Set out for Buenos Ayres--Rio Sauce--Sierra Ventana--Transportal of
pebbles--Third posta--Driving horses--Bolas--Partridges and
foxes--Features of country--Long-legged plover--Teru-tero--Hailstorm
--Natural enclosures in Sierra Tapalguen--Flesh of puma--Meat diet
--Guardia del Monte--Effects of cattle on the vegetation--Cardoon
--Buenos Ayres--Corral where animals are slaughtered.
BAHIA BLANCA TO BUENOS AYRES.
SEPTEMBER 8TH.--Having with some difficulty hired a Gaucho to
accompany me, on my ride to Buenos Ayres, we started early in the
morning. The distance is about four hundred miles, and nearly the
whole way through an uninhabited country. Ascending a few hundred
feet from the basin of green turf on which Bahia Blanca stands,
we entered on a wide desolate plain. It consists of a crumbling
argillaceo-calcareous rock, which, from the dry nature of the
climate, supports only scattered tufts of withered grass, without
a single bush or tree to break the monotonous uniformity. The
weather was fine, but the atmosphere remarkably hazy; I thought the
appearance foreboded a gale, but the Gauchos said it was owing to
the plain, at some great distance in the interior, being on fire.
After a long gallop, having changed horses twice, we reached the Rio
Sauce. It is a deep, rapid, little stream, but not above twenty-five
feet wide. The second posta on the road to Buenos Ayres stands on its
banks; a little above there is a pass for horses, where the water
does not reach to the horse’s belly; but from that point, in its
course to the sea, it is quite impassable, and hence makes a most
useful barrier against the Indians.
Insignificant as this stream is, the Jesuit Falconer, whose
information is generally so very correct, figures it as a
considerable river, rising at the foot of the Cordillera. With
respect to its source, I do not doubt this is the case; for the
Gauchos assured me, that in the middle of the dry summer, this
stream, at the same time with the Colorado, has periodical floods;
which can only originate in the snow melting on the Andes. It is
extremely improbable that a stream, so small as the Sauce then was,
should traverse the entire width of the continent; and indeed,
if it were the residue of a large river, its waters, as in other
ascertained cases, would be saline. During the winter we must look
to the springs round the Sierra Ventana as the source of its pure
and limpid stream. I suspect the plains of Patagonia, like those of
Australia, are traversed by many water-courses, which only perform
their proper parts at certain periods. Probably this is the case with
the water which flows into the head of Port Desire, and likewise
with the Rio Chupat, on the banks of which masses of highly cellular
scoriæ were found by the officers employed in the survey.
As it was early in the afternoon when we arrived, we took fresh
horses, and a soldier for a guide, and started for the Sierra de la
Ventana. This mountain is visible from the anchorage at Bahia Blanca;
and Capt. FitzRoy calculates its height to be 3500 feet;--an altitude
very remarkable on this eastern side of the continent. I am not aware
that any foreigner, previous to my visit, had ascended this mountain;
and indeed very few of the soldiers at Bahia Blanca knew any thing
about it. Hence we heard of beds of coal, of gold and silver, of
caves, and of forests, all of which inflamed my curiosity, only to
disappoint it. The distance from the posta was about six leagues,
over a level plain of the same character as before. The ride was,
however, interesting, as the mountain began to show its true form.
When we reached the foot of the main ridge, we had much difficulty in
finding any water, and we thought we should have been obliged to have
passed the night without any. At last we discovered some, by looking
close to the mountain, for at the distance even of a few hundred
yards, the streamlets were buried and entirely lost in the friable
calcareous stone, and loose detritus. I do not think nature ever made
a more solitary, desolate pile of rock;--it well deserves its name
of _Hurtado_, or separated. The mountain is steep, extremely rugged,
and broken, and so entirely destitute of trees and even bushes, that
we actually could not find a skewer to stretch out our meat over the
fire made of thistle[1] stalks. The strange aspect of this mountain
is contrasted by the sea-like plain, which not only abuts against
its steep sides, but likewise separates the parallel ranges. The
uniformity of the colouring gives, also, an extreme quietness to the
view;--the whitish gray of the quartz rock, and the light brown of
the withered grass of the plain, being unrelieved by any brighter
tint. From custom, one expects to see in the neighbourhood of a lofty
and bold mountain a broken country, strewed over with huge fragments.
Here nature shows, that the last movement before the bed of the sea
is changed into dry land, may sometimes be one of tranquillity. Under
these circumstances, I was curious to observe how far from the parent
rock any pebbles could be found. On the shores of Bahia Blanca, and
near the settlement, there were some of quartz, which certainly must
have come from this source: the distance is forty-five miles.
The dew, which in the early part of the night wetted the
saddle-cloths, under which we slept, was in the morning frozen.
From the sharpness of the cold, I supposed we were already at a
considerable elevation, although, to the eye, the plain had appeared
horizontal. In the morning (9th September) the guide told me to
ascend the nearest ridge, which he thought would lead me to the four
peaks that crown the summit. The climbing up such rough rocks was
very fatiguing, the sides were so indented, that, what was gained in
one five minutes, was often lost in the next. At last, when I reached
the ridge, my disappointment was extreme in finding a precipitous
valley as deep as the plain, which cut the chain transversely in two,
and separated me from the four points. This valley is very narrow,
but flat-bottomed, and it forms a fine horse-pass for the Indians,
as it connects the plains on the northern and southern sides of the
range. Having descended, and while crossing it, I saw two horses
grazing: I immediately hid myself in the long grass, and began to
reconnoitre; but as I could see no signs of Indians, I proceeded
cautiously on my second ascent. It was late in the day, and this part
of the mountain, like the other, was steep and rugged. I was on the
top of the second peak by two o’clock, but got there with extreme
difficulty; every twenty yards I had the cramp in the upper part of
both thighs, so that I was afraid I should not have been able to have
descended. It was also necessary to return by another road, as it was
out of the question to pass over the saddle-back. I was therefore
obliged to give up the two higher peaks. Their altitude was but
little greater, and every purpose of geology had been answered; so
that the attempt was not worth the hazard of any further exertion. I
presume the cause of the cramp was the great change in the kind of
muscular action, from that of hard riding to that of still harder
climbing. It is a lesson worth remembering, as in some cases it might
cause much difficulty.
I have already said the mountain is composed of white quartz rock,
and with it a little glossy clay-slate is associated. At the height
of a few hundred feet above the plain, patches of conglomerate
adhered in several places to the solid rock. They resembled in
hardness, and in the nature of the cement, the masses which may be
seen daily forming on some coasts. I do not doubt these pebbles
were, in a similar manner, aggregated, at a period when the great
calcareous formation was depositing beneath the surrounding sea. We
may believe that the jagged and battered forms of the hard quartz yet
show the effects of the waves of an open ocean.
I was, on the whole, disappointed with this ascent. Even the view
was insignificant;--a plain like the sea, but without its beautiful
colour and defined outline. The scene, however, was novel, and a
little danger, like salt to meat, gives it a relish. That the danger
was very little was certain, for my two companions made a good
fire--a thing which is never done when it is suspected that Indians
are near. I reached the place of our bivouac by sunset, and drinking
much maté, and smoking several cigaritos, soon made up my bed for
the night. The wind was very strong and cold, but I never slept more
comfortably.
SEPTEMBER 10TH.--In the morning, having fairly scudded before the
gale, we arrived by the middle of the day at the Sauce posta. On
the road we saw great numbers of deer, and near the mountain a
guanaco. The plain, that abuts against the Sierra, is traversed
by some curious gullies, of which one was about twenty feet wide,
and at least thirty deep; we were obliged in consequence to make a
considerable circuit, before we could find a pass. We staid the night
at the posta, the conversation, as was generally the case, being
about the Indians. The Sierra Ventana was formerly a great place of
resort; and three or four years ago there was much fighting here. My
guide had been present when many men were killed: the women escaped
to the top of the ridge, and fought most desperately with big stones;
many thus saving themselves.
SEPTEMBER 11TH.--Proceeded to the third posta in company with the
lieutenant who commanded it. The distance is called fifteen leagues;
but it is only guess-work and is generally overstated. The road was
uninteresting, over a dry grassy plain; and on our left hand at a
greater or less distance there were some low hills; a chain of which,
we crossed close to the posta. Before our arrival, we met a large
herd of cattle and horses, guarded by fifteen soldiers; but we were
told many had been lost. It is very difficult to drive animals across
the plains; for if in the night a lion, or even a fox, approaches,
nothing can prevent the horses dispersing in every direction; and a
storm will have the same effect. A short time since, an officer left
Buenos Ayres with 500 horses, and when he arrived at the army he had
under twenty.
Soon afterwards we perceived by the cloud of dust, that a party of
horsemen were coming towards us; when far distant my companions knew
them to be Indians, by their long hair streaming behind their backs.
The Indians generally have a fillet round their heads, but never any
covering; and their black hair blowing across their swarthy faces,
heightens to an uncommon degree, the wildness of their appearance.
They turned out to be a party of Bernantio’s friendly tribe, going to
a salina for salt. The Indians eat much salt, their children sucking
it like sugar. This habit is very different from that of the Spanish
Gauchos, who, leading the same kind of life, eat scarcely any. The
Indians gave us good-humoured nods as they passed at full gallop,
driving before them a troop of horses, and followed by a train of
lanky dogs.
SEPTEMBER 12TH AND 13TH.--I staid at this posta two days, waiting for
a troop of soldiers, which, General Rosas had the kindness to send
to inform me, would shortly travel to Buenos Ayres; and he advised
me to take the opportunity of such an escort. In the morning we
rode to some neighbouring hills to view the country, and to examine
the geology. After dinner the soldiers divided themselves into two
parties for a trial of skill with the bolas. Two spears were stuck
in the ground thirty-five yards apart, but they were struck and
entangled only once in four or five times. The balls can be thrown
fifty or sixty yards, but with little certainty. This, however,
does not apply to a man on horseback; for when the speed of the
horse is added to the force of the arm, it is said, that they can
be whirled with effect to the distance of eighty yards.[2] In the
middle of the day two men had arrived, who brought a parcel from
the next posta to be forwarded to the general; so that besides these
two, our party consisted of myself and guide, the lieutenant and
his four soldiers. The latter were strange beings; the first a fine
young negro; the second half Indian and negro; and the two others
nondescripts; namely, an old Chilian miner, the colour of mahogany,
and another partly a mulatto; but two such mongrels, with such
detestable expressions, I never saw before. At night, when they were
sitting round the fire, and playing at cards, I retired to view such
a Salvator Rosa scene. They were seated under a low cliff, so that I
could look down upon them; around the party were lying dogs, arms,
remnants of deer and ostriches; and their long spears were stuck in
the turf. Further in the dark background, their horses were tied up,
ready for any sudden danger. If the stillness of the desolate plain
was broken by one of the dogs barking, a soldier, leaving the fire,
would place his head close to the ground, and thus slowly scan the
horizon. Even if the noisy teru-tero uttered its scream, there would
be a pause in the conversation, and every head, for a moment a little
inclined.
What a life of misery these men appear to us to lead! They were
at least ten leagues from the Sauce posta, and since the murder
committed by the Indians, twenty from another. The Indians are
supposed to have made their attack in the middle of the night; for
very early in the morning after the murder, they were luckily seen
approaching this posta. The whole party, however, escaped, together
with the troop of horses; each one taking a line for himself, and
driving with him as many animals as he was able to manage.
The little hovel, built of thistle-stalks, in which they slept,
neither kept out the wind or rain; indeed in the latter case the only
effect the roof had, was to condense it into larger drops. They had
nothing to eat excepting what they could catch, such as ostriches,
deer, armadilloes, &c., and their only fuel was the dry stalks of a
small plant, somewhat resembling an aloe. The sole luxury which these
men enjoyed was smoking the little paper cigars, and sucking maté. I
used to think the carrion vulture, man’s constant attendant on these
dreary plains, while seated on some little eminence, seemed by its
very patience to say, “Ah! when the Indians come we shall have a
feast.”
In the morning we all sallied forth to hunt, and although we had not
much success, there were some animated chases. Soon after starting
the party separated, and so arranged their plans, that at a certain
time of the day (in guessing which they show much skill) they should
all meet from different points of the compass on a plain piece of
ground, and thus drive together the wild animals. One day I went
out hunting at Bahia Blanca, but the men there merely rode in a
crescent, each being about a quarter of a mile apart from the other.
A fine male ostrich being turned by the headmost riders, tried to
escape on one side. The Gauchos pursued at a reckless pace, twisting
their horses about with the most admirable command, and each man
whirling the balls round his head. At length the foremost threw them,
revolving through the air: in an instant the ostrich rolled over and
over, its legs fairly lashed together by the thong.
The plains abound with three kinds of partridge,[3] two of which are
as large as hen pheasants. Their destroyer, a small and pretty fox,
was also singularly numerous; in the course of the day we could not
have seen less than forty or fifty. They were generally near their
earths, but the dogs killed one. When we returned to the posta, we
found two of the party returned who had been hunting by themselves.
They had killed a puma, and had found an ostrich’s nest with
twenty-seven eggs in it. Each of these is said to equal in weight
eleven hens’ eggs; so that we obtained from this one nest as much
food as 297 hens’ eggs would have yielded.
SEPTEMBER 14TH.--As the soldiers belonging to the next posta meant to
return, and we should together make a party of five, and all armed,
I determined not to wait[4] for the expected troops. After galloping
some leagues, we came to a low swampy country, which extends for
nearly eighty miles to the northward, as far as the Sierra Tapalguen.
In some parts there were fine damp plains, covered with grass, while
others had a soft, black, and peaty soil. There were also many
extensive but shallow lakes, and large beds of reeds. The country on
the whole resembled the better parts of the Cambridgeshire fens. At
night we had some difficulty in finding, amidst the swamps, a dry
place for our bivouac.
SEPTEMBER 15TH.--Rose very early in the morning, and shortly after
passed the posta, where the Indians had murdered the five soldiers.
The officer had eighteen chuzo wounds in his body. By the middle of
the day, after a hard gallop, we reached the fifth posta: on account
of some difficulty in procuring horses we staid there the night.
As this point was the most exposed on the whole line, twenty-one
soldiers were stationed there; at sunset they returned from hunting,
bringing with them seven deer, three ostriches, and many armadilloes
and partridges. When riding through the country, it is a common
practice to set fire to the plain; and hence at night, as on this
occasion, the horizon was illuminated in several places by brilliant
conflagrations. This is done partly for the sake of puzzling any
stray Indians, but chiefly for improving the pasture. In grassy
plains unoccupied by the larger ruminating quadrupeds, it seems
necessary to remove by fire the superfluous vegetation, so as to
render serviceable the new year’s growth.
The rancho at this place did not boast even of a roof, but merely
consisted of a ring of thistle-stalks, to break the force of the
wind. It was situated on the borders of an extensive but shallow
lake, swarming with wild fowl, among which the black-necked swan was
conspicuous.
The kind of plover, which appears is if mounted on stilts,
(_Himantopus melanura_) is here common in flocks of considerable
size. It has been wrongfully accused of inelegance; when wading about
in shallow water, which is its favourite resort, its gait is far
from awkward. These birds in a flock utter a noise, that singularly
resembles the cry of a pack of small dogs in full chase: waking in
the night, I have more than once been for a moment startled at the
distant sound. The teru-tero (_Vanellus cayanensis_), is another
bird, which often disturbs the stillness of the night. In appearance
and habits it resembles in many respects our peewits; its wings,
however, are armed with sharp spurs, like those on the legs of the
common cock. As our peewit takes its name from the sound of its
voice, so does the teru-tero. While riding over the grassy plains,
one is constantly pursued by these birds, which appear to hate
mankind, and I am sure deserve to be hated, for their never-ceasing,
unvaried, harsh screams. To the sportsman they are most annoying, by
telling every other bird and animal of his approach: to the traveller
in the country, they may possibly, as Molina says, do good, by
warning him of the midnight robber. During the breeding season, they
attempt, like our peewits, by feigning to be wounded, to draw away
from their nests dogs and other enemies. The eggs of this bird are
esteemed a great delicacy.
SEPTEMBER 16TH.--To the seventh posta at the foot of the Sierra
Tapalguen. The country was quite level, with a coarse herbage and
a soft peaty soil. The hovel was there remarkably neat, the posts
and rafters being made of about a dozen dry thistle-stalks bound
together with thongs of hide; and by the aid of these Ionic-like
columns the roof and sides were thatched with reeds. We were here
told a fact, which I would not have credited, if I had not had partly
ocular proof of it; namely, that, during the previous night, hail
as large as small apples, and extremely hard, had fallen with such
violence, as to kill the greater number of the wild animals. One of
the men had already found thirteen deer (_Cervus campestris_) lying
dead, and I saw their _fresh_ hides; another of the party, a few
minutes after my arrival, brought in seven more. Now I well know,
that one man without dogs, would hardly have killed seven deer in a
week. The men believed they had seen about fifteen dead ostriches
(part of one of which we had for dinner); and they said that several
were running about evidently blind in one eye. Numbers of smaller
birds, as ducks, hawks, and partridges, were killed. I saw one of the
latter with a black mark on its back, as if it had been struck with a
paving-stone. A fence of thistle-stalks round the hovel, was nearly
broken down, and my informer putting his head out to see what was the
matter, received a severe cut, and now wore a bandage. The storm was
said to have been of limited extent: we certainly saw from our last
night’s bivouac a dense cloud and lightning in this direction. It
is marvellous how such strong animals as deer could thus have been
killed; but I have no doubt, from the evidence I have given, that
the story is not in the least exaggerated. I am glad, however, to
have its credibility supported by the Jesuit Drobrizhoffer,[5] who,
speaking of a country much to the northward, says, hail fell of an
enormous size and killed vast numbers of cattle: the Indians hence
called the place _Lalegraicavalca_, meaning “The little white things.”
Having finished our dinner of hail-stricken meat, we crossed the
Sierra Tapalguen; a low range of hills, a few hundred feet in height,
which commences at Cape Corrientes. The rock in this part is pure
quartz; further eastward I understand it is granitic. The hills are
of a remarkable form; they consist of flat patches of table-land,
surrounded by low but perpendicular cliffs, like the outliers of
a sedimentary deposit. The hill which I ascended was very small,
not above a couple of hundred yards in diameter; but I saw others
larger. One which goes by the name of the “Corral,” is said to be
two or three miles in diameter, and encompassed on all sides by
perpendicular cliffs, between thirty and forty feet high, excepting
at one spot, where the entrance lies. Falconer[6] gives a curious
account of the Indians driving within it troops of wild horses,
and then by guarding the entrance, keeping them secure. I have
never heard of any other instance of table-land in a formation of
quartz, and which, in the hill I examined, had neither cleavage or
stratification. I was told that the rock of the “Corral” was white,
and would strike fire.
We did not reach the posta on the Rio Tapalguen till after it was
dark. At supper, from something which was said, I was suddenly struck
with horror at thinking that I was eating one of the favourite
dishes of the country, namely, a half-formed calf, long before its
proper time of birth. It turned out to be Puma; the meat is very
white, and remarkably like veal in taste. Dr. Shaw was laughed at
for stating that, “the flesh of the lion is in great esteem, having
no small affinity with veal, both in colour, taste, and flavour.”
Such certainly is the case with the Puma. The Gauchos differ in their
opinion, whether the Jaguar is good eating, but are unanimous in
saying that cat is excellent.
SEPTEMBER 17TH.--We followed the course of the Rio Tapalguen, through
a very fertile country, to the ninth posta. Tapalguen itself, or the
town of Tapalguen, if it may be so called, consists of a perfectly
level plain, studded over as far as the eye can reach, with the
toldos, or oven-shaped huts of the Indians. The families of the
friendly Indians, who were fighting on the side of Rosas, resided
here. We met and passed many young Indian women, riding by two or
three together on the same horse: they, as well as many of the young
men, were strikingly handsome,--their fine ruddy complexions being
the picture of health. Besides the toldos, there were three ranchos;
one inhabited by the Commandant, and the two others by Spaniards with
small shops.
We were here able to buy some biscuit. I had now been several days
without tasting any thing besides meat: I did not at all dislike this
new regimen; but I felt as if it would only have agreed with very
hard exercise. I have heard that patients in England, when desired
to confine themselves exclusively to an animal diet, even with the
hope of life before their eyes, have hardly been able to endure it.
Yet the Gaucho in the Pampas, for months together, touches nothing
but beef. But they eat, I observe, a very large proportion of fat,
which is of a less animalized nature; and they particularly dislike
dry meat, such as that of the Agouti. It is, perhaps, from this
regimen that the Gauchos, like other carnivorous animals, can abstain
long from food. I was told that at Tandeel, some troops voluntarily
pursued a party of Indians for three days, without eating or drinking.
We saw in the shops, many articles, such as horsecloths, belts, and
garters, woven by the Indian women. The patterns were very pretty,
and the colours brilliant; the workmanship of the garters was so
good, that an English merchant at Buenos Ayres, maintained they must
have been manufactured in England, till he found the tassels had been
fastened by split sinew.
SEPTEMBER 18TH.--We had a very long ride this day. At the twelfth
posta, which is seven leagues south of Rio Salado, we came to the
first estancia with cattle and white women. Afterwards we had to ride
for many miles through a country flooded with water above our horses’
knees. By crossing the stirrups, and riding Arab-like with our legs
bent up, we contrived to keep tolerably dry. It was nearly dark when
we arrived at the Salado; the stream was deep, and about forty yards
wide; in summer, however, its bed becomes almost dry, and the little
remaining water nearly as salt as that of the sea. We slept at one
of the great estancias of General Rosas. It was fortified, and of
such an extent, that arriving in the dark I thought it was a town and
fortress. In the morning we saw immense herds of cattle, as well we
might, the general here having seventy-four square leagues of land.
Formerly nearly three hundred men were employed about this estate,
and they defied all the attacks of the Indians.
SEPTEMBER 19TH.--Passed the Guardia del Monte. This is a nice
scattered little town, with many gardens, full of peach and quince
trees. The plain here looked like that around Buenos Ayres; the turf
being short and bright green, with beds of clover and thistles, and
with bizcacha holes. I was very much struck with the marked change
in the aspect of the country after having crossed the Salado. From a
coarse herbage we passed on to a carpet of fine green verdure. I at
first attributed this to some change in the nature of the soil, but
the inhabitants assured me that in this part, as well as in Banda
Oriental, where there was as great a difference between the country
around Monte Video and the thinly-inhabited savannahs of Colonia,
that the whole was to be attributed to the manuring and grazing of
the cattle. I am not botanist enough to say, whether the change is
owing to the introduction of new species, to the altered growth of
the same, or to a difference in their proportional numbers. Azara
has also observed with astonishment this change: he is likewise
much perplexed by the immediate appearance of plants not occurring
in the neighbourhood, on the borders of any track that leads to a
newly-constructed hovel. In another part he says,[7] “Ces chevaux
(sauvages) ont la manie de préférer les chemins, et le bord des
routes pour déposer leurs excrémens, dont on trouve des monceaux
dans ces endroits.” Does this not partly explain the circumstance?
We thus have lines of richly-manured land serving as channels of
communication across wide districts.
Near the Guardia we find the southern limit of two European plants,
now become excessively common. The fennel in great profusion covers
the ditch banks in the neighbourhood of Buenos Ayres, Monte Video,
and other towns. But the cardoon (_Cynara cardunculus_)[8] has a
far wider range: it occurs in these latitudes on both sides of the
Cordillera, across the continent. I saw it in unfrequented spots in
Chile, Entre Rios, and Banda Oriental. In the latter country alone,
very many (probably several hundred) square miles are covered by one
mass of these prickly plants, and are impenetrable by man or beast.
Over the undulating plains, where these great beds occur, nothing
else can live. Before their introduction, however, I apprehend the
surface supported as in other parts a rank herbage. I doubt whether
any case is on record, of an invasion on so grand a scale of one
plant over the aborigines. As I have already said, I nowhere saw the
cardoon south of the Salado; but it is probable that in proportion
as that country becomes inhabited, the cardoon will extend its
limits. The case is different with the giant thistle (with variegated
leaves) of the Pampas, for I met with it in the valley of the Sauce.
According to the principles so well laid down by Mr. Lyell, few
countries have undergone more remarkable changes, since the year
1535, when the first colonist of La Plata landed with seventy-two
horses. The countless herds of horses, cattle, and sheep, not only
have altered the whole aspect of the vegetation, but they have almost
banished the guanaco, deer, and ostrich. Numberless other changes
must likewise have taken place; the wild pig in some parts probably
replaces the peccari; packs of wild dogs may be heard howling on the
wooded banks of the less frequented streams; and the common cat,
altered into a large and fierce animal, inhabits rocky hills. I have
alluded to the invasion of the cardoon: in a like manner, the islands
near the mouth of the Parana, are thickly clothed with peaches and
orange-trees, springing from seeds carried there by the waters of the
river.
While changing horses at the Guardia, several people questioned us
much about the army,--I never saw any thing like the enthusiasm for
Rosas, and for the success of the “most just of all wars, because
against barbarians.” This expression it must be confessed is very
natural, for till lately, neither man, woman, nor horse, was safe
from the attacks of the Indians. We had a long day’s ride over the
same rich green plain abounding with various flocks, and with here
and there a solitary estancia, and its one _ombu_ tree. In the
evening it rained heavily: on arriving at a post-house, we were told
by the owner that if we had not a regular passport we must pass
on, for there were so many robbers he would trust no one. When he
read, however, my passport, which began with “El Naturalista Don
Carlos, &c.” his respect and civility were as unbounded, as his
suspicions had been before. What a naturalist may be, neither he nor
his countrymen, I suspect, had any idea; but probably my title lost
nothing of its value from that cause.
SEPTEMBER 20TH.--We arrived by the middle of the day at Buenos Ayres.
The outskirts of the city looked quite pretty, with the agave hedges,
and groves of olive, peach, and willow-trees, all just throwing out
their fresh green leaves. I rode to the house of Mr. Lumb, an English
merchant, to whose kindness and hospitality, during my stay in the
country, I was greatly indebted.
The city of Buenos Ayres is large[9]; and I should think one of the
most regular in the world. Every street is at right angles to the
one it crosses, and the parallel ones being equidistant, the houses
are collected into solid squares of equal dimensions, which are
called quadras. On the other hand, the houses themselves are hollow
squares; all the rooms opening into a neat little courtyard. They
are generally only one story high, with flat roofs, which are fitted
with seats, and are much frequented by the inhabitants in summer.
In the centre of the town is the Plaza, where the public offices,
fortress, cathedral, &c., stand. Here also, the old viceroys,
before the revolution, had their palaces. The general assemblage of
buildings possesses considerable architectural beauty, although none
individually can boast of any.
The great _corral_ where the animals are kept for slaughter to supply
food to this beef-eating population, is one of the spectacles best
worth seeing. The strength of the horse as compared to that of the
bullock is quite astonishing: a man on horseback having thrown his
lazo round the horns of a beast, can drag it any where he chooses.
The animal having ploughed up the ground with outstretched legs, in
vain efforts to resist the force, generally dashes at full speed to
one side; but the horse immediately turning to receive the shock,
stands so firmly, that the bullock is almost thrown down, and one
would think, would certainly have its neck dislocated. The struggle
is not, however, one of fair strength; the horse’s girth being
matched against the bullock’s extended neck. In a similar manner a
man can hold the wildest horse, if caught with the lazo, just behind
the ears. When the bullock has been dragged to the spot where it
is to be slaughtered, the _matador_ with great caution cuts the
hamstrings. Then is given the death bellow; a noise more expressive
of fierce agony than any I know: I have often distinguished it from
a long distance, and have always known that the struggle was then
drawing to a close. The whole sight is horrible and revolting, the
ground is almost made of bones; and the horses, and riders are
drenched with gore.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] I call these thistle-stalks for the want of a more correct name.
I believe it is a species of Eryngium.
[2] As a proof of the force with which the balls are hurled, I may
mention an anecdote that happened at the Falkland Islands. At the
time the Spaniards murdered some of their own countrymen, and all
the Englishmen, a young Spaniard was running away, when a great tall
Indian, by name Luciano, came at full gallop after him, shouting to
him to stop, and saying that he only wanted to speak to him. Just as
the Spaniard was on the point of reaching the boat, Luciano threw the
balls: they struck him on the legs, with such a jerk, as to throw
him down and to render him for some time insensible. The man, after
Luciano had had his talk, was allowed to escape. He told us that his
legs were marked by great weals, where the thong had wound round, as
if he had been flogged with a whip.
[3] Two species of Tinamus, and _Eudromia elegans_ of D’Orbigny,
which can only be called a partridge with regard to its habits.
[4] The lieutenant pressed me much to stop. As he had been very
obliging--not only providing me with food, but lending me his private
horses--I wanted to make him some remuneration. I asked my guide
whether I might do so, but he told me certainly not; that the only
answer I should receive, probably would be, “We have meat for the
dogs in our country, and therefore do not grudge it to a Christian.”
It must not be supposed that the rank of lieutenant in such an army,
would at all prevent the acceptance of payment: it was only the high
sense of hospitality, which every traveller is bound to acknowledge
as nearly universal throughout these provinces.
[5] History of the Abipones, vol. ii., p. 6.
[6] Falconer’s Patagonia, p. 70.
[7] Azara’s Voyage, vol. i., p. 373.
[8] D’Orbigny (vol. i., p. 474), says that the cardoon and artichoke
are both found wild. Dr. Hooker (Botanical Magazine, vol. lv., p.
2862), has described a variety of the Cynara from this part of South
America under the name of _inermis_. He states that botanists are now
generally agreed that the cardoon and the artichoke are varieties
of one plant. I may add, that an intelligent farmer assured me, he
had observed in a deserted garden, some artichokes changing into the
common cardoon. Dr. Hooker believes that Head’s vivid description
of the thistle of the Pampas applies to the cardoon; but this is a
mistake. Captain Head referred to the plant, which I have mentioned
a few lines lower down, under the title of giant thistle. Whether it
is a true thistle I do not know; but it is quite different from the
cardoon, and more like a thistle properly so called.
[9] Is said to contain 60,000 inhabitants. Monte Video, the second
town of importance on the banks of the Plata, has 15,000.