THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE 235 



ages like these, who have not the least idea of the power of 

 fire-arms. In the very act of levelling his musket he appears 

 to the savage far inferior to a man armed with a bow and 

 arrow, a spear, or even a sling. Nor is it easy to teach them 

 our superiority except by striking a fatal blow. Like wild 

 beasts, they do not appear to compare numbers ; for each in- 

 dividual, if attacked, instead of retiring, will endeavour to 

 dash your brains out with a stone, as certainly as a tiger 

 under similar circumstances would tear you. Captain Fitz 

 Roy on one occasion being very anxious, from good reasons, 

 to frighten away a small party, first flourished a cutlass near 

 them, at which they only laughed; he then twice fired his 

 pistol close to a native. The man both times looked as- 

 tounded, and carefully but quickly rubbed his head; he then 

 stared awhile, and gabbled to his companions, but he never 

 seemed to think of running away. We can hardly put our- 

 selves in the position of these savages, and understand their 

 actions. In the case of this Fuegian, the possibility of such 

 a sound as the report of a gun close to his ear could never 

 have entered his mind. He perhaps literally did not for a 

 second know whether it was a sound or a blow, and there- 

 fore very naturally rubbed his head. In a similar manner, 

 when a savage sees a mark struck by a bullet, it may be some 

 time before he is able at all to understand how it is effected ; 

 for the fact of a body being invisible from its velocity would 

 perhaps be to him an idea totally inconceivable. Moreover, 

 the extreme force of a bullet, that penetrates a hard sub- 

 stance without tearing it, may convince the savage that it 

 has no force at all. Certainly I believe that many savages 

 of the lowest grade, such as these of Tierra del Fuego, have 

 seen objects struck, and even small animals killed by the 

 musket, without being in the least aware how deadly an in- 

 strument it is. 



22nd. — After having passed an unmolested night, in what 

 would appear to be neutral territory between Jemmy's tribe 

 and the people whom we saw yesterday, we sailed pleasantly 

 along. I do not know anything which shows more clearly 

 the hostile state of the different tribes, than these wide border 

 or neutral tracts. Although Jemmy Button well knew the 

 force of our party, he was, at first, unwilling to land amidst 



