70 CIENEGA RIVER. 



some time to accustom oneself to lying 

 perfectly still in one unvarying extended 

 position. 



We began our voyage by poling, which 

 the men perform in a clear space of about 

 twelve feet, left for that purpose, in the fore- 

 part of the canoe ; and so instinctively are 

 they habituated by custom to preserve the 

 balance, that their movements never affect 

 the trim. One boga, called the ipatron, a se- 

 lected trusty man, acquainted with the na- 

 vigation, sits in the stern to direct the canoe 

 with his paddle. 



At first we passed through several narrow 

 channels formed by numerous islands, ge- 

 nerally clothed with trees down to the wa- 

 ter s edge. We saw many alligators basking 

 in the sun, or darting through the water, 

 either in sport or in the pursuit of the finny 

 tribe on which they subsist. The Cienega 



