The Viper. 
495 
Serpents differ very much in size. We are told of 
Serpents in the Isle of Java measuring fifty feet in 
length ; and in the British Museum there is a skin of 
one thirty-two feet long. 
Ik ^ 
THE VIPER, OK ADDER, (Vipera berus,) 
Is a venomous species of serpent that seldom exceeds 
the length of two or three feet, and is of a dull yellowish 
brown colour with black, spots, the abdomen being en- 
tirely black ; the head is nearly in the shape of a lozenge, 
and much thicker than the body. The Yiper is vivi- 
parous ; yet it is ascertained that the eggs are formed, 
though they are hatched in the body of the mother. 
The Reverend Mr. White, of Selborne, in company 
with a friend, surprised a large female Yiper, as she lay 
on the grass, basking in the sun, which seemed very 
heavy and bloated. As Yipers are so venomous that 
they should be destroyed, they killed her ; and after- 
wards, being curious to know what made her so large, 
they opened her, and found in her abdomen fifteen 
