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Cornugaya Directory 10
Page 08
Some 13 kil. farther, the river being smooth but swift, we came to a
basin 700 m. broad, where the river described a turn toward the
north-east. We came upon a large clearing on the hill-side on the left
bank. There we saw the remains of two or three huts which had been
destroyed by fire. We perceived one or two people, and we landed. We
found that it was the shed of an enterprising Peruvian trader who had
established himself there in order to collect rubber. Only a few days
before we arrived a great fire had taken place, which had destroyed
nearly all he possessed; but--fortunately for us--they had saved a few
things, and I was able to purchase a quantity of rice, biscuits, dried
meat, beans, _farinha_, condensed milk, _banho_ (liquid lard in tins),
and a number of other things, such as clothes, shirts, rope, nails,
axes, etc., which we needed badly.
It is never right or useful to take revenge, for if you wait long enough
you are always avenged by Providence. That afternoon my men saw some wild
chestnuts on a tree, and they insisted on landing to pick them. They
knocked down the tree, as usual, to get the chestnuts, although it was
fully 3 ft. in diameter. They picked a great many of the wild chestnuts
and proceeded to eat them--Alcides, much to my amazement, actually
offering me one. I asked them if they knew what they were eating, as I
quickly observed when the tree fell down that not a single chestnut had
been touched by birds or monkeys.
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