44 TRAVELS ON THE AMAZON. {September, 



of the Celestial Empire think that we must be very poor 

 miserable barbarians, indeed, to be obliged to come so far to 

 buy their tea. 



Even Senhor Seixus himself, an educated Brazilian and the 

 Commandante of the district, inquired if the government of 

 England were constitutional or despotic, and was surprised to 

 hear that our Sovereign was a woman. 



We at length procured two men, and proceeded on our 

 journey up the river, having spent four days very pleasantly at 

 Baiao. As we went slowly along the shore, we saw on a tree 

 an iguana, called here a chameleon, which Mr. Leavens shot, 

 and our men cooked for their supper. In the evening, we 

 anchored under a fine bank, where a large leguminous tree 

 .was covered with clusters of pink and white flowers and large 

 pale green flat pods. Venus and the moon were shining 

 brilliantly, and the air was deliciously cool, when, at nine 

 o'clock, we turned in under our tolda, but mosquitoes and 

 sand-flies would not allow us to sleep for some hours. The 

 next day we had a good wind and went along briskly ; the 

 river was narrower and had fewer islands ; palms were less 

 abundant than below, but the vegetation of the banks was 

 equally luxuriant. Here were plenty of porpoises, and we saw 

 some handsome birds like golden orioles. 



On the 9th, early in the morning, we arrived at Jutahi, a 

 cattle estate, where we expected to get more men ; but the 

 owner of the place being out, we had to wait till he returned. 

 We obtained here about a gallon of delicious new milk, a great 

 treat for us. We shot a few birds, and found some small 

 shells in the river, but none of any size or beauty, and could 

 see scarcely any insects. 



As the man we wanted did not arrive, we left on the loth, 

 hoping to meet him up the river. I walked across an exten- 

 sive sandbank, where, about noon, it was decidedly hot. 

 There were numerous little Carabideous beetles on the sand, 

 very active, and of a pale colour with dark markings, remind- 

 ing me of insects that frequent similar situations in England. 

 In the afternoon w^e reached a house, and made a fire on the 

 beach to cook our dinner. Here were a number of men and 

 women, and naked children. The house was a mere open 

 shed, — a joof of palm-thptch supported on posts, between 

 which the redes (hammocks) are hung, which serve the pur- 



