PREFACE TO VOL. VIII
Following is a synopsis of the documents contained in the present volume:
XXV. A summary of the contents of the first two chapters of the Relation of 1635 was given in Volume [VII.] of our series. Continuing his narrative, Le Jeune urges that French colonies be sent to Canada, to develop and hold the country for the French crown. Still more important, in his view, is the aid which these would afford to his favorite project,—that of rendering the nomadic tribes stationary, by furnishing nuclei for Indian settlements. He then, as usual, closes his yearly letter by a resumé, in the form of a journal, of the chief events during the past year, beginning with the departure of the French fleet, in August, 1634. He relates how he and Buteux went, in September, to Champlain's new settlement at Three Rivers, and describes the region thereabout. An elk-hunt, a funeral, the cruel treatment of an Iroquois prisoner, an Indian dance, and various conversations on religion, with the savages, are narrated. The superior gives a sad account of the famine among the Indians that winter, and the consequent epidemic, which often proves fatal, even among the French. He has heard ill news of his brethren who had ventured into the Huron country, but letters from them show that these reports are in a measure false. In May, Le Jeune and a companion go to Quebec, to meet the French fleet, which, however, is delayed until July, when it brings a reinforcement of six Jesuit priests and two brothers, whereat there is great rejoicing among the missionaries. Champlain holds a council with the Hurons, and recommends to their friendship Fathers Le Mercier and Pijart, who depart with them. Le Jeune remains at Quebec. Again he urges that efforts should be made to render the wandering Indians sedentary,—intimating that not only could they thereby be more easily converted, but that the beaver might thus be kept from extermination. He mentions the crafty attempts of the Iroquois to arouse hostilities among the tribes on the St. Lawrence, and thus to divert the Indian trade from the French to the Dutch and English, at Albany. The journalist describes the conversion of a young French Huguenot, and closes by giving directions to his correspondents in France as to the forwarding of their letters.
In his report on the Huron mission, sent to Le Jeune the preceding May (1635), Brébeuf describes his journey to Lake Huron, with its attendant hardships and perils. He, with his companions, settles at Ihonatiria, near the place where he had formerly lived, when on his first mission to the Hurons. These savages welcome his return, and build a cabin for the French. The former suffer much from the same epidemic that had attacked Three Rivers; but the French keep in good health. Brébeuf describes his cabin, which is at once a dwelling and a church; and relates the astonishment of the natives at the sight of various articles brought by the French,—a small mill, a clock (which the Indians thought was alive), a loadstone, a magnifying glass, etc.,—but especially at the art of writing, which is utterly incomprehensible to their simple minds.
Brébeuf writes of the Huron myths of creation, the morals and superstitions of that tribe, the doings of their medicine men; he praises their spirit of hospitality, their patience in sickness, their courage in view of death,—upon which qualities he hopes to build a Christian faith and life in their hearts. He describes the baptisms and the apparent conversions that had rewarded the efforts of the missionaries; the kind of religious instruction they give the savages; the condition of their affairs; and the friendly relations existing between them and the Hurons. He adds a postscript, to mention a new baptism, and the mildness of the recent winter and spring.
Julien Perrault, of the mission in Cape Breton Island, describes in a letter to his superior (Le Jeune), the situation, climate, resources, and people of that island. He praises the docility and honesty of the natives, and the decency of their behavior and conversation.
The Relation ends with an interesting collection of "various sentiments and opinions of the Fathers who are in New France, taken from their last letters of 1635,"—embodying their religious experiences, observations and opinions concerning their work, and the qualifications they consider necessary in those who would come to Canada as missionaries.
XXVI. Like the preceding document, the Relation of 1636, although throughout styled by bibliographers Le Jeune's, because he was the superior and the editor, is a composite: the first half being a Relation (or annual report) of eleven chapters, sent by Le Jeune to his provincial at Paris, and dated Quebec, August 28, 1636; the second half consists of a Relation on the Huron mission, by Brébeuf, dated at Ihonatiria, July 16 of the same year, and sent down to Le Jeune by a native messenger. Brébeuf's Relation is divided into two parts, one of four chapters, the other of nine.
We have space in the present volume but for the two opening chapters of Le Jeune's own yearly narrative. He begins by describing the arrival of Montmagny, Champlain's successor as governor of New France. The missionaries are rejoiced to find that the new governor has brought with him Chastelain and Garnier, priests of their order, to aid them in their great task; and, still more, that Montmagny is a pious man, and greatly interested in their work. This is evinced by his becoming sponsor in baptism for a savage, almost as soon as he has landed at Quebec. Le Jeune mentions also the arrival of Father Nicolas Adam, as well as several families of colonists, especially those of De Repentigny and La Poterie. He then relates how interest in the Canadian mission is spreading in France, not only in religious circles, but among the nobility, court officers, and persons of wealth. He praises the piety and generosity of the Marquis de Gamache, who largely supports the Quebec mission; and several members of the Hundred Associates, whose letters are quoted, showing their zeal and liberality. He is especially pleased at the intention of a wealthy lady, Madame Combalet, to establish a hospital in New France. He continues, as usual, with circumstantial accounts of conversions among the savages, and the pious deaths of several.