68 AUTHENTIC HISTORY 



Christians; who have propagated their vices, and yielded them tradition 

 for ill, and not for good things. But as low an ebb as these people are 

 at, and as inglorious as their own condition looks, the Chnstians have 

 not outlived tlteir sight, with all their pretensions to an higher manifesta- 

 tion. What good, then, might not a good people graft, where there is so 

 distinct a knowledge left between good and evil? I beseech God to 

 incline the hearts of all that come into these parts, to outlive the 

 knowledge of the natives, by a fixed obedience to their greater knowledge 

 of the will of God ; for it were miserable, indeed, for us to fall under the 

 just censure of the poor Indian conscience, while we make profession of 

 things so far transcending. 



"XXVI. "For their original, I am ready to believe them of the Jewish 

 race; I mean, of the stock of the ten tribes; and that, for the following 

 reasons: First, they were to go to a ' land not lyJantcd, nor hnoirn ;' which 

 to be sure, xisia and Africa were, if not Enropc ; and he that intended 

 that extraordinar}^ judgment upon them, might make the passage not 

 uneasy to them, as it is not impossible in itself, from the eastermost parts 

 of Asia to the westermost of America. In the next place ; I find them of 

 the like countenance, and their children of so lively resemblance, that a 

 man Avould think himself in DuJcc^s place, or Berry street, in London, when 

 he seeth them. But this is not all; they agree in rites; the}'- reckon 

 h J moons ; they offer their Jirst fruits ; they have a kind of feast of taber- 

 nacles ; they are said to lay their «7/a7* upon tivelve stones: their rnourn- 

 ing a year: customs of zcomen, with many other things that do not now 

 occur. 



"So much for the natives; next, the old planters will be considered in 

 this relation, before I come to our colony, and the concerns of it. 



XXVII. " The first planters, in these parts, were the Butch : and soon 

 after them, the /Swedes and Finns. The Dutch applied themselves to 

 traffic ; the Stoedes and Finns to husbandry. There were some disputes 

 between them, some years, the Dutch looking upon them as intruders 

 upon their purchase and possession : Avhich was finally ended in the sur- 

 render made by John Rizeing, the Swedish Governor, to Peter jStyvesanf, 

 Governor for the States of Holland, anno 1655. 



XXVIII. " The Dutch inhabit mostly those parts of the province that 

 lie upon, or near the lay ; and the Sioedes, the freslies of the river Dela- 

 ■icare. There is no need of giving any description of them, who are bet- 

 ter known there than here; but they arc a plain, strong, industrious 

 people; yet have made no great progress Fin culture or propagation of 

 fruit trees ; as if they desired rather to have enough than plenty or trajB6.c. 

 But, I presume the Indians made them the more careless, by furnishing 

 them with the means of profit, to icit, skins and furs, for rum and such 

 strong liquors. They kindh' received me, as well as the English who 



