SNAKES. 23 



for the purposes for which it is designed, and the 

 originality with which its construction is carried out. 

 Some of these structures had a tree enclosed within 

 its walls ; could it be that this was with the intention 

 of gaining shelter for their residence from the burning 

 rays of the vertical tropical sun ? 



Snakes are also very abundant here, the most 

 numerous being the beautiful water-viper, with 

 bands around its body in alternate brown and 

 copper-coloured rings ; the green tree snake, not 

 poisonous, whose principal food is small birds ; two 

 species of the repulsive puff adder, the cobra, and, 

 last, the common green mamba of Natal. It is 

 commonly believed that this last reptile will chase 

 people ; my experience of them leads me to believe 

 this a fallacy, but if a human being happened to be 

 between them and their retreat, most assuredly they 

 will not turn aside to avoid him. Their bite is sup- 

 posed to be deadly, but I have known persons cured 

 of it by an immediate application, externally and 

 internally, of " Croft's Mixture," the principal in- 

 gredient of which is ammonia. The mamba fre- 

 quently grows to the length of ten or eleven feet ; 

 it is very active, so it behoves a person to get out 

 of its way rapidly. There are two varieties, the 

 green and the brown ; in build they are slim, and 

 taper to a very fine point at the termination of the 

 tail. 



An hour before sunset Dillon returned ; he had 



