SNAKE-POISON LITERATURE. 37 



suade him to drink milk," (which you can do by 

 dropping it on to bis head) "the offer of it would 

 become a great inducement to good behaviour. 

 A cobra must always be taken out daily and 

 gradually tired out of his wildness, but in the 

 intervals of his performances he should be left 

 alone and not worried. There is very little 

 danger about handling this snake: nerve is all that 

 is required. I have very little of it myselfi and 

 can never handle venomous snakes with con- 

 fidence. I have often envied the nerve of a friend 

 in Rangoon, who emboldened by the possession 

 of a fancied antidote in case of accident, hand- 

 les cobras with perfect freedom ; he puts his 

 hand into a narrow-mouthed basket containing 

 several cobras, and picks out the one he wants 

 without the slightest objection on the part of 

 the snake beyond the usual hard swearing. 

 When the cobra is on the floor, he squats 

 down before him and brings him to attention, 

 if he is making tracks, by a smart smack on the 

 back ; then by a side to side movement of the 

 knees or gently moving in front of him a piece 

 of chalk or a roUed-up handkerchief held in the 

 left hand, he can be kept steady for a long 

 time, following your movements." (The hand 



