494 THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES
defence of their idolatry.” —“ Can we not,”’ said I, “do it in the night,
and then leave them the reasons in writing, in their own language.”—
“Writing!” said he; “why, there is not in five nations of them. one
man that knows any thing of a letter, or how to read.a word in any
language, or in their own.” —‘‘ Wretched ignorance!” said I to him:
“however I have a great mind to do it; perhaps nature may draw
inferences from it to them, to let them see how brutish they are to
worship such horrid things.”—‘ Look you, sir,’”’ said he; “if your
zeal prompts you to it so warmly, you must do it; but in the next
place, I would have you consider these wild nations of people are sub-
jected by force to the Czar of Muscovy’s dominion; and if you do
this, it is ten to one but they will come by thousands to the governor
of ‘Nertzinskay, and complain, and demand satisfaction; and if he
‘cannot give them satisfaction, it is ten to one but they revolt; and it
will occasion’ a new war with all the Tartars in the country.”

This, I confess, put new thoughts into my head for a while; but I
harped upon the same string still; and all that day I was uneasy to
put my project in execution. Towards the evening the Scots merchant
met me by accident in our walk about the town, and desired to speak
with me. “I believe,” said he, “‘I have put you off your good design;

- I have been a little concerned about it since; for I abhor the idol and
idolatry as much as you can do.”"—“ Truly,” said I, “you have put it
off a little, as to the execution of it, but you have not put it all. out of
my thoughts; and, I believe, I shall do it still before I quit this place,
though I were to be delivered up to them for satisfaction.’’—“ No, no,”

-Baid he, ‘God forbid they should deliver you up to such a crew of
monsters! they shall not do that neither; that would be murdering
you indeed.”—‘ Why,”’ said I, “‘how would they use me ?’’—“ Use
you!” said he; “I'll. tell you how they served a poor Russian, who
affronted them in their worship just as you did, and whom they took
prisoner, after they had lamed him with an arrow, that he could not
run away: they took him and stripped him stark naked, and set him

- upon the top of the idol monster, and stood all round him, and shot as

‘many arrows into him as would stick over his whole body; and then

_they burnt him, and all the arrows sticking in him, as a sacrifice to the

_+idol.”—“ And was this the same idol?” said I. “Yes,” said he,
. “the very same.”—‘ Well,” said-I, “‘I will tell you a story.” So I
related the story of our men at’ Madagascar, and how they burnt and

gacked:the village there, and killed man, woman, and child, for their

murdering one of our men, just ‘as it.is related before; and when I

-had-done, I added, that I thought we ought to.do so to this village.

ui He listened’ very attentively to the story; but when I talked. of -