Personal Narrative Of Travels To The Equinoctial Regions Of America During The Years 1799-1804 - Volume 2 - By Alexander Von Humboldt And Aime Bonpland.
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When She Felt Herself
Seized, She Sought The Eyes Of The Animal, And Plunged Her Fingers
Into Them With Such
Violence, that the pain forced the crocodile to
let her go, after having bitten off the lower part of her
Left arm.
The girl, notwithstanding the enormous quantity of blood she lost,
reached the shore, swimming with the hand that still remained to her.
In those desert countries, where man is ever wrestling with nature,
discourse daily turns on the best means that may be employed to escape
from a tiger, a boa, or a crocodile; every one prepares himself in
some sort for the dangers that may await him. "I knew," said the young
girl of Uritucu coolly, "that the cayman lets go his hold, if you push
your fingers into his eyes." Long after my return to Europe, I learned
that in the interior of Africa the negroes know and practise the same
means of defence. Who does not recollect, with lively interest, Isaac,
the guide of the unfortunate Mungo Park, who was seized twice by a
crocodile, and twice escaped from the jaws of the monster, having
succeeded in thrusting his fingers into the creature's eyes while
under water. The African Isaac, and the young American girl, owed
their safety to the same presence of mind, and the same combination of
ideas.
The movements of the crocodile of the Apure are sudden and rapid when
it attacks any object; but it moves with the slowness of a salamander,
when not excited by rage or hunger. The animal in running makes a
rustling noise, which seems to proceed from the rubbing of the scales
of its skin one against another. In this movement it bends its back,
and appears higher on its legs than when at rest. We often heard this
rattling of the scales very near us on the shore; but it is not true,
as the Indians pretend, that, like the armadillo, the old crocodiles
"can erect their scales, and every part of their armour." The motion
of these animals is no doubt generally in a straight line, or rather
like that of an arrow, supposing it to change its direction at certain
distances. However, notwithstanding the little apparatus of false
ribs, which connects the vertebrae of the neck, and seems to impede
the lateral movement, crocodiles can turn easily when they please. I
often saw young ones biting their tails; and other observers have seen
the same action in crocodiles at their full growth. If their movements
almost always appear to be straight forward, it is because, like our
small lizards, they move by starts. Crocodiles are excellent swimmers;
they go with facility against the most rapid current. It appeared to
me, however, that in descending the river, they had some difficulty in
turning quickly about. A large dog, which had accompanied us in our
journey from Caracas to the Rio Negro, was one day pursued in swimming
by an enormous crocodile. The latter had nearly reached its prey, when
the dog escaped by turning round suddenly and swimming against the
current.
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