e purposes of a railway it is admirable; the
gradients are practically level, and the only works of art required
would be in crossing the many _burity_ swamps that intersect the route,
and these, although numerous, are narrow.

Even the Rio Sapao itself could doubtless be made into a good canal, in
the absence of a railway, for there is plenty of water, and the ground
offers great facilities for straightening its course.

Especial care was taken in preparing the camp that night. The Don and
Jose superintended the operation of constructing the fort, the sides of
which were further protected by spreading over them the hides used for
covering the packs of the mules. Bush was also cut to make up and
enlarge the defences, and a strong stake was driven into the ground
inside the fort for the purpose of securing the dogs in case the
peccaries arrived. The camp was made on the borders of a clump of trees,
to which we were enabled to sling the hammocks, no one caring to sleep
on terra firma that night, but two of the men who were unprovided with
hammocks spread their hides on the ground inside the fort.

After dinner, of course, peccaries formed the sole subject of
conversation, but hour after hour went by, yet no signs of their
presence appeared; and, after arranging the watches for the night, we
turned in, and with the fatigues of the day I was soon asleep.

It appeared to me, however, that I had barely closed my eyes, when I
felt my hammock violently shaken. It was the Don awakening me, saying,
"Wake up, here are the _porcos_, we are going to have some fun." The
first peculiarity that struck me was the prevalence of the odor of old
pigsties. I sat up, looked around, and listened. The pitchy blackness of
night surrounded us, but the fire, burning brightly, sent its flickering
light upon the tree-trunks, the foliage, and the hammocks; two men were
in the fort with gun and knife in hand, and the dogs tied to their stake
were with difficulty kept quiet, and vented their excitement in deep
growls. As I listened it became evident that we were surrounded by some
animals, for in many directions was heard, in the stillness of night,
the sound of bodies moving through the bush, twigs snapping, grass
rustling, etc. It was a moment of suspense, but not for long; for
suddenly, from all around us, came a blood-curdling sound of the
simultaneous snapping of teeth from vast numbers of the enemy, followed
by the appearance of a crowd of ch