CAMETA 



107 



I found many interesting insects in the cacaoal ; the 

 most handsome was the Salamis jucunda, a magnificent 

 butterfly with sickle-shaped wings, which flies with great 

 rapidity, but is readily taken when quietly feeding on 

 decaying cacao fruits. The island was three or four 

 miles long and about a mile broad, and was situated in 

 the central part of the river. The view from Dona 

 Pauhna's house was limited by the western row of islets, 

 this middle channel being about a mile broad ; not a 

 ghmpse was obtainable of the main land on either side, 

 and each island was a mass of greenery, towering to a 

 great height, and seeming to repose on the surface of 

 the water. The house was in a very dilapidated con- 

 dition ; but Dona Paulina, who was a simple, good- 

 natured little woman, with her slaves, tried to make us 

 as comfortable as the circumstances permitted. At night 

 it rained heavily, and the water poured through the 

 broken tiles on to my hammock, so I was obliged to 

 get up and shift my quarters ; but this is a common 

 incident in Brazilian houses. 



The next day we crossed the river to the main land, 

 to the house of Dona Paulina's father, where we slept, 

 and on the following morning started to walk to Cameta 

 through the forest, a distance of nine miles. The road 

 was sometimes tolerably good, at others it was a mere 

 track, and twice we had to wade through swamps which 

 crossed the path. We started at six a.m., but did not 

 reach Cameta until nine at night. 



In the course of our walk I chanced to verify a fact 

 relating to the habits of a large hairy spider of the genus 

 Mygale, in a manner worth recording. The species was 

 M. avicularia, or one very closely allied to it ; the in- 

 dividual was nearly two inches in length of body, but 

 the legs expanded seven inches, and the entire body and 

 legs were covered with coarse grey and reddish hairs. 

 I was attracted by a movement of the monster on a tree- 

 trunk ; it was close beneath a deep crevice in the tree, 

 across v/hich was stretched a dense white web. The 

 lower part of the web was broken, and two small birds, 

 flnches, were entangled in the pieces ; they were about 

 the size of the English siskin, and I judged the two to 

 be male and female. One of them was quite dead, the 

 other lay under the body of the spider not quite dead, 

 and was smeared with the filthy liquor or saliva exuded 



