BANDED RATTLE-SNAKE. 321 



The person thus l^itten I have known to survive 

 without any assistance for many hours ; but where 

 a Rattle-Snake with full force penetrates with his 

 deadly fangs, and pricks a vein or an artery, in- 

 evitable death ensues, and that, as I have often 

 seen, in less than two minutes. The Indians 

 know their destiny the minute they are bit, and 

 when they perceive it mortal, apply no remedy ; 

 concluding all efforts in vain : if the bite happen- 

 eth in a fleshy part, they immediately cut it, to 

 stop the current of the poison." 



The colour of the head of this Rattle-Snake 

 is brown, the eye red, the upper part of the body 

 of a brownish yellow, transversly marked with ir- 

 regular broad black lists. The rattle is usually 

 of a brown colour, composed of several horny 

 membranous cells, of an undulated pyramidal 

 figure, which are articulated one within another, 

 so that the point of the first cell reaches as far as 

 the basis or protuberant ring of the third, and so 

 on ; which articulation being very loose, gives 

 liberty to the parts of the cells that are inclosed 

 within the outward rings, to strike against the 

 sides of them, and so to cause the ratthng noise 

 which is heard when the snake shakes its tail. " 



The charming, as it is commonly called, or 

 attractive power this snake is said to have, of 

 drawing to it small animals, and devouring them, 

 is generally believed in America ; as for my own 

 part I never saw the action, but a great many 

 from whom I had it related, all agree in the man- 

 ner of the process; which is, that the animals, 



