220 WANDERINGS IN SOUTH AMERICA. 



profusion, there seems to be no reason why he should 

 confine himself to one tree alone for food, and entirely 

 strip it of its leaves. During the many years I have 

 ranged the forests, I have never seen a tree in such a 

 state of nudity ; indeed, I would hazard a conjecture, 

 that, by the time the animal had finished the last of the 

 old leaves, there would be a new crop on the part of the 

 tree he had stripped first, ready for him to begin again, so 

 quick is the process of vegetation in these countries. 



There is a saying amongst the Indians, that when the 

 wind blows, the sloth begins to travel. In calm weather 

 he remains tranquil, probably not liking to cling to the 

 brittle extremity of the branches, lest they should break 

 with him in passing from one tree to another ; but as soon 

 as the wind rises, the branches of the neighbouring trees 

 become interwoven, and then the sloth seizes hold of them, 

 and pursues his journey in safety. There is seldom an 

 entire day of calm in these forests. The trade-wind 

 generally sets in about ten o'clock in the morning, and 

 thus the sloth may set off after breakfast, and get a con- 

 siderable way before dinner. He travels at a good round 

 pace ; and were you to see him pass from tree to tree, as I 

 have done, you would never think of calling him a sloth. 



Thus, it would appear that the different histories we 

 have of this quadruped are erroneous on two accounts : 

 first, that the writers of them deterred by difficulties and 

 local annoyances, have not paid sufficient attention to him 

 in his native haunts ; and secondly, they have described 

 him in a situation in which he was never intended by 

 nature to cut a figure ; I mean on the ground. The sloth 

 is as much at a loss to proceed on his journey upon a 

 smooth and level floor, as a man would be who had to 

 walk a mile in stilts upon a line of feather beds. 



One day, as we were crossing the Essequibo, I saw a 



