552 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1810. 



changes and troubles ! and he be- 

 gan to sing the 130th psalm, de 

 prqfundis. Lo ! said they, now 

 he is bewailing his unhappy fate^ 

 The place which they hart chosen 

 not being a convenient station, 

 they removed to the main land to 

 some deserted huts of their own, 

 drew their canoes ashore, and 

 kindled a fire, to which they 

 brouglit their prisoner. They laid 

 him in a hammock, fastened the 

 cords which were still kept round 

 his neck, to a tree, and from time 

 to time through the night in- 

 formed him, in their mirth, that 

 he was now their beast. The 

 next day a storm arose, and they 

 called upon him to pray that it 

 might not destroy them. Hans 

 obeyed, beseeching God to shew 

 the savages that his prayers were 

 heard, and presently he heard 

 them say the clouds were passing 

 off; for he was lying along in the 

 canoe, and could not lift his head, 

 so severely had he been bruised. 

 This change of weather he wil- 

 lingly attributed to his prayers, 

 and returned thanks for it. A se- 

 cond night was passed like the 

 first, and they congratulated each 

 other that on the morrow they 

 should reach home: but I, says 

 he, did not congratulate myself. 



On the third evening they came 

 to their town, which was called 

 Uwattibi. It consisted of seven 

 houses (a town seldom had more), 

 but each house contained twenty 

 or thirty families, who, as they 

 were generally related to each 

 other, may not improperly be 

 called a clan. They are about 

 fourteen feet wide, and one hun- 

 dred and fifty long, more or less, 

 according to the number of the 

 clan. Each family has its own 



birth and its own fire, but there 

 are no partitions whatsoever be- 

 tween them. The usual height 

 of the roof is about twelve feet ; 

 it is convex, and well thatched 

 with palms. These houses are 

 built to enclose an area, in which 

 they slaughter their prisoners : to 

 each house there are three low 

 doors, all towards the area. The 

 town is surrounded first with a 

 close palisade, in which loop-holes 

 are left for their arrows ; this pa- 

 lisade is so constructed as to form 

 alternately two sides of a triangle, 

 and three of a square; and with- 

 out this is a circular one of 

 high, strong stakes, not so closely 

 set as the inner, neither far 

 enough apart to leave room for 

 passing through. At the entrance 

 they set up a few heads of those 

 whom they had devoured, stuck 

 upon 8pii<es upon these pales. 



When the canoes arrived, the 

 women were digging mandioc. 

 The captors made Hans cry out to 

 them in Brazilian, Here I am, 

 come to be youi .neat ! Out came 

 the whole population, old men, 

 children and all. Hans was deli- 

 vered over to the women, who 

 were, if possible, more cruel than 

 the men on these occasions. They 

 beat him with their fists, they 

 pulled his beard, naming at every 

 pluck and at every blow, some 

 one of their friends who had been 

 slain, and saying it was given for 

 his sake. The children also were 

 suffered to torment him at their 

 pleasure ; and all expressed their 

 joy to him at the thoughts of the 

 feast they were to have. The 

 men meantime regaled themselves 

 with potations of Icaamy. They 

 brought out the rattles, which 

 they regard as oracles, and thank-« 



