46 MEMOIR OF 



to forget all that he had suffered during the previous 

 six months. 



ASCENT OF THE RIVER CORENTYN. 



Having explored the river Essequibo to three and 

 a quarter degrees north, and the river Rupununi to 

 two and a half degrees north latitude, Mr. Schom- 

 burgk now considered it desirable to make choice of 

 some other of the great rivers of Guiana ; hoping 

 that, by pursuing the stream towards its source, he 

 might be enabled to penetrate into the interior to- 

 wards the Sierra Acarai, and at the same time in- 

 vestigate the capabilities of the adjacent country for 

 colonization. For this purpose, therefore, the Co- 

 rentyn was selected; the more especially as the 

 reports heretofore obtained from those who had 

 visited this river were but meagre and unsatis- 

 factory. 



On the 2d September, 1836, he quitted Deme- 

 rara for Berbice, accompanied by an artist and an 

 ornithologist whom he had engaged for the occa- 

 sion, and three volunteers, namely, Lieut. Losack 

 of the 69th regiment, Mr. Reiss, and Mr. Cameron ; 

 and having entered the Corentyn, pursued his way 

 up this river, for about forty miles, to the Post of 

 Oreala. The banks of the river thus far are gene- 

 rally low, but fertile, and well calculated for culti- 

 vation. At present they are almost uninhabited; 

 whole tracts remain the undisputed haunt of the 

 jaguar and the deer. 



Tliere are several settlements of Indians here, 



i 



