Chap. VI. AN TIENT METAPHYSICS. 153 



This theory of mine is fupported by fads : The Orang Outang 

 has certainly no religion ; and if the reader be not yet convinced 

 of his being a man, Peter the Wild Boy, of whofe humanity there 

 never was any doubt, had no idea of a God *, though he was tam- 

 ed and domefticated, and lived very quietly in a family, where I 

 faw him, and had learned a little language. Him, however, as 

 well as the Orang Outang, i confider in the natural (tate. The 

 Savage Girl, whom I faw in France, came from a country where 

 thf V not only had the ufe of language, but prattiled fome of the 

 arts of life, particularly fiiliing, in the natural way indeed, I mean by 

 their hands, but fo that they lived by it. but, from the converfations 

 I had with her, 1 could not learn that they had the leaft idea of re- 

 lig on. And the people of the Pelew ifiands, though much farther 

 advanced in the arts of life, have none neither, as far as we could 

 dilcover dunng the i;^ weeks we were among them ; though, dur- 

 ing that time, we appear to have informed ourlelves of their govern- 

 ment, and the arts of war and navigation which they pradife ; and 

 as there is no religion in any nation, without religious ceremonies 

 and forms of worfhip, thefe we muft have alfo obferved,if there had 

 been any fuch among them. The people of New Zealand appear 

 to be ftill farther advanced in the arts of life ; for they have not 

 only the ufe of language, but are orators and public fpeakers t, and 

 are a generous noble-minded people, as well as the Pelew men ; yet 

 neither have we difcovered any religion among them. The Indian na- 

 tions of North America have notions of religion, which they carry fo 

 far as to acknowledge a Great Spirit, in whofe name they make their 

 treaties of peace. But, in the firft place, I fay, thofe nations are 

 much farther advanced in the arts of civil life than any of the peo- 

 ple above-mentioned; and, fecojid/j, I fay, that even this further 

 progrefs would not have carried them on to the conception of a 

 Supreme Being, if they had not learned it from a people much 



Vol. IV. U farther 



* See p 371. of vol. III. of this work. 



I See p. 4. of vol. VI. of Origin of Language, 



