A YO UNG NA TURALIST. 1 2 7 



■with a black coat, bounded forward, and, seizing it, dis- 

 appeared before I had time to recover from my surprise. The 

 marauder was abused as a thief and a rogue by TEncuerado, 

 who had been a witness of this misfortune. Lucien examined the 

 pheasant, which was almost as big as a turkey ; but its sombre 

 plumage did not at all answer to the magnificent idea which the 

 boy had formed of this bird. He thought that the head was much 

 too small for the body, and its naked and warty cheeks led him 

 to observe that the pheasant had the appearance of having put 

 on two plasters of tortoise skin, a remark which was certainly 

 well founded. With regard to the beautiful and many-coloured 

 pheasant-species peculiar to Asia and Africa, Mexico possesses 

 none of them, so far, at least, as I know. 



About two o'clock in the afternoon, Lucien remarked that the 

 trees grew farther apart, which was a sign that we were approach- 

 ing an open glade or the foot of a mountain. Sumichrast made 

 the boy walk in front as leader, a reward for the sharpness of his 

 eyes. Proud of this duty, our little guide led us to an opening 

 edged with a rampart of wood at a short distance off. 

 " Halt ! " cried I. 



The butts of the guns were dropped upon the ground at this 

 order; our hut was soon constructed, and I'Encuerado imme- 

 diately afterwards busied himself preparing our meal. 



Sumichrast, who, from the state of his hand, was condemned 

 to idleness, remained with the Indian, whilst I proceeded, in 

 company with Gringalet and Lucien, to reconnoitre the vicinity 

 of our bivouac. Almost immediately, a yoloxochitl, a species of 

 magnoHa, met our eyes. I called I'Encuerado, who chmbed the 

 tree in order to throw us down some of its beautiful sweet-smelling 

 flowers; they are externally of a pinkish-white colour, yellow 

 on the inside, and the petals, before they are full-blown, assume 

 the form of a cross, and afterwards that of a splendid star. The 

 Indian did not fail to remind us that an infusion of the glitter- 

 ing leaves of the yoloxochitl is a remedy against diarrhoea, and 

 that its flowers, as their shape indicates, cure palpitations of the 

 heart. A little farther on, we recognised a nutmeg-tree, a shrub 

 about ten feet in height, and covered with half-formed fruit. 



