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logether boneath iho shade of somo friendly algarrobo or quebracho, 
Others are built in a circle of sonto considerable extent, the opea space 
oncloscd serving as a íiold for gamos or a íying-up place for their horses 
or llocks. 
The whole disposition of tlieir villagcs, and the manner of building 
their Imts, indícate, as is also the case witli the Mataco, a people on 
their defence, who dread attack. The secluded village and the shape 
of their grass houses built to act as a soft receiving shield for the 
descending arrows of their enemies, resemble tliose of the Suhin, and 
form a striking contrast to the Lengua-Mascoy, who used to build 
chicíly with reed mats resting on crossed polos and carried from place 
to place, and who invariably prefer the open spaces. 
IV 
The Choroti are split up into little family groups living not lar 
apart from eaoli other in the monten, and never far from the river i’il- 
comayo. Often in the dry season for lacle of food and water they 
leave their forest homes and settle cióse to the river, which has always 
an abundance of fish, easily netted or trapped. A triangular shaped 
net supported on a couple of rods is the more general method of fishing. 
The man enters the water with his net, and when he feels the weight 
of fish folds the one rod over the other and drags it to land. Attached 
to his naked waist is a thickish cord with a suf'licient length of loose 
hanging line, containing a wooden needle-like skewer at the end, 
which he passes through the fish and when ful! of fish girdles it round 
the loins. 
Their chiefs have little real power, but are recognised as such, and 
to some extent on importan! occasions lead the way. But as has 
already been remarked, extreme poverty is the keyword of the Choroti, 
touching not onty their country but their social and personal be- 
longings. 
Idiey have few flocks of sheep and goats and an occasional beast 
of burden — a horse or donkey — meagre gardens give tliem a certain 
amount of food supplies and drinks for the sumiller festivities. The 
wild fruits such as the algarroba and cactus are plentiful ; some of 
which are pounded up in a wooden mortar and pressed into calces. 1 
But such is the poverty of these people that on one occasion all the 
hostess liad to offer our native guide on arrival was a handful of cactus 
1 “ Patai” is tlie ñame of the cakes or “ bricks ” of algarroba sweet meal in t lie N.-W. 
of Argentina. 
