Occasional Notes. 339 
might certainly lend nerve of the kind. And if the snake 
be handled, without its attempting to bite, inoculation 
receives the credit of prote6live power, even though any 
other person with corresponding nerve, might equally 
have handled the reptile ; while if the snake does bite, 
and, being harmless, produces no result, inoculation also 
receives the credit. On these considerations, it 
must be yielded that, however remarkable the per- 
formances with snakes in the hands of the inocu- 
lated may be to an observer, they are worse than 
worthless, unless the observer is really familiar with the 
strufture, and the chara6leristics and habits of snakes — 
a fa6l that should be proved in every case, however 
eminent the individual may be in other respe6ls. At 
present no such competent observer has declared him- 
self, either as a believer in inoculation, or even as one 
who had witnessed any seemingly remarkable phenomena 
in connexion therewith. 
As an example of the erroneous impressions that may 
be conveyed in perfe6l good faith, I may adduce exhi- 
bitions with green snakes, since I have had such snakes 
named to me in such a connexion, and since I have been 
able to benefit by common ideas regarding one, a harm- 
less whip-snake (Dryiophis fulgida), which has been 
exhibited for some time in the Museum. Several different 
kinds of green, or nearly green, snakes are to be found 
in the colony, one of which is a poisonous Viperine 
snake, known it appears commonly by the term parrot 
snake, though it may well be doubted from the general 
use of this name for the harmless green snake in the 
Museum, whether this term is not commonly applied to 
all of them generally. An exhibition may be seen with 
