A NATURALIST IN BRAZIL 



gnashing their teeth if one so much as moved. Two months later I 

 saw these pumas in the zoological gardens of Rio, when they were 

 already quite tame. The Jaguar too occurs in the Sertao, and also 

 its smaller edition, the Ocelot, which I once saw near Olinda. In 

 north-eastern Brazil the black Jaguar is almost more frequent than 

 the yellow-spotted variety, and I once saw a magnificent black 

 jaguar which had been trapped, and which was not much smaller 

 than a tiger. Its black coat, glossy as satin, was marked by still 

 blacker rings. 



Snakes are very abundant in the Sertao, especially such venomous 

 snakes as the Jararaca and the Rattlesnake. Nevertheless, one seldom 

 sees them, since they lead a nocturnal existence and hide themselves 

 by day. The field-workers of the cotton-factory often encountered 

 snakes ; they pinned them to the ground with a forked stick, took 

 them by the tail, and popped them into a jar. In the factory I was 

 able quietly to observe all sorts of snakes in captivity. 



As I shall show in Chapter XIX, one need have no fear of all 

 these creatures if one should encounter them in one's excursions. 

 In Brazil, as all over the world, only man is dangerous. 



The Sertao still offers a fruitful soil for romantic tales of robbers. 

 When I was in Recife a robber chieftain was lying in the local 

 prison. For months he and his band had made the Sertao unsafe. 

 He had many deaths on his conscience, and had exacted contribu- 

 tions from many country towns. It was said, however, that he had 

 never harmed poor people, but had even helped them, and that 

 he was driven to adopt his calling by some injustice that he had 

 suffered. The countryfolk, therefore, were sympathetic towards him. 

 and in the early days of his captivity he had no respite from the 

 visits of his admirers. He was then sent to Fernando Noronha, 

 the lonely island on which the Brazilian convict establishment is 

 situated. 



Many customs still prevail in the Sertao which are reminiscent of 

 the old colonial days. One drives for hours on end through the 

 wilderness, across the sand and through the bush, now on waggon- 

 tracks, now over grass, and along dry watercourses, and on such 

 journeys one learns to appreciate the tilt of the waggon, which not 

 only protects one against the sun, but above all prevents one from 

 being thrown out. But one gradually grows tired of being tossed 

 to and fro, and of bumping one's head against the hood, and after 

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