2 20 
TIERRA BEL FUEGO 
CHAP. 
with the officer on watch, would say, “ Me see ship, me no 
tell” 
It was interesting to watch the conduct of the savages, 
when we landed, towards Jemmy Button : they immediately 
perceived the difference between him and ourselves, and held 
much conversation one with another on the subject. The old 
man addressed a long harangue to Jemmy, which it seems was 
to invite him to stay with them. But Jemmy understood very 
little of their language, and was, moreover, thoroughly ashamed 
of his countrymen. When York Minster afterwards came on 
shore, they noticed him in the same way, and told him he 
ought to shave ; yet he had not twenty dwarf hairs on his face, 
whilst we all wore our untrimmed beards. They examined 
the colour of his skin, and compared it with ours. One of our 
arms being bared, they expressed the liveliest surprise and 
admiration at its whiteness, just in the same way in which I 
have seen the ourang-outang do at the Zoological Gardens. 
We thought that they mistook two or three of the officers, who 
were rather shorter and fairer, though adorned with large 
beards, for the ladies of our party. The tallest amongst the 
Fuegians was evidently much pleased at his height being 
noticed. When placed back to back with the tallest of the 
boat’s crew, he tried his best to edge on higher ground, and to 
stand on tiptoe. He opened his mouth to show his teeth, and 
turned his face for a side view ; and all this was done with 
such alacrity, that I daresay he thought himself the handsomest 
man in Tierra del Fuego. After our first feeling of grave 
astonishment was over, nothing could be more ludicrous than 
the odd mixture of surprise and imitation which these savages 
every moment exhibited. 
The next day I attempted to penetrate some way into the 
country. Tierra del Fuego may be described as a mountainous 
land, partly submerged in the sea, so that deep inlets and bays 
occupy the place where valleys should exist. The mountain 
sides, except on the exposed western coast, are covered from 
the water’s edge upwards by one great forest. The trees reach 
to an elevation of between 1000 and 1500 feet, and are 
succeeded by a band of peat, with minute alpine plants ; and 
this again is succeeded by the line of perpetual snow, which, 
