A hunting-trip on the Taquary had been planned to secure some of the large game that is found in the region. December 16, therefore, found the hunting-party aboard the _Nyoac_. This boat, which was a river steamer of considerable size, had been placed at the disposal of the expedition by the government, and served as our “home” during the weeks that followed, until we reached Porto Campo. Besides Colonel Roosevelt, there were on board Colonel Candido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Kermit Roosevelt, Captain Amilcar de Magalhães, a photographer, physician, taxidermist, and myself. Mr. Cherrie had returned to Urucúm to finish the work in that locality, and Mr. Fiala remained in Corumbá to complete the examination of the enormous amount of impedimenta which he had so ably brought together. [Illustration: S. S. _Nyoac_ on the Paraguay River.] [Illustration: Corumbá.] The _Nyoac_ steamed up the Paraguay a few hours, and then turned into the mouth of the Taquary. The water of the latter river being pretty low, a steam-launch was towed along as a precaution; should the steamer become stranded it would have been possible to proceed on the launch. We had been travelling but a short time, when cries from members of the crew drew our attention to the water; and there, where the launch had been but a moment before, were only a few sticks of fire-wood floating on the water. A man had been placed aboard the smaller craft to operate the steering-gear; he had fallen asleep at his post, and in rounding a sharp bend the launch had capsized and sunk. We spent several hours trying to drag the submerged boat to the bank, but the task had to be abandoned, and the launch was left--a total loss. There were scores of caimans along the Taquary. As these reptiles are justly classed as vermin they may be destroyed on sight. Frequently rows of them dotted the edges of the sand-banks, lying with wide-open mouths. A shot in the head was instantly fatal, and the only movement perceptible was the sudden closing of the mouth as the bullet went home. Crocodiles frequently enter the forest to quite some distance from the water; I know of no more repulsive sight than to come suddenly upon one of the huge saurians lying quietly in wait among the shadows; the evil, grinning expression; the leering green eyes and the glistening, scaly body of the creature suggest treachery and cruelty combined with agility and cunning. One of the reptiles that we saw had cornered a school of fish in a small inlet, blocking the entrance with its body. As the frantic fish tried to escape by jumping out of the water and over the obstruction, the crocodile caught them in mid-air and swallowed them.