plied. The Biffayan Indians in general difcover a natural tafte for mufic, and a propenfity to the mechanic arts; and I am convinced nothing but want of experience prevents their attaining a very high degree of eminence in thefe purfuits. The flexibility of their nerves and mufcles may, perhaps fcarcely be credited but the fact is, that they handle finall objects with their feet with equal eafe and dexterity as we do with our hands; and can exert a force in pinching with their toes, not lefs than that of an European when he pinches with his fingers. With the affiftance of his campilan alone the Indian makes his fiddle or guitar, cuts down the largest tree in the foreft, and fhapes and excavates it into the form of a cance. At one time it is used to carve on the bamboo, defigns of no mean effect, for the ornament of his houfe; at another, it is turned against the enemy for his perfonal defence. This, in fhort, feems to be the only edged tool known, or at leaft in ufe, among the Indians of Samar. "Among their productions of art, the Indian mat merits particular notice, which is a fpecies of manufacture of fuch fineness, that a piece of fix feet went eafily into my pocket. It is executed in various handfome defigns, and painted with very lively and elegant colours, which they have the art of extracting, from different trees. "Silk, cotton, and the fibres of the fig-bannan above mentioned, furnish the Indian with the raw materials of his best manufactures in cloth. He makes a kind of lace, and embroiders his filk stuffs with furprising elegance and addrefs. Each family is provided in a loom, for its own domeftic purposes. At fea you find the Indian a ship's carpenter, fail-maker, and caulker; on land, a rope-maker, and hipbuilder: but though he exercises occafionally almost all the mechanic arts for his own amusement or convenience, he is never found to profecute any one of them, exclufively of the reft. I was informed, but with what degree of certainty I will not pretend to fay, that even the art of writing with a kind of pencil on the leaves of the cocoa-tree, once exifted in this ifland. "They have a cuftom, implied in the word maffarer, of cracking the joints, and pinching the flesh in different parts of the body, which, as they conceive, tends to promote the free circulation of the blood and humours. That of rubbing the children's limbs with oil is likewise common; ufages which, as they are not peculiar to them, but prevalent over the whole continent of Afia, may be prefumed to have long been found to have a falutary effect. In place of cupping they ufe fevere pinchings on the neck and shoulders, which they continue to exercise until they are fatisfied they have attained their end. They let blood by means of incifions made in the skin; and as to phyfic, they are wonderfully verfant in the virtues of many flowers, balins, and plants, the ufe and application of which they owe to nature and their own experience alone. "Large breeches, which defcend below the calf of the leg, a fhirt falling over them to the middle of the thigh, and a handkerchief twisted round the head in the manner of a turban, conftitute their ordinary drefs. On occafions of ceremony they appear in their round hat, and a kind of bed-gown confifting of filk and cotton. Thick fhort fingers, and long nails on the middle and little ones, are esteemed highly becom, ing, infomuch that I have obferved them them on different perfons full two inches in length. The women wear a kind of apron, which, after paffing feveral times round the waift, falls down to the toe; and fome of them a petticoat of fo very fine and tranfparent a texture, that a fenfe of modefty obliges them to tuck up a corner of it to the fore part of the girdle, whereby one leg is completely expofed. Their fhift defcends only to the top of the hip; and the head-drefs differs but little from that of the men, except that they roll their hair high on the head, fo as in fome degree to give it the appearance of a crown. If to these we add a gown worn only on extraordinary occafions, I have mentioned every article of their apparel. "The hair of both fexes is remarkably fine, particularly that of the women, which they are accuftomed to comb with great care, and to anoint frequently with oil of the Cocoa nut, in order to ftrengthen and render it of a deep black. Their nofe is fhort and depreffed, but the noftrils are by no means dilated like thofe of the negro; nor, indeed, have I often obferved an ugly or illfavoured woman on thofe iflands. The features are fmall, and not always regular; but they have beautiful eyes, and faces uncommonly interefting and expreffive. They ufe pitchers of the bamboo; and fome of them have a light fort of Leaf hat, fimilar to what is worn by Indians of the firft diftinction. One of the most beautiful objects, in my opinion, that can meet the eye of a painter, is a fine young Indian on her way to fetch water from the well. The large leaf hat, the delicate arrangement of the thin tranf parent petticoat, and a light bamboopitcher in each hand, beftow a furprifing grace and dignity on her perfon. In the remote parts of the country, and especially at a distance from the miffionaries, perfons of both fexes appear almost naked. "The natives of Samar have fish in plenty and variety from their rivers, as well as the fea-coaft, the latter of which fupplies them likewife in very elegant pearls; and their manner of fishing, from its fingularity, merits notice:-There is a certain pea of an intoxicating quality, nanied coco, found in the island, which being reduced to a powder, is fcattered by the Indian, at low water, all over the fand. Upon the return of the tide, the fish which have eaten the bait, appear floating in a state of infenfibility on the furface of the water, and are picked up with ease in what numbers the fifh. erman judges convenient. "The iron-tree, ebony, and dy. ing-wood, grow in every part of the ifland; and gold duft is found in fome quantity in its more interior regions; but the monks, in their concern for the morals of the people, have been careful to get this dangerous branch of traffic into their own hands The Spaniards themfelves are forbidden to refide in the Indian villages, under the pretext of protecting the innocence of the natives against the corruption of European manners. The council at Manilla, however, has lately reftrained, by various regulations, the exorbitant power affumed by the clergy in those islands. It would require the elegant genius of a Virgil or Theocritus, to make the reader conceive the natural advantages of Samar-the country, of all thofe I have yet feen, or that perhaps exift in this planet, the moft eminently beautiful. How often have I envied the Biffayans (for, except the natives of Luconia, it is thus they name all the inhabitants of the Philippine ifles) the happy reE 4 tirement tirement of this little infular paradife! If in the province of Tegas, the mind of the traveller is conftantly roufed and agitated by ob jects of grandeur and magnificence, in the ifland Samar, he is foothed and enchanted with an elegant and rich difplay of fimple beauty. In the former the eye fiits in fucceffion over nature's stupendous works, from the noble but gloomy foreft to the widely extended plain, bounded by the diftant horizon; and thence to rivers and lakes, the naife and vaft furface of whofe waters are formed to imprefs the mind with the awful majesty of the Creator. In the latter are the emanations of his goodness, fprings, fountains, and rivulets; landscapes elegantly compofed by various blendings of woods and lawns, curioufly interfecting each other as they feem to float over the varied afpect of the foil. Woods, it is true, without the extent and magnitude of the Tegan foreft, but which, enlivened by the bloffoms of fpring, or loaded with their autumnnal fruits, yield balfam for the wounds, and odours for the refi efhment of the natives. The wild beehive hanging from the branches; the air highly perfumed with a very fragrant fpecies of wild jeffamy, and the fweet roses of China; every thing, in fine, prefents nature in adolefcence, fuch as the exifts before the folly and caprice of man have learned to disfigure or efface her na tive charms: Here I was often at a lofs to determine which had the most claim to my admiration, the beauty of the country, or the gentle and innocent manners of the natives. Having continued my traveis half round the globe, I had become lefs addicted to local and illiberal partialities, and in fome measure fenfible how little the narrow prejudices of education ac cord with the fentiments of an open and candid mind. Hence, if I envied the Biffayan's country, I was ftill more covetous of his fociety, of that fincerity vifible in the whole tepour of his conduct, and above all of that calm ferenity of mind but little exhibited by the more polished circles in modern Europe. I furveyed with fatisfaction the smallest of nature's works, which the levity of a refined imagination has in no inftance taught the Biffayan either to impair or deftroy. My heart was enchanted in my attendance on their religious worfhip, which is accompanied with a very fimple but interefting and expreffive fpecies of mufic. Under thefe and fimilar impreffions, I became particularly dif pofed to acknowledge the goodness of divine providence, which had led me as it were by the hand through all my wanderings; and my thoughts being turned towards religion in general, I gave more attention than ufual to the confideration of my own. "The language of christianity teaches us to afcribe to the divine mind an attribute of excellence unknown in any other religious fyflem. In the new Teftament he is reprefented equally tranfcending in meeknefs, gentlenefs, and humility, as in power, wifdom, and majefty; and not lefs great and adorable for the examples of his condefcenfion, than for that aftonishing grandeur difplayed in the number and magnitude of his works. By other reli gions he has been pourtrayed as the object of awe and terror; by this he is revealed in the amiable character of brother and friend, as well as of law-giver and judge. Qualified, therefore, to quiet the fears, to encourage the hopes, and in one word to conftitute the happiness of all who fubmit to its precepts in the fame I honefty honefty and fimplicity with the good Biffayans, the elements of the chriftian fcheme establish, in their uni form fpirit and tendency, an unqueftionable claim to the univerfal belief and acceptance of mankind.”. CHARACTER of the PEASANTRY of NORWAY, with a SHORT ACCOUNT of the PRESENT STATE of that COUNTRY. [From the third yolume of Coxe's Travels into Poland, Ruffia, Sweden, and Denmark.] THE $ HE Norwegians, being the fame race with the Danes, and fo long connected with them in religion and government, speak the fame language, with a neceffary mixture of provincial expreffions. Wilfe, a native of Norway, informs us, that the gentry and inhabitants of the principal towns, allowing for a few provincial expreffions, fpeak purer Danish than is ufual even in Denmark, not excepting Capenhagen; that the inhabitants of the eaftern confines bordering on Sweden naturally blend many Swedish words; that throughout the whole country the general accent and cadence is more analogous to the Swedifh than to the Danish pronunciation; and that the inhabitants on the western coafts, who have a more conftant communication with the Danes, partake lefs of this peculiarity. "The Norwegians maintain their own army, which confifts of 24,000 infantry, and 6,000 cavalry. The troops are much efteemed for their bravery, and, like the Swifs mountaineers, exceedingly attached to their country. "The horfes which fupply their cavalry are small, but strong, active, and hardy. "Every peafant (thofe excepted, who inhabit the coafts, and are claffed as failors) not born in a town, or upon fome noble eftate, is by. birth a foldier, and enrolled for fervice at the age of fixteen. From that year until he has attained the age of 26, he is claffed in the young militia. At 26 he enters into the old militia, and continues to ferve till 36, at which period he receives his difcharge. The militia take the field every year in the month of June, and remain encamped about a month. "Norway is bleffed with a particular code, called the Norway Law, compiled by Grieffelfeld, at the command of Chriftian the Fifth, the great legiflator of his country. By this law, the palladium of Norway, the peafants are free, a few only excepted on certain noble eftates near Frederickstadt. But the virtue of this law extends itself even to those ferfs, for no proprietor can have more than one of these privileged eftates; and unless he poffeffes a title or certain rank, and refides on his eftate, he lofes his privilege, and the peafants are free. The benefits of the Norway code are fo vifible in its general effects on the happiness and in the appearance of the peasants, that a traveller must be blind who does not inftantly perceive the difference between the free peasants of Norway and and the enslaved vaffals of Denmark, to their fuperiors, yet paying pro. though both living under the fame per refpect to thofe above them. government. "Many of the peasants pretend to be defcended from the antient nobles, and fome even from the royal line: they greatly pride themfelves upon this fuppofed defcent, and are careful not to give their children in marriage but to their equals in birth and blood. "A curious cuftom prevails in Norway, called odels right, or right of inheritance, by which the proprietor of certain freehold eftates may re-purchase his eftate, which either he or any of his ancestors have fold, provided he can prove the title of his family. But in order to enforce this claim, his ancestors, or he, muft have declared every tenth year, at the feffions, that they lay claim to the eftate, but that they want money to redeem it; and if he, or his heirs are able to obtain a fufficient fum, then the poffeffor muft, on receiving the money, give up the eftate to the odels-man. For this reafon, the peafants who are freeholders, keep a ftrict account of their pedigree. This cuftom is attended with advantages and difadvantages. As to the advantages, it fixes the affections of the peafant on his native place, and he improves with pleasure thofe poffeffions which are fo ftrongly fecured to him: it increases the confequence and excites the industry of his family. On the contrary, the eftate lofes its value when fold to another perfon, becaufe, as he poffeffes only a precarious eftate, which he may be obliged to refign, he is not inclined to improve the lands, as if they were irrecoverably his own. "The Norwegian peafants poffefs much fpirit and fire in their manner, are frank, open, and undaunted, yet not infolent; never fawning "Their principal mode of falute is by offering their hand; and when we gave them or paid them a trifle, the peasants, inftead of returning thanks by words or by a bow, fhook our hands with great frankness and cordiality. "The peasants of Norway are well clothed and well lodged, and appear to poflefs more comforts and conveniencies of life than any which I have seen in the courfe of my travels, excepting in fome parts of Switzerland. "They weave their ordinary cloth and linen; they make alfo a kind of ftuff like a Scotch plaid. The cloth which the men ufe for their coats is principally of a ftone colour, with red button holes, and white metal buttons. "The women, while employed in their household affairs, frequently, as in Sweden, appear only with a petticoat and a thift, with a collar reaching to the throat, and a black fafh tied round the waift. Their linen is remarkably fine: and as they are ufually well made, this mode of drefs fets off their fhapes to the highest advantage. "The common food of the peasant is milk, cheese, dried or falted fish, and fometimes, but rarely, fleth or dried meat, oat-bread called fladbrod, baked in fmall cakes about the fize and thickness of a pancake; it is ufually made twice a year. I obferved a woman employed in preparing it: having placed over the fire a round iron plate, fhe took a handful of dough, and rolled it out with a rolling-pin to the fize of the iron plate; he then placed it on the plate, and baked it on one fide, then turned it on the other with a mall ftick. In this manner the baked an astonishing number in lefs |