Chap. III. 
MOUTH OF THE TEFFE. 
177 
channels, each about a mile in breadth. We kept 
to the southernmost of these, travelling all day on 
the 80th April along a high and rather sloping 
bank. 
In the evening we arrived at a narrow opening, which 
would be taken by a stranger navigating the main 
channel for the outlet of some insignificant stream : it 
was the mouth of the TefFe, on whose banks Ega is 
situated, the termination of our voyage. After having 
struggled for thirty-five days with the muddy currents 
and insect pests of the Solimoens, it was unspeakably 
refreshing to find one's-self again in a dark-water 
river, smooth as a lake and free from Pium and Motuca. 
The roimded outline, small foliage, and sombre green 
of the woods, which seemed to rest on the glassy waters, 
made a pleasant contrast to the tumultuous piles of 
rank, glaring, light-green vegetation, and torn, timber- 
strewn banks to which we had been so long accustomed 
on the main river. The men rowed lazily until night- 
fall, when, having done a laborious day s work, they 
discontinued and went to sleep, intending to make 
for Ega in the morning. It was not thought worth 
while to secure the vessel to the trees or cast anchor, as 
there was no current. I sa,t up for two or three hours 
after my companions had gone to rest, enjoying the 
solemn calm of the night. Not a breath of air stirred ; the 
sky was of a deep blue, and the stars seemed to stand 
forth in sharp relief ; there was no sound of life in the 
woods, except the occasional melancholy note of some 
nocturnal bird. I reflected on my own wandering life : I 
had now reached the end of the third stage of my journey, 
VOL. II. N 
