﻿944 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  blue, 
  the 
  fruit 
  of 
  the 
  jagua 
  palm 
  (kii), 
  probably 
  Genipa 
  sp. 
  A 
  woven 
  

   fabric 
  is 
  made 
  black 
  by 
  burying 
  it 
  for 
  several 
  days 
  with 
  clay 
  and 
  

   branches 
  of 
  a 
  Phyllanthus 
  which 
  they 
  call 
  "sal." 
  

  

  They 
  make 
  woolen 
  bags 
  by 
  hand, 
  using 
  a 
  kind 
  of 
  crochet 
  technique 
  

   without 
  needles, 
  and 
  decorate 
  them 
  with 
  rectangular 
  and 
  rhomboid 
  

   figures. 
  Some 
  bags 
  are 
  made 
  of 
  hemp 
  (fique), 
  in 
  which 
  case 
  the 
  

   stitches 
  are 
  larger 
  and 
  the 
  article 
  has 
  greater 
  elasticity. 
  

  

  Weapons. 
  — 
  For 
  weapons, 
  the 
  Pdez 
  used 
  large, 
  thick 
  lances 
  of 
  black 
  

   or 
  chonta 
  palm, 
  20 
  to 
  25 
  palms 
  or 
  more 
  long, 
  clubs 
  or 
  macanas, 
  stones 
  

   thrown 
  with 
  slings, 
  large 
  rocks 
  rolled 
  down 
  from 
  heights, 
  spear 
  throw- 
  

   ers 
  like 
  those 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  Chibcha, 
  and 
  shields 
  of 
  jaguar, 
  puma, 
  or 
  

   bear 
  skin. 
  The 
  Pdez 
  quickly 
  adopted 
  iron 
  arms 
  from 
  the 
  Spaniards, 
  

   and 
  in 
  the 
  last 
  wars 
  of 
  the 
  Conquest 
  they 
  used 
  steel 
  swords 
  and 
  knives. 
  

   In 
  a 
  recently 
  discovered 
  grave 
  were 
  copper 
  bells, 
  a 
  golden 
  breastplate, 
  

   shield 
  bars 
  of 
  tumbaga, 
  a 
  Spanish 
  dagger, 
  and 
  a 
  curved 
  knife 
  of 
  the 
  

   Arabian 
  or 
  north 
  African 
  type 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  conquistadors. 
  

  

  Today 
  the 
  Pdez 
  use 
  the 
  club 
  or 
  macana, 
  ordinary 
  guns, 
  machetes, 
  

   knives, 
  and, 
  for 
  killing 
  birds, 
  the 
  blowgun. 
  

  

  Fire 
  making. 
  — 
  Fires 
  are 
  generally 
  made 
  today 
  with 
  flint 
  and 
  steel, 
  

   but 
  some 
  Indians 
  use 
  modern 
  matches. 
  For 
  both 
  heating 
  and 
  cook- 
  

   ing, 
  the 
  fire 
  is 
  made 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  in 
  the 
  main 
  house, 
  surrounded 
  

   by 
  stones 
  which 
  help 
  support 
  the 
  pots. 
  It 
  is 
  covered 
  at 
  night, 
  and 
  

   almost 
  never 
  goes 
  out. 
  

  

  Illumination 
  is 
  provided 
  not 
  only 
  by 
  the 
  fire 
  but 
  by 
  candles 
  made 
  of 
  

   wax 
  from 
  the 
  wax 
  palm 
  and 
  from 
  seeds 
  of 
  a 
  wild 
  laurel. 
  The 
  latter 
  

   are 
  cooked 
  and 
  pressed 
  in 
  a 
  bag 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  wax 
  drips 
  into 
  a 
  half 
  

   calabash 
  or 
  pot 
  to 
  form 
  a 
  semispherical 
  lump. 
  It 
  is 
  melted 
  to 
  make 
  

   candles 
  with 
  cotton 
  wicks. 
  The 
  Pdez 
  use 
  these 
  themselves 
  and 
  also 
  

   sell 
  them, 
  for 
  they 
  are 
  superior 
  to 
  candles 
  made 
  of 
  animal 
  tallow. 
  A 
  

   cruder 
  means 
  of 
  lighting 
  consists 
  of 
  transfixing 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  

   "higuerilla" 
  seeds 
  on 
  a 
  long, 
  thin 
  bamboo 
  splinter. 
  When 
  the 
  splinter 
  

   is 
  laid 
  horizontally 
  and 
  lighted, 
  the 
  first 
  seed 
  burns 
  strongly, 
  after 
  

   which 
  the 
  flame 
  passes 
  from 
  seed 
  to 
  seed, 
  lasting 
  some 
  15 
  minutes 
  and 
  

   throwing 
  a 
  fair 
  light 
  a 
  few 
  feet 
  around. 
  

  

  COMMERCE 
  

  

  Each 
  week 
  a 
  market 
  is 
  held 
  in 
  the 
  municipio 
  or 
  in 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  small 
  

   native 
  villages 
  (pis. 
  190, 
  191). 
  The 
  Indians 
  sell 
  vegetables, 
  tortillas, 
  

   eggs, 
  chickens, 
  and 
  laurel 
  wax, 
  and 
  buy 
  salt, 
  brown 
  sugar, 
  and 
  espe- 
  

   cially 
  lime 
  (mambe) 
  to 
  be 
  chewed 
  with 
  coca. 
  Each 
  product 
  has 
  a 
  

   price 
  in 
  Colombian 
  money, 
  whether 
  by 
  quantity 
  or 
  weight. 
  The 
  unit 
  

   of 
  weight 
  is 
  called 
  an 
  u 
  egg, 
  ,f 
  and 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  equals 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  a 
  

   chicken 
  egg. 
  After 
  his 
  few 
  customary 
  transactions, 
  paid 
  for 
  either 
  in 
  

   cash 
  or 
  in 
  terms, 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  future 
  coffee 
  crop 
  is 
  mortgaged 
  to 
  the 
  

  

  