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THE SNAKES AND SERPENT CHARMERS AT THE

ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.

BY W. COOPER,

AUTHOR OF "LORD BACON IN ADVERSITY," ETC.

OUR friend the Hippopotamus has of late so completely monopolized the public interest at these agreeable Gardens, that comparatively little attention has been bestowed on other interesting objects contained within their precincts. Of these, one of the least appreciated but most remarkable, is the collection of Reptilia formed within the last eighteen months, and which is already without its equal in Europe. To D. W. Mitchell, Esq., the zealous and accomplished Honorary Secretary, is the credit due of originating and carrying into execution this important addition to the collection— an addition which has already been the means of introducing several new and undescribed species to the notice of naturalists, but which is yet only in its infancy; for in all quarters of the globe competent persons are seeking after rare and monstrous reptiles, which will in a few years render this already remarkable collection absolutely unique.

At the present time there are at the Gardens two Arabs, who are eminently skilled in what is termed "Snake-Charming." In this country, happily for ourselves, we have but little practical acquaintance with venomous serpents, and there is no scope for the development of native skill in the art referred to; the visit, therefore, of these strangers is interesting, as affording an opportunity of beholding feats which have hitherto been known to us only by description. We propose, therefore, to give some account of their proceedings, and hope to draw attention to that portion of the collection which has been mentioned.

Visitors to the Zoological Gardens will remark, on the right hand side, after they have passed through the tunnel and ascended the slope beyond, a neat wooden building in the Swiss style. This is the reptile-house, and whilst our readers are bending their steps towards it, we will describe the performances of the Serpent Charmers.

The names of these are Jubar-Abou-Haijab,and Mohammed-AbouMerwan. The former is an old man, much distinguished in his native country for his skill. When the French occupied Egypt, he collected serpents for their naturalists, and was sent for to Cairo to perform before General Bonaparte. He described to us the General, as a middle-sized man, very pale, with handsome features, and a most keen eye. Napoleon watched his proceedings with great interest, made many inquiries, and dismissed him with a handsome "backsheesh." Jubar is usually dressed in a coarse loose bernoose of brown serge, with a red cap on his head. The gift, or craft, of serpent-charming, descends in certain families from generation to generation; and Mohammed, a smart active lad, is the old man's son-in-law, although not numbering sixteen years. He is quite an Adonis as to dress, wearing a smart, richly-embroidered dark-green jacket, carried-hussar fashion-over his right

shoulder, a white loose vest, full white trousers, tied at the knee, scarlet stockings and slippers, and a fez or red cap, with a blue tassel of extra proportions on his head. In his right ear is a ring, so large that it might pass for a curtain ring.

Precisely as the clock strikes four, one of the keepers places on a platform a wooden box containing the serpents, and the lad Mohammed proceeds to tuck his ample sleeves as far up as possible to leave the arms bare. He then takes off his cloth jacket, and, opening the box, draws out a large Cobra de Capello, of a dark copper colour: this he holds at arm's length by the tail, and after allowing it to writhe about in the air for some time, he places the serpent on the floor, still holding it as described. By this time the cobra has raised his hood, very indignant at the treatment he is receiving. Mohammed then pinches and teases him in every way; at each pinch the cobra strikes at him, but, with great activity, the blow is avoided. Having thus teased the snake for some time, Mohammed rises, and placing his foot upon the tail, irritates him with a stick. The cobra writhes, and strikes sometimes at the stick, sometimes at his tormentor's legs, and again at his hands, all which is avoided with the utmost nonchalance. After the lapse of about ten minutes, Mohammed coils the cobra on the floor, and leaves him whilst he goes to the box and draws out another far fiercer cobra. Whilst holding this by the tail, Mohammed buffets him on the head with his open hand, and the serpent, quite furious, frequently seizes him by the forearm. The lad merely wipes the spot, and proceeds to tie the serpent like a necklace around his neck. Then the tail is tied into a knot around the reptile's head, and again head and tail into a double knot. After amusing himself in this way for some time, the serpent is told to lie quiet, and stretched on his back, the neck and chin being gently stroked. Whether any sort of mesmeric influence is produced we know not, but the snake remains on its back, perfectly still, as if dead. During this time the first cobra has remained coiled up, with head erect, apparently watching the proceedings of the Arab. After a pause, the lad takes up the second cobra, and carrying it to the first, pinches and irritates both, to make them fight; the fiercer snake seizes the other by the throat, and coiling round him, they roll struggling across the stage. Mohammed then leaves these serpents in charge of Jubar, and draws a third snake out of the box. This he first ties in a variety of apparently impossible knots, and then holding him at a little distance from his face, allows the snake to strike at it, just dodging back each time sufficiently far to avoid the blow. The serpent is then placed in his bosom next his skin, and left there, but it is not so easy after a time to draw it out of its warm resting place. The tail is pulled; but no! the serpent is round the lad's body, and will not come. After several unsuccessful efforts, Mohammed rubs the tail briskly between his two hands, a process which-judging from the writhings of the serpent, which are plainly visible-is the reverse of agreeable. At last Mohammed pulls him hand-over-hand-as the sailors say,and, just as the head flies out, the cobra makes a parting snap at his tormentor's face, for which he receives a smart cuff on the head, and is then with the others replaced in the box.

Dr. John Davy, in his valuable work on Ceylon, denies that the fangs are extracted from the serpents which are thus exhibited; and

says that the only charm employed is that of courage and confidence, -the natives avoiding the stroke of the serpent with wonderful agility; adding, that they will play their tricks with any hooded snake, but with no other poisonous serpent.

In order that we might get at the truth, we sought it from the fountain-head, and our questions were thus most freely answered by Jubar-Abou-Haijab, Hamet acting as interpreter :—

Q. How are the serpents caught in the first instance?

A. I take this adze (holding up a sort of geological hammer mounted on a long handle) and as soon as I have found a hole containing a cobra, I knock away the earth till he comes out or can be got at; I then take a stick in my right hand, and seizing the snake by the tail with the left, hold it at arm's-length. He keeps trying to bite, but I push his head away with the stick. After doing this some time I throw him straight on the ground, still holding him by the tail; I allow him to raise his head and try to bite, for some time, in order that he may learn how to attack, still keeping him off with the stick. When this has been done long enough, I slide the stick up to his head and fix it firmly on the ground; then taking the adze and forcing open the mouth, I break off the fangs with it, carefully removing every portion, and especially squeezing out all the poison and blood, which I wipe away as long as it continues to flow; when this is done the snake is harmless and ready for use. Q. Do the ordinary jugglers or only the hereditary snake charmers catch the cobras?

A. We are the only persons who dare to catch them, and when the jugglers want snakes they come to us for them; with that adze (pointing to the hammer) I have caught and taken out the fangs of many thousands.

Q. Do you use any other snakes besides the cobras for your exhibitions?

A. No; because the cobra is the only one that will fight well. The cobra is always ready to give battle, but the other snakes are sluggish, only bite, and can't be taught for our exhibitions.

Q. What do the Arabs do if they happen to be bitten by a poisonous snake?

A. They immediately tie a cord tight round the arm above the wound, and cut out the bitten part as soon as possible-some burn it; they then squeeze the arm downwards so as to press out the poison, but they don't suck it because it is bad for the mouth; however, in spite of all this, they sometimes die.

Q. Do you think it possible that cobras could be exhibited without the fangs being removed?

A. Certainly not, for the least scratch of their deadly teeth would cause death, and there is not a day that we exhibit that we are not bitten, and no skill in the world would prevent it.

Such were the particulars given us by a most distinguished professor in the art of snake-charming, and therefore they may be relied on as correct; the matter-of-fact way in which he acted as well as related the snake-catching, bore the impress of truth, and there certainly would appear to be far less mystery about the craft than has generally been supposed. The way in which vipers are caught in this country is much less artistic than the Arab mode. The vipercatcher provides himself with a cleft-stick, and stealing up to the

reptile when basking, pins his head to the ground with the cleft, and seizing the tail, throws the reptile into a bag. As they do not destroy the fangs these men are frequently bitten in the pursuit of their business, but their remedy is either the fat of vipers or salad oil, which they take inwardly, and apply externally, after squeezing the wound. We are not aware of any well-authenticated fatal case in man from a viper bite, but it fell to our lot some years ago to see a valuable pointer killed by one. We were beating for game in a dry stony district, when suddenly the dog, who was running beneath a hedgerow, gave a yelp and bound, and immediately came limping up to us with a countenance most expressive of pain; a large adder was seen to glide into the hedgerow. Two small spots of blood on the inner side of the left foreleg, close to the body of the dog marked the seat of the wound; and we did our best to squeeze out the poison. The limb speedily began to swell, and the dog laid down, moaning and unable to walk. With some difficulty we managed to carry the poor animal to the nearest cottage, but it was too late. In spite of oil and other remedies the body swelled more and more, and he died in convulsions some two hours after the receipt of the injury.

The Reptile-house is fitted up with much attention to security and elegance of design; arranged along the left side are roomy cages painted to imitate mahogany and fronted with plate-glass. They are ventilated by perforated plates of zinc above, and warmed by hot water pipes below. The bottoms of the cages are strewed with sand and gravel, and in those which contain the larger serpents strong branches of trees are fixed. The advantage of the plate-glass fronts is obvious, for every movement of the reptiles is distinctly seen, whilst its great strength confines them in perfect safety. Each cage is, moreover, provided with a pan of water. The chief inmates of this house at present are first a magnificent Python (P. Seba) from West Africa. He is upwards of nineteen feet in length, and his girth is equal to that of a small tree. In the next cage are two fine specimens of the Oular Sawa (P. reticulatus) from Ceylon. These two compartments fill the end of the room. Three large rattlesnakes (Crotalus durissus and C. horridus) occupy the next division; and their fit neighbours are, in succession, three large Cobra de Capellos from Egypt, an Anaconda, so fierce that on being enraged some time ago, he bit himself severely; six horrid-looking and most deadly Puff-Adders, also from Egypt, and so called from the power possessed by them when angered, of inflating their bodies to the size of a man's arm. On the same side are six immense Boa Constrictors, just now shedding their skins, which shows them off to great advantage. We are in the habit of connecting with serpents the idea of everything that is horrible and repulsive-notions applicable indeed to the Puff-Adders and that tribe, but certainly not to the Boas and Pythons, for the variety and lustre of their colours bear out that noble description of Milton,

"On his rear

Circular base of rising folds that towered,
Fold above fold, a surging maze! his head
Crested aloft, and carbuncle his eyes,
With burnished neck of verdant gold, erect
Amidst his circling spires that on the grass
Floated redundant."

Several specimens of Cleopatra's Asp (Cerastes Hasselquistii), (the first brought to this country,) are well worthy of attention. The flat broad head of each is provided with two horny processes immediately above the eyes; and as these snakes have a habit of burrowing in the sand, so as to completely conceal the body and head, these processes may serve to give timely warning of their vicinity, for if trod upon, their bite would be very severe, if not fatal. According to good testimony, this species will continue for days together in one position, and as it never seeks to avoid danger, however imminent, its presence is often only discovered when the foot which has trampled on it is seized. It retains its hold with great tenacity, and considerable exertion is often required to detach the asp. This is a peculiarity characteristic of the viper tribe, and is strong evidence in favour of its having been a poisonous serpent which bit St. Paul at Melita, it being described as hanging on his hand after fastening thereon. The Asp has a singular mode of progression-a lateral wriggling of the whole body causing it to advance sideways like a crab. Besides these mentioned, there are numerous other serpents great and small, now introduced for the first time, and not yet named. Not less rich is the collection in Lizards. There is a huge Iguana from the West Indies, the flesh of which is very palatable, and is much esteemed as an article of food. They live principally in trees, and have the power of changing their hues according to the colour of the spot on which they happen to rest.

In another cage is a very rare and active black and white carnivorous Lizard, which is continually whining and scratching against its cage, presenting a great contrast to three huge brown Lizards, his immediate neighbours, who are remarkable for their sluggishness. On the other side of the room are numerous specimens of the little Hyla, or Tree Frog, very beautiful creatures, dwelling amidst the foliage of the woods in the South of Europe, and, like the Chamelion and Iguana, changing their hues in accordance with the colours of surrounding objects.

There are other very curious Frogs and Lizards, and fine specimens of the edible Snails, which hold so high a place in the estimation of continental gastronomes. Except when roused by hunger, the Serpents are generally in a state of torpor during the day, but as night draws on, they, in common with other wild denizens of the forest, are roused into activity. In their native state the Boas then lie in wait, coiled round the branches of trees, ready to spring upon the antelopes and other prey as they pass through the leafy glades; and the smaller serpents silently glide from branch to branch in quest of birds on which to feed. As we have had the opportunity of seeing the reptile-house by night, we will describe the strange

scene.

About ten o'clock one evening during the last spring, in company with two naturalists of eminence, we entered that apartment. A small lantern was our only light, and the faint illumination of this, imparted a ghastly character to the scene before us. The clear plate-glass which faces the cages was invisible, and it was difficult to believe that the monsters were in confinement and the spectators secure. Those who have only seen the Boas and Pythons, the Rattlesnakes and Cobras, lazily hanging in festoons from the forks of the trees in the dens, or sluggishly coiled up, can form no

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