Mon hoste iettant quelques branches de pin dans le feu, il prestoit l'oreille au bruit qu'elles feroient en se bruslant, prononçant quelques paroles; ie luy demanday pourquoy il faisoit cette ceremonie, pour prendre des Porcs épics, me respond il, de dire quel rapport il y a de ces branches bruslées auec leur chasse, c'est ce qu'ils ne sçauent pas, & ne sçauroient sçauoir. My host, throwing some pine branches into the fire, listened attentively to the noise which they made in burning, and pronounced some words. I asked him why he went through this ceremony; "To capture Porcupines," he answered me. What connection there is between these burning branches and their hunting, they neither do nor can explain. Ils ne mangent point la moëlle des vertebres ou de l'espine du dos de quelque animal que ce soit, car ils auroient mal au dos, & s'ils fourroient vn baston dans ces vertebres, ils sentiroiẽt vne douleur, comme si on le fichoit dans les leur. Ie le faisois expres deuant eux pour les desabuser, mais vn mal d'esprit si grand, comme est vne superstition inueterée depuis tant de siecles, & succée auec le laict de la nourrice [96] ne se guerit pas en vn moment. They do not eat the marrow of the vertebræ or backbone of any animal whatever, for they would have a backache; and, if they were to thrust a stick into these vertebræ, they would feel the pain the same as if some one had driven it into theirs. I did it purposely, in their presence, to disabuse them; but a disease of the mind so great as is a superstition firmly established for so many centuries, and drunk in with the nurse's milk, [96] is not eradicated in a moment. Ils ne mangent point les petits embrions d'Orignac, qu'ils tirent du ventre de leurs meres, sinon à la fin de la chasse de cét animal, la raison est que leurs meres les aiment, & qu'elles s'en rendroient fascheuses & difficiles à prendre, si on mangeoit leur fruict si ieune. They do not eat the little embryos of Moose, which they take from the wombs of the mothers, except at the end of the chase for this animal. The reason is that their mothers love them, and they would become angry and difficult to capture, if their offspring were eaten so young. Ils ne reconnoissent que dix Lunes en l'année, i'entends la pluspart des Sauuages, car i'ay fait auouër au Sorcier qu'il y en auoit douze. They recognize only ten Moons in the year,--I mean the greater part of the Savages, for I made the Sorcerer admit that there are twelve.