CHAPTER XXVII. 



l'eNCUERADO AND THE PARROTS. GRINGALET MEETS A 



FRIEND. THE COUGAR, OR AMERICAN LION. A STREAM. 



OUR " PALM-TREE VILLA." TURTLES' EGGS. — THE TAN- 

 TALUS. — HERONS AND FLAMINGOES. 



F 1 ^HE parrots that we heard chattering were quite suffi- 

 ~r cient to wake us up in the morning. The sun rose 

 red and angry ; a perfect concert soon greeted its appear- 

 ance. The hoccos set up their sonorous clucking, and birds 

 of every kind came fluttering round us. Lucien, now recon- 

 ciled to the virgin forests, was never tired of admiring the 

 varieties of trees, shrubs, or bushes, and the infinite number 

 of the winged inhabitants which enliven them. We slowly 

 descended into the plain ; even now the heat was too much 

 for us, and long marches would soon be impossible. A 



