ACROSS UNKNOWN SOUTH AMERICA 
ruler, and would obey nobody’s orders or instructions, 
especially from the Central Government. 
I told him that the work I had done was principally 
for the good of Brazil; that all I asked him was to help 
me to save the lives of two Brazilian citizens, and the 
maps, photographs, etc., which would be useful chiefly to 
Brazilians, whatever their political views were. I would 
gladly pay out of my own pocket, within reasonable 
bounds, all expenses in connection with the trip. If I 
had applied to him it was only because I had found it 
impossible at Manaos to charter a steam launch. 
I spread out before the Governor a map of South 
America, showing the journey I had taken from Rio de 
Janeiro to Manaos marked in red. The Governor, who 
had evidently never seen a map before, turned it upside 
down, mistook the entire map of South America for a 
map of his own province, and seemed to be under the 
impression that the Amazon had its birth close to Rio de 
Janeiro. 
A bitter enemy of all foreigners, especially English¬ 
men, the Governor was detested by everybody, and was 
at open war with the Commandante of the Federal troops 
in the town. All the money which should have been spent 
in embellishing or improving the town, was mis-spent in 
keeping a large army of police — over 2,000 men, I be¬ 
lieve — for his personal protection. 
My audience with the Governor did not last long, and 
I paid him back in his own coin. He immediately turned 
round then, with great courtesy begging me to stay and 
talk matters over, and said that he would be delighted to 
be of use to me in showing me around the city. I merely 
turned my back upon him as I would on any nonentity 
and limped out of the palace. Several messages were 
sent to me afterwards, which I treated with the contempt 
they deserved. 
As nearly all the launches in the place belonged to 
350 
