"Ah, you are surprised, señor."
"Surprised! I'm knocked cold! I didn't know anything this big was being done in Venezuela."
"Well, this isn't exactly in Venezuela, señor."
"No! How's that?"
"We are now in the free and independent territory of Rio Negro, señor. We are now under the jurisdiction of General Adriano Fombombo. You observe the difference at once."
By this time the motor was again below the level of the alcornoque growth and the men began discussing what they had seen.
"What's the object of it?" asked Strawbridge.
"The general is going to canalize at least one half of this entire Orinoco valley. This sandy stretch you see around you, señor, will be as fat as the valley of the Nile."
The idea seized on the drummer's American imagination.