The God whom the Christians adore is no less adorable in the midst of fires and flames, in the midst of a pagan and barbarous people, than in the most august Churches of the earth.

once felt my As for my

[117] A Christian woman, on hearing of the approach of the Iroquois, fled with her two little children who could hardly follow her, and they wandered in the woods for six days. On their return, one of the Fathers asked the poor woman on what they had lived in the woods. "I lived on prayers," she replied quite simply. "When I grew weak, I said my Rosary, and I at strength return, and continued my way. children, I tried to find for them some small roots and the tips of the branches of small shrubs, on which the animals live in the woods. At night, I put my children to sleep; and, as I could not sleep myself, I passed the nights almost entirely in prayer and in saying my Rosary. It is the blessed Virgin alone who has saved my life, and whom I wish to serve with all my heart until my death." The devotion of that poor woman, and the piety which she has shown for several years, deserved that assistance from Heaven.

A young woman said, some time ago: 'Very early in the morning, I long to be in the Church; and, when it is time [118] to leave, it seems as if we had only just gone in."

A good old man, a Christian of long standing, was insulted, and nevertheless expressed no indignation at it. When asked whence he derived that equanimity of mind, he replied: "If I were in sin, I would, when I am calumniated and loaded with insults, be angry at it. But, as I am not in fault therein, I have

faute, i'ay plus fujet de m'en réjouïr, que de m'en attrifter. Dieu qui voit le fond de mon cœur, fçait bien mon innocence, & c'est cela qui me confole.

Vne veufue eftant follicitée au mal, par vn ieune homme riche, qui luy prefentoit vne chofe de prix, & luy promettoit de l'aider en fa pauureté. Malheureux que tu es, retire toy, & laiffe moy ma pauureté, luy refpond cette femme; Pourueu que ie meure Chreftienne, fans m'engager dans le peché, ie ferai en peu de temps, mille fois plus riche que toy. Dieu m'en promet bien plus que toy, & me tiendra parole. Ie ferois folle de prendre moins, & de m'engager dans le peché.

[119] Vne autre veufue qui n'auoit point d'autre appuy au monde que fon fils vnique, qu'elle aimoit tendrement; l'ayant perdu, & l'ayant veu enleuer à fes yeux par les Iroquois Agnieronnons, eut fon recours à Dieu auec vne refignation vrayment Chreftienne. Mon Dieu, luy difoit-elle, vous auez voulu efprouuer ma fidelité, & fi c'eftoit de cœur que ie vous difois que ie vous preferois à toutes chofes. Vous le voyez maintenant. Il eft vray que ie fonge à mon fils, & que ie le pleure nuict & iour: mais il eft vray auffi que ie fonge bien plus à vous, & qu'en pleurant ie vous dis que ie fuis contente, à cause que ie fçay que c'eft vous qui l'auez permis.

more reason to rejoice than to be sorry for it. God, who sees the bottom of my heart, knows my innocence full well, and that consoles me."

A widow was solicited to do evil by a rich young man, who offered her a valuable gift, and promised to assist her in her poverty. "Wretch!" replied the woman; "go away and leave me in my poverty. Provided that I die a Christian without falling into sin, I shall soon be a thousand times richer than thou. God promises me much more than thou, and he will keep his word to me. I would be foolish to take less and involve myself in sin."

[119] Another widow, who had no other support in the world than her only son, whom she tenderly loved, lost him, and saw him carried off before her eyes by the Agnieronnon Iroquois. She had recourse to God with truly Christian resignation. "My God," she said to him, "it has been your will to test my faithfulness, and to try whether I meant it from the bottom of my heart when I said that I preferred you above all things. You see it now. It is true that I think of my son, and that I weep for him night and day; but it is also true that I think much more of you, and that, while I weep, I tell you that I am content, because I know that it is you who have permitted it."

CHAPITRE XI.

DE LA NATURE & DE QUELQUES PARTICULARITEZ DU PAYS DES IROQUOIS.

L

E pays des cinq Nations des Iroquois auant leurs conqueftes eftoit entre le 40. & le 50. degré d'eleuation: [120] maintenant on ignore l'eftenduë de leur domination, qui s'eft accreuë de tous coftez par leur valeur militaire. Noftre demeure eft entre le 42. & 43. degré fur les riues du petit Lac de Gannentaa, qui feroit vn fejour des plus commodes & des plus agreables du monde, fans le ceder mefme à la leuée de la Riuiere du Loire, s'il auoit des Habitans auffi polis, & auffi traitables.

Il a des auantages qui manquent au reste du Canada: car outre les raifins, les prunes, & plufieurs autres fruits qui luy font communs auec les belles Prouinces de l'Europe, il en poffede quantité d'autres qui furpaffent les noftres en beauté, en odeur, & en faueur. Les forefts font prefque toutes compofées de chasteigners & de noyers. Il y a deux fortes de noix, dont les vnes font auffi douces & agreables au gouft, que les autres font ameres: mais leur amertume n'empefche pas qu'on n'en tire d'excellente huile, en les faisant paffer par les cendres, par le moulin, par le feu, & par l'eau, de la mesme façon dont les Sauuages tirent l'huyle du tournefol. On y [121] voit des cerifes fans noyau, des fruits qui ont la couleur & la groffeur d'vn abricot, la fleur du lys blanc, l'odeur & le gouft du citron: des pommes de

CHAPTER XI.

OF THE NATURE AND OF SOME PECULIARITIES OF THE

IROQUOIS COUNTRY.

HE country of the five Iroquois Nations, before

TH

their conquests, lay between the 40th and 50th degrees of latitude; [120] at present, we do not know the extent of their dominion, which has been increased on all sides by their military valor. Our residence is situated between the 42nd and 43rd degrees, on the shores of the little Lake Gannentaa, which would be one of the most commodious and most agreeable dwelling-places in the world, without excepting even the levee of the River Loire, if its Inhabitants were as polished and as tractable.

It has advantages that are wanting in the rest of Canada; for, besides grapes, plums, and many other fruits, which it has in common with the fine Provinces of Europe, it has a number of others, which excel ours in beauty, fragrance, and taste. The forests consist almost entirely of chestnut and walnut trees. There are two kinds of nuts; one kind is as sweet and agreeable to the taste as the other is bitter; but, with all their bitterness, an excellent oil is extracted from them by passing them through the ashes, through the mill, through fire, and through water, in the same way as the Savages extract oil from sunflowers. 19 [121] Stoneless cherries are found there. Fruits grow there which are of the color and size of an apricot, whose blossom is like that of the