The manners, lauues, and customes of all nations collected out of the best vvriters by Ioannes Boemus ... ; with many other things of the same argument, gathered out of the historie of Nicholas Damascen ; the like also out of the history of America, or Brasill, written by Iohn Lerius ; the faith, religion and manners of the Aethiopians, and the deploration of the people of Lappia, compiled by Damianus a ̀Goes ; with a short discourse of the Aethiopians, taken out of Ioseph Scaliger his seuenth booke de emendatione temporum ; written in Latin, and now newly translated into English, by Ed. Aston.

Of Lusitania, and of the auncient manners of the Portugals. CAP. 24.

LVSITANIA, a Prouince in the further∣most part of Spaine, and at this day called Portugall, hath Bethica on the South, Tar∣ragon on the East, and the Ocean sea vppon the West and North. It was first called Lusi∣tania, (according to Pliny) of Lusus the father of Bacchus, and Lysa his luxurious and dissolute companion.

Of all Spaniards, the Portugals bee most valiant, sub∣till, actiue and nimble, and through their extraordinarie skill in nauigation haue found out more strange and vn∣knowne lands, than any people in the world againe: Their shields which they vse in the warres be two foote broade, and made crooked towards the vpper end where they hold their hands, (for other handle they haue none) and these will they vse with such agility, as they will thereby easily auoide both arrowes, darts, and hand-blowes: They haue also short swords or poynards hanging by their sides, and some haue brest-plates made of linnen cloth, and yet but few weare other priuie coats or crested helmets, but onely such as be made of nerues or sinewes.

They be very skilfull in darting, & can cast them a great way from them, they continue the battell long, and by rea∣son of their nimblenes, quicke agility, and lightnesse,

they will easily flie from their enemie, and againe pursue him, as makes most for their aduantage: foot-men haue their legs harnessed, and euery one a bundle of darts, and some carrie Iauelins pointed or headed with brasse. There be some Portingals dwelling neere the riuer Durius, which are said to liue like vnto the Spartanes: these vse two kind of oyntments, and sulphury or fierie stones to warm them withall, and all cold things are washed. They eate all one kind of meate, which is wholesome, though it be homely: when they sacrifice, they cut not the beast in peeces, but opening his belly, they looke into the bowels or garbage of the oblation, as also into the veines of his side, and by handling of them coniecture of things to come. Another kind of diuination they haue by mens intrals, and especial∣ly captiues; in doing whereof they first couer the man or∣dained for that purpose, with a cassocke, and then the Au∣gur or Southsayer maketh an incision in the bottome of his belly, and by his fall prophesieth of future euents, which done, they cutte off the right hands, and offer them to their gods.

Those Portingals which inhabite on hils fare but mean∣ly, they drinke water, and lye vpon the bare ground: They suffer their haire to grow long, and to hang downe about their shoulders dangling like women, and they fight with Myters vpon their heades, in stead of helmets. Their dain∣tiest meate is bucke goates, which they also sacrifice to Mars, as they do captiues and horses.

They haue also (in imitation of the Greekes) their Hecatombes, which are sacrifices made with an hundred beasts of all sorts, and (as Pindarus is of opinion) they sa∣crifice and offer euery hundreth thing likewise. They haue their Gymnick playes, (which are so called, for that they be

done by naked men) and these playes are exercised with weapons, horses, plummets of Leade, called the Whirle-about, running and disordered fighting: and sometimes they diuide themselues into parts, and fight one side a∣gainst another.

These mountainous Lusitanians feede two parts of the yeare vppon Acornes, which when they haue dried and ground into meale, they make bread thereof and so eat it. In stead of wine (wherof those parts are barren) they haue drinke made of barley, and that they euer drinke new, as∣soone as it is brewed.

When kinsfolke and friends are assembled together to banquet, in stead of oyle they vse butter, and haue seates made in the walles for them to sit in; where euery one ta∣keth his seate according to his worth or grauitie, and e∣uer in their drinking, they vse to sing and dance after mu∣sicke; leaping and capering for ioy, as the women in Boe∣tica do, when they ioyne all their hands together, and so fall a dauncing: Their apparell (for the most part) is black cassockes, which they will wrap about them, and so lye themselues downe to sleepe vppon straw or litter: They eate their meate in earthen platters, as the French men do, and women weare for the most part red garments.

In steade of money they vse thinne plates of siluer, or else exchange and barter one commoditie for another. Those which are condemned to dye, are stoned to death, and Parricides are carried from out the confines of their hilles, or beyond some riuer, and there couered and ouer-whelmed with stones. They contract matrimonie after the manner of the Greekes, and (according to the custome of the Aegyptians) bring those which are sick into the streets, to the end that those which haue beene troubled with the

like griefes themselues, may shew them how they were cu∣red. And these be the customs vsed in those mountainous and northerne countries of Spaine.

It is reported, that those Spaniards which inhabite the vtmost parts of Portingall, when they be taken prisoners by their enemies, and readie to bee hanged, they will sing for ioy: That the men there giue dowers to their wiues, and make their sisters their heires, who do also marrv their own brothers. And that they be so barbarous and bloudy∣minded, that mothers will murther their owne children, and children their parents, rather then that they should fall into the hands of their enemies. They do sacrifice to a god, whose name is vnknowne: when the Moone is in the full, they will watch all night euery one at his owne dore, dancing and skipping all the night long. The women haue as good part of all profits and increase as men haue, for they practise husbandry, and be obedient and seruiceable to men, when they themselues are with child.

The Spaniards make poyson of a kind of herbe much like vnto Persley, which offendeth not vppon a sodaine, but by litle and litle, and this they alwaies haue in readi∣nesse for any one that wrongs them, in so much as it is sayd to be proper to the Spaniards to be great poysoners, and that their custome is also to offer themselues to bee slaine and sacrificed for those to whome they are newly reconciled.

Notes

• The bounds of Portugall.