ACROSS THE ANTIOQUIAN GOLD-FIELDS 115 



ber of the animals we wanted, Golondrina could never see 

 them, and so she failed to catch them. However, one day 

 he saved his reputation as a hunter by making a difficult 

 trip of ten miles to a steep, heavily wooded ravine, and 

 shooting a number of red howler monkeys. A few days 

 later the dog accidentally came across a peccary, which 

 some native hunters were pursuing, brought it to bay on a 

 rock, and kept it there until it could be shot. 



This place presented rare opportunities for hunting by 

 night. A road had been cut through the forest, dividing it 

 in two clean-cut sections. However, the tips of wide- 

 spreading branches from each side of the clear swath met 

 in several places, forming an aerial connection above the 

 road. These are known as "monkey bridges" because 

 night monkeys and other animals utilize them in crossing 

 from one section of the forest to another. As there was a 

 full moon it was only necessary to sit quietly on a stump 

 near one of the bridges and wait. Before long a rustling 

 sound would come from the tree-top, so slight as to be 

 scarcely audible, and occasionally a deep, low grunt; then 

 silent, shadowy forms emerged from the blackness of con- 

 cealing foliage and slowly made their way across the springy 

 passage. Kinkajous also used these bridges, and as the na- 

 tives prized the skins of these animals highly for making 

 chaparejos, they conducted a regular business of hunting 

 them on moonlight nights. After shooting in one spot for 

 several nights in succession, it was necessary to leave it 

 undisturbed for some time, as the animals became wary 

 and sought other bridges. 



The town of Valdivia is located on a little ridge four 

 thousand two hundred feet up, about ten miles from Puerto 

 Valdivia, which is on the Cauca River. All the intervening 

 country is wooded. 



We reached the port on a Sunday afternoon. The people 

 from a distance of many miles around flocked to the spot 

 on this day for the purpose of having a "good time," so 

 that there were upward of a hundred natives in and about 



