they ran into the water erect on their legs, looking like miniatures of the monsters of the prime.  One showed by its behavior how little an ordinary shot pains or affects these dull-nerved, cold-blooded creatures.  As it lay on a sand-bank, it was hit with a long 22 bullet.  It slid into the water but found itself in the midst of a school of fish.  It at once forgot everything except its greedy appetite, and began catching the fish.  It seized fish after fish, holding its head above water as soon as its jaws had closed on a fish; and a second bullet killed it.  Some of the crocodiles when shot performed most extraordinary antics.  Our weapons, by the way, were good, except Miller’s shotgun.  The outfit furnished by the American Museum was excellent—­except in guns and cartridges; this gun was so bad that Miller had to use Fiala’s gun or else my Fox 12-bore.

In the late afternoon we secured a more interesting creature than the jacares.  Kermit had charge of two hounds which we owed to the courtesy of one of our Argentine friends.  They were biggish, nondescript animals, obviously good fighters, and they speedily developed the utmost affection for all the members of the expedition, but especially for Kermit, who took care of them.  One we named “Shenzi,” the name given the wild bush natives by the Swahili, the semi-civilized African porters.  He was good-natured, rough, and stupid—­hence his name.  The other was called by a native name, “Trigueiro.”  The chance now came to try them.  We were steaming between long stretches of coarse grass, about three feet high, when we spied from the deck a black object, very conspicuous against the vivid green.  It was a giant ant-eater, or tamandua bandeira, one of the most extraordinary creatures of the latter-day world.  It is about the size of a rather small black bear.  It has a very long, narrow, toothless snout, with a tongue it can project a couple of feet; it is covered with coarse, black hair, save for a couple of white stripes; it has a long, bushy tail and very powerful claws on its fore feet.  It walks on the sides of its fore feet with these claws curved in under the foot.  The claws are used in digging out ant-hills; but the beast has courage, and in a grapple is a rather unpleasant enemy, in spite of its toothless mouth, for it can strike a formidable blow with these claws.  It sometimes hugs a foe, gripping him tight; but its ordinary method of defending itself is to strike with its long, stout, curved claws, which, driven by its muscular forearm, can rip open man or beast.  Several of our companions had had dogs killed by these ant-eaters; and we came across one man with a very ugly scar down his back, where he had been hit by one, which charged him when he came up to kill it at close quarters.