ITINEEARY. JxiU 



they had been in fact rathei' soothing under our slicltcr: l>nt thunder- 

 storms of such severity were quite another matter. The soughing of 

 tlie winds in the slender Bonnetia branches and their tliin tops, with 

 re..'aiTent echoes, was always a half-surprise when one woke fi'oni fitful 

 sleep at night, as though one heard the distant murinuiing of the seas ; 

 and perhaps the closeness of ones ears to the ground niay have added 

 to the impression. 



After getting the only species of bird noticed on the top, and taking 

 a representative series of ])hotographs, among them the one of the 

 tree \\'ith Jacob in the branches, McConnell had gone down on the 

 third day for the special effort on the birds below , and in the most 

 considerixte manner had left ovir personal servant, George, with me. 

 As a fact, I hardly know how I could have managed without hiui, for 

 as the days passed 1 began to get so stiff in the back and legs from the 

 constant soaking with the cold moistui'e and water, and perhaps too 

 from the chilly waterproof-sheet at night on the moist grovmd, that I 

 had to get about with a sort of half-stoop ; and C4eorge alw ays had 

 something hot waiting for me, and he would relieve me greatly by 

 rubbing me over with vaseline and embrocation and warm cloths, 

 which kept me going, liesides, he was of the greatest use in helping 

 me to sort out and prepai-e the miscellaneous material brought in. We 

 could not always remember all that had previously been collected, so 

 that the selection took more time as we A\ent on ; and he was of much 

 more service than any of the untrained Indians could have been xmder 

 the circumstances. 



At last, however, as new material became practically exhausted, I 

 decided t;p join McConnell below, where, as I heard through the relays 

 of Indians who Came up, he was getting a very line set of birds, 1 

 hoped to be able to do some work on the more sunny slopes of 

 Kukenaam and in the extensive clearing of the provision-fields, and 

 perhaps in the unexplored gorge between the two mountains. 



We all got down safely, many carriers having come up so that the 

 loads might not be heavy. Suffering as I was \\itli stiffness in the 

 back iiiid joints, I found the descent a long and laborious task, for 

 though the path was now well-worn and open, it had become worse by 

 the traffic over some of the moistest and steepest parts, where it was 

 the easiest to slide down on the back and side; and I was literally 

 plastered with mud and the slime of many small plants before i got 

 out of the forest-belt. To make it worse, a cold drenching rain began 

 falling heavily when I was some two miles from the village, chilling me 

 to tiie bone during the slow walk over the narrow rocky trnck : this 

 was the last .straw for me. For more than a week I was nearly helpless 

 ill my hamirH)ck, and it was neaily anotiier before I was able to 

 attempt the return journey. Mc<Juiinell told me afterwards that he 

 had made all arrangements with Jlitchie to have me carried on our 

 foiMier track south, which tiioiigh longer was nothing like as difhcult 

 as the Mazaruni route; and, of cour.se, the Indians were all sure 1 was 

 dving, as a ptuialty for staying so long on the mountain and going 

 ail over it. Witii the increasing stiHne.s.s, I had realised that such 

 continuous work, under the moist conditions inse[)arable from it, 

 would most likclv cMiise me much suffering later. I)ut uitii limited 



