58 CRUISE OF THE STEAMER CORWIN. 



tlio skill boat. For this service we were olili^ed to pive tliem sonietliiiip: to eat in addition to a 

 siiuill (jiiaiitity of lobaceo. Tliey all say tiiat tliey do not want inucli jiay, but " somelliiiig to 

 eat." I sent one fellow <;iinniii^ during the afternoon, and he promised to be back the next day. 

 Our expedition wound its slow way along the banks of the river, soinetinies {jetting ashore in 

 shoal water and sandy bottom, and then escaping, as if niir.iciilonsly, being dashed onto tlie rocks, 

 which were only to be discovered by a jieculiar ripple on the water. In mid chanml there are no 

 obstructions, but alongside of the bank, in the present stage of the water, many jntting rocks lie 

 jnst benealli the surface. Aliout .'5 o'clock we observed a <lanf;erous ledge w hicli maki's out liom 

 some high rocky clilTs on the right and extends about thirt.y feet into the river. All day we have 

 been steaming toward the mountain of the mysterious green stone; sometimes standing iij) jjlain 

 to our sight and soinetinies obscured by heavy masses of clouds, its ]u-esence was ever felt, and it 

 seemed tome to hold within its shadows some mysterious charm, some fascinating secret which 

 must be wrested from its grnsj). As the day closed and the soft light of night came on, wejiitched 

 our tent on the side of a woody hill. A beautiful waterfall tumbled down its sides, and amid the 

 trees I saw the familiar forms of the robin, the swallow, and the sparrow, and as they fluttered 

 about our camp our thoughts were carried back to our homes. The river is much discolored by 

 the stream.s running in from the mountains, and are usually of a dark reddish color, while that of 

 the main stream is beautirnlly clear and several degrees lower in temperature. Today we made 

 1G.3 miles. Average temperature, !)o°. 



July L*0, 1884. — Begins with moderate southeast wind and rain. Mid part wind shifted to 

 northeast and blew strong with heavy rain sijualls. Ends light northeast breeze, overcast and 

 passing showers. The left shores were generally low, with lolling ('ounlry back to the mountains. 

 On the right the banks were high, and occasionally sand blufls were observed with a sparce growth 

 of pine trees on to|). In many jilaces the high banks had crumbled away ; ud trees had tumbled 

 down with their tops in the water and their roots resting on the accumulation of loose earth near 

 the water's edge. At 4 a. m. called all hands and began usual preparations for the day. At 8.30 

 got under way and stood up the river. In a short time we reached the cami) of our Indian lellow- 

 voyagers, and observing a signal made to us we ran in, and the Indian to whom 1 had given 

 ammunition to hunt with the day before brought us a brace of geese as the result of his night's work. 

 Our stock of meat, small in the beginning, was growing alarmingly scant. It was impossible for 

 us to get game without delaying the progress of the expedition, as the geese and ducks feed in 

 lakes and lagoons from three to live miles in the interior. To-day as I walked along the banks I 

 saw many tracks of brown bear, and Andre informed me that he had seen bear and porcupine 

 tracks also iluring the day on the opposite side. Our advance to-day was varied by a season of 

 rest from mosfpiitoes, but we had to submit to a lesser evil in the form of a violent rainstorm. 

 The clouds hung low on the mountains early in the morning, and toward noon the wind shifted 

 from southeast to northeast, and blew in strong pull's down the niouiitsnii gorges. I saw the wind 

 (•omiiig and hastily jiicked up the skin boat, which was being towed along the banks by the three 

 Indians with Andre in charge, and hoisting our sail we sped up stream at a lamoiis rate. For the 

 first time since we entered the river we seemed to be really going ahead, and no amount of rain 

 could daiiiiien the enthusiasm of our i)arty. This, however, did not last long. The rain ceased 

 about 4 p. III., and the clouds rolled u|)wards and rested on the highest ])eaks of the niountains. 

 At 7.30 we camjied at the foot of a sandhill on the right side of the river, having made L'0.4 

 miles during the day. Average temperatine, OO^. 



Juhj LM, ISSl.— Begins with moderate southeast wind and partly cloudy with passing showers, 

 and continued so throughout the day. (Jailed all hands at 4 a. m. and got under way at 8. The 

 general character of the shores remained the same as yesterday, but the current was found to be 

 stronger than ever, ami about noon we ran into a part of the river where the channel is divided 

 into two parts by a sand shoal extending for about a quarter of a mile jiarallel to the rivei-'s course 

 and reaching nearly from shore to shore. Here the current was tound to be so strong that it was 

 almost impo.ssible to get ahead at all. Frequent stojis had to be nnide to allow the steam to run up, 

 and the time thus lost was not regained, as we found with the utmost iiressuie that we could safely 

 carry that we could not go half as fast as the skin boat, which was being towed and jiaddlcd by 

 the Indians. In view of these circumstances I decided to abandon the launch lor the present and 



