1874.] Poison of Indian Venomous Snakes. 75 



are occasionally killed by large individuals belonging either to the same 

 or to a different species *. 



The symptoms caused by the poison were the same in both the inno- 

 cuous and the venomous snakes killed by it, and consisted chiefly of slug- 

 gishness and indisposition to move, which probably signifies in the snake, 

 as it does in the frog, a progressive paralysis. Only in experiment 6 

 were convulsive movements noticed. The movements of the tail in ex- 

 periment c, after motion had ceased in every other part of the body, are 

 remarkable. 



The poisonous action of the venom of the cobra, Ddboia, and Bungarus 

 upon innocuous snakes is shown in the following experiments selected 

 from a number recorded in the * Thanatophidia of India : '- 



Exp. a. March I0th, 1868. A rat-snake (Ptyas mucosa), about 6 feet 

 in length, was bitten by a large cobra at 12.54. Before closing the 

 snake's jaws on the part the scales were scraped off. Blood was freely 

 drawn by the snake's fangs from bites inflicted in two places. 



1.8 P.M. Appears sluggish; wound bleeding freely. 



1.16. Perfectly active, and moves about rapidly in the cage. 



1.35. No change. 



There was no apparent change in the snake all that day or the next, 

 except that it may have been a little more sluggish. It died in the 

 night of the llth, being found dead on the morning of the 12th. 



Exp. b. A small grass-snake (Tropidonotus quincunciatus) was bitten 

 by a cobra at 1.12 P.M. 



1.11. Very sluggish. 



1.20. Tosses its head about in a convulsive manner. 

 1.25. Dead 13 minutes after the bite. 



Exp. c. Two tree-snakes (Dendrophis picta\ one about 3 feet 4 inches 

 long, and the other somewhat smaller, were bitten by a cobra. 



1.7. The larger snake bitten. 



1.8. The smaller one bitten. 



1.12. Both sluggish. 



1.15. The smaller snake dead 7 minutes after the bite. 



1.16. The larger one dead 9 minutes after the bite. 



They simply seemed to become sluggish and powerless ; there were no 

 convulsions, no writhings or contortions. After they had appeared quite 

 dead for a moment or two, the tail of each moved slightly. 



Exp. d. A green whip-snake (Passerita mycterizans\ more than 3 feet 

 long, was bitten by a cobra about 10 inches from the head, at 12.37 P.M. 



12.38. Sluggish, moves less actively ; gapes, keeping the mouth wide 

 open. 



* It is probable death may be due to other causes, especially in the case of a Daboia- 

 bite, where the fangs are so large that the wound and internal haemorrhage might cause 

 death. 



