ACROSS UNKNOWN SOUTH AMERICA 
Punta de Cururu, with the Serra of the same name upon 
it. Once or twice the ship stopped at different sheds in 
order to take up merchandise, but we halted only long 
enough to get the cargo on board, and once more we 
proceeded gaily down stream. It was wonderful how 
one appreciated civilized ways of locomotion after travel¬ 
ling for months and months, as we had done, in the 
manner of prehistoric man. 
In the evening, while we were sitting at dinner, there 
was a big bump. We had run aground somewhat heavily 
on a sand dune. The captain rather frightened me as he 
said that on a previous occasion they had stuck on a 
sand bank for several days before they could get off. As 
luck would have it that night, partly by the aid of a steel 
cable several hundred metres long, which had been 
fastened to a number of big trees on the shore, partly by 
her own power, we were able to back out and get her free. 
Only six hours were wasted. The tide, which reaches a 
long way up the Tapajoz River when the latter is low, 
helped us a great deal. At high tide the level of the 
water is raised more than one foot. It seemed amazing 
that the tide of the ocean could extend its influence by 
forcing the water back so far up the Amazon and its 
tributaries. 
Although the steamer on which I was did not draw 
much water, being built specially for river navigation, 
careful soundings had to be taken continually. I well 
recollect the cries of the man at the lead. When the man 
cried out, “ Una brapal” (one fathom), there was great 
excitement on hoard, and we had to slow down to half 
speed or dead slow. In the distance on the left bank, in 
the haze, could be distinguished high hills, at the foot 
of which white ribbon-like streaks were visible along the 
water. 
The Barros do Tapayuna, a sand and mud bar, ex¬ 
tremely shallow, extended from the elongated island of 
330 
