Quasi tous ceux qui estoient dans la cabanne où le Sorcier m'a assez mal traité, font morts qui d'vn costé, qui de l'autre, & tous d'vne mort deplorable. Il n'y a que trois iours qu'on m'a amené le fils du Sorcier pour le mettre dans vn Seminaire que nous voulons commencer; i'auois grand desir de le prendre, & de luy faire autant de bien, que son pere m'a fait de mal; mais comme il a les escroüelles d'vne façon [302] fort horrible auprés de l'oreille, la crainte que nous auons en qu'il ne donnast ce mal aux petits garçons, que nous tenons en nostre Maison, nous l'a fait éconduire. Monsieur Gand, homme tout a fait charitable, fait penser & pense luy-mesme cét enfant; s'il guerit nous le mettrons en nostre Seminaire.
Almost all of those who were in the cabin where the Sorcerer treated me so badly, have died, some here, some there, and all by a lamentable death. Only three days ago they brought me the Sorcerer's son, to have him put in a Seminary we intend to establish; I was very anxious to take him, and to do him as much good as his father had done me evil; but, as he has a most horrible scrofulous affection near the ear, we were afraid he would give the disease to the little boys we have in our House, and so we refused him. Monsieur Gand,[22] a very charitable man, has this child's sores dressed and dresses them himself; if he recovers, we will place him in our Seminary.
Quant à l'Apostat, il nous est venu [51] voir, faisãt mine de se vouloir recõcilier à l'Eglise; nous luy auons demandé quelques preuues de sa bonne volõté; sçauoir est qu'il nous vint voir non dans la famine des Sauuages, qui luy fait rechercher les François, mais dans leur abondance: que s'il retourne en ce temps-là, nous le receurons & retiendrons quelques mois auant que de luy donner l'entrée de l'Eglise.
As to the Apostate, he came [51] to see us, pretending that he wished to be reconciled to the Church; we demanded some proof of his good will; namely, that he should come to see us, not when the Savages were having a famine, which forced him to seek the French, but in the time of their abundance; if he returns then, we will receive him, and keep him several months before giving him permission to enter the Church.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATA: VOL VII
XXIII
See Volume [VI.] for particulars of this document.
XXIV
The original of Le Jeune's letter to Cardinal Richelieu, dated at Quebec, August 1, 1635, is in the Archives of Foreign Affairs, at Paris. We follow a transcript of the document, in the library of the Dominion Parliament, Ottawa. So far as we are aware, this is its first publication.