Enter Chief William. 
89 
306. I was still busily engaged with the unloading of our boat and 
transport of the baggage up to the village, when a given signal from 
Mr. King called me up from the bank to the settlement where, as soon 
as I reached the top, the cause of the call explained itself. Several 
Indians, led by chief William carrying in his hand the staff of office, the 
symbol of his authority, had just arrived and taken up their places in 
front of our quarters. This staff as I subsequently learned is to le 
found only among the coastal tribes standing in closer relations with 
Georgetown, the chieftain receiving it as a present from the Governor. 
After Mr. King, who at least was somewhat conversant with the Warrau 
language, had presented me, and the first salutation ceremonies <•< insist- 
ing of a shake of the hand and the exclamation “Matte”* had been con- 
cluded, the savage wished to make me understand that I was welcome, 
and then immediately changed Ihe subject to the one dearest his heart 
by asking my introducer whether we had “Sopi” (spirits) with us. As 
his readiness to help and assist particularly depended upon a satisfac- 
tory reply to this question we had to humour him : this was followed with 
the best results, for hardly had the Indians emptied their glasses than he 
sent one of them away for some drinking water. 
307. Chief William was of small thick-set stature, clothed in an old 
lorn striped shirt, while his subordinates wore but a coloured apron 
around their loins. We learnt from him that the residents of Cumaka 
had gone into the forest to build corials. When Mr. King told him that 
more strangers would be following in a few days he expressed himself 
as uncommonly glad, and assured us that they were all welcome. 
308. Our things were now for the first time subjected to the closest 
scrutiny, and question followed after question, every single one closing 
with the refrain “Have you got much spirits with you?” to which the 
sight of the barrels with salted meat and the like may have prompt- 
ed them. The fancy picture l had painted of an Indian settlement was 
certainly not realised here among these villagers whose dirt and notice- 
able but futile craving for liquor entirely corresponded with those of the 
isolated individuals whom I had already had occasion to notice in 
Georgetown. The infinite delight and pleasure that Nature had granted 
me on the one hand in a much more superabundant measure than I had 
expected, I felt doubly or trebly minimised in connection with these peo- 
ple. After satisfying his curiosity, and on his departure asking for 
another glass of spirits, the chief left us with the promise to return oh 
the following morning. 
309. The unloading and fixing up of our things were soon completed, 
the latter not robbing us of much time, it being only necessary to fol- 
low the hint unconsciously given us by the Indians in the arrangements 
of their households, and now content and self-satisfied we gazed upon 
our work. It was yet with feelings of greater hankering and gratifica- 
tion that we gazed upon that of our busy and always smiling negro, 
Hamlet, wet with perspiration, who during our labours had lighted a 
thoroughly good fire on which he had placed the requisite number of 
