I?. Schomburgk^ Di\ PkiL 43 
spring ; they were the flowers of the beautiful Cassia poly- 
stachia, Benth., which appeared here as a tree, forming whole 
groves, and supplanting all other kinds of trees and shrubs. 
Giving still a backward glance to the country which we had 
passed, where the unfettered power of nature had worked in 
fierce revolution, we descended into the charming valley, 
which we reached after much fatigue over and between large 
blocks of quartz and granite, which was the more difficult 
the rocks being slippery from the heavy dev/. We turned 
towards the west to a woody oasis, watered by a small tributary 
of the River Mu37-ang, and formed by gigantic forest trees, 
beautiful palms, luxuriant Heliconias^ and ferns. Our road 
was barred by a fall of earth of about twenty feet deep, in 
which the fallen trees were lying in wild confusion, and we 
were necessitated to take a roundabout way. Leaving the 
oasis we ascended a .small hill, where v/e observed assembled 
a number of Indians, pointed out to us as Arekiinas. As 
soon as we neared them, they left the hill and descended into 
the valley ; following them, we saw before us the longed for 
Arekuna settlement. We had put our foot on the territorj^ 
of the Arekunas, one of the powerful and warlike tribes in 
British Guiana, which, it appears, used to inhabit the 
tributaries of the River Uaupes, and were described by 
Monteiro and Ribeiro as cannibals. The tribe now inhabits 
the mountains and savannas on the sources of the Rivers 
Caroni, Ciiyimi, and Mazaruni. Before we reached the 
settlement, in front of which were standing a couple of red 
figures, we had to cross a small rivulet. 
That we had been expected we easily concluded, not only 
from the scouts set, but from the careful toilet. Their whole 
body, including the hair, was painted red vuth arnatto, whilst 
the face was painted in stripes and points with caravera, a 
color made from the Bignonia Ghica, Ilumb. and Boiipl. 
The chief who was almost blind welcomed us with a long 
pathetic speech, from which we understood tlirough our in- 
terpreter that we could get neither bread nor meat, only 
some bananas, yams, and sugar-cane. 
The expression of the Arekunas is more warlike than that 
of the Macusis, their bodies more powerful and robust. Their 
skin was. also darker than that of the other tribes of Guiana. 
In the pierced septum of the nose they wore pieces or bam- 
boo about eight inches long, painted and ornamented with 
all kinds of carved work ; the earlaps were also pierced, and 
