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Show .. H l S T 0 R y 0 F M E X I C 0. . ir ht About an hour before the break of day, one 11 oo I( I. and evenmg .tw ~~ ~ the bough of a tree where he has palled the • • . o~ ~he~ beg~~th l~any others 'of his fpecies, to call them, with a mg. t a ong I 'ch he continually repeats with a tone of glad-fhnll, clear note, w 11 f. 1 · When they nefs till fame of his companions hear and a~ wer l~nll. b h d , 1 lake a very chearful nOife, whtc 1 may e ear are all a wad~~ tley nln the J. ournies I have made through· the king-at a great tnance. f fc f< dom of Michuacan, where they abound, they were o orne u e to me as they always roufed me in time, to allow me to fe~ out by the 'k f d Thefe birds are about as large as fparrows. rea o ay. · d C 1 I · he T zacua,' a b'1 r d which refembles the abo.v e m. ent1one a a'fmi ra li • 1 d ·1 1n {ize, m co our, an n the form of its ne. ft ts fttll. mor.e furpn mg. Thefe birds live in fociety ; and every tree 1S to them a village, com-ofed of a great number of nefts, all hanging from the boughs. Op f h which does the office of the head or the guard of the ne o t em h' 1 · .a· b v1'1 1·.1 ge, r e1r1. des in the middle of the tree; from wfi tc 1fi It · niCS a1 · ou1t f:r om one ne {11.. to "... nother' vifiting them all, and• a ter mgmg a Itt ef while, returns to its place j while the reft remam perfe~ly file~t. I an bird of a different fpecies approaches r.he ~ree, he fl1e~ to 1t, and eny d cavour s, w1'th his bill and wings, to dnve 1t off. ; but 1f a man, or any other large animal comes near, he flies fcreammg to .another tree, d 'f at that time any 'fzacuas belonging to the fame village happen :m I 1 . h' to be returning from the fields, he meets them, and. c 1angmg IS note, obliges them to retire again: as foon as he ·per~e1;es the danger over, he returns happy to his wonted round of vlfitmg the n~fts. Thefe obfervations upon the Tzacua, made by a man of penetratwn, learning, and veracity (h), ihould make us expeCt to find fome things frill more extraordinary in thefe birds, if the obfervations were repeated ; b~t we mull now leave thefe pleafant objeCts, and turn our eyes upon fome that are of the moll: difagreeable kind. The reptiles of Mexico may be reduced to two orders or claffes; SECT. XII. ( ') I Reptiles of namely, the four-footed, and the apodes or thofe without feet z • n )1e:xico. (h) The Abbe D. Giufeppe Rafaelle Campoi. . ( i) I am perfectly aware of the v.~~oriety of opinions entertained by difFerent authon, With refpect to the animals. which ought to be claffed among the rcpti}es: but as 1 do not ~nder." take to give ;~n e~o.ct arrangement, but merely to prefent them m fome order to the 1 cade1' J t•kc t~ term of Rtptilt1 i~ the fame' f~nfe in which'ic was commonly uRderfiood of old. . the I - H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. the fidl: clafs are crocodiles, lizards, frogs and toads : in the fccond .all kinds of ferpents. The Mexican crocodiles refemble the Afi·ican in fize, form, voracity, way of living, and in all the other peculiarities of their charac .. ter. They abound in many of the lakes and rivers in the hot countries, and deil:roy men and other animals. It would be altogether fuperfluous to give any defcription of thefe terrible animals, when fo much has been written about them in other books. Among the greater lizards we reckon the Aca!tetepon, and the Iguana. The ./Jca/tetapon, known to the Spaniards by the very improper name of Scorpions, ar two lizards which refemble each other in colour and in form, but very different in their fize and tails. The fmalleft · is about fifteen inches, with a long tail. fhort legs, a red, . broad, cloven tongue, a grey rough fkin covered with white warts like pearls, a fluggifh pace, and a .fierce afpetl:. From the mufcles of the hind-legs to the extremity of the tail, its Jkin is cro.lfed with yellow lines in the form of rings. The bite of this animal is painfu I, but not mortal as fome have imagined. 'It is peculiar to th<: . warmer climates. The other lizard is an inhabitant of the ,r fame eli- · inatc, but twice as large, being, according to the report of fome who have feen it, about two feet and a half long, and more than a foot thick · round the back and belly. It has a fhort tail, with a thick head and legs. This lizard is the fcourgc of rabbits. The Iguana is a harmlefs lizard, fuffidently known in Europe from the accounts of American hifi:orians. Tbey al>oufld in the warm -countries, and are of two kinds, the one a land animal, and the other t1.mpliibious. Some of them have been found as long as three feet. They run with great fpced, and arc very nimble in climbing trees. Their eggs and fle{h arc ·arable, and prnifed by fome authors, but theit· flefh is hurtful to tho(<.; bbonring under the French clifea[e. Of the fmaller lizarcl.s there are a great many · fpecies, differing in fize, colour, and oth~r ·ircumfl:::mces ; of which fome are poifonous, and others harmlefs. Among the latter the firfl: place is dwe to the cameleon, called by the Mexicans ·~!jflfrtpalcatl. This refembles the comn)on cameleon almoft in every refpeet, but ditfen in having no <:re.fi:, and in having large, rouacl.., open can;. Among the othcr.liz'ards VoL. I. I of 57 BOOK I. ., , • |