FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25  
26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   >>   >|  
The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Land of Mystery, by Edward S. Ellis This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net Title: The Land of Mystery Author: Edward S. Ellis Release Date: October 10, 2005 [eBook #16855] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) ***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LAND OF MYSTERY*** 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 York Hurst & Company Publishers Copyright 1889 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, when a canoe, containing four white men and three natives, came to a halt a thousand miles from the mighty Amazon, in the upper waters of the Xingu River, near the great table-land of Matto Grosso. It was hard work, forcing the long shallow boat against the rapid current of the stream, whose unknown source is somewhere among the famous diamond regions of Brazil. It was plain sailing for three hundred leagues from the Amazon, from whose majestic volume the little party of explorers had turned southward more than a month before. The broad sail, which was erected in the centre of the craft, swept it smoothly along over the narrowing bosom of the Xingu, between luxuriant forests and past tribes of strange-looking Indians, who stood on the banks staring wonderingly at the extraordinary beings, the like of which many of them had never seen before. Occasionally the explorers put ashore, and, using only the language of signs, exchanged some of the beads and gaudy trinkets for the curious articles of the savages. Endless varieties of fruit were so abundant that it was to be had for the simple trouble of plucking; while the timid natives stood in such awe of their visitors, that the thought of harming them never entered their minds. But ominous changes were gradually noted by our friends, as they steadily ascended the mysterious stream. At first the natives fled at their approach, and failed to understand the
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25  
26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

natives

 

MYSTERY

 

Mystery

 
Amazon
 

Edward

 
stream
 

Project

 

explorers

 
Gutenberg
 
Author

luxuriant

 

forests

 
tribes
 
smoothly
 
strange
 

narrowing

 

beings

 

extraordinary

 

whatsoever

 
wonderingly

staring

 
Indians
 

erected

 

leagues

 

hundred

 

majestic

 
volume
 
sailing
 

famous

 

diamond


regions

 

Brazil

 

restrictions

 

turned

 

southward

 

centre

 

Occasionally

 
ominous
 

gradually

 

entered


visitors
 

thought

 
harming
 
friends
 
approach
 

failed

 

understand

 
mysterious
 
steadily
 

ascended