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teeth ; and it is also certain from them that foul, bad, and
irregular teeth, give to a countenance an effect so pecu-
liarly unpleasing as to lead an observer to suspect something
wrong in the mind.
Those kinds of teeth which are held by physiognomists to
be indicative of the character of different nations, may all
be observed in different individuals of the same country.
For example : the well arranged teeth of the Spaniards ; the
long separated teeth of the Tartars ; and the extremely
white teeth of the Hottentots, are all to be found with the
natives of Great Britain. The appearance of the teeth can-
not, therefore, be a more true mark of national than of
individual character.
Most civilized nations agree in considering soundness,
whiteness, and regularity, essential to beautiful teeth. There
are some nations however of a different opinion, and think
that in order to be beautiful, the teeth cannot be too black.
The ladies of the 'Marian Islands blacken their teeth. The
Tonquinese and Siamese employ every art for the same
purpose. The inhabitants of Sumatra and Malacca also
blacken their teeth. Father Tachard says that these people
blacken their teeth from an idea that man ought not to have
white teeth like brutes.
The married women of Java dye their teeth black, which
we may suppose is intended as a mark of distinction. In
some other of the East India Islands the inhabitants gild the
too front incisores of the upper jaw, and blacken the adjoin-
ing teeth. Many savage tribes have modes peculiar to them-
selves of ornamenting their teeth ; and some offer their front
teeth as a sacrifice to their gods.
The Abyssinian Negroes take off the corners of their front
teeth, and make them spear pointed. The Malay Indians
make a groove across the incisores of the upper jaw ; they