Page:The naturalist on the River Amazons 1863 v1.djvu/180

 on decaying cacao fruits. The island was three or four miles long and about a mile broad, and was situated in the central part of the river. The view from Dona Paulina's house was limited by the western row of islets, this middle channel being about a mile broad; not a glimpse was obtainable of the main land on either side, and each island was a mass of greenery, towering to a great height, and seeming to repose on the surface of the water. The house was in a very dilapidated condition; but Dona Paulina, who was a simple, good-natured little woman, with her slaves, tried to make us as comfortable as the circumstances permitted. At night it rained heavily, and the water poured through the broken tiles on to my hammock, so I was obliged to get up and shift my quarters; but this is a common incident in Brazilian houses.

The next day we crossed the river to the main land, to the house of Dona Paulina's father, where we slept, and on the following morning started to walk to Cametá through the forest, a distance of nine miles. The road was sometimes tolerably good, at others it was a mere track, and twice we had to wade through swamps which crossed the path. We started at six a.m., but did not reach Cametá until nine at night.

In the course of our walk I chanced to verify a fact relating to the habits of a large hairy spider of the genus Mygale, in a manner worth recording. The species was M. avicularia, or one very closely allied to it; the individual was nearly two inches in length of body, but the legs expanded seven inches, and the entire body and legs were covered with coarse grey and reddish hairs.