Page 427
An.1687
Their Habit, and Rings of yellow Metal.
zel colour, and small, yet bigger than the Chinese; short low Noses, and their Lips and Mouths mid- dle proportioned. Their Teeth are white ; their Hair is black, and thick, and lank, which they wear but short ; it will just cover their Ears, and so it is cut round very even. Their Skins are of a very dark copper colour.
They wear no Hat, Cap, nor Turbat, nor any thing to keep off the Sun. The men for the big- gest part have only a small clout to cover their Nakedness ; some of them have Jackets made of Plantain leaves, which were as rough as any Bears skin : I never saw such rugged things. The Wo- men have a short Petticoat made of Cotton, which comes a little below their Knees. It is a thick fort of stubborn cloath, which they make themselves of their Cotton. Both Men and Women do wear large Ear-rings, made of that yellow Metal before mention'd. Whether it were Gold or no I cannot positively say: I took it to be so, it was heavy, and of the colour of our paler Gold. I would fain have brought away some to have satisfied my curiosity ; but I had nothing wherewith to buy any. Captain Read bought 2 of these Rings with some Iron, of which the people are very greedy: and he would have bought more, thinking he was come to a very fair Market ; but that the paleness of the Metal made him and his Crew distrust its being right Gold. For my part, I should have ventur'd on the purchase of some: but having no property in the Iron, of which we had great store on board, sent from England by the Merchants along with Captain Swan, I durst nor barter it away.
These Rings when first polished look very glo- riously, but time makes them fade, and turn to a pale yellow. Then they make a soft paste of red earth, and smearing it over their Rings, they cast them into a quick fire, where they remain till they be