THE JOURNEY TO THE AMAZON 279 



We remained at Santarem about three months, including 

 a visit to Monte Alegre, a village on the opposite or north 

 side of the river, where we had heard there were some very 

 interesting caves, and where we found the great water-lily, 

 the Victoria regia, growing abundantly in a backwater of the 

 Amazon. Santarem and Monte Alegre both differ from 

 almost all the rest of the places on the banks of the Amazon 

 in being open country, with rocky hills dotted all over with 

 low trees and shrubs, and with only isolated patches of forest 

 for many miles round. This peculiarity of vegetation was 

 accompanied by an equal peculiarity of insect life, especially 

 in the butterflies, which were almost all different from any I 

 had found at Para, and many of them wonderfully beautiful. 

 Here I first obtained evidence of the great river limiting the 

 range of species. At Santarem I found a lovely butterfly 

 about the size of our largest peacocks or red-admirals, but 

 entirely of different shades of the most exquisite sky-blue of 

 a velvety texture (Callithea sapphirina) , while on the oppo- 

 site side of the river was a closely allied species of an almost 

 indigo-blue colour, and with different markings underneath. 

 Dr. Spruce assured me that, though he had studied all the 

 known plants of the Amazon before leaving England, he felt 

 quite puzzled when collecting at Santarem, because almost 

 every shrub and tree he found there proved to be a new 

 species. 



We greatly enjoyed our short residence at Santarem, both 

 on account of the delightful climate, the abundance of good 

 milk, which we could get nowhere else after leaving Para, and 

 for the pleasant friends we met there. The following descrip- 

 tive verses by my brother may therefore appropriately follow 

 here : — 



" A Description of Santarem. 



" I stand within a city, 



A city strangely small; 

 'Tis not at all like Liverpool, 



Like London, not at all. 

 The blue waves of the Tapajoz 



Are rippling at its feet, 



