MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 



455 



to subjection in the middle of 

 the seventeenth century, has the 

 Cumanagotoes toward the west, 

 the Guaraounoes toward the east, 

 and the Caribbees toward the 

 south. It occupies a space along 

 the elevated mountains of the 

 Cocollar and the Guacharo, the 

 banks of the Guarapiche, of the 

 Rio Colorado, of the Areo, and 

 of the Cano of Caripe. Accord- 

 ing to a statistical survey made 

 with great care by the father 

 Prefect,* there were in the Mis- 

 sions of the Arragonese Capuchins 

 of Cumana — 



Nineteen villages of Missions, 

 of which the oldest was established 

 in 1728; containing one thousand 

 four hundred and sixty-five fami- 

 lies, andsix thousandfour hundred 

 and thirty-three persons ; sixteen 

 villages de doctrina, of which the 

 oldest dates in 1660; containing 

 one thousand seven hundred and 

 sixty-six families, and eight thou- 

 sand one hundred and seventy 

 persons.f 



These Missions suffered greatly 

 in 1681, 1697, and 1720, from 

 the invasions of the Caribbees, 

 then independent, who burnt 

 whole villages. From 1730 to 

 1736, the population diminished 

 from the ravages of the small- 

 pox, a disease always more fatal 

 to the copper-coloured Indians, 

 than to the whites. Many of the 

 Guaraounoes, who had been 



long been captain of a ship; and be- 

 fore he became a monk, bore the 

 name of Tiburlio Redin. 



* Fray Francisco de Chiprana 

 (manuscript memoir). 



t Cultivated \2inQ (lahramas), be- 

 longing to these thirty-five villages, 

 655 1 ubnudas. The number of cows 

 in 1792 amounted only to J883, 



assembled together, fled back 

 again to their marshes. Fourteen 

 old Missions remained deserted, 

 and have not been rebuilt. The 

 Chayraas are in general short ; 

 and they appear so particularly, 

 when compared, I shall not say 

 with their neighbours the Car- 

 ribbees, or with the Payaguas 

 or Guayquilits * of Paraguay, 

 equally remarkable for their sta- 

 ture, but with the ordinary natives 

 of America. The common stature 

 of a Chayma is 1*57 met. or four 

 feet ten inches [five feet two 

 inches nearly], their body is 

 thick set, shoulders extremely 

 broad, and breast flat. All their 

 limbs are round and fleshy. Their 

 colour is that of the whole Ame- 

 rican race, from the cold table 

 lands of Quito and New Grenada 

 to the burning plains of the Ama- 

 zons. It is no longer changed 

 by the varied influence of climate; 

 it is connected with organic dis- 

 positions, which for ages past 

 have been unalterably transmitted 

 from generation to generation. 

 If the uniform tint of the skin be 

 more coppery and redder toward 

 the north, it is on the contrary 

 among the Chaymas of a dull 

 brown inclining towards tawny. 

 The denomination of copper co- 

 loured \_rouges-cuivres'] men could 

 never have originated in equi- 

 noxial America to designate the 

 natives. 



* The ordinary stature of the 

 Guayquilits or Mbayas, who live be- 

 tween the 20lh and 22nd degrees of 

 south latitude, is, according to Az- 

 zara 1.84, met. or five feet eight in- 

 ches [six feet and half an inch Eng.] 

 The Payaguas, equally tall, have 

 given their name to Fayaguay, or 

 Paraguay. 



The 



