upon
whom he was used to lay the weight of government, he being great
chief of war of the Natches, i.e. generalissimo of their armies;
that prince grew furious by the resistance he met with; he held his
gun by the barrel, and the Sun, his presumptive heir, held it by the
lock, and caused the powder to fall out of the pan; the hut was full
of Suns, Nobles, and Honorables[92*] but the French raised their
spirits again, by hiding all the arms belonging to the sovereign,
and filling the barrel of his gun with water, that it might be unfit
for use for some time.

As soon as the Suns saw their sovereign's life in safety, they
thanked the French, by squeezing their hands, but without speaking;
a most profound silence reigned throughout, for grief and awe kept
in bounds the multitude that were present.

The wife of the Great Sun was seized with fear during this
transaction. She was asked whether she was ill, and she answered
aloud, "Yes, I am"; and added with a lower voice, "If the Frenchmen
go out of this hut, my husband dies and all the Natches will die
with him; stay, then, brave Frenchmen, because your words are as
powerful as arrows; besides, who could have ventured to do what you
have done? But you are his true friends and those of his brother."
Their laws obliged the Great Sun's wife to follow her husband in the
grave; this was doubtless the cause of her fears; and likewise the
gratitude towards the French, who interested themselves in behalf of
his life, prompted her to speak in the above-mentioned manner.

The Great Sun gave his hand to the officers, and said to them: "My
friends, my heart is so overpowered with grief that, though my eyes
were open, I have not taken notice that you have been standing all
this while, nor have I asked you to sit down; but pardon the excess
of my affliction."

The Frenchmen told him that he had no need of excuses; that they
were going to leave him alone, but that they would cease to be his
friends unless he gave orders to light the fires again,[93*]
lighting his own before them; and that they should not leave him
till his brother was buried.

He took all the Frenchmen by the hands, and said: "Since all the
chiefs and noble officers will have me stay on earth, I will do it;
I will not kill myself; let the fires be lighted again immediately,
and I'll wait till death joins me to my brother; I am already old,