Omaha daily bee., 1899-06-11
MIGHTY RIVER OF THE SOUTH
Story of a Tour of the Amazon on an Ocean
Steamer.
IT'S GREAT SIZE AND ITS TRIBUTARIES
How IL Looks a Thousand Miles from
the sea-People and Products
of the Great V~alley-The
Rainy Season.
S GREAT SIZE AND ITS TRIBUTARIES

Copyright, 1899, by Frank G.. Carpenter
ON H AMAZON, May Is, 1S99.-(spe-
ciaI correspondence of The Bee.)-Ahoat
unon the mighty Amazon! Steaming up the
yreatest river of the world. Riding on ana
on and on oyer a yellow inland sea, now
co~asfing shores lined with a tropical Vege-
tation and now so far out that the trees
become hazy lines of blue in the distance
| am on an ocean steamer 800 miles from
the Atlantic in the heart of South America
I am lust now within a half mile of Its
south bank. The shores are lined with
cacao orchards, and by the aid of my glass
can see the golden fruit from which our
chocolate comes shining out of the green
leaves. Back of the orchards are the lofty
trees of the mighty Amazon forests and
close to the shore are the gray matched
huts of the people. The opposite bank Is
wooded, but it is so far away that 1t forms
only a line of soft navy blue which fades
into the lighter blue of the sky.
In front and behind the steamer stretches
this mighty stream carrying the waters OF
the northern and central Andes down to
the sea. 1t has In it the washings of more
than half a continent, and is the down
spout of n watershed half as large as the
whole United States. With 1t are mixed the
particles from the sluice boxes of the gold
mines of the Benz and the Maranon. Atoms
of 1t have received bitter kisses from the
quinine trees of Peru and other atoms have
trickled from the soil of Ecuador. 1t has
the DRAWINGS of the sacred cities Of the
Incas, and it may contain some of the
washings of the diamond mines of upper
Brazil. II has passed through countries of
canniblls, 1t has come from wilds where
the foot Of white man has never trod, from
mountains ard valleys and lofty plateaus,
and now Is on it's way across the continent
to its great mother, the ocean.
Ia Extent of the Amazon.
/ entered the Amazon by its lower mouth
south of the island of Marajo. | sailed
about that island, which itself is as big as
some of our states to the narrows. and
then wound in and out through a series OF
wonderful channels into the main stream.
Since then / have been steaming slowly up
against the current. l have passed Obydos
and l am now going on to the point 1000
miles from the Atlantic, where the Rio
Negro flows into the Amazon. Tomorrow /
shall go by the mouth of the Madeira, and
j have already crossed the mouths of tribu-
taries as large as some OF the great rivers
of the world.
The Amazon resolves into itself more than
100 rivers. 1t has HOO branches and Ii
is unquestionably the greatest water system
of the globe. 1t has eight rivers each OF
which has a navigable length of more than
1000 miles.
In coming here I crossed the Tocatins,
up which you can steam for days into the
wilds of Brazil. ! am on a great ocean
steamer, which, when we stop at Manaos, a
few days from now. will go further inland
from the ocean than Chicago. There are
steamers from Manaos which will take you
1850 miles further on TO Iquitos, Peru, so
that you can go by steam upon the river
1850 miles westward from the sea.
kanaos Is pm the Rio Negro. It has