CARICHANA INDIANS. 201 



old men, women, and children, who were afterward 

 divided among their establishments. The river again 

 contracted, and rapids began to make their appear- 

 ance, the shores becoming sinuous and precipitous. 

 In a bay between two promontories of granite, they 

 landed at what is called the Port of Carichana, and 

 proceeded to the mission of that name, situated at 

 the distance of two miles and a half from the bank, 

 where they were hospitably received at the priest's 

 house. The Christian converts at this station were 

 Salivas, a social and mild people, having a great taste 

 for music. 



Among these Indians they found a white woman, 

 the sister of a Jesuit of New-Grenada, and expe- 

 rienced great pleasure in conversing with her with- 

 out the aid of a third person. In every mission, 

 says Humboldt, there are at least two interpreters, 

 for the purpose of communicating between the 

 monks and the catechumens, the former seldom 

 studying the language of the latter. They are na- 

 tives, somewhat less stupid than the rest, but ill 

 adapted for their office. They always attended the 

 travellers in their excursions ; but little more could 

 be got from them than a mere affirmation or nega- 

 tion. Sometimes, in attempting to hold intercourse 

 with the Indians, he preferred the language of signs, — 

 a method which he recommends to travellers, as the 

 variety of languages spoken on the Meta, Orinoco, 

 Casiquiare, and Rio Negro is so great, that no one 

 could ever make himself understood in them all. 



The scenery around the mission of Carichana ap- 

 peared delightful. The village was situated on a 

 grassy plain, bounded by mountains. Banks of rock, 

 often more than 850 feet in circumference, scarcely 

 elevated a few inches above the savannas, and 

 nearly destitute of vegetation, give a peculiar char- 

 acter to the country. On these stony flats they 

 eagerly observed the rising vegetation in the differ- 

 ent stages of its development : lichens cleaving to the 



