Mc]iagc Expedition to the Philippines 153 



On his arrival at the house he was pleased to find that the 

 snake exceeded by six inches the length given by the man, 

 actually measuring 22 feet and 6 inches in length by 24 inches 

 in circumference. With small trouble the powerful animal was 

 chloroformed and then killed. Then came the task of skinning 

 it which was no small one, I assure you. . But the work was 

 done, the skin taken off, carried to camp, cleaned and salted 

 before dark. The weather was so favorable that by the end of 

 a week it was well preserved. 



We congratulate both the Academy and ourselves on having 

 obtained a snake of this size. That snakes even much larger 

 than this exist here there is no doubt, but we have now spent 

 nearly two years and a half in the tropical jungle and never 

 before have we seen a snake that even approached this one in 

 size. In Mindoro we secured one thirteen feet and eight inches 

 in length and, although we hoped, still we never expected to 

 get one over twenty feet long. But the snake was not the only 

 thing secured at Igwahit. Together we went there the day the 

 mail arrived, and all of that week we were busy putting up birds 

 and animals. Some of these are worth notice. 



1. The flying squirrel (Pteromys), of which we obtained 

 thirty-two skins and some skeletons. This squirrel, of which we 

 heard accounts in 1887, is a very pretty animal, a typical flying 

 squirrel, from twenty-two to twenty-eight inches in length, vary- 

 ing to almost pure white. In most cases we have preserved all 

 the bones, so that skeletons can be made in case they prove more 

 valuable than the skins. 



2. The ordinary squirrel, Sciurus Steerii, of which we have 

 a number of skins, etc., and some specimens in alcohol. 



3. Tupaia (sp. ?), known here as the besin. It is abundant 

 and we have a number of specimens. 



4. A species of Histrix. In 1887 we obtained a single 

 mounted specimen of this porcupine, by exchange in Manila. We 

 now have seven skins and three complete skeletons, besides most 

 of the bones to go with the skins. 



5. Six skins and one skeleton (besides extra bones) of the 

 "pantut."* I can give you no other name for this curious an- 

 imal. In general appearance it resembles a huge mole. Its 

 fur is very dark brown, almost black, and quite glossy. The legs 



* Mydacus Marchei Heut, is the name standing in Occasional Papers, vol. i. p. 6i, Pre 

 liminary Notes on the Birds and Mammals collected by the Menage Scientific Expeditior 

 to the Philippine IslanEs, by Frank S. Bourns and Dean C. Worcester, 1894. 



