Other Snakes
There are many other snakes in the United States, but they are not venomous. Here is one thing to remember: you need never fear a snake found in this country which has lengthwise stripes, that is, stripes running from head to tail. Daniel C. Beard tells me that he has learned this from observation, and Raymond L. Ditmars, curator of reptiles in the New York Zoological Park, agrees with him.
While the lengthwise-striped snakes are harmless, others not striped in this way are harmless, too. The blacksnake, though he looks an ugly customer and, when cornered, will sometimes show fight, is not venomous and his bite is not deep. It is, therefore, wanton cruelty to kill every snake that crosses your path simply because it happens to be a snake. Kephart, in his book of "Camping and Woodcraft," says in regard to identifying the poisonous snake:
"The rattlesnake, copperhead, and cottonmouth are easily distinguished from all other snakes, as all three of them bear a peculiar mark, or rather a pair of marks, that no other animal possesses. This mark is the pit, which is a deep cavity on each side of the face between the nostrils and the eye, sinking into the upper jaw-bone."
If, when one has been bitten and the snake killed, an examination is made of its head, it can be ascertained immediately whether the snake was venomous, and in this way unnecessary fright may be avoided.