The Indian manner of CURING THEIR SICK, is very similar to that of the Jews. They always invoke YO HE WAH, a considerable space of time before they apply any medicines, let the case require ever so speedy an application. The more desperately ill their patients are, the more earnestly they invoke the deity on the sad occasion. Like the Hebrews, they firmly believe that diseases and wounds are occasioned by the holy fire, or divine anger, in proportion to some violation of the old beloved speech. The Jews had but small skill in physic.—They called a physician “a binder of wounds,” for he chiefly poured oil into the wounds and bound them up. They were no great friends to this kind of learning and science; and their Talmud has this proverb, “the best physicians go to hell.” King Asa was reproved for having applied to physicians, for his disease in his feet. The little use they made of the art of medicine, especially for internal maladies; and their persuasion that distempers were either the immediate effects of God’s anger, or caused by evil spirits, led them to apply themselves to the prophets, or to diviners, magicians and enchanters. Hezekiah’s boil was cured by Isaiah—Benhadad king of Syria, and Naaman the Syrian applied to the prophet Elisha, and Ahaziah king of Israel sent to consult Baal-zebub. The Indians deem the curing their sick or wounded a very religious duty; and it is chiefly performed by their supposed prophets, and magi, because they believe they are inspired with a great portion of the divine fire. On these occasion they sing YO YO, on a low bass key for two or three minutes very rapidly; in like manner, HE HE, and WA WA. Then they transpose and accent those sacred notes with great vehemence, and supplicating fervor, rattling all the while a calabash with small pebble-stones, in imitation of the old Jewish rattles, to make a greater sound, and {172} as it were move the deity to co-operate with their simple means and finish the cure[XLII]. Footnote XLII: