Cautantowwit; the great south west God, to whose house all souls go, and from whom came their corn and beans, as they say.

Wompanand; the eastern God. Chekesuwand; the western God. Wunnanameanit; the northern God. Sawwanand; the southern God. Wetuomanit ; the house God. Squauanit; the woman's God. Muckquachuckquand; the children's God.

I was once with a native, dying of a wound, given him by some murtherous English, who robbed him and run him through with a rapier, from whom in the heat of his wound, he at present escaped from them but dying of his wound, they suffered death at New Plymouth, in New England: This native dying, called much upon Muckquachuckquand, which of other natives I understood, as they believed, had appeared to the dying young man many years before, and bid him, when he was in distress, call upon him.

Secondly, as they have many of these feigned Deities, so worship they the creatures, in whom they conceive doth rest some Deity: Keesuckquand; the sun God. Nanepaushat; the moon God. Paumpagussit; the sea God. Yotaanit the fire God.

When I have argued with them about their fire God, "Can it, say they, be but this fire must be a God, or divine power, that out of a stone will arise in a spark, and when a poor naked Indian is ready to starve with cold in the house, and especially in the woods, often saves his life, doth dress all our food for us, and if it be angry, will burn the house about us, yea if a spark fall into the dry wood, burns up the country?" (though this burning of wood to them they count a benefit, both for destroying vermin, and keeping down the weeds and thick ets.)

Præsentem narrat quælibet herba Deum.

Besides there is a general custom amongst them, at the apprehension of any excellency in men, women, birds, beasts, fish, &c. to cry out, Manittoo, that is, it is a God: as thus, if they see one man excel others in wisdom, valour, strength, activity, &c. they cry out Manittoo; a God. And therefore when they talk amongst themselves of the English ships and great buildings, of the ploughing of their fields, and especially of books and letters, they will end thus, Mannittoowock; they are Gods: Cummanittoo: you are a God, &c. A strong conviction natural in the soul of man, that God is filling all things, and that all excellencies dwell in God, and proceed from him, and that they only are blessed who have that Jehovah for their portion.

Nickommo; a feast, or dance. Of this feast they have publick and private, and that of two sorts.

First, in sickness, or drought, or war, or famine.

Secondly, after harvest, after hunting, when they enjoy a calm of peace, health, plenty, prosperity; then they have Nickommo, a feast, especially in winter.

Powwaw; a priest. Powwauog; priests. These do begin and order their service and invocation of their Gods, and all the people follow, and join interchangeably in a laborious bodily service, unto

sweating, especially of the priest, who spends himself in strange antick gestures and actions, even unto fainting.

In sickness, the priest comes close to the sick person, and performs many strange actions about him, and threatens and conjures out the sickness. They conceive that there are many Gods, or divine powers within the body of a man; in his pulse, his beart, his lungs, &c.

I confess to have most of these their customs by their own relation : for after being once in their houses, and beholding what their worship was, I never durst be an eye witness, spectator, or looker on, lest I should have been partaker of Satan's inventions and worships.

They have an exact form of king, priest, and prophet. Their kings or governours do govern: Their priests perform and manage their worship Their wise and old men, of which number the priests are also, make solemn speeches and orations, or lectures, to them concerning religion, peace, or war, and all things.

He or she that maketh this Nickommo, feast or dance, besides the feasting, of sometimes twenty, fifty, an hundred, yea I have seen near a thousand persons at one of these feasts,-give a great quantity of money, and all sort of their goods, according to and sometimes beyond their estate, in several small parcels of goods, or money, to the value of eighteen pence, two shillings, or thereabouts, to one person: and that person that receives this gift, upon the receiving it, goes out, and hollows thrice for the health and prosperity of the party that gave it, the master or mistress of the feast.

By this feasting and gifts the devil drives on their worships pleasantly (as he doth all false worships, by such plausible earthly arguments of uniformities, universalities, antiquities, immunities, dignities, rewards unto submitters, and the contrary to refusers) so that they run far and near and ask, Awaun Nickommit; who makes a feast?

They have a modest religious persuasion not to disturb any man either themselves, English, Dutch, or any in their conscience and worship.

Cowwewonck; the soul; derived from Cowwene, to sleep, because, say they, it works and operates, when the body sleeps. Michachunck ; the soul, in a higher notion, which is of affinity with a word signifying a looking glass or clear resemblance: so that it hath its name from a clear sight or discerning, which indeed seems very well to suit with the nature of it.

They believe that the souls of men and women go to the south west; their great and good men and women to Cautantowwit's house, where they have hopes, as the Turks have, of carnal joys. Murtherers, thieves, and liars, their souls, say they, wander restless abroad.

They relate how they have it from their fathers, that Cautantowwit made one man and woman of a stone, which disliking, he broke them in pieces, and made another man and woman of a tree, which were the fountains of all mankind.

They apprehending a vast difference of knowledge between the English and themselves, are very observant of the English lives. I have

heard them say to an Englishman, who being hindered, broke a promise to them," You know God; will you lie, Englishman ?"

After I had, as far as my language would reach, discoursed, upon a time, before the chief Sachim or prince of the country, with his arch priests and many others in a full assembly; and being night, wearied with travel and discourse, I lay down to rest, before I slept, I heard this passage: A Quunnihticut Indian, who had heard our discourse, told the Sachim Miantunnomu, that souls went up to heaven or down to hell; "for, saith he, our fathers have told us, that our souls go to the southwest."

The Sachim answered, "But how do you know yourself, that your souls go to the southwest? Did you ever see a soul go thither ?"

The native replied: "When did he (naming myself) see a soul go to heaven or hell?"

The Sachim again replied: "He hath books and writings, and one which God himself made concerning men's souls; and therefore may well know more than we that have none, but take all upon trust from our forefathers."

The said Sachim, and the chief of his people, discoursed by themselves of keeping the Englishman's day of worship, which I could easily have brought the country to, but that I was persuaded and am, that God's way is first to turn a soul from its idols, both of heart, worship, and conversation, before it is capable of worship to the true and living God, according to 1. Thess. 1. 9. as also, that the two first principles and foundations of true religion, or worship of the true God in Christ, are repentance from dead works, and faith towards God, before the doctrine of baptism or washing, and the laying on of hands, which contain the ordinances and practices of worship. Heb. vi. 2.

THE

CHAP. XXII.

Of their Government and Justice.

HEIR government is monarchical yet at present the chiefest government in the country is divided between a younger Sachim Miantunnomu, and an elder Sachim, Caunounicus, of about fourscore years old, this young man's uncle; and their agreement in the government is remarkable. The old Sachim will not be offended at what the young Sachim doth; and the young Sachim will not do what he conceives will displease his uncle.

Sachimmaacommock; a prince's house; which, according to their condition, is far different from the other houses, both in capacity, and also in the fineness and quality of their mats.

Beside their general subjection to the highest Sachims, to whom they carry presents, they have also particular protectors, Under-Sachims, to whom they also carry presents, and upon any injury received, and complaint made, these protectors will revenge it.

The Sachims, although they have an absolute monarchy over the people, yet they will not conclude of ought that concerns all, either laws, or subsidies, or wars, unto which the people are averse, and by gentle persuasion cannot be brought.

I could never discern that excess of scandalous sins amongst them, which Europe aboundeth with. Drunkenness and gluttony, generally they know not what sins they be. And although they have not so much to restrain them, both in respect of knowledge of God and laws of men, as the English have, yet a man shall never hear of such crimes amongst them, of robberies, murders, adulteries, &c. as amongst the English.

The most usual custom amongst them in executing punishments, is for the Sachim either to beat, or whip, or put to death with his own hand, to which the common sort most quietly submit: though sometimes the Sachim sends a secret executioner, one of his chiefest warriors, to fetch off a head, by some unexpected blow of a hatchet, when they have feared a mutiny by a publick execution.

CHAP. XXIII.

Of Marriage.

INGLE fornication they count no sin; but after marriage, which they solemnize by consent of parents and publick approbation, pubiickly, they count it heinous for either of them to be false.

In case a man or woman commit adultery, the wronged party may put away or keep the party offending. Commonly, if the woman be false, the offended husband will be solemnly revenged upon the offender, before many witnesses, by many blows and wounds; and if it be to death, yet the guilty resists not, nor is his death revenged.

Their number of wives is not stinted; yet the chief nation in the country, the Narrogansets, generally have but one wife.

Two causes they generally allege for their many wives.

First, desire of riches; because the women bring in all the increase of the field, &c. the husband only fisheth, hunteth, &c.

Secondly, their long sequestering themselves from their wives after conception, until the child be weaned, which with some is long after a year old generally, they keep their children long at the breast.

The husband gives from five to ten fathom of their money for his wife, to the father, or mother, or guardian of the maid. If the man be poor, his friends and neighbours contribute money toward the dowry.

The women commonly abound with children, and increase mightily; except the plague fall amongst them, or other lesser sicknesses, and then having no means of recovery, they perish wonderfully.

It hath pleased God in a wonderful manner, to moderate that curse of the sorrows of child-bearing to these poor Indian women: So that ordinarily they have a wonderful more speedy and easy travail and

delivery than the women of Europe. This follows, first, from the hardiness of their constitution, in which respect they bear their sorrows the easier. Secondly, from their extraordinary great labour, even above the labour of men, as in the field, they sustain the labour of it, in carrying mighty burdens, in digging clams and getting other shell-fish from the sea, in beating all their corn in mortars, &c. Most of them count it a shame for a woman in travail to make complaint, and many of them are scarcely heard to groan. I. have often known, in one quarter of an hour, a woman merry in the house, and delivered and merry again; and within two days abroad; and after four or five days, at work.

The men put away frequently for other occasions beside adultery; yet I know many couples, that have lived twenty, thirty, forty years together.

CHAP. XXIV.

Of their Coin.

HE Indians are ignorant of Europe's coin; yet they have given a name to ours, and call it Moneash, from the English money. Their own is of two sorts; one white, which they make of the stem or stock of the periwinkle, when all the shell is broken off and of this sort six of their small beads, which they make with holes to string the bracelets, are current with the English for a penny.

The second is black, inclining to blue, which is made of the shell of a fish which some English call hens, Poquauhock: and of this sort three make an English penny :

They that live upon the sea side, generally make of it, and as many make as will.

The Indians bring down all their sorts of furs, which they take in the country, both to the Indians and to the English, for this Indian money. This money the English, French, and Dutch trade to the Indians, six hundred miles in several parts, north and south from NewEngland, for their furs, and whatsoever they stand in need of from them, as corn, venison, &c.

One fathom of this their stringed money is worth five shillings.

Their white money they call Wompam, which signifies white; their black, Suckauhock, Sucki signifying black.

Both amongst themselves, as also the English and Dutch, the black penny is two pence white; the black fathom, double, or two fathoms of white.

Before they had awl blades from Europe, they made shift to bore their shell money with stone. They also felled their trees with stone set in a wooden staff, and used wooden hoes, which some old and poor women, fearing to leave the old tradition, use to this day.

They hang strings of money about their necks and wrists, as also upon the necks and wrists of their wives and children.