d, who have their private parts covered, some with a covering
of cotton, which they bind round their hips, while others use grass and
leaves of trees.[326-2] When they wish to adorn themselves, both men and
women paint themselves, some black, others white, and various colors, in
so many devices that the effect is very laughable;[326-3] they shave some
parts of their heads, and in others wear long tufts of matted hair, which
have an indescribably ridiculous appearance: in short, whatever would be
looked upon in our country as characteristic of a madman, is here
regarded by the highest of the Indians as a mark of distinction.

In our present position, we are in the neighborhood of many mines of
gold, not one of which, we are told, is more than twenty or twenty-five
leagues off: the Indians say that some of them are in Niti, in the
possession of Caonabo, who killed the Christians; the others are in
another place called Cibao, which, if it please God, we shall see with
our eyes before many days are over; indeed we should go there at once,
but that we have so many things to provide that we are not equal to it at
present. One third of our people have fallen sick within the last four or
five days, which I think has principally arisen from the toil and
privations of the journey; another cause has been the variableness of the
climate; but I hope in our Lord that all will be restored to health. My
idea of this people is, that if we could converse with them, they would
all become converted, for they do whatever they see us do, making
genuflections before the altars at the _Ave Maria_ and the other parts of
the devotional service, and making the sign of the cross. They all say
that they wish to be Christians, although in truth they are idolaters,
for in their houses they have many kinds of figures; when asked what such
a figure was, they would reply it is a thing of _Turey_, by which they
meant "of Heaven." I made a pretence of throwing them on the fire, which
grieved them so that they began to weep: they believe that everything we
bring comes from Heaven, and therefore call it _Turey_, which, as I have
already said, means heaven in their language. The first day that I went
on shore to sleep, was the Lord's day. The little time that we have spent
on land, has been so much occupied in seeking for a fitting spot for the
settlement, and in providing necessaries, that we have had little
opportunity of becoming acquainted with the product