322 
Eoul Play is Wrongly Suspected. 
the building material these structures present at the same time an un- 
commonly variegated appearance. A second species occupy rather the 
lower savannah; their “hills” are usually only 2 to 3 feet high and have 
quite the shape of a bee-hive turned upside down. 
81)3. Under a really consuming and scorching temperature of 128° 
Fahrenheit ive continued our course along gently undulating ground, 
the higher levels of which were overstrewn with quartz and granite frag- 
ments and boulders of a coarse-grained quartz conglomerate cemented 
with ferruginous clay, in between which grew the dainty Dioilia rigida 
Chmss. Schicht., and a new species of the Cissampelos , very peculiar in 
its external appearance, Avhich Dr. Klotzseh has described as subcrenata. 
Tired and exhausted, we reached Awarra village in which we made up 
our minds to spend the night, so as to gather renewed strength for the 
following morning. 'The fairly large settlement was also situate on a 
small rise. The inhabitants happened to be all in Pirara: only some old 
women and several small children, for whom the road to Pirara had been 
too laborious, remained behind. This absence was all the more agreeable 
to me because I now trusted that I would sleep undisturbed, with which 
hope in view 1 immediately threw myself into my hammock. It might 
have been somewhere about midnight when 1 was gently awakened by 
Tiedge, who had slung his bed close beside mine, whispering that he 
thought our companions seemed bent on mischief. At first I was some- 
what startled at what he told me, and raising myself in my hammock 
saw by the light of the fire, which was still burning, that my companions 
were also sitting in their hammocks, where they were closely examining 
the guns in their hands. The one took «aim with his weapon, while the 
other removed the charge and reloaded; in short they kept on practising 
both operations. This unexpected discovery seemed to me at all events 
suspicious, but on mature consideration I concluded that they could 
have no hostile intention in view because not only was the unmistakable 
good-nature and peaceability of the tribe opposed to «any such measure, 
but the proximity of so considerable a force that had their relatives, etc., 
absolutely in its power, must have made any surprise attack doubly 
dangerous. The correctness of my surmise was soon clearly establish- 
ed. The journey had naturally not tired these men, accustotned to such 
a temperature, so much as it had both of us, and to while away the time 
they had taken up and scrutinised weapons so rare and important for 
them : reassured, I lay down again in my hammock and slept until shortly 
before sunrise when we resumed our journey. Tiedge had certainly not 
been able to allay his mistrust, and candidly admitted that he had not 
closed his eyes the whole night. The narrow path still lay ever ahead of 
us in the open savannah, the rises of which were here and there occupied 
by low bushes of Myrtus, Byrsonima . Mclastoma and Hirtella , while the 
swampy plains were covered with a low growth of grass and occupied 
by glorious Mauri tia palms, elegant Poly gala, Hibiscus and Convol- 
rolus: the palms were alive with innumerable parrakeets, the swampy 
spots forming a promenade for the many Mycteriae and herons. Upon the 
rises which we crossed in the course of the day, the smooth light-brown 
bark drew my attention to several trees already before the Indians hurried 
