38* K A R R A S ® Y f O R A IsT
CftA P. thing. This naturally leads .me to the fbeeeh of an In -
,L, ' djajt, inj reply:.t9 a iff mom praaehedyby at Swedi fh rninifter
at an,Indian treaty, held at Coveftogue, of which the
principal'fohftapqg was a$;fellsw§ :.
&en really believe, that we anA our fore-
«•.fathers are all» as you wnuld teach us^ condemned-to
fuSer. eternal torments in another world, becauf© we
“ have not. been taught your myfterious: novelties! $r Are
“ we not the work of God? And can the Almighty not
“ manifeft his will without the help of a book ? If this is
“ true, and God is juft, then how is it confillent with his
“ juftice to force life upon us without pur consent, and
2 then to condemn us all to eternal damnation, becaufe
“ we did not meet with you. Nq?, Sir», we; aye convinced.
“ that the Chriftians. are more deprived in their morals
“ than we Indians, if we may judge: ©f their: tkxftrines by
*f the general badnefs of their lives.”
There cannot indeed be a more laudable' undertaking,
than the endeavour to engraft divine truth« on the pure
minds of thefe innocent people, fo worthy o f inftruc-
tion; but I fear, and it is top obfervabte^ that the
words of one good man will have but littleefFe&, when
the practice of the far greater humher o f Moravian
preachers fettled amongft them on the banks of the Sera-
mica rivers, where they endeavour to convert the negroes
as well as the Indians, is in diredfc contradiction torhisdife
and precepts.
All the Guiana Indians believe in God as the fupreme
author
author of every good,' ^nd never inclined to do them an
injury; but they worlhip whom they call
' Vawaho^ to prevent his affridt-ing them with Hnl, and to
whom th'ef atfb'fibe pain*, difeafe, ^ wounds, and death-,:
ahd^wftiW£*an Indian die«* in order to ^ayert future fatar
Mty,'the Wholfe.f&miJy *T©,on after, ieave lhe|%ot as1 a place
of rehdenee.
1 s The Guiana Indians area perffeiStlyiftee people, that is,
they ’have no diviiidii off land^a-md kre- without an ^ g o vernment,
excepting that hr nroft families'the^lieil? kigts
as captain, pfieft, and physician, to whom they pay’ a re-
■Veremial bbbdienfce r thefejmen ;are- called' P-eii or Pa-
id fiw&e civilizednations* Myd better than
all others’.
Polygamy is admitted among them, and' ever Indian.
-is^ allowed-In take 'Ui:nlhrfiy I'^ives aS'h&'-ean'iprb-
‘Vide for, though he generaty-hiky bufdnep b f whom
he> is ektremelyi ^eate'us, and' whom ^foe khoclsi&on the-
head the ifldmen't'he Wedefm a decided rpioof d f-her
' incontineriey< J Thefe India n& never beat- their -eh'il-
dren OH? ally fidlaiint Whaieverif'nOf'give them-any-edu-
'tatifihv-exempt in hnhtlng^fifhing* funning, ahdTwim--
i y^t they nevet u£e abufive ‘langhagfe to “each
other*; nor ileal; and a- lyW, i$| totally unknown"&mcfng
them. To: which I. may ad’d, that no people can be more
grateful when treated with, civility, of Which' I {hall in.
-future relate a remarkableanitance :* but I mufh not fot-
genthat, OEt’ijhe’Othef hand* they are ©kBremely revenge^.
. 1 f f i
CHAP.
XV.