Then helium rushed to the museum, recovered a technological man—
“Trot maine retired a deadly serpent, conscionable the deadliest you can;
I mean to fto him wound me, each the hazard I volition endure,
Just to beryllium the sterling worth of my wondrous snakebite cure.”
–Banjo Paterson, “Johnson’s Antidote”
*
The archetypal celebrated Australian snake antheral was Charles Underwood. Colonial newspapers described him arsenic “the celebrated snake charmer,” “the notorious snake-charmer,” “the stout capable man,” “bilious-looking,” and “professor.” Some said helium learned his tricks successful North America; others said helium learned them from Amazonian shamans. Underwood’s contemporaries were unclear connected galore of the details of his life, adjacent earlier his villainous rival Joseph Shires began claiming that helium was Charles Underwood. New South Wales, furthermore, was for a clip location to astatine slightest 2 and possibly 3 existent Charles Underwoods. Horatio, the mediate sanction of the Charles Underwood, appears lone successful the grounds of his birth, connected February 19, 1807, to Richard and Elisabeth Underwood of Pleasant Row successful London, and successful the study connected the inquest into his untimely death.
The barest way of crumbs traces Underwood’s way done aboriginal adulthood. In March 1829, helium was convicted successful London connected 2 counts of road robbery and sentenced to fourteen years. At the time, this meant proscription to the penal colonies, which, immoderate the purported magnitude of the sentence, was astir often a one-way trip. He is listed among the 2 100 convicts who arrived successful Sydney aboard the barque Norfolk successful August 1829. His whereabouts for the adjacent decennary are uncertain, though later, arsenic his fame grew, a Queensland paper wondered if helium was the aforesaid Charles Underwood who had spent clip successful a penal colony determination and who was known for keeping institution with snakes. There is nary further notation of him until 1841, erstwhile helium was convicted of forging a cheque and again sentenced to proscription to a penal colony, this clip from the Australian mainland to Van Diemen’s Land, present known arsenic Tasmania. When helium reappeared again, successful April 1849, it was arsenic a snake man.
The snake men drew from a deeper taste well. In handling venomous snakes and weathering their bites, they were acting retired an age-old story.
Underwood, newspapers record, had arranged a snakebite accumulation successful a ample country of St. Mary’s Hospital successful Hobart, Tasmania. On the appointed Saturday, astir 50 learned men assembled to ticker Underwood’s experiments. Much was astatine stake: The lieutenant politician had authorized the presiding doc to merchandise Underwood from the presumption of his bail if the experiments were successful. But trouble piled upon difficulty. Despite moving ads successful the newspapers successful the days starring up to the event, the learned men had procured lone 3 snakes: a “large diamond snake,” a “whip snake,” and a “very tiny achromatic snake.” The snakes were excessively docile. When Underwood placed the provided rabbit successful a cask with the snakes, they would not bite. Nor would they wound a cat.
When Underwood took 1 of the snakes and forced its rima to adjacent implicit the rabbit’s ear, it failed to envenomate the rabbit. Luckily for Underwood, during this past attempt, the snake spot him instead, yet giving him the accidental to beryllium himself. He produced a “small phial containing a light-coloured liquid, and rubbed a information implicit the bite,” wrote 1 reporter. “He said it was capable to cure the wound of the deadliest taxon of snakes.”
According to the past Greeks, a mighty serpent called Ophion incubated an tremendous ovum that hatched into the beingness and each its inhabitants. Ophion besides hatched “ophidiophobia,” “ophidiophilia,” Acanthophis, and different presumption of serpentine twist. During his celebrated trials, Hercules encountered Echidna, who was fractional maiden and fractional viper. She had stolen his horses portion helium was napping. “I volition springiness them backmost to you,” she said, “but lone aft you person slept with me.” The Gorgons had snakes for hair. Dante, who visited them successful Hell, recorded that the trio, “who had the limbs of women and their ways,” besides wore girdles made of snakes. After Perseus chopped disconnected the caput of Medusa, the astir celebrated of the Gorgons, helium carried it with him arsenic helium flew with his winged shoes implicit the deserts of Libya. Drops of Medusa’s humor turned to snakes, which, Ovid explained, is “why Libya is present infested with poisonous reptiles.”
During the Roman Civil War, Cato led a Republican service done the deserts of Libya, wherever his soldiers encountered heat, sand, and the assorted spawn of Medusa. As Lucan recounted successful his Pharsalia, these included the chersydros, the chelydri, the cenchris, the cerastes, the scytale, the pareas, the dipsas, the drowsy asp, the deadly seps, the fierce haemorrhois, the dreadful amphisbaena, the swift jaculi, the scorching prester, and the basilisk. One soldier, named Aulus, stepped connected a dipsas. It spot him, and soon his full assemblage was aflame and helium was consumed by an unbearable thirst. A scorching prester spot different soldier, Nasidius, who instantly swelled to large size, bursting his overgarment of mail, until “he himself laic concealed, wholly hidden wrong his swollen body.” The unlucky nobleman Tullus was bitten by a fierce haemorrhois, causing humor to determination from his eyes, nose, ears, mouth, and different orifices and outlets. The worker Sabellius was bitten by a deadly seps. His tegument fell off, the membranes separating his organs dissolved, his bones turned to mush, and his caput rolled away.
European colonists successful Australia encountered a suite of venomous snakes conscionable arsenic fearsome arsenic those of the Libyan desert. Australian newspapers successful the aboriginal 1800s offered changeless snake coverage, giving a consciousness of corporate dread. There was a dependable toll: women, men, “a good boy,” “a good cow,” “a good ewe,” each dormant of snakebite. Some victims fell instantly into unconsciousness. Others vomited and mislaid their sight. One boy’s lingua turned yellowish and his teeth turned black. Another antheral reenacted the decease of Tullus: After helium was bitten, humor gushed from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth, and his assemblage dissolved, becoming “instantaneously a wide of putrefaction, truthful that it was with trouble removed into a grave.”
The wound of a venomous snake is simply a mysterious thing. The wounds are tiny and often astir painless successful the moment. Sometimes decease comes quickly, but different times it whitethorn not get for galore hours oregon adjacent days, during which clip the unfortunate volition endure immoderate fig of symptoms, including symptom oregon numbness, paralysis oregon spasm, a pulse that races oregon drags, insensibility, confusion, terror. In their desperation to debar this fate, radical person turned to galore antithetic cures. Early remedies for snakebite included ether, tincture of asafoetida, mercury, strychnine, carbolic acid, chlorine of gold, chlorinated lime, mustard poultice, potassium permanganate, whiskey, brandy, gunpowder, petrol, toad urine, quality urine, olive oil, chaotic radish oil, daffodil juice, rancid butter, goat cheese, goat milk, pig’s lard, and pigface works juice, arsenic good arsenic suction cups, ligature, and impromptu amputation.
Most of these methods worked astir arsenic good arsenic modern products that committedness to thicken the penis oregon reconstruct representation and attraction to the addled. In 1 sense, snake men similar Underwood were nary antithetic from present-day gadget and ointment salesmen. But the snake men drew from a deeper taste well. In handling venomous snakes and weathering their bites, they were acting retired an age-old story, of Hercules, Thor, Vishnu, Saint George, Saint Patrick, and different heroes who grappled with serpents, defeating evil, death, adjacent fearfulness itself.
To the astonishment and delight of the assembled learned men, Underwood seemed to endure nary sick effects from the snakebite—all thanks, helium told them, to his proprietary cure. In March 1850, helium conducted further experiments for men of science, this clip successfully causing black, brown, and diamond snakes to wound 2 cats and twenty-three dogs, of which, 1 newsman wrote, “28½ per cent died aft the exertion of the antidote, and 27¼ per cent without the antidote.” He began advertizing his antidote successful the newspapers. In 1852, helium was sentenced to eighteen months of hard labour for stealing 5 gallons of rum.
In 1854, reporters spotted him performing for ample crowds successful downtown Hobart. “He places the reptile’s caput successful his mouth,” 1 newsman wrote, “and allows it to twirl and upwind astir his person.” A week later, 1 of the snakes spot Underwood connected the tongue. A newsman wrote that “the charmer admitted helium was nether the power of liquor.” In 1855, a policeman discovered him lying drunk successful the streets. When the policeman tried to apprehension him, Underwood threatened him with a container of snakes. A tribunal aboriginal banished him from Hobart.
His increasing fame seems to person inspired imitators. In 1857, Underwood published an advertisement cautioning that helium could not beryllium answerable for a cure purchased anyplace but astatine Mr. Millhouse’s Manufactory, and that “no different constitution has the genuine nonfiction but him.” In December 1858, newspapers reported the decease of George Henwood, an itinerant timepiece repairman and snake charmer who sold what helium called “Underwood’s antidote.”
After helium was bitten by 1 of his snakes portion showing them disconnected astatine a pub, Henwood “took a tiny vessel retired of his pouch and rubbed immoderate of the worldly that was successful it connected to his digit wherever it was bleeding,” recalled 1 witness. “In 10 minutes afterwards helium came up into the bar; helium looked precise pale, and [the bartender] gave him a nip of gin, which [he] asked for; helium past went into the room and sat down; I asked him however helium felt, and helium said, ‘better,’ and past asked for immoderate peppermint, which I gave him; helium past went up stairs and sat successful his bed; successful astir 10 minutes I went up and asked him however helium was; helium said, ‘better.’ ” Henwood died soon after. In an nonfiction connected the lawsuit published the pursuing February successful The Australian Medical Journal, E. Swarbreck Hall, Esq., MBOS, wrote that “it is precise indispensable to pass the nationalist from reposing assurance successful specified outer antidotes…as was unluckily the case, from this snake-charmer’s spot successful Underwood’s antidote.”
In April of that year, Underwood appeared successful Melbourne and announced a snake exhibition. “He does not authorities whether helium volition licence the snakes to run upon his person,” the paper announcement said, “but persons are politely requested to bring their ain snakes.” In May, The Cornwall Chronicle revealed the root of Underwood’s power. In a Rumpelstiltskinian turn, the paper reported, Underwood had appeared precocious 1 nighttime astatine a shepherd’s hut and asked to get a pot. The shepherd observed arsenic Underwood boiled and stirred and filtered his brew. After the snake antheral near successful the morning, the shepherd scuttled down to the paper offices. “The works that possesses the prime of neutralizing the effect of the venom imparted to the quality assemblage by the wound of the snake,” the insubstantial declared, “is nary different than the communal fern!”
In a missive published soon aft successful The Argus newspaper, Underwood wrote, “I defy each the aesculapian powers successful the satellite to prevention the beingness of immoderate idiosyncratic oregon carnal bitten by snakes with fern leaves.” He past offered to archer his concealed “for the tiny sum of 1 penny per caput for the colonisation of Victoria and its dependencies.” Another paper calculated the sum to beryllium astir 3,000 pounds, oregon thing adjacent a half-million dollars today.
It was astir that clip that Underwood seems to person caught upwind of his astir brazen imitator. The archetypal grounds of this feud is from precocious October 1859, erstwhile The Bendigo Advertiser reported that Underwood had appeared 2 nights earlier astatine the Victoria Hotel successful Bendigo and allowed himself to beryllium bitten connected the feature by a snake “kindly lent” by 1 Dr. Hutchinson. “The effect of the wound was precise soon perceptible,” the newsman wrote. “A stupor appeared to beryllium commencing, the pupil of the oculus became dilated and insensible to light, and a flimsy rigidity of the limbs apparent.” He applied his antidote and soon recovered. During his abbreviated convalescence, though, a subordinate of the assemblage declared that this Charles Underwood “could not beryllium the Underwood.”
The gathering fell into argument, until Dr. Hutchinson took the signifier and declared that, whether oregon not this Underwood was the Underwood, helium had successful information been bitten by a venomous snake, applied his antidote, and survived, thereby fulfilling each expectations of however a Charles Underwood ought to behave. The Bendigo Advertiser newsman past quoted from an nonfiction that had tally the time earlier successful the paper successful Castlemaine, a municipality astir twenty-five miles away: “A man of the highest respectability showed america a missive from Melbourne yesterday, successful which it is stated by a competent authority, that the idiosyncratic who is present experimenting with snakes successful Castlemaine is not the existent Underwood, but a idiosyncratic named Joseph Shires.” The Bendigo Advertiser newsman demurred from judgment, penning that “as to the allegation conveyed we cannot connection immoderate opinion,” but noted that the antheral present claiming to beryllium Charles Underwood astatine the Victoria Hotel had a tattoo connected his limb that work “Joseph Shires.”
None of their contemporaries seems to person realized what is present obvious: The 2 snake men were moving together. The duels were a sham, a mode to merchantability snakebite antidote.
Shires’s beginnings are arsenic mysterious arsenic Underwood’s. He was calved nether a somewhat antithetic name, Joseph Beaumont Shiers, astir 1819 successful New York, New York. In the record connected his 1841 condemnation successful London, for stealing a coat, watches, a ring, and different goods, helium was described arsenic possessing a sallow complexion, an oval head, a agelong visage, a tiny mouth, brownish hair, achromatic eyebrows, bluish eyes, and nary whiskers. “Protestant,” the papers noted. “Can work and write.” Sentenced to 7 years’ transportation, helium arrived successful Tasmania the pursuing year, among 250 convicts aboard the Surrey. In the nationalist announcement announcing the ship’s passengers, Joseph Shiers was transformed into Joseph Shires—perhaps a clerical error, possibly a hint of his inclination toward reinvention.
Over the adjacent 2 decades, records are few, astir of them noting transgression convictions for warring successful bars, stealing a watch, deserting a whaling ship, and beating his wife. The archetypal clip his sanction is mentioned successful transportation with snakes is successful an advertisement helium placed successful the Melbourne Age successful August 1859, 2 months earlier the Bendigo exhibition, inviting radical to ticker him trial Underwood’s antidote with 2 snakes that he’d caught. He signed the advertisement with his ain name, seemingly lone deciding aboriginal to follow Underwood’s.
Upon proceeding of the Bendigo exhibition, the existent Charles Underwood offered the imposter a nationalist challenge: They would duel by snakebite, and spot whose cure was better. Shires accepted the duel, and successful precocious January 1860, the 2 men met astatine the Cornwall Assembly Room successful Launceston, Tasmania. Advertisements for the escaped lawsuit drew what a newsman deemed “a motley assemblage.” Underwood appeared first. He was dressed successful a bluish coat, achromatic pants, and a achromatic hat, and wore “a peculiar smile.” When helium lifted his hat, a achromatic snake tumbled out. He began charming it, guiding it backmost and distant connected the level portion murmuring incantations to the audience. He decried Shires the imposter, and the assemblage began to chant “Shires, Shires!”
Shires appeared. He wore nary overgarment oregon hat, and the tattoo connected his limb was visible. Underwood and Shires shook the long, forceful handshake of bitter enemies. They shouted implicit each different for the audience’s attention. Underwood enactment the snake backmost successful his chapeau and took it retired again. Shires enactment the caput of a snake successful his mouth, past said it spot him, arsenic humor trickled from his lip, though the newsman wrote, “We cannot accidental whether helium did not himself inflict the coiled with his ain teeth.” The snake charmers tried to trial their antidotes connected kittens, but the snakes refused to bite. “The accumulation was absurd from opening to end,” the newsman concluded, “and utterly valueless successful settling the question, nary uncertainty a precise important 1 to all, whether oregon nary determination is an antidote for snake bites.”
Several months later, different advertisement appeared connected the wrong pages of The Argus newspaper:
antidote for snake-bites.—Challenge to Charles Underwood.—The undersigned challenges you to conscionable him, connected Monday evening next, the 30th of April, astatine half-past seven, astatine Mr. Taylor’s, All Nations Hotel, Sandridge, determination and past to trial our antidotes for snake-bites. The statement to be, you bring snakes by which I volition beryllium bitten and use my ain antidote, and, vice versa, you to beryllium bitten by snakes I produce, applying your antidote.
The advertisement makes nary notation of their anterior encounter, nor bash the 2 men look to person mentioned it during the resulting duel. They met a 3rd clip 2 weeks aft that, astatine the Union Hotel successful Geelong, southwest of Melbourne. Witnesses said some men appeared to beryllium drunk. None of their contemporaries seems to person realized what is present obvious: The 2 snake men were moving together. The duels were a sham, a mode to merchantability snakebite antidote. The conspiracy, though, was abbreviated lived. Underwood died a small much than a twelvemonth later, successful November 1861, aft 1 of his snakes spot him portion helium was showing it disconnected successful a bar. In the study connected the inquest into events starring up to his death, the landlady of the Eureka Hotel recalled that Underwood and his woman and young girl entered the barroom “about half-past 7 o’clock connected Saturday night. They had among them a cage of snakes. Could not accidental whether [Underwood] was sober oregon not, but should not deliberation helium was.”
Joseph Shires was present Australia’s astir celebrated snake man. In the years that followed, helium toured widely. Advertisements for his snakebite antidote appeared regularly successful newspapers. For a time, it seemed that his snakebite-based fame and luck could lone proceed to grow. Then helium encountered Professor George Britton Halford.
An English anatomist with almighty muttonchops, Halford arrived successful Melbourne successful 1862, and soon joined the assemblage quest for a snakebite cure. In aboriginal 1867, helium published a statement of his investigations into the physiological effects of snakebite. Using a microscope, helium had discovered that snake venom suffused the humor of the wound unfortunate with what helium called “germinal” cells, which rapidly multiplied, preventing the humor cells from carrying oxygen, and causing “coldness, sleepiness, insensibility, dilatory breathing, and death.” In a consequent lecture, Halford noted that snake venom’s effect connected the humor was similar that of cholera, and modestly suggested that the venom of dormant snakes, dried and carried aloft connected the wind, mightiness beryllium the origin of that disease. People wrote letters to the exertion praising him.
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Excerpted from Snake Men: Rebels, Reptiles, and the Race to Name the Creatures of Earth by Zach St. George. Copyright © 2026 by Zach St. George. Used with support of the publisher, W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.
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