BRA 
BRA 
voice is said to be so inconceivably singu- 
lar, 'and of such a mournful melancholy, 
attended, at the same time, with such a 
peculiarity of aspect as at once to excite a 
mixture of pity and disgust : and it is add- 
ed, that the animal makes use of this natu- 
ral yell as its best mode of defence; since 
other creatures are frightened away by the 
uncommon sound. This, however, is far 
from being its only refuge ; for so great is 
the degree of muscular strength wbi^h it 
possesses, that it is capable of seizing a dog 
with its claws, and holding it, in spite of all 
its efforts to escape, till it perishes with 
hunger ; the sloth itself being so well calcu- 
lated for supporting abstinence, that the 
celebrated Kircher assures ns of its power 
in this respect, having been exemplified by 
the. very singular experiment' of suffering 
one, Which had fastened itself to a pole, to 
remain in that situation, without any sus- 
tenance, upwards of forty days. This ex- 
traordinary animal is an inhabitant of the 
hotter parts of South America. It is nearly 
as large as a middle-sized dog. 
B. Didactylus, or two toed sloth, is also a 
native of South America ; and it is asserted, 
on good authority, that it is likewise found 
in some parts of India, as well as in tiie 
island of Ceylon. In its general appear- 
ance, as well as in size, it bears a consider- 
able resemblance to the former species : it 
is, however, somewhat more slender in its 
shape, covered with smoother or less coarse 
and harsli hair, and is of a more uniform or 
less varied tinge ; and, in particular, is 
strikingly distinguished, as a species, by 
having only two claws on the fore-feet ; it 
is also a much more active animal, and, 
even when imported into Europe, has been 
known, according to tlie testimony of the 
Count de Buffon, to ascend and descend 
from a tall tree several times in a day ; 
whereas the three-toed sloth with difficulty 
performs that operation in a whole day, and 
can scarcely crawl a few hundred yards in 
the space of many hours. 
B. Ursinus, or ursine sloth, is by far the 
largest species: it is a native of India, 
and has been but lately introduced to the 
knowledge of European naturalists. It was 
brought from the neighbourhood of Patna 
in Bengal, This animal has, at first sight, 
so much of the general aspect of a bear, 
that it has actually been considered as such 
by some observers : hut it is uo otherwise 
related to the bear than by its size and habit, 
or mere exterior outline. It is about the 
size of a bear and is covered all over, ex- 
cept on the face, or rather the snout, which 
is bare and Whitish, with long shaggy black 
hair, which on the neck and back is much 
longer than elsewhere : on the fore part of 
the body the hair points forwards ; on the 
hinder part backwards : the eyes are very 
Small ; the ears rather small, and partly hid 
in the long hair of tire head : it is totally 
destitute of incisores, or front teeth ; in 
each jaw there are two canine teeth of a 
moderate size: the nose or snout is of a 
somewhat elongated form ; it also appears 
as if furnished with a sort of transverse joint, 
or internal cartilage, which admits of a pecu- 
liar kind of motion in this part. It is a gentle 
and good natured animal ; it fleds chiefly 
on vegetables and milk, is fond of apples, 
and does not willingly eat animal food, ex- 
cept of a very tender nature, as marrow, 
which it readily sucked from a bone pre- 
sented it. Its motions are not, as in the 
two former species, slow and languid, but 
moderately lively ; and it appears to have a 
habit of turning itself round and round 
every now and then, as if for amusement, 
in the manner of a dog when lying down to 
sleep. It is said to have a propensity to 
burrowing under the ground. 
BRAG, an ingenious and pleasant game 
at cards, wherein as many may partake as 
the cards will supply , the eldest hand deal- 
ing three to each person at one time, and 
turning up the last card all round. This 
done, each gamester puts down three 
stakes, one for each card. The first stake 
is won by the best card turned up in the 
dealing round ; beginning from the ace, 
king, queen, knave, and so downwards. 
When cards of the same value are turned 
up to two or more of the gamesters, the 
eldest hand gains ; but it is to be observed, 
that the ace of diamonds wins, to whatever 
hand it be turned up. 
The second stake is won by what is called 
the brag, which consists in one of the 
gamesters challenging the rest to produce 
cards equal to his : now it is to be observed, 
that a pair of aces is the best brag, a pair 
of kings the next, and so on ; and a pair of 
any sort wins the stake from the most va« 
luable single card. In this part consists 
the great diversion of the game; for, by 
the artful management of the looks, gestures, 
and voice, it frequently happens, that a pair 
of fives, treys, or even duces, out-brags a 
much higher pair, and even from pairs 
royal, to the no small merriment of the com- 
pany. The knave of clubs is here a princi- 
pal favqurite, making a pair with any other 
