CAPTAIN TUCKEY'S NARRATIVE. 173 



Our night scene here, though entirely dissimilar from the 

 preceding one, was perfectly theatrical ; the trees completely 

 shading the ravine, and the reflection of the fires on the tent, 

 and on the foliage, and on the rocks, with the mixture of 

 black and white men, each cooking his supper, might have 

 exercised the pen of Salvator Rosa, and would give no bad 

 idea of the rendezvous of a horde of banditti. 



In the morning we found we had pitched our tent over a 

 nest of pismires ; but although we were covered with them, 

 not a person was bitten, any more than by the musquetoes, 

 who, from its shade and humidity, had cliosen this as their 

 head quarters. At day-light we were roused by the discor- 

 dant concert of a legion of monkeys and parrots chattering, 

 joined with that of a bird named by the natives booidoso, (a 

 crested Toucan) having a scream between the bray of an 

 ass and the bleat of a lamb ; another, with a note resembling 

 the cuckoo, but much hoarser; and another crying " whip 

 poor will" (a species of goatsucker). We also found that 

 several buffaloes had been to drink at one of the holes in the 

 rocks, about 200 yards from one of our tents. 



Aug. 23. At seven o'clock (having given the people their 

 usual breakfast of cocoa), we set out, and crossed a most 

 difficult tract of hills and ravines until 11, Avheii we found 

 -ourselves just at the angle of the river, formed by its 



