96 



THE FER-DE-LANCE. 



it is resting, fluttering their wings, stretching their necks, and uttering hoarse cries of mingled 

 rage and terror. The honey guide is especially fearful of this Serpent, and has often guided 

 a man, not as he supposed, to the vicinity of a hive of wild bees, but to the resting-place of 

 this venomous Snake. The pig, when in good condition, is said to be the only animal that 

 can resist the poison, the thick coating of fat which covers the body preventing the venom 

 from mingling with the blood. It is said, indeed, that a fat hog cares nothing for Fer-de- 

 Lance or rattlesnake, but receives their stroke with contemptuous indifference, charges at 

 them fearlessly, tramples upon them until they are disabled, and then quietly eats them. 



Against the effects of this poison there seems to be no certain remedy ; but the copious 

 use of spirits has lately appeared to neutralize in some measure the full virulence of a Snake 



lanceotatm. (One-glxtb natural 



bite. The amount of strong spirits which can be drunk under such circumstances is almost 

 incredible, its whole force seeming to be employed in arming the nerves against the enfeebling 

 power of the poison. Some recent and valuable experiments have shown, that if a man, 

 bitten by a venomous Serpent, can be kept in a state of semi-intoxication through the use of 

 spirituous liquors, this rather strange process will give him almost his only hope of escape. 



Yet nothing is made in vain, and terrible as is this creature to man, it is of no small use 

 to him even in the localities where it is most dreaded. But for the presence of the Fer-de- 

 Lance and one or two other Serpents closely allied to it, the sugar plantations would be devas- 

 tated by the rats which crowd to such fertile spots, and on which this Snake chiefly feeds. 



As is the case with many Serpents, the color of the Fer-de- Lance is rather variable. Its 

 usual tints are olive above with dark cross bands, and whitish gray below, covered with very 

 minute dark dots. The head is brown. This reptile attains a considerable size, being 

 generally five or six feet long, and occasionally reaching a length of seven or eight feet. The 

 tail ends in a horny spine which scrapes harshly against rough objects, but does not rattle. 



CLOSELY allied to the Fer-de-Lance is another poisonous Serpent of Southern America, 

 remarkable for the very large size to which it attains, and the glowing radiance of its fearful 



