At their _Canticas_, or Dancing-Matches, where all Persons that come are freely Entertain’d, it being a Festival time. Their Custom is when they Dance, for the Spectators to have short Sticks in their Hands, and to knock the Ground and Sing altogether, whilst they that Dance sometimes act Warlike postures, and then they come in painted for War with their Faces black and red, or some all black, some all red, with some streaks of white under their Eyes, and so jump and leap up and down without any order, uttering many Expressions of their intended Valour. For other Dances they onely shew what antick Tricks their ignorance will lead them to, wringing of their Bodies and Faces after a strange manner, sometimes jumping into the Fire, sometimes catching up a Firebrand, and biting off a live Coal, with many such tricks, that will affright rather than please an _English_-man to look upon them, resembling rather a company of infernal Furies than Men. [Sidenote: Their sitting in Council.] When their King or _Sachem_ sits in Council, he hath a Company of Arm’d Men to guard his Person, great respect being shewn him by the People, which is principally manifested by their silence. After he hath declared the cause of their Convention, he demands their Opinion, ordering who shall begin: The Person order’d to speak, after he hath declar’d his mind, tells them he hath done: no Man ever interrupting any Person in his Speech, nor offering to speak, though he make never so many long stops, till he says he hath no more to say. The Council having all declar’d their Opinions, the King after some pause gives the definitive Sentence, which is commonly seconded with a shout from the People, every one seeming to applaud and manifest their Assent to what is determin’d. If any Person be condemn’d to die, which is seldom, unless for Murther or Incest, the King himself goes out in Person (for you must understand they have no Prisons, and the guilty Person flies into the Woods) where they go in quest of him, and having found him, the King shoots first, though at never such a distance, and then happy is the Man that can shoot him down; for he that hath the fortune to be Executioner, is for his pains made some Captain, or other Military Officer. They grease their Bodies and Hair very often, and paint their Faces with several Colours, as black, white, red, yellow, blue, _&c._ which they take great pride in, every one being painted in a several manner. Within two Leagues of _New York_ lieth _Staten-Island_, it bears from _New York_ West something Southerly: It is about twenty Miles long, and four or five broad, most of it very good Land, full of Timber, and producing all such Commodities as _Long-Island_ doth, besides Tin and store of Iron Oar; and the _Calamine_ Stone is said likewise to be found there: There is but one Town upon it, consisting of _English_ and _French_, but it is capable of entertaining more Inhabitants.