REPTILES 291 



reptiles coiled on the top of it just out of reach of the water. 

 As I had the gun in my hand I fired, and owing to my being 

 so near, the shot cut the snake right in two and blew both parts 

 off the stone into the water. The second specimen I got at the 

 Kiboko river on my fourth journey. It lay right in the middle 

 of the caravan road through the wood, extended at full length, 

 and leisurely moving along. I had only a small-shot cartridge 

 with me ; the shot therefore did not injure the skin perceptibly, 

 though it killed the puff-adder on the spot. 



On the loth of February 1898, in Singo, a province of 

 Uganda, I had three narrow escapes from snake-bite. In the 

 morning a snake was disturbed under the awning of my tent, 

 but fortunately it was killed before it could get at me. On 

 the march, another crossed the narrow footpath right under 

 our feet. It suddenly emerged from the tangled weeds on our 

 right and disappeared in the long grass on our left. Luckily 

 it was not trodden on, so no one was bitten. The third 

 was to cloud the day with a sad event. I was riding at the 

 time on my donkey, and my Wahima servant, " Ferhani," was 

 by my side. Two Soudanese soldiers were walking in front of 

 us. With a start they sprang to one side, calling out " snake " ; 

 but we were so immediately behind them, that my donkey, my 

 boy, and I were already over the spot, and had no time to 

 avoid it. The snake could have struck at me as easily as at 

 the bov, because on donkey-back one's legs are not very many 

 inches from the ground. 



With a scream of fear, and his face distorted with terror, 

 Ferhani jumped from my side. Too late ! The snake struck 

 him ; my donkey and I escaped unhurt. I jumped down to 

 attend at once to the poor fellow. He had sunk on the 

 ground, clasping his leg. He exclaimed : " Master, I shall die." 

 Then he kept reciting his Mohammedan prayers, " There is 

 but one God and Mohammed is his prophet, and is with 

 God," up to almost the moment of his death. The wound 

 consisted of four tiny punctures, mere pin-pricks ; and while 

 one man was vigorously sucking the wound, I twisted my 

 handkerchief round the limb to arrest circulation. The Sou- 

 danese soldiers were most sympathetic and attentive. Taking 

 Ferhani of their own accord on their back, they carried him 

 to my tent, running the whole distance. I used ammonia and 

 stimulants, the remedies at hand, but nothing could save him. 



