I noticed that whenever we came across rocky places the number of insects increased to an enormous extent, especially mosquitoes and gnats. I think it was due principally to the fact that in those rocks many cavities were found which got filled with stagnant water which eventually became putrefied.
The place where we halted we called Abelha Camp, because of the millions of bees which worried us to death there, not to speak of the swarms of flies, mosquitoes and ants, and myriads of butterflies which came to settle in swarms upon us. It was indeed curious to note the wonderful tameness of the latter, as they had never seen a human being before.
Fishing on the Arinos: a Jahu.
Fish of the Arinos River.
There was a nasty-looking rapid close to the camp. We had to let the empty canoe down carefully by means of ropes, my men on that particular occasion donning their lifebelts again, although they walked on dry land when they were taking the canoe along. When I asked them why they put them on, they said that perhaps the canoe might drag them into the water and they had no wish to get drowned.
We left that camp late in the afternoon—at three o'clock—having wasted the entire morning conveying the canoe to a spot of safety and then carrying all the baggage along overland.