e were ready, the horses were caught
and saddled, and we were soon mounted and ready to proceed. Our party
consisted of Ned, Pedro, and I; Manco, Nita, and their child; and three
Indians, of a tribe with whom the latter were going to take up their
residence. We had, besides, two other horses laden with clothing and
provisions. Bidding adieu to our unhappy hostess and the villagers, our
cavalcade was put in motion, and we plunged into the interminable
forest. Without the assistance of our Indian guides, we could not
possibly have found our way among the gigantic trees which shot up like
tall masts from the level soil, often branchless till near the summit,
where their boughs intertwined, and formed a canopy which the rays of
the sun could scarcely penetrate.

"On, on, my friends!" cried Manco; "the enemy may be on us before we are
aware of their approach. They have traitors with them, and will
certainly despatch a force to search us out."

This was sufficient to make us urge our horses to their utmost speed;
and all day we rode on, halting only now and then for a very short time,
to rest our animals or to take food. At night we encamped in the
forest. For our shelter we cut a number of canes which grew near a
stream, and with them formed some huts, which we thatched with palm
leaves. We had supplied ourselves with grass hammocks and Indian
mosquito curtains, and by hanging them up in our huts we obtained very
comfortable quarters. We frequently had streams to pass, which feed the
great arteries running into the Amazon. They were in most instances too
deep to be forded, so we had to wait till we could construct rafts to
convey ourselves and our luggage, our horses swimming alongside. We
took care to make a great noise to keep the caymans at a distance, lest
any of them should think fit to grab at our animals' legs. We had the
satisfaction of feeling sure that, should we be pursued, our enemies
would take much longer time to cross than we did. Still, however, we
pushed on as fast as the nature of the ground would allow. We were now
approaching the river Ucayali, at a spot not far from the banks of which
Manco intended to make his abode. He might, of course, have found
numberless places among the Andes, where the Spaniards could not have
discovered him; but so many of his brother chieftains had already been
betrayed by their own countrymen, that he had resolved to remove himself
far beyond the reach of treac