LOUISIANA. 



121 



and give him in return a barrel of brandy -, wc 

 made the bargain in prefence of feveral witnefTes, 

 and he delivered his fon to me. 



I was ready to laugh at this farce, from the 

 very beginning of it. I made him drink upon 

 the bargain fome brandy, into which I had put 

 long pepper. When he had drunk it, he was 

 bound, and brought to fleep. When he was 

 recovered of his drunkennefs, the Cacique of 

 the village and his relations, who were in the 

 fecrer, came to him into his hut, where he lay 

 upon a mat -, they difplayed to him all the hor- 

 ror of the unnatural a6lion he had committed by 

 felling his own offsprings The poor Indian 

 came crying to me, and faid, Indage wai panis, 

 i. e. I am unworthy of living 5: I do no longer 

 deferve to bear the tender name of father. He 

 was very angry at the brandy I had given him 

 to drink, and which had fired all his ftomach •, 

 he called it urine of the chief of hell, that is, of 

 the evil fpirit that caufed it* 



His wife, who is naturally humorous, and 

 who W^s diverting herfelf at his expence, afked 

 him very coolly where his fon was } He ftill ex- 

 cufed hirrlfelf, faying, that, knowing me to be 

 very kind, he expe(5ted I would return him his 



fon ; 



