CHAPITRE II.
DES SAUUAGES BAPTISEZ CETTE ANNÉE, & DE QUELQUES ENTERREMENS.
IL semble que nostre Seigneur veüille authoriser la pureté de immaculée Conception de sa saincte Mere, par les [24] grands secours qu'il donne à ceux qui honnorent cette premiere grandeur de la Vierge. I'enuoyay l'an passé à V.R. la formule d'vn vœu, que nous fismes suiuans son conseil dans toutes nos Residences le huietiesme de Decembre, iour dedié a cette Conception sacrée; nous cachions cette deuotion, & V. R. l'a publiée la faisant imprimer en mesmes termes que nous l'auons voüée, & que nous la voüerons encore Dieu aydant tous les ans à mesme iour. La benediction que le ciel a versé sur nos petits trauaux depuis ce temps-là, est si sensible; que ie conuierois volontiers tous nos Peres de l'Ancienne France, voire de tout le monde, & toutes les bonnes ames qui cherissent la conuersiõ de ces Peuples, de s'allier de nous par ces saincts vœux, vnissant tous les ieusnes, toutes les prieres, toutes les souffrãces, toutes les saintes actions les plus secrettes de ceux qui entreront dans ces alliances, pour estre presentées à la Diuinité en l'honeur & en action de grace de l'immaculée Conception de la saincte Vierge: afin d'obtenir par son entremise l'application du sang de son Fils [25] à nos pauures Sauuages, l'entier dénuëment & l'amour de [246] Iesvs en la Croix, auec vne mort vrayment Chrestienne, à ceux qui procurent leur salut, & à tous les associez en la pratique de cette deuotion, dont la formule est à la fin de la Relation de l'an passé. I'écriuois dans cette Relation, que nous auions baptizé vingt deux personnes, nous en auons baptizé cette année plus d'vne centaine depuis ces vœux presentez à Dieu, & fort peu auparauant. En tout on a fait enfans de l'Eglise depuis le depart des Vaisseaux iusques à present cent quinze Sauuages. De plus, Dieu nous a donné de grandes ouuertures pour le salut de ces Peuples, les faisant resoudre à deux points, qui font voir que la foy entre dans leur ame. Le premier est, qu'ils ne sont pas marris qu'on baptize leurs enfans malades, voire ils nous appellent pour ce faire. Le deuxiesme, que les plus âgez mesmes commencent à desirer de mourir Chrestiens, demandans le baptesme en leurs maladies, pour ne point descendre dans les feux, dont on les menace. Bref nous auons obtenu ce que nous n'osions quasi demander, tant [26] nous les voyons alienez de ces pensées; c'est de donner quelques petites filles: mais ie parleray de cecy en son lieu. Toutes ces faueurs sont venuës du ciel par les merites de la sainte Vierge, & de son glorieux Espoux, depuis les vœux dont i'ay fait mention. Descendons en particulier, & suiuons l'ordre du temps de ces Baptesmes.
CHAPTER II.
OF THE SAVAGES BAPTIZED THIS YEAR, AND SOME BURIALS.
IT seems that our Lord wishes to authorize the purity of the immaculate Conception of his holy Mother, by the [24] great assistance he gives to those who honor this chief dignity of the Virgin. I sent last year to Your Reverence the formula of a vow which we made according to your advice in all our Residences, on the eighth of December, a day dedicated to this sacred Conception. We concealed this act of devotion, and Your Reverence has published it, using the same words in which we made the vow, and in which we will pledge ourselves again, God helping, every year on the same day. The blessings that heaven has bestowed upon our insignificant labors, since that time, are so evident that I would like to urge upon all our Fathers of Old France, yea even of all the world, and all the good souls who cherish the conversion of these Tribes, to ally themselves with us through these holy vows, uniting all the fasts, all the prayers, all the sufferings, all the most secret acts of virtue, of those who will enter into this alliance, to be presented to the Divinity in honor of and as an act of thanks for the immaculate Conception of the holy Virgin, in order to obtain through her mediation the application of the blood of her Son [25] to our poor Savages, the entire abnegation and love for Jesus on the Cross, with a truly Christian death, to those who procure their salvation and to all those associated in the practice of this act of devotion, the formula of which is given at the end of last year's Relation. I wrote in that Relation that we had baptized twenty-two persons; this year, since these vows were presented to God, we have baptized more than a hundred, and, before that, very few. In all, since the departure of the Ships up to the present, we have made one hundred and fifteen Savages children of the Church. Furthermore, God has given us great openings for the salvation of these Tribes, making them resolve upon two points which show that the faith has entered into their souls. The first is, that they are not vexed at us for baptizing their sick children; indeed, they even summon us to do this. The second is, that the more aged ones are likewise beginning to wish to die Christians, asking for baptism when they are sick, in order not to go down into the fires with which they are threatened. In short, we have obtained what we hardly dared to ask for, so greatly [26] do we see them alienated from their former inclinations; that is, the promise to give us some little girls, but I will speak of this in its place. All these favors have come from heaven, through the merits of the holy Virgin and of her glorious Spouse, since the vows which I have mentioned. Let us come down to particulars, and follow the order of time of these Baptisms.
Le neufiesme de Decembre, iustement le lendemain de la feste de la Conceptiõ: Le sieur Iean Nicolet, Truchement pour les Algonquins aux trois Riuieres, vint donner aduis aux Peres, qui demeuroient en la Residence de la Conception, scize au mesme lieu, qu'vn ieune Algonquin se trouuoit mal, & qu'il seroit [248] à propos de le visiter. Les Peres se transportent incontinent en sa Cabane, demandant permission à son pere de l'instruire, Dieu sembloit auoir disposé les cœurs de ces Barbares, que nous luy auions presentez, faisant nos vœux le iour precedent. Ce pauure Barbare se monstre fort content du bien qu'on procuroit à son fils: le Pere Buteux l'instruit, & pource que le malade estant Algonquin n'entendoit qu'à demy la langue Montagnese, dont se [27] seruoit le Pere, vne femme Sauuage bien versee en ces deux langues, seruoit d'interprete, faisant couler par sa bouche la foy & les veritez Chrestiennes dans l'ame de ce pauure ieune garçon, sans les retenir pour soy: iustement à la façon de ces canaux, ou de ces aqueducs, qui versent les sources d'eau toutes entieres, sans rien reseruer pour eux. Enfin le douziesme du mois, voyant que leur malade abaissoit, ils le baptiserent apres l'auoir instruit, & luy donnerent nom Claude; il mourut bien tost apres, prononcant les saincts noms de Iesvs & de Marie, ses parens demanderent aux Peres, s'ils ne seroient pas bien contents qu'on mist ce corps aupres des François; C'est bien nostre desir, repartent-ils. Nous luy ferõs vn honneur, leur dismes nous, que nous denierions au plus grãd Capitaine du mõde, s'il n'estoit Chrestiẽ. Hastez vous donc de preparer ce qui est necessaire pour l'enterrer à vostre mode, dirent-ils, puis qu'il est à vous. Il se fit vn beau conuoy de tous nos François, apres lesquels venoient les Sauuages deux à deux, auec vne modestie qui ne sentoit rien du Barbare. A l'issuë de l'enterrement le pere du defunct [28] fit vn festin aux Sauuages, pendant lequel, comme il ne mangeoit point selon leur coustume; tantost il chantoit, maintenant il discouroit; I'ay perdu l'esprit, disoit-il, la mort de [250] mon fils me tire hors de moy-mesme; ie me suis veu autrefois entre les mains de nos ennemis, tout prest d'estre mis en pieces, & d'estre déchiré à belles dents, iamais ie ne perdy courage, il ne faut pas que ie le perde maintenant; i'ay dequoy me consoler, puis que mon fils, s'il eust vescu, n'auroit pas manqué de tirer vengeance des Hiroquois. Et se tournant vers les Peres, Vous auez de beaucoup allegé ma douleur, rendans les derniers honneurs à mon fils. Voila la harangue de ce pauure Barbare, sur les funerailles de son fils, qui a bien d'autres pensées maintenant dans le ciel.
On the ninth of December, the very next day after the feast of the Conception, sieur Jean Nicolet,[29] Interpreter for the Algonquins at the three Rivers, came to inform the Fathers who lived in the Residence of the Conception, situated at the same place, that a young Algonquin was sick, and it would be well to visit him. The Fathers immediately hastened to his Cabin, and asked his father's permission to instruct him; God seemed to have prepared the hearts of these Barbarians, whom we had presented to him in our vows the day before. This poor Barbarian appeared very glad at the good that was being done to his son; Father Buteux instructed him; and, as the sick man was an Algonquin, and only half understood the Montagnese tongue, which [27] the Father used, a Savage woman, well versed in both these languages, served as interpreter, allowing the faith and Christian truths to flow from her lips into the soul of this poor young man without retaining them for herself,—precisely like those canals or aqueducts which discharge whole fountains of water, without reserving any for themselves. Finally, on the twelfth of the month, seeing their patient was sinking, they baptized him, after having given him instruction, and named him Claude; he died shortly afterwards, pronouncing the holy names of Jesus and Mary. His parents asked the Fathers if they would not like to have his body placed near the French. "That is indeed our desire," they answered. "We will show him an honor," we told them, "that we would refuse to the greatest Captain in the world, if he were not a Christian." "Hasten then and prepare what is necessary to bury him in your way," they said, "since he is yours." A fine escort was formed, consisting of all our Frenchmen; and after them came the Savages, two by two, with a modesty which savored in no wise of Barbarians. After the burial, the father of the dead man [28] gave a feast to the Savages, during which,—as he did not eat, according to their custom, now singing, now talking,—he said, "I have lost my courage, the death of my son has undone me; at other times I have seen myself in the hands of our enemies, about to be cut to pieces and torn by their teeth, and I have never lost courage; I ought not to lose it now, for I have something to console me, since my son, if he had lived, would not have failed to wreak vengeance upon the Hiroquois." And turning towards the Fathers, "You have greatly soothed my grief, by rendering the last honors to my son." Such was the discourse of this poor Barbarian at the obsequies of his son, whose thoughts are now quite different in heaven.