With a little dexterous management, but not until
after we had sustained some severe bumps, we managed to get out
of this difficulty, clearing the rocky point at a close shave
with our jib-sail. Soon after, we drifted into the smooth water
of a sheltered bay which leads to the charmingly situated village
of Altar do Chao; and we were obliged to give up our attempt to
recover the montaria.
The little settlement, Altar de Chao (altar of the ground, or
Earth altar), owes its singular name to the existence at the
entrance to the harbour of one of those strange flat-topped hills
which are so common in this part of the Amazons country, shaped
like the high altar in Roman Catholic churches. It is an isolated
one, and much lower in height than the similarly truncated hills
and ridges near Almeyrim, being elevated probably not more than
300 feet above the level of the river. It is bare of trees, but
covered in places with a species of fern. At the head of the bay
is an inner harbour, which communicates by a channel with a
series of lakes lying in the valleys between hills, and
stretching far into the interior of the land.
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