FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 57 



who had encamped in the vicinity of the for- 

 tress. A girl had four lovers, whose jealousy 

 produced the most violent quarrels: after fight- 

 ing a long time without any result, they deter- 

 mined to end the strife by murdering the object 

 of their love, and the resolution was immediate- 

 ly executed with their lances. The whole horde 

 assembled round the funeral pile, and chanted 

 a song, a part of which was interpreted by one 

 of our countrymen, who Iiad been long resident 

 here. "Thou wast too beautiful — thou couldst 

 not live — men looked on thee, and madness fired 

 their hearts !^' 



Savage as this action was, another exceeded 

 it in ferocity. A father, irritated by the cries of 

 his child, an infant in the cradle, snatched it 

 up, and threw it into a vessel full of boiling 

 whale-oil. These examples are sufficient to 

 characterise this hateful people, who appear to 

 be in every respect the very refuse of human 

 nature. 



Their weddings are celebrated merely by a 



feast given to the relatives of the bride. The 



dead are burned, and their ashes preserved in 



small wooden boxes, in buildings appropriated 



D 5 



