420 THE ADVENTURES OF 



The animal came down slowly, and we could only see it 

 indistinctly. At last it reached the lower branches. It 

 was an ant-eater (Myrmecophaga jubata). It remained 

 motionless for an instant, moving its enormous muzzle, and 

 darting out its flat tongue, which, being covered with a 

 slimy coating, enabled it to catch up the ants with facility. 

 At length the " bear," as it is called by the Indians, slid 

 down the trunk, hanging on to it with its enormous claws, 

 its prehensile tail strongly clinging to the sides of the tree. 



At the sight of this shapeless beast, only fifty paces from 

 us, Lucien rushed to me in terror. Sumichrast had just 

 cocked his gun, and the noise made the ant-eater turn tail 

 and prepare to run off, when it found itself face to face 

 with 1'Encuerado. It stood up on its hind legs, with its 

 snout in the air, and then stretched out its arms ready to 

 strike any one who was imprudent enough to come within 

 reach of them. Nothing could be more strange than the 

 appearance of the animal in this defensive position. Sud- 

 denly a shot was fired, and the ant-eater crossed its fore 

 legs and fell down dead. L'Encuerado had once been 

 nearly throttled by an ant-eater, and hence it would have 

 been of no use for me to have attempted to prevent his 

 shooting it. 



" Do not come near, Tata Sumichrast," cried the Indian ; 

 " these beasts die very hard, and I still bear the marks of 

 their claws on my skin. Let me just tickle him up with 

 the point of my machete" 



" You need not have been afraid," said Sumichrast ; " its 

 ugliness is no proof that it is vicious. It will not attack 

 human beings, and only makes use of its strength to defend 

 itself. It is of the order Edentala, and akin to the arma- 

 dilloes." 



" Does it eat any thing but ants ?" asked Lucien. 



" Ants and other insects. It climbs trees, and its bushy 



