VARANIDAE 5 45 



Sir J. G. Tennent ■^ gives the following account of V 

 scdvator : — 



" The ' Kabara-goya ' of the Singhalese is partial to marshy 

 ground, and when disturbed upon land will take refuge in the 

 nearest water. From the somewhat eruptive appearance of the 

 yellow blotches on its scales, a closely allied species, similarly 

 spotted, obtained the name of Monitor exanthematicus, and it is 

 curious that the native appellation of this one, Kctbara, is 

 suggestive of the same idea. The Singhalese, on a strictly 

 homoeopathic principle, believe that its fat, externally applied, is 

 a cure for cutaneous disorders, but that taken inwardly it is 

 poisonous. The skilfulness of the Singhalese in their preparation 

 of poisons and their addiction to using them are unfortunately 

 notorious traits in the character of the rural population. Amongst 

 these preparations the one which above all others excites the 

 utmost dread, from the nmnber of murders attributed to its 

 agency, is the potent kahara-tel, a term which Europeans some- 

 times corrupt into colra-tel, implying that the venom is obtained 

 from the hooded-snake ; whereas it professes to be extracted from 

 the Kabara-goya. 



" In the preparation of this mysterious compound, the unfor- 

 tunate Kabara-goya is forced to take a painfully prominent part. 

 The receipt, as written down by a Kandyan, was sent to me from 

 Kornegalle by Mr. Morris, the civil officer of that district ; and 

 in dramatic arrangement it far outdoes the cauldron of ]\Iacbeth's 

 witches. The ingredients are extracted from venomous snakes 

 by making incisions in the head of these reptiles and suspending 

 them over a basin to collect the poison as it flows. To this, 

 arsenic and other drugs are added, and the whole is boiled in a 

 human skull, with the aid of three Kabara-goyas, which are tied 

 on three sides of the fire, with their heads directed towards it, 

 and tormented by whips to make them hiss so that the fire may 

 blaze. The froth from their lips is then added to the -boiling 

 mixture, and so soon as an oily scum rises to the surface, the 

 kabara-tel is complete. Before commencing the operation of pre- 

 paring the poison, a cock has to be sacrificed to the demons. 



" This ugly lizard is itself regarded with such aversion by the 

 Singhalese that if one enter a house or walk over the roof, it is 

 regarded as an omen of ill-fortune, sickness, or death ; and in 



1 Sketches of the Nat. Hist, of Ceylon, London, 1861. 

 VOL. VIII 2 N 



