Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/215

 teftimonks of Spanljh writers. 303

ornaments which they wore, only at that great feftival; that they went filently and fedately in proceffion, with their heads veil'd, and drums beat ing and thus continued one day and night ; but the next day they danced and feafted ; and for two days fucceffively, their prayers and praifes were heard. This is another flrong picture of the rites of the Indian North- Americans, during the time of their great feftival, to atone for fin ; and with a little amendment, would exhibit a furprifing analogy of fundry eflential rites and cuftoms of the Northern and South American Indians, which equally glance at the Mofaic fyftem.

Lerius tells us, that he was prefent at the triennial feaft of the Carib- bians, where a multitude of men, women, and children, were aflembled; that they foon divided themfelves into three orders, apart from each other, the women and children being fiddly ordered to flay within, and to attend diligently to the finging : that the men fung in one houfe, He, He, He, while the others in their feparate lioufes, anfwered by a repetition of the fame notes : that having thus continued a quarter of an hour, they all danced in three different rings, each with rattles, &c. And the natives of Sir Francis Drake's New Albion, were defirous of crowning him Hio> or Ohio, a name well known in North America, and hath an evident relation to the great beloved name. Had the former been endued with a proper ca pacity, and given a fuitable attention to the Indian general law of purity, he would probably have defcribed them finging To- He Wah^ Halklu-Tab t &c. after the prefent manner of our North -American red natives; and as giving proper names to perfons and things from a religious principle, to exprefs the relation they bore to the facred four- lettered name.

Thefe writers report alfo, that the Mexicans facrificed to the idol Haloc, they tell us, that the high-prieft was anointed with holy oil, and drefied with pontifical ornaments, peculiar to himfelf, when he officiated in his facred function ; that he was Iworn to maintain their religion, rights, and liberties, according to their ancient law -, and to caufe the fun to fhine, and all their vegetables to be properly refrefhed with gentle fhowers. If we throw down the " monkiih idol god of water," we here find a flrong parity of religious cuftoms and ceremonies, between the pretended prophets, and high-priefts of the prefent northern Indians, and the ancient Mexicans.
 * their God of water," to give them fealbnable rains for their crops : and

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