would like to have us divide with him all that we have. "I will
give thee," said he, "of all that I possess, and thou shalt give me
of all that belongs to thee." In this way, we should eat in a month
all the provisions for a year, for they never stop eating as long
as they have anything. Having nothing more, they go in search of
something, and beg for it persistently. It is true that this simple
fellow realizes that this is not a good way, and, when I show him
that it is not well to use up his food so quickly, he says: "It is
not I who do that, it is my wife." He is astonished when we give
him a piece of Bear or Moose six weeks after he has given it to us,
for in that time they eat two, three, [96] and four bears in his
cabin, if they capture that many.
Le 13. de Feurier Dieu nous fit vne faueur fort signalée: Mon maistre
nommé en sa langue comme i'ay desia souuent dit, Pierre Pastedechouan,
s'en alla sans nous rien dire. Depuis qu'il estoit auec nous, il
s'estoit vn peu remis: il se confessoit de tẽps en tẽps sãs se vouloir
cõmunier quoy qu'on luy dit. Sa raison estoit que iamais il ne s'estoit
cõmunié en son pays, si biẽ en France: mais i'estois là mieux disposé
qu'icy, disoit-il. Comme il sentit approcher le Caresme, il nous
fit plusieurs interrogations sans que nous prissiõs garde où elles
buttoient: scauoir mõ à quel âge on estoit obligé de ieusner, si dans
tout le Caresme on ne mangeroit point de chair, & choses semblables.
La peur qu'il eut du ieusne, & la croyance qu'il auoit que [97] les
gens de La Nasse auroient bõne chasse, fit qu'il s'en alla les trouuer
sans nous en parler. Voyant mon secours perdu pour la langue, nous
demandasmes derechef à Dieu qu'il luy pleust nous donner pour la
seconde fois celuy qu'il nous auoit dõné pour la premiere. La Theologie
de ce bon aueugle né n'est pas bonne, qui dit que Dieu n'exauce point
les pecheurs, si fait bien quand il luy plaist. La Nasse ayant mangé
toute sa chasse, & n'en trouuant plus dans les bois, la faim le pressa
si fort, qu'il ne sçauoit de quel coste se tourner. Nostre Pierre
se voyant dans le ieusne deuant que d'estre en Caresme, ayant pense
perdre la vie sur vne glace qui coula dessous luy, & passé quatre
iours sans quasi rien manger, nous reuient voir tout defait apres 15
iours d'absẽce, il ne nous dit point que la famine le ramenoit, aussi
attribuay-ie [98] son retour à celuy qui nous le donnoit pour la
seconde fois: Il demeura donc auec nous iusques à Pasques, m'aydant à
conclurre ce que i'auois enuie d'acheuer de nostre Dictionnaire.
On the 13th of February God did us a very signal favor. My teacher,
named in his language, as I have often said already, Pierre
Pastedechouan, went off without giving us notice. Since he had
been with us, he had somewhat improved; he had been to confession
from time to time, but would not take communion, whatever might
be said to him. His reason was that he had never taken communion
in his country, though he had in France; "But I was," he said,
"more disposed to it there than here." As he felt that Lent was
approaching, he asked us a number of questions, the full tendency
of which we did not comprehend; namely, at what age it was
necessary to fast; if one should not eat meat at all during Lent,
and similar things. The fear he had of fasting, and his belief that
[97] the people of La Nasse would be lucky in their hunt, led him
to go to them without telling me. Seeing that I had lost my help
in learning the language, we again asked God to give us, if it
pleased him, for a second time, the one he had given us at first.
The Theology of that worthy man, blind from birth, who says that
God does not hearken to sinners except when it is agreeable to him,
is not good. La Nasse having eaten all his game, and finding no
more in the woods, was so pressed with hunger that he knew not on
which side to turn. Our Pierre found himself fasting before the
beginning of Lent; having nearly lost his life upon the ice, which
slipped from under him, he passed four days with scarcely anything
to eat and returned to us completely exhausted, after 15 days of
absence. He did not tell us that hunger brought him back, therefore
I attributed [98] his return to him who gave him to us for a second
time. He remained with us until Easter, helping me to finish what I
was very anxious to complete, our Dictionary.
Le Vendredy Sainct, il s'en voulut aller à la chasse auec nostre
Sauuage qui estoit du retour, mais ie luy dis qu'il n'iroit point
qu'il ne se fust acquitté du deuoir que doiuent rendre à Dieu tous
les Chrestiens en ce tẽps-là; i'aduerty nostre Sauvage de ne le point
receuoir en sa cõpagnie; ce qu'il fit. Il se confessa donc & se
communia le iour de Pasques. Le lendemain nostre Sauvage retournant
pour vendre au sieur de Caën vn ieune Eslan qu'il auoit pris tout vif
(lequel mourut depuis) nostre homme l'accosta, & luy dit que nous ne
l'auions retenu sinon pour prier Dieu le iour precedẽt, & que l'ayant
[99] fait nous estions contens qu'il le suiuit: Il est vray que pour le
contenter nous luy auions dit que s'estant acquitté de ses deuotiõs,
il pourroit s'en aller à la chasse à la premiere occasion, ce qu'il a
fait auec promesse de retourner, mais nous ne l'auõs point veu depuis.
Dieu soit beny de tout: ie ne m'osois promettre tout ce que i'ay tiré
de luy, i'en ay assez pour me rendre capable d'aller hyuerner parmy les
Sauuages, auec profit.
On Good Friday, he wanted to go hunting with our Savage, who
had returned; but I told him that he should not go until he had
rendered to God the devotion that all Christians owed to him
at that time. I charged our Savage not to receive him in his
company, and he did not. Then he confessed and received his Easter
communion. The next day, our Savage returning to sell to sieur de
Caën a young Elk that he had taken alive (which died afterward),
our man accosted him, and said that we had only detained him that
he might pray to God on the preceding day; and that, having done
[99] so, we were willing that he should go with him. It is true
that, in order to please him, we told him that, if he performed his
devotions, he might go hunting upon the first opportunity; which
he did with the promise to return, but we have not seen him since.
But God be praised for all; I dared not promise myself all that I
have drawn from him; I have enough to fit me for going to pass the
winter among the Savages with profit.
La Nasse reuenant de la chasse nous dit que ce pauure ieune homme
auoit trauersé les bois pour aller trouuer ses frères à Tadoussac:
pour moy i'estime qu'il a la foy, i'en ay de tres-grands indices: mais
comme c'est vne foy de crainte & de seruitude, & que d'ailleurs il est
enchaisné par vne infinité de mauuaises habitudes, il a de la peine de
quitter la liberté blasmable des Sauuages, [100] pour s'arrester sous
le ioug de la loy de Dieu.
When La Nasse returned from hunting, he told us that this poor
young man had gone through the woods to find his brothers
at Tadoussac. For my part I think he has faith; I have seen
strong indications of it; but as it is a faith born of fear and
slavishness, and as, moreover, he is enchained by a multitude
of bad habits, he has great difficulty in abandoning the wicked
liberty of the Savages [100] and submitting to the yoke of the law
of God.
Le 21. de Mars, vn Sauuage mangeant chez nous à terre, selon leur
coustume, s'arresta tout court, disant qu'il ne mangeroit pas
dauantage, autrement qu'il mourroit: Ie luy demanday pourquoy, il
me dit qu'il auoit veu vne lumiere brillãte tourner tout à l'entour
du plat: ie voulus mettre la main sur le plat, il s'escria, K_higa
nipin_, K_higa nipin_, tu mourras, tu mourras: Or comme ie commence
à cognoistre leurs fantaisies, pour luy faire voir sa simplicité:
ie prends vne cuillerée ou deux de ce qu'il mãgeoit, & en mangeay
moy-mesme, il commence à me regarder comme tout estonné, & voyant que
ie n'auois point de mal; i'en mãgeray aussi, fit-il, puis que tu en as
mangé.
On the 21st of March, a Savage who was eating at our house, upon
the ground, according to their custom, stopped suddenly, saying
that he would eat no more,--if he did, he would die. I asked him
why, and he told me that he has seen a bright light revolve around
his plate. I was about to put my hand upon the plate, and he cried
out, _Khiga nipin, Khiga nipin_, "Thou wilt die, thou wilt die."
Now as I am becoming familiar with their fancies, to make him
understand his simplicity, I took a spoonful or two of what he was
eating, and ate it myself. He looked at me with astonishment, and,
seeing that I was not sick, "I will eat also," said he, "since thou
hast eaten of it."
On dit que quelques Basques ou Anglois leurs ont baillé l'apprehension
[101] que les François les vouloient empoisonner. C'est pourquoy
plusieurs vous inuitent de gouster le premier de ce que vous leur
presentez. En quoy il arriua vne chose agreable à vn Sauuage fort
adonné a boire: le sieur du Plessis luy ayãt fait presenter vn verre
de vin, ou de sidre; il se tourne, & le donne à vn François pour en
taster: ce François le tasta si bien, qu'il n'y laissa rien. Le Sauuage
qui le voyoit faire, crioit prou _egouspé, egouspé_, c'est assez,
c'est assez: mais l'autre tira iusques au bout, puis presenta le verre
tout vuide au Sauuage, pour l'apprendre vne autre fois à quitter ces
deffiances.
It is said that some Basques or Englishmen have communicated to
them the fear [101] that the French were seeking to poison them.
That is why many of the Savages invite you to first taste whatever
you give them. Apropos of this, a very amusing thing happened to
a Savage who was much addicted to drink. Sieur du Plessis having
presented him with a glass of wine, or of cider, he turned about,
and gave it to a Frenchman to taste; this Frenchman tasted it so
well, that there was none of it left. The Savage, who saw what he
was doing, cried out, _egouspé, egouspé_, "It is enough, it is
enough." But the other drank the last drop, giving the empty glass
to the Savage, as a lesson that, another time, he must be less
suspicious.
Le 22. nostre Pierre ayant pris vn Castor, vne Sauuage l'ayant écorché,
nostre frere le prit & le laua: ceste femme voyant qu'il faisoit tomber
à terre le sang de cét animal, s'écria, en verité cét homme n'a point
[102] d'esprit, & se tournant vers Pierre, luy dit, tu ne prendras
plus de Castors, on a respandu le sang du tien: c'est vne de leurs
superstitions, qu'il ne faut point respandre à terre le sang pur du
Castor, si on veut auoir bonne chasse, du moins Pierre nous le dit
ainsi.
On the 22nd, our Pierre having caught a Beaver, a Savage skinned
and our brother washed it. This woman, seeing that he let some of
the blood of the animal fall to the ground, cried out: "In truth,
this man has no [102] sense;" and turning to Pierre she said:
"Thou wilt take no more Beavers, for the blood of thine has been
spilled." It is one of their superstitions that you must not spill
the pure blood of the Beaver upon the ground, if you wish to have
good hunting, at least Pierre has told us so.
Le premier iour d'Auril le Capitaine des Algonquains nous vint voir,
& nous apporta de la chair d'Elan, ses gens en auoient tué dix, quoy
qu'vn Sauuage vous donne pour vn grand mercy, (c'est vn mot qu'ils
ont appris des François) il leur faut rendre quelqu'autre chose pour
vn autre grand'mercy, autrement vous serez tenu pour vn ingrat. Ils
reçoiuent assez volontiers sans donner: mais ils ne sçauent que c'est
de donner sans receuoir. Il est vray que si vous les voulez suiure
dãs les bois, ils vous nourriront sans vous riẽ demander, [103] s'ils
croient que vous n'ayez riē: Mais s'ils s'apperçoiuẽt que vous ayez
quelque chose, & qu'ils en ayẽt enuie, ils ne cesseront de vous presser
que vous ne leur ayez donné.
On the first day of April, the Captain of the Algonquains came to
see us, and brought us some Elk meat, his people having killed ten
of these animals. Although the Savages will give you something for
a "thank you," (this is a word they have learned from the French),
you must make them some return for another "thank you," otherwise
you will be looked upon as ungrateful. They are willing enough to
receive without giving; but they do not know what it is to give
without receiving. It is true that, if you will follow them into
the woods, they will feed you without asking anything of you, [103]
if they think that you have nothing. But if they see that you have
something, and they want it, they will not stop asking you for it
until you have given it.
Pour retourner à ce Capitaine, ie luy demanday s'il auoit vn fils, &
s'il ne vouloit point nous le dōner pour l'instruire; il me demanda
combien ie voulois d'enfans, & que i'en auois desia deux: ie luy
dis qu'auec le tẽps peutestre i'en nourrirois vingt, il s'étonna:
Habilleras-tu bien, me dit-il, tant de mõde? Ie respondis que nous ne
les prendrions pas que nous n'eussions le moyen de les habiller, il
repart qu'il seroit bien content de nous donner le sien, mais que sa
fẽme ne le voudroit pas. Les femmes ont icy vn grand pouuoir: qu'vn
hõme vous promette quelque chose, s'il ne tient pas sa promesse, il
pense s'estre bien excusé, quand il vous a [104] dit que sa femme ne
l'a pas voulu: ie luy dis donc qu'il estoit le maistre, & qu'en France
les femmes ne commandoient point à leurs maris: cela est bien, dit-il,
mais pour mon fils ie suis assez sçauant pour l'instruire, ie luy
apprẽdray à haranguer: instruits premierement les Montagnaits, si cela
reüssit bien, nous te donnerons nos enfans.
To return to this Captain; I asked him if he had a son, and if
he would not give him to us to be educated. He asked me how many
children I wanted, and [said] that I already had two. I told him
that in time I should perhaps feed twenty. He was astonished.
"Wilt thou clothe so many as well?" asked he. I answered him that
we would not take them until we had the means to clothe them. He
replied that he would be very glad to give us his son, but that his
wife did not wish to do so. The women have great power here. A man
may promise you something, and, if he does not keep his promise, he
thinks he is sufficiently excused when he tells you [104] that his
wife did not wish to do it. I told him then that he was the master,
and that in France women do not rule their husbands. "That is very
well," said he, "but I know enough to instruct my son; I shall
teach him to make speeches. Instruct the Montagnaits first; if thou
succeedest well, then we will give thee our children."
Ie luy parlay de Dieu, il m'escoutoit fort attentiuement: Ie luy
enseignay quelque petite priere en langage Montagnaits qu'il entend
fort bien; il les prononçoit en sa langue, & me promit qu'il les diroit
souuẽt. Or cõme le tẽps me pressoit d'aller reciter mon office, ie luy
dis que i'allois prier Dieu: il me suiuit, entra dãs ma chambrette, &
s'y tint iusques à ce que i'eusse acheué, me faisãt aprés plusieurs
interrogations; bref il ne s'en retourna qu'à la nuict.
I talked to him about God, and he listened very attentively. I
taught him a little prayer in the Montagnaits language which he
understands very well. He repeated it in his tongue, and promised
me that he would say it often. Then, as the time had come for me
to go and recite my office, I told him that I was going to pray to
God. He followed me, entered my little room, and remained there
until I had finished, asking me a number of questions afterward. In
short, he did not go away until night.
[105] Le 18. & le 20. d'Auril, il tonna fort & ferme auec de grands
éclairs, & cependant la riuiere estoit encor glacée, & la terre
couuerte de neige; ce qui fait voir qu'il y a de la chaleur en l'air, &
que ces neiges & froids sont accidentels, & contre la nature du climat:
noꝰ sommes parallelles à la Rochelle, cõme i'ay desia dit. Tous les
François pourront tesmoigner qu'ils n'ont point veu dans le cœur de la
France mois de May si chaud, que celuy qu'ils ont esprouué à Kebec.
[105] On the 18th and 20th of April, it thundered loudly and
violently, with sharp flashes of lightning, and yet the river
was still frozen, and the ground white with snow; this showed us
that there was heat in the air, and these snows and this cold
were accidental and contrary to the nature of the climate. We are
on a parallel with la Rochelle, as I have already said. All the
Frenchmen can testify that they have never seen in the heart of
France so warm a month of May as they have experienced in Kebec.
La chaleur est icy grande & brûlante; & cependant i'ay remarqué
depuis que ie suis icy qu'il a gelé tous les mois de l'année. Ie ne
m'estonne point de ces gelées: nous auons du costé du Nord vne chaisne
de montagnes peut-estre de cent ou deux cens lieues d'estendue. Nous
ne sommes pas éloignez de six lieuës de ces [106] monts prodigieux,
& peutestre tousiours couuerts de neiges: Ie vous laisse à penser
si les vents qui passent par là nous peuuent apporter beaucoup de
chaleur. De plus nous sommes dans les bois de 800 ou mille lieuës.
Nous habitons les bords de deux fleuues, dont l'vn engloutiroit les
quatre beaux fleuues de France sans regorger. Voila les vrayes causes &
alimens du froid. Si le pays estoit découuert iusques à ces montagnes;
nous aurions peutestre l'vne des plus fœcondes vallées qui soient en
l'vniuers: L'expérience nous fait voir que les bois engendrent les
frimas & les gelées. Les terres de ceste famille qui est icy estant
plus découuertes que les nostres, sont plustost déchargées de neiges,
& moins sujettes à ces froids du matin. Les nostres aussi ne sentent
point ces rigueurs si souuent, que celles de la [107] maison des RR.
Peres Recolets qui sont plus referrez dans les bois.
The heat here is intense and burning, and yet I have observed
since I have been here that there has been frost every month of
the year. I am not surprised at these frosts. We have on the North
of us a chain of mountains, probably one or two hundred leagues in
extent. We are not distant six leagues from these [106] stupendous
mountains, probably always covered with snow.[42] I leave you to
decide whether the wind coming from that direction can bring much
heat. Besides, we are in a forest covering from 800 to a thousand
leagues. We live upon the banks of two rivers, one of which would
swallow up the four great rivers of France without overflowing.
Behold herein the real cause and source of the cold. If the country
were cleared as far as the mountains, we should probably have one
of the most fruitful valleys in the universe. Experience teaches
us that the woods engender cold and frosts. The lands owned by the
family living here, having been cleared more than ours, are sooner
freed from snow, and less subject to cold in the morning. Neither
do we feel these rigors so often as do those who live in the [107]
house of the Reverend Recolet Fathers, who are farther in the woods.
Il y a quantitè de iours en hyuer dont l'ardeur du Soleil se fait bien
plus fortement ressentir qu'en France. Le premier iour que ie vey
nostre riuiere prise, ie m'estonnay, car le temps estoit fort doux; &
cherchant la raison de cela, celle-cy me vint en pensée. La riuiere
se glace tousiours sur les bords, & quand la marée viẽt à monter, elle
dètache ces glaces, & les ameine en haut. Or est-il que nõ pas loin de
nous il y a vn fault, ou des rochers qui empeschent les glaces a la
marée de passer plus outre. Ces glaces estant donc ramassées & pressées
sur cette riuiere, qui est au milieu d'vn si grand bois, où le froid
& la neige se conseruent aisément: elles se lient ensemble, & ainsi
de mille & mille glaces il s'en fait vne qui se va grossissant tous
les iours, & [108] qui fait vn grand pont sur toute la riuiere. La
Lombardie n'est pas loin des Alpes dont le sommet est tousiours blanc
de neige, & neantmoins ie ne sçay si l'Europe a quelque vallée plus
agréable & plus fertile que cette contrée: i'en dy le mesme du lieu que
nous habitons s'il estoit deserté & cultiue. Voila ma pensée touchant
le pays: si ie me trompe ce n'est pas merueille, cela m'arriue assez
souuent, tout gist à le deserter: mais ô mõ Dieu, que de peine à purger
vne forest embarassee d'arbres tombez! ie dirois volontiers depuis le
deluge.
There are many days in the winter when the heat of the Sun makes
itself felt a great deal more than it does in France. The first
day that I saw our river frozen, I was astonished, because it was
very mild weather; and, in seeking a reason for it, this came to
my mind. A river always freezes first along its banks; and, when
the tide rises, it loosens this ice and carries it higher up. Now,
not far from us there is a waterfall or some rocks, which prevent
the tidal ice from passing beyond them. This ice being thus
massed and pressed together in the river, which is in the midst
of so great a wood that the snow and cold are easily preserved,
it becomes consolidated; and thousands and thousands of blocks of
ice are frozen into one mass which goes on increasing every day,
[108] making a great bridge over the whole river. Lombardy is not
far from the Alps, the summits of which are always white with snow,
and yet I do not know that Europe has a more agreeable and more
fertile valley than that country. I would say the same of the place
in which we live, if it were cleared and cultivated. This is my
opinion touching this country; if I am mistaken, it is not strange,
as that happens to me often; everything depends upon clearing the
land. But oh, my God! What labor there will be in clearing a forest
encumbered with fallen trees, I might well say, since the deluge.
Le 23. du mesme mois d'Auril, nous veismes partir les glaces, cela est
effroyable: on m'a dit qu'on en auoit veu passer devãt le fort lõgues
d'vne demie lieuë; ce sont des ances d'eau glacée que la marée de la
grãde riuiere va détachant. Sur nostre [109] petite riuiere les glaces
n'y sõt pas si affreuses, & neantmoins ie leur ay veu emporter de
gros morceaux de terre, arracher des souches, briser quelques arbres
qu'elles entouroiẽt. On en voit marcher de tous droits dessus ces
glaces au beau milieu de la riuiere, qui en vne seule marée paroist
aussi belle & aussi claire, comme si elle n'auoit point esté glacée.
On the 23rd of the same month of April we saw the ice float
away; it is a frightful spectacle. I was told that pieces half
a league long were seen passing before the fort. These are the
banks of frozen water which the current of the great river goes on
loosening. Upon our [109] little river the ice is not so alarming;
nevertheless I have seen it carry away large pieces of earth, tear
up stumps, and crush the trees which it had enclosed. You can see
them [the trees] moving erect on these pieces of ice, in the very
middle of the river, which in a single tide appears as beautiful
and as clear as if it had never been frozen.
Le 7. de May, vn Sauuage estant venu voir la Nasse nostre voisin:
cõme ie vey qu'il se portoit mal, ie l'aborday, & luy parlay de Dieu,
l'exhortant à auoir recours à luy: il me respondit, Toy, tu cognois
Iesus, prie le pour moy, car moy ie ne le cognois point, ie ne cognois
que nostre Manitou. Ie luy dis qu'il prononçast souuẽt de cœur ces
paroles, O Iesus qui estes bon, ayez pitié de moy, il mourut quelque
temps apres.
On the 7th of May a Savage called to see la Nasse, our neighbor; as
I saw that he was not well, I addressed him, speaking to him of God
and exhorting him to have recourse to him. He answered me: "Thou
knowest Jesus, pray to him for me, for I do not know him; I know
only our Manitou." I told him to say these words often from his
heart: "Oh Jesus, who art good, have pity on me." He died a short
time afterward.
Les Montagnaits le tenoient pour [110] l'vn de leurs grands sorciers,
ou consulteurs de Manitou: ie sçauray quelque iour si vrayement il y
a de la diablerie en leur fait: pour le present ie ne puis dire autre
chose que les vns disent que ouy, les autres que non: c'est à dire
qu'il n'y a rien d'asseuré.
The Montagnaits held him as [110] one of their great sorcerers or
consulters of Manitou.[43] I shall know for certain, some day,
whether there is any jugglery in their doings or not. At present, I
can only say that some of them say "yes" and others "no." That is
to say that there is nothing sure.