TIGER SLAYER BY ORDER 



black cobra, the most venomous of the species. Every one 

 was naturally much alarmed, and, including the victim 

 himself, prepared for the worst, for there was no cure or 

 antidote known of in those days. 



The man soon showed symptoms of the poison, and had 

 already become drowsy, when some religious mendicants, 

 happening to pass along the road near the bungalow, saw 

 the dead snake, which had been thrown there, and question- 

 ing the servants, ascertained what had happened. 



They now came into the compound, asking to be allowed 

 to see and cure the bitten man, and this request being 

 granted, one of them unswathed his turban and undoing a 

 knot in it, extracted a small blue gi'een stone of a some- 

 what spongy appearance. Wetting this with spittle, he 

 rubbed it on the wounds, at the same time making passes 

 and uttering certain incantations. He repeated this per- 

 formance three times, then informed the patient, who 

 certainly seemed better, that he would be quite all right 

 now and free from all effects of the poison. 



He then proceeded to tie up his treasured talisman, and 

 making his salaams, was going off, when my friend, who had 

 been much interested in this proceeding, engaged him in 

 conversation with a view to finding out what was the com- 

 position, etc., of the stone, and finally asked him whether 

 he would sell it. 



But this he absolutely declined to do, declaring it was 

 an heirloom, handed down from many generations, nor 

 would he permit the stone to be touched by any one. 

 Finally, accepting a small reward, he went off with the 

 rest of his companions. Meanwhile, the man bitten had 

 been rapidly improving, and in a short time was perfectly 

 well! 



Doubtless the virtue of these stones lies in the fact of 

 their being porous and strongly absorbent, thus, when 

 placed against a snake-fang puncture, gradually draw off 

 all the poison. This, at any rate, is the generally accepted 

 explanation of the native superstition, which attribute 

 to these stones a mysteriously miraculous power brought 

 into operation only by passes and incantations such as I 

 have described. 



I have since heard that Faquirs and others who make a 

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