' The art of man could not draw a more faithful picture of
these Indians."
Boden was not much skilled in sacred lore, and scarce knew what to
make of all this. The idea that the American Indians were the
descendants of the lost tribes of Israel was entirely new to him;
nor did he know anything to boast of, touching those tribes, even in
their palmiest days, and while in possession of the promised land;
still he had some confused recollection of that which he had read
when a child--what American has not?--and was enabled to put a
question or two, in return for the information now received. "What,
do you take the savages of America for Jews?" he asked,
understanding the general drift of the missionary's meaning.
"As sure as you are there, friend bee-hunter, though you are not to
suppose that I think Peter Onoah of the tribe of Benjamin. No, I
turn to the 21st verse for the tribe of Peter Naphthali--Naphthalis,
the root of his stock. 'Naphthali is a hind, let loose: he giveth
goodly words.' Now, what can be plainer than this? A hind let loose
is a deer running at large, and, by a metaphor, that deer includes
the man that hunts him. Now, Peter has been--nay, is still--a
renowned hunter, and is intended to be enumerated among the hinds
let loose; 'he giveth goodly words,' would set that point at rest,
if anything were wanting to put it beyond controversy, for Onoah is
the most eloquent speaker ear ever listened to! No one, that has
ever heard him speak, can doubt that he is the one who 'giveth
goodly words.
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