CHAPTER XVII 
Cattle-raising—Don Filiberto Trano’s new house—Horse-flies and 
wasps — Teustepe — Spider imitating ants—-Mimetic species — 
Animals with special means of defence are conspicuously. marked, 
or in other ways attract attention—Accident to horse—The MW ygale 
—Illness—Conclusion of journey. 
AFTER crossing the trachytic plain, we reached a large cattle 
hacienda, and beyond, the river Chocoyo, on the banks of 
which was some good, though stony, pasture land. We saw 
here some fine cattle, and learnt that a little more care was 
taken in breeding them than is usual in Nicaragua. The 
country, with its rolling savannahs, covered with grass, is 
admirably suited for cattle-raising, and great numbers are 
exported to the neighbouring country of Costa Rica. Scarcely 
any attention is, however, paid to the improvement of the 
breeds. Few stations have reserve potreros of grass. In 
consequence, whenever an unusually dry season occurs, the 
cattle die by hundreds, and their bones may be seen lying all 
over the plains. Both Para and Guinea grass grow, when 
planted and protected, with the greatest luxuriance; and 
the latter especially forms an excellent reserve, as it grows 
in dense tufts that cannot be destroyed by the cattle. When 
not protected by fencing, however, the cattle and mules 
prefer these grasses so much to the native ones, that they 
are always close-cropped, and when the natural pasturage 
fails there is no reserve of the other to fall back on. I planted 
both the Para and Guinea grasses largely at the mines and at 
Pital, and we were able to keep our mules always in good 
condition with them. 
About four o’clock in the afternoon our animals were 
getting tired, and we ourselves were rather fatigued, having 
been in the saddle since daylight, with the exception of a few 
minutes’ rest at Tierrabona. We halted ata thatched cottage 
on some high stony savannah land, and were hospitably 
received by the peasant proprietor, Don Filiberto Trano. 
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