Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/159

 tf/je jimilarity of their punifiments. 147

reflets on his fickle, obftinate, and cruel difpofition, will naturally think on the Jews. Englim America, feelingly knows the parity of the temper of their neighbouring Indians, with that of the Hebrew nation.

The Ifraelites cut off the hands and feet of murderers, 2 Sam. iv.- 12. ftrangled falfe prophets and fometimes burned, ftoned, or beheaded thofc malefactors who were condemned by the two courts of judgment. The Indians either by the defect of tradition, or through a greedy defire of re venge, torture their prifoners and devoted captives, with a mixture of all thofe Jewilh capital punimments. They keep the original fo clofe in their eye, as to pour cold water on the fufferers when they are fainting, or over come by the fiery torture to refrefh, and enable them to undergo longer tortures. The Hebrews gave wine mixt with the juice of myrrh, to their tortured criminals, to revive their fpirits ; and fometimes vinegar to prevent too great an effufion of blood, left they mould be difappointed in glut ting their greedy eyes, with their favourite tragedy of blood : which was eminently exemplified in their infulting treatment of Chrift on the crofs.

The Indians, beyond all the reft of mankind, feem in this refpect to be actuated with the Jewifti fpirit. They jeer, taunt, laugh, whoop, and re joice at the inexpreflible agonies of thofe unfortunate perfons, who are un der their butchering hands ; which would excite pity and horror in any heart, but that of a Jew. When they are far from home, they keep as near to their diftinguifhing cuftoms, as circumftances allow them : not be ing able formerly to cut off the heads of thofe they killed in war, for want of proper weapons ; nor able to carry them three or four hundred miles without putrefaction, they cut off the (kin of their heads with their flint- ftone knives, as fpeaking trophies of honour, and which regifter them among the brave by procuring them war titles. Though now they have plenty of proper weapons, they vary not from this ancient barbarous cuftom of the American aborigines : which has been too well known by many of our northern colonifls, and is yet fhamefully fo to South-Carolina and Georgia barriers, by the hateful name of fcalping.

The Indians ftrictly adhere more than the reft of mankind to that po- fitive, unrepealed law of Mofes, " He who Iheddeth man's blood, by

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