In the mean time, father Jogues accompanied thefe deputies in their return to their own canton, where he was received with great marks of profound efteem, and careffed even by those who had tormented him before. He was fo well pleafed with his reception, that he refolved to fix his habitation among them: mean while, leaving his cheft and baggage in this canton, he repaired to Fort Richelieu, to wait on Mr. de Montmagny, and affured that gentleman, that he might depend upon the fincerity of the Agniers. The governor, however, had more pene-tration than to confide in the affurance of an ill-informed millionary, whofe character was compofed of fimplicity and enthusiasm. He had received certain intelligence, that the Iroquois meditated a rupture. Nevertheless, he fuffered the poor father to return, and expofe himself again to the brutal rage of thefe favages. He fet out for Agnier, accompanied by a young Frenchman called La Lande, and attended by fome Indians; who, hearing that the Iroquois had commenced hoftilities, by attacking a Huron village in the night, thought proper to forfake him in the neighbourhood of Trois Rivieres. Any other perfon, thus abandoned by his conductors, and alarmed with fuch intimations, would have returned immediately to the French fettlement; but father Jogues was not conducted by the dictates of human reafon. He had been long enamoured of the crown of martyrdom, and now forefaw the confummation of his with: he might, how ever, have excuted the poor youth, who perhaps was not at all ambitious of this honour. Charlevoix

afcribes this fhocking inftance of mad fanaticifm to the fupernatural impulfe of heaven. Thus the worst actions of mankind are varnished over by the artifice of priestcraft, or the prejudice of enthusiasm.

Jogues and his attendant pursued their journey to the first village of the Iroquois, where they were treated like prifoners of war, stripped, beaten, baftinadoed, and plainly told that they were condemned to death: that, however, they should not be burned, but killed with a hatchet, and their heads fixed on ftakes, for a public monument. The miffionary, notwithstanding his eager defire of martyrdom, pleaded for his life with the most earneft elocution. He reprefented, in the most lively colours, the crime and indignity of fuch proceedings. He expatiated on the confidence he had fhewn in delivering himself into their hands: he reminded them of the invitations they had given him, to come and dwell among them; he repeated the promife they had fo folemnly made: he enlarged upon the humane conduct of the French, with refpect to them; upon the treaty fealed with oaths, and the little advantage they could reap from the renewal of the war.

To this harangue they made no reply; but maintained a gloomy horrid filence 'till next day in the evening, being the feventeenth day of October. Then a Huron, who lived at Agnier, led Jogues into his hut, on pretence of refreshing him with food; for neither he nor his companion had tafted any thing fince their journey. As he entered the cabin, a favage, who lay concealed behind the door, started up, and laid him dead with one blow of a hatchet. La Lande, who followed

him, met with the fame fate. Their heads, being cut off, were expofed upon poles, and their bodies thrown into the river. Such was the fate of a man, who, in the midst of blind zeal and rash enthusiasm, ftill preferved the virtues of humanity. He was immediately canonized as a holy martyr and confeffor, and many miracles are faid to have been performed at his interceffion. The favage, who acted as his executioner, in the course of the following year fell into the hands of the French, and was delivered to the Algonquins, who tortured him to death at the stake, where he is faid to have profeffed himself a convert to Christianity.

Nothing could be more unworthy of a civilized people than this conduct of the French, in countenancing a practice at which humanity fhudders; for the example of a brutal enemy can never justify a retaliation of barbarity. The motives that induced the Iroquois to murder the miffionary, have been variously explained. The governor of New Holland, now called New York, in a letter to Mr. de Montmagny, with an account of the father's death, imputed it to a firm perfuafion among the favages, that he had left the devil in their country. Others attributed it to the malice of the tribe called the bear; adding, that those of the wolf, and the tortoife, had endeavoured in vain to protect the miffionary from the rage of their brethren. Certain it is, diftempers had been very rife, and very mortal, that year in the canton of Agnier; and the vermin having deftroyed almost their whole ftock of corn, the people imputed these misfortunes to fome forcery which father

Jogues had left in his trunk. Their fuperftitious refentment was corroborated by the infinuations of fome Hurons fettled among them, who took notice, that thefe difafters began precifely at the time when they invited the miffionaries into their country. Without doubt, these were fufficient motives to impel favages to the perpetration of such an outrage: but, in all probability, they were ftill reinforced by an established opinion, that thofe miffionaries acted as fpies, under the cloak of propagating the Gospel.

The Iroquois, having thus infringed the treaty, refolved to improve the perfidious advantage they derived from the fecurity of the Hurons. Their parties began to fcour the country: one of thefe happening to meet with the famous chief, Prefkaret, accofted him under the mafque of friendship, and afterwards ftabbed him in the back. Another fell fuddenly upon fome chriftian Indians, who had gone a-hunting; murdered fome, took the rest prifoners, and tortured them to death. Such was their hatred to the religion of Chrift, that they maffacred and burned all its profeffors, without distinction of age or sex; and even crucified an infant, in derifion of our Saviour's death.

The first account of these brutal· hoftilities was brought to the French fettlements by an Algonquin woman, who had been carried prisoner to one of the villages of Agnier. She was ftripped stark naked, fettered with cords, and confined to a hut, where he lay furrounded by her enemies. In the middle of the night, perceiving them all fast asleep, the made fhift to untie the ropes with which he was bound: then L 2

rifing

ftation. Five and thirty days this poor wretch travelled through the woods, ftark naked and alone, having no other fuftenance than roots and berries. At length fhe reached the river St. Laurence, a little above lake St. Peter, and paffed it in a fort of wicker canoe, made with her own hands. She foon perceived the fort of Trois Rivieres at a distance, and meeting with fome Hurons whom fhe knew, fhe fquatted down behind a bufh, and called to them aloud that she was naked. They immediately fupplied her with a blanket, and brought her to the fort, where fhe gave the first notice of the rupture, and related her own adventure. An adventure in which the courage, perfeverance, and hardiness of those Indians are not more confpicuous than their vindictive temper and ftupidity: for if this female favage had fuppreffed her defire of revenge, and gone off quietly, without noife or bloodshed, the might have escaped unnoticed, without running fuch imminent hazards of her life.

rifing foftly, the feized a hatchet, with which the flew at one blow the Indian who lay between her and the door; and, going out of the hut, concealed herself in the hollow of a tree, which he had obferved the preceding day. The people of the hut were waked by the groans of the dying man, and in an inftant the whole village was alarmed. The young men, taking it for granted that the prisoner had fled, pursued her into the fields. Then the taking the opportunity of their abfence, came out of her hiding-place, from whence the had seen their motions, and, chufing a contrary road, reached the woods unperceived. Next day they discovered her footsteps, and followed her with fuch expedition, that, notwithstanding her utmost efforts of diligence and difpatch, and the advantage of two days before them, fhe on the third heard them at her heels; and being on the fide of a pond, threw herself into the water. As they approached the bank, the dived among fome weeds and rufhes, which afforded her an opportunity of thrusting up her head for fresh air, without being perceived. Her purfuers, after having ftayed fome time, and fearched all the neighbourhood of the pond, returned to their village, and then the was relieved from her difagreeable

Earl of

St. James's Place, O8. 18, 1760.

MY LORD,

Received, by the laft poft from Ireland, an inclofed printed paper, which I am given to under

ftand you avow yourself to be the author of. As I have the honour to enjoy a confiderable fhare of the duke of Bd's confidence, and by my employment, as his principal fecretary, may be fuppofed to be

meant

As to religion, I think and I hope he thinks with me, that God, is neither a Presbiterian, nor a Lutheran, nor of the Low Church, nor of the High Church; but God is the father of all mankind, the father of the noble author, and mine. Caftle of Fornex in Burgundy.

Have received the honour of your letter, dated from your cattle of Fornex in Burgundy, by which I find I was guilty of an error, in calling your retirement an exile. When another edition fhall be made of my Dialogues, either in English or French, I will take care that this error fhall be corrected; and I am very forry I was not apprised of it fooner, that I might have corrected it in the edition of a French tranflation of them juft published under my infpection in London. To do you justice is a duty I owe to truth and myself; and you have a much better title to it, than from the pafsports you fay you have procured for English noblemen: you are intitled to it, Sir, by the high fentiments of respect I have for you, which are not paid to the priviledges you tell me your king has confirmed to your lands, but to the noble talents God has given you, and the fuperior rank you hold in the Republic of Let

ters.

I am, &c.

The favours done you by your king are an honour to him, but add little luftre to the name of Voltaire.

I intirely agree with you, that God is the father of all mankind ; and fhould think it blafphemy to confine his goodness to a fect; nor do I believe that any of his creatures are good in his fight, if they do not extend their benevolence to all his creation. These opinions I rejoice to fee in your works, and shall be very happy to be convinced, that the liberty of your thoughts and your pen, upon subjects of philofophy and religion, never exceeded the bounds of this generous principle, which is authorised by revelation as much as by religion; or that you disapprove, in your hours of fober reflection, any irregular fallies of fancy, which cannot be juftified, though they may be excufed by the vivacity and fire of a great genius.

I have the honour to be, &c.

[From the Pub. Ledger.]

the performance of any new piece, which bore the name of a Comedy. I went therefore to the first night of the Jealous Wife, a Comedy written by Mr. Colman, Author of many of the humorous effays, published under the title of the Connoiffeur.

I went,