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Show THE PRESENT STATE Col. 4 : Smith gives tOckanickon, account of an who died a ° 1681. OF JUDAH AND ISRAEL. old Indian k ing, ‘To a proprieter of New Jersey. then with him, he said, as he was abou t to die; - * - R76 } F 1 ‘There are two ways ; a broad, and a straight way. The worst and the greatest number go in the peead way ; the best and the fewest in the straight way.” It is fully evident from many sources of information that the ladians’ views of the Great religion, were from their own Spirit, and their ancient tradition ; and -not from any thing they ever learned from the wee eople after the latter came to this continent. Rev. Mr. Brainerd, the noted missionary to the Indians, informs of his meeting an Indian one hundred and hirty miles from our settlements, who had a house consecrated to religious purposes. Mr. Brainerd !a- boured to teach him Christianity; but some of it he utterly rejected, saying, “‘ God had fugit him_ his religion, and he would never turn from it.” He lamented that the Indians had grown so corrupt. He related that about five years before he (having before lived at ease as the Indians did) became ‘greatly distressed, and thought he could live among aie not Indians; and for some months he lived retired oe At length, he said, eo them in the woods. Spirit had comforted him. That since that are 1€ had known the Great Spirit, and tried to serve him. Ben That he loved all men, be they who they He treated Mr. Brainerd he never did before. ae a great courtesy, and seemed hearty and ue but so tenacious of his own — in his religion; al views, that he would not receive the pecaliar yhristianity. et deaths 0 a hunting tour among the soars oe hin informs of an aged Indian who seemed ard who praying to the Great Spin prepare He would petition with, Oh. oh, oh—-?? and for use e, -hous a sweatat-ho self for prayer by entering at rioleynt persp! himself 1into a (or i fifteen minutes putting He would then burn tobacco, and f : y te ration. - Col. Smith undertook to ae the Great Spirit. something of the way of access to God reve : : . ’ ‘ > . ” j a é s . the gospel. He said “ he thought he was now too old to begin to learn a new religion. He should there-. | fore continue to worship God in the way he had been — taught ;”” evidently meaning taught from Indian tradition. This old Indian had been informed something of the religion of the Roman Catholics; but he said, he did not believe the great and good Spirit ever taught them any such nonsense. He therefore concluded that the Indians’ old way of worshipping God was better. The exploring commissioners of the United Foreign Missionary Society reported in favour of a mise sion being founded among the Pawnees, high up the Missouri. ‘They gave the following account of this tribe. “ The Pawnees feel and acknowledge their’ dependance on God. A man who has often witnessed it informed us that in their public feasts, before they eat, a man venerable for age asks a blessing, and thanks God for success in hunting, for the meat they are about to eat, for the drink, and white Their for the wood which makes a fire to cook their provisions.”? These Pawnees had never learned their religion from the whites. They were effectually out of their reach. And no straggling white traders among the wester n Indians were disposed to teach the Indians religion ; nor would the Indians receive any instruction from them, as appears from the following. ‘These exploring Commissioners state, as one reason why a mission should be soon established among them, thus ; “ They are much better prepared to receive a mission than those nations who have more intercourse with the people. circumstances call on you to send the gospel among them, before the wretched hordes who are ever flying from the abodes of ej. Vili zation reach their vicinity, and against our holy religi on.” ‘Their One Great Spirit then was never prejudice them worshipping the lea rned from us, he past contiguities of the Ind ians to our frontiers ave ever tended to subvert the religion of these Natives, such as it was, and to give them a deadly Prejudice against ours. 12* No! Their religious notions ‘ |
