Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1916-06-03

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banked in on each side by most luxu-
riant vegetation. No one who had not
observed that for a short distance
reeds had taken the place of shrubs
could possibly have guessed the exist
ence Of such a stream or dreamed Of
the fairyland beyond.
For a falryland 1t was, the most
wonderful that the imagination Of man
could conceive. The thick vegetation
met overhead, interlacing into q nat
ural pergola, and through this tunnel
of verdure in a golden twilight flowed
the green, pellucid river, beautiful in
itself, but marvellous from the strange
tints thrown by the vivid light from
above, filtered and tempered in its fall
Clear as crystal, mOtionless as a sheet
of glass. green as the edge Of an ice.
berg, it stretched in front Of US under
Its leafy archway, every stroke Of our
paddles sending a thousand ripples
across its shining surface. 1t was a
fitting avenue to a land of wonders.
All signs of the Indians had passed
away, but animal life was more fire.
Quent, and the tameness Of6he cree-
lures showed that they knew nothing
of the hunter. Fuzzy little black vel
vet monkeys with snow white teeth
and cleaning, mOcking eyes chartered
at us as we passed. With a dull,
heavy splash an occasional cayman
plunged in from the bank. Once a
dark, clumsy tapir stared at us from
a gap in the bushes and then lumber
ed away through the forest Once, too,
the yellow, sinuous form of a great
puma whisked amid the brushwOod,
and its green, baleful eyes gared ha-
tired at us over its tawny shoulder.
Bird life was abundant especially the
wading birds, stOrk, heron and ibis
gathering in little groups, blue, scar
let and white, upon every log which
jutted from the bank, while beneath
us the crystal water was alive with
fish of every shape and color
For three days we made our way
up this tunnel Of hazy green sunshine.
On the longer stretches one could hard.
ly tell as one looked ahead where the
distant green water ended and the
distant green archway began. The
deep peace of this strange waterway
was unbrokeu by any sign of man.
mo Indian here. Too much afraid
Curupurl," said Gomez
"Curupurl is the spirit of the woods"
Lord John explained. Its a name
for any kind of devil. The poor beg.
gars thinks that there is something
fearsome in this direction, and there
fore they avoid it,"
On the third day 1t became evident
that our journey in the canoes could
not last much longer for the stream
was rapidly growing more shallow.
Twice in as many hours we. stuck upon
the bottom. Finally we pulled the
boats up among the brushwood and
spent the night on the bank of the
river. In the morning Lord John and
made our way for couple of miles
through the forest, keeping parallel
with the stream, but as it grew ever
shallower we returned and reported,
what Professor Challenger had already
suspected, that we had reached the
highest point to which the canoes could
be brought. We drew them up, there.
fore, and concealed them among the
bushes, blazing a tree with our axes
so that we should find them again.
Then we distributed the various bur
dens among us-guns, ammunition,
food, tent, blankets and the rest
and. shOuldering our packages, we set
forth upon the more laboriOus stage of
our journey.
Advancing in single file along the bank
Of the stream, we soon found that it
narrowed down to mere brook, and
finally that 1t lost itself in great
green morass of spongelike mosses
into which we sank up to our knees
The place was horribly haunted by
clouds Of mosquitoes and every form
Of flying pest, so we were glad to find
solid ground again and to make cir
cult among the trees, which enabled
us to outfank this pestilent mOrass
which droned like an organ in the dis
lance so loud was 1t with insect life.
On the ninth day after leaving the
canoes, having done, as | reckon, about
l2O miles, we began to emerge from
the trees. which had grown smaller un.
til they were mere shrubs. Their place
was taken by an immense wilderness
Of bamboo, which grew so thlckly that
we could only penetrate it by cutting
, pathway with the machctes and bill
; hooks of the Indians. 1t took us a long
day, travelling from I in the morning
, till at night, with only two breaks
Of one hour each. TO get through this
, obstacle. Anything more monotonous
and wearying could not be imagined
for, even Mt the most open places.
, could not see more than ten or twelve
, yards, while usually my vision was
limited TO the back Of Lord Johns cot
ton jacket in front of me and to the
yellow wall within foot Of me OF
either side From above came one
thin knife edge Of sunshine and fftcer
feet over our heads one saw the tops
D Of the reeds Swaying against the deel
, blue sky. do not know what kind ol
, creatures mhahit such thicket, bu
sevrrnl times we heard the nhDaing of