HOUSE AND GARDEN 
LY, I 914 
harmless imitators is strikingly similar, the 
yellow rings of the poisonous coral snakes 
always border the black rings, while the 
non-venomous snakes have pairs of black 
rings bordering a yellow one. Coral 
snakes inhabit the Southern States, where 
they burrow in soft soil and are often 
plowed up in the fields. As a rule, they 
are gentle and do not attempt to bite unless 
trod upon. 
The particularly dangerous snakes of 
this country are the rattlesnakes, copper¬ 
head and the moccasin. There are thir¬ 
teen distinct species of rattlesnakes, but 
each and every one is branded by a char¬ 
acter for immediate identification : the rat¬ 
tle, composed of a series of dry rings of 
skin on the end of the tail. It is a mistake 
to imagine that a poisonous snake may be 
told by a thick body and a flat triangular 
head that is quite distinct from the neck. 
Many of the harmless snakes have exactly 
these outlines and some of them are pro¬ 
portionately stouter of body and uglier in 
appearance than the formidable copper¬ 
head or the water moccasin. 
The copperhead snake of the Eastern 
States is marked somewhat like several of 
the non-venomous species, and the poison¬ 
ous water moccasin is not unlike the harm¬ 
less water snakes. Photographic illustra¬ 
tions show both of them. From the non- 
venomous reptiles they differ in having 
elliptical or cat-like eye pupils and between 
the eye and the nostril is a deep pit—even 
more prominent than the nostril itself. 
With an idea of the kinds of our native 
venomous serpents, it is well to understand 
that the pair of fangs or hollow teeth in 
the upper jaw are hypodermic needles that 
mankind has precisely copied in designing 
one of the most essential instruments in 
medical work. The snake’s poison glands 
are situated in the temples. The latest 
treatment for the bite of such snakes was 
invented by Dr. Albert Calmette, of 
France, who by repeated injections of 
very small quantities of snake-venom into 
the blood of horses, causes Nature to 
manufacture an ingredient to combat the 
action of the poison. This is separated 
from the treated animal’s blood without 
injuring the creature and hypodermically 
injected into the victim of snake bite. The 
treatment has greatly reduced the death 
rate in such snake-infested countries as 
India, Australia and South America. 
A few words are due to the credit of our 
poisonous serpents. They never attack. 
Of cornered they fight bravely, as well any 
wild creature ; but the attitude is to quickly 
escape if this be possible. They are de¬ 
stroyers of injurious mammals and cause 
few accidents. 
The milk snake, black racer, water 
snake, flat-headed “adder,” green snake 
and striped snake represent the vast family 
of harmless serpents inhabiting this coun¬ 
try. They are the reptiles ordinarily en¬ 
countered on our travels. Some of them 
are of marked economic importance to the 
farmer, while a few are rather detrimental 
New Books of HARPER & BROTHERS 
By ARNOLD BENNETT 
THE PRICE OF LOVE 
An entirely new kind of who-stole-the-money story, told at lightning speed. In 
the first pages the reader is brought face to face with an extraordinary situation. The 
interest which the six characters find in all the details of life is intense—Bennett’s 
own contagious interest. Youthful love, youthful intolerance, youthful oblivion of 
all but self and the moment, are embodied in the heroine. So feminine is she in her 
strength and ignorance, in her insight into her husband’s weakness, and in her love 
which must spend itself whether the object is worthy or not. Illustrated. $1.35 net. 
Special edition of 2,000 copies. 15 Illustrations, many in color, $2.00 net. 
By RUPERT HUGHES 
WHAT WILL PEOPLE SAY? 
This is what they DO say: “ The biggest book ever turned out by any modern author. 
I was more interested than I have been since I read ‘Ben Hur,’ at the time I was about 
twelve years of age. Distances anything in years. I was in a cold sweat when I fin¬ 
ished. It is your cycle now.” “Frankly, I consider it just about the finest piece of 
writing I have ever seen in the English language. I had not been disappointed in one 
whom I consider the literary artist of to-day. For has not the literary artist of the 
past decade (one Rudyard Kipling) said: ‘for surely accuracy is the touchstone of 
all artIllustrated. ' $1.35 net. 
By IRVING BACHELLER 
THE MARRYERS 
“It’s a ticklesome kind of a book,” says one man who has read the story. “A 
journey of about a thousand laughs will land one at the climax of the story a wiser and 
better American. Laugh by laugh he gathers wisdom in its pages.” Like “Keeping 
Up With Lizzie,” it provokes the laughter of conviction. You get something more 
than fun out of such books. Your mental house jacked up and plumbed and leveled. 
“The Marryers” is Socrates Potter at his best. This time he gets after the Europe- 
mad and the title-crazy. He points the way to the only asylum for the sane in a 
time when people are wasting their property and honor in wild commercial dissipa¬ 
tions. Illustrated. $1.00 net. 
FOR YOUNGER READERS 
HARPER’S GASOLINE 
ENGINE BOOK 
HARPER’S BOOK FOR 
YOUNG GARDENERS 
By ALPHEUS HYATT VERRILL 
“It is pleasant to encounter a book which shows some care 
in compilation and some consideration of the boy reader’s 
ignorance of technical terms. This book is a complete manual 
in convenient size, of the construction and uses of that cheap 
and multi-useful supplyer of power, the gasoline engine. Marine 
and stationary motors and vehicle motors all come in for a 
detailed explanation. An extremely useful portion of the book 
is the appendix, which is devoted to motor troubles and their 
remedies .” — Chicago Post. Illustrated. $1.00 net. 
This book has been prepared to show how much profit and 
pleasure may be obtained from simple gardens, and how to 
plan, arrange, and care for them properly. Mere theories and 
elaborate methods have been avoided, practicability being the 
purpose of the volume. School gardening, experimental gar¬ 
dening, ornamental gardening are all explained, and the author 
shows what can be accomplished at a small outlay in a city 
back yard or vacant lot. Fully illustrated. $1.50 net. 
Peroxide 
Oriental Rugs _ 
Not that peroxide is used—it is not strong enough. 
They use lime chloride, acid, paint, glycerine—and the 
effect is beautiful for a full month. Of course the 
white is “funny,” the rug looks blended, but it pay* — 
not the buyer. Later the rug looks gray or brown, 
harsh, dull, dusty. Finally the owner, if he lives to 
learn, as many do, pockets his loss and buys the real 
thing. 
One of my customers threw out scores of Kerman- 
shahs, Saruks, Mesheds, Serapis, Kashans, and bought 
classics from me. 
Whether you want one or one hundred write'me for 
my monograph and list. 
L. B. LAWTON, Major, U. S. A., Retired 
181 Cayuf* Street, Seneca Falla, New York. 
WELL ROTTED 
Horse Manure 
Dried—Ground—Odorless 
To insure increased Garden Crops — larger and _ 
| brighter Flowers and a rich green Lawn, give 5 
i your soil a heavy coating of Dried, Ground Horse ^ 
1 Manure. No weed seeds — no refuse, it becomes § 
I part of the soil. S 
Plant food is immediately available and lasting, g 
Your planting will be successful when you use Well $ 
Rotted Horse Manure. Put up in bags 100 lbs. g 
each. Write for Circular B and prices. 
NEW YORK STABLE MANURE COMPANY 
273 Washington Street, Jersey City, N. J. 
In writing to advertisers please mention House & Garden. 
