1637. J DANGER OF THE PRIESTS. 121 



ers went away. One old chief, as he passed out 

 said to Brebeuf, " If some young man should split 

 your head, we should have nothing to say." The 

 priest still continued to harangue the diminished 

 conclave on the necessity of obeying God and the 

 danger of offending Him, when the chief of Ossos- 

 sane called out impatiently, " What sort of men 

 are these ] They are always saying the same thing, 

 and repeating the same words a hundred times. 

 They are never done with telling us about then- 

 Oki^ and what he demands and what he forbids, 

 and Paradise and Hell." ^ 



" Here was the end of this miserable council," 

 writes Le Mercier; . . . "and if less evil came of 

 it than was designed, we owe it, after God, to the 

 Most Holy Vu'gin, to whom we had made a vow 

 of nine masses in honor of her immaculate con- 

 ception." 



The Fathers had escaped for the time ; but they 

 were still in deadly peril. They had taken pains 

 to secure friends in private, and there were those 

 who w^ere attached to theu' interests ; yet none 

 dared openly take their part. The few converts 

 they had lately made came to them in secret, and 

 warned them that then* death was determined upon. 

 Their house was set on fire ; in public, every face 

 was averted from them ; and a new council was 

 called to pronounce the decree of death. They 

 appeared before it with a front of such unfhnc^hing 

 assurance, that their judges, Indian-like, postponed 



1 The above account of the council is drawn from Le Mercier, Rela- 

 tim des Hurons, 1638, Chap. II. See also Bressani, Relation Abreyee, 163. 



11 



