The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-08-12
THE FER.DE-LANCE.
THE TERRIBLE REPTILE WHICH
RElGNS IN MARTINIQUE.
The Deadly Serpent Which Il Lord Of the
Forests and SoIitudes by Day. and the
The Cat its Most Formidable Enemy.

Terror &. tSDaus ana paThs
The Cat Its Most Formidable Enemy.
Nature IS dangerous here; the powers that
build here ere also the powers that putrefy;
here lie and death are perpetually inter
chancire o...ce in the never ceasing transfer
nation of forces, melting down and reshap-
ing living substance simultaneously within
the same awful crucible. There are trees dis
tillng venom; there are plants that have
fangs. there are perfumes that affect the
brain; there arc cold green crcepers whose
touch CONSUMES flesh like fire, willie in all
the receSses and the shadows Is n swarming
of unfamiliar life, beautiful or Lideous-in-
sect, reptile, notwithstanding, devouring,
Observing, proving Strange spiders Of
burnin, colors, immense lizards, scaribs
cuirass,d in all tints of metal, hrmming
birds plumaged in all splendor Of j3Wcl radi-
ance, flies that flash like fire, centipedes Of
gigantic growth. And the lord Of all these.
the despot Of these vast domains, is the ter
rible Fcr-lcla lance, the trigonocephalus, tho
Bothrcrs llnceolatus, the craspodccephalus,
dcalles. If Occidental thanatophdia.
There are eight varieties Of INN, the most
common being the gray speckled with black,
precisely the color that enables the monster
TO hide himself among the roots of the trees
by simply coiling about them and concealing
his triangular head Sometimes he is beau
tiful flower yellow; then he may never be
distinguished from the branch OF bright ia
nanas among which he hangs cooled, or he
may be- n dark yellow, or yellowish brown,
or tho color Of wine lees speckled with pink
and black or perfect ash tint, or black with
n yellow belly, or black with a rose belly
all hues Of tropical mold, of old bark Of
putrefyins trees, of forest detrtuS. The iris
of the eye IS orange with red flashes, at
night it CLOVIS like incaEdescent charcoal
And tho fer-dc-lance reigns absolute king
over the mountains and the rayines; be ~
lord Of the forests and the solitudes by day,
and by right he extends his dominion over
the public roads, tho familiar paths tho
parks, the pleasure resorts People must re-
main at home after dark unless they dwell Ill
the city itself; if you happen 10 be out visit
ing after sunset, only mile from town, your
friends will caution you anxiously not to fol
low the boulevard as you go back, and TO
keep as closely rs possible 20 the very center
of the path Even in the brightest noon you
cannot venture TO enter the woods unescorte1;
YOU cannot trust your eyes TO detect danger,
at any IaOment n seeming branch, a knot of
lianas, pink or gray root, ciump Of pen
dant yellow fruit, may suddenly take life,
writhe. swell, stretch, spring, strike. Then
you Will need aid indeed, aud most quickly;
for within the space of a few heart beats
tho stricken flesh chills, tImeiies, soitens,
change, color spots vlolaccousiy, ami an lcv
c0lincs crawls through all the blood. II
the Tbs clan or the pau,Cur arrif IN time,
and no artcry or vein has been directly
picrc. d, tEcro is hope. but the danger is not
pa sci when the life has been saved Ne
cro,is of the tissues begins, the ilesh cO-rupts,
tattcrs Uumhlcs from the bone; and tho
colOrs of its patreiaction arc frightful mock
cries Of tho Eucs Of vegetable death, Of forest
decomposition, the CHASTITY pinks and grays
and yellows Of rotting trunks and roots melt
ing back into the thick fetid clay that gave
them birth You molder rs the trees
moldcr; you crumble and dissolve as dis
solves the substance of the balatas and the
palms and the acomatS: the Death-of-the-
Woods has seized upon you
And this pestilence that walketh in dark
ness, this destruction that waSteth at noon
day, may not DO exercised. Each female
produces viviparously from forty TO sixty
young at birth The haunts of the crea-
ture are in many cases inaccessible inexplor
able, its multiplication is prodigiouS, il is
only The surplus Of its swarmng that over
pours into the cane fields, and makes the
high roads perilous after sunset, yet to des-
troy three or four hundred thanatophidia on
q single small plantation during the lapse OF
twelve months has not been uncommon. Tho
introduction Of the mangouste the ichneu-
mon may, it is hoped, do much toward pro-
tectng the workers in the cane fields and on
the cocoa and coffee plantations; but the
mangouste's powers are limited and the
ocean Of death is illimitable.
The exI erience of fear has enabled dOmcs-
tic animals to discern the presence of tho
enemy While invisible to man. Your horse
rears and plungcs in the darkness, trembles
and sweats; do not try TO ride on until you
are surcd the way is clear-yOur animal
las perceived far ahead two scintillatng
points, two moving sparks of fire Or your
dog may come running back, whining shiy-
ellnE, stctllb us Wal ilIur iif CilllldIS
kept about country residences have learned
to fight for their lives; the hen battles hope
lessly fer her chickens, the bull tries to gore
his supple enemy, the pig gives more sue
ccsiful combat; but the creature who fears
tho monster least is the brave cat. Seeing a
snake she - once carries her kittens TO
pace Of safety, then boldly advances to tho
encounter She win walk q the very limit
OF tho rpclt's striking range and begin to
fciD!, teasing him, startling him, trying to
draw bis blow. How the emerald and
tie to2aziac eyes glow thon-they are
fiawcs. \ moment more and the tri-
angular head, Kissing from the coil,
lasnc5 swift Gs if moved by wings. But
sniftcr still the strong stroke of the armed
paw that smites tho horror aside, flinging it,
mangled and gasping, in the dust. Never
theleSs, pussy does not yet dare 10 spring;
the enemy, still active, has almost in-
s,antly reformed his coil; but she is again
in front of him, watching-vertical pupil
against vertical pupil Again the lash
ing stroke; again the beautiful counter
ing; the living death is hurled aside, the
scaled skin is deeply torn, one eye socket has
ceased to flame. Once more the stroke of tho
serpent; once moro the light, quick, cutting
blow. But now the trigonOcephalus Is blind,
is stupefied; before he can attempt TO coil,
pussv has leaned uDOu him mailing the hOr-