Excepting the inhabitants of Lancerota and Forte Ven tura, who were more gigantic and better made than those of the other islands, the natives were in general of a middle stature, but extremely athletic, and particu larly skilful in the exercise of wrestling. A remarkable feat of this kind is related of Adargoma, the Canarirm chief, who was taken prisoner by the Spaniards at the battle of Guiniguada. When at Seville, a peasant of La Mancha, famous for his strength, having heard of the Canarian as an extraordinary wrestler, challenged him to a trial of skill. Adargoma accepted the chal lenge, but proposed that they should first drink toge ther; and, taking a glass of wine, lie said to the Spa niard : " Brother, if you can, with both your hands, pre vent my carrying this wine to my mouth, or cause me to spill one drop, then I will wrestle with you ; but if you are unable to do this, 1 would advise you to return home." He then drunk off the wine, in spite of alt the other's efforts to prevent him, which so astonished the peasant, that he prudently took his advice and retired. The common dress throughout the Canaries was a cloak made of sheep or goat skins, to which the women added a petticoat, reaching down to the knees, and a cap or bonnet of the same materials, which they sometimes adorned with feathers. Their shoes were formed of raw hides, with the hairy side out. The Canarians had also a light coat, the stuff of which was manufactured from a sort of rush, which being beat, became soft like flax. Some of their garments were curiously sewed with thin thongs of leather as fine as common thread, and painted with various kinds of dyes, which they extracted from the roots of trees and herbs. Their houses were all built of stone, but without cement or mortar of any kind, and sometimes so neat and regular, that many of the villages made a very good appearance. in Grand Ca nary they laid wooden rafters or beams along the top, which they covered with earth ; but in Ferro, where the houses were of a circular form, and so large that they sometimes contained twenty families, the roof was formed of branches of trees and fern. Their furniture consisted of goat skins, which were their only beds ; and baskets and mats very ingeniously wrought. They had also earthen vessels dried in the sun, which they used in cooking, and for holding their victuals. Goat's flesh and mutton, either roasted or boiled, constituted their principal food. These, however, they ate alone, with out any addition of bread or roots. They used also bar ley meal roasted and dressed with butter, which they called gap: and in some of the islands, they had a kind of bread made of fern roots, which, with milk and but ter, composed the chief part of their diet. In Grand Canary, no person was allowed to kill his own cattle. This office was confined entirely to the butchers, who, from their employment, were held in general abhorrence ; and this trade was accounted so ignominious, that it was unlawful for a butcher to keep company with any but those of his own profession. Ile was not even per mitted to enter the house, or to touch any thing that be longed to the rest of the inhabitants, who were in their turn prohibited from visiting any of the public sham bles. The only compensation for this degraded ttade was, that the natives were obliged to supply the butch ers with every thing they had occasion for. This aver sion for an employment, which, from its very nature, must deaden in some measure the feelings of kindness and humanity of those who exercise it, spew a degree of refinement in this people which is seldom to be found even among the most civilized nations. Their delicacy with regard to the female sex is equally worthy of admira tion. The least indecent word or action was severely punished, and it was a prevailing custom at Tem ri fie, that if a man by chance met a woman alone on the road, or in a solitary place, he was not to speak to, or even to look at her, but to turn out of the way until she was past. Contrary to what some authors have, affirmed, these islanders never had more than one wife at a time, though in their marriages, they paid no regard to con sanguinity, except that of a mother or sister. In Grand Canary, when parents tt ere inclined to marry their daughter, they confined her for thirty days ; and fed her with large quantities of milk and golJio, in order to fat ten her; fur they imagined that lean women were inca pable of eonceiiing children. They could, however, put away their wives when they pleased; but, in such cases, their children were, by this means, rendered ille gitimate, and incapable of inheriting their father's effects. In all diseases, their prevailing cures were bleeding, burning, and anointing. When any one fell sick, they rubbed his body with sheep's marrow and butter, and then covered him well up, to keep him warm, and p•o mote perspiration ; but, when troubled with acute pains, they drew blood, by scarifying the affected part with sharp stones. When they received any cut or wound, they hurtled it with lire, and then anointed it with goat's butter. They also employed herbs; and, in Teneriffe,
they had a kind of medicine prepared from mocanes, which they used in fluxes and pleurisies, the most com mon diseases of the island. When any of the nobles died, they embalmed the body, and shut it up in the cave set apart for the family burying-place. Some of them were put into chests, and afterwards deposited in stone sepulchres. The office of embalming belonged only to particular persons ; and each sex performed it for their own dead. In Teneriffe, the king could only be buried in the cave of his ancestors ; and the corpses were so arranged as to be known again. About the mid dle of last century, two of these embalmed bodies, which were taken out of a cave, were found perfectly entire, and as light as cork. The hair, teeth, and garments, were quite sound and fresh, and without any disagreeable smell.
Some of these islands were remarkable for their good government and strict administration of justice. In Grand Canary, the punishment immediately followed conviction. if the delinquent was charged with a capi tal crime, his head was placed upon a flat stone, when the executioner, with another, dashed out his brains. In all other cases, they used the lex talionis. In Ferro, no crimes were punished but murder and theft. The mur derer was put to death in the same way as lie had killed the deceased : and thc thief, for the first offence, lost one eye, and for the second the other, that he might not see to steal any more. In Lancerota and Forte Ventura, they had a law, that, in cases of quarrel, if a man enter ed openly by the door into his enemy's house, and killed him, or did him harm, he was not liable to be punished ; but if lie climbed over the wall, or came upon him una wares, he was condemned to suffer death ; and the me thod of execution was the same as in Grand Canary. In Palma, as in Sparta, theft was considered as a virtue ; for he was esteemed the cleverest fellow who could steal with such address as not to be discovered; and, if de tected in the act, he was merely obliged to restore the plunder. The common punishment in Teneriffe was cud lling, which was generally executed in the pre sence of the kil; and elders. In cases of murder, the criminal was punished with banishment and the confisca tier of property, whit 11 was bestowed upon the relations Of the deceased ; hut death was peter inflicted for any crime, as they had a belief that it belonged to God to take away that life which he gait'.
Sonic authors, f011owing the account of the Nubian geographer, have represented the of the c a naries as gross idolaters. This geographer relates, " that in each of the Formate islands is to he seen a pil lar raised of stone, of au hundred cubits length, ein.11 pillar supporting a brazen image, with its ham] lifted up and pointing backwards." Pyramids of this description, though without the image, were found in the island of Palma ; and in one district, there is a long narrow rock upwards of an hundred fathoms high, where the natives used to worship their god Idafe, whose name the rock itself still retains. It would appear, however, that the religion of many of these islands was pure theism. They adored only one god, whom they denominated by various titles, as the Great,' the Sublime,f the Possessor of the World.' the Sustainer of !leaven and Earth ;§ and the only worship which they offered, was the lifting up of their hand towards heaven in silent adoration. In Grand Canary and Lancerota they had houses of worship, but no images, or any representation of the Deity ; and their sacrifices consisted in the pouring out offerings of goats' milk. The Canarians had also several convents, inha bited by religious women called :\Iagadas, which were held sacred ; and all criminals who fled thither, were protected from the officers of justice. In Ferro, how ever, they had two deities ; one of them male, named Eraoranzan, who was worshipped by the men ; the other female, called :\ loneyba, worshipped by the women. In seasons of great distress, occasioned by a long drought, or any other public calamity, it was an universal custom in these islands for the natives to assemble in certain places, set apart for the purpose, with their children and flocks, and, sitting in a circle on the ground, began to lament and make a inouraui noise, their flocks blect ing also for want of food ; for both men and beasts, on these occasions, were debarred all kind of sustenance. These fasts sometimes lasted three days and three nights. The wealth of these islanders consisted chiefly in their flocks and herds. Agriculture was little known among them ; and practised only in its rudest form. They broke the ground with a wooden hoc, which had sometimes a goat's horn fixed to the end of it, and then threw in the seed. Barley was their principal grain; but they had also wheat, beans, and peas or vetches. In harvest, they reaped only the ears, which they threshed with sticks, or beat out with their feet, and then winnowed the corn with their hands. Their only fruits were ?icacorras, mo canes, and wild dates.