[CHAPTER XVII.]
HUNTING THE TAPIR.—AMONG THE CARIPUNA INDIANS.—ARRIVAL AT THE FALLS OF THE MADEIRA.—MAKING INDIA-RUBBER.
One day was much like another in the descent of the river, as the party was not disturbed by hostile natives, and met with no accidents of consequence. Frank was disappointed in his hopes of hunting-adventures, as the jaguars and pumas persisted in keeping out of sight, and utterly deprived the young gentleman of an opportunity to try his weapons.
THE AGOUTI.
Less powerful game abounded, however, since the tapir and the agouti were frequently encountered. The agouti is about the size of a rabbit, which it greatly resembles both in appearance and habits. When pursued it runs rapidly for a short distance and then tries to conceal itself; if it is captured it makes no resistance beyond a plaintive cry.
The tapir deserves a more extended notice than the agouti, as he is much larger, and resists the attacks of his enemies with a good deal of vigor. Fred's account of a fight with a tapir will give an idea of the characteristics of this animal.
"The tapir is very widely distributed through tropical South America, and is probably more generally hunted than any other denizen of the country. His favorite haunts are narrow gorges and moist ravines, and the forests on the banks of all streams, whether large or small, though he prefers the latter. He is like an Englishman in desiring a cold bath in the morning, and the first tapir we saw was seated up to his neck in the water, at a bend of the river. We had told Manuel to call us when a tapir was discovered, and early one morning he roused us.
"Frank threw on his garments very hastily, and seized his rifle for a shot at the beast. As he emerged from the tent our pilot whispered, 'anta' (the native name for tapir), and pointed directly ahead of our course. The men had stopped rowing, and were silently urging the raft towards the shore, where it would be concealed from what we hoped to make game of, by an intervening bush.