300 
ox. 
common employment of the natives. They draw 
up in a large square, and commence their opera- 
tions by setting fire to* the grass, which, at certain 
seasons, is very long and dry. As the fire goes on, 
they advance, closing their ranks as they proceed. 
The animals, alarmed by the light, gallop con- 
fusedly about, till they are hemmed in so close, that 
frequently not a single beast is able to escape. 
In Louisiana the men mount on horseback, each 
with a sharp crescent-pointed spear in his hand. 
They approach with the wind, and, as soon as the 
animals smell them, they instantly make off ; but 
the sight of the horses moderates their fear, and 
the majority of them, from their luxuriant feed- 
ing, are, at certain times of the year, so fat and 
unwieldy, as easily to be enticed to slacken their 
pace. As soon as the men overtake them, they 
endeavour to strike the crescent just above the 
ham, in such a manner as to cut through the ten- 
dons, and render them afterwards an easy prey. 
The hunting of these animals is also common in 
several parts of South America, It commences 
with a sort of festivity, and ends in an entertain- 
ment in which one of their carcases supplies the 
only ingredient. As soon as a herd of cattle is 
seen on the plain, the most fleet and active of 
the horsemen prepare to attack them, and des- 
cending in the form of a widely extended crescent, 
hunt them in all directions. After a while they 
become so jaded and weary, that they seem ready to 
sink under their fatigue : but the hunters, still 
urging them to flight by their loud cries, drive 
them at last from the field. Sucli as are unable 
to exert the necessary speed for escape are slaugh- 
tered. The hunters from these supply themselves 
with what flesh they want, and abandon the rest 
to the wolves. 
The sagacity which the animals exhibit in de- 
