4 i2 DAN BEARD'S ANIMAL BOOK 



an expression to designate the motion, which was 

 simply a sudden straightening out of a loop made 

 in the shiny black neck and, although the snake's 

 motion when attacking was apparently as rapid as 

 that of the shutter of a camera, 



HIS POOR NOSE 



would come with a bang against the hard, unyield- 

 ing wires, and the squirrel would be in the top of 

 the cage ready to repeat the manoeuver. At last, 

 in sheer pity for the snake's wounded nose, I took 

 the reptile by the tail and pulled him from the cage 

 and tossed him down on the damp ground under 

 the ferns, where he might find life, liberty and 

 the pursuit of happiness without the company of 

 flying squirrels. He was a fine specimen of black 

 snake. Every motion of his glistening body be- 

 tokened strength and grace, and I was very anxious 

 to make a careful study of him, for I have none 

 among my sketches, but, because of the unceasing 

 persecution of the flying squirrel, I liberated my 

 model and allowed it to escape. 



I will not vouch for the absolute truthfulness 

 of the following story, and I fail to recollect 

 seeing anywhere an account of a jewelry shop in 

 the Garden of Eden, although all accounts men- 

 tion 



ADAM AND EVE AND THE SERPENT. 



But this is a new version of the serpent inci- 

 dent. It seems that after Adam and Eve had lived 



