THE RABBIT.--WILD POTATOES.--A DIFFICULT PATH.--AN EXTINCT
CRATER.--HOAR-FROST.--THE TORRENT.--THE FAWN.--THE TETTIGONES.--THE
DRAGON-FLIES.
The next day, when I opened my eyes, the sun was shining brightly in a
blue sky. I made up the fire, and walked off, with my gun on my
shoulder, to try and obtain some kind of game, so as to surprise my
companions when they got up. For about a quarter of an hour I traversed
tracts of heath which reminded me of my native country, when a too
confiding rabbit came frisking along within gunshot, which I knocked
over and placed in my game-bag.
On my return all were up, standing round the fire, and they hailed me
as a conqueror. The terrible trials of the day before seemed to be
entirely forgotten; even Lucien had recovered all his liveliness.
L'Encuerado took the rabbit, and in an incredible short space of time
had it skinned, and placed to broil on the burning coals.
"Well! what do you think of hurricanes?" asked Sumichrast of Lucien, who
was watching him cleaning his gun.
"They are most awful! I should never have thought that the wind, which
is invisible, could have blown down and broken up trees as big as that
one which almost fell upon us."
"Were you much frightened?"
"Rather; and so were you, for you were quite pale."
"The danger was much greater than you imagined. If the uprooted tree had
pitched on our rock, it would have upset it, and crushed us beneath."
"Then the wind must be much stronger in forests than in towns?"
"No; for the hurricane of yesterday probably destroyed entire villages.
It was one of those tropical storms which happily only break out at long
intervals. Many an Indian is at this moment rebuilding his destroyed
hut."
Lucien looked very thoughtful, and went and sat down at the foot of a
tree. When I passed near him, I saw he had tears in his eyes.
"What's the matter?" I asked.
"I was thinking of mamma and my brothers. M. Sumichrast told me that the
tempest must have demolished whole villages; so perhaps our home has met
with some misfortune."
"Don't be frightened, my dear boy! Thank God! stone walls can generally
stand against wind. Besides, this hurricane can hardly have been felt at
Orizava. At all events, your mamma has more reason to be anxious about
_us_, for she knows that we are far from shelter--exposed to all its
violence."
I kissed poor Lucien, and comforted him as well as I could, assisted by
l'Encuerado, who soon afterwards took him off to look after our roast
rabbit.
The _tochtli_, or Mexican rabbit, is different from the European
species, although it has the same colored coat and instincts. In fact it
is a hare.
"Do you know the family of the animal we are going to have for
breakfast?" asked Sumichrast.
"Yes; it is a Rodent."
"Well done; but how did you recognize it to be so?"
"By the absence of canine teeth in its jaws, its large incisors, and its
hind legs being longer than its fore legs."
"Come, your memory is good. You should also know that, in Europe, the
rabbit, which is nearly allied to the hare, is thought to be a native of
Africa. Formerly, the Aztecs used to sacrifice hundreds of these animals
to the goddess Centeutl, who is the Ceres of Mexican mythology; and the
nobles used to wear cloaks made of the hair of the hare, mixed with
cotton. With regard to the larger hare, known farther north as the
Jackass rabbit, the Indians generally refuse to eat its flesh, under the
pretense that it feeds on dead bodies, a mistake which as yet they have
not been persuaded to abandon."
We did justice to our game like guests who have to make up for a forced
fast. The meal finished, without further delay our little coterie moved
on again. Instead of the abundant and bushy thickets of sarsaparilla, we
met with nothing but stunted shrubs. However, as we approached the
mountain the vegetation assumed a richer aspect, and the bare rocks no
longer protruded through the soil. Here and there, tanagers, with black
backs, yellow breasts, and violet-blue throats, fluttered around us;
also other variegated birds of the Passerine family. We were just
about to begin climbing the slope, when l'Encuerado, whose piercing eyes
seemed to see every thing, exclaimed:
[Illustration: "A labyrinth of rocks brought us out in front of a stony
rampart, more than a hundred feet in height."]
"There are some potatoes!"
Lucien ran towards the Indian, who, with his _machete_, had already
cleared away the earth round a small plant with oval-shaped leaves,
covered with soft greenish berries. Some wrinkled tubercles were ere
long discovered, which we could easily crush between our fingers. This
is the origin of the valuable plant for which Europe is indebted to
America.
After climbing some time, we came upon a mass of rocks all heaped up in
a perfect chaos. Some obstacle or other incessantly obliged us either to
jump over or make a circuit so as to get forward. The temperature,
however, was refreshing, and rendered our exertions less fatiguing.
The chances of our journey brought us out once more upon the plateau.
All the mountain crests we could see were barren, and a profound silence
reigned on every side. We stopped to take breath, and the sight that met
our eyes impressed us with its stern grandeur. It reminded Sumichrast of
the Swiss mountains which he had so often traversed; and some flowers he
gathered further recalled his home. While thus occupied, two butterflies
fluttered over our heads.
"It is an Alpine species!" eagerly cried my friend.
The locality prevented him from following these capricious insects for
any distance: for one moment he leaned over the abyss, bristling up with
rocks, and followed, with a longing eye, the two winged flowers which
had recalled to him a fleeting image of his fatherland.
A labyrinth of rocks brought us out in front of a stony rampart more
than a hundred feet in height, and almost perpendicular. This unexpected
obstacle brought us to a halt. How should we make our way over it? Upon
examining the spot, we decided to incline towards the left, which seemed
to us the most accessible road. In parts the wall diminished in height,
but we tried in vain to climb it. A more successful attempt, however,
brought us nearly to the top, but not without great fatigue, for
sometimes the rock appeared to hang over us. At length, by climbing on
to Sumichrast's shoulders, I managed to reach the flat surface above. I
hoisted up Lucien here with the lasso; next I drew up Gringalet, who was
only too pleased to submit to the operation, and lastly Sumichrast and
l'Encuerado. The terrible obstacle was at last overcome; beyond it the
ground was, comparatively speaking, level, but covered with stones of a
volcanic nature.
We still kept on our way, although it was four o'clock, in the hope of
finding some tree at the foot of which we could make our bivouac.
L'Encuerado put down his load to climb up a needle-shaped rock, the
extraordinary position of which reminded us of the celebrated leaning
tower of Pisa. When he had reached its top, the Indian called out to us
that he could see a clump of trees. The cold began to inconvenience us
and we wanted wood to make our fire, so, plucking up fresh courage, we
continued our journey. The distance now traversed was inconsiderable;
but the ups and downs and circuits had quite wearied us. Gradually the
rocks decreased in size, and were more widely spread; a plain slightly
depressed in the centre, dotted here and there with thinly growing
thickets, was reached. In the background there was a clump of firs and a
glittering lake, quite a liquid oasis hidden in a desert.
[Illustration: "Sunset surprised us ere we had finished our labor."]
It now became highly necessary for us to seek shelter, for our teeth
were chattering with the cold. L'Encuerado, having climbed a tree, cut
down the wood that was necessary for the construction of a hut; while
Lucien broke all the dry branches off, a task in which I helped him.
Sunset surprised us ere we had finished our labor. The waters of the
lake assumed a dark hue, and the mountain peaks towards the setting sun
furrowed the sky with their strangely irregular outlines, and the breeze
resounding through the pine-trees produced a solemn and grave chant, a
peculiarity which has doubtless given to this species of tree the name
of _Pinus religiosus_. As the rays of the sun died away and the dark
shadows covered the sky, the silence became still more profound.
Suddenly the last rays of the luminary vanished; the gathering darkness
imbued us with an emotion which those only can understand who, like us,
had found themselves face to face with some of the grandest emanations
from the Creator's hands.
Lucien, too, was subject to the influence of the twofold majesty of
darkness and solitude; he was speechless, and looked by turns both at
the earth and the sky. The stars appeared glittering in the blue heaven,
and were reflected on the motionless surface of the neighboring water.
Suddenly a luminous ray seemed to dance over the lake, and then to
divide into a shower of sparks. It was the reflection of our fire, to
which l'Encuerado had just set a light.
The piercing cold was excessively trying: our _sarapes_ did not seem
sufficient to protect us from its influence. Fortunately we had obtained
fuel enough to keep up the bivouac fire all night. Our meal, although
without meat, was a cheerful one. Each in turn retired to his pine-leaf
couch; and soon I alone remained up, not feeling an inclination for
slumber.
What a contrast it was! The night before, at this time, we were deafened
by the uproarious wind, and the forests echoed with its fearful effects;
while we, perfectly helpless, sheltered behind a trembling stone, could
scarcely breathe the burning air. Twenty-four hours had hardly elapsed,
and a few miles had brought us on to a granite soil where we felt even
unpleasantly cold; it was no longer the uproar, but the silence, which
awoke in my mind the reveries of loneliness.
We rose before dawn, perfectly benumbed and hardly able to move our
lips. L'Encuerado stirred up the fire so as to get the coffee ready. The
first ray of light showed the ground covered with a white shroud of
bright hoar-frost. Lucien had never seen this phenomenon before, and was
never tired of admiring it. Sumichrast explained to him that the drops
of dew, which every morning may be seen glittering on the grass in hot
countries, freeze in situations of great altitude, and produce those
beautiful transparent globules which, owing to the refraction of light,
assume so beauteous an appearance.
The rays of the sun warmed us but little, so I hastened our preparations
for departure. After skirting the edge of the lake, we once more found
ourselves among rocks. The summit which we had traversed was doubtless
the crater of some extinct volcano. I took a farewell look at the
gigantic semicircle, edged with mountain crests, ere commencing a
journey quite as difficult as that of the day before, through the
immense stones which had been vomited forth by the burning mountain.
More than once we got into a _cul-de-sac_, and we sat down utterly
discouraged.
For the last time I examined the horizon. We were now standing on the
highest summit of the Cordillera; opposite us, as far as we could see,
rose verdure-clad peaks, which gradually diminished in height. We were
again about to meet with tropical vegetation, and should ere long reach
the plains and forests of the _Terre-Chaude_. The way seemed direct and
easy; but how many obstacles must be overcome, how many valleys must be
crossed, ere we could reach our destination!
We descended the slope by a giant staircase, each step of which must
have been at least seven or eight feet in height. More than once the
lasso was called into use; but all obstacles were at last safely
overcome. I can not describe the joy I felt upon once more seeing
pine-trees. We sought in vain for any traces of the hurricane; this side
of the mountain had evidently not been visited by it.
The slope was now more gradual; our pace became faster, and a few oaks
were in sight. A rumbling noise made us stop and listen attentively, but
l'Encuerado, who was more expert than we were in making out distant
sounds, told us that it was a torrent. Squirrels gambolled on the
branches as we passed by, and toucans seemed to tempt us to stop; but we
were all anxious to reach the waterfall. Ere long, oaks and birches, and
afterwards guava-trees, surrounded us on every side. The ground was now
level, and in less than half an hour l'Encuerado conducted us to the
edge of an immense ravine, at the bottom of which there was a roaring
torrent.
It was not long before the steep bank became less abrupt, and we
established our bivouac. While we were cutting down some branches,
Sumichrast put his finger to his lips and seized his gun. A slight noise
was heard in the thickets, and our companion disappeared. We were
listening, holding our breath, when we heard the screech as of an owl;
we knew it was a call, so l'Encuerado also glided away through the
bushes.
"Why did M. Sumichrast call l'Encuerado?" asked Lucien, in a low voice.
"Probably because he has discovered the trail of some animal."
I had scarcely finished speaking, when a movement in the leaves
attracted my attention. A fine fox, with an eager look, and its tail
lowered, rushed past me. I fired, but without effect, for it bolted off
among the trees, followed by Gringalet. Almost at the same moment, a
report told me that l'Encuerado had also seen game.
Lucien was very sorry that I had missed the fox; I only regretted having
lost a charge of powder, and also having awkwardly put to flight the
quarry which was probably being pursued by my companions. I then
continued my work of cutting off the branches, and told Lucien to strike
the flint and light the fire. Thanks to l'Encuerado's lessons, he
managed his work much better than I had expected.
We heard Sumichrast give a call, to which Lucien answered, and the
disappointed hunter joined us.
"What did you fire at?" he inquired of me.
"At a fox, which I missed; were you chasing it?"
"No; I caught sight of a doe and its fawn, but I could not get near
them."
"And where is l'Encuerado?"
"He wanted to shoot some bird, so as not to come back quite
empty-handed."
"Chanito! Hiou! Hiou! Chanito!" we heard shouted in the distance.
"Hallo! hallo!" answered the boy.
And, soon after, l'Encuerado returned, carrying a fawn on his shoulders.
"Oh! what a pretty little creature!" cried Lucien; "why didn't you take
it alive?"
"Bullets are the only things that can run as fast as these animals,
Chanito."
"What became of the mother?" asked Sumichrast.
"I was not able to get near her; but at all events, we have more than
enough meat now, both for to-day and to-morrow."
Lucien took possession of the fawn. He had always longed to possess one
of these animals alive. He duly examined the slender legs and tapering
muzzle of the poor creature, whose fawn-colored back, dotted over with
symmetrically arranged spots, would change in color as it got older.
"Well, Master 'Sunbeam,' in what class will you place this mammal?"
asked Sumichrast, addressing Lucien.
"It is not like any of those I know."
"Well, then, you never can have seen goats, cows, or sheep. It is a
ruminant, or an animal which has three or four stomachs. Its lower jaw
is provided with eight incisors, while the upper jaw has nothing but a
cushion or gum."
"That's right enough," said Lucien, opening the fawn's mouth.
"In all ruminants, the food, when swallowed, passes into the first
stomach; it is then brought up to be chewed again; this is called
'chewing the cud.' You must often have seen a cow or a sheep sitting
quiet in the sun and constantly chewing."
"Yes," replied Lucien, "and l'Encuerado always told me that they had
eaten some bitter herb."
"His explanation is about as correct as that given by the Mexicans, who
say that an animal which chews the cud is reading the newspaper. Another
characteristic of these animals is, that their feet are cloven."
"And they have horns!" cried Lucien.
"Not all of them; for instance, the camel, llama, and musk-deer, are
exceptions."
It remained for us to decide how our fawn should be cooked. After a
discussion on the subject, we left the point entirely to l'Encuerado,
and I made my way down to the bottom of the ravine. Upon lifting up some
stones and pieces of bark, I discovered several species of the
_Carabus_ family. Lucien caught on a shrub some insects of a very
peculiar shape; at the first glance, Sumichrast recognized them as
_tettigones_.
"These insects belong to the _Hemeptera_ family," said he, "therefore
they are allied to the bug and the grasshopper; these insects have
neither mandibles[O] nor jaws; their mouth is a sort of beak, formed of
a jointed tube extending along the breast, which you can see very
plainly. This order is a very numerous one, and the two species you have
just found are peculiar to Mexico."
"Here is one like a fowl, and another like a canoe."
"You are quite right, and you will meet with others which are still more
singular looking."
The appearance of these little creatures pleased Lucien very much, and,
as he was letting them run about on his hand, he saw them jump off and
disappear. He was just going to return to the shrub on which he had
caught them, when his attention was attracted by an immense dragon-fly,
commonly called in Mexico _the devil's horse_, and in France
_demoiselle_. The beautiful insect, after flying round and round,
settled on a plant, and was immediately caught in the young hunter's
net. The prisoner had greenish eyes, a yellow body, and its wings were
dotted over with black and scarlet. It doubled back its tapering body,
as if to try and sting the hand which held it, and shook its gauzy wings
with a kind of metallic sound. A half-eaten mosquito hung out of its
mouth, and, although the dragon-fly was sadly bruised, it continued its
meal, much to the amusement of Lucien, who hardly expected to find such
tiger-like habits in an insect so elegant in form and so harmless in
appearance.
"It is of the order _Neuroptera_," I said to him; "thus called because
of the veins on its four wings. This insect first lives in the water in
the form of a larva, in which state it remains a year--it is very much
like the insect you are holding, only, all that can be seen of its wings
are small swellings, which grow longer each time the animal changes its
skin. This swelling is a sort of sheath to the beautiful gauzy wings
which distinguish all the Neuroptera, and the dragon-fly in particular."
"What! does the dragon-fly begin its life by living in water like a
fish?"
"Yes, and they are quite as voracious in that state as when they are
perfect insects. The larva changes to a grub, and greedily devours
water-lizards and young fish; after a certain time, which varies
according to the species, it rises to the top of the water by crawling
up a reed, and remains perfectly motionless, exposed to the rays of the
sun; suddenly, the skin covering the head bursts open, and the
dragon-fly, spotted with black, blue, and green, takes flight, and loses
no time in darting upon the first insect which comes within its reach."
My lecture was interrupted by the cry of "Hallo! hallo!" from
l'Encuerado. It was his substitute for a dinner-bell.
[Illustration]
FOOTNOTE:
[O] A very hard substance placed immediately under the upper lip, which
insects use for cutting and tearing their food.
[Illustration]