Like most reptiles they retire during the winter into holes, in which they remain in a torpid state until the return of spring; and during this period they may be taken or destroyed without danger. Their flesh is eaten by the negroes, who also apply their fat, as well as their rattles, to various medicinal or superstitious uses. The number at present in the Tower exceeds a hundred, varying from four to six feet in length, and differing very considerably from each other both in colour and markings. [Illustration] CHISWICK: PRINTED BY CHARLES WHITTINGHAM, COLLEGE HOUSE. End of Project Gutenberg's The Tower Menagerie, by Edward Turner Bennett