[157] =estas dos frases=, _i.e._, =¡En Chile! ¡y a pie!= _In a foreign land! and on foot!_ Chile, moreover, being a mountainous country, ill suits the gaucho accustomed as he is to the plains of Argentina. Being horseless is of course always a calamity for a gaucho, whether in the pampa or far from it. [158] =se dan=. V. 2, 9. [159] =dónde se le han visto rastros al león=, _where the tracks of the lion_ (_puma_) _have been seen_. [160] =se fraterniza=, lit., _it is fraternized_; trans., _there drinking and the prodigality of those with means induce comradeship_. [161] =empiezan a echarse=, _begin to be laid_. [162] =la Península=, _i.e._, Spain. [163] =¡guerra a cuchillo!= _war to the knife!_ The Spanish general, José Palafox Melfi, defender of the city of Zaragoza against the besieging troops of Napoleon (1808-1809), being asked by the French general to surrender, answered with the famous words above mentioned. For this heroic defense of Zaragoza he was made Duke of Zaragoza. [164] =a más de un arma=, _besides being a weapon_. [165] =a la par de jinete=. After the words =a la par= the words =de hacer alarde= are understood and =ser= is understood before =jinete= and =valiente=. [166] =una esgrima=, _a form of dueling_. [167] =Así se ve a estos gauchos=, _thus these gauchos are seen_. [168] =por brillar=. V. 18, 15. [169] =si _corre a la partida_=, _if he gets the better of the rural guards_. [170] =si su conducta posterior=..., _i.e._, Rosas protected murderers because he himself turned out to be the greatest of murderers later on when he became dictator. [171] =En cuanto a los juegos de equitación=. Darwin, speaking of the horsemanship of the gaucho, says: "General Rosas is also a perfect horseman--an accomplishment of no small consequence in a country where an assembled army elected its general by the following trial: a troop of unbroken horses, being driven into a corral, were let out through a gateway, above which was a crossbar; it was agreed that whoever should drop from the bar on one of these wild animals, as it rushed out, and should be able, without saddle or bridle, not only to ride it, but also to bring it back to the door of the corral, should be their general. The person who succeeded was accordingly elected; and doubtless made a fit general for such an army. This extraordinary feat has also been performed by Rosas." [172] =Uno le arroja un tiro de bolas=, _Some one takes a shot at him with the bolas_. The _bolas_ used by the gauchos to catch cattle and game are of two kinds; they may consist of two round stones covered with leather and united by a leather thong about seven or eight feet long; or they may consist of three balls united to a common center. The balls differ in size and weight, depending on the kind of game the gauchos wish to catch. They are twirled around the head and hurled at the feet of the fleeing animal. Light bolas of the first kind are called =lives=. Cf. 82, 12.