XX vi ITlXRIiAHY. 



undertaking was to cross the Cotinga to a small island near the 

 opposite bank. This did not appear to me a very difficult task until 1 

 tried it. The river was running strongly and came above my waist, 

 and the bottom was made up of large slippery stones which rolled 

 under the feet. "We all cut long sticks to help us in withstanding the 

 stream, and went over in twos and threes supporting one another, some 

 of the stronger men crossing two or three times to assist in bringing over 

 the loads. Crossing to the mainland early the next morning we arrived 

 in Arecuna country, and after passing a village called Yamacoumella, on 

 the Elinisia, we reached Yaramonta. Although early in the afternoon, 

 we made camp near the village, my feet having given out. The people 

 in this part of the countiy seemed very timid, running into their 

 houses and hiding in corners when they saw us coming, and our men 

 made them worse by gi'oaning at them through the door ; but when 

 they saw that we were only on a friendly visit, they would biing out a 

 cake of cassava on a mat with a stew of pappus and put it outside the 

 house for us as a welcome. 



The next morning I was unable to go on, so decided to stny behind 

 with ten men, while Quelch continued his journey. We were told it 

 would take four days to cut a track through the bush up the side of 

 Roraima, and this would give me a chance of coming up to him. In 

 the afternoon one of the Indians looked at my feet while I was lying 

 in my hammock, and found that instead of being bruised they Avere 

 full of jiggers, which had burrowed into the soles, and directly these 

 were removed I was practically all right and ready to start : this we did 

 early next morning, after bartering some cassava for a few fish-hooks. 

 Shortly after starting, I saw a curious table-land on our right, in the 

 middle of a regular range ; one mountain seemed to have had its top 

 removed and replaced by a big level savanna extending back for <a 

 considerable distance. At the end of this savanna, many miles off, I 

 could see another range rising from the level. In the afternoon 

 I had a slight attack of fever and camped early. Soon after this 

 Roraima came into full view, with "VVeitipu in front a little to the 

 right, but we soon lost sight of them as we descended into the valley of 

 the Cnino, which we had to ford. On the opposite bank we met 

 some Indians carrying an immense vessel of cassava, which I bought. 

 David, our huntsman, undertook the job of distributing it, and did so 

 by filling each man's gourd and drinking half before he handed it 

 back. They refused to sell me some sugar-cane they had with them, 

 but after I moved on they either gave it away or my men took it, for 

 when I looked back each man was carr^-ing about 12 feet. We next 

 ascended a hill which rose steeply for 1000 feet and camped in 

 the valley beyond, at a spot where a few trees grew from the rocks 

 in the middle of the stream. Just before putting up our hammocks, 

 we had a very heavy shower, and the water swelling rapidly, nearly 

 obliged us to move elsewhere ; this was the first shower we had had 

 .since leaving Kwaimatta. 



The following day we had one or two particularly stiff climbs, which, 

 however, were not quite so trying as those we had lately, the quartz 

 and quai'tz-porphyiy having been replaced by sandstone, which had 

 worn more or less smooth, while in the valley we only had to put up 



