I have lately had an opportunity of repeating my visit to the eccentric Bercheych. Having slept on my way at Mr. Graham’s, I rode from thence in the morning to take my breakfast tête-à-tête, with this solitary yet social and intelligent recluse. Although unexpected, he instantly addressed me by name, and received me in the most friendly manner, telling me that he was mindful of his promise, and that some Indians were at work upon the model of a house and furniture, which he had offered to procure for me.

A most ample breakfast was quickly set before us, served with great neatness and order. I was delighted, as formerly, with his conversation and remarks, and was particularly gratified with the account he gave me of that singular animal the great Ant-eater, which he had had frequent opportunities of seeing both dead and alive, his people having shot several of the species. The weight of this peculiar quadruped is commonly from 150 lb. to 200 lb. He has a very small head, covered with hair as soft as velvet; his tail is immensely large and flat, and beset with long hair, which is stiffer than the bristles of a hog. His feet are armed with long claws, forming very strong offensive weapons, By means of his claws, and his tail, he is able to defend himself against even the tiger; and in some instances he has been known to conquer that fierce and powerful animal. When attacked, he fights with his claws, protecting his head by wrapping it up in his broad tail of bristles, which the tiger cannot penetrate. He has a tongue of uncommon length, which is moistened with saliva of a saccharine flavour. As the name implies, ants are his food, and his mode of procuring it is by thrusting his deceitful tongue into a nest of these insects, when, allured by the taste of the saliva, they settle upon it in great numbers, and the animal, by drawing it in, swallows up whole hosts of them at once. The high relish, no doubt, excites an increased secretion, and with his tongue again sweetly baited, he entraps new victims, repeating the slaughter until his appetite is satiated with the myriads of slain.

Walking lately with one of the gentlemen of the hospital department, down to the bottom of a coffee estate, which leads into the woods, our attention was arrested by the singular appearance of multitudes of the trees at the entrance of the forest; many of which had pensile bodies, like common cabbage-nets, stuffed with straw, hanging from the extremities of their lofty branches; and others, huge black masses, conveying the idea of large animals, adhering to their trunks. Upon approaching nearer to them we discovered that the former were the nests of birds; the latter, of ants!

The bird-nests were the fabrication of a species here termed the mocking-bird, but unlike that of imitative note so named in the Northern States of this continent. Both the construction and situation of these nests are peculiarly ingenious. They are not built upon, nor within any part of the tree, but are fastened to the outermost twigs of the remotest branches, as if tied to them with strings; and it is extremely difficult to imagine how, in this pensile form, the building of them can be effected; for it might seem, from the manner in which they are suspended, that they must have been first constructed, then carried up whole, and hung upon the twigs which support them. They are deep and cylindrical like long nets or purses, from which figure, together with the ready flexibility of the tender branches which bear them, they are in no danger of being overturned by the breeze, nor of having their eggs, or young, tossed out by sudden gusts of wind. The appearance of them, as they hang waving in the air, is very remarkable: some of the trees are so thickly covered with them that, at a short distance, it is difficult to distinguish which are most numerous, these nests or the leaves. The situation of them is admirably chosen for the purpose of protection against the various species of monkies, which infest the woods; none of these marauders being able to support themselves upon the slender twigs from which the nests are suspended. Buffon would tell us that an unerring instinct had taught these birds thus to shelter their eggs, and their young: Darwin would attribute it to reason and experience. But the fact of the younger birds selecting the same situation, and constructing their nests, even the first season, with as great dexterity as their parents, seems to offer an insurmountable objection to the opinion which refers it to a reasoning faculty. Nothing of progressive advancement is displayed, all is perfection from the beginning, and experience begets no superiority; for it is not seen that either age or repetition affords the usual advantages of improved intellect—the youngest bird being equally ingenious, and equally perfect in his architecture as the oldest.

The ant-nests are immense masses of black earth, built upon the trunks of the trees; many of them so high, and of such extraordinary bulk, as to render it matter of surprise, how even the combined industry of these minute insects could have carried up, and worked together such prodigious accumulations. One of the nests very much resembled a large black bear clinging round the tree; nor was it till we came near enough to examine it closely that we could believe it to be the masonry—the dwelling-house and castle of these diminutive artists.

I thrust the end of my cane into several of the nests, breaking through the outer walls of the mansions; when instantly hosts of ants issued forth from the openings. Upon breaking-down a part of one of these buildings to examine it more particularly, I found that although the exterior surface was smooth and uniform, the interior was formed into cells somewhat of a regular figure, and very much resembling the honey-comb of bees.

We find that these nests are converted to an useful purpose, being given as food to little chickens. Frequently the trees, upon which they are built, are cut down for the sole purpose of obtaining them. The mode of using them is by breaking off a portion of the cellular earth, from the great mass, and sticking it upon a pole, or otherwise placing it over the lattice-work of the pen in which the hen and her brood are confined, in order that the young ants may fall out of their cells to the ground; where they are instantly devoured by the chickens.

On the day after my breakfast visit at the cottage, hermit Bercheych, as he is often called, came, in great state, to dine with us at the barracks. He was paddled down the creek in his large canoe, by six fine slaves, and it was pleasing to observe what profound attention and respect were borne this old gentleman by his negroes, who comported themselves with a degree of regularity and decorum worthy the best ordered domestics of Europe.

Our party was small, and we sat down to dinner in the presence of a group of naked Indians, who that day made us a visit from the woods. It was not in our power, even with our best assiduities, to make a sufficient return for the many marks of hospitality we had met with at the hermitage, but our guest expressed himself happy, and was lively and entertaining as ever. The few hours we had of his society passed very pleasantly, and we regretted extremely that the tide, and the approach of evening took him from us early after dinner.

Absorbed with the civilities due to the accomplished and methodical Bercheych, we were less regardful of our strangers from the woods than usual; but we have lately been visited by another party of the bucks, to whom we earnestly devoted our attentions, during the short time they remained among us. We made it a settled experiment to endeavour to rouse them from that fixed apathy and indifference which forms so striking a feature of their character. By signs we attempted to lead them into a sort of conversation. We gave them rum to drink; brought out bows and arrows to shoot with; played the German flute to them; beat the drum, and piped the fife—but all in vain! Nothing of mirth or vivacity was excited. Rum possessed the only charm: of this both the men and women drank glass after glass as quickly as it was given them.

Cynics have said that the gift of speech is a blessing seldom denied to the ladies; but we remarked that these naked wood-nymphs were peculiarly taciturn. They seemed even more tranquil and incurious than the men. They sat two upon a chair, the whole time, with their backs towards us, and were not inspired, by any thing that occurred, to move a single feature or a muscle; nor were the men much more animated: one of them, who appeared to be very old, had in his hand a piece of a large and coarse reed, nearly two feet long, with two or three holes cut in it, like a flute. With this we did prevail upon him to blow a few harsh and simple notes; and these he seemed to consider very superior to all the varied sounds of the German flute, which was played to him by one of the officers; for, he refused to accept the flute in exchange for his reed. After trying various other means to rouse them, we caused the drum and fife to be played, unexpectedly, below the window, where they were sitting. This seemed to strike the ear, and they for a moment appeared to listen, but nothing of impulse was betrayed—nothing of vivacity overspread their features: nor did an individual of them so far forget his gravity as to rise from his seat to look out at the window.