I 
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The Double-headed Snake 
I S drawn here of its natural Bignefs. I did not propofe at firft in this Natural 
Hi/lory to exhibit Monfters, but our prefent Subject (confidered even with a 
fingle Head) may be looked on as a natural Production of a Species little or not at 
all known to us. 
It had two very diftinCt Heads, joined together at the Crania . See Letter B. The 
Heads were not in an horizontal Pofition when the Snake lay on its Belly, but in- 
clined to each other on their under Sides, leaving an Opening for the Throat to 
come in between the two Heads underneath, as is exprefied at A. I found, by 
opening the Mouths, that each of them had a forked Tongue, and the Teeth were 
feen in each Mouth. It was not of the Viper-Kind, there being no Appearance of 
Tufks or Fangs. The Tops of the Heads were cover’d with broad flattifh Scales : 
The Neck was {lender; the Body increafed gradually to near half its Length, then de- 
creafed to the Tail, which ended in a Point. The upper Side, for the whole Length, 
was covered with fmall Scales, falling one over another ; the Belly was cover’d with 
lingle Scales running acrofs it, in the Form of half Rings. It was all over of a 
yellowifti Colour, without any Spots or Variation. Since I drew this, a Perfon 
brought a common Engli/h Snake to me, which had two Heads quite feparate from 
each other, the Necks parting about an Inch from the Heads. 
The above defcribed came from the Illand of Barbadoes> and was fald to be taken 
out of an Egg of the Size of a fmall Pullet’s Egg, by a Man who found it under 
Ground as he was digging. It was brought November 5, 17473 to the Royal Society , 
where it was examined : I afterwards procur’d it to make a Drawing : It feems to me 
to be of the fame Species with the Yellow Snake defcribed and figur’d in Sir Hans 
Bloane's Natural Hijiory oj Jamaica , Vol. II. P. 335. Tab. 274. 
The Black Butterflies. 
I S U P P O S E thefe two Butterflies to be Male and Female ; the Bodies 
and Ground-work of the Wings in both are of a very black Velvet-like Colour on 
their upper Sides, and a more nifty Black beneath ; the biggeft Fly has a large irregular 
white Spot on each of the upper or longer Wings ; on the under Wings it has feven 
fine, red, longifh Spots on each ; befides fix little Half-Moons of red between the 
Points of the Scalloping of the Wings, it hath alfo four fmall red Spots on the * 
Body. The lefter Fly hath acrofs each of the upper Wings a Cloud of broken 
Spots of a yellowifh Colour ; the lower Wings have longifih Spots of Red, much 
like thofe in the larger Fly, but the fmall Half-Moons between the Scallops are 
White. 
I take thefe to be fcarce Flies; I have not feen them in any Collections ; they were 
given to me by the late Mr. William Goupy , Fan-Maker in the Strand , London , who 
told me he received them from the Weft Indies ; they are drawn of the exaCt Size of 
Nature, as are all the Infects defcribed in this Work* 
The 
