Evening star., 1941-11-16
Truck Carried Party on
First Lap of Journey
Unknowingly Bitten
By Vampire Bat
While He Slept
PRIZE CONTRIBUTION
By David Napier, 10,

East Silver Spring tMd) School.
British Guiana, in South America,
is my real home. I was born there
and have lived there all my life, ex-
cept for what might be called the
one-year furloughs when I come
to the United States to spend year
in school. This is the third time l
have been in this country.
So much for that. I just wanted
YOU to know who I am, so I can
tell YOU about one of the real thrills
I had in British Guiana-When my
father. who is a Britisher, took me
to Kaieteur Falls, said to be the
highest waterfall in the world. 1t
is far from our home in George
town, the capital of our British
colony, and requires long trip down
rivers and through jungles.
We went to Bartica, a mining town
I'D the EsSequebo River, and from
there started the difficult part OF
our trip. We were carried by truck
for 100 miles through the dense
jungle and stopped for the night
at a rest house at GarraWay Stream.
Seldom Kill Humans.
During the night I was bitten on
toe of my right foot by a vampire
bat. I didn't know it at the time
and kept on sleeping. But a girl
in our expedition had been bitten
first, and this had been discovered,
One of our friends then went to
each bed to see if any one else had
been bitten and found two others
had, including myself. The bite
wasn't bad, however, and it was
treated with iodine.
These vampire bats are dangerous,
but they seldom kill human beings,
Usually a light is burned at night
to keep them away, but we had no
light. for some reason or other, and
/ guess my mosquito netting was
not tucked in tightly enough around
my cot to keep the bat out. These
bats have been known 10 kill cows
and other animals by returning
night after night to bite them, cauS-
ing continued loss of blood which
proves fatal after time.
Fish Bites Toes.
From Garraway Stream We were
carried again by truck to the Po-
taro River. where boats awaited us.
After changing boats couple OF
times. we arrived at the last stop,
Tlkeit We rested there about two
days and went in swimming in the
river. Because it was in the deep
tropics. we had to be careful not tC
go too far out in the stream for fear
of two dar gerS-the peral, a fish
that is known for biting toes and
fingers of swimmers, and the elec-
trio eel. which in a few cases has
been known TO shock or electrify
swimmers so they can't move, caus-
ing them to drown.
Into the jungle We went from
Tukeit on the last leg OF our trip
to the top Of the great Kaieteur
Falls. We had no sooner reached
the rest house at the top when 9
heaVy-Set woman came hurrylne
up the mountain as fast as she
could (Which wasn't very FAST tC
gasp out breathlessly that another
woman had tainted far down the
mountain.
Rainbow COlOrS
So we started off with q flask
of tea to find 200 yards away the
woman who was supposed to have
tainted coming slowly up the path
leaning heavily upon poor Indian
After all this turmoil was over. we
went to see the falls 1t was a TOO
foot drop to the bottom, and the
spray was terrific. You could see
rainbow colors through it. Then all
of us walked out on Devils Dare,
rock iutting out OF the precipice
overlooking the falls.
Below us was the beautiful gorge
inaccessible to all except strong and
courageous people who could gel
there over big rocks, dense under
brush and occasional swings from
the boughs of the trees. My father
one made the trip to the gorge.
So ended our visit to the falls
Back again at Tukeit, we had a
grand time rowing in the river. Al
last we returned to Bartica, ano
from there home again to George
town and civilization. The jungle
trip was thrill for me, too, because
/ Georgetown children never go to