an upper view of the snake 



without endangering the parting of the 

 snake's body. While engaged in this work 

 my nephew captured a lusty mountain black 

 snake, and I got my camera ready, focused 

 it, and put it in the hands of one of the 

 party, and then tried the experiment to see 

 what the black snake would do with my two 

 hands when his tail touched them. The re- 

 sult is depicted in the accompanying photo- 

 graphs. 



He handcuffed me in less time than it 

 takes to tell how he did it. In fact, his mo- 

 tions were too quick for me to accurately 

 tell just how he did it, but by taking a series 

 of photographs of different views I succeeded 

 in getting some pictures which will explain 

 the operation better than I can by words. 



The first photograph shows my nephew 

 holding the snake by the head the moment 

 after its tail had touched my arm, and, as 

 it may be seen, my hands are securely tied 

 together. 



The second photograph shows an upper 

 view o>f the snake in my hands. 



The third photograph shows an under view. 

 In each of the last two photographs I for- 

 cibly kept my hands apart so as to show 

 the manner in which the knot was tied. In 

 the last photograph you can see how com- 

 pletely I was handcuffed after the snake had 

 drawn the knot taut by this living manacle. 

 Of course, I don't want the reader or any 

 one else to think that I was unable to free 

 myself, because I have strength enough, and 

 any ordinary man has, to simply pull his 

 hands apart and tear the body of the little 

 reptile asunder; but, had his body been made 

 of metal instead of flesh no handcuff in- 

 vented by man could have held me more se- 

 curely. To keep this snake for future ob- 

 servations I threw him in a large receiving 

 cage, which was made 'of a piece of wire 

 netting, bent into the form of a cylinder, and 

 covered top and bottom, and in which I put 



63 



