THE FER-DE-LANCE. 



97 



small Snake which had tried to swallow a mouse too large even for the expansile powers 

 of a Snake's throat, and which had literally burst through the skin and muscles of the 

 neck. 



The lower jaw, moreover, is not jointed directly to the skull, but to a most singular 

 development of the temporal bone, which throws out two elongated processes at right 

 angles with each other, like the letter*! laid horizontally *"% so that a curious double 

 lever is obtained, precisely after the fashion of the well-known " throwing-stick " of the 

 aboriginal Australians, which enables those savages to fling their spears with deadly 

 effect to a distance of a hundred yards. 



The teeth of the venomous Serpents will be described in connection with one of the 

 species. 



The Serpents, in common with other reptiles, have their bodies covered by a delicate 

 epidermis, popularly called the skin, which lies over the scales, and is renewed at 

 tolerably regular intervals. Towards the time of changing its skin, the Snake becomes 

 dull and sluggish, the eyes look white and blind, owing to the thickening of the epidermis 

 that covers them, and the bright colors become dim and ill-defined. Presently, however, 

 the skin splits upon the back, mostly near the head, and the Snake contrives to wriggle 

 itself out of the old integument, usually turning it inside out in the process. This shed 

 skin is transparent, having the shape of each scale impressed upon it, being fine and 

 delicate as goldbeater's-skin, and being applicable to many of the same uses, such as 

 shielding a small wound from the external air. In two very fine specimens of cast skins, 

 formerly belonging to a viper and boa-constrictor, now lying before me the structure of 

 each scale is so well shown, that the characteristics of the two reptiles can be distin- 

 guished as readily as if the creatures were present from whose bodies they were shed. 

 Even the transparent scale that covers the eyes is drawn off entire, and the large elon- 

 gated hexagonal scales that are arranged along the abdomen, and aid the animal in its 

 progress, are exhibited so boldly that they will resist the movement of a finger drawn 

 over them from tail to head. 



THE first sub-order of Snakes consists of those Serpents which are classed under the 

 name of VIPERINA. All these reptiles are devoid of teeth in the upper jaw except two 

 long, poison-bearing fangs, set one at each side, and near the muzzle. The lower jaw 

 is well furnished with teeth, and both jaws are feeble. The scales of the abdomen are 

 bold, broad, and arranged like overlapping bands. The head is large in proportion to 

 the neck, and very wide behind, so that the head of these Snakes has been well com- 

 pared to an ace of spades. The hinder limbs are not seen. 



In the first family of the Viperine Snakes, called the CROTALID^E, the face is marked 

 with a large pit or depression on each side , between the eye and the nostril. The 

 celebrated and dreaded FER-DE-LAXCE belongs to this family. 



This terrible reptile is a native of Brazil, and in some parts is very common, owing to 

 its exceeding fecundity and its habit of constant concealment. It has an especial liking 

 for the sugar plantations, and a field of canes is seldom cut without the discovery of 

 seventy or eighty of these venomous creatures. Martinique and St. Lucia are terribly 

 haunted by this Snake, which is held in great dread by the natives and settlers. In 

 general, the Serpents, even those of a poisonous character, avoid the presence of 

 man, but the Fer-de-Lance frequently takes the initiative, and leaping from its conceal- 

 ment, fastens upon the passenger whose presence has disturbed its irritable temper, 

 and inflicts a wound that is almost invariably fatal within a few hours. 



Even in those cases where the sufferer recovers for the time, the system is terribly 

 injured, and the latent virulence of the poison can hardly be eliminated from the frame 

 even at the cost of painful boils and ulcerations which last for many years. The nervous 

 system is also much affected, as giddiness and paralysis are among the usual conse- 

 quences of the strong venom which this reptile extracts, by some inexplicable chemistry, 

 from perfectly harmless food. Convulsions, severe pain at the heart, together with 

 distressing nausea, are among the many symptoms produced by this poison. 



To escape this creature in its chosen haunts is a matter of very great difficulty, as it 

 is either concealed under dead leaves, among the heavy foliage of parasitic plants, or 

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