358.Columbus originated the idea that the Indians lacked the
conception of privately held property. In his widely circulated
letter of 1493, he noted that the inhabitants of the Indies have
no iron or steel or weapons, nor are they fitted to use them.
This is not because they are not well built and of handsome
stature, but because they are very marvelously timorous…It
is true that, after they have been reassured and have lost
this fear, they are so guileless and so generous with all that
they possess, that no one would believe it who has not seen
it. They refuse nothing that they possess; if it be asked of
them; on the contrary, they invite anyone to share it and
display as much love as if they would give their hearts.
….
…I have not been able to learn if they hold private property;
it seemed to me to be that all took a share in whatever anyone
had, especially eatable things.
The Journal of Christopher Columbus 194, 200 (C. Jane trans.1960).
The Medieval And Renaissance origins of the status of the American
Indian In Western Legal Thought by Robert A. Williams, Jr.
Pg.81
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