TARAPOTO TO CANELOS iii 
Several times the men have had to leap into the 
water and drag the canoes by hand a good distance 
over the shallow bed before finding again sufficient 
water to float us. . . . 
[Early on April 29 they reached the much- 
desired Andoas, situated on the left bank of the 
Pastasa, where they had to engage fresh crews to 
take them up the Bombonasa river to Canelos. 
The village stands on a low ridge, on each side of 
which is a little stream, the m.ouths of which are 
about a quarter of a mile apart. The soil is loamy 
and very fertile. Spruce was only able to take one 
short walk in the forest during his five days' stay 
here, and noted that while the trees seemed mostly 
familiar to him, the shrubby and herbaceous plants 
were nearly all new. The following rather char- 
acteristic incident is noted in the Journal : — ] 
At Andoas it was necessary that some one 
should sleep in the canoes, to take care of their 
cargoes, and I and Don Ignacio, as being most 
interested, undertook to do it, although we must 
thus deny ourselves the pleasure of sleeping under 
a roof, which the rest of our party took advantage 
of. Our salt fish was stowed in the fore-part of the 
canoe and covered over with palm-leaves, on w^hich 
were laid logs of wood, so that the fish could not 
easily be got at by the dogs who visited the canoes 
every night in a troop. Nevertheless, they found 
out some part not so well secured as the rest where 
they one night introduced their muzzles and gnawed 
at the fish, and on the following night I lay awake 
until I heard them at work, and then seized my gun 
and rushed out of the cabin ; but they made off too 
quickly for me and disappeared over the top of the 
