erved by some of these Argus-eyed
videttes, would have been absolutely impossible; and if seen as surely
brought to a stop, and taken back to Assuncion.

Revolving all these difficulties in his mind, Ludwig Halberger was
filled with dismay, and for a long time kept in a state of doubt and
chilling despair. At length, however, a thought came to relieve him--a
plan of flight, which promised to have a successful issue. He would
flee into the Chaco!

To the mind of any other man in Paraguay the idea would have appeared
preposterous. If Francia resembled the frying-pan, the Chaco to a
Paraguayan seemed the fire itself. A citizen of Assuncion would no more
dare to set foot on the further side of that stream which swept the very
walls of his town, than would a besieging soldier on the _glacis_ of the
fortress he besieged. The life of a white man caught straying in the
territory of "El Gran Chaco" would not have been worth a withey. If not
at once impaled on an Indian spear held in the hand of "Tova" or
"Guaycuru," he would be carried into a captivity little preferable to
death.

For all this, Ludwig Halberger had no fear of crossing over to the Chaco
side, nor penetrating into its interior. He had often gone thither on
botanising and hunting expeditions. But for this apparent recklessness
he had a reason, which must needs here be given. Between the Chaco
savages and the Paraguayan people there had been intervals of
peace--_tiempos de paz_--during which occurred amicable intercourse; the
Indians rowing over the river and entering the town to traffic off their
skins, ostrich feathers, and other commodities. On one of these
occasions the head chief of the Tovas tribe, by name Naraguana, having
imbibed too freely of _guarape_, and in some way got separated from his
people, became the butt of some Paraguayan boys, who were behaving
towards him just as the idle lads of London or the _gamins_ of Paris
would to one appearing intoxicated in the streets. The Prussian
naturalist chanced to be passing at the time; and seeing the Indian, an
aged man, thus insulted, took pity upon and rescued him from his
tormentors.

Recovering from his debauch, and conscious of the service the stranger
had done him, the Tovas chief swore eternal friendship to his generous
protector, at the same time proffering him the "freedom of the Chaco."

The incident, however, caused a rupture between the Tovas tribe and the
Paraguayan Government, te