HUNTING WILD CATTLE. 243 



myrning I started with six horses and two Gau- 

 chos : the latter were capital men for the purpose, 

 and well accustomed to living on their own re- 

 sources. The weather was very boisterous and 

 cold, with heavy hail-storms. We got on, howev- 

 er, pretty well, but, except the geology, nothing 

 eould be less interesting than our day's ride. The 

 country is uniformly the same undulating moor- 

 land ; the surface being covered by light brown 

 withered grass and a few very small shrubs, all 

 springing out of an elastic peaty soil. In the val- 

 leys here and there might be seen a small flock of 

 wild geese, and everywhere the gi'ound was so 

 soft that the snipe were able to feed. Besides 

 these two birds there were few others. There is 

 one main range of hills, nearly two thousand feet 

 in height, and composed of quartz rock, the rug- 

 ged and barren crests of which gave us some 

 trouble to cross. On the south side we came to 

 the best country for wild cattle ; we met, however, 

 no great number, for they had been lately much 

 harassed. 



In the evening we came across a small herd. 

 One of my companions, St. Jago by name, soon 

 separated a fat cow ; he threw the bolas, and it 

 struck her legs, but failed in becoming entangled. 

 Then dropping his hat to mark the spot where the 

 balls were left, while at full gallop he uncoiled his 

 lazo, and after a most severe chase again came up 

 to the cow, and caught her round the horns. The 

 other Gaucho had gone on ahead with the spare 

 horses, so that St. Jago had some difficulty in kill- 

 ing the furious beast. He managed to get her on 

 a level piece of ground, by taking advantage of her 

 as often as she rushed at him ; and when she would 

 not move, my horse, from having been ti'ained, 

 would canter up, and with his chest give her a vi- 



