Daily Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1876-1884, 1880-07-22
The DeadI,est Serpent.
lLondon TcIegraph.I

A recent arrival at the Geological
Society Gardens In Regents Parl
deserves special notice, apart from
the fact that it is the first of III
species known to have been brought
to England. 1t is snake, called
the echis curinoto, about foot auC
IA half long and of dingy gray
color. Yet, although in appear
ance neither Interesting nor for
midabie, it Is the deadlIest Of Gre.
ated things. This detestable little
worm, which, looking at it, the
spectator might make bold to say
he could initiate very passsbly in
cork and putty, is, nevertheless,
one of the miracles and master
pieces of nature, for it is death
itself, and carries in its tiny head
the secret of destroying life with
the sudden rapidity of lightning
and the concentrated agony of all
poisOus. The echis comes To us
from India, where it is tolerably
common, being found in nearly
every part of the peninsula, and
feared wherever found as the incar
nation of instant and terrible de-
struction. Fortunately, however,
for man, il is not, like the cobra
and korait, II house frequenting
snake, for its thy SIZE would give
1t q terrible advantage over human
beings who live crowded togethe +,
as the natives of India do, in small
darkened rooms, while its agrees.
i've habits would make it infinitely
more fatal TO life than its dreade
relatives. For this king of the
asps-this modern basilisk-is not
only venomous beyond conception,
but is actively offensive. 1t does
not turn to escape from man az the
cobra will, or flash into conceal.
ment like the kurait, but, conscious
of It's deadliness, deliberately keeps
the path against its human assaIl-
ant, and, putting its own eighteen
inctes of length against his own
bulk, challenges and provokes the
conflict. A stroke with u whip
will cut it in two, or clod of earth
disable it; but such is its malignity
that 1t will invite attack by evSzg
device at its command, stalking its
own life on the mere chance of its
adversary coming within the little
circle of its power. At most, the
radius of this circle is twelve inches,
but within it, at any point, lies
certain death, and, on the bare
hope of hand or foot trespassing
within its reach, the echis throws
it, body into figure of eight coil.
aud, attracting attention by ruiz
bling its loops together, which from
the rOughness of tue scales-hence
the epithet carandta-makes a
rustling, Kissing sound, erects its
head in the center and awaits at
tack. No one having once en-
couutered this terrible worm can
ever forget its truculent aspect
when thus aroused, its eagerly ag
gressive air, its restless coils, which
in constant motion one over the
other, and rustling ominously all
the while, stealthily but surely
bring it nearer and nearer to the
object of its fury; the eye malig-
nant even beyond those of other
vipers, and then the Uncomfortable
rapidity of its stroke. For the
ecbis does not wait to strike until
it is within striking distance, but
vents its malice in repeatedly dart
Ing at nothing, hoping, perhaps, to
aggravate It's antagonist into COM
ing into closer quarters; or, more
probably, AS a mere expression of
its own incOntrollable viciousness.