254 WANDERINGS IN SOUTH AMERICA. 



disagreeable hissing in the bedchamber that night. At day- 

 break, I sent to borrow ten of the negroes who were cut- 

 ting wood at a distance ; I could have done with half that 

 number, but judged it most prudent to have a good force, 

 in case he should try to escape from the house when we 

 opened the bag. However, nothing serious occurred. 



We untied the mouth of the bag, kept him down by 

 main force, and then I cut his throat. He bled like an ox. 

 By six o'clock the same evening, he was completely dis- 

 sected. On examining his teeth, I observed that they were 

 all bent like tenter-hooks, pointing down his throat, and 

 not so large or strong as I expected to have found them ; 

 but they are exactly suited to what they are intended by 

 nature to perform. The snake does not masticate his food, 

 and thus the only service his teeth have to perform is to 

 seize his prey, and hold it till he swallows it whole. 



In general, the skins of snakes are sent to museums 

 without the head : for when the Indians and Negroes kill 

 a snake, they seldom fail to cut off the head, and then they 

 run no risk from its teeth. When the skin is stuffed in 

 the museum, a wooden head is substituted, armed with 

 teeth which are large enough to suit a tiger's jaw; and 

 this tends to mislead the spectator, and give him erroneous 

 ideas. 



During this fray with the serpent, the old negro, Daddy 

 Quashi, was in Georgetown procuring provisions, and just 

 returned in time to help to take the skin off. He had 

 spent best part of his life in the forest with his old master, 

 Mr. Edmonstone, and amused me much in recounting their 

 many adventures amongst the wild beasts. The Daddy 

 had a particular horror of snakes, and frankly declared he 

 could never have faced the one in question. 



The week following, his courage was put to the test, and 

 he made good his words. It was a curious conflict, and 



