284 On the Eupaiorium Huaco. 



two letters from a resident near Caraccas, to a friend in German- 

 town, who has obligingly furnished me with copies. The first is da- 

 ted at Tapatapa, near the lake of Valencia, Nov. 15, 1827, and 

 after describing the lake on, and near which, a party of ladies and 

 gentlemen were spending the day, it proceeds : 



"During the day, a man named Martines, who has the care of 

 the cattle on the estate, came to the lake to see Mr. Alderson," (a 

 gentleman well known in Philadelphia,) " and, to our amazement, 

 carried in his hand a large live rattlesnake, with eight rattles. He 

 had caught it on the road not far from the house we were in. He 

 threw it down on the corridor, and as one of the men who were with 

 him produced its fangs, which Martines, had pulled out when he caught 

 it, we were not so very much afraid, though we all kept at a most 

 respectful distance. Martines is one of those persons who can charm 

 snakes ; in other words he is inoculated with some of the venom of 

 the snakes, which effectually secures him from all danger and he 

 handles the most venomous kinds without the least apprehension. 



" Marvellous as this may appear to you, it is really true. He 

 never hesitates to catch hold of a snake, meet it when or where he 

 may. He seizes it just below the head, holds it dangling between 

 his finger and thumb, and after depriving it of its fangs, carries it 

 about in the crown of his hat. He often takes it out, and placing it 

 opon the ground, and retiring to some little distance places his hand 

 on the earth, and raps to attract its attention, — calls it to come to 

 him, and, believe it! the horrid reptile crawls to him, gets on his 

 hand and is instantly recaught in the manner I have described. Re- 

 member this is not a " hearsay story." I have seen it done before 

 yesterday, and know that Martines is not the only one who can do 

 such things, there are many people about Maracay who are inocu- 

 lated as he is, and none of them fear to catch snakes." 



Having been requested, on behalf of a physician in this vicinity to 

 obtain further particulars in regard to this interesting subject, the fol- 

 lowing statements were made in a letter dated Chacao, May 19, 

 1828. 



" I will now tell you all we have learned on the subject of 



Snake-vaccination, while at Tapatapa, which I request you to com- 

 municate to Dr. and assure him from me, that I tell '^the truth 



and nothing hut the truth.^ Our information is gained from a med- 

 ical man as well as from the unlearned. The doctor was questioned 

 by Mr. A. as he was anxious that there should be no mistake in what 

 we repeated to you. 



