172 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 43 



" Thus this fire was relighted with profane fire. Immediately sickness took 

 hold of the Suns. In a few days they were seen to die in rapid succession, and 

 it was necessary to send after them into the world of spirits many people to 

 serve them. This mortality lasted four years, without anyone being able to 

 guess what had occasioned it. Nine great Suns who succeeded each other died 

 in this interval, and a multitude of people with them. Finally, at the end of 

 this time the guardian himself fell ill. This bad man, feeling that he was not 

 able to live a long time, had word sent to the great Sun at once that he had 

 something to communicate to him of such great importance that if he died 

 without revealing it all the Natchez would die. The great Sun went to see 

 him as quickly as possible. As soon as the sick man perceived him his whole 

 body trembled and he appeared unable to speak. However, he spoke these 

 words, although with difficulty : 



" ' I am going to die, so it makes no difference to me whether the sickness or a 

 man kills me. I know that I am a bad man for having for so long a time con- 

 cealed, in order to preserve my life, what I am going to tell you. I am the 

 cause of the death of my nation, therefore I merit death, but let me not be 

 eaten by the dogs.' 



" The great Sun understood by these words that this man was guilty of some 

 great crime, and that it was necessary to reassure him in order to draw from 

 him his secret, which appeared to be of the last importance. He therefore 

 told him that whatever he had done he might be assured that he would not be 

 put to death and that he would be buried, that what he had promised him was 

 as true as it was true that the Sun, their father, lighted them every day, and 

 that he should hasten to speak before death prevented him. On this promise 

 the bad guardian confessed all that he had done, which I have related to you. 



" Immediately the great Sun assembled the old men and by their advice it 

 was resolved to go that very day to wrest fire from the other temple. That was 

 executed and the Suns ceased dying." This expression, " to wrest fire," ap- 

 pearing extraordinarily to me, I asked the great Sun what it signified. He re- 

 plied that it was necessary that the fire be carried away by violence and that 

 blood be shed over it, unless on the way lightning was seen to fall on a tree 

 and set fire to it, that then they might spare themselves the trouble of going 

 farther and take this fire, but that that of the Sun was always preferable." 



In the narrative of the temple guardian as recorded by Du Pratz, 

 the Culture hero is said to have died after seeing his children's chil- 

 dren. Fortunately a little more regarding the fate of this founder 

 of the Natchez state is preserved by St. Cosme, which supplements 

 Du Pratz's narrative in some important particulars. He says : 



The chiefs were regarded as spirits descended from a kind of idol which they 

 have in their temple and for which they have a great respect. It is a stone 

 statue inclosed in a wooden box. They say that this is not properly the great 

 spirit, but one of his I'elatives which he formerly sent into this place to be the 

 master of the earth ; that this chief became so terrible that he made men die 

 merely by his look ; that in order to prevent it he had a cabin made for him- 

 self into which he entered and had himself changed into a stone statue for fear 

 that his flesh would be corrupted in the earth. ^ 



The thought at once presents itself that Du Pratz's informant 

 broke off his narrative at this point because he did not wish to make 



" Du Pratz, Hist, de La Louisiane, ii, 326-341. 



* Compte Uendu Cong. Internat. des Am^r., 15th sess., i, 39-40. 



