[ntlian and Pacific Oceans, extending, as 

 Dr. Giinther, of the British Museum, says, 

 'rom tlie coast of Madagascar to the 

 [sthmus of Panama. They pass their whole 

 ife i7i the water (with tlie exception, per- 

 laps, of Platurus), and soon die Avhen 

 srougiit on shore. They have very capa- 

 ;ious lungs, extending backwards to the 

 mus, and consequently all their ribs are 

 employed in performing the respiratory 

 unctions. By retaining a portion of the 

 dr in these extensive lungs they are 

 ;nabled to float on the surface of the 

 vater without the slightest effort. Cantor 

 ;ays that A\'hen the snake is out of the 

 vater and blinded by the light it freely 

 nakes use of its tongue as a feeler. The 

 ood of the sea-snakes consists entirely of 

 iniall fish, among them species with very 

 itrong spines [Apogon siluroids). As all 

 hese animals are killed by the poison of 

 ,he snake before they are swallowed, and as 

 ,heir muscles are perfectly relaxed their 

 irmature is harmless to the snake, which 

 iommences to SAvalloM* its prey from the 

 lead and depresses the sjjines as deglutition 

 )roceeds. There cannot be, says Dr. 

 jiunther, the slightest doubt that the 

 ;ea snakes belong to the most poisonous 

 pecies of the whole order. Russell and 

 Cantor, in the transactions of the 

 joological Society, ii., p. 303, have 

 bscertained it by direct observation. 

 Cortoises, other snakes, and fish died 

 rom their bite in less than an hour, 

 md a man succumbed after four hours, 

 ^.ccidents are rarely caused by them, 

 jecause they are extremely shy, and swim 

 uway on the least alarm ; but Avhen sur- 

 prised in the submarine cavities forming 

 ;heir natural retreats, they attempt to 

 )ite every object near them, even turning 

 •ound to wound their OA\'n bodies. I hope 

 VIr. Coombe will be able to present the 

 ;pecimen to the Tasmanian Museum ; if so 

 ueans will be aftbrded me to give a more 

 letailed description of the specimen. 



' NOTES ON A VISIT TO WEST AUS- 

 TRALIA." By Alex. Morton. 



The Secretary then gave an account 

 )f his recent visit to Western Australia, 

 rotably in the Upper Murchison dis- 

 trict, 600 miles from Perth. The paper 

 ivas illustrated \f\i\\ numerous lantern 

 jlides prepared by Mr. Beattie from photo- 

 graphs taken by Mr. Morton whilst on 

 lis tour, the lantern being manipulated 

 jy Mr. Nat Oldham. In describing 

 lis journey to Western Australia, Mr. 

 Morton remarked that it was stated by 



some writers that the harbour of Albany 

 was one of the finest on the Australasian 

 coasts ; but he was of opinion that the 

 harbour of Hobart Avas in more ways than 

 one far ahead of that of Albany. If he 

 were asked to place the harbours of certain 

 centres of Australasia in order of accommo- 

 dation, from a shipping point of view, 

 he would do so as follows : — Hobart, 

 Sydney, Albany, Auckland, Wellington. 

 Having given a description of Perth he 

 took his audience straight away into 

 the strange, far-ott" inland districts of the 

 great western colony, with its varied scenes of 

 luxuriant vegetation, and arid, monotonous 

 plains, deserts, scrub, rock, and sheep and 

 cattle stations. Only a comparatively few 

 years ago it was a terra incognita. His 

 description of the natives was of an inter- 

 esting and vivid character. Some of them, 

 he said, were very finely grown men. 

 The features of many of them were 

 of a Jewish type. Professor Baldwin 

 Spencer had noticed the same thing in the 

 central parts of the Australian continent. 

 He described their corroborees. There 

 was no limit to the wives a man 

 might have, and a child might be 

 married to a man old enough to be 

 her grandfather. The weird funeral and 

 burial customs were described, also the 

 medicine men or Avizards, the native 

 camps, cannibals, and so on. He said they 

 were marvellously dexterous and clever 

 trackers. The ground Avas an open 

 book to them. A native Avould knoAv 

 the different tracks of every horse on 

 a station, and could follow them. They 

 Avere Avell fed and treated on the 

 stations as a general thing. They fared 

 very differently in their native camps and 

 in the deserts. It Avas Avlien they got to 

 the mining districts that they became 

 demoralised. The natives shoAV an 

 absence of malice after punishment. 

 Cannibalism Avas not at all uncommon 

 among them. He produced a number 

 of native Aveapons, etc., and explained 

 them. Some of the natives had learned 

 to speak English very fluently, and made 

 very good servants. The numerous slides 

 served to illustrate all these points exceed- 

 ingly Avell. Also several of the mining 

 toAvnships and mines, a good impression 

 being vividly conveyed of the hard, rough 

 life endured in tliese places, Avhilst the 

 mortality among young men from typhoid 

 Avas great. The "scai-city of Avater and the 

 droughts give rise to endless troubles, 

 deprtvations, and suttering. Still, Avith it 

 all, the indomitable Britisher overcomes 

 obstacles and flourishes in every district. 



