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but amongft: the Iroquois and Hurons they may 

 part by mutual confent ; this is done without any 

 noife, and the parties thus feparated are at liberty 

 to enter into new engagements. Thefe Indians 

 cannot fo much as conceive how men mould make 

 any difficulty about it : " My wife and I, (faid one 

 " of them to a miflionary, who endeavoured to 

 " bring him to a fenfe of the indecency of this 

 " fort of feparations,) cannot live in peace toge- 

 " ther ; my neighbour is exactly in the fame fitu- 

 <c ation, we have agreed to exchange wives and 

 ct are all four perfectly well fatisfied : now what 

 " can be more reafonable than to render one ano- 

 * ther mutually happy when it can be fo eafily 

 tc brought about, and without hurting any body 

 This cuftom however as I have already remarked, 

 is looked upon as an abufe, and is of no great 

 antiquity, at leaft among the Iroquois. 



What mod commonly deftroys the peace of fa- 

 malies amongft. the Canadian nations is jealoufy, 

 to which both fexes are equally fubject. The Iro- 

 quois boaft of being free from this evil ; but thofe 

 who have been moil converfant among them afTure 

 us, that they are jealous to an extravagant height, 

 "When a woman has difcovered that her hufband 

 likes another, her rival mull take care to keep well 

 upon her guard, and the more fo as the unfaithful 

 hufband can neither defend her, nor fide with her 

 in any manner ; a man who fhould maltreat his 

 wife on this account would be difgraced for ever. 



The parents are the only match-makers in this 

 country ; the parties concerned never appear in it, 

 but abandon themfelves blindly to the will of thofe 

 on whom they depend ; but behold the caprice of 

 thefe barbarians, who fuffer themfelves to be de- 

 pendant 



