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began to shout most vehemently, wishing to direct us where
to land. When we were on shore the party looked rather
alarmed, hut continued talking and maldng gestures with
great rapidity. It was without exception the most curious
and interesting spectacle I had ever beheld. I could not
have believed how wide was the difference, between savage
and civilized man. It is greater than between a wild and
domesticated animal, in as much as in man there is a greater
power of improvement. Tlie chief spokesman was old, and
appeared to be the head of the family; the three others
were powerful young men, about six feet high. The women
and children had been sent away. These Fuegians are a
very different race from the stunted miserable wretches
further to the westward. They are much superior in person,
and seem closely allied to the famous Patagonians of the
Strait of Magellan. Their only garment consists of a mantle
made of guanaco skin, with the wool outside; this they wear
j ist thrown over their shoulders, as often leaving tlieir persons
exposed as covered. Their skin is of a dirty coppery
red colour.
The old man had a fillet of white feathers tied round his
head, which partly confined his black, coarse, and entangled
hair. His face was crossed by two broad transverse bars ;
one painted bright red reached from ear to ear, and included
the upper lip ; the other, white like chalk, extended parallel
and above the first, so that even his eyelids were thus
coloured. Some of the other men were ornamented by
streaks of black powder, made of charcoal. The party
altogether closely resembled the devils which come on the
stage in such plays as Der Freischutz.
Their very attitudes were abject, and the expression of
their countenances distrustful, surprised, and startled. After
we had presented them with some scarlet cloth, which they
immediately tied round their necks, they became good
friends. This was shown by the old man patting our
breasts, and making a chuckling kind of noise, as people do
when feeding chickens. I walked with the old man, and
this demonstration of friendsliip was repeated several times;
it was concluded by three hard slaps, which were given me
on the breast and back at the same time. He then bared
his bosom for me to return the compliment, which being
done, he seemed highly pleased. The language of these
people, according to our notions, scarcely deserves to be
called articulate. Captain Cook has compared it to a man
clearing his throat, but certainly no European ever cleared
his throat with so many hoarse, guttural, and clicking
sounds.
They are excellent mimics: as often as we coughed or
yawned, or made any odd motion, they immediately imitated
us. Some of our party began to squint and look awry; but
one of the young Fuegians (whose whole face was painted
black, excepting a white band across his eyes) succeeded in
making far more hideous grimaces. They could repeat with
perfect correctness, each word in any sentence we addressed
them, and they remembered such words for some time. Yet
we Europeans all know how difficult it is to distinguish apart
the sounds in a foreign language. Which of us, for instance,
could foUow an American Indian through a sentence of more
than three words .? All savages appear to possess, to an uncommon
degree, this power of mimicry. I was told almost
in the same words, of the same ludicrous habits among the
Caffres : the Australians, likewise, have long been notorious
for being able to imitate and describe the gait of any man,
so that he may be recognised. How can this faculty be explained
? is it a consequence of the more practised habits of
perception and keener senses, common to all men in a savage
state, as compared to those long civilized ?
When a song was struck up by our party, I thought the
Fuegians would have fallen down with astonishment. With
equal surprise they viewed our dancing; but one of the
young men, when asked, had no objection to a little waltzing.
Little accustomed to Europeans as they appeared to
he, yet they knew, and dreaded our fire arms; nothing would
tempt them to take a gun in tlieir hands. They begged for