SWANTON] INDIAN TRIBES OF THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY 201

admitted that it was that of a warrior who had had no part in the murder
of the Frenchmen; but that as he was the brother of one of the murderers
who had escaped them they had thought it necessary to kill him in his place.a
M. de Bienville showed himself much dissatisfied with them because they had
not brought him the other heads and told them that the next day he wished
that they would bring [the head of] some chief. The Little Sunf was re-
placed in prison and in fetters like the others. The Frenchman and the two
Illinois savages, who had gone to deliver themselves to the Natchez, after four
days, were brought back by chief Little Sun, to whom they owed their lives,
for he had delivered them from the frame where they had been attached to be
burned. This Frenchman assured M. de Bienville that no more Frenchmen
were descending from the upper Mississippi, and that he was the last. They
were very much pleased to hear it.
 The 15th they sent to the Natchez two war chiefs and the high priest of
the temple, who were charged to bring back the head of the chief Oyelape,
otherwise called White Earth.b They were brought to a point near their
villages by a detachment of soldiers. This same day the chief of the Tonikas
came with M. Davion. their missionary, to inform M. de Bienville to keep him-
self well on his guard; that he had had news through three of his people, who
had just arrived from the Natchez. that that nation had assembled, and that
their warriors had taken the determination of descending en, masse in dugouts
to slaughter us in our camp, and thereby rescue all their chiefs or perish with
them. These Tonikas offered to send 40 of their bravest warriors to guard us
all night. M. de Bienville, who distrusted these as much as the others, thanked
them, and told them that he feared nothing; that nevertheless they would
please him by continuing to send spies among the Natchez to learn what they
were doing.
 The overflow of the Mississippi began to inundate all the land of the island
where we were encamped. There was half a foot of water above the highest
land. This caused us much fever, illness in the legs, and colic, [on account of]
always having the feet in cold water, through the excessive heats. M. de
Bienville, not being able to remain in his tent, had a cabin made surrounded
with palings and covered with the bark of trees. He also had them erect a
little powder magazine.
 The chief, Tattooed-serpent, having caught the fever, M. de Bienville made
him come out of prison, took off his fetters, and permitted him to remain every
day with him (Bienville) along with his brothers. He had reason to be pleased
with them. M. de Bienville, who thus passed all his days with these chiefs,
reproached all of them for their evil practices, saying to them that they had
received the past year English traders and two young boys of this nation to
learn their language; that after having sent them back at his demand that
they had promised him they would never detach themselves from the friend-
ship and alliance of the French; that nevertheless six months afterward they
had been traitorous enough to kill the first Frenchmen who had appeared
among them; that every other French chief would not content himself with
demanding solely the heads of the murderers, but that he would make all the

 a Pnicaut mentions only this head. The others may not have been shown him. He
 says the innocent person was killed in place of Chief White Earth. La Harpe states
 that two attempts were made to substitute another for the head of the chief who had
 committed the murder.
 "According to Pfnicaut, he was nephew of the great Sun, while La IIarpe, who calls
 him The Arrow," says he was the great Sun's brother. The Arrow may have been his
 name and White Earth his village. Oyelape has been supposed to be a corruption of wi
 kahdp, earth white," but the writer's Natchez informant thought that it referred to a
 blister raised by medicine.