ON SERPENT-WORSHIP AND VENOMOUS SNAKES. 89 



The cobra, as I have said, is an object of veneration and 

 superstitious awe to the natives of Hindustan, for in a 

 religion that deprecates the wrath of a cruel and relentless 

 power which it desires to propitiate, the symbol of evil 

 represented by this reptile is naturally regarded with 

 peculiar deference. The rapidity and deadliness of its 

 poison, and the large death-rate due to its bite, explain these 

 feelings, which need cause no surprise when it is remembered 

 that upwards of 20,000 people die yearly of snake-bite alone. 



I shall give you a brief account of the most interesting 

 forms of venomous snakes, confining myself to those that are 

 found in our Indian Empire. It would be barely possible 

 even to enumerate in the time at my disposal, the deadly 

 snakes of other countries, or the innumerable innocent forms. 



Wherever climate and other conditions are favourable, 

 .snakes are likely to be found, the most venomous as well as 

 the greatest numbers in hot and tropical regions. In our 

 own island, as well as in most parts of Europe, the common 

 adder is the only venomous snake, and its power is feeble 

 compared with that of the snakes of India, the West Indies, 

 Tropical America, Africa, and Australia. 



The order Ophidia is divided into Colubriform and Viperi- 

 form ; the fiist are both venomous and innocuous, the second 

 are all venomous. Both are numerously represented in 

 India ; the colubriform has five genera of Elapidae, and four 

 of Hydrophidae, the viperiform has two genera of Viperidae, 

 and four of Crotalidae, making fifteen poisonous genera, which 

 comprise a large number of species, but this is small com- 

 pared with the number of innocent colubrine snakes. 



The most widely distributed venomous snakes are the 

 viperiform ; America and Africa abound in them ; the 

 Crotalidae are most numerous in America, the Viperidae in 

 Africa, whilst poisonous colubrine snakes are most numerous 

 in Asia. 



The Ophidia are cold-blooded vertebrata, destitute of 

 external skeleton, pectoral arch, sternum, or limbs. In a few 

 there is a rudimentary pelvis and hinder extremities. 



The body is covered by a deciduous epidermis and scales, 

 These, with some exceptions, assume on the head and 

 abdomen the condition of scuta? or plates. The bones of 

 the mouth are connected by ligaments, which allow of great 

 distension, thus enabling the creature to swallow prey largei 

 in diameter than itself. 



In snakes, one lung is much larger than the other. Their 



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