tree that differed from all the others in its aspect. It was a
noble-looking tree, rising with a smooth stem, to the height of seventy
feet. At its top, there was a sheathing column swollen larger than the
stem, and not unlike the sheathing column of the catinga already
mentioned, except that that of the pashiuba was of a deep green colour.
Its leaves, however, differed materially from those of the catinga. It
is true, that, like them, they were pinnate, but the leaflets, instead
of being slender and tapering, were of a triangular shape, notched along
the edges, and not growing very regularly out from the mid-rib. Their
general arrangement, as well as the form, therefore, gave the tree a
different, and, perhaps, more beautiful aspect. But the most singular
characteristic of the pashiuba was its roots. I have said that the
roots of the catinga rose above the surface of the soil. So did they,
but only to a limited height, forming a little cone. Now the roots of
the pashiuba stood up to the height of ten or a dozen feet! Each root
was nearly straight in itself, but there were a number of them, and they
sloped upwards so as to make a sort of pyramid, out of the apex of which
grew the stem. There were wide spaces between the roots--so wide that
you could easily pass through, and a full-grown man might stand upright
with his head under the very base of the stem. Fancy a man standing
under the trunk of a tree that rose seventy feet above his head!

There were young trees of the same species growing around, and these
were miniature models of the older ones. Sometimes these lesser ones
are supported on three roots, like the tripod of a surveyor's compass,
and this gives them a somewhat ludicrous appearance. There are many
species of this sort of palms, which are classed under the genus
_Iriartea_. In most of them the fruit, which is small oval and red or
yellow, is bitter and uneatable; but their wood is prized for many
purposes. The wood of the species which Don Pablo had found is hard on
the outside, but soft within, and splits readier into laths and planks
than any other kind of palm.

Guapo attacked the roots with his axe, and enough trunks were soon
felled to make laths, doors, and all sorts of benches.

The different kinds were now collected on the edge of the stream, and
were tied together by a rope-like, creeping plant, called a "Sipo," so
that they formed a rude raft. The leaves of the "bussu," with gre