FRESH-WATER TURTLES. 1 53 



sand-islands, the turtle-pools in the forest, and the tributaries and 

 lagoons of the great river. His companion was Cardoza, who was 

 a sort of official superintendent of the diggers for turtles' eggs on 

 the sand-banks of Shimuni, the island lying nearest to Ega. There 

 are four or five of these royal praias, as they are called, in the 

 district, each having its commandant, whose business is to see that 

 every inhabitant has an equal chance in the egg-field. 



"The pregnant turtles descend from the interior pools of the 

 main river in July and August, before the outlets dry up, and seek 

 their favourite sand-island in countless swarms; for it is only a 

 few praias that are selected by them out of the great number 

 existing. When hatched, the young animals remain in the pools 

 throughout the dry season; for these breeding-places of the turtle 

 then lie from twenty to thirty feet above the level of the river, and 

 are accessible only by cutting a path through the dense forest." On 

 the 26th of September Mr. Bates left Ega with his companion, who 

 was about to visit the sentinels placed to mark when and where the 

 turtles laid their eggs. Their conveyance was a stoutly-built canoe, 

 or igarete, arranged for two paddlers, with an arched covering in the 

 stern, under which three persons could sleep comfortably. The 

 swift current of the Solimoens carried them rapidly to the large 

 wooded island of Baria, which divides the river into two broad 

 channels. Shimuni lies in the middle of the north-easterly passage. 

 There they were quickly paddled, reaching it an hour before sunset. 

 The island is about three miles long and half a mile broad. The 

 forest which covers it rises to an immense uniform height, presenting 

 all round a compact and impervious front, the uniformity being 

 interrupted by a singular tree, called mulatto wood, the polished 

 dark-green trunk of which is seen conspicuously through the mass ot 

 vegetation. The sand-bank lies at the upper end of the island, and 

 extends several miles, presenting an irregular surface of ridges and 

 hollows. At the further shore, to the north-east, where no forest line 

 shuts out the view, the white, rolling, sandy plain stretches away to 

 the horizon ; to the south-west a channel, about a mile in breadth, 

 which separates Baria from Shimuni, is situated. 



Arrived at this island, Mr. Bates proceeds to describe with great 

 minuteness the operations of the turtles, as well as those of the 

 sentinels placed to watch them. 



" We found two sentinels/' he says, " lodged in a corner of the 

 praia, where it commences at the foot of the towering forest west of 

 the island, having built themselves a little rancho with poles and 

 palm-leaves. Great precautions are obliged to be taken to avoid 



