192 NOTES OF A BOTANIST 
direction, the current would have borne her violently 
against the bank, when she would infallibly have 
been swamped and buried under a mountain of 
sand. The exertion required was so great, that 
the perspiration ran off me in streams ; but most 
happily we succeeded in getting clear out into the 
Amazon without once grounding, although we had 
rarely so much as a fathom of water. Those on 
shore could not have suffered less than myself, for 
the sun and the sand were scorching hot. It 
would be difficult to express what a load was taken 
off our minds when we found ourselves once more 
on the broad and breezy Amazon, and our previous 
silent anxiety was changed into noisy expressions 
of joy. The wind was blowing fair, and lasted 
until near sunset, sufficing to put us over to the 
north shore of the Amazon, along which our course 
now lay. 
The Ramii-urumucana and the dangers of its 
passage are well known to the dwellers on the 
Amazon. The previous year a boat, larger than 
ours, attempting to pass it under the same circum- 
stances, was wrecked, from the captain's rashly 
scorning to seek the advice and assistance of the 
neighbouring settlers. 
The inhabitants of the numerous sitios on the 
Ramos were chiefly Mestizos, of various shades of 
colour. The only white man we met with was 
Captain Macedo, and he could not be reckoned 
more than a visitor. Notwithstanding that the 
land is extremely fertile, and the lakes abound in 
fish and waterfowl, the people live in a state of 
comparative destitution ; their only care being to 
eat up all their provisions to-day and leave nothing 
