196 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 43

to arrive at the landing. There was from time to time a clear moon, and the
Chevalier de la Loire then turned his head to see if anyone followed us.
Finally, thanks to the Lord, we arrived at the end of the prairie, which is very
near the landing, where we found M. de la Loire, the elder, who was awaiting
us along with another person, acting as sentinel, to await us with him. After
embracing much we got into our canoes and we landed the S savages. M. de
la Loire recompensed all 8 of them and made a larger present to the one who
had been first to forewarn me. As we parted they asked us where we were
going, and we replied that we were going to Mobile, and that they would see
us again in a short time.
 As soon as we were gone the 8 savages that we had left on the shore of the
river went home to the Natchez to inform the grand chief of the departure of
the French. The entire village was immediately alarmed; but the grand
chief said absolutely that that could not be, and that the Chevalier de la
Loire, as well as Penicaut, were lying in their cabin with 3 savages; the 8
savages, however, told him anew that they were gone with the other French-
men. The grand chief rose promptly and went to knock, like an angry man,
on the door of the cabin of the Chevalier de la Loire, and hearing the savages
who were inside say that they could not open the door and that they did not
have the key, lie ran to the bed of the Chevalier de la Loire, where, not
finding us, he hastened to maltreat the 3 savages, to whom he had given orders
to guard us. They excused themselves by saying that we must be sorcerers,
and that they had not heard the least noise. He possessed himself of all the
goods in the storehouse and the clothes, which were left in the cabin of the
Chevalier de la Loire.
 As for us, we arrived at 10 o'clock in the morning opposite the village of the
 Tonicas, where we set foot to earth. We found there M. Davion, missionary
 priest, who embraced us all. He told us that he had believed us dead. Then
 he said mass for us to thank God for the grace which he had shown us.
 After mass we recounted to him everything that had passed, for which he
 thankedGod a hundred times. While we were speaking to him, we saw 3
 Natchez arrive, who came, on the part of their grand chief, to excite the chief
 of the Tonicas to have the missionary and all the Frenchmen who were in his
 village killed, promising that all the Natchez savages would join them after-
 ward in making war on the French, adding that it was much better to deal with
 the English who gave them goods at a better rate. The chief of the Tonicas,
 a man of as good sense as a savage is able to have, and incapable of treason,
 a very rare virtue among the savages, was very much astonished at such a
 speech. He wished to break his [the speaker's] head immediately. IIe asked
 the opinion of M. Davion on that point, who would not permit it, counseling
 him to send them back without doing them any liarnm, because M. de Lamothe
 would perhaps be offended. M. Davion wrote a letter to M. de Lamothe about
 the treason of the Natchez and their evil purpose; we gave him this letter on
 arriving at Mobile, at which M. de Lamothe was very much surprised."

 The events which followed-events dignified by the title of the
 first Natchez war-are given below as narrated by De Richebourg,
 who was captain of the company assigned to Bienville, and probably
 kept some official record of everything that happened:
 M. de Bienville having received at this time new commissions from the king
 to the command of the Mississippi, his majesty gave him orders to go and
 a Margry, DWcouvertes, v, 512-520.