Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/113

 r religious feftii)ah, fajts, &V. 162

orders to be covered up with white marley clay, and wetted over with clean water *.

Immediately, the magi order them to make a thick arbour over the altar, with green branches of the various young trees, which the warriors had de- fignedly chofen, and laid down on the outfide of the fuppofed holy ground : the women, in the interim are bufy at home in cleaning out their houfes, renewing the old hearths, and cleanfing all their culinary veflels, that they may be fit to receive the pretended holy fire, and the fanetified new fruits, according to the purity of the law ; left by a contrary conduct, they mould incur damage in life, health, future crops, &c. It is frefh in the memory of the old traders, that formerly none of thefe numerous nations of Indians would eat, or even handle any part of the new harveft, till fome of it had been offered up at the yearly feftival by the Arcki-magus^ or thofe of his appointment, at their plantations, though the light harveft of the paft year had forced them to give their women and children of the ripening fruits, to fuftain life. Notwithftanding they are vifibly degenerating, both in this, and every other religious obfervance, except what concerns war-, yet their magi and old warriors live contentedly on fuch harm food as nature affords them in the woods, rather than tranfgrefs that divine precept given to their forefathers.

Having every thing in order for the facred folemnity, the religious waiters carry off the remains of the feaft, and lay them on the outfide of the fquare ; others of an inferior order carefully fweep out the fmalleft crumbs, for fear of polluting the firft-fruit offering ; and before fun-fet, the temple muft be cleared, even of every kind of vefiel or utenfiJ, that had contained, or been ufed about any food in that expiring year. The women carry all off, but none of that fex, except half a dozen of old beloved women, are allowed in that interval to tread on the holy ground, till the fourth day. Now, one of the waiters proclaims with a loud voice, for all the warriors and beloved men, whom the purity of the law admits, to come and enter the beloved fquare, and obferve the faft, he likewife exhorts all

from evil ; but the above practice feems to be pretty much tempered with the Mofaic infti- tution ; for God commanded them to make an altar of earth, to facrifice thereon. Exud, xx. 24.
 * Under the palladium of Troy, were placed things of the like nature, as a prefervative

the

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