THE REASON WHY. 311 



Even when bitten by highly venomous snakes, it does not 

 follow that death, or even serious illness, will result. If a 

 poisonous snake should succeed in inflicting a full and complete 

 bite, and if that snake should happen to be a healthy one of 

 adult size, then if death does not take place, very serious con- 

 stitutional effects are bound to follow. Often, however, the 

 venom, or most of it, is absorbed by the clothing, or the skin is 

 barely scratched. In other cases a partial bite with only one 

 fang is inflicted. It is impossible to know for certain whether 

 any alleged cure is what it claims to be or not, unless tested 

 under proper conditions. The conditions must be such as to 

 leave no possibility of doubt as to the identity of the snake used 

 for the purpose. In experimental work one test is not sufficient. 

 A series of experiments are necessary. 



It by no means follows that a fatal dose, or even a dose suffi- 

 cient to cause noticeable symptoms of poisoning, will be injected 

 even if a snake should puncture the flesh with both fangs. Often 

 the snake miscalculates its distance, and the venom squirts out 

 before the fangs penetrate the skin. In these cases only a 

 fractional dose is injected. At other times a fierce thrust is 

 made which either misses or strikes the boot or clothing at an 

 oblique angle. Like a flash a second blow is delivered. This 

 time the fangs, perchance, are driven home. In such cases as 

 these the venom would be driven out of the poison glands and 

 shed by the first thrust, leaving very little for injection by the 

 second bite. In fact, I have often found that the masseter 

 muscles, which squeeze the glands and expel the poison, do not 

 always respond a second time, unless there is a pause between 

 the first and second bite. 



During the course of my experiments it was abundantly 

 evident that a bite from a venomous snake did not always mean 

 the injection of a fatal dose of venom. I will give one instance 

 from scores in my note book. 



A large Puff Adder which had been in captivity five days, 

 was held by the finger and thumb and allowed to bite the lower 

 part of the thigh of a Cape Jackal which was as large as a full- 

 grown Pointer dog. The snake drove both fangs into the flesh. 

 It bit a second time, but only one fang penetrated halfway. 



Five minutes later a second Puff Adder was held to the thigh 

 of the Jackal. At first it refused to bite, but when its nose was 



