55 
R. Schomburgk^ Dr. Phil. 
Just as we were preparing our camp for tlie night we 
observed a large ant-eater {Myrmecophaga juhata, Lin.) 
stepping from the oasis in the savanna — the first mammal we 
had seen since we left Torong-Yauwise, the poor animal 
not dreaming that death was so near him. The Indians 
surrounded and killed it after a hard struggle, and its meat 
was soon broiling over the fires. 
The dawning morning found us on the road, and showed us 
an unbroken chain of toil and exertion. After ascending 
the westerly terrace-like declivity of the Makaripa for about 
200 feet, we had to descend into the valleys again. The 
deeper the gullies and valleys became the more frequent 
appeared marshes, which were fed by a number of small 
mountain rivulets which precipitated from the steep de- 
clivities. In these swamps luxuriated Limnanthus^ Schultesia^ 
Rhexiay Spinner a ^ and Commelyna, 
"We again began the -laborious work of ascending. The 
summit was covered here and there by that remarkable 
compositae the JPachydermatophijllum Scliomhvrgkiiy 0. Schultz., 
Bip., and also some gray-colored, stiff grass, which formed 
the only vegetation. Large sandstone rocks in horizontal 
layers at once forming steep v/alls, on vfhich, to our great 
surprise, we discovered rows of Indian hieroglyphic writing,, 
part of which, by atmospheric influence, was obliterated. The 
figures were mostly rough representations of the human form, 
kaimans, and snakes, in which they differed materially 
from the hieroglyphs we met with in the Liver Essequibo. 
According to the description which Alexander Humboldt 
gives of the hieroglyphs which he discovered on the granite 
rocks of the Caycara, they have been found, as yet, distributed 
over a space of at least 12,000 square miles, and. in fact over 
the basin of the large rivers Corentyn, Essequibo, Orinoko, 
and part of the Amazon. Mv brother saw them in his first 
travels in British Guiana (ascending the Corentyn) on the 
rocks of the Timeri imder 4° 37' H. latitude and 57° 45 TY. 
longitude ; and again near the great cataract under 4° 21' 30" 
N. latitude and 57° 45' 30" W. longitude. He also found 
them on the Berbice under 4° 56' N. latitude and 58° 9 W. 
longitude. This >vas also the case in his last expedition 
towards the Liver Trombetas, under 1° 27' 17. latitude and 
56° 41' W. longitude. He also discovered them on the 
Cuyuwini, which flows under 2° 16' IST. latitude into the 
Essequibo; and besides this on the Upper Essequibo, and 
