They Were Very Inoffensive As Long As They
Were Few In Numbers, But In The Morning (21st) Being Joined
By Others They Showed Symptoms Of Hostility, And We Thought
That We Should Have Come To A Skirmish.
An European
labours under great disadvantages when treating with savages
like these, who have not the least idea of the power of
fire-arms.
In the very act of levelling his musket he appears
to the savage far inferior to a man armed with a bow and
arrow, a spear, or even a sling. Nor is it easy to teach them
our superiority except by striking a fatal blow. Like wild
beasts, they do not appear to compare numbers; for each
individual, if attacked, instead of retiring, will endeavour to
dash your brains out with a stone, as certainly as a tiger
under similar circumstances would tear you. Captain Fitz
Roy on one occasion being very anxious, from good reasons,
to frighten away a small party, first flourished a cutlass near
them, at which they only laughed; he then twice fired his
pistol close to a native. The man both times looked astounded,
and carefully but quickly rubbed his head; he then
stared awhile, and gabbled to his companions, but he never
seemed to think of running away. We can hardly put ourselves
in the position of these savages, and understand their
actions. In the case of this Fuegian, the possibility of such
a sound as the report of a gun close to his ear could never
have entered his mind.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 338 of 776
Words from 90574 to 90831
of 208183
