appear to them, and acquaint them with what passes at a distance, in
respect to their most important concerns; to advise them what they had
best do, or not do; to forewarn them of dangers, or to inspire them with
revenge against any nation that may have insulted them, and so forth.

They have no idea of his spirituality, or even of the spirituality of
that principle, which constitutes their own vital principle. They have
even no word in their language that answers to that of soul in ours. The
term approaching nearest thereto that we can find, is _M'cheejacmih_,
which signifies _Shade_, and may be construed something in the nature of
the _Manes_ of the Romans.

The general belief amongst them is, that, after death, they go to a
place of joy and plenty, in which sensuality is no more omitted than in
Mahomet's paradise. There they are to find women in abundance, a country
thick of all manner of game to humor their passion for hunting, and bows
and arrows of the best sort, ready made. But these regions are supposed
at a great distance from their's, to which they will have to travel; and
therefore it's requisite to be well-provided, before they quit their own
country, with arrows, long poles fit for hunting, or for covering
cabbins, with bear-skins, or elk-hides, with women, and with some of
their children, to make their journey to that place more commodious,
more pleasant, and appear more expeditious. It was especially in
character for a warrior, not to leave this world without taking with him
some marks of his bravery, as particularly scalps. Therefore it was,
that when any of them died, he was always followed by, at least, one of
his children, some women, and above all, by her whom in his life he had
most loved, who threw themselves into the grave, and were interred with
him. They also put into it great strips, or rolls of the bark of birch,
arrows, and scalps. Nor do they unfrequently, at this day, light upon
some of these old burying-places in the woods, with all these funeral
accompanyments; but of late, the interment of live persons has been
almost entirely disused.

I never could learn whether they had any set formulary of prayer, or
invocation to the _great Manitoo_; or whether they made any sacrifices
of beasts or peltry, to any other _Manitoo_, in contradiction to him, or
to any being whom they dreaded as an evil genius. I could discover no
more than what I have above related of the ceremonies in honor of the