160 



CHILI. 



more picturesque scene than was now presented to 

 us ; or one which, in the hands of a bold sketch- 

 er, would have furnished a finer subject. Let the 

 furious beast be imagined driven almost to mad- 

 ness by thirst, and a variety of irritations, and in 

 the utmost terror at the multitude of lassos whirl- 

 ing all around him ; he rushes wildly forward, his 

 eyes flashing fire, his nostrils almost touching the 

 ground, and his breath driving off the dust in his 

 course : — for one short instant he is free, and full 

 of life and strength, defying, as it were, all the 

 world to restrain him in his headlong course; 

 the next moment he is covered with lassos, his 

 horns, his neck, his legs, are all encircled by these 

 inevitable cords, hanging loose, in long festoons 

 from the hands of the horsemen galloping in all 

 directions, but the next instant as tight as bars of 

 iron ; and the noble animal lying prostrate on the 

 ground motionless and helpless. He is immedi- 

 ately dispatched by a man on foot, who stands 

 ready for this purpose with a long sharp knife in 

 his hand ; and as soon as the body is disentangled 



from the lassos, it is drawn on one side, and ano- 



s 



