The Colony of Lagos 
with a sword cane, it proved to be very tenacious 
of life and struck right and left in a most savage 
manner. The natives say that its spike is very 
poisonous, and 1 felt very thankful that I did not 
get it into my foot. 
The ordinary species of centipede is very nu¬ 
merous in the sands of the streets, and are so so¬ 
ciable that I frequently, on retiring at night, 
found one snugly ensconced between the white 
sheets. Rats and snakes contested for empire 
under the floors, and as the last were full of 
holes, the rats spent much of their time in the 
rooms of the house, even contesting with me for 
the food on the table. One bold marauder took 
bread from the table while I was eating. The 
snakes were often large, but 1 could not learn 
much about them. The natives were much afraid 
of them, but I did not hear of a single instance 
in which any one was killed by a snake, though 
I heard of one instance in which a white man 
was nearly frightened to death by one. 
There were many varieties of ants and beetles, 
some of the last being not only of great size but of 
wonderful beauty. The large lizards (of which 
mention has already been made) had the freedom 
of the house. To keep them out was too much 
trouble and they were useful in destroying the 
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