THE MULE. 



roads, where, to venture on horseback, would bring 

 inevitable destruction. Their manner of descending 

 the precipices of the Alps, and the mountains of Spa- 

 nish America, is extremely singular. In these diffi- 

 cult and dangerous passages, the road frequently lies 

 between perpendicular or over-hanging rocks on one 

 side, and frightful precipices on the other, from which, 

 to look down into the immense abyss below, is suffi- 

 cient to st/ike the traveller with terror and stupefac- 

 tion ; and the narrow path, winding along the side of 

 the mountains, is in many places interrupted with 

 steep declivities of several hundred yards. These, no 

 horses whatever, can descend ; mules are the only 

 beasts of burthen that are equal to the task. When 

 they arrive at the brink of one of those almost per- 

 pendicular descents, they stop short without any 

 check from the rein, and continue sometime immove- 

 able, seeming to ruminate on the danger before them,, 

 trembling, snorting, and attentively viewing the road. 

 Having thus prepared themselves for the descent, 

 they place their fore-feet in a posture adapted to pre- 

 vent a too great precipitancy, and put their hind-feet 

 together, drawing them a little forward. In this at- 

 titude they slide down with great swiftness and won- 

 derful steadiness, like an experienced skaiter balanc- 

 ing himself upon the ice. But in this dangerous mo- 

 ment, the rider must do nothing but endeavour to keep 

 his seat firm on the saddle, and trust his safety en- 

 tirely to the mule ; for the least check of the rein, or 

 the least motion, would be sufficient to disorder the. 

 equilibrium, 'in which case both must unavoidably be 

 dashed to pieces. Some mules, after .having been 

 much accustomed to those dangerous journies, ac- 

 quire a kind of reputation for their safety and dexte- 

 rity, which very much enhances their value. 



As there is only another animal of the horse kind, I 

 shall entertain you with a short description of it, be- 

 fore I conclude my letter. The animals of this tribe 

 are, by naturalists, reckoned only three in number, 

 the mule being not a distinct species, but an hetero- 

 geneous production. Of these three, the horse is th 



