206 
NATURE 
[ Dec. 28, 1882 
of the poison ; the circumstances under which the bites 
are inflicted; the value of any known remedies in the 
treatment of those bitten, and what measures might pos- 
sibly be devised for diminishing this serious evil. 
After a long and careful investigation of the whole 
subject, I drew up a detailed report, containing the re- 
sults of my inquiry, and presented it to the Government 
of India, with a request that, when published, it should 
be distributed throughout India, among civil and medical 
officers, with a view of enabling them to take measures 
for the protection of human life, and the destruction of 
the creatures which caused such frightful mortality. I 
also endeavoured to point out the mode in which the 
poison destroys life, and to indicate such rational mea- 
sures as might be of service in the treatment of those 
bitten. 
Iam not aware how far the advice I then tendered has 
been acted on, but I am glad to find, by a recent resolu- 
tion published in the Gazet¢e of /ndza, that some progress 
is being made, and that the mortality of 1881 has been 
somewhat less than that of 1880, from this cause, and 
that this desirable result is due to the measures that have 
been taken by Government to procure the destruction of 
the poisonous snakes. . 
From the returns furnished to me at the instance of 
Government in 1870, for the year 1869, I made out that 
the human deaths from snake-bite were as follows in— 
Bengal, including Assam and Orissa ... ... 6645 
North-West Provinces ... . 1995 
Punjab 755 
Oude nog Eco . 1205 
Central Provinces ... rape een 606 
@entraluIndiatee, 6. cy ose. acs OD 
British Burmah 120 
Total... 11,416 
Tnese were the only returns received, and represent 
not much more than half of the whole area, but the total, 
large as it is, cannot be regarded as the real mortality in 
these provinces, as the information from which the re- 
cords were framed being probably only partial and imper- 
fect, it rather under-rates than exaggerates the mortality. 
I expressed a belief that if systematic registration were 
adopted, the number recorded would prove to be larger, 
whilst, if information were gathered from the whole of 
Hindostan, it would be found that not less than 20,000 
persons are destroyed annually by snakes. 
Certain suggestions were made as to measures for 
identification, destruction of venomous snakes, and for 
registration of deaths. These would appear, from the 
terms of the resolution above referred to, to have been 
partially adopted, with the result of causing some dimi- 
nution of the evil. I pointed out that the snakes which 
are so destructive to life are the cobra, the bungarus or 
krait, the echis, and the daboia or Russells’ viper, all of 
which are most conspicuous snakes, and easily identified. 
There are others, such as Bungarus fasciatus, Ophio- 
phagus elaps, which are dangerous, but comparatively 
rare, and seldom bite men, whilst the hydrophide being 
confined to the sea or estuaries, are, though very poisonous, 
not so dangerous to man, and the trimeresuri, which 
are both uncommon, and at the same time are not so 
deadly as to endanger life. All these are depicted in 
coloured figures taken from life, which renders their iden- 
tification simple and easy. 
I further remarked that, “meanwhile there exists the 
obvious necessity of endeavouring to prevent the nume- 
rous fatal accidents by making generally known the 
appearance and habits of the poisonous snakes, and by 
instituting rewards for their destruction. With a plain 
description and a faithful representation of each species 
in colours, every district, medical or police officer, would 
be able at once to distinguish the venomous from the 
innocent snakes, and thus knowledge enough, at least 
for all practical purposes, might be imparted to intelligent 
native subordinates, to enable them to recognise the 
poisonous snakes. By offering a larger reward for 
these only, their numbers would soon diminish, and the 
people would be made acquainted with the characters 
that distinguish the venomous from the harmless snakes, 
and would learn to avoid them. Thus only, I believe, 
can the evil be remedied, so long, at all events, as the 
mode of life among the lower and agricultural classes 
remain what it now is. I would suggest that magistrates, 
district and police officers, and civil surgeons be autho- 
rised to give the following rewards for poisonous snakes :— 
Annas* 
Cobra 253 
Bungarus czruleus ... 
Bungarus fasciatus ... 
Ophiophagus 
Russell’s Viper 
Echis é 
Trimeresurus 
RR OMB ASW 
The sum disbursed would no doubt be large, but the 
results in the saving of life and destruction of snakes would 
compensate for the expenditure.”’ 
Such was the state of things when I left India in 1872. 
The Government of India then, at my instance, appointed 
acommission to continue the inquiry which I had com- 
menced three or four years previously. This resulted in 
several valuable reports by Drs. J. Ewart, A. Wall, and Mr. 
Vincent Richards, whilst, in conjunction with Dr. Lauder - 
Brunton, F.R.S., an investigation into the nature of the 
physiological action of the virus was continued here by me, 
the results of which have been published in the Proceedings 
of the Royal Society in 1873, 1874, and 1875. Meanwhile 
the evil continues, and it is probably within the mark to 
say that, since the subject came under consideration in 
1870, [50,000 to 200,000 human beings, to say nothing of 
domestic animals, have been destroyed by snake bites. 
The subject has often received the most anxious 
consideration of the Indian Government, and a variety 
of measures have been resorted to, not without a 
certain measure of success ; but it is my belief that not 
until a system of organised, determined, and sustained 
efforts for the destruction of the snakes is adopted and 
carried out on the lines suggested in my report, will the 
evil be fairly grappled with and overcome. The present 
resolution shows that the matter is again receiving some 
consideration, and there is good reason to believe that 
if the measures be prosecuted with energy and determina- 
tion throughout India, good results will follow. But I 
repeat it is only by the destruction of the snakes that the 
evil can be mitigated. Something may be expected 
from the people themselves as their knowledge of the 
subject increases, as they become more familiar with the 
appearance or character of the venomous as distinguished 
from the harmless snakes, and as they gradually become 
convinced of the futility of all antidotes charms or spells 
to protect them ; or should they ever alter their present 
mode of living in huts which have the floor on the ground 
surface, to huts with raised floors—a consummation 
devoutly to be wished, not only on account of snakes, 
but of malaria—but hardly likely to be realised. 
For the purpose of hunting out and destroying the evil 
it is absolutely necessary that a fixed system of rewards 
should be established, and that in every district there 
should be an organised body of men whose duty it would 
be, under proper supervision, to seek out and destroy the 
snakes, receiving a recompense according to the import- 
ance and number of the snakes killed. Such men are to 
be found among certain castes, and with the aid of de- 
scriptions and coloured drawings, such as now are avail- 
able, there need be no great difficulty in carrying out this 
much-to-be-desired object. That such a project would 
be costly is true, but can that cost be considered excessive 
Eight annas represent one shilling. 
