332 
THE STORY OF THE TORTOISE . 
her voice, and the male only at these times; so- that when the people hear this 
noise, they know that the two- are together. The female, where the soil is 
sandy, deposits her eggs together, and covers them up with sand; but where 
the ground is rocky, she drops them indiscriminately in any hole. The egg 
is white and spherical; one which I measured was seven and three-eighths 
inches in circumference, and therefore larger than a hen’s egg. The young 
tortoises, as soon as they are hatched, fall a prey in great numbers to the 
carrion-feeding buzzard. The old ones seem generally to die from accidents, 
as from falling down precipices; at least, several of the inhabitants told me 
that they never found one dead without some evident cause. 
The inhabitants believe that these animals are absolutely deaf; certainly 
they do not hear a person walking close behind them. I was always amused 
when overtaking one of these great monsters, as it was quietly pacing along, 
to see how suddenly, the instant I passed*, it would draw in its head and legs, 
and uttering a deep hiss fall to the ground with a heavy sound, as if struck 
dead. I frequently got on their backs, and then giving a few raps on the 
hinder part of their shells, they would rise and walk away;—but I found it 
difficult to keep my balance. 
The handsome Brazilian tortoise, which attains a length of nearly twenty- 
two inches, is an inhabitant of tropical South America', to the east of the 
Andes, and also- of the Windward Islands, ascending to- an elevation of about 
two thousand feet. In many wooded districts it appears to- be very abundant, 
feeding not only on leaves and grasses, but likewise on the fallen fruit which 
is to* be met with in great quantities. In the hot season it constructs a nest 
of dry leaves, wherein are deposited its eggs, which may be a dozen or two- in 
number. When first hatched, the young are of a uniform yellowish brown 
color, with their shells still soft. The young, and to a less degree the adults, 
have numerous enemies, but the greatest are the puma and jaguar. Against 
the sharp teeth and stout claws of these voracious animals, no-t even the strong 
hard shell of the tortoise is a sufficient defense. 
