The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents 2

The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents 2

XXIII (concluded)

 

LE JEUNE'S RELATION, 1634

 

PARIS: SEBASTIEN CRAMOISY, 1635

 

 

Chaps. x.-xiii., and Index, completing the document; Chaps. i.-ix.

appeared in Volume VI.

 

 

 

 

[164] CHAPITRE X.

 

DE LEURS HABITS & DE LEURS ORNEMENTS.

 

 

C'ESTOIT la pensée d'Aristote, que le mõde auoit fait cõme trois pas,

pour [165] arriuer à la perfection qu'il possedoit de son temps. Au

premier les hommes se contentoient de la vie, ne recherchants purement

& simplement que les choses necessaires & vtiles pour sa conseruation.

Au second ils ont conjoint le delectable auec le necessaire, & la

bienseance auec la necessité. On a trouué premierement les viures,

puis les assaisonnements, on s'est couuert au cõmencement contre

la rigueur du temps, & par apres on a donné de la grace & de la

gentillesse aux habits, on a fait des maisons aux premiers siecles

simplement pour s'en seruir, & par apres on les a fait encore pour

estre veuës. Au troisiéme pas les hommes d'esprit voyans que le monde

iouyssoit des choses necessaires & douces pour la vie, ils se sont a

donnez à la contemplation des choses naturelles, & à la recherche des

sciences, si bien que la grande Republique des hommes s'est petit à

petit perfectionnée, la necessité marchant deuant, la bien-seance & la

douceur venant apres, & les sciences tenant la dernier rang.

 

[164] CHAPTER X.

 

ON THEIR CLOTHES AND ORNAMENTS.

 

 

IT was the opinion of Aristotle that the world had made three

steps, as it were, to [165] arrive at the perfection which it

possessed in his time. At first men were contented with life,

seeking purely and simply only those things which were necessary

and useful for its preservation. In the second stage, they united

the agreeable with the necessary, and politeness with necessity.

First they found food, and then the seasoning. In the beginning,

they covered themselves against the severity of the weather, and

afterward grace and beauty were added to their garments. In the

early ages, houses were made simply to be used, and afterward they

were made to be seen. In the third stage, men of intellect, seeing

that the world was enjoying things that were necessary and pleasant

in life, gave themselves up to the contemplation of natural objects

and to scientific researches; whereby the great Republic of men has

little by little perfected itself, necessity marching on ahead,

politeness and gentleness following after, and knowledge bringing

up the rear.

 

Or ie veux dire que nos Sauuages Montagnais & errans, ne sont encore

[166] qu'au premier degré des trois que ie viẽs de toucher, ils ne

pensent qu'à viure, ils mãgent pour ne point mourir, ils se couurent

pour banir le froid, non pour paroistre, la grace, la bienseance,

la connoissance des arts, les sciences naturelles, & beaucoup moins

les veritez surnaturelles, n'ont point encore de logis en cét

hemisphere, du moins en ces contrées. Ce peuple ne croit pas qu'il y

ait autre science au monde, que de viure & de mãger, voila toute leur

Philosophie. Ils s'estõnent de ce que nous faisons cas de nos liures,

puisque leur connoissance ne nous donne point dequoy bannir la faim,

ils ne peuuent comprendre ce que nous demandons à Dieu en nos prieres.

Demande luy, me disoient-ils, des Originaux, des Ours & des Castors,

dis luy que tu en veux manger; & quand ie leur disois que ce la estoit

peu de chose, qu'il y auoit biẽ d'autres richesses à demãder, ils se

rioyent, que pourrois tu, me repondoient-ils souhaitter de meilleur,

que de manger tõ saoul de ces bonnes viandes? Bref ils n'ont que la

vie, encore ne l'ont-ils pas toute entiere, puisque la famine les tuë

assez souuent.

 

Now I wish to say that our wandering Montagnais Savages are yet

only [166] in the first of these three stages which I have just

touched upon. Their only thought is to live, they eat so as not to

die; they cover themselves to keep off the cold, and not for the

sake of appearance. Grace, politeness, the knowledge of the arts,

natural sciences, and much less supernatural truths, have as yet

no place in this hemisphere, or at least in these countries. These

people do not think there is any other science in the world, except

that of eating and drinking; and in this lies all their Philosophy.

They are astonished at the value we place upon books, seeing that

a knowledge of them does not give us anything with which to drive

away hunger. They cannot understand what we ask from God in our

prayers. "Ask him," they say to me, "for Moose, Bears, and Beavers;

tell him that thou wishest them to eat;" and when I tell them that

those are only trifling things, that there are still greater riches

to demand, they laughingly reply, "What couldst thou wish better

than to eat thy fill of these good dishes?" In short, they have

nothing but life; yet they are not always sure of that, since they

often die of hunger.

 

[167] Iugez maintenant qu'elle peut-estre la gentillesse de leurs

habits, la noblesse & la richesse de leurs ornements, vous prẽdriez

plaisir de les voir en cõpagnie: pendant l'Hiuer toutes sortes d'habits

leurs sont propres, & tout est commun tant aux femmes comme aux hommes:

il n'y a point de difformité en leurs vestemens, tout est bon, pourueu

qu'il soit biẽ chaud. Ils sont couuerts propremẽt, quand ils le sont

commodement; dõnez leur vn chaperon, vne homme le portera aussi bien

qu'vne femme, il n'y a habit de fol dont ils ne se seruent sagement,

s'ils s'en peuuent seruir chaudement: ils ne sont point comme ces

Seigneurs qui s'attachent à vne couleur. Depuis qu'ils prattiquent nos

Europeans, ils sont plus bigarrez que des Suisses. I'ay veu vne petite

fille de six ans vestuë de la casaque de son pere, qui estoit vn grand

homme, il ne falut point de Tailleur pour luy mettre cét habit dans

sa iustesse, on le ramasse à l'entour du corps, & on le lie comme vn

fagot. L'vn a vn bonnet rouge, l'autre vn bõnet verd, l'autre vn gris,

tous faits, nõ à la mode de la Cour, mais à la mode de la commodité.

L'autre aura [168] vn chapeau que si les bords l'empeschent, ils les

couppent.

 

[167] Judge now how elegant must be their garments, how noble and

rich their ornaments. You would enjoy seeing them in company.

During the Winter all kinds of garments are appropriate to them,

and all are common to both women and men, there being no difference

at all in their clothes; anything is good, provided it is warm.

They are dressed properly when they are dressed comfortably. Give

them a hood, and a man will wear it as well as a woman; for there

is no article of dress, however foolish, which they will not wear

in all seriousness if it helps to keep them warm, in this respect

being unlike those Lords who affect a certain color. Since they

have had intercourse with our Europeans, they are more motley than

the Swiss. I have seen a little six-year-old girl dressed in the

greatcoat of her father, who was a large man; yet no Tailor was

needed to adjust it to her size, for it was gathered around her

body and tied like a bunch of fagots. One has a red hood, another

a green one, and another a gray,--all made, not in the fashion of

the Court, but in the way best suited to their convenience. Another

will wear [168] a hat with the brim cut off, if it happens to be

too broad.

 

Les femmes ont pour robbe vne camisolle ou vn capot, ou vne casaque,

ou vne castelogne, ou quelque peau dont ils s'enueloppent, se lians

en autãt d'endroits qu'il est necessaire, pour fermer les aduenuës au

vent? L'vn porte vn bas de cuir, l'autre de drap, pour le present ils

couppent leurs vieilles couuertures ou castellongnes, pour faire des

mãches & des bas de chausses. Ie vous laisse à penser si cela est bien

vuidé & bien tiré; en vn mot ie reïtere ce que i'ay desia dit, leur

proprieté est leur commodité, & comme ils ne se couurent que contre

l'injure du tẽps, si tost que l'air est chaud, ou qu'ils entrènt dans

leurs Cabanes, ils iettent leurs atours à bas, les hõmes restãs tous

nuds, à la reserue d'vn brayer qui leur cache ce qui ne peut estre

veu sans vergongne. Pour les femmes elles quittent leur bonnet, leurs

manches & bas de chausses, le reste du corps demeurant couuert. Voila

l'equipage des Sauuages, pour le present qu'ils communiquent auec nos

François.

 

The women have for dress a long shirt, or a hooded cloak, or a

greatcoat, or a blanket, or some skins tied in as many places as

may be necessary to keep out the wind. A man will wear one stocking

of leather, and another of cloth; just now they are cutting up

their old coverings or blankets, with which to make sleeves or

stockings; and I leave you to imagine how neatly and smoothly

they fit. In a word, I repeat what I have already said,--to them

propriety is convenience; and, as they only clothe themselves

according to the exigencies of the weather, as soon as the air

becomes warm or when they enter their Cabins, they throw off their

garments and the men remain entirely naked, except a strip of cloth

which conceals what cannot be seen without shame. As to the women,

they take off their bonnets, sleeves and stockings, the rest of

the body remaining covered. In this you have the clothing of the

Savages, now during their intercourse and association with our

French.

 

Ce peuple va tousi[o]urs teste nuë, hormis [169] dans les plus grands

froids, encore y en a-il plusieurs qui ne se couurient iamais, ce qui

me fait conjecturer que fort peu se seruoient de bõnets, auant qu'ils

communiquassent auec nos Europeãs, aussi n'en sçauroient ils faire,

ains ils les traittent tous faits, ou du moins les font tailler à nos

François. Voila pour leur coiffure, qui n'est autre que leurs cheueux,

tant aux hommes qu'aux femmes, & mesme aux enfans; car ils sont testes

nuës dans leur maillot.

 

These people always go bareheaded, except [169] in the most severe

cold, and even then some of them go uncovered, which makes me think

that very few of them used hats before their intercourse with our

Europeans; nor do they know how to make them, buying them already

made, or at least cut, from our French people. So for their head

gear they have nothing but their hair, both men and women and even

the children, for they are bareheaded in their swaddling clothes.

 

Leurs robbes sont faictes de peaux d'Elans, d'Ours, & d'autres animaux.

Les plus riches en leur estime sont faites des peaux d'vne espece de

petit animal noir, qui se trouue aux Hurons, il est de la grandeur d'vn

Lapin, le poil est doux & luisant, il entre bien vne soixantaine de ces

peaux dans vne robbe, ils attachẽt les queuës de ces animaux aux bas,

pour seruir de franges, & les testes au haut pour seruir d'vne espece

de rebord. La figure de leur robbe est quasi quarrée, les femmes les

peignent, tirant des raïes du haut en bas, ces raïes sont également

distantes & larges, enuiron de deux pouces vous diriez du passement.

 

Their clothes are made of the skin of Elk, Bears, and other

animals. The ones that they value the most are made of the skins

of a kind of little black animal found in the Huron country; it

is about the size of a Rabbit, the skin is soft and shiny, and it

takes about sixty of them to make a robe. The tails of the animals

are fastened to the bottom, to serve as fringe; and the heads

above, to make a sort of border. These robes are nearly square in

shape; the women paint colored stripes on them from top to bottom,

which are about as wide as two thumbs, and are equally distant from

each other, giving the effect of a kind of lace-work.