^OFlEST AND STREAM. 
[Auo. i8, 1900. 
Canoeing in South America. 
Of all the adventures encountered during a year and 
four months traversing the second largest of the earth's 
rivers, the Parana and its tributaries, the most thrilling, 
and those that Avill leave on my mind the most vivid im- 
pressions, were experienced on the River Cuyaba, some 
2,000 miles north of Buenos Ayers, after having paddled 
our canoe from March 12 to Aug. 7. The settlements 
that might in any sense be termed civilized were few 
and far between— in fact, except it was here and there 
a steamboat wooding station, only Indian villages were the 
habitations for hundreds of miles in any direction. This 
was a season of inundations, the banks of the_ rivers we 
had traversed in many places being several feet under 
water. Having to depend upon our rifles to provide our 
meat, often it would be several days before we could find 
dry land enough upon which we could do any hunting or 
light a fire to cook a meal By the time we had reached a 
point some fifty miles above the Rio San Lorenzo, we had 
come to a country where we considered it might be made 
profitable for us to stop a few months. Our ammunition 
and stores had run low, and to stock up anew for the 
period we had decided to remain in that vicinity, a trip 
must be made to Cuyaba. some 300 miles north. 
Leaving niy companion, 1 took passage on a passinj); 
"charta," or flat boat, pushed by long poles in the hands 
of Indians and half-breeds. It was my intention to re- 
turn in about fifteen or twenty days to our Camp, but 1 
was destined to be delayed on account of not receiving a 
telegram from New York via Rio Janeiro, the telegrapTi 
line from Cuyaba to Rio being interrupted for many 
days. Instead of twenty days, it was nearly forty before 
I landed again on the bank of the river near where we 
had pitched our tent. 
It was a little past midnight when my effects were all 
on shore. Our camp had been located some distance 
from the bank of the river, so I did not think it strange 
that my companion was not at hand tOMneet me ; besides, 
he was a very sound sleeper. It took some time to make a 
blaze of the damp wood to light up the surroundings, by 
which time the launch was well down the river and nearly 
out of sight from my position. At this moment a thought 
dawned upon me to go down to the cave around the 
bend and see if my canoe was moored in its usual place. 
Grasping a brand from the fire, I started, swinging it 
around my head to keep it ablaze, to light my way. One 
can well imagine my surprise to find no canoe, and about 
the landing no tracks of recent making were visible. Could 
it be that I was alone upon that wilderness spot, a 
veritable jungle, with no habitation except here and there 
an Indian camp for hundreds of miles ? 
The Indians of the section at this time had been at 
war arnong their neighboring tribes two or three years 
before colonized by the State of Matto Grosso, and an 
attempt had been made to make soldiers of them. Their 
nature would not permit of this state of existence, so they 
soon deserted and dispersed in roving bands, subsisting 
by hunting and fishing, and trave!ing long distances and 
stealing cattle from squatters here and there. They are 
said to have been cannibals, and to this day they are ac- 
cused of that barbarous practice. Only two years ago 
one of their bands crept into the limits of the city of 
Cuyaba at night, murdering men and carrying off women 
and children. At a very recent date whole settlements 
have been massacred and the houses burned by this tribe 
of daredevils. While passing up the River Cuyaba we went 
ashore at several banana and orange groves where once 
were settlements, but the owners had been killed or had 
deserted them on account of fear. This tribe is called 
Corvados. They are very large frame and muscular, 
heads and features above the average in size. Scarcely 
one of this tribe can be found standing less than 6 feet in 
height. Firearms they do not use, nor do they believe 
in them, using bows and arrows and spears for every 
kind of game. Nothing is so wild or ferocious that they 
cannot secure it. They shoot fish by lying on the back and 
shooting straight up into the air that the arrow may in 
descending enter the water perpendicularly among the 
shoals of fish. They hold the bow with the feet usually, 
and use both hands to draw the arrow. A bow which 
they will spring to the arrow-head, one unaccustomed to 
it could not draw it back 6 inches. 
Having had dealings with this tribe, and seeing in 
experience what many had told me before, is it a wonder 
that my heart sank within me when I realized in that 
instant my situation? I could not wait till daylight to go 
to the camp ground, so I secured a torch and set out 
to go over the road to it, cut through thorns and the 
everywhere-prevailing caraguata. My last hope vanished 
when I found there also no trace of recent habitation ex- 
cept tracks of alligators, tigers, better known as the South 
American jaguar, and antas, which abound in all parts of 
Central South America. Going back to where my effects 
had been landed bv the steamer, I could not refrain 
the words aloud, "What shall I do with all this?" 
Placing my foot unon a log at the riverside, a thought 
came to me that "if this is only sound enough I will 
dig out a canoe and go down the river, rather than wait 
here a month for the mail packet." Making a thorough 
examination by torch light of the quality of the wood, I 
prepared to go to work on it. The only tools T had were 
a small hatchet, a sheath knife and. an old cutlass, all of 
which I bad .sharpened while at Cuvaba. The sun was 
well up when I stopped work for breakfast. As for pro- 
visions, there was at hand a very abundant sunplv for 
me alone for six months. The log and the prospects of 
making a canoe of it had braced me up wonderfully, and I 
ate mv breakfast with good relish. 
Satisfied in that resoect. I sat down on one end of 
the Insr. cnntpmnlatms: and planninar another attack on it 
with mv little hatrhet. when hannpnine to ca«t a slance 
toward a clump of wild banana rt'anfs. T wa<; iiict in ti'rae 
to see a moving obiect of some Vmd. w^^ich looked like r> 
man. r'>trppting. Grasping mv rifle, without a second of 
thr>uq-ht T rnn acro«s the onening to pet a view of the 
ofhfr cJrIp nf the clnmn of nlants. and thfre. sNndmg 
wit-h fbpir backs to ine. were thrive ■stalwart nake>d Tnd'ans. 
Thev had been ^nving and undoubtedlv contriving some 
?vay to approach me anc] my effcts wftTlOj^t (langcr to 
themselves. I judged them to be friendly or they would 
have pmned me with arrows before tms, so with ntie 
across my arm ready to present m an instant, I began to 
walk toward them, makmg heavy foot treads to draw 
their attention toward me. When they turned and saw 
me, they showed no sign of alarm or surprise, but ad- 
vanced toward me in tne same manner as any friendly 
native would do, ready to shake my hand. They were 
evidently Corvados. One of them spoke a little Portu- 
guese, but as my own knowledge of the language was 
rather limited, it was very hard to converse with him. 
The Indians were much interested in the work I had al- 
ready begun on the log, while I counted the days on my 
fingers to them that it would take in the construction of 
the canoe. This was a blind \k, for alone I could have 
finished it roughly in two days at least, so that it would 
answer my purpose. Thinking they might be of service 
to mcj I explained to them that if they would assist me, a 
piece of canvas which they very much coveted would 
be given them as soon as the work was completed. Know- 
ing the tribe to which they belonged to be a band of 
cowardly thieves, I fefired that if they Were permitted to 
return to their camp they would act as guide at night to 
pounce upon me with their braves and carry off all I 
had there, In such a case a fight must take place against 
great odds, 
Like all other Indians We had encountered iti Sotith 
America, these were not an exception in relation to beg- 
ging. If the^v are not in a position to steal, they are not 
backward as to asking for anything they covet that you 
may have. In this case they informed me that they were 
very hungry. I lianded them some ,e;aliatas (a kitld of 
bread so hard that it requires a hammering to break it) 
aiid some jerked beef. Tliey devoltred it with dispatch. 
Then handing one a knife, at\othef the cutlass, I showed 
them how to chip Up a flake from the log to be pulled off 
by the third Indian, while it was my place to follow them 
up and smooth the slivered portions with the hatchet, 
taking good care that I Worked a safe distance from 
and fronting them, that every movement could be watched. 
The log was a soft kind of wood and of straight grain, 
enabling us to progress finely, As often as every hour 
through the day Ihey gave me to understand that they 
were again conforme (hungry), when more hardtack and 
dried meat would be given them. Repeatedly they would 
ask for pinga, a very common intoxicating liquor made 
from sugar cane. There was a two-quart bottle of the 
cane juice in my "bolsa," which was carried as an anti- 
dote for venomous bites, but I knew that to give them 
one drink would only whet their appetite for more, until 
they would get unmanagablc, so 1 kept it secreted, as it 
happened, for a more serviceable purpose. About 4 o'clock 
in the afternoon one of the Indians feigned illness, and 
gave me to understand that he could work no more. It 
was in vain that I urged kim to continue. Doubling 
himself up and holding on to his stomach with both 
arms, like a boy that has eaten too many green apples, he 
made for the shade of a tree near by, and for a few 
minutes seemed in great agony ; but soon became quiet and 
appeared to be sleeping. The fact that his companions did 
not express any sign of sympathy for- him caused me 
to be suspicious, so I kept an eye over in his direction 
as often as possible, and proceeded with my work. My 
whole attention was engaged, with my back toward him 
for a few minutes, when, upon looking around again I 
found he had sneaked out of sight. I saw that all their 
weapons were in the place they had deposited them in the 
morning, so I at once concluded that the redskin had 
started off for their village, and at night would lead the 
whole posse down upon me. Now was my time to 
bring out the pinga for the two remaining. They drank 
moderately and modestly at first, and would offer me a 
pull at the jug, but soon they took full possession of 
it, and their generosity vanished like the tanglefoot they 
were drinking, They became very happy, and danced 
around like big monkeys until they were exhausted, 
tumbled over in loving embrace and fell asleep near the 
edge of the water. W^atching them carefully and working 
at the same time on my canoe until they became helpless, I 
had so far completed it that before sunset it was launched 
and loaded with my effects to within 4 inches of the gun- 
wale, and I was ready to start on my lonesome voyage 
in pursuit of my companion. 
From the Indian who had talked to me in Portuguese it 
was quite certain that the3^ knew .something of my com- 
panion, and that he was either killed or driven away by 
the Corvados, I could not tell which, but that he had 
gone down the river a few days previou,sly was the 
cherished, thought in ray mind. 
The two drunken savages were lying one across the 
other with their heads down the slope of the bank. Pulling 
them around in a more comfortable position, I spread the 
promised canvas over them to keep off the vultures, alli- 
gators and tigers while they remained in their stupor. 
Then seating myself in the stern of my dugout, I pushed 
off into the stream, and by the time the darkness of night 
had settled about me had glided silently and swiftly down 
the stream three or four miles. All night long I guided 
my craft before the rapid current, stopping only at day- 
light to make a fire on the bank and prepare breakfast. 
Delaying here no longer than was necessary. I was seated 
in my canoe, paddling it rapidly, hoping to be able to 
enter the Paraguay River some time the following day. 
I should undoubtedly have reached it before nightfall if 
it had not been that a little shooting match had delayed 
me about two hours the first and another uii the second 
day. My first adventure was with the South American 
elpehant, better known as tapir. Itj this section of the 
country, whenever you find a forest, the "howling mon- 
keys" will be your constant comoanions. Along the edge 
of the river grow.s a tree, the bud and fruit of which 
they feed upon. Like children at the zoo. I never became 
tired of watching their curious actions, and I was thus 
engaged, when, within a dozen yards of me. emitting a 
loud whistle like that of a steamer, a monstrous tapir 
that had been disturbed from his bed rushed wildly up 
the bank. My rifle, alwavs at my right side, was in an 
instant filmed at the back of his head as he was retreating. 
The Winchester. 4a beine- rather liarht for such large 
game, merely stunned the brute, so before I could stakn 
mv canoe and rfach him. he vyas aerain on feet and 
stood contemplating his sudden misfortune. The tapir Jn 
innea ranee is between the e^enhant and the hog. and 
knowing them to be aggressive and extremely savage 
%'l]iej? wounded, I realized my situatjori when the motister 
turned upon me, not more than 10 feet distant. Bringing 
my rifle again into action, I planted a bullet between his 
eyes. It required two more shots to kill him. I found the 
hide so thick and heavy that it would have been too much 
to add to the load of my canoe, so I cut out a piece of 
meat from the lom, which proved to be quite palatable 
when broiled over a heap of glowing coals. 
By noon the long line of lorest had been passed, and 
spread out on cither side were great level plains as fat as 
the eye could reach, with an occasional palm grove. Ail 
over this level country stand the great ant heaps like 
sentinels. In some localities they are black and in others 
brown or white, depending upon the nature of the earth 
from which they are constructed. The occupants are so 
numerous that paths leading from one to another of the 
heaps resemble sheep paths ; every blade of grass is 
cleaned out that there may be no obstruction in their way 
of travel. Out upon these pampas the ciervo and vernado, 
the pampas deer, are seen feeding, often in droves of 
dozens in a place; But upon this occasion I had no in- 
terest in hunting them, having sufficient meat on hand to 
last me for several days. As I rounded a bend in the 
river in the tvvtlight of the eveiiitig, I carrte suddenly 
upon a noble buck, standing knee-deep in the watet. At 
night aiid ih the, morning the deer go to the riverside to 
slake their thirst from off these vast plains. This one 
being the largest of the kind I had ever seen, afld pos- 
sessing a noble pair of arttlefs, I determined to sectire It 
if possible fot the horns alohe. Raising my rifle I sighted 
and fired, biit was surprised to see the deer plunge fdr 
the shore as if my bullet had hot taken effect; I fired 
again as he ran, but with rto better result than at first. 
My past experience with this kind of game had taught me 
to follow up their trail, for it is often they will run at 
full speed a hundred yards or more with a bullet directly 
through the heart. This was not an exception, for I 
had not far to go through the tall grass before I came up 
to it where it had dropped dead, ray first bullet having 
pierced its vitals near the heart. Removing the twenty- 
pronged antlers from the head, I returned with them to 
my canoe and proceeded on my journey down the river. 
Darkness had again settled about. Millions of fire bugs, 
together with the growl-thug-thug, of the alligator as it 
rose to the surface, an occasional snarl of the jaguar, the 
croaking of monstrous toads, the snapping and barking of 
the lobo, a river seal, together with much else that sounded 
strange and weird, rendered this night lonesome beyond 
extreme. The great vampires, numerous here, cast ghostly 
shadows upon the silvery .surface of the water as they 
passed and circled around my head. 
Far away to my left the light of an Indian camp-fire, 
which it is the custom of the savages to build around 
them at night, arose and shone upon the misty at- 
mosphere. I gave this no thought at the time, for the 
course of the river seemed to be carrying me away from 
it, but half an hour later I had turned a bend and was 
gradually winding, until directly in front of me I beheld 
the camp, located close to the river's bank. There were 
no forest trees to cast their shadows along the line of 
the river on the oppo.site side to hide me from their 
view. Wondering how I could pass t|hem unseen, upon 
deliberation I determined to risk it, so' crossing the river 
I crouched as low as possible in the canoe, alloAving it to 
drift along by the current, hoping that if seen by them 
at all they would think it only a log or an island of 
camalota, which are usual floating objects at all times ift 
these waters. Just as I was congratulating myself upon my 
good fortune to pass them unseen, a howl went up from 
their dogs, which had evidently scented me. At once by 
the light of their fires I could see flitting forms of the 
savages as they congregated on the shore. I made no 
move toward paddling, but continued to drift along as 
before, until I saw a ripple along the shore near their 
camp, which suggested that they had launched a canoe and 
were in pursuit of the object of their surprise. Ther 
rising from my crouching position, I brought my paddle 
into play and sped down the river at a rapid rate, with 
the Indian cancx; fast gaining upon me. This race con- 
tinued probably for two miles, when it became evident that 
I must bring my rifle into play in order to frighten ray 
pursuers. I fired six shots in their direction as fast as it 
was practicable to overhaul and shoot my repeater. This 
shooting had the desired effect, for they reversed their 
paddles and were soon out of sight, going up the stream. 
By midnight a dark line of forest was d-iscemible in 
the distance, and an hour later I steered my canoe into a 
little cove, where I moored for a rest. Arranging a 
bed as comfortable as possible under the circumstances in 
my canoe, I was soon asleep. 
Awaking early in the morning, I made ready for my 
departure on ray jcnirney in order to cover as much dis- 
tance as possible during the cool of the daj-, for while 
the .sun is overhead it is always very warm, rendering' 
it almost necessary to stop work of any kind until the 
sun gets well in the west. While noiselessly gliding 
near the bank of the river, on a large fallen tree, its 
branches extending 40 feet or more out over the w^ater. I 
noticed a strange object, as if some large animal was 
crouching low on the trunk. Upon nearer approach the 
spots on the body proved conclusively in my mind that it 
\yas a tiger, with his head leaning down over the opposite 
side of the tree trunk in an earnest watch for prey. These 
.South American tigers are great fishers and are good 
climbers. They watch their opportunity as a fish rises to 
the surface, attracted by the saliva which the animal emits 
from its mouth for bait, when with a clip with its sharp 
claws the beast is almost sure to land its prey. The brute's 
attention was so much taken up in its eagerness to procure 
its morning meal that I had drifted to within a dozen 
yards of it before it either heard or scented me. 'Then, sud- 
tienly raising its head, it gave me a beautiful shot for the 
center of the forehead. Rolling off the tree into the 
water, it sank at once, as is common for all dead animals 
to do in those waters. Procuring a hook, I fished his 
long tail to the surface and catching hold of it soon had 
the tiger landed. Upon examination I found this one to 
be the most beautifully marked and to possess the most 
perfect set of long teeth of all that I had ever seen, so 
could not resist the temptation to take off and cure the 
skin and head for future mounting, notwithstanding it 
would add at least 25 pounds more to the load of my 
canoe. _ ■ • 
Pavasde monfe he'mo: immerous on the trees about whet 
my appetite for a broiler, so brought down a plump hen 
foV my breakfast, In flavor ajid qtiality of fle.sh thes^ 
