"The exports of Siam," said the Doctor, in answer to the above remark, "comprise a good many things. Besides the articles mentioned, the country produces and sends to foreign ports a considerable amount of tin, which is dug from its mines; and it also exports small quantities of other metals. Then it produces pepper, tobacco, cardamons, ivory, and various dye-stuffs. It also exports the skins of the rhinoceros, buffalo, ox, elephant, tiger, leopard, bear, snake, and deer; and some of these articles go out in the form of leather. How great are the quantities of these things I am unable to say, as I have not studied the tables of imports and exports very closely."
Frank was curious to know how the people caught the snakes whose skins they exported. He thought a snake was a disagreeable thing to associate with, and not at all easy to capture.
The Doctor explained that the matter was by no means as difficult as he imagined. The snakes are fond of chickens, and they come around the houses of the people, particularly those that are built on rafts, in search of their favorite prey. When a native discovers any indications that a snake has been around his premises, he arranges a coop made of strong sticks of bamboo, and, after putting a chicken inside, he leaves an opening in one end large enough for the snake to enter. He goes into the coop and kills the chicken, which he swallows whole, after the manner of snakes in general. He is so gorged that he cannot escape, and is found in his prison in the morning. Under these circumstances he is easily killed, and his skin is an ample compensation for the slaughtered fowl.
Fred had observed little cages on poles rising from the roofs of many of the houses, and naturally inquired their use.
"Those cages," said Doctor Bronson, "are intended as traps for birds. If you examine them closely you will perceive that they are double; one half is intended as a trap, and is left open for the wild bird to enter, while the other contains a captive bird who serves as a decoy."
Naturally the conversation turned upon the birds of Siam and their peculiarities.
HAUNTS OF SEA-BIRDS ON THE COAST.
"I cannot give you a very good account of the birds of Siam," said the genial Doctor, "for the reason that the ornithology of the country has not, as far as I am aware, been carefully and exhaustively studied. The birds of prey include the white eagle and also the common brown eagle; and they have, as you have observed, the vulture, which is the same species that is found in India. The kite is very common; and there are two or three varieties of the hawk. As for crows, they have enough in Siam to destroy all the corn in the States east of the Hudson River; and if the Siamese attempted to raise that article, they would doubtless have a hard time of it."