THE COBRA DE CAPELLO. 



299 



As long as it is in a quiet mood, its neck is nowhere thicker 

 than its head or other parts ; but as soon as it is excited, it 

 raises vertically the anterior part of its trunk, and dilating the 

 hood on each side of the neck, which is curiously marked in 

 the centre in black and white, like a pair of spectacles, advances 

 against the aggressor by the undulating motion of the tail. 

 It is not only met with in the cultivated grounds and 

 plantations, but will creep into the houses and insinuate itself 

 among the furniture. Bishop Heber heard at Patna of a lady 

 who once lay a whole night with a cobra under her pillo\Y. 

 She repeatedly thought during the night that she felt some- 

 thing move, and in the morning when she snatched her pillow 

 away, she saw the thick black throat, the square head, and the 

 green diamond-like eyes of the reptile advanced within two 

 inches of her neck. Fortunately the snake was without malice ; 

 but alas for her if she had during the night pressed him a 

 little too roughly. 



This is the snake so frequently exhibited by the Indian 

 jugglers, who contrive by some unknown method to tame 

 them so far as to perform certain movements in cadence, and 

 to dance to the sound of music, with which the cobra seems 

 much delighted, keeping time by a graceful motion of the head, 

 erecting about half its length from the ground, and following 

 ithe few simple notes of the conjuror's flute with gentle curves 

 like the undulating lines of a swan's neck. It has been natu- 

 rally supposed, before this could be done, that the poisonous 

 fangs had been extracted ; but Forbes, the author of ' Oriental 

 Memoirs,' had nearly been taught at his cost that this is not 

 always practised. Not doubting but that a cobra, which 

 danced for an hour on the table while he painted it, had been 

 disarmed of its fatal weapons, he frequently handled it to ob- 

 serve the beauty of the spots, and especially the spectacles on 

 the hood. But the next morning his upper servant, who was a 

 zealous Mussulman, came to him in great haste and desired 

 he would instantly retire and praise the Almighty for his good 

 fortune. Not understanding his meaning, Forbes told him 

 that he had already performed his devotions, and had not so 

 many stated prayers as the followers of his prophet. Mahomet 

 then informed him that while purchasing some fruit in the 

 ■bazaar, he observed the man who had been with him on the 



