family to Ega. This would give a rest,
which was deservedly due to the hard-working crew of the raft.

The night passed at the moorings near a slightly rising shore, and
nothing disturbed the quiet. A little sheet-lightning was observable on
the horizon, but it came from a distant storm which did not reach the
entrance to the lake.

CHAPTER XVI. EGA

AT SIX o'clock in the morning of the 20th of July, Yaquita, Minha, Lina,
and the two young men prepared to leave the jangada.

Joam Garral, who had shown no intention of putting his foot on shore,
had decided this time, at the request of the ladies of his family, to
leave his absorbing daily work and accompany them on their excursion.
Torres had evinced no desire to visit Ega, to the great satisfaction of
Manoel, who had taken a great dislike to the man and only waited for an
opportunity to declare it.

As to Fragoso, he could not have the same reason for going to Ega as had
taken him to Tabatinga, which is a place of little importance compared
to this.

Ega is a chief town with fifteen hundred inhabitants, and in it reside
all those authorities which compose the administration of a considerable
city--considerable for the country; that is to say, the military
commandant, the chief of the police, the judges, the schoolmaster, and
troops under the command of officers of all ranks.

With so many functionaries living in a town, with their wives and
children, it is easy to see that hair-dressers would be in demand. Such
was the case, and Fragoso would not have paid his expenses.

Doubtless, however, the jolly fellow, who could do no business in Ega,
had thought to be of the party if Lina went with her mistress, but, just
as they were leaving the raft, he resolved to remain, at the request of
Lina herself.

"Mr. Fragoso!" she said to him, after taking him aside.

"Miss Lina?" answered Fragoso.

"I do not think that your friend Torres intends to go with us to Ega."

"Certainly not, he is going to stay on board, Miss Lina, but you wold
oblige me by not calling him my friend!"

"But you undertook to ask a passage for him before he had shown any
intention of doing so."

"Yes, and on that occasion, if you would like to know what I think, I
made a fool of myself!"

"Quite so! and if you would like to know what I think, I do not like the
man at all, Mr. Fragoso."

"Neither do I, Miss Lina, and I have all the time an idea that I
have seen him somewhere before.