Note 1651 — BOOK VIII. THE NATURE OF THE TERRESTRIAL ANIMALS.
John Bostock translation
As Cuvier remarks, it is difficult to conceive what he means by the boa of Italy. At the present day, the longest Italian serpents are the Æsculapian serpent (a harmless animal), and the “Coluber quadrilineatus” of Linnæus, neither of which exceeds ten feet in length. The one here mentioned, was probably, as Cuvier suggests, one of the genuine boa or python species; but, as he says, where did it come from? and how did it get there?