218 TRAVELS ON THE RIO NEGRO. [November, 
oblige me either to halt and deliberately unhook myself, 
or leave a portion of my unlucky garment behind. The 
Indians were all naked, or, if they had a shirt or trowsers, 
carried them in a bundle on their heads, and I have no 
doubt looked upon me as a good illustration of the use- 
lessness and bad consequences of wearing clothes upon a 
forest journey. 
After four or five hours' hard walking, at a pace which 
would not have been bad upon clear level ground, we 
came to a small stream of clear water, which had its source 
in the serra to which we were going. Here we waited 
a few moments to rest and drink, while doing which we 
heard a strange rush and distant grunt in the forest. 
The Indians started up, all excitement and animation : 
“ Tyeassii \” (wild hogs) they cried, seizing their bows 
and arrov/s, tightening the strings, and grasping their 
long knives. I cocked my gun, dropped in a bullet, and 
hoped to get a shot at a porco but being afraid, if I ^ ^ 
went with them, of losing myself in the forest, I waited 
with the boys in hopes the game would pass near me. j 
After a little time we heard a rushing and fearful gnash- 
ing of teeth, which made me stand anxiously expecting 
the animals to appear ; but the sound went further off, 
and died away at length in the distance. 
The party now appeared, and said that there was a 
large herd of fine pigs, but that they had got away. 
They however directed the boys to go on with me to 
the Serra, and they would go again after the herd. We i 
went on accordingly over very rough, uneven ground, 
now climbing up steep ascents over rotting trunks of 
fallen trees, now descending into gullies, till at length 
