ON THE PLAN ALTO 169 



enemies of these small South American deer, both those 

 of the open grassy plain and those of the forest. 



It is not nearly as easy to get lost on these open 

 plains as in the dense forest ; and where there is a long 

 reasonably straight road or river to come back to, a man, 

 even without a compass, is safe. But in these thick 

 South American forests, especially on cloudy days, a 

 compass is an absolute necessity. We were struck by 

 the fact that the native hunters and ranchmen on such 

 days continually lost themselves and, if permitted, 

 travelled for miles through the forest, either in circles or 

 in exactly the wrong direction. They had no such 

 sense of direction as the forest-dwelling 'Ndorobo 

 hunters in Africa had, or as the true forest-dwelling 

 Indians of South America are said to have. On certainly 

 half a dozen occasions our guides went completely astray, 

 and we had to take command, to disregard their asser- 

 tions, and to lead the way aright by sole reliance on our 

 compasses. 



On this cool day we travelled well. The air was 

 wonderful ; the vast open spaces gave a sense of 

 abounding vigour and freedom. Early in the afternoon 

 we reached a station made by Colonel Rondon in the 

 course of his first explorations. There were several 

 houses with whitewashed walls, stone floors, and tiled or 

 thatched roofs. They stood in a wide, gently sloping 

 valley. Through it ran a rapid brook of cool water, in 

 which we enjoyed delightful baths. The heavy, intensely 

 humid atmosphere of the low, marshy plains had gone ; 

 the air was clear and fresh ; the sky was brilliant ; far 

 and wide we looked over a landscape that seemed limit- 

 less ; the breeze that blew in our faces might have come 

 from our own northern plains. The midday sun was 

 very hot ; but it was hard to realize that we were in the 



