56 The Humming Bird. 



the common snake has only a few black spots ; in the latter 

 also, the scales have a keel or ridge, those of the viper being 

 smooth. The general appearance of the two reptiles is very 

 different, the viper being comparatively short and stumpy, 

 with the. base of the head much wider than that of its non- 

 poisonous relative. The latter is perfectly harmless, and, 

 although I have caught numbers of them, I have never known 

 one to even attempt to bite. In any case their teeth are much 

 too small to do any harm, and can scarcely be felt with the 

 finger. Needless to say, their tongue, which the)/ constantly 

 protrude, is quite incapable of hurting anyone. I was once 

 bitten, however, by a snake belonging to the same genus, but 

 of a different species (Tropidonotus tesselatus) , from the 

 south of Europe. He was a most savage, intractable fellow, 

 always hissing loudly whenever approached. After he had 

 been in my possession some little time, he managed to make 

 his escape, and, not being heard of for two or three weeks, was 

 given up as lost. One day a gentleman living three or four- 

 doors round the corner came to tell me that there was a snake 

 on a ledge at the back of his house, and to ask if it belonged 

 to me. The information gave me great pleasure, which, 

 strangely enough, did not appear to be shared by the occupier 

 of the house. I quickly went with him, when he pointed out 

 the snake, which was coiled up and basking in the sun. I got 

 on the ledge and seized him, when to my great surprise he bit 

 me three times in rapid succession, each bite leaving a double 

 row of little holes in the fleshy part of my hand. The 

 punctures bled freely, but knowing that the snake was not 

 venomous I did not feel any alarm, although I thought it 

 advisable to have the wounds touched with caustic, as the 

 reptile's mouth might not have been clean. This snake had 

 much stronger teeth than the English species ; I do not believe 

 that those ol the latter would draw blood, even if they tried 

 to bite, which, as I said before, I have never known them to 

 do. There is another European species, the Vipérine snake 

 (T. viperinus) , which is very interesting, and becomes very 

 tame. It is smaller than T. natrix, and, as its name implies, 

 bears a considerable resemblance in shape to a viper, but is 

 perfectly harmless. 



Now a few words regarding the best localities for meeting 

 with the Grass Snake. They are essentially water-lovers, and 

 therefore the vicinity of ponds and ditches is the best place to 

 explore for them. They are probably more common in damp, 

 clayey parts of the country than on sandy heaths and commons. 



