EXPEDITION TO SURINAM. 



^'^ the fweating multitude below." — This I immediately 

 tried, and llept exalted near one hundred feet above my 

 companions, whom I could not fee for the myriads of 

 mufquitoes below me, nor even hear them, from the in- 

 ceffant buzzing of thefe troublefome infedls. 



This was the principal diflrefs of the night; while, 

 during the day, we had frequently been attacked by 

 whole armies of fmall emmets, called here fire-ants^ 

 from their painful biting. Thefe infe6ls are black, and 

 very diminutive, but live in fuch amazing multitudes 

 together, that their hillocks have fometimes obflrudled 

 our paflage by their Hze, over which, if one chances to 

 pafs, the feet and legs are inftantly covered with innu- 

 merable of thefe creatures, which feize the fkin with fuch 

 violence in their pincers, that they will fooner fuffer the 

 head to be parted from their body, than let go their hold. 

 The burning pain which they occafion cannot, in my 

 opinion, proceed from the lharpnefs of their pincers only, 

 but mull be owing to feme venomous fluid which they 

 infufe, or which the wound imbibes from them. I can 

 aver that I have feen them make a whole company hop 

 about, as if they had been fcalded with boiling v/ater. 



On the 17th we continued our march ftill due E. till nine 

 o'clock, when we altered our courfe to the N. and had to 

 fcramble through great quantities of thofe mataky roots, 

 or trumpeters already defcribed, which proved that we 

 were defcending into the low grounds, and indeed the foil 

 foon became very marfhy ; fortun?"tely, however, though 

 it was now the wet feafon, we had as yet very little rain. 



N a This 



