SS NATURALIST'S CABINET. 



Fatality of the rattle snake's poison. 



tudes, and retire into the ground, beyond the 

 reach of the frost. Tempted by the warmth of a 

 spring day, they are often observed to creep out 

 in a weak and languid state. Mr. Pennant men- 

 tions that a person has seen a piece of ground 

 covered with them, and that he killed with a rod 

 between sixty and seventy, till, overpowered with 

 the stench, he was obliged to retire. 



The poison of the rattle snake wben irritated, 

 or the weather is exceedingly hot, often proves 

 fatal in a very short time. When angry, this 

 creature's rattle is said to be loud and distinct, 

 but when pleased, to sound like a distinct trepi- 

 dation, in which nothing distinct can be heard. 

 Negroes, and others who have been bitten by 

 them, have frequently recovered without any 

 assistance, yet the fatality of its poison has been 

 proved by many experiments. We read in the 

 Phil. Trans, that a snake was tied down to a 

 grass plot, and made to bite a healthy cur dog; 

 immediately afterwards the poor animal's eyes 

 were fixed, his teeth closed upon his tongue, 

 which was hanging out, his lips were drawn up 

 so as to leave his teeth and gums bare, and in a 

 quarter of a minute he died. The hair was then, 

 taken off by means of hot water, and only one 

 small puncture appeared between his fore legs, 

 with a bluish-green color round it. A second 

 dog was brought about half an hour afterwards, 

 and the snake bit his ear; he exhibited signs of 

 violent sickness, staggered about for some, time, 



