60 RIO TO TERRA DEL FUEGO CHAP, in 



learn but two of their words : halldcd, which signifies beads, 

 at least so they always said when they wanted them, instead 

 of the ribbons or other trifles which I offered them ; and 

 ooudd, which signifies water, for so they said when we took 

 them ashore from the ship and by signs asked where water 

 was ; they at the same time made the sign of drinking 

 and pointed to our casks, as well as to the place where we 

 put them ashore, where we found plenty of water. 



Of civil government I saw no signs ; no one seemed to 

 be more respected than another; nor did I ever see the 

 least appearance of quarrelling between any two of them. 

 Eeligion also they seemed to be without, unless those people 

 who made the strange noises I have mentioned before were 

 priests or exorcists ; but this is merely conjectural. 



Their food, so far as we saw, was either seals or shell- 

 fish. How they took the former we never knew, but the 

 latter were collected by the women, whose business it seemed 

 to be to attend at low water with a basket in one hand, a 

 stick with a point and a barb in the other, and a satchel 

 on their backs. They loosened the limpets with the stick, 

 and put them into the basket, which, when full, was emptied 

 into the satchel. 



Their arms consisted of bows and arrows, the former 

 neatly enough made, the latter more neatly than any I 

 have seen, polished to the highest degree, and headed either 

 with glass or flint ; this was the only neat thing they 

 had, and the only thing they seemed to take any pains 

 about. 



That these people have before had intercourse with 

 Europeans was very plain from many instances, first, from 

 the European commodities, of which we saw sail-cloth, 

 brown woollen cloth, beads, nails, glass, etc., especially the 

 last (which they used for pointing their arrows in con- 

 siderable quantity), and also from the confidence they 

 immediately put in us at our first meeting, though well 

 acquainted with our superiority, and from the knowledge 

 they had of the use of our guns, which they very soon 

 showed by making signs to me to shoot a seal. They 



