*What the Indians notions of God are, in their Pagan state, is hard to determine. I have taken much pains to enquire of my Christian people, whether they, before their acquaintance with Christianity, imagined there was a _plurality_ of great invisible powers, or whether they supposed but _one_ such being, and worshipped him in a variety of shapes: but cannot learn any thing of them so distinct as to be fully satisfying upon the point. Their notions in that state were so dark and confused, that they seem not to know what they thought themselves. But so far as I can learn, they had a notion of a plurality of invisible _deities_, and paid some kind of homage to them promiscuously, under a great variety of shapes. And it is certain those who yet remain Pagans pay some kind of superstitious reverence to beasts, birds, fishes, and even reptiles; that is, some to one kind of animal, and some to another. They do not indeed suppose a divine power _essential_ to these creatures, but that some invisible beings (I cannot learn that it is always one) communicate to these animals a _great power_, either one or other of them, (just as it happens) and so make these creatures the immediate authors of good to certain persons. Whence such a creature becomes _sacred_ to the persons to whom he is supposed to be the immediate author of good, and through him they must worship the invisible powers, though to others he is no more than another creature. And perhaps another animal is looked upon to be the immediate author of good to _another_, and consequently _he_ must worship the invisible powers in that animal. And I have known a Pagan burn fine tobacco for incense, in order to appease the anger of that invisible power which he supposed presided over _rattle-snakes_, because one of these animals was killed by another Indian near his house. But I find, that in ancient times, before the coming of the white people, some supposed there was _four_ invisible powers, who presided over the four corners of the earth. Others imagined the _sun_ to be the _only_ deity, and that all things were made by him: others had a confused notion of a certain _body_ or fountain of _deity_, somewhat like the _anima mundi_, so frequently mentioned by the learned Heathens, diffusing itself to various animals, and even to inanimate things, making them the immediate authors of good to certain persons. But after the coming of the white people they seemed to suppose there were three deities, and three only, because they saw people of three different kinds of complexion, _viz._ English, Negroes and themselves.