192 CENTRAL AMERICA. 



ence in the pain of their stings ; and as I 

 have been stung many dozens of times by 

 both, have a sort of a right to know ; the 

 forest-scorpion's is a genuine sting, that, 

 what with the pain and the effect it has on 

 the mouth, makes you literally " hold your 

 jaw*" for a shorter or longer time, according, 

 if a remedy be at hand or not ; but the 

 house-scorpion, unless he is a large one, does 

 not sting much worse than an English w^asp, 

 and not half as bad as one of the country's 

 wasps ; but scorpions are nasty animals, and 

 are always found where least expected ; they 

 are very fond of a dirty clothes-bag, and are 

 often found among linen and the rugs put 

 under saddles. 



At the end of their long tail there is a 

 small curved and very sharp sting, but hol- 

 low like the fang of a snake, with a small bag 

 at the root, containing a very acrid and partly 

 poisonous fluid. When a scorpion, by his 

 feelers or claws, finds he has an enemy to 

 deal with, he turns his tail over the back 

 until the point is struck down with force 

 in front of the head, and the pressure on the 

 little bag injects a small quantity of its con- 

 tents into the puncture made by the sting. 



That the bag contains a sort of poison is 



