The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents Volume 16

PREFACE TO VOL. XVI

The preliminary matter and first chapter of the so-called Le Jeune’s Relation of 1639 (Document XXXIV.) were published in Vol. XV. We herewith give the rest of Part I. (Le Jeune’s own portion), and the two opening chapters of Part II., which was Lalemant’s report to his superior, Le Jeune, of affairs in the Huron country. Following is a synopsis of the contents of the present volume:

XXXIV. Continuing his annual narrative, Le Jeune describes in detail the foundation of the Ursuline convent at Quebec by Madame de la Peltrie, and the arrival of these nuns (August 1, 1639), with the Hospital sisters and a reinforcement of Jesuit Fathers. The nuns are taken, for a visit, to Sillery; they are overcome with joy to see the Indians offering their devotions in the chapel, and still more when children, both French and Indian, come to the Ursulines for instruction; while the sick are brought to the Hospital sisters for care, even before their baggage arrives from the ship. As aid in this emergency, mattresses are loaned them by the Jesuits. Madame de la Peltrie “cannot contain herself; she wishes to be everywhere, wherever the Savages are in question; and she is already the godmother of several. She could not meet a little Savage girl without embracing and kissing her.” The good sisters do [Page 1] the same, “without heeding whether or not these little Savage children were dirty, and without asking whether this were the custom of the country.”

The superior then praises in high terms the devotion and charity of the Duchess d’Aiguillon, foundress of the hospital, and quotes one of her letters showing her pious intentions in its establishment, —also a letter from Father de Quen, describing the condition of the inmates of the hospital, and extolling their piety.

Le Jeune again explains the necessity of rendering the savages stationary; and recounts the assistance given for this purpose by many friends of the missions -not only private persons, but the Company of New France. He reports much progress in their mission, with more conversions than in preceding years. “Over 800 Algonkins, attracted by the report of our faith, and by the assistance given the sedentary savages at Sillery, have come down to Three Rivers; but they declare that they come only to acquire a knowledge of the true God.” The missionaries still have to contend with the opposition of the medicine men, and the Algonkins “are much diverted from the good thoughts that God has given them,´by a contest with their enemies and their defeat therein. Moreover, they are held in bondage to Satan, by their superstitions and by their unwillingness to observe single marriage. The missionaries console themselves, however, with the pious sentiments and behavior of their actual converts, upon which the superior dwells at much length.

Discouraging news comes from Three Rivers, of hostile feeling among the Indians, caused by the revival of the old story that the French had introduced [Page 2] the smallpox, then raging there. But the aboriginal families settled at Sillery are steadfast in their faith and religious duties. The missionaries are especially consoled by the discretion of some Indian girls, Who refuse to marry men that are not baptized, and refer their suitors to the Fathers for answer. The baptized Indians so faithfully observe fast days and Lent, that they abstain from meat in the midst of others who are feasting thereon; and even pass two days without eating any food, while hunting during Lent, rather than oat meat. The writer describes the conversions, baptisms, pious acts, and family affairs of the earliest Indian settlers at Sillery, most of whom are now Christians. The missionaries are deeply grieved at the misfortune which befalls these families late in the summer of this year (1639), —an attack of smallpox; the disease was brought by some Indians who had been trading with the Abenakis of Maine. François Xavier Nenaskoumat and Noël Negabamat, the headmen, are both stricken, and removed to the hospital at Quebec; while others of their followers are also afflicted with various diseases. But these trials appear only to strengthen the faith and resignation of all.

Le Jeune relates the conversion, and the pious sentiments expressed by several of his neophytes. One is a young Algonkin, “whose conversion alone more than sufficiently repays all the trouble and expense incurred for the salvation of the Savages." so full of self-abnegation is he that, in the depth of winter, he goes in a thin, worn robe, refusing to wear the good one given him by the Fathers, for these reasons: “I fear that my body, if I supply it with comforts, and cover it warmly, will be always urging me [Page 3] to procure for it the same good things; and, if I cannot cover it by my own skill, it will gradually lead me to frequent your society for its own special benefit, rather than for the salvation of my soul. This has made me resolve not to make use of your presents. Secondly, if I show myself desirous of your gifts, I shall be continually importuned by a woman who has very little sense, who will urge me to get from you all that she will think your goodness can grant me. Hence, I have made a resolution to disregard my body, that I may better reflect upon the welfare of my Soul.” A dearly-loved sister of this convert dies without baptism; he decides that, since she has refused the friendship of God, he will no longer love her; and presently he loses all memory of her. Another neophyte is a chief who remains steadfast through both affliction and the ridicule of his countrymen. A third is the “sorcerer” or medicine man, who had formerly so hindered the missionaries. This last, Pigarouich, had sought to obtain baptism; but he fell from grace, engaging in gambling and debauchery, and was refused by the missionaries until, at the end of two years, he shows that “the Faith has taken possession of his soul;” and after many entreaties, he is granted the desired boon.

Le Jeune then relates the progress, during the past year, of his seminaries for Indian boys, —these now include Montagnais and Algonkins, as well as Hurons. Among those of the last-named tribe, the most satisfactory results were visible in a man of fifty years, whom the Fathers received most reluctantly; but this convert was snatched from them by death at the time when he gave most promise of usefulness to [Page 4] the mission cause. The Algonkin and Montagnais lads are exceedingly tractable and industrious, and surprise their preceptor by their intellectual acumen and quickness. There has been, however, much illness among them; so the missionaries decide to retain hereafter only a few of the younger boys.

The writer adds some interesting information in regard to the superstitious beliefs current among the aborigines —that each man has several souls; that the souls of the dead must not be allowed to enter the cabins of others; that sickness may be healed by a solemn gambling bout. He mentions also some of their customs —those connected with gambling; the resuscitation of a dead man, by conferring his name and responsibilities on another; and customs relating to marriage and burial. He closes his part of the Relation by mention of the frightful mortality caused among the savages of his district by the smallpox epidemic, —which has begun also to attack the French, —and the anxieties and labors thus laid upon the missionaries and the Hospital nuns, who labor to relieve the prevalent wretchedness.

The Relation of the Huron mission in this year is sent by Jerome Lalemant, who, in the first two chapters, given in the present volume, describes the physical aspects of that region, and the tribes dwelling therein; the difficulties attending the mission, and the hopeful prospect. He enumerates the priests who are laboring among the Hurons, and describes their daily occupations, their plan of work, and their intentions for the near future.

R. G. T.

Madison, Wis, February, 1898.

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XXXIV (continued)

Le Jeune’s Relation, 1639

Paris: SEBASTIEN CRAMOISY, 1640

The preliminary matter and chap. i. of Part 1. (Le Jeune’s own Relation) were given in Volume XV. In the present volume, Part 1. (chaps. ii.-xi.) is completed; and Part II. (Lalemant’s Huron report) is commenced, the first two chapters thereof being here presented. The six remaining chapters of Part II., completing the document, will appear in Volume XVII.

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[17] CHAPTER II.

OF THE NUNS RECENTLY ARRIVED IN NEW FRANCE,

AND OF THEIR OCCUPATION.

T was in this Year that Madame the Duchess d’Aiguillon erected and endowed a house in honor of God in this new world, while God is preparing another dwelling for her in Heaven, And there was found an Amazon, who has led the Ursulines, and established them on these outer confines of the world. It is indeed a remarkable fact that, —at the very moment when God touched the heart of madame the Duchess d’Aiguillon in Paris, and inspired her with the idea of building a Hostel-Dieu¹ for our Savages who were dying in the forests, abandoned and without any assistance, and while she was thinking [18] of the Hospital Nuns of Dieppe² for carrying out her project, —he raised up, in another part of France, a modest and virtuous Lady, and inspired her to undertake the Seminary for the little daughters of the Savages, and to confide its management to the Ursulines. And he so arranged affairs that, without the one knowing anything of the other’s design, all was accomplished at the same time, so that these good Nuns might have the consolation of crossing the Ocean together, and that the Savages might benefit, at the same moment, by this double and equally necessary service. I would offend the reasonable desires of many, if I did not say here a word respecting the conduct of that virtuous Lady [Page 9] throughout her undertaking. She is a native of Alenson; her name is Magdelaine de Chauvigny; she is the daughter of the late Monsieur de Chauvigny, seigneur of Vaubegon, and President of the Elected in the Election of A1erçon.³ From her infancy, she did all in her power to enter the Religious life, and commenced even then the practice of works of piety and Christian charity. But her father obliged her to marry an honorable Gentleman, named Monsieur de la Pelterie, who, five and a half years after their marriage, left her a childless widow, (19] having had by her only one daughter, who died immediately after Baptism. As soon as she became a widow, she began, through the perusal of the Relations that we send over every year, earnestly to consider means of contributing to the education of the little Savage girls. With that intention, she caused many prayers to be said; for having resolved to sacrifice herself entirely, with all of her fortune that she could legally surrender, to the divine Majesty, —she desired to learn from God whether it would be agreeable to him that she should do so in New France. While she was in doubt, God’s providence employed a violent illness which, in a short time, brought her so low that the Physicians despaired of her recovery, and gave her up. Seeing herself in this condition, she felt strongly inspired to vow that she would devote her wealth and her person to New France, without communicating aught of this to any one. Shortly after, the Physician came, and found her condition greatly improved; and —without knowing what she had done, or having any inkling of her design —he said to her: “Madame, your disease has gone to Canada.” He spoke [Page 11] better than he knew, and made his patient laugh, who was very happy to see [20] by this so extraordinary effect, that God accepted her sacrifice. When her health was fully restored, she thought of nothing but the execution of her plan. But Monsieur her Father, who was still living, urged her to marry again, and went so far as to threaten, in good earnest, to disinherit her if she would not obey him. As she saw that her Father spoke in earnest, and that, if she did not show some compliance, she ran the risk of completely ruining her pious plan, she resolved to feign that she was willing to remarry; and, by this means, she regained the good graces of her Father, who in the meantime passed from this life to the other. Then, without delay, having divided her property with her sister, she went, in January, to Paris. Having there conferred about her enterprise with several holy and learned persons, who approved it, she went to Tours, where there was an Ursuline of her acquaintance, very virtuous and very zealous, who had long desired to go to New France.⁴ It is difficult to imagine the welcome she received from Monseigneur the Most Illustrious and Most Reverend Archbishop of Tours, to whom she paid her respects, and artlessly revealed all her [21] plans. That venerable Prelate, who took a great interest in the salvation of Souls, —admiring this Lady’s courage and virtue, and having made known to her his great affection for the missions of New France, —promised her all the help and assistance in his power to give. On their part, the Ursulines received her with open arms, and, overcoming a thousand difficulties, they granted her the Nun whom she asked for, and gave her for companion another Nun, full of courage and [Page 13] virtue, the daughter of Monsieur de Savoniere, Seigneur of la Troche and of Saint Germain in Anjou. At first, he opposed the selection of his daughter for that object; but afterward, with Madame his wife, gave his consent by letters so replete with piety and Christian virtue that they deserve to be made public. Madame de la Pelterie having so fortunately procured at Tours what she desired, went to take leave of Monseigneur the Archbishop; and, by his command, introduced to him the two Nuns chosen for the enterprise. He thus received a singular consolation, in contemplating these three charitable Souls as [22] three victims who were about to sacrifice themselves to as many crosses, even at the end of the world. And as, owing to his infirmities, he was unable to celebrate Holy Mass, he wished to receive communion with them at the Mass which he caused to be said in his private Chapel. Then he gave them his holy blessing, to which he added a short but very fervent exhortation, interspersed with tears, commending to them the virtues and the fervor necessary for this undertaking. New France will ever be under very special obligations to him. Madame de la Pelterie, well pleased, returned to Paris, taking with her the two Ursulines. Upon her arrival there, she tried to obtain a third Ursuline from the Congregation of Paris, which differs a little from that of Tours, in order to give both an opportunity of working for the salvation of the Savages, and, perhaps, to initiate the much-desired union of the two Congregations; but they were unable to obtain what they desired. We have not yet been able to learn the reason therefor; I only know with certainty that it did not depend upon the Ursulines of Paris, who, for the [Page 15] past twelve years, have displayed an incredible zeal for New France, and who, instead of only one Nun, [23] would have supplied several others, and are still in readiness to give them. They were greatly mortified, therefore, when they saw themselves deprived of this opportunity, to which they had so long looked forward. The good Foundress, however, did not lose courage; but, persisting in her design to bring an Ursuline of the Congregation of Paris, she applied to Monseigneur the Most Illustrious and Most Reverend Archbishop of Rouen, begging him —through the intermediary of some virtuous and pious person —to give her a third Ursuline from the Convent of Dieppe, which is connected with that of Paris. This he granted with the same ardor as when he gave the three Hospital Nuns to Madame the Duchess d’Aiguillon⁵ This is a double obligation, for which New France will ever be indebted to him. Mother Cecile of the Cross, an Ursuline, was therefore chosen in the Dieppe Convent to join the two others, who were greatly consoled thereat, being well disposed to the union of the two Congregations. And to show that Madame de la Pelterie had not more affection for one than for the other, she never would contract with any Ursuline establishment of [24] France, but only with the Ursulines, whose Obedience is for New France; and she has attached her donation exclusively to the Ursuline establishment in New France. I could have much to say here respecting the signal virtue and incomparable zeal of the person of whose services this good Lady has availed herself for the management of the whole undertaking, —which would greatly rejoice the hearts of whoever might read it. But his modesty does not even allow me to [Page 17] mention him;⁶ he is satisfied that God should consent to employ him to further the plans of this incomparable Lady, who will serve as a pattern to all who may have the courage to imitate and follow her. Let us return to our History.

When we were informed that a bark was about to arrive at Kebec, bearing a College of Jesuits, an establishment of Hospital Nuns, and a Convent of Ursulines, the news seemed at first almost a dream; but at last, descending towards the great river, we found that it was a reality. As this holy band left the ship, they fell on their knees, thanked the God of Heaven and kissed the soil of their beloved country —for thus they called these regions. [25] All gazed in silence on this spectacle. From a floating prison were seen issuing these virgins consecrated to God, as fresh and as rosy as when they had departed from their homes. All Ocean, with its waves and tempests, had not injured their health in the slightest degree. Monsieur the Governor received them with all possible honor. We led them to the Chapel; the Te Deum laudamus was chanted; the Cannon thundered on all sides. Heaven and earth were praised, and then we conducted them to the houses set apart for them until such time as they should have others more suitable for their duties. On the following day, they were taken to the Residence of Sillery, where the Savages dwell.⁷ When they saw these poor people assembled in the Chapel, offering their prayers, and singing the articles of our creed, the tears fell from their eyes. In vain they tried to hide it, —their joy, too restrained within their hearts, showed itself in their features. On going thence, they visited the settled families and the neighboring [Page 19] cabins. Madame de la Pelterie, who led the party, could not meet a little Savage girl without embracing and kissing her, with marks of affection [26] so sweet and emphatic that these poor barbarians stood astonished and edified, —all the more that they themselves are cold in their greetings. All these good women did the same, —without heeding whether or not these little savage children were dirty, and without asking whether this were the custom of the country, —the law of love and charity overcoming all human considerations. The newly arrived Fathers were set to work; they were called upon to baptize some Savages. Madame de la Pelterie is already the godmother of several. She could not contain herself; she wished to be everywhere, whenever the Savages were in question. It happened, soon after she had landed, that, on going to receive communion, she observed at the holy Table only monsieur the Governor, and some Savages who were performing their devotions that day. She hastened into their midst, not without tears of consolation on seeing the simplicity and devotion of these good Neophytes. In fact, it is a sweet pleasure to see these good people approach Jesus Christ amidst our French. It must be confessed that God makes his influence felt in these meetings; his goodness desires that those who labor together for the salvation of the Savages should enjoy some little [27] share of the favors that he confers on these young plants of his Church. These visits being soon over, Altars were erected in the Chapels of their houses, holy Mass was said there, and these good women retired into their seclusion. Into the Hospital went the three Hospital Nuns sent by Monseigneur the Most Reverend Archbishop [Page 21] of Rouen, who —full of zeal for the salvation of souls and very anxious to show Madame d’ Aiguillon how willing he was to contribute, to the best of his ability, to the good works she had undertaken —could not better oblige her than in obliging the poor Savages, by giving for their aid one of the most precious treasures of his Diocese. For these good women, besides being very strict in discipline and in regular observance, are, beyond a doubt, excellent in the care and treatment of the sick, both in temporal and in spiritual matters. The three Ursulines withdrew to a private house,⁸ after having mutually embraced the other nuns. Soon afterwards, we had six savage girls given to Madame de la Pelterie or to the Ursulines; and some French girls began going to them for instruction; so that they [28] already perform the duties of their order. But if ever they have a house with sufficient accommodation, and the means to feed the savage children, they will perhaps have so many of these as to weary them. God grant that the heavy expenses may not thwart their designs; the outlay to be made here is very great, but God is still greater.

As for the Hospital, the Nuns were not yet lodged, and their baggage had not yet arrived, when sick people were brought to them. We had to lend our straw beds and mattresses that they might perform this first act of charity. Oh, how often I have wished that Madame the Duchess d’Aiguillon might see, even for three days, what she has commenced to effect in these countries! The nuns whom she has sent us could not contain themselves for gladness. They had sick persons to nurse and had nothing to give them; but the charity of Monsieur our Governor is delightful. Even if it is necessary to refuse some [Page 23] poor afflicted Savages, one cannot do everything at the first stroke. We hope that Madame the Duchess, by increasing the aid, will cause increased pity toward the sick people of her house, —let us rather say, of the house of God. If the Savages are [29] capable of astonishment, they will experience it here; for among them no heed is paid to the sick, especially if they are considered sick unto death; they are looked upon as beings of another world, with whom is held no intercourse, no conversation. Now, when they witness the tender care and attention that is given to their Countrymen, it causes them to entertain a high esteem for the person for whose sake this great help is given them, who is Jesus Christ, our Savior.

But, if it’ please you, let us consider what designs Madame d’Aiguillon had in founding this institution. Observe how she speaks of it in the letter that she wrote to the Mother Superior of the Hospital Sisters who have come hither: “My good Mother, I give praise to God for the resolution you have taken to go over to New France, for which I am deeply obliged to you and to the two good sisters who accompany you. I also greatly rejoice that Our Lord has chosen you for this, as I have a very special esteem for your merit. I hope that this will compensate for all failings on my part and that God, in his kindness, will be more regardful of your virtues [30] than of my imperfections. I wish to tell you of the object that I have had in founding this institution. It is to dedicate this Hospital to the Blood of the Son of God, that was shed in order that mercy might be granted to all men —and to ask him to apply it to our Souls, and to those of these poor barbarous people. I inform you of my intentions so that you may offer them [Page 25] to our Lord, and that, in effecting the foundation, you may dedicate it accordingly, and place on its door: ‘Hospital dedicated to the Blood of the Son of God, shed in order that mercy might be granted to all men.’ If it be not deemed advisable that this Inscription be placed upon the door, I desire that all the Nuns should know that such is my purpose in the foundation, and that they devote themselves to the service of the poor with that object. I further desire that the Priest who says Mass every day shall have the same intention. I regret exceedingly that I cannot embrace you, and your good Sisters who are going with you, and in person entreat you to pray Our Lord to have mercy on me. It was a great consolation to me to see those good Ursulines who are also going to Kebec with Madame de la Pelterie. I was [31] promised that you would all be in the same ship.” (And lower down) “Rest assured, my Mother, that I shall serve you personally, and your new house, with eager affection, and that I shall remain all my life,

My good Mother,

Yours, most delighted to render

you service,

Du PONT,”

IN THE MARGIN, THE FOLLOWING WORDS ARE WRITTEN:

“My good Mother, oblige me by taking care to ask the Savages whom you shall attend at the hour of death, for the salvation of Monseigneur the Cardinal, for that of some persons towards whom I have special obligations, and for mine; and that all your Nuns do the same act of charity for me.

Paris, the 10th of April, 1639.”

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[32] The Letters with which she has been pleased to honor me are full of similar affectionate wishes. I have but these few words to say to her in Answer:

“Madame, all France honors you for that noble Ducal Coronet that encircles your Brow. I assure you that all the diamonds which embellish it have no effect on either my heart or my eyes; their lustre is too weak to shine across the vast extent of the Ocean. But I confess that your heart, which so deeply honors the Blood of Jesus Christ, touches me to the quick. You go to the source of life, and no one can love Jesus without loving those who cherish and honor his Blood. Saint Theresa having rendered some service unto Our Lord, that good Prince said these beautiful words to her, which are inscribed at the end of the book containing her life: ‘My daughter, I desire that my Blood may benefit thee and that thou mayst have no fear that my mercy will fail thee. I have shed it with much suffering, and thou enjoyest it with much pleasure, as thou seest.’ Such, Madame, are the words I should wish the King of souls to say to your soul. Could it be possible that a Soul which so lovingly honors [33] the Blood of Jesus Christ, should not feel the effects of it? O, my Lord, permit it not! Amen, Amen.”

This excellent Lady is already repaid for her alms, at the very moment that I write these lines. Many Savages have already prayed for her in her Hospital; several have already died there. The first one had lived like a Saint, since his Baptism; he died there like a Saint. This good man looked upon life as a prison, and upon death as a transition to true liberty. His utterance failed him, owing to a great oppression on his chest, —at least, we could hardly [Page 29] hear him; but when he was requested to pray for those who so charitably succored him, he made such an effort that he prayed aloud for Monseigneur the Cardinal and for Madame the Duchess d’Aiguillon. Death cut short his physical speech, but could not stop the prayer of his soul, which he went to continue in Heaven. I wished to have his body taken to Sillery, as a precious deposit and as a Relic; but the winds and tide compelled me to leave it at Kebec. Here is [34] part of a Letter from Father de Quen, which shows the good done at the Hospital:

“B

ARNABÉ Mistikoman returns to Sillery, sound in body and soul, as I believe. He, of his own accord, made his confession and received communion this morning, in thanksgiving for the restoration of his health. Yesterday, we buried one of the two Algonquins whom I baptized the day before, —the one who had a wound in his breast; his companion is doing a little better than usual. Marie, wife of Noël Negabamat, nearly died last night of a severe attack of colic and a high fever which still troubles her. I heard her confession this morning, with the intention of giving her the communion, but the bleeding administered to her prevented it. Noël, her husband, is better; he has made confession, and received communion; I think he will return to see you in a few days. Estienne Pygarouich, wishing to go Beaver hunting, went as far as Sillery, seeking you to hear his confession; but, not finding you there, he came to me. I heard his confession with great satisfaction and content in my soul. The other sick persons are doing as usual. When at the Altar, remember him [35] who is yours,” etc. Would not [Page 31] one say that this Hospital, which is but newly founded, had been erected for a hundred years in the heart of Christianity? If France but saw the joy, the modesty, and the charity of the good Nuns who manage it, in perfect seclusion and order, the Ladies would hasten to their assistance, To succor the poor of Jesus Christ is the service of Empresses and Queens. Now, I must state, in passing, that here are four great works bound together by a single tie —the settlement of the Savages, the Hospital, the Seminary for little Savage boys, and the seminary for little Savage girls. These last three depend upon the first. Let these barbarians remain always nomads, —then their sick will die in the woods, and their children will never enter the seminary. Render them sedentary, and you will fill these three institutions, which all need to be vigorously aided.

HE Gentlemen of the Company of New France, in order to induce the Savages to settle, have granted the same favor in their store to the sedentary Christians as to the French. They have also [36] ordered that some cleared land be given to the young girls who marry; they have, moreover, set apart every year a sum of money to make presents to the Christian Hurons who come to supply themselves with goods at their stores. Verily, these are praiseworthy actions, deserving to be honored by men and by Angels.

Another has greatly helped the seminary for little boys: and, this year, a person, giving an alms of a hundred écus, spends this sum in purchasing cloth and food, which seem to have been sent this year by a most special providence of God. [Page 33]

A worthy and pious person has given a hundred écus for the wedding of a young Savage girl sought in marriage by a young Frenchman of very good character.

The Gentlemen of the Congregation of Nôstre Dame, founded in Paris, give a sum every year for the support of a Savage. Thus, God ever induces some chosen soul to coöperate with his work.

I say nothing concerning the mission of the Hurons and other sedentary nations, where the harvest [37] is more abundant. All things will come in their time. Neither the seminary for girls, nor that for boys, nor the Hospital, nor the settlement of the Savages, nor the missions to more distant nations, will fail to receive assistance. Happy those whom the .God of Heaven shall choose to make his instruments for these grand works, —whether employed therein personally, or by contributing their wealth, or by inducing others to contribute. [Page 35]

CHAPTER III.

OF THE FAVORABLE DISPOSITIONS OF THE SAVAGES

TOWARDS THE FAITH.

LL that we said last year of the blessings which God grants to this new Church, has been perceptibly increased since that time, in spite of all the opposition and obstacles of the Demons and of their tools. We have baptized more Savages than in previous years. The Sedentary families have persevered in the practice of Christianity, [38] and have inclined others to imitate them. Prayers are publicly said everywhere, The chants and Drums of the sorcerers or jugglers are losing their influence. The Name of Jesus Christ is spreading like a fragrant balm, making itself felt far away in these vast countries. The rumor of our faith and the assistance that we have commenced to give to those who have become settled, have induced over eight hundred Algonquins to come down as far as the three Rivers, —who have declared that they approached us merely for the purpose of acquiring knowledge of the true God. So indeed I may say that we have seen Savages of more than ten different Nations bend the knee before Jesus Christ, lending ear to a language they had never heard. I do not say that they are all converted, but, at least, they have commenced to render some homage to their God, being present at the prayers which their Countrymen or allies offer up into his hand. Now, that we may observe some [Page 37] order, let us consider, in the first place, the obstacles that we have met in the instruction of both classes, and then we shall see the benefit that God has caused to be derived therefrom.

[39] It must not be imagined that the Devil surrenders, either himself or his fortresses, without a struggle. Although the Savages declare that they wish to be instructed, they are not all animated by the same spirit, nor are they all equally willing. The best of them are imbued from the cradle with many errors, which are eradicated only little by little, in proportion as light and grace enter into their souls. As they have been afflicted for several years with serious diseases and as nearly all imagine that their deaths are due solely to witchcraft, two headstrong fellows among them —seeing that every one listened attentively to our explanation of our belief —undertook to oppose us, publicly declaring that the prayers caused death among them. One of these used threats against the Fathers who called upon the Savages to receive instruction in the Chapel. “Since we pray,” said they, “we see by experience that death carries us off everywhere.” Others added that the French were vindictive to the last degree, and that we had received orders from France to take revenge —through a general mortality among all the people of the country —for some Frenchmen who were killed by the [40] Savages several years ago.

A certain sorcerer, or rather charlatan, a man of some standing among them, sought to prove by our doctrine that we caused their death. “The French teach,” said he, “that the first woman who ever lived brought death into the world; what they say is true, —the women of their land are capable of such [Page 39] wickedness, and that is why they bring them into these countries —to make us all lose our lives. If the few they have already brought here have killed so many, those whom they expect will destroy all that remain.” (The Devil was already affected by the coming of the Hospital Sisters and the Ursulines.) All these evil reports greatly retard the glory of Our Lord, and the salvation of these unfortunate peoples. It has ever been the object of the evil spirit to decry, to the best of his power, those who endeavor to extricate souls from darkness and from sin. The war that suddenly occurred when these rumors seemed quieted, and the defeat of the Algonquins, have greatly diverted their minds from the good thoughts that God had bestowed upon them; nevertheless, as not one of those who were baptized was taken or killed [41] in the fight, this blessing has confirmed many of them in their good intentions.

In a word, sin or the habit of vice is a chain, very difficult to break. Every day we hear some who tell us that our doctrine is good, but that its practice is difficult. Some have two wives whom they love, or who are useful to them in their housekeeping; others are held in estimation on account of certain superstitions which they would have to abandon if they were baptized. The young people do not think that they can persevere in the state of matrimony with a bad wife or a bad husband; they wish to be free and to be able to divorce the consort if they do not love each other. Such are the chief outward impediments we have encountered in the performance of our duties. Let us now see how the forces of the Demons are but as straws, and, like thorns, do not prevent the budding of the roses. [Page 41]

In the first place, the Savages who have received instruction have, with very few exceptions, a very high opinion of our belief; they think that to be a Christian and a foe to vice is one and the same thing. Therefore [42] when they are asked whether they have not done something wrong, they answer: “I pray to God, and consequently I do not commit those actions.” If they notice any vice in a Frenchman. They very properly say that he does not believe, and that he will descend into Hell.

They attend the public prayers, bring their children to be baptized; ask for that Sacrament with. Affection —I mean those who are more thoroughly instructed. In short, we know already by their conduct that the Faith is working in their souls. When these Algonquins arrived at the three Rivers —to the number of over one hundred canoes full —they were very haughty and arrogant, notably those from the Island. Having heard the doctrine of Jesus Christ, they were seen to be so changed that even our Frenchmen were astonished.

One of the petite Nation of the Algonquins, —having been present at the prayers, and heard the singing of the Litanies of the attributes of God —impressed these so fully on his mind that he asked for them in writing. When this was granted to him, he highly valued the paper containing them. It came to pass that, this good man, in returning to his own country, was wrecked; all [43] his goods were lost, but he and his people saved their lives. What caused him the most sorrow, as he told us afterward, was the loss of his paper, —so much that, although he was far distant from him who had given it to him, he decided to retrace his steps, to ask him for [Page 43] another one. But he was greatly astonished when he saw the paper, quite sound and whole, under the ribs of his canoe, recovered from the danger. He wondered at this as a prodigy, and related it to his people as a miracle. Having returned to his own country, he assembled his neighbors every day in a large cabin, hung this paper to a pole, and all stood around it, singing what they knew of these Litanies, all crying out to God: “Chawerindamawinan, have pity on us.” God took pleasure in their entreaty, for the disease that afflicted them entirely disappeared. When this poor man came back to see our Fathers, he brought the paper with him; and, as he had to spend the winter in the woods to procure his supply of Elk meat, he asked for another, which he regarded with the same veneration. As he did not yet know by heart the prayers to be offered to God, he offered him the paper, saying, with all his people:’ [44] “If we knew what is in this paper, we would all say it to thee; but since we are ignorant, be content with our hearts and have pity on us, thou who art our great Captain.” Afterward, when he came back to our Fathers, he told them that nothing had failed him, and that God had given him abundance.

Even the Sorcerer, —whom I mentioned above, and who, at the beginning, exclaimed against the coming of the French women, —when his little girl became ill, did not have recourse to his art, but to Baptism, which he obtained for his child; and, bodily health having returned with the holiness of the soul, this charlatan ceased not to extol us and our doctrine. But he acted like the bells that call the faithful to the Church, and never enter it themselves.

One incident in connection with the arrival of these [Page 45] Algonquins caused us sorrow. A Nipieirinien Captain who was also coming to receive instruction, fell so ill at the river des Prairies, about thirty leagues above the three Rivers, that he died. Before giving up his soul, he said to his people: “Tell the French that I was going to see them to learn the road to Heaven. I am much grieved that I [45] cannot die near them; I have hurried on as fast as I could, but illness does not allow of my going any further; as for you, do not fail to carry out your design after my death.”

Another Algonquin, on hearing God spoken of, exclaimed: “This is what I have long wished to hear;” and, seeking the Father, he begged him for more special instruction, and, for that purpose, he came every day to our house. Hardly had he begun this practice, when his son fell dangerously ill. This did not startle him; he hung a rosary about the boy’s neck, and going to the Father who was instructing him, he said: “I have nothing so dear in the world as my two children; here is my son very sick, and in danger of death; even if he and his sister were to die, I would not abandon the resolution I have taken to pray to God. I know well that he is the Master of our lives. My wife, my children, and myself,” added he, “having all fallen seriously ill together, it occurred to me that there must be some one in the world who had a care for men. I prayed to him without knowing his name; he cured all of us, although we knew him not. Now that we [46] are beginning to know him, he will not abandon us.” In fact, his son was cured soon afterward, and was baptized with his little sister and their grandmother. This poor man, seeing that he would have to go [Page 47] away without Baptism —they were pressed by hunger, because provisions could not be sold to them at the store —said to the Father who had taught him: “Why do you refuse me the gift that you gave my children and my mother?” All things have their time; one ought not to be hasty in matters of such importance. It is a custom among these peoples to give for the cure of the sick, a feast at which all must be eaten. Now, to do away gradually with this superstition, one of our Fathers, preaching against these feasts, stated publicly that God abhorred them; but that he was pleased with charitable works, and, consequently, that what was given to jugglers and charlatans should be given to poor widows and orphans. An old man, remembering this precept, and seeing his daughter ill, told his son-in-law to go out hunting and to ask God for a moose, so that he might give food to the poor. The son-in-law obeyed, and killed the great animal; the good old man bestowed his alms, and his daughter was cured.

[47] A band of Savages, who left us in the Autumn to winter in the woods, told us in the Spring how God had helped them. “We prayed to him every day,” they said, “without fail. As soon as we killed an animal, we returned thanks to him on the spot, as the being who had given it to us; in fact, it seemed to us as if we were taking our food from a storehouse, one piece after the other. For instance, having found a Bear, we remained some time without finding anything; the Bear being eaten, we said to God: ‘We have nothing left; give us our food; thou art our Father.’ Immediately we found something to live on; and God kept us for a long time like that, —so that we were astonished, and said that if [Page 49] there should be nothing left in our pouches, God would put something therein. If any of us did any evil thing, the others at once said to him: ‘Do what thou wilt; but the Fathers must know all we do.’” In fact, when they arrived they told us, without our asking them, all the good and all the evil they had done, confessing their sins aloud before being baptized.

[48] I have mentioned above the evil reports and the war that delayed the course of the Gospel. Monsieur our Governor went up to the three Rivers with a bark and some shallops, well armed, and removed these obstacles. For, although contrary winds and the precipitation of the Savages robbed him of the opportunity of defeating their enemies against whom he was proceeding —nevertheless, seeing the good will which a man of such merit had for them, they met and held several councils among themselves, at which they decided to embrace the Christian faith and to dwell near the French. In fact, they erected good and long cabins quite close to our settlement at the three Rivers, giving us a fine opportunity of teaching them. The affairs of God are always opposed. Everything was proceeding happily and they were assiduous in attending the prayers that they were made to recite in the Chapel, and the explanations of the Catechism, —given to the women in the morning, and to the men in the evening, —when famine compelled them to seek their living here and there, on the rivers and in the woods. The delay in the arrival of the ships was the cause of this misfortune. It [49] was a sore grief for us to see a large number of very well disposed persons depart from our vicinity, through inability to provide for [Page 51] their bodily wants. Finally, when the ships made their appearance after having been long expected, these poor scattered sheep again gradually gathered around us.

As I was about to close this Chapter, one of the Fathers of our Society who is at the three Rivers, wrote me the following:

HE persecution against us is again commencing; the smallpox, or some other similar disease unknown to me, having broken out among the Savages, the Devil makes them say that we are the cause of this contagion. They openly assert that Father le Jeune is certainly the author of the death of Mantwetehimat, who would not obey him; they also say that he caused the death of this man’s wife, There are a good many cabins here, and some are greatly afflicted. Kwikwiribabougouch presses me to baptize him before he leaves here; the dread of dying in the woods makes him desire Baptism. Shall I grant it to him? All the Savages who are here say that all is over with them, and that not one of them will see the Spring. [50] Will Your Reverence soon be here? Have the Hospital mothers arrived? It is reported here that they have come. If the sick at the three Rivers ask to be taken to Kebec, what shall I say to them? Can those who are there and those who are up here be cared for all together? A word in reply, if you please.”

This is, indeed, a variegated Letter. On the one hand, we are accused of causing death; and, on the other, we are asked for the Sacrament of life.

I may say, in passing, that this Mantwetchimat was a wicked Apostate, to whom —as he would not [Page 53] submit to his duty —I said that if he attacked God, he would not remain long unpunished. He promised that he would go down to Kebec with me, for I was then at the three Rivers. I think that he had some good will, but he did not keep his word. Hardly had I left than he and his wife —who was also baptized, and was not much better than her husband —both died. This made the Savages say that I had caused their death.

It happened, almost at the same time, that a Sorcerer or Juggler was breathing on a sick person, at about ten o’clock at night, because he dared not [51] do it in the daytime. I heard of it and, hastening there with one of our Fathers, I upbraided him and made him cease, threatening him in God’s name. Before day broke, this miserable man was attacked by the contagion or smallpox, which rendered him horrible to look at. This astonished the Savages, and led some of them to think that we wished their death and that God granted our wish. In vain I told them that God would be angry with us and would punish us, if we wished evil to any one. “Even if you killed one of us,” they said, “God would say nothing to you, for you pray to him morning and evening, and at all hours; and we do not know how to pray to him; that is why he will leave us to die.”

As regards the Hospital, I replied that we had enough sick people at Kebec and that it would be necessary to wait till there were better accommodation and more adequate means for succoring so many poor unfortunates. However, all these vexations are true proofs of the conversion of these peoples; we are beginning to observe this truth so often, that they no longer cause us any fear. They are like the [Page 55] cold and the winds, which cause [52] wheat and trees to throw out strong roots, while appearing about to break and destroy everything. [Page 57]

CHAPTER IV.

OF THE CHRISTIANS OR BAPTIZED SAVAGES IN GENERAL.

E have two kinds of Christians in these countries: some have been baptized. when very ill, after rather slight instruction but sufficient to allow of their receiving that Sacrament in that condition; the others have been baptized in full health, after having been well instructed in the principal and most necessary articles of our creed. Altogether, they number four hundred and fifty or thereabout, including the Hurons, who constitute by far the majority. Now, to speak of those down here, I may say, in the first place, that I do not know a single one of those baptized when ill, who openly scorns his Baptism. There are two or three of them who have married Savage women who are not [53] Christians, because they were unable to find any baptized women willing to marry them. We deal leniently with them, allowing them to come to prayers, but we do not yet admit them to the Sacraments. Lac potum vobis dedi; we give them milk to drink, as unto babes. Experience teaches us that we should not despair of any one.

As for all the others, it is a blessing deeply felt to see them attending prayers and the instructions that we give them; present at Mass on Festivals. and Sundays, and some on working days; coming to Vespers when they are sung in our Chapel at Sillery, in the residence of Saint Joseph; chanting the Pater and [Page 59] the Credo, the Commandments of God and some Hymns composed in their Language; making their confessions with admirable candor; receiving communion with devotion and respect; reciting the Rosary every day in honor of the blessed Virgin. It is a heartfelt consolation to us to see Savages engaged in these holy exercises. There are some who come to ask Our Lord for his holy blessing in the Chapel, when they wish [54] to undertake a journey: and, on their return, come also to give him thanks for having preserved them. In a word, I repeat what I have said a hundred times, —if we had the means to give considerable assistance to the Savages, and to induce them to become sedentary, we would see a great blessing overspread these peoples, who are much more docile in matters of the Faith than we had dared to expect, as will be seen by the remarks that I am about to make.

I have heard on good authority that some shameless women, who had approached some men at night and solicited them to do evil in secret, received for answer, only these words: “I believe in God, I pray to him every day; he forbids such actions, —I cannot commit them. ”

Much praise is given to the answer of that Christian servant of the Church in Lyons, who, when urged to sin by her still Pagan master, replied: “Christiana ego sum, nihil sceleris admittunt Christiani; I am a Christian; Christians do not commit so great sins.” I have heard that some young widowed Savage women and some girls, solicited and urged to abandon themselves to Savages who gave them assistance and helped them to live, [55] replied that they were baptized and never committed such offenses. [Page 61] Is not this astonishing in the land of barbarism?

There is a most evil custom among the Savages. Those who seek a girl or a woman in marriage go to her to make love at night. There is much wrong in these visits, but not always, for the Savage women of these parts are sufficiently reserved, fearing that they may not find a husband if they make themselves common. Now, —in order to extirpate so mischievous a usage, —we counsel the young Christian girls to give no answer to those who seek them at such times. Some have followed this advice very well, spurning those who came to visit them and even coming to beg us to forbid such visits to them, thinking that the young men would obey us better than them. Others only said these few words to them: “Go and see the Fathers; be instructed and baptized; then I will speak to you, —not at night, but in the daytime.” Three young Algonquins from the Island, having come down to Kebec, and wishing to make love according to their custom, [56] addressed themselves to Christian girls. They were greatly astonished when these girls told them to apply to us about the matter, and that they would decide nothing without our advice. These good people finally came to us and asked us if we governed the Savage girls. At first, we did not know what they meant; but, having at last comprehended it, we gave them to understand that these visits were of no avail, and that they could not expect to marry any Christian girl unless they were baptized. If all had the reserve of those I have just mentioned, it would be a great consolation; but unfortunately some of them, when far away from our settlements, marry at [Page 63] the solicitation of their relatives, and all these marriages, not being according to God, are broken off as easily as they were heedlessly contracted.

We have confirmed some in their marriages since their Baptism. These, we hope, will remain Firm and constant. I once heard a woman instructing her husband upon Confession. I was comforted at seeing the candor of [57] these good Neophytes. “Be very careful,” she said, “not to hide any of thy sins; seek for them in thy conscience, and tell them all to God; it is to him that thou speakest, —the Father is there but to take his place, because God does not make himself seen on earth. But, above all, be very sorry for having offended him; for, if thou hast no sorrow for thy sins, nothing will come of it.”

Here is a matter which has afforded me much consolation. The Hiroquois having made their appearance near the three Rivers, the Savages were gathered from all sides. Having met together, they made several war feasts, at which they must sing, dance, and yell, —all this through superstition, to obtain advantage over their enemies. As they dance, one after another, they give each a signal, selecting him whom they wish to have dance after them. It happened that one of these dancers gave the bouquet or signal to François Xavier, one of our new Christians, who refused it, renouncing these superstitious dances. It was tendered to Ignace Amiskwape, who did the same. It was presented to some other Christians who all imitated the courage of these brave Athletes, deriding the follies of [58] their Countrymen who placed their hopes in these ridiculous actions.

On another occasion, one of our Fathers having been informed that a great Feast of meat was being [Page 65] held on a Friday in a cabin, asked the women coming out of it whether there were not some Christians among the guests. They replied that, in truth, there were some; but that they were not eating, being there only to chat and converse with the others. The Father entered the cabin to wards the end of the banquet, and found all the Christians with their dishes filled with meat which they had not touched, receiving it only to give it to those who were not yet baptized. In short, the entire company asked the Father to return thanks to God for them, and to explain some points of our doctrine to them.

Having left the Residence of St. Joseph to attend to some matters, the Father whom I left in its charge wrote me as follows:

“ We easily recognize, since your departure, those Savages who really wish to believe and those who only feign to do so. The former attend prayers regularly [59] and the latter hardly come at all since you went away. As for the Christians, their conduct is very edifying; they never fail to attend the public prayers, and some of them are present at holy Mass every day, as early as four o’clock in the morning. This rebukes and incites our French who are here.”

Another Father, left at the same place, wrote me the following words:

“This morning, I heard the confession of twenty-two Christian Savages. Canoes put in here every day. I cannot, alone, suffice for them all. Hasten your return, if you please,” etc.

The Savages love their children above all things. They are like the Monkeys, —they choke them by embracing them too closely. They have, however, a great fear of what others may say about them and [Page 67] are afraid to give their children, lest they be blamed by their Countrymen. Seeing a good Christian woman at the point of death, I asked her for one of her little girls, to have her brought up by the Reverend Ursuline Mothers, of whose arrival we had received news from Tadoussac. The good woman said to me: “For my part, I am well pleased at this; I know very well that you take [60] great care of poor orphans; but question her Uncle a little, whether he will agree to it.” By good fortune, this Uncle was a Christian. I asked him whether he, would be satisfied if we had the little girl brought up by these good Nuns. He replied that she was the child of his own brother, and that he could not give her up without being blamed by his relatives. I then answered that I was glad that she should be with him, and that he should have her reared in the Faith; but I only feared that God would require from him an account of the child because his wife did not take proper care of her; and that, for my part, I transferred to him my responsibility. The good man was astonished and gave her to me at once, to be handed over to the good Mothers on their arrival. This incident showed me that the fear of displeasing God was becoming rooted in the souls of these poor Neophytes.

A Frenchman wished to make a Christian Savage woman work on a Feast day, not knowing that she had been baptized. The good woman said to him: “Is it permitted to thee to work to-day?” The Frenchman having replied that it was not, “Why then,” said she, “dost thou wish to make me work, since [61] I believe, and pray to God, and wish to go to Heaven as well as thou?”

Non requiritur in Christiano initium, sed finis, a great [Page 69] Saint has said. To commence well is not all; but everything consists in bringing the final period of our lives to a good conclusion. In the previous Relations I have spoken of a young man called Paul Aniskawaskousit, who became blind shortly after his Baptism. This good Neophyte died as he had lived since his conversion, —that is, in a most holy manner. When we administered to him the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, he took the Crucifix that was presented to him, kissed it, and lovingly addressed it: “It is thou who hast given me life, I now return it to thee; thou art good, have pity on my soul. I do not ask thee for health; thou art master; thy will be done.” The poor young man had suffered with the patience of a Job, ever since his Baptism, and, at his death, caused us to say that there is no heart so hard that Heaven’s fire does not soften.

I shall here insert the end of a Letter which teaches us that Faith has great power in the heart, even of a barbarian. Last year we baptized a young lad, [62] about fourteen years of age. We were in great doubt whether we should grant him that favor, for he was but little instructed; but, as he was about to return to his own country, where the nation of Atikamegues takes refuge,⁹ we made him a Christian, and he was named Jacques. This poor youth, falling ill, instructed his father to the best of his ability, made him pray to God, and, before drawing his last breath, advised him to go to the three Rivers to be baptized, which he did. This is what was written to me about it:

“The Attikamegues, or white fish-such is the name of that nation-came down to the three Rivers. I instructed them a little, and they gave me [Page 71] much satisfaction. An old man, among others, pressed us so urgently that we granted him Baptism. He is the father of Jacques Oupassewigan whom we baptized last year. That poor boy persevered in the Faith; although he was very far away from us; he taught his Father, and, finding himself attacked by a serious illness, he advised him, on his deathbed, to .go to us to receive instruction. He surprised me; he was attentive [63] to a wonderful degree. ‘This,’ he would sometimes say, ‘is what I should have known long ago; hitherto I have not lived; I was like a dead man, my son commenced to give me life.’ ‘Hasten my son,’ he would say to the Father, ‘to instruct and baptize me, for I do not wish to go into the fire.’” [Page 73]

CHAPTER V.

OF THE FIRST FAMILIES THAT BECAME SEDENTARY.

E who has begun to give assistance to our Savages to enable them to house themselves and to till the soil has laid, we hope, the foundations of a Christian village which is filled with blessings at its birth. The first two Families who served as foundation stones for this edifice or this new Church, have not only persevered in their intentions but have also attracted others, who begin to imitate them. It is all-important to help them. Monsieur [64] Gand, a truly charitable man, seeing what a good effect we are producing on their souls, has increased our help by several men, whom he engaged for this year and for the next. He sees for himself the difficulties of the country, and the little progress that can be made, owing to the length and severity of the winters; while, meantime, in order to enjoy the fruit we gather from these new plants, great expense is incurred in cultivating them. Behold the first fruits of the first two Families that have become sedentary, and that give the impulse to the others. I cheerfully dedicate them to him who has given them the first assistance, and to all who favor this great undertaking.

In the first place, all who compose these two Families are regenerated in the Blood of Jesus Christ. In the second place, although they are, to a considerable number, all lodged in the same house, —men, [Page 75] women, and children, with but one and the same hearth and the same table, —nevertheless, we have never heard a single dispute among them. The profound peace that dwells in their midst is, to our minds, a sure indication that God is not far away. Factus est in pace locus ejus. They say their prayers [65] in private, evening and morning, on their knees, and do not fail to attend public prayers. As a rule, they hear holy Mass every day, and some as early as four o’clock in the morning. They receive the Sacraments with affection and respect; and some have so tender a conscience that, as soon as they think they have committed some sin, they come at once to confess it, with incomparable frankness, to the Father who has charge of them.

One of us heard one day, unseen, the Heads of these two Families encouraging one another to observe the Christian Law. “Let us not be disheartened,” said they, “we shall not be alone; the leading men among us wish to believe and to dwell near us; let us abandon our old ways to adopt those which are taught us, and which are better than ours.”

They were in great anxiety whether they could observe abstinence from meat on Fridays and Saturdays. “For,” said one, “when we shall be in the woods, making our provision of Elk, we shall have nothing but meat to eat, and what shall we do?” The other replied: I‘ What [66] trouble we are giving ourselves! Since there are only two days in each week, we will pass them without eating anything, and thus observe our abstinence from flesh.” This advice was considered good, but not by the Father in charge of them, who taught them what was to be done in such circumstances. Let us enter into further details. [Page 77]

These two Families having gone to secure their supply of Elk flesh, François Xavier, formerly called Nanaskoumat by his friends, came back with most of his people two days before holy Lent. As he had nothing but meat and smoked eels, we said not a word to him about the abstinence from meat that is observed at that time. But he, having learned it through communication with our Frenchmen, told us that he wished to observe the law, as he was a Christian. We replied that, as he had neither bread nor peas, —in a word, no food but some dried eels, —he was not obliged to follow this strict rule. He answered that the same reasons which induced us not to eat meat obliged him to do the same, since he had but one and the same faith with us; and that he was strong enough to [67] be able to do with a little smoked fish. This answer touched our hearts, and made us resolve to assist him and his daughter out of the limited supply we had, —that is to say, a little bread and peas, and, sometimes, a small quantity of codfish. Here, therefore, were the father and daughter observing abstinence, and sometimes fasting, while the remainder of the Family, who were not yet all baptized, ate very good meat. Entering their room one day while they were fasting, I found both sitting apart from the others, making a light evening repast on a little bread. Then, turning to the other side, I saw a large pot filled with the tongues and upper lips [moufles] of moose, which gave out a delicious smell. These, the most delicate parts of the animal, were being cooked for his people. I must confess that I was greatly surprised at this sight. In fact, it is an astonishing thing to see a man, the head of the Family, —-after having under [Page 79] gone great hardships and fatigue in killing such animals, —witnessing others eating the choicest morsels before his eyes, and constraining himself to fast without being obliged or compelled thereto, and contenting himself with a piece of bread for his sole repast. But what surprised me still more was that a young girl about eighteen or twenty years of age [68] should, in imitation of her father, pass these forty days partly fasting and always abstaining, and ill-fed in the midst of abundance. We asked her once whether she did not think this time very long, and whether she did not find it very difficult to deprive herself of the meat that she saw her companions eating. She admitted that she had, indeed, found it somewhat difficult at first, but that had soon passed away. On another occasion, as a good feast was being given in their house in honor of some of their friends, I asked her father whether he were not tempted to taste a little of the feast —consisting of very fine pieces of Elk meat-which was before his eyes. He smilingly replied: “Nikanis, at the beginning of Lent, I put my heart under that table; that is why my eyes see the meat in vain, —they do not wish for any, because they no longer have any heart. And then, should we not suffer a little as well as the other Christians? We wish to please God, as well as you people.” O God! who would ever have thought that such words would issue from the lips of a barbarian, and that such abstinence would be practiced by a Savage who formerly gorged himself with human [69] flesh! God is God, and his kindness knoweth no bounds; it extendeth to whomsoever pleaseth him.

Here is something more, equally astonishing: This [Page 81] good man having ventured too far during a hunt, and having taken with him only a small quantity of bread that we had given him, found that he had nothing else to eat than the flesh of the Elks that he had killed. He preferred to remain two days without eating, rather than break his abstinence from meat; and, although we had told him that he was not obliged to practice such austerity, he nevertheless did likewise on a subsequent similar occasion. His daughter having, according to the custom of the country, gone with some of her companions to bring out of the woods the flesh of the animals that her father had killed, was detained by bad weather for a longer time than she expected; and when she had consumed her meagre Lenten provision, she found herself with no other food but meat. She still had two days of hard work before reaching home; and it was necessary to drag, by sheer strength, heavy sleighloads of flesh over the snow. She was strongly urged to eat meat; but this poor girl, following her father’s example, would not taste it. [70] Those who especially understand the Savages, and who see these acts, are constrained to admit that grace is stronger than nature. Some of our Frenchmen, observing this practice, said that, if ever they returned to France, they would reproach Heretics and bad Catholics a hundred times over by telling them that the Savages observed Lent, while they ate meat like dogs. Besides, these poor people are in nowise bound by the laws of fasting; for they most often have only fish without bread, —and with no other sauce than water, —or only meat; and more frequently they have nothing at all. The natural meadows¹⁰ which they have begun to cultivate will, [Page 83] in time, relieve them from this great destitution.

I would be too diffuse were I to point out all the good qualities of this truly Christian man. He sometimes tells us of the regret that he feels at seeing the bad opinion that some of his nation have of us. He deplores the hardness of heart of those who do not listen to the Gospel. Moreover, he is a dexterous and very industrious man, far from being addicted to the sloth and idleness natural [71] to Savages. If his efforts were seconded, he would soon extricate himself from the misery common to these barbarians; but he happened to marry a woman who has very little executive ability. The help we now give him will enable him to succeed, He admires our way of doing things. “It is strange,” he said one day, “that you should know everything you have to do by the sound of a bell, —without anything being said to you, and without speaking to one another. As soon as you hear the bell, some go out, others enter; some go to work, others to pray; it makes you rise and go to bed; and it gives, without a word, and with the same sound, all the commands that have to be given. It is different with us; if I wish to persuade my people to work, I must speak many words; and, after all, they scarcely obey me.”

A young man of his nation having asked him for his daughter in marriage, he said to him: “Now that I am a Christian, I honor God; I desire to obey him. Well, he does not wish me to give my daughter to any one but a person who believes in him, and who is resolved never to leave her if he marries her. Consider whether thou hast enough courage to fulfill these two conditions.” The young man replied that he [72] had not sufficient mind to retain all that we [Page 85] taught, and that he hardly dared to hope for Baptism. The Neophyte replied: “It is not lack of memory which prevents thee from enjoying that happiness; at first, I was in the same error; but I afterwards found that, when one prays to God, he gives understanding, and helps one to know what is necessary in order to be baptized. I was also told that there was no need of my knowing so many things, but that I must have good will and a great desire to truly obey God and not to offend him. It is not want of understanding that I fear in thee, but the resolution to serve God all thy life, and never to leave my daughter to marry another; consider whether thou hast sufficient constancy for this.” The poor young man bled at the nose, as they say; he could never bring himself to enter the bond of an indissoluble marriage. Now, observe that it was not the Neophyte that related to us this proceeding, but the young man himself, who afterwards sought to renew the affair, but he has not yet succeeded therein. Oh what trouble these marriages of the Savages will give us! We have said enough of the [73] father; let us now add a few words about his children. This worthy man has had several; four remained to him. This year, God has taken to himself the two youngest, —so that he now has but one son, from twenty to twenty-two years of age, and a daughter, of whom we have just spoken, aged about eighteen. This young man having gone up to the three Rivers last winter, to go to war against their enemies, went straight to stay with our Fathers, without any one having advised him to do so. He told them that if he were to dwell in the cabins of the Savages, he would run the risk of offending God; that the [Page 87] example of the young people, who were very dissolute, might pervert him; and he therefore begged them to give him shelter. Moreover, as he would soon leave to go to war with his Countrymen, he wished to have holy Baptism conferred upon him, so that his soul might not be imperilled by the dangers to which his body would be exposed. Our Fathers received him with open arms, found him well instructed, and, after having closely inquired into his conduct, considered that they could not conscientiously refuse him that Sacrament for which he asked so earnestly. He was therefore made a Christian and named Vincent. [74] When his father received the news, he was greatly rejoiced, —but not so I, for I had resolved not to baptize him until he was married, owing to the difficulty which I foresaw —and which I still see for him —of finding a Christian wife who will suit him or who is not related to him. Nevertheless, God has, up to the present, shown me that his greatness surpasses the littleness of my heart, which is perhaps too narrow and too contracted in such matters; for that young man, assisted by the graces that he derives from the Sacraments, has thus far persevered in the resolution not to marry any girl who is not a Christian. If he preserves the stainless conscience that God has given him since his Baptism, his words will be found true. May Our Lord grant him this grace.

AS to the other Family, its Head was named Negabamat; but he now bears the name of the person who has assisted and who still greatly aids them. He took Monsieur Gand for his Godfather, and, on that account, he was named Noël. He was baptized, with his wife and his eldest son, on the day of the [Page 89] Immaculate Conception of the blessed Virgin. They were all clad in French garb through the [75] generosity of him who presented them for Baptism. His wife was named Marie, and his son, Charles. He had three children of his own and two adopted ones; all have been regenerated in Jesus Christ. We will now speak of them.

This man is well built, and of a good disposition. When he was questioned regarding his Baptism, and especially when he was exhorted to place his trust in God alone, and not in the temporal assistance of men, he answered in a loud tone of voice: “A good part of my life has passed, —I cannot live long in this world; therefore, I do not rest my belief nor base my hope on men, who cannot prolong my life, but in him who has made all, who can grant me eternal life.” Although the women are naturally bashful, his wife never seemed surprised, even when she saw herself in a French dress which she had never worn. The presence of our French, who filled the Church, did not disturb her; to the questions put to her, she replied in a loud voice, and with a face beaming with joy. We asked her afterward how it happened that she was not [76] abashed before so many people, and she replied: “I did not think at all of ‘those who were looking at me. I merely said in my heart: ‘I shall not go to Hell, I shall go to Heaven; all my sins are pardoned;’ and,” she added, “those who believe in God should not be ashamed to say what they believe.” This good woman shows abundant signs of predestination; she prays to God gladly, hears his word with pleasure, and loves to receive frequently the Sacraments; she has sometimes come back from a great distance for the express purpose [Page 91] of making her confession and receiving communion, being greatly troubled when she is prevented from hearing Mass. Being in the woods, occupied in drying Moose flesh, and finding that she was delayed too long, she came to Kebec to receive communion. The Father who heard her Confession —either through inadvertence, or in order to try her-left her with- out having her approach the holy Table. The poor woman said to him: “I have come from a great distance, and with great hardships, to enjoy so great a blessing, and you deprive me of it. Have I then committed any sin that deserves such punishment?” She sought another Father and complained to him, with such candor that he was greatly edified. It [77] must be admitted that these two good souls have deceived me; I did not think that Faith had so strongly taken root in their hearts. Hardly had they become Christians when God visited or tried them very sorely. This new Christian was speaking one day, to a relative, of our doctrine, and of the assistance that we gave the Savages, that we might gather them into a village; and his friend told him that the general feeling of the majority of his nation was that all that we were doing was but a cloak to cover our evil intentions, and that we desired nothing but the ruin of the country and the death of all its inhabitants. “And,” said he to Noël, “rest assured of what I say; thou wilt soon see thy children die before thine eyes; thou wilt follow afterward, and, if we, like thee, listen to them, we shall pass through the same gate. Such is the rumor that prevails,” said this gossip. Noël came and told me all this, without being disturbed, urging me to preach strongly and firmly against that error. Now, —whether [Page 93] the Devil knew the physical condition of his children, or whether God wished to derive his own glory from the faith and constancy of these new Christians —at all events, the five children that he had are almost reduced to one. Soon [78] after this conversation, one of his children was seized with a hectic fever which will deprive him of life in a few days, —for he is but a skeleton, and his bones pierce through his skin in many places. Some time afterward, another child, who was at the seminary, was seized by another disease, which has lasted five months, and, at present, he is not expected to live more than a few days. His eldest son, about fourteen years old, who was also a pupil of our Seminary, gave him consolation in the midst of his afflictions, for indeed he was a well-behaved child, and of an excellent mind. He was suddenly seized with a defluxion or pleurisy which, after causing him great suffering, carried him off in a few days at our House, where he had been brought that he might be more conveniently nursed. His father did not stir from his side while he was sick; his mother came to see him every day, from a distance of over a league. It was during this illness that we were convinced of the faith of the father and child. The fever became so high and so violent that it sometimes made him delirious. Whenever the poor child had a little rest, his father would call us, and beg us to speak to him of God, in order suitably to prepare [79] his soul for death. Sometimes, I saw him fall on his knees near his bed to pray to God, and to have his son pray; his mother prayed, on her part; and both made a vow to God for the recovery of their child, but with the utmost resignation to God’s will. “It is not we,” said they, “who [Page 95] command life. If thou foreseest, O great Captain of Heaven, that when our child grows older, he will not obey thee, we do not ask thee for his restoration to health; but as thou art good, grant him help both for his body and for his soul.” On his side, the child was very well disposed, showing that he did not fear death. He made his confession, received the Body of Our Lord, and Extreme Unction, with full understanding, resigning himself to God’s will, without asking for his life unless he were made to ask for it. His usual prayer was: “Jesus have pity on me, have mercy on me; I am sorry for having offended thee.” At last, feeling that he was near death, he said to us: “I have no more strength. Here, feel my body; it is already cold; I am dying.” He made a confession again, and, when he had received absolution, the defluxion suddenly suffocated him. When he was dead, I told François Xavier who was [50 i.e., 80] present, to console the father, fearing that this blow might unsettle him; but François said to me: “Noël has good courage. As soon as he saw his son expire, he told me that, while he saw him suffering, his soul was filled with sorrow; but that when he saw him dead, and beyond human aid, his heart felt relieved. Indeed, the good man came to me and said: “Nikanis, thou shalt say to our Captain” —he spoke of Monsieur the Governor —“that I thank him for having visited my son during his illness, and assure him that my heart is quite free, and that I remember well the promise that I have given to God, to serve him all my life, —I am not a child, to recall it. I will always pray to him; it is he who disposes of our lives; we are not masters of them.” These words afforded much consolation to [Page 97] Monsieur the Chevalier de Montmagny, whom I would gladly call the Knight of the Holy Spirit, so ready do I find him to perform saintly and courageous deeds and actions replete with the spirit of God. After this death, it happens that his adopted daughter has a dangerous cough, and his youngest son is dying. In truth, the good man may well say: Probasti me et cognovisti me. This we have often impressed [71 i.e., 81] upon his mind-that God wished to try his faith. These arrows were shot at him from Heaven through love. This is not all. His wife kept her strength throughout all these illnesses, and attended to her children. God wished to afflict her as well as the others; she was taken ill with smallpox, which then prevailed, and was the first to enter the Hospital recently established at Kebec. Before these heavy strokes, her husband had already suffered some attacks from his people; for, when he went down to Tadoussac, the Savages laughed at him, —knowing that he prayed to God, —saying that he would become a Jesuit; that he sought to appear clever, and that all he did it for was to live long on earth; but that he would find himself deceived. One of his Countrymen one day told him something —I know not what —that he had seen in a dream, and insisted that he should do it, unless he wished to die soon. This did not startle him; he replied that he would ask the Father who was his director whether the action were permitted, —in which case, he would perform it; otherwise he would not. He was forbidden to do it, and he obeyed without hesitation, and without a reply. Behold how grace operates in a heart that is called barbarian, —[82] or rather, let us say, in God’s children, since they are rendered such by Baptism. [Page 99]

I thought that I had finished speaking of these two Families; but —since the ships still leave me time to write —the sorrow and joy which at present divide my heart, must form the conclusion of this Chapter. Some Savages of the Island, on their return from the country of the Abnaquiois,¹¹ brought here a very contagious epidemic of smallpox. This disease, which kills off these poor people everywhere, has come down as far as Sillery, that is, to the Residence of Saint Joseph, where we are collecting the Savages. After having taken some of them from us, after having snatched from us a true Apostle for these countries, it attacked the Heads of these first two Sedentary Families, with such fury that we do not yet know the result. François Xavier, formerly Nenaskoumat, was the first seized; he was at once carried to the Hosp

Editor		Reuben Gold Thwaites

		\| Finlow Alexander
		\| Percy Favor Bicknell
		\| William Frederic Giese
Translators.		\| Catherine S. Kellogg
		\| Crawford Lindsay
		\| William Price
		\| Hiram Allen Sober

Assistant Editor		Emma Helen Blair

Bibliographical Adviser		Victor Hugo Paltsits

Electronic Transcription		Tomasz Mentrak

CONTENTS OF VOL. XX.

Preface To Volume XVI.		1
Documents: —
XLI.	Relation de ce qvi s’est passé en la Novvelle France, en l’année 1639 [Chapters ii.- xi., completing Part I. of the document; and Chapters i., ii. of Part II., being Lalemant’s Huron report]. Paul le Jeune; Sillery, September 4, 1639. Hierosme Lalemant; Ossossané, June 7, 1639		7
Notes			255