136 THE WHALEMAN ; OR, 



cover that they had any idea of the one God, the 

 Maker and Upholder of all things and beings, 

 nor of Providence, nor of accountability, nor of 

 moral right and moral wrong. 



They believed, however, as all heathen idola- 

 ters and pagans do, that there were superior di- 

 vinities. They seemed to fear evil spirits, if they 

 had no reverence for good ones. They had an 

 idea that somewhere, in some remote mountain 

 in the interior, their god lived, and that the dead 

 would in some way or other go thither ; though 

 they never gave us their views particularly upon 

 this subject. They had no idols nor household 

 gods. They paid profound homage to the crow, 

 and regarded it in some sort as sacred. They 

 wore crows' heads as amulets upon their persons. 

 With the exception of the kindness they mani- 

 fested towards us, and natural affection towards 

 their children and to one another, in their social 

 habits, intellectual ignorance, and moral dark- 

 ness, they must be classed among the most de- 

 graded of the human race. 



Their habits of industry correspond with the 

 general features of their character. Thus fish- 

 ing, hunting, making sleds, training dogs in their 

 teams, running races, occasional traffic with tribes 

 in the interior, &c, constitute the principal routine 

 of their employments and amusements. Their 



