266 THE GREAT CRESTED COQUETTE. 



nitude. They wind along with, the grandeur 

 almost of the. ocean. 



The giant river of South America is the 

 Amazon, that in places spreads out into an ex- 

 panse of water of a pale yellowish orange, and is 

 as much as six miles in breadth. 



Trunks of trees, and fruit and leaves, and frag- 

 ments of the forest, float in vast quantities down 

 the river. And beds of aquatic plants line the 

 shore. Masses of these plants, looking like sea- 

 weeds, detach themselves, here and there, and 

 form floating islands. 



On either bank of the river is the dense and 

 mighty forest, that presents us with a succession 

 of pictures. Here are stems of different colours, 

 black, red, yellow, and silvery gray. And here 

 is the feathery palm; and here are festoons and 

 garlands of colour, as the parasitic plants droop 

 from the branches and, in places, touch the 

 water. 



The water's edge is alive with birds. Here are 

 crowds of water-fowl. Here is the Heron, stand- 

 ing patiently for hours, his eye fixed on the water 



