The pregnancy an-d births of thofe women, would be thought very
extraordinary among us, where the ladiesfuffer fo much, notwith -
{landing ail the care, and circumfpeition ufed before and after
laboUr. On the contrary, a Morlack woman, neither changes
her food, ‘nor interrupts her daily fatigue, on. account o f her
pregnancy j and is. frequently delivered in the fields, or on the
road,: by herfelf j and takes the infant, walh.es- it in the firlt
water ihe finds, carries it home and: returns the day after to
her ufual labour, or to.feed her flock.■ ¡The cuilom o f the nation
is invariable in wafhing the new-born infants in cold water ;
and the Morlacchi may juiHy fay: o f ithemfelv.es what the ancient
inhabitants o f Italy did r
rsrij sroied beiobfinoo 2nind> ysrij .sartaaa-id icew vsrfi,
Durum rtf Jtirpe gemiii ^tos^cLjiumma, printum
I&femmysyjavciquf gefur^dufapfus,, ep. updis.
And it is certain that the cold bath'produces not fiich bad ef-
fedls on infants, as Maebard pretends y* who condemns the pre-
lent cuilom o f the ScptcK ana Inflr, 'as'prejudicial to the nerves^
and derives the immerfions'of tKe hncienl Germans from fuper-
ftition and ignorance..
! T h e little creatures^1 thus cirelfefsTy treated m their-tend erdil
moments, ^ e afterwards'wtapT in niilefable rags, where they
remain three'or four months, under'the dime ungentle maniige-
menf ; and'when that te tm 'is Jelapfed' they are fet at liberty,,
and left to crawl about the cottage, and before the door, till'
they learn to walk upright by themfelves and at the fametime
acquire that fifigiflar' 'degree o f ‘ drength, and health with-
which the Morlacchi are endowed, and are able, without the
leaft
* Mémoires de la Soc. Oecon. de Berne, an, 1764. iii partie.
leaft inconvenience, - to expofe their naked breads to the fcvereft
froft and fnow. The infants are1 allowedtQ.&ck their: mothef-s
milk while ihe has any, -or-till-die .is! with, child) jagaiu, ¡and if
that ihould not happen for three, four, or. fix years,-they continue'all
that time. to receive nouriihmeat -from the bread.
The prbdigious length of the breads o f .the Morlacchian women
is fomewhat extraordinaryiiifor it .is veiy certain,. thapthey
can- give the teat to-their' children, over -theirofliQuldersii or un-
der their arms. They let the-boys fun about, without breeches,
in a fhirt that reaches'only to the knee, till the age, o f thirteen
or fourteen, following- theCudom»o£;S^w,;ihhjeâ to the, Porte,
where no H araz,. or capitation-tax-is paid (for: the .boys till
they wear breeches, they- being confidered before that- time as
children, not- cap ahlF â^ ^h hu rte^ ô f bP fearfiing' their bread.
On the occafion. o f biŸèhs,,,'àh'ü'''feipeÉildly o f the firdp-all the
relations, and frie^s^^çnd^pfefçnts of^eatables to the woman in
childbed,, or: rather, ;ftq th e , woman delivered ; and the family
makes a fupper o f all thofe ppeiçnis itqgetner. . The women do
not. enter the church, till forty days afterrçEiÎd birth.:
The Morlacchi pafs their youth in the WOOdi,.'attending their
fkjçks, and herds, and . that life ofkflSkt, and lçifure, .they
eften beepme dexterous.in carding with a fimple knife, they’-
nj,ake w.oodeii cup and,, wh titles adpraed with fanciful-baff-
reliefs, which are not void o f .merit, and at lead ihew the genius
o f the,people. .
amid edî is fane -, aevlsimsdl yd irianqu jjlsw 0} msei vadi
j ,( j O f the Food;o f th e.M oR L& zcn i..
Milk coagulated in ^aMbuè1!tWf^i>;iisï5the ordinary nourilhment
o f the Morlacchi ; they fometimes give it an agreeable acid by
the infufion o f vinegar,. whereby the curd becomes extremely
- . • re