Page:The naturalist on the River Amazons 1863 v2.djvu/189

 great variety of forms, and is shown, as already observed in the Tapajos and other tributaries of the Lower Amazons. The mouth of the Quarý, or the channel which connects the lake with the Solimoens, is only 200 or 300 yards broad, and has but a very feeble current. It is about half a mile long, and opens on a broad sheet of water which is not of imposing magnitude, as it is only a small portion of the lake, this having a rather sharp bend in its lower part, so that the whole extent is not visible at one view. There is a small village on the shores of the inner water, distant twelve hours' journey by boat from the entrance. We anchored within the mouth, and visited in the montaria two or three settlers, whose houses are built in picturesque situations on the banks of the lower lake not far inwards. Several small but navigable streams or inlets here fall into the Quarý; the land appeared to be of the highest fertility; we crossed a neck of land on foot, from one inlet to another, passing through extensive groves of coffee, planted in a loose manner amongst the forest trees. One of the settlers was a Gibraltar Jew, established here many years, and thoroughly reconciled to the ways of life of the semi-civilised inhabitants. We found him barefoot, with trousers turned up to the knee, busily employed with a number of Indians—men, women, and children—shelling and drying cacao, which grows wild in immense profusion in the neighbourhood. He seemed a lively and sensible fellow; was a great admirer of the country, the climate, and the people, and had no desire to return to Europe. This was the only Jew I met with on the