unconscious that this was the first stage of their ultimate
transformation into roast beef, or _filets de boeuf a la Bordelaise_.

Though Lyon and I never attempted to use the lasso, we often joined in
riding a beast down, and the horses, after they had once identified
the particular beast they were to follow, turned and twisted with such
unexpected suddenness that they nearly shot us both out of the saddle
a dozen times. None of the pupils were yet able to use the lasso with
certainty, though they spent hours in practising at a row of bullocks'
skulls in the corral. In time a foreigner can learn to throw the lasso
with all the skill of a born Argentine, but the use of the "bolas" is
an art that must be acquired in childhood. I used to see some of the
gauchos' children, little fellows of five or six, practising on the
fowls with miniature toy bolas made of string, and they usually hit
their mark. The bolas consist of pieces of raw hide shaped like the
letter Y; at the extremities are two heavy lead balls, whilst at the
base of the Y is a wooden ball which is held in the hand. The operator
whirls the bolas round his head, and sends them flying at the
objective with unfailing certainty, and the animal "emboladoed" drops
as though shot through the head. I have seen these used on "outside
camps," but on a well-managed estancia, such as Espartillar, the use
of the bolas is strictly prohibited, since it tends to break the
animal's leg. The only time I ever saw them employed there, was
against a peculiarly aggressive male ostrich, who attacked all
intruders into his particular domain with the utmost ferocity. The
bird fell like a dead thing, and he assumed a very chastened demeanour
after this lesson. The South American ostrich, the Rhea, though
smaller and less dangerous than his big African cousin, can be most
pugnacious when he is rearing a family of young chicks. I advisedly
say "he," for the hen ostrich, once she has hatched her eggs,