160 RODENT WATEE TRESPASSERS. 



fur still on it. While still warm and fresh from the 

 animal, it is worked over a wooden mould, much as a 

 felt hat is made at the present day, so as to make a 

 circular cover for the quiver. 



The hair is inside, and not outside, as might be 

 imagined. But the native hunter knows what he is 

 about. In the first place, the presence of the stiff, 

 coarse hair serves to retain the cover in its place when 

 screwed on, as it were, with a rotatory motion ; and 

 in the next place, not a particle of water can pass 

 through the hairs thus compressed together. Rain 

 has no effect upon it, neither has dew, or the drip- 

 pings from moisture-saturated leaves. Even if the 

 quiver should perchance fall into the water, no harm 

 would befal it, and it would float away as lightly and 

 as free from water as a corked bottle. It might lie 

 in, or rather on, the "water for a week, and the en- 

 closed weapons would be as serviceable as when they 

 were first shut into it. 



The use of these hairs to the animal can easily be 

 seen by watching the Capybara in the water. As it 

 swims about, in spite of the graceful ease of its move- 

 ments, it looks as if its long clothing of coarse hair 

 must be very unpleasant when it comes on shore. 

 After it has swum about for some time, it clambers 

 up the bank, when the water pours off its hairy 

 clothing like rain off" a thatched house, leaving the 

 animal as dry as are the rooms of the house in 

 question. 



The Capybara does not seem to care particularly 

 about the quality of the water, and may often be found 

 near the mouths of tidal rivers, when at time of flood, 



