60 NOTES OF A BOTANIST 



as the Cinchonas, some of which it sufficiently 

 resembles in both leaves and flowers, but differs 

 generically in the seeds being wingless ; and the 

 bark, although slightly bitter, has none of the febri- 

 fugal and antiperiodic properties of the Cinchonas. 

 There had not been wanting people on the spot who 

 warned Don Luis of his mistake ; but he was too 

 opinionated to listen to them, and persevered to his 

 disastrous overthrow. 



My host at Lamas was the venerable vicar, 

 Padre Antonio Reategui, and he must needs have 

 me stay all the following day with him ; but the 

 time was not lost to me, for I botanised the whole 

 hill-top, made a sketch of the curious town, and on 

 the two evenings of my stay profited by the intelli- 

 gent conversation of the Padre. It was from him 

 I got the first trustworthy account of the mountain 

 I was bent on visiting. A small colony had recently 

 been established on the flanks of the Campana, con- 

 sisting of an Indian named Chumbi and his family, 

 and of his two sisters, their husbands and young 

 children. To Chumbi the Padre gave me a letter 

 of recommendation, and assured me I should find 

 in his hut at least good shelter, and store of plantains 

 to eat along with my charqui. 



Having lingered so long at Lamas, I must 

 hasten over the remainder of the journey. On the 

 22nd we reached Tabalosos, a small Indian village 

 on the opposite side of the deep valley of the Mayo, 

 and at about the same distance from Lamas as 

 Tarapoto. At Tabalosos I passed the night in the 

 house of some relations of Chumbi, my bed being 

 merely a hide spread on the earthen floor, like those 

 of the other inmates. The next day's journey was 



