We Preparü to Withstand the Wet. 
8Ö 
nioi'iiing, there soon, liowever, formed from out of its small accompanying 
clouds a gloomy grey-black bank practically resting upon tke savannab, 
where, su])se(juent to a violent gale, it overtloods tlic ground, which, being 
already saturated, cannot absorb any furtlier additions. The copious 
and violent showers had already at the beginning of June turned into the 
most dreadful and really horrible storm-clouds: several such would often 
tower up to Heaven at the same time, and gradually approaching one 
another, notify their junction with a continuous roll of thunder. These 
awful scenes usually l>egan iji the afternoon, were re-enacted at midnight 
and heralded the break of day: the last were always the most terrifying 
and during their continuance almost incredible quantities of Avater fell 
to tlie accompaniment of tlie most frigid ful thunder-('la])S. The dawn, 
naturally not quite broken already, turned usually into darkness, Avliich 
A^•as (uily l-ent by the dazzling forked lightning. As weather like this 
often kept up for hours, the quantity of rain falling amounted to mosth 
0-4 inches: never, however, did we see the lightning flash start a tire. 
226. From the beginning of June to a greater or less degree this 
dreadful spectacle repeated itself almost daily: like the sun, we verv 
rarely at this period got to see the moon, and then only in a diaphanous 
veil. 
227. Our two houses, of which one was occupied by my brother, and 
the other by Mr. Goodall, Fryer, and myself, could not withstand Aveather 
of this desci-iption Avell enough at least for us and liad to be not oidy 
a good deal repaired but s]H'ciiilly lifted up in a style more convenient 
than that Avhat Tndiian comfort desii-es on <»ne's premises. The thatching 
of l oth Avas first of all rencAved to Avithstand the rain, and some openings 
then made in the mud Avails to admit some light. The boards that had 
served as seats in Friar Jose's church, and Avere saAvn from the beautiful 
wood of the Poa da rainka {Ormoxia hijsfiophi/]]n . Klotzsch) proved of 
considerable hel]i in building up the furniture which might not of course 
excel in elegance the Avoi-k of this desci'iption manufactured by the late 
Mr. Robinson. Though the interior looked fairly habitalde it had also 
acquired a certain erudit<' appearance because one side wall was occupied 
with a large frame on which Avere piled all the treasures I had collected, 
to saA'e them from the incoiiceiA^alde moisture of the ground, while across 
the adjoining one Avas stretched a lighter franu> for drying the plants and 
botanical pa])ers: as this could only be effected by the heat from tlie fire 
it gave me plenty of Avoi ry aiul trouble. In Europe it is an easy matter 
to set up an Herbarium, but, Avithin the Tropics, to ])reserve during the 
wet season a collection that has been established during the dry, borders 
closely on one of the labours of Sisyphus. 
228. In spite of the dam that we had thrown up around our houses 
and the trenches that had been dug, the mass of Avater pouring down 
during the night nevertheless overflowed our dwellings more than once 
to such an extent as to turn the dam into a dyke and our house into a 
small lake, Avliich noAV and again naturally received a tributary from the 
roof. While still engaged Avith the im,provements on our winter quarters 
we AA ere aAvakened out of our sleep one night l)y the clear voice of 
