184 SCRIPTURE NATURAL HISTORY. 



with rage, rose and fell like the bellows of a forge ; his dilated skin 

 assumed a dull and scaly appearance ; and his tail, which sounded 

 the denunciation of death, vibrated with so great rapidity! as to re- 

 semble a light vapor. The Canadian now began to play upon his 

 flute ; the serpent started with surprise, and drew back his head. 

 In proportion as he was struck with the magic effect, his eyes lost 

 their fierceness, the oscillations of his tail became slower, and the 

 sound which it emitted became weaker, and gradually died away. 

 Less perpendicular upon their spiral line, the rings of the fascinated 

 serpent were by degrees expanded, and sunk one after another up- 

 on the ground, in concentric circles. The shades of azure green, 

 white, and gold, recovered their brilliancy on his quivering skin, 

 and slightly turning his head, he remained motionless, in the atti- 

 tude of attention and pleasure. At this moment, the Canadian ad- 

 vanced a few steps, producing with his flute sweet and simple notes. 

 The reptile, inclining his variegated neck, opened a passage with 

 his head through the high grass, and began to creep after the mu- 

 sician, stopping when he stopped, and beginning to follow him again, 

 as soon as he moved forward.' In this manner he was led out of 

 the camp, attended by a great number of spectators, both savages 

 and Europeans, who could scarcely believe their eyes, when they 

 beheld this wonderful effect of harmony. The assembly unani- 

 mously decreed, that the serpent which had so highly entertained 

 them, should be permitted to escape. 



But on some serpent-?, these charms seem to have no power ; 

 and it appears from scripture, that the adder sometimes takes pre- 

 cautions to prevent the fascination which he sees preparing for him; 

 for the deaf adder shutteth her ear, and will not hear the voice of 

 the most skilful charmer, Psalm Iviii. 5, 6. The same allusion is 

 involved in the words of Solomon : ' Surely the serpent will bite 

 without enchantment, and a babbler is no better,' Eccl. x. 11. The 

 threatening of the prophet Jeremiah proceeds upon the same fact ; 

 ' I will send serpents (cockatrices) among you, which will not be 

 charmed, and they shall bite you,' Jer. viii. 17. In all these quota- 

 tions, the sacred writers, while they take it for granted that many 

 serpents are disarmed by charming, plainly admit that the powers 

 of the charmer are in vain exerted upon others. To account for 

 this exception it has been alleged, that in some serpents the sense 

 of hearing is very imperfect, while the power of vision is exceed- 

 ingly acute ; but the most intelligent natural historians maintain, 

 that the reverse is true. The sense of hearing is much more acute 

 than the sense of vision. Unable to resist the force of truth, others 

 maintain, that the adder is deaf not by nature, but by design ; for 

 the Psalmist says, she shutteth her ear, and will not hear the voice 

 of the charmer. But the plirase, perhaps, means no more than this 

 that some adders are of a temper so stubborn, that the various arts 

 of the charmer make no impression they are like creatures desti- 

 tute of hearing, or whose ears are so completely obstructed, that no 

 pounds can enter. The same phrase is used in other parts of Scrip-. 



