FATALITIES. 171 



homestead like a drunken man. When we reached him he 

 cohapscd, and died an hour afterwards. The Cobra, however, 

 usually contents itself with a demonstration which is intended 

 to frighten its aggressor. It then turns and endeavours to find 

 a place of concealment. Should its enemy return to the attack 

 it will again boldly turn and face him. 



To be bitten by a Cobra is a common occurrence in South 

 Africa, and many deaths result. The unshod and bare-legged 

 natives are the principal sufferers. Cobras are frequently found 

 in and about farmsteads. Many farm-houses and outbuildings 

 are roofed with straw, the walls being made of " wattle and daub," 

 viz. two rows or walls of twigs entwined or interlaced, with a 

 space between. These are plastered over with mud. Cobras 

 frequently take up their quarters in the thatch, in the hollow 

 spaces in the walls, and down rat holes, and in the crevices of the 

 stone walls of the cattle kraals. The abundance of rats and mice 

 about farmsteads attract the Cobras. 



Fatalities. 



Many instances are on record of Cobras actually getting into 

 bed with the sleeper, attracted there by the warmth ; and many 

 are the cases of people being bitten in this way. 



Two European children were once fatally bitten by a Cobra, 

 both of whom died. It was a very sad case. They were spending 

 their holidays with a relative in the country. One night a Cobra 

 crept into their bed. One of the children evidently moved in his 

 sleep, whereupon the Cobra instantly bit him on the face. The 

 terrified boy sat up and screamed, and before his little brother 

 could realize what had happened, he too was bitten. The uncle 

 and aunt, hearing the cries, rushed to the room. One of the 

 children, a manly little fellow, recovering his presence of mind, 

 cried to his relatives not to come into the room, but to get 

 a light and a stick, for there was a snake inside. A candle and 

 weapons were hastily secured, and there, right in the middle of 

 the room, was a large Cobra, reared and ready to strike. Both 

 the children died before morning. 



Dogs and monkeys, if bitten by an adult Cape Cobra, will 

 usually die within an hour. A Vervet Monkey which was bitten 

 on the forearm died in seven minutes. Some venom injected 



