OF LA PER.OUSE. 28 X 



I imagined that habit would have rendered 

 thefe favages excellent fwimmers ; but their mo- 

 tions are too precipitate, and differ only in that 

 refpect from thofe of our good European fvvim- 

 mers. They muff, however, have made no great 

 efforts to fupport themfelves in the water, for 

 part of their head was funk in it, fo that they 

 were obliged to keep their mouths fruit : feveral 

 fupported themfelves by the motion of their 

 feet alone, while they were fattening to the end 

 of our lines their articles of exchange. 



If we may judge of the difpofition of thefe in- 

 habitants by their conduct towards us, their man- 

 ners are extremely mild ; an air of good nature 

 was depicted in their features. Far different from 

 the favages of the little ifland which we had vi- 

 iited two days before, they gave us marks of the 

 ftricteft probity. It is afloniihing to meet with 

 fo much difference in the manners of favages a 

 fpch a fhort diftance from each other, and who 

 are equally bordering on a ftate of nature. Their 

 oppofite behaviour towards us, proceeded, per- 

 haps, from the inhabitants of the little iiland 

 having had to deal only with boats, while the latter 

 trafficked with fhips, which kept them in awe. 



The chiefs of each canoe generally made the 

 paddlers give up the articles which they received 

 from us. We faw with much concern that 

 they fometimes employed force to get from them 



our 



