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Show 634 MR. STANLEY S. FLOWER ON THE [May 16, Many people have heard bow a hill-fort in India, long supposed to be impregnable, was captured by means of a lizard which went up the perpendicular rock-face, with a cord attached to it, by means of which the attacking soldiers eventually ascended. In Bangkok it is said that people's hats are stolen by means of the Tokay. The lizard, with a cord round its body, is let down at night from a roof or veranda over the head of a passer-by in the street; it struggles to find a foothold, touches the hat, seizes it, and next moment is jerked up by the man, watching above, cord in hand, and the astonished victim is at a loss to know whither his hat has suddenly vanished. Colour (in life). Upper surface and sides of head, body, and limbs grey (varying from pale bluish to very dark rich violet), profusely spotted ; the spots are either very pale bluish grey, almost white, or rich brick-red. On the head these spots are fairly symmetrically arranged, the red ones predominate, and the light ones are not so whitish as they are on the body; these latter on the top of the head coalesce more or less into longitudinal lines. On the back the light spots are grouped into narrow transverse bands ; usually there is one of these on the neck, one on the shoulders, four between the limbs, and one on the loins. The spots on the limbs are smaller than those on the back, red and light grey, subequal in size and in about equal numbers. The upper surfaces of the digits are similarly marked, the spots being: smaller than on the limbs. The nails are pale blue-grey, like tbe light spots. Lower surface of head, body, and limbs paler grey than above, whitish on the chin, spotted as above, but the spots are smaller, paler in colour, and not so sharply defined. The lower surfaces of the digits are brownish grey. Tail grey (usually darker than the back, and in young specimens dark violet, almost black), with about eight narrow transverse rings of pale bluish grey (iu young specimens almost white). Iris yellow. Size. The largest specimen I have measured, a male from Bangkok, was snout to vent 178 mm., and width of head 45 mm.; it had lost its tail, which, judging from other specimens, should have been nearly as long as the head and body, which would give the total length of an adult Tokay to be about 356 m m. Hab. North-eastern India, Burmah, South China, Annam, Siam, Malay Peninsula, Java, Celebes, Lombok, Ombaai, Savu, Sulu Island, Philippines, Timor Laut. 45. GECKO STENTOR (Cant.). Platydactylus stentor, Cantor, p. 18. Gecko smithii, Stol. J. A. S. B. 1870, pp. 161, 162. Gecko stentor, Giinth. Rept. Brit. Ind. p. 102, pl. xi. fig. A ; Blgr. Cat. Liz. i. p. 184. Recorded from Penang by Cantor and Stoliczka. Hab. Burma, Andamans, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo. |