nieuhoff's brazil. 717 



fpikes are halfways yellowl/li, the remaining part is black, except the points, which 

 are whitifh and as fharp as an awl. When they are vexed, they are able, by a cer- 

 tain contra6lion of the fkin, to throw or dart them with fuch violence, that they wound, 

 nay, fometimes kill men or beads. Their whole body, to meafure from the hinder- 

 moft part of the head to the beginning of the tail, is a foot long, and the tail a foot and 

 five inches in length, which likewife has halfways fharp fpikes, the reft being covered 

 with briftles like other hogs. The eyes are round, ftarting and gliftering hke a car- 

 buncle ; about the mouth and nofe 15 hair of four fingers length, refembling thofe 

 of our cats or hares : the feet' are like thofe of apes, but with four fingers only with- 

 out a thumb, inftead of which you fee a place vacant, as if it had been cut away. The 

 fore-legs are lefs than the hindermofl, they are likewife armed with fpikes, but not 

 the feet. 



This creature commonly lleeps in the day-time, and roves about by night ; it 

 breathes through the noftrils, is a great lover of fowl, and climbs up the trees, though 

 very llowly. The flefli is of no ungrateful tafte, but roafted and eaten by the inha- 

 bitants. It makes a noife jii, like the Luyaert. 



That four-legged creature, by the Brazilians called AI, by the Portuguefe Priguiza, 

 and by the Dutch Luyaert (lazy-back) from its lazy and flow pace, becaufe in fifteea 

 days time it fcarce walks above a ftone's throw. It is about the bignefs of a middle-^ 

 fized fox, its length being a little above a foot, to meafure from the neck (which is 

 fcarce three fingers long) to the tail. The fore-legs are feven fingers long to the feet, 

 but the hindermoft about fix ; the head round, of three fingers in length ; its mouth, 

 which never is without a foam, is round and fmall, its teeth neither large nor fharp. 

 The nofe is black, high, and glib, and the eyes fmall, black and heavy. The body 

 is covered all over with afh-coloured hair, about two fingers long ; which are more 

 inclining to the white towards the back. Round about the neck the hair is fomewhat 

 longer than the reft. It is a very lazy creature, unable to undergo any fatigues, by 

 reafon its legs are as it were disjointed in the middle ; yet it keeps upon the trees, but 

 moves, or rather creeps along very flowly. Its food is the leaves of the trees ; it never 

 drinks, and when it rains, hides itfelf. Wherever it faftens with its paws, it is not 

 eafily removed ; it makes, though feldom, a noife hke our cats. 



The Pifmire Eater, is thus called, becaufe he feeds upon nothing but pifmires ; 

 there are two forts, the great and the fmall : the Brazilians call the firft Tamanduai, and 

 the laft Tamanduai Guacu. It is a four-legged creature, of the bignefs of a dog, 

 with a round head, long fnout, fmall mouth, and no teeth. The tongue is roundifh, 

 but fometimes twenly-five inches, nay, two foot and a half long. When it feeds, it 

 ftretches out its tongue upon the dunghills, till the pifmires have fettled upon it, and 

 then fwallows them. It has round ears, and a rough tail ; is not nimble, but may 

 be taken with the hand in the field. The fmall one, called Tamanduai Guacu, is of 

 the bignefs of a Brazilian fox, about a foot in length. On the fore-feet it has four 

 crooked claws, two big ones in the midft, and the two lefTer on the fides. The head 

 is round, yet pointed at one end, a little bent below ; with a little black mouth with- 

 out teeth. The eyes are very fmall ; the ears fland upright about a finger's length. 

 Two broad black lifts run along on both fides of the back ; the hairs on the tail are 

 longer than thofe on the back, the extremity of the tail is without hair, wherewith it 

 faftens to the branches of the trees. The hairs all over the body are of a pale yellow, 

 hard and bright. Its tongue is round, and about eight fingers long. It is a very 

 lavage creature, grafps every thing with its paws, and if you hit it with a ftick, fits 

 rpright like a bear, and takes hold of it with its ruouth, It fleeps all day long, with. 



its 



