296 
EXCURSIONS AROUND EGA. Chap. IY. 
and sparingly scattered. My companions were greatly 
elated, and on approaching the encampment at Catua 
made a great commotion with their paddles to announce 
their successful return, singing in their loudest key one 
of the wild choruses of the Amazonian boatmen. 
The excavation of eggs and preparation of the oil 
being finished, we left Catua on the 3rd of November. 
Carepira^ who was now attached to Cardozo's party, had 
discovered another lake rich in turtles, about twelve 
miles distant, in one of his fishing rambles, and my 
friend resolved^ before returning to Ega, to go there 
with his nets and drag it as we had formerly done the 
Aningal. Several mameluco families of Ega begged to 
accompany us to share the labours and booty ; the 
Shumana family also joined the party ; we therefore 
formed a large body, numbering in all eight canoes and 
fifty persons. 
The summer season was now breaking up ; the river 
was rising; the sky was almost constantly clouded, and we 
had frequent rains. The mosquitoes also, which we had 
not felt whilst encamped on the sand-banks, now became 
troublesome. We paddled up the north-westerly chan- 
nel, and arrived at a point near the upper end of Catua 
at ten o'clock p.m. There was here a very broad beach 
of Tmtrodden white sand, which extended quite into the 
forest, where it formed rounded hills and hollows like 
sand dunes, covered with a peculiar vegetation : harsh, 
reedy grasses, and low trees matted together with Manas, 
and varied with dwarf spiny palms of the genus Bactris. 
We encamped for the night on the sands, finding the 
