26o NOTES OF A BOTANIST 
his Indians in hunting and fishing, the days of good 
saiHng or of continuous rowing, are all recorded, 
as well as the ever-changing character of the vege- 
tation, the various trees and shrubs and palms 
which his experienced eye detected as novelties, 
and the many beautiful flowers he was able to 
gather which were not only new species but were 
so peculiar in structure as to constitute new genera 
— all this rendered the journey a continuous intel- 
lectual enjoyment to so enthusiastic a botanist. 
But the daily record of such incidents during a 
month's journey would be monotonous and unin- 
teresting to the general reader, and as the more 
important botanical discoveries are referred to in 
the letters to his various correspondents, I shall 
only give in full such portions of the Journals 
as describe the few incidents of more general 
interest that occurred at some of his stopping-places. 
The first of these was about the middle of the 
voyage, and here the Journal becomes more inter- 
esting.] 
Nov. 24, 1 85 1. — Below the mouth of the Rio 
Branco are the celebrated Ilhas de Pedras or 
Uarapanaki — granite rocks in the middle of the 
river on which are extensive Indian picture-writing. 
The figures are very numerous : some representing 
animals ; one a number of persons joining out- 
stretched hands, called the " Dancers " ; and there 
is one which is plainly a rude attempt at a church, 
and underneath is the word Deos, to all appearance 
of the same date. The figures have been formed 
by scraping broad lines on the rock with some 
hard instrument. Sometimes the whole figure is 
scratched out. It does not seem necessary to 
