THE RIVER OF DOUBT 253 



We were bitten by huge horse-flies, the size of bumblebees. 

 More serious annoyance was caused by the pium and boro- 

 shuda flies during the hours of daylight, and by the polvora, 

 the sand-flies, after dark. There were a few mosquitoes. 

 The boroshudas were the worst pests; they brought the 

 blood at once, and left marks that lasted for weeks. I did 

 my writing in head-net and gauntlets. Fortunately we had 

 with us several bottles of "fly dope" — so named on the 

 label — put up, with the rest of our medicine, by Doctor 

 Alexander Lambert; he had tested it in the north woods 

 and found it excellent. I had never before been forced to 

 use such an ointment, and had been reluctant to take it 

 with me; but now I was glad enough to have it, and we 

 all of us found it exceedingly useful. I would never again 

 go into mosquito or sand-fly country without it. The ef- 

 fect of an application wears off after half an hour or so, and 

 under many conditions, as when one is perspiring freely, 

 it is of no use; but there are times when minute mosquitoes 

 and gnats get through head-nets and under mosquito-bars, 

 and when the ointment occasionally renewed may permit 

 one to get sleep or rest which would otherwise be impossible 

 of attainment. The termites got into our tent on the sand- 

 flat, ate holes in Cherrie's mosquito-net and poncho, and 

 were starting to work at our duffel-bags, when we dis- 

 covered them. 



Packing the loads across was simple. Dragging the 

 heavy dugouts was labor. The biggest of the two water- 

 logged ones was the heaviest. Lyra and Kermit did the 

 job. All the men were employed at it except the cook, 

 and one man who was down with fever. A road was 

 chopped through the forest and a couple of hundred stout 



