q68 
The Discoveries 
of tranfporting if in the W ool to Europe, which renders 
the Profit Yery inconfiderable to the Planters, it might 
furnifh all Europe, without coiling the Dutch any other 
Trouble than purchafing it of the Indians, for very in- 
confiderable ToySj and Haberdaihery Ware of little Va- 
lue, The Indians efteeming a Grain of Cryftal,, to adorn 
their Necks or Ears, as much as a Diamond of the fame 
Bignefs is valued among the Europeans and if the Difor- 
ders which have happened in the European Settletnents 
in Guiana, at feveral Times, had not hindered the eila- 
blifhing a regular Commerce, this advantageous Trade 
Would have been already fettled, and a vail Number of 
People enriched by it;, but in a more peculiar Manner the 
Inhabitants of Cayenne, becaufe of the Situation of their 
Ifiand, their Sea-port Town, and great Intereil with the 
Indians. 
The Pete is an Herb that can be peeled, as Hemp and 
Nettles with us, but the Threads are finer than Silk, and 
would have long iince fupplanted it, if it had been allow- 
ed to be tranfporred into Europe. The Vanilla is a Weed 
that creeps up Trees as Ivy does •, the Leaves are of a 
bright Green, long, ilrait, thick, and pointed at the 
Ends, When it has been feven Years fet in the Ground, 
it begins to bear a kind of Huiks, full of an oily Matter, 
and Seed much fmaller than that of Poppy, which they 
life there to perfume Liquors and Tobacco, and is ufed 
in fome Parts of Europe, in Chocolate, The Papaye is 
a thick Fruit, tailing fomewhat like a Cucumber, of a 
round Shape, the Stem tall, but flender, with large 
Leaves, cleft like Vine-leaves ; the Tree is hollow, and 
grows fifteen Foot high in one Year, The Accajou-ap- 
ple is long, thick, and of an Orange-red ; it has a fharp 
Taile, and is commonly eaten baked. At the End of 
this Fruit is a green Nut, which tafles like SpaniJJo Nuts 
GT Filberts, much in the Shape of a little Sheep’s Kidney •, 
the Shell whereof is oily the Oil ilaining the Skin 
black, fo as it does not rub off in a long Time, and is 
medicinal and very laxative. The Plant is a round Sort 
of Tree like a Chefnut Tree, and the Leaves in Shape 
and Form refembling thofe of the Bay-Laurel. The 
Wood is very fine, proper to make all Sorts of Houfiiold 
Goods. The Indians make their long Canoes, which 
they call Piraguas, of it j though thefe are commonly 
forty or fifty Feet long. It has been obferved that 
wherever the Juice of this Apple falls, the Stain cannot 
be taken away till the Seafon of the Apple is quite over. 
We will now proceed from the Country and its Pro- 
duce, to the People, of whom the Writers fpeak to 
this Purpofe : The Indians are generally red, and of a 
middling or rather low Stature, of a robuft ftrong Confti- 
tution, having black, long, and lank Hair, going ail naked, 
their Privy-Parts covered only with a little Cotton-wool 
hanging down, to the Legs r The Women are fliorter 
generally than tliQ Men, and of a red Colour, but tole- 
rably handfome ; their Eyes for the moll part blue, and 
very regular Features in their Faces, and well framed -, 
they ufe a Piece of Cloth about fix Inches fquare, which 
they call Camifa, ufually wove in Stripes of divers Co- 
lours, and efpecially white, which is the moft valued 
among them. 
The Men cut off their Beards, dye their Faces with 
Rocou, and cover their Arms and Faces with feveral 
Folds of the kind of Cloth before-mentioned. They wear, 
by way of Ornament, a fort of Crown, or Garland, of 
Feathers of fundry Colours, and bore a Hole between 
their Noftrils, where they hang a little Piece of Money or 
a large green Stone, or rather Cryftal, brought from the 
River of the Amazons, which they put a great Value on. 
Thefe Indians bxq generally of fuch a robuft Conftitution, 
and live fo long that they reckon a Man dies young at a 
hundred Years of Age. They are endued with pretty 
good Senfe, their long Lives ferving them to gain Ex- 
perience, and improve their Judgments in fuch Things as 
are within the Reach of the Light of Nature ; they are 
Judicious, ingenious, patient and fkilfiil in fifhing and 
hunting, and fpend the greateft Part of their Time in 
thofe Exercifes, and fpare no Pains to get their Living, 
being more inclined to Peace than War, which yet they 
engage in, either upon a juft Quarrel, or Revenge, in 
and Settlements Book t. 
Point of Honour. They perform their Promifes to each 
other exadtly, and will not do to others what they would 
not have others do to them. 
It once happened that feveral of thofe Nations near the 
oi Amazons tntQrtdi into aLeague againft another, and' 
■were, about a Year in making great Preparations for 
War, which at laft ended in one Night’s Expedition, 
by furprizing tv/o or three Carbets, fo they call their 
Hamlets or Villages, where they burnt about an hundred 
Perfons of all Sexes and Ages, and returned home as 
proud and fierce as if they had conquered the whole 
Country ; other Wars are feldom concluded till they 
make forty or fifty of their Enemies Prifoners, whom 
afterwards they either kill, boil in their Pots, and eat 
as the Noragues do, or fell them to the Europeans at the 
Coaft, for Slaves. This Barbarity feems in them to be 
rather the Effedt of an ancient ill Cuftom, to eat the 
Flefh of their Enemies, than a natural Difpofition for 
they feem to be alliamed of it, v/hen the Europeans re- 
prefent to them, in their Language, That by the Laws 
of God we are forbid to kill an Enemy when he is taken 
Prifoner, and much more to eat him. And they did not 
offer to reply to it, and fome of the Alquas have appear- 
ed full of Indignation when they heard that fome Gaiihis 
infinuated, they would be roafted by them, if the Eu- 
ropeans ilrould venture to travel through tireir Country. 
Whence it may be inferred, that though this barbarous 
inhumane Praftice is fo much eftablifhed and received 
among thefe Afoquas and Noragues, yet it feems to be 
no difficult Matter to reftrain them from it. 
They are generally great Eaters, and drink little or 
nothing at their ordinary Meals till they have done, and 
then commonly drink one Draught ; but when they 
affemble together for warlike Enterprizes, or to begin a 
Canoe, or to launch it, or to admit one into their Council 
after they have expofed him to feveral hard Trials, they make 
extraordinary Rejoicings, which frequently hold three or 
four Days, continuing till they have drank up all their 
Liquors ; for upon thofe Occafions they make three or 
four different forts of Drink, fome of which become very 
ftrong by Fermentation, as that which they call Palinot, 
which they make of Caffibi, that is, baked more than ordi- 
nary ^ their common Diet is that they call Caffibi, being 
Cakes made of the Mandioca Root baked on the Embers, 
as alfo Indian Wheat, Fifh, and Fruit. 
Thefe Particulars ftiew, that the Accounts formerly 
publifhed, when it was propofed to fix an Englijh Colony 
on thefe Coafts, were perfecftly well founded, and that 
there are no very confiderable Obftacles to be furmounted 
by the Dutch, in order to render Surinam, and the reft of 
the Places they poffefs on the Coaft of South America, 
much more advantageous than they are at prefent ; the 
greateft Difficulty is, to quiet the Minds of the Natives ; 
the greateft Part of the Nations in Guiana having con- 
ceived an exceffive Hatred to the Dutch, which is be- 
lieved to arife chiefly from the Stories told them by the 
French Portuguefe Miffionaries, who make no fort of 
Scruple of affirming any thing that may ferve their Turns, 
and hinder the Indians from converfmg or trading with 
Pleretics. We are told that the Natives pretend to this 
Day a great Efteem and Veneration for the Englijh ■, and 
that they tell a great many romantic Stories about them,, 
which are fuppofed to be owing to the Correfpondencies 
formerly fettled there by Sir Walter Raleigh. In a Time 
of profound Peace perhaps it might not be impoffible to 
attempt, and fucceed in^ fixing an Englijh Colony upon 
one of the two great Rivers, by v,^hi£h Guiana is bound- 
ed •, at leaft it is right to keep alive the Memory of our 
having a Right to do this, and that we have a much 
better Title to this large and agreeable Country than any 
other Nation in Europe. 
5. The Ifiand of T ohaga lies in the Latitude of 1 1 
Degrees 1 5 Minutes North, and is the moft to the Eaft 
of all the Elands called Antilles: It is about twelve Leagues 
in Length, four in Breadth, and thirty in Circumference. 
It originally belonged to us •, for in 1628 we find that 
Ydm<^Charles I. granted it, together with Trinity Ifiand, 
Barhida, and St. Bernard, to Philip Earl of Pembroke 
and Montgomery ; but it does not appear that ever any 
Settle- 
f 
