WE GO WITH A SERINGUEIRO ON HIS ROUND 21 



CHAPTER V 



WE GO WITH A SERINGUEIRO ON HIS ROUND 



A RUBBER-GATHERER ill the Amazon region is called a 

 " seringueiro." On his daily round he has to follow a 

 narrow path, called an "estrada," that has been cut 

 through the forest as a means of communication from 

 one scattered rubber-tree to another. 



As I should like you to understand exactly how these 

 estradas are planned, I want you to imagine, for the 

 moment, that you are standing somewhere near the 

 river in a tract of unexplored forest. From this spot 

 as starting-point you set out in any direction you like 

 to hunt for rubber- trees. However excited you may 

 be, you cannot possibly hurry, as the only path at 

 your service is the one you are making for yourself. 

 You cut a narrow strip, the length of your arm's reach, 

 out of the dense undergrowth, walk on a few paces, 

 and are again brought to a standstill ; not another step 

 can you move forward until you have continued the 

 path by cutting away another strip out of the tangle 

 ahead. 



You know you are in a district where Hevea rubber- 

 trees flourish, but you have to take your chance of 

 finding them among the many kinds of trees that are 

 crowded together in the forest. When once you have 

 settled the general direction in which you will explore, 

 you go straight ahead, for you are just as likely to find 

 what you want in a direct line as you would be if you 

 let the fancy of every few minutes lead you into 

 clearing a more irregular, and therefore longer, path. 



