Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-05-07
SOURCES or TINE oHrNoco.
Described by the rIrs Modern white Mss
Who Has NIsi..-t Them

soukCEs or TINE ORrNOCO.
| Described by the rira Modern Whine M.
Who Has Visited Them.
Twelve hundred miles from the mouth Of
the orinoco river was as far as extended my
explorations toward the sources OF that great
stream" said Ensign Roger weIles who hes
just returned from The region mentioned. 70 Q
writer for the STAR He " the only white man
tina; has penetrated those wilds. a, all events
since the DAYS of the carly spaniards
The orinoeo ia one Of the bigees, rivers IN
the world. as yon NAV see by glancing at .
map OF South America. II Is dotted all along
| it's course with Numerous small islands ana ia
upper waters are obsiructcd by many cata-
facis. During my long Journey toward it's
sources my canoe had often been carried over
land around impossible falls. by the time one
reaches the Rio Mets which Is tho largest
tributary of the Orlnoco navigation - further
interferred with by wild and savage Indians
who use poisoned arrows. 80 that traders who
buy and sell goods along the stream anchor
the sailing scows out in the middle OF il az
night, keeping guard with rides against possi-
BILE surprise
I'm that part OF the country and beyond to-
ward the interior, whittier Ipcncsrated naked
hess Is the rule among tue natives. neither
men nor women wearing anything besides q
loin cloth OF tho mos. restricted dimeusions
Here Is one of tho @oin cloths. which Representa-
tho height 81 fashion as 90 dress among those
people. You see IL is but rectangular scrap
OF bead work fastened by string The
bead work. however. is very beautiful
beng done III an exquisite pattern
Two hundred miles beyond the mouth OF the
hlo Meta the l3irida river enters the Orinoco.
started ap that stream with my canoe loaded
with trinkets Tor exchange with the natives
who live in a condition OF extreme savagerv
although they arc amiably disposed and usually
harmless. They so entirely nude. save for the
Ion cloths. rs have described. aud get their
subsistence by hunting and fishing chiefly the
latter. | was much interested in then NOTIFIED
OF taking fish by the use Of the bow and arrow.
For this purpose they employ arrows six
feet IN length made of reeds tipped with iron.
While a canoe is padded gently along in the
shadows the marksman stands ready with his
arrow on the string az the bow. AZ soon a. a
large fish is seen. If the approach can be made
within range, the arrow is lot fy and rarely fails
TO strike the prey. These Indians hunt with
olow guns made out OF the young stalks Of a
certain kind OF palm, from which the pith
Is removed Tho arrows cmployed an
prolecillcs are simply splinters of reed
sharpened at one end, the other end being
! wrapped with enough silk cotton obtained
rom another kind OF palm to I'LL up the bore
OF the blow gun The arrows are about ten
inches long and very light They are tipped
with the famous and deadly '-woorari" poison
Used by one of these naked sayages. the blow
gun is weapon of great accuracy AND
u
top being brought down by the skilled sharp
shooter with reasonable certainty at the firss
try.
These primitive aborigines dwell in hut.
built of palm leaves mostly. Each family has
its little garden patch. which il chiefly devoted
10 raising the root from which cassava 10 made.
They depend upon this root almost entirely
Tor food. apart from what they get by hunting
ana fishing. IL Is preparedby grating 10 be-
gin With The crater employed Is of the most
primitive possible description. being simply .
plank with perforations, small sharp pieces
OF flint being inserted in the holes Being re-
duced TO sort OF meal by rubbing on this
crater the cassaya is pressed 10 get the water
out OF 1t, because the root is watety as the
potato. Then IL is sified and formed for cook
ing into what looks like an enormous
griddle cake two or three feet in diameter
This cake Is baked on a fiat piece OF earthen-
ware of corresponding size.
An Indian will so of for a weeks hunting
with no other food than quantity of cassaya
prepared in this fashion. / myself was Obliged
TO live upon IL almost wholly for month"; Az
first did not find IL palatable. but after awhile
l acquired the taste and became quite fond of il
The chief trouble was that il was cooked on
the bare ground and always contained con-
siderable percentage Of dirt. However one
must not be too particular about ones diet
when travelling in the wids. These sayages
are quite cleany, 80 Tar as bathing is concerned.
but their habits of living otherwise are not
godliness.
80 far as the virtue Of the women ia con-
cerned should say that il ives OF a high
order. Some of them are fairly good looking
and have excellent figures. but their comeli.
ness rs nearly always spoiled by badly de-
cayed teeth. i assisted Internationally In the
performance OF quite romance ON one occa-
sion. When my canoe was on the point OF
leaving native village, where we had been So
tourning, young Indian girl seemed TO be con.
siderably agitated and manifested an evident
desire to accompany me. My pilot. against nv
wish, permitted her TO get aboard and she
came with us down the stream 20 our next halt
ing place. 4 noticed that the pilot was ex-
tremely attentive TO her. shortly after we
made our next landing the mother OF the girl
made her appearance IN a canoe, having fol-
lowed US to get back her daughter. whom she
took away with her The pilot was very mel
aneholy after this occurrence and subsequently
confessed TO me that he had brought the young
lady away for the purpose of making her his
wife.
Matrimonial methods are extremely sfmp,s
among these natives. When Young man and
young woman wish to marry they go 10 house
keeping together, and that is all there is OF il
Often youth of one village will WOO ana win
a maiden OF village hundreds of miles dis
tant along the river. As a rule, they seem to
enjoy as uninterrupted a domestic felicity as
civilized couples obtain. The Indians are
gradually retiring toward the higher sources
OF the Orinoco because of the harsh and dis
honest treatment which they receive at the
hands OF the white men and hslf-castes
OF Venezuela. They can never get fair prices
for the cassava which they produce and sell
to the feneZueians. Cassava is an important
food OF the poorer classes all through yene-
zaeia, being ground by machines in factories.
Among the curiosIties which obtained from
these savages for exhibition at the worlds fair
at Chicago are a number o: interesting musical
instruments, sach reed flutes aud drums
made out of kind OF corkwood
intended TO speak OF the remarkable pattern in
which the beadwork of the loin cloths rs always
made. THIS pattern, as you will observe, is in
ageometric form peculiarly Greek, and the
mystery Is where these people got II from.
Not least strange is the fact that the cassaya
graters are always made with the sharp pieces
OF flint arranged IN precisely the same design,
which Doubtless had some original significance
long lost even 70 tradition"
Aids 10 Oratory.
From the ST, Louis Globe-Democrat
II am about to deliver an important speech
in few oays," said gentleman to q number
of friends at the Laclcde. Can Won tell me