The Body Was At Length Deposited In The
Coffin, And The Groaning And Shrieking Of The Assembled Multitude
Ceased.
A solemn funeral ceremony took place:
Every respectable
person received a great wax taper to carry in the procession: the
coffin after being carried all round was deposited in the church: the
people dispersed; and the great day of Passion Week was brought to a
close."
CHAPTER IX.
EXPEDITION TO THE SUN-WORSHIPPERS. [Footnote: An account of this
expedition was requested by and sent to the Royal Geographical
Society of London, Eng.]
I took passage on the "Urano," a steamer of 1,500 tons, for
Concepcion, 200 miles north of Asuncion.
On the second day of our journey the people on board celebrated a
church feast, and the pilot, in his anxiety to do it well, got
helplessly drunk. The result was that during that night I was thrown
out of the top berth I occupied by a terrific thud. The steamer had
run on the sandbank of an uninhabited island, and there she stuck
fast - immovable. We were landed on the shore, and there had further
time for reflection on the mutability of things. In the white sand
there were distinct footprints of a large jaguar and cub, probably
come to prey on the lazy alligators that were lying on the beach; and
I caught sight of a large spotted serpent, which glided into the low
jungle where the tiger also doubtless was in hiding.
After three days' detention here, a Brazilian packet took us off. On
stepping aboard, I saw what I thought to be two black pigs lying on
the deck. I assure the reader that it was some seconds before I
discovered that one was not a pig, but a man!
At sunset it is the custom on these river boats for all to have a
bath. The females go to one side of the ship, and the males to the
other; buckets are lowered, and in turn they throw water over each
other. After supper, in the stillness of the evening, dancing is the
order, and bare feet keep time to the twang of the guitar.
We occasionally caught sight of savages on the west bank of the
river, and the captain informed me that he had once brought up a bag
of beans to give them. The beans had been poisoned, in order that
the miserable creatures might be swept off the earth!
We landed at Concepcion, and I walked ashore. I found the only
British subject living there was a university graduate, but - a
prodigal son Owing to his habit of constant drinking, the authorities
of the town compelled him to work. As I passed up the street I saw
him mending a road of the "far country" There I procured five horses,
a stock of beads, knives, etc, for barter, and made ready for my land
journey into the far interior. The storekeeper, hearing of my plans,
strongly urged me not to attempt the journey, and soon all the
village talked. Vague rumors of the unknown savages of the interior
had been heard, and it was said the expedition could only end in
disaster, especially as I was not even going to get the blessing of
the Pai before starting. I was fortunate, however, in securing the
companionship of an excellent man who bore the suggestive name of
"Old Stabbed Arm"; and Dona Dolores (Mrs. Sorrows), true to her name,
whom I engaged to make me about twenty pounds of chipa, said she
would intercede with her saint for me. Loading the pack-horse with
chipa, beads, looking-glasses, knives, etc., Old Stabbed Arm and I
mounted our horses, and, each taking a spare one by the halter, drove
the pack-saddle mare in front, leaving the tenderhearted Mrs. Sorrows
weeping behind. The roads are simply paths through deep red sand,
into which the horses sank up to their knees; and they are so uneven
that one side is frequently two feet higher than the other, so we
could travel only very slowly. From time to time we had to push our
way into the dense forest on either side, in order to give space for
a string of bullock carts to go past. These vehicles are eighteen or
twenty feet long, but have only two wheels. They are drawn by ten or
twelve oxen, which are urged on by goads fastened to a bamboo, twenty
feet long, suspended from the roof of the cart, which is thatched
with reeds. The goads are artistically trimmed with feathers of
parrots and macaws, or with bright ribbons. These are of all colors,
but those around the sharp nail at the end are further painted with
red blood every time the goad is used.
The carts, rolling and straining like ships in foul weather, can be
heard a mile off, owing to the humming screech of the wheels, which
are never greased, but on the contrary have powdered charcoal put in
them to increase the noise. Without this music (?) the bullocks do
not work so well. How the poor animals could manage to draw the load
was often a mystery to me, Sections of the road were partly destroyed
by landslides and heavy rains, but down the slippery banks of rivers,
through the beds of torrents or up the steep inclines they somehow
managed to haul the unwieldy vehicle. Strings of loaded donkeys or
mules, with jingling bells, also crawled past, and I noticed with a
smile that even the animals in this idolatrous land cannot get on
without the Virgin, for they have tiny statuettes of her standing
between their ears to keep them from danger. Near the town the rivers
and streams are bridged over with tree trunks placed longitudinally,
and the crevices are filled in with boughs and sods. Some of them are
so unsafe and have such gaping holes that I frequently dismounted and
led my horse over.
The tropical scenery was superb.
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