Reptiles 



poisonous, and in countries like India, where the natives 

 walk barefooted, for the most part, they take a consider- 

 able toll of human life. The Times of iQth September 

 1906 stated that " a statistical paper on India issued to- 

 day shows that in 1904 there were killed in that country 

 by snakes and wild beasts 24,034 persons 21,880 by 

 snake bites, 795 by tigers, 399 by leopards and the rest by 

 other animals. The number of cattle killed was 98,582. 



" The other side of the account shows that 65,146 snakes 

 and 16,121 wild animals were killed, for which rewards of 

 7313 were paid." 



All the poisonous snakes carry their venom in sacs at 

 the bases of hollow fangs, and when these fangs are 

 plunged into any substance, preferably, on the part of the 

 snake, into the flesh of some animal, the sacs are emptied 

 of their venom, which pours into the wound through the 

 hollow teeth, a case of hypodermic injection, in short, and 

 one from which our medical men took their cue. 



Though all snakes exhibit an inordinate degree of 

 cunning, they can hardly be described as ingenious. Some 

 of them, it is true, are given to burrowing in sand, but their 

 engineering bent is not so highly developed as it is among 

 the tortoises even. The burrowing snake simply sinks its 

 body into soft sand by means of undulatory movements. 



The hog-nosed snake possesses a degree of ingenuity 

 sufficient to earn him a place in our pages- he has the 

 unsnake-like habit of feigning death when alarmed. Now 

 the hog-nosed snake is perfectly harmless, a fact which 

 does not prevent it from pretending to be very ferocious 

 when in danger, in the hope, evidently, of frightening its 

 enemies ; should these tactics fail, the snake rolls on his 

 back, opening his mouth and rolling his head from side 

 to side, till his jaws are covered with dust or earth, then 

 he remains utterly limp and motionless. He will stay 

 thus for a quarter of an hour or more ; but, should the 

 danger pass, the reptile lifts his head and surveys his 

 surroundings, darts out his tongue an organ, by the way, 



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