l two o'clock that afternoon that I struck the big
stream once more and we followed its right bank.

To our great delight we came to a small clearing where some years before
_mandioca_ had been cultivated. We threw down our loads at once and
proceeded to search for roots. To our great joy we found one small root,
about as big as a small carrot. We made a fire. Oh! the anxiety in
lighting up that fire, as we only had eight matches left, and they had
got damp.

Filippe, who was the expert in striking matches, was entrusted with the
job. Alas! he struck and struck time after time the first match against
the box until its head was worn off altogether, and no flame was
produced. With some anxiety we watched the second match having a similar
fate.

The men said that the root we had found was of wild _mandioca_, and if we
ate it raw we should certainly all die, but if roasted properly over a
flame it lost some of its poisonous qualities. We all had our eyes fixed
on that root, and felt the happiest of mortals, as if the most expensive
banquet had all of a sudden been placed before us. It was a great relief
when Filippe struck the third match and it actually produced a flame. We
lighted a fire, roasting the valuable root upon it.

Benedicto, who was the culinary expert, roasted the root until it was
nearly carbonized, and by the time he took it out of the flame we had
each of us left for our share a section of its fibrous core not larger
than a well-smoked cigarette stump.

We devoured that luxurious meal in haste. It tasted as bitter as aloes.
No sooner had I eaten it than I felt extremely ill, my men also
experiencing a similar sensation. Benedicto was the first one to vomit
painfully and cough violently; then came my turn, then Filippe's. So our
first meal was not much of a success.

The little strength we had seemed now to have disappeared altogether. We
lay helpless upon the bank of the river, unable to move. Once or twice
Filippe shouted for help, thinking that our voices might be heard, but no
answer ever came to our cries.

Eventually we proceeded once more along the right bank of the river, when
we perceived on the opposite bank an abandoned hut. The river at that
point was 70 m. wide, from 4 to 5 ft. deep, with a fairly strong current.
We decided to cross over and see if perhaps by chance some food had been
abandoned in the hut. It was already evening, and we were so exhausted
that we did not dare to cross the