546 JOURNAL, BOMB A Y NA TURA L HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XI. 



at dinner one evening a neighbour called to see me ; it was dark and he was 

 attended by a servant carrying a lantern, and on hearing the sound of footsteps 

 approaching the bungalow my dogs rushed out of the dining-room barking ; 

 both the cubs were in the room at the time, and one of them bounded 

 out with the dogs, evidently joining them in their hostile exhibition. I 

 much fear this incident interested me more than it did the late caller, 

 who was naturally rather taken back by the sudden rush of two dogs 

 accompanied by leopards, although like the dogs the cubs were perfectly 

 friendly when he came inside the house. 



On the first occasion the cubs saw goats, when little more than a month 

 old, they showed much excitement and hostility towards them, and one day 

 when a goat happened to be tied in the compound, they got out of their 

 enclosure, rushed at once at it, one catching hold at tbe shoulder and the 

 other behind, but their teeth were so short they were easily shaken off. 

 After the cubs commenced a purely meat diet — of raw and cooked meat, 

 when some three months old — a strong instinctive activity was noticed in 

 their licking and eating moist earth— specially that of a red colour, and 

 this they would do several times a day in a most persistent manner. 

 It would be interesting to know whether this has been observed by those 

 who may have brought up young tigers and leopards — if so, it would 

 seem to point to the necessity of providing some fresh earth for these animals 

 when confined in cages. The cubs are bad at tree-climbing, and very 

 seldom in play go up on even a low tree, and when on one are almost as 

 clumsy as a dog. I have never noticed them sharpen their claws against 

 any tree ; their power of sight is splendid, but their sense of smell is 

 extremely deficient. When chasing each other, or one of the dogs in play, 

 they always attempt, when going at full speed, to upset the play-fellow 

 by striking his hind legs from under him, and when he falls, which he 

 usually does, a spring is at once made at the neck, and he is then worried 

 to an imaginary death. 



G. S. RODON, Major. 



Dharwar, 11th August, 1897. 



No. XII.— SNAKES AT TRINCOMALEE. 



While at Trincomalee during the dry season, from July-October, I was 

 much struck by the frequency with which the Russell's Viper (Daboia 

 russellii) was found. At the back of the Naval Hospital the jungle comes 

 down closely and is very thick, and here many were killed in the verandahs, 

 bath-rooms, and one in a bed-room ; they were all, however, small, none being 

 over 18 inches long. 



Cobras (Naja tripudians) were occasionally killed, and one curiously was 

 eaught alongside the Flagship while attempting to get on board, the ship being 



