They think that he who understands the natures and remedies of diseases can be ignorant of nothing. They will believe him in matters of religion, and be tractable and obedient to him. Our Saviour himself inspired mortals with wonder, by healing bodies as well as souls. In imitation of him, when we were employed in the instruction of the savages, we endeavoured to supply the want of physicians, surgeons, and druggists, by easily obtained remedies, by reading medical books, and by other means, in order to wean that miserable people from their jugglers, whom we accounted the chief obstacles to the propagation of the holy religion. It is incredible how well the sick are taken care of in the Guarany towns. Indians are appointed to attend upon them, more or fewer, according to the number of inhabitants. These men have some knowledge of herbs and common remedies, though they are not allowed to use any medicine without consulting the missionary. They carry in their hands a staff marked with a cross, and are hence called crossbearers. It is their business to go about dawn to visit the sick in the district appointed to each, and to enquire whether any one has fallen ill lately. In the evening they make their report to the missionary in the presence of all, before he performs divine service, and are informed by him what remedies are to be used and what sacraments administered to each. At mid-day boiled meat with the best wheat bread is sent from his kitchen to the houses of all the sick, which are sometimes thirty, more or less, in number. All the sick are visited once every day, and sometimes oftener, by the missionary, accompanied by two boys. In short we never suffered any thing of use to the minds or bodies of the sick to be wanting. Moreover there resided amongst the Guaranies two or three lay-brothers of our order, European surgeons, tolerably skilled in the art of medicine; but on account of the great distance of the towns from one another, they were not always at hand to offer their assistance when it was needed.