Chapter XCV

Of the forest of the Andes, of their great thickness, of the huge snakes which are bred in them, and of the evil customs of the Indians who live in the interior of these forests.

This cordillera of the Andes must be one of the grandest in the world, for it commences at the straits of Magallanes, extends along the whole extent of this kingdom of Peru, and traverses so many provinces that they cannot be enumerated. It is covered with high peaks, some of them well covered with snow, and others with mouths of fire. The forests on these mountains are very difficult to penetrate by reason of their thickness, and because during the greater part of the year it rains. The shade is so dark that it is necessary to go with much caution, for the roots of the trees spread out and cover all the ground, and when it is desired to pass with horses, much labour is necessary in making roads. It is said among the _Orejones_ of Cuzco, that Tupac Ynca Yupanqui traversed these forests with a large army, and many of the tribes who inhabited them were very difficult to conquer and bring under his sway. In the skirts of the mountains towards the South Sea, the natives were intelligent; they were all clothed, and were ruled by the laws and customs of the Yncas. But, towards the other sea, in the direction of the sun-rise, it is well known that the inhabitants are of less understanding and reason.[462] They raise a great quantity of _coca_, which is a very precious plant among the Indians, as I will relate in the next chapter. As the forests are very large, the truth may be received that they contain many animals, as well bears, tigers, lions, tapirs, pigs, and striped wild cats, as other wild beasts worthy of note. Some Spaniards have also seen serpents of such bigness that they looked like beams, but, although one should sit on them, they would do no harm, nor do they try to kill any person. In talking over this matter of the serpents with the Indians of Cuzco, they told me something which I will relate here, as they assured me of its truth. In the time of the Ynca Yupanqui, who was grandson of the Ynca Huira-ccocha, certain captains were sent with a large army to visit these forests, by the Ynca’s order, and to bring the Indians they met with under subjection to him. Having entered the forests, these serpents killed all those who went with the said captains, and the calamity was so great that the Ynca showed much concern at it. An old enchantress heard this, and she said that if she were allowed to go to the forests, she would put the serpents into so deep a sleep, that they would be able to do no harm. As soon as she had received permission, she went to the place where the people had been killed. Here she performed her incantations, and said certain words, upon which the snakes changed from fierce and wild, to the gentle and foolish creatures they now are. All this that the Indians say may indeed be a fiction or fable, but it is certainly true that these snakes, though so large, do no hurt to any one.

The forests of the Andes were well peopled in those parts where the Yncas had buildings and store-houses. The country is very fertile, yielding maize and yucas, as well as the other roots which they raise, and there are many excellent fruits. Most of the Spanish citizens of Cuzco have planted orange, lime, fig, vine, and other trees of Spain, besides large plantain groves, and very luscious and fragrant pines. In the very distant and dense parts of these forests they say that there is a people so savage, that they have neither houses nor clothes, but go about like animals, killing birds and beasts with arrows.[463] They have neither chiefs nor captains, and they lodge in caves or in the hollows of trees, some in one part and some in another. It is said, also (but I have not seen them), that there are very large monkeys which go about in the trees.

* * * * *[464]

In the year 1549 I was at Charcas; and I went to see the cities in that region, for which purpose the president Gasca gave me letters of introduction to the corregidors, that I might learn all that was worthy of notice.

* * * * *

NOTE TO CHAPTER XCV.

ON THE RIVER PURÚS, A TRIBUTARY OF THE AMAZON.

BY

MR. RICHARD SPRUCE.

“Notwithstanding the slow rate at which commerce and civilisation
advance in the interior of South America, the opening up of routes
of communication is becoming daily of more importance, and is
exciting greater interest among the inhabitants. Some of the mighty
rivers of that continent might seem to have been made by nature’s
hand expressly for steam navigation, being so wide and deep, and
flowing with so gentle and equable a descent, as to allow vessels
of considerable size to reach the very foot of the mountains whence
they take their rise; such are the Amazons, the Magdalena, and the
Plata, with its tributary the Paraná; while others, of scarcely
inferior volume, such as the Orinoco, the Rio Negro, the Madeira,
and the Cauca (the main tributary of the Magdalena), are navigable
for a considerable distance in their lower and upper parts, but
towards the middle of their course are beset by rapids and
cataracts, which can only be ascended, even by small boats, with
infinite trouble, risk, and delay. In the case of the Orinoco and
Rio Negro, the cataracts occupy so short a space, the actual fall
is so slight, and the nature of the ground is such, that the
obstructions might be easily turned or avoided by a navigable canal
or a railroad, neither of which is likely to be constructed until
the exigencies of commerce or colonisation shall make it an
imperative necessity. The Madeira, however, the largest tributary
of the Amazons, has no less than two hundred and forty miles of its
middle course rendered practically unnavigable by a succession of
rapids and cataracts, below which it is navigable down to its
mouth,--a distance of five hundred miles,--for steamers of a
thousand tons; and above them for smaller vessels for an equal
distance, counting the navigation of its tributary, the Mamoré,
which was explored by Lieut. Gibbon, of the U. S. navy, in 1851.
Its other large tributaries, the Béni, the Ubahý, and the Guaporé,
are said to be navigable for an equal or even greater distance. Now
the navigation of the Madeira is of the first importance to the
Brazilians, not only as a means of communication with the western
part of the empire, but also with the highlands of Bolivia and
Southern Peru, and it has been proposed to obviate its
difficulties, 1. By opening a road from the point where it ceases
to that where it begins again to be navigable, along which cargos
might be transported on beasts of burden, and then be re-embarked
above the falls; or, 2. By exploring the rivers running to the
Amazon from the southward, between the Madeira and Ucayali, in the
belief that some one of them might prove to be navigable up to a
point beyond the last falls of the Madeira. The three principal of
these rivers, beginning with the most easterly, or that nearest the
Madeira, are the Purús, the Yutahý, and the Yauarý (or Javarí). All
these rivers are stated by Baena[465] to take their rise in the
highlands of Peru, and the Purús has always been considered the
largest of the three; for although it drains a far narrower basin
than the Madeira, and its stream is much less wide and rapid, it
is still a noble river, with deep water for a very long way up.
People have gone up it from the Amazon and the Barra do Rio Negro,
in quest of turtle, brazil-nuts, and sarsaparilla, for months
without encountering any obstacle to its navigation. Lieutenant
Herndon, in descending the Amazon in 1851, found the mouth of the
Purús to be half a mile wide, with a depth of 16 fathoms, while at
one mile up the depth was 18 fathoms.

“The Purús communicates with the Amazon by one principal mouth, and
by four narrow channels (called _furos_) which leave the Purús at a
good way up, and enter the Amazon, three above and one below the
real mouth. Along these channels the water sometimes flows from the
Purús into the Amazon, and sometimes in the contrary direction,
according to the variable height of the water in the two rivers;
and sometimes, when both rivers are very low, the channels are left
nearly dry. The middle one of the three upper channels is called
the Furo de Cochiuará, a name which Acuña applies to the whole
river, and writes it ‘Cuchiguará.’ It is a famous and navigable
river, he says, and adds, ‘Although there are rocks in some places,
it has plenty of fish, a great number of turtle, abundance of maize
and mandioc, and all things necessary for facilitating the entrance
of an expedition.’[466] The rocks of which he speaks, we shall
afterwards find to be cliffs rising from the river’s edge, and
offering no hindrance whatever to navigation.

“When I was at the Barra do Rio Negro in 1851, a man of colour,
named Serafim Salgado, arrived there from the Purús, where he had
spent some six months, trading with the Purupurú (or Spotted)
Indians, who inhabit the lower part of the river, and from whom it
takes its name; and also with the Catauixís, whose settlements
extend upwards to a distance of two months’ journey from the
mouth.[467] I purchased from him various warlike and other
instruments used by the Catauixís, which are now deposited in the
Museum of Vegetable Products at Kew; and obtained from him some
curious information about the customs of those Indians. They use
the powder of the roasted seeds of _Acacia Niopo_ as a stimulant
and narcotic, as I have also seen it used by the Guahibos on the
Orinoco, where it is called _Niopo_, and by the Múras and other
Indians on the Amazon, where it is called _Paricá_. For absorbing
the _Paricá_ by the nose, a tube is made of the bone of a bird’s
leg cut in two, and the pieces joined again at such an angle, that
one end being applied to the mouth the other reaches the nostrils;
a portion of snuff is then put into the tube and blown from it with
great force up the nose. A _Paricá_ clyster-pipe (which seems
peculiar to the river Purús, as I have myself nowhere seen it
used) is made on the same principle, of the long shankbone of the
Tuyuyú (_Mycteria Americana_). The effect of the _Paricá_, taken as
snuff, is to speedily induce a sort of intoxication, resembling in
its symptoms that produced by the fungus _Amanita muscaria_. Taken
as a clyster it is a purge, more or less violent according to the
quantity employed. When the Catauixí Indian is about to set forth
on the chase, he takes a small clyster of _Paricá_, and administers
another to his dog, the effects on both being (it is said) to clear
their vision and render them more alert! His weapon is generally
the blowing cane, from which he propels slender darts tipped with
_Uirarí_ poison. Attached to the quiver that holds the darts is a
slender tube of bamboo, two inches and a half long, filled with
soot, with which he smears his face when he approaches his hut, if
he returns successful from the chase. By this signal his family are
advertised beforehand whether or not they will have to go without
supper.--The Catauixí name for the blowing-cane darts is
_Araráicohí_, and for the poison _Arinulihá_--the only two words I
possess of their language.

“When in 1852 the upper part of the Amazon, and the adjacent
territory east and west of it (corresponding to the ancient
Capitania do Rio Negro), were separated from the province of Pará,
and erected into a province, under the name of ‘Amazonas,’ the
exploration of the rivers entering the Amazon on the south was
taken up in earnest by the new president and the provincial
assembly; and Serafim Salgado was appointed to explore the Purús,
with instructions “_to seek a passage to the towns of Bolivia, by
the river Purús and the savannahs of the Beni, shorter than that by
the Madeira, and free from the cataracts of that river_.”
Unfortunately he was not furnished with a single instrument--not
even a compass, or so much as a lead line for soundings; and his
diary of his long and tedious voyage is deficient in information on
almost every point of importance; yet, meagre as it is, as no
account of that river has ever appeared in print, I give here a
translation of it, appending thereto a few deductions which I think
may be legitimately made from it.[468]

“‘_Report of Serafim da Silva Salgado on the Exploration of the River Purús._

“‘Most illustrious and excellent Sir,--I have the honour to present
to your Excellency the report of the voyage which I made from this
capital to the 7th _Maloca_ (village) of the Purús, which river I
ascended during the space of four months and nineteen days. Along
with it your Excellency will find also a list of the articles
which I expended during this long and painful voyage, and another
of the presents and other objects which were furnished me to enable
me to undertake it.

“Your Excellency will allow me to mention that I have not yet paid
the _Tuxaúa_ (chief) Mamurité, and the Purupurú Indian Baidá, who
accompanied me on this voyage, and who have hitherto received no
pay whatever. The first will be satisfied with a few presents and
clothes, and the second with something less. I regret much that I
have not been able to perform better the task which your
Excellency’s most excellent predecessor confided to me, and (from
circumstances specified in the Report) that I could not go forward
until I reached some Bolivian town; although I believe there is
none such on the banks of the Purús, because at the seventh village
of the Cucamas, which is the highest point I reached, the river is
so narrow and obstructed, that it would be impossible to ascend
much beyond it even in the season of flood.

“‘I beg your excellency to kindly excuse the incompleteness of my
performance, and to honour me by receiving it, with the expressions
of faithful respect and attachment that I offer to your Excellency.

“‘_Deos guarde á V. Exª._ Barra do Rio Negro, 20 de Dezembro de
1852.

“‘SERAFIM DA SILVA SALGADO.

“‘To the most illustrious and excellent Senhor Dr. Manoel Gomes
Correa de Miranda, 1st Vice-president of the Province of Amazonas.’

“‘_Report of the voyage made by the undersigned from the capital of
the Province of Amazonas to the limit of navigation of the river
Purús._

“‘Honoured by being appointed, on the 5th of May of the current
year, by his Excellency the President of the Province, to explore
the river Purús, and furnished with the necessary instructions, I
set out from this city of the Barra on the evening of the 10th of
May, in two canoes, manned by twelve Indians, and accompanied by a
corporal and twelve soldiers with their arms and ammunition, and
travelled as far as the lake Curupira, twelve hours’ journey. It
was six in the evening of the 11th when I reached that lake, where
I remained until the 13th, occupied in making _toldas_[469] for the
canoes. I started again on the morning of the 14th, and at
nightfall was within the _furo_[470] of Aranduba, and as we could
not pass it with daylight we remained there, and on the 15th passed
out at the other end, and that day reached another _furo_ called
Bode.

“‘On the 16th reached the Caldeiraō;[471] the 17th the mouth of the
_furo_ Arapapá; the 18th the farm of José Antonio Barrozo; the 19th
a little way above the lake Calado; the 20th lake Manacapurú, where
we had to remain till the 24th to mend the ironwork of the helm of
one of the canoes. On the 24th, continuing to ascend the
Solimoēs,[472] we reached the upper point of the island Marrecaō;
on the 25th the island Paratarý; on the 26th the _paraná-merím_ of
the same name,[473] along which we sailed the three following days,
passing along the lake Berury (_already within the mouth of the
Purús_) on the 30th, and on the 31st the Castanha lake. In front of
Berury on the right (ascending the Purús) is the _paraná-merím_ of
S. Thomé.

“‘_River Purús._

“‘June 1st. Navigated as far as the upper point of the island Naná,
passing lake Estopa on the right hand as night closed in.

“‘June 2nd. Reached the mouth of lake Mathias, passing the mouths
of lakes Sunára and Ubím.

“‘June 3rd. Reached Paricatuba, where there was a guard of
soldiers, having passed this day the mouths of lakes Cuiuaná, Cáua,
and Tapurú on the right, and Xaviana on the left. Here we remained
until the 5th, to make a _tolda_ for an additional canoe.

“‘June 6th. Reached the mouth of lake Uaiapuá, and on the left hand
lake Paricatuba.

“‘June 7th. To the beach called Carapaná.[474]

“‘June 8th. To lake Uarumá on the left.

“‘June 9th. To the _paraná-merím_ of Yary, along which we navigated
all through the 10th and 11th.

“‘June 12th. To the _paraná-merím_ of Macaco.

“‘June 13th. To the _paraná-merím_ of Sapiá.

“‘June 14th. To lake Taboca, on the right bank.

“‘June 15th. To the mouth of lake Campina.

“‘June 16th. To the _paraná-merím_ of Guajaratuba, along which we
went all through the 17th, before we got out again into the main
river.

“‘June 18th. Along the _paraná-merím_ of Chapeo.

“‘June 19th. Rested this day below Taná-merím, the site of an
ancient _maloca_ of the Muras. Started again on the 20th, and on
the 21st reached the _sitio_ of Hygino (a man of colour), where we
remained all through the 22nd, and on the 23rd reached the beaches
of Tabocál.

“‘June 24th. Went on until we passed the Paraná-pixuna.

“‘June 25th. Reached Itaituba, so called from its rocky cliffs.

“‘June 26th. To the beaches of Quatí.

“‘June 27th. Drew up in front of Arimá, a place where they are
founding a new village. We passed this day the mouth of lake
Jacaré, on the left.

“‘June 28th. Went on this day without stopping, and on the 29th
reached the beach called Paxiuba, and on the 30th the mouth of the
Tanariá Grande. Passed the outlet of lake Manarý on the left, and
that of the Tauarí on the right. Throughout this month the voyage
was not interrupted by any untoward occurrence, but we suffered
much from the heavy rains and the great plague of mosquitos.

“‘July 1st. This day reached the beach of Tauaná on the left. Went
on all through the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, and on the 5th reached the
beach of Ituá. During this time eight Múra Indians, part of our
crew, deserted, and we were obliged to seek hands to supply their
place in the village of Arimá, in which we succeeded by the aid of
the Tuxáua Marý. We could then start again, and on the 6th reached
the beach of Jaburú.

“‘July 7th. This day halted in front of the _furo_ Muahán, and on
the 8th in the mouth of the furo Caiaupé.

“‘July 9th. To the mouth of the river Tapauá, which enters on the
right.

“‘July 10th. Reached the beach of Macuquirý.

“‘July 11th. To the beach of Aramiá, passing the mouth of the
Pauatrarý on the right.

“‘July 12th. To the beach of Mapuahán.

“‘July 13th. To the beach of Pucutihán.

“‘July 14th. To the beach of Cauarchan.

“‘July 15th. To beyond lake Capihán.

“‘July 16th. To the beach of Juihán.

“‘July 17th. Below lake Caquatahán, where we met rafts of Purupurú
Indians.

“‘July 18th. To the beach Arapapa, passing the mouths of the rivers
Mucuín and Caquatahán on the left. We went along the margin of the
same beach all through the 19th, 20th, and 21st, and arrived on the
22nd at the beach of Auaboneny, the 23rd at that of Uarimá, and the
24th at that of Curianhán, passing this day the mouth of the river
Apituhán.

“‘July 25th. Navigated this day along the river bank, and on the
26th reached the beach of Mapuahan; on the 27th that of Assaituba,
where we remained all the 28th to repair one of the canoes.

“‘July 29th. Reached this day the beach of Pacihá, having passed
the mouth of the river Marý, and on the 31st reached the beach of
Jurihán.

“‘During this month the voyage was continued without any other
interruption than the desertion of the Mura Indians, and the
necessity of repairing the canoes. On some days we went on until
midnight to make up for the delay in the mornings, when the thick
fog was not dissipated by the sun’s rays until eight or ten
o’clock.

“‘August 1st. Reached the beach of Jurucuá; on the 2nd that of
Capim; on the 3rd that of Situahán; on the 4th that of Terrahán; on
the 5th that of Catarrahán; on the 6th that of Boto, passing this
day a point called Catatiá on the right.

“‘August 7th. Reached the beach of Maquirahán, and passed the mouth
of the river Cunhuaryhán.

“‘August 8th. To the beach of Parahán, having passed this day some
high cliffs called Cumarihán.

“‘August 9th. To the beach of Curianá, passing lake Learihán on the
right.

“‘August 10th. To the beach of Quarý, passing the mouth of lake
Tumehán, where there are rocky cliffs.

“‘August 11th. Reached the beach of Mamurihán-merím, which is on
the right bank; the 12th the beach of Gamuhím; the 13th that of
Itirapuá; the 14th that of Caçadua; the 15th that of Guajará; the
16th that of Arutá; the 17th the mouth of the river Paniný; the
18th the beach of Parahán; the 19th the mouth of the river
Chiriuiný. From this river begins a very long beach, along which we
navigated all through the 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th,
and on the 26th arrived at another beach called Pedreira. On the
27th we were alongside another extensive beach, by which we went on
until the end of the month. Nothing worth mentioning happened
throughout this month; but the voyage began to grow more difficult,
because the river got gradually narrower, much obstructed with
trunks of trees, and so very tortuous, that we have sometimes gone
on a whole day without advancing scarcely anything, on account of
the great bends of the river.

“‘September. Continuing to ascend the river during the 1st, 2nd,
and 3rd, on the 4th passed the mouth of the igarapé Macuianý, said
to be inhabited by a horde of cannibals, of the tribe Jamamadi, to
the number of about four hundred. Thus we went on until the 11th,
when we passed another igarapé, the Euacá, on the left, in which
also there are numerous Jamamadi Indians. In the mouth of this
stream, and on an adjacent beach, there was an encampment of more
than a hundred people who had been drawn together by hearing our
_réveillé_.

“‘On the 12th passed the mouth of the river Canaquirý, whose
sources are in the _campos_ of the river Madeira. In this river
appeared sixteen _ubás_ and _cascas_[475] with Indians of the
tribe Canamarý (cannibals), who came out to meet us; they were in
all sixty-five souls. By an Indian who accompanied our expedition,
and who understood a little of their language, we learnt that the
Canamarýs were plotting among themselves to surprise our canoes by
night, kill us all, and carry off our goods. Profiting by this
timely warning, I had the canoes anchored in the middle of the
stream, and prepared our troops to resist any attack that should be
attempted by night. Early in the morning the Indians dispersed, but
not before we had bought of them their arrows and _curabís_
(poisoned arrows), and then, telling them that another canoe was
following us, we got rid of them.

“‘On the 18th reached the first _malóca_ (village) of the Cucama
Indians; on the 23rd we drew up at the second; on the 29th at the
third, and, although the voyage began to be very arduous, we went
on all day of the 30th.

“‘October. After having gone on the whole of the 1st, we arrived on
the 2nd of this month at the fourth _maloca_ of Cucamas; on the
4th, at the fifth _maloca_; on the 6th, at the sixth _maloca_; and
on the 9th, at the seventh _maloca_.

“‘These Indians, gathered together in _malocas_, to the number of
thirty, forty, or fifty each, subsist on _aipím_ (=_Manihot Aypi_
Pohl.)[476] and bananas of which they have plantations, and on
game. They are light-coloured, well-made (that is, the men, for of
women we saw not a single one, because they hide them away, except
the old ones), and they bore the under lip. _They wear ponchos._
They had no iron tools of any kind, and they were well content with
some axes which we gave them. They would employ this tool to make
their canoes, for they make their clearings by fire alone.

“‘They were highly delighted when they saw us approach, for they
had never before seen civilised people; although they mentioned a
few names of persons whom they had seen at the headwaters of the
Juruá.

“‘Many of these Indians wished to go down the river with our
expedition, but, as our farinha was nearly exhausted, I did not
venture to take them; besides, as their principal aliment is
_aipím_ and bananas, and we had a great distance to go before
coming to those plants again, they would necessarily have suffered
much by the way.

“‘They live unceasingly persecuted by the tribes Canamarýs,
Apurinás, and Oainomarís (all cannibals), who unite to harass them,
rob them, and kill those they meet in order to devour them.

“‘The Cucamas have such a way of speaking that they seem to us to
belong to Bolivia, for they make use of several Spanish words, and
call, for instance, an axe _hacha_, a cutlass _machéte_, a knife
_cuchillo_, etc.

“‘It was quite impossible to ascend higher than the seventh
_maloca_, for the river was so narrow, and so much obstructed, that
it did not admit the passage of even the smallest canoes.

“‘For this cause we set out to return on the 10th, and, going along
without stopping, we reached this capital on the 30th of November,
about eight o’clock at night.

“‘Finally, in all this long and painful voyage, we had not to
deplore any fatal accident.

“‘Barra do Rio Negro, 20th of December, 1852.

“‘SERAFIM DA SILVA SALGADO.’

“With the ‘Report’ before us, let us endeavour to ascertain the
extreme point of Serafim’s navigation on the Purús. As he says not
a word about bearings and distances, the only guide we have to the
latter is the time occupied in the ascent, and I find that,
deducting the days when he was stationary, he travelled from the
Barra to the head of navigation on the Purús in 141 days. Now, if
we take a known distance on the Amazon, viz. from the Barra to
Manacapurú, which is 82 nautical miles (following the course of the
river), we find that Serafim spent just 8 days over it, being at
the rate of 10¼ miles per day. In the month of May, when he
started, the Amazon would already have risen considerably and the
current would be difficult to stem; hence this slow rate of
progress.[477] The Purús in its lower part has a much gentler
current than the Amazon, and there he would no doubt get on better;
but it would attain its highest level during the period of
Serafim’s voyage up it, and would then run much more than usual;
and he mentions expressly that in its upper part the current became
from day to day more rapid as he proceeded; so that I think we may
safely assume 10¼ miles a day as the average rate of progress
throughout the voyage, and travellers who have had to creep up
South American rivers in canoes will agree with me that it is
rather over than under the mark. This would give us for

Distance from Barra to head of navigation of Purús 1445 miles
Deduct distance from Barra to mouth of Purús 150 miles
----
And we get 1295 miles, for

the whole length of Serafim’s navigation of the Purús, including
all the bends of the river, from which at least one-third (but
probably more) would have to be deducted to reduce it to a straight
line. Taking off the third part, leaves 863 miles for the shortest
distance between the extreme points of the navigation of the Purús,
or say in round numbers 800 miles, which is possibly still in
excess of the actual distance. Supposing that on the map of Spix
and Martius (which is even yet the best we possess for a great part
of South America) the general direction assigned to the Purús is
correct (N.E., or rather N. 46° E.), and measuring on that rhumb
for 800 miles, we reach a point which is in lat. 12° 30´ S., long.
(from Greenwich) about 70° W. To ascertain where this takes us to
we must go to the Andes of the S. E. of Peru, and inquire what
streams flow northward from thence, between the headwaters of the
Ucayali on the west, and those of the Madeira on the east. The
fullest and probably the only trustworthy account we have of those
streams is contained in two memoirs, by Mr. Clements Markham,
published in the journals of the Royal Geographical Society, giving
an account of an expedition made to the north-east of Cuzco in
1853, and of another in the adjacent province of Carabaya in 1860.
He found the streams there divided into three groups, the most
westerly uniting to form the river called the Madre de Dios, or
Amaru-mayu, while the streams of the middle group formed the
Inambarí, and the most easterly were tributaries of the Tambo-pata.
He descended the Tono (as the upper part of the Madre de Dios is
called) to a point in about lat. 12° 45´ S., long. 70° 30´ W.; the
Sandia to where it unites with the Huari-huari to form the
Inambarí, in lat. about 13° 10´ S., long. 69° 15´ W.; and the
Tambo-pata to lat. 12° 18´ S., long. 68° 38´ W. Now if the Purús be
prolonged but forty miles beyond the point to which Serafim is
supposed to have ascended in 1852, it brings us exactly to where
Mr. Markham descended on the Madre Dios in the following year
(1853). In so savage a region it is quite possible that two
explorers, the one starting from the mouth and the other from the
head of a river, might reach nearly the same point on it, at the
very same time, and yet not only be unaware of each other’s
proximity, but afterwards, in comparing their itineraries, not find
therein a single name common to both. There is, however, one name
on Mr. Markham’s map, that of the river Inambarí, which I feel
pretty confident is the same as the Oainamarí mentioned by Serafim
as the name of an Indian nation who harassed the pacific and
agricultural Cucamas at the head of the Purús. The Indian name of a
river is generally that of a nation inhabiting its banks, as in the
case of the Purús itself. Besides, the Indian of the Amazon,
following the genius of their language (the Tupí), are very apt to
prefix to names, especially such as begin with a vowel, a sound
like that of the English _w_, which the Portuguese and Spaniards
have variously represented by the letters _u_, _o_, _oa_, _hu_,
_gu_, and even _b_; thus, to the northward of the Amazon, we have
the river _Guaupés_, _Uaupés_, or _Aupés_; the _Guasié_, _Sié_, or
_Xié_ (pron. _Shié_); precisely analogous instances to _Oainamarî_,
_Uinamarí_, or _Inam(b)arî_; for (it should be added) the letter
_b_ is generally a modern interpolation in names of the plain, not
heard from the month of a native Indian.[478]

“Serafim does not tell us, and probably did not ascertain, whether
his Oainamarí Indians lived on a river which fell into the Purús.
Mr. Markham’s impression, after visiting the Madre de Dios, the
Inambarí, and the Tambo-pata, and noting their direction at the
lowest point he attained on them, was that all three united to form
one river, which he supposed to be the Purús; and his opinion is
entitled to great weight, as that of the only person capable of
giving an account of what he saw, who has visited all the three
rivers. Here, however, is the difficulty, which only a new and
thorough exploration can clear up; for all speculation on such a
point is uncertain and valueless. Comparing the maps of Martius and
Markham, and bearing in mind the statement of Baena, one would be
tempted to say that the Tambo-pata was the head of the Purús, the
Inambarí of the Yutahý, and the Madre de Dios of the Yauarý; or the
Madre de Dios may really be the origin of the Purús, and the other
two streams may flow into the Beni. There are other possible modes
of combination, and there is even another tributary of the Amazon,
intermediate between the Yutahý and the Purús, I mean the Yuruá,
which, though a smaller river, has so long a course, that we see
(in Serafim’s story) Cucamas of the Purús having intercourse with
people at the head of the Yuruá.

“It is clear from Serafim’s report, that the plain through which
the Purús flows has a scarcely perceptible declivity, for he
nowhere encountered cataracts, or even rapids. Indeed, on referring
to the maps, and considering the nature of the ground, we see that
the head of navigation of the Purús must needs be on a lower level
than that of the Beni and Mamoré; and yet on a tributary of the
latter (the Chaparé) Gibbon found that water boiled at 209° 5´,
indicating an elevation above the sea of only four hundred and
sixty-five feet. This goes far to show that Humboldt may be correct
in his supposition of a strip of low land extending from the Amazon
valley, between the Andes on the one hand, and the mountains of
Brazil on the other, all through the provinces of Mojos and
Chiquitos to the basin of the river Plate. The navigable part of
the Purús extends to the southward, along this lowland, apparently
to far beyond the last falls of the Madeira; its depth is probably
great enough to admit of its being navigated by steamers at least
up to within two hundred miles of the highest point reached by
Serafim; and we may therefore be allowed to predict that the Purús
will at some future day become one of the great highways between
the Andes and the Amazon.

“Like other affluents of the Amazon flowing through a champaign
country, the Purús has numerous lakes, and but very few rivers
tributary to it. I have ascended two rivers, entering the Amazon
from the northward, which have precisely the same character, viz.,
the Trombetas and the Pastasa. The latter of these two rivers is in
some parts nearly two miles in breadth, but its stream is generally
sluggish and so shallow that, although I entered it when the waters
were at their highest level, yet when they partially subsided
during the voyage, we had great difficulty in finding a channel
sufficiently deep to float our canoes, although the latter were
merely hollowed trunks, and we were still some distance below the
confluence of the Bobonasa. On the Purús, however, Serafim does not
once mention being impeded by insufficient depth of water. He
complains of the foggy mornings, such as I have experienced on all
the rivers whose course is northerly or southerly; whereas on the
Amazon, and even on the Rio Negro, so long as its course (in
ascending) is westerly, the easterly trade-wind usually prevents
any accumulation of fog, especially in the dry season, when that
wind prevails most.”

“RICHARD SPRUCE.”

“June 13th, 1864.”