176 WANDERINGS IN 



THIRD obtains a sufficient supply of food, with very little 



JOURNEY. * * 



- trouble. He cannot travel fast ; man is superior 

 to him in speed. Without swiftness to enable 

 him to escape from his enemies, without teeth, 

 the possession of which would assist him in self- 

 defence, and without the power of burrowing 

 in the ground, by which he might conceal himself 

 from his pursuers, he still is capable of ranging 

 through these wilds in perfect safety ; nor does 

 he fear the fatal pressure of the serpent's fold, 

 or the teeth of the famished jaguar. Nature 

 has formed his fore-legs wonderfully thick, and 

 strong, and muscular, and armed his feet with 

 three tremendous sharp and crooked claws. 

 Whenever he seizes an animal with these formid- 

 able weapons, he hugs it close to his body, 

 and keeps it there till it dies through pressure, 

 or through want of food. Nor does the ant- 

 bear, in the mean time, suffer much from loss 

 of aliment, as it is a well-known fact, that he 

 can go longer without food than, perhaps, any 

 other animal, except the land tortoise. His skin 

 is of a texture that perfectly resists the bite 

 of a dog ; his hinder parts are protected -by 

 thick and shaggy hair, while his immense tail 

 is large enough to cover his whole body. 



The Indians have a great dread of coming 

 in contact with the ant-bear ; and after disabling 

 him in the chase, never think of approaching 

 him till he be quite dead. It is perhaps on 



