THE NATURALIST ON THE RIVER AMAZONS. 



dertaklng, as the savages attacked all comers. 

 Besides the Araras and the Mundurucus, the 

 latter a tribe friendly to the whites, attached 

 to agriculture, and inhabiting the interior of 

 the country from the Madeira to beyond the 

 Tapajos, two other tribes of Indians now 

 inhabit the lower Madeira, namely, the 

 Parentintms and the Muras. Of the former 

 I did not hear much ; the Muras lead a lazy 

 quiet life on the banks of the labyrinths of 

 lakes and channels which intersect the low 

 country on both sides of the river below 

 Borba. The Araras are one of those tribes 

 which do not plant mandioca, and indeed 

 have no settled habitations. They are very 

 similar in stature and other physical features 

 to the Mundurucus, although differing from 

 them so widely in habits 'and social condi- 

 tion. They paint their chins red with Uructi 

 (anatto), and have usually a black tattooed 

 streak on each side of the face, running from 

 the corner of the mouth to the temple. They 

 have not yet learned the use of firearms, have 

 no canoes, and spend their lives roaming 

 over the interior Of the country, living on 

 game and wild fruits. When they wish to 

 cross a river they make a temporary canoe 

 with the thick bark of trees, which they 

 secure in the required shape of a boat by 

 means of lianas. I heard it stated by a trader 

 of Sautarem, who narrowly escaped being 

 butchered by them in 1854, Ibat the Araras 

 numbered two thousand fighting men. The 

 number I think must be exaggerated, as it 

 generally is with regard to Brazilian tribes. 

 When the Indians show a hostile disposition 

 to the whites, I believe it is most frequently 

 owing to some provocation they have re- 

 ceived at their hands ; for the fust impulse of 

 the Brazilian red-man is to respect Euro- 

 peans ; they have a strong dislike to be forced 

 into their service, but if strangers visit them 

 with a friendly intention they are well treat- 

 ed. It is related, however, that the Indians 

 of the Madeira were hostile to the Portuguese 

 from the first ; it was then the tribes of 

 Muras and Torazes who attacked travellers. 

 In 1855 I met with an American, an odd 

 character, named Kemp, who had lived for 

 many years among the Indians on the 

 Madeira, near the abandoned settlement of 

 Crato. He tofcl me his neighbors were a 

 kindly-disposed and cheerful people, and that 

 the onslaught of the Araras was provoked 

 by a trader from Barra, who wantonly fired 

 into a family of them, killing the parents, 

 and carrying off their children to be employ- 

 ed as domestic servants. 



We remained nine days at the sitio of 

 Senhor John Trinidade. It is situated on a 

 tract of high Ygapo land, which is laised, 

 however, only a few inches above high-water 

 mark. This skirts the northern shoie for a 

 long distance ; the soil consisting of alluvium 

 and lich vegetable mould, arid exhibiting the 

 most exuberant lertility. Buch districts are 

 the first to be settled on in this country, and 

 the whole coast for many miles WHS dott'd 

 with pleasant-looking sitios like thai of ^u* 



friend. The establishment was a large onev 

 the house and out-buildings covering a large* 

 space of ground. The industrious propi ietor 

 seemed to be jack-of -all -trades ; he was 

 planter, trader, fisherman, and canoe-builder, 

 and a large igarite was now on the stocks, 

 under a large shed. Theie was gieat pleas- 

 ure in contemplating this prosperous fatm, 

 from its being worked almost entirely by free; 

 labor ; in fact, by one family and its de- 

 pendants. John Trinidade had only one 

 female slave ; his ether workpeople were a 

 brother and sister-in-law," two godsons, a free 

 negro, one or two Indians, and a family of 

 Muras. Both he and his wife were mame- 

 lucos ; the negro children called them always- 

 father and mother. The order, abundance, 

 and comfort about the place showed what 

 industry and good management could effect 

 in this country without slave-labor. But tbe- 

 surplus produce of such small plantations is 

 very trifling. All we saw had been done 

 since the disorders of 1835-6, during which 

 John Trinidade was a great sufferer ; he was 

 obliged to fly, and the Mura Indians de- 

 stroyed his house and plantations. There was 

 a large, well- weeded grove of cacao along the 

 banks of the river, comprising about 8000 

 trees, and farther inland considerable planta- 

 tions of tobacco, mandioca, Indian corn, fields 

 of rice, melons, and water-melons. Near the 

 house was a kitchen-garden, in which grew 

 cabbages and onions introduced from Eu- 

 rope, besides a wonderful variety of tropical 

 vegetables. It must not be supposed that 

 these plantations and gardens were inclosed 

 or neatly kept ; such is never the case in this 

 country, where labor is so scarce ; but it was 

 an unusual thing to see vegetables grown at 

 all, and the ground tolerably well weeded. 

 The space around the house was plentifully 

 planted with fruit-trees, some, belonging to 

 the Anonaceous order, yielding delicious 

 fruits large as a child's head, and full of cus- 

 tardy pulp which it is necessary to eat with 

 a spoon ; besides oranges, lemons, guavas, 

 alligator pears, Abius (Achras cainito), Geni 

 papas, and bananas. In the shade of these, 

 coffee-trees grew in great luxuriance. The- 

 table was always well supplied with fish, 

 which the Mura, who was attached to the*- 

 household as fisherman, caught every morn- 

 ing a few hundred yards from the port. The 

 chief kinds were the Surubim, Pira-peeua, 

 and Piramutaba, three species of Siluri.hc, 

 belonging to the genus Phnelodus. To thtse- 

 we used a sauce in the. form of a yellow 

 paste, quite new to me, called Am be, which, 

 is marie of the poisonous juice of the man- 

 dioci root, boiled down before the starch or 

 tapioca is precipitated, and seasoned with 

 capsicum peppers. It is kept in stone bottles 

 several weeks before using, and is a most ap- 

 petizing relish to fish. Tucupi, another sauctr 

 male also from mandioca juice, is much 

 more common in the interior of the countf, 

 than Arubo. This is made by boiling or 

 huatitrr the pure liquid, after the tapioca has 

 bc" pai -it j d, daily for several days in sue- 

 iiOStivmj AH 1 seasoning it with pei>i>eis> 



