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[[underlined]] 5804 [[/underlined]] /1 [[blue, round, ink stamp]] [[outer circle]] SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. [[/outer circle]] [[inner circle]] APR 15 1865[[/inner circle]] [[/blue, round, ink stamp]] [[round ink stamp reading C.A.T.Co. SAN JUAN ??NORTE. APR 6 1865]] San Juan Del Norte (Graytown) April 3rd,1865 Dear Prof Baird, I shall try to send back a box by this steamer - or at least by the next. We have a lot of pretty fair things - can't work much tho too hot. I send from Mr. Holland a poisonous snake like the African Cerastes. - [[underlined]] not [[/underlined]] a Rattle snake!! nor copperhead nor moccasin. - It is certainly genetically different from any snake I've ever seen ^[[insertion]] before [[/insertion]] from north Am. - Pray ask [?Cope]] to call it _____? hollandii if new. - Possibly a letter I gave Holland for you may not reach you as soon as this - Therefore Ill repeat Henry E Holland Chief engineer of Cent Am. Transit Co - stationed here has learned to skin birds and has made arrangements to sell his skins to Knider and others. Ive advised him to communicate with you. Told him I believed he would be much the gainer - after some talk I have gotten him quite interested in the S.I. and I think he might very likely be induced to collect heavily and
Transcription Notes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerastes_cerastes, Saharan horned viper.