d drove halted at about fifty paces from the stream; the black
and white bull advanced alone and, first leisurely taking a drink,
plunged into the water; he reached the opposite bank, where he halted
and turned right about. Then the entire drove, above which was hovering
a cloud of horse-flies, dashed at full gallop into the stream to join
their guide. Although the drove must have consisted of hundreds, in
less than a quarter of an hour there were not left more than five or six
on our side, and these seemed afraid to cross. Suddenly a gun was fired,
and one of the animals came rushing past our tree with a jet of blood
flowing from his chest. Suddenly he stopped, groaned, and sank down upon
the ground. I cast a glance at l'Encuerado, who descended to the lowest
branch, continuing his gymnastic exercises. The young bulls on our side,
frightened by the report of the gun, at last made up their minds to
cross; one of them, however, stopping to drink, was seized by a
crocodile, and gradually drawn under the water. A second disappeared in
the middle of the stream; and a third, after a fearful struggle, reached
the bank. The whole drove, goaded on by the horse-flies, then resumed
their furious course, and were soon lost in the distance.

These cattle range the prairies in droves of sometimes forty thousand,
and were originally imported by the Spaniards.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

CHAPTER XXXII.

THE KING OF THE VULTURES.--THE TICKS.--L'ENCUERADO
FRIGHTENED BY A DEMON.--THE TAPIRS.--GOOD-BYE TO
THE STREAM.--THE PUMA'S PREY.--A MISERABLE
NIGHT.--OUR DEPARTURE.--THE SAVANNAH.--LUCIEN
CARRIED IN A LITTER.--HUNGER AND THIRST.--WE
ABANDON OUR BAGGAGE AND PETS IN DESPAIR.

The next morning l'Encuerado started alone on the raft; for we had
resolved to cross the savannah on foot, and thus escape, for an hour or
two, the insects which took advantage of our forced immobility in order
to bleed us at their leisure.

Flocks of black vultures hovered high up in the sky, bending their
course towards a spot not very far from the river bed. Our curiosity led
us in that direction, and in a large hole, with perpendicular sides,
about twelve yards wide, we saw several hundreds of these bare-necked
gentry fighting over the carcass of a buffalo. We were retiring in
disgust, when the vultures, who had not seemed the least alarmed at our
presence, suddenly manifested fea