Note 140 — ORIGINALIDAD Y CARACTERES ARGENTINOS El Rastreador—El Baquiano—El Gaucho Malo—El Cantor Domingo F. Sarmiento
Reading edition
el poncho. The poncho used by the gauchos is a thick woolen blanket of oblong shape, with a slit in the center so that it may fall over the wearer’s shoulders. It is an inseparable accouterment of the gaucho. It is his winter coat, his raincoat, and his shield to boot, for in his dueling, to which he is much given, the gaucho fights with the knife in one hand and the poncho wrapped around the other hand and arm.