Snakes of Jamaica. 417 



neither " lutea" (which, among Naturalists, signifies a golden- 

 yellow, of which hue I have never seen a single scale in this species) 

 nor " raaculis nigris notata," for the spots are stpictly not of a black, 

 but of a dark blue colour. One of thera (with the more obtuse tail) I 

 received alive, injured from bruises, but not lacerated; and from the 

 great size of its abdomen, it seemed to be large with young. It was put 

 into spirits within a very short time after it died ; yet when I removed it 

 into the cask, I was greatly disappointed at finding its abdomen in a most 

 flaccid state. I nevertheless send it, (with two other specimens, much 

 damaged aboutthe head,) because certain parts or organs, being yet per- 

 fect, may prove useful, especially the head, the tail, and the claws near 

 the vent. These last are well defined and will, I hope, claim notice 

 from Mr. Bell. I say this, because, although the claws in question are a 

 remarkable character in the Boa tribe, they have never been well 

 figured, so far as I know. The best of the attempts I am acquainted with 

 is in Abel's plate of " the great Snake of Java," p. 46 of his Voyage to 

 China ; but let his figure only be compared with the part in my speci- 

 men, and its imperfections will strike you. A correct representation 

 therefore of this character seems to be a desideratum, at least in English 

 works of Natural History ; nor in the account of Professor Mayer's in- 

 vestigation of this particular structure among the •' phsenopoda" of the 

 Serpent race, given at p. 253, vol. HI. of the Zoological Journal, is any 

 mention made of figures to illustrate his descriptions. 



There is a peculiarity moreover of our Yellow Snake which is deserv- 

 ing of attention : its pupil, during life, is linear and vertical. I have had 

 several opportunities of observing the eye of this species, and, in one 

 individual, I was able to watch it by day and by candle-light, for not less 

 than six or seren weeks. The only variation I ever perceived from its 

 usual form of a very narrow vertical line was upon one or two occasions 

 (in the Snake first mentioned of the above three) when the length of the 

 line was somewhat shortened, and its extremities slightly dilated, giving 

 to the pupil a distant resemblance to an hour glass much lengthened out. 

 As I have not seen any work or figure which alludes to any such form of 

 the pupil among the Ophidia, (with the exception of Abyssinian Bruce's 



Vol. V. EE 



