necessary article, and the other almost so--and which could not possibly
be procured in such a place. These two things were _salt_ and _milk_.
Now there was neither a salt-mine, nor a lake, nor a drop of salt water,
nor yet either cow, goat, or ass, within scores of miles of the place,
and still they had both salt and milk!
The milk they procured from a tree which grew in the woods close by, and
a tree so singular and celebrated, that you have no doubt heard of it
before now. It was the _palo de vaca_, or "cow-tree," called sometimes
by an equally appropriate name _arbol del leche_, or "milk-tree." It is
one of the noblest trees of the forest, rising, with its tall straight
stem, to a great height, and adorned with large oblong pointed leaves,
some of which are nearly a foot in length. It carries fruit which is
eatable, about the size of a peach, and containing one or two stones;
and the wood itself is valuable, being hard, fine-grained, and durable.
But it is the sap which gives celebrity to the tree. This is neither
more nor less than milk of a thick creamy kind, and most agreeable in
flavour. Indeed, there are many persons who prefer it to the milk of
cows, and it has been proved to be equally nutritious, the people
fattening upon it in districts where it grows. It is collected, as the
sugar-water is from the maple, simply by making a notch or incision in
the bark, and placing a vessel underneath, into which the sap runs
abundantly. It runs most freely at the hour of sunrise; and this is
also true as regards the sap of the sugar-tree, and many other trees of
that kind. Sometimes it is drunk pure as it flows from the tree; but
there are some people who, not relishing it in its thick gummy state,
dilute it with water, and strain it before using it. It is excellent
for tea or coffee, quite equal to the best cream, and of a richer
colour. When left to stand in an open vessel, a thick coagulum forms on
the top, which the natives term cheese, and which they eat in a similar
manner, and with, equal relish. Another virtue of this extraordinary
tree is that the cream, without any preparation, makes a glue for all
purposes as good as that used by cabinet-makers, and, indeed, Don Pablo
and Guapo had already availed themselves of it in this way.
So much for the _palo de vaca_.
It still remains for me to tell you where the _salt_ came from; and
although the milk-tree was ever so welcome, yet the salt was a thing of
still greater necessity. Indeed, the latter might be looked upon as an
indispensable article in household economy. You, my young reader, know
not what it is to be without salt. With whole sacks of this beautiful
mineral within your reach, almost as cheap as sand, you cannot fancy the
longing--the absolute craving--for it, which they feel who are for a
period deprived of it. Even the wild animals will make long journeys in
search of those salt-springs--or, as they are called, "licks"--which
exist in many places in the wilderness of America. For salt, Don Pablo
and his companions would have exchanged anything they had,--their sugar,
plantains, cocoa, coffee, or even the cassava, which was their bread.
They longed for salt, and knew not how they could get on without it.
The only substitute was the "aji," or capsicum, of which several species
grew around, and almost every dish they ate was strongly spiced with it.
But still this was not salt, and they were not contented with it.
It was now that they found a friend in Guapo. Guapo knew that among
many of the Indian tribes the fruit of a certain species of palm was
manufactured into salt; and he knew the palm, too, if he could only get
his eyes upon it. Seeing his master and the rest so troubled upon this
head, Guapo rose one morning early and stole off among the groves of
palm, on the other side of the river. There, in a marshy place, with
its roots even growing in the water, stood the very tree,--a small palm
of about four inches in diameter and twenty to thirty feet high. It was
thicker at the base than the top, and the top itself rose several feet
above the tuft of pinnate, feathery fronds, ending in a pointed spike.
It was the "jara" palm, of the genus _Leopoldinia_.
It was the fruits upon which Guapo bent his eyes with earnestness. Each
one was as large as a peach, of an oval shape, slightly flattened, and
of a yellowish green colour. They grew in large clusters among the
bases of the leaves; and Guapo was not long in ascending several trees--
for the jara is a smooth-skinned palm, and can be climbed--and breaking
off the spadices, and flinging them to the ground. He had soon
collected a bag-full, with which he hurried back to the house.
All wondered what Guapo meant to do with these fruits, for they tasted
them and found them very bitter. Guapo soon showed them his intention.
Having prepared a sort of furnace, he set the nuts on fire; and when
they were thoroughly reduced to ashes, to the great joy and astonishment
of all, these ashes, which were as white as flour, had the taste of
salt! It is true it was not equal to "Turk's Island," nor yet to "Bay"
salt, but it proved to be good enough for cooking purposes, and
satisfied the craving which all had felt for this indispensable article.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE.
THE CANNIBAL FISH AND THE GYMNOTUS.
About this time an incident occurred that was very near having a fatal
termination for one of the party--Leon. The day was a very hot one, and
as the cool water looked inviting, Leon could not resist the temptation
of taking a bath. Having undressed himself, he plunged into the river
nearly in front of where the house stood, and began splashing about
quite delighted. The rest were not heeding him, as each was engaged
with some occupation within the house.
Leon at first kept wading about in a place that was not beyond his
depth, but, by little and little, he took short swims, as he wished to
practise, and become a good swimmer like Guapo. His father had not only
given him permission, but had even advised him to do so. And it may be
here remarked that all parents would do well to take the same course
with their children and allow them to acquire this healthful and useful
art. No one can deny that thousands of lives are annually sacrificed,
because so few have taken the trouble to learn swimming.
Well; Leon was determined to be a swimmer, and at each attempt he made a
wider stretch into the deep water, swam around, and then back again to
the bank.
In one of these excursions, just as he had got farthest out, all at once
he felt a sharp pain as if from the bite of some animal, and then
another, and another, upon different parts of the body, as if several
sets of teeth were attacking him at once!
Leon screamed--who wouldn't have done so?--and his scream brought the
whole household to the edge of the water in less than a score of
seconds. All of them believed that he was either drowning or attacked
by a crocodile. On arriving at the bank, however, they saw that he was
still above water, and swimming boldly for the shore--no signs of a
crocodile were to be seen!
What was the matter?
Of course that question was asked him by all of them in a breath. His
reply was that "he could not tell--_something was biting him all over_!"
The quick eye of the mother now caught sight of blood--around the
swimmer the water was tinged with it--her piercing shriek rent the air.
"O God! my child--my child! Save him--save him!"
Both Don Pablo and Guapo dashed into the water and plunged forward to
meet him. In the next moment he was raised in their arms, but the blood
streamed down his body and limbs, apparently from a dozen wounds. As
they lifted him out of the water they saw what had caused these wounds.
A shoal of small fish, with ashy-green backs and bright orange bellies
and fins, was seen below. With large open mouths they had followed
their victim to the very surface, and now that he was lifted out of
their reach, they shot forward and attacked the legs of his rescuers,
causing Don Pablo and Guapo to dance up in the water, and make with all
haste for the bank. As soon as they had reached it, they turned round
and looked into the water. There were these blood-thirsty pursuers that
had followed them up to the very bank, and now swam about darting from
point to point, and ready for a fresh attack on any one that might enter
the water!
"They are the `cannibal fish!'" said Guapo, in an angry tone, as he
turned to attend to Leon. "I shall punish them yet for it. Trust me,
young master, you shall be revenged!"
Leon was now carried up to the house, and it was found that in all he
had received nearly a dozen wounds! Some of them were on the calves of
his legs, where the piece of flesh was actually taken out! Had he been
farther out in the river, when first attacked, he might never have
reached the shore alive, as the fierce creatures were gathering in far
greater numbers when he was rescued, and would most undoubtedly have
torn him to pieces and eaten him up! Such has been the fate of many
persons who have fallen among the "cannibal fish" in the midst of wide
rivers where they had no chance of escape. These ferocious little
"caribes," or "caribitos," as they are called (for the word _carib_
signifies cannibal), lie at the bottom of rivers, and are not easily
seen; but the moment an attack is made by one of them, and a drop of
blood stains the water, the whole shoal rises to the surface, and woe to
the creature that is assailed by their sharp triangular teeth!
Of course the wounds of Leon, although painful, were not dangerous, but
the chief danger lay in the loss of blood which was pouring from so many
veins. But Guapo found ready to his hand the best thing in the world
for stopping it. On some mimosa-trees, not far from the house, he had
already observed--indeed, so had all of them--a very singular species of
ants' nests of a yellowish brown colour. The ants themselves were of a
beautiful emerald green. They were the _Formica spinicollis_. These
nests were composed of a soft cotton-down, which the ants had collected
from a species of _Melastoma_, a handsome shrub found growing in these
regions; and this down Guapo knew to be the best for blood-stopping.
Even Don Pablo had heard of its being used by the Indians for this
purpose, and knew it by the name of "_yesca de hormigas_," or "touchwood
of ants." He had heard, moreover, that it was far superior even to the
ants' nests of Cayenne, which form an article of commerce and are highly
prized in the hospitals of Europe. Guapo, therefore, ran off and robbed
the green ants of their nests, and speedily returned with the full of
his hands of the soft "yesca." This was applied to the wounds, and in a
few minutes the bleeding was effectually stopped, and Leon, although
still suffering pain, had now only to be patient and get well.
Strange to say, another incident occurred that very evening, which
taught our party a further lesson of the danger of taking to the water
without knowing more of its inhabitants. Just as they had finished
supper, and were seated in front of their new house, the mule, that had
been let loose, stepped into the river to drink and cool its flanks. It
was standing in the water, which came up to its belly, and, having
finished its drink, was quietly gazing around it. All at once, it was
observed to give a violent plunge, and make with hot haste for the bank.
It snorted and looked terrified, while its red nostrils were wide open,
and its eyes appeared as if they would start from their sockets. At
length it reached the bank, and, staggering forward, rolled over in the
sand, as if it was going to die!
What could all this mean? Had it, too, been attacked by the "caribes?"
No; that was not likely, as the bite of these creatures upon the hard
shanks of the mule could not have produced such an effect. They might
have frightened it, but they could not have thrown it into "fits"--for
it was evidently in some sort of a fit at that moment.
It might have been a puzzle to our party not easily solved, had Guapo
not been upon the spot. But Guapo had witnessed such an incident
before. Just before the mule gave the first plunge Guapo's eyes had
been wandering in that direction. He had noticed an odd-looking form
glide near the mule and pass under the animal's belly. This creature
was of a greenish-yellow colour, about five feet in length, and four or
five inches thick. It resembled some kind of water-snake more than a
fish, but Guapo knew it was not a snake, but an eel. It was the great
_electric eel_--the "temblador," or "gymnotus."
This explained the mystery. The gymnotus, having placed itself under
the belly of the unsuspecting mule, was able to bring its body in
contact at all points, and hence the powerful shock that had created
such an effect.
The mule, however, soon recovered, but from that time forward, no
coaxing, nor leading, nor driving, nor whipping, nor pushing, would
induce that same mule to go within twenty feet of the bank of that same
piece of water.
Guapo now bethought himself of the narrow escape he himself had had
while swimming across to the palm-woods; and the appearance of the
gymnotus only rendered him more determined to keep the promise he had
made to Leon,--that is, that he would revenge him of the caribes.
None of them could understand how Guapo was to get this revenge without
catching the fish, and that would be difficult to do. Guapo, however,
showed them how on the very next day.
During that evening he made an excursion into the wood, and returned
home carrying with him a large bundle of roots.
They were the roots of two species of plants--one of the genus
_Piscidea_, the other a _Jacquinia_. Out of these, when properly
pounded together, Guapo intended to make the celebrated "barbasco," or
fish-poison, which is used by all the Indians of South America in
capturing fish. Guapo knew that a sufficient quantity of the barbasco
thrown into the water would kill either "temblador," caribe, or any fish
that ever swam with fins.
And so it proved. In the morning Guapo having prepared his barbasco,
proceeded to the upper end of the lake-like opening of the river, and
there flung his poison into the stream. The slow current through the
valley greatly favoured him, and from the large quantity of roots he had
used, the whole pool was soon infected with it. This was seen from the
whitish tinge which the water assumed. The barbasco had scarcely time
to sink to the bottom when small fish were seen coming to the surface,
and turning "wrong side uppermost." Then larger ones appeared, and in a
few minutes all the fish in that particular stretch of water, with
several gymnoti, were seen floating on the surface quite dead. To the
great joy of Guapo and Leon, who sat by the bank watching, hundreds of
the little caribes, with their bronze gills quite open, and their yellow
bellies turned up, were seen among the rest.
But Guapo had not made this great slaughter purely out of revenge. He
had another object. They were not too well off for meat, and a dish of
fish would be welcome. Guapo and Don Pablo had already provided
themselves with long-handled nets, and they soon scooped out several
basketfuls of fish. Among others they netted numerous "caribes," for
these little monsters, fierce as they are, are not surpassed for
delicacy of flavour by any fish in the South American rivers. The
gymnoti approached the bank, where Guapo fished them out, not to eat--
although they are often eaten. There was not a spark of electricity in
them now. The barbasco had cured them of that; any one might have
handled them with safety, as there was not a charge left in their whole
battery.
The lake was quite cleared of all its dangerous denizens, and Leon might
bathe with safety, as soon as he got well; and over the fish-dinner they
could now laugh at the adventures both of Leon and the electrified mule.
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO.
THE CINCHONA-TREES.
In about two weeks from their arrival in the valley, the house, with a
stable for the horse and mule, was completed, and all the necessary
furniture as well. Had you entered the establishment about this time,
you would have observed many odd articles and implements, most of them
quite new. You would have seen boxes woven out of palm-leaves, and bags
made of the fibrous, cloth-like spathe of the "bussu," filled with the
soft, silky cotton of the bombax, to be afterwards spun and woven for
shirts and dresses. You would have seen baskets of various shapes and
sizes woven out of the rind of the leaf-stalks of a singular palm called
"Iu" (_Astrocaryum_), which has no stem, but only leaves of ten feet
long, growing directly out of the ground. You would have seen chairs
made of split palms and bamboo, and a goodsized table, upon which, at
meal-time, might be noticed a table-cloth, not of diaper, but, what
served equally well, the broad smooth silken leaves of the plantain.
There were cups, too, and plates, and bowls, and dishes, and bottles, of
the light gourd-shell (_Crescentia cujete_), some of the bottles holding
useful liquids, and corked with the elastic pith of a palm. Other
vessels of a boat-shape might be noticed. There were large wooden
vessels pointed at the ends like little canoes. They were nothing more
than the spathes or flower-sheaths of one of the largest of palms, the
"_Inaga_" (_Maximiliana regia_). This noble tree rises to the height of
one hundred feet, and carries feathery fronds of more than fifty feet in
length. The spathes are so large that they are used by the Indian women
for cradles and baskets; and their wood is so hard, that hunters often
cook meat in them, hanging them over the fire when filled with water!
Many other singular implements might have been noticed in the new home.
One, a cylinder of what appeared to be wood, covered thickly with
spinous points, hung against the wall. That was a grater, used for the
manioc, or yucca roots; and it was a grater of nature's own making, for
it was nothing more than a piece of one of the air roots of the
"pashiuba" palm, already described. Another curious object hung near
this last. It was a sort of conical bag, woven out of palm-fibre, with
a loop at the bottom, through which loop a strong pole was passed, that
acted as a lever when the article was in use. This wicker-work bag was
the "tipiti." Its use was to compress the grated pulp of the manioc
roots, so as to separate the juice from it, and thus make "cassava."
The roots of the yucca, or manioc plant, grow in bunches like potatoes.
Some of them are oblong--the length of a man's arm--and more than twenty
pounds in weight. When required for use, the bark is scraped off, and
they are grated down. They are then put into the tipiti, already
mentioned; and the bag is hung up to a strong pin, while the lever is
passed through the loop at the bottom. Its short end goes under a firm
notch, and then some one usually sits upon the long end until the pulp
is squeezed sufficiently dry. The bag is so formed that its extension,
by the force of the lever, causes its sides to close upon the pulp, and
thus press out the juice. The pulp is next dried in an oven, and
becomes the famous "cassava" or "farinha," which, throughout the greater
part of South America, is the only bread that is used. The juice of
course runs through the wickerwork of the _tipiti_ into a vessel below,
and there produces a sediment, which is the well-known "tapioca."
There are two kinds of the yucca or manioc-root,--the _yucca dulce_, and
_yucca amarga_--the sweet and bitter. One may be eaten raw without
danger. The other, which very closely resembles it, if eaten raw, would
produce almost instant death, as its juice is one of the deadliest of
vegetable poisons. Even while it is dripping from the _tipiti_ into the
vessel placed below, great care is always taken lest children or other
animals should drink of it.
There were no beds--such things are hardly to be found in any part of
tropical America--at least not in the low hot countries. To sleep in a
bed in these climates is far from being pleasant. The sleeper would be
at the mercy of a thousand crawling things,--insects and reptiles.
Hammocks, or "redes," as they are there called, take the place of
bedsteads; and five hammocks, of different dimensions, could be seen
about the new house. Some were strung up within, others in the porch in
front, for, in building his house, Don Pablo had fashioned it so that
the roof protruded in front, and formed a shaded verandah--a pleasant
place in which to enjoy the evenings. Guapo had made the hammocks,
having woven the cords out of the epidermis of the leaf of a noble palm,
called "tucum" (_Astrocaryum_).
Their home being now sufficiently comfortable, Don Pablo began to turn
his attention to the object for which he had settled on that spot. He
had already examined the cinchona-trees, and saw that they were of the
finest species. They were, in fact, the same which have since become
celebrated as producing the "Cuzconin," and known as "_Cascarilla de
Cuzco_" (Cuzco bark).
Of the Peruvian-bark trees there are many species,--between twenty and
thirty. Most of these are true cinchona-trees, but there are also many
kinds of the genus _Exostemma_, whose bark is collected as a febrifuge,
and passes in commerce under the name of _Peruvian bark_. All these are
of different qualities and value. Some are utterly worthless, and, like
many other kinds of "goods," form a sad commentary on the honesty of
commerce.
The species, which grew on the sides of the adjacent hills, Don Pablo
recognised as one of the most valuable. It was a nearly-allied species
to the tree of Loxa (_Cinchona condaminea_), which produces the best
bark. It was a tall slender tree--when full grown, rising to the height
of eighty feet; but there were some of every age and size. Its leaves
were five inches long and about half that breadth, of a reddish colour,
and with a glistening surface, which rendered them easily distinguished
from the foliage of the other trees. Now it is a fortunate circumstance
that the Peruvian-bark trees differ from all others in the colour of
their leaves. Were this not the case, "bark-hunting" would be a very
troublesome operation. The labour of finding the trees would not be
repaid with double the price obtained for the bark. You may be
thinking, my young friend, that a "cascarillero," or bark-hunter, has
nothing to do but find a wood of these trees; and then the trouble of
searching is over, and nothing remains but to go to work and fell them.
So it would be, did the cinchona-trees grow together in large numbers,
but they do not. Only a few--sometimes only a single tree--will be
found in one place; and I may here remark that the same is true of most
of the trees of the great Montana of South America. This is a curious
fact, because it is a different arrangement from that made by nature in
the forests of North America. There a whole country will be covered
with timber of a single, or at most two or three species; whereas, in
South America, the forests are composed of an endless variety. Hence it
has been found difficult to establish saw-mills in these forests, as no
one timber can be conveniently furnished in sufficient quantity to make
it worth while. Some of the palms, as the great _morichi_, form an
exception to this rule. These are found in vast _palmares_, or
palm-woods, extending over large tracts of country, and monopolising the
soil to themselves.
Don Pablo, having spent the whole of a day in examining the cinchonas,
returned home quite satisfied with them, both as regarded their quantity
and value. He saw, from a high tree which he had climbed, "_manchas_,"
or spots of the glistening reddish leaves, nearly an acre in breadth.
This was a fortune in itself. Could he only collect 100,000 pounds of
this bark, and convey it down stream to the mouth of the Amazon, it
would there yield him the handsome sum of 40,000 or 50,000 dollars! How
long before he could accomplish this task he had not yet calculated; but
he resolved to set about it at once.
A large house had been already constructed for storing the bark, and in
the dry hot climate of the high Montana, where they now were, Don Pablo
knew it could be dried in the woods, where it was stripped from the
trees.
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE.
A PAIR OF SLOW GOERS.