THE CONVICT TRAIL 193 



whether he would receive it quietly, or, as I have 

 seen the king cobra in Burma, become enraged 

 and attack in turn. 



The cord touched his nose, and he drew back 

 close to some bushy stems. Again it dangled 

 against his head, and his tongue played like 

 lightning. And now he sent forth the warning 

 of his mastership a sharp whirrrrr! and the tip 

 of his tail became a blur, the rough scales rasp- 

 ing and vibrating against the dead leaves, and 

 giving out a sound not less sharp and sinister 

 than the instrumental rattling of his near rela- 

 tives. 



For a moment the head hung motionless, then 

 the noose-man made a lunge and pulled his 

 cord. The great serpent drew back like a flash, 

 and turning, undulated slowly away toward the 

 darker depths of the forest. There was no 

 panic, no fear of pursuit in his movements. He 

 had encountered something quite new to his ex- 

 perience, and the knowledge of his own power 

 made it easy for him to gauge that of an oppo- 

 nent. He feared neither deer nor tapir, yet at 

 their approach he would sound his warning as a 

 reciprocal precaution, poison against hoofs. 

 And now, when his warning had no effect on 



