particularly, whether they fpeak the fame language. Now by late accounts from Ruffia we are informed, that there is no affinity between the Kamskatkan tongue, and that of the Americans on the oppofite fide of the ftreight. Whence we may conclude with great certainty, that the latter are not a colony of the former. But I go farther. There are feveral cogent argu ments to evince, that the Americans are not defcended from any people in the north of Afia or in the north of Europe. Were they defcended from either, Labrador, or the adjacent countries, must have been first peopled. And as favages are remarkably fond of their natal foil, they would have continued there, till by over-population they should have been compelled to fpread wider for food. But the fact is directly contrary. When America was discovered by the Spaniards, Mexico and Peru were fully peopled; and the other parts lefs and lefs, in proportion to their diftance from thefe central countries. Fabry reports, that one may travel one or two hundred leagues north-weft from the Miffifippi, without feeing a human face, or any veftige of a house. And fome French officers fay, that they travelled more than a hundred leagues from the delicious country watered by the Ohio, through Louifiana, without meeting a fingle family of favages. Labrador is very thin of inhabitants; no people having been discovered in it, but the Efquimaux, a very finall tribe. And as that tribe has plenty of food at home, there is no appearance, that they ever fent a colony to any other part of America. The civilization of the Mexicans and Peruvians, as well as their populoufnefs, makes it extremely probable that they were the first inhabitants of America. In travelling northward, the people are more ignorant and favage: the Efquimaux, the most northern of all, are the moft favage. In travelling fouthward, the Patagonians, the moft fouthern of all, are so stupid as to go naked in a bitter cold region. I venture ftill farther; which is, to 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 that appearance differs widely from the appearance of any other Book II. other known people. Excepting the eye-lafhes, eyebrows, and hair of the head, which is invariably jet black, there is not a fingle hair on the body of any American: not the least appearance of a beard. Another diftinguishing mark is their copper-colour, uniformly the fame in all climates, hot and cold; and differing from the colour of all other nations. Ulloa remarks, that the Americans of Cape Breton, resemble the Peruvians in complexion, in manners, and in cuftoms; the only visible difference being, that the former are of a larger ftature. A third circumftance no lefs diftinguishing is, that American children are born with down upon the fkin, which difappears the eighth or ninth day, and never grows again. Children of the old world are born with skins fmooth and polished, and no down appears till puberty. That the original inhabitants of America are a race distinct from all others, I once thought demonftrable from fome reports concerning the Efquimaux. The author of the history of New France, and feveral other writers report, that the Efquimaux are bold, mifchievous, fufpicious, and untamable; that it is not even fafe to converfe with them but at a distance; that no European skin is whiter; and that they are bearded up to the eyes. Suppofing these facts to be true, had I not reafon to believe, that the Efquimaux must have fprung from fome nation in the north of Europe or Afia, though I could not pretend to fay, whether the tranfmigration was by land or fea? From the fame facts, however, I was forced to conclude, that the rest of the Americans could not have had the fame origin; for if the Canadians or any other American nation were of Afiatic or European extraction, they muft, like the Efquimaux, have had a beard and white fkin to this day. But one cannot be too cautious in giving faith to odd or fingular facts, reported of diftant nations. It is difcovered by later accounts more worthy of credit, that the foregoing defcription of the Efquimaux is falfe in every particular. Of all the northern nations, not excepting the Laplanders, the Efquimaux are of the Smalleft fize, few of them exceeding four feet in height.. They They have heads extremely grofs, feet and hands very fmall. That they are neither cruel nor fufpicious, 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 English failors, with expreffions of fatisfaction. for being able to accommodate them. But what is the moft to the prefent purpose; they are of a copper colour, like the other Americans, only a degree lighter, occafioned probably by the intenfe cold of their climate; and they are alfo altogether deftitute of a beard. It is common indeed among them, to bring forward the hair of the head upon the face, for preferving it from flies, which rage in that country during fummer; an appearance that probably has been, mistaken by travellers for a beard. 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 Palifer to Newfoundland ann. 1764. Meeting a company of about two hundred Efquinaux, he was agreeably furprised to hear the Greenland tongue. They received him kindly, and drew from him a promife to return the next year. And we are informed by Crantz, in his history of Greenland, that the fame Danifh miffionary vifited them the very 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 dialects of North and South Greenland, which differ not fo much as the High and Low Dutch. Both nations call themselves 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 refembles 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 interven tion tion of any fea*. One thing is certain, that the Greenlanders refemble the North-Americans in every particular: they are of a copper colour, and have no beard; they are of a small size, like the Efquimaux, and have the fame language. And thus I am obliged to abandon my favourite argument, for proving the Americans, the Efquimaux excepted, to be indigenous, and not indebted to the old world for their existence. At the fame time, the other arguments urged above remain entire; and from what is now faid a circuinftance occurs, that fortifies greatly the chief of them. People, who with a bold face furmounts all difficulties rather than give up a favourite opinion, make light of the copper colour and want of beard, willing to attribute all to the climate. We want data, I acknowledge, to determine with accuracy what effects can be produced by a climate. But luckily we have no occafion at prefent to determine that difficult point. It is fufficient that the climate of Labrador is much the fame with that of the northern parts of Europe and Asia. From that circumftance I conclude with certainty, that the copper colour and want of beard in the Efquimaux cannot be the refult of climate. And if fo, what foundation can there be for making these circumstances depend on the climate in any other part of America? Truly none at all. I add, that as the copper colour and want of beard continue invariably the fame in every variety of climate, hot and cold, moift and dry, they muft depend on fome invariable cause acting 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 eminent writer (6), America emerged from the fea later than any other part of the known world: and fuppofing the human race to have been planted in America by the hand of God later than the days of Mofes, Adam and Eve might The Danes had a settlement in Greenland long before Columbus faw the West Indies. Would it not appear paradoxical to say, that America was difcovered by the Danes long before the time of Columbus, and long before they knew that they had made the difcovery? (a) Book 1. sketch 1. might have been the firft parents of mankind, i. e. of all who at that time existed, without being the first parents of the Americans. The Terra Auftralis incognita is feparate from the reft of the world by a wide ocean, which carries a ship round the earth without interruption. How has that continent been peopled? There is not the flightest probability, that it ever has been joined to any other land. Here a local creation, if it may be termed fo, appears unavoidable; and if we must admit more than one act of creation, even the appearance of difficulty, from reiteration of act, totally vanifheth. M. Buffon, in his natural history, bears teftimony, that not a fingle American quadruped of a hot climate is found in other part of the earth with refpect to these we muft unavoidably admit a local creation; and nothing seems more natural, than under the fame act to comprehend the first parents of the American people. any It is poffible, indeed, that a fhip with men and women may, by contrary winds, be carried to a very diftant fhore. But to account thus for the peopling of America, will not be much relished: Mexico and Peru must have been planted before navigation was known in the old world, at least before a fhip was brought to fuch perfection as to bear a long course of bad weather. Will it be thought, that any fuppofition ought to be embraced, however improbable, rather than admit a separate creation? We are, it is true, much in the dark as to the conduct of creative Providence; but every rational conjecture leans to a feparate creation. America and the Terra Auftralis must have been planted by the Almighty with a number of animals and vegetables, fome of them peculiar to thofe yaft continents: and when fuch care has been taken about inferior life, can fo wild a thought be admitted, as that man, the noblest work of terrestrial creation, would be left to chance? But it is scarce neceffary to infift upon this topic, as the external characters of the Americans above mentioned reject the fuppofition of their being defcended from any people of the old world. It is highly probable, that the fertile and delicious plains of Peru and, Mexico were the first planted of all the |