160 
A Boa Constrictor Wants to Visit Us. 
ois, we iievertlieless experienced tlieir effects in the raised red spots, the 
size of a pea, that ^^■e carried with us for days together. 
.*!8(!. At Itrciik of day our old; cliicf left us and, witli his wives, re- 
tiu jied to Torong-Yauwise, while we continued our way along tbe valley 
evei- to the North-west and soon crossed the river Tnpnring which, run- 
ning from North to West, and bordered with a thick Mauritia forest, pour- 
ed into the Zuruma. The whole valley appeared to be absolutely full of this 
glorious palm. The welcome enjoyable lioui-s of the morning when one's 
body and spirits are fresh and active, wlien chaff and mirth pass up and 
down the long train, lasted none t<>o> long. The sun rose, joking gradu- 
ally sto])ped, the still apparently closed procession widened more and 
more, and soon a long distance separated the man in front from the one 
behind. With the conversation lagging, one's thoughts Avandere<l cheerily 
over the surrounding country until, invited by this or that novelty, they 
wandered home, and convei sation of all description cease*! : luit even 
these thoughts came to a standstill when, tired and exhausted, the sun 
shot its scoi-chiug rays npon our heads. And then, without any thoughts 
at all, one stares into the atmosphere sparkling and quivering with the 
lieat, while the sun's rays, I'eflected from the bleak mountains, change the 
\ allevs into real ovens, one's breathing becoiiiin!>- ever more difficult, ami 
one's spirits apathetic to everything around. This is just what happened 
to-day, for though not yet mid-day, the thermoinetev registered 108° F. 
in the slia<le. Towards) noon we left the enervating atmosphere of the 
A'alley and climbed up a mountain slope about ßOO feet high, covered with 
numerous granite fragments. To the N.W. Zabang towered above innu- 
meral le monntain-tops, while the long Pawai-ii-ang and Pakara-wari 
mountain zone stirtched away to the north, and the peculiar formation 
of Mt. Murapa (Sect. ;>0?>) as well as that of Anapu-yeng lying some- 
what towards the East, aroused our interest that now revived under the 
less oi)pressive heat on the mountain-crest. Partlv nvev "ranite and 
quartz reefs rising above the ground, and par-tly over sumshed-up frag- 
ments heaped one on top of the other, we made our way for a time along 
the ridge and then descended into the valley of the Tukere which also 
ran a cour-se to the N.W. The Tukere flows into the Tupuring, and is 
se]iarated from it by the ridue over which we had just climbed. P>etween 
slender Mauriiia palms and blinding-white masses of quartz we followed 
the course of the crystal stream, the bed of which was also stored with 
quartz fragments that heve bo])be<l up above the surface, and there formed 
]ucture.s<|ue cascades an.d rapids, until we crossed it and on its western 
shore stood before a wall -like precipice, ANhose cooling- shade irresis- 
tibly invited us to take a rest. To the uortli some ß miles distant, there 
/ose the still statelier, pyramidal mass of rock, Amboina. The exclamation 
''Akui" ( snake ) and a ]ieculiar movement in the water of the stream let 
us know that it was just then being crossed by r/ snake which, judging 
from its direction, appeared to l e choosing our camp foii a landing 
place. But the hasty shouting of the Indians must have warned the crafty 
reptile of the impending danger, for it turned itself round, and although 
several Indians jumped in nftei' it, luckily made its esca]ie. Judging 
from its movements and from its back, which several times rose above 
