iL O U I S I A N A. 173 



dian' imrfiediately anfwered, that he had only- 

 done the duty of a brother, who ought to luc- 

 cour the unhappy In time of danger ; that, as 

 the Great Spirit had taught him to fvvim like a 

 fifli," he could not employ his fkill better than 

 to fave "the . life of his fellow-creature. 



All the Indians, both ^men and women, learn 

 to fwim from their infancy. I have often ^ttn. 

 the mothers put their little children into pools of 

 freih water, and I took great delight in feeing 

 the little creatures fwim naturally. Would not 

 fuch an education be better than thofe methods 

 which people are fo fond of In Europe ? The 

 queftion I fpeak of .here is of the utmofl confe- 

 quence, elpecially in a country where almoft eve- 

 ry body goes by water, and on fea-voyages. I 

 fhall not enter into thefe details, vv'hich might 

 prove tirefome : I Ihall only fay, that, accord- 

 ing to found reafon, the Uril thing, which it is 

 neceflary to know in nature, is how to preferve 

 one's exiHence ; and that it is to be wifhed, that 

 the European mothers would imitate the Ame- 

 ricans in that particular, and likewife in fuck- 

 ling their oyvn children. This adlion, v^'Mch 

 is didated by nature, would prevent many acci- 

 dents with' regard to children fuppofed to be 

 legitimate i - and, without quoting manyfafts 



to 



