8o HISTORY OF THE [BOOK. i. 



drought never rages, and the hurricane is never felt. 

 In this seat of bliss (the elysium of antiquity) they be- 

 lieved, that their greatest enjoyment would arise from 

 the company of their departed ancestors, and of those 

 persons who were dear to them in life;* a proof at 

 least of their filial piety and of the warmth and ten- 

 derness of their affections and dispositions. 



The consciousness in our Indians that they were 

 accountable beings, seems to indicate a greater degree 

 of improvement than we are willing to allow to any 

 of the natives of the new hemisphere. Although 

 like the Charaibes, our islanders acknowledged a plu- 

 rality of Gods, like them too, they believed in the 

 existence of one supreme, invisible,, immortal, and 

 omnipotent Creator; whom they named Jocahuna.'f 

 But unhappily, with these important truths, these 

 poor people blendid the most puerile and extravagant 

 fancies, which were neither founded in rational piety, 

 nor productive of moral obligation. They assigned to 

 the supreme Being, a father and mother, whom they 

 distinguished by a variety of names, and they sup- 

 posed the sun and moon to be the chief seats ot their 

 residence. J Their system of idol-worship was, at the 

 same time, more lamentable than even that of the 

 Charaibes ; for it would seem that they paid divine 

 honours to stocks and stones converted into images, 

 which they called Zemi; not regarding these idols as 



* Herrera, lib.iii. c, iii. 



f Martyr, decad. i. lib. ix. F. Columbus. 



J F. Columbus. P. Martyr. Benzoni. 



