VriLD HORSE.] 



THE HOESE, AND 



[wild hoesb. 



reeking from the niotlier, wliich is said to be 

 sacrificed for the sole purpose, just at the time 

 of bearing when the hair has not begun to 

 grow. At this stage the skin strips off easily, 

 and is very white and beautiful in texture and 

 appearance. The ham forms the calf of the 

 boot; the hock easily adapts itself to the heel ; 

 and the leg above tlie fetlock constitutes the 

 foot; the whole making a neat and elegant 

 half- boot, with an aperture suiBcient for tlie 

 great toe to project through." 



When the Gaucho wishes to take a wild 

 horse, he mounts one that has been used to 

 the sport, and gallops over the plain. As soon 

 as he comes sufficiently near liis prey, "the 

 lasso is thrown round the two hind-legs; 

 and as the Gaucho rides a little on one side, 

 the jerk pulls the entangled horde's feet late- 

 rally, so as to throw him on his side, without 

 endangering his knees or his face. Before the 

 horse can recover the shock, the rider dis- 

 mounts, and snatching his poncho or cloak 

 from ins shoulders, wraps it round the pros- 

 trate aninud's head. He then forces into his 

 niouth one of the powerful bridles of the 

 country, straps a saddle on his back, and 

 bestriding him, removes the poncho; upon 

 which the astonished horse springs on his 

 legs, and endeavours, by a thousand vain 

 efforts, to disencumber himself of his new 

 master, who sits quite composedly on his back^ 

 and, by a discipline which never fails, reduces 

 the animal to such complete obedience, that 

 he is soon trained to lend his whole speed and 

 strength to the capture ot his companions." 



These animals possess much of the form of 

 the Spanish horse, from which they sprung. 

 They are tamed, as has been seen, with far less 

 difficulty than could be thought possible; and, 

 although theirs is the obedience of fear, and 

 enforced at first by the whip and spur, there 

 are no horses that so soon and so perfectly 

 exert their sagacity and their power in the 

 service of man. They are possessed of no 

 extraordinary speed; but they are capable of 

 enduring immense tatigue, and are frequently 

 ridden fifty or sixty miles without drawing bit. 

 Indeed, it is known that they have been urged 

 on by the cruel spur of the Gaucho, more than 

 a hundred miles, and at tlie rate of twelve 

 miles in the hour. 



Like the Arab horses, they know no inter 

 46 



mediate pace between the walk and the gallop. 

 Although, at the end of a day so hard, their sides 

 are horribly mangled, and they themselves so 

 completely exhausted, there is this consolation 

 for them — that they are immediately turned 

 loose on the plains, and it will be their own 

 fault if they are speedily caught again. The 

 mare is occasionally killed for food, and, espe- 

 cially, on occasions of unusual festivity. Gen- 

 eral San Martin, during the war for indepen- 

 dence, gave a feast to the Indian allies attached 

 to his army; and the flesh of niares, with the 

 blood mixed with gin, formed tbe whole of the 

 entertainment. 



On such dry and sultry plains the supply of 

 water is often scanty. When this is the case, 

 a species of madness seizes on the horses, and 

 their generous and docile qualities are no longer 

 recognised. They rush violently into every 

 pond and lake, savagely mangling and trampling 

 upon one another ; and the carcasses of many 

 thousands of them, destroyed by their fellows, 

 have occasionally been seen in and around a con- 

 siderable pool. This is one of the means by 

 which the too rapid increase of this quadruped 

 is, by an ordinance of Nature, prevented. It 

 is observed by Humboldt, that during the 

 periodical risings of the large rivers, vast 

 numbers of wild horses are drowned. Tiiis is 

 especially the case when the Apure is swollen, 

 and when these animals attempt to reach the 

 rising grounds of the Llanos. 



The bolas is another instrument which is 

 occasionally brought into requisition by the 

 Gauchos for the catching of wild horses. It 

 consists of two balls, of two kinds, attached tr 

 thongs. The first is composed of three rounc 

 stones, about the size of a man's fist, covere'i 

 with strong leather, and attached to a common 

 centre by tough leathern cords, three feet 

 long. The smallest of the three is taken in 

 the hand; and, after whirling the others vio* 

 lently round the head, the whole are thrown to 

 the distance of about one hundred teet, when 

 they so maim and entwine themselves round the 

 limbs of any living creature, that it is impos- 

 sible to escape from them. Tlie other kind is 

 a single ball of the same size, except when it 

 is made of iron or copper, it being then 

 smaller. It is also covered with leather, and 

 lias a leathern thong attached, by which it 

 IS whirled round, and, at tlie hard gali.-p, 



