448 General Obfervations on the North American Indians.
Thus ended my LECTURE. The reverend old red pontiff imme diately afked, whether they had the accurfed beings on the ouher fide of the water? I told him, I hoped not but the religious men often fpoke a ftrong fpeech of evil to thofe they reckoned very bad, and turned them out of the beloved houfe, to the evil fpirits of darknefs. Upon which he requefted me to mention any one of the crimes that might occafion fuch treatment. I told him, " I had heard of a gentleman, whofe heart did not allow him to love his lady fufficiently, and me having by Iharp watching difcovered him to give love to another, com plained of it to a great beloved man j accordingly, either for the neglecl:, or wrong application of his love duty, he was ordered to pay her a confider- able fum of money he valuing it more than her, his heart did not allow him to give fo much : whereupon a (harp fpeech of evil was fpoken againft him, and by that means he was faid to become accurfed." My Indian friend faid, as marriage mould beget joy and happinefs, inftead of pain and mifery, if a couple married blindfold, and could not love each other after wards, it was a crime to continue together, and a virtue to part, and make a happier choice , and as the white people did not buy their wives after the manner of the Indians, but received value along with them, in pro portion to their own pofiefllons, whatfoever the woman brought with her, me ought to be allowed to take back when they feparated, that her heart might weigh even, and nothing be fpoiled. That, in his opinion, fuch determinations belonged to the law, and not to the great beloved men j and, if he underftood me aright, the beloved man threw away the gentleman to the accurfed beings of darknefs, not for having afted any thing againft the divine law, but for daring to oppofe the words of his mouth, in imi tation of the firft prefumptuous great beloved man, who fpoiled the fpeech of the divine mefienger. Many natural, pertinent, and humorous obfer- vations, were made by him on what he had heard.
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