In the course of the journey thither, my attention was principally engaged by the wild and solitary aspect of the country. About twenty-five leagues north-east from Monte Video, I observed an irregular ridge of granite mountains, in a direction nearly north and south, and the country from this distance gradually assumes a rugged appearance. Mica is very common upon the road, and in some places quartz; on one hill I gathered several detached crystals of the latter substance. The ravines of these stony wilds and the wooded margins of the rivers afford shelter to many ferocious animals, such as jaguars, (here called tigers), lions, and ounces. Here are also great numbers of wild dogs which breed in the rocks, and at times make great havoc among the young cattle. The farms in this district, for the most part, include tracts of land from twenty to thirty miles in length by half that extent in breadth, watered by pleasing streams. Vast herds of cattle are bred upon them; it is calculated that each square league sustains one thousand five hundred or two thousand head.
At the distance of about forty leagues from Monte Video, in the direction above mentioned, the range of hills gradually lessens and disappears; the country opens finely on the left, and is intersected by numerous rivulets. After crossing several of these we arrived at the head of a little brook called Polancos, which a few miles below, assumes the name of Barriga Negra. It there receives several small streams, and in the course of ten leagues is augmented by the confluence of some others; becoming thus a considerable river, about as large as the Trent at Gainsborough, it is denominated Godoy, but, on passing into the Portugueze territories, it changes its name to that of Sebollati, and flows into the Lagun Meni. Near the junction of two rivulets that form the Barriga Negra, stands the great lime-kiln of my friend, in whose house I took up my residence, and was received with that kindness and sincere hospitality which in an instant dispelled every doubt from my mind, and excited in me sentiments of gratitude that were every day more deeply impressed in my heart.
Having become thoroughly domesticated in my new abode, I began to make excursions into the surrounding district and the parts beyond it. The country in general may be termed stony and mountainous, though its inequalities do not exceed those of Derbyshire. No traces of either volcanic or alluvial matter are to be found; the solid rock frequently appears on the surface, and in many places projects in masses of various sizes. The mountains and rocks are of granite; no veins of metallic substance have hitherto been discovered, but fine red and yellow jasper, chalcedony, and quartz, are not unfrequently found loose on the surface. Some fossils of the asbestos kind, and some very poor oxides of iron are likewise to be met with occasionally. The bases of many of the conical mountains are overlaid with limestone of a dull blue color; I found in this substance many capillary veins of calcareous-spar, and sometimes crystals of pyrites. In one part of the vicinity there is a plain about half a mile square, on the surface of which are found large quantities of white stone in nodules; it is of a very close texture and proves to be gypsum without water (Anhydrite). The summits of these mountains are no where calcareous, excepting those of one ridge, the singular appearance of which induced me to trace it as far as was practicable. The limestone on these summits is of a close compact kind, united to transparent quartz in a tabular form, standing, as it were, in laminæ perpendicular to the horizon, and thus presenting to the view a number of upright slabs, somewhat similar to the grave-stones in a country church-yard. This singular ridge apparently commences at a mountain of very unusual form, and, extending about two miles, in which it crosses two or three valleys, and terminates in a ravine of considerable depth. No vestige of calcareous crystallization appeared in this limestone[3]. It is singular to remark, that the cavities formed by the laminæ afford refuge for reptiles, particularly rattle-snakes; the person employed by Mr. Martinez in getting the stone, destroyed upwards of twenty-seven serpents of that species in the course of a few weeks.
The limestone is loosened by the wedge and lever, and brought away in large slabs to the kilns, where it is broken into fragments of a convenient size, and burnt with wood. The kilns are very capacious, but so badly constructed that the process of calcination is very slow and tedious. The lime, when slaked, is measured, put into sacks made of green hides, and sent in large carts, drawn by oxen, principally to Colonia del Sacramento, Monte Video, and Buenos Ayres.
Barriga Negra is distant about 160 miles north-east from Monte Video, about 120 from Maldonado, and 90 from the town of Minas. The country around it is mountainous, well watered, and not destitute of wood. The banks of the streams are thickly covered with trees, rarely, however, of large size, for the creeping plants, interweaving with the shoots, check their growth and form an impenetrable thicket. Here are numbers of great breeding estates, many of which are stocked with from 60,000 to 200,000 head of cattle. These are guarded principally by men from Paraguay called Peons, who live in hovels built for the purpose at convenient distances. Ten thousand head are allotted to four or five Peons, whose business it is to collect them every morning and evening, and once or twice a month to drive them into pens, where they are kept for a night. The cattle by this mode of management are soon tamed; a ferocious or vicious beast I never saw among them. Breeding is alone attended to; neither butter nor cheese is made, and milk is scarcely known as an article of food. The constant diet of the people, morning, noon, and night, is beef, eaten almost always without bread, and frequently without salt. This habitual subsistence on strong food would probably engender diseases, were it not corrected by frequently taking an infusion of their favorite herb Mate, at all times of the day, when inclination calls for it.
The dwellings of the Peons are in general very wretched, the walls being formed by a few upright posts interwoven with small branches of trees, plastered with mud inside and out, and the roof thatched with long grass and rushes. The door is also of wicker-work, or, in its stead, a green hide stretched on sticks and removable at pleasure. The furniture of these poor hovels consists of a few skulls of horses, which are made to serve for seats; and of a stretched hide to lie upon. The principal if not the sole cooking utensil is a spit or rod of iron, stuck in the ground in an oblique position, so as to incline over the fire. The beef when spitted is left to roast until the part next the fire is supposed to be done enough, then its position is altered, and the change is occasionally repeated, until the whole is cooked. The juices of the meat, by this mode of roasting, help to mend the fire, and indeed the people seem to think that they are fit for nothing else. The meat, which is naturally poor and coarse, being thus dried to a cake, bears little affinity to the boasted roast beef of England. Fuel, in some parts, is so extremely scarce that the following strange expedient is resorted to for a supply. As the mares in this country are kept solely for breeding, and are never trained to labor, they generally exceed, in a great degree, the due proportion; a flock of them is frequently killed, and their carcasses soon becoming dry, are used as firing, (with the exception of the hides and tails), which, when properly prepared, are packed for exportation.
The Peons are chiefly emigrants from Paraguay[4], and it is a singular fact that, among the numbers that are here settled, very few women are to be found. A person may travel in these parts for days together without seeing or hearing of a single female in the course of his journey. To this circumstance may be attributed the total absence of domestic comfort in the dwellings of these wretched men, and the gloomy apathy observable in their dispositions and habits. It is true that the mistress of an estate may occasionally visit it for a few months, but she is obliged during her stay to live in great seclusion, on account of the dreadful consequences to be apprehended from being so exposed.
The dexterous mode in which the Peons catch their cattle, by throwing a noose over them, has been frequently detailed, but certainly no description can do full justice to their agility. They throw with equal precision and effect, whether at full gallop or at rest. Their method of catching horses, by means of balls attached to leather thongs, is similar to the former but more unerring; scarcely an instance has been known of its failure, except in those frequent trials which are requisite to acquire perfect skill in the practice.
They have a very singular and simple way of training mules and horses to draw light carts, coaches, &c. No harness is used; a saddle or pad is girted on, and a leather thong is fastened to the girth on one side, so that the animal moving forward, with his body in a rather oblique direction, keeps his legs clear of the apparatus which is attached to him, and draws with a freedom and an agility that in a stranger excite great surprise. A similar contrivance is used in the catching of cattle. The Peon fastens one end of his lazo[5] to the girth of his horse, who soon learns to place himself in such an attitude as to draw the ox which his rider has caught, and even, should the latter dismount, to keep the thong on the stretch.