THE COLLECTORS' MONTHLY. 



23 



exception of about two feet from the 

 big snake's tail was loose. 



Then a most wonderful thing hap- 

 pened. The big snake's head was at 

 the top of the tree, and he hadn't been 

 paying much attention to the goings 

 on at the other end of his body. 

 When the smaller snake stopped pull- 

 ing, the big one looked down and saw 

 that something was wrong. His eyes 

 glistened, and reaching down he 

 grabbed a mouthful of his own cover- 

 ing and proceeded to finish the job. 

 It was done with dispatch and ease. 

 The big snake seemed proud at his 

 new suit and wriggled all around the 

 case and admired himself for some 

 time. Then, to the astonishment of 

 the watchers, the smaller snake also 

 climbed the tree and went through 

 the same performance, assisted by the 

 larger one. 



After both reptiles were free from 

 the old skins they made a meal of 

 them, and each drank about a gallon 

 of water to wash down the repast. — 

 Philadelphia Press. 



Only a Beetle. 



A distinguished naturalist was once 

 shut up in a gloomy French prison 

 for some political reason. While 

 there his active mind prevented him 

 from sinking into despondency, for 

 even his cheerless cell furnished him 

 with food for thought and study. 

 The very insects, which to another 

 would have been merely objects of 

 aversion, were to him as fresh leaves 



from the ever interesting book of 

 nature. 



The surgeon who visited the prison 

 found the naturalist one day intently 

 examining a beetle, which had intrud- 

 ed on his solitude. He informed the 

 physician that the insect was a rare 

 one, and proceeded with the enthusi- 

 asm of a naturalist to speak of its 

 peculiarites. The physician begged 

 that he might have it for two young 

 friends who were ardent students of 

 the science, and it was readily granted 

 to him. 



The students were well acquainted 

 with the fame of the celebrated Latre- 

 ille, and when they learned his situa- 

 tion they forthwith took active meas- 

 ures to secure his release. So success- 

 ful were they, that the scholar was at 

 length set at liberty, and could ever 

 after feel that he owed his life to an 

 insect. A month later, and all his 

 fellow-prisoners were put on board a 

 ship for transportation . The vessel 

 foundered in the Bay of Biscay, and 

 all on board perished. 



How small the means God uses to 

 save our life, or to take it away. 

 And if we will but look back along 

 the line of our personal history, shall 

 we not usually find that the most triv- 

 ial events have frequently decided one 

 whole life course. Great events do 

 not often happen to us, and when 

 they do the result is not what we ex- 

 pected. But the chance meeting with 

 an individual, the perusal of some 

 book, or even a paragraph in a news- 

 paper which deeply impresses us, may 



