448 Miscellaneous Intelligence. 



attempt to shoot the condor ; they usually catch him by traps or by the 

 lasso, or kill him by stones flung from slings, or by the Bolas. A cu- 

 rious method of capturing the condor alive is practiced in the province 

 of Abancay. A fresh cow-hide, with some fragments of flesh adher- 

 ing to it, is spread out on one of the level heights, and an Indian pro- 

 vided with ropes creeps beneath it, whilst some others station themselves 

 in ambush near the spot ready to assist him. Presently a condor, at- 

 tracted by the smell of the flesh, darts down upon the cow-hide, and 

 then the Indian, who is concealed under it, seizes the bird by the legs, 

 and binds them fast in the skin, as if in a bag. The captured condor 

 flaps his wings, and makes ineffectual attempts to fly ; but he is speed- 

 ily secured, and carried in triumph to the nearest village. 



The Indians quote numerous instances of young children having been 

 attacked by condors. That these birds are sometimes extremely fierce 

 is very certain. The following occurrence came within my own know- 

 ledge whilst I was in Lima. 1 had a condor, which, when he first came 

 into my possession, was very young. To prevent his escape, as soon 

 as he was able to fly, he was fastened by the leg to a chain, to which 

 was attached a piece of iron, of about six pounds weight. He had a 

 large court to range in, and he dragged the piece of iron about after 

 him all day. When he was a year and a half old he flew away, with 

 the chain and iron attached to his leg;, and perched on the spire of San- 

 to Tomas, whence he was scared away by the carrion hawks. On 

 alighting in the street, a negro attempted to catch him for the purpose 

 of bringing him home ; upon which he seized the poor creature by the 

 ear, and tore it completely off. He then attacked a child in the street 

 (a negro boy of three years old), threw him on the ground, and knock- 

 ed him on the head so severely with his beak, that the child died in 

 consequence of the injuries. I hoped to have brought this bird alive to 

 Europe ; but after being at sea two months on our homeward voyage, 

 he died on board the ship in the latitude of Monte Video. 



18. Fossil Footprints; by James Deane, (from a letter to Prof. 

 Silliman.) — I beg your permission to correct an error which occurred 

 in the March number of your Journal, relative to a communication of 

 mine in a preceding number. 



It is there stated, page 276, that "you are informed by Prest. E. 

 Hitchcock, that the quadruped tracks figured by me, p. 79 of this vol- 

 ume, and supposed to be new, are the Sauroidichnites pahnatus of his 

 Geological Report, or the Palamopus anomalus of his new nomencla- 

 ture, &c. He lately examined the original specimen in the collection 

 of Mr. Marsh, and immediately recognized it as belonging to the 

 species just mentioned." 



I saw this statement with surprise and immediately referred to the 

 descriptions of Prest. H., which are as follows. 



" S. palmatus. Toes 4, all directed forward : the three outer ones 

 resemble very much the three front toes of most of the species already 

 described; the middle one being somewhat, but not very much, the 

 longest ; and those on each side nearly equal. The inner or fourth toe 

 is very short. Length of foot 2£ to 3 inches. Shown of the natural 

 size and in relief on PI. 34, fig. 15, &c." 



