I have seene a Deare passe by me upon a neck of Land, and a Salvage that has pursued him by the view. I have accompanied him in this pursuite; and the Salvage, pricking the Deare, comes where hee findes the view of two deares A Deare pursued by the view of the foote, hee was found and killed. together, leading several wayes. One, hee was sure, was fresh, but which (by the sence of seeing) hee could not judge; therefore, with his knife, hee diggs up the earth of one; and, by smelling, sayes, that was not of the fresh Deare: then diggs hee up the other; and viewing and smelling to that, concludes it to be the view of the fresh Deare, which hee had pursued; and thereby followes the chase, and killes that [{49}] Deare, and I did eate part of it with him: such is their perfection in these two sences.
Chap. XVI.
Of their acknowledgment of the Creation, and immortality of the Soule.
Although these Salvages are found to be without Religion, Law, and King (as Sir William Alexander hath well observed,[273]) yet are they not altogether without the knowledge of God (historically); for they have it amongst them by tradition that God made one man and one woman, and bad them live together and get children, kill deare, beasts, birds, fish and fowle, and what they would at their pleasure; and that their posterity was full of evill, and made God so angry that hee let in the Sea upon them, and drowned the greatest part of them, that were naughty men, (the Lord destroyed so;) and they went to Sanaconquam, The beleefe of the Salvages. who feeds upon them (pointing to the Center of the Earth, where they imagine is the habitation of the Devill:) the other, (which were not destroyed,) increased the world, and when they died (because they were good) went to the howse of Kytan, pointing to the setting of the sonne;[274] where they eate all manner of dainties, and never take paines (as now) to provide it.
The Sonne called Kytan.
Kytan makes provision (they say) and saves them that laboure; and there they shall live with him forever, [{50}] voyd of care.[275] And they are perswaded that Kytan is hee that makes corne growe, trees growe, and all manner of fruits.
And that wee that use the booke of Common prayer doo it to declare to them, that cannot reade, what Kytan has commaunded us, and that wee doe pray to him with the helpe of that booke;[276] and doe make so much accompt of it, that a Salvage (who had lived in my howse before hee had taken a wife, by whome hee had children) made this request to mee, (knowing that I allwayes used him with much more respect A Salvage desired to have his sonn brought up to learne the booke of common prayer. than others,) that I would let his sonne be brought up in my howse, that hee might be taught to reade in that booke: which request of his I granted; and hee was a very joyfull man to thinke that his sonne should thereby (as hee said) become an Englishman; and then hee would be a good man.
I asked him who was a good man; his answere was, hee that would not lye, nor steale.
These, with them, are all the capitall crimes that can be imagined; all other are nothing in respect of those;[277] and hee that is free from these must live with Kytan for ever, in all manner of pleasure.