118 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



[Najas. 



«nd its head averted, till judf^nt: its distance, it turns 

 round, springs upon him, and fastens upon the part 

 next to it ; Vor it is not true that the cerastes does 

 not leap or sprin([f.. I »aw one of them at Cairo 

 crawl up the side of a box in which there were 

 many, and there lie still as if bidinfr himself, till one 

 of tho people who brought them to us came near 

 him ; and though in a very disadvantageous posture, 

 sticking as it were perpendicular to the side of the 

 box, it leaped near thu distance of three feet, and 

 fastened between the man's finger and thumb, so as 

 to bring the blood. The fellow showed no signs 

 either of pain or fear; and we kept him with us for 

 full four hours without his applying any sort of 

 remedy, or seeming inclined to do so. To make 

 myself assured that the reptile was in its perfect 

 state, I made the man hold it by the neck, so as to 

 force open its mouth and lacerate the thigh of a peli- 

 can, a bird as big as a swan. The bird died in about 

 thirteen minutes, though it was apparently affected 

 in about fifty seconds." As a proof of the power 

 ■which the snake-charmers have of handling poison- 

 ous snakes with impunity, the same traveller says, 

 " I have seen at Cairo a man who came from above 

 the Catacombs, where the pits of the mummy-birds 

 are, who has taken a cerastes with his naked hand 

 from a number of others at the bottom of a tub, put 

 it upon his bare head, and tie it about his neck like 

 a necklace. After which it has been applied to a 

 hen, and bit it, which has died in a few minutes : 

 and to complete the experiment, the man has taken it 

 by the neck, and beginning at the tail has eaten it as 

 one would do a carrot or stock of celery, without any 

 seeming repugnance." Brace's idea is that certain 

 Arab tribes have the knowledge of some roots, the 

 chewing of which, combined with a washing of the 

 body with an infusion of the leaves in water, exempts 

 them from the effects of the poison of these reptiles. 

 But with regard to the Black people of Sennaar he 

 suspects them to be naturally proof against the poi- 

 son. His opinions on these points are unworthy 

 serious consideration ; and we cannot help thinking 

 with Cloquet, that he was credulous and imposed 

 upon by the dexterity of jugglers. Those who have 

 seen fire-eaters exhibit their tricks can easily imagine 

 that a similar deception might be practised, substi- 

 tuting a serpent for burning materials ; and as to 

 the experiments, the substitution of a perfect for a 

 fangless snake, and vice versS, by a dexterous hand, 

 is about upon a par with the thimblerig game. Be- 

 sides his details are anything but precise, nor do we 

 wonder at it ; for when speaking about the poison 

 glands he says, " I confess the danger attending the 

 dissection of these parts made me so cautious that 

 any observations I should make upon them would 

 be the less to be depended upon." From this we 

 may judge of his coolness when the living reptiles 

 were creeping loose about him or writhing in the 

 hands of jugglers. 



We now advance to a far more formidable group 

 of serpents, the deadly Cobras, Najas or Naias, 

 which nave been celebrated from the earliest times, 

 and which are respectively distributed to Africa and 

 India. 



In the genus Naja, or Naia, the head is covered on 

 the top and sides with plates ; and the skin of the 

 neck IS extremely dilatable, or capable of being 

 expanded to such a degree as to form a thin hood, 

 the scales during the expansion being thrown far 

 apart, from the stretching of the skin. When 

 irritated these snakes elevate the head and anterior 

 portion of the body, expand their hood, hiss loudly, 

 and with sparkling eyes advance resolutely towards 

 their assailant ; in this attitude their appearance is 

 very beautiful, and, were there no cause for alarm, 

 might be contemplated with pleasure. An en- 

 counter with an enraged naja is, indeed, no trifling 

 ntfair, for though seldom more than five or six feet 

 long, the reptile is bold and powerful, and springs 

 on its foe with great velocity ; and, as its bite is 

 mortal, its destruction the next moment cannot re- 

 pair the mischief. In dealing with such creatures 

 discretion is the better part of courage. Fig. 2286 

 represents the Head of Naja ; a, the side view ; h, as 

 •een from above : Fig. 2287, view of the upper side 

 of the Hood expaniled, with the head on the same 

 line with the body : Fig. 2288, a view of the under 

 side of the same : Fig. 2289, the Head seen from 

 behind, when the anterior portion of the excited 

 serpent is in an erect posture. 



In the naja tripudians the hood is impressed 

 behind with a mark somewhat resembling the cen- 

 tral portion of a pair of spectacles reversed : it 

 usually consists of a double reversed horseshoe line 

 of black or brown, with the two ends dilated so as 

 to enclose an oval space, in the centre of which is a 

 ring or spot of black.. 



2290, 2291.— The Common I.sdian Naja 



{Naja tripudians). Cobra de Capello* of the Asiatic 

 Portuguese ; Serpent i. lunettes of the French ; Spec- 



* TliU name is notr ginn indiflcRnUy lo all the hooded snake*. 



tacle Snake of the English ; Nag and Chinta Nagoo 

 of the natives. 



This formidable snake attains to five, or even six 

 feet in length ; Captain Percival, indeed, says that 

 specimens occur in Ceylon as long as fifteen feet; 

 but these specimens, we believe, will be found to 

 belong to the genus Hainadryas. which we shall here- 

 after notice, and of which the species, being hooded, 

 go under the indiscriminate name of " Cobras :" 

 tbey attain to very large dimensions, and are dread- 

 fully venomous, and much feared. 



We have already spoken of the manner in which 

 the naja expands its hood and advances to the com- 

 bat ; and well, as Captain I'ercival says, is it that 

 he gives the signal, as his motions afterwards are 

 too rapid to be avoided ; and he adds, " I have 

 more than once been an eye-witness to instances 

 where the fatal bite of this snake was escaped 

 merely by the object of his vengeance timely ob- 

 serving his preparations. One remarkable quality 

 of these dangerous serpents is their fondness for 

 music ; even when newly caught they seem to listen 

 with pleasure to the notes, and even to writhe them- 

 selves into attitudes. The Indian jugglers improve 

 greatly on this instinct, and after taming them by 

 degrees, instruct them to keep time to their fla- 

 geolet." 



The colour of these snakes is subject to some 

 variation, and in Ceylon, according to Dr. Davy, 

 those of a light colour are called high-caste snakes, 

 those of a dark colour low-caste. " The natives," 

 he says, " in general rather venerate this snake than 

 dread it. They conceive that it belongs to another 

 world,* and that when it appears in this it is merely 

 as a visitor ; they imagine that it possesses great 

 power, that it is somewhat akin to the gods, and 

 greatly superior to man. In consequence they su- 

 perstitiously refrain from killing it, and always avoid 

 it, if possible. Even when they find one in their 

 house, they will not kill it, but, putting it into a 

 bag, throw it into water. They believe that this 

 snake has a good and generous disposition, and that 

 it will do no harm to man unless provoked." Dr. 

 Davy gives a pleasing picture of the irritations and 

 soothings with which the snake-charmers excite and 

 allay the temper of this serpent, and records several 

 instances of the operation of the poison. In one 

 case a young cock was bitten in the thigh, and 

 gradually sank, and perished in convulsions in about 

 seventeen minutes. The firet symptoms consisted 

 in the respiration becoming hurried and laborious, 

 to which succeeded a comatose state ; the breathing 

 then became scarcely perceptible, when four or five 

 convulsive fits came on, each weaker than the other, 

 the last proving fatal. 



A distinct species, found in Calcutta, Bombay, 

 and Assam, and termed by Dr. Cantor the Masked 

 Naja (Naja larvata), is described in the 'Zool. Pro- 

 ceeds.' 1839, p. 32. It is of a brownish colour, with 

 numerous faint transverse stripes; the hood is 

 marked with a white ring, not unlike the form of 

 a mask, behind which there are from three to five 

 white rings ; the anterior part of the lower surface 

 is marked with alternate white and bluish-black 

 rings ; the posterior part is iridescent glaucous. 



A young specimen of this snake was living in 

 1829 in the Society's Gardens, Regent's Park. The 

 artificial temperature, G2? Fahr., in which it was 

 kept, appeared to agree with it very well. Dr. 

 Cantor observes that, in one respect, it offered in its 

 habits a striking difference from those of the najas 

 generally in captivity, for, as he was informed by the 

 keeper, it feeds occasionally upon living frogs and 

 earth-worms, and that it drinks milk; while those 

 in Dr. Russell's possession, and also in his own, in 

 India, when deprived of liberty invariably refused 

 to take any kind of food. This must be taken with 

 some exceptions, for Col. Briggs states that those 

 kept by the priests in the temples are pampered 



• Dr. Dftvy.in his chapter on the Cingalese System of the Universe, 

 has tlie following pas-s.i^e : — 'Hie Na^jii bhawenc, that lies under 

 Asoora bhawene, is also 10,000 leagues in circumference. It is a 

 hollow sphere, witiiout mountnins or hills, lakes or rivers, ami en- 

 tirely destitute of vegetation, with the exception of a single tree, 

 called Parasattoo, that answers for all others, bearing not only an im- 

 mense variety of flowers and fruit", but everything else tliat is desii> 

 able. Tlie N'oga-bhawenc is the abode of a numerous race of snakes, 

 similar in kind to the hooded snake, and of great size, beauty, and 

 power, capable of passing from one part of the world to another, and 

 shining like.gods ; so that, though they have no W^ht but tliat which 

 emanates ftrom their own iKidies, tliey enjoy perpetual day infinitely 

 brighter than ours. In their former lives on earth they were persons 

 of remarkable purity and gooflness, almost deserving of liecoming 

 gods ; but their high virtues were sullied by some vice, particularly 

 that of malice, to which thev owe their present forms. Though 

 snakes, they are Ithoodists, and are in possession of a relic and wor- 

 sliip in temples. Tliey reside in well-furnished houses, and eat and 

 dri:ik, and enjoy society. By merely wishing, they immediately 

 have any article of food they want : and whatever it may be, it always 

 appears in tire form of a frog. Tliey are under a re^ai government, 

 and are ilistriliuteil into castes, like the Cingalese. Their king, 

 Maliakilla naga-rajsya, is in every respect superior to the rest; it 

 WRs with his assistance that the gods and Asooras churned the milky 

 sea; he wound himself round a rock, and tliey, pulling at his two 

 extremities, set tlie mass in motion and accomplished their work. 

 Were those snakes dispise<l, they could destroy the whole of the in- 

 habitants of the earth by a fini^le blast of their poisonous breath ; 

 but they are naturally mild and benevolent, and do harm only when 

 provoked. In consequence they are rather venerated than dreaded : 

 and it is on this account that the common hooded snake is so much 

 KSpected." 



with milk and sugar, and will feed out of the hand 

 as tamely as any domestic animal. 



2292, 2293, 2294.— The Eg\ttian Cobra or Asp 



{Naja Haje\. El Haj6 or Haj6 Nascher of the 

 modem Arabs. 



This formidable snake was well known to the 

 ancients, and Cuvier observes that "its habit of 

 elevating itself when approached led the ancient 

 Egyptians to believe that it was the guardian of the 

 plains which it inhabited, and they adopted it as 

 the protecting deity of the world; it is this snake 

 whicti they sculptured on all the portals of their 

 temples, on two sides of a globe." .This species is 

 incontestibly the asp or aspic of Egypt, or of Cleo- 

 patra, who chose it as the instrument of herdeath.i— 

 "the worm of Nilus there that kills and pains not," 

 in order to defeat the intentions of CiBsar. 



Among the Egyptians this snake was one of the 

 marks of regal dignity, and is seen on the forepart 

 of the tiara of almost all the Egyptian statues of 

 deities and kings. 



Pliny gives the following account of this species, 

 " The neck of the asp," he says, " is capable oi 

 distention, and the only remedy against its bite is 

 amputation of the wounded part. This animal, 

 otherwise so much to be dreaded, has a sentiment or 

 kind of affection truly wonderful ; it never lives 

 alone, the male and female being constantly found 

 together, and if one happens to be killed, the other 

 seeks with the utmost fury to avenge its death. It 

 knows and selects the destroyer from among crowds, 

 and can only be deprived of its revenge by the most 

 speedy flight, or the intervention of some rapid 

 river." He adds that the lateral position of its eyes 

 prevents it from seeinsr straight before it, and that 

 consequently it is often trodden under foot before it 

 is aware of its danger. This latter circumstance by 

 no means proves its incapacity for seeing before it ; 

 in fact its sight is as quiclc as its actions are prompt 

 and rapid. Old walls, ruins amidst woods, and 

 similar places are its usual haunts. 



It would appear, from Dr. A. Smith, that this 

 species is a native of Southern Africa, as well as 

 Egypt, Libya, &c. In his African Zoology he 

 figures three varieties of the Haje, as well as the 

 snake in its young state, with the synonyms Echidna 

 flava, Merrem; Naja nigra. Smith; Geel Copell, 

 Bruin Copell, and Spuugh-Slang of the Dutch Cape 

 Colonists. Fig. 2295 represents the Haje in its 

 young state, and 2296 the variety called Spuugh- 

 Slang. 



He describes the majority of the South Afiican 

 specimens as either entirely yellow or purplish 

 brown, though a considerable number occur in 

 which both these colours exist in the same indi- 

 vidual : the depth of the colour varies considerably 

 in different specimens,particularly in the yellow ones, 

 in which every shade between straw yellow and clear 

 purplish brown may be observed. The general colour 

 of the young is pale straw yellow, with two brownish 

 red collars on the throat ; the extremities of each of 

 which are visible upon the neck above, and the ex- 

 tremities of the lower collar are generally connected 

 by a narrow bar of the same colour across the hood ; 

 the eyes are light chestnut brown. Dr. A. Smith 

 further remarks, that if this reptile be specifically 

 distinct, he had not been able, after a close com- 

 parison, to discover the distinctive characteristics ; 

 and that the differences of colour among those col- 

 lected in Egypt are quite as great as among the 

 South African specimens. 



With respect to the variety called spuugh-slang 

 (spitting snake), which is of a livid blackish brown, 

 and which is more rare than the others, he observes 

 that it has acquired its name from its supposed 

 power of ejecting its poison to a distance. All the 

 Cobra de Capellos, he remarks, distil poison from the 

 points of their fangs when they are much irritated, 

 and are able to eject a portion of it beyond the 

 mouth by a forcible expiration, but he is not disposed 

 to admit that any greater power is possessed by the 

 spuugh-slang. 'The contrary, however, is asserted 

 both by the colonists and natives : — " Both of these 

 affirm that the snake in question is able to cast its 

 poison to a distance of several feet, especially if the 

 wind be blowing so as to favour its object ; and that 

 it often projects it into the eyes of unwelcome 

 intruders, and thereby occasions a degree of inflam- 

 mation which not uncommonly terminates in loss of 

 sight. In the Cape Colony the varieties of the 

 Cobra de Capello are all regarded as highly dan- 

 gerous, and many severe if not fatal consequences 

 arc the results of their bite. They are all savage and 

 bold, and when assailed they generally resist rather 

 than fly, and they not unfrequently act upon the 

 offensive. They climb trees with great facility, and 

 often fake to the water out of choice. In the liquid 

 element their progress is rather slow, and during 

 their residence in it the head is ahvays kept raised 

 above the surface. Whenever they are excited or 

 irritated, they, like the common species of In Ua, 

 inflate the loose skin of the neck, and exten.i it 



