PREFACE, Xix 



than the children of the Natives, even if they 

 could as easily be obtained ; and when instructed, 

 they would be equally promising, as the instru- 

 ments of spreading civilization and the religion of 

 the gospel, among the Indian tribes. They have 

 always been habituated to a life, in a great meas- 

 ure settled ; and they would, therefore, endure 

 confinement, better than children who have lived 

 among the wandering savages. They are partial- 

 ly civilized, by an intercourse with those, who 

 have carried into the wilderness many of the feel- 

 ings and habits of civilized society. They would 

 not be liable to be withdrawn, at an improper 

 time, from the place of their education, by the 

 whims and caprice of unstable parents. At the 

 same time^ being familiarly acquainted with the 

 manners and customs and feelings of the savages, 

 by a frequent intercourse with them, being able 

 to speak their languages, and having some of the 

 Indian blood circulating in their veins, they would, 

 when properly instructed, be as well qualified to 

 gain access to the Natives, and to have influence 

 over them, as if they had originally been taken, 

 directly from their families. 



