SOUTH AMERICA. 
9 
puts you in mind of grass withered by the wintry first 
f , J & J , „ *, JOURNE 
blast. His legs are too short5 they appear detormed 
by the manner in which they are joined to the body ; 
and when he is on the ground, they seem as if only 
calculated to be of use in climbing trees. He has 
forty-six ribs, while the elephant has only forty; 
and his claws are disproportionably long. Were 
you to mark down, upon a graduated scale, the dif¬ 
ferent claims to superiority amongst the four-footed 
animals, this poor ill-formed creature’s claim would 
be the last upon the lowest degree. 
Demerara yields to no country in the world in her Birds, 
wonderful and beautiful productions of the feathered 
race. Here the finest precious stones are far sur¬ 
passed by the vivid tints which adorn the birds. The 
naturalist may exclaim, that nature has not known 
where to stop in forming new species, and painting 
her requisite shades. Almost every one of those 
singular and elegant birds described by Buffon as 
belonging to Cayenne, are to be met with in Deme¬ 
rara; but it is only by an indefatigable naturalist 
that they are to be found. 
The scarlet curlew breeds in innumerable quantities 
in the muddy islands on the coasts of Pomauron ; 
the egrets and crabiers in the same place. They 
resort to the mud-flats at ebbing water, while thou¬ 
sands of sandpipers and plovers, with here and there 
a spoonbill and flamingo, are seen amongst them. 
The pelicans go farther out to sea, but return at sun¬ 
down to the courada-trees. The humming-birds are 
chiefly to be found near the flowers at which each 
