168 MAYOLO. Chap. IX. 



paratively speaking, is tlie evaporation in these 

 shady places. Whether it was owing to the heat 

 of the weather, or to the low situation of Mavolo 

 (for the prairie lies in a valley only 496 feet above 

 the sea-level), I cannot tell, but I was unwell during 

 the whole of our stay here, and was never free from 

 feverishness and an oppressive sensation in tlie head, 

 which were extremely dispiriting. Nevertheless, I 

 was determined not to give way to feelings of lassi- 

 tude, and took my daily bath in the sjDarkling rivulet 

 which meandered through the prairie towards the 

 forest. 



Some days after, an eruption of very small red 

 pimples almost covered my body. I then thought 

 that the small-pox had been checked by my having 

 been vaccinated. 



Since my arrival in Mayolo, I have been com- 

 puting my lunar observations, a very fatiguing task 

 in this hot climate. 



Every day since I have been here we have had 

 thunder and lightning. As I look towards the 

 mountains in the east, heavy black clouds hang con- 

 tinually over the country, and it seems to rain there 

 unceasingly. The people, pointing to that country, 

 say it is the " Mother of Kain." Here, at Mayolo, 

 since the 12th, we have had alternately rain and 

 sunshine — one day a tornado, the next day a clear 

 blue sky. Since the sim has been east of the moon, 

 I have only been able on one day to take the distance 

 between the sun and moon. 



On the 22nd of April I saw a curious example of 

 the surgical practice of the Otando people. In the 



