ACROSS UNKNOWN SOUTH AMERICA 
A barrier of islands describing a crescent then stood 
before us, the largest island of that group being 800 
metres wide and several kilometres long, Belinda Island. 
I did not measure the exact length of this island, as we 
got into great trouble there in some strong rapids, and I 
had to leave my notebooks for a moment in order to assist 
poor Benedicto in baling out the water so that we could 
keep afloat. 
When our course turned to 10° bearings magnetic, we 
came into full view of a high range to the north of us 
which spread from northwest to southeast. The river had 
cut its way right through it. We reached a great basin 
again, 2,000 metres broad like its predecessor, with four 
beautiful islands abreast, and a number of other islands 
varying from 100 to 500 metres in length behind them, 
in the centre, while rocks innumerable were scattered 
about. There was a rapid once more, with a nasty suc¬ 
cession of strong whirlpools formed by the deviation of 
the swift waters encountering the many rocks. 
Beyond the rapids we got a full view of the range 
before us, which extended from 90° bearings magnetic to 
320°. We had hardly recovered from negotiating those 
eddies when we were confronted by yet another strong 
rapid, impossible to navigate, where we had to let the 
canoe down by means of ropes. 
The river here was most picturesque, in great straight 
stretches from 3,000 to 9,000 metres in length. Some 
4,000 metres farther down we came to a very bad rapid. 
My men were extremely tired of unloading and reloading 
the canoe all the time with the heavy baggage which still 
remained. They became most ill-tempered when this new 
rapid appeared before us, blaming me, as it were, for the 
rapid being there. I told them that if they did not care 
to unload all they had to do was to shoot the rapid. They 
quarrelled among themselves. When we got near it my 
men became terrified. Alcides, who was at the steering 
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