no Through the Brazilian Wilderness 



if given the chance will bite a piece the size of a teacup 

 out of either man or dog. It is found singly or in small 

 parties, feeds on roots, fruits, grass, and delights to 

 make its home in hollow logs. If taken young it makes 

 an affectionate and entertaining pet. When the two were 

 in the hollow log we heard them utter a kind of moan- 

 ing, or menacing, grunt, long drawn. 



An hour or two afterward we unexpectedly struck the 

 fresh tracks of two jaguars and at once loosed the dogs, 

 who tore ofi yelling, on the line of the scent. Unfortu- 

 nately, just at this moment the clouds burst and a deluge 

 of rain drove in our faces. So heavy was the downpour 

 that the dogs lost the trail and we lost the dogs. We 

 found them again only owing to one of our cdboclos; an 

 Indian with a queer Mongolian face, and no brain at all 

 that I could discover, apart from his special dealings 

 with wild creatures, cattle, and horses. He rode in a 

 huddle of rags; but nothing escaped his eyes, and he 

 rode anything anywhere. The downpour continued so 

 heavily that we knew the rodeo had been abandoned, and 

 we turned our faces for the long, dripping, splashing ride 

 homeward. Through the gusts of driving rain we could 

 hardly see the way. Once the rain lightened, and half a 

 mile away the sunshine gleamed through a rift in the 

 leaden cloud-mass. Suddenly in this rift of shimmering 

 brightness there appeared a flock of beautiful white 

 egrets. With strong, graceful wing-beats the birds urged 

 their flight, their plumage flashing in the sun. They 

 then crossed the rift and were swallowed in the gray 

 gloom of the day. 



On the marsh the dogs several times roused capy- 



