Chapter VI: Part III (1)

TUCKER OFFERED THE COMMAND OF THE PERUVIAN FLEET, WITH THE
RANK OF REAR ADMIRAL--ARRIVES IN LIMA--NO PRECEDENT FOR
THE RETURN OF MONEY--COMMISSIONED A REAR ADMIRAL IN THE
NAVY OF PERU--COMMANDS THE ALLIED FLEETS OF PERU AND
CHILE--SPANISH WAR--TUCKER'S PLAN FOR A NAVAL CAMPAIGN;
PROJECTED EXPEDITION AGAINST MANILA--CESSATION OF
HOSTILITIES--TUCKER RETIRES FROM THE COMMAND OF THE
FLEET, AND IS APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF THE PERUVIAN
HYDROGRAPHICAL COMMISSION OF THE AMAZON--CROSSES THE
ANDES AND REACHES THE AMAZON--EXPLORES THE YAVARI
RIVER--ORDERED TO THE UNITED STATES TO SUPERINTEND THE
BUILDING OF AN EXPLORING STEAMER--RETURNS TO THE AMAZON
WITH STEAMER _Tambo_. EXPEDITION UP THE UCAYALI AND
EXPLORATION OF THE TAMBO RIVER--ORDERED TO THE UNITED
STATES TO PROCURE A STEAMER OF LIGHT DRAUGHT OF
WATER--RETURNS TO THE AMAZON WITH STEAMER
_Mairo_--SECOND EXPEDITION UP THE UCAYALI--CANOE
EXPEDITION UP THE PACHITEA AND EXPLORATION OF THE PICHIS
RIVER--EXPEDITION UP THE AMAZON AND HUALLAGA
RIVERS--ORDERED TO LIMA. ORDERED TO NEW YORK TO
SUPERINTEND THE CHARTS MADE BY THE HYDROGRAPHICAL
COMMISSION--PUBLICATION OF CHARTS ABANDONED ON ACCOUNT OF
THE FINANCIAL CONDITION OF PERU--LETTER FROM PRESIDENT
PARDO--LETTER FROM MINISTER FREYRE--TUCKER RETIRES TO HIS
HOME IN PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA--OCCUPATIONS AND AMUSEMENTS
OF OLD AGE--DEATH--CHARACTER AND QUALITIES--CONCLUSION.

While residing in Raleigh, North Carolina, Tucker received a letter from the Peruvian Minister to the United States, requesting an interview on affairs of importance. Going to Washington, Tucker saw the Minister, and the result of the interview was that he accepted a proposition to go to Peru and enter the Navy of that Republic as a rear-admiral, his commission to be dated from the time of his arrival at Lima. He was allowed to take with him two staff officers, one with the rank of captain and the other with that of commander.

When Tucker entered the Navy of Peru, that Republic was engaged in a war with Spain. Spain had never recognized the independence of her former South American colonies, and thinking a favorable opportunity had arisen for asserting her dormant claims, the Spanish Government sent an iron-clad frigate, accompanied by several smaller vessels, to attack the Chilean and Peruvian seaport cities on the Pacific coast. The attack upon Valparaiso, the chief port of Chile, was successful, but the Spanish squadron was beaten off at Callao by the Peruvian batteries. Whilst preparing for the defense of Callao, the Peruvian Government determined to place its naval establishment on such a footing that it would be able to meet any force Spain could send to the Pacific. Tucker had, and most deservedly, the reputation of being a hard fighter, a thorough disciplinarian, and a splendid seaman; hence the Peruvian Government of President Prado directed its Minister at Washington to engage his services if possible. The cause was one which enlisted all Tucker's sympathies, and he agreed to take command of the Peruvian fleet. Tucker became much attached to Peru, and served the Republic zealously and faithfully. He had many warm friends in Lima, and no matter what party held the Government, the trust and confidence reposed in him by the authorities in Lima was always implicit.

Tucker arrived in Lima accompanied by his personal staff, David Porter McCorkle, captain of the fleet, and Walter Raleigh Butt, commander and aide. Just before their leaving New York the Peruvian Minister handed Tucker a bag of gold, with which he was told to pay all the traveling expenses of himself and staff; this was done, but when the party arrived at Lima the bag was still half full. Tucker insisted on returning this surplus to the Government, but there was no precedent for such a thing, and it was not without some difficulty that there could be found an officer of the treasury authorized to receive and receipt for the unexpected money.

The appointment of a foreigner to command their fleet was distasteful to some of the Peruvian officers, and this fact coming to Tucker's knowledge, he informed General Prado, the President of the Republic, that he had no wish that any officer should be forced to serve unwillingly under his command, and preferred resigning if the dissatisfaction at the appointment of a stranger to command the fleet was general or deep-seated. The officers who were dissatisfied were relieved from duty, and others were easily found who were not only willing but anxious to serve under Tucker.

The Peruvian squadron was lying at Valparaiso when Tucker hoisted his flag on board the frigate _Independencia_. The Chilean squadron was also lying at Valparaiso, and Tucker, as senior officer present, was in command of the allied fleets of both Peru and Chile.

An efficient state of drill and discipline was soon established in the fleets. A feeble attempt at mutiny broke out on one occasion during the temporary absence of Tucker, but it was easily quelled without bloodshed, and no similar attempt was ever again made whilst Tucker was in command. Officers of the Peruvian Navy, who were themselves opposed to giving foreigners high rank in their service, admitted that the fleet had never been in so good a condition for effective service as whilst it was under Tucker.

The Spanish squadron had retired from the coast, but was expected to return as soon as it had been refitted and revictualed, but no apprehension was felt as to the result of another attack by the Spanish, for the allied fleets were believed to be fully equal to the task of protecting the coasts and ports of the Republics.

Tucker's plan of naval operations was to sail with a small squadron, composed of the most efficient vessels under his command, for Manila, a most important dependency of Spain in the East Indies. He expected to take the Spaniards entirely by surprise, to capture all Spanish vessels in port, and to hold Manila and the other ports of the Philippine Islands until peace was established.

In order to provide for the reappearance of the Spanish fleet on the coast during his absence, Tucker advised the allied Governments to enroll as a naval reserve all the Peruvian and Chilean masters, mates and crews of merchant vessels, pilots and mariners engaged in employments on shore. A part of his plan was that all merchant steamers carrying the flags of the Republics, which could be made available for war purposes, should be inspected and held ready for active service in the Navy and manned by the naval reserve whenever the Government should think it necessary to employ them. This force, with the harbor defense iron-clads, and the forts and batteries on shore, Tucker thought would be a sufficient protection for the coast, whilst his squadron of the most efficient sea-going vessels was absent in the East Indies, where the capture of Manila would have dealt a heavy blow to Spain, and rendered an honorable peace, carrying with it an acknowledgment of the independence of Peru and Chile, a matter of easy attainment.

This plan, which would probably have been entirely successful if carried out with skill, daring and judgment, as it would have been by Tucker, was favorably considered by the Governments of the allied Republics, but it was not carried out, probably on account of the financial embarrassments under which the Republics labored, and which rendered it exceedingly difficult to find the funds required to fit out the expedition.

The Manila expedition having been abandoned, and the Spanish fleet which had been employed on the Pacific coast having returned home, Tucker requested permission to visit Lima, in order that he might lay before General Prado, President of the Republic, a plan for making an exploration and survey of the Peruvian or Upper Amazon River and its tributaries. The President heartily approved of the enterprise, for the Government was at that very time considering the practicability of opening better communications between the west coast and the eastern part of the country, and of finding an outlet by the waters of the Amazon for the rich productions of the interior.

Tucker resigned his commission as rear-admiral in the Navy of the Republic, and was immediately appointed President of the Peruvian Hydrographical Commission of the Amazon. He left Lima with a full corps of assistants, and made his way across the mountains to the head of navigation on the Palcazu river, where the party was received on board a Government steamer that had been dispatched from Iquitos to meet them. The headquarters of the Commission was established at Iquitos, the principal settlement on the Upper Amazon river, and the place where the Government factories and magazines were located.

In the small steamer _Naps_, belonging to the Government, Tucker made an exploring expedition of two hundred and fifty miles up Yavari, the river which forms the boundary between Peru and Brazil.

None of the Peruvian steamers on the Amazon being suitable for exploring and surveying purposes, the Government at Lima ordered Tucker to proceed to the United States and procure such a vessel as was required for the duty pertaining to his Commission. In obedience to this order Tucker spent some months in the United States, and had a steamer built by Messrs. Pusey, Jones & Co., of Wilmington, Delaware, expressly adapted to the navigation of the shoals and rapids of the Upper Amazon. This vessel, named the _Tambo_, was delivered to Tucker at Para, the Brazilian city at the mouth of the Lower Amazon. Embarking on board the _Tambo_, Tucker took the steamer up the river to Iquitos, where supplies were taken on board sufficient to last for several months. He then proceeded to make an important expedition up the Upper Amazon, the Ucayali and the Tambo rivers. The Tambo river had never been explored, and it was thought that it presented a feasible route for navigation to San Ramon, a military station in the heart of the interior, only about thirty miles distant from the large and important city of Tarmo, which is connected by railway with Lima.

Leaving Iquitos, the _Tambo_, with the Commission on board, passed up the Amazon to the mouth of the Ucayali river, up the Ucayali past the rapids of the "Devil's Leap," and entered the Tambo river. The Tambo was found to be a narrow stream, full of rocks and rapids and not practicable for navigation by steamers. When the steamer _Tambo_ could ascend no higher, Tucker fitted out a small boat and pulled some twenty miles farther up the river, but everywhere found such obstructions as rendered it an impracticable route to the interior. It is, perhaps, to be regretted that time did not allow of an examination of the other affluents of the Usayali trending towards San Ramon and Tarmo.

On his return to Iquitos, Tucker was again dispatched to the United States to procure another and smaller exploring steamer. During his absence Captain James Henry Rochelle was directed by the Government at Lima to take charge of the Hydrographical Commission as its acting president.

After an absence of some months, Tucker returned to Iquitos with the new steamer, which was named the _Mayro_, and was little more than a large steam launch, intended for use where a vessel of greater draught of water could not be employed.

The next expedition decided upon was for the exploration of the water route towards Huanaco, by way of the entirely unknown river Pichis. Most of the tributaries of the Ucayali had been traveled more or less by the Jesuit priests from the College of Ocopa, but none of them had attempted the route of the Pichis, the banks of which were in possession of roving tribes of Indians, who permitted no stranger to pass through their country. It was thought possible, and even probable, from the stories told by the natives, that the head of the Pichis river would be found well suited for being the eastern terminus of the trans-Andean railway.

In February, 1873, the _Mayro_, with a detachment of the Commission on board, was dispatched from Iquitos, with orders to await at the mouth of the Pachitea river the coming of the _Tambo_. Tucker embarked on board the _Tambo_ on the 1st of April with the main body of the Commission, and arrived at the confluence of the Pachitea and Ucayali, seven hundred and sixty-five miles from Iquitos, on the 13th of May. The river had commenced to fall, which rendered it prudent not to ascend the Pachitea in steamers, for had one of them got aground whilst the water was falling, it would probably have remained in that situation until the next annual rise of the river.

The water of the Amazon, and the same may be said of all its tributaries, begins to rise about October, and continues to increase its flood until December. In December there is a short period of no rise, or perhaps even a slight fall, after which the river again continues to rise until May, when the permanent fall commences and continues until the following October, when the annual flood again sets in. Sand bars are constantly forming and shifting in the channel of the river, and for a steamer to run on one of them whilst the water is falling endangers the detention of the vessel until she is floated off by the annual rise in October.

The annual fall of the river having set in when the _Tambo_ reached the mouth of the Pachitea, Tucker determined to continue the expedition in canoes. Six of the largest and best canoes that could be procured from the Indians were fitted out, and the whole Commission embarked in them, accompanied by its escort of a dozen Peruvian soldiers under the command of Major Ramon Herrera.

From the 19th to the 30th of May the Commission prosecuted its survey of the Pachitea without interruption, but on the 30th, at a place called Cherrecles Chingana, fifteen or twenty Cashibo Indians came down to the left or north bank of the river, and by signs and gestures signified a desire for friendly communication. The canoes were paddled in to them, and some few presents of such articles as could be spared were distributed among them, and, apparently, received most thankfully. But the Cashibos did not let the occasion pass without showing the treachery for which they are notorious. When the interview was ended, seemingly in the most amicable manner, and as the canoes of the Commission were paddling off, a flight of arrows was discharged at them by a party of Cashibos who had been lying in ambush during the interview. A few volleys from the Remington rifles, with which all the members of the Commission were armed, soon dispersed the savages and drove them to the jungle.

Of all the savage tribes that roam about the head waters of the Ucayali, the Cashibos alone are cannibals. They are brave, cunning and treacherous, and are only surpassed by the Campas in their hatred of the white man. The Campas inhabit the spurs and hills at the foot of the eastern Cordilleras, where the Ucayali and Pichis rivers have their origin. They are a fierce, proud and numerous tribe, and are held in great fear by their lowland neighbors. They permit no strangers, especially no whites, to enter their country, and the members of the expedition under Tucker were the first white men who ever ascended the Pichis into the regions of this warlike tribe.

The canoes of the expedition entered the mouth of the Pichis on the 6th of June. Being an unknown river, it became necessary to give names to the prominent points as they were discovered; and these names were used subsequently in making the charts of the surveys of the Commission.

The navigation of the Pichis was found to be clear and unobstructed from its mouth for a distance of fifteen miles up to Rochelle Island, which is in latitude 9 deg. 57' 11" south, longitude 75 deg. 2' 0" west of Greenwich, and three thousand one hundred miles from the Atlantic coast, following the course of the Amazon river. Rochelle Island was reached on the 7th of June, and was named after Captain James Henry Rochelle, the senior member of the Commission. Any steamer which can navigate the Pachitea can ascend the Pichis this far without difficulty, but above Rochelle Island the navigation becomes more difficult, and probably impracticable for any but steamers of very light draught and strong steam power.

On the 15th of June the expedition arrived at the head of canoe navigation on the Pichis. The point was named Port Tucker, after the president of the Commission. Port Tucker is in latitude 10 deg. 22' 55" south, longitude 74 deg. 49' 0" west of Greenwich, distant three thousand one hundred and sixty-seven miles from the mouth of the Amazon, following the course of the river, and one hundred and ninety miles in a direct line from the Pacific coast. The lofty mountains so plainly in sight from Port Tucker are the eastern spurs of the Andes, the chosen land of the savage and numerous Campas Indians.

Several days before the expedition reached the shoals which terminate the navigation of the Pichis, the tom-toms or drums of the Campas were heard night and day beating the assembly of the warriors. The purpose for which the braves were to be assembled was not a matter about which there was the least doubt, but probably sufficient numbers were not got together in time to execute their intentions, for no attack was made on the Commission whilst it was in the Campas country.

During this expedition the Palcazu river was also ascended to Port Prado, or Puerto del Mairo, the head of navigation for steamers of light draught. Port Prado is in latitude 9 deg. 55' 22" south, longitude 75 deg. 17' 45" west of Greenwich, distant three thousand one hundred and nineteen miles from the mouth of the Amazon, following the river, and only about forty miles from the important interior city of Huanaco, to which place it is in contemplation to extend the trans-Andean railway. If the road were continued from Huanaco to Port Prado there would be a complete trans-continental line of communication by railway and steamboats from Lima in Peru to the mouth of the Amazon.

Two new rivers were discovered by the Commission flowing into the Pichis. One of them was named the Trinidad, from having been discovered on Trinity Sunday, and the other was called Herrera-yacu, after Major Ramon Herrera, of the Peruvian Army, who commanded the escort of the Commission. The supplies of the expedition were running too short to allow of any but a cursory examination of these two rivers. The Trinidad, trending to the westward, can only be of value as affording a water route to the plains lying between the Pichis and the Ucayali, but it is possible that the Herrera-yacu may furnish a nearer water route to Cerro de Pasco than any yet known.

Whilst the canoes of the Commission were descending the Pachitea, they were attacked by the Cashibos, who assembled on the banks of the river, and, waiting until the leading canoes had passed, let fly flights of arrows at the canoe which brought up the rear. The Cashibos were dispersed by a few rounds from the Remington rifles of the Commission, and the explorers met with no further forcible opposition on the way to the steamers awaiting them at the mouth of the Pachitea, where they arrived after a canoe voyage of forty-one days, during which many difficulties and some dangers were encountered and overcome. Not a single person under Tucker's command was killed, or died from sickness, during this expedition, and, singular to relate, after all the hardships and exposure endured the explorers were in much better health when they returned to their steamers than when they left them at the beginning of the expedition.

On the 15th of July, 1873, the steamers _Tambo_ and _Mayro_, comprising the exploring squadron, reached Iquitos after an absence of three months and ten days. From the 15th of July to the 18th of September the Hydrographical Commission was on shore at Iquitos, employed making charts of the surveys of the late expedition, whilst the steamers were being refitted for further service.

On the 18th of September the Commission again embarked and proceeded to the mouth of the Yavari river, which forms the boundary between Peru and Brazil. The greatest pains were taken to properly establish this point. On a small island in the middle of the river, and very near its confluence with the Amazon, many astronomical observations were taken, resulting in giving the latitude 4 deg. 18' 45" south, longitude 69 deg. 53' 10" west of Greenwich, the distance from the Atlantic coast by the courses of the Amazon being one thousand eight hundred and eleven miles. From the Brazilian frontier the main stream of the Amazon was surveyed and its tributaries examined by the Commission up to Borja, where the river rushes from a narrow gorge of the mountains and leaps into the lowlands. Borja is in latitude 4 deg. 31' 37" south, longitude 77 deg. 29' 43" west of Greenwich. From the Atlantic coast to Borja, a distance of two thousand six hundred and sixty miles, the Amazon is navigable, without serious obstruction or difficulty, for either river or sea-going steamers of several hundred tons burthen.

It would take many long years to make a thorough survey of the waters of the Amazon, which is, in fact, more of an inland sea than a river, with hundreds of branches forming a network of communicating channels extending for sixty or seventy miles on each side of the main stream. At the height of the annual floods the whole country, with the exception of the highest land, on which the towns are invariably built, is covered with water, forming a vast swamp and jungle, traversed in every direction by navigable channels, which at the season of low waters become rivers or natural canals.

The principal object for which the Commission presided over by Tucker had been instituted was accomplished when the main channels of the river and of its affluents was traced from the Peruvian and Brazilian frontiers to the head of navigation of the main river and of its tributaries, so as to show the nearest approach by water communication to the eastern terminus of the trans-Andean railway. This duty having been executed, Tucker was ordered to proceed to Lima for conference with the Government as to the results of the explorations and surveys he had made.

After consultation with Tucker, Senor Pardo, the President of the Republic, directed that charts of the surveys made by the Hydrographical Commission should be published in New York, and that Tucker and two members of the Commission should be detailed to prepare the work for the press and superintend the engraving of the plates. The other members of the Commission returned to their homes, having completed the duty for which they were engaged.

There were some changes from time to time in the Peruvian Hydrographical Commission of the Amazon, but the following list of its members may be taken as correct:

President--John Randolph Tucker. Members--James Henry Rochelle, David Porter McCorkle, Walter Raleigh Butt. Secretaries--Timoteo Smith, Maurice Mesnier. Surgeon--Francis Land Galt. Civil Engineers--Manuel Charron, Manuel Rosas, Thomas Wing Sparrow, Nelson Berkeley Noland. Steam Engineers--John W. Durfey, David W. Bains.

On arriving in the United States, Tucker established an office in New York, and, assisted by Captain Rochelle and Mr. Sparrow, soon had the charts and plans, with explanatory notes, ready for the hands of the printers and engravers; but in consequence of the financial difficulties into which Peru had fallen, the publication was delayed from time to time and finally abandoned altogether, as is shown by the following letter from Senor Pardo, President of the Republic:

LIMA, Marzo 13, 1877.
"_Sr. J.R. Tucker._
"_39 Broadway, New York City._

"_Estimado amigo_:--He recibido su apreciable carta de 10 del
pasado, que me es grato contestar manifestandole que las
graves dificultades economicas porgue hoi atravissa la
Republica, oblejan el Gobierno a dar por terminada la comiseon
de que fue ud encargado para la publicacion de los Mapas y
Cartas topograficas de las regiones Amazonicas.

"En esta virtud, se sirvira ud. entregar al senor Freyre,
Ministro del Peru en Washington, las reforidas Cartos, Mapas,
y todas las demas utiles pertenecientes al Gobierno del Peru,
que hoi existen en poder de la Comision que ud. preside; todo
bajo de inuentario y con las formalidades necesarias.

"En cuanto al pagar de sus suldos y los de los Sennores que
forman parte de esa Comision, he ordinado al Ministro de
Hacienda disponga lo conveniente para su pronto abono, y juzgo
que asi-luego les servan completamente satisfechos.

"Deseandole a ud. la mejor conservacion, me as grato
reiterarle las expresiones de mi amistad y particular estima."

"Su afrino S.S.
"PARDO."

[TRANSLATION.]

"LIMA, March 13, 1877.
"_J.R. Tucker, Esq._
"_39 Broadway, New York City._

"_Esteemed Friend_:--I have received and answer with pleasure
your appreciated letter of the 10th ultimo, apprising you that
the grave economical difficulties which at present afflict the
Republic, obliges the Government to order the termination of
the commission with which you are charged for the publication
of the maps and charts of the Amazonian regions.

"For this reason, you will be pleased to deliver to Mr.
Freyre, Minister of Peru in Washington, the referred to
charts, maps and all other articles belonging to the
Government of Peru, which now remain in charge of the
Commission over which you preside; all to be delivered under
inventories and with the necessary forms.

"In regard to the payment of the salaries of yourself and the
other gentlemen who form part of the Commission, I have
ordered the Minister of the Treasury to take measures for the
prompt disbursement of what may be due, and I judge that in a
short times these claims will be completely satisfied.

"With my best wishes, it gives me pleasure to repeat the
expression of my friendship and particular esteem.

"Truly your faithful Servt.,
"PARDO."

In compliance with the directions of President Pardo, the charts made by the Commission were delivered to the Peruvian Legation at Washington. These charts were all ready for publication, and had they been published would have afforded much valuable information in regard to the Upper Amazon and its tributaries, water courses which are daily becoming more and more important to commerce, and which are destined in the not distant future to be navigated by lines of ocean as well as by lines of river steamers.

The following letter from Colonel Manuel Freyre, Peruvian Minister at Washington, describes the charts and plans which Tucker delivered to the Legation, and which it is to be hoped are still preserved:

"_Legacion del Peru._
"WASHINGTON, Marzo 22 de 1877.
"_Senor Don Juan R. Tucker, Ex-Presidente de la
Comision Hidrografica del Amazonas._

"La caja que dijo le. depositada en poder del Consul Tracy, ha
sido recibida en esta Legacion, y contiene los siguientes
planos; a saber:

"1st. Un plano del Rio Amazonas Peruano, desde lo boca del rio
Yavari hasta Borja, termino de la navegacion a vapor, dibujado
sobre diez pliegos y en una escala de una pulgada por cada das
millas. Los rios Ytaya y Pastaza estan incluidos en esta
Plano, que cuenta 848 millas del rio Peruano Amazonas, 45
millas del rio Ytaya, y 7 millas del rio Pastaza."

"2d. Un plano del rio Yavari desde su boca hasta la
confluencia de los rios Yacarana y Yavarasina, dibujado,
sobre das pliegos y en una escala de una pulgada por cada dos
millas. Este plano cuenta 220 millas del rio Yavari.

"3d. Un plano del rio Nanay desde su boca hasta el termino de
la navegacion para vapores de poco calado debujado sobre dos
pliegos. Este plano contiene 160 millas del rio Nanay.

"4th. Un plano del rio Tigre-Yacu desde su boca hasta un punto
111 millas aniba de la boca, dibujado sobre dos pliegos y en
una escala de una pulgada por cada dos millas."

"5th. Un plano del rio Huallaga desde la boca hasta
Rumi-Callirina, el termino de la navegacion para vapores,
dibujado sobre dos pliegos y en una escala de una pulgada por
cada dos millas. Este plano cuenta 169 millas del rio
Huallaga.

"6th. Un plano del rio Morona desde su boca hasta un punto 37
millas arriba de dicha boca, dibujado sobre un pliego y en una
escala de una pulgada por cada dos millas."

"7th. Un plano del rio Potro desde la boca hasta el termino de
la navegacion para vapores de poco calada, dibujada sobre un
pliego y en una escala de una pulgada por cada dos millas.
Este plano contiene 64 millas del rio Potro.

"8th. Un plano del rio Ucayali desde la boca hasta la
confluencia de los rios Urubamba y Tambo, dibujado sobre nueve
pliegos y en una escala de una pulgada por cada das millas.
Los rios Urubamba y Tambo, desde sus bocas hasta el mas alto
punto donde espracticable la navegacion a vapor, estan
incluidos en este plano, que contiene 885 millas del rio
Ucayali, 24 millas del rio Urubamba, y 53 millas del rio
Tambo."

"9th. Un plano del rio Pachitea desde su boca hasta la
confluencia de los rios Palcazu y Pichis, dibujado sobre dos
pliegos y en una escala de una pulgada por cada dos millas.
Este plano contiene 191 millas del rio Pachitea."

"10th. Un plano del rio Palcazu desde la boca hasta el puerto
del Mairo, dibujado sobre un pliego y en una escala de una
pulgada por cada dos millas. Estate plano contiene 37 millas
del rio Palcazu.

"11th. Un plano del rio Pichis desde la boca hasta el termino
de navegacion en canoas, dibujado sobre un pliego y en una
escala de una pulgada por cada dos millas. Una parte del rio
Herrera-yacu y otro parte del rio Trinidad se hallan en este
plano, que contiene 85 millas del rio Pichis, 4 millas del rio
Trinidad, y 5 millas del rio Herrera-yacu.

"12th. Un plano del rio Amazonas Peruano y sus afluentes,
dibujados sobre un pliego y en una escala de una pulgada por
cada quince millas. Este plana contiene 1661 millas del rio
Amazonas Peruano y sus afluentes.

"13th. Todas las mencionadas planos estan dibujados sobre
treinta y cinco pliegos, siendo cada pliego treinta pulgados
de largo por quince pulgada de ancho.

"14th. Un plano del rio Amazonas Peruano y sus afluentes,
dibujado sabre un pliego y en una escala de una pulgada por
cada diez millas, siendo el pliego cines pies de largo por
cinco pies de ancho. Este plano contiene en un solo pliego
todos los reconocimientos verificados por la Comision
Hidrografica del Amazonas, que son por todo 2945 millas.

"Loo demas planos dan los mismos reconocimientos mas
detalladamenente.

"15th. Un plano del pueblo de Yquitos, dibujado sobre un
pliego.

"Dios que a le.
"MANL. FREYRE."

[TRANSLATION.]

"_Legation of Peru._
"WASHINGTON, March 22d, 1877.
"_John R. Tucker, Esq., Ex-President of the Hydrographical
Commission of the Amazon._

"The box deposited by you with Consul Tracy has been received
at this Legation, and contains the following charts, to wit:

"1st. A chart of the Peruvian Amazon river, from the mouth of
the River Yavari to Borja, the termination of steam
navigation, drawn upon ten sheets, and on a scale of one inch
to each two miles. The Rivers Itaya and Pastaza are included
in this chart, which contains 848 miles of the Peruvian Amazon
river, 45 miles of the Itaya river, and 7 miles of the Pastaza
river.

"2d. A chart of the Yavari river from its mouth to the
confluence of the Rivers Yacarana and Yavarasino, drawn upon
two sheets and on a scale of one inch for each two miles. This
chart comprises 220 miles of the Yavari river.

"3d. A chart of the River Nanay from its mouth to the
termination of navigation for steamers of light draught,
drawn upon two sheets and on a scale of one inch for each two
miles. This chart contains 160 miles of the River Nanay.

"4th. A chart of the River Tigre-yacu, from its mouth to a
point 111 miles above its mouth, drawn upon two sheets and on
a scale of one inch for each two miles.

"5th. A chart of the River Huallaga, from its mouth to
Rumi-Callirina, the termination of steamer navigation, drawn
upon two sheets and on a scale of one inch for each two miles.
This chart comprises 169 miles of the Huallaga river.

"6th. A chart of the River Morona, from its mouth to a point
37 miles above its mouth, drawn upon one sheet and on a scale
of one inch for each two miles.

"7th. A chart of the River Patro, from its mouth to the
termination of navigation for steamers of small draught, drawn
upon one sheet and on a scale of one inch for each two miles.
This chart contains 64 miles of the Patro river.

"8th. A chart of the River Ucayali, from its mouth to the
confluence of the Rivers Urubamba and Tambo, drawn upon nine
sheets and on a scale of one inch for each two miles. The
Rivers Urubamba and Tambo, from their mouths to the highest
point to which steamer navigation is practicable, are included
in this chart, which contains 885 miles of the River Ucayali,
24 miles of the River Urubamba, and 53 miles of the River
Tambo.

"9th. A chart of the River Pachitea, from its mouth to the
confluence of the Rivers Palcazu and Pichis, drawn upon two
sheets and on a scale of one inch for each two miles. This
chart contains 191 miles of the River Pachitea.

"10th. A chart of the River Palcazu, from its mouth to Port
Mairo, drawn upon one sheet and on a scale of one inch each
for two miles. This chart contains 37 miles of the River
Palcazu.

"11th. A chart of the Pechis river, from its mouth to the
termination of canoe navigation, drawn upon one sheet and on a
scale of one inch for each two miles. A part of the River
Herrera-yacu, and also a part of the River Trinidad, are
included in this chart, which contains 85 miles of the River
Pichis, 4 miles of the River Trinidad, and 5 miles of the
River Herrera-yacu.

"12th. A chart of the Peruvian Amazon river and its affluents,
drawn upon one sheet and on a scale of one inch for each 15
miles. This chart contains 1661 miles of the Peruvian Amazon
river and its affluents.

"13th. A chart of the River Ucayali and its affluents, drawn
upon one sheet and on a scale of one inch for each 15 miles.
This chart contains 1284 miles of the River Ucayali and its
affluents.

"All the above mentioned charts are drawn upon 35 sheets, each
sheet being 30 inches long and 15 inches broad.

"14th. A chart of the Peruvian Amazon river and its affluents,
drawn upon one sheet and on a scale of one inch for each ten
miles, the sheet being 5 feet long by 5 feet broad. This chart
contains, on one single sheet, all the surveys made by the
Hydrographical Commission of the Amazon. The other charts give
the same surveys more in detail.

"15th. A plan of the town of Iquitos, drawn upon one sheet.

"May God guard you.
"MANL. FREYRE."

Tucker was in the sixty-seventh year of his age when he retired to his home in the City of Petersburg, Virginia, where he had purchased a comfortable house with a lawn and garden attached. Here he passed the evening of an active life in the enjoyment of a private fortune, which, though not large, was sufficient to supply all his moderate wants and simple tastes. Relatives and friends frequently visited him; he read much, and books, especially the older English classics, were a source of much pleasure to him; the improvement of his lawn and garden was a pursuit which afforded him unfailing interest and occupation.

On the 12th of June, 1883, he was apparently in his usual good health. In the course of the morning a friend called on him, and they conversed together for some time, seated in the shade of a tree on the lawn. His friend having taken his departure, Tucker reseated himself for a few minutes in his chair, suddenly arose, straightened up his tall form to its full height, and fell forward--dead. Physicians were immediately summoned, but all the efforts to revive him were ineffectual. He had died from disease of the heart; passing away from this world without a struggle or a sigh, and going where souls as pure as his have nothing to fear.

His remains were taken to Norfolk, Virginia, where they were received by old friends and comrades, who knew and loved him well, and interred by the side of his wife's grave, in a beautiful private cemetery near the city.

Admiral Tucker possessed many of the qualities of a great commander. His judgment was excellent, and it was very rarely the case that he was mistaken as to what it was possible for the force at his disposal to accomplish. He always commanded the respect and confidence, as well as the good will, of his men. A strict disciplinarian, the prompt and unhesitating obedience to orders he exacted was cheerfully rendered by his subordinates. His plans were coolly and deliberately formed, and, having been once determined upon, were carried out with energy and resolution. In the ordinary intercourse of private life he was so gentle, generous and genial that his friends and associates felt for him a regard approaching affection. In youth he was an eminently handsome man and in maturer years his presence was imposing. Sailors and Indians are fond of giving personally descriptive names to those with whom they are thrown in contact; when Tucker was a lieutenant he was called "Handsome Jack" by the men-before-the-mast, and the warriors of the savage tribes that wander about the head waters of the Amazon knew him as the "Apo," the meaning of the word being "High Chief."

In concluding this sketch of the eventful life of John Randolph Tucker, it is but doing justice to his memory to say that the sea-service never produced a more thorough and accomplished sailor, and that there never was bred to the profession of arms a more honorable and gallant gentleman.

* * * * *

NOTES

ON THE

Navigation of the Upper Amazon

AND ITS

PRINCIPAL TRIBUTARIES

BY

CAPTAIN JAMES HENRY ROCHELLE

Member of the late Peruvian Hydrographical Commission of the Amazon.

NOTES.

THE AMAZON.

Springing from Lake Laracocha, in the heart of the Andes, the Amazon winds its way through the eastern Cordillera of Peru, a rapid and turbulent stream, until, passing through a narrow gorge in the mountains at the pongo de Manseriche, it leaps into the lowlands and flows for two thousand six hundred and sixty miles in a direction nearly east through the vast plains of Peru and Brazil, fed on its way by tributaries which are themselves great rivers, and finally pouring its immense volume of water into the Atlantic ocean. From the Atlantic up to the Peruvian frontier the river is known as the Lower or Brazilian Amazon, and sometimes as the Solimoens; above the Brazilian frontier the river lies wholly in Peruvian territory and takes the name of the Peruvian Amazon or Maranon, but is commonly spoken of as the Upper Amazon. It is of the navigation of the Upper Amazon that these notes will treat.

RISE AND FALL OF THE RIVER.

The waters of the Upper Amazon and its tributaries begins to rise annually in October, remains stationary for a short time in December, then continues to rise until May, when it commences to fall. November, December, January, February, March and April are considered the months of high water, and June, July, August and September comprise the low-water season. October and May are sometimes months of high and sometimes of low water.

DEPTH OF WATER.

During the season of low water a minimum depth of twenty-four feet is found in the channel of the Upper Amazon, from the Brazilian frontier to the mouth of the Ucayali river at Nanta, eighteen feet from the mouth of the Ucayali to the mouth of the Huallaga river, and twelve feet from the mouth of the Huallaga to Borja, where further navigation is rendered impracticable by the rapids and falls of the pongo de Manseriche.

CURRENT.

From the Brazilian frontier to the mouth of the Ucayali river the current of the Amazon is three miles per hour; from the mouth of the Ucayali to the mouth of the Potro river three and one-fourth miles per hour; from the mouth of the Potro to the mouth of the Morona river three and a-half miles per hour; and from the mouth of the Morona to Borja, at the head of steamer navigation, the current is three and three-fourths miles per hour. This is the usual and average current to be met with, but it increases or diminishes with the rise and fall of the river and, also, with the narrowing or broadening of the channel.

PILOTS.

In order to prevent running upon sand-bars, which are constantly forming and shifting and frequently changing the bed of the channel, the services of experienced pilots are indispensable to the safe navigation of the Upper Amazon and its tributaries. It is not difficult to obtain such pilots, and they are frequently expert hunters and fishermen as well as pilots.

BEST TIME FOR NAVIGATING THE RIVER.

When a steamer on the Upper Amazon runs aground, it is almost always in consequence either of the ignorance of the pilot or of the unskillful handling of the vessel. To get aground when the water is falling endangers the detention of the vessel until she is floated off by the next rise of the river, which may not occur for months; getting aground when the water is rising usually necessitates a delay of only a few hours, as the rising water soon floats the vessel off. Hence it is, of course, that the navigation of the Amazon is attended with much less difficulty when the waters of the river are rising than when they are falling.

FUEL.

Coal is not to be found on the Upper Amazon; the steamers burn wood, which is abundant, cheap and makes good fuel. Wood should be ordered in advance at certain points, but in case a steamer gives out of fuel all that has to be done is to haul in to the bank, send the crew on shore with axes, and cut as much wood as is required.

DISCHARGING AND RECEIVING CARGO.

In the absence of wharves on the Upper Amazon and its tributaries, vessels lay alongside of the banks whilst discharging or receiving cargo. The banks at the usual stopping places afford good landings; wharves are not needed and it would be difficult to construct them so that they could be used at all stages of the water.

IMPORTS.

It may be well to say a word about the trade of the Upper Amazon. There are no import or export duties for this part of Peru, nor are any duties paid on goods passing up the Brazilian Amazon to Peru. Coarse cotton cloth is worn by nine-tenths of the inhabitants who are civilized enough to wear clothes at all. The demand for this cloth is large and will grow from year to year, and of all coarse cotton cloth in the market the American is preferred. The plantain is the native substitute for bread, but wheat flour is used by the mercantile and official classes; there is a steady demand for Baltimore and Richmond flour, which brands are supposed, probably with reason, to stand the climate better than flour manufactured elsewhere. Bacon hams sell for one dollar per pound, but the demand for them is small and the article is soon spoiled by the climate. Axes, hoes, spades and machettes are much in demand, and there is a limited demand for improved firearms; ready made clothing, and articles of household furniture for the houses of the richer persons of the community, are usually imported from Europe.

EXPORTS.

The exports of the region of the Upper Amazon are not as valuable as they are destined to become when the productions of the rich valleys of eastern Peru find an outlet to market by way of the river. Among the principal articles of export may be enumerated, hats, from Mayubamba (Panama hats); rum, made from the sugar cane (cachaca); dried fish (payshi); and Indian rubber (jebe). The Indian-rubber tree abounds in the forests of the Upper Amazon, and the gathering of the gum is a profitable industry. Specimens of gold have been obtained from the natives about the pongo de Manseriche, and rich deposits of the precious metal will without doubt be discovered at some future time, but no search even can be made for it until the fierce and cruel savages, who have undisputed possession of the country beyond Borja, shall have been subdued.

MOUTH OF THE YAVARI RIVER.

Commencing at the Yavari river, which forms the boundary between Peru and Brazil on the south side of the Amazon river, and following the Upper Amazon and its principal tributaries up to the head of navigation, the first place to be noted is the mouth of the Yavari river:[2] Latitude 4 deg. 18' 45" south; longitude, 69 deg. 53' 10" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 5 deg. 38' 54" east; thermometer (Fahrenheit), 76 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 266 feet; distance from the Atlantic ocean, following the course of the river, 1811 miles; current, in the Amazon, 4-1/2 miles per hour; width of the Yavari river at its mouth, 500 yards; width of the Amazon, 1200 yards; depth of water in the channel of the Amazon, 36 feet. As the Yavari river marks the boundary between Peru and Brazil on the south side of the Amazon, special pains were taken to ascertain correctly the latitude and longitude of its mouth; the observations for the latitude and longitude were taken on a small islet, probably overflowed at high water, in the middle of the lower mouth of the river.

It was said in Iquitos that, in 1874, Captain Guillermo Black, President of the Peruvian Boundary Commission, ascended the Yavari in a small steamer a distance of 500 miles from its mouth, and 300 miles farther in canoes to a point where there was barely two feet of water in the channel, at which point the latitude was determined to be 7 deg. 1' 22" south, and the longitude 74 deg. 8' 25" west of Greenwich; elevation above the sea-level, 800 feet.

TABATINGA (BRAZIL).

Distance from the Atlantic, 1825 miles; current, 4-1/2 miles per hour; depth of water, 36 feet; width of river, 800 yards.

Tabatinga is the Brazilian frontier post on the north side of the Amazon. Captain Azevedo, of the Brazilian Navy, gives the latitude of this place as 4 deg. 14' 30" south; longitude, 70 deg. 2' 24" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 6 deg. 35' 10" east.

LETITIA.

Latitude, 4 deg. 10' 57" south; longitude, 69 deg. 59' 21" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 5 deg. 57' 40" east; elevation above sea-level, 274 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 1828 miles.

Letitia is the Peruvian frontier post on the north bank of the Amazon. A fort, intended to command the passage of the river, was projected but not erected at this point. It is probable that the passage of steamers up the Amazon cannot be stopped by forts and batteries at any point on the river below Tamshiyacu.

LORETO.

Latitude, 3 deg. 54' 20" south; longitude, 70 deg. 7' 45" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 5 deg. 11' 24" east; thermometer, 78 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 286 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 1865 miles; current, 3 miles per hour; width of river, 1300 yards.

Loreto is the most eastern Peruvian town of any importance on the Amazon. It is situated on the north or left bank of the river. Near it resides a tribe of Indians, partly civilized, called the Ticunas.

CAMACHEROS.

Situated on the right or south bank of the river; current 2-1/4 miles per hour; width of river, 1800 yards.

MAUCALLACTA.

Situated on the right or south bank of the river; width of river, 2500 yards.

PEBAS.

One mile from the Amazon, on the left or north bank, and one mile up the River Ambiyacu. The current of the Amazon at Pebas is 2-1/2 miles per hour; distance from the Atlantic, 2009 miles.

ORAM.

On south or right bank of the river; current, 2-1/2 miles per hour; width of river, 1000 yards; depth of water, 36 feet.

IQUITOS.

Latitude, 3 deg. 44' 15" south; longitude, 73 deg. 7' 30" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 5 deg. 55' east; thermometer, 78 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 295 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 2126 miles; current, 3 miles per hour; depth of water, 36 feet.

Iquitos is on the north bank of the Amazon, at a point where the river is divided by an island into two channels; from the town to the island the river is 1800 yards wide, and the channel on the other side of the island has about the same width. The Government buildings and works are situated at this place, and it is the largest and most important town on the Upper Amazon. It is a place of considerable trade, and in it are established several mercantile houses which import their goods directly from Europe and the United States by way of Para. The anchorage is good at all times, and vessels, whilst discharging or receiving cargo, can lay in security alongside the high bank that lines the whole front of the town. This is an advantage not to be underrated when it is remembered that there are no wharves on the Upper Amazon.

TAMSHIYACU.

Situated on a high bank on the south side of the river, distant 2146 miles from the Atlantic; thermometer, 76 deg.. At this place the river is narrow, has only one channel, and the current is strong. It is probably the only position on the Amazon, below the mouth of the Ucayali, where vessels could be prevented from passing, up or down, by heavy guns mounted in forts or batteries.

MOUTH OF THE UCAYALI RIVER.

Latitude, 4 deg. 28' 30" south; longitude, 73 deg. 21' 30" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 7 deg. 2' east; thermometer, 80 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 318 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 2189 miles; current in the Amazon, 3 miles per hour; depth of water in the channel of the Amazon, 30 feet; width of the Amazon, 1300 yards. Unfortunately, immediately at the month of the Ucayali neither the banks of that river nor those of the Amazon afford a place suitable for the location of a town. Nauta, on the north bank of the Amazon, seven miles above the mouth of the Ucayali, is the nearest place at which it is practicable to build houses not liable to be swept away by the annual floods.

NAUTA.

Latitude, 4 deg. 31' 30" south; longitude, 73 deg. 27' west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 7 deg. 2' east; thermometer, 78 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 320 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 2195 miles; current 3-1/4 miles per hour; depth of water, 30 feet; width of river, 1200 yards. Situated on the north bank of the Amazon, near the confluence of that river and the Ucayali, Nauta is well located for grasping the trade of both rivers, and ought to become a place of importance. Of course, the six or seven miles that vessels have to ascend the Amazon to reach the place after leaving the Ucayali constitutes a drawback, especially in the case of vessels not propelled by steam; but no desirable place can be found below and near the mouth of the Ucayali where buildings could be erected and vessels could load and unload with facility at the season of high water. Below and adjoining Nauta the banks are high and present a better site for a town than the one on which it stands.

SAN REGIS.

Distant from the Atlantic 2230 miles; current, 3-1/3 miles per hour; average current between Nauta and San Regis, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

MOUTH OF THE TIGREYACU RIVER.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2245 miles; current, 3-1/2 miles per hour; average current between San Regis and the mouth of the Tigreyacu, 3-1/4 miles per hour. The Tigreyacu can be navigated by steamers of considerable size for some distance; its waters are dark and clear, and those tributaries of the Amazon having dark and clear waters are usually unhealthy, whilst those having muddy and discolored waters have always been found to be healthy.

SANTA CRUZ DE PARINARI.

Latitude, 4 deg. 36' 30" south; longitude 74 deg. 6' 30" west of Greenwich; magnetic variation, 7 deg. 27' 20" east; thermometer, 78 deg.; elevation above sea-level, 351 feet; distance from the Atlantic, 2273 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

PARANARI.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2293 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

VACA MARINA.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2334 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

ELVIRA.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2352 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

SAN PEDRO.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2393 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

FONTEVERA.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2408 miles; current, 3-1/4 miles per hour.

MOUTH OF THE HUALLAGA RIVER.

Distance from the Atlantic, 2430 miles; current in Amazon, 3-1/4 miles per hour. One hundred and twenty-three miles up the Huallaga is the town of Yurimaguas, a centre of trade, to which steamers from Para frequently ascend.

CEDRO ISLA.