S. LOURENCO RIVER 
To the south-southeast in the distance stood a high 
mountain range, or rather a great flat-topped plateau of 
delicate, cobalt blue shades, almost losing itself in the 
sky. To the east, completing the circle, were two other 
great spurs of red-baked rock, with precipitous, almost 
vertical, sides and with much-striated buttresses that 
ended in conical mounds — eroded into that shape by the 
action of water and wind. 
To the south, beyond, a sloping tableland with a 
pronounced dip eastward extended from east to west. It 
towered over everything, and was shaped like a trapezium. 
In front of this sloping tableland was another long, flat- 
topped range, stretching from east-southeast to west- 
northwest. Again in front of this could be seen an 
interesting series of prismatic mounds, like parallel bar¬ 
riers. To the south-southwest rose a large mountainous 
mass — another plateau. Then came a second range, cut 
into clear pyramids with rectangular bases, and, beyond, 
a great expanse of lovely green with some large mounds 
of a similar shape to those already described. Two more 
pyramids were also to be observed far, far in the distance, 
while others of a slightly less angular shape were 
noticeable upon the great flat stretch due west. 
Right under us, at the bottom of the precipice, was 
thick forest covering, zigzag fashion, the two depressions, 
roughly in a general direction of southeast to northwest. 
Those two depressions drained that immense basin. It 
was there that the streamlet Caxoeirinha had its birth. 
The Caxoeirinha flowed northwest and fell into the Ponte 
de Pedra River, which flowed south. Those two streams, 
with a number of others, formed the head-waters of the 
great S. Louren^o River, a formidable tributary of the 
Rio Paraguay or Parana. 
An extraordinary effect of clouds could be seen that 
day, and a similar occurrence I saw on many other 
occasions upon the tablelands of Matto Grosso. The 
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