1833.] THE CARDOON. 113 



unfrequented spots in Chile, Eutre Bios, and Banda Oriental. In 

 the latter country alone, very many (probably several hundred) 

 square miles are covered by one mass of these prickly plants, and 

 are impenetrable by man or beast. Over the undulating plains, 

 where these great beds occur, nothing else can now live. Before 

 their introduction, however, the surface must have supported, as 

 in other parts, a rank herbage. I doubt whether any case is on 

 record of an invasion on so grand a scale of one plant over the 

 aborigines. As I have already said, I nowhere saw the cardoon 

 south of the Salado ; but it is probable that in proportion as that 

 country becomes inhabited, the cardoon will extend its limits. The 

 case is different with the giant thistle (with variegated leaves) of 

 the Pampas, for I met with it in the valley of the Sauce. Accord- 

 ing to the principles so well laid down by Mr. Lyell, few countries 

 have undergone more remarkable changes, since the year 1535, 

 when the first colonist of La Plata landed with seventy-two horses. 

 The countless herds of horses, cattle, and sheep, not only have 

 altered the whole aspect of the vegetation, but they have almost 

 banished the guanaco, deer, and ostrich. Numberless other changes 

 must likewise have taken place ; the wild pig in some parts prob- 

 ably replaces the peccari; packs of wild dogs may be heard 

 howling on the wooded banks of the less-frequented streams ; and 

 the common cat, altered into a large and fierce animal, inhabits 

 rocky hills. As M. d'Orbigny has remarked, the increase in num- 

 bers of the carrion-vulture, since the introduction of the domestic 

 animals, must have been infinitely great ; and we have given reasons 

 for believing that they have extended their southern range. No 

 doubt many plants, besides the cardoon and fennel, are naturalized ; 

 thus the islands near the mouth of the Parana, are thickly clothed 

 with peach and orange trees, springing from seeds carried there by 

 the waters of the river. 



While changing horses at the Guardia several people questioned 

 us much about the army, I never saw anything like the enthu- 

 siasm for Rosas, and for the success of the " most just of all wars, 

 because against barbarians." This expression, it must be con- 

 fessed, is very natural, for till lately, neither man, woman, nor 

 horse, was safe from the attacks of the Indians. We had a long day's 

 ride over the same rich green plain, abounding with various flocks, 

 and with here and there a solitary estancia, and its one ombu tree. 

 In the evening it rained heavily : on arriving at a post-house we 



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