Dreams that foretell

Or comme nous commençasmes à approcher à quelques deux ou trois iournées de la demeure de leurs ennemis, nous n'allions plus que la nuit, & le iour nous nous reposions, neantmoins ne laissoient de faire tousiours leurs superstitions accoustumées pour sçauoir ce qui leur pourroit succeder de leurs entreprises; & souuent me venoient demander si i'auois songé, & auois veu leurs ennemis : Ie leur disois que non : Neantmoins ne laissois de leur donner du courage, & bonne esperance. La nuit venue nous nous mismes en chemin iusques au lendemain, que nous nous retirasmes dans le fort du bois, pour y passer le reste du iour. Sur les dix ou onze heures, aprés m'estre quelque peu proumené au tour de nostre logement, ie fus me reposer; & en dormant, ie songay que ie voyois les Yroquois nos ennemis, dedans le lac, proche d'vne montaigne, qui se noyoient à nostre veue; & les voulans secourir, nos sauuages alliez me disoient qu'il les falloit tous laisser mourir & qu'ils ne valoient rien. Estant esueillé, ils ne faillirent comme à l'acoustumée de me demander si i'auois songé quelque chose : ie leur dis en effect ce que i'auois veu en songe : Cela leur apporta vne telle creance qu'ils ne douterent plus de ce qui leur deuoit aduenir pour leur bien.

As we came within two or three days’ travel of where their enemies lived, we moved only by night and rested by day. All the same, our allies never stopped performing their usual superstitions to learn how their plans would turn out. They often came to ask me whether I had dreamed, and had seen their enemies. I told them no, but I kept on giving them courage and good hope. At nightfall we set off and went on until the next day. Then we pulled back into the deep woods and stayed there for the rest of the day. Around ten or eleven o’clock, after a short walk around our camp, I lay down to rest. In my sleep I dreamed that I saw the Iroquois, our enemies, drowning in the lake close to a mountain while we watched. I wanted to save them, but our Savage allies told me to let them all die, since they were worthless. When I woke up, they asked me, as they always did, if I had had a dream. I told them just what I had seen in it. This made them so confident that they no longer doubted that good fortune was coming to them.