Now to speake something of their Marriages, the Kings or great Powwowes, alias Conjurers, may have two or three Wives, but seldome use it. Men of ordinary Ranke, having but one; which disproves the report, that they had eight or tenne Wives apeece. When a man hath a desire to Marry, he first gets the good-will of the Maide or Widdow, after, the consent of her friends for her part; and for himselfe, if he be at his owne disposing, if the King will, the match is made, her Dowry of Wampompeage payd, the King joynes their hands with their hearts, never to part till death, unlesse Shee prove a Whore; for which they may, and some have put away their Wives, as may appeare by a story. There was one Abamoch married a Wife, whom a long time he intirely loved above her deservings, for that shee often in his absence entertained strangers, of which hee was oftentimes informed by his neighbours, but hee harbouring no sparke of jealousie, beleeved not their false informations (as he deemed them) being in a manner angry they should slander his Wife, of whose constancy hee was so strongly conceited: A long time did her whorish gloazing and Syren-like tongue, with her subtle carriage, establish her in her Husbands favour, till fresh complaints caused him to cast about, how to finde out the truth, and to prove his friends lyars, and his Wife honest, or her a Whore, and his friends true: whereupon hee pretended a long journey to visite his friends, providing all accoutraments for a fortnights journey; telling his Wife it would be so long before she could expect his returne, who outwardly sorrowed for his departure, but inwardly rejoyced, that she should enjoy the society of her old Lemman; whom she sent for with expedition, not suspecting her Husbands plot, who lay not many miles off in the Woods; who after their dishonest revelings, when they were in their midnight sleepe, approaches the Wiggwamme, enters the doore, which was neither barred nor lockt; makes a light to discover what hee little suspected; but finding his friends words to bee true, hee takes a good bastinado in his hand brought for the same purpose, dragging him by the haire from his usurped bed, so lamentably beating him, that his battered bones and bruised flesh made him a fitter subject for some skilfull Surgeon, than the lovely obiect of a lustfull strumpet; which done, hee put away his wife, exposing her to the curtesie of strangers for her maintenance, that so curtesan-like had entertained a stranger into her bosome.
Chap. XII.
Of their worship, invocations, and conjurations.
Now of their worships: As it is naturall to all mortals to worship something, so doe these people, but exactly to describe to whom their worship is chiefly bent, is very difficult; they acknowledge especially two, Ketan who is their good God, to whom they sacrifice (as the ancient Heathen did to Ceres) after their garners bee full with a good croppe: upon this God likewise they invocate for faire weather, for raine in time of drought, and for the recovery of their sick; but if they doe not heare them, then they verifie the old verse, Flectere si nequeo Superos, Acharonta movebo, their Pow-wows betaking themselves to their exorcismes and necromanticke charmes, by which they bring to passe strange things, if wee may beleeve the Indians, who report of one Pissacannawa, that hee can make the water burne, the rocks move, the trees dance, metamorphize himselfe into a flaming man. But it may be objected, this is but deceptio visus. Hee will therefore doe more, for in Winter, when there is no greene leaves to be got, he will burne an old one to ashes, and putting those into the water, produce a new greene leafe, which you shall not onely see, but substantially handle and carrie away; and make of a dead snakes skinne a living snake, both to be seene, felt, and heard; this I write but upon the report of the Indians, who confidently affirme stranger things. But to make manifest, that by Gods permission, thorough the Devils helpe, their charmes are of force to produce effects of wonderment; An honest Gentle-man related a storie to mee, being an eye-witness of the same: A Pow-wow having a patient with the stumpe of some small tree runne thorough his foote, being past the cure of his ordinary Surgery, betooke himselfe to his charmes, and being willing to shew his miracle before the English stranger, hee wrapt a piece of cloth about the foote of the lame man; upon that wrapping a Beaver skinne, through which hee laying his mouth to the Beaver skinne, by his sucking charmes he brought out the stumpe, which he spat into a tray of water, returning the foote as whole as its fellow in a short time. The manner of their action in their conjuration is thus: The parties that are sick or lame being brought before them, the Pow-wow sitting downe, the rest of the Indians giving attentive audience to his imprecations and invocations, and after the violent expression of many a hideous bellowing and groaning, he makes a stop, and then all the auditors with one voice utter a short Canto; which done, the Pow-wow still proceeds in his invocations, sometimes roaring like a Beare, other times groaning like a dying horse, foaming at the mouth like a chased bore, smiting on his naked brest and thighs with such violence, as if he were madde. Thus will hee continue sometimes halfe a day, spending his lungs, sweating out his fat, and tormenting his body in this diabolicall worship; sometimes the Devill for requitall of their worship, recovers the partie, to nuzzle them up in their divellish Religion. In former time hee was wont to carrie away their wives and children, because hee would drive them to these Martens, to fetch them again to confirme their beliefe of this his much desired authoritie over them: but since the English frequented those parts, they daily fall from his colours, relinquishing their former fopperies, and acknowledge our God to be supreame. They acknowledge the power of the English-mans God, as they call, him, because they could never yet have power by their conjurations to damnifie the English either in body or goods; and besides, they say hee is a good God that sends them so many good things, so much good corne, so many cattell, temperate raines, faire seasons, which they likewise are the better for since the arrivall of the English; the times and seasons being much altered in seaven or eight yeares, freer from lightning and thunder, long droughts, suddaine and tempestuous dashes of raine, and lamentable cold Winters.
Chap. XIII.
Of their Warres.
Of their Warres: Their old souldiers being swept away by the Plague, which was very rife amongst them about 14 yeares agoe, and resting themselves secure under the English protection, they doe not now practice any thing in martiall feates worth observation, saving that they make themselves Forts to flie into, if the enemies should unexpectedly assaile them. These Forts some be fortie or fiftie foote square, erected of young timber trees, ten or twelve foote high, rammed into the ground, with undermining within, the earth being cast up for their shelter against the dischargements of their enemies, having loope-holes to send out their winged messingers, which often deliver their sharpe and bloody embassies in the tawnie sides of their naked assailants, who wanting butting Rammes and battering Ordinances to command at distance, lose their lives by their too neare approachments. These use no other weapons in warre than bowes and arrowes, saving that their Captaines have long speares, on which if they returne conquerours they carrie the heads of their chiefe enemies that they slay in the wars: it being the custome to cut off their heads, hands, and feete, to beare home to their wives and children, as true tokens of their renowned victorie. When they goe to their warres, it is their custome to paint their faces with diversitie of colours, some being all black as jet, some red, some halfe red and halfe blacke, some blacke and white, others spotted with divers kinds of colours, being all disguised to their enemies, to make them more terrible to their foes, putting on likewise their rich Iewels, pendents and Wampompeage, to put them in minde they fight not onely for their Children, Wives, and lives, but likewise for their goods, lands and liberties; Being thus armed with this warlike paint, the antique warriers make towards their enemies in a disordered manner, without any souldier like marching or warlike postures, being deafe to any word of command, ignorant of falling off, or falling on, of doubling rankes or files, but let fly their winged shaftments without eyther feare or wit; their Artillery being spent, he that hath no armes to fight, findes legges to run away.
Chap. XIIII.
Their games and sports of activitie.
Bvt to leave their warres, and to speake of their games in which they are more delighted and better experienced, spending halfe their dayes in gaming and lazing. They have two sorts of games, one called Puim, the other Hubbub, not much unlike Cards and Dice, being no other than Lotterie. Puim is 50. or 60. small Bents of a foote long which they divide to the number of their gamesters, shuffling them first betweene the palmes of their hands; he that hath more than his fellow is so much the forwarder in his game: many other strange whimseyes be in this game; which would be too long to commit to paper; hee that is a noted gamster, hath a great hole in his eare wherein hee carries his Puims in defiance of his antagonists. Hubbub is five small Bones in a small smooth Tray, the bones bee like a Die, but something flatter, blacke on the one side and white on the other, which they place on the ground, against which violently thumping the platter, the bones mount changing colours with the windy whisking of their hands too and fro; which action in that sport they much use, smiting themselves on the breast, and thighs, crying out, Hub, Hub, Hub; they may be heard play at this game a quarter of a mile off. The bones being all blacke or white, make a double game; if three be of a colour and two of another, then they affoard but a single game; foure of a colour and one differing is nothing; so long as a man winns, he keepes the Tray: but if he loose, the next man takes it. They are so bewitched with these two games, that they will loose sometimes all they have, Beaver, Moose-skinnes, Kettles, Wampompeage, Mowhackies, Hatchets, Knives, all is confiscate by these two games. For their sports of activitie they have commonly but three or foure; as footeball, shooting, running and swimming: when they play country against country, there are rich Goales, all behung with Wampompeage, Mowhackies, Beaver skins, and blacke Otter skinnes. It would exceede the beleefe of many to relate the worth of one Goale, wherefore it shall be namelesse. Their Goales be a mile long placed on the sands, which are as even as a board; their ball is no bigger than a hand-ball, which sometimes they mount in the Aire with their naked feete, sometimes it is swayed by the multitude; sometimes also it is two dayes before they get a Goale, then they marke the ground they winne, and beginne there the next day. Before they come to this sport, they paint themselves, even as when they goe to warre, in pollicie to prevent future mischiefe, because no man should know him that moved his patience or accidentally hurt his person, taking away the occasion of studying revenge. Before they begin their armes be disordered, and hung upon some neighbouring tree, after which they make a long scrowle on the sand, over which they shake loving hands, and with laughing hearts scuffle for victorie. While the men play the boyes pipe, and the women dance and sing trophies of their husbands conquests; all being done a feast summons their departure. It is most delight to see them play, in smaller companies, when men may view their swift footemanship, their curious tossings of their Ball, their flouncing into the water, their lubberlike wrestling, having no cunning at all in that kind, one English being able to beate ten Indians at footeball. For their shooting they be most desperate marksmen for a point blancke object, and if it may bee possible Cornicum oculos configere they will doe it: such is their celerity and dexterity in Artillerie, that they can smite the swift running Hinde and nimble winged Pigeon without a standing pause or left eyed blinking; they draw their Arrowes between the fore fingers and the thumbe; their bowes be quicke, but not very strong, not killing above six or seaven score. These men shoot at one another, but with swift conveighance shunne the Arrow; this they doe to make them expert against time of warre. It hath beene often admired how they can finde their Arrowes, be the weedes as high as themselves, yet they take such perfect notice of the flight and fall that they seldome loose any. They are trained up to their bowes even from their childhood; little boyes with Bowes made of little stickes and Arrowes of great bents, will smite downe a peece of Tobacco pipe every shoot a good way off: as these Indians be good marksmen, so are they well experienced where the very life of every creature lyeth, and know where to smite him to make him dye presently. For their swimming it is almost naturall, but much perfected by continuall practise; their swimming is not after our English fashion of spread armes and legges which they hold too tiresome, but like dogges their armes before them cutting through the liquids with their right shoulder; in this manner they swimme very swift and farre, either in rough or smooth waters, sometimes for their ease lying as still as a log; sometimes they will play the dive-doppers, and come up in unexpected places. Their children likewise be taught to swimme when they are very young. For their running it is with much celeritie and continuance, yet I suppose there be many English men who being as lightly clad as they are, would outrun them for a spurt, though not able to continue it for a day or dayes, being they be very strong winded and rightly clad for a race.