Cap. JX. 



The Caribby-Illands. 



*57 



Royal dignity , but a great Gardiner's Pruning-hook, which 

 he always carries about him. 



The women among the Maldevefes, make about a dozen 

 holes in each ear, at which they fatten little gilt nails, and 

 fbmetimes Pearls and Precious Stones : The Ladies of Madd- 

 gafcar and Braftl make a hole as big as that a man may thruft 

 his thumb through it in the lower part of the ear, at which 

 they hang pendants of wood and bone : And the Peruvians, 

 under the reign of their Kings the Tncas, were accuftomed to 

 make in their ears a hole of an incredible bignefs, at which 

 they fattened chains of a quarter of an Ell in length, with 

 Pendants of Cold at the bottom, of an extraordinary big- 

 nefs : But our Caribbians are content with a fmall hole, accor- 

 ding to the European modern the fofteft part of the ear,through 

 which they put the bones of certain Fifties very fmooth, pie- 

 ces of that kind of Tortoife (hells which they call Carets 5 and 

 fince the Chriftians came among them. Buckles of Gold, Sil- 

 ver 3 Latten, at which they hang very fair Pendants.- They 

 know how to diftinguifti between thofe that are right and the 

 counterfeit, but they are moft taken with fuch as are made of 

 Chrjrftal, Amber, Coral, or fome other rich material, provi- 

 ded the buckle, and all the other workmanftiip be of Gold : 

 Some have endeavoured to put upon them fuch as were only 

 Copper gilt, and would have perfwaded them they were 

 Gold 5 but they refufed them, faying that they intended to de- 

 ceive them, and that it was but Kettle-gold: and to make a 

 tryal thereof, they were wont to put them into their mouths : 

 So great is their experience in thefe things beyond thofe of 

 Afadagafiar, who when the Hollanders coming thither in the 

 year M DC XLV. offered them a Silver-fpoon, put it between 

 their teeth, and finding it was hard refus'd it, defiringone of 

 Tin .* Whence it may eafily be imagined what account they 

 made of Tin, fince they gave a young maid in exchange for a 

 Spoon of that mettal. Herodotus affirms that heretofore among 

 the Ethiopians, Copper was in better efteem than Gold, the 

 ufe whereof was fo vile, that they bound Malefactors with 

 chains of Gold. r 



The Caribbians dofbmetimes alfomake holes through their 

 lips, and put through them a kind of little Bodkin, which is 

 made of the bone of fome beaft or fifh : Nay they bore through 

 the fpace between the Noftrils 5 that they may hang there fome 

 Ring, a grain of Chryftal, or fome fuch toy.* The necks and 

 arms of our Caribbians have alfb their refpedtive ornaments 5 

 for they have their Neck-laces and Bracelets of Amber, Coral 5 

 or fome other glittering material : The men wear Bracelets on 

 the brawny part of the arm, neer the moulder} but the wo- 

 men wear theirs about the wrifts They adorn alfo their legs 

 with Chains of Rajfada , inftead of Garters : Thofe among 



L 1 



them 



