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 MS(B(DiriB8!S 
 
 ON THE 
 
 RELIGION OF THE INDIAN TRIBES 
 
 CP 
 
 JSIORTH AMERICA, 
 
 DELIVERRD BEFORE 
 
 THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 
 
 DECEMBER 20, 1819. 
 
 BY SAMUEL FAR MAR JARVIS, 
 
 D. D. A. A. S. 
 
 Jusques dans leurs <leinnrrhps Irs plus indifler.^ntps on apppr^oit ties traces de la 
 religion primitive; muis <|ui echaptiit i ifiix, (iiii tie Ips eluilieiit pas assc/., par la 
 i-aison qu'ellis sonl ent ore p!us pflU* C's par le (letHUt d'iu!>tnic'li()ii, fju'altfeie''8 par 
 \a iitelunge d'uii cuUe superatitieux, et par des tiaditioiis fabulcujcs.. ..C^ir/«('ou'. 
 
 JfEW-YOIiK: 
 
 rUELISUED BV C. WII.K, & CO. 3 WALL STREET. 
 C. S. Van Winkle, Printer. 
 
 1820. 
 
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 NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY 
 
 
 ■:k 
 
 H>f 
 
 December 20^A, 1819. 
 
 Resolved, that the thanks of this Society be presented to the 
 Rev. Samuel F. Jarvis, D. D. for the Anniversary Dis- 
 course delivered by him this day, and that he be respectfully 
 requested to furnish the Society unth a copy for publication. 
 
 Resolved, that Doctor A. W. Ives, G. C. Verplanck, 
 and M. C. Paterson, Esqrs. be a Committee to wait on 
 the Reverend Doctor Jarvis, unth this resolution. 
 
 JOHN PINTARD, 
 
 Recording Secretary. 
 
 
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DISCOURSE 
 
 ON 
 
 THE RELIGION OF THE INDIAN TRIBES 
 
 OF 
 
 
 NORTH AMERICA. 
 
 Mr. President, and 
 
 Gentlemen of the Historical Socieiijt 
 
 In survej'ing those portions of American history, 
 from which I might select a subject for the present 
 occasion, it appeared to me, that the religion of the 
 Indian tribes of North America, had not been viewed 
 with that largeness of observation, which is the 
 characteristic of enlightened philosophy. Various 
 causes may be mentioned, which have hitherto con- 
 spired to prevent, or to impede, such an examination. 
 In the first place, the horror, proceeding from the 
 cruelties of their warfare, forbade the calmness of 
 investigation. As long as they were formidable, 
 curiosity was overpowered by terror ; and there 
 was neither leisure, nor inclination, to contemplate 
 their character as a portion of the human family, 
 while the glare of conflagration reddened the mid- 
 
 i 
 
 h 
 
6 
 
 iiij^lit sky, and the yells of the savaj^c, iniiij^liii^ with 
 the shrieks of hutchr'red victims, rode, as j)()rteiitous 
 messengers, upon every gale. Hut that state of 
 things has h)ng eeased to exist. The white men of 
 America iiavc; Ix'come too numerous, to fear any 
 longer the eflfcjcts of savage harharity ; and the tales, 
 which one(! carried terror to the stoutest heart, aro 
 now scarcely heard beyond the precincts of the nur- 
 sery. In the room of fear, should now arise a senti- 
 ment of pity. " The red men are melting," to borrow 
 the expressive metaphor of one of their most celebra- 
 ted warriors* — " like snow before the sun ;" and we 
 shouKl be anxious, before it is too late, to copy the 
 evanescent features of their character, and perpetuate 
 them on the page of history. 
 
 But when fear ceases, contempt is a natural con- 
 sequence. The Indian, whoso character was once 
 so lofty and independent, is now seen begging at 
 our doors for the price of his perdition ; and, as our 
 foot spurns the suppliant, wc are apt to think, that 
 nothing, connected with one so vile, can be worthy 
 of our attention. But is it fair to judge from so 
 vitiated a specimen ? When a race of men are 
 minirled with others, who consider them as inferiors, 
 they inevitably become so. Submission to contempt, 
 is an acknowledgment of its justice. If, therefore, the 
 
 * The noted Miami Chief Mishikiiiakvva, or Little Turtle, who contributed 
 most to the defeat of St. Clair. See Volney's View ot liie soil and climate oi 
 the United Stales. Sujiiileuient, No. VI. Thilad. 1804, p. 383. 
 
liii;^ vvilli 
 jrtcntous 
 
 state of 
 e niun of 
 feur any 
 the talcs, 
 leart, aro 
 
 the nur- 
 B a sunti- 
 o borrow 
 ; celebra- 
 ' and we 
 copy the 
 [3rpetuatc 
 
 ural con- 
 vas once 
 jTging at 
 d, as our 
 ink, that 
 u worthy 
 from so 
 lien are 
 inferiors, 
 antempt, 
 fore, the 
 
 •ontributcd 
 d climate o( 
 
 Indian would avoid degradation, ho must retire from 
 the habitations of white men ; anrl if we wish to see 
 him in his original character, we must follow him to 
 his native forests. — There, surely, he is worthy of our 
 attention. The lovers of the physical sciences, ex- 
 plore the woods of America, to cull her plants, and to 
 investigate the habits of her animals. JShall not the 
 lovers of the moral sciences, be equally ardent and 
 industrious ? Shall man, who stands at the summit 
 of earthly creation, be forgotten, amid the general 
 scrutiny ? 
 
 The sources of prejudice which I have mention- 
 ed, influence the examination of every subject, con- 
 nected with the Indian character : there are peculiar 
 difficulties, with regard to that on which I have 
 chosen to address you. 
 
 The Indians themselves are not communicative in 
 relation to their religion ; and it requires a good d<'al 
 of familiar, attentive, and I may add, unsuspected 
 observation, to obtain any knowledge respecting it. 
 Hence, many who have been transiently resident 
 among them, have \ery confidently pronounced, that 
 they have no religion ; an assertion, which subse- 
 quent and more accurate travellers, have shown to 
 be entirely unfounded.* 
 
 Those, also, on whom we rely for information, 
 have either been too little informed to know what 
 to observe, or they have been influenced by peculiar 
 
 !k 
 
 ll 
 
 I lH' 
 
 i 
 
 See NotB A. 
 
modes of thinking:, which have given a tinge to all 
 they hav<' said on iht; sul)ject. 
 
 The various spucidatioiis, for example, on the 
 qncstion, whence America was peoph'd, led to many 
 misrepresentations of the rc^lif^ious rites of its inhahi- 
 tar.ts ; and ailinities were discovered which existed 
 no where but in the fancy of the inventor. Gomara, 
 TiCrius, and Lescarhot, inferred from some resem- 
 hhuiees of this kind, thnt America was peopled hy 
 the Canaanites when they were expelled by Joshua; 
 and the celebrated Cirotius, adopting the sentiment 
 of Martyr, imagined that Yucatan was first peo|)led 
 by Ethiopians, and that those Ethiopians were 
 Christians !* 
 
 The human mind derives pleasure from paradox, 
 for the same reason that it delights in wit. Both 
 produce new and surprising combinations of thought; 
 and the judgment, being overpowered by tin? fervours 
 of imagination, becomes for a time insensible to their 
 cxtrava<j[ancc. 
 
 It is well known, that, among the philosophers of 
 Europe, the opinion has very generally prevailed, 
 that the natives of America were, both as to physi- 
 cal and mental powers, a feeble race ; and, impress- 
 ed with this belief, they hardly considered the reli- 
 gion of the Indians as worthy of minute attention. 
 The celebrated historian of America, has uncon- 
 sciously fallen into this error, at the very njomcnt in 
 
 * ?pe Not* B. 
 
V 
 
 '1 
 r 
 
 inge to all 
 
 L', on the 
 (1 to many 
 its inlmhi- 
 ch existed 
 
 Goinara, 
 lie roscin- 
 )oopl(Ml hy 
 )y Josliiia ; 
 
 sentiment 
 •St peopled 
 ians were 
 
 11 paradox, 
 v'it. Both 
 r thought; 
 i(? fervours 
 )lc to their 
 
 sophcrs ot 
 )revailed, 
 to J)hysi- 
 impress- 
 the reli- 
 attention. 
 ;is uneon- 
 nomcnt iu 
 
 whieli he was censurinpj others, for sulTering their re- 
 lation of faets to 1)0 perverted, by an attachment to 
 preconceived theories.* > t . 
 
 Voliiey,in opposition to the sentiments of Rousseau, 
 has endeavoured to sink the character of ihe savage, 
 in the same proportion as that eccentric author sought 
 to raise it. On the subject of the Indian religion 
 especially, no one should be read with greater cau- 
 tion. He who could imagine that Christianity was 
 only an astronomical allegory, and that the birth of 
 our Saviour meant no more than that tiie sun had 
 entered the constellation Virgo, can hardly be con- 
 sidered as perfectly san^, even when he treats on the 
 religion of Heathens.f We need not be surprised, 
 therefore, at the assertion, that the Indians have no 
 regular system of religion ; that gach one employs 
 the liberty allowed him of niaking a religion for 
 himself; and that all the worship they kuo.w is of- 
 fered to the authors of evil.} Never Wall^here an 
 
 * See Rohortaon's America, hook iv. ^. vii. 
 
 f See Les Ruiiies, ou M'tlitatioiis sur Ins Rnvolulioiis ties EuniiroH, pai* 
 M. Voliiey. A''ouve.lle edition,, corritru', Paris, 1792, 8vu. eliap. 22. p. isr>. 
 221-4. Ill this work, Volney had the lisirilibnod to inuiiitain, not only llmt 
 our Saviour was ail allegorienl pcr-sonaf^e, hut that all reli!<ioiis, Ili-ulheii, 
 IVfahometan, mid Jewish, as well as (hristian, ar." in suhsfniice the s.iiiie ; 
 that all have arisen from a literal interpretation of the (igiirnti\e lani^nn^'e of 
 astmnomere ; and that the very idea of a God, sjirung from a peisoiiifjcutioii 
 of the elements, and of the pliysical powers of the universe. \i the sij^ht of 
 this monstrous creation of a disordered fancy, one cannot help cxciiiiiiiiii'.; 
 with Stillinsjileet, " Oh what will not Atheists helieve, rather than a Oeit} 
 and Providence." 
 
 i Voliiey's View of the United States, ut sujir. trans, by Brown, p. ^Irt. 
 
 2 
 
 1. 
 
 f i 
 
10 
 
 assertion more unfounded; but it enabled him to 
 quote that maxim of the Epicurean poet, which is 
 so frequently in the mouths of unbelievers, that all 
 religion originated in fear : 
 
 Piimos in orbe Decs fecit timor. 
 
 On the other hand, an hypothesis has somewhat 
 extensively prevailed, which exalts the religion of 
 the Indians as much above its proper level, as Voi- 
 ney has debased it below ; 1 mean that, which sup- 
 poses them to be the descendants of the ten tribes of 
 Israel. This theory so possessed the mind of Adair, 
 that, although he had the greatest opportunities of 
 obtaining knowledge, his book is, comparatively, of 
 little use. We ae constantly led to suspect the 
 fidelity of his statements, because his judgment had 
 lost its equipoise, and he saw every thing through a 
 discoloi red medium. I feel myself bound to notice 
 this hypothesis the more, because it has lately been 
 revived and brought before the public, by a venera- 
 ble member of this society, whose exalted character 
 renders every opinion he may defend a subject of re- 
 spectful attention.* 
 
 To the mind of every rc^ligious man, the history of 
 the Hebrews is a subject of peculiar interest; and it 
 is impossible to read of the extermination of the 
 
 * See Dr. Boudlnot's Star in the West, or a humbU attempt to discover 
 the long-lobt ten tribes of Israel, piepariitoiy to their return to their beloved 
 city Jerusalem. Trenton, (N. 1.) 1816. 8vo. 
 
1 him to 
 
 which i8 
 
 ;, that all 
 
 lomewhat 
 eligion of 
 1, as Voi- 
 hich sup- 
 i tribes of 
 of Adair, 
 unities of 
 itively, of 
 spect the 
 ment had 
 ;hrough a 
 to notice 
 e\y been 
 venera- 
 character 
 ect of re- 
 
 listory of 
 and it 
 1 of the 
 
 )t to discover 
 lieir beloved 
 
 11 
 
 kingdom of Israel, without a feeling of compassion 
 for the captives, who were thus torn from the land 
 of their prerogative. The impenetrable irkness 
 which hangs ovi^r their subsequent history, combines 
 with this sentiment of pity, the powerful excitement 
 of curiosity. It is not, then, to be wondered at, that 
 when the disquisitions arose respecting the peopling 
 of America, the idea of tracing to these western 
 shores the long-lost tribes of Israel, should also have 
 arisen before the eye of imno;inat'.on with captivating 
 splendour; that the thought should have been seized 
 with avidity by men who were pious, and ardent, 
 and contemplative ; and that, in the establishment 
 of a theory which every one could wish to be true, 
 facts should be strained from their natural bent, and 
 resemblances imagined, which have no existence in 
 reality. 
 
 The most unequivocal method of tracing the origin 
 of the aborigines of America, as Charlevoix has 
 sensibly remarked, is to ascertain the character of 
 their languages, and to compare them with the pri- 
 mitive languages of the eastern hemisphere.* 
 
 But this test will, I conceive, be found very fatal 
 to the theory in question. The best informed wri- 
 ters agree, that there are, exclusive of the Karalit or 
 Esquimaux, three radical languages spoken by the 
 
 * Charlevoix's Dissertation sur I'origine des Am6riquains, prefixed to his 
 Journal d'un voyage dans TAmer. Peptcnt. — Hist, de In nouvello France, 
 torn. iii. p. 36. 
 
!t 
 
 !t 
 
 ■f 
 t 
 
 i 
 
 i .; 
 
 12 
 
 Iiidiuiisof INortli America.* Mr. Heckewclder de- 
 nominates them the Iroquois, the Lenape, and the 
 Floridian. The Iroquois is spoken by the six na- 
 tions, the Wyandots or Hurons, the Naudowessies, 
 die Assiniboils, and other tribes beyond the St. Law- 
 rence. The Lenape, which is the most widely ex- 
 tended language on this side of the Mississippi, was 
 spoken by the tribes, now extinct, who formerly in- 
 habited Nova-Scotia and th*^ present state of Maine, 
 the Abenakis, Micmacs, Canibas, Openangos, Soc- 
 cokis, Etchemins, and Souriquois : dialects of it 
 are now spoken by the Miamis, the Potawotamies, 
 JNIissisaUgoes, and Kickapoos ; the Conestogos, Nan- 
 ticokes, Shawanese, and Mohicans ; the Algonquins, 
 Knisteneaux, and Chippeways. The Floridian in- 
 cludes the languages of the Creeks or Muskohgees, 
 Chickesaws, Choctaws, Pascagoulas, Cherokees, 
 Seminoles, and several others in the Southern states 
 and Florida.f These three languages are primitive, 
 that is to say, are so distinct as to have no perceiva- 
 ble affinity. All, therefore, cannot be derived from 
 the Hebrew ; for it is a contradiction in terms, to 
 speak of three languages radically different, as de- 
 
 ■^ See Note C. 
 
 I Transactions of the Historical nnd Literary Committee of the Americau 
 Pliilosopliical Society, lield at Philadelphia for promoting useful knowledge. 
 Vol.i. rhilad. 1819, 8vo No. I. An account of the history, manners, and 
 customs, of the Indian nations who once inhabited Pennsylvania, and the 
 neiglibouring states. By tlie Rov. John Heckeweldci of Bethlehem. Chap. 
 i\. p. 104. 
 
•H' 
 
 IS 
 
 ^'clder de- 
 , and the 
 B six na- 
 lowessies, 
 St. Law- 
 ^idely ex- 
 sippi, was 
 merly in- 
 of Maine, 
 gos, Soc- 
 cts of it 
 ivotamies, 
 gos, Nan- 
 gonquins, 
 ridian in- 
 skohgees, 
 herokees, 
 em states 
 primitive, 
 perceiva- 
 ived from 
 terms, to 
 it, as de- 
 
 bc American 
 knowledge, 
 manners, and 
 aiiia, and the 
 ehem. Chap. 
 
 rived from a common source.* Which then, We 
 may well ask, is to be selected as the posterity of the 
 Israelites : the Iroquois, the Lenapo, or the southern 
 Indians ? 
 
 Besides, there is one striking peculiarity in the 
 construction of American languages, which has no 
 counterpart in the Hebrew. Instead of the ordinary 
 div ision of genders, they divide into the animate and 
 inanimate. It is impossible to conceive that any 
 nation, in whatever circumstances they might be 
 placed, could depart, in so remarkable a manner, 
 from the idioms of their native language.f 
 
 But supposing that there were some affinity in 
 any one of the languages of North America to the 
 Hebrew, still it would not prove that the persons 
 who speak it are of Hebrew descent. The Arabic 
 and the Amharic have very strong affinities with the 
 Hebrew : but does it thence follow that the Arabs 
 and Abyssinians are Hebrews? Admitting, there- 
 fore, the fact of this affinity, in its fullest extent, the 
 only legitimate inference would be, that the langua- 
 ges of America are of oriental derivation, and, con- 
 sequently, that America was peopled from Asia. 
 
 To pursue this subject further, would occupy toO 
 much time upon a point which is merely subsidiary. | 
 But I cannot forbear remarking, that, while the na- 
 tion of Israel has been wonderfully preserved, the 
 
 i 
 
 * S«9 N*te ». 
 
 t SceiVotoE. 
 
 : Se« Note r. 
 
. I 
 
 y 
 
 : I 
 
 ! r 
 
 ^- '^' 
 
 % ' 
 
 \ ^ 
 
 14 
 
 Indians are nearly exterminated. The nation of 
 Israel will hereafter be restored to the land of their 
 forefathers; but this event must speedily arrive, or 
 the unhappy tribes of j-kmerica can have no part in 
 it. A few years more, and they will be beyond the 
 capability of migration I 
 
 The question, then, with regard to the immediate 
 origin of the American Indians, aiust remain la the 
 uncertainty which hangs over it. Nothing but a 
 more extensive knowledge of the languages of this 
 continent, of those oi' Northern Asia, and of the 
 Islands in the Southern Pacific, can throw any ad- 
 ditional light upon a jjroblem, which has so long 
 exercised, and so completely exhausted, the inge- 
 nuity of conjecture. Their religion furnishes no 
 assistance in the solution, for it cannot be identified 
 with that of any particular nation, in any other por- 
 tion of the globe ; and though resemblances, and 
 those very strong and striking, can be traced, yet 
 they are such as are common to the great family of 
 man, and prove nothing but that all have one com- 
 mon origin. 
 
 It will be readily seen, however, that this proof is 
 of vast importance. If the religion of the Indians 
 exhibits traces of that primeval religion which was 
 of divine appointment ; if the debasement of it was 
 'Owing, as among all other nations, to the concurrent 
 operation of human ignorance, weakness, and cor- 
 ruption : and if its rites, and even its superstitious 
 
i nation of 
 md of I heir 
 y arrive, or 
 i no part in 
 bejond the 
 
 immediate 
 nain In the 
 hing but a 
 iges of this 
 and of the 
 3W any ad- 
 as so long 
 , the inge- 
 rnishes no 
 3 identified 
 
 other por- 
 anees, and 
 raced, yet 
 
 family of 
 
 one corn- 
 is proof is 
 te Indians 
 vhich was 
 
 of it was 
 loncurrent 
 
 and cor- 
 ner stitio us 
 
 16 
 
 observances, bear that analogy to those of the old 
 world, which must exist where all have flowed from 
 one source : then all that is really useful in the ques- 
 tion respecting the origin of the inhabitants of this 
 continent will be fully obtained. There will be no 
 anomaly in the history of human nature ; and the 
 assertion of Voltaire will be found to be as false as 
 it is flippant, that the Americans are a race entirely 
 different from other men, and that they have sprung 
 into existence like plants and insects.* 
 
 * " II n'est permis qu'a un aveugle de douter que les Blancs, les N6gres, 
 les Albinos, les Hottentots, Ics Lupons, les Chinois, les Am6ricains soient 
 des races entiereraent diffit'rentes." Voltaire (Euvres, vol. 16. p. 8. 
 
 " Au reste si Ton demutide d'oii sont veiius les Amtricain;;; il faut aussi 
 demmider d'oii sont venus les habitants des terres Anstrales ; et Ton a deja 
 repondu que la providence qui a mis des liomnies dans le Norvcge, en a 
 plantu aussi en Am6rique et sous le cercle polaire meridional, conime ellc y 
 a plante des arbres et fait croitre de I'herbe." Ibid, p. 10. 
 
 " Se peut-il qu'on demande encore d'ou sont venus Ics liommes qui ont 
 peuple TAm^rique .' On doit assur6ment faire la meme question sur les na- 
 tions des Terres Australes. Elles sont beaucoup plus cloignces du port dont 
 partit Christoplie Colonib, que ne le sont Ics iles Antilles. Onatrouvedes 
 hommes et des animaux partout ou la terre est habitable ; qui les y a mis P 
 On a d6jH dit; C'est celni qui fait croitre I'herbe des champs : et on ne de- 
 vait pas etre plus suri)ris de trouver en Amerique des hommes que des 
 mouches." lb. p. 37. 
 
 How much pains did this extraordinary man take to degrade that nature of 
 which he was at once the ornament and (he shame ! No one can read the 
 writings of Voltaire, without a feeling of admiration at the wonderful versa- 
 tility of his talents. No one can help beine; amused, and having his mind 
 drawn along, by the powers of his excursive fancy. But with ail this, there is, 
 to every serious and sensitive mind, a feeling of disgust and shrinking ab- 
 horrence. By associating ludicrous images with subjects which have been 
 hallowed by the veneration of ages, he has the address to impart to them 
 that ridicule which properly belongs only to the company in which he has ■ 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 
 
16 
 
 ,.;._ 
 
 
 Previous to the dispersion of the descendants of 
 Noah, th<> knowh'tlge of the true (iod, of the wor- 
 ship which he required from his creatures, and of 
 the sanctions with which he enforced his commands, 
 must have been common to all. It is impossibh^ to 
 conceive of any distinction where all were equally 
 related to him, and possessed equal means of instruc- 
 tion and knowledge. In a word, the whole of man- 
 kind formed one universal church, having the same 
 faith and the same worship. 
 
 How long this purity continued we know not, 
 nor when, nor where, idolatry was first introduced. 
 That it began, however, at a very early period, wc 
 have the strongest evidence ; for Terah, the father 
 of Abraham, was an idolater, notwithstanding the 
 precepts and example of Noah, both of which, for 
 more than a hundred years, he personally enjoyed. 
 We may account for it from that tendency in our 
 nature which seeks to contract every thing within 
 the compass of our understanding, and to subject it, 
 if possible, to the scrutiny of our senses. A Being 
 purely spiritual, omniscient and omnipotent, is above 
 our comprehension, and we seek, by the multiplica- 
 tion of subordinate deities, to account for the opera- 
 placed them. Hence, his writings have done more injury to truth, and to 
 human happiness, than those of any other modern — perhaps I may add, 
 of any other being. The thoughtless and the timid have been frightened 
 out of tlieir good principles by his caustic sarcasm, while to the rashly 
 bold and ignorantly daring, the eye," of the judgment have been blinded by 
 the coruscations of his wit. 
 
17 
 
 i^ndants of 
 fthe vvor- 
 3S, and of 
 ommands, 
 )ossible to 
 e equally 
 )f instruc- 
 3 of maii- 
 the same 
 
 now not, 
 troduced. 
 eriod, we 
 he father 
 iding the 
 vhich, for 
 enjoyed. 
 y in our 
 g within 
 ubject it, 
 A Being 
 is above 
 ultiplica- 
 le opera- 
 truth, and to 
 I may add, 
 1 frightened 
 the rashly 
 n blinded by 
 
 tions of his power. When this is done, the imagina- 
 tion feels itself at liberty to clothe them with corpo- 
 real forms ; and from this idea, the transition is not 
 difficult, to the formation of idols, and the introduc- 
 tion of idolatry. 
 
 But notwithstanding this departure from primeval 
 purity, the religion of mankind did not at once lose 
 all its original brightness. It was still the form of 
 the archangel ruined, it did not reject the worship 
 of the true God, but seems only to have absurdly 
 combined with it the worship of inferior divinities. 
 
 When Abraham sojourned at Gerar, the king of that 
 country had evidently communications with the Al- 
 mighty ; and the testimony which God gave of the 
 integrity of his character, and his submission to the 
 divine admonition, clearly prove that he was a true 
 believer.* 
 
 At a subsequent period, when Isaac lived 
 in the same country, the king, a descendant of 
 the former monarch, requested that a covenant of 
 friendship should be made between them, because, 
 as he observed, Isaac was the blessed of Jehovah.f 
 " This," as Bishop Horsley remarks, " is the lan- 
 guage of one who feared Jehovah, and acknowledged 
 
 his providence."t 
 
 When Joseph was brought before the King of 
 
 * Gen. XX. 3, 4, 5, 6. See also xxi. 22, 23. t Gen. xxri. 28, 29. 
 
 t Horsley's Dissertation on the Prophecies of the Messiah, disjjersed 
 among the Heathen, prefixed to Nine Serin, p. 41. New-York, 1816. Sv«> 
 
 3 
 
 m 
 
. f 
 
 1 I 
 
 M 
 
 18 
 
 Egypt, both speak of God as if tlicy had the same 
 faith, and the same trust in his overruling provi- 
 dence.* 
 
 Even at so late a period as when the Israelites 
 ent(;red Canaan, the sj)ies of Joshua found a woman 
 of Jericho, who confessed that *' Jehovah, the God 
 of Israel, he is God in Heaven above, and in the earth 
 beneath. "t 
 
 The book of Job presents an interesting view of 
 the patriarchal religion as it existed in Arabia; and, 
 it will be remembered that, in Mesopotamia, Balaam 
 was a prophet of the Most High. 
 
 These instances are sufficient to show how exten- 
 sively the worship of the true God prevailed, and 
 tiiat it had not become extinct even when the chil- 
 dren of Israel took possession of the land of promise, 
 and became the peculiar people of Jehovah. That 
 it was blended, however, with the worship of infe- 
 rior divinities, represented in idolatrous forms, is 
 equally apparent from tlie sacred history. . 
 
 When the servant of Abraham had disclosed to 
 the family of Nahor the purpose of his mission, 
 both Laban and Bethuel replied : *' The thing pro- 
 ceedeth from Jehovah ; we cannot speak unto thee 
 bad or good."! This reply was an evidence of their 
 faith in the true God ; yet it afterwards appears that 
 the same Laban had images which he called his 
 Gods, and which were regarded with veneration, and 
 
 •^ Gen. xli. 25. 32. 38, 39. 
 
 t Josh.ii. V. 11. 
 
 Gen.xxiv. 60. 
 
r 
 
 be same 
 
 \ provi- 
 
 sraelitcs 
 woman 
 he God 
 he earth 
 
 view of 
 a; and, 
 Balaam 
 
 1 exten- 
 [ed, and 
 he chil- 
 jromise, 
 That 
 of infe- 
 )rms, is 
 
 osed to 
 mission, 
 ng pro- 
 ito thee 
 of their 
 irs that 
 led his 
 on, and 
 
 tiv. 60. 
 
 19 
 
 greatly valued by himself and his children.* Upon 
 the occasion of Jacob's departure to Bethel, he com- 
 manded his household to " put away the strange 
 Gods that were among them." These Gods must 
 have been numerous ; for it is mentioned that " they 
 gave unto Jacob all the strange Gods which were 
 in their hand, and he hid them under the oak by 
 Shech( m.f Even the chosen family, therefore, was 
 not exempt from the infection of idolatry. 
 
 But this was idolatry in its milder form. The 
 progress of corruption among mankind soon intro- 
 duced a grosser and more malignant species. The 
 worship of the invisible Creator was at length for- 
 gotten ; His seat was usurped by fictitious deities ; 
 and a general apostacy prevailed. 
 
 Quis nescit qualia demcns 
 
 ^gyptus portentti colat ? 
 
 Porrum et CBpc nefas violare, ant frangere moi-sii. \ 
 
 O satictas gentes, tjuibus lia-o nascuiitur in hortis 
 
 Numina! Juvknal. Sat. xv.j 
 
 Then it was that the Almighty was pleased to give the 
 nations over " to a reprobate mind,"§ and to select 
 
 * Gen. xxxi. 19. 30. 32. 34, 35. \ Gen. xxxv. 2. 4. 
 
 X Who knows not to what monstrous Gods, ray friend, 
 
 The mad inhabitants of Egypt bend .' 
 
 'Tis dangerous here 
 
 To violate an onion, or to stain 
 
 The sanctity of leeks, with tooth profane. 
 
 O holy nations I Sacro-sanct abodes ! 
 
 Where every garden propagates its gods ! — Gifforu 
 § Rom. 1. 28. 
 
 w 
 
 m 
 
20 
 
 '!( 
 
 a prculini' pooplr, to be a signal ovomplo of hispro- 
 vidi'iKT, the witness of iiis won.. anil tin; guar- 
 dian of tliat revelation with wI'.ilh he souji;ht to 
 check the waywardness of human corruption. 
 
 I. Having thus seen that all false religions are, in a 
 jrreater or h'ss dejjree, departures Irom the true ; that 
 th(;re is a tendency in the hiunan mind, to form low 
 and limited views of the Supreme lieing ; and that, 
 in fact, all nations have fallen into the corruptions of 
 polytheism ami idolatry ; we should conclude, even 
 in reasoning a priori^ that the religion of the Indians 
 would be found to partake of the general character. 
 Accordingly, the fact is amply attested, that while 
 they acknowledge One Suprenr Being, whom they 
 denominate the Great Spirit, or the Master of L//e, 
 they also believe in Subordinate Divinities, who have 
 the chief regulation of the affairs of men. 
 
 Charlevoix, who had all the op])ortunities of ob- 
 taining information which ])ersonal observation, and 
 the united testimony of the French missionaries 
 could give, is an unexceptionable witness with re- 
 gard to the Hurons, the Iroquois, and the Algon- 
 quins. Nothing, says he, is more certain, though 
 at the same time obscure, than the conception which 
 the American savages have of a Supreme Being. 
 All agree that he is the Great Spirit, and that he is 
 the master, creator, and governor of the world.* 
 
 * Charlevoix, Journal, iic. let. xxiv. p. 343. 
 
>f his pro- 
 llu; giiar- 
 lougtit to 
 
 5 arc, in a 
 rue ; tliat 
 form low 
 and that, 
 iptions of 
 Jcle, even 
 e Indians 
 character, 
 hat while 
 liom they 
 of Life, 
 who have 
 
 es of ob- 
 tion, and 
 tsionaries 
 
 with re- 
 e Algon- 
 , though 
 )n which 
 Being, 
 lat he is 
 
 world.* 
 
 The Ilurons call him Areskoui ; the Iroipiois, hv a 
 slight variation, Agreskoue. lie is, with them, the 
 Ciod of war. llis name they invoke as they march. 
 It is the signal to engage, and it is the war-cry in the 
 hottest of tlie battle.* 
 
 But, beside the Supreme Being, they believe in 
 an infinite number of subaltern spirits, wiio are the 
 objects of worship. These they divide into good 
 and bad. The good spirits are calKui, by the Ilu- 
 rons, 0/ckisj by the Algonquins, Manitous. They 
 suppose them to be the guardians of men, and that 
 each has his own tutelary deity .f In fact, every thing 
 in nature has its spirit, though all have not the same 
 rank nor the same influence. The animals they 
 hunt have their spirits. If they do not understand 
 
 • Charlevoix, Journal, iic. let. xxiv. p. 344. " l\ paroit que dans 
 res cliansons (ile guerre) on uivoqiie le Dieu de la guerre, que les Murons 
 appellent Jireshoui, ct Ics Iro(|uois Jlgreskoui Je ne s^-ni [las quel nom on 
 lui donnc dans les langucs Algoiiquincs Mais n'est II pas uii peu utonnant 
 que dans le mot Grec A^d; , qui est le Man, et le Dieu de la guerre dans tous 
 Ics ptiys, oi\ Ion a suivi la Tli6oloKie d'Homere, on trouve la racine d'ou 
 semhicnt deriver plusieurs termes dc la lungue Huronne ct Iroquoise, qui ont 
 rapport u la guerre P Aregouen signilie, fuirc la guerre, et se conjuguc aiiisi : 
 liarefro, je fais la guerre ; Sarego, tu I'uis la guerre ; Artf^o, il fait la guerre. 
 Au restc, Areskoui n'est pas seuleinent le Mars de ces peuples ; il est encore le 
 Soiiverain des Dicux,ou,comme ils s'expriment, le Grand Esprit, le Creiiteur 
 et le Maitre du Monde, le Genie qui gouverne tout : mais c'est principale- 
 mcnt pour les expeditions militaires, qu'on I'lnvoque, comine si la qualit^^ 
 qui lui fait le plus d'honneur otoit celle de Dieu des armees. Son vom est le 
 cri lie guerre avant krottibal,et au fori de la luSlce : dans les marches m^me 
 on le ripete sourent, eomme pour s'encoura^er, el pour implorcr son assistanct.' 
 Ibid, p. 208. 
 
 t See Note G. 
 
 1^ 
 
 ■»f 
 
22 
 
 r 
 
 
 It- 
 
 ii 
 
 p> 
 
 ! ! 
 
 f 
 
 any thing, they immediately say, h is a spirit. Il 
 any man performs a remarkable exploit, or exliibits 
 extraorilinary talents, he is said to be n spirit^ or, in 
 other words, his tutelary deity is supposed to he ol* 
 more than ordinary power.* 
 
 It is remarkable, however, that these tutelary 
 deities are not supposed to take men under their pro- 
 teetion till something has been done to merit the 
 favour. A parent who wishes to obtain a j[;uardian 
 spirit for his ehild, first blackens his face, and then 
 causes him to fast for several days.f During this 
 time it is expected that the spirit will reveal himself 
 in a dream ; and on this account, the child is 
 anxiously examined every morning with regard to 
 the visions of the preceding night. Whatever the 
 child ha})pens to dream of the most frequently, even 
 if it happen to be the head of a bird, the foot of an 
 animal, or any thing of the most worthless nature, 
 becomes the symbol or figure under which the Okki 
 reveals himself. With this figure, in the concep- 
 tions of his votary, the spirit becomes identified ; 
 the image is preserved with the greatest care — is the 
 constant companion on all great and important occa- 
 sions, and the constant object of consultation and 
 worship, t 
 
 As soon as a child is informed what is the nature 
 
 * Charlevoix, Journal, &ic. let. xxiv. p. 345-6. [See Note H.] 
 
 t See Note I. 
 
 \ CharlcvoiSi ut supr. p. 346. 
 
 t ! 
 
23 
 
 i 
 
 a spirit. It* 
 , or <*\iiil)its 
 spirit, or, in 
 »sed to be of 
 
 ?sc tutelary 
 er their pro- 
 [) merit the 
 I a guardian 
 :c, and then 
 During this 
 veal himself 
 ic child is 
 th regard to 
 hatever the 
 jently, even 
 D foot of an 
 less nature, 
 
 h the Okki 
 he concep- 
 
 identified ; 
 are — is the 
 ►rtant occa- 
 iltation and 
 
 the nature 
 
 ^ote H.] 
 
 or form of his protecting deity, he is carefully in- 
 structed in the obligations he is under to do him 
 homngc — to follow his advice communicated in 
 dreams — to deserve his favours — to confide implicitly 
 in his care — and to dread the consc(|uenccs of his 
 displeasure. For this reason, when the Huron or 
 the Iroqucis goes to battle or to the chase, the image 
 of his okki is as carefully carried with him an his 
 arms.* At night, each one places his guardian idol 
 on the palisad(;s surrounding the camp, with the 
 face turned from the quarter to which the warriors, 
 or hunters, are about to march. lie then prays to it 
 for an hour, as he does also in the morning before he 
 continues his course. This homage ])erform('d, he 
 lies down to rest, and sleeps in tranquillity, fully 
 persuaded that his spirit will assume the whole duty 
 of keeping guard, and that he has nothing to fcar.f 
 
 * See Note K. 
 
 f " Mai8 ce que Ton oublieroit encore mains que les armes, et ce que I'oti 
 conserve avec le plus g and soin dont les sauvages sont capnhles, ce sont les 
 Manitous. J'en parlerai ailleurs plus amplemcnt : il suHit ici dc dire que re 
 sont les symboles, sous lesquels cliucun se represente sou esprit rnuiilier. On 
 les met lous dans un sac fait de Jones, et peiut de differcntes coulcurs ; et sou- 
 vent, pour fairc honneur an chof, on place ce suo surle devant de son canot. 
 S'il y a trop de Jtfa/u7ou< pour tenir dans un seui sac, on les distribue dans 
 plusicurs, qui sont confies i\ la garde du lieutenant et des ancieiis de cliaque 
 Camille. Mors on y joint les prescns, qui ont etc faits pour avoir des prison- 
 niers, avee les langucs de tons les animaux, i^u'on a litcs featlunt In cumpofrnc, 
 tt dont on doit /aire au relour un aacrijice aux esprits." Charlevoix, Journal, 
 p. 223. 
 
 «' On campe lontems avant le soleil coucbe, et pour I'ordinaire on laisse 
 «leva ' le camp un grand espace envirounC' d'une pulissade, ou pl^tOt d'une 
 
 !" 
 
 t;l 
 
 .til 
 
i 
 
 l^ 
 
 'I 
 
 
 '^! 
 
 I17 ii 
 
 !■ 
 
 
 ' • 1! 
 
 24 
 
 With this account of Charlevoix, the relations 
 which the Moravian missionaries give, not only of 
 the Iroquois, but also of the Lenap^s, or Delawares, 
 and the numerous tribes derived from them, per- 
 fectly accord. " The prevailinjj opinion of all these 
 nations is," says Loskiel, *' that there is one God, 
 or, as they call him, one great and good Spirit, who 
 has created the heavens and the earth, and made 
 man and every other creature." But " beside the 
 Supreme Being, they believe in good and evil spirits, 
 considering them as subordinate deities." " Our 
 missionaries have not found rank polytheism, or 
 gross idolatry, to exist among; the Indians. They 
 have, however, something which may be called an 
 idol.* This is the Manitto, representing, in wood, 
 the head of a man in miniature, which they always 
 carry about them, either on a string round their 
 neck, or in a bag. They hang it also about their 
 children, to preserve them from illness, and ensure 
 to them success. When they perform a solemn 
 sacrifice, a manitto, or a head as large as life, is put 
 upon a pole in the middle of the house. But they 
 understand by the word manitto, every being to 
 which an offering is made, especially all good 
 
 «spece <le treillis, sur lequel on place les Mnnitous tournfes du c6t6, ovi Ton 
 veut aller. On les y inroque pendant unehev.re,ttonenfailautanl toushi 
 tnaiim, avnnt que de dicamper. Aprh cela on croit tVavoir rien a cralndre, on 
 suppose i/iie les esprits se chargent de faire seids la sentinelle, d loute Varmee 
 dart tranquillemenl sous leur sauve-garde." Ibid, p. 230. 
 * See Note L. 
 
26 
 
 the relations 
 , not only of 
 »r Delawares, 
 [1 them, per- 
 n of all these 
 ; is one God, 
 d Spirit, who 
 h, and made 
 *' beside the 
 nd evil spirits, 
 ies." " Our 
 ily theism, or j 
 dians. They 
 
 ■ 
 
 ' be called an ^ 
 ting, in wood, 
 1 they always 
 r round their | 
 3 about their 
 
 and ensure : 
 rm a solemn I 
 
 as life, is put 
 se. But tliey 
 
 ery being to 
 ally all good 
 
 rn6s du cflto, ovi Ton 
 
 nfail aulant tou.i les 
 
 ir rien a craindre, on 
 
 nelle, d toule. Varmse 
 
 spirits. They also look upon the elements, almost 
 all animals, and even some plants, as spirits, one 
 exceeding the other in dignity and power. The 
 iDanittocs are also considered as tutelar spirits. 
 Every Indian has one or more, which he conceives 
 to be peculiarly given to assist him and make him 
 prosper. One has, in a dream, received the sun as 
 his tutelar spirit, another the moon ; a third, an owl ; 
 a fourth, a buffalo. An Indian is dispirited, and 
 considers himself as forsaken by God, till he has re- 
 ceived a tutelar spirit in a dream ; but those who 
 have been thus favoured, are full of courage, and 
 proud of their powerful ally.* 
 
 This account is corroborated by Hecke welder in 
 his late interesting history of the Indian nations. 
 
 *' It is a part of their religious belief," says he, 
 " that there are inferior maniitos, to whom the 
 great and good Being has given the rule and com- 
 mand over the elements ; that being so great, he, 
 like their chiefs, must have his attendants to exe- 
 cute his supreme behests ; these subordinate spirits 
 (something in their nature between God and manj 
 see and report to him what is doing upon earth ; 
 they look down particularly upon the Indians, to 
 see whether they are in need of assistance, and are 
 ready at their call to assist and protect them against 
 danger. Thus I have frequently witnessed Indians, 
 
 ' Loskiel, parti, cliap.iii. p. 3-i, 35. 30, 10. LonJ. 1794. 
 
 I 
 
 ( 
 
 il 
 
26 
 
 on the approach of a storm or thunder gust, address 
 the nianitto of the air to avert all danger from them : 
 f have also seen the Chippeways, on the lakes of 
 Canada, pray to the manitto of the waters, that he 
 tnight prevent the swells from rising too high, while 
 they were passing over them. In both these instan- 
 ces, they expressed their acknowledgment, or 
 showed their willingness to be grateful, by throwing 
 tobacco in the air, or strewing it on the waters."* — 
 " But amidst all these superstitious notions, the Su- 
 preme Manitto, the creator and preserver of heaven 
 and earth, is the great object of their adoration. On 
 him they rest their hopes — to him they address their 
 prayers, and make their solemn sacrifices."! 
 
 The Knistineaux Indians, who inhabit the country 
 extending from Labrador, across the continent, to 
 the Highlands which divide the waters on Lake 
 Superior from those of Hudson's Bay, appear, from 
 Mackenzie's account, to have the same system, of 
 one great Supreme, and innumerable subordinate 
 deities. " The Great Master of Life," to use their 
 own expression, " is the sacred object of their devo- 
 tion. But each man carries in his medicine bag a 
 kind of household God, which is a small carved 
 image about eight inches long. Its first covering is 
 of down, over which a piece of beech bark is closely 
 tied, and the whole is enveloped in several folds of 
 
 * See Note M. 
 
 i Heckeweldcr, p. 205, 6. 
 
m 
 
 ;ust, address 
 • from them : 
 Lhe lakes of 
 ters, that he 
 I high, while 
 ;hese instan- 
 ^dgment, or 
 by throwing 
 waters."* — 
 ons, the Su- 
 3r of heaven 
 )ration. On 
 address their 
 
 es."t 
 
 t the country 
 
 continent, to 
 
 rs on Lake 
 
 appear, from 
 
 system, of 
 
 subordinate 
 
 |to use their 
 
 their devo- 
 
 icine bag a 
 
 all carved 
 
 covering is 
 
 \k is closely 
 
 ral folds of 
 
 |205, 6. 
 
 red and blue cloth. This little figure is an object of 
 the most pious regard."* 
 
 It is remarkable, that the description given by 
 Peter Martyr, who was the companion of Columbus, 
 of the worship of the inhabitants of Cuba, perfectly 
 agrees with this account of the Northern Indians by 
 Mackenzie. They believed in the existence of one 
 supreme, invisible, immortal, and omnipotent crea- 
 tor, whom they named Jocahuna, but at the same 
 time acknowledged a plurality of subordinate deities. 
 They had little images called Zemes, whom they 
 looked upon as only a kind of messengers between 
 them and the eternal, omnipotent, and invisible God. 
 These images they considered as bodies inhal aed 
 by spirits, and oracular responses were therefore 
 received from them as uttered by the divine com- 
 mand.f 
 
 The religion of Porto Rico, Jamaica, and His- 
 paniola, was the same as that of Cuba ; for the in- 
 habitants were of the same race, and spoke the same 
 language. The Carrihean Islands, on the other 
 hand, were inhabited by a very fierce and savage 
 people, who were continually at war with the milder 
 natives of Cuba and Hispaniola, and were regarded 
 
 * Mackenzie's Voyages from Montreal, on the river St. Lawrence, through 
 the continent of North America, to the FroEen and Pacific Oceans, in the 
 years 1789 and 1793. Lend. 1801. 4to. p. ci. cii. 8vo. 1802. vol. i. p. 124. 
 
 t Pet. iMart. decad i. lib. ix. apud Stillini^fleefs Origines Sacra;, vol. 2. p. 
 360. and Edwards' West-Indies, vol. i. p. 83. [See Note N ] 
 
 \<] If 
 
 4 
 

 i! 
 
 id 
 
 '.i 
 
 
 i 
 
 Hi 
 
 ■ f 
 
 ^^li'' 
 
 1 1 
 
 28 
 
 by them with the utmost terror and abhorrence. 
 Yet *' the Charaibes," to use the langua^<- of the 
 elegant historian of the West Indies, " while they 
 entertained an awful sense of one j2;reat Univeisal 
 Cause, of a superior, wise, and invisible Being of ab- 
 solute and irresistible power, admitted also the 
 agency of subordinate divinities. They supposed 
 that each individual person had his peculiar protector 
 or tutelary deity ; and they had their lares and pe- 
 nates, gods of their own creating." " Hughes, in his 
 History of Barbadoes, mentions many fragments of 
 Indian idols, dug up in that island, which were com- 
 posed of the same materials as their earthen vessels. 
 ' I saw the head of one,' says he, ' which alone 
 weighed above sixty pounds. This, before it was 
 broken off, stood upon an oval pedestal, about three 
 feet in height. The heads of all the others were 
 very small. These lesser idols were, in all proba- 
 bility, made small for the ease and convenieucy of 
 being carried with them in their several journeys, as 
 the larger sort were perhaps designed for some sta- 
 ted places of worship.' ^'* 
 
 Thus, in this vast extent of country, from Hud- 
 son's Bay to the West Indies, including nations 
 whose languages are radically different, nations un- 
 connected with, and unknown to, each other, the 
 greatest uniformity of belief prevails with regard to 
 
 ^ Edwards, vol. i. p. 48-9. and Hughes, p. 7. apud Edwards ut. sup. 
 

 abhorrence. 
 uag<' ot" the 
 witile they 
 It Univt'isal 
 5eing of ab- 
 (l also the 
 y supposed 
 ar protector 
 res and pe- 
 o;hes, in his 
 raji^ments of 
 1 were corn- 
 hen vessels. 
 ;'hich alone 
 fore it was 
 about three 
 others were 
 1 all proba- 
 venieney of 
 ourneys, as 
 r some sta- 
 
 Tom Had- 
 ing nations 
 nations un- 
 other, the 
 I regard to 
 
 'ards ut. sup. 
 
 29 
 
 the Supreme Being, and the greatest harmony in 
 their system of polytheism. After this view, it is 
 impossible not to remark, that there is a smaller de- 
 parture ftom the original religion among the Indiar 
 of America, than among the more civilized nations 
 of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The idea of the 
 Divine Unity is much more perfectly preserved ; the 
 subordinate divinities are kept at a much more im- 
 measurable distance from the Great Spirit ; and, 
 above all, there has been no attempt among them to 
 degrade to the likeness of men, the invisible and in- 
 comprehensible Creator of the universe. In fact, 
 theirs is exactly that -milder form of idolatry which 
 " prevailed every where from the days of Abraham, 
 his single family excepted," and which, after the 
 death of that patriarch and of his son Isaac, infected, 
 from time to time, even the chosen family itself.* 
 
 II. The belief of a future state of rewards and 
 punishments has been kept alive among all heathen 
 nations, by its connexion with the sensible enjoy- 
 ments and sufferings, and the consequent hopes and 
 terrors of men. 
 
 Its origin must have been in divine revelation ; for 
 it is impossible to conceive that the mind could have 
 attained to it by its own unassisted powers. But 
 the thought, when once communicated, would, in the 
 shipwreck of dissolving nature, be clung to with the 
 
 Hovsley's Dissertation, nt supr. p. 47. 
 
 (t 
 
 ! ' 
 
30 
 
 f ! 
 
 ill 
 
 1 
 
 K ; 
 
 :M\\>] 
 
 V: 
 
 gvasp of expiring hope. Hence no nations have yet 
 been found, however rude and barbarous, who have 
 not agreed in the great and general principle of retri- 
 butive immortality. When, however, we descend 
 to detail, and inquire into their peculiar notions with 
 regard to this expected state, we find that their tra- 
 ditions are coloured by the nature of their earthly 
 occupations, and the opinions they thence entertain 
 on the subject of good and evil. 
 
 This remark is fully verified by the history of the 
 American Indians. " The belief most firmly esta- 
 blished among the American savages," says Charle- 
 voix, *' is that of the immortality of the soul.* They 
 suppose, that when separated from the body, it pre- 
 serves the same inclinations which it had when both 
 were united. For this reason, they bury with the 
 dead all that they had in use when alive. Some 
 imagine that all men have two souls, one of which 
 never leaves the body unless it be to inhabit ano- 
 ther. This transmigration, however, is peculiar to 
 the souls of those who die in infancy, and who 
 therefore have the privilege of commencing a se- 
 cond life, because they enjoyed so little of the first. 
 Hence children are buried along the highways, that 
 the women, as they pass, may receive their souls. 
 From this idea of their remaining with the body, 
 arises the duty of placing food upon their graves ;t 
 and mothers have been seen to draw from their 
 
 it ii r ; i 
 
 ^ See Note O. 
 
 t Journul Historique, p. 351. [See Note P.J 
 
 ■i'l 
 
31 
 
 * 
 
 bosoms that nourishment whi h these littlo crea- 
 tures loved when alive, and shed it upon the earth 
 which covered their remains."* 
 
 *^ When the time has arrived for the departure of 
 those spirits which leave the body, they pass into a 
 region which is destined to be their eternal abode, 
 and which is therefore called the Country of Souls. 
 This country is at a great distance toward the west, 
 and to go thither costs them a journey of many 
 months. They have many difficulties to surmount, 
 and many perils to encounter. They speak of a 
 stream in which many suffer shipwreck ; — of a dog 
 from which they, with difficulty, defend them- 
 selves ; — of a place of suffering where they expiate 
 their faults ; — of another in which the souls of those 
 prisoners who have been tortured are again tor- 
 mented, and who therefore linger on their course, 
 to delay as long as possible the moment of their 
 arrival. From this idea it proceeds, that after the 
 death of these unhappy victims, for fear their souls 
 may remain around the huts of their tormentors from 
 the thirst of vengeance, the latter are careful to 
 
 mi 
 
 ',m 
 
 ;S,| 
 
 'hi 
 
 I ij 
 
 * « On a vft des m^res garJer des ann6cs entiores les cadavres de leiirs ea- 
 £ans, et ne pouvoir s'en eloigner ; et d'autres se tirer du lait de la mamclle, 
 et le repandre sur la tombe de ces petites cr6atures. St le feu prend k uQ 
 village, ou il y ait des corps morts, c'est la premiere chose qu'on met en 
 suretc on se depouille de ce qu'on a de plus pr6cieux, pour en parer lea 
 defunts : de tems en tcms on decouvrc le ure cercueils pour les changer d'ha* 
 bits, et Ton s'arrache les morceaux de la bouclie, pour les porter sur leur 
 sepulture, et dans les lieux, ou Ton s'imagin« que leurs amesss pronaeneDt." 
 Charlevoix. Jotnnal,. ut supr. p. 372-3, 
 
i) 
 
 ■■ ; 
 
 '■!; ;l 
 
 32 
 
 strike every place around them with a staff, and to 
 utter such terrible cries as may oblige them to de- 
 part 
 
 To be put to death as a captive is, therefore, an 
 exclusion from the Indian paradise ; and, indeed, 
 " the souls of all who have died a violent death, 
 even in war, and in the service of their country, are 
 supposed to have no intercourse in the future world 
 with other souls.f They therefore burn the bodies 
 of such persons, or bury them, sometimes before they 
 have expired. They are never put into the common 
 place of interment, and they have no part in that 
 solemn ceremony which the Huronsand the Iroquois 
 observe every ten years, and other nations every 
 eight, of depositing all who have died during that 
 period in a common place of sepulture."| 
 
 To have been a good hunter, brave in war, fortu- 
 nate in every enterprise, and victorious over many 
 enemies, are the only titles to enter their abode of 
 bliss. The happiness of it consists in the never-fail- 
 ing supply of game and fish, an eternal spring, and 
 an abundance of every thing which can delight the 
 
 " Journal Historiqiie, ut supr. p. 352. [See Note Q.J 
 
 t How ditterent from the opinions of the Scandinavian Nations, from 
 whose paradise all were excluded who ignobly died in the common 
 course of nature. None were admitted to the Hall of Odin but those who 
 hail i'allen in battle. 
 
 % Charlevoix, Journal Hist. p. 376-7. This ceremony is called the feast 
 of the dead, or of souls, and is described very minutely by Charlevoix, who 
 C4ills it " Taction la plus singulicre et la plus celebre de toute la religion def 
 sauvages." 
 
 Wl 
 
 to 
 
33 
 
 1 stafT, and to 
 e them to dc- 
 
 therpfore, an 
 
 and, indeed, 
 
 anient death, 
 
 country, are 
 
 future world 
 
 irn the bodies 
 
 ?s before they 
 
 » the common 
 
 part in that 
 
 I the Iroquois 
 
 lations every 
 
 d during that 
 
 n 
 
 n war, fortu- 
 
 over many 
 
 eir abode of 
 
 e never-fail- 
 
 spring, and 
 
 delight the 
 
 ian Nations, from 
 
 in the common 
 
 in but those who 
 
 s called the feast 
 Chiuievoix, who 
 te la religion des 
 
 
 senses without the labour of procuring it."* Such 
 are the pleasures which they anticipate who often 
 return weary and hungry from the ciwise, who are 
 often exposed to the inclemencies of a wintry sky, 
 and who look upon all labour as an unmanly and 
 degrading employment. 
 
 The Chepewyans live between the parallels of lat. 
 60 and 65 north, a region of almost perpetual snows ; 
 where the ground never thaws, and is so barren as 
 to produce nothing but moss.f 
 
 To them, therefore, perpetual verdure and fer- 
 tility, and waters imincuml)ered with ice, are volup- 
 tuous imag(^s. Hence they imagine that, after death, 
 they shall inhabit a most beautiful island in the 
 centre of an extensive lake. On the surface of this 
 lake* they will embark in a stone canoe, and if their 
 actions have been generally good, will be borne by 
 a gentle current to their delightful am] eternal abode. 
 But if, on the contrary, their bad actions predominate, 
 " the stone canoe sinks, and leaves them up to their 
 chins in the water, to behold and regret the reward 
 enjoyed by the good, and eternally struggling, but 
 with unavailing endeavours, to reach the blissful 
 island, from which they are excluded for ever."t 
 
 On the other hand, the Arrowauks, or natives of 
 
 * Charlev. ut supr. p. 352-3. 
 t Mackenzie, 8vo. vol. I. p. 155. 1S7. 
 
 t Mackenzie, ut sup. General History of the Fur Trade, 4to. p. cxix. 8vf 
 vol. i. p. 145, 6. 
 
 5 
 
\i 
 
 I 
 
 t 
 
 1:8- i 
 
 'V 
 
 :ll i 
 
 ,W 
 
 •I 
 
 h I 
 
 ti 
 
 If 
 
 ii4 
 
 Cuba, Hispuniola, Porto llico, Jamaica and Trini- 
 dad, would naturally place their enjoyments in 
 every thing that was o|)posite to the violence of a 
 tropical climate. " They supposed, therefore, that 
 the spirits of ^ood men were conveyed to the plea- 
 sant valley of Coyaba; a place of indolent tranquillity, 
 ahoiuiding with giiavas and other delicious fruits, 
 coo' shades, and murmuring rivulets ; in a country 
 where drought never rages, and the hurricane is 
 never felt."* 
 
 While these voluptuous people made the happi- 
 ness of the Future State to consist in these tranquil 
 enjoyments, their fierce enemies, the Charaibes, 
 looked forward to a paradise, in which the brave 
 would be attended by their wives and captives. 
 " The degenerate and the cowardly, they doomed 
 to everlasting banishment beyond the mountains; to 
 unremitting labour in employments that disgrace 
 manhood — a disgrace heightened by the greatest of 
 all afflictions, captivity and servitude among the Ar- 
 rowauks."t 
 
 Thus the ideas of the savage, with regard to the 
 peculiar nature of future bliss or woe, are always mo- 
 dified by associations arising from his peculiar situa- 
 tion, his peculiar turn of thought, and the pains and 
 pleasures of the senses. With regard to the ques- 
 tion in what their happiness or misery will consist, 
 
 an 
 but 
 
 sei^ 
 the 
 ali( 
 
 " Edwards' Wcsl Indies, vol. i. p. 73. 
 
 t Ibid, vol. i. p. 47. 
 
 :i 
 
 ■' 
 1 
 
 (■ 
 
 tl 
 
 
 i i 
 
 i 
 
and Triiii- 
 oynieiits in 
 iolence of a 
 refore, that 
 to thr- plea- 
 tranquillity, 
 cious fruits, 
 in a country 
 liurricane is 
 
 the happl- 
 ese tranquil 
 
 Charaibes, 
 1 the brave 
 ad captives, 
 ley doomed 
 tuntains; to 
 lat disgrace 
 
 greatest of 
 ong the At- 
 
 gard to the 
 always mo- 
 uliar situa- 
 e pains and 
 the ques- 
 viil consist, 
 
 A. i. p. 47. 
 
 35 
 
 they differ ; but with regard to the existence of a 
 future state, and that it will be a state of retribution 
 for the deeds done in the body, they agree without 
 exception, and their faith is bright and cloudless. 
 *' Whether you are divinities or mortal men," said 
 an old man of Cuba to Columbus, '* we know not— 
 but if you are men, subject to mortality like our- 
 selves, you cannot be unapprised, that after this life 
 there is another, wherein a very difl'erent portion is 
 allotted to good and bad men. If, therefon^ you 
 expect to die. and believe, with us, that every one is 
 to be rewarded in a future state, according to his 
 conduct in the present, you will do no hurt to those 
 who do none to you."* 
 
 This relation is given us by Martyr, and it is suf- 
 ficient to show, with what exactness the primitive 
 belief has been retained. This man was a savage, 
 but he spoke the language of the purest revelation. 
 
 III. On the belief of a God who regulates the 
 affairs of men, and of a future state of rewards and 
 punishments, all religion is founded; and from these 
 principles, all religious rites are ultimately derived. 
 But there is an obvious distinction to be made, be- 
 tween the tradition of doctrines, and the tradition of 
 those outward observances with which the doctrines 
 were originally connected. The tradition of doc- 
 
 ' Herrera, lib. ii. cap. 14. and Martyr, decfid. i. lib. iii. apud Edwards, 
 vol. i. p. 72-3. See also Stillingfleet's Orig. Sac. Oxon. 171*7. vol. 2. p. 357. 
 
 II 
 
I 
 
 'i 
 
 tl 
 
 i 
 t 
 
 > ' 
 
 i 
 
 
 i mi 
 
 96 
 
 trinos is oral ; tin* tradition of ceremonies is ocular 
 
 ru 
 
 'h 
 
 )f the 
 
 )ie n 
 
 most SI _ 
 
 from moutli to moiitli, is HiMcoloiired and distorted. 
 After a few removals from its source, it becomes so 
 altered as hardly to have any resemblance to its first 
 form. Hut it is not so with regard to actions. 
 These are retained by the sight, the most faithful 
 and accurate of our senses : — they are imitated ; — 
 the imitation becomes habitual ; — and habits, when 
 once formed, are with difliculty eradicated. No 
 fact is more certain, or falls more within the expe- 
 rience of every attentive observer of our nature, than 
 that of customs prevailing among nations, for which 
 they are totally unable to account. Even among 
 individuals, habits exist, long after the causes have 
 ceased, to which they owed their origin. The child 
 imitates the actions of the parent, without inquiring, 
 in all cases, into the motives which lead to the ob- 
 servance ; and even if informed of the motives, he 
 may either misconceive or forget them. Here then 
 is the difference between oral and ocular tradition. 
 The doctrine may be lost in the current of ages, 
 while the ceremony is transmitted unimpaired. 
 
 Scgnius irrltunt ariimos demissa per aiirem 
 Quiitn ({iia; sunt uculis subjecta iiiielibus. 
 
 HoK. A. P. 180.» 
 
 ' That which strikes thr eye 
 
 Lives long upon the mind : The faithful >l^Ut 
 Engraves the image with a beam of light. 
 
iiit's is ocular. 
 r, as it passes 
 and distorted. 
 it becomes so 
 nee to Its first 
 rd to actions. 
 
 most faithful 
 B imitated ; — 
 
 habits, when 
 idicatcHl. No 
 hiu the expe- 
 r nature, than 
 )ns, for which 
 Even among 
 I causes have 
 I. The child 
 out inquiring, 
 ad to the ob- 
 e motives, he 
 Here then 
 lar tradition, 
 rent of ages, 
 1 paired. 
 
 TJ 
 
 loK. A. P. 180.* 
 
 37 
 
 fn endeavouring, then^fore, to trace the affinities 
 which a corrupt religion may bear to the pure, if wo 
 wish to be successful, we must confine ourselves to 
 its outward observances. This remark applies with 
 peculiar force to the religion of the Indian tribes. 
 They ha\ e never possessed the knowledge of letters, 
 and all their religious doctrines have been trusted to 
 the uncertain conveyance of oral tradition. The 
 wild and roving life of the Indian, is at variance with 
 (he reception of regular instruction ; and though the 
 parents may be very careful in relating th(;ir tradi- 
 tions to their children,^ they must, of necessity, be 
 confused and imperfect. 
 
 But supposing them to be ever so exact, we have 
 no certainty that the accounts given of them by tra- 
 vellers are correct. The Indians, it has before been 
 observed, are not communicative on religious sub- 
 jects ; and they may take pleasure in baflling, or mis- 
 leading, the curiosity of white ukmi, whom they, in 
 general, look upon with no frieiully eye. And with 
 regard to oral traditions, there is greater room, also, 
 for the imagination of the traveller to draw wrong 
 conclusions, and to be influenced in his report by the 
 power of a preconceived system. On the other 
 hand, with regard to religious ceremonies, he has 
 only to give a faithful relation of what he sees ; and 
 
 I: 
 
 "ye 
 lit 
 
 * See Ui;(;ke\\cKh'r, Hist. Ace. p 99. who mentions the great pain;* 
 which Ihfi liiUiiuis take to instil good prhiciples into tin; minds of their chil- 
 dren. 
 

 M4 
 
 I 
 
 -M 
 
 
 %'. 
 
 ri 
 
 W 
 
 j. 
 
 38 
 
 even if the force of some favourite theory, leads him 
 to mingle his comments with his description, a judi- 
 cious reader is able to separate the one from the 
 other. Tlie apj)lication of these principles will save 
 much labour, and give certainty to a subject, which 
 has hitherto been considered as affording nothing 
 but conjecture. We will proceed, then, to consider 
 the external part of the religion of the Indians, and 
 we shall soon see, not only that there is a great 
 uniformity among the rites of nations who are radi- 
 cally different, but, if I am not mistaken, that con- 
 nexion with the patriarchal religion which might 
 naturally be supposed to exist, if the one be consi- 
 dered as a corruption of the other. 
 
 All who have been conversant with the worship 
 of the American tribes, unite in the assertion, that 
 they offer sacrifices and oblations, both to the Great 
 Spirit, and to the subordinate or intermediate Divi- 
 nities. 
 
 To all the inferior deities, whether good or male- 
 volent, the Hurons, the Iroquois, and the Algonkins, 
 make various kinds of offerings. " To propitiate 
 the God of the Waters," says Charlevoix, " they 
 cast into the streams and lakes, tobacco, and birds 
 which they have put to death. In honour of the 
 Sun, and also of inferior Spirits, they consume in 
 the fire a part of every thing they use, as an acknow- 
 ledgment of the power from which they have de- 
 
39 
 
 \f^ leads him 
 tion, a judi- 
 le from the 
 ies will save 
 [ject, which 
 ling nothing 
 , to consider 
 Indians, and 
 ; is a great 
 ho are radi- 
 n, that con- 
 ^hich might 
 le be consi- 
 
 the worship 
 lertion, that 
 the Great 
 idiate Divi- 
 
 }d or male- 
 Algonkins, 
 propitiate 
 Dix, " they 
 and birds 
 lour of the 
 onsume in 
 n acknow- 
 have de- 
 
 rived these possessions. On some occasions, they 
 have been observed to make libations, invoking at 
 the same time, in a mysterious manner, the object 
 of their worship. These invocations they have 
 never explained ; whether it be, that they have in 
 fact no meaning, or that the words have been trans- 
 mitted by trndition, unaccompanied by their signifi- 
 cation, or that the Indians themselves are unwilling 
 to reveal the secret. Strings of wampum, tobacco, 
 ears of corn, the skins, and often the whole carcasses 
 of animals, are seen along difficult or dangerous 
 roads, on rocks, and on the shores of rapids, as so 
 many offerings made to the presiding spirit of the 
 place. In these cases, dogs are the most common 
 victims ;* and are often suspended alive upon trees 
 by the hinder feet, where they are left to die in a 
 state of madness."t 
 
 What Charlevoiv ^hus affirms, with regard to the 
 Hurons, Iroquois, and Algonkins, is mentioned by 
 Mackenzie, as practised among the Knisteneaux. 
 " There are stated periods," says he, *' such as the 
 spring and autumn, when they engage in very long 
 and solemn ceremonies. On these occasions, dogs 
 are offered as sacrifices ; and those which are fat 
 and milk white are preferred. They also make large 
 offerings of their property, whatever it may be. 
 The scene of these ceremonies, is in an open inclo- 
 
 
 See Note R 
 
 I Charlevoix, Journal, p. 347-8 
 
i 
 
 if. 
 
 ^ 
 
 ill 
 
 i 
 
 
 ■•Si. 
 
 p. Hi :; :■ 
 i! 
 
 ,1 
 
 'A 
 
 i:!'!'! 
 
 40 
 
 sure, on the bank of a river or lake, and in the most 
 conspicuous situation, in order that such as are pass- 
 ing along, or travelling, may be induced to makc^ 
 their offerings. There is also a particular custom 
 among them, that on these occasions, if any of the 
 tribe, or even a stranger, should be passing by, and 
 be in real want of any thing that is displayed as an 
 offering, he has a right to take it, so that he replaces 
 it with some article he can spare, though it be of far 
 inferior value ; but to take or touch any thing wan- 
 tonly is considered as a sacrilegious act, and highly 
 insulting to the Great Master of Life, who is the 
 sacred object of their devotion." At the feasts 
 made by their chiefs, he farther observes, " a small 
 quantity of meat or drink is sacrificed before they 
 begin to eat, by throwing it into the fire, or on the 
 earth."* 
 
 A similar account is given by Adair of the prac- 
 tice among the Creeks, Katabahs, Cherokees, Choc- 
 taws, and other southern Indians. " The Indian 
 women," says he, *' always throw a small piece of 
 the fattest of the meat into the fire, when they are 
 eating, and frequently before they begin to eat. 
 They pretend to draw omens from it, and firmly be- 
 lieve that it is the mean of obtaining temporal bless- 
 ings, and averting temporal evils. The men, both 
 in their summer and winter hunt, sacrifice in the 
 
 * Gen. Hist, of Fur Trade, 4to. p. c. ci. cil. civ. 8vo. vol. i. p. 123-4. 128. 
 
 to 
 a 
 
I in the most 
 I as are pass- 
 ced to makc^ 
 ular custom 
 f any of the 
 smg by, and 
 played as an 
 i he replaces 
 h it be of far 
 ^ thing wan- 
 , and highly 
 
 who is the 
 it the feasts 
 ;s, *' a small 
 
 before they 
 re, or on the 
 
 of the prac- 
 
 iees, Choc- 
 
 Fhe Indian 
 
 lall piece of 
 
 len they are 
 
 gin to eat. 
 
 d firmly be- 
 
 poral bless- 
 
 men, both 
 
 fice in the 
 
 i. p. 123-4. 128. 
 
 
 41 
 
 woods a large fat piece of the first buck they kill, 
 and frequently the whole carcass. This they offer 
 up, either as a thanksgiving for the recovery of 
 health, and for their former success in hunting, or 
 tliat the Divine care and goodness may still be con- 
 tinued to them."* 
 
 The song of the Lenape warriors, as they go out 
 to meet their enemy, concludes with the promise pf 
 a victim if they return in safety. 
 
 ,0 ! Thou Great Spirit above ! 
 
 Give me strengtii and coiirnjie to meet my enemy : 
 
 Suffer me to return again to my children, 
 
 To my wife, 
 
 And to my relations ! 
 
 Take pity on me and preser\'e my liiV , 
 
 And I will make to thee a sacrifice. 
 
 Accordingly, " after a successful war," says 
 Hecke welder, " they never fail to offer up a sacrifice 
 to the great Being, to return him thanks for having 
 given them courage and strength to destroy or con- 
 quer their enemies."t 
 
 Loskiel, who has given a minute account of 
 the sacrifices offered by the Lenape or Dehi- 
 wares, and who is said, by Hecke welder, to have 
 almost exhausted the subject, affirms that they 
 are offered upon all occasions, the most trivial, 
 
 * Adair, Hist, of North American Indians, p. 115. 117. 
 
 ^ Heckcwelder, Hist. Arc of [nd. p. 204, 207. [See Note S,] 
 
 6 
 
 
 \ 
 
 m- 
 
 I 
 
 \ I, 
 
 5i : k- 
 
 I 
 
 Oil 
 
is 
 
 ,.l \\ 
 
 '(y 
 
 if ^i 
 
 .1!. 
 
 il 
 
 lii 
 
 Hi 
 if 
 
 t if 
 
 I r 
 
 ) 1 
 
 i ^ 
 
 f r 
 
 
 42 
 
 us well as the most important. " They sacrifice to 
 a hare," says he, " because, according to report, 
 the first ancestor of thu Indian tribes had that name.* 
 To indian <^orn, they sacrifice bear's flesh, but to deer 
 and bears, indian corn ; to the fishes, small pieces of 
 bread in the shape of fishes ; but they positively 
 deny, that they pay any adoration to these subordi- 
 nate good spirits, and affirm, that they only worship 
 the true God, through them : For God, say they, 
 does not require men to pay offerings or adoration 
 immediately to him. He has, therefore, made 
 known his will in dreams, notifying to them, what 
 beings they have to consider as Manittoes, and what 
 offerings to make to them."t — "When a boy dreams, 
 that he sees a large bird of prey, of the size of a man, 
 flying toward him from the north, and saying to 
 him, * Roast some meat for me,' the boy is then 
 bound to sacrifice the first deer or bear he shoots to 
 this bird. The sacrifice is appointed by an old man, 
 who fixes on the day and place in which it is to be 
 performed. Three days previous to it, messengers 
 are sent to invite the guests. These assemble in 
 some lonely place, in a house large enough to con- 
 tain three fires. At the middle fire, the old man 
 
 * This may account for the following statement by Charlevoix : " Pres- 
 que toutes les Nations Algonquines ont donne le noin de grand Lievre an 
 premier Esprit. Quelqucs uns rappeUeiit MirJmbou : d'antres /llafiocan ." 
 Journal, p. 344. 
 
 ' Loskiel, p. 40 
 
I Q 
 
 y sacrifice to 
 ig to report, 
 d that name.* 
 h, but to deer 
 mall pieces of 
 ey positively 
 :hese subordi- 
 only worship 
 Dd, say they, 
 or adoration 
 trefore, made 
 o them, what 
 toes, and what 
 a boy dreams, 
 size of a man, 
 ind saying to 
 boy is then 
 he shoots to 
 an old man, 
 ich it is to be 
 it, messengers 
 assemble in 
 lough to con- 
 the old man 
 
 Charlevoix : " Pres- 
 de grand Litvre an 
 tVnnlres Mahocan." 
 
 performs the sacrifice. Having sent for twelve 
 strait and supple sticks, he fastens them into the 
 ground, so as to inclose a circular spot, covering 
 them with blankets. He then rolls twelve red-hot 
 stones into the inclosure, each of which is dedicated 
 to one God in particular. The largest belongs, as 
 they say, to the great God in Heaven ; the second, 
 to the sun, or the God of the day ; the third, to the 
 night sun, or the moon ; the fourth, to the earth •, 
 the fifth, to the fire ; the sixth, to the water ; the 
 seventh, to the dwelling or House-God ; the eighth, 
 to indian corn ; the ninth, to the W3st : the tenth, 
 to the south ; the eleventh, to the east ; and the 
 twelfth, to the north. The old man then takes a 
 rattle, containing some grains of indian corn, and 
 leading the boy, for whom the sacrifice is lade, into 
 the enclosure, throws a handful of tobacco upon the 
 red-hot stones, and as the smoke ascends, rattles his 
 calabash, calling each God by name, and saying : 
 * This boy (naming him) ofiers unto thee a fine fat 
 deer and a delicious dish of sapan ! Have mercy on 
 him, and grant good luck to him and his family.' "* 
 All the inhabitants of the West Indies offered sa- 
 crifices ; and of these, the Charaibes were accustom- 
 ed, at the funerals of their friends, to offer some of 
 the captives who had been taken in battle.f I 
 scarcely need advert to the well-known fact, that 
 
 '' liOskiel, part i. cap. iii. p. 42-3. 
 \ Edwards' West-Indies, p. 47. 51. 
 
 • 'I 
 
I't 
 
 ,; f 
 
 t i 
 
 . t 
 
 
 lii 
 i- I' 
 
 
 
 -I 
 
 * i' 
 
 P- 
 
 • } I- 
 
 (■ ' 
 
 ! ,, 
 
 f 
 
 I - 
 
 human sacrifices were offered by the Mexicans. Oi 
 these, all the Spanish historians have give" the most 
 horrible and disgusting account, and they are de- 
 scribed more especially by Bernal Diaz, who was 
 an eye witness, with the most artless and affecting 
 simplicity. Of this practice, however, there are no 
 traces among the present Indian tribes, unless the 
 tormenting of their captives, as Charlevoix seems to 
 intimate, be considered as a sacrifice to the God of 
 war.* 
 
 That the practice ol sacrifice, as an expiation for 
 sin, formed a prominent feature in the religion of all 
 the nations of the old world, is a truth too well 
 known to require proof. That it formed a part of 
 the patriarchal religion is equally evident ; and that 
 it must have been of divine institution will, I think, 
 be admitted, after a very little reflection. The ear- 
 liest instance of worship, recorded in the Holy Scrip- 
 tures, is the sacrifice offered by Cain and Abel, at a 
 period when no permission had yat been given to eat 
 animal food, and no pretext could have possibly pre- 
 sented itself to the mind of man for taking the life 
 of any of the creatures of God. It is equally incon- 
 ceivable, that by any deduction of unassisted reason, 
 
 " "II semble que ce soit desvictiniesqu'onengraisse pour le sacrifice, et ils 
 sont eifectiveinent imnioles nu Dieu de la Guerre : la seuie ditference qu'on 
 met entre ceux et las aiitres, (the adopted prisoners,) c'est qu'on leur noircit 
 euti6rernent le visage." Journal Hist. p. 246. 
 
 V.~.i- 
 
ixicans. Of 
 vc" the most 
 tlicy are de- 
 az, who was 
 and affecting 
 there are no 
 ;s, unless the 
 oix seems to 
 ,0 the God of 
 
 expiation for 
 religion of all 
 uth too well 
 ned a part of 
 nt ; and that 
 iviii, I think, 
 The ear- 
 Holy Scrip- 
 id Abel, at a 
 given to eat 
 Dossibly pre- 
 iking the life 
 ually incon- 
 isted reason, 
 
 ir le sacrifice, et ils 
 e difference qu'on 
 fiu'on leur noircit 
 
 45 
 
 the mind could have arrived at the conclusion, that 
 to destroy a part of creation, could be acceptable to 
 the Creator ; much less, that it could be viewed as 
 an act of homage. The difiiculty is still greater, 
 when it is considered that this was intended as an 
 expiation for the sins of the offerer. How could the 
 shedding of the blood of an animal be looked upon 
 as an atonement for the offences which man had 
 committed against his maker ? This would have 
 been to make an act at which nature would once 
 have involuntarily shuddered, the expiation of an- 
 other act which might not in itself be so hurtful or 
 so barbarous. 
 
 This reasoning is further strengthened by the next 
 instance of worship recorded in the Bible. When 
 Noah had descended from the Ark, the first act of a 
 religious nature which he performed, was to build 
 an altar and to offer sacrifice. Human reason would 
 have dictated a course of conduct directly opposite ; 
 for it would have told him not to diminish the scanty 
 remnant of life ; especially when the earth was al- 
 ready covered with the victims which had perished 
 in the mighty waste of waters. 
 
 But if of divine institution, the question then ari- 
 ses, what was the reason of the institution ? Every 
 intelligent being proposes to himself some end — 
 some design to be accomplished by his actions. 
 What, then, with reverence let it be asked, was the 
 design of God r 
 
 R: 
 
 :!if '' 
 
 w 
 
 I > I 
 
 > < 1 1 
 
i'l 
 
 i 
 
 
 > 
 
 hi 
 
 hi; 
 
 i 
 
 H! 
 
 k\< 
 
 II 
 
 i I 
 
 I; 
 
 ill 
 
 •i! 
 
 It 
 
 ' ! 
 
 I. 
 
 i!i 
 
 111 
 
 .1 
 
 Hi' f 
 
 ■ ! 
 
 ill 
 
 46 
 
 To the Christian the solution of this inquiry is not 
 difficult. He has learned, that in the secret counsels 
 of almighty wisdom, the death of the Messiah was 
 essential for the salvation of man ; that in his death, 
 the first of our race was as much interested as he 
 will be, who will listen to the last stroke of depart- 
 ing time ; that it was necessary, therefore, to esta- 
 blish a representation of this groat event as a sign of 
 the future blessing, in order to keep alive the hopes 
 and the expectations of men ; and that this was ef- 
 fected by the slaughter of an innocent animal, whoso 
 life was in the blood, and whose blood poured out 
 was the symbol of His death, who offered himself a 
 ransom for the sins of men. 
 
 Assuming this as the origin and intent of sacri- 
 fice, it is easy to account for its universal prevalence 
 among mankind. Noah, as we have seen, offered a 
 burnt offering immediately after he left the Ark. 
 From him, and his three sons, did their posterity de- 
 rive the practice ; and we find from the Scriptures, 
 that it prevailed among all the nations, which, from 
 their connexion with the family of Isiael, are there 
 incidentally mentioned. 
 
 If we turn to profane history, we cannot open a 
 volume without meeting every where the record 
 of sacrifice. The Phenicians, the Ethiopians, the 
 Egyptians, the Chinese, the Persians, the nations in 
 the north of Europe and Asia, the Carthaginians, 
 the Greeks, the Romans, the inhabitants of Gaul 
 
 
 
nquiry is not 
 crct counsels 
 Messiah was 
 in his death, 
 rested as he 
 le of depart- 
 fore, to esta- 
 ; as a sign of 
 ve the hopes 
 this was ef- 
 limal, whoso 
 d poured out 
 ed himself a 
 
 nt of sacri- 
 il prevalence 
 jn, offered a 
 the Ark. 
 josterity de- 
 Scriptures, 
 vhich, from 
 are there 
 
 not open a 
 the record 
 opians, the 
 nations in 
 thaginians, 
 :s of Gaul 
 
 I 
 
 47 
 
 and Britain — in a word, every heathen nation, of 
 which we have any records remaining, constantly 
 offered sacrifice as an expiation for sin. The gra- 
 dual corruption "of the true religion, while it caused 
 the origin of the rite to be forgotten, inade no other 
 alteration in the practice than such as regarded the 
 quality of the victim. Human reason must, at all 
 times, have perceived, how inadequate was the 
 slaughter of animals to atone for the sins of man- 
 kind. A nobler victim seemed to be demanded ; and 
 it was not to be wondered at, that the blood of men, 
 and even of children, as approaching nearer to inno- 
 cence, should finally be considered as essential to ob- 
 tain the grant of pardon.* 
 
 To find the same practice prevailing among all 
 the Indian tribes of America, a practice deriving its 
 origin, not from any dictrite of nature, or from 
 the deductions of reason, but resting solely upon the 
 positive insti.^.ution of God, affords the most trium- 
 phant evidence, that they sprang from the common 
 parent of mankind, and that their religion, like that 
 of all other heathen nations, is derived by a gradual 
 deterioration from that of Noah. At the same time, 
 it will be seen, that they are far from having sunk to 
 the lowest round on the scale of corruption. With 
 
 A. 
 
 the exception of the Mexicans, their religious rites 
 
 * Pee N»te T. 
 
 ;*''■ 
 
 ii 
 
 I* 
 
 
 s. ■ 
 
 ill 
 
 a 
 
 '■ 
 
 k 
 
48 
 
 
 luivc a character ot mildness u liicli we should else- 
 where seek ill vain. 
 
 IV. Having seen that sacrifice is practised among 
 the Indians, we an; naturally led to consider the 
 question, whether they have among them a priest- 
 hood ; and, on this point, tiie testimony of travel- 
 lers is somewhat discordant. Mackenzie mentions 
 that the Chepevvyans have hii^h priests ;* yet he 
 describes the public sacrifices of the Knisteneaux, as 
 offered by their chiefs, and the private, by every man 
 in his own cal)in, assisted by his most intimate 
 friend.f Charlevoix says, that among the Indians of 
 whom he writes, in public ceremonies, the chiefs are 
 the priests, in private, the father of each family, or 
 where there is none, the most considerable person in 
 the cabin. An aged missionary, he says, who lived 
 among the Ottawas, stated, that with them an old 
 man performed the office of priest."t Loskiel says 
 
 * Mackenzie, 8vo. vol. i. p. 153. « There are conjurers and liigh priestP, 
 Imt I was not present at any of their ceremonies." 
 
 t Ibid, p. 124. 128-9. 
 
 t " Si Ion pent donner ic noni de sacrifices aux ofTrandes, que ces peuple> 
 font ii lenrs divinitos, Ics prStrcs parml eux ne soni jamais leu joni^leurs : dans 
 ?es ceremonies publiques, ce sont les chefs, ct duns ic domestique, ce sonI 
 ordinairement les pores de famille, ou a leur defaut les plus consideraLile de 
 la cabanne." .Journal Hist. p. 364. 
 
 •' ITn ancien Missionaire (le pcre Claude Allouez, jesuitc) qui a beau- 
 rouj) vecu avec les Outaouais a ccrit que, parmi ces sauvages, un viellard fait 
 J'odice de prrlre dans les fesliiis, dont je viens de parler ; qu'il commence par 
 remercicr les csprits dii sncces d,^ lacliasse; qu'ensuite nn aulie prenil un 
 pain de pelun. le rompt en deux, ct leJoUi- dans le feu." Ibid, p. 35f>. 
 
 I 
 
v^e should cise- 
 
 ractiscd among 
 > consider the 
 them a priest- 
 ony of travel- 
 nzic mentions 
 iests ;* yet he 
 iiiisteneaux, as 
 , by every man 
 most intimate 
 J the Indians of 
 , the chiefs arc 
 ach family, or 
 •al)le person in 
 ays, who lived 
 them an old 
 Loskiel says 
 
 rcrs and liigh priest?, 
 
 s, que ces peuplt- 
 le.i jongleurs .- tliuis 
 omesti(jue, ce soiif 
 plus considerable de 
 
 jcsuitp) qui a henu- 
 ges, un viellard fait 
 quilcomnionoe pai* 
 nil autre pruMid un 
 Ibid, p. 350. 
 
 49 
 
 of the Lenap6, or Delaware Indians, that *' tht^y 
 have neither priests regularly appointed, nor tem- 
 ples. At general and solemn sacrifices, the oldest 
 men perform the offices of priests ; but in private 
 parties, each man bringing a sacrifice is priest him- 
 self. Instead of a temple, a large dwelling-house 
 is fitted up for the purpose." lie afterwards speaks 
 of the place of oflering, under the name of "the 
 house of sacrifice," and mentions it as being " in a 
 lonely place."* 
 
 On the other hand, Bartram, in his account of the 
 Southern tribes, says, " There is in every town, or 
 tribe, a High Priest, with several inferior, or junior 
 priests, called by the white people jugglers, orcoiiju- 
 rers."t To the same purpose, Adair asserts, that 
 they " have their High Priests, and others of a reli- 
 gious order." *' Ishtohoollo," he observes, " is the 
 name of all their priestly order, and their pontifical 
 oiifice descends by inheritance to the eldest."| 
 
 Notwithstanding this diversity, however, the dif- 
 feren'^e is more in appearance than in reality. Va- 
 rious meanings attached to the same words, in con- 
 sequence of arbitrary associations, may produce a. 
 diversity of description. If a priest be one whosti 
 exclusive duty it is to celebrate the rites of rel'^ion, 
 
 * Loskiel, p. 39, 40. 42. ad calc. A liouse of .ia-iifice is only another 
 name for temple. 
 
 t Bartram, Travels through North and Soutli raroliiia. fifargin, F.nst and 
 West Florida, &ic. Lond. 171)2. 8vo. p 495. 
 
 4 Adair, Hist. Korth American Indians, p. SO, SI,- 
 
 7 
 
 i 
 
 iflMl 
 
60 
 
 ' ! 
 
 
 J 
 
 ^1 l; 
 
 
 p. ' 
 
 
 
 ' ' 
 
 
 1 1 i,t 
 
 1 
 
 l! 
 
 I 1' 
 
 i 
 
 ■']■. 'I 
 
 I I 
 
 i 
 
 tlien it must be admit ted that a priesthood exists 
 among the Indians ; for those vvlio (k'ny that they 
 have priests, allow that in their public sacrifices 
 the chiefs are the only persons authorized to offi- 
 ciate. The only dillerence, then, lies in this, whe- 
 ther the j)riesthood be or be not connected with the 
 oflice of the magistrate. 
 
 Among Christians, as among the Jews, the j)riest- 
 hood is distinct from the civil authority ; but pre- 
 vious to the separation of the family of yVaron, these 
 two offices were generally united. Melchizedeck 
 was both king of Salem and priest of the most High 
 God. .Tethro was, at the same time, priest and 
 prince of Midian ; and Abraham hims(j|f, who is 
 called a prince, performed the sacerdotal functions. 
 We find this union of the -egal and sacerdotal cha" 
 racters existing among heathen nations. Homer 
 describes the aged Pylian King as performing reli- 
 gious rites ;* and Virgil tells of the Monarch of 
 Delos, who was both priest and king : 
 
 "Rex Aniiis, rex idem liomiiiuin Plia'bitiue siicerdos.'M- 
 
 Among the Creeks, and other Southern Indians, 
 a monarchical form of government seems to pre- 
 vail ; among the Northern Indians, a republican. 
 In both, the sacerdotal office may be united witli 
 civil authority, and therefore partake of its peculiar 
 character. Among the one, it may be hereditary : 
 
 " Odvss. lil). iii. 1. 418-iao. 
 
 t iEurlJ. lib. iii. I. SO. 
 
thood exists 
 \y that they 
 lie sucrifices 
 ized to olfi- 
 in tliis, vvhe- 
 md vvitli the 
 
 s, the priest- 
 ty ; l)Ut pre- 
 Aaron, these 
 /lelchizedeck 
 le most High 
 I, priest and 
 iseir, who is 
 al functions, 
 crdotal cha- 
 lis. Homer 
 brming reli- 
 Monarch of 
 
 aos.' 1- 
 
 lern Indians, 
 I'ms to pre- 
 
 republican. 
 
 inited with 
 lits peculiar 
 
 Ihcreditary : 
 
 iii I. fin. 
 
 i 
 
 51 
 
 amone: the other, elective. If this be not sufTirient 
 to reconcile the discordant accounts, we are hound, 
 I think, to respect the united testimony of ( harle- 
 voix and Loskiel, in preference to any other, as they 
 do not appear to have had any system to serve, 
 which might given bias to their statements. And if 
 this be so, it will be seen that the lleligion of the In- 
 dians approaches much nearer to the patriarchal, than 
 to that of the .lews. Their public sacerdotal oHices 
 are performed by their chiefs, and in their [)rivatc, 
 the head of every family is its priest. 
 
 V. But there is another office, which Carver, Bar- 
 tram, and others, have confounded w ith the priest- 
 hood, which exists among all the Indian Tribes, and 
 concerning which, there is no diversity in the state- 
 ment of travellers. To this class of men, the French 
 Missionaries gave the name of Jongleurs, whence 
 the English have derived that of Jugglers or Conju- 
 rers.* To use the definition of Charlevoix, they 
 are those servants of their Gods, whose duty it is to 
 announce their wishes, and to be their interpreters 
 to men :t or, in the language of Volney, those 
 " whose trade it is, to expound dreams, and to nego- 
 
 • Sec Note U. 
 
 t " lis (the Jongleurs) ue sont n^nnsmoins les niinlstiTs de ccs Diciix piv- 
 tendus, que pour annoncer aux liommes leurs voloulos, et pour ctre leurs iu- 
 terpretes : car, si I'ou pcut donuer le riom do sacrifices aux offrandes que ces 
 peuples font Ji leurs DlvmUrn, Im prftrcs parmi eur nr sont jnmnis Im Jon 
 gleurs." Journal Hist. p. 363-4. 
 
 ¥ 
 
 < I 
 
-.! i 
 
 !ili! 
 
 rMi 
 
 ;t: 
 
 52 
 
 tiate between the Manitto, and the votary."* " The 
 Jongleurs of Canada," says Charlevoix, " boast that 
 by means of thi good spirits whom they consult, 
 they learn what is passing in the most remote coun- 
 tries, and what is tc^ come to pass at the most dis- 
 tant period of time; that they discover the origin 
 and nature of the most secret disorders, and obtain 
 the hidden method of curing them ; that they dis- 
 cern the course to be pursued in the most intricate 
 affairs; that they learn to explain the obscurest 
 dreams, to give stv .^ess to the most difficult negotia- 
 tions, and to render the Gods propitious to warriors 
 and hunters." " I have heard," he adds, " from per- 
 sons of the most undoubted judgment and veracity, 
 that when these impostors shut themselves up in 
 their sweating stoves, which is one of their most 
 common preparations for the performance of their 
 sleight of hand, they differ in no respect from the 
 descriptions given by the poets, of the priestesses of 
 Apollo, when seated on the Delphic Tripod. They 
 have been seen to fall into convuiaions, to assume 
 tones of voice, and to perform actions, which were 
 seemingly superior to human strength, and which 
 inspired with an unconquerable terror, even the most 
 prejudiced spectators." Their predictions were 
 ■sonK^times so surprisingly verified, that Charlevoix 
 
 * Vlevr of the soil and climatei &c. p. 417. 
 
 
ry."^ "The 
 
 i, " boast that 
 
 they consult, 
 
 remote coun- 
 
 the most dis- 
 
 er the origin 
 
 rs, and obtain 
 
 that they dis- 
 
 iiost intricate 
 
 the obscurest 
 
 ificult negotia- 
 
 js to warriors 
 
 s, " from per- 
 
 and veracity, 
 
 nselves up in 
 
 )f their most 
 
 ance of their 
 
 ect from the 
 
 }riestesses of 
 
 ipod. They 
 
 I, to assume 
 
 which were 
 
 and which 
 
 ven the most 
 
 ctions were 
 
 Charlevoix 
 
 58 
 
 seems firmly to have believed, that they had a real 
 intercourse with the father of lies.* 
 
 This account of the Jongleurs of Canada, is con- 
 firmed by Mr. Heckcwelder, in his late work on the 
 Indian Tribes. " They are a set," he observes, " of 
 professional impostors, who, availing themselves of 
 the superstitious prejudices of the people, acquire 
 the name and reputation of men of superior know- 
 ledge, and possessed of supernatural powers. As 
 the Indians in general believe in witchcraft, and 
 ascribe to the arts of sorcerers many of the disor- 
 ders with which they are afflicted in the regular 
 course of nature, this class of men has arisen among 
 them, who pretend to be skilled in a certain occult 
 science, by means of which they are able, not only 
 to cure natural diseases, but to counteract or destroy 
 the enchantments of wizzards or witches, and expel 
 evil Spirits."! 
 
 " There are jugglers of another kind, in general 
 old men and women — who get their living by 
 pretending to supernatural knowledge — to bring 
 down rain when wanted, and to impart good luck 
 to bad hunters. In the summer of 1 799, a most 
 uncommon drought happened in the Muskingum 
 country. An old man was applied to by the wo- 
 men to bring down rain, and, after various ceromo- 
 
 •' Cliarlevoix, Journal, p. 361-2. 
 
 t Heckcwelder, Hist. Account, ut siipv. p. 224. 
 
 \i: 
 
\i\ 
 
 
 
 '<-t 
 
 u 
 
 V 
 
 .S1;' 
 
 
 54 
 
 nies, declared that they shouhl have rain enough. 
 The sky had been clear for nearly five weeks, and 
 was equally clear when the Indian made this decla- 
 ration. But about four in the afternoon^ the horizon 
 became overcast, and, without any thunder or wind, 
 it began to rain, and continued to do so till the 
 ground became thorouejhly soaked. Experience 
 had doubtless taught him to observe that certain 
 signs in the sky or in the water were the forerun- 
 ners of rain ; yet the credulous multitude did not 
 fail to ascribe it to his supernatural power."* " It 
 is incredible to what a degree the superstitious belief 
 in witchcraft operates on the mind of the Indian. 
 The moment his imagination is struck with the idea 
 that he is bewitched, he is no longer himself. Of 
 this? extraordinary power of their conjurers, of the 
 causes which produce it, and the manner in which it 
 is acquired, they have not a very definite idea. The 
 sorcerer, they think, makes use of some deadening 
 substance, which he conveys to the person he means 
 to * strike,' in a manner which they can neither un- 
 derstand nor describe. The person thus * stricken,' 
 is immediately seized with an unaccountable terror. 
 His spirits sink, his appetite fails, he is disturbed in 
 his sleep, he pines and w astes away, or a fit of sick- 
 ness seizes him, and he dies at last, a miserable vic- 
 tim to the workings of his own imagination. "f 
 
 ■* Heckewelder, Mist. Ace. of Indians, ut su\>t. p. 229 — 231, 
 t Ibid, p. 232-3. 
 
 I 
 
 mg 
 
rain enough. 
 
 weeks, and 
 
 e this decla- 
 
 y the horizon 
 
 der or wind, 
 
 > so till the 
 
 Experience 
 
 that certain 
 
 the forerun- 
 
 tude did not 
 
 ,ver."* " It 
 
 titious belief 
 
 the Indian. 
 
 kith the idea 
 
 limself. Of 
 
 rers, of the 
 
 in which it 
 
 idea. The 
 
 ; deadening 
 
 n he means 
 
 neither un- 
 
 * stricken,' 
 
 able terror. 
 
 isturbed in 
 
 fit of sick- 
 
 erable vic- 
 
 Dn."t 
 
 -231, 
 
 .| 
 
 55 
 
 A remarkable instance of this belief in the power 
 of these sorcerers, and of the wonderful effects of 
 imagination, is related by Hearne, as having occur- 
 red during his residence among the northern or 
 Chepewyan Indians. Matonabbee, one of their 
 chiefs, had requested him to kill one of his enemies, 
 who was at that time several hundred miles distant. 
 " To please this great man," says he, " and not ex- 
 pecting that any harm could possibly arise from it, I 
 drew a rough sketch of two human figures on a piece 
 of paper, in the attitude of wrestling ; in the hand 
 of one of them I drew the figure of a bayonet, point- 
 ing to the breast of the other. ' This,' said I to 
 Matonabbee, pointing to the figure which was hold- 
 ing the bayonet, ' is I, and the other is your enemy.' 
 Opposite to those figures 1 drew a pine tree, over 
 which I placed a large human eye, and out of the 
 tree projected a human hand. This paper I gave to 
 Matonabbee, with instructions to make it as public 
 as possible. The following year when he came to 
 trade, he informed me that the man was dead. Ma- 
 tonabbee assured me, that the man was in perfect 
 health when he heard of my design against him, but 
 almost immediately afterward became quite gloomy, 
 and, refusing all kinds of sustenance, in a very few 
 days died."* 
 
 Bartram, in his account of the manners and habits 
 
 * Ilcarne, Journey to tlic Nortlierii Ocean. Dublin. 171><>, 8vo. p. 221. 
 NotP. 
 
 i 
 
III 
 
 I 
 
 h 
 
 ■ i 
 
 
 ■! 
 
 
 \ 
 
 v5 ,? 
 
 'ill I 
 
 i'V. 
 
 ' . 
 
 i ■ H 
 
 i 
 
 56 
 
 of the tribes which inhabit Florida and the south of 
 the United States, relates, as their general belief, 
 that " their seer has communion with powerful in- 
 visible spirits, who hr ve a share in the government of 
 human affairs, as well as of the elements. His in- 
 fluence is so great, as frequently to turn back an 
 army when within a day's journey of their ene \y, 
 after a march of several hundred miles." " Indeca," 
 he adds, " the predictions of these men have sur- 
 prised many people. They foretel rain or drought, 
 pretend to Irng rain at pleasure, cure diseases, ex- 
 ercise witchcraft, invoke or exi^el evil spirits, and 
 even assume the power of directing thunder and 
 lightning."* 
 
 t 
 
 The power, then, of these impostors, is supposed 
 to consist — in the miraculous cure of diseases — the 
 procuring of rain, and other temporal blessings, in 
 the same supernatural manner — the miraculous in- 
 fliction of punishment upon the subjects of their dis- 
 pleasure — and tlie foretelling of future events. It 
 will immediately be seen, that these are, in fact, the 
 characteristics of the prophetic oflice ; those, I mean, 
 which are external, which produce, therefore, a last- 
 ing impression upon the senses of men, and from 
 the force of ocular tradition, would naturally be pre- 
 tended to, even after the power of God was with- 
 drawn. 
 
 "* Bartr; .n, Travels, «t siipr. p. 49S. 
 
 
 11' 
 
v: 
 
 1 the south of 
 eneral belief, 
 
 powerful in- 
 jovernment of 
 ints. His in- 
 turn back an 
 
 their ene ly, 
 ' "Indei^u," 
 en have sur- 
 n or drought, 
 
 diseases, ex- 
 1 spirits, and 
 
 thunder and 
 
 , is supposed 
 
 diseases — the 
 
 blessings, in 
 
 iraculous in- 
 
 of their dis- 
 
 events. It 
 
 , in fact, the 
 
 lose, I mean, 
 
 efore, a last- 
 
 3n, and from 
 
 rally be pre- 
 
 i was with- 
 
 That true profihets had such power, is evident 
 from the whole tenor of Sacred History. On their 
 power of predicting future events, it is not necessan 
 to dwell ; but it will be seen, that there is a striking 
 analogy between the pretensions of the Indian im- 
 postors, and the miracles wrought by the prophets. 
 We have seen, that tne former assume the power of 
 curing or inflicting diseases by supernatural means. 
 We find the pro})hets curing or inflicting the most 
 inveterate diseases, by a word, by a touch, by wash- 
 ing, and other means naturally the most inadequate.* 
 We have seen that the Indian impostors protend to 
 foretel drought or rain. So, Elijah the Tishbite 
 said to Ahab, " As the Lord God of Israel liveth, 
 before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain 
 these years, but according to my word."t And 
 again, the same prophet, when there was no appear- 
 ance of change in the heavens, said to the King, 
 '* Get thee up, eat and driuK, for there is a sound of 
 abundance of rain. "J We have seen, that among the 
 Indians, the conjurers pretend to inflict punishment 
 on their enemies by supernatural means. So we 
 read of a true prophet, that he commanded fire to 
 descend from heaven and consume the soldiers who 
 were sent by the King of Israel to take him.^ 
 
 But I wish to direct your attentiv.ii more especially 
 
 * Thus Naamaii was cured of li»s leprosy liy Eli^ll;l, mul the same disensu 
 inflicted by the prophet on his servant Gehazi. 2 Kiiirv, v. 
 
 M Kln2;s.xvii 1. t 1 King«, xviii. 41. iS 2Kiiigs. I 10 !;.» 
 
 a 
 
 .y 
 
 1'^ 
 
 J' 
 
 
58 
 
 liM 
 
 I 
 
 
 :i^; 
 
 I V 
 
 , lip If 
 
 ■'ii|ii 
 
 I ': 
 
 
 ill 
 
 ^h!' I 
 
 l:^ 
 
 to a very early period of Sacred History, while the 
 Gentiles had not yet entirely apostatized from the 
 worship of the true God, and therefore were not yet 
 wholly cut off from the patriarchal church. In the 
 history of Abraham and Abimelech, we have an in- 
 stance of the power which prophets possessed of ob- 
 taining blessings for others. ** Now, therefore," 
 said God to Abimelech, ** restore the man his wife : 
 for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee^ and 
 thou shall live.^^* The same power is attributed to 
 Job, who was probably a descendant of Esau ; con- 
 sequently, not one of the chosen family ; and, there- 
 fore, a prophet among the Gentiles. " The Lord 
 said to Eliphaz the Temanitc, My wrath is kindled 
 against thee Jind against thy two friends. — There- 
 fore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven 
 rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for 
 yourselves a burnt-offering, and my servant Job 
 shall pray for you, for him will I accept : lest I deal 
 with you after your folly."t 
 
 Traces of the same power are to be found in the 
 History of Balaam, the prophet of Midian. When 
 the Israelites, on their passage from Egypt, were 
 passing through the country of Moab, the King of 
 the Moabites, alarmed for his personal safety, sent 
 for the prophet to curse them. " Come now, there- 
 fore, I pray thee, curse me this people, for they are 
 
 • (.Jen. xs. 
 
 tJob, xlii.7.S. 
 
ry, while the 
 ed from the 
 were not yet 
 irch. In the 
 e have an in- 
 jsessed of ob- 
 , therefore," 
 lan his wife : 
 'br thecy and 
 attributed to 
 f£sau; con- 
 ; and, there- 
 **The Lord 
 ith is kindled 
 ids. — There- 
 s and seven 
 offer up for 
 servant Job 
 lest I deal 
 
 found in the 
 ian. When 
 Egypt, were 
 the King of 
 safety, sent 
 now, there- 
 for they are 
 
 '.6. 
 
 69 
 
 too mighty for me; peradventure, I shall prevail, 
 that we may smite them, and that I may drive them 
 out of the land : for I wot, that he whom thou blessest 
 is blessed f and he whom thou cursest is cursed. And 
 the elders of Moab, and the elders of Midian, de- 
 parted with the rewards of divination in their hand ; 
 and they came unto Balaam and spake unto him the 
 words of Balak. And he said unto them, lodge 
 here this night, and I will bring you word again, as 
 Jehovah shall speak unto me. — And God said unto 
 Balaam, thou shalt not go with them ; thou shalt 
 not curse the people, for they are blessed."* Here 
 is not only a proof of the power ascribed to the 
 prophet by the nations among whom he dwelt, but 
 a) recognition, by God himself, of the authority of 
 Balaam to bless and curse in his name. And here, 
 T I mistake not, we may observe the connecting 
 link between the power of true prophets, and the 
 arts practised by the false, after the divine influence 
 was withdrawn. The elders of Moab and of Midi- 
 an, it is said, " departed tvith the rewards of divina- 
 tion in their hand." The inference is inevitable, 
 that Balaam, who undoubtedly had intercourse with 
 the true God, was at times deprived of the divine in- 
 fluence, and that under a sense of that deprivation, 
 he had recourse to the arts of divination. Of this 
 there is farther evidence. **^ Surely," he exclaims. 
 
 - Nitnah. xxii. 6, 7, 8. 12. 
 
 !^ 
 
 
 hi' 
 
 m 
 
• ■ 
 
 ti ;i 
 
 ! !i(i 
 
 . I- > 
 
 i,;ri 
 
 .4; 
 
 ;ll 
 
 11; 
 
 60 
 
 in one of his sublime prophecies, '' there is no en- 
 chantment against Jacob, neitlier is there any divina- 
 tion a{2;ainst Israel." And it is subsequently stated, 
 that " when Balaam saw that it ])leased the L.ord to 
 bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek 
 lor enciiantnients."* When he could not obtain au- 
 thoritj iVom God to curse Israel, he had recourse, in 
 the depravity of his heart, to these unhallowed in- 
 cantations ; but finding that it was in vain to con- 
 tend with the determination of the Almighty, he re- 
 signed himself at length to the divme influence, and 
 converted his intended curse into a blessing. " How 
 goodly are thy tents, O Jacob ! and thy tabernacles, 
 O Israel ! — Bless(^d is he that blesseth thee, and 
 cursed is he that curseth thee."t ' . r ■; < : 
 In proportion, th(ui, as Idolatry increased, the 
 prophetic spirit in the patriar li 1 church was gra- 
 dually withdrawn. While the true God was wor- 
 shi])ped, even though in absurd connexion with Idols, 
 the divine influenc: ^vas sometimes communicated. 
 But being gradually more and more frequently de- 
 nied, the ])rophets had recourse to the superstitious 
 observances of divination and judicial astrology. 
 And as Idolatry, in its downv/ard course, at length 
 lost siglit of the Creator, and worshipped only the 
 creatures, so the proplielic office degenerated into 
 the arts l)y va hich impostors preyed upon the super- 
 stition of the ignorant. 
 
 * Nninl'. xxiv. 1 . 
 
 t Ihiil, ."», 9. 
 
61 
 
 *e is 110 eii- 
 p ail}' (livina- 
 lently stated, 
 
 the Liord to 
 mes, to seek 
 3t obtain au- 
 
 recourse, in 
 hallowed iii- 
 k'aiii to coii- 
 ightj, he re- 
 ifluouce, and 
 n^. " How 
 
 tabeniach^s, 
 h thee, and 
 
 creased, the 
 
 ;h was gra- 
 
 I was wor- 
 
 n with Idols, 
 
 nmnnicated, 
 
 quentlj de- 
 
 uperstitious 
 
 astrology. 
 
 e, at length 
 
 d only the 
 
 lerated into 
 
 1 the supcr- 
 
 I have now, gentlemen, finished the view which 
 I )>r()jK)sed to take of the Ueligion of the Indians. 
 I am sensible that it is very imperfect, but enough 
 has been said, I hope, to show the analogy which it 
 bears to the religion of the patriarchal ages, and its 
 wonderful uniformity, when considered as prevailing 
 among nations so remote and unconnected. 
 
 It has already been observed, however, that their 
 religious system can afford no clue by which to 
 trace them to any particular nation of the old world. 
 On a subject so obscure as the origin of nations, 
 there is great danger of expatiating in conjectures. 
 In fact, the view here taken, in some meeisure cuts 
 off these conjectures, by tracing the Aborigines of 
 America, to a higher source th;iii lias usually been 
 assigned to them. If the opinion I have advanced 
 be true, it will, I think, a])pear rational to believe, 
 that the Indians are a primitive people ; — that, like 
 the Chinese, they must have been among the earliest 
 emiPirants of the descendants of Noah; — that, like 
 that singular nation, they advanced so far bt^yond 
 the circle of human society, as to become eiitirel\ 
 separated from all other men; — and that, in this way, 
 they preserved a more distinct and homogeneous 
 character than is to be found in any other portion 
 of the Globe. Whether they came immediately to 
 this western continent, or whether they arrived here 
 by gradual progression, can never be ascertained, 
 and is, in fact, an in([uiry of little moment. It is 
 
 :l^M 
 
 
 ' fci 
 
 i 
 
62 
 
 
 ( : 
 
 j 
 
 ffii 
 
 •I. t, 
 
 'I 
 
 m 
 
 
 probable, however, that, like rhe Noithtrh hordes 
 who descended upon Europe, and who '* T,itituted 
 the basis of its present ])opulation, their numbers 
 were great ; and that from one vast reservoir, they 
 flowed onward in successive surges, wave impelling 
 wave, till tliey had covered the whole extent of this 
 vast continent. At least, this hypothesis may ac- 
 count for the uniform character of their religion, 
 and for the singular fact which has lately been illus- 
 trated by a learned member of the American Philo- 
 so})hical Society, that their languages form a sepa- 
 ran; class in human speedi, and that, in their plans 
 of thought, the same system extends from the coasts 
 of Labrador to the extremity of Cape Horn.* 
 
 But, turning from speculations which are ren- 
 dered sublime by their shadowy form, and immeasu- 
 Fable magnitude, I shall conclude a discourse which, 
 I fear, has become already tedious, by remarks of a 
 more practical, and, I would hope, of a more useful 
 nature. 
 
 We have seen that, like all other nations unblessed 
 with the light of Christianity, the Indians are idola- 
 tors ; but their idolatry is of the mildest character, 
 and has departed less than among any other people 
 from the form of primeval truth. — Their belief in a 
 future state is clear and distinct, debased only by 
 
 * See NotpW. 
 
;!l^ 
 
 tlitn. hordeb 
 ) *- *r, uituted 
 ^leir numberii 
 >ervoir, thej 
 ve impelling 
 ixtent of this 
 sis may ac- 
 leir religion, 
 y been illus- 
 jrican Philo- 
 form a sepa- 
 1 their plans 
 m the coasts 
 
 orn.* 
 
 ch are ren- 
 id immeasu'- 
 lurse which, 
 emarks of a 
 more useful 
 
 IS unblessed 
 s are idola- 
 
 character, 
 her people 
 
 belief in a 
 d only by 
 
 
 63 
 
 those corporeal associations which proceed from th« 
 constitutional operations of our nature, and from 
 which even Christians, therefore, are not totally ex- 
 empt — They retain among them the great principle 
 of expiation for sin, without which all religion would 
 be unavailing — And they acknowledge, in all the 
 common occurrences of life, and even in their very 
 superstitions, the overruling power of Divine Provi- 
 dence, to which they are accustomed to look up 
 with an implicit confidence, which might often put 
 to shame the disciples of a purer faith. 
 
 Provided, then, that their suspicions respecting 
 every gift bestowed by the hands of white men, can 
 be overcome, the comparative purity of their reli- 
 gion renders it so much the easier to propagate 
 among them the Gospel of Salvation.* In this view, 
 is it possible for the benevolent heart to restrain the 
 rising wish, that the scanty remnant of this unfortu- 
 nate race may be brought within the verge of civi-* 
 lized life, and made to feel the influence, the cheer- 
 ing and benign influence, of Christianity ? Is it not 
 to be wished, ♦hat the God whom they ignorantly 
 worship, may be declared to them, and that, toge- 
 ther with the practices they have so long preserved, 
 may be united that doctrine which alone can illu- 
 mine what is obscure, and unravel what is intricate ? 
 If this be desirable, it must be done quickly, or thw 
 
 ). ( 
 
 I , 
 
 !l I 
 
 \\i' 
 
 )■■• 
 
 \ 
 
 1 
 
 !< 
 
 '( 
 
 U 
 
 i. 
 
 Sfp \ote \. 
 
si, I 
 III 
 
 111 
 I'll 
 
 I i 
 
 Mi! 
 
 if 
 
 I- I , I t 
 
 ill 
 
 6t 
 
 opportunity will be for (3ver lost. Should our pre- 
 judices prevent it, we must remember that their 
 faults will be obscured, and their virtues brightened, 
 hy the tints of time. Posterity wiH^ think of them, 
 more in pity than in an^er, and will blame us for the 
 little regard which has l)een paid to their wellare. 
 
 Hapless nations! — liike the mists >> Inch are ex- 
 haled by the scorching radiance of your summer's 
 sun, ye are fast disappearijij^ from the earth. But 
 there is n Great Spirit above, who, i ongh for wise 
 juirposcs he causes you to disappear from the earth, 
 still extends his protiTting care to you, as well as to 
 the rest of his creatures. — There is a country of 
 Souls, a hapi)ier, and better country, which will be 
 opened, we may charitably hope, to you, as well as 
 to the other children of Adam. — There is the ato- 
 Jiing blood of the Redeemer, which was shed for 
 you, as well as the rest of mankind ; the efficacy of 
 which, you have unwittingly continued to plead ; and 
 which may be extended, in its salutary influence, 
 even to those who have never called on, because they 
 have never heard, the name of the Sox of God. 
 
 i: i 
 
'■ 
 
 L' 
 
 ulcl our pre- 
 r that lljL'ir 
 s l)i-ighteitedY 
 ink of thcni, 
 110 us for tlie 
 r well'are. 
 
 Iiich arc ex- 
 ur summer's 
 earth. Bui 
 ugh i'or wise 
 m the earth, 
 IS well as to 
 I country of 
 hieh will be 
 [i, as well as 
 
 is the ato- 
 as shed for 
 a eflicacy of 
 
 plead ; and 
 y infljience, 
 )ccause they 
 \ OF God. 
 
 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 NOTE A. 
 
 Thus, Henriie 8ay.s, >< Religion hiis not ns yet begun to dawn among the 
 Northern Indians — 1 never found any ol" tlit'in that had the Uiast idea of futu- 
 rity." " Matunal)l»e«!, a man of as clear idt'in in other lautlers ns any tiiut I 
 ever saw, always declared to ine, Ihut nriliier lie, nor any of liis country 
 men, had an idea of a future state." Journey to tlie iS'orthern Ocean. Dub- 
 lin, 179G, 8vo. p. 343 — 4. Yet Mackenzie alurtns, tiiat they believe ii: a 
 future state of rewards and punishments, and givLS a very particular account 
 of their belief. " Tln^y are," he says, " superstitious in the extreme. I ne- 
 ver observed that they had any particular form of reli^^ious worship ; but an 
 they believe in a good and evil spirit, and a state of future rewards and pu- 
 nishments, thoy cannot be devoid uf religious impressions. At the some 
 time, tlieij manifest a decided unwillingness lu make any communications on the 
 iubject." This last fact will account for the declaration of Matonabbee ; 
 and also for the concealment of their forms of worship from the view of 
 Mackenzie. lMackenzie,Gen.Hist. 8vo. vol. 1. p. 145. 15G. Mackenzie cor- 
 rects several other erroneous statements made by Hearne. 
 
 Colden, speaking of the five nations, says: "It ik certain they have no 
 kind of public worship, and I am told they have no radical word to express 
 Gud,but use a compound word, signifying the Preserver, Sustniner, or Mus- 
 ter of the Universe ; neither could I ever learn what sentimiints they have of 
 a future existence." Colden, Introduction to Hist, of Five Indian Nations 
 of Canada, p. 15. On the other hand, Charlevoix assures us, that " parmi 
 ces peuples, qu'on a prctcndu n'avoir auciine id6e de religion, ni de Divi- 
 nite, presqne tout paroit I'objct dun cultc religicux, on dii nioins y avoir 
 quehjue rapport." Journal, p. 348. And Heckev\elder affirms, that " Ha- 
 bitual devotion to the Great First Cause, and a strong feeling of gratitude for 
 the benefits which He confers, is one of the prominent traits which charac- 
 terize the mind of the untutored Indian." Hist. Ace. p. 84. '• Another dif- 
 ficulty I had to encounter," says Adair, " was the secrec;/ and closeness of the 
 Indians as to their own affairs, and their prying disposition into those of 
 others." Adair, N. Am. Indians, preface. The testimony of so respectable 
 a writer as Colden would have great weight, if he had ?poken from his owi 
 
 9 
 
 ! 
 
 •il^l 
 
 IP 
 
 
 f 
 
,1 1. 
 , ;li 
 
 66 
 
 t f 
 
 !l! 
 
 1.. ! I 
 
 personal knowledge ; but be confessedly derived his opinions of the Indian 
 character from the testimony of others. What he has said, therefore, can- 
 not avail against the united testimony of Charlevoix, Adair, and Hcckewel- 
 der. 
 
 NOTE B. 
 
 " Gomara et Jean De Lery font descendre tous les Amiricjuains des Ca- 
 nancens chasses de la terre promise par Josuc." — Charlevoix, Dissc/ntion 
 sur I'origine des Amoriquains, prefixed to his Journal d'un Voyage, 8ic. 
 Mistoire de la Nouvelle France, torn. 3 p. 4. Paris, 1744, 4to. 
 
 " Lescarbot panche un peu plus vers le sentiment de ceux qui out trans- 
 porte dans le Nouveau Monde les Canaiieens chasses de la terre proTiise par 
 Josuc. II y trouve an moins quelque vraisemblance en ce que ces peuples, 
 aussi bien que les Amtriquains, avoient la cofttume de faire saiiter lurs en- 
 fans par-dessus le feu, en inroquant Icurs idolea, et de manger la chair 
 humaine." Ibid, p. 10. 
 
 '* En 1642. Grotius publia un petit ouvrage in-quarto sons ce litre : De 
 origine genlinm Americanarum. — Si on en croit le docte Hollandois, ii 
 lexception de I'Yucatan, et de quelques autres provinces voisines, dont il 
 fait une classe a part, touts TAm^rique Septentrionnale ii et6 peuple par les 
 Norvegiens. — Ce qui I'oblige de mettre Ji part I'Yucatan, c'est I'usage de la 
 Circoucision, dont il s'est mis dans la tete qu'on a trouv6 des traces dana 
 cctte province, et une pretendue tradition ancienne des habitans, qui portoit, 
 tiuc leurs ancf tres avoient etc sauv6s des Hots de la mer ; ce qui a fait croire 
 ;\ qiielques-uns, ajoClte-t'-il, qu'ils 6toientiissus des Hebreux. II refute n6ans- 
 moins cette opinion, avec les m6mes arguraens k peu prcs dont s'est servi 
 BiTverood, (Breerwood,) et il estime, avec Dom Pierre Martyr d'Anglerie, 
 que les premiers qui peupl^rent I'Yucatan, furent des Ethiopiens jettes sur 
 cette cote par une lemp6te, ou par quelque autre accident. II juge m6me 
 que ces Ethiopiens etoient Chretiens, ce qu'il infere d'une espece da Bap- 
 tome usite dans le pays." — Ibid. p. 12, 13. 
 
 In this dissertation, Charlevoix, has given a very judicious and interest- 
 ing summary of the several theories, which had been formed, at the time 
 he wrote, respecting the peopling of America. As the writings of their re- 
 spective authors are mentioned in chronol >gical order, it may be called, in 
 fact, the annals of these opinions, up to the date of his work: (1744.) In 
 contemplating their extras'agance and inconsistency, we scarcely knoAV 
 whether to smile or to mourn most, at these results of learned imagination. 
 
 In 1767, was published at Amsterdam, a French work, entitled, " Essai 
 sur cette ({uestion, quand et comment TAnierique a-t-clle etc peuplce 
 d'liommcs et d'animaux .' par E. B. d'E." The author professes respect 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 1 ,"' 
 
 
 ' '1 
 Si 
 
 k 
 
"<r 
 
 lions of the Indian 
 lid, therefore, cnn- 
 ir, and Hcckewel- 
 
 neri({uains des Ca- 
 evoix, Dissr.fHtion 
 d'un Voyage, 8ic. 
 4to. 
 
 :eux qui out trans- 
 I terre protiise par 
 ;e que ces peupleg, 
 •e saiiler Inrs en- 
 le manger la chair 
 
 » sons ce litre : J9c 
 cte Hollandois, u 
 89 voisjnes, dont il 
 I et6 peuple pai' les 
 I c'est I'usage de la 
 v6 des traces dans 
 )itans, qui portoit, 
 Ee qui a fait croire 
 . II refute n6ans- 
 •es dont s'est servi 
 "lartyr d'Anglerie, 
 iopiens jettes sur 
 it. II juge mdme 
 le espece de Bap- 
 
 ious and interest- 
 ried, at the time 
 ;ings of their re- 
 may be called, in 
 ork: (1744.) In 
 i scarcely know 
 led imagination, 
 oiilltled, " pjssai 
 !lle etc peuplce 
 irofcsses respect 
 
 i 
 
 t 
 
 67 
 
 for religion ; but he is either an Infidel in disguise,' or a very sorry Christian ; 
 and he has a smattering of learning, just extensive and superficial enough, to 
 intoxicate the brain. He maintains, that the deluge was of very limited 
 extent ; that the Chinese and the Scythians arc the descendants of Abel ; 
 that the Egyptians and Ethiopians are the posterity of Cain ; that the Negro 
 complexion was the stigma of his punishment ; that the Greeks, Thracians, 
 Celts, and ancient inhabitants of Italy, were Antediluvians; and hence, he 
 concludes, that the Aborigines of America are derived from as high an origin. 
 For the establishment of this theory, which occupies a quarto volume of 
 GOO pages, he has formed a va.st apparatus of astronomy and geology, of 
 history and philology, in which the wrecks of every thing that had been 
 considered by the learned as established, and no longer controvertible, ap- 
 pear " nantes in gurgite vasto." 
 
 In 1810, the excellently learned professor Vatcr published at Leipzig his 
 " Inquiry on the origin of the American population," in which he minutely 
 considers every hypothesis that has ever been formed or maintained on this 
 interesting subject. It will doubtless give pleas.ure to the public, to be in- 
 formed, that Mr. Diiponceau is now engaged in translating this valuable 
 work, which is undoubtedly the best that has ever been written on the subject. 
 
 NOTE C. 
 
 I have excluded the Karalit, because it is generally admitted, that 
 the Esquimaux derive their origin from Grocnland, and are a distinct 
 race from all the other inhabitants of this continent. " In all the 
 North American territories," says Ileckewelder, "bounded to the North 
 and East by the Atlantic ocean, and to the South and West by the river 
 Mississippi, and the possessions of the English Hudson's Bay Company, 
 there appear to be but four principal languages; branching out, it is true, 
 into various dialects, but all derived from one or the other of the four mo- 
 ther tongues, some of which extend even beyond the Mississippi, and per- 
 haps as far as the rocky mountains. These four languages are, 1. The Karalit. 
 2. The Iroquois. 3. The Lenape. 4. The Floridian. Mr. Duponceau has 
 mentioned, in his report prefixed to Mr. Heckewelder's history, that the 
 language of the Osages has been found, from a vocabulary by Dr. Murray 
 of Louisville, to be a dialect of the Iroquois. " By means of this vocabula- 
 ry," says he, " we have acquired a knowledge of the wide-spread extent of 
 the family of Indian nations of Iroquois origin, which, not long ago, were 
 thought to exist only in the vicinity of the great lakes, while we are enabled 
 to (race them even to the banks of the Missouri." p. xxxvii. 
 
 Charlevoix and Loskiel give substantially the same account. " Dans cettc 
 etisndue de pays," says the former, " qu'on appelle proprement la Nouvelle 
 
 M 
 
 .fNji 
 
 '•U^' 
 
 \' 
 
 I 
 
I 
 
 
 
 U is j i : ' 
 11 
 
 ;■! 
 
 i r I 
 
 ihl 
 
 i ' 
 
 I'M 
 
 lA 
 
 ir 
 
 li^ 
 
 
 •1*" 
 
 11 
 
 
 'i. 
 
 II 1 
 
 
 
 Hi- 
 
 
 
 n ' 
 
 
 • 
 
 1 
 
 
 ,' 
 
 
 
 \< 
 
 l{ 
 
 
 ;i 
 
 H 
 
 
 !:■ 
 
 1 
 
 G8 
 
 France, qui n'a dc bornes on nord que du cAte de la bnyc dc Hudson, qui 
 n'en a point d'autre a Test que la mer, les colonies Angloises uu ••ud, la 
 Louysiane au sud-est, et les terres des Espagnols a I'ouest ; danh celte wteniiue 
 dis-jc, de pays, il n'y a que trois langues-mcres dont toules les autres sont 
 derivces. Ces langues sont, la Siousc, I'Algonquine, et la Huroniie." Jour- 
 nal, p. 183. The Huron, U the same with the Iroquois; and the Algonquin, 
 only another name for (he Lenapc or Delaware. With regard to the tijird 
 language (la Siouse) Charlevoix confesses he knew little or nothing. 
 
 "It appears very probable," says Loskiel, " tliatthe Delaware and Iroquois 
 are the principal languages spoken tliroughout the known part of >'orth 
 America, Terra Labrador excepted, and that all others are dialects of them. 
 Our missionaries at least, wlio wore particularly atleniivc to this subject, 
 have never met with any which had not some similitude with either f^ne 
 or the other : But tlie Delaware language bears no resemblance to the Iro- 
 quois." Hist, of the Mission of the United Brethren among tlie Indians of 
 North America, part 1. ch. 2. p. 18. Lond. 1794, Svo. 
 
 We have no reason, I think, to doubt the statement of the Roman andMo- 
 ravian missionaries, who have made tiiese lanj!;uages tlieir stutly, and who had 
 no object in attempting to trace affinities where none existed. In the state- 
 ments of Charlo%oix and Heckeweider, the Span! :>h territories arc cautiously 
 excluded ; doubtless because of the great number of radical languages which 
 ore said to exist tliere. For the same reason, in Loskiels account, the term 
 A'ortk /imerica is (o be imderstood in contradistiuction to Middle, as well 
 as So»7/t America ; since Ihc Mornvian missionaries could have had no 
 knowledge of the Indian languages within the Spanish dominions. — I wish 
 to be understood as speaking with the same reservation; on account of the 
 express testimony given to this surprising fact by the most respectable wit- 
 nesses, " Le nrjml)re de ces langues," says the Baron Von Humboldt, 
 speaking of the languages of Mexico, " est au deli\ de vingt, dont quatorze 
 ont doji\ di'.s grammaires et des dictionnaires assez complets." After enu- 
 merating them, he proceeds to observe, '•' II paroit que la plupart daces 
 langues, loin detres des dialectes d'une seule, (comme quelques auteurs I'ont 
 faussement avance.) sont au moins aussi diffcrentes les unes des autres que 
 Test le Grcc dc rAllemand, ou le Francois du Polonois : c'est du moins le cas 
 des sept langues de la Nouvelle-Espagne, dont je posscde les vocabulaires. 
 CcHe varietd d'idiomci que pnrleni les peiipks du A''ourcau Continent, et que, 
 sans la 7)iu)ndre rxaui'ration on peut porter a plusieijrs centaimes, pr6- 
 srnle ini philnnmine bien fruppant , surtout si on les compare aupeu de langues 
 qn'offrent VAsie el I' Europe." Essai politique sur le Royaume de Nouvelle 
 Espagnc, torn. 1. p. 3TB. Paris, 1811. 8vo. 
 
 It is, indeed, a striking 'phenomenon • and il becomes still more so when 
 compared with the fact, that in Ihc United States a7id British America, there art 
 
 on 
 ho 
 hu 
 
5-p dc Hudson, qui 
 ngloises au '■ud, la 
 danti cettentenuue 
 Ues les autres sont 
 Huroniic." Joiir- 
 nd the Algonquin, 
 ppgard to the third 
 or nothing, 
 iware and Iroquois 
 vn jpHit of North 
 e dialects of them, 
 ve to this subject, 
 5 with either one 
 jblance to the Iro- 
 ong the Indians of 
 
 le Roman andAIo- 
 
 tiidy, and who had 
 
 ted. In the state- 
 
 ries are cautiously 
 
 d languages which 
 
 account, the term 
 
 to Middle, as well 
 
 uld have had no 
 
 minions. — I wish 
 
 on account of the 
 
 t respectable vvit- 
 
 Von Humboldt, 
 
 t, dont quatorze 
 
 lets." After enu- 
 
 a plupart de ces 
 
 qucs auteurs I'ont 
 
 OS des autres que 
 
 st du raoins le cas 
 
 les vocabulaires. 
 
 Continent, et que, 
 
 CENTAINES, pri- 
 
 aupeudelanguex 
 urae de Nouvelle 
 
 till more so when 
 hncrica, there are 
 
 li) 
 
 
 69 
 
 on/.v four radical languages, even including the language of Oroenland. If, 
 however, it should be true, as Humboldt thinkh, tiiat there are several 
 hundreds of primitive American languages, it would only afford stronger 
 proof of the truth of the position, in support of which the existence of 
 three radical languages has been mentioned ; namely, that the Indians are 
 not the descendants ot the twelve tribes. 
 
 I f<ii.l very great dilfidence in appearing to call in question so high an au- , 
 thority, yet I cannot help suggesting the probability, that the more our know- 
 ledge of Indian languages is extended, the greater will be the affinities we 
 shall discover; and that many will be found to be related, which are now 
 considered as totally distinct. 
 
 Even in written language, to trace etymologies is, in many cases, a diffi- 
 cult task; and requires an extensive knowledge of the philosophy of human 
 speech. But thi:, difficulty is immeasurably increased, when languages are 
 merely oral, and arc represented in foreign characters, not by the natives 
 themselves, but by persons who are often ignorant of all other tongues but 
 their own, who are confessedly unacquainted with that which they endea- 
 vour to write, and whose power of discriminating sounds is not always the 
 most acute. 
 
 When a language is written, the writing continues unaltered through all 
 the changes of pronunciation ; when it is only spoken, the deviations from 
 the original become rapid and various, in propoition as the imperfections 
 are more or less extensive, of the bodily organs and the mental faculties. 
 
 As, therefore, languages merely oral tend inevitably to corruption, so the 
 attempts made to reduce them to writing, are subject to corresponding im- 
 perfections. The alphabets in which they are represented, may vary in 
 themselves, and be severally incompetent to convey an exact idea of their 
 powers. Persons who use the same alphabet may employ different com- 
 binations of letters to represent the same sounds. " 1 have frequently 
 found," says the celebrated circumnavigator. Captain Cook, " that the 
 same words, written down by two or more persons from the mouth of the 
 same native, on being compared together, differed not a little." Voyages, 
 vol. 2. p. 521. Lond. 17S5. 4to. And even if the sounds be perfectly re- 
 presented, we know, from our own experience, the confusion, with regard 
 to etymology, which would arise from making pronunciation the standard 
 of orthography. The anomalies of English pronunciation are so great, that 
 if we were to write it as it is spoken, to trace its etymologies would re- 
 quire tiie powers of an (Edipus. 
 
 Under such disadvantages, we certainly ought to be cautious not to form 
 hasty opinions with regard to the affinities of Indian languages. Our 
 means of information are, at present, too limited, and we must patiently 
 wait the result of those inquiries, which, though commenced too late, have, 
 
 4! 
 
 ill; 
 
 If 
 
 , I 
 
 I'll 
 
 11 . ! 
 
70 
 
 I I 
 
 n 
 
 i r(i 
 
 h ■] I 
 
 .:r.l 
 
 a length, been happily begun by the American Philosophical Society. The 
 collection of information from distant and independent sources, will leac" 
 by a gradual approximation, to the most accurate results ; and we shall 
 probably be able to apply to the subject, the remarks of the great lexico- 
 grapher of our language, that in proportion " as books are multiplied, the 
 various dialects of the same country will always be observed to grow fewer 
 and less diflferent." 
 
 Perhaps I ought net to dismiss this subject without observing, that Mr. 
 •lefferson long ago made the same remark as M. Von Humboldt, with re- 
 gard to the great number of American languages; in his Notes on Virginia. 
 " Arranging them,'' says he, " under the radical onss to which they may 
 be palpably traced ; and doing the same by those of the red men of Asia, 
 there will be found, probably, turenty in America for one in Asia, of those 
 radical languages, so called, because, if they wero ever the same, they have 
 lost air resemblance to one another. A separation into dialects may be the 
 work of a few ages only, but for two dialects to recede from one another 
 till they have lost all vestiges of their common origin, must require an im- 
 mense course of time ; perhaps, not less than many people give to the age 
 of the earth. A greater number of those radical changes of language having 
 taken place among the red men of America, proves them of greater antiqui- 
 ty than those of Asia." — Notes on Virginia, Query 11. Aborigines. 
 
 The acute and scientific author might have contented himself with stating 
 ihe fact, and have paired the slur upon Revelation. It is by no means certain, 
 that the same phenomenon does not exist in Asia. The languages spoken 
 in the immediate neighbourhood of the Caucasian mountains, have little 
 more in common than their geographical situation. "Except the Armenian 
 and Georgian," say the Quarterly Reviewers after Adelung, " they are scarcely 
 ever employed in writing ; and, principally perhaps from this cause, they ex- 
 hibil a.s grant a dirtrsity in the space ofa/eio square miles, as those oftwny other 
 nations do, in as many thonsnnih." Q. R. vol. x. p. 283. Rev. of the IWithridates. 
 But admitting that it is confined to America, is there no way of solving 
 the diflSculty, but by attacking the Scriptures .' And if it be inexplicable, shall 
 we surrender all the stupendous evidences of Divine Revelation, because we 
 are unable to account for a fact which is comparatively insignificant.'' This 
 is a kind of minute philosophy, unworthy of so distinguished a name, which 
 can be compared only to the calculations of the Canon Recupero in Bry- 
 done, who sought to determine the world's age by enumerating the lavas of 
 JEtna. 
 
 NOTE D. 
 
 There maybe an affinity among languages in two ways; in etymology, 
 and in grammatical construction. \Vhere there are etymological affini 
 
ill 
 
 ;al Society. Tlie 
 >urces, will leac" 
 ts } and we shall 
 (he great lexico- 
 e multiplied, the 
 d to grow fewer 
 
 serving, that Mr. 
 nboldt, with re- 
 otes on Virginia, 
 which they may 
 red men of Asia, 
 in Asia, of those 
 same, they have 
 lects may be the 
 'om one anotlier 
 it require an im- 
 » give to the age 
 language having 
 f greater antiqui- 
 irigines. 
 
 iself with stating 
 10 means certain, 
 jnguages spoken 
 Eiins, have little 
 pt the Armenian 
 tkey are scarcely 
 s cause, they ex- 
 ose of tiany other 
 the Mithridates. 
 way of solving 
 explicable, shall 
 ion, because we 
 gnificant? This 
 a name, which 
 cupero in Dry- 
 ing the lavas of 
 
 in etymology, 
 ological ailini 
 
 71 
 
 ties, there will of course be a similarity in grammatical forms. On the 
 other hand, languages may be entirely different as to etymology, and yet 
 similar in grammatical construction. The question, with regard to the de- 
 scent of the Indians from the Hebrews, must rest upon both these affinities ; 
 for although resemblances in grammatical construction will not prove a 
 common origin, yet differences in grammar afford the strongest evidence of 
 the converse of the proposition. 
 
 ETYMOLOGY. 
 
 Table I. — Delatvart, and Iroquois tvords of the Onondngo diaUrt, 
 from Zeisberger, 
 
 Ltnapi or Delaware. 
 
 Iroquois, (Qnond. 
 dialect.) 
 
 Kcbrexc. 
 
 God, 
 
 PatamiUvos, 
 
 Nioh, 
 
 Elohim, 
 
 o^ribN 
 
 Spirit, 
 
 Mannilto, 
 
 Otcon, 
 
 Rtiach, 
 
 rm 
 
 Man, 
 
 Leniio, 
 
 Etschinak, 
 
 ijsh, 
 
 WM 
 
 WOMAM, 
 
 Ochqueu, 
 
 Echro, 
 
 Ishii, 
 
 nwK 
 
 To DiB, 
 
 Angeln, 
 
 Yaich6-ye, \ 
 Yawo-h6-ve, j 
 Waunteconi, 
 
 Mut-th, 
 
 m?3 
 
 
 
 
 
 To Eat, 
 
 Mitzin, 
 
 Achiil, 
 
 bSN 
 
 Flesh, 
 
 Oyos, 
 
 Owichra, 
 
 Ba-sir, 
 
 *1VS 
 
 Fish, 
 
 Namses, 
 
 Otschi6nfa, 
 
 »ttR. 
 
 at 
 
 BOSE, 
 
 Wochgan, 
 
 Oschtiehnta," 
 
 Ng6-tsem, 
 
 QVV 
 
 A Child, 
 
 Amemens, 
 
 Ixh^a, 
 
 Niingar, 
 
 1I?3 
 
 It may not be amiss to make some remarks upon the pronunciation of this 
 and the following specimens. lo Zeisberger's vocabulary, the powers of 
 the German Alphabet are employed to express the pronunciation of Indian 
 words. Ch has the guttural sound of the Greek X. When the consonants 
 are doubled, it is merely to denote that the preceding vowel is short, as a iu 
 man. /and j before a vowel have the power of y which I have therefore 
 in most cases taken the liberty to substitute. Sch is equivalent to the FJnglish 
 «/t. The apostrophe after n k and s denotes the contraction of a vowel, as 
 n'pommauchii, for ni pommaucksi. Que and ke differ ; the former being pro- 
 nounced like kuie. W before a vowel, as in English. In representing the 
 Hebrew in English letters, I have followed the points, which give, I am in- 
 clined to believe, the traditional representation of the original vowel sounds. 
 These remarks will apply to all the siJeciraens, excepting those from Adair, 
 of which I can say nothing. 
 
 * Cherekae, K6ra, aocordins 'o .idnir. 
 
 
 
 III' 
 
 ■1 ) 
 
■ . I 
 
 i! 
 
 '1 
 
 1". 
 
 1 
 
 ii 
 
 
 • 
 
 > 
 
 'i 
 
 i I 
 
 ■ i 
 
 r; 
 
 n 
 
 
 11 I ;l 'i 
 
 I 
 
 ft ^ ;> n a-n ^i 
 &■ » a ". "^ e ^ 
 
 - - 5. 3 s "^ 
 
 3 S-3 3 g S.3 
 
 p,^ = q • - n. 
 
 o _ n >• p 3 
 
 ^ ff - "^ p 
 
 re = 
 
 S^ 3 
 
 p s 
 
 w. o o 
 
 ■cb 
 
 p O 
 
 O H " S- <* » 
 
 erg 3 - « 
 
 p 
 
 a 
 o 
 
 ^S-'U<"> 
 
 p p 
 
 «» 2;q s I 2 » 
 °i"p^. 
 
 3<* P 5' 
 ~« < 3 -^ 
 
 p 
 
 o ^ = ^ '^ 
 
 a S i - ° 3 -„ 
 
 • " P 5" J* CTQ 3 
 
 f.^ "-^ tfl (T> ,- B* ™ 
 
 5»o 
 
 i-s=s -3 
 
 ■1 <->• 
 
 3-* 
 
 
 
 « 3 2. 
 
 
 ? O -• rt O S 4 
 
 o 
 
 •-IB 
 
 ^ "re 3 -. 
 
 ^H-q 
 
 or O 
 
 ® S'H 
 2 re B- 
 
 :"* 3 rt> 
 
 ._ !^< 
 
 c c- -«. 2 P 
 
 =: g^ 2 i' P S 
 
 O^ B" -^ *-, = ?• 
 
 O 5 Cf P C^ 2 
 
 i; S. rti 3" £ rt- 3 
 3 re ^^ <^ B* ^» 
 
 5r- ft 
 
 CD 
 
 78 
 
 
 One, 
 
 Two, 
 
 Three, 
 
 Four, 
 
 Five, 
 
 Six, 
 
 Seven, 
 
 Eight, 
 
 Nine, 
 
 Ten, 
 
 
 3 
 
 s 
 
 5! 5! H H > 5! O > H !£ 
 
 S S."'?"" B-J-V; B-DTP 
 
 1 
 
 Ngutti, 
 
 Nischa, 
 
 Nacha, 
 
 Newo, 
 
 Palenach, 
 
 Giittasch, 
 
 Nischasch, 
 
 Chasch, 
 
 Peschkonk, 
 
 Tellen, 
 
 
 f 
 
 Soquo, 
 
 Tahre, 
 
 Choeh, 
 
 Nankke, 
 
 Ishke, 
 
 Sootare, 
 
 Karek6ge, 
 
 Suhiifiyra, 
 
 Sohnayra, 
 
 Skoeh, 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 o" 
 
 p" 
 
 3 
 
 Chephpha, 
 
 Toogalo, 
 
 Tootchina, 
 
 Oosta, 
 
 Tathlabe, 
 
 Hannahle, 
 
 Untoogklo, 
 
 Un tootchina, 
 
 Chakkale, 
 
 Pokoole, 
 
 1 
 
 Hommai, 
 
 Hokkole, 
 
 Tootchina, 
 
 Ohsta, 
 
 Chakiipe, 
 
 Eepahge, 
 
 Hoolophage, 
 
 Cheenepa, 
 
 Ohstkpe, 
 
 Pok61e, 
 
 O 
 
 1 
 
 Z H c« Cfi :/) O > f-W yj pj 
 ** ^ " « B 
 
 1 
 
 X 
 
 re 
 
 Achath, 
 
 Shetdyim, 
 
 Shalush, 
 
 Arbang, 
 
 Chamesh, 
 
 Shesh, 
 
 Shebang, 
 
 Sheinoneh, 
 
 Tce-shang, 
 
 Nges-reh, 
 
 !? 
 
 
 J? 
 
 « ej a u Q O J J-ii 3 
 
 1 
 
 O BJ > 
 
 ^3 t^ 
 
 
 CD "^ 
 
 
 cc 
 
 >r 
 
 
 
 
 *!■« 
 
 N*.^ 
 
 K 
 
 
 
 K- 
 
 
 
 «> 
 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 3 
 
 n 
 
 M 
 
 ►53 
 
 s- 
 
 St 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 rh 
 
 g-Qtcj 
 
 A 
 
 
 S 
 
 
 ** 
 
 
 0- 
 
 fcO 
 
 <% 
 
 * 
 
 c^ 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 ST 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 1- 
 
 
 
 "i 
 
 f* 
 
 b 
 
 
 
 <->? 
 
 a-s 
 
 r> 
 
 a 
 
 »- 
 
 S 
 
 1 
 
 ^ 
 
 a 
 
 S 
 
 
 
 & 
 
 NJ 
 
 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 
 
 "^ 
 
 a 
 
 j5 
 
 n 
 8 
 
 7J 
 
 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 H 
 
 a. 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 r> 
 
 p 
 
 «« 
 
 r> 
 
 
 
 
 
 ?r-0 
 
 
 S 
 
 p 
 
 »-3 
 
 H 
 M 
 
 Ii: 
 
>l 
 
 IP 
 
 73 
 
 
 '^ 
 
 fe 
 
 1 
 
 Is 
 
 Br 
 
 3 f* 
 
 ^ 
 
 i/- 
 
 ^ 
 
 f ! 
 
 ■?> 
 
 s.-r- 
 
 •* 
 
 ^S 
 
 £b>-'» 
 
 i-^i^ 
 
 
 ?l 
 
 5! 
 
 ^^§ 
 
 SJ 
 
 CAO 
 
 ►w 
 
 §& 
 
 
 • fa 
 
 
 
 
 
 CD 
 
 
 
 -ۥ5, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 >a » 
 
 
 Wt* 
 
 
 -I o 
 
 
 *."« 
 
 
 
 
 5- 
 
 
 • 2^ 
 
 
 S3 
 
 
 C IS, 
 
 
 ►»l2. 
 
 
 s^s. 
 
 
 3,5 
 
 
 R.Qr3 
 
 
 
 ,t9 
 
 crq 
 
 
 21 
 
 S3 
 
 TO 
 
 s ^ 
 
 2 « 
 
 > 
 u 
 
 w 
 
 3d 
 
 per. 
 
 2d per. 
 
 1st per. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Kg' 
 
 OB 33 
 
 HHH 
 
 22-- 
 
 
 
 n 9 
 
 K M 
 
 s a n 
 
 H4 M« 
 
 
 
 s « 
 
 ti) ^' 
 
 PI %• 
 
 
 
 
 P9 S 
 
 §> 
 
 5 
 
 p-» 
 
 ! 
 
 
 » - 
 
 c 
 
 uo 
 
 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 1 5* 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 B8 
 
 
 1 
 
 '^>-/^-^^ 
 
 ,-*-/^*-s 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 )^ 
 
 »• -i 
 
 
 •-< •-►cro 
 
 i" B- ~^ 
 
 sa, se, 
 
 wassa, 
 
 wasch 
 
 tessa, 
 
 tscbi, 
 
 UP 
 
 •§ 
 ? 
 
 o 
 
 s 
 
 f 
 
 
 IB 5l 
 
 J6 8 
 
 ^ 2 
 
 
 o 
 s 
 
 
 p 
 
 i 
 
 P 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 fb 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 i i 
 
 n 
 
 «1 
 
 c 
 
 r 
 
 1 
 
 g o ^ 
 
 I"* 
 
 ■ • 1 
 
 f 1 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 
 B S 
 
 p: 
 
 D 
 ( J" 
 
 
 
 
 ?r W 
 
 
 
 rP 
 
 
 
 g f 
 
 • ^ 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 
 S3 
 
 I 
 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 ~ 
 
 
 
 S- 
 
 
 
 ! 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 en. 
 
 
 i°3 
 
 r 
 
 S 
 
 r 
 
 
 
 t 
 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 >> 
 
 >> 
 
 
 
 «• 
 
 s 
 
 ss 
 
 5 5. 
 
 
 
 
 V 
 
 :^s- 
 
 O J" 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 
 
 r*>-r 
 
 BT 
 
 Co 
 
 
 
 
 ^-^ 
 
 
 nS 
 
 
 
 
 j 
 
 
 1 
 
 J?" 
 
 
 H 
 
 X 
 
 -i 
 
 \s'4 
 
 ' ^. 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 :i 
 
 X X 
 
 X X 
 
 
 
 or 
 
 c a- 
 
 nci 
 
 t— N 
 
 
 3- 
 
 oP 
 ►1 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 p 
 
 'r::^ 
 
 1 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 u 
 
 ^ If 
 
 -4.1 
 
 « 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 §.25^ 
 
 '^ d' 
 
 S o-i 
 
 
 e S 
 
 r/i 
 
 i 
 
 ! I 
 
 lO 
 
Ife.: 
 
 J?>"liFT"\. ■■ -Ift^, 
 
 
 1 ! 
 
 i'i 
 
 I 
 
 74 
 
 3(] 
 
 peri. 
 
 2d p. 
 
 1st per. 
 
 a 3> -" 
 
 
 
 HH 
 
 H*^ 
 
 
 gs 
 
 o o 
 
 
 
 
 3:* 
 
 w " 
 
 
 
 v.*^ 
 
 > ?i 
 
 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 B- 
 
 B" 
 
 B_ 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 O 
 
 r 
 
 ^' 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 fli 
 
 r 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 t? 
 
 1 
 
 s- 
 
 1 
 
 o 
 
 B 
 
 ^ ^ ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 
 
 ; gunti, 
 1 t'gunti, 
 
 cr ~ ~ tt ss ~ 
 = 2.&-B-3 j: 
 
 S?." 3 B 6" 
 
 - r» 5. g B-BS 
 
 &■"■» B cr. 
 
 
 -" l^e B 
 
 ! 
 
 
 P) - B - 
 
 « 
 
 ; Jr B 
 
 n 
 
 CL 
 
 
 s- g 
 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 eg 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 
 
 P" 
 
 a. 
 
 •s 
 
 1 ^ 
 S* 5 
 
 •;§ 
 
 C. 
 
 B 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 J? 
 
 B 
 
 C^ 
 
 &. 
 
 w 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 .? 
 
 1 
 
 "? 
 j) 
 
 
 ' 
 
 cf. "• 
 
 
 
 ft" 
 
 
 
 B 
 
 Et 
 
 »r 
 
 
 
 
 i" 
 
 S 
 
 Si 
 G 
 
 s? 
 
 
 
 r 
 
 
 a 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 J 
 
 
 , 
 
 s 
 
 p: 
 
 1. 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 a 
 
 S* 
 
 
 » 
 
 P 
 
 to 
 
 " 
 
 
 1 
 
 .« 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 ^,:, 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 
 
 i '," 
 
 
 
 ? 
 
 
 crtr " 
 
 B-B" 
 
 E. E. 
 
 a V » 
 
 
 
 (t A 
 
 rt> n 
 
 SS 
 
 p B 3 
 
 
 
 S-" 
 
 B 3 
 
 
 n » B 
 
 B-O - 
 
 
 
 1-5 
 
 B" 
 
 B 3- 
 B B 
 >• S 
 
 Co 
 
 
 
 
 ** 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 >i^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 3-- 
 
 'ia 
 
 -s-g 
 
 rf 3-. 
 
 "f U C# 
 
 
 & 
 ? 
 
 3 :4 
 
 u u 
 
 X X 
 
 S X X 
 
 
 p 
 
 p- 
 
 cr 
 
 n o 
 
 B 
 
 
 » 
 
 n 
 
 B-B* 
 
 B 
 
 
 
 B 
 
 B 
 
 n » 
 
 »• 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 «• 
 
 = B 
 
 
 g 
 
 
 
 
 2? 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 
 V.o' 
 
 
 §- 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 g 
 
 -s,0 
 
 u u 
 
 rf 
 
 ft 
 
 
 
 u. 
 
 Mv 
 Th- 
 His 
 He 
 Oui 
 
 Yoi 
 The 
 
 Ii 
 In 
 A 
 
 Chii 
 Che 
 
 • 
 vsec 
 
76 
 
 U. Example of a Noun in the Lenapi, or Delcaoare, with tin Imeparablt Pro- 
 nouns, from Heckewelder'i Correspondence, Let. XXI. (Transac. ut sup. p. 
 426.) compared with the Hebrew. 
 
 1 
 
 Father. Delaware, Oocii.* Hebrew, Ab, sk- 
 
 1 
 
 o 
 a 
 a. 
 
 <^ 
 o 
 
 S. 
 » 
 
 f 
 
 es 
 
 > 
 
 5r 
 
 I. 
 
 My Father, 
 Thy Father, 
 His Father, 
 Her Father, 
 Our Father, 
 
 Nooch, 
 
 Kooch, 
 
 Oochwali, 
 
 Oochwall, 
 
 Nochena, 
 
 Abi, *3K 
 Abicha, (m.) Abich, (f.) ^»aR 
 Abiv, or Abihu, irrSH VSK 
 Abiha, rrSK 
 Abinu, na'SK 
 
 Your Father, 
 
 Kochuwa, 
 
 Abichem, (m.) Abichen, (f.) | jj* ^^l^ 
 
 Their Father, 
 
 Ochuwawall, 
 
 Abihem,(m.)Abihen,(f.) I^^^^J^IJ 
 
 In Delaware, the pronoun is sometimes prefixed and sometimes suffixed. 
 In Hebrew, it is uniformly suffixed. 
 
 According to Adair, my father is, in Chickasaw Mgge, in Cherokee Ake- 
 tohta ; your father, Chickasaw Chinge, Cherokee Chatokta. My mother, 
 Chickasaw Saske, Cherokee Akachee ; your mother, Chickasaw, Chishke, 
 Cherokee Chacheeah. 
 
 \ 
 
 \\\ 
 
 6 
 
 * Ooch is the abstract word. " Wetoochwink," the father, m commonJy 
 vsed, because there are few occasions of using this word in the abstract sense. 
 
 
 f , 
 
II :! 
 
 >i! 
 
 */6 
 
 Ilf. Example of the Verb To Lovk, in the Lenap6 or Delaware, and Iroquoh, 
 compared with the Hebrew. 
 
 ■i ii 
 
 f 'I 
 
 Under the general name of Iroquois, I have given the Onondago verb 
 from Zeisbcrgc, and the Mohawk, which I wrotf. down in Albany, in the 
 year 1817, Irom the mouth of Mr. Eleazar Williams, a son of one of th« 
 chiefs of the Oneida nation, who is now a candidate for Holy Orders, and a 
 lay reader and catechist among the Oneidas. Mr. Williams has received a 
 very good education; is acquainted with Greek and Latin; and speaks 
 French fluently. He assured me, that the Mohawk was the pure, or nriother 
 tongue, which was understood by all the live nations ; but that each had a 
 dialect of its own. An evidence of the correctness of this statement, was 
 afforded me by an interview which I had with several chiefs of the Onon- 
 dago tribe, who were at Albany transacting some business with the governor. 
 On that occasion I read the general confession in our liturgy ; after which 
 Mr. Williams translated it for fhem, and then proceeded to read in the Mo- 
 hawk, the prayer for all conditions of men. In looking over it, as he read, 
 I perceived that the vowels had the full Italian sounds, excepting a, pro- 
 nounced like aio ; that the nasal sounds an, o>i, he. were exactly like the 
 French ; and that the guttural sounds were like those of the Oriental lan- 
 guages. I observed, likewise, that the accent was chiefly on the ultimate 
 and penultimate. I ventured, therefore, to read a portion of the prayers 
 and hymns, and succeeded so well that they understood me, and expressed 
 their surprise and pleasure. This is a proof, not only of the ease with which 
 a correct pronunciation might be acquired, but also of the fact, that the 
 Onondagoes understand the Mohawk, though they have a dialect which dif- 
 fers from it considerably) as will appear from the verb here exhibited from 
 Zeisberger. 
 
77 
 
 •tf and Iroquois, 
 
 Onondagn verb 
 
 Albany, in the 
 I of one of tha 
 y Orders, and a 
 
 has received a 
 in; and speaks 
 pure, or niother 
 hat each had a 
 
 statement, was 
 ifs of the Onon- 
 th the governor. 
 ;y ; after which 
 read in the Mo- 
 er it, as he read, 
 Lcepting a, pro* 
 xactly like the 
 e Oriental Ian- 
 on the ultimate 
 
 of the prayers 
 and expressed 
 
 ase with which 
 fact, that the 
 ect which dif- 
 
 exhibited from 
 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 <T) mm 
 
 Ka ■■ 
 
 « =s » 
 
 CD ** U) 
 
 O 
 
 < < 
 
 o'd 
 
 ^ S ** ^^ a£ 
 
 tnaq 
 
 
 «7g 
 
 (3 
 
 a. -• — • -1 
 
 (t> S 3 'S 
 
 ^^ '«^ 
 
 ■< c ? ? 
 
78 
 
 'i 
 
 . ' J 
 
 !|l 
 
 '! ii 
 
 \^ 
 
 I DID 
 
 Thou 
 
 
 i ° 
 
 3? 
 
 
 C^ 
 
 
 ,0^ 
 
 B 
 
 
 § ^ 3 § 5 § 
 
 
 I 
 4 
 i 
 
79 
 
 e 
 a 
 
 r 
 
 o 
 
 n 
 
 D 
 
 D 
 
 « 
 
 fi 
 
 eg 
 
 » n 
 
 B - 
 
 0) 
 
 B" 
 O 
 
 £- 
 re" 
 
 > 
 
 B- 
 
 I 
 
 - m gg a> CO 
 B" !« <W a* 
 C *. O O 
 
 s 
 o 
 5- 
 
 I 
 
 9* 
 
 n 
 
 H 
 
 rn 
 
 2 
 
 2 
 S 
 
 B 
 
 B* 
 
 rft 
 
 B 
 
 s 
 ft 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 u 
 
 X 
 
 -•"2' 
 
 B 
 
 5* 
 
 K 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 B- 
 
 <* 
 
 «3 
 
 a 
 
 « 
 
 «*. 
 
 B 
 
 u 
 
 ^ 
 
 B- 
 
 •? 
 
 B 
 
 » 
 
 O 
 
 O 
 
 Oq 
 
 P 
 
 ^ 
 
 "• 
 
 C 
 
 r* 
 
 o 
 
 5 
 
 
 B 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 O 
 
 a 
 
 <3 
 
 o 
 
 1-^ tn 
 (» B 
 
 M 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 o w « 
 
 r 
 
 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 -« 
 
 ■O -1 H 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 f 
 
 3 
 
 M 
 
 w B K 
 
 '?;3 
 
 n 
 
 H 
 
 a 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 i^S* 
 
 o 
 1 
 
 
 
 1^ 
 
 
 
 .l^«^?l 
 
 
 
 s y " yo ST e 
 
 
 
 B B B ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 S-.- S^ '"W 
 
 
 
 S B O BBS B 
 
 Job- o ^ H ■ ai 
 
 2 3 S ' B S (V ■ <* 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 »>^ 
 
 • 8^ • ^ 
 
 
 .55 .5 
 
 
 s 
 o 
 
 or6c 
 ano 
 
 
 Ul 
 
 : ^ :s 
 
 1 
 
 
 •J ■ g 
 
 1 
 
 
 . "c 
 
 a 
 
 
 • " 
 
 ■? 
 
 
 • & ■ ^ 
 
 
 
 • e • o 
 
 
 
 ■ E- • e. 
 
 
 
 
 
 B 
 
 t^^v^ M PI'^s/^' W M 
 
 
 
 „ B-B- n B-B- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 din 
 indi 
 
 futu 
 
 
 3 
 
 3 s a 
 
 
 ►.. c » 
 
 
 
 B 5 O- 
 
 
 
 & « b- 
 
 
 
 2 *< 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 K f. 
 
 X X 
 
 
 
 IK' 
 
 so 
 PI 
 u> 
 
 n 
 
 ll!^ 
 
'l 
 
 Mill 
 
 i-l 
 
 i I; 
 
 i ■ 
 
 ; I, 
 
 liii 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 ! 
 
 lilt 'I.. 
 
 :| 
 
 •m!! 
 
 80 
 
 CONJUNCTIVE M001». 
 
 rilESENT. 
 
 When or it I l(>v(>, 
 
 tlioii lovcst, 
 
 lu' loves, 
 
 wt; love, 
 
 ye love, 
 
 tliey love, 
 
 Iruqnoh. 
 
 Zei.sbcrger Siiys, 
 in iiis Uiiondugo 
 GiHrninar, " Tlie 
 conjunctive or op- 
 tutive is not in tiie 
 
 aiij^nHge,ijnt is ex- 
 pressed liy the in- 
 
 lic.ative " 
 
 Lcnapi. 
 
 4l)Ociii)k, 
 
 AJioiiianne, 
 
 Klioalat, 
 
 AhoHlenk, 
 
 Aii()i;le(jne, 
 
 Ahouiuciitit. 
 
 Hthrii 
 
 There is no 
 conj. or opt 
 inooil in Heh. 
 the idea ,-f de- 
 sire or contin- 
 gency being 
 expressed by 
 Mie fiit.ind. 
 
 I'RETKIUTK. 
 
 When or if 1 loved, 
 
 tlion didst 1. 
 
 he loved, 
 
 we loved, 
 
 ye loved, 
 
 thev loved. 
 
 A\'anting in Iro- 
 (juois. 
 
 Ahoalaclikup, 
 
 AhoaJHiMiiip, 
 
 F^lioalachtii|), 
 
 Alioalenkiip, 
 
 Ahoaleknp, 
 
 Ahoalachtitnp, 
 
 Nothine; cor- 
 respondent in 
 Hebrew. 
 
 ri-UPERIKCT. 
 
 When or il' I had loved, 
 
 thou hadst I'd 
 
 he had loved, 
 
 we had I'd, 
 
 ye had loved, 
 
 they had I'd, 
 
 Ahoulakpanne, 
 
 Ahoalanpanne, 
 
 Klu)alal[)anne, 
 
 Ahoalenkpanne, 
 
 Ahoalekpanne, 
 
 Alioalachtitpanne, 
 
 Nothing cor- 
 respondent in 
 Hebrew. 
 
 FL'TUllE. 
 
 When or if I shall love 
 
 thoushalt !. 
 
 he shall lov 
 
 we shall love. 
 
 ye shall love 
 
 they shall 1. 
 
 Wanting in Iro- 
 piois. 
 
 Ahoalaktsch, 
 
 Alioalantsch, 
 
 Khoalatsch, 
 
 Ahoalawonksch, 
 
 Ahoalawekscli, 
 
 Alioalaktiksch, 
 
 Nothinc; cor- 
 respondent in 
 Hebre*;. 
 
 INFINITIVE MOOD. 
 
 To love, 
 
 To have loved, 
 
 To be about to love, 
 
 Yonor6chqua, 
 
 YonorochfjUiisqua 
 
 I'lN'yonorocluina, 
 
 Ahoalan, 
 
 EhOb, airtx 
 
 The participles are not given by Zeisberger, either of the Onondago, or 
 Lcnni Lenape. 
 
 It must be observed, that my object being merely to show the difference 
 between the Indian languages and the Hebrew, I have not attempted to ex- 
 liibil a full view of the exuberant richness of their grammatical construction. 
 The Delaware verb, Ahoalan, to loir, pursued through all its forms, occupies 
 alone fourteen folio pages in Ziisberger's Grammar. , 
 
 1 proceed to give, merely as a specinien, a comparative view of the man- 
 ner in which the objective personiil pronoun^ are united to the active verb.'. 
 
 Ilov 
 liov 
 
 Iha^ 
 
 Ihav 
 
 Thou 
 
 Thou 
 
 I 
 
 Thou 
 
 ■-*fiL. 
 
Hebrn . 
 
 There is no 
 coiij. or opt. 
 mood in Meb. 
 tiie idi-a rf de- 
 sire or contin- 
 gency l)einf!; 
 ixpressed by 
 fhe Int. infl. 
 
 Notliing cor- 
 rei^pondent in 
 Hebrew. 
 
 Nothing cor- 
 respondent in 
 Hebrew. 
 
 Nothine; cor- 
 respondent in 
 Hebrevy. 
 
 Eliob, airrx 
 
 Onondago, or 
 
 the difference 
 tempted to ex- 
 i\ construction, 
 brms, occupies 
 
 Rwof the ninn- 
 ic active verb.'. 
 
 81 
 
 EXAMPLE OF THE PERSONAL FORMS IN DELAWARE AND 
 
 HEBREW. 
 
 FIRST PERSONAL FORM, I- 
 
 Delaware, ^tresent. 
 
 Singular. 
 
 Hove thee, 
 
 I love him. or her, 
 
 K'dahoatelt 
 N'dahoala 
 
 Plural. 
 
 I love you, 
 I love them, 
 
 K'dahoalohhnmo 
 N'dahoalawak 
 
 Hebrew, pralerite. 
 
 1 have loved thee, (m.) Ababticba, 
 
 TnanN 
 (f.) Ahabtich, 
 
 I have loved him, Ahabtihu, 
 
 — — — her, Ahabtiha, rfna.nK 
 
 I have loved you, (m.) Ahabtich^m, 
 
 '■ . - (f.) Ababtichen, 
 
 I have loved them, (m.) Ahabtihem, 
 
 DrfnanK 
 
 (f.) Ahabtih^n, 
 
 ^.T'narrx 
 
 SECOND PERSONAL FORM, THOU. 
 Delaware, present. 
 
 Thou lovest me, K'dahoall 
 him or her, K'dahoala 
 
 Thou lovest us, 
 them. 
 
 K'dahoalineen 
 K'dahoalawak 
 
 Hebrew, praierite, (masc.) 
 
 Ihou (m.) hast loved me, Ahabtani, 
 
 I him, Ahabtdhu, 
 
 innanK 
 ■ her, Ahabt-hiih, 
 nnanN 
 
 Thou hast loved us, Ahabtanu, 
 
 isnarTM 
 
 them, (m.) Ahabt^m, 
 
 onarr« 
 
 (f.) Ahabtdn, [nanK 
 
 (feminine.) 
 
 Thou (f.) hast loved me, Ababtini, 
 
 •a-nartN 
 ... him, "j 
 
 Ahabtihu, I as in first 
 her, j person. 
 
 Aliabtiha, J 
 
 Thou (f.) hast loved us, Ahabtinu, 
 
 is-nanK 
 them, (m.) Ahubtim, 
 
 D-narrs 
 
 (f.) Ahahtin, 
 
 ^Tia.TH 
 
 m 
 
 \\ 
 
 i\ 
 
 1 \ 
 
\ii 
 
 v.i 
 
 
 t «ri 
 
 
 1 . i:: 
 
 :iifir J'; 
 
 
 82 
 
 THIRD PERSONAL FORM, HB OR SHE. 
 
 Delaware, present. 
 
 Singular. 
 
 He or she loves me, N'dahoaluk 
 
 thee, K'dahoaluk 
 
 him, W'dahoalawall 
 
 Plural. 
 
 He or she loves us, W'duhoalguna 
 
 you, Wdahoalguwa 
 
 them, W'dahoalawak 
 
 Hebrew, prmterite, (masc.) 
 
 He has loved me, Ahahani, »DiilN 
 thee,(m.) Ahabcha, lanK 
 
 (f.) Ahab6ch, ^a^TK 
 
 • him, Ahabdhu, inartK 
 . her, Ahab-h,ih, narrK 
 
 He has loved us, Ahabinu, naarrx 
 
 you, (mv Ahabchem, 
 
 Dsanx 
 ■ ■ (f.) Ahabcheii, 
 
 parTM 
 — — — — them, (m.) Ahabiau, 
 
 (f.) Ahabdn, \zrtH 
 
 (feminine.) 
 
 She has loved me, Ahabathni, »:nirrN 
 -. thee, (ra.) Ahabathcha, 
 
 ■^inarrK 
 ■ (f.) Ahabathecli, 
 
 inarTN 
 him, Ahabath-hu,irrnarT»< 
 
 -- her, Ahabdth-hah,iinanM 
 
 She has loved us, Ahabiithnii, ■^jnaPTit 
 
 you, (m.) Ahabathcliem, 
 
 oananK 
 ' (f.) Ahabathchen, 
 
 ^Dnarrx 
 —————them, (m.) Ahabathsim, 
 
 onarrK 
 
 (f.) Ahabathttn, 
 
 ^nariK 
 
 IV. As a specimen of the Grammatical forms of the Floridian Languages, 
 I subjoin the " Conjugation of a verb in the Cherokee language, by the Rev. 
 Daniel S. Butrick," communicated by him to the American Philosophical 
 Society. I copy it with the division of syllables, accents, inc. from the ori- 
 ginal paper. 
 
 ACTIVE VOICE— INDICATIVE MOOD. 
 
 PIIE3E\T TENSE. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 1. tse ne yT. I take, or 
 
 am taking, {a per- 
 son,) 
 
 2. he ne yh Thon ta- 
 
 kest, ' 
 
 3. Ca ne yT. He or she 
 
 takes, 
 
 J5?«o^ 
 
 a ne ne yT. We two 
 
 take, {speakhig to 
 
 each other,) 
 a ste ne yif. We two 
 
 take, (speaking to a 
 
 third person,) 
 a ste ne yf. You two 
 
 take. 
 
 Plural. 
 
 1. a te ne yl. We (all) 
 take, (peaking to 
 one of the compani/,) 
 
 1. a tse ne yt. We (;i!l) 
 
 take, (speaking to 
 one not of the earn- 
 pany,) 
 
 2. a tse ne yr. You (all) 
 
 take, 
 
 3. line neyit. They take. 
 
 
tl. 
 
 W'dahoalguua 
 W'dahoalguwa 
 W'dalioalawak 
 
 abinu, IDanX 
 .; Ahabchcrn, 
 
 Ahabchen, 
 
 fn.) Ahabuiu, 
 
 .) AhabAn, |3rTK 
 
 labcithnii, ijnarTK 
 1.) Ahabathclietn, 
 oananK 
 ) Ahabathchen, 
 
 m.) Ahabatlii^rii, 
 
 onariK 
 I Ahabathc<n, 
 
 ?^ 
 
 ian Languages, 
 age, by the Rev. 
 an Philosophical 
 &i.c. from the ori- 
 
 Plural. 
 
 neyl. We (all) 
 (speaking to 
 oft/iecompani/,) 
 ne yr. We (all) 
 !, {speaking to 
 not of lite com- 
 
 Vh) 
 ne yi. You (all) 
 
 neyr. They take. 
 
 83 
 
 IMPERFECT TENSE. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Flur. 
 
 I. 
 
 tse ne yu hu. I did 
 
 1. 
 
 a ne ne yu hu. 
 
 We 
 
 1. 
 
 a te ne yu hu. We. 
 (all) did take, 
 
 
 take. 
 
 
 (2) did take, 
 
 
 
 2. 
 
 be ne yu hu. Thou, 
 
 1. 
 
 a ste ne vu hu 
 
 We 
 
 1. 
 
 a tse ne yu hu. We 
 (all'l did take, 
 
 
 &1C. 
 
 
 (2) did take, 
 
 
 
 3. 
 
 6 lie yu hu. He, ^c. 
 
 2. 
 
 a ste ne yu hu. 
 (2) did take, 
 
 You 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 a tse ne yu hu. You 
 
 (all) did take, 
 6 ne .le yu hu. They 
 
 did take. 
 
 PERFECT TENSE. 
 
 1. 
 
 tse ne ye scO. 1 have 
 taken, or been tii- 
 
 1. 
 
 a ne ne ye scu. 
 (2) k.c. 
 
 We, 
 
 1. 
 
 a te ne ye scfl. We, 
 (all) kc. 
 
 
 king. 
 
 1. 
 
 k ste ue ye scu. 
 
 We, 
 
 1. 
 
 ft tse ne ye scu. We, 
 
 2. 
 
 he ne ye scfl. Thou, 
 
 
 (2) i^c. 
 
 
 
 (all) &ic. 
 
 
 fee. 
 
 2. 
 
 a ste ne ye scii. 
 
 You, 
 
 2. 
 
 a tse ne ye scu. You, 
 
 3, 
 
 eft ne ye scu. He, 
 he. 
 
 
 (2) kc. 
 
 
 3. 
 
 (all) he. 
 u ne ne ye scu. They, 
 &c. 
 
 FIRST FUTURE TENSE. 
 
 1. 
 
 to tse ne yu. I shall 
 take, 
 
 1. 
 
 ti a ne ne yu. 
 two, kc. 
 
 We 
 
 1. 
 
 ti a te ne yu. We, 
 rail) fcc. 
 
 2. 
 
 te ne yu. Thou, &c. 
 
 1. 
 
 ti a ste ne yfl. 
 
 We 
 
 1. 
 
 ti a tse ne yu. We, 
 
 3. 
 
 til cu ne ;;u. He, Uk. 
 
 
 two, &iC. 
 
 
 
 (all) &.C. 
 
 
 
 2. 
 
 ti a ste ne yu. 
 two, k.c. 
 
 You 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 ti a tse ne yu. You, 
 
 (all) &ic. 
 ta ne ne yu. They, 
 
 &c. 
 
 SECOND FUTURE TENSE. 
 
 1 
 
 2. 
 
 tse ne ye sea sti. I 
 shall b« taking. 
 
 he ne ye sea stI. 
 Thou, Jsic. 
 
 1. 
 1. 
 
 a ne ne ye sea stI. 
 
 We two, &c. 
 ft ste ne ye sea stt. 
 
 We two, &c. 
 
 1. 
 1. 
 
 a te ne ye sea sir. 
 
 We, (all) &,c. 
 ft tse ne ye sea stI. 
 
 We all, he. 
 
 3. 
 
 cu ne ye sea sM. He, 
 &c. 
 
 2. 
 
 a sle ne ye sea sti. 
 You two, &ic. 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 a tse ne ye sea str. 
 
 You all, he. 
 u ne ne ye soft sir. 
 
 They, &,c. 
 
 " The potential mode is generally formed from the indicative, by prefixing 
 ya ti ; and the subjunctive, by prefixing ys. What I here call the potential 
 mode, expresses power ; there is another mode, for which, as yet, I have no 
 name, to express Irbtriy : as / may," he. D. S. B. 
 
 
 ; << 
 
 
 ( i 
 
 H ■ ! 
 
 t i 
 
 1^ ; 
 
 ') 
 
n 
 
 ■! iii 
 
 r J;:i 
 
 I: 
 
 :;.i 
 
 ■■ ' i'l'' 
 
 
 ;i ;:; 
 
 i^ J' 
 
 ; t) 
 
 '4 
 
 84 
 
 IMfERATIVE MOOD. 
 
 i)ing. 
 
 
 Dual. 
 
 i 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. tse ne yii. Let me 
 
 1. 
 
 ii ne ne yu. Let us 
 
 1. 
 
 a te ne yil. Let us 
 
 take. 
 
 
 two, &,c. 
 
 
 all,&LC. 
 
 2. he ne yu. Do thou, 
 
 1. 
 
 d ste ne yO. Let us 
 
 1. 
 
 ft tsc ne ya. Let us 
 
 kc. 
 
 
 two, k>:. 
 
 
 all, fcc. 
 
 2. wl cu ne yu. Let 
 
 2. 
 
 a ste ne yu. .Do you 
 
 2. 
 
 a tse ne yQ. Do you 
 
 him, &.C. 
 
 
 two, JiiC. 
 
 3. 
 
 all, k.c. 
 wu ne ne yQ. Let 
 them, &1C. 
 
 INFINITIVE MOOD. 
 
 1. 
 
 tse ne yu tl. To take. 
 
 1 . a ne ne yfi tT, 
 
 1. 
 
 a te ne yQ tl. 
 
 2. 
 
 he ne yu tf. 
 
 1. A ste ne yu tl, 
 
 1. 
 
 ft tse lie yu ti', 
 
 3. 
 
 6 ne yu tf. 
 
 2. a ste ne yO tl, 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 a tse ne yi'i tl, 
 A ne ne vft tf. 
 
 PASSIVE VOICE— IJNDICATIVE MOOD. 
 
 PRESENT TENSE. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 uns ke ne yi«. I am 
 
 taken, 
 a tsu ne yu. Thou, 
 
 &LC. 
 
 k tse ne yii. He, kc. 
 
 1. 
 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 
 ta kin c ne yu. 
 
 two, kc. 
 ta kTn c ne yu. 
 
 two, &c. 
 ta ste ne yii. 
 
 two, kc. 
 
 We 
 We 
 
 You 
 
 1. ta ke ne yu. We, (all) 
 
 kc. 
 l.tAkencyii. We, (all) 
 kc. 
 
 2. tatseneyu.You,(all) 
 
 3. ta ca tie ne yu. They, 
 
 kc. 
 
 IMPERFiOCT. 
 
 r 
 
 ungkeneyii hii. I was. 
 
 1. 
 
 ta km e ne yu hfl, 
 
 1. 
 
 tfi ke ne yii hii, 
 
 
 kc. 
 
 1. 
 
 til kin e ne yu hu, 
 
 1. 
 
 t& ke ne yii hu, 
 
 2. 
 
 a tsu ne yu hu. Thou, 
 
 2 
 
 ta ste ne yH hii, 
 
 2. 
 
 til tse ne yii hii, 
 
 
 kc. 
 
 
 
 3. 
 
 ta ca tse ne yu hii. 
 
 3 
 
 h tse ne yu hi1, He, 
 kc. 
 
 
 
 
 
 PERFECT. 
 
 ]. 
 
 ling ke ne ye scii. 1 
 
 1. 
 
 ta kill e lie ye scii. 
 
 1. 
 
 ta ke ne ye scii. 
 
 
 have been taken. 
 
 1. 
 
 ta kin e ne ye scii, 
 
 1. 
 
 t(l ke ne ye scii, 
 
 o 
 
 a t?M ne ye scii. Thou, 
 
 2. 
 
 ta ste ne ye scii, 
 
 2. 
 
 til tsc ne ye scii, 
 
 
 '2^ J, 
 
 
 
 3. 
 
 ta ca tse ne ye scQ. 
 
 3. 
 
 a tsH ne ye scii. He, 
 kc. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
85 
 
 FUTURE. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 ie yd. Let us 
 
 ne yti. L<;t us 
 
 ic. 
 
 ic yii. Do you 
 
 liC. 
 
 ; ne yd. Let 
 
 1, &1C. 
 
 S/ng. 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 fi yuns ke ne yfl. t 
 .shall i)o tiikcii, 
 
 tiy.i tsu neyii. Tlioii, 
 &c. 
 
 ti yfl tse ne yn. He, 
 i:c. 
 
 1. tiya kTu e ne yfl, 
 
 1. ti vA kJn e ne yu, 
 
 2. ti ya ste ne yu, 
 
 1. 
 1. 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 ti yii ke ne yfl, 
 ti yii ke ne yu, 
 t) yfl tse ne yfl, 
 tu ca tse ne yfl. 
 
 N. B. The potential and subjunctive moods are formed in the same man- 
 ner as in the active voice. 
 
 B yu tT, 
 le yfl ti, 
 ui yfl tr, 
 le vfl tr. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 lie yu. We, (all) 
 10 yfl. We, (all) 
 icyu.You,(all) 
 >ene yfl. They, 
 
 ne yfl hfl, 
 lU! yfl hu, 
 no yu hu, 
 se ne yfl hii. 
 
 IMPERATIVE MOOD. 
 
 1. 
 
 wflng ke ne yfl. 
 
 Let 
 
 1. 
 
 ta krn e ne yfl, 
 
 1. 
 
 ta ke ne yfl. 
 
 
 nic be taken. 
 
 
 1. 
 
 tA kin e ne yfl, 
 
 1. 
 
 tA ke ne yfl. 
 
 t> 
 
 vva tsfl ne yu. 
 thou be, kc. 
 
 Do 
 
 2. 
 
 ta ste ne yfl, 
 
 o 
 
 3! 
 
 til tse ne yfl, 
 
 wl tT ca tse ne yii. 
 
 'i. 
 
 wii tse ne yfl. 
 him, iic. 
 
 Let 
 
 
 
 
 
 Note. Some words in this mood are distinguished from the present passive 
 only by the accent, which is not here marked. 
 
 INFIMTIVE MOOD. 
 
 1. 
 
 flng ke ne yu tr. 
 
 To 
 
 1. 
 
 (u km e ne yfl ti. 
 
 1. 
 
 Xii ke ne yu ti, 
 
 
 
 be taken. 
 
 
 1. 
 
 ta kin e ne yfl tf. 
 
 I. 
 
 ta ke ne yfl tl. 
 
 
 2. 
 
 a tsfl ne yu tl, 
 
 
 2. 
 
 tii ste ne yu ti, 
 
 2. 
 
 ti'i tse ne yfl tl, 
 
 
 3. 
 
 i\ Lse ne yu tf, 
 
 
 
 
 3. 
 
 tl ca tse ne yfl tt. 
 
 
 MIDDLE VOICE— INDICATIVE MOOD. 
 
 PRESENT TENSE. 
 
 le ye scu, 
 le ye scu, 
 ne ye scfl, 
 se ne ye scd. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. cfl td ne yl. 1 am ta- 
 
 king, (myself.) 
 
 2. hfl ta ne yl. Thou, 
 
 kc. 
 
 3. h \k ne yl. He, 8ic. 
 
 1 tii nfl ta ne yl, 
 
 1. ta stfl ta ne yl, 
 
 2. ta stu til ne yl, 
 
 1. tfi tfltfi neyr, 
 
 1. ta tsfl til neyf,j 
 
 2. ta tsfl ta ne yi^" 
 
 3. ik nu ta ne yl. 
 
 : i 
 
8G 
 
 IMPERFECT. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. k qu ti\ ne yd hu I 
 
 did take, (myself,) 
 
 2. tsii til ne yii hu. Thou, 
 
 3. 6 tk ne ytt hii. He, &lc. 
 
 1. 
 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 
 kin ii ta ne yti htt, 
 6 kin u til ne yu hCi, 
 t' stii tu ne yu hii, 
 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 e cii ta ne yii hii, 
 6 cu lu ne yu hfi, 
 (: tsfi ta ne yu hu, 
 to nii ta ne yu hu. 
 
 PERFECT. 
 
 ■':« 
 
 1. cu til ne ye scii. I 
 
 1. 
 
 ta nu \h ne ye scu. 
 
 1. 
 
 tii tu til ne ye scii, 
 
 have taker!, or been 
 
 1. 
 
 ta stu til ne ye scii, 
 
 1. 
 
 Ih Isu til ne ye scil, 
 
 taking, (niyselt.) 
 
 2. 
 
 ta stti td ne ye scu, 
 
 2. 
 
 ta tsu td no ye scu, 
 
 2. hu tk ne ye scft. Thou, 
 
 
 
 3. 
 
 til nil ta ne ye scu. 
 
 iic. 
 
 
 
 
 
 3. k ta ne ye scii. He, 
 
 
 
 
 
 &tc. 
 
 
 
 
 
 FIRST FUTURE 
 
 1. tacii tiine yii. 1 shall 
 
 1, 
 
 tA t;i nii ti\ nu yu. 
 
 1. til til til til ne yii. 
 
 take, (myself,) 
 
 1. 
 
 ti ti k stu til ne yu, 
 
 1 tk ti a tsu ti\ ne yu, 
 
 2. tii ta ne yti. Thou, 
 
 2. 
 
 ik ta stu til ne yu, 
 
 2. ta tk tsii ta ne yu, 
 
 &iC. 
 
 
 
 3. ta tii nfl tk ne yii. 
 
 3. tu n tJi ne yu. He, ^^'C. 
 
 
 
 
 SECOND FUTURE. 
 
 1. cu tk ne ye scii stl. 1 
 
 shall be tikiiig, 
 (myself,) ' 
 
 2. hu ta ne ye sea sti. 
 
 Thou, Lc. 
 
 3. a tk ne ye sea stl. 
 
 He, &1C. 
 
 1. ta nil ta ne ye scfl stl, 
 1 . td stu tk ne ye sea stT, 
 •2. ta stu Id ne ye sea sli, 
 
 1 . ti\ tu tk ne ye sea sti', 
 
 1 . td tsu tk ne ye sea stl, 
 
 2. til tsu tk ne ye sea sti, 
 
 3. tk Dii tk ne ye sc ,. stl. 
 
 The potential and suljunctive moods foimed in some respects as in the 
 Active Voice. 
 
 IMPERATIVE MOOD. 
 
 1. cfi tk ne ytt. l..-;l rue 
 
 I. *:'i iij tkne yti. 
 
 1. 
 
 til til tk ne yti, 
 
 take, (myself,} 
 
 I. til irtutk ne yu, 
 
 1. 
 
 til tsu ta ne yu, 
 
 2. ha tk ne yft. Do thou, 
 
 2. Vi stii tk no yuf 
 
 2. 
 
 ta tsii tk ne yti. 
 
 &iC. 
 
 
 3. 
 
 wl tu nii tk ne yCi. 
 
 3. wu tk ne yti. Let him, 
 
 
 
 
 k.c. 
 
 
 
 
Plur. 
 
 e cii ta ne yCi hft, 
 6 cu la ne yu hfi, 
 e tsfl td ne yu hfl, 
 to nCi ti ne yu hu. 
 
 tit tu ta ne ye scii, 
 til tsu ta no ye scii, 
 ta tsii Id no ye scii, 
 til nu til ne ye scCi. 
 
 ta tdtiita ue yii, 
 t& ti a tsu til ne yu, 
 ta til tsu ta ne yu, 
 ta ta nft ih. ne yu. 
 
 til tu til ne ye scii sti', 
 til tsu til ne ye sea stit, 
 til tsu til ne ye sea stI, 
 tkvu ikae yescsU. 
 
 pme respects as in the 
 
 Itii tii ti\ ne yu, 
 Itii tsii til ne yu, 
 Ita tsu til ne yu, 
 
 Iwl tu nil til ne yu. 
 
 «7 
 
 INFINITIVE MOOn. 
 
 Sing. 
 
 Dual. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 1. Ji qu ti\ lie yil tr. To 
 
 take, (myself,) 
 
 2. ts'"i td ne yii tf, 
 
 3. 6 til ne yu tr. 
 
 1. ti'i krn n til ne yil t(, 
 
 1. tfi klnuti\ lie yii tl, 
 
 2. til stci til ne yii tl. 
 
 1. tii cu til ne yu tl, 
 
 1. tii CM la lie yu tr, 
 
 2. ta Uii til ne yu tr, 
 
 3. tsii nu til ne yu tl. 
 
 « REMARKS. 
 
 " 1. When two are talking together, and one speaks to liis ccmpanioM, he 
 says, d nt nf yi, Wc {two) are taking ; but if he speaks to any o^her person 
 or persons than his companion, he says, d sle ne y1, We {two) are taking. 
 
 " 2. When three or more people are talking together, and one speaks to 
 the company, he says, a te n^ yi. We {all) are taking ; hut if he speak to any 
 person or persons, not Included in the expression — not belonging to the 
 company, he says, d tse ne yl, We (all) are taking. So through all the 
 voices, modes, and tenses. 
 
 " 3. The infinitive mode is vnried by persons. Thus, I want to take, it quA 
 td ll, tsS nf yil tl : I want yon to take, speaking to one person, I say, a qud 16 
 tl, he ne yu tl : I want him to take, a. qud td li, 6 ne yii ti, k.c. &.c. &ic. 
 
 " 4. I have passed over the potential and subjunctive modes, becausft 
 there are various ways of forming them, and I am not confident which is 
 best. I have omitted the participles, because I am not sufticiently acquaint- 
 ed with them." 
 
 It will immediately be seen, that a language so remarkably rich in gram- 
 matical formi. as to surpass even the Greek, differs tola rvlo from the He- 
 brew, one of the simplest of all languages. For the sake of those, however, 
 who are unaeijuaiuted with the latter, I subjoin the preterite of the verb to 
 TAKE, Lakiich npb 
 
 Sing. 
 
 Plur. 
 
 He took, Lnkaihh npVl'I'hcy (in. ii f.) took, Aa-A-cc/fw inpb 
 
 She took, Ln-hirhhh rrnpb'Vo (in ) took, Le-knc/i-ldm 'snnp'i 
 
 Thou (in.) did-'t take, Ln-k.'rh-la nnpbj Ye (f ) took, Le-karli-len Jnnp'i 
 
 Thou (f.) didst take, Lti-kncht nnpbj\Ve(m fe f.) took, La-kach-nu iJnpS 
 I (in. k. f.) took, La-knch-ti "nnpbl 
 
 For the vocabulary froiin Zeisberger, the conjugation of the verbs in the 
 liCiuii Lenape, and Onondago, irom the same author, and the above exam- 
 ple of the Cherokee verb, I am indebted to the kindness of Peter S. Dupon- 
 oeau. Ksq. corre'spondinir si-cretary of the fli'-torical and J,iterary Commit 
 
 1 
 
88 
 
 tee ol the American IMiilosophical Society. As dial gentleman is devoting 
 his leisure moments witjj {-rent tmlour to the study of Indiiti. languages, we 
 have reason to expect, that he will throw inucii light upun the philosophical 
 history of human speech ; a subject in uliich, to use tiie words of (hi Quar- 
 terly Reviewers, " the critical scholar, the niclapliysician, and ihe hi:3loi'ian, 
 are equally interested." 
 
 If 
 
 ;1 
 
 ' I lii 
 
 1 i( k Ai 
 
 t|! I' 
 
 NOTE E. 
 
 « In the Indian lanH;uaq;cH, says Mr. Heckfwelder, those discriminating 
 words or inHectioiis, which we call ^etulers, are not, as with us, in gencral| 
 intended to distinguish between mide and female beings, Imt between 
 animate and inanimate things or substances. Trees and plants (annual 
 plants and jTrasscscxccpltJ) are included within the generic class of animated 
 beings. Hence the personal pronoun lias only two modes, if I can so ex- 
 press myself, one applicable to the nnimale, and the other to the inanimate 
 gender; ^ nekama' is the personal pronominal form which answers to ' he' 
 and ' she' in English. If you wish to distinguish between the sexes, you 
 must add to it the word ' man' or ' woman.' Thus, ' nekama lenno' 
 means ' he,' or ' Ikis man ;' ' nekama ocluiueu,' ' s/je,' or < this woman.' 
 
 " The males of quadrupeds are called ' loino wtchum,' and by contrac- 
 tion <■ lennoclium,' the females * ockque wcchuniy' and by contraction ' och' 
 quichum,' which is the same as saying he or she beasts. With the winged 
 tribe, their generic denomination ' we/ie//c' is added to the word which ex- 
 presses the sex, thus ' lennn wehtlh,' for the male, and * ochrpierhelle,' 
 (with a little contraction,) for the female. There are some animals, the 
 females of which have a particular distinguishing name, as <■ niinschetto,'' a 
 doe, *«Mn«/ieacifc' a she bear. This, however, is not common." Corres- 
 pondence respcc iiig the Indian languages. Let. vii. Transactions, ut supr. 
 pv 367-9. 
 
 ** The Indians distinguish the genders, animate and inanimate, even in 
 their verbs. Ao//j«//on and nolhalla, both mean ^ I posstss,' but the former 
 <;an be used only in speaking of the possession of things inanimate, and the 
 latter of living creatures. — In tlie verb, '/o.ste,' the same distinction is 
 made between things, animate and inanimate. JVcicau, ' I see,' applies 
 only to the former, and ' nemen,' to the latter. Thus the Pelawares say, 
 lenno SV.WA.V, ' f see a man;' tsc/wlcns newau, * 1 see a bird ;' achgook tiE- 
 HVAV,' I see as7iake ;' On the contrary, they say, wiqiiam nemen, ' I see a 
 house ;' amocliol nkmen, ^ I see a canoe,' Uc. Ibid. p. 438-9. 
 
 These expressions of Mr. Heckewelder are to be taken, however, with 
 due limitation. In their full extent, they apply only to the Lenape and their 
 kindred tribes. It is certain, from the specimens of the Mohawk and Ouon- 
 
iman is devoting 
 II. languages, \vc 
 lie; |iiiilosophical 
 tnls of tilt-. Qiiar- 
 iiid ihc liiijlorian, 
 
 e discriminnting 
 1 us, in general, 
 ;s, but between 
 I plants (annual 
 ;lass of animated 
 , if I can so ex- 
 .o the inanimate 
 1 answers to ' he' 
 n the sexes, you 
 ' jiekama leiino' 
 Is woman.' 
 and by contrac- 
 ontraction ' odi- 
 With the winged 
 word which ex- 
 d ' ochfjueclielle,' 
 ne animals, the 
 ' jwnschcHo,' a 
 mon." Corres- 
 iactions, ut supr. 
 
 niinate, even in 
 but thii former 
 nimate, and the 
 p distinction is 
 / sec,' applies 
 Delawares say, 
 •(/ ;' acligook ne- 
 NEMEN, ^ I see a 
 
 however, with 
 enapo and their 
 luwkandOnon- 
 
 89 
 
 dago in the preceding note, that there arc feminine verbs in the Iroquoi". 
 That tliu distinctions of gender exist also in tl:e nouns, is evident fruin the 
 following passage in Zcisbergcr's Ono.idago Grammar. " The gender of 
 nouns is twofold, niHscnlint) and feminine ;" it is partly designated or dis- 
 tinguished i»y the nature of the thing, and partly irom prefixes, or, to speak 
 more accurately, prefonnalins. Exiim|)les : 1. From the nature of the 
 thing — Etschinalc, a man ; Ecliro, a woman. 2. From prefixes — iSayadal, a 
 person, (ra.) Sgaytidnt a person, (f.) T'liiului^e, two persons, (m.) I'giutage, 
 two persons, (f.) drliso 7iihanati, three persons, (m.) dcliso ncgunnti, three 
 per.sons.(f.)" Zeisbcrger's M. S. Grammar of the Ouondago Lang, transl. 
 by P. S. Duponceau, Esq. 
 
 Yet we must not iiastily conclude, that the distinction of animate and 
 inanimate, does not exist in the Iroquois. Charlevoix, wliose cautious ac- 
 curacy on other subjects leads us to place confidence in what he asserts on 
 his own knowledge, says expressly, " Uaiis le Huron, (a dialect of the Iro- 
 quois,) tout se conjugue," k.c. — " Les verbes simples ont une double conju- 
 gaison, I'une absolue, Tautre recipro()ue. Li:s Iroisiemcs personnes ont les 
 deux genres, car it n\i/ en a que deux duns res Iniignrs, a Si^'avoir le genre no- 
 ble, et le genre ignotile. Pour ce ijui est des nombres et des terns, on y 
 trouve les memes dltl'crencjis, que dans le Grec. Par exeniple, pour racoii- 
 ter un voyage, on s'exprime autrement, si on I'a fait par terre, ou si on I'a 
 fait par eau. Les verbes actifs se multiplient autant de fois, qu'il y a de 
 choses (jui tombeiit sous leur action ; comme le verbe, qui signifie manger, 
 varie autant de fois, qu'il y a de choses comestibles. L'aclion s'exprimti 
 autrement a l'6gnrd d'une chose animte, et d'une chose inanim6e ; ainsi,voif 
 unhomme, el voir unepierre, ce sont deux verbes.i Se servir d'une chose, 
 qui apparlient ii celui i\\\\ s'en sort, ou a celiii ti (|ui on parle, ce sont autant 
 de verbes ditrerens. — // y a queliiuc chose de tout ccla dans la langxie Jitgon,- 
 gitme, (a dialect of the Lena|)e or Delaware,) mais la manicre ii'en est pas 
 la m6me, etje nc suis niillcmcnt en utat de vous en instruirc." Jcurnal 
 Hist. p. 197. 
 
 On this subject, Mr. Duponceau thus writes to me : "I iiave yet found 
 nothing in Zeisbei-ger respecting an inanimate gender in the Iroquois, but it 
 docs not follow from thence, that it does not exist some where, and in some 
 
 * In another grammar of the Otiondago, by the same author, he says, " there 
 are three genders, masculine, feminine, andiieuler. Tlie neuter nouns are those 
 which have no sign of gender prel'ixed to them." In his Delaware grammar, he 
 also divides the genders into nia&culinc, feminine, and neuter. Vet we now 
 know, that they are also divided into animate and inanimate. 
 
 f The same assertion, and (he same ejtainple, as thnt of Heckcweldfir, with 
 respect to the Delaware, above quoted. 
 
 VI 
 
 I 
 
 ■il', 
 
 I \ 
 
 ; i 
 
 H 
 
 1 
 
IS 
 
 'iii 
 
 I i l|. i 
 
 I ' T. I : 
 
 90 
 
 toriH, III Uiut languuge, for in liis Delawure draminHr, he divides the gen- 
 ders into masculine, feminine, and n'»uter ; and it is from Mr Hcckewelder 
 (hat wo huve the account of the inanitnnle. The truth is, that the writers of 
 Indian Grammars, most of them ut Icusl, have tried too niucli to assimilate 
 their rules to those of their own language, or of the JiUlin. It was a great 
 while before I satisfied myself, that the Irotjuois was Polysyiithetic. Zeis- 
 berger's Uramniars do not show it; but some other inanuscripls of his, and a 
 careful investigation of his (Jramniars and Dictionaries, with that view, huve 
 convinced ine that it is so in the highest degree. This I shall develope at a 
 future day, when I have more leisure for it ; but, on the whol»', we must be 
 careful of generul negative inferences, as they may mislead us." 
 
 «« The Delaware, though it has this general division oi animal e and inani- 
 mate, is not a stranger to the masculine and feminine ; as many names ol 
 animals are dilferent for the sexes, and others are distinguished us with us by 
 a male and female epithet. Thus we say, lit cat, sht cat, cock sparrow, hen 
 fparrow, k.c. From these, an lro<|uois, on a superticial view, might say that 
 our language has no genders," kc. 
 
 NOTE F. 
 
 Much stress has been laid upon the supposed use of the Hebrew words 
 Jehovah and Halltluiah among the Indians. With regard *o the invocation 
 of God, by the name of Jehovah, the fact, in the first place. Is not certain. 
 Some travellers assert that the Indians, when assembled in council, and on 
 other solemn occasions, express their approbation by ejaculating Ho, h(>, ho, 
 with a very guttural emission. In the minutes of a treaty, held at Lancaster, 
 I think in 1742, on which occasion Conrad Weiser was interpreter, it is 
 said that the chiefs expressed their approbation in the usual manner, by say- 
 ing, " Yo-wah." Adair says that they exclaim, " Yo-he-wah," and, accord- 
 ing to his manner of interpretation, asserts, that this means "Jehovah." But 
 surely all this may be purely imaginary. It is well known that the Hebrew 
 nation abstain from the use of this sacred name. Wo have the authority of 
 .losephus and Philo, that it was never pronounced. The Scpfuagint ver- 
 sion, which was made more than 260 years before Christ, constantly substi- 
 tutes for it, the word Kvpitt, Lord, which agrees with the present practice 
 rtnongthe Jews. It must be proved, then, that before the dispersion of the 
 ten tribes, it was customary to jironounce the name of Jehovah, or else the 
 use of a similar word among the Indians is hostile to the theory it was in- 
 tended to serve. 
 
 As to the word Halleluiah, supposing it to be true that such a word is ut- 
 tered, and that it is not an accidental resemblance, what is the inference to 
 be drawn from it - That the Indians are Hebrews? But " the ancient Greeks 
 
 ■;t, 1 
 
91 
 
 Jivules tlie gen- 
 r Hcckewelder 
 at U»c writers of 
 :li to asiiiinildte 
 It was a great 
 yiitlietic. Zeis- 
 i|)ts of luH, and a 
 
 tliat view, havt* 
 ill developc at a 
 o\v, we must be 
 us." 
 malt and inani- 
 
 luanj iiHines of 
 ed us with us by 
 lick sparrow, litii 
 ', might say that 
 
 I Hebrew words 
 i the invocation 
 , is not certain, 
 council, and oii 
 ting Ho, bo, ho, 
 Id at Lancaster, 
 iterpreter, it is 
 nanner, by say- 
 
 " and, accord' 
 Jehovah." But 
 hat the Hebrew 
 
 he authority of 
 Septuagint ver- 
 
 nstantly substi- 
 resent practice 
 ispcrsion of tlie 
 vah, or else the 
 
 ory it was in- 
 
 1 a word is ut- 
 10 inference to 
 ancient Greek" 
 
 bad their similar Kcrlnmation, Eximu In, with which they both bngnn uuil 
 endfil their ;;((n(M, or liymns, iii honour of Apollo." See I'arkhurst, Heb. 
 Lex. voce ^rt. v. and Clulmet's b:<;t. Article Alleluia. May wc not as well 
 conclude, that tiie Indian** are deMCcndcd from liie (irooks, or the Orceki 
 from tlie Helirows ? All «uch arguments are extremely unsatisfactory, and 
 can weigh nothing in opposition to the facts, that the American languages 
 have no airinity with the Hebrew, Ihiil the Indians have not the least know- 
 ledge of w ritten characters, that none of thcni practise the rite of circum- 
 cision, aiul 'hat there arc no traces among them of the observation of the 
 Sabbath. " It cannot be perceived that they have any set holy-dayes; only 
 in sonie great disfresse of want, feare of enemies, times of triumph, and of 
 gatherin;; their fruits, the whole countrcy, men, women, and children, as- 
 senibli' to their solemnities." Obsenations ut the Rites of Virjjinians, by 
 Captain Smith and otiiers. Purclias, vol. v. p. 951. 
 
 NOTIi a. 
 
 Tills belief in subordinate deities is represented by Adair, in conformity 
 with his system, as only a belief in the ministration jf Angels. Hist, of th« 
 N(»rth American Indians, p. 36. 
 
 <' They (viz. the Clierokees, Creeks, Choctaws, kc.) believe the higher 
 regions to be inhabited by good spirits, whom they call HoUxik IshlohooUo 
 and Nana Uhlohoollo, ' holy people,' and ' relations to the great holy one.' 
 The I [oltuk Ookproo.ie or JVaiia Oi)l:proosc, 'accursed people,' or ' accursed 
 beings,' they say, possess the dark regions of the west ; tin; former attend 
 and favour the virtuous; and the latter, in like mimner, accompany and 
 have power over the vicious." p. 30. <' Several warriors have told me, that 
 their J\'(inn hhtoliooUo, ' concomitMut holy spirits,' or angels, have forewarned 
 them, as by Intuition, of a dangerous ambuscade, which must have been at- 
 tended with certain death, when they were alone, and seemingly out of dan- 
 ger ; and by virtue of the impulse, they immediately darted off, and, with 
 extreme difficulty, escaped the crafty pursuing enemy." p. 37. 
 
 The Cbepewyan, or Northern Indians, according to Hearne, " are very 
 superstitious wit!i respect to the existence of several kinds o[ fairies, called 
 by them A''atlt-^^na, whom tliey frequenlly say they see, and who are supposed 
 by them to inhabit the different elements of earth, sea, and air, according to their 
 several qualities. To one or other of those fairies thej, uiually atlributf any 
 rhani^e in their circumstances, either for the l>eller or worse; and as the j, are 
 led i ito this way of thinking entirely by the art of the conjurers, there is no 
 such thing as any general mode of belief; for those jugglers differ so much 
 from each other in their accounts of these beings, that those who believe 
 any thing they say, have little to do but change their opinions according to 
 

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 Ihe will and caprice of the conjurer, who is almost daily relating some new 
 whim or extraordinary event, which, he says, has been revealed to him in a 
 dream, or by some of his favonrite fairies, when on a hunting excnrsion." 
 Hearne, 347. cap. ix. end. What Hearne calls fairies were probably the infe- 
 rior tutelary deities. 
 
 When among the Sioux, Captains Lewis and Clarke went to see, (annd 
 1804,) "a large mound in the midst of a plain, about n. 20. w. from the 
 mouth of Whitestone River, from which it is nine miles distant. It is called 
 by the Indians, the Mountain of Little People, or Little Spirits, and they be- 
 lieve tliat it is the abode of little devils in the hnmnn form, of about 18 inches 
 high, and with remarkably larf^e heads; they are armed with sharp arrows, with 
 which they are very skilful, and arc always on the icatch to kiUthostwho should 
 have the hardihood to approach their residence. The tradition is, that many 
 liave suffered from those little evil spirits, and among others, three Maha 
 Indians fell a sacrifice to them a few years since. This has inspired all the 
 neighbouring nations, Sioux, IMahas, and Oltoes, with such terror, that no 
 consideration could tempt them to visit the bill." Lewis and Clai'ke's ex< 
 pcdition up the Missouri, vol. 1. p. 52-3. Philad. 1814. 
 
 The term devils is a gloss of the travellers. Theie are probably the same 
 with the Matchi Manittoes, or inferior evil spirits, of the Lenap6. 
 
 " The whole religion of the Mandans, (anno 1804,) consists in the belief 
 of one Great Spirit, presiding over their destinies. This being must be in the 
 nature of a good genius, since it is associated with the healing art, and the Great 
 Spirit frf synonomous with Great Medicine, a name also applied to every thing 
 which they do not comprehend. Each individual selects for himself the particular 
 object of his devotion, which is termed his tncdicine, and is either some invisible 
 being, or more commonly some animal, which thenceforward becomes his protec- 
 tor or his intercessor with the Great Spirit ; to pro{iitiate whom, every atten- 
 tion is lavished, and every personal consideration is sacrificed. 'I was 
 lately owner of 17 horses,' said a Mandun to us one day, ' but I have offered 
 them all up to my medicine, and am now poor.' He had in reality taken all 
 his wealth, his horses, into the plain, and, turning them loose, committed 
 them to the car« of his medicine, and abandoned them for ever. The hor- 
 ses, less religious, took care of themselves, and the pious votary travelled 
 home on foot." Lewis and Clarke, vol. 1. p. 138. 
 
 "Besides the buffaloe dance, we have just described, there is another 
 called medicine dance, an entertainment given by any person desirous of 
 doing honour to his medicine or genius. He announces that on such a day 
 he will sacrifice his horses, or other property, and invites the young females 
 of the village to assist in rendering homage to his medicine ; all the inhabit- 
 ants may join in the solemnity, which is performed in the open plain, and 
 by daylight, but the dance is reserved for the unmarried females. The feast 
 
93 
 
 relating some new 
 ivealed to him in h 
 unting excnrsion." 
 I probably the infe- 
 
 ent to see, (annb 
 N. 20. w. from the 
 istant. It is called 
 nirits, and they be- 
 , of about 18 inc/jfs 
 I sharp arrows, with 
 •iUthosticho should 
 tion is, that many 
 thers, three Maha 
 lus inspired all the 
 iuch terror, that no 
 is and Clai'ke's ex- 
 
 probably the same 
 Lenap6. 
 
 insists in the belief 
 
 eing must be in the 
 
 g art, and the Great 
 
 ilied to every thing 
 
 mselfthe particular 
 
 '.ithcr some invisible 
 
 becomes hisprotee- 
 
 lom, every atten- 
 
 ncrificed. 'I was 
 
 bdt I hcive offered 
 
 in reality taken all 
 
 loose, committed 
 
 3r ever. The hor- 
 
 us votary travelled 
 
 i, there is another 
 )crson desirous of 
 that on such a day 
 the young females 
 le ; all the inhabit* 
 c open plain, and 
 ?males. The feast 
 
 is opened by devoting the goods of the Mtaltr of the feast to his medicine, which 
 it represented by a head of the animal itself, or by a medicine bagt >f ^6 deity 
 be an invisible being." Lewis and Clarke, vol. 1. p. 151-2. 
 " lam inclined to think that, from an imperfect knowledge of their language 
 and religious customs, Lewis and Clarke were led into a mistake respecting 
 the term " Medicine," as applied to the Supreme Being, and to the subordi- 
 nate divinities. The Indians undoubtedly consider the healing art as a 
 supernatural power ; and as they cull every thing they do not comprehend 
 a Spirit, they would naturally call any medicine, of which they had felt the 
 efficacy, a Spirit. Lewis and Clarke may easily, therefore, have been led 
 to suppose that their word for Spirit meant medicine. 
 
 That the same belief in one supreme, and numerous subordinate deiticSi 
 existed among the tribes now extinct, who formerly inhabited the Atlantic 
 States, appears from the accounts given by the first settlers, which coincide 
 in a remarkable manner with the statements of Modern Travellers. 
 
 In the year 1587, Thomas Harlot, sent over by Sir Walter Raleigh, and, 
 to use his own expressions, " in dealing with the naturail inhabitants specially 
 imploycd," gives the following statement, concerning the Indians within 
 the Colony of Virginia : 
 
 " Some religion they have already, which, although it be farre from the 
 true, yet this being ts it is, there is hope it may be the easier anri .sooner re» 
 formed ; they also believe that there are many gods, which they call Jifuntoac, 
 being of different sorts and degrees, one onely chief e and Great God, which 
 hath bene from all etemilie. Who, as they affirme, when hee purposed to 
 make the world, made first other Gods of a principall order, to be as meants 
 and instnimeyits to be used in the Creation and government tofoloio ; and after 
 the sunne, moone, and stnrres as peltie Gods, and the instruments of the other 
 order more principal. First, (they say,) Avere made waters, out of which by 
 the Gods was made all diversilic of creatures that are visible or invisible." 
 Hackluyt's Collection, vol. 3. p. 276-7. 
 
 In Winslow's " Good News from New-England ; 6t' a relation of things 
 remarkable in that plantation," anno 1622, occur the following remarks on 
 the subject of the Indian Religion : 
 
 « A few things I thought meete to adde Iieereunto, which I have observed 
 amongst the Indians, both touching their religion, and sundry other cus- 
 tomes amongst them. And first, whereas myselfe and others, informer letter** 
 (which came to the presse against my wille and knowledge,) icrote that the 
 Indians about us are a people without any religion or knowledge of any God, 
 therein I erred, though wee could then gather no better ; for as they conceive of 
 many divine powers, so of one whom they call Kiehlan, to be the principall 
 maker of all the rest, and to be made tyy none : Hee, (they say,) created the 
 Heavens, Earth, Sea, and all creatures co tUained therein. Also, that hee made 
 
 ' 1\ 
 
94 
 
 i 
 
 V. 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 J ; 
 
 one man and one woman, of whom they and wee, and all mankind, came . 
 but how they benume so furre dispersed that know they not. At first, they 
 say, there was no Sachem or King, but KielUan who dwelletii above the 
 Heavens, whither all good men goe when they die to see their friends, and 
 have their fill of all things : This, his habitation, lyeth westward in the Hea- 
 vens thr-y say ; thither the bad men goe also, and knocke at His doore, but 
 he bids them Qmcliet, that is to say fValke abroad, for there is no place for 
 such ; so that they wander in restlesse want and penury. J^ever man saw 
 thisKielUan; onely old men tell litem of him, and bid them tell their children ; 
 yea, to charge them to teach their posterities the same, and lay the like 
 charge upon them. This power they acknowledge to be good, and when they 
 ohtaine any great mailer, meet together and cry unto him, and so likewise for 
 plenty, victory, ^c. sing, dance, feast, <;lve thankes, and hang up garlands, 
 and otiier things in memory of the same. 
 
 " Another power they w^orship whom they call Hobbamock, and to the 
 northward of us Hobbnmoqui ; this as farre as wee can conceive is the 
 devill, him they call upon to cure their wounds and diseases. When they 
 are curable, hee perswades them hce nends the same for some conceiled an« 
 ger against thum, but upon tlieir culling upon him, can a<id doth help them ; 
 but when they are mortall, and not oiraljie in nature, then he perswades 
 them Kiehtan is angry and sends them, whom none can cure ; insomuch, as 
 in that reojMict onely they somewhat doubt whether hee bee simply goodi 
 and therefore in sicknes.?e never call upon him. This Ilnbhomock appears in 
 sundry formes unto them, as in Hit shape of a man, a deare, afawne, an eagle, 
 ^c, but most ordinarily as a snake :" fyc. Purchas's Pilgrim, lib. x. chap. ▼. 
 vol. 4. p. 1867. 
 
 This Hobbomock, or Hobbamoqui, who " appears in sundry forms," is 
 evidently the Oke or Tutelary Deity, which each Indian worships ; and Mr. 
 Winslow's narrative affords a solution of the pretended worship of the 
 devil, which the first settlers imagined they had discovered, and which has 
 since been so f. <!qu<'" * • mentioned on their authority, without examination. 
 The natives, it was » . jnd, worshipjjed another being, beside the Great Spi- 
 rit, which every on»a called his Hobbomock, or Guardian Ok6, This, the En- 
 glish thought, could be no other than the Devil, and accordingly they as- 
 serted, without further ceremony, what they believeJ to be a fact. Hence, 
 in a " Tractate, written at Henrico in Virginia, by Master Alexandsr Whit- 
 aker, Minister to the Colony there," (anno 1613,) we find the following ac- 
 count of the worship of the Kcjjos, or Tutelary Deity of the Virginian In- 
 dians : 
 
 " They acknowledge that there is a Great Good God, but know him not, 
 having the eyes of their understanding as yet blinded : wherefore they serve 
 the devill for fearc, after a most base manner, sacrificing sometimes, (as I 
 
iTiBiikind, came . 
 Dt. At first, they 
 elletli above the 
 their friends, and 
 :ward in tlte Hea- 
 at His doore, but 
 re is no place for 
 JVever man saw 
 ell their children; 
 and lay the liko 
 1, and when they 
 lid so likewise for 
 laiig up garlands, 
 
 amoek, and to the 
 1 conceive is the 
 ises. When they 
 )mc concctled an* 
 I doth help them ; 
 en he pcrswndes 
 ire ; insomuch, as 
 bee simply good* 
 bomock appears in 
 afawne, an eagle, 
 m, lib. X. chap. ▼. 
 
 sundry forms," is 
 rorships ; and Mr. 
 
 worship of the 
 id, and which has 
 
 lout examination. 
 
 le the Great Spi- 
 lt. This, the En- 
 |ordingly they a*- 
 a fact. Hence, 
 
 Alexandsr Whit- 
 
 thf following ac- 
 le Virginian la* 
 
 tt know him not, 
 srcfore they serve 
 \ !<ometinies, (as I 
 
 ii 
 
 96 
 
 bavie here heard,) their owne children to him.* i have tent one image of 
 their Ood to the tounsell in England, which ispoinied upon one side of a toad- 
 itoole, much like unio a deformed monster. Their priests, (whom they call 
 ^iakosoughs,) are no other but such us our English witches are," kc. 
 Purchas, lib. ix. vol. 4. p. 1771. 
 
 NOTE H. 
 
 ** Nemo vir magnus sine aliquo afllatii divino unquam fuit." Cic. de. 
 Nat. Deor. lib. ii. 
 
 " Les sauvages appellent G6nie ou Esprit tout ce qui surpasse la 
 capacit6 do lenr entendement, et dont ils ne peuvent comprendre la cause, 
 lis en croyent de bons et de mauvais." La Hontan, M6moii-es de rAm6rique 
 Septentrionale, Amsterd. 1705. ed. 2. vol. 2. p. 127. They adore the Great 
 Spirit, he observes, in every thing. " Ccla est si vral que des qu'ils voyent 
 quelque chose de beau, de curicu:: ou de surprenant, surtout le soleil et lea 
 autres astres, ils s'6crient ainsi : O Grand Esprit, nuus te voyons partout." 
 lb. p. 115. — La Hontan was an infidel, and sought to exalt deism at the 
 expense of Christianity. It is impossible to read his work without perceiv- 
 ing that be shelters himself under the garb of an Indian, while he gives vent 
 to opinions which in France would have endangered his safety, if uttered 
 as his own. We can never be certain of ihe accuracy of his statements, ex- 
 cepting when corroborated by other testimony. — In the above extracts, it 
 will be seen how he has bent to the support of his own notions, the belief 
 that every thing in nature has its tutelary spirit. 
 
 It has been before remarked that all nature is divided by the Indians 
 into the two great classes of animate and inanimate. It is proballe, 
 therefore, that all animate nature being considered as one great whole, 
 the agency of tutelar/ spirits is supposed to be co-extensive. — « Un 
 Francois ayant un jour jett6 un souris qu'il venoit de prendre, unc petite 
 lille la ramassa pour la maiger: le pere de I'cnfant, qui I'apper^ut, la 
 lui arracha, et se mit k fa.'^ de grandes caresses k I'animal qui 6toit 
 mort: le Fran9oiB lui en demanda la raison: < C'cst, repondit-il, pour 
 appaiser le G6nie des souris, afin qu'il ne tourmente pas ma fille, quand 
 ellc aura mang6 celle-ci.' Apr6s quoi, il rendit I'animal k I'enfant, qui le 
 mangea." — Charlevoix, Journal, p. 299, 300. — " Non senlement ces sauvages 
 (the Potcwotamies, Outagamies, and other nations around Lake Michigan) 
 ont, comme torn les autres, la cofitume de se preparer aux grandej chasses par 
 desjeftnes, qua Ics Outagamis poussent meme jusqu'k dix jours de suite, 
 raais encore, tandis que les chasseurs sont en campagnc, on oblige souvenl 
 
 * This, Purchas afterwards mentions, is found to be fa'se, vol.5, p. 932- It 
 arose from a mistaken notion respecting the ccrcniony of obtaining a Guardian 
 Spirit for boys. S>ee J{ote f . 
 
 i'^ 1 
 
 j.':!i 
 
 xA\ 
 
 1 1 
 
 
il 
 
 96 
 
 lei enfans de jeOner, on observe Ics sondes qu'ils ont pendant Icur jeAne, 
 et on en tire de bons ou de raauvois augures pour Ic succ6s de la chasse. L'tn- 
 tetUion (U ce»jet\nes est d'appaiser lc.i Gdniet txUilaires des animaux, qii'on doit 
 chasser, et Von pr6tend qu'ils font connditre par let rives s'ils s'opposeront, ou 
 s'ils seront favorahlen anx chasseurs." lb. ubi supra 
 
 <' I have often redected," says Mr. Heckewelder, " on the curious con- 
 nexion wliich appears to subsist in the mind of an Indian, between man and 
 the brute creation, and found much matter in it for curious observation. — 
 All beings, endowed by the Creator with the power of volition and self-mo- 
 tion, they view in a manner as a great society, of which they are the head, 
 &c. — They are, in fact, according to their opinions, only the first among 
 equals, the legitimate hereditary sovereigns of the whole animated race, of 
 which they are themselves a constituent part Hence, in their languages, 
 those inflections of their nouns, which we call genders, are not, as with us, 
 descriptive of the masculine and feminine species, but of the animate and 
 inanimate kinds. Indeed, they go so far as to include trees and plants within 
 the first of these descriptions. All animated nature, in whatever degree, is, 
 in their eyes, a great whole, from which they have not yet ventured to sepa- 
 rate themselves. They do not exclude other animals from their world of 
 Spirits, the place to which they expect to go after death. 
 
 " A Delaware hunter once shot a huge bear, and broke its back bone. 
 The animal fell, and set up a most plaintive cry, something like that of the 
 panther when he is hungry. The hunter, instead of giving him another shot, 
 stood up close to him, and addressed him in these words: <Hearkye! bear; 
 you are a coward, and no w^arrior, as you pretend to be. Were you a warrior, 
 you would show it by your firmness, and not cry and whimper like an old 
 woman. You know, bear, that our tribes are at war with each other, and 
 that your*s was the aggressor. You have found the Indians too powerful for 
 yo<i, and you have gone sneaking about in the woodsf, stealing their hogs ; 
 perhaps at this time you have hog's flesh in your belly. Had you conquered 
 me, I would have borne it with courage, and died like a brave warrior; but 
 you, bear, sit here and cry, and disgrace your tribe by your cowardly con- 
 duct.' I was present at the delivery of this curious invective. When the 
 Jiunter had despatched the bear, I asked him how he thought that poor ani- 
 mal could underUand what ho said to it ? < Oh !' said he, in answer, ' the 
 bear understood me very well ; did you not observe how ashamed he looked 
 while I was upbraiding him?' " Historical Account, &c. p. 247 — 9. 
 
 NOTE I. 
 
 Mr. Heckewelder describes the same custom nnder the name of " Initia- 
 tion of Boys;" <• a practice," he «ay?, « which is very common among the 
 
97 
 
 idant Icur jeftne, 
 le la chasse. Lin- 
 imaux, qiCondoit 
 Is s'opposeroHtf ou 
 
 the curious con- 
 bctween man and 
 us observation. — 
 ition and self-mo- 
 liey are the head, 
 f tiie first among 
 animated race, of 
 a their languages, 
 re not, as with us, 
 the animate and 
 and plants within 
 liatever degree, is, 
 ventured to sepa- 
 )m their world of 
 
 :e its back bone, 
 inglike that of the 
 him another shot, 
 ' Heark ye ! bear ; 
 ere you a warrior, 
 imper like an old 
 h each other, and 
 s too pow^erful for 
 ealing their hogs ; 
 ad you conquered 
 •ave warrior ; but 
 ur cowardly con- 
 ictive. When the 
 ght that poor aiii- 
 in answer, < the 
 shamed he looked 
 ). 247—9. 
 
 name of «' Initia- 
 nraon among the 
 
 Indians, and indeed is universal among those nations that I have become 
 acquainted with." <' When a boy is to be thus initiated, he is put under an 
 alternate course of physic and fasting, either taking no food whatever, or 
 swallowing the most powerful and nauseous medicines, and occasionally he 
 is made to drink decoctions of an intoxicating nature, until his mind becomes 
 sufficiently bewildered, so that he sees, or fancies that he sees, visions, and 
 has extraordinary dreams," Lc. — " Then he has interviews with the Maii- 
 nitto, or with Spirits who inform him of what he was before ho was born< 
 and what he will be after his death. His fate in this life is laid entirely open 
 before him ; the Spirit tells him what is to be his future employment," 
 &.C. — '* When a boy has been thus initiated, a name is given to him analo- 
 gous to the visions that he has seen^ and to the destiny that is supposed to b* 
 prepared for him. The boy, imagining all that happened to him, while un- 
 der perturbation, to have been real, sets out in the world with lofty notions 
 of himself, and animated with courage for the most desperate undertakings.' 
 Hist. Account, p. 238, 239. 
 
 This practice of blacking tlie face and fasting, together with the use of 
 e.Tietics, as a system of religious purification, for the purpose of obtaining a 
 (Guardian Spirit, appears to have existed formerly among the natives of Vir- 
 ginia and New-England ; though the first settlers were not always able to 
 learn the real object of the ceremonies they saw. Tomocomo, one of the 
 Chiefs of the Virginian tribes, gave the following account to Mr. Purchas, in 
 the year 1616. 
 
 " They use to make black-boyes once in 14 or 15 yecres generally, for all 
 thfe country, (this happened the last yeere, 1616,) when all of a certaine age, 
 that have not beene made black-boyes before, are initiated in this ceremonie. 
 Some foure monthes after that rite they live apart, and are fed by some ap- 
 pointed to carry them their food : they spcake to no man, nor come in 
 company, seeme distracted, (some thinke by some devillish apparition 
 «icaiTed ; certaine, to oblige them to that devillish religion as by a hellish 
 sacrament of the devil's institution,) and will offer to shoot at such as 
 come nigh them. And when they come into company, yet are, for a cer- 
 taine tine, of silent and strange behaviour, and wil doe any thing never so 
 desperate that they shal be bidden ; if they tel them they shal be old men, 
 if they goe not into the fire, they will doe it. There is none of their men 
 but are made blacke-boyes at one time or other. Let us observe these things 
 with pittie and compassion, and endevour to bring these silly souls out of 
 the snare of the Devill, by our prayers, our purses, and all our best endea- 
 vours. This may bee added, that their young people have, in manner, no 
 knowledge, and the vulgar little of their religion. They use also to beguile 
 them with their okee, or image of him in their houses, into whose mouth 
 they will put a tobacco-pipe kindled, and fln« behinde that image draws 
 
 13 
 
i^^ 
 
 98 
 
 "J i 
 
 i I 
 
 the smokei which the siUier viil^r and children thinkc to b(>« done by their 
 Ood or Idoll." Relation of Tomocomo and Mr. Kolph, in Purchas, vol. v. 
 booke 8. chap. 6. p. 955. 
 
 Thi.s ceremony waa witnessed by the famous Cnptnin John Smith, one ot 
 tiie first settlers, and by William White, but they at the time mistook it for a 
 sacrifice of the Children to the Devil. See Purchas, vol. 5. p. 952. 
 
 " Tiie Wcrowance being demanded the meaning of this sacrifice, answered, 
 That the Children were not all dead, but the next day they were to drinke 
 ff'i^/MaA:on, which would make them mad; and they were to be kept by the 
 leul made blacke-boyei in the wilderne-sse, when their oke did siicke the bloud 
 of those which fell to his lot, &ic. I his siicrifice they held to be so necessa- 
 ry, //to/ t/ZAcj/ j/iou/d omit it, their oke or Devill, and all their other Qui- 
 youghcosughes, uhich are their other gods, would let them have no deare, tur- 
 kies, eorne, nor Jish, aiul yet besides, he would make n great slaughter amongst 
 them." Captain Smith's Description of Virginia. Purchas, vol. 4. p. 1702. 
 lib. ix. cap. iii. 
 
 Mr. Winslow gives the following account of the Indians of New-England. 
 ** The Panietes are men of great courage and wibedome, and to these also the 
 Deuill appewreth more familiarly then to others, and, as wee coiueiue, maketh 
 coiunant with lhem,to preserve them from death by wounds with arrowes, knives, 
 hatchets, S^-c. or at least both themselues and especially the people thinke Ihem- 
 »i lues to be freed from the same. And though against their battels, all of them, 
 by painting, disfigure themselues, yet they are Icr.owne by their courage and 
 boldnesse, by reason whereof one of them will chase almost an hundred men, for 
 they account it death for whomsoever stand in their way. These are hijrhly 
 esteemed by all soils of people, and are of the 6'ac/itm'« councill, without 
 which they will notvvarre, or vndertake any weighlic businesse," &c. 
 
 ^'^ And to the end they mmy haue store of these, they traine up the most fat' 
 ward and likeliest boys from iiieir childhood in great hardnesse, and make them 
 abstnin from dulntie meat, observing diuers orders prescribed, to the end that 
 when they are of age, the Deuill may appeare to them, causing to drink thejuyce 
 of sentry, and other bitter hearbs till they cast, which they must disgorge into 
 the platter^ and drinke againe and againe, till at length, through extraor- 
 dinary pre.ss of nature, it will seeme '•• be all oloud, and (his the boys will 
 doe ii'ith eagernesse, iili by reason offaintnesse they can scarce stand on their 
 legs, and then must goe forth into the cold : also they beat their shins 
 with sticks, and cause them to run through bushes, stumps, and brambles, to 
 make them hardy and acceptable to the Devill, that in lime he may appeare 
 unto then^." Purchas's Pilgrim, b. x. chap. 5. vol. 4. p. 1868. The passages 
 in italics sulliciently indicate the confidence and courage with which the 
 natives were inspired, from the conviction of their possessing a Guurdian 
 Spirit, and t!ie painful austerities wiiich their children were obliged to under- 
 go in order to obtain one. 
 
99 
 
 i(>e done by their 
 I Purclias, vol. v. 
 
 Iin Smith, one ot 
 e mistook it for a 
 
 p. 962. 
 
 crifice, answered, 
 L'y were to drinke 
 ; to be kepi by the 
 1 siicke the bloud 
 to i)e so necessa- 
 
 thtir other Qui- 
 ive no deare, tur- 
 slaughter amongst 
 IS, vol. 4. p. 1702. 
 
 of New-England, 
 nil to these also tlit 
 e cotueiue, maketh 
 Ih arrowes, kniveSf 
 leople thinke them' 
 nttelt, all uflhenif 
 their cotiruiire and 
 hundred men, for 
 
 These are highly 
 councill, without 
 lesse," &c. 
 te up the mostfoT' 
 se, and make (hem 
 ed, to the end that 
 
 to drink the juyce 
 lust disgorge into 
 
 through extraor- 
 
 this the boys will 
 arce stand on their 
 
 beat their shins 
 
 and brambles, to 
 
 he may appeare 
 
 >8. The passages 
 
 e with which the 
 >ssing a Guurdian 
 
 obliged to under- 
 
 NOTE K. 
 
 In 1384, when Virginia was first discovered, the Captain of one of the 
 vessi'ls scut by Sir Walter Kaleigh, states, concerning the inhabitants of the 
 Island of Rnanoak, that " within the place where they feede was their lodg* 
 ing, and within thai thtir Idoll, which they worship, ofwhome they speak i/jcre- 
 dible things:' Hakiiiyt, vol 3 p. 249. 4to. Lond. 1600 " When they gne to 
 wctrres they carry about with them their idol, of whom they aske counsel, as the 
 Romans were wooiU of the oracle of Apollo. They sing songs as they marche 
 towardes the battcll instead of drummes," Sic. Ibid. p. 250. 
 
 NOTE L. 
 
 Adbir afRrms that the Indians do not " worship any kind of Images what- 
 ■ocver." (p. 22.) " These Indian Americans," he says, "pay their religious 
 devoir to Loak Ishto-hoollo- \ba, ' the great, beneficent, supreme, holy Spi- 
 rit of Fire,' who resides, (as they think,) above the clouds, and on earth also 
 with unpolluted people. He is with them the iiole author of warmth, light, 
 and of all animal and vegetable life. They do not pay the least perceivable 
 adoration to any images or to dead persons ; neither to the celestial lumina- 
 ries, nor evil Spirits, nor any created beings whatsoever." p. 19. Yet he 
 afterwards admits that " there is a carved human statue of wood," but as- 
 serts that they pay to it no religious homage. " It belongs xo the head war- 
 town of the upper Muskohge country, and seems to have been originally de- 
 tigned to perpetuate the memory of some distinguidied hero who deserved well of 
 his country ; for when their cusseena, or bitter black drink, is about to be drank 
 in the Synedrion, they frequently, on common occasions, will bring it there, and 
 lumour it with the first conchshell-full by the hand of the chief religious attend- 
 ant : and then return it to its former place." (p. 22.) He speaks also of 
 " Cherubimical figures in their Synhedria," before which they danced 
 through a strong religious principle, and always in a bowing posture : (p. 30.) 
 When it is recollected that Adair's theory required it to be prove d that the 
 Indians worship no other than the Supreme Being, it will not be difficult to 
 account for the reluctance with tvhich he is obliged to admit the fact of the 
 existence of these images, and for the attempt to explain it in consistency 
 with his hypothesis. 
 
 " Though so familiar with these genii, they, (the Jugglei-s,) cannot de- 
 scribe their form or nature. They suppose them to be bodies of a light, 
 volatile, shadowy texture. Sometimes they and their disciples will select 
 a particular one, and give him for a dwelling, a certain tree, seipent, rock, 
 or waterfall, and him they make their fetish, like the Afrlruns of Congo " 
 Vo'ney, p. 417. 
 
 I ; 
 
Il 
 
 I' 
 
 ;:;^-' 
 
 i« 
 
 I. 
 
 100 
 
 <' When we tiri-ivfld on tlit; west side of the River, cncii painted the iVunt 
 M his target or shield ; some witli the fif^tire of tlie sun, others with tiiut oi' 
 the moon, several with dill'ercnt i(inds of birds and beasts of prey, and 
 many willi tnc images of imaginary beings, which, according to their silly 
 notions, are the inhabitants of the diHerent elements, earth, sea, air, Lc. On 
 inquiring the rciison of their doing so, I learned that each man painted hi^ 
 shield with the image of that being on which he relied most for success iu 
 the intended engagement." Hearne, 149. 
 
 Yet l^Iearne atTirms elsewhere that they had no religion ! — He speaks in 
 this place of the Chepewyan, or Nortberu Indians, passing the Copper-mine. 
 River to attack the Esquimaux. 
 
 Just above the month of Stone Idol Creek, " we discovered that a few 
 miles back from the Missouri there are two slonet reKmhlina; human ftfrurm, 
 and a third like a dofi; ; all which arc objects of great veneration among the 
 Ricaras.— Whenever they (the Ricaras) pass these sacred stones, they stop to 
 make some offering of dress to propHiaJte these deifies. Such is the account 
 given by the Ricara Chief." Lewis and Clarke, (18()4,) vol. 1. p. 107. 
 
 Hariot, a servant of Sir Walter Raleigh, says of the natives of Virginia, 
 (anno 1587.) "They thinke that all the Gods are of humane shape, and 
 therefore they represent them by images in the formes of men which they call 
 Keioasowok, one alone is called /fcwrt.*.- tiiem they place in houses appro- 
 priate or temples, which they call Machicomuck, where they worship, pray, 
 sing, and make many times offering unto them. In some Machicomuck we 
 have scene but one Kewns, in some two, and in other some> three. The 
 common sort thinke them to be also Gods." Hakluyt, vol. 3. p. 277- See 
 also Purchas, vol. v. p. 948. of the Virginian rites related by Master Hariot. 
 
 " Their Idoll, called Kiwasn," says the same author, " is made of wood 
 fuure foot high, the face resembling the inhabitants of Florida, painted with 
 flcshe colour, the brest white, the other parts black, except the legs, which 
 are spotted with white ; he hath chaines or strings of beadcs about his 
 neck." Hariot, apud Purchas, vol. v. p. 950. 
 
 "There is yet in Virginia," says Captain Smith, " no |)lnce discovered (o 
 be so savage in which the Savages have not a religion. — .'Xll tl-ing.* that were 
 able to doe them hurt beyond their prevention, they adore with their kinde 
 of divine worship; as (he fire, Avater, lightning, thunder, our ordnance pieces, 
 horses, Sic. But their Chiefe God they worship is the Divell ; him they 
 mil Oke, and serve him more of feare than love. They say they have con- 
 ference with him, and fashion themsolvos as neere to his shape as they can 
 imagine. In their temples Ihey hare hia image evil farouredly carved, and then 
 painted and adorned with chaines, copper and beades, and covered with a skin. 
 in such manner us the deformitie may well suite with such a God." Pe- 
 i4;ription of Virginia, Purclias, lib. is. cap. iii. vol. 4. p. 1701. 
 
101 
 
 liiited the iVunt 
 n-VH with tliut of 
 ta uf prey, and 
 iig to their silly 
 seu, air, &:c. On 
 mail |miiit«'d hii 
 !)t tur success iii 
 
 — He speaks in 
 be Copper-mine 
 
 vered that a few 
 f human figurrs, 
 ution among the 
 jnes, thty tlop to 
 i is the account 
 1.1. p. 107. 
 ves of Virginia, 
 nane shape, and 
 n which thty call 
 1 honses appro- 
 Y worsliip, pray, 
 Machkomuck we 
 ne» tliree. The 
 
 3. p. 277. See 
 Master Hariot. 
 
 made of wood 
 da, painted with 
 
 the legs, whicli 
 eades about his 
 
 re discovered to 
 tl.in^s that were 
 with their liinde 
 Drdnancp pieces, 
 [)ivell ; hivi they 
 
 they have cou- 
 lapc as they can 
 
 carved, and then 
 'ered with a skin. 
 h a fJod." De- 
 
 NOTE M 
 
 <* Tlicre in an licrhn whirii is sowed apart hy itsellf, niid is cnllod liy tim 
 inhabitants Vppouoc . in the Wi'.st lndii>s it iiiith di\ crs names, according to 
 the sevcndl places and conntreyn where it uniweth and is used ; the Span- 
 yards geiieiHlly call it Tuharru. — This i'/ipouitr is of so precious estimation 
 umongst them, that they Ihiiiku their goiU are marvellously delighted there- 
 with : whereupon soniitiine they niiiki: halhwidfins, and cast some of the. 
 pinidrr Ihrrrinfor asnrrijire . biitiir in n xlonne upnn the waters, to pacijie thrif 
 Kods, they cast iome up into the ain, and into the water : so a weare for Jish be- 
 inn iitifty set up, they cast some therein and into the aire : also after an escape 
 of danger, they cast some into the aire likewise : hut all done witJi strange 
 gestures, stamping, sometime dancing, clapping of hand^, holding up of 
 hands, and staring up into the heavens, uttering tlierev.ithall and chattering 
 strange words and noises.' Hariot, apud Hakluyt, vol.3, p. 271*2. 
 
 " In every territory of a If'erowancc, is a temple and a priest, two or three, 
 or more. The principall temple, or place of superstition, is at Utlamussack, 
 at Pauiaunk, and neere unto which is a house, temple, or place of I'owhutans. 
 Upon the top of ceilain red sandy hits in the woods, there are three ffreal 
 honses fdhd with ima';^es of their kings, and direls, and tombs of their prede- 
 cessors. Those houses are neere sixty foot in length, built arbor-w ise, after 
 their building. This place they count so holy, as that none but the priests 
 and kings dare coim; into them ; nor the savages dnre not go up the river in 
 boates by it, but that they solemnly cast some peere of copper, while beads, or 
 pocones into the rirrr ; for feare their Oke should lie offended and revenged of 
 them. In this place coinmoiily are resident, seven priests,'' &:c. Smith's 
 Description of Virginia, rurclms, lib. ix. chap. iii. vol.4, p. 1701. 
 
 NOTE N. 
 
 How exactly the Zeme$ of the Islanders corresponded with the Okies or 
 Manitloesoi the present Continental Indians, will appear from the following 
 relation in Purchas : 
 
 " Now, concerning the Zemes and the superstitions of Hispaniola, the 
 Spaniards had beenc long in the ilaiid before they knew that the people 
 worshipped any thing but the lights of Heaven ; but after, by further con- 
 versing and living amongst them, they came to know more of their religior», 
 of which, one Hamonus, a Spanish heremitc, writ a booke, and Martyr hath 
 borrowed of him to lend us. It is apparent, by the /wiwafw which they wor- 
 shipped, that there appeared unto them ceitaine illusions of evil spirits. 
 These images they made of Gossampine cotton hard stopped, sitting, like the 
 pictures of the Oivel, whirh they cnWPii Zniies- ; whrm they take In Ite th* 
 
 4 
 
 I 
 
102 
 
 medialors and ninueniferi of (hr. Great Ood, irhirh they nrknouledge (hit, 
 Ettrnall, Infinile, fhnnipolent, Invisible. Of theu fhey Ihinke thry obtainr. 
 raine or [aire weather ; and when thry goe to the warret, they hive crrlaine 
 Utile one* which they bind to their ftrrhtitdn. Kvery king hath hit particular 
 Zeme.3, whirh he honourelh. Thry call the Ktcniall Uoit by iiwue two nameSt 
 Joeanna and Guamannmoeon, as their predecessun taught them, nffirming* 
 that hf linth a fathfr, called by tlii;!ie five names, Attnbeira, Matnona, Guaca- 
 rn|)ita, Lii'lla, Uiiiinuzoa. 
 
 " Thry make the Ze.me$ oftlirert matter and forme . some of wood, as they 
 were admonished by certaine vinionn a|ipearing to them in the woods : 
 others, whir.h had received answere of tlicni among the rockes, make tlietn 
 of stone : some of roofes, to the similitude of «'irh as appears to them when 
 they gather the rootes whereof Hiey make their bread, thinking that the 
 Zcmes sent them plenty of these rootes. They altrihiite a Zemes to the par' 
 lieular tuition ofeptry thinfi; ; — lome assigned to the sea, others to foimtaines, 
 woods, or other their peculiar charges." Purchai, vol. v. p. 1()9I. 
 
 NOTE 0. 
 
 " The Mandans," according to Captains Lewis and Clarke, 1804, <' be- 
 lieve" that " the whole nation" formerly " resided in one large village under 
 ground, near a subterraneous lake." Accident made them acquainted with 
 the charms of the upper region, and about one half of the nation ascended 
 to the surface of the earth. When they die, they expect to return to the 
 original seats of tlieir forefathers; " the good reaching the ancient village by 
 means of the lake, which the burden of the sins of the wicked will not ena- 
 ble them to cross." See the tradition related at large, Exped. up the Mis- 
 souri, vol. 1. p. 139. 
 
 " Kagohami came down to see us early ; his village is afllictcd by the 
 death of one of their eldest men, who, from his account to us, must have 
 seen one hundred and twenty winters. Just as he was dying, he requested 
 his grandchildren to dress him in his best robe when he was dead, and then 
 carry him on a hill, and seat him on a stone, with his face down the river 
 towards their old villages, that he might go straight to his brother, who had 
 passed before him to the ancient village under ground " Ibid, vol. 1 p. 163. 
 
 It is remarkable how many of the Indian nations think thoy formerly 
 lived under ground. 
 
 "They," the natives of Virginia, (anno, 1587,) "believe also the immor- 
 talitie of the soule, that after this life, as soone as the soule is departed from 
 the body, according to the tcorkes it hath done, it is either cctriedto heaven,the 
 habitacle of Gods, there to enjoy perpetuall blisse and happinesse, oreltloa 
 great pitte or hole, which they thinke to be in the furthest parts of their part 
 
knoultdgt Ont, 
 tike thry obtaine 
 ley hfT'e crrtirine 
 \lh hill partieular 
 inse two namMi 
 them, affirming, 
 lumuiia,Guaca- 
 
 if wood, astiiey 
 ill the woods : 
 krtu, mnkt! tlietn 
 5 to them when 
 liinking that the 
 if men lo the pat' 
 rs to fountaines, 
 . lOtfl. 
 
 ke, 1804, <' be- 
 je village under 
 icquainted with 
 latlon ascended 
 lo return to the 
 cicnt village by 
 d will not ena- 
 ed. up the Mis- 
 
 afllictcd by the 
 us, must have 
 g, he requested 
 dead, and then 
 down the river 
 other, who had 
 ,vol. 1 p. 163. 
 they formerly 
 
 Iso the immor- 
 departed from 
 d to heaven, the 
 esse, or els to a 
 ts of their part 
 
 103 
 
 •f the world toward the sunn* set, there to burne continually : the plac* 
 they cfill Popoguuo." Hariut.apud Hacklnyt, vol. 3. p. 277. 
 
 <*'rhi>y think thiit their werowan(*«-« and prirsts, which they also eitcema 
 Quiyouifhcosuifln'.'i, when thf>y ure dend, ^oi> beyond the mnuiitaincs towards 
 the setting of the snnne, and fvrr remnirie there in forme of their Oke, 
 with their hpuds paiiitod with oile and poronei, finely trimnu'd with fenthers, 
 and shall have b«>ades, lintchcts, copper, nnd tuburc o. diiing notbinr but 
 dance and sing, with all their predrccvtsors," J^c. Capt. Smith's Description 
 nf Virginia, apud Purchas, vol. Iv. p. 1702. 
 
 NOTE P 
 
 See Heckewelder's account of Indian funerals, Hist. Ace. p. 2A2-271. 
 *< This hole" (in the coffin) " is for the spirit of the deceased to go in and out 
 atpleature, until it has found the place of its future reridettee." p. 266. "At 
 dusk a kettle of victuals teas carried to the grace, and placed upon it, and the 
 same was done every evening/or the space of three weeks, at the end of which 
 it xooM supposed that the traveller had found her place of residence." p 270. 
 This was the funeral of the wife of Shingask, a noted Delaware chief, at 
 which Mr. H. was present in 1762. 
 
 Blackbird, a Maha chief, died of the small pox about four years before 
 Lewis and Clarke's eipedition, (i. e. in 1800.) On the top of a knoll, three 
 hundred feet above the water, a mound of twelve feet diameter at the base, 
 and six feet high, is raised over the body of the deceased king. " Ever since 
 his death ke is supplied with provisions from time to time, by the superstitious 
 regard of the Mahas." Lewis and Clarke's Exped. up the Missouri, vol. 1. 
 p. 43. <' The eHects of the small pox on that nation" (the Mahas) " are most 
 distressing. — They had been a military and powerful people, but when these 
 warriors saw their strength wasting before a malady which they could not 
 resist, their frenzy was extreme ; they burnt their village, and many of them 
 put to death their wives and children, to save them from so cruel an afflic- 
 tion, and that all might go together to some better country." Ibid. p. 45. 
 Compare with this, Hebr. xi. 14, 16, 16. 
 
 NOTE Q. 
 
 " When any of their relations die," says Adair, " they immediately fire 
 off several guns, by one, two, and tlirce at a time, for fear of being plagued 
 with the last troublesome neighbours ;" (the Hottuk ookproose, accursed 
 people or evil spirits.) < All the adjacent towns also on the occasion, whoop 
 and b at night; for they reckon, this offensive noise sends off the 
 
 •ghosts to their proper fixed place, till they return at some certain time, to 
 
lll 
 
 104 
 
 repossess thoir beloved tract of land, and enjoy their terrestrial paradise. 
 As they believe in God, so they firmly believe that tliere is a class ot higher 
 beings than men, and a future state of existence." Hist, of North American 
 Indians, p. 36. 
 
 
 NOTE R. 
 
 
 ill 
 
 1 i ;--i . 
 
 
 i ;■'■ 
 
 lu another place, Charlevoix mentions the superstitions of the Ottsiwas, 
 among whom an Idol was erected, " et tout le monde occu|)e h. lui sacrifier 
 des Chiens." Hist, de la Nouv. France, Tom. 1. p. 392. « Les Criques 
 adorent le soleil, auquel lis sacrifient des Chiens." Ibid. p. 397. 
 
 Lewis and Clarke, (anno 1804,) observed the same custom among 
 the Tetons Okandundas. '•' The hall, or council room, was in the shape 
 of three quarters of a circle covered at the top and sides with skins 
 well dressed and sewed together. Under this shelter sat about 70 
 men, forming a circle round the chief, before whom were placed a Spa- 
 nish flag, and the one we had given them yesterday," &c. — " After he 
 had ceased, t.h > great chief rose and delivered an harangue to the same 
 effect : then, with great solemnity, he took some of the most delicate parts 
 of the dog, which was cooked for the festival, and held it to the flag by 
 way of sacrifice : this done, he held up the pipe of peace, and first pointed it 
 towards the heavens, then to the four quarters of the globe, and then to the 
 earth, made a short speech, lighted the pipe, and presented it to us." Expe- 
 dition up the Missouri, vol. 1. p. 84. 
 
 " When any of the young men of these nations, (Iroquois,) have a mind 
 to signalize tuenisclves, and to gain a reputation among their countrymen, 
 by some notable enterprise against their enemy, they, at first, communicate 
 their design to two or three of their most intimate friends ; and if they com« 
 into it, an invitation is made in their names to all tlie young en of the 
 Castle to feast on dog's J'ssh ; but whether this be because dog's flesh is most 
 agreeable to Indian palates, or whether it be as an emblem of fidelity for 
 which the dog is distinguished by all nations, that it is always used on 
 this occasion, I have not sufficient information to determine. When the 
 company is met, the promotei-s of the enterprise set forth the undertaking 
 in the best colours they can ; they boast of what they intend to do, and 
 incite others to join, from the glory there is to be obtained ; and all who eat 
 of the dog's flesh, thereby enlist themselves." Jolden's Hist, of Five Indian 
 Nations of Canada, Inlroduc. p. vi. 
 
 Bernal Diaz, on»* of the companions of Cortes, mentions the same prac- 
 tice as prevailing among the Mcr,icans. 
 
 " When he arrived at the summit, he found Inerc an Indian woman, very 
 
rrestrial paradise. 
 I a class ot higher 
 FWorth Ai .crican 
 
 5 of the Ottiiwag, 
 ujH; h lui sacrifier 
 t. '< Les Criques 
 . p. 397. 
 
 custom among 
 vas in the shape 
 sides with skins 
 r sat about 70 
 Bre placed a Spa- 
 te. — " After he 
 igue to the same 
 nost delicate parts 
 it to the flag hy 
 nd first pointed it 
 , and then to the 
 I it to us." Expe- 
 
 >is,) liave a mind 
 leir countrymen, 
 -st, communicate 
 and if they com* 
 lung en of the 
 og's flesh is most 
 m of fidelity for 
 
 always used on 
 mine. When the 
 
 the ucdcrtaking 
 
 tend to do, and 
 
 and all who eat 
 
 of Five Indian 
 
 3 the same prac- 
 Ian w omau; very 
 
 105 
 
 fat, and having wUh her a dog of that ipeeiei, which they breed in order to tat, 
 and which do not bark. This Indian was a witr.h ; she wot in the cut of 
 sacrificing the dog which is a signal of hostility." T true Hist, of the Con- 
 quest of Mexico, by Captain Bernal Diaz del Cast>>io, one of the Conquer- 
 ors, written in the year 15G8. Keatiiige's Trans, p. 352. 
 
 In the Scriptures, dogs and swine are continually mentioned together as 
 animals equally unclean. Hence, the prophet, reprehending the hypocrisy 
 of those who rested in mere external observances, could think of no stronger 
 figure to represent the abhorrence with which God regarded their offerings, 
 than the comparison of them to the sacrifice of dogs and swine. " He that 
 sacrificeth a Iamb, is as if he cut off a dog's neck ; he that offereth an obla- 
 tion as if he offered swine's blood," &c. Isaiah, Ixvi. 3. Comp. Matt. vii. 6. 
 and 2 Pet. ii. 22. The law not only forbade dogs to be offered to God, but 
 even the price for which dogs were sold. Deut. xxiii. 18. See Bochart 
 HieroE. lib. ii. cap. Ivi. pars. 1. p. 690. 
 
 Is it credible that nations, descended from the Hebrews, would have so 
 far forgotten their origin, as to offer in sacrifice, what the law of Moses 
 declared to be an abomination in the sight of God P — Adair speaks of the 
 aversion which the Indians originally had to swine's flesh, as a proof of 
 their Hebrew origin, but is silent respecting the practice of sacrificing and 
 eating that of dogs. Hist. N. Amer. Indians, p. 133-4. 
 
 NOTE S. 
 
 Heame, speaking of the superstitious obseivances of the Chepewyan In<- 
 dians, after an engagement|with the Esquimaux, says, that all who had shed 
 blood were considered in a state of uncleanness, and were not permitted to 
 cook any victuals for themselves or others. The murderers painted all the 
 space between the nose and chin, as well as the greater part cf their cheeks, 
 V '.ih red och;e before they would taste a bit of food, and would not drink 
 out of any other dish, or smoke out of any other pipe but their own ; and 
 none of the others seemed willing to drink or smoke out of theirs. All 
 these ceremonies were observed from the time of their killing the Esqui- 
 niaus in July, till the winter began to set in, and during the whole of that 
 time they would never kiss any of their wives or children. They refrained 
 also from eating many parts of the deer, and other animals, particularly the 
 head, entrails, and blood , and during their uncleanness, their victuals wera 
 never sodden in water, but dried in the sun, eaten quite raw, or boiled, when 
 a fire fit for the purpose could be procured. 
 
 " When the time arrived for putting an end to these ceremonies, the men^ 
 without a female being present, made a fire at some distance from the tents, 
 into which they threw all their ornaments, pipe-stems, and dijhes, which 
 
 14 
 
 ' t 
 
hi' ]• 
 
 
 ,J 
 
 it; 4 
 
 f. :J 
 
 106 
 
 were soon consumed to aslies ; after wlticli a feast was prepared, consisting 
 of such articles as they had long been prohibited from eating ; and when all 
 was over, each man was at liberty to eat, drinic, and smoke as he pleased ; 
 and also to kiss his wives and children at discretion, which they seemed to 
 do with more raptures than I had ever known them do it either before or 
 since." Hearne, p. 204-6. This was evidently an expiatory rite, a purifi- 
 cation by fire and a sacrifice. How inconsistent with Heame's assertion in 
 another place, thot they have no religion! 
 
 Captain Smith thus describes the worship of the natives of Virginia : 
 
 ** The manner of their devotion is, sometimes to make a great fire in the 
 house or fields, and all to sing .nd dance about it with rattles, and shout to- 
 gether four or five houres. Sometime they set a man m the midst, and about 
 him they dance and sing, he all the while clapping his hands, as if he would 
 fceepe time, and after their songs and dances ended, they goe to their feasts. 
 
 " They have also certaine altar stones, they call Pawcorances, but these 
 stand from their temples, some by their houses, others in the woods and 
 wildernesses, where they have had any extraordinary accident ir incoun- 
 ter. As you travell by them they will tell you the cause of liieir erection, 
 wherein they instruct their children ; so that they are in stead of records 
 and memorialb of their antiquities. Upon this they offer Bloud, Deare Suet, 
 and Tobacco. These they doe when they retume from the warres,from hunt' 
 ing, and upon many other occasions. They have also another superstition that 
 they use in stormes, when the waters c">-e rough in the Rivers and Seacoasts. 
 Their conjurers runne to the water sides, or passing in their boats, after 
 many hellish outcries and invocations, they cast tobacco, copper, pocones, or 
 such trash, into the water, to pacijie that God whom they thinke to be very angry 
 in those stormcs. Before their dinners and sappers, the better sort will take 
 the first bit, atid cast it in the fire, which is all the grace they are knowne to 
 use." Description of Virginia, by Captaine John Smith. Furchas, lib. ix. 
 chap. Hi. vol. 4. p. 1702. 
 
 Mr. Winslow gives the following account of the religious rites of the na- 
 tives of New-England : 
 
 <' Many sacrifices the Indians use, and in some cases kill children. It seem- 
 eth they are various in their religious worship in a little distance, and grow 
 more and more cold in their worship to Kiehlan," &.c. " The Nanohigganses 
 exceed in their blind devotion, and have a great spatious house wherein 
 onely some few (that as we may tearme them priests) come : thither at cer- 
 taine knowne times, resort all their people, and offer almost all the riches they 
 have to their Gods, as kettles, skins, haicheU hrades, knives, 4^c. all which are cast 
 by the priests into a great fire that they make in the midst of the house, and there 
 consumed to ashes. To this offering, every man brir"3th freely, and the more 
 hee is kuowne to bring, hath the better esteeme of all men." Good News 
 from New-England, Stc. Purchas, vol. 4, lib. x. chap. v. p. 1867-8, 
 
107 
 
 (xretl, consisting 
 ;; and when all 
 ; as be pleased ; 
 tliey seemed to 
 jithcr before or 
 iry rite, a purifi- 
 ne's assertion in 
 
 if Virginia: 
 I great fire in tbe 
 ;5, and sbout to- 
 midst, and about 
 Is, as if he would 
 c to their f easts, 
 nances, but these 
 the woods and 
 ident I r incoun- 
 af tlieir erection, 
 stead of records 
 'doud, Deare Sueti 
 warreSffrom hunt' 
 r superstition that 
 ers and Seacoasts. 
 their boats, after 
 ipper, pocones, or 
 ce to be very angry 
 tter sovi will take 
 iy are knowne to 
 Furchsis, lib. ii. 
 
 IS rites of the na- 
 
 lildren. It seem- 
 
 stance, and grow 
 
 le Nanohigganses 
 
 s house wherein 
 
 thither at cer- 
 
 all the riches they 
 
 all which are cast 
 
 le home, and there 
 
 ily, and the more 
 
 I." Good News 
 
 1867-8, 
 
 le 
 
 NOTE T. 
 
 " One would think it scarce possible," says Bryant in his Analysis of An* 
 tient Mythology, " that so unnatural a custom, as that of human sacrifices, 
 should have existed in the world ; but it is very certain, that it did not only 
 exist, but almost universally prevail." Analysis, Edit. 3d. 8vo. Lond. 1807. 
 vol. 6. p. 296. 
 
 From this learned writer I select a few examples of this horrid practice, 
 referring for complete satisfaction on this interesting subject to the work 
 itself. 
 
 " Phylarchus affirms, as he is quoted by Porphyry, that of old, every 
 Grecian state ..lade it a rule, before they marched towards an enemy, to 
 solicit a blessing on their undertakings by human victims. Aristomenes^ 
 the Messenian, slew 300 noble Lacedemonians, among whom was Theo- 
 pompus, the King of Sparta, at tlie altar of Jupiter, at Ithome. The Spar- 
 tan boys were whipped, in the sigiit of their parents, with sucli severity be» 
 fore the altur of Diana Orthia, that they often expired under the torture. 
 
 Among the Romans, " Calus Marius offered up his own daughter for a vic< 
 tim to the Dii Averrunci, to procure success in a battle against the Cimbri. 
 When Lentulus and Crassus were Consuls, so late as the 657th year of Rome, 
 a law Avas enacted that there should be no more human sacrifices. — This 
 law, however, was not sufficient to produce their abolition, for not very long 
 after this, it is reported, by Suetonius, of Augustus Ca;sar, when Perusia sur- 
 rendered in the time of the second Triumvirate, that, beside multitudes 
 executed in a military manner, he offered up, upon the Ides of March, 300 
 chosen persons, bolli of the Equestrian and Senatorian Order, at an altar 
 dedicated to the manes of his Uncle Julius Even at Rome itself this cus- 
 tom was revived : and Porphyry assures us, that, in his time, a man was 
 every year sacrificed at the shrine of Jupiter Latiaris. Heliogabalus offered 
 the like victims to the Syrian Deity, which he introduced among the Ro- 
 mans. The same is said of Aurelian. 
 
 *< The Carthaginians, upon a great defeat of their army by Agathocles, see- 
 ing the enemy at their gates, seized at once 200 children of the prime nobi- 
 lity, and offered them in public for a sacrifice. Three hundred more, being- 
 persons who were somehow obnoxious, yielded themselves voluntarily, and 
 were put to death with the others. The neglect of which they accused 
 themselves, consisted in sacrificing children, purchased of parents among 
 the poorer sort who reared them for that purpose ; and not selecting the 
 most promising, and the most honourable, as had been the custom of old. 
 In short, there were particular children brought up for the altar, as sheep are 
 fattened for the shambles : and they were bought and butchered in the 
 same manner. — If a person had an only child, it was the more liable to bp 
 f»nt to death, as being esteemed more acceptable to the deity, and more effi- 
 
a 
 
 mm 
 
 108 
 
 cacious of the general good," 8ic. It is impossible not to shudder at this 
 dreadful recital, fii comparison with the infernal riles of these civilized 
 nations, how pure is the religion of the Savaget of America ! 
 
 NOTE U. 
 
 The arts practised by these impostors, when called upon to exercise their 
 'apposed power of healing, are thus described by Mr. Heckewelder. " At- 
 tired in a frightful dress, he approaches his patient, with a variety of con- 
 tortions and gestures, and performs by his side, and over him, all the antic 
 tricks that his imagination can sug|;est. He breathes on him, blows in his 
 mouth, and squirts some medicines, which he has prepared, in his face, 
 mouth, and nose ; he rattles his gourd filled with dry beans or pebbles, pulls 
 out and handles about a variety of sticks and bundles, in which he appears 
 to be seeking for the proper remedy, all which is accompanied with the most 
 horrid gesticulations, by which he endeavours, as he says, to frighten the 
 Spirit or the disorder away," &c. Hist. Account, p. 226. 
 
 Mr. Hearne's description of the conjurers among the Chepewyan or 
 Northern Indians, which is very minute, and disgusting enough, corresponds 
 so exactly with Heckeweldcr's account, that it would seem as if the same 
 person had sut to each for his picture. Froai the following passage it will 
 be seen that he depends for success upon the aid of his attendant Spirit. 
 
 *' — I began to be vciy inquisitive about the Spirits, which appear to 
 them, on these occasions, [swallowing a stick, bayonet, &,c.] and their form ; 
 when I was told that they appeared in various shapes, for almost every 
 conjurer had his peculiar attendant ; but that the Spirit which attended the 
 man who pretended to swallow the piece of wood, they said, generally ap- 
 peared to him in the shape of a cloud." ^learne, p. 217-18. of the Northern 
 or Chepewyan Indians. 
 
 From the following extracts, it will be seen that the same office existed, 
 attended by the same ceremonies, and the some results, among the natives 
 of Virginia, at the time of its first settlement by the English. 
 
 " To cure the slcke, a certaine man with a little rattle, using extreme bowl- 
 ings, shouting, singing, with divers antick and strange behaviours over the 
 patient, sucketh blood out of his stomack or diseased place." News from 
 Virginia by Captain Smith, apud Purchas, vol. v. p. 950. 
 
 Master Alexander Whitaker, Minister to the Colony at Henrico, anno 
 1G13, states, that " they stand in great awe of the (iuiokosoughs, or priests, 
 which are a generation of vipers, even of Sathan's owne brood. The man- 
 ner of their life is much like to the Popish Hermits of our age ; for they live 
 alone in the woods, in houses sequestered from the common course of men, 
 neither may any man be suffered to cyme into their house, or to speake with 
 
109 
 
 shudder at this 
 these civilized 
 
 exercise their 
 Bwelder. " At- 
 variely of con- 
 im, all the antic 
 ina, blows in his 
 ired, in his face, 
 )r pebbles, pulls 
 rhich he appears 
 ed with the most 
 ;, to frighten the 
 
 Chepewyan or 
 ugh, corresponds 
 m as if the same 
 g passage it will 
 idant Spirit, 
 ivhich appear to 
 
 1 and their form; 
 for almost every 
 lich attended the 
 lid, generally ap- 
 . of the Northern 
 
 ne office existed, 
 
 nong the natives 
 
 I. 
 
 ng extreme howl- 
 
 laviours over the 
 
 ce." News from 
 
 it Henrico, anno 
 soughs, or priests, 
 rood. The man- 
 ige ; for they live 
 m course of men, 
 or to speakewith 
 
 Ihem, but when this priest doth cell him. Ke taketh no care for his victuals 
 for all such kinde of things, both bread and water, iic. are brought unto a 
 place neere unto his cottage, and there are left, which hee fetcheth for his 
 proper neede. If they would have raine, or have lost any thing, they have their 
 recourse to him, who conjurethfor them, and many times prevailelh. If they be, 
 tick, he is their physician ; if they be wounded, he tueketh them. M his com- 
 mand they make warrc and peace, neither doe they any thing of moment with- 
 out him." Whitaker, in Purchas, vol. 4. p. 1771. 
 
 Q,uiokosough seems to have been an appellation common to their Gods and 
 conjurers, unless it be a mistake of the English settlers. The Virginian In* 
 dians so fed Captain Smith, "that he much misdoubted that he should have 
 beene sacrificed to the Quoyoughquosicke, which is a superiour power they 
 worshippe, then the Image whereof, a more ugly thing cannot be described." 
 Purchas, vol. v. p. 950. 
 
 The name written by Whitaker, Quiokosough, and by Smith, (i^oyoughquo^ 
 jicAre, is, no doubt, the same as Kewasowok in Harlot's account ; a proof of 
 the uncertainty of the orthography of Indian words. 
 
 Among the New-England Indians, the same office was designated by the 
 name of Powah, or as it is otherwise written Powow. Thus Mr. Winslow 
 states, in his " Good Newes from New-England" — «' The office and dutie of 
 the Powah, is to be exercised principally in calling upon the Devill, and cur- 
 ing diseases of the ticke and wounded, he. 
 
 " In the Powah's speech, hee promiseth to sacrifice many skinnes ofBeastSf 
 Kettles, Hatchets, Beades, Knives, and other the best things they have, to thejiendt 
 if hee will come to helpe the partie diseased," &c. Furchas, vol. iv. lib. x. 
 cap. V. 
 
 The Savages of Acadia, according to Charlevoix, called their Jongleurs, 
 Autmoins. " Daus I'Acadie — quand on appelle les Jongleurs, c'est moins u 
 cause de leur habilete, que parcc qu'on suppose, qu'ils peuvent mieux s^a« 
 voir des Esprits la cause du mal,et les remedes, qu'il y faut appliquer. — Dans 
 IWcadie, les Jongleurs s'apelloient Jlutmoins,ci c'6toit ordinairement le chef 
 du village, qui etoit revetu de cette dignite." Journal, p. 367-8. 
 
 In the Bohiiii of ihc natives of Hispaniola, when they were visited by Co- 
 lumbus, we clearly recognize the same office. 
 
 " Their Boitii, or priests, instruct them in these superstitions : these are 
 also physicians, making the people beleeve that they obtaine health for them 
 of the Zemes. They tye themselves to much fasting and outward cleanlincssc 
 and purging ; especially where they take upon them the cure of great men : 
 for then theydrmike the powder of a certaine heurbe, which brought them into a 
 furie, wherein they said ihsy learned many things of their Zevies, Much adoe 
 they make about the sicke partie, deforming themselves with many gestures^ 
 breathing, blowing, svcking the forehead, tertwlrs, and necke of Ihc patient^ 
 
 tl 
 

 no 
 
 sometimes also saying) tliat tiie Zemes is BDgrie for not erecting a chappell, or 
 dedicating to liiiu a grove or garden, or the neglect of other holies. And if 
 Ihe sick partie die, bis kins-folkes, by witchcraft, enforce the dead to speake, 
 and tell them whether hee died by naturall destinie, or by the negligeno>^ of 
 the Boitii, in not fasting the full due, or ministring convenient medicine : so 
 that, if these physicians be found faulty, they take revenge of them." Pur- 
 chas, vol. V. p. 1093. 
 
 
 
 NOTE W, 
 
 See tlie very Interesting report of Mr. Duponceaii, to the Historical and 
 Literary Committee of the American Philosophical Society; and also his 
 Correspondence with Mr. Heckewelder. " All the genuine specimens that 
 we have seen," he observes, " of th'e grammatical forms of the Indians from 
 North to South, on the C ntinent and in t . Islands, exhibit the same general 
 features, and no exception whatever, that I know of, has yet been dis- 
 covered." 
 
 '■ When we find so many different idioms, spoken by nations which reside 
 at immense distances from each other, so entirely different in their etymolo- 
 gy, that there is not the least appearance of a common derivation, yet so stri- 
 kingly similar in their forms that one would imagine the rame mind presided 
 ever their original formation, we may well suppose that the similarity extends 
 through the whole of the language of this race of men, at least until we have 
 clear and direct proof to the contrary." Correspondence, ut supr. Letter 
 xxiii. 
 
 Will it be thought an extravagant supposition, that it was the Divine mind 
 which presided over their original formation ; and that when God confounded 
 Ihe languages of men for the very purpose of dispersing them throughout the 
 Earth, He should have so planned the systems of speech, as to make similar 
 grammatical forms characterize the great divisions of the human race .'' 
 
 NOTE X. 
 
 fai this opinion I am supported by Charlevoix. " D'ailleurs les idees 
 quoiqu'enticrement confuses, qui leur sont resties d'un Premier Etre, les 
 vestiges presqu'e(fac6s du culte religicux, qu'ils paroissent avoir autrefois 
 rendu ii cette Divinitc Supreme ; et les foibles traces, qu'on remarquey 
 Jusques dans leurs actions les plus indiff6rentes, de I'ancienne croyance, et 
 de la religion primitive, peuvent les remettre plus facilement qu'on ne croit, 
 dans le chemin de la verif6, »-" ionner a. leur conversion au christianisme des 
 (acilites qu'on ne rencontre pas, ou qui sont contrebalanc6es par de plus 
 grands obstacles, dans les nations les plus civilis6es." Charlevoix, Jour{^, 
 p. 265. 
 
 Ill 
 
 M 
 
ig a chappell, or 
 r holies. And if 
 : dead to speake, 
 16 negligeno^^ of 
 nt medicine : so 
 ►f them." Pur- 
 
 Historical and 
 y ; and also his 
 
 specimens that 
 ic Indians from 
 le same general 
 I yet been dis" 
 
 IS which reside 
 their etymolo- 
 lion, yet so slri' 
 i mind presided 
 lilarity extends 
 ; until we have 
 ut supr. Letter 
 
 le Divine mind 
 •d confounded 
 throughout the 
 make similar 
 an race ? 
 
 jurs leg idees 
 mier Etre, les 
 voir autrefois 
 >n remarqucj 
 ! croyance, et 
 j'on ne croit, 
 stianisme des 
 parde plus 
 ois, Jourj^, 
 
 111 
 
 On this subject, Charlevoix may surely be admitted a, a competent y^itntss 
 No men have more accurately studied the human character than the Jesu^^ 
 
 o ol "T"'"" °^ '^' """'"' °^ ^"''^""y' ""'^' ^^''^t is still more 
 
 o our purpose, the success of their present attempts to civilize and convert 
 
 deltr'T."'' ?'"r ""*=°"'l"^'^'^ by the Spaniards, and in the highest 
 degree mart.al,a„d jealous of their liberties, is a convincing proof of U.e 
 wisdom of their system. Their missionaries are never solitary, and there- 
 fore are not obliged to sink to the level of the savage state, in order to enjoy 
 the pnvdeges of social Ife. The Indians, also, whom they educate, JZ 
 duced to mar-y and sett', around them, under their paternal supervision, ia. 
 stead of bemg again incorporated with their uncivilized countrymen; 
 
 fhTf '', ?' "" ?^'"'"" has fully shown, they would quickly lose all 
 tnat they had gai^^d.