The estancia consisted of three sections, one where I went, another where my brother was, and the other the headquarters.

I was under a young Scotchman.  The camp was fifteen miles, with 3,000 cows, 2,000 steers, and 500 mares.  There was my companion, one peon (man), a boy, and myself.  My house was made of mud walls and floor, a zinc roof, with a little straw.  It was cool in summer, but very cold in winter.  There was one room for ourselves, where we slept and ate, one for the cook (when we had one), and a kitchen.  Under my bed I had a snake’s hole; a long black snake came out in the night, and, on hearing a sound, would go back.  I did everything to kill it, but with no success.  Also I had two kittens which slept in my bed.  One night I felt something soft by my feet.  I thought it was the kittens, but, putting my hand down, I found my feet covered with blood.  I jumped out of bed, and found a young hare half eaten and my sheets covered with blood.

The first thing I had to do was to skin a cow, and it made me feel very uncomfortable to look at the horrid sight.  The next day I was sent to fetch the fat from a dead cow.  When I got there I could not see any fat and wondered what it was.  I saw the intestines and carried them bodily on my new recado (native saddle).  My horse got excited and I arrived dead beat.  I told my companion I had the fat:  then he burst out laughing and said I had got the intestines.  Needless to say my recado was the worse for wear.

The food was different from what I was used to, and I felt ill for a time.

In the summer I was up at between three and four, having “mate-cocido” (cooked Paraguayan tea—­the native drink) with a hard biscuit; at eleven, breakfast of puchero (big pieces of meat boiled in a pot), then maize with milk and a biscuit.  Sometimes tea at four, but very seldom; supper consisted of an asado and mate at seven or eight o’clock.

I had charge of two valuable stallions—­they had a stable of mud and straw.

At branding time the capataz (foreman) came up with his men for a week.  Up before three o’clock, quite dark, we branded 6,000 calves, and I enjoyed it.

The Boss seldom came; when he did, his trap would be sure to run over a piece of wire, and then we heard of it; nothing missed him.

Then our cook began stealing provisions from the store box.  We changed the locks three times, and each time she bought a key to the same.  One night I asked her for some coffee.  She said there was none.  I could see she had some in a small bag, and I went to fetch it.  She took up a knife and threatened me.  I soon twisted the knife from her.  Our food was bad, my companion was careless, and frightened of her.  One day he had a row, and she got the sack, using strong language.  We then did our own cooking for eight months:  the first one home from camp had to begin cooking.

The meat we got was often green and bitter.  All the time we had puchero and asado, and an occasional ostrich egg.