Chap. II. MYSTERIOUS SOUNDS IN THE FOREST. 73 



are, besides, many sounds which it is impossible to 

 account for. I found the natives generally as much at 

 a loss in this respect as myself. Sometimes a sound is 

 heard like the clang of an iron bar against a hard, 

 hollow tree, or a piercing cry rends the air ; these are 

 not repeated, and the succeeding silence tends to 

 heighten the unpleasant impression which they make 

 on the mind. With the natives it is always the 

 Curupira, the wild man or spirit of the forest, which 

 produces all noises they are unable to explain. Myths 

 are the rude theories which mankind, in the infancy of 

 knowledge, invent to explain natural phenomena. The 

 Curupira is a mysterious being, whose attributes are 

 uncertain, for they vary according to locality. Some- 

 times he is described as a kind of orang-otang, being- 

 covered with long, shaggy hair, and living in trees. At 

 others he is said to have cloven feet, and a bright red 

 face. He has a wife and children, and sometimes comes 

 down to the ro9as to steal the mandioca. At one time 

 I had a Mameluco youth in my service, whose head was 

 full of the legends and superstitions of the country. He 

 always went with me into the forest ; in fact, I could 

 not get him to go alone, and whenever we heard any ot 

 the strange noises mentioned above, he used to tremble 

 with fear. He would crouch down behind me, and beg 

 of me to turn back. He became easy only after he had 

 made a charm to protect us from the Curupira. For 

 this pui-pose he took a young palm leaf, plaited it, and 

 formed it into a ring, which he hung to a branch on 

 our track. / 



At length, after a six hours' walk, we arrived at our 



