agined might be the cause of their misfortune, they at last fixed upon something which only the light that the author of nature has impressed upon the brow of all men, could reveal to them. Some remembered that they had once robbed the deceased Estienne Bruslé of a collar of 2400 porcelain beads. They accused themselves before the old men, who at this news immediately assembled; and, having well considered the whole matter, they decided that they had found the source of their malady, and thus the only means of remedying it [250] was to make restitution therefor as soon as possible; and for the better success of the affair they resolved to come in person to see the French, and to satisfy them for the wrong done to them. This decision was no sooner made than they started on the journey. I leave your Reverence to imagine how much we were astonished at the cause of this second embassy, which these old men made known in terms worthy of compassion. They spread out upon a mat the two thousand four hundred porcelain beads, which they had collected by a contribution made by the survivors in their village. They conjured us very earnestly, and at different times, to receive this collar in satisfaction for the theft committed against a Frenchman, to have pity on them, and to preserve the few whom the disease had spared up to that time. The Father Superior rejoined that it was very well-advised on their part to wish to make this restitution,- that it was an act of justice, and very right not to keep the property of others; that, nevertheless, we could not accept this collar, since it had not been stolen from us, and he from whom it had been taken was dead, and there was no one in the country who could re

uoir pitié d'eux, & de conferuer ce peu que la maladie auoit iufques à prefent efpargné. Le P. Superieur refpondit que c'eftoit tres-bien aduisé à eux, de vouloir faire cette reftitution, que c'eftoit vne action de iuftice, & tres-raifonnable de ne point retenir le bien d'autrui; neantmoins que nous ne pouuions pas accepter ce collier, puis qu'il ne nous auoit pas esté defrobé, & que celuy à qui il auoit esté pris estoit mort, & n'y auoit perfonne dans le pays qui le peust receuoir en fon nom. D'auantage [251] que c'eftoit vne chofe trop dangereuse pour nous, nommement en ce temps; de receuoir des presens de nations eftrangeres; que ceux de ce païs, qui auroient bien toft le vent de cette affaire, ne prendroient pas cecy pour vne fimple reftitution: mais pluftoft pour quelque fecrette intelligence à leur defauantage; enfin qu'ils deuoient fe contenter de s'eftre mis en deuoir de rendre ce qu'ils iugeoient ne leur appartenir pas, qu'ils fatisfaifoient en cela fuffifamment à leur obligation, & que l'acceptation que nous en ferions, seroit tout à fait inutile pour eux, & nous pourroit estre extremement dommageable, s'ils venoient à guerir deformais; que fi au contraire le mal continuoit, ils ne manqueroient pas de nous estimer des trompeurs, comme n'aians pas refpondu à leur attente. Ils fe contenterent de ces raisons, & s'en retournerent auec leur porcellenne, & mefme auec quelque petit prefent. Mais ce n'eft iamais fait, ceux-cy ne font pas fi toft partis qu'en voici d'autres qui nous donnent fuiet de chercher de nouueaux expediens pour fatisfaire à leur imagination. Le iour du baptefme de Pierre Thouendaentaha nous auions exposé vne fort belle image du iugement, [252] où les damnez font

ceive it in his name. More than this, [251] he said that it was too dangerous a thing for us, especially at this time, to receive presents from strange nations; that the people of this country, who would soon get wind of this affair, would not consider it as a simple restitution, but rather as some secret understanding to their disadvantage; in fine, that they should content themselves with having undertaken to restore what they considered did not belong to them,—that in doing so they had sufficiently discharged their obligations, and that our acceptance of it would be altogether useless to them, and might be extremely injurious to us, if from that time they began to recover; that if, on the contrary, the sickness continued, they would be certain to regard us as impostors for not having fulfilled their expectations. They were satisfied with these arguments, and returned with their porcelain and even with a little present. But this thing is never ended; they had no sooner departed than others came, who caused us to search for new expedients to satisfy their imagination. On the day of the baptism of Pierre Tsiouendaentaha, we had exhibited an excellent representation of the judgment, [252] where the damned are depicted, some with serpents and dragons tearing out their entrails, and the greater part with some kind of instrument of their punishment. Many obtained some benefit from this spectacle; but some persuaded themselves that this multitude of men, desperate, and heaped one upon the other, were all those we had caused to die during this Winter; that these flames represented the heats of this pestilential fever, and these dragons and serpents, the venomous beasts that we made use of in order to poison them.

depeints, les vns auec des couleuures & des dragons, qui leur deschiret les entrailles, & la pluspart auec quelque efpece d'inftrumens de leurs fupplices. Plufieurs tirerent quelque profit de cette veuë, neantmoins quelques vns fe font perfuadez que cette multitude d'hommes defefperez, & entaffez les vns fur les autres, eftoit tous ceux que nous auions fait mourir cét Hyuer; que ces flammes representoient les ardeurs de cette fieure peftilentielle, & ces dragons & ces ferpens, les beftes venimeufes, dont nous nous estions feruis pour les empoifonner. Cela fut dit en plein feftin à Ouenrio au rapport du Capitaine Enditfacon. Vn autre depuis nous demanda fi en effect il eftoit vrai que nous nouriffions chez nous la maladie comme vn animal domestique, disant que c'estoit vne opinion affez commune dans le païs. Et tout fraifchement que ie retournois d'Offoffané, vne femme qui venoit de fon champ, prit vne fauterelle & me l'apporta, me priant instamment de luy enfeigner quelque inuention pour faire mourir ces beftioles, qui mangent les bleds, adioustant qu'on luy auoit dit, que nous estions paffez maistres en ce mestier.

Le 9. noftre cabane d'Offoffané estant tout à fait acheuée, quarante à cinquante Sauuages, [253] tant hommes que femmes, vindrent icy à Ihonattiria querir vne partie de noftre bled, & quelques petits meubles, les Capitaines eftoient de la troupe. Ce font des feruices qu'ils vous rendent gratuitement en ces occafions.

Le 16. tomba malade de la contagion, vne ieune fille, des parentes & de la cabane de noftre nouueau Chreftien. La fage prouidence de Dieu a des deffeins que nous ne voions pas; tout l'Hyuer ils n'auoient

This was said in open feast at Ouenrio, according to the report of Captain Enditsacon. Another one afterward asked us if it were really true that we were raising the malady in our house as if it were a domestic animal, saying that this was quite a common opinion in the country. And very recently, when I was returning from Ossossané, a woman who was coming from her field caught a grasshopper and brought it to me, begging me earnestly to teach her some contrivance for killing these little creatures that eat the corn, adding that she had been told that we were past masters in this art.

On the 9th, our cabin at Ossossané being entirely finished, forty or fifty Savages, [253] both men and women, came here to Ihonattiria to get part of our corn and a few little articles of furniture, the Captains being in the crowd. These are services that they render you gratuitously on these occasions.

On the 16th, a young girl, related to our new Christian and belonging to his cabin, fell sick of the contagion. The wise providence of God has designs that we do not see. All the Winter they had been occupied solely in comforting the others; and now they are the only ones in our village who are afflicted. This shock is indeed rather violent for a new plant, and for us a reason for adoring submissively the secret judgments of God. She is now in the fifth day of her fever, with very manifest signs of danger. Therefore we have already prepared her for Holy Baptism, to which she and her relatives have given us their consent, with evidences of great faith and resignation to the will of God. It is also a consolation to us to see nothing in the cabin, up to the present, contrary to the first promises and resolutions of