Port Desire to Patagonia
Index
Search
Contact us
as glass resembles a diamond; the value which we set upon a diamond, therefore, is more capricious than the value which they set upon glass. The love of ornament seems to be a universal principle in human nature, and the splendid transparency of glass, and the regular figure of a bead, are among the qualities that by the constitution of our nature excite pleasing ideas; and although in one of these qualities the diamond excels glass, its value is much more than in proportion to the difference: the pleasure which it gives among us is, principally, by conferring distinction, and gratifying vanity, which is independant of natural taste, that is gratified by certain hues and figures, to which for that reason we give the name of beauty: it must be remembered also, that an Indian is more distinguished by a glass button or a bead, than any individual among us by a diamond, though perhaps the same sacrifice is not made to his vanity, as the possession of his finery is rather a testimony of his good fortune, than of his influence or power in consequence of his having what, as the common medium of all earthly possessions, is supposed to confer virtual superiority, and intrinsic advantage. The people, however, whom I had now adorned, were not wholly strangers to European commodities, for upon a closer attention, I perceived among them one woman who had bracelets either of brass, or very pale gold, upon her arms, and some beads of blue glass, strung upon two long queues of hair, which being parted at the top, hung down over each shoulder before her: she was of a most enormous size, and her face was, if possible, more frightfully painted than the rest. I had a great desire to learn where she got her beads and bracelets, and enquired by all the signs I could devise, but found it impossible to make myself understood. One of the men shewed me the bowl of a tobacco pipe, which was made of a red earth, but
 |
Voyaging Accounts |  |
© Derived from Volume I of the London 1773 Edition: National Library of Australia call no. FERG 7243, page 30, 2004
Published by kind permission of the Library
To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/hv01/067.html