Forest and Stream 



Supplement No. 7 In Foreign Lands. 



ON THE TROM BETAS. 



THE Rio Trorubetas rises in the highlands a few leagues 

 north of British Guiana, and in latitude 2° N.; flows 

 in a southeast direction for some twenty-five miles, and 

 pnters the Amazon about four miles above Obidos, a 

 Brazilian town of 500 habitants. It is a "fever river." 

 and not much visited by Europeans on that account. 

 Just below the falls tertianos are very bad, and often 

 fatal. 



It is a wide river, and the water is clear; unlike the 

 Amazon, which is rnuddv; or the Rio Negro, which is 

 wine-colored: or the Rio Blanco, white and milkv. The 

 natives call the valley of the Trombetas " a world by 

 itfelf," urder the impression, J suppose, that it is pretty 

 well cut off from the rest of the world. It is a strange 

 country. You may leave the main river at almost any 

 point below the eaxoeiras or rapids, following the deep 

 canos or channels far into the gloomy forest, and cruise 

 for weeks and weeks without coming in sight of the m iin 

 liver. Game — nowhere abundant in the Amazon Val- 

 ley—is more plentiful on the Trombetas than elsewhere; 

 and perhaps it was this that caused me to plan a canoe 

 voyage up that river. 



Let me'premise that I am a live Yankee, and had been 

 waiting on Brazilian officials with their tardy ways from 

 May until August. It was driving me to the verge of insan- 

 ity, LikeSterne : s starling, I wanted to "get out." Not that 

 the city of Para, North Brazil, is a bad place for an indo- 

 lent man who can enjoy swinging in a hammock twelve 

 hours per day, in a climate where the mercury does not 

 drop below 80° nor rise above 95% summer or winter, by 

 night or day. But there are fragile constitutions that 

 cannot stand so much sleep. Wherefore, when I had 

 waited three mortal months for nothing; when I had 

 gone daily to the palace, only to be put off with " paei- 

 enza" and " logo rnais" ; in 'a word, when my stock of 

 Yankee patience was utterly exhausted, I suddenly re- 

 solved on a canoe trip. 



It was in August, 1867. Professor Agassiz had made 

 his celebrated exploration the year before, and his lec- 

 tures, delivered in Cooper Institute the previous winter, 

 were in my pocket, while I had the gist of them in my 

 head, and found them of little practical value. I had 

 what was better, 4*. e., letters of introduction from the 

 highest officials and best known scientists at home. The 

 letters helped amazingly. Without them I should have 

 been a sort of pariah. With them, I could go anywhere. 



Among others, I luckily had a letter to Major Coutinho, 

 the officer who had been detailed as guide to Prof. Agas- 

 siz and his party, and the Major was supposed to know 

 more of the Amazon aud its tributaries than any living 

 , man. 1 found him alfable and ready to give all the in- 

 formation in his power. He dissuaded me from my 

 original intention of ascending the Tapajos, and recom- 

 mended the Trombetas instead. Obidos was a cheaper 

 town to fit out from than Santarem. To the eaxoeiras 

 of the Trombetas it was a short two days' paddle; to the 

 rapids of the Tapajos, twice as far. And game was much 

 more abundant on the former stream. He even thought 

 it likely I might get a shot at a jaguar, an event for which 

 I was pining. Lastly, I could make a canoe trip cheaper 

 than I could live in the old Hotel de Europa, by nearly 

 one-half. He said, "You can hire a good montaria for 

 s2 per month. Pay your paddlers $2 a month each, and 

 your puntevo $4. with their salt fish, farina and coffee. 

 Your crew of four, with the canoe, will cost $12 a month. 

 Provisions and your own expenses Avill about double 

 that. You can live a river life for a dollar a day, pro- 

 vided you can stand it. And you can pay off your crew 

 in hickory shirts and cheap jewelry at 100 per cent, 

 profit." The Major gave me letters to several of the 

 principal men in Obidos, and after the usual amount of 

 vexatious red tape that pervades Brazil, I found myself 

 afloat in one of the fine iron steamei'3 that plow- the 

 waters of the Amazon. Prom Para to Obidos is 700 

 miles, and the steamer made it, against the current, in 

 less than two days and a half. 



At Obidos I was in luck. My letters to the delegado 

 and the padre were invaluable. Another letter to a com- 

 inerciante put me in possession of a good room, and I 

 soon had my little chest, double rifle, fishing tackle and 

 hammock in good shape. The padre, Senor Jose Gual- 

 dina, introduced me to the best gxiide in Obidos, one 

 Senor Dom Diego, who had just finished a montaria 28ft. 

 long by 30in. beam. The montaria was thought to be the 

 swiftest within a thousand miles. Dom Diego, with his 

 crew of three tapnyos, had been practicing with her for 

 three days before my arrival, and he was just hankering 

 for a party to "take care of." I was his customer. In 

 ten minutes we had struck a bargain, by which I was to 

 pay $4 per week for montaria and crew, with rations, 

 the voyage to last as long as I chose. 



I gave him carte blanche on the commereiante, as re- 

 garded her outfit, and he did not abuse confidence. I 

 laid in my own small stores to suit myself, and in two 

 days we were off. 



Dom Diego spoke the lingoa geral, Portuguese and a 

 little English. The padre spoke English quite intelli 

 gibly. He made a bad mistake when he solemnly turned 

 me over to Dom Diego as a sort of helpless babe-in-t he- 

 woods, to be carefully looked after, kept out of danger, 

 and returned at the end of the cruise in sound condition. 

 For the lithe, muscular puntero chose to consider him- 

 self as a sort of dry-nurse thenceforth, and the way he 

 assumed charge of my physical safety and well being 

 was most exasperating. For instance: The padrone or 

 capitaine of a river boat is supposed to sit aft holding an 

 umbrella over his head, while his crew do all the paddl- 

 ing—a style of amusement that is apt to become monoto- 

 nous after the few first hours, Nosv, I had bought a fine 



Indian paddle in Para; and was disposed to use it, at 

 least enough for exercise. But hardly had I made a 

 dozen strokes when the Doin walked aft, calmly took 

 the paddle from my bauds, and politely substituted the 

 spread umbrella in a fatherly, superior way that led me 

 to conclude that he thought that I thought myself not 

 so much capitaine as an infantile charge. 



Again, with the wonderful fish stories of Prof. Agassiz 

 in mind, I had laid in a supply of handlines, squids aud 

 artificial minnows, all of which had failed to take fish on 

 the lower Amazon. But I said that this might be on ac- 

 count of the muddy water, and the Trombetas was clear: 

 just the. water where fish ought— if anywhere— to take 

 a, spinning bait. So I got out a trolling line with a bone 

 squid for a lure, and commenced fishing, when the Dom 

 walked calmly aft, and remarking that it was no bono, 

 commenced hauling in my line. 



A man may take implements of manual labor away 

 from me. paddles, boes, axes, etc., and not excite me to 

 a high pitch of wrath. Interfering with my hunting or 

 fishing arrangements is a different matter altogether. 

 Whence it happened that he got a furious box on the ear, 

 at the same time the line being snatched from his hand. 

 He took it with a look of reproachful surprise, as a 

 mother might take a blow from a spoiled child, but sub- 

 sided at once, and thereafter allowed me to fish as I 

 pleased, only remarking that it was muito mal, no bono. 



For an hour or more I towed the long line behind the 

 swift-moving montaria, and then there was a jerk that 

 nearly took me overboard. I thought at first it was a 

 snag, but it turned out a veritable fish, and a lively one 

 withal, also exceedingly handsome. I was obliged to call 

 on one of the crew to help get him alongside, where he 

 was stunned with a blow from a paddle and taken on 

 board. He was entirely new to me. In color he was 

 similar to a salmon trout, but his mouth was like that of 

 a catfish, only not so coarse, and he had long barbels or 

 streamers on either side of the mouth that were longer 

 than his body. The caudal and dorsal fins were very 

 much cuiwed, and the outer spines of each were also 

 ornamented with long pennants that streamed behind as 

 he swam. And he was useful as well as ornamental, 

 being excellent when cooked. I estimated his weight at 

 501bs. Thereafter no attempt was made to interfere with 

 my fishing, nor did we lack fresh fish. 



On the whole, the trip was most interesting. The 

 canoe, long and narrow, shot up the stream with marvel- 

 ous speed under the four well-handled paddles, the 

 scenery was constantly changing, and every mile brought 

 to view something strange and novel. The hills on the 

 Trombetas are higher, and approach the Amazon more 

 nearly than those of any other tributary, so far as I have 

 seen. 



It seemed wonderful to me that so many canos, furos 

 and igarapes (all meaning channels) should lead away 

 from the river, away back into the unexplored, gloomy 

 forest to heaven only knows where. No guide of the 

 Amazon, not even Major Coutinho, ever was or ever will 

 be acquainted with the interminable windings of these 

 mysterious, endless water courses. Starting from the 

 border line of Peru and Brazil, there are fifteen large 

 tributaries which enter the Amazon between Tabatinga 

 and Para. And there is not a living man who is a com- 

 petent guide for any one of these, with its complicated 

 network of waters. Human life is not long enough to 

 learn the lesson. Local guides there are on every river, 

 men who know the tortuous channels for hundreds of 

 miles. But don't trust them too far. Their reverence 

 for the educated white man, with his superior outfit, may 

 lead them too deeply into the complicated depths of a 

 trackless forest. Remember that the Amazon rises at 

 certain points as much as 40ft. in the rainy season, at 

 which time all creeks, canos and feeders set back into 

 the forest with a strong current. Then the dry season 

 approaches, the main river falls rapidly, and countless 

 thousands of canos. creeks, etc., reverse their courses and 

 flow toward the Amazon. Of course, at certain stages of 

 the water some channels will have no perceptible current, 

 while others will flew outward, and still others will be 

 flowing to the central stream. And as of the Amazon 

 proper, so of its larger tributaries; making a wilderness 

 of waters so labyrinthine, puzzling and bewildering, that 

 no one man is or can be a competent guide for the water 

 channels of a single large river. 



Probably this accounted for the fact that Dom Diego 

 persistently refused to leave the main river for more 

 than two or three miles, though I desired to make longer 

 explorations, and called his attention to the fact that as 

 it was the dry season all side streams must be flowing to 

 the river. He in turn explained that there were several 

 main rivers; that the back channels, furos, canos, etc., 

 flowed to all points of the compass; that we might follow 

 some of them for a week and then come out at last on 

 the Amazon, or we might get lost. Then there were 

 crocodiles, jaguars, and last, but not least, gentes, sav- 

 ages, who would ambush us and shoot poisoned arrows 

 from their pueunas or blowguzis. This last was the thing- 

 he feared — perhaps with good reason, for the Indians of 

 the Amazon, who refuse to be domiciled in villages and 

 submit to the domination of the priests, are treated pre- 

 cisely as on a footing with wild beasts; and in return it 

 must be confessed that they do shoot poisoned arrows 

 when they get a chance. 



We were longer reaching the first rapids than was at 

 all necessary, for I frequently ordered a halt for the pur- 

 pose of exploring or hunting where the ground looked in- 

 viting, and also to climb some of the mountainous hills 

 that seemed easily accessible. Truth to say, the hunting 

 was not good, and one soon gets enough climbing in that 

 climate, where, the blood being heated with the mercury 

 above 90% it is not easy to "cool off." 



We saw many jaguar tracks, and at one point a w r ell- 

 worn path, where tapirs had a runway from the river to 

 their feeding grounds, but the animals kept out of sight. 

 At several places the Indians called my attention to the 

 feeding grounds of the peixe-boy or fish-ox, but although 

 1 offered a new hickory shirt as a bribe, they could not 

 put me on to a shot at one. Howling monkeys, spider 

 monkeys and other simians were plenty enough, and the 

 Indians, who like them cooked, were anxious that I 

 should kill enough for camp use. 



I tried it once — only once. Thev ran me up a channel 

 in the direction of a band of howlers that were making 

 more racket than a pack of wolves, and we happened to 

 cut them off just as they were laying plans to cross the 

 igarape. There were only six of them, but they made 

 noise enough for six hundred. As the montaria came 

 swiftly up they became silent and took refuge in the 

 dense foliage of a huge sipo, where, had they chosen to 

 remain in hiding, they would have been safe; but curios- 

 ity got the better of caution, and a face was constantly 

 being poked through the leaves with a comical look of 

 fear and inquiry. Finally, the one who appeared to act 

 as leadpr showed within 30ft. of the ground and I dropped 

 him with a bullet through the neck. As he lay at the 

 roots of the sipo (pine), bleeding to death, he gave me a 

 look of pitiful appealing misery — a look of little-old-man 

 horror and reproach that haunts me to this day. The 

 Indians made a stew of him, of which I did not partake; 

 nor have I ever drawn a bead on one of the species from 

 that day to this, despite the constant urging of my crew 

 to shoot monkey enough for camp use. 



I seldom went on shore where the land was high and 

 dry without flushing the n'ambu, a bird with the mark- 

 ings and appearance of a wild turkey, but about the size 

 of "a common hen. I was anxious to get one, but the 

 sudden flight, the thick foliage, and the fact that I could 

 not catch one sitting, left the double rifle in a decided 

 minority. Diego had a cheap ,20cal. Belgian gun, which 

 he never loaded with anything smaller than No. 1 shot, 

 and with this he killed several riambus— always sitting. 

 He did not think of shooting on the wing. When, sub- 

 sequently, I borrowed his gun and cut one down on the 

 rise at the first shot, he was half in awe of his gun, evi- 

 dently thinking it bewitched. 



What, with frequent landings and short excursions in- 

 land, it was late on the third day when we arrived within 

 hearing of the lower cascade, and the montaria was 

 turned sharply into the west bank, where there was afine 

 camping ground, with a barrata, or cabin. The cabin 

 consisted entirely of posts and a paida, or palm-thatched 

 roof, being open at sides and ends. The paula was well 

 laid and rain proof, though not proof against reptiles, for 

 hardly had we taken possession when a black scorpion 

 dropped from overhead, anrl, with his tail elevated for 

 fight, commenced to make his escape. He was des- 

 patched without ceremony, and Diego commenced punch- 

 ing the paula with a pole. This brought down a coral 

 snake and a shower of spiders. I had misgivings about 

 swinging a hammock where reptiles seemed so numerous, 

 but Diego assured me it was all right; and, thinking I 

 could stand as many snakes and scorpions as the next of 

 the party, I stretched my hammock athwart the barrata, 

 and prepared for a stay. 



The spot was well chosen for a camp, and had evidently 

 been used a great deal as such. The barrata was 20ft. 

 long by 12ft. wide, and the open sides made little differ- 

 ference in that climate. The site was on dry, high land, 

 in an open palm grove, and the soft murmuring roar of 

 the rapids above came to the ear drowsily in the still 

 night, with somnolent effect. And here, at last, just be- 

 low the eaxoeiras, were fish in such abundance as I had 

 never before seen. 



Probably salmon in the spawning season are more 

 numerous in the rivers of Oregon, but these were of 

 many varieties and did not come there to spawn, but to 

 feed. And, so far as I could learn, they remain a con- 

 stant quantity all through the year, not only on the 

 Trombetas, but on the Toc-an-tins, the Tapajos, the 

 Madeira and all tributaries where there are eaxoeiras. 

 At the foot of the rapids I selected a clear spot just op- 

 posite a promising pool, and whirling a bone squid 

 around until it had sufficient impetus, launched it 30yds. 

 away. As it struck the water several large fish dashed 

 savagely at it, and one was hooked on the instant. He 

 fought gamly as a trout, and my fingers were bleeding 

 before he was finally landed. I judged him to weigh 

 about 201bs., and he had the general appearance of a 

 Spanish mackerel, with the addition of rich carmine 

 markings along the lateral line, and slender, graceful 

 pennants on the first x - ays of dorsal and caudal fins. A 

 handsome fish, and also game, making several high leaps 

 before coming to hand. Two more casts resulted in as 

 many fish, one of them similar to a yellow perch; and 

 then it struck me I had enough, quite as many as the 

 camp could use; and I do not fish nor hunt for the love 

 of slaughter, 



Just then Dom Diego appeared to me. In fact, he was 

 always appearing. He was simply obeying the padre's 

 injunction to take care of me, keep me in sight, and 

 bring me back safely. I could not get away from him. 

 When I thought myself alone there was always a silent, 

 coffee-colored shadow on my trail, keeping mostly out of 

 sight, not interfering with my movements and always 

 within easy call. I came to like it. A Brazilian forest 

 is a fearful place in which to get lost, and it inspired 

 confidence to know that I always had a muscular, com- 

 petent guide within whistling distance, and the Dom was 

 cheap. A single guide iu the Adirondacks, at home, 

 would have cost me $3 per day and his board, say $4 per 

 day. Here I had a crew of four men, with a first-class 

 montaria, for $16 per month. 



