CHAPTER XLIII.
ACRES OF EGGS.
The next evening our travellers encamped on a sand-bar, or rather agreat bank of sand, that ran for miles along one side of the river. Ofcourse they had nothing to hang their hammocks to, but that was a matterof no importance, for the sand was dry and soft, and of itself wouldmake a comfortable bed, as pleasant to sleep on as a hair-mattress. Theyonly wanted wood enough to cook with, and to keep up their fire duringthe night--so as to frighten off the wild beasts.
This night they kept watch as usual, Leon taking the first turn. Infact, they found that they must do so every night--as in each of thecamps where they had slept some danger had threatened; and they thoughtit would be imprudent for all to go to sleep at the same time. Theheaviest part of the sentinel's duty fell to Guapo's share; but Guapohad long accustomed himself to go without sleep, and did not mind it;moreover Don Pablo took longer spells at the stern-oar during the day,and allowed Guapo many a "cat-nap."
Leon seated himself upon a pile of sand that he had gathered up, and didhis best to keep awake, but in about an hour after the rest were asleephe felt very drowsy--in fact, quite as much so as on the night of theadventure with the vampire. He used pretty much the same means to keephimself awake, but not with so good success, for on this occasion hefell into a nap that lasted nearly half-an-hour, and might havecontinued still longer, had he not slid down the sand-hill and tumbledover on his side. This awoke him; and feeling vexed with himself, herubbed his eyes as if he was going to push them deeper into theirsockets.
When this operation was finished, he looked about to see if any creaturehad ventured near. He first looked towards the woods--for of course thatwas the direction from which the tigers would come, and these were theonly creatures he feared; but he had scarcely turned himself when heperceived a pair of eyes glancing at him from the other side of thefire. Close to them another pair, then another and another, until havinglooked on every side, he saw himself surrounded by a complete circle ofglancing eyes! It is true they were small ones, and some of the headswhich he could see by the blaze, were small--they were not jaguars, butthey had an ugly look--they looked like the heads of serpents! Was itpossible that an hundred serpents could have surrounded the camp?
Brought suddenly to his feet, Leon stood for some moments uncertain howto act. He fully believed they were snakes--anacondas, or water-snakesno doubt--that had just crept out of the river; and he felt that amovement on his part would bring on their united and simultaneous attackupon the sleeping party. Partly influenced by this fear, and againexhibiting that coolness and prudence which we have already noticed as atrait of his character, he remained for some moments silent andmotionless.
Having already risen to his feet, his eyes were now above the level ofthe blaze, and, as they got the sleep well scared out of them, he couldsee things more distinctly. He now saw that the snake-like heads wereattached to large oval-shaped bodies, and that, besides the halfhundred or so that had gathered around the fires, there were wholedroves of the same upon the sandy beach beyond. The white surface wasliterally covered as far as he could see on all sides of him with blackmoving masses; and where the rays of the moon fell upon the beach, therewas a broad belt that glistened and sparkled as though she shone uponpieces of glass kept constantly in motion!
A singular sight it was; and to Leon, who had never heard of suchbefore, a most fearful one. For the life of him he could not make outwhat it all meant, or by what sort of odd creatures they weresurrounded. He had but an indistinct view of them, but he could see thattheir bodies were not larger than those of a small sheep, and from theway in which they glistened under the moon he was sure they werewater-animals, and had come out of the river!
He did not stay to speculate any longer upon them. He resolved to wakeGuapo; but in doing so the whole party were aroused, and started totheir feet in some alarm and confusion. The noise and movement had itseffect on the nocturnal visitors; for before Leon could explain himself,those immediately around the fires and for some distance beyond rushedto the edge, and were heard plunging by hundreds into the water.
Guapo's ear caught the sounds, and his eye now ranging along the sandyshore, took in at a glance the whole thing.
"Carapas," he said laconically.
"Carapas?" inquired Leon.
"Oh!" said Don Pablo, who understood him. "Turtles is it?"
"Yes, master," replied Guapo. "This is, I suppose, one of their greathatching-places. They are going to lay their eggs somewhere in the sandabove. They do so every year."
There was no danger from the turtles, as Guapo assured everybody, butthe fright had chased away sleep, and they all lay awake for some timelistening to Guapo's account of these singular creatures, which we shalltranslate into our own phraseology.
These large turtles, which in other parts of South America are called"arraus," or simply "tortugas," assemble every year in large armies,from all parts of the river. Each one of these armies chooses for itselfa place to breed--some sandy island, or great sand-bank. This theyapproach very cautiously--lying near it for some days, and reconnoitringit with only their heads above the water. They then crawl ashore atnight in vast multitudes--just as the party saw them--and each turtle,with the strong crooked claws of her hind feet, digs a hole for herselfin the sand. These holes are three feet in diameter and two deep. Inthis she deposits her eggs--from seventy to one hundred and twenty ofthem--each egg being white, hard-shelled, and between the size of apigeon's and pullet's. She then covers the whole with sand, levelling itover the top so that it may look like the rest of the surface, and sothat the precious treasure may not be found by vultures, jaguars, andother predatory creatures. When this is done the labour of the turtle isat an end.
The great army again betakes itself to the water, and scatters in everydirection. The sun acting upon the hot sand does the rest; and in lessthan six weeks the young turtles, about an inch in diameter, crawl outof the sand, and at once make for the water. They are afterwards seen inpools and lakes, where the water is shallow, far from the place wherethey have been hatched; and it is well known that the first years oftheir life are not spent in the bed of the great river. How they findthese pools, or whether the mothers distinguish their own young andconduct them thither, as the crocodiles and alligators do, is a mystery.With these last the thing is more easy, as the crocodile mothers deposittheir eggs in separate places, and each returns for her young when theyare hatched, calls them by her voice, and guides them to the pool wherethey are to remain until partly grown.
But among the thousands of little turtles hatched at one place and time,and that seek the water altogether, how would it be possible for theturtle mother to distinguish her own young? Yet an old female turtle isfrequently seen swimming about with as many as a hundred little onesafter her! Now are these her own, or are they a collection picked up outof the general progeny? That is an undetermined question. It would seemimpossible that each turtle mother should know her own young, yet amidstthis apparent confusion there may be some maternal instinct that guidesher to distinguish her own offspring from all the rest. Who can say?
It is not often, however, that the turtle is permitted to have offspringat all. These creatures are annually robbed of their eggs in millions.They have many enemies, but man is the chief. When a turtle hatchingplace is discovered, the Indians assemble, and as soon as all the eggshave been deposited, they uncover and collect them. They eat them--butthat is not the principal use to which they are put. It is for themaking of oil, or "tortoise-butter," they are collected.
The eggs are thrown into a large trough or canoe, where they are brokenup with a wooden spade and stirred about for awhile. They then remainexposed to the sun, until the oily part collects on the surface, whichis then skimmed off and well boiled. The "tortoise-butter" is now made,and after being poured into earthen jars or bottles, it is ready formarket. The oil is clear, of a pale yellow colour, and some regard it asequal to the best olive oil, both for lamps and for cooking. Somet
imes,however, it has a putrid smell, because many of the eggs are alreadyhalf hatched before the gathering takes place.
What would be the result were these eggs not gathered by the Indians?Perhaps in the different rivers of South America more than an hundredmillions of them are deposited every year! In the Orinoco alone, inthree principal hatching places, it has been calculated that at leastthirty three millions are annually destroyed for the making oftortoise-butter! Fancy, then, one hundred millions of animals, each ofwhich grows to the weight of fifty or sixty pounds, being produced everyyear, and then the increase in production which these would make if leftto themselves! Why the rivers would be crowded; and it would be truewhat old Father Gumilla once asserted, that "It would be as difficult tocount the grains of sand on the shores of the Orinoco, as to count theimmense number of tortoises that inhabit its margins and waters. Were itnot for the vast consumption of tortoises and their eggs, the river,despite its great magnitude, would be unnavigable, for vessels would beimpeded by the enormous multitude of the tortoises."
But nature has provided against this "over-population" of the turtlesby giving them a great many enemies. The jaguars, the ocelots, thecrocodiles, the cranes, and the vultures, all prey upon them; and,perhaps, if man were to leave them alone, the result would be, not sucha great increase in the number of the turtles, but that the creatureswho prey upon them would come in for a larger share.
The "carapa," or arrau turtle, is, when full grown, forty or fiftypounds in weight. It is of a dark green colour above and orange beneath,with yellow feet. There are many other species of fresh-water turtles inthe rivers of South America, but these breed separately, each femalechoosing her own place, and making her deposit alone. Indeed, some ofthe smaller species, as the "terekay," are more esteemed both for theirflesh and eggs; but as a large quantity of these eggs is never foundtogether, they are not collected as an article of trade, but only to beroasted and eaten. The white does not coagulate in roasting or boiling,and only the yolk is eaten, but that is esteemed quite as palatable asthe eggs of the common fowl.
The flesh of all kinds is eaten by the Indians, who fry it in pots, andthen pour it with its own oil into other vessels and permit it to cool.When thus prepared, it will keep for a long time, and can be taken outwhen required for use.
Most of the above particulars were communicated by Guapo; and when hehad finished talking, all the others went to sleep, leaving Guapo to hismidnight vigil.