548 



THE MANATEE. 



The common Manatee is generally about nine or ten feet in length, and is remarkable 

 for the thick fleshy disk which terminates the muzzle, and in which the nostrils are 

 placed. It is found in some plenty at the mouths of sundry large rivers, such as the 

 Orinoco or the Amazon, and feeds upon the algae and other herbage which grows so 

 plentifully in those regions. By some writers the animal, is said to leave the water 

 entirely, and to search for its food upon the land, but this assertion is now ascertained 

 to be incorrect. It is, however, in the habit of crawling partly out of the water, and 

 has a strange custom of elevating its head and shoulders above the surface in such a 

 manner that it bears some resemblance to a human being. 



The flesh of this animal is said to be well flavored, and as the Manatee is ecclesias- 

 tically reckoned as a fish, together with the whales, seals, and other water-loving 

 creatures, it is permitted as a lawful article of diet on fasting days. When properly 

 salted and preserved by drying in the sun, the flesh of this animal will remain sweet for 

 a whole year. The skin of the Manatee is in great request for the formation of sundry 



MANA-TEE.-Manatus.Australls. 



leathern articles in which great strength is required, and the oil which is extracted 

 from its fat is of excellent quality, and is free from the unpleasant rancid odor which 

 characterizes so many animal oils. 



So valuable an animal is subject to great persecution on the part of the natives, who 

 display great activity, skill, and courage in the pursuit of their amphibious quarry. 

 The skin of the Manatee is so thick and strong that the wretched steel of which their 

 weapons are composed, the " machetes," or sword-knives, with which they are almost 

 universally armed, being sold in England for three shillings and sixpence per dozen, 

 is quite unable to penetrate the tough hide. Nothing is so effectual a weapon for 

 this service as a common English three-cornered file, which is fastened to a spear-shaft, 

 and pierces through the tough hide with the greatest ease. The skin of the Manatee 

 is so thick that it can be cut into strips like the too-celebrated " cow-hide " of America, 

 which is manufactured from the skin of the hippopotamus. Before being dressed, the 

 hide of the Manatee is thinly covered with rather stiff bristles. 



