The shores of the Parana and Paraguay, and the larger islands of these
rivers, abound in stags, which, in no respect, differ from those of
Europe. Not one is to be seen in any other part of Paraguay. The
Abipones pursue the stags on swift horses, and laying hold of their
horns, kill them either with a knife or a spear; they also pierce them
with thick arrows, when hunting in a wood impervious to horses.
Formerly, before the savages were acquainted with iron, they prefixed a
stag's horn to their spears, instead of an iron point, and this weapon
inflicted very deep wounds. Whilst I dwelt amongst them, some of the
elder Abipones still used spears pointed with stags' horn, and were the
more dreaded on that account. Stags' skins, which are used for various
purposes, the Spaniards soften and polish with the melted fat of mares.
They also entertain an idea that the smallest piece of stag's skin, worn
close to the body, is a powerful preservative against the bites of
serpents, as it is well known that stags and deer have frequent
conflicts with these animals.