532 



SNAKKS 



in Britain, ami was liclieved to have been produced 

 by a number of adders laying their heads together 

 and hissing till the foam produced was turned into 

 otone. Such charms when examined have often 

 been found to be simply ancient -possibly pre- 

 historic spindle-whorls. See also BEZOAR. 



An a superstition we must also regard the wide- 

 spread belief that snakes ' fascinate ' their prey. 

 Although many observers are convinced of this, 

 the use of the word ' fascinate ' has not been 

 justified. No doubt snakes, having no movable 

 eyelids, have an unusual power <>f steady staring ; 

 no doubt birds whose nestling* are threatened will 

 flit anxiously about regardless of danger. In coun- 

 tries where venomous snakes are common, it is 

 possible that the animals on which they prey have 

 an inherited dread of them. It is certain that Ixitli 

 men and animals when brought suddenly face to 

 face with something terrible are often panic-stricken 

 and incapable of motion ; but there is no evidence 

 that snakes have a power of fascination. 



Scarcely a superstition, but rather an insuffi- 

 ciently confirmed opinion, is expressed in the com- 

 mon belief that snakes swallow their young ones 

 when danger threatens. Were not errors of obser- 

 vation exceedingly common, we should be inclined 

 to accept this strange fact, for the shelter afforded 

 by the mouth is a convenient if somewhat hazard- 

 ous one, and the young snakes might live there 

 for some time. It'is known that a few lishes and 

 amphibian* carry their young in their months. But 

 the possibilities of mistake are many ; thus, some 

 snakes eat other snakes, and their bodies have 

 often lii-en found in the food-canals of their larger 

 neiglitmure. Moreover, some snakes are viviparous, 

 and unpractised ol>servers might mistake the ovi- 

 ducts for the alimentary canal. 



Serpeitt-c/inriiiiny. This art has been practised 

 from very ancient times in Africa and the East, 

 anil often remains from generation to generation 

 the profession of a family. Pliny and older 

 writers frequently describe it, and there are 

 several allusions to it in the Old Testament 

 Scriptures; see Exod. vii. 11, 12; Psalm Iviii. 

 4, 5; Kcrh-s. x. 11 ; Jer. viii. 17. It is sometimes 

 practised for alleged useful purposes, since the 

 ' charmers ' are often employed to clear a house 

 nf its unwelcome snake visitors, though common 

 rejiort says that they are yet more successful in 

 removing inanimate objects. For the most part, 

 however, it is, like conjuring, a form of popular 

 amusement. In India it is practised by several 

 di-linct classes of men, who vary in the methods 

 and success of their art. The subject has not as 

 yet been studied with adequate scientific precision, 

 so that it is difficult to separate what is due to 

 trickery and to dexterity from any residual facts 

 which cannot lie thus explained. There is no 

 reason to lielieve that the- charmers possess the 

 constitutional immunity from make-bite which 

 they often claim, for a tragic end to their exhibi- 

 tions Mimet inie* belies their pretensions, and they 

 usually take good care to play with snakes whose 

 fangs or even poison-glands 1iave been carefully 

 removed, or even to use those which are not 

 venomous at all. Nor can we, without further 

 evidence, lielicve that the professional snake- 

 tinders have, beyond the cleverness of long experi- 

 ence (including an educated sense of smell), any 

 peculiar ]>wer of discovering concealed snakes, 

 especially since it i well known that, they often 

 use simple sleight of hand, producing snakes from 

 within the folds of their rol's, or merely discover 

 what they themselves have previously hidden. The 

 frequent use of a musical pipe, and the way in 

 which the snakes seem to respond to the sounds, 

 lire facto in! ci .-ting to naturalists, who believe 

 that at least many snakes are very deaf. Experi- 



ments should be made to determine how far the 

 rhythmical motions which often accompany the 

 music may have any influence on the snakes. 

 That the charmers govern their snakes by their 

 eye is another of the vague assertions of common 

 report ; but more interesting is the ancient habit of 

 spitting down the snake's throat, closing its mouth, 

 laying it (tat on the ground, and sending it into a 

 cataleptic perhaps hypnotic state, or ' turning it 

 into a stick.' The charmers sometimes manifest 

 a fearlessly confident dexterity in handling intact 

 venomous snakes, and they sometimes suiter for it. 



Snake-bites. The extent of the mortality from 

 snake-bite among inhabitants of warm countries is 

 rarely appreciated by those who live in conditions of 

 relative immunity. Official statistics show that in 

 the decade 1880-89 the deaths of persons reported 

 from snake-bite in British India varied from 18,670 

 ( 1881 ) to 22,480 ( 1889), without taking account of 

 2000 or 3000 cattle annually killed by snakes. Even 

 if we doubt whether all deaths referred to snake-bite 

 are really due to this, whether the Cobra and its 

 allies are not blamed for more than they are really 

 responsible for, it is certain that the mortality from 

 snake-bite is relatively great when compared with 

 that which any other animals cause. We can- 

 not, however, regard it as absolutely great, for, as 

 British India had in 1891 a population of over 

 22 millions, the mortality of human beings from 

 this cause in a maximum year does not much 

 exceed 1 in 10,000. In the decade referred to 

 rewards were paid for snakes destroyed to the 

 number of from 212,776 (1880) to 578,415(1889); 

 but the result in less satisfactory when it is known 

 that in some places snakes are bred in order to be 

 killed for the premium. 



The effect of a snake-bite depends, on the one 

 hand, on the species of snake, on its vigour at the 

 time, on the extent to which the teeth closed on the 

 flesh of the victim, and so on ; on the other hand, 

 on the species and vigour of the organism bitten. 

 In connection with the effects of different snake- 

 poisons Dr A. H. Hilson divides venomous snakes 

 into two classes : in the first, including the Cobra, 

 Kraii, hab.iia. and other Indian snakes, the 

 poisoning causes paralysis of the lower extremities 

 and the muscles of articulation, is associated with 

 a regular or intermitting action of the heart, with 

 paralysis of the respiratory muscles, with persistent 

 consciousness, wild little effect on the sensory 

 ganglia, and is unaffected by injection of ammonia 

 into the veins: in the second class, including the 

 common Australian poisonous snakes, the Rattle- 

 snake, and the Indian genus Trimeresuriis, the 

 poisoning causes no paralysis or only as an adven- 

 titious symptom, is associated with failure of the 

 heart's action, but with no impeding of respiration, 

 with rapid obliteration of consciousness, \\ith dis- 

 ordered sensory functions, and is curable by injec- 

 tion of ammonia into the veins and by the use of 

 stimulants. Snake poison is usually regarded a-, 

 ()a neurotic paralysing the nerve centre's, (6) an 

 irritant producing inflammation, and (c) to some 

 extent a septic. It acts through the circulation on 

 the nerve centres, and also affects the blood ilself. 



l':i\rer summarises the treatment of snake hjie 

 as follows : ' Apply at once a ligature, or ligatures 

 at intervals of a few inches, as tight as you can 

 possibly tie them ; and tighten the one nearest to 

 the wound by twisting it with a stick or oilier 

 such agent. Scarify the wound, and let it bleed 

 freely. Apply either a hot iron or live coal, or 

 explode some gunpowder on the part ; or apply 

 either carlmlic or some mineral acid, or caustic. 

 Let the patient suck the wound whilst you are 

 getting the cautery ready ; or if any one else will 

 run the risk, let him do it. 



1 If the bite be on a toe or finger, especially if the 



