New-York tribune., 1903-03-04
IN SOUTH AMERICA.
TIE 7r4Oels Of Elrstss Fro.n BogOta.

nowr. THE oRINoco ~ A CANOE gy 6
Isres ITaana. Wiz an insToone9en ,S se. y Sy. -
sThoenas Y. crewell q CO.
The ssgue Of one OF the countless political
revolutions which reprosch the South American
states made It advisable for the author OF this
Iesssnt record OF mountain and river descent 20
leave Borota Mr. Trians Is the son Of q former
EresSdent of Colombia. and he found. as did two
os his friends that he would be more At his ease
elsewhere. The three descended by mule rE~1n
nom tie high perch Of the capital 70 q sn%A
tributary Of the Meta River. proceeding ooRn
stream by canoe. .As military posts near tne
mouth of the Meta could not be easily sVaoeo'
to;vvevar they changed their course by q short
march 10 n branch OF the Muco River, WHICH,
runx.ng into the Vichsda. brought them to the
ortnooo above the rapids. Leal, who mace nlm-
self their faithful guide. thought the rapids
more serious impeachment than q military post.
but he was man quick TO see tne fuuiiT OA
arxumeat Shooting the rapids. made FAMOUS oS
Bumboldfs description. or slirting them On tne
shore they continued down the or4noco nS canoe
and san TO La Urbana, Caicara, where steamer
unfeelfnEiy passed them by. and finally to Ciu-
dad Bolivar. where there was no dimculT IN
retting passage on steamer to the sea-
The route thus comprised all the lower Orr
rooo With q glimpse Of the region above the I'M
-,A5tnr rspids. and an intimate acquaintance
1~5Yb a norton of the western tributary system
starting at the Andes. The account OF IL en-
bodies record Of personal experience aVoIolns
all the seIf-conscious seriousness OF the oehO'
crate explorer or the practical observation OF Cne
scientist The party travelled under various
characters supplied by the imaginattons OF tne
natives or inspired therein by the polite repre-
sentations Of the guides. While riding IN the
mountains they became the bishop and MS 'raln'
At the entrance TO the river country they were
prospective purchasers Of grazing lano' IN q
region. as II proved. where land was beld solely
nv souatter rights: later on they baptized, with
yo,,oh rnisSiving numbers of Indian babies: ana
On reaching the orinoco they found their as
tinRuished reception was due to a oeiet tnet
they were a Colombian commission LOOKING over
g t-sr4 coded nv Venezuela through an inter-
national court Of arbitration
The mule meets faiI NEED Of praise in this
book II the camel be the ship OF the DESERT the
author says the mule Is the balloon OF the
mountains. And Fernin. the cook and personal
servsnt who had been for brief period a
revoIutionist and was by trade tailor, In
snealins Of the ability OF a certain mule in as
-andinz the roads which follow the mountain
like a flung strand Of rope, said that the animal
would undoubtedly. could it only ma the way
reach the gates Of heaven and bray in the ear OF
ST Peter. One Of their guests on cattle ranch
Of the upper Meta was at great concern TO IN
struct the author IN the use Of his tiger spear:
Doubtless IL was more dangerous than snoot-
trzr the beast down with q winchester or
perinPton rife: but" he went on 10 say
.snovEder and lead are expensive, cartridges are
dif7cuIt to obtain, and when once e1hduStSu
yoyr weapon is no better than a oroomsuck.
Now and then It is necessary TO nre tne
rife into him; but this is great pity, OWING ~
the waste OF lead and gunpowder.
Provisions were extremely low when the party
reached the supply Of turtles on the lower Ori-
noco But they SO tired Of turtle meat that
they had TO threaten FerTnin with the sudden
ending Of his career, the only terms on which
this -fsstidious cook would consent TO return 70
t,oiIed rice and casabe, a pulp bread with the
tsste~and consistency Of sawdust" The traV-
Il. eIlerS. much as they enjoyed their view OF a
troujcsI wilderness. glad 20 see cities again.
and 70 set out by steamer for Trinidad.
A feeling OF superiority over our fellow pas
senSers uncousciously filed our breasts for
were we not boon companions, fellow travellers
tried and trusted comrades OF those rusnlns
waters? Had we not shared their pilgrimage
for DAYS and days. calm and in storm. IN
sunshine and in darkness? Had we not slept on
their bosom or travelled upon 1t for countess
hours till the secret Of their mystery and the
ioy of their wandering had penetrated into our
very soul?
The suggestion of the Spanish in which this
account was originally written does not detract
from it's unpretentious charm.