OF THE AMAZON. 
501 
bad spirit is killing the moon, and tliey make all the 
noise they can to frighten him away. 
One of their most singular superstitions is about the 
musical instruments they use at their festivals, which 
they call the Jurupari music. They consist of eight or 
sometimes twelve pipes, or trumpets, made of bamboos 
or palm-stems hollowed out, some with trumpet-shaped 
mouths of bark and with mouth-holes of clay and leaf. 
Each pair of instruments gives a distinct note, and they 
produce a rather agreeable concert, something resembling 
clarionets and bassoons. These instruments however are 
with them such a mystery, that no woman must ever see 
them, on pain of death. They are always kept in some 
igarip4 at a distance from the malocca, whence they are 
brought on particnlar occasions : when the sound of 
them is heard approaching, every woman retires into the 
woods, or into some adjoining shed, which they generally 
have near, and remains invisible till after the ceremony 
is over, when the instruments are taken away to their 
hiding-place, and the women come out of their conceal- 
ment. Should any female be supposed to have seen 
them, either by accident or design, she is invariably ex- 
ecuted, generally by poison, and a father will not hesi- 
tate to sacrifice his daughter, or a husband his wife, on 
such an occasion. 
They have many other prejudices with regard to wo- 
men. They believe that if a woman, during her preg- 
nancy, eats of any meat, any other animal partaking of 
it will suffer : if a domestic animal or tame bird, it will 
die ; if a dog, it will be for the future incapable of hunt- 
ing ; and even a man will be unable to shoot that par- 
