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line. To the northward the grafs is not fo rich, nor the trees fo high as in the fouthernparts; and almoft every where, even the largeft trees grow at a diftance of not lefsthan thirteen yards afunder.
Befides the quadrupeds already mentioned, there is one, the belly of which is totallywhite, and the back brown, with white fpots; it is much like a polecat, and the Indianscall it quoll. There are vaft numbers of beautiful pigeons, many of which were Ihotby the feamen; and the other land-birds are eagles, hawks, cranes, herons, buftards,crows, quails, doves, parrots, parroquets, cockatoos, and fome other birds of veryelegant plumage.
The infers are few in number, among which the mufquito and the ant are the chief.The ants are of four kinds. The fxrft are perfectly green, and live on trees, in whichthey build curious nefts, by bending down the leaves, and gluing them together withan animal juice; thoufands of them joined to keep the leaf in its proper pofition, whilemany others were employed in the gluing them. Being difturbed in their work, theleaves, which are four or five inches in breadth, flew back with a force which wasthought much fuperior to the united ftrength of thefe infects. Thofe who difturbedthem paid for their curiofity, by being ftung in a very fevere manner.
The fecond kind of ants are quite black, and live in the infide of the branches oftrees, after they have worked out the pith. Some of the branches being gathered,millions of thefe animals iffued from every broken twig.
The third fort took up their lodging in the root of a plant that twines round thetrunk of other trees. This root, which they hollowed for their purpofe, was cut intogreat numbers of paffages which ran acrofs each other; yet the plant appeared not tohave been injured. Thefe were not more than half the fize of the red ant of thiscountry ; but, upon being difturbed, they crawled over the body in thoufands, and puttheir dift'urbers to the pain arifing from exquifite tickling.
The fourth kind were like the white ants of the Eaft Indies; and had one fort ofWefts as big as a half-peck loaf, hanging from the boughs of the trees, and compofed°f feveral minute parts of vegetables, ftuck together by a glutinous matter, fuppofedto have been fupplied from their own bodies. The cells had a communication withe ach other, and had openings which led to other nefts on the fame tree; theyhad likewife a hollow covered paffage to another neft on the ground, at the root of adifferent tree from that on which the former neft was fufpended. The ground neftsar e fix feet in height, and almoft as much in breadth; the outfide being plaftered withclay of near two inches in thicknefs. Thefe have a fubterraneous paffage to the roots°f the trees near which they ftand ; whence the ants afcend, by covered ways, up the*yunk and branches. As thefe ground-built houfes are proof againft the invafion ofm e rain, it is fuppofed that the ants retire to them during the wet feafon.
The feas abound with delicate green turtle, befides thofe enormous cocklesVv hich have been already mentioned. Alligators are found in the rivers and fait^eeks.
The men are well made, of the middle fize, and adtive in a high degree; but theirv °ices are foft, even to effeminacy. Their colour is the chocolate; but they were focovered with dirt, as to look almoft as black as negroes.
7 he chief ornament of thefe people is the bone that is thruft through the nofe,^hich the failors whimfically termed their fpritfail-yard. Some few of them had an°rnament of fhells hanging acrofs the breaft. Befides thefe ornaments, they paintedtheir bodies and limbs white and red, in ftripes of different dimenfions; and they hada circle of white round each eye, and fpots of it on the face.
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