166 A NATURALIST IN THE GUIANAS 



required it was necessary to display the treasures I had 

 brought in the shape of beads, gorgeously coloured cloths, 

 knives, fish-hooks, and such other articles as appeal 

 strongly to an Indian's fancy. With this end in view, 

 about a week after our arrival I got three families from 

 the Indian settlement to spend a day with us at La 

 Prision. It was amusing to observe the excitement of the 

 women, and even of the younger girls, when piece after 

 piece of bright print was produced. The sight of so 

 much finery so puzzled them that it was a long time 

 before they could make up their minds. Finally I 

 succeeded in securing the services of the three best pilots, 

 or patrons, as they are called, of the Mura settlement, 

 and they and their wives returned to their homes to await 

 the day of our departure. When I compare the pleasur- 

 able excitement shown by these people at the sight of 

 such articles as cloth and beads, with the behaviour of 

 one of their number who had been to Trinidad with me 

 after my first visit to the Caura, I cannot help thinking 

 that that lack of surprise at seeing for the first time the 

 greatest works of civilisation, which has been attributed 

 by many writers to the Indians' aversion to show surprise, 

 as being undignified, comes from an entirely different 

 cause. In the case of Maite, the Indian who remained 

 with me in Port of Spain, and whose emotions I had a 

 great many opportunities of studying, I noticed that he 

 expressed no wonder at seeing for the first time those 

 things which one would have expected to have surprised 

 him most. The steamers in the harbour, the locomotives 

 on the wharf, were barely noticed ; but when I took him 

 to one of the large shops he expressed wonder and delight 

 at the enormous quantity of cloth, beads, fish-hooks, and 

 knives which he saw. In this instance he was able to 



