AN ALARM. 275 



miglit liear the report, now thought it high time 

 to shoot, so he fired, and killed him in his tracks. 

 " The skin," as he informed ns, " was so beauti- 

 ful, it was a pleasure to look at it." 



These skins are very highly prized by the 

 Mexicans, and also by the Kangers; they are 

 used for holster coverings and as saddle cloths, 

 and form a superb addition to the caparison of a 

 beautiful horse, the most important animal to 

 the occupants of the prairies of Texas, and upon 

 which they always show to the best advantage. 



In a conversation with General Houston at 

 Washington city, he informed us that he had 

 found the jaguar east of the San Jacinto river, 

 and abundantly on the head waters of some of 

 the eastern tributaries of the Rio Grande, the 

 Guadaloupe, etc. 



These animals, said the general, are sometimes 

 found associated to the number of two or more, 

 together, when they easily destroy horses and 

 other large quadrupeds. On the head waters of 

 the San Marco, one night, the general's people 

 were aroused by the snorting of their horses, but 

 on advancing into the space around could see 

 nothing, owing to the great darkness. The 

 horses having become quiet, the men returned 

 to camp and lay down to rest as usual, but in 

 the morning one of the horses was found to have 

 been killed and eaten up entirely, except the 



