beholden to Him for His
favours, and therefore rejects all His blessings; as one who should
afflict himself for the empty shadow of virtue; or for no better end
than to render himself capable of bearing those misfortunes which
possibly will never happen.

This is their notion of virtue and of pleasure; they think that no man's
reason can carry him to a truer idea of them, unless some discovery from
Heaven should inspire him with sublimer notions. I have not now the
leisure to examine whether they think right or wrong in this matter: nor
do I judge it necessary, for I have only undertaken to give you an
account of their constitution, but not to defend all their principles. I
am sure, that whatsoever may be said of their notions, there is not in
the whole world either a better people or a happier government: their
bodies are vigorous and lively; and though they are but of a middle
stature, and have neither the fruitfullest soil nor the purest air in
the world, yet they fortify themselves so well by their temperate course
of life, against the unhealthiness of their air, and by their industry
they so cultivate their soil, that there is nowhere to be seen a greater
increase both of corn and cattle, nor are there anywhere healthier men,
and freer from diseases: for one may there see reduced to practice, not
only all the art that the husbandman employs in manuring and improving
an ill soil, but whole woods plucked up by the roots, and in other
places new ones planted, where there were none before. Their principal
motive for this is the convenience of carriage, that their timber may be
either near their towns, or growing on the banks of the sea, or of some
rivers, so as to be floated to them; for it is a harder work to carry
wood at any distance over land, than corn. The people are industrious,
apt to learn, as well as cheerful and pleasant; and none can endure more
labour, when it is necessary; but except in that case they love their
ease. They are unwearied pursuers of knowledge; for when we had given
them some hints of the learning and discipline of the Greeks, concerning
whom we only instructed them (for we know that there was nothing among
the Romans, except their historians and their poets, that they would
value much), it was strange to see how eagerly they were set on learning
that language. We began to read a little of it to them, rather in
compliance with their importunity, than out of any hopes of their
reaping from