27 
Never iias the savage, freely roving 
through the forests of the temperate zone, 
been known to throw willingly aside the 
habits of the hunter, and embrace the still- 
ness of agricultural life. This transition, 
which is the most difficult, and the most 
important in the history of human socie- 
ties, can only be attained by the force of 
circumstances. When, in their distant mi- 
grations, hordes of hunters, expelled by 
other warlike hordes, reached the plains of 
the equinoctial zone, they were compelled 
by impenetrable forests and a luxuriant 
vegetation, to change their character and 
habits. There are countries between the 
Orinoco, the Ucajale, and the river of 
^Amazons, where man finds no other space 
free than the rivers and the lakes. Rivetted 
to the soil on the banks of rivers, the most 
savage tribes encircle their huts with ba- 
nanas, ,jatropha, and other alimentary 
plants. 
No historical fact, no tradition connects 
the nations of South America with those 
