They Had A Quarell With The Hurrons In The Isle Where We Had Come From Some Years Before In The Lake Of The Stairing Hairs, And Came Purposely To Make Warres Against Them The Next Summer.

But lett us see if they brought us anything to subsist withall.

But are worst provided then we; having no huntsmen, they are reduced to famine. But, O cursed covetousnesse, what art thou going to doe? It should be farr better to see a company of Rogues perish, then see ourselves in danger to perish by that scourg so cruell. Hearing that they have had knives and hattchetts, the victualls of their poore children is taken away from them; yea, what ever they have, those doggs must have their share. They are the coursedest, unablest, the unfamous & cowarliest people that I have seene amongst fower score nations that I have frequented. O yee poore people, you shall have their booty, but you shall pay dearly for it! Every one cryes out for hungar; the women become baren, and drie like wood. You men must eate the cord, being you have no more strength to make use of the bow. Children, you must die. ffrench, you called yourselves Gods of the earth, that you should be feared, for your interest; notwithstanding you shall tast of the bitternesse, and too happy if you escape. Where is the time past? Where is the plentynesse that yee had in all places and countreys? Here comes a new family of these poore people dayly to us, halfe dead, for they have but the skin & boans. How shall we have strength to make a hole in the snow to lay us downe, seeing we have it not to hale our racketts after us, nor to cutt a litle woad to make a fire to keepe us from the rigour of the cold, which is extreame in those Countreyes in its season. Oh! if the musick that we heare could give us recreation, we wanted not any lamentable musick nor sad spectacle. In the morning the husband looks uppon his wife, the Brother his sister, the cozen the cozen, the Oncle the nevew, that weare for the most part found deade. They languish with cryes & hideous noise that it was able to make the haire starre on the heads that have any apprehension. Good God, have mercy on so many poore innocent people, and of us that acknowledge thee, that having offended thee punishes us. But wee are not free of that cruell Executioner. Those that have any life seeketh out for roots, which could not be done without great difficultie, the earth being frozen 2 or 3 foote deepe, and the snow 5 or 6 above it. The greatest susibstance that we can have is of rind tree which growes like ivie about the trees; but to swallow it, we cutt the stick some 2 foot long, tying it in faggott, and boyle it, and when it boyles one houre or two the rind or skinne comes off with ease, which we take and drie it in the smoake and then reduce it into powder betwixt two graine-stoans, and putting the kettle with the same watter uppon the fire, we make it a kind of broath, which nourished us, but becam thirstier and drier then the woode we eate.

The 2 first weeke we did eate our doggs. As we went backe uppon our stepps for to gett any thing to fill our bellyes, we weare glad to gett the boans and carcasses of the beasts that we killed. And happy was he that could gett what the other did throw away after it had ben boyled 3 or foure times to gett the substance out of it. We contrived an other plott, to reduce to powder those boanes, the rest of crows and doggs. So putt all that together halfe foot within grounde, and so makes a fire uppon it, We covered all that very well with earth, soe seeling the heat, and boyled them againe and gave more froth then before; in the next place, the skins that weare reserved to make us shoose, cloath, and stokins, yea, most of the skins of our cottages, the castors' skins, where the children beshit them above a hundred times. We burned the haire on the coals; the rest goes downe throats, eating heartily these things most abhorred. We went so eagerly to it that our gumms did bleede like one newly wounded. The wood was our food the rest of sorrowfull time. Finaly we became the very Image of death. We mistook ourselves very often, taking the living for the dead and the dead for the living. We wanted strength to draw the living out of the cabans, or if we did when we could, it was to putt them four paces in the snow. Att the end the wrath of God begins to appease itselfe, and pityes his poore creatures. If I should expresse all that befell us in that strange accidents, a great volume would not centaine it. Here are above 500 dead, men, women, and children. It's time to come out of such miseryes. Our bodyes are not able to hold out any further.

After the storme, calme comes. But stormes favoured us, being that calme kills us. Here comes a wind and raine that putts a new life in us. The snow sails, the forest cleers itselfe, att which sight those that had strings left in their bowes takes courage to use it. The weather continued so 3 dayes that we needed no racketts more, for the snow hardned much. The small staggs are [as] if they weare stakes in it after they made 7 or 8 capers. It's an easy matter for us to take them and cutt their throats with our knives. Now we see ourselves a litle fournished, but yett have not payed, ffor it cost many their lives. Our gutts became very straight by our long fasting, that they could not centaine the quantity that some putt in them. I cannot omitt the pleasant thoughts of some of them wildmen.

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