CHAPTER III. 



THE TOCANTINS. 



Canoe, Stores, and Crew — River Mojii — Igaripe Miri — Cameta — Seniior 

 Gomez and his Establishment — Search for a Dinner — Jambouassu — 

 Polite Letter — Baiao and its Inhabitants — A Swarm of Wasps — Enter 

 the Rocky District— The Mutuca— Difficulty of getting Men— A Vil- 

 lage without Houses — Catching an Alligator — Duck-shooting— 

 Aroyas, and the Falls — A Nocturnal Concert — Blue Macaws — Turtles' 

 Eggs — A Slight Accident — Capabilities of the Country — Return to 

 Para. 



On the afternoon of the 26th of August we left Para for the 

 Tocantins. Mr. Leavens had undertaken to arrange all the 

 details of the voyage. He had hired one of the country 

 canoes, roughly made, but in some respects convenient, having 

 a tolda, or palm-thatched roof, like a gipsy's tent, over the 

 stern, which formed our cabin ; and in the forepart a similar 

 one, but lower, under which most of our provisions and 

 baggage were stowed. Over this was a rough deck of cedar- 

 boards, where the men rowed, and where we could take our 

 meals when the sun was not too hot. The canoe had two 

 masts and fore and aft sails, and was about twenty-four feet 

 long and eight wide. 



Besides our guns, ammunition, and boxes to preserve our 

 collections in, we had a three months' stock of provisions, 

 consisting of farinha, fish, and caxaga for the men ; with the 

 addition of tea, coffee, biscuits, sugar, rice, salt beef, and 

 cheese, for ourselves. This, with clothes, crockery, and about 

 a bushel sack of copper money — the only coin current in the 

 interior — pretty v/ell loaded our little craft. Our crew consisted 

 of old Isidora, as cook ; Alexander, an Indian from the mills, 

 who was named Captain ; Domingo, who had been up the 

 river, and was therefore to be our pilot ; and Antonio, the boy 



