192 ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS. 



she must be prepared for him. She tried to make a 

 large fire, but the wood was expended. She thought 

 of rolling herself up in the bed-clothes, but these would 

 be torn off. The idea of getting under the low bed- 

 stead suggested itself, but she felt sure a paw would be 

 stretched forth which would drag her out. Her hus- 

 band had taken all their firearms. At last, as she 

 heard the jaguar this time scrambling up the end of the 

 house, she in despair got into a large store chest, the 

 lid of which closed with a spring. Scarcely was she 

 within it, and had dragged the lid down, inserting her 

 fingers between it and the side of the chest, when the 

 jaguar discovered where she was. He smelt round the 

 chest, tried to get his head in through the crack, but 

 fortunately he could not raise the lid. He found hel 

 fingers and began to lick them ; she felt them bleed, but 

 did not dare to move them for fear she should be suffo- 

 cated. At length the jaguar leaped on to the lid, and 

 his weight pressing down the lid, fractured these 

 fingers. Still she could not move. He smelt round 

 again, he pulled, he leaped on and off, till at last get- 

 ting tired of his vain efforts, he went away. The poor 

 woman lay there till daybreak, and then only feeling 

 safe from her enemy, she went as fast as her strength 

 would let her to her nearest neighbour's, a distance of 

 two miles, where she procured help for her wounded 

 fingers, which were long in getting well. On his re- 

 turn, her husband found a male and female jaguar in the 

 forest close by, with their cubs, and all were destroyed. 

 As a proof that these animals are as soon startled as 

 the tiger, we are told of an Indian who saw a fierce- 

 looking jaguar standing directly in his path at a dis- 

 tance of ten paces. At first he was extremely puzzled 



