AMONG SAVAGES

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 249, 20 April 1912, Page 10

AMONG SAVAGES

• STIRRING AiDYKNTI-'RJOS OF A PIONEER. One of the only two while men who have penetrated unharmed into the heart of the Paraguayan Chaoo, the last stronghold of the savage Indians in their retreat 'before, civilisation, was in London, making preparations for a fresh expedition in company iwith some English sportsmen, when the last unail left. The .Paraguayan Chaeo is a wild tract of virgin forest, palm groves, river and swamp, a rough oval of some 2tM),t)tM) square miles in area, enclosed hy tile great I'ilcomayo and Paraguay rivers and the Bolivian Andes 011 the north. Only the southern extremities have 'been explored. The difficulty of the country, the wild 'animal life, and the terrible atrocities suffered by rash intruders at the hands of the Indians have kept it an unknown and unmapped land. There have been some thirteen previous attempts by intrepid explorers to find a route through this dangerous country from the Argentine to Bolivia since the latter State lost her seaboard and was deprived of easy outlet and access for trade. All these were failures, and the greater number ended in disaster and bloodshed. Of the four most recent expeditions—two Argentine, one German, and one British—the first three never returned, not a single man to tell the undoubted tale of massacre by Indian's. From the fourth Mr. W. B. Grub'b struggled back after hair-breadth escapes from the savages w'ho had attacked the party on the iPjlcomayo river—and after experiencing terrible privations. •The pioneer, the Count W. de Niemira. who was interviewed in London, is now a most busy man, tlie work of arrangement in connetcion with his fresh visit, monopolising his time. It is difficult to induce him to speak of his romantic' experiences. From his long sojourn among the natives and his thorough exploration of t'he country, he has learnt its resources and prospects. 'Sucli of the narrative as lie told is of absorbing interest, and throws light on a people and a life that is popularly supposed to have been killed 'by the oncoming of civilisation twenty years ago. Intent on sport and exploration, the Count W. Niemira set out in November, J'!KH). from the Villa del Rosario, an outpost on the borders of the unopened country. He had been warned by the Jefe Politica, Senor Cabrera, that the authorities would take no responsibility, and that he must carry his life ill his own hands. But he was furnished with an official permit—an interesting document obtained from the Paraguay Government at Asuncion—enabling him to shoot any men endangering his safety on his travels. He was equipped with a medical training; and, indeed, had 'been furnished with another curious document by the Paraguay Government, which licensed him to practise in medicine in the State. It bears the quaint observation that this authorisation invests him with a standing equal to a qualified doctor. This training went far to found the intimate relations hp subsequently established with the natives even most hostile to white men, such as the Chamacocos, in the far interior.

The first stages of the journey he accomplished toy canoe, penetrating as tar <is lie could up flie Riacho Negro. Thence, transferring his baggage to Indian ponies, he struck out "for the interior, and met a hunting party of Lengua Indians. Here he had the good lurkto establish friendly relations, and found the reputation that subsequently took many difficulties out of his path." The daughter of a prominent chief, bv name Larosn, had 'fallen ill ; he -was led thither, and ultimately effected a happv cure, .Following on this, he was admitted to a kind of blood brotherhood, anu afterwards invested .with the standing of a chief. After this lie scarcely ever lacked a party of Indian guides,'who passed him from the care of one tribe to another. Only in the case of the fierce Chamacocos, and, lastly, the dreaded Ai tiibe, was he escorted' to the territory borders and left to go forward alone. Hut lie always .found that word had travelled ibeforc him, in the mysterious wsiv of primitive races, and rude hospitality and services were given him, One terrible experience of abandonment. he bad on the way to the Chamacoco territory. For ten days he wandered without sense of direction, setting parts of the forest a'b'laze by night to ward oil' the snakes, jaguars and pumas that infest it. and uttering the animal calls of the various tribes to summon aid. till lie shrieked himself soundless. At last he came upon a hunting party, who brought him back to the camp; and lie was forced to witness terrible retribution visited on the defaulters. At this stage lie lost all his baggage, save his rifle and jealously-guarded ammunition. iFor seven months after this lie lived practically as a savage among the .Cliamacocos. uul later the. Ai. His fame travelled far. and in the innermost recesses of the country the name he went by, "Cuimbayete" ("the powerful man"), was feared and acknowledged. The journey back was made in native fashion 011 relays of ponies furnished by Indians from camp to camp; though more, rapid, it was infinitely more trying than the coming, deprived as lie was of all the accessories of civilisation. When lie reached the outskirts of the open area of the mission posts, he fouml'all he liad loft in t'he care of the chief Larosa, untouched and carefully stored. His appearance, with long-grown hair and burnt skin, clad in such garments as he could obtain at Villa del Kosario, created a sensation on the pleasure steamer he boarded and C'oncepcion. At Buenos Avrcs he was a.blc to make a considerable addition to his bank balance by disposing of osprey feathers, for which he had traded the remaining possessions he 'had left in trust with Larosa. "And then," was the concluding question, "what was your ,first impression 011 getting back to civilisation at, Buenos Ayres?" "I was terrified," said the count; "the traffic made me tremble*"