The River of Doubt 259 



Navaite; we named the rapids after them, Navaite 

 Rapids. By observation Lyra found them to be (in close 

 approximation to) latitude 11° 44' south and longitude 

 60° 18' west from Greenwich. 



We spent March 3 and 4 and the morning of the Sth 

 in portaging around the rapids. The first night we 

 camped in the forest beside the spot where we had halted. 

 Next morning we moved the baggage to the foot of the 

 rapids, where we intended to launch the canoes, and 

 pitched our tents on the open sandstone flat. It rained 

 heavily. The little bees were in such swarms as to be a 

 nuisance. Many small stinging bees were with them, 

 which stimg badly. We were bitten by huge horse-flies, 

 the size of bumblebees. More serious annoyance was 

 caused by the pium and boroshuda 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 effect 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 mos- 



