I have seen a lizard of such strange size, that if it had been related to me by another, I should not have believed it. I assure you that they are as large as a quarter pipe. They are like those that we see here, as to their form; their colour is greenish-brown, and greenish-yellow under the belly: they run very fast, and hiss in running; they are not mischievous to men, although they do not fly from them unless pursued. The Indians eat them, and find them very good.[78] [78] Probably "Lacerta Iguana" (Linn.), some of which grow to a great size. The flesh was considered a delicacy by the Indians and by many Europeans, but eating of it too frequently was supposed to occasion a wasting of the body. De Rochefort says: "On ne conseille néanmoins d'en manger souvent à cause qu'elle dessêche trop le corps et lui fait perdre tout son embonpoint."--_Hist. Nat. et Morale des Antilles._ I have also many times seen in that country, animals that they call caymans, which are, as I believe, a kind of crocodile,[79] and so large, that certain of the said caymans are twenty-five and thirty feet in length, and are very dangerous; for if they should find a man unawares, without doubt they would devour him. They are of a whitish-yellow colour under the belly, the back armed with strong scales of brownish-green colour, having the head very long, and the teeth strangely sharp; the mouth very wide, the eyes red, and very flaming; on the head there is a sort of crown; they have four very short legs, the body of the size of a barrel. There are also smaller ones. From beneath the hind thighs excellent musk is procured. They live in the lakes and marshes, and in the fresh-water rivers. The Indians eat them. [79] In another room there were great earthen vessels, some filled with water, others with earth, in which were snakes as big as a man's thigh; and crocodiles, which they call caymans, as thick as a man's thigh.--Gage, _Description of the Palace of Montezuma._ I have also seen tortoises of marvellous size, such that two horses would have difficulty in dragging one of them; and there are some so large that, in the shell which covers them, three men could place themselves and float as in a boat. They are fished in the sea. The flesh of them is very good and resembles beef. They are in great quantity in all the Indies, and they are often seen going to feed in the woods. There are also numbers of tigers,[80] of the skin of which great care is taken. They do not attack unless pursued. [80] Tigris Americana (Linn.)--Jaguar. There are also to be seen in the said country, some civettes,[81] which come from Peru, where there are quantities. [81] Viverra civetta (Linn.)--the Gato de Algalia of the Spaniards.