A YOUNG NATURALIST. 171 



We felt quite grieved at Sumichrast's suffering ; for we 

 well knew by experience the intolerable pain which is pro- 

 duced by the sting of this herb. L'Encuerado took Lucien 

 in charge, while I gave my assistance to the injured man. 

 For some distance we moved along without much difficul- 

 ty, but very soon a whole forest of nettles stood up in 

 front of us. Lucien and Sumichrast sat down, while the 

 Indian and I, by means of our machetes, opened out a nar- 

 row path ^ at last we reached again the timber land, so we 

 had now almost got out of our difficulties. 



The stalks of the nettles, cut off a few inches above 

 the ground, served to give firmness to our footing. But 

 l'Encuerado, always too confident, tripped up, and his right 

 cheek was brushed by some of their leaves ; it only needed 

 this to render him perfectly unrecognizable. Although I 

 pitied him, I could not help smiling at the grimaces pro- 

 duced on his sun-burnt visage by the painful stings. ( Even 

 Sumichrast, when looking at him, forgot his own suffer- 

 ings. 



Under a cypress, we observed five or six snakes, each 

 about a yard and a half long. One, more courageous than 

 the others, remained under the trees and steadily surveyed 

 our party. Gringalet, furious in the extreme, barked and 

 jumped all round the reptile, which, raising its head from 

 the centre of the coil formed by its body, shot out its 

 tongue. Its skin was of a golden yellow, dotted with green 

 spots, and streaked by two almost imperceptible black 

 lines. L'Encuerado called in the dog ; the snake then coil- 

 ed itself up, slowly turning its head in every direction, as if 

 to select the best direction for retreat. Suddenly it unroll- 

 ed its whole length, exposing to our view an unfortunate 

 sparrow, which was still breathing. Leaving it unmolest- 

 ed, after a few minutes' delay it seized its victim by the 

 head, by degrees the little feathered innocent disappeared, 



