The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. V. Being the First of the Third VoyageCook, James
History
The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. V. Being the First of the Third Voyage
Cook, James
Cook, James, 1728-1779 -- Travel; Explorers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Voyages around the world -- History -- 18th century
The concert having continued about a quarter of an hour, twenty women
entered the circle. Most of them had, upon their heads, garlands of the
crimson flowers of the China rose, or others; and many of them had
ornamented their persons with leaves of trees, cut with a great deal of
nicety about the edges. They made a circle round the chorus, turning
their faces toward it, and began by singing a soft air, to which
responses were made by the chorus in the same tone; and these were
repeated alternately. All this while, the women accompanied their song
with several very graceful motions of their hands toward their faces,
and in other directions at the same time, making constantly a step
forward, and then back again, with one foot, while the other was fixed.
They then turned their faces to the assembly, sung some time, and
retreated slowly in a body, to that part of the circle which was
opposite the hut where the principal spectators sat. After this, one of
them advanced from each side, meeting and passing each other in the
front, and continuing their progress round, till they came to the rest.
On which two advanced from each side, two of whom also passed each
other, and returned as the former; but the other two remained, and to
these came one from each side, by intervals, till the whole number had
again formed a circle about the chorus.
Their manner of dancing was now changed to a quicker measure, in which
they made a kind of half turn by leaping, and clapped their hands, and
snapped their fingers, repeating some words in conjunction with the
chorus. Toward the end, as the quickness of the music increased, their
gestures and attitudes were varied with wonderful vigour and dexterity;
and some of their motions, perhaps, would, with us, be reckoned rather
indecent. Though this part of the performance, most probably, was not
meant to convey any wanton ideas, but merely to display the astonishing
variety of their movements.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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