32 TRAVELS ON THE AMAZON. \Ju7ie, 
minuteness worthy of a more extensive audience ; yet he 
was rather fond of displaying his knowledge on a subject 
of which we were in a state of the most benighted igno- 
rance, and at the same time quite willing to learn. His 
method of instruction was by a series of parenthetical 
remarks on the trees as he passed them, appearing to 
speak rather to them than to us, unless we elicited by 
questions further information. 
“ This,” he would say, “ is Ocooba, very good medi- 
cine, good for sore-throat,” which he explained by going 
through the action of gargling, and showed us that a 
watery sap issued freely on the bark being cut. The 
tree, like many others, was notched all over by the num- 
ber of patients who came for the healing juice. This,” 
said he, glancing at a magnificent tall straight tree, 
is good wood for houses, good for floors ; call it 
Quarooba.” ''This,” pointing to one of the curious 
furrowed trees that look as if a bundle of enormously 
long sticks had grown into one mass, " is wood for 
making paddles ;” and, as we did not understand this 
in Portuguese, he imitated rowing in a canoe ; the name 
of this was Pootieka. " This,” pointing to another large 
forest-tree, "is good wood for burning, to make char- 
coal ; good hard wood for everything, — makes the best 
charcoal for forges,” which he explained by intimating 
that the wood made the fire to make the iron of the axe 
he held in his hand. This tree rejoiced in the name 
of Nowara. Next came the Caripe itself, but it was a 
young tree with neither fruit nor flowers, so we had to 
content ourselves with specimens of the wood and bark 
only ; it grew on the edge of a swamp filled with splen- 
