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Nieuhof, Johannes, 1618-1672 / An embassy from the East-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Grand Tartar Cham, emperor of China: delivered by their excellencies Peter de Goyer and Jacob de Keyzer, at his imperial city of Peking wherein the cities, towns, villages, ports, rivers, &c. in their passages from Canton to Peking are ingeniously described by John Nieuhoff; also an epistle of Father John Adams, their antagonist, concerning the whole negotiation; with an appendix of several remarks taken out of Father Athanasius Kircher; Englished and set forth with their several sculptures by John Ogilby
(1673)

[Kircher appendix] Chap. X. Of the serpents of China.,   pp. 416-417


Page 416

dITHA(1,4ISVS J(JRCIIER'S. 
(CHAP. X. 
Of the Serpents of China. 
'Here are in this Empire Serpents of fo prodigious a fize, that (as I 
tinius in his Atlas relateth) in the Province of 9 aangfi there are f 
- thirty Foot long, unto which if their Bulk anfwereth, one would 
that greater cannot be. 
'he Flora Sinenfis reporteth of the Serpent call'd Gento, "That it devot
ole Stags, yet is not very venomous ; it is of an Aflhcolotir, its lei 
om eighteen to twenty four Foot: Being hungry, it rulfheth out of 
hickets and feizeth its'Prey:" Ereded upon his Tail, he maintains a
F 
th Men or wild Beafts; and oftentimes will feize upon a Man by I 
g from a Tree, and kill him by its violent windings about him. The 
(es preferve his Gall to cure the Difeafes of the Eyes. 
farcus aulus Venetus tefifieth the fame of the Serpents of Carra4jam, w 
fo great, that fome are in length ten Paces, in thicknefs ten Palms ; a 
metrical Pace confifling of five Foot, the length of this Serpent muft be
Foot, and fo it exceeds the Serpents of 9juangft twenty Foot ; but if the
c 
mon Pace, which is three Foot, then they are equal ; But thus Marcus Pas
"There are bred in the Province of Carrajam very great Serpents, forn
"length ten Paces, and in thicknefs ten Palms, having in flead of Feet,
C 
"like thofe of a Lion or Falcon ; they have great Heads,and fiery Eyes,fta
"as wide asSawcers, and bunching forth like Footballs; their Mouth 
"Jaws fo wide, that are able to fwallow a Man, with large and fharp
T 
"being terrible to behold ; they are taken after this manner : The Serpe
"the day.time lieth hid in Caves of the Mountains, and in tht night-tim
"eth forth to hunt the Dens of Beafts for Prey, which he devoureth,
fea 
. neither Lions, Bears, or any other Creature ; and having fatisfi'd his
I 
ger, returneth to his Cave, with the weight of his Body ploughing exc 
"ing deep Furrows, the Earth being Sandy, in which Tra& the Huntfime
"firong Stakes, pointed with (harp Iron, which they conceal with the
S 
"and when the Serpent cometh forth to feek his Prey, or returneth back,
"as he creepeth along, the Sand giveth way, and the Iron Spikes pierce
his 
Breafi, goring his Entrails  where being faftned, and fore wounded, the 
" Huntfmen kill him, and fell his Gall at a great Price, it being Medicinal;
"the Flefh they fell for Meat, and Men feed freely on it. Thus far Marcus
qpaulus Tenetus. And though thefe may be reckon'd amongft Dragons, yet are
they without Poyfon, of which there are divers others (as Martinium relateth)
in the Province of Chekiang. 
There are alfo other Serpents in China, full of incurable Poyfon, call'd
Cabra 
de Cabelo, that is, The Hairy-Headed Serpent, of whofe Stone we have made
men- 
tion. 
In the Empire of the Mogor there is another fort, fwoln with deadly Ve- 
nom, and exceedingly valu'd for the excellent Antidotes that are compounded
oirthem. Let this Serpent be fleep'd in a large Veffel full of rich Wine,
fo that 
his Head may come out at a Hole made in the middle of the Cover, then put
Fire under it till the Wine be ready to boil, and the Poyfon of the Serpent
breathe 


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