AND AMONG THE BOTOCUDOS. 



305 



clothed in the most beautiful pink ; the bougainvillea brasilknsis twined 

 round the tops of the trees, which were partly still without leaves, 

 and covered them all over with its dark rose-coloured flowers ; numer- 

 ous varieties also of trumpet-flowers (hignonia), some rising high, 

 some creeping on the ground, were growing in the greatest luxuri- 

 ance, adorned with every variety of rose-coloured, violet, white and 

 yellow blossoms. It would be impossible, at this season, for the best 

 landscape-painter to represent the infinitely diversified tints of colour 

 in the crowns of the gigantic trees composing these great forests ; 

 and, if he could succeed, every person who had not himself seen 

 this country, would consider his performance to be a mere sport of his 

 imagination. In this part of the river, we had, as before, great trou- 

 ble in working our way in the manner above described, between nu- 

 merous rocks, and through currents; and our people who towed the 

 canoe often fell up to their necks in water, yet without letting the 

 rope slip out of their hands. 



The heat was already great, and numerous swarms of moskitoes 

 tormented us ; but they are said to be far more insupportable when 

 the water is high. On the evening of the second day we again kin- 

 dled our fire on a sandy flat contiguous to the river ; the moon shone 

 in glorious splendor, and promised us fine weather for the following 

 day. The next morning the whole valley, through which the river 

 flows, was enveloped in a thick fog, which, however, was soon dis- 

 pelled. When the atmosphere had cleared, we saw a flock of large 

 swallows, of the swift species ( ci/pselus), of a hitherto unknown kind, 

 the soot black plumage of which had nothing remarkable in it ; on 

 account of their extremely rapid flight, we were not able to kill any 

 of them. 



We continued our voyage, passed round some considerable rocky 

 cliffs, and then came to a remarkably great fall ; which we how- 

 ever surmounted, as we had done the others, by the help of the 



2 R 



