. Lawrence and his man acquitted
themselves creditably, and supper did not terminate till the roast was
gone. Then they all spread their beds on the floor and retired for the
night. Each covered his or her head with a poncho, or other garment--
nothing of the sleepers being left visible save their bare feet--after
which silence reigned around.

In summer, abodes of this kind are so animated with insect life that the
inhabitants usually prefer to sleep on the ground in front of their
dwellings, but in the present case the recent storm had rendered this
luxury for the time impossible.

Little cared Lawrence and his man for that. Where they lay down to
repose, there they remained without motion till daylight. Then the
magnificent cock overhead raised his voice, and proclaimed the advent of
a new day. Quashy sat up, split his face across, displayed his internal
throat, and rubbed his eyes. Immediately the cock descended on his
woolly head, flapped its wings, and crowed again. The people began to
stir, and Lawrence went out with Quashy to saddle their horses, being
anxious to follow in the trail of the troops without delay. A prolonged
search convinced them that their horses had either strayed or been
stolen, for they were nowhere to be found.

Returning to the hut, they observed that the Gauchos were exceedingly
busy round their corral, or enclosure for cattle.

"What can they be about?" said Lawrence, as they drew near.

"Killin' pigs, I t'ink."

"I think not; there seems too much excitement for that."

There certainly was a considerable noise of piggish voices, and the
Gauchos were galloping about in an unaccountable manner, but, as is
usually the case, a little investigation explained the seemingly
unaccountable. The men were engaged in driving some cattle into the
enclosure, and as these were more than half wild and self-willed, the
process entailed much energy of limb and noise. As to the porcine
yells, the whole of the almost superhuman skirling arose from one little
pig, which the ebony cupid before mentioned had lassoed by the hind leg.

Gaucho children--after being delivered from the cradle before described,
and after passing through the crawling period of infancy and attaining
to the dignity of the stagger--begin to copy their seniors. With lassos
and bolas made of twine, they practise on little birds, or on the dogs
and fowls of home. Our ebony cupid, though not indeed a Gaucho, but a
negro