The National tribune., 1898-03-10
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ON HEsH..eI4ssn
.HMA!!l.ZONS

That there was turmoil and confusion
helpleSsnesS and clamor on board the
vessel goes without saying. Capt Pablo
beat his breast, beseeching St Christie
pher; and OF his crew, those still intoxi-
Gated blaSphemed for the most part, while
others made vows. If the whole company
had been taken bodily out of this 18th
century and put down at an early part OF
the middle ages, there would have been
nothing wanting TO make them fit those
times perfectly.
Then, as we drifted broadside on to the
current, a heavy, Sullen boom of thunder
rolled over darkened sky and livid water,
the cloud wall rent aSunder streamed out
i'll long tossing arms of Somber mist and
the wind came down upon us with ter
nble- great sound
Get her head round Work it round
with oars, or we'll go down in an instant,
shouted my comrade. His assured, com
manding tone took effect-it always does
but there was only enough time TO get be-
fore the gale, when with shrek and roar,
with sitting rush of flying sand, and the
darkness OF midnight, we were in its midst.
To all intentS and purposes the vessel
Immediately became wreck. She had an
unexpected bouyancy, however, and not
withStandng her mainmast went by the
board, enough yet stood forward to steer
with, and when, as happened several time
during those long hours in which we drove
through impenetrable gloom, lightning
showed us a shore line, or an indescribably
roaring warned us that the forest was too
near, our schooner was kept away. This
pretty nearly summed up all expedientS in
stewardship, and we were fortunate in
being able to do so much.
The tempest ragged from about shutdown
until nearly morning. Then it blew itself
out all at once, giving these admirable
mariners renewed courage, and an oppor-
fun
Francisco had disappeared. When, where,
or how, amidst the murlI of night and rag
ing wind, no man could tell. Nevertheless,
he was gone forever.
We needed TO relit after managing to
weather this gale, or more properly, wealth
erIng It without management; but as our
damages were OF q nature that exceeded
native resources in this region, we aban-
doned the vessel at a neighboring settle
ment, and taking to canoes made our way
towards that great bifurcation of the ORR
noco surveyed by Humboldt.
Thence we passed by the CaSSiquiar
channel into the connected, and thus
sometimes spoken of as united, Amazonian
system although these Amazon and ORR,
noco basins are hydrographically and topo-
graphically distinct
East Of the place at which we took our
departure from this Great Mater" para
qua and the Tamanak word Orinucu
have this meaning) levels change, and
between that gentle western slope over
which the western part OF this middle
river flows, and a more pronounced At
iantlc inclination, out-crOpping ridges Of
granite form those magnificent cascades,
the Maipure and Aturea rapids. while at
little Marimara falls stands that famous
mass OF granite-"The Tigers Stone
which is vocal at sunrise like the Epyp-
tan Memnon.
All those oracular stones and speaking
statues OF past times (wben OF course,
their voices were not those of concealed
priests emitted sounds for the same
reason and in a similar manner. They
had some kind OF a cavity within which
was connected by an orifice with the ex-
teTnal air, they were so placed that the
rising sunbeams fell upon them, and all
occupied situations in equatorial regions,
where the contrast Of temperature between
night and day is violent, and a period of
transition from one to the other is very
short. When the air contained III these
regular or irregular masses was suddenly
heated, as must have happened every
morning, it rushed out; therefore as the
reservoir was large or small, the channel Of
exit expanded or contracted, straight or
crooked, rough or smooth, those sounds
produced by its passage would vary in
time, pitch, and meditation.
The Orlnoco contains fewer floating
islands than are found on the Amazon
Such agglomeratiOns OF whole trees, drift
wood, reeds, grasses, and vegetable debris,
intermingled with a variable quantity OF
mud, are mainly freshet formations.
During the chief annual inundation
period from April TO August, an average
rise in this stream is from 40 to so feet. It's
course lies wholly within Venezuelan terri
tory, where lands bordering the river are
mostly savannas easily overfowed, and at
the confluence OF so great watercourse
with its larger affiuents, every flood con-