THE ZEBRA. 



227 



probable we may come in time to equal the 

 Spaniards in breeding them, where it is not 

 uncommon to give fifty or sixty guineas for a 

 mule; and, indeed, in some mountainous coun- 

 tries, the inhabitants cannot well do without 

 them. Their manner of going down the 

 precipices of the Alps, or the Andes, is very 

 extraordinary ; and with it we will conclude 

 their history. In these passages, on one side, 

 are steep eminences, and, on the other, fright- 

 ful abysses ; and, as they generally follow the 

 direction of the mountain, the road, instead 

 of lying in a level, forms at every little dis- 

 tance steep declivities, of several hundred 

 yards downward. These can only be de- 

 scended by mules; and the animal itself seems 

 sensible of the danger, and the caution that 

 is to be used in such descents. When they 

 come to the edge of one of these descents, 

 they stop, without being checked by the rider; 

 and, if he inadvertently attempts to spur them 

 on, they continue immoveable. They seem 

 all this time ruminating on the danger that lies 

 before them, and preparing themselves for 

 the encounter. They not only attentively 

 view the road, but tremble and snort at the 

 danger. Having prepared for the descent, 



they place their fore-feet in a posture as if 

 they were stopping themselves ; they then 

 also put their hinder-feet together, but a little 

 forward, as if they were going to lie down. 

 In this attitude, having taken as it were a 

 survey of the road, they slide down with the 

 swiftness of a meteor. In the mean time, all 

 the rider has to do is to keep himself fast on 

 the saddle, without checking the rein, for the 

 least motion is sufficient to disorder the 

 equilibrium of the mule ; in which case they 

 both unavoidably perish. But their address, 

 in this rapid descent, is truly wonderful ; for, 

 in their swiftest motion, when they seem to 

 have lost all government of themselves, they 

 follow exactly the different windings of the 

 road, as if they had previously settled in their 

 minds the route they were to follow, and taken 

 every precaution for their safety. In this 

 journey, the natives, who are placed along the 

 sides of the mountains, and hold by the roots 

 of the trees, animate the beast with shouts, 

 and encourage him to perseverance. Some 

 mules,after being long used to these journeys, 

 acquire a kind of reputation for their safety 

 and skill ; and their value rises in proportion 

 to their fame.* 



CHAPTER XL. 



OF THE ZEBRA. 



THERE are but three animals of the horse 

 kind. The horse, which is the most stately 

 and courageous : the ass, which is the most 

 patient and humble ; and the zebra, which is 

 the most beautiful, but at the same time the 

 wildest animal in nature. Nothing can exceed 

 the delicate regularity of this creature's colour, 

 or the lustrous smoothness of its skin; but, on 

 the other hand, nothing can be more timid or 

 more untameable. 



It is chiefly a native of the southern parts 

 of Africa; and there are whole herds of them 

 often seen feeding in those extensive plains 

 that lie towards the Cape of Good Hope. 

 However, their watchfulness is such, that they 

 will suffer nothing to come near them, and 



their swiftness so great, that they readily 

 leave every pursuer far behind. The zebra, 

 in shape, rather resembles the mule than the 

 horse or the ass. It is rather less than the 

 former, and yet larger than the latter. Its ears 

 are not so long as those of the ass, and yet 

 not so small as in the horse kind Like the 

 ass, its head is large, its back straight, its legs 

 finely placed, and its tail tufted at the end; 

 like the horse, its skin is smooth and close, 

 and its hind quarters round and fleshy. But 

 its greatest beauty lies in the amazing regu- 

 larity and elegance of its colours. In the 

 male, they are white and brown ; in the 



Ulloa, vol. i. 



2Q 



