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a lengthing more or less in degree of viscidity, odorless, and invariably of acid reaction. In their dried state they are soluble in water at ordinary temperatures, save for a slight cloudiness, which but slowly settles. Thus dried they resemble ordinary egg-albumen, and when prepared in small quantities in a porcelain capsule, innumerable radiating lines of fracture occur, which break the mass, the long, needle-like pieces closely resembling acicular crystals; indeed, the resemblance is so striking that the uninitiated are frequently deceived as to the true physical condition of the venom.

other rattlesnakes, the diamond attains
of eight feet, and is strictly a Southern species, only
found on the Atlantic south of the Carolinas. In the
same locality is found the ground rattlesnake, about
thirteen inches long. Others are the red, Mitchell's,
horned, "side-winder" tiger, St. Lucas, banded, Ari-
zona, spotted, scutulated, confluent, and the black-tail
rattlesnakes, all of the genus Crotalus. In the genus
Candisona are found the Mexican ground, the Southern
ground, the Sonora ground, and the black rattle-
snakes a ferocious array. The bite of nearly all of
these is extremely dangerous, though in the smaller it
is not necessarily fatal. Almost all animals succumb to
them, and man, if proper remedies are not at hand. It is
a general belief that the hog is exempt; but this is at
least not the rule, and where these reptiles are common,
these animals are often killed by them.

Almost every locality has its seer with a remedy for snake-bites; whisky, however, is generally the most successful. This was well shown in New York City in 1883, where a showman was bitten by a large rattlesnake, and recovered by being kept under the influence of large doses of whisky. Being a temperance man, he asserted that he suffered more from the liquor than he did from the bite.

It is stated that De Lacerda, of the French Academy of Sciences, has established the fact that permanganate of potash is the best antidote to the poison of snakes. The experiments were exhaustive, and deemed satisfactory. The scientist injected the active venom of a deadly snake, diluted with distilled water, into the cellular tissue and veins of a dog, and found that the antidote stopped the manifestations of venom injuries. The experiments were made in the presence of the Emperor of Brazil and a large company of scientists, and the fortunate experimenter has been decorated by the Emperor for his valuable discovery.

Certain rules should be observed in case of snakebite, and perhaps will not be out of place if recorded here. Generally the wound determines the character of the snake; thus, if the marks left by the teeth are arranged in two lines of punctured wound, there is no need of anxiety, as the snake is not poisonous; but if the wounds are two punctures, remedies should be immediately applied, as in nine cases out of ten the The following is the treatment animal is venomous. to be adopted: First, if the wound is on the arm or leg, two ligatures should be made above it as tightly as possible, thus preventing the absorption of the poison; second, the wounds should be immediately opened to the depth of the puncture, so that the blood may readily flow, and for this purpose apply hot water, if at hand; third, the wound should be sucked immediately, either by the patient or some one else, or cupping-glasses, if at hand, applied; fourth, wash the wound with ammonia, and rub the vicinity with it; cauterize with a red-hot iron or sulphuric acid, butter of antimony, or nitrate of silver-all these are good if used immediately; fifth, take large doses of ammonia; one, two or three wineglasses, of the eau-de-luce; if this cannot be had, take from one to six glasses of brandy or whisky at short intervals, or sufficient to bridge over the prostration, as for this it is that whisky is used-it is not in itself an antidote; sixth, mad-stones, or charms, etc., are only to be used in case the patient wishes to die.

The poisons of all snakes have certain characteristics in common. In the fresh state, according to Drs. Weir, Mitchell and Reichert, of Philadelphia, the venoms are in the form of a slightly turbid yellowish fluid, vary

In describing the external symptoms produced by the different crude venoms, Mitchell and Reichert observe that such symptoms do not differ radically, except in degree. From all alike there is produced some primary heart-disturbance, temporarily lowered blood-pressure, fatal enfeeblement of the respiratory centres, local effusion of blood, with lessening or loss of its power to clot, and, when the animal subjected to the venom survives some hours or a day, noticable breaking down of the capillaries, and tending to putrescence and gangrene. Of the different poisons, cobra venom is the most intense in its poisoning power, that of the copperhead next, then the venoms of the moccasin and the rattlesnake. In the course of their researches these investigators have been led to consider that the serpent venom does not contain an alkaloid, as had been surmised by other inquirers, but that it is in every case made up of three distinct proteid bodies, of which two are soluble in distilled water and one is not. The first of these proteids they declare to be a peptone-peptic venom; the second, a globulin resembling paraglobulin-globulin venom; the third resembling albumen-albumen venom. Respecting the active properties of these particular parts, the following is deduced from the experiments related: The peptone venom, which remains uncoagulated by boiling, which will dialyze, and which responds to all the characteristic tests by which its place in the family of proteids is determined, is poisonous, but is far from possessing all the poisonous characters of the compound venomous fluid from which it is derived, being slower in its action, and producing local effects which are oedematous in charac ter and ultimately putrefactive. The venom globulin, on the other hand, is a poison of such virulence that one twentieth of a grain of it is sufficient to kill a strong pigeon in the course of two hours, and to give rise, within a few minutes after injection, to enormous infiltration of blood into the neighboring tissue. But this venom has no effect on the blood-pressure, in which it differs from the venom peptone, under which that pressure is reduced. The albumen venom is doubtfully poisonous, and, on the whole, the full action of the natural or crude venom, as it is produced by the serpent, may be considered as represented by the two distinctive parts, called by the authors peptone venom and globulin

venom.

The juggling of the Hindoo fakirs with the deadly cobra is familiar to all, and it is now known that it is done at times without resort to trickery; but it is not generally known that similar experiments have been tried with the rattlesnake in this country.

Chateaubriand says: "One day, when we had stopped We had a Canadian amongst in a plain on the banks of the River Genedie, a rattlesnake entered our camp.

us who played on the flute; wishing to amuse us, he approached the animal with this new kind of weapon. At the approach of his enemy, the splendid reptile at once coiled itself up spirally, flattened its head, puffed out its cheeks, and showed its envenomed fangs, while its

forked tongue moved rapidly, and its eyes burned like redhot coals; its body became inflated with rage, rose and fell like a pair of bellows; its dilated skin bristled with scales; and its tail, which produced a sinister sound, oscillated with lightning rapidity. The Canadian now began to play upon his flute. The snake made a movement expressive of surprise, gradually drew its head backward, closed its inflamed month, and, as the musical sounds struck it, the eyes lost their sharpness, the vibration of its tail relaxed, and the noise which it made became weaker and weaker, and finally died away altogether; the coiled-up line became less perpendicular, the coils of the charmed snake opened, and in their turn rested in wider concentric circles on the ground. The scales of the skin were also lowered, and immediately recovered their wonted brilliancy; and, turning its head slowly toward the musician, it remained immovable in an attitude of pleased attention. At this moment the Canadian walked away a few steps, drawing low and monotonous tones from his flute; the reptile lowered his neck, opened a way among the fine grass with its head, and crawled in the steps of the musician who thus fascinated him, stopping when he stopped and following him when he began to move away. The snake was thus conducted from our camp, in the midst of a throng of spectators as many redskins as Europeans-who could scarcely believe their eyes."

Of all the poisonous snakes of this country, the copperhead (Ancistrodon contortrix) is the most dreaded. It is also known as the cotton-mouth, moccasin and red-eye in the South. It is common from the Catskill region to the Gulf States. It attains a length of two feet; is of a hazel hue, the head having a bright coppery lustre. The copperhead conceals itself in shady spots in meadows of high grass, feeding upon small animals, and rarely attacking large animals unless stepped on; in this way horses are sometimes killed by them. The mother copperhead has also been observed to take its young in its mouth when danger threatened them.

The water-moccasin (Ancistrodon piscivorus), from its pugnacious disposition, is perhaps more dreaded than any of our poisonous snakes. While the rattlesnake will slink away from danger, the moccasin will attack man or brute with savage ferocity, and thus is treated with respect by the negroes of the South. It is found from the neighborhood of the Pedee River to the Gulf States, and to some extent in the Mississippi Valley; while another species-the Ancistrodon piscivorus pugnax-is found in Texas, and called the Texas moccasin.

But the stronghold of the moccasin is in the vast swamp of Southern Florida, where the members of a recent expedition state that they exist in enormous numbers, having to be pushed aside as they advanced, and crawling into the boats and canoes at night. They are essentially water-snakes, chasing fishes and small reptiles in the streams of the rice-plantations. They may be recognized by the dark-brown colors on the upper portion of the head, and the yellowish line extending from the snout to or over the nostril. They rarely attain a length of over twenty inches, and are short in proportion.

In Tennessee one specimen of a moccasin-A. atrofuscus-commonly called highland moccasin, was found in 1833, and has never been seen since, so it would appear that there are three species of these reptiles. The latter is now in great demand by naturalists.

The moccasins show the same curious care for their young already mentioned. A few years age a gentleman, directing some hands at work on the lawn of Dr. Phares,

of Woodville, Miss., heard a low, blowing noise, and on looking saw a large water-moccasin, and a large number of young hurrying to her head and disappearing so rapidly that he first thought they ran under her. He soon discovered that they went into her slightly opened mouth, which was held close to the ground till they had all entered. She then attempted to escape, but was cut in two with a hoe. A large number of young, eight or ten inches long, were taken from her.

A gentleman in Georgetown, S. C., writes: "I had for several days noticed a very large moccasin coiled around the limb of a small tree near the pond. I concluded to capture it, and accordingly procured a large rabbit and placed it some way up from the pond, to tole her away from the water. She soon came down and disappeared under a large log; when next seen she was near the bait, having traced it along the log on its opposite side. When she had nearly swallowed the bait we made an advance; quickly disgorging it, she gave a shrill, whistling noise, and five young snakes ran from under the log and ran down the throat of the old one. We cut off her head and found the five young, which made efforts to get away."

One of the most beautiful snakes found in the United States, venomous, but not necessarily fatal in its bite, is the bead - snake (Elups). It has permanently erect poison-fangs, but is extremely mild in its disposition. The coloring of the harlequin, as it is sometimes called, is exceedingly rich, the principal color being red, with seventeen broad black rings, each bordered with yellow. It ranges from Virginia to Arkansas, four other species being known in Florida and Texas. In South America they are extremely dangerous. They are generally found under ground, often being hoed up by the hands working at sweet potatoes.

One of the commonest of the non-poisonous snakes is the striped or common garter - snake (Entœnia sirtalis), ten species of which are known in the United States. In early Spring they are almost the first of the reptiles to roll out of their holes, where they have been hiding in balls or clusters. The writer has seen them in New York before the snow was fairly away. Though easily aroused, and striking quickly, their bite is little more than a scratch. In the Spring they are always hungry, and I have seen one chase a toad for fifty feet over a gravelly road, finally catching it. I captured the snake, and fed it with three adult toads within two hours. If the victim was seized by the head his fate was soon determined, for when a hind leg was caught, the other, for a while, seemed to offer an obstacle, and called to mind the story that once went the rounds of the papers, to the effect that a toad, seeing itself about to be swallowed, seized a stick and held it crosswise in its mouth, thus averting the danger.

The garter-snake is remarkably prolific, and in the Spring their numbers about pools are sometimes astonishing. It has been suggested that they are both viviparous, as well as ovoviviparous, from the fact that seventy-eight young have been taken from a single female, some being found free and others in sacks. With a brood of forty or fifty young, the striped snake would seem to have a difficult time in protecting its offspring by taking them in her mouth. They have this habit, however, as is well shown by some of the reports received by Professor Goode.

A writer from Chesterfield, N. H., says: "I saw a striped snake on the hillside, and noticed something moving about her head, and counted twenty little snakes, from one and a half to two inches long. I made a move,

WATER-SNAKE RECEIVING ITS YOUNG IN ITS MOUTH.

and the old one opened her mouth, and they went in out of sight. I stepped back and waited, and in a few moments they began to come out. Then I made for the old snake, and killed her, and forced out several."

Another gentleman writes: "Some years ago I came across a garter-snake (Eutania saurita) with some young ones near her. Soon as she perceived me she hissed, and the young ones jumped down her throat, and she glided beneath a stone heap. Another time I caught a snake of the same species, but, as I thought, of immense size, which I took home and pnt in a cage. On going to look

at her some short time afterward, I discovered a great number of young ones (about thirty, if I remember rightly), and whilst I was still looking at the sudden increase, two more crept out of the old one's mouth, and finally, after a little while, a third one did likewise."

The black snake (Bascanion constrictor), that is a match for the rattlesnake, often squeezing it to death, is a familiar form, and widely distributed. A party of hunters recently observed in Pennsylvania a

black ball, two feet in diameter, rolling slowly down a hill, and found, on examination, that it was composed of hundreds of these reptiles. In appearance they are very attractive, from a decorative point of view, being of a steel-blue uniform color, with a rich tessellated arrangement of scales. In their natures they are wild, untamable, powerful and active foes, often engaging in encounters with other snakes, especially the rattlesnakes, quickly killing and forcing them to disgorge their prey. In their movements they are so rapid, that they are often called the racer.

In the breeding season they are bold, often going out of their way to attack passers-by, and have been known to chase an intruder for some distance. According to Holbrook, they will even descend from a tree to attack the one who is teasing them.

The black snake is the one that most frequently appears in the local press in the guise of a charmer, and as we have previously suggested, this power, so often imputed, is merely imaginary. The reptile preys upon birds in their nests, penetrating thickets in search of them; and often the cat-bird and the red winged blackbird are seen acting strangely, crying and fluttering before the reptile in fear and rage, while thus charmed, frequently falling a victim in their attempt to protect their young. At such times, the cries of distress of the old bird have called a number of birds of different genera, who assemble to join forces against the common enemy, finally forcing it to retreat. Like other snakes mentioned, the black snake is said to protect its young by taking them in its mouth. The Rev. Chauncey L. Loomis, M. D., of Middletown, Conn., saw the Alleghany black snake open its mouth, and seven young pass down its throat, upon which the mother darted swiftly away.

In speaking of this interesting phase of snake life, Professor Goode says, referring to the testimony on various genera: "The total number of testimonies in my possession is one hundred and twenty. Sixty-seven wit

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THE COACH-WHIP SNAKE.

THE HOG-NOSE SNAKE.

nesses saw the young snakes enter the parent's mouth; twenty-two of these heard the young warned by a whistle, or hiss, or click, or sound of the rattles; five were considerate enough to wait and see them reappear when danger seemed over, one seeing the act repeated on several days. These saw young snakes coming out of a large one's mouth, and not having seen them enter, were naturally much astonished. Five struck the parent, and saw the young rush from its mouth; eighteen saw the young shaken out by dogs, or running from the mouth of the dead parent. Thirty-six of those who saw the young enter the parent's mouth, found them living within its body. Only twenty of the sixty-seven allowed the poor affectionate parent to escape. Thirty-three who did not see the young enter found them living within the parent's body. Testimony of

this character concerning the ovoviviparous species is, however, to say the least, dubious."

The coachwhip-snake (Masticophis), a long, slender form, of the Southern and Gulf States, from its attenuation and rapid movements, has been vested with remarkable powers by the credulous. The Indians formerly asserted that it had the power of cutting its antagonist in twain by its whip-like motions; others thought that it formed itself in a wheel by holding its tail in its mouth and rolling away. Many of these

curious fables are still believed in the South.

An interesting fact concerning the common milk-snake (Ophiobolus triangulum) has been shown by Professor C. F. Brackett, of Princeton,

illustrating how, immediately after birth, the young make use of their instinctive faculty. He says: "A workman who was mowing in my father's hayfield came upon a moist, moss-grown knoll, and his scythe cleft off a portion of the thick moss and sphagnum, and revealed several (at least a dozen, I should say) small soft bodies, which he declared to be snakes' eggs. I, at that time, having no knowledge of such matters, was incredulous, and proceeded to tear one of them open, when, to my surprise, there appeared a small, perfectly formed milk - adder, which immediately assumed a pugnacious attitude, and brandished its tongue as defiantly as an old snake would have done. Other eggs were torn open with like results. Soon the old snake appeared,

and after endeavoring apparently to encourage the young family thus suddenly initiated into the world, it put its mouth down to the ground, and every one that had been liberated from the egg voluntarily and hastily disappeared within the abdomen of the old one. Last of all, I put the point of a pitchfork through the old snake, and fulfilled the Scriptural injunction of bruising its head, when, with a pocketknife, I opened the abdomen, and found the young ones still active."

The hog nose snake, or blowing adder (Heterodon platyrhinos), common in the Eastern States, is, notwithstanding its disagreeable aspect, perfectly harmless.

Among the most attractive forms are the green snakes. The Teptophis aestivus, common in the South, is of a brilliant green color, and a perfect mimic of a vine, and

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THE CORN SNAKE.

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