Mark L. Bishop, Jr. age , of Charlottesville, for his question:

How did the fer‑de‑lance get its name?

Fer‑de‑lance is a French expression going back to the days when knights fought each other with spears. It means the iron tip at the end of a lance ‑ the business end of a spear. It was the part of your enemy's weapon to watch.

In South and Central America there is a large and poisonous serpent called the fer‑de‑lance. This menace also haunts the sugar plantations of the West Indies. It is a snaky relative of our rattler. However, sometimes our rattler is considerate enough to give a warning before he strikes. He shakes the horny rattles on his tail. The fer‑de‑lance has no rattles to shake. He always strikes without warning.

It is not hard to see how this fellow came to be named after the for‑de‑lance of jousting days. Like the deadly iron tip of a lance; it is ready to strike and harm. And the bite of this serpent is far worse than the wound of a spear. Sometimes the spear leaves a clean, unpoisoned wound. But the bite of the serpent named for the tip of the lance is always poisoned.