ALLIGATORS. 163 



of the animal, whom he receives on his 

 left arm, round which the roana is folded 

 many times, and at the same moment rips 

 him up with his cuchilla, the knife of the 

 country. 



The alligators are very prolific, laying 

 eggs, which are by no means bad eating. 

 The bogas are very fond of them, and 

 wherever they observe the marks of recent 

 scratching, they immediately dig the spot, 

 and take out the eggs, which they boil in 

 the same vessel with their meat and plan- 

 tains. In this manner we once discovered 

 one of these depositories, and I was induced 

 to eat some of the eggs, which had by no 

 means a disagreeable flavour. I have some- 

 times seen the young, by hundreds at a time 

 (shortly after being hatched by the heat 

 of the sun), only a few inches in length : 

 having taken to the water, they keep close 

 to the shore, so that with a tortuma one may 

 M 2 



