Morning journal and courier., 1884-09-17
scorpions and CentiPedes.

Frequently though the scorpion is met with, yet sting from one is rares An in stance coming within my observation was that of my chowkeedar, who had been stung during the night while asleep on his mat in the corner of the veranda, where the reptile had evidently dropped down from above. I was awoke by loud ''bapre-bap'' and the very familiar "sapkatdia'' (''Father, oh, father, snake has bitten mer0 and, on go- ing to the spot with light, we discovered the assailant to be not snake, but SCOT pion, which was standing motionless in the corner, still angrily curving it's tail-a dis covery which afforded unspeakable relief to the chowkeedar, who had thought his last hours had come, and who now with folded hands, and upturned eyes devotedly acknowl- edged his escape in the exclamation: "Dohar Ram Ji, jan buchgara" (Mercy, oh, Ram, my life is sparedD He had pressed upon the reptile, no doubt, while turning round, and had been stung on the arm, which rapidly swelled to great size, accompanied by pain 50 excessive as to cause feeling of faintness With his mind, however, relieved from the F'worst, " he soon set about collecting herbs from the compound and garden, under the application of hot mashes of which the pain gradually subsided, in a couple of days.
 Being curious to watch the habits of the scorpion, placed one under Q glass case along with grasshopper two inches long, whose sharp-spiked legs constituted its strong natural defense For while the scorpion took no notice of the wild leaps of his com panion, though every now and again 1t struck against him in rebounding from the glass cover, but at length, irritated by the contin- After several unsuccessful clutches, he man aged to seize with his toes leg of grass hopper, which he held in his jaws, while en- deavoring to transfx him with his sting, till he succeeded in driving it through and through him. The leaps of the grasshopper now speedily grew feebler, and soon he lay motionless and dead. For twenty four hours the scorpion took no further notice of his companion, and then, pressed by hunger, he bethought himself of him, and speedily de- voured him.
 Like the scorpion the centipede also seems partial to grasshoppers, when 1t can get them. An enormously magnified copy as it is of the little home centipede, the sight of one five or six inches long, with it's multitude of prehensile feet all moving at once, and its long feelers steering it's way, causes an in voluntary creeping of the flesh. Once while reclining on a sofa perusing daily paper after midday breakfast preparatory to turn ing inn for the customary siesta, I was sur prised by thump- humping against news paper which was ly1ng In & corner or the room, and the continuance of the sound in duced me to jump up to ascertain the cause, suspecting of course, a snake and frog The raising of the paper disclosed a centipede about five inches long, holding in his jaws 0 large grasshopper, which he was quietly hollowing out without the least regard to the frantic kicks of his victim, which had occa- stoned the noise against the paper. Nor did he seem disposed to re1inquish so choice 8 morseI, but allowed himself to be turned over and over without even relaxing his hold and as the grasshopper could not physically recoup his loss, I let his devourer continue, till in a quarter of an hour only the shell re- mained, and only then did the diminishing kicks of the grasshopper cease altogeth- CT.
 On another occasion, in the hot month of May during my morning ablutions, while raising the sponge to my face, l was met by the nearer view of an ugly pair of horns, fol pores. Not an instant too soon, dropped it down again on the basin stand, upon which the full length of a hideous centipede grad ually unwound itself.
 Such are instances of the way these rep tiles are come upon now and again in India, generally when and where least expected, and showing the weariness people require to prac- tice in every movement, even in lifting a book or paper, or putting the hand any where where the eye does not also reach. The bite of the centipede is rarely heard of, but it is more or less poisonous, and like the string of the scorpion, is considered serious to children.