E-text prepared by Al Haines
THE LAND OF MYSTERY
by
EDWARD S. ELLIS
Author of
"Famous American Naval Commanders," "Jungle Fugitives," "Old Ironsides,The Hero of Tripoli and 1812," etc.
New YorkHurst & CompanyPublishersCopyright1889 by Frank Lovell Co.1901 by Street & Smith
THE LAND OF MYSTERY.
CHAPTER I.
IN THE MATTO GROSSO.
The blood-red sun was sinking beyond the distant Geral Mountains, whena canoe, containing four white men and three natives, came to a halt athousand miles from the mighty Amazon, in the upper waters of the XinguRiver, near the great table-land of Matto Grosso.
It was hard work, forcing the long shallow boat against the rapidcurrent of the stream, whose unknown source is somewhere among thefamous diamond regions of Brazil. It was plain sailing for threehundred leagues from the Amazon, from whose majestic volume the littleparty of explorers had turned southward more than a month before. Thebroad sail, which was erected in the centre of the craft, swept itsmoothly along over the narrowing bosom of the Xingu, between luxuriantforests and past tribes of strange-looking Indians, who stood on thebanks staring wonderingly at the extraordinary beings, the like ofwhich many of them had never seen before.
Occasionally the explorers put ashore, and, using only the language ofsigns, exchanged some of the beads and gaudy trinkets for the curiousarticles of the savages. Endless varieties of fruit were so abundantthat it was to be had for the simple trouble of plucking; while thetimid natives stood in such awe of their visitors, that the thought ofharming them never entered their minds.
But ominous changes were gradually noted by our friends, as theysteadily ascended the mysterious stream. At first the natives fled attheir approach, and failed to understand the signs of comity, or wereso distrustful of the strangers that they refused to meet theiradvances. Fleeing into the woods or high hills, they peeped out fromtheir coverts, uttering strange cries and indulging in grotesquegestures, the meaning of which could hardly be mistaken. Had therebeen any misapprehension on the part of the visitors, there was noneafter several scores launched their arrows at the boat, as it glidedaway from the shore and up stream. The aim was wild and no one wasstruck, but when Professor Ernest Grimcke, the sturdy, blue-eyedscientist of the party, picked up one of the missiles and carefullyexamined it, he made the disturbing announcement that it was tippedwith one of the deadliest of known poisons.
The other members of this exploring party were Fred Ashman, a bright,intelligent American, four-and-twenty years of age; Jared Long, anattenuated, muscular New Englander in middle life, and Aaron Johnston,a grim, reserved but powerful sailor from New Bedford, who had spentmost of his life on whaling voyages. Professor Grimcke and Ashman werejoint partners in the exploring enterprise, Long and Johnston beingtheir assistants.
In addition, there were three native servants, or helpers, known asBippo, Pedros and Quincal. They had been engaged at Macapa, near themouth of the Amazon. They were rather small of size, the first-namedbeing the most intelligent, and in that warm, tropical climate wore noclothing except a strip of native cloth around the loins. Ashman hadstriven to teach them the use of firearms, but they could neverovercome the terror caused by the jet of fire and the thunderousexplosion when the things were discharged. They, therefore, clung totheir spears, which, having honest points, cannot be said to have beenvery formidable weapons in their hands, even though each native wasable to throw them with remarkable deftness and accuracy.
The sail that had served the explorers so well, where the Xingu wasbroader and with a slower current, became useless, or at least provedunequal to the task of overcoming the force of the stream.Consequently they had recourse to the broad-bladed oars, with whichthey drove the canoe swiftly against the resisting river, cheered bythe oft-repeated declaration of the Professor, whose spirits neverflagged, that the harder it proved going up stream, the easier must itbe in descending, and that the arrangement was much better than if thecondition of affairs were reversed.
The most tiresome work came when they reached some place, where thefalls or rapids compelled them to land, and, lifting the boat and itscontents from the ground, carry it round the obstruction to the morefavorable current above. These portages varied in length from a fewrods to a fourth of a mile, and the further the party advanced, themore frequent did they become.
"We have gone far enough for to-night," said the Professor, as the prowof the boat was turned toward the left bank; "we will go into camp andmake ready for to-morrow."
A few minutes later, the bow of the canoe gently touched the dark sandof the shore. Bippo, Pedros and Quincal understood their duty so wellthat, without suggestion from the others, they leaped into the shallowwaters, ran a few steps, and, grasping the front of the craft, drew itso far upon the land that the others stepped out without so much aswetting the soles of their shoes.
This task was no more than finished, when the natives scattered in theforest, which came almost to the edge of the water, in quest of fuel.This of course was so abundant that the work was slight, but sinceProfessor Grimcke and Fred Ashman paid them well for their servicesthey were left to attend to that duty unassisted.
As the surroundings of the party were entirely new and strange, Grimckeproposed that while the evening meal was being prepared, they shouldfind out, if it could be done, whether any unwelcome neighbors werelikely to disturb them before morning. After a brief consultation, itwas decided that the Professor and Jared Long should make their way upthe river, keeping close to shore, with the purpose of learning theextent of the rapids, while Ashman and the sailor, Johnston, shouldfollow the clearly marked trail which led directly away from the streamand into the forest. It was more than probable that one of the coupleswould come upon something worth knowing, and it was not unlikely thatboth would return with important information.
Twilight is of short duration in the low latitudes, and the wish of thefour white men was to be back in camp at the end of an hour, by whichtime night would be fairly upon them. But the moon was at its full andwould serve them better than the twilight itself.
The German and New Englander, therefore, moved away from camp,following the course of the Xingu, while their two friends quicklyvanished in the forest. Each carried his repeating Winchester and hisSmith & Wesson.
Ashman felt some misgiving because of the trail leading into the woodsfrom a point so near the camp. It seemed likely to have been worn bythe inhabitants of some village near at hand, though it was possiblethat the innumerable feet of wild animals on their way to and from theriver may have been the cause. The upper waters of the Xingu areremarkably clear and pure, a fact which rendered the first theory mostprobable.
The explorers had landed in a dangerous region, as they were destinedto learn very soon, and the experience of the couples who took routesat right angles to each other was of the most thrilling character.
It has been stated that the progress of the canoe had been checked, aswas often the case before, by the rapids of the Xingu, which could bepassed only by carrying the canoe and luggage to the smoother watersabove. It was apparent that the river frequently overflowed its banks,for immense quantities of driftwood lined both shores, while thevegetation had been swept away to that extent that a space of a dozenfeet from the margin of the stream was comparatively free from it.Thus both parties found the travelling easy.
The rapids were a hundred yards wide, more or less, and, with such asteep incline, that the foamy waves dashed hither and thither andagainst each other with the utmost fury, sending the spray high in airand sweeping forward with such impetuosity that it seemed impossiblefor the strongest craft under the most skilful guida
nce to shoot them.The explorers studied them with great interest as they ascended theleft bank.
It was inevitable that in a country with such excessive vegetablegrowth, every part of the Xingu should show much floating timber. Thelogs which plunged through the rapids played all manner of antics.Sometimes they leaped high out of the waters, like immense seamonsters, the out-spreading limbs showing a startling resemblance tothe arms of a drowning person mutely appealing for help. Then a heavytrunk would strike a rock just below the surface, and the branches,dripping with spray, swept over in a huge semi-circle. The roar andswirl suggested the whirlpool below the falls of Niagara, one of themost appalling sights in all nature.