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diff --git a/old/62513-0.txt b/old/62513-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 6c39d49..0000000 --- a/old/62513-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4331 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Through British Guiana to the summit of -Roraima, by Mrs. Cecil Clementi - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Through British Guiana to the summit of Roraima - -Author: Mrs. Cecil Clementi - -Release Date: June 28, 2020 [EBook #62513] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH BRITISH GUIANA TO RORAIMA *** - - - - -Produced by MFR and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - - -THROUGH BRITISH GUIANA TO THE SUMMIT OF RORAIMA - - - - -[Illustration: KAIETUK FALL. - -Frontispiece.] - - - - - THROUGH BRITISH - GUIANA TO THE - SUMMIT OF RORAIMA - - BY - MRS. CECIL CLEMENTI, M.B.E. - - WITH FOURTEEN ILLUSTRATIONS AND A MAP - - E. P. DUTTON AND COMPANY - 681 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK - - _Printed in Great Britain_ - - _All rights reserved_ - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. THE DEMERARA RIVER 11 - - II. THE ESSEQUEBO RIVER 29 - - III. THE POTARO DISTRICT 47 - - IV. THE POTARO GORGE 59 - - V. KAIETUK, MOTHER OF MISTS 71 - - VI. THE ASCENT TO THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS 89 - - VII. THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS OF BRITISH GUIANA 119 - - VIII. A CORNER OF BRAZIL 149 - - IX. THE VENEZUELAN APPROACH TO RORAIMA 183 - - X. RORAIMA, FATHER OF STREAMS 199 - - XI. THE RETURN JOURNEY 217 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - KAIETUK FALL _Frontispiece_ - - FACING PAGE - - THE DEMERARA RIVER: VIEW FROM THREE FRIENDS’ MINE ACROSS TO AKYMA 24 - - WATERSMEET OF COMMINGLED CUYUNI AND MAZARUNI RIVERS WITH ESSEQUEBO 31 - - MOUNT SAKWAI ON POTARO RIVER NEAR TUKEIT 62 - - WATERSMEET OF POTARO AND AMUK RIVERS AT AMATUK, SHOWING MOUNT - KENAIMA ON RIGHT AND MOUNT KUKUI IN CENTRE ABOVE RIVER-MIST 62 - - POTARO GORGE FROM KAIETUK 78 - - BARAMAKU SAVANNAH 113 - - MOUNT KOWATIPU FROM THE KARTO TABLELAND 128 - - WARATUK RAPIDS 172 - - OPAMAPÖ WATERFALL 172 - - FORDING THE KOTINGA RIVER 174 - - THE SOUTH-WEST FACE OF MOUNT RORAIMA, SHOWING THE TÖWASHING - PINNACLE 186 - - CAMP ON MOUNT RORAIMA 208 - - MOUNT WEITIPU FROM THE LEFT BANK OF THE KOTINGA RIVER 225 - - MAP OF ROUTE FROM HOLMIA TO MOUNT RORAIMA _at end_ - - - - -THROUGH BRITISH GUIANA TO THE SUMMIT OF RORAIMA - - - - -THE DEMERARA RIVER - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE DEMERARA RIVER - - Men travel far to see a city, but few seem curious about a - river. Every river has, nevertheless, its individuality, its - great silent interest. Every river has, moreover, its influence - over the people who pass their lives within sight of its - waters.—H. S. MERRIMAN: _The Sowers_, chap. ii. - - -British Guiana, as first seen from the shoal-water near the Demerara -lightship, is a mournful and monotonous picture. Mud flats, fringed with -courida and mangrove, stretch endlessly along the shore. Never a hill -is to be seen. The coastal flats are four feet below the level of high -spring tides, and the Atlantic slops over the sea dams in yellow waves -of muddy water. The wide expanses of rich sugar-fields and smiling rice -lands begin about a mile from the seaside and stretch “aback” to the “wet -savannahs,” by means of which they are irrigated. These wet savannahs -are vast natural swamps converted artificially into shallow lakes by -“stopping off” their seaward outlets. South of them spreads “the bush,” -that great primeval forest so hostile to man, but sheltering in its -mysterious recesses a million varieties of insects, a multitude of beasts -and reptiles, and a wealth of bird life unequalled, perhaps, in any other -part of the world. - -Little, however, does the average colonist or the chance visitor to -British Guiana see of the wonder and beauty of South America. The forest -builds an impenetrable barrier, keeping him a close prisoner upon seaside -mud flats, which are in the main a dreary waste of uncultivated land. -Lack of labour renders it impossible for more than a small fraction -even of the coastal fringe to be made to yield its increase. A land the -size of England, Scotland, and Wales combined; a population equal to -that of Hertfordshire, and a cultivated area less than one-fifth the -size of Kent; a land for the greater part unknown and unsurveyed, whose -only roads extend along the seaboard and for a few miles up the banks -of its main rivers—such is British Guiana, ever since the close of the -Napoleonic Wars a possession of the British Crown, the only one in South -America, and rich in unexplored possibilities. - -But the colonists of British Guiana have never made any serious attempt -to investigate the interior of their heritage. Their revenue has always -been spent upon coastal development; and a conviction exists that the -interior is not only a death-trap, but also a wilderness of useless -jungle and sandy deserts. Many attempts were made to dissuade me from -venturing into it with my husband, and I was assured that I was risking -my health—nay, my life. But the call of the wild was too strong, and I -shall always be glad that I decided to go; for the fact that a woman has -traversed these forests and the highland prairies beyond during many -strenuous weeks and came back with health and vigour renewed may perhaps -dispel the legends accumulated about the horrors of “the bush,” and -induce people to investigate for themselves the charms and opportunities -of this neglected land, or at least to travel with us in spirit into -those great expanses of sleeping Nature which await the day of man’s -occupation. British Guiana lies, like the princess of the fairy-tale, in -an enchanted sleep. One day, surely, the fairy prince will come, mounted -upon an iron horse, and bid her awake! - -Two long years my husband and I lived continuously in Georgetown, at -the mouth of the Demerara River. Then, exhausted in mind and body by -the enervating atmosphere and dismal monotony of a tropical coast, near -the equator and below sea-level, we decided to spend a brief holiday in -exploring a part of the Colony’s interior hitherto blank upon the map, -hoping to find there some of that strength which cometh from the hills. -A journey up cataract-barred rivers and through primeval forests by -Indian trails was in itself an attractive prospect; but we had a still -more potent lure. On the 21st March, 1914, my husband had spent a day -at the Kaietuk Fall, and had gazed from the brink of the great chasm -into which the Potaro River there plunges, up its dreamy reaches towards -the forest-clad ridges that stand above the Arnik creek and away to -the towering, cliff-faced mass of Mount Kowatipu. It was then that he -resolved to visit some day the wonders which Nature might hold in the -forests and savannahs farther to the west and the south-west, and perhaps -even to make his way to that famous Mount Roraima, of which the residents -in British Guiana hear so much and see so little. Then, in October, -1915, he made the acquaintance of Mr. J. C. Menzies, whose occupation -as a diamond and gold prospector had carried him into distant parts of -our Colony’s interior. Mr. Menzies’ account of prairie tablelands at -high altitudes, to be reached by travelling a few days beyond Kaietuk, -and affording a view of Mount Roraima, where the boundaries of British -Guiana, Brazil, and Venezuela meet, and whence streams flow to the -Amazon, Orinoco, and Essequebo, determined us to attempt the journey -across those tablelands to that mountain of mystery. During the previous -seven years Mr. Menzies had frequently traversed the little-known and -unsurveyed part of the Colony that lies between the Potaro River and our -frontier with Brazil, and he had been greatly struck by the opportunities -for cattle-ranching afforded on its highland savannahs. He had, moreover, -bought and driven cattle from Brazil over the Ireng River into British -territory, where they wander freely under the nominal guardianship of -a tribe of Makusi Indians. He was therefore well qualified to make the -preliminary arrangements for the expedition which we had in mind, and he -very kindly agreed to place his experience unreservedly at our disposal -and to accompany us. His knowledge of our proposed route did not extend -beyond the Colony’s boundaries; but he felt sure that an Indian guide -could be found in one of the villages near the Ireng, who would be able -to lead us on to the goal of our hopes, Mount Roraima. - -We started on the 20th December, 1915, our first stage being by steamer -from Georgetown to Wismar, a small settlement sixty miles up the Demerara -River. The journey takes eight hours, and the scenery is not interesting. -For the most part the land on both sides is absolutely flat and screened -from the traveller by a dense fringe of jungle growth. Not that the -river-banks are entirely unoccupied; tenements and farms are dotted along -each bank for miles after the tall chimneys of the sugar factories are -left behind. Indeed, between Georgetown and Wismar there remains hardly -an acre of Crown land by the river-side, and the titles of some estates -date back to the year 1746, when the Dutch still ruled in Demerara. But -a former Governor of the Colony decreed that a belt, several yards wide, -should be reserved along the façade of all riverine grants, so that -his successors might be free, if so disposed, to make roads or build -wharfs on the river-bank. This untenanted strip of land was, of course, -rapidly overgrown with jungle, and the dense _mokka-mokka_ which grows -at the water’s edge makes a forbidding-looking fringe to the Demerara’s -yellow tide. This plant, a member of the arum family, is said to offer -an excellent paper-making material. It grows sometimes just above the -surface of the water, and sometimes reaches a height of thirty feet -or so, forming a happy sanctuary for birds of many kinds. Their nests -among the broad leaves, that clothe the thick stems rising straight out -of the water, are secure from snakes and such-like enemies. Once I saw -a tiny humming-bird, a veritable jewel of colour, seated on her minute -nest, regarding us trustfully as we paddled by. This was not, indeed, -on the banks of the Demerara, but during an expedition to one of the -wet-savannah conservancies already mentioned. She sat on her airy throne, -perched in the fork of a low _mokka-mokka_ stem, a few feet above the -wind-swayed rushes and broad lily leaves which cover the wide expanses on -each side of the water-paths, kept clear for boats. As we sat in our low -corial, her background was blue sky, and a prettier sight can scarcely be -imagined. - -The Demerara River has several large creeks, navigable by corials or even -motor-boats for many miles, but their mouths, screened by _mokka-mokka_ -plant, are mostly impossible to distinguish from the deck of a river -steamer. The only one of these streams I have explored is the Kamuni -creek, which my husband and I once visited in order to see the now almost -deserted Chinese settlement of Hopetown. Strange that such lonely jungle -should ever have had attractions for Chinese settlers! Everywhere broods -the heavy silence of the tropical “bush,” broken now and then by the whir -of a beetle or the cry of a bird swooping across the creek; nor does -this forest afford any variations of colour save in the intense green -of the overarching foliage, reflected leaf for leaf in the still, black -water. Now and then some glorious orchid decorates a decaying tree-trunk, -or the blossoms of some brilliant flowering creeper, fallen from the -distant tree-tops, float down the stream. Here and there a splendid blue -butterfly flits into the sunshine, and an occasional splash betrays an -alligator subsiding into a dark pool. - -The Hopetown Settlement, which was once a flourishing village engaged -chiefly in charcoal-burning, now consists only of a few hovels, thatched -with troolie palm, and of some ill-kept rice-fields, the one redeeming -feature being a nice wooden church. When we went in, there were flowers -on the altar, and a pair of Cantonese vases, which must wonder how they -got there. An aged Chinese catechist conducted the service, and a priest -visits the place at rare intervals. - -The people, I remember, welcomed us gladly, and were delighted to -hear a few words in Cantonese spoken by my husband. The whole village -accompanied us as we walked along the dam, which serves it both as a main -road and as a safeguard against inundation. We visited the “cultivation,” -but there was nothing satisfactory to be seen. A few miserable plantains, -a few poor cacao-bushes, untended and uncared for, was all we could -observe. A paddy-field, to which we were led, was merely a rough clearing -in the bush, the trees having been cut down, but the stumps left -standing, and no attempt was made to irrigate or drain. There had been -no manuring, nor, indeed, was there any sign of tillage. The sight was a -sad one to eyes accustomed to the smiling, carefully tended rice-fields -of China, with their neatly dammed divisions for conserving water, fields -from which the laborious Cantonese, by unceasing toil, reap their annual -reward of two rice harvests and one crop of “dry cultivation.” The -Hopetown settlers told us that they could only raise a rice crop from a -given area once in five years; but with care the land could, of course, -be made productive. The settlement possessed no animals; not even the -pig, so universal in China, was to be seen. In fact, the people evidently -lacked energy to make an effort to improve their condition. Most young -Chinese, desirous of better things, have doubtless discovered that by -going to Georgetown they can with thrift, industry, and the business -instincts of their race, find more promising openings for making a -livelihood, in trade or otherwise, than Hopetown offers. Hence only the -aged, the feeble, or the indolent, remain in the settlement; and Hopetown -no longer answers to its name, for little hope of its future is now left. - -The Chinese, however, came late in the story of the Demerara. Only Caribs -lived there in 1598, when the river was first made known to Europe by the -report of two Dutch ships that had cruised along the coast of Guiana, but -had not traded in the “Demirara,” because they were pressed for time, and -because the Caribs informed them that “not much was to be found there,” -and also, perhaps, chiefly “because their provisions were growing scant.” -In those days, maybe, there was a numerous Carib population hereabouts; -but the inhabitants are now a curious medley, almost amphibious, for -once the sugar estates are passed the river is their only road, and the -smallest child navigates his corial. The census of 1911 records that -only 8,101 people were in that year inhabiting the Demerara. Of these, -2,983 were blacks; 1,756 were East Indians; 1,741 were of mixed race; -124 were Chinese; 178 were Portuguese; and 48 were Europeans other than -Portuguese. Only 1,229—say 15 per cent. of the whole—were aborigines. -There is the history of British Guiana in a nutshell! A ceaseless -struggle to people from overseas an empty land! The Portuguese came from -Madeira. The blacks are descended from negro slaves brought here from -Africa by the Dutch West India Company. No black slaves were ever brought -to Demerara under British rule; for the slave trade was abolished by -Parliament in 1807, and this Colony did not become definitely British -until seven years later. The East Indians have all been introduced as -indentured labourers under a system of immigration which began in 1845 -and ended in 1917. They hail chiefly from Bengal and Madras. The Chinese -also came here under indenture, as the result of a scheme of immigration, -from Hong-Kong, Canton, and Amoy, which lasted from 1853 intermittently -until 1874, and was then discontinued. - -On the whole, the Lower Demerara is distinctly monotonous and void of -interest, but shortly below Wismar there are hints of better things. The -river, which at Georgetown is a mile wide, narrows considerably; the -banks rise on either side, crowned by big forest-trees, telling of their -mighty brethren in the far interior, and greenheart logs lie steeping in -the river, waiting to be shipped. They cannot be drifted downstream in -the usual fashion, as greenheart is heavier than water and does not float. - -Moreover, the river-water, previously an opaque yellow from the influx -of the tides that wash seas of mud along the British Guiana coasts, now -changes to the beautiful black “bush-water,” which, coming from the -forest depths, is darkly stained by vegetable matter held in suspension. -Sometimes it has a reddish tinge, and then again turns amber-coloured, -especially over sandy shallows. It makes a wonderful mirror for sky, -cloud, and tree, reflected in its sleeping depths; and it is quite safe -and pleasant to drink, when boiled. - -The township of Wismar on the Demerara River is the terminal point of -the small piece of railway built in 1896 by Sprostons Limited to cross -the divide, here less than nineteen miles wide, between the Demerara and -Essequebo Rivers. Close to the railway-station, alongside which is a -steamer wharf, cluster the police-station, post office, magistracy, and -a few shops. The train is a little toy affair, very dirty; the engine -burns wood fuel, and the sparks which fly from its funnel give as fine -a display of fireworks after nightfall as one could wish to see. They -are, however, somewhat dangerous. A case in point was the occasion when -Princess Marie-Louise travelled over the line in 1914. The train had been -specially decorated in her honour; but it had not proceeded more than -half a mile from Wismar before the sparks set all the decorations on -fire, and a halt was necessary in order to divest the passenger-coaches -of all combustible embellishments. - -Crossing the divide by motor-trolley is quite an agreeable experience, -especially in the cool of the evening, and the line is seen to better -advantage. The scenery, however, is disappointing. On the Essequebo side -of the water-parting, Sprostons have considerable timber-cutting grants, -to which they run branch lines. But near the main line all big trees have -long ago been cut down, and some years ago a terrible forest fire swept -down the divide, leaving behind it a desolation of stark and charred -tree-trunks, unlovely to look at. The soil is a white sand, dazzling in -the equatorial sunlight. - -Just above Wismar the Demerara Bauxite Company has begun mining -operations, and it is very interesting to visit the Company’s settlements -at Fair’s Rust and Akyma. Fair’s Rust is a mile above Wismar and can -be reached by ocean-going steamers, but the principal bauxite mines, -or rather quarries, are twelve miles farther up, where the low hills -consist of almost solid pink-coloured ore, once the overburden has been -removed. The Company pays great attention to the health of its employés: -good houses are built; bush is cleared away, and drainage and sanitation -carefully contrived. - -[Illustration: THE DEMERARA RIVER: VIEW FROM THREE FRIENDS’ MINE ACROSS -TO AKYMA. - -To face page 24.] - -A very pleasant way of accomplishing the journey to Wismar is to travel -as a guest of the Company in one of its comfortable motor-boats, starting -from Georgetown at about tea-time and following the silvery pathway of -the river, aglow in the setting sun; to anchor in the starlight and sleep -in the grateful coolness and velvet silence of the river night; to get -under way again in the dawn, and to reach the settlement at Akyma before -the full heat of the day. Especially is this delightful when such a -journey is but the first stage on towards all the glories of mountain and -river which lie awaiting those who venture to explore the wonders of an -unknown land. - - - - -THE ESSEQUEBO RIVER - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ESSEQUEBO RIVER - - Vainly does each, as he glides, - Fable and dream - Of the lands which the River of Time - Had left ere he woke on its breast, - Or shall reach when his eyes have been closed. - Only the tract where he sails - He wots of; only the thoughts, - Raised by the objects he passes, are his. - - MATTHEW ARNOLD: _The Future_. - - -The problem of improving the Colony’s lines of communication into the -interior may be said to be the problem of circumventing the Essequebo -River. For instance, it is the Essequebo and its tributary the Rupununi -which ought to form a natural highway across British Guiana to Brazil. -But the cattle-track, just opened to Georgetown from the Colony’s lowland -savannahs near the Brazilian border, studiously avoids the Essequebo, -which it touches only at Kurupukari, there crossing the river and leaving -it for good. Again, the Essequebo and its tributary the Cuyuni should -form the main avenue of approach from British Guiana to Ciudad Bolivar -on the Orinoco, in the heart of Venezuela. But it is very likely that, -when the time comes for linking this Colony to Venezuela by road or -railway, the line will but touch the Essequebo to bridge its estuary, -and then make across country to the Tumeremo savannahs. Similarly, the -problem of reaching Kaietuk and the highland savannahs of British Guiana -has now become the problem of avoiding the Essequebo. - -It is a tantalizing river. Twelve miles wide at its mouth; two miles wide -at Bartika, where the commingled Cuyuni and Mazaruni join it; and still -fully the same width at Rockstone, where the Demerara-Essequebo Railway -strikes it—nevertheless, its innumerable cataracts and rapids make it -a snare and an illusion to the navigator. In fact, the _raison d’être_ -of the Demerara-Essequebo Railway is to short-circuit the extremely -dangerous series of cataracts between Rockstone and Bartika, in which -many lives have been lost. By crossing the low divide between the two -rivers, the traveller reaches the Essequebo at Rockstone, well above -these dangers. He then has a navigable stretch of sixty miles before him -to Tumutumari. - -[Illustration: WATERSMEET OF COMMINGLED CUYUNI AND MAZARUNI RIVERS WITH -ESSEQUEBO. - -To face page 31.] - -This short-circuit, however, misses some interesting country. At Bartika, -thirty miles below Rockstone, the commingled Cuyuni and Mazaruni Rivers -flow into the Essequebo, and very beautiful is the watersmeet of the -three stately streams. On one hand, the shining waters of the Cuyuni -invite one, as the morning mists roll away, to follow its gleaming track -to Venezuela; whilst, on the other, Mazaruni, “black water,” as its -Indian name implies, though flecked with spume from its dread cataracts, -has lured on many a diamond-seeker to the very shadow of Roraima’s -unscalable precipices. - -Amid the mingling Mazaruni and Cuyuni, with a clear view down to the -Essequebo, lies Kyk-over-all, a tiny island, where the earliest Dutch -settlers lived in a fort, whose picturesque ruins still remain. These -hardy pioneers established themselves here as early as the opening years -of the seventeenth century, and traded with the Indians chiefly in anatto -dye. To “see over all” was indeed a necessity for that tiny handful of -white men, whose sole connection with Europe, civilization, and succour -was but one solitary ship in a year! The Dutch also established a -settlement at Kartabo, a bamboo-crowned point on the nearest mainland, -about half a mile away, whence a speedy flight to the fort could be made -in case of danger descried. Kartabo Point lies exactly between Mazaruni -and Cuyuni, and here the New York Zoological Society hopes to establish -a permanent research station under Dr. William Beebe, who considers the -neighbourhood a paradise from the naturalist’s point of view. - -Within sight, a few miles downstream, His Majesty’s Penal Settlement -affords to the convicts all that Nature can offer to cheer their toil! -There is naturally no stone in the silted mud flat on which lies the -inhabited part of British Guiana; but the excellent granite of which the -hills near the Settlement are composed forms the quarry whence all the -stone used on the coast has been obtained. Convict labour has also built -a dry-dock adjacent to the prison. - -I have never been beyond Kartabo on the Mazaruni, but I remember a -delightful expedition up the Cuyuni to Matope. We started from the Penal -Settlement in the delicious freshness of the early morning, and were -carried by the big prison launch to the foot of the Camaria rapids, -where there is a road-portage of three miles. “Jack” and “Jill,” two -panting Ford lorries, conveyed us with many bumps and jerks over the -uneven, hilly road. A prison gang was out “improving” the road-surface -by shovelling loose sand into the ruts. Their work looked very nice, -and certainly had not exhausted or overheated the dusky road-menders; -but poor “Jack” and “Jill” found sand-filled ruts more than they could -bear and constantly stuck fast, whilst their boiling radiators protested -noisily with spurts of angry steam, and “all man” found assisting them -out again distinctly more strenuous than road-mending. Next I have -memories of a long, lazy afternoon, when, embarked once more, we puffed -and panted slowly upstream from Camaria, or else drifted in lazy silence -on the bosom of the big sleepy river, whilst our out-board motor refused -to function. The delightful blue hills on each bank of the Cuyuni seemed -shouldering each other aside to catch a glimpse of the unaccustomed life; -and the exquisite peace made me wish “ever to seem falling asleep in a -half-dream,” until the diabolical spitting and puffing reasserted itself -and restored me to reality again. - -We managed to reach Matope before dusk in spite of many breakdowns. Here, -amid tree-crowned rocks, the river swirls down in fifteen separate -cataracts; and, in the days of Wenamu and Pigeon Island gold booms, -Matope rest-house, post office, and bond-store were established on the -two most accessible islets, and a launch service plied thither. We were -joyously greeted by the black officer in charge of the station, who -proudly displayed to us the attractions of his lonely little domain and -ferried us in the gathering dusk—for twilight is, alas! unknown in the -tropics—across to the rest-house island, a most enchanting spot. Here, -after the bustle of disembarkation and the long, hot day, a bathe in the -cool, soft river water, like cream to the skin, was delightful indeed, -though it had to be accompanied by a furious splashing to frighten the -_pirai_, an unpleasant flesh-eating fish that nips off the fingers -and toes of the unwary ere they know it. Then, lulled by the musical -roar of the cataracts, we slept soundly until, at 3 a.m., the “howling -baboons” howled. To anyone who has never heard these creatures it is -perhaps impossible to convey any idea of this marvellous sound. The South -American baboons have howling bones in their throats, and at a distance -of some miles their “howl” sounds merely like a storm-wind soughing -through distant tree-tops; but, when they are close at hand, the whole -air is alive with the din, so that you cannot tell from which direction -it proceeds. Every nerve in your body tingles, and there is a curious -fascination in the great volume of sound, which used to remind me dimly -of the boom of the big temple-bell through the cryptomeria groves of -far-distant Japan. - -Near Matope, on a hill-shoulder on the right bank of the river, stand -the ruins of the house in which the government gold officer of the -district used to live in the days of the big gold rushes. He must have -had a charming abode. We explored remains of a lovely garden terraced -in the hill-side. Beautiful clumps of feathery bamboo framed delicious -views of sky, river, and forest, adream in the golden sunlight; whilst -bougainvillea, oleander, and petrea made the foreground a riot of -colour. But Nature in tropical climates pursues her task of blotting -out the works of man with surprising swiftness. The house, a wooden -structure of the usual Creole type, had fallen to pieces inside under the -influence of wood-ants, and its three stories were filled with a glorious -alamander-bush, thrusting its golden blossoms everywhere, filling all -the deserted space, and forcing its way out over the roof. - -Doubtless one day in the far-distant future these lovely reaches of -river will be colonized. Plantations of limes, coffee, and rubber will -replace the all-enveloping forests, and managers’ houses will crown the -little hills. Although so close to the equator, the sun in British Guiana -has little of its eastern fierceness and the climate is wonderfully -healthy, if elementary principles of hygiene and sanitation are observed. -Once away from the mosquito-ridden coastal swamps, our experience has -always been that we can expose and exert ourselves in a way that would -be impossible in the East, and I believe that on these inviting hills -white men, with wives and children, could live in health and comfort. -Communications are needed; motor-roads to run through the forest -connecting the settler with civilization and his neighbours. One pioneer, -Mr. G. B. Withers, has cleared and planted with rubber the hills on the -Mazaruni opposite the Penal Settlement, and has constructed a motor-road -through the forest to connect his estate with the Agatash Lime Plantation -on the Essequebo above Bartika. No metalling was necessary, since the -forest floor, once cleared of stumps, makes an admirable surface. All the -big forest trees have been left standing, only the “under-bush” being -removed, for shade thus prevents the swift upspringing of vegetable -growth which would occur in any place exposed to the direct rays of the -tropical sun. Cool even at midday, with hats and helmets removed to enjoy -the delicious shade, to drive along these cleverly-aligned gradients is a -treat indeed; and one dreams of the transformation which might be wrought -by motor transport in this unopened land. - -But the day of motor-roads into the interior has not yet come, and we -reached Rockstone on our journey to Roraima by railway from Wismar. -At Rockstone the great width of the Essequebo is disguised, as almost -everywhere else, by islands; for immediately opposite the railway -terminus is Gluck Island, fully seven miles long, in whose marshy -jungle the Victoria Regia lily was originally found. Apart from the -railway-station, the only other building there is a pleasant little -bungalow hotel, in which we spent the night. The full moon over the -Essequebo was very pretty. - -We started upstream from Rockstone at 6.30 a.m. on the 21st December, -1915, and arranged ourselves for a long day’s occupation of the _Ark_, -a primitive sort of house-boat, towed alongside the motor-launch which -plies regularly, when the state of the river permits, between Rockstone -and Tumatumari. The launch was a terribly noisy affair, and even in the -dignified seclusion of our _Ark_ we could not hear ourselves speak. -However, once comfortably established in hammocks, we could lose -ourselves in our books. One of the most important parts of an outfit for -a bush journey, and certainly one that requires very careful thought, -is the choice of one’s library; for who would dream of starting, like -Musset’s _Ninon_, “en voyage sans livre”? You want, first of all, books -that contain a good deal of reading matter in them, so that you may not -run through the pages too quickly; and the more they afford of piquant -contrast to the surroundings you are likely to encounter, the better; -whilst an enduring charm will be thrown for you over any favourite work -which has accompanied you across hill and dale and cheered hours of -weary waiting in the rain, or of provoking delays on the part of the -food commissariat. Sir George Trevelyan’s _Life and Letters_ of that -most delightful of men, Lord Macaulay, Macaulay’s Essays, _Kim_ and -_Vanity Fair_, have all acquired for me a peculiar and indescribable -flavour, since this or that passage recalls some incident of travel or -lazy hammock hours in river and forest, when, as supper was a-preparing -or the pit-pat of rain beat on our tent-roof, I lay luxuriating in the -delightfulness of freshly-donned, dry footgear and in the anticipation of -“pigtail soup.” - -The Essequebo was unusually low on this occasion, and the silver -sand-reefs jutted out of the water like bones. At midday we were stopped -by the Kopano sands, which forbade further progress. Here we waited a -long three hours for a smaller launch, the _Nelly_, which was expected -downstream from Tumatumari to discharge her crowd of “balata-bleeders” -and “pork-knockers” into our bigger launch for their return journey _via_ -Rockstone to the joys of a Christmas in civilization. We found the time -long, in spite of lunch, Lord Macaulay, and the view of a flat-topped -hill known as the Arosaro Mountain, a welcome sight to eyes that had -scarcely seen any rising ground for two years. It is a low forest-clad -hill with a flat top and cliff-edges, the first sounding of the Roraima -_leit-motif_. We were, however, anxious to reach Tumatumari that night, -for we knew that the _Ark_ must be left behind with the big launch, while -the tarpaulins and camp gear, that would have made a bivouac on the -river-bank tolerable, had preceded us by some days with our stores. At 3 -p.m. we welcomed the sight of a puff of dark smoke on the wide stretch -of smooth, still water before us; but it was close on 4 p.m. before our -transhipment was complete and our fate committed to the launch _Nelly_. -She was quite unspeakable—filthy dirty, with a shocking vibration—but -we were thankful enough when she did vibrate, for the hateful little -thing constantly broke down and floated helplessly on the vast expanse -of desolate water, as we anxiously scanned the lingering daylight, the -while an unhappy son of Ham wrestled in vain with his engine. My husband -managed to sling a hammock for me inside the launch, and that was a great -comfort; but the noise was excruciating. The coxswain, a nice fellow -called Lekha, half East Indian and half black, said his orders were to -get us through, if possible, but that Crabbu Falls could not be run in -the dark. As he spoke, the vixenish launch broke down again, and required -half an hour’s patching up. A little later the engines stopped once more -for a quarter of an hour. We felt rather miserable, as a more comfortless -place in which to spend the night than that abominable little _Nelly_ -could hardly be imagined, and no food was available, save tea and the -remains of a cake, with some slabs of chocolate which I fortunately had -handy; so we were now pretty hungry. By 6.30 p.m. it was dark. Rich, -fresh, sweet scents were wafted to us from the banks; but, though the -moon rose beautifully at 7 p.m., she hid her fickle light soon afterwards -behind a cloud-bank. However, our cox was a real good fellow. By help of -a very feeble light from the dimmed moon, he got us safely through Tigri -Rapids—a tortuous race between rocks—and at about 8.30 p.m. we got to -the foot of Crabbu Falls. Here another launch, the _Potaro_, was waiting -to help us up the rapid, and the blazing crude oil of her engines made -the night a weird _inferno_ of noise and glare. She was lying near a -sandy spit; and, when _Nelly_ got alongside her, we managed to push out a -plank, scrambled ashore, and strolled about to stretch our cramped limbs. -There was a banaboo of Patamona Indians near by, whose inhabitants came -out silently to watch at a safe distance our strange proceedings. The -flickering light of the burning oil lit up their dusky figures uncannily. - -At length the moon, which was full, cleared somewhat, and Lekha decided -to risk the attempt of climbing the rapid. _Nelly_ and _Potaro_ were -lashed side by side and, steaming together, were to surmount the rapid. -But the first attempt failed. We steamed up, gaining ground inch by -inch, till, just as we were at the crest of the rapid, _Nelly’s_ engines -stopped again, and we had to slide back. Next time, however, _Potaro_ -made the attempt towing _Nelly_ as dead-weight, and just did it. Lekha -then said that _Potaro_ drew too much water to continue safely upstream, -as she might hit on a sand-bank. But I declared that I would prefer -any fate to that of returning to _Nelly_; and Lekha, who was really a -sportsman, agreed to transfer our few belongings to the bigger launch -and take us on. Two miles above Crabbu Falls we entered the mouth of -the Potaro River, and puffed our hesitating way over its black course, -the moon having disappeared again as soon as she had seen us safely -surmount the rapid. Darkness, of course, hid from us the lovely view of -blue mountain ranges, which we have subsequently seen from Potaro mouth, -hills which verily looked to us the “delectable mountains.” We reached -Tumatumari, ten miles up the Potaro, shortly before midnight, as tired as -dinnerless folk well could be; but that was the only really unpleasant -day of all our forty days in the wilderness. - -Such an experience naturally prompts the question: Is there no better way -of getting from Georgetown to the Potaro? Cannot this section also of the -Essequebo be circumvented? Yes, a better way has been found, but it has -not yet been made available for public use. There already exist eighteen -and a half miles of railway from Vreed-en-hoop, on the Demerara River, -opposite Georgetown, to Parika, on the Essequebo estuary. There also -exists a much-neglected road, 67 miles long, built years ago by prison -labour, from Bartika to the Kaburi gold-fields. It is now proposed to -extend the railway for a distance of some thirty-four miles from Parika -to a point opposite Bartika; and the trace has also been cut of a road -extension from Kaburi to a place known as Garraway’s Landing, on the -Potaro. The total distance from Bartika to Garraway’s Landing would be -about a hundred miles; and, if this route were made available for motor -traffic, it would be possible with suitable arrangements to make the -journey by train from Georgetown to Bartika and onwards by motor-car from -Bartika to the Potaro River in a single day between sunrise and sunset. -Such a line of communication would be a boon to the colonists both at -Bartika and on the Potaro River, besides being a great step towards -bringing the Kaietuk plateau within reach; and I hope the day may not be -far distant when its construction will be taken in hand. - - - - -THE POTARO DISTRICT - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE POTARO DISTRICT - - Quid non mortalia pectora cogis, - Auri sacra fames? - - VIRGIL: _Æneid_, iii. 56. - - -Tumatumari is a formidable cataract with rocky islands amidst its -swirling rush of waters. The name is said to mean “as hot as pepper.” -All river traffic, whether upstream or downstream, is stopped by this -obstacle, and a portage between the lower and the upper landing must -be made over about half a mile of good cart-road. On the right bank -stands a nice wooden bungalow, belonging to Sprostons, built on a bluff -overlooking the river. There are also several other houses, including a -land office, a police-station and a post office, in this little outpost; -and many “bucks,” as the aborigines are called in local parlance, live -in the neighbourhood. From a point just above the cataract Sprostons -run a launch service for another ten miles upstream past Garraway’s -Landing to a place known as Potaro Landing, and there all public service -ends. Potaro Landing is the northern terminus of a cart-road, about -twenty-three miles long, running between the Potaro and Konawaruk Rivers -and serving the Minnehaha Gold Mining Company’s settlement. It runs as a -sort of Nile through a desert of dense forest. - -Great is the energy of the white man! In lands where all Nature cries to -him, “Be still; do not exert yourself; keep a dry skin!” and where she -relentlessly obliterates with importunate veils of quick-springing jungle -all traces of his efforts, if ever he suspends them, he nevertheless -pursues his way, dragging his machinery, and defying the mosquito! But -in British Guiana he is hopelessly handicapped by want of labour. What -can he do, if he cannot command the hands effectually to conquer the -wilderness, to roll back the jungle, to plant and tend and reap? - -The road up from the river-side at Potaro Landing is wide, but -excessively bad. It begins by climbing up a hill of loose sand, in which -the heated wayfarer toils along ankle-deep, save where a very rough -corduroy of timber changes the form of his penance. Even the fortunate -occupant of a dogcart is little better off, for the jarring to one’s -spine as the wheels jolt from log to log is almost more than body and -bones can endure. After the first seven miles the road-surface changes -and becomes ironstone gravel, good enough to permit motor traffic, -provided one does not set too much store by the springs of the car. From -the road there are interesting glimpses of the black cliffs of Eagle -Mountain and another range of grim precipices, frowning like prison -walls on either hand. The valley, thus shut in, is intensely hot. The -soil is fertile, and limes especially thrive, though all cultivation -is precarious, when established on an oasis, amid the jungle, and thus -woefully exposed to the depredations of birds and cushie ants. These ants -frequently clear a patch of cultivation in a single night of every blade -of greenstuff. - -When, in 1917, we visited the hospitable manager of the Minnehaha Company -at his house, situated near the tenth milestone of the road, there was -a big dredge at work washing gold in Mahdia creek at “Nine Miles,” and -another was in process of being shifted from “Fifteen Miles” to a point -lower down the Minnehaha creek, near the twentieth mile-post. The Company -also maintains a comfortable and picturesque bungalow at “Eighteen -Miles.” Near the fifteenth mile you cross the divide between the Potaro -and Konawaruk Rivers, and the road then runs along the banks of the -Minnehaha creek. This once was a picturesque stream, but the washing -for gold has discoloured it and altered its course. A track branches -off from “Fifteen Miles” and runs up into the Eagle Mountain, where -quartz-mining operations had just been begun when war broke out and work -was unavoidably suspended. - -The administrative headquarters of the district are at the eleventh -mile, where the Government maintains a court-house, a police-station, -and a dispensary. Several shops are dotted at intervals along the -road, and more than one church. Nor must I omit to mention the “Potaro -Library,” an imposing-looking shed consisting of side-posts, a roof, -and a floor, and proclaiming its title in large letters, but (apart -from the total absence of all books) a somewhat strange building to -enjoy the title of “library.” I understand it is frequently used for -dancing. The shopkeepers of the Potaro Road and, I believe, in all the -Colony’s gold districts are Chinese. I shut my eyes and imagined the -difference that would be wrought in that desolate scene if a million or -so of their almond-eyed brethren could be transported hither. How would -the wilderness blossom as a rose, air and light enter, where reigns -mosquito-breeding jungle, and the fertile land smile with all that maketh -glad the heart of man! Now, if you bump over the excruciating corduroy -and the large stones embedded in the road, and especially if light is -fading and darkness gathering, the melancholy of the long, dreary, -winding way, with its scattered settlements and struggling clearings, -penetrates your very bones and gives you a sensation of physical disquiet. - -I have, nevertheless, very pleasant recollections of the Potaro District -and of the cheery hospitality of the Company’s manager and his three or -four white assistants, chiefly New Zealanders. Their pluck, good spirits, -and eagerness in their work made a vivid impression on my mind, as did -the interesting process of gold-washing, which we observed on Mahdia -creek. The dredge-buckets bring up quantities of yellow mud from the -bed of the stream, and this mud is washed by water along a sort of wide -gutter with gratings across the bottom. The gold-bearing matter, being -heavier than the rest, gravitates down through the gratings on to coconut -matting sprinkled with quicksilver. This process is called “washing -up.” When it has continued for a considerable time, the coconut mattings -are carefully washed and beaten, and all that comes out, including the -quicksilver, which has charged itself with the gold particles, is again -washed through a box by a jet of water. The box has three layers of -plush in it, and the water is strained through these layers. The residue -is very fine black dust, from which the gold-bearing quicksilver is -carefully separated and carried off to be smelted. This process is called -“streaming down.” - -From the manager’s bungalow at the tenth mile a very pleasant alternative -route back to Tumatumari, avoiding the launch trip, is to ride over the -seventeen miles of Tiger creek trail. This trail was opened as a bridle -track for the accommodation of the “pork-knockers,” who washed Tiger -creek for gold, at one time very profitably, though the “placers” are -now worked out. A branch line, also made up as a bridle track, goes off -from this trail to St. Mary’s, on the Konawaruk River, where the British -Guiana Gold Mining Company have dredges at work. The ride is delightful, -if one be mounted on a sure-footed mule. The forest trees are veritable -giants, and their deep shadow prevents the suffocating undergrowth -from springing up. The line, when we rode over it, was clean, and all -bridges were in good repair. It is absolutely cool even at midday in -the exquisite shade, and we enjoyed charming little views, where the -path wound pleasantly up and down small hills. At times it runs beside -the deep pools of beautiful Tiger creek and its picturesque slides of -amber water and creamy foam. Being mounted, we had the pleasure, rare to -travellers in the bush, of looking about us instead of being obliged to -watch our feet carefully all the time, or pay the penalty by a stumble. -Thus I caught sight of an ant-bear, and we observed that remarkable -animal, with its enormous tail and long snout, ambling along on the -hill-side below us for quite fifty yards. It appears that ant-bears are -bold creatures and fear nothing, as everything else takes care to give -them a wide berth. Though they only eat ants, they have a way of rising -on their hind legs, gripping an adversary with their inturned front -claws, and then tearing him open with their hinder ones. Big ant-bears -have been known to do this to men. - -When the time comes to improve communications in this part of the Colony, -the Potaro River will doubtless be bridged at Garraway’s Landing, -where it is only 300 feet wide. Then a line will be cut to join the -Potaro-Konawaruk Road at “Two Miles”; and from this second mile-post -another road will branch off to rejoin the river and climb to Kaietuk and -the highland country beyond, up the wonderful Potaro Gorge. - -To-day a trail leads away into the forest westwards from “Two Miles,” -where a rough sign-board proudly points the way “To Kaieteur.”[1] Gladly -does the wayfarer step into the restful shade after the glare of white -sand on the cart-road, and grateful indeed is the cool springiness of the -leaf-strewn forest floor. After five miles along this trail, where from -time to time the roar of unseen cataracts breaks the silence, the path -emerges on Potaro bank once more, at a place known as Kangaruma. Here, on -a low hill immediately above the river, is a small clearing with a wooden -rest-house, belonging to Sprostons, a couple of Indian troolie-sheds, and -some provision-fields. - -It is on account of the long series of rapids below Kangaruma that the -portage of seven miles from Potaro Landing has to be made, and the -river’s big loop to the north is also thus circumvented. - -When travelling up the Potaro Gorge we have always sent our stores on -ahead of us to Kangaruma, and arranged for our Indian carriers, or -_droghers_, to await us there. Then from this spot one fairly “pulls out -on the Long Trail, the trail that is always new.” - - - - -THE POTARO GORGE - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE POTARO GORGE - - He lured her away so far, - Past so many a wood and valley and hill, - That now, would you know where they are? - In a bark on a silver stream, - As fair as you see in a dream. - - A. O’SHAUGHNESSY: _Zuleika_. - - -Once the stores are all safely packed in the tent-boat, the paddlers -established on their thwarts, and after the last wild rush up the bank -to secure some precious, almost forgotten article, such as kettle or -saucepan, how delightful it is to feel that at length one is off into -the very heart of the wilderness! The soothing splash of the paddles is -inexpressibly welcome after the din of launch travel, and we surrender -ourselves to the enjoyment of the big restful silence and unchanging -peace of the dreamy forest-wrapped river, and to delightful anticipation -of wonders to come. - -On the journey to Roraima, we left Kangaruma in the afternoon of 22nd -December, 1915. Our party consisted, besides Mr. Menzies and ourselves, -of Haywood, our black cook, a most excellent and capable fellow, and of -fourteen aborigines. Scanning the expressionless bronze figures of these -Indians as they paddled steadily upstream, I speculated on what manner -of men they might be, these dwellers amid trees and waters, whose home -lies in the very bosom of Nature, and who look to her alone to supply all -their needs. Nine of them came from the Demerara River, and the remaining -five were Makusis from the highlands whither we were bound. Two of these -five—Johnny and Thomas by name—were headmen of Puwa, a village near the -Ireng River and close to the Brazilian frontier. The Makusis were good -fellows and did yeomen service; but the natives of the Demerara River, -as we discovered to our cost, were an idle and worthless set. They had -already suffered the contaminating effects of civilization, and great -were the delays and annoyance we had to endure from them, until we -were able to exchange them for the willing and athletic Makusis of the -highlands. - -Above Kangaruma stretch some seventeen miles of smooth water to Amatuk, -where once more the roar and rush of a cataract break on the river’s -repose. Amatuk is a delightfully pretty place. The Potaro here is -joined by the Amuk creek, and then rushes in two cataracts round a -rocky tree-crowned island, swirling out, all foam-beflecked, into a bay -below. In the centre of the right-hand cataract, down which the great -bulk of the water flows, there is a sheer drop of some thirty feet, and -a fountain of white foam leaps upward. On a low knoll, looking over -the bay and immediately above the left-hand cataract, stands another -wooden rest-house. This knoll has been cleared of the dense bush, which -dominates all else, and delicious English bracken grows freely on its -sandy slopes. - -We arrived by starlight; and, whilst the baggage was being carried up to -the rest-house and supper made ready, I lay in my hammock watching an -exquisite moon rising from out the million tree-tops of the forest, with -a foreground of dimly shining river. The music of falling water filled -the air, and the stars gleamed like great lamps hung athwart the night. -Wherever we may in future travel, a hammock shall always accompany me. It -enables one to be made as comfortable as possible in two minutes, though -for sleeping at nights we must confess to being luxurious enough to -require camp-beds. To our delight, we each of us needed a warm blanket -that night; and, when you have scarcely used the lightest blanket for two -years, it is a real luxury to enjoy a good heavy one again. Rain fell all -night long, and at dawn heavy mist-wreaths lay about the hills. - -[Illustration: MOUNT SAKWAI ON POTARO RIVER NEAR TUKEIT.] - -[Illustration: WATERSMEET OF POTARO AND AMUK RIVERS AT AMATUK, SHOWING -MOUNT KENAIMA ON RIGHT AND MOUNT KUKUI IN CENTRE ABOVE RIVER-MIST. - -To face page 62] - -Amatuk is the gateway to the beautiful Kaietuk Gorge. Looking upstream -from the bay below the fall, we saw towering on one side the peak of -Kenaima Mountain, and on the other side the vertical cliff-face of Mount -Kukui. Just above Amatuk the Potaro emerges from between these mountains, -and is at once joined from the right by the Amuk creek, which also flows -in a narrow gorge, so blocked by huge boulders and so difficult of access -that it has never yet been explored. Streams, which are almost better -spoken of as cascades, spring down the faces of the cliffs, gleaming like -white threads against the red sandstone. Another hint is thus given of -the Roraima _leit-motif_ which rules the land. We had, indeed, throughout -our wanderings the impression of a mighty symphony. The wondrous Kaietuk -Fall was the first movement whose introduction began with Amatuk. -Thereafter we realized that several days of river and forest journey -were but the transition passages to a movement of shining tablelands, -whose jasper-bedded rivers repeat everywhere the same _leit-motif_, -though with a myriad tiny variations, for all the streams of the highland -savannahs tumble in cascades down vertical faces into a succession of -pools, while long-sought-for and much-dreamt-of Roraima, with his cliffs -over a thousand feet in height rising out of primeval forest, standing on -his pedestal of rolling savannah uplands, with waterfalls leaping from -his mysterious flat-topped summit, forms a magnificent résumé and finale -of the whole. - -Next morning, whilst the stores and baggage were being portaged from -the bay below Amatuk to another boat moored above the falls, we had -leisure to study the beauty of the cataract. The river was low, so we -made our way to the edge of the water over rocks generally covered by -the rushing stream as it changes from the normal dark—almost black—flow -of its peaceful progress to the amber swirl and creamy spray of coming -excitement. These diabase rocks are all flat-topped and deeply fissured, -and they contain here and there curious “jigs,” made by pebbles swept -round and round in some tiny whirlpool, till, as the long ages pass, -they dig for themselves deep circular holes. These “jigs” are eagerly -explored by the diamond prospectors, as sometimes they contain precious -stones. I baled out one such deep, dark hole with the help of a Makusi, -and obtained a plateful of extremely pretty pebbles, all tiny and -agleam with many different colours, rose-red, turquoise-blue, pieces of -malachite-green, and many a shining speck of quartz to raise my hopes. I -felt that to be the actual winner of a real diamond, however small, would -be a delightful experience; but my pebbles, although pronounced by the -authority of Mr. Menzies and Haywood to be “good diamond indication,” did -not, in spite of their intrinsic beauty, harbour any stray speck of real -value. Nevertheless, I feel that diamonds will always have an added charm -for me when I think of them as gifts from that lovely land of unknown -streams and as the ornaments of Nature herself. - -We spent a delightful three hours paddling upstream to the next portage -at Waratuk, surrounded by the wonderful scenery of the gorge. Rain fell -in little misty veils of shower; and exquisite forest fragrance, wafted -to us from the banks, was strong enough to overpower even the smell of -salt beef and pork which emanated from our provisions. Potaro here flows -between flat-topped cliffs towering on both sides about a thousand feet -above their own reflections, mirrored in the black water. The hidden -bases of the hills are clothed in forest, while their sides are grim -precipices, revealing overhangs of castellated rock and toppling crags -with great fissures and clefts, wild and wondrous to behold. - -At about noon we reached Waratuk, where another portage is necessary. -This is a much smaller cataract than Amatuk. In fact, at high river, -boats going downstream can run it, whereas no one would dream of running -Amatuk, in the centre of which is a vertical drop. On the right bank at -Waratuk stands a little shelter with corrugated iron roof, supported by -wallaba posts. Under its cover we lunched, or rather took “breakfast,” as -the midday meal is invariably called in this Colony; and at 2 p.m., when -all our stores had been portaged, we set off again in another smaller -craft known as the “parson’s boat,” used by the Church of England for the -missionaries who at one time travelled up the Potaro to mission-stations, -now abandoned. - -From Waratuk to Tukeit was two hours’ paddling. The shining lazy river, -lying half asleep between its sentinel hills, seemed already to have -forgotten the wild leap over Kaietuk. But from our boat we caught several -glimpses of the Kaietuk cliff, which bars the end of the gorge, and we -could just see that corner of the fall itself which is nearest the left -bank. - -The river is studded by rocky islets, and the stunted trees growing -thereon are often literally laden with long bags of woven sticks which -are the mocking-birds’ nests. At high river I once counted seventeen on -one small tree, which appeared to rise straight out of the water, its -rock pedestal being entirely submerged. - -Above Tukeit the river is a series of racing cataracts, curiously broken -by deep, still pools, where the main current would appear to flow beneath -the surface. It is, of course, an entirely unnavigable piece of water, -and to pursue the valley on foot to the base of the mighty Kaietuk -precipice is an enterprise of extreme difficulty, not to say danger. -Masses of giant boulders make progress all but impossible; and, save at -very low river, the attempt could not be made. The Potaro has therefore -to be abandoned until some miles above Kaietuk, and no full view of the -waterfall from below is obtainable along the present line of ascent. - -Sprostons have made a little clearing at Tukeit, and have put up a wooden -rest-house on the left bank of the river, about a hundred yards from the -water. The forest closes in densely all round, so that the place has no -view, and besides being very stuffy, it is full of big biting cow-flies. -It is not a pleasant spot to spend a night in; but nevertheless, when -encumbered by baggage, one cannot with the existing means of transport -get up from Amatuk on to the Kaietuk plateau in one day. On the opposite -side of the river, however, there is an excellent camping-ground on -a beach of shining silver sand, and a rocky dell at the forest edge, -watered by the clear, cold Tukeit stream dropping from the cliff-tops a -thousand feet above, offers delightful refuge in the heat of the day. So, -if time were no object, a camp on Tukeit sands for fishing would be an -agreeable interlude in a “bush” journey. The very deep, still pools of -the river near by are a favourite haunt of _haimara_, which are excellent -eating. These fish sometimes grow very large, and Indians wading in the -pools are on occasion savagely bitten by them. The aborigines usually -obtain fish by shooting them with bow and arrow. This they do with much -skill and dexterity. - -But who would delay at Tukeit when Kaietuk calls? We must be up and on! - - - - -KAIETUK, MOTHER OF MISTS - - - - -CHAPTER V - -KAIETUK, MOTHER OF MISTS - - The cataracts blow their trumpets from the steep. - - W. WORDSWORTH: _Ode_. - - -There were showers at dawn, but these had passed over when we started -from Tukeit in the early morning to climb up on to the Kaietuk plateau. -The existing forest trail, after leaving Tukeit, traverses some low -foot-hills, and then rises sharply to cross the Washibaru creek. Next -follows another steep ascent to the Korumê creek, which is bridged by -_tacoubas_ at a point whose Indian name has been translated as the -“Devil’s Mother’s Pillars.” Here the country is very broken, and the -whole channel of the Korumê has been strewn with large boulders that -completely hide the water from sight. It would seem probable that in time -past cliffs stood on both sides of this gorge, and that they crumbled -inwards, so blocking the exit of the Korumê, which, nevertheless, has -burrowed a way underneath the rocks and hurries down in a very abrupt -cataract to the Potaro. From the Devil’s Mother’s Pillars there is an -exceedingly steep climb, with a gradient resembling in places a ladder -rather than a road, until the edge of the Kaietuk plateau is reached at -a tree on which the word “Amen” has been cut. Gossip has it that on one -occasion a respected colonist was hoisted up to this point, two Indians -pulling him with a rope in front and two more pushing him behind. He lay -down under this tree almost at his last gasp; and, while he recovered -breath, his companion cut the word “Amen” in the trunk. It certainly is -a villainous climb, especially in rainy weather, when the moss-covered -stepping-stones are wet and slippery, and it does not improve with -acquaintance. From Amen Point the forest trail runs along a ridge more -or less level for another couple of miles or so to the Kaietuk savannah, -with the precipitous gorge of the Potaro on one side and the deep-cut -valley of the Korumê on the other. The Indians say that this path -originated in a track by which otters descended from the Upper to the -Lower Potaro; and, whether this be so or not, the line is certainly quite -unsuitable for human traffic even on foot. - -The whole trail runs always in forest, never affording any view of the -Kaietuk Falls or of anything save the vista of tree-trunks immediately -ahead. Big boulders lie scattered pell-mell round about in the jungle, -some as large as houses, and many curious orchidaceous plants thrive in -the drenchingly moist atmosphere. The so-called “Kaieteur lily,” whose -green leaves are striped with brown and black lines and whose heart, when -in flower, is a scarlet feather, grows gaily on boulder and tree-stem. -Then suddenly, when we had been about two hours on the march from Tukeit, -the forest ended and the trail debouched on a savannah of flat rock, -covered with a thin layer of sand, in which grass and many charming -wild-flowers grow freely. No sooner do you reach the savannah than you -also come upon the last of Sprostons’ rest-houses. It stands out in the -open, at a considerable distance from any water, save what is caught upon -its corrugated iron roof and conveyed to a vat. Behind it and on both -sides all view is cut off by the forest, which is only a few feet away. -In front there is a small open savannah, and beyond range upon range of -blue, forest-clad hills. But there is still no sign or sound whatever of -the mighty waterfall, and those who do not know could never guess that -anything extraordinary was near by. - -We rested for a few minutes in the bungalow, enjoying the view and the -delicious change of climate which comes from ascending some 1,500 feet. -Then we walked on a hundred yards or so across the savannah. The first -sign of danger ahead is a deep fissure in the ground, which must be -crossed carefully. A few steps more, and with appalling suddenness a -terrific chasm yawns at one’s feet. From the rest-house nothing can be -seen of precipice or chasm, and the forests which clothe the cliff-tops -upon the opposite side of the river gorge appear to meet the edge of -the savannah. Indeed, this abrupt rift in a landscape which does not -otherwise suggest anything stupendous startled me afresh each time. It -takes hours to realize the scene. We stood on the overhanging lip of a -precipice: thin air below us for many hundred feet. Still, however, the -waterfall was almost a mile away across the gulf; and nothing could be -seen of it, for the whole gorge was filled with mist and thick, white, -fleecy cloud. “Mother of Mists” should Kaietuk be named, as Roraima -is called “Father of Streams.” In point of fact, however, the word -_Kaietuk_ (Dr. Bovallius writes it _Kaijituik_) means “Old Man’s Rock,” -and the falls are so named by the Indians, because of a folk-tale to the -effect that an aged Indian, becoming a nuisance to his relatives, as his -feet were infested with chigoes, which they had to pick out for him, was -put in a woodskin and sent to drift to his death over this abyss. Strange -that Kaietuk’s majestic beauty should have inspired no better legend -than this! The word _tuk_ or _tuik_ means “rock,” and is also found in -Paka_tuk_, Ama_tuk_, Wara_tuk_, and _Tuk_eit, all of which are well-known -cataracts on the Potaro River. The usual spelling “Kaieteur” is a mere -mistake. - -The mists of the waterfall are drawn up and dispersed in the sunshine, -but directly the sun goes they fill up the gorge and hide everything. -Indeed, it was not till the afternoon on the day of our arrival that the -weather cleared and Kaietuk stood revealed in all its grandeur. I fear -it is almost impossible to give in words any idea of this wonder, but I -will make an attempt. Lazy, dreamy Potaro suddenly leaps down fully eight -hundred feet vertically into a great black caldron below, and then flows -through a vast amphitheatre of precipices, towering to an equal height -on either bank, their bases clothed in forest. The black bush-water, as -it reaches the lip of the fall and the sun strikes it, turns first amber -and then to a creamy spray, and falls in festoons of foam, which seem -living and change incessantly. The river was low on this occasion, so -that comparatively little water was going over, and it looked as though -the whole mass turned to spray before reaching the black depths beneath; -but sometimes a puff of wind blew the opalescent foam-curtain aside for -a second, and one caught a glimpse of the amber column descending. The -contrast between the grim, black and red, weather-stained cliffs and the -flying, gleaming, living, falling water is marvellously beautiful. Little -wisps of mist float ceaselessly forth from out the black cavern behind -the fall. A glorious rainbow hovers about it, whilst flights of swallows -cross and recross before it, bathing themselves in the spray in a manner -that would enchant a Japanese artist. Pairs of macaws sail majestically -past the background of white foam, the crimson of their under-wings and -the brilliant blue of their bodies gleaming like jewels when the sun -catches them. The fickle come-and-go of shape and sheen in the restless -cataract makes its strange beauties alive with caprice and mystery; for -the eye can follow during several seconds the lace-like, ever-varying -tracery of each water-wreath as it drops from the lip of Kaietuk to meet -the foam tossed up from the black whirlpool underneath. - -We spent all the afternoon studying the fall from various points of -view. At the cliff-edge near Sprostons’ bungalow one can see, but not -photograph, its entire length; and there is a good view of the tumbling -reaches of the river below, which alternate with large, still pools. You -can also look fully a mile upstream above the fall, where Potaro flows -in a straight reach through a vast, densely forested plateau, stretching -away to distant blue hills, also forest-clad, save on their vertical -cliff-sides—hills that beckon the traveller onwards, prophesying further -wonders. For from the Kaietuk savannah a view can be obtained of Mount -Kowatipu, round the spur of which we were to travel on our further -journey to Roraima, and of the lofty range of mountains, called by the -Indians Kamana and Morakabang, at the head of the Kopinang River. There -is also an extensive panorama of the plateau and the mountains on the -right bank of the Potaro. - -Sir Walter Egerton, who visited Kaietuk in 1913, had a path cut for him -from Sprostons’ rest-house in a downriver direction, near the edge of the -precipice, through an awesome forest among black fissures, huge rocks, -and forbidding caverns, for a distance of about a quarter of a mile, -to a bare jut of cliff, which overhangs the gorge at a point about one -mile as the crow flies from the brink of Kaietuk. From this spot it is -possible to photograph the abyss in its entire height, but not from any -point nearer. The vertical fall is sixfold that of Niagara, and the whole -scene is on so enormous a scale that it is difficult to realize how huge -is every detail of it all, and one sorely needs something to give the -sense of proportion with the ordinary workaday world. There is also a -trail from the rest-house to the brink of the fall, where one obtains a -wonderful view down the gorge to Mount Kenaima at the Amatuk Gateway and -to the dim plains beyond, a distant sea of forest. But from the water’s -edge it is, of course, impossible to see much of the chasm into which -the river falls, unless you lie prone on the overhanging rock and look -straight down into the caldron below. Round about the head of the fall -on the left bank of the Potaro is a curious open plain of hard, smooth -rock. It is almost flat, with a gentle incline toward the river-side, -and is strewn with small, round, white pebbles. Save the wealth of -wild-flowers, only scrub wreathed with golden “Kaietuk vine” and big -orchidaceous plants, some of them ten or twelve feet high, grow there; -but it is a curiously fascinating place, and forms a weird and fantastic -approach to the fall itself. Surely it would be a good thing if British -Guiana made the whole of this unique savannah in the immediate vicinity -of Kaietuk, abounding, as it does, in interesting plants and flowers, -into a colonial park, after the model of the national parks in the United -States; and, if so, when made readily accessible, it should be a source -of health and delight to many generations of our colonists, whose work -compels them to reside, as a rule, on the hot coastal plains. - -[Illustration: POTARO GORGE FROM KAIETUK. - -To face page 78.] - -We reached Kaietuk on Christmas Eve; and, as all our baggage and stores -had to be carried up on the back of our Indian droghers from Tukeit -to a point above the waterfall, where Potaro is again navigable, our -headquarters during all Christmas Day, as well as for the larger part -of Boxing Day, were at Sprostons’ rest-house. I shall never forget that -Christmas Day at Kaietuk. The lights were so wonderful on the gorge, -and a lovely rainbow hovered over the fall. Each time that I turned away -from Kaietuk and looked down the valley I said to myself: “It is more -lovely than the last time I looked this way;” and, whenever I turned back -to that living, moving water, I felt, “This really _is_ more wonderful -than a second ago.” One of the most striking things about Kaietuk is its -silence, due, I suppose, to the foot of the fall being so far below. -Occasionally, when the wind eddied upward, a great sullen growl came up, -and the Makusis standing beside me at the brink of the cliff stepped back -with a grunt of superstitious alarm. - -The wonder of it all makes coming away very hard, for one becomes -fascinated by the ever-changing glory and can never look enough. When, in -October, 1917, my husband and I were three weeks in camp on this plateau, -it did not seem one day too long; and we studied Kaietuk in all its -moods—in misty dawn, magnificent day, and ghostly moonlight. We pitched -camp about fifty yards from the edge of the abyss, a few feet above the -river-side. It was a heavenly spot. Our tarpaulins were slung in a little -strip of forest for protection from the weather; but a big rock, jutting -out into the river and overarched by trees, made us the most perfect -“parlour” in the world. As I lay in a hammock, listening to the delicious -swish-swish of the hurrying river, I could see miles and miles of blue -hills and shining stream below me, right away down the gorge to Amatuk. -What happy, lazy hours that hammock afforded me, too blissful even for -reading, when one seemed not wholly awake, yet not at all asleep, and -altogether aware of the loveliness around one! The fall, of course, -could not be seen from the camp, but the air came to us chilled by its -moving waters, cool and invigorating even at midday. Curiously enough, -the mists, which float ceaselessly forth from behind Kaietuk and often -fill the gorge and roll in clouds over the savannah, seemed somehow to be -abruptly cut off by the precipice, and never came our way. Altogether it -was the most perfect of many delightful camps. - -But the day’s occupation was by no means limited to hammock musings, -for our object, during those three weeks, was to find a practicable -alignment for a motor-road from the Kaietuk plateau down to Amatuk. A -very interesting and attractive job it was, though it involved us in -many an hour’s hard climbing and scrambling, only to reward us at first -with disappointment. - -The work of trail-cutting in the vicinity of Kaietuk is like groping -in the dark. One can see little or nothing beyond the few yards just -ahead; for the forest shuts out all view, save when one reaches an abrupt -cliff-edge or a little patch of rocky savannah. In country such as this -every step has to be cut toilfully up and down hillsides, and no rapid -reconnaissance survey is possible. Oh for a hydroplane, with which to get -a bird’s-eye view of plateau, ravine, and river! - -The Indians we found to be of no use to us as guides to the country, and -they did not at all relish the job on which we were engaged. They have -a superstitious fear of Kaietuk and all its surroundings. They consider -that the whole place spooks, and they constantly murmur about “kenaima” -whilst at work. This is their word for ghosts and spirits, and they -have given to the mountain standing above Amatuk, at the entrance to -the Potaro gorge, the name of Mount Kenaima. From its summit the smoke -as of fires is said constantly to ascend, though no man walks thereon. -Between Kangaruma and Chenapowu, some fifty miles of river, there is not -a single human habitation, and the surrounding country appears unknown -to the aborigines. Our men dared not even look at the Kaietuk Fall when -by themselves, and, if obliged to approach it, hurried past with averted -eyes. They would not leave camp unless two might go together, and they -plainly were reluctant to cut lines through the rock-strewn forests -round about, painting their faces with red streaks to ward off malign -influences. Would that evil could indeed be averted by so simple an -expedient! The truth may be that the numerous caverns of this region are -haunted by jaguars and possibly by other wild beasts, and that Indians -have been killed from time to time when passing through the gorge. - -Still, after many failures we at last succeeded in finding a line. My -husband’s first idea was to circumvent entirely the ravines of the -Washibaru and Korumê creeks, which form the chief obstacles in the ascent -to Kaietuk. So he cut a path from the edge of Kaietuk Fall in a direction -at right angles to the Potaro across the Kaietuk plateau, descending into -the Korumê valley. He then continued up this valley until he reached a -saddle, where, at a height of about 1,150 feet above Tukeit, is the -source of the Korumê. After that he crossed over on to another plateau -above the left bank of the Korumê, and so made his way to the head-waters -of the Washibaru creek. But, although the two ravines had thus been -circumvented, no reasonable gradient could be found downhill, beyond -Washibaru Head, either to Tukeit or to Waratuk. At last we decided to -explore the Korumê defile itself, in spite of its forbidding aspect at -Devil’s Mother’s Pillars, and shortly after dawn one day we walked to -Korumê Head, taking four Makusis with us. - -The Indians had so persistently declared this valley to be “no walky” -that we scarcely dared to hope that it would be possible to get along -it for any distance; and my husband, anticipating some very troublesome -scrambling, desired me to return to camp and leave him with the four -men to make the attempt. But the men hung back so much that I was -obliged to follow to drive them after him. My husband led the way, -plunging ahead through a thick jungle of scrub and bush-rope. Then, -when he reached the farthest point from which he could see me through -the forest veil, he signalled to me, and I gave the word to the men to -cut a straight line to where he stood. This process we repeated again -and again hour after hour. The going was amazingly good—too good to -last, and we expected every minute to be stopped by a waterfall or by -a jumble of rock and cliff. It was very exciting and very delightful. -The gradient was 28 per cent. over the first 4,854 feet, there being -no rock obstruction whatsoever. Then for another 4,438 feet of gentle -descent the ground surface, though by no means bad, was less easy, and -the line had to be graded round the hill-side instead of running on the -valley floor. Eventually we were held up by a welter of huge _tacoubas_, -and turned back, our men being tired and sulky. But on later days my -husband completed the trail, though from the point where we had stopped -on the first day things were not so easy. Obstacles were incessant for -the remaining 2,400 feet to Devil’s Mother’s Pillars, where it will be -necessary to make a hair-pin bend in the road alignment, and the country -between the Korumê and the Washibaru creeks is also rough and difficult. -Nevertheless, when we broke up camp at Kaietuk to return to Georgetown, -we had a complete track to Tukeit, and since then the line has been -surveyed, continued to Amatuk, and examined by an engineer, who reported -on the 31st October, 1918, that the cost of a motor-road from Amatuk -to Washibaru would be about $92,000, and from Washibaru up the Korumê -valley to Kaietuk plateau about $37,300. It only remains now to trace -the alignment of a road from Garraway’s Landing to Amatuk in order to -complete the scheme of a highway from Bartika past Kaburi and across the -Potaro-Konawaruk Road to Kaietuk. What a difference it will make to life -in British Guiana when it is possible to reach that wonderland in a day’s -drive by motor-car from Bartika! - - - - -THE ASCENT TO THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE ASCENT TO THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS - - I will make a palace, fit for you and me - Of green days in forests. - - R. L. STEVENSON: _Romance_. - - -In the long, straight reach of the Potaro, immediately above Kaietuk, -there are several rapids; and the dangerous proximity of the -Kaietuk abyss itself makes this stretch of the river an undesirable -starting-point for an upstream journey. Mr. Menzies told us a harrowing -tale of a bushman who years ago, wishing to cross from the right to the -left bank of the Potaro in this reach, made a raft to ferry himself and -his kit over the river. When out in midstream, he found to his horror -that his punt-pole would not touch bottom, and the raft began to drift -in the direction of the waterfall. The man did not hesitate long, but, -abandoning all his belongings, threw himself into the river and, being -a strong swimmer, successfully reached the bank. So, in order to avoid -all such dangers, the landing-stage for the Upper Potaro has been placed -a couple of miles above Kaietuk, at a point about thirty-five minutes’ -walk from Sprostons’ rest-house. For the most part, the trail to this -landing-place traverses the rocky Kaietuk savannah, the only patch -of ground clear of forest on our whole journey from the coast to the -highlands; but for the last fifteen minutes it goes through forest and -involves a troublesome scramble over tangled tree-roots, resembling piles -of giant “spillikens.” The path emerges on the left bank of the Potaro -at a point where there is a small inlet, and where all view of Kaietuk -and its surroundings has already been lost. Here were two boats, one -being a second “parson’s boat,” and the other belonging to Mr. Menzies. -Mr. Menzies’ boat is thirty feet in length, built of silver-balli wood, -very handy and buoyant. It came up from Georgetown in sections, and was -screwed together by Mr. Menzies with the help of two men in this little -cove, where it is safely moored even in flood-time. The “parson’s boat,” -on the other hand, came up whole, and was many days in transit from -Tukeit. What a job hoisting it to Amen Point must have been! - -We put six Indians into the “parson’s boat”; the remaining eight, with -Mr. Menzies, Haywood, ourselves, and all our baggage, embarked in the -other. A tarpaulin shelter was stretched amidships over a frame of bent -boughs, to which a hammock was slung for me. Mr. Menzies steered, and -had four paddlers with him in the stern, while Haywood was bowman with -four more; and so we started off upstream on the afternoon of the 26th -December, 1915. - -The Potaro above Kaietuk is as calm and peaceful as below Tukeit. -Its reflections are so wonderful that it is hard to distinguish the -waterline, where the foliage of the banks ends and its mirrored -reflection begins, while the deep blue of the tropical sky shines yet -brighter up from the river’s heart than from overhead. Primeval forest -is unbroken on both banks, save occasionally where patches of secondary -jungle and “congo-pump” suggest that in bygone days there were Indian -settlements on the banks, now abandoned, probably for _kenaima_ reasons. -Whenever a chief dies in an Indian village, the people are apt to -attribute any subsequent run of bad luck to his _kenaima_, or spirit, and -they migrate from the place. Indeed, a village is nearly always deserted -for a short time after the death of any important villager. There are -also whole districts besides the Kaietuk country into which Indians will -not go for fear of _kenaima_. - -We did not get far that day, as the men, who had been droghing our stores -from Tukeit to the landing on the Upper Potaro, complained of fatigue. So -we made an early camp on the river-bank at a place where the forest was -“clean,” as the bushmen express it—that is, without choking undergrowth. -Very soon we were most comfortably established. A tarpaulin stretched -over a framework makes a nice roof; and we also had tarpaulins hung on -the two sides for the sake of privacy, and another spread as a floor to -keep our feet dry. It is not the custom in this country to use tents, -so we had not brought ours. But this was a mistake, for a tent can be -rigged up as easily as a tarpaulin, and it would have ensured greater -comfort and privacy. Moreover, on the open savannahs a tent is needed as -a protection against wind and rain. Haywood built himself a camp-fire, -placing a stick horizontally on two forked uprights and slinging pots on -it above the flames, just as the bushman does in Canada and probably all -the world over. Our fire and those of the Indians lit up the damp forest -glade and made it look quite friendly, but an hour after dusk torrents of -rain fell, which speedily extinguished the warm glow. - -Next morning we paddled steadily upstream, halting only for an hour and a -half at noon, when we lunched. It was a very restful day. No rain fell, -but the sky was overcast until 3 p.m. Then the sun broke through the -clouds and lit up the river with its perfect reflections most prettily. -We passed the mouths of several creeks emptying into the Potaro, the -largest being the Amamuri, the Seebu, and the Ichirak, and from our -boat we could at times see the mountains in which are the sources of -the Ichirak and the Arnik creeks. Above the mouth of the Ichirak the -Potaro becomes very winding, and there is a place where two reaches are -parallel, flowing in opposite directions, so that Indians travelling in -woodskins make a portage over the neck of the bend. We noticed frequent -maipuri tracks on both banks as well as on spits of sand, where the -animals come down to water; and occasionally the river-edge turns to -eta-swamp, where muscovy duck are said to abide. We also saw several -divers, some beautiful white cranes, and a pair of otters, so much -interested in us that they kept bobbing up close to the boat, trying to -get a better view. The trees on the Upper Potaro are magnificent, and the -forest looks friendly; whereas the dense, suffocating, tropical jungles -of the lowlands give a horrible impression of hostile, evil Nature. - -This night we camped at the mouth of the Arnik on a small island round -which the creek flows into the Potaro. The ground is slightly rising and -makes a picturesque and comfortable camping-place, with a view straight -down the main river. As usual, rain poured down all night long, making us -thankful that our tarpaulins were waterproof. - -Next morning, after paddling an hour and a half, we reached the -watersmeet of the Potaro and the Chenapowu creek. This is the limit of -navigation, for the Chenapowu is blocked by _tacoubas_ and cataracts, -and the Potaro itself, a short distance above Chenapowu, is impeded by -serious rapids. The river being low had been favourable for our upstream -journey, and we covered the thirty miles from Kaietuk to Chenapowu in ten -and a half hours’ actual paddling. River travel is, of course, always -governed by the state of the river; and Mr. Menzies told us that once -in time of abnormally high flood he made the whole journey downstream -from Chenapowu to Kangaruma, a distance of fifty miles, between sunrise -and sunset. We, on our way back, there being then about three feet more -water in the river than on our way up, paddled from Chenapowu to Kaietuk -in six and a half hours; but we were far indeed from approaching Mr. -Menzies’ record. At Chenapowu several trails from the highlands converge, -and it was here that an old Swedish gentleman, Dr. Carl Bovallius, some -years ago made a settlement which he called Holmia. He cleared a hundred -acres of land and built himself a house, admirably situated on a knoll -overlooking the watersmeet of the Potaro and Chenapowu, furnished his -home with every comfort, and began a trade in balata with the Indians of -the neighbourhood. Mr. Menzies did the transport work for him, and by his -direction explored the forest trails to find a short-cut to the highland -savannahs. It was thus that he found “Menzies’ Line,” which balata-laden -Indians could travel in two days, and which is certainly a capital path -from the Potaro to the highlands. We ourselves travelled over it. Its -length was estimated by Dr. Bovallius’ foreman to be thirty-two miles; -but, as the track is now interrupted by fallen trees, it must be somewhat -longer, for détours have to be made to avoid all the bigger obstacles. - -It is unfortunate that Dr. Bovallius did not come here as a younger man. -He was over seventy years of age when he began his enterprise; and, -though he lived to be seventy-eight, yet time was lacking for him to -establish his work on firm foundations. When he died, the Indians carried -off everything that could possibly be removed, and his entire clearing -is now covered by secondary growth and the horrible “congo-pump,” which, -bearing a ghastly resemblance to rubber, grows habitually wherever a -clearing in the primeval forest has once been, and mocks at abandoned -human endeavour. We could, however, still see traces of the roads and -bridges which Dr. Bovallius had made, and a small corrugated-iron -powder-store remains in good repair. Of the house at Holmia nothing is -left save the four main posts and a few panes of glass scattered on the -ground. - -We approached Chenapowu in some anxiety, for at this point we were to -leave the waterways and begin our long march overland; and it was here -that Mr. Menzies had instructed the Makusis of the highlands to meet -us as baggage-carriers. He fully believed that the Makusis understood -and meant to execute his instructions, until, just before we got there, -Johnny of Puwa observed casually that his people “Chenapowu side no -come.” Unfortunately, on arrival, we found that Johnny had spoken but -too truly, for at Chenapowu we found no one but John Williams, a tall -Patamona, attired only in loin-cloth, knife, and belt, who, with his wife -and children, was the sole inhabitant of Holmia. He came down to our boat -and insisted on shaking hands with us, saying very firmly and politely, -“How do you do?” but he equally firmly said, “Me no carry load.” In these -depressing circumstances the only thing to be done was to camp for the -time being on the site of Dr. Bovallius’ house. We never discovered why -the Makusis had failed us; for, when we eventually reached the highlands, -they were all eagerly awaiting us and most anxious to be of use; but -it did not seem to have occurred to them that their services would be -needed in the forest. Of course, explanations with a people whose best -interpreters understand only a bare dozen words of the English language -and can speak but half as many are apt to miscarry. Anyway, the Makusis -were not there, and we were faced by a forest trek of thirty odd miles, -with carriers insufficient to make the attempt. It was a difficult and -unpleasant position. - -As soon as the boats had been unloaded, and camp made at Holmia, we sent -off two Indians, Robert and Hubbard by name, to Arnik village, which in -Dr. Bovallius’ time was some two and a half hours’ walk from Holmia, and -whence he supplied himself with ground provisions. We instructed these -men to make great haste, and to induce as many as possible of the men -of Arnik to return with them at once, bringing cassava for the forest -journey, and we hoped to make an early start next day. Our stores were -packed in the powder-house, and we sat down to await the arrival of the -Arnik people with what patience we could muster, by the help of Sir -George Trevelyan’s _Life and Letters of Lord Macaulay_. Our camp, shut -in by congo-pump and dense secondary growth, was most unattractive. -There were no mosquitoes—indeed, we never saw mosquitoes after Rockstone -during our whole journey. But other horrible insects, such as cow-flies, -sand-flies, and ticks, made life a burden. The day dragged wearily by -and night fell with the usual heavy rain, but without any sign of the -Arnik people or of our messengers. Early next morning Mr. and Mrs. John -Williams called with their two children. Mrs. Williams wore a bead apron -and had tattoo marks on her face and body. They asked for sugar; but -John had been so little helpful that we did not feel in the mood to be -very generous with that precious commodity, and consequently only gave -a teaspoonful to each child, whereupon the family, apparently offended, -disappeared into the forest and we saw them no more. All day we waited -for the men of Arnik to arrive, but no one appeared; and when, as -daylight died, heavy rain again began to fall, and we had finally to give -up all hope of starting next morning, we felt thoroughly depressed and -miserable. Before going to bed it was decided that at dawn Mr. Menzies -should make a start, with all our Indians and as many loads as they could -carry; take them to Akrabanna creek, where the trail to Arnik branches -off from “Menzies’ Line”; should there deposit the loads at the junction -of the trails, send the Indians back to us to be ready for further -service, and himself go on to Arnik to ascertain the position. The inroad -being made on our food-supplies, without our getting any nearer to the -savannah plenty, was beginning to cause us great anxiety. - -Next morning Mr. Menzies set off early, as arranged, with all the -Indians, leaving Haywood as our only camp attendant. Haywood’s optimism -and cheerfulness were unfailing, but even Macaulay failed to cheer -_us_ as the long hours crawled by. Heavy rain fell at intervals, and, -imprisoned by sodden forest on all sides, the position was certainly not -enlivening. During some hours we hoped that Mr. Menzies might return, -having met the men of Arnik in the way; but we were disappointed, and - - The weary day dragged to its rest - Lingering like an unloved guest. - -Late in the afternoon nine of the Indians returned with a note from -Mr. Menzies which informed us that Arnik village had been shifted to a -considerable distance from its former site, but that he was going thither -with one man, leaving two to guard the loads, and sending the others -back to us. He suggested that we should move to Akrabanna next day, -with as much of the baggage as the nine men could carry, and meet him -there. This not very cheery epistle still comforted us much, because it -accounted for Amik’s delay, and our spirits also rose at the prospect -of moving on. After an early supper we had gone to bed with a bright -camp-fire to cheer us, when we heard a shout, and then beheld the joyful -sight of Mr. Menzies with a lamp, followed by Robert and Hubbard and a -line of seven men and three women. As they filed past our tarpaulin, the -firelight gleaming upon their naked brown bodies, I could have cried for -joy. Mr. Menzies had met the men of Arnik on the trail before he reached -the site of their new village; and it appeared that Robert and Hubbard -had got there on the night of the day they left us, but had found all the -men away hunting. A day had been spent in palaver and in making cassava -for the journey, and therefore not until the morning of the third day did -such hunters as had returned set out with our messengers for Holmia. With -anxiety much relieved, we calmed our emotions and went to sleep. Heavy -rain fell all night. - -We struck camp early in the morning of the 31st December, 1915, and a -walk of twenty minutes up the left bank of the Chenapowu creek brought -us to the point where the Tumong trail branches off to the west. All -previous travellers to Mount Roraima, _via_ the Potaro, had gone by the -Tumong trail; and, according to their accounts, it is by no means a good -one. But we continued along the Chenapowu, and after another fifteen -minutes forded the Wong creek, its tributary, while a further quarter -of an hour brought us to the point where the Chenapowu creek itself is -spanned by two _tacoubas_, for crossing at low water and at high water -respectively. The silver-sand bottoms of these creeks contrast prettily -with the deep amber bush water. Thence an ascent over a couple of low -hillocks brought us after a walk of one hour and seventeen minutes from -Holmia to a clearing on a bracken-covered sand-hill above the right bank -of the Akrabanna creek, where there had once been a Patamona village, and -where now the line to Arnik branches off eastwards from our trail. The -Akrabanna falls into the Chenapowu, which latter creek, though invisible -in the dense forest, continued on our right hand, until we saw it again -five hours’ march farther on at its watersmeet with the Sirani-baru creek. - -It was delightful to be up and doing, and we enjoyed our walk to -Akrabanna very much. On Mr. Menzies’ recommendation, we had equipped -ourselves with rubber sole canvas boots, and we found them most -comfortable and practicable. Our feet were always getting wet, since -we had constantly to wade across streams, but canvas dries quickly -without getting stiff, and the rubber sole is a great safeguard against -slipping. Moreover, it is possible to feel through it the nature of the -ground underfoot, and whether it is likely to bear one or not. Forest -trails are a mass of tangled roots covered by deceptive layers of fallen -leaves, and one must, therefore, concentrate one’s attention upon one’s -feet. To glance up even for half a minute, without first standing still, -invariably results in a stumble or in goring the feet upon some spiky -stump; but the path is springy underfoot, and it is possible to walk -long hours without fatigue. Nevertheless, the monotony of forest trek -is extreme. Generally you cannot see twenty yards in front of you. -Indians walk so silently that sometimes the long file of carriers appears -noiselessly and suddenly at one’s side, when one had perhaps believed -them to be some distance behind. They do not speak on the line of march, -and they move their feet very carefully, seldom cutting them. We soon -became quite adept ourselves at walking quickly without stumbling, and -at clambering over the fallen trees that barred our progress every few -yards. It would not, I think, be possible for a woman to negotiate -these trails in a skirt, for not only would it hamper her greatly in -surmounting the continual obstacles, but it would at once become sodden -with water from the dripping trees and bushes, and from the perpetual -fording of streams, when water often rises nearly to the knees. I wore -knickerbockers and puttees, and found myself able to move very quickly -and easily. - -We lunched at Akrabanna and considered the situation, which was not -particularly reassuring. We could reckon on but seven carriers from -Arnik, for the three women had only come sightseeing and were about -to return to their homes, each one having an infant with her. They -were neat, squat little people, attired only in the bead _queyu_, or -apron, and carrying their children on the hip. We had, therefore, only -twenty-one carriers all told, and of these the nine Demerara River men -were totally inefficient. Not a cheerful outlook! So we reluctantly -resolved that it would not be advisable to travel that day beyond the -Akrabanna camping-ground, some thirty minutes farther on, where we would -open all the boxes containing stores and pack the contents in quakes, -thus appreciably lightening the loads. Having come to this decision, -we descended to the Akrabanna creek, which is wide and crossed by a -primitive bridge in the shape of an enormous tree lying athwart the -stream. This _tacouba_ was rather slippery, but rubber soles steadied -our feet, and we crossed it and many others without mishap. After that, -we ascended some distance up a sharp incline and chose a very nice -camping-ground. We found a level floor for our tarpaulin, while the steep -slope below promised good drainage. The trees around were magnificent, -and the rare sunshine made all look charming. Bell-birds, giving thanks -for the fine weather, sounded their musical “ding-dong” everywhere. - -After establishing ourselves with all our comforts about us and a good -fire burning, we wandered downhill to look at the rest of the camp, -which was made some distance below us. We saw the seven men of Arnik -busily engaged on making quakes out of split palm-stalks, having already -thatched themselves a little palm-leaf _banaboo_. They were fine, -strongly-built fellows, destitute of clothing save a loin-cloth, but -their skins are so nice and red that their whole effect is eminently in -keeping with their surroundings. They have also a fine native dignity -about them. On they went with their quake-making, cooking, etc., -without troubling themselves at all about us as we stood watching their -extraordinarily dexterous fingers, and they talked, cracked jokes, and -told stories among themselves like a gay dinner-party at some club. No -word of English could they speak, save their names, which were Samuel, -George, Austin, William, etc. Our “civilized” Indians were mostly -lounging in hammocks. This sort of droghing was not what they liked at -all. After surveying the loads, we realized that some stuff must be left -behind, and we decided to leave to their fate our two side-tarpaulins, in -future using our carpet as a wind-break or screen when needed, and also -to desert a couple of tins of salt which we carried as barter. Money was -no more use once the Potaro-Konawaruk Road was behind us. Then we dined -under our tarpaulin, that good fellow Haywood making nothing of running -up and down the hill between us and his “kitchen” with the viands. -We had for supper soup, rice, and potatoes, with fried sausage, tea, -bread and jam. Our bread lasted very well in a tin till we were on the -savannahs and could obtain cassava. We went to sleep with a bright fire -burning, and very snug in our blankets. There was tremendous rainfall as -usual all night. - -New Year’s Day also began with rain; and, after some delay in -redistributing loads, we set off, following two of our men, appropriately -named Moses and Aaron, through the wilderness, whilst Mr. Menzies came -behind with the rest. From the Akrabanna to the Sirani-baru our trail -crossed no water at all, save two small brooks, both of which are within -half an hour’s walk of the watersmeet of the Chenapowu and Sirani-baru. -The path runs for two and a quarter hours’ march dead level along a -plateau, sometimes narrowing to a ridge, which, we assumed, must divide -the valley of the Chenapowu on the west from that of the Akrabanna on -the east. At the northern end of this plateau there is a stiff climb of -1,200 feet by terraced ascents from the Akrabanna, taking one hour and -forty-six minutes, while at the southern end there is an easy descent of -800 feet, which lasts sixty-five minutes. The trail was very indistinct, -and once or twice we lost it for a few minutes; for Indians are content -to mark trails by merely breaking an occasional twig, and it is extremely -easy to stray from the right line—in fact, one is bound to do so, unless -an Indian guide is immediately ahead. We marched, of course, always -in single file, one behind the other, looking warily at our feet and -requiring all our energies for laborious scrambles over huge fallen trees -and their ramification of branches. It was but rarely that anyone spoke, -and our party of twenty-five souls scarcely broke the oppressive weight -of silence that broods over the sombre forest depths, though sometimes -birds, alarmed by the sight of us, sent shrill cries of warning through -the tree-tops. In one place we crossed a deep fissure in the ground, -resembling that of which I have spoken near the Kaietuk rest-house. No -rain fell in the afternoon, but the dripping forest kept us very wet. - -Our progress was slow on account of our lagging droghers, and we had to -halt at the first of the two brooks between Akrabanna and Sirani-baru. -The place looked an unpromising camping-ground; but it is wonderful how -quickly the most desolate glade of rain-soaked forest assumes a snug and -comfortable air when man has pitched his bivouac there. On this occasion, -the ground being utterly sodden, we placed our spare tarpaulin on the -ground, and caused the Indians to build us a side-screen of palm-leaves. -Our excellent roof tarpaulin (twenty feet by fourteen feet) was soon -spread; then our two camp-beds with their equipment of blankets, blue -pillows, and mosquito-nets, our table and three chairs, lunch-basket with -cups, spoons, plates, knives, etc., and my husband’s prismatic compass, -boiling-point thermometer, and aneroid barometer, all combined to make -the place look quite civilized and home-like. Mr. Menzies had a smaller -tarpaulin, under which he slung his hammock and sheltered the baggage, -whilst the Indians speedily rigged themselves up leaf-thatched _benabs_. -Then, with a dozen fires burning all around, the whole aspect of the -place changed in a twinkling. - -Soon after we had made camp a few cheery sunbeams found their way -down to us. In the forest sunlight falls like a most precious but -sparingly-scattered largesse. Haywood provided us for supper with an -excellent creole soup, piping hot, made of onions, potatoes, and salt -pork. It was very welcome in the chilly damp, and we did it ample -justice. Of course, there was a downpour all night. - -There was also rain at dawn of the following morning, and showers -alternated with sunshine during the whole day. We soon found ourselves -at the edge of the Sirani-baru, within a few yards of its confluence -with the Chenapowu creek. This is halfway-house between Holmia and the -highland savannahs. We crossed the creek by means of a huge _tacouba_, -and the trail ascended sharply on the other side. Ten minutes later -Thomas shot a marm, and announced triumphantly, “Marmu for Mamma.” The -Indians always called me “Mamma” and my husband “Pappa.” We plucked the -bird on the spot, and then continued our march. When the Sirani-baru has -been crossed, a very short ascent of 200 feet again takes the trail on to -a level plateau, which continues until the path drops slightly to recross -the Sirani-baru near its head after close upon three hours’ march, and -that was all we achieved during the day owing to our laggard droghers. We -were, in effect, making our way round the spur of Mount Kowatipu, which -stood at our right hand; but nothing could be seen of the mountain, and -the only object of interest during the day’s march was a deep excavation -at the side of the trail. It may possibly have been made for gold, but it -might equally well be natural. - -Our Demerara River men were now very sulky, but the Arnik boys were -as good as gold, and appeared to enjoy life. We took much interest in -watching them. Primitive man is wonderfully neat and dexterous. He seems -to be able to fashion a leaf or a twig to his will, be it spoon or basket -or house that he wants; and it is touching to see him hold a palm-leaf -carefully over his head to serve as an umbrella, or pick a large leaf -to squat upon; for his primitive mamma has evidently taught him not to -sit on damp ground. When missionaries or traders introduce clothes, the -Indians soon suffer in health; for it never occurs to them to take their -garments off, and they wear their sodden raiment day and night till they -die of pneumonia. You cannot keep dry in the bush; and, as an American -once observed to Mr. Menzies, while prospecting for gold with him in the -forest: “In this place your shirt is sopping wet in two seconds, and -three months won’t dry it.” Rain fell heavily all the time while camp -was being made, and also most of the evening and night. - -Next day we started in a downpour, and were instantly soaked to the -skin. A climb of twenty-four minutes brought us on to the crest of the -divide which, sloping down from Mount Kowatipu, forms at this point the -water-parting between the Essequebo and the Amazon, 2,520 feet above -sea-level. Here on a hill-saddle is a little swamp, out of which two -tiny streams trickle in opposite directions, thus marking the divide. -Thereafter the trail runs almost level for one hour twelve minutes to -the point where the path over Nose Mountain from Arnik comes in from -the east. After that you descend for twenty-six minutes and cross on -stepping-stones the Huri creek (2,090 feet above sea-level), a tributary -of the Yawong, which falls into the Kowa, and so feeds the Ireng and -the Amazon. Next follows a steady and at times a steep ascent along -undulating hill-ridges, narrowing in places to a knife-edge, until -after one and three-quarter hours’ march from Huri creek the trail -emerges from the forest into the Baramaku savannah at a height of 2,680 -feet above sea-level. The character of the forest towards the end was -quite different, and we had to push our way through tall bamboo grass -and among thickets of small trees before we at last came out into the -sunshine of lovely Baramaku-toy. “Toy” means “savannah” or open country -in the language of the local Indians. I wonder if anyone can imagine the -ecstasy it was to us rain-sodden, half-drowned rats who had not seen -clear sky for seven long days to find ourselves out of the dark, gloomy -twilight of the forest, standing in the scented flower-starred grass, -able to look over long views of distant tiers of hills into the fading -blue distance, whilst glowing sunshine warmed us through, and the most -delicious, cool and fragrant breezes blew in our faces. Welcome seemed to -smile from every blade of grass in that enchanting little place. - -[Illustration: BARAMAKU SAVANNAH. - -To face page 113.] - -The whole march through the forest between Holmia and Baramaku-toy can -be done, and was done by us on our return journey, in fourteen hours and -twenty-six minutes. My husband estimated our average rate of progress -at two and a half miles an hour; and the length of the trail in all its -windings would therefore be some thirty-six miles. On the outward journey -this march through the forest occupied sixteen and a half hours, and -was spread over four tedious days, because of the inefficiency of our -Demerara River droghers. The gradients of the route are shown in the -diagram (p. 237), drawn by my husband. - -At Baramaku-toy our forest trek ended, and we never again spent a whole -day in the forest during the remainder of our journey to Roraima, -although frequently we passed through belts of woodland fringing a river -course between one savannah and the next. The British Guiana jungle -is certainly a place where you cannot see the wood for the trees. The -effort of getting along quickly without catching your feet absorbs -the attention, and I am afraid that I have laid much emphasis on the -damp and gloom. Nevertheless, the magnificence of some of the forest -giants induced us often to stand still and marvel. The mora-trees, in -particular, grew to a great height, and their trunks, when a few feet -from the ground, spread out ribs of twisted wood like bastions all -round them. When they lie fallen, you are astonished to see how short a -depth the foundations of the monster penetrated into the soil. We saw -no orchids in flower in the forest, but orchidaceous parasites grow -everywhere on bush and stone, and send out fibres to suck moisture from -the earth. Even those perched on the tops of mighty trees, more than a -hundred feet above the ground, drop down these little, thirsty, fibrous -mouths. Occasionally we noticed brilliant blossoms lying at our feet, -fallen from some creeper, stretching itself in light and air over the -tree-tops; and at one point we picked up and enjoyed some delicious -_suwarri_ nuts. But, taken as a whole, primeval tropical forest is a -hostile thing. It can harbour no fairies, though there might be demons -and goblins. To be alone even for a minute in the jungle is alarming, for -such is the profound silence all around that one has a terrifying sense -of being inimically watched by unseen things, and I can imagine nothing -worse than to be lost in the bush. - - - - -THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS OF BRITISH GUIANA - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE HIGHLAND SAVANNAHS OF BRITISH GUIANA - - The shining tablelands, - To which our God Himself is moon and sun. - - _Tennyson_: _Ode on the Death of - the Duke of Wellington_. - - -By contrast with the forest, the Baramaku savannah seemed fairyland. It -looks like an English park: smiling slopes of grass with here and there a -clump of bracken or a cluster of trees; undulating knolls and dells, and -a delicious little brook at its far end. Its area is between three and -four square miles, and it is situated about 2,700 feet above sea-level. -We walked right across it and pitched camp near the brook. A tarpaulin -shelter was quickly made, and we changed luxuriously into dry clothes, -after which Haywood produced excellent tea almost at once. In spite of -all the drenchings of the last week, my husband and I were in better -health and spirits than at our departure from Georgetown. The cool of the -forest had been invigorating, and the sole evil result of the ceaseless -damp was rheumatism in my shoulder, which disappeared after two days of -the savannah sunshine and dry air. - -But the setting of Baramaku-toy is far from English, for all around -this little Eden looms the dark tropical forest, while to the north -cliff-faced, forest-crowned Kowatipu glowered at us from among his -rain-clouds some ten miles away. He rises a thousand feet or more above -the sea of forest, a rectangular plateau edged by precipices, true to -the Roraima _leit-motif_. He is the magnet for all the rain of the -neighbourhood, and is generally wrapped in forbidding cloud. But as we -gazed at him for a few minutes from Baramaku-toy, he stood out clear and -grand, until once more he wreathed his head in mist, while rain fell -about his feet. We watched, rejoicing in our escape, when, as it were, -he shook his fist at us by sending an ugly black cloud straight for us. -I ran to the shelter of the tarpaulin, having no mind to get my nice dry -clothes soaked again. But it was only an impotent threat. He could not -touch us in Baramaku’s charmed keeping, and the cloud drifted off on to -the forest-clad hills near by, whilst the thrushes sang on undisturbedly -and we basked in the sunshine, lying in the lush grass with no _bête -rouge_ to annoy us and fanned by cool breezes. The air had a delicious -mountain nip in it, the thermometer at 5 p.m. being only 69° F. The night -was quite cold, and I was glad of three blankets. Here we slept without -mosquito nets, untroubled by insects. No one at present inhabits this -savannah, but there are the remains of a deserted banaboo; and the spot, -when made less difficult of access, would be a charming little country -property. It has pasturage suitable for horses and cattle, with plenty -of room available for pleasure-grounds and park-land, as well as for a -kitchen-garden and poultry-farm. Within a short time a family established -here would make itself almost independent of supplies from the coast. - -After our usual breakfast of porridge and coffee, we set off next -morning, having first been taken by Mr. Menzies to look at a little -meadow sprinkled underneath its grass with water-worn pebbles. He said -that he had once prospected this place for diamonds, and thought it -showed good promise, but could not go on with the work for lack of -dynamite. He had found some ancient beads in the ground, of a kind not -now used by the aborigines, and concluded that the place had been an -Indian settlement in bygone days. - -Crossing the brook which bounds the Baramaku savannah, our trail plunged -again into forest, and ran uphill and down-dale over a number of small -rills that drain northwards into the Kowa River, until, after a hot, dull -walk of about five and a half miles, we reached the Quaibaru savannah. -Ten minutes before emerging from the forest we came upon a stream -with provision-fields on its banks, where cassava, yams, bananas, and -plantains grew plentifully; and here our droghers washed themselves, -brushed their hair, and titivated generally, preparatory to a state entry -into Quaibaru village, whilst one of their number sounded a cow-horn to -announce our approach. We could see that we were expected by the fact -that the path had been carefully and recently cleaned for us. - -The savannah of Quaibaru is not nearly so picturesque as that of -Baramaku, but it occupies a commanding position high above the left bank -of the Kowa valley. As the forest veil falls, you step out on to the -ridge of a grassy hill, whereon are perched three banaboos, one on the -hill-top (2,550 feet above sea-level), the two others in _échelon_ lower -down the ridge. Then come in succession two narrow savannah valleys, -divided by two more savannah ridges, on which also are banaboos. The -houses of the savannah Indians are, as a rule, circular, about thirty -feet in diameter, and they accommodate a large number of people and dogs. -The walls are of mud, about four feet high, and the thatch slopes up -sharply to a high pointed top, so that inside there is a sort of upper -story, where provisions can be stored out of the way of the starving curs -who abound in every village. The houses are only lighted by the doorway, -and are, therefore, very gloomy within, the reason for this being that -the pest of the savannahs, the biting kabouru-fly, never enters a dark -place. The doorways generally face north-east, so as to get all the -breeze possible, the wind blowing almost as steadily from that quarter -over the savannah as it does on the coast. - -We had anticipated much delay at Quaibaru, for we feared that our -droghers, after short rations in the forest, would insist on celebrating -their arrival in inhabited country by a feast. Luckily for us, the -Quaibaru folk, who are Patamonas, were not in a hospitable frame of mind -towards our convoy, though friendly enough to us. They declared that -they had no cassiri and scarcely any cassava, so that our men were soon -anxious to leave. Accordingly we made and ate our breakfast beside -a stream in the first Quaibaru valley, a shadeless and uncomfortable -place, where the Quaibaruvians brought us some excellent bananas, a -limited supply of hard cassava—“wood-bread,” Mr. Menzies called it—and -a bucketful of limes. Mr. Menzies had given the villagers some limes to -plant a few years ago, and the trees had done extremely well. The limes -were welcome, as the stock we had brought up from Potaro Landing was -nearly exhausted. The villagers also undertook to fetch up for us the -salt which we had left behind at Akrabanna, and to bring it after us to -Puwa. - -After a short midday halt we pushed on, winding in and out of the -little Quaibaru valleys under a blazing sun; but a fresh breeze saved -the situation. From a hill-ridge before descending a very steep forest -slope to the Kowa River, we caught our first view of the big savannah, -rising as a shining tableland high up behind smaller tree-clad hills on -the other side of the river. It was a sight for sore eyes, and looked -a veritable “Land of Promise.” An Indian trail always goes bang up the -side of a hill in a straight line, and bang down the other side, with no -thought of gradient or of avoiding unnecessary exertion, so down we had -to go, sliding perpendicularly to the Kowa, hanging on to handy trees -as we passed, and more than once taking an involuntary seat. We crossed -the Kowa on a _tacouba_, just awash with the stream; and after a short -rest and cool down, the process assisted by a limade, we went on through -a forest of luxuriant wild papaw and banana for some distance. Our path -then turned sharply out of the Kowa valley and proceeded to ascend a hill -very nearly as steep as a house in a bee-line upwards. It was a bit of a -scramble, and the stiffest climb we had had since the ascent to Kaietuk, -the last part being a dry watercourse. Once on top, the forest dropped -away. We had a superb view back over the Kowa to Quaibaru-toy, and we -could just see a savannah hill with a tuft of trees on it away behind the -Quaibaru forest. It was Baramaku-toy standing a-tiptoe to see the last of -us. Kowatipu would have been in sight had he not been characteristically -concealed in a rain-cloud. We sat down to admire the glorious breadth of -landscape, hoping also to see our carriers emerge from the bush, for we -were somewhat anxious to know how the Demerara River men would negotiate -the hill. Haywood, who always kept up well, arrived almost as soon as -we did, and inquired exultingly whether “Madam don’t think this country -worth the walk.” I said, “Indeed I did.” - -Haywood always carried his possessions in a bag upon his head, and -managed most skilfully to look after his feet without upsetting his -balance. Indians carry their loads on their backs, with a strap over -each shoulder and a third strap across the forehead. Their hands are -thus free, though Haywood always gave each drogher of our party some -additional etcetera, such as a saucepan, lamp, or a teapot. I used often -to wish I could sketch the oddness of a pair of extremely stalwart, -naked, red legs, surmounted by a mighty bundle, trotting along in -front of me, naught else of the man being visible save a pair of hands -carefully conveying some absurdly civilized object, like a teapot or a -kerosene lamp! - -In days to come it is to be hoped that one of the main roads of British -Guiana may lead up to this plateau; and, when the time is at hand for -building such a road, its trace will probably be carried from the -watershed of the Sirani-baru into the Kowa valley by easy gradients, and -thence round hill contours, without ascending the Baramaku or Quaibaru -savannahs up to the high-level tableland. But the existing trail could -with a few détours at small expense be made into a bridle track suitable -for pack animals and for cattle; and if this were done the savannah -highlands, which are to-day within nineteen hours’ march from the Potaro -at Chenapowu, would be made economically and speedily accessible. A -launch would place Chenapowu within two hours of Kaietuk, and a motor -road would bring Kaietuk within a day’s journey of Bartika. It would -then be a matter of no difficulty and small expense to travel up or down -between the highland savannahs and the coast in three or four days. - -We got tired of waiting for our laggard carriers, took tea, and started -off again. The trail now went once more into the bush for a few minutes, -up and down one more hill, and then emerged into savannah for good. The -sun was very hot and shone straight in our eyes; but the glorious air -prevented fatigue, for every breath of it was like a draught of strength. -Our path ran fairly level through high grass; but, like all Indian -trails, it was uncomfortably narrow, as the Indians put their feet down -one immediately in front of the other. The hills above the right bank of -the Kowa, below the point where we crossed it, form a grassy tableland -with high savannah crests; and, passing through a col between two such -crests, we debouched after two and three-quarter hours’ actual marching -from Quaibaru-toy on the magnificent plateau which forms part of Mr. -Menzies’ ranch. The path dipped down to the deep pool of a stream, near a -waving fringe of high bamboo. To the right rose a low tree-clad hill, and -at its foot we camped in a banaboo built by Mr. Menzies near the northern -boundary of his grazing land close to Karto village. - -[Illustration: MOUNT KOWATIPU FROM THE KARTO TABLELAND. - -To face page 128.] - -Towards sunset my husband and I went up a neighbouring knoll to take -observations. The view over the lovely rolling plain, with its smiling -valleys, was entrancing, and old Kowatipu actually put his head, rather -crossly, out of his cloud for a few seconds. The Karto tableland is a -flat, grassy plateau some 2,400 feet above sea-level. It is bounded on -the east by the Kowa River; on the north-west and south-west by the -Chiung River, both flowing in rifts far below the plateau level; on the -south-east and north by hills which divide the Kowa from the Chiung -valley. Its extreme length from north to south is about seven miles, -and its extreme width from east to west is some eight miles. Its area is -roughly fifty square miles; and the distance across the plateau by our -trail, which ran in a tolerably straight line, my husband estimated at -five miles. The whole tableland forms an excellent grazing-ground; and, -although there was at the time of our visit no water on the central part -of the plateau, there were many streams at its edges, falling into the -Kowa and the Chiung, while across it ran a few dry channels, which are, -no doubt, full of water in the rainy season. The Indian village, named -Karto, stands at the north-west corner of the plateau, not far from Mr. -Menzies’ banaboo. Its provision-fields are partly in the tree-clad hills, -fringing the plateau to the north, and partly down in the fertile Kowa -valley near the point of our crossing. We saw no cattle on the tableland; -but the Karto villagers told us that there was a herd on some very -attractive-looking pasture-grounds near the head of the Chiung River. For -it must be understood that the highlands suitable for grazing are by no -means confined to the tableland which we crossed, and from which we could -see the savannahs round the upper reaches of the Chiung only a little -below our level, while across the valley of the Chiung, lower in its -course, we looked up to a yet higher, and apparently not less extensive, -savannah plateau. These attractive and spacious highlands deserve to be -developed, and would support a considerable population. They would, as it -is, make an admirable hill-station. The scenery is beautiful. The climate -at the season of our visit was delightful. The locality could be made -easily and cheaply accessible from Georgetown, and would, I venture to -think, prove much superior as a health resort to the West India Islands. - -We did not see Mount Roraima from the Karto tableland; but I do not doubt -that from one or other of the savannah hills which surround that plateau -it would be possible to see Roraima, if by fortunate coincidence one -reached the proper point of observation at a time when the mountain was -free from cloud; for on our way back we saw Roraima from many hill-tops, -and even from valleys, which on the way out vouchsafed us no such view. -We did, however, from Karto get our first sight of Mount Chakbang, -standing out conspicuously far away to the west, a rugged finger pointing -to the sky, and the mountains of Mataruka were plainly visible. - -We awoke next morning to find a slight drizzle falling, but it soon -cleared off into a brilliantly sunny day. All the Karto people came to -see us—men, women and children, dogs and waracabra. Indians are very -fond of tame birds, but do not keep them in cages. They fly about as -they like. These villagers were Makusis, and appeared very friendly. Our -droghers were revived and gay, having had overnight a feast of cassava -and cassiri. Cassiri, which is a drink made from cassava, has a magical -effect on these people. It seems to cheer without inebriating—in fact, it -has rather the effect which a cup of good tea or coffee has on a tired -European. - -Our road for a couple of hours now lay over the glorious grass plateau -which forms part of Mr. Menzies’ ranch. Walking was perfectly delightful -in that exhilarating highland air. We had enchanting views of blue -distance in all directions. Far on our left the tableland was bounded -by the rift of the Kowa River, beyond which rolling forest-clad hills -faded into the horizon, whilst nearer to the right the head-waters of -the Chiung River wound away among green savannah mountains, in the knees -of which lay little rounded terraces and small gulleys, studded with -eta-palm. These hills form another tableland about five hundred feet -higher than the one which we traversed, and would probably be a good -country for sheep. None of these smiling, healthy highlands are marked -on the Colony’s maps, and their very existence has, in the past, been -steadfastly denied. - -Mount Mataruka lay south-west of us, almost in a straight line with -our path; but, although we ultimately climbed over its shoulder, our -route first made a wide détour, taking us to Puwa village. From the -south-west end of Mr. Menzies’ tableland we descended some seven hundred -feet in half an hour to a narrow gorge, where four streams, falling in -picturesque cascades from the plateau, converge to form the Kowyann, a -tributary of the Chiung. From this point the Makusis had opened a bridle -track for us through the small forest belts which separate the wide -stretches of savannah; and we could have ridden on horseback the rest of -the way to the Ireng but for the fact that, owing to a misunderstanding -between the chief at Mataruka and a chief in the Kotinga valley, where -the horses were, “shanks his mare” had still to be our mount. We -breakfasted beside the Kowyann, and then took our way down its valley, -steep grassy hills rising on either side of us. We travelled alternately -through little savannahs, whose long waving grass and crooked trees, -pretending to be apple-trees, had a queer resemblance to an English -orchard, and through patches of woodland. The shade in these little -forest belts was very grateful, as the sun was extremely hot. A march -of one and a quarter hours down the Kowyann valley brought us to Chiung -village, where we spent the night. - -This village stands on the left bank of the Chiung River, and here a -large gathering of Makusis had assembled. They seemed very pleased to see -us, and explained that they had cut a broad trail all the way to Puwa. -They also provided an abundance of cassava and cassiri for our droghers. -The village consisted of two houses, with a third unfinished one, which -was being erected for us. The frame was all in place, the wooden bars -tied neatly together with bark-fibre, according to Indian fashion, for -these people do not use any form of nail. The roof of our house was only -partly thatched, and the sides were all open, a fortunate circumstance, -as it was very hot in the enclosed valley. We used our tarpaulin to -screen ourselves off from the rest of the village, which was about fifty -yards away, and at night we enjoyed the brilliant stars, looking down -upon us. We placed our beds immediately under the small portion of thatch -which had been completed, for the excessively heavy dew of the savannahs -makes it unpleasant to sleep entirely _à la belle étoile_. Until -darkness fell we were much troubled by the biting kabouru-flies, which -are slightly larger than the ordinary sand-flies. Their bite is much -more irritating, and raises a red lump with a black spot in the centre. -Though the lump soon dies down, the black speck remains for several days. -I defended myself from the kabouru with a dark veil and gloves, but my -husband and Mr. Menzies were soon sorry objects. The savannah Indians -appear to suffer little, if any, irritation from the bites of kabouru, -but the poor fellows from Arnik and from the Demerara River, being -unaccustomed to this pest, which is not known in the forests, were very -much afflicted. In the highland savannahs kabouru-flies are generally -found near water, and the larger the stream the worse the kabouru; so -we had to pay for our close proximity to the Chiung River, which flowed -with a delicious gurgling noise close to our banaboo. During the night -Mr. Menzies’ quarters were invaded by a raiding dog, who carried off our -excellent ham. This would have been a serious business had we not been -approaching Puwa, the “Land of Plenty” as far as food is concerned. - -Next morning (6th January) we left Chiung village at dawn with a large -convoy, for all the village, including women and babies, came with us. -Ten minutes after our start we forded the Chiung River, an operation -which took another ten minutes and was great fun. The water, deliciously -cold, rose to my knees. But very little walking in that savannah air soon -dries one again completely, a delightful contrast to the bush! - -The path we followed from Chiung to Puwa was nothing more than a big -circuit round a hill. We should have preferred a short-cut over the -summit; but the Indians having prepared a level track for us with much -care along the valleys, we felt that it would be ungrateful not to take -their line. This track ran through a thick belt of forest, fringing the -banks of the Chiung; and the Makusis had most carefully straightened and -cleared the forest path to a width of six to ten feet, removing most -of the tree-stumps, while in places they had actually swept the ground -clean of fallen leaves. The job must have given them a great deal of -trouble, for the trees, though small, were of hardwood varieties, such as -purple-heart and letter-wood, and the road-makers were justly proud of -their work. We were two hours in this forest, but I was walking slowly, -being tired by the unaccustomed exposure to sun during the two preceding -days. Then the trail again emerged into savannah, having left the river, -which winds away to the left round some hills that we crossed over a low -col (1,550 feet above sea-level). - -We now found ourselves in the Ireng valley, though at some distance from -the river, and we halted for breakfast in the little belt of forest -beside a small brook. Here we discovered that we were an enormous party, -for half Puwa village, including Johnny’s wife and sons, had come out to -meet us. The Makusis, as young men, are extremely handsome and well-made, -full of life and movement. Johnny’s sons it was a treat to see, the -eldest especially, a lad of about fifteen. He wore only a loin-cloth and -necklace, with bracelets of beads, carried a bow and arrows, and simply -flew about the place—never walked, but he ran, and every movement was -as graceful as a cat’s. Then there was a dear little fellow about six, -Edward by name, who greeted Haywood most affectionately, and became -a zealous little cook’s mate. I remember we gave him and some small -companions a few of the dried prunes we were eating, and they tied up -each one most carefully in a separate leaf, and said they would take them -to their mothers. I also remember in connection with that meal that Mr. -Menzies and I incautiously partook of red peppers, supplied us by some -hospitable friend, and cried in consequence many bitter and involuntary -tears. - -Our path next lay through a succession of little valleys with graceful -eta-palms growing in all the creeks, and occasionally patches of bush, -through which the Makusis had cut us a royal road. The trail, which had -hitherto run east-south-east, now turned back on itself, the direction -being west-north-west to the Puwa creek, which we forded after another -two hours’ march; and from the ford it took us twenty minutes more to -reach Puwa village. Our path was practically level and very good going -all the way from Chiung to Puwa. The distance, as the crow flies, between -those villages over the hill-tops is only some six miles, but we had -come at least twice that distance. The provision-fields of Puwa village -are in forest, close by the ford, and are very fertile. One yam brought -from these fields and given to us was as much as a man could carry. The -village itself stands on the right bank of the stream from which it takes -its name, and is situated in a ring of hills, two of which we climbed, -being rewarded by a very good view of the Ireng valley and of the river -itself, flowing in a deep-cut trench. Everyone in Puwa was drawn up in -festal array to meet us, very anxious to shake hands, and all who could -boast clothes of any sort had them on. The ladies mostly had their -skirts hung round them, immediately below their arm-pits, whilst the -correct Puwa wear for trousers is to hang them round the shoulders, the -seat forming a sort of mantle behind and the trouser legs quite handy -to flap away flies or wipe a perspiring forehead, as need may arise. -One boy there was who had, I should imagine, been away to work on some -Brazilian ranch, for he was most magnificently got up in a white coat, -blue trousers _on_ his legs, and three necklaces; and he had a larger -number of pins stuck through his lower lip than anyone else. He evidently -fancied himself no end, so we christened him the “Nut.” Both Patamonas -and Makusis have a habit of sticking pins, or, failing these, pieces of -stick, through their lower lips. The Makusi women are very much shorter -than the men, but their figures, save in girlhood, are not pretty. They -carry splendidly, and I should think are as strong as the men. They are -very squat and have immense legs, being beasts of burden from childhood, -whereas the men only carry loads on state occasions. Indians generally -live at a considerable distance from their provision-fields, and often -at some height above water, so that the women are perpetually engaged -in droghing. The Indian children seem to abound everywhere and to enjoy -life. Indeed, I think they live in a children’s Paradise—no lessons, no -clothes, no bed-time! - -Puwa village consisted of three houses, and another, in process of -building for us, was in much the same state as that we occupied in -Chiung. The villagers made me a nice little dressing-room in one corner -of our _benab_ with tarpaulins and a cowhide; and on arrival I subsided -into my hammock to enjoy a glorious cool breeze blowing up the valley, -whilst my husband climbed the steep rocky hill just above the village -to take observations. Meantime all sorts of offerings came in. Piles of -cassava, plantains and bananas, enormous yams, pumpkins, eggs, and a -couple of fowls, one of which Haywood had in the soup in a jiffy. The -people seemed to have a great affection and respect for Mr. Menzies, -and he usually got them to understand somehow what he wanted, although -he does not speak more than six words of their language. “Walky” takes -the place of “makey” in pidgin Makusi. “Um” represents “piecey” of -pidgin Chinese. We went to bed early, the young moon and stars shining -in beautifully upon us; but dogs marauding about amongst our baggage -disturbed us a good deal, as did attendant fleas. Indian dogs are never -fed, so that they may be keen hunters, and they are always mangy and -horribly thin. - -Next day we spent in Puwa, as there was so much to do. Everyone was very -busy. Haywood did some satisfactory and much-needed laundry work. The -Indians drove up a herd of fine short-horn cattle for our inspection, -then a bullock was separated from the rest, driven down to the edge of -the stream, and killed at a blow by a Makusi, after which all the village -assisted at the cutting up and salting. The rest of the cattle smelt -blood, and set up a fearsome bellowing. This herd had been purchased by -Mr. Menzies from Indians in Brazil, and by him driven across the Ireng -River. Another matter to be settled was the method of carrying me, when -necessary, on the line of march. My husband insisted that from time to -time in the heat of the day I should be carried in a hammock slung on a -pole between two carriers. This, of course, was never possible when the -trail ran at all steeply up or down hill. It was quite impossible in the -forest, and my hammock did not come into use for this purpose until we -left Puwa. The expedient was adopted principally to give me opportunities -of rest without thereby delaying the progress of our caravan. Johnny and -Jack, two stalwart Indians from Chiung village, undertook the carrying -job. Then we selected from our stores what we thought we should ourselves -consume during the next fortnight—jam, oatmeal, sausages, chocolate, -dried fruit, cheese, biscuits, tea and coffee, enough to make a load -for one man. The rest, together with a few of our personal belongings, -we handed over to the headman of Puwa, to keep in his banaboo until we -returned. We also settled that the whole of our droghers from Chenapowu, -save two, should remain and be fed in Puwa during such time as we were -on our way to and from Roraima. The two we took with us were Edward and -Moses, both Makusis, who particularly requested to be allowed to come. -The Amik boys went with us next day to Mataruka, and then returned to -Puwa to rest, so that they might be fresh for the return journey through -the Kowatipu forest. - -When the chief part of cutting up the bullock had been accomplished and -long strips of it had been salted and dried in the sun, Mr. Menzies -worked a gramophone, to everyone’s great delight. This gramophone had -been brought up in fulfilment of a request from Albert, the headman -of Mataruka. He had asked for a church bell, a gramophone, and “high -wines”—that is, rum—as a reward for the services which he would give us -in connection with our farther journey. Mr. Menzies had undertaken on -our behalf that the first two of his wishes should be fulfilled if he -arranged to have his people ready to convey us from Mataruka to Roraima. -With the gramophone we supplied half a dozen records; and as I listened -to the hideous machine screaming out its ragtime, “Tipperary,” etc., sung -with an appalling Yankee twang, I wished we could have done something -better for the poor dears. - -A nice breeze blew all day, and we were not troubled by kabouru save in -the very early morning. After tea-time we strolled up a little hill close -by and enjoyed the cool of the afternoon and a lovely view of the Puwa -and Ireng valleys. We had excellent grilled steak for dinner; but the -dogs were worse than ever at night, trying to get at the meat that had -been hung up to dry. The Indians sat up eating the remains of the bullock -nearly all night. They made remarkably little noise over their feast, and -appeared perfectly fresh and gay next morning. - -On the following morning there was great delay in getting off owing -to the redistribution of loads; so my husband and I started off by -ourselves, with my hammock-bearers ahead to show us the way. But more -haste, less speed! Johnny and Jack, for reasons best known to themselves, -saw fit to guide us down into a low stuffy valley, shut off by high hills -from any breath of wind, and we struggled along for an hour and a half -through bush and old yam and cassava cultivation by a path which at times -did not admit of our standing upright. Finally we climbed out of the -valley, up a steep col, where we joined our caravan of droghers and Mr. -Menzies, who had come by a shorter and quicker route along a hill-ridge, -affording a fine view of mountain scenery far and near. From the point -where the two trails converge, an hour’s march over a charming and -spacious savannah valley, in which there are some rice-fields, and up a -low hill, leads to a banaboo, beautifully situated some six hundred feet -above the Ireng, now in full view, and commanding a superb panorama. To -the south lay the fertile, golden-looking Mataruka plain, crossed by the -line of the Waikana creek; to the south-east was a tangle of big hills -beyond the Ireng; to the east the Puwa hills and a glimpse of the Karto -tableland; from north through west to south, beyond the winding Ireng, -the most glorious stretch of open rolling grass hills and valleys that -one could wish to see; and beyond all that, in the far, far distance, -was Roraima’s great block, some sixty miles away in the direct line of -vision. Of course, it was impossible at that distance to distinguish -between Roraima, Kukenaam, and Weitipu. We merely saw a dim blue mass, -obviously very much higher than anything near it. - -The air on our hill-top was absolutely glorious, and a strong breeze blew -steadily. The place is too high for the kabouru, and we spent a couple -of hours enjoying ourselves, and ate a most excellent midday meal. Our -menu consisted of beefsteak, potatoes, onions, yams, biscuits, cheese, -prunes, lemonade and coffee; and we laughed at the idea of the starvation -journey which an expedition to Roraima is always supposed to be. Haywood -cooked inside the banaboo, to get out of the wind, and his grilled steak -was first-class. The banaboo gave us pleasant shade during the meal, for -we sat in the open immediately under the thatch-eaves. In the afternoon -we descended sharply to the left bank of the Ireng, which is here the -boundary of British Guiana. By the river-side the kabouru were one black -cloud, and I was thankful for my dark blue veil, which appeared to scare -them off me. The boat we wanted was on the Brazilian side of the river, -so one of our men sprang into the water, swam across for it, and paddled -gaily back to us, apparently not the least out of breath, although the -Ireng here is wide and flows with a swirling current. We hastily got into -the dug-out and crossed the river, landing at a point where the Waikana -creek from the Mataruka plain flows into the Ireng. So we left British -Guiana for Brazil. - - - - -A CORNER OF BRAZIL - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A CORNER OF BRAZIL - - Across the hills, and far away - Beyond their utmost purple rim. - - TENNYSON: _The Day-Dream_. - - -It took some time to ferry our whole party across the Ireng, as there -were only three boats available—namely, two small dug-outs and a large -one, the latter specially made for us by the Mataruka people. The -crossing was an amusing performance to watch, and very picturesque the -dug-outs looked piled up with baggage and people. Meanwhile, my husband -and I rested in shade under some trees at the mouth of the Waikana creek, -which drains the Mataruka savannah and joins the Ireng through a narrow -rift between hills that completely conceal the plain from the river-side. -But, once through this gate, an extensive flat prairie lies before you; -and an hour’s march over it brings you to Mataruka village, at the foot -of the mountain of the same name, which we had first seen from the Karto -tableland, and which had been in view off and on ever since. Even at the -village you are only halfway across this admirable pasture-land, which is -flanked on the east by Mount Bulak-köyepin, a landmark conspicuous during -many days of our journey, and on the south by the hills that divide the -Ireng from the Kotinga watershed. A tropical sun blazed down out of a -cloudless sky, and I was extremely glad to avail myself of the hammock, -and to find that the men carried me very comfortably. They bore me along -faster than I could have walked. - -Mataruka is a large Makusi village; and we found all its inhabitants -drawn up in two long lines, with their chief, Albert, at their head, -waiting to shake hands. I did wish that the fashion of shaking hands -had not spread to this far-away corner of Brazil, and I left the brunt -of it to my husband; but all the mothers brought their babies to me to -shake hands. They seem to regard it as a most important ceremony, and, -of course, we should have hated to hurt the feelings of this friendly, -pleasant people. Albert, a very stout and heavy personage, whom we did -not much like, wore a pink shirt and grey trousers, all much too small -for his portly figure. In expectation of his church bell and gramophone, -he had mustered his people from far and wide to meet us. He had also -caused a banaboo to be built for us, a very large, though unfinished -edifice, of which the greater part of the roof had been completed and -also the sides to windward—a fortunate circumstance, as the wind sweeps -ceaselessly over the Mataruka plain. We went into our house, followed by -the entire village; and Albert then brought up Joseph, our future guide, -a very shy Makusi cowboy. My husband asked him how many days the journey -to Roraima would take, and he answered by nervously reeling off all the -names of mountains and rivers we should pass. This certainly made it -sound a very long way indeed. Joseph we found to be a really good fellow, -and we became very fond of him before the end of our journey. - -These preliminaries being over, “gramophone talked,” with great success, -and was duly handed over to Albert after he had been instructed how to -work it, together with his church bell. No sooner had that been done than -he proceeded to ring the bell as a summons to the villagers to come to -church. Albert, who has strong ecclesiastical leanings, has set apart -as a church in his village a very nice banaboo with a pointed apse -containing a picture of the Madonna and Child. Logs on the floor serve -as pews for the congregation, which trooped in dutifully at the sound of -the bell—men, women and children, dogs and poultry. Then began a sort of -religious service; for Albert conducts lengthy prayers and hymn-singing -every morning and afternoon. We could frequently catch the words “Ave -Maria” and “Spiritus Sanctus”; and, whenever the congregation fastened -upon any phrase or tune they knew, they all shouted lustily together. -Albert himself intones rather well, having been taught by an itinerant -Roman Catholic priest. On every day we spent in the village Matins and -Evensong were duly celebrated, while in the intervals the gramophone -proved a great success. There are several houses in Mataruka, and also -a corral for the cattle. At our request, a herd of about fifty head was -driven into the corral for our inspection; and the Makusis said there -were, in addition, plenty of wild cattle round about. Here we enjoyed a -plentiful supply of new milk, brought to us in large gourds, and on our -return journey a bullock was killed for our benefit. - -The dogs of Mataruka were unfortunately even more insistent than those -we had hitherto had to endure. Nothing was safe from the miserable -starving brutes. They sprang upon the rough tables made of cross-wise -branches and snatched anything that was put down for a second. Poor -Haywood was almost beside himself, and was quite hurt with me for -collapsing with laughter as a dog swallowed three eggs and made off with -two fish that had been brought as a gift. The fish were certainly very -stale and the eggs probably likewise, so it was not a matter to grieve -over, as the loss of a precious ham at Chiung had been. We went to bed as -usual at dusk. The night was chilly, and the glory of the stars above the -wide plain was wonderful. - -We were up again breakfasting on porridge and fresh milk by starlight -with a sinking Southern Cross before dawn of day (9th January). There -was, however, much delay in starting off, as we had an almost entirely -new set of carriers. The Mataruka folk appeared to regard our expedition -to Roraima in the light of a pleasure trip, and a large number of -women, and even one baby in arms, accompanied us on the march there and -back. I think they enjoyed the idea of a pilgrimage through the Arekuna -country under a safe escort. There is no love lost between Makusi and -Arekuna; the latter are stronger men and fiercer, but the former are -much more numerous. So, our camp-followers being many, the usual load -for a drogher, which is between fifty and sixty pounds, was considerably -reduced, and several men carried next to nothing. Our rate of travel was -thereby much accelerated, and everyone was extremely cheerful, regarding -the whole jaunt as great fun. - -From Albert’s village our trail ascended between Mount Mataruka on our -right and Mount Kako on our left. The valley, up which we climbed, was -very hot, even at half-past seven in the morning, and we wound up it with -the sun at our backs towards an elusive pass over a succession of ridges, -each one pretending to be the real summit, and when we had surmounted -it, behold! there was yet another beyond. It was an exceedingly pretty -valley with long golden grass, dotted with picturesque shade trees; but -the Indians behind us set fire to the grass, and on our return it was a -blackened desolation. Indians always set fire to the prairies when they -travel, partly to keep the trails clear and make walking easier than -it would be in long grass, and incidentally to drive away snakes, but -partly out of merely childish pleasure in the blaze. It is very bad for -the country, as the soil after a burning tends to get washed off the -hills by the next heavy rain. - -When, after climbing for an hour and a quarter, we really reached the -final ridge at a point 2,350 feet above sea-level, the view was glorious -and the air so keen and invigorating, so strong and beautiful, that -with each breath we seemed to be drinking health and energy. From this -pass the most striking feature of the landscape was Mount Chakbang, far -away to the west-north-west. It looks in shape somewhat like a clenched -fist, with one finger pointing up to the sky. This mountain is indeed a -surveyor’s friend, for it is visible and unmistakable from nearly every -elevated point in the country. - -Joseph, our guide, a most picturesque bronze figure, with his scarlet -loin-cloth, his little quake containing a hammock and drinking gourd on -his back, and a pair of chickens on his arm to assist the commissariat, -was always close to my husband, telling him the names of all the hills -far and near, whenever we halted for observations. He was tall and very -lean and carried a knife in his hand, with which he would gesticulate -to himself as he walked, describing semicircles in the air with it, or -pointing away to distant hills, evidently reciting in his mind all the -different trails of the neighbourhood. - -From the col between Mount Mataruka and Mount Kako, the trail taken -by Joseph descended slightly across an upland savannah and led us in -forty-five minutes to another col between the hills to the east of -Rera, a plain almost as large as that of Mataruka and exceedingly well -watered, draining into the Kotinga. Rera is Joseph’s home, and he pointed -out his house far away to the south of the golden savannah on a knoll, -where stood three banaboos with cattle grazing close by. No breath of -air stirred in the Rera plain, and I was glad of my hammock. Johnny and -Jack had evidently found my weight the day before more than they could -bear, and had each provided himself with a tin canister instead; but -I had two fresh volunteers, an old man, whose name did not transpire, -and his son, who called himself “Misterquick.” Mr. Quick is an Anglican -parson who used to visit the district. These two Makusis carried well; -but Indians dislike weights on their shoulders, as they are accustomed -to carrying on the back, and they often complained, “Mamma heavy.” I did -not, however, require them to carry me for long at a time, though the -hammock was very useful in enabling me to rest every now and then for ten -or fifteen minutes without delaying the line of march. - -After skirting the Rera plain for some distance past the foot of Mount -Kurowya, we crossed a rather nasty little eta-swamp, and then turned -off at a right angle to ascend a pass between Mount Kumâraying and -Mount Sakmann—a steep and rocky track. Halfway up we stopped to take -lunch, where a delicious rippling brook crossed our path. Unfortunately, -there was little shade and no breeze, so it was very warm. We made an -excellent meal off our Puwa beefsteak, for meat keeps several days in -this atmosphere. We also took note of the extraordinary number of people -in our train; but, as only nineteen claimed rations, we realized that the -others had come independently for the sake of the journey. There were -some uncommonly good fellows amongst our men. Daniel, Joseph’s great -friend and ally, was a thoroughly hard-working boy. A younger Thomas -formed with Haywood our commissariat, and a very efficient one too. -Thomas carried the lunch-basket and all the materials and implements -immediately necessary for making and eating a meal, and he stuck firmly -to a position just behind Haywood, which meant that he was always well -to the front. Thomas also became a very handy man about camp, and learnt -with Indian deftness to manipulate our folding beds, chairs, and table. -In return for these services, he was admitted to mess with Haywood, who -took care that he should always have enough to eat, or rather that there -should be plenty, for an Indian has an infinite appetite and can never -have enough. Haywood observed to me once: “I does like to see Thomas eat. -He eat so diligent”; and it was an apt remark, for Thomas would squat -down to finish the remains in a saucepan with an air of rapt thought, -the complete concentration of a man who is faced with one of the great -tasks of life, and he would scour and scour again the inside of the pots -with his spoon, until no smallest speck of food could possibly be scraped -together, before he would consent to wash them. Thomas’s wife came too, -carrying a baby, as well as a quake with their hammocks and food. I was -rather anxious about that baby the first day, exposed to torrid sun with -nothing on its head; but it was perfectly well and cheerful the whole -time—a fine little boy. Johnny and Jack of Chiung were another pair of -stalwart friends. Jack wore a felt hat with a green ribbon run in and out -round the crown. It looked a very quaint apex to his brawny, bronze-red -figure. He was an exceptionally powerful fellow, whilst Johnny was a -dear old man to whom we became much attached. He would come holding out -his hand, saying “Mamma” in a most appealing way, to beg for a piece of -chocolate; and if I refused him a bit, he would sulk just like a spoiled -child, and pretend to be deaf when spoken to. Then the “Pirate,” as we -christened him on account of a red handkerchief he wore tied round his -head, his real name being Alexander, was a cheery personage, always to -the fore, despite the fact that he was very elderly; and he was closely -followed by his nimble, if likewise elderly, wife. The “Nut,” too, having -discarded necklaces and trousers, proved a useful retainer. - -After our meal we started again up the hill. It certainly was a roasting -climb; but a delicious breeze met us on the top and fanned us as we went -down the other side. We descended into a small grass plain, at the end -of which we crossed a narrow strip of bush, where, as usual, a path -had recently been cleared for us; and then, following the bank of a -delightful jasper-bedded little stream with pretty cascades and crystal -clear water, we wound in and out between low hills in a narrow valley -until the trail again took us to a hill-top, whence we perceived that we -had come in a sweeping semicircle from Mataruka back to the Ireng, which -was again at our feet. At this point we were two and three-quarter hours’ -march from the col between hills above the east end of the Rera plain, -say six miles by the trail in all its windings; but the distance back to -the col between Mount Mataruka and Mount Kako was only four miles in the -direct line of vision. Plainly, therefore, there must be some straighter, -if more arduous, path over this stretch of country; and, as a matter of -fact, the Arekunas who accompanied us on our return journey did make a -short-cut, which took them from the Paiwa valley to the saddle between -Mount Mataruka and Mount Kako without traversing the Rera plain. Their -path was, however, described by Joseph, with an expressive gesture, -as “Mountain-top, mountain-top, mountain-top.” We could now see the -savannah peaks above Enamung as well as those near Puwa, and it would -evidently be possible to reach Enamung from the Karto tableland by a -route far more direct than ours had been. Indeed, Joseph afterwards told -us of a trail leading from Karto village to Enamung in two stages. That -would undoubtedly be the best line for any future traveller bound for -Roraima, as the long détour through Chiung, Puwa, Mataruka, and Rera, is -thus avoided. Still, we did not object to the longer march. It was all -very delightful in the keen air and sunshine, and I realized with great -thankfulness that I was now hardening to the sun and felt extremely fit -and well. - -From our hill-top we continued for some time along a ridge, descending -gradually at first, and then sharply, till after twenty-three minutes’ -walk we forded a beautiful clear stream, almost at the level of the -Ireng, which it joined a short distance to our right. Then, on a low -knoll beyond, we stepped upon some stone slabs with curious markings on -them, and here Joseph said, “Makunaima pickaninny, he dead.” Makunaima is -the goddess whose tears, shed for the loss of her pickaninny, are said to -form Roraima’s waterfalls, and this we supposed to be the child’s burial -place. Then came another little flat meadow, a strip of woodland over -some undulating ground, and we again emerged into a large grassy plain in -the middle of which stands Paröwöpö village. I say “village,” but there -was only one banaboo and an open building, which the few women about the -place called “church,” but which contained no holy pictures nor any sign -of worship. Our whole party established ourselves in this “church”; and, -while we took tea, the women brought cassiri for our droghers. As each -fresh batch of men came in, the cassiri bowl was handed to Joseph to give -them at his good pleasure. After tea we had some difficulty in getting -our caravan to restart from Paröwöpö. They explained that Enamung was -“far far”; but, Joseph having prescribed Enamung as our destination for -the night, we would not listen, but pressed on. - -Another hour and a quarter brought us to Enamung village. The trail, -after leaving the Paröwöpö plain, passed through the forest-belt which -fills the low saddle between the hills that separate the two savannahs. -The trail in this forest had been admirably cleaned and widened, and even -the leaves had been swept off the path. Towards sunset we emerged from -the bush into a lovely scene, open savannah, with a broad stream curving -through it in a semicircle. On our side of this stream the ground rose -and fell in pleasant undulations, whilst on the other side it rolled up -into high grassy peaks. We could hear a cataract roaring on the right, -where the river disappeared from view. This river, called the Wairann, -is a tributary of the Ireng, and we followed its course upstream for -several miles next day. The Enamung village consists of two houses and -a cattle-pen, perched up on a grassy knoll just above the right bank of -the Wairann. A more beautiful spot for a camp cannot be imagined. But -we had barely time to spread our tarpaulin over a wooden framework that -stood between the two banaboos before night closed in on us; and just as -dusk was falling some children drove up cattle into the pen. We counted -twelve head. They were a good, short-horned, straight-backed breed. This -was the last place at which we saw cattle on our outward journey. Of -course, the herds one sees at the various Makusi villages are only the -tame cattle; and we were told that a far larger number roam wild among -these uninhabited savannahs, and are shot by the Indians, when they have -a craving for fresh beef. - -It grew very cold directly the sun had gone down, and the moon circled -with earth-shine was glorious, likewise the stars. Luckily there was no -wind, as our camp was most exposed. The Indians and Mr. Menzies all slept -inside the banaboos; but we were in the open, and, as we lay with all our -blankets over us, looking into the infinite depths of the starry skies, -the muffled roar of the distant cataract filling the air, four lines of -Matthew Arnold’s which have always haunted me and filled me with longing -since I was a child came into my mind: - - In the moonlight the shepherds, - Soft lulled by the rills, - Lie wrapped in their blankets, - Asleep on the hills. - -On the morrow we were up again by starlight and admired an exceptionally -bright Southern Cross. Then, after swallowing a large plateful of -porridge each, washed down with some coffee, we were off on the trail as -day dawned. From Enamung village a climb of twenty-three minutes took -us to the brow of a hill, whence we had a good view up the valley of -the Wairann and far beyond to Mount Weitipu, one of the giants standing -near Roraima. The path, however, dropped down again to the river, which -curved back to us, and we followed its right bank upstream for two hours -in a beautiful valley. On the left bank rose an almost perpendicular -grassy hill; but we wound alternately through meadows, strewn with big -black boulders, and through belts of woodland, where, as before, a -bridle track had been cleared for us. The river was roaring in cataracts -or meandering in still reaches beside us or racing round islands. It -contains a large volume of water. - -Our caravan halted for “breakfast” unusually early, and we expostulated -with Joseph; but he waved his hand in the direction of our onward path, -which was now to leave the beautiful Wairann, and said, “Tuna (_i.e._, -_water_) far, far.” The Indians have a manner of saying “f-a-a-r-far” in -a faint voice that is wonderfully expressive of distance. - -When the meal was over we resumed our march, and a five minutes’ climb -uphill, followed by a seventeen minutes’ march across a small plateau, -finally took us from the watershed of the Ireng to that of the Kotinga. -From the small plateau we again obtained a glorious view of Mount -Weitipu, rising high and blue above all intervening hills. The next hour -was spent in descending from the plateau, fording a little brook which -falls into the Karakanang, a tributary of the Kotinga, re-ascending on -to another and very stony tableland, to the south-east of which was the -Karakanang gorge, far below the level of our trail, and so reaching the -point where that river is forded by stepping-stones of red jasper just -above its leap from the plateau level into the gorge. The heat of the -sun, though intense at midday, was mitigated by a heavenly breeze that -fanned us steadily. Flights of locusts rose at our approach and flew -round us, hitting us all over. The Indians eagerly caught as many as -they could and ate them raw on the spot, regarding them, apparently, as -titbits. - -The Karakanang is a most fascinating river, flowing crystal clear in a -succession of little vertical falls, or else sliding over long, smooth -slabs of jasper into limpid green pools. This is the regular formation of -river-beds in the upper Kotinga watershed. The colouring of that country -is exquisite: greeny-grey grass, red soil, and blue-green crystal-clear -water, flowing over coral-red jasper bottoms. When we had crossed -the Karakanang, the tableland widened into a fine grassy savannah, -surrounded by a stately amphitheatre of hills, and we marched over -easily-undulating ground for an hour and a half, crossing in that time no -less than six small streams, that flowed through gulleys in the plateau -to join the Karakanang. The course of these tiny cañons could be traced -afar off by the eta-palms growing in them. At last we came to a rift in -the tableland, where, beyond another small stream, there was a strip of -forest, through which, for the first time since leaving Karto tableland, -we found that no trail had been cleared for us—a plain hint that we were -now passing from the land of the Makusis into that of the Arekunas. -Moreover, the stream, where we reached it, ran in a deep pool, too deep -to ford; so, while Joseph and some of the men were felling a couple of -small trees for us to cross by, and clearing a path through the wood, -we sat down under a big tree, drank cold tea, which Haywood had handy, -and ate chocolate. Joseph’s arrangements being complete, we crossed the -pool on his makeshift bridge, and a few minutes’ walk brought us to the -other side of the bush. Thence our trail gradually sloped down over a -grassy savannah to meet the Warukma River, where it races down over a -jasper bed, glittering under the sun, from the heart of the mountain -amphitheatre that swept round in a majestic circle to our left. - -We forded the Warukma and camped on the ledges of its left bank. These -torrents, when swollen by heavy rain, must be a splendid sight, but they -would then be very difficult to cross. A delicious current of icy-cold -water was flowing in the bed of the Warukma; but wide stretches of -jasper floor were uncovered and dry, and on one of these Joseph and -his men improvised for us a most ingenious tent. They placed one end -of a ridge-pole in the fork of a tree on the bank; the other end they -supported on cross-wise poles, whose bases they propped up with big -stones. They then stuck short uprights, on which to tie the tarpaulin, -in cracks of the ledge and buttressed them up with stones. It was very -picturesque. The ledge made us a beautiful, clean, level floor, and this -was, in fact, the nicest camp of our journey. We bathed in a natural -“porphyry font,” a few yards upstream from our tent. The water was -stone-cold and clear, and the pool very deep. Little fish, about the size -of a trout which would be thrown back as too small, and of a bright green -colour, with black “eyes” on them, came swimming up curiously to examine -us. We had a still, cloudless night; the moon was very bright, but not -large enough to dim the radiance of the stars. - -We woke to find the weather deliciously cool and grey; and, after our -porridge and coffee, we started “under the opening eyelids of the -morn” to climb steadily until we reached the ridge of the mountain -amphitheatre. It was an hour’s ascent. At the top we found a fine, -grassy, high-level plateau, well watered, but almost treeless, which -it took us just half an hour to cross. The freshness of the grey -morning gave wings to our feet. We crossed a brook and a water-hole -on this plateau, for the country is wonderfully irrigated, and every -tableland seems provided with springs of clear water. At the far end -of the plateau, before descending, we had a superb view back to Mounts -Mataruka and Bulak-köyepin. Given favourable weather conditions, Roraima, -Kukenaam, Wei-assipu, Weitipu, and Muköripö can all be seen from the -trail itself at this point, which is 3,150 feet above sea-level; but on -our outward journey they were densely veiled in cloud. If you climb a -peak rising above the plateau a little to the east, Mount Chakbang also -comes into sight. It is a splendid observation-post for a surveyor, and -for that reason my husband labelled it “Landmark Peak.” - -Our path now descended very gradually in the valley of a stream, -which rises on “Landmark Peak” and soon becomes a fine jasper-bedded -watercourse, the trail betaking itself to the river-bed, where the smooth -slabs made excellent going. This stream is called Aimaratökpai. It was -very nearly dry—a fortunate thing for us; but I should love to see these -rivers rushing down in spate over their smooth stone floors. The bed of -this particular stream had weathered to a slate-blue colour, but there -was a good deal of pink, disintegrated jasper sand lying on it. The -effect of the blue floor, with its pink streaks of sand and the grey -hills above it, was very lovely and curious. - -Too soon the line suddenly decided to leave this friendly river-bed, -and we had to scramble up a steep bluff about sixty feet in height. An -Indian trail always makes a great point of doing the unexpected. We then -traversed a very switchback of a path, winding over hill-spurs, until -we gained the top of a steep slant into the valley of the Waraïna, a -confluent of the Kotinga. The view from this spot, before we descended, -was beautiful, and our whole company sat down to admire it. Indians love -to look out over a big stretch of country, and it is amusing to watch a -crowd of them pointing out to each other all the salient features and -tracing with finger-tips the directions of different trails over distant -hills. Their language seems onomatopœic, and at times one can gather the -gist of their conversation without understanding one word. It sounds -very much as though they spoke in tones, like the Chinese, but, much -more quietly. They are a curiously quiet people, the result, I suppose, -of living amid that big, silent Nature. We never heard them sing on the -line of march, or even when paddling, and they seldom raise their voices. -In camp, with thirty of them close by, they never disturbed us. If we -happened to wake in the night, only the flicker of the fires, which they -keep going throughout the dark hours, reminded us that they were near us; -and even in their villages they make little noise. A mere dozen blacks or -Chinese would give one a very different tale to tell. - -A steep scramble downhill brought us to the side of a brook, which we -followed for a short distance, and which flows into the Waraïna. We -left the brook just before the watersmeet, and crossing in the fork -a little belt of land, where some fine cassava was growing, we forded -the Waraïna. Then a short walk took us to our breakfast camp on the -Opamapö, another confluent of the Waraïna. This is one of the prettiest -spots in the country; for here the Opamapö makes a vertical leap of some -sixty feet over a red jasper cliff into a clear, deep, jasper-ledged, -tree-girt pool. The crowning note of colour came from a purple-blossomed -tree projecting over the cliff-side. We sat on the tree-shaded ledges -above the fall, drawing water for our meal from a limpid, green pool, -and the stream beyond wound away fringed with eta-palm. Steep, green -hill-shoulders formed the far horizon. - -[Illustration: WARATUK RAPIDS.] - -[Illustration: OPAMAPÖ WATERFALL. - -To face page 172.] - -After an hour and a quarter’s rest, during which we ate cold chicken, one -of the four brought with us from Mataruka, and our men regaled themselves -with cassava and dried beef, we proceeded on our way, fording the -Opamapö. The weather was still delightfully grey and cool, and we met a -few light, passing showers—greetings from Roraima behind his cloud-wall. -We marched in a steadily widening valley for fifty minutes until we -reached the crest of a low ridge that forms the water-parting between -the streams that feed the Waraïna and the basin of the Kotinga itself. -The latter river, however, as had previously been the case with the -Ireng, remained invisible until we reached its edge. We were now in the -gently-sloping pasture-lands of a magnificent valley, beautifully watered -by numerous streams, whose course is marked in the lush grass by avenues -of eta-palms; but no human habitation or sign of cattle could anywhere be -seen. We put up a big deer, but it escaped us easily. There were signs -that a fire, probably lit by travelling Indians, had recently passed over -the place, the grass being very young and green, and the stems of the -palms blackened and scorched. On our right we now saw Mount Weitipu quite -clearly, with Mount Muköripö, an oddly-shaped rocky cone, close beside -him. The ground undulates gently, forming a plateau some three hundred -feet above both banks of the Kotinga, which flows in a narrow trench -below the spacious acclivities of the surrounding country. - -At last from the edge of this plateau we saw at our feet the Kotinga -itself, with its turquoise-blue water, flowing through a valley of -brightest green, dotted with eta-palms. So attractive and refreshing -it looked that we little guessed the hidden plague awaiting us, until -Joseph said resignedly, pointing down to the river: “Kabouru plenty, -plenty.” We now descended quickly to the left bank of the river, crossing -the ravine of a boisterous little brook on the way. The river-bed is -here about 2,200 feet above sea-level; and the ford is not far below -the confluence of the Kwating from the north-west and the Pipi—another -blue jewel in a setting of eta-palms—from the north-east, to form the -Kotinga proper. It was by far the most serious obstacle of the kind that -we had to negotiate. The river at the ford is some two hundred feet -wide, and contains near the left bank an island of some size—the usual -camping-ground of Indians on their way over this trail—and near the right -bank another much smaller island. The ford runs diagonally across at the -brink of a small rapid over jasper rocks, water-worn and slippery, and -would doubtless be quite impassable when the river comes down in spate. -As it was, the water came well above my husband’s knees; and, the current -being strong, we had to plant our feet carefully at each step to avoid -an accident. We had by this time become quite accustomed to wading over -streams, and much enjoyed the delicious feeling of the stone-cold water -round our feet and legs. Our clothes and our canvas rubber-soled boots -dried very quickly in the sun after each such crossing. Joseph wanted us -to camp on the island near the left bank, but we did not like the look of -it. It was covered with dense bush, and the kabouru, from which pest we -had been happily free since crossing the Ireng, rose in their millions -to receive us. Besides, we felt that a ford, once begun, is better done -and finished with. It was great fun getting across. Joseph held my arm -firmly, and piloted me with much care and skill. The long file of our -Indians, men and women, gingerly picking their way along the brink of the -rapid, was a quaint sight. - -[Illustration: FORDING THE KOTINGA RIVER. - -To face page 174.] - -On the right bank of the Kotinga, in the neighbourhood of the ford, there -was no “bush,” without which, of course, one cannot camp, as firewood -is essential, and the Indians must have trees on which to hang their -hammocks. So we moved on, the trail turning downstream to the left and -then up an eta-fringed brook. After a little while we forded this brook, -and, having crossed a low ridge, we made camp at 4.30 p.m. on the banks -of another stream in a clump of bush at its edge. Alas! there was no -escaping the kabouru! As soon as we had halted, they came about us in -swarms, and rendered life intolerable until dark, at 6.30 p.m., when they -all disappeared. The ups and downs of camp life are truly astonishing! -The night before, in the Warukma bed, we had had as perfect a site for -our camp as we could possibly desire, whilst the Kotinga valley camp -could not well have been more disagreeable. It was not a picturesque camp -either, for the surroundings had recently been scorched by fire. The -stream beside us was, however, pretty enough. It dropped in a cascade -into a steep gulley at our feet, there disappearing into a dense thicket. -But there was no level ground, so that we spent an uncomfortable night -with our beds at a slant. I would strongly advise future travellers by -this route to endeavour to ford the Kotinga early enough in the day to -permit of their camping for the night some way up the hills to the north -or south of the valley, at a distance from the river. - -Next day (12th January) we were up, dressed, and packed before dawn, -to avoid the kabouru. It was a glorious, cool morning. A heavy dew -sparkled on the grass, and the air was keen and fresh. Our path continued -obstinately to the left, despite the fact that our goal lay behind -Weitipu on the right; and we passed over beautiful undulating meadows, -like English hayfields ready for the scythe, and then round hill-spurs, -until after one and three-quarter hours’ march we reached the valley -of the Chitu, a large confluent of the Kotinga, crossing on our way -frequent little brooks that tumbled down steep gulleys. Here the Indians -and Haywood killed a snake in the grass, and the latter said it was a -_labaria_ and poisonous; but is a snake ever killed which the people -concerned in the daring deed do not declare to be deadly? - -We forded the northern fork of the Chitu close to the point where it -descends out of a steep line of hills, and up the steepest part of these -hills our trail then proceeded to climb. Pink soil showed through the -grass, which was now short and growing in tussocks, so that we knew -we were still on jasper formation. The hill ascended in a series of -terraces, the ascent between each being almost vertical; and on each -terrace we paused to drink in the wonderful beauty of the widening view, -for our hill-side commanded a great stretch of the Kotinga valley, -shut in far away by the mountain ranges we had crossed in the previous -forenoon. The sun filtered through the clouds enough to light up the -scene with the most extraordinary and exquisite colouring, the far hills -being a marvellous sapphire and the nearer country a brilliant emerald, -patched with purple cloud shadows. It reminded me dimly of old stained -glass and of the colouring of Rossetti’s pictures. We were climbing the -crest of the hill-ridge in the fork between the northern and southern -branches of the Chitu River, and one hour’s effort brought us to the -summit. We then had a view right back to “Landmark Peak,” while in front -of us stretched a tableland, over which the wind blew keen and cold, -for we were 4,500 feet above sea-level. Such a country! And there it -lies, all untouched and unknown, the great silence of solitude brooding -over it! Save for a handful of nomadic Indians scattered over the vast -prairies, never a man treads these lonely regions. - -For the next hour and a half our path lay over charming upland savannah, -with here and there a strip of woodland, intersected by numerous brooks -hurrying down in cascades to meet the Chitu. We halted beside one of -these rivulets, crossing, as usual, just above a cascade that fell into -the customary deep green pool. We had to put our coats on directly we -stopped to rest, for the sky was overcast and a chilly but invigorating -wind was blowing. Anyone who filled these highland valleys with cattle -and built himself a jasper house amidst the life-giving breezes of the -hills would have his lot cast in a fair land. After luncheon we walked -on again, and were caught in one or two light showers of cold drizzle, -though not enough to soak our clothes. We descended slightly to cross the -southern fork of the Chitu, racing down to its valley. The ford is short, -but deep. Then we climbed to the head-waters of the Chitu close by. Here -is, we believe, the divide between the Amazon and the Orinoco; and, if -so, at this point we presumably crossed from Brazil into Venezuela. -These two republics, however, have not delimited the frontier in this -neighbourhood. - - - - -THE VENEZUELAN APPROACH TO RORAIMA - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE VENEZUELAN APPROACH TO RORAIMA - - There, among the flowers and grasses, - Only the mightier movement sounds and passes; - Only the winds and rivers, - Life and death. - - R. L. STEVENSON: _In the Highlands_. - - -From the ridge above the head-waters of the Chitu we descended gently, -and after fifteen minutes’ march we forded the Maipa, a deep, sluggish -stream, with a belt of forest at its farther side. On the projecting -branch of a tree a glorious purple orchid, the only one we saw during our -journey, was admiring its reflection in the water. The Maipa probably -belongs to the Orinoco watershed. We then traversed the narrow forest -belt on the farther bank, and emerged into a curiously-rifted savannah, -which led us to the foot of another abrupt hill-side. Up it we went, -and found ourselves at the edge of a vast rolling plain, Weitipu on our -right and far beyond a big fog-bank, which we knew concealed Roraima. -His great form loomed dark in the cloud. This tableland, at the extreme -south-east edge of which we stood, extends past the foot of Mount Weitipu -almost to the foot of Roraima, and then drops down to the Kukenaam River. -Its average level is fully 3,800 feet above the sea, its gentle grassy -undulations, broken here and there by clumps of trees beside intersecting -watercourses, spread out before us for a distance which it took no less -than five and a half hours’ actual march to traverse. This plateau is -a superb pasture-land, but no animals now graze there, save a few wild -deer. What a country to lie fallow! - -We proceeded on our way, fording the Arataparu and the Weiwötö, both -large tributaries of the Arabupu. All these streams undoubtedly feed the -Kukenaam River, and thus form a part of the Orinoco basin. The ford of -the Weiwötö was just above a lovely flashing waterfall, and we camped on -its right bank. Now at last did Roraima and Kukenaam deign to take note -of us. First the head of the Töwashing pinnacle, which forms Roraima’s -south-east corner, emerged from out of a fog-bank; then a piece of grim, -grand shoulder, then cloud-drift once again; but gradually more and more -of the twin giants was exposed, never clear all at once, but hinted at -sufficiently for us to grasp their outlines. I felt smitten with awe and -fear. We seemed so minute and so presumptuous to venture unbidden into -the presence of these towering monsters in a land that knew us not. The -glory and the beauty was very great, as the evening sun fell on them, the -fleecy clouds now revealing, now concealing, the black precipices. Well -may the Indians feel that the place is holy ground! - -I must try to describe the scene more exactly. Weitipu lay on our right -almost due north of us, rising sheer up from the plain. This mountain -seems to be made of quartz, cliffs of which stood out where the savannah -slopes had been washed away. Its southern end is roughly circular at the -base, the sides being terraced and the small plateau at the top being -surmounted by a sharp peak, which would afford an uninterrupted view to -every point of the compass. All this part of the mountain is savannah -dotted with occasional tree-clumps, and it is seamed by the gulleys -of small streams tumbling from its terraces in sparkling waterfalls. -To the northward the mountain is forest-clad, and is shaped into the -cliff-sided, flat-topped rectangular block, so characteristic of this -country. From its north-west side stretches a sea of forest, in which two -crags jut out fantastically side by side, the more conspicuous of the two -being known as Muköripö. Between Weitipu and Roraima the land drops very -considerably and is densely forested. Then arises Roraima’s south-eastern -wall, which is said to be ten miles long. From our camp at Weiwötö we -saw it, of course, greatly foreshortened, and the south-western face, up -which we eventually climbed, we could not yet see at all; but Kukenaam’s -southern end projected far beyond the Töwashing pinnacle. At one moment -the clouds cleared away almost entirely, and we counted six long white -streaks of water falling vertically down Roraima’s cliff-face. It had -evidently rained heavily, for we did not see these cascades again after a -spell of fine weather. - -Our Weiwötö camp was very exposed and bleak. Joseph looked so shiveringly -cold that we spared him an outfit of clothes, which, alas! greatly -impaired the dignity and picturesqueness of his appearance. The Makusis, -with Mr. Menzies and Haywood, went off for the night to a little wooded -island amidstream for shelter. They had stretched one of our tarpaulins -for us over an old hut-frame on the open plain, and had made a most -inefficient wind-break with the other. As we tossed and shivered on -our narrow camp-beds through the chilly night, we could see the dim, -cloud-wrapped mountain forms looming against the moonlit sky. - -[Illustration: THE SOUTH-WEST FACE OF MOUNT RORAIMA, SHOWING THE -TÖWASHING PINNACLE. - -To face page 186.] - -For the first and only time on the journey Haywood failed to have his -fire alight before dawn. His excuse, as he arrived by daylight, was an -entirely adequate one. To reach the bush-covered island, where he and -the Indians had slept, it was necessary to wade knee-deep in water, and -he did not like to attempt the ford in the dark. So we got off somewhat -later than usual, and after fifteen minutes’ march forded the Arabupu. -This stream, running very fast and deep, at times nearly carried me off -my feet. The water rose well above my husband’s knees, and the squat -little Indian women were up to their waists. From now onwards until we -halted for breakfast we were walking over prairie land, mostly on the -upward trend, towards the nearest corner of Roraima’s south-eastern wall -where the Töwashing pinnacle separates itself from the mass, and we came -gradually round to face the south-western side. Flights of locusts rose -in all directions on our approach. We walked sharply to keep ourselves -warm. Roraima and Kukenaam were at first impenetrably hidden in fog; but, -as the day wore on, the sun came out and very gradually dispersed the -clouds. Nearer and nearer we came, the great cliffs, rendered peculiarly -mysterious by the flying clouds that partly enveloped them, for ever -changing their shapes, till I said to myself: “Either I am dreaming it -all, or else I have had a touch of sunstroke; but that scene cannot be -real.” - -We breakfasted in sun and wind in a hollow by a small brook, and then -set off again, proceeding to the edge of the tableland, which then falls -abruptly down in steep-sided terraces to the basin of the Kukenaam -River. We dropped down some one thousand feet into this valley in the -course of an hour, and then walked up the left bank of the Kukenaam -River over flat ground, intersected by streams and swamps, under a -broiling sun, in blinding glare—not a pleasant walk. A march of one and -a quarter hours through this country brought us to the Töwashing, a -stream which leaps from the Töwashing pinnacle of Mount Roraima to join -the Kukenaam, and, fording it, we filed into Kamaiwâwong village half an -hour later, amidst an ominous silence. My mind had been plagued with a -presentiment that some hitch would befall us here. Several travellers -have reached this spot and yet failed to conquer Roraima, one of the -last being Dr. Crampton, a professor from the United States, who became -convinced that the Arekunas meant to murder him, and simultaneously that -the ascent of Roraima “to satisfy a purely personal ambition” would be -“unjustifiable.”[2] The fact that Kamaiwâwong was entirely empty and -deserted was far from reassuring. Not so much as a dog was there to bark -at us. We sat down in the shade of one of the banaboos and sent Joseph -with a deputation up a small hill to the village of Tekwonno, about half -a mile off, across the Kukenaam River. This, too, looked ominously empty, -and soon the deputation returned saying, “No man.” Roraima and Kukenaam -stood for the first time entirely clear of cloud, gazing down upon us as -much as to say, “There is many a slip ’twixt the cup and the lip.” - -It was rather an uncomfortable position. We had about thirty very hungry -people with us. They had been reckless with the food-supplies; and, -when Mr. Menzies remonstrated, Joseph had declared: “Arekuna, plenty -cassava.” But at the “breakfast” hour this day more than half of our -followers had had nothing to eat. We resolved, therefore, to establish -ourselves at Kamaiwâwong as comfortably as possible for the night, and on -the morrow, if the Arekunas did not return, as we hoped they would do, to -send out a raiding party to find their provision-fields and to bring in -cassava, whilst we, with another party, would attempt to make our way up -the mountain. With field-glasses we could see quite clearly, running up -the cliff-face, the ledge by which all ascents of Mount Roraima have been -made since Sir Everard im Thurn first found the way in 1884, a line of -green across the red face of the rock. - -Roraima and Kukenaam stand on the same vast pediment of highland -savannah. Doubtless in remote ages they were one mountain.[3] Above -the savannah slopes is a girdle of forest, out of which the gigantic -cliff-walls start up vertically a thousand feet into the air, dominating -and dwarfing all beside. The whole scale is so huge that eyes -unaccustomed to it are easily deceived as to the distances involved. The -precipices seemed to be close at hand, but in reality they were not less -than four miles away from us in the direct line of vision to the nearest -point. The twin mountains are divided by a deep rift between their -cliffs, and from the summit of Mount Kukenaam on the west side of this -rift the Kukenaam River leaps in a mighty waterfall, the spray and mists -of which surge to and fro in the gorge, filling and concealing it, and -often making the cliffs of the two colossi appear to be one continuous -escarpment. - -Rather glumly we established ourselves in Kamaiwâwong. The village -takes its name from the Kamaiwa, a small stream which, after springing -vertically a thousand feet downwards from the point on Roraima where -the ledge athwart the cliff-face reaches the summit of that grim wall, -flows past Kamaiwâwong, between it and Tekwonno, to join the Kukenaam -River. The banaboos are built on a little plain, some 3,700 feet above -sea-level. We chose a circular one for our dwelling. Only its walls to -windward had been filled in, so that it was the reverse of stuffy. Mr. -Menzies, with Joseph, Haywood, and Thomas, occupied a house near by, -whilst the others spread themselves about in other buildings. Kamaiwâwong -was quite as large as Mataruka village, and had an imposing church. The -house of Jeremiah, its late chief, stood in the centre, the doorway -blocked up with earth-sods. He had recently died. - -We unpacked and settled down, and it was beginning to get dusk, when -Joseph called out “Arekuna yebu” (_i.e._, _coming_), and pointed to a -hill on the other side of the Kukenaam River, where his keen eyes had -detected moving figures. The word went round the camp, “Arekuna yebu.” -It was a very great relief! Just as night fell, three stalwart fellows -strode up in single file, all carrying guns, the first and last naked, -the centre one attired in a blue coat and trousers and brown wide-awake -hat. All had ear-rings and painted faces. They wore an absurdly jaunty -delighted-to-see-you air, held out their hands, ejaculated “How-do?” and -laughed cheerily. They then pointed to the mountain and said: “Roroyima -(such is the Arekuna pronunciation) piff-piff-piff-paff-whizz,” or -at least that is what it sounded like; and it clearly meant: “It is -a long way up there; do you want to go?” We signified that we did, -and, moreover, that we wanted cassava and _kapong_ (_i.e._, men). They -squatted down beside us, and said: “Yes, yes, to-morrow, Schoolmaster -yebu.” “Indeed?” we said; “but what side Schoolmaster and what side all -man?” They pointed across the hills, over which they had come, and said, -“Wrayanda-aniafpai banaboo”; so we sent off the blue-suited fellow with -a lamp to return to, and hasten, his people, the other couple remaining -with us. - -Kamaiwâwong had evidently been abandoned by the villagers, Indian -fashion, so that Jeremiah’s _manes_ might have peace; but we never -discovered for certain why Tekwonno also had been deserted. The Arekunas -afterwards said, “Wrayanda-aniafpai plenty cassava,” as though to imply -that they were all employed there preparing cassava; but this would -not account for every man, woman, child, dog, and fowl having cleared -out. It is more likely that they misdoubted our intentions, and removed -themselves and their belongings until they were reassured. Mr. Menzies -laid it to a “guilty conscience.” He said the Arekunas are often -brigands, raid Makusi fields, and carry off their women; and that, seeing -a large party approach, they preferred to seek safety in flight until -they were assured that vengeance was not about to overtake them. - -We went to bed much relieved, and hoping to make the ascent next day—a -fallacious hope as it proved; but really we were all the better for -having a day’s rest forced upon us, after six consecutive marches, during -which we had covered the distance of some ninety-three miles between Puwa -and Kamaiwâwong. The night was very cold. We piled our mackintoshes on -top of our blankets to keep in the warmth; but from 3 a.m. onwards it was -too cold to sleep, and we were up at dawn preparing for the climb. Only -our camp-beds, our two bedding-bags, and one small canister, were to be -carried with us, and we were ready to start before any more Arekunas had -come in. So we sat down to solace ourselves with “the virtuous Macaulay,” -hoping to make at all events a half day’s march. At about 11 a.m. a long -string of Arekunas arrived, beating a tom-tom, and much decorated with -paint and necklaces. One man had painted coat-buttons down his naked -chest! They brought with them cassava and bananas, a clucking hen, and -sat-on eggs, also nineteen magnificent pineapples, which they laid out in -rows on the floor of our banaboo. Those pineapples were quite the most -delicious I ever tasted. But to all inquiries as to making a start the -Arekunas merely replied, “Schoolmaster yebu,” so that we had to resign -ourselves to further delay. The newcomers brought a gourd of _paiwarri_ -with them, which they offered to our people. This is a highly alcoholic -beverage, and made the eyes of the drinkers shine unnaturally. We were -glad to see that there was not much of it. - -The day was brilliantly fine; not a cloud speck on either of the great -mountains, whose cliff-faces shone red above the green tree-belts. -We felt we were letting opportunity sadly slip by us, but there was -nothing to be done. The glare from the barren earth-terrace, on which -an Indian village always stands, was blinding, so we spent nearly all -day within the welcome shade of our banaboo. Arekunas—men, women, and -children—arrived in small parties at intervals all day long, and our -hungry Makusis were regaled with the much-desired cassava and cassiri. -Towards nightfall Schoolmaster came in, evidently the chief of the -tribe. Why he has this peculiar name I do not know. He is a big, stalwart -individual, all muscle and sinew, full of gaiety and laughter, as seems -to be the Arekuna habit, and we explained to him, pointing to the summit -of Roraima, that we wished to be there the next day. After nightfall -the moon shone brilliantly, so that we had an opportunity of seeing the -mountains in all lights. It was an unforgettable scene of mystery and -beauty. - - - - -RORAIMA, FATHER OF STREAMS - - - - -CHAPTER X - -RORAIMA, FATHER OF STREAMS - - It was the rampart of God’s house - That she was standing on; - By God built over the sheer depth, - The which is Space begun. - - D. G. ROSSETTI: _The Blessèd Damozel_. - - -Saturday, 15th January, 1916, was the day on which at last we climbed to -the summit of Mount Roraima. We were most fortunate in having a cool, -grey morning; and after sundry delays, at which Indians are adepts, -we started off from Kamaiwâwong at 7.38 a.m. Our party consisted of -Schoolmaster and twelve other Arekunas, some to act as baggage-carriers -and some to cut open a trail where the ascent was through forest. Mr. -Menzies and Haywood also accompanied us, but none of our Makusi droghers. -We had asked Joseph and Daniel whether they would like to come; but -they said “No,” possibly under pressure, for I don’t think the Arekunas -particularly wished the secret of their mountain to be disclosed to -Makusis. However, Joseph and Daniel subsequently changed their mind, -hurried after us, and overtook us just as we were reaching the cliff-top. - -Roraima stood in clear-cut outline before us, untouched by clouds. -There was heavy dew on the grass, and it was delightful walking up the -savannah slopes. The hill-track led us off to the right over ground which -was in places very stony but for the most part good going, if steep. -Schoolmaster pointed to the top of the mountain, and said, “To-morrow”; -but we firmly answered, “No, to-day,” whereupon all the Arekunas smiled -and shook their heads, and Schoolmaster shut his eyes, beat his breast, -and gasped, to show how exhausted we should soon be. I retorted by -running past him, laughing my contempt, and pointing up to the sky, while -I told him, “Paranakiri [_i.e._, _overseas_] mountain so!” He opened his -mouth, pointed down his throat, and said, “Brandina!” which I fear throws -a lurid light on the proceedings of former travellers. It was really -quite an amusing dumb-crambo argument; but our steady pace soon convinced -him that we meant business. The path wound unremittingly uphill over -long grass, with big boulders, doubtless once part of Roraima’s mighty -cliffs, lying on all sides, much as they do on Dartmoor tors, whilst the -depressions are boggy and filled with marsh-plants. The ever-widening -semicircle of panorama behind us was very beautiful and interesting. - -From Kamaiwâwong to the forest fringe was a hard three hours’ walk, with -no halt save an occasional pause for breath. At 10.24 a.m. we reached the -highest point of the savannah hills, 6,510 feet above sea-level. Then -we dropped down some fifty feet to the edge of the forest, and made our -first halt, from 10.35 a.m. to 12.17 p.m., in thick jungle by the side of -a delightful gurgling brook, which dashes down icy cold from Roraima’s -bleak heights. The ascent to this point can hardly be less than five -miles by the trail in all its windings. Schoolmaster introduced the spot -to us as “English pappa banaboo”; and we believe he meant to indicate -it as the site of Sir Everard im Thurn’s camp, when he was searching -for a path to the top of Roraima. As far as is known, Sir Everard was -the first human being to find a way up the precipice and to set foot on -Roraima’s summit. He did so on the 18th December, 1884, after spending -about a month in camp at the edge of the forest-belt, whilst his Indians -cut a trail to the toe of the ledge, whereby alone the cliff-face can be -surmounted; and our midday halt must have been near the place where he -persevered with such patience. We had a thorough rest and made a good -meal. Our limes having given out, we took a bottle of lime-juice with -us; and I made Schoolmaster drink a spoonful of it, lest the appearance -of a bottle should make him believe that his “brandina” prophecy was -being fulfilled. Close by, there were growing some delicious-looking -blackberries; but, just as we were about to eat some, the Arekunas cried -“No, no!” and made so much fuss that we desisted. - -Restarting, we addressed ourselves to the ascent through the forest-belt; -and this, to my mind, is really the only disagreeable part of the -whole climb. The ground here is a pell-mell of huge boulders, pieces -of disintegrated mountain that have broken away from the overhanging -cliffs above during long ages past; for Roraima and Kukenaam are but the -“fragments of an earlier world.” Over these rocks grows a dense mass of -small trees, and magnificent tree-ferns root upon the débris of earlier -decaying jungle, which is covered with a carpet of slimy green moss and -has a horrid corpse-like smell. The whole place is dank and cold, and -the thick matting of moss makes it impossible to know whether one is -stepping on a secure foothold, or on a rotten tree-branch, or on nothing -but a layer of moss and twigs concealing a chasm between two great rocks. -It was a thoroughly nasty scramble, and feet and hands had to be used -almost equally. Our rate of progress was necessarily slow, with many -short pauses, while the trail was being cut open ahead of us, and it was -2.15 p.m. before we reached the base of the cliff at the point where the -diagonal ascent by the jungle-covered rock-ledge begins. During these two -hours I must confess that I was very unhappy, and I reflected much on the -superior wisdom of all the other women in the world who had refrained -from placing themselves in this predicament. I expected to sprain knee -or ankle at every step, and the struggle was dreadfully exhausting—in -places more like tree-climbing than mountaineering. Schoolmaster with two -Arekunas kept ahead of us to chop open a track. - -At the base of the ledge we were 7,680 feet above sea-level; and here it -was that Mr. J. J. Quelch camped in 1894, when he and his party climbed -Roraima. It is awe-inspiring to stand at the very toe of that mighty -precipice, with its blue and red stains, and, looking vertically up, -to see the overhang of great masses of rock, ready, it would seem, one -day to topple over and grind to pieces the ledge and all that is on it. -But until the day of that impending catastrophe the climb up the ledge -will present no great difficulty, although there are some bad places in -it. I put my ear against the cliff, and could hear the drip of water -percolating inside. - -During the forest climb we had no view at all, but the vegetation on the -ledge, being stunted and less dense, permits not infrequent glimpses of -the glorious landscape below, spread out like a great green sea. Lovely -flowers abounded at our feet, and the cool air was like a tonic after -the damp oppression in the forest. We reached the first obstacle in the -ledge at 3.45 p.m., when it became necessary to use a rope to assist -the droghers in hoisting their loads up an almost vertical rock-face -some twenty feet high. An active man, unloaded, can, however, scramble -up without such assistance. A troublesome point about the ledge is that -it has three V-shaped dips, and its general nature can best be shown -diagrammatically thus: - -[Illustration] - -These three dips are very steep, and we had fairly to slide down them, -clinging on to every root, bush, or stone we could catch hold of, while -getting up again on the other side was, of course, an even more severe -struggle. - -At the third dip we met the only other considerable obstacle presented -by the ledge. We reached this point at 4.20 p.m., and found a diminutive -waterfall trickling down the face of the precipice and falling in a -shower of icy-cold spray upon the ledge, which the action of the water -has swept clean of all bush and scrub. A sharp V-shaped depression has -here been cut in the ledge, which ascends under the waterfall in rock -steps, covered with moss and very slippery. Care is necessary, but in dry -weather, such as prevailed at the time of our ascent, there is little or -no danger. After heavy rain, however, it might be impossible to pass -beneath the waterfall, although I doubt whether, except in the case of -continuous rainfall lasting many days, a traveller would be held up long -by this obstacle, as water appears to drain away very rapidly from the -reservoirs on the rocky summit of Mount Roraima. For example, from our -camp at Weiwötö, after a rain-storm had passed over Roraima, we counted -no less than six waterfalls on its south-eastern face; but next day, -after some hours of fine weather, none of these could be seen with the -naked eye. They may possibly have continued as small trickles, but were -quite inconspicuous, as, indeed, was the waterfall under which we now -passed, for it could not be seen from Kamaiwâwong. - -Save at this waterfall, the ledge is everywhere many feet wide, and there -is no danger whatsoever of falling off it. From the waterfall another -forty minutes’ direct ascent over rock-boulders brought us to the top of -the escarpment, 8,625 feet above sea-level. We reached this point at 5 -p.m. The whole climb had, therefore, taken us three hours over savannah, -two hours through forest, and two and three-quarter hours up the ledge. -For purposes of comparison, I may here say that the descent of the ledge -occupied one and three-quarter hours, the descent through forest one hour -and fifty minutes, and across the savannah two and a half hours. Roraima -was kindly disposed to us, for we had splendid weather for the climb—a -grey, cool morning, followed by a sunny, windless afternoon. - -The scene when one has at last scaled the cliff-face of Roraima is -fantastic and almost grotesque. Little meets the eye save rock, which the -weather has blackened and worn into many weird shapes—a dragon, a frog, -and a couple of umbrellas, all of rock, were conspicuous objects at the -spot where we camped for the night; but there is in general a monotonous -lack of differentiation in the rock-shapes, making this rugged plateau a -maze where one would soon be lost, especially if mist settled down on the -mountain. Here and there are stunted trees (_Bonnetia Roraimæ_): but all -wood on this bleak summit is so sodden with moisture that it is difficult -to kindle a respectable fire for cooking purposes, and quite impossible -to make such a blaze as would keep out the cold. Water is abundant, clear -as crystal, and icy cold. We found no really satisfactory camping-ground; -but Schoolmaster took us to the spot where, it would appear, all those -who before us had spent the night on the top of Roraima took shelter. It -was in the middle of a big amphitheatre of crags, encircled by what one -might almost call waves of stone, about five minutes’ walk from the edge -of the precipice. Here two large rocks converge at an angle which gives -protection from the prevailing winds; and by spreading a tarpaulin over -the gap between them we made ourselves a rock-sided tent, commodious -enough to contain our two camp-beds. Unfortunately, the floor was not dry -rock, but spongy, wet moss. - -[Illustration: CAMP ON MOUNT RORAIMA. - -To face page 208.] - -Haywood had ready-made Bovril in his kettle, and soon supplied us with a -hot drink, after which we made our arrangements for the night. Directly -the sun had disappeared, it felt desperately cold, and we longed in vain -for fires to warm ourselves. At 6.15 p.m. the thermometer was 51° F.—not -very low, of course, but when you are used to a tropical climate it feels -like freezing. A fire can only be maintained by an Indian squatting -beside it and tending it all the time. Even then it gives but little -warmth. Mr. Menzies arranged his tarpaulin in a place somewhat similar -to the one where we were camped; but when the wind rose in the night -he discovered to his cost that the entrance to his cave-dwelling was to -windward. He sheltered (if “shelter” is the word) Haywood, Joseph, and -Daniel with him. We gave our spare tarpaulin to the Arekunas, and as many -as could got behind it; but several preferred the lee-side of our rock, -where the poor things chattered, shivered, and blew up fires all night -long. The night was clear, and Roraima looked wonderful by moonlight, the -fantastic shapes around us being even stranger than by day. We slept a -little, not much; and I think that my husband and I were the only ones of -our party who slept at all. - -Next day was gloriously fine. We rose at dawn to find gusts of icy -wind and wisps of cloud blowing all over the place. Our naked Indians -looked numb with cold; and, as the few of them who could boast of a -shirt or trousers were not much better off, my husband and I reluctantly -decided that it would be impossible for us to spend another night on -the mountain-top. It would have been inhuman to expose all our company -in this shelterless place. Any party that may come hereafter, really to -examine Roraima’s summit, would have to organize matters so as to let -their Indians spend the night in the forest below, and occupy the days -in bringing up firewood for them. - -We had, however, a few hours to spare, and we spent them in exploring -the vicinity of our camp. From the edge of the cliff the panoramic view -to the south-west is vast and superb, the landscape resembling a map in -green plasticine with the rivers shown in blue. All the hills we had -toiled over looked the merest little crinkles; but the effect of that -glorious stretch of open country is wonderfully impressive; and as the -sun, gaining power, dispelled all mist, we revelled in the great sweep of -air and space in front of us. Our old friend Chakbang was the only hill -that looked more than an earth-wrinkle, save for some huge cliff-faced -mountains miles away in Venezuela, which must be as high, if not higher, -than Roraima. Roraima itself concealed Mount Weitipu from our sight, and -we could see hardly anything of the line by which we had approached. The -call of the mountain was clearly to go on, on to the Orinoco, but we -could not obey. We had reached the end of our tether, and from this point -the return journey began. - -To explore the summit of Roraima itself would be a difficult task, and -not without danger. It would be unsafe to go any distance without white -paint, or some other means of marking one’s way; for one would very soon -be lost in the labyrinth of extraordinary rock-forms, and, when mist or -cloud was on the mountain, it would be impossible to see more than a -very short distance ahead. We clambered up to a point from which there -was a good view of the summit of Kukenaam. It appeared to be the same -fantastic jumble of black weather-worn rock that surrounded us where we -stood, arranged in the same curious amphitheatres. Then we set off in an -endeavour to reach the edge of the cliff between Roraima and Kukenaam; -but it is slow going where every step is a climb either up or down. I -soon gave up and made my way leisurely back to camp, while my husband -pressed on. But he found a great chasm across his path and had to turn -back also. We next visited the mark erected by Mr. C. W. Anderson on his -boundary survey, and walked to the source of the Kamaiwa creek, which lay -in the trough of the rock-wave wherein our camp was situated. There is a -sort of fascination I cannot describe in these silent waterholes, where -the eternal moisture of the “Father of Streams” gathers on beds of white -sand and shining crystals. The stillness and the deadness of everything -was extraordinary, and yet somehow wonderfully refreshing. There was -not a trace of animal life. In an eastern land Roraima would have its -“patient, sleepless eremite,” seeking revelation in meditation amid its -great silent peace, “in height and cold, the splendour of the hills.” - -At 10.30 a.m. we “breakfasted”; at 11.7 a.m. we commenced the descent; -and we reached Kamaiwâwong without misadventure by 5.30 p.m. The -steepness of the descent made it almost as slow a business as scrambling -up had been. I did a good deal of it by sitting down and then lowering -myself with the help of my hands. Mercifully the forest trail was much -improved by the fact that all the droghers had climbed it after us, so -that the slippery moss had to a great extent been trodden away, and we -could see where to put our feet. How the Arekunas managed to negotiate -that climb with loads on their backs without breaking their legs is -beyond our comprehension. They were a good deal cut and scratched, it -is true; but their prehensile toes saved them from more serious injury. -Indians catch hold by their toes in truly monkey fashion; and, if a man -drops anything on the line of march, he picks it up with his toes and -puts it into his hand to avoid stooping. Our feet seemed stupid, clumsy -things by comparison. By the time I reached the savannah slopes I was so -very stiff that I could only move slowly. These lovely savannahs had all -been set on fire by our men, and were charred and grievous to see. - -At Kamaiwâwong we were received with great acclamation. The village had, -during our absence, been repeopled. Evidently everyone from far and near -had come to see us, and there was much excitement and, unfortunately, -a great desire to shake hands. The Arekunas would seem to have thought -that our arrival broke the evil spell which the death of Jeremiah had -cast upon the place. They pulled away the earth-sods that blocked the -doorway of their late chief’s banaboo, reoccupied both it and all the -other banaboos, and held evensong in the village church, singing the same -hymn and intoning the same prayers which we had heard at Mataruka. There -was much cassiri-drinking and general rejoicing; and as soon as it was -dark the men trooped out and set fire to the grass in a circle round the -village, to drive away all evil spirits, we supposed. They danced round -the fires they had lit like madmen, in order to “send kenaima far.” Next -day a feast was held in honour of the reopening of the village. Tekwonno, -we gathered, had never been really abandoned. Indeed, it is more than -likely that its inhabitants, having news of our approach, with a large -following of Makusis, considered it prudent to evacuate Tekwonno until, -by observing us from the neighbouring hills, they were satisfied of our -peaceful intentions. - -Roraima wore a cloud-cap during the evening, so we congratulated -ourselves on having decided to come down; and during the night we saw -the wonderful effect of a brilliant moon lighting up the gleaming clouds -that rested on the black precipices of the twin giants—our last view of -them from Kamaiwâwong, for next morning they were quite invisible. We had -an excellent night’s rest, which I think we well deserved; and, having -blocked in with a tarpaulin a good deal more of the sides of our banaboo, -we were quite warm by comparison with our experience of the previous -night. - - - - -THE RETURN JOURNEY - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -THE RETURN JOURNEY - - Alas, that the longest hill - Must end in a vale; but still, - Who climbs with toil, wheresoe’er, - Shall find wings waiting there. - - H. C. BEECHING. - - -Many farewells and the bringing up of piles of cassava for the support -of our caravan delayed our start from Kamaiwâwong on the return journey -to Mataruka. We had asked Schoolmaster to send two men with us to bring -back from Puwa the salt and the cloth which was to be the recompense -of those Arekunas who had assisted us; but instead of sending two men, -Schoolmaster himself and the entire party who had climbed Roraima with -us gaily accompanied our march back. It was a delightful morning, with -alternate showers and sunshine and gloriously cool winds. We retraced our -steps until we were close to the spot where we breakfasted on the 13th -January, and here we halted again for our midday meal at a delicious spot -under a big tree, sitting amidst fragrant bracken and pretending to be -in England. The walk had unstiffened our muscles, cramped by the long -descent of the day before, and we felt quite fit and fresh. - -Schoolmaster, who now acted as guide, applied for permission to lead us -back by a line different from that which we had traversed on the outward -journey. We agreed; and in the end Schoolmaster brought us to Mataruka by -a trail which interlaced with Joseph’s so as roughly to form the figure -8. Our first divergence was to the left in the direction of Weitipu; -and plainly any trail which avoided the long sweep to the west round by -the head-waters of the Chitu was likely to be a short-cut. Then, after -wheeling to the left, we descended somewhat abruptly to a little plateau -on which stands Maurekmutta banaboo, the home of a solitary Arekuna -family. Here Schoolmaster showed us another line running almost straight -towards Kamaiwâwong. It would probably have been preferable to the one we -had walked, and might have saved some climbing. Why they had not led us -that way we could not make out; but, of course, to an Indian time is of -no importance, unless he is hungry, and the tramp of half a dozen extra -miles is a mere trifle. No one was at home in this banaboo. - -We next descended yet farther, until, after one and a quarter hours’ -march beyond the point of divergence from Joseph’s trail, we reached -and forded the Arabupu (3,780 feet above sea-level). Here we were met -by quite a heavy shower of cold rain. Twenty minutes later we crossed -the Gunguila, a confluent of the Arabupu; and another ten minutes’ march -brought us to the brow of a hill, 4,060 feet above sea-level, where it -became evident that we were making straight for the southern spur of -Mount Weitipu across the folds and rifts of a plateau. We could, in -fact, see our trail running ahead past the very toe of Weitipu; but as, -on descending, the path followed a valley in the diametrically opposite -direction, we were reminded—and not for the first time either—that Indian -trails are like the paths in the garden of the talking flowers in _Alice -through the Looking-Glass_, and that to get anywhere you must turn and -walk in the opposite direction. We crossed two more small streams, and -then, after a further fifty-six minutes’ march, we halted for the night -on the right bank of the Erkoy River, in a little copse, evidently the -recognized Indian camping-ground, and much preferable to the bleak camp -at Weiwötö on Joseph’s trail. The Erkoy is another confluent of the -Arabupu, and from a little clump of trees on a level terrace where we -camped the ground dropped away abruptly to the river. A steep grass hill -on the left bank protected us nicely on the windward side, whilst the -lee-side was open to the savannah. In the watery rays of the evening sun -Roraima and Kukenaam stood clear for the first time that day. We could no -longer see the south-western wall up which we had climbed, but we had a -splendid view of the south-eastern escarpment. The clear, swift-running -Erkoy almost tempted us to bathe, but it was too cold to venture. We had -a fine night, though once or twice, as the rush of the wind shook the -tree-tops, we woke up sufficiently to rejoice that we were not on the -exposed tableland. The Makusis camped all round us, while the Arekunas -slung their hammocks in a clump of trees a little way downstream. - -Next morning (18th January) was gloriously fine, and we saw Roraima and -Kukenaam for the last time at close quarters, shining red in the dawn. -We forded the Erkoy, which flows swiftly and came icy cold well over -our knees; and then, ascending the steep bank on the other side, we -found ourselves once more on a rolling plateau with the trail we had -seen passing over the toe of Weitipu, now just ahead. I loved the walk -over the fresh grass of this shining tableland, amidst the indescribable -peace of its mighty silence. The trail was almost level, save for little -descents into the channels of the many streams that come racing down -Weitipu’s steep flanks; and in the keen, fresh morning air mere movement -was a joy—different indeed to one’s feelings on the low, hot coast-lands! -In succession we crossed the Kamaoura-wong, two small swamps, the -Tongkoy, and the Sappi, all streams which tumble in picturesque cascades -from Weitipu; and after an hour’s march we crossed the southern spur of -Weitipu himself. He is a very attractive mountain, majestic, but without -the bleak austerity of Roraima and Kukenaam. His southern summit would -afford a splendid camping-ground, and several of his terraces would -make beautiful house-sites. In China such a mountain would have been -studded with temples and monasteries, but I have never heard of anyone -climbing to the top of Weitipu. It would not be difficult to do this, -though rather strenuous, and I should love to go back one day and make -the ascent. On the spur of Weitipu, where we stood (4,100 feet above -sea-level), Schoolmaster showed us yet another trail—the most direct of -all—branching off to Kamaiwâwong! - -We then crossed two more streams—a small one called the Apa, and a -larger one called the Perumak. The latter is fringed by forest, and is -probably identical with the river Maipa, crossed by Joseph’s trail. A -glorious grassy savannah spreads out on both sides of this narrow strip -of woodland; and in it, just beyond the Perumak ford, an hour’s march -from the spur of Weitipu, stands a solitary banaboo, near which the trail -to Tumong, by which Dr. Crampton travelled in 1911, branches off to the -left. We kept to the right, and eighteen minutes later reached the crest -of a ridge, which appears to form the divide between the watershed of -the Orinoco and of the Amazon. At this point, therefore, we presumably -returned from Venezuela to Brazil. The divide here is 3,860 feet above -sea-level. - -We now descended into a charming valley, and, after forty minutes’ march, -halted for our midday meal beside the Muruïna, a pretty little tributary -of the Kotinga. Once more we recognized the jasper formation, and we -established ourselves on a tree-shaded ledge above a deep, clear pool. -This place is a recognized Arekuna camping-ground. The creek is forded -just above a waterfall, where its two branches meet. Within the fork is -a copse, and at the season of our visit there ran along the side of the -stream a dry rock-ledge which would form a roomy and level tent-floor. I -remember that, whilst we waited for Haywood’s preparations, we regaled -ourselves on the last of the delicious pineapples, carried with us from -Kamaiwâwong. It tasted most especially nice after our three hours’ walk. - -Another ascent and descent brought us, twenty minutes after restarting, -to the Tunâpun creek. We crossed it, and thirty-eight minutes later we -had climbed to the top of the hill-ridge (3,670 feet above sea-level), -overlooking the full width of the Kotinga valley right across to -“Landmark Peak.” This was the same hill-ridge that we had climbed, much -farther to the west, on the 12th January; but the fierce midday sun had -sucked up all colour from the landscape, and it no longer looked the -fairyland which it had seemed on that early morning. Now came an abrupt -descent, very warm work and lasting just an hour, to the point where -the Töpa creek is forded close by a solitary banaboo. Suddenly our -procession halted. The magic word _waikin_ was passed along, and we all -squatted down on the ground, while Schoolmaster and Joseph stalked two -big deer not far away. Schoolmaster crept to within point-blank range of -one animal and fired. Alas! his stock of powder and shot was practically -exhausted, so he had given his old fowling-piece a most insufficient -charge; and the deer, though hit, bounded away uphill with its companion. -Behold Joseph and Schoolmaster racing after them up the steep slope like -a pair of dogs! They rejoined us later very crestfallen; and Schoolmaster -gesticulated to me as graphic an account of the whole business as ever -disappointed sportsman poured into the ear of sympathizing lady. - -For the rest of the day’s march the trail lay over spacious undulating -pasture-lands, crossing three small streams, fringed by eta-palms; and, -after two and a quarter hours’ march from the Töpa crossing, we reached -and forded the Kotinga at the same point as on our outward journey, thus -completing one loop of the figure 8. We then made our way over rocks up -a little ravine on the left bank and camped in bush upon a small level -terrace at the edge of a brook. It was a nasty, stuffy place, full of -ants; but we cared little for that, as we were practically free from -the kabouru. My husband unfortunately caught his foot in some bush rope -lying on the rocks and fell heavily, breaking the little finger of his -left hand, which caused him great pain. The Kotinga valley, it seems, was -destined to be disagreeable to us. - -[Illustration: MOUNT WEITIPU FROM THE LEFT BANK OF THE KOTINGA RIVER. - -To face page 225.] - -When, next morning, we emerged from our ravine on to the brow of a bluff -above the Kotinga, we were delighted to see a most interesting and novel -aspect of Roraima, which was really rather astonishing, for there had -been no hint of such a view either the evening before or on our outward -journey. The morning was gloriously clear, and on the left, behind -Weitipu, the south-eastern face of Roraima projected clear and red, and -beyond that again Kukenaam’s southern end; whilst on the right of Weitipu -we saw plainly, not only the other end of Roraima’s south-eastern wall, -but also a small and foreshortened portion of the eastern escarpment. -This view enabled us in a small degree to grasp the enormous area of -Roraima. It is impossible to do so when opposite one great wall only; -for Roraima is an immense, irregular quadrilateral, of which the -south-eastern side, ten miles in length, is the longest, and the area of -the summit, flanked all round by precipices, cannot be less than fifty -square miles. - -From the Kotinga ford to the pass at “Landmark Peak” Schoolmaster’s trail -coincided with Joseph’s, but from “Landmark Peak” to the Rera valley we -traversed a new line of country. This time we swung off to the right, -and we hoped to be led along the ridge of the mountain amphitheatre -which encircles the Warukma and Karakanang plateau. But an Indian trail -is nothing if not surprising. For the first half-hour we did indeed -continue on the high tableland at the same altitude as the pass (3,150 -feet above sea-level), crossing two streams; but then we wheeled sharply -to the right, and, passing between two low knolls, left the tableland -by a narrow path skirting round the contours of a hill and affording a -view over a sea of jagged peaks tumbled together without apparent rhyme -or reason. It was a most astonishingly tangled-looking country, with -valleys running at angles to each other and hills flung about pell-mell -in the midst of them, as though the powers engaged in making this place -had got tired of their work and flung it all down anyhow and left it. -The colouring, too, was curious, vivid red, black, and green; for many -fires had evidently seared the countryside, the most recent leaving -black patches, which contrasted oddly with the bright green of new grass -springing up where the land had peace, and with the red soil on the -hillsides, whence heavy rain had washed away the black ash, but where as -yet forgiving Nature had not reasserted herself. For half an hour our -path clung to the hill-side, but it then gave that up as a bad job and -dropped abruptly into one of the narrow valleys beneath. The prospect was -certainly not an inviting one. We consoled ourselves, however, with the -reflection that the divergence to the right must have put us in a direct -line for Mount Mataruka. A short but heavy shower of rain now drenched -us to the skin; but it was welcome, as relieving an unwonted sultriness -of the atmosphere. Round the base of the hill we curved, climbed over a -knoll in the valley, and so, after three-quarters of an hour’s march, -we came to the left bank of a creek called the Walamwötö, presumably a -tributary of the Kotinga. Here we pitched camp in a small winding valley -(2,450 feet above sea-level) by the side of a charming pool. As we were -establishing ourselves under our tarpaulin, a storm of wind and rain -almost blew it away from its moorings, and six Makusis had to hold it up -on the weather side until the fierceness of the gusts abated. We caused -the ridge-pole to be lowered considerably so as to afford less target for -the wind, and I was somewhat anxious about the night. But after dark the -weather became beautifully still and clear, a full moon making diamonds -everywhere of the lingering rain-drops. This was the only rain-storm of -any moment which we encountered from the day we left the Kowatipu forest -until the day of our return to it. During the whole of the rest of our -savannah journey we enjoyed superb weather, sunny, breezy, cool, and -rainless, save for occasional Scotch mist upon the hill-tops. - -We rose very early next day (20th January), and broke our fast by -lamplight. But the sun soon rose clear and very hot, and I realized that -the strenuous exertions of the five preceding days without a rest were -beginning to tell on me. So the start did not find me very fresh. An -hour’s march in narrow winding ravines, followed by a short climb over -a long black-bouldered slope, brought us to James’s banaboo (2,720 feet -above sea-level), perched upon a hill-top. The inhabitants came out in -a string to greet us, and the second man in the line, as he shook my -hand (the ceremony none of them will forego), ejaculated questioningly -“Mamma?” and all his companions echoed the cry. It must be seldom, if -ever, that a white woman is seen by these people. The view from this -lonely banaboo was certainly enchanting; but, alas! no tableland such as -we had hoped to see lay unrolled before us, only a fresh tangle of hills -and valleys; and, though the country looked most interesting, it also -looked very arduous. Moreover, there ensued an argument between Joseph -and Schoolmaster as to the right road onwards, and we wondered whether -they really knew the way, or were merely proceeding by trial and error. -The long ridge of tableland, over the crest of which we had hoped to -travel when we turned aside from Joseph’s line at “Landmark Peak,” looked -most provoking away to the left. At length our guides reconciled their -difference, whatever it may have been, and led us three hundred feet -downwards over a broad hill-shoulder across a small stream. Then, after -a long, gradual ascent over another broad hill-shoulder, we came to the -top of a commanding hill, 2,960 feet above sea-level. Here indeed we were -comforted, for we saw again Mount Mataruka, and realized that we were -making for it by a much more direct line than if we had returned through -Enamung. Besides, a nice undulating ridge lay before us, and the view was -grand. We could see a magnificent expanse of country on all sides. Far, -far behind lay Weitipu, with Roraima and Kukenaam at his back, bidding -us a last good-bye. We saw them no more after this. I wonder if we ever -shall again! On the right we had an excellent view of our former line of -journey, the plateau of the Karakanang and the grassy peaks of Enamung, -as well as of a big waterfall shining white in the distance, whither our -outward journey had unfortunately not led us. Our guides said that it was -a fall on the Wairann; and at close quarters it must be a fine sight, for -even at a distance of about seven miles it was a striking feature in the -landscape. At this point we were one hour and six minutes’ march from -James’s banaboo. - -We continued for another forty minutes along the crest of the hill-ridge, -enjoying intensely the glorious scenery, and finally reaching a point -(2,810 feet above sea-level) whence, beyond a cleft in the hills, cut -athwart our line of march by the Karakanang River, we could see the long, -straight line of the Paiwa valley, down which lay our forward path. -Fifty minutes’ sharp descent, largely through forest, then brought us to -a ford of jasper slabs over the Karakanang (1,960 feet above sea-level). -Here we made our midday meal, and thereafter we ascended the valley of -a brook, which falls into the Karakanang at the ford; and, climbing -over some hillocks shut in between high hill-ranges on both sides, we -came, after an hour and a half, to the Paiwa River (2,210 feet above -sea-level), down which our trail then ran for three and a half hours’ -actual march. It was most fascinating scenery. The turquoise-blue Paiwa -in its rose-pink bed (for the blood-red jasper weathers on the surface to -pink) flowed clear as crystal through opal-green pools and in rippling -white cascades, whilst shade trees, dotted here and there, relieved the -glare of the brilliant light. Beneath one such tree, seated on pink sand -close to the edge of the stream, we enjoyed our usual tea halt. The sides -of the valley are seamed with confluent brooks, many of which had water -even at this height of the dry season. In wet weather the smiling stream -must be a very torrent. - -At first the Paiwa had all the appearance of making for the Ireng; but -at a point a little more than halfway in that part of its course which -we followed it turned abruptly off to the south and swept past Mount -Pakara to join the Kotinga. Towards sunset we crossed to its left bank, -where was a broad level stretch of sand, evidently a favourite Indian -camping-ground, but rather a disappointing one to me, as there was a rift -in the jasper formation just here, and the stream merely gurgled over -quite ordinary stones, while the sand was a commonplace white. Moreover, -the steep hill-side across the stream had been hideously burnt, and there -were evidences of recent Indian encampment and of fish-poisoning in the -river. Indians are an admirable people in many ways, but they scarcely -deserve their goodly heritage, since all that they do for their beautiful -country is to poison the fish in its exquisite streams and to disfigure -the fair hills by continual grass-burning. - -Next day we ate our porridge and drank our coffee before dawn, as the -moon sank behind the trees. Then, after following the river for a short -distance, we climbed up through a copse to where a banaboo was perched -on a bluff, the Paiwa below making a right-angled turn, so that those -who live here have an excellent vantage-ground whence they can watch -all wayfarers whether up or down stream. At the banaboo we found -Schoolmaster and his Arekunas, who had evidently spent the night there, -leaving the Makusis with us; and after a short colloquy Joseph led us -down into the Paiwa valley once more. The Arekunas remained behind, and -made for Mataruka by that line of their own which Joseph had graphically -described as “Mountain-top, mountain-top, mountain-top,” on the day of -our trek to Enamung. - -The Paiwa, which had grown to a considerable size, now reverted again to -a jasper bed, fringed this time with eta-palms, and looking prettier than -ever. We walked along its bank most of the way; but at times the valley -would close in to a gorge and the river run in cataracts, while we would -have to climb over rocky bluffs. At last we crossed the blue waters of -this pleasant river for the last time, and finally quitted the Paiwa -watershed. Our trail now wound away to the left, choosing most cleverly -a low divide, and then equally cleverly winding in and out on the level -round the spur of our old friend Kumâraying, until we found ourselves in -the Rera plain once more. It would have been a pretty path but for the -desolation and destruction wrought by fire. Some men ahead of us actually -started two fresh fires, which were fiercely burning as we passed. - -At the special request of our people we went to Joseph’s banaboo for our -midday meal. His wife provided us with abundance of delicious fresh eggs, -and I confess, without any desire to teach my grandmother, that at times -the best way of eating eggs is to suck them. A few minutes’ walk brought -us back to the trail by which we had travelled on our outward journey, so -completing the second loop in the figure 8. We now followed our former -line of march the rest of the way back to Mataruka village, where we were -warmly received by Albert and the inhabitants. The Arekunas we passed at -a brook a few minutes from the village, busily engaged in washing and -painting their faces afresh. They then made a state entry behind us, -beating a tom-tom. - -The rest of our travels needs no description, for the line of our -homeward march was identical with that of our outward journey. The -distance between Mataruka and Kamaiwâwong by Joseph’s trail was a march -of thirty-two hours forty-seven minutes; and the return journey between -the same villages by Schoolmaster’s trail was a march of thirty-two hours -fifty-one minutes, of which eleven hours twenty-eight minutes were -occupied in retraversing those parts of the route where the two trails -were identical—namely, the Kukenaam valley, the ascent from the Kotinga -ford to “Landmark Peak,” and the line from Rera to Mataruka. There is, -therefore, little to choose between the two routes. Both mean five stages -of rather more than six hours’ march a day. Schoolmaster’s line was -slightly more direct, but Joseph’s was appreciably less arduous. - -We reached Georgetown, after forty-six days’ absence, on the 3rd -February, 1916, resting on the way back for one day at Mataruka, one -day on the Karto tableland, and one day at Kaietuk. There was a new -and lovely note of colour on the Potaro; for the river was lit up by -a beautiful pink blossom (_Syphonia globifera_) all along the banks, -very much like peach-blossom in appearance and in its manner of growing -on a leafless tree. Also there was much more water going over Kaietuk -than when we passed upstream; and magnificent was the amber swirl that -descended, to change into gleaming spray flashing like diamonds, as it -fell into the black depths. Grey-green cascades dashed down the crags on -all sides, flashing out of the mists that lay heavy on the summits, to -mingle with the blossom-strewn river—a country for Undine indeed! - -So our brief journey in the mountains ended, alas! below sea-level; nor -did we “find wings waiting there,” for the aeronautical service of the -British Guiana Government is as yet only an aspiration. - -[Illustration: Route from HOLMIA IN BRITISH GUIANA TO MT. RORAIMA] - -[Illustration: SECTION OF COUNTRY TRAVERSED BETWEEN KAIETTUK FALL, ON THE -POTARO RIVER, AND MT RORAIMA - -Horizontal Scale 1/2,000,000. Vertical Scale exaggerated 50 times.] - - - - -FOOTNOTES - - -[1] _Kaieteur_ is a mistake for _Kaietuk_. See p. 75. - -[2] _Vide_ his article in _Timehri_, vol. ii., 3rd series (1912), p. 18. - -[3] Cf. _Timehri_, vol. iv. (1885), “The First Ascent of Roraima,” p. 23, -where Sir E. im Thurn, writing of Roraima and Kukenaam, says: “Rarely did -we see the scene quite clear, a fact which, as the Indians were never -tired of explaining to us, was owing to the habit of the mountain—_they -regard both mountains as one_—of veiling itself whenever approached by -white men.” - - -PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY BILLING AND SONS, LIMITED, GUILDFORD AND ESHER - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Through British Guiana to the summit -of Roraima, by Mrs. Cecil Clementi - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH BRITISH GUIANA TO RORAIMA *** - -***** This file should be named 62513-0.txt or 62513-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/5/1/62513/ - -Produced by MFR and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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