112 THE SHOOTER'S GUIDE. 



flesh has long been celebrated as a noble medicine. 

 A broth, made by boiling one viper in a quart of 

 water, till it comes to a pint, is the usual method in 

 which it is given at present ; and it is said to be a 

 very powerful restorative in battered constitutions : 

 the salt of vipers is also thought to exceed any other 

 animal salt whatever, in giving vigour to the languid 

 circulation, and prompting to venery." 



If the venom be taken internally it is perfectly 

 innocent ; " the famous experiments that were tried 

 by Rhedi and others, in the presence of the grand 

 duke of Tuscany and his court, put this beyond any 

 doubt whatsoever. By these it appeared, that the 

 serpent having once bitten, exhausted for that time 

 the greatest part of the poison ; and though the 

 wound caused by its biting a second time was at- 

 tended with some malignant symptoms, yet they 

 were much milder than before. It appeared that 

 the serpent, upon biting a sponge, or a piece of soft 

 bread, and then biting a dog immediately after, did 

 not inflict a wound more dangerous than the prick of 

 a needle. It appeared, that the venom being col- 

 lected, and a needle dipped therein, this produced 

 almost as painful effects as the tooth of the animal 

 itself. But what caused the greatest surprise in the 

 court was, the seeming rashness of one Tozzi, a viper- 

 catcher, who, while the philosophers were giving 

 elaborate lectures on the danger of the poison when 

 taken internally, boldly desired a large quantity of it 

 Blight be put together; and then, with the utmost 



