ACROSS UNKNOWN SOUTH AMERICA 
high stood on the left side of the stream, while a hill range 
300 feet high was now visible to the west-northwest. 
We had little time to admire the beautiful scenery, for 
we soon found ourselves upon another great barrier with 
a terrible-looking rapid. I asked my men if they pre¬ 
ferred to shoot it, as the exertion of loading and 
unloading the canoe was certainly heavy. 
“ No, no, no, no! ” they all cried in a chorus. 
We therefore unloaded the canoe, and with consider¬ 
able trouble and waste of time we led her down the rapid 
by means of ropes. Even led in that fashion with the 
greatest care, the canoe was entirely filled with water. 
Islets of rock of considerable beauty rose from the 
river on the right-hand side. As we got a little way 
farther, slightly more to the northwest, another hill range, 
perhaps a little higher than the one we had already 
observed, began to disclose itself to the northwest, on 
the right side of the river. As we advanced I further 
ascertained that the first range extended in a general 
direction from southwest to northeast. The river had 
actually eroded its way through this range. Strong 
rapids were again met with at that point, the channel 
being strewn with innumerable sharp-edged rocks, most 
unpleasant if you were to come in contact with them. 
A small islet with a picturesque spur of rock on the 
north side was here seen; then a larger island, 300 metres 
long, Evelina Island, also on the left side. The river 
flowed for 3,000 metres in a north-northwesterly direction, 
and at the end of that distance a rectangular island, 200 
metres long and 80 metres wide, Eileen Island, em¬ 
bellished it. Like most of the islands in that particular 
portion of the river it had a beautiful spur of rock on 
its eastern side, preceded by a little islet also of rock. We 
passed to the left of this island. It was separated by a 
channel 80 metres wide from another narrow island, 200 
metres to the west of it, Diana Island. 
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