ISCnORTI, OR ISCHORTZI. 133 
Lohavoliits, and Ontsoa, enjoy the privilege of snbmittiug themselves, 
on the death of their lord or king, to any chief they please. In return 
for such homage, the new lord makes them a present, in consequence 
of which he becomes heir of all their possessions ; hence the lower 
classes, both of whites and blacks, when death aj)proaches, are under 
the greatest anguish of mind, knowing that their lords will not fail to 
deprive their children of every thing they possess. The Ondevenes 
have not the same liberty with the others, but, in times of famine, 
the chiefs are obliged to supply them with necessaries, which, if they 
fail to do, they have the liberty of submitting themselves to new 
masters. 
The inhabitants of this province have no temples, and very little 
appearance of religion, only they keep up a custom of immolating 
beasts upon particular occasions, as in sickness, planting yams and 
rice, on assemblies, &c. They offer the first-born beast to the Devil, 
and to God, naming the Devil first, in this manner, Diaubilis Amin- 
hauhabere, or. Lord Devil and God. 
IsCnORTI, OR IsCHORTZI. 
These are the inhabitants of the flat country of Ingria. When 
Peter the Great wrested this province from the Swedes, which was 
confirmed to him by the treaty of Nystadt in 1721, the inhabitants 
were a Finnish people, but little different from the Finns of Carelia, as 
to their language and tpanqers ; but they are not allowed to retain 
their ancient Swedish privileges. Peter made a present of part of the 
Ischortzi to several Russian nobles, who, on their side, were obliged 
to people the less cultivated cantons of Ingria with colonies of P.,u&" 
sians from their estates, and hence we often see a village of Russians 
surrounded by villages of Finns. The Ischortzi have long followed 
agriculture : their economy is an ill-chosen mean between that of 
the Russians and that of the Finns. They assemble in small villages, 
of five or ten farms each, and live miserably in small dirty huts. Their 
household furniture indicates the greatest penury ; and their manner 
of living is disgusting. Notwithstanding the land that each family 
occupies is of tolerable extent, their agriculture and cattle are equally 
poor. Their inclination to idleness and drinking leads them often to 
sell their stock, and even the corn they have saved for sowing their 
fields. The money thus obtained they soon squander, and are thus 
reduced to the most deplorable indigence. In this state they behold 
their cattle die of hunger and cold, with indifference. Some of them, 
however, imitate the Russian villagers, who, being better managers, 
are in better circumstances. The Ingrians are a stupid, suspicious, 
thievish race, and dangerous from their pilfering habits. Those who 
live along the road to Riga, resemble the gypsies, wander about like 
them, calculate nativities, and tell fortunes. 
The dress of the men is like that of the Finn boors, but that of the 
women betrays a variety, which, considering their poverty, and the 
tyranny which their husbands and fathers exercise over them, may 
pass for luxury. The lower part of their dress resembles that of the 
Filin country women. Their shifts reach down to their knees, having 
