CHAPTER XXVI 



THE WARLIKE WOMEN OF THE AMAZON : 

 A HISTORICAL STUDY 



[THIS essay was written by Spruce as an appendix 

 to his chapter on the Trombetas river, near the 

 mouth of which the early discoverers first en- 

 countered the fighting women. But as the evidence 

 adduced by Spruce for their existence is spread over 

 a large part of Amazonia, it seems better to give it 

 here. By doing so I have been enabled to divide 

 the present work into two volumes of nearly equal 

 size, each dealing with a well-defined geographical 

 area.] 



THE WOMEN WARRIORS 



I cannot dismiss the Trombetas without saying a 

 few words about the warlike women whom Orellana 

 affirmed that he encountered on his voyage down 

 the Great River, the site of the encounter having 

 been identified by subsequent travellers with the 

 mouth either of the Trombetas or of the Nhamunda 

 (called also the Cunuris), which is the next tributary 

 of the Amazon to westward. It is of little moment 

 to which river we assign it, when (according to 

 Baena) the Nhamunda has two mouths, 14 leagues 

 apart, and the lower mouth is but 6 leagues above 



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