Page:A narrative of travels on the Amazon and Rio Negro.djvu/241

 iSSi.] PASS THE FALLS. 209

On one or two days of bright sunshine, a beautiful Papilio came about the house, settling on the ground in moist places : I succeeded in taking two specimens ; it is allied to P. Thoas, and will probably prove a new species. This was my only capture worth mentioning at Jukeira. I had seen the same species at Jauarit£, but could not take a specimen. I purchased one of the red macaws painted as I have mentioned above. Senhor L. was here quite a martyr to the chegoes, fre- quently extracting ten or a dozen in a day, which made his feet so full of holes and wounds as to render walking painful, as I had experienced at Cobati and Javita. I, however, escaped pretty well, seldom having to take out more than two or three at a time, partly I believe owing to my being a good deal in the forest and to my always wearing slippers in the house. When a person has only one or two now and then, it is a trifling affair, and one is apt to think, as I for a long time did, that the dread of chegoes was quite unnecessary, and the accounts of their persecutions much exaggerated. Let any one, however, who still thinks so, take a trip into this part of the country, and live a month in an Indian's house, and he will be thoroughly undeceived.

After staying here six days, finding little to be done, we pro- ceeded on our downward passage to Sao Jeronymo. On the second day, in the morning, we reached Urubuquarra, the malocca of Bernardo, situated just above the falls. There is a path from this place through the forest, about three miles, to the village ; and as there were no Indians here to assist us in passing the falls, we set ours to work, carrying part of the cargo along it. In the afternoon Bernardo's son, who had re- turned before us with a canoe-load of farinha, came in, and we arranged to pass the falls the next morning. The river had risen considerably since we ascended, and had now reached a higher point than had been known for several years, and the rapids were proportionally more dangerous. I therefore pre- ferred going through the forest, carrying with me two small boxes, containing the insects I had collected, and my drawings of fish, — the loss of which would have been irreparable. The morning was fine, and I had a pleasant walk, though the path was very rugged in places, with steep descents and ascents at the crossing of several small brooks. Arrived at Sao Jeronymo, I waited for Senhor L., at the house of Senhor Augustinho,

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