210 
WANDERINGS IN 
third to erect a stage amongst the trees, close to the water’s 
jour>ey. e( j From this we intended to shoot an arrow 
o 
into the cayman : at the end of this arrow was to be 
attached a string, which would be tied to the rope, 
and as soon as the cayman was struck, we were to 
have the canoe ready, and pursue him in the river. 
While we were busy in preparing the stage, a tiger 
began to roar. We judged by the sound that he was - 
not above a quarter of a mile from us, and that he 
was close to the side of the river. Unfortunately, 
the Indian said it was not a jaguar that was roaring, 
Couguar. but a couguar. The couguar is of a pale, brownish 
red colour, and not as large as the jaguar. As 
there was nothing particular in this animal, I thought 
it better to attend to the apparatus for catching the 
cayman than to go in quest of the couguar. The 
people, however, went in the canoe to the place 
where the couguar was roaring. On arriving near 
the spot, they saw it was not a couguar, but an im¬ 
mense jaguar, standing on the trunk of an aged 
mora-tree, which bended over the river; he growled, 
and showed his teeth as they approached ; the co¬ 
loured man fired at him with a ball, but probably 
missed him, and the tiger instantly descended, and 
took off into the woods. I went to the place before 
dark, and we searched the forest for about half a 
mile in the direction he had fled : but we could 
see no traces of him, or any marks of blood, so I 
concluded that fear had prevented the man from 
taking steady aim. 
We spent best part of the fourth night in trying 
