Travels on the Amazon

by Alfred Russel Wallace

March 1st.—We passed the "Macáco" (monkey) caxoeira early. The rocks here, and particularly about Oomarie caxoeira, were so full of parallel veins, as to give them the appearance of being stratified and thrown up nearly vertically; whereas they are granitic, and similar to those we had already seen. We then soon reached the "Irá" (Honey) and "Baccába" (a Palm) caxoeiras; at both of which there are figures or picture-writings on the rocks, which I stayed to sketch. In passing the latter rapid, we knocked off one of the false keels I had had put to the canoe previous to starting, to preserve the bottom in the centre, where it was worn very thin by being dragged over the rocks by its former owner. We therefore stopped at a sandbank, unloaded the canoe, and plugged up the nail-holes, which were letting in water very fast.

The next day we passed in succession the "Arára Mirí" (Little Macaw), "Tamaquerié" (Gecko), "Paroquet," "Japoó" (a bird), "Arára" (Macaw), "Tatú" (Armadillo), "Amána" (Rain), "Camóa" (?), "Yauti" (Tortoise); and, finally, about three P.M., arrived at "Carurú" (a water-plant) caxoeira. The last five of these, before arriving at Carurú, were exceedingly bad; the passage being generally in the middle of the river, among rocks, where the water rushes furiously. The falls were not more than three or four feet each; but, to pull a loaded canoe up these, against the foaming waters of a large river, was a matter of the greatest difficulty for my dozen Indians, their only resting-place being often breast-deep in water, where it was a matter of wonder that they could stand against the current, much less exert any force to pull the canoe. At Arára fall, the usual passage is over the dry rock, and we unloaded for that purpose; but all the efforts of the Indians could not get the heavy canoe up the steep and rugged ascent which was the only pathway. Again and again they exerted themselves, but to no purpose; and I was just sending by an old man, who was passing in a small canoe, to Carurú for assistance, when he suggested that by getting a long sipó (the general cable in these rivers) we might obtain a good purchase, to pull the canoe up the margin of the fall, which we had previously tried without success. We accordingly did so, and by great exertions the difficulty was passed,—much to my satisfaction, as sending to Carurú would have occasioned a great and very annoying delay.

The river from Jauarité may be said to average about a third of a mile wide, but the bends and turns are innumerable; and at every rapid it almost always spreads out into such deep bays, and is divided into channels by so many rocks and islands, as to make one sometimes think that the water is suddenly flowing back in a direction contrary to that it had previously been taking. Carurú caxoeira itself is greater than any we had yet seen,—rushing amongst huge rocks down a descent of perhaps fifteen or twenty feet. The only way of passing this, was to pull the canoe over the dry rock, which rose considerably above the level of the water, and was rather rugged, being interrupted in places by breaks or steps two or three feet high. The canoe was accordingly unloaded, quantities of poles and branches cut and laid in the path to prevent the bottom being much injured by the rocks, and a messenger sent to the village on the other side of the river to request the Tushaúa to come with plenty of men to our assistance. He soon arrived with eleven Indians, and all hands set to work pushing the canoe, or pulling at the sipós; and even then, the strength of five-and-twenty persons could only move it by steps, and with great difficulty. However, it was at length passed, and we then proceeded to the village, where the Tushaúa lent us a house.

The canoe was so weak in the bottom in one place, that I was fearful of some accident in my descent, so I determined to stay here two or three days, to cut out the weak part and put in a strong board. I now also saw that this canoe was much too heavy to proceed further up the river, as at many of the falls there was no assistance to be obtained, even in places as difficult to pass as Carurú; so I opened negotiations to purchase a very large "obá" of the Tushaúa, which, before leaving, I effected for an axe, a shirt and trousers, two cutlasses, and some beads. We were delayed here five entire days, owing to the difficulty of finding a tree of good wood sufficiently large to give a board of twelve or fourteen inches wide; and at last I was obliged to be content with two narrow boards, clumsily inserted, rather than be exposed to more delay.

There was a large malocca here, and a considerable number of houses. The front of the malocca was painted very tastefully in diamonds and circles, with red, yellow, white, and black. On the rocks were a series of strange figures, of which I took a sketch. The Indians were of the "Ananás" or Pineapple tribe; I bought some dresses and feather ornaments of them; and fish, mandiocca-cakes, etc., were brought me in considerable quantities, the articles most coveted in return being fish-hooks and red beads, of both of which I had a large stock. Just below the fall, the river is not more than two or three hundred yards wide; while above, it is half a mile, and contains several large islands.

The large black pacu was abundant here, and, with other small fish, was generally brought us in sufficient quantity to prevent our recurring to fowls, which are considered by the traders to be the most ordinary fare a man can live on. I now ate for the first time the curious river-weed, called carurú, that grows on the rocks. We tried it as a salad, and also boiled with fish; and both ways it was excellent;—boiled, it much resembled spinach.

Here, too, I first saw and heard the "Juriparí," or Devil-music of the Indians. One evening there was a caxirí-drinking; and a little before dusk a sound as of trombones and bassoons was heard coming on the river towards the village, and presently appeared eight Indians, each playing on a great bassoon-looking instrument. They had four pairs, of different sizes, and produced a wild and pleasing sound. They blew them all together, tolerably in concert, to a simple tune, and showed more taste for music than I had yet seen displayed among these people. The instruments are made of bark spirally twisted, and with a mouthpiece of leaves.

In the evening I went to the malocca, and found two old men playing on the largest of the instruments. They waved them about in a singular manner, vertically and sideways, accompanied by corresponding contortions of the body, and played along while in a regular tune, accompanying each other very correctly. From the moment the music was first heard, not a female, old or young, was to be seen; for it is one of the strangest superstitions of the Uaupés Indians, that they consider it so dangerous for a woman ever to see one of these instruments, that having done so is punished with death, generally by poison. Even should the view be perfectly accidental, or should there be only a suspicion that the proscribed articles have been seen, no mercy is shown; and it is said that fathers have been the executioners of their own daughters, and husbands of their wives, when such has been the case. I was of course anxious to purchase articles to which such curious customs belong, and spoke to the Tushaúa on the subject. He at length promised to sell them me on my return, stipulating that they were to be embarked at some distance from the village, that there might be no danger of their being seen by the women.

On the morning previous to that on which we were to leave, two more of our Indians who had received full payment on starting, were discovered to have left us. They had taken possession of a canoe, and absconded in the night; leaving me no remedy, but the chance of finding them in their houses on my return, and the still more remote chance of their having anything to pay me with.

The Indians here have but little characteristic distinction from those below. The women wear more beads around their necks and arms. The lower lip is often pierced, and two or three little strings of white beads inserted; but as the nations are so mixed by inter-marriages, this custom is probably derived from the Tucanos. Some of the women and children wore two garters, one above the ankle and one below the knee—swelling out the calf enormously, which they consider a very great beauty. I did not see here so many long tails of hair; most of the men having probably been to the Rio Negro with some trader, and thence worn their hair like Christians; or perhaps because the last Tushaúa was a "homen muito civilizado" (a very well-bred person).