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Show THE FIRST SPANISH EXPLORERS 81 November and December. They have channels made of reeds and get fish only during that time; afterwards they subsist on roots. At the end of February they remove to other parts in search of food, because the roots begin to sprout and are not good any more. ‘‘Of all the people in the world, they are those who love their children and treat them best, and should the child of one of them happen to die, parents and relatives bewail it, and the whole settlement, the lament lasting a full year, day after day. Before sunrise the parents begin to weep, after them the tribe, and the same they do at noon and at dawn. At the end of the year of mourning they celebrate the anniversary and wash and cleanse themselves of all their paint. They mourn all their dead in this manner, old people excepted to whom they do not pay any attention, saying that these have had their time and are no longer of any use, but only take space and food from the children. ‘‘Their custom is to bury the dead, except those who are medicine men among them, whom they burn, and while the fire is burning, all dance and make a big festival, grinding the bones to powder. At the end of the year, when they celebrate the anniversary, they scarify themselves and give to the relatives the pulverized bones to Every man has a recognized wife, but the medicine drink in water. men enjoy greater privileges, since they may have two or three, and among these wives there is great friendship and harmony. ‘When one takes a woman for his wife, from the day he marries her, whatever he may hunt or fish, she has to fetch it to the home of her father, without daring to touch or to eat of it, and from the home All the of the father-in-law they bring the food to the husband. while neither the wife’s father nor her mother enter his abode, nor is he allowed to go to theirs, or to the homes of his brothers-in-law, and should they happen to meet they go out of each other’s way a crossbow’s shot or so, with bowed heads and eyes cast to the ground, The holding it to be an evil thing to look at each other or speak. women are free to communicate with their parents-in-law or relThis custom prevails from that island atives and speak to them. as far as about fifty leagues inland. ‘‘There is another custom, that when a son or brother dies no food is gathered by those of his household for three months, preferring rather to starve, but the relatives and neighbors provide them with Now, as during the time we were there so many of them victuals. died, there was great starvation in most of the lodges, due to their customs and ceremonials, as well as to the weather, which was SO rough that such as could go out after food brought in but very little, withal working hard for it. Therefore the Indians by whom I was kept forsook the island and in several canoes went over to the mainland to some bays where there were a great many oysters and during |