Page:The Captivity of Hans Stade of Hesse.pdf/174

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IN EASTERN BRAZIL.

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was seon crowded by the Tuppin Ikin savages, also some Portuguese among them, for a slave who was following me when I was captured, escaped them and raised an alarm as they took me. These intended to release me and called out to my captors, that if they were brave they would come to them and fight. And they turned back with the canoes again to those on shore, and these shot with blowpipes^[1] and arrows upon us, and those in the boats back. again to them; and they untied my hands once more, but the ropes round my neck still remained firmly bound.

Now the king in the boat, in which I was, had a gun and a little powder, which a Frenchman had bartered to him for Brazil wood. This I was compelled to fire off at those on shore.

When they had so fought for some time, they feared that the others might perhaps be reinforced by boats and pursue them; and they sailed away, after three of them had been shot. They went about the distance of a falconet-shot past the bulwark of Brikioka, wherein I used to be, and as we so passed, I was obliged to stand up in the boat that my companions might see me, and they from the fort fired at us two large guns, but their shot fell short.

Meanwhile several canoes from Brikioka came sailing after us, and thought to overtake us, but they paddled away too quickly. When my friends saw this and that they could effect nothing, they again made for Brikioka.

↑ The well-known Sarbacan, of which Varnhagen (i, 114) says, "No Amazonas faziam uso da Zarabatana hervada". It is the Sampat of Java, used to kill birds, and a toy of the kind has been introduced into Europe. In Brazil recondite poisons were remarkably common, hence we are again disposed to postulate a higher civilization than that of the Tupis.

[1] The well-known Sarbacan, of which Varnhagen (i, 114) says, "No Amazonas faziam uso da Zarabatana hervada". It is the Sampat of Java, used to kill birds, and a toy of the kind has been introduced into Europe. In Brazil recondite poisons were remarkably common, hence we are again disposed to postulate a higher civilization than that of the Tupis.

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