VII THE GREAT DROUGHT 141 



genera inhabit and have inhabited the Old World, it seems 

 most probable that the North American elephants, mastodons, 

 horse, and hollow-horned ruminants migrated, on land since 

 submerged near Behring's Straits, from Siberia into North 

 America, and thence, on land since submerged in the West 

 Indies, into South America, where for a time they mingled with 

 the forms characteristic of that southern continent, and have 

 since become extinct. 



While travelling through the country, I received several 

 vivid descriptions of the effects of a late great drought ; and 

 the account of this may throw some light on the cases where 

 vast numbers of animals of all kinds have been embedded 

 together. The period included between the years 1827 and 

 1830 is called the "gran seco," or the great drought. During 

 this time so little rain fell, that the vegetation, even to the 

 thistles, failed ; the brooks were dried up, and the whole 

 country assumed the appearance of a dusty high-road. This 

 was especially the case in the northern part of the province of 

 Buenos Ayres and the southern part of St. Fe. Very great 

 numbers of birds, wild animals, cattle, and horses perished 

 from the want of food and water. A man told me that the 

 deer^ used to come into his courtyard to the well, which he 

 had been obliged to dig to supply his own family with water ; 

 and that the partridges had hardly strength to fly away when 

 pursued. The lowest estimation of the loss of cattle in the 

 province of Buenos Ayres alone, was taken at one million head. 

 A proprietor at San Pedro had previously to these years 

 20,000 cattle ; at the end not one remained. San Pedro is 

 situated in the middle of the finest country ; and even now 

 abounds again with animals ; yet, during the latter part of the 

 " gran seco," live cattle were brought in vessels for the consump- 



* In Capt. Owen's Surveying Voyage (vol. 11. p. 274) there is a curious account 

 of the effects of a drought on the elephants, at Benguela (west coast of Africa). *' A 

 number of these animals had some time since entered the town, in a body, to possess 

 themselves of the wells, not being able to procure any water in the country. The 

 inhabitants mustered, when a desperate conflict ensued, which terminated in the ulti- 

 mate discomfiture of the invaders, but not until they had killed one man, and 

 wounded several others." The town is said to have a population of nearly three 

 thousand ! Dr. Malcolmson informs me, that during a great drought in India the 

 wild animals entered the tents of some troops at EUure, and that a hare drank out of 

 a vessel held by the adjutant of the regiment. 



