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1 V-

WILD SCENES

SOUTH AMERICA;

LIFE IN THE LLANOS OF VENEZUELA.

BT
DON RAMON PAEZ.

"NIHIL ARDUUM MOBTALIBUS."

NEW YORK:
CHARLES SORIBNER, 124 GRAND STREET.
1862.

' Y greyes van sin cuento
Paciendo tu verdura desde el llano
Que tiene por lindero el horizonte,
Hasta el erguido monte
De inaccesible nieve siempre cano."
Andres Bello, Silva & la Zona Turrida.

Entered, according to act of Congress, in the year 1862, by
CHARLES SCRIBNER.
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern
District of New York.

JOHN F. TROW,
PRINTER, STEREOTYPE!!, AND ELECTROTVTER,
48 & 50 Greene Street,
New York.

MY YOUNG FRIEND,
EDWARD B. KETCHUM, ESQ.,
THESE PAGES,
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN FOE HIS ESPECIAL AMUSEMENT, ARE
^Kfettfonatelg BeKirateJ,
AS A TOKEN OF THE niGH EEGAED ENTERTAINED FOR HIM AND
HIS ESTIMABLE FAMILY BY
TnE AUTHOR.

PREFACE.

It was my lot several years ago — I need n'ot state how
many — to be brought forth into this world amid the wild
scenes which I propose to describe. Later in life I was
fortunate enough to be sent by my parents to England, for the
purpose of finishing my education under the tuition of the
learned fathers at the College of Stonyhurst. "While there,
I had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of the inimi
table author of " Wanderings in South America," Charles
Waterton, Esq., who years before had also been an inmate
of that celebrated institution, and whose book became at once
my favorite study, on account of the graphic descriptions -it
contains of animals and objects with which I was already
familiar. The works of the distinguished traveller, Baron
von Humboldt, who first made those regions known to the
civilized world, next afforded me an endless source of scien
tific enjoyment, developing in me an early taste for the
natural history and physical wonders of my native land.

VI PREFACE.
On my return home, I immediately turned my steps
toward " Those matted woods .
Where crouching tigers wait their haplebS prey,'1
anxious to study nature in her own sanctuary ; but, owing
to the unfortunate state of affairs in the country, I did not
enjoy long my cherished dreams of exploring it through all its
extent. Sufficient information was, however, obtained in my
rambles through the plains, to enlarge upon a subject scarcely
touched upon by travellers.
Thus from my earliest days have I been associated with
the scenes forming the text of the present narrative, which
I venture to lay before the public, trusting more in the indul
gence and characteristic "generosity of the Anglo-Saxon race
toward foreigners, than in my own ability to fulfil the
arduous undertaking. But I must be here permitted to
return my most sincere thanks to Mr. Alexander Cotheal and
other friends, for the pains they have taken in weeding the
manuscript of many imperfections in the language. To Mr.
Frederick Melby, a Danish artist of great merit, who, not long
since, visited the Llanos and various other parts of Vene
zuela, I am also indebted for his kindness in placing at my
disposal his valuable collection of sketches : from these, and
from others taken by myself during my journeys, Monsieur
V. Nehlig has been enabled to produce the accompanying
illustrations with singular fidelity to the subject.
New York, August, 1S62.

CONTENTS,

CHAP. I. The Departure,
II. The JIorros,
III. The Llanos,
IV. The Llaneros,
V. Scenes at the Fishery,
VI. Wild Horses,
VII Across the Pampas,
VIII. La Portdguesa,
IX. The Apure Eiver,
X. Savannas of Apuri:,
XI. El Frio,
XII. Birds of III Omen and Carrion Hawks,
XIII. The Rodeo,
XIV. Branding Scenes,
XV. Plants and Snakes,
XVI. Tiger Stories,
XVII. Shooting Adventures,
XVIII. Mata Totumo,
— XIX. Matiture,
XX. The Cimarronera, .
XXI. Los Borales,
XXII. Incidents of the War of Independence,
XXIII. Incidents of the War of Independence,

pace 1
If!
26
¦10W
74

116 1331481C317;i
ISO
202222
238251267280
289302319

CONTENTS.

CHAP.XXIV. XXV.
XXVI.
XXVII.
XXVIII. XXIX.

Scenes at the Pass of Apurito,
Calabozo, Caracas,
Monagas, Maracaibo,The Goajiros,
XXX. A Cruise in the Caribbean Sea,
XXXI. Ho ! for Maracaibo,
XXXII. Paez,
XXXIII. The Exile,

PAGE 33534S
361
373388404
417435454
479

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE
1. Frontispiece — Stampede of Wild Horses.
2. Morros de San Juan, 19
3. Pounding Corn, 36
4. The Caribe, 63
5. The Electric Eel, 68
6. Troop of Wild Horses on the Alert, 74
7. Across the Pampas, 90
8. Encounter with a Crocodile, 113
9. The Saman, 122
10. The Manatee, 162
11. The Rodeo, . 175
12. Branding Scenes, 189
13. Training the Boys, 200
14. Aristolochia Apurensis, 219
15. The Jaguar, 222
16. Garzoneando, . 242
17. The Armadillo,, . 245
18. Llanero Encampment, 247
19. The Great Ant-Eater, . 257
20. Young Crocodile, . . 269
21. Crocodile Basking in the Sun, 278
22. Capture of Spanish Gunboats by Llanero Cavalry, 322

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

23.

Ferrying the Cattle across the Apure,

335

24.

Dr. Gallegos Sewing the Belly of a Wounded Horse, .

. 338

25.

Homeward Bound,

345

26.

Caracas,

365

27.

Borders of the Lake of Maracaibo, .

395

28.

The Saw-fish,

. 396

29.

The Tapir,

398

30.

The Bonito,

422

81.

The Dolphin,

423

32.

The Sword-fish,

425

33.

The Butterfly Flower,

431

34.

Belisario,

441

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMEKICA.

CHAPTER I.

THE DEPARTUEE.

On a fine morning in the month of December of
the year 1846, a jolly cavalcade, or rather heteroge
neous assemblage from the various castes composing
the bulk of the population in the Venezuelian Re
public, was to be seen traversing the streets of the
beautiful town of Maracay, in the direction of the
road leading to the Llanos or Pampas of Apure, a
region widely celebrated for its wildness, its dangers,
and the many exploits enacted therein. There the
father of the writer owned extensive cattle farms, and
the aforesaid company proposed spending the remain
der of the summer season in hunting among the un
tamed herds constituting the wealth and commerce
of that wild region.
I shall never forget the exciting scenes of that
eventful day ; it forms one of the most pleasing epi
sodes of my life. Full well do I remember also the
picturesqueness of the variegated costumes of the

2 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
riders ; their red and blue ponchos flowing in the
wind as they cantered to and fro through the unusu
ally animated streets of the little town, taking leave
of their friends, and provisioning their saddle-bags
with the necessaries they required ; the trampling
and neighing of horses ; the parting adieux and wav
ing of handkerchiefs in the hands of lively brunettes,
as we defiled under the windows and balconies of the
Calle Eeal, crowded with anxious relatives, friends,
and sweethearts of many a gallant cavalier, who
might never return from his distant and perilous
journey. Por my part, I confess, that although for
sundry reasons I regretted departing from our roman
tic abode in the valleys of Aragua, still, so great was
my desire to visit the land of the wild bull and croco
dile, that for several nights before leaving home I
dreamed of nothing but wild scenes and terrible en
counters with the lords of the savannas.
The method of conducting a South American
cattle farm is entirely different from that usually
practised among the more peaceful scenes of the
North American prairies. Here the cattle, accus
tomed from their birth to the friendly voice of man,
readily obey his commands and follow him instinc
tively wherever he leads them. In the plains of
South America, on the contrary, the herds hear no
other than the voice of Nature in her sublimest
moods, in the thunders of the storm, and when in
her vernal showers she calls upon the crocodiles and
other drowsy reptiles, awakening them from their
periodical summer's lethargy ; and nightly the roar
and screams of savage beasts answering each other in

THE DEPARTURE. 3
the darkness. The cattle, thus roaming over exten
sive plains, and free of all restraint, necessarily require
to be occasionally collected together for the purpose
of branding and marking the young calves, which in
crease there with astonishing rapidity. If this pre
caution were neglected, they would in time become
so dispersed over those boundless plains, as to be al
together irreclaimable. This operation cannot be ac
complished, however, without a great number of men
and horses, both well trained to and thoroughly ac
quainted with this demi-savage occupation. There
fore we mustered now quite a little army of Llane
ros, or natives of the' Llanos, who are the only indi
viduals capable of prosecuting and successfully per
forming the arduous duties appertaining to these cat
tle forays. Our retinue presented pretty much the appearance
of an oriental caravan ; it consisted of more than a
hundred individuals of all grades and colors ; from
the bright, rubicund faces of merry England's sons,
to the jetty phiz of the native African, all of whom,
notwithstanding, fraternized as though sprung from
the same race.
Our company, moreover, had been organized as
if for a military campaign, and formed the nucleus of
a more extensive camp, to be increased by additions
from different places along the route. The leader —
General Paez — besides having acquired in early life
a practical knowledge of this peculiar warfare, pos
sessed in addition the rare gift of being — in the opin
ion of many — " the first rider in South America,"

4 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
and withal the most accomplished Llanero in the Re
public. His dispositions were accordingly made in
a manner most likely to insure success in this strange
campaign ; passing in review every person and every
object, with as scrupulous care as he bestowed upon
the legions under his command in the long strife for
his country's freedom ; distributing each partiqular
horse with reference to the skill and special duties of
his rider, and every load according to the strength of
each beast of burden.
Next in importance to the Leader was a Surgeon
and Physician, whose valuable services were to be
frequently called into requisition. Although we were
not now to encounter powder and ball, we had to
deal with no less dangerous enemies in the form of
wild bulls, snakes, and crocodiles, without reckoning
the pestiferous marshes of the country.
After our Surgeon came the Treasurer ; his duty
was to conduct safely the military chest of the expe
dition, consisting of sundry bags of hard dollars, pon
chos, checkered linen handkerchiefs of the peculiar
pattern worn with so much pride by Llaneros on the
head, knives, sword blades, and various other articles
of barter which they prize more than money itself,
and for the attainment of which they labor hard and
even expose their lives.
To me was assigned the honorable post of Secre
tary to the expedition, whose pleasant duty was to
keep its records, and at times those of the political
" Bulls and Bears " of the country at large. At
tached to this office were an English amateur of wild
sports, an English artist of considerable merit, and a

THE DEPARTURE. 5
few others, who, like myself, not being sufficiently
trained to the hard operations of the field, were forced
to be content with the tamer occupations of the cattle
farm, and only an occasional foray among the smaller
game of the savannas.
I will mention two other individuals, who, al
though filling less exalted positions than the preced
ing — being the cook and the washerman — were very
necessary to our comfort ; not that we felt over-scru
pulous with regard to the dressing of either ourselves
or that of the savory dishes of the Llanos — where I
relished a beafsteak au naturel with as much gusto
as though prepared by the Delmonicos or Maillards
of New York — but an early cup of coffee was a lux
ury not to be despised, and an occasional scouring of
our scanty wardrobe was equally an essential. The
cook was a mulatto by birth, whose name — Monico —
bore some similarity to that of the distinguished
caterer of William street, and was as great a favorite
with us as the latter is among the " down town "
gentry of the great city, not only on account of his
good nature and skill in the preparation of the deli
cious beverage before mentioned,
" que en los festines
La fiebre insana templara a Lieo,"
but also for the aid he lent his companions in mend
ing their tattered garments, being as accomplished a
tailor and shoemaker as cook. Gaspar, the washer
man, was a lame negro rather advanced in years, but
with all the vivacity of his race still sparkling in his
eyes. He had earned some reputation in his time as
a brave soldier during the protracted war of Inde-

6 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
pendence, but, disabled now by a bullet and sundry
tiger scars, testimonials of his good service in the
cause of humanity, could perform no other work than
the rather feminine one allotted to him on this occa
sion. He, however, possessed other accomplishments,
among which the chief was that of recounting his ad
ventures in the wars and with the wild beasts of the
field, which made him a desirable companion and
general favorite.
Poor fellows ! they are both dead, and their bones,
as well as those of most of that little band of heroes,
are now bleaching in the hot sun of the tropics,
amid the waving grass of those savannas once ren
dered famous by their deeds of valor and enlivened
by their chivalrous songs. After faithfully following
their leader through dangers and hardships no less
terrible than those of the battle-field, one by one they
fell, not by foe " in battle arrayed," nor the terrible
stroke of the wild bull, but by the assassin's treach
erous hand, and those of the unprincipled myrmidon
of military misrule ; not because of their political in
fluence in the councils of the Nation, but for being
the faithful followers of their beloved Chieftain.
The reader has now been introduced to those con
stituting the Staff of the expedition ; but in addition
a host of attendants and idlers formed the rank and
file of this motley assemblage. Each one of these had
a special duty to perform. Some were asistentes, or
the personal attendants of the former, as no hlanco
ventures to travel in the Llanos without some cicero7ie
of the country to guide him over the trackless wastes,
to saddle his horse, and see that both horse and rider

THE DEPARTURE. 7
are comfortably quartered for the night. Others were
appointed to conduct the beasts of burden, of which
there were a formidable array ; while the most ex
perienced riders were intrusted with the care and
guidance of our madrina, or pack of supernumerary
horses, which formed by far the most efficient ele
ment of our expedition.
Our drove consisted of about two hundred spirited
chargers, as swift and slim as any that ever tramped
the hot sands. of Yemen or the Sahara ; these were to
be reinforced with fresh relays from the cattle farms,
to supply the place of those which might be carried
off from various causes during those exciting hunts.
The only method of travelling as yet adopted in
the country is on horseback. This is at first somewhat
fatiguing to those unaccustomed to long journeys ;
but the traveller soon becomes inured to it, and ends
by preferring it to any other, on account of the exhil
arating sensation of independence he experiences ; at
all events, it is the most convenient that can be adopted
in a country which, like the Pampas, is subject to
vast inundations, and overgrown in all its extent by
the rank herbage of the savannas. On the mountains,
mules are usually preferred for their surefootedness,
as also for their astonishing endurance of hunger and
fatigue ; but in the Pampas, where journeys must be
accomplished with great expedition and rapidity, they
are comparatively worthless from the shortness of
their gait, and also because their hoofs become soft
ened by the marshy soil which everywhere prevails,
they being never shod, owing to a mistaken notion
of the riders, who believe that by so doing the sure-

8 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
footedness of the animal is impaired. The best horses,
consequently, had been selected on this occasion, but
were not to be saddled until we reached the Llanos.
These were all collected into a madrina or drove, to
gether with the vaqueros or horses destined for the
chase, and placed under the charge of half a dozen
experienced Llaneros, who were to drive them loose
across the country. In the mean time we would per
form on mules the first four days of our journey,
which lay across the rough and hilly country be
tween the valleys and the plains. As beasts of bur
den, mules are particularly serviceable ; in view of
this we had collected a pack of jibout twenty for the
purpose of transporting our loads, consisting partly,
as I have observed, of various descriptions of goods
for distribution among the Llaneros, in part payment
of their wages ; but the greater number were laden
with our own chattels and provisions ; for although
the Llanos are justly regarded as a land of plenty, the
habitations are yet so widely distant, that it is expe
dient to provide for all contingencies.
Our road, at times, lay across extensive fields of
sugar cane, indigo, and tobacco ; or through vast
plantations of Erithynas (bucarales) raised for the
protection of the shade-loving Cacao trees, loaded
with the luscious bean that yields its " divine food " *
to gods and mortals. At other times, extensive tracks
of waste lands (rastrojos) overgrown with a luxuriant
vegetation, intercepted the line of our march, giving
* Linnaeus, in his enthusiasm for the delightful beverage obtained from
the cacao bean, named the plant that produces it theobroma — food for
the gods.

THE DEPARTURE. 9
the country a wild and desolate aspect. Land is so
cheap and plentiful in Yenezuela, that it is always
more advantageous for the planter, whenever the
land has become exhausted with repeated cultivation,
to clear a new patch of ground for his crop, than to
trouble himself about restoring to the ground by ar
tificial means what nature will provide in the course
of time. The rapidity with which a patch of waste
land, that only a year or two before had been aban
doned as unserviceable, becomes covered with an ex
uberant vegetation in the tropics, is quite extraordi
nary. Hardly have the plough and hoe of the indus
trious husbandman ceased to harass the land with
their incessant toil, when an entirely different crop
of indigenous plants, which had been silently strug
gling for existence, now make their appearance, and
change the aspect of the landscape with new forms
of vegetation. Insignificant weeds at first, scarcely
worth noticing, they soon attain sufficient strength to
arrest the progress of any stragglers that might have
remained of the plantation. In a short time they
have acquired the size and form of well-developed
trees, with boughs spreading far above a man on
horseback; and before two summers have elapsed,
not a vestige remains of what was once a flourishing
plantation. An endless variety of creepers, such as
convolvulus, bignonias, and passion flowers, now find
support among their numerous branches, forming
with them the most picturesque bowers and arcades,
or hanging by their sides in graceful garlands and
festoons of the most exquisite beauty. Our troop of
supernumerary horses, as if unwilling to leave behind
1*

10

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

these delightful retreats, did not fail to profit by the
tangled nature of the cover, frequently eluding the
vigilance of the drivers, and dashing forward when
ever they saw an opening to decamp. The most
skilful management on the part of the drivers was
'then required to disentangle them from the thick
jungle ; otherwise we should have arrived at the end
.of our journey with less than half their number. It
was quite amusing to see those reckless fellows glid
ing here and there through the tangled woods in full
pursuit of the refractory animals, now hanging from
one leg down the sides of their steeds, or stretched
over their necks to avoid being lifted from the saddle
by the intervening branches. In spite of all precau
tion, and the vigilance of their drivers, we missed
several valuable hunters in the course of the journey,
every one of which made his way back to the -potreros
or old grazing grounds with unerring precision. So
remarkable is this peculiarity in horses of one place
driven across a strange country, and the cunning
they display in effecting their escape, that although
we left instructions along the route to secure all de
serters, most of those we missed at a considerable
distance from Maracay, made their way back across
the fields, avoiding in their flight the public roads
and populated districts through which we had passed.
Late in the evening we reached San Luis de Cura,
a town of some importance on our route. Although
we had there many friends of whose hospitality we
could have availed ourselves, we preferred passing
the night at a Pulperia, or country inn, a short dis
tance in advance — hotels being yet unknown in that

THE DEPARTURE. ;Q
part of the country. Our numerous retinue, and
especially our horses, accustomed to the unrestrained
freedom of the potrero — an enclosed field attached to
the Pulperia — precluded all idea of seeking accom
modations within the narrow limits of a city residence.
Declining, therefore, all invitations to that effect, we
pushed on to a place called El Rodeo, a few miles
further. San Luis de Cura — or Yilla de Cura, as it is
usually called — is a sort of entrepot to which the
people of the Llanos resort from time to time to bar
ter the products of their farms for those of foreign
manufacture, retailed there by country traders. It
is, in fact, the connecting link between the agricul
tural and pastoral sections of the republic ; hence we
find there the strongest admixture of wild and civil
ized manners and costumes curiously intermingled in
all the pursuits and vocations of the people. Thus we
often meet with persons of respectability clad in the
elegant city dress, and riding a horse entirely capar
isoned in the gaudy attire of the Llanos, and vice
versa. Our accommodations at the inn were not of the
most inviting description, neither its apartments' nor
the potrero affording much comfort to the weary car
avan after their long ride. A stony bank on the
slope of the barren hill for -couch and the broad dome
of heaven for roof, with not even posts enough from
which to sling our hammocks, was all the hospitality
we received at the Pulperia. We slept soundly not
withstanding, softening our beds of pebbles by spread
ing our ponchos over them, while each man's saddle,

12 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
serving at once as pillow and larder, furnished us
with supper on this occasion. The llanero sad
dle is admirably adapted for the rough journeys of
the country, and though somewhat ponderous, ren
ders good service to the wandering Llanero in his
long peregrinations. These saddles, usually styled
vaqueras, in allusion to the occupations of the riders,
appear to be modelled after the gay accoutrements of
the Arabs ; the same profusion of silver ornament and
bright-colored trimmings of morocco, the high peak
in front, and still higher cantle behind. A comfort
able pellon or shabrack, made either of an entire
sheepskin or horse hair dyed black and neatly braided
at one end, covers the -entire seat, and hangs from it
in graceful folds. Numbers of bags and pockets —
holsas — made of the same material as the saddle, and
in keeping with the rest, are affixed to it for the pur
pose of stowing away all those little commodities so
essential to the traveller on a long journey, such as
papelon, a sort of brown sugar in cakes resembling
maple sugar, cheese, cakes of Indian corn, and aguar
diente, a beverage equally celebrated for its use and
its abuse. The stirrups, which are usually carved from
a block of wood, present the peculiarity of being
longer and heavier than any ever adopted by eques
trians. Although termed africanos, they are just the
reverse of their cognomens, as can be seen by com
paring the subjoined designs.
An expert rider never places his whole foot in the
stirrup, as is the case with the Arabs, but holds it
with his big toe, so as to disentangle himself readily
in case of a fall. This habit gives a crooked shape to

THE DEPARTURE. 13
the feet and legs of the rider, which peculiarity en
titles him to the credit of being a good horseman.

The carvings on some of these stirrups are very
fanciful, and display considerable taste. Their beauty
is thought to consist chiefly in the two triangular ap
pendages at the bottom with which they urge on their
horses. The cobija or poncho is also a most indispensable
commodity on these long journeys ; and no traveller
should omit providing himself with one, especially
during the rainy season. It is fully six feet square,
with a hole in the centre to admit the head, and its
office is twofold, viz., to protect the rider and his
cumbrous equipment from the heavy showers and
dews of the tropics, and to spread under him when
there is no convenience for slinging the hammock.
It also serves as a protection from the scorching rays
of the sun, experience having taught its wearer that
a thick woollen covering keeps the body moist and
cool by day, and warm by night. The poncho used
in Yenezuela is made double, by sewing together two
different blankets, the outside one being dark blue
and the inner one bright red, which colors, as is well
known, are differently acted upon by light and heat. »
By exposing alternately the sides of the poncho to

14 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the light according to the state of the weather, those
modifications of temperature most agreeable to the
body are obtained. Thus, when the day is damp and
cloudy, the dark side of the poncho, which absorbs
the most heat, is turned towards the light, while the
reverse is the case when the red surface is presented
to the sun. On the same principle, the manta, or
white linen poncho, is worn when the sun is very
powerful, the color in this instance repelling the rays
of light more readily than the red surface of woollen
materials. The manta is a very expensive luxury on
account of the embroideries that usually decorate it,
and which might rival in elegance the finest skirt
of a New York or Parisian belle. When worn by a
gallant cavalier on a sunny day, it presents in the
distance a very picturesque appearance, not unlike
the graceful bornouse of the Arabs.
Equally useful and expensive is the hammock, one
of the few articles of native manufacture produced in
Yenezuela, and one which has thus far baffled the
ingenuity of foreign weavers to imitate. It is woven
by hand on looms of rude construction in very tasteful
designs, and trimmed with fringings of the most com
plicated pattern. A fine hammock costs from fifty
to sixty dollars.
It may truly be said that with hammock, poncho,
and the saddle with its array of pockets, &c, the
roving dwellers of the pampas are at home wherever
they may be. They are, in fact, the tent, bed, and
vabse best adapted to the country, affording them all
the comfort that a princely rajah could experience
under his gorgeous panoply of oriental magnificence,

THE DEPARTURE. 15
and possessing, moreover, the advantage of being
easily conveyed from place to place, in a small compass,
by the riders. The hammock and the poncho usu
ally form a bundle behind the saddle ; with them the
traveller makes himself a tent when camping out,
by stretching out a rope from end to end of the ham
mock, over which the poncho is thrown at oblique
angles, and then tied securely to the rope. Under it
the traveller may now defy the storm, and even Old
Boreas himself, as the stronger the tent is impelled to
and fro, the more lulling to the sleeper will be the
motion imparted to it from the outside.
It is surprising to see a horse of so small stature as
those from the Llanos generally are, carry on his
back both the weight of the rider and his ponderous
equipment for such considerable distances ; but the
fact is, that the loads are so well distributed and
counterbalanced, that the animals feel no material in
convenience therefrom.

CHAPTER H.

THE MOEEOS.

Eaelt the next morning we were aroused by the
trampling of horses and tinkling of stirrups close to
our resting places, apprising us that the hour of de
parture was near at hand. To travel with comfort in
those hot regions, it is necessary to make the most of
the absence of the sun, before its rays descend to the
earth in glowing streams, parching the body and
spirits of the traveller. Our people, therefore, com
menced to saddle and load as early as three o'clock
a. m. The operation usually occupied considerable
time, as each animal had to be hunted in the dark, as
well as its accoutrements. The baggage mules, espe
cially, required more than ordinary skill in replacing
and adjusting the loads upon their backs by means of a
hundred turns of the lazos, or raw-hide halters. And
even after the greatest precautions, the vicious creatures
endeavored to displace their loads by running against
each other or rolling on the ground, to the inconceiv
able disgust of the drivers, who were often compelled
to alight from their sumpters to put things to rights.
Our road lay this day across a wild and desolate
valley, presenting the appearance of having once been

THE M0RR0S. 17
the scene of violent convulsions of nature, judging
from the distorted masses of granite and gneiss piled
along the route. The morning, though moonless, was
bright with stars, which in those latitudes sparkle like
diamonds in a setting of azure. The air was balmy ;
and the solitude of the spot, only broken by the occa
sional shriek of a night owl, or the refreshing murmur
of a mountain stream, was truly sublime.
Slowly winding our course down the rugged sides
of a deep ravine, we came suddenly in view of a most
glorious spectacle. The delicate tints of dawn were
already gilding the rugged crest of the distant moun
tains ; above these rose in silent grandeur what ap
peared at first a heavy cloud of an intense blue, the
irregular outlines of which set in bold relief against
the transparent sky, forming the background to the
picture. I eagerly spurred my mule forward to gain
an eminence from whence I could contemplate more
advantageously that magnificent spectacle, when, to
my great astonishment, I discovered that, what I had
supposed a cloud, was in fact the famous promontory
known as the Morros de San Juan, the singular con
formation of which has given rise to many specula
tions and legendary dissertations on the part of sa
vants and others less versed in scientific researches.
When the sun rose above the horizon, a more extra
ordinary scene was never unfolded to the eye of the
spectator. The huge and rugged mountain, some
thousand feet high, stood in the midst of a desolate
gulf, apparently of volcanic origin ; while the vege
tation, stunted and scrubby for want of adequate
nourishment, contrasted singularly with the granite

18 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
masses scattered all over the valley. The meandering
rivulet of La Puerta, twice the scene of sanguinary
conflicts between patriots and Spaniards, threaded its
sparkling way through that Yalley of Death, to mix
its waters with those of the beautiful Guarico in the
distance. .In both of those engagements the arms of
Spain were victorious ; but, as often happened in
those days of guerra d muerte, the victors steeped
their laurels in the blood of the vanquished with
unsparing hand. These triumphs were shared alter
nately by the monster Boves and the sanguinary
Morillo. It would be difficult to find two more
bloody wretches than these myrmidons of despotism,
whose very names are to this day the avenging cry
against the race from which they both sprang. The
forces opposed to them in these engagements hardly
amounted to one-half their own numbers ; but the
patriots under Bolivar accepted the battle with the
despair of men who have no alternative between
deatli and an ignominious yoke. It is asserted that
the rivulet became, on both occasions, completely
glutted with the gore and dead bodies of the van
quished. Morillo had a very narrow escape from the
lance of Gregorio Monagas — -celebrated as a matador,
and for nothing else — who deliberately attacked the
Spanish chieftain in the midst of his staff. Although
the bold Llanero succeeded in piercing the groin of
the Spaniard with his lance, the wound was not suffi
ciently deep to cause his death.
The rugged crest of the mountain surrounded by
an atmosphere resplendently clear, the wild and

THE M0RR0S.

19

shattered rocks, piled like the giant skeletons of an
extinct race, together with the painful associations
connected with the spot, made an impression upon
my mind not easily forgotten.
Although I had often experienced a keen desire
to see this natural wonder of my country, I could not
repress a feeling of regret at the recollection of the
sanguinary scenes enacted on this spot, and that my
first impressions of astonishment should be replaced
by others of a less pleasing character.
On awakening from the reverie into which the
scene had plunged me, I perceived for the first time
that I was alone, my less contemplative companions
having proceeded on their journey while I was ab
sorbed in wonder. I felt glad of my solitude, for the
very silence seemed to breathe a prayer to the Al
mighty for the martyred children of Liberty before
one of his most glorious temples.

/'-

20 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
We reached the village of San Juan in time to
breakfast at the house of our excellent friend Don
Jose Pulido, a gentleman of most amiable and hospi
table disposition. While they prepared our morning
meal, I repaired to the outskirts of the village to
sketch the Morros, which from the distance appeared
two huge castles in ruins. The continued action of the
waters has furrowed the sides of the mountain — com
posed principally of a peculiar limestone — into many
fantastic forms. The same wearing action has in like
manner perforated the calcareous rock into a thousand
subterranean passages or chasms of fathomless depth, it
being asserted by persons who have approached suffi
ciently near the entrance of these caves, that a bowl
der rolled down the abyss, is never heard to strike
the bottom. I regretted exceedingly that our short
stay at this place would not permit me to visit the
interior of the main entrance to these subterranean
passages, no person ever having ventured within the
dark abode — as it is currently believed — of demons
and the like. As a proof of this assertion, the villa
gers point out to the inquisitive traveller a spring
issuing from that Tartarus highly charged with sul
phurated hydrogen gas, the fumes of which are in
themselves sufficiently powerful to convey the idea
that something diabolical must be brewing in the
bowels of the stupendous mountain. The spring,
however, possesses highly medicinal virtues ; on this
account it is often visited by invalids from various
parts of the country, especially those affected with
rheumatic or scrofulous complaints.
During a heavy freshet, the bones of an antedi-

THE MORROS. 21
luvian animal, supposed to be those of a mastodon,
were disinterred by the torrent in the bed of a ravine.
A portion of these bones were sent to us by our zeal
ous friend Don Jose, as a great curiosity ; as such
they were transferred to the British Minister at Ca
racas, and finally consigned by him to the great
Museum in London.
The village of San Juan is likewise noted for its
fine climate and the total absence of epidemics. In
valids affected with pulmonary complaints find there
also an air and temperature most congenial. Beyond
these advantages, San Juan offers no other attrac
tions to the stranger capable of inducing a longer
sojourn than is absolutely necessary, as not even a
ranch has been raised there for the convenience of
those seeking its beneficent waters.
After partaking of a substantial breakfast, com
posed of the most popular dishes of the country, such
as camefrita, sancocho, and some delicious fish from
the river Guarico, we bade adieu to our estimable
host, Don Jose, and continued our journey down the
stony bottom of a narrow quebrada or ravine, noted
for its many windings, and the quantities of sharp
stones that pave the way ; these are evidently the
detached fragments of the basaltic formation consti
tuting the base of the Morros. At Flores, a miser
able country inn like all the rest along this route, we
stopped a few moments to refresh ourselves with
guarapo, a kind of cider made from the juice of sugar
cane, or by dissolving papelon in water and allowing
it to ferment for a few days. The guarapo of Flores
is celebrated throughout the country, and no person

22 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
passing through this place ever omits to call for it.
When mixed with aguardiente, it forms what is
termed carabina, (carbine ;) the effects rarely fail to
knock down those who rashly brave its fire.
Our next stopping place was the village of Ortiz,
a little beyond that of Parapara. Taken together,
they might be considered as the Pillars of Her
cules to the grassy Mediterranean of the Llanos, and
the terminus of civilized pursuits in that quarter, as
there you find the last vestiges of agriculture and the
useful arts. In addition to small patches of sugar
cane and Indian corn raised by the inhabitants for
their own consumption, they excel in the manufac
ture of leather, saddles, and their appurtenances,
which they sell to all parts of the country. Beyond
this, nothing is to be met with but wild herds of
cattle grazing on prairies or steppes of vast extent,
with the exception of the narrow belt of park-like
scenery intervening between these and a ridge of low,
rocky hills — galeras — which skirts the ancient shore
of the great basin of those pampas. The galeras were
doubtless the natural rampart of that extraordinary
body of waters which, at some remote epoch, must
have filled the space now forming the grazing
grounds of Yenezuela, as attested by the nature of
the soil and the organic remains found imbedded in
the clay.
I noticed at Ortiz the same trap formation of the
Morros, with extensive beds of basaltic slate protrud
ing through the sides of the hills. Entire columns
of this slate, varying from four to five feet in length
by six inches diameter, are used in the village for

THE MORROS. 23
paving the thresholds of houses, their quadrangular
form adapting them perfectly for this purpose with
out any additional labor after being detached from
the rock. The action of the waters during the untold
lapse of ages, or perhaps the irruptions of the sea it
self when it beat against the sides of the hills, has
caused the partial disintegration of the rock in manv
places, and scattered the debris far and wide over
the surrounding country. Nevertheless, vegetation
seemed nowhere affected in the least by this vast ac
cumulation of loose stones ; on the contrary, wher
ever it was favored by the depressions of the ground,
trees of large dimensions, noted for hardness and du
rability, sprang up, forming dense forests on either
side of the road. Foremost in the long catalogue of
splendid timber trees of Yenezuela, we found there
growing in great perfection the Vera, or Lignum
Yitce — Zigophylum arboreum — the wood of which is
so hard that it turns the edge of the best-tempered
tools ; breaking or splitting it seems equally impos
sible, on account of the interweaving of its fibres,
which cross each other in diagonal layers. This tree
has a wide range over the country, especially near
the sea-coast, which circumstance renders it extremely
useful in the construction of wharves, as well as for
the keels of ships ; the attacks of the teredo or sea-
worm are futile upon the iron network of its fibres,
on which account it can remain under water for an
indefinite period and eventually become petrified.
The useful Ouayacan or guaiacum of the arts, a nearly
allied species of this tree, is also found here in the
greatest abundance ; unfortunately it is too short to be

24 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
employed for the same purposes as the former ; it
finds, however, numerous applications in naval con
struction, especially for blocks and pulleys for the
rigging of vessels. Turners employ it likewise for
various articles requiring extreme hardness and a
close grain.
The Aleornoque, a most beautiful tree, somewhat
resembling the American elm, and scarcely inferior
to the foregoing, raises here its graceful head above
the rest, affording the cattle a permanent shade even
during the driest seasons. It must not be confounded,
however, with the well-known Spanish oak — Quercus
suber — which yields the cork of commerce. It is
largely employed in the Llanos in the construction of
houses and fences. Braziletto wood — Cesalpinia bra-
ziletto — so celebrated for its beautiful dye, is so abun
dant here also, that all the fences at Ortiz and Para-
para are made of this valuable dyewood.
The list of useful trees peculiar to this region
could be extended beyond the limits of this chapter,
were it not for the fear of taxing the patience of my
reader with an abstract nomenclature. I cannot pass
unnoticed, however, two other trees of no less impor
tance to the natives, on account of their timber and
medicinal properties ; these are the Tacamahaca —
Elaphrium tomentosum— and the tree that yields the
precious balsam of copaiva — Copaifera officinalis. By
making incisions in the trunk and branches of both
these trees, a resinous fluid, possessing great healino-
powers when applied to wounds and other ailments
of the flesh, is obtained in great abundance and col
lected in tin cans placed under the incisions. The

THE MORROS. 25
former is particularly abundant in the province of
Guayana, where it attains to great dimensions. Its
resin, an opaque, lemon-colored substance resembling
wax, is very fragrant, and when mixed with that of
Carana or Algarroba, forms excellent torches which
burn with great brilliancy, and emit a delicious odor.
The bark is also remarkable as affording a material
similar to that employed by the North American In
dians in the construction of their canoes, and used
similarly by their brethren of the Orinoco for their
light pirogues. With this object the Indian separates
the bark without breaking, and cutting it of the re
quired dimensions, proceeds to join the extremities
by means of bejucos or slender vines, filling the inter
stices with a little moist clay to throw off the water ;
the whole is then well bound with stronger vines,
and a couple or more sticks are affixed between the
borders of the pirogue to prevent its collapsing
when launched into the broad stream.

CHAPTER IIL

THE LLANOS.

We left Ortiz as usual, very early the next morn
ing, stumbling here and there amidst the mass of loose
stones which paved the way all along the winding
bed of the quebrada. In proportion as we advanced
on our route, the hills decreased in size, while the
loose stones seemed to increase in quantity. The
splendid groves of hardy and balsamiferous trees,
which near Ortiz formed an almost impenetrable for
est, gradually became less imposing in appearance,
until they were replaced by thickets of thorny bushes,
chiefly composed of several species of mimosas, with
a delicate and feathery foliage. The traveller accus
tomed to the shade of a luxuriant vegetation, and to
the sight of cultivated valleys, is struck by the rapid
diminution of the former, and the total disappearance
of the latter, as he emerges from the Galeras of Ortiz :
yet he is somewhat compensated by the almost over-
powering perfume shed by masses of the canary-colored
blossoms with which these shrubs are loaded, from the

THE LLANOS. 27
summits down to the bending branches that trail the
ground at every passing breeze.
Suddenly we entered a widely-extended tract of
level land almost destitute of vegetation. With the
exception of a few clumps of palm-trees with fan-like
leaves, nothing but short grass covered its entire sur
face, almost realizing the idea of " an ocean covered
with sea- weed." A dense mass of vapor pervading
the atmosphere obscured the horizon, while the fan-
palms, seen from afar, appeared like ships enveloped
in a fog. Gradually the circle of the heavens seemed
to close around us, until we became, as it were, en
compassed by the sky. We were, in fact, treading
the shores of the great basin of the Llanos, over one
of the ancient shoals or Mesas, which, like successive
terraces, now form the borders of those grassy oceans
known as the Pampas. This was the Mesa de Paya,
the seat of one of the cattle-farms to which we were
bound. After wandering for nearly three hours over
this monotonous landscape without compass, and
guided only by certain landmarks known to the
vaqueanos, we came unexpectedly upon the borders
of the Mesa, which commands an extensive view of
the lower savannas. As if by magic the dreary scene
changed to one of the most glorious panoramas in
existence. At our feet lay a beautiful expanse of
meadow, fresh and smooth as the best cultivated
lawn, with troops of horses and countless herds of
cattle dispersed all over the plain. Several glitter
ing ponds, alive with all varieties of aquatic birds,
reflected upon their limpid surface the broad-leaved

28 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
crowns of the fan-palms, towering above verdant
groves of laurel, amyris, and elm-like robles. Further
beyond, and as far as the eye could reach, the undu
lating plain appeared like a petrified ocean, after the
sweeping tempest.
But I feel that my descriptions fall short of the
reality, and that I am unable to depict the harmo
nious effects of light and shade, and the blending of
the various tints of green, blue and purple, dispersed
over this extensive panorama ; the gentle undulations
of the plain ; the towering palms gracefully fanning
the glowing atmosphere with their majestic crowns
of broad and shining leaves ; and myriad other beau
ties difficult to enumerate.
I could scarcely tear myself away from the spot,
so fascinated was I with the novelty of the scene.
My companions, more concerned for the speedy termi
nation of the journey than the beautiful in nature,
set off at a brisk trot towards the house, which was
at no great distance. Fearing to lose my way among
the intricate paths leading to it, I was compelled to
follow in their wake, stopping occasionally to gaze
once more upon those enchanting groves, which
seemed to return me to the highly cultivated fields
and green meadows of glorious " Old England," from
whence I had just returned.
On descending to the plain below, my attention
was attracted to an unsightly group of palm-thatched
huts, looking more like huge bee-hives than the
abode of human beings. A formidable fence of palm
trunks surrounded the premises, and several acres of
ground beyond. These were the corrals, or enclosures

THE LLANOS. 29
where the training of the fierce herds was practised
by the hardy dwellers of the Llanos ; but no signs of
cultivation, or aught else connected with the rural
occupations of the farmer, were visible in the neigh
borhood. Presently the cavalcade stopped before the
gate, and all the individuals composing it dismounted
and began to unsaddle their horses amidst the bark
ing of a legion of dogs, and the braying of all the
donkeys in the vicinity.
This was the hato or cattle-farm of San Pablo we
were in quest of, famous in the annals of the civil
wars in Yenezuela, as the occasional head-quarters
of the constitutional armies, commanded by the owner
of this farm. Our leader was received at the entrance
of his estate, by a grave and elderly negro slave, who
acted as overseer, and had under his control all the
men and property attached to it. Kneeling upon the
stony court-yard, he kissed the hand extended to him
in friendly greeting, after which he proceeded to un
saddle his master's horse, which he led to a pond
within the enclosure, where the horses were watered.
We purposed remaining a few days at San Pablo,
with the object of incorporating some fresh relays of
mules and horses from the abundant stock of this
estate : so we of the staff installed ourselves under the
palm-roof of our rustic mansion, while the rank and
file of the expedition found accommodation in the
open barracoons adjoining it ; although none of the
party had reason to boast of being better off than
their neighbor.
" It is sad when pleasing first impressions are
obliterated," remarks a sentimental writer ; " always

30 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
painful to become desenchante on a more intimate ac-
q uaintance with either people or places." I soon found
that I was not in the fairy land I had imagined, abound
ing in grottos and refreshed by sparkling fountains,
but in the region of the Llanos where the French adage,
chacun pour soi et Dieu pour tous, is verified "to its
fullest extent. San Pablo, with its vaunted prestige,
and in spite of its proximity to several important
marts, was no better provided with accommodations
than the untidy douar of the wandering Arab of the
Desert. A rickety table standing against the wall
for fear of tumbling down, two or three clumsy cedar
chairs covered with raw-hide, and a couple of grass
hammocks, serving the double purpose of beds and
lounges, constituted all the furniture of the great
farm. As a substitute for wardrobes and hat-stands,
we were shown a number of deer-antlers and bull
horns imbedded in the walls of reeds and mud, on
which to hang our pouches, bridles, &c. I searched in
vain, on our arrival, for something like a bowl in
which to lave my hands and face, covered with dust
and parched by the broiling sun of the savannas.
Even water was so scarce that it was served to us
sparingly from a large calabash gourd used in bring
ing it from the river, nearly a mile distant. It is true
there was, within the enclosure of the houses, a pond
or excavation, made while searching for the remains
of a brave officer who fell fighting for his country's
freedom. Sufficient water had accumulated there
during the rainy season to entitle it to the name of
Laguna, or Lake of Genaro Yazquez, the name of
the afore-mentioned hero ; but it was so filled with

THE LLANOS. 31
Bavas — a small species of alligator, — terrapins, and
toads, as to render the water undrinkable.
But to return to our head-quarters, the structure
of which struck me so forcibly at first as a bee-hive
of vast proportions, naturally suggesting the idea of a
"land of milk and honey." Unfortunately neither
of these could be obtained either for love or money,
although the woods and pastures of the estate
abounded in both the creatures that produced them.
So we were compelled to resort to our reserved stock
of papelon to sweeten our coffee, and to its own de
licious natural aroma in the place of milk. As to
the house itself, it only differed from the rest in that
region in being larger, and perhaps in better order
than are the generality. Imagine a pyramidal struc
ture, thatched with palm leaves, the roof slanting to
within a few feet of the ground, and supported on stout
posts of live timber, which served also as framework
for the walls, and you will have some idea of the style
of architecture peculiar to the country. Doors and win
dows are of no account in a country uniformly warm
throughout the year, and where the inhabitants pos
sess few articles capable of tempting the cupidity of
light-fingered gentry. Therefore, an ox-hide stretched
across the openings left in the walls to admit light and
the inmates, is all that is required to keep off unin
vited guests. As an exception to this rule, our man
sion of San Pablo had one or two rooms set apart for
invalids, provided with doors and windows of solid
planks of timber in the rough ; the other apartments
had the upper half of the walls purposely left open,
to admit full and free entrance of light and air. A

32 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
narrow piazza or corridor, formed by the slanting of
the roof to within tive feet of the ground, ran along the
entire length of the main building, and was intended
more as a protection to the rooms against the sun and
rains, than as a resort for the inmates.
The first step, on arriving, was to secure a place in
the open reception room, for my own chattels and
hammock, before all the spare posts and hooks had
been appropriated by my companions. This accom
plished, I proceeded to a thorough examination of my
saddle and its accoutrements, so as to have them
adapted to the peculiar mode of travelling in the
Llanos. This care I left to the good judgment of our
attendants, not being myself sufficiently skilled in the
art of mending, greasing, and putting in order the
complicated gear of our riding equipment. In the
same predicament were also my two English com
panions, and our worthy doctor ; a kind word, how
ever, addressed to the good-natured Llaneros — espe
cially if accompanied with a drop of aguardiente — •
never failed of enlisting their services in our favor.
Habit, as well as necessity, is sometimes the
mother of invention, as my experience soon taught
me that, to get along in my new quarters, it would be
requisite to set aside the airs and insignia of civiliza
tion. Divesting myself, therefore, of all such super
fluities as coat, cravat, pants, and shoes, I adopted the
less cumbrous attire of the Llaneros, consisting mainly
of breeches tightly buttoned at the knee, and a loose
shirt, usually of a bright checkered pattern. Shoes
are altogether dispensed with in a country like the
Llanos, subject to drenching rains, and covered with

THE LLANOS. 33
mud during a great portion of the year, besides the
inconvenience they offer to the rider in holding the
stirrup securely when in chase of wild animals. The
leg, however, is well protected from the thorns and
cutting grass of the savannas by a neat legging or
botin, made of buffskin, tightly buttoned down the
calf by knobs or studs of highly polished silver.
Another characteristic article of dress, and one in
which the wearers take great pride, is the linen check
ered handkerchief, loosely worn around the head. Its
object is ostensibly to protect it from the intensity of
the sun's rays ; but the constant habit of wearing it
has rendered the handkerchief as indispensable a head
dress to the Llaneros as is the cravat to the neck of
the city gentleman.
One angle of the building was devoted to the
kitchen, and rooms for the overseer and his family ;
the other was set apart for a store-room, suggesting
hidden treasures of good things for the comfort of the
inner man. Being naturally inquisitive, I lost no
time in investigating the contents of the bodega ; but
instead of sweetmeats, fresh cheese, or even bread
and butter, — articles of easy manufacture in the
Llanos, on which I had feasted my imagination, — I
found the place filled with roaches, pack-saddles, old
bridles, lazos, and tasajo or jerked beef. This last is
prepared by cutting fresh beef into long strips, and
exposing them to dry in the sun, first rubbing them
thoroughly with salt. Animal substances spoil so
readily in tropical climates, that unless this precau
tion is taken immediately after a bullock is slaughter
ed, the meat becomes tainted' in a short time. Two
2*

34 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
or three days' exposure to the hot sun of the Llanos,
is sufficient to render the beef as dry and tough as
leather ; in this state, it may be stored away for six
months without spoiling. The older the better ; age
imparting to it that peculiar rank flavor which makes
tasajo so highly prized by people of all ranks in Cuba
and other West India Islands. Large shipments of
this beef have been made from Yenezuela to those
places ; but the competition of Buenos Ayres has re
duced of late the profits arising from this branch of
our exports. The manner of killing and quartering an
animal in the Llanos deserves particular mention.
The cattle being usually some distance from the house,
two horsemen are despatched after the victim ; one
of them gallops close to the animal's rear, and throw
ing his unerring lazo at its head, drags it along, while
his companion urges it on by means of his garrooha
or goad, until they reach the sacrificial post : one or
two turns of the lazo around this, bring the animal
close to the botalon,' the matador then plunges the
point of his dagger into the vertebrae back of the head,
and the struggling beast drops as if struck by an elec
tric spark ; a second thrust of the bloody dagger into
his throat severs the artery, and the blood gushes in
torrents through the wound from every part of his
body. The prostrate victim is now turned upon its
back, and a long incision made lengthwise of the
belly, preparatory to flaying and cutting up the car
cass. When the animal is not intended to be imme
diately slaughtered, he is tied to the post by a succes
sion of coils from the lazo around his horns, and left
there until the fatal moment comes to despatch him.

THE LLANOS. 35
One night I was awakened by a terrific bellowing
proceeding from the botalon y but, as I knew there was
no bullock there for slaughter at the moment, I was at
a loss how to account for this uproarious serenade.
Curiosity led me to inquire into the cause, and direct
ing my steps towards the spot, I beheld a group of
about a dozen bulls, smelling at the blood of their
former companions, and ploughing up the gore with
their hoofs, evidently in great distress. This continued
for some time, until, finding their bewailing by moon
light rather too touching even for artists' ears, we or
dered them to be driven away, in spite of the sublimity
of the scene. I had other opportunities of witnessing
similar testimonials of respect, whenever a herd of cat
tle approached the place of execution, which never
failed to impress me deeply" with a feeling of compas
sion for their sorrows.
Every morning an animal was slaughtered for us.
Our meals consisted of roast beef, without either vege
tables or wheaten bread. Indian corn we had in abun
dance, both in the grain and in the husk ; but before
it could be converted into arepas — the favorite bread
of the country — it required to be passed through a
variety of operations each day, which made the pro
cess rather tedious, as the grain must first be hulled
by pounding it in large wooden mortars, adding a
handful of sand and a little water : next the grain must
be separated from the chaff, thoroughly washed, and
then boiled over a slow fire. In doing this, care must
be used, for if too soft it will not answer the purpose.
Finally it is ground to a paste between two stones,
formed into flat cakes, and baked in shallow pans of

36

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

earthenware. The result of all this labor is bread
exceedingly white and nourishing ; but it has the dis
advantage of becoming tough and unpalatable when
cold. Under the popular name of tortillas, this bread
is also extensively used in Mexico and Central Amer
ica, although inferior to our own.

Even this was considered a great luxury at San
Pablo, few other cattle-farms being provided with the
necessary utensils for its manufacture, and still fewer
the number of those that will grow sufficient corn for
the consumption of their inmates. The Llaneros are
essentially a pastoral people, and trouble themselves
but little with the cultivation of the land, considering
it rather derogatory to bend their heads, even to
mother Earth. Hence their homes are usually in a
state of utter wretchedness, being unprovided even

THE LLANOS. 37
with the commonest necessaries. Although the land
is extremely fertile, and would well repay the labor
with abundant crops of every kind of grain, they do
not consider bread an essential, using instead a piece
of boiled liver, which in their estimation answers just
as well. Therefore the divine command, which en
joins us to earn our daily bread by the sweat of the
brow, is not much regarded by them. In the midst
of countless herds, and surrounded with the most
munificent gifts of a bountiful Providence, they are
often even without fresh meat ; not because they are
sparing of their cattle, which in that country bears a
nominal value, but because they are naturally abste
mious ; and as for milk and butter, they despise both
as food only fit for children. Cheese, however, is a
favorite article of food with them, and in its prepara
tion, they display considerable ability, especially the
delicious kind termed queso de manos, a species of
boiled cheese. As some of my readers may wish to
experiment in making it, I will give them the recipe.
Curd the milk in the usual way, and boil the curd in
its own whey. When about the consistency of mo
lasses candy, stretch it out repeatedly with the hands
until cold. Add a little salt to the mass ; roll it into
flat cakes, and hang the cheese to drain in nets sus
pended from the ceiling. When pulled, it will sepa
rate in layers which look like parchment, retaining
all the flavor of the milk.
The cows, being half wild in most cases, require to
be milked by main force. To accomplish this, one
of the dairymen throws a noose around the horns of
the animal, and holds it secure by means of a long

38 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
pole attached to the thong, while another proceeds to
milk it in the usual way ; but none will yield a drop,
unless the calf is first allowed to suck a little, and
then tied to the mother's knee.
Every cow is distinguished by a fancy name, such
as Clavellina, Flor del Campo, Marabilla, and others
equally euphonious and poetical. When called to be
milked, the tame ones immediately answer in sup
pressed bellowings, and come forward of their own ac
cord, while the calves confined in the pen, on hearing
their mothers' names, run along the fence in search of
the gate ; a boy, stationed there for the purpose, lets
fall one of the bars, and off they bound after the
mothers. The men perform there altogether the occupations
allotted to women in other countries, such as milking
the cows, curding the milk, and turning out the cheese
when ready. They do not even disdain cooking their
own food, and washing their own garments, when
occasion requires. Of the women, I may be permit
ted to quote here what Sir Francis Head, in his quaint
style, says with reference to those in the Pampas of
Buenos Ayres, as being equally applicable to their
sisters of the Llanos : " The habits of the women are
very curious : they have literally nothing to do, the
great plains which surround them offer no motive to
work, they seldom ride, and their lives certainly are
very indolent and inactive. They all have families,
however, whether married or not ; and once when I
inquired of a young woman employed in nursing a
very pretty child, who was the father of the ' cria-
tura,' she replied ' Quien sabe ? ' " *
* Journeys across the Pampas.

THE LLANOS. 39
But it is time to introduce my reader to a more
intimate acquaintance with this singular race of peo
ple, whose manliness, bravery, and skill in waging a
constant war, not only with the wild animals of the
field, but against the proud legions of Iberia, entitle
them to a place among the heroes of the earth.

CHAPTER IV.
THE LLANEEOS.

" Uichoso aquel que alcanza
Como rico don del Cielo,
Para defender su suelo
Buen caballo y buena lanza." — Aeolas.

The people inhabiting the vast region of the
Llanos, although claiming descent from the old Cas-
tilian race, once the rulers of the land, are, in fact, an
amalgamation of the various castes composing the
present population of the Republic. These are, the
whites, or the descendants of the European settlers of
the country ; the aboriginals or Indians, and a great
proportion of blacks. In most of the towns the native
whites preponderate over all others, and represent
the wealth, as well as the most respectable portion
of the community ; in the villages and thinly popu
lated districts of the plains, a mongrel breed result
ing from the admixture of these three, constitute the
majority of the inhabitants. These are dispersed over
an area of 27,000 square miles, making a proportion

THE LLANEROS. 41
of only fourteen individuals, out of a population of
390,000, to every square mile.
This race, although vastly inferior to the first in
mental capacity and moral worth, is endowed with a
physique admirably adapted to endure the fatigues
of a life beset with dangers and hardships.* Cast
upon a wild and apparently interminable plain, the
domain of savage beasts and poisonous reptiles, their
lot has been to pass all their life in a perpetual strug
gle, not only with the primitive possessors of the
land, but with the elements themselves, often as
fierce as they are grand. When it is not the alarm
of the dreaded viper or the spotted jaguar, it is the
sudden inroad of vast inundations, which, spreading
with fearful rapidity over the land, sweep off in one
moment their frail habitations and their herds.
Nevertheless, this insecure existence, this continual
* Mons. de Lavayesse, in his interesting work on Venezuela, makes
some pertinent remarks on this subject worthy of the consideration and
study of learned physiologists. "Why is it," he says, "that individuals
proceeding from a mixture of African and indigenous American blood,
have greater strength, finer forms, more intellectual faculties and moral
energy, than the Negro or Indian? Why, although the white be, in gen
eral, superior in strength of body, mental powers, and in moral force, to
the aboriginal American and to the negro — why, I ask, are the individ
uals born of the union of a white with an Indian woman, (the Mestizos,
for instance,) inferior in mental and corporeal qualities to the Zambos?
Why are the Mestizos generally distinguished by finer figures, agreeable
countenances, and in mildness and docility of their dispositions ? Why
is the mulatto, son of a white and a negress, superior to the Zambo in in
tellectual faculties, but his inferior in physical? Why is it, that when
those races are mixed, their progeny is remarkable for a more healthy
and vigorous constitution, and for more vital energy, than the individuals
born in the same climate of indigenous European or African blood, with
out mixture ? "

42 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
struggle between life and death, between rude intel
lect and matter, has for the Llanero a sort of fascina
tion, perhaps not so well understood by people pos
sessing the blessings and ideas of civilization, but
without which he could not exist, especially if de
prived of his horse and cast among the mountain
region north of his cherished plains. The Modern
Centaur of the desolate regions of the New World,
the Llanero spends his life on horseback ; all his ac
tions and exertions must be assisted by his horse ; for
him the noblest effort of man is, when gliding swiftly
over the boundless plain and bending over his spirited
charger, he overturns an enemy or masters a wild
bull. The following lines of Yictor Hugo seem as
though copied from this model : " He would not fight
but on horseback ; he forms but one person with his
horse ; he lives on horseback ; trades, buys, and sells
on horseback ; eats, drinks, sleeps, and dreams on
horseback." Like the Arab, he considers his horse
his best and most reliable friend on earth, often de
priving himself of rest and comfort after a hard day's
journey to afford his faithful companion abundance
of food and water. It is not at all surprising, there
fore, to hear the bard — all Llaneros are poets more or
less — exclaim, after the loss of both his wife and val
ued horse : Mi muger y mi caballo
Se me murieron a, un tiempo ;
Que muger, ni que deruonio,
Mi caballo es lo que siento.
My wife and my valued horse
Died both at the same time ;
To the devil with my wife,
For my horse do I repine.

THE LLANEROS. 43
Few people in the world are better riders than
the Llaneros of Yenezuela, if we except perhaps the
Gauchos of Buenos Ayres, or equal to either in the
dexterity they display in the wonderful feats of horse
manship to which their occupations in the field in
ure them from childhood. Their horses, moreover,
are so well trained to the various evolutions of their
profession, that animal and rider seem to possess but
one existence.
The life of the Llanero, like that of the Gaucho
his prototype, is singularly interesting, and resembles
in many respects that of others who, like them, have
their abode in the midst of extensive plains. Thus
they have been aptly styled the Cossacks and the
Arabs of the New World, with both of whom they
have many points in common, but more especially do
they resemble the last named. When visiting the
famous Constantine Gallery of paintings at Yersailles,
I was struck with the resemblance of the Algerine
heroes of Horace Yernet with our own, revealing at
once the Moorish descent of the latter, independently
of other characteristic peculiarities.
The inimitable author of " Journeys Across The
Pampas," already quoted, alluding to the life of
these wild shepherds of the plains, compares it very
appropriately to the rise and progress of a young
eagle, so beautifully described by Horace in the
following verses :
Olim juventas et patrius vigor
ITidum laborum propulit inscium ;
Vernique, jam nimbis remotis,
Insolitos docuere nisus

44 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Venti paventem ; moz in ovilia
Demisit hostem vividus impetus ;
Nunc in reluctantes dracones
Egit amor dapis atque pugnas.
— Hobaoe, Book iv., Ode iv.
" Whom native vigor, and the rush
Of youth have spurr'd to quit the nest,
And skies of blue, in springtide's flush,
Entice aloft to breast
The gales he fear'd before his lordly plumes were drest.
" E" ow swooping, eager for his prey,
Spreads havoc through the flutter'd fold ;
Straight, fired by love of food and fray,
In grapple fierce and bold,
The struggling dragons rends, e'en in their rocky hold."
— Translation' bt Mabtdt.
" Born in the rude hut, the infant Gaucho receives
little attention, but is left to swing from the roof in a
bullock's hide, the corners of which are drawn tow
ards each other by four strips of hide. In the first
year of his life he crawls about without clothes, and I
have more than once seen a mother give a child of
this age a sharp knife, a foot long, to play with. As
soon as he walks, his infantine amusements are those
which prepare him for the occupations of his future
life ; with a lazo made of twine he tries to catch little
birds, or the dogs, as they walk in and out of the hut.
By the time he is four years old he is on horseback,
and immediately becomes useful by assisting to drive
the cattle into the corral." '
When sufficiently strong to cope with a wild ani-

THE LLANEROS. 45
mal, the young Llanero is taken to the majada or
great cattle-pen, and there hoisted upon the bare
back of a fierce young bull. With his face turned
towards the animal's tail, which he holds in lieu of
bridle, and his little legs twisted around the neck of
his antagonist, he is whirled round and round at a
furious rate. His position, as may be imagined, is
any thing but equestrian ; yet, the fear of coming in
contact with the bull's horns compels the rider to
hold on until, by a dexterous twist of the animal's
tail while he jumps off its back, he succeeds in over
turning his antagonist.
In proportion as he grows older and stronger, a
more manly amusement is afforded him with the
breaking in of a wild colt. This being, however, a
more dangerous experiment, in which many a " young
eagle " is rendered a " lame duck," he is provided
with the necessary accoutrements to withstand the
terrible struggle with the animal. Firmly seated
upon his back and brandishing overhead a tough
chaparro vine for a whip, the apprentice is thus in
stalled in his new office, from which he must not de
scend until the brute is perfectly subdued ; the coil
of lazo in the hands of his merciless instructor would
be the least evil awaiting him should he otherwise
escape safe and sound from the desperate kicks and
plunges of the horse.
Here commences what we may term, the public
life of the Llanero ; his education is now considered
complete. From this moment all his endeavors and
ambition will be to rival his companions in the dis
play of physical force, which he shows to an admi-

46 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
rable degree when, armed with his tough lazo, he
pursues the wild animals of his domain. If a power
ful bull or wild horse tries to escape into the open
plain, the cavalier unfurls the noose which is always
ready by his side, and the fugitive is quickly brought
back to the corral. Should the thong give way under
the impetuous flight of the animal, the rider seizes
him by the tail, and whirling round suddenly, pulls
towards him with so much force as to cause his im
mediate overthrow.
In all these exercises the roving cavalier of the
Llanos acquires that feeling of security and enduring
disposition for which he is famous. Unfortunately, it
is often turned to account in disturbing the balance
of power among his more enlightened countrymen ;
for he is always ready to join the first revolutionary
movement offering him the best chances for equipping
himself with arms of all descriptions. Next to the
horse, the Llanero esteems those weapons which give
him a superiority over his fellow-creatures, viz., a
lanoe, a blunderbuss, and a fine sword. If he is un
provided with either of these, he considers himself a
miserable and degraded being, and all his efforts will
tend to gratify this favorite vanity, even at the risk
of his own life. Therefore he goes to war, because he
is sure, if victorious, of finding the battle-field covered
with these tempting trophies of his ambition. In this,
unfortunately, he is too often encouraged by a host
of unprincipled politicians who, not wishing to earn
a livelihood by fair means, are eternally plotting
against the powers that be.
•*¦ The style of sword worn by the Llaneros differs

THE LLANEROS. 47
little from that used by Spaniards of the middle ages,
the hilt being surmounted by a guard in the shape of
a reversed cup, affording an excellent protection to
the hand that wields it, while the blade is made with
two edges, instead of one. Most of these swords are
mounted in silver, the same as the accompanying
dagger, another of their favorite weapons ; and such
is the passion among Llaneros for" glittering swords
and daggers, that they would sooner dispense with a
house or a corral, than with either of these expensive
commodities. The lance comes next in importance, and in their
hands is quite a formidable weapon, which they are
enabled to handle with great dexterity, from their
constant practice with the garrocha or goad with
which they drive and turn the cattle. As an element
of war, the lance has become celebrated in the coun
try, having rendered the cause of Independence the
most effectual service in repelling the attacks of the
sanguinary hosts sent by Spain against the indomi
table " Rebeldes " of Colombia.
The trabuco or blunderbuss, too, is held in great
estimation as a weapon of defence, or rather of ag
gression, as they are at all times ready to test its
powers on the slightest provocation ; . and nobody
thinks of travelling in that desert country without
one of these wide-mouthed spitfires by his side.
Being rather of a superstitious turn of mind, these
people believe that by decorating their deadly wea
pons with some insignia of their religion, they are
rendered more effectual ; the cross surmounts their
swords and daggers ; while the rosary and agnus Dei

48 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
entwine the butt-end of their trdbucos, when called
into requisition. Thus they are emboldened to per
form acts of desperate valor which, under any other
circumstances, would be considered rash in the ex
treme. Such is the religious faith of these benighted
people ; a religion of form and superstition rather
than conviction. Christianity, like the Spanish lan
guage, exists among them, it is true ; but corrupted
and enveloped in dark superstition, almost bordering
on idolatry. It cannot, however, be expected that a
widely scattered population over so extensive an area
of desert plains, should possess any means of enlight
enment beyond what is conveyed to them through
the few teachers distributed among the principal
towns of the interior. Therefore it is not an unusual
thing to meet with persons owning extensive cattle
farms, and even holding important commissions in
the army, who cannot read or write. During the
good old times of the Capuchin Missions, the youth
of the villages under their control received at their
hands a scanty education, principally in the primary
notions of the catechism ; but with the destruction of
those beneficent establishments, during the protracted
struggle between natives and Spaniards, they were
replunged into utter ignorance, and most of their
places of worship have long since gone to decay.
They have retained, nevertheless, enough of the ex
travagant notions of that school to establish a creed
singularly at variance with the teachings of the Gos
pel, and founded principally on a belief in saints and
amulets. The latter consist in little trinkets wrought

THE LLANEROS. 49
in gold or silver ; or written orisons carefully pre
served in leathern bags and worn suspended from
their rosaries around their necks. Most of these ori
sons are the more extravagant from the fact they have
no meaning whatever ; yet this very obscurity seems
to attach greater value to them, their principal charm
consisting, as they say, in their mysterious import.
Great faith is also placed in certain prayers which
are supposed to have the power of driving away the
Devil, curing diseases and averting all kinds of evil.
As regards their Creator, they only have some
vague ideas ; they believe, for instance, in one God ;
mats voila tout. They seem to entertain greater fear
of Beelzebub and Death personified, both of whom
they imagine to possess undisputed sway over His
creatures. The first they fancy to be fashioned with
horns, hoofs, and claws like some of their wild beasts.
Their ideas of death are no less extravagant. A re
spectable old gentleman of my acquaintance who once
found himself very low with fever, thus related his
experience respecting this fearful vision. " Why ! "
said he to a circle of friends who came to congratulate
him on his recovery, " I had always supposed that
Death was actually a horrid skeleton skulkiug about
the world in search of victims, and carrying in his
hand a fearful hook with which he angled for us as
we do for fish. No such thing, my friends, I assure
you ; Death, after all, is nothing more than lack of
breath ; " accompanying the assertion with a gentle
pressure of his nose with his fingers and a hearty
laugh. As a natural consequence, the Llaneros, in spite
s

50 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of their bravery and sangfroid in other respects, en
tertain great fear of espantos or ghosts and appari
tions. One of the most popular hallucinations of this
kind is la bola defuego, or " light of Aguirre the Ty
rant," as the natives usually style it — a sort of ignis
fatuus, arising from the decomposition of organic
substances at the bottom of certain marshes. Super
stitious imaginations, unacquainted with this phe
nomenon, readily transform these gaseous exhalations
into the soul of the famous Lope de Aguirre wander
ing about the savannas. This adventurous individual
had the satisfaction, while he lived, of discovering the
great river Amazon. Being of a restless and bloody
disposition, like all the heroes of that epoch, he started
in search of El Dorado with a powerful expedition
from Peru, which resulted in the discovery of the
Father of Waters. He stained his laurels, however,
with the blood of his own daughter, as well as with
that of his companions, for which unpardonable atro
cities it is believed his accursed soul was left to wan
der over those countries which he sullied with his
crimes.* Now it appears before the terrified traveller
in the form of a blazing ball of fire ; a minute after
it will be seen one or two miles off. If sufficiently
near, the spectator cannot fail to observe the entrails
of the wicked wanderer enveloped in the flames of
this extraordinary apparition. Such is the power of
affrighted imaginations which have converted one of
the commonest phenomena of chemical action into
the wildest speculation of besotted fanaticism.
* See Humboldt, Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America.

THE LLANEROS. 51
With regard to miracles and the interposition of
the saints, the names of some of which are constantly
in their mouths, the Llaneros also have many curious
notions. For every emergency of their lives there is
a special patron saint ; San Pablo, like good old St.
Patrick, is supposed to have entire sway over snakes
and other vermin ; San Antonio, the power of re
storing stolen goods to their rightful owners ; while
San somebody else that of befriending the highway
robber and assassin from the punishment of justice
and violent' death. As an illustration of this fact, I
will relate here an incident which I witnessed during
one of those endemic revolutions so typical of the
Spanish American republics, and which never fail to
foster lawless bands of desperadoes who, under the
cover of political reforms, commit all sorts of depre
dations upon the helpless inhabitants.

JOSE URBANO, THE GUERILLA-CHIEF.
A digression for the sake of variety.
Shortly after our return from the Apure, a revo
lution broke out among the colored population ; a
class which until then had been the most peaceful
and submissive, but since perverted to such a degree
as to require all the energies and resources of the
white race to save itself from utter ruin and degra
dation. An ambitious demagogue, editor of a newspaper
in the capital, had been seized with the mania, so

52 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
prevalent in South America, of becoming President
\pi*o tern.) of the Republic. To this end, he spared no
means in recommending himself to the public, through
the columns of his paper, heaping at the same time
all kinds of slander and abuse upon those who stood
in his way. Finding, however, little cooperation from
the better class of the community, he experienced no
scruple in courting the favor of the colored popula
tion, who, he readily persuaded, " had a perfect right
to share in the gains and property of their aristocratic
masters." The Government was powerless in arrest
ing the spirit of revolt which was daily being infused
among the masses, as the Constitution allowed perfect
freedom of the press, and the good citizens did not
care to take the matter into their own hands. The
consequence was, a fearful outbreak among the lower
classes, backed by all the tramposos or broken-down
speculators of the country, proclaiming community
of property, and the ci-devant editor (who, by the
way, had not a sous to stake in it) candidate for the
next Presidency of the Republic. The revolt soon
spread to the Llaneros, by far the most to be feared
in the matter of hard blows ; and although it was
quelled in time through the efforts of General Paez,
it sowed the seeds of discontent which have since
brought forth to the country an abundant crop of re
venge, violence, and rapine. It was during that cam
paign the incident I am about to relate occurred in
the savannas of San Pablo.
We had just encamped for the night on the beau
tiful plain of Morrocoyes, not far from our place,
when a messenger arrived to apprise the General that

THE LLANEROS. 53
the famous Jose Urbano, leader of a band of robbers
who had committed several wanton murders in that
neighborhood, had crossed over to San Pablo under
cover of night. The General immediately despatched
a dozen of his men after the banditti, with positive
orders to follow up the r astro or trail to the world's
end if necessary, and not return to his presence with
out the body of the leader, muerto 6 vivo, dead or
alive. To any other set of men less accustomed to
the wild pursuits of the Llanos, this would have ap
peared an impossibility in a country like San Pablo,
traversed in all directions by numerous cross-ways
made by the cattle ; but the instinct of those men in
tracking runaways as well as stray animals, is truly
wonderful. Although the plain was covered with the
footprints of twenty thousand animals roaming wild
over the savannas, they followed close on the heels of
the banditti, until they fell in, unfortunately, with
another trail left by some vaqueros. The night was
very dark, and they easily mistook this for that of the
enemy. As a matter of course it led them to a ranch
where the unlucky vaqueros were amusing themselves
at the game of monte. Without stopping to ascertain
who the gamblers were, the troop charged in the
midst of them, killing two or three innocent fellows,
and dispersing the rest like a herd of wild sheep.
The aggressors did not discover their mistake until
one of the fugitives, who happened to be acquainted
with the party, recognized the voice of the com
mander, and shouted to him to stop the carnage.
After this unfortunate encounter, it may be easy
to conceive that the troopers were not slow in retrac-

54 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ing their steps in search of the cause of their mistake ;
this time, however, with more prudence, carefully ex
amining every trail until they found the right one. It
led them to another ranch where Urbano was spend
ing the evening in the society of one of his numerous
sweethearts. Here they all dismounted very quietly,
and leaving the horses in charge of two companions,
they rushed into the ranch with a wild shout and
lance in hand. The attack was so sudden, that most
of the banditti were either killed or dispersed before
they had time to seize their arms. Only their gallant
leader stood at bay against tremendous odds, defend
ing himself bravely for a long time with the assistance
of his equally courageous sweetheart, who kept all
the while urging him on like a tigress.
Overpowered at last by a superior force, and faint
with the loss of blood from numerous wounds, the
bandit fell at the feet of his sable Amazon. When
raised, an amulet was found between his teeth so
firmly held, that it required the united efforts of two
men to remove it. On being opened, it was found to
contain a written orison, shrouded in such mysterious
language as would have defied the skill of a magician
to decipher. This, I was informed, was the famous
Oracion del Justo Juez, a singular misnomer for a
talisman intended to befriend these gente non sancta \
in their marauding expeditions.
It was a lucky thing for the assailants that Urbano
received at the outset a severe cut on his right arm,
causing an immediate flow of blood which filled the
pan of his trabuco, otherwise the affair would have
terminated very differently. The ignition of the pow-

THE LLANEROS. 55
der was thus prevented just as he was in the act of
discharging the contents of that engine of destruction
amidst the group.
The body of the culprit was now tied ou the back
of a horse and conveyed to the presence of the Gen
eral, as an atonement for the unfortunate mistake
which had deprived him of the services of two or
three valuable hands.
The news of this adventure spread as if by magic
over the surrounding country and brought together
great numbers of curiosos, among them, no doubt,
many of Urbano's adherents, who might have dis
credited the statement. The General improved the
opportunity to address them an impressive homily,
ordering at the same time the mutilated body of the
renowned bandit to be exposed on the public road for
twenty-four hours, as a warning to others with similar
proclivities. The death of this man, considered invulnerable by
the superstitious children of the Llanos, produced a
more powerful impression upon them than if a great
battle had been fought and won. Next day, hun
dreds of facciosos, availing themselves of a general
amnesty granted by the Commander-in-Chief to re
pentant revolutionists, began to arrive from various*
quarters and gave in their submission.
Thus ended for the time being one of the most
dangerous outbreaks that had ever occurred in the
country, from the nature of the principles involved.
As to the originator, he was subsequently eclipsed by
a bolder political aspirant, the ever-memorable Jose
T. Monagas. This worthy, of whom more especial

56 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
mention will be made hereafter, and who, in an evil
hour for his country, was called to fill the chair of
State, profiting by the condition of anarchy in which
the other had plunged the nation, afterwards shot
down the Representatives of the people in Congress
assembled, and proclaimed himself absolute ruler,
thus leaving the other ambitious pretender to exclaim
with the poet :
" Hos ego versiculos feci, tulit alter honores.'1

CHAPTER Y.
SCENES AT THE FISHERY.
Four days we remained at San Pablo making ar
rangements for the contemplated expedition to the
Apure ; but the horses being quartered at consider
able distance, we removed to La Yegiiera, a small farm
within the estate exclusively devoted to the breeding
of those animals. Great numbers of mules were also
raised there, which made the equine stock amount to
nearly three thousand animals of all ages. There,
untrammelled by barriers of any kind, they roamed
at will over those beautiful meadows in a semi-wild
state ; their only keeper was a half-breed, who with
his family occupied the Ranch, which on that occasion
was to shelter us also. This Ranch being too small,
however, for the accommodation of the whole party,
most of them bivouacked in a grove of lofty Cesal-
pinias and Carob trees, from whose spreading branches
they slung their hammocks, the dense foliage forming
a sufficient shelter from the heavy dews of night and
the heat of the sun by day.
Our Leader, the Doctor, and myself, were domi-
3*

58 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ciled at the Ranch. Having the full range of the
neighboring groves during the day, we had then no
occasion to use our single apartment, already par
tially occupied with the culinary utensils and other
wares of the family. But on retiring to our ham
mocks at night, the scene presented was rather ludi
crous. In the same room allotted to us slept the
keeper, his wife, and their numerous progeny,
with all the dogs and chickens of the household
huddled together in the most familiar maimer. Not
withstanding, I will confess that the arrangement was
not altogether disagreeable to me, as in close pro
pinquity slept two of the prettiest damsels I had yet
encountered in that region, with eyes brilliant enough
to render other light superfluous. The only important
hindrance to my nightly repose was the occasional
flapping of wings and the hourly crowing of our
host's favorite gamecock, tied directly under my ham
mock, and who served for clock and night-watchman
to the establishment.
Agapito, our host, had an easy time as overseer
of this domain, his only occupation being from time
to time to scour the savannas in search of young foals
which might have been attacked by the gusano. This
is the larvae of a species of fly deposited in the umbili
cal cord of the new born, and which, if not promptly
removed, will eat into the very vitals. It is fortu
nately not difficult to destroy them by the use of pow
dered cebadilla, the seed of a liliaceous plant (Yera-
trum cebadilla) abounding in veratrine. For this
purpose, the keeper is always provided with a horn
filled with the poisonous drug, and a wooden spatula.

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 59
With the latter he digs out the worms and fills the
wound with the powder to prevent a renewal of their
attacks. Groves and meadows unequalled for their luxu
riance and natural beauty surrounded us on all sides,
while numerous springs and rivulets, issuing from the
foot of the terrace -like Mesas, rushed down the de
clivity of the plain, increasing the volume of the
beautiful Guarico on whose banks stood the primitive
abode of our unsophisticated host. This river is justly
celebrated for the abundance and superiority of its
fish ; so, without delay, providing myself with hook
and line, I proceeded thither, being anxious to procure
specimens for my sketch-book, and also a substitute
for our daily fare of beef. But, strange to relate,
each time I dropped hook in the water, it was carried
away in some mysterious manner, without the least
motion being imparted to the float. My tackle, which
I had brought from England, although arranged for
fly-fishing, was capable of bearing a fish of many
pounds weight ; but as I soon lost' all my stock in
hand in the vain endeavor to secure my specimens, I
gave up in disgust and returned to the Ranch that
the mystery might, if possible, be explained. On
seeing my slender lines, mine host with a broad grin
facetiously remarked that they were good to play at
fishing with, the only drawback to the amusement
being that the caribe, a fish not larger than a perch,
would carry off all my playthings. Impossible, said
I ; the lines are strong enough to lift you out of the
water if necessary ; to this he quietly replied, direct
ing my attention to a mutilated finger of his right

60 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
hand, "Do you see this? well, not long ago I was
washing my hands in the riyer after slaughtering a
calf, when a caribe darted at my finger and carried
off a part before I was even aware of his approach."
Here was a serious obstacle to my favorite sport, and
to the pleasure that Mr. Thomas and I had anticipated
in sketching the various kinds of fish peculiar to that
region. Fortunately, a short distance down the river
was a fishing encampment provided with all the ne
cessary appliances for obtaining the fish in large
quantities. Of these we resolved to avail ourselves ;
but as several others of our party were equally inter
ested, our leader despatched a messenger to the fish
ermen, inviting them to come up the river with their
nets, and fish in our presence. To this they readily
acceded, and soon after made their appearance pad
dling themselves over the water in four large canoes
laden, among other things, with their chinchorros or
seines, which they at once proceeded to spread across
the stream, covering a deep charco or pool known to
contain abundance of fish. Although the river at
this season was very low, owing to the usual summer
drought, pools of considerable depth were left at in
tervals, and in these the fish sought refuge in vast
f numbers from the season's heat and from the eager
pursuit of the fishermen, of which the latter sang,
while spreading their seines, in the following Lines :
Guavina le dijo a Vagre
Vamonos al caramero,
Porque ya viene el verano
Y nos coge el chinchorrero :

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 61
Guavina said to the Vagre,
Let us quickly seek the cover,
Till the summer's heat is over,
Lest the seine make us its prey.
As the nets were dragged towards each other, the
fish could be seen by thousands moving within the
space embraced by the seines. Indeed, so numerous
were they, that it soon became impossible to pull
them in shore without previously relieving them of a
portion of their contents. Accordingly, some of the
men, armed with throw-nets, harpoons, and vieheros
— these last large hooks affixed to wooden handles —
plunged into the midst of the finny multitude, and
commenced an onslaught on the largest among them.
Presently one of the men came out with a monstrous
fellow of the catfish tribe beautifully striped like a
Bengal tiger, and like him having a thick snout fur
nished with long barbs. This species is called the
vagre rayado or striped catfish, and is much esteemed
by people of all classes as a substitute for beef during
Lent. Large quantities are salted and sent at that
time to the capital and other cities, where, under the
name of pescado llanero, it forms one of the delicacies
of the season. Some of these fish attain an enormous
size, measuring five, six, and even seven feet in length,
and are so fat that a single one is a load for two men.
There are other varieties of catfish, smaller in size,
although equally rich in flavor ; one of them — the
Engorda-mayordomo — is, I conclude from its name,
a special favorite with overseers.
In diving with the vichero, much caution was
necessary on the part of the men lest they should be

62 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
hooked by their hasty companions in lieu of the fish.
A more important -source of anxiety to the divers,
was several dangerous fish among the multitude
struggling in the water, such as the Ray-fish, whose
tail is furnished with a sting three inches long, with
which it inflicts a very painful wound ; Electric eels,
whose touch alone will paralyze in an instant the mus
cles of the strongest man ; the Payara, shaped some
what like a sabre, and equally dangerous. The upper
jaw of this last is furnished with a formidable pair of
fangs, not unlike those of the rattlesnake ; with these
it inflicts as smooth a gash as if cut with a razor ;
and finally, the caribe, whose ravenous and blood
thirsty propensities have caused it to be likened to
the cannibal tribe of Indians, once the terror of those
regions, but now scattered over the towns and vil
lages along the course of the Orinoco. Each time the
nets were hauled in shore, half a dozen or more of
these little pests were to be seen jumping in the
crowd, their jaws wide open tearing whatever came
in their way, especially the meshes of the nets, which
they soon rendered useless. Their sharp triangular
teeth, arranged in the same manner as those of the
shark, are so strong, that neither copper, steel, nor
twine can withstand them. The sight of any red sub
stance, blood especially, seems to rouse their sanguin
ary appetite ; and as they usually go in swarms, it is
extremely dangerous for man or beast to enter the
water with even a scratch upon their bodies. Horses
wounded with the spur are particularly exposed to
their attacks, and so rapid is the work of destruction,
that unless immediate assistance is rendered, the fish

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 63
soon penetrate the abdomen of the animal and speed
ily reduce it to a skeleton ; hence, doubtless, their
appellation of mondonguero — tripe-eater. There are
other varieties of the caribe in the rivers of the
Llanos, but none so bold and bloodthirsty as this
glutton of the waters. So abundant is this species
in some rivers of the Apure, that it is a common
saying among Llaneros : " there is more caribe than
iwater."

Every feature of this miniature cannibal denotes
the ferocity and sanguinary nature of its tastes. The
piercing eye, surrounded by a bloody-looking ring,
is expressive of its cruel and bloodthirsty disposition.
Its under j.aw, lined with a thick cartilaginous mem
brane which adds greatly to its strength, protrudes
considerably beyond the upper, giving, as this forma
tion of jaw does to all animals possessing it, likewise
an expression of ferocity. Large spots of a brilliant
orange hue cover a great portion of its body, espe
cially the belly, fins, and tail. Toward the back, it is
of a bluish ash color, with a slight tint of olive green,
the intermediate spaces being of a pearly white, while

64 WILD SCENES IN SODTH AMERICA.
the gill-covers are tinged with red. The inhabitants
being often compelled to swim across streams infested
with them, entertain more fear of these little creatures
than of that world-renowned monster, the crocodile.
This last, although a formidable antagonist in the
water, can be easily avoided and even conquered in
single combat by daring men, while the former, from
their diminutive size and greater numbers, can do more
mischief in a short time than a legion of crocodiles.
The other kinds of caribe, although larger in size,
are less dangerous than the preceding, and some even
perfectly harmless. Among these, the black caribe
of the Apure and Orinoco rivers is considered dainty
eating. The caribilo is also a harmless pretty little
fish, with back of a fine green color, and belly white
with occasional streaks of pink.
In spite, however, of all these vicious creatures,
and the great depth of the water, the fishermen accom
plished their work in a manner that would have done
credit to the fearless pearl-divers of the ocean, more
especially the swimmers, who are constantly in dan
ger from some of the fish while gliding through the
water in their pursuit. Those in the canoes were, of
course, less liable to be attacked, although it often
happened that a payara, being peculiarly adapted
for darting out of the water, would clear the nets with
a spring and fall in the midst of the paddlers, causing
a momentary confusion among them. My attention
was particularly attracted to the skill of the men in
throwing their hand nets, sometimes lying on their
stomach on the surface of the water, their hands en
cumbered with the nets ; others would stand perfectly

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 55
erect, half their bodies out of water, and without any
footing to serve them as point d'appui. In the same
manner, those whose business it was to drive the fish
towards the seines, managed their huge batons, and
all apparently without the least inconvenience. Sud
denly their labors were interrupted by a serious ob
stacle in the shape of a caiman or alligator struggling
hard between the nets to regain his freedom. Here
was a sufficient test of the courage and ability of the
fishers. If the monster remained, he would not only
endanger the nets, but also the progress of the men
through the water, they being liable at any moment
to come in contact with his powerful jaws. It was
therefore decided to get rid of the intruder at all
hazards. To accomplish this, a lazo was procured,
and to the astonishment of all the blancos present, a
man went down with it to the bottom in search of the
monster, with the avowed object of lazoing him under
the water. After a few moments of, to us, most anx
ious suspense, but which the hardy fishermen re
garded as child's play, their companion rose to the
surface panting for breath, not yet having ascertained
the precise position of his intended victim. After
inhaling sufficient air, the diver again disappeared,
coming up in due time with the glad tidings that the
enemy was cajjtured, in proof whereof he handed us
the other end of the lazo that we might drag him out.
This was no easy task, as these reptiles, by their pe
culiar conformation, have immense power while under
water, and it required the united efforts of all on
shore to land him. This accomplished, we were per
plexed in what manner to despatch him, as no steel

66 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
instrument can penetrate the thick cuirass of the
caiman, except it be in the armpits ; but so violent
were his struggles, that it was impossible to strike
him there. At last the Doctor, more sagacious than
the rest of us in anatomical operations, plunged a
harpoon into the nape of the neck. The effect was
that of paralyzing at once the movements of the
prisoner, after which he was easily stabbed.
The manner in which our gallant diver accom
plished his daring feat was thus explained by his
companions ; the caiman, like the domestic hog,
is said to delight in being scratched about the ribs,*
and of this the diver perhaps availed himself in
order to place the noose around his neck, being very
careful to approach him from behind, as it is a well-
known fact that these reptiles, owing to the nature of
their coliar vertebra?, cannot easily turn round. The
alligator is not so dangerous as its congener the croco
dile of the Orinoco and its tributaries ; few real croco
diles ever ascend the Guarico as far as San Pablo.
However, a case had occurred here not long before,
when a man disappeared under rather mysterious cir
cumstances, and there was good reason to surmise
that his loss was due to one of these gentry. It ap
pears that the seines, being entangled around a snag
at the bottom of the river, a man was, as usual, sent to
remove the obstruction ; considerable time elapsing
without his reappearance, his comrades, seriously
alarmed, instituted a diligent search, but no vestige of
the unfortunate man was ever discovered. It never oc-
* Since the above was in type, I find this fact corroborated by Sir
J. Emerson Tennent in his interesting " Sketches on the Natural
History of Ceylon," p. 284.

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 67
curred to his friends that he might have fallen a prey
to a crocodile, and the calamity was universally as
cribed to the supernatural influence of some evil genii
of the deep. From that time, the spot has borne the
ominous name of the Encantado or haunted pool.
All obstructions to the progress of the nets were
at length removed, and a sufficient quantity of fish
having been taken therefrom, we all assisted in pull
ing them in, and a few moments afterwards had the
satisfaction of beholding the sand banks on which we
were, strewn with the proceeds of the two seines.
It would be impossible to convey an adequate
idea of the singular forms and brilliant hues of most
of these fish, all new to me. The Cherna, in particu
lar, attracted my attention from their abundance
and peculiar formation. Some attain a large size,
weighing as much as a hundred pounds, and their
flesh is so delicate as to deserve the appellation
of river veal. The mouth is comparatively small,
and set with a row of teeth bearing a strong resem
blance to those of the human species.
The fishing having been solely for our amusement,
and more game obtained than we required for our
consumption, some was distributed among the people
of the neighborhood who had collected to witness the
sport, and the remainder given to the fishermen, who
received besides a handsome compensation for their
trouble in coming so far from their encampment.
During the distribution of the fish, a singular in
cident took place which illustrates at once the tena
city of life with which reptiles are endowed, and the
electrical powers of that most singular creature, the

68 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
gymnotus or electric eel. A boy had discovered one
of these among the heap of fish on the beach, and was
dragging it along by means of a vichero to avoid the
shocks, when the body of the eel came accidentally
in contact with the carcass of the caiman. This last,
which, after the rough treatment it had received from
our medical adviser, was supposed to be quite dead,
much to the surprise of all, opened his huge jaws
and closed them with a loud crash. The Doctor, espe
cially, who, from his professional knowledge in surgi
cal operations, had pronounced it beyond recovery,
was the loudest in his expressions of astonishment at
this unexpected turn. It was, however, merely a
convulsive movement, induced by contact with the
eel, and similar to that produced on the limbs of a frog
by a galvanic current ; for, afterward, the reptile re
mained without further signs of returning life. Science
will, ere long, take advantage of the electric eel.

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 69
I would here most willingly entertain my readers
with an account of the nature and habits of these
" animal electrical machines," had not the great
Humboldt already elucidated the subject in the most
comprehensive and brilliant manner. To his admir
able works I will therefore refer the reader for a full
and graphic description of this, one of the most curi
ous of fish. It was in one of the numerous tributary
creeks of this river, that the distinguished traveller
procured the gymnoti for his experiments ; perhaps
from amongst the progenitors of the above mentioned.
The manner in which they were obtained differed
somewhat, however, from the one adopted by us on
this occasion. Knowing how difficult it was to catch
these eels on account of their extreme agility and
powerful electrical discharges, the guides collected in
the savannas a drove of wild horses, which they forced
into a pool of water abounding in gymnoti. " The
extraordinary noise caused by the horses' hoofs makes
the fish issue from the mud and excites them to at
tack. The yellowish and livid eels, resembling large
aquatic serpents, swim on the surface of the water
and crowd under the bellies of the horses and mules.
A contest between animals of so different an organi
zation presents a very striking spectacle. The In
dians, provided with harpoons and long slender reeds,
surround the pool closely, and some climb up the
trees, the branches of which extend horizontally over
the surface of the water. By their wild cries, and
the length of their reeds, they prevent the horses
from running away and reaching the bank of the
pool. The eels, stunned by the noise, defend them-

1Q WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
selves by the repeated discharge of their electric bat
teries. For a long interval they seem likely to prove
victorious. Several horses sink beneath the violence
of the invisible strokes which they receive from all
sides in organs the most essential to life ; and stunned
by the force and frequency of the shocks, they disap
pear under water."
" I wish," adds the traveller, " that a clever artist
could have depicted the most animated period of the
attack ; the group of Indians surrounding the pond,
the horses with their manes erect and eyeballs wild
with pain and fright, striving to escape from the
electric storm which they had roused, and driven
back by the shouts and long whips of the excited In
dians ; the livid yellow eels, like great water snakes,
swimming near the surface and pursuing their enemy ;
all these objects presented a most picturesque and
exciting ' ensemble.' In less than five minutes two
horses were killed ; the eel, being more than five feet
in length, glides beneath the body of the horse and
discharges the whole length of its electric organ. It
attacks, at the same time, the heart, the digestive
viscera, and the cceliac fold of the abdominal nerves.
I thought the scene would have a tragic termination,
and expected to see most of the quadrupeds killed ;
but the Indians assured me that the fishing would
soon be finished, and that only the first attack of the
gymnoti was really formidable. In fact, after the
conflict had lasted a quarter of an hour, the mules
and horses appeared less alarmed ; they no longer
erected their manes, and their eyes expressed less
pain and terror. One no longer saw them struck

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 7]
down in the water, and the eels, instead of swimming
to the attack, retreated from their assailants and ap
proached the shore. The Indians now began to use
their missiles ; and by means of the long cord at
tached to the harpoon, jerked the fish out of the
water without receiving any shock so long as the
cord was dry."
The electric eel, although much dreaded by man,
is greatly esteemed by gourmands. It is necessary,
however, to deprive the fish of those parts constitut
ing the electrical apparatus, which are rather spongy
and unpalatable. Its bones, administered in the form
of a decoction, are said to act powerfully, in cases of
difficult parturition. For this object, the spine of
the fish is carefully preserved suspended from the
thatch roof of the huts in that region where the ser
vices of accoucheurs are totally unknown.
Among the promiscuous assemblage of fish scat
tered on the sand beach, ready to transfix the hand
that might inadvertently touch them, were many
sting-rays. This species, like its prototype the famous
" Devil-fish " of the Caribbean Sea, is quite circular
and flat, with a tail over a foot in length, very thick
at the base and tapering towards the end. Near the
middle on the upper part, it is armed with a long
and sharp-pointed bone or sting, finely serrated on
two sides, which the fish can raise or lay fiat at will.
When disturbed, the ray, by a quick movement of
the tail, directs its sting towards the object, which it
seldom fails to reach. The wound thus inflicted is so
severe, that the whole nervous system is convulsed,
the person becoming rigid and benumbed in a few

72 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
moments. Even long after the violent effects of the
wound have subsided, the part affected retains a slug
gish ulceration, which has in many instances baffled
the skill of the best surgeons. Some creeks and la
goons of stagnant water are so infested with them,
that it is almost certain destruction to venture into
them. They usually frequent the shallow banks of
muddy pools, where they may be seen at all times
watching for prey ; and, as if conscious of their
powers, scarcely deign to move off when approached
by man. They, also, are considered good eating, on
which account they frequently fall a prey to hungry
boys and vultures, who wage constant war upon them
with spear and talon.
Mr. Thomas and I had plenty of occupation in
sketching the various specimens before us ; but the
speedy approach of night compelled us to relinquish
our agreeable pastime ; thus many curious fish which
we would have liked to preserve, had to be consigned
to the frying-pan instead of to our portfolios.
In the mean time our able cook, Monico, and half
a dozen of Llanero assistants — all of whom are more or
less accomplished in the art of cooking in their own pe
culiar style — were busily engaged throughout the af
ternoon preparing the spoils of the day for our supper.
A fat calf was also killed in honor of the occasion,
and roasted before a blazing fire under the trees. The
Llaneros are, quite skilled in roasting an ox or calf,
which they divide in sections according to the flavor
of each particular morceau. These they string upon
long wooden spits, and keep them turning before the

SCENES AT THE FISHERY. 73
fire until sufficiently cooked. The ribs of the animal,
taken out entire, usually form the most favorite mor
sel ; but I would recommend to future travellers in
that country the entreverado, made up of the animal's
entrails, such as the liver, heart, lungs, and kidneys,
cut into pieces of convenient size and spitted ; then
enveloped in the fat mesenteric membrane of the an
imal, and cooked in its own juices.
In addition to this abundant supply of came
asada, we had fish in every style, smoked, broiled, en
sancocho, (bouilli,) &c, with plenty of bread prepared
by the wife and daughters of our equerry. Just as
every one had eaten, as he supposed, his fill, one of
our assistants made his appearance bending under the
weight of a boiling caldron containing a rich bouilli
of cherna heads, and urged us to partake of his hum
ble fare. Although this was rather reversing the
order of courses, we were finally prevailed upon to
taste the soup he had prepared with so much care for
us ; and no sooner was the rich broth tasted by our
epicurean party, than it was forthwith devoured with
unimpaired appetites ; but my enjoyment of the broth
was somewhat spoiled by coming in contact with a
row of omniverous-looking teeth, which so reminded
me of a human skull, that I was constrained to
throw my portion away, although I must confess
that I never tasted soup superior to it.

CHAPTER VI.
WILD HOUSES.
The fishing over, the main object of our expedition
to La Yegiiera was next attended to, namely, that of
adding to our madrina of supernumerary horses from
the abundant stock of this farm. An entire day was
passed in riding through its enchanting groves and
meadows, inspecting the numerous droves of mares,
guarded by their proud padrotes or stallions. Each
troop is under the control of one of these, who not
only prevent their mingling with other packs, but en
deavor also to appropriate all the other mares they
can kidnap from their neighbors. The conquest, how
ever, is not obtained without a determined resistance
from their rightful lords, which occasions fierce com
bats between the rivals. When any stranger ap
proaches, the whole troop boldly advances towards
the object of their alarm, neighing, snorting, and
throwing their slim and beautiful forms into the most
graceful attitudes. When at the distance of a hun
dred paces, they all halt, and five or six scouts are
detached from the main body to reconnoitre. These

WILD HORSES. 75
approach still nearer, and stretching their necks and
ears, seem, with wild glance and cautious movement,
to inquire from the stranger the object of this intru
sion, while, in the mean time, the stallion keeps the
whole troop in readiness for retreat in case of pursuit.
When this last occurs, the scouts hastily incorporate
themselves with the main body, while the stallion
orders the retreat as skilfully as a good general might
under similar circumstances, stopping occasionally to
watch the enemy's movements, but never resuming
the lead until the troop is out of danger. When thus
wildly coursing over the prairies in packs of one or
two hundred, headed by their respective stallions, in
spired, as it were, by the freedom of the plain, noth
ing can surpass their magnificent appearance, nor the
proud air of liberty with which they snuff the passing
breeze. We one day brought to the Ranch a large
drove, from which we selected those required for the
expedition. This occupied the men for a couple of
days, as it was discovered that most of the animals
were in bad condition from burrs and garrapatas,
another destructive insect peculiar to those places, of
the size and shape of a bed-bug, and very distressing
to animals. It adheres with such tenacity to the skin
of the poor brutes, that it requires to be pulled by
hand in order to detach it ; if left undisturbed, it will
suck the blood until its body becomes distended to
many times the natural size. It attacks all kinds of
animals, bjit more especially horses : these last suffer
in consequence, from malignant sores about their ears,
which soon wither and drop off.
The horses were so wild that they had to be broken

76 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
in before they could be of any service. This opera
tion — which might as well be termed breaking down
horses, as a great number are ruined by it — affords
the Llaneros a fine opportunity for testing their ability
in coping with this, the most spirited animal in the
world. It is also undoubtedly one of the most diffi
cult performances on cattle-farms, requiring strong
nerve and great skill on the part of the rider to with
stand the kicks and plunges of the animal and retain
his seat. The method practised in the Llanos differs
but little from that of the Pampas of Buenos Ayres,
so ably described by Sir Francis Head, Darwin, and
other eminent writers. I will quote some passages
from the first of these authors respecting this diver-
tisement among the Gauchos ; their method I specially
commend to the numerous disciples of the renowned
Rarey, who has so astonished the Old World and the
New with his wonderful skill in horse-taming.
" The corral was quite full of horses, most of which
were young ones, about three and four years old. The
capataz, mounted on a strong, steady horse, rode into
the corral, and threw his lazo over the neck of a young
horse, and dragged him to the gate. For some time he
was very unwilling to leave his comrades, but the
moment he was forced out of the corral, his first idea
was to gallop away ; however, the jerk of the lazo
checked him in a most effectual manner. The peons
now ran after him on foot, and threw the lazo over
his four legs, just above the fetlocks, and twitching
it, they pulled his legs from under him so suddenly,
that I really thought the fall he got had killed him.
In an instant a Gaucho was seated upon his head, and

WILD HORSES. 77
with Ids long knife, in a few seconds he cut off the
whole of the horse's mane, while another cut the hair
from the end of his tail. This they told me is a mark
that the horse has been once mounted. They then
put a piece of hide into his mouth to serve as a bit,
and a strong hide-halter on his head. The Gaucho
who was to mount, arranged his spurs, which were
unusually long and sharp, and while two men held
the animal by his ears, he put on the saddle, which he
girthed extremely tight ; he then caught hold of the
horse's ear and in an instant vaulted into the saddle ;
upon which the man who was holding the horse by
the halter, threw the end of it to the rider, and from
that moment no one seemed to take any further notice
of him. The horse instantly began to jump in a man
ner which made it very difficult for the rider to keep
his seat, and quite different from the kick or plunge
of an English horse ; however, the Gaucho's spur soon
set him going, and off he galloped, doing every thing
in his power to throw his rider. Another horse was
immediately brought from the corral, and so quick was
•the operation, that twelve Gauchos were mounted in
a space which, I think, hardly exceeded an hour."
"It was singular to see the different manner in
which the different horses behaved. Some would
actually scream while the Gauchos were girthing the
saddle upon their backs ; some would instantly lie
down and roll over it ; while some would stand with
out being held, their legs stiff and in unnatural direc
tions, their necks half bent towards their tails, and
looking so vicious and sulky, that I could not help
thinking I could not have mounted one of them for

78 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
any reward that could be offered me ; and they were
invariably the most difficult to subdue."
By repeating this treatment a number of times,
and a sound thrashing with the chaparro whenever
they prove refractory, the riders finally succeed in
conquering the indomitable spirit of their steeds,
although they long retain a vicious propensity to
occasionally practise their old tricks, either by throw
ing themselves backwards upon their riders, or sud
denly plunging headlong at a furious rate. Another
dangerous habit is that of whirling rapidly, when least
expected, in an opposite direction to the one intended
by the rider, who, unless very expert, is unseated and
liable to have his neck broken. But, when these
horses are at length thoroughly broken in, there are
few in the world capable of performing their duty 60
well as those trained in the Llanos of Yenezuela.
My allusion on a former page to the renowned
Rarey, recalls to my memory the name of Santos
Nieves, a famous picador of San Pablo, whose ingen
ious mode of entrapping horses appears to have been
formed on the same principle as that which has char
acterized Mr. Rarey's method.
Instead of dashing after the droves, with lazo in
hand, and wild shouts, as is usual when the capture
of one or more horses is intended, Santos Nieves made
use of every precaution to avoid giving these shy crea
tures the least alarm ; and so successfully were all his
expeditions executed, that he achieved for himself the
tremendous reputation of being a horse-witch. His
plan was, however, the simplest possible. If the
object was to capture only a single animal — which

WILD HORSES. 79
feat is peculiarly difficult to accomplish in woody
places especially — he made preparations as if for a
long journey, previous to seeking the haunts of his in
tended captive. Having sojourned in San Pablo for
over half a century, he was thoroughly acquainted with
all their accustomed places of resort. The first impulse
of the animal on finding himself followed, was to scam
per off; but the patient picador, instead of hurrying in
pursuit, quietly remained on the same spot, watching
and waiting the next move of the animal. Presently
the horse, seeing he was not pursued, would conclude
to return and reconnoitre the object of his alarm. Sat
isfied from the quiet attitude of the man, that nothing
need be feared from him, the horse resumed his brous-
ing near by. Again the man cautiously and slowly
advances, until perceived anew by the horse, who, as
before, beats a rapid retreat. Impelled by curiosity,
he returned for the third time ; again inspects the
picador, who remains motionless as before, upon seeing
which, the animal concludes he may safely continue
his meal. These manosuvrings, again and again re
peated, usually occupied an entire day, towards the
close of which, if the horse were not very scary, the
picador, with cautious approach and gentle words,
succeeded in placing the halter around his neck.
The extreme coyness, however, of most of these ani
mals, frequently compelled Santos Nieves to camp out
for the night and resume his pursuit, not only the fol
lowing morning, but, if necessary, for three or more
consecutive days, at the end of which he always re
turned in triumph with his captive to the farm.
The relative value of these horses depends princi-

80 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
pally on their form, color, and gait. The Llaneros are
quite skilful in teaching them a variety of paces and
evolutions, which are as essential to their hazardous
occupations, as is the helm to the mariner. For war
purposes, they are especially invaluable, as was prac
tically demonstrated in the long struggle with the
Spaniards, who not being equally expert in the man
agement of their steeds, were, in consequence, often at
the mercy of their antagonists. A good charger must
be endowed with an easy mouth, good wind, and quick
movement to either side, so that when pursued by
an enemy, he can be made to whirl suddenly to the
attack if necessary. The same rule applies to those
used in chasing wild animals, especially bulls, which,
when hotly pursued, often face about and charge their
assailants. It is equally indispensable in warm climates, that
a horse should possess an easy gait for travelling. In
this respect, they are trained to the particular fancy
or requirements of the rider. Some prefer a gentle
trot on a long journey, as being the least fatiguing to
the horse; but, for city riding, or short journeys, an
amble, rack, or pasitrote — something between both —
is usually adopted. The test of a good pacing horse
consists in " the rider being able to carry a glass of
water in his hand without spilling," while that of a
first-rate charger is to stop, Avhen at the height of
his speed, on the slightest pull of the bridle.
Great regard is also paid to the color of horses ;
piebald, cream, and the various shades of white, are
usually preferred. But, where great endurance and
strength are requisite, connoisseurs generally select

WILD HORSES. gl
those of a darker color. Their price in the country is
greatly enhanced of late in consequence of a devas
tating disease, which has been raging among them for
several years past. Horses were so plentiful in the
Llanos at one time, that a large export trade in their
hides was carried on with foreign countries. A good
horse, which then only brought five dollars, now costs
from eighty to one hundred, and even more, according
to the fancy of the parties interested. — Great numbers
of the inhabitants were also carried away by the same
scourge, which swept over the land like the cholera,
not even sparing the fish in the rivers.
This frightful epidemic, which the Llaneros have
appropriately styled Peste, or plague, is supposed to
have originated in the great primeval forest of San
Camilo, at the head waters of the Apure, from decom
position of the vegetable detritus accumulated there
during centuries. From thence, travelling eastward
along the course of the river, the epidemic continued
its ravages among the inhabitants of the towns and
villages situated on the right bank, attacking first one
place and then another, until the whole province
scarcely escaped depopulation. Even when the mor
tality abated, the country, which until then had pos
sessed a most healthful climate, never recovered its
former salubrity ; fevers of a more or less dangerous
character prevail from that time, especially towards
the end of the rainy season, while the raising of horses
has been entirely abandoned in consequence.
The first symptoms of the epidemic appeared
among the crocodiles, whose hideous carcasses might
then be seen floating down the stream in such pro-
4*

82 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
digious numbers, that both the waters and air of that
fine region were tainted with their effluvium. It was
observed that they were first seized with a violent fit
of coughing, followed by a black vomit which com
pelled them to quit their watery home, and finally find
a grave amongst the thickets on the river banks.
The disease next attacked the fish and other inhabit
ants of the water, with equal violence, until it was
feared the streams would be depopulated. The fearful'
mortality among them can be better estimated from
the fact that, for more than a month, the rippling
waves of that noble river, the Apure, were constantly
washing down masses of putrefaction, its placid sur
face being by them actually hidden from view for
several weeks.
The next victims were the pachidermata of the
swamps, and it was a pitiable sight to see the sluggish
chiguires (capyvaras) and the grizzly wild-boars
dragging their paralyzed hind-quarters after them;
hence the name of derrengadera, applied to this
disease. Not even monkeys in their aerial retreats, escaped
the contagion, and their melancholy cries resounded
day and night through the woods like wailings of the
eternally lost.
It is a singular fact, that while the scourge did not
spare any of the countless droves of horses roaming
the savannas of the Apure, and adjacent plains,, don
keys and horned cattle were seldom, if ever, attacked,
so that, by their aid, the owners of cattle-farms were
enabled to prevent the entire dispersion of their herds.
A curious incident related in connection with this

WILD HORSES. 83
public calamity, is very current in the Llanos, respect
ing the origin of the disease among horses. Eugenio
Torralva, a man of uncommon industry, although of
humble extraction, had accumulated quite a hand
some fortune by the raising of cattle, on the borders
of La Portuguesa ; but his chief wealth consisted in
horses, on which he greatly prided himself — so much
so that, on one occasion, while a distinguised person
age was passing through his estate, Torralva directed
his attention to the numerous droves grazing in the
plains ; then turning to his guest, who appeared
equally delighted with the sight, said to him, " Think
you, General, that I shall ever be in want of horses 2
Ni que Dios quiera! (Not even if God Almighty
wished it!)" he blasphemously added. Two years
later, the witness to this impious boast was again on
his way to the Llanos : near San Juan he met an old
man, apparently in a very destitute condition, riding
a donkey. Not knowing who the wayfarer was, he
bowed, as is customary, and rode on without taking
further notice of the old man or his uncouth equip
ment ; whereupon the stranger, waving his hand to
him, cried, " Why, General, have you already for
gotten your friend Torralva ? " He that " giveth and
taketh away " had deprived him of every horse, and
the once wealthy farmer was now compelled to travel
on an ass. It is asserted by the Llaneros that soon
after he uttered the above-mentioned blasphemy, the
Peste broke out among his immense stock, from
whence they say the disease spread to other farms,
until the contagion became general.
It is not a little singular that although the horse

84 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
was unknown to the aborigines of America, at the
time of its conquest, the researches of Darwin and
other eminent geologists have shown them to have
existed in vast numbers on that continent contempora
neously with the Mastodon, Megatherium, Mylodon,
and other extinct animals. " Certainly, it is a marvel
lous fact, in the history of mammalia," observes that
assiduous explorer, " that in South America a native
horse should have lived and disappeared, to be suc
ceeded, in after ages, by the countless herds descended
from the few introduced by the Spanish colonists ! "
In general these animals are of middling size, and,
like their progenitor, the Andalusian horse, endowed
with a fiery spirit, (if not checked by ill-treatment or
abuse,) and surprising endurance, especially during
the exciting chase of wild cattle, when they are kept
in constant motion for many consecutive days.
The steed of the Llanero, like his master, is accus
tomed to the inclemency of the seasons, being through
out the year kept in the open air, but always within
reach : hence the well-known adage, El ojo del amo
engorda el caballo, (the eye of the master will fatten
the horse ;) which adage implies the advantage of
keeping a sharp lookout on other things besides horses.

CHAPTER YH.
ACROSS THE P AM PAS.
Early in the morning of the fifth day, we left the
Ranch at La Yegiiera to journey southward, followed
by our long train of baggage mules and relay horses,
our good-natured host and keeper, Agapito, escorting
us for some distance in the double capacity of guide
and entertainer. Without his assistance it would
have been difficult for us to proceed on our journey,
which lay across a rolling prairie, covered in some
places by magnificent groves of tall timber trees and
a vast multitude of slender, towering palms, which,
by the glimmering light of the stars, appeared like a
mighty fleet of ships guarding the entrance to some
giant harbor. Although the morning was dark, and
there was properly speaking no road, but only a
beaten track branching off in all directions, our
guide, who knew every inch of the ground, led us
on without once turning to the right or left, merrily
chanting some of the lively ballads of the Llanos.
Occasionally he was joined by other bards equally

86 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
distinguished for their powers of voice and versifica
tion, thus producing very animated choruses of a
character peculiarly wild.
As the sun rose in the horizon, we came upon
another extensive plateau, the Mesa del Rastro,
stretching for several miles, unbroken by a single
tree or shrub, but alive with numberless herds of
cattle roaming in all directions, while flocks of birds
of every plumage, all new to me, flew affrighted at
our approach, filling the air with their wild, peculiar
cries. Among these, the Taro-taro, a large bird of
the Ibis tribe, which derives its name from its bell
like notes, and the Carretero or carter, a beautiful
species of goose with variegated plumage and crimson
bill, particularly attracted my attention. The latter
is named from the rumbling noise it makes when on
the wing, similar in sound to the rumbling of cart
wheels on hard ground.
Continuing our march over this seemingly inter
minable plain, we at length descried in the horizon
the village of El Rastro, where we purposed break
fasting and spending the hottest part of the day. We
were cordially received and entertained at the house
of Senor Llovera, a wealthy neighbor of ours, whose
lands extended from the southern boundary of San
Pablo to this village.
El Rastro is noted for the beauty and fresh com
plexion of the women, in spite of an ardent climate ;
and the males for their singular propensity to abstract
the hair from the manes and tails of horses stopping
at their village. This they often practise under the
very noses of the unfortunate owners, for the purpose

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 87
of converting it into halters for their own steeds.
Thus many a fine animal, which is supposed to be se
curely quartered for the night, is found next morning
so shamefully disfigured that he can scarcely be rec
ognized by his owner, who swears by all the saints
in the calendar to take summary vengeance on the
first rastrero* who may chance to cross his path.
Fortunately we had no cause of complaint, as our
droves were constantly under the surveillance of a
dozen or more vigilant keepers, perfectly au fait to
the peculiar taste of that community.
The beautiful complexion of the women is the
more extraordinary from the fact that this village,
which stands on the southern edge of the plateau, is
entirely exposed to the glare of a tropical sun, and the
hot breezes of the east. I nowhere met during my
journey, such rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes as in
this miserable hamlet. I could almost fancy them
the fairies of the wilderness, bewitching the unsus
pecting traveller, while their perfidious helpmates
practise their rascally tricks.
These high terraces possess the advantage of being
free from those noxious exhalations which render the
plains below so unhealthy at certain seasons. Owing
to the nature of the soil, mostly composed of a loose
conglomerate or shingle, no permanent deposits of
stagnant water are formed, endangering the health of
the inhabitants, who are often blessed with a " green
old age" and the possession of unimpaired mental
and bodily faculties. Many are the instances where
* Jiastrero — a native of El Rastro — literally, a mean rogue.

88 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
men attaining seventy and eighty years are still able
to take part in the hardy ventures of the country
along with their more youthful companions. Among
our own party we had several individuals of this class
who, after experiencing all the vicissitudes of a de
structive war, had seen many a hot summer roll by,
and camped out amidst the drenching showers of the
rainy season, without any material change in their
physique. Of these were Santos Nieves, the horse
tamer, whose only food consisted of jerked beef,
cheese, and papelon, upon which he had thrived ad
mirably up to the age of seventy ; Crisostomo, the
negro major domo of San Pablo, who had lost all
recollection of his earlier days; Conrado, the horse
driver, whose age and experience in conducting our
refractory madrinas had entitled him to the revered
appelation of taita or father. But the most extra
ordinary instance of longevity which has come to my
ears, is in the Monagas family, also hailing from those
regions, the age and number of whose members se
riously alarmed the republic at one time; for the
multitude of their rapacious demands appeared end
less. The patriarch of the family is said to have at
tained the moderate age of one hundred and twenty
years, yet. was able to scour the savannas on horse
back after the cattle up to the time of his death. The
memorable Jose Tadeo, the late Dictator and tyrant
of the republic, is yet in his prime at the age of
seventy-nine, while his brothers Gregorio and Jose
Francisco, whose vandalic career of plunder and as
sassination was — happily for the country that gave
them birth — cut off by the late revolution, did not

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 89
show the least signs of unabated vigor at the time of
their death, although one of them was considerably
older than Tadeo. And last, though not least, the
renowned zambo general, Sotillo, the pet bull-dog of
the family, to which, however, he bears no other re
lationship than that existing among rogues of the
same stamp : although now in his eightieth year, he
is able to carry on a successful partisan warfare
against the existing government. Without a roof to
shelter him, and no other equipment of war than the
lance and horse, this savage chieftain, for such he is
by birth and education, has set at defiance all the
forces sent in his pursuit, and nearly brought the
country to the verge of barbarism in his strivings to
uphold the iniquitous claims of this rapacious family.
Fierce in looks and menacing in tone, with a head
more like a polar bear than a South American savage,
he has become for a long time the terror of the eastern
provinces, which are in constant dread of his sudden
attacks — now cutting off' small detachments of troops
and" defenceless individuals, now retreating to his
fastness amidst the arid plains of the Alto Llano at
the approach of a superior force. He has even suc
ceeded in defeating such on two or three occasions by
his cunning manoeuvring and the rapidity of his
movements. During half a century, his favorite oc
cupation has been hunting wild cattle and waging a
guerilla warfare against society, which too often has
been compelled to yield to the savage demands of
this Bedouin of the Llanos.
Having partaken of a substantial breakfast, we

90 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
bade adieu to our kind host, and again betook our
selves to our long and weary journey across the Pam
pas. Descending to the plain, stretching for a thou
sand miles to the foot of the Bolivian Andes, we at
once entered into an entirely different country, show
ing unmistakable proofs of a diluvial origin. The
soil, mostly a mixture of clay and sand, no longer
offended the feet of our horses with those extensive
beds of pebbles so trying to the poor beasts. The
vegetation, also, whenever favored by some accident
of the ground, showed a marked difference in charac
ter. The thorny mimosas, which only thrive in a
gravelly soil, here disappeared altogether, and were
replaced by dense groves of laurel and other balsam-
iferous trees. The Copernicia palms, so extensively
used for thatching and other economic purposes, re
appeared at first in a few scattered clumps, and after
wards in countless multitudes, literally closing the
perspective with their tall, slender trunks. This
beautiful palm is known in the country under various
names, according to the uses made of its separate
parts. These are almost as numerous as the leaves
of its dense, symmetrical foliage. Thus, by the rural
architect of the Llanos, it is called palma de cobija —
thatch palm. When its leaves are plaited and neatly
braided into hats that never wear out, it bears the
name of palma de sombrero ; and when the same are
employed in driving off the myriads of fiies that in
fest the premises, or in fanning the heated dweller in
those regions, it is called palma abanico ; and so on
throngh a long catalogue.
A house thatched with this palm is not only im-

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 91
pervious to the pouring showers of the tropics, but
against fire also, as it is nearly incombustible : a hot
coal dropped on it will only burn slowly where it
falls, without spreading or raising any flame. It is,
moreover, very durable and cool throughout the hot
test months. All the fences and corrals of the region
where it abounds are made of the entire trunks of this
palm, while the cattle find a grateful shelter under its
dense shade. The slowness of its growth, observable
even after centuries have elapsed, is another curious
peculiarity of this palm. When Europeans first pen
etrated this wild region, they found extensive tracks
covered with low, apparently stunted plants, a few
inches only above ground. According to the recol
lection of the oldest inhabitants, of whom there are
many in the country, as I have already stated, these
dwarfish palm forests have not altered very percep
tibly during their lives. It must therefore have taken
a full-grown plant thousands of years to attain the
height of twenty feet, which is their average size.
Emerging from these extensive palmares — palm
forests — we again found ourselves in the midst of the
boundless plain, assuming here as desolate an aspect
as if fire had passed over its entire surface, a dreary
waste of dried-up swamps, parched by the burning
sun. Dismal tracts of these terroneros, as they are
termed, lay before us, having the appearance of an
extensive honey-comb, over which our jaded beasts
stumbled at every step, increasing our weariness to a
state almost bordering on desperation. The action of
the rains washing the earth from around the grass
tufts, which are afterwards parched and hardened by

92 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the heat of the sun, leaves the surface of the ground
covered with numerous little clumps of indurated
clay, so closely packed that there was no footing for
the animals.
Even the cattle seemed to have forsaken this in
hospitable region, for, with the exception of a few
stragglers, there were no signs of animation. Most
of the cattle are transferred at this season to the fer
tile shores of the Apure and Portuguesa; or they
abandon of their own accord these dreary wastes for
well-known streams where they allay their thirst.
Ours was intense on this occasion, while the tantaliz
ing mirage, that singular atmospheric phenomenon so
peculiar to arid deserts, haunted us incessantly with
its rippling, vapory phantom, a feeling in which our
poor beasts seemed to participate, as wTith outstretched
necks and ears they snuffed in vain the far horizon in
search of the reviving element. By an unpardonable
oversight, our men had neglected to fill their gourds
with water, and now we felt the want of it.
These scenes have been described so graphically
by the eloquent pen of Humboldt, in his " Tableaux
de la Nature," that I will not attempt it further, but
refer my reader to the following :
"When under the vertical rays of the never^
clouded sun, the carbonized tufty covering falls into
dust, the indurated soil cracks asunder as if from the
shock of an earthquake. If at such times two oppos
ing currents of air, whose conflicts produce a rotary
motion, come in contact with the soil, the plain as
sumes a strange and singular aspect. Like conical-
shaped clouds, the points of which descend to the

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 93
earth, the sand rises through the rarified air in the
electrically charged centre of the whirling current,
resembling the loud waterspout dreaded by the ex
perienced mariner. The lowering sky sheds a dim,
almost straw-colored light on the desolate plain ; the
horizon draws suddenly near ; the steppe seems to con
tract, and with it the heart of the wanderer. The hot,
dusty particles which fill the air, increase its suffocating
heat, and the east wind blowing over the long-heated
soil brings with it no refreshment, but rather a still
more burning glow. The pools, which the yellow,
fading branches of the fan palm had protected from
evaporation, now gradually disappear. As in the icy
north the animals become torpid with cold, so here,
under the influence of the parching drought, the croco
dile and the boa become motionless and fall asleep,
deeply buried in the dry mud. Everywhere the death-
threatening drought prevails, and yet, by the play of
the refracted rays of light producing the phenomenon
of the mirage, the thirsty traveller is everywhere pur
sued by the illusive image of a cool, rippling, watery
mirror. The distant palm bush, apparently raised by
the influence of the contact of unequally heated, and
therefore unequally dense strata of air, hovers above
the ground, from which it is separated by a narrow
intervening margin."
Indeed, so perfect was this illusion of the mirage,
that on one occasion Mr. Thomas and myself were en
tirely deceived by the appearance of a beautiful lake
which we prepared to sketch. But what was our sur
prise when, on climbing a tree to obtain a better view,
the phantom disappeared as if by magic ! This occurs

94 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
whenever the spectator places himself above the line
of the natural horizon.
At length we reached a solitary pool of muddy
water in the midst of the savanna, which was hailed
with joy by man and beast ; but, on nearer inspec
tion, the thirsty travellers were seized with disgust
and disappointment on seeing several dead and dying
animals embedded in the mud. These quagmires
form extensive barriers in some places, especially in
dried-up creeks where hundreds of animals perish
every year, being unable to extricate themselves from
the adhesive quality of the clay. At our approach
two hideous alligators rushed into the pond, and thus
the scanty portion that had not been disturbed by
the tramping of animals was in a moment thickened
like the rest. However, there being no other alter
native, we were compelled to follow the example of
our sturdy Llaneros, who proceeded without much
consideration to dip their calabashes into that species
of mud soup ; then covering the mouths of the totu-
rnas with our handkerchiefs, we sucked through them
this miserable substitute for water.
About noon we descried a speck in the horizon,
looking like a sail at sea. Increasing in size as we
neared it, it soon appeared to be a solitary mound or
promontory; by degrees it assumed more distinct
ness, finally presenting to our view all the luxuri
ance of tropical vegetation. This was the Mata de
San Pedro, a sort of island grove of splendid forest
trees, which, like a veritable oasis, stood in the midst
of those desert plains, a relief to the parched and
Wayworn traveller. Mata is the name by which the

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 95
natives designate these lovely gems of the Pampas,
no less cherished than are those of the famed African
Desert by the wearied caravan ; like them, they re
ceive appropriate names from some peculiarity of
feature or other trivial cause, as Mata Gorda, Mata
Redonda, &c. But whatever be the name, all hail
with joy these verdant bowers, a cool retreat to every
species of animal in summer, and a safe refuge during
the season of floods, for, being somewhat higher than
the sm-rounding country, they are rarely overflowed
by the periodical inundations.
It was entirely dark on our arrival at the Mata,
and we were then so weary that there was little in
clination evinced to make any preparations for sup
per, and we were also greatly in need of water. Al
though the earth was parched by the long drought,
Providence has placed a few feet below the surface
an unlimited supply of the purest water. This can
be obtained at any time by merely digging for it
with a wooden pole sharpened at one end. In the
present instance we were spared this trouble, as some
of our people, well acquainted with the place, knew
where one of these primitive wells could be found.
Our first business, therefore, was to seek for the jagtiey
in spite of the deadly rattlesnakes said to abound
there. From this we obtained sufficient water for
ourselves and riding horses, the other animals being
left to shift for themselves, always under the close
vigilance, however, of the watchmen appointed for
the night. These men had a hard task : apart from
the fatigue of keeping awake and on horseback all

96 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
night, they were in constant fear of a sudden stam
pede among the horses, which not unfrequently oc
curs. To provide against a contretemps of the sort,
those in immediate use were secured nightly by straps
attached to the feet, which prevented their straying
far from the camp.
We rose very early, judging from the height of
the Lucero or morning star — which in those solitudes
takes the place of town clock — whose brilliancy almost
equals that of the full moon. I nowhere recollect
having seen this gorgeous luminary of morning shed
such radiant streams of light as in the ever-cloudless
sky of the Llanos during the summer months. In
equal proportion all the other heavenly bodies seem
there to vie with each other in heightening the splen
dor of that glorious firmament, cheering the heart of
the wanderer who finds himself, like the mariner on
the high seas, encompassed only by the vault of
heaven, whose glowing lamps were then our unerring
guide towards the south, enabling us to dispense with
compass or any landmarks by which to direct our
course. Towards evening, we deviated a little from
it, hoping to reach a cattle-farm, intending to pass
the night there; but our horses being almost ex
hausted from the roughness of the ground, compelled
us to stop by the banks of a treeless creek abounding
in alligators ; this we knew by the strong odor of
musk which pervaded the air. In spite of their prox
imity, which made me start more than once in my
dreams, we slept soundly in our ponchos on the hard
ground, for want of trees from which to sling our
hammocks. This lack of firewood compelled us also

ACROSS THE PAMPAS. 97
to go supperless that night and without breakfast
next morning. After a long search we finally suc
ceeded in collecting a handful of drift wood along the
banks of the creek, enabling Monico to make us a
stimulating cup of coffee in which to " drown our
sorrows." Midday brought us to the cattle-farm we were in
quest of, when immediate preparations were made for
an ample meal, which should compensate us for pre
vious privations. The overseer informed us that not
far from the house was a herd of cattle bearing our
brand. Thither we despatched two men in search of
the fattest among them. In a short time they re
turned with a fine cow, which was speedily slaugh
tered and spitted before a blazing fire kindled under
three stupendous mimosa trees bearing flat, kidney-
shaped legumes or pods six inches in circumference.
Our hunger appeased, we spread our ponchos under
the shade of these giants of the vegetable world, and
slept until noon, when we were again in our saddles
prosecuting the journey through a less monotonous
landscape. The plain, although still preserving the
same rough character, was diversified with groves of
other ' leguminous trees, (Canafistulos,) the pods of
which were nearly three feet in length, and contain a
black pulp valuable as a cathartic.
Towards evening we were gratified by seeing, for
the first time, that splendid spectacle, a prairie on
fire. The grass, parched with the burning sun, is
purposely fired by the natives to promote the growth
of the new crop, which last, owing to the heavy dews,
starts long before the rainy season sets in. The con-
5

98 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
fiagration extended for more than three miles, the
strong evening breeze driving it onward in curling
fiery billows. Yolumes of smoke loaded with burn
ing particles of grass, ascended in clouds, increasing
the grandeur and beauty of the scene by their various
tints of red, pink, and purple, diffused throughout the
atmosphere. Aided by this illumination, we were
enabled to discover a solitary ranch, where we tarried
the remainder of the night, although there was noth
ing to be had there in the shape of edibles. Fortun
ately one of our party had shot a number of wild
ducks in a lagoon, and a provident individual had
saved some choice morsels of the cow. There was
some difficulty in procuring wood enough for a fire,
but a couple of rafters from the old ranch afforded
the needful fuel, and thus we were happily prevented
passing a supperless, as well as comfortless night.
Many hours before daybreak we were again up,
saddling and loading our animals, which, owing to
the darkness, was always the most irksome part of
the journey. We were, however, most happy to bid
adieu to the solitary ranch with its myriads of bats,
the only tenants we encountered there.

CHAPTER VIH.
LA PORTUGXJESA.
Again we were under way, and again our eyes en
countered only the flat monotonous plain on all sides
sweeping to the horizon, varied only in being more
barren, rougher, and consequently more exhausting to
our horses than any of the preceding. Many of the
riders dismounted, that the poor brutes might be re
lieved as much as possible, and accomplished the re
mainder of the journey on foot. This occasioned a
burning thirst, which the scant supply of water in our
gourds was not sufficient to allay ; and it was not until
noon had long passed, that our guides, pointing to a
blue ridge of forest in the distance, informed us it
marked the course of the river Portuguesa, our intend
ed halting place, and on the borders of which we pur
posed spending several days. The cavalcade, inspir
ited by this view, pressed forward as rapidly as their
exhausted condition would permit, and fortunately
reached the pass before nightfall.
This beautiful river has its rise in the mountains

100 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of Trujillo, and connects the fertile province of Bari-
nas with the sea, through the Apure and Orinoco,
being in fact one of the principal tributaries of the
former. Its commercial advantages, as may be
imagined, are of great importance to the interior of
a country so distant from the ocean, and whose prin
cipal products consist in the bulky yield of the plan
tations. It is navigable during a great portion of the
year, especially for steam vessels, and I am happy
to learn that the great civilizer of the world — steam
— has at length been introduced there through the
enterprising energy of some Yankee speculators.
The banks of the river, being both high and pre
cipitous, a passage to it can only be accomplished at
certain points, where the hand of man and the tramp
of animals have cut deep trenches, forming paths to
the water's edge. On this occasion, we sought the
pass of San Jaime, where a ferryman is stationed with
a canoe to take across any who desire it. Horses,
however, being excellent swimmers, are left to ferry
themselves over. Our first care on arriving at the
pass was to unload our beasts of burden, and unsaddle
our steeds for the purpose of allowing them to cool
before entering the water, a precaution which, if neg
lected, not unfrequently proves fatal to both man and
beast. This duty fulfilled, we proceeded to hail the
Oanoero, whose ranch was perched upon the south
bank of the river. The knowledge that he would re
ceive a " real " for every man and beast that crossed,
besides various perquisites from passengers whom he
supplied with meals during their sojourn at his ranch,
so expedited his motions, that in a few moments hisfrail

LA PORTUGUESA. 101
barge received its first load, each person taking his
own chattels with him. A boy of fifteen, naked and
sunburnt, paddled the canoe, while the ferryman
steered it by means of his eanalete. The utmost care
was necessary to prevent the overturn of the crazy
skiff, which reeled at every stroke of the paddle,
threatening to pitch all its contents overboard. As
soon as we landed on the opposite shore, the boat re
turned for a second load, and the trips were repeated
until the whole party had crossed. There now only
remained the horses, who being extremely shy of deep
water, required to be forced to swim across, an op
eration demanding considerable skill on the part of
the drivers. The only way was to give them an ex
ample ; accordingly two expert swimmers, divesting
themselves of clothes, jumped upon the bare back
of their horses and plunged incontinently into the
stream. Then, sliding off to one side, they allowed
the horses to swim without encumbrance, supporting
themselves with one hand upon the animal's haunches,
while with the other they guided them by means of
a halter. Meanwhile, those that remained on shore
set up a tremendous shouting and yelling, at the same
time shaking their ponchos violently with the intent
to frighten all the rest of the troop down the steep
embankment, where, encouraged at the sight of the
two ahead, they all entered the stream and followed
their leaders without further difficulty. Several large
crocodiles, who had watched all these proceedings
from the middle of the river, alarmed by the confu
sion, disappeared from view, and then the heads only
of the leaders and their steeds rose, puffing and snort-

102 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ing, above water. In spite, however, of all the up
roar, one of these men was instantly attacked by ca-
ribes, and very narrowly escaped serious injury from
them. I was standing at the time on the opposite
side of the river, watching this novel mode of ferrying,
and observed that the man, abandoning his horse,
endeavored to reach the bank by long strides, occa
sionally lashing himself with a coiled lazo he carried
in his hand. It immediately occurred to me that he
might have been attacked by crocodiles, a belief
which was strengthened on seeing the poor fellow's
sides streaming blood as he stepped upon the beach.
My first apprehension was quickly dispelled by his
pointing to a circular wound on his shoulder, about
the size of a quarter dollar, and to others as severe on
various parts of his body, inflicted by caribes. Had
the man been a less expert swimmer, or the water less
agitated, the accident would undoubtedly have proved
more serious ; as it was, we were considerably alarmed
for the fate of the other man, who, however, happily
escaped unhurt.
The surprising boldness of these diminutive fish,
naturally increased my anxiety to examine more mi
nutely into their peculiarities, than I had yet the op
portunity of doing. I therefore determined to procure
fresh specimens, if possible. On a former occasion I
had lost most of my trout hooks, but I still preserved
some larger ones, mounted with copper wire, to be
used in the rivers of the Apure ; these I supposed
proof against the teeth of any fish, and no sooner
were we established in the ranch of the ferryman,
than, taking my lines I hastened to the river aceoni-

LA PORTUGUESA. 103
panied by my English co-laborer, the artist. The
hooks were baited with pieces of fresh beef, and
dropped 'with great precaution near the shore.
Scarcely did the bait touch the water, when it was
seized by caribes. Without allowing them time, as it
seemed, to get the whole of it between their jaws,
we pulled in the lines, but, alas ! minus hooks, as
well as bait. On examination, we discovered that
one of the hooks had been cut through, while the
other was severed from the wire. Still, we persevered,
but invariably with the same unfortunate result.
Greatly annoyed, I turned to question a Llanero,
who stood near laughing at what he considered my
simplicity. Another tapped me gently on the shoul
der, and addressed me with " NiTio, you might as
well attempt to catch a rattlesnake by the tail " (a
favorite expression among them) " as to think of
hooking one of those chaps." What is to be done,
then? for I must have at least a couple of these
scoundrels, said I. " Who ever saw a genteel young
gentleman like yourself, with a taste for such disgust
ing creatures ? " he replied, imagining that I wanted
them for eating. On my explanation that my object
was simply to sketch and preserve them in spirits,
they advised me to procure a piece of tough skin from
the head of an ox which was then being slaughtered,
and to suspend it from a strip of the same material.
I immediately followed their instructions, and shortly
repaired again to the river. Seating myself on the
stem of the canoe, which was moored across the
stream, I dropped my novel bait into the water, and
watched for the result with the utmost interest. In

104 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
a moment a shoal of caribes collected around the bait
and commenced attacking it voraciously. Finding
the thick cartilage too tough even for their sharp
teeth, and unwilling to give it up, they continued
gnawing at it like so many little hyenas. When I
imagined them to be fairly " stuck " through the
thick skin, I lifted the whole concern over the side
of the canoe, and had the satisfaction of seeing about
a dozen of the fish dancing at the bottom of my barge.
Finding this novel style of fishing rather easy and
entertaining, I continued it until I was suddenly ap
prised into whose company I had thrust myself by
feeling the heel of my left foot seized by one of the
captives with such violence as caused me to drop my
bait, with the vicious creatures that were hanging
from it, into the river. My only thought now was
how to contrive my escape, having the whole length
of the canoe to traverse, and its floor paved with
these ravenous little wretches. My first impulse was
to spring overboard ; but a moment's reflection con
vinced me that it would be a jump from the " frying
pan into the fire." Placed thus, as it were, between
Scylla and Charybdis, I again appealed to the inge
nuity of my former advisers for deliverance. This
they readily accomplished by a very simple contriv
ance, consisting of a gunny bag, which they spread
over the gaping draught of fish. In a moment their
sharp teeth were again at work, this time among the
tough fibres of the bag, to which they clung with the
tenacity of bull-dogs, thus enabling us to fish them
out again without difficulty.
My biting experience of these little pests left me

LA PORTUGUESA. 105
in no mood to spare them, and I never missed an op
portunity of provoking a bloody conflict among them.
With this view I made it my daily business to scatter
pieces of flesh in the river, which never failed in at
tracting great numbers to the spot. These devoured
the meat in a few moments, after which, being them
selves of a red hue, and mistaking each other for the
meat, they continued the feast by devouring one
another, until few of them remained alive. Thus I
accomplished my revenge upon these cannibals of the
finny tribe. The pike and the caribe are, I believe,
the only fish which devour those of their own species
when disabled. " As no one dares to bathe where it
is found," remarks Humboldt in his travels, " it may
be considered as one of the greatest scourges of those
climates, in which the sting of the mosquitoes and the
general irritation of the skin, render the use of baths
so necessary." Fortunately for mankind, these fish are subject to
a yearly mortality during the heats of summer, when
the water is deprived of a portion of the air it holds
in solution. Their carcasses may then be seen float
ing on the water by thousands, while the beach is
strewn with their bones, especially their bristling
jaws, which render walking barefoot on the borders
of lagoons extremely dangerous.
To judge from the incessant turmoil in the river
at all hours of the night, besides evident proofs of
their depredations during the day, I concluded that
the havoc they commit on the other denizens of the
water must be very great. Even the armor-clad
crocodiles are not exempt from their attacks, when

106 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
wounded in their own quarrels, as they sometimes
are, during the season of their loves, for even croco
diles are subject to jealousy, that other "green-eyed
monster." *
During the annual inundation of the savannas,
when quadrupeds perish by thousands in the vernal
deluge, the caribes have ample field for their voracity ;
but living animals are not exempted, for they prey
with equal fierceness upon the young calves when
wading through the marshes, and upon the mothers,
whose udders they so mutilate, that the young ones
frequently perish from lack of nourishment. The
poor cattle lead about this season a truly miserable
life. Those that escape the teeth of the caribe, the
coil of the anaconda, that great water serpent, or the
jaws of the equally dreaded crocodile, are in contin
ual danger of falling a prey to the lion or the jaguar,
while congregated upon the bancos and other places
left dry amidst the rising waters. None, however,
escape the tormenting sting of myriad insects which,
until the waters subside, fill the air they breathe.
Even at night, when all created beings should rest in
peace, enormous vampires, issuing from the gloomy
recesses of the forest, perch upon the backs of the
sufferers and suck their life blood, all the while lull
ing them with the flapping of their spurious wings.
In fact, it seems as if in these regions all the elements
conspired against these useful creatures ; for, after
these varied evils have abated with the return of the
dry season, the hand of man is also continually against
them in harassing hunts, or in firing the ripe pastures
* The eyes of crocodiles are tinted with green.

LA PORTUGUESA. 107
which sweep their realms in devastating fury, driving
them in consternation from the fields of their enjoy
ment. The crocodiles of this river are noted for being the
most savage and daring in the Llanos. Although
usually styled yellow caymans, to distinguish them
from the common alligator, which is of a darker hue,
they are in fact real crocodiles, with an acute snout,
like those inhabiting the Nile and other celebrated
rivers of Africa.
While walking along the banks of the Portuguesa,
one may see these huge lizards collected in groups of
half a dozen or more, basking in the sunshine near
the water, with their jaws wide open until their
ghastly palates are filled with flies or other creatures
alighting within them. We tried in vain shooting
them with guns ; the reptiles were so wary, that the
moment we took aim they rushed into the water.
Being at a loss how to procure a subject for my pen
cil, I sought the advice of an old man, an angler by
profession, who lived in one of the huts near the river.
He agreed to let me have his canoe with his son to
paddle it, and the requisite number of harpoons, pro
viding I could obtain the assistance of an Indian boy
from the neighborhood, who was a capital marksman
with the bow and arrow. " What ! " I exclaimed in
astonishment, " do we expect to kill one of these
monsters with so slight a thing as an arrow ? "
" No, Senorito," he calmly answered ; " but you
must first know where to find him under water
before you can strike him with the harpoon ; the

108 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
arrow of which I speak is the kind we use in catching
turtles." These arrows are constructed so as to allow
the head, affixed to the shaft somewhat in the manner
of a lance, to come off the moment it strikes an object
in the water. A slender cord, several feet in length,
connects it with the shaft, which last is made of a
light, buoyant reed ; around this the cord is wound
closely until it reaches the point where the head is,
then fastened securely. The shaft being extremely
light, floats on the surface of the water the moment
it is set free from the head by the struggles of the an
imal, thus acting as a guide for its recovery.
The old angler then proceeded to explain that the
operation must be conducted first by sending one of
these arrows into the body of the crocodile to mark
^his position under water ; and then, if practicable, we
might plunge a harpoon into the only vulnerable spot
we could hope to reach, viz., the nape of the neck,
after which the animal could be easily dragged on
shore by means of strong ropes attached to the har
poon. Accordingly, I went in search of the Indian boy,
whom I found under a tree, seated like a toad on his
haunches, skinning a porcupine he had just killed.
At my approach he raised his head and fixed on me
his unmeaning eyes. When spoken to, he only re
plied to all my questions with the monosyllables, si,
no. After a little coaxing, and the promise of some
fish hooks, he followed me to the canoe without ut
tering a word more. We were not long in getting a
chance to test the skill of my new acquaintance. As
We approached the river banks, a large crocodile hove

LA PORTUGUESA. 109
in sight, floating down the stream like a log of wood.
Our position was most favorable to send an arrow
rattling through his scales, and my young Nimrod
lost no time in improving the opportunity. Stepping
a few paces in advance, and bending gracefully over
the precipice, he let fly at the reptile's head his slen
der, yellow reed, por elevacion, viz., shooting the
arrow up into the air at an angle of forty-five, which
causes it to descend with great force upon the object,
after describing an arc of a circle in the manner of a
bomb-shell. Although the distance was fully three
hundred paces, the arrow struck the mark with the
precision of a rifle ball. A violent plunge of the
huge reptile was my first intimation that the trial had
been successful, and a moment after I perceived the
golden reed, now attached to him, skimming swiftly
over the surface of the water. We hastened for the
canoe, and immediately gave chase up the stream, as
the crocodile had taken that direction. We were
rapidly gaining upon him, when, alarmed at the sound
of the paddles, he sunk in very deep water, as was in
dicated by the reed. This circumstance rendered it
impossible to employ our harpoon. We tried in vain
to start him ; he stuck to the muddy bottom whence
neither pulls nor curses could move him. We hoped
that in time he would come to the surface to breathe,
and then we might strike him with a harpoon ; but
in this we were equally disappointed. After waiting
for him two hours, we gave him up, along with the
arrow head sticking in his own.
I made various other attempts to secure a speci
men, but with no better result, as the river was yet
too high to sound for them.

HO WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
While in this place, I was told several incidents
in relation to the cunning and instinct of these sau-
rians, one of which appeared to me most remarkable
in an animal of the reptile tribe. The ferryman here
possessed at one time a great many goats. One day
he perceived that several of them had disappeared,
and not being able to account for it in any other way,
he at once laid the blame on the hated crocodiles,
although these creatures seldom carry their attacks
beyond their own element. His suspicions, he dis
covered in the end, were well founded, having wit
nessed the destruction of one of his goats in a very
singular manner. It appeared that a crocodile had in
some mysterious way discovered that goats delight in
jumping from place to place, but more especially
from rocks or mounds. Rocks, however, being rather
scarce in the country, their treacherous enemy under
took to gratify their taste for this innocent pastime,
and at the same time cater to his own. Approaching
the water's edge to within a few feet from the bank,
he swelled out his back in such a manner as gave it
the appearance of a small island or promontory. The
stupid goats perceiving this, varied their gambols by
jumping from their secure places on shore upon the
seeming island, which they, however, never reached,
for the crocodile, tossing up his head at the right in
stant, received them into his open jaws, and swallowed
them without difficulty.
Crocodiles have a special penchant for dogs also,
and never miss an opportunity of gratifying their
taste for the canine. In this, however, they are often
balked by the superior cunning of their intended tit-

LA PORTUGUESA HI
bits. One day I observed a couple of tiger-hounds
quietly enjoying a cool bath in the river. Struck
with their apparent nonchalance when in such a dan
gerous proximity, I found on inquiry that these an
imals never approach the water, either to drink or to
bathe, without previously attracting the crocodiles by
means of repeated bowlings to some distant spot.
This instinct of the dog with regard to crocodiles
(seems to be rather of antique date, for I find it re
corded in the writings of both ancient and modern
travellers in different parts of the world.
No person can venture near the water without
danger from their attacks, being so treacherous that
they approach their intended victim near enough to
strike him with their powerful tails before he is even
aware of their proximity. The bubbling sound of a
gourd being filled in the water by some imprudent
person, specially attracts them. To obviate this
danger, a calabash bowl with a long wooden handle is
usually employed for the purpose ; yet, even this is
not unfrequently snatched from the hands of the
water-carrier. If by accident a human being falls a
prey to this tyrant of the river, the reptile is then
called cebado, which appellation implies every thing
that is bold, ferocious, and treacherous in an animal
of the species, as from that time they not only way
lay persons, but follow them in the canoes, in hopes
of again securing this dainty morsel. There are,
however, men bold enough to meet the enemy face
to face in his own element. The man who makes up
his mind to this encounter is well aware that this
must be a conflict to the death for one of the antago-

112 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
nists. The ferryman related to us a feat of gallantry
worthy of a better cause, performed here by a Llanero
with one of these monsters. The man was on his way
to San Jaime on a pressing errand. Being in haste
to get there the same day, he would not wait for the
canoe to be brought to him, but prepared to swim
across, assisted by his horse. He had already secured
his saddle and clothes upon his head, as is usual on
similar occasions, when the ferryman cried out to him
to beware of a caiman cebado, then lurking near the
pass, urging upon him, at the same time, to wait for
the canoe. Scorning this advice, the Llanero replied
with characteristic pride, " Let him come ; I was
never yet afraid of man or beast." Then laying aside
a part of his ponderous equipment, he placed his two-
edged dagger between his teeth, and plunged fear
lessly into the river. He had not proceeded far,
when the monster rose and made quickly towards
him. The ferryman crossed himself devoutly, and
muttered the holy invocation of Jesus, Maria y
Jose ! fearing for the life, and, above all, for the toll
of the imprudent traveller. In the mean time, the
swimmer continued gliding through the water tow
ards the approaching crocodile. Aware of the impos
sibility of striking his adversary a mortal blow unless
he could reach the armpit, he awaited the moment
when the reptile should attack him, to throw his sad
dle at him. This he accomplished so successfully,
that the crocodile, doubtless imagining it to be some
sort of good eating, jumped partly out of the water
to catch it. Instantly the Llanero plunged his dagger
up to the very hilt into the fatal spot. A hoarse

LA PORTUGUESA.

113

grunt and a tremendous splash showed that the blow
was mortal, for the- ferocious monster sunk beneath
the waves to rise no more.
Proud of this achievement, and scorning the tardy
assistance of the ferryman, who offered to pick him up
in his canoe, he waved his bloody dagger in the air,
exclaiming, as he did so : " Is there no other about
here ? " and then turning, he swam leisurely back to
take his horse across.
The canoero who related this adventure then
added : " So delighted was I on that occasion, that
I killed my fattest hen to treat the man to a good
sancocho, for the caiman had devoured all my
goats." But this is only one of the many exploits con
stantly being enacted in these regions, by the bold
race of men inhabiting them.

114 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
There is still living at San Fernando, a town at
the confluence of the Apure and Portuguesa rivers,
another individual equally bold in attacking croco
diles, in which warfare he uses only a wooden mace
or club. He is possibly one of the greatest swimmers
in that or any other country, having repeatedly ac
complished the run between San Fernando and El
Diamante — a plantation which he owns, three miles
below the town — without once stopping on the way.
Armed with his heavy club in one hand, and a bottle
of rum in the other, to keep himself in good spirits,
this modern Hercules will, for the fun of it, during
a spree, provoke a fight with a caiman cebado /
and so effectual has been his warfare, that he has
actually succeeded in driving them away from the
pass, formerly so infested by them, that scarcely
a year elapsed in which numbers of persons were
not carried off by them, helpless washerwomen espe
cially. I observed, also, at La Portuguesa, a great num
ber of fresh-water porpoises or toninas, as they are
called there, swimming with rapidity against the cur
rent, and bending their backs gracefully like their
congeners of the sea. Crocodiles appeared to avoid
them, and would invariably dive out of the way at
their approach. It is probable that from this circum
stance arose the current belief that toninas will be
friend persons when they chance to fall into the water,
against the attacks of crocodiles. It is, moreover, as-i
serted that these cetacea will rescue a man from
drowning, pushing him on to the shore with their

LA PORTUGUESA. H5
snouts. In acknowledgment of this animal philan
thropy, the hand of man is there never raised against
these inoffensive creatures ; and so conscious are they
of this, that they seem rather to delight in his neigh
borhood, sporting around the canoes which ascend
the river, and spouting jets of water and compressed
air like rmniature whales.

CHAPTER IX.

THE APURE EIVEK.

We tarried several days at La Portuguesa to afford
our horses time to recover from the fatigues of the
previous rough journeys. We also expected to incor
porate there another drove, which having been kept
throughout the summer grazing in the ever-verdant
meadows of this river, were now in very fine condi
tion. In the mean time, we were agreeably occupied
in hunting, fishing and dancing ; the people of the
neighborhood being sufficient for our social enter
tainments. Every morning we rode out to the savannas to
hunt an ox for our meals. The remainder of the day
was occupied in scouring the adjacent woods and
plains after our steeds, who seemed as if conscious of
the life that awaited them beyond La Portuguesa ;
for it required all the ingenuity and sagacity of the
Llaneros to discover their hiding-places, and bring
them again to the corrals. The evenings were de
voted to dancing and singing by the light of half a

THE APURE RIVER. H7
dozen candiles, or lamps made of burned clay, and
filled with the grease of crocodiles. The habitations
being considerably scattered along the banks of the
river, we employed a number of runners for the pur
pose of bringing the company to the fandango, as
these nocturnal revelries are called, who came in
canoes or wading through the mud as occasion re
quired. And now, refined and courteous reader, picture to
yourself a motley assemblage, brought together with
out any regard to color, age, or position, under an
open shed or barracoon dimly lighted, and you will
form an idea of our soirees dansantes, which for merri
ment and courtesy might with good reason have been
the envy of the most polished reunions.
The orchestra was composed of a guitar scarcely
larger than the hand that twanged it, a banjo of huge
proportions, and a couple of noisy maracas, rattle-
boxes made from the shell of the calabash fruit, and
filled with the seed of a Marantha or Indian shot.
No music is considered complete without this accom
paniment, which, as well as I could judge, filled the
place of castanets, or the less romantic " bones " of
negro minstrelsy. A wooden handle is attached to
each, to enable the performer to shake them to and
fro, which he does with appropriate gestures and con
tortions expressive of his different emotions. A cor
responding choir of singers, picked from our own
suite, was attached to the players. All Llaneros are
passionately fond of music, and display considerable
talent, composing many beautiful songs of a national
character, called tonos or trovas llaneros. Few in

118 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the country are not gifted with the power of versifica
tion, and there are among them many famous impro-
visatori. Whenever two of these are brought to
gether, a competition for the laurel crown is the in
variable consequence. This amicable strife sometimes
occupies several successive hours, ending only when
one of the bards is fairly silenced by the other ; the
victor is then declared the lion of the fete and receives
accordingly not only the congratulations of his ad
mirers, but also secures the smiles of the most spark
ling eyes in the company. It is really surprising to
see men, who cannot distinguish one letter of the al
phabet from another, compose and extemporize poetry
which, although rude in character, is nevertheless full
of interest and significance. Most of their songs and
ballads refer to deeds of valor performed by their own
heroes ; while others recount their love adventures,
and daily struggles with the wild and unsubdued
nature which surrounds them. Their instruments,
when handled with skill, produce very harmonious
sounds. The bandola or banjo bears no resemblance
to the one in common use among the negroes of the
States. It is, in fact, a guitar of large proportions,
shaped somewhat like the lute of old. The guitar of
the Llanos is the reverse of its associate the banjo,
being considerably smaller and with only five strings,
on which account it is called Cinco. Still, it is a
very noisy little instrument, all its cords being made
to resound at once by running the fingers of the right
hand up and down over them, while those of the left
stop them at the right moment.
The dancers do not grapple with each other, as is

THE APURE RIVER. 119
the practice among some of the more enlightened,
but dance alone, joining hands occasionally for a few
moments, and then separating and whirling round by
themselves. First, a woman paces round the room
in double-quick step, looking for a partner ; when a
suitable one is found, a graceful waving of the hand
kerchief summons him before her ; then both go,
through their evolutions until the woman chooses to
withdraw. The man then with a polite bow invites
a second partner, and so on to the end of the first
dance. This is styled the Galeron, in which only the
most skilful dancers take part, as it requires great
flexibility of joint and limb to execute all the intricate
and graceful posturings and swayings of the body,
constituting the principal charm of the performance.
They have a variety of other dances, such as La
Maricela, El Raspon, La Zapa, &c, all of which,
however, are of the same character, the chief differ
ence being in the double entendre of the stanzas sung
as accompaniment to the music. La Maricela, espe
cially, is a very exciting dance, from the satirical bon
mots hurled by the bard of the evening at each couple
as they pass. The facility with which these verses are
improvised is most amusing, and would even astonish
the most accomplished Neapolitan improvisatore.
Some of them are capital hits upon the personal ap
pearance, &c, of the dancers, and none fail to find
some point for ridicule. i
Three or four days we sojourned among these jolly
people, and then again set out for the scene of our
future adventures, stopping for the night at San

120 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Jaime, once a thriving town, but now nearly deserted
in consequence of the desolating civil wars which
have afflicted the country for several years. On our
way thither, we traversed a succession of beautiful
prairies, bound by rings of magnificent forest trees,
and watered by numerous creeks and lagoons filled
with water fowl. Unlike the dreary wastes we had
already crossed, which, " like the ocean, fill the imagi-
ation with the idea of infinity," the plains stretching
between the Portuguesa and Apure rivers are char
acterized by the rankness and luxuriance of the vege
tation. Owing to the periodical inundation, the land
scape wears here the green mantle of spring even
during the hottest months.
This yearly inundation is one of the most curious
phenomena of this region. At the approach of the
rainy season, those two magnificent offsprings of the
Sierra Nevada, the Apure and Portuguesa, tired as it
were of their long repose, suddenly rise in their
heated, muddy beds, and leap over their borders, at
first in playful gambols ; then in fearful and rapid
course, converting these widely extended plains into
a vast lagoon. To the few spots which escape the
general submersion, the inhabitants retire with their
chattels and flocks in canoes held in readiness for the
purpose. Thus the land is kept in a state of constant irriga
tion and fertility unsurpassed in any country, although
at the expense of the comfort of the inhabitants, who
are compelled to abandon their homes to the croco
diles and anacondas of the stream. When the waters
subside, the intruders are expelled by the rightful

THE APURE RIVER. 121
owners of the dwellings ; the few articles of furniture
they possess replaced in the damp rooms, and they
again devote themselves to domestic pursuits until the
next inundation forces them anew to seek a home
elsewhere. I was shown at the pass the marks left
by the water on the walls of the cottages, indicating
in some instances a rise of twelve feet.
I was struck with the size and luxuriance of the
trees along the course of these rivers. My attention
was particularly attracted by the saman, a species of
Mimosa, with delicate, feathery flowers of a pinkish
hue, and gigantic, umbrella-shaped boughs. There
is in the valleys of Aragua one of these which, from
time immemorial, has elicited the admiration of
travellers, and received the protection of the law
since the discovery and settlement of the country,
for its magnificent proportions and the great age
which it is supposed to have attained.
Extensive tracts of land are entirely taken up by
individuals of this class. It would be impossible to
conceive any thing more grand in nature than a forest
of these trees. It might be said of them that each is
a forest in itself ; and were all the beautiful parasites
J;hat cling to their trunks and branches for support
spread upon the ground, they would cover several
acres. All along the course of the great rivers Apure,
Guarico, and Portuguesa, the soman is found in such
countless numbers that the combined fleets of the
civilized world might be reconstructed from this in
exhaustible supply. The axe of the northerner could
readily convert those stupendous forests into vehicles
6

122

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

of commerce and civilization, were it not for the wast
ing fevers, endemic of that region. Now they only
serve as protective haunts for desperate bands of rob
bers and cut-throats, let loose by unprincipled poli
ticians.

*><j?§5£^

-" .Mt>

Equally rank and luxuriant are the grasses in
these alluvial lands. We were compelled to drive
before us all the relay horses and other beasts of bur
den to open a. passage and save our bare feet from
being dreadfully lacerated by the gamelote, a tall,
cutting, and worthless grass, with blades almost as
sharp as a " Toledo." It grows so closely and rapidly
as to obliterate in a few days the paths made by .
travellers, killing every other species in its way. Un
fortunately, it is perfectly useless as fodder, except
for Chiguires or water-hogs, which feed on it when
nothing better offers, and to the flesh of which it im
parts its disagreeable flavor ; the gamelote is therefore
consigned to the flames as soon as it is ripe enough
to burn, which it does with as much seeming fury as

THE APURE RIVER. 123
it displayed against the feet and legs of travellers in
its green days.
On the second night of our journey, we pitched
our camp near several ponds, literally crowded with
alligators and fish and water fowl of all varieties,
which kept up a continual strife, to our great discom
fort. Not only was the water rendered noxious by
the numerous creatures in it, but even the air was
filled with the effluvium and mosquitoes arising there
from. We were compelled to dig wells in the vicin
ity of the lagoons to obtain water for our use ; but
no artifice could shield us from the unmerciful attacks
of the mosquitoes, especially the kind called pul-
lones, from the length and strength of the proboscis.
We tried in vain to escape their painful sting by roll
ing ourselves from head to foot in our ponchos and
hammocks, at the peril of suffocation ; the needle-like
proboscis of the insects actually penetrated through
the folds of our covering so as to draw blood. Nor
would the smoke of the blazing fires around the
camp drive them off, as was anticipated. Fortunately,
they only paid us an early visit, retiring all at once
before midnight, and leaving us to the tender mercies
of their kinsfolk, the noisy mosquitoes or zancudos.
These, although not so tormenting with their sting,
were none the less so with their music, while no part
of our bodies could be left uncovered without being
instantly besieged by swarms of these " howling-insect
wolves." This, however, was the only occasion upon
which we were troubled by mosquitoes during our
journey, as they only appear in force during the rainy
season.

124 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
I noticed here for the first time a low range of
hills or medanos, mere accumulations of sand tossed
from place to place by the winds across the boundless
plain. ; to-day, they rise above the surrounding prai
ries ; to-morrow, they are levelled with the dust of the
savannas : fit emblem of the ephemeral republics of
the South ! These medanos had been overrun by the
gamelote, giving them the character of permanent
hills, from which the place takes the name of Me
danos de San Martin.
It is scarcely necessary to say that there was no
temptation to prolong our stay there longer than was
needed by our horses, who revelled all night in the
fine meadows around the lagoons. Packing up once
more, we bade adieu to that inhospitable encampment
long before daylight.
Struggling through miles of gamelote, we reached
the cattle farm of Corozito towards noon. Don Lu
ciano Samuel, the proprietor, extended to us the hos
pitalities of his demesne with the characteristic grace
and frankness of the people in those regions. From
thence to the Pass of Apurito, on the river Apure,
was only a few hours' ride ; and the morning being
the best time for crossing the river with our animals,
we rose early in order to reach it before the breeze
should commence blowing.
Owing to the thick vegetation on its banks, we
did not discover the river until we were close upon
it ; and then, with what delight did I again view the
broad surface of this magnificent stream !
Although born near its shores, I had but a faint
recollection of its broad expanse. Perhaps its turbu-

THE APURE RIVER. 125
lent waves had rocked my raw-hide cradle during one
of the periodical inundations ; for, from earliest child
hood, I have borne marks left by the teeth of the
caribe. What glorious recollections of the fierce contest
for liberty did its waters bring to memory ! Not the
lordly Thames, with its " woven- winged " argosies,
teeming with the merchandise of the earth ; the en
chanting Delaware, framed in romantic cottages and
orchard groves ; nor yet the splendid Hudson, re
nowned for its floating palaces and legends, but more,
that on its banks nestles the home of Irving, awakened
in my breast such emotions of heartfelt admiration as
did this silent messenger from the Sierra Nevada !
There, amidst the thunders of the Heavens and rolling
avalanches, it takes its rise, precipitately descending
to the plain below through a succession of frightful
leaps, which shake the primeval forest to its very
foundations. And so it comes, that its surface is often
loaded with an immense accumulation of fallen trees
from the various zones of vegetation it traverses in its
course. Thus the delicate ferns and other Alpine
plants are commingled with those of the burning
climes below, and finally deposited in the wide estu
ary forming the delta of the Orinoco. When future
generations shall disentomb them in a petrified state,
their geologists will no doubt attribute this singular
agglomeration to wonderful changes in the temper
ature of the earth.
The river Apure, properly speaking, is formed by
the confluence of two other streams, the Sarare and
Uribante. The former has its rise among the New

126 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Granadian range of mountains, although a great por^
tion of its waters flow now into the Arauca, conse
quent on the great deposits of sand and drift wood
accumulating at its mouth.
The Uribante, or Upper Apure, may be consid
ered the main channel of this river, with a total
length of six hundred and forty miles, five hundred
and sixty-four of which are navigable for large vessels.
It takes the name of Apure after its junction with the
Sarare ; but is again subdivided into several ramifi
cations called canos or creeks, each of which has a
particular name ; among them, La Ebilla, Apurito
and Apure-Seco are the most important ; these again
unite with the main channel, and form islands of sur
prising fertility. These islands are invaluable as po
treros for the cattle, when other parts of the country
are parched with the droughts of summer, the steep
banks and wide channels of the rivers serving as the
most effectual barriers against their roaming propen
sities. The geographical situation of this river, joined as
it is to one of the greatest tributaries of the wide
ocean — the Orinoco — at a point nearly five hundred
miles from its confluence with the sea, stamps it as
one of the most important lines of internal navigation
in the world, and points to the wild region of the
Llanos as a future emporium of civilization. To it all
the products and other natural sources of wealth from
the adjoining provinces will be brought for immediate
exportation to foreign markets ; as, in addition to the
vast area of level country traversed by it, this river
receives the tribute of a hundred navigable streams

THE APURE RIVER. 127
descending from the eastern slope of the Andes of
New Granada and Yenezuela.
The width of the Apure varies considerably ac
cording to the seasons of rains aud droughts ; some
times extending miles beyond its actual channel, but
usually not less than one thousand yards broad.
Humboldt, who measured it at San Fernando in the
month of May, when it had receded to its lowest ebb,
found it to be two hundred and thirty-six toises
broad ; higher up it is considerably wider, gradually
diminishing as it approaches its great confluent. Al
luding to this singular phenomenon, mostly caused
by evaporation and infiltrations through the dry,
sandy banks of the river, the same eminent traveller
elucidates some curious facts worthy of notice. He
says : " Some idea of the magnitude of these effects
may be formed, from the fact that we found the heat
of the dry sands at different hours of the day from
36° to 52°,* and that of sands covered with three or
four inches of water 32°. The beds of rivers are
heated as far as the depth to which the solar rays can
penetrate, without undergoing too great an expansion
in their passage through the superincumbent strata
of water. Besides, filtration extends in a lateral di
rection far beyond the bed of the river. The shore,
which appears dry to us, imbibes water as far up as
to the level of the surface of the river. We saw
water gush out at the distance of fifty toises from the
shore, every time that the Indians struck their oars
into the ground. Now, these sands, wet below but
* Centigrade Thermom.=97° to 126" Fah.

128 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
dry above, and exposed to the solar rays, act like
sponges, and lose the infiltrated water every instant
by evaporation. The vapor that is emitted traverses
the upper stratum of sand strongly heated, and be
comes sensible to the eye when the air cools towards
evening. As the beach dries, it draws from the
river new portions of water ; and it may be easily
conceived that this continual alternation of vaporiza
tion and lateral absorption must cause an immense
loss, difficult to submit to exact calculation. The in
crease of these losses would be in proportion to the
length of the course of the rivers, if from their source
to their mouth they were equally surrounded by a
flat shore ; but these shores being formed by deposits
from the water, and the water having less velocity in
proportion as it is more remote from its source, throw
ing down more sediment in the lower than in the
upper part of its course, many rivers in hot climates
undergo a diminution in the quantity of their water
as they approach their outlets. Mr. Barrow observed
these curious effects of sands in the southern part of
Africa, on the banks of the Orange river. They have
also become the subject of a very important discus
sion in the various hypotheses that have been formed
respecting the course of the Niger."
At the time we crossed the Apure, it was consid
erably below the average width, as we were then in
the midst of the dry season ; nevertheless, it presented
a formidable obstacle to our progress. There being
only one canoe at the pass, the whole morning was
spent in the transportation of our bulky riding-gear
and luggage ; and the breeze setting in shortly after

THE APURE RIVER. 129
our arrival, the passage of the horses was postponed
until noon, in consequence of the agitated state of the
water. It would have been rather hazardous to ex
pose our valuable steeds to the " chopping sea,"
which, beating against the animals' nostrils, is apt to
stop their respiration, and as they then lose their
steadiness in swimming, are rendered liable to be
drowned. We were met on the opposite bank of the river
by a committee of gentlemen in their shirt sleeves,
like ourselves, commissioned by the inhabitants of
Apurito to tender our Leader the hospitalities of their
village. Prominent among them was the general
overseer of his estate, Commandant Ravago, a tough,
wiry, and weather-beaten individual, whose nose
Nature had made of an unjustifiable length, and who
discoursed in a language peculiar to himself. Indeed,
it required one to be well versed in the jargon of the
Llanos to understand his dissertations upon matters
and things in general ; for he pretended to be a con
noisseur in every thing, except languages ; the English,
especially, was peculiarly distasteful to his ears, and
whenever he heard us conversing in that tongue, he
declared in his patois, that it reminded him of a pack
of horses neighing to each other. Notwithstanding
his uncouth manner and appearance, our overseer
was a very shrewd fellow, and quite au fait in all
matters appertaining to cattle farms.
As for the village or port of Apurito, it was a
mere assemblage of mud-plastered cottages, thatched,
like all houses in that region, with palm leaves.
Some of them had doors and windows of planed
6*

130 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
boards ; but the greater part were free to whoever
and whatever chose to walk or crawl into them ; no
church, no school-house, no building devoted to pub
lic meetings of any sort. The Alcalde, that most im
portant functionary in small Spanish communities,
held his audiences in the narrow corridor of his hut,
while the sala was devoted to the all-absorbing game
of monte. Once a year the Padre, next in importance
to his Honor the Alcalde, paid a visit to the village,
when all the boys and girls who had not been bap
tized were brought before him at his lodgings, where
the ceremony was performed in a somewhat informal
manner, and without special regard being paid to the
strict injunctions of the Church. There were a few
storehouses scattered along the banks of the river,
where all business transactions were carried on.
These were principally in hides, which are given in
exchange for the few articles of barter brought from
the Orinoco. Hides, in fact, are the bank notes of
the Llanos ; and although rather voluminous and
uncleanly, they change hands as readily as any
" paper " that was ever in " the market." These are
taken to Ciudad Bolivar, formerly Angostura, in
bongos and one-mast sailing vessels called lanchas,
which return laden with salt, knives, blankets, and
printed calicoes, articles of prime necessity among the
inhabitants. Other ports along the Apure, such as
Nutrias and San Fernando, carry on a very extensive
trade in these goods. The first-named town adds
largely to her exports, bringing in the agricultural
products of the adjoining province of Barinas. These
are coffee, cacao, indigo, and tobacco ; the last being

THE APURE RIVER. 131
highly prized in Germany for meerschaums, and al
ways obtaining a ready sale at Bolivar.
The course of the Apure being nearly in a straight
line from west to east, the trade winds blowing across
the plains in the summer season play a very impor
tant part in propelling, even against the current, the
heaviest craft sailing up the river. During the rainy
season, the westerly winds combine with the current
of the stream in expediting the progress of vessels.
Of late, several steamboats have been added to
those already engaged in this traffic ; and I am told
are doing a very profitable business. God speed
them !
" During the time of great floods," writes Hum
boldt, " the inhabitants of these countries, to avoid the
force of the currents, and the danger arising from the
trunks of trees which these currents bring down, in
stead of ascending the beds of rivers in their boats,
cross the savannas. To go from San Fernando to the
villages of San Juan de Payara, San Rafael de Ata-
maica, or San Francisco de Capanaparo, they direct
their course due south, as if they were crossing a
single river of twenty leagues broad. The junctions
of the Guarico, the Apure, the Cabullare, and the
Arauca with the Orinoco, form, at a hundred and
sixty leagues from the coast of Guiana, a kind of in
terior delta, of which hydrography furnishes few ex
amples in the Old World. According to the height
of the mercury in the barometer, the waters of the
Apure have only a fall of thirty-four toises from San
Fernando to the sea. The fall from the mouths of

132 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the Osage and the Missouri to the bar of the Missis
sippi is not more considerable. The savannas of
Lower Louisiana everywhere remind us of the sa
vannas of the Lower Orinoco." — Travels to the Equi-
noxial Regions.

CHAPTER X.
SAVANNAS OP APURE.
After a thorough examination of animals and
baggage, to see that all was as it ought to be, we left
the uninteresting village of Apurito for our cattle-
estate of San Pablo de Apure, a few miles further
south. As we passed the last house fronting the
river, Mr. Thomas descried a jaguar-skin, which the
owner of the hut had spread to dry upon the fence.
Wishing to examine it more closely, he spurred his
mule ahead and was in the act of seizing the skin,
when the animal, whose view of it had until then been
obstructed by the other beasts, .oming unexpectedly
into close proximity with the — to him — fearful object,
drew back in terror, snorting, kicking, and plunging
so violently as to capsize the unlucky artist upon the
sandy beach. The abhorrence with which mules re
gard the South American tiger, is one of the most
curious phenomena of animal instinct with which I
am acquainted ; not only do they manifest it at sight

134 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of the creature, but also by their scent, while the
animal is still a long distance off, and yet, in most
cases, they have never seen a tiger, as was the case in
the present instance, this mule having been reared in
the potreros of San Pablo de Paya, where tigers are
rarely, if ever, met with.
After a ride of a few hours through alternate
glades of gigantic mimosas and verdant savannas, we
reached San Pablo before night had cast her gloom
over those solemn wilds. The house was neat and
well located, commanding an extended view of the
country and innumerable herds of cattle grazing in the
distance. There were, besides, a large caney or bar-
racoon for the accommodation of the men and their
chattels, and a detached hut in which the culinary
functions of the establishment were to be performed.
The appellation of San Pablo, conferred on this
farm also — although the owner possessed already
another of. the same name — made me suspect that
snakes were not uncommon in that country, the reality
of which fact I ascertained the first time that I strolled
any considerable distance from the house. In a coun
try where saints are supposed to exert an unbounded
influence over all human affairs, it is not unusual to
give to houses and localities, threatened with some
special calamity, the name of the saint who is consid
ered the patron or defender from that particular evil :
thus places which are frequently visited by thunder
storms, are called after Santa Barbara ; those infested
with snakes, receive the name of San Pablo, &c, &c.
Although this farm formed part of the demesne we
came to inspect, we did not remain there longer than

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 135
was absolutely necessary to investigate into its general
condition. When the order was given to remove to El Frio — ¦
another farm further westward — we gladly saddled
horses and started off at a brisk pace over those fresh
and beautiful prairies which, with their perpetual
grassy carpet, caused us to feel as if we were coming
into a land of promise and contentment, instead of one
of toil and hardship. Indeed, every thing denoted
that we were now entering on far different scenes from
those we had left across the river. It seemed a ter
restrial paradise, where a beneficent Providence had
congregated every animal most needed by man. Now
it was the slender forms of deer in herds bounding
swiftly over the greensward ; now the gristly wild
hogs and capyvaras making hastily for the nearest
swamp to avoid the eager chase of our men. Occa
sionally might be seen a redoubtable wild bull, retir
ing sulkily and slowly at the head of his shaggy troop,
as if wishing to dispute our right to enter his domain.
Yegetation, however, seemed to flourish here less than
in other places we had visited, as, excepting a few
scattered palms of a new variety, and some straggling
Matas — which, from the mirage continually before
us, appeared like fairy groves set in clearest water —
nothing but the fine and level lawn met the eye for
many miles.
Unlike the higher plains, where only a coarse
herbage predominates, the savannas of Apure are
characterized by a luxuriant growth of various grasses,
which, like those of the Portuguesa, preserve a uni
form verdure throughout the year. These grasses —

133 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
some of which are as soft and pliable as silk — are
most important in the economy of cattle-breeding in
the savannas watered by the Apure and its tribu
taries. The prodigious increase of animals in these
plains is mainly owing to the superiority of the pas
tures over those of the upper regions of the Llanos,
from whence the farmer is compelled to migrate with
his stock every summer.
I noticed in Apure three varieties of grass, which
in richness of flavor and nutritious qualities can hardly
be surpassed by any other fodder plants of the tem
perate zones. In the early part of the rainy season,
the granadilla — a grass reaching to about four feet in
height, with tender succulent blades and panicles of
seed not unlike some varieties of broomcorn — starts
with the earliest showers of spring. It grows with
great rapidity, and is greedily sought by all rumi
nants ; but being an annual, soon disappears, leaving
no vestige of its existence. In the alluvial bottom
lands subject to the periodical inundation, two other
grasses, no less esteemed for their nutriment, have an
uninterrupted growth and luxuriance which the hot
test season cannot blast ; these are the carretera,
named from the beautiful prairie-goose that feeds on
it, and the lambedora, so termed on account of its
softness, animals feeding on it appearing to lick rather
than masticate it. Cattle and horses thrive on it very
perceptibly, and even calves only a fortnight old, may
be left to shift for themselves amidst those nutritious
pastures. Esteros is the name by which these perennial mead
ows are there designated. They have moreover the

to

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 137
advantage of retaining water enough throughout the
year to make them the resort of all kinds of quadru
peds and of every fowl whom " Nature has taught to
dip the wing in water," the former to allay their
thirst and feast on the fine grass, and the latter for
the purpose of raising their young in the vicinity of
ponds well stocked with fish of all varieties.
No description can convey a just idea of the ap
pearance presented by these lagoons, crowded with
almost every variety of animal. The birds in particu
lar — most of which belong to the extensive family of
cranes — seem to have migrated there from all quarters
of the globe. These fluttering communities of aquatic
birds are known in the country under the appropriate
name of garzeros, from the many gccrzas— herons —
predominating in them. The immense number of
these may be conceived from the fact that their colo
nies sometimes embrace several miles in extent. I
noticed there also various kinds of cranes — garzones —
one of them, called the soldier, from its erect bearing
and martial air — is over five feet in height, with a
bill fully a foot long. The garzas were of various
sizes and colors, some snow-white, some a delicate
blue, others gray or pink, and many of a brilliant
scarlet. Although cranes and herons are species very
nearly allied, yet they verify the old saying, " birds
of a feather flock together," for each keeps quite dis
tinct from the other. They generally select the
spreading top of a low bush — catyaro — growing in
vast quantities near the water, in which to build their
nests ; these are of dry sticks very ingeniously inter
woven among the branches. Well-beaten tracks are

138 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
made under the bushes by the tramp of many sus
picious characters of the feline tribe, who make these
feathered colonies their favorite resort, where they
improve every opportunity of appropriating any
young birds that may chance to fall from the nests.
As we rode past several ponds, covered with a
kind of water-lily, whose flowers are of a dark purjjle
color, myriads of ducks, of the small species called
guiriries, rose in the air, actually for the moment ob
scuring the sun. They uttered a shrill note, clearly
repeating the sound from Avhich they are named, so
that the hunter easily discovers their whereabout.
There were/besides, great numbers of a larger species
of duck — the pato real, or royal duck — so named, I
presume, from a graceful tuft of black feathers with
which it is crowned. Here and there a brace of
carreteros soared over head, uttering their peculiar
rolling notes ; the hoarse quacking of the male bird,
followed by the shrill cries of the female, make perfect
the before-mentioned resemblance to the rumbling of
cartwheels. During the moulting season, the people in the
neighborhood of these lagoons resort to them from
time to time, and drive without difficulty towards the
farm-house as many of these ducks as they may desire.
I was assured by several reliable individuals that not
far from San Pablo there is a lagoon on the borders
of which a regiment of cavalry once encamped, and
lived during a fortnight exclusively on these birds,
without any apparent diminution of their numbers.
This prodigious exuberance of animal life has
justly entitled the Apure to the reputation of being

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 139
a land of plenty ; but, alas, it is also a land of death !
as, from the bottom of these extensive marshes mias
mas of a pestilential nature are continually arising,
which, at certain seasons of the year, render this fine
country almost uninhabitable for man. They are
also the abode of those enormous water-snakes or ana
condas, known in the country under the name of
culebras de agua, in, contradistinction to the boa con
strictor or traga-venado, so termed on account of the
ease with which it gorges itself with a whole deer at
once. Both of these snakes are also remarkable for the
strength which enables them to crush their victims in
the coils of their huge muscular bodies ; but the ana
conda is by far the more voracious and bold of the
two, attacking not only inferior animals, such as
deer, capyvaras, and young calves, but even that pride
of the herd, the padrote, cannot always escape the
deadly embrace. Woe to the unsuspecting colt or
heifer, who, panting with thirst and heat, should in
cautiously plunge into one of these modern Stygian
lakes, for the coil of the monster will in an instant be
around it, followed by a fearful cracking of its bones.
This accomplished, the snake proceeds to cover the
whole mangled body with a slimy secretion from his
mouth which assists him in the process of deglutition.
Should it be a stag — the head of which presents the
formidable obstacle of its huge antlers — the snake
commences by swallowing first the hind quarters,
trusting to time and the natural process of decay for
the head to drop off. In this plight the anaconda is
often found, looking like an immense log, stretched out
in the soft mud of lagoons, whence they are then easily

140 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
dragged by means of a lazo, tied to the tail of a horse.
On examining the mouth of one of these snakes, it
will be found that the jaws are furnished with a row
of sharp and crooked teeth, bent inward like tenter
hooks ; with these he seizes his prey, and holds it
securely until the victim, unable to struggle ronger,
drops exhausted. What appears most extraordinary
in these unequal contests, is the tenacity with which
the snake adheres to the soft mud of the lagoon, there
being neither rock nor stump to which he can secure
himself. Nor will the efforts of a large bull, no mat
ter how powerful, be sufficient to drag the snake one
inch out of his element, unless he is first cut asunder.
In darting upon a quadruped, the anaconda inva
riably aims at its snout, the animal seldom escaping
when once the terrible fangs have been buried in its
flesh. It is not an unusual thing, however, for a bull
to cut a snake asunder in his violent struggles ; then
the shaggy victor may be seen proudly inarching at
the head of his troop with this unsightly trophy hang
ing from his nose. The toughness of the anaconda's
skin makes it eagerly sought after by the inhabitants
for straps and various other objects susceptible of
injury from friction, as they outwear those made from
any other material. The fat is also much esteemed
for burning, and as a lubricator for the bones and
tendons of persons afflicted with rheumatism, or rigid
ity of limb. This oil is perfectly clear and transpa
rent, without any disagreeable odor, and is readily ab
sorbed into the system by simply rubbing it on the
skin. Shortly after leaving San Pablo, we had a spirited

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 141
chase after a herd of wild pigs. There were upwards
of twenty browsing on the borders of a pond, and in an
instant the whole plain — in such repose a few moments
before — -resounded with the cries and clatter of our
horsemen in eager pursuit of this delicious game of
the Llanos. Many of the men being provided with
lances, they had no difficulty in despatching most of
those whose fate threw them in the way of the re
morseless cavaliers. But an old berraco or boar,
which seemed to be the sultan of the grisly commu
nity, harassed by the combined attacks of several
horsemen, suddenly whirled round and made a gallant
stand, determined, as it appeared, not to give up
without a fierce resistance. At first it was supposed
that three or four men would be sufficient to bring
him down, and that number were accordingly sent
after him ; but finding the engagement protracted,
several others, including myself, went to their assist
ance. On reaching the spot a fearful spectacle was
presented to us. The infuriated animal, his eyes
shooting fire, and fiercely grinding his tusks, stood at
bay a short distance from his aggressors, his mouth
covered with a bloody froth, while one of the men lay
bleeding profusely from a wound on the thigh inflicted
by the sharp tusks of the boar. We learned that
Cipriano, the wounded hunter's name, perceiving that
the lances of his companions only succeeded in irritat
ing the boar, very foolishly leaped from his saddle,
and drawing his sword, deliberately attacked him
without even taking the precaution of covering his
movements with the sheepskin from his saddle, as is
practised in contests with Avild bulls. The man

142 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
boasted with reason of being the most skilful matador
in all the Apure ; but in this case he did not reckon
on the tough hide of his opponent ; for, at the first
rush of the boar upon him, and in spite of the steadi
ness with which he aimed the stroke, the well-tem
pered steel bent like a reed the moment it encountered
the shoulder of the boar, leaving Cipriano completely
at the mercy of the enraged brute. The consequence,
as I have already stated, was a severe gash, almost
laying bare the femoral bone of the unfortunate
matador. The tusks of the wild boar, especially those
of the lower jaw, are so long and sharp, that the ani
mal makes use of them as a bull does of his horns.
The upper ones rest directly upon the lower, and his
constant grinding of them, especially when he is en
raged, soon wears the points into a broad and sharp
edge. United, these tusks form a perfect circle five
or six inches in diameter. The services of our surgeon,
Dr. Gallegos, were immediately called into requisition,
who dressed the wound, while the companions of the
suffering hunter endeavored to avenge him. They
rained a shower of lances upon the body of the en
raged beast, but, apparently, with no better effect ;
for, with one powerful stroke of his tusks, he broke in
two the shaft of some and carried away the head of
others. Doubtless we should have succeeded in fin
ishing him after a time ; but the helpless condition
of our companion requiring especial care, we placed
him on his saddle, for want of better conveyance, and,
leaving the boar conqueror, proceeded on our journey.
Having killed more animals than we could con
veniently carry, we selected two fat sows for our

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 143
breakfast, and left the remainder to the flock of
turkey-buzzards which, like a troop of hungry scav
engers, followed our line of march across the prairies.
I may observe here that the wild boar of the
Llanos is the common hog run wild in consequence
of the little or no care bestowed upon their breeding
in the cattle-farms, and as they find in these swamps
all the elements they require for their development,
viz., roots of various kinds, sweet herbs, eels, snakes,
and mire ad libitum, their propagation is greatly in
creased. Thus the number of pigs in these savannas is
almost incredible — in the lands of El Frio alone being
estimated at forty thousand — and a just idea may be
formed of their ravages from the fact that, for miles
around, those fine prairies have been completely
ploughed up by them, rendering the ground exceed
ingly dangerous for horses, and almost useless for
cattle-breeding, by destroying the fine pastures which
are invariably replaced by a crop of worthless weeds.
Wild hogs, nevertheless, sometimes render good
service by destroying the snakes— for which they seem
to have a particular penchant — especially that little
scourge of the savannas of Apure, the dreaded mata-
caballo. The tails of these hogs being especially long,
and, as usual, twisted, they swing them round con
tinually when running — a peculiarity which did
not escape a benighted son of Africa, who was being
trained at a cattle-farm to the business of the Llanos,
and which occasioned quite a ludicrous scene at one
of these hunts. He had become already expert in the
use of the lazo, and was one day taken to the savanna

144 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
by the overseer for the purpose of procuring an ox for
slaughter, when they fell in with a fine hog, which at
once changed their plans, and they immediately gave
him chase. None of the men had lazos, except the
negro, and he was therefore commanded to follow
and secure the game ; but although he rode a very
swift horse, and was often within range of the lazo, he
was observed each time to slacken his pace without
any apparent cause. " Now then,  son of
 thy mother," the Llanero vociferated, " let
go the lazo, or we will roast thee alive in his stead,"
shouting at him also many other no less characteristic
expressions. But Sambo, waving the lazo over his
head in order to keep the noose open, would again
stop short of his mark, until the pig, who probably
knew by this time that he was wanted, straining every
nerve to reach a swamp hard by, succeeded at last in
gaining a clump of wild plantains that bordered the
estero. Here the major-domo, losing his small rem
nant of patience, quickly rode up to him, and dis
charging sundry lashes with his chaparro upon the
sooty skin of his apprentice, asked him, in a thunder
ing voice : " How now, my master, why did ye let the
fellow go without a single effort on thy part to secure
him ? Have not I taught thee well enough how to
handle a lazo, thou sooty imp ? " " Oh ! yessa, mas
sa," quoth the darkey ; " but, look yer, massa, when
me wisher to lazo pig, him wisher to lazo me nei
ther ; " imitating, at the same time, with his arm the
swinging of the pig's tail.
Yery beautiful was the appearance of the many
herds, each headed by its padrote, on all sides dispers-

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 145
ing at our approach. The bulls are generally of a
grave and quiet disposition when collected in herds,
and rather avoid the approach of man unless provoked
to self-defence, when they become very ferocious.
Each troop is under the control of the most powerful
bull in the drove, a position which is only attained by
dint of strength and courage ; as not only has he to
defend his troop from the attacks of the common ene
my, but to maintain his supremacy against rival ena-
morados. Thus the padrote, or big father, as he is
appropriately styled, can show many scars upon his
tough hide, received in these fierce combats. If a lion
or jaguar approach during the night, the padrote im
mediately takes all his measures for the defence of his
post. His first care is to compel the herd into a com
pact mass, and then advances to engage the enemy in
single combat, from which he rarely fails to come off
victorious. In the mean time the herd, within the
limited space into which they have been congregated,
with heads lowered towards the enemy, prepare to
repulse the intruder and defend their young by a for
midable array of horns.
Man is the only antagonist whose superiority the
padrote will acknowledge ; but even this is not with
out an obstinate resistance whenever hehas an opportu
nity. Nor will he retire in a hurry from his pursuers,
but facing about from time to time, often succeeds in
thwarting their intentions and securing an honorable
retreat. When the sun is high in the meridian, troops of
these noble animals may be seen slowly advancing
towards the nearest mata, seeking to avoid the exces-
7

146 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
sive heat of the day and to enjoy their siesta in cool
retirement. Here they amuse themselves sometimes
in watching over their harems, sometimes in making
their toilet, which is rubbing the point of their horns
against the hard trunk of a palm tree, or any other
convenient object, until they become sharp as awls.
Woe ! then, to the imprudent traveller who, over
powered by the heat, seeks refuge in one of those
groves, thus intruding upon the sanctuary of his bull-
ship's seraglio. Should he succeed in escaping safe
and sound, his horse is certain of being severely chas
tised for his master's indiscretion.
An adventurous Briton, who once penetrated into
one of those haunts sacred to Taurus, came very
near losing his life in consequence. He fortunately
escaped with only a few scratches and contusions ; but
his clothes were torn from his body by the horns and
hoofs of the bull. It chanced in this wise : The inten
sity of the sun's rays had compelled the traveller and
his companion — a shrewd old Llanero, who acted as
guide — to seek shelter under a solitary grove. On a
closer acquaintance they judged it to be the retreat
of a wild bull, from the deep scars observable on the
bark of the trees, evidently caused by some animal's
horns. They were not mistaken, for they soon dis
covered at a short distance, quietly grazing, the prob
able owner of the rural retreat. Knowing from ex
perience that this would be a very unsafe spot for their
siesta, the Llanero advised that they should move off
at once, rather than be ejected thence, as would surely
be the case if they remained much longer. But John
Bull, with characteristic pride, and trusting entirely

SAVANNAS OF APURE. 147
to his fine brace of pistols, laughed at the idea of giv
ing up his comfortable quarters, without at least a
struggle for their possession. Ordering the man to
sling his hammock, he carefully examined his pistols,
after which he retired to his aerial couch. The Llanero
shook his head and very wisely omitted unsaddling
the horses, contenting himself with merely unfastening
the straps. Presently the bull began to advance in
the direction of the mata, which the phlegmatic Eng
lishman no sooner perceived, than quitting his ham
mock, he seized his pistols and went to the encounter.
The Llanero crossed himself, and taking the horses
aside, proceeded to secure the saddles and to tie the
lazo to the tail of his own steed. In the mean time
the bull continued leisurely advancing, apparently
without much noticing his uninvited guests ; occasion
ally, however, uttering deep bellowings expressive of
his displeasure. Bang ! bang ! went the two pistols ;
but before the smoke had cleared, the Llanero beheld
his companion stretched upon the ground and fiercely
trampled under the feet of the infuriated animal.
Swift as thought, the Llanero sprang into the saddle,
and spreading his lazo, whirled it two or three times
above his head ; then let it fall around the horns of
' the bull at the very instant he was about to transfix
the prostrate traveller. Thus providentially prevent
ed from doing further injury, he was easily hamstrung
and finally despatched by the captors. That the Eng
lishman escaped being instantly killed, can only be
accounted for by the fact that a bull often misses his
aim from the very fury of his attack.

CHAPTER XI.
EL FRIO.
On arriving at El Frio, we were agreeably sur
prised at finding more spacious accommodations than
We had anticipated. The house, although thatched
like all the rest with palm leaves, was spacious and
well built of pajareque ; that is, the framework of the
walls was of strong posts of timber, well lathed and
plastered over with soft mud mixed with straw. In
addition to a large sala or reception room, it con
tained three or four sleeping apartments ; but these
last were so full of bats, that it was impossible to pass
a comfortable night in them, especially on account of
the disagreeable odor proceeding from these disgust
ing creatures, while the incessant bird-like chirping
sound which they made overhead, completely mur
dered our first night's sleep. We tried in vain to
smoke them out by means of dried cow dung. They
absented themselves during a portion of the day, but
were sure to return at dusk, bringing with them an
abundant supply of wild berries for their supper,
some of which they were constantly dropping in our

EL FRIO. 149
hammocks, finally compelling us to seek refuge in the
open air of the corridors and courtyard.
Apart from the mansion stood a row of smaller
structures containing thu kitchen and storerooms of
the farm, which being useless to us, we abandoned to
the bats and turkey-buzzards. Our cooking, as usual,
was left to our skilful chef Monico and his satellites,
who preferred the sans f aeon style of the camp to
confining themselves in the narrow range of a kitchen.
That which chiefly attracted my attention at this
farm was the substantial nature of the fence encom
passing the buildings, capable of resisting not only
the sudden rush of a herd of cattle, for which purpose
it was intended, but also a heavy cannonade, in case
of need. It was constructed of enormous blocks of
trees, almost impervious to steel or fire, driven into
the ground, each as close to the other as possible, and
neatly trimmed at top so as to present an even sur
face. I was unable to comprehend by what means
those monster rails could have been removed from the
forest. This, I afterwards ascertained, had been ac
complished during the inundation of the savannas,
when they are easily transported in balsas or rafts
made of lighter wood. The trees yielding this ever
lasting timber are two distinct species of acacias,
known in the country under the euphonious names
of Angelino and Acapro, either of which will turn
the edge of the best tempered steel if great care is not
used. I was shown here two uprights to the princi
pal gate of the majada or great enclosure for cattle,
nearly a hundred years old, still in perfect preserva-

150 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
tion, although standing in soil subject to alternate in
undations and parching heats.
The majada, also formed of strong posts, was
sufficiently spacious to contain three thousand an
imals, with compartments for the accommodation of
the herds during the various operations of cattle
farms. Although there was abundant vegetable
material for the comfort or security of the inmates, I
observed here, as everywhere, a total want of shade
trees around the houses. The Llaneros, although
strongly addicted to the " sweets of savage life," are
decidedly opposed to trees in the immediate neighbor
hood of their dwellings. Trees, say they, attract the
thunderbolt of heaven and the wild beasts of the field,
being besides the natural refuge of snakes and mos
quitoes during the great floods. This lack of shade
was the more regretted by us as we were then in the
midst of the summer solstice, when the sun pours its
vertical ra}rs upon the dry soil, while each day be
tween the hours of ten and eleven, a strong breeze
arose, sweeping over the exposed plain, and bringing
with it showers of sand ; this lodged in our mouths,
eyes and ears, and mingled with the food, thus render
ing it unpalatable even to our carnivorous appetites.
And yet, but a short distance from the house bloomed
an inviting grove, two or three miles in circumfer
ence ; this a man of taste could have readily converted
into a delightful abode, especially as in the rainy season
the inundation of the surrounding savannas would
permit the approach of vessels from the Orinoco, by
which the owner could supply himself with all the
comforts of civilized life. This charming spot was

EL FRIO. 151
further embellished by a small lake, where we daily
watered our horses, though not without some risk to
life and limb on account of the babas and caimans
swarming in its depths. Even the shallower portions
were so filled with sting-rays, caribes, and other
aquatic vermin, as to render bathing in it extremely
hazardous. Our ablutions, therefore, were limited to
the occasional scrubbing of our dusty and heated
bodies with wet towels. The babas, although still
more repulsive in appearance than their relative of
the long snout — the crocodile — are considered a bonne
bouche, especially the tail, the flesh of which is said
to rival chicken in its flavor. From this uninviting
fount of the desert, necessity compelled us to replenish
oui gourds each afternoon, that the particles of sand
and clay with which it was filled might have time to
settle during the night.
The summer breezes, although disagreeable in
many respects, are yet most necessary, carrying off
noxious exhalations arising from the marshy deposits
which remain in those low grounds long after the
waters have subsided ; otherwise those regions would
be uninhabitable. The Apure is especially salubrious
in the dry season, and were it not for their impru
dences, the inhabitants would enjoy perfect health
during at least seven months of the year. But these
people, careless of consequences, and trusting to their
iron constitutions, are not deterred, while in the ex
citement of a long chase, from plunging into one of
these pestiferous marshes after the object of their pur
suit. The result is a severe reaction of the system,
followed by violent spasms, fevers, or that most horrid

152 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of diseases, elephantiasis or mal de San Lazaro, so
prevalent in the hot regions of tropical America.
Add to this recklessness the great want of medical
resources in the country, and the consequent wretch
edness and misery can be readily imagined. Never
theless, the inhabitants seem to care so little about
these endemic vicissitudes, that in time one accustoms
himself also to view them in the same spirit of fatal
ism which they attach to every event of their lives.
I was never weary of admiring the beauty of the
sky and transparency of the atmosphere at this season.
Objects three or four miles distant appeared as if
actually only a few rods from the beholder, a circum
stance which often misled me when in my rambles
after game I had to traverse the plain on foot, occa
sioning frequent disappointments in my reckonings.
The radiation of heat evolved from the earth at
night, produced by the perfect clearness of the sky,
was so great at times as to produce a very sensible
degree of cold, which rendered the use of blankets
quite acceptable ; hence the name of El Erio given
to this estate. The evenings, especially, were so raw
and chilly, that in order to keep warm, we passed a
great portion of the night in revelry and dancing by
moonlight, although not one crinoline graced our
soirees. But we had excellent dancers of the Zapateo,
a sort of " breakdown," in which most of our men
exhibited a flexibility of feet and ankles which would
have done credit to the most accomplished Ethiopian
troop. Our host no Juan Manuel, as the overseer was
familiarly styled, had engaged the services of a cele-

EL FRIO. 153
brated player on the bandola from Banco Largo, and
there being no lack of improvisatori among us, these
nightly revels were conducted with all the eclat that
circumstances would permit. Among the bards who
distinguished themselves most at such times were the
Negro Quintana, an old Sergeant of the Guard, whose
constant attendance for many years on his beloved
Chief and " Master," as he styled the General, had
endeared him to the latter ; and Sarmiento, as the
other was named, who acted in the capacity of capo-
ral to the cattle farm of San Pablo. Both of these
made themselves famous by the wonderful facility
with which they improvised on any given subject.
They occasionally varied the performances by singing
to their guitars ballads whose burden was invariably
some adventure arising from the eventful life in the
pampas. Of these choice morceaux the most popular
were " Mambrun," an imitation of the old French
song, " Mcdbrooli s,en fut en guerre" and " Marce-
lino." The hero of this last was a renowned bandit,
who for a long time baffled all efforts to capture him,
but who finally received his deserts from the hands
of a traitor, who joined his forays for the purpose of
betraying him to his enemies.
Marcelino was a common peon in one of the
cattle farms bordering the river Matiyure, but being
of a restless and daring disposition, preferred the
roving life of a bandit to the more sober occupations
of the farm. Finding himself pursued by the hand
of justice, he was compelled for a time to seek refuge
among the Indians south of the great river Meta, who
are at this day sole tenants of those immeasurable

154 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
wilds. His superior acquirements and boldness soon
gained him the confidence and respect of the savages,
who finally adopted him for their leader, following
him in his marauding expeditions against the defence
less cattle forms this side of the Arauca. Embold
ened by success, they attacked the wealthy town of
that name, whence Marcelino carried off a beautiful
woman, the wife of a respectable farmer of the place,
who employed every means in his power to recover
her. All efforts, however, were for a time fruitless,
owing to the wild nature of the country and the cun
ning of her captor ; but he was finally taken in one
of his expeditions. The intention had been to send
him to Achaguas, with which object he was well
bound and placed under a strong escort ; but being
a great favorite with all classes of Llaneros, who ad
mire valor in every form, he was finally given in
charge of the famous Manuel Blanco — a rich land
owner of the Apure — at the earnest solicitation of the
latter, who promised to see him safely delivered to
the authorities. On the way thither, however, Mar
celino managed to give his bondsman the slip, and
escaped to his favorite haunts again. All further
attempts to retake him failing at that time, a bold
sambo from the upper country volunteered to pene
trate into the unknown region, intending to decoy
him and his savage band to a certain cattle farm
where a strong picket of cavalry would lie in wait.
Having represented to Marcelino that immense
wealth in money and jewels was possessed by the
owners of the farm, the bandit concluded to come out
of his fastness and retrieve his former fame by a bold

EL FRIO. 155
dash at the cattle farm of Herradero. On arriving at
the place, where matters having been arranged as had
been agreed upon between Maldonado — the betray
er's appropriate name — and the officers of justice, Mar
celino and his band were surprised. He endeavored
to escape, but Maldonado spurring his horse toward
the unsuspecting bandit, pierced him with his sword.
Without delaying he then pushed on, followed by the
hateros, to the camp where the unfortunate lady was
still a captive. They found her surrounded by a train
of red skin dames of honor, all of whom were after
ward distributed as servants among the families of
their conquerors.
Nearly all the Indians of that tribe were destroyed
on this occasion, only a few escaping to the Big
Forest, where they bewailed among the monkeys and
jaguars of those solitudes the loss of their favorite
chieftain. The ballad which commemorates the
event, commences :
" A Marcelino lo mataron
En el hato de Herradero,
Y los Indios lo lloraron
A su capitan vaquero."
Marcelino the bold was slain,
Slain at the farm of Herradero ;
And the Indians lament in vain
Their loved sportsman, chieftain and hero.
Maldonado, who at heart was a rogue of the same
stamp as Marcelino, having tasted of the independent
roving life of the bandit, found it so congenial that he
concluded to follow the illustrious example of his

156 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
former leader and associate ; but wanting in the prin
cipal traits which had raised the latter to his exalted
position, was speedily destroyed and almost precisely
in the same manner which he had devised for the
overthrow of the renowned Marcelino. Previous to
this, however, Maldonado, in imitation of his former
chieftain, and availing himself of the defenceless state
of the town of Guasdualito, attempted to carry off
from thence la Yillafaiie, a lady celebrated for her
beauty. With this intent, he brought to her door a
horse already saddled for her, and commanded her to
mount and follow him. This she indignantly refused
to do ; but finding all entreaties and resistance of no
avail, she seized some poison from a drawer at hand,
and with resolution worthy of a Roman matron,
placed it to her lips, exclaiming, as she did so, that
she would surely swallow it if he did not instantly
quit her presence. The threat proved successful ; for
the bandit, awed by her heroism, left her.
The business of the pampas required us to be up
at the first peep of dawn. A cup of coffee and milk,
mixed with ground parched corn — which I would
recommend to all travellers on long journeys of this
sort — served us until breakfast time. I amused my
self during the day sketching in company with my
friend, Mr. Thomas, while the men made their prep
arations for a grand hunt among the cattle of the
estate. The most important of these arrangements
was that of manufacturing from hides sufficient lazos
for the sport. There is a marked difference between
the skins of bullocks raised in the shady parts of the

EL FRIO. 157
Llanos and those roaming wild over the deserts of the
Apure. Although the former are much thicker, the
lazos made from the hides of cattle constantly ex
posed to the sun's rays are infinitely stronger. The
lazo is easily made. A fresh hide, spread upon the
ground with the hair downward, is neatly cut into a
long strap two inches wide. This is twisted into a
tight thong and stretched out to dry between two
posts, after which it is well rubbed with fat. When
thoroughly dried, a loop is made at one end ; through
this, when required for use, the thong is passed, forming
the noose or lazo proper, while the other end is firmly
tied to the horse's tail, using its long hair for the pur
pose. In other parts of South America they fasten
the lazo to a ring in the saddle ; but this arrangement,
besides causing too great strain upon the horse's back,
is fraught with danger to the rider in case of a recoil
from the thong if a break occur. The thorough train
ing which horses receive in the Llanos is invaluable
in such cases, as not only does the success of the chase
depend on the readiness with which he obeys his
rider, but even after the game is secured with the
lazo, it is necessary that the horse should range in
stantly on a line with the struggling victim ; but
unless this is effected before the strain comes upon
the lazo, the horse and his rider are inevitably over
thrown. The hunter, at the moment of using the lazo,
coils a portion of the thong, which he holds with his
left hand, and with the rest forms the running noose,
which is repeatedly whirled around his head to keep
it open. When within reach of his mark, he aims at
the animal's head and throws the noose in such a

158 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
manner as to cause a rapid uncoiling of the thong in
his left hand. Some Llaneros are so expert as to
entangle at the same instant the feet and head of
the animal, on which he is quickly brought to the
ground. We were joined at El Frio by another party- of
cattle hunters, under the leadership of an old ac
quaintance, Colonel Castejon, widely celebrated in
the Llanos for great bravery and skill in the pursuits
of the country. Pie came to help us in the hunt after
wild cattle, and to help himself to as many animals
as he could drive home with his party. We also had
the honor of a visit from the Governor of the Prov
ince, Senor Arciniega, a jovial, talkative, and well-
informed functionary, and the most accomplished
marksman of the Apure. It was therefore proposed
to have a grand shooting match in the open field, and
with this view we all started one morning for a creek
called Macanillal, about three miles distant, intending
to use the crocodiles, by far the most difficult animal
to shoot, as targets. On entering the woody banks
of the creek, we were agreeably surprised to discover
on the soft mud evident proofs that we had come in
the right direction, not only for our anticipated sport
with the water monsters, but also that we were likely
to have a brush with even a more formidable antag
onist — the jaguar. Footprints of this splendid an
imal were so numerous, that we forgot for a time the
crocodiles and made diligent search for the nobler
game. We had small success, however, having no
dogs with us to drive him from the jungle ; for, un-

EL FRIO. 159
less he has the advantage over his adversaries, the
jaguar never shows himself in the day-time.
As we came in sight of the water, I was aston
ished at seeing its whole surface bubbling as if in a
state of effervescence, and at finding also on nearer
inspection that this was occasioned by the blowing
close to the water's surface of millions of coporos.
Other varieties of fish were also so abundant, that we
shot many near the shore, among them a very fine
catfish. The report of the guns brought to the surface
numbers of crocodiles, which we prepared to assail
from the high bank of the creek. To our honorable
guest, the Governor, was conceded the privilege of
shooting the first, which he did with great accuracy,
sending a ball directly through one of the creature's
eyes. Still the shot did not kill him instantly, as
would have been the result with any other animal ;
and he plunged through the creek for a time at a
furious rate, lashing the water with his powerful tail,
and causing great commotion among the finny mul
titude. The other crocodiles in lieu of being
alarmed with the uproar, were only rendered more
inquisitive, dashing forward with gleaming eyes and
tusks, which so fascinated my friend the English
artist, as rather endangered his safety in his eager
ness to get a thorough view of the reptiles. Forget
ting his proximity to the precipice, he approached it
so nearly as to miss his footing, and would doubtless
have rolled into one of the open jaws below him, but
for the prompt assistance of a companion, who caught
him as he was in the act of falling.

160 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
From the same place where the first shot was
fired, we succeeded in killing or wounding not less
than twenty crocodiles ; but the banks being high
and precipitous, we could not secure the carcases.
One of these, which lay stranded on a sand bank
across the creek, being characterized by a singular
hump on his back, which added to his already mon
strous size, I felt a great desire to examine more
closely. To accomplish this, it was necessary to ford
the creek lower down, where I was assured the water
was sufficiently low to allow of walking over. The
undertaking was not, however, without considerable
risk from the numerous sting-rays and caribes. But
my interest in all pertaining to Nature's works helped
me over to the other side, whither I was accompanied
by Roseliano, a youth attached to my family, famed
as a dare-devil. With his assistance I dragged the
crocodile partly out of water, and was examining the
load which nature had placed upon his back, when
Roseliano perceived a movement of one of his eyes,
the other having been shattered by the bullet ; we
supposed he had been by this time quite dead. My
young companion, who had expressed his suspicions
that the crocodile was only feigning death, wishing
to ascertain the truth, proposed stabbing him in the
armpit with his dagger. Before permitting this, I
insisted upon securing the jaws by means of a large
stake which we sharpened at one end and plunged
into his nostrils, and I then leaned upon it with the
whole weight of my body. This precaution saved
my companion, but came very near proving fatal to
myself, as the instant the crocodile felt the cold steel

EL FRIO.

161

between his ribs he raised his enormous head, lifting
me at least a foot from the ground ; but was pre
vented from injuring me by the stake which he
caught between his powerful tusks, shattering it to
splinters, and then retreated to the middle of the
creek. His triumph was, however, of short dura
tion ; for, the blood oozing in torrents from his
wounds, he quickly fell a prey to thousands of
hungry caribes.
Sir Robert Schomburgh relates an incident which
occurred during his ascent of the river Berbice, and
which further demonstrates the tenacity of life in the
cayman. " One was fired at, floating, and the ball
took off the end of the snout ; it received another im
mediately afterward in the hinder part of the skull
which appeared to have taken effect ; still, the In
dians were not sparing in their blows, and when there
was not much likelihood of its possessing a spark of
life, it was deposited on the bow of one of the corials.
While the corial was drawn across the rapids, two of
the Arawaaks got courage and took it up in order to
lay it in a more convenient place ; they had just
effected this, when at one bound it jumped out into
the river and disappeared. The Indians looked quite
stupefied, and never afterward could be persuaded to
touch a cayman."
The creek of Macanillal is also famous for its many
water-dogs, or perros de agua (Myopotamus coypos)
and nutrias. The latter is a large species of otter
with a fine glossy fur. The former resembles a
beaver very closely, but has a round tail similar to
that of the opossum. Both animals live in the water,

162 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
coming out occasionally to sun themselves on the
sand banks. In a hut near the scene of our last
crocodile adventure I saw a skin of the water-dog
which measured five feet in length, exclusive of the
tail ; but although I often made diligent search for
this singular amphibious animal, I never had an op
portunity of making his acquaintance. Like the
otter he is extremely shy, and only the practised eye
of an Indian can trace him near the surface of the
water when he rises to breathe.
I also sought in vain for the manatl, (Trichetus
manatus,) another amphibious animal very common in
Apure during the season of floods, when it leaves the
beds of the great rivers to feed on the grass of the
savannas. It is between ten and fifteen feet in length,
and weighs from five to eight hundred pounds. Its
shape resembles that of a seal, although considerably
longer, with a smooth skin and rather small eyes.
The flesh of the manati is very savory, on which ac
count, as well as for the abundance of fat it yields,
the Indians wage relentless war against it.

CHAPTER XII.
BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARRION HAWKS.
The distant bellowing of bulls assembling their
herds — sure sign that the tiger was prowling near
them — lulled us pleasantly to sleep in our hammock-
beds after the fatigues and labors of the day. Not
unfrequently we were treated to a serenading chorus
of araguatos or howling monkeys, and to the hootings
of the titiriji or tiger-owl of the pampas, whose pecu
liar cries might be readily mistaken, by an unaccus
tomed ear, for the angry growl of that spotted bandit
of the forest — the jaguar. The neighboring woods
were also the haunts of several other species of owls
and goat-suckers, whose dreary notes wake mournful
echoes by night and fill superstitious imaginations
with fearful and foreboding visions.
The tiger-owl, which may be said to rank among
the feathered tribe as does the jaguar or American
tiger among beasts, is nearly the size of a domestic
turkey. Like his powerful prototype, he is spotted
with black, and seldom makes himself heard except-

164 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ing at night, when calling on his mate ; or during his
nocturnal expeditions in the neighborhood of the
farmyard. He is then, not only a terror to the de
fenceless brood, but also to the younger inmates of
the house, who look upon him with a kind of super
stitious awe, on which account he sometimes escapes
punishment. Less imposing in size than the preceding — although
more terrifying in their way— are the ya-acabo and the
pavita — two other species of owl considered harbin-.
gers of calamity or death, when heard fluttering
around a house. The first portends an approaching
death among the inmates, and is therefore looked
upon with dread even by men who would not flinch
at the sight of the most formidable bull or jaguar.
Yet that appalling cry, ya acabo ! ya acdbo ! — it is
finished ! it is finished ! — seems so fraught with evil
mystery, that few hear it unmoved. The only expe
dient resorted to, in such cases, is to form a cross with
hot ashes in front of the house, which, it is believed,
will drive away this ill-omened messenger. The pavita
— although not larger than a turtle-dove, is also con
sidered pajaro de mal agilero — a bird of ill-omen —
being no less — they say — than the departed spirit of
some good-natured relative come to warn his kindred
against approaching calamity. In these cases, as it is
believed that nothing is so acceptable to the poor soul
as a few Pater Nosters' and Ave Marias, they usually
try to disembarrass themselves of the unwelcome
visitor by reciting aloud several of these prayers, after
crossing themselves twice with much devotion. When
ever this owl's dreaded cry is heard, it is certain to

, BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARRION HAWKS. 165
be followed by a scene of great confusion and dismay :
the children run to the women and hide behind their
skirts ; the women seek protection from the men ;
while these content themselves with muttering the
holy invocation Ave Maria Purisima ! which is ever
with them the favorite talisman against danger.
Great varieties of goat-suckers — not unlike huge
butterflies fluttering in the light evening breeze — also
make their appearance at sundown, when may be
heard their singularly harsh notes closely resembling
human articulations.
" The harmless, unoffending goat-sucker, from the
time of Aristotle down to the present day " — says
Waterton in his " Wanderings " — " has been in dis
grace with man. Father has handed down to son,
and author to author, that this nocturnal thief subsists
by milking the flocks. Poor injured little bird of
night ! how sadly hast thou suffered, and how foul a
stain has inattention to facts put upon thy character !
Thou hast never robbed man of any part of his prop
erty, nor deprived the kid of a drop of milk."
"When the moon shines bright, you may have a
fair opportunity of examining the goat-sucker. You
will see it close by the cows, goats, and sheep, jump
ing up every now and then, under their bellies. Ap
proach a little nearer — he is not shy, 'he fears no
danger for he knows no sin.' See how the nocturnal
flies are tormenting the herd, and with what dexter
ity he springs up and catches them as fast as they
alight on the belly, legs and udder of the animals.
Observe how quiet they stand, and how sensible they
seem of his good offices, for they neither strike at him,

166 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
nor hit him with their tails, nor tread on him, nor try
to drive him away as an uncivil intruder. Were you
to dissect him and inspect his stomach, you would
find no milk there. It is full of the flies which have
been annoying the herd.
" The prettily mottled plumage of the goat-sucker,
like that of the owl, wants the lustre which is observ
ed in the feathers of the birds of day. This, at once,
marks him as a lover of the pale moon's nightly beams.
There are nine species here " (in Demerara). " The
largest appears nearly the size of the English wood-
owl. Its cry is so remarkable, that having once heard
it, you will never forget it. When night reigns over
these immeasurable wilds, whilst lying in your ham
mock, you will hear this goat-sucker lamenting like
one in deep distress. A stranger would never con
ceive it to be the cry of a bird. He would say it was
the departing voice of a midnight murdered victim,
or the last wailing of Niobe for her poor children, be
fore she was turned into stone. Suppose yourself in
hopeless sorrow, begin with a high loud note, and pro
nounce, ' ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha,' each note lower
and lower, till the last is scarcely heard, pausing a
moment or two betwixt every note, and you will have
some idea of the moaning of the largest goat-sucker in
Demerara. " Four other species of the goat-sucker articulate
some words so distinctly, that they have received their
names from the sentences they utter, and absolutely
bewilder the stranger on his arrival at these parts.
The most common one sits down close by your door,
and flies and alights three or four yards before you, as

BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARRION HAWKS. 167
you walk along the road, crying, ' Who are you, who,
who, who are you ? ' Another bids you, ' Work away,
work, work, work away.' A third cries mournfully,
' Willy, come go, Willy, Willy, Willy come go.' And
high up the country a fourth tells you ' Whip poor
Will, whip, whip, whip poor Will.' " *
There is a bird, however, among these nocturnal
serenaders which impresses you with very different
feelings from those produced by the owl species : this
is the Gcdlineta de monte or forest-hen, a most beau
tiful creature both in color and in shape, and not un
like a water-hen in general appearance : the eyes
especially are peculiar^ pretty, being of a brilliant
ruby color and scintillate like fire. These birds sing
in concert, and their song — a lively chatter — has a
mystic fascination I am unable to describe. They
are also considered delicate eating ; but unfortunately
are very difficult to catch, for even after being shot,
unless wounded in the leg, they can outstrip the swift
est hound, although their wings, being very small,
avail them little. Nature, however, has provided
them with long yellow legs for the purpose.
The ponds and lagoons of the savannas are literally
crowded with other individuals of the feathered tribe,
whose lively notes and incessant chatterings contribute1
likewise to enliven the night. The most conspicuous
among them are various species of teal-ducks, such as
g'dires and yaguasos, and a long-legged plover — alcar-
avan. — This last has the peculiarity of uttering a long,
shrill sound at hourly intervals, thus marking every
* Wanderings in South America.

168 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
hour of the night after the manner of a clock's alarum.
It is easily domesticated in the houses, where it ren
ders some service, not only by marking time, but also
by giving warning of the approach of strangers.
The aruco is another bird of large size, whose
drum-like notes are often heard in the stillness of
night. In size and plumage it greatly resembles a
turkey ; but its flesh is so spongy, that in lifting one
of these uncouth birds from the ground, it appears like
a mere bundle of feathers. The wings of the male are
provided with a pair of sharp spurs, with which, when
fighting, they greatly injure one another.
Another feature of the cattle-farm is the great num
ber of carrion vultures and other birds of prey con
stantly hovering around the houses and corrals, attract
ed thither by the carcasses of dead animals. The most
conspicuous among them is the zamuro or gallinazo,
(Cathartes Atratus,) that constant companion of rude
civilization in all tropical countries, but an indolent,
greedy and disgusting associate. As, however, they oc
casionally render service in the capacity of scavengers,
they are generally tolerated among the fowl of the farm
yard. It is a gregarious bird, and collects in large
flocks on the roof and fences, where, with knowing
glances, they seem to be scanning all the actions of
the inmates. I often amused myself in threatening
them with a missile of some sort ; but they never ap
peared to notice it, until they perceived me to be in
earnest : then with wings half spread and leaning for
ward, they watched intently the moment when I should
hurl it at them to evade it by flight or a dodge of the
head. — They build their nests in holes which they dig

BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARRION HAWKS. 169
in the ground. Their young are white, gradually
changing to black as they grow older, and only two
are raised by the parent every year. Although essen
tially carrion feeders, the olfactories of these birds are
not so sensitive as to discover for them a dead animal
— as many suppose ; — but their sight is very good.
They fly to immense heights, and thence examine every
portion of the ground below them. In doing this they
may often be observed on motionless wing, whirling
round and round in graceful evolutions.
With the zamuro is often associated another carrion
vulture, the oripopo or turkey-buzzard, (Vultur aura,)
of the same size and with similar habits to the former.
It differs however, from its relative in color — which is
dark brown — and in having its neck more destitute of
feathers. It is also more elegant in form and in its
graceful evolutions through the air than the black
vulture: The turkey-buzzard has a wide geographical
range, having been met by Audubon as far north as
Pennsylvania, and by Darwin in the arid plains of
Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. When soaring
through the upper regions of the air, it can be at once
recognized by its long, sweeping flight, accompanied
by a buzzing sound, much like the gust of the whirl
wind, and perfectly audible from a great distance.
The Rey-Zamuro, or king of the vultures, (Yultur
papa,) larger than the foregoing, is the most beautiful
of its kind. Its plumage, resembling down in softness
and fineness, is of a pearly white, excepting the wings,
which are tipped with black. The breast and neck,
although entirely bare of feathers, are decked in the
most brilliant tint of blue, orange, and red, while a sort

170 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of membranous excrescence crowns the head, giving
it a truly royal appearance.
This King of the vultures has also very aristocratic
habits, never associating with any, not even those of
his own tribe. It is a remarkable fact that when he
alights upon a carcass, amidst a flock of other vultures,
all these last retire, or make a circle round the ban
quet. When his majesty has dined, he flies off, utter
ing a loud cry, and only then his subjects venture to
approach the carrion.
There is in the more elevated part of the adjoining
province of Barinas, another bird of the same class —
Yultur barbatus — which partakes of the eagle and the
vulture, but is larger than either. It is called in con
sequence gavilucho — eagle-hawk — and has been seen
at times descending toward the plains. The legs and
wings are very long and powerful. It is said to be
very handsome, but it is extremely shy of man. The
plumage is bluish, red, white and yellow. This
bird joins to the boldness and cruelty of the eagle, the
loathsome voracity of the vultures. It prefers live
flesh, especially that of small quadrupeds, and preys
principally upon rabbits, goats, sheep and even young
calves. It raises only one brood in a season, and
builds its nest amidst the most inaccessible ledges of
the Cordilleras.
I will close the list of the carrion birds of Yene
zuela with enumerating two others, nearly allied to
the hawk, but partaking also of the characteristics of
the eagle. These are the caricari and chiriguare
(Polyborus Brasiliensis and P. Chimango) correspond
ing to the caracaras and carrancha of Brazil and

BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARKION HAWKS. 171
Buenos Ayres, concerning which Darwin has given
this graphic account :
" The caracaras are from their structure placed
among the eagles : we shall soon see how ill they be
come so high a rank. In their habits they will supply
the place of our carrion crows, magpies and ravens, a
tribe of birds widely distributed over the rest of the
world, but entirely absent in South America.
" The carranchas, together with the chimango,
constantly attend in numbers the estancias and
slaughtering-houses. If an animal dies on the plain,
the gallinazo commences the feast, and then the two
species of Polyborus pick the bones clean. These
birds, although thus commonly feeding together, are
far from being friendly. When the carrancha is
quietly seated on the branch of a tree or on the
ground, the chimango often continues for a long time
flying backward and forward, up and down, in a
semicircle, trying each time at the bottom of the
curve to strike its larger relative. Although the
carranchas frequently assemble in numbers, they are
not gregarious ; for in desert places they may be seen
solitary, or more commonly in pairs.
" The carranchas are said to be very crafty, and
to steal great numbers of eggs. They attempt, also,
together with the chimango, to pick off the scabs
from the sore backs of horses and mules. The poor
animal, on the one hand, with its ears down and its
back arched, and, on the other hand, the hovering
bird, eyeing at the distance of a yard the disgusting
morsel, form a picture, which has been described by
Captain Head with his own peculiar spirit and ac-

172 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
curacy. These false eagles rarely kill any living bird
or animal ; and their vulture-like, necrophagous
habits are very evident to any one who has fallen
asleep on the desolate plains of Patagonia, for when
he wakes he will see, on each surrounding hillock,
one of these birds patiently watching him with an
evil eye ; it is a feature in the landscape of these
countries, which will be recognized by every one who
has wandered over them. If a party of men go out
hunting with dogs and horses, they will be accom
panied during the day by several of these attendants.
After feeding, the uncovered craw protrudes ; at
such times, and indeed, generally, the carrancha is an
inactive, tame, and cowardly bird. Its flight is heavy
and slow, like that of an English rook. It seldom soars ;
but I have twice seen one at a great height gliding
through the air with great ease. It runs, (in contra
distinction to hopping,) but not quite so quickly as
some of its congeners. At times the carrancha is
noisy, but is not generally so ; its cry is loud, very
harsh and peculiar, and may be likened to the sound
of the Spanish guttural g, followed by a rough double
r r ; when uttering this cry, it elevates its head higher
and higher, till at last, with its beak wide open, the
crown almost touches the lower part of the head.
This fact, which has been doubted, is quite true."
These birds are, however, a great blessing to the
inhabitants of the Llanos, who are indebted to them,
not only for the destruction of vast numbers of snakes
and other reptiles, but for the service they render
conjointly with the vultures in consuming the offal
near houses. They seek their food both in dry lands

BIRDS OF ILL OMEN AND CARRION HAWKS. 173
and amidst the swampy borders of rivers ; on the one
they find serpents and lizards in abundance ; in the
other terrapins, frogs and small crocodiles. They
are peculiar in always killing their prey before com
mencing to devour it. If the caricari meet with a'
serpent or young crocodile large enough to oppose a
long resistance, he approaches it sideways, shielded
by one of his wings spread out, and striking his prey
near the head with his bill, retires to a short distance
to watch the result. A second blow is usually fatal,
upon which, seizing his victim in his claws, he tears
it with his bill. The sluggish tortoises and terrapins
are easy prey for the caricaii ; these he renders help
less by turning them upon their backs, then with his
powerful bill tears out the entrails.
Singing birds are of great numbers and varieties
in the Llanos ; these are mostly of the oriole species,
all of which seem to delight in the vicinity of man.
They usually select some tree near the house, and
from its slender topmost branches, weave their hang
ing nests beyond reach of mischievous boys and mon
keys. One of these songsters, the gonz'al, had his
nest close by the ropes of my hammock, where every
morning before sunrise he awakened me by his sweetly
plaintive notes ; and so fascinated was I by this charm
ing neighbor, that I always remained long after the
reveille, listening to his delicious music.
There is another closely allied species, far superior
to this or any other bird of the kind with which I am
acquainted. It is the troupial, whose powerful notes
can only be likened to strains of the violin. It is
easily domesticated in houses, and learns readily any

174 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
air from hearing it whistled. I have one of these
birds at home (in New York) which sings the Ca-
chuca, Yankee Doodle, and various other tunes, be
sides distinctly whistling the name of a person. Its
predominant colors are rich orange and shining black,
with white spots on the wings and bill in beautiful
contrast. It is a dangerous pet, however, if at large
in a house, attacking strangers furiously, and always
aiming at the eyes.
The arrendajo, or mocking-oriole, is perhaps the
most extraordinary of its kind, on account of its imi
tative proclivities, mimicking every sound with such
exactness, that he goes by the name of mocking-bird
among the colonists of Demerara ; according to
Waterton, " His own song is sweet, but very short.
If a toucan be yelping in the neighborhood, he drops
it, and imitates him. Then he will amuse his pro
tector with the cries of the different species of wood
pecker, and when the sheep bleat he will distinctly
answer them. Then comes his own song again ; and
if a puppy dog or a guinea fowl interrupt him, he
takes them off admirably, and by his different ges
tures during the time, you would conclude that he
enjoys the sport."
The arrendajo is, besides, a beautiful bird, and
considered by ornithologists a model of symmetry ;
his predominant color is a glossy black, with the ex
ception of his belly, rump and half the tail, which
are of a bright yellow. On each wing also he has a
spot of the same color. His beak is tinged of a deli
cate shade of lemon, while his eyes are sky blue, the
pupil being a deeper shade of the same.

CHAPTER XIH

THE E0DEO.

We had long been impatiently awaiting the com
mand for a general turnout and chase among the
legions of wild cattle grazing in the far horizon ; and
when ats length the day was appointed for a rodeo or
grand hunt, the universal gratification was boundless.
It is customary in all large cattle farms to assem
ble from time to time the cattle of certain districts for
the purpose of selecting those which require branding
and marking, and also to allow the neighboring farm
ers to separate from the herds many stray animals
belonging to them, which, from the open nature of
the plains, it is impossible to keep within the boun
daries of their own savannas. This operation cannot
' be accomplished without a great number of able and
expert riders, who, on a given day, surround a large
area of country and drive toward one centre all the
cattle that may be found within the selected space.
An extended circle or ring is thus formed, enclosing
a great horde of wild animals ; these are kept in check

176 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
by the well-concerted evolutions of the vaqueros until
the appointed rendezvous is reached, where, after
allowing the cattle to cool down, the different brands
are selected ; hence the name of rodeo, from rodear,
to surround. The object on this occasion was not only to sepa
rate all the calves that required branding, but also to
collect a large drove of oxen, so as to furnish our ex
tensive potreros of San Pablo de Paya with market
able beeves.
Our first foray against the horned tenants of the
wilderness would thus assume an importance seldom
witnessed in that retired corner of the republic ; as
also in addition to our own force, we counted upon
the assistance of the vaqueros from the neighboring
cattle farms of Caucagua, La Yagua, and others bor
dering these savannas. Due notice was accordingly
sent to the respective owners of those estates to mus
ter on a certain day all their forces upon the field.
The area selected for the hunt embraced at least
fifteen miles d la ronde. The hunters, in . squads of
six or eight, proceeded on the afternoon of the day
before the hunt to their stations at various points of
the savanna, having instructions to start at early
dawn for the appointed centre. We of the staff made
a simultaneous move from the house, driving before
us, without distinction, all the animals we encoun
tered on the route. The cattle being so unexpectedly
roused from their slumbers, naturally endeavored to
fly from their pursuers. Soon, however, meeting
those from opposite directions, they whirled in mad
despair, vainly endeavoring to break through the ex-

THE RODEO. 177
tended line of horsemen, who were constantly gallop
ing about the struggling mass with shouts and thrusts
from their steel-pointed garrochas.
At the commencement it was a truly interesting
sight to watch the many groups of cattle, deer, wild
boars, dogs, foxes, and other wild quadrupeds coming
in from all directions as if impelled by one common
instinct ; but no sooner did that living ring commence
closing upon them, than, scared by the confusion and
uproar of the scene, their terror quickly grew to
frenzy, and they ran from side to side bellowing,
grunting, howling as they went. Solely intent upon
the danger that menaced them, the mother forgot her
offspring, and listened no more to their painful lamen
tations ; the lover abandoned his beloved, seeking
only his own safety in disgraceful flight ; and even the
fierce bull, forgetting for a moment that he is sover
eign of those realms, lost his natural spirit of brave
defiance, and rushed blindly off in the train of the
frightened multitude. As if to increase the grandeur
of the spectacle, a garzero, which had established
itself on the borders of a creek hard by, also caught
the alarm, and at our approach flew up in the air
with a tremendous crashing of wing and bill, leaving
their young to care for themselves, and with their
discordant and piercing cries to swell the uproar of
the scene. It is impossible to convey an adequate
idea of this vast multitude of frightened cranes and
herons of all sorts which fluttered overhead at that
moment ; so great was their number that they spread
over an extent of several miles, and actually for a
time cast a deep shadow over the landscape.
8*

178 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Not less than eight or ten thousand head of cattle
were brought within the ring formed of more than a
hundred horsemen, who, in preventing the escape of
the animals, were compelled to expose themselves and
their noble steeds to the vindictiveness of the bulls,
which were constantly rushing upon the lines in their
endeavors to regain the open prairie. Whenever this
was attempted, a horseman galloped boldly upon the
fugitive, and by interposing himself between the open
field and the bull, forced the latter back to the herd.
Wonderfully adroit were the herdsmen in their avoid
ance of the repeated strokes aimed at them by the
bulls, even when it appeared impossible to escape
being caught between the animal's horns. The gar-
rocha played an important part in repelling these at
tacks. This instrument, only second in importance
to the lazo when in the hands of expert riders, is
made of the slender, yet tough stem, of the alvarico
palm, (senocarpus cubarro,) by merely sharpening the
top end to a point, or surmounting it with' an iron
head, around which a number of loose rings of the
same metal are affixed ; these, when shaken close
to the animal's ear, frighten him off with the rattling
sound they produce. The shaft of the goad is fully
ten feet long, and although not thicker than a walk
ing-stick, can bear an immense amount of pressure
without breaking. As a weapon of aggression, this
slender palm stem has become justly celebrated
throughout the country, from the fact of having sup
plied the primitive bands of patriots who first dared
to oppose the tyrannical rule of Spain with ready-
made lances in the wilderness. The manner in which

THE RODEO. 179
Llaneros make use of the garrocha is quite extra
ordinary. When in pursuit of a bull which they pur
pose turning back to the rodeo, if the animal be
swifter than the horse, the rider always manages to
reach him with the point of his spear. This he
thrusts into the bull's hide, just above the shoulder-
blade, and then leans forward and rests the whole
weight of his body upon the shaft, assisted in it by
his intelligent charger. The equilibrium of the bull
is thus usually destroyed, and he rolls headlong upon
the ground. These falls are often sufficient to pre
vent further attempts at escape, in which case the
bull is easily led into the rodeo. This performance,
however, is one of the most dangerous practised
among Llaneros, and is undertaken only by the most
skilful and experienced riders, as, should the spear
glance off while the hunter is leaning upon it, or
should he happen to overturn the bull in front of his
horse, he will in either case receive a terrific fall, and
in the latter event, probably come into collision with
the fallen animal.
From the midst, and above all the heads of that
tumultuous assemblage of wild animals, rose the
shaggy frontlet of a black bull, whose martial air and
fearless step seemed to proclaim him the patriarch of
the herd. An experienced Llanero, intently watching
all his movements from afar, observed to those near
him, that they would soon have fresh sport ; and that
" if any one prized the skin of his horse, he would do
well to look to his spurs ; " meaning that the black
bull evidently intended mischief. Mr. Thomas, who
was busily sketching the novel scene before him, un-

180 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
accustomed to the jargon of the Llanos, did not un
derstand this remark, and therefore quietly continued
his occupation. The next moment the bull was in
our midst, charging first upon Captain Yalor, one of
the best riders on the field, who, in spite of his name,
hastily spurred his steed out of reach ; but the bull
still pursuing, charged again and again upon him,
and doubtless the last attempt would have been fatal
to either horse or cavalier, had not the bull been
checked in his final onset by accidentally plunging
one of his legs into the hole of an armadillo, which
fortunate circumstance gave the captain time to dis
tance his pursuer. The bull next sought;, to vent his
rage on the incautious artist, who, one leg crossed
over the neck of his horse as support for his sketch
book, sat evidently absorbed in contemplation of the
powerful and daring brute, with Avhose ferocious
nature he was totally unacquainted. Having never
before attended sports of the kind, my friend paid
little regard to the menacing attitude of the animal,
who rushed upon him with a fearful bellow that made
us tremble for his fate. But for some unaccountable
reason, the bull after one or two ineffectual attempts
to strike his intended victim, wheeled about and dis
appeared among the tangled jungle bordering the
creek, apparently indignant at the nonchalance withr
which John Bull received the advances of his name
sake. Fearing the recurrence of similar attacks,
which might have a less fortunate termination, it was
decided to disembarrass ourselves of so uncomfort
able a neighbor ; with this object, the requisite number
of horsemen provided with lazos were sent to capture

THE RODEO. 181
and subdue him. Instead of seeking safety in precip
itate flight, as is generally the case with wild bulls,
this one unflinchingly stood his ground, and neither
shouts nor menaces could induce him to abandon the
threatening attitude he had assumed. It was indeed
a splendid sight to behold that proud monarch of the
horned tribe bidding defiance to all about him, his
huge and shaggy head, surmounted by a pair of
pointed, powerful horns, high in air, and with an ex
pression of countenance that was almost diabolical.
His savage upper lip looked as if curled in contempt
of his antagonists, and his eyes gleamed with fury in
the light of the morning sun. Occasionally with his
fore feet he ploughed up the earth, which, falling in
showers upon him, he swept from his sides with his
tail, uttering all the while a sort of suppressed roar
resembling distant thunder. Then came the furious
charge, when every one was compelled to run for his
life, as nothing could arrest his headlong course.
Blinded with rage, he spared not even those of his
own species, killing two heifers instantly, and wound
ing a bull so severely that he died shortly after
ward. Each time the men whirled the lazo to
throw it over his head, he dashed forward with such
rapidity as to disconcert their aim, until, finally, a
bold and agile sambo, Sarmiento by name, who acted
as caporal, and of whom we shall say more hereafter,
dismounting from his horse and seizing the red blan
ket from his saddle, prepared to face the bull without
the encumbrance of the lazo. His intention was to
bewilder or torear him by a succession of such feats
of agility as are usually practised by matadors in bull

182 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
fights ; and so successful was he, that in one of the
animal's furious charges, he succeeded in grasping
and holding his tail ; and in spite of the efforts the
bull made to strike him with his horns, Sarmiento
followed his movements so closely, that by a dexter
ous twist of the tail he succeeded in overthrowing the
brute upon his side ; he then drew the tail between
the hind legs, and as this completely deprives the
animal of all power of rising, he was enabled to hold
him until others came to his assistance. Then, to
prevent further mischief, the men proceeded to saw
off the tops of his horns and to perform upon him
other usual operations. These precautions, however,
proved quite unnecessary, as the bull, exhausted by
rage and loss of blood, shortly afterward dropped
upon the ground and expired.
In spite of the vigilance and constant efforts of the
men to keep the animals within the rodeo, several
other bulls managed to break through the ranks. The
only method of bringing them back was by using
the all-potent lazo, and two men, one of them thus
equipped, were despatched after the fugitive, which
on being noosed, was by the second man speedily
thrown upon his side by means of that dangerous ap
pendage, the tail, in the management of which the
Llaneros of Yenezuela are so famous. This accom
plished, they pierced the thick cartilage which divides
the nostrils with the point of a dagger ; one end of
the thong was then passed through the wound, while
the other remained fastened to the horse's tail ; the
Llanero, then mounting his steed, jerked the end at
tached to the bull, which brought the prostrate beast

THE RODEO. 183
at once to his feet, when he was marched off to his
destination without further trouble, literally led by
the nose.
Another method of arresting a bull in his flight,
is by a bold manoeuvre termed colear, and which con
sists, as already stated, in availing themselves of the
animal's tail to overthrow him when at full speed ;
but that is not easy of accomplishment, as the bull
has then such entire freedom of movement. The
horse also must be perfectly well trained to these
hazardous undertakings, and should obey instantly
the slightest pull of the bit ; for if the bull turns sud
denly upon his pursuer, the chances are ten to one
that the horse will be severely wounded. The rider
first gallops close to the rear of the bull, and seizing
his tail with one hand, gives it a turn or two around
his wrist to prevent its slipping. When thus pre
pared, he urges his horse forward, until the heads of
the two animals are on a " dead-heat ; " then quickly
turning in an oblique direction, and exerting all his
strength, he pulls the bull toward him, and does not
relinquish his hold until he perceives that the enemy
is tottering, when he is easily overthrown from the
great impetus imparted by their rapid pace. Some
men are so dexterous that they can colear with both
hands at the same time ; which necessarily gives greater
power over the bull, enabling the rider to bring him
down much more readily. The horse, in this case,
left to his own well-taught guidance, assists the man
oeuvres of his rider, pushing forward at the instant he
perceives that his master is prepared for the pull, and
turning about also at the right moment. How won-

184 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
derful the instinct of these noble creatures ! that
teaches them so readily the importance of the slight
est movement, on which often depends, not only the
success of the enterprise, but their own safety, as
well as that of their masters. If too powerful resist
ance is offered at the outset by the bull, as is some
times the case, the rider still clings to the tail of his
adversary, and throwing himself off his horse while
at full speed, the impetus combined with his weight
and strength never fail in bringing the bull like a
fallen giant to the ground ; then the man quickly
drawing the tail between the hind legs, awaits the
arrival of his companions to assist in securing the
prize. It was often matter of surprise to me in what
manner the Llaneros, notwithstanding the thorough
training of the horses, contrived their speedy ap
proach to the rear of the bulls, as these were usually
considerably ahead at the start. On one occasion, I
was regretting that my pony was too small to keep
pace with the hunters, when one of the men, who was
mounted on a prototype of Rosinante — on which,
nevertheless, he had performed prodigies of strength
— turned to me and said, " Vaya, nino, let me show
you that this is not the fault of the horse, but that of
the rider ;" whereupon we exchanged horses, and off
he went after a powerful bull just escaped. Not
many minutes expired before I lost sight of horse and
rider in a cloud of dust raised by the beast in its fall.
Some hours expired before the tremendous excite
ment and confusion of the wild melee described above
had sufficiently subsided to render the forms of men

THE RODEO. 185
and cattle visible through the clouds of dust and ashes
raised by the trampling of so many animals. The
grass, at this period parched by the sun and reduced
to ashes in various places by the usual conflagrations,
mingled with the dust and rose in dense columns,
which from afar might have been mistaken for the
dreaded monsoon.
In the mean while the distracted mothers ran from
side -to side, lowing piteously for . their missing
young. Here and there fierce duellos among rival
bulls took place for the possession of some shaggy one
of the softer sex. Butting their huge fronts together,
and goring each other with their sharp-pointed horns,
they fought with the courage and skill of accomplished
gladiators, tearing up the earth in wild fury, and fill
ing the air with their deep, savage bellowings. A
crowd of admirers from amidst the herd formed a
circle around the combatants, and if any from among
their number evinced the least disposition to interfere,
he was immediately chased away by the others, so
that there might be fair play while the fight lasted.
Often these encounters proved fatal to one of the bel
ligerents, as neither will yield the palm without a
desperate resistance.
The bellowing of thousands of animals, with the
yells and deafening shouts of the men galloping
about the plain, waving their ponchos and rattling
their garroohas, combined to give the scene more the
appearance of a fiendish melodrama, than a purely
pastoral assemblage of men and cattle.
The confusion having at length subsided, four
of the ablest horsemen, penetrating the living mass,

186 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
which, as they advanced, surged on either side, like
the waves of the sea, commenced the difficult task of
separating the animals intended for the brand, and
those belonging to our neighbors. This occasioned
another series of evolutions, which only men trained
to such exercises could have accomplished success-
fully. _
It is usual in all cattle-farms to cut a notch or two
in the animal's ear at the time they are branded, for
the purpose of recognizing them more readily from a
distance, a precaution which is particularly serviceable
on occasions like that just described, it being impossi
ble to read the brand when the creatures are crowded
into a herd. Although most of the calves had not
the notch, they belong by right to the owner of the
mother, even if they are found on the lands of another
party. Of it the vaqueros availed themselves in
their subsequent apportioning of the different lots of
cattle. This they accomplished in the most expedi
tious manner by riding boldly at the animals in ques
tion, hastening or checking their progress through the
herd as the case required. Thus by repeated evolu
tions of the sort, they finally brought the animals to
the edge of the ring, where an opening was purposely
left for their escape, and then the nearest horseman
drove them in among a small body of tame cattle sta
tioned a short distance from the rodeo. These violent
manceuvrings could not be accomplished, however,
without endangering at every step the security of the
entire herd. Each time the drivers turned out an
animal the whole mass was thrown into the utmost
confusion, and it required the most consummate skill

THE RODEO. 187
on the part of the men to prevent the entire disper
sion of the cattle. The fearlessness with which the
drivers plunged into that labyrinth of savage, panting
brutes, advancing close upon the wall of bristling
horns which barred their progress, and boldly driving
the infuriated creatures before them like a pack of
sheep, was truly worthy of admiration. The readiness
with which they detected at a distance the mark on the
animal's ears was also no less noticeable, singling out
such at a glance, and immediately driving them away
to their respective groups. When all the brands had
thus been apportioned, each owner proceeded to drive
away his own herd. We found in these cases — as in
deed in all similar ones — the assistance of madrineros
or trained oxea, of great service in driving a large
body of cattle across the plains. A dozen of these
oxen were sufficient to lead a vast drove, stopping or
advancing at a signal from the overseer, while the
vaqueros kept close watch on rear and flank to pre
vent escape and to urge on the cattle, especially the
crowd of stray calves — some of them only a few hours
old — which, like a procession of lost children, kept up
a continual bewailing for their mothers as if the last
ray of hope had departed from them. Although
their case was indeed a hard one, and the task of driv
ing them over the rough ground still harder, we were
unwilling to leave them behind, hoping to find their
mammas among the multitude before us. When within
a short distance from the house, we halted to make
preparations for the enclosure of the herds. But one
of the most dangerous parts of the proceedings yet re
mained, that of forcing the cattle into the corrals.

188 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The entrance to the majada — shaped like a great
funnel — was, like the rest of the fences, made of very
strong posts, driven into the ground and barred across
at intervals with thick rafters of bamboo. Through
this funnel, or manga, the cattle in small lots were
driven at full speed headed by the madrineros — those
treacherous guides trained to ensnare their kindred —
while the horsemen barricaded the mouth of the fun
nel with the breasts of the poor horses. Every thing
proceeded satisfactorily as far as the end of the funnel,
the madrineros, with all the cunning of semi-civilized
brutes, redoubling their pace at the moment of enter
ing the great enclosure. Then their wild brethren,
perceiving the treachery, turned upon their captors,
and a most fearful struggle ensued. The bulls, in
spite of the deafening shouts of the men, and the for
midable array of garrochas levelled at their heads, en
deavored to force their way back to the open plain,
and many of them actually succeeded in breaking
through the barricade of horses. Thus many noble
steeds, which until then had escaped unhurt, met with
an inglorious death. That most of the men escaped
unhurt, appeared little less than miraculous, as not
only were they also exposed at every moment to the
vindictive attacks of the bulls, but it often happened
that some of them were unhorsed, when they were in
imminent danger of being trampled by the retreating
foe. The superior skill and intrepidity of man, how
ever, triumphed at length over mere brute resistance,
and the whole herd was in a short time securely quar
tered in the majada.

CHAPTER XIY.
BRANDING SCENES.
" Entre tanto en ancha hoguera
Como encendido tizon,
Ta la marca eentellea
Con chispas de azul punzu.1'
VENTCRA PE LA VEGA.
It was late in the evening when we partook of our
only meal that day, and we afterward retired to rest;
but not to sleep, owing to the incessant noise made
by the cattle in the corrals, who, during the whole
night, were rushing to and fro as if goaded by demons.
Sometimes we feared that the fences would give way
before their mad onset, while the dust rose in suffo
cating clouds, filling the atmosphere and mingling
with our food, which was thus rendered almost unfit
for use. The bellowing, roaring, and moaning of the
herd could only be likened to the wild confusion of a
battle-field. Many of the savage bulls in their fury
turned their horns, sharp as bayonets, against their
own kindred. The proud padrote, his dusky mate,
and the tender heifer shared alike in the slaughter.
The next day numbers lay gored to death in the dust

190 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of the corrals, while others presented ghastly wounds.
Soon the carcasses began to putrefy, which, added to
the particles of dust floating through the air we
breathed, rendered the atmosphere intolerable. Many
more of the cattle died of suffocation, and others from
an infectious disease induced by the crowded state of
the herd and the noxious exhalations from the car
casses. We therefore lost no time in branding them
that they might be set free, lest the infection should
extend to the whole herd.
Animals affected in this manner exhibit no symp
toms of the disease until immediately prior to their
demise, when they are observed to stagger a few
paces and drop suddenly,, as if shot by a rifle ball ;
and yet the vtdtures seem to possess an intuitive
knowledge of this approaching dissolution, in proof
whereof, numbers of these feathery satellites of death
can be seen hovering around an animal which the
scourge has doomed, although it is apparently still in
perfect health. The infection, fortunately, is confined
to the horned cattle, no instance of its transmission to
other creatures occurring, except in the case of men
venturing to skin the carcasses, when it assumes a dif
ferent form. Persons who have thus exposed them
selves are seized with a horrible swelling of the neck,
commencing with a pimple not larger than a pin's
head, and gradually increasing in size until it extends
to the cerebellum. Death is the inevitable result if the
patient is not promptly attended by a skilful physi
cian. There were two or three cases of the kind
among our own people, but by careful treatment we
were fortunate enough to save them. There, are, how-

BRANDING SCENES. 191
ever, every year many poor fellows in that improvi
dent region, who, not having the same advantages, are
often carried away by the distemper.
The branding of cattle, as conducted in extensive
establishments, is a real festival for the sport-loving
people of the Llanos ; and each one feels himself as
deeply interested therein as though assisting at a
grand bull fight — the time-honored amusement of the
descendants of Pelayo, the Cid, and other worthies of
like celebrity ; and indeed the former, or hierra, as
that wild pageant is termed, with all its incidents and
dangers, all its noise and bustle, is perhaps the grand
est spectacle of the kind that could be devised for the
entertainment and training of that chivalric race.
It is undoubtedly one of the wildest scenes ever be
held in the pampas, and one which afforded me ex
ceeding pleasure from the variety of incident accom
panying it. The majada is, in fact, the school in
which from infancy the Llanero is trained to conquer
or to die in daily struggles with the brute creation.
It is a veritable Olympic Circus, where the agility
and strength for which he is famed are displayed
during the exciting operations performed upon the
savage denizens of the savannas, branding and mark
ing the calves, sawing off the horns of furious bulls
and converting them into oxen for the improvement
of their flesh and disposition.
On the day appointed, all animals confined in the
majada are driven into the corralejas or smaller cor
rals adjoining the great enclosure, and there packed
as closely as possible to prevent the bulls, always
ready to strike, from doing much mischief among

192 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
their own kindred. Meantime the men prepare
their lazos and station themselves according to their
respective strength and ability, while the boys kindle
a blazing fire in a safe corner of the majada, in which
the various brands to be used are kept at a red heat.
These brands generally represent the initials of the
owner, or some sort of hieroglyphic stamp affixed to
the end of a long handle. A record of these is kept
by the Justice of the Peace in each district ; and it is
considered a great crime to alter or in any unauthor
ized manner efface their impression from the skin of
animals. The cattle are usually branded on the
haunches ; but whenever a horse, mule, or mare is
sold, the brand in a reversed position is again affixed,
this time on its shoulder, followed by the buyer's
brand, the same operation being repeated whenever
the animal changes hands, so that some poor beasts
come at last to be quite disfigured with deep scars.
When all is ready for the fray, the majordomo,
climbing to the highest post of the enclosure, from
whence he directs operations, gives the signal. Here
he keeps an account of the calves branded, by notch
ing a long strip of raw hide. A number of these
strips, called tarja or tally, are carefully preserved in
every cattle farm as a record to be laid before the
owner at the year's end in lieu of balance-sheet.
The principal business of the day being that of
branding the calves collected at the rodeo, two or
three men armed with lazos, fearlessly enter the
pens at peril of life and limb — for the mothers are
ever ready to defend their young — and proceed to
drag the calves out singly by means of the lazo,

BRANDING SCENES. 193
though not without many obstinate struggles on their
part, and the more formidable resistance of their par
ents, which are kept back at the point of the gar-
rocha by men stationed on the fences. The contest,
however, is not of very long duration ; the calf nearly
choked by the lazo, and tormented by a cruel twisting
of his tail, springs forward toward the branding-
place. The moment he passes the threshold, one or
two little imps pounce upon the tail, jerking it until
they succeed in throwing him down ; the lazo is then
quickly removed, and the captor hurries back to the
pen for another calf. When a number have been
thus secured, a man goes round with the brand, and
in a very short time the whole lot are stamped
with the burning seal of the estate amidst the pit
eous bellowings and ineffectual kicks of the helpless
creatures. These operations, although performed on young
animals, are not so easily accomplished as might be
supposed ; it being not unusual for full-grown ones to
spring over the fences, or force their way through the
narrow gate of their pen. At such times, the opera
tors outside aie in imminent danger of being assailed
by the fugitives, if the latter are not promptly se
cured by men stationed for the purpose at the gate of
the corralejas. It becomes a much more serious busi
ness when a powerful bull is lazoed. He not only re
fuses obstinately to be dragged out like a calf, but re
quires the combined force and skill of all the men to
compel him from the pen, although the gate is pur
posely left wide open. In such cases a picador,
climbing to the top of the fence, endeavors to drive
9

194 WILD SCENES IX SOUTH AMERICA.
out the animal by repeated thrusts of the goad ; that
also failing, another lets himself down close to the
bull's tail, which he twists violently, and this seldom
fails to drive the refractory creature madly out, fol
lowed by the shouts and huzzas of his cruel torment
ors. The next proceeding is to throw him for the
purpose of regaining the lazo, and for the performance
of the above-mentioned operations. This, however, is
no easy matter, from the frantic plunges of the bull,
who has the entire range of the lazo. The only cer
tain method is that of dragging him close upon a
post — botalon — driven into the ground, where his over
throw is finally accomplished by the united efforts of
several men, one grappling his hind legs, another
seizing the tail, while two others keep a steady hold
of the thong, until the animal, at last exhausted, drops
heavily to the ground.
To justly appreciate scenes like these, one must
himself behold the dusky athlete battling single-
handed with a bull just escaping from the corral.
Seizing him by a horn with one hand, the Llanero
still holding it watches his opportunity until he can
grasp with the other the animal's tail. The bull is
then allowed to run as fast as he will, as the greater
his speed the more easily his downfall is accomplished.
If the bull moves too slowly, a few impressive jerks
generally accelerate his speed ; but occasionally he
returns the compliment by turning fiercely upon his
tail-bearer, who, if not very nimble, risks being gored
to death ; yet his skilful antagonist, not only usually
succeeds in evading his attack, but speedily contrives
to throw him. No sooner does this occur, than the

BRANDING SCENES. 195
vanquished one is surrounded by a host of merry yell
ing vagabonds, one brandishing a huge knife, which
he sharpens on the horns previous to performing the
operation which transforms the animal into an ox,
and if not previously marked, cuts his ear according
to the rule of the estate whose property he is ; another
holds a red-hot brand, which he implants at once
upon the quivering hide ; while a third with a small
hand-saw cuts off the sharp points of the horns. The
whole operation scarcely occupies three minutes' time ;
but notwithstanding this, the danger is very great if
the bull succeed in regaining his feet before it is fin
ished, as, instead of being subdued, no sooner is he
free, than he turns upon his assailants in renewed
fury, and then those valiant heroes may be seen scat
tering about the arena like a flock of partridges.
With nostrils widely distended, and foaming at the
month, the bull for an instant stands an embodiment
of rage and terror, endeavoring to discover the objects
of his vengeance. None, however, are presumptuous
enough to await ' his onset ; they would be levelled
with the dust in an instant, and his conquerors there
fore adopt the wiser policy of a speedy retreat to the
highest fence, whence they pour a volley of abuse
upon his shaggy head.
Occasionally, while the men were engaged with
one bull, several others effected their escape in spite
of the men whose business it was to prevent it. The
situation of the others then became critical in the ex
treme, being exposed to the attacks of the fugitives
on the one hand, and to those of the prisoner on the
other ; this last they were often compelled to abandon

196 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
in the midst of their labors. Those who held younger
animals formed with their bodies a sort of barricade
with which to fend off the aggressor, when no other
expedient could be resorted to. At times it appeared
almost impossible to escape the impetuous charge of
the bulls, especially when the men were some distance
from the fences ; the only remaining means of safety
then consisted in throwing themselves flat upon the
ground at the moment the bull aimed a stroke, as in
that case the animal invariably jumped over their
bodies. It is asserted that bulls in charging always
close their eyes, thus missing in blind precipitancy
many excellent opportunities for avenging the out
rages perpetrated on their race. Not so the cows,
who are said to keep their eyes fully open when they
are bent on mischief, seldom if ever turning from their
intended victim without leaving some mark, of either
horn or hoof, in token of displeasure.
On one occasion our leader himself very narrowly
escaped from one of these infuriate feminalities in
spite of his ability in dealing with wild cattle, and his
dexterity in avoiding their attacks. We had just en
tered the majada, and were making preparations for
the coming frolic. We stood under the shade of a
splendid matapalo or wild fig-tree growing within
the great enclosure, when a cow, which had left her
young behind while chased in the savanna, feeling
rather uneasy in consequence, cleared the fence of the
pen wherein she was confined, and the next moment
was among us. All retreated to the fences, excepting
our leader, who, ever rather sensitive about turning
his back upon an enemy, stood his ground somewhat

BRANDING SCENES. 197
protected by the stout body of the tree. The cow at
first appeared to pay but little attention to him, mak
ing straight for the gate of the majada, which she,
unfortunately, found strongly barred against her
escape. Then retracing her steps, she sought to
avenge her evident disappointment upon the gentle
man in white, whom she very well recollected having
left at the foot of the old matapalo. Still the un
daunted soldier, although repeatedly urged by his
men to fly, scorned the idea of seeking the talan-
quera, or, in other words, climbing the fence in a
hurry, thinking at first to avoid the enemy by step
ping round and round the tree ; but the cow was too
cunning to be cheated in this manner. After thus
chasing him in vain for a few minutes, she suddenly
changed her course, seeking him in the opposite di
rection, which brought them face to face. Unfortu
nately, the General, who had that morning been sitting
for his likeness in the full costume of the Llanos which
he still wore, found himself rather embarrassed in his
movements by the wide folds of the manta. This
prevented him from drawing the sword he had re
tained, which was his first impulse ; and he therefore
retreated a few paces into a more open space where
he could torear her until others came to his assistance.
With the subtlety of her sex the cow at once perceived
his intentions, and rapidly following his every move
ment, watched her opportunity to strike him on the
side ; but he, precisely at the right instant, with great
presence of mind threw himself flat upon the ground
just as she aimed the blow. Instead, however, of j limp
ing over him, as is usual with bulls in similar cases, the

198 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
cow rushed upon him, when his adroitness in grasping
one of her fore feet so firmly as to arrest further at
tack until others came to his relief, prevented any in
jury beyond a slight scratch on his side and tearing
his manta.
It is needless to add that after so disrespectful an
assault upon the revered person of our leader, the
cow received no gentle treatment at the hands of the
indignant vaqueros : some were for despatching her
at once for their evening meal ; others, for affixing a
dry hide to the end of her tail and letting her loose
over the plain ; while a few, compassionating her ig
norance, among them the aggrieved owner, were
only for depriving her of the means of doing further
mischief with the horns. This opinion prevailing at
last over all others, the ruthless hand of the execu
tioner at once applied the saw to the pride of her
head, after which she was allowed to depart in peace.
Thus ended a short, but not altogether inglorious
struggle, which, but for the cunning and address dis
played on both sides, might have terminated fatally
to either of the parties engaged in it.
After the corralejas had been emptied of their
contents, there still remained in the majada several
bulls at large, which had escaped during the confu
sion ; and many of these not yet having been oper
ated upon, another most exciting chase was afforded
to the indefatigable and athletic hunters. The nar
rowness of the field, however, which precluded the
use of horses, and the fact that each bull required to
be captured with the lazo, occasioned serious obsta-

BRANDING SCENES. 199
cles and much risk to the men engaged therein. Lack
of volunteers there was none, and among them a pow
erful red-haired zambo, which freak of nature had ob
tained for him the sobriquet of Colorado — the red man.
This fellow enjoyed a wide reputation in the
country for his exploits, both in field and corral, and
on this occasion proved himself deserving of the fame
which he had heretofore achieved. It was he who
now first led the charge. Seizing a lazo of long di
mensions, contrary to usual practice, he proceeded to
coil it on his right hand, securing the end upon his
left. Then, cautiously approaching a formidable
black bull, which stood alone in the centre of the
majada, he sent the whole lazo, noose and all, uncoil
ing like a snake through the air until it reached the
animal's head. Although the distance must have
been thirty paces, we had the satisfaction of seeing
the noose settle round his neck as truly as if placed
there by the practised hand of a hangman. From
this moment, Colorado was unanimously proclaimed
master of the lazo, an honor which he enjoyed to the
end of the performances, as all that remained in this
ease to be accomplished by the others was merely to
pull the lazo in order to bring the bull up to the
botalon or upright post, which served the double
purpose of subduing stake for the bulls, and training
post for the boys. To it one or more young bulls
were usually brought at the end of the day's work,
and the boys compelled to mount them in the manner
described in a previous chapter ; the animals are then
set loose amidst the crowd of assembled quadrupeds,
which are evidently amazed at the singular spectacle.

200 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

We witnessed several exhibitions of the kind in
the majada, whenever we were present at the brand
ing of the cattle ; but never do I recollect any serious
accident occurring to the little riders. Thus it is that
the Llaneros educate their boys from infancy to the
severest exercises of their profession, so that they in
turn may teach the same to their own children.
Not always, however, is the Llanero's triumph
over the brute creation obtained so easily, for many
are the instances in which the latter gain the advan
tage in these hand-to-horn combats, and in such cases
the evil resulting is very great. Sometimes the men
are dreadfully lacerated, either by the horns or the
sharp hoofs of their antagonists, frequently losing
their lives in consequence, from want of proper medi
cal treatment at the time the wounds are inflicted.
The most common phase the disease assumes is that
of tetanus or lock-jaw, which sometimes ensues from
only a slight scratch on the tendinous part of the foot.
From the scarcity of surgeons in the country, and the
lack of skill in dressing these wounds, mortification,
aneurisms, malignant abscesses, and a variety of other

BRANDING SCENES. 201
complaints are amongst the evils resulting from this
otherwise entertaining sport. In spite of all our pre
cautions, and the assistance of the surgeon, Dr. Gal
legos, we lost three of our best men, and several
others afterward died in consequence of injuries re
ceived during that expedition.

CHAPTER XV.
PLANTS AND SNAKES.
The wide extent of the savannas composing this
cattle farm, and the dispersion of the herds through
out them, compelled us to remove our quarters to a
more central point, from whence we could sally forth
in their pursuit. Orders were issued accordingly for
the men to be in readiness, and the next morning we
quitted with regret our comfortable quarters at the
majordomo's mansion and started for Mata-Gorda,
one of those delightful primeval groves which dot the
prairies here and there.
Some idea of the extent of this huge farm may be
gathered from the fact that one may start at a gallop
early in the morning from one end of the savannas
and not reach the other until late at night of the same
day. Its area would measure at least eighty square
leagues, or about one hundred and fifty thousand acres
of the richest land, but which under the present back-
Avard and revolutionary state of the country is com
paratively valueless to its owner. The number of

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 203
cattle dispersed throughout the length and breadth
of this wide extent of prairie land was computed to
be about a hundred thousand heads, and, at one
time, ten thousand horses ; but what with the peste,
revolutionary exactions, and skin hunters, compara
tively very few of the former and none of the latter
have been left.
Our first occupation on arriving at the Mata was
to set up a hasty ranch for the protection of our ac
coutrements and baggage, a structure which required
little labor or expense, the graceful palms affording
the best kind of thatch for the roof, and the surround
ing woods sufficient posts and rafters for the frame
work. A convenient apartment was provided in it
for the hammocks of our Leader and worthy Surgeon,
while the rest of us were compelled to seek accommo
dations among the trunks and branches of the trees.
These arrangements completed, the necessary tim
ber was next cut for the corrals to be erected for en
closing the coming herds, a work to which the hunters
devoted themselves, while I found greater attractions
in my daily explorations through the tangled forest.
The beautiful palms there claimed my most particular
attention. Apart from the splendor of their growth
and other peculiarities to which I have already al
luded in a former chapter, they are sufficient in them
selves to supply many of the domestic and economic
wants of man in a primitive state.
I also observed here many useful species of the
extensive family of leguminous plants, such as the
canafistula, (Cathartocarpus,) of which there were
several varieties, all of them beautiful timber trees,

204 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
whose pods, two feet long, were filled with a black
gummy substance possessing very medicinal proper
ties. In a natural form it affords one of the mildest
and most agreeable cathartics. Belonging to the
same family, the caro, masaguaro, and soman aca
cias can scarcely be rivalled in durability by any
other production of the vegetable world. Their pods
also contain a large proportion of a similar gummy
substance which cattle devour greedily, and which
fattens them better than any other kind of fodder.
The malagueta pepper, or donkey-bean, (TJvaria
febrifugal) an excellent febrifuge and antispasmodic,
also grows here in the greatest abundance. Its aro
matic seeds are carefully preserved in the tobacco
bladder of every Llanero, along with the tubers of the
snake root, (Aristolochia bulbosa,) a plant possessing
the same virtues, and withal the best antidote against
the bite of serpents.
Several other medicinal plants, such as the stately
mora, the wild sour-sop, and the mapurite, are also
met with here ; the last owes its name to the pecu
liar odor, not unlike that of the skunk, which per
vades the whole plant, rendering it any thing but
acceptable in the neighborhood of an encampment.
Of wild fruits there was also a fine array, and
among them the most delicious of all, in my opinion,
is the manirito, (Anona muricata,) a fruit scarcely
known to horticulture, and still less to the listless in
habitant of the country where it grows in wild lux
uriance ; as no one there has yet thought of bringing
it under cultivation. This plant, which belongs to
the same family as do several of the most celebrated

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 205
fruit trees of the tropics — the various kinds of custard
apples and the delicious cherimoyer — attains a height
of ten feet, and at the season of maturity, actually
bends to the ground beneath its sweet load. Unfor
tunately it all ripens at once, so that in a few days
the whole crop disappears. This fruit, like its con
gener the sour-sop, is covered with soft prickles. The
inside, a sweet and highly aromatic pulp, is filled with
small seeds, which, when the fruit is eaten in large
quantities, as is generally the case, are apt to produce
dangerous strictures. The whole plant is exceedingly
fragrant ; and by rubbing the leaves between the
hands, they emit a delightful aroma, not unlike that
of new mown hay.
Another pleasant fruit, that I here met also for
the first time, was the wild madrono, of the size of a
lemon, which it also resembles in shape and color. It
is filled with a most agreeable sub-acid pulp ; this
envelops three or four large nuts, not unlike cacao-
beans, and tastes very much like strawberries. The
tree producing this delicious fruit attains a height of
twenty feet. The foliage is very dense, with coria
ceous leaves ten inches long, of a brilliant green. A
thick yellow resin, resembling gamboge, exudes from
every part of the tree when wounded ; but whether it
has been found useful for any particular purpose, I
was unable to ascertain.
Somewhat similar to the latter, although growing
upon a plant of an entirely different nature, is the
cacaita, or monkey cacao-bean, a soft and rather in
sipid fruit, the production of a vine, which monkeys
devour greedily.

206 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
By far the largest proportion of the trees were
several species of guamos (Inga lucida) and others of
the same order of leguminous plants, bearing pods
eight or ten inches long ; these are filled with a row
of black beans, enveloped in a snowy white and sweet
ish pulp, most agreeable to the taste. The ripening
season of this mild and wholesome fruit was just com
mencing, and every day we gathered and consumed
quantities of it.
Another pod-bearing tree of great utility proper
to that region is the cdgarrobo, (Hymenea curbaril,)
the locust tree of the New World, which bears a thick
ligneous pod containing several hard, brown, and
rounded beans. These are surrounded by a sweet fari
naceous substance, possessing great alimentary prop
erties. A fragrant resin exudes from the pericarp of
the pods, which, on being burned, yields a perfume
similar to the odor of frankincense combined with
that of balsam of Tolu.
I had almost forgotten to mention, among the
agreeable fruits of these parts, several kinds of wild
guavas, from the tiny Arrayan, scarcely distinguish
able among the tufts of grass by which it is sur
rounded, to the beautiful paujil shrub, bearing in
great profusion quantities of brilliant scarlet, highly
perfumed and acidulous fruits. The berry of the
former exactly resembles Jamaica allspice in shape;
is quite sweet, and possesses in a high degree the ex
quisite flavor and aroma of the myrtle tribe, to which
indeed all these plants belong.
Great care was necessary in selecting spits for
roasting the beef, on account of a most poisonous

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 207
shrub, the deadly guachamacd, abounding there. It
belongs to the extensive family of ApocineaB or Dog
banes, whose poisonous qualities are known all over
the world. So virulent is this poison, that meat
roasted on spits made from the guachamaca, absorbs
sufficient poison to destroy all who partake of it. The
lazy Indians make use of it to kill without trouble the
cranes and herons on the borders of lagoons. For
this they procure a number of sardines, besmear them
with the juice of the plant, and spread them along
the places frequented by those birds. The moment
one of them seizes the fish, and before it is fairly swal
lowed, the bird drops dead ; then the indolent hunter,
issuing from his hiding-place, cuts off the parts affect
ed by the poison, usually the head and neck, and
feels no scruple in eating the remainder.
A dreadful case of poisoning by means of this
plant had just occurred at Nutrias, soon after our ar
rival on the Apure, which created for a time great
excitement even amidst that scattered population. A
woman who lived with a man in the vicinity of that
town became jealous of the attentions he bestowed
upon a charming neighbor of theirs, and determined
to avenge herself, but in some manner that would not
excite suspicion. In those remote regions where coro
ners and chemists are unknown, it is impossible to
detect murder except where marks of external vio
lence are visible. Accordingly, she prepared for her
lover a bowl of masato, a favorite beverage of the
country, made of Indian corn boiled, mashed in water,
and fermented ; in this she soaked chips of the poison
ous plant and offered it to him with smiling grace.

208 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Delighted at sight of the tempting bowl, the unsus
pecting lover invited several of his neighbors — among
them the hated rival — to share it with him. The
woman, not intending to destroy any but her perfid
ious lover, during his absence prepared another bowl,
omitting this time the poison. Llanero politeness
obliged the host, however, to mix his portion with
the others, which having done, he invited the com
pany to dip their calabash cups into the bowl. Out
of eleven persons there assembled, among them sev
eral children, not one escaped except the wicked per
petrator of this wholesale murder ; nor even the don
keys and fowl of the household, as their attentive
master had thrown them the remains of the deadly
mixture. Such is the dread in which the Llaneros hold this
plant, that I was not even permitted to preserve the
specimens of fruit and flowers I had collected, with
the object of ascertaining, on my return to the Val
leys, the botanical characters of the species. They
almost threatened to desert, if I insisted upon carry
ing them among the baggage.
The propagation of this plant throughout the
Apure appears to be of recent origin, none of the
oldest inhabitants recollecting to have met with it
until within comparatively a short period.
The men had no small trouble in clearing our
camp of many noxious reptiles ; and it became our
regular afternoon business to hunt for snakes. We
succeeded in killing a great number in the vicinity of
the ranch, some very poisonous, while others were

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 209
quite harmless ; of the latter class I found two species
of coral snakes, against which an unjust prejudice ex
ists, that they are among the most poisonous. Of the
former, the matacaballo is the most to be feared. Al
though scarcely larger than a good -sized earthworm,
his bite is nevertheless almost instantaneously fatal to
man and beast. Unlike his other sluggish and torpid
congeners, this little snake is the more dangerous be
cause always on the alert. The tramp of a horse,
especially, never fails in rousing them, against which
noble animal they evince an inveterate rancor. I was
once occupied in sketching one of these snakes, which
I had permitted to live for the purpose, and I observed
that whenever a horse approached us, the snake rap
idly turned his head in the direction of the sound,
seeming as if anxious to strike the animal with his
fangs ; but as I had fortunately taken the precaution
of disabling him by partially breaking his spine, he
could make but little progress toward the object of
his dislike.
The tendinous part between the hoof and ankle-
joint of the horse being nearest the ground, is conse
quently most exposed to the bite of the matacaballo ;
and although the distance from the ankle to the heart
is. very great, it not unfrequently happens that the
animal drops as if touched by the electric spark, from
which fact I infer that this poison acts on the nervous
system as well as on the blood. Horned cattle and
pigs are fortunately shielded by the thickness of their
skin from the fangs of this destroyer, which cannot
penetrate it. Hence this snake has been termed, par
excellence, matacaballo, literally horse-killer.

glO WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

It was at one time extremely dangerous to drive
horses across the banks of these savannas where
snakes are always most abundant ; their numbers,
however, have been considerably diminished since
the immense multiplication of pigs in those re
gions. Horses have there also another dangerous enemy —
a great hairy spider or species of the tarantula ; this
inflicts a very poisonous and painful sting just above
the hoof, which in time drops off, although it is never
followed by death.
But among all these evil creatures, there is none
so disgusting or so dangerous as the rattlesnake. The
virulence of its poison, and the great size attained by
some, renders them the terror of every man and beast
where they abound. Fortunately for mankind, they
have been provided by an ever-watchful Providence
with what is termed a rattle ; this is composed of a
number of horny rings placed at the end of the tail,

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 211
which, on being shaken, produce a peculiar sound,
and serve as warning. It is said that Nature every
year adds one of these rings, thus marking the age of
the reptile. From its loathsome body is exhaled a
strong odor, somewhat resembling musk, in itself
sufficient to warn the most careless, as it is per
ceptible at the distance of a hundred feet. The head
is peculiarly flat and broad, and the eyes sparkle in
the darkness like specks of fire. The mouth is a
ghastly aperture, whence issues a black and forked
tongue, which the reptile moves incessantly when
irritated. Two long fangs, curved inwardly, project
in front of the upper jaw, and through them the
fatal venom is discharged. The poison is secreted
from two glands in the form of small bags at the
root of the fangs, admirably adapted for the pur
pose, being hollow inside throughout their whole
length, and by their pressure against the glands pro
duced by the act of biting, the liquid is ejected into
the wound. Fortunately, this snake is the slowest in
its motions, and the most torpid of its kind, otherwise
the mischief done by them would be much greater,
they being very abundant also in the Llanos. Their
favorite haunts are the hollow trunks of decayed trees
and deep fissures in the ground. Occasionally they
are found coiled among thick clumps of grass, which
shelter them from the glaring sun ; but they are
always ready to strike any intruder. At night they
issue forth in quest of game, returning again to their
hiding-places before sunrise.
In addition to the foregoing, there are several
other kinds in the Apure ; among the, harmless ones

212 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA
the sabanera is very abundant in the savannas, from
which it is named. Some of these are ten feet long,
and occasionally even more. They glide over the
ground with astonishing rapidity, making all varieties
of contortions with their bodies, the forward part of
which they keep all the while raised in a vertical po
sition. These snakes are very useful, as they destroy
all the poisonous kinds they encounter.
The beautiful coral snake, with alternate rings of
red, black, and white, is occasionally seen in the vicin
ity of ant-holes. Most persons attribute to it very
poisonous qualities ; but I have examined its mouth
carefully and found there no fangs, nor any of the
characteristics of poisonous snakes.
In the same category is placed another inoffensive
reptile, a cecilia, emphatically styled culebra de dos
cabezas, or two-headed snake — so named on account
of having both ends of its body of equal thickness,
while the eyes are almost invisible. It seems the con
necting link between snakes and earthworms, partak
ing of the nature of both, is about a foot long, and
rather disproportionately thick for its length, while
its body is covered with minute scales. As this snake
has the power of moving backward or forward with
equal facility, it is supposed by many to be actually
possessed of two heads. There is abundant nourish
ment for it in the ant nests which it frequents, but it
feeds also on earthworms, and the larvas of insects,
pursuing them with unrelenting perseverance through
the ground. The double motion of this reptile, its
great muscular powers and flexibility enable it to
penetrate the deepest recesses of a colony of ants, and

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 213
to pierce the earth with wonderful expedition in
search of prey.
Another singular delusion existing in the Llanos
is the general belief that horse and human hair is
transformed into snakes, if left for a time to soak in
water. The snake resulting from this singular meta
morphosis is said to possess all the venom of the most
virulent, and a person bitten by one of them must at
once resign himself to his fate, as there is no remedy.
I recollect having often observed on the margins of
ditches and pools of stagnant water curious-looking
creatures, not unlike magnified horsehair, with snake
like motions ; scarcely any thing like a head being
visible, and still less a mouth with the requisite fangs.
They are singularly tough and tenacious of life, and
may be beaten with a stone without producing any
apparent impression upon them. From this fact, and
from their capillary appearance, the delusion has
doubtless originated. ANTIDOTES.
Several antidotes are recommended for the venom
ous bite of snakes ; some of them possess real alexi-
pharmic virtues, as the raiz de mato, to which I
have already alluded under the name of Aristolochia
bulbosa, and the guaco, (Mikania Guaco,) a compo
site plant which the learned Mutis has rendered so
celebrated through the instrumentality of Humboldt ;
the others, however, are nothing more than supersti
tious imaginings, which see in the tooth of a crocodile
extracted on Good Friday, or in some unmeaning

214 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
orison whispered in the sufferer's ear, greater powers
than in all the resources of medical science. Yet
such is the leaning of the benighted children of Na
ture in these regions toward the supernatural, that
they always give the preference to whatever savors
most of the miraculous. Somewhat of this has doubt
less arisen from the mistaken idea that all snakes are
poisonous. Thus if it so happen that the incantation
is whispered over a person who recovers, having been
bitten by a harmless snake, his cure is of course at
tributed to magic, which is accordingly proclaimed a
sovereign remedy for all similar cases in future. Saint
Paul, as I have already mentioned, possesses not only
the power of arresting the fatal spring of a snake, if
invoked in time, but can also neutralize the poison,
even when it is circulating through the veins. Not
withstanding my want of faith in the intervention of
the saint in question, I confess myself to have been
on an occasion extremely puzzled by one of these
cherished superstitions, the famous Oracion de San
Pablo, and up to this period have not been able to
account for it in a manner satisfactory to my common
sense. As we were one afternoon driving home a
herd of cattle, the majordomo's horse was bitten by a
matacaballo, when at a short distance from the ranch.
The rider observed his sudden start, and at once men
tioned the cause thereof. The ground, overgrown
with grass, was diligently searched, and the snake dis
covered and killed on the very spot pointed out by
the majordomo, who in the mean time had hastened
forward with his horse to the ranch, knowing that the
strength of the poor animal would soon give way.

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 215
Scarcely had he alighted when his horse, covered with
a cold sweat, dropped to the ground. A curandero
or snake doctor immediately presented himself and
commenced a series of incantations over the prostrate
animal, which it was supposed would soon counter
act the poison. I was anxious to administer spirits
of hartshorn, a well-authenticated remedy for such
cases, but the Llaneros opposed this resolutely, on the
ground that it would interfere with their own. The
Oracion was accordingly whispered in the horse's ear
and the patient then removed to a convenient pasture,
where he could find abundant feed if fate ever restored
his appetite. Here he was left, rolling upon the
ground and moaning piteously, while I was positively
assured by the men that in the course of two hours, at
most, he would be completely restored, and my scep
ticism confounded. Singularly enough, the remedy
acted in this case like a real charm ; at the appointed
time the horse started to his feet and commenced
browsing the grass around him with as much gusto
as if he had experienced no ailment whatsoever.
Whether the venom of the snake was not, in this in
stance, strong enough to kill the horse ; or, what is
more probable, the reptile's fang might not have pen
etrated deep enough, are questions which cannot be
decided, but shortly afterward the same horse, a
beautiful but wild and vicious young stallion, came
very near kicking to death the curandero who restored
him to health.
The Llaneros are not, however, the only people in
the country who have faith in these miraculous cures.
It is more or less entertained throughout the country

216 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
by persons more enlightened in other respects than
they. It is asserted of a famous curandero in the
Valleys of Aragua, that in extreme cases, if prevented
from going in person to the patient, it was only neces
sary to send his hat ! By placing this talisman on
the injured man's head, it would not only afford im
mediate relief, but arrest the progress of the venom
until the owner could come himself to perfect the
cure. Another singular practice obtains among Llaneros ;
it is that of inoculation with the juice of certain plants
possessing alexipharmic virtues, after which the most
poisonous snakes may be handled with impunity. It
is asserted, moreover, that cerrados — as individuals
thus inoculated are termed — are not only proof against
the bite of these reptiles, but can attract them around
their persons by merely clapping of hands or whis
tling for them in fields where they abound. Having
never witnessed any of these experiments, I will
neither undertake to uphold the truth of this asser
tion, nor will I question its veracity ; but there are
hundreds of reliable persons in the country who will
unhesitatingly swear to its efficacy ; among them, is
the testimony of Dr. Benites, a professional gentleman
who has published the result of his experiments in a
small book on the materia medica of the country.
With the view of ascertaining the alleged properties
of the guaco he devoted a great portion of his time
while at La Victoria in experimenting with various
kinds of snakes ; from him I quote the following pas
sage : " The guaco possesses in a high degree the

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 217
faculty of preserving man and animals in general
from the terrible and fatal effects of the bites of ser
pents. This valuable secret, discovered in Bogota by
the celebrated naturalist, Don Celestino Mutis, in
1788, remains still as such among some curanderos
of our own country, who, under certain mysterious
forms, and availing themselves of the fangs of ser
pents, puncture several slight incisions in certain
parts of the body, which they fill with the powdered
leaves of the guaco previously made dry, and admin
ister the same internally mixed in common rum.
This property of the guaco is so reliable, inoculation
by means of the juice such as was practised by Mutis
himself so well authenticated, and the facts concern
ing it so well attested, that there cannot longer exist
the least doubt in regard to its efficacy. I wished to
convince myself by actual experiment, and can testify
that in a thousand trials of inoculation practised by
myself in different ways on patients whom I allowed
to be bitten by various kinds of snakes, I never knew
one to fail. Suffice it to say that the principal amuse
ment of children in this place is to catch, carry about
and play with snakes, and that even young ladies
keep them in their bosoms or coil them around their
necks." It appears, nevertheless, absolutely necessary to
renew the inoculation at different epochs of a man's
life, as in the case of vaccination it loses its power
after a time. It was no doubt owiDg to his neglect
of the rule, that a gentleman in the town of Ocumare
some years ago fell a victim to his blind confidence
in this sort of inoculation. Don N. Ugarte had kept
10

218 WILD SCENES IN SOUTn AMERICA.
a rattlesnake in a drawer during four years ; with it
he occasionally amused himself, no more harm result
ing therefrom than if it had been a kitten. * One day
on returning home from? his rounds in the plantation,
he felt in the humor of playing a little with his old
pet, and accordingly took him out of his berth and
placed him upon the writing desk before him. One
of the children who had also been inoculated happen
ing to be near, the father suggested that he should
kiss the reptile ; to this, the child objected very de
cidedly ; the foolish parent, however, insisting, the
mother interfered and begged that her child should
not be compelled to touch the loathsome creature ;
whereupon the father exclaimed : " How foolish you
are ! I will show you how it kisses me. Now, then,
pet, give me a kiss ; " and so saying, he leaned for
ward toward the snake; true to its instincts, the
reptile sprang to his lips and implanted such a kiss
that its master never recovered from the effects. Both
fangs of the snake went quite through his upper lip,
and he at once felt himself to be mortally wounded.
A physician was sent for without delay, but he ex
pired before assistance could reach him.
The guaco is employed, moreover, in various other
disorders of the system with great success. In chronic
rheumatism it is an invaluable remedy both in the
form of poultices made of the fresh leaves, or by sim
ply rubbing the part affected with a decoction of the
plant in spirits, and taking internally one or two
ounces of the expressed jnice, morning and evening.
Administered in the latter form it is an efficacious
remedy against hydrophobia, if given immediately

PLANTS AND SNAKES.

219

after the person has been
bitten by a mad dog. Gen
eral Paez was thus saved,
when a youth, from this
dreadful scourge of tropical
countries ; he has neverthe
less retained in after life
some evil effects of the
virus still in his system
manifesting itself in a ten
dency to severe spasmodic
affections, especially at
sight of a snake, which
invariably induces violent
convulsions. Next to the guaco in
importance as an alexiphar-
mic, may be classed the
raiz de mato, including
several varieties of Aristo-
lochias, the roots of which
are intensely bitter. As
its name implies, it is said
to afford the mato — a large
species of lizard — a prompt
antidote against the bite
of his old antagonist, the
snake. There would seem
to exist some ancient
grudge between these two
reptiles, many persons as
serting that whenever they

220 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
come in sight of one another^hey instantly rush to
the attack, the mato never failing to overcome his
rival by his superior botanical knowledge ; this, or
his instinct, prompts him to seek the plant, and
swallowing some of the leaves, returns recuperated to
the fight.*
It was doubtless' from this circumstance the knowl
edge was first obtained respecting the valuable prop
erties of the plants ; and it is not a little remarkable
that people in different parts of the world, unac
quainted with the botanical structure of Aristolo-
* Dr. Lindley, speaking of the properties of Aristolochias in general,
and more especially of A. serpentaria — a North American species — ob
serves : " As its name implies, it is used as an antidote to serpent bites,
a quality in which several other species participate, among which may be
mentioned A. trilobata, a Jamaica plant, also employed as a sudden and
powerful sudorific ; and the Cartagena A. unguicida, concerning which
Jaquin writes, that the juice of the root, chewed and introduced into the
mouth of a serpent, so stupefies it that it may for a long time be handled
with impunity ; if the reptile is compelled to swallow a few drops, it
perishes in convulsions. The root is also reputed to be an antidote to
serpent bites. This plant is probably the celebrated guaco of the Colum
bians,* concerning whose supposed efficacy as an alexipharmic so much
has been said by Humboldt and others ; at least a leaf of what is either
this species or one closely allied to it, has been given me by Dr. Han
cock as the genuine guaco. It is not a little remarkable that the power
of stupefying snakes, ascribed in Cartagena to A. anguicida, should be
also attributed to A. pallida, longa, boetica, serpenvirens, and rotunda,
which are said to be the plants with which the Egyptian jugglers stupefy
the snakes they play with. In medicine these plants are slightly aromatic,
stimulating tonics, useful in the latter stages of low fever ; the taste is

* Thia i3 evidently a mistake, as the plant alladed to here belongs to the ex
tensive family of Compositie; probably the great resemblance -which its leaves bear
to those of Aristolochias — being deeply cordate-acuminate— has given rise to it
The Authok.

PLANTS AND SNAKES. 221
chias, should have discovered in them properties of
equal merit, and classed them under the same ver
nacular name.
bitter and acrid ; the odor strong and disagreeable : they are said to be
sudorific, and have been employed as emmenagogues in amenorrhcea."
Lindley's Vegetable Kingdom.

CHAPTER XVL
TIGER STORIES.
On the second night from our arrival at the Mata,
just as most of our party in their hammocks were
swinging off into dreamland, the ominous cry of El
Tigre ! — the tiger — was heard in the direction of the
camp fires, where a few of the men still lingered. As
if lifted by a gust of the pampero, every man dropped
from his aerial couch, and in an instant the whole
camp became a scene of the wildest confusion. Fire
brands flew in every direction, by the uncertain glare
of which we gained occasional glimpses of the jaguar,
for such was the intruder, prowling near us like a
huge cat. The horses snorted in terror, the men
shouted vociferously, while our brave Monico com
menced drumming upon his pots and kettles as if
they were so many gongs, with which in his capacity
of cook he summoned us to dinner, creating such an
uproar as drowned the voices of men and beasts, and
was horrible enough to frighten away a legion of
jaguars. The odor of the savory spits, at all hours
faithful to their posts around the camp fires, had

^»i

TIGER STORIES. 223
doubtless proved the magnet of attraction to his
spotted majesty, who, probably disgusted with the
style of his reception, made a precipitate retreat to
his stronghold in the forest, growling indignation at
our want of hospitality.
Although among the natives he is commonly
known by the name of the tiger, this animal is act
ually the jaguar or Felix Onza of naturalists, no real
tigers existing in any part of America. It neverthe
less exerts the same tyranny over other animals as
does the tiger or leopard in the hot regions of the Old
World, differing from its congener principally in the
form of the marks upon his skin, which in the jaguar
of America are rounded or in rings, therein unlike the
long stripes of the Bengal tiger. In another species
common to the forests of Guayana, the skin is nearly
black, the spots being invisible except in the broad
sunlight. This is considered the most sanguinary and
ferocious. Some jaguars attain a great size, measur
ing seven feet from the nose to the tail. They are
sufficiently powerful to kill an ox or horse and drag
them off over the highest fences.
When the excitement occasioned by the intrusion
of the nocturnal thief had subsided, few of us were
inclined for sleep ; several of our men, therefore, who
had been at different times active participators in
similar adventures, volunteered entertaining us for
the remainder of the night with some interesting
stories concerning this lord of South American for
ests. From them I gathered many useful facts re
specting his habits and disposition, which I shall
recount as nearly as possible verbatim.

224 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Although, perhaps, the most powerful among wild
beasts of this continent, the jaguar is by no means as
terrible as might be supposed from the renown of his
prowess. Occasionally when hard pressed by hunger
he ventures within the precincts of man, robbing the
corrals of the farmhouse of their defenceless inmates.
Many instances are also related of his having attacked
and carried off a solitary traveller to his lair in the
woods ; but he usually evinces the profoundest respect
for man unless driven to extremities, when he has
been known to set at defiance the combined efforts of
a host of men and dogs. When thus, by a too inti
mate acquaintance with the people and flocks of some
particular community, he has gone so far as to levy
blackmail upon them, the appellation of cebado — as in
the case of the crocodile — is given to the jaguar. An
animal of this description is said to possess wonderful
daring and instinct, making him by far the most dan
gerous of the class, attacking not only tame animals
in the corrals, birt even individuals are frequently as
sailed and devoured by him. It is said also that when
he has once tasted human blood, he becomes insatiable
in his eagerness to procure this luxury. They are then
so dangerous, that the owners of cattle farms usually
call a meeting of all the hateros in the vicinity, capa
ble of handling lazo or lance — firearms being rarely
used in expeditions of this kind — and with the assist
ance of a pack of well-trained hounds of a peculiar
breed, called tigreros in consequence, they surround
the wood supposed to harbor the tiger, and beating
carefully about the jungle, drive him out into the open
plain, where men on horseback are stationed ready to

TIGER STORIES. 225
lazo the game as it breaks cover. To ensure success,
it is only requisite that the horses be steady and well
trained to the sport ; and as the tiger, conscious of
his danger, frequently refuses to quit the jungle, a
number of daring matadors are also needed to drive
him out or attack him in his lair, assisted in this by
the dogs, which, by harassing him on all sides, divert
him from the assailants.
Jaguars were at one time so numerous in the
Llanos, that their ravages upon the calves and young
foals were truly frightful. This circumstance, in ad
dition to the value attached in other countries to
their beautiful skins, have contributed to reduce the
numbers very considerably, as whenever they make
their appearance they are eagerly pursued.
In its wild state the jaguar is an exceedingly beau
tiful animal ; his motions particularly easy and grace
ful, and possessing wonderful agility in bounding
among the trees and tall grass of the savannas.
When watching for prey, he generally crouches upon
the ground, the fore paws stretched out, resting his
head between them in a manner very similar to that
of the domestic cat ; and as he climbs trees with a
facility almost equal to that of monkeys, these are in
exceeding dread of him on that account.
The haunts usually preferred by the jaguar appear
to be swampy borders of marshes and lagoons over
grown with reeds and wild plantain, where they are
sure of finding plenty of game. Water hogs or capy-
varas especially, are easy prey, as they cannot move
except in short jumps. It is asserted that where these
animals abound, there is little to be feared from the
10*

226 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
jaguar, which always prefers the wild animals of the
field for food, becoming bolder and more dangerous
to man in proportion as these disappear.
My earliest recollection of the jaguar dates from
the time when the famous town of Achaguas was
head-quarters for the patriot army commanded by
my father. I was a little fellow not more than three
years of age, when a foraging party fell in with a
tigress and her cub ; the latter they secured and
brought to Achaguas after a desperate struggle with
the mother. The extreme beauty and youth of the
captive soon gained the sympathies and favor of a
host of admirers, especially those of the female de
partment, in the household of Colonel Mujica, who
purchased it and consigned it to their care. Under
their special protection and good treatment it quickly
grew strong enough to take part in all squabbles
among the dogs and cats of the family, which an
imals always form a prominent feature in all well-
regulated Llanero establishments. At first the new
pet was allowed the entire freedom of the premises,
associating very readily with every stranger who vis
ited the house, and evincing none of the disagreeable
traits ascribed to these animals. I, who participated
in all its juvenile antics, and who supposed it to be
only a large cat, very soon became its favorite play
mate, until on one occasion it carried its pranks so
far as to throw me down, at the same time tearing
my clothing to rags with its claws. From this mo
ment it was considered expedient to chain up my
playfellow, and accordingly he was secured to a pillar

TIGER STORIES 227
in the corridor of the house. It is related of this fa
vorite, that having afterward broken its chain, it
speedily found the way to the poultry yard where the
Colonel kept his game chickens, not one of which was
left to fight its battles over. For this unpardonable
breach of discipline the young tiger received so sound
a castigation as to cripple the poor fellow for life.
Numberless are the tricks recorded of the lame
tiger of Colonel Mujica, fhey for a time constituting
the principal amusement of those of the army who
were in the habit of frequenting the Colonel's quarters
to while away their idle hours at the favorite game
of monte. What finally became of my uncouth play
fellow, I am unable to state ; the probability is that
he, as well as most of the brave champions of that
memorable epoch, is dead ; at all events, they are
buried .... in the dust of the past.
In a solitary ranch, not far from San Jaime, there
once lived a poor widow, who, out of compassion for
a young cub which had been picked up by some va
queros undertook to raise it with the milk of her own
goats, sheltering it at night from the damp under the
folds of her bed, covering and treating the foundling
with as much affection as though it were her child.
In return, the little fellow became so attached to its
adopted mother, that it could not endure a moment's
separation from her, and would lie like a cat by the
fireside while she devoted herself to the occupations
of the kitchen. As it grew older and stronger, the
woman's slender stock of goats was rapidly dimin
ished by its repeated depredations ; it was therefore

228 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
deemed prudent to give it wider range than the
widow's little farm-yard, and it was encouraged to
seek for game in the neighboring woods. Whenever
successful in these excursions, the intelligent creature
invariably brought some home, and with seeming
pride laid it at the feet of its benefactress. On one
occasion, some of her neighbors having come to pass
the day with her, she thought that as game was plen
tiful and easily obtained, she would spare such of her
goats as had thus far escaped the teeth of her favorite,
and, instead, procure with its assistance a supply of
venison with which to treat her guests. Accordingly^
leaving the hut in their charge, she and her efficient
hunter started for the woods, proposing to be back in
time to cook the dinner ; but to the astonishment of
her visitors, the dinner-hour arrived, then the night,
but no tidings of the hunters ; and up to this time, I
believe, nothing has been heard about either of the
former tenants of the solitary ranch, although it is
not difficult to imagine the poor widow's fate.
We had once in our employ a stout and powerful
sambo, who on account of his name — Bolivar — and
his great muscular development, had received the
sobriquet of Bolivote, or big Bolivar. Great was his
pride in possessing not only the same patronymic as
the distinguished General of his name, but also some
deep scars on his right arm, inflicted by the claws of
a jaguar, which he improved every opportunity of
displaying. Bolivote had been riding hard during a whole
day, and feeling rather weary, sought repose under

TIGER STORIES. 229
the shade of a clump of palm trees, allowing his horse
meanwhile to crop the grass near by. He had lain
down at the foot of a palm, and almost fallen asleep,
when he was roused by a rustling of the leaves over
head, and looking up to ascertain the cause, beheld
with astonishment a large jaguar in the act of spring
ing upon him. He started to. his feet, but was within
the tiger's grasp ere he could unsheath his sword.
Without losing a moment he plunged his finger into
one of the fiery eyeballs glaring upon him, and suc
ceeded in forcing it from its socket. The pain thus
inflicted was so acute, that the tiger retreated with
fearful yells ; yet not before he had mangled with
teeth and claws the sturdy arm which had punished
him so severely.
During our journey across the pampas, we were
shown the spot where not long before a jaguar had
attacked a woman. Her preservation, also, was due
to presence of mind, and to the fact of being armed
with a machete or cutlass, with which she had in
tended cutting a load of wood for domestic uses.
The wood being near at hand, she was in the daily
habit of fearlessly traversing the plain alone. On
one occasion she went al monte, to the fields, as they
say there, with the intention of collecting her usual
load of fagots. No sooner did she commence break
ing the sticks, than a deep rumbling growl which
seemed to shake the ground beneath her feet, almost
paralyzed her movements. Although the sound was
somewhat familiar, yet she never before had heard it
so near at hand, and she was therefore instantly con-

230 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
scious of her perilous situation. Knowing that an
attempt at precipitate flight would only contribute to
increase the anger of the tiger, she decided accord
ingly upon concealing herself and remaining perfectly
quiet behind a large tree. Vain endeavor ! in a few
moments a large jaguar glided from the tangled jun
gle and stood before the terrified woman, his eyes
shooting fire, his open mouth parched with thirst of
blood. At the dread sight she gave herself up for
lost, and began reciting aloud a prayer to her patron
saint, which the tiger answered with another fearful
roar. The jaguar then commenced tearing up the
roots of the nearest tree, looking the while like a huge
cat sharpening his claws. Then gradually approach
ing the woman's hiding-place until within a few yards,
with a bound he cleared the space separating them,
and alighted at the foot of the tree behind which she
was sheltered. Without a moment's loss, the woman
aimed a blow with her machete, severing one of the
paws which grasped the tree. This partly disabling
him, he retreated a few paces ; but soon returning to
the attack, received a second blow, this time on his
head, with such good effect that he fell stunned upon
the ground. It is needless to add that our heroine
did not wait to see what might have been the final
result of this blow, but springing from her hiding-
place, she so belabored him with her machete as to
completely spoil his skin for marketable purposes.
Among the troop of idlers and adventurers always
following the camp, we were favored at Mata Gorda
with the company of a famous story teller of the

TIGER STORIES. 231
Apure, who, in wonderful encounters with wild
beasts, and marvellous adventures, might almost
rival the celebrated Baron Munchausen, or even the
sailor of Arabian Nights celebrity. His real name
was B. ; but owing to his diminutive stature and
cunning, he had been honored with the familiar ap
pellation of Tio Conejo* Indeed, so small was he,
that if we credit his statement, he was often mistaken
for his own baby, usurping its place in the cradle for
the purpose of enjoying the kisses and other petites
caresses usually lavished by the female sex upon these
tender innocents. Among the various incidents of
his eventful life, he had, as a matter of course, some
thing to say concerning tigers.
" Once upon a time," said our humorous compan
ion, " I was by the banks of the river Uribante, and
there had an opportunity of cheating Tio Tigre in
his endeavors to make mince meat of my humble
self. Returning one day from a successful fishing
excursion, I was enjoying my usual siesta when El
Tio made up his mind, as it seemed, to pay me an
unexpected visit, doubtless with the intention of rob
bing me of the products of my industry, which I had
dressed and salted a few minutes before. Happily I
1 have for obvious reasons accustomed my eyes to
keep alternate watch when camping out alone, as was
the case in this instance, so that if approached by any
evil-disposed individual, I am always able to avoid
* Tio Tigre and Tio Conejo — Uncle Tiger and Uncle Rabbit. These
are the heroes of endless adventures, the mother's never-failing source of
amusement to her children, supposed to have taken place in the woods
of Venezuela.

232 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
danger through the watchfulness of the one on duty ;
when this sentinel becomes weary, I allow it to sleep
and rouse its fellow.
" Well, Senores, as I have said already, one of my
watchmen observing the tiger coming toward me, I
sprang from my hammock with the intention of giv
ing him a warm reception ; but, luckily for the
spotted vagabond, my cuchillo, which is always by
my side, was left forgotten among the heap of fish I
had been dressing. Thus cut off from my only means
of defence, and observing near by an immense gourd
of a size such as is rarely seen in these parts, I slipped
into it j ust when Tio Tigre thought he had me."
The narrative was here interrupted by a sceptical
individual from the audience insisting upon being en
lightened as to the precise dimensions of that gourd ;
the reply was, " Why, Sirs, here is nothing extraor
dinary. I have seen squashes at the foot of the Cor
dilleras, each of which would be a load sufficient for
a bongo. I once lost a pack of mules during the
night, and after searching for them around the base
of what I supposed a hillock, I found the sagacious
animals inside one of these squashes — for such was
the seeming hillock — supping at leisure on the succu
lent pulp, having gnawed for themselves a passage to
the interior. But to return to mj story. The tiger,
enraged at my sudden disappearance, commenced a
deliberate attack with teeth and claws upon the tough
and slippery shell, with no , other result than that of
rolling the gourd with me in it further from him.
" It was hugely amusing to watch from my strong
hold the tactics of my assailant; at one moment

TIGER STORIES. 233 «
crouched a short distance off upon the ground, he
would watch the mysterious object much as a cat
watches a mouse ; then with a sudden spring pounced
again upon the gourd, thus causing it to roll before
him like a ball. My only fear was, that the tiger in
one of these furious onsets might precipitate me into
the stream below. I was not then aware that water
in deep rivers reaches no lower than the base of their
steep banks, which act as support for the whole body
of water above, thus leaving a clear expanse under
neath and the bed of the river entirely dry, a remark
able fact which I discovered on another occasion
when diving in the Orinoco for a lost treasure belong
ing to the monks.
" That which I feared at last came to pass. The
gourd, pushed by the tiger, fell spinning into the
water, and I found myself sailing down the stream
escorted by a band of hungry crocodiles, who
watched me with eager eyes and open jaws, until
my patron saint in the form of a humane porpoise
came to my assistance, frightened off the ugly
wretches, and receiving me on his back, landed me
in safety on a desert shore, where, amigos, you will
have to leave me for the present, as it is almost morn
ing, and we must sleep an hour or two before starting
for the Rodeo." THE PANTHER-TIGER.
Although principally a sojourner in the more ele
vated parts of the country, the panther is occasion
ally seen descending toward the plains in search of

234 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA!
the abundant fare of the pampas. He resembles the
jaguar in many respects, and is called in consequence,
tigre de serrania, or mountain tiger. He is, however,
easily distinguished from the former by the shape of
his head, which in the panther is more acute toward
the snout, while the spots on his skin are smaller and
more closely set.
The panther is by far the bolder and more san
guinary of the two ; he frequents the mountain passes,
waylaying stray animals and solitary travellers ; and
there are many cases on record in which he has dis
played his bloodthirsty propensities by boldly seeking
food even in the very haunts of man.
Some of the mountain districts of Venezuela are
so infested with them, that few travellers ever ven
ture to journey alone there ; as, for instance, the mon-
tana de Capaya, east of Caracas, and the Cerro de
Aroa to the west, both famed for the number and
boldness of these animals. Under cover of the dense
forests with which those mountains are clothed to the
very summit, they lie in wait. Not long since, a
traveller from the village of Aroa, finding the dis
tance greater than he had anticipated, was compelled
to pass the night in the forest. Fearing the panthers,
he slung his hammock between two palm trees as
high as possible from the ground, hoping doubtless
thereby to escape them, but his precautions proved
of no avail ; the poor traveller fell a prey to one of
these sanguinary beasts. A few days after, a party
of muleteers passing along the same route, found on •
the spot where the sad tragedy had been enacted,
evidence of the bloody assault. Deep furrows

TIGER STORIES. 235
ploughed in the ground between the palm trees,
showed that the panther must have made frequent
and tremendous leaps to reach the unfortunate travel
ler ; but with the exception of the torn hammock,
there remained no vestige of the victim.
My first vacation trip from the terrors of a South
American school and the angry visage of a harsh pre
ceptor, is still fresh in my mind, as is also the fright
I received upon the road from an imaginary panther
while endeavoring to reach before daylight the near
est inn upon the route.
The road from the capital to the Valleys of A ra-
gua — our destination — lies for the most part over a
high ridge of mountains with precipitous sides, inter
spersed here and there with deep ravines and almost
impenetrable thickets of forest trees, fit lurking-places
for wild beasts and banditti. The extreme steepness
of the road renders the aid of mules, or horses of su
perior mettle, imperative, and for this exigency our
attentive guides had well provided before leaving
Caracas. The party was principally composed of young gen
tlemen and their attendants, all like myself bound to
the fertile regions of Aragua, where we purposed pass
ing the holidays with our families ; and a wilder set
of madcaps it would have been difficult to find.
Every moment witnessed a malicious trick, some
times tickling the mules under the cruppers with
whips, until, worried into frenzy, they plunged fear
fully along the road, placing us in danger of being
hurled into eternity through the yawning chasms be-

236 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
neath. Sometimes jerking the tail of a neighbor's
mule, causing the animal to whirl so violently as to
almost destroy its balance. Occasionally some of the
party might be seen scrambling up the rugged side
of a mountain after bright colored insects or wild
berries. At length, the steepness of the ascent no
longer permitting the continuance of our pranks, the
guides entertained us with frightful stories of a tiger
said to lurk in these mountains ; but chiefly with ac
counts of horrid murders perpetrated at various points
along our route, which, judging from the many crosses
and stone mounds raised to the victims by the piety
of wayfarers, must have been truly appalling in num
ber. In those parts it is customary to mark the spot
where a crime of the kind has been committed, with
a wooden cross, at whose foot every passer-by casts
a stone, muttering at the same time a prayer for the
repose of the unshriven soul. One of these memorials
was erected to a poor fellow, whose throat had been
cut and body frightfully mutilated for a new poncho
and a few reals. At another, a tiger had seized a
wearied poultry carrier imprudently asleep by the
side of his coop, and devoured him and his chickens.
In another instance, the tiger appeared suddenly
among a group of muleteers quietly refreshing them
selves by the murmuring waters of a mountain stream,
and after scattering the affrighted group, helped him
self to their repast.
These stories, told with great vivacity and much
embellishment, excited in a high degree the fervid
imaginations of the youthful cavalcade, causing them
as night approached to keep close together. They,
however, did not deter me, who had ever a peculiar

TIGER STORIES. 237
fondness for the beautiful in nature, from loitering
somewhat in the rear of my companion to gaze in
wondering admiration upon the grandeur and wild
luxuriance of the scene which on all sides met my
eyes. Absorbed in contemplation I was riding slowly
along, when suddenly, and to my great horror and
dismay, I found myself in presence of, apparently, the
dreaded tiger of the mountains. My imagination,
roused by the exciting stories of the muleteers, showed
me the spotted brute seated upon his haunches, his
sinister eyes gazing steadily at me over his right
shoulder. Notwithstanding this pacific attitude, a
thrill of terror chilled my veins, while in spite of the
cold prevailing on those mountain ranges, heavy
drops of perspiration streamed from my trembling
body. The tiger seeming spell-bound with my sud
den apparition, I endeavored to cry aloud for help ;
but terror had deprived me of voice. I then con
cluded to dismount and place the mule between
myself and the tiger, which impulse was suddenly
checked as I caught sight of the yawning precipice
beside me. I had therefore no alternative, other
than the ignominious one of sliding down in the rear
of my mule, a feat I rapidly accomplished without in
the least inconveniencing the patient creature, which
all the while stood quietly awaiting my pleasure. At
this moment the moon, until then partially obscured
by the dense fog, shone brilliantly upon the scene,
when, to my great mortification and greater relief, I
discovered that the ferocious tiger of my imagination
was only the fallen branch of a tree covered with
leaves, which, last my fertile fancy had mistaken for
the spotted skin of the dreaded mountain tiger.

CHAPTER XVII.
SHOOTING ADVENTURES.
We were now in the very midst of the most splen
did shooting ground of the republic, and each day
my quest after the feathered inhabitants of those fine
groves was rewarded with an abundant supply of
pavas, guacharacas, and that most noble and beauti
ful of all game birds, the pauji or crested curassow
of South America, (Crax alector.) This fine species
is found in all parts of the country, especially in the
woods of the tierra caliente, where it can be tracked
without difficulty by the shrill and prolonged whistle
with which it calls its mate, and which can be heard
from a long distance. It appears not to notice the
presence of the hunter, allowing itself to be shot
down without making the least effort to avoid the
danger. This bird is nearly the same size as the do
mestic turkey, and being easily domesticated, could
very well supply the place of that fowl, as the flesh is
juicy and of exquisite flavor. Its plumage is pecu
liarly rich and beautiful, the head and neck being
white and the rest of its body of a rich olive brown,
excepting the wing tips which are black. An elegant

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 239
tuft of curled, glossy black feathers surmounts the
head, adding greatly to the splendor of its appear
ance. In the more elevated parts of the country
there is another species, the pauji de piedra or
cashew-bird, so called from a singular excrescence on
the top of its head, in color a bluish gray, and bear
ing some resemblance to a polished nodule of slate.
This bird only inhabits woods growing at about four
thousand feet of elevation, and if possible exceeds in
beauty the preceding. Its plumage of a deep black,
with tints of olive green, contrasts exquisitely with
that of the bill and legs, which are respectively of a
brilliant 6carlet and deep yellow. They are even
more easily domesticated than the preceding, and are
therefore to be met with in many a farm yard of the
Cordillera, where they form one of its most graceful
ornaments. The guacharaca or South American pheasant may
also be classed among the finest game birds of Venez
uela, and is extremely abundant everywhere. In riding
along the solitary roads through the plains and fertile
vales of the tierra caliente, the traveller may have
often noticed at all hours of the day and even of the
night, more especially at the approach of rain, a most
discordant chattering in harsh and shrill notes ; it is
the song of the guacharaca, a bird of about the size
of the domestic hen, bearing some resemblance to the
female pheasant, and like it of a chocolate color. It
is of a sociable nature, always congregating in flocks
of twenty or thirty. The moment one of the number
leads the chant, all the rest join in chorus, uttering
distinctly in hoarse repetition guacharaca, guacha-

240 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
roca / hence the name of this bird. These cries are
invariably responded to by all the flocks in the neigh
borhood, so that in a short time the whole valley
rings from end to end with their discordant voices.
Like all other gallinaceous birds, it is very easily do
mesticated with the paujies, pavas, gallinetas, and
several other wild fowl with which the rural inhabi
tant loves to stock his yard.
In addition to the foregoing, there are also in the
Llanos all kinds of wild pigeons, doves, plovers, and
quails, the latter so abundant that they can easily be
killed by the hundred with a stick. And indeed, so
great is the almost endless variety of fine birds in
these wilds, that it would be impossible, within the
limits of these pages, to enter into further detail con
cerning them.
Deer were also very plentiful, both in the mata,
whither they were attracted by its refreshing shade,
and in the meadows around it ; but having no dogs
with us, and being unwilling to tire our horses in un
profitable sport, we refrained from their pursuit. One
afternoon, however, much to my surprise, a merry,
clever fellow by the name of Casimiro, who had fol
lowed us from the valleys, entered the camp bending
under the weight of a fine doe which he had killed
that afternoon, together with a buck that an Indian
boy was carrying for him. On our complimenting
his extraordinary skill in killing two deer in so shorn
a space of time, he informed us that he could have
brought down any number of them, and intended
retracing his steps at once for more. This proved no
mere boast, for quickly returning to -the woods, he

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 241
soon after again made his appearance with a similar
load, which, seating himself by the fire, he at once
commenced skinning.
I inquired of Casimiro the occasion of his success ;
he replied by producing a tube of bamboo about the
thickness of the thumb, one end being covered with
a thin membrane. On blowing through the other
end, a sound precisely resembling the bleating of a
young fawn resulted. It is in this manner that the
treacherous hunter decoys the anxious doe, whose
every motion he watches from the place of his con
cealment behind the branches of some tree, usually
the algarrobo, of whose pods deer are very fond.
This detestable expedient is, I am glad to state, rarely
practised unless by hungry sportsmen ; and as we
were then in the midst of plenty, and venison besides
not being much relished by the beef-eating popula
tion of the Llanos, we had fortunately no occasion to
resort to it in any of our subsequent deer-shooting
adventures. Another device much practised by Indians in
these cases, consists in assuming the guise of the
great garzon or soldier crane of the pampas, whose
company appears always welcome to deer grazing in
the open prairie. This crane, which I have mentioned
in a former chapter, as being at the least five feet in
height, is mounted upon a pair of long slender legs,
giving it the appearance of walking on stilts ; their
plumage is a dazzling white, and they have a pouch
under the throat of a brilliant scarlet color. The
bill, too, is quite a remarkable feature, fully a foot
11

242 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
long and very wide at the base, which permits of
swallowing at a mouthful large fish, as well as frogs,
toads and snakes, of which last it partakes with equal
relish. All that the hunter has to do, who intends
ensnaring his deer with borrowed plumes, is to hide
his own face with a mask, which must have a long
bill resembling that of the crane attached to it. The
mask being securely fastened on, he finishes his toilet
by covering his body to his knees with a white gar
ment.

In this simple disguise the hunter, equipped be
sides with his gun or bow and arrows, makes straight
for the game, careful however to approach it in a
contrary direction to that of the wind, deer possessing
peculiarly acute powers of scent. On one occasion,
I was fortunate enough to shoot three of these shy
animals out of a small herd, before the rest took the
alarm.

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 243
Our young attache, Roseliano, who had witnessed
the universal success of these devices, envying the
achievements of his elders, determined to try what he
could accomplish for himself in this line. Accord
ingly, choosing for his intended victim a fine stag
grazing at no great distance from the camp, he forth
with proceeded on his experiment. Having no gar-
zon's beak at hand, nor even a white garment, with
which to personate the feathered dandy of the savan
nas, he was for some time at a loss how to approach
the game without alarming it, when a malicious com
panion persuaded him that he could ensnare the deer
equally well if he presented himself simply in puris
naturalibus, assuring him that the animal would in
dubitably conceive him to be a rare bird or at least
a new species of garzon. Roseliano, finally convinced
by these specious representations, quickty denuded
himself; then, gun in hand, and taking all necessary
precautions in regard to the wind, which was blowing
quite fresh at the time, immediately gave chase.
At first the stag appeared to pay little heed to the
enticing object, and allowed it to approach within
range ; but the moment the gun was raised, the stag
turned round and trotted slowly off, waving his short
tail defiantly. Sometimes he stopped for a little while,
seeming to examine from head to foot this unfeathered
biped, afterward resuming his mastications with per
fect nonchalance. At such times Roseliano, with
due precautions, would creep slowly toward him, '
when invariably the deer, almost within range, again
trotted composedly down the plain, not even giving
his pursuer a chance to aim at him. Occasionally he

244 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
would turn about, stamp his tiny hoof upon the hard
ground, and again move off wagging his little tail at
him as though to say, " No, you don't."
Thus went each, still eluding still pursuing, for a
long distance, without either seeming at all willing to
part company, until the burning sun began to tell
upon the bare skin of the young hunter, who expe
rienced besides sundry painful reminders from the
thorny sensitive plants under foot. At length grow
ing somewhat desperate, he dashed ahead and sent a
random shot after the deer without success, the ball
striking the ground far short of the mark. The deer
seemed now to think he had received notice to quit,
for, to the great disgust of poor Roseliano, he at once
bounded gracefully over the tall grass and disap
peared from view.
Within a stone's throw of our camp were several
lagoons abounding in terrapins and turtles, whilst on
all sides the savannas teemed with many delicious
quadrupeds. These, on account of their penchant
for the water, have been declared cold-blooded an
imals by the church, and can in consequence be
eaten as fish ; and as it was Holy Week, a grand
hunt was proposed for the purpose of providing the
camp with food which should be wholesome as well
for the soul as the body. Accordingly, early on Good
Friday morning the whole disposable force assembled
in front of the ranch ; and after a partial organization,
all started on foot in different directions, some in
quest of cachicamos or armadillos, others for gala-
pagos and tortoises, while the less fastidious did not
disdain to try their skill upon those water hogs, the
chigiiires or capyvaras.

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 245
The results of the hunt far exceeded our expecta
tion, as in less than four hours nearly three hundred
armadillos, and probably as many turtles, were
brought into camp. The flesh of the chigilire is not
much relished by the Llaneros, although it is excel
lent for hams when properly cured and smoked ;
accordingly the carcasses, the hind quarters being
removed, were left to the turkey buzzards.
The flesh of the armadillo is most delicious, tast
ing very much like young pig ; and being always
roasted in the shell — a thick
cuirass formed of successive
horny plates — all its juices are
effectually preserved. It is,
however, very rich eating, from
the excess of fatness, and there
fore liable to produce indiges
tion, if not followed by a good
dose of aguardiente and a strong
sauce of Chili peppers. It is also said to exert very
injuri°us effects on persons predisposed to syphilitic
disorders of the system, developing incipient ulcers
and various other cutaneous diseases.
The armadillo is a harmless, curiously-formed
little quadruped, about the size of a common hedge
hog ; it burrows in the ground, spending the greater
part of the day in cool retirement, issuing at dusk or
very early in the morning in search of food ; this con
sists principally of worms, the larvas of insects or per
chance a young snake from the broods that take shel
ter among the cells of its subterranean abode — whether
by permission or as intruders, remains to be ascer-

246 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
tained. The fact is, however, that many of these bur
rows are so full of snakes, that it is necessary on ac
count of them to exercise considerable caution when
passing near the abodes of armadillos. Two little
owls called aguaita-caminos, road-watchers, usually
stand like sentinels at the entrance of these burrows,
and by their constant flutterings around the sports
man, and their uncouth motions, almost invariably
succeed in warning the armadillo. Nevertheless, if
the hunter approach in front, he can always secure it
with his hands as its vision in that direction is entirely
obscured by the position of the plates with which the
head is covered. When attacked from the rear or
sides, it makes quickly for its burrow ; but if the
hunter, however, be sufficiently expert, he may suc
ceed in getting hold of the long, horny tail of the an
imal before it disappears entirely from view. Even
then, as this creature possesses the power of swelling
its body when thus attacked, it is rather difficult to
drag it out, unless by some means the size of the bur
row can be enlarged. There is then danger of severe
wounds from its sharp claws, as well as of being bitten
by some of the poisonous snakes which share its
home. What affinity there is existing between this
quadruped and the finny inhabitants of the water,
prompting their classification among amphibia, I was
unable to ascertain ; but although the capyvara and
several others placed by the church under that cate
gory, possess, it is true, great powers of resistance
while in water, the reverse is assuredly the case with
regard to the armadillo, which always seeks the higher

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 247
grounds so as to escape submersion during the great
floods ; and I have often found it in the midst of ex
tensive plains where no moisture excepting the dews
of night is to be seen for miles around.
When all the different parties, participants in the
hunting excursion, were once more seated round the
camp fires, it was quite amusing to hear their ac
counts of the various incidents connected with it ;
one had got hold of a rattlesnake's tail, mistaking- it
for that of an armadillo ; another had stumbled over
a crocodile while diving for turtles in a shallow creek ;
a third had his toe bitten off by caribes ; while not a
few experienced more or less severe shocks from elec
tric eels. In front of many of the fires, soon blazing
under the trees, were arrayed on long wooded spits
entire carcasses of the armadillos split along the belly
and kept open by means of cross bars of green boughs.
Directly the coals were sufficiently hot in the centre
of the fires, the galapagos were all beheaded and
thrown, still alive, into the midst of the burning em
bers. These chelonia, like all other amphibia, are ex
ceedingly tenacious of life ; their sufferings, therefore,
must doubtless be great under this lingering death, as
was manifested by their long-continued struggles in
the fire.
The Llaneros say that these turtles, according to
their most exquisite gastronomers, should be eaten
where there is no light, asserting that they will then
be found more rich and juicy ; but the actual reason
for this, as I afterward ascertained to my great dis
gust, was that some of the choicest morsels are pre-

248 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
cisely those which to be eaten must not be seen,
as otherwise they would unhesitatingly be rejected.
There are several varieties of fresh water tortoises
in the Apure, an abundant and wholesome food for
the inhabitants. The most common are the galapagos,
a large species of terrapin, the terecay and the arrau
or great turtle of the Orinoco, concerning which the
celebrated Father Gumilla wrote in his " Orinoco II-
lustrata," that " it would be as difficult to count the
grains of sand on the shores of the Orinoco, as to
count the immense number of tortoises which inhabit
its margin and water. Were it not for the vast con
sumption of tortoises and their eggs, the river Orinoco,
despite its great magnitude, would be unnavigable,
for vessels would be impeded by the enormous multi
tude of tortoises."
Without presuming to question the emphatic as
sertion of this reverend father of the loug beard and
gown, never having visited the shores of the Orinoco,
I will venture to assert of the galapagos that they
alone could furnish man in the plains of Apure for
ages with an inexhaustible supply of food, even were
all other sources cut off. To convey an idea of the
prodigious abundance of this species, it may suffice to
say that by merely driving a herd of wild cattle or
horses at full speed into any pond of these savannas,
the first wave produced by the sudden splash will
heave up thousands of turtles upon the beach.
Another method resorted to in the Llanos for obtain
ing them, is by raking in the soft mud in which these
chelonia habitually bury themselves the moment they
are alarmed. After this mud becomes thoroughly

SHOOTING ADVENTURES. 249
dried by the summer's heat, they remain under its
indurated crust in a dormant state until the com
mencement of the rainy season. Yet even here the
poor creatures are insecure, as they are not unfre
quently roused from their siesta by the hunter setting
fire to the dry water plants, the ornaments of these
natural ponds ; at such times breaking through the
earth crust which environs them, they in vain en
deavor to escape their tormentors, who can then pick
them up at their leisure.
In addition to the foregoing, there are two other
varieties of tortoises found amidst the marshes and
jungles of the Llanos ; they are the morrocoy or land
tortoise, having a hard and rounded shell, and the
jicotea, an animal which appears to form the con
necting link between turtles proper and tortoises';
both are of excellent flavor, more especially the for
mer, whose liver, dressed and fried in its own gall, is
undoubtedly superior to that most prized of all epi
curean morsels, foie gras. It is very large as com
pared with the size of the animal, decreasing however
very materially if its owner has had a long fast, which,
as this reptile, like all others of the class, can and does
frequently live a long time without food, has doubt
less occasioned the popular error that it feeds on its
own liver when long deprived of other nourishment.
During the season of great droughts, the morrocoy
seeks the hollow trunks of trees for shelter, where it
lives entirely without nourishment for several months,
until, feeling the dampness produced by the first
showers of spring penetrating his subterranean abode,
he moves slowly out to browse upon the tender shoots
11*

250 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of water plants and prairie lilies. The shell of this
tortoise is so hard that nothing short of heavy blows
from an axe can separate the thick plates of which it
is formed, and a locomotive engine might pass over it
without producing the least effect upon its unimpres-
sible tenant. Long after the carcass has been cut up
for cooking, and is in water boiling over the fire, the
pieces are incessantly in motion, and it is not until
the boiling has been continued many successive hours,
that the meat is fit for eating.
The land tortoise does not deposit its eggs in the
sand, as is the practice with its congener of the water,
but drops them indiscriminately into any convenient
hole, leaving the care of hatching them to the heat of
the earth. The egg, which is larger than a hen's, is
extremely white, spherical in form, and very hard.
The male is readily distinguished from the female by
a deep depression of its pectoral plate, that of the
female being perfectly even with the ground.
I have been assured by reliable parties that the
blood of the morrocoy is a specific for neuralgia, if
rubbed, while still warm, upon the part affected.

CHAPTER XVHL

MATA TOTUMO.

Little was accomplished in the way of hunting
during the two weeks we passed at Mata Gorda, oc
cupying ourselves mainly in building a ranch for the
establishment of a caporal and his family, with cor
rals attached, sufficiently spacious to accommodate a
large drove. Other parts of the estate requiring im
mediate attention, we removed from Mata Gorda to
Mata Totumo, a retired corner of the savannas, whose
proximity to other cattle farms exposed it to the con
stant depredations of poachers. In this way vast
numbers of our cattle were annually lost to us ; it
had accordingly become necessary to establish there
also a Fundacion, or small farm with a resident capo
ral, who should exercise a strict surveillance and take
charge of a small herd of tame cattle as a nucleus for a
permanent settlement in that exposed frontier.
Hardly were we established in the new encamp
ment, when a party of our men in scouring the sa
vanna encountered a band of these cattle poachers,
who had already collected a sufficient drove to make

252 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
them comfortable to the year's end, and were hasten
ing home with their unlawful booty. Our people
immediately gave chase, but succeeded in capturing
two only of the robbers. After whipping these most
unmercifully, as is customary in the Llanos for similar
offences, and giving them in addition the positive as
surance that, if again found within the precincts of
the estate, they would fare even worse, the rascals
were at length allowed to depart without further
punishment. As usual in all our prairie encampments, much
time was occupied in destroying baneful weeds and
reptiles. Snakes especially were so plentiful as to at
times greatly endanger our barefooted community.
That habit is second nature, was certainly strikingly
exemplified in the present instance, for in a few days
we came to notice the heretofore dreaded snakes as
little as though so many harmless earthworms. Our
fears, if not their cause, being at length entirely re
moved, we next erected a shelter from the inclemency
of the weather for our abundant luggage, no small
cause of anxiety, situated as we were at a long dis
tance from the source of any fresh supplies. After
wards we commenced raising corrals for our increas
ing herds. Fortunately building materials were very
abundant ; and the bamboo, that graceful represen
tative of the grasses, was of the greatest utility. Its
tall and pliant stems afforded all that was necessary
for rafters and fence rails, serving also various other
uses. To duly estimate the size attained by this giant
grass of the tropics, it is necessary to understand that
some stems reach the astonishing height of thirty.

MATA TOTUMO. 253
or even forty feet, with a corresponding thickness
of six or seven inches at their base ; and as these
bamboos spring in immense clusters from the ground,
they grow at last into an aspect which is truly beau
tiful: Innumerable slender leaves of a dehcate sea
green color, clothe in masses the tops of these huge
stems, curving them downward by their weight, and
giving them, especially when sporting with the soft
breezes of the pampas, the appearance of waving
plumes of most magnificent proportions, rising, bend
ing, swaying in long, graceful sweeps over the tops
of the surrounding trees. An elegant writer, describ
ing this majestic Queen of the Grasses, has beauti
fully said, " Grace, delicacy, richness of form and
color, every element of vegetable beauty, appear com
bined in this luxuriant dweller by the streams of the
tropics. Nothing is more cheerful to the eye of the
heated and wearied traveller, than the deep rocky
basins formed by mountain streams when filled with
water, and overshadowed by clumps of bamboo.
They often lean over the stream on one side and arch
the pathway on the other, excluding almost every
ray of sunlight from the cool recesses below. Their
delicate brittle leaves are stirred by the tiniest zephyr,
and bend to the pressure of the butterfly and the bee.
Sometimes clumps of bamboo stand on either sideof the
roads and form long vaulted passages, as if by fretted
Gothic arches, with here and there branches of rich
flowers and leaves hanging down like beautiful cor
bels. When the gale of the hurricane comes, these
groves of bamboo exchange an aspect of beauty for
that of grandeur. They are heaved and tossed like

254 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the billows of the sea, and their rich foliage driven in
every direction appears like surges breaking on the
rocks." No sooner was the majada in readiness, than we
commenced the somewhat laborious, but at the same
time pleasingly exciting business of filling it, for
which purpose we called upon the neighboring cattle
farms of La Yagua and Caucagua for assistance. So
effectual were our efforts, that in a few days we had
collected two thousand animals for the brand, most
of which, having long passed the age when this oper
ation is usually performed, gave us in consequence a
great deal of trouble. Occasionally, by way of relax
ation from our labors, we busied ourselves in training
the boys in the manly art of torear, or the scarcely
less dangerous one of breaking in wild horses, on
which especially the hardy dwellers of the Llanos
eminently pride themselves. During our sojourn at
Mata Totumo, its owner became concerned in an in
cident highly illustrative of this peculiar pride, so uni
versal a trait among these children of Nature and the
Sun, illustrative no less of the almost entire freedom
from conventional restraint which exists between
master and servant in the Llanos. Our Leader had
taken a strong fancy to a beautiful cream colored
horse, which, although partially trained to the saddle,
missed no opportunity of practising some of his old
tricks, a favorite one being apparently to unseat,
whenever possible, his rider. This amusement he
several times indulged in at the expense of his master,
and, as it chanced, always in presence of his pet cap-

MATA TOTUMO. 255
oral, Sarmiento, who invariably gave carte blanche
to his own witticisms on such occasions. To these
the good-humored master replied one day by chal
lenging him to ride the horse round the camp on a
run without being thrown, a dollar to be added to his
wages if successful ; if the reverse, the same amount
to be thereafter deducted. " Done," cried Sarmiento,
extending his hand familiarly to his master ; and
without more words, having blindfolded the horse by
means of a sliding leather strap attached to the bridle,
called tapaojos, he placed upon him his own saddle
and holsters, and the next moment was firmly seated
on his back. Then, removing the bandage, he at
once commenced belaboring the refractory stallion
with his chaparro, showering such powerful blows
upon his haunches, that the terrified animal rushed
headlong through the camp, rearing, plunging, and
tearing along the plain at a fearful pace. All in vain
were the efforts of the nigh frantic steed to shake the
unmerciful Centaur from his back ; the poor animal
had to strive against one with whom contention was
ineffectual, and who finally brought him back tri
umphantly to the camp as submissively meek as he
had previously been savage and refractory.
Shortly after our arrival in that secluded spot,
came the Corporation of Mantecal, under whose juris
diction we were, accompanied by many of the inhabi
tants, to pay their respects and personal regards to
the former chieftain of the Llanos and late President
of the Republic, tendering him at the same time the
hospitalities of the town — a few straggling huts. It

256 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
was a surprise party, nevertheless we acquitted our
selves with becoming hospitality. Two fat calves were
immediately slaughtered ; and these, together with
numbers of armadillos, galapagos, and a fine sow from
the swamps near by, formed a banquet not unworthy
a London board of aldermen. A hastily constructed
table, its top made from laths of bamboo and tied
with bejucos or creepers to four rough posts set in the
ground, was soon raised under the trees ; the broad
leaves of the wild plantain formed the table cloth,
while the shells of galapagos served the double pur
pose of plates and dishes, entirely in keeping with the
rural entertainment.
Here, as well as at Mata Gorda, game was most
abundant, and we could at all times count upon a
ready supply with which to vary the more substan
tial dishes. Deer were plentiful in the surrounding
woods ; but I found them, after killing several, too
thin at this season to be worth hunting, especially as
the savannas were teeming with the finest cattle and
wild hogs ; the latter are in good condition at all
times, and each day our men brought to camp the
spoils of one or more capones hanging from the sad
dles. The ant-bear or great ant-eater, a stout and power
ful animal measuring six feet from the snout to the
end of the tail, also ranged these prairies ; but al
though his flesh is well-flavored and easily procured,
it is never used for food, owing to his repulsive ap
pearance. " He is chiefly found in the inmost recesses
of the forest, and seems partial to the low and swampy
parts near creeks, where the trocly-tree grows. There

MATA T0TUM0.

257

he goes up and down in quest of ants, of which there
is never the least scarcity, so that he soon obtains a
sufficient supply of food with very little trouble. He
cannot travel fast ; man is superior to him in speed.
Without swiftness to enable him to escape from his
enemies ; without teeth, the possession of which would
assist him in self-defence ; and Avithout the power of
burrowing in the ground, by which he might conceal
himself from his pursuers, he still is capable of rang
ing through these wilds in perfect safety ; nor does
he fear the fatal pressure of the serpent's fold, or the
teeth of the famished jaguar. Nature has formed his
fore-legs wonderfully thick, and strong, and muscular,
and armed his feet with three tremendous sharp and
crooked claws. Whenever he seizes an animal with
these formidable weapons, he hugs it close to his
body, and keeps it there till it dies through pressure,

258 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
or through want of food. Nor does the ant-bear in
the meantime suffer much from loss of aliment, as it
is a well-known fact that he can go longer without
food than, perhaps, any other animal, excepting the
land-tortoise. His skin is of a texture that perfectly
resists the bite of a dog ; his hinder parts are pro
tected by thick and shaggy hair, while his immense
tail is large enough to cover his whole body." *
Numerous also were the foot-prints of the jaguar ;
yet, in my frequent perambulations through the forest,
it was never my fortune to encounter this despot of
the howling wilderness, although I one day mistook
for his voice that of the titiriji or great horned owl
of the pampas. I found him perched among the
branches of a guamo tree, inclining his large head
toward me with a scrutinizing look peculiar to those
birds, as if taking mental notes of my appearance.
Whenever I remained perfectly quiet he gave utter
ance to his unearthly Lootings, the woods echoing
and re-echoing the dismal sounds. The titiriji would
seem to be possessed of some ventriloquial power, for
his voice, loud and deep as it was, yet appeared to
issue from a distance. The frequent effect of this pe
culiarity is to mislead the unaccustomed hunter, who
by it is readily induced to wander on and on in un
availing search. Having contemplated at leisure this
singular bird, I finally levelled my fowling-piece at
him, and brought him down with a charge of buck
shot which I had destined for a deer. It proved a
very fine specimen, with wings as large as those of a
* Waterton's " Wanderings in South America."

MATA TOTUMO. 259
good sized turkey, while two horn-like tufts of feathers
rose on each side of the head, which, in addition to
the large, glaring eyes, gave him a truly ferocious
aspect. His food consists of all kinds of wild fowl ;
however, not being over scrupulous, he devours with
equal relish rats, mice and snakes ; while even mon
keys of the smaller sort are often his prey. This owl
(inhabits for the most part the loneliest and gloomiest
portions of the forest ; but is occasionally seen sol
emnly watching from some convenient tree-top the
various inhabitants of the farmyard.
The guamos were now in full bearing, their lus
cious beans a grateful refreshment to the heated and
thirsty rambler through the woods. Monkeys and
macaws are particularly fond of this bean ; and on
the tops of all the highest guamo-trees could be seen
family reunions of these chatterers apparently discuss
ing the merits of the crop.
Of monkeys there are two kinds in the pampas,
viz. the araguato or howling monkey, (Simia ursina,)
conspicuous in the forest from its extraordinary vol
ume of voice, and the machango, (S. sajous,) a small
gray monkey very common in other parts of the coun
try. On account of its wonderful agility and viva
city, this last is much esteemed as a pet by the inhab
itants, many of whom keep one or more tied to a post
in the court-yard, where they enact to some extent
the role of buffoon to the whole family. They are,
however, very mischievous creatures, doing every
possible damage in the house the moment they are
at large ; but are especially destructive to cacao plan-

260 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
tations and cornfields. When about to commence
their depredations in these, they usually assemble in
great numbers and exercise many precautions ; the
first step is to station several of their number as sen
tinels upon the highest trees, or any elevated situation
overlooking the avenues leading to the plantation,
whence they warn the others of approaching danger.
The next proceeding is that of placing those of the fe
males — which on account of their young are prevented
from assisting in the foray — in some safe retreat. The
precautions completed, they invest the cornfield in
earnest, pulling down the stocks and tearing off ears
of corn with astonishing expedition, chattering, laugh
ing, and yelling all the while like a set of mischievous
boys in the absence of the dominie. When they have
accumulated a sufficient number of ears, they split
the husks, and tying them in pairs by means of an
ingenious knot peculiar to themselves, called in con
sequence monkey-tie, they throw them across their
backs, and thus equipped hasten to hide their booty
in some safe nook difficult of discovery by the neglect
ful majordomo, who not unfrequently conceals his
own defalcations in the yield . of the plantation by
ascribing the deficiency to the thieving monkeys. It
often happens that while these last are engaged in
their depredations, they are surprised by the owner
of the cornfield, who, eluding the vigilance of the
scouts, suddenly appears and pours a shower of shot
into their midst. Then with shrill cries of alarm the
whole troop scamper off helter-skelter, tumbling,
pitching or hobbling along on all fours, but never
dropping a particle of their plunder. The belief ob-

MATA TOTUMO. 261
tains in the Llanos, that when at length safe in their
haunts, the careless sentinels are arraigned before a
council of elders, who after due deliberation condemn
them, after which the guilty parties are tied to a tree
and soundly whipped.
No less remarkable is their ingenious method of
crossing torrents and other minor streams which they
often encounter in their ceaseless perambulations
through the forest. As among men, all cannot swim
with equal facility, so it is also with monkeys ; accor
dingly the leaders of the troop, generally the strong
est of the party, climb to the spreading branches of
some tree projecting over the stream ; one of them
then twists his tail firmly around a branch, and let
ting his body hang, seizes upon the tail of the nearest
comrade, who in his turn performs the same operation
with the next, and so on until a sort of chain or living
pendulum is formed, which in obedience to the laws
of equilibrium oscillates slowly but constantly from
their combined efforts to reach the opposite bank.
This finally achieved, the last monkey secures him
self to the most convenient tree. The others of the
chain, now disengaged from the tree at the opposite
side of the stream, wade through the water, each
helped by his neighbor, assisted likewise by the cur
rent. Some are, however, occasionally drowned, the
last one in the chain especially, which circumstance
has probably given rise to the popular proverb, el
ultimo mono siempre se ahoga — the last monkey is
sure to be drowned. Sagacious as these animals un
doubtedly are, it is often very easy to entrap them.
One of the simplest methods consists in cutting a

262 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
number of holes in a gourd barely large enough to
admit of squeezing in the monkey's hands. The
gourd thus prepared is filled with corn and secured
to the trunk of a tree, then shaken violently for a
time so as to attract the attention of the monkeys,
and a few grains of corn scattered in the neighbor
hood of the trap. The gourd is in fact the dinner
bell of the monkeys, which no sooner hear the well
known sound, than they descend in great numbers
from their aerial homes, and each in turn seizing the
gourd, grasps through one of the holes a handful of
corn. But in vain do they struggle to withdraw their
hands without relinquishing the prize ; and at this
critical moment, the concealed author of their mishap
suddenly makes his appearance, and tying their hands
carries them off to his cottage in the woods.
More taciturn and retiring in his habits than the
preceding, the araguato — a large reddish monkey of
the ring-tail genus — exhibits none of those mischiev
ous tricks which characterize the former, never ap
proaching the haunts of man nor ravaging the fields
of the industrious farmer. His only food consists of
wild fruits, gathered as, with astonishing rapidity, he
springs from branch to branch. All the limbs of this
great monkey are admirably adapted to his roving
habits ; in these he is assisted very materially by his
long prehensile tail, which acts the part of a fifth
hand. The roar of the araguato is so extraordinary, that
persons who hear it for the first time invariably ima
gine it that of the jaguar. I think I may assert with
out fear of mistake, that it can be heard at the dis-

MATA TOTUMO. 263
tance of three miles, especially in damp and cloudy
weather. " The Indians pretend," observes Hum
boldt, " that when the oraguatos fill the forest with
their bowlings, there is always one that chants as
leader to the chorus. The observation is pretty ac
curate. During a long interval one solitary and
strong voice is generally distinguished, till its place
is taken by another voice of a different pitch. We
may observe from time to time the same instinct of
imitation among frogs, and almost all animals which
live together and exert their voices in union. The
missionaries further assert that when a female among
the araguatos is on the point of bringing forth, the
choir suspends its howlings till the moment of the
birth of the young. I could not myself judge of the
accuracy of this assertion ; but I do not believe it to
be entirely unfounded. I have observed that when
an extraordinary incident — the moans, for instance, of
a wounded araguato — fixed the attention of the band,
the howlings were for some minutes suspended. Our
guides assured us gravely, that ' to cure an asthma,
it is sufficient to drink out of the bony drum of the
hyoi'dal bone of the araguato.'' This animal having
so extraordinary a volume of voice, it is supposed
that its larynx must necessarily impart to the water
poured into it the virtue of curing affections of the
lungs. Such is the science of the vulgar, which
sometimes resembles that of the ancients."
The araguato is about two feet and a half long,
exclusive of his tail, which is still longer than his
body, and with features more closely resembling those
of man than any other species I am acquainted with.

264 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The face of this singular monkey is nearly concealed
by a sandy, bushy beard, extending below and project
ing considerably beyond his chin, giving him a very
dignified appearance. So striking is their resem
blance to the human species, that once, after having
shot one, I almost felt as though I had committed a
murder. When I raised the poor creature from the
ground upon which he had fallen, his large grey eyes
were bathed in tears, and every feature expressed the
deepest agony. .Casting upon me a most eloquent
look of reproach, he endeavored to push me aside ;
but too much enfeebled by his wound, lay down and
calmly resigned himself to the scrutinizing gaze of
my English companions, who discussed and disputed
about the division of his still panting body — one
wanting the skin for a smoking cap and the drum of
the throat for the bowl of his pipe, while the other
would be contented with nothing less than the whole
carcass. For my own part, I only desired to get out
of sight of the dying creature ; and shouldering my
gun, departed in a mood which determined me never
again to lift my hand against these innocent wild men
of the woods. MANTEOAL.
In compliance with an invitation tendered to the
General and his suite by the good people of Mantecal,
we started in a few days to visit their village, not far
distant from our encampment. When within three
miles of the place, we were welcomed by a large con
course of the inhabitants coming to escort us. Al-

MATA TOTUMO. 265
most the whole population turned out, saluting our
entry into the town with the firing of blunderbuses
and other firearms, and further gracing it with a most
discordant uproar of rickety harps, violins, and ban-
dolas, enough to have driven frantic the "Enraged
Musician " of Hogarth.
Mantecal was at one time quite a flourishing town,
notwithstanding the wars which ravaged it for many
successive years ; but since the great epidemic of 1832,
and subsequently, it has been well nigh depopulated,
while the few inhabitants who were not swept away
by the scourge, abandoned their homes. Thus the
once busy community became almost a dismal wil
derness, " Where at each step the stranger fears to wake
The rattling terrors of the vengeful snake."
At the time of our visit to Mantecal but few
houses remained standing, sad monuments of past
prosperity. We spent three days there, and the in
habitants, hospitable in spite of their miserable con
dition, entertained us to the utmost of their ability.
Not only did they provide the best accommodations
the village afforded, but treated us in addition to a
nightly fandango, in which people of all castes and
conditions joined. These festivities ended, we gladly
returned' to our prairie home, the more especially that
the important duties we had there to perform would
probably delay our return to Maracay several weeks
longer ; also the rainy season was fast approaching
and each day we had warnings of the coming tempest
then brewing in the south.
12

266 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
We continued to hunt those savannas while there
were any orejanos to brand, adding largely in the
meantime to our stock of reserved oxen for the mar
kets of the upper country, which had already in
creased to a considerable drove. We also made sev
eral excursions to the neighboring cattle farms for
the purpose of separating from their herds all the
orejanos whose mothers bore our brand. Judging
from the number of calves there collected, and with
out taking into consideration those yearly discarded
by the mothers, it was easy to perceive that the rev
enues of those estates were greatly increased at our
cost, their original stock being vastly inferior to ours.
In this manner many of the minor cattle farms en
riched themselves at the expense of wealthy neighbors.

CHAPTER XIX.

MATTYURE.

Having by this time completed our arrangements
at Mata Totumo, we broke up our camp on the 15th
of March and departed for Los Laureles, the ancient
site of another cattle farm, now quite deserted, on the
banks of the river Matiyure.
We found the house in ruins, and only a few re
maining posts marking the boundary of the former
corrals. The first duty, therefore, was that of repair
ing the fences, an operation which necessitated sev
eral days' hard labor. Meanwhile I found much en
joyment in exploring the woody banks of the river,
the wildness of whose aspect had for me a peculiar
charm. They were my daily resort, where, encom
passed by the glorious solitude, I essayed to picture
for others those lovely scenes which still perfume the
shrine of memory in all their dewy freshness. To one
who loves " the cool sequestered haunts of Nature,"
no spot could be more charming, nothing more in
spiring than to recline under the venerable shade of
some wide-branched guamo uplooking to the many-

268 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
tinted clouds as they sweep in solemn majesty be
neath the blue veil of heaven, and seem to melt into
the tree tops in the distance — trees whose gigantic
height and size, wall with magnificent vegetation the
steep banks rising on either side of the river, mirrored
in its tranquil surface. The harsh scream of the
heron, or the ominous hootings of the tiger-owl, alone
wake the echoes where else
" All things are calm, and fair, and passive — Earth
Looks as if lulled upon an angel's lap
Into a breathless, dewy sleep."
Yet is this beautiful river celebrated for the num
ber and size of its crocodiles. As I sat sketching on
the banks, I could perceive them gliding slowly under
the still waters, the upper part of the head alone
visible, and seeming to watch me with an evil eye.
The beach being strewn with their egg shells, I con
cluded this to be a favorite resort with them during
the breeding season. The female lays about eighty
eggs in a hole which she digs in the sand, leaving to
the hot sun the care of hatching them. These eggs,
twice as large as those of the turkey, are considered a
great delicacy by the Indians and jaguars, who fre
quently purloin them before they are hatched.
The caricari is another great enemy of young croc
odiles, attacking them as they come out of the shell.
After they betake themselves to the water, the older
ones, prompted no doubt by motives of family pride
to keep them within their own circle, swallow these
tender members, thus preventing all other intimacies.
Notwithstanding this admirable provision of Divine

MATIYURE.

269

Wisdom, and a constant war maintained by man and
beast against them, they are so numerous in some
charcos of the river that, if stationary, their bodies

would completely bridge its surface from bank to
bank. Despite their great voracity, the mother exhibits
some degree of tenderness toward her offspring. Pos
sessed, in this case, of an instinct almost infallible,
she returns at a period when incubation is completed,
and assists her young in extricating themselves from
the shell. Unlike the eggs of birds, crocodiles' eggs
are soft and pliable as those of the turtle, yielding,
when handled, to the pressure of the fingers, yet so
tough that it is difficult to break them, and in ap
pearance resembling white parchment. At the very
moment of liberation, the young crocodiles display
their savage nature in a wonderful degree, biting at
every object within reach ; also the same vicious pro
pensity is exhibited by those extricated even before
the completion of incubation. I was once greatly
amused in watching a struggle between two caricaris

270 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
and one of these youngsters not larger than a good-
sized lizard. Each time the birds made a dash at
him, this little saurian, grunting savagely, darted for
ward with wide-open jaws, looking for all the world
like a young dragon. During ten minutes the strug
gle continued without decided advantage on either
side, when one of the assailants, changing his tactics,
suddenly seized the crocodile by the neck with his
sharp claws and soared triumphantly with him into
high air. There loosing his hold, the bird followed
his descent with wonderful rapidity, prepared, when
he reached the ground, to repeat the blow ; but
already half stunned, the victim soon yielded to su
perior cunning.
When the savannas are overflowed by the swollen
rivers, these carnivorous and malicious reptiles spread
themselves over the face of the country, committing
great havoc among young animals. So destructive
had they proved to the calves and foals on this estate,
that the owner on one occasion offered a reward of
half a dollar a head for every crocodile killed upon his
lands, it being sufficient for the claimant to produce,
in evidence of success, the two great tusks of the
upper jaws. The result of this ukase was, that before
the expiration of a month, more than four hundred
crocodiles had been destroyed ; yet no sensible dimi
nution was observable, neither did the persevering
dragonade against them quench in the least their
boldness. This expedient proving useless, they had
been suffered to remain unmolested until our arrival
at Los Laureles, when we determined to exterminate
those at least which infested that pass of the river

MATIYURE. 271
where we performed our daily ablutions and watered
the horses. Accordingly, one day a party of us, well
provided with every necessary, started for a bend of
the river where the water appeared to be very still
and deep. None of the usual angling implements
were required in this sport ; we used only a strong
lazo and a hoop about three feet in diameter made
from a light vine common on the banks of these
rivers. Around this hoop the fresh lungs of a bul
lock, cut into thin strips, were twisted and securely
fastened. The running noose of the lazo was then
laid over the bait and tied there with tendrils from
the same vine. All being ready, this simple decoy
was launched into the middle of the stream, we re
taining on shore the other end of the lazo. Aroused
by the splash, two large crocodiles soon appeared and
rushed for the bait with open jaws. The successful
one, in his eagerness to escape with his prize, burst
the slender. vines that secured the noose to the hoop,
which last projected beyond his snout, and the noose
on its recoil sliding over, firmly lazoed his upper jaw.
With shouts of exultation we hastened to the assist
ance of the man who held the lazo, seeing him unable
to cope with the monster, more than a match for half
a dozen men. By our united efforts we finally suc
ceeded in dragging him to within a few feet of the
embankment, when, catching sight of our earnest
faces watching him over the cliff, he tossed up his
head with such sudden violence as to pull the thong
through our hands to its full length, and retreated in
triumph to the middle of the stream. The tough
hide, however, from which the thong was twisted,

272 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
proved equal to the emergency, and with one more
strenuous- effort we succeeded in landing him upon
the beach, while
" Le flot qui l'apporta, recule epouvante."
Some of us who never before had so near a view
of these vicious creatures, were astonished at its size
and strength, and our Esculapius, assuming an appear
ance of bravery, approached among the first to con
template the vanquished foe, but evidently quaking
with apprehension of the huge tusks before him. His
terror at length proving stronger than the dread of
his companions' gibes, he seized the lazo, tugging
with such desperate energy to close the fearful chasm
that the thong slipped from his hands, he lost his
balance, and the next moment found himself lying
almost within reach of the still open jaws. From
these, notwithstanding a considerable corporeal im
pediment, he escaped by springing with the agility of
a cat up the embankment, where he remained, per
haps to ascertain whether the poet's statement that
" distance lends enchantment to the view," was cor
rect by the crocodile case before him. At length the
object of his regards almost ceased struggling, sure
sign that his strength was failing ; then with one
more pull we hauled him partially out of water, but
no power could force him entirely therefrom, as each
time on reaching the bank he braced his fore feet with
unconquerable strength against it, so forcing himself
back into the stream. In this predicament we had no
other resource than to despatch him, and two or three
sharp blows of a hatchet administered by the roguish

MATIYURE. 273
Roseliano, severed the upper jaw, with its beautiful
row of teeth, from the head, a surgical operation per
formed under the supervision of our eminent Escula-
pius. The patient expired — no doubt to the Doctor's
relief — not on his hands, and the " subject " was
abandoned to the myriads of caribes which, although
their teeth could produce little impression upon his
tough cuirass, feasted with avidity on his blood so
long as it flowed from his mutilated head.
We prepared a large supply of bait in like manner
to the former, all of which was seized by the hungry
crocodiles with the same fatal results to them. In the
short space of three -hours we succeeded in killing
six large ones, and could no doubt have destroyed a
greater number, had not the lazo been gnawed
through by caribes, that pest of all rivers in this
region. Our men secured a large supply of fat from the
intestinal membrane of the crocodiles : a sovereign
remedy for bruises and cutaneous diseases among
horses. By exposing this fat to the sun, in horns
slightly punctured at the end, a fine oil equal to that
of the whale, is obtained by percolation and collected
in basins placed under the horns.
Selecting the jaws of the dead crocodiles contain
ing the finest tusks, we distributed the latter among
our friends for tinder boxes and amulets. It is uni
versally believed throughout the Llanos that the
tusks, when worn next the flesh of man or beast, will
preserve the wearer from the poison of snakes, espe
cially if obtained on Good Friday. For this reason
the smaller ones, set in gold or silver, are worn sus-

274 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
pended from the rosaries which form one of the prin
cipal ornaments of the people in those parts. It is
further believed that rings made of the same material
will apprise the wearer, of poison mixed in any
draught by causing an instantaneous effervescence
of the liquid. The supposed efficacy of these poten
tial talismans was once peculiarly tested in our own
camp. Among the few luxuries carried by our commis
sariat into the Llanos was a basket of champagne,
which was reserved for state occasions. One after
noon, while almost every person was enjoying his
siesta, the temptation seized one of our men to search
for aguardiente among the petacas. His good fortune
discovered to him our little treasure of champagne,
and grabbing a bottle he at once commenced cutting
with his dagger the wires that secured the cork. Up
this flew at last with a loud report, which broke the
dead silence of the camp and started to their feet
more than one drowsy slumberer.
Our thief, seeing the profuse effervescence gushing
out with great force, endeavored at first to arrest it
by clapping his hands over the mouth of the bottle;
but suddenly recollecting that he had on one of those
mysterious tusk-rings, the suspicion flashed to his
mind of poison intended for el amo, the master ; and
when in addition to this the bewildered knave per
ceived that apparently the more he endeavored to
confine the liquid, so much more it frothed and bub
bled, he was overpowered with terror, shrieking out
in an ecstasy of horror, "Ave Maria Purisima!

MATIYURE. 275
Help ! Help ! cristionos / this aguardiente must be
poisoned, or else the devil is in it."
On hearing these cries, every one sprang from his
hammock, imagining the camp attacked by a band
of malhechores, and the would-be thief was thus
caught in the very act.
As he was, however, out of his wits with fright,
he escaped with only a mild reprimand, the more
especially that we enjoyed several hearty laughs at
his expense. Futile were our efforts at convincing
the frightened fellow that champagne was very good
drink ; he evidently distrusted all our assertions.
Some was then poured out and drank, and the bottle
passed round ; but when it came to his turn, he per
sistently refused to touch it. On being asked whether
his surprise and repugnance arose from seeing the
liquid rushing out of the bottle, his reply was, " Oh,
no, Senores ; I am not surprised to see it coming out,
but how the devil did it get in % "
With the intention of finishing a sketch of one of
the crocodiles, I next day revisited the battle field,
and to my surprise discovered the absence of one of
the dead bodies ; but presently perceived the mailed
carcass floating at some distance on the water. I was
for some time at a loss to discover what had occa
sioned his change of position, and I finally concluded
that its comrades must have given him honorable in
terment in the deep. Desiring to ascertain, if pos
sible, the facts of the case, I determined to conceal
myself near by and keep close watch. I had been in
hiding only a few moments when at least half a

276 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
dozen crocodiles approached the deceased, not, as I
had imagined, to mourn his loss, but to feast upon
the many fish in their turn gorging themselves upon
the body. Then, almost to my horror, I beheld these
monster insatiates rend in pieces and devour the mel
ancholy remains of the dear defunct with grunts of
revolting satisfaction. Nor did I perceive in this case
any of those " crocodile tears " with which travellers
tell us it is their hypocritical habit to bedew the head
of a human victim. It is said that when they have
devoured a man, finding themselves unable to swal
low his head, they convey it to some secluded spot
on the river banks, there to weep over and bewail
their inability with cries which make night hideous.
The size and appearance of crocodiles must be
sometimes most extraordinary, if we may credit our
adventurous friend B., who boasted so intimate an
acquaintance with their habits, that one could easily
imagine such familiarity might breed contempt.
Judge, O reader, if I speak not truly.
He related that one day, having labored success
fully until noon in his piscatory pursuit, overcome
by fatigue and the intense heat of a tropical sun, he
turned his longing eyes toward shore in search of
some friendly shelter ; but perceiving that, between
him and the only copse of trees which relieved the
glaring scene, there stretched a dreary waste of burn
ing sand, he had not courage to traverse, even to reach
so tempting a goal — he sought a refuge more acces
sible. This to his great joy he just then discovered in
the form of what appeared to»be the wreck of an old
canoe thrown on its side near the water's edge. Here

MATIYURE. 277
was a cool retreat wherein to enjoy his siesta ; so
hastening toward it, his satisfaction was complete on
finding it sufficiently capacious to admit of slinging
to the protruding ribs his chinchorro, or grass ham
mock, which, with his guitar and gourd of aguar
diente, were his inseparable companions. Refreshing
himself with a good pull at the gourd, and stretching
himself in his hammock, he soon slept the profound
sleep of the weary. He awoke to find himself envel
oped in a darkness which he might have supposed
that of midnight, but that it was unrelieved by moon
or friendly star. Completely bewildered, he sought
a clew to this dark mystery by moving forward with
cautious steps and extended hands, uncertain into
what horror his next movement might betray him,
when his surprised attention was attracted, first to
the spongy nature of the ground, then to the clammy
yet warm and sticky walls that on all sides encoun
tered his extended fingers. The discovery of these
facts was accompanied by the very unpleasant con
viction that he had mistaken the open jaws of some
sleeping crocodile for an old bongo. However, with
his recovery from the first shock of surprise returned
the stoicism so characteristic of his race, which was
the more entirely reinstated by finding his well-filled
gourd with his beloved guitar lying near. Notwith
standing, however, a reviving draught from the for
mer, he soon became conscious of a void in his inter
nal economy, which he at once determined to fill at
Mr. Crocodile's expense ; thereupon drawing his
knife, he without the least compunction made a meal
from the tenderest morsels within reach. And so

278

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

MATIYURE. 279
eating, drinking, sleeping and tuning his diminutive
guitar to the cheering strains of some lively ballad of
the Llanos, he remained for days, he knew not how
many, an uncomplaining prisoner within those slimy
walls. At length, while mournfully draining the last
remaining drop within his faithful gourd, his dungeon
walls were suddenly made visible to him by a faint
ray of light which penetrated his very soul with the
desire once more to behold its source. Snatching at
the dear companions of his imprisonment, without
another moment's delay he rushed for the opening
that admitted the life-giving ray, and discovered to
his delighted surprise that his jailer, having deserted
the water for a siesta upon the sands — which he recol
lected was the occasional habit of these monsters —
had left wide-open his prison doors. These he lost
no time in passing,. seizing with firm hand as he flew,
his chinchorro, still suspended from the crocodile's
tusks he had so almost fatally mistaken for the ribs
of an old canoe.
The precise duration of his captivity, B., with a
praiseworthy fear of exaggeration, never ventured even
to surmise to us, merely stating the fact that when
he lay down for his siesta the moon was in full dress,
and when freed from his hideous jail, Her Majesty
had in her turn retired for a nap.

CHAPTER XX.

THE C I M A E E 0 2ST E R A.

We had been apprised that between a great bend
of the river Matiyure — forming the southern bound
ary of our savannas — and an extensive flat overgrown
with thorny bushes, there existed what the Llaneros
call a cimarronera, or great hiding place for cattle,
which, owing to the impenetrable nature of the jun
gle, had from time immemorial baffled the efforts of
every majordomo who had hunted these savannas.
Further we had ascertained that the cattle were there
as numerous as a colony of ants ; but so savage and
shy, as to never venture from their wild sanctuary.
Thither our efforts were to be directed, not only on
account of the good harvest in store, but also for the
purpose of breaking up, if possible, that den of runa
ways which, if left unmolested, might in time become
a serious obstacle in the way of reducing those wild
herds to at least a partial submission.
The corrals, which I trust the patient reader has
not forgotten we were in process of building, being
now ready, we commenced preparations for a descent

THE CIMARRONERA. 281
upon the fierce hordes of that neglected section. Mes
sengers were therefore despatched to the people of
Caucagua, an adjacent cattle farm, apprising them of
our intention, and with the dawn of day more than
an hundred hunters were assembled on the spot.
Among them were some of the best enlazadores that
the country could produce, all of whom, like the val
iant Pentapolin — chosen model of the hero of La
Mancha — had his right arm bared to the shoulder
that the wide sleeve of the Llanero shirt might not
interfere with the management of the lazo.
As soon as the sun was high enough to light us
through the bushes, a detachment of hunters pene
trated the bristling maze of thorny acacias, and suc
ceeded in driving out into the open savannas so large
a herd of cattle that it soon swelled to a considerable
rodeo. No sooner, however, did they discover the
presence of the hunters, than becoming frantic they
rushed from side to side like a band of furies, and,
heedless of the shouts and goads of the horsemen,
broke at length through the ring of even these expe
rienced hunters, scattering again in all directions. In
vain did the fearless pursuers throw themselves be
tween the wild mass and the jungle ; so rapid and
entire was the dispersion that the plain which but
now swarmed with the driven, bellowing, maddened
creatures, was cleared as if by magic, leaving the dis
appointed hunters in sole possession. Only here and
there a faint cloud of dust in the distance betrayed
the course that some of the fugitives had taken. The
men, enraged at this unexpected discomfiture, could
not be restrained from again entering the tangled

282 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
labyrinth and dragging thence by sheer force a num
ber of the refractory brutes. After deliberation, it
was decided that several of the hunters should scour
the plain in search of the runaways, while the larger
number rushed again fearlessly into the jungle.
These at last succeeded in securing several fierce
bulls, each of which was treated secundum artem, de
priving them of the chance of doing much mischief in
future ; for no sooner were they down, than the knife
and the saw were busy with their horns, ears, &c.
But the business was not accomplished without the
usual average of casualties in these contests, and on
that occasion one of our best hands was greatly im
perilled. A ferocious bull was undergoing the usual
precautionary, though severe measures, for his sub
jugation, when one of the men standing near, acci
dentally became entangled in the coils of the lazo at
a moment when the bull, infuriated, escaped from
those who held him. The poor fellow, although
thrown violently to the ground and severely stunned,
almost miraculously escaped further injury. The
daring Sarmiento, one of those who witnessed the
transaction, enraged at sight of his helpless compan
ion, sprang from his horse, seized the sheep-skin
which covered the saddle, and holding it before him
self, fearlessly advanced sword in hand to meet the
bull, which, not comprehending the challenge, stood
panting and trembling with rage before his bold ad
versary. The matador perceiving this, approached
him more closely and shook the sheep-skin in the
animal's face ; then, firm as a rock, he stood and
dauntlessly awaited the coming struggle ; it was

THE CIMARRONERA. 283
enough ; with head lowered to the ground, and lash
ing himself furiously with his powerful tail, the bull
rushed upon his antagonist with a terrific roar, causing
every heart to tremble for the safety of the bold mat
ador. Then we heard a heavy fall, a deep groan ;
we saw only a cloud of dust that concealed the scene ;
but we knew the Llanero had conquered. Trium
phant shouts of approbation filled the air, whilst I
knew not whether most to applaud the fearless grace
with which the man had stood his ground before this,
the most powerful of all infuriate creatures, or the
dexterous celerity that had found, and with one fatal
blow penetrated, the narrow passage through the ver
tebrae into the spinal marrow. But the scene in that
remote corner of the earth recalled forcibly to my
mind the spirited lines in which the author of Childe
Harold thus depicts one of like nature in the midst
of refined Europe :
" Foiled, bleeding, breathless, furious to the last,
Full in the centre stands the bull at bay
Mid wounds and clinging darts and lances brast,
And foes disabled in the brutal fray :
And now the matadors around him play,
Shake the red cloak, and poise the" ready brand :
Once more through all he bursts his thundering way-
Vain rage ! the mantle quits the conynge hand,
Wraps his fierce eye— 'tis past — he sinks upon the sand ! "
Those who had galloped off in search of the scat
tered herd finally returned, bringing a large addition
to the stock, and we were driving them to the para-
dero, when our Leader's horse, a fiery charger of the

284 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Goagiro breed,* little accustomed to the broken
ground of the pampas, lost his footing and fell with
him while endeavoring to clear an extensive terro-
nero. Fortunately his rider received no injury ; but
loosing hold of the bridle in his fall, the horse was
soon careering over the plain, and would inevitably
have made good his escape, had not some vaqueros
hunting in that direction encountered and captured
him after a long race. Accidents of the kind are
very common in. the Llanos, and often in consequence
many persons are killed or otherwise injured. The
least evil to which the ousted rider may be subjected,
is that of being left alone, perhaps with a dislocated
limb, on an extensive plain, where the unfortunate
may perish from hunger or exposure before assistance
chances to reach him. Our friend B., who once
found himself similarly circumstanced, related to us
on this occasion the adventure, which he swore by
all the saints in the calendar had actually occurred
to him. Notwithstanding such exalted referees, a
few grains of doubt still disturbed our belief.
" He was once," he said, " engaged in hunting
with a party of vaqueros on the extensive savannas
of Merecure, which form the great canon or pampa
between the rivers Cunaviche and Arauca. Having
started in the morning with a full complement of
men, there was no difficulty in forming the rodeo ;
but, as in our own case, all their manoeuvres proved
ineffectual in keeping together so great a number of
untamed brutes, which finally broke through the
* Raised by a warlike tribe of Indians inhabiting the peninsula of
La Goagira, on the Gulf of Maracaibo.

THE CIMARRONERA. 285
ranks as easily as might a herd of wild hogs through
a field of reeds, and vanished in the distance. So
great was the cloud of dust they raised, that when it
cleared, B., whose horse during the confusion had
stumbled in the hole of a prairie-owl, thrown, and
then deserted him, found himself solus in the midst
of the wide pampa, and so bewildered and confused
by the general stampede, that he was totally unable
.to discover the least clew by which to guide his steps
over those trackless wilds. Overcome with the fa
tigue of his useless search, he threw himself upon the
ground, finally quite disheartened by the recollection
that he had no lazo by which he would have been
enabled at any time to secure sufficient animal food
for his subsistence. Two whole days he thus passed
hopelessly wandering and in search of food, when,
upon the third, kind Providence, compassionating his
sufferings, placed in his way a fat calf, which he suc
ceeded in capturing after a short chase. Having
slaughtered it, he roasted the whole at once lest it
might spoil, then ravenously devoured the welcome
repast. This supply lasted several days, when again
finding himself minus food, he determined to put in
practice a stratagem that he had devised whereby to
secure for himself in future an unfailing supply
of wholesome nourishment. He had observed the
mother of the calf, apparently in search of her off
spring, lingering in the neighborhood, moaning and
bellowing in a most piteous manner. Availing him
self of the first eligible opportunity, he approached
her on all fours, entirely covered with the skin of her
own calf, and forthwith commenced drawing suste-

286 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
nance from the maternal fount ; this he accomplished
with so much natural ease and grace, that the tender
mother, after a few incredulous sniffs, felt convinced
at last of his being a perfect calf, and accepting him
for her own, bestowed upon him a good licking. Thus
graciously encouraged, and each day more delighted
with the unrestrained freedom of his new life, time
rolled on and a year elapsed without his ever regret
ting the loss of home or friends ; while so powerful
was the effect of this novel mode of existence upon
his person, that it had materially altered his whole
appearance, and as the calf skin seemed to have ac
tually adhered to his own, so he found himself rapidly
assimilating, as well in tastes as habits, to that inter
esting quadruped.
About this period the majordomo undertook
another hunt on these plains, where he quickly suc
ceeded in collecting a large number of cattle ; but
although they were all, as usual, extremely difficult
to manage, still there was one of the number, a
young bull with a fine pair of horns twelve inches
long, more refractory and troublesome than any of
the others, which fact — as B. was the bull — was owing
probably to his educated instincts, they enabling him
to devise a variety of expedients for the discomfiture
of his pursuers. However he was at length obliged
to yield to superior numbers, and the unerring lazo
finally brought him struggling to the ground, when
in an instant one of his captors, an athletic sambo,
had drawn his knife and commenced sharpening it
upon the horns of this novel minotaurus, preparatory
to performing upon him the usual necessary oper-

THE CIMARRONERA. 287
ations. But what language can do justice to the as
tonishment of all beholders, when the apparent bull,
casting aside his hairy disguise, sprang erect from the
ground, exclaiming as he did so : " Stop, amigos !
can you have forgotten your old comrade B., who
was lost a year ago in this cimarronera ? "
So perilous an adventure having convinced him of
the risks attending a savage life, his companions had
no difficulty in persuading him to return home with
them, and thereafter found him of immense assistance
in their expeditions, as, being perfectly familiar with
the haunts and habits of the cattle in that cover, he
could lead the vaqueros, when required, with the
sagacity of a pointer.
This story,, which B. related with the most admir
able ingenuousness of manner, recalled to his recol
lection a wonderful discovery upon which he had
chanced, while journeying on a pressing errand to
Arauca. He had been riding hard all day across the plains,
until at length, overtaken by night, he was constrained
to encamp on the spot. Grass and water for his
horse — a fine trotter — being abundant and at hand, he
took no precaution to prevent his straying, other than
that of fastening the animal's feet on the right side
with a manea, a strap with looped nooses at both ends.
In spite of this the horse wandered from him during
the night, a mishap which compelled poor B. to finish
the remainder of the journey on foot, besides being
obliged to carry the ponderous saddle upon his head.
Having accomplished his errand at Arauca, and
after an absence of several weeks, he was returning

288 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
home by another route, riding a hired animal, when
to his great joy, on the way he found his steed in fine
condition, and his feet still secured by the strap. The
horse he was riding being already tired, he removed
the saddle to the back of his own steed, and imme
diately mounted him. But to his overpowering as
tonishment, he discovered, on resuming the journey,
that the gait of his horse had undergone an extraor
dinary change, trotting as formerly on the side that
had remained free from the strap, but ambling on the
one which had been so long confined by it. His wife
possessing an ambler, he sold it immediately he
reached home, it being thereafter a useless expense, as,
whenever in the future he and his better half wished
to ride at the same time, all that he had to do was to
place her on the ambling side, and then seating him
self on the other they trotted and ambled away to
their hearts' content.

CHAPTER XXL
LOS BOEALES.
Aware of the importance of a plentiful supply of
water for the cattle during the season of drought, we
resolved to build a large reservoir in the heart of the
savannas before leaving the pampas, and with this ob
ject now turned our steps toward the lagoon of Los
Borales — so named in honor of a species of water lily
very abundant on its borders — which, although quite
a lake during the rainy season, often lost its waters
by evaporation and other causes when most needed.
This required a dam to be raised across one of the
many creeks traversing these plains in all directions,
to arrest the flow when the floods begin ebbing, thus
leaving an artificial reservoir where previously only
in extensive bog existed. We installed ourselves
within the shelter of a solitary grove, and imme
diately commenced raising an embankment to several
feet above the level of the plain, taking the earth for
the purpose from the bed of a creek connecting with
the lagoon. Digging to the depth of twelve feet, we
came upon a tree with trunk and branches in perfect
13

290 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
preservation, which, although it had evidently been
thus entombed for ages, a breath of air had power to
crumble into dust. As from the time of our arrival
it had rained unceasingly, the water rapidly accumu
lated in the now completed reservoir, though our sat
isfaction received something of a damper from the
fact that the fires were thereby constantly extin
guished, until we bethought ourselves of erecting
over them a covering of green boughs about three
feet from the ground. Upon this we laid large pieces
of meat, which, covered with palm leaves, were speed
ily cooked by the fire beneath.
In that retired and solitary grove, seated on a
pack-saddle, and surrounded by lazos, bridles, and
other emblems of our peaceful occupation, I wrote
under the dictation of my father, his emphatic refusal
to accept the Presidency of the Republic for a third
time. Little did we then dream that this spontaneous
act of political abnegation would be hailed with ex
ultation by his enemies, in the hope of working, as it
did for a time, his ruin as well as that of the Repub
lic ; and that the same plains where occurred this
disinterested proof of patriotism, should shortly after
ward witness a scene of bloodshed and persecution
to him who, not long before, had been the acknowl
edged guardian of his country's liberties.
Thunder storms were now of frequent occurrence.
One night we were awakened by a fearful clap from
the approaching tempest. The prospect was not in
viting. Sheltered in our hammocks only by our tol-
clos, and raising among us all but a very small um
brella of philosophy, we awaited the coming storm.

LOS BORALES. 291
In a moment it was upon us with a raging wind that
threatened to overthrow and crush us beneath the
falling branches of the trees. Then from the heavens
descended so continuous a sheet of commingled fire
and flood, that these at last appeared to become a
part of the atmosphere we breathed. Terrified by
this fearful uproar, our madrina of supernumerary
horses, which, fearing the snakes, we had quartered
in the bed of a dried-up lagoon, dashed madly across
the plain, in spite of the combined efforts of their
keepers. But no sooner had these refractory animals
abandoned the secure pastures for the high grounds,
than, attacked by snakes, three of them paid with
their lives their insubordination, and one of these un
fortunates was afterward brought staggering into the
camp, groaning piteously. Unable in the darkness
to discover the cause of his sufferings, a light was
speedily procured by igniting a rag rolled in fat,
when a most revolting spectacle presented itself ; the
poor beast, so covered with blood that he appeared
literally to have been plunged into a bath of gore,
had evidently been bitten by a snake, possibly the
same which in killing the others had probably nearly
exhausted its poison upon them, so that what re
mained of the venom had not power to produce im
mediate death, but effected a complete diapedesis or
transudation of the blood. A curandero present un
dertook to restore the poor animal by means of the
famous oracion, but on this occasion his skill was
vain — the horse in a short time expiring, apparently
in great agony. The groans of the dying animal, the
thundering of the others along the waste, the shouts

292 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
and curses of their pursuers, who in the darkness
were in danger of being trampled under the feet of
more than three hundred frightened animals, mingled
with the appalling fury of the elements, until it seemed
as though earth and heaven were struggling for the
mastery. This fearful scene oh, my unhappy coun
try ! shadowed forth but too faithfully thy dark night
of despotism ; the anarchy, contentions, and wretched
ness of thy children ; thy ravaged borders, where the
" Wise and Good " had formerly scattered plenty
over the smiling land, and portrays now to me as faith
fully the night when I, with a handful of brave youths
from Maracaibo, was surprised upon the borders of its
lake by the myrmidons of the tyrant Monagas, and
carried prisoners to the capital while endeavoring to
save the remnant of constitutional liberty in the re
public. Our men, finding it impossible during the dark
ness to trace the horses — among them all of those used
for the saddle — were obliged to postpone their search
until sunrise. At length, as if wearied with its wild
orgies, this tumultuous night passed away, and the
morning star appeared leading the timid dawn. The
earth, so late the dark abode of chaos, now in bloom
and beauty, seemed the favored daughter of the
spheres, sparkling in liquid gems, and radiant in the
gorgeous splendor of tropical spring, while myriads
of white lilies, far as eye could reach, mantled the
plain, flooding with perfume the pure morning air.
Countless flocks of waterfowl, from the tiny guiriri
to the soldier-like crane of the pampas, crowded the

LOS BORALES. 293
miniature lakes, which the late storm had left in
every hollow of the ground, and made the air re
sound with their harsh and varied notes. Conspicu
ous among these last were the several species of
garzas — herons — those " Ladies of the waters, delicate
in form, beautiful in plumage, and graceful in their
movements," whose slender, arching necks, curving
here and there above and through the sprouting
grass, reminded one of the deadly snakes lurking
about the plain. There, too, the carrao, a bird less
prepossessing in appearance, but endowed with keen
perception of a coming change of weather, "announ
ced by loud cries, from which it derives its name,
the near approach of rain with singular precision.
Clouds of fluttering gaviotas or scissor-beaks (Rhyn-
chops) skimmed the water in wild, irregular flight,
ploughing up the smaller fish with their scissor-like
beaks, and vexing the ear with harsh and piercing
cries. On all sides bellowing herds of cattle and
troops of emaciated deer wandered, panting as they
sought for water and fresh food ; while, rescued from
the torpor into which the protracted summer drougbt
had plunged them, the drowsy crocodiles and slug
gish tortoises moved slowly over the plain in search
of the reviving element.
It was no easy task to keep the fires burning after
the deluging showers of the previous night, in con
sequence of which we were threatened for a while
with starvation in the midst of plenty, as not only
had our temporary kitchen been destroyed, but every
log of wood was drenched with water ; so were also
our scanty garments and ponchos, most of them being

294 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
likewise in a few hours covered with the larvae of
myriads of flies which infested our camp. These
petites miseres were, however, forgotten for the mo
ment in the all-absorbing topic of the whereabouts of
our runaway horses. Happily the Llaneros, accus
tomed from their infancy to observe the instincts of the
animals surrounding them, possess a sort of intuitive
knowledge — with them it might be called a science —
of their movements and impulses.
In following the trail of stray animals amidst
thousands intercepting each other in every direction,
it is of course necessary to determine the right one in
order to prosecute the search with some degree of
success. The long experience and sagacity of our
sturdy majordomo, whose word was considered in
fallible in such matters, were of incalculable advan
tage on this occasion. Calmly seated on his ham
mock, his weather-beaten countenance turned toward
the far horizon, he assembled around him the wearied
watchmen of the missing drove, still drenched by the
late tempest ; and directing each squad as to the
probable course followed by the separate groups of
horses, he ordered them to disperse over the plain in
pursuit of their uncertain errand. As the subsequent
results proved, on the afternoon of the following day,
it was executed with gratifying punctuality ; and
here I may be permitted to utter a passing word of
praise in behalf of these hardy cavaliers of the desert
plains, upon whose courage and sagacity often de
pends, not only the success of such expeditions, but
sometimes even the fate of a whole army, whose pro
gress would be seriously endangered without a com-

LOS BORALES. 295
petent body of cavalry to procure the necessary sup
ply of beef. Scantily provided with raiment, poorly
paid, and the simple fare of the Llanos for rations,
they are at the post of duty at all hours, in the hot
sunshine of day, or " in thunder, in lightning, and in
rain " by night, always cheerful and happy, providing
they have with them their inharmonious guitar and
plenty of tobacco with which to satisfy their appetite
for stimulus of some sort. Among the various duties
of their vocation, one of the hardest to which they
are subjected is that of keeping a constant watch over
the cattle at night to prevent their dispersion, as they
are compelled to remain for hours on horseback and
" wide awake." In order to accustom the cattle to
the voice of their nocturnal guardians, a constant
chant in a peculiarly plaintive strain, in which cattle
seem rather to delight, is kept up until morning,
when only a few horsemen are necessary to retain
them within the grazing ground. Should the unruly
herd, despite their vigilance, take alarm, as is often
the case, or evince any symptoms of uneasiness, the
first care of the men is to close in, in circle, and if this
prove unavailing, they place themselves at the head
of the stampede, in order to check, if possible, the
progress of the affrighted multitude ; but woe to the
unfortunate watchman whose horse, missing his foot
ing, throws his rider, for he will be trampled to death
in an instant !
One afternoon we were apprised by a special mes
senger from El Frio, that a tall, red-faced Englishman
had arrived from the Orinoco, bringing any quantity

296 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of fire-arms, ammunition, and — what appeared most
extraordinary to our informant — a genuine negro ser
vant who could speak English. As no written com
munication had been despatched along with the
bearer of this unexpected piece of intelligence, we
had not an idea of who this British Nimrod might be.
We, however, hastened to welcome the stranger, and
for the purpose left Los Borales next morning for
head-quarters. On arriving, we were most agreeably
surprised at meeting no less a personage than Lord
James Butler, now, as I understand, Earl of Or-
mond. We then recollected that the previous year,
when his lordship had honored us with a visit at our
home in the valleys of Aragua, he had promised that
should we carry out our projected expedition to the
pampas, he would meet us there. Accordingly, in
expectation of this, he had quitted Barbadoes — where
he was stationed with his regiment — in his yacht for
the river Orinoco. There he left it and prosecuted
the remainder of the voyage in a clumsy bongo, up
the Apure, arriving at San Fernando nearly a month
after quitting Ciudad Bolivar. At the former place
he was advised to proceed to Achaguas, where he
would most likely hear of our whereabouts. Obtain
ing there the requisite information, he immediately set
out for our cattle farm, distant about fifteen leagues ;
but instead of providing him with a guide across the
trackless waste, he was merely furnished with a re
fractory mule, which they assured him would take
him to the next cattle farm, whence he would be di
rected onward. He had not proceeded far on his
solitary way, when the vicious animal, taking fright

LOS BORALES. 297
at a prairie-owl just as night was approaching, sud
denly whirled round, and my lord, despite his long
legs and English horsemanship, lost his balance, was
dismounted, and, what was worse, left to shift for
himself in the midst of a wide plain ; the mule, finding,
perhaps, the load rather too much for him, scampering
off without even a parting compliment. Nor was his
sable squire at hand to render him the requisite assist
ance, as he had been left behind in charge of the
numberless accoutrements for the chase. Fortunately
a peon accidentally encountered the mule on his way
home, and knowing the tricks of the animal, secured
him, and brought him back to the discomfited trav
eller. His lordship related this adventure with much
humor, and on our expressing regret that he had met
with so disagreeable a contretemps, he coolly replied
that he scarcely considered it in that light, and rather
regretted its speedy termination as having, possibly,
deprived him of some curious experiences.
Although the best room in the house had been
prepared for his accommodation, we observed with
surprise that when night came, he insisted upon
having his hammock slung in the open air. This, we
afterward discovered, was in consequence of his great
horror for the murcielagos clinging in clusters to the
thatch-roof of the house ; and I must confess also that
the guest-chamber in our Manor of the Pampas had
few attractions, and could offer none of the allure
ments of the diilce domo to his lordship of Kilkenny
Castle. Wines or delicacies of any kind we had
none ; but as we were well aware that the hospitable
13*

298 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Englishman always offers some choicer beverage than
water to his guests, we caused an old corozo-palm tree
standing in front of the house to be cut down, and
from it we procured every afternoon a plentiful sup
ply of palm-wine. To obtain this, a trough is scooped
out in the upper part of the stem among the footstalks
of the leaves ; the opening is then covered with the
square piece of bark just cut out, and the wine or sap '
allowed to accumulate in the trough during the night
A few hours are sufficient to produce a pleasant vinous
fermentation with a sweetish taste and a flavor sim
ilar to that of Malaga wine ; but if left to ferment for
a longer period, it acquires decidedly intoxicating
properties. Although our sports were nearly over at this time,
we endeavored to entertain our distinguished visitor
as well as circumstances would permit. We escorted
him several times to the savannas in search of game,
and even got up a rodeo and branding frolic for his
special amusement, with both of which he appeared
highly delighted. During the excitement of the
rodeo he had another adventure, similar to that I
have already related as having occurred to my friend,
Mr. Thomas, with a wild bull, and which came very
near proving more disastrous than his lordship's pre
vious one with the refractory mule. We had just
surrounded a large herd of cattle, when, like the
artist, inspired by the excitement of the chase and its
accompanying scenes, Lord James seized his sketch
book and commenced to delineate them. He had
not been long thus occupied, when a bull, attracted
perhaps by the commanding attitude of the draughts-

LOS BORALES. 299
man, broke through the ring, and made at him with
fury in his eyes. Unconscious of danger, he contin
ued his occupation with as much composure as if at a
stag-hunt in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was
too late to render him assistance, and we watched the
issue with breathless anxiety ; but the bull, apparent
ly awed by the immovable attitude of the rider and
his fearless composure, contented himself with making
a tremendous demonstration at the breast of the horse
without either touching him or his rider, and then,
turning tail, vanished in the distance. It was highly
amusing to hear his lordship inquire the meaning of
all that flourish of trumpets, when a witty Llanero,
standing near, replied to him that it was evidently
intended as a salutation from the wild multitude to
the honored guest.
Startled by the noise and rush of so many animals
over the plain, the foxes — in the pursuit of which
Englishmen are so lavish of trouble and expense —
could be seen running to and fro, endeavoring to
escape,; no sooner did the noble son of Albion dis
cover that this favorite game was also to be found in
the pampas, than he abandoned the exciting hunt of
the wild cattle for the first fox that crossed his path.
He had not proceeded far, however, when another fox,
and then another, and finally a legion of them offered
to his eager pursuit. Bewildered by so many bushy
tails, he gave up the chase in disgust ; and I am
sorry to state that this species of embarras de richesse,
spoiled sport for him in all his subsequent sorties,
excepting when, on a visit to the creek of Macanillal,
we " caught a tartar " in the shape of a full-grown

300 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
crocodile, which we mistook for a young one. This
adventure, however, afforded him a good deal of
amusement, and some surprise to those engaged in
the undertaking. It so happened that only the end
of the reptile's tail was out of water in a very shallow
spot, the rest of its body being entirely buried among
the roots of a large stump. Judging from the ap
parent smallness of the tail that we could easily drag
out the creature, and his lordship having expressed a
desire to obtain the specimen for preservation, Rose
liano immediately volunteered his services. He tried
in vain, however, to bring it to light unassisted,
whereupon a lazo was brought into requisition, and
having noosed the tail therewith, we succeeded in
pulling the reptile out of its hiding-place, when, to
our great astonishment and trepidation, we discov
ered that it was a large and full-grown female croco
dile with a brood of young ones among the roots of
the old tree. She struggled furiously in defence of
her brood, several of which we captured and pre
sented to our guest ; but when the time came for dis
posing of the mother and recovering the lazo, we found
that it would prove no child's play, inasmuch as she
had full command of her jaws. After several ineffec
tual attempts to stab her while in water, we succeeded
at length in dragging her partly from her lair, and
then only were we enabled to unfasten the noose. A
stab or two in the armpits, causing a flow of blood,
speedily brought the caribes to finish the job, after
which we returned to the house, much gratified at
having rid the creek of this dangerous family.
On our way back I met with a severe accident,

LOS BORALES. 301
and narrowly escaped serious injury from it. We
were cantering along a beautifully level piece of
ground, covered with short grass ; this suggested to
my English friends the idea of testing the relative
swiftness of our horses. Off we at once started, and
had proceeded but a short distance, when we found
our way obstructed by a dried-up creek. The English
men, as a matter of course, delighted, leaped it at a
bound ; but my pony, not being sufficiently strong to
clear the obstruction, missed the opposite bank and
fell, rolling over with me into the ditch. I was a
good deal bruised in consequence, and the house
being still at considerable distance, suffered intensely
in reaching it. This accident prevented me from
joining in the other sports devised for the entertain
ment of our noble guest, who, however shortly after
ward bade us adieu and returned to the sea coast.
He preferred, on this occasion, the route through
Nutrias and Barinas, that he might escape the tedious
descent of the rivers ; a messenger was therefore de
spatched to Ciudad Bolivar, ordering his yacht to
meet him at Puerto Cabello. Disabled by my recent
mishap, I could not, much to my regret, accompany
him ; a guide of his own selection was, however, fur
nished in the person of our negro troubadour Quin-
tana, for whom his lordship had evinced a decided
predilection, even extending to him an invitation to
visit " Old England," the friend and protector of be
nighted Africa ; but we could not spare him for so
long a trip ; and as Llaneros have an innate aversion
to trusting themselves on unknown waters, the ac
quaintanceship terminated on the borders of the Ca
ribbean Sea.

CHAPTER XXH
INCIDENTS OF THE WAE OP INDEPENDENCE.
After the departure of Lord James Butler from
El Frio, we began to think that it was also high time
for us to be getting ready for our return homeward.
The task of retracing our steps, however, was not an
easy thing to accomplish with three thousand oxen to
look after, besides the other animals we" brought
"there ; and this in the face of the approaching inun
dation of the savannas.
As soon as our preparations were completed, we
took our final departure from El Frio, Avhich perhaps
we were destined never to revisit, stopping at San
Pablo for a few days to make further arrangements
at the pass for crossing the river with our immense
train of animals and baggage. On our way to San
Pablo, we were nigh being put to rout, and our
labors scattered to the winds, by an invasion of a
small bloody fly termed mosquilla, which makes its
appearance at the commencement of the rainy season,
and which, for destructiveness to flesh and blood, sur
passes any thing I have yet seen in the shape of an

INCIDENTS OP THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 303
insect. In an instant we were enveloped in a swarm
of these terrible creatures, which fastened themselves
upon us and the cattle with a tenacity like that of
hungry leeches, maddening both man and beast, and
causing streams of blood to flow from the bites. The
only relief we found for a while was to drive the cattle
at full speed across the plain ; but this expedient, al
though for the time it frightened away the flies, came
very near producing also a complete dispersion of the
herd. We therefore resigned ourselves to endure
their torturing attacks until they had gorged them
selves with blood.
From San Pablo we despatched men on to Apur
ito, where we proposed crossing the river with the
cattle, to make preparations for this toilsome work ;
and then started for Achaguas, the inhabitants of
which town had tendered our Leader an earnest in
vitation to visit his old head-quarters. After an easy
ride of about three hours, we forded on horseback the
arm of the Apure River which, running in a south
easterly direction, forms with the Arauca and the
main channel of the former the island of Achaguas,
on which the capital of the province, a collection of
mud hovels, is situated. A brood of scaly crocodiles
basking in the sun, and a herd of tame cattle refresh
ing themselves in the middle of the stream, were the
only signs of animation we perceived on our approach
to the renowned capital of the Apure. In spite of its
present dilapidated condition, Achaguas did not fail
to interest me more than any other spot in Apure,
being my birthplace, and the stronghold for many
years of my country's independence. The Governor

304

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

of the province, Senor Arciniega, accompanied by
the few officials in the place, came out after a while
to greet our Leader, as did also the veteran General
Cornelio Munoz, former Commander of the famous
Guardia de Honor, or Colorados de Paez, which un
der the leadership of both these generals, performed
so many prodigies during the long struggle between
Royalists and Patriots, which resulted in the final
overthrow of Spanish domination in Colombia. At
that epoch of historical interest to the friends of lib
erty in America, Achaguas held the most conspicuous
position as the head-quarters of the patriot armies, a
brief sketch of which may not be uninteresting to my
readers. The arms of the republic were at first unsuccessful,
and Yenezuela submitted to the government of the
mother country, the Spanish commander, Don An
tonio Monteverde, having triumphed over the patriot
forces in 1812. By this time, however, a new cham
pion of the republican cause was rising in the south,
amidst the wild scenes I have endeavored to depict in
the foregoing pages. This champion was Captain
Jose A. Paez, then a youth of twenty Aprils, who
conceived the happy idea of collecting a horde of un
disciplined Llaneros in the plains of Casanare to op
pose the overwhelming forces of Spain. His intimate
acquaintance with the country, and his thorough mas
tery in all the sports of the Llaneros, admirably fitted
him to carry out his plans successfully. How he
came there, and by what means he acquired the re
quisite proficiency for the arduous enterprise, the
following anecdote of his early career will explain.

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 305
When seventeen years of age, an uncle of his, the
good Priest of Araure, his native place, entrusted him
with a large sum of money to deliver safely into the
hands of the curate of a distant parish, furnishing
him for the journey with a mule, an old pistol, and a
rusty sword ; for, even at that period of comparative
quiet and peace (1807) it was dangerous for a travel
ler to venture over the roads alone, and carrying with
him the tempting metal. The future President of the
Republic, highly elated at the great confidence re
posed in him, with the usual inexperience of youth,
spoke freely about his commission in the first inn he
stopped at to get his meals. The consequence of this
imprudence was, that shortly after he left the inn, he
was attacked on the road by three men, who, as a
matter of course, demanded la bolsa 6 la vida. The
youthful traveller, however, dismounted with the old
pistol in his hand already cocked, and now threaten
ing one and then the other of his assailants, endeav
ored to repel them. At last, being too closely pressed,
he fired the pistol at the nearest robber, with such
good aim that he killed his adversary on the spot,
while the fragments of the barrel, which, burst at the
same time, struck another in the face. Then charging
resolutely upon the third bandit with the rusty sword,
he quickly put both to flight, leaving behind them
the corpse of their wretched comrade. Notwithstand
ing the obvious propriety of his conduct on this oc
casion, acting as he did in self-defence, the young
man feared the consequences ; he imagined himself
already accused, persecuted, without the means of
proving his innocence, and therefore determined to

g06 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
hide himself by going into the interior of the plains,
hoping thus to escape a punishment which his error
made him regard as inevitable. Determined to gain
an honest livelihood, he sought employment on the
cattle farm of La Calzada, in the province of Barinas,
where he soon became inured to the fatigues of the
ranger's life ; acquiring at the same time, under the
tuition of a cruel negro majordomo, that proficiency
in horsemanship which later in life gave him the su
periority over the enemy.
Proud and jealous at the same time of his white
apprentice, whom he imagined had been sent there
by his master to spy his actions, the negro overseer
of La Calzada spared no opportunity to put to the
test the courage and strength of the future champion
of those plains, sometimes compelling him to break
in the most vicious horses, which often led him off for
days into the open fields ; at other times ordering
him away upon the most hazardous ventures of the
Llanos. Not satisfied with this show of authority
over his pupil, the brutal black Mentor of young
Paez ended the fatigues of a hard day's labor by
ordering him to bring a pail of water and wash his
muddy feet ! But the tide of fortune soon changed ;
the whirlwind of revolution offered Paez a new field
of adventure, and the humble peon of La Calzada
rapidly gained the highest posts in the patriot army
while the haughty overseer went to increase the ranks
of the opposing foe. In the course of events the ma
jordomo was brought one day a prisoner to Paez,
who not only spared his life, but kept him always
near his person, his only revenge being to imitate the

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 307
tone of his former tyrant when calling upon young
Paez to exercise the functions of the slave : " Nino
Jose Antonio ! bring a bowl of water to wash my
feet ! " to which the old negro humbly replied, " I
see, nino, you have not forgotten your old tricks."
When the revolution broke out, on the 19th of
April, 1810, Paez enlisted in the militia of Barinas as
a common soldier, and soon after was promoted to
the rank of sergeant of cavalry. This, however, being
rather a slow process of promotion, he proceeded to
organize an independent body of cavalry, with which
he rendered important service to the cause of inde
pendence. But the path of glory was not without
thorns, and our young leader found himself a pris
oner in the hands of the merciless Spaniards, owing
his preservation, as it was then believed, to the influ
ence of a miracle. In those clays a war without quar
ter was fiercely waged. The province of Barinas
having been again occupied by the royalist forces,
Paez fell into the hands of the cruel Puy, was thrown
into prison and ordered to be executed in the city
of Barinas the next day. At that time military ex
ecutions of captured enemies were conducted by lead
ing them out during the night to some lonely spot,
where they were despatched with the lance or the
sword. Paez and a number of his fellow-prisoners
were thus being led out one night, when he observed,
as he was leaving the prison, that he was uncovered ;
believing himself to be only going to make his deposi
tion before the Governor, he requested his companion
in the cell to lend him his hat. The Spanish officer

308 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
in charge of the mournful cortege, failing to recognize
him under this guise, ordered him back to be ex
changed for the owner of the hat, who, he supposed,
was the identical " captain of the rebels." Thus he
obtained unwittingly a respite of one day. The fol
lowing night he was awakened about eleven o'clock
by a great noise of horsemen and infantry in the
street. He imagined they were coming to lead him
and the rest of his fellow-prisoners to the place of ex
ecution. He prepared, therefore, to die ; but Provi
dence saved his life once more. The noise of arms
and horses in the street had been occasioned by an
alarm in consequence of information received by
Governor Puy, that a considerable army of patriots
was encamped on the banks of the Santo Domingo
river, on which Barinas is situated, and was about
marching on the city. Several parties, coming from
different directions, confirmed the information re
ceived by the Governor, and the panic became gen
eral. It was supposed that the patriots in large num
bers intended to take the Spanish garrison by sur
prise and seize upon the Governor. The latter, there
fore, immediately abandoned Barinas with his forces,
leaving only a few men to guard the prison, for in his
hurry he had forgotten to execute the prisoners, as
he had done before on similar occasions. This was
the time for Paez to make a bold effort to save his
life. The next morning he embraced the opportunity,
broke his fetters, helped to release his fellow-prison
ers, and overpowered one of the sentinels, who at
tempted to oppose his escape. Paez then fled to put
himself once more at the head of a small band of

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 309
patriots, to harass the enemy in the same province of
Barinas. On the morning succeeding the alarm, the
royalists could not discover an enemy for more than
fifty miles around the city. The alarm and panic oc
casioned by the reported approach of" an enemy in
the night, confirmed by so many persons, some of
whom had gone out to reconnoitre, and the most sin
gular disappearance, or absence, of this host on the
following morning, gave rise to the popular belief,
existing to this day among the common people,
that the life of Paez was saved by the friendly inter
cession and miraculous appearance of an army of de
parted spirits, known as the Escuadron de las Animas.
Many combats and encounters took place after
this, between the royalists and patriots for the pos
session of Barinas, and when, at last, the city was
evacuated by the latter, Paez followed the movements
of commandant Garcia de Sena into the mountain
ous province of Merida. Garcia de Sena, finding
the cavalry cumbersome in the difficult passes of
the mountains, dismissed them in the town of Las
Piedras. It was then that Paez, once again free to
act according to his own judgment and impulses, con
ceived the idea of going through the centre of New
Granada to the plains of Casanare, south of the prov
ince of Apure. This plan was the result of expe
rience, which convinced him that the patriots could
not triumph, notwithstanding their unheard-of efforts,
while the Spaniards held possession of the plains and
controlled the supply of horses. The acquisition of
the Llanos gave the superiority to the Spaniards, as,
by means of it, they had a source of supplies and a

310 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
safe retreat. Paez determined, therefore, to make
that wild region the base of his military operations,
and with this object organized a body of horsemen in
the plains of Casanare, which he soon after led into
the province of Apure.
In the language of another, " no man was better
calculated to command the love and respect of his
wild soldiery. Great bravery, a thorough knowledge
of localities, an affable and familiar treatment of his
followers, procured for Paez great popularity and
an unlimited sway over the minds of his men. He
was one of the best riders in a district of country cel
ebrated for good horsemen, and understood the man
agement of the lance, his favorite weapon, almost to
perfection. He possessed great bodily strength and
agility, and few could compete with him in the wild
sports of the Llaneros, or inhabitants of the immense
plains of Yenezuela."
The Llanos are, in fact, a permanent camp of mil
itary instruction for their intrepid inhabitants. Ac
customed from their infancy to subdue the wild horse,
to master the wild bull, to swim across broad streams,
and to grapple in single combat with the crocodile,
the tiger and wild boar, the Llaneros learn to despise
danger. When the war turned them from their or
dinary occupations, the enemy found them ready-
made soldiers. Inhabiting a genial atmosphere and
endowed with iron constitutions, their wants are
few and insignificant ; in peace, the lazo and the
horse ; in war, the horse and the lance. Perfectly
acquainted with the country and unencumbered with
heavy accoutrements, the dwellers of the Llanos can-

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 3H
not be conquered except by men of the same region,
and Yenezuela possesses in those limitless plains and
in the breasts of their valorous children, the strongest
bulwark of her national independence.
Paez, now master of his own military movements,
resolved to meet the enemy there, and, if possible, to
bring about an engagement. On the 16th of Febru
ary, 1816, he commenced his march in pursuit of the
royalist chief, Don Rafael Lopez, and in three hours'
space met him at a place called Mata de la Miel, on
the right bank of the river Apure. «The royalist leader
had two pieces of artillery and sixteen hundred men,
whom he drew up at once in order of battle. Paez's
forces amounted altogether to about six hundred cav
alry. It was evening and the night fast advancing,
on which account many of the patriot officers were of
opinion that the engagement should be postponed un
til the following day. This very reason, however, de
termined the leader to enter at once into action, as he
feared that his soldiers, observing the great superior
ity of the enemy in numbers, might take advantage
of the night to desert. Paez accordingly divided his
forces in two columns, placing the one, composed of
New Granadians, under command of Captain Genaro
Yasquez, and the other, composed of Yenezuelians,
under Captain Ramon Nonato Perez. The royalists
were completely routed, and during all that night and
the two following days the forces led by Paez pursued
and captured a great portion of those under Don
Rafael Lopez.. Such was the action of Mata de la
Miel. There were left dead on the field four hundred
royalists, and a great number of prisoners were taken,

312 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
together with about three thousand five hundred
horses and nearly all the enemy's arms. Four months
afterward, in June, Lopez again crossed the Apure
with twelve hundred horsemen and four hundred in
fantry, but Paez met him near Mantecal and com
pelled him to retreat, after losing many men' and
horses. Notwithstanding these advantages on the part of
the patriot forces, the result of the following cam
paigns (1814, 1815, and 1816) was most disastrous to
the arms of the republic elsewhere ; Yenezuela, New
Granada, and the plains of Casanare again fell into
the hands of the vengeful Spaniards. In 1816, a very
numerous emigration of patriots, consisting of men,
women, and children, in a state of great destitution
and suffering, fled to the wilderness from the persecu
tion of the royalists, and took refuge in the camp of
Paez. Many persons of distinction were to be found
among the fugitives, and a system of government
was established for the regulation of affairs. A meet
ing of officers was held at Arichuna, and Paez ap
pointed supreme chief, with the rank of General of
Brigade. He applied himself immediately to raise
sufficient forces to oppose Don Rafael Lopez and to
acquire, if possible, some resources in his extreme
want. The hardships and privations endured by the
patriot army on the plains can scarcely be conceived.
The soldiers were so destitute of clothing as to be
compelled to use for a covering the hides of the cattle
freshly killed ; very few had hats, none shoes. The
ordinary and only food was beef, without salt and
without bread. There were, in addition to all this,

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 313
continual rains, and the rivers and creeks had over
flowed and covered over the country. They wanted
horses, and as these are indispensable to the Llaneros,
they must be obtained before any thing else. Only
wild horses could be procured, and they had to be
tamed and broken. This was done in squadrons, and
it was a curious spectacle to see five or six hundred
riders at a time struggling to subdue these wild an
imals. Around the ground were stationed several
officers, mounted on well-trained horses, whose duty it
was to go after those which escaped from their riders,
to prevent them from carrying away the saddles, al
though these were made of wood, with thongs of raw
hides. Many years after these scenes, an eye-witness
wrote : " We courted danger in order to put an end,
with honor, to such a miserable life." To provide
against this misery, Paez now turned his attention to
the nearest source of supply, Barinas, a city abound
ing in all the commodities he stood most in need of.
Although nearly two hundred miles distant, the
patriot chieftain did not hesitate to invade his old
antagonist in the midst of the rainy season. The
undertaking could not, however, be executed without
great peril and hardships, he having to contend not
only against the inveterate enemies who occupied all
the approaches to the city, but against the inundation
of the savannas at the time. The expedition, more
over, had to be conducted with great secrecy, avoid
ing even the few channels left open in those inland
seas for the transit of men on horseback. Not in the
least deterred by obstacles so formidable in themselves,
Paez got together one thousand picked men, and two
U

314 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
thousand white horses, animals of this color being re
puted the best swimmers. With these, he crossed
the Apure and several other streams, then at the
height of their flood, being compelled besides to ford
extensive lagoons of various depths to avoid the nu
merous gunboats of the enemy, stationed at all the im
portant passes. In one of these, on the river Suripa,
the expedition was fortunate enough to capture by
surprise a gunboat and a large quantity of hides,
which were left behind with a strong guard for future
use. When near Barinas, Paez sent a detachment to
surprise also the town of Pedraza, to the south-east
of the capital, with the object of drawing the atten
tion of the royalists in that direction. The ruse suc
ceeded admirably ; the small detachment of men car
ried every thing before them, penetrating as far as
the plaza, and then retreated, according to instruc
tions, to rejoin the main body. Enraged at their
audacity, the Spanish commander at Barinas sent out
a large force in pursuit of the attacking party, thus
weakening his own force. Paez then advanced
against Barinas, disposing his line of march in single
file, each horseman followed by his spare horse, tied
to the tail of his own sumpter. The object of this
arrangement was to deceive the royalists also in re
gard to the real numbers of the enemy, which from a
distance presented a very imposing appearance. Ba
rinas is situated on the border of an extensive plain,
bounded on the south by the mesa of the same name,
through which Paez made his entry into the doomed
city when the sun was in the meridian. The dreaded
army of " departed spirits " did not produce a more

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 3^5
appalling consternation among the royalists than the
apparition of this unexpected body of ragged horse
men. They knew full well that, owing to the over
flow of the savannas, no advance could be made upon
the city from the south. They felt equally secure
against any attack from the north and from the east,
which were then entirely under their control, while
on the west they were still better protected by the
lofty Sierra Nevada. Without stopping to ascertain
the real character of the force before them, the royal
ists collected together in a great hurry whatever val
uables they prized most, and had already loaded
several mules with them, when the enemy, dashing
forward in full gallop, arrived in time to secure the
rich booty, after dispersing the owners and their
troops. The half-clad followers of Paez then fell
upon the stores and abandoned houses of the royalists
with the eagerness of men who had not seen a respect
able garment in a long time. One of the officers was
fortunate enough to capture a mule loaded with thirty
thousand dollars in gold, while every man in the party
got more goods than he could carry.
Paez only remained a sufficient time at Barinas
to arrange the transportation of the booty, which took
up nearly all the spare horses brought along for this
purpose ; without these and the hides seized at Su-
ripa, it would have been impossible to remove it to
the patriot camp in the wilderness. Owing to the
presence of a strong flotilla of gunboats at the mouth
of the river, the captured vessel had to be abandoned
after a while, and the wearisome route across the in
undated savannas resumed by the returning caravan.

316 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The hides served the double purpose of covering
for the goods and lighters to ferry them over the
streams. This species of leather canoe is an inge
nious contrivance frequently resorted to in those wild
regions wherever there is a scarcity of boats, and con
sists in a bag or trough formed by passing a rope
through a number of holes round the rim of the hide,
and gathering it over the goods. One end of the
rope of sufficient length is then handed over to a good
swimmer, who takes it between his teeth and tows
the lighter after him. In this manner, the immense
booty obtained at Barinas was successfully trans
ported over one hundred miles of inundated plains, to
the inconceivable joy of the wretched emigrants at the
camp of Arichuna.
After allowing his troop sufficient time to rest
from their fatigues, and finding it to his advantage to
resume the offensive, at least to occupy the attention
of his soldiers, Paez commenced his march toward
Achaguas, although the season was still very severe.
The march was slow, as, besides the difficulties of the
road, they were encumbered by numerous emigrants,
and compelled, at every step, to procure supplies on
account of the want of stores. The great multitude
of men, women, and children, moving with the army,
represented to the life the picture of a nomadic people
without home or country, who, after consuming the
resources of the district they have occupied, raise
their tents to conquer another.* In this manner they
* Nevertheless, Paez took particular care to preserve the breed of
cattle on the plains of Apure. Notwithstanding that he was continually
engaged in war, he issued most effective orders to prevent its extinc-

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 317
arrived at the sand hills or Medanos de Araguayuna,
where, having left the emigrants under the protection
of a resolute band of horsemen, Paez incorporated all
the men capable of bearing arms in his ranks, and
marched against Lopez, whom he supposed to be at
Achaguas. But after proceeding a short distance, he
learned that the enemy, to the number of seventeen
hundred horsemen and four hundred infantry, was at
the cattle farm called Yagual. Paez then changed
his course and took his position between the enemy
and the city of Achaguas. His army was divided
into three columns, commanded by Generals Urda-
neta and Servier, and by Colonel Santander ; they
were nearly all armed with lances, very few with
muskets or carabines, and the supply of ammunition
was scanty. On the 8th of October, they came in
sight of the enemy, and although their number much
exceeded that of the patriot forces, Paez did not hesi
tate to give them battle. The conflict was long and
severe, but it was decidedly in favor of the patriots.
Don Rafael Lopez was compelled to abandon his po
sition, after sustaining a severe loss ; on the next day
he refused to renew the battle and fell back upon
Achaguas, having previously shipped on the river
' Arauca all his artillery and wounded for San Fer
nando. On the 13th, Lopez, having made a short
resistance, abandoned the town, of which Paez took
possession. Shortly after this, Lopez being attacked
by surprise on the banks of the Apure, was utterly
tion. The origin of all the cattle estates which are at present to be
found in Venezuela is to be traced to the Apure plains.

318 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
defeated, his forces dispersed, and he himself lost his
life. At the head of his brave soldiers, Paez rescued
the province of Apure, a part of that of Barinas, in
Yenezuela, and recovered that of Casanare, in New
Granada. Having increased his force by the new
levies raised in these provinces and in others, he
formed that army which subsequently rendered such
important services in the cause of freedom, and whose
exploits have been so much admired.

CHAPTER XXIH.
INCIDENTS OF THE WAE OF INDEPENDENCE.
While these events were taking place in the dis
tant plains of Yenezuela, Spain, having bravely ex
pelled the French invaders from her territory, now
turned the whole strength of her arms against her
rebellious colonies. Several expeditions were de
spatched under the command of the ablest Generals,
and provided with all the material for a vigorous
campaign. One of these, led by Lieutenant-General
Don Pablo Morillo, set sail from Cadiz on the 18th
of February, 1815. It consisted of sixty-five trans
port ships and other smaller vessels, convoyed by
the line-of-battle ship San Pedro Alcantara, mount
ing seventy-four guns, and having on board the regi
ments of Leon, Yictoria, Estremadura, Barbastro,
Union, (afterward known as Yalencey,) Cazadores
of Castile, and the General's battalion of infantry
Cazadores, the regiments of dragoons of the Union,
and the hussars of Ferdinand YIL, a park of artillery
with eighteen pieces, two companies of fortress artil-

320 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
lery, three of sappers, and a park provided with all
that was requisite to besiege a second-class fortress.
The total number of men composing this expedition,
including the marines, amounted to fifteen thousand.
The ships carrying this formidable armament cast
anchor, on the 3d April, 1815, in Puerto-Santo, to
the windward of Carupano in Yenezuela. Morillo,
the commander of this expedition, was a brave, active,
and energetic officer, cool in action, a severe discipli
narian, and was beloved by his soldiers. Besides this
force, there was a royalist army of five thousand men
in Yenezuela, commanded by Morales.
At first, General Morillo met with little or no op
position, until, going into the interior, he encountered
the wild horsemen of the plains. The haughty tem
per of the Spanish commander-in-chief could not bear
that a handful of semi-savages, as he was pleased to
style them, should insult the pennant of Castile any
longer, and he therefore prepared to capture every
one of them ; with what results, the sequel of this
narrative will show.
In the early part of January, 1817, the Spanish
commanders La Torre and Calzada effected a junction
at Guasdualito, on the plains of Apure. About the
same time, the royalist brigadier Don Ramon Correa
and the Lieutenant-Colonel Don Salvador Gorrin left
San Fernando with fifteen hundred men, and with
his cavalry and infantry attacked the line of the pa
triots and completely routed Guerrero, the repub
lican General, forcing him to fall back upon Paez,
after a bloody battle, in which the patriots sustained a
considerable loss. The siege of San Fernando being

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 321
raised in consequence of this triumph, the attention
of La Torre and Calzada was directed to Paez, who
presented the greatest obstacle to their occupation
of the river Apure and its adjacent plains. An
army of four thousand veteran soldiers of all .arms,
including seventeen hundred of the cavalry com
manded by Colonel Rcmigio Ramos, presented a
force sufficient to inspire the Spanish commander
with confidence, particularly as La Torre, who was a
brave and accomplished soldier, was anxious to dis
tinguish himself among his companions in arms. He,
therefore, marched to the town of San Yicente, fol
lowing the right bank of the river Apure, with the
intention of attacking Paez who was then in Man
tecal. On the 28th of January, the patriots and
royalists met on the plain of Las Mucuritas ; the
former with a body of cavalry amounting only to
eleven hundred horsemen, and the latter with the
forces already mentioned. The result of the engage
ment was as unfortunate to La Torre as it proved ad
vantageous to the patriots under Paez, who on this
occasion made up for his inferiority in numbers by
means of a stratagem which nearly resulted in the
destruction of the entire Spanish army. The order
of battle adopted by the royalist leader was the best
which the nature of the ground and the enemy he
had to contend with would permit ; his infantry pre
sented a strong and compact front, while -his cavalry
was posted on the wings and on the rear. Paez hav
ing only cavalry, could not come within the range of
the enemy's muskets without running the risk of
being wholly destroyed, and he consequently con-
14*

322 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ceived the idea of separating the royalist horse from
the -infantry. The presumptuous confidence of Colo
nel Ramos and the inexperience of La Torre in the
Llanero's tactics, facilitated the execution of Paez's
plan. - Having formed two columns with a portion of
his forces, Paez ordered them to attack the enemy's
flauks, and then immediately to retreat, as if they
had been repulsed. His object was to draw out the
enemy's cavalry in the heat of the pursuit, and at
once surround them with two other columns which hei
had ready prepared for that purpose. This simple
manoeuvre had the desired effect, and La Torre's cav
alry was speedily destroyed. The European hussars
alone escaped, because they advanced with less pre
cipitancy, and in better order. The republican leader
now ordered the dry grass of the plain to be set on
fire, and it instantly became a sea of flame. Fortu
nately for La Torre, his infantry retreating precipi
tately in close column, succeeded in reaching a spot
which had been burned some time before. Even
there, his infantry sustained several charges from
Paez's cavalry, compelling him ultimately to seek a
refuge in a dense wood on the right bank of the
Apure, where the pursuit ceased for want of infantry
on the part of the patriots. Of this battle, General
Morillo wrote : " Fourteen consecutive charges upon
my wearied battalions, convinced me that those men
were not a small gang of cowards, as had been repre
sented to me." On the following morning, Morillo
joined La Torre, and continued with him his march
to San Fernando without crossing the Apure, and
always in sight of the republican cavalry. Paez

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 333
finally perceiving that the enemy avoided a new en
gagement, retired to San Juan de Payara.
In 1S17, General Bolivar appeared in the province
of Guayana, and his first effort was to open his com
munication with Paez, who did not hesitate to recog
nize his authority, although widely separated from the
Liberator's head-quarters.
From this period, the patriots began to extend
their operations ; a series of brilliant actions took
place at various points, and the republican cause ap
peared to revive on the line of the Apure and the
Orinoco rivers. The acquisition of Guayana under
Piar was an important and decisive event in the his
tory of the war ; by means of it, Bolivar was in a
situation to harass the posts occupied by the royalists,
on any point of the immense line embraced by the
Orinoco and its numerous tributaries ; he had ap
proached the island of Trinidad, had obtained sup
plies of men, horses, and cattle, and secured a com
munication with Paez.
In the beginning of January, 1818, Paez deter
mined to take the fortified town of San Fernando by
assault ; to this end, he directed that two gunboats,
captured from the royalists, and eight or ten other
boats, should rendezvous on the creek of Biruca, con
necting with the Apure ; said vessels were to lie in
ambush there, ready to land at San Fernando a
chosen body of men on the night of the 14th, while the
rest of the army engaged the attention of the enemy
in another direction. But two deserters, who went
over to the royalists, betrayed the plan, and before it
could be executed, an unexpected and vigorous attack
was made on the boats, all of which fell into the

324 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
hands of the royalists, and of the men on board only
two escaped by swimming. The project had, in con
sequence, to be abandoned, and Paez, in pursuance
of the instructions of Bolivar that he should not
risk his forces until the latter joined him, confined
himself to maintaining the siege, sending, in the
mean time, several exploring parties to the plains of
Calabozo and San Carlos. In the latter part of the
same month, Bolivar joined him with two thousand
five hundred disciplined troops, among them the
famous British Legion lately arrived, increasing the
republican forces to about ten thousand infantry and
the same number of cavalry, which last was composed
of well-trained men, accustomed to victory on the
plains of Apure. The plan of the campaign having
been arranged between Bolivar and Paez, they re
solved to cross over the river Apure and march
forthwith on Calabozo, where Morillo had established
his head-quarters. But here a great difficulty pre
sented itself : the patriot forces had no boats in which
to cross that broad and deep river. It was then that
Paez conceived and executed the extraordinary plan
of capturing with cavalry the gunboats of the enemy
stationed on the river, opposite the point toward
which they were marching. A party of fifty lancers,
mounted on horses without saddles, were selected for
this purpose, the brave Aramendi being one of their
number ; at a signal from their leader, who headed
the movement, they plunged into the river and swam
toward the Spanish gunboats assisted by the horses.
The royalists, taken by surprise, had only time to fire
a single round, and the next moment the gunboats

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 335
were boarded on all sides and captured by the pa
triots. This dangerous manoeuvre was performed at
a distance of two miles from San Fernando, which,
from that moment, was cut off from all communica
tion with Morillo. The patriot army being thus pro
vided with the means of transportation across the
Apure, a body of cavalry was immediately de
spatched in the direction of the road leading to Cala
bozo, and succeeded in capturing by surprise a party
of twenty-five men, who composed the advanced post
of the enemy. In consequence of this manoeuvre,
Morillo was also taken by surprise on the 11th of
February, at a time when his hussars and a portion
of the battalion of Castille were at a place called
Mision de Abajo, about three miles to the south of
Calabozo. Only a few men from both regiments,
with a Colonel, succeeded in making their escape to
the intrenchments in the city. The sturdy veteran,
Morillo, could not believe the report of his Colonel,
that the whole patriot army was marching upon him.
Haughtily accusing that officer of cowardice, he sal
lied forth in person with his staff to reconnoitre what
he supposed to be a band of guerrillas ; but he him
self had to flee for safety into the city, narrowly
escaping death through the stoical heroism of his in
sulted Colonel, who threw himself between the Com
mander-in-chief and the lance of one of Paez's staff
officers. Instead of investing the royalists at once, Bolivar
committed the error of encamping for the night with
all his troops at the village of El Rastro, about
four miles this side of Calabozo. Morillo improved

326 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
this opportunity to abandon the city under cover of
night, and fell back on Caracas, by the mountainous
route of El Sombrero, where the patriots could not
follow him on account of the inferiority of their in
fantry. Paez then returned to the Apure, while Bol
ivar remained with the bulk of the army, to be soon
after entirely annihilated at La Puerta by the royalist
General. But the Genius of the Andes was untiring
in his efforts to see his country, and the rest of the
South American Continent, free from European op
pression. On the 16th January, 1819, Bolivar joined Paez
again at San Juan de Payara with a newly organized
corps d'armee, and their united forces amounted to
four thousand men. Bolivar, as a recompense for the
important services rendered by Paez to his country,
raised him to the rank of General of Division, and
left him in command of all the forces, while he pro
ceeded to Angostura, where Congress was to meet in
February. About this time the royalist Generals,
Morillo and La Torre, also joined their forces at San
Fernando, amounting in all to six thousand five hun
dred men of all arms. With these they immediately
proceeded to attack the patriots at San Juan in the
beginning of February. Paez retreated toward the
Orinoco, transported all his infantry to the island of
Urbana, and took up a position, with his guard and
two squadrons of carabineers, at Cunaviche ; the re
mainder of his horsemen he stationed on the plains
of Rio Claro, and a most cumbersome emigration of
ten thousand patriot refugees, that followed his camp,
was taken to Araguaquen. The plan adopted by

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 337
Paez on this occasion was precisely the same as the
one always practised by him in former campaigns ; yet
the royalist General was so infatuated in his eagerness
to destroy what he called the " Gang of Apure," that
he was easily led away into the wilderness before he
was conscious of his danger. On the 11th of Febru
ary, Morales, who commanded the vanguard of the
royalist forces, was stationed at the cattle farm of
Canafistola ; while one of his squadrons of cavalry
was engaged in collecting cattle for the army, Paez,
who never lost sight of him, appeared suddenly with
twelve hundred horsemen, and, without giving the
enemy time to retreat, threw them into disorder, and
cut them up. He then charged upon Morales, and a
quick, constant firing had commenced, when the prin
cipal body of the Spanish army appeared in the dis
tance. The patriots now retreated toward Cunaviche,
keeping their adversary under observation ; at night,
however, they retraced their steps, and in the morning
appeared situated a short, distance in the opposite di
rection. Morillo countermarched and continued for
many days wandering over that wilderness, renewing
his efforts to overtake an enemy which kept con
stantly before him, like the mirage of the desert, and
which did him great injury by driving away the
cattle. The only means that Morillo could employ to
overtake his opponent and force him to battle, was
to use his cavalry ; but the employment of this arm
jeopardized the only force which procured the sub
sistence of the army, and might thus compromise its
6afety. At length, convinced of the inutility of his
efforts, he recrossed the Arauca and in the early part

328 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of March, established his head-quarters at Acha
guas. On the first day of April, General Morillo again
resumed the offensive, marching along the left bank
of the Arauca and approaching the position occupied
on the right bank by Generals Paez and Bolivar ; the
latter had recently returned from the Congress at
Angostura, where he had been elected President of
the Republic, and resumed the command in chief of
the army. Morillo made several feigned movements
to the right and to the left, as if he wished to cross
the river, and at noon of the 2d, took up his posi
tion nearly opposite that of Bolivar, out of range of
the cannon. For the purpose of drawing him forth,
General Paez crossed the river with one hundred and
fifty horsemen, composed mostly of officers who vol
unteered for the hazardous undertaking ; with these
he formed three small columns and advanced upon
the enemy. Morillo immediately put all his forces in
motion ; his infantry and artillery commenced firing,
while the cavalry charged upon the small band of
patriots, hoping to overpower by numbers the weak
columns of the enemy ; he himself directed his course
toward the bank of the river. Paez, in the mean
time, retreated in order, purposely leaving the pass
of the river on his rear. Morillo, observing this, and
supposing him inevitably lost, detached from the
army all the cavalry in pursuit of Paez, and directed
his fire upon the right bank, defended by some light
troops. As soon, however, as the republican General
perceived tha.t the enemy's horse were at a consider
able distance from the army, and in disorder, he faced

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 329
about suddenly, attacked his pursuers in front and on
the flanks, in small groups of twenty men, and with
out giving them time to recover from their astonish
ment or to re-form the lines, he routed them, oc
casioning great loss. In vain they made the most
obstinate resistance— in vain the carabineers dis
mounted — all their efforts were useless ; disconcerted
and taken by surprise, all those who opposed the
vigorous attack were killed upon the spot. The vic
tors pursued the remnants of the force as far as the en
emy's lines, slaying all whom they overtook. Their
infantry, thrown into confusion, sought refuge in the
woods, the artillery ceased firing, and night pre
vented the further destruction of the royalist army.
On the day following this encounter, Bolivar issued
a decree, conferring the cross of Liberators {Liberta
dores) on all the officers, sergeants, corporals, and sol
diers, who fought in this engagement, known in his
tory by the name of Queseras del Medio ; while the
following proclamation announced to the army the
success recently obtained by the republican arms :

SIMON BOLIVAR PRESIDENT, Etc., Etc.
" To the Heroes of the Army of Apure :
" Soldiers ! You have just performed the most
extraordinary action that can be recorded in the mili
tary history of nations — one hundred and fifty men, or,
rather, one hundred and fifty heroes, led on by the
undaunted General Paez, have deliberately attacked
in front the whole Spanish army, under Morillo ;

330 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
artillery, infantry, cavalry, nothing availed to de
fend the enemy from the hundred and fifty com
panions of the intrepid Paez. The columns of their
cavalry have disappeared under the strokes of our
lances ; their infantry sought a shelter in the woods ;
the roar of their cannon was silenced before the breasts
of our horses, and only the darkness of night preserved
the army of the tyrant from complete and absolute
destruction. " Soldiers ! The deed you have performed is but
the prelude of what you can accomplish. Prepare
then for the combat, and reckon on victory, which you
carry on the point of your lances and bayonets. " Bolivar.
" Head-quarters at Potreritos Marrerenos, April 3, 1819."
After this engagement, Morillo, finding himself
again deprived of his cavalry in the heart of the sa
vannas, retreated precipitately to Achaguas, and
finally to San Fernando, which place he fortified
strongly, and recrossing the Apure, sought a more ad
vantageous position against the attacks of his hover
ing enemy.
The engagement of Queseras del Medio was the
precursor of new plans and bold projects, combined
between Bolivar and Paez. The plains of Yenezuela,
being now entirely rescued from the enemy, these two
Generals arranged the dangerous and important ex
pedition that was to give freedom to New Grana
da. Paez had the honor accorded him of choosing
which of the two should command the expedition.
They both agreed that Bolivar should march into New

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 331
Granada, and that Paez should preserve, at all risks,
the possession of the plains of Apure. Yictory
crowned the republican arms in New Granada, and
Paez resolutely and successfully defended the im
portant territory confided to his care and protection.
On the 17th December, 1819, Yenezuela and New
Granada were united into one great republic, under the
name of Colombia, with a territory embracing nearly
500,000 square miles.
The year 1821 is celebrated for the important vic
tory obtained by the republican army, under Bolivar
and Paez, on the field of Carabobo, which secured
Yenezuela to the patriots. General Bolivar's forces
amounted to 6,000 men. Only the first division of
the army, commanded by Paez, took part in the bat
tle. This division was composed of the famous Brit
ish Legion, lately arrived from England, the battalion
of Apure, and 1,500 horsemen. The field of Cara
bobo is a vast and open plain, lying in a southerly
direction from Yalencia. An army endeavoring to
enter this plain from Tinaquillo, as the patriot army
was attempting to do, is obliged, after passing the
river Chirgua, to penetrate over the defile called Buena
Yista, lying to the northeast. This defile is a formi
dable position, on which a few men can easily arrest
the progress of an army. If this pass be gained, and
the many obstructions be overcome, which an enemy
can easily oppose over a rough and craggy road of
considerable length, there still remains a narrow val
ley to be traversed, formed by hills, which constitute
the entrance on the west to the plain of Carabobo ;
here the level ground commences. General La Torre,

332 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the Spanish commander, had stationed in the valley
and on both sides on the hills commanding it, several
pieces of artillery, as well as strong bodies of infantry.
On the plain near the opening of the valley the ex
tended line of infantry was deployed in order of bat
tle, with its right resting upon a thicket ; next fol
lowed another line, and between the flanks of both,
there were two strong bodies of cavalry. The second
line of battle had on its left the road to El Pao, and
the cavalry on the same side was stationed on the
brow of a hill over which that road passes ; the sum
mit of the hill was occupied by a battalion. Such
was the military position of the Spanish forces, amount
ing on this occasion to 9,000 men. On the 24th of
June, the patriot General occupied the defile, and
from that place observed the position of the enemy.
The narrow road pursued by Bolivar allowed him
only the room necessary to file off, and the Spaniards
not only guarded the outlet into the plain, but com
manded the valley with their artillery and a large
body of infantry. The position was impregnable.
It was therefore resolved that General Paez, with
considerable risk and difficulty, should penetrate
through a foot-path but little known, and turn the
enemy's right. This path was extremely hazardous.
It begins at the high road leading to San Carlos, to
the west of the valley ; goes over the top of a small
hill covered with woods, which was commanded by
the Spanish artillery, and leads into a ravine where
the men were compelled to pass singly, because it
was very rough and full of brambles and briars.
When the enemy discovered the movement of the

INCIDENTS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 333
advancing forces under Paez, he directed part of his
own against the latter, and some of his battalions
came up to the ravine, as the patriot battalion of
Apure was beginning to pass it, and a vigorous firing
commenced and was continued on both sides. The re
publican corps at last succeeded in passing the ravine,
but no longer able to sustain singly the enemy's
charge, was already giving way, when the British
Legion came up to their support. The enemy had by
this time brought into action four of his best bat
talions, against only one of the patriots. But the
gallant Britons now filed off and formed in order of
battle, under a murderous fire, with almost super
human coolness, and kneeling down, they could not
be made to yield an inch of ground. Almost all its
officers were either killed or wounded ; but the service
rendered by those brave foreigners was great indeed.
Their heroic firmness gave time for the battalion of
Apure to rally and return to the charge, while two
companies of Tiradores, led on by the gallant Her as,
came also into the action. The enemy at last yielded
under the simultaneous charge of the bayonet made
by these different corps and fell back upon the caval
ry for support. By this time the body-guard of Gen
eral Paez, six hundred strong, had passed the ravine,
and charging the enemy's horse on the rear of its
columns, routed them completely and decided the
action on that memorable day. Only one battalion,
the famous Yalencey, successfully repelled the furious
charges of the patriot cavalry, which pursued the
royalists as far as Yalencia. General La Torre, with
the remnant of his forces, shut himself up in the forti-

334 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
fications of Puerto Cabello, which were finally carried
by assault on the 7th of November in the same year
by General Paez.
The victory gained at Carabobo was complete and
brilliant, decisive of the fate of the republic, and
glorious to the brave soldiers of Apure, whose favored
leader was raised by Bolivar to the rank of General-in-
chief on the field of battle — an appointment which
was subsequently ratified by Congress " in acknowl
edgment of his extraordinary valor and military vir
tues."

CHAPTER XXIY.
SCENES AT THE PASS OP APURITO.
When we were apprised that every thing was
ready at the pass, we moved on from San Pablo
with the horses, the cattle following behind by easy
marches, to allow them sufficient time to graze on the
rich herbage by the way.
On our arrival at Apurito, we found the river
quite swollen with the recent showers and already
extending from bank to bank. The first business was
to select among our men and horses the strongest and
most capable of enduring the fatigue and of guiding
through the boisterous waves of the Apure the various
lots into which the cattle were divided for the pur
pose. Our next step was to assemble at the pass a
sufficient number of canoes with expert paddlers to
act in concert with the leading men and horses, by
flanking the swimmers in the river. Two long pali
sades, running parallel down to the bank of the river
and narrowing toward the water, had already been
constructed ; through these the animals, in lots of
two hundred at a time, were driven at full speed,

336 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
with deafening shouts and earnest goading, while two
men, stripped naked and mounted on two spirited
horses without saddles, headed the movement, plung
ing headlong into the river pell-mell with the cattle,
which were thus encouraged to swim across. A herd
of tame animals was stationed on the opposite shore
to incorporate the swimmers as they came out of the
water. Having done this, the leaders swam back to
procure another lot of animals, a feat they performed
for about twenty successive times in the course of the
day. Nevertheless, the task was not so easily accom
plished as was practised with the horses ; for it often
happened that the bulls became quite refractory and
pugnacious, in which case the men in the canoes
were obliged to hold them by the horns, dragging
them along by main force as they paddled on ; at
other times the beasts got alongside of the leading
men and horses, and then the danger to both was im
minent, the bulls attacking them in the water ; thus
many valuable horses were killed by these infuriated
animals, while the men had several narrow escapes.
What with savage bulls, electric eels, crocodiles and
caribes — not to mention other pernicious creatures of
the waters and the broad expanse of the river before
them — the task of these bold adventurers is truly ap
palling ; yet they go to work and accomplish their
task with a willing heart and a perfect nonchalance
of every thing around them. The same might be
said also in regard to the noble steeds which share
with them the dangers of the river, acting at the
same time the part of floating bridges to the men,
and as decoys to the cattle during the passage. Their

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 337
powers of endurance, in this instance, are the more
surprising, inasmuch as they are not allowed even a
few moments' rest after they land, being kept in
constant motion the whole day.
A number of horsemen with lazos were also sta
tioned along the shore to secure those bulls which,
eluding the vigilance of the men in the canoes, suc
ceeded in regaining the land ; many were drowned,
however, in the attempt, and their carcasses aban
doned to the turkey-buzzards, from an inherent dis
gust among the people of the Llanos for the flesh of
animals which have not been killed in the usual way.
On one or two occasions, the whole troop rebelled
against their drivers and succeeded in making their
escape to their pasture fields, in spite of the horsemen
on shore ; others, after reaching the sloping banks
across the river below the pass, were arrested in their
flight by the overhanging cliffs, and finally hurled to
a watery grave by the rapid rise of the river.
Thus the cost of these expeditions, although ex
ceedingly interesting to those participating in the ex
citement, is sometimes greater than the profits arising
therefrom, and none but Llaneros, who are accus
tomed to live on beef and water, ought to indulge in
this truly savage business. Our loss in horses alone,
without reckoning the expenses of the expedition and
the danger to flesh and bone, amounted on this occa
sion to about thirty animals, which in round figures,
setting the value of every horse at the minimum price
of one hundred dollars, would make the sum of three
thousand dollars ; while the value of the cattle itself,
many of which were also lost to us, could hardly be
15

338

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

set down at five dollars a head at that epoch. One
of the horses was so valuable, that our Leader re
quested the Doctor to attend the wounded animal and
endeavor to save his life if possible. On examination.
it was found that his bowels were partly forced out
through the wound ; but as he would not allow any
body to touch him, it was resolved to tie his feet ;
then passing a pole through the legs of the animal, he
was lifted from the ground in a reverse j3osition, to
allow the Doctor to operate more conveniently. It
was already very dark, and the group of Llaneros
lifting the patient, with others holding up lighted
torches made of rags and tallow, and the humorous
Esculapius leaning over the struggling beast, pre
sented a scene ludicrous in the extreme. In spite of
the skill with Avhich he performed the operation, and
the humane care of the owner, the horse expired the
same night.

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 339
Three whole days were spent in the laborious oc
cupation of forcing the cattle across the river. Nor
were the nights less diligently employed at the village
in the more entertaining recreation of dancing, fiirt-
ing and gambling, according to the tastes and inelina-
tions of our motley assembly. It must be confessed,
however, that the latter had more incentives for the
people of that pastoral region than the shepherd's
reed and crook. Occasionally a fight would occur
during these nocturnal revelries ; but this, beyond
some hard words and brandishing of swords and dag
gers by moonlight, which rather added to the pictur-
esqueness of the scene, never ended in any thing very
serious. " Calo el chapeo, reqnirio la espada,
Mh'6 al soslayo, fuese y no huho nada.''
The river was now rising so rapidly, that in order
to reach our camp in the neighborhood of the village,
we were obliged to place canoes across the main
street leading to it, for fear of coming in contact with
any of the numerous tenants of that stream. About
this time the fish, conscious of the approaching inun
dation of the savannas, commence to ascend the river
in search of those places best suited for spawning ;
and so great is the number of those that seek a nup
tial rendezvous, that the noise they make in the
water can be heard at some distance from the river.
During their migration the water becomes so tainted
with their flavor, that it is unfit to drink or wash in.
Desirous of obtaining some live specimens for sketch
ing, I procured a tarraya, or throw net, which I re
quested one of our men to launch near the bank ; he

340 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
did so ; but when he tried to lift it, he found it im
possible unassisted, which made us fear that the net
had got entangled among snags at the bottom of the
river. A companion was called to our assistance, and
between us three, we soon brought it up, when, to my
astonishment and delight, I found the net full of cop-
oros, palometas, and other delicacies ; the caribes,
however, soon rendered it perfectly useless, which
circumstance I considered a misfortune, as I could
not keep the fish long without spoiling. Next day I
was advised by one of the villagers to place three or
four canoes, partly filled with water, across the stream ;
the fish, finding their progress arrested by the obstruc
tion, endeavored to jump over ; in doing which they
fell in the canoes by hundreds. The contrivance suc
ceeded so well, that every morning I could depend
on a plentiful supply, both for mj sketch-book and
the frying-pan. My attention was particularly at
tracted this time by a large fish called the valenton,
from its great strength which, as I was informed,
enables him to drag a canoe after him when caught
with the hook and line. A distressing occurrence
took place there which nearly cost the life of a young
man while engaged in fishing for the valenton. The
angler and a friend were engaged in conversation,
with their lines thrown carelessly over the sides of
the canoe, when the fish seized the bait and ran off,
as he is in the habit of doing. The jerk was so vio
lent, that the young man was unable to hold the line,
and allowed it to slip through his hands ; he was not
aware that at the end of the line there was another
hook, which buried itself in the thumb of his right

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 344
hand ; the next moment he was violently pitched in
the water and dragged for some distance, when for
tunately .the line broke, and he was picked up almost
insensible by his companion. During its gambols in
the river, the valenton jumps sometimes three feet
clear out of the water, raising a large volume of
spray and striking the surface with its powerful tail
in its fall ; so great is the splash, that the noise can
be heard a great distance off, especially in the still
ness of the night, when the fish seems to be more
busily engaged in hunting.
Among the many eventful incidents of la Lnde-
pendencia still fresh in the memory of our Leader,
he relates an anecdote in connection with the Liberta-
dor, Simon Bolivar, in which both these champions
of freedom participated while engaged on an im
portant reconnoissance during the rainy season. The
savannas being, as usual, overflowed for the most part,
and there being no other means of transportation than
the frail canoes of the country, the two chieftains were
compelled to travel in one of these over their inundated
domain, with the assistance of two Indian paddlers.
Fish were so numerous, that numbers of them, dis
turbed by the strokes of the paddles against the sides
of the canoe, jumped in all directions, while not a few
fell amidst the distinguished passengers. The Liber-
tador who, like almost all great men, had also his
weak points, possessed a very nervous temperament,
especially about little things ; therefore he felt quite
uneasy at the unceremonious intrusion from the finny
inhabitants of his swampy realms, whose movements
he mistook for a mischievous propensity on their part

,342 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
to attack the wayfarer. On the other hand, our
Leader, who was always ready to practise a good joke,
seized the opportunity to occasionally tip the canoe so
as to make it ship water, and more fish along with it.
Whereupon his companion, who was not aware of the
trick practised upon him, imagining that the fish were
becoming bolder as they advanced, exclaimed in utter
despair, " D  n it ! Companero, let us pull back, for
even the fish are savage in this country."
When the waters subside, thousands, nay, millions
remain struggling in the ponds and little pools, left on
the savannas, where they soon perish and rot away,
tainting the air with their effluvium. Some of them,
like the curito, a species of Silurus, covered with trans
verse plates surrounding the body, have the power of
living buried in the indurated mud, from whence they
are called to life again by the returning showers.
As they form a most delicious mess, they are eagerly
sought by men and women, who resort to these places
armed with wicker baskets, and collect great numbers
of the fish before they are carried away by the in
creasing inundation of the savannas.
A very singular belief, shared likewise, according
to Sir Emerson Tennent, by the people of Ceylon,
exists in the Apure respecting fish falling from the
clouds. Alluding to this phenomenon, that ingenious
writer observes : " Both at Galle and Colombo in the
southwest monsoon, fish are popularly believed to
have fallen from the clouds during violent showers ;
but those found on the occasions that give rise to this
belief, consist of smallest fry, such as could be caught
up by water spouts and vortices analogous to them,

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 343
or otherwise blown on shore from the surf ; whereas
those which suddenly appear in the replenished tanks
and in the hollows which they overflow, are mature
and well-grown fish. Besides, the latter are found
under the circumstances I have described, in all parts
of the interior, whilst the prodigy of a supposed fall
of fish from the sky has been noticed, I apprehend,
only in the vicinity of the sea or of some inland
water." Although the author further explains the phenom
enon on the supposition that some fish are endowed
with the power of locomotion over land, while others
in a torpid state remain buried in the mud until the
return of the rainy season ; yet, I have been assured
by reliable persons that live fish have been picked up
in places where no such possible contingencies could
occur ; for instance, upon the roofs of houses or amidst
wide plains far from running water. Most of those
thus found are small, from three to seven inches
long ; but none of them capable of living more than
twenty minutes out of water ; and the father of the
writer once even witnessed a fall of bocachicos, a fish
which seldom lives over five minutes out of his own
element. Having accomplished our task as well as could be
expected from such a primitive mode of ferriage, we
transported ourselves and chattels across the broad
stream, and immediately commenced our slow march
over the prairies ; our long train of baggage mules
and wild beasts necessitated many stoppages by the
way in order to incorporate stragglers, but more fre
quently to hunt anew the runaways among the latter.

344 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The bulls especially showed a marked reluctance to
leave behind their bellowing harems in the everglades
across the river. Such was their love of home in this
respect, that we were assured that most of those
which succeeded in evading our pursuit, made their
way back to their savannas in spite of the broad ex
panse of water which separated them. Much valu-'
able time and patience were lost in this way, while
the increasing inundation was following fast on our
steps, so much so, that long after we had left the
banks of the river on our rear, we had to wade through
a continuous sheet of water, which was every moment
rising above the fetlocks of our beasts. We also had
to ford several smaller streams, already swollen by
the rapid rise of the Apure ; but, as no canoes
could be had amidst those wilds, for love or money,
we availed ourselves of the primitive contrivance
devised on such occasions by means of a raw hide
fashioned into a lighter. The trunks and boxes
were carefully piled inside the skin, and if a person
chose to avail himself of this frail barge, he had only
to sit steadily on the top of the baggage ; the load
was then carefully launched on the water, the other
end of the rope intrusted to the swimmer and towed
in safety to the other side. In this manner our pon
derous Doctor and a few others who were unwilling
to expose their own skin to the tender mercies of the
caribes, were successfully ferried across, although it
required a steady nerve not to stir an inch and thus
upset the whole concern.
Our march across the prairies presented a splendid
sight and was suggestive of a long file of prisoners

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 345
after a well-contested field of battle. At the head of
the column, which extended for upward of a mile,
marched a strong picket of horsemen, the Punteros,
guiding the caravan ; and on the sides and rear was
another file of men with lazos ready to unfold after
deserters. Lively tunes and whistling were kept up
by the men for the diversion of the cattle, which ap
peared quite delighted with the music and in conse
quence became less restive on the march.
When near San Jaime, I, together with a party
of young companions, having separated ourselves
from the rest and taken another route, lost ourselves
in the intricate passes leading to the village. This
circumstance, although it delayed us for some time
from reaching the camp, led us to an abundant field
of rich honey, the production of a small wasp called
matajey, which builds its nest on the branches of the
trees, in the shape of a large ball. The sting of this
insect is so distressing, that persons affected by it be
come feverish and benumbed ; therefore, in order to
possess ourselves of its delicious honey-combs, we took
the precaution to smoke out the wasps by means of a
burning rag at the end of a long pole applied to the
mouth of the nest, when the whole swarm abandoned
it to the hunters without molestation.
It was almost dark when we arrived at San Jaime,
having hit accidentally upon the right path, after
wandering the whole day through the woods ; but,
being well supplied with honey and water, we did not
regret as much the loss of our dinner, as the fact of
its having been prepared by another kind of swarm,
but this time of pretty girls, who had assembled foi
ls*

346

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

the purpose at the cottage of our hospitable host. We
enjoyed, however, the pleasure of their unsophisti
cated society for some time before retiring to our ham
mocks where, fatigued by the toils of our previous ad
venture, we speedily lost ourselves again in " sweet,
balmy sleep."
Beino* rather in a hurry to reach the pass before a
sudden rise of the creeks connected with the river Por
tuguesa, we were up long before sunrise, and had
barely time to partake of a substantial breakfast, pre
pared by our charming entertainers.
Immediately upon our arrival at the pass, we pro
ceeded to force our cattle across the river, which being
less wide than the Apure, and our herds having be
come more manageable after the long march, we were
enabled to execute it in better order and less time than
at the former river. Still we contrived somehow or
other to tarry here longer than was necessary, having
wasted three days in accomplishing what might have
been the work of one. The fact is, that we were
rather taken up with our former feminine acquaint
ances, especially at the close of day, when the party
assembled in the barracoon, destined for the fandango,
which was usually kept up the whole night.
Fitful accompaniment to these nocturnal revelries
was the deafening croaking of the toads and frogs,
now abounding by myriads in the marshes and quag
mires of the vicinity. The shrill, metallic notes of
the frogs, and the hoarse croaking of their milky
brethren, are a feature which never fails to excite
the astonishment of strangers in those regions. The
former especially are so striking, that were an English-

SCENES AT THE PASS OF APURITO. 347
man or American suddenly transported there, without
knowledge of these sounds, he would imagine himself
at home, in the neighborhood of ten thousand steam
whistles. I was assured by our friend B., with
reference to the toads of Guadarrama, a village on
the banks of the Portuguesa, that one night he was
thrown down in the street by coming in contact with
one of these creatures, which he mistook for a boy in
a stooping posture. Indignant at, what he supposed,
the indiscretion of the fellow, B. was in the act of
kicking him away when, to his surprise, he perceived
the seeming boy slowly moving off in the shape of a
big toad !

CHAPTER XXV.
CALABOZO.
While quietly absorbed one day in the pleasures
of the angler by the banks of a creek not far from the
camp, I was startled in my peaceful occupation by
the report of fire-arms in that direction. There were
rumors concerning the depredations of a band of rob
bers in that neighborhood, and therefore I had every
reason to suppose they had been bold enough to at
tack our little band of resolute men with a view to
plundering the camp. To pack up lines and port
folio was the work of an instant, and hurrying toward
the camp, I arrived breathless and panting with fa
tigue in time to get the last glimpses of the cause of
this uproar in the shape of a lancha gliding quickly
down the river. It seems that the boatmen, delighted
with the presence of the beloved Chieftain of the
Llanos, immediately recurred to the usual way of ex
pressing their enthusiasm, whether in peace or war,
through the means of the all-potent gunpowder. In
the afternoon of the same day a detachment of horse,
composed for the most part of citizens from Calabozo,

calabozo. 349
arrived at the pass to invite the general to their city,
and to offer him protection, in case of need, from the
band of desperadoes above mentioned ; these had al
ready been bold enough to attack the prison guard of
Calabozo, with the object of carrying off one of its
inmates, a prominent citizen of the place who had
been implicated in the robbery of a large drove of
mules. Although it was currently reported that his
two sons were the perpetrators of this unworthy act,
yet, the fact that the animals were found on his estate,
and his stout refusal to implicate his sons, made him
responsible for the robbery ; he was therefore incar
cerated and his trial had commenced when his sons,
adding sedition to theft, attacked the prison during
the night with a band of peons from their own and
other cattle estates. The result was most disastrous
to the assailants ; one of the sons having been badly
wounded in the strife was taken prisoner and shot in
the public square ; while the other forfeited his life
soon after during the vigorous persecution undertaken
by the citizens against his band. Yet, this handful
of men, badly armed and without leaders, but with a
wide field of forest and savannas for retreat, and
plenty of cattle for subsistence, continued for a long
time to engage the serious attention of the govern
ment ; and finally, when the following revolution
broke out, they formed the nucleus around which the
rebel party mustered very strong. In this manner
many depredators not only evade the punishment of
justice for their crimes, but eventually rise in impor
tance, and even become leading spirits in the land
where the laws are powerless in repressing their ex
cesses.

350 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
With this encouraging prospect before us, we bade
adieu to the gay brunettes of La Portuguesa and took
the straightest route to Calabozo, across the great es-
tero or swamp of Camaguan. An entire day was
spent in wading through this refreshing transit route,
which, owing to the increasing rise of the river, had
already acquired the aspect of a broad lake. Our
horses were most of the time immersed in the water
up to the saddle girths, and few of them escaped total
submersion, wherever there were any depressions of
the ground. Many of the baggage mules especially,
having no rider to guide them, lost their footing and
rolled in the water, to the great discomfort of those
who had any articles of apparel in their loads. Tow
ard the afternoon we emerged from this dismal
swamp and made a landing at a place called Banco
Largo, celebrated in the annals of the horse epidemic
as the cattle estate upon which the wrath of Heaven
fell after the blasphemous boasting of its owner.
We were beginning to appreciate the comfort of
riding again upon firm ground, when we observed a
group of horsemen emerging from the palmar on our
right, galloping in the direction of our scouts, as if
threatening to cut them off. Fearing lest they might
be the band of robbers whom we had every reason to
suspect of evil intentions, we put spurs to our horses
in hot chase of them. Mistaking us in turn for those
gentry, the strangers pushed on ahead of us to evade
our pursuit. Our scouts observing their retreat cut
off by a larger force, were not slow in their endeavors
to reach the farm-house, where they could defend
themselves against the supposed robbers until we

CALABOZO. 351
could come up to their assistance. The suspected
party being mounted on fresh horses, we found it
difficult, however, to overtake them. Fortunately
one of their horses stumbled accidentally in a hole,
throwing down the rider, which circumstance placed
him in our hands ; from him we ascertained that they
were not salteadores, but vaqueros from a neighboring
cattle farm, whom the annoyances of the mosquilla
had compelled to ride through the palmar at robber's
speed. His companions observing that we permitted
him to depart in peace, now slackened their pace,
and had their fears dispelled before they could carry
the alarm to other places that the salteadores were
close at hand.
At Yenegas, a cattle State not far from Calabozo,
we parted company with our herds, abandoning their
care and guidance to the efficient caporals, while we
proceeded direct to the Palmyra of the Llanos, always
escorted by the citizen-guard who had come so far to
meet us. Another deputation from the city, com
posed of the most prominent persons in the place, met
us at the pass of the Guarico, and after a few congrat
ulatory compliments, we rode on without stopping
until we reached the village of the Mision de Abajo.
Here we remained long enough to change our wet
garments and partake of a collation prepared at the
summer residence of an old soldier of Independence.
This village is famous on account of several crystalline
springs issuing from deep gullies made by the water
on a hard conglomerate composed of sand, pebbles,
and nodules of beautiful agates ; the whole cemented
together by a calcareous substance, consisting probably

352 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of minute shells of infusoria.* Some of the pools
measure several fathoms in depth ; yet the water is
so transparent, that the smallest pebble can be clearly
discerned at the bottom ; I also noticed many small
fish. These sparkling natural fountains were shaded
by groves of balsamiferous plants, such as copaiferas,
amyris, and carob-trees, the dark foliage of which
was relieved by a carpet of green grass extending for
miles around, the whole presenting an appearance of
a well-cultivated and beautifully laid out English
park. Thither resort, during the sultry months of
summer, the inhabitants of Calabozo, who now came
out in vast numbers to welcome us to their beautiful
city. The procession was formed on the extensive nat
ural lawn, three miles in length, between the village
and the city, which rose in the distance amidst the
towering foliage of the fan-palms surrounding it in
oriental magnificence. As we entered the narrow,
but cleanly streets, the firing of muskets, pistols, and
blunderbusses commenced amidst the vivas of the
population, while a shower of roses fell on the favored
head of the " Lion of the Llanos," f as he passed under
the windows of the houses.
The city of Calabozo, capital of the province of
El Guarico, is situated upon the northern extremity
of the mesa or plateau of the same name, command-
* See Darwin, Geology of the Pampas, pp. 129-171. Murray, 1852.
f Leon de los Llanos, or Leon de Payara — the appellation given to
General Paez by the people after the action of San Juan de Payara in
1837, when he defeated with his body-guard of sixty Llaneros the forces
of the rebel chieftain Farfan, numbering one thousand.

CALABOZO. 353
ing an extensive view of the picturesque country
watered by the beautiful river which gives its name
to the province. Unlike all the other towns of the
Llanos, Calabozo is an extremely well-built city, with
streets running at right angles. The houses are neat
and commodious, ranking with the best in the capital
of the republic. It contains a number of fine churches,
one of which was built at the expense of a wealthy
cattle proprietor of the place ; it is one of the finest
temples in the country.
Words cannot do justice to the enthusiastic recep
tion and boundless hospitality extended to us on this
occasion by the generous inhabitants. In addition to
the regular entertainments, such as breakfast and
dinner-parties, balls, and fandangos provided daily in
their city residences, we were occasionally treated to
a fete champetre, a, la llanera, in their quintas or
country-houses. Most of these are situated on the
banks of the beautiful Guarico, on the slopes of the
plateau upon which the city is built ; and there,
amidst the most luxuriant groves of orange, lemon,
and other tropical fruits, the abundant fare was served
to us in true Llanero style. In the mean time the tro-
vatori of the Llanos did not fail to enliven the scene
with their never-ending trovas llaneros, in which espe
cial mention was made of the'most prominent persons
to whom we were indebted for this munificent hospi
tality ; but more particularly to the past deeds of the
personage who prompted it. The broad fan-shaped
leaves of the moriche-^sX'm. (Mauritia, flexuosa) — the
celebrated Tree of Life of the Warraoun Indians —
supplied the most appropriate table-cloths on these

354 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
occasions, spread in the vicinity of some murmuring
spring, issuing in most cases from the foot of the
palm-trees. The natives believe that this plant pos
sesses the power of pumping water from the ground
by means of its matted roots : they evidently con
found cause and effect in this, as well as in many
other cases ; for this luxuriant palm will not thrive
except in moist ground. The slopes of the mesa act
ing as a vast drain to the plain above, offer this de
sideratum to the moriche-'palm. Some of the springs
are of a thermal character, but not too warm to pre
vent persons enjoying a most refreshing bath. I
noticed, in one instance, two springs running side by
side, one of which was cold and the other warm. The
tide-flooded lands on the Lower Orinoco and Amazon
rivers seem to be particularly adapted to the develop
ment of this noble * species of palm. " In those
places," says Wallace, f " there is no underwood to
break the view among interminable ranges of huge
columnar trunks, rising unbroken by branch or leaf
to the height of eighty or a hundred feet, a vast nat
ural temple, which does not yield in grandeur and
sublimity to those of Palmyra or Athens."
A full-grown leaf of this tree is quite a load for
one man to carry. The petiole, or leaf-stock, is a solid
beam ten or twelve feet long, while the leaf or fan
itself measures nine or ten across. The fruit, in
bunches of three hundred and upward, perfectly re
sembles the cones of the white pine. When arrived at
* Linneus, in his enthusiasm for the splendid family of palms, calls
them the princes of the vegetable kingdom.
f Palms of the Amazon and Rio Negro.

calabozo. 355
its maturity, it is yellow within and scarlet without,
covered with scales.
The benefits of this life-supporting tree may be
reckoned as numerous as the number of days in the
year. From the unopened leaves the wild man of the
forest obtains a fibre remarkable for its toughness, and
which he twists into cordage for his bow-string and
fishing tackle, or weaves it into elegant hammocks
and aprons for himself and family ; he also plats them
neatly into mats and cloaks, and even sails for his
canoe ; when fully expanded, these leaves form the
best thatch for his hut. From the terminal bud or
inner layer of leaves, commonly styled the cabbage
of the palm, the Indian procures a vegetable quite
analogous to, and more tender and delicious than a
similar production of the garden. The fruit in like
manner affords a variety of alimentary substances, ac
cording to the season in which it is gathered, whether
its saccharine pulp is fully mature, or whether it is in
a green state. Like the plantain and the celebrated
peach-palm of the Rio Negro, it is either eaten raw,
when fully ripe, or roasted — in the latter case tasting
very much like chestnuts. Soaked in water and al
lowed to ferment, it forms a pleasant drink somewhat
resembling pulque. The ripe fruit also yields by boil
ing in water, an oil which is readily converted into
soap by means of the ashes of a Clusia, (quiripiti.)
" The spathe, too — a fibrous bag which envelops the
fruit before maturity — is much valued by the Indian,
furnishing him with an excellent and durable cloth.
Taken off entire, it forms bags in which he keeps the
red paint for his toilet, or the silk cotton for his ar-

356 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
rows, or he even stretches out the larger ones to make
himself a cap, cunningly woven by nature without a
seam or joining. When cut open longitudinally and
pressed flat, it is used to preserve his delicate feather
ornaments and gala dresses, which are kept in a chest
of plaited palm-leaves between layers of smooth bussio
cloth." * The trunk of the male tree contains a fari
naceous meal, yurumo, resembling sago, and like the
fecula of the tapioca-root, it is readily converted into
bread by simply drying it on hot earthen plates.
Allowed to rot in the stem, this meal gives birth to
numerous fat worms, highly esteemed by Indian gour
mands. Tapped near the base of the leaves, the trunk
yields also an abundance of a sweet liquor, which,
when fermented, forms one of the various kinds of
palm-wines. Such are in substance some of the most
useful products of this veritable tree of life, with which
the existence of a rude people is as intimately con
nected, as that of civilized man is with the luxuries
and comforts that surround his home. " When the
Tamanacks," says Humboldt, " are asked how the
human race survived the great deluge, the ' age of
water ' of the Mexicans, they say : ' a man and a
woman saved themselves on a high mountain, called
Tamanacu, situated on the banks of the Asiberu, and
casting the fruit of the moriche-palm, they saw the
seeds contained in these fruits produce men and
women wTho repeopled the earth.' Thus we find in
all its simplicity, among nations now in a savage
state, a tradition which the Greeks embellished with
all the charms of imagination."
* Wallace, Palms of the Amazon and Rio Negro.

calabozo. 357
To protect themselves from the attacks of mosqui
toes and wild beasts, the tribes roaming over the
great delta of the Orinoco, are in the habit of raising
between the huge trunks of the palm-trees hanging
platforms skilfully interwoven with the foliage, which
allow them to live in the trees bke monkeys. The
floor of these aerial habitations is covered with a coat
ing of mud, on which the fires for household purposes
are made. Thus when the first explorers of the Orino
co River penetrated for the first time into that exu
berant terra incognita, they were surprised to observe,
among the tops of the palm-trees, flames issuing at
night as if suspended in the air. " The Guaranis still
owe the preservation of their physical, and perhaps
their moral independence, to the half-submerged,
marshy soil over which they roam with a light and
rapid step, and to their elevated dwellings in the
trees, a habitation never likely to be chosen from
motives of religious enthusiasm by an American Sty-
lites."* I also met for the first time at Calabozo with the
most splendid rose-bush, or rather tree, I had ever
seen, and which appears to be indigenous to that hot
region, as I am told that the same grows in great
luxuriance at San Fernando and Ciudad Bolivar, but
was unknown to the rest of the country previous to
our visit to the Llanos. Being passionately fond of
flowers myself, I did not neglect to bring along with
me this beautiful new variety to our home in the
Yalleys of Aragua, where it soon displayed its count-
* The followers of a sect founded in Syria by the fanatical pillar-
saint Simeon Sinanites. — Humboldt,

358 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
less blossoms to the admiring gaze of the passers by.
From thence it was also carried by me to Caracas,
where it soon became the general favorite of the fair
dames of the Capital, who by unanimous accord
named it, not as might be supposed after the intro
ducer, but after his father, with which the former was
equally well satisfied ; and certainly no more beauti
ful compliment could have been paid their favorite
champion, than by associating his name with the
acknowledged Queen of Beauty among flowers. The
size attained by this plant surpasses any thing of the
kind with which I am acquainted. When favored by
a dry and hot climate like that of Calabozo, its shoots
attain a height of fifteen to twenty feet with a cor
responding thickness ; so that a hammock with its
usual load can be supported between two trees ; and
as these put out a great number of branches, each of
them loaded with flowers or buds ready to expand,
they present a sight truly splendid. A hundred blos
soms may be plucked each morning of the year with
out marring its luxuriant beauty. I have myself
counted over one thousand buds on a single plant.
These flowers are of a delicate pink color, with very
regular petals of a deciduous nature ; so that in de
taching themselves from the calix, they cover the
ground upon which the parent grows, with a rosy
carpet. " Sin flores y sin hermosas
Que fuera de los mortales ?
Bien habeis nacido, rosas,
Sobre el lodo de los males." — Akolas.

calabozo. 359

TRANSLATION.

" Without beauty, without flowers,
What would be this world of ours ?
Well, that e'en in misery dire
Find we roses 'mid the mire."
The truth of the above sentiment we soon realized ;
from this time a succession of misfortunes, commencing
with a violent attack of fever which nearly carried us
all to the grave, and ending with the destruction of
our property and peaceful homes, followed one another
without intermission.
The fever was doubtless induced by our previous
exposure on the journey and subsequent dissipations
at Calabozo, although the city itself is one of the
healthiest spots in the republic. Unfortunately, our
physician, who was blessed with a very jealous wife,
had been summoned home by his better half on hear
ing of our approach to the fairy metropolis of the
Llanos. However, there were two or three medical
gentlemen in the place, and these, with the unremit
ting kindness and assistance of the ladies, managed
to keep us alive until a skilful physician, who had
been sent for, arrived from the Yalleys of Aragua.
The critical condition of our respected Leader and sire
particularly gave them serious fears, as the fever in
his case had commenced to assume a malignant char
acter. Courier after courier was despatched across
the miry plains to hasten the arrival of the doctor,
while the generous inhabitants vied with each other
in the anxious cares with which they surrounded the
sick-bed of their beloved guest. Years have rolled
on, and many changes have since taken place, both

360 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
in the affairs of the nation and in the fortunes of the
subject of these remarks ; yet, their love for the
" Martyr of San Antonio," * far from diminishing,
seems to have increased during his protracted exile ;
for, as I write these lines, a petition addressed to the
actual President of the republic demanding his recall,
and signed by all the inhabitants of Calabozo, has
come to hand, protesting in the strongest terms against
the impolicy and injustice of leaving him still in. exile
when the nation most needs his counsel and influence.
Justly deprecating the horrors of civil war and the
want of unity which have existed in the republic since
the downfall of the Monagas party, the petitioners
conclude with this feeling outburst of patriotic solici
tude for the absence of their favorite champion :
" From the far-off shores of the Arauca, to the sources
of our own Guarico, our anxious horsemen watch in
cessantly the far horizon, inquire from the passing
breezes of the destinies of the Hero, who has con
demned himself to voluntary exile, and then exclaim
with a sigh : ' Were he again to lead us on to battle,
Yictory would be forthcoming, strengthened by Peace,
and blessed by the vanquished.' "
* San Antonio, an old castle in Cumana, where General Paez was
kept in durance for nine months byThe late ruler of Venezuela, General
Jose T. Monagas.

CHAPTER XXYI.

CAE ACAS.

When sufficiently convalescent to proceed on our
journey, we left Calabozo for the Yalleys escorted by
every man who had a horse to carry him. At Mor-
rocoyes we parted company with our numerous ret
inue, and hastened home before the fever should re
appear, as is often the case ; and indeed, no sooner
had we recovered in some measure the fatigue of the
journey, than this terrible scourge again attacked us
with renewed violence. Our leader especially was so
prostrated by it, that little hope was entertained of
his recovery. He survived, however, to be recalled
to the field in consequence of serious disturbances oc
casioned by that bone of contention in our unhappy
republics — Presidential elections. The Guzmancistas
or followers of Guzman — the ambitious politician al
ready alluded to — fearing to risk the constitutional
elections, reiolved to carry them by force. With this
object, Guzman collected in Caracas an immense rab
ble at the head of which he marched toward Mar-
16

362 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
acay, ostensibly upon some trifling pretext, but act
ually in the hope of first securing the person of the
General, and then joining some scattered bands across
the lake. I have mentioned (in the fourth chapter of
this narrative) how he succeeded in enticing the lower
classes to join him by false promises of rewards in the
shape of bounty lands at the expense of the indus
trious few who did not side with him. Remission of
old scores of debts, pending judgments for various
crimes and the freedom of the slaves, were included
in his grand programme.
We were at dinner in the plantation when the
General received a government despatch appointing
him to the command of the army, but this being a
myth, no standing force of any account existing in
Yenezuela previous to these troubles, the General-in-
Chief mustered again his late band of devoted attend
ants and a few friends from Maracay, who rallied
round him on hearing of the approaching phalanx of
Guzmancistas. The appointment did not arrive an
hour too soon ; for, as we were engaged in answer
ing the despatches, information was received of a
large force of negroes descending on the Valleys from
the mountains called La Sierra across the lake.
Though still enfeebled by our late illness, we were
compelled to march all night under a drenching rain
and through mud reaching to our horses' bellies, in
search of the marauders, who had already been re
pulsed from Yilla de Cura. We met them at the vil
lage of Magdaleno, whence we dislodged them after
a sharp engagement. General Paez very narrowly
escaped a shot from a blunderbuss fired so closely

CARACAS. 363
upon him, as to sprinkle his blouse with the unburned
powder. The swiftness of his horse, which dashed
forward at the moment, saved his rider from perhaps
an untimely death. Protected by the mountains, the
insurgents collected again in a few weeks, and de
scending on the plains, tried their fortunes against
Calabozo, but were met by the citizens at a place
called Limon, near San Pablo, and totally routed/
We arrived shortly afterward in time to assist in their
dispersion, and succeeded in securing some of the
leaders, among others the famous Jose Urbano, al
ready mentioned. Guzman and his formidable rab
ble, in the mean time, considering discretion the
better part of valor, concluded to postpone their
threatened attack on the oligarcas of Maracay, and
returned to that hotbed of sedition and revolution,
Caracas, to await their opportunity. The govern
ment, however, as a precautionary measure, and with
abundant proofs of their criminality, ordered the ar
rest of the most prominent ringleaders, whereupon all
fears of an outbreak at the capital were dispelled.
But it was soon discovered that the insurrection had
its ramifications in various parts of the province,
especially among the wild regions of the east, bor
dering the plains of Barcelona. For the suppression
of this faction, General Jose T. Monagas, for a long
time the bete noire of that section, was appointed
second in command of the army ; and such was the
energy displayed by him on the occasion, that he cap
tured and executed in a few days the greater part of
his opponents. On the other hand, the General-in-
Chief, finding no more enemies to conquer, freed all

364 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
his prisoners, excepting the leaders, who were reserved
for trial by the proper authorities, and returned to his
home in the Yalleys of Aragua. Strenuous efforts
had been made by his friends during his absence to
secure his election to the Presidency, although he had
repeatedly manifested through the press and in his
private correspondence his unwillingness to serve for
a third period. Finding, however, that his fellow-
citizens still persisted in their efforts, he decided to
quit his country, that he might be thereby disquali
fied for office. On this decision becoming known, it
was finally agreed to elect Monagas, then at Barce
lona, and we proceeded to Caracas for the purpose of
receiving him.
The elevation of this individual to the Presidency
of the Republic, although he had only figured until
then as a guerilla chief and the sworn enemy of con
stitutional rights, was considered at the time a stroke
of policy, hoping thus to satisfy his grasping ambi
tion, which had ever aspired to the chief place of the
nation. How he acquitted himself in his new trust,
the murdered members of the Congress which ele
vated him will show.
We arrived in the capital amidst the greatest
manifestations of popular favor and respect to the
General-in-Chief. The streets were crowded with
people of all parties and conditions. The loveliest
ladies were deputed to present crowns of laurel to
our Leader, while from the windows and balconies
hung garlands and festoons of the most exquisite
flowers, and banners inscribed with appropriate mot
toes and devices. Every street corner was spanned

CARACAS.

365

¦' 'Hif
Mil

366 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
by triumphal arches, tastefully decorated with flags
and allegorical paintings, among them the portraits
of Bolivar and Paez were conspicuous. The air re
sounded with the acclamations of the populace and
the bursting of rockets fired almost from under our
horses' feet, while so densely crowded were the streets,
as to render our progress through them all but im
possible. Yet the same multitude which then shouted
its enthusiastic vivas to " the disinterested patriot,"
a year later demanded his head from the tyrant Mo-

A splendid collation had been prepared by the cit
izens of Caracas in the spacious corridors of the Gen
eral's house, while the cellars were stocked with the
choicest wines and delicacies. It was well understood
throughout the city that Monagas and his troop of
demi-savages — still at Barcelona plotting the ruin of
the republic — were to be the guests of General Paez un
til a suitable house was prepared for them. However,
the new President delayed his coming, and this delay
was the more ominous, from the fact that the country
was yet in a very unsettled condition. Many of the
ringleaders in the late insurrection were still at large,
and the gang of La Sierra had again shown itself in
great force led by Rangel, a bold half-breed, once the
follower of Cisneros, another Indian bandit, who,
under pretence of fighting for Spain, had held the
neighborhood of Caracas in terror during eleven
years. But, as is often the case in countries involved
in civil war, the tables were now turned, and this
former terror of the mountains became the most effi
cient instrument in the suppression of the lawless

CARACAS. 367
hordes then roving the inaccessible mountain passes
of La Sierra. He was accordingly intrusted by the
General-in-Chief with their extermination, although
it must be confessed he occasionally evinced a some
what dangerous partiality to his old ally, Rangel —
while we remained at Caracas awaiting from day to
day the advent of the future renegade, Monagas.
The manner in which the savage Indian chief was
converted from a merciless brigand into a submissive
slave of General Paez's will is rather singular, and'
therefore I may be permitted to give it place among
these Wild Scenes. Although the power of Spain,
under whose banner he claimed to wage a fierce war
against society, had been non est in Yenezuela for
many years, he continued to harass the best troops in
the republic during all that time, until General Paez,
finding it impossible to capture him by force, endeav
ored to subdue him by gentle dealing. A son of the
bandit, a lad of seven or eight years, had been cap
tured by the troops and sent as a trophy to the Gen
eral. The little savage was so wild, that no one dared
to approach him : his teeth and claws, for such seemed
his long and sharp-nailed fingers, would have torn in
a moment the friendly hand extended to caress or
touch him ; therefore his baptism, until then neg
lected, was postponed till he became more tract
able. The General himself stood his godfather, and
one of the ladies in the family as godmother. . The
little Christianized savage was now sent to boarding-
school in company with the other children of his god
father, and treated in all respects as one of them.
When intelligence of his son's good fortune reached

368 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the ears of Cisneros, who had hitherto supposed him
dead, the old bandit was so moved that he sent a
letter of thanks by one of his wives to his compadre,
protesting nevertheless his determination to continue
faithful to His Majesty of Spain. General Paez im
proved this opportunity to propose an interview in
whatever place or manner most agreeable to Cisneros.
At first a downright refusal was returned, he suspect
ing treachery even from a compadre, which relation is
in some sort a sacred bond between parents and god
father : he could not comprehend why a man in the
position of the General should trust himself among
savages, having no other motive than the pleasure of
an interview. A second invitation was tendered him
through some women emissaries — no man venturing
to penetrate his camp — and this time with better re
sults ; he consented to the interview, but with the
express condition that the General should find his
way alone to the bandit's haunts in the mountains of
Tuy, south of Caracas. The undertaking was a most
hazardous one, but there was no help for it. Thither
the General directed his course, notwithstanding the
most strenuous opposition, not only on the part of his
family, but also from the entire population. A num
ber of gentlemen escorted him as far as the entrance
to the forest, where they remained anxiously awaiting
the issue. Following the route marked out in the
letter of instructions sent to him, the General waded
through the forest until he was stopped by a dismal
Quien vive ? from one of the sentries. The challenge
being satisfactorily answered, he was directed to pro
ceed forward. Another Quien vive ? made him con-

CARACAS. 369
scious of a long file of savage soldiers, with guns
levelled at his head. Onward he went, expecting
each moment to hear the word fuego ! (fire ;) but, to
his great surprise, not a word more was uttered until
he reached the head-quarters of the chief, under a
large ceiba tree. From the renown and prowess of
Cisneros, the General expected to behold a powerful
Indian warrior, surrounded by a staff of equally ath
letic men. What was his wonder and disappoint
ment to perceive a puny creature, his face nearly con
cealed under a mass of dangling hair, advancing
toward him ! His voice, too, was so shrill and effem
inate, that the General could not but in his turn sus
pect some knavery. He observed, however, that this
caricature of a man carried in his hand in lieu of a
peace pipe, a formidable blunderbuss, widely known
throughout the country, and which, from its size, no
other than Cisneros would have ventured to fire. No
further introduction was needed ; so, extending his
arms toward the stranger, the General embraced his
compadre, blunderbuss and all. Notwithstanding this
cordial demonstration of friendship, the bandit ap
peared rather shy or covetous of the silver-mounted
sword hanging at his guest's side, which the General
perceiving, immediately despoiled himself of, and
presented to his compadre with another embrace.
The temptation was too great. Casting all reserve
aside, Cisneros laid his blunderbuss against the tree
and invited his compadre to sit beside him in his own
hammock. The General, now exerting all his tact,
endeavored to persuade the stubborn bandit to aban
don his career of crime for the less hazardous pursuits
lfl*

370 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of civilized communities ; offering in the name of the
republic to continue him in the rank and pay of Colo
nel, the same grade he then held in the service of
Spain. To this Cisneros replied that he had sworn
fealty to the King his master, and therefore could not
hear of any proposition to betray the confidence re
posed in him. Without committing himself in the
least, he finally consented to accept an invitation
from the General to return the^pisit at some future
day, which he did, a fortnight later, escorted by his
whole band of savages. He would not, however, ad
vance beyond the village of El Yalle, three miles
from Caracas. Thither the curious people of the cap
ital hastened in crowds, attracted by the fame of the
strange guest, who, finally, was so captivated by the
universal cordiality of his reception, that he concluded
to remain, accepting the reiterated proposals tendered
him by the General. He then disbanded his body
guard of four hundred Indian soldiers, all of whom
were retained in the service of Government, and be
took himself to the raising of cattle after the example
of his compadre, who advanced him the requisite
number of heads to establish a fundacion in the In
dian village of Camatagua. La cobra tira al monte,
says the proverb, which may be rendered, " the dog
will return to his bone." Poor Cisneros, after doing
good service in ridding the country of marauders,
thus retrieving, in some measure, his past misdeeds,
became at last suspected of conniving at the escapes
of his former comrade, Rangel ; so much so that the
General-in-Chief found it necessary to dispossess him
of his command, summoning him to his head-quarters

CARACAS. 37I
at Yilla de Cura, whither he returned for this object.
One night, while the General was conversing with
two of his staff in the corridor of a lonely house
where he was stopping just beyond the town, Cis
neros, blunderbuss and sword in hand, appeared sud
denly before him. Immediately suspecting treachery,
the General advanced toward him and inquired,
" Why are you here ? " — " I come," Cisneros coolly
replied, " to demand the cause of my removal."
Said the General, " Are you alone ? " — " My men are
there," — quickly retorted Cisneros, pointing to an
open field in the rear. Even as he spoke, the General
snatched the sword and blunderbuss from the aston
ished guerrillero, and ordering one of the officers to
put him immediately in irons, directed the other to
go in search of the men and conduct them to the bar
racks. Further investigation showed that Cisneros, dis
pleased at being superseded in his command by a
Lieutenant-Colonel, called upon his men to follow
him, an invitation which was readily complied with
by one-third of them at least ; and many more would
doubtless have followed, had it not been for the
prompt decision of that officer, who ordered back the
rest — warning them of the danger they incurred in
thus disobeying the orders of the General-in-Chief.
Escorted by the recreants, Cisneros then made his
way down to Yilla de Cura, which place he ap
proached stealthily under cover of night.
A council of war was ordered for the next day,
and the evidence of his guilt being furnished by him
self, he was condemned to be shot as soon as the sen-

372 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
fence should be approved by the higher authority.
In the mean time, Cisneros, believing firmly that all
this was only gotten up by his compadre to frighten
others, did not manifest the least concern as to the
issue. He alleged that some, more criminal than him
self in inciting the insurrection, were at large in the
capital and other places, and therefore he had nothing
to fear. Contrary to his expectations, however, when
the sentence was returned he found that the General
had ordered his execution. Still Cisneros, impressed
with the sacred nature of the bond existing between
him and the General-in-Chief, could not be convinced
that he would be shot ; but when finally conducted
to the place of execution, he became very submissive,
and demanding permission to speak, addressed the
crowd assembled in the plaza, protesting his inno
cence of the charge of treason imputed to him, al
though he acknowledged that this was but the just
reward of his former crimes.
A few days later, the body also of Rangel, pierced
with bullets and thrown across the back of a donkey,
was brought in, he having been tracked in the forest
and shot by an expert mountaineer, after a defeat sus
tained from the government forces at Pagiiito.
All fears of further insurrection being now dis
pelled, we turned our steps toward the capital, where
we arrived in season to comply with the request of
Monagas, that General Paez should be the first to
welcome him at the wharf of La Guaira.

CHAPTER XXYEL
MONAGAS.
A whole month elapsed between the election of
Monagas and his arrival at La Guaira, whither the
General-in-Chief went to meet him. Preparatory
to his public reception in the capital, I received in
structions from head-quarters to have a dejeuner a la
fourchette prepared at Catia, a hamlet near Caracas.
There I met for the first time this " Tiger of the East,"
as he was appropriately styled, and his troop of blood
hounds. Among these the most conspicuous were his
brother Jose Gregorio, also a General, and the famous
Juan Sotillo, whom I have already introduced to the
reader's acquaintance in a former chapter.
Excepting a habit of never meeting the person's
eye with whom he is conversing, the elder Monagas
has a most commanding appearance, being over six
feet in height, and possesses features expressive of great
determination. Although he had already attained the
advanced age of sixty-two years, he scarcely represented
fifty at most, having black glossy hair and moustache.

374 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
But notwithstanding these advantages, his personnel
seemed not to produce a favorable impression upon
the people who came to receive him ; for, as the pro
cession moved through the streets, the acclamations
of the multitude were mostly directed to the General-
in-Chief beside him, a circumstance we all regretted
exceedingly, and from which he seems to have taken
mortal offence. A characteristic incident occurred
during the procession among the followers of the new
President, which elicited much merriment. As the
cavalcade entered the streets of the capital, Juan So-
tillo rode up to Jose Gregorio, and passing his arm
through that of his foster-brother, the two proceeded
along through the procession apparently greatly sat
isfied of their own gallantry. It was well known in
the capital that the two Llaneros were una y came,
i. e. blackguards both ; and indeed, if we are to judge
the former by the spelling of his own signature, which
instead of Sotillo reads Sopillo, (confirmed villain,) no
doubt could be entertained respecting the character
of one of them at least.
The cavalcade, after marching along the Calle del
Comercio, alighted, as had been arranged, at the
house of the General-in-Chief, situated at the end of
the street. Matters progressed very pleasantly with
our guests for about a month, when they removed to
their new residence. Several splendid balls and bull
fights provided by the citizens were given in honor
of the strangers, when it was observed that the Presi
dent, although extremely partial to the latter, declined
attending both. The mission of our Leader being now
accomplished, we returned to Maracay, expecting to

MONAGAS. 375
recruit from our fatigues in that quiet little town.
But even there our repose was interrupted by various
reports reaching us almost daily respecting the mis
doings of the new President. His entire cabinet,
composed of high-minded men, disgusted with his
perfidious conduct, soon resigned and retired into
private life, thus leaving the fate of the republic in
the hands of an unscrupulous ruler. The perverse
adherents of Guzman, who had suffered the most
from him while in command of the army of the East,
were now the first to surround and lavish upon him
the basest flattery for the purpose of gaining him over
to their party. Guzman, still in prison undergoing
his trial for riot and sedition, was immediately set
free by Monagas ; while Bias Bruzual, the leader of
the so-called liberal party, became at once his confi
dential adviser. A year later, these two unprincipled
demagogues, who then held high offices in the state,
very nearly lost their heads at the hands of one of the
myrmidons of the despot for expressing sentiments
derogatory to his administration.
In a word, I will state that soon after his installa
tion in the Executive power, Monagas comme*nced
subverting the constitution of Yenezuela, and sur
rounded himself with all those who had in former
years openly waged war against the fundamental law.
He removed all the officers and commanders of the
militia, and substituted his own partisans ; refused to
appoint as Governors of provinces the persons nomi
nated according to law, and placed in their stead his
own creatures. He collected and took possession of
all arms belonging to the State, and gave them into

376 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the hands of his followers, disarmed the active or
regular militia, and called into service the paid mili
tia, or militia of reserve, without the authority of law
as required by the constitution. He also excited and
encouraged dissension and jealousy between the dif
ferent classes of the community. The result of all
these acts was, that articles of impeachment were
presented against him in the House of Representa
tives in the manner provided by the constitution ;
but on the 24th of January, 1848, as the House was
proceeding to take into consideration the accusation,
the militia of reserve, called into service by Monagas,
officered and paid by him, attacked the House and
fired upon the representatives of the people ; a scene
of bloodshed and slaughter ensued ; eleven members
and other citizens were murdered, among the former
the distinguished statesman, Santos Michelena ; but
notwithstanding that Monagas had especially com
manded his myrmidons to bring him the heads of five
other prominent members, viz., Hermenegildo Garcia,
P. J. Rojas, J. Y. Gonsalez, J. M. Rojas, and Simon
Camacho, strange to relate, not one fell into their
hands, and, with the exception of the two first, are
now living to rejoice in the downfall of their would-
be butcher. The House of Representatives was de
serted, and the members fled in consternation to their
homes ; several found refuge in the various foreign
legations at the capital, whence they, along with sev
eral others, were dragged the next day into the House
and compelled to pass a general amnesty in favor of
all concerned in the bloody tragedy. I was in Car
acas at the time, making preparations to embark for

MONAGAS. 377
the West Indies with some members of my family,
and can bear testimony to the abominations of this
modern St. Bartholomew. The house of the generous
French Charge, Monsieur David, whose guests we
then were, presented a scene which I shudder to de
scribe. Monsieur David, who had witnessed the hor
rors of the Greek war for independence, declared that
these scenes reminded him of similar ones enacted by
the Turks in the Grecian Archipelago. But this was
only in keeping with the deed which gained Monagas
his appellation of " Tiger of the East," when, treach
erously introducing himself in an Indian village, and
inviting the inhabitants to assemble in the church,
under pretence of bestowing rewards in the name of
the Spaniards whom they served, he closed the doors
and fired the building. As the poor wretches in the
extremity of their despair endeavored to spring from
the windows, they were caught upon the lances of
their foes and brutally massacred. Thus Monagas
annihilated an entire village, sparing neither age nor
sex, and this under the plea of avenging some atroci
ties which had actually been perpetrated by Span
iards in his own camp.
This total subversion of law produced great con
sternation throughout the republic. The people
turned again to Paez and reminded him of his
promises to stand by them and protect their liberties.
Several towns and provinces declared against the
usurpation of Monagas, and called upon Paez to re
store the constitution. Convinced in my own mind
that he would respond to this call as soon as the news

378 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of the catastrophe should reach him, I made strenu
ous efforts to depart for Curacao, all the avenues to
the interior being closely guarded by the partisans of
Monagas. Notwithstanding the promise he had given
us only the previous day, to the effect that he would
grant whatever request we might see fit to ask of
him, when applied to for our passports, demurred, his
plea being that such a step on our part would,
abroad, bring discredit on his government ! He also
tried in vain to induce our removal from the protec
tion of the French Legation to his own house, doubt
less in anticipation of some aggressive movement on
the part of our Leader, then on his way to New Gra
nada, the inhabitants of our sister republic having ten
dered him an invitation to visit them. We, persisting
in our first determination, were at length permitted
to leave for La Guaira, escorted by an aide-de-camp
of Monagas, just one day before the news reached
the capital that General Paez was in arms against
the tyrant.
On the 4th of February we embarked on board a
Dutch schooner for the peaceful island of Curacao, to
the northwest of La ' Guaira. Sped by the trade-
wind and current, we descried on the morning of the
5th the red roofs of the quaint old town of Willem-
stadt, capital of the island, and the two splendid forts
commanding the harbor's entrance. An hour or two
more "before the wind," brought our swift craft
within its tranquil waters, where we were soon sur
rounded by a fleet of clumsy punts, manned by as
ragged and vociferous a set of negroes as ever shone
under a tropical sun. With one hand upon the long

MONAGAS. 379
oar by which they propelled and steered at the same
time their boats, with the other they endeavored to
direct our attention to themselves, almost bewildering
us with their cosmopolitan patois ; now offering to
transport our persons and chattels in their ponches
for only one placa, about one cent ; now extolling the
merits of their employer's hotel or boarding-house,
none of these, however, remarkable for cleanliness or
1 1 comfort. On the wharf of Punda, a suburb of the town de
voted to business and the goddess Cloacina, we were
met by a crowd of more familiar faces, composed of
other refugees from our unhappy country, who had
succeeded in evading the vigilance of guards stationed
on all the roads leading to the seacoast as well as to
the interior, and now accosted us with anxious glances
and inquiries respecting the fate of the beloved ones
left behind. Among them we discovered the plump
and honest face of many a Dutchman, who hastened
to offer us those hospitable civilities so acceptable in
a foreign land.
Finding the proximity of punt-drivers and fruit-
venders none the most odorous, notwithstanding the
display of delicious fruit that lined the wharves, and
the accommodations at the hotel not so inviting as
had been represented to us, we removed to La Otra
Banda, by far the most decent qu artier of the four
into which the town is divided, where, for a compara
tively small sum, we hired a furnished house.
I soon made myself familiar with the few points
of attraction in the island ; and having been favored
with the sympathy and kind attentions of its inhab-

380 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
itants from the moment of our arrival, had abundant
opportunities for visiting their beautiful country resi
dences, embowered in groves of mango, tamarind,
and other equally splendid fruit trees. Curacao is
justly celebrated in this respect, especially for its
Sapodillas, (Achras sapota,) undoubtedly the finest
in the tropics. The bergamot orange, from whose
rind is distilled in Holland the delicious liqueur
which bears the name of the island, also grows there
in the greatest profusion.
There was so aristocratic an air of careful order
about these rural retreats as to recall at every step the
proverbial neatness of the mother country. Many of
the farms are devoted to the raising of sheep and
goats, including a few horned cattle ; but the greater
portion of the lands are occupied with plantations of
the aloe socotrina and the cochineal cactus, from both
of which Curacao and its dependencies, Bonaire and
Oruba, obtain a fine revenue. A large quantity of
salt is also exported from those islands, which, to
gether with large receipts of goat-skins from the
neighboring Yenezuelian province of Coro, contribute
to maintain a brisk trade between Curacao and the
United States.
The island has an area of about one hundred and
seventy miles ; it is hilly in the interior, although not
very high ; the shores are bold and rocky, showing
evident proofs of its coralline formation and subse
quent elevation. It scarcely contains any water, and
the soil is poor as a general thing, although the in
dustrious inhabitants, of whom there are about fifteen
thousand, make up for the deficiency in this respect.

MONAGAS. 381
A great portion of my time was employed at
Curacao iii scanning from an eminence the distant
horizon, in anxious expectation of some vessel from
La Guaira bringing glad tidings of the tyrant's down
fall, or at least something concerning the movements
of our beloved Leader. Yain were our hopes ; every
new arrival was eagerly sought and questioned, only
to learn that Monagas was daily ree'nforced with volun
tary levies from the colored population, whom his
satellites had no difficulty in persuading that unless
they enlisted freely under his black banner, they
would all be branded and sold by the " ambitious
Paez " to the English ! Of such stuff are often, alas !
composed the armies raised in South America for the
enslavement of higher intellect and constitutional
rights. I may remark here, en passant, that far from
aiming at the perpetuation of slavery in Yenezuela,
General Paez exerted himself, both as a magistrate
and private individual, in accomplishing the gradual
emancipation of the few still remaining in the repub
lic, enacting laws to such effect during -his adminis
tration, and giving freedom to all those in his posses
sion whose good conduct and fidelity entitled them
to that benefit. Yet, so successful were the agents
of despotism in propagating those absurd notions,
and so great the contagious effect of that base cal
umny, that it spread even to the miserable aloe-
scented punt-drivers of Curacao, whose insolence
toward the refugees already required the inter
vention and assistance of the police on many occa
sions. Tired at length of such uncertainty, and learning

382 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
that the forces of Maracaibo had occupied the prov
ince of Coro, I sailed for La Yela on the night of the
16th of March. Several other gentlemen, desirous
like myself of sharing with the gallant maracaiberos
the hardships of the first campaign for the ree'stablish-
ment of order, also accompanied me. The distance
from Curacao to the mainland being only thirty
miles, we arrived at the open roadstead of La Yela
before we were even aware of our approach to the
coast. A more barren and desolate spot than
this, I believe, does not exist even in Arabia Petrea.
A few straggling houses in a state of decadence and
misery, surrounded on all sides by prickly cactuses
and acacias (cujies,) which constitute the principal
sustenance of numerous flocks of goats raised here by
the inhabitants, formed the tout ensemble of the old
est port in South America. We had some difficulty
in finding any one from whom we could ascertain
whether the place was still under the sway of el
Grande Asesino, or under the auspices of La Restau-
racion. With this discouraging prospect before us, and
enlisting at once the services of some stray donkeys
left behind as unserviceable by the retreating mona-
gueros, we took the road leading to the capital, over
an extensive cpiagmire or salina formed by the rising
tides. A low range of moving sand hills, extending
for several miles along the sea-shore, prevents the en
tire obliteration of the route.
Our donkeys behaved admirably, considering their
emaciated condition and the spongy nature of the
ground which, in addition to the sprinkling of sand

MONAGAS. 383
from the medanos, had imbibed sufficient salt water
to render it almost impassable.
Another striking feature of the landscape we
traversed, was the number and varieties of the cactus
tribe growing there in society with the bristling
cvjies, (mimosa ternecina, negra, and others,) forming
impenetrable thickets to any but the corianos, through
out the province. The pods of these mimosas afford
excellent nourishment to the troops of mules and asses,
as well as goats, constituting the principal wealth of
the inhabitants ; while the cactuses contain a watery
sap sufficient to atone for the total want of springs in
those barren flats. Upon one of them, four or five
miles beyond La Yela, the ancient city of Coro, once
the capital of Yenezuela Proper, stands to the present
day ; neither the ravages of time — its existence dating
from the year 1527 — nor the descent of English free
booters in 1567, who captured it after a desperate as
sault ; nor the devastating War of Independence, end
ing only with the almost total extermination of the in
habitants, having destroyed the very decided influence
it still exerts over the destinies of the country at large.
Although the forces from Maracaibo, under the
command of the noble-minded Pinango, encountered
very little opposition from the Monagas party in Coro,
additional reinforcements were despatched thither by
sea from Caracas ; these were landed in the eastern
part of the province, too far off from Pinango's base
of operations to guard against the advancing columns
of the enemy. Still, Pinango had largely increased
his army with additional levies from various parts of
the province, and with these prepared to meet the

384 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
enemy on his own ground. Accordingly on the 3d of
April he moved with his whole force toward La Yela,
but had not proceeded further when he received in
telligence that the enemy was rapidly advancing from
an opposite direction. After deliberating on the best
course, he determined to await his foe on the plain of
La Yela, the approach to which was well covered by
some war schooners just arrived from Maracaibo.
We remained two days at La Yela in hourly ex
pectation of a brush with the enemy, who our
scouts informed us was at Taratara, a hamlet not far
from our camp, where, protected by an impenetrable
barrier of cactuses and mimosas, and in greater num
bers than we could oppose to them, they awaited our
advance. Pinango, therefore, very wisely resolved to
embark with his whole force for Maracaibo, but the
commanders of the vessels refusing to receive his
troops on board, he suddenly changed his tactics and
gave the order to advance upon the enemy.
We had no difficulty in driving in their pickets
toward Taratara, and shortly after the action became
general. Unfortunately, the regiment detailed by
Pinango to outflank the enemy became inextricably
involved amidst the bristling cactuses, while their
opponents poured murderous volleys upon them from
behind some wooden fences, where they had in
trenched themselves. Several of our best officers
were either killed at once or mortally wounded ;
among the latter our lamented Chief, whom we were
forced to leave behind in the flight that ensued.
Happily the enemy, mistaking our movement for a
feint, pursued us with only a small body of cavalry,

MONAGAS. 385
which, although keeping at a, respectable distance,
added to the confusion of our retreating soldiers..
Yery few of us were fortunate enough to gain the
schooners with the help of the few boats at our dis
posal ; the remainder were either dispersed or taken
prisoners before they reached the beach.
Although poorly mounted, but well provided with
an excellent double-barrelled gun, I succeeded after a
hard ride in reaching the sea-shore, where I was
picked up by a boat from a Dutch schooner at anchor
in the bay, and transferred afterward to our flotilla.
With me also escaped two brave commanders, Gen
eral Muguerza and Colonel Minchin, both badly
wounded ; happily they recovered while at Mara
caibo, for which place the vessels sailed that same
evening, leaving numbers of our unfortunate compan
ions to shift for themselves amidst the cruel woods of
Coro. Misfortunes never come singly. On our way to
Maracaibo, I was confidentially informed by an officer
of the staff that General Pinango's wish to withdraw
from Coro was in consequence of a bulletin from Ca
racas, received by him at La Yela, announcing the
startling fact that General Paez had been defeated in
the plains of Apure. Although I at first did not at
tach much importance to a bulletin coming from the
enemy, the sad intelligence was fully confirmed
shortly after our arrival at Maracaibo, by an emis
sary from the General himself, informing the author
ities of his retreat into New Granada. I then learned,
for the first time, that, although quite unprepared for
the unequal contest, he took the field with a few fol-
17

I
386 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
lowers at Calabozo, where he received the first infor
mation respecting the bloody tragedy at Caracas.
His force was receiving daily additions with volun
teers from various parts of the Llanos, when a traitor
— Cornelio Muiioz — whom _ he had raised from the
lowest station in life to the highest rank in the army,
rebelled against him in the province of Apure, thus
mena.cing his rear. To guard against this evil in time,
the General set off immediately in that direction with
the object of having an interview with Munoz, or of
attacking him before he should increase his force.
Unwilling to commence hostilities in the province
of his especial solicitude, General Paez despatched at
once a commissioner duly accredited to treat with
Munoz while he mustered his forces, consisting wholly
of cavalry, on the plain of Cambero. Finding, how
ever, that he could not come to terms with his un
grateful compadre — for, in addition to other favors
from his benefactor, Munoz had prevailed upon the
General to stand as godfather to one of his children — ¦
he determined to attack him with his body-guard of
tried Llaneros and a few squadrons from Calabozo.
A gallant charge from the former soon broke the en
emy's front, who fled in confusion across the plain ;
but before the cloud of dust raised by the horses had
cleared, the regiments from Calabozo, seized with a
sudden panic, fled in exactly the opposite direction
to that taken by the retreating enemy. All the
efforts of General Paez to arrest the flight were una
vailing, they never stopping until close to the frontiers
of New Granada.
On the other hand, the guard, after a successful

MONAGAS. 387
pursuit of several miles, when they lanced great num
bers of their opponents, finding on their return no
traces of the missing regiments and only dead bodies
upon the field, were in their turn overwhelmed with
panic, and likewise retreated into New Granada by
another route.
Thus, from a victorious General, our Leader be
came, through the treachery or cowardice of one of
his lieutenants, a wanderer in a strange land. The
negotiations with Muiioz had been conducted by the
commander of the forces from Calabozo, who stood in
great fear of Munoz ; and it was rumored at the time
that the latter had promised him full pardon in case
of a defeat, providing he should desert his chief and
friend in his hour of danger.

CHAPTER XXYIH.

MAEACAIBO.

Monagas, now free from enemies in other parts of
the republic, directed his whole energy and attention
to the subjugation of Maracaibo, which, from her
geographical situation and abundance of resources,
offered a more formidable obstacle to his sway.
A glance at the map of Yenezuela, will show a
deep indentation of the coast toward the west, formed
by the wild and still unsubdued peninsula of La
Goajira, — exclusively inhabited by a warlike tribe of
Indians — on the north, arid the arid coast of Coro
on the southeast. Into this wide gulf, usually termed
Saco de Maracaibo, the largest lake in South America
pours the tribute of a hundred navigable rivers and
several minor streams. The entrance to the lake is
extremely dangerous, on account of the many shoals
and breakers that bar its mouth, while but a small
portion of its eastern shores is accessible to an ene
my seeking to invade the province by land, the rest
being entirely surrounded by an impenetrable forest
and pestiferous marshes, the haunts of the tapir, and

MARACAIBO. 389
numerous herds of wild hogs. The only entrance to
it from the sea, is through a narrow channel between
dangerous shoals, in the west end of its mouth, where
a fort mounting twelve guns can easily dispute the
passage of a flotilla, such as are used in the republic.
With the aid of good pilots, ships not exceeding
eleven feet draught can cross the bar and intervening
shoals between this point and Maracaibo, thirty-five
miles inland.
Further on, the lake expands into a nearly circular
basin, four hundred miles in circumference, navigable
in all its extent by the largest craft afloat.
Although the news of the reverse of Taratara
threw the people of this province into the greatest
excitement for a time, the comparative security they
felt under the protection of their little fleet of schoon
ers — soon increased by the addition of a bark and sev
eral armed piraguas — finally quite restored the public
tranquillity, and I had leisure to occupy myself with
other objects than gunpowder.
It is not my intention to tire the reader, more than
is absolutely necessary to the fulfilment of my task,
with the recital of the miseries aud tragedies inci
dental to civil war ; my mission is simply to depict
the natural features of my native country, avoiding
the unnatural as much as possible. Therefore, let us
now glance at the city and its environs, where spark
ling eyes and loving hearts await our arrival to wel
come us to their comfortable mansions ; for hotels are
rather a scarce commodity in Maracaibo, the gen
erous hospitality of the inhabitants having thus far
prevented their establishment.

390 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The first object that attracts our attention on enter
ing the bay, is a spacious custom-house fronting the
water ; near this stands also the market, profusely
supplied with game, fish, and the finest beef in the
country. There can be found also abundance of
vegetables, raised oh barbacoas, several feet from the
ground, for the purpose of protecting the tender
shoots from the depredations of red ants. Were this
precaution neglected, the entire crop would disap
pear in a single night, the time usually chosen by
these pernicious insects for their marauding excur
sions. Among the vegetables you cannot fail to
notice the size and abundance of the plantains, a fa
vorite food with the people of all classes. This vege
table being suspended sufficiently high from the
ground by the parent plant, does not require man's
protection against the ants, whose habits are de
cidedly terrestrial. Immense plantations of this de
licious fruit, or vegetable, exist on the moist borders
of the lake, along with its inseparable companion, the
cacao-tree. As a substitute for soda water or iced
lemonade in this burning climate, the intelligent
garcon before the fruit-stands will present you for the
asking the huge green husk of the cocoa-nut, filled
with its refreshing sap, erroneously called milk. The
tree producing it, is another of the peculiar features
environing the lake, whose shores for more than forty
miles are covered with a continuous plantation of this
useful palm ; from it the inhabitants obtain, besides
wine, oil, milk, (from the kernel,) cabbage, thatch,
timber, &c, &c.
Embowered in one of these cocales — cocoa-nut

MARACAIBO. 391
plantations — the rural retreat of Los Haticos looms
across the bay. This, as the name implies, is a collec
tion of country houses, where the citizens spend great
portions of their time in revelry and enjoyment.
Some of the houses are roofed with red tiles, giving
them a very pretty appearance amidst the dark foliage
of the palms ; but the greater part are thatched with
enea, or flag-reed, unfortunately also used to a great
extent in the city. During the merry nights of
Christmas and other holidays, abundantly provided
by our calendar, Los Haticos present a scene of bustle
and gayety remarkable for good taste, sociability, and
unostentatious hospitality. There, to the strains of
the guitar, the harp and pianoforte, you may listen
to as melodious voices as any that ever issued from
enchanted groves. They proceed from the accom
plished Maracaiberas, by far the most interesting fea
ture of this province. If, fascinated by their charm
ing voices, you are tempted the next morning to stroll
through that little paradise of Spanish grace and
beauty, you will behold these syrens of the lake,
quietly seated under the shade of those stately palms,
at work upon their famous laces, rivalling in fineness
the spider's web. Their cottages are as open to
strangers as the noble hearts of the fair occupants.
Step in without ceremony, tired traveller, and witness
henceforth to the excellency of the cup of chocolate
speedily prepared for you by their hospitable hands,
which, at the same time, offer also for your comfort a
richly embroidered napkin of their own manufacture.
But as we shall have other opportunities to see
more of them, we will take leave for the present of

392 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
these charming ladies of Maracaibo, and continue our
ramble through the city.
As we sail to and from Los Haticos, you cannot
fail to notice the immense number of piraguas, (flat-
bottomed sailing boats having two masts and square
sails,) which crowd the bay and the line of the horizon
toward the south. These are the vehicles of trans
portation throughout this thrifty " Little Yenice," or
Yenezuela proper, a name conferred upon it by the
Italian navigator, Amerieus Yespuccius, who first
braved the dangerous bar of Maracaibo. The borders
of the lake being swampy and unhealthy, the abo
rigines of that epoch, as well as those of the present
day, to escape the malignant fevers and clouds of
hungry mosquitoes filling the air, built their habita
tions in the water on posts of lignum-vitge, which in
this province bears the appropriate name of iron-
wood. Crowds of roguish urchins — attracted by the loads
of golden plantains on board some of the piraguas —
are constantly diving around these, after the fruit
thrown to them by the patrons, as otherwise these
little depredators would speedily relieve them of the
main part of their cargo. In this manner the young
Maracaiberos acquire their astonishing proficiency in
swimming, which, later in life, enables them to brave
the dangers of their inland sea.
The piraguas are very useful for ascending the rivers
of the interior, connecting the commercial metropolis
of the lake with the agricultural provinces of Merida,
Trujillo, and portions of New Granada. The two
former send to Maracaibo for exportation, indigo,

MARACAIBO. 393
coffee, cacao, pita fibre, sugar, honey, and delicious
preserves. The fertile valleys of Cucuta in New Gra
nada depend principally upon Maracaibo for goods
of foreign manufacture, giving in return tobacco,
coffee, cacao, and straw hats. Maracaibo exports,
besides large quantities of dye-woods, copaiba, divi-
divi, senna-leaves, and hides.
Among the shipping you will also observe many
fine schooners and square-rigged vessels built from
her own inexhaustible supply of everlasting-timber,
the city furnishing besides the best sailors, as well
as the " smartest " business men in the republic.
There is a naval academy in addition to a college
and several public schools, where the youth receive
excellent instructions in the primary branches of edu
cation. In this connection Depons observes : " The
youth of Maracaibo are particularly favored by na
ture, the least elemental instruction being sufficient
to develop their mental faculties, a proficiency not
easily obtained in Europe without long study and
excellent teachers."
The greatest anxiety prevailed among the people
of Maracaibo for the arrival of General Paez, hourly
expected from New Granada. A fine schooner was
fitted up for his accommodation without loss of time,
and despatched to the mouth of the river Catatumbo —
the main channel of communication between Cucuta
and the lake — to receive and conduct him to the city.
A number of gentlemen were commissioned for this
purpose, and I availed myself of the opportunity to
partially explore that interesting region.
16*

394 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The distance from Maracaibo to the Catatumbo is
about ninety miles, and the schooner made the run
during the night, so that by early morning, we drop
ped anchor in the still waters of Congo bay. The
spy-glass was constantly in use, examining every
bongo that hove in sight, hoping as we did every mo
ment to receive some tidings of our Leader's where
abouts. We knew that he was at Cucuta, making
preparations for his voyage down the river ; accord
ingly we waited from day to day, in constant expec
tation of his arrival. To our great disappointment
we learned, twelve days afterward, that the enemy's
guerillas were posted along the woody banks of the
river, cutting off his communication with the lake,
thus annihilating our cherished hopes and those of
the whole province, which longed to receive him
with open arms.
Meanwhile, I was not idle in procuring infor
mation respecting the natural curiosities of that
region. Much of the day was occupied in rowing
round the bay, and among the numerous channels
between the alluvial islands, constantly forming at
the mouths of tributary rivers. Immense quantities
of drift-wood and water-lilies are brought down by
these, and deposited in the shallow borders of the
lake. The wild plantain — heliconia — and other hy
dropathic plants also take root there, and before many
years have rolled by, not only the course of the rivers,
but also the aspect of the scenery become changed.
The stately mora — Madura tinctoria — which, under
the name of fustic, is largely shipped from Maracaibo
to various parts of the world — invites to its gigantic

MARACAIBO.

395

branches and luscious berries, troops of chattering
monkeys and flocks of noisy macaws, whose brilliant
plumage vies in richness with the various tints yielded
by that celebrated tree.

Not even a foot of dry land could we find whereon
to exercise our cramped limbs. Our excursions, there
fore, were made mostly in the boats of the schooner,
or by wading through the shallower parts of the bay,
which were covered with fine sand. The water was
so transparent, that we easily avoided the numerous
sting-rays and saw-fish beneath its surface. I speared
several young ones of the latter, almost as numerous
as the sands of those extensive shoals, which led me to
conclude that this was a breeding place for that curious

396 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
species of shark. " It attains a length of from twelve
to fifteen feet, including the serrated rostrum from
which its name is derived.

"This powerful weapon seems designed to com
pensate for the inadequacy of the ordinary maxillary
teeth, which are usually small, obtuse, and insufficient
to capture and kill the animals which form the food
of this predatory shark. To remedy this, the fore
part of the head and its cartilages are prolonged into
a flattened plate, the length of which is nearly equal
to one-third of the whole body ; the edges being
armed with formidable teeth that are never shed or
renewed, but increase in size with the growth of the
creature." *
Alligators of enormous size were equally abundant
there, especially in the inlets of lagoons connected
with the lake, waiting for prey. To these lagoons
numbers of piraguas resort regularly to load with fish,
which, salted, forms one of the principal articles of
trade with Maracaibo. Near the anchorage of our
schooner was a fisherman's cottage, raised on posts
three feet above water like the Indian habitations. Its
* Sir J. Emerson Tennent.

MARACAIBO. 397
owner, whose body was so spotted with coagulated
blood from the bite of mosquitoes that it had lost its
original hue, supplied us daily with fresh fish, re
ceiving in exchange salt, tobacco, and aguardiente.
I could not repress a sentiment of pity for the solitary
inhabitant of those lonely swamps, and even ventured
to advise a change of location, when, to my great sur-
-prise his disfigured countenance assuming a grin of
evident compassion, he whispered close in my ear :
" Should you ever wish to escape into New Granada, I
can take you there in my canoe through channels only
known to myself." I then little thought I should ever
need to accept this invitation ; so, offering him a segar,
I contented myself instead, with a trip in his skiff to
one of the neighboring islands after some wild pavas
we heard tolling in the distance. I shot one of these,
of a rich chocolate color, and quite as large as a
turkey-hen, which it greatly resembles ; hence its
name. The swampy and tangled nature of the jungle
prevented however further progress, and I returned
to my cicerone's hut after a few ineffectual shots at
the alligators. He related to me several wonderful
stories about the danta or tapir, the river-horse of
the New World, which from want of space I am com
pelled to omit. Subsequently, on my return to Mara
caibo, I saw one of these animals quite tame at the
house of Senor Casanova, one of the " merchant
princes" of our " Little Yenice," who had allotted a
place, in the corridor of his own house, to that noble
beast. One night we were surprised by the most fearful
storm within my experience. It seemed as though

398

WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.

the " windows of Heaven were opened," amidst the
glare of lightning, the howling winds, and rolling
thunder. The latter was especially terrific. The rain
fell with such force as to tear away the awning which
protected our nightly slumbers, our numbers being
too great for the little cabin of the schooner. The
danger from the lightning was greatly enhanced by
the immediate proximity of a war vessel filled with
gunpowder. The surface of the lake appeared at
times like a vast sheet of fire, while the roaring of the
storm contributed to render the scene awfully sub
lime. These thunder storms are very frequent at the
extremity of the lake, where it rains almost inces
santly during a large portion of the year. The great
mass of vapors dispersed throughout the atmosphere,
carried thither by the sea breezes, is doubtless the
cause of this phenomenon. Alluding to the subject,
Codazzi has, in his Geography of Yenezuela, some
noteworthy remarks : " In the regions where the Cat-

MARACAIBO. 399
atumbo disembogues, storms accumulate more fre
quently, while the thunder and lightning often fright
en the navigator there. It seems as if the electric
fluid was a^o more concentrated in those localities,
where a luminous phenomenon may be perceived
every night, which, like a flash of lightning, illumines
the atmosphere from time to time. Observed from
the sea, the flash appears as though directly over the
island of Toas, nearly in the meridian of the bar of
Maracaibo ; it passes over the mouth of the Cata-
tumbo, and serves as a guide to mariners. Can it be
caused by the exhalations of hydrogen gas* from the
swamps, which occupy a vast area near the mouth of
the Catatumbo ? "
After impatiently awaiting there for more than a
fortnight the advent of our Leader, desirous of joining
him without further delay, I engaged a man to take
me in his canoe up the river, despite the warnings of
my comrades respecting the guerillas infesting its
banks. I was not much encumbered by luggage,
having lost every thing— -foin Vhonneur — at Taratara ;
therefore I had only to step from on board the
schooner into the little craft alongside, bidding adieu
to my friends the Commissioners, whom I promised to
rejoin in a short time if not captured by the gueril
las. A young man bound to Cucuta, bearing de
spatches from the Governor of Maracaibo to General
Paez, joined me as I was leaving the schooner, and
the sun shining powerfully at the time, we both
crawled into the carroza, a sort of thatch awning five
* Carburetted hydrogen gas. — The Author.

400 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
feet long by half that number wide, in the stern of
the canoe. This was to be our common apartment
for the next twelve or fourteen days of river naviga
tion. We had not proceeded far, when the canoe
grounded among a labyrinth of snags, near the mouth
of the river, which the patron was endeavoring to
reach by a short cut. To retrace our way would have
been as unprofitable as the endeavor to force the
canoe through the stockade that barred its progress ;
therefore we were politely requested by our Charon
to lighten his barge by stepping overboard, which,
considering the number of sting-rays and other angry
dwellers of the waters lurking there, I regarded as a
bad commencement for our journey. Donde manda
capitan, no manda marinero." Having therefore no
alternative between being stuck in the mud, or by
the bones of the fish, we preferred to risk the latter,
as the lesser evil of the two ; so stumbling here and
pulling there, we finally extricated the canoe with
only the loss of half a day, which, aware of the re
ception awaiting us beyond the lake from the mos
quitoes, we did not much regret.
Toward evening we commenced ascending the
river, sometimes assisted by the canalete, where the
current was not very strong, but usually by means
of a pole hooked into the branches of trees skirtin«-the
banks. The vegetation was superb beyond descrip
tion, the river being entirely hemmed in between
walls of massive foliage. Occasionally we met float-
* Where the captain commands, sailors have no authority.

MARACAIBO. 401
ing down stream, huge balsas, or rafts of timber, cut
upon its banks and towed afterward to Maracaibo,
by a long and circuitous route along the irregular
shores of the lake.
So far, we had not been troubled by mosquitoes ;
but hardly did the shadows of night close upon the
scene, than we were apprised of their vicinity, by a
low humming sound proceeding from the forest,
which, gradually approaching, occasioned us direful
forebodings. The patron advised us to light our
segars an hour or two before retiring to our narrow
apartment, if we wished to escape their importunities.
This, however, proved a poor expedient, as the entire
night was spent in directing at our unseen enemies
blows, from which, as a general thing, we ourselves
were the only sufferers. In the sharper sting and
loud triumphant song of many among them, I recog
nized my old acquaintances, the pullones. Add to
these aggravations, a continuous drizzling rain upon
our uncovered feet, which would project outside the
carroza, and some idea may be formed of the tor
ments we endured during that and the following
night. I was revolving in my mind serious thoughts
of abandoning my trip to New Granada, and return
ing to the lake by the first balsa floating down the
stream, when, toward the morning of the third day,
I heard the heavy stroke of oars against the sides of
some bongo rapidly approaching from up the river.
" Listen ! " I exclaimed to my companion ; " get
your despatches ready to be pitched into the river, for
I fear the monagueros are upon us." When within
hailing distance^ we gave the qui vive. A friendly

402 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
voice, which I immediately recognized as that of
Roseliano, answered " Paez ! " and a moment after
ward, two huge bongoes full of men were alongside
of our frail canoe. To pick up my bundle of segars,
— actually the only remaining property I possessed in
the world, — and jump on board one of them was the
work of an instant. The passengers proved to be
the faithful Llanero Guard, which had followed our
Leader into New Granada ; but my disappointment
was great on learning from them that the General
had abandoned the idea of coming to Maracaibo by
this route, giving the preference to that of the Mag-
dalena River, which, although much longer, would
enable him to stop at Jamaica and other West India
islands, before .again confronting his old antagonist,
Monagas. We availed ourself of the opportunity offered by the
bongoes to return to the lake, where — to the no small
satisfaction of the crowded party on board them, we
found the schooners still waiting for more definite in
formation concerning the anxiously looked-for arrival
of the General. All were transferred to the schoon
ers without delay, and a fine land-breeze blowing at
the time, we made all sail for Maracaibo, carrying
thither the vexatious news of our unfulfilled commis
sion. The low lands of Congo bay were soon lost
sight of, and then the broad expanse of fresh water,
heaving like the ocean, was all we saw. It blew and
rained heavily through the night ; but the next day
the clouds lifted, affording us a distant view of the
Sierra Nevada, rising in snowy peaks thousands of
feet above the region of the clouds.

I.< ^RACAIBO. 403
It would almost seem, from the fact of this vast
body of water penetrating so far inland, that Provi
dence had expressly designed it to bring into near
proximity the sea-coast and the lands at the foot of the
higher Cordilleras of Merida and Trujillo, whose fertile
slopes in the form of table-lands stretch to the borders
of this splendid lake. So great are their extent and
astonishing fertility, so numerous the navigable
streams, by which they are watered, and various the
climates in those regions, that time alone is wanting
to render them the seat of a vast commerce. Between
the lake and the sierras surrounding it, the people
and products of Europe and America can find each
their congenial temperature, from the burning heats
of the tropics to the chilling frosts of winter, or the
eternal snows of polar regions.
A dead calm, which fortunately, as we were al
ready short of provisions, only lasted until sundown,
succeeded the boisterous night ; otherwise we would
have fared rather poorly during the passage to Mara
caibo, which place we reached toward morning.

CHAPTER XXIX.

THE GOAJIROS.

The arrival of our vessels in the harbor naturally
attracted thither a great crowd of anxious friends in
hopes to find there the one who, they trusted, would
deliver them in the impending struggle that menaced
from across the lake ; for the enemy, who had already
arrived at Altagracia, opposite Maracaibo, were
known to be making preparations for crossing to La
Goajira, and for marching thence by land to invade the
province. The undertaking was, however, fraught
with peril to the attacking forces, from the notorious
hostility of the Indians and other formidable obstacles
to be encountered along the route. Unfortunately,
the greatest anarchy reigned at the time among our
own people, who, finding no cooperation from their
terrified leaders, already despaired of success in re
pelling the invaders. The disappointment therefore
they experienced at not finding in our vessels the
cherished object of their hopes, may be easily imag
ined. Men, wringing their hands, frantically paced
the wharf in utter dejection of spirit, while the women

THE GOAJIROS. 405
of all ranks, who have ever manifested a strong sym
pathy for the " Eselarecido," — General Paez — sat down
and wept bitter tears of disappoinment beneath the
grateful palms that surround their homes.
While wandering through the streets of the city,
not knowing where to find an abiding place, I was
politely accosted by several gentlemen, who, on hear
ing of my unfortunate mishap at Taratara, where I
lost the little I had saved from the flame of revolution,
hastened to offer me their homes and purses. I ac
cepted the hospitality of Don Antonio Montiel, whose
kindness on this occasion, as well as that of his estima
ble family, is still fresh in the memory of the exile.
While there, I had an opportunity of witnessing the
dreadful effects of the animal poison, used by the sav
ages of La Goajira, and which I can only compare to
the madness induced by hydrophobia.
My host, Don Antonio, owned a cattle-farm on the
frontiers, not far from the fort of San Carlos, and
while his men, four in number, were engaged in driv
ing some tame animals to the corrals, a hidden host
of red-skins issuing suddenly from the bushes, sent a
shower of poisoned arrows amidst the drivers, killing
one man instantly and wounding two more. Of these
one was taken to the fort ; the other, a slave of Senor
Montiel, being sent to him at Maracaibo. Although
the wound was a flesh one, his master at once gave
the necessary orders for his approaching interment,
as nothing could save him. The poor fellow appeared
perfectly resigned, and answered all my questions
with apparent unconcern. On the second day the
poison manifested itself by occasional twitchings of

406 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the nerves, which increased gradually to violent jerks
of the whole frame, until death relieved the agonized
sufferer. There is no known antidote to this poison, except
that of immediate cauterization, where the wound is
not too deep. Aware of this, the vengeful Indian
makes his arrow's tip of the bone of the sting-ray,
notching it deeply in several places, so that it is sure-
to break off in the flesh, while the serrated edges pre
vent its extraction.
Senor Montiel, who for many years had traded
with this savage tribe of Indians, and was well ac
quainted with their history and habits, gave me very
interesting details concerning them and the con
cocting of this direful poison. The contents of the
witches' caldron in " Macbeth " was a harmless drug
in comparison with it. A number of dead reptiles,
snakes, toads and lizards, with a sprinkling of centi
pedes, scorpions and tarantulas, are placed in a gourd
and allowed to rot until they all, " like a hell broth,
boil and bubble " into a yellowish liquid, which col
lects at the bottom of the gourd : in this, the points
of the arrows are steeped, and then laid aside to dry.
The Goajiros are equally expert in the use of fire
arms, and being in addition most accomplished riders,
they oppose a formidable barrier against the perma
nent occupation of their territory. They were per
haps the first inventors of conical balls, which they
have been in the habit of manufacturing for them
selves since they have become masters of the gun ;
and so expeditious are they in their management of
it, that they can load and fire in less time than any

THE GOAJIROS. 407
veteran soldiers opposed to them. This they effect by
drilling wider the vent of the old flint muskets, the
only ones then used in Yenezuela, thus facilitating
the run of the powder into the pan when the cartridge
is introduced into the barrel, and the ball being
heavier than that of their opponents, a blow upon
the ground with the but-end of the musket while
they fly swiftly around the enemy, is sufficient to load
and prime it. They understand also that, by raising
the muzzle of the gun, a longer range is attained — a
practice which they may have derived from constant
use of the bow and arrow. But from whom they
acquired their scientific use of other weapons, was
more than my friend Don Antonio could tell me.
The territory, or peninsula, occupied by the Goa-
jiros, has long been the subject of disputes and
reclamations between Yenezuela and New Granada,
lying, as it does, on the boundaries of both republics ;
and although the former only claims one half of it,
while the other demands the lion's share, the fact is,
that neither of them has reckoned upon the host there ;
nor have they exercised any jurisdiction beyond the
forts established on the frontiers to check the forays
of their savage neighbors. Indeed, it is a curious cir
cumstance that, while all the other tribes of Indians
have been subdued or exterminated in South America,
neither the Araucanians or Patagonians inhabiting
the extreme south, nor the Goajiros of the far north,
have ever been conquered by the white race. Sev
eral steps were made at different times by Yenezuela
to subjugate the Goajiros ; but with the exception of
a temporary occupation of the ground held by the

408 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA
soldiers of the republic, nothing was ever gained un
less it be an increase of their hatred to the orijunas,
as they call us.
The habits of these Indians are very curious.
They live in communities of a certain number of fami
lies like the nomads of the desert, and like them roam
over arid plains with their herds, pitching their camp
wherever they find abundant food and water for the
cattle, and moving off to another place only when the
pastures are consumed. They possess the finest breed
of cattle and horses and other domestic animals. The
head of the nation was a squaw, Rosa by name, her
self a splendid equestrian as well as archer. Each
tribe, however, is under the immediate control of a
cacique, who exercises a sort of patriarchal sway over
all concerns of the country. The head of a family re
ceives from him a portion of stock in trust, according
to the number of individuals composing it. These are
only entitled to the yield of the herds, the cacique re
serving to himself the right of disposing at any time of
those animals always commanding a good price in the
market ; they readily sell, or rather exchange them,
on the frontiers under the surveillance of government
officers, appointed expressly at the town of Sinamaica.
This, however, does not prevent the white traders im
posing upon the ignorance of their savage customers,
who, being unacquainted with the use of money, dis
pose of their cattle for aguardiente, worthless trinkets,
bridles, knives, cotton, woods and colored blankets,
far below the value of what they give in exchange.
From the yarn of their blankets, pulled apart for
the purpose, these Indians weave elegant scarfs and

THE GOAJIROS. 409
other articles of dress, displaying their innate taste
and ingenuity. The Goajiros do not go nude as is the
practice among other South-American tribes, but
rather pride themselves, especially the women, upon
a profuse display of printed calico, the brightest that
England's factories can produce. Their style of dress
is exceedingly picturesque and unique. The men
wear a sort of flowing blouse without sleeves, not un
like the dress of an ancient Roman warrior, tied
around the waist by a long scarf, the ends of which
fall gracefully on one side. When the weather is
warm, the upper part of the dress is allowed to drop
down over the sash, thus exposing their athletic
shoulders to view. The chiefs wear, besides, a head
dress made from the bright feathers of the macaw-
parrot, which adds greatly to their picturesqueness, es
pecially when mounted on one of the spirited Goajiro
horses. The latter are remarkable for fine training,
elegant proportions and good mettle, and invariably
command higher prices than those of any other breed
in Yenezuela. The training they receive must differ
considerably from that usually practised in the coun
try, as these noble creatures cannot brook the touch of
spur or whip. Another distinguishing mark is the
peculiar brand imprinted on their haunches in the
form of geometrical figures, instead of the letters or
hieroglyphics used in other portions of Yenezuela.
Great numbers are annually exported from the
peninsula, notwithstanding the reluctance of the In
dians to part with their steeds ; still the finest among
them are seldom, if ever, permitted to go out of the
territory, unless it be through some stratagem on the
18

410 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
part of the white traders who, to gain their ends, often
resort to the disgraceful plan of thoroughly intoxicat
ing the owner. It is probably owing to this manifest
disinclination to part with their property, that the
practice arose among the Indians of cutting off the
ears of the best horses. When pressed very hard to
sell one of these, the rider, without uttering a word,
quietly dismounts and drawing the long knife which he
carries in his belt, puts an end to the transaction by de
priving the poor creature of those valuable appendages.
" There ! orijuna no like horse without ears ! " the
redskin exultingly exclaims ; then, jumping upon the
back of his mutilated steed, doubtless regretting that
he had not done the same to the occasion of the trans
action, resumes his dealings with the astonished trader,
who, it is scarcely necessary to add, does not press the
bargain further.
The Goajiros also trade largely with the English
and Dutch of the West Indies, from whom they ob
tain more substantial commodities in the shape of flint
muskets, powder and lead — articles of prime necessity
among them, and which they cannot procure so easily
from their neighbors. When a vessel drops anchor
near the coast, the cacique of that district, accom
panied by some members of his family, immediately
proceeds in his canoe to welcome the strangers ; but
before entering into any negotiations, an exchange of
hostages takes place. This is a custom of long stand
ing among these savages, a custom which, to their
credit be it acknowledged, has ever been held sacred
by them in all dealings with the whites. But, a short
time before the revolution, the reverse had been the

THE GOAJIROS. 411
case, on the part of those claiming to be their superiors
in civilization and morality.
A schooner from Curacao, having anchored off
the Goajira. coast, the usual method of communication
with strangers was promptly resorted to by the cacique,
who sent on board as hostages some of his daughters.
But, instead of returning an equivalent from the ves
sel, the crew, with unparalleled brutality, fell upon
the helpless creatures, whose cries alarmed their
friends on shore, already uneasy at the detention of
the canoe. A little fleet of canoes was manned with
the greatest expedition, and a dead calm occurring at
that moment, the schooner was quickly surrounded
and boarded by the avenging aborigines, who mas
sacred the crew and burned the vessel, but spared the
lives of some children found on board.
When the facts concerning the affair were known
at Curacao, the authorities of the island, instead of
viewing the fate of their countrymen as a just retri
bution for their misdeed, proceeded to demand instant
reparation from the Yenezuelian government, although
it should not have been held responsible for the doings
of a wild tribe of Indians. Fearing, however, to com
promise the national dignity, a not unfrequent occur
rence between weak republics and European nations,
a force was despatched to the peninsula from Mara
caibo, and without giving previous notice to the
natives, as is their practice when about to commence
their hostilities, attacked them and, taking prisoners
several of their most prominent warriors, executed
them without mercy. Among these were the parties
implicated in the avenging massacre, whose conduct

412 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
on that occasion should have taught the government
how to maintain the dignity of a people. The Goa
jiros, taken by surprise, offered but feeble resistance
to an overwhelming force, and the conquerors hastened
back to Maracaibo for want of water in the sandy
wastes of La Goajira.
The hero of the expedition was Colonel Jose Esco-
lastico Andrade, the same who a little later so inglo-
riously abandoned the city and all its charming
women to their fate, at the approach of the Mona-
gueros, and who, it must be confessed, on this occasion
showed himself less scholastic in military tactics, than
he obtained credit for in his campaign against the In
dians. It is related that, while in the pursuit of this
wild set, a cacique was brought hand-cuffed before
Don Escolastico. At sight of the hated orijuna, the
Indian warrior could not conceal his indignation, and
addressing the commander through an interpreter, ex
claimed, while he struggled to free himself : " Thou
art like the cunning fox, who only attacks his prey in
the darkness of night."
Quarrels among the Goajiros are settled by arbi
tration of the elders, providing no blood has been
shed. When this occurs, the complainant expects,
besides, a compensation in cattle, varying in number
according to the extent of the injury inflicted. A re
fusal to pay is immediately followed by a challenge
from the friends of the injured man, invariably result
ing in the death of several on both sides. As a
natural eonsequence, these feuds entail new reclama
tions and renewed hostilities, which increase the
blood-tribute beyond the ability of either side to

THE GOAJIROS. 413
satisfy. Thus it often happens that the strife ends
only with the extermination of the contending par
ties. From this cause it is asserted that the popula
tion, which formerly numbered 60,000, has dwindled
down to 15,000. But this is of course mere conjec
ture, as no one has ever ventured, beyond the frontier
forts, for the purpose of taking the census.
The Goajiros devote themselves also to the culti
vation of the soil, a chain of mountains running
through their territory offering them excellent lands
for the purpose. Don Antonio Montiel found them
always ready to work for him in his extensive estab
lishments on the Goajira coast for cutting braziletto-
wood, and has even employed them very successfully
in his cacao plantation at Zulia. in the southern part
of the Lake of Maracaibo.
Attached to the Goajiro nation is an inferior tribe
of Indians, the Cocinas, whom they have subjugated
and hold as slaves, not even permitting them to dress
like themselves or wear arms of any sort. The Co
cinas are supposed to have originally come from the
unexplored Sierra, forming the boundary between the
province of Maracaibo and the northern part of New
Granada. Although considered in the light of savages, the
Goajiros have given proof, on several occasions, that
they are not altogether insensible to the calls of
humanity and generosity. During my sojourn in
Maracaibo, an English bark bound to Carthagena was
wrecked on their dangerous coast during the night ;
the crew would have all perished amidst the foaming
breakers, but for the exertions of the Indians who,

414 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
being excellent swimmers and well acquainted with
the place, not only saved every soul on board, but
likewise a great portion of the cargo. The same
humane conduct was displayed by them toward the
family of Senor Gallegos, a prominent citizen of Mara
caibo ; they, being also wrecked on the Goajira coast,
were saved, and afterward escorted by the savages to
the castle of San Carlos.
When all the avenues of communication between
Maracaibo and the " outside barbarians " were cut off
by the blockading forces of Monagas, the Goajiros
proved invaluable couriers for the transmission of our
despatches through their territory. A prince of their
nation had in former years paid a visit to-» General
Paez, then President of the republic, who received
him with becoming dignity and respect ; and so de
lighted was His Highness of the red-skin with the
cordial treatment and presents which he received on
this occasion from the General, that he remained ever
after his warm friend and admirer. In acknowledg
ment of this and other civilities, the Goajiro nation
now became a sort of volunteer ally and warm sup
porter of our cause, even to the extent of attacking
the forces of Monagas, while passing through their
territory to invade the province. Owing to the
reprehensible negligence of our commanders who
failed to guard against it, this event took place when
least expected ; and although our Indian allies did
their utmost to check the advance of the enemy, the
reverse was the dastardly conduct of those intrusted
with the custody of, the public safety. Instead of
sending our fleet to capture or destroy the few vessels

THE GOAJIROS. 415
sent by Monagas to the coast of Coro for the trans
portation of his troops, they held it back in readiness
to decamp, which they did the moment it became
known that a landing on the Goajira coast had been
effected, while the enemy were still many miles from
Maracaibo. The indignation of the people was so
great, that some of the leaders would have undoubted
ly fallen a sacrifice to public vengeance, but for the
presence of the fleet and a squadron of cavalry, com
posed mainly of Llaneros. Even so they had great
difficulty in accomplishing the embarcation of the
troops, only one half of which ever reached their desti
nation, the castle of San Carlos.
In the mean time, the invading forces were every
day being terribly decimated by the poisoned ar
rows and conical balls of the Indian warriors who, in
addition, poisoned the few wells along the route, which
they paved with concealed arrow-heads, set upright be
neath the sand ; as none of the soldiers in our armies
wear shoes, those who escaped the unerring aim of
the arrows, fell afterward victims to the virus of the
hidden ones. Many also perished amidst these burn
ing sands for want of water, and were afterward
almost disheartened by an excess of it, as the ragged
vagabonds found the river Socuy swollen to overflow.
All the canoes had been removed by order of Ser
rano, the Governor of Maracaibo ; but this did not
deter Castelli, the commander of the invading forces,
from crossing on rafts, finding no foe there to dispute
his passage. A few companies of fusiliers would have
been sufficient to hold them in check, while the Indians
were constantly hovering on their rear ; and although

416 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
some troops and armed piraguas had been detailed
with that object, the cowardly commanders abandoned
the river at sight of the enemy and returned to Mara
caibo, only to increase the alarm of the no less pusil
lanimous leaders there.
Many days after the latter had retired to the castle,
the enemy, in bands of one or two hundred, with all
their powder wet, and ready to throw themselves
upon the mercy of their antagonists, appeared before
the city, which they occupied without the least oppo
sition. Even then it would have been an easy task
to make them all prisoners, as it was known that the
fever, contracted in their passage through the marshy
borders of the Socuy, had broken out among them,
while all communication with their base of operations
was effectually cut off by our fleet. Still the pol
troons who held the fate, not only of their own province
but also of the whole country in their hands, with an
enthusiastic population to back them and abundant
resources at command, hesitated for a long time to in
vest the city with the forces under them, contenting
themselves with a little skirmishing and a useless
waste of ammunition at long range. Tired at length
of this amusement, and having more vessels than they
required, they conceived the grand idea of detailing a
portion of the fleet to frighten Monagas in his capital,
by sending a few random shots along the coast of La
Guaira and Puerto Cabello. As I was also growing
weary of my confinement in the narrow island of San
Carlos, I gladly joined the expedition, although I en
tertained but little hope of its ultimate success.

CHAPTER XXX.
A CRUISE IK THE CARIBBEAN SEA.
On the 15th of July, 1848, the vessels, ten in
number, intended for the expedition, were assembled
at Bajo-Seco, a sandy islet near the bar, forming a
small bay opposite the castle of San Carlos. The
Honorable J. H. Garcia, one of the five members of
Congress, whose heads were so highly prized by Mo
nagas, harangued the troops, two hundred strong,
intended for this formidable expedition, after which
they were distributed on board the different trans
ports. These consisted of the bark Maracaibo, mount
ing seven guns ; schooners Constitucion, six ; Paez and
Diez de Junio, three ; and the others a pivot-gun each.
We were obliged to wait several hours at Bajo-
Seco until the high-tide should permit the bark, which
drew a little over eleven feet, to pass over the bar.
Toward evening we were fairly out to sea, and from
that moment commenced our troubles and sufferings,
the whole night being employed in making short
tacks, to avoid the dangerous breakers at the mouth
18*

418 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of the lake, with a heavy sea washing constantly over
head. When morning dawned we found ourselves nearer
the point of our departure than from the reckoning of
the tacks we had supposed, the current having driven
us during the night in the direction of the bar ; so
that, after fifteen hours' sailing, we were still in sight
of the castle.
The following night was even worse than the pre
ceding, the wind increasing in violence as the sun
went down. The sea rose so high that more than once
it was feared our bark would be thrown on her beam
ends. From one of the schooners a soldier fell over
board ; and although the night was intensely dark,
and in spite of the heavy sea, the gallant mate Poca-
terra immediately went into a boat to search for him,
declaring that unless the man was devoured by
sharks, he was certain to maintain himself afloat until
assistance could reach him. After a search of two
hours, the soldier was picked up by the boat, having
escaped both the fury of the waves and the voracity
of the sharks. My admiration was equally divided
between the great powers of endurance displayed by
the preserved, and the hardihood of his preserver.
Six or seven days were spent in vain endeavors to
reach the island of Oruba, a distance which, had the
wind and current been in our favor, we could have
accomplished in as many hours. As the provisions
were already nearly exhausted, it was decided to tack
for the bay of Los Taques, not an inappropriate name,
on the coast of Coro, where some fishermen supplied
us with salt jwel, a fish very abundant at that place.

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA. 41 9
Our next effort to reach Oruba resulted in a worse
failure, as we were carried along by the tide for a
considerable distance. I proposed to our commander
that he would depress the muzzle of the pivot-gun
and permit me to apply a match to the touch-hole,
the result of which operation would certainly have
been to impel us most rapidly down the gulf ; the
captain then informed me that, not long before, the
commander of a Danish man-of-war had been de
tained for over thirty days on this very spot, and
despairing of ever ascending the channel between
Oruba and the coast of Paraguana, he carried into
execution the plan, which I flattered myself had orig
inated in my own bTain, and which I proposed as an
effectual termination to our successive disappoint
ments. It was indeed most discouraging to be constantly
in sight of the land, where we expected to obtain
fresh provisions and a pilot, but which we of the
bark seemed destined never to reach. The schooners,
from the nature of their rigging, could sail more
easily along the channel against a head wind ; two
of them were therefore despatched to Curacao for
the purpose of apprising our friends of our serious
contretemps, and to obtain there the much needed pro
visions. A slight change of weather at length allowed the
rest of the fleet to reach the western end of Oruba,
and with the assistance of a pilot from that island, we
were enabled to proceed on our voyage of adventure
as far as Curagao. There we were joined by the other
vessels, and refreshed with sundry baskets of most

420 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
delicious fruits sent on board by our friends, and we
then set sail again for the coast of Yenezuela.
Contrary to the instructions received from the
Commander-in-chief, then at St. Thomas much en
feebled by another attack of fever, to proceed direct
to the island of Margarita, whose inhabitants were
most friendly to our cause, the insubordinate com
manders of the fleet commenced a sort of filibustering
raid against unoffending trading vessels on the coast.
Guerra avisada, no mata soldado — fore-wamed, fore
armed. Warned of our approach in time, and com
prehending our purpose, the enemy of course made
preparations to meet us at all points and despatched
a steamer with troops to garrison the forts of Mar
garita. While in pursuit of a schooner from La Guaira,
we were drawn under the fire of the castle at Puerto
Cabello, and the Constitucion very narrowly escaped
being sunk by the heavy artillery of the " Caballero."
We were so near land, that the guerillas on shore
opened upon us a sharp fire of musketry from behind
the bushes. We returned the compliment with grape
and shot, when they quickly showed us their heels.
During the engagement, Captain Las Casas, of Cara
cas, now a General, while standing near me, was
struck by a musket ball oh the nose, which feature
was previously a little one-sided. Feeling no incon
venience from the blow, except a temporary inflamma
tion, we concluded that the ball had only grazed the
part, although to the astonishment of his companions
and his own satisfaction, his nose from that time
became permanently straight. Ten years after the

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA. 421
occurrence of this event, on returning to Caracas from
exile, I was surprised to hear there one morning that
the General had coughed up a musket-ball during the
night. The affair naturally excited a good deal of
talk throughout the city ; but on examination by com
petent persons, it was discovered that the missile,
doubtless the identical one fired at him by the gue
rillas, proceeded from his nose, having worked itself
a passage through the roof of his mouth into his throat.
It is not to be wondered at that the General's personal
appearance had undergone so remarkable a change,
having an ounce of lead lodged in the bridge of his
nose. Had the bullet penetrated a line deeper, he
would have been spared the annoyance resulting from
repeated doses of mercurial compounds, sarsaparilla,
and other medicaments administered by his physician,
under the supposition that the hardening and swelling
of his nose arose from a different cause.
We continued sailing along the coast, with occa
sional stoppages at the plantations, intending to pro
cure there fresh provisions or capture some stray
falucho, loaded with cacao, for which the wealthy oli-
garcas were afterward made to pay handsomely. As
we approached the eastern sea, fish were so abundant,
that our gallant commanders gave up their wild-goose
chase for the more entertaining sport afforded by the
hook and line. Each time the bait was cast over
board, we had the satisfaction of hauling in a carite,
or its larger congener the sierra, two species of
mackerel, occasionally taken on the coast of the
United States under the name of Spanish mackerel,
but extremely common in the Caribbean Sea. They

422 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
abound especially about the numerous keys and islets
of the main, where a boat can be loaded in a short
space of time by merely angling for them with a bent
nail for hook, and a white rag for bait. A third spe
cies, the bonito, to its delicate flavor adds, as its name
implies, a most beautiful appearance, especially when
living.

But no description can convey a just idea of the
rapidly changing and brilliant tints observable in a
dying dolphin. The Aurora Borealis would pale be
fore it, and the painter might seek in vain on his pallet
for colors to equal the various tints of purple, gold
and emerald, which pass and repass over its body
" till the dark hand of death closes the scene." The
dolphin is one of the swiftest creatures that plough
the waters of the broad ocean ; many of them are
caught by the hook and line from vessels sailing rap
idly in the Caribbean Sea. They seem particularly
to delight in the most arduous undertakings, chasing
the flying-fish, which they unfailingly capture the
moment it touches the surface of the water, and fol
lowing bait at the end of a line trailing from a vessel

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA. 423
while at full speed ; otherwise they " won't take" the
hook.

Among others, caught from our schooner, was a
large sword-fish measuring ten feet in length, and
weighing seventy-five pounds. It gave us consider
able trouble to pull him on deck, requiring the efforts
of two men, and he was not secured until he had struck
the vessel several blows with his powerful bayonet-
shaped rostrum, a portion of which was left embedded
in the copper sheathing of the schooner. Some attain
still larger dimensions, measuring from fifteen to
twenty feet, and weighing as much again, in propor
tion to the size of the one caught on that occasion.
Next to the shark, the sword-fish is perhaps the
most dangerous inhabitant of those seas, attacking in
discriminately whatever comes in his way. The bulky
sperm-whale, or chacalote, especially offers him a con
venient mark on which to exercise his belligerent pro
pensities, his peculiar shape enabling the sword-fish
to penetrate deeply into the body of his antagonist,
from which he seldom comes out again. Not even
sailing vessels are exempt from his attacks, although
usually at the expense of his formidable weapon, which
is almost invariably left broken off in the timbers.
The conformation of this fish is admirably adapted

424 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
for his fighting proclivities. His body, sharp and
smooth on the surface, but endowed internally with
muscles as strong as those of the rhinoceros, is armed
with that terrible weapon of destruction from which
he derives his name, and which is a prolongation of
the frontal bone. The dorsal and ventral fins exhibit
a peculiarity not met with in any other fish : these are
disposed in such a manner as to admit of their being
folded inside longitudinal cavities on the back and
belly of the fish. The former is quite a curiosity in
itself, opening and closing like an India rubber fan,
which it much resembles. It is of a dark purple
color, and extends nearly the whole length of the
body. Among the endless superstitions of the lower
classes in my country, there exists one, from time im
memorial occasioning a curious custom at La Guaira
of watching the horizon on Good-Friday for " the
fight " between a whale and a sword-fish. They be
lieve that on that holyday two of these monsters, im
pelled thereunto by a natural sentiment of piety, meet
in deadly combat to offer themselves as sacrifice for
the misdeeds of the finny tribe ; and the breaking of
the waves into white foam, an occurrence daily before
their eyes, is readily converted by their benighted
imaginations into the furious splash of the comba
tants. Another popular belief in connection with Good-
Friday is, that persons then bathing in sea or river,
are instantly transformed into fish ; and so powerful
an influence does this superstition exert on the minds
of many throughout the country, that they would

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA.

425

426 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
sooner think of wading through the Stygian Lake,
than of plunging beneath deep water on that day.
The excellence and abundance of the fish, and the
excitement of catching them, contributed greatly to
vary the monotony of our tedious voyage. With the
exception of the bark, all the other vessels were so
small that we were compelled to remain on deck
both day and night. Happily, not a single case of
sickness occurred during the trip, although all were
constantly exposed to the equinoctial sun and showers.
The sea air of Yenezuela is remarkably healthful at
all seasons ; owing to local causes, fevers are inciden
tal to but few places along the coast. The trade-wind
is also singularly uniform, the fearful hurricanes so
prevalent in the West Indies being unknown there.
We hailed at length the high mountains of Co
lombia's brightest jewel, Margarita — the pearl — so
named by Columbus from the abundance and splen
dor of those gems obtained by him from the aborig
ines on his third voyage of discovery to America.
The island has subsequently become more celebrated
by the heroic resistance of the inhabitants against the
combined forces of Spain by land and water, winning
for her the glorious appellation of New Sparta.
While steering for that brave little island in hopes
of finding there at least space sufficient in which to
stretch our weary limbs cramped by long confinement
to the small vessels, our gallant fleet had a splendid
chase after the Yankee steamer that carried there the
reinforcements sent by Monagas. Doubtless, mistak
ing our vessels for the squadron of the latter, momen
tarily expected in those waters, the steamer was ap-

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA 427
proaching us under a full head of steam, when a
schooner in advance of the others very foolishly fired
a shot at her, which by the way did her no harm as
she was three miles off, thus apprising her of the real
character of our fleet. Of course, all efforts after this
to overtake her were futile, and we proceeded on our
forlorn voyage, having wasted several rounds of am
munition. We coasted for a day or two along the arid shores
on the south side of the island ; but finding there
neither friend nor foe from whom to gain information
respecting the state of affairs in the interior, we
finally dropped anchor near the little island of Coche,
a dependency of the former, where we had the morti
fication of learning that all its important forts had
been strongly garrisoned by the enemy ; but not
having a sufficient number of troops on board to
effect a landing on that coast, it was unanimously
decided by our commanders that there were no lau
rels growing there for them, only very prickly cactuses.
The province of Cumana, on the mainland, was
known to be most friendly to our cause ; preparations
were therefore made to land on that coast, and en
deavor to effect a communication with some guerillas
in the interior. With this object we secured at Coche
a number of flecheras — long boats used in Margarita
for spreading the nets — and a sufficient number of
Guaiqueri Indians to man them. These boats are
fifty feet long, very sharp and low, to admit of theii
being propelled by paddles dexterously handled by
the Indian rowers, who, keejnng perfect time in
the strokes, give, in consequence, greater impetus to

428 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
the fiecheras ; hence their name, fvomfecha, an arrow.
When manned by fifteen or twenty rowers on a side,
the usual allowance for each boat, they look like huge
centipedes skimming swiftly over the water.
The Guaiqueries are besides very expert divers, on
which account they were advantageously employed '
in the pearl-fisheries of Margarita before the oyster
beds producing the pearls were destroyed by greedy
speculators. In former times, Margarita was the
centre of a brisk trade with people of all nations,
who flocked there to procure those beautiful gems
" of purest ray serene." The inhabitants, however,
carry on at present a more permanent business in
the produce of their seines. At Coche, where the
most considerable fisheries are located, I had an op
portunity of witnessing the exploits of the Indian
divers, when they were overhauling the contents of
the enormous seines employed there. So great was
the draught of fish in one of them, that four hundred
men could not land it ; therefore, some of the captives
were allowed to escape, which was done by the divers
unfastening under water the cords uniting the two
compartments dividing these seines — a feat accom
plished by the Guaiqueries in an incredibly short
time, regardless of the numerous sharks among the
other fish. The seine being thus partially relieved
of its contents, was speedily dragged on shore, when
men, women, and children busied themselves in clean
ing, salting, and spreading the fish to dry upon the
sand. The care of removing the remains and smaller
fry accumulated upon the beach, was left to the dogs
and pigs from the village, who feasted during a whole

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA 429
afternoon upon, among other things, the finest sar
dines I ever saw. The fishermen call these Spanish
sardines, probably from their beautiful appearance,
it being still the habit of the people in South Amer
ica to honor with that adjective any thing particu
larly fine.
Our short stay at Coche, although not quite so
satisfactory in a political point of view, was produc
tive of great relief to us after our wearisome voyage
up the coast. When ready to depart for the main
land, most of the male inhabitants of the island vol
unteered their services and their fiecheras ; nor did
they omit to bring along a seine, which proved of
great advantage in -providing fish for all when no
other provisions could be obtained. Each of the
larger vessels took a flechera in tow, and thus
equipped we set sail for Carupano, a port of some im
portance to the south-east of Margarita. We passed
an American schooner at anchor near the spot where,
years ago, the Spanish line-of-battle-ship San Pedro
Alcantara was burned to the water's edge and sunk
during the terrible siege of the island by the royalists.
A large amount of money, said to be not less than
two millions of dollars, was lost along with her, and
the crew of the Yankee vessel, well provided with the
necessary appliances, were now engaged in diving for
the almighty dollar. They had succeeded in blasting
the old hulk to pieces with the assistance of a gal
vanic battery and diving-bell ; but whether they dug
up sufficient " tin " to pay expenses and leave a hand
some surplus, no one knew. All that was known
was, that after each explosion enough of dead fish

430 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
was picked from the surface of the water to load the
schooner. Perhaps the fear of rousing the cupidity
of their less industrious neighbors occasioned this ex
treme reserve.
Two days' sailing in the placid waters of the eastern
sea, brought us before the ramparts of Carupano,
which town unfortunately we found also already oc
cupied by troops sent from the city of Cumana and
other places less devoted to our cause. We attempt
ed, nevertheless, to effect a landing under cover of
night, but were deterred from doing so by the timely
warning of some citizens, who swam over to our ves
sels and informed us that the enemy were strongly
barricaded at all points. By the advice of those
friends we then directed our course toward the bay
of Puerto Santo, east of Carupano, where they as
sured us the people would flock by hundreds to join
us. Our informants then wished us God speed and
left us, returning on shore to prepare the people for
our projected move.
We were not deceived in this as we had been by
other similar promises, for before morning we were
joined by about three hundred mountaineers, all good
marksmen, and eager to have a brush with the Mona-
gueros in the city. "Without waiting for further
reenforcements, our commander, Colonel Codazzi, im
mediately ordered the advance upon Carupano over
the hardest road conceivable, and so full of enormous
centipedes, most of them twelve inches long, that it
required the utmost care on our part to avoid step
ping upon them. Their bite, although not fatal, is

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA.

431

exceedingly painful at the moment, followed by a high
degree of local inflammation.

In contrast with these poisonous insects, the beau
tiful, I might call it wonderful, butterfly-flower (On-
cidium papilio) also abounds there. It belongs to the
natural order Orchidaceae, better known under the
popular name of air-plants or parasites, those lovely
daughters of Flora and Favonius, so rich in perfume
as well as color, but whose principal charm consists
in their caricaturing every object in nature, from the
" human form divine " to the humble bee, often de
ceived by a perfect representation of- his species,
(Ophrys apifera.) Thus we count among our floral
treasures, " angels, " " swans," " doves," " eagles,"
" pelicans," " spiders," " bumble-bees," and even a
perfect infant in the cradle was found by Linden in
the mountains of Merida. The celebrated Flor del
Espiritu Santo (Peristeria elata) is another of this
class.

432 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA
Many are the beautiful allegories with which the
fanciful imagination of the children of the tropics has
clothed these marvellous productions of their luxu
riant zone. " Not an infant is baptized, not a mar
riage is celebrated, not a funeral obsequy is per
formed, at which the aid of these flowers is not called
in by the sentimental natives, to assist the expression
of their feelings ; they are offered by the devotee at
the shrine of his favorite saint, by the lover at the
feet of his mistress, and by the sorrowing survivor at
the grave -of his friend; whether, in short, on fast
days or feast days, on occasion of rejoicing or in mo
ments of distress, these flowers are sought for with an
avidity which would seem to say that there was ' no
sympathy like theirs ; ' thus, ' Flor de los Santos,'
' Flor de Corpus,' ' Flor de los Muertos,' ' Flor de
Mayo,' ' No me olvides,' (or ' Forget-me-not,') are but
a few names out of the many that might be cited to
prove the high consideration in which our favorites
are held in the New World. Nor are these the only
honors that are paid to them ; for Hernandez assures
us that in Mexico the Indian chiefs set the very high
est value on their blossoms, for the sake of their great
beauty, strange figure and delightful perfume ; while
¦in the East Indies, if Rumphins is to be credited, the
flowers themselves positively refuse to be worn, ex
cept by princes or ladies of high degree."*
Pardon, gracious reader, if, fearing the hundred-
footed monsters upon the road, I have taken so lofty
a flight among the " angels " and " spread-eagles "
* Bateman, Orehideas.

A CRUISE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA. 433
overhead ; air-plants, my special delight, never escape
a passing compliment from me.
Descending to the beautiful valley of Maracapana
after our fatiguing march over the mountains, we
were again warned not to attack the city, as our force
was insufficient to dislodge the enemy from their in
trenchments. Without stopping to count them at
all events, we retraced our steps and fell suddenly
upon Rio-Caribe, another port further east, which we
captured after a feeble resistance from the garrison.
I had the honor of being the only one hit, though
slightly, on this occasion.
The fleet had now no difficulty in getting safely
into a snug harbor, which it did on the same day,
anchoring in front of our barracks near the mouth of
the little river from which the port takes its name.
A large quantity of cacao, captured during our cruise,
being stored in them, the Honorable IT. Garcia, who
acted in the double capacity of Quartermaster-gen
eral and Commander-in-chief for the time being, pro
ceeded to discharge, weigh, and re-ship to St. Thomas
our ill-gotten booty, to be disposed of for provisions
and other necessaries.
Rio-Caribe has the disadvantage of being rather
sultry and unhealthy, on which account we did not
enjoy our conquest longer than was necessary to
muster some additional reinforcements of volunteers.
Attracted by the refreshing shade along the woody
banks of the river, several of our men were in the
habit of spending there in idleness a great portion of
the day ; but even this small comfort was of short
duration, it being observed after a while that many
19

434 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of those who frequented the spot, became benumbed
and swollen in the most unaccountable manner. On
investigating the cause of this singular disorder, it
proved to arise from the baneful exhalations of an
euphorbiaceous tree, the Hippomane mancinella or
manzanillo, whose dense foliage of a brilliant green
particularly invites the weary and indolent to repose
under its shade. It bears a fruit not unlike a small
apple in shape, color, and perfume, hence its name ;
unfortunately, like the apple of Eden, it is forbidden
fruit among the paradisiacal groves of the New
World. Yet, the fertile imagination of the author
of Monte Cristo, parodying the luminous science of
the South- American Orfila, would not fail to find in
it a splendid subject for another dissertation on the
transfusion of poisons.
The manzanillo is a lover of the sea-shore, espe
cially rocky places washed by the dashing waves,
and the fruit, dropping in the water, is eagerly swal
lowed by fish which, although not affected by the
poison, readily transmit it to those who partake of
their flesh. Muleteers, unacquainted with the poi
sonous properties of this plant, often ruin their animals
by driving them with rods obtained from the branches
of the tree.

CHAPTER XXXI.
HO! FOE MARACAIBO.
" He who fights and runs away,
Lives to fight another day."
The scarcity of provisions at Rio-Caribe, which
only offered a daily fare of fish, but more especially
the fact that the enemy were marching in strong force
upon us, determined our leader to return forthwith to
Maracaibo. Fearing, however, to lose the further
cooperation of our eastern allies, who would undoubt
edly refuse to follow, and unwilling to leave them be
hind, our commanders resorted to the stratagem of
feigning a landing on the coast of Margarita, the
friendly disposition of the inhabitants affording them
a plausible pretext. Accordingly, all the, troops were
transferred on board the transports, with instructions
to rendezvous at the port of Juan Griego, on the north
of the island, and a fine evening breeze blowing at
the time," we soon lost sight of the straggling town of
Rio-Caribe and its poisonous orchards.
The next morning all the vessels were quietly rid
ing at anchor in the above-mentioned harbor, but no

436 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
prospect of landing. The enemy, doubtless astonished
at our apparent audacity, remained watching our
ships from the ramparts of the forts on shore, which
did not open upon us until the Constitucion sent a
random shot to draw their fire. We had been told
that these forts were dismantled, and had only a
couple of guns left to fire salutes, which, having for
balls only a few rusty shells, were, it was said, as use
less as the broken carriages upon which they were
mounted ; yet the first shot struck off the head of the
man stationed at the top of the flag-vessel, while
others, following in quick succession, were aimed with
so much accuracy, that it was found expedient to
haul off to a safe distance. Toward evening the top
sail-man cried out " A sail to leeward ! " and immedi
ately after another and another hove in sight, until
eleven vessels were signalled. No doubts could be
now entertained that the enemy's fleet were approach
ing ; but, instead of proceeding to attack it while we
had the advantage of the windward, ours improved it
to decamp ; and such was their haste that I, in com
pany with another young officer, having been sent
out to reconnoitre along the coast, had scarce time to
scramble on board the rear vessel, the one we be
longed to being already far away.
The enemy's fleet, observing our movements, gave
chase ; but, night approaching, we lost sight of each
other until morning, when, to my sorrow, I perceived
the transport containing the Llaneros attacked by
one of the enemy's vessels, a large brig, while ours
were — nowhere. The Llaneros had no defence on
board except their lances ; these would have been

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 437
sufficient on land, but on shipboard served only to
clog the movements of men unaccustomed to the
heavings of the sea. Perceiving that the commander
of the Paez — which vessel had received me on board
— did not go to the rescue of the transport, although
the rest of the fleet were far away to leeward, I ven
tured to suggest to the commander the humanity of
such a step, but had scarcely spoken when, seizing
me roughly by the arm, he threatened to put me in
irons if I uttered another word upon that subject.
After this violent demonstration, my sympathy
for the Llaneros was of necessity smothered ; but my
resolve, though a silent one, was full of hope that I
should at some future day proclaim to the world the
poltroonery of these commanders. To their shame,
and that of our colonel, also on board, a little schoon
er, commanded by a foreigner, an Italian whose name
I do not now recollect, mounting only one twelve-
pounder pivot-gun, hove in sight at that moment,
and, perceiving the dangerous situation of the trans
port, immediately went to her assistance, and took her
in tow, after partially disabling the brig.
Toward noon we succeeded in coming up with
our fleet squadron, which, finding itself still pursued
by the enemy's vessels, and doubtless ashamed of its
hasty retreat, now faced about with a determination
which, if at first exhibited, would have been highly
creditable. Now it was the enemy's turn to ' vamose,'
for scarcely had we formed our line of battle and pre
pared for the attack, than their vessels turned about
and made off, never stopping until they reached Juan
Griego. Our commanders at once improved the

438 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
opportunity to get themselves out of the scrape as
quickly as possible, making their way back to Mara
caibo in as many days as it had previously taken
weeks to accomplish the same distance.
When I found myself again within the crumbling
walls of the fort of San Carlos, with nothing but
parched corn and occasional strips of lean beef for
food, while the borders of the lake were abounding
in fine cattle and luscious plantains, I, rather than thus
starve in the midst of plenty, almost wished myself a
prisoner in the filthy dungeons of the enemy ; not from
despair of the good cause I, as well as the rest of my
family, had embraced, but the culpable remissness of
the leaders in the province was such that, although
they could with ease have provided against this
wretchedness, having a numerous fleet of piraguas at
their disposal, they kept the troops stationed at the
castle in almost a famishing condition. Many of the
poor fellows kidnapped from the healthy mountains
of Carupano, died of dysentery, induced by the miser
able fare and brackish water of San Carlos.
Necessity finally compelled the sluggish Andrade
to make a move toward the city, where the enemy
were quietly refreshing themselves upon the fat of the
land after their hard march through La Goagira. A
simple message sent by the Governor Serrano to the
owners of piraguas soon brought together around the
island every craft available for the embarkation of
troops and their material. These were easily landed
at Los Haticos under the guns of the fleet, but Castelli,
who was not so dilatory as our commander, came out
to the encounter as he was on his way to invest the

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 439
city. A fierce engagement with our advance, com
manded by two brave Englishmen, Colonels Weir and
Minchin, immediately took place ; and although the
enemy fought with desperation, they were finally
compelled to retreat in disorder toward the city,
which could have been captured the same day but for
the stupidity of Andrade, who ordered Minchin back
to Los Haticos. Here the former afterward amused
himself in cutting down the beautiful cocoanut palms
shading the place, to form with them barricades around
the houses of that rural retreat, fearing another sortie
of the enemy.
These, although terribly cut up in the first en
gagement, and despite the barricades and heavy artil
lery, were not deterred from again attacking us — this
time, however, with even more disastrous results to
themselves than in the previous fight. Nearly one-
half their numbers were left dead upon the field, and the
survivors hastened back to the city to make prepara
tions for a speedy surrender. Still Andrade, whose
force had greatly increased by voluntary enlistments
of the people, hesitated to advance beyond his in
trenchments, not even permitting the brave Belisario
to pursue the flying enemy with his Llanero cavalry.
At length a brilliant plan for distinguishing him
self flashed upon Andrade, on hearing that reenforce-
ments for Castelli were being assembled at Quisiro
on the other -side of the lake ; these he proposed to an
nihilate before they could be smuggled into Maracai
bo, embarking with this object seven hundred of the
best troops at his command, beside a battery of light
artillery. A landing was soon effected on the ene-

440 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
my's territory, his pickets driven in, and the strag
gling village of Quisiro invested in dne form. Al
though its entire force did not amount to more than
two hundred men under Zamora and Baca, they re
pelled all our attacks from behind the fences of the
houses ; whereupon Andrade, instead of bringing his
artillery to bear on those frail barricades, ordered a
charge with the bayonet, which, of course, resulted in
a repulse and great slaughter on our side. Then — as
if fearful that the broad expanse of water between the
enemy and his camp at Los Haticos would be insuf
ficient to guard against pursuit— he ordered a retreat
toward San Carlos.
We lost several valuable officers and a great num
ber of men by that foolish adventure ; yet the spirit
of the troops, far from being daunted, seemed to gain
fresh vigor after this reverse. Those who escaped
being killed or wounded clamored to be carried back
to Los Haticos, hoping that some more decided meas
ures would be taken for the reduction of the city.
The enemy, emboldened by our discomfiture at
Quisiro, made another sortie, with the object of pro
curing cattle for their famished regiments. They
found no difficulty in collecting a large flock of goats
and other animals, which they were driving over a
hilly country toward the city, when, informed of
their return by our videttes, Andrade ordered Com
mandant Belisario to intercept them with his cavalry,
instead of detailing a body of infantry for that service.
Never shall I forget the look of smiling resignation with
which the noble-minded fellow rode past me at the head
of his troop ; nor, to my inquiry of " Where bound,

HO! FOR MARACAIBO.

441

companero ? " his ominous reply, " A morir ! " for he
well knew the hazard of the undertaking ; yet un
complainingly did this brave heart pass from our
sight to fulfil the fatal order of his superior. A few
moments after, we heard a volley of musketry, fol
lowed by some random shots, which told us plainly
that the fearless Llaneros had broken and dispersed
the hosts opposed to them ; but, alas ! at the cost of
their gallant commander, who with his charger fell,
pierced with bullets, amid the bristling bayonets of
the enemy. His comrades succeeded, nevertheless,

\ff nn^n^ N^. NvXvC^f N«-
LIEUT.-COLONEL ANTONIO BELISARIO.

in carrying away his remains, after dispersing the ma
rauders, whom they pursued to the environs of the be
leaguered city. 19*

442 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
When the lifeless body of Belisario was brought
into the encampment at Los Haticos, it was received
by his companions in arms with such demonstrations
of loving reverence as virtues like his should ever
command. The patriotic Maracaiberas were among
the first to show their appreciation of the fallen hero
by their graceful and fragrant adornings of his funeral
bier, while all wept for this departed brave, as though
with him had passed away the last hope for the good
cause. It was, indeed, a sad spectacle to behold those cold
remains, only a few hours before instinct with life
and energy, breathing but in noble aspirations, and
filled with every grace and virtue that endears man to
man, now laid in mournful state. Even the stern
Englishmen, usually so undemonstrative, could not
repress their tears when the first notes of the funeral
march wailed forth as we bore him with solemn step
to his grave. Thus departed one who, had he lived,
wrould have been an honor to his country, as he was
already among the bravest and best.
Another of the most daring in our little army was
an American officer whose name, Barclay Clements,
will long be admiringly remembered by his comrades
in Yenezuela. Being unfamiliar with the Spanish
language, he had no special duty assigned him, yet
he was a host in himself with that terrible weapon
of his nation, the rifle. Woe to the incautious " mo-
nagoso " who, confiding in his stout intrenchments,
should show his head above the parapet. A sudden
disappearance of the red cap, following the crack of
the Kentucky rifle, sufficiently indicated the probable

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 443
fate of its wearer. So formidable was the execution
done by the sharpshooter — who made more havoc
among Castelli's ranks than all the cannon brought
by Andrade from the castle of San Carlos — that the
former was induced to set a prize upon the head of him
whom he distinguished as the " accursed Yankee."
Ammunition being rather a scarce commodity in
the enemy's camp, a few rounds from our artillery, in
lieu of being dreaded, were considered quite a God
send by the besieged, who never failed to return us
our own missiles with good effect from a couple of
rusty carronades formerly used as moorings for vessels
in the harbor, but which the ingenious Castelli had
now mounted upon heavy logs of mahogany. A most
melancholy catastrophe was once caused by one of
these guns among the market-women of Los Haticos,
four of them, and two men, being killed by a single
ball in its rebound from a palm tree.
During several months no material advantage was
gained on either side ; so time and ammunition were
frittered away in fruitless skirmishes. At length the
enemy's fleet, recovering from its fright in the eastern
sea, made its appearance at the bar of Maracaibo,
which it, nevertheless, did not venture to cross, owing
to the presence of some of our vessels ; yet, they
maintained a strict blockade at the mouth of the lake,
permitting neither ingress nor egress. About this
time a fine iron steamer, obtained by General Paez
from the United States, arrived at the island of Oruba
short of coal and without armament to successfully
run the blockade. Unfortunately, she fell into the
hands of the enthusiastic Garcia, who, although very

444 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
able in making speeches, knew nothing of naval
affairs. By his advice and urgent solicitations she
was hurried to San Carlos with as many bundles of
brushwood as the barren soil of Oruba could afford.
By the time she reached the bar the steamer had con
sumed the last chip, consequently she fell an easy
prey to the enemy's fleet, and was forthwith taken to
Puerto Cabello.
The roughness of the sea outside the bar, especially
in the month of November, when the " Northerns "
render the anchorage there very unsafe, compelled
the blockading squadron to beat about to windward for
a while, thus affording another steamer, purchased by
General Paez the opportunity to run in, which she
did amid the liveliest rejoicings of the army and na
vy. The enemy's absence was of but short duration.
Strengthened by some additional vessels, while we
could only oppose to them six or seven schooners at
the time, they improved the high tides then prevail
ing to force the bar when least expected, driving our
little squadron like chaff before the wind. The artil
lery of the castle, however, speedily arrested the pro
gress of both conquerors and conquered, the latter
not even stopping to fire a shot at their pursuers.
What made the flight still more humiliating, was the
presence of an English frigate, whose gallant crew
witnessed the whole transaction from her anchorage
outside the bar. I was standing on the parapet of
the castle, amazed at the strange manceuvrings of
our schooners when, roused to consciousness of the
cause by the first flash from the enemy's cannon, I
perceived that it was fired precisely in my direction ;

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 445
I involuntarily moved a little to one side, and imme
diately after saw a ball strike the spot upon which I
had been standing. Whether it was aimed at me or
not, was matter of but little consideration ; yet I could
not fail to congratulate myself that the enemy had
lost such food for rejoicing as would have been the
death of General Paez's son.
Thus far victorious, the enemy might then have
pushed on to Maracaibo and bombarded the camp at
Los Haticos before Andrade was even aware of his
danger. But they lacked the pluck of Padilla, who,
in 1824, performed a similar feat before a vastly su
perior force. Regardless of the thunders of San Car
los — then in the hands of the Spaniards — and a power
ful fleet beside, the patriot General compelled the lat
ter to retreat beyond the shoals of El Tablazo, and af
terward boarded and captured the whole fleet.
Awed by the fires from the castle, the enemy
quickly withdrew to Bajo Seco, where they could
have been speedily destroyed if our commanders had
had the precaution to establish a battery on that
sandy islet while they held possession of it. This the
enemy effected without loss of time, to the subsequent
ruin of our fleet and prospects.
A council of war was convened on the next day to
meet at San Carlos, and a plan adopted for the imme
diate attack of the enemy's fleet ; but, desirous of
avoiding, as much as possible, the shedding of blood,
it was decided to send a despatch to the commander,
General Bricefio, requesting him to withdraw from
those waters before he should be compelled thereto vi
et armis. I was commissioned to carry this humane

446 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA
warning, and although I expected nothing short of
violent imprisonment, I was received with courtesy
and even kindness by the officers, who only detained
me long enough to treat me to a good breakfast.
General Briceno having declined our terms, orders
were issued to the. commanders of all our vessels to
assemble at San Carlos, and hold themselves in readi
ness for the forthcoming battle. Before morning
dawned on the following day, the fleet were under
way and attacked the enemy in their safe anchorage ;
but, instead of prosecuting the plan fiirst laid out, viz.,
that of boarding each of the enemy's vessels, as was
practised by Padilla, they opened their fires upon
them under full canvas, and with a rapidly ebbing
tide. The consequence was a nearly total destruction
of the whole fleet by a raking storm, of cannon and
musketry, the narrowness of the channel not permit
ting them to sail round the foe, as had been their in
tention. The vessels that were not driven ashore had
the rigging so badly cut that they could scarcely re
gain their anchorage, while the enemy sustained little
or no injury. Great was also our loss in killed,
wounded, and prisoners, which so disheartened the
leaders that, without waiting an attack from the block
ading forces — still in their former positions — they
resolved to evacuate the province altogether, prefer
ring an inglorious retreat to the honorable capitula
tion offered by General Briceno through me.
Andrade, however, managed the evacuation of
the castle and his camp before Maracaibo with great
er skill than he had displayed in conducting the siege ;
for it was not until the chief part of the distance to

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 447
Congo Bay had been accomplished, that the enemy
discovered the retreat. Thither Briceno followed us
in a steamer and a few other vessels, judging from the
liasty manner of our departure that our forces must be
in a state of complete demoralization, as was indeed
the case, some of the commanders of the fleet actually
refusing to obey orders, and directing their course
toward the Catatumbo, in search of an outlet to New
Granada, preferring this rather than to rendezvous at
the mouth of the Escalante, as commanded. For my
part, I did not see the wisdom of trying to escape by
either route, as the one would lead us through a thick
forest and quagmires into the province of Merida, in
possession of the enemy ; while the other was no less
fraught with difficulty and hardships, not to mention
the tormenting insects to be encountered on the river.
Those of our companions in arms who had never
before visited the interior of the lake, and who had
only some faint idea of the famous nubes de mosquitos
— clouds of mosquitoes — often wafted by the breeze
across the water, were now alarmed by the appear
ance in the air of long, dark streaks, resembling the
smoke from the chimney of a steamer. There being
no other vessels of this sort upon the lake but the one
we were in and the enemy's, they naturally supposed
that the latter was close upon us. These fears were
not dispelled until somewhat later in the day, when a
shower of mosquitos fell upon the deck like a burst
ing water-spout. They were, however, of a different
species from those with which I was already ac
quainted, differing from them in the absence of the
proboscis ; consequently they do not sting, and are

448 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
therefore called mosquitos bobos — foolish mosqui
tos. No less bobos proved to be our pilots in seeking
for the mouth of the Escalante, mistaking one of its
numerous creeks for the main channel of the river.
After considerable effort we succeeded in getting
the steamer through the narrow creek, having ground
ed several times in the attempt, and lost much valu
able time. Great numbers of piraguas, laden with
troops, had preceded us, and were now endeavoring to
reach the town of Zulia — our destination — by the slow
method of dragging with hooked poles, as described
in a former chapter. The other vessels of the fleet
were all abandoned at the mouth of the river, with the
exception of two that were blown up by their com
manders. A little more reflection would have shown
the expediency of sinking them instead, thus block
ing the channel and preventing the enemy's steamers
from ascending the Escalante after our disorganized
forces. Not even a guard was stationed below the
town to apprise us in case of pursuit, Andrade not
intending to abide longer at Zulia than was necessary
to dispose his march through the tangled forest and
almost impassable morasses of that unhealthy region.
On arriving at the place, our forces scarcely
amounted to four hundred men all told, the rest hav
ing deserted in various ways. The town offering but
few accommodations for even so small a body of
troops, most of these were immediately transferred to
the other side of the river. Only a squad of infantry
and what remained of the faithful Llaneros, were left
to look after the sick and wounded. Having at the

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 449
time no special duty to perform, excepting that of in
terpreter on board the steamer, I remained at my post
until nightfall ; but the mosquitos proving rather im
portunate, I proposed to the officers that we should
seek accommodations on shore, not in the least antici
pating an attack, for that night at all events.
When about retiring to our beds we were startled
by the sound of two or three shots in the direction of
the plaza. One of us, my brother Sabas, went out to
reconnoitre, but before his return we heard a tremen
dous volley of musketry, and yells of Viva Monagas.
I did not know what became of my companions, but
they all disappeared in an instant ; nor did they even
report themselves on board the steamer, which I
reached by swimming, no one venturing to come to
my assistance with a boat. Shortly after, my missing.
brother also came on board by the same expeditious
method, he having narrowly escaped being killed by
the advancing enemy, wTho, unable to dislodge our men
from the houses on the plaza, with characteristic brutal
ity, set fire to the thatch with which they were roofed,
and in a few moments the whole town was enveloped
in flames. By the glare of these we were enabled to
pour grape and shot from the steamer upon the incen
diaries, many of whom fell while in the act of applying
the torch to the roof that sheltered the Llaneros ; the
latter then retreated tow^ard the steamer, now become
the scene of action. Unfortunately, the pivot-gun,
which had in the commencement done such terrible
execution, got out of order after a few rounds ; but we
still retained the use of two carronades, and these
were admirably served by my young friend Roseliano

450 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
and Manuel Escurra, another brave youth from Ca
racas. We were so near the landing that, although the
night was very dark after the conflagration subsided,
we could plainly distinguish the red caps of the ene
my by the flash of our cannon. As these did not
seem to produce much impression upon them, we re- ¦
sorted to smaller arms, which we could use to greater
advantage, being, from the strength of the river cur
rent and the want of engineers on board, unable to
turn the steamer.
The contest was steadily maintained during the
entire night, and although the odds were greatly
against us, we were unwilling " to give up the ship "
in hopes that Andrade — who we knew was but a short
distance off — would recross the river and attack the
enemy on the rear. When morning dawned, instead
of friends, we saw only the red caps of our foes ap
pearing through the fences and windows of the houses
fronting the river, from whence issued volleys of
destructive fire. We returned it for awhile, but con
vinced at last of the inutility of prolonging the strug
gle, I endeavored to set in motion the machinery of
the steamer, aided by the mate, the only one on board
who understood any thing of its management. While
thus engaged a ball struck my assistant, depriving us
of his valuable services at this critical moment. We
then endeavored to hoist the anchor, but the strength
of the current was such, that we could not bring the
steamer up to it. A few blows applied to one of the
bolts of the chain severed the connecting links, and
we then drifted down the stream.

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 451
We had, however, proceeded but a short distance,
when we discovered below a bend of the river the
smoke pipe of the enemy's steamer, evidently in good
position and ready to receive us. But, with no one to
direct kour craft, and with only sick and wounded on
board, we could offer no further resistance. Several
of our men sprang into the water and swam ashore to
avoid being made prisoners, among them my wounded
brother Tomas, whom I never saw again. I would
have followed their example, but for my cherished
note and sketch books, which I had stored away in the
steamer, and I preferred captivity to the loss of either.
Having no white flag at hand, a shirt was imme
diately hoisted at the topmast, in lieu of it, as a signal
of surrender, thus realizing the witty parody on Yol-
taire's Oedipus,
" Quand on a tout perdu, et qu'il n'y a point d'espoir," &c.
But the enemy's steamer threatening to fire upon us
if we did not drop anchor, we, having none, fastened
a stout rope round a carronade and rolled it over
board. Thus ended our first campaign against Mo
nagas. Fortunately we fell into the hands of our old ac
quaintance General Briceno, a man distinguished for
his humanity toward the vanquished, and he re
ceived us on board his steamer with delicate and high
bred courtesy. We then learned that the officer who
led the attack against the town was no other than the
famous Ezequiel Zamora, who, from being a convict
and the comrade of Rangel, was raised to the rank of
General by the unscrupulous ruler of unhappy Yene
zuela. Zamora was one of those most desperate char-

452 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
acters, without education or social position, who, in
South America, often rise amid the whirl of civil dis
cord. He would have put to death all his prisoners,
as he had done in former times, but for the strict
injunctions of General Briceno, who had previously
warned him against any acts of cruelty toward them.
This wretch has lately forfeited his life in his renewed
endeavors to reinstate the sway of a rapacious family
at the expense of his country's weal.
As for the indirect author of our misfortunes, An
drade, we afterward heard that he had capitulated
to the commander of the forces of Monagas in the
province of Merida, who allowed him to retire into
New Granada with all who wished to follow him.
We were less fortunate, being taken back to Maracai
bo, the same day, there to await the pleasure of the
Commander-in-chief, Castelli. As we sailed out of
the river Escalante and past Congo Bay, my thoughts
involuntarily turned to the humble fisherman in his
hut, who, months before, as if impressed with a pre
sentiment of our approaching catastrophe, had offered
to conduct me in his canoe to New Granada. How
gladly would I now have availed myself of his ser
vices ; but it was, alas ! too late. From Maracaibo
we were taken to Caracas, and there confined in a
filthy jail in company with some of the worst charac
ters in the country. As a crowning climax, we were
loaded with irons, and treated in all respects like
common felons by orders of the late butcher of his
country's representatives. We only owed our pres
ervation and obtained our passports for Curacao to
the untiring efforts of our lamented friend Don Juan

HO! FOR MARACAIBO. 453
Manuel Munoz y Funes, brother-in-law to Queen
Cristina, and Spanish Minister at Caracas, a true
Spanish hidalgo, whose name will be ever cherished
by the Yenezuelian people. Noble at heart, as well
as in principle, his main effort, while in our midst,
was to conciliate, by his gentlemanly demeanor rather
than through treaties, the long pending difficulties be
tween his nation and her former colony of the Main.
Although his demise occurred while absent from his
post, Caracas paid to his memory, in solemn funeral
obsequies, that tribute of love and respect only shown
to the most favored of her sons.

CHAPTER XXXII.
PAEZ.
After a separation of fifteen months, during
which time many hardships and vicissitudes had
been experienced, on both sides, we had the happiness,
on the 18th of April, of rejoining our Leader, then
at Curacao, entirely recovered from his late illness,
and ready to take the field once more against the
oppressor of his country. Scarcely a week elapsed,
which did not bring us tidings of some new act of
high-handed persecution against unoffending citizens.
The property of the disaffected was seized, wherever
found ; entire cattle estates were relieved of their
herds, by the followers of Monagas, while the rev
enues of the custom houses were appropriate'd at once
as the patrimony of his family. A reign of terror
was established at the capital, and throughout the
most important districts of the country. Gregorito,
a son of the weak-minded Jose Gregorio, vied with
the ferocious Juan Sotillo, in the exploits by which
they endeavored to maintain the prestige of the
dreaded fraternity.*
* An honorable exception must be made of the sons of Jose Tadeo,
who bore no part in these atrocities, and whose exemplary conduct and

paez. 455
To arrest, if possible, further iniquities, and being
urged repeatedly from all quarters of the republic to
come to the rescue of the inhabitants, General Paez,
with a select body of officers, sailed for Coro on the 1st
of June — a successful pronunciamento having already
been effected in the province — and immediately took
the field with the troops collected there. Although
these scarcely amounted to one thousand, our Leader
felt confident that the people in other parts would fol
low the example of those of Coro, and lend him their
support, as had been previously offered him. With
the object of ascertaining the extent of what they
promised, our little army, encumbered with a long
train of baggage-donkeys and mules, mostly loaded
with ammunition, and three hundred reserved muskets
— commenced their march toward the east on the
20th, this being the most expeditious way of deciding
the contest with our enemies. We encamped the
first night at Taratara, the scene of a former struggle
with them, the recollection of which afforded me no
grounds for dreams of future triumphs.
The next stopping-place was the town of Cuma-
rebo, pleasantly located on the summit of a moun
tain, and celebrated in the history of the country as
being also the scene of several sanguinary conflicts
between royalists and patriots. Thus might one
travel from Maracaibo to Maturin — the two extreme
ends of the republic — over one continuous battle
ground, the war arena for half a century of a people
scarcely numbering one million of souls.
gentlemanly demeanor gained them the respect of the inhabitants, and
contrasted singularly with the actions and rough manners of the remain
der of the family.

456 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
Cumarebo gave to us a few additional volunteers,
and the mountains of San Luis a small column of
infantry, which together increased our effective force
to about eight hundred. On the night of our arrival
at Cumarebo, we were entertained for a couple of
hours by the recitation of some poems, by a talented
negro slave, belonging to the family at whose house
we were stopping, and composed by him in honor of
General Paez. Our pleasure and astonishment were
enhanced upon learning that this rude poet — unable
to read or write — was forced to commit to memory
his compositions even as he conceived them.
On the 23d, we resumed the inarch through a
delightfully shaded road, with occasional openings of
green savannas, and halted at Piritu, a town of little
importance, but which nevertheless contributed its
full quota of volunteers to the good cause. These
formed part of the force under General Carmona,
who was already posted on the road to Puerto
Cabello. No less patriotic were the young ladies of this place,
who, in addition to an address read by them in verse
to our Leader, prepared for him a chair of state,
adorned with flags and other allegorical emblems.
Piritu is likewise noted for the beauty of its climate
and surrounding scenery. From our quarters in the
plaza, I enjoyed at the same time a view of the
mountain range on which the town is situated, and
of the famous valley of the Yaracuy, toward the south.
Lack of space, and of adequate language, prevents
a description of that magnificent valley, which, upon
its wild bosom, bears many a winding river pursuing

paez. 457
their silent course to the Caribbean Sea, through
dense forests of invaluable vegetable products, and
over vast savannas, rivalling in freshness even those
of the Apure. With regret I turned away from this
enchanting view, to join the main body of our troops,
now far beyond the town. My duties as aide-de-camp
to the Commander-in-Chief, necessarily required my
constant attendance at his side, often depriving me
of the contemplation of scenes more in harmony
with my tastes.
We tarried for two days on the plains of Curari,
to procure a herd of cattle, as our march was to be
henceforth through a complete wilderness, the plan
of the campaign having been altered, in order to
reach the Llanos — the goal of our Leader's aspirations
— by a short cut : his deficiency in cavalry, and the
certainty of a movement in his favor so soon as the
people there should hear of his landing, rendered this
change expedient.
On the 24th, we reached the village of Jacura,
where we expected to incorporate the force under
Carmona. In this, however, we were disappointed,
as Carmona insisted upon being left behind to guard
against any attack on our rear ; a precaution hardly
1 necessary, having little to fear in this respect from
the population of Coro. A lofty range of mountains
intervened between this province and the Llanos,
while the force at our command was insufficient to
cope with the numerical strength of our opponents.
Undeterred by the almost insuperable obstacles
to be encountered on the route, our Leader gave the
order to march southward, impelled thereto by that
20

458 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
righteous, self-sacrificing spirit, which has ever been
his guide.
The first few leagues of the journey convinced
us that we had taken the wrong road ; but to return
was now impossible : so, forcing our way through
tangled branches, and skirting fearful precipices, we
reached at length the ranch of Guararipana, inhabited
by an old negro, Anselmo, who, with his family of
half a dozen daughters and as many boys, were the
only human beings we had encountered since leaving
Jacura. On the 29th, we descended the first range of
mountains, and encamped on the borders of the Rio
Tocuyo, which we crossed with great difficulty on
the following day, having only one small canoe in
which to transport ourselves and our heavy baggage.
Owing to the incessant rains, the road, or rather
path, had become impassable, so that we advanced
but little on the 30th ; and our weary troops were
compelled to encamp supperless on the slope of a
precipitous mountain, as soon as it grew dark. Sev
eral of our animals, missing their footing, rolled down
the precipice, and among them my own horse, which,
fearing a fall, I was driving before me. Unwilling
to give him up for lost, I followed his descent, but
presently found myself imbedded to my knees in the
most adhesive mud, enveloped in complete darkness,
and with little or no hope of rejoining my compan
ions. My chief dread was that I might fall into the
jaws of some ferocious panther, or step upon some
of the horrid serpents abounding there. Never had I
known real terror until that fearful night. After long

paez. 459
and desperate struggles to free myself from the mud,
and assisted by occasional gleams of light from the
very large and numerous fire-flies, I finally suc
ceeded in extricating myself from the " slough of
despond " into which my horse had led me. Happily
I soon overtook a soldier driving a tired horse, which,
in the darkness, I at first had mistaken for a panther.
From the man I learned, to my great relief, that the
advance guard was encamped further on, upon the
banks of the rivulet or quebrada of Cararapa, toward
which he was now going. We therefore walked
along in company, driving the horse before us, to
serve, if necessary, as a scapegoat to the tigers. I
arrived at last safe and sound, with only the loss of my
shoes and an excellent horse, at the quebrada. Speedily
doffing my muddy garments, I devoted myself to most
thorough ablutions ; and after well washing my clothes,
I squatted down, Indian fashion, to dry them and
myself before a blazing fire. Such are some of the
delights of campaigning among the mountains of
South America.
We wandered through tangled forests, and over
the lofty Sierra of Aroa — famous for the richness of
its copper mines and the boldness of its panthers —
until the 5th of August, when we descended to the
valley of Yaracuy, dispersing some guerillas we en
countered, without any serious casualties on our side.
We afterward passed through several villages on the
route ; but although the inhabitants were known to
be friendly disposed toward us, they invariably dis
appeared at our approach, doubtless afraid to com
promise themselves.

460 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
On the 7th, we reached the summit of another
range of mountains, mostly covered with verdant
meadows, admirably adapted for raising sheep, al
though not a single flock of these useful animals exists
there. We slept at the farm of Pontezuela, where
we noticed some fine cattle, and on the 8th pre
pared to march on the ancient city of Nirgua, where
the enemy was reported to be in force. We still
held as prisoners of war, the Governor appointed by
Monagas in Coro, his military commander, General
Yalero, of ventriloquial celebrity, and other worthies,
who being more of an encumbrance than profit, our
Commander-in-Chief paroled them all, and left them
behind, unwilling to expose their persons to the
bullets of their own friends. The latter, however,
retired at our approach, and we occupied the city
without the least opposition.
Nirgua is the third city in antiquity of those
founded by the Spaniards on the New Continent, as
its present dilapidated state shows ; but it would be
difficult to find a more delicious climate or lovelier
environs. It is situated upon a high plateau, sur
rounded by still higher mountains, from whose sum
mit there flows ever an unceasing current of refresh
ing air. ¦ There we enjoyed what we stood most in
"need of, viz., a day of rest and a good dinner, but
no pronunciamento, most of the men having previously
been driven from the town by a despotic military
commander. We had not been molested by the enemy in some
days ; but, on the morning of the 10th, a large force,
composed of infantry and cavalry, appeared on our

PAEZ. 461
rear, drawn up on the heights commanding the city.
We expected every moment to be attacked, and pre
pared to receive them, our policy being throughout
the campaign, to maintain ourselves strictly on the
defensive. Observing that the enemy did not seem
disposed to risk a battle in the narrow streets of
Nirgua, we took our positions outside, on the road lead
ing to Yalencia, when — supposing we were attempt
ing our escape — they rushed down upon us most
furiously. Without flinching, we awaited their ap
proach in good order of battle — so much to their
chagrin, that without advancing within range of our
muskets, they poured upon us volleys of vulgar
abuse. Unwilling to waste our time and ammunition
upon the miserable rabble, we moved slowly on our
way over a fine mountain road, evidently much fre
quented in ordinary times, as attested by the number
oipulperias and farm-houses, now entirely deserted.
Attracted by the beauty of the scenery and
abundance of resources, we pitched our camp early, in
the evening, in the charming vale of El Potrero, the
seat of a fine farm, well stocked with poultry, vege
tables, and cattle ; and these being considered com
mon property in times of civil war, we fared well that
night, especially as there was no one about the
premises to claim them.
The advance guard had some hot work that night
with the pickets of another force in front of us, show
ing very conclusively that we were hemmed in
between two fires, as the other phalanx from Nirgua,
although moving on very cautiously, was known to
be approaching our position. Still, when morning

462 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
dawned, we prepared to move forward, in hopes of
soon effecting a junction with the cavalry of the
Llanos, our Leader having received positive informa
tion at Nirgua that a great portion of that warlike
section of the republic was already in arms against
Monagas. The road from El Potrero passes over a low range
of hills, from whose summit we enjoyed a fine view
of the enchanting plain of Albahacas ; and several
miles beyond, the coffee-bearing mountains of Mont-
alban — decked in the choicest products of a temperate
clime — lifted here and there giant peaks amid a hover
ing veil of fleecy clouds. In vain we strained our
eyes in the endeavor to descry the position of the
force opposed to us, in that direction. Concealed by
the woody copses along the numerous streams of the
plain, the enemy awaited our approach, ready to
spring upon us like sneaking hyenas from their lairs.
Onward we went through mire and rain, without
meeting with any accident until we reached the
middle of the plain. Having halted to prepare our
morning meal at a deserted inn, the usual precautions
were taken to guard against a surprise ; but before we
had had time to light the fires, the advance .guard,
which had been posted on the banks of a river on our
left, was suddenly attacked by a large force under
cover of the woods skirting the river, while our front
and right flank were menaced at the same time by
large masses of infantry and cavalry. Before we came
to blows with these, our little band on the left, com
manded by the brave American, Captain Clements,
put to flight the force opposed to him, which bo

paez. 463
affrighted the others — especially as they could not as
certain our actual numbers on account of the woods
— as to cause an immediate change in their tactics, re
sulting in an inglorious retreat toward the neighbor
ing woods. Without giving them time to recover from
their astonishment, we pushed boldly on across the
plain, anxious to regain the higher ground, where we
could more easily defy their whole force, in case they
were disposed to renew the attack. Some ineffectual
attempts were made by detachments of cavalry to
head us off, but their infantry did not show itself un
til it was too late to arrest our progress.
Once again on high ground, we could with ease
view the various corps d J armee operating against us
on the plain of Albahacas. Without reckoning the
forces which so mysteriously disappeared in the woods
on our right and front, there was to the left of the po
sition lately occupied by us, and screened by the in
tervening ridge of woods along the river banks, a long
line of cavalry, 2,000 strong, besides the corps of in
fantry so bravely repulsed by Captain Clements. It
was a fortunate circumstance that our victorious sol
diers, while endeavoring to ford the river in pursuit
of the flying enemy, wetted their powder, compelling
them to return to their positions, thereby escaping the
onset of the enemy's hidden cavalry. The road from
Nirgua was held by the force which had hovered on
our rear the day before ; while the host which at
tempted to intercept our march toward the mountains
could not have been less than seven hundred. In all,
the enemy numbered about five thousand men !
We remained in undisturbed possession of the field

464 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
until night, when, having rested sufficiently from our
fatigues of that day, we took the road to the Llanos,
leaving our discomfited foes to concoct a more suc
cessful scheme for entrapping us. We had laid the
" flattering unction to our souls," that the most diffi
cult part of the journey had been already accom
plished, as it was impossible to conceive of a worse
road than the one we had left behind us ; but a few
steps onward in the darkness revealed to us the folly
of our hopes ; and we found that there was greater
danger of being hurled into eternity down one of the
surrounding precipiees, than from the comparatively
harmless fire of the enemy. Trusting more to our
own hands and feet than to the four-footed beasts to
scramble with us up the steep ascent, the few who
were still fortunate enough to ride a horse, dismount
ed and performed this portion of the journey partly
on all fours. When midnight came, the whole army
was fairly exhausted by fatigue and hunger, and dis
pirited also, having lost all prospect of ameliorating
its condition. The only refuge left us from our sor
rows was in sleep ; so, spreading our ponchos upon a
bleak and rugged peak several thousand feet above
the level of the plains we were in quest of, officers
and privates were soon on a level with each other.
When we rose at early dawn to proceed on our weary
journey, the ground around us was frozen like the
hearts of the wanderers when remembering that,
though inveigled into this hazardous enterprise by
our own countrymen, as yet not one had ventured out
of his hiding place to give us even the least informa
tion concerning the state of affairs in the republic.

paez. 465
This day's march, though not so fatiguing to our
troops, as we had already attained the summit of the
Cordillera, and were now on the descent, was none
the less discouraging, from the absolute scarcity of
provisions along the route. Late in the afternoon the
advance guard surprised a post of about a hundred
men, who fired a few shots and then decamped, leav
ing in the possession of our famished soldiers a slaugh
tered cow, which they were preparing to roast. Some
what strengthened by this unexpected meal, we were
enabled to push forward to the next post, arriving late
in the evening at the hamlet of Casupo, which proved
to be deserted, but where we found abundant stock
of cattle and waving fields of Indian corn.
We expected to have reached El Tinaco, a town
on the borders of the Llanos, the next day ; but, on
resuming the journey, we discovered the heights
commanding the road already occupied by a large
band of ragamuffins under Zamora, who, as a matter
of course, commenced the attack upon our advancing
columns with volleys of abuse, before they bethought
themselves of their arms. Disregarding both, and
not even firing a shot in return, our Commander-in-
Chief ordered the advance up a steep mountain on the
right of their position — a movement evidently mistaken
by the enemy for unwillingness on our part to fight
at all ; for, shouting in exultation, they came precipi
tately down upon us. Our Leader had anticipated this
result of his ruse. When, therefore, they were suffi
ciently detached from their inaccessible eyrie, Colonel
Minchin, who commanded the rear guard, charged
upon them with the bayonet, killing forty, and scat-
o0*

466 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
tering the remainder like a flock of geese. But six of
our number were killed and eighteen wounded — among
the latter Lieutenant Minchin, son of the gallant Col
onel, who, perceiving the young man fainting from
loss of blood, quietly said to him : " Stay behind, my
son, until I punish these rascals." Their cavalry, five
hundred strong, was drawn up in a valley at the foot
of the mountain, evidently intending to fall upon us
if we were defeated ; but on a platoon of infantry be
ing brought against them, they all turned tail and
disappeared before our soldiers had even a chance to
empty their muskets. We then continued our march
through the valley without further molestation, by
words or acts, from our despicable enemy.
Although this part of the country showed more
signs of human life than the portion preceding it, we
did not encounter a single person on the route until
we arrived at Yallecito, a prettily-located farm several
miles beyond Casupo. ' Our attention was here at
tracted to the following inscription in large characters
upon the lintel of the farm-house — a sentiment which
should find a place in every homestead in the land :
Do UNTO OTHERS AS YOU TTOULD nAVE OTHERS DO UNTO TOU ;
AND LET TnE WAYWOKN TRAVELLER EVER FIND BEST AND COM
FORT BENEATH THIS HUMBLE EOOF.
On the strength of this Christian and hospitable
invitation, our Commander-in-Chief and his staff rode,
into the courtyard of the farm-house, where the own- J
er, Serior Mercedes Cepeda— a singularly appropriate
name — came to receive us with every manifestation
of cordiality. All the other houses on the transit were

PAEZ.

467

deserted by the inhabitants, our mendacious enemies
having spread the report that we came to ravage their
firesides, with many other accusations of a similar
character. While these infamous slanders were being mali
ciously circulated by the abettors of the tyrant, the
authors were themselves actually perpetrating the
villanous acts which they had attributed to us among
the people of the Llanos, who, not receiving prompt
information of our approach, had fallen a prey to the
sanguinary hordes of Juan Sotillo before wre could
render them any assistance. Calabozo and Chagua-
ramas, the two most important towns in the plains,
particularly aroused Sotillo's wrath to a degree that
threatened the entire extermination of the whites in
both places. Several prominent persons were brutally
murdered, and their bodies horribly mutilated by the
" Minotaur of Santa Anna." * Of this number were
the noble brothers Belisarios, of Chaguaramas, whose
salted heads were sent, along with those of Dr. Pena
and Miguel Coucin, of Calabozo, by Sotillo, to Mona
gas as the most acceptable present to his " Compae
Tadeo." Previous to this, however, he carried these
trophies to Calabozo, and halting before the house of
the bereaved family, ordered the matron Dona Petro-
na Camacho, Coucin's mother-in-law, and one of the
most distinguished ladies in the city, to be brought into
his presence, and in the most insulting and barbarous
language announced to her the vandalic deed ! And
* Santa Anna, a village in the Llanos of Barcelona, Sotillo's birth
place.

468 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
this monster is still at large, and still perpetrating
similar acts of barbarity in my country !
Convinced of the inutility of prosecuting the cam
paign, General Paez, rather than sacrifice his faithful
companions in a hopeless struggle, despatched on the
14th two commissioners to General Silva, Command
er-in-Chief of the forces opposed to him, proposing a
termination of hostilities under certain conditions. The
commissioners returned in the afternoon of the same
day with an unsatisfactory reply, when our Leader at
once decided to send his chief of staff, General Cor-
dero, competently authorized to arrange the basis of a
capitulation with Silva, to whom he addressed the
following letter :
To the Commander of the Forces operating in this Province.
Sir: On my arrival at the seat of Albahacas the 11th
inst., I learned that your Excellency was at the head
of the army to oppose my progress. I then resolved
to invite your Excellency to terminate the civil war
in a pacific manner ; but before closing my communi
cation, I was attacked and obliged to defend myself.
I entertain to-day the same sentiments that, upon the
11th, I was about to communicate to you ; they are
those which, as Commander-in-Chief and as President
of the Republic, I have always practised.
I wish to put an end to the present contest with
out adding to the calamities which the country al
ready so bitterly deplores ; and I believe this can be
speedily effected if your Excellency adopts the meas-

paez. 469
ures I propose through my chief of staff, General Leon
de Febres Cordero. (Signed,) Paez.
EJSAD-QUAETERS AT THE SEAT OF VALLECITO,
August 15, 1849.
In accordance with the wishes expressed in the
above communication, General Cordero entered into
an agreement with Silva, by which the latter engaged
himself to guarantee the lives, and respect the persons
of all the officers and soldiers under the immediate or
ders of our Commander-in-Chief, who only wished
permission to quit the country as speedily as possible ;
the officers retaining their swords, and the rank and
file to be immediately discharged. Upon these con
ditions, and trusting to the assurance given by Silva
that the terms of this capitulation should be respected
by those in authority, our brave soldiers resigned
their arms to the officers appointed by Silva to re
ceive them, and the General-in-Chief, accompanied by
bis officers, then rode over to Macapo Abajo, the
head-quarters of the former.
On the 16th, we all started for Yalencia, the capi
tal of the province Carabobo, so named in honor of
the battle-field where Paez sealed forever the inde
pendence of his country. While upon the road to Ya
lencia, we had the pleasure of riding through that
celebrated battle-ground, which circumstance fully
repaid some of us for all the hardships and privations
we had thus far endured, the victor himself acting on
this occasion as our cicerone. We listened with in
tense interest to his account of that memorable en-

470 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
gagement, as he pointed out to us the most notewor
thy features of the field. Here the heroic British
Legion received unmoved, and gallantly repelled, the
successive charges with the bayonet, and the raking
fire of the whole Spanish infantry. There the famous
Guardia de Honor — Paez' body-guard — swept like
the thundering tornado over the plain, spreading ter
ror and destruction among the enemy's cavalry.
Further beyond, " the bravest of the brave," General
Cedeno, and the fiery young commander, Ambrosio
Plaza, fell in their eagerness to share with Paez the
honors of the day, the skilful and rapid manoeuvring
of his division having secured the triumph of the re
publican arms ere the respective commands of the
fallen heroes could participate in the battle. Then
the conqueror, " his brows bound with victorious
wreaths," was hailed with the wildest, most enthusi
astic acclamations of the multitude : the respectful
homage of his brother soldiers was his. Then how
almost overwhelming the adulation lavished upon him
from every side ! How great the contrast now !
Over that same field where he had achieved the free
dom of his country, he now passed unarmed and a
prisoner, in the hands of those countrymen, whom,
having delivered from vassalage, he had now striven
to save from tyrannical oppression, and so sacrificed
himself. Midway between Carabobo and the capital, Zamo-
ra's dastardly mob, that would not face our bayonets at
Casupo, was the first to assail us, now that we had been
deprived — contrary to the agreement with Silva — of
our swords. The utmost efforts on the part of the es-

PAEZ. 471
cort furnished by the General for our preservation were
required to prevent a wholesale butchery of our par
ty. As we approached Yalencia, the mob, instigated
by the Governor, Joaquin Herrera, became more and
more threatening, while a Captain Perez, an assassin
in the employ of that functionary, and doubtless com- .
missioned by him to commence the bloody fray, de
liberately rode into the midst of our party, blunder
buss in hand. Selecting Colonel Celis for his first
victim, he endeavored to shoot him, but his blunder
buss fortunately missed fire. Yarious other attempts
to murder us were made by the desperadoes ; but,
thanks to the resolute stand taken by the commander
of the escort, we were enabled to reach Yalencia in
safety. Foiled in this, the Governor now resorted to other
no less criminal plans for our extermination. No
sooner were we within the precincts of the plaza, than
the vandals of Zamora surrounded us, and we should
doubtless have been sacrificed, but for the earnest re
monstrances of General Silva, who was in honor
bound to protect us. Herrera then ordered us to dis
mount, and notwithstanding he had given his consent
that the ladies of Yalencia might prepare comfortable
quarters for all, marched us into that filthy hole, the
city prison. There he crowded us nearly to suffoca
tion into a small room swarming with vermin, while
most of our effects, together with the furniture of the
house prepared for our reception, became the spoil of
his mercenary dependents. The next day our re
spected Leader and other prominent officers were load-

472 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ed with irons, while our soldiers were distributed
among the plantations of the Government officials.
Not satisfied with the ignominious treatment he
gave us, Herrera concocted with Zamora, who became
our jailer on this occasion, the plan of confining our
Leader alone— though then suffering from illness — in
a damp and ruinous apartment, open to the rains and
dews of night. I entreated permission to accompany
him, and although Zamora at first objected, Herrera
finally consented, and I was allowed to attend my aged
father. The rest of our companions were sent, some
to fill the crumbling vaults of the fortifications at La
Guaira, others to share the felons' quarters in the
common jail of Caracas.
After being subjected for many days to this bar
barous treatment, the order came from Monagas to
send us also to the capital, under the escort of our
epauletted jailer, who took particular pains, on the
way thither, to torment us in every conceivable man
ner ; sometimes denying us the comfort of a quiet rest
at night ; at other times inciting the populace, but
more especially the slaves of the plantations on the
route, against the venerable captive. On one occa
sion Zamora called out the whole gang of negroes from
an estate near Maracay, and taking a young one from
the arms of its mother, commenced caressing it, to
flatter the vanity of the blacks, whom he addressed in
the following words : " Here, boys, comes the Lord
and Master who has kept you in bondage all these
years, while we Liberates have been striving to free
you ; henceforth you will be at liberty to do just as
you please." After this harangue, it is almost super-

paez. 473
fluous to add we were at the mercy of the frantic
blacks, who, armed with stones and cutlasses, would
have torn us to pieces, but for the officers of the es
cort, who hurried us out of reach.
It is in this manner that the demagogues of Yene
zuela — and, indeed, of the whole of South America, I
may add, with few exceptions — seeking only their
own aggrandizement, have brought that fine region
to the verge of barbarism. Not only have they anni
hilated the conservative element which alone gave
them guarantees, but placed a most terrible weapon
— such as universal suffrage — in the hands of a caste
naturally antagonistic to the white race, and by far
the more prolific of the two. The fearful revolution
which has been raging in Yenezuela for the last three
years — although ostensibly for political ascendency —
is nothing but the " irrepressible conflict" brought
by these social renegades, and which, if not speedily
neutralized by a well-sustained stream of immigration,
will ultimately sweep away the remnants of civiliza
tion from my unhappy country. Notwithstanding
that the constitution of the republic, framed after that
of the United States, was most liberal in all respects,
the demagogues calling themselves the liberal party,
in order to gain proselytes, commenced by demanding,
on behalf of the colored races, privileges and fran
chises which they are incapable of appreciating. I
have shown elsewhere how nearly they accomplished
their object with the overthrow of the conservative
element and institutions of the country. The turmoil
and confusion of that revolt brought a bolder and
more unscrupulous political aspirant to fill the Presi-

474 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
dential chair, which a worthy magistrate, General
Soublette, had occupied with honor, but unfortunately
not with that firmness required at this critical period
| of our political organization. His successor, though
possessing that quality in a high degree, with almost
unparalleled ingratitude, turned it against the party
that had raised him to power, appealing for support
to the blacks, he being himself a white man. When,
after a time, he discovered his influence nearly gone,
and the power of his family tottering under the imbe
cile administration of his brother Jose Gregorio, he
sanctioned the decree of emancipation enacted by the
latter, in order to gain over the colored population,
and thus make soldiers of the liberated slaves. He
succeeded in this, but at what cost ! at the expense
of the agricultural interests of the country, and, more
especially, of the domestic comfort of the whole com
munity ; for not only did the slaves, but the free
blacks also, refuse to work for the whites, whom they
insulted in all the public thoroughfares, even threat
ening their lives. Fearing to be utterly exterminated
by them, the whites are now striving to save them
selves from the curse thus brought upon them. In no
instance has the act of these political disorganizes
been that of actual philanthropy toward the " down
trodden and oppressed African ; " their sole aim was
to court the favor, and thus enlist the services of a
race numerically stronger than their own.
It was doubtless the conviction that such would
finally be the calamitous state of the countries he
helped to liberate, that wrung from the great Bolivar
this awful prophecy, with regard to the Southern con-

paez. 475
tinent of the New World : " America is ungovern
able ; those who have served her revolution have
ploughed in the sea. These countries will inevitably
fall into the hands of the unrestrained multitude, to
become then the prey of petty tyrants of all grades
and races; when, overpowered by ferocity and bar
barism, foreign nations will not even deign to con
quer us. Were it possible to return a portion of the
earth to primitive chaos, this would be the last period
of America." *
Such seems to have been also the opinion of Dr.
Poeppig, a learned German naturalist, who visited
those countries about that time ; and who, in his ac
count of Chili, has the following observations :
" No country in America enjoys to such a degree
as Chili the advantages which a state derives from
a homogeneous population and the absence of castes.
If this young republic rose more speedily than any
of the others from the anarchy of the revolutionary
struggle, and has attained a high degree of civiliza
tion and order, with a rapidity of which there is no
example in this continent, it is chiefly indebted for
those advantages to the circumstance that there are
extremely few people of color among its citizens.
Those various transitions of one race into the other
are here unknown, which strangers find it so difficult
* La America es ingobernable : los que han servido a la revolucion
han arado en el mar : lo mejor que puede hacerse en America es emigrar.
Estos paises caeran infaliblemente en manos de la multitud desenfrenada
para pasar despues a tiranuelos de todos colores y razas ; y estinguidos por
la ferocidad y la barbarie, los estrangeros ni se dignaran conquistarnos.
Si fuera posible que una parte del mundo volviese al caos primitivo, ese
seria el ultimo periodo de la America.

476 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
to distinguish, and which, in countries like Brazil,
must lead, sooner or later, to a dreadful war of exter
mination, and in Peru and Colombia will defer to a
period indefinitely remote the establishment of gen
eral civilization. * * * If it is a great evil for a
state to have two very different races of men for its
citizens, the disorder becomes general, and the most
dangerous collisions ensue, when, by the unavoidable
mixture, races arise which belong to neither party,
and in general inherit all the vices of their parents,
but very rarely any of their virtues. If the popula
tion of Peru consisted of only whites and Indians, the
situation of the country would be less hopeless than
it must now appear to every calm observer. Destined
as they seem by Nature herself, to exist on the earth
as a race, for a limited period only, the Indians, both
on the north and south of this vast continent, in spite
of all the measures which humanity dictates, are be
coming extinct with equal rapidity, and in a few cen
turies will leave to the whites the undisputed posses
sion of the country. With the negroes the case is
different ; they have found in America a country
which is even more congenial to their nature than the
land of their origin, so that their numbers are almost
everywhere increasing, in a manner calculated to ex
cite the most serious alarm. In the same proportion
as they multiply, and the white population is no
longer recruited by frequent supplies from the Span
ish peninsula, the people of color likewise become
more numerous. Hated by the dark mother, distrust
ed by the white father, they look on the former with
contempt, on the latter with an aversion, which cir-

PAEZ.

477

cumstances only suppress, but which is insuperable,
as it is founded on a high degree of innate pride. All
measures suggested by experience and policy, if not
to amalgamate the heterogeneous elements of the pop
ulation, yet to order them so that they might subsist
together without collision, and contribute in common
to the preservation of the machine of the state, have
proved fruitless. * * * The late revolutions have
made no change in this respect. The hostility, the
hatred, of the many colored classes will continue a
constant check to the advancement of the state, full
of danger to the prosperity of the individual citizens,
and perhaps the ground of the extinction of entire
nations. The fate which must sooner or later befall
the greater part of tropical America which is filled
with negro slaves, which will deluge the fairest
provinces of Brazil with blood, and convert them
into a desert, where the civilized white man will
never again be able to establish himself, may not
indeed afflict Peru and Colombia to the same extent ;
but these countries will always suffer from the evils
resulting from the presence of an alien race. If such
a country as the United States feels itself checked
and impeded by its proportionably less predominant
black population ; and if there, where the wisdom
and power of the Government are supported by public
spirit, remedial measures are sought in vain ; how
much greater must be the evil in countries like Peru,
where the supine character of the whites favors in
cessant revolutions, where the temporary rulers are
not distinguished either for prudence or real patriot
ism, and the infinitely rude negro possesses only

478 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
brutal strength, which makes him doubly dangerous
in such countries, where morality is at so low an ebb ?
He and his half-descendant, the mulatto, joined the
white Peruvian, to expel the Spaniard, but would
soon turn against their former allies, were they not
at present kept back by want of moral energy and
education. But the negro and the man of color, far
more energetic than the white creole, will in time
acquire knowledge, and a way of thinking that will
place them on a level with the whites, who do not
advance in the same proportion, so as to maintain
their superiority." *
* Poepig's Travels in Chili, Peru, &c.

CHAPTER XXXHL
THE EXILE.
"Farewell to the land where the gloom of my glory
Arose and o-ershadowed the earth with her name.
She abandons me now — but the page of her story,
The brightest or blackest, is filled with my fame.
* * * * When liberty rallies
Once more in thy regions, remember me then."
Btbon, Napoleon's Farewell.
The reception prepared for us at the capital, by
the rulers of the republic, was in keeping with the
plan adopted by them from the beginning to get rid
of their captive, through a popular tumult, as the best
way to cover their own wickedness. Some hours
before we approached Caracas, Zamora sent ahead
his emissaries to apprise the people — as he and his
associates were wont to call the rabble — of our com
ing. When within the city limits, he made straight
for the plaza, the rendezvous of all the loafers and
negro porters of the town, who, notwithstanding the
training they had received beforehand, did not dare
to assail the " Illustrious Citizen," * except with
* Illustrious Citizen. An honorary title conferred on General Paez
by a special act of Congress.

480 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
empty words and angry faces. It was, however,
gratifying not to observe amidst the crowd a single
white person on this occasion.
From the plaza to the filthy jail — the mansion
prepared for the " Father of his Country " — was but
a short distance ; and I was glad when at length the
gates of that ominous abode were opened to receive
us, and closed upon the vociferous crowd outside.
The scene of replacing the heavy irons — taken off the
feet of our Leader to permit him to ride on horse
back — was again gone through, and father and son
were plunged into a dark hole, with scarcely any air
to breathe. The former, however, bore all these
indignities with the calm resignation which never
abandoned him under the most trying circumstances ;
while the latter, taking courage from the example set
him by his parent, wrote upon the walls of his prison
cell the following lines of Horace :
Justum et tenacem propositi virum
Non civium ardor prava jubentinm,
Non vultus instantis tyranni,
Mente quatit solida ; neque auster,
Dux inquieti turbidus Adrise,
Nee fulminantis magna Jovis manus ;
Sic fractus illabatur orbis,
Impavidum ferient ruinse.
T E A N S L A T I 0 ST .
The man, in conscious virtue bold,
Who dares his secret purpose hold,
Unshaken hears the crowd's tumultuous cries,
And the impetuous tyrant's angry brow defies.

THE EXILE. 481
Let the wild winds, that rule the seas
Tempestuous, all their horrors raise ;
Let Jove's dread arm with thunders rend the spheres,
Beneath the crush of worlds undaunted he appears.
Fearing for the security of his prisoner in the
capital, Monagas resolved, after a while, to confine
General Paez alone in the castle of San Antonio, at
Cumana. A special decree was issued at the same
time, banishing me for ten years, thus separating me,
perhaps forever, from the object of my special solici
tude. I immediately addressed the so-called Presi
dent of Yenezuela the following petition, not doubting
for a moment that my just request would be granted
forthwith :
" The undersigned, at present confined in the
prison of this city, represents to your Excellency :
That an order having been issued by the Secretary
of State, for his immediate expulsion from the Terri
tory of Yenezuela, the execution of said order would
deprive his father of what little aid and comfort he
can afford him.
" The undersigned therefore petitions your Ex-
i cellency to suspend the execution of said order, until
the enactment pending against his father be carried
into effect ; and to direct that the undersigned be
allowed to remain near his person, wherever he may
be sent, and continue rendering him the little assist
ance in his power.
" Ramon Paez.
" Caracas, Sept. 16th, 1849.
" To His Excellency ihe President of Venezuela."
21

482 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
The reply to this appeal was an order to the jailer
for the immediate separation from my father, pending
the arrangements in progress for his removal to
Cumana, and to confine me within the premises al
lotted to common criminals. Thus I found myself
again in the felon's den, surrounded by beasts of a
worse description than those I had encountered in
the wilds of my native country. However, I had
then the consolation of receiving visitors — a privilege
denied my father with few exceptions. To the fair
ladies of Caracas in particular, I am indebted for
many hours of enjoyment in their charming society.
Regardless of the horrors peculiar to that kennel of
depravity, and scorning the taunts and sneers of a
brutal soldiery, the gentle women of the capital
crowded my prison cell from early morning until
noon, bringing with them the choicest preserves, and
still sweeter bouquets arranged by their own hands.
Words are inadequate to express my gratitude for the
delicate tokens of regard with which my country
women surrounded me in my affliction. They con
tributed to lighten the weight of the heavy irons with
which my feet were again loaded, in revenge — as I
supposed — for these delicate tokens of sympathy.
As to my honored father, he was soon after carried
off to Cumana, and thrown into the suffocating dun
geons of the fort, where he was treated with the ut
most rigor.
The horrors of his captivity have been set forth
in the following protest,* addressed by him to his
* The document — printed in letters of gold on crimson velvet — was

THE EXILE. 483
savage tormentor, and which now forms the brightest
page of his eventful life.
" To His Excellency General Jose Tadeo Monagas, Chief of the present
Administration of the Republic :
" Sir : — Imprisoned in this fortress, and oppressed
by the executors of your most severe orders, I am,,
notwithstanding, still the same General-in-Chief of the
armies of Colombia and Yenezuela, and still the same
who received from the Congress of our country, as
recompense for his services, the title of Blustrious
Citizen. " My duty toward my country — the calls of the
people — compelled me to take up arms in February,
1848. It was then my opinion, &$, it is now, that
the assassination of the representatives of the people,
perpetrated on the 24th of January, of that year,
was unjustifiable. My political creed is set forth in
the documents which I published since that period.
" Persuaded that I have done all that my public
duties required, and desirous of putting an end to the
war which was devastating the country, I approved the
compact of the 15th of last August, a compact entered
into, agreeably to my instructions, between the Chief
of my General Staff and General Jose Lauren cio Silva,
the Chief of your army. What has since transpired
you well know. You disapproved that compact
which caused me to lay down my arms in perfect
confidence ; you seized upon the person of myself
and of my companions in arms ; and when we were
extensively circulated throughout the republic, and handsomely framed
to match the "Declaration of Independence."

484 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
found unarmed, the most horrible acts of revenge
were perpetrated upon us. Let our entry into Ya
lencia, on the afternoon of the 18th of August, bear
eloquent testimony of my assertion. The Governor,
Joaquin Herrera, glutted in his work of revenge,
crowned it by putting heavy irons upon me and
several of my companions. I remember those days of
horror with a noble pride. The passions of the times
cannot deprive me of the consideration which my ser
vices to the republic have deserved. I have trodden,
and still continue to tread, the path travelled by emi
nent men, whom an impartial and enlightened world
acknowledges as the most zealous defenders of the
rights of humanity ; as the real friends of that justice
and morality which ought to preside over the desti
nies of nations ; as the most perfect friends of the
people, for whose welfare every good government
should labor incessantly.
" The compact of the 15th of August, signed at
Macapo-Abajo or Monagas, has been rejected by you.
This, however, cannot be sufficient to quiet your
conscience. The fact is before an enlightened world.
At present I can only protest, as I do protest, in
the most unqualified manner, against the violation of
that compact.
" I have been led from prison to prison, until at last
I am brought to this fortress, where it seems I am to
drain the cup of my sufferings. I hope, however,
that Divine Providence will not deprive me of the
strength with which I have been favored up to this
time, to enable me to resist so many outrages.
" Confined to a very narrow apartment, without

THE EXILE. 485
being allowed the least exercise — with a sentinel
always in sight— with an officer always by my side
at the hours of taking food — denied the privilege of
communicating with my family (for I am not per
mitted to write nor to receive letters from them) — de
prived finally of the comforts which the visits of
some of my fellow citizens offered me, it seems that
the termination of my life is eagerly sought.
" Humanity and civilization must raise their pow
erful voices against such cruel treatment. Without
being a prisoner of war, I find myself imprisoned. I
submit to force, and I know well what may be my
fate ; but I ought not to pass over, in silence, acts
which degrade and vilify my country. I ought to
protest, and do protest, against such extraordinary
and grievous outrages.
" After having, by a decree, remitted the judicial
trial to which you supposed I was liable, by what
right am I detained a prisoner and ill-treated, as I am ?
Though my expulsion has been decreed, I am detained
with most glaring injustice — an injustice which is
heightened by the means employed to keep me con
fined, condemned to the horrid punishment of silence
and solitude. Is, perchance, the safe custody of one
man incompatible with what is due to the dignity
of man? Can I not be considered safely secured,
without being tormented? Read, sir, the pages of
history, and you will learn how persons of my char
acter have been treated in similar cases.
" I have, sir, no favor to ask of you, no grace to
implore. My sole object, 1 have already said, is to
protest against the horrors that I am made to endure.

486 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
You may continue to act as may seem best to you ;
but I hope by this protest to furnish one more proof
of how much I esteem my personal dignity, and of
my readiness to discharge the duties which I owe to
the republic over whose destinies I have presided.
" Jose A. Paez.
" Cumana, in the Fortress of San Antonio, 5th February, 1860."
The anger of the Tyrant on reading this protest
may be easily imagined. From that moment the
most stringent measures were taken to deprive his
victim of life also, by a barbarous and slow process.
The only door and the simple window of " his narrow
apartment " were closed night and day ; and this in
the ardent climate of Cumana, where the thermometer
is seldom below 90°. So oppressed was he at times
by the closeness of his cell, that he had to lie down
near the sill of the door, to inhale what little fresh
air came through. How different the usage expe
rienced by Monagas at the hands of General Paez,
when the latter had him in his power — Monagas
having twice before rebelled against the fundamen
tal law of the republic ! On both occasions, Paez
not only pardoned him, but reinstated the unruly
chieftain in his rank and position in the army ; even
exerting his influence, at a later period, in securing
his elevation to the Presidency, which had been ten
dered to and declined by Paez.
At length his powerful constitution gave way
under this iniquitous treatment, and a rush of blood
to the head ensued, which would doubtless have ter
minated fatally, but for the prompt assistance of two

THE EXILE. 487
skilful physicians in the place. The people of
Cumana, aroused to a sense of duty and just indigna
tion, resolved to put a stop to this disgraceful perse
cution. Men, women, and children rebelled against
the minions of the despot, threatening the garrison
with destruction, if their victim was not allowed to
embark for foreign parts. Congress, then assembled
at Caracas — although exclusively devoted to the
interest of Monagas — 'also urged the matter, and the
latter was compelled to issue an order to that effect,
detailing the steamer Libertador for that purpose.
Still, when the vessel arrived at Cumana short of
fuel — as was purposely designed by the Govern
ment — and the captain demanded it from the author
ities there, he was referred to the Governor of Barce
lona. Thither the steamer went to secure it ; but,
although there was abundance of coal at the place,
the brother of Monagas, military commander of the
province, under frivolous excuses prevented its ship
ment. Suspecting something wrong, the captain,
who, although in the service of the Tyrant, was a
conscientious individual, immediately returned to
Cumana, and laying the case before the people,
prompt measures were taken to enable the steamer
to proceed on her voyage without delay. Every
thing combustible was readily contributed by the
generous inhabitants, who gave up, not only the ship
timber in the harbor, but even the doors and windows
of their houses. It was rumored at the time, that a
base plot to drown the General had been concocted
between Monagas and an old French pirate, Captain
Bernard, who had command of a sailing war-vessel ; a

"488 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
suspicion which was strengthened, shortly after the
departure of the steamer, by the arrival of said in
dividual at Cumana, with orders to take the captive
on board his vessel ; but it was too late.
On the 24th of May, 1850, " the Martyr of San
Antonio" left his prison, followed by an immense
concourse of people, who accompanied him in a sort
of triumphal procession to the steamer Libertador,
which conveyed him afterward to St. Thomas.
There I joined my father in time to participate in
the hospitalities extended to him by the liberal in
habitants of that wealthy island ; and a vessel offer
ing soon after for Philadelphia, we took our depart
ure for " The land of the free and the home of the brave ; "
where we arrived safely on the 26th of July, after
a pleasant voyage of eleven days. The city of
" brotherly love," through her Common Council,
hastened to offer the Yenezuelan exile the freedom of
her soil ; but New York having beforehand sent a
commission of gentlemen to await his arrival and
tender him a public reception, we left the next day
for the Empire City, stopping at Staten Island until
the 2d of August, the day fixed for the reception.
Here, patient reader, I would like to entertain you
with a full description of the splendid reception and
boundless hospitalities tendered to our Leader by the
people of the United States, and more especially of
that by the city of New York, the place which he had
chosen for his future residence ; but I fear I have
already taxed your time and patience too much with

THE EXILE. 489
the recital of our own troubles, while an account of
that ovation and the subsequent manifestations of sym
pathy from the people of the Great Republic would —
to do it full justice — require a separate volume. Here
we found at length ample repose and security, " under
the shade" — to use our Leader's quaint phrase — " of
the northern pines," and enjoyed for ten years every
social and political privilege, under a free and en
lightened government, until subsequent changes in
the affairs of Yenezuela recalled us from exile and
forced our Leader to give up his humble abode in
New York for the agitated soil of South America.
Being gone on a visit to Central America, I had
almost forgotten Monagas and his arbitrary rule, when
I read one day in the " New York Herald," away
amidst the wilds of Costa Rica, that a great revolu
tion had occurred in Yenezuela, and that Monagas was
besieged in his own house in Caracas. On my return
to the United States, I was gratified to find in New
York a number of Commissioners despatched by the
Provisional Government of Yenezuela, to invite Gen
eral Paez back to his liberated country, and to express
to him the unanimous wish of the people for his imme
diate return ; a desire which he hastened to comply
with, but which nearly cost him his life. The military
authorities of New York having tendered him a
grand review of all their corps, previous to his
departure, he was riding toward the parade grounds,
in company with Governor King and a numerous
staff, when his horse fell three times under him on the
slippery pavement of Broadway, the animal's weight
crushing his foot in the most frightful manner ; and
21*

490 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
although he was immediately surrounded with the
best surgical skill in the city, his life was despaired
of for a time, unless his powerful constitution should
come to his rescue, which happily took place. His
presence in Yenezuela being of the utmost importance
at the time, he was removed, while still suffering
from his severe accident, to one of the steamers placed
at his disposal by the Government of the United
States — a compliment rarely paid to foreigners, and
consequently highly appreciated by us all. A bril
liant retinue, composed principally of the Yenezuelan
Commissioners, His Honor the Mayor of New York,
(Daniel F. Tieman Esq.,) and members of the Com
mon Council, with delegations from the militia of the
city and county of New York, accompanied the am
bulance in which he was conveyed, and escorted by
a detachment of the City Horse Guards, on board
one of the steamers.
The General, with the Commissioners, his private
secretary, and several other persons of his retinue,
and the lamented Colonel Sandford, son of the Major-
General commanding the militia of the city, em
barked on board the Wyandotte ; the rest of the
suite, including my friend E. L. Molineux, Esq., of New
York, myself and brother, on board the Mohawk ; and
on the 25th of November, 1858, we bade adieu to the
metropolis of the New World, amid the salvos of
artillery, and good wishes of the kind-hearted inhabi
tants. May peace and prosperity ever be with them !
I wish, for the sake of the nation's credit, that
my narrative could end here, instead of being com
pelled to record, further on, the circumstances of our

THE EXILE. 491
second exodus from the country which so earnestly
solicited the recall of General Paez from exile. But
let us not anticipate unpleasant events ; they will
be recounted in their place. The city of Cumana,
which so nobly came to his rescue in the hour of his
peril, first engaged our Leader's attention, as the most
entitled to receive his warm acknowledgments of
gratitude for the bold stand she took against his cruel
tormentors. Thither the steamers directed their course
at his special request ; but a dense fog prevailing at
the time of leaving the harbor, we lost sight of each
other, until our arrival at Cumana — a circumstance
we of the Mohawk lamented exceedingly, on account
of the precarious condition of our Leader's health.
We also were too late to participate in his reception
by the generous Cumanese ; our steamer — owing to
some derangement in her machinery — arriving in
port a week after.
The limits of this chapter do not permit lengthy
descriptions of the several ovations and enthusiastic
receptions which everywhere greeted the Martyr of
San Antonio on his return from exile : they were as
spontaneous and cordial, to all appearances, as the
conduct of the provisional authorities was cold
and reserved toward the General. The " miserable
Castro," — chief of the Provisional Government — with
an eye on the chair of state left vacant by the down
fall of Monagas, could not support these public mani
festations of respect paid to one regarded by him as
a dangerous rival, and against whom he had conspired
all his life : therefore he lost now no opportunity to
annoy him in every possible manner, with the object

492 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
of compelling him to abandon the country — which
he did, later, of his own accord ; unfortunately not
soon enough to spare us the affliction occasioned by the
death of our estimable guest, Colonel Sandford, who,
notwithstanding the assiduous efforts of the whole
community to save his life, fell a victim at Yalencia
to that most fearful pestilence of the equinoctial
regions, the vomito. Our Leader's grief was extreme
on this occasion, appreciating, as we all did, the
motives which prompted that amiable young officer
to accompany him on his return home.
When sufficiently recovered from his late accident
to bear the fatigues of a reception at the capital, the
General took his departure for Caracas, glad to quit
the scene of his young friend's lamentable demise.
But the obnoxious Castro had preceded him there
already with the train of Government ; and although
he was compelled by the force of public opinion to
take a part in the reception, the overwhelming dis
play of popular favor which characterized that ova
tion, only contributed to make him more envious,
and, if possible, more ungracious toward the object
of his rancor. To show my readers to what extent
these petty jealousies are often carried, I will state
that, when applied to for permission to employ the
military bands of music in the procession, Castro
refused flatly, excusing himself with averring that
this was altogether a civil affair. The same bands
were soon after employed, by Castro's orders, at the
release of some negro politicians confined in the jail
of Caracas by the civil authorities. Here again the
black star of the republic was permitted — for political

THE EXILE. 493
reasons — to cast its lurid glimmer over the already
clouded atmosphere enveloping the capital. The
adherents of Monagas, profiting by the dissensions
brought about by Castro among the contending
factions, commenced to muster their forces in various
parts of the country ; and although they were kept
at bay for a time, it was plain enough that, unless
vigorous measures were adopted for their extermina
tion, they would eventually become a serious annoy
ance to the Government.
Compelled by circumstances to be a mere spec
tator in the political farce of changing a tyrannical
ruler for an imbecile one, and in danger at any
moment of being assailed by the latter, General Paez
could no longer be of any service to the country that
recalled him from exile : he therefore solicited and
obtained his passport for the United States, an
nouncing his immediate departure to the people
through a farewell address ending with this earnest
appeal to their patriotism :
" Fellow-citizens ! Listen once more to the prayer
of my heart : continue no longer the course of your
destruction : ravage not the beautiful country which
Providence has granted you : let your rulers be slaves
to the Constitution and laws of the republic : let the
people make a wise exercise of their precious rights :
let those bloody revolutions, the ignominy of Spanish
America, forever cease on our soil. This is all you
require to reappear before the world as a wise and
prosperous people : such would be the greatest recom
pense you could accord me — the only one I would

4.94 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
exact from you in return for the new expatriation I
impose upon myself."
But instead of permitting him to depart in peace,
the provisional despot they had placed at the head
of the Government, issued an order to arrest him at
La Guaira before he should embark. No one was
foolhardy enough, however, to execute it, and he
departed for the United States on the anniversary
of her independence. Before the month was over,
the framer of that order found himself deposed and a
prisoner in the Government palace. His successor, Yice-
President Tovar, although a man of higher intellect
and position in society, with the characteristic selfish
ness that marks the policy of most rulers in South
America, studiously deferred recalling General Paez
until after the regular elections, that placed him in
the presidency, contenting himself in the meantime
with addressing the General a friendly letter, which
the latter scarcely regarded in the light of a formal
invitation to return. It was probably in allusion to this
document that "El Constitucion al" of Caracas — the
organ of the conservative element in Yenezuela — issued
the following complimentary notice, which I give here
in full, as it embodies the main facts of our Leader's
public career :
" With grateful satisfaction we have learned that
His Excellency the Yice-President of the Republic
has written to our Washington, calling him to the
bosom of that country which he liberated with his
sword, elevating her to the rank of a nation — giving
her a constitution and laws — creating for her a
treasure, and acquiring for her a credit, both at home

THE EXILE. 495
and abroad, which placed her in the van of the South
American republics. How many noble sensations,
how many glorious recollections, and how many
debts of national gratitude crowd on the imagination
on hearing the name of Paez, the living monument
of Yenezuelan glory !
" The preservation of Paez is one of those great gifts
for which Yenezuela is indebted to God, who so visibly
protects her. Few nations, very few, behold in one
man alone the embodiment of their history.
" Paez the young man, consecrated all the fires of
his youth to the struggle for his country's independ
ence. From a simple soldier on the borders of the
Arauca, he went from victory to victory, and from
rank to rank, to the plains of Carabobo. There,
amid the smoke of battle, he received from Bolivar
the highest military grade to which that splendid and
decisive triumph entitled him.
" Paez the General, at the age of reflection, full of
prestige and glory, employed all his advantages in
nationalizing' his country. From a Bogotan province
or colony, he raised her to the rank of a nation. He
freed her from military despotism, gave her a free
constitution, a civil government, wise laws, and sub
dued the Monagas, the only persons who refused
obedience. " Paez the President, gave to his military compan
ions an example of respectful submission to the laws.
Devoted to the interests of his country, he gave her
institutions of intellectual and moral progress, created
for her a revenue, stimulated her industry and com
merce, acquired credit for her at home and abroad.

496 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
and raised her to the first rank among the South
m American republics.
" Paez, the first civil and military character of his
country, descended from the presidential chair that
he might occupy himself as a simple citizen, and re
tired to a country life. The Monagas rose against
that proof of civil power. Paez abandoned his flocks,
and seized once more his sword to repress that attempt.
The Monagas being conquered, he pardoned them,
and replaced in the presidential chair the wise citizen
whom the nation had chosen. This act procured for
Paez the golden sword and the title of Blustrious
Citizen, which the Congress of his country bestowed
upon him.
" Paez, a second time President, gave an impetus
to the advancement of Yenezuela, and delivered her
to his successor, peaceful, prosperous, and admired by
all nations, all her pledges observed, and a treasury
overflowing with millions of surplus. When, when
shall we see her again in so happy a condition ? So
many services earned for him the admiration of all
nations, and the honors and decorations of the kings
of England, France, and Sweden.*
* William the Fourth of England, sent to General Paez, in 183*7, a
magnificent sword, on which were inscribed the following words: — " The
gift of King William the Fourth to General Paez, as a mark of esteem
for his character, and for the disinterested patriotism which has distin
guished his gallant and victorious career. ISS*!."
The gift was presented by the British Minister in Venezuela, Sir
Robert Ker Porter, accompanied by an official note expressive of the
high opinion entertained by his sovereign for the character and services
of General Paez.
In 1843, the Citizen King of the French, Louis Philippe, named Gen-

THE EXILE. 497
" Paez, a second time in the retirement of private
life, was astounded at the horrible announcement that
Monagas had murdered the representatives of his
country in the very sanctuary of the legislative
power. Notwithstanding the weight of years, he did
not hesitate to take up arms in order to chastise that
unheard-of crime. Fortune was not with him in that
holy cause. Reduced to the miseries of a dungeon
in the castle of San Antonio, and loaded with chains,
he did not cease, nevertheless, to protest daily against
the atrocity of the crime, in which the people, in the
persons of their representatives, were assassinated, and
in which, by violating the immunity of the national
representation, the basis of the republican system was
threatened. " Paez, at liberty, was hailed by enlightened people
as a martyr of civilization and public freedom, and
received in the midst of the apotheosis prepared for
him by the republic of Washington. In the bosom
of the freest people on earth he received great honors
and distinguished considerations, when, on the fall
of his country's tyrant, whom a simultaneous effort
of the people had driven from his blood-stained seat,
he was called by the supreme power, and received
with transports of enthusiasm in the arms of all his
eral Paez " Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor," and sent him the
cross and cordon, the insignia appertaining to that high rank in the Le
gion. In 1845, Oscar the First, King of Sweden and Norway, the son of
the celebrated Marshal Bernadotte, sent to General Paez the grand cross
and insignia of the Military Order of the Sword, with a communication
couched in terms expressive of his high regard and esteem for the Gen
eral.

498 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
fellow-citizens, without distinction of party, sex, or
age. " Paez, in Caracas, had no time to receive the
demonstrations of gratitude and admiration which
the people in mass, and families and citizens in pri
vate, lavished upon him. The heroic Cumana, whose
resolution to save him from captivity gave him an
exile's liberty, was the first which begged the privi
lege of bestowing, like a free people, honors on him,
whom, a captive, she had before liberated. So many
national kindnesses drew upon him the envy of
Castro, who aspired to the presidency, and saw in all
these manifestations a rival that made him tremble ;
the more so, since that person's disregard for every
law was notorious.
" Paez, persecuted by the miserable Castro, looked
upon this matter with the scorn which a venomous
reptile causes in a giant ; but, doubtless, the idea of
seeing friends, to whose loyalty he would have sworn,
and for whom he would have given his life — friends
whom formerly he had loaded with distinctions, honors,
and considerations — indifferent to, or participators in
this infamous persecution, must have embittered his
hours. The idea rent the heart of Paez. In the
silence of his profound grief, no complaint was ever
heard against them. Scarcely even did he say with
Ovid: " Donee eris felix, multos numerabis amicos ;
Tempora si fuerint nubila, solus eris.
In hours of sunshine friends shall countless be ;
Let clouds o'ercast, and lo ! they fly from thee.
" Persecuted by the Government and loved by the

THE EXILE. 499
people, he saw that persecution and love mutual
ly increased each other, and nourished political
passions. The very refusal of the Government to re
ceive him with the honors of his rank, increased
much, very much, the enthusiasm of the reception
which the people of Caracas and other places gave
him. Finally, not to be an object of discord between
the people and the Government, he determined to ex
patriate himself of his own accord, and left Caracas
amidst the lamentations of his family and friends,
and with the sympathies of the entire population.
Cum repeto noctem qua, tot mihi cara reliqui,
Labitur ex oculis nunc quoque lacryma meis.
When in the night I ask me why I've left
So many faces dear to me, a tear
From out my bosom, by my sorrow cleft,
Will start and, welling to my eye, appear.
" The envy of Castro and of his myrmidons was
excited even at the hospitable repose which that ven
erable man was seeking in a foreign land. Already
embarked, the order came to detain him, and a Gov
ernment vessel started in pursuit. The torments
which awaited him are no secret now. Fortunately
he could not be overtaken. His friends notified him,
a few minutes previously, of the hellish intentions
of Governor Castro. Supported in the arms of an
oligarchist and a liberal, of a creole and a foreigner,
of a patriot general and a Spaniard — in the arms, in
fine, of two men, in whom was represented, for the
occasion, the fusion of all the opposite and conflicting
political feelings in love for the hero, he was con-

500 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
ducted without the loss of a moment to the Mole, in
the midst of an immense crowd, who showed by word
and action the feeling which the great citizen's de
parture, and the vile persecution to which he was
subjected, produced.
" We accompanied the hero to the act of embarka
tion. We witnessed the efforts of the Government
to seize him, and the public indignation which that
act of infamous persecution produced in the entire
population of La Guaira. We are certain that, if they
had succeeded in bringing him back, the people would
willingly have shed their blood to rescue him from
the fangs of the tigers who thirsted to devour him.
Providence, which never is tardy in chastising the
wicked, did not permit a month to pass over before
Castro found himself in the prison he had prepared
for Paez, and the people have not ceased to invoke
his presence as the great friend of all Venezuelans, and
have called on him to bring his country the olive of
peace. " Paez, in his second exile, returned to receive from
the sons of Washington all the attentions and public
demonstrations which the consistent defender of pop
ular liberty and the high priest of the republican
system deserved.
" In our attempt to glance at the immense volume
of Paez's glory, we have scarcely been able to touch
some prominent points. It is a work of much time, of
laborious research, and much more intelligence.
" Now that Yenezuela has conquered " [for a time]
" the rebellion against her institutions, and the legits
macy of her Government has shown the omnipotence

THE EXILE.

501

of her power, the Yice-President turns his eyes to the
founder of our republic, to call him to her bosom, that
he may contribute, with the great power of his vast
sympathies, and with the wisdom of his counsels, to
the re-establisment of peace and harmony amongst
all Yenezuelans. " We congratulate Mr. Tovar on such a very just
and proper measure, and hope that our Congress, imi
tating the great Convention which yielded the mag
nanimity of this act to the executive power alone, may
grant an honorable recall to the great citizen, to
whom we owe independence, nationality, and civil
power. There will not be even one member of Con
gress who will not glory in aiding with his vote an
act which justice, gratitude, national dignity, and the
pride of the Yenezuelan name demand.
" Oaeacas, May 3, 1859.

In conclusion, I will add that, notwithstanding the
state of anarchy then reigning in the country, and
the almost unanimous wish of the contending
parties to submit to the arbitrament of General
Paez, the guardians of public safety did not see fit
to recall him officially until it was too late for him
to be of much service. The fear of strengthening his
popularity — should he succeed in settling the pend
ing difficulties — appears to have had more weight
with them than the paramount exigency of averting
a war of castes. Well has Darwin said, in his account
of Buenos Ayres : " That country will have to leam,
like every other South American State, that a repub-

502 WILD SCENES IN SOUTH AMERICA.
lie cannot succeed till it contains a certain body of
men imbued with the principles of justice and honor."
And now, patient reader, having accomplished my
task to the best of my ability, I bid you farewell,
trusting that our peculiar mode of warfare — into
which I have unavoidably led you — has proved no
less novel and exciting than the rest of these Wild
Scenes.

THE END.

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