222 ANIMISM AND FOLK-LORE OF GUIANA INDIANS [eth. ann. 30 



The Magic Boat 



156. On and on the party went , and in the afternoon they came to a landing where there 

 was a beautiful canoe Tpith a paddle inside it. But the old man warned tliem to leave 

 it strictly alone. "Don't." he said, ''any of you get into that boat, because if you do, 

 even without touching the paddle, you will be carried off immediately, and we shall 

 never see you again. " They all took heed, except one man, and went to sleep. This 

 one man kept awake and could not sleep: the more he thought of the boat, the greater 

 was his desire to go and have another look at it. He quickly slipped out of his ham- 

 mock, and gazing at its graceful lines, began wishing that he had so beautiful a canoe 

 for himself. He approached nearer and nearer, admiring it more and more, until he 

 finally jumped in. No sooner had he done so, than the vessel went off with him, 

 and neither boat nor occupant was seen again.' 



The Amazons 



157. Again they all started away, and after a time arrived at a landing-place whence 

 an Indian house could be seen. With the old man leading his crew Indian-file up the 

 pathway, they soon reached the house, where they asked for lodging that night. An 

 old woman came out and said, "We are all females li^ang in this settlement. " This 

 was quite true. There were several houses in the settlement, but all full of women — 

 not a boy nor a man to be seen anywhere. " All those who pass this way have to remain 

 at least a year with us before we allow them to proceed on their journey. We will do 

 our best to make you happy while you stay. Both you, old man, and every one of 

 your companions must take two or three of our women to wife. At the end of the 

 year, those of you who become fathers of girls are free to go your way. but those to 

 whom boys are born must stay with us from year to year until you beget girls. You 

 now know what is expected of you. " The boat's crew, recognizing that there was no 

 help for it, made up their minds to stay. Now the woman in charge was indeed a sly 

 old dame. To every hammock she attached a rattle, and then kept awake all night. 

 If she heard the rattle sounding frequently, she knew that everything was as it should 

 be. But when the rattle remained silent, she would proceed to that particular ham- 

 mock [atque commonuit niarem ut neUgeret ofBcium suum]. The men had only to 

 give good cause for the rattles shaking all night. 



Of a morning the females went hunting with the bows and arrows, or else they went 

 fishing, just reversing the usual order of things, and leaving the men in the hammocks 

 to rest. It was naturally many years before the crew finally got away from this settle- 

 ment.^ 



1 Here follow a whole series of exploits, all detailing the results consequent on disobeying the old man's 

 instructions. They arrived at a place where there was a field full of ripe plantains, of which they are told 

 they might pick two each, but no more. Among the crew was a greedy man, who did eat more, and at 

 night the rest of the party were awakened by the noise caused by his grinding his teeth so loudly: looking 

 into the hammock whence the noise proceeded, they saw that its occupant had been changed into a tiger. 

 At another place they passed a house where some cassava cakes had been left to dry on the troolie roof: 

 there were no occupants anywhere to be seen, and the old man gave orders that the cassava was not to be 

 touched. He, being a piai-man, could distinguish the Yawahus (Spirits), who were invisible to the 

 remainder of the crew. One of the latter, however, took one of the cakes away, but he had no sooner pro- 

 ceeded a few steps, than he suddenly disappeared: he had joined the Spirits. Another scene shows the 

 search party arriving in the country of the Baboon Tribe, where the old man warns them not to laugh — 

 laughter would indeed prove the death of them. The Baboons performed all thedirtiest tricks imaginable 

 to excite the risibilities of the boat's crew: one of these yielded to the temptation and was made into pepper 

 pot. And so on. 



' For a further reference to Amazons, see Sect. S96. 



