In Selangor, as in Perak, the “live gall-bladder” of the python will (it is believed), if kept in a jar, develop into a serpent; when dried it is in great request as a remedy for small-pox. The story that Mr. Wray tells of the pit viper (ular kapak daun) is in Selangor told of a snake called chintamani. Selangor Malays say that it was once upon a time a Raja of the country, and that the birds which bring it food were then its subjects. A Malay told me that he once saw this operation, and that the birds fed it with insects. It is reputed to be a perfectly harmless snake, and it is considered extremely lucky to keep one of the species in one’s house, or even to see it. It is described as of a bright and glittering blue[304] colour (biru bĕrkilat-kilat), and is frequently referred to in charms, especially those connected with the Rice-soul ceremony, and is sometimes said to spring from the egg of the chandrawasih or bird of paradise.
The cobra (ular tĕdong) is said to have a bright stone (kĕmala or gĕmala)[305] in its head, the radiance of which causes its head to be visible on the darkest night. A “snake bezoar” (guliga ular) is also said to be occasionally found in the back of a snake’s head (?), whilst the snake-stone (batu ular) is carried in its mouth.
This batu ular is a prize for the possession of which snakes are not unfrequently believed to fight, and appears to correspond to the pearl for which in Chinese legendary lore the dragons of that country were believed to engage in mortal combat. A Malay remarked to me that it was always worth while if one came upon two snakes thus engaged to kill them both, as one of them was sure to possess this much-coveted stone, which is said to confer an almost certain victory upon its possessor.
Another species of “snake-stone,” which is said to be manufactured by Pawangs from gold, silver, amalgam (of silver and gold), tin, iron, and quicksilver, is called Buntat Raksa, and is said to be invaluable in case of snake-bite. It is believed that this stone will adhere to the wound, and will not fall off until it has sucked out all the poison. One of these stones, which was sold to me in Selangor for a dollar, was about an inch long and oval in shape; it was evidently made of some mixture of metals, and was perforated so as to enable it to be carried on a string.
The ular gantang is said to be a snake, though from the description given it would seem more likely to be some species of slow-worm or blind-worm. It is only a “few inches” long, and is “black,” and there is said to be little if any difference between its head and its tail. It is considered to be extremely lucky, and when a Malay meets it, he spreads out his head-cloth or turban on the ground, and allows it to enter, when he carries it home and keeps it.
To dream of being bitten by a snake is thought to portend success in a love affair.[306]
“A horned toad, known as katak bertandok, but not the common one of that name (Megalophrys nasuta, Gunther), has a very bad reputation with the Malays. It is said to live in the jungle on the hills, and wherever it takes up its abode all the trees and plants around wither and die. So poisonous is it, that it is dangerous even to approach it, and to touch or be bitten by it is certain death.
“The bite of the common toad (Bufo melanostictus, Cantor) is also said to prove fatal. That toads have no teeth is an anatomical detail that does not seem to be thought worthy of being taken into account.
“The supposed venomous properties of this useful and harmless tribe have a world-wide range. In Shakespeare many allusions to it are made; one of them, which mentions the habit of hibernation possessed by those species which inhabit the colder parts of the earth, says—
‘In the poison’d entrails throw,