THE OHIO VALLEY-GREAT LAKES ETHNOHISTORY
ARCHIVES: THE MIAMI COLLECTION
It is noted that the following work from the Miami Archives should be read and
considered within the historical context in which it was composed and printed.
The opinions expressed and the language used do not reflect the opinions or
standards of the Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, but are, rather,
indicative of thought in that historical moment during which the document was
published.
History of the Savage Peoples who
are
Allies of New France
La Potherie: from his Histoire de
l'Amerique septrionale, Paris 1753
Blair ed: Indian Tribes of the Upper Great Lakes Region, Volume II, pp. 83-93, 94-96.
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(p. 83) "The great distance which lay between us and all these allies was a hindrance in causing them to show all the activity that we could have desired. The French who went among them, either to facilitate their trading or to maintain them in entire harmony, were even exposed to many dangers. Perrot was on the point of being burned by the Maskoutechs, who had received from him so many benefits. That tribe, insatiable for all that they saw, sent to ask him to come to their village, to trade for beaver-skins; and a chief of the Pouteouatemis accompanied him. Hardly had he reached their village, with six Frenchmen, when the savages seized all their merchandise; and they displayed more inhumanity to him than to the meanest of their slaves. It is a rule among all the tribes to give to the captives the first morsels of what food may be eaten; but these savages would not give him any food. One of their chiefs could not refrain from complaining that he would not have the strength to endure the fire, if they did not take better care of him; they intended to sacrifice him to the shades (p. 84) of many of their men who had been killed in various fights, and they said that Perrot was the cause of their death. A warrior who came to him to pronounce his sentence told him that they had intended to burn him in the village, but that part of them would not be witnesses of this execution. He said to Perrot: "Thou wilt set out at sunrise, and be closely followed, and at noon thou wilt be burnt on the plain. Thou art a sorcerer, who hast caused the deaths of more than fifty of our men, in order to pacify the shades of two Frenchmen whom we killed at Chikagon. If thou hadst taken revenge for those two alone we would not have said anything, for blood must be paid with blood; but thou art too cruel, and therefore thou art going to be the victim who is to be sacrificed to them." Great steadfastness was necessary in so terrible an emergency. The Pouteouatemi chief also sang his death-song, on the eve of his departure, and they made him and Perrot set out the next morning from the village, with the other Frenchmen, who were lamenting their wretched fate. While the people in the village were amusing themselves with dividing all the property of the Frenchmen, the latter went forward a little distance on a beaten path, and then they bethought themselves to take several wrong directions without losing sight of one another. Some warriors were sent after them, who could not find their tracks; but the French do not know whether these men really could not discover them, or only pretended not to find them. However that may be, a Miami who had married a Maskoutech woman saw these warriors start, and immediately gave notice of it to his tribe, telling them that Perrot had been plundered and burned by the Maskoutechs. The chief of the Miamis was at that time at war with the Iroquois; and the Miamis were only waiting the moment of his arrival, in order to avenge (p. 85) this death. The tribes of the bay were also notified of it, and desired to seize the war-club for the chastisement of those peoples. Perrot arrived safely among the Puans, where they immediately hung up some war-kettles, as if to go in search what had been taken from him, and to kill some Maskoutechs; but as it was a question of holding together all those tribes in their desire to form a connection with the common enemy, he obliged them to suspend their anger, for the sake of the French nation.
"On all sides hostilities were begun in earnest against the Iroquois. The Outaouaks sent out war-parties against them from all quarters, and during the summer killed or captured more than fifty of them. The Miamis of Muramik [sc. Maramek] (see footnote 29) carried off eight Loups, to whom the English had given many presents; four of these captives they gave to the commandant on the Saint Joseph River, and reserved the others for Frenchmen, friends of theirs who had rendered them many services. Monsieur de Louvigny sent thirty-eight men to go in quest of these, with orders to induce the Miamis to put them in the kettle if they could not be taken to Michillimakinak; but those of Saint Joseph had carried them away. The tribe of Loups was entirely devoted to the interests of the English, who were trying to make use of them in order to gain entrance among our allies; and the Iroquois profited by this union. Too many precautions, therefore, could not be taken to keep back the former from the beaver trade, and to obtain the advantage from acts of hostility against the latter. A present of fifty pounds of gunpowder was given to the Miamis of Maramek, to unite them to our interests; and they took the war-path to the number of two hundred-- who (p. 86) separated into four bands, after having divided the powder among them. On the next day after their departure a solemn feast was made by order of Ouagikougaiganea, the great chief, to obtain from the Spirit a safe return. They erected an altar, on which they placed bear-skins arranged to represent an idol; they had smeared the heads of these with a green clay, as they passed in front of these skins, kneeling down before them; and every one was obliged to assist at this ceremony. (see footnote 30) The jugglers, the medicine-men, and those who were called sorcerers occupied the first row, and held in their hands their pouches for medicines and for jugglery; they cast the spell, they said, upon those whose deaths they wished to cause, and who feigned to fall dead. The medicine-men placed some drugs in the mouths of these, and seemed to resuscitate them immediately by rudely shaking them; the one who made the most grotesque appearance attracted the most admira- (p. 87) tion. They danced to the sound of drums and gourds; they formed, as it were, two hostile parties, who attacked and defended in a battle. They had for weapons the skins of serpents and otters, which, they said, brought death to those on whom they cast the spell, and restored life to those whom they wished [to live]. The director of the ceremony, accompanied by two old men and two women at his side, walked with serious manner, going into all the cabins of the village to give notice that the ceremony was to begin soon. They practiced the imposition of hands on all persons whom they met, who, by way of thanks, embraces their legs. Everywhere were seen dances, and one heard only the howls of the dogs which they were killing in order to offer the sacrifices. The bones of those which were eaten were afterward burned, as in a holocaust. The persons who had been killed, and whom the medicine-men brought back to life by the spell, danced separately, while the others remained as if dead. Men, women, girls, and boys of twelve years old, fell dead or were restored to life, as were even the jugglers, the medicine-men, and the sorcerers. Every one had offered the handsomest ornaments that he could. Some persons thrust down their throats sticks a foot and a half long, and as large as one's thumb, and feigned to lie dead; then they were carried to the medicine-men, who brought them back to life and sent them away to dance. Others swallowed feathers of the swan or eagle, then drew these out, and fell down, as if dead; and these also were resuscitated. In short, one recognized in their antics only diabolical contrivances.
"The best thing in this festival was, that all the riches of the village were destined for the jugglers. The ceremonies lasted during five days, both day and night; at the latter time they were within the cabins, and by day (p. 88) in the public place-- where they approached from all sides, marching as if in procession. It was useless to represent to them that all this that they were doing was criminal before God; they answered that this was the right way to secure his favor, to the end that he should give some enemies to be eaten by their young men, who would die without that if they did not observe this solemnity. One of their war-parties arrived at the end of thirty days; they had killed many Iroquois, without losing one of their own men, and they said to the French: "Believe us, our sort of ceremony has made the Spirit listen to us." The other bands came back some time afterward, with a number of prisoners, and the Loups whom the men of Saint Joseph had made to turn aside.
"While the Miamis were giving to Monsieur de Frontenac proofs of their fidelity, the Maskoutechs had openly declared hostilities against their allies the Ayoes, and had cut to pieces all the inhabitants of the Ayoe's main village. Some of them came to the Miamis and tried to induce Perrot to go among them, assuring him that they would make reparation for the pillage of his merchandise; but the Miamis, who knew that the Maskoutechs intended to eat him, sharply asked them if they thought that he was a dog, whom they could drive away when he disturbed them, and then bring him back at the first caress which they offered him. The Maskoutechs learned that all the peoples of the bay, with the Miamis and several other tribes, had intended to avenge the injury which the former had inflicted on Perrot; and they sent him two deputies to ask that he would not go away from Maramek, where they wished to confer with him. Their chief came in person, with a number of warriors, and entered the cabin of the Miami chief, where a meeting was called of the more prominent men (p. 89) of the tribe, and of the Kikabous. The Maskoutechs had carried away some Ayoes slaves, a woman and three children, whom they seated before Perrot, and said to him: "We have borrowed thy guns; they have thundered upon a village, which they have made us eat. See the effect which they produced, and which we bring to thee," at the same time displaying these slaves. They placed forty beaver robes before him, and continued their speech thus: "We have taken from thee a garment to dazzle the sight of our enemies and make ourselves feared by them, and we pay thee for it by this beaver; we do not pay thee for they guns and merchandise. If thou art willing to receive us with forgiveness, we know where are some beavers, for we saw them on our road [to this place]. If we live a few years, thou shalt be satisfied; for we did not intend to plunder thee, and we have only placed thy merchandise to thy credit."
"This chief was told that in order to appease the wrath of Onontio it was necessary to destroy a village of Iroquois; and that they must not attack people who had not made war on them; that they were easily forgetting their own dead [killed by the Iroquois], whom the French were continually avenging; that they would do well to send to Montreal one of their chiefs, in order to appease Onontio; that his fire was lighted, to receive all those who desired to warm themselves at it-- and even the Iroquois, although they were his enemies; and that they might be sure that he would have taken vengeance on their tribes, if we had not caused all the others to hang up their hatchets. A chief resolved to accompany that Frenchman [i. e., Perrot] to Montreal, in order to turn aside the resentment of Monsieur de Frontenac; and forty Miamis escorted him as far as the bay. When they arrived among the Outagamis, the latter dissuaded (p. 90) the Maskoutech from going farther; because they told him that the rule of the French was to hang thieves, without any pardon, and that he would for love of his people certainly suffer the same fate-- which caused him to return home.
"The English, who had until then made all sorts of attempts to insinuate themselves among the Outaouaks, found the finest opportunity in the world for succeeding in this. As soon as they learned that the Iroquois had granted life to the son of a Sauteur chief, they procured his freedom; they had thought that, as his father was dead, he might succeed the latter, and that the ascendency which he possessed over the minds of his people would be an effectual means to facilitate to them some further entrance among the neighbors of the Sauteurs. The gratitude that this freedman felt (as they believed beyond doubt) for so great a benefaction must induce him to engage in any undertaking in favor of his liberators. Moreover, the Iroquois were planning also to obtain some advantage from this matter; and on both sides they gave the Sauteur collars and presents in order to persuade our allies to take sides and carry on trade with them. He met the Outaouaks out hunting, in the midst of the winter; they met together to hear the explanation of those collars, and at the same time concluded to keep the affair secret. They secretly sent, "under ground," many presents to the Sakis and to the peoples at the bay, to constrain them to withdraw from the war against the Iroquois; among those tribes many visits were made [by the Outaouak envoys], but they replied that all those solicitations were useless, and that they would die rather than abandon the interests of the French. The Sauteurs, who were beginning to realize that the Iroquois had spared their lives, declared them- (p. 91) selves against our allies if they intended to continue war against the Iroquois. Nothing could make them go back from their decision; they said that they were men, capable of resisting whomsoever undertook to thwart them in what they had resolved. The commandant at Michillimakinak, when he heard of the friendship of the Sakis, sent word to them that he and his Frenchmen would die [for them] if they were attacked, even offering them his fort as a refuge. The Cinago Outaouaks, who had declared in favor of the Sauteurs, fearing that the Sakis would carry far the resentment which they had displayed against the latter, on the one hand undertook to reconcile them with the Sakis, and on the other did everything in their power to turn them aside from the Iroquois War. They made presents to the Sauteurs, and gave them a calumet which said that their dead lay together among the Nadouaissioux, and that, since they were relatives, they ought to hang up their hatchets this year-- but assuring them of no interference another year, if they wished to resume the war.
"The Outaouaks faithfully kept the secret of the collar which the Iroquois had given to the Sauteurs, and, in order not to cause suspicion in the French, they asserted to Monsieur de Louvigny that they had received it for the sake of peace, and that they had been urged to become mediators with Onontio for that end. They tried to persuade that officer to accept this collar himself, since he was commandant at Michillimakinak; but he excused himself, and informed them that they must go to present it to Onontio. They did not hesitate to send envoys to him, who took advantage of the departure of the Sakis.
"We may say that the Hurons and the Outaouaks were in extreme blindness about all that concerned the Iro- (p. 92) quois, whom they believed to be really their friends; for while they did whatever the latter wished, in order to give them substantial proofs of their friendship, the Iroquois sought, underhand, for occasions to take the others by surprise. After the departure of those envoys the Hurons captured two Iroquois, whom they sent back to their homes with many presents, as a pledge to their nation that the Outaouak people had no greater desire than alliance with them-- at the same time congratulating them on having spared the lives of the Sauteurs; but the Iroquois did not act in so good faith.
"Dabeau, a Frenchman who had been a slave among them for several years, was with a band of warriors who went out to attack whomsoever they should encounter; being left alone with eight of their men and two women, he killed them all while they were asleep, and took the women to the first village of our allies that he could light on, when he found two Hurons hunting beavers. His fear of being himself slain by men who could have appropriated to themselves the exploit which he had performed constrained him to make them a present of the two slaves, and of the scalps which he had brought with him. He embarked with them for Michillimakinak. The arrival of these two women threw much light [on the designs of the Iroquois], and the [Huron] people felt indignation at finding themselves thus deceived. Immediately a war-party was sent out, who laid violent hands on thirteen Iroquois who were coming to make war on them; they killed five and captured seven of these, and only one escaped. As it was known that an agreement had been made between the Hurons and the Iroquois that they would on both sides spare the lives of captives whom they might take, our people observe that the Hurons were planning to act thus by these Iro- (p. 93) quois. Some Frenchmen, seeing them come ashore, killed two of the captives with their knives; the Hurons rescued the other five and took them into their village, and seize their weapons. General disorder arose; the Outaouaks remained neutral, and stepped aside to be spectators of the fracas. Nansouakouet, the only friend of the French, called his warriors together, in order to support the French in case fighting arose. The Hurons, who knew the generous nature of the French, incapable of doing harm to those who were in their power, hastened to our fort, in order to find an asylum there. The Hurons did not push their violent acts further; the old men entreated the commandant not to pay attention to the insolence of their young men, and brought to him the chief of the Iroquois band, to dispose of him as he should think best. Although the character of the French is opposed to inhumanity, it was impossible to avoid giving a public example of it [in this case]. The continual favors which were bestowed on the captives by our allies-- who at heart were more our enemies than were even the Iroquois-- only secured the continuance on both sides of the secret arrangements which existed between them; and, in order to exasperate at least the Iroquois, it was considered best to sacrifice this chief. For this purpose all the Outaouaks were invited "to drink the broth of this Iroquois," to express myself after their manner of speech. . . .
(p. 94) "Those savages who were most incensed quieted down after the departure of the deputies who carried to Monsieur de Frontenac the Sauteur's collar; and our people made various attempts to ascertain its real meaning, and (p. 95) what reply the Outaouaks and the other tribes made to the English and the Iroquois. At Michilimakinak there was a Frenchman who was an intimate friend of one of the principal council chiefs among our allies; he assured this chief of entire protection from Onontio. As man readily discloses his thought in the midst of joy, the chief, after being warmed by a little brandy, promised the Frenchman to meet him next day in the woods, where he would tell him in confidence the entire condition of affairs; and the two went to the appointed place. The Outaouak assured him that the English had sent to the tribes four collars. By the first they sent word that they would establish a post on Lake Herier, where they would come to trade; the second took the savages under their protection. By the third, the English ceased to remember the pillage, by the savages together with the French, from their warriors who were going to Michilimakinak; and by the fourth they promised to furnish their merchandise at lower prices than those asked by Onontio-- who was avaricious and robbed them.
"As for the Iroquois, they had sent to these tribes eight collars. By the first, they said that they remembered the peace that they had made with La Petite Racine, and that they had not desired to break it, even though their brothers the Outaouaks should kill them every day; by the second, they buried all the dead whom their brothers had slain. The third hung up a sun at the strait between Lake Herier and Lake Huron, which should mark the boundaries between the two peoples, and this sun should give them light when they were hunting. By the fourth, they threw into the lake, and into the depths of the earth, the blood that had been shed, in order that nothing might be tainted with it. By the fifth, they spent "their own bowl," so that they might have but one dish from (p. 96) which to eat and drink. By the sixth, they promised to eat the "wild beasts" around them which should be common [enemies] to both. The seventh was to make them "eat together of the buffalo," meaning that they would unite to make war on the Miamis, the Islinois, and other tribes. By the eighth, they were to eat "the white meat," meaning the flesh of the French.
"This chief told the Frenchman the
replies of the Outaouaks, who consented to all these demands and sent return
messages by means of collars, red-stone calumets, (see
footnote 31) and bales of beaver-skins; and he was secretly engaged to go
down to Montreal and talk with Onontio, who would not fail to question closely
the Sauteurs who had gone away with the Outaouak deputies."
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29Marameg (Maramek) was the early name of the Kalamazoo River, Mich.--Ed.
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