They  went  off  in  this  manner  one  afternoon,  and  did
not  return  at  evening,  so  we  thought  they  were  going
to  make  a  night  of  it ;  but  it  rained  heavily  soon  after
dark,  and  about  midnight  we  were  awakened  by  a  great
noise;  and,  on  looking  out,  saw  the  party  returning,
Lohier  at  the  head  with  a  torch.  The  children  were
crying,  the  women  scolding,  the  dogs  howling,  and  the
pigs  grunting  and  squealing.  As  they  slowly  groped
their  way  along  the  wet  and  slippery  path,  with  the
dark  forest  on  each  side,  the  only  light  coming  from
Lohier's  torch,  they  presented  a  strange,  weird  appear-
ance, equal  to  the  scene  in  Macbeth  where  the  witches
dance  about  the  caldron.
The  Coyara  is  very  kind  to  his  wife  and  children ;
and,  all  the  time  we  remained  among  them,  we  never
saw  a  child  punished,  or  a  woman  ill-treated.  The


240  COLLECTOR'S  RAMBLES

children  were  very  quiet,  and  seldom  cried ;  but  there
was  one  noted  exception  to  this  rule  :  nearly  every
night  the  inhabitants  of  the  whole  village  were  awak-
ened by  the  shrieks  of  a  child.  Her  mother  was  very
patient,  and  I  used  to  hear  her  say,  "Bidica,  bidica !
Coyara  aria  yargima,  lass.  De  avier  kikini  de  yaba
yaba  momonarty.  Negato  de  ellegim  vany  momo.  Ne-
gato  de  aneane  momo.  Yaba  yaba  lass"  In  other
words,  "  Goodness  gracious !  Coyara  men  cannot
sleep.  You  are  a  small  child,  but  you  cry  very  loud.
