| Citation |
BNL.726.023
28 Jul-4 Aug 1726:11,12 (1175)
Boston. Here follows an account of the voyage of four
Mississippi savages to France, of their stay, and several
audiences of the King, Princes of the blood, India Company,
with their complements, honours and presents. Taken from
five several prints of the Postman, from January 22. to
February 5th. 1726. . . [4 paras.]
On the 27 three of them, with a slave and a young woman,
daughter to one of 'em, were presented to the India Company,
dressed in the habits of ceremony of their country, that is
naked, all their bodies stain'd with divers colours, a plume
of feathers on their heads, a scarlet sash to hide their
nakedness.
They had bows & arrows in their hands, and the foremost, who
was spokesman, carries a long pipe in his hand, which they
call Calumet, to which hung an ornament of feathers of
various colours, in form as the bandecolles of trumpets. . .
[2 paras.]
They have been shewn the chief curiosities at Paris, but
what they most particularly notic'd were the cauldron's and
spits in the kitchen of the Hospital of the Invalids, asking
if there were soldiers enough to eat up all the victuals.
They were astonished at the sight of an opera, clapp'd their
hands for joy, jogging each other with surprize. . . [1
para.]
On the 8th of November, they were again presented to the
[India] Company, when the chief of the Illinois, as a
Christian, and ancient ally of the French, presented his
speech to the Comptroller General as follows,
The Black Gown*. . . [3 paras.] Chicagou.
[footnote] * This is the name which the savages give to the
Jesuits. The person here meant is Father Beaboles.
The following speech was made to the India Company by the
chiefs of the Indian nations call'd Missoury, Osages and
Otoptata. . . [11 paras.]
Then he caus'd the presents of the Company to be delivered
to them, consisting of a habit compleatly French, being a
blue coat with silver buttons and button holes, scarlet
wastecoats embroider'd with silver, red breeches and hose,
silver lac'd hats, some with red others with blue feathers,
six ruffled shirts, six necks; &c. A savage habit
consisting of a cloath wrapper five quarters wide, with
silver lace two inches above the list, which is left there,
because the savages reckon it an ornament, a braguet, which
is a quarter of an ell of scarlet cloath adorn'd with silver
lace above the savage. This they make use of to cover their
nudities. And a pair of mitasse, which are cloath stockings
half blue and half red, which come up to the thighs, and are
ty'd with ribbonds to their sashes.
The dress presented to the savage girl was a damask gown of
flame colour with gold flowers, an under petticoat of the
same, a panier, two pair of boddice, six lac'd shifts, and
ribbonds of gold and silver, and a pair of silk stockings.
|