288 



INDIAN AND OTHER 



dwellings, which they assail with a terrible war-whoop, 

 maiming and decapitating all they encounter, with the ex- 

 ception of the children, whom they lead into captivity. After 

 having satiated themselves with the spilling of human blood, 

 and having plundered whatever is within their reach, more 

 especially the heads of those they have slain, they return vic- 

 toriously to their homes. The invaded sometimes stand on 

 the defensive ; but usually those who attack are the van- 

 quishers. Their most common pra6lice, therefore, is to fly 

 to the forest, and having assembled there, to proceed to the 

 encounter of the invading foe, whose progress they arrest. 

 Having in their turn become the assailants, the issue of the 

 contest is frequently so much in their favour, that they do not 

 leave any one of the adversaries to carry to his nation the 

 tidings of the defeat. But whether their attempt be prospe- 

 rous or unsuccessful, they complete the destru6lion of the 

 town which the enemy had assaulted, and remove to another 

 part. ' 



If those who engage in an expedition of this nature succeed 

 in all the stratagems of the warfare, they dispatch a messenger 

 to their nation to announce their vi6lories. The instant these 

 are made known, all who remained behind, the women more 

 particularly, colledl together, and sally forth to meet the war- 

 riors, bestowing on them welcomes and encomiums in pro- 

 portion to the number of heads each brings with him, and re- 

 prehending and deriding him who comes without them. This 

 operates so powerfully on these barbarians, that they would 

 suffer death sooner than enter their house without the head of 

 an enemy, or some other extraordinary token of their prow- 

 ess. Those Avho maintain that the Indian does not pique him- 

 self 



