292 TRAVELS IN THE EAf^T FNDTAN ARCHIPELAGO. 



cot up into tliin slices and ^mokod, and now, in many 

 places on the hills around tbe bay of Kayeli, col- 

 umns of smoke ai'e seen rising every day, where the 

 natives are busy changing venison into dmUngy the 

 only kind of meat they have except that of wild 

 boarSj which are very abundant on this island, though 

 seldom taken. They are accustomed to come out 

 into the praiiie-landa in great droves, and frequentl}^ 

 an area of a quarter of an acre is so completely rooted 

 up by them that it looks as if it had been ploughed 

 They even come by night to the gardens, or culti- 

 vated places^ at a little distance from tbe village, and 

 in a short time destroy almost every thing growing 

 in them. One time, seeing a rare bird perched high 

 on the top of a J one tree that stood in the tall grass, I 

 cautiously approached within range and tired, when 

 suddenly there was a rattling of hoofs on the dry 

 ground, caused by the stampede of a large herd 

 within pistol-shot of where we were, but entii*ely 

 hidden from our view^ by the thick grass. Tlie na- 

 tives ai*e usually afraid of them, and the one wbo was 

 crawling along behind me to pick up the bird fled at 

 tbe top of bis speed wben he heard tbe thundering 

 tread of more than a bundred hoofs, while I stood 

 wondering w^hat sort of beasts bad so suddenly 

 sprimg out of tbe earth, and half querying whether 

 my shot, as they fell on tbe ground, had not been 

 changed into quadrupeds in the same miraculous way 

 that the dragon teeth, sown by Cadmus, were trans- 

 formed into men, Tbe hog-deer, or bahirma^ is also 

 found among thgse mountains. While I was at Ka- 

 yeli a young one was caught by some of tlie natives. 



