His Bite Has No More Venom,
Than A Prick With A Pin.
He is the best Mouser that can be;
for he leaves not one of that Vermine alive, where he comes.
He also kills the Rattle-Snake, wheresoever he meets him,
by twisting his Head about the Neck of the Rattle-Snake,
and whipping him to Death with his Tail.
This Whipster haunts
the Dairies of careless Housewives, and never misses to skim the Milk
clear of the Cream. He is an excellent Egg-Merchant,
for he does not suck the Eggs, but swallows them whole (as all Snakes do.)
He will often swallow all the Eggs from under a Hen that sits,
and coil himself under the Hen, in the Nest, where sometimes
the Housewife finds him. This Snake, for all his Agility, is so brittle,
that when he is pursued, and gets his Head into the Hole of a Tree,
if any body gets hold of the other end, he will twist, and break himself off
in the middle. One of these Snakes, whose Neck is no thicker
that a Woman's little Finger, will swallow a Squirrel;
so much does that part stretch, in all these Creatures.
{King Snake.}
The King-Snake is the longest of all others, and not common;
no Snake (they say) will meddle with them. I think they are not accounted
very venomous. The Indians make Girdles and Sashes of their Skins.
{Green Snake.}
Green-Snakes are very small, tho' pretty (if any Beauty be allow'd to Snakes.)
Every one makes himself very familiar with them, and puts them in their Bosom,
because there is no manner of Harm in them.
{Corn-Snake.}
The Corn-Snakes are but small ones; they are of a brown Colour,
mixed with tawny. There is no more hurt in this, than in the green Snake.
{Vipers.}
Of those we call Vipers, there are two sorts. People call these Vipers,
because they spread a very flat Head at any time when they are vex'd.
One of these is a grayish like the Italian Viper, the other black and short;
and is reckon'd amongst the worst of Snakes, for Venom.
{Tortois.}
Tortois, vulgarly call'd Turtle; I have rank'd these among the Insects,
because they lay Eggs, and I did not know well where to put them. Among us
there are three sorts. The first is the green Turtle, which is not common,
but is sometimes found on our Coast. The next is the Hawks-bill,
which is common. These two sorts are extraordinary Meat.
The third is Logger-Head, which Kind scarce any one covets,
except it be for the Eggs, which of this and all other Turtles,
are very good Food. None of these sorts of Creatures Eggs
will ever admit the White to be harder than a Jelly; yet the Yolk,
with boiling, becomes as hard as any other Egg.
{Terebin.}
Of Terebins there are divers sorts, all which, to be brief, we will comprehend
under the Distinction of Land and Water-Terebins.
{Land-Terebin.}
The Land-Terebin is of several Sizes, but generally Round-Mouth'd,
and not Hawks-Bill'd, as some are. The Indians eat them. Most of them
are good Meat, except the very large ones; and they are good Food too,
provided they are not Musky. They are an utter Enemy to the Rattle-Snake,
for when the Terebin meets him, he catches hold of him a little below
his Neck, and draws his Head into his Shell, which makes the Snake
beat his Tail, and twist about with all the Strength and Violence imaginable,
to get away; but the Terebin soon dispatches him, and there leaves him.
These they call in Europe the Land Tortois; their Food is Snails, Tad-pools,
or young Frogs, Mushrooms, and the Dew and Slime of the Earth and Ponds.
{Water-Terebin.}
Water Terebins are small; containing about as much Meat as a Pullet,
and are extraordinary Food; especially, in May and June.
When they lay, their Eggs are very good; but they have so many Enemies
that find them out, that the hundredth part never comes to Perfection.
The Sun and Sand hatch them, which come out the Bigness of a small Chesnut,
and seek their own Living.
{Brimstone-Snake.}
We now come again to the Snakes. The Brimstone is so call'd, I believe,
because it is almost of a Brimstone Colour. They might as well
have call'd it a Glass-Snake, for it is as brittle as a Tobacco-Pipe,
so that if you give it the least Touch of a small Twigg,
it immediately breaks into several Pieces. Some affirm,
that if you let it remain where you broke it, it will come together again.
What Harm there is in this brittle Ware, I cannot tell;
but I never knew any body hurt by them.
{Chicken-Snake.}
The Egg or Chicken-Snake is so call'd, because it is frequent about
the Hen-Yard, and eats Eggs and Chickens, they are of a dusky Soot Colour,
and will roll themselves round, and stick eighteen, or twenty Foot high,
by the side of a smooth-bark'd Pine, where there is no manner of Hold,
and there sun themselves, and sleep all the Sunny Part of the Day.
There is no great matter of Poison in them.
{Wood-Worm.}
The Wood-Worms are of a Copper, shining Colour, scarce so thick
as your little Finger; are often found in Rotten-Trees.
They are accounted venomous, in case they bite, though I never knew any thing
hurt by them. They never exceed four or five Inches in length.
The Reptiles, or smaller Insects, are too numerous to relate here,
this Country affording innumerable Quantities thereof;
as the Flying-Stags with Horns, Beetles, Butterflies, Grashoppers,
Locust, and several hundreds of uncouth Shapes, which in the Summer-Season
are discovered here in Carolina, the Description of which
requires a large Volume, which is not my Intent at present.
Besides, what the Mountainous Part of this Land may hereafter
lay open to our View, Time and Industry will discover,
for we that have settled but a small Share of this large Province,
cannot imagine, but there will be a great number of Discoveries made
by those that shall come hereafter into the Back-part of this Land,
and make Enquiries therein, when, at least, we consider that
the Westward of Carolina is quite different in Soil, Air, Weather,
Growth of Vegetables, and several Animals too, which we at present
are wholly Strangers to, and to seek for.
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