488 EXCURSIONS BEYOND EGA 



point a direct road by land to the Ucayali, which must 

 pass to the south of the sources both of the Jutahi and 

 Jauari, the two rivers lying between the Jurua and 

 Ucayali. Eight distinct tribes of Indians inhabit the 

 banks of the Jurua, all of which, except the most remote 

 (the Conibos) pass overland to the Jutahi^. Each tribe 

 has its peculiar language, and to a great extent, also its 

 peculiar customs. I heard, however, of no new feature 

 in Indian character or customs, except that the Conibos 

 practise the art of knitting cotton cloth, which they 

 fashion into long cloaks. The cloth, of which I saw 

 many specimens, forms a regular, durable, and not in- 

 elegant web of tolerably close texture. The Conibos, 

 like the Indians of Peru, do not grow the poisonous kind 

 of mandioca, but simply the sweet kind, or Macasheira 

 (Manihot Aypi). I estimate the length of the Jutahi at 

 about 400 miles, and that of the Jurua at 600 miles. 



We remained at anchor four days within the mouth 

 of the Sapo, a small tributary of the Jutahi flowing from 

 the south-east ; Senhor Raiol having to send an igarite 

 to the Cupatana, a large tributary some few miles further 

 up the river, to fetch a cargo of salt fish. During this 

 time we made several excursions in the montaria to 

 various places in the neighbourhood. Our longest trip 

 was to some Indian houses, a distance of fifteen or eighteen 

 miles up the Sapo, a journey made with one Indian 

 paddler, and occupying a whole day. The stream is not 

 more than forty or fifty yards broad ; its waters are 

 darker in colour than those of the Jutahi, and fiow% as 

 in all these small rivers, partly under shade between two 

 lofty walls of forest. We passed, in ascending, seven 

 habitations, most of them hidden in the luxuriant foliage 

 of the banks ; their sites being known only by small 

 openings in the compact wall of forest, and the presence 

 of a canoe or two tied up in little shady ports. The 

 inhabitants are chiefly Indians of the Maraua tribe, whose 

 original territory comprised all the small by-streams 



^ The order in which they are met with on ascending the 

 river is as follows : i. Marauas. 2. Catauishis. 3. Canamares. 

 4. Arauas. 5. Collinas (rivers Shiruan and Invira, affluents 

 of the right bank). 6. Catoqumos (R. Shiruan). 7. Naiias. 

 8. Conibos, with their hordes Mauishis, Zaminaiias, and true 

 Conibos. 



