RETURN TO MANAOS. 263 
are almost unknown ; and there are none so poor as not 
to possess two or three of the strong and neat twine 
hammocks made by the Indians themselves from the fibres 
of the palm. Then the open character of the houses and 
the personal cleanliness of the Indians make the atmos- 
phere fresher and purer in their houses than in those of 
our poor. However untidy they may be in other respects, 
they always bathe once or twice a day, if not oftener, 
and wash their clothes frequently. We have never yet 
entered an Indian house where there was any disagree- 
able odor, unless it might be the peculiar smell from the 
preparation of the mandioca in the working-room outside, 
which has, at a certain stage of the process, a slightly 
sour smell. We certainly could not say as much for 
many houses where we have lodged when travelling in 
the West, or even " Down East," where the suspicious 
look of the bedding and the close air of the room often 
make one doubtful about the night's rest. 
o 
This morning we were up at five o'clock, and at six we 
had had coffee and were ready for the various projects sug- 
gested for our amusement. Our sportsmen were already in 
the forest, others had gone off on a fishing excursion in a 
montaria, and I joined a party on a visit to a sitio higher 
up on the lake. Mr. Agassiz was obliged to deny himself 
all these parties of pleasure, for the novelty and variety 
of the fish brought in kept him and his artist constantly 
at work. In this climate the process of decomposition 
goes on so rapidly, that, unless the specimens are attended 
to at once, they are lost ; and the paintings must be made 
while they are quite fresh, in order to give any idea of 
their vividness of tint. Mr. Burkhardt is indefatigable, 
always busy with his drawing, in spite of heat, mosquitoes, 
