formed that a snake had been discovered ;
but it was a young one, called the bush-mas-
ter, a rare and poisonous snake. I instantly
rose up, and, laying hold of the eight foot
lance, which was close by me, ' Well, then,
Daddy/ said I, We'll go and have a look
at the snake.' I was barefoot, with an old
hat, and check shirt, and trousers on, and pair
of braces to keep them up. The negro had
his cutlass, and we ascended the hill ; another
negro, armed with a cutlass, joined us, judg-
ing, from our pace, that there was something
to do. The little dog came along with us,
and, when we had got about half a mile in the
forest, the negro stopped, and pointed to a
fallen tree ; all was still and silent : 1 told
the negroes not to stir from the place where
they were, and keep the litUe dog in, anij tkat
I would go in and reconnoitre. I advanced



270



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



up to the place slow and cautious. The snake
was well concealed, but at last I made him
out ; it was a coulacanara, not poisonous, but
large enough to have crushed any of us to
death. On measuring him afterwards, he
was something more than fourteen feet long.
This species of snake is very rare, and much
thicker, in proportion to his length, than any
other snake'in the forest. A coulacanara of
fourteen feet in length is as thick as a common
boa of twenty-four. After skinning this
snake, I could easily get my head into his
mouth, as the singular formation of the jaws
admits of wonderful extension. A Dutch
friend of mine, by name Brouwer, killed a
boa, twenty-two feet long, with a pair of stag's
horns in his mouth ; he had swallowed the
stag, but could not get the horns down ; so
he had to wait in patience with that uncom-
fortable mouthful till his stomach digested the
body, and then the horns would dropout. In
this plight the Dutchman found him, as he
was going in his canoe up the river, and sent
a ball through his head. On ascertaining the
size of the serpent which the negro had just
found, I retired slowly the way I came, and
promised four dollars to the negro who had
shown it to me, and one to the other who had
joined us. Aware that the day was on the
decline, and that the approach of night would
be detrimental to the dissection, a thought
struck me that I could take him alive. I
im?vguied if I conld strike him with the lance
behind the head, and pin him to the ground,
I might succeed in capturing him. When I
told this to the negroes, they begged and
intreated me to let them go for a gun, and
bring more force, as they were sure the snake
would kill some of us ; but I had been in
search of a large serpent for years, and now
having come up with one, it did not become
me to turn soft. So, taking a cutlass from one
of the negroes, and then ranging both the
sable slaves behind me, I told them to follow
me, and that I would cut them down if they
offered to fly. I smiled as I said this ; but
they shook their heads in silence, and seemed
to have but a bad heart of it. When we got
up to the place, the serpent had not stirred ;
but I could see nothing of his head, and I
judged by the folds of his body that it must
be at the farthest side of his den. A species
of woodbine had formed a complete mantle
over the branches of the fallen tree, almost
impervious to the rain or the rays of the sun.
Probably he had resorted to this sequestered
place for a length of time, as it bore marks of
an ancient settlement. I now took my knife,
determining to cut away the woodbine, and
break the twigs in the gentlest manner pos-
sible, till I could get a view of his head. One
negro stood guard close behind me with the
lunce, and near him the other with a cutlass.
The cutlass which I had taken from the first
negro was on the ground close by me in case
of need. After working in dead silence for a
quarter of an hour, with one knee all the time



on the ground, I had cleared away enough to
see his head. It appeared coming out between
the first and second coil of his body, and was
flat on the ground. This was the very posi-
tion I wished it to be in. I rose in silence,
and retreated very slowly, making a sign to
the negroes to do the same. We were at this
time about twenty yards from the snake's
den. I now ranged the negroes behind me,
and told him who stood next to me to lay hold
of the lance the moment I struck the snake,
and that the other must attend my movements.
It now only remained to take their cutlasses
from them, for I was sure if I did not disarm
them, they would be tempted to strike the
snake in time of danger, and thus for ever
spoil his skin. On taking their cutlasses
from them, if I might judge from their phy-
siognomy, they seemed to consider it as a most
intolerable act of tyranny in me. Probably
nothing kept them from bolting, but the con-
solation that I was to be between them and
the snake. Indeed, my own heart, in spite of
all I could do, beat quicker than usual ; and
I felt those sensations which one has on board
a merchant vessel in war time, when the cap-
tain orders all hands on deck to prepare for
action, while a strange vessel is coming down
upon us under suspicious colours. We went
slowly on in silence without moving our arms
or heads, in order to prevent alarm as much
as possible, lest the snake should glide off or
attack us in self-defence. I carried the lance
perpendicularly before me, with the point
about a foot from the ground. The snake had
not moved ; and, on getting up to him I struck
him with the lance on the near side, just
behind the neck, and pinned him to the
ground. That moment the negro next to me
seized the lance, and held it firm in its place,
while I dashed head foremost into the den to
grapple with the snake, and to get hold of his
tail before he could do any mischief. On
pinning him to the ground with the lance, he
gave a tremendous loud hiss, and the little
dog ran away, howling as he went. We had
a sharp fray in the den, the rotten sticks flying
on all sides, and each party struggling for
superiority. I called out to the second negro
to throw himself upon me, as I found I
was not heavy enough. He did so, and the
additional weight was of great service. I had
now got firm hold of his tail ; and after a vio-
lent struggle or two, he gare in, finding him-
self overpowered. This was the moment to
secure him. So, while the first negro con-
tinued to hold the lance firm to the ground,
and the other was helping me, I contrived to
unloose my braces, and with them tied up the
snake's mouth. The snake, now finding him-
self in an unpleasant situation, tried to better
himself, and set resolutely to work, but we
overpowered him. We contrived to make
him twist himself round the shaft of the lance
and then prepared to convey him out of the
forest. I stood at his head, and held it firm
under my arm, one negro supporting the belly,



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPOPTS.



and the other the tail. In this order we
began to move slowly towards home, and
reached it, after resting ten times, for the snake
was too heavy for us to support him without
stopping to recruit our strength. As we pro-
ceeded onwards with him, he fought hard for
freedom, but it was all in vain. The day was
now too far spent to think of dissecting him.
Had I killed him, a partial putrefaction
would have taken place before morning. I
had brought with me into the forest a strong
bag, large enough to contain any animal that
I should want to diesect. I considered this
the best mode of keeping alive wild animals
when I was pressed for daylight ; lor the bag
yielding in every direction to their efforts
they would have nothing solid or fixed to work
on, and thus would be prevented from making
a hole through it. I say fixed, for after the
mouth of the bag was closed, the bag itself was
not fastened or tied to any thing, but moved
about wherever the animal inside caused it to
roll. After securing afresh the mouth of the
coulacanara, so that he could not open it, he
was forced into this bag, and left to his fate till
morning. I cannot say he allowed me to have
ti quiet night. My hammock was in the loft
just above him, and the floor between us half
gone to decay, so that in parts of it no boards
intervened between his lodging and mine. He
was very restless and fretful ; and had Me-
dusa been my wife, there could not have been
more continued and disagreeable hissing in
the bed-chamber that night. At daybreak I
sent to borrow ten of the negroes who were
cutting wood at a distance ; I could have done
with half that number, but judged it most
prudent to have a good force, in case he should
try to escape from the house when we opened
the bag. However, nothing serious occurred.
We untied the bag, kept him down by main
force, and then I cut his throat. He bled like
an ox. By six o'clock the same evening, he
was completely dissected."



THE HUMMING BIRD.

The above bird (according to the Edinburgh
Cabinet Library") is a pretty little feathered
creature, no bipger than an overgrown wasp ;
with a black bill no bigger than a small needle,
and with legs and feet in proportion to its
body. This creature does not wave its wings
like other birds when it flies, but keeps them
in a continued quick motion, like bees or
other insects ; and like them makes a con-
tinued humming noise as it flies. It is very
quick in motion, and haunts about flowers
and fruit like a bee gathering honey ; making
many addresses to its delightful objects, by
visiting them on all sides, and yet still keeps
in motion, sometimes on one side, sometimes
on the of.her, as often rebounding a foot or



two back on a sudden, and as quickly returns
again, keeping thus about one flower five or
six minutes, or more.



BEAVERS.

Such if i he sagacity of the beavers (which
we extract from Cox's Colombia} that a tribe
of American Indians consider them as a fallen
race of human beings, who, in consequence of
their wickedness, vexed the Good Spirit, and
were condemned by him to their present shape,
but that in due time they will be restored to
their humanity. They allege that the beavers
have the power of speech, and that they have
heard them talk with each other, and seen,
them sitting in council on an offending member.
The lovers of natural history are already
well acquainted with the surprising sagacity
of these wonderful animals, with their dex-
terity in cutting down trees, their skill i>i
constructing their houses, and their foresight
in collecting and storing provisions sufficient
to last them during the winter months ; but
few are aware, I should imagine, of a remark-
able custom among them, which, more than
any other, confirms the Indians in believing
them a fallen race. Towards the latter end
cf autumn, a certain number, varying from
twenty to thirty, assemble for the purpose of
building their winter habitations. They im-
mediately commence cutting down trees ; and
nothing can be more wonderful than the skili
and patience which they manifest in this
laborious undertaking. To see them anxi-
ously looking up, watching the leaning of the
tree when the trunk is nearly severed, and
when its creaking announces its approaching
fall, to observe them scampering off in all
directions to avoid being crushed. When the
tree is prostrate, they quickly strip off its
branches ; after which, with their dental
chisels, they divide the trunk into several
pieces of equal lengths, which they roll to
the rivulet across which they intend to erect
their house. Two or three old ones generally
superintend the others, and it is no unusual
sight to see them beating those who exhibit
any symptoms of laziness ; should, however,
any fellow be incorrigible, and persist in re-
fusing to work, he is driven unanimously by
the whole tribe to seek shelter and provision
elsewhere. These outlaws are, therefore,
obliged to pass a miserable winter, half starved
in a burrow on the banks of some stream,
where they are easily trapped. The Indians
call them " lazy beaver," and their fur is not
half so valuable as that of the other animals,
whose persevering industry and prtvoyance
secure them provisions and a comfortable
shelter during the severity of the winter.

THE BANK MARTIN.

The bill and claws of the above bird (says
the author of the Architecture of Birds) are



272



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



commonly hard and sharp, and admirably
adapted for digging. The bill is small, but
its shortness adds to its strength, as it sud-
denly tapers to a point like a sailor's niarlin-
spike, or rather like the points of a pair of
fine compasses when closed. The bank-
swallow perforates the sand bank with its bill
shut, it clings with its sharp claws and pegs
in its bill as a miner does his pickaxe, till it
has loosened a considerable portion of the
hard sand, and tumbled it down among the
loose rubbish below. Some of these swallows'
holes are nearly as circular as if they had
been planned out with a pair of compasses,
while some are more irregular in form : but
this seems to depend more upon the sand
crumbling away than any deficiency in the
original workmanship. It always scrapes out
with its feet the sand detached by the bill,
bat so careful is this performed that it never
scratches up the unmined sand or disturbs
the plain of the floor which rather slopes
upwards, and of course the lodgment of rain
is thereby prevented. Bewick says that the
nest of the Sand-Martin is carelessly con-
structed of straw, dry grass, and feathers ; the
female lays five or six white eggs almost trans-
parent ; it is said to have only one brood in the
year.



DESPERATE STRUGGLE BETWEEN A MAN ANP
A MASTIFF FOR LIFE.

A short time since, Mr. Somerwill, the pro-
prietor of the Pettington Lime Kilns, North
Devon, arose from a little cabin he has fitted
up on the spot, to attend to the process of his
kiln, and, having effected his purpose, he lay
down again without undressing, having over
his clothes a smock-frock. Soon after the
door of his cabin, which he had neglected to
fasten, was thrust open, which alarmed his
little dog lying on the floor, and caused him
to bark, when the intruder, which proved to
be a very large mastiff dog, seized the little
animal, and shook it with great violence. On
loosing his prey, the little dog leaped up on
the bed, and sought the protection of his
mts er; thither the mastiff pursued him, and,
placing his paws on the bed, he laid hold of,
not the dog, but his master, whom he dragged
from the bed to the ground, where he held
him for a while ; at length Mr. Somerwill
caught his assailant by the throat, and re-
gained his legs, but it was with the utmost
difficulty he could withstand his powerful
enemy. Fortunately for him, a piece of hoop
iron was within his reach, which served him
for a weapon, wherewith he continued to
beat the head of his shaggy antagonist till he
had cleft his skull, and finally destroyed him.
Mr. Somerwill received no other injury than
the alarm and fatigue occasioned by the con-
test, the thickness of his clothes having proved
a protection from the fangs of his canine foe.



BY STEAM.

A friend of mine startled me a little bj
stating that he occasionally took the same horse
ninety-miles to cover, and after a day's hunt-
ing, brought him home a like distance.
*' Unless you hunt by steam," I exclaimed,
" it is impossible !" " Why," says he, " that's
the whole secret. I go with my horse on
board the steamer at Quebec, and reached
Trois Riviere m good time to breakfast, hunt
with my father-in-law, who keeps a pack, and
return to Quebec by the afternoon boat."-
Fcrguson's Visit to the United States and
Canada, in 1831.

SPEED AND STRENGTH OF IRISH HORSES.

The man who rode express from Cork to
obtain Mr. O'Connell's assistance as Counsel,
performed the journey on the same horse, in a
most extraordinary manner. Mr. O'Connell
lives in the wildest part of Kerry, and the
country for half the journey is very moun-
tainous. Burke left Cork at five o'clock on
Saturday evening, and reached Mr. O'Con-
nell's on Sunday morning at half-past eight
o'clock. He rested and refreshed his horse
two hours, and rode him back to Cork at eight
on Monday morning ; thus performing, within
thirty-eight hours, a journey of 180 Irish
miles, on very rough roads, upon the same
horse. What say the Americans to this ex-
ploit. It resembles the flight of the wild
animal that bore away Mazeppa in Lord
Byron's beautiful poem.

"TO A WATERFOWL."

By William Bryant, an American Poet.

" Whither, midst falling dew,

While glow the heavens with the last steps of day,
Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue

Thy solitary way 1

Vainly the fowler's eye

Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong
As, darkly painted on the crimson sky

Thy figure floats along.

Seek'st thou the plashy brink
Of weedy lake, or marge of river wide,
Or where the rocking billows rise and sink

On the chafed ocean side ?

There is a Power whose care
Teaches thy way along that pathless coast
The desert and illimitable air

Lone wandering, but not lost.

All day thy wings have fanned,
At that far height, the cold thin atmosphe,
Yet stoop not, weary to the welcome land.

Though the dark night is near.

And soon that toil shall end,
Soon shalt thou find a summer home, and rest
And scream among thy fellows : reeds shall bend

Soon o'er thy sheltered nest.

Thou'rt gone the abyss of heaven
Hath swallowed up thy form ; yet on my heart
Deeply hast sunk the lesson tliou hast given,

And shall not soon depart.

He, who from zone to zone, '

Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight,
In the long way that I must tread alone,

Will lead my steps aright."



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



273




THE JOLLY ANGLERS:



" Dr. Nowell died February 13th, 1601, being aged NINETY-FIVE YEARS, forty-four of which he had beea
Dean of St. Paul's Church; and that his age had neither impaired his hearing, nor dimmed his BYES, nor
Weakened his memory, nor made any of the faculties of the mind weak or useless." 'Tis said, that ANGLING
and TEMPERANCE were great causes of these blessings, and I wish the like to all that imitate him, and love
the memory of so good a raao. IZAAK. WALTON ,



O ! the jolly Angler's life, it is the best of any,
It is a. fancy void of strife, and belov'd by many,'
It is no crime, at any time, but a harmless pleasure ;
It is a bliss, of lawfrjness, it is a joy, not a toy,
It is a skill that breeds no ill, it is sweet and com.

plete

Adoration to the mind, it's witty, pretty, decent,
Pleasant pastime, we shall sweetly find,
If the weather proves but kind, we'll enjoy our

leisure.
18



In the morning up we rise, soon as daylight's peeping:.
Take a cup to cheer the heart, leave the sluggard

sleeping,

Forth we walk, and merry talk, to some pleasant river.
Near the Thames, silver streams, there we stand, rod

in hand,

Fixing right, for a bite, all the time the fish allure,
Come leaping, skipping, bobbing, biting,
Dangling at our hooks secure :
With this pastime sweet and pure,we could fish for ever

T



274



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



As we walk the meadows green, where the fragrant

air i ,
Where the object's to be seen, O I what pleasure there

i*;

Birds do sing, flowers spring, full of delectation,
Whistling breeze runs through the trees, there we

meet meadows sweet,

Flowers find to our mind, it is a scene of sweet content
From the sweet refreshing bowers,
Living, giving, easing, pleasing, vital powers,
Kxhaled from those herbs and flowers,
Raised by the falling showers, for man's recreation.

Thro' the shady forest, where the horn is sounding,
Hound and huntsman roving, there is sport abounding ;
A hideous noise, is all their joys, not to be admired,
While we fish, to gain a dish, with our hook, in the

brook,

Watch our float, spare our throat,
While they are sweltering to and fro ;
Tantivee, tantivee, the horn does loudly blow,
Hounds and huntsmen all a row, with their pastime

fired.

We have gentles in our horns, we have worms and

paste too,
Great coats we have, to stand a storm, baskets at our

waists top,

We have line, choice of twine, fitting for our angle,
If it's so, away we go, seeking out carp or trout,
Eel or pike, or the like, dace or bleak, what we lack,
Barbel, jack, or any more,
Gudgeons, roaches, perches, tenches, here's the jolly

Angler's store,
We have choice of fish galore, we will have our

angling.

If the sun's excessive heat should our bodies swelter,
To bush or hedge we'll retreat for a friendly shelter ;
If we spy a shower high, or the day uncertain,
Then we flee beneath a tree, there we eat victuals

sweet ;

Take a coge, smoke and foge,
If we can no longer stay,
We go laughing, joking, quaffing, smoking,
So delightful all the way,
'Jims we conclude the day, with a cup at parting.

NONE but an out-and-out Angler, we are
well assured, can enter into the "Joys OF
ANGLING ;" many persons, it is true, are
pleased with it as a mere pastime ; accept of
an invitation, play with the rod and line for a
few hours, and may, perhaps, be induced to
have another trial, if they are lucky enough
to catch a dish of fish ! But to other persons,
Angling proves any thing but pleasing, nay,
tiresome ; and we have heard several indi-
riduals exclaim, in the words of the late ele-
gant, but fastidious Lord Chesterfield, who
gave his opinion in the following terms re-
specting hunting : " Do they ever go a SECOND
time ?" Therefore, we again repeat the above
assertion, that it must be nothing else than an
out-and-out Angler, who can fully enter into
the u JOYS OP ANGLING." Indeed, something
after the adage, that a man must be born a
poet to excel in his art ; or, in other words,
that a man must be born an Angler or he will
catch no fish ; there is such a peculiarity of
thinking attached to the sport a matter of
taste altogether, and totally different from all
other kinds of Sporting.

An Angler, at all events, must possess one
of our greatest virtues, namely, PATIENCE ;
without patience, no man can become any
thing like an Angler ; and those persons who



are destitute of this most admirable quality
belonging to human nature must give up all
ideas of a jiusement to be obtained by the use
of the line and rod. But we have known
many persons, within the circle of our sport-
ing acquaintances, who have been perfectly
contented with only a nibble in the course of a
very long summer's day, much more the lucky
chance of experiencing a bite ; and who have
packed up their baskets with as much cool-
ness and composure as if they had the most
extraordinary luck in the world, and have
caught fish enough to have supplied Billings-
gate Market. But then it is said, according
to the old proverb, that " the patient man not
only endureth, but he overcometh all things !"
Be it so the true Angler not only acts up to
the extremity of the above sentence, but he
also entertains a further opinion upon the sub-
ject, that however bad his luck might have
been one day, he may experience better the
next time he throws his line into the water.

Angling is most decidedly an art, and
Anglers, in general, are entirely devoted to
this contemplative pursuit ; in fact, they never
appear to tire at it. After the day's sport is
over, bad or good, we have found most of the
Anglers truly pleasant, and perfectly good-
tempered. Neither distance, nor weather, at
times operate upon the feelings of the Angler ;
and he trudges towards the scene of his de-
light, some favorite piece of water, or river,
perhaps twenty miles, with as much ease and
indifference as if it was only a few yards
contemplating on the healthful exercise and the
enjoyment which free air affords with the above
sport to the Philosopher! Yes, we must use
the term Philosopher ! for such we believe
them to be, and have no hesitation, generally
speaking, that all true Anglers come under
that denomination of character.

In the course of our variegated life we
have spent many very harmonious evenings in
the company of Anglers after they have re-
tired from their day's sport, to enjoy the com-
pany of their friends and acquaintances over
the glass, cigar, or pipe, and we never found
them tardy in telling their tale, or giving
their song, when required to contribute to the
conviviality of the night. We well remember
we were very much pleased with Mr. FLOAT'S
song, who gave the following verses in the
true spirit and taste of an Angler :

TO ANGLE WE WILL GO.

Of all the sports and pastimes