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Cornugaya Directory 07
Page 09
On January 9th we passed several villages. Along the banks we saw many
Indians, all dressed up in bright costumes, principally red shawls. We
entered a tiny channel on the right bank and went as far as a place
called San Jeronimo, a fairly large settlement. This small channel was,
as late as 1895, the main stream, which has since been diverted by the
formation of a low island. At sunset we perceived to the west what
appeared at first a mass of low clouds revolving in a circle at a great
speed. On closer inspection we found it to be millions of _garcas_ or
aigrette storks flying in a circle.
On January 7th we arrived at the large settlement of Condamano, a
sub-Prefecture in the big province of Loreto. There were two parallel
streets, clean and well kept, with others intersecting at right angles.
On the main street along the water front were many large commercial
houses, handsome buildings of _cana_ walls and zinc roofs. The place had
been built on a flat high land about 30 ft. above the river, and had
some 1,500 to 2,000 inhabitants. One of the peculiarities of Condamano
was that during the rubber-collecting season the population consisted
almost entirely of women, as the men were in the forest collecting the
latex.
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