Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.2): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

172 COUNTING UESPECT TO AGE. The canoe Indians are in reality despised by the Patago- nians ; but, for the sake of trade, are generally kept upon half- friendly terms. For dogs, old horses, guanaco meat, and old mantles, the former give pieces of iron pyrites (used for striking fire), their captives, or their cliildren. Patagonians have a great antipathy to negroes. As soon as they see a black man, they shout, hoot, hiss, and make faces at him. No signs of hieroglyphics or writing have been noticed among the Patagonians. They can reckon as far as thousands. Time is counted by years and moons, days and nights. There are parti- cular words denoting the various phases of the moon, the sea- sons of the year, and the times of day and night. In counting, the fingers and toes are used, as well as words expressing num- bers, especially when trying to make their meaning clear to strangers. Once, when Mr. Low was leaving Gregory Bay, he gave Maria to understand that he would return again in four moons, and asked her to have some guanaco meat ready for him when he should arrive. He returned a fortnight before his time. No meat was ready. Maria said he was too soon, explaining herself by holding three fingers up, and the fourth bent half down. The few words of their language which have been collected by me are mentioned in the Appendix. The Patagonians pay respect to old people, taking great care of them ; they seldom move about on ordinary occasions, but remain near the tolderia (village or encampment) with the herds of mares. It has been mentioned that the Patagonians have lately taken a liking to spirits. When intoxicated, they are very noisy, but not quarrelsome. They are very fond of tobacco and use some sort of pipe, frequently ornamented with brass and tassels : it is passed round from one to the other. They neither work, nor use any metal but what is obtained from white men. There is no kind of pottery made by them: wooden vessels, or bladders, being used for containing water. Many of them now have iron kettles, in which meat is some- times boiled, but their usual mode of cookery is roasting ; a