SNAKES AND SNAKE STORIES 423 



lower two in the drawing. The upper two show 

 the eggs the exact shape and size they were when 

 laid. 



While speaking of the exact size, it may be well 

 to call the attention of the reader to the fact that 

 all the original drawings of small creatures in this 

 book are made exactly life size, but have been re- 

 duced in photo engravings to suit the size of the 

 book. The original drawings are all made on 

 sheets of paper ten inches wide by fourteen inches 

 long. These proportions will .help you to get the 

 correct size of the objects shown. 



THE RED-BELLIED SNAKE 



shown in the illustration was caught in July and 

 contained seven eggs. In one of the water snakes 

 there were thirty-three eggs and in the one killed 

 on August 19, from which the drawings on the 

 colored plate were made there were only eighteen 

 eggs. 



Pike County has the reputation of having more 

 snakes in it than any place in the United States, 

 especially rattlesnakes, but in twenty summers spent 

 roaming around the woods, swamps and quarries, 

 I have never met but five live rattlesnakes. Once 

 I was on my way with my field glasses in hand to 

 the shore of Big Tink Pond. I had heard the old 

 eagle across the lake whistling. All of us "Pikers" 

 have learned to know this bird by the name of 

 Uncle Sam. When he's up to some mischief, this 



