11. INHABITANTS. In Patagonia the inhabitants, may be called a race of giants, though less in size than, the surprise of the first navigators led them to suppose. Magellan described one so tall that the sailors' heads did not reach to his waist. Herrera says that the least person among them was taller than any man in Castile. Sir Thos. Cavendish in 1592 measured tracks in the sand four times larger than his own. In 1776 Duclos Guyot measured the least man which he found among the Patagonians, and found his height to be 5 feet 7 inches. The rest were much taller but so well proportioned that they did not appear very tall. The tallest person that subsequent navigators measured was more than 8 feet high, and nearly 5 around the waist. The mean height varies from 6 to 7 feet. Their arms are a sling with two stones tied together, one of which they hold in the hand while they swing the other round the head till it has acquired sufficient momentum to be launched at the object, which they hit with much precision.

CHAPTER LIII. GENERAL VIEW OF SOUTH AMERICA.

1. BOUNDARIES AND EXTENT. This portion of the western continent is bounded N. by the Carribean Sea; E. by the Atlantic; S. by the Southern Ocean, and W. by the Pacific. It extends from 120 N. to 55° 55′ S. lat. and from 34° 30' to 81° W. lon., and contains above 7,000,000 square miles.

2. MOUNTAINS. The Andes extend along the western coast of this continent from the isthmus of Darien to the straits of Magellan, sometimes within 50 miles of the sea, and at others 200 miles distant. This great chain is connected with the Cordilleras of Mexico and the Rocky Mountains, and is the most extensive on the globe. In South America it sometimes consists of a single ridge, and sometimes of three separate ranges. In the eastern part of South America, the mountains are often called the Brazilian Andes. They extend along the eastern shore, and are connected with the western chain by a ridge between the 10th and 20th parallels of S. latitude.

The

3. RIVERS. The largest river in South America is the Amazon, or Maranon. By some it is regarded as the largest in the world, though it is inferior in length to the Missouri. It rises in Peru, and flows easterly into the Atlantic, after a course of more than 4,000 miles. It is navigable to the foot of the Andes, and the tide flows 400 miles above its mouth. Ucayale, Madeira, Negro, Topayos, Xingu, Puros, Japura, and many others are large streams tributary to the Amazon. The Orinoco rises in the central part of Colombia, and flows north-easterly into the Atlantic. It has a course of above 1,000 miles, and is navigable two thirds of this distance. One of its branches the Cassiquiare presents a phenomena altogether unique of its kind. This stream is a natural canal flowing to the north into the Orinoco, and to the south into the Negro, a branch of the Amazon. The La Plata is a very broad river formed by the junction of Uruguay and the Parana, which rise in the southern part of Brazil. In its whole extent this river is 2,000 miles in length; and at its mouth it expands to the width of 150 miles. The Pilcomayo, Vermejo and Salado are tributaries of this stream. The Tocantins rises among the Brazilian Andes, and flows N. into the Atlantic near the mouth of the Amazon. There are no large rivers in this country flowing into the Pacific.

4. ISLANDS. The Galapagos Islands lie in the Pacific Ocean, about 200 miles from the coast. They form a considerable group, intersected by the equator. Most of them are small, but many are covered with forests and abound in turtle. They are uninhabited, but are frequently visited by the South Sea ships for refreshments.

Juan Fernandez is about 350 miles W. of the coast of Chile. It is small but pleasant and fertile. It is inhabited by a few Spaniards, and is famous for having been the residence of Alexander Selkirk. Masafuero, is another small island 22 leagues W. of Juan Fernandez. This is also a pleasant spot but uninhabited. The island of Mocha is 125 miles N. W. of Valdivia in Chile, and was once well peopled. It is now without inhabitants, but is occasionally visited by the American and British whale ships.

5. CLIMATE. The three zones of temperature which originate in America from the enormous difference of level between the various regions, cannot by any means be compared with the zones which result from a difference of latitude. The agreeable, the salutary vicissitudes of the seasons are wanting in those regions that are here distinguished by the denominations of frigid, temperate, hot, or torrid. In the frigid zone it is not the intensity, but the continuance of the cold, the absence of all vivid heat, the constant humidity of a foggy atmosphere, that arrest the growth of the great vegetable productions, and, in man, perpetuate those diseases that arise from checked perspiration. The hot zone of these places does not experience excessive heat; but it is a continuance of the heat, together with exhalations from a marshy soil, and the miasmata of an immense mass of vegetable putrefaction, added to the effects of an extreme humidity, that produces fevers of a more or less destructive nature, and spreads through the whole animal and vegetable world the agitation of an exuberant, but deranged vital principle. The temperate zone, by possessing only a moderate and constant warmth, like that of a hot-house, excludes from its limits both the animals and vegetables that delight in the extremes of heat and cold, and produces its own peculiar plants, which can neither grow above its limits, nor descend below them. Its temperature, which does not brace the constitution of its constant inhabitants, acts like spring on the diseases of the hot region, and like summer on those of the frozen regions. Accordingly, a mere journey from the summit of the Andes to the level of the sea, or, vice versa, proves an important medical agent, which is sufficient to produce the most astonishing changes in the human body. But, living constantly in either one or the other of these zones must encrvate both the mind and the body by its monotonous tranquillity. The summer, the spring, and the winter are here seated on three distinct thrones, which they never quit, and are constantly surrounded by the attributes of their power.

6. NATURAL PRODUCTIONS. The vegetable kingdom in South America offers the richest abundance and variety. The most remarkable trees are the palm, cocoa, banana, and cinchona. On the shores of the ocean the mangrove abounds.

In the region of the palms the natives cultivate the banana, jatropha, maize, and cocoa. Europeans have introduced the sugar-cane and indigo plant. After passing the level of 3,100 feet, all these plants become rare, and only prosper in particular situations. It is thus that the sugar-cane grows even at the height of 7,500 feet. Coffee and cotton extend across both of these regions. The cultivation of wheat commences at 3,000 feet; but its growth is not completely established lower than 1,500 feet above this line. Barley is the most vigorous, from a height of 4,800 to 6,000 feet. One year with another it produces twenty-five or thirty grains for one. Above 5,400 feet the fruit of the banana does not easily ripen; but the plant is still met with, although in a feeble condition, 2,400 feet higher. The region comprehended

between 4,920 and 5,160 feet, is also the one which principally abounds with the cocoa, or Erythroxylum Peruvianum, a few leaves of which, mixed with quicklime, support the Peruvian Indian in his longest journeys through the Cordillera. It is at the elevation of 6,000 and 9,000 feet that the Chenopodium quinoa, and the various grains of Europe are, principally cultivated, a circumstance which is greatly favored by the extensive plateaus that exist in the Cordillera of the Andes, the, soil of which being smooth, and requiring little labor, resembles the bottom of ancient lakes. At the height of 9,600 or 10,200 feet, frost and hail often destroy the crops of wheat. Indian corn is scarcely any longer cultivated above the elevation of 7,200 feet; 1,000 feet higher and the potato is produced; but it ceases at 12,600 feet. At about 10,200 feet barley no longer grows, and rye only is sown, although even this grain suffers from a want of heat. Above 11,040 feet all culture and gardening cease.

7. MINERALS. In the precious metals South America surpasses all other parts of the globe. The chief mines of gold and silver are among the Andes on the western shore. The diamond mines of Brazil are the most productive in the world.

8. ANIMALS. The Jaguar, which is sometimes called the American Tiger, is one of the most formidable animals of the New World. He is to be found in the southern division of America, from Paraguay to Guinea; but he does not appear to inhabit to the northward of the isthmus of Darien. Even in the south the race is gradually growing more rare, in consequence of the double temptation to destroy him, which is offered by the desire of getting rid of a beast so destructive to the flocks, and by the high price which is obtained for his skin. More robust and more clumsy than the leopard, he is also much superior in size, as he often measures four or five feet from the nose to the root of the tail. The jaguar is a solitary animal,

residing in forests, especially near large rivers. He is an excellent swimmer, and is equally expert at climbing. He lies in ambush for his prey, on which he pounces suddenly, and his great muscular strength enables him instantly to bear it to the ground. Man he does not often attack, and never but by stealth. Ferocious as he is in his wild state, the jaguar, when captive, becomes tame and even mild, and is particularly fond of licking the hands of those with whom he is familiar. The taking of the jaguar forms a portion of the warlike features distinguishing the Indians of South

America, particularly the Llaneros, or men of the plains. The Cougar is found in different parts of this country; it has already been described under the General View of North America. The Ocelot is nearly equal in size to the lynx of Europe, but shorter in its proportions, and more graceful in its form it holds, as it were a middle station between the leopard and the domestic cat. Its body, when full grown, is nearly three feet in length, and its tail rather more than one; while its medium height may be reckoned at about eighteen inches. It is extensively spread over the American conti

nent, being found in the widely separated regions of Mexico and Paraguay, where it abides in the depths of the forests during the day, and giving chase at night to birds and small quadrupeds. As it is an active climber, it follows the birds even to their nests. It does not eat with the same ravenous avidity which characterizes nearly all the animals of its tribe. The Margay is much smaller than the ocelot. It resembles the wild cat in the size and shape of its body; its head only is more square, its snout longer, its ears rounder, and its tail longer; its hair also is shorter, and it has black streaks and spots on a brown ground. Its skin is fawn-colored above, and whitish beneath, with longish spots of dark brown, disposed in fine lines, straight on the back, and oblique on the flanks. The shoulders are spotted with a deep reddish brown, and bordered with a black brovn. It is very

difficult to be tamed, and never loses its natural ferocity; it varies greatly in its color, though commonly it is such as we have described it. This animal is very common in Brazil and Guiana. There are several other small species of the cat kind.

The Tapir or Anta is of the size of a small cow, or zebu, but without horns, and with a short naked tail; the legs are short and thick, and the feet have small black hoofs. His skin is so thick and hard as to be almost impenetrable to a bullet; for which reason the Indians make shields of it.

The tapir seldom stirs out but in the night, and delights in the water, where he oftener lives than on land. He is chiefly to be found in marshes, and seldom goes far from the borders of rivers or lakes. He swims and dives with singular facility. This animal is commonly found in Brazil, Paraguay, Guiana, and in all the extent of South America, from the extremity of Chile to Colombia. The Peccary bears a strong resemblance to the common domestic hog, but is, however, of a distinct species and differs in several striking characters. But the most remarkable distinction between it and all other quadrupeds, appears to consist in a large gland placed immediately beneath the skin on the middle of the loins. These animals are extremely numerous in all parts of South America. There are

two species; the Collared Peccary, and the White-lipped Peccary. The former is the smallest of the two, seldom measuring three feet in length. The latter not unfrequently reaches the length of three feet and a half. These animals subsist for the most part on vegetable food, chiefly roots;