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

CHAPTER IX. Features — Form — Paint — Disposition — Food — Doctor — Religious ideas Superstitions — Marriage — Death — Burial — Cannibalism — Weapons — Women's occupation — Training — Obtaining food — Fire — Language — Sagacity and local knowledge — Battles — Ceremony — Natives in Trinidad Gulf — Obstruction Sound — Potatoes — Dogs. The most remarkable traits in the countenance of a Fue- gian are his extremely small, low forehead; his prominent brow ; small eyes (suffering from smoke) ; wide cheek-bones wide and open nostrils ; large mouth, and thick lips. Their eyes are small, sunken, black, and as restless as those of savages in general. Their eyelids are made red and watery by the wood smoke in their wigwams. The chin varies much ; that of a Tekeenica is smaller and less prominent than that of an Alikhoolip, in whom it is large and rather projecting, but there is much variety. The nose is always narrow between the eyes, and, except in a few curious instances, is hollow, in profile out- line, or almost flat. The mouth is coarsely^ formed (I speak of them in their savage state, and not of those who were in England, whose features were much improved by altered habits, and by education) ; their teeth are very peculiar : no canine, or eye-teeth, project beyond the rest, or appear more pointed than those ; the front teeth are sohd, and often flat-topped like those of a horse eight years old, and enamelled only at the sides: the interior substance of each tooth is then seen as plainly, in proportion to its size, as in that of a horse. Their hair is black, coarse, and lank, excepting the few instances mentioned in the next page. It grows by single hairs, not by piles, or by little bunches like very small camel-hair pencils. It does not fall off', nor does it turn gray until they are very old. Little, if any, hair is seen on the eye-brow. They would have a strag- gling beard, but scrupulously pull out every hair with tweezers made of muscle-shells.