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watered by the Ohio, through Louisiana, without meeting a fingle family of favages. The civilization of the Mexicans and Peruvians, as well as their populousness, make it extremely probable that they were the first inhabitants of America. In travelling northward, the people are more and more ignorant and favage: the Efquimaux, the most northern of all, are the most favage. In travelling fouthward, the Patagonians, the most southern of all, are fo ftupid as to go naked in a bitter cold region.

I venture ftill farther; which is, to indulge a conjecture, that America has not been peopled from any part of the old world. The external appearance of the inhabitants, makes this conjecture approach to a certainty; as they are widely different in appearance from any other known people. Excepting the eye-lashes, eyebrows, and hair of the head, which is invariably jet black, there is not a fingle hair on the body of any American: no appearance of a beard. Another diftinguifhing mark is their copper colour, uniformly the fame in all climates, hot and cold; and differing from the colour of VOL. III.

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every other nation. Ulloa remarks, that the Americans of Cape Breton, resemble the Peruvians, in complexion, in manners, and in customs; the only visible difference being, that the former are of a larger ftature. A third circumstance no lefs diftinguifhing is, that American children are born with down upon the skin, which difappears the eighth or ninth day, and never grows again. Children of the old world are born with fkins fmooth and polished, and no down appears till puberty.

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The Efquimaux are a different race from the reft of the Americans, if we can have any reliance on the most striking characteristical marks. Of all the northern nations, not excepting the Laplanders, they are of the fmallest fize, few of them exceeding four feet in height. They have a head extremely grofs, hands and feet very fmall. That they are tame and gentle appears from what Ellis fays in his account of a voyage, anno 1747, for discovering a north-weft paffage, that they offered their wives to the failors, with expreffions of fatisfaction for being able to accommodate them. But above all, their beard and complexion make the strongest evidence

evidence of a diftinct race. There were lately at London, two Efquimaux men and their wives; and I have the best authority to affirm, that the men had a beard, thin indeed like that of a Nogayan Tartar; that they were not of a copper colour like the other Americans, but yellow like people in the North of Afia.

It has been lately discovered, that the language of the Efquimaux is the fame with that of the Greenlanders. A Danish miffionary, who by fome years refidence in Greenland had acquired the language of that country, made a voyage with Commodore Pallifer to Newfoundland ann. 1764. Meeting a company of about two hundred Efquimaux, he was agreeably furprised to hear the Greenland tongue. They received him kindly, and drew from him a promise to return the next year. And we are informed by Crantz, in his history of Greenland, that the fame Danifh miffionary vifited them the next year, in company with the Rev. Mr Drachart. They agreed, that the difference between the Efquimaux language and that of Greenland, was not greater than between the dialects of North and South Green

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land, which differ not fo much as the High and Low Dutch. Both nations call themfelves Innuit or Karalit, and call the Europeans Kablunet. Their ftature, features, manners, drefs, tents, darts, and boats, are entirely the fame. As the language of Greenland resembles not the language of Finland, Lapland, Norway, Tartary, nor that of the Samoides, it is evident, that neither the Efquimaux nor Greenlanders are a colony from any of the countries mentioned. Geographers begin now to conjecture, that Greenland is a part of the continent of North America, without intervention of any fea*

From the preceding facts it may be concluded with the highest probability, that the continent of America fouth of the river St Laurence was not peopled from Afia. Labrador on the north fide of that river, is thin of inhabitants; no people having been difcovered there but the Ef

*The Danes had a fettlement in Greenland long before Columbus faw the Weft Indies. Would it not appear paradoxical to fay, that America was difcovered by the Danes long before the time of Columbus, and long before they knew that they had made the difcovery?

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quimaux, who are far from being numerous. As they have plenty of food at home, they never could have had any temptation to fend colonies abroad. And there is not the flightest probability, that any other people more remote would, without neceffity, wander far from home to people Canada or any country farther fouth. But we are fcarce left to a conjecture. The copper colour of the Canadians, their want of beard, and other. characteristical marks above mentioned, demonftrate them to be a race different from the Efquimaux, and different from any people inhabiting a country on the other fide of Labrador. These distinguishing marks cannot be owing to the climate, which is the fame on both fides of the river St Laurence. I. add, that as the copper colour and want of beard continue invariably the fame in every variety of climate, hot and cold, moist and dry, they muft depend on fome invariable cause act-· ing uniformly; which may be a fingularity in the race of people (a), but cannot proceed from the climate.

If we can rely on the conjectures of an

(a) Preliminary Difcourfe.

eminent

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