of AN Orchid II cater. ioi 



obstacles caused the angry weight of water to eddy 

 and boil like a monster caldron. The principal danger 

 to the canoes shooting these rapids is the probability 

 of being dashed to pieces against some of these hidden 

 destroyers. The boatmen seemed to understand fully 

 their desperate danger, and as the first canoe moved 

 away from the bank I could hear them encouraging 

 each other. The first canoe was loaded with forty 

 bags of coffee, and no sooner was the frail bark 

 pushed off from the side than it was caught in the 

 current. The descent from where we were to the 

 still waters below occupied about five minutes, and so 

 great was the velocity that had the canoe only jarred 

 with any of the projections of the banks it must 

 inevitably have been dashed to pieces. But the skill 

 of the natives is so great that they guided the whole 

 of the canoes safely into the calmer waters below, and, 

 once clear of their danger, gave an exulting shout 

 which we could hear above the roar of the rapids. 

 After little more progress, night came upon us again. 

 I had been fortunate through the day in shooting some 

 ducks, so we had no lack of food. 



Next day we started by daybreak, and as we 

 neared the higher part of the river we found it in 

 many places very shallow, and on this account we had 

 a piece of sport which was quite new to me. This 

 was a race with a large fish, called by the natives 



