ANA 
ANA 
t^ariegated with a brownifh red intermixed with 
black fpots. 
The Rofe-coloured Amzell is common in Lap- 
Tand and fome other European countries, but is 
leldom found in Great Britain, See Ouzel. 
ANABLEPS. In the Artedian fyftem, the 
nanne of a new genus of filh of the malacopterigious 
kind J the diftinguifhing charafteriftics of wliich 
are, that the branchiaftege membrane contains fix 
bones, and there is only one fmall fin at the ex- 
tremity of the back. Of this fpecies of filh there 
Jire but few fpecimens extant. The Anableps is a 
fpecies of the cobitis in the Linnsan fyftem. 
ANACA. A Brazilian fpecies of parroquet, 
about the fize of a lark. The beak is brown and 
hooked ; the crown of the liead is covered witli river- 
coloured feathers, and there are circles of brown 
ones near the eyes. The diroat is grey; the upper- 
parts of the neck and fides are green; tlie belly is 
of a reddifli brown ; the back is green, with a pale 
brown fpot; and the tail is likewife of a pale brown. 
At the top of each wing is a deep blood-red mark ; 
and the other parts of the wings are green, except 
their extremities, which have a blueifli tinge. The 
thighs are covered with green feathers, and the legs 
and feet are grey. 
ANACANDAIA, or ANACONDA. A Cey- 
lonefe ferpent of enormous magnitude, extremely 
mifchievous among cattle; whence it has alfo ob- 
tained the name of bubalinus. 
The following ftrange account of the Anacon- 
da, faid to be written by an Englifh gentleman 
refident in the Eaft Indies, and figned R. Edwin, 
was inferted in the Edinburgh Evening Courant 
of Auguft 1 5, 176&, and from thence found it's way 
into moft of the Englifh periodical mifcellanies. 
We give it, therefore, rather as the only parti- 
cular account we have been able to obtain of this 
aflonifhing ferpent, than as one on which we can 
think of hazarding our own veracity. 
* Some years fince the commands of my direc- 
tors carrying me to Ceylon, to tranfaft an affair of 
no little confequence, I had an apartment pre- 
pared me on the fkirts of the principal town, facing 
the woods. At Ibme diftance from my window 
there was a rifing ground, on which ftood three or 
four large palm-trees, that afforded me every morn- 
ing, as I lay in bed, a delightful profpecft. One 
morning, as I was looking at thefe, I faw, as I 
thought, a large arm of one of them in flrange 
commotions, bending and twilling about (but 
there was no wind) and often ftriking one end 
to the earth, then railing it again, and lofing it 
among the leaves. I was gazing at this with great 
amazement, when a Ceylonefe coming in, I 
begged him to look and woncier with me. He 
looked, and was more amazed and terrified than 
myfelf. In fiiort, a palenefs overfpread his whole 
face, and he feemed almoft finking to the earth 
v/ith terror. He conjured me to bar up all my 
doors; and then told me, that what appeared an 
arm of the tree, was in reality a ferpent of that 
monftrous fize, diverting itfelf with it's various 
contorfions, and now and then darting dovvn to 
the earth for prey. I foon found the truth of 
what he told me; and, looking with more cir- 
cumfpe6tion, faw it feize a fir.all animal and take it 
lip into the tree. Enquiring farther about tliis 
ftrange fight, the Ceyloneie told me that the only 
wonder was, that the creature was fo near us ; for 
it was a feroent but too well known in the ifland, 
tliough it ufually kept in the inland parts and 
woods, where it often dropped from the covert of 
a large tree, and devoured the unwary traveller. A 
relation fo ftrange as this could never have gained' 
credit with me, had I not, at the fame inftant, per- 
ceived a creatare capable, from it's fize, of doing, 
even more than v/as related. The monfrer con- 
tinued to divert itfelf; and v/e afiembled in a body 
of twelve, all on horfeback and well armed, to- 
deftroy it. We rode up towards the place: but, 
that we might not expofe ourfelves to unneceffary 
danger, we furrounded the ground, and rode be- 
hind a dole thicket, from whence we might, un- 
feen, level our fire-ariTiS. It was by this time the 
heat of the day; and, when we arrived, we found- 
it fo much larger than we had conceived, that 
every man of us wiflied hirnfcif faiely at home,., 
and it was a long time before any one had the re- 
lolution to fire. We had now time to obfcrve the 
creature; and, believe me, all the dcfcriptionr.of 
monfters of this kind hitherto given are trifles, 
when compaA^ed with what we faw. The natives 
agreed that it was much l-arger than any they had 
ev<"r feen, and fuch a mixture of horror and beauty 
blended together, no eyes but thofe which faw it 
can conceive. The creature was more than as 
thick as a flender man's waifl; yet leemed far 
from fat, and very long in proportion to it's thick- 
nefs. It often hung by it's tail from the highefl 
boughs of the tree; anct being moft furprizingly 
nimible, was now diverting itfelf, in the heat of 
the day, with a thoufand gambols round the 
branches of the tree: fometimes coming down, 
twifting it's tail round the bottom of the ti-unk, and 
darting itl'elf to it's whole length around. In 
tlie midft of one of thefe gambols, we were fur- 
prized to fee it get up in haile into the tree. But 
the caufe foon appeared : a fmall animal, of the fox 
kind, bat not like our Englifli foxes, immediately 
approached; which the ferpent having feen com- 
ing, took this way to be prepared for it; and, dart- 
ing down' on the unwary creature from the tree, 
fwallowed it in an inftant. Then licking it's chops, 
with a broad double tongue of a biackilh colour, it 
laid itfelf at full length on the ground, but with it's 
tail ftill twifted round the tree. In this pofture I 
had leifure, with horror, yet with admiration, to be- 
hold it. It was covered with fcales like thofe of 
a crocodile, all ridged up in the middle; it's head 
was green, with a vait black fpot in the middle, 
having yellow ftreaks round thejaws ; it had a yellow 
circle like a golden collar, round it's neck, behind 
which was another great fpot of black; and it's fides; 
were of a dufl^y olive colour. It's back was more 
beautiful than can well be imagined: down the 
middle of it v>?as a broad chain of black, curled 
and waved at the edge; and, round this, all the 
way, a narrow one of flefn-colour, tlie outfide of 
that having a very broad one of a bright yellow, 
waved and curled in various inflexions, and Ipotted 
all over at fmall diftances, with great round and 
long blotches of a perfect blood colour. It's head 
v/as very fiat, 'but extremely broad ; and it's eyes 
were rnonftroufiy large, bright, and terrible. Thefe 
were the colours as it lay motionlefs; but, when 
it moved about in the fun, it was a thoufand times 
more beaudful: the colours, according to the 
feveral fhades of light, prefenting the eye with a 
vail variety of hues, and in many places looking 
like the changeable colours in fiiks. 
' We nov/ all levelled at it as it lay, and fired at 
it's head; but, whether it accidentally moved juft 
at that time, or our fears made us take bad aim, or 
what- 
