THE HIGHLAND WILDERNESS 183 



and his associates, that their baggage and equipment had 

 been labelled by the Brazilian Government "Expedi^ao 

 Scientifica Roosevelt-Rondon." This thenceforth became 

 the proper and official title of the expedition. Cherrie 

 and Miller did the chief zoological work. The geological 

 work was done by a Brazilian member of the expedition, 

 Euzebio Oliveira. The astronomical work necessary for 

 obtaining the exact geographical location of the rivers 

 and points of note was to be done by Lieutenant Lyra, 

 under the supervision of Colonel Rondon; and at the tele- 

 graph stations this astronomical work would be checked by 

 wire communications with one of Colonel Rondon's assis- 

 tants at Cuyaba, Lieutenant Caetano, thereby securing a 

 minutely accurate comparison of time. The sketch-maps 

 and surveying and cartographical work generally were to 

 be made under the supervision of Colonel Rondon by Lyra, 

 with assistance from Fiala and Kermit. Captain Amilcar 

 handled the worst problem — transportation; the medical 

 member was Doctor Cajazeira. 



At night around the camp-fire my Brazilian compan- 

 ions often spoke of the first explorers of this vast wilder- 

 ness of western Brazil — men whose very names are now 

 hardly known, but who did each his part in opening the 

 country which will some day see such growth and devel- 

 opment. Among the most notable of them was a Portu- 

 guese, Ricardo Franco, who spent forty years at the work, 

 during the last quarter of the eighteenth and the opening 

 years of the nineteenth centuries. He ascended for long 

 distances the Xingu and the Tapajos, and went up the 

 Madeira and Guapore, crossing to the headwaters of the 

 Paraguay and partially exploring there also. He worked 



