to pass along the Path of Souls, called by us the Milky Way. This belief, however, little affected the older beliefs and practices regarding the abode of souls in the West or in the ground or in "that place" from which they come to enter the bodies of infants at birth.25

The Iroquois did not take either kindly or willingly to the idea of eternal punishment. That idea was too foreign to his experience.26 It seems that not until the religious revival under Handsome Lake in the early nineteenth century was the notion of hell as the place of punishment for sinners definitely accepted.

At festivals it became customary, though possibly not before the nineteenth century, to make public confession of sins. But the conception neither of confession nor of sin, judging from the practice, was that of the old Jesuit teachers. Confession meant simply the acknowledgment of contrition. The Indian disliked punishment intensely. The sinner, after confession, expected no punishment here or hereafter. If a man, said they, be truly sorry, says so and promises faithfully to do wrong no more, "Then what more can be expected of him?"

Oral prayer became a part of the regular, public, religious ceremonies, the Great Spirit being thanked for the favors he had shown to his people and asked for continued aid since his people so faithfully carried out his behests.27 Prayers seem to have been uttered not so much in the spirit of "true Christian humility" as in the spirit, "We have done our duty and respectfully remind you to do yours." It was customary at the conclusion of the regular morning meal for the man to say, "Thanks are given " and for the woman to reply, "It is well." This practice probably was not aboriginal.28

Baptism never was adopted. It was black magic, dangerous and filled with malignant power.29

25 LVII J. R. (1672-1673), 117-119; Canfield, 169-171; Converse, 51-52, 56–57; Morgan, I, 245–246.

26 Boyle, 271.

27 Morgan, I, bk. ii, chs. I, II, passim; cf. Boyle.

28 Parker: Maize, 61; Converse, 134 note 1; LIII J. R. (1669-1670), 265-267.

29 Donohoe, 122; cf. XLII J. R. (1655–1656), 135.

7

HANDSOME LAKE AND THE CRYSTALLIZATION OF MANY CHRISTIAN INFLUENCES.

A great man and the birth of a new nation effected changes in the Iroquois religion in the nineteenth century even as the Christian religion had been effecting them during the two centuries preceding. Under these three influences religious practices in the nineteenth century became more definite, regularly recurring and fixed, and at the same time more thoroughly related to the Great Spirit. Between about 1775 and 1815 the Iroquois, long a prized ally both of the English and of the French, found a new nation building and growing, and surrounding their ancient territories and impressing its will upon them. Henceforth war could not be waged, and peace was in the land. Besides, the presence of so many people was making hunting a poor occupation. So the warrior lost his work. Men neither went forth regularly to war nor made a living by hunting. Men had to farm. The old agricultural basis became the very economic center of life, and what had been man's work disappeared or remained simply as a pastime while woman's work became his. Agreskoue now had no reason for continued existence. He disappeared. But the deities of agriculture waxed and grew. With peace, with a settled life and with a definite routine of work centering about the orderly, repetitive tasks of the farmer, there came a definiteness in the recurrence and conduct of religious ceremonies. Just as this change was taking place the effect of the Christian religious forces at work during the preceding two centuries came to a head, in so far as that was possible, in one man who crystallized the beliefs concerning the Great Spirit and gathered the religious ceremonies about him.

Handsome Lake, half brother to Cornplanter, was a Seneca sachem who, having lived the greater part of three score years a life largely dissolute, reformed upon recovering from a dangerous illness and for about two decades until his death in 1815 preached moral reformation upon a religious sanction. While ill, so runs his statement, he had a vision in which he was visited by four angels, emissaries of the Great Spirit. For, according to the Jesuit teaching one communicated with God only through an intermediary. These angels had Handsome Lake accompany them and showed him heaven and hell.

They told him, at the behest of Hawenneyu, to reform his people. 30

Intemperance beyond all other vices had played obvious and dreadful havoc among the Iroquois.31 Some feared its inroads would exterminate them altogether. Whatever may be said of Lake's motives and methods, he did endeavor late in life to work a reform and did carry through a successful campaign against drink. Though this was of primary importance in his eyes it was not his sole mission. Mere talk about the necessity of being good would carry little weight, for men had long talked thus. So Lake preached good conduct on the pain of eternal, fearful punishment. In his teachings he perpetuated both the old forms and beliefs and the new ones that had crept in. He powerfully emphasized the religious sanction back of conduct on earth by describing the rewards that Hawenneyu would give the good and by emphasizing the ills that awaited the wicked in the form of dreadful punishment from Hawenneyu. His chief and striking influence was upon morals, and his instrument for improving the morals was the religious belief in the Great Spirit. His preaching bore fruit immediately.

"His (Handsome Lake's) introduction to the Onondaga nation was like this. At the time the whites came among this people they were greatly addicted to the use of ardent spirits, and frequently indulged in it to the most beastly excess. In the year 1790 or '91, while Mr. Webster occupied his trading house at the mouth of Onondaga Creek, eighteen of the principal chiefs and warriors of the Onondagas called on him, stating that they had just set out to attend a great council of the six nations, to be held at Buffalo. As was customary, Mr. Webster produced his bottle, and it was plied with a right good will to the lips of all. Webster was always a special favorite with the Indians, and on this occasion parted with his guests with unusual demonstrations of mutual attachment. In due time, these delegates returned; and as usual the bottle of strong drink was placed before them. To the utter astonishment of Mr. Webster, every man of them refused to touch it. . . . The chiefs explained, that they had met at Buffalo, a PROPHET of the Seneca nation, who had assured them, and in this assurance they had the most implicit confidence, that without 30 Morgan, I, 217-220; Parker: Code of Handsome Lake, 5, 9–13, 19, 21-26.

31 LVIII J. R. (1673–1674), 205; Doc. Hist. of N. Y., II, 592, 627623, 640, 656, 976, 1107, 1109 and vol. IX, 1043-1044; Parker: Code, 9, 10, cf. 17, 18, 20-21.

a total abstinence, from the use of ardent spirits, they and their race would shortly become extinct; that they had entered upon a resolution, never again to taste the baneful article, and that they hoped to be able to prevail on their nation to adopt the same salutary resolution."32

In 1888 a Seneca, speaking of Handsome Lake's work, described it thus:

"The general belief is, one great spirit controls everything; God, he is called in English, he is a supreme power on earth, everything; and then they believe in temperance; that is the most part of their religion, is temperance; and they believe in thanking, mostly, to the Great Spirit, that is the most important thing; most everything they see they thank him; it is their doctrine to be kind to one another, to be good, honest people; and they believe a man is to have only one woman to live with; and they are strict; their doctrine is against marry more than one woman; it commenced about eighty-eight years ago that way; before that we was wild; they would murder one another, and drinking just about that time; there was a great deal of whisky brought for the Indians; and they had terrible times; and then they got up this Indian doctrine; and Handsome Lake he preached to the Indians; he was taken sick, they claimed, and some good things he showed to the people, and everybody adopted right away; after that doctrine everybody was good; everybody was good; and all shaking hands and all feeling good; and that is the starting of this Indian religion.

The religious ceremonies of the nineteenth century described by Clark, Morgan, Parker and others owe much for their emphasis upon morals and upon the Great Spirit as the sanction of morality to the teachings of Handsome Lake and his immediate and sole successor, Jimmy Johnson. What Handsome Lake preached is related by Jimmy Johnson in a sermon occupying three mornings.34 Johnson opened his address with a brief statement of the visit of the four angels to Handsome

32 Clark: Onondaga, I, 105-106; cf. Parker, u. s., 6.

33 Morgan, II (note 66), 235-236, quoted from Indian Problem, II, 1104.

34 What follows is a summary of the translation of Johnson's address at a general Condoling Council held at Tonawanda, Oct. 4, 5, 6, 1848. Ely S. Parker who made the translation was thoroughly familiar with the discourse. It is given in full in Morgan, I, 224-248. Cf. E. Johnson: Legends, Traditions and Laws, 185-208. Johnson was a Tuscarora chief. His account is similar to that of Morgan. A fine discussion is given in Parker: Code, in which the code itself is translated, pages 20-80.

Lake. Following that and as the first of a number of exhortations he pointed out the evils of intemperance and solemnly warned his listeners against the habit. The remainder of the first morning's discourse dealt mainly with family relations. Marriages, said he, as far as possible should be kept faithfully. Hypocrisy and deceit should be shunned. It is a duty to care for orphan children and properly to rear them. All children should be taught morality and reverence for the Creator. As for the marriage relation, adherence must be given to the ancient Iroquois dictum that it is right and meet for a mother to select a suitable match for her child. Once married, the endeavor should be made not to give grounds for divorce. Here Johnson repeated the command that children be taught the old moral virtues of obedience to and respect for their elders, and also that they be taught the duty of obedience to and reverence for the Great Spirit. He pointed out that quarreling between man and wife was wrong and that they should support each other, since quarreling and antagonism between parents were of evil influence upon their children. After telling his listeners that the Great Spirit thought it a great wrong to sell land, to traffic in earth as though it were paltry merchandise, and that consequently the Great Spirit surely would punish the transgressor, Johnson concluded his first day's speech at noon with this remark: "Chiefs, keepers of the faith, warriors, women and children:-You all know that our religion teaches, that the early day is dedicated to the Great Spirit, and that the late day is granted to the spirits of the dead. It is now meridian and I must close."

Taking up his discourse again the following morning Johnson declared that adultery, always a great wrong in Iroquois eyes, was a sin in the eyes of the Great Spirit. Regarding punishments the Creator had declared that the chastisement of children by means of the rod was wrong and that the old method, that of sprinkling water upon the child to be corrected or even of ducking him, was sufficient. The Great Spirit sanctioned all the old festivals and games, and therefore they were to be continued. Then Johnson portrayed what were to be the future punishments meted out by the Great Spirit to all drunkards and inhospitable people, and what were to be the rewards granted to the hospitable. He verbally castigated