Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/58

 46 On the defcent of the American Indians from the Jews.

Indians apply the epithet, compounded, to any of their own religious men, it fjgnifies the great, holy, beloved, and fanctified men of the Holy One.

They make this divine name point yet more ftrongly to the fupreme author of nature, for, as aN, fignifies father j and as the omniprefent Spirit of the univerfe, or the holy father of mankind, is faid to dwell above, they therefore call the immenfe fpace of the heavens, Aba, Abafe, and Abatara : and, to diftinguifh the King of kings, by his attributes, from their own Minggo Ifnto, or great chieftains, they frequently name him Minggo Ijhto Aba, &c. ; Ifhto Aba, &c. , Minggo Aba, &c. ; and, when they are ftriving to move the paffions of the audience, IJhtoboollo Aba. The He brew fervants were not allowed to call their matter or miftrefs 2$, Abba, till they were adopted; to which cuftom St. Paul alludes, Rom. viii. 15.

They have another appellative, which with them is the myfterious, efien- tial name of God the tetragrammaton, or great four-lettered name which they never mention in common fpeech, of the time and place, when, and where, they mention it, they are very particular, and always with a folemn air.

There is a fpecies of tea, that grows fpontaneoufly, and in great plenty, along the fea-coaft of the two Carolinas, Georgia, and Eaft and Weft-Florida, which we call Topon, or Cuffeena : the Indians tranfplant, and are ex tremely fond of it ; they drink it on certain ftated occafions, and in their moft religious folemnities, with awful invocations : but the women, and chil dren, and thofe who have not fuccefsfully accompanied their holy ark, pro Aris et Focis, dare not even enter the facred fquare, when they are on this religious duty ; otherwife, they would be dry fcratched with fnakes teeth, fixed in the middle of a fplit reed, or piece of wood, without the privilege of warm water to fupple the ftiffened ikin.

When this beloved liquid, or fuppofed holy drink-offering, is fully prepared, and fit to be drank, one of their Magi brings two old confecrated, large conch-fhells, out of a place appropriated for containing the holy things, and delivers them into the hands of two religious attendants, who, after a wild ceremony, fill them with the fuppofed fanftifying, bitter liquid : then they approach near to the two central red and white feats, (which the

traders

�� �