FIRST JOURNEY. 39 



duck is numerous ; and large flocks of two other kinds 

 wheel round you as you 'pass on, but keep out of 

 gun-shot. The milk-white egrets, and jabirus, are dis- 

 tinguished at a great distance ; and in the seta and 

 coucourite trees, you may observe flocks of scarlet and 

 blue aras feeding on the seeds. 



It is to these trees that the largest sort of toucan 

 resorts. He is remarkable by a large black 



The Toucan. . J 



spot on the point ol his tine yellow bill. 

 He is very scarce in Demerara, and never seen except 

 near the sea-coast. 



The ants' nests have a singular appearance on this 



plain ; they are in vast abundance on those 



parts of it free from water, and are formed 



of an exceedingly hard yellow clay. They rise eight or 



ten feet from the ground, in a spiral form, impenetrable 



to the rain, and strong enough to defy the severest 



tornado. 



The wourali poison, procured in these last-mentioned 

 huts seemed very good, and proved afterwards to be 

 very strong. 



There are now no more Indian settlements betwixt 



you and the Portuguese frontiers. If you 



Portuguese -yyish to visit their fort, it would be advisable 



frontiers. 



to send an Indian with a letter from hence, 

 and wait his return. On the present occasion a very 

 fortunate circumstance occurred. The Portuguese com- 

 mander had sent some Indians and soldiers to build a 

 canoe, not far from this settlement ; they had just 

 finished it, and those who did not stay with it had 

 stopped here on their return. 



The soldier who commanded the rest said, he durst 

 not, upon any account, convey a stranger to the fort ; 



