The Red Cloud chief., 1892-09-09
FLOODS ON THE AMAZON.
Thousands of square Miles Annually Sub
merged. Only FALL Trees Being Visible.

and eastern Arkansas are but spring
frcshcts compared with the monster
floods that visit the Amazon valley
every year with a regularity cqualed
only by astronomical events and tar
collections, The rainfall OF northern
Brazil Is about three times that of tina
w~eb-footiest counties Of Oregon, aud In
midsummer the thunder showers that
drench the woods every afternoon re-
semble u daily cloudburst.
Rains of that sortare apt to occur day
after dry for u series Of weeks, and
their effect or the lowlands can be only
iinpcrfectly indicated by the fact that
the Amazon river drninsan area of more
than two million square miles. Tho
Mississippi, too, drains half the eastern
slope of u country larger than Brazil,
but its largest anlucuts are dwarfcd by
th2 thirl-cltss tributaries of the South
American father of waters, Not such
flowing lakes only as the Rio Negro aud
the Mclcra, but the Purus, the Naytri,
the Qirul, the Hinge, the Papajos and
dozen o. othcr streams rarely IN 'ntiouci
On this side Of the isthmus, enter the
main river through n delta miles in
width AMI d,cp enough for the largest
river steamers OF the st Lawrpn,c q,
About the middle uf summer these
streams begin e. rise, those from the
southwest first, those from the north
west and north u few weeks later aud
u fortnight after the arrival of the Sec
ond supplement the valley of the Ama-
zon becomes u paradise of swamp-loving
brutss. Tho tapir. the p~cccari, the fish
otter, celebrate the picnis season of
their ummcr life, and herds of wild
deer begin their westward exodus.
Near Monte Bcira, In the province (now
''stitc') Of Matte FroSso, the woods in
midsummer get full of game, as u hun
bred years ago the foothills of the
southern Allcghanics swarmcd with
wild pigeons when the forests of the
north were buried In snow. "A more
than usually sudden rise Of the flood
cuts of many of these fugitivcs, who
are thus reduced To the alternative of
making for the highest accessible
ground further east, till every knoll be-
comes hill of refuge, crowded with
timid brutes, whose survival depends
on their escape from the giant cats and
boas who may approach their strong
hold by swimming IL the water should
have submerged too large Il portion of
the continuous forest.
About two months after the begin
ming Of the rainy season the dcluge OF
the lowlnnds reaches its maximum.
merged so effectually that canoes can
be- padded through forests apparently
free from undcrbrush, since only the
taller trees, with their network of
climbing vines, RS, like islands above
the surging waters. The swollen rivers
have found new currents, and broad,
gurgling streams twist and eddy
through the lcnfy wilderness, tearing
of whole groups of trees with all their
roots, but making amends by depositing
hillocks OF driftwood, which soon get
covered with tufts Of new vegetation.
rhcprcssure of the surging flood against
these mounds of alluvium soon becomes
enormous, but the deep-rooted stems of
the abansoLia and the cnnoho tree may
resist till new deposits of driftwood con-
solidatea a number of mounds, thus form
ing good-sized islands, with n down
stream base of perhaps half q mile, but
n narrow head DETECTING the current
left and right, like the wedge-shaped
front OF a stout bridge pier.
The climbing talent OF the great cat
saves them the trouble of emigration.
The jaguar and the ocelot become en-
tirely aborsal, travelling like monkeys
, from branch to branch, and making
themselves at home in the tree-tops; 30
much so. indeed, that some Of them 20
TO housekeeping and raise u litter OF
. cubs in the cavity of a hollow tree.
A swimming deer in these submerged
tangle woods has no chance at all
against the pursuit of an enemy that
can leap from branch to branch or
climb along the viaduct-like cables OF
the great Llama vines, and a jagunr
would not begin to regret a phenomenal
deluge till the waters had closed over
the tops of the tallest palms.
The Brazilian ant bear survives the
rainy season In d peculiar way Of his
own. His favorite hunting grounds,
the big ant hills of the u~uderbrush, are
soaking under twenty feet of water and
tree ants hug the hooks Of their dens
during the season of constant showers.
In spite OF his big claws their enemy is
not prepared to rip big trees in quest Of
his food and his proficiency In climbing
cannot compare with that OF the big
eats, but his talent for long fasts is un-
rivaled, even in this era of Tanner
Freaks. One drink per week will do
i'm for a period Of ten or twelve weeks,
during which he husbands his vital re-
sources, on the principal of minimum
expenditure. With his bush tail coilcd
about his neck, he dozcs away the rainy
day under the roof of n fallen tree, while
his physical torpor is not apt TO be Off
set by an excess of mental activity.
1t has be en- asserted that an ant
bears forelegs are powerful enough To
hug II panther to death, but 1t is proba-
BILE that Il jaguar could break his head
at the first blow, and at all events the
tyrant Of the brazilian forests must
find 1t much harder to cope with the
agility OF the tree-climbing monkeys.
In daytime they elude the pursuit SO
X