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of the Suhin, the strong guttural of the Toba, or the cowed nasal 
of the Mataco. 
They are by no means a warlike people, but nevertheless hold 
their own with the Mataco on the other side of the river, who some- 
times cross to settle a dispute or make a raid. The only weapon 
visible was the bow, with arrows of both wooden and iron points. A 
few shot-guns and rifles have been introduced among them. 
III 
Though their habitat is a river bank the Choroti cannot be termed 
a “ river Indian ” in the sense of the famous Paiyagua, the river 
pirates of Paraguay ; on the contrary, he is a “ child of the forest.” 
The immediate country watered by the Pilcomayo is good and suit- 
able for cattle, but a few leagues inland where the Choroti have their 
homes the physical characteristics of the territory are endless patches 
of scrubby forest land, broken here and there with small open camps, 
and an occasional water-hole or sluggish stream winding its way to 
the main river. A sandy soil producing an abundance of cactus and 
sturnpy tliorny shrubs, an occasional knoll of higher ground and a few 
timber trees, or a hollow with a few palms ( carandaí ) offer little 
attraction to the traveller or wealth to the settler. . 
The cattle peón Avho has to work in this type of country wears a 
cape as covering from behind, and attached to the saddle in front 
as protection to himself and his mount are guarda-montes , a kind of 
liide shield, and iny companion and I regretted the absence of these 
uscful travclling articlcs when wendiug our way through the woods 
from village to village. With torn clothes and scratched hands and 
face we rodé along the narrow tracks, scarcely visible in places owing 
to their infrequent usage, and at times we were compelled to dismount 
and lead our animáis through the dense and thorny growth. 
Choosing some quiet spot within reasonable distance of water, 
often hidden away from the main track, sheltered behind bushes or 
scraggy trees, the Choroti build their little settlement. Their huts 
are well made, of grass, supported on boughs of trees which meet at 
the top, forming a conical or beehive shaped appearance, varying from 
six to ten feet high in the centre, with a circular floor space ranging 
from ten to fifteen feet in diameter, entered by a little doorway three 
feet high and two feet wide, which is often blocked at night with a 
hurdle of grass as a protection against the beasts of camp and forest. 
Some villages are arranged in sections of several huts each, huddled 
