110 
ON MATICO. 
him, and in the opposite direction, till at length the left hand 
is extended from him, and the right approaches to the left 
shoulder, gradually twisting the fow by the turn and flex- 
ures of that wrist ; this double motion is then retraced, but 
in such a way (the left wrist now principally acting) that 
the fow, instead of being untwisted, is still more twisted, 
and is at length again placed upon the left arm, while he 
takes a new and less constrained hold. 
" Sometimes the fibres of the fow are heard to crack with 
the increasing tension, yet the mass is seen whole and en- 
tire, becoming more thin as it becomes more twisted, while 
the infusion drains from it in a regularly decreasing quan- 
tity, till at length it denies a single drop. He now gives it 
to a person on his left side, and receives fresh fow from 
another in attendance on his right, and begins the operation 
anew, with a view to collect what before might have es- 
caped him, and so on, even a third time, till no dregs are 
left, save what are so fine, and so equally diffused through 
the whole liquid, as not to be thus separated. 
"During the above operation, various people are em- 
ployed making cava cups of the unexpanded leaf of the ba- 
nana tree, which is cut into lengths of about nine inches, 
each piece being then unfolded, is nearly square, the two 
ends are next plaited up in a particular manner, and tied 
with a fibre of the stem of the leaf, forming a very elegant 
cup, not unworthy of imitation. 
" The infusion of cava being now strained, the perform- 
ance of which generally occupies about a quarter of an hour 
or twenty minutes, the man at the bowl calls out, 6 The cava 
is clear.' The mataboole replies, 6 Squeeze out,' alluding to 
the peculiar operation of filling the cups. Two or three 
now come forward and sit down near the bowl, bringing 
with them and placing on the ground several of the cups ; 
one then rises and holds with both hands a cup to be filled, 
standing a little on one side, and holding the cup over the 
middle of the bowl, so that his body does not obstruct the 
