( 48 ) 



made choice of it for his burial-place, and they ne- 

 ver pafs by this place, without rendering him their 

 homage, by offering him the frnoke of their to- 

 \ bacco. 



This, Madam, is what feemed worthy of ob- 

 fervation with refpecl: to this poll, fo celebrated in 

 the voyages and relations of Canada. I now re* 

 turn to the manners and cuftoms of the Indians, 

 and having already treated of what relates to their 

 wars, I mall entertain with what pafTes at their 

 marriages. 



A plurality of wives is allowed of, amongft fe- 

 veral of the nations of the Algonquin language, and 

 it is common enough to marry all the filters this 

 cuftom is founded on a perfuafion, that filters mull 

 agree better together than ftrangers. In this cafe 

 all the women are upon an equal footing ; but 

 amongft the true Algonquins there are two orders 

 of wives, thofe of the fecond order being the flaves 

 of the firft. Some nations have wives in every 

 quarter where they have occafion to fojourn for a 

 while in hunting time ; and I have besn affured, 

 that this abufe has crept in fome time fince, a- 

 mongft the nations of the Huron language, who 

 were always before fat isfied with one wife. But 

 there prevails in the Iroquois canton of Tfonnon- 

 thouan a much greater diforder {till, namely a plu- 

 rality of hulbands. 



With refpecl to degrees of parentage in mar- 

 riage, the Hurons and Iroquois are very fcrupulous; 

 the parties amongft them muft have no manner of 

 confanguinity, and even adoption itfelf is included 

 in this law. But the hufband when the wife hap- 

 pens to die firft is obliged to marry her fitter, or 



in 



! 



