INTRODUCTION. 97 



visible above the spray ; then she rises again above 

 the foaming waters, obeys the steady hand of the 

 helmsman, and skipping over the waves formed by 

 the fall and impetuosity of contending currents, the 

 danger is over, and a simultaneous burst of joy 

 generally escapes from the canoemen, to proclaim 

 their success. 



Alas ! success does not always attend tlic descent 

 of these falls, and large is the number of those who 

 have lost their lives in descending the cataracts by 

 the canoe having been upset or split on coming in 

 contact with a hidden rock. I had thus the grief to 

 witness, during our descent of the river Berbice, the 

 upsetting of one of our canoes, while passing one of 

 the Christmas Cataracts, and of her inmates, thirteen 

 in number, Mr. Reiss, a talented young man who 

 accompanied me as volunteer, lost his life by this 

 disastrous accident. 



South of the first series of rapids, the Essequibo 

 assumes a new prospect, displaying numerous sand- 

 banks rising above its surface, which obliged us 

 constantly to cross and re-cross to avoid running 

 aground. The guana (Lacerta igucmna) had se- 

 lected them as a deposit for its eggs, which when 

 fresh are a great delicacy. Our Indian canoemen 

 showed great dexterity in securing them, and in 

 a very short time they took some hundred eggs 

 and captured several of the guanas, 



"We frequently selected these sand- banks for our 

 night-camp, and our attempts in fishing were here 

 generally more successful than when we camped 



