The Papuans--Their Physical and Moral Characteristics--Their Artistic Tastes--Their Dwellings--Their Primitive Political Institutions--Their Weapons and Mode of Fighting--The Polynesians--Their Manners and Customs when first visited by Europeans--Tattooing--The Tapa Cloth--Their Canoes--Swimming Feats--Aristocratic Forms of Government--The Tabu--Religion-- Superstitious Observances--Human Sacrifices--Infanticide--Low Condition of the Coral Islanders 276 CHAPTER XXIII. SNAKES. First Impressions of a Tropical Forest--Exaggerated Fears-- Comparative rareness of Venomous Snakes--Their Habits and External Characters--Anecdote of the Prince of Neu Wied--The Bite of the Trigonocephalus--Antidotes--Fangs of the Venomous Snakes described--The Bush-Master--The Echidna Ocellata-- The Rattlesnakes--Extirpated by Hogs--The Cobra de Capello-- Indian Snake-Charmers--Maritime Excursions of the Cobra--The Egyptian Haje--The Cerastes--Boas and Pythons--The Jiboya-- The Anaconda--Enemies of the Serpents--The Secretary--The Adjutant--The Mungoos--A Serpent swallowed by another--The Locomotion of Serpents--Anatomy of their Jaws--Serpents feeding in the Zoological Gardens--Domestication of the Rat-Snake-- Water-Snakes 292 CHAPTER XXIV. LIZARDS, FROGS, AND TOADS. Their Multitude within the Tropics--The Geckoes--Anatomy of their Feet--The Anolis--Their Love of Fight--The Chameleon-- Its wonderful Changes of Colour--Its Habits--Peculiarities of its Organisation--The Iguana--The Teju--The Water-Lizards-- Lizard Worship on the Coast of Africa--The Flying Dragon--The Basilisk--Frogs and Toads--The Pipa--The Bahia Toad--The Giant Toad--The Musical Toad--Brazilian and Surinam Tree-Frogs 310 CHAPTER XXV. TORTOISES AND TURTLES. The Galapagos--The Elephantine Tortoise--The Marsh-Tortoises-- Mantega--River-Tortoises--Marine-Turtles--On the Brazilian Coast--Their Numerous Enemies--The Island of Ascension-- Turtle-Catching at the Bahama and Keeling Islands--Turtle caught by means of the Sucking-Fish--The Green Turtle--The Hawksbill Turtle--Turtle Scaling in the Feejee Islands--Barbarous mode of selling Turtle-flesh in Ceylon--The Coriaceous Turtle--Its awful Shrieks 321 CHAPTER XXVI. CROCODILES AND ALLIGATORS.