Year: 1869

Du Chaillu, in his last book
about Africa, says:


One day l witnessed a fearful
scene. A man, a native of Go
rec, an island on the coast of Sen
egambia, who had the reputation
Of being a snake-charmer and
was then at the gaboon, had sue
ceeded in capturing one of these
large naja. He was a bold man
and prided himself on never be-
ing afraid of any snake, however
venomous the reptile might be
nay, not only was he not afraid of
any of them but he would fight
with any of them, and get hold of
them.


l had often seen him with
snakes in his hands. He was
careful, of course to hold them
by the neck below the head so
that the snake could not turn it
self and bite him.


That day he brought into a
large open place, perfectly bare
of grass, one of these wild naia,
that he had just captured, and was.
amusing himself by teasing the
horid and loathsome creature
when l arrived. 1t was a huge
one.


Most of the people of the vii
lage had fled and those natives
who like myself were looking on,
kept long way off. Not a
MpOngwe mdn, not a single in
hbbitant of the whole region l
have yet explored, would have
ever dared to do what the Goree
man did.


Two or three times, as the snake
crawled on the ground, we made
off in the opposite direction with
the utmost speed, myself, I am
afraid, leading off in the general
stampede though had provided
myself with a gun.


1t was perfectly fearful, perfect
ly horid and appalling, to see that
man making plaything, as we
may say, at death, for it could be
nothing else, 1 thought.


At first when l saw him he had
the snake around the body, but
he held it firmly just below the
neck, and l could see by the mus
cles of his arm that he had to use
great strength. AS long as this
part of the body is held firmly
the snake loses much of its great
power of crushing one to death
as the boa-constrictOr or python
does with larger animals and as
small snakes do with smaller
game; but with this naja the dan
ger would have been the venom
Gus bite.


Then with his other hand he
took the tail of the snake, and
gave it a swing and gradually un-
folded the reptile from his black
bedy which was warm and shiny
with excitement but always hold
ing the head. On a sudden he
threw the snake on the ground.
Then the creature began to crawl
away when suddenly the Goree
man came in front of it with
light stick and instantly the mon
ster erected itself to. almost half
its length, gave a tremendous
whistle, which we all heard, look
ed glaringly and fiercely in the
mans face with its sharp, pointed
tongue out, and then stood still
as if it could not move. The Go
rec man with his little stick in
his left hand, touched it lightly,
as though to tease it. 1t was a
fearful sight-and if he had been
near enough, the snake would no
doubt have sprung upon its an
tagonist. The man, as he teased
and infuriated the snake with the
rod he held in his left hand, drew
the attention of the reptile to-
ward the stick; then suddenly and
in the wink of an eye, almost as
quick as lightning, with his right
hand he got hold Of the creature
just under his head.


The same thing that Ihave just
described again teek place. The
snake folded itself round his body;
then he unfolded the snake, which
was once more letloose, and, now
this horrid serpent got so infuria-
ted that as soon as hewas thrown
upen the ground he erected him
self, and the glare of his eyes was
something terrific. 1t was indeed
an appalling scene; the air around
seemed to be filed with the whis-
thing sound of the creature,


Alas, a more terrible scene soon