114 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



charmers, charming never so wisely.' According to Indian folk-lore 

 there is a common belief among the natives that the Nag or Cobra 

 (Naja tripudians) is always a male, and that the Nagin, or female, is 

 the graceful Snake (Zamenis gracilis or Z. fasciolatus). A similar 

 belief probably prevailed throughout the East, and the Psalmist's 

 ' deaf adder ' was perhaps some Snake popularly believed to be the 

 mate of the African Cobra (Naja haje), a frequent subject for Snake- 

 charming in Palestine. At any rate, the proverbial ' deaf adder ' 

 possessed the organ of hearing, and yet she stopped her ear and paid 

 no heed to the music which apparently fascinated other Snakes. The 

 Snake-charmers of Egypt and India have been known from the earliest 

 period. The mantras or incantations of these men have really no 

 influence on other Snakes except over the reptiles trained to obey their 

 call. The Cobra's fondness for music has been reported from time 

 immemorial. The snakeman perhaps improves upon this natural 

 instinct, and after a few weeks' training succeeds in teaching the 

 reptile to keep time with the waving of his musical instrument." 



A discussion recently took place in the pages of the ' Athenasum ' 

 on a remark made by Sir David Hunter-Blair, that there was absolutely 

 no mention of Fireflies in all the writings of antiquity. In opposition 

 to this statement Dr. S. Birdwood has given the following quotations :— 



Aristotle, 'History of Animals,' iv. 1, 3: "The glowworm 

 [iruyoXa(A.7ris] is both winged and wingless " ; and v. 17, 7 : " The 

 wingless glowworm has its beginning in a little, hairy, black grub." 

 Both quotations probably refer to Lampyris noctiluca, the mouche lumi- 

 neuse of the French. 



Pliny, ' Natural History,' xi. 28 [34] : " The glowworm [lampyris] 

 emits from its side at night a light like that of fire, bright at the instant 

 it opens its wings, and again extinguished in darkness at the moment 

 it closes them " ; and xviii. 26 [66] : " The signal of the ripening of 

 barley and for the sowing of millets is one, the shining of the ' cicin- 

 delse,' so the rustics call them, but the Greeks ' lampyrides.' How 

 boundless is the bounty of Nature ! " Both these passages undoubtedly 

 refer to Lampyris italica, the lucciole of the modern Italians. 



Dr. R. Garnett has also added to our information on this question: — 



After reading Sir David Hunter-Blair's letter, I turned to Forcellini 

 under cicindela, and found him citing Pliny, lib. xviii. cap. 66 : " Lu- 

 centes vespere per arva cicindelae ; ita appellant rustici stellantes 

 volatus, Graeci vero lampyridas." Referring to the passage to ascer* 

 tain whether Pliny had said anything further, I was rewarded by 



