86 A YEAR IN BRAZIL. 



vary the monotony of camp cooking, regaled me on an 

 omelette aux points d'asperge, entre cdte a la bordelaise, and 

 mayonnaise of chicken. He is a wonderful cook, and these 

 delicacies were prepared under his supervision. 



When I rode back, alone, the vultures had given place 

 to fifteen hawks, some of which were inside the carcase. 



We shifted camp to this place on the nth, and again 

 my preserved eatables proved most useful. I was told 

 there was a wolf in the neighbourhood, and the fowls all 

 took the precaution of roosting at the top of a big tree, 

 under which is our rancho, used for cooking. At eleven 

 o'clock I was awakened by the two dogs barking, ahd a few 

 moments after there was a terrific yell from Vicente, whose 

 tent is some dozen feet from mine : " lobo esta na mitiha 

 barraca " (" The wolf is in my tent"). I jumped up, seized 

 my gun, and rushed out ; but he was off. His wet foot- 

 marks were plain on the side of the tent where he had tried 

 to get in. Calling to some of the men to follow, I went 

 off to see whether I could find any trace of him, but 

 returned in about a quarter of an hour, having seen nothing 

 The men were all crouching round the dying embers of the 

 fire, and told me it was very dangerous to go alone after 

 the wolf. I said that was their fault for not accompanying 

 me. Next night he came again at seven o'clock, and we 

 went after him ; but he disappeared, and we have not seen 

 him since.* I suspect that he came after the fowls. 



September 1 2. — This has been my worst day of carrapatos. 

 On returning from the work I removed, or had taken off 



* Captain R. F. Burton mentions it as the Guara wolf {Caiiis Mexicanus) of 

 Cuvier. He says, " I have seen closely but a single specimen, which much 

 resembled the French wolf, except that the coat was redder. This carnivor 

 especially favours the lands where forest and prairie meet or mix. I have never 

 heard of it attacking man ; but, on the other hand, there are no snows to 

 make it ravenous." — " Highlands of Brazil," vol. ii. p. 54. 



