Nicolas Perrot and the Jesuits who acted as interpreters repeated the
speech in five different languages; and, to confirm it, thirty-one
wampum belts were given to the thirty-one tribes present. Then each
tribe answered in turn. First came Hassaki, chief of an Ottawa band
known as Cut Tails. He approached with a majestic air, his long robe
of beaver skin trailing on the grass behind him. Four Iroquois
captives followed, with eyes bent on the ground; and, when he stopped
before the governor, they seated themselves at his feet. "You asked us
for our prisoners," he said, "and here they are. I set them free
because you wish it, and I regard them as my brothers." Then turning
to the Iroquois deputies: "Know that if I pleased I might have eaten
them; but I have not done as you would have done. Remember this when
we meet, and let us be friends." The Iroquois ejaculated their
approval.
Next came a Huron chief, followed by eight Iroquois prisoners, who, as
he declared, had been bought at great cost, in kettles, guns, and
blankets, from the families who had adopted them. "We thought that the
Iroquois would have done by us as we have done by them; and we were
astonished to see that they had not brought us our prisoners. Listen
to me, my father, and you, Iroquois, listen.
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