The best true Account that we have of the Primitive wild Inhabitants of the Earth, not civilized by Government, nor assisted by Learning, Arts and Communication with Strangers, is of the Canaanites; whose State of Nature the Indians still retain, resembling them in most Respects, who may be their Cousins descended from Joktan, and may be some cursed Generations, for Reasons hidden from us. For which Causes they might be separated from the rest of Mankind, and be debarred the Light of Grace, and kept in their barbarous Ignorance, for their obstinate Rebellion against God; till of his gracious Goodness and Mercy he be pleased in his appointed Time to compleat their Conversion, and be more favourable to them.
I have a much truer and clearer Notion of the Canaanites, Hebrews, &c. since I have seen the Indians, than I could have before, who afford living Examples of the primitive Savages, and Idolaters.
To confirm this, observe; that as the Inhabitants of the Land of Canaan, who were vanquished by the Israelites, and were principally descended from Canaan the fourth Son of accursed Ham, being a Mixture of several remarkable Nations that were great and idolatrous, and in an especial Manner hateful to God, with frequent Wars and Barbarities among themselves; in like Manner are the American Indians, as savage, idolatrous, unbelieving, numerous, monstrous, idle and delighting in War and Cruelty as their antient Relations the Inhabitants of the Land of Canaan; and have as many different Nations, Languages, and strange Names and Customs as the Canaanites, the Jebusites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizites, and the Gergisites. The Indians being subdivided into as many Branches and Sovereignties as they, intermixt with as hideous Neighbours, as the Gigantick Philistines of the Race of Misraim; with the Moabites and Amorites, Descendants of Lot by his own Daughters; with the Midianites and Edomites, the Posterity of Midian and Esau.
The Senecaa Indians in their War Dress may appear as terrible as any of the Sons of Anak. The Usherees, Shuterees, and Cherackees are full as formidable as the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amalakites; and a Tuskaroodau is as savage and strange as any Canaanite, that dwelt by the Sea; and a Pomunkee, Sapony, or Sugarr is as fierce and frightful as any Amorite that dwelt upon or beyond the Mountains; and Powhatan, Oppechancanough and Wickmaunatauchee have fought many Battles not unlike Og, Sihon, and Chederlaomer.
In my mean Judgment it seems not improbable that when Noah had cursed the Posterity of Ham, and reserved different blessings for Shem and Japheth, God set a distinguishing Colour upon their Bodies, and ingrafted in their Nature various Tempers, and endowed them with separate Talents. From whence their Posterity are of three different Complexions and Countenances, as is apparent in White, Black, and Brown People, which by Mixtures, or from Climates or otherwise are subdivided: Particularly the brown Children of Shem have two peculiar Aspects different from each other, and distinct from all the rest; one proper to the Jews, the Sons of Peleg, and the other belonging to the East and West-Indies, the Sons of Joktan, Peleg's younger Brother.
To the white Posterity of Japheth, viz. to the Europeans in particular are Noah's Words (Gen. ix. 27.) very applicable, where he said, that God should enlarge Japheth, and he should dwell in the Tents of Shem, and Canaan shall be his Servant; which seems fulfilled in our Possession of Lands in the East and West-Indies, the Tents of the Sons of Shem, where Canaan or the Negroe is our Servant and Slave; and as it is said of him in the 25th Verse, a Servant of Servants is Canaan unto his Brethren.
For the Negroes seem evidently to be Descendants from some of the Sons of Canaan. For it is not to be supposed that the Jews destroyed them all, for the Families of the Canaanites were spread abroad, Gen. x. 18. so that probably in process of Time they possessed Africa. As for the Blessing upon Shem in the 26th Verse, and Canaan being his Servant; this appears to be fulfilled in the Jews in Part, descended from Peleg, Heber's eldest Son; from whom sprung Abraham the Father of the Faithful, in whose Seed the Lord God of Shem may be said to be blessed according to Noah's Prophecy, who made Part of Canaan Slaves, and took them Captive. And as for the other Branches of Shem's Posterity by Joktan (which Sound is not quite lost in either of the Indies) I take them to be the East and West-Indians, Chinese, and Tartars; and it may be the Persians, for whom with their Cousins the Jews, none but God knows what Blessings may still be reserved in Store, it being to be hoped that they and all the Ends of the World may be converted, and see and partake of the Salvation of our God; so that by all may the Lord God of Shem at length be blessed.
Thus far, as to my Notions of the Original of the Indians, whom I imagine to be descended from some of the Sons of Joktan, second Son of Eber, sprung from Shem, Noah's eldest Son: With a Derivation of the Whites from Japheth the youngest, and the Negroes from some of the Sons of Canaan, Descendant of Ham, Noah's second Son.
