278 
A Party or Macusis Strike Camp, 
and more comforting when the former all of a sudden disappeared com- 
pletely and the broad savannah reached down to the riverside. A halt 
was now called and we quickly climbed the steep bank, not for our eyes 
to ramble over the broad expanse but only to be still more obstructed by 
the grass more than six feet high. Owing to its thick growth, and the 
still denser virgin forest near by, we could see nothing but the isolated 
Makarapan Range, probably rising from out of the immense plain, with 
its reefs and ridges just in the act of being fringed with gold in the early 
sunshine, as well as some other mountain chains towering over one 
another like terraces in the far north and east. 
794. That the calorific rays of the morning sun exerted increased 
vital activity in the plants was demonstrated to us on our return to the 
boats by the balsamic fragrance that had distributed itself through the 
whole atmosphere. In the midday hours this generally disappears 
completely. 
795. We soon afterwards passed on the right bank the mouth of the 
Taraqua (Rewa or Quitaro of the maps), one of the largest tributaries 
flowing into the Rupununi. According to the statements of the Indians 
it arises on the northern slope of the Carawaimi Range, then turns 
towards north-west through the mountain chain of the Sierra Taripona, 
now flows in a half circle round the foot of an extremely remarkable 
granite pyramid which the Indians call Ataraipu (Devil’s rock) and 
shortly afterwards joins with the Rewa that comes here from the south- 
east, whereupon they continue their combined course to the Rupununi. 
The district between the Rewa is thickly forested and quite uninhabited. 
796. We had not left the mouth far behind when suddenly an 
uncommonly lively scene presented itself before our eyes: a party of 
Macusis seemed to have just struck camp and were about to resume their 
journey up-stream in three corials. I gazed in astonishment at the 
motley crowd, and the active bustle in its heterogeneous composition, 
which formed the most faithful pendant to some gipsy encampment such 
as at the present day only Spain possesses. Red-coloured hammocks 
in which many of the worshipful house-masters were still lying at their 
ease and whence they were comfortably watching the strenuous efforts 
of the women dragging the remaining objects to the boats, were slung in 
between the green trees or else upon stakes driven into the ground. 
Over there, small boys were pulling a refractory monkey by the leg 
towards the corials: over here, a little girl was hurrying with some 
parrots in the same direction. Women with sucklings that huddled in a 
sling hung over the left shoulder, were carrying in their freed hand 
the dull and blackened kitchen-ware to the boats where ill-tempered dogs 
squatted in the bows and hoarsely barked at us. Blue columns of smoke 
from out of the ash-heaps of already burnt-down fires rose here and there 
in the calm atmosphere and spread out their capitals in between the river- 
side foliage now moistened with the morning dew. As soon as the men 
noticed us they very quickly got out of their hammocks, put on their 
lovely feather hats, came to the bank, stared at us in surprise, and called 
out “Matti,” a greeting that we heartily responded to. 
797. Just as the Indians had had their turn of staring at us, so it 
