lots 



NAIA. 



NAIA. 



1046 



c, the dis or homl seen from behind, when the anterior portion of the 

 excited ecrpcnt is in an erect posture. 



Xala Irifttdians, rcclucca, in an erect and excited state. 



milk and sugar by the priests, and he notices it as a surprising 

 instance of the effect of kind treatment in subduing the most irritable 

 spirits " The Hindus," says the Colonel, in continuation, " have a 

 notion that the sagacity and the long-cherished malice of this worm 

 are equal to that of man. I have seen them come out from their 

 holes in the temples, when a pipe has been played to them, and feed 

 out of the hand as tamely as any domestic animal; and it is when in 

 this state of docility, so opposite to their shy but impetuous nature, 

 the common people believe that the Deity has condescended to adopt 

 that form. It seems probable that this hooded snake was the dragon 

 of the heathen worship ; and the shape of its head and its activity 

 when in a state of excitement probably gave rise to the fable of its 



"itVpretended that the root of the Ophiorrhiza mungos is a specific 

 against the bite of this serpent. The priests and jugglers however, 

 who make them dance to astonish or amuse the people, make all sure, 

 there U little doubt, by extracting the poison-fangs. 



This formidable species, or at least some species of hooded snake, 

 according to the records of travellers, grows to a considerable length. 

 Captain Percival gives the following account of its size and habits, in 

 his ' Account of the Island of Ceylon,' 4to, 1805 : 



" The Cobra Capello, or Hooded Snake, is found here from six to 

 fifteen feet long. Its bite is mortal. The natives find the herb 

 pointed out by the ichneumon a remedy, if timely applied. When 

 enraged and preparing to attack, it raises its head and body to the 

 height of three or four feet in a spiral manner, while at the same time 

 the remaining part of the body is coiled up to accelerate and give force 

 to the spring. At this instant it distends from its head a membrane 

 in the form of a hood, from which it receives its name. This membrane 

 lies along the forehead and the sides of the neck, and is almost imper- 

 ceptible till the animal gets into a state of irritation and is about to 

 attack his foe. When the hood is erected it completely alters the 

 appearance of the head, and discloses a curious streak in the shape of 

 a pair of spectacles, and sometimes of a horse-shoe. The extension 

 of this membrane seems intended by Providence to give warning to 

 all those within this animal's reach that he is preparing to attack 

 them. Without this signal he would be very dangerous indeed, as his 

 motions afterwards are too rapid to be avoided. I have more than 

 once been an eye-witness to instances where the fatal bite of this 

 snake was escaped from merely by the object of his vengeance timely 

 observing his preparations. One remarkable characteristic of these 

 dangerous serpents is their fondness for music. Even when newly 

 caught they seem to listen with pleasure to the notes, and even to 

 writhe themselves into attitudes. The Indian jugglers improve 

 greatly on this instinct, and, after taming them by degrees, instruct 

 them even to keep time to their flageolet." 



The largest Cobra de Capello seen by Dr. Davy in Ceylon was 

 nearly six feet long; and he adds that the general length is between 

 two and four feet. The colour varied : those of a light colour were 

 called high-caste snakes by the natives, 'and those of a dark colour 

 low-caste. "The natives," says Dr. Davy, "in general rather venerate 

 this snake than dread it. They conceive that it belongs to another 

 world, and that when it appears in this it is merely as a visitor ; they 

 imagine that it possesses great power, that it is somewhat akin to the 

 gods, and greatly superior to man. In consequence they supersti- 

 tiously refrain from killing it, and always avoid it, if possible. Even 

 when they find one in their house, they will not kill it, but, putting it 

 into a bag, throw it into water. They believe that this snake has a 

 good and generous disposition, and that it will do no harm to man, 

 unless provoked." Dr. Davy gives a pleasing picture of the irritations 

 and soothings with which the snake-charmers excite and allay the 

 temper of this serpent, lie records several instances of the operation 

 of the poison, the first arising from a serpent found in a bag floating 

 down the Kalang-ganga. It was about five feet long, and about six 

 inches in circumference in the broadest part. This snake bit a hen, 

 fixing its fangs in the skin covering the lower part of the left pectoral 

 muscle, and keeping its hold about two or three seconds, when Dr. 

 Davy succeeded in shaking it off. The hen, which at first seemed to 

 be little affected, died eight hours after she was bitten. ('An Account 

 of the Interior of Ceylon,' &c., by John Davy, M.D., F.R.S., 4to, 

 London, 1821.) 



Several Cobras have been kept alive in the Zoological Gardens 

 Regent's Park. One of these creatures bit one of the keepers on the 

 nose whilst he was playing with it. The man died in a few ho\rs 

 after. The Arabs who accompanied the Hippopotamus had the power 

 of snake-charming; and on several occasions these fearful reptiles 

 were made to go through a variety of performances by a lad not more 

 than 10 or 12 years old. 



There are several other species of Naia. Schlegel, in his essay on 

 the ' Physiognomy of Serpents,' gives the following : 



N. ffaje, the Aspis of antiquity. This is the snake which is most 

 frequently operated on by the snake-charmers of Egypt, where it is 

 found. [Asi 1 .] It is worthy of observation with reference to the 

 contest in the presence of Pharaoh between Moses and Aaron and the 

 magicians of Egypt (Exodus, vii. 9-12), that it is stated, on good 

 authority, that the modern Egyptian jugglers possess the power of 

 throwing the N. Haje into a state of catalepsy, and rendering it stiff 

 and immoveable, in other words, changing it into a rod, by pressing 

 the nape with the fingers. 



TV. Bungarut is a rare species, inhabiting the islands of Java and 

 Sumatra. It is the Bunyanis of Daudin. 



N. Bungaroides, closely resembles the last, but is smaller. 



.AT. porphyrica inhabits the sandy downs of Australia. 



N. JIamacltatca inhabits the Cape of Good Hope. A r . r/wmbcata and 

 N. lubrica are also Cape species. 



N. Maps is a very large snake, but its country is unknown. 



N. curia, a native of Australia. , 



We owe to Dr. Cantor, who has added so much to our knowledge of 

 the natural history of Asiatic serpents, the introduction of a new 

 genus of hooded snakes, flamadryas, which will probably find its 

 proper place in the series as a sub-genus of Naia. 



llamadryus (Cantor). Head broad, sub-ovate, deplanate, with a 

 short obtuse rostrum, covered above with 15 scuta; cheeks tumid ; 

 eyes large, prominent, pupil round ; nostrils widely opened, within 

 the confine of two scuta ; gape very ample, subuudnlated. Poison- 



