COUGAR. 
place. Tn Brasil, Paraguay, and the country 
of the Amazons, it is very frequently seen 
climbing up trees ; either in quest of prey, or 
to avoid it's pursuers. Like all other animals 
of the cat kind, it is terrified at the sight of 
fire, and seldom ventures to approach ; for, it 
not only suspe6i:s, as is imagined, it's enemies 
to be always near, but the brightness po^ver- 
fully dazzles it's nodlurnal eves. 
From the nature of this animal, which 
quenches it's thirst, BufFon says, more fre- 
quently with blood than with water, we 
might naturally suppose that it's flesh is not 
very proper for human food. It has, how e- 
vcr, been said, by some travellers, to be ex- 
tremely palatable. Piso, in particular, goes 
the )eno;th to assert, that it is as jrood and as 
white as veal ; and Charlevoix, and others, 
have compared it to mutton. But BufFon thinks 
it hardly credible, tliat it can be well tasted : 
and, therefore, he prefers the testimony of 
Dcsmarchais ;. who intimates, that the best 
tiling about this animal is it's skin, of which 
hourings are made for horses, it's flesh being 
generally lean, and of a very disagreeable fla- 
vour. 
