136 UP THE RIVER OF TAPIRS [chap, v 



went far back of ci^-ilization to a savage ancestry near 

 by in point of time and othermse immeasurably remote ; 

 for through the stUl, hot air, under the brilliant moon- 

 hght, we heard the monotonous throbbing of a tomtom 

 drum, and the twanging of some odd-stringed instru- 

 ment. The small black turkey-buzzards, here always 

 called crows, were as tame as chickens near the big 

 house, walking on the ground or perched in the trees 

 beside the corral, waiting for the oJfFal of the slaughtered 

 cattle. Two palm-trees near ovu* tent were crowded 

 with the long, hanging nests of one of the cacique 

 orioles. We Mved well, with plenty of tapir beef, which 

 was good, and venison of the bush-deer, which was 

 excellent ; and as much ordinary beef as we wished, and 

 fresh milk, too — a rarity in this country. There were 

 very few mosquitoes, and everything was as comfortable 

 as possible. 



The tapir I IdUed was a big one. I did not wish to 

 kUl another, unless, of course, it became ad\dsable to 

 do so for food ; whereas I did wish to get some speci- 

 mens of the big, white-Hpped peccary, the " queixa " 

 (pronounced " cashada ") of the BraziUans, which would 

 make our collection of the big mammals of the BraziUan 

 forests almost complete. The remaining members of 

 the party killed two or three more tapirs. One was a 

 bull, full grown but very much smaller than the animal 

 I had killed. The himters said that this was a distinct 

 kind. The skull and skin were sent back with the other 

 specimens to the American INIuseum, where, after due 

 examination and comparison, its specific identity will 

 be estabhshed. Tapirs are sohtary beasts. Two are 

 rarely found together, except in the case of a cow and 

 and its spotted and streaked calf. They hve in dense 

 cover, usually lying down in the daytime, and at night 



