CHAPITRE VIII.
DE LEURS FESTINS.
IL n'y a que les chasseurs effectiuemẽt & ceux qui l'ont esté, qui soient ordinairement conuiez aux festins, les femmes vefues y vont aussi: notamment si ce n'est pas vn festin à manger tout, les filles, les femmes mariées, & les enfans en sont quasi tousiours exclus. Ie dis quasi tousiours, car par fois on les inuite, ie leur ay veu faire des Acoumagouchanai, c'est à dire des festins à ne rien laisser, ausquels tout le monde se trouuoit, les [137] hõmes, fẽmes, & petits enfans: quand ils ont grãde abondance de viures, les femmes font quelquefois des festins par entr'elles, où les hõmes ne se trouuẽt point.
CHAPTER VIII.
ON THEIR FEASTS.
ONLY actual hunters, and those who have been hunters, are usually invited to their feasts, to which widows go also, especially if it is not an eat-all feast. The girls, married women, and children, are nearly always excluded. I say nearly always, for occasionally they are invited. I have known them to have Acoumagouchanai, that is to say, feasts where nothing is to be left, to which every one was invited, [137] men, women, and little children. When they have a great abundance of food, sometimes the women have a feast of their own, where the men are not found.
Leur façon d'inuiter est sans fard & sans ceremonie, quand tout est cuit & prest à manger (car on n'inuite personne auparauant) quelqu'vn s'en va par les Cabanes où sont ceux qui doiuent estre conuiez, ou bien mesme on leur criera ce mot du lieu où se faict le festin khinatonmigaouinaouau, vous estes inuitez au banquet, les hommes ausquels ce mot s'adresse, respondent ho ho, & prenant sur l'heure mesme leur plat d'escorce & leur cueiller de bois, s'en viennent en la Cabane de celuy qui les traitte. Quand tous les hommes ne sont pas inuitez, on nomme ceux qu'on veut conuier; le deffaut de ceremonies faict épargner beaucoup de paroles à ces bõnes gens. Il me semble qu'au siecle d'or on faisoit comme cela, sinon que la [280] netteté y estoit en plus grande recommandation que parmy ces peuples.
Their way of inviting is straightforward and without ceremony. When all is cooked and ready to eat (for no one is invited before), some one goes through the Cabins of those who are to be invited; or else they will cry out to them this word, from the place where the feast is given, khinatonmigaouinaouau, "You are invited to the banquet." The men to whom this word is addressed, answer, ho ho, and straightway taking their own bark dish and wooden spoon, come to the Cabin of the one who is to entertain them. When all the men are not invited, those who are desired are named. The absence of ceremony spares these simple people many words. It seems to me in the golden age they must have done like this, except that then cleanliness was in higher favor than among these people.
Dans tous les festins, comme aussi dans leurs repas ordinaires, on donne à vn chacun sa part, d'où vient qu'il n'y en a [138] que deux ou trois qui ayẽt les meilleurs morceaux, car ils ne les diuisent point: ils donneront par exemple la langue d'vn Orignac, & toutes ses appartenances à vne seule personne, la queuë & la teste d'vn Castor à vn autre; voila les meilleures pieces, qu'ils appellent Mascanou, la part du Capitaine. Pour les boyaux gras de l'Orignac, qui sont leurs grands delices, ils les font ordinairement rostir & en font gouster à tous, comme aussi d'vn autre mets, dont ils font grand estat, c'est le gros boyau de la beste remply de gresse, & rosty auec vne corde qui pend & tourne deuant le feu.
In all the feasts, as well as in their ordinary repasts, each one is given his part, from which it happens that [138] only two or three have the best pieces, for they do not divide them. For example, they will give the tongue of a Moose and all the giblets to a single person, the tail and head of a Beaver to another; these are the best pieces, which they call Mascanou, "the Captain's part." As to the fat intestines of the Moose, which are their great delicacies, they usually roast them and let every one taste them, as they do another dish, which they hold in high esteem,—namely, the large intestine of the beast filled with grease, and roasted, fastened to a cord, hanging and turning before the fire.
Au reste ils sont magnifiques en ces festins, car ils ne presentent que les bonnes viandes les separants exprés, & donnant à chacun tres abondamment, quand ils en ont.
Also they are very magnificent in these feasts, for they only offer the good meat, separating it expressly, and giving to each one very abundantly, when they have it.
Ils ont deux sortes de festins, les vns à manger tout, les autres à mãger ce qu'on voudra, remportant le reste pour en faire part à leur famille. Cette derniere façon me semble loüable, car il n'y a point d'excez, chacun prend autant qu'il luy plaist de la portion qui luy est donnée; [139] voire i'oserois dire que c'est vne belle inuention pour conseruer l'amitié entr'eux, & pour se nourrir les vns les autres: car ordinairement les peres de famille ne mangent qu'vne partie de leurs mets, portans le reste à leurs femmes & à leurs enfans, le mal est qu'ils font trop souuent des festins dans la famine que nous auons enduré: si mõ hoste prenoit deux, trois, & quatre Castors, tout aussi tost [282] fut-il iour, fut-il nuict on en faisoit festin à tous les Sauuages voisins; & si eux auoient pris quelque chose, ils en faisoient de mesme à mesme temps: si que sortant d'vn festin vous allez à vn autre, & par fois encore à vn troisiesme, & vn quatriesme. Ie leur disois qu'ils ne faisoient pas bien, & qu'il valoit mieux reseruer ces festins aux iours suiuans, & que ce faisant nous ne serions pas tant pressez de la faim; ils se mocquoient de moy, demain (disoient-ils) nous ferons encore festin de ce que nous prendrons; oüy mais le plus souuent ils ne prenoient que du froid & du vent.
They have two kinds of feasts,—one at which everything is eaten; the other at which the guests eat what they please, carrying away the rest to divide with their families. This last feast seems to me praiseworthy, for there is no excess, each one taking as much as he likes of the portion given to him; [139] indeed, I would venture to say that it is a happy invention to preserve friendship among them, and for each to help feed the others. For usually the heads of families only eat a part of their share, carrying the rest to their wives and children. The trouble is that their feasts come too often. In the famine through which we passed, if my host took two, three, or four Beavers, immediately, whether it was day or night, they had a feast for all the neighboring Savages. And if those people had captured something, they had one also at the same time; so that, on emerging from one feast, you went to another, and sometimes even to a third and a fourth. I told them that they did not manage well, and that it would be better to reserve these feasts for future days, and in doing this they would not be so pressed with hunger. They laughed at me. "To-morrow" (they said) "we shall make another feast with what we shall capture." Yes, but more often they captured only cold and wind.
Pour leurs festins à ne rien laisser, ils sont tres blamables, & c'est neantmoins l'vne de leurs grandes deuotions, car ils [140] font ces festins pour auoir bonne chasse, il se faut bien donner de garde que les chiens n'en goustent tant soit peu, tout seroit perdu, leur chasse ne vaudroit rien; Et remarquez que plus ils mangent plus ce festin est efficace; de là vient qu'ils dõneront à vn seul homme, ce que ie ne voudrois pas entreprendre de manger, auec trois bons disneurs, ils creueroient plustost, pour ainsi dire, que de rien laisser. Vray qu'ils se peuuent ayder les vns les autres; quand quelqu'vn n'en peut plus, il prie son compagnon de l'assister, où bien l'on fait passer son reste pardeuant les autres qui en prennent chacun vne partie, & apres tout cela s'il en reste on le iette au feu; celuy qui mange le plus est le plus estimé, vous les entendez raconter leurs proüesses de gueule, specifiants la quantité & les parties de la beste qu'ils ont mãgé; Dieu sçait quelle musique apres le banquet, car ces Barbares donnent toute liberté à leur estomach & à leur ventre, de tenir le langage qui [284] leur plaist pour se soulager; quand aux odeurs qu'on sent pour lors dans leurs Cabanes, elles sont plus fortes que l'odeur des roses, mais elles ne sont pas si douces, vous les voyez haleter [141] & souffler comme des gens remplis iusques au gosier; & de faict comme ils sont nuds, ie les voyois enflez iusques à la gorge, encore ont ils du courage là dedans, leur cœur retient ce qu'on luy donne, ie n'ay veu que l'estomach du Sorcier mécontent de ce qu'on luy auoit donné, quantité d'autres en approchoient de bien prés, mais ils tenoient bon. I'en ay veu par fois de malades apres ces excez.
As to their "leave-nothing" feasts, they are very blamable; and yet this is one of their great devotions, because they [140] make these feasts in order to have a successful chase. They must be very careful that the dogs taste nothing of this, or all will be lost, and their hunting will be worthless. And notice that, the more they eat, the more efficacious is this feast. Hence it happens that they will give, to one man, what I would not undertake to eat with three good diners. They would rather burst, so to speak, than to leave anything. True, they can help each other; when one can eat no more, he begs his companions to assist him; or else he may pass the remains of his part along to the others, who each one take some of it, and after all this, if anything remain, it is thrown into the fire. The one who eats the most is the most admired. You will hear them describing the prowess of their jaws, naming the quantity and the parts of the beast which they have eaten. God knows what kind of music follows this banquet, for these Barbarians give full liberty to their stomachs and bellies, to utter whatever sounds they please, in order to relieve themselves. As to the odors that are then exhaled in their Cabins, they are stronger than the perfume of roses, but not so sweet. You see them pant [141] and blow, like people full up to their throats; and, in fact, as they are naked, I saw that they were swollen as high as their necks. Still, with it all, they have mettle there inside, for their stomachs retain what is given them. I have known only the Sorcerer's stomach to be dissatisfied with what it received; many others came very near it, but they held their own. Occasionally, I have seen some of them sick after these excesses.
Mais venons à l'ordre qu'ils gardent en ces banquets; Ceux qu'on doit traitter estans conuiez à la façon que i'ay dit, ils s'en viennent auec leur ouragan, ou escuelle leur cuillier, ils entrent dans la Cabane sans ceremonie, chacun prenant sa place comme il vient, ils s'asseoient en rond à l'entour de la chaudiere qui est sur le feu, renuersant leur plat deuant eux, leurs sieges, c'est la terre couuerte de branches de pin, il n'y a point de preseance, toutes les parties d'vn cercle sont aussi courbées, & aussi nobles les vnes que les autres, quelquesfois l'vn d'eux dira à celuy qui entre Outaiappitou, viens icy, sieds toy là.
But let us notice the order which they observe in these banquets. Those who are to be entertained having been invited in the way I have stated, they come each with his ouragan, or dish, and his spoon, and enter the Cabin without ceremony, each one taking his place as he comes. They seat themselves around the kettle which is over the fire, turning their plates upside down before them. Their chairs are the ground, covered with pine branches; and no order of precedence is observed. All the members of the circle are alike bent forward; and one is as noble as the other. Sometimes one will say to another who enters, Outaiappitou, "Come here, sit thou there."
Chacun ayant pris sa place & s'estant assis en forme de Guenon, retirant ses [142] jambes contre ses cuisses, si c'est vn festin à manger tout, on ne dit mot, on chante seulement, & s'il y a quelque Sorcier ou Manitousiou, il bat son tambour; vray qu'ils ne sont pas tousiours si religieux qu'ils ne tiennent quelque petit discours. Si le festin n'est pas à ne rien laisser, ils s'entretiennent vn peu de temps de leurs chasses, ou d'autres choses semblables, le plus souuent de gausseries.
Each one, having taken his place, sits in the posture of a monkey, drawing up his [142] legs against his thighs. If it is an eat-all feast, not a word is said, they only sing; and if there is a Sorcerer or Manitousiou present, he beats his drum; true, they are not always so strict that they do not hold some little conversation. If it is not a leave-nothing feast, they have a little conversation about their hunting, or the like, but most frequently about their pranks.
[286] Apres quelques discours, le distributeur du festin, qui est ordinairement celuy qui le fait, descend la chaudiere de dessus le feu, ou les chaudieres s'il y en a plusieurs, les mettãt deuant soy, & lors il fait quelque harãgue ou semet à chãter, & tous les assistans auec luy; quelquefois il ne faict ny l'vn ny l'autre, mais seulement il dit les mots de l'entrée du festin qui ne s'obmettent iamais, c'est à dire qu'il declare dequoy il est composé: par exemple il dira, hommes qui estes icy assemblez, c'est vn tel qui faict le festin, ils respondent tous du fond de l'estomac hô-ô-ô, le festin est composé de chair de Castor, ils poussent de rechef leur aspiration hô-ô-ô, il y a aussi de la farine [143] de bled d'Inde hô-ô-ô, respondent ils, à chaque diuersité de mets.
After some talk, the server of the feast, who is usually the one who gives it, takes down the kettle from the fire,—or the kettles, if there are several,—and, placing them before him, he makes a speech or begins a song, and all the others join in. Sometimes he does neither, but simply says the words at the opening of the feast, which are never omitted,—namely, he declares of what it is composed; for example, he will say, "Men who are assembled here, it is such and such a one who gives this feast." They all answer in deep chest tones, hô-ô-ô. "The feast is composed of the flesh of Beavers." They again utter this aspiration, hô-ô-ô. "There is also some [143] Cornmeal." Hô-ô-ô, they respond, to each of the different dishes.
Pour les festins moins solemnels, celuy qui le faict s'addressant à quelqu'vn de ses amis, ou de ses parents, il luy dira, mon cousin, ou mon oncle, voila le Castor que i'ay pris, nous le mangerons maintenant, & alors tout le monde dit son hô-ô-ô, & voila le festin ouuert, duquel on ne sort point, que les mots par lesquels on le conclud ne soient dicts. Cela fait, le distributeur ramasse quelquefois la gresse de dessus la chaudiere & la boit luy tout seul, d'autres fois il en fait part à ses amis, quelquefois il en remplit vn grand & profond plat qui se presente à tous les conuiez comme i'ay dit, & chacun en boit sa part; si le festin est de pois, de farine, de bled d'Inde, ou de choses semblables demy liquides, il prend les Ouragans, ou escuelles d'vn chacun, & distribue la chaudiere, le plus esgalement qu'il luy est possible, leurs rendant leurs plats bien garnis, sans regarder par quel bout il commence; il n'y a ny honneur ny [288] blasme d'estre party le premier ou le dernier. Si le festin est de viande, il la tire auec vn baston pointu, [144] la met dans des plats d'escorce deuant soy, puis ayant ietté les yeux sur le nombre des conuiez, il la distribue comme il luy plaist, donnant à chacun abondamment, non pas egalement. Car il donnera les friants morceaux à ses confidents, voire mesme quand il a donné à tous vne bonne piece, commençant par ceux qui ne sont pas de sa Cabane, il rechargera iusques à deux & trois fois & non pas pour les autres, personne ne s'offence de ce procedé, car c'est la coustume.
As to their less solemn feasts, the one who gives them addresses each one of his friends, or relatives, and says to him, "My cousin, or my uncle, here is a Beaver that I have taken, we will now eat it;" and then every one utters his hô-ô-ô; and lo, the feast has begun, from which they do not emerge until the words with which they are to terminate it are uttered. When this is done, the distributor sometimes collects the grease from the kettle and drinks it all by himself; at other times, he shares it with his friends; then again, he fills a large, deep dish which is offered to all the guests, as I have said, and each one drinks his share. If the feast is of peas, flour, Cornmeal, or such half-liquid things, he takes the Ouragans, or dishes, of each one and divides what is in the kettle, as equally as he can, returning their plates to them well filled, without noticing at what end he began. There is neither honor nor disgrace in being served first or last. If the feast is of meat, he draws it out with a pointed stick, [144] puts it into some bark dishes before him; then, having cast his eyes over the number of guests, he distributes it as he pleases, giving to each one abundantly, but not equally. For he will give the dainty morsels to his intimate friends; and, even when he has given to each of them a good piece, beginning with those who are not of his Cabin, he will serve them again, even two or three times, and not the others. No one is offended at this proceeding, for it is the custom.
Il presente ordinairement la chair au bout d'vn baston, nommant la piece ou la partie de l'animal qu'il donne, en cette façon; si c'est la teste d'vn Castor, ou d'Asne sauuage, ou d'autre animal, il dira Nichta Koustigouanime; Mon cousin, voila ta teste, si c'est vn espaule, il dira voila ton espaule, si ce sont des boyaux, il en dira de mesme; d'autresfois ils disent simplemẽt, Khimitchimi, voila ton mets: mais prenez garde qu'ils n'ont point l'equiuoque en leur langue que nous auons en la nostre. On raconte d'vn certain, lequel rencontrant son amy, luy dit par courtoisie, si i'auois quelque chose digne de vous, ie vous inuiterois à des-jeusner en [145] nostre maison, mais ie n'ay rien du tout, son valet l'entendant luy repartit à la bõne foy, excusez-moy Monsieur, vous auez vne teste de veau, cela dit en lãgage Montagnais n'a rien de ridicule, pource qu'ils n'õt point d'equiuoque en ces termes, les mots qui signifient ma teste propre & la teste d'animal qui m'est donnée estants differents.
He usually offers the meat on the end of the stick, naming the piece or part of the animal which he is giving in this way; if it is the head of a Beaver or of a wild Ass, or some other animal, he will say, Nichta Koustigouanime, "My cousin, here is thy head;" if it is the shoulder, he will say, "Here is thy shoulder;" and if it is the intestines, he will name it in the same way; at other times they simply say, Khimitchimi, "Here is thy meat." But bear in mind that they have not the ambiguity in their language that we have in ours. They tell a story about a certain one, who, meeting his friend, said to him through courtesy, "If I had something worthy of you I would invite you to breakfast at [145] our house, but I have nothing at all." His servant hearing him, answered in good faith, "Excuse me, Sir, you have a calf's head." If this were said in the Montagnais language, there would be nothing ridiculous in it, for they have nothing ambiguous in such terms,—the words which mean "my own head" and "the head of an animal which is given me," being altogether different.
Celuy qui fait le festin & qui le distribue ne fait iamais sa part, il se contente de voir manger les autres [290] sans se rien retenir pour soy; neantmoins quand il y a peu de viures, si tost qu'il a tiré la viande de la chaudiere, son voisin ou son amy choisit les meilleurs morceaux par courtoisie, & les met à part; puis quand tout est distribué, il les presente au distributeur mesme, luy disant vn tel, voila ton mets, il respond comme tous les autres, hô-ô-ô.
The one who gives the feast and who serves it never takes part therein, but is satisfied in watching the others, without keeping anything for himself. However, when there is a scarcity of food, as soon as the meat is taken from the kettle, his neighbor or friend chooses the best pieces for politeness and puts them aside; then when all is distributed, he presents them to the distributor himself, saying to him, "Here is thy meat," and he answers like all the others, hô-ô-ô.
Ils ont quelques ceremonies, que ie n'entẽds pas bien faisant festin d'vn Ours, celuy qui l'auoit tué, fit rostir ses entrailles sur des branches de pin, prononçant quelques paroles que ie n'entendis pas, il y a quelque grand mystere là dedans: de plus on luy dõna l'os du cœur de l'animal, qu'il porte dans une petite bource matachiée, penduë à son col; faisans festin d'Orignac, [146] celuy qui luy auoit donné le coup mortel, & qui faisoit le festin, apres auoir distribué la chair, ietta de la gresse dans le feu, disant: papeouekou, papeouekou, i'ay desia expliqué ce que cela veut dire.
They have some ceremonies which I do not well understand, when they have a Bear feast; the one who has killed it has the entrails roasted over some pine branches, pronouncing some words which I do not comprehend. There is some great mystery in this; also they give him the heart-bone of the animal, which he carries in a little embroidered purse hung around his neck. When they have a Moose feast, [146] the one who has given it its deathblow, and who gives the feast, after having distributed the flesh, throws some grease into the fire, saying, papeouekou, papeouekou, of which I have already explained the meaning.
Le festin distribué, si c'est à manger tout, chacun mange en silence, quoy que quelqu'vns ne laissent pas de dire vn petit mot en passant: aux autres festins, encore qu'il soit permis de parler ordinairement, ils parlent fort peu, s'estonnans des François qui causent autant & plus en table qu'en autre temps: aussi nous appellent-ils des Oyes babillardes. Leurs bouches sont quasi grosses comme des œufs, & c'est le plaisir qu'ils prennent à gouster & à sauourer ce qu'ils mangent, qui leur ferme la bouche, & non l'honnesteté: Vous prendriez trop de plaisir à leur voir assaillir dãs leurs grandes escuelles d'escorce, vn Castor boüilly, ou rosty, notamment quand ils viennent de la chasse, ou de leur voir étudier vn os: [292] ie les ay veus tenir vn pied d'Orignac à deux mains par vn bout la bouche, & les dents faisants leur deuoir de l'autre: en sorte qu'ils me sembloient vouloir iouër de ces longues flutes d'Allemagne, sinon qu'ils alloient vn peu trop fort, pour auoir long temps bonne haleine: [147] quand ce qu'ils mangent leur agrée, vous leur entendez dire de fois à autre, ainsi que i'ay desia remarqué, tapoué nimitison, en verité ie mange, cõme si on en doutoit. Voila le grand tesmoignage qu'ils rendent du plaisir qu'ils prennent à vostre festin; au reste ayant succé, rongé, brisé les os qui leurs escheent pour en tirer la gresse & la mouëlle, ils les rejettent dans la chaudiere pleine de boüillõ qu'ils doiuent boire par apres, il est vray qu'aux bãquets à tout manger, ils sont deliurez de cette inciuilité, car il n'y a point d'os.
The feast distributed, if it is an eat-all, each one eats in silence, although some do not fail to say a word or two from time to time. In the other feasts, although they are usually permitted to speak, they speak very little, and are astonished at the French who talk as much and more at the table than at any other time, so they call us cackling Geese. Their mouths are almost as large as eggs, and it is the delight they have in tasting and relishing what they eat that closes their mouths, and not politeness. You would take genuine pleasure in seeing them attack, in their great bark dishes, a boiled or roasted Beaver, especially when they have just come from the chase, or in seeing them tackle a bone. I have seen them hold the foot of a Moose in their two hands by one end, the mouth and the teeth doing duty at the other, so that they seem to me to be playing on those long German flutes, except that they go at it with a little too much force to hold their wind long. [147] When they are eating something that they are very fond of, you will hear them say from time to time, as I have already remarked, tapoué nimitison, "I am really eating," as if any one doubted it. This is the great proof that they offer of the pleasure they experience at your feast. Now having sucked, gnawed, and broken the bones which fall to them, to get out the grease and marrow, they throw them back into the kettle of broth which they are to drink afterward. It is true that at the eat-all banquets this unmannerly trick is not practiced, for there are no bones.
Ayans mangé les mets qu'on a presenté, on distribue le boüillon de la chaudiere, dont chacun boit selon sa soif, si c'est vn banquet de deuotion, c'est à dire, à ne rien laisser, quelquefois il faut aussi boire tout le boüillon; d'autrefois il suffit qu'on mãge toute la viande, estant libre de boire ce qu'on voudra du boüillon. Quand le Maistre du festin void qu'on cesse de mãger, il dit les paroles qui terminent le banquet, qui sont celles-cy, ou autres semblables, Egou Khé Khiouiecou; or vous vous en irez, supplé, quand il vous plairra: le festin conclud, quelques vns demeurent vn peu de temps pour discourir, d'autres s'en vont aussi tost délogeans sans trompette; c'est à [148] dire, qu'ils sortent sans dire mot, par fois ils disent, Nikhiouan, ie m'en vay, on leur respond Niagouté, allez à la bonne-heure, voila le grand excez de leurs compliments.
Having eaten the meats that have been offered, the broth is served from the kettle, each one drinking of this according to his thirst. If it is a banquet of devotion, that is to say, a leave-nothing feast, sometimes they are also obliged to drink all the broth. At other times, it is enough if they eat all the meat, being free to drink what they want of the broth. When the Master of the feast sees them stop eating, he pronounces the words which terminate the banquet, which are the following, or others like them: Egou Khé Khiouiecou, "Now you will go away; return this feast when you please." The feast concluded, some remain a little while to talk, and others leave immediately, going out without trumpets; that [148] is, they go out without saying a word; sometimes they say, Nikhiouan, "I am going;" the answer is, Niagouté, "Go then." See the profuseness of their compliments.