The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1880-12-23
Fascination.

In 1850 (twenty-one years ago. fol-
lowed in the rocks of Avon, close paths
park of Fontainebleau, the fairy by the
Denec court, when the approach OF
storm induced me to leave the blue
arrows, indicating the right path for q
short cut. l soon lost my way, and
found myself in a maze Of bram5les
! and rocks, when was startled by seeing
on my left hand, at distance Of about
ten yards, snake, whose body, lifted up
from the ground at height Of about a
yard, was swinging to and fro. l re-
mained motionless, hesitating whether
to advance or retreat, but soon per-
ceived that the snake did not mind me,
but kept on maintaining its swinging
motion, and some plaintive shrieks at
tracted my attention to greeniinch
perched on a branch of young pine
overhanglng the snake, with his feathers
ruffled, following by nod Of his head
on each side of the branch the motions
OF the snake. He tottered, spread his
wings, alightcd on a lower branch, and
SO on, until the last branch was reached.
the point of rock broke 1t, and the
snake disappeared with the .apidity
OF an arrow. On approaching the spot,
real abode of vipers, which l did with
the greatest precaution, knowing by OBJ
servatlon that death may be the result of
of bite OF viper, I saw the greenfnch
on the ground asitated by co1vulsive
and spasmodic motion, opening and
shutting his eyes. l put him in my
bosom to try the effect Of heat, and has
tened to reach the park of Fontaineblcau.
The little claws OF the bird opening and
shutting, perhaps as an effect of heat,
made me think that he might perhaps
0e abe to stand on my finger, and he
sid clutch it, and held on with spas
modic squeezes. In the park got some
water, and made him drink it. In short,
he revived, and finally flew of in the
lime-trces Of the park. Now, while fol-
lowing the motions of the snake and
bird, experienced singular sensation.
l felt giddy; a squeezing like an iron
hoop pressed in my temples, and The
ground seemed to me to be heavlng up
and down. In fact, the sensation was
quite analogous to that experienced on
beginning of seasickness From these
facts, would it not seem probable that
fascination IS nothing more nor
less than an extreme taiieue
of the optic nerve, produced by a rapid
gyratory motion of q shining object, and
resulting in nervous attack and coma!
Curiosity rivets at first the attention OF
the bird, unconscious of any danger, and
when giddiness warns him of his peril 1t
is too late. The snake is as we'll aware
of this as the lophius piscastorious is OF
the effect OF his membrane. In this sys-
tenn the fHct Of thc1 bird coming down
from higher to lower branch would bc
explained by the supposition that, g,ddi-
ness overtaking him, he opened instinct
lively his wings anil chung to the next
support that he found, the motion having
partially removed the git!,liness so as to
enable him to hold fast. Observe that
nothing hindered the bird from flying
away, and that the snake, being At most
five feet long, could never have reached
even the lowest branch. tBesides he could
have no nest to protect, for in the rocks
of Avon there is no water save rain-water
in the hollows of the rocks, and this is
not potable on account of microscopic
leeches which people it, the instinct OF
birds teaching them to avoid it.-Ndture.