40 



INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 12 



The use of jringa is almost universal among 

 the men. A villager well acquainted in the com- 

 munity luiows only two men who do not use it. 

 ■'Pinffa^s my drink," remarked a villager. "Not 

 this sweet stuff. Only pinga. Drink until one 

 keels over, until one wants to fight, not that ! But 

 taken as it should be taken, pinga is the best drink 

 in the world." 



Women also drink, but only occasionally and 

 never in public. "You may be sure," said a villager 

 who sells pinga, "that a woman who drinks in the 

 sight of others is a prostitute." No woman is a 

 habitual drunkard, although local residents tell 

 of a wife who, worried over her husband's be- 

 havior with another woman, "drank herself to 

 death" some years ago. Only an occasional man 

 objects to his wife drinking modei'ately. Children 

 are given pinga at an early age. "When they ask 

 for it," a parent will say, "we give them a few 

 drops." 



Pinga is sold at the village stores, the bakery, 

 and two iotequins^^- either in bottles for taking 

 home or in small "drinks" for consumption on the 

 l^remises. The hoteguins handle nothing but 

 liquor and soft drinks. Both are open daily. To 

 the larger one, the term "bar," imported from the 

 cities, is now being applied. In it, there are three 

 small tables where customers may be seated while 

 they play cards, and drink. There are six chairs. 

 Regularly kept in stock are the following drinks : 



Pinga 



Pinga, with mint 

 White beer 

 Black beer 

 Grape wine 

 Pineapple wine 

 Quinado (wine with qui- 

 nine) 

 Vermouth 



Anisette 



Bitters 



Liqueur of cocoa 



Agtia tonica (carbonated 

 water with quinine) 



Guarana 



Refrencos ( apple, tange- 

 rine, pineapple) " 



Lemon soda 



Large quantities of pinga are consumed in the 

 community. The owners of the three stores esti- 

 mate that they sell each month, respectively, 200, 

 150, and 120 liters; the owners of the hotequitt.s, 

 150 and GO liters; the owner of the bakery, 100 

 liters. This represents a total of ai^proximately 

 180 gallons per month for a population of a little 

 over 2700 persons. Although these estimates 

 may be somewhat exaggerated, they are consid- 



erably below another estimate, made by a village 

 official and confirmed by other persons at that time 

 present. It is at least certain that rather large 

 quantities of pinga are regularly consumed in the 

 community. 



Consumption is heaviest on week ends, approxi- 

 mately as much pinga being sold on Saturday and 

 Sunday as during the remainder of the week. 

 It is also heavy on rainy days, when many farmers 

 come to the village to pass the hours with their 

 friends. "If you can't drink a drop or two in the 

 village," one hears it said on a rainy day, "what 

 are you going to do?" During "the time of the 

 rains," consumption is always heavier than during 

 "the time of the drought." 



Drinking is almost entirely a social act. Only 

 two men in the community are known to drink 

 alone and this behavior is frowned upon. There 

 is considerable "treating" of friends and ac- 

 quaintances in an established, ceremonial man- 

 ner."* To become drunk and noisy or quarrel- 

 some, however, is severely condemned. To spend 

 on drink for oneself or others money which is 

 especially needed for other purposes is also cen- 

 sured, even by the owners of stores and hoteqwins. 

 There is only one habitual drunkard in the com- 

 munity. Three other men drink rather heavily. 

 One of the latter, however, is commended by 

 local inhabitants when he periodically "goes a 

 year without drinking at all." 



A favorite drink at festas, especially that of 

 Sao Joao, is quenfdo. It is made by adding about 

 half as much water to a quantity of pinga and 

 boiling with a little ginger and cinnamon. It is 

 served hot from the fire. A favorite drink at 

 weddings is pau a pique, sometimes also called 

 temperada. The principal ingredient also is 

 pinga, flavored and colored with a bit of aniline, 

 clove, cinnamon, anise, currant, or capUe "'^ sirup, 

 to which is also added a sirup made of sugar and 

 water, hot from the fire. 



The use of tobacco is almost universal among 

 the men and quite common among the women. 

 The preferred form is the cigarette, usually pre- 

 pai'ed as needed from shavings whittled with a 

 pocket knife from a twist of tobacco. Corn husks 

 are used for papers. Several men smoke pipes, as 

 also do almost all the older women, especially on 



^ Since this was written, anotlier small boteguim has been 

 opened in the village. 

 »3 Soft drinks. 



« See Etiquette, p. 122. 

 »= (.Adiantum sp.). 



