THE REJOICINGS OF THE INDIANS AFTER OBTAINING A VICTORY OVER THEIR
ENEMIES--THEIR DISPOSITION, ENDURANCE OF HUNGER, AND MALICIOUSNESS.--THEIR
BELIEFS AND FALSE OPINIONS, COMMUNICATION WITH EVIL SPIRITS--THEIR
GARMENTS, AND HOW THEY WALK ON THE SNOW--THEIR MANNER OF MARRIAGE, AND THE
INTERMENT OF THEIR DEAD.
On the 9th of June the savages proceeded to have a rejoicing all together,
and to celebrate their _tabagie_, which I have before described, and to
dance, in honor of their victory over their enemies. Now, after they had
feasted well, the Algonquins, one of the three nations, left their cabins
and went by themselves to a public place. Here they arranged all their
wives and daughters by the side of each other, and took position themselves
behind them, all singing in the manner I have described before. Suddenly
all the wives and daughters proceeded to throw off their robes of skins,
presenting themselves stark naked, and exposing their sexual parts. But
they were adorned with _matachiats_, that is beads and braided strings,
made of porcupine quills, which they dye in various colors. After finishing
their songs, they all said together, _Ho, ho, ho:_ at the same instant all
the wives and daughters covered themselves with their robes, which were at
their feet. Then, after stopping a short time, all suddenly beginning to
sing throw off their robes as before. They do not stir from their position
while dancing, and make various gestures and movements of the body, lifting
one foot and then the other, at the same time striking upon the ground.
Now, during the performance of this dance, the Sagamore of the Algonquins,
named _Besouat_, was seated before these wives and daughters, between two
sticks, on which were hung the heads of their enemies. Sometimes he arose
and went haranguing, and saying to the Montagnais and Etechemins: "Look!
how we rejoice in the victory that we have obtained over our enemies; you
must do the same, so that we may be satisfied." Then all said together,
_Ho, ho, ho_. After returning to his position, the grand Sagamore together
with all his companions removed their robes, making themselves stark naked
except their sexual parts, which are covered with a small piece of skin.
Each one took what seemed good to him, as _matachiats_, hatchets, swords,
kettles, fat, elk flesh, seal, in a word each one had a present, which they
proceeded to give to the Algonquins. After all these ceremonies, the dance
ceased, and the Algonquins, men and women, carried their presents into
their cabins. Then two of the most agile men of each nation were taken,
whom they caused to run, and he who was the fastest in the race, received a
present.
All these people have a very cheerful disposition, laughing often; yet at
the same time they are somewhat phlegmatic. They talk very deliberately, as
if desiring to make themselves well understood, and stopping suddenly, they
reflect for a long time, when they resume their discourse. This is their
usual manner at their harangues in council, where only the leading men, the
elders, are present, the women and children not attending at all.
All these people suffer so much sometimes from hunger, on account of the
severe cold and snow, when the animals and fowl on which they live go away
to warmer countries, that they are almost constrained to eat one another. I
am of opinion that if one were to teach them how to live, and instruct them
in the cultivation of the soil and in other respects, they would learn very
easily, for I can testify that many of them have good judgment and respond
very appropriately to whatever question may be put to them. [141] They have
the vices of taking revenge and of lying badly, and are people in whom it
is not well to put much confidence, except with caution and with force at
hand. They promise well, but keep their word badly.
Most of them have no law, so far as I have been able to observe or learn
from the great Sagamore, who told me that they really believed there was a
God, who created all things. Whereupon I said to him: that, "Since they
believed in one sole God, how had he placed them in the world, and whence
was their origin." He replied: that, "After God had made all things, he
took a large number of arrows, and put them in the ground; whence sprang
men and women, who had been multiplying in the world up to the present
time, and that this was their origin." I answered that what he said was
false, but that there really was one only God, who had created all things
upon earth and in the heavens. Seeing all these things so perfect, but that
there was no one to govern here on earth, he took clay from the ground, out
of which he created Adam our first father. While Adam was sleeping, God
took a rib from his side, from which he formed Eve, whom he gave to him as
a companion, and, I told him, that it was true that they and ourselves had
our origin in this manner, and not from arrows, as they suppose. He said
nothing, except that he acknowledged what I said, rather than what he had
asserted. I asked him also if he did not believe that there was more than
one only God. He told me their belief was that there was a God, a Son, a
Mother, and the Sun, making four; that God, however, was above all, that
the Son and the Sun were good, since they received good things from them;
but the Mother, he said, was worthless, and ate them up; and the Father not
very good. I remonstrated with him on his error, and contrasted it with our
faith, in which he put some little confidence. I asked him if they had
never seen God, nor heard from their ancestors that God had come into the
world. He said that they had never seen him; but that formerly there were
five men who went towards the setting sun, who met God, who asked them:
"Where are you going?" they answered: "We are going in search of our
living." God replied to them: "You will find it here." They went on,
without paying attention to what God had said to them, when he took a stone
and touched two of them with it, whereupon they were changed to stones; and
he said again to the three others: "Where are you going?" They answered as
before, and God said to them again: "Go no farther, you will find it here."
And seeing that nothing came to them, they went on; when God took two
sticks, with which he touched the two first, whereupon they were
transformed into sticks, when the fifth one stopped, not wishing to go
farther. And God asked him again: "Where are you going?" "I am going in
search of my living." "Stay and thou shalt find it." He staid without
advancing farther, and God gave him some meat, which he ate. After making
good cheer, he returned to the other savages, and related to them all the
above.
He told me also that another time there was a man who had a large quantity
of tobacco (a plant from which they obtain what they smoke), and that God
came to this man, and asked him where his pipe was. The man took his pipe,
and gave it to God, who smoked much. After smoking to his satisfaction, God
broke the pipe into many pieces, and the man asked: "Why hast thou broken
my pipe? thou seest in truth that I have not another." Then God took one
that he had, and gave it to him, saying: "Here is one that I will give you,
take it to your great Sagamore; let him keep it, and if he keep it well, he
will not want for any thing whatever, neither he nor all his companions."
The man took the pipe, and gave it to his great Sagamore; and while he kept
it, the savages were in want of nothing whatever: but he said that
afterwards the grand Sagamore lost this pipe, which was the cause of the
severe famines they sometimes have. I asked him if he believed all that; he
said yes, and that it was the truth. Now I think that this is the reason
why they say that God is not very good. But I replied, "that God was in all
respects good, and that it was doubtless the Devil who had manifested
himself to those men, and that if they would believe as we did in God they
would not want for what they had need of; that the sun which they saw, the
moon and the stars, had been created by this great God, who made heaven and
earth, but that they have no power except that which God has given them;
that we believe in this great God, who by His goodness had sent us His dear
Son who, being conceived of the Holy Spirit, was clothed with human flesh
in the womb of the Virgin Mary, lived thirty years on earth, doing an
infinitude of miracles, raising the dead, healing the sick, driving out
devils, giving sight to the blind, teaching men the will of God his Father,
that they might serve, honor and worship Him, shed his blood, suffered and
died for us, and our sins, and ransomed the human race, that, being buried,
he rose again, descended into hell, and ascended into heaven, where he is
seated on the right hand of God his Father." [142] I told him that this was
the faith of all Christians who believe in the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit, that these, nevertheless, are not three Gods, but one the same and
only God, and a trinity in which there is no before nor after, no greater
nor smaller; that the Virgin Mary, mother of the Son of God, and all the
men and women who have lived in this world doing the commandments of God,
and enduring martyrdom for his name, and who by the permission of God have
done miracles, and are saints in heaven in his paradise, are all of them
praying this Great Divine Majesty to pardon us our errors and sins which we
commit against His law and commandments. And thus, by the prayers of the
saints in heaven and by our own prayers to his Divine Majesty, He gives
what we have need of, and the devil has no power over us and can do us no
harm. I told them that if they had this belief, they would be like us, and
that the devil could no longer do them any harm, and that they would not
lack what they had need of.
Then this Sagamore replied to me that he acknowledged what I said. I asked
him what ceremonies they were accustomed to in praying to their God. He
told me that they were not accustomed to any ceremonies, but that each
prayed in his heart as he desired. This is why I believe that they have no
law, not knowing what it is to worship and pray to God, and living, the
most of them, like brute beasts. But I think that they would speedily
become good Christians, if people were to colonize their country, of which
most of them were desirous.
There are some savages among them whom they call _Pilotoua_, [143] who have
personal communications with the devil. Such an one tells them what they
are to do, not only in regard to war, but other things; and if he should
command them to execute any undertaking, as to kill a Frenchman or one of
their own nation, they would obey his command at once.
They believe, also, that all dreams which they have are real; and many of
them, indeed, say that they have seen in dreams things which come to pass
or will come to pass. But, to tell the truth in the matter, these are
visions of the devil, who deceives and misleads them. This is all that I
have been able to learn from them in regard to their matters of belief,
which is of a low, animal nature.
All these people are well proportioned in body, without any deformity, and
are also agile. The women are well-shaped, full and plump, and of a swarthy
complexion, on account of the large amount of a certain pigment with which
they rub themselves, and which gives them an olive color. They are clothed
in skins, one part of their body being covered and the other left
uncovered. In winter they provide for their whole body, for they are
dressed in good furs, as those of the elk, otter, beaver, seal, stag, and
hind, which they have in large quantities. In winter, when the snows are
heavy, they make a sort of _raquette_ [144] two or three times as large as
those in France. These they attach to their feet, and thus walk upon the
snow without sinking in; for without them, they could not hunt or make
their way in many places.
Their manner of marriage is as follows: When a girl attains the age of
fourteen or fifteen years, she may have several suitors and friends, and
keep company with such as she pleases. At the end of some five or six years
she may choose that one to whom her fancy inclines as her husband, and they
will live together until the end of their life, unless, after living
together a certain period, they fail to have children, when the husband is
at liberty to divorce himself and take another wife, on the ground that his
own is of no worth. Accordingly, the girls are more free than the wives;
yet as soon as they are married they are chaste, and their husbands are for
the most part jealous, and give presents to the father or relatives of the
girl whom they marry. This is the manner of marriage, and conduct in the
same.
In regard to their interments, when a man or woman dies, they make a
trench, in which they put all their property, as kettles, furs, axes, bows
and arrows, robes, and other things. Then they put the body in the trench,
and cover it with earth, laying on top many large pieces of wood, and
erecting over all a piece of wood painted red on the upper part. They
believe in the immortality of the soul, and say that when they die
themselves, they shall go to rejoice with their relatives and friends in
other lands.
ENDNOTES:
141. _Vide_ Vol. II of this work, p 190.
142. This summary of the Christian faith is nearly in the words of the
Apostles Creed.
143. On _Pilotoua_ or _Pilotois, vide_ Vol. II. note 341.
144. _Une manière de raquette_. The snow-shoe, which much resembles the
racket or battledore, an instrument used for striking the ball in the
game of tennis. This name was given for the want of one more specific.