CHAP, ix.] HUNTING WILD CATTLE. 189 



experienced at the height of between one and two thousand feet, 

 on the mountains of North Wales; having however less sunshine 

 and less frost, but more wind and rain.* 



16th. I will now describe a short excursion which I made 

 round a part of this island. In the morning I started with six 

 horses and two Gauchos: the latter were capital men for the 

 purpose, and well accustomed to living on their own resources. 

 The weather was very boisterous and cold, with heavy hail-storms. 

 We got on, however, pretty well, but, except the geology, nothing 

 could be less interesting than our day's ride. The country is 

 uniformly the same undulating moorland ; the surface being co- 

 vered by light brown withered grass and a few very small shrubs, 

 all springing out of an elastic peaty soil. In the valleys here 

 and there might be seen a small flock of wild geese, and every- 

 where the ground was so soft that the snipe were able to feed. 

 Besides these two birds there were few others. There is one 

 main range of hills, nearly two thousand feet in height, and com- 

 posed of quartz rock, the rugged and barren crests of which gave 

 us some trouble to cross. On the south side we came to the best 

 country for wild cattle ; we met, however, no great number, foi 

 they had been lately much harassed. 



In the evening we came across a small herd. One of my com- 

 panions, St. Jago by name, soon separated a fat cow ; he threw 

 the bolas, and it struck her legs, but failed in becoming entan- 

 gled. Then dropping his hat to mark the spot where the balls 

 were left, while at full gallop, he uncoiled his lazo, and after a 

 most severe chace, again came up to the cow, and caught her 

 round the horns. The other Gaucho had gone on ahead with the 

 spare horses, so that St. Jago had some difficulty in killing the 

 furious beast. He managed to get her on a level piece of ground, 

 by taking advantage of her as often as she rushed at him ; and 

 when she would not move, my horse, from having been trained, 

 would canter up, and with his chest give her a violent push. But 



* From accounts published since our voyage, and more especially from 

 several interesting letters from Capt. Sulivan, K.N., employed on the survey, 

 it appears that we took an exaggerated view of the badness of the climate 

 of these islands. But when 1 reflect on the almost universal covering of 

 peat, and on the fact of wheat seldom ripening here, I can hardly believe 

 that the climate in summer is so fine aud dry as it has lately been repre- 

 sented 



