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.
Minutes of Council with Ottawa
(August 1 - September 26 & 28, 1706)
Vaudreuil, Marquis de in: Michigan Historical
Collections, XXXIII, pp. 258-262.
|
pp. |
|
col. I: |
|
|
|
|
col. II: |
|
|
|
|
|
rest to Vaudreuil). |
TALK BETWEEN MARQUIS DE
VAUDREUIL AND ONASKIN,
CHIEF OF THE OUTAVOIS.
Endorsed-
Replies of the Marquis de Vaudreuil to the words of the Outavois of Michilimakina, brought by the Sr. Boudor, and read in the presence of Companissé and Le Brochet on the first of August, 1706, in order to learn whether those were the sentiments of their people.
I have seen, O Companissé and Le Brochet, what Onaskin has sent to tell me in writing, which the Sr. Boudor has brought to me on his behalf; and I have had it read in your presence that I might learn whether it was indeed your sentiments; and as you have both assured me that it was the words of my children of Michilimakina, I am going to reply to them. Listen and hear me, O Champanissé, and thou, Le Brochet. I should have been very glad to see all of you here, to bring back the slaves you promised to hand over to me to give to your brothers the Iroquois; and I had tried, by treating you well, to let you all know the difference I make between a disobedient child and one who listens to my words. But since Onaskin has not come nor the other elders, I am still very glad to see thee O Companissé and thee also Le Brochet. I was acquainted with the news concerning what took place at Detroit, and Maurier, whom I sent up there with Father Marest, to accompany him and to remind you at the same time of your word, must have told you that I did not include you in what took place at Detroit and that I was all along convinced that you had no share in it.
I have seen the steps you have taken,- you say- in order to prevent the French people I have at Michilimakina, from being exposed to insults from your young men, who are sorrowing (page 259, I) for the loss they have sustained at Detroit, or to an attack from your enemies. I am convinced, and am willing to believe that, as you had no hand in what took place at Detroit, you had no other object in what you have done except to prevent your brothers the French from being insulted. But as I look upon all that has taken place with other eyes than you do, I cannot and will not permit my young men to be molested in any way; and if you had really felt the sentiments you ought to have felt for your brothers, the French who are up there, and for me, who am the Father of you all, you would have come down with them as you ought to have done; you would even had aided them with the means of bringing their furs. That is how you would have given me proofs of your affection, and not by keeping them among you like prisoners or like hostages while you await my reply. I love my children the French; I am their Father, and I will spare nothing to avenge them. Listen and hear me, O Companissé and thou also; O Le Brochet.
I am very glad to see that my children of Michilimakina, in spite of the bad news from Detroit, still retain the sentiments they ought to feel, and that they remember the promise they gave me last year. I receive with pleasure the four slaves whom they send me to return to their brothers, the Iroquois, and I am satisfied that they will send me the other four next year, and I ever regard them as my true children; but I also wish them to give me proofs of their confidence by aiding all the French people I have up there with the means of coming down, and also by their young men helping them to bring their furs down here. That is the only way in which they can testify to me of their obedience; and it is also the only means left to me to forget what they have done, for indeed I cannot think that my children, the French people are, as it were, prisoners up there, without any heart throbbing within me; and, as long as I know that they (page 260, I) are not quite free I cannot listen to anything.
I sent you last year a message by M. de Louvigny. I am rejoiced that it served you as a strong help in rejecting all the evil suggestions which have been made to you. You must have known that all he told you from me was true. I am a good father; do not oblige me to be severe.
I told you last year that you were my children, and so were the Iroquois, but that I held you always on the left side, as the nearest to my heart. Do not make yourself unworthy of a place which ought to be so dear to you, but imitate your brothers the Iroquois who, though they have just grounds of complaint, always remain obedient, and do not take any steps without consulting me.
I sympathize with you strongly in all the difficulties you may have; but I have already told you that, until I see my French people who are up there back again, and until you place yourselves entirely in my hands as true children ought to do, I cannot give you any answer, and I will never allow it to be said that a child is to lay down the law for his father.
I have seen what you tell me regarding your brothers of the Sault. I do not wish my children to have any difficulties with one another. I will arrange this matter before you depart; but, as my children of the Sault obey me, see that you do the same.
You asked me last year for a man having wisdom to guide you and to direct your minds in troublesome matters. I then promised you a missionary, and I have sent Father Marest to you. I am convinced that if you follow in his course, you will always do well; and you are to look upon him, in all he says to you, as if I were speaking to you myself, for he knows my mind.
As regards what you say to me about my commander at Detroit, and the action he has taken in what has happened there, I am surprised that my children of Michilimakina can speak to me as you do.
The people of Detroit, for I ought not to call them my children any more, attacked the Miamis without cause, since the Sieur de Tonty who was then in command, had settled the difficulty they had had with the Missisaguez, and I had even shown my pleasure thereat to the offender when he came down here. Yet in spite of that, the Outavois at Detroit attacked the Miamis, who are my children even as they are. But where did they attack them? At my door, in my very arms; for it was I who made them come within the bastions of my fort. And you complain that my commandant there received them in his fort, and gave them aid. You say that he killed some men; could he have done otherwise? And if the Outaoüas had been attacked by the Miamis, would you not have wished him to get you out of it in just the same way? His fort is fired upon; has he not grounds for thinking that they have designs on him as well as on the Miamis? And if he ordered the Outaouas to be fired at, was it he who sought the Outaouas to kill him, or the Outaouas who came to attack him. I think you are too wise, my children of Michilimakina, to take part in such a discreditable business. I am even willing to believe, as Maurice* will have told you, that the Outaouas of Detroit had no direct intention of attacking me; but as they have slain the Miamis, who are my allies, and besides that have killed one of my Missionaries, and a soldier who was valued among us, unless the Outaouas of Detroit make reparation proportionate to the offence they have committed against me, I will spare nothing to avenge myself.
But as for you, remain in peace on your mats; listen quietly to my words; (page 262, I) follow the advice of Father Marest whom I have sent you as a Missionary; help my French people in the means of coming down with their furs; help them yourselves; come here with them, and trade. You will find everything you want here, for we have just received goods in abundance, and you will always find me with a father's heart, and arms open to receive you. But, on the other hand, if you offer the slightest insult to my people, I will not only deny you all the help you have a right to expect from me, but I will also declare war against you which will end only with the complete destruction of your tribe. Remember well O Companissé, and thou also Le Brochet, all that I have said to you, so that you may be able to repeat it to your people when you return; and you may assure them that it rests with them alone whether they will be my true children or will become my enemies. And in order that you may forget nothing that I have just said to you, I am sending a copy of it to Father Marest, that he may put you in remembrance of it.
Words addressed to the Marquis de Vaudreuil by Onaskin, Chief of the Outavas.
As our father directed us to bring him eight slaves to fulfill the promise which we had made to him last summer, we had determined to bring down ten boats for that purpose; but the grievous news that has come from Detroit decides us not to bring down so many. We will only go in order to try and set right these unfortunate affairs, and so show our obedience.
Having held a council, we resolved to go to our brothers the French, to withdraw them in a friendly manner from their houses since we did not think them safe there, either from our own young men, who were sorrowing for the loss they had sustained, or from the fear of attack by our enemies. Hence we have called them to our homes to dwell there until we return.
The evil news we have received from Detroit does not prevent us from remembering today the promise we gave last summer to our father. To that end, we bring down two boats and have asked our brothers the French for a third to keep us company as far as Montreal, to take five slaves there, al- (page 259, II) though we were only bound to give four. But we are glad to make known to our father, by this number, that we are obedient children.
We will not fail, next year, to complete the number of slaves we are bound to give. We beg our father to look upon us as his children, to treat us as a father, and to have pity on us in the handling of this present affair in which we have no part, and to have regard to the small number we muster here.
The message which Monsieur de Louvigny brought us last spring from our father has been a powerful aid to us in rejecting everything evil which could come to us, for we know that all he said to us on behalf of our fathers was true, and also his kindness in not taking rods to chastise his children who had disobeyed him but, on the contrary, overwhelming them with benefits.
We remember well that our fathers told us that we were in his bosom, and the Iroquois also, our brothers, but with this difference, that the latter were in the right side and we in the left; we are so safely lodged in his heart that no troubles, however bad them may be, will give him cause to drive us out.
We beg our father to take pity on our families, especially those who are mourning.
We learnt last year that the people of the Sault cherished bitterness in their hearts because they had lost the son of one of their chief men. We beg our father to induce them to look favorably upon us and to show us hospitality, and to smoke with us when we go to them, as they were wont to do formerly to give us marks of their good will.
Last year we asked our father for a man of wisdom to guide us. We beg him now to remember that he told us then that he had not yet selected anyone. We do not doubt that he will take pity on us by granting us the request which we made to him, especially at the present juncture which is a warning to us; for we think the commandant of Detroit has not done well in receiving the (page 261, II) Miamis, our enemies into the fort and excluding us.
We beg our father to watch over our interests, so that we may return to our families in safety; and to be well assured that nothing will ever happen on our part which is not in conformity with his will.
We hope that all the tribes will know the good heart of their father, giving him their full confidence in negotiating this present trouble. We beg our father to have pity on us, being now compelled to fight our enemies, by giving us a little powder and some bullets, that we may remain on the defensive.
(page 262, Marest to Vaudreuil)
LETTER FROM FATHER MAREST TO THE MARQUIS DE VAUDREUIL.
Endorsed.- Letter from Father Marest to the Marq. de Vaudreuil annexed to the letter of the 30th of Oct. 1706. This letter is marked E. in the long private letter to the Marquis de Vaudreuil of the 1st of Sept.
|
J. M. J.* |
|
Mishilimakina, this 14th Augt. 1706. |
Sir-
I had the honor of writing to you somewhat at length from Topikanich of all
the bad news we heard there, which would doubtless have made many men give way
if they had found themselves in such a position, which had indeed already
shaken some of our men, and seemed to those who told us it of such great
importance that they offered readily to go
_______________
* The initials of the names "Jesus, Mary, Joseph," often used by Jesuit writers, as here, at the beginning of a letter.- Ed. Wis. His. Coll. Vol. 16, p. 232.
Return
to TOC, p. 7
Continue
to next part of Miami Collection
[return to Miami
Collection Menu]
[return to Glenn A. Black
Laboratory of Archaeology List of Publications]
[return to Glenn A. Black
Laboratory of Archaeology Home]
Last updated: 30 October 2000
URL: http://www.gbl.indiana.edu/home.html
Comments: webmaster@www.gbl.indiana.edu
Copyright 1996, Glenn Black Laboratory of Archaeology and The Trustees of Indiana University