ricultu. 



lowed to perish for want of cultivation, or are smo- 

 thered by dissipation and indulgence. Latin gram- 

 mar, the peripatetic philosophy, the theology of the 

 Th>mi.'t;i, and a little Common law, constitute the 

 studies of their most eminent scholars. The arts 

 and trades are reduced to those which arc indispen- 

 sibly necessary, and they are exercised only by some 

 poor Spaniards from Europe, or by people of colour. 

 The Creolian ladies are reckoned much handsoimr 

 than the Spanish ; the jetty blackness of their hair and 

 eyes contrasting admirably with the brilliant white- 

 of their skin. They are all, however, equally 

 indolent in disposition with their husbands, are fond 

 of show, and greatly resemble in manners and in dress 

 the ladies of Old Spain, but less reserved, and more 

 gaudy in their ornaments. But with all their exter- 

 nal magnificence and costliness of dress and furniture, 

 the Spaniards, within doors, in this quarter of the 



ir hou- woj-ldj are described as filthy in the extreme. " Ab- 

 lution of any kind is never, or very negligently per 

 formed. Flies, and various kinds of vermin, are a- 

 bundant plagues in every house ; and the ravages of 

 the ants are only equalled by those of the mice and 

 rats. In their cookery, the bountiful provision of na- 

 ture is spoiled by the perverted taste of man ; and 

 both meat and fish are disguised, and their flavour 

 indiscernible by the accumulation of spice, eggs, oil, 

 onions, and garlic, with which they are dished up." 



The Spaniards who inhabit the country, may be 

 divided into the agriculturists and the shepherds. Of 

 the former, however,the number is very inconsiderable, 

 the labour of the employment deterring many from 

 embracing it ; and it is in general only followed by 

 those who have not the means of becoming mer- 

 chants, or of acquiring a sufficient quantity of land 



pherds. for pasture. The shepherds, on the contrary, are 

 numerous, and constitute a considerable proportion 

 of the Creolian inhabitants in this viceroyalty. Their 

 numerous domestic herds, which wander over the 

 plains of Paraguay and Buenos Ayres, are computed 

 by Azara at twelve million of cattle, three million of 

 horses, and a considerable number of sheep, divided 

 among a great many e&lancias, or farms, each pos- 

 sessed by a single proprietor. An ordinary estancia 

 consists of five or six square leagues, and is under the 

 charge of a capataz, or master shepherd, and a ser- 

 vant for every thousand cattle, who is either a young 

 Creole, a negroe slave, a man of colour, or a con- 

 verted Indian who has deserted from some of the 

 fethod of colonies. These shepherds, however, never accom- 

 . l' . pany their tlocks into the field, as in Europe, but 

 content themselves with merely collecting them once 

 a week, in order to prevent them from wandering 

 beyond the bounds of the estancia. The rest of their 

 time is spent in breaking their horses, but chiefly in 

 the most degraded idleness. Addicted to the grossest 

 vices, and sunk in ignorance and superstitiou, this 

 race of men seem to have completely forgotten the 

 origin from whence they sprung, and, in point of civi- 

 lization, are little inferior to the wildest savages of the 

 heirhabi- desert. Their habitations, which are generally si- 

 tuated near the centre of the estancia, are nothing 

 but miserable huts, whose furniture consists chiefly 

 of a cask for holding water, a horn to drink with, a 

 wooden spit, and a small copper vessel in which they 



Ayrc*. 



cirflocks. 



61 



infuse the herb of Paraguay. Some, however, have 



a chair or wooden bench, and a kind of bed ; but the 



greatest number sit upon their heels, or the tkulU " ~~*~~ 



of their cattle, and sleep upon skins spread on the . 



ground. Their only food is roasted meat, which they ***** * ood - 



cat without salt, but at no stated hours ; puUe and 



vegetables they consider as no better than grass, and 



fit only for horses. The offals and bones, which 



they scatter around their huts, engender an infinite 



number of flies and noxious insects, and collect a 



multitude of ravenous birds, which deafen them with 



their constant cries. Their dress corresponds with Theirdreti. 



the filthmess and meanness of their habitations. Few 



of the herdsmen have a shirt. A poncho, or cloak, 



which consists of a piece of coarse woollen or cotton 



stuff, manufactured in the province of Tucuman, about 



three feet long and two broad, with a hole in the 



centre for the head to -pass through, a hat, a pair of 



drawer?, and half boots formed of the skins which 



they strip from the legs of their cattle, constitute 



the whole of their clothing. Besides these, how- 



ever, the master shepherd, or proprietor, has a dou- 



blet, a vest, breeches, and shots. The dress of the The dre 



women consists merely of a shirt without sleeves, of l ^ e wo " 



which is bound round the middle with a girdle ; and m * n ' 



as they have seldom more than one at a time, when 



it requires washing, they carry it to the nearest 



brook to perform that operation, and wait until it is 



dry. In Paraguay, however, the shepherds are both 



better lodged, and more decent and cleanly in their 



apparel than those of Buenos Ayres. 



This people are most dexterous horsemen. In- 

 deed, they scarcely know what it is to walk, as they 

 never go any distance on foot. From their infancy, TheprincJ- 

 riding is their only instruction and amusement ; and P a ' 

 they become so habituated to the exercise, that they l e ( 

 will keep their seat upon the most furious animal, on horte- 

 The principal operations of the estancia are perform- back. 

 ed on horseback. The weekly gathering of the herds 

 is made at f ull gallop ; but, from the extent of some 

 of the pastures, the cattle are nearly in a wild state, 

 and are hunted and killed in the same manner as the 

 wild oxen in the plains of the Pampas. The com- 

 mon method, however, of slaying their cattle, is to 

 drive a certain number into an inclosure, where the ' 

 shepherds assemble on horseback, armed with spears 

 in the form of a crescent, a knife, and catch-ropes ; 

 as many beasts are then turned out as there are men 

 in waiting, when each pursues his prey at full speed. 

 If the bullock be swifter than the horse, the peasant 

 with wonderful dexterity throws his catch-rope round 

 his neck, or entangles one or two of his legs, by which 

 means he easily secures him ; but he generally ham- 

 strings him with his spear, and then dispatches him 

 with his knife This employment is continued every 

 day, until all the cattle appointed for the year's 

 slaughter are killed. They fish on horseback ; car- 

 ry the water from the well on horseback ; and even 

 attend mass on horseback, remaining at the church 

 door, which is left open on purpose that they may 

 hear the service. " In short," says Azara, " every 

 thing they do is done on horseback." These shep- 

 herds, who are bred in the desert, and hold no inter- 

 course with society, except with the individuals of dUsoute 

 their own estancia, are little superior in knowledge manners. 



Method of 



