376 The Naturalist in La Plata. 



ture from a large area of country ; and although 

 there was no water, the soft fresh grass must have 

 been grateful to them. Snakes are seen coiled up 

 when they are at home ; when travelling and far 

 afield, they lie as a. rule extended full length, even 

 when resting and they are generally resting. 

 Pausing at length, before quitting this green plain, 

 to give my horse a minute's rest, I got off and 

 approached a large snake ; but when I was quite 

 twelve yards from it, it lifted its head, and. turning 

 deliberately round, came rather swiftly at me. I 

 retreated, and it followed, until, springing on to my 

 horse, I left it, greatly surprised at its action, and 

 beginning to think that it must be venomous. As 

 I rode on the feeling of surprise increased, con- 

 quering haste ; and in the end, seeing more snakes, 

 I dismounted and approached the largest, when 

 exactly the same thing occurred again, the snake 

 rousing itself and coming angrily at me when I was 

 still (considering the dull lethargic character of the 

 deadliest kinds) at an absurd distance from it. 

 Again and again I repeated the experiment, with the 

 same result. And at length I stunned one with a 

 blow of my whip to examine its mouth, but found 

 no poison-fangs in it. 



I then resumed my journey, expecting to meet 

 with more snakes of the same kind at my destina- 

 tion ; but there were none, and very soon business 

 called me to a distant place, and I never met with 

 this species afterwards. But when I rode away 

 from that green spot, and was once more on the 

 higher, desolate, wind-swept plain surrounding it 

 a rustling sea of giant thistles, still erect, although 



