The times., 1897-04-18
Literature.

tween Brazil, Venezuela and British Guiana
that II has for centuries been question
to which country OF the three it really
belongs. Scientists and explorers are un-
commonly Ignorant of the summit of this
highest peak in northern South America,
partly through neglect and partly through
its inacceSsibity, for the summit may
only be reached by balloons The more
wonder that such a stimulating prize for
the adventurous explorer should so long
have remained neglected
Especial interest gathers TO Rraima on
account Of It's being the supposed site of
FL Dorado. Humboldt and Schumburgk
agree upon British Guiana as its site We
are told that it stood on an island in the
midst OF grea lake. called Parma: but
no such axe is now to be found in South
America anywhere near the locality indi-
Gated. a n explanation OF tie mystery is,
however, afforded by the suggestion that
such great lake, or inland sea- almost
certainly existed at one time in precisely
this part of the continent: in that case
what are now mountains would then have
been islands. In this great suppusedanCient
lake the group OF islands now represented
by mountain SUBMITS might well have been
the home ola powerful and conquering race,
as is today Japan with its group OF more
than 5000 islands. and Roraima, as the
highest, may well have been selected as
the nation s fas1ness, and the site OF their
capital city.
This is the interesting and ingenious
theory upon which Mr. Aubrey bases his
romance The readers in following him
10 p.. -, e u
mysteries of its tabIeland summit, may
Well feel an eagern ess for advent ure
and promise of surprising wonders which
are fictions surpassed only by the uE-
authenticated facts in which they have their
foundations.
A man of great learning, but strange ap-
pearance, appeared. SO the story runs,
to some explorers and asked for certain
young men To accompany him To iloraima
he proved TO be one of the ancient nation
who inhabit Ell Dorado and its territory
The adventures on the summit constitute
the story
But the greatest of these adventures is
the one with the Devil Tree which the
heroes killed. thus relieving the country
OF a great horror, and the king of "A de-
Tended enemy. The Devil Tree had no
leaves, but branches only. Its color was
OF u somber violet blue, tinged in places
with a ruddy hue. The trunk was about
thirty feet in height and eight or nine
feet in diameter. The branches. which
were many, a hundred or more probably,
dropped over from where the trunk ended
and trailed about the ground But what
was most astonishing, 10 one who looked
upon them for the first time, was that
these branches were all in motion. Even
though no wind stirred, they waved to
and fro, ran restlessly along the ground,
like 1.-the snakes The Devil Tree grew out
OF the floor of a stone amplitheater. 1t
was in possession Of the enemies to the
king, and TO it they gave their prisoners,
for the tree fed on human blood.
To kll the Devil Tree the pit was filled
with aggressive vcnomous scrpents, which
were starved to the point of attacking the
serpentine branches of the tree Then a
mine underneath it was charged and root
aud branch it was shattered to destruc-
ton -4'-v>s~-
Mr. Aubrey it will be seen, is imagina-
tive, bold and ingenious. He claims the
license of romance writer to maintain
the accuracy of the facts he presents about
an unknown spot until the contrary be
proved The story is absorbing from cover
to cover, and it should bring to the atten-
tion of explorers and antiquanans a desire
of search in a spot logically more fruitful of
interests and values than Arctic voyages,
for which there can scarcely be COM
parative utility. The Devil Tree of Ell
Dorado, will find large circle Of readers
for by its nature it appeals to scientists,
romancers, explorers, antiquarians, and
even to boys, who after all have anintuition