A Stubbokn Alcalde. 203 



and the alcalde was unwilling they should go, and manu- 

 factured a host of lies and excuses. He declared there was 

 but one large canoe in town, and that we must send to 

 Suno for another, and for men to man it. There were in- 

 deed few Indians in Santa Rosa, for while we were disput- 

 ing a large number went off with shoutings down the river, 

 to spend weeks in the forest hunting monkeys.* It was a 

 Stirling sight to see tliese untamed red men in the depths 

 of the Napo wilderness starting on a monkey crusade ; but 

 it was still more stirring to think of paddHng our own canoe 

 down to Brazil. After some time lost in word-fighting, we 

 tried the virtues of authority. "We presented the president's 

 order, which commanded all civil and militaiy powers on 

 the Napo to aid, and not to hinder, the expedition ; then 

 we put into his hand an oificial letter from the alcalde of 

 Napo (to whom Pablo was subordinate), which, with a 

 flourish of dignified Spanish, threatened Santa Rosa with 

 the doom of Sodom and Gomorrah if any impediment was 

 placed in our way. 



To all this Edwards, who had kindly accompanied us 

 down the river thus far, added, with frightful gestures, that 

 he puqjosed to report him to the Quito government. After 

 this bombardment Sandoval was another man, and the two 

 canoes and four Indians we wanted were forthcoming. We 

 had to wait, however, two days for the Indians to prepare 

 their chicha for the journey and to cover the canoes with 

 palm awnings. The price of a canoe for the Maranon is 

 twenty-five varas of lienzo, and the same for each Indian. 

 Unfortunately we had only fifty varas left ; but, through 

 the influence of the now good-natured alcalde, we induced 

 the Indians to take the balance in coin. After many de- 



* Monkej's form an article of food throughout tropical America. The meat 

 is tough, but keeps longer than any other in that climate. The Indians told 

 Gibbon that ' ' the tail is the most delicate part when the hair is properly 



