Page:Researches in the Central Portion of the Usumatsintla Valley.djvu/33

Rh One of my most skilful men, provided with a long pole and a large roll of bejucos, boldly leaped on to the raft and safely reached the other bank. The improvised bejuco rope was now firmly fastened to either shore.

I had bidden the man search carefully on the opposite bank to see whether the Indians had not concealed a small boat somewhere among the trees projecting into the water. Hardly had he touched the opposite bank when his joyful shout announced that he had found a fine new cayuco. He unfastened the boat, got into it, and brought it to our bank, abandoning the now useless raft to float down the river.

The cayuco had very recently been made from a caoba tree. We tied it firmly to a tree, lest it should be torn away during the night by the chance swelling of the stream. The finding of this cayuco was the second piece of good fortune that befell us on our expedition to Pethá.

There was now nothing further to do, and we cooked a fine Crax rubra, which we had killed on the way. It invariably rained at night.

On the morning of September 3d, after crossing and recrossing the river three times, the passage over the Chocolhá was completed. The little Indian boat was now fastened as securely as possible to the left bank, so that it might serve us on our return. At a distance of only two hundred paces from our crossing-place, we saw a well-built open champa, and a smaller one near by for cooking. Several pottery cooking-utensils lay around, and at a short distance we saw the clearing where the caoba had been felled and the cayuco had been made. Numerous hunter's trails ran in all directions from the hut, which was very confusing to us, but, true to our purpose to move always in a southerly or southeasterly direction, we chose the path which seemed to correspond best to that direction. The sequel proved that we had made a wise choice. We marched on uninterruptedly, crossing numerous brooks and also on the left a large tributary of the Chocolhá. The region became wilder and more mountainous, but we followed the path closely uphill and downhill, though it was often hardly discernible, convinced that it must lead somewhere. Towards noon, as we were already very tired, we made a short halt for rest and food. Then we pushed on again in spite of heavy showers of rain which drenched us to the skin. Finally we came to a small milpa established in the midst of the forest. This was the first sign that we were near an Indian settlement. The rain ceased. We proceeded cautiously. Descending the last declivity, suddenly a silvery expanse of water gleamed between the dark branches of the trees. A few steps further down, the path ended at the waters of the Lake of Pethá. Where the path ended three cayucos were fastened to the trees, and the oars belonging to them were found hidden in the branches. This was the third piece of good luck that had befallen us on our romantic expedition to Pethá. Indeed, of what advantage would it have been to us to have reached the lake without boats