90 IN THE WILDS OF SOUTH AMERICA 



ing food in her bill, and at last I discerned a dark object 

 against the face of the rock upon which the bird centred her 

 attention. There was no longer cause for concealment, so 

 we moved to the edge of the torrent and saw the grass and 

 mud nest plastered against the face of the rock ; below raged 

 a whirlpool, and on each side there was a waterfall. A 

 more inaccessible spot could not have been chosen by the 

 bird, whose haunts had never been violated. 



After a consultation the Indians decided to build a raft, 

 and accordingly cut down trees and lashed the trunks to- 

 gether, but no sooner had the craft been launched than it 

 was caught by the raging swirl and spun about until the 

 creepers parted and we found ourselves struggling in the 

 whirlpool. A great liana which had been securely tied to 

 the raft and fastened on the bank swept past, and this 

 proved to be our salvation. 



A tall tree was now felled, and its course so directed that 

 the top should fall across the inaccessible rock island, but 

 it fell several yards short and again we were outwitted. 



The sun was now directly overhead, and the fierce rays 

 entered the rfarrow confines of the canyon so that it was 

 stiflingly hot. Angry peals of thunder warned us of the 

 approaching storm, and red howling monkeys, disturbed 

 from their midday rest, roared dismally. Above, the river 

 flowed like a greenish stream of molten glass; below, it 

 dashed through the gorge with a dull roar, and to the tow- 

 ering boulder in the centre clung a treasure, to possess which 

 men had risked their lives; but on the very verge of success 

 we seemed likely to fail. Even the Indians, pioneers of the 

 jungle, shook their heads doubtfully and wanted to return. 



We tried the only remaining resource. With poles and 

 lines two of the Indians and myself picked our way to a 

 number of small rocks that jutted out of the angry flood at 

 the very mouth of the gorge. The other Indian spliced to- 

 gether joints of slender bamboo and climbed out into the 

 branch of the fallen tree which had lodged against some 

 rocks. From this precarious position he made repeated 



