31 
as above. The black snake is intensely black npon the upper side 
from head to tail, but the holly is sometimes bright red, sometimes 
salmon-coloured, and again yellow. When alarmed it raises the front 
third of its body off the ground, bends forward the bead which is 
flattened^ and Ls ready to strike certain deatli upon its enemy. When 
in this attitude it does not wait to be injured before sinking. The 
flattening of the head is a certain sign of anger, and at once dis¬ 
tinguishes the venomous nature of the species, insomuch that none of the 
non-venomous snakes practice the habit. In length the black snake 
averages about four to five feet, and in thickness about two to three 
inches. There is apparently very little neck, that is the head and 
neck arfe much of the saino thickness, and this again is a distinguish¬ 
ing mark of the venomous from the non-venomous sorts, for the 
latter have a distinct head joined upon a much narrower neck. The 
black snake is both diurnal and nocturnal in its habits, and is j)articu- 
larly fond of haunting swamps and nver hanks, though it is found in 
all localities. It can s^vim well, indeed is fond of the water. Always 
approach it with caution! One blow from a stick will, however, 
disable it. 
The Brown Snake attains to even a greater length and greater 
thickness than the black snake. Its avei-age length on the coast 
lands is about five to six feet, but upon the interior westeni plains 
it is fi*equently met with eight feet in length. In young specimens 
the belly is yellow-spotted, but in aged individuals these disappear, 
and the whole snake is of a brown colour. lu the writer’s opinion it 
is even more deadly in its bite than the black snake, for he has seen 
strong healthy bullocks succumb in a few hours to its temblo venom. 
Also lie can positively attest that it will sometimes even when 
unprovoked attack both man and horse. So that a person attempting 
to kill one must always act with caution. As a rule one sharp blow 
with a stick or whip will break the vertebra? of any snake, this renders 
it unable to travel and it can be killed at leisure. 
No specific antidote has yet been discovered to the poison of these 
snakes. There have been many so called discoveries, notably that of 
Underwood and also of Shires, but both these, when tested by 
medical experts, proved useless. The only action that can be taken 
is to tie a ligature tightly round the limb between the bite and the 
lieart, and then to out the wound so as to make it bleed freely, or to 
suck it forcibly. Send at once for a medical man and, in the mean¬ 
time, keep up the depression that will ensue, by frequent dnnks of 
strong spiiits of any sort. A man can consume a bottle of spirits in a 
very short time, if bitten by a venomous species, and yet lie 
will not get drunk. It should always be remembei'cd that to tlio 
strong man who is bitten, there is the chance of life if the above pre¬ 
cautions are taken; much depends upon whether the snake was 
extremely angry, as when wounded, or whether merely annoyed, as 
when toucliod or trod upon, for the reptile has the power to eject 
at will, more or less poison ; again, the quantity of poison decre<a.scs 
rapidly with evoi-y bite. Mncli also depends upon the state of lieallh 
