THE HORNED ANIMALS. 



447 



paca is very palatable. In their native country they 

 are not used as beasts of burden, but are bred exclu- 

 sively for their wool and flesh. From their wool the 

 Indians manufacture artistic table-covers and other 

 valuable articles, which are noteworthy for their 

 beautiful lustre and their wearing qualities. 



The Vicugna, its "The Vicugna {Auchenia vicugna) is 

 Home and more graceful than the Llama," says 

 Haunts. Tschudi. "In size it holds the mean 

 between Llama and Alpaca, but is distinguished 

 from both by its wool, which is much shorter, more 

 curly and of an exquisitely fine texture. The top of 

 the head, the upper part of the neck, the body and 

 the thighs are of a peculiar reddish yellow hue 

 known as Vicugna color; 

 the throat and the inner 

 faces of the limbs are 

 light ochre yellow; the 

 breast-hair, which is 

 nearly five inches long, 

 and the abdomen are 

 white. 



"During the rainy sea- 

 son the Vicugnas live on 

 the ridges of the Cordil- 

 leras, which afford but 

 scant vegetation. As the 

 hoofs are soft and the 

 soles sensitive, the ani- 

 mals always remain on 

 the grass plots, and even 

 when pursued, they rare- 

 ly retreat to the craggy, 

 bare peaks and still less 

 to the glaciers and snow- 

 fields, as is the habit of 

 the Chamois. During 

 the hot season they de- 

 scend to the valleys. 

 The apparent contradic- 

 tion of habits that in- 

 duces the animals to 

 keep in cold regions in 

 winter and in warm ones 

 in summer, is explained 

 by the fact that the crest 

 of the Cordilleras is 

 quite parched during the 

 dry season, and vegeta- 

 tion capable of affording 

 them sufficient nourish- 

 ment can be found only 

 in the valleys, where 

 there are rivers and mo- 

 rasses. 



" The female usually 

 gives birth to a single 



young one, which immediately after it is born exhib- 

 its extraordinary powers of endurance and great 

 fleetness. The young male Vicugnas remain under 

 the protection of their mothers until they are fully 

 grown; then a large number of females unite and 

 drive the males away by dint of biting and kicking. 

 These discarded individuals unite to form their own 

 herds, eventually joining others, so that they some- 

 times number from twenty to thirty." 



The Vicugna Vicugnas caught young are easily 



Easily Domes- tamed and become very familiar, at- 



ticated. taching themselves to their keeper 



and following him like well-bred domestic animals. 



With advancing age, however, they become vicious, 



like their wild relatives, and unbearable by reason of 

 their unpleasant habit of continually spitting. The 

 experiment of taming them is seldom tried, and their 

 freedom is disturbed only to procure their wool. 



As early as the times of Acosta the Indians used to 

 shear the Vicugnas and use their wool to manufact- 

 ure a fabric of great value, which had the appearance 

 of white silk, and was very durable, as it did not re- 

 quire dyeing or the usual process of bleaching and 

 finishing. Clothing made from this stuff was espe- 

 cially adapted for hot weather. Even now the finest 

 and most durable materials are woven out of this 

 wool, and felt made from it is used for making strong, 

 soft hats. 



THE VICUGNA. Inhabiting the most elevated localities of Bolivia and northern Chili, the Vicugnas live in 



herds. This animal is the smallest of the American species of the Camel family, is very wild, and has resisted all 

 attempts to reduce it to a state of domestication. They are pretty animals with a soft, silky fur which is much in 

 request for making fine fabrics. (Auchenia vicugna.) 



Gbe Ibornefc Hntmals. 



THIRD FAMILY: Bovid/e. 



The third main section of the Ruminants contains 

 the Horned Animals (Bovidce), which constitute a 

 single, clearly defined family, separated into five sub- 

 families. Closely allied to the hollow-horned ani- 

 mals as the Deer may appear to be, they differ from 

 them decidedly in shape and structure, as well as 

 in the manner of the growth of their horns, the de- 

 velopment and progression of those members being 

 a constant one. The Horned Animals have conical 

 projections on the forehead, which remain enclosed 



