The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. 3: Acadia, 1611-1616
History
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. 3: Acadia, 1611-1616
Canada -- History -- To 1763 (New France); Indians of North America -- Canada; Jesuits -- Missions; Jesuits -- North America
Le Sauuage se sentant mal extraordinairement, se couche tout au long du
feu: lors on dit; _Ouëscouzy. Ouëscouzy._ Il est malade. En son temps
on luy donnera sa part de ce qu'on aura rousty, boüilly, ou trainé par
les cendres; tout ainsi qu'aux autres, car de luy chercher ou apprester
quelque chose de particulier, ils n'en ont point l'vsance. Si donc le
malade mange ce qu'on luy aura baillé, bon prou luy face; sinon, lon
dira, qu'il est bien malade. Et apres quelques iours (si lon peut) on
mandera querir l'_Autmoin_, que les Basques appellent _Pilotoys_, c'est
à dire, sorcier. [81] Or ce _Pilotoys_ ayant consideré son malade, le
souffle, & resouffle auec ie ne sçay quels enchantements; vous diriés
que ces vents pectoraux doiuent dissiper la cacochymie du patient.
Que s'il voit apres quelques iours, que pour tout son boursoufflement
le mal ne disparoit point, il en trouue bien la cause à son aduis,
c'est dit-il, pour-autant que le Diable est là, au dedans du malade,
le tourmentant, & empeschant la guerison. Mais qu'il faut l'auoir le
mauuais, l'enleuer de force, & le tuer. Lors tous se preparent à ceste
heroique action, que le tuer Belzebut: Et l'_Autmoin_ les aduertit
d'estre bien sur leurs gardes: car il se peut bi[~e] faire que cest
audacieux se voyant mal mené par luy, se ruë sur quelqu'vn de la
troupe, & l'estrangle là. Pour ceste cause il distribue à chascun son
acte de la [82] fable: mais elle seroit trop longue à raconter, car
elle dure bien trois heures.
A Savage, feeling very ill, stretches himself out near the fire:
then they say: _Ouëscouzy, Ouëscouzy_, "he is sick." When his
turn comes, they give him his share of whatever they have boiled,
roasted, or dragged over the coals, just the same as the others,
for they are not accustomed to seek or prepare any special food for
him. Now if the sick man eats what is given him, it is a good sign;
otherwise, they say that he is very sick, and after some days (if
they can) they will send for the _Autmoin_, whom the Basques call
_Pilotoys_; i.e., sorcerer.[20] [81] Now this _Pilotoys_, having
studied his patient, breathes and blows upon him some unknown
enchantments; you would say that these chest winds ought to dispel
the vitiated humors of the patient. If he sees after some days,
that notwithstanding all his blowing the evil does not disappear,
he finds the reason for it according to his own ideas, and says it
is because the Devil is there inside of the sick man, tormenting
and preventing him from getting well; but that he must have the
evil thing, get it out by force and kill it. Then all prepare for
that heroic action, the killing of Beelzebub. And the _Autmoin_
advises them to be upon their guard, for it can easily happen that
this insolent fellow, seeing himself badly treated by him, may hurl
himself upon someone of the crowd, and strangle him upon the spot.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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