THE REPTILES 257 



front do not differ very much in their shape from the common 

 innocuous snakes, although some have the power of expanding 

 their neck into a kind of hood ; but those which have the hollow 

 teeth are usually distinguishable by their large triangular head, 

 short body, and very short tail. The venom or poison is a clear, 

 pale yellow or straw-coloured fluid, and appears to be a pure 

 solution of two or more poisonous proteins which are the active 

 agents in conjunction with a small amount of an organic acid 

 or colouring matter. According to C JN Martin, there appears to 

 be " only one fairly reliable treatment, that by serum therapeutics, 

 the injection of considerable quantities of serum of animals which 

 have been partially immunised by repeated doses of snake-venom. 

 Unfortunately, this treatment will not often be available." Hun- 

 dreds of natives perish annually from the bite of poisonous snakes, 

 the Cobra and the dreaded " Krait " being responsible for thf 

 majority in India. 



Few objects are more calculated to inspire awe than a large 

 Cobra, when, with its hood erect, hissing loudly, and eyes glaring, 

 it prepares to strike. The Cobras feed on small animals, birds' 

 eggs, frogs and fish. They prefer taking their food at dusk or in the 

 night, and are said to drink a great deal of water. The Cobra is 

 oviparous, and the eggs, from eighteen to twenty-five in number, 

 are about the size of those of a pigeon, with a white, tough, leathery 

 shell. It is a most deadly snake, and its poison, when thoroughly 

 inoculated, is quickly fatal. The number of deaths from Cobra- 

 bite in India yearly is most appalling. The Cobras are the favour- 

 ites of the snake-charmers, who render them temporarily harmless 

 by extracting the poison fangs ; but unless care is taken to remove 

 the reserve fangs and germs, these deadly weapons are soon 

 replaced. The snake has the power of raising its head, neck, 

 and much of its body so that it balances as it were on its tail, 

 swaying to and fro in a very graceful manner to the rhythmic 

 motion of the snake-charmer's hands. 



Australia has several very poisonous snakes, of which the 

 Black Snake (Pseudechis porphyriacia) is the commonest. Equally 

 fatal is the Brown-banded Snake (Hoplocephalus curtus), which 

 frequents the plains ; while the dangerous Death Adder (Acan- 

 thophis antarcticus) loves great warmth and frequents sandy 

 places. 

 R 



