We needed no urging, and within five minutes the day was set when porters in abundance should come to convey our equipment, and we should start on our journey to the mysterious stronghold of Padre Fulgencio, and the boundless jungles bordering the Rio Chimoré. CHAPTER XIX AMONG THE YURACARÉ INDIANS OF THE RIO CHIMORÉ True to his promise, Padre Fulgencio sent the Indians to Todos Santos, and on the morning of August 2 we packed into canoes such of our equipment as was necessary for the trip and started across the brown water of the Chaparé. On the other side of the river there was no clearing; the trees grew down to the water’s edge, and the moment the canoes were left behind we plunged into the perpetual gloom of the forest. An indistinct trail led into the heart of the jungle. The Indians adjusted our belongings on their backs, securing them with broad strips of bark placed across the forehead; then they set out at a good pace, a number of women and children carrying boiled yuccas and plantains, trudging at the rear of the procession. There was not much undergrowth, but the ground, from which there is little evaporation on account of the dense canopy overhead, was very muddy. Every few rods we came to a deep streamlet which had to be crossed on the trunks of fallen trees; some of these slimy bridges were sixty feet long and almost impassable to us, but the Indians strode across as unconcernedly as geckos. Half-way to the mission the Indians stopped for lunch and a short rest, and by noon we reached the edge of the clearing, having covered a distance of twelve miles. After a tramp of half a mile through weedy fields of maize and yuccas, we reached the mission-buildings--a few dozen low grass huts clustering around an open square. At one end rose two structures of large size which served as the church and general meeting-place. Near the centre of the clearing a stately cross had been erected, hewn from the heart of a giant ceiba. The priest was delighted to see us and spared no effort to make us comfortable. We were soon installed in a room of one of the buildings which served as a boys’ dormitory, and a short time later started out to inspect our surroundings. At first the Indians were reticent and would peer at us from a distance. This was true particularly of the children, but as the days wore on we made friends with them, and from both the people themselves and the priest we learned a great deal about their history and habits. The name Yuracaré, according to D’Orbigny, was given to them by the Quechuas, and means “white man”; this is most inappropriate, as they are of a decided brown color, although perhaps averaging lighter than the Quechuas. They were first discovered by Viedma in 1768.