h, for which Minha, and particularly the young
mulatto, felt an instinctive aversion.

These were, in fact, the horrible vampires which suck the blood of the
cattle, and even attack man if he is imprudent enough to sleep out in
the fields.

"Oh, the dreadful creatures!" cried Lina, hiding her eyes; "they fill me
with horror!"

"And they are really formidable," added Minha; "are they not, Manoel?"

"To be sure--very formidable," answered he. "These vampires have a
particular instinct which leads them to bleed you in the places where
the blood most easily comes, and principally behind the ear. During
the operation the continue to move their wings, and cause an agreeable
freshness which renders the sleep of the sleeper more profound. They
tell of people, unconsciously submitted to this hemorrhage for many
hours, who have never awoke!"

"Talk no more of things like that, Manoel," said Yaquita, "or neither
Minha nor Lina will dare sleep to-night."

"Never fear!" replied Manoel; "if necessary we will watch over them as
they sleep."

"Silence!" said Benito.

"What is the matter?" asked Manoel.

"Do you not hear a very curious noise on that side?" continued Benito,
pointing to the right bank.

"Certainly," answered Yaquita.

"What causes the noise?" asked Minha. "One would think it was shingle
rolling on the beach of the islands."

"Good! I know what it is," answered Benito. "Tomorrow, at daybreak,
there will be a rare treat for those who like fresh turtle eggs and
little turtles!"

He was not deceived; the noise was produced by innumerable chelonians of
all sizes, who were attracted to the islands to lay their eggs.

It is in the sand of the beach that these amphibians choose the most
convenient places to deposit their eggs. The operation commences with
sunset and finishes with the dawn.

At this moment the chief turtle had left the bed of the river to
reconnoiter for a favorable spot; the others, collected in thousands,
were soon after occupied in digging with their hind paddles a trench six
hundred feet long, a dozen wide, and six deep. After laying their eggs
they cover them with a bed of sand, which they beat down with their
carapaces as if they were rammers.

This egg-laying operation is a grand affair for the riverine Indians
of the Amazon and its tributaries. They watch for the arrival of the
chelonians, and proceed to the extraction of the eggs to the sound
of the drum; and the harvest is divided