“Having thus seen that all false religions are, in a greater or less degree, departures from the true; that there is a tendency in the human mind to form low and limited views of the Supreme Being; and that, in fact, all nations have fallen into the corruptions of polytheism and idolatry, we should conclude, even in reasoning _à priori_, that the religion of the Indians would be found to partake of the general character. Accordingly, the fact is amply attested, that while they acknowledge one Supreme Being, whom they denominate the _Great Spirit_, or the _Master of Life_, they also believe in subordinate divinities, who have the chief regulation of the affairs of men. “Charlevoix, who had all the opportunities of obtaining information which personal observation, and the united testimony of the French missionaries could give, is an unexceptionable witness with regard to the Hurons, the Iroquois, and the Algonquins. Nothing, says he, is more certain, though at the same time obscure, than the conception which the American savages have of a Supreme Being. All agree that he is the Great Spirit, and that he is the master, creator, and governor of the world.[34] The Hurons call him Areskoui; the Iroquois, by slight variation, Agreskooue. He is with them the god of war. His name they invoke as they march. It is the signal to engage, and it is the war-cry in the hottest of the battle.[35] “But, beside the Supreme Being, they believe in an infinite number of subaltern spirits, who are the objects of worship. These they divide into good and bad. The good spirits are called by the Hurons, _Okkis_, by the Algonquins, _Mannitous_. They suppose them to be the guardians of men, and that each has his own tutelary deity. In fact, every thing in nature has its spirit, though all have not the same rank nor the same influence. The animals they hunt have their spirits. If they do not understand any thing, they immediately say it is _a spirit_. If any man performs a remarkable exploit, or exhibits extraordinary talents, he is said to be _a spirit_, or in other words, his tutelary deity is supposed to be of more than ordinary power.[36]