Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/173

 T&eir preparatory ceremonies for war. 16 f

Bed for war ; much lefs to afibciate with the camp in the woods, though he went (as I have known it to happen) on the fame war defignj they oblige him to walk and encamp feparate by himfelf, as an impure danger ous animal, till the leader hath purified him, according to their ufual time and method, with the confecrated things of the ark. With the Hebrews, the ark of Berith, " the purifier," was a fmall wooden cheft, of three feet nine inches in length, two feet three inches broad, and two feet three inches in height. It contained the golden pot that had manna in it, Aaron's rod, and the tables of the law. The INDIAN ARK is'of a very fimple conitruc- tion, and it is only the intention and application of it, that makes it wor thy of notice j for it is made with pieces of wood fccurely fattened to-* gether in the form of a fquare. The middle of three of the fides extend a little out, but one fide is flat, for the conveniency of the perfon's back who carries it. Their ark has a cover, and the whole is made impenetrably clofe with hiccory-fplinters ; it is about half the dimenfions of the divine Jewifh ark, and may very properly be called the red Hebrew ark of the purifier, imitated. The leader, and a beloved waiter, carry it by turns. It contains feveral conlecrated w veffels, made by beloved fuperannuated wo men, and of fuch various antiquated forms, as would have puzzled Adam to have given fignificant names to each. The leader and his attendant, are purified longer than the reft of the company, that the firlt may be fit to act in the religious office of a prieft of war, and the other to carry the awful facred ark. All the while they are at war, the Hetiffitj or " beloved waiter," feeds each of the warriors by an exact ftated rule, giving them even the water they drink, out of his own hands, left by intemperance they tlioukl fpoil the fuppofed communicative power of their holy things, and occafion fatal diiafters to the war camp.

The ark, mercy-feat, and cherubim, were the very efience of the levi- tical law, and often called " the teftimonies of Tobewab." The ark of the temple was termed his throne, and David calls it his foot-ftool. In fpeaking of the Indian places of refuge for the unfortunate, I obferved, that if a captive taken by the reputed power of the beloved things of the ark, fhould be able to make his efcape into one of thefe towns, or even into the winter-houfe of the Archi-magus, he is delivered from the fiery torture, otherwife inevitable. This when joined to the reft of the faint images of the Mofaic cuftoms they Hill retain, fcems to point at the mercy-feat in the {ancillary. It is alfo highly worthy of notice, that they

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