426 EXCURSIONS AROUND EGA 



river. The northern shore of the island had a broad 

 sandy beach reaching to its western extremity. We 

 reached our destination a httle after daybreak ; this was 

 the banks of the Carapanatuba ^, a channel some 150 

 yards in width, which, like the Anana already mentioned, 

 communicates with the Cupiyo. To reach this we had to 

 cross the river, here nearly two miles wide. Just as day 

 dawned we saw a Cayman seize a large fish, a Tambaki, 

 near the surface ; the reptile seemed to have a difficulty 

 in securing its prey, for it reared itself above the water, 

 tossing the fish in its jaws and making a tremendous com- 

 motion. I was much struck also by the singular appear- 

 ance presented by certain diving birds having very long 

 and snaky necks (the Plotus Anhinga). Occasionally a 

 long serpentine form would suddenly wriggle itself to a 

 height of a foot and a half above the glassy surface of the 

 water, producing such a deceptive imitation of a snake 

 that at first I had some difficulty in believing it to be 

 the neck of a bird ; it did not remain long in view, but 

 soon plunged again beneath the stream. 



We ran ashore in a most lonely and gloomy place, on 

 a low sand-bank covered with bushes, secured the mon- 

 taria to a tree, and then, after making a very sparing 

 breakfast on fried fish and mandioca meal, rolled up 

 our trousers and plunged into the thick forest, which 

 here, as everywhere else, rose like a lofty wall of foliage 

 from the narrow strip of beach. We made straight for 

 the heart of the land, John Jabuti leading, and breaking 

 off at every few steps a branch of the lower trees, so 

 that we might recognize the path on our return. The 

 district was quite new to all my companions, and being 

 on a coast almost totally uninhabited by human beings 

 for some 300 miles, to lose our way would have been 

 to perish helplessly. I did not think at the time of 

 the risk we ran of having our canoe stolen by passing 

 Indians ; unguarded montarias being never safe even 

 in the ports of the villages, Indians apparently considering 

 them common property, and stealing them without any 

 compunction. No misgivings clouded the lightness of 

 heart with which we trod forwards in warm anticipation 

 of a good day's sport. 



^ Meaning in Tupi, the river of many mosquitoes : from 

 carapana, mosquito, and ituba, many. 



