understood, is for the purpose of disturbing such animals as may
be within reach of the conflagration; and thereby they have an
opportunity of killing many. We have also had much reason to
believe, that those fires were intended to clear that part of the
country through which they have frequent occasion to travel; of
the brush or underwood, from which they, being naked, suffer very
great inconvenience. The fires, which we very frequently saw,
particularly in the summer-time, account also for an appearance,
which, when we arrived here, we were much perplexed to understand
the cause of; this was, that two-thirds of the trees in the woods
were very much scorched with fire, some were burnt quite black,
up to the very top: as to the cause of this appearance we
differed much in our opinions; but it is now plain, that it has
ever been occasioned by the fires, which the natives so
frequently make, and which we have seen reach the highest
branches of the trees: we sometimes, upon our arrival here,
conjectured that it proceeded from lightning, but upon looking
farther, it appeared too general amongst the woods to have been
occasioned by such an accident.

We had reason to believe, that the natives associate in tribes
of many families together, and it appeared now that they have one
fixed residence, and the tribe takes its name from the place of
their general residence: you may often visit the place where the
tribe resides, without finding the whole society there; their
time is so much occupied in search of food, that the different
families take different routs; but, in case of any dispute with a
neighbouring tribe, they can soon be assembled.

We are well informed by those whom we have had among us, that