140 NICARAGUA. 



and propelled the boat at an average of three miles per 

 hour. 



The margins of the river, for a long while, are charming. 

 It was a repetition of what I saw from San Juan del Sur 

 to la Virgen, but even more picturesque on account of the 

 river. For miles and miles the river flows on through 

 primeval forests, rich in beauty and ever changing variety. 

 Eye and ear are alike charmed by the luxuriant foliage of 

 the trees, creepers, orchids, and many other parasitical 

 plants. 



Numerous animals give much animation to the beautiful 

 scenery, many coloured birds fly about, flocks of parrots 

 scream with all their might, monkeys of several kinds chatter 

 or gambol in the trees, some of them are so fearless, that they 

 stand quite close, looking at you when passing by. I was 

 very much amused with an incident which took place at the 

 time. So many monkeys were standing on the same branch, 

 that when we passed, in the hurry of their flight, the branch 

 broke, and nearly all of them fell in the water, but they easily 

 swam back on land, none the worse for their involuntary bath, 

 except for a piteous appearance. 



Crocodiles are quite numerous, swimming lazily in the 

 river, scarcely showing the end of their nose above the water, 

 others basking in the sun on the margins of the river, not 

 deigning to move at our approach. They had the appearance 

 of fallen trunks. I had several shots at them, but without the 

 least effect. They scarcely moved at all. I recommend the 

 River San Juan to industrials in search of crocodile hides. 

 At a very small cost, they could establish nurseries of these 

 animals, and make money. Besides the crocodiles hides, they 

 could also gather large quantities of Iguanas, a large species 

 of lizard, over one yard in length from end to end, also much 

 used for industrial purposes. The Iguana is a very peaceful 

 animal, usually seen on the branches of the trees on the 

 banks of rivers. They remain quite still at the same place 

 for hours. They are usually green or brown sprinkled with 

 dark spots. They are quite harmless, and can be easily 

 domesticated. They feed on insects ; they are oviparous and lay 

 a large number of soft eggs, which, when boiled, are very good 

 eating. They contain scarcely any albumen. The flesh is also 

 very good to eat, and I made many good meals with them. 

 Jaguar and Puma (Felis onca and concolor), Danta (Tapirus 

 dowi), Jabali (Dicotyles labiatus), a kind of small wild boar 

 Venado (Cariacus rufinus), Cotuza (Dasyprocta punctata), 



