SEPT. 1770 QUADRUPEDS 343 
sweep of their semicircle in front 7 feet 64 inches. One 
caution is, however, exceedingly necessary in buying these 
beasts, which is that one of them of any given size does not 
weigh half as much as an ox of the same size in England; 
in this we, who were ignorant of the fact, were very much 
deceived. The larger animals which we guessed to be 400 
Ibs. did not weigh more than 250, and the smaller which 
we guessed to be 250 not more than 160; this vast differ- 
ence proceeded first from a total want of fat, of which there 
was not the least sign, but more especially from the thinness 
of the flanks, and thin pieces which were literally nothing 
but skin and bone. Their flesh, notwithstanding this, was 
not bad; it was well tasted and full of gravy: not that I 
can put it on a footing with the leanest beef in England, 
yet I should suppose it better than a lean ox would be in 
this burnt-up climate. 
Mr. Lange told us that when the Portuguese first came 
to this island there were horses upon it, an opinion from 
which I confess I rather apostatise; but, to waive the 
dispute, horses are now very plentiful. They are small, 
generally eleven or twelve hands high, but very brisk and 
nimble, especially in pacing, which is their common step. 
The inhabitants appear to be tolerable horsemen, riding 
always without a saddle, and generally with only a halter 
instead of a bridle. This is not, however, the only benefit 
that these islanders receive from them, for they use them as 
food, and prefer their flesh to that of buffaloes and every 
other sort but swine’s flesh, which holds the highest rank 
in their opinion. 
Their sheep are of the kind that I have seen in England 
under the name of Bengal sheep; they differ from ours in 
having hair instead of wool, in their ears being very large 
and flapping down, their horns almost straight, and in their 
noses, which are much more arched than those of our 
European kind. These sheep are, I believe, very frequently 
called cabritos, from their resemblance to goats, which, though 
I cannot say it appeared to me at all striking, yet had such 
an effect on the whole ship’s company, officers and seamen, 
