THE EXPERIMENTS. 145 



succession. The first fowl died in thirteen minutes, the second 

 in fifteen minutes, the third in three hours and four minutes. 



A variegated male Boomslang bit the bared thighs of two 

 fowls within the space of one minute. The first fowl died in nine 

 minutes, the second in forty-five minutes. 



A fowl bitten slightly Hved two days and died, the wound 

 oozing blood, and the mucous membranes of the mouth being 

 inflamed and congested. 



A male (greenish-yellow and black) Boomslang bit a fowl 

 on the thigh. I killed the snake and injected some of its blood 

 into the victim. No curative effect followed. The fowl died 

 in twelve minutes. 



A female Boomslang bit a fowl on the thigli. I killed the 

 snake and injected contents of its gall into the fowl, which died 

 in eleven hours. 



Another fowl was bitten and injected with the serum of the 

 blood of the snake that bit it. No curative effect ; it died in 

 fourteen minutes. 



A female Boomslang bit a duck on the thigh. Progressive 

 exhaustion ; slight oozing of blood in mouth ; rapid heart's 

 action ; paralysis ; death in seventeen minutes. 



A second duck was bitten by the same snake immediately 

 after the first one. Same symptoms ; died in thirty-five minutes. 



A male Boomslang bit a duck on the neck. Within three 

 minutes it fell on its back completely paralysed ; it remained 

 still for another five minutes ; struggled feebly when touched. 

 Died in nineteen minutes. 



A male Boomslang bit a large cock fowl on the comb. 

 Blood oozed from the cock's nostrils one minute after being 

 bitten. It began to mope, then suddenly sprang four feet straight 

 up into the air and fell a dead mass, three minutes after being 

 bitten. 



The venom gland of a male Boomslang was rubbed up with a 

 little water and injected with a hypodermic syringe into a vein in 

 a live and active Cape Jackal. The animal died before the needle 

 could be withdrawn. It perished as quickly as if shot through 

 the head with a bullet. The venom, being injected into a vein, 

 reached the heart almost immediately, and instantly paralysed 

 its action. 



