Contacting Indigenous Tribes of Brazil, Early 1900s
The Indian roaming the forests of Brazil, far away from the haunts of civilisation, is a gentleman of nature. Should you come unannounced to his domain, though he has never…
From: 1908 C.E. To: 1915 C.E.
Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.
“Chapter VII: The Indian at Home,” Part 1, from Brazil and the Brazilians by George James Bruce, 1915.
It is a wonderful privilege to be the first civilised white man to come in contact with any race of natives. Those of us who have enjoyed this experience have not as a rule much sympathy with those explorers who return from so-called savage lands with tales of barbarous treatment or grave dangers surmounted. I know that I am not alone in the opinion that nearly all explorers' and navigators' troubles with natives arise from inexperience in dealing with them, or from indiscretions.
Men who have had an extended experience of natives, and are careful in their habits, need seldom have any fear of danger from those who never saw nor heard of a white man before. The principal danger arises generally from the natives' recollection of some wrong behaviour of a former white visitor, whom they may have encountered or only heard of. They are in that case naturally suspicious of, or hostile to, the next white visitor who comes along.
When I am about to traverse unknown territory, I make as full inquiries as possible about the kind of white men who preceded me, should any have. If I learn that they were men likely to transgress the native laws in any way, I change my route preferably to one never before taken by a white man. Who is there having much experience in uncivilised lands, who would not sooner trust himself amongst natives who never saw a civilised man, rather than to the semi-civilised natives who had learnt only to fear or hate him?
The Indian roaming the forests of Brazil, far away from the haunts of civilisation, is a gentleman of nature. Should you come unannounced to his domain, though he has never seen or heard of a civilised European, he will treat you usually with respect. Let us go up the mighty Madeira River, and after steaming for a few days on its wide breast, turn into one of its many affluents. Day after day we proceed on our journey into the heart of these vast forests. At last we land and journey deep into the woods. There is no sign of human life around; yet from the moment of our landing we were watched and followed by Indians.
News of our arrival has been sent near and far by the strange telegraphy of these people. Unseen by us they are gradually completing a circle around us and our every movement is noted. We camp for the night at a suitable spot. One of the party watches by the fire while the rest sleep. About midnight strange low cries attract the watcher's attention. They come from the woods around. He knows what it means, and wakes us to say that the Indians are around us.
We sit up and discuss the situation for a while, then resume our rest. Next morning we go to the point where the cries began and hang our presents of coloured cloths, beads, metal cups, and small mirrors, on trees or poles we stick in the ground, and halt for the day. At night we retire as before. There are no cries that night. Next morning we go to where we left the presents the previous day. We find all the articles gone, and arrows sticking in the ground around, with their points in the direction that means peace and safety for us. The Indians believe we have no hostile intentions to them, have intimated that to us, and we go on unmolested right through their territory, though we are probably watched carefully till we leave their borders. Should the cries have been repeated the second night, the following morning we would have found our presents untouched. We might then have added largely to them and retired as before.
If the Indians wished us to go back, the cries would be renewed earlier that night, and an arrow or two into our camp would clinch the matter. We must then clear as quickly as possible unless we wish to fight it out. If we go away we will not be further interfered with, unless we show any resentment. Should we decide to fight, relying on our fire-arms, we must be prepared to carry on a running and extremely hazardous fight, with perhaps many hundreds of men for several days. The odds would be greatly against us. The fact of being ordered back would show us that the Indians had some previous bad experience of white men, or had heard unfavourably of them.
Indian dwellings vary according to the habits of the tribe. Those Indians who live by hunting, and are consequently roving about after game continually, erect only rude temporary shelters up in trees, or in bushes on the ground. Some of these abodes are merely break-winds. The hunting tribes have usually little or no covering on their bodies, and their household goods and utensils are extremely limited. Where tribes settle permanently huts or houses of different types are built. Some of these are conical without walls, some are quadrangular with wood and clay walls and thatch roof, while others are all thatch roof brought down to a quadrangular base. Many tribes live in "malocas," great quadrangular halls that house a number of families, such as the "wharepunis" of the New Zealand Maories. Indian settlements are usually found on the highest and driest spots near to rivers.
Cotton-spinning and weaving seems to have been practised in certain tribes before the European advent. The making of clay pottery was widely prevalent. In the Amazon Valley household pottery was lavishly ornamented with coloured figuring and lines. Basketware, wooden, bone, and horn vessels, and articles for household use made of combinations of these things, comprised the home equipment. Weapons for hunting were huge bows and arrows, spears, blowpipes, darts, nets, and snares. For fighting, lances, clubs, bows and arrows, with shields were most commonly used. The Indians had an extensive variety of foods.
The forests provided meat, fruits, nuts, vegetables, corn, and birds, while the rivers yielded turtles, and fish in hundreds of varieties. Indian repasts usually include soups, stews, mandioca meal, fish, meats, vegetables, fruit, and nuts. The only drink taken with meals is water. In their feasts the Indians use a variety of intoxicating drinks, though seldom more than one is used at the same feast. The most common is Kawa, or Kava, made from maize or from mandioca root by a process in which chewing by women, as with Samoans, is an important stage. Next to Kawa, a wine made from the juice of the Tabate fruit, seems always to have been most popular. Altogether ten or twelve intoxicating drinks of different kinds have been found amongst various tribes.
When an Indian falls sick the "paje" or medicine man is called in. This man usually does what he previously ascertains he is expected to do, then shakes his head gravely, prescribes, and gets his reward.
The home life of uncivilised Indians away in these forest recesses does not differ very much from what it would be in a civilised household so situated. Where the family have a hut to themselves, the visitor is given a hammock or a bed of mats in the best corner. The evening may be spent with music, singing, dancing, drinking, and conversation. The musical instruments are generally flutes and stringed instruments, accompanied by castanets or drums.
The songs are weird chants mostly, their themes being legends, religious beliefs, love and hunting daring. War-songs are seldom sung in family circles. The household may possibly retire very late if it has an interesting visitor.
Everyone but the very old members of the family are up and out early. While the women or slaves are preparing breakfast, the men bathe in the river, or go for a stroll around. After breakfast the men go hunting, fishing, or to work at their canoes or weapons. The younger women go and work in the plantations and the old folks are left to mind the young children. At noon the women usually return from their outside work and lie about the house conversing with callers till the men come in at evening, when they busy themselves attending to what is brought home, and in preparing the evening meal.
Should the tribe be cannibals and they have a prisoner to eat, this is generally done at a special afternoon feast which is conducted with much ceremony and drinking. Intoxicants are freely supplied to those who have to kill and eat the prisoner. When those present are well intoxicated, the victim is led in and after being made the butt of their drunken sport, he is clubbed to death, cooked and eaten. In an extended experience of natives who were, or whose ancestors had been cannibals, I never got satisfactory evidence of human beings having been killed and eaten for food only. I believe cannibalism to be the extreme expression only of that feeling which would prompt an English high church clergyman to cross a street rather than meet a dissenting clergyman he sees approaching. The uncivilised savage eats instead of cuts the man he dislikes.
Morality in the Indian home and village is generally good. Uncivilised natives are seldom thieves. Each respects the other's property and household. Great chiefs have several wives placed in different huts. The common members of tribes usually have only one wife. Daughters are betrothed when very young, and given up to their future husbands when they arrive at womanhood. If a girl has not been betrothed, when she arrives at marriageable age her hair is cut short, and marks are scratched into her back to show that she is prepared to take a husband. The women of some tribes paint their faces with dyes obtained from plants, and wear ornaments hanging from holes in the lobes of their ears, a custom not unknown amongst women in more civilised surroundings.
Mothers carry on their backs infants and children unable to walk, slings made of cotton or other plant fibres being used as carriers. The children in a hut are shy and restrained when there is a stranger present, but at ordinary times are as boisterous and irresponsible as European children can be. It is noteworthy that children's games and toys are very much alike in all countries. The Indian girl has her doll, and the boy his toy animals; and the mother gets quietness and good behaviour by threatening to bring a wild black or white man if the children are naughty. The children learn to dance with their elders. There is little grace or beauty in the Indian dances.
Since the negroes were introduced to Brazil the African dances have been largely adopted by the Indians as well as Europeans. In addition to the "maxixe," the "baducca," a somewhat similar dance, has much vogue. As the "baducca" may find its way to European mansions, it might be described shortly. It is usually danced by a man and woman who approach each other and retire, making as they do so a variety of hip contortions, and keeping up an incessant snapping with the fingers. This dance is usually given at a feast where a man has to be eaten.
The name for a child is chosen by its relatives in conference shortly after its birth. If the child be a boy he has the right to take an additional name, when he has grown up, every time he kills an enemy. Having a great many names therefore indicates that the bearer has been a very blood-thirsty savage. A woman is entitled to use all the names her husband takes, but their sons may not.
Hospitality is a trait of Indian character. Those who have succeeded well in the chase or at fishing share freely with their unsuccessful tribesmen, and an Indian family will divide up their last scrap of food with a stranger. Treat an Indian well and you can depend on good treatment in return. Offend him, and you had better beware.
Bruce, George James. Brazil and the Brazilians. Methuen, 1915.
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