THE PAMPAS OF PATAGONIA. 23 



on my side of the water. As I am about to dismount, they 

 gallop wildly, with the extraordinary galvanic contortions 

 peculiar to these creatures when descending a steep place, 

 down the barranca and out into the marsh-grass by the river. 

 I now see a chance of cutting them off, as in front of them 

 the river turns in a loop ; my horse is comparatively fresh, 

 and I am on hard ground, as I think. 



The cruzado enters into the spirit of the game, and in 

 an instant we are flying along the cliff. The guanacos start 

 at the same moment and make off straight down the valley. 

 Inside half a mile they will be stopped by the loop of the 

 river, when they must either plunge into the water or break 

 back and cross my front at close range. They travel three 

 parts of the distance before they perceive the trap, then 

 double instantly and break back. I have but three hundred 

 yards to go, they have a similar distance. I shall have 

 time to dismount and get a steady shot as they cross broad- 

 side. My eyes are fixed on the leading buck, a big, black- 

 faced fellow ; the cruzado has seen them too, and knows 

 exactly what is expected of him. He has a turn for speed, 

 and my little trick seems likely to succeed, when I suddenly 

 find myself first in the air and next in a calif ate bush ; in- 

 deed for a second or so I am not sure where I am. Then I 

 crawl out with a bleeding nose, but no more serious damage, 

 to find the cruzado, looking curiously fore-shortened, still 

 struggling to extricate himself from a pit of soft, whitish 

 clay, into which his front-legs have sunk to the shoulders. 

 Meantime the guanaco have bounded past, up the barranca 

 and out of sight. 



After clearing the cruzado and myself as well as I can 

 from the marks of the adhesive clay and a much more 

 lengthy proceeding freeing the barrel of my rifle from mud 

 and slime, I notice that it is growing late and turn towards 

 camp. Both my horse and I have been considerably sobered 

 by the rather crumpling fall, and now jog along at a pace 



