TO CARAVELLAS, &C. 



203 



renzo when he was among them. At present some of them have set- 

 tled on the Mucuri, but another part of them is said to Hve more to 

 the north, towards the river Belmonte. This tribe has, on the Rio 

 Doce, the reputation of being extremely savage, though, according to 

 other accounts, unjustly. The Malalis, now a very small tribe, re- 

 side far up the Rio Doce, near the military station of Passanha, and 

 have settled near it, under the protection of the Portuguese, for se- 

 curity against their enemies the Botocudos. The languages of these 

 two tribes, some specimens of which will be found in the Appendix to 

 the second volume of these Travels, differ greatly from those of the 

 other tribes. The five united tribes have in general, as I have said, 

 an affinity in manners and customs. They commonly bore a hole in 

 the lower lip, and, put into it a short thin piece of cane, one end of 

 which they dye red with urucu. They cut their hair short in the 

 neck and over the eyes ; some cut it close almost on the whole head. 

 Like all the Tapuyas, they paint their bodies with red and black. 

 They all believe thunder to be the voice of a powerful being, whom 

 they call Tupan ; a word common to many tribes, among others to 

 the Puris, and which was used even by the Tupi tribes on the coast. 

 Near relations never marry, but in other respects they observe no 

 rule, and entirely follow their inclinations. Young females consider 

 it as the highest mark of their favour to young men, if they paint 

 them, for which purpose they generally carry some urucu about 

 them*. The Patachos have hitherto always behaved in a hostile 

 manner on the Mucuri ; not long since they shot an Indian at the 

 door of his dwelling, on the fazenda of Mr. Joao Antonio. 



After remaining here ten days, we proceeded on our journey. 

 The night was agreeably cool, and the full moon shone in the most 

 lovely splendour when we quitted the Mucuri : her soft and friendly 



* Besides the tribes here enumerated, the Corografia Bradlica, t. II. p. 74. mentions 

 some others as inhabiting these parts, but whose names I never heard on the east coast. 



