Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1886-10-20
STORIES OF THE COBRA.
Various Unpleasant Experiences OF
English Families in India

While at home on furlough from
India a short time ago l was much
| amused at finding a very general I'M
preston gmong my friends that to come
across a cobra was an everyday kind of
occurrance in India. How erroneous
this idea is may be gathered from the
fact that not many days ago brother
officer told me that although he had
been about ten years in India he had
never vet seen a cobra in wild state.
His is. it is true, probably an excep-
tionable case; but still it shows that an
| Englishman may pass considerable
| time in India without coming across
one of these venomous reptiles. Cob
ras. however, are met with quite often
enough. and sometimes i'll very curious
and uncomfortable places. For instance,
a young lady who had Just returned
| from ball in small station In South
ern India. noticed, as she was on the
point of getting into bed, that the pillow
looked disarranged, and on taking II up
| TO smooth il out she discovered COBRA
coiled up underneath it. She called out
for assistance, and her father, coming to
the rescue, speedily dispatched the OBJ
noxious intruder with stick. L hap
pened TO mention this circumstance TO
an officer one day, and he informed me
! that the very same thing had happened to
himself soon after his first arrival III the
country, and that, in consequence, lie
never got into bed until he had examln-
cd the epillows.
In the year 1873, while quartered at
Bellary. on going into the drawing room
of the Bungalow, which at that time
shared with friend. | discovered a cobra
/ curled up on the sofa-cushion. l has
tened out of the room to fetch stick;
but in doing so | must. L suppose, nave
made some noise, as on returning the
snake Lad disappeared. y few even
| inrs later, however, Just as my ''chum
was leaving the house TO go out TO din
ner. he called out to me that there was
a snake crawling up the steps of the
| yeranda in front of the drawing-room.
| ran out with a stick and succeeded III
killing the unwelcOme visitor. 1t turned
out to b "a fairly large cobra, and was
| in all probability the one which i had
seen few days previously on the sofa.
| IL is. however, III the bathrooms OF an
Indian bungalow that cobras, when met
with within doors, are most frequently
encountered, as they come in pursuit of
| the frogs which delight TO take up their
quarters there; for froggy Is an article
| of diet to which the cobra IS very par
tial. An officer of the Madras cavalry,
since deceased, told me that when quar-
tered at ArcOt, he one day observed IN
his bathroom, emerging from the waste
water pipe, the head of a cobra, which
was holding in his mouth a frog. The
pine was too narrow 10 admit of the
snakes withdrawing his head unless he
released his victim; this, however, from
unwillingness TO fOrego his meal, he
would not do, and in consequence, paid
the penalty for his gluttony with his
life
One day my wife'S ayah came run
ming into our bedroom saying there was
a large snake in the bathroom. Arm
ing myself as usual with stick, went
into the bathroom Just in time TO see
the snake disappear into the waSte-wa-
ter pipe. which ran under a another
small room to The back Of the house,
where the water found its outlet. The
servants stationed themselves ut the
outlet, while endeavoTed to drive the
reptile out from the rear, first with my
stick. and afterward by pouring the
contents of kettle of boiling water
down the pipe. Both attempts to dis
lodge the intruder from his position
proving Intellectual. l commenced vig-
Orous assault on him by thrusting a
bamboo about five feet along down the
pipe. and this time success rewarded my
efforts, and the snake, driven from his
refuge, was killed by the servants out
side. This cobra measured about five
feet six inches in length, and was the
largest have ever seen killed. / may
here mention that the ordinary ideas
about the size attained by this species OF
snake are greatly exaggerated. Some
years ago a Surgeon-Malor serving IN
the Madras Presidency, with whom L
was acquainted, took a great interest IN
this matter, and offered considerable
reward to any one who would bring him
a cobra six feet in length: but. If my
memory serves me right, the reward
was never gained, although very large
number of cobraS were produced for his
inspection.
Once l witnessed a wonderful escape
from the almost invariably fatal effects
of a cobra bite. / was marching with
some native troops in the cold weather,
and halted for the night at place called
Ma kur, where, instead of having our
tents pitched, my wife and | preferred
occupying a small bungalow belonging
to the Department of Public Works,
which was situated opposite the encamp-
ing-ground. Sitting outside the bunga-
low after dinner, had occasion to call
my head servant to give him some or
ders for the next morning. As he ran
up saw him kick something off his left
foot, and at the same time he called out:
''Samp. sahib, samp.' "a snake, sir, a
snake.") There WAS bright wood fire
burning close by, and saw by its light
the snake with its head up. 1t was
Immediately killed by some of the camp
followers and was brought 10 me, and
proved TO be small cobra. On eXam-
ining my servants foot found one tiny
puncture on the ankle, on which was a
single drop of blood. The man was at
once taken to the hospital tent and at
tended to by the hospital assistant i'll
medical charge of the troops, WHO
applied ammonia and did all that was in
his power. L was very anxious about
the man, but he awoke me at the hour
for marching next morning as if moth
ing had happened, and for some time
apparently experienced no inconyeni-
ence. Some weeks later, however, after
we had reached our destination, his left
leg swelled very much, and he suffered
great pain for considerable time; but
he eventually recovered. The snake
was seen by eight or ten different per-
sons besides myself, and was beyond
doubt cobra; and the only possible ex-
PLANTATION of the mans escape seems to
be that the reptile must have bitten
something else very shortly before. and
so to great extent exhausted the dead
ly poison in It's fangs.
One of our children had a narrow
escape, though of a different kind, when
quite baby. Ny wife picked him up
ore day from the floor, where he was
living enioying himself in baby fashion.