Crossing The Stream A Little Below The Upper Fall, The Path
Ascends A Steep Slope For About Five Hundred Feet, And Passing
Through A Gap Enters A Narrow Valley, Shut In By Walls Of Rock
Absolutely Perpendicular And Of Great Height.
Half a mile further
this valley turns abruptly to the right, and becomes a mere rift
in the mountain.
This extends another half mile, the walls
gradually approaching until they are only two feet apart, and the
bottom rising steeply to a pass which leads probably into another
valley, but which I had no time to explore. Returning to where
this rift had begun the main path turns up to the left in a sort
of gully, and reaches a summit over which a fine natural arch of
rock passes at a height of about fifty feet. Thence was a steep
descent through thick jungle with glimpses of precipices and
distant rocky mountains, probably leading into the main river
valley again. This was a most tempting region to explore, but
there were several reasons why I could go no further. I had no
guide, and no permission to enter the Bugis territories, and as
the rains might at any time set in, I might be prevented from
returning by the flooding of the river. I therefore devoted
myself during the short time of my visit to obtaining what
knowledge I could of the natural productions of the place.
The narrow chasms produced several fine insects quite new to me,
and one new bird, the curious Phlaegenas tristigmata, a large
ground pigeon with yellow breast and crown, and purple neck.
This rugged path is the highway from Maros to the Bugis country
beyond the mountains.
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