General Discussion

the 1643 writings of missionary John Heckewelder interesting:

"Whatever liveth on the land, whatsoever growth out of the earth, and allthat is in the rivers and waters flowing through the same, was given jointly to all, and everyone is entitled to his share. From this principle, hospitality flows as from its source. With them it is not a virtue but a strict duty. Hence they are never in search of excuses to avoid giving, but freely supply their neighbor's wants from the stack prepared for their own use. They give and are hospitable to all without exception, and will always share with other and often with strangers, even to their last morsel. They rather would lie down themselves on an empty stomach, than have it laid to teir charge that they neglected their duty, bu not satisfying the wants of the stranger, the sick, or the needy."

There are numerous other writings from the colonial period where the authors point out that the Indians embodied Christian values in a manner and to a degree that the Euro-Americans -- those my late brother called "European boat people" -- did not.