Extreme Ignorance of the Natives. 41 



horses, the men in charge being armed with long 

 sabres and pistols. The equipment was unusual but 

 effective, as a fine and representative collection of 

 the fauna of the locality was made by the inde- 

 fatigable naturalist. 



The human inhabitants of this region possessed an 

 interest to our hero, due to their extreme ignorance. 

 They looked upon him as a necromancer, and his 

 fame spread far and near. The rich who could not 

 visit him sent for him, and begged that he would 

 exhibit the compass by which he made his way over 

 their country. They could not understand it, and 

 their ignorance was a continual surprise to the visi- 

 tor. He found that they did not know the shape of 

 the earth, or anything of geography, while the 

 matches which he carried and ignited by biting 

 excited the liveliest curiosity. Upon one occasion 

 an entire family, with a number of friends, gathered 

 to witness this performance, which Darwin good- 

 naturedly repeated. Indeed he was a mystery to 

 the entire people. Why he washed his face in the 

 morning, allowed his beard to grow aboard ship and 

 removed it when ashore, his handling snakes, and 

 apparent knowledge of those which were venomous, 

 were all features that caused him to be looked upon 

 with suspicion and wonder. 



At Maldonado Darwin first met the Gauchos, the 

 men who correspond to the cowboys of America, 

 — a wild, daring race that, with their enormous 

 clanking spurs, sharp daggers, and picturesque cos- 

 tumes, presented a striking spectacle as they dashed 

 away upon their wild horses. It was here that the 



