310 A NATURALIST'S WANDERINGS 



profuse ; but they take little or no care of it, simply twisting 

 it into a knot behind, where it is transfixed with a neatly 

 ornamented comb. They never dye it, that apparently being 

 the prerogative of the male sex alone. 



The men vary very greatly in stature : some are short and 

 thick- set, and reach little over 5 feet, if they even attain that 

 height. The greater proportion are tall, well formed men of 

 about 5 feet 11 inches, but some stand well over 6 feet — 

 splendid looking fellows with perfect frames and magnificent 

 muscles. In their walk they stride forward in a jerky, 

 bouncing style, whicli gives to the head and their hair 

 when combed out behind, a quick nodding motion. Their 

 whole motion is full of grace, but so proportioned are they that 

 it really seems scarcely possible for them to move ungrace- 

 fully. As youths they are splendid examples of the human 

 form ; as children not a few of both sexes are really pretty 

 in face and figure, but unfortunately they are frequently dis- 

 figured by an enormously distended stomach and abdomen, 

 which induces a sad and sickly expression of countenance. 

 The women vary greatly also ; some being short and thick-set, 

 scarcely reaching 5 feet, while others are as tall as the taller 

 of the men. Many of the girls are handsome, and a few are 

 even beauties, with pensive eyes, delicate features, and fault- 

 less in contour of body and limb ; but as they pass into the 

 married state their features become coarser, yet on the whole 

 neither sex can be called ugly. 



The colour of their smooth soft skin is a rich chocolate brown ; 

 but here and there among them occurs a quite black-skinned 

 individual, who is at once remarkable as being an exception to 

 the prevailing colour. In feature the forehead retreats slightly 

 from the prominent superciliary ridges, as seen in profile. En 

 face it is somewhat flat. la the malar region, in some the 

 cheek-bones are very prominent ; while in others, again, this 

 feature is as little observable. The brows are low, but not con- 

 spicuously hairy. The eyes are small and narrow, and in some 

 of them a slight obliquity is observable, while, on the other hand, 

 there are those with the eyeball very prominent. There are two 

 distinct forms of nose among them : one in which that feature is 

 very low between the eyes, advancing with a straight dorsum to 

 the retrousse tip, which discloses both nostrils conspicuously, 



