At length all was over, though it was long before the jaguar ceased to struggle, and still longer before the peccaries trotted off. On repairing, then, to the scene of the occurrence, the fortunate spectators of it found eleven dead or dying peccaries, lying in an irregular circle on the ground, and, scattered amidst them, the shredded skin and torn and mangled carcase of the jaguar, which as an anatomic whole might be said to have disappeared; with such vindictive ferocity had its small but savage enemies continued to assault it, long after life had become extinct. The account, if I remember, goes still farther than this, but, not having it at hand, I will not risk repeating inaccurately a statement which might seem to some, very remarkable. One should, however, remember that our domestic pigs are omnivorous, or nearly so, and it would not be particularly surprising if they inherited this quality from their savage ancestry. This incident of the peccaries and jaguar affords a good illustration of the familiar adage that union is strength, for individually the boldest of these fierce little pigs would fall an easy prey to their redoubtable enemy, as may be gathered from the havoc he was able to make amongst them, even when surrounded and almost smothered by their numbers. It may be said, however, that under similar circumstances a tiger could, probably, account for several of the big wild boars of India, though he may occasionally be driven off, or even wounded to the death, by one alone. The pressed mass of bodies, unable through their own numbers to retreat or guard themselves, must offer fatal facilities to the teeth and claws of a creature capable of using them with effect, almost up to the moment of death itself. It is conceivable, therefore, that even a single full-grown male peccary might, for some time, hold a jaguar at bay, if he were not taken by him unawares. This, however, the jaguar almost always contrives to do; and indeed it is essential that he should, and also have a stronghold to retreat to, since it is but seldom that a peccary is found alone.