Notes on Ahorlginal Aiitiquitits, 441 



■with piles, stakes, and barres. Over it, and also in many places 

 of the wall, there is a kind of gallery to runne along, and ladders 

 to get up, all full of stones and pebbles for the defence of it 

 There are in the towne about fiftie houses, at the utmost about 

 fiftie paces long, and twelve or fifteen broad, built all of wood, 

 covered over with the barke of the wood as broad as any boord 

 very finely and cunningly joyned togither according to there 

 fashion. Within the said houses, there are many roomes. 

 In the midest of every one, there is a great hall, in the 

 middle whereof they make their fire. They live in common to- 

 gither : then doe the husbands, wives and children each one retire 

 themselves to their chambers. They have also on the top of their 

 houses certaiue granaries,* wherein they keepe their corne to 

 make their bread withall ; they call it Caracony, which they 

 make as hereafter shall follow. They have certaine peeces of 

 wood, like those whereon we beat our hempe, and with certain 

 beetles of wood they beat their corne to powder ; then they make 

 paste of it, and of the paste, cakes or wreathes, then they lay 

 them on a broad and bote stone, and then cover it with bote 

 pebbles and so they bake their bread instead of ovens. They 

 make also sundry sorts of pottage with the said corne and also 

 of pease and of beanes, whereof they have great store, as also 

 with other fruits, great cowcumbers and other fruits. They have 

 also in their houses certaine vessels as bigge as any But or Tun, 

 wherein they keepe their fish, causing the same in sommer to be 

 dried in the smoke and live therewith in winter, whereof they 

 make great provision, as we by experience have scene. All their 

 viands and meates are without any taste or savour of salt at all. 

 They sleepe upon barkes of trees laide all along upon the ground 

 being over-spread with the skinnes of certaine wilde Beastes, 

 wherewith they also clothe and cover themselves, namely of the 

 Dormouse,t Beaver, Martin, Fox, Wild Cat, Deer, Stag, and 

 other wild beasts, but the greater part of them go almost naked 

 (during the summer). The thing most precious that they have 

 in all the world they call Esurgny ; which is white and which 

 they take in the said river in Cornibots,J in the manner followino- 



* Corn-cribs. f ? Musk-rat. 



% This word seems to have puzzled the translators. It is probably a vul- 

 gar local name for some shell supposed to resemble that of which these 

 Indians made their wampum. I would suggest that it may be derived 

 Can. Nat. 3 No. 6, Vol. Y. 



