Chap. II. 
FISHERWOMEN. 
107 
had made with her own hands of parrots' feathers. 
The rods iis.ed are slender bamboos, and the lines made 
from the fibres of pine-apple leaves. It is not very 
common for the Indian and half-caste women to pro- 
vide for themselves in the way these spirited dames 
were doing, although they are all expert paddlers, and 
very frequently cross wide rivers in their frail boats 
without the aid of men. It is possible that parties of 
Indian women, seen travelling alone in this manner, 
may have given rise to the fable of a nation of Amazons 
invented by the first Spanish explorers of the country. 
Senhora Joaquina invited me and Jose to a Tucunare 
dinner for the afternoon, and then shouldering their 
paddles and tucking up their skirts, the two dusky 
fisherwomen marched down to their canoe. We sent 
the two Indians into the woods to cut palm-leaves to 
mend the thatch of our cuberta, whilst I and Jose 
rambled through the woods which skirted the campo. 
On our return, we found a most bountiful spread in the 
house of our hostess. A spotless white cloth was laid 
on the mat, wdth a plate for each guest and a pile of 
fragrant newly-made farinha by the side of it. The 
boiled Tucunares were soon taken from the kettles and 
set before us. I thought the men must be happy hus- 
bands who owned such wives as these. The Indian 
and mameluco women certainly do make excellent 
managers ; they are more industrious than the men and 
most of them manufacture farinha for sale on their own 
account, their credit always standing higher with the 
traders on the river than that of their male connections. 
I was quite surprised at the quantity of fish they had 
