For myself,--in the persuasion I had that our Fathers, whom I had left in the woods, or some other of the French who had fled, would not fail to go as soon as possible to Cayenne to give them certain intelligence of our sad lot, or at least to forward ample information with regard to it,--I imagined they would send some one to rescue me. But I was deceiving myself, and they were entirely ignorant of every thing that had happened to me. So Friday passed, and the next day we cast anchor very near the Enfant Perdu. This is a rock, distant from the land six thousand and thirteen _toises_,[21] as it has been exactly measured by M. de la Condamine, member of the Royal Academy of Sciences, on his return from Peru. Towards nine o’clock in the morning, after a great stir in the ship, I saw two large boats set out, which went to a little river called Macouria, especially to plunder the residence of a certain lady; in revenge, they said, for some grievances which had been previously suffered by the English, who had gone there to purchase syrups. For, my Reverend Father, you must know that in time of peace that nation trades to this place, principally to furnish horses for the sugar plantations.[22] As I saw but thirteen men in each boat, including two Frenchmen, who were to serve as guides, I began from that moment to entertain some hopes of my liberty; because I fully believed, as the weather was very clear, they would see this manœuvre from the land, and not fail to fall upon them. I was thus indulging in these pleasant thoughts when they came to tell me that the boats were about to go first to Couron, which is about four leagues distant from Macouria, to capture there, if possible, Father Lombard, the missionary, who had labored with so much success and for so long a time in Guyane, in the conversion of the Indians. Their object was, that they might exact a ransom for him in conformity with his age and merits. I leave you to imagine how like the stroke of a thunderbolt news of this kind came upon me, for I was well assured that, if this worthy missionary should be brought on board our ship, he would entirely sink under the fatigue. But Providence, which was not willing to afflict our missions to this extent, defeated their plan. They ran aground on the way, and were obliged to hold to their first design, which was to ravage Macouria alone. They, in fact, arrived there on Sunday morning, and spent that day and the following night in pillaging and destroying the dwelling which was the object of their hate. On Monday morning, after having set fire to the buildings, they returned on board, without having received the least opposition from any one. The negroes were so thoroughly terrified that they did not dare to show themselves, and the French who had been dispatched from Cayenne on Sunday morning had not yet been able to reach there.