The people in general are about the middle fize, their limbs
ftraight, .and tolerably well-fhaped ; many of the older people are
rather lean, hut I never favv one perfon who could be called corpulent
'amongft them; both fexes are remarkably diftiiiguifhed
'by high prominent cheek bones and fmall eyes. A love of dirt
•and filth is univerfally predominant all over the coaft. In regard
to their complexion, it is no eafy matter to determine what caff
that is ; but if I may judge from the few people I faw tolerably
clean, thefe Indians are very little darker than the Europeans in
general.
The hair of both fexes is long and black, and would be an ornament
to them, were it not for the large quantities of greafe and
red oker conftantly rubbed into it, which not only gives it a’dif-
gufting appearance, but affords a never-failing hdrbour for vermin.
Sometimes, indeed, the women keep their hair in decent
order, parting it from the forehead to the crown, and tying it behind
after the manner of a club.. :
The young men have no beards, and I was at firft inclined to
think that this arofe from a natural want of hair on that part,
but I was foon undeceived in this particular, for all the men we
faw, who were advanced in years, had beards all over the chin,
and fome of them whilkers on each fide the upper lip.
As this fuppofed defeft amongft the natives of America has oc-
cafioned much lpeculative enquiry amongft the learned and ingenious,
I took every opportunity of learning how it was occafioned,
and was given to underftand, that the young men got rid of their
beards by plucking them out, but that as they advance in years,
the hair is fuffered to grow.
In
' In their drefs, there is little Variety ; the men generally wearing ^787^
coats (fuch as I have already defcribed; made of fuch Ikins as ,—
fancy fuggefts, Or their fuccefs in hunting furnilhes them with,
and fo’metimes the loofe cloak thrown over the fhoulders, and
tied with fmall leather firings. Befides this, fome of the more civilized
fort, particularly thofe in Cook's River, wear a fmall piece
of fur tied round the waift, when the heat of the day caufes them
to throw their coat afide, or they are difpofed to fell it. The drefs
of the women differs in fome refpefts from that of the men : their
under garment is made of fine tanned leather, and covers the
body from the neck to - the ancle, being tied in different parts to
it fit clofe: over this is tied a piece of tanned leather like
an apron, and which reaches no higher than the waift; the upper
garment is made ii> much the fame manner as the men’s coats,
and generally of tanned leather, the women not caring to wear
furs, as they were alvvays unwilling to be ftripped of their gai-
ments, which, lhould they happen to be worth purchafing, their
hufbands alway infifted on their being fold; indeed, the depott-
ment of the women in general was decent, modeft, and becoming.
It might be imagined, that the children of thefe favages would“
enjoy the free and unreftrained ufe of their limbs from their ear-
lieft infancy; this, however, is not altogether the. cafethree
pieces of bark are fattened together, fo as to form a kind.of.chair,,
the infant, after being wrapped in furs, is put into this chair, and
jalhed fo clofe, that it cannot alter its pofture even with ftr.uggling;;
and the chair is fo contrived, that when a mother wants to feed her
child, or give it the breaft, there is no occafion to releafe it from
, its fhackles. Soft mofs is ufed by the Indian nurfe to keep her
•child clean i but little regard.is paid to. this article, and the poor
infants.