As They Went Up To
Make Cottages In The Island Of The Massacre, Which Was 16 Dayes Before Our
Departure, One Of The Company Goes To Shute For His Pleasure, Finds A Woman
Half Starved For Hunger, Lying On A Rock By A Water.
He brings her to the
cottages & made so much by giving her some luckwarme water, which he boyled
with flower & grease, that she came to herselfe entirely againe.
Shee was
examined. Shee told them what is above said, and when it happened. Shee hid
her selfe in a rotten tree during the slaughter, where shee remained 3
dayes; after we weare gone shee came foorth for to gett some food, and
found nothing, but founde onely some small grapes, of roots the 3 first
dayes, & nothing else. Shee finding her selfe feeble and weake, not able to
sustaine such, resolved for death. The father, knowing her to be a
Christian, had a singular care for her, & brought her where I overtooke the
said father with the 8 french. Being brought [she] was frightened againe
for seeing a man charging his gunne to kill her, as shee said, so went away
that night, & non knowes what became of her. Being weake, not thoroughly
healed, shee fancied that such a thing might be done. By this, we poore,
many have recovered. The father arrives, that affirmes this newes to us,
being very sorry for the losse of this poore creature that God has so long
preserved without any subsistance, which shews us apparently that wee ought
not to despaire, & that keeps those that lives in his feare. We went to
meete the father, I meane those that weare able, to bid the father welcome
& his company. Being come safe & in a good disposition together, we
rendered God thanks.
There weare many that waited for us, desiring to tourne back againe to
Quebecq, obtaining their desier from the fathers & the governour of the
fort. They weare 13 in number & one father. After 6 weeks end we recovered
our health. So we went to bring them a part of the way, some to the water
side, some to the laksende, where we tooke of one another farewell, with
such ceremonys as are used when friends depart. Some dayes after we heare
that the poore woman was in the woods; not that shee knew'd which way to
tourne, but did follow her owne fancy whersoever it lead her, & so wandered
6 dayes, getting some times for her subsistance wild garlick, yong buds of
trees, & roots. Shee was seene in an evening by a river, whereby shee was
for 3 dayes, by 3 hurrons renegades. They tooke her, but in a sad
condition. They not considering that shee was of their owne nation, stript
her. It is the custom to strip whomsoever is lost in the woods. They
brought her to the village, where the father was that brought her from the
place of murdering to that place whence shee runned away the second time.
This father, knowing her, brings her to our fort, that we might see her as
a thing incredible but by the mercy of God.
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