t hisses sharply. If this show does not scare away its
enemy it will suddenly be seized with a spasm, ending by turning on its
back, limp and apparently lifeless. When it thinks danger is past it
recovers its normal position and quickly gets away. This snake is known
popularly as the "Flat-headed Adder," the "Puff Adder," "Viper" and
"Blow Snake."

THE HARLEQUIN OR CORAL SNAKE.

Is a strikingly marked serpent. Its colors are scarlet, black and
yellow. This snake is found in the southeastern and central United
States. It is a near relative to the deadly Cobra-de-Capello and is
itself poisonous. A burrowing reptile.

THE MOCCASINS.

These snakes are highly poisonous. The Water Moccasin is one of the
largest venomous snakes found in the United States. Some have been
caught that measured four feet in length and almost two and a half
inches around. Certain kinds of harmless water snakes are popularly
supposed to be and are called "moccasins." Unless you have a very close
knowledge of which is which, you should be careful how near you approach
them. The Water Moccasin is found quite abundantly in the east from the
Carolinas southward and along the Mississippi states as far north as
Illinois. It likes swamps and is found abundantly in many southern
swampy sections. This snake is often known as the "Cotton Mouth" Snake.
It is vicious and pugnacious and will fight snakes of any size. The
prey of this serpent consists of birds, frogs, other snakes, fish and
small animals. The Copperhead derives its name from the copperish tint
on its head. It is not as large a snake as the Water Moccasin, nor does
it like the swamps. It frequents rocky locations that are thickly
wooded. It has a peculiar habit of backing away from danger by looping
its body and then drawing it straight again.

[Illustration: THE MOCCASIN.]

THE RATTLESNAKES.

The rattlesnake is the most interesting as well as the most deadly of
the North American serpents. Its chief distinguishing characteristic is
the rattle at the end of tail. Curator Ditmars, of the New York
Zoological Park, says that although he has "studied living examples of
many species of deadly snakes--the South American bushmaster and the
fer-de-lance, the African puff adder and the berg adder, and such East
Indian species as the king cobra, the spectacled cobra and Russell's
viper, and although there is indelibly stamped upon his mind the bloated
body, the glassy stare and the rhythmic h