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IX THE CINCHONA FORESTS 269
position, but not so wide apart that a dog or a pig could have
got through the interstices. The whole fabric was, therefore,
abundantly ventilated, and only too frequently filled with fog, as
we found to our cost, in coughs and aching limbs, and in mouldy
garments, saddles, etc.
Having reposed a day at Limon, Dr. Taylor went on with my
horses two days' journey to Ventanas, hoping to find Mr. Cross
there and to bring him up. During his absence I had to look
after killing the ox and drying the beef, and to repair our dwelling,
which was sadly fallen to decay, especially as to the roof. I
therefore set the Indians to drag bamboos and palm-leaves out
of the forest, with which we patched up the hut as well as we
could. I visited also all the Bark trees known to exist within
a short distance, and was well content to see on many of them
a good crop of capsules, which had already nearly reached
their full size on the finest trees on other ; trees, however, there
were only very young capsules, and even a good many flowers,
so that I might have obtained at least
thirty good flowering
specimens ; but, wishing to gather as many seeds as possible,
I dried only a couple of specimens, which I had afterwards cause
to regret,
for
ripe capsules.
not one of the late -flowering
I learnt from the inhabitants
panicles
that the
produced
trees had
been covered with blossom in the latter part of April and begin-
ning of May.
When Dr. Taylor had been ten days at Yentanas, a brief note
from Mr. Mocatta was left at Guaranda by the Spanish minister
(on his way from Guayaquil to Ouito), informing me that Mr.
Cross had been taken suddenly ill, when about to start for
Ventanas. I therefore sent to recall Dr. Taylor, and, after his
return to Limon, our operations were confined to visiting the Hark
trees daily, which extended through a zone of about four miles in
breadth, and to collecting and studying the accompanying vegeta
tion. As we had a fair share of sun towards the end of , I Jinn
was in hopes the fruit would ; speedily ripen but nearly all through
the month of July the weather was cool, with a good deal of mist
and fog, so that the capsules scarcely increased in
size, many fell
oil', and some were attacked by a maggot and curled up. On the
tree which bore most capsules they began to turn mouldy, the
UK mid being not fungi but rudimentary lichens. I began to tear
we should get no ripe seeds, and as the seeds had been especiallj
recommended to me in my instructions from Kn.;land. it may be
imagined how severe was my feeling ot 1 disappointment
another motive for fearing the same result. Tinpeople
of Limon
had got a notion that I should buy the seeds of them, and one
mornin:'. when I made my round among the trees. 1 found that
two of them had been stripped oi \ < r\ pani< le, undoubtedly l>\
some one who calculated on selling me the set This was \er\
had