THK DEMERARA RIVER. 665 



point of view. No waterfall in the territory surpasses tliem 

 in orandeur. 



O 



The fierce Caribs, in the days of their })ower, inhabited 



the banks of the river, engaged in carrying into slavery 



the people of other tribes from far and near ; but they, and 



those they oppressed, have passed away — a few families only of 



their descendants remaining here and there — the one to boast 



of the prowess of their ancestors, the other to tell the tale of 



their woes. 



THE DEMERARA RIVER. 



High up the River Demerara — on which George Town, the 

 capital of the colony, is built — where the river forces its Avay 

 through the dense forest, is a fall of great picturesque beauty. 

 Here, says Mr. Brett, the cataract precipitates itself in one 

 body over the rocky barrier ; and huge masses of rock, crowned 

 with stately trees, divide it into channels ere it reaclies its 

 lower bed. Of these channels, there are two large ones in 

 the centre, witli smaller ones on either side. All are fille<l 

 with great boulders, over which the dark waters toss and 

 dash until they roll into the wide basin below, covering its 

 surface and margin with masses of yeasty foam. The length of 

 the fall appears to be three or four hinidred feet, though the 

 perpendicular difference between the levels of the river above 

 and below is sixty-five feet. Three-fourths of this cataract 

 is hid from view by the luxuriant forest which clothes its 

 sides and covers its islands. The misty spray — rising, when 

 the river is full, from the channels between the tall trees — the 

 rushing noise, and a glimpse of the torrent here and there, 

 show imperfectly its divided course. Could a clear view l)e 

 obtained of it, it would be found to contain a spectacle lull 

 of beautv and interest. 



