Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1885-10-22
A DlsTANT PEOPLE.
,haracterist'cs Of the Terre del
ruego indian-Tne woman's Love for
Toh..co

''h"aus LoNe l0r
Tobacco.
iheTerre del Fuego Indians. tho
ugiiest mortals that ever breatbed. ara
anyways on the lookout for passing YES.
sens and come out in capoes to beo
anu 10 trade skins for tobacco, writes
u correspondent to The Neg York Sun
Inc fnegians, or Canoe Indians ~ 90
1ney are commonly called, to distin.
suish them from the Patagonians, who
u'silke the water and prefer TO navi.
gate on horseback, have no settled
haoitatIon. They are a simple people,
with u dirty and bloated appearance
anu faces that would scare a mule
ihey have broad features. low fore.
heads over which the hair hangs In
tangled Jumps, high cheek-bones, fat
MUSES. enormous chins and Jaws, and
mouths Ike a crocodile, with teeth
mat add to their responsiveness. Their
KIN Is said to be of a copper color
lheY are short in stature, round sbouL
" ~
uered, squatty, and bloated, a physical
ue4ormIty said to be due to the fact
'hat most OF their lives are spent in
canoes The women are eve more re-
PuiSlve IN their appearance than the
men, and the children, which arc I'M
commonly numerous, look like Young
~o'ooons' Their intelligence seems to
oo confined to a knowledge of boating
ana bshing, end they exercise great
skill IN both pursuits. Scientists who
nave Ia 'estigated them say that they
ere the very lowest order of human
KIND many degrees below the Digger
Indians.
although these people live IN Il per.
petual winter, where 1t freezes every
night and always SHOWS when the
clouds she'd moisture, they 90 almost
stark naked! The skin of the otter
ana guanaco are used for blankets.
which are wOrn about the shoulders
inc afford some protection; but under
'"ese he'iher women nor men wear
anything whatever, except shoes and
legglngs made Of the same material
winch protect the feet from the rocks,
lilere Is some little attempt at adorn-
ment made by both sexes in the way of
necklaces, bracelets, and earrings
made of fish bones and sea shells.
VIII oh are often ingeniously Joined to.
gether. The women Will sell the skin
blankets that cover their back for TO.
bacco, standing, meantime, as nude as
a statue OF Venus
Their food consists of mussels, fish,
sea an mails, and flesh Of similar sorts.
which they catch with the rudest sort
OF implements. Their ii hing lines are
made OF grass and their HOOKS of fish
bones. For weapons they have bows
and spears, the former HAVING strings
ma de of the entraYls of animals, and
The latter being long. slender poles.
with tips OF sharpened bone. They
also use slings with great dexterity,
which are made of woven grass, and
are said to bring down animals at long
range.
During the day they are always on
the water, in canoes or dugouts made
of the trunks of trees, the whole FAM
lily going together, and usually con.
EiStlng OF II man, two or three wives,
and as many urChins as can be crowd
ed into the boat. When night falls
they so ashore and build n fire upon
The rocks to temper the frigid atmos-
phere. Around this they cuddle in a
most alectiOnate way. The name of
the islands upon which they live came
from these fires. The early naviga-
tors when passing through the straits,
were amazed to see these fires spring
up as if by magic all over the islands
every night at shutdown, aud so they
called them Terra del FuegO, or the
land of fire. The English shorten the
nppellat.on, and thus the place is
known as Fireland.
No one has ever been able to ascer-
lain whether they possess any sort of
religious belief or have religious cere-
monies. Across the straits the Pata-
gonians, or horse Indians, are of a
higher order OF creation and perform
sacred rites 20 propitiate the evil and
good spirits, in which, like the North
American savages, they believe, but
the Fucgians are too degraded to con.
template anything but the necessity
Of ministerlng to their passions and
appetites. They eat fish and flesh un-
cooked, and appreciate as dainties the
least attractive morsels. Their Ian.
guage is an irregular and meaningless
iargon, apparently derived from the
Patagonians, with whom they we're,
some time in the distant past, con-
nected. Bishop Sterling, of the
Church of England, a devoted and
energetic man, who has charge of
onary work in South America,
with headquarters on the Falkland
islands, has made some attempt to
benefit these creatures, but with nc
great uccess lie has a little
schooner in which he sails around,
and has succeeded in ingratiating
himself among the Fuegians by giving
them presents of beads and Irvine,
blankets and clothing. They use the
first for ornaments, the second for
fishing gear, but trade of the
other things for rum and to-
bacco the first chance they get.
As long as his gifts hold out he will be
kindly received, no doubt, and his de-
yotion meet with encouragement, but
if he should land among them without
the usual plumber they would proba-
bly kill Ii m at bre.-lfast time and
nick his ribs for lunch. Toward the
Atlantic coast the sarages are OF
n higher order, and the bishop
has establis he'd a missionary station in
A little town in which they live. His
assistants have succeeded in persuad.
ing the inhabitants Of this village to
wear clothing and run a primary
school, from which much good may