Their honesty is immaculate, and their purity of
purpose, and their observance of the rites of their religion, are most
uniform and remarkable. They are, certainly, more like a nation of
saints than a horde of savages."
In fact, the antibelligerent policy of this tribe may have sprung from
the doctrines of Christian charity, for it would appear that they had
imbibed some notions of the Christian faith from Catholic missionaries
and traders who had been among them. They even had a rude calendar of
the fasts and festivals of the Romish Church, and some traces of its
ceremonials. These have become blended with their own wild rites, and
present a strange medley; civilized and barbarous. On the Sabbath, men,
women, and children array themselves in their best style, and assemble
round a pole erected at the head of the camp. Here they go through a
wild fantastic ceremonial; strongly resembling the religious dance of
the Shaking Quakers; but from its enthusiasm, much more striking and
impressive. During the intervals of the ceremony, the principal chiefs,
who officiate as priests, instruct them in their duties, and exhort them
to virtue and good deeds.
"There is something antique and patriarchal," observes Captain
Bonneville, "in this union of the offices of leader and priest; as there
is in many of their customs and manners, which are all strongly imbued
with religion."
The worthy captain, indeed, appears to have been strongly interested by
this gleam of unlooked for light amidst the darkness of the wilderness.
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