34 
Botanical Reminisce^ices. 
fell lo tlie ground, lie would be greeted bj^ a general scornful 
laughter, in ridicule of his awkwardness, V^ery often we 
mixed in the circle of the players, and were, as a rule, the 
object of the jeering laughter of young and old. 
No sooner had the sun disappeared than the several dances 
were proceeded with, and every one was full of life and 
cheerfulness ; even the austere and grave features, so common 
to age in the American race, dh appeared as if by magic, 
and the smiling faces of the old men rested on the wonderful, 
quick movements of the younger ones, revelling in the 
remembrance of the past ; the fair sex, who did not take 
part in the dances, at the same time criticising the awkvfard, 
and praising the active. 
In the so-called monkey dance they imitated the capers 
and leaps of a flock of monkeys to such a perfection, that no 
one could but believe he looked at his Darwinian brethren^ 
which kept us in a continued roar of laughter. In the tiger 
dance the most powerful of the young Indians was leading 
the line of animals they represented, two other Indians, who 
represented tigers, in imitating the movements of these 
animals, had, during the dance, to carry one out of the line 
by cunning or force, and to bring him to a place indicated. 
The dance was continued until the last of the Indians had 
been caught, v/ho was then with shoutings of joy greeted as 
conqueror. 
|s Their common dance was the same we had observed among 
other tribes. A monotonous* song coming from hundreds of 
voices regulated the line. The subject of their songs was 
mostly a glorification of the wonders of the surrounding 
scenery ; but as often the subject of their poetical effusions 
was a description of our demeanor towards them, or of our 
figures, or an account of the purpose of our travelling in their 
country, as far as they were acquainted with it. This kind 
of improvisation is not restricted to their brethren of the north,, 
but is also customary in the south of America. . 
TV^ith little modulation of the voice they give descriptive 
songs ^ concerning their deeds in war and hunting, yielding 
sometimes to an inexhaustible effusion of humor or satire, of 
which mode of expressing their minds the Indians are par- 
ticularly fond. 
The introduction and finale of such festivities is a deafening 
shout, similar to the barking of dogs, which has for its pur- 
pose the driving away of the mischievous spirits. 
