A SNAKE FIGHT 23 



attack was so instantaneous that it was difficult to see 

 just what had happened. There was tremendous 

 writhing and struggling on the part of the jararaca; 

 and then, leaning over the knot into which the two 

 serpents were twisted, I saw that the mussurama had 

 seized the jararaca by the lower jaw, putting its own 

 head completely into the wide-gaping mouth of the 

 poisonous snake. The long fangs were just above the 

 top of the mussurama's head ; and it appeared, as well 

 as I could see, that they were once again driven into 

 the mussurama ; but without the slightest effect. Then 

 the fangs were curved back in the jaw, a fact which I 

 particularly noted, and all effort at the offensive was 

 abandoned by the poisonous snake. 



Meanwhile the mussurama was chewing hard, and 

 gradually shifted its grip, little by little, until it got the 

 top of the head of the jararaca in its mouth, the lower 

 jaw of the jararaca being spread out to one side. The 

 venomous serpent was helpless ; the fearsome master of 

 the wild life of the forest, the deadly foe of humankind, 

 was itself held in the grip of death. Its cold, baleful 

 serpent's eyes shone, as evil as ever. But it was dying. 

 In vain it writhed and struggled. Nothing availed it. 



Once or twice the mussurama took a turn round the 

 middle of the body of its opponent, but it did not seem 

 to press hard, and apparently used its coils chiefly in 

 order to get a better grip, so as to crush the head of its 

 antagonist," or to hold the latter in place. This crushing 

 was done by its teeth ; and the repeated bites were 

 made with such effort that the muscles stood out on 

 the mussurama's neck. Then it took two coils round 

 the neck of the jararaca, and proceeded deliberately to 

 try to break the backbone of its opponent by twisting 

 the head round. With this purpose it twisted its own 



