Le cinquiesme de Nouembre, i'allay veoir les reliquas [28] d'vne bonne-pallissade, qui a autrefois entouré vne Bourgade, au lieu mesme où nos François ont planté leur Habitation. Les Hiroquois ennemis de ces Peuples ont tout bruslé; on voit encore [73] le bout des pieux tous noirs; il y a quelques arpens de terre défrichée, où ils cultiuoient du bled d'Inde. I'espere qu'auec le temps nos Canadiens reprendront cet exercice, qui leur sera autant profitable pour le Ciel, que pour la terre; car s'ils s'arrestent, on aura moyen de les instruire.
On the fifth of November, I went to see the remains of a good palisade, which formerly surrounded a Village in the very place where our French have established their Abode. The Hiroquois enemies of these Tribes have burned everything; there can still be seen [73] the ends of the blackened stakes; there are some arpents of cleared land, where they cultivated Indian corn. I hope in the course of time our Canadians will resume this industry, which will be as profitable to them for Heaven as for earth; for, if they stop their wanderings there will be opportunities of instructing them.
Le septiesme on nous décriuit vne façon de dance des Sauuages que nous n'auions point encore veuë. L'vn d'eux commence, pendant que les autres chantẽt; la chanson finie, il va donner le bouquet, c'est à dire, qu'il va faire vn present à celuy qu'il veut faire dancer apres soy; l'autre finissant la dance en fait de mesme, & si nos François se trouuent auec eux, on leur porte le bouquet & le present aussi bien qu'aux autres.
On the seventh we had described to us a kind of Savage dance that we had not yet seen. One of them begins while the others sing; the song finished, he goes and gives the bouquet, that is, he goes and makes a present to the one whom he wishes to dance after him; the other does the same thing when he finishes the dance; and, if our French are with them, they bring the bouquet and the present to our men as well as to the others.
Le dix-huictiesme de ce mois, [74] tous les Sauuages s'escarterent, qui deça, qui de là dans les bois, pour aller pendant l'hyuer chercher l'Elan, le Cerf & le Caribou, dont ils viuent; Si bien que nous demeurasmes sans voisins, nos seuls François restans en nostre nouuelle Demeure.
On the eighteenth of this month, [74] all the Savages dispersed, some here and some there into the woods, to go during the winter to hunt the Elk, the Deer and the Caribou, upon which they live; so that we were without neighbors, our French alone remaining in our new Dwelling place.
Le trentiesme de Decembre la neige n'estant ny assez dure ny assez profonde, pour arrester les grandes iambes de l'Elan, vne troupe de ces pauures Barbares, s'en vindrent crier misericorde en nostre Habitation; la famine qui fut cruelle l'an passé les a encore traicté plus rudement cet hyuer, du moins en plusieurs endroits; on nous a rapporté que vers Gaspé les Sauuages ont tué & mangé vn ieune garçon que [30] les Basques leur auoient laissé pour apprẽdre leur langue. Ceux de Tadoussac auec lesquels i'hyuernay il y a vn an, se sont mangez les vns les autres [75] en quelques endroits. Monsieur du Plessis Bochart montant à Kebec, nous a dit qu'il y en auoit encore quelques-vns dans les bois, qui n'osoient paroistre deuant les autres, à raison qu'ils ont meschamment surpris, massacré, & mangé leurs compagnons. Nous auons esté témoins de leur famine aux trois Riuieres: ils venoient par bandes, tous défigurez, décharnez comme des squelets, aymans, disoient-ils autant mourir auprés des François, que dans leurs Forests: le malheur pour eux, estoit, que comme ceste Habitation ne faisoit que de commencer, il n'y auoit point encore de magasins aux trois Riuieres, nos François & nous n'ayans apporté de Kebec que les viures necessaires pour le nombre des hommes qui y residoient: nous nous efforçasmes pourtant de les secourir, chacun de son costé leur [76] faisant la charité selon ses forces, ou selon son affection, pas vn de ceux qui vindrent vers nous ne mourut de faim.
On the thirtieth of December, the snow having been neither hard nor deep enough to arrest the long legs of the Elk, a troop of these poor Barbarians came crying for pity at our Settlement; the famine, which was cruel last year, has treated them still worse this winter, at least in several places; we have heard a report that, near Gaspé, the Savages killed and ate a young boy whom the Basques left with them to learn their language. Those of Tadoussac, with whom I passed the winter a year ago, have eaten each other [75] in some localities. Monsieur du Plessis Bochart, on his way to Kebec, told us that there were still some in the woods who do not dare appear before the others because they had wickedly surprised, massacred, and eaten their companions. We have been witnesses to their famine at the three Rivers; they came in bands, greatly disfigured and as fleshless as skeletons, liking, they said, as well to die near the French as in their own Forests; the misfortune for them was that, as this Settlement was only in its first stages, there was not yet a storehouse at three Rivers, our French and we having brought from Kebec only the food necessary for the number of men who were residing there; we tried, however, to help them, each on his side [76] exercising charity according to his means, or according to his inclinations; not one of those who came to us died of hunger.
Le Pere Buteux & moy entrans dans vne cabane, vne femme nous dit, qu'il n'estoit resté qu'elle & sa compagne, de tous ceux auec lesquels elles auoient hyuerné dans les bois. On a trouué des Chasseurs roides morts sur la neige, tuez du froid & de la faim, entre autres, celuy qui auoit pris le prisonnier Hiroquois duquel i'ay parlé cy dessus.
When Father Buteux and I entered a certain cabin, a woman told us that no one remained but she and her companion, of all those with whom they had wintered in the forest. Hunters had been found stiff in death upon the snow, killed by cold and starvation,—among others, the one who had taken prisoner the Hiroquois of whom I have spoken above.