Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/124

 ii2 On the dffccnt of the American Indians from the Jews.

fuppofed benefit of their altars, who eat of a cow, and drink wine, or that eat with foreigners, or an inferior caft. Though the heathen world offered facrifice, had ablutions, and feveral other forts of purifications, and frequently by fire, yet at the beft, their religious obfervances differed widely from the divine inftitutions ; whereas the American Aborigines obferve ftrict purity, in the moft efiential parts of the divine law. The former concealed their various worfhip from the light of the fun ; fome feeking thick groves, others defcending into the deep valleys, others crawl ing to get into caverns, and under their favourite rocks. But we find the latter, in their ftate-houfes and temples, following the Jerufalem copy in a furprizing manner. Thofe of them who yet retain a fuppofed moft holy pkce, contrary to the ufage of the old heathen world, have it {landing at the weft end of the holy quadrangular ground : and they always appoint thofe of the meaneft rank, to fit on the feats of the eaftern fquare, fo that their backs are to the eaft, and faces to the weft *. The red fquare looks north ; and the fecond men's cabbin, as the traders term the other fquare, of courfc looks fouch, which is a ftrong imitation of Solomon's temple, that was mo delled according to the divine plan of the Ifraelitim camp in the wildernefs. We find them alfo fanctifying themfelves, according to the emblematical laws of purity, offering their annual facrifice in the centre of their quadran gular temples, under the meridian light of the fun. Their magi are de voted to, and bear the name of the great holy One ; their fuppofed pro phets likcwife that of the divine fire ; and each of them bear the emblems <of purity and holinefs while in their religious duties, they fing ALELUIAH^ YO HE WAH, &c. both day and night. Thus different are the various gods,.

" a prince of God." They elected him on account of his wifdom : The fecond was called Rojb Ha-Toflibbah, " the father of the aflembly :" he was chief in the great council. And db betb Jin, or " the father of the confiftory," fat at his right hand, as the chief of the feventy-two, of which the great fynhedrion confided, the reft fitting according to their merit, in a gradual declenfion from the prince, to the end of the femicircle. The like order is ob- ferved.by the Indians, and Jer. ii. 27, God commanded the Ifraelites, that they Ihould not turn their backs to him, but their faces toward the propitiatory, when they worlhipped him. I remember, in Koofah, the uppermoft weftern town of the Mufkohge, which was a place of refuge, their fuppofed holieft confuted of a neat heufe, .in the centre of the weftern fquare, and the door of it was in the fouih gable-end clofe to the white cabbin, each on a direct line, north and foiuh,
 * The Hebrews had two presents in the great fynhedrion. The firft was called No/he To*

temples,

�� �