6 NOTES OF A BOTANIST 
the weeds kept down more than in Brazilian 
villages. About looo sticks of firewood were 
embarked here in two hours. 
On April i we reached Iquitos, a considerable 
village on the north bank at the mouth of a small 
stream of black water. It contains many people 
of mixed race, besides a great many Iquitos Indians 
who inhabit the western portion of the village.^ 
Here I first saw the fruit of a remarkable palm-like 
Pandanacese (Phytelephas) allied to the plant that 
produces the vegetable ivory. 
On April 2, reached Nauta, on the north bank, 
a few miles above the mouth of the Ucayali, which 
enters from the south — a river equal in size to the 
Maranon itself. Nauta stands on rising ground 
from 30 to 60 feet above the river. The soil is 
sandy with some mixture of clay near the river. 
At the back the ground goes on gently rising for 
a considerable distance, only interrupted by rivulets. 
In the second growth on old clearings, the most 
curious feature is the absence of Selaginella, so 
constant in such places on the Amazon and Rio 
Negro. There is, however, a common Adiantum 
and a low tree-fern. 
[As the steamer went no farther, Spruce had to 
wait a fortnight at Nauta before he could hire two 
canoes with the necessary Indians to take him and 
his goods up to Yurimaguas on the river Huallaga. 
In the intervals of this work he collected such 
^ Iquitos is now a town of about 10,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of 
the Peruvian province of Loreto, and the centre of the rubber trade of the 
Ucayali, the Napo, and all the higher tributaries of the Amazon. There is a 
monthly communication with Para by river steamers, while at longer intervals 
steamei's make the through journey from Liverpool to this inland port within 
sight of the lower ranges of the Andes. 
