OCR Text |
Show 44 CHAPTER III. . R Polanco-Lazo and Bolas Monte Video-m'1\. ,, al d onad o-Excurswnf to -, Cervus campestn.s - R' '. IVCt G l gy Absence o trees I -Partridges- co o - k l'ke habits-Tyrant-flycatc 1er-hog- Tucutuco- ~olothrus, cu~ o;- 1 formed by lightning-House Mocking-bird-Camon hawks- u es struck. MALDONADO. . In the morning we got under way, and JuLY 5'l'H, 1832.- ndid harbour of Rio de Janeiro. In stood out of the splel w nothing particular, ex-t tl p ata we sa our passage o le re~t shoal of porpoises, many hun-ceptmg on one day a g h 1 was in places furrowed by . b The w o e sea dreds m num er. . 1 resented, as them. and a most extraordmary spe~tac e wa.s p h'ch their ' . th by JUmps m w l hundreds, proceedmg togde ther t the w'ater. When the b d. · re expose us cu whole o les ~e . ' h . animals could cross and h' was runmng mne knots, t ese s lp h b s with the greatest ease, and then dash away r~crossht de o;_ soon as we entered the estuary of the Plata, nght a ea · s 0 dark nj ht we were the weather 'vas very unsettled. ne • . g h' ch made ded bv numerous seals and pengums, w l d h surroun ; h rte e such strange nm·s es, that the . officer on watc 0 repo second uld hear the cattle bellowmg on shore. n a k . ~~O'ht we witnessed a splendid scene of nat~ral fire~~r ;~ th~ mast-head and yard-arm ends shone w1th St. m if h.O ' h t · an d the form of the vane could almost be traced, as so 'to h 'd been rubbed with phosphorus. The sea was ~iO'h~ luminous, that the tracks of the penguins were marked b o y fiery wake and lastly, the darkness of the sky was y a t ·1 ill:minated by the most vivid lightning. momen an Y · t d b When within the mouth of the river, I was m~eres e. y b . how slowly the waters of the sea and nver mlXed. o servmg · 1 ·fie The latter, muddy and discoloured, from Its ess s~eci s gravi. t y, floated on the surface of the salt water· This wa 1832-3. MALDONADO. 45 curiously exhibited in the wake of the vessel, where a line of blue was seen mingling in little eddies, with the adjoining fluid. JuLY 26TH.-We anchored at Monte Video. The B~agle was employed in surveying the extreme southern and eastern coasts of America, south of the Plata, during the two succeeding years. To prevent useless repetitions, I will extract those parts of my journal which refer to the same districts, without always attending to the o.rder in which we visited them. MALDONADO is situated on the northern bank of the Plata, and not very far from the mouth of the estuary. It is a most quiet, forlorn, little town ; built, as is universally the case in these countries, with the streets running at right angles to each other, and having in the middle a large plaza or square, which, from its size, renders the scantiness of the population more evident and more unsociable. It possesses scarcely any trade; the exports being confined to a few hides and living cattle. The inhabitants are chiefly landowners, together with a few shopkeepers and the necessary tradesmen, such as blacksmiths and carpenters, who do nearly all the business for a circuit of fifty miles round. The town is separated from the river by a band of sand-hillocks, about a mile broad : it is surrounded on all other sides, by an open slightly-undulating country, covered by one uniform layer of fine green turf, on which countless herds of cattle, sheep, and horses graze. There is very little land cultivated even close to the town. A few hedges, made of cacti and agave, mark out where some wheat or Indian corn has been planted. The features of the country are very similar along the whole northern bank of the Plata. The only difference is, that here the granitic hills are rather more boldly pronounced. The scenery is very uninteresting; there is scarcely a house, an enclosed piece of ground, or even a tree, to give it an air of cheerfulness. Yet, after being imprisoned for some time in a ship, there is a charm in the unconfined feeling of walking over boundless plains of turf. Moreover, if your view is |