390 BouRU. 



The next morning was clear and fine, and I set out soon 

 after sunrise to explore the neighborhood. The village had 

 evidently been newly formed, and consisted of a single 

 straight street of very miserable huts totally deficient in 

 every comfort, and as bare and cheerless inside as out. It 

 was situated on a little elevated patch of coarse gravelly soil, 

 covered with the usual high rigid grass, which came up close 

 to the backs of the houses. At a short distance in several 

 directions were patches of forest, but all on low and swampy 

 ground. I made one attempt along the only path I could 

 find, but soon came upon a deep mud-hole, and found that I 

 must walk barefoot if at all ; so I returned, and deferred fur- 

 ther exploration till after breakfast, I then went on into the 

 jungle, and found patches of sago-palms and a low forest 

 vegetation, but the paths were everywhere full of mud-holes, 

 and intersected by muddy streams and tracts of swamp, so 

 that walking was not pleasurable, and too much attention 

 to one's steps was not favorable to insect-catching, which re- 

 quiref above every thing freedom of motion. I shot a few 

 birds and caught a few butterflies, but all were the same as 

 I had already obtained about Cajeli. 



On my return to the village I was told that the same kind 

 of ground extended for many miles in every direction, and I 

 at once decided that Wayapo was not a suitable place to 

 stay at. The next morning early we waded back again 

 through the mud and long wet grass to our boat, and by 

 midday reached Cajeli, where I waited All's return to decide 

 on my future movements. He came the following day, and 

 gave a very bad account of Pelah, where he had been. There 

 was a little brush and trees along the beach, and hills inland 

 covered with high grass and cajuputi-trees — my dread and 

 abhorrence. On inquiring who could give me trustworthy 

 information, I was referred to the lieutenant of the burghers, 

 who had travelled all round the island, and was a very intel- 

 ligent fellow. I asked him to tell me if he knew of any part 

 of Bouru where there was no " kusu-kusu," as the coarse grass 

 of the country is called. He assured me that a good deal of 

 the south coast was forest land, Avhile along the north was 

 almost entirely swamp and grassy hills. After minute in- 

 quiries, I found that the forest country commenced at a 



