TRAVELS IN 
368 
of the young men prefent, excite them to emula- 
tion, and infpire them with ambition. 
This prologue being at an end, the muficians 
began, both vocal and inftrumental; when prefently 
a company of girls, hand in hand, dre fifed in clean 
white robes and ornamented with beads, bracelets 
and a profufion of gay ribbands, entering the door, 
immediately began to fing their refponfes in a gen- 
tle, low, and fweet voice, and formed themlelves 
in a femicircular file or line, in two ranks, back to 
back, facing the fpedfators and muficians, moving 
flowly round and round. This continued about a 
quarter of an hour, when we were furprifed by a 
fudden very loud and flirill whoop, uttered at once 
by a company of young fellows, who came in brifkly 
after one another, with rackets or hurls in one hand. 
Thefe champions likewife were well drefifed, paint- 
ed, and ornamented with filver bracelets, gorgets 
and wampum, neatly ornamented with moccafins 
and high waving plumes in their diadems : they 
immediately formed themfelves in a femicircular 
rank alfo, in front of the girls, when thefe changed 
their order, and formed a fingle rank parallel to the 
men, raifing their voices in refponfes to the tunes 
of the young champions, the femicircles continually 
moving round. There was fome thing lingular and 
diverting in their ftep and motions, and I imagine 
not to be learned to exadtnefs but with great atten- 
tion and perfeverance. The ftep, if it can be fo 
termed, was performed after the following manner; 
firft, the motion began at one end of the femicircle, 
gently riling up and down upon their toes and 
heels alternately, when the firft was up on tip-toe, 
the next began to raife the heel, and by the time 
the firft refted again on the heel, the fecond was 
on 
