1837.] On the •« Indian Boa" " Python Tigris" 533 



ing its prey, the snake darts out his forked tongue as if licking his 

 lips at the thoughts of the banquet, and gradually prepares himself 

 for the deadly spring. 



I introduced a full grown buck rabbit, into the den of the largest 

 snake, which there lay coiled up in one corner. 



The rabbit eyed the monster in evident uneasiness, with his ears 

 thrown back, and nose elevated and stamping firmly with his hind 

 feet, on the floor. The snake in the mean time was incessantly bran- 

 dishing his long forked tongue, and gradually opening out the close 

 drawn coils of his body in order to give himself room for the deadly 

 spring. 



His head then slowly and almost imperceptibly glided forward 

 over the upper coil, towards the rabbit, which intently eyed every 

 movement of his foe. — In an instant and with a suddenness which 

 made me start, the snake dashed forward, but to my surprise the rab- 

 bit eluded his grasp, by springing over him. 



With a loud and threatening hiss the Boa sullenly gathered himself 

 again into his corner, where he lay still for an instant, with his head 

 still pointing towards the rabbit. — Not liking his position, the poor 

 buck turned to move away, and that movement decided his fate, for 

 with the speed of lightning, both snake and rabbit rolled in a fast 

 embrace, with a heavy crash against the side of the cage. The Boa 

 had seized his victim by a fore leg, with one coil round the throat so 

 closely drawn that the eyes seemed starting from their sockets ; a 

 second coil was thrown around the body, immediately below the 

 shoulders, and another round the loins. So instantaneous was the 

 spring, that not even one cry escaped the rabbit, and though the last 

 convulsive motion of the hind legs, was strong enough to shake the 

 boa, it lasted but a few minutes and all was over. For some seconds, 

 after life had to all appearance fled, the snake still held his firm posi- 

 tion as if to allow no chance of escape, and proceeded first to disen- 

 gage his teeth from the hold he had taken and then to uncoil from the 

 neck; — with the remaining coil he still held fast. 



For some little time he continued to open and twist his jaws about 



most frightfully, to clear his mouth of the rabbit's fur, which done, he 



j commenced searching for the head, and measuring the carcass all 



round with his nose ; — during this time the tongue was ever on the 



j move, darting and quivering about in all directions ; but although 



constantly in contact with the animal's hair, not a vestige of saliva 



j was left behind. There was no lubrication here. 



3 z 



