The ceremony of adoption is as follows.——A feast is prepared of dog’s flesh boiled in bear’s grease, with huckle berries, of which it is {46} expected every one should heartily partake. When the repast is over, the war song is sung in the following words. “Master of Life, view us well; we receive a brother warrior who appears to have sense, shews strength in his arm, and does not refuse his body to the enemy.” After the war song, if the person does not discover any signs of fear, he is regarded with reverence and esteem; courage, in the opinion of the Savages, being considered not only as indispensible, but as the greatest recommendation. He is then seated on a beaver robe, and presented with a pipe of war to Smoke, which is put round to every warrior, and a wampum belt is thrown over his neck. The calumet, or Indian pipe, which is much larger than that the Indians usually smoke, is made of marble, stone, or clay, either red, white, or black, according to the custom of the nation, but the red is mostly esteemed; the length of the handle is about four feet and a half, and made of strong cane, or wood, decorated with feathers of various colours, with a number of twists of female hair interwoven in different forms; the head is finely polished; two wings are fixed to it, which make it in appearance not unlike to Mercury’s wand. This calumet is the symbol of peace, and the Savages hold it in such estimation, that a violation of any treaty where it has been introduced, would in their opinion be attended with the greatest misfortunes.[52] Wampum is of several colours, but the white and black are chiefly used; the former is made of the inside of the conque, or clam shell; {47} the latter of the muscle: both are worked in the form of a long bead, and perforated in order to their being strung on leather, and made up in belts. These belts are for various purposes: When a council is held, they are given out with the speeches, and always proportioned in their size, and the number of the rows of wampum which they contain, to the idea the Indians entertain of the importance of the meeting; they frequently consist of both colours. Those given to Sir William Johnson, of immortal Indian memory, were in several rows, black on each side, and white in the middle: the white being placed in the centre, was to express peace, and that the path between them was fair and open. In the centre of the belt was the figure of a diamond, made of white wampum, which the Indians call the council fire. When Sir William Johnson held a treaty with the Savages, he took the belt by one end, while the Indian chief held the other: if the chief had any thing to say, he moved his finger along the white streak; if Sir William had any thing to communicate, he touched the diamond in the middle.