186 IN THE WILDS OF SOUTH AMERICA 



in the limited Patamona vocabulary at his command, while 

 she sat stolidly in a hammock. When he had finished, she 

 calmly remarked, "Well, you tell him I think he is a damn 

 fool," in perfect English ! 



This tribe of Indians has a curious custom of torturing 

 themselves in various ways, which performance is called 

 "beena." It is supposed to insure success in any under- 

 taking. A favorite method is to insert tough, pliable creep- 

 ers into the nostrils and draw them out through the mouth. 

 Another consists of slashing the breast, arms, and legs, 

 and rubbing into the wounds the acrid juice of a plant. 

 The official to whom I have previously referred had an 

 Indian in his employ whose duty it was to supply the table 

 with fresh meat. He hunted daily in the forest, bringing 

 in deer, peccaries, agoutis, and other game in abundance; 

 but on one occasion fortune conspired against him. There- 

 upon he tried his favorite beena, but it failed to bring him 

 luck; every other means of mutilation known to the man 

 was then resorted to in rapid succession, but still his 

 long tramp and careful stalking yielded no meat. He be- 

 came greatly discouraged and told his employer that he 

 would make one more attempt at hunting, and should he 

 fail in this would use his weapon upon himself. The officer 

 thought it unwise to permit the discouraged man to return 

 to the forest on the day following this declaration, so 

 ordered him to cut weeds in his back yard. This the In- 

 dian reluctantly consented to do, but scarcely had he 

 begun when he cut down a bush containing a wasps 7 nest 

 and was severely stung. He immediately took his gun 

 and hurried away, saying that a new "beena" had been 

 sent to him, and that at last the evil spell was broken. 

 Strange to relate, that night he returned laden with game. 



A daily launch service is maintained from above the 

 falls at Tumatumari to Potaro Landing, a day's journey 

 up-stream. The boat's crew are all negroes, and are ordi- 

 narily a careless, slovenly lot. A short time before, they 

 had failed to make proper allowance for the strength of the 



