252 TRAVELS IN BRAZIL. 



has one begun to question him about his language, 

 when he grows impatient, complains of head-ache, 

 and shows that he is unable to bear this exertion. 

 The great number of different languages which we 

 meet with among the American Indians, is extremely 

 remarkable ; for they cannot properly be referred as 

 dialects to certain original languages, because they 

 have very few synonymous radical words *, and in 

 general differ so widely from each- other, that it 

 frequently happens that Indians of different tribes 

 do not understand each other, and must converse 

 together by signs, as well as the Europeans who 

 have any intercourse with them. Their languages 

 extend only to the denomination of the objects im- 

 mediately surrounding them, and often express the 

 predominant quality of things by imitative sounds 

 {onomatoijceia). They distinguish with great preci- 

 sion the internal and external parts of the body, 



* We have collected vocabularies of the following nations, 

 which we shall publish in the appendix of the fourth volume. 

 Coroados, Coropos, Puris, Botocudos, Macuanis, Penhams 

 (Panhems or Panhamis), in Minas Geraes ; Machacalis, Ca- 

 poxos, Cataxos, Comanaxos on the frontier of Porto- Seguro, 

 Bahia, and Minas ; Cariris, Sabujas, Camacaens, Masacaras in 

 Bahia ; Geicos in Piauhi; Apogenicrans, Pimenteiras and 

 Purecamecrans in Maranhao ; Muras, Mundrucus, Uainumas, 

 Manaxos, Canna-mirim, Passes, Juri-Tocana-Tapuiija, Juri- 

 Taboca-Tapuvija, Culinos, Catuquinas, Uairu^u, Camp^vas, 

 Marauas, Araquaxus, Cauixanas, Mariat6s, Maxurunas, Tocu- 

 nas, Manaos, Bares, Cariays in Para and Rio Negro; and 

 lastly wepos sess the vocabularies of the Lingua Geral of Brazil 

 (that of the Tupinambas) and that of the Incas. 



