Ouâbi : or the virtues of nature :: :: University of Virginia Library

Now for the war-feast all the chiefs prepare,
The jetty draught exhausts the gen'rous bowl,
And the fierce dance, fit emblem of the war,
Swells the great mind, and fires the kindling soul.

Tho songs of vengeance ev'ry breast inspire,
The peaceful calumet succeeds the feast,
Till livid glimmerings mark the sinking fire,
And the gem'd skies proclaim the hour of rest.

Ere the first blush of day illumes the morn,
The chiefs, impatient for the battle, rise;
With warlike arms their colour'd limbs adorn,
While glowing valour sparkles in their eyes.

Onward they move, by great Ouâbi led,
The young Celario with the painted train,
Like white narcissus mid the tulip-bed,
Or like a swan with peacocks on the plain.

The golden ringlets of his glossy hair,
Intwin'd with beads, the tow'ring feathers grace,
No longer floating to the am'rous air,
Nor mingling with the beauties of his face.

Dress'd like a sachem—o'er his naked arm
With careless ease reclin'd his gaudy bow,
Not bright Apollo boasts so fair a form,
Such ringlets never grac'd his iv'ry brow.

On the far field the adverse heroes join,
No dread artill'ry guards the coward side;
But dauntless strength, and courage half divine,
Command the war, and form the conq'ror's pride.

Thus before Illion's heav'n-defended tow'rs,
Her godlike Hector rais'd his crimson'd arm;
Thus great Atrides led the Grecian pow'rs,
And stern Achilles spread the loud alarm.

Where danger threats the European flies,
Eager to follow when Ouâbi leads,
His feather'd arrows glance along the skies,
And many a hero, many a sachem bleeds.

Now the strong hatchet hews whole nations down,
Now deathful show'rs of missive darts descend,
The echoing war-whoop drowns the dying groan,
And shouts of vict'ry ev'ry bosom rend.

When by some hand's unerring force applied,
Flew a swift arrow where Celario stood,
Its darting vengeance pierc'd his guardless side,
And drank the living current of his blood.

While from the wound the barbed shaft is drawn,
O'er his fair side the drops of crimson glow,
And seem lost rubies on a wint'ry lawn,
Adding new lustre to the silv'ry snow.

The Illinois their great Ouâbi hail,
No more the foe his conq'ring arm defies;
O'er the blue mountain, thro the thorny vale,
The victor follows, as the vanquish'd flies.

Fatigu'd by slaughter, ev'ry chief retires
To the lov'd solace of his native plain,
There still regardful of the sacred fires,
Till the loud war awakes his strength again.

By slaves supported thro the mazy wood,
Celario gains the sachem's distant home,
Where mourning warriors stop the purple flood,
And for each healing plant the weedy desert roam.

Azâkia's hand the chymic juice applies,
Her constant aid the strength'ning food prepares,
Her plaintive voice beguiles his closing eyes,
And sooths his slumbers with unceasing prayers.

Now winds his ringlets round her dusky hand,
And views the contrast with enamour'd boast,
Now o'er his features bends with accents bland,
'Till ev'ry swimming sense in wonder's lost.

Thus the lorn wretch, by ignis fatuus led,
Pursues the gleam which charms his lonely way,
Nor, 'till destruction whelms his hapless head,
Suspects the dangers of the treach'rous ray.

Celario gazes with renew'd desires,
While kindling hopes his doting bosom move;
Yet still Ouâbi's worth his soul inspires,
And much his virtue struggles with his love.

Now each new day increasing strength bestows,
And his brac'd limbs the limping staff resign,
His humid lip with roseate lustre glows,
His lucid eyes with wonted brightness shine.

The dance is rather an act of devotion, than of recreation, and constitutes a part of all their public ceremonies.

See William Penn's Letters.

The calumet is a highly ornamented pipe, which the Indians smoke as a type of peace and harmony on all public occasions.

Their bows are stained with a great variety of glaring colours, and otherwise ornamented. For a specimen see the Museum of the University at Cambridge.

It is a point of religion with the American Indians never to suffer their fires to go out until the close of their year, when they are totally extinguished, and others are kindled by friction of certain wood. The policy of this act of devotion is evident, as it not only indicates to their youth the necessity of their being constantly ready for war, but serves as an annual school to instruct them (in all cases of emergency) in the method of raising this necessary element into action from the objects of nature, which surround them.

The prisoners of inferior rank, taken in battle, are retained as slaves by the rights of war; and this is the only kind of slavery known amongst them.

These people are perhaps the first botanists in the world; and from their knowledge of the properties of plants, according to William Penn, have a remedy for almost every disease, to which they are subject. They have certain antidotes to all venomous bites, and it is said an infallible cure for cancers.