Commoro.—"I am afraid of elephants and other animals when in the jungle at night; but of nothing else."
"Then you believe in nothing—neither in a good nor evil spirit! And you believe that when you die it will be the end of body and spirit; that you are like other animals; and that there is no distinction between man and beast; both disappear, and end at death?"
Commoro.—"Of course they do."
"Do you see no difference in good and bad actions?"
Commoro.—"Yes, there are good and bad in men and beasts."
"Do you think that a good man and a bad must share the same fate, and alike die, and end?"
Commoro.—"Yes; what else can they do? How can they help dying? Good and bad all die."
"Their bodies perish, but their spirits remain; the good in happiness, the bad in misery. If you leave no belief in a future state, WHY SHOULD A MAN BE GOOD? Why should he not be bad, if he can prosper by wickedness?"
Commoro.—"Most people are bad; if they are strong they take from the weak. The good people are all weak; they are good because they are not strong enough to be bad."
Some corn had been taken out of a sack for the horses, and a few grains lying scattered on the ground, I tried the beautiful metaphor of St. Paul as an example of a future state. Making a small hole with my finger in the ground, I placed a grain within it: "That," I said, "represents you when you die." Covering it with earth, I continued, "That grain will decay, but from it will rise the plant that will produce a reappearance of the original form."