124 A NATURAL HISTORY 



and fliaded Valleys, dreadful in Appearance, and more fo in its 

 Executions. 



This cruel Serpent is an Emblem of the old Serpent, that 

 great fiery Dragon, that in a few Hours reduced yoi>, a wealthy 

 Prince, into the lowefl Ebb of Poverty, converted his Palace in- 

 to a Dunghill, and his Body into an Hofpital of Difeafes ; and if 

 permitted, he would immediately turn the Earth into a Scene of 

 Blood and Deftrudion ; therefore ht is called a,-n-o?.x-juv, xhtDeJiroyer, 

 Rev. ix. II. the Murderer, and Shedder of Blood. N. B. The 

 tutelar Deity of the Ccefars was Apollo, that is, the — Dejiroyer. 

 The like kind of bloody Deity has prefided in the Temples of Ty- 

 ranny ever fince. 



XCI. The Gobe Moujes, fo denominated by the French, from" 

 its gobbling all kinds of Flies, which it conftantly hunts, and fwal- 

 lows in a voracious manner. It commonly frequents Houfes 

 where it fuffers no little Infers to live, no not upon Garments : 

 It is of the ftellionick form, and the leaft of all the Quadrupeds- 

 in thofe Antilles, which our Etiglifi call, the Leeward-IJlanh. 



May not this Animal ferve to reprefent thofe gobbling Sots, 

 who brufli ofF tlie Flies of Melancholy, and drown them in the 

 inchanted Cup? Thus likewife the Sons of Mammon hunt for 

 golden Flies^ as Entertainments mofl delicious. 



XCn. BROCilE r DE TORR E, or the Land-Pike, is a 

 Serpent of about fifteen Inches long, fo termed from its Likenefs 

 in Figure and Skin to that Fifli. Inftead of Fins, it has four 

 Feet, too weak to fupport the Body, therefore crawls on its 

 Belly, after an odd unufual manner, winding its Body about like 

 a Pike newly taken out of the Water; which kind of Motion be- 

 ing firange, ftrikes Terror into Spedtators. Tetre^ denies it to 

 have the perfedl Shape, Head and Skin of the common Pike, 

 and treats Sieur Rochefort with fome Roughnefs, according^ to 

 Mr. Ray. 



In the Night, thefe Serpents are found under the Rocks, where 

 they make a fi ightful Noife, more hideous than the croaking of 

 Frogs and Toads. In Antigua is a Fifli called Cajie, like our Pike 

 in figure, feven or eight Foot long, and big in proportion : It 

 preys like the Shark, and efpecially on human Fleil: ; and the 



leaft 



