CHAPTER XV
Mutiny and Threats—Wasted Efforts—Awful Waters—The Canoe escapes in a Violent Rapid—Another Mutiny—The Canoe recovered—An Appalling Vortex—The Fall of S. Simão—Cutting an Artificial Channel in the Rocks
Brazilians of a low class are unfortunately easily led by words. Alcides, who could not get over his bad temper, once more incited the men to revolt. While I was busy taking altitude observations with the hypsometrical apparatus I kept my eye on them, as I saw plainly that I was coming in for trouble.
Unfortunately for us another bad part of the rapid had to be negotiated, and the only way possible was to take the canoe overland once more. With Alcides at their head, all the men were now in open rebellion, and absolutely refused to work.
"Very good," I said to them. "If you do not like to take the canoe along we shall stay here. I like this spot very much, as it is most picturesque."
The men filled the magazines of their rifles with cartridges, and then came threateningly toward me, shoving the muzzles right in my face.
"You must give us food," said they. "We want to eat, and we want to be taken back to our country."
I advised them to take a walk in the forest and see if they could shoot something there, for if they shot me, one fact was certain, and that was that they would never see their happy homes again.
Two of the men turned away in order to go after game, but the man X levelled his rifle at my head and demanded his money, as he wished to leave at once. The contract I had with him was different from that I had with the other men. I had agreed to pay him on reaching the nearest point of civilization, where I would let him loose again. I therefore said that I would most certainly pay him the very minute he had fulfilled his contract.