3,6 N„A T AJ R A L H I S T O R Y of N O R JV A t.
they are hardly -ever feen in [the neighbouring parifhes; «AdjfWiS
informed in Nardals Parfonage ntSundmoer, that on ’that fide ef
ihe river which rans by them there are many in the Summer,^'buf
on file other fide-not .one; and even it has been try’d to.bring
them ioiv.er^ and they have immediately languished, and -died in
a few hours after.
. - .This may have fuffioient ground from r ^ # ^ ®
the foil, the’ it is nqt-obvious, and depends, perhaps.* ;%pióhsQer-
tain hidden minerals, which may be agreeable, or opposite Te their
natures. Some advance that die much higher mountains ^pMfine
fide -than theiather obftnnft the rays of the fun, whiéh thé 'Snake
is fond .of, to be revived by its warmth.
In the feme place I was afiured that apeafent’s fiifo 'fejjnd-
Snake in file cradle with her child, who was -not in the leaftfeurt
by it i Móft probably this cold creature wanted to revise i^ l |
ia-the heat ; for when it has lain the whofe Winter ifi ;A* ft$tfi-èf*
infenfibility, it receives life again gradually by, the fun’s warnath1
in. the Spring : and -our long Winters and fhort;Snpaéiéfè keep
them Upder, and prevent ‘ their increaftng fo much ais in wafiifeir
climates.
The kind of Snakes which the pekfent calls Hfiiii OrrneBy is
ibugfit after, and preferved as a remedy for the cattlo femapy
difbrders f a peCëof tniacreature, particularly thé hëkd, -fe rolled
up in a lump of dough, and put down the defeafed creaturep
throat. The Ikin that the Snake’ annually cafts,' is fifed
round a woman’s body in difficult labour ; and They ifliagiife- it
promotes delivery.
In regard to the birth of the venomous feind, by the obferva-
tions of many it is affirmed, that the female parent hahgs-hèffelf
npran the branch, of a tree, and lets the young ontes, óne after
the other, drop down from fier.1'. Whether this i s 'ddfié ’ that -
they fljouldnofi bite the mother, according to their nature,' I
cannot determine.
All theffi creatures are viviparous’ for there are feme kind
of thepi which lay eggs, and they are often found in du&gfciKs,
lying ppafi a great number of eggs,' to hatch them as birds do:
and feme have ebferved that they made the great flat toad lie
upon the®, wfeiife they have thrown themfelvea round the neft,
to keep him cl'ofe to his duty;
singular ind- AAQthër ffegfife? incident, which I have heard from many credible
witnefles, may be related here, to fhevv the power of Sex*
pents r §v,en, oven bfids, which d<? not feenj fubjeéïed to them ,*
tlat.ls,“’as' one' of tfiëm' Ife s fW ll fiule his head about a quarter
h H
N A T U R A L H I S T O R Y N O R W A Y .
of a yard,-; Iwith
feme low flying bird,-in its; flight %p|klas' to fiave’ the misfortune
"S© Cbme perpendicular fiver him’ ; oh this it fiiff tinn'd* ft ill,
tho’' ét feme fathoms height 5 and-'finding itfelf rrefiftibly impelled,
it begins to cry fadly, and' diéps direélly info.the:§èW .
pent’s-mouth, who well kio-ws hèw to fêpkrkté the ‘feathers; afi&
throw them oii’t,
That this happenst}H certain; but' bo# thofe IrajM or efflliVtk
that may arife from the natural powers of the Snake, filth* vVhfch
to were, fecksf thé bfefe ';dfifin!to Lllitiffor
j^tfré’-tb' iBvéfti.^atl:,;;?fSö ihüch bd'Sbfei^ed ho^lv'étc tfiah
tKS .'Lord ‘of Nature,-Who ofdains onè ëreétufê‘föf thp ' ethél^
food, has given the Serpent'dH 'this a pöwér Which!*does not1 altogether
feemto agree with his form and fhapfe
nus fe|sW:tfl his Hifi. Septentr. L ‘. *xi. c?TS; Thatlrf this eWiry Serpents w>a
ijfjfto be'found a Serpent, calfed1 Amphifbeiïa,' Wi^h tfio heaM?aa},Ivead8*
one at each énd, and that it
hither way. The feme is related by ‘ÖdqWdfi'f DappCt^aSbu’t
_a-föh:'(rf:,^ÉöpeÈ^ ltt-Anaerica; but I have not héard it ih'this
cbuntry cööfiiüaed ti^'èdy'bóé^- Mr.
;-tfiÓ?!ip-afifh1 of Tyfees, and-dean of S u nd forM ^ ,,2ffiired me
that he had1 a fmall Serpent, I with two heads on qne body and
ta il; fo that each head had
for i t : he had prefervèd it a léaSg! While in ipirits of wine^flut ifc
laft threw it away fefithe requeft of his Wife, Who had afiavefftoU
to it,- and was'afraid fhe fhould happen to fee it upawares, and
be terrified. This puts me iii mind :oF a Serpent, _ or: young
Dragon, with feven heads and necks; on a •
* -Coneerpjjng a large fort:of Serpents in!Phrygia,, ^lianHS,-in ljis.Lib.'iL de Aniw
mal. cap. 21.. tells us, Cauda ;ad terram adniti, reliquio. erefto 1 corpore,. toto gutture
eminente &paulatim!l'axato;ofeliiante, vólUcWsfuper vblantesj ’ tamWii-‘fu|}f®'?ferail-
tur, fua; afpiradone,. tanquam amatorio quodarn, ad:fe attrahkre:alliéerè; -P. S. When
I wrote, this I met witli, in Biblioth;. Britannique,-.T0m.;xii.. -P.L p. i.g,6> an .extract
ÖF philofophica] tranfaffions de' annö ‘ 1^34, M.' Jun. Juf-Aug. and'there is, art. 1 ,a
treatife, called, Cdnjeftutts. fur: le-'p'öüvoir- de charmer ou- de fafciner, qu’on' attribüé
aux Serpens a Sonnettes. The renowned .Sir . Hans Slphije, as an author, is of Opinion
that the' American Rattle-fnake (and here we attipifilte the fame faculty to the common
Snakes) firft bites an,d wounds 'titó’ bird,' and7 then; lying';under the brahch'.qf' thé
tree where the .bird is flown to, . witelles, Idiadit fflay\droP döwri ïatofihè mouth of its
executioner. But in this! country they afliire toe; quite the contrary to what has!been
faid, r averring the unhurt bird’s guttering in the air over the Snake’s open mouth. Nor
does it to me feem probable1 that the Serpent 'ïhóül'd fetTfiptW ffi? out of his mouth,
to catch it ■ What I-have fet down., is. what I cannot vouch
from my own experience; , but have it. from, thofe -that I have; no reafon to idoubt. . i
In the' Hamburgh Magazine Wé 'rhèeC with Üöct. C. J. Spvehgér’s famous experi-
ment made with a moiife that was letgopfe on the ground to a. Snake,: it made a few
turns, and fqueaked a little, and then rmi iSlrfc'et' mt<5 ' 'the Shake’s open moufi, whq
q i the while lay Jtill. . Might, the Newtonian attraction take place here ?n j f
Pa r t II. L pointed