CHAPTER XXIX.
AN ARMADILLO HUNT.
Conversing in this way, the bark-hunters, at length, reached thecinchona-trees, and then all talk about armadillos was at an end. Theywent lustily to their work--which was of more importance--and, underGuapo's axe, several of the cinchonas soon "bit the dust."
There was a spot of open ground just a little to one side of where thesetrees stood. They had noticed, on coming up, a flock of zamuros, orblack vultures, out upon this ground, clustered around some object. Itwas the carcass of another deer. The first blow of the axe startled thebirds, and they flapped a short way off. They soon returned, however,not being shy birds, but the contrary.
There was nothing in all this to create surprise, except, perhaps, thedead deer. What had been killing these animals? Not a beast of prey, forthat would have devoured them, unless, indeed, it might be the puma,that often kills more than he can eat.
The thought had occurred to Don Pablo that they might have died from thepoisoned arrows of an Indian. This thought somewhat disquieted him, forhe knew not what kind of Indians they might be,--they might be friendlyor hostile;--if the latter, not only would all his plans be frustrated,but the lives of himself and party would be in danger. Guapo could notassure him on this head; he had been so long absent from the GreatMontana that he was ignorant of the places where the tribes of theseparts might now be located. These tribes often change their homes.
He knew that the Chunchos sometimes roamed so far up, and they were themost dangerous of all the Indians of the Montana,--haters of the whites,fierce and revengeful. It was they who several times destroyed thesettlements and mission stations. If Chunchos were in the woods theymight look out for trouble. Guapo did not think there were any Indiansnear. He would have seen some traces of them before now, and he hadobserved none since their arrival. This assurance of the knowing Indianquite restored Don Pablo's confidence, and they talked no longer on thesubject. After a while, their attention was again called to thevultures. These filthy creatures had returned to the deer, and werebusily gorging themselves, when, all at once, they were seen to rise upas if affrighted. They did not fly far,--only a few feet,--and stoodwith outstretched necks looking towards the carrion, as if whatever hadfrightened them was there.
The bark-hunters could perceive nothing. It was the body of a smalldeer, already half eaten, and no object bigger than a man's hand couldhave been concealed behind it. The zamuros, however, _had_ seensomething strange--else they would hardly have acted as they did--and,with this conviction, the bark-hunters stopped their work to observethem.
After a while the birds seemed to take fresh courage, hopped back to thecarrion, and recommenced tearing at it. In another moment they againstarted and flew back, but, this time, not so far as before, and thenthey all returned again, and, after feeding another short while, startedback a third time.
This was all very mysterious, but Guapo, guessing what was the matter,solved the mystery by crying out,--
"_Tatou-poyou_!"
"Where?" inquired Don Pablo.
"Yonder, master, yonder in the body of the beast."
Don Pablo looked, and, sure enough, he could see something moving; itwas the head and shoulders of an armadillo. It had burrowed and come upthrough the body of the deer, thus meeting the vultures half-way! Nodoubt, it was the mysterious mode by which it had entered on the stagethat had frightened them.
They soon, however, got over their affright, and returned to theirrepast.
The armadillo--a very large one--had, by this time, crept out into theopen air, and went on eating.
For a while the zamuros took no heed of him, deeming, perhaps, that,although he had come in by the back-door, he might have as good a rightupon the premises as themselves. Their pacific attitude, however, wasbut of short duration; something occurred to ruffle their temper--somesilent affront, no doubt, for the bark-hunters heard nothing. Perhapsthe _tatou_ had run against the legs of one, and scraped it with thesharp edge of his corslet. Whether this was the cause or no, a scufflecommenced, and the beast in armour was attacked by all the vultures atonce.
Of course he did not attack in turn, he had no means; he actedaltogether on the defensive; and this he was enabled to do by simplydrawing in his legs and flattening himself upon the ground. He was thenproof, not only against the beaks and weak talons of a vulture, but hemight have defied the royal eagle himself.
After flapping him with their wings, and pecking him with their filthybeaks, and clawing him with their talons, the zamuros saw it was all tono purpose, and desisted. If they could not damage him, however, theycould prevent him from eating any more of the deer; for the moment hestretched out his neck, several vultures sprang at him afresh, and wouldhave wounded him in the tender parts of his throat had he not quicklydrawn in his head again. Seeing that his feast was at an end--at leastabove ground--he suddenly raised his hind-quarters, and in a brace ofseconds buried himself in the earth. The vultures pecked him behind ashe disappeared, but the odd manner of his exit, like that of his_entree_, seemed to mystify them, and several of them stood for somemoments in neck-stretched wonder.
This scene had scarcely ended when a pair of fresh armadillos wereespied, coming from the farther edge of the opening, and, in fact, fromthe edge of a precipice, for the river flowed close by, and its channelwas at that point shut in by cliffs. These two were large fellows, andwere making speedily towards the carrion, in order to get up before itwas all gone. Guapo could stand it no longer. Guapo had tasted roastarmadillo, and longed for more. In an instant, therefore, axe in hand,he was off to intercept the new-comers. Don Pablo and Leon followed tosee the sport and assist in the capture.
The armadillos, although not afraid of the vultures, seeing the huntersapproach, turned tail and made for the precipice. Guapo took after one,while Don Pablo and Leon pursued the other. Guapo soon overhauled hisone, but, before he could lay his hands upon it, it had already halfburied itself in the dry ground. Guapo, however, seized the tail andheld on; and, although not able to drag it out, he was resolved itshould get no deeper.
THE ESCAPE OF THE ARMADILLO.]
The one pursued by Don Pablo had got close to the edge of the precipice,before either he or Leon could come up with it. There it stood for amoment, as if in doubt what plan to pursue. Don Pablo and Leon werecongratulating themselves that they had fairly "cornered" it, for thecliff was a clear fall of fifty feet, and, of course, it could get nofarther in that direction, while they approached it from two sides soas to cut off its retreat. They approached it with caution, as they werenow near the edge, and it would not do to move too rashly. Both werebent forward with their arms outstretched to clutch their prey; theyfelt confident it was already in their grasp. Judge their astonishment,then, at seeing the creature suddenly clew itself into a round ball, androll over the cliff!
They looked below. They saw it upon the ground; they saw it open outagain, apparently unharmed, for, the next moment, it scuttled off andhid itself among the rocks by the edge of the water!
They turned toward Guapo, who was still holding his one by the tail, andcalling for help. Although it was but half buried, all three of themcould not have dragged it forth by the tail. That member would havepulled out before the animal could have been dislodged; and such is notan unfrequent occurrence to the hunters of the armadillo. Don Pablo,however, took hold of the tail and held fast until Guapo loosened theearth with his axe, and then the creature was more easily "extracted." Ablow on its head from Guapo made all right, and it was afterwardscarried safely to the house, and "roasted in the shell."
That was a great day among the "armadillos."