The Congerees Are Kind And Affable To The English, The Queen Being
Very Kind, Giving Us What Rarities Her Cabin Afforded, As Loblolly Made
With Indian Corn, And Dry'd Peaches.
These Congerees have
abundance of Storks and Cranes in their Savannas.
They take them
before they can fly, and breed 'em as tame and familiar
as a Dung-hill Fowl. They had a tame Crane at one of these Cabins,
that was scarce less than six Foot in Height, his Head being round,
with a shining natural Crimson Hue, which they all have.
These are a very comely Sort of Indians, there being
a strange Difference in the Proportion and Beauty of these Heathens.
Altho' their Tribes or Nations border one upon another, yet you may discern
as great an Alteration in their Features and Dispositions,
as you can in their Speech, which generally proves quite different
from each other, though their Nations be not above 10 or 20 Miles in Distance.
The Women here being as handsome as most I have met withal,
being several fine-finger'd Brounetto's amongst them. These Lasses
stick not upon Hand long, for they marry when very young,
as at 12 or 14 Years of Age. The English Traders are seldom without
an Indian Female for his Bed-fellow, alledging these Reasons
as sufficient to allow of such a Familiarity. First, They being remote
from any white People, that it preserves their Friendship with the Heathens,
they esteeming a white Man's Child much above one of their getting,
the Indian Mistress ever securing her white Friend Provisions whilst
he stays amongst them. And lastly, This Correspondence makes them learn
the Indian Tongue much the sooner, they being of the French-man's Opinion,
how that an English Wife teaches her Husband more English in one Night,
than a School-master can in a Week.
We saw at the Cassetta's Cabin the strangest Spectacle of Antiquity
I ever knew, it being an old Indian Squah, that, had I been to have guess'd
at her Age by her Aspect, old Parr's Head (the Welch Methusalem)
was a Face in Swadling-Clouts to hers. Her Skin hung in Reaves
like a Bag of Tripe. By a fair Computation, one might have justly thought
it would have contain'd three such Carcasses as hers then was.
She had one of her Hands contracted by some Accident in the Fire,
they sleeping always by it, and often fall into sad Disasters,
especially in their drunken Moods. I made the strictest Enquiry
that was possible, and by what I could gather, she was considerably above
100 Years old, notwithstanding she smoak'd Tobacco, and eat her Victuals,
to all Appearance, as heartily as one of 18. One of our Company
spoke some of their Language, and having not quite forgotten
his former Intrigues with the Indian Lasses, would fain have been dealing
with some of the young Female Fry; but they refus'd him,
he having nothing that these Girls esteem'd. At Night we were laid
in the King's Cabin, where the Queen and the old Squah pig'd in with us:
The former was very much disfigur'd with Tettars, and very reserv'd,
which disappointed our fellow Traveller in his Intrigues.
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