the night, and precipitating itself from a neighbouring hill, nearly overwhelmed the colony of St. Jeronymo. The immense force of waters broke the leathern door, rushed into my hut where I was sleeping, and not immediately gaining egress, increased to about five palms in depth. Awakened by the noise, I put my arms out of bed, and using them as a plumb, measured the depth of the water; and had not the wall, which was perforated by the flood, opened a way to the waters, I must have been obliged to swim for my life. The same thing happened to all the Abipones who dwelt on low ground, their huts being entirely inundated. But lo! the next morning a report was spread, that a female juggler, who had received some offence from one of the inhabitants of the town, had caused this great storm in the intent of drowning the whole horde, but that the clouds had been repulsed, the rain stopped, and the town saved by the interposition of another juggler. That dreadful flood did not extend to the neighbouring plain, where Pariekaikin, at that time chief of the Abiponian jugglers, was then living with some companions, who, after a long drought, were very desirous of getting water. This Pariekaikin in an oracular manner declared, that Father Joseph Brigniel had caused that rain for the advantage of his town, and that because he, Pariekaikin, did not choose to reside there, he had, out of revenge, directed the clouds with such art, that not a drop of rain reached his station. For they made no hesitation in accounting that Father a conjuror, because he happily and speedily healed the sick.
That the American jugglers enjoy familiar intercourse with the evil spirit is not only firmly believed by the ignorant savages, but some writers have even endeavoured to persuade Europe to believe it. For my part, after so long an acquaintance with these nations I could never bring myself to credit it, always remaining of opinion that they neither know, nor are capable of performing any thing above human powers. Being firmly persuaded that they would do me all the evil in their power, I often accosted them in a friendly manner, and by all sorts of good offices endeavoured to prevail upon them to alter their manner of life, and embrace religion; for by their example almost all the rest would regulate their conduct. But this was like washing the blackamoor white: for these wickedest of mortals, unwilling to part with their authority and lucrative office, left no stone unturned, no frauds unattempted to deter and intimidate their countrymen from going to church, attending to the instructions of the priests, and receiving baptism, daily denouncing death, and destruction on the whole nation, unless they obeyed. Nor is this either new or surprizing. In all the American nations the teachers of the holy religion have found the jugglers upholders of ancient superstition, and rocks in the way of the desired progress of the Christian law. Good heavens! what contests, and what trouble did they not cause to Antonio Ruiz de Montoya, the famous Guarany missionary! It was not till he had repressed the authority of the remaining jugglers, and commanded the bones of the dead ones, which were universally worshipped with great honours, to be burnt in the presence of the people, that he converted an infinite number of savages to the Christian religion, and induced them to enter colonies. Till these knavish holophants, and sycophants to speak with Plautus, are abolished, nothing can be done with the savages; this I affirm on experience. The town of St. Joachim not only merited the praise of religion, but produced many fruits of genuine piety. But as snakes often lurk in the grass, and tares in the most abundant harvest, an old Indian secretly performed the office of juggler there, and suffered himself to be adored as a divine person by some foolish women, whom he served in the double capacity of physician, and prophet, at the same time carrying on a criminal intercourse with them. These things were disclosed to me by Ignatius Paranderi, chief Cacique of the town; so that judging it advisable immediately to reprove this mischievous old man in public, since private admonitions were of no avail, I repaired to his house attended by all the chief people of the place; and imitating, in this important business, the thundering tongue of Cicero when he fulminated against Catiline, addressed him in the following manner. "How long, accursed old man, will you belie your profession of Christianity, by daring to corrupt the morals of your fellow-hordesmen with nefarious arts, and indecent conduct? After living near twenty years in the school of Christ, are you not afraid to practise savage rites the most repugnant to Christian laws? Your manner of life is exactly suitable to the name of tiger, (he was called Yaguaretè, which means a tiger;) for by your deceits and indecencies you tear the poor little sheep of Christ. Extreme age has conducted you to the goal of life; – unless you repent, what a wretched death, and when dead what a sad fate awaits you! I am equally ashamed and grieved on your account. He whom you behold dead on the cross for you," said I, showing him a crucifix, "will drive you headlong into hell, to punish your perfidy. Be what you appear, or appear what you are. Regulate your conduct according to divine law. But if savage superstitions are too firmly rooted in your breast to be ever eradicated, return instantly to the woods of the savages, to the dens of wild beasts where you first saw the light, that your example may not pervert the rest of your hordesmen, who have dedicated their lives to religion and virtue. Go, and repent of your former sins, and by penitence and innocence of life, cleanse away the stains of them. If you do not instantly obey my friendly admonitions, it will be worse for you. Henceforward, you shall not go unpunished. Know, that as soon as ever I hear of any act of superstition or indecency committed or attempted by you, at my orders you shall be led about the streets amidst the hisses of the people, and pelted with cow-dung, by a crowd of boys. Such is my firm determination. This is the thyme and frankincense that shall be offered up to the stinking divinity, which you have madly dared to arrogate to yourself and suffered to be adored." This commination left the old fellow alarmed, and, if I mistake not, corrected, all good men highly approving the severity of my speech. No suspicions were ever after entertained of him, though I inspected all things with a vigilant eye and an attentive ear.
As the jugglers perform the offices not only of soothsayers and physicians, but also of priests of the ceremonies of superstition, it exceeds belief what absurd opinions they inculcate into the ignorant minds of the Abipones. Out of many, I will mention a few. The Abipones think that none of their nation would ever die, were the Spaniards and the jugglers banished from America; for they attribute every one's death, from whatever cause it may proceed, either to the malicious arts of the one, or to the fire-arms of the other. If an Abipon die from being pierced with many wounds, or from having his bones broken, or his strength exhausted by extreme old age, his countrymen all deny that wounds or weakness occasioned his death, and anxiously try to discover by which of the jugglers, and for what reason he was killed. Because they have remembered some of their nation to have lived for a hundred years, they imagine that they would never die, were it not for the jugglers and the Spaniards. What ridiculous ideas do not the Americans entertain respecting the eclipse of the sun and moon! During the time it lasts, the Abipones fill the air with horrid lamentations. They perpetually cry tayretà! oh! the poor little thing! grieving for the sun and moon: for when these planets are obscured, they always fear that they are entirely extinguished. Still more ridiculous are the Chiquito Indians, who say that the sun and moon are cruelly torn by dogs, with which they think that the air abounds, when they see their light fail; attributing their blood red colour to the bites of these animals. Accordingly, to defend their dear planets from those aërial mastiffs, they send a shower of arrows up into the sky, amid loud vociferations, at the time of the eclipse. But, who would believe that the Peruvian Indians, so much more civilized than the rest, should be foolish enough to imagine, that when the sun is obscured, he is angry, and turns away his face from them, on account of certain crimes which they have committed? When the moon is in darkness, they say she is sick, and are in perpetual apprehension, that, when she dies, her immense carcass will fall down upon the earth and crush all the inhabitants. When she recovers her light, they say she has been healed by Pachacámac, the Saviour of the world, who has prevented her death, that the earth may not be utterly crushed and destroyed by her weight. Other crazy notions are entertained by other Americans concerning eclipses. The Abipones call a comet neyàc, the Guaranies yacitatà tatatĩbae, the smoking star: for what we name the hair, beard, or tail of a comet, they take to be smoke. This star is dreaded by all savages, being accounted the forerunner and instrument of various calamities. The Peruvians have always believed the comet to portend the death of their kings, and the destruction of their provinces and kingdoms. Montezuma, monarch of the Mexicans, having frequently beheld a comet like a fiery pyramid, visible from midnight till sun-set, was greatly alarmed for himself and for his people, and shortly after conquered and slain by Cortez.
Let us now return to the superstitions of the
