The back of the cayman may be said to be almost impenetrable to a musket-
ball, but his sides are not near so strong, and are easily pierced with an
arrow; indeed, were they as strong as the back and the belly, there would
be no part of the cayman's body soft and elastic enough to admit of
expansion after taking in a supply of food.
The cayman has no grinders; his teeth are entirely made for snatch and
swallow: there are thirty-two in each jaw. Perhaps no animal in existence
bears more decided marks in his countenance of cruelty and malice than the
cayman. He is the scourge and terror of all the large rivers in South
America near the line.
One Sunday evening, some years ago, as I was walking with Don Felipe de
Ynciarte, Governor of Angustura, on the bank of the Oroonoque, "Stop here a
minute or two, Don Carlos," said he to me, "while I recount a sad accident.
One fine evening last year, as the people of Angustura were sauntering up
and down here in the Alameda, I was within twenty yards of this place when
I saw a large cayman rush out of the river, seize a man, and carry him down
before anybody had it in his power to assist him.
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