THE REASON WHY. 343 



* But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there : and their houses shall be full 



of doleful creatures ; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance 



there." ISAIAH xiy. 



1333. There are various animals which are very widely dispersed, enduring 

 the extremes o.' tropical heat and of polar cold, which are either in a wild 

 condition or in a state of domestication. Wild races, considered to be varieties 

 of the domestic dog, occur in India, Sumatra, Australia, Beloochistan, Natolia, 

 Nubia, various parts of Africa, and both the Americas; while in subjection to 

 man, the dog is his faithful companion, and has followed his steps into every 

 diversity of climate and of situation to which he has wandered. The north 

 temperate zone of the Old Continent appears to be the native region of the ox, 

 which passes in Lapland within the arctic circle, and has been spread over South 

 America since its first introduction by the Spaniards. The horse, originally an 

 inhabitant of the temperate parts of the Old World, has shared in a similar 

 dispersion, and now exists in the high latitude of Iceland, in the desolate regions 

 of Patagonia, and roams wild in immense herds over the Llanos of the Orinoco, 

 leading a painful and restless life in the burning climate of the tropics. 

 Humboldt draws a striking picture of the sufferings of these gifts of the Old 

 World to the New, returned to a savage state in their western location. 



" In the rainy season, the horses that wander in the savannah, and have not 

 time to reach the rising grounds of the Llanos, perish by hundreds amidst the 

 overflowings of the rivers. The mares are seen, followed by their colts. 

 swimming, during a part of the day, to feed upon grass, the tops of which alone 

 wave above the waters. In this state they are pursued by the crocodiles ; and 

 it is by no means uncommon to find the pnnts of the teeth of these carnivorous 

 reptiles on their thighs. Pressed alternately by excess of drought and of humi- 

 dity, they sometimes seek a pool, in the midst of a bare and dusty soil, to quench 

 their thirst; and at other times flee from water and the overflowing rivers, as 

 menaced by an enemy that encounters them in every direction. Harassed during 

 the day by gad-flies and mosquitoes, the horses, mules, and cows find themselves 

 attacked at night by enormous bats, that fasten on their backs, and cause 

 wounds which become dangerous, because they are filled with acaridse and other 

 hurtful insects. In the time of great drought, the mules gnaw even the fiorny 

 melocactus (melon-thistle), in order to drink its cooling juice, and draw it forth 

 as from a vegetable fountain. During the great inundations, these same animals 

 lead an amphibious life, surrounded by crocodiles water-serpents, and manatees. 

 Yet, such are the immutable laws of nature, their races are preserved in the 

 struggle with the elements, and amid so many sufferings and dangers. When 

 the waters retire, and the rivers return into their beds, the Savannah is spread 

 over with a fine odoriferous grass ; ai.d the animals of old Europe and Upper 

 Asia seem to enjoy, as in their native climates the renewed vegetation of 

 spring." 



1334. The first colonists of La Plata landed with seventy-two horses, in the 

 year 1535, when, owing to a temporary desertion of the colony, the animals ran 

 wild ; and in 1580, only forty-five years afterwards, it had reached the Straits of 

 Magellan. The ass has a more restricted range than the horse, not being 

 capable of enduring so great a degree of cold, though usually far from being 

 considered a delicate animal. To the warmer parts of the temperate zone, 

 between the 20th and the 40th parallels of latitude, the ass seems best adapted, 

 not propagating much beyond the 60th, and only occurring in a state of degene- 

 ration beyond the 52nd. The sheep and goat tribe are widely spread, equa'ly 

 supporting the extremes of temperature. According to Zimmerman, the Art/act 

 or Mouflon, the original race of sheep, still exists on all the great mountains of the 

 two continents ; and the Capricorn and Ibex, the ancestors of the common goat 

 inhabit the high European elevations. From the 64th degree of north latitude 

 the hog is met with all over the old continent, ana also in the islands of the 

 Indian Ocean, peopled by the Malay race; and since its introduction into the 



