"De Toutes Les Instructions Propres
A L'homme, Celle Qu'il Acquiert Le Plus Tard, Et Le Plus Difficilement,
Est La Raison Meme." The Tranquil Indifference And Uninquiring Eye
With Which They Surveyed Our Works Of Art Have Often, In My Hearing,
Been Stigmatized As Proofs Of Stupidity, And Want Of Reflection.
But surely
we should discriminate between ignorance and defect of understanding.
The truth was, they often neither comprehended the
Design nor conceived
the utility of such works, but on subjects in any degree familiarised
to their ideas, they generally testified not only acuteness of discernment
but a large portion of good sense. I have always thought that the distinctions
they shewed in their estimate of us, on first entering into our society,
strongly displayed the latter quality: when they were led into our respective
houses, at once to be astonished and awed by our superiority, their attention
was directly turned to objects with which they were acquainted.
They passed without rapture or emotion our numerous artifices and contrivances,
but when they saw a collection of weapons of war or of the skins of animals
and birds, they never failed to exclaim, and to confer with each other
on the subject. The master of that house became the object of their regard,
as they concluded he must be either a renowned warrior, or an expert hunter.
Our surgeons grew into their esteem from a like cause. In a very early stage
of intercourse, several natives were present at the amputation of a leg.
When they first penetrated the intention of the operator,
they were confounded, not believing it possible that such an operation
could be performed without loss of life, and they called aloud to him
to desist; but when they saw the torrent of blood stopped, the vessels
taken up and the stump dressed, their horror and alarm yielded to astonishment
and admiration, which they expressed by the loudest tokens.
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