highly venomous. These snakes
must not be confounded with the very numerous species of sea eels,
which, though exceedingly savage and armed with strong needle-pointed
teeth, are all non-venomous, though their bite produces high
inflammation if not at once properly attended to and cleansed by an
antiseptic. The sea snake is a true snake in many respects, having
either laminated scales or a thick corduroyed skin resembling
rudimentary scales. The head is flat, and the general structure of the
body similar to that of the land snake. Whether any of them possess the
true poison glands and fangs I do not know, for although I have killed
many hundreds of them I never took sufficient interest to make a careful
examination; and I was told by a Dutch medical gentleman, long resident
on the coast of Dutch New Guinea, and who had made some investigation on
the subject, that he had failed to discover any poison sacs or glands in
any one of the several snakes he had captured. Yet in some instances he
found what at first appeared to be the two long front teeth common to
venomous land snakes, but on detailed examination these always proved to
be perfectly solid; nevertheless a bite from one of these sea serpents
was generally regarded by the natives as fatal; in my own experience
I know of two such cases, one at the island of Fotuna in the South
Pacific, and the other in Torres Straits.

In Sigavi Harbour, on Fotuna, there is a rock to which vessels
occasionally make fast their stern moorings. In the boat which I sent
away with a line to this rock were several boys, natives of the island,
who went with the crew for amusement. One of them, aged about ten,
jumped out of the boat, and in his hurry fell on his hands and knees,
right on top of a large black and white banded sea snake, which at once
bit him savagely on the wrist, causing the blood to flow from a score of
tiny punctures. The boy at once swam on shore to be treated by a native;
in the evening I heard he was suffering great agony, in the morning the
poor little fellow was dead.

The second instance was near Raine Island, in Torres Straits. A stalwart
young Kanaka, one of the crew of a pearling lugger, was diving for clam
shells on the reef, when a snake about three feet in length suddenly
shot up from below within a foot of his face. In his anger and disgust
he unthinkingly struck it with his hand, and was quickly bitten on the
forefinger. A few hours later he was in a high fe