"Again they said, 'You must not steal.' Should you want for anything necessary, you have only to tell your wants and they will be supplied. This is right. Let none ever steal anything. Children are often tempted to take things home which do not belong to them. Let parents instruct their children in this rule.
"Many of our people live to a very old age. Your Creator says that your deportment toward them must be that of reverence and affection. They have seen and felt much of the miseries and pains of earth. Be always kind to them when old and helpless. Wash their hands and face and nurse them with care. This is the will of the Great Spirit.
"It has been the custom among us to mourn for the dead one year. This custom is wrong. As it causes the death of many children, it must be abandoned. Ten days mourn for the dead, and not longer. When one dies, it is right and proper to make an address over the body, telling how much you loved the deceased. Great respect for the dead must be observed among us.
"At another time the four messengers said to Handsomelake that they would show him the destroyer of Villages (Washington), of whom you have so often heard. Upon the road leading to heaven he could see a light, far away in the distance, moving to and fro. Its brightness far exceeded the brilliancy of the noonday sun. They told him the journey was as follows: First they came to a cold spring, which was a resting place; from this point they proceeded into pleasant fairy grounds, which spread away in every direction: soon they reached heaven; the light was dazzling: berries of every description grew in vast abundance: the size and quality were such that a single berry was more than sufficient to appease the appetite: a sweet fragrance perfumed the air; fruits of every kind met the eye. The inmates of this celestial abode spent their time in amusement and repose. No evil could enter there. None in heaven ever transgress again: families are reunited and dwell together in harmony: they possessed a bodily form, the senses and the remembrance of earthly life; but no white man ever enters heaven. Thus they said. He looked and saw an inclosure upon a plain, just without the entrance of heaven. Within it was a fort. Here he saw the 'destroyer of villages,' walking to and fro within the inclosure. His countenance indicated a great and good man. They said to Handsomelake, 'The man you see is the only pale face that ever left the earth; he was kind to you when on the settlement of the great difficulty between the Americans and the Great Crown (Great Britain), you were abandoned to the mercy of your enemies. The Crown told the great American that as for his allies, the Indians, he might kill them if he liked. The great American judged that this would be cruel and unjust; he believed they were made by the Great Spirit, and were entitled to the enjoyments of life; he was kind to you and extended over you his protection: for this reason he has been allowed to leave the earth. But he is never permitted to go into the presence of the Great Spirit. Although alone, he is perfectly happy. All faithful Indians pass by him as they go to heaven. They see him and recognize him, but pass on in silence. No words ever pass his lips.
"Frieads and relatives, it was by the influence of this great man that we were spared as a people, and yet live. Had he not granted as his protection, where would we have been? Perished—all perished.
"The four messengers further said to Handsomelake that they were fearful that unless the people repent and obey his consmands, the forbearance and patience of the Creator would be exhausted; that He would grow angry with them and cause their increase to cease.
"Our Creator, made light and darkness; He made the sun to heat and shine over the world; He made the moon, also, to shine by night and to cool the world, if the sun make it too hot by day. The keeper of the clouds, by direction of the Great Spirit, will then cease to act. The keeper of the springs and running brooks will cease to rule them for the good of man. The sun will cease to fulfil its office. Total darkness will then cover the earth. A great smoke will rise and spread over the face of the earth. Then will come out of it all monsters and poisonous animals created by the evil-minded, and they, with the wicked upon the earth, will perish together.
"But before this dreadful time shall come, the Great Spirit will take home to Himself all the good and faithful. They will lay themselves down to sleep, and from this sleep of death they will arise and go home to their Creator. Thus they said.
"I have done. I close thus, that you may remember and understand the fate which awaits the earth, the unfaithful and the unbelieving. Our Creator looks down upon us. The four Beings from above see us. They witness with pleasure this assemblage, and rejoice at the object for which it is gathered. It is now forty-eight years since we first began to listen to the renewed will of our Creator. I have been unable, during the time alloted to me, to rehearse all the savings of Ga-ne-o-di-yo (Handsomelake); I regret very much that you cannot hear them all.
"Counselors, warriors, women and children, I have done. I thank you all for your attendance, and for your kind and patient attention. May the Great Spirit, who rules all things, watch over and protect you from every harm and danger while you travel the journey of life. May the Great Spirit bless all, and bestow upon you life health, peace and prosperity: and may you in turn appreciate His great goodness. This is all."