The Dawson journal., 1885-01-08

o10 "ao VneI = dlnOAS many Otnef
celebrities) "and this goodly
cheer, to see the snakes?
''The guests are met, the feast is set;
Mays't hear the merry din"
But he was evidently determin-
ed. So off we drove to Cheyne
Walk, where we fortunately found
the snake-charmers at home, and
saw much the same scene that [
have already described. Lord
Arthur was more venturesome
than | was, and got one of the
smaller reptiles up his sleeve, and
Mr.. M. had to come to the rescue
and draw it forth through his
shirt cuff. We were shown a very
perfect skin, apparently about
three yards long, which Mr. NJ.
coolly told us the boa had cast
while in bed with him one cold
night. He felt "the poor thing
fretting about" and kept telling
it to be quiet, but it would persist
in squeezing between his legs and
feet, and in the morning he found
that it had shed it's skin.
Mr.. and Mrs. NJ. informed us
that once, when they were away
for two months, they left the two
big snakes in charge of a keeper
at the Zoo. On their return the
keeper said that if they had de-
layed much longer the boa would
have died, as it was refusing food;
and when he produced the snake
it recognized Mrs. Ms voice, and
sprang at her with
SUCH VEHEMENT AFFECTION
as nearly to upset her, coiling it
self closely round her until they
reached home in a cab. Our
hosts also informed us that one
summers evening, when the fami-
ly, including all the snakes, were
having tea in the garden, Cleopa-
ira kept swinging from a tree by
its tail, and Mr.. NJ, thinking it a
good opportunity to gauge the
strength of the boa, placed him
self under the tree and allowed
the snake to coil itself
round his wait. He then found
that he could lift his feet from
the ground. We were also in
formed that if the big snakes once
made pets of live animals given
for food-which they were apt to
do when not hungry-they would
never eat them, but would wait
until fresh beasts or birds were
provided.
Some years later, while I was
abroad, | noticed in the English
newspapers, an account of q
chancery suit affecting my friends
and their beloved snakes, and on
my return, finding that they were
likely to be turned out of their
house, owing to a stray snake hav-
ing frightened neighbor's SER
want into fit, [ wrote a lettle to
the Times in defense Of the snakes,
which will be found quoted in DR..
Romane's book on Animal In
telligence." In spite of my pro-
testations the serpents were de-
clared to be a dangerous nuisance,
and my friends were turned out
nearly broken-hearted and ruined.
After long interval [ heard of
them again from the late Frank
Buckland, who was a kind friend
to the family. They were living
quietly with their snakes in small
lodgings near Leicester Square.
One day Mr.. NJ, who was deli
cate man, was seized with a faint
ing fit, and remained on his bed
insensible while Mrs. III. hastened
out for the doctor. On her re-
turn with Buckland, they found
Mr.. NJ. still on the bed, but re-
gaining his consciousness. He
was weeping over the PROSTATE
body of his beloved Cleopatra.
The snake, suspecting something
wrong, had evidently
crept up stairs, and when
1t found its beloved master insen-
sible had experienced some kind
of shock. Partly on the bed and
partly trailing on the floor, the
poor boa was found stone-dead!
BUCKLEN'S ARNICA SALVE.
L L L q