280 CHAMELEON. 



excitement and alarm, I soon ascertained that the awk- 

 ward movements of Sooboo, Mr. Brooke's coxwain, as he 

 was engaged in clearing out the boat, had broken the 

 bottle, containing the captive snake, and that no sooner 

 had the men caught a glimpse of his gliding form, than 

 they, one and all, rushed tumultuously over the side of 

 the Tambang into the river, while the serpent, soon fol- 

 lowing their example, swam peacefully to the opposite 

 bank, and found a safe retreat among the dense, weedy 

 mass that fringed the river. Sooboo afterwards informed 

 me, that the species of snake I had captured in the 

 morning, was considered by the natives, one of the most 

 venomous in the country. 



The Polyckrus virescens, like the Chamelion, changes its 

 colour, assuming various hues, which are dependent on 

 rage or fear. When first captured, and trembling in the 

 hand, it throws off its bright green mantle, and assumes 

 a coat of sober russet-brown, which is sometimes varied 

 with lighter spots ; frequently it remains of a fine emerald 

 green on the belly. It is the " Gruning " of the Malays, 

 and probably the " Chameleon " that Marsden mentions, 

 as being common in Sumatra. It hunts for insects among 

 the foliage of the trees, and is fond of travelling out to 

 the end of a slender branch, to watch the Diptera, as they 

 wheel in circles by. I always found their stomachs 

 loaded with insects. The Gruning bites very severely. 



The " Toke " of the Malays, is a very common lizard 

 among the " attap " dwellings of the Dyaks. It feeds 

 on beetles, and other insect-forms that find a home in 

 holes of rotten wood. It emits a peculiar chirping 

 sound. The eggs are somewhat smaller than a wren's, 



