THE SOUTH AMERICAN LASSO. 



31 



iness of the sun's rays striking on the arid low 

 (grounds : neither bird nor beast was to be seen, 

 Inor the least speck of a cloud in the sky. The 

 jtyranny of the sun was complete. There was a 

 solemn tranquillity in this, which, while it disposed 

 Ithe mind to thought, took nothing from its cheer- 

 fulness. But we were soon left to enjoy it alone, 

 as the company dropped off one by one, to take 

 their siesta, the landlord only remaining ; but as 

 this was evidently out of civility to his guests, we 

 took an early opportunity of slipping off to our 

 rooms, that he also might retire. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



Selection of Cattle.— Description of the Lasso used for 



catching Cattle. — Expertness of the Chilians Country 



Dances.— Promesa against Dancing by a Young Lady. 



Our host was a native Chilian, but of Spanish 

 descent. He was a considerable landed pro- 

 prietor, who passed the greater part of his time 

 on his estate, and who, from his knowledge of 

 farming, cattle breeding, and the cultivation of the 

 vine, had been enabled not only to turn his pro- 

 perty to good account, but to obtain great influence 

 in the country. By kindness and hospitality he 

 drew people to his house, while his talents and 

 information rendered him an invaluable neigh- 

 bour. His wife was absent in the city for her 

 confinement, but her father and two sisters were 

 of our party. 



Between four and five o'clock, the siesta being 

 over, our friends rubbing their eyes gradually made 

 their appearance ; and by half past five, we were 

 all assembled. The carreta, which is merely a 

 covered cart, well supplied with mats and straw in 

 place of springs, was ordered for the ladies, who 

 set out to pay what they were pleased to call "unas 

 visitas campestres ; " in plain English, gossiping 

 country visits. 



The gentlemen rode in another direction to see 

 the cattle selected for next day's Matanza or slaugh- 

 ter. We were guided by a cloud of dust to the 

 spot where the country people had collected the 

 drove, and hemmed them into a corner. The 

 master of the house, accompanied by the principal 

 horseman of his farm, rode amongst the beasts, 

 and fixing his eye upon the fattest, pointed it out 

 to the attendants, who soon separated it from the 

 rest, by means of their goads. In this way fifteen 

 were selected, and being surrounded by about a 

 dozen horsemen, were driven slowly towards the 

 house, and finally shut up in an adjoining corral 

 or enclosure. 



On our way homeward, our host entertained us 

 by making his people show us the South American 

 method of catching cattle. The instrument used 

 is called in English a Lasso, from the Spanish Lazo, 

 which signifies slip-knot or noose. It consists of a 

 rope made of twisted strips of untanned hide, vary- 

 ing in length from fifteen to twenty yards, and is 

 about as thick as the little finger. It has a noose 

 or running knot at one end, the other extremity 

 being fastened by an eye and button to a ring in 

 a strong hide belt or surcingle, bound tightly round 

 the hori*s. The coil is grasped by the horseman's 

 left hand, while the noose, which is held in the 

 right, trails along the ground except when in use, 



and then it is whirled round the head with con- 

 siderable velocity, during which, by a peculiar turn 

 of the wrist, it is made to assume a circular form ; 

 so that, when delivered from the hand, the noose 

 preserves itself open till it falls over the object at 

 which it has been aimed. 



The unerring precision with which the lasso is 

 thrown is perfectly astonishing, and to one who 

 sees it for the first time, has a very magical appear- 

 ance. Even when standing still, it is by no means 

 an easy thing to throw the lasso ; but the difficulty 

 is vastly increased when it comes to be thrown from 

 horseback and at a gallop, and when, in addition, 

 the rider is obliged to pass over uneven ground, 

 and to leap hedges and ditches in his course. Yet 

 such is the dexterity of the guassos, or countrymen, 

 that they are not only sure of catching the animal 

 they are in chase of, but can fix, or as they term it, 

 place their lasso on any particular part they please; 

 either over the horns or the neck, or round the 

 body ; or they can include all four legs, or two, or 

 any one of the four ; and the whole with such ease 

 and certainty, that it is necessary to witness the 

 feat to have a just conception of the skill displayed. 

 It is like the dexterity of the savage Indian in the 

 use of his bow and arrow, and can only be gained 

 by the arduous practice of many years. It is in 

 fact the earliest amusement, as well as business, of 

 these people ; for I have often seen little boys just 

 beginning to run about, actively employed in las- 

 soing cats, and entangling the legs of every dog 

 that was unfortunate enough to pass within reach. 

 In due season they become very expert in their 

 attacks on poultry; and afterwards in catching wild 

 birds : so that by the time they are mounted on 

 horseback, which is always at an early age, they 

 begin to acquire that matchless skill, from which 

 no animal of less speed than a horse has the slightest 

 chance of escaping. 



Let us suppose that a wild bull is to be caught, 

 and that two mounted horsemen, guassos as they 

 are called in Chili, or guachos in Buenos Ayres, 

 undertake to kill him. As soon as they discover 

 their prey, they remove the coil of the lasso from 

 behind them, and grasping it in the left hand, 

 prepare the noose in the right, and dash off at full 

 gallop, each swinging his lasso round his head. The 

 first who comes within reach aims at the bull's 

 horns, and when he sees, which he does in an in- 

 stant, that the lasso which he has thrown will take 

 effect, he stops his horse, and turns it half round, 

 the bull continuing his course, till the whole cord 

 has run out. The horse, meanwhile, knowing, by 

 experience, what is going to happen, leans over as 

 much as he can in the opposite direction from the 

 bull, and stands trembling in expectation of the 

 violent tug which is to be given to him by the bull 

 when brought up by the lasso. So great, indeed, is 

 the jerk which takes place at this moment, that 

 were the horse not to lean over in the manner de- 

 scribed, he would certainly be overturned ; but 

 standing as he does across the road, with his feet 

 planted firmly on the ground, he offers sufficient 

 resistance to stop the bull as instantaneously as if it 

 had been shot, though the instant before he was 

 running at full speed. In some cases, this check 

 is so abrupt and violent, that the animal is not 

 only dashed to the ground, but rolls along at the 

 full stretch of the lasso ; while the horse is drawn 

 sideways, and ploughs up the earth with his feet 



