70 Prince Maximilian^s 



however, during the night, and accompanied us in the morning 

 towards Villa de S. Jodo da Barr a. The weather was exces- 

 sively hot; t]ie swamps of the woods, nearly dried up, appeared 

 overspread with a thick covering of yellow and whitish butter- 

 flies, which were seeking moisture. This concourse of butter- 

 flies to wet grounds is a sure harbinger of the hot season; and 

 they may sometimes be seen like clouds swarming about a piece 

 of water. The view of the Paraiba was concealed from us by 

 bushes ; and the sandy soil proved that we were near the sea. 

 When we had reached the bank of the river, a species of hunt, 

 completely movel to us, presented itself, being that of the Jacare, 

 crocodilus scolcrops, or alligator of this (;ountry. This amphi- 

 bious animal lives in all the rivers of the Brazils, and especially 

 in marshy places and standing water. The last are easily dis- 

 covered by certain large-leafed water-plants, Nymphcea Pon- 

 tcderia, the branches of which spread their leaves horizontally 

 over the surface. Among these the experienced observer per- 

 ceives the Jacare, peeping its head lurkingly out of the water, 

 though it is sometimes seen in the middle of the stream, 

 especially in dead, slow-running brooks. Thick bushes with 

 slender stems from eighteen to twenty feet in height, belonging 

 to a tree furnished with large wooly heart-shaped leaves^ (ap- 

 parently a Croton) very nearly related to the Tridesmys, {Monos- 

 cia) covered the shore of the Paraiba. Between these it is easy 

 secretly to approach the bank and view the Jacare, as it basks 

 with its head above the water, watching its prey. As at first 

 we approached the water without thinking of these creatures, 

 or observing the necessary silence, we heard the noise which 

 they make on diving into the river ; and this, inducing us to 

 proceed more carefully to learn whence it arose, we found the 

 Jacares to be the cause of it. With a double-barrelled gun, 

 loaded with middling shot, I hit one of these animals in the 

 neck; it sprang up, rolled itself on its back, and then sank 

 down. We destroyed three or four more in the same liianner, but 

 had no means of getting any one of them out of the water; our 

 huntsman, however, having killed one in a slow running stream 

 at a little distance from us, we were enabled, on coming up 

 to them, to procure a man and canoe from some neighbouring 

 fisher-huts, who, searching the bottom of the water with a 

 fork, brought up the animal. This Jacare was about six feet 

 in length, of a grey greenish colour, with some dark cross 

 stripes, especially on the tail; the under side of the body had 

 a bright yellow unmixed appearance. Greatly rejoiced t^ pos- 

 sess this beautiful, and to us yet novel creature, we placed it 

 upon one of our beasts of burden ; whence it diffused widely 

 around a most disgusting musk-odour. The Jacare of the east 



