206 EDGE OF THE JUNGLE 
a disturbance in the low ferns beneath his ham~ 
mock. He reached over and caught hold of one 
of the cords, finding the attendant trap heavy 
with prey. He was on the point of feeling his 
way to the trap itself, when instead, by some 
subconscious prompting, he reached over and 
snapped on his flashlight. And there before him, 
hanging in mid-air, striking viciously at his fin- 
gers which were just beyond its reach, was a 
young fer-de-lance—one of the deadliest of trop- 
ical serpents. His nerves gave way, and with 
a crash the trap fell to the ground where he 
could hear it stirring and thrashing about among 
the dead leaves. This ominous rustling did not 
encourage sleep; he lay there for a long time 
listening,—and every minute is longer in the 
darkness,—while his hammock quivered and 
trembled with the reaction. 
Guided by this, I might enter into a new field 
of naturalizing and say to those who might, in 
excitement, be tempted to do otherwise, ‘Look 
at your traps before lifting them.” But my 
audience would be too limited; I will refrain 
from so doing. 
It is true that this brief experience might be 
looked upon as one illustration of the perils of 
