Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/101

 A con'uerfatlon with one of their priejls. 8y

any one, except his religious attendant, to come near him, and, in every other refpect, had honeftly obfervcd the aufrere rules of his religious place, according to the beloved fpeech that IJbtoboollo Eloa Aba gave to the Lodche ef their forefathers : but Loak Ifotpboollo was forely vexed with nioft of their young people for violating the chaftity of their neighbours wives, and even among the thriving green corn and peafe, as their beds here/and there clearly proved -, thus, they fpoiled the power of his holy things, and tempted Minggo IJbto Eloa, " the great chieftain of the thunder," to bind up the clouds, and withold the rain. Befides, that the old women were lefs, honeft in paying their rain-makers, than the Englifh women behaved to their beloved men, unlefs I had fpoken too well of them. The' wives of this and the other perfon, he faid, had cheated him, in not paying him any portion of the lad year's bad crop, which their own bad lives greatly contributed to, as that penurious crime of cheating him of his dues, fufficiently teftified ; not to mention a late cuftom, they had contracted fmce the general peace, of planting a great many fields of beans and peafe, in diftant places, after the fummer-crops were over, on the like difhoneft principle ; likewife in affirming, that when the firft harveft was over, it rained for nothing ; by that means they had blackened the old beloved fpeech, that JJhtoboollo Eloa of old fpoke to his Lodche, and conveyed down to him, only that they might paint their own bad actions white. He concluded, by faying, that all the chieftains, and others prefent, as well as myfelf, knew now very well, from his honeft fpeech, the true caufe of the earth's having been fo ftrangely burnt till lately, and that he was afraid, if the hearts of thofe light and mad people he complained of, did not fpeedily grow honed, the dreadful day would foon come, in which Loak Jfotohoollo would fend Phut- iblk Keeraab Iftto, " the great blazing ftar," Tahkane eeklenna, Loak backache, " to burn up half of the earth with fire," Pherimmi Aiube, " from the north to the fouth," Haffe oobea pera, " toward the fetting of the fun," where they fhould in time arrive at the dreadful place of darknefs, be confined there hungry, and otherwife forely diftrefl among hifimg fnakes and many other frightful creatures, according to the ancient true fpeech that IJhto- hoollo Aba fpoke to his beloved Lodche.

Under this argument, I will alfo mention another ftriking refemblance to the Jews, as to their TITHES. As the facerdotal office was fixed in the tribe

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