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(' " ry^' yfl 
 
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 Acadians of Louisiana and their Dialect 
 
 11V 
 
 ALCKi: roirriioi; 
 
 l<Hll|-«S.S(p« (l|. I lilt I-KIM II 1 ,\S 
 
 1,1 M.r AMI I II i;, All 11 IS n I.AM' I Ni\ I nsi'»\ up 
 
 I 111 I^IANA. 
 
 IJcprim-^,! from lli,- r:,/./i, ,iti>„.. ^^^ \U,- M,,n|.;nN I.ani.uai.k As.-.ociaIii.n oi- Amkkka, 
 
 Vol. vi, No. I, i8.)i. 
 
Copyright, iSyi, liy Aiakk iMtuTtH 
 
THE ACADIANSOr LOUISIANA AND THEIR DIALECT. 
 
 Everything concerning French Louisiana seems at this time 
 to possess an interest for the jniblic ; and it has been my purpose 
 in sonvi measure, to give an account of its language, its litera- 
 ture, its dialects, its folklore and its inhabitants. My papers 
 published in the Ti\insaciions of our Modkkn Lan(;uage As- 
 sociATiON have been so kindly received that I feel encouraged 
 to continue my labors in a field \ast and fertile but difficult to 
 explore. The work to be done is, to a great extent, one of 
 original research and of patient investigation, and it will require 
 several years to present a tolerably complete tableau of pictur- 
 esque h'rench Louisiana. I now desire to present another feature 
 of the picture by giving a brief sketch of the Acadians and their 
 dialect. It may not be amiss to begin this study by taking a 
 bird's-eye view of the history of Acadia, from the setdement of 
 the colony to the dispersion of the inhabitants. We shall then 
 accompany Evangeline to the beautiful banks of the Ti^che and 
 follow her canoe and that of Gabriel as they glide along its 
 [)lacid waters, leaving scarcely a ripple on the gentle stream 
 which the names of the unhappy lovers have rendered immortal. 
 
 L' 
 
 Even before the time of John Cabot the Normans, the Bretons 
 and the Basques are said to have known Newfoundland, and 
 the first description of the shores of our United States was made 
 in 1524 to a French King, Francis the First, by the Florentine 
 Verrazano. Ten years later we see the bold son of St. Malo 
 sailing on the broad St. Lawrence, which was to be the scene of 
 so many conflicts for the possession of its rugged shores. In 
 1535 Jacqut's Cartier saw the future site of Quebec and Montreal 
 and became acquainted with the Indian tribes, the future allies of 
 the Fi;ench in their contest with the English. New France was 
 
 I For this sketch of the history of Acadia I have taken as my chief guide Pakkman's »d 
 mnal.le '• Narratives," although I do not always share his opinions and arrive at the same 
 conclusions. I'or a complete bibliography of the subject see 'Critical and Narr.tive History 
 of America," edited by Justin Winsor. 
 
 aeaaaiE . 
 
4 .\F.ri:f-: forth' h'. 
 
 cnsa,vm.<l. but wh.> was to establish th. Inst s..(tIc.nH.nt in tlu- 
 •jam. of the most Chnstian Kin. ? In vain <li<l J.an Iranvnis 
 ^\^' la K.u,ue. Sunn- cK- Roherval, in ,542. brave- ,he turo.s ..f the 
 sk- of Demons and att<n,,.t to plan, a eolonv in Xeu iManee 
 «" lis . 1-tated expechtion nothing remained bt.t the nam.' of lie 
 < ^- la Demoiselle, wlu-re the stern koberval abamlone.l to the 
 demons his nieee Marguerite to punish her for an unhallowed 
 love. I he Marquis de la Roehc^ with his ship loa.l of eonviets 
 was not more sureessful in 1598 than R,.berval half a cnturv 
 l>elore. ( lumplain and de M..nts were to be the fathers of (\m- 
 ada and Aeadia. The lormer ha<l been sent on an expedition to 
 iie new world by the Commamler de Cliastes. and on his return 
 oh ranee asi^ociated his fortunes with those of de Monts who 
 Had just been made l.ieutenant (;eneral of Aeadia. 
 
 " The word Acadia." .says 1^\KKM.^^•. " is said to be derived 
 
 <••*'"• the Indian A<jnoddiauke^ ur Acp.oddic, meaning lu hs 
 
 -led a pollock. The Bay of PassanKupiodd V ^^ eat m llork 
 
 water, derives its name from the same (,rigin." ' ' ' 
 
 The region desij-nated by this name comprised a large terri- 
 tory, Nova .Vot.a, New Brunswick and Maine, but was later con- 
 sidered to embrace the peninsula of Noxa Scotia onlv The 
 c nnate was much milder than that of Canada, and all travellers 
 de.scnbe the country as beautiful. The tide in the Bay of Fun- 
 dy i.s grand, and there are excellent ports al<,ng the coast. We 
 .leed n„i then be ;^stonishefl that Poutrinconrt.'one of .le Monts' 
 C()mpaninns, was so pleased with th.- Port Royal that he ob 
 tamed a grant Irom de Monts. and in ,(x.5. established a colony 
 which, alter many vicissitudes, was destined to be celebrated in 
 history and in romance. De Monts himself with Poutrincourt 
 ^ Champ ainand I>ontgnu ^> had. in ,604, founded a settlement at .St.' 
 eroKx, but th.- place was badly chosen and after a wint.-r of mis- 
 ery the colony was translerred to Port Royal. De Monts was a 
 Calvmist and he. had taken with him to the New World both 
 Catholic priests and Protestant niinisters who. it cm well be 
 iniagmed, were not on very good t.^rms. .Such were their quar- 
 rels that the sailors buried in the same grave a priest and a min- 
 ister • lu sec- If they would lie peaceably together." De Monts 
 returned to I- ranee to protect his fur trade monopoly and left 
 1 ontgrave in command at Port Royal. He was absent many 
 months, a.ul Pontgravc had abandoned the colony, leaving only 
 
r/i/-: .i(\i/)/.ixs ()/'■ Loi'Ts/Ax.i 5 
 
 two iTU'u ill charj^re, when l^tiitrincourt arrived with siipphes. 
 I'ont^iiave rt'turned, ami another attempt was made to estal)H.sh 
 Port Royal on a sohd foimdati(jn. The poet F.escarbot gives an 
 interest! ii.i,^ account ot" the winter passed witliout \ery ,L,M-eat snf- 
 terin,i;s, and already the colonists were bej^innin,^ to hope, wlieii 
 in the summer ol" 1607, news was received that de Monts' char- 
 ter had been rescinded and that the colony must lie abandoned. 
 The settlers departed with heavy hearts, leaving the Indians lull 
 of sorrow. The l-'rench had been humane and i'riendly to the 
 savages. 
 
 The settlement in Acadia had apparently tailed, but Poutrin- 
 court was not discourajred. He oinained liom the KinL>- a 
 confirmation of his g^rant, formed a partnership with the sieur 
 Robin, and in 1610 returned to Port Royal with other setders. 
 Unhappily, however, the year 16 ro was as fatal to Acadia as to 
 France: the great King. Henry IV, was murdered, and soon 
 afterward Madame la Marquise de (kurcheville obtained from 
 Marie de Medicis a grant of all Acadia. The pious Marcjuise 
 was associated with the Jesuits and wished to 'com crt the In- 
 dians. Her agents and priests, especially the able and ener- 
 getic Father Biard, did not agree with P(Hitrincourt and his son 
 Biencourt, and discord was supreme in the colonv, when in i6t -,, 
 a heavy blow fell on the rising settlement. Samuel Argall, 
 already noted for having abducted Pocahontas, heard of French 
 Port Royal, captured a f)art of the inhabitants and dispersed the 
 others. Father Biard and Madame de Guercheville's com- 
 mander, Saussaye, tinally reached France, and the good lady's 
 pl.ms for saving the souls of the Indians were frustrated. 
 
 Biencourt had escaped during the destruction of Port Royal 
 and was roaming in the woods with a few followers, when Pou- 
 trincourt arrived with supplies. At the sight of his son'a misery, 
 the Baron lost all hope for his colony and returned to France, 
 where, in 1615, he died a soldier's death. Biencourt, however, 
 rebuilt Port Royal and kept the colony alive. Little progress 
 was made, as in 1686 the whole population of Acadia was only 
 915- There bad been troublous times in the colony from 1613 
 to 1686, and several masters had ruled the country. In 1621, 
 Sir William Alexander obtained from James I. a grant of New- 
 Scotland and tried to establish baronetcies in Acadia. His plans 
 were but short-li\ed, as the English surrendered the province to 
 
tl'e iMvncI, in .6.^- by lln- treaty .,f St. Cnnu^n. I.nuis XIH 
 apix.iutcd M, cle K^uilly ( uncrnor ..I" Acadia, and the latter 
 named as his lieutenants, Charles de la Tour and the Sieur 
 . dAuInay. Here eomes a roniantie episode : the two lieutenants 
 as in duty bound, quarrelled and made war upon eaeh other 
 l-a lour went to Uoston to obtain aid against his rival, and in 
 Hs absence .rAulnay attaeked his fort. The plaee was most 
 bravely detenckd In- Madame de la Tour, but she was defeat.-d 
 and died ol nxmirication. 1 1.,- husband sm.i-^h.d for son.e tinu. 
 wah httle suceess aKainst cPAtdnay, but the latter died, and la 
 lour settled all difficulties by marrying hi.s rival's widow a 
 <|ucer hut not unwise proceeding. 
 
 Acadia h.id become once more peaceful in 1653 by la Tour's 
 
 niarna .e.xyhen (,ne year later the I-nglish t..ok po^ssession of the 
 
 colony. Cromwell was ruling Knoland at that time, and he 
 
 mulerstood how important it was l^r the English settlements on 
 
 he At antic that Acadia should not belong to the French. By 
 
 bus orders Major Robert Sedgwick, of Charlestown. and Captain 
 
 John Leverett, of Boston. sul,jugated Acadia, which was kept by 
 
 the K.ghsh until 1668, when by the treaty of Hreda. it was 
 
 restored to the l-rench. 
 
 rlr 'l^'''^ ■'']'' y^^'^ t'^^ ^'olony enjoyed peace under French 
 rule, and the mhabitants led comparatively quiet lives, enlivened 
 by some adventures with the Indians and the Fnglish. A very 
 romantic character is the Haron de St. Castin, the son-in-law o'f 
 Matakando, the niost powerful Indian chief of that region In 
 the company of his Indian relatives the bold \^■.,,o^, waged 
 incessant war against the English. 
 
 In 1690 Frontenac was for a second time governor of New 
 ^ ranee, and by his energy and courage he saved the colony 
 «.om rmn He repulsed the attacks of Phips against Quebec 
 and ot Schuyler against Montreal, carried war into the English 
 possessions and nearly broke the power of the Iroquois He 
 was not, however, able to save Acadia from the e.umv ' This 
 settlement wa.s too remote from Quebec to be ertectually pro' 
 tec ed and iell again into the hands of the English, h 690 
 VVilhan, Phips sailed fron. Boston with a small fl,'tand .educed 
 the pnnaixd Acadian settlements. He obtained great booty 
 and was well received on his return to Massachusetts, althou.-h his 
 exMuion seems to us more like a piratical raid than legidn.ate 
 
/•///•; .■i(\u)/.ivs (}/■• Lor/sf.ix.i. 
 
 "m 
 
 Ac:idi;i was iijijaiii restored to the f-reiirh in 1697 by the treaty 
 of Ryswick, and when l-'rontenar died in 169S Louis XIV was 
 still master of all New France. Kronteiiac is a niost intcre-stin^ 
 and heroic character; he was proud and stern, but at the same 
 tinu' most l)rave. skilKul and shrewd. His nanu- and that of 
 Montcalm arc the greatest in the history of N( w France. 
 
 Nearly one hundred years had passed since tie .Monts had 
 landed in Acadia, and the unfctrtmiate colony had been thrown 
 about like a shuttlecock from the I'lench to the lji>.;l!sh and 
 from the Fn^lish to the French. In the bej^dnninij of the 
 ei,i,diteenth century three expeditions sailed from Moston to con- 
 ([uer Acadia. The hrst two were not successful, but the third 
 commanded by Governor Nicholson and compo.sed of thirty-six 
 \pssels, took Port Royal and subilued the country. The whole 
 number of inhabitants in 1710 was twenty-five hundred. Three 
 years later, by the treaty of Utrecht, Acadia was foiinally ceded 
 to Kn^land, and hVance. in order to compen.sate for the loss of 
 Port Royal, called l>y the I'ai.i^lish Annajiolis, had to Iniild on 
 Cape Breton the celebr<ted fortress of I.ouisbourg. The Aca- 
 dians had fought bravely for their imlependence, and it was only 
 after a .qalUmt resistance that Subercase had surrendered Port 
 Royal. The Fn^lish imposed their ilominatiou upon Acadiaby 
 torce, and it is not surprisinj^ thai the inhabitants refu.^ed to be- 
 come Kn}4lishmei^ and did all in their power t(j remain faithful to 
 their king, their religion and their language ! 
 
 L'abbe C.\sr.RAiN in his charming book, ' I'n Pelerinage au 
 Pays d'Evangeline,' has given a beautiful de.scription of Acadia 
 and calls attention to the poetical and expressive names of some 
 parts of the country : Heaubassin, Peausejour, le Port Royal, la 
 (irand-Pree, names characteristic of the simple and peaceful 
 disposition of a people who, if left to themselves, would ha\e 
 been satisfietl with praying to their Ciod and attending to theii 
 numerous children. In 1S85 l'abbe C.\S(;r.\in visited all Acadia 
 and manifests his delight on seeing a land of (juiet and happi 
 ness. a land of which a great part has again become French. 
 What a contrast between the Acadia of our days and th.it of 
 1755! The descendants of the e.xiles have prospered once nu)re 
 in the land of their ancestors, but their pre.sent state of content- 
 ment does not make us forget the misery of the past. The field 
 that was once the scene of a blootlv battle mav now be covered 
 
.u ('/ r ho h' r 1 1: K> 
 
 with 
 
 Krt'<'n turf aiul v;trir«:,t<-(| flowrr.s. I,„t still th.Me will 
 
 lH-<<.rt' iis tlu' liuvs <.|- tlu' (Iv.ni. aiui we shall I 
 "I tlu« cannon. I.a ( -.rand-i'iY,- and Hcanl 
 
 risi- 
 
 loar th( tlunui 
 
 I r 
 
 an attractive sioht. U\\ the nam 
 
 • •I a (Ircac 
 
 Ifnl tr 
 
 <s recall t< 
 
 iincdy 
 
 )a.ssin may present 
 •»nr mintis the s.-ene 
 
 <l 
 Th 
 
 By the treaty of I'trecht it had I 
 
 ians mi^dit withdraw to the I-'renel 
 is no doubt that the l-'.iij^lish 
 
 ^('('W stipulated that the A 
 
 Ca- 
 
 ere 
 
 p«»wer to prevent the emij^ration to ('apt.- \\ 
 and. as they were not harsi 
 latter preferred to rcnV 
 Tl: 
 
 possessions if they chose 
 governors did all in theii 
 
 pe J^reton or to Canada. 
 
 1. as a rule, to tlu 
 
 »in in the c<»untry of th 
 
 inhabitants, tht 
 
 ey refu.sed. however, for a lonjj time, to take the oati 
 
 eir ancestors. 
 
 inj.; that thcv would 
 
 1 ot aile 
 
 en a part of the met 
 
 IS with the tacit if not expressed uiuh rstand 
 
 .yiance to the I-ai^dish sovereign, and wh 
 took the oath, it w 
 
 tht 
 
 of Canada tried to keej) the inhal 
 
 never be compelled to b(! 
 
 ■Vench. That the priests in Ai adia and 
 
 ;ir arms against 
 
 even the ( 
 
 io\crnor 
 
 King;, in spite of their beiuj- I-ai^lish subjects, th 
 
 able doubt. VV 
 
 what .creat rivahv th 
 
 e can hardly blame this fecjini-, i( 
 
 ere was at the time bet 
 
 Jitants laithful to the French 
 
 ere is no reason- 
 
 W(.> consider 
 
 and the I'Vench in Anjerica, and also th 
 
 ween the Kni^lish 
 
 the 
 
 everywhere prevalent. The pri.-st 
 
 it a <luty on their part to try to harm the Kn-lish I 
 althou^rh wc may not approve the .act of som" 
 duplicity of some of the French atrents, we d 
 conduct any excuse for the cruelty of the ICn-disl 
 
 e spirit of intolerance 
 
 s must haxe considered 
 
 H.retics, and 
 
 some of them nor the 
 
 o not find in their 
 
 Seeiii'^f how disaffected tlu' Acad 
 ters, the Marquis (jf Cornwall 
 Hal if 
 
 ians were with their 
 
 new mas- 
 
 :ix 
 
 IS. in 17.49. laid the foundations of 
 IS a protection aK^.inst Fouisboury. A number of the 
 
 ony at the instij-alion of 
 
 inhabitants had escaped from the col 
 
 rabb6 FeFoutre, says PARKMAN.and had 
 
 I'rench settlements. Their lot 
 
 gone to the adjoining 
 
 were not able to provide for tl 
 
 was .1 sad one, as the l-'rencl 
 
 th 
 
 eceivc them as T^i.^lish subjects. It 
 ■ ey should make a kind of guerill 
 
 lem and the l^nylish would onh 
 
 IS not astonishing,'- that 
 
 I war with their Indi 
 
 a.i>ainst the Knylish and that they should atten 
 
 an allies 
 
 c(juntrymcn against the 
 
 the Kni^lish were in great peril in the midst of 
 
 secretly hostile to them, but 
 
 ipt to excite their 
 conquerors. It must In' admitted that 
 
 men openly or 
 
 no necessity of war can justify tht 
 
 easuics taken to rid Knglish Nova Scotia of her French A 
 low relate briefly tlu' terrible event which h 
 
 J ians. 
 
 Let 
 
 us n 
 
 made the word Acadia sadly celebrated 
 
 ;is 
 
I III .\C.\I>I.\\S or I.OVJS! \\A. 
 
 In 1755 till- (lOMTitur (»t' Aciulia was Clvirlis l/iwiriici', ii 
 ii.iiiir tIfStiiK-'d to (ibtiiin an inii'iu iablc notoriety. 1 Ic I'cm)I\ cd 
 hi < \|icl till- I'riMich from tin posts wliich they still lii'ld in tlic 
 rolonv, A lorcf of lii^litcrn hundifd men roinniaiHicd l)\ ( nl 
 • mt 1 Moiikton stntid iVom i\t\v ICnj^land .uul (aptiiritl toil 
 llc'ausC'jonr, which th(' cowardly an<l \i1c commandant, Vcrjuor. 
 >inT< n(Urc<i at the tir^t att:uk. ( )n the ))1ams of Ahraliani he 
 A\as also to l)c the (irst to yield lo W'ollc and to canse the defeat 
 and di'atii ol" ihi' brave Montcalm, t!i<' t ill ot' nnel)e( , .md ,lhc 
 h)ss ol Canada. 
 
 Alter thi. capture ot iU'.msejdin , lort (lasi)eiean sinreiulered 
 also, and there was no lonj^t-r any ohstrtcle to j)r(;\('nt Lawrence 
 
 1 
 The ( lovernor ditcrmined to remove tiom 
 
 Irom act omplishiiK; a desii^n which he nnist have been ( herisl 
 
 ins,'; lor some time 
 
 the |)ro\ince all the I*'rench Acadi.ms. lb- recpiired I'lom the 
 
 inh.ibitams an oath ot un(]iialitii(l allei;iance, and on their rel'iisal 
 
 lit' resolved to i)roceed to extreme nu'asnves. I'akkm.W savs 
 
 that 
 
 " The Acadi.ms, ihouj^li callini; tliemselves neutrals, were an 
 enemy encamped in the heart ot" the jjroviiice," and adds; 
 ■■These are the reasons vv hich explain and palliate a nu'asureton 
 hiU'rih autl aidi^-crimiiiate to l)e wliolh iustiiied." 
 
 It 
 
 is impossible to jiistitv the measure in any wav : ieai^ ot .m 
 
 < ilemy does not justily his murdi-r, and the ixpulsion ol the 
 Acadiaiis was ihe canse of untold misiry both |)hysical .and 
 moral and ot the;, death ot' a number ot ni( n, women and chil- 
 
 dren. 
 
 It the harsh removal ot the Acadi.ms is iustifiable 
 
 S< I IS 
 
 Bonaparte's massacri' ot' the prisoners ot latfa. lie couhl not 
 l)rovid<' for them as prisoners, aiul il he ickased them they 
 would immediatelv attark him ayain. 
 
 iciv cnior 
 ll 
 
 I. 
 
 Liwrence was so nuich the more int;\cusable 
 
 <ause tile oiilv 
 
 Acad 
 
 ue 
 ians that l;,ivc him anv cause ot anxiotv were 
 
 those of Ikaiisejoiir, and thev' had beiMi defeated. Thi' inhabi 
 lants of the Basin of Mines and of Annapolis wire |)eacelnl, 
 prosperous and contented, and althou,yh thev mijLjht have sided 
 with thi- briMU'li in .m inv.ision ot the province, they never vould 
 have tjiouyht of rev; ItiinL^ ai^ainsl the Knylish. They were an 
 iiL^norant and simple people, but lal)orious, chaste and reliyioiis. 
 Their chief defect sei'iiis to h.ive been an inordinate love tor liti- 
 gation, a trait whic-h thev inheriled from their Norman ancestors.' 
 
lO 
 
 ALCIF. FORTir.R, 
 
 Lawrence tocik away llie ,!l;uiis of many of the inh.i!.i«:ant.s hv 
 an unworthy siratcs^cni, and then ':c ordered the ruthless work 
 to he done. Monkton seizeil the men of He.jusejour, and Win- 
 ^low, Handfif'Ul and Muniyihd the same at hi ( irand-Pree, a' 
 Annapoh;; and at I'ort h^Iwarch Let us pietnre the scene at la 
 Grand -Lree. 
 
 Winslow issued :i proclamation calling upon all the men to 
 meet him at the \illaoe church on Sunday. There ^le was at 
 the appointed liour with his two Iiundred and ninety men fully 
 armed to meet the intended \ ictim^. hOur hundred and eii^hteen 
 men answered the call and assemltled in the church. What was 
 their consternation or hearinji; that they were pr!soiu-rs, that all 
 their pro])erty was confiscated, and that the\ were to Ix' torn 
 fron) their lioni'-s with their families. \o resistance was possi- 
 ble as the men v;ere unarmed. They were put tor safe keeping 
 on board tovu' .diips, and on the 8th of October the men, women 
 and children were embarked. Thi-^ was ii'jt^rand dcra)i_iri'iiieiU 
 of which their descenriants, says Tabbe C.\S(".kai\, speak to this 
 day. Winilow cctmpleted his work in December and shipped 
 2510 p:'rsons. Murray, Monckton and Ilandtield were eq>;alK- 
 successful .ind ukjix than bcxx) persons wc re violently <'.\pelled 
 h'om the colony. A tew inanaLji'd lo escape, ait!ioui;h they were 
 tracked like wild beasts. In order to compel them to surrtMider, 
 the dwellings and even the churclus were burnt and tlie enjps 
 were destroyed. The fugitives suffered frightfull)- and many 
 women a.. d children died of misery. In this scene of persecu- 
 tion we are glad -^o see the Lmmvc otTicer Hoishebert defeat a 
 party e! F.nglish who wire burning a church at Peticodiac. 
 (.'nha{)pily, as alrea-ly stated, no resistance could be made, and 
 the unfortunates were huddled together like sheep on board th- 
 trans])orts, to be scattered about all along the Atlantic coast 
 among a hostile people speaking a language unkiKnvn to them 
 and having a creed di:terent from their own. 
 
 Who canimagiMC tne feelings of these; men and women when 
 the ships started on the fatal journey ,ind they threw a last 
 glance at their once beautiful country, now made " desolate and 
 bare!" How many ties of kindred and of love were rndi-ly 
 torn asunder! The families were rot alwa\son the same ship, 
 and the fathva' and mother were s(.>p.ir,>ted from their children, 
 ;uui many ['Aangeiines never m<-t their ('.al)riels. Tlu' order of 
 expulsion was harsh and rrncl and. it ua.s executed with tittle 
 regard for the most sacred feelings of the human heart. 
 
THE ACAPIANS OF LOUISIANA. 
 
 II 
 
 We shall not follow the Acadians in their wanderings. Let us 
 only sta':e that their lot in tlie {'".nulish colonies was generally a 
 liard one Very few remained where they had been transported. 
 Many r turned to their countr>' after incredible sufferings, to be 
 again e pelled in 1762; some went to France, where they formed 
 a settle- 'ont at Helle Isle ; some went to the Antilles, and some at 
 last U)\\m\ a true horn • in hospitable Louisiana. At the peace 
 of 1763 a number of Acadians returned toNcua .Scotia, and their 
 descendants together with those oi the inhabitants who had 
 escap d from the persecution number now, according to Tabb^ 
 Cascr.mx, more than [30,000 souls. This fecundity is won- 
 derful, and if we consider the tenacity of those people, their 
 attachment to their families, to their country, io their religion, 
 we may indeed say with the warm hearted Canadian abb6 : 
 " The Acadians are as astonishing for their virtues as for their 
 misfortunes." We now close this brief sketch of the ancestors, 
 alid proceed to a sUuly <>{ their descendants li\ ing in Louisiana. 
 
 IL 
 
 Mr. Gayarrk in his ' History of Louisiana,' says: 
 
 " Between the ist of January and the 13th of ^[ay, 1765, about 
 650 Acadians had arrived at New Orleans, and Irom tiiat town 
 had been sent to form settlements m Attakapas and Opelou.sas 
 under the command of Andry." 
 
 Many others of the unfortunate eriiles came to Louisiana, 
 some from the Antilles, but the greater part, in rude boats built 
 by themselves, floated down the streams flowing into the Miss- 
 issippi and reached New Orleans, where they expected to find 
 the white baimer of France. Two years before, however, the 
 mfamous treaty of Paris ha'd been signed, and Louisiana now 
 belonged to Spain. The Sp.miards had not yet taken possession 
 ol the colony, and the French (officials received most kindly the 
 unhai)[)y strangers. There they were on the levee of New 
 Orleans with the'r wives and children, helpless, destitute, pos- 
 sessing only a few articles of wearing apparel, they who a few 
 years beti^re were pro.sperous farmers with comfortable homes 
 and fertile fields. But at last thf'ir journey was ended and they 
 were again to find a home and lands much more fertile than 
 those which they had left. yVbout fifty miles above New Orleans, 
 the Acadians gave their name to one of the parishes of Louisi- 
 
12 
 
 .11. cm: f\')h'r/'j:fx'- 
 
 aiM.aml tin- AcacK.in ooast, iuav railed St. jainos. was u\w. (.<" tlu- 
 lii-bt sctlU'uuT.ts made by the exiles. Later tlu-v spread all alonii. 
 the Mississippi River and the adjiMiiing hayoiis, ar.d tlieir de- 
 scendants are to be found in every parish ui lower L<juisiana. 
 They turai an important ami useful part of <>ur population, 
 althoui^h many of them are as simple and ij^noraiu as their an- 
 cestors of 1755. They are. however, .ucnerally honest and 
 laboiioiis, deepiv relii^ious and very nuieh ifLichcd to the idiom 
 (,; tlieir fidiers. Many ro.se lo the hii;he.sl pe.sition in tlie State 
 and we lui\ e anu)n.4 us to-day elegant ladies ap.d cultivated gen 
 tlemen belonging to the Acadian race. They are proud of their 
 aiiccst(>rs, ;i!itl jusllv so, because if the latter were p<'asants, th(\v 
 were, at the same time, mart>rs to their religious and jjatriotic 
 feeliui^s. If there ever was ;,ay prejudice against the Acadians 
 among the descendants of the early colonists, it existed only 
 among narrow-minded people and was not maniiesl. 
 
 Having dionght of the Acadians and their dialect as an inter 
 esting subject to study, 1 deterinined to piy a \ is.t to the 
 .•\ttakapas country niadi' classic by the genius of L( )N(.l r.l.i.ow. 
 In the beginning of last September 1 left New Orleans at 7.30 
 a. m. by the Southern Pacific Railroad and arrixed at St. Mary's 
 Parish after a journey of five hours. Along the route the train 
 passed ihnaigh iields o<'tall sugar cane, yellow cnrri and golden 
 rice. Every now and then we crossed a bayou, or a marsh or a 
 forest. Shortly after le.iving the city we reach(.-d " liayou des 
 Allemands" named for the ( lerman settlers who had been sent to 
 America bv the famous John Law. In tin middle of the bayou 
 is an islanil covered with trees and briers, on which is a hut 
 which serves as a hunting lodge for the sportsmen, whose; canoes 
 for duck shooting are to be seen ev(,'r\ where. Tribes grow to 
 the <dge df the w.iter of all our bavons am. render the smallest 
 stream picturesque. 
 
 After passing another beautiful stream, Bayou Boeuf, we see a 
 tew of the Indian niountls whicli are so interesting ti> the archae- 
 ologist and the ethnologist, and at Morgan City, we cross the 
 wide and turl);d Atchafalaya, the rival of the Mississippi, and 
 which tlireatens, if not curbed by artificial means, t(> divert the 
 waters of the great river Irom its present channel. 
 
 A tew miles alt 'r passing Morgan City I leave the tr.iin and > 
 am soon on a plantation situated on both sides of the Teche. 
 
7V//-; .IC.IDLINS OF /.OUISIANA. 
 
 13 
 
 ;(> 
 
 '>m 
 
 After dinner I take my little nephews witli me and we i;() to the 
 Havon. There is in front of the house a drawbridge which is 
 opened every time a boat or raft passes. We sit on the bridge 
 and I look on the waters Howini^ beneath and 1 can hardly see 
 the direction of the current. A few months before the Hayou 
 liad been a torrent overflo\vin.t>- its left bank. St. Mary's Parish 
 is one of the most prosperous in Louisiana and everywhere there 
 are central su};ar lactories witii the most mod(;rn appliances, the 
 p<.werful mills, or the diffusion process, and through this busy 
 scene of pro.tjress llow tln' tranquil waters of the Teche, its banks 
 covered with moss ui'own live oaks. Here is the same spectacle 
 which the poet has so admirably described. It is civili;:ation 
 now, but side by side with the prime\al forest. Under the 
 stalely oaks the children run and play while 1 lie upon the j^ra^s 
 and iiuHlitate. My thouohts return to the past and 1 ima.yine 
 what nuisv have been the feeliiij^s of the Acadians when they saw 
 for the first time in 17G5 the beautiful Attakapas country. 
 
 Not far from the plantation where I visited, is a villa,ye called 
 Charenton. It is Init a hamlet, but it possesses a church and a 
 coiuent of nuns. The i.;ood sisters of St. Joseph have estab- 
 lished a school for j^irls which docs great good to the neigbor- 
 liood. The mother superior, a very agreeable and intelligent 
 ladv, is a descendant of the Acadians. Very near the \ illage is 
 a .settlement of Indiar.s. I observed them wath curiosity, as they 
 are the sole remnant of the Attakapas tribe, the fierce man- 
 eaters. Some of the sipiaws are handsome, and the men have 
 the real Indian type, although I am told that the ttibe is rapidly 
 disappearing and mingling with the negroes. The women make 
 very pretty reed cane baskets, ([uite different in design from 
 those which the Choctaws sell at the h'rench market in New (,)r- 
 h-.ms ; the men cultivate a little patch of ground and sell fish and 
 gauie. (Jne hundretl years ago the Indians were numerous on 
 the Terhe; they seem to have melted aw;iy without being 
 inole>ted. 'l"he mere ronlact of civilization was suiftcicnt to 
 cause them to vanish. It seems to have l>een an inevitable des- 
 tiny and we may say in tlu words ot \'l( TDK in'OO: 
 
 '• La chose siinpleiniiit (l\lk--nKMite ariiva 
 
 (.'online la unit sv fail luistine le jour s'cn va." 
 
 Two miles from Ciiarenton is th<; Grand Lac which 1 desired 
 very much to see, so one morning at day break 1 started in a 
 
 I' 
 
J4 
 
 .//. ( 7:7:' FOA' T/I-A' 
 
 li,t,'lu l>u<;,yv with tho ohU'st of 
 
 Tiilanc I'nivcTsitv. '11 
 
 my nc'pliews. ;i Sophomore of 
 
 the lake ; we had to i>ass t 
 
 \cw IS 111 realit\ no route lead 
 
 IIU 
 
 t(» 
 
 or sever.il miles through a forest 
 
 the hank ol the Teche and it gave me great pleasure to see 
 bayou where it appeared most wild. After a ride of two 1 
 
 on 
 
 tl 
 
 le 
 
 we left the shore of the 'Feci 
 
 lours 
 
 le and turning toward tlie interior we 
 
 soon arrived at the lake. 1 felt delighted at the sight : bel 
 stretehed the blue waters, which a light 1 
 late g;entlv, -.md in the d 
 
 .schooners whieh seemed to be the wings of 
 
 ore us 
 
 )reeze causeil to undu- 
 
 istance eould be seen the sails of two 
 
 marine l)ii 
 
 (is sk 
 
 niin;^; ihc surface of th 
 
 im- 
 
 e wa\es. All around tin- lake is a fore.st 
 
 and on the trees we could see the cardinal bird with his scarkt 
 robe, th(> jay bird with his silver and blue jacket, the black bird 
 
 with his golden eiiaulels, and what pleased me most, numberl 
 
 ess 
 
 mocking birds, th 
 
 ose 
 
 ii^bnirable songsters, which tl>e impudi-nt 
 hnglish sparrow is rapidly driving away from ouy Southern 
 
 at 
 
 id. 
 
 Being- so near the Atehufalaya, th.; Craiui I.ac is liable to 
 overflow- and, la.st spring, its waters inundated a large e.\tent of 
 c<nmtry. A levee made .n great part with shells has been 
 
 erected by the o\v»ner of the plant 
 
 ition iinmediati'ly adjoiningf 
 
 the lake, and as there are large oak trees on the bank, the placc 
 is a favorite result in summer for pleasure .seekers. While we 
 were cro.ssing a little bayou by means of a tree which the wind 
 had thrown down and wWu-h s.-rvr.,! is a suspended britige, we 
 
 > us as the 
 
 saw an o 
 
 Id Iiulian on the other side, lie appeared t( 
 spirit oi the 'ake summoned to protect it from the pale face, 
 already, our imagination was taking its flight toward fairv 
 
 wh 
 
 anfl 
 and 
 
 en we were suddenly brought back to reality by the voice of 
 
 :1 man who was speaking to us in Knglish. \everdid i,\\y 
 
 n:Uional idiom appear to me more prosaic than in the mouth of 
 
 us (lesc 
 
 tl 
 and t 
 
 eiulant of the Attakapas. We hastened to leave 1 
 
 inn 
 
 nunc 
 
 uriied our eyes again towards the lake. Here my 
 reverted to .mother scene and events long past presented them- 
 selves to me. In the \ ear 1.S62, after the fall of New Orleans, 
 our plantation, being on the Mississippi, fift 
 
 the city, my father thought that it would 1 
 his family out of the reach (jf the invadi 
 to St. .Mary's parish where th 
 te 
 
 :t the Attakapas country. .After a le 
 
 ty-seven miles from 
 
 e more prudent to put 
 
 ug army and he sent us 
 
 ere was a Coiifedi-rate army to pro- 
 
 w months, however, the 
 
7///; ./r. //>/./. v.v (;•• /.(>r/s/.ix.L 
 
 15 
 
 l'"cderals spr-'iul over tlu; country ;uk1 it was thou_y;ht adxisable 
 ihat we should return home-. My hrollier, ai;e(l se\enti'en, 
 «.:nlisteil as a Confederate s()ldierin the Trans-NIiss'ssippi depart- 
 ment, and my fallu'r started w'.tli tlie younger chilchi-n on the 
 return jonrnev. We emljarked in two larL;e skill's, with twcj 
 Indians in each one as oarsmen, and we went down the Teehe. 
 The tri|) was most pheasant to me as we jxissed throu;:;li num- 
 berless Ijayous. stopjjiiiL; at ni^ht at the houses of t'riends, an<l 
 takini^' our meals durint; the day under the shade of some 
 lar;^^e tree. 1 ha\'e no recollection of the route, which ended only 
 at the mouth of Ikiyou l'la(|uemin(.s, in Il)er\illc I'ar'sh, where 
 there were carriages to take us home, but although only six 
 vears old at the time, I shall ne\ cr foryet the anxiety of my 
 fjthcr, when on enterin,^ the (irand Lac, the boomintj of a can- 
 non was hearfl. It was thout;ht to be a l'\'deral yun-boat and 
 our Indians were ordered to row most dilijuently. Twenty-eit^ht 
 vears had passe<l since I had crossed the (irand Lac as a \\iv,\- 
 tive. but yet on that September morning of i8c;o I thoui^ht I 
 heard still the \()ice of our devoted father encouni^ini^ his little 
 children with his tender words of love. 
 
 While in .*^t. Mary I had occasion toxisit a nuiuber of planters 
 who received uic \cry kindly and who did .ill in their power to 
 help me in mv work. They introduced me to some Acadians 
 and communicated to me a few characteristic expressions of the 
 Acadian lan,<!iua!^e. 1 was, ho\ve\er, anxious to .see St. Martins- 
 \ ille, ami after promisinj^- to return to .St. .Mary, I took the train 
 and went to the oldest town on the Teche. It was with real 
 pleasure that 1 started on my journey ; I IkkI never gone to that 
 part of Louisiana before ant! exerythini; was new to me. I 
 passed on mv w.iy Jeanerette and Xev. Il)eria in Iberia Parish. 
 They are both thriving towns, die latter espicialjy. on ac coimt 
 of its proximity to the celel»rated salt mines on Axtry's Island. 
 It has a handsome (^itholii- church, an eleyant [lublic hij^h 
 school and some beantifil ])ri\ate .residences, 'i'he following- 
 extract from |udfe Mak tin's 'History ol Louisiana " t^ixes a 
 very i>c)od idea of the s^eoiL^raphy of the Teche country: 
 
 " The Teche has its so'arce in the j)rairie' ', the up|)er j)artof 
 the settlements of Opelonsas, ,ui(l dnrini^ tlie season ot' hii^h 
 water, (lows jjartiall)' into the (.\>urtal>leau. As it enters the 
 settlements of Attakapas, it receives trom the rij^ht side !)avou 
 Luselier, which bayou Honrbeux connects with Vermilion river. 
 
1 6 
 
 \LCI':E I'ORTIh'.R 
 
 A littl 
 
 f IIRHC 
 
 tli;iii twenty miles laithcr, it passes bclori- the tow i 
 
 t)!' St. Martinsv il 
 
 an 
 
 (1 n aches, titteen miles after, the spot 
 
 on 
 
 wliich the Spiaianis. soon atter the <X'S.<ion, made a \am attempt 
 to establish a city, to wh'eli the name of New Iberianvas destinech 
 twenty miles from the mouth of th<; Teche, is the town ol 
 h'ranklin." 
 
 I may add here ihat the Teche becomes a noble- river shortly 
 before niin^linc; its watt rs with those of tln' rapid Atchaialaya. 
 From leanerette to New Iberia the fields presented '_ same 
 beautiful crops of cane, rice and C(M-n which I had .seeii p'onij; the 
 rtnite from New Orl'-ans, but after passin^^ New Iberiu, cotton 
 bes^ins to be seen, and 1 noticed in one patch of i;rou. i the curi- 
 ous fact of our four i^reat staples ji^rowin^ s'de Iiyside, cane, 
 cotton, rice and corn. Such is the wonderful tertility i)t cuir 
 
 .soil. 
 
 St. Martinsville (\.i~)ci< not lie on the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 and it is only latc-lv that it has been connected with the main 
 line bv a branch leading to the Tcche. This may account for 
 the stagnation of business in t}ie town, which before the war was 
 very prosperous. 1 had letters of introduction to .several dis- 
 tiniruished gentlemen, but I saw on arriving in that Creole town 
 that a Creole needed no crede.itials to bt" wc^ll-received. 1 foimd 
 myself among friends, I may say. among relations, as all the per- 
 sons I met knew my family .md 1 knew theirs. I'"rench is essen- 
 tially the language of the inhabitants and it is well spoken by the 
 educated class. The latter speak English also, but the lower 
 class speak the Acadian French niixeil with the 'Creole patois 
 and a little English. In the interior settlements i au larirf) little 
 or no English at all is sp)ken, and at Breaux Bridge, in St. Mar- 
 tin Parish, and in the adjoining parish iA l.atayette, French is 
 taught together with English in the public schools. Although 
 we desire to see every child in Louisiana speak English we wish 
 every one to speak French also, and T was very glad to see hinv 
 the people of St. Martin are attached to their French. Among 
 thtrsewho have done the most to encourage the study of French 
 in his parish is Mr. Im-;i.ix X'oouhies, a descendant on his 
 mother's side, of an old Acadian family. He has e.stablished a 
 dramatic society for which he has written several charming 
 comedies, and although he writes elegant brench he is perfectly 
 familiar with the Acadian dialect. I am deeply indebted to^him 
 tin- the interest he took in my work and the hi:lp he kindly gave 
 me. 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
TIIF. ACADIASS OF LOriSi.lXA. 
 
 17 
 
 Th 
 
 t-ru IS 
 
 but one hoti-1 in Si. M;»rtinsvillf ; it is a lar^c house 
 
 th a wide ^alkry an 
 
 \vi 
 
 as ni 
 
 :1 massive hrick cokimns. Everythin.q: is 
 
 antL'-bclluin davs ; no rc^istfr awai 
 the 
 
 ts the names of the 
 
 >^uests, and tlie owmu 
 
 ■r see ns to have imphcit e.)nti(lence in the 
 honesty of his boarders. As the criminal court was in session tlie 
 members of the jury were taking tlieir <linner at the hotel when 
 1 arrived. There beinj^ no phu.e at the table for me I was ^nven 
 mfortaWe rockin;^' chair .md 1 sat in the tlinai- room durinj> 
 
 As several of them were Acadians I 
 
 a CO 
 the 
 
 til. 
 
 of the jurors. 
 
 I'stenec'' very attentivelv to their conversation and took notes 
 
 while tlie'^ were si)L'akin'4-. All of them spoke French, but the 
 
 infllueirje .f English on their French was sometimes apparent. 
 
 One of them spcakini,^ of an imi)ortant rri 
 
 others 
 
 express 
 
 mma 
 
 1 case said to the 
 
 vous serez 
 
 
 
 tons lockes f locked up ) ce soir. Another, to 
 
 his contempt of the argument of a lawyer, said : (;a, (;"a 
 
 1 fion ave moue, that d )es n,)t produce much effect 
 
 \\ me, and h;s friend rejilied : il aur.i U!i bou boat (pronounced 
 
 cette affaire. Althou>rh 1 was very huno;ry 
 
 11 a pas o[ran( 
 
 bou(c) encore avec 
 
 I was sorry to see the jurors leave the table to go to the cou 
 
 rt 
 
 house to be lockH. 
 
 After 
 
 dinner 
 
 1 took a walk over the town 
 
 and never liave I 
 
 seen a more ni 
 
 so few bar-rooms. 
 
 ni 
 
 e of antyefoi-i, as depu 
 
 lict and orderly place m\(\ one where there arc 
 The life in that old Creole town reminded 
 denicttul W, me nianv tnues b\- my ai^ed 
 
 friends. There was not nuich animation in business, l)ut order 
 iled evcrvuhere and the peojile were uni- 
 
 and decency preva 
 
 fonnlv .iffible and politt 
 
 ■^l»ei 
 
 \t th 
 
 e evenmu \erv 
 
 '/leasai 
 
 ith 
 
 kith mv host, his wife and his ^rai 
 
 Imother. con\ersing with 
 
 the old ladv abou 
 
 ttl 
 
 le 
 
 past. 
 
 I awoke very early the lie 
 window ol niv room 1 saw a 
 
 •neath, its walei 
 
 the distance, a prairie abovt' wh 
 
 <t morniny;, and on opening; the 
 j.rettv sioht : the bayon was just 
 •s i;rei'ii with water jilants and rushes and in 
 ich was rising resplendent a 
 heard at the door, and aiiswerinij;- 
 ui) of real Creole 
 
 A kn 
 
 ock wa^ 
 
 Se[)tember sun. 
 
 it I found a litde m'!.;ro <;irl briiiviint; me a cup 
 
 A\^c. 
 
 bff. 
 
 At a short distance from the hotel is the rhureh, on the e-reen 
 the statue of the last < urate, halht r Jan 
 belo\ed b\- his parishioners. 'I'he 
 
 re which stands 
 
 who diet! an oetot>enariau 
 present priest, Father I-ani;! 
 
 ois, IS a I) 
 
 otauist of >'|-eat merit who 
 
i8 
 
 ALCkE FOR riF.R 
 
 obiit 
 
 16 (.jiisdeni 
 iiiensis 
 f. jean 
 fraiivi'i'- 
 I 
 
 has made important clisc(>v(M-U'S in tiu' flora of Lonij^ana. He is 
 a corrfspondiu;^ nK'inl>er of I'AiIk'Ucc (.uuisiiinais, and I deter 
 mined to pay him a visit, lie received me very kindly and 
 showed me his admiral)le botanical eollections. 1 asked his 
 l)ermission to look over the chure.h rejrister, and on ttuninj;- to 
 the year 1765 ' saw the reeord of the first child Ix^-n of Acadian 
 parents in St. Martin, prol)al)ly the hrst horn in Louisiana. I 
 j;ivc here the exact copy, with the orij^inal spellinj; and pnneuia 
 tion as per certified copy kindly made f.ir me by Tabbe Lang- 
 
 lois : 
 
 " l.aii mille Sept cent soixantc ciiiii U- oiize may je pij' 
 capiuiii Missioiiaire aposloliciiie ciir^^ de la n<-'"« nccadie 
 s()vi'^si.i;iit'. av Itaptise avee !fs les ceremonies ortliiiairts 
 do h-^iilisf niir'-ruiTite amu' iu''e la vcillt' (If IfKilimr 
 Mariage d'oIivit-T tliitiaudaut et de niaj^dflaiiK- Uroussaid 
 ses pere et mere It'parrain a est^- Rlmu' iralian, el hi Mai- 
 raine Marie tliil)audaiit (pii ont ilt'clar^- w sa\ oir siii;MLi fir 
 
 ce recpiis selon I'orddnnance aux altakapas ks juiirs ct 
 
 an (pie dessiis 
 
 (siyn^) f. jean t'rancois e. cure; 
 Masse 
 Anoyii " 
 
 OHn :er Thil)audaut. the father of the little j.;irl born in 1765. 
 was a descendant of the celebrated meunier Thibaudaux, seig- 
 neur dc Chipody in Acadia in Poutrincourt's time. The family 
 is exceedingly numerous in Louisiana and they have given their 
 name to one of oui towns on Bayou Lafourche. One oi thi' 
 Thibodanx was President of the Senate in 1.S24 and was acting 
 (iovernor for a few weeks, after the resignation of (lovernor 
 Robertson. The Broussards, the family of Olivier Thibodaut's 
 wife, are also \ery numerous in the State, Thibodaux. Brous 
 sard. Landry, L.eblanc and Bourgeois are the largest fan'iilies in 
 Louisiana of Acadian descent. 
 
 In the register of St. Martin church 1 saw also the name of a 
 distinguished Louisianian, a professor in the Oratorian order in 
 France and curate of St. Martin for many years. Ktienni, 
 ViKi. translated in beautiful Latin verse, the twenty-four books 
 of Fenf.LOn's ' Telemaque.' Louisiana may well be proud of a 
 writer of whom FL\k rHEi.FMV, the authf)r of the ' Nemesis,' has 
 
 said : 
 
 " \ifl. tpii de K^nelon \irgilisa la prose." 
 
 There being such vast prairies in the Attakapas the Acadian 
 settlers compared them with the wide expanse (vfthc Ocean and 
 
THU .ic.in/.i.vs OF /.()('/sr.ix.i. 
 
 19 
 
 iipplit'd to thorn many nautical ti-rnis. 'TIk y say <r/A'r d?( /n'ffc, 
 or iiictlrc <) /a voile when tlu.y start to cross the prairi«', and an 
 island is, in thuir lan|t,aiajt;c, a pieix- of w<ioilod jiiroiind in the 
 prairie. 1 was shown /'//c de^ Cypres while in St. Martin. It is 
 in a prairie which is not tar Ironi the Cirand liois, an immense 
 forest which begins in the Altakapas country and extends as lar 
 as the Arkansas line. !n the ( ".rand Hois, near St. Martinsville, 
 are a number of lakes of which one, lake Catahoulou, is two and 
 a-lialf miles Xow^i, ;ind tliree-fonrths of a mile wide. It is one 
 hundred and ten feet dei-p and is said to be beautitul. It is a 
 LH-eit place for hunting :uul hshing- but is full of alligators and 
 gar fish. 1 was show-n an .Acadian who, being in a canoe on a 
 tishing excursion, was followed by a gar fish about twelve feet 
 long. He seized an opportunity. and jumi)ed on the l)ack ot the 
 fish which dived with liim to the bottom of the lake. On arising 
 from the water our hero said to his terrified companions : " now, 
 he will not return." This individual was a real type and h.is 
 conversation was very instructive in its quaintness. 
 
 St. Martins\ ille was the home of a true hero, Alcibiade De 
 Hlanc, ex-justice of our Supreme Court. It was he who started 
 the White League moveiiumt which was to save Louisiana from 
 carpet-bag and negro rule. Not far from the town in Latayette 
 Parish lived another trui' and chixalric Lo'uisianian, Alexaiulre 
 Mouton, ex-Gt)\crnor and United States Senator, who was the 
 son of an Acadian exile. He died lately at a very advanced age, 
 and Louisiana could but bless the English for sending her a race 
 that could produce such men as the ( '.ovtrnor and his son, the 
 valiant general who fell a victor at Mansfield. 
 
 The eminent men that have arisen among the Acadians in 
 Louisiana .show what good elements there are in that race, but 
 unfortuiHitely, they are, as a rule, lacking in ambition. They 
 are laborious, but they appear to be satisfied, if by cultivating 
 Uieir patch of ground with their sons, they manage to live with 
 a little comfort. The mother and daughters attend to the house- 
 hold duties and weave that excellent fabric called the colonnade. 
 The greatest defect of the Acadians is the little interest they 
 take in education ; a great many are completely illiterate. As 
 ihe pui)lic school system progresses, education will spead grad- 
 ually among them, and being an intelligent race they will pro- 
 duce many men like Alexanilre Mouton. Kducation will, ol 
 course, destroy their dialect, so that the work of studying their 
 
 I ^( W^M M 
 
 M- customs and lan<.'ua*'e must not be lony ' >laved. 
 
JO 
 
 Oil Siiiulay. SrpU'in 
 
 Ai.ci:i: i-oh'rn'R 
 
 Ikt 2ist. I wfiU to (luirch when' I siu t!u- 
 
 v\h<)U' popuIatuMi (> 
 
 f ihc town ;ii 
 
 1(1 afU'i l>iil<lin'j a'licii t«> my 
 
 iuwlv-iua<lt' IriciK 
 
 • t'litlriiu'ii am 
 
 iliaii cxpi 
 
 )s. I lc«t St. Martinsvilli.' wIk-it I had met kind 
 I tail- lad'K's, takiiij^; with iiu' a i;()<'«l stoik ot Aca- 
 
 ■eshUMis. 
 
 A tru hours later 1 was a^aiii in 
 
 Si. M 
 
 irv s 
 
 Parish. 1 wished this tiiiK- to livi- in the prairie where 1 thou;Jit 
 there would be a hetter ohaiire of ohserviii.i; the Aeadiaiis. The 
 prairie is now ent'.relyeullivated arounil jianc-rette and is dotte.l 
 e\'ervwliere w'*'^ '''" »-r>tt-i<r».< ot" the sni;iU farnu rs .uul with the 
 
 com 
 
 ^ th the cottages of the small farnu rs .uu 
 
 fortahle houses of the larK<- planters, l-or a week I roamed 
 
 eic 
 
 kiiu 
 
 eiioU''li 
 
 ,dl o\er the country with some friends who w 
 
 to take me to the places of interest and to the persons wli(» 
 
 niii;lu help me in my work. 
 
 liavinj- heard that every Saturday evenin- tlu're was 
 the prairie, I reciuested on*. 
 
 a ha 
 
 II m 
 
 )f niv friends to take me to see one 
 
 We arrived at ei,>ilit o'clock, hut already tlu- ball had be-un. 
 lu the yard were vehicles of all sorts, but three-mule carts were 
 uiost numerous. The ball room was a l.irv;e hall with t;alleries 
 ,dl around it. Wh.'n we entered it was crowded with persons 
 
 (lancuii 
 
 to the music of three fiddles. I was astonished to see 
 
 that nothiiiii ^\':is as' 
 
 ;ed f( 
 
 )r entrance 
 
 but I was told that anv white 
 
 pe 
 
 rson decentiv d lessee! could come m. 
 
 Tl 
 
 e man v^ivinji; the 
 
 ntertainment deiivid his pn.lil> from the sale of relreshment^ 
 .Vlv friend, a wealthy younjj; planter, born in the neighborhood, 
 
 introduced me to many pei 
 
 •.sons and 1 had a uood chance to 
 
 hear the Acadian dialect, as ever\ 
 
 body there Jjclou'^ed to the 
 
 Acadian race. 1 asked a pleasant lookinj; man: 
 
 ,S7 
 
 St elle ici 
 
 ie correi 
 
 •ted 
 
 me by rep 
 
 Ivinji 
 
 \'otre 111 
 in 
 
 Om. ni.i denioi- 
 
 'r est !a. 
 
 .sons 
 
 However, he did not say /f/rs messieurs lor hi; 
 but spoke of them as ines iiar^-oiix, althou!.;h he showed me 
 
 me his dame. We went tot^ether to the refreshment r 
 
 w 
 
 oom 
 here were beer aiid lemonade, but I observed that the favorite 
 
 linn 
 
 k was 
 
 black ((jlTee, wliich indeed was ( 
 
 •xcellent. At midnieht 
 
 1 ; it was chick 
 
 en 'jon 
 
 ibo with rice, the na- 
 
 supper, was servet 
 tional Creole dish. 
 
 Most of the men appeiireil uncouth and awkward, but the 
 youn-i .^irls were really charm inj,''- 'I'bey were ele.^ant, well- 
 dressed and e.\ceedini>ly handsome. The)- had larj>c aiul soft 
 I'ves and beautiful black hair. Seeinj.; how well they 
 .stonished and j-rieved to hear tiiat i)robal)ly very 
 
 black 
 
 looReu 
 
 was a 
 
THE ACAHIASS OF /.Of/rS/.IX.l 
 
 31 
 
 fiw of tluMH could ri-ad or write. On listfiiin^^ to the conversa- 
 tion 1 could easily see that they had no education. French w.is 
 spoken by all, but occasionally Rniilish was heard. 
 
 Alter supper my trieiul asked me if I wanted to see /<• pare 
 iVix />t///s. I followed hiui without knowing what he meant and 
 he took me to a room adjoining; the dancing h.dl. win re I saw 
 a nund)er of little children thrown on a bed and sletpinti'. The 
 mothers who accompanied their d.i\iyhters had left tlu' litde ones 
 in ihv. />nrr aux peiits before passing' to thedanciui; room, where 
 1 saw them the whole evening assembled toKClher in one c(jrner 
 of tile hall and watching over their daughters. I. c parr mix 
 pcii/s interested me very much, but I fouiul the gand)ling 
 room stranger still. There were about a dozen men at a table 
 l)laying cards. One lamp suspended from the ceiling threw a 
 dim light upon the players who appeared at first sight very wild, 
 with their broad brimmed felt hats on Uuir heatLs and their long 
 untrimnied sun burnt faces. There was, however, a kindly 
 rxpression on every face, and everything was so (juii't that I saw- 
 that the men were not professional gamblers. I saw the latter a 
 dittle later, in a l)arn near by whire they had taken reluge. 
 About half a dozen men, playing on a rough board by the light 
 of two candles. I understood that these were the black sheep 
 of the crowd and we merely cast a glance at them. 
 
 ! was desirous to see the end of the ball, but having been told 
 that the break-up would only take place at four or five o'clock 
 ill tlu' morning, we went away at one o'clock. I was well-pleased 
 with my evening and I admired the perfect order that reigned, 
 consiilering that it was a public atitair and open io all who wished 
 to come, without any entrance fee. My friend told me that when 
 the dance was o\er the nnisicians would rise, and going out in 
 ilie yard would hre several pistol ^^hots in the air, crying out at 
 die same time : Ic bal est fmi. 
 
 The names of the children in Acadian families arc quite as 
 strange as the old biblical names among the early puritans, but 
 much more harmonious. For instance, in one family the boy 
 was called Duradon. and his hve sisters answi-red to the names 
 of Kllige, Enyone, Meridie, Ozeina and Fronie. A father who 
 had a musical ear called his sons, Valmir, Vahnorc, Valsin, Val- 
 cour and Valerien, while another, with a tincture of the classics, 
 called his boy Ueus, and his daughter Deussa. 
 
32 
 
 t /.('/:/■ r\)i<Tn:h' 
 
 All i!k' Acadiiins ai 
 
 i«)!iK's never set'in 
 
 [ 
 
 (• yivat niKf.s aiul tli« y ami ihi ir little 
 to 1)1' tiifd. riu'V oftin have i\ritiii« raies. 
 ivinj; is wry clu-ap in tin- prairie ami tin- huiII farna'r.s pn' 
 (luce (.n their lanns ahno.st everything they use. At the slcrt- 
 they exchanj^e ey>«s aiul hens tor city j^ooils. 
 
 Several fanners in the prairie still have sii^ai housi s with th.- 
 .^Ul-fashioneil mill. lhr<-f per|)en(liiular r(.Iler^ turn. d by nml. -. 
 horses. Tliev fwve some means, hut are so mu. h .itta.lu-<[ 
 1(1 ways that they will not rli,m.ue. It will m»l be lon^. 
 r, before the younj^vr generation replaces ifie .mtiquatnl 
 
 The .Aiidians are 
 
 or 
 
 to th 
 
 e o 
 
 lowevo 
 
 m 
 
 ill with the wonderful modern inventions. 
 
 an intellimnt, i)eaeerul .md honest population ; they are he^in 
 
 Iready stated, Ii.im 
 Without education. 
 
 f tl 
 
 u-m, as a 
 
 ninjk^ to un()ro\e, indee<l many o 
 
 been di,stini;uished, but as yet l«'o maiiv an 
 
 Let all I.ouisianians take to heart the eause ol edueati.m and 
 make a cru.sade a^^iin.st ignorance in <ftn- coinitry [)arishesl 
 
 liefore leaving the ptairie I look .idvantai^f of my |)ro.\imity 
 to the (".ulf to pay a \isit to C'Ate lUaiuhe. The coa.sl ol 1 
 
 ,ouis- 
 
 iana is Hat. but in the .Atlakapas country live islands or eleva 
 
 tions break the monotony. 
 
 Th 
 
 esi- 
 
 .ire ruuv;('^l -i'"' abrupt ami 
 
 present some beautiful scenes. A few miles I'rom the prainc is 
 a forest railed C>premort ; it is being cleared, and ilu- land is 
 admirably adapted to sugar caiK. The road leading to Cote 
 
 Hlanchf passes for three m 
 
 ilcs through the forest and along ('y 
 
 prcmort Haycjii, which is so shallow that large trees grow m it 
 and the water merely trickles arouiul them. On leaving the 
 
 w 
 
 ood 
 
 we enter on ,i trembling pr 
 
 urie ovtr vvhicli a ro 
 
 id h; 
 
 IS 
 
 been built, and we soon le.ich Cote Blanche. It is called an 
 island, because on one side is the gulf .ind on the others is tlu- 
 We ascended a bluff about one hundred teet 
 
 trembling prairie. 
 
 high and beheld an c-nchanting scene, in the rear was the wood 
 which we had just left, stretching like a curtain around the prai- 
 rie, to the right and to the left were a number of hills, one ot 
 which was one hundred and fifty-seven feet high, covered with 
 tall cane wa\ ing its green lances in the air, while in front ot us 
 stood tin.' sugar house with large brick chimneys, the white 
 house of the own^-r of the ^ ;,.:e. the small cottages of the 
 negroes on both sides of .. v, -t''^ i-o:i<l, and a litde farther tin- 
 blue waters of the ( lulf. . .'.j>pr(iached the edge of the blutf, and 
 a> I louki'd at the waves tlashing against the shore and at tin 
 
Tin: .K .!/>/! v.v or /.or/.s/.ix.i 
 
 as 
 
 •sun slowly si'ttinij in a rloudk-ss sky, I cxclaiini'*! ; " l.a^vrenrc, 
 <K'strnyrr of tin- Acadian lionn-s, ytmr ciiKlty has t'aiW'd. This 
 hcantiful country was awaitinj,' your victims. W'v h uc lirit no 
 U;iy ot" l'"unily with its iinincnsc tid's, no rook^, n<» snow, tint 
 \\c ha\c a land |)i<'tiucs<inc aiwl wonderfully I'crtilca laiwl whcri' 
 men arc kw, our Louisiana is luitcr than your A<a<lia! " 
 
 III. 
 
 1 am indebted in part tor the list ot'provcrlis and curious say- 
 inv^s I shall otVci lo the 11. mi. 1'"|.;i.ix N'ooumis, of St. Martins- 
 ville, who made the followiiii;- interestiii;^ remarks to me al)t)Ut 
 (he .\cadian dialed ; 
 
 'i'"ach locality has itspecullar patois, thus at the u^per limit of 
 our parish, one uses expressions which are never heard at the 
 lower limit. The dialed in I,aloin'<'he difil'ers I'.ssentially fron> 
 that which is in use in St. Maitm, at Axoyelles or on the Wrmil- 
 lion Hayou." 
 
 Tlif ri-marks of Mr. VOukimI'S are correct as 1 ha\e myself 
 ol)ser\ed, and they may apply with c<pial truth to the patois in 
 li.uice, where' ditHerences are found in the speech of the peas- 
 ants livinji; within the same dialed hoimdaries. Local iuMuences 
 li,i\e always inoditicd the lan^•ua^c of uneducated people, even 
 when they belonj^ed to the. same race; political inlluences ha\e 
 also been verv powerful, tor instance, the more or less complete 
 
 .-;t 
 
 ihjuyation o 
 
 f the c(Mupiered by the conquerors The dif- 
 
 tcrciK-e of races, however, is the greatest cause of the difl'erent 
 <li,ilects. 
 
 lust as the Latin i^ave rise to the eiylu Romance tongues, the 
 laitsiiic f/V;/7\vas divided into ditferent dialects, ilue in threat part 
 to X\\v ditVcrence of races in the provinces ot the north of France. 
 in the '^ame way we may account for some of the variations in 
 the Acadian dialect of Louisiana. Canada and Acadia were set- 
 tled mainly by emigrants from Normaiuh', I'oitou, Aunis, Hrit- 
 tanv and Picardy, with a few from I'aris. The dialectical 
 peculiarities of the ancestors may still hv found, to a certain 
 extent, amonj; the descendants, although the\- must h.wc been 
 \ery nnich weakened by lom^- residence in America. The con- 
 slant interniarriai;i' of peoj)le whose fathers were fn^m ditilerent 
 l)rovinces tended certainly to er.isc the jjiculiarities ol speech, 
 and at the tiuic of the disjiersioii of the Acadians in 1755, their 
 
24 
 
 AI.CEE FOKin'R 
 
 lancvuaue must h.ve V.n nearly unitor.n. I shoulu, thyrdorc, 
 .rrhe at the conclusion that the <lirtVrcnces u, tlu- Acadian <l.a- 
 i: m Louisiana are due m..re to local inllucnce. than to the 
 ,.ro.incial peculiarities of speech of tin Xorn.an or West I. rancc 
 
 Lestors. The English lan-^ua^^ l-s naturally cvrted a gieat 
 influence en the Louisiana Acadian paioi.. and so have the 
 Spanish and Creole p.tois. producing thus a very mtercstm^ 
 Speech mixture. The .lialect by contact v-th torc:^n lan^na^es 
 Ins lost sonu-what .i its simplicity observes ^r.■. \ ookhu-s, but 
 it' has gained in originality. The iollouin, expressions, o, 
 which some are very nuaint and p,cturesc,ue. bear out the truth 
 of the above assertion. As 1 intend to contmue my studies ot 
 he Acadian dialect in the dh^Tcnt localit.es, so as to be abkN by 
 a study of the peculiarities, to arrive at a better understandm, 
 of the whole subject, 1 shall indicate from svhat parish die dHter- 
 ent specin\ens are taken. 
 
 1. I'yow the I\irisli of SI. Martin. 
 
 •M .- tv.,,,1 rniibillr Si);uiisli fiif>i!i''. diniiniitivi' of 
 ^-'^'^^^'V;;;;;"'i;'conne;'u'n';;mt\hLvurd i.^s proper to state 
 1^; the Acadians sonulimes use ex|.ressi.M.s u lucli are m 
 reality Rood French, hut in.t in coniin..n r,s.-. 
 
 I riiki' but is se doin used. . ,- - i ,, 
 
 stickv mud in tlie i>rairi'.'S. , ,, , i i.-, „■,!., 
 
 n,„s Irs For^/arfn's, d.nns la misere, dans 1 .nd.arr.as. be. 1 uulo 
 
 r)M-<. ;i rctnotc seUUiHcnt . 
 
 A'iji.r la l^'r/. V \L in dan,.r ui death. A',//,.". .- ,k.ss very .u a, 
 
 r/;r/a/./<. a slap uith the h;u;k ol tlu- hand. 
 
 /i/cwczir. corruption of blemir, ..xprcssive. 
 
 answer for that. 
 I 'n plcin dc .uriil>t\ a ii,reetl\ man. 
 
 ha'-<() without sayni'^ a word. .,,••;.' > ; ■ 
 
 r/;..T;r;,toconvers.. Wy nuuh u.e.i. S.-'Mneio, m. 
 
 "Kl innt eii faseiit la . u.MTatlo," 
 Fn.drr sun ,ar,,vnuu u. IrM .nun: on.. <;arM<nnn, Hnni Spaniel. 
 / n /...,./^;Tm!m to he !. ared. Imuu, ,/^;r da n,:,jra/r. 
 
 1 
 
Till-: ACAniASS OF i.nvisiANA. 
 
 The Acadiaiis use the ioHowinj^ expressions ixarowed troni 
 
 Vhe Creole patois : 
 
 Ml))! mirdcmaugcy, tlie stoiiiaili. 
 Man te)idi\ tlie ear. 
 Mo)i soifL llie nose. 
 Mo)i oi (l(ii)\ the eve. 
 
 'iiirc I 
 
 liUiu 
 
 •I poti-aii, to prevent a yomrj; man tVoni daiuini 
 
 with a 
 
 vomi'. 
 
 ■irl. 
 
 )■(,' /iirs- pjs 
 
 taiitot. tUire must he no deiav, I'-l tiif iii;itl<'r W- st 
 
 ■llU-d 
 
 nimedialely. 
 
 / ';/ 'cuidi, a man vvitlicjut ener>!;y, as soft as emdy. 
 / ';/ tr/tni/i\ a vonng cock from tlie !'ai<j;. iJ^aiitr. 
 (.'a') ion, a sta'llion. (See luiR. and .Scoth gar)-iVi and g/iffoft a 
 
 a work liorse.) 
 
 L-ltUn;, 
 
 Hadji'uhi\ to .s|)«';.1k 
 .1/, 
 
 iDiOi/irr 
 
 i\\<.- 
 
 h)ud, Irom i^ur/i/r. pronounceil djeuh' 
 
 m conculjinai;:t. 
 
 i lu'val di\s chrDihis, a liorse wliich ambles. 
 
 riri'K dc l\rih t'> die The word virer, to turn, is very connnon 
 
 It heau 
 
 It is nst'd in many compounds 
 chiivs, the horns of a cow. 
 klior, a line fellow (ironically |. 
 
 rr- iiii)nflirs, the tail, vi): 
 
 /oil)- pour rhii)-, /Jit"-bi\ lo llee. I'sed a^. an 
 
 /'( hoc inobably from kx/. 
 
 oi tU'r 
 
 >i< 
 
 loiuitnii' 
 
 a hne dress. 
 
 lla»i]Hi'y HH 7i'ii.v-tii (Oini, to jrivc a ^• 
 
 d bratiui, lo mak<' him rui 
 
 /\uis /r.s poii.v dr hois, samv as dd)is Ics FofdorIit\-~, lo be m distn-ss. 
 raille)- divis /<■ gingas, to lie. 
 ('o//pr')- /<J pca/i (-'i(7f()/n, m i'\;i'^\i<i... - 
 
 /(//as, Ions spnrs. (i'"''- ''"''''i' I'roven(.ai r.ifCti. a worthUss 
 
 ate. C/ia/oin, tht- raccoon. 
 
 /->, 
 
 \ rata 
 
 hor.- 
 
 1)IK/, 'I':tvmoli;Ldsches WTirterbuc h 
 
 reihiny/ii louvcttc eii dcii'\\\iAA\\ out with som<- one. corr<'spondm.i 
 
 lo ) ooiprt' id pai//r. 
 / II ^I'os dtx. ,1 rich man. 
 Juiirr /a djnt/e douce, to play the hv|)ocrit.'. 
 /■;/ ^rand /i)i,iiite/iiiv:iic. i tall, awkward fellow. 
 
 /hir ca/iii, a doll ; as in the Crtole i^atois. 
 Mc//ie an pare or parqiicr dcs aiiiinau 
 
 X, to lake them from ih 
 
 prairie and ))laee them within enclosnres. Mc//ic au corai/. 
 
 is also frciincnt, from 
 
 Snanish corral. 
 
 1 with litrlu hair (cheveiix <h,'il.iinl 
 
 / 'lie chd/iiie. a womai 
 
 / 'lie gcriiiiiu\ a fust cousin. 
 
 '/'oii'irr /cs iiioii/ons, corrni>tion i)\ /oiidre 
 
 ( 'rier pour la piro 
 
 to call for h.l|). olu 
 
 n used while playin 
 
 card 
 
 from tli" lanuna.iic of hunters. 
 
 V /lisciii/. (,'raissci ut ca/oqui)!/c, to beat 
 
 I'ciidrc so 
 
 (laio/i, a gatr. probably from hrench t 
 
 /ai( 
 
 .Id 
 
 ■n-nch I 
 
 ■/oil 
 
 I'loXHMU.a 
 clclc//a. 
 
 1 cli'da, Middlr I. at. clida and c/ia. diminutive 
 
 (1)11,/., •l"tvm<.>lo,i.Aisclus 
 
 '/iitcar, I'rovi-iual near ami 
 
 Of Celtic on!j,ni. 
 
 Wiirtcrbiich.') 
 Ii'utlicr, to call in a loud voice. Irom 
 •I char, rieard hiiqner, picin, 
 
 ue/i't 
 
 I'rom iiuc/ii I coiner 
 
 hiielic/, hunter's 
 
 horn. N 
 
 orm 
 
 an houter, l'.ui;hsh 
 
 hoot. 
 
 (I)ii-;7., 'i'",tvmoloKist 
 
 lies Worterbuch.'i 
 
 Montr snr le c/aioii 
 
 / liHc/ie-/es, is often hearil. 
 
 'll( !>'l 
 
 I //in I 
 
 a t^anu- ( 
 
 •ock, from Spanish 
 
 dlina. 
 
 ("nc hocot/e, a sm.all wonian, fat and not eles^ant 
 I'.tve sans reserve, to be reatb for the hsht. 
 I e passc)- au cai/et, to brat h;!ii. 
 
26 
 
 ALCEK FOR TIER 
 
 With regard to the fondness of the Acadians for nautical terms 
 referred to above, the following lines sent me by Mr. Voohhiks 
 on the subject are very interesting : 
 
 "Us vous diront: En s^ai^nani Ic large, vous aurez a votre 
 gauche une He (lue vous cdtoicrcz. Vous verrez un grand bois 
 dans le lointain— quand vous aurez navigue une bonne partie de 
 li journC'c, vous arriverez a ce bois dans Vansc x, y, ou z. 11 y 
 a iri une maison : vous n'aurez qu'a liHcr, et un tel viendra vous 
 recevoir Si vous pouvez continuer, il vous pilotera dans ce 
 bois, Hutrement vous n'aurez qu'a vircr de bord et revemr ici. 
 
 11. From the Parish of St. Mary.. 
 
 J\iHse is the prairie advancing in the wood like a small bay. 
 
 // a 'plon^i', he gave way (he 'dived') throiis^'h fear. 
 
 Haler to^niU. Much mort conmion than tirer. 
 
 Chapotn; to whittle a piece of wood ; corruption of Kng. chip. 
 
 {vrtS^! mil (inTy i"''"«';i"'''K ^'^K'^t*^' *^^ '" ^^- ^''''■^'"' ''"^ syn.Miyuu.iis 
 
 with pare explained above. 
 ■ /Vtrt/^/- to weep, from ;^//(?«/<''-. I.'eujaut imalc , ,. , ,^ 
 
 J/Jpw raS'/^ "H- pipe. From rroven<;al C achimbau. (Sc-e 
 
 'Mireio," xii.) , . , • • 
 
 Avoir le respire eourt et le discours egare, to be dying. 
 
 Fortover, to swim. ,,,..., ^ 
 
 Comportemevt iVun eheval, the gait of a horse. 
 
 Faire ehaudiire ensejub/c, to marry. , , , r 
 
 %teharae iei, Pateharac /a to strike riglU and It-ft, prol,al,ly from 
 
 patatras. 
 Tchieadeuee, meche de fouet. ,. ■ ^ , 
 
 SefiiviPer, to dress oneself well, from ad}., pi>„pa>,t. 
 Ah! laguitiehe, Ah! \he disagreeable woman, trom gnnehen.v. 
 Du fard, for la faree. . 
 
 //'v",7*'-,-^v the harness. Another nautical term. , • , 
 
 ^5/i;nt;«, a finger.sore,-prohably from fouUler, the sore being dec p 
 
 ' enough to be dug inbv 
 Grhniner la terre, to pulverise the ground. 
 Terliboueher, to laugh. 
 
 i-S/£'^t;;'iS'oru, a fight, to shrink, as the milk ou be.omiug 
 
 clabber. . 
 
 fhir limit 'ie a lioness, trom tiie I'-Uglisn. 
 [."nvS to' whi,>, probably another nautical word, trom garoehou; 
 
 J.a roufixe"^^^^^^. The expression, Premls ta routine a voloute. is 
 
 to dismiss some one. . , , ,- i ; / .. 
 
 ( -ne halleuse, a dancer, from hat, but reminds us ot old V rench hale> . 
 
 ;;S::;:?-2t;;- y:-'^.--'- ^"^^- ^" soutad>re,nejr te n.onte, pre- 
 
 Cela fail ^irf 'u n*=?kes one shiver, it is astonishmg. A ronimon 
 exclamation. ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^. ^^^,^.,^^^^^^ ,,^, ^.^^j,,^,^ 
 
 /',„. /,^,vv a rockinir chair. I examples uf tiie shortening ot words so 
 ^'; m' - ■ ■' a piece c.mnion in a patois. Or are they fn.n, 
 
 '"' """''• -^ '''^'^- I (, Kr. hars and bat. mors-us." 
 
 Finbaiiehrr. to sit together on a bench. 
 Qr quine, it is progressing : trom quine m a same. 
 
THE ACADIANS OF LOUISIANA. 
 
 27 
 
 . An Acadian called Charles, guing to the 
 jf the (laii>;hter ofanother Charles, said ; /' vas /} 
 e II la ft III' (i tocuiHe. 
 
 .^faiortic, marriage. 
 
 niarriajie o( 
 
 la tnaiunw 
 (liu, in common use lor loinbe. Tiu tbllovving expression was heard 
 
 at the.honse of an Acadian Oii'a qii'alle a qtta crie /—Allc 
 
 a qu'alle a elm. 
 i'li branlcyx cradle. A ^ood word, .is tlie cradle used to hang from 
 
 the ceiling of tiie room. 
 Coutre-ceiiilurCy a ditch. 
 M'.v ii,^ali\^, corn shucks; a ct>rrui)tion from dgars, as the shucks 
 
 have somewhat the slia|H- of a cigar. 
 Ihinitre en pC'liiH\ a fence with palings. 
 
 t' — 
 
 / — 
 o- 
 
 u- 
 y- 
 ai 
 oi 
 
 ail 
 fit 
 on 
 II n 
 
 f ' — 
 
 </- 
 
 ,/- 
 h- 
 
 J~ 
 I- 
 n- 
 
 '/- 
 ; — 
 
 /- 
 .1 
 
 I'HONliTICS.* 
 
 pronounced generally A and a as in I>ench, but the tendency is to 
 
 lay much stress ui>oii tlu- A and to make it a. The a is often 
 
 changed into u, as in tiie Creole patois, fiopa, viutnan. 
 the o is generally lost ; the !•: often becomes a: chizre for ch'ere, 
 
 alle for cV/V; .\oal for .VV'^^/,- e remains ; .^ becomes ui ; inesure, 
 
 becomes mmsure. 
 remains, or has tlie sound of il. \\\poli\ lioH.pion. 
 -the O hardly exists, cliose and lote, l)eing both jMonipunced chase 
 
 and cnte. 
 -pronounceil ;> ; une becomes r>ne. 
 -has the sound of L in pays, luaLi. 
 -has tile long sound in vrai (vre). 
 
 -Ik'.s kept in many words tiie Norman \VR in nioi, /lliitois, lot, etc. 
 pronounced also e : Jroid becomes yrr^/ ,• icfioidif becomes 
 frcdir. 
 
 becomes sometimes UAN : /;/«/ often pronounced mUAN. 
 —pronounced J, p:nre. 
 
 —becomes ui : /uiociu', Europe become uigene uirope. 
 —becomes sometimes o: on cst-cc .' pronounced o est-ce? 
 —the n of the nasal is lieard and the //;/ (jften becomes ve-N. 
 pronounceil very often tcli : cure (tclnir^). 
 -becomes dj : Dicu (Djeu). At end of word sounds like /as in ijuand 
 
 followed by a consonant : (|uand (cpi.-mte le ferez-vous ?). 
 always pronounced at <t\\(\ of word iwrfs. oeufs, etc. 
 -Tiie h asjiirate liardly exists: des zliaricots, des zheros, etc. 
 -sometimes /, Zo/e {ox Joseph. 
 
 •ofti-n dropped : i va for il va ; the 1. always pronounced like y. 
 -sonietiuies n : mani^re. 
 -always proiK)unced in eiiiq. 
 -very often dropiied : jjou for pour, joii {ov jour, etc.; l)y a curious 
 
 transformation reeette becomes arcette./r^'wr,:' becomes perne/. 
 ■pronounced at end of word : alors becomes alorse ; chauj, ed into 
 
 r : laiil pis becomes taut i^ire. 
 oft'-n not pronounced : piasse ior pia.lre. 
 -prououuic'd like .v at end of word : eusse, ceuse, deusse, sisse, disse 
 
 for eux, eeu.v, deux, six, di.r. 
 -is sometimes replaced by J : J^non for Zenon. 
 
 With n^marcl to the pails of spcecli ihcre is little to observe in 
 the Acachan dialect ; there is, of course, a ^reat deal of contrac- 
 
 * I'lir I'liDiiclic signs are from Passy's ' Les Sons Uii Fr-iiisain.' 
 
28 
 
 ALCkE FORTir.h' 
 
 tion, of abbreviation, as in 
 fill, fl'ivis, c'fc Jnnvn\ et( 
 
 thelanuuai^ieorall iiiif(lucaU.d ix^upK 
 
 Tlu- liaison with tht- \ and / is 
 
 ijcnerally incorrci 
 
 fhoiitil 
 
 and 
 
 tlu 
 
 more rare 
 
 the liaison which is \ 
 
 thi- l-'ri-nch, the liiatus is a 
 
 t; the /beinu pronounced like 
 
 Iv. like /; nn i^ryos-t-lionimc. On aixoiint ot 
 
 'luu-h more frequent in tlu: dialect than m 
 
 Imost unknown in the fornur 
 
 The peculiar part of the s.vn 
 
 tax of the Acadian is the use ot 
 
 the ]>ronoun 
 /"/lion, J'aricns 
 
 of the first pt 
 
 t person sinti^ular wi 
 
 th a plural v( rb 
 
 and often th.it same form o 
 
 Ih 
 
 e Dronou 
 
 ns of the third persi 
 
 jn : 
 
 // ,'fians, i 
 
 f the verb used widi 
 Is r lions. Instead 
 
 of j\ivo)is the contr 
 
 acted torin/"<w.^' is trequc 
 
 nt. 
 
 The neuter 
 
 \(i 
 
 bs such as ali<t\ pariir, soi 
 
 with avoir 
 auxiliarv i 
 
 Tl 
 
 u: re 
 
 Ilex 
 
 ive 
 
 \erl)S 
 
 :///, etc.. are usually conjnuated 
 nerallv dropped tlu 
 
 a\c' 
 
 sje 
 
 V;-, 
 
 'I'he formation of nouns from \ 
 Mr. V(><iKHii:s calls my attc 
 
 erbs is common as in 1* rench 
 ntion to two interesting; words : I m 
 
 pisf from pesfr 
 
 iiUC 
 
 troinpr ( unc em 
 
 ID 
 
 ) from se ironipcr. 1 
 
 :fer briefly here to tlupecu 
 
 liarities of the dialect, as in tlu' longer 
 
 \vn below the points 
 
 )f interest will be fully ex- 
 
 re 
 
 specinuMis .^i 
 plaiiu'd. 
 
 The two lollowiniv letters are interesting not only as specimens 
 of the dialrrt. but also with rc-ard to folklore, as the customs 
 and UKUUKTS of the Acad.ans are described. I am nulebted 
 nrincipallv for the subject matter to Mr. Zknon DK MokI'KLI.k. 
 toinu'rly of I'ointe Coupee Parish, whose valuable sug-cstions 
 with reg.ird to writing the dialect 1 alst. desire to acknowledjri-. 
 
 I'KI'.MIIKK I.KTIUi;. 
 
 r.ayoH Cliont^Hiu,\ Ir 3 \ovein/»r iS<,<>. 
 Mos CMi.K Mcs^it a I'liii.Di.oocK. 
 
 .lire- out ni 'ronnais et i.i ' K-s aiUies v. Mil i <mUT ..a .Is savmns - I .m 
 
 ^i. • .1 as 'a 'ai.lurs attenchM dire ciae Ics pr.nners Uuhc^ns 
 
 uV V • I ■ '•tion. arrives <h. Nor.l par h.- M.ssippi. Us venmns drs 
 
 i.HHu's c ^^'.'-l -ns ,'-p.nT/.ll.^s tout 1. Iour du ikaue ^'V^;';."- *, 7' '' 
 
 , t^. a ■^T.nul bancle avi/.ns arrett< cotc^ nous autres lis etmn. to s 
 
 •s 1. Uears d des eonrmrs cU-s hois. I.a bcaiUe des chauva:4ess s 
 
 Is •, ions entes; ..a fait v en a pUin dans lmix mUns .pn s avajus 
 
 uaH^ vl'- o s lili;; d.s hois. Mouan j Vn o.nnaj. ,.le,n dcs Huml .s 
 
 idU. qu'a du san- rhauva«e et menu- qu .Is et.ons '...-n lu.', -h 
 
 ; '^;-.^rst ,;,Mri,lm.,l ..r,h-v.r.,ns.dwi,h ,„o, ,. of Ins, ,„:rs„M .,i„u. H-.d tlur.l 
 
 |i.rs. 1)1. 
 
 4 Entmilu =; ' «"" ' • 
 
THE ACAPIAKS OF LOl^ISIANA. 
 
 29 
 
 U'-cfiulre (les premiers liabitants; i^ s'disioiis les seiils vrais Anit'n- 
 
 cams. 
 
 I'oiir lors (lone em 
 
 u- fois (^'tal)lis icite tons CfS j;aillavds-la 
 
 \ ions mis a Iravaillcr diir ; el pi i s'ljlioiis 
 
 s a 
 
 (lelV.'i^hi 7 i-t iielt'-yt' 
 
 bati (IfS caliaiies ft avions 
 
 (I'la U-rrt; t-l diactm dans eux aiilres a en emu 
 
 ■;ert 
 
 nou CU 
 
 lliver dn mais. du tal ac, de Tindii 
 
 ile a Venn la (-anne et ensuile le ri/ 
 
 it l)ouconp pins 
 
 lard ilu foton et pi ensii 
 
 N'os s;rands-i)opas a\iuns en lioucon 
 dans uinn ieniie temps, (|nand ma jianvre deiinte moman 
 
 p (lis pilits. (,'a me failjon^ler 
 
 me faisail 
 
 der dii\:()lon pon faire la i 
 
 ulonnade ; les (ils Anions tindnsv l)leus 011 
 .„,.-.... Alors on avail (les bien jolies lehiilolles et (les vtT-renses'o pon 
 aller v.ais prommer rdimanche. On avail (-W- d auparavant a la 
 
 cat 
 
 roiitres. 
 
 niesse i)ou api)rendre le caK'ilnme aver le 
 iiarc'" on taisailsa i)remii're comnuini'.)n. 
 
 tcluiri' ft i)i (|uand on elail 
 Oh! maisc'elail eune bean 
 
 r, on sentail iin'on <'tail leK're comme nne p 
 
 |i)n 
 
 pas teiite pou 
 
 hniK 
 
 t'aire enne pcjchiT;, a rieii anrail pn me 
 
 A rien m'anrait 
 fair 
 
 t: vn'ei 
 
 (le 
 
 burd el i)rendre em 
 
 ne iriauvais chemin connne les manvais 
 
 'a 
 
 rnimenls. 
 
 Aassib'it on tjlait assez .^lan 
 
 d V 
 
 )ou travai 
 
 betes. Noire popa noil's donnail lonjours enne tile tanre '3 p 
 conmiencer el an iioiit de ipiecpie lemps alle '4 avail nn veau, g- 
 
 ler la lerre, on soit^nail les 
 
 onr 
 fail 
 
 que chacnn dans nous 
 
 mires avail un p'lit con.nuncnuiU pou nons 
 
 inarier 
 
 Nons anlres dans la campas;ne on se mariaU .1 
 
 t ienne. On conrtisait 
 
 lis lilies et enne fois un Rar 
 
 i;on av.n 
 
 I ehoisi sa prt'leiidne, la noce 
 
 tar( 
 
 n 
 
 lail pas boucoup. Ob! mais dn Djiab si on s'amr.sail I'a 
 
 bien 
 
 licUN (jn'a c't' hetire 
 
 V eime noce on enne bal on 
 
 ansai 
 
 I di 
 
 riLiiiilon:- 
 
 ■I c elai 
 
 I si tetUant (pie les violoniers memes (luiltaienl lent 
 
 violon 
 
 ft se mettaienl a co 
 
 rcobier com 
 
 me 1 
 
 es an 
 
 tres. Ah! tu penx 
 
 •nelleri-s va, c elail pas coin 
 
 me a c'l'lieiire, lu 
 
 )n. Parlez-moi 
 
 anlres fois, oni 
 
 presen 
 
 I a n'imiiorle ((ui temps i d.insions ; n 
 
 de^ 
 ons 
 
 men(;ail a fredir, mais 
 nn samedi, i avail pas 
 
 antri'S on dansait iis.pie (piand la saison coint 
 
 par exemple, cpiaiid le Mardi ^6 Gras toinbail i' . 
 
 dc Caiberine, '7 il fallait nn bal. Dans les urancl cbaleurs <'n avai 
 s le lemps, on travaillait irop bouconp dnr a la cbarrne: 1 talUul 
 -bansser et dt^cbausser rmais et 1 colon, et pi a 
 lions (le foin (;t de paille. J'vons K^arantis 
 
 na 
 
 ■aboMrer la terre, reii 
 1( 
 
 la tin de Teti'' faire des in 
 
 on 
 
 Mail sonvenl mal en position avec 
 
 caloi|nmt( 
 
 .8 1 
 
 es ( 
 
 bonbonlnres. les mannson 
 
 It^ soleil (jni vons i;ril1ail la 
 lins, les bcles rouges el 
 
 ics poux de bois. On avail pas me 
 
 me le lemps de charter >y un pen 
 
 comme ( 
 
 lisait iiainainc-2" .Soco 
 
 SiiAt !e soleil ('tail conche fallait jon-ler :\ bone enne b(. nne ta.se 
 <le lait et manner nn iiei. de conche-concbe et pi aller ^ 'Hurer en 
 bas le bere" i.on doimi: nn pen (-t se lever a la barre du jonr. y( 
 "•^ '^ ' ■' "i •.;;', nnvilain colon ; surtout 
 
 I des moments on fmnai 
 
 mil!( miseres 1 .ivai 
 
 (inand noire defmt popa vivait. 
 
 i fallait liter raide. M.iis povre ( 
 
 men 
 
 11 ('tail toniours le iiremier deboute 
 ItJlinl, le 15on Djeii I'a i>ris, et tnonan 
 
 u- je sttis apres pr()cher24 cote k; cure pon ^ 
 
 irder 
 
 ses 
 
 pou I 
 
 Kon Djeii inerci, an jour d'aujoni 
 
 l.-nrs V ai domn!' tout (;a j'avais, et coini 
 'isl jnste (pie (;a j'ai 
 
 i-d'hni tons mes pilits sont grands, 
 ne i me resle pins arien, (;a 
 
 fail pfuir eux autres ils le faisions pou mouan. 
 
 6 
 8 
 
 12 
 '3 
 
 15 
 16 
 17 
 
 l/s. 7 Ili'/'rulu-. 
 
 Cliiniip : A iniriiius expression. 
 Ti'inls. !•> I 'iimist'i. 
 
 I'ircr lie liorU, oiic (if the nam 
 (," ni'sse. 14 Kile 
 
 Tlie word d'scrt must have ilcsign.i 
 ti Pi-.t. 
 :il expri-sions so common among tli 
 
 ted the y 
 e Atailia 
 
 raines. 
 ns. 
 
 Tu /•t-Dx friiftt^i va : You may say what yii please. 
 (>i,,tnii /.■ MarJi ihas tomh.iU un saiiirdi 1 n tarniya^l ti 
 I ,iT,tit f<as ill' Catherine 
 i'/iarirr, to r.nnverse. 
 ' .a niousti<|uai 
 
 It had to he done. 
 .>o Miirrahw. 
 
 mc. 
 8 l.a t tc. 
 ji A dish made wit 
 
 h corn meal. 
 
 ■4 
 'I la 
 
 ()';; /-inmut tin rilain colon, for oxyfil.iit : We were ni an en 
 r>,:Ji,-r .-,«,• le currtou ^arcler .les poules : 1 shall soon die 
 ke cure of the curate's chickens. 
 
 emharrassi 
 1 shall 
 
 ni> sitnat 
 ht in the 
 
 \'.m. 
 cemetery 
 
$o 
 
 ALCEE FORIIER 
 
 J'iii pas fail avn" eiix li- partagc a MoiilKoinmt'ry. C'csl ilaiislc teiiip*. 
 a (I'Arta i^iutlc -i? k\\\v ce tanuax lapiii la vivail. C't'lait iiii ^^aillard 
 tpi't^tait plus ('i)i]iii!i (|U«':l)Oie; quand il allait a la cliassc aver ses. 
 latnarad s loniMii^ il «?tait fori tomiiu! imiik' (luval il coiumeiivail 
 tiiiijouis par t;Ti)j^iKr (aire siMiiblant t'Otit.' t*ii rt>lt>re. I iciir faisail 
 eiiiK' loniif cachi' el (]Uiniil il lallail partaker ic iijibU-r il prt'iiait lout 
 •■* 'ai^sait hi rt'Slaiit puii It s aiiliLS. (,"a tail (Upi ce ttinps-la iioii"^ 
 
 ft 
 
 mitres ons dii toiijoiirs k- p;;rlaKf a .Muntji^omimry. 
 
 Ma |>liiitH* (oiinait !<alopt-r ciin'tiuflois dans I'passe. alU- pre lul 
 rt;.stam|)i( .-"^ mais jt- niiiiiais TarrOttr (piaiul inenie jc* dois li iiiettre 
 ciuic bridi'ii. Connneit' im- snitions lassc i'va (iuir iciu ina prfiiiit-rr 
 lotiri;, ct je voiis pronit-ts, Miissimi, di^ voiis ocrire t'tiron- aiivant k- 
 ji ur di- Ni al Oiidoii faireeiiiU' '^raml rt'vcilloti si vousvoulez vt'iiir. 
 t )ii \a St- rtnoir pins tard. 
 
 Jc \oiis saliie de loin. 
 
 15ai IS ( iknsiuii.i |-. 
 
 I>Ki'\li:MK I.KTTRI':. 
 
 liayoii Clumpiqur, le 12 \m'i'nihri\ ;S(^>. 
 .Mrssn:r Piiii o. tUK, 
 
 \'oiis int' liise/ ronimc t,a dans vot' r^'ponsi cjiie nra It-ltre vous 
 axions tail hicn du plai^ir t-l poii je ((nuiniu' a voiis coiiter les affaires 
 (k-s preiuic-rs Cailit-ns tpi' t'tions veiius i( ite. C'est Jus au liir et a 
 iHusure j'dcris (|iu' ^;:\ m' rexiciu. I'our k>rs done jt- \as lout voiis 
 dire to it c,a je i-omiais. P'ti Ijriii'^/ par i)'ti krin (;;i va (inir par faire 
 einie iiros tas. Hieii silr y en a deschosesqiii allions vous inlerhoiiser,^'^ 
 l)arce (]iir e'est pas un p'li nioriifaii j'avions pon coiiter. 
 
 i-es Ac adieus avions et^ rhasst's i)ar les Ansjlais. C'est des lani- 
 eiix ctxpiins ([u'elions poll ainsi dire des pirates, ils avions ijrofit*'' de 
 leu butin aprt^-s (]iie ces niallieiueux avions parti ile leu pays, et Its 
 eotpiins savions eninari'- de leu maisons pou eusse rester et pi ils 
 a\ions eu d-s deserts =•> tout hieii cu'tix'd'S. i.es Aeadiens leurs y 
 avions toujoius sjarde un p'tit <-hien .p> de k-ur eiiienne el a clKupie 
 (*ois (pi'ils entendios diie (r'od-djm, c'est coiiinie si on leur jetait de 
 la eendre cliaude dans le dos. 
 
 \os a'e i\ aimions la <kasse. Le ;^r.iiid-popa de inoii popa ('lions 
 ^Tand chasseur. Bon matin il eiions deboiM et apres s'avoir rineej' 
 la dalle, i! fall.iil ijueqiie cbo^e pou bousiHer?' Testoniae. II parlail. 
 niais bieii sur, aussi i)ien que le Hon Djeu a fait les ponim«.:s, il 
 revenait charijt^ des^ibier: des ( anards, des elievreiiils et des ours. 
 .-Mors il e\ itait 3.^ ties amis pou diner avec kii ; e'c'tait ties vrais ranic- 
 i|uins,.n ties vraies bamboches. La on deeidions tjonner un bal pou 
 
 aMiuser la lunesse. 
 
 I 
 
 n p 111 f^arvon 
 
 ;\ el 
 
 leva 
 
 1 all 
 
 ions porte en porte 
 
 t'viter tout le iiioude. On etait pas tier, on t^tait tout ej;al nousaiilres. 
 I )'ai)ord oil t'lait boniK^le, on demaiulait |)as la restant. i>e nionde 
 ilres a elnval, boucouj) en eliarrettes. On avail 
 itlel.iit Ti C.hs el Ti Noir et ra vous 
 
 \eiiioiis a pie 
 
 ai 
 
 pas caleene on liaroiitlie 
 
 on 
 
 iroltions sur le tliemin roinine les yjraiids cheval (|ui venions tki Keii- 
 turky. \"la la elianelion on clianlait dans t:'tenips \A, ^r(>ute/.-bien : 
 
 1^ Very loiij; n;o : D'Anagiiette and ViiKenne.i wt-re Ijurnei! Iry the Indians. 
 
 ah Le Diiif.i itKx lients : st.inipetle. 
 
 27 -A curious rendering of "petit i petit I'oi'icau fait -.on niii." 28 Slirpreiiilre. 
 
 .jg A pretty ex(iression : "des di'scrts bicn iMiltiv s." 
 
 V) (!n>,{,y un f tit chirn ilr leiir t/iiiitiic avoir line dent roiiire (pieK|ii'iiii, 
 
 y .l/o- s iiTi'ir I'll, Ti-i Krni/ilh . y^ />i7>;f,ti/. i,^ (! iiiiiiis i/lncn. 
 
TllFi ACADTASS OF LOf'ISllXA. 
 
 .^» 
 
 I'RKMIKR C()l'IM.Kr.35 
 
 Depi c|iie j'ons fait connaissancc 
 D'liii certain tfiidion, 
 J'ons coiiroiis a i'accointanrt', 
 J'ons pv.^r(is la raison. 
 |e IK' coiuiais dans la nature 
 Kicn (If plus llattLMU' 
 (Jue I'ainiabK' creature 
 Oui mv. tchient an Iclioeur, his, 
 
 SKCOND cori'i.i-.T. 
 
 .I.'antre jonr en cachette, 
 
 AUe nu' tit present ci'nn becot.^fi 
 
 Ah ! nui bundle en devint inu'ette 
 
 Kt j'en restai ttnil sot. 
 
 <.'e becot la an fond de inon aine 
 
 Jmprinia le bonlieur ; 
 
 \\ redoubia la ilaninie 
 
 Qui me tchient an tchoeur, his, 
 
 TKoisiKMK coiri.Kr. 
 
 fl n'y a rien de rt;niarqnable; 
 
 J'artout ini soleil. 
 
 J)ans le nionde habitable 
 
 On tronve tout pared. 
 
 Mais alle a ma douce aniie 
 
 Vn pitit air (lattem- 
 
 line tidgire de fantaisie 
 
 (Jui me tchient au tchoeur. his, 
 
 yiicTKiKMK c<)r"ij; r. 
 
 La beautt? la plus tentante 
 
 I'eut me faire les yenx don.v. 
 
 Ah ! je lui dirions : vous ^Hes eharmantc 
 
 Mais il n'y a rien |)ou vous. 
 
 Ce n'esl pas cjue sa tid^ire jenne et belle 
 
 Ne soit pleine de traicheur, 
 
 Mais ce n'est pas vous cju'etes la demoiselle 
 
 (Jni nie tciiient an tchoeur. <^/.v. 
 
 On ne s'cnibetait pas a taire de l;i politiijue connne vous aiitres 
 .i\-ec \()s ^'lections a tons les six mois. Nous, les autreslois, le (Inuv- 
 eineiir nontmait un connnandant 37 dans notre paroisse. II etait 
 '•apitaine des arnu'es ^\\\ roi, et .i^rand ji,!j;e, et comme on avail pas de 
 proces, il .ivait ]ias jjran<i chose a faire; jus fnnier sa pipi', et pi se 
 promener le matin et se reposer raprt>s midi. <Jne(|iiet<iis le com- 
 Hi uidant re^lait une succession et il ijardait uut^' boniu- pari pon lui 
 ^iiissite ; il disait il etait lu'ritier nonmie par le Ciouvernenunl. 
 
 ijuand y avait un maria.i;e tons nous autres on accomj>as;nait les 
 inari^s a I'l-'.^lise et apresla (.-arenionie on revenait eixliantanl, et a la 
 udce on tirait des coups de tisil. C"«'tait cine hal)itude, (,":i I'reuvr 
 (lue nos aieux aimions la poudre et qu'ils n'en avions pas penr. I.en- 
 (Icuiain de la noce chacnn reprenait si)«i ouvrat^e pou Iravailler dans 
 !e desert. Mouan, c(ii\ime j'elais |)ili, je moptioiis a califoin'chon sur 
 le ciieval de ch,irru( v\ mon j;rand tVere l<-h(inil>onsail '^ lis i^uides ; 
 \A allail |)u vile coiimie ya. 
 
 .^S'l'li' 
 
 sKiili is iiaU'e iiiiil nr.irrfLil, iililio'j'^h tln' luetic is iiol .\i\v,iys i direct. 
 '<i''rr. J7 ISiirii)^; ihr '-•jiaiii-h diiiiijimtii.n, jH A vcrl> furnici! fn-.iii iritirhmi. 
 
32 
 
 AI.CliE fORTIlR 
 
 Oiiaiul V aviiit im tnlcrrcim-nt iiou 
 
 iiitH'S on pdilalt Ir nioit in 
 
 tern 
 
 siir liii liDvard i'l l)ras 
 
 il( tinl rt conimt 
 «.n tL'ml)^^ 
 
 foul 1(; iiiDiulc arfoinpaj^imit It- paiivii- 
 (f'tail fatigaiit, Ics poitciirs I'lioiisi liaii^^-^ ^1^' lymiw 
 
 (a .illait I'liit il.iui tiiu'til, mais (iiiaiiil la (;aremoiiii' elioiis 
 
 fiiiif on rt\ lua 
 
 it r.iidf lei'itiK 
 
 Iri' l\)uviaj:i-, i)arce qii'on t'oiiiiiail pas 
 
 dans Cf tcnips-la. ( )li ! iumi, on l.omiiiait 
 
 lias sii 
 
 aivra^c. 
 
 Aussitc si on (•tioiis | 
 la ,<;ncMTf a veinii' 
 (lu'allail a i'ecole ft jiar ens 
 
 as tons riilu s ( 
 
 ,_,, In niouison a\ait cU-qiini riiiaiul 
 
 l)ansks liuniiiis Ic plusvicnx !;aii;on t'tait Uila 
 itt-- oiianil il I'lail assL-zsa\ant ii nionlrail 
 
 a ti)ns lis an 
 
 tix-s de la laniillf. l.f stco 
 
 ml t'lait charpintiir, If Uoi- 
 
 SUIR' 
 
 ror"vron it If tiuatiifnie ct 
 
 nloaiiifr. Les lilies faisionl lacton- 
 
 naiif ft rondaunt ; •♦'■ f f 
 
 ainsi lout sf lais.iit sii I'lialaiatiun 
 
 tail loiitfs dfs bonnes (:oulnrifnsfS.4> par 
 
 On avail pas ni 
 
 Kaidf 4^ Kudf ni I'.stindii 
 
 ittf ■).( mais (Miand c'flait 
 
 |)OU voyager ott flail pas f 
 
 hariassf. On allait anx AUakap.is el 
 
 aux OpeUuisas a t 
 
 hfval ft Ifs If mnifs vf nions tout de nuiue coniim 
 
 Its homiH" 
 
 On i-amiiait dans le l>ois U- soit 
 
 If u poi 
 
 1 chasser les marinii'Huns e 
 
 fliarrail ins(|n'a nifnuit. 
 
 un allmnait i in boii 
 
 _t les ti^rfs, on faisait du calf ft oi> 
 
 LfS liomnifs faisions la v;ardf et an p'tii 
 
 lonr 
 
 on Sf re mfUail vw routf 
 
 Mai 
 
 iS uu 
 
 and on arrivait clif/ dfS amis 
 
 on hif n des parents dans la | 
 dfs plaisirs, dfS diners jusqira oi 
 
 la Dlairif , aiors c'ftions tUs contontfrnfiils, 
 
 1 ^tait iaiinf.44 On <:nait trop ron- 
 
 tfnts nous 
 s'anuise 
 
 en toiinifr cole nous antres i 
 
 ari:f (jiie on flait l;iss( 
 
 r, i tall.iit i)enser a travailler 
 
 ffS vovagfs, 
 
 l^a 
 
 l.'liomnif qu fs 
 dans le mondf . 
 
 rie qn'on appreiiait bomoiip des qneq 
 
 Mais tons IfS ans on I'aisioiis 
 nfs fhosfs. 
 
 I bien mstni 
 
 it ('est cila (pTa boiironp roulf sa bosse 
 
 tf im (:haribari45(iiron a 
 
 I-'ant jf vouscon 
 mari6 i<itf cole noiis aiiUfs. _ A i:f < 
 tons cole, mais on a 
 
 doniif a nil vie nx (lui s'avaii 
 
 haribari If inondf <:''lions ve mi di 
 fait lant du train 4" ft du lapa^f .cY-lail \\\\ tiimulli 
 
 donm 
 
 avail boulfverse lout le voisinaji;( 
 
 Al 
 
 I'ordre de fmir lont (,a, aiissite \ 
 
 ors 
 a T; 
 
 if commandant a\ions 
 
 chicaiif s ft If s i 
 eii i)lusii-urs 
 massacre a coujjs 
 
 arretf net. Mais les 
 .lamaillfs avions conlimif dans le jour; (.a fail y en a 
 taillfs ft dufls ft plnsifiirs jeniifs liommes s avions 
 
 de tisils ; v fU a deux {|ii'avions ete lues 
 
 Monan if 
 
 in'a iroiivf compromis comme 
 le m'ai embarqu6 dans eiim 
 
 temoin. rai-t-'li:- oblige de decamiK 
 
 roj,nif el j'avions derive jusqii 
 
 ville cot^ nion parraii 
 
 Oiiaiui i'f lions las llauf r el navij^ 
 
 m 
 
 r47 a la 
 
 N<,nvelle-Orlf;ins j'ai l^artl a pifd jx.u tounif-r chf/ monai. cuitf qm 
 
 coulf . 1 'avions trouvt 
 
 u mondf if fonna 
 
 issions lout i)artout, i;a tail 
 
 i'f lions pas 
 
 bli"f tcluniander48 \ manf;fr ni pou coiiclifr 
 
 (^~a (• est 
 
 le plus joli voyage .1 a\ions la 
 
 mais fail, j'ai pris deux ans pou m en 
 
 revinir.' II faut j 
 
 f \ 1)1 
 
 IS dis, if suis violonier de mon 
 
 <:'lat, I 
 
 )as mi ba 
 
 s'a jamai 
 
 s donne sans <; est nioi 
 
 an qui i>>Uf. J'avions aiTi\f un sanifdi 
 
 \ St. jacipies, y 
 
 avail un bal, mais If musicie n s'a trou\ f ma 
 
 ladi 
 
 ofTri 49 liies sfr vices, a 
 Lendfinain j'l'lion 
 
 ..h! comme tout If mondf etioiis conunt, 
 r^'viK'' dans tons les maisoiis. J'avions rfluquf 
 
 veillf au soi 
 
 riiiif bfUf .\( .ulif niu 
 
 Mairinlon m 'avail tape dans 
 
 Of 11 
 
 Al 
 
 ors, 
 
 je I'v ai dil ton 
 
 t suitf ; "la belle, vniis me plait, si vous 
 
 di 
 
 oni on va se maner 
 
 .\llf m'a repoiH 
 
 U : 
 
 Tai 
 
 )f , (,a me w 
 
 is< / 
 le m'ai 
 
 arif avec alle ft on s- a res 
 
 tf cotf son pt^rf jns(.iu'a plus df de iix 
 
 aii^ 
 
 ai revfiiu 
 
 I'ar apri^-s j'avions appris la mort a ma paiivre moman 
 
 an Baiou Cboupique pour regler la succession. . Ma to>. q.umd , . i f n 
 
 ma pa 
 
 rt j'ai dil comme (;a, tant pire pou les amis 
 
 111 
 
 ouan, if vas rester ici 
 
 te d; 
 
 ms mon [lays. 
 
 \'(IU 
 
 j'ai quiltt'- di-rrifr 
 
 s VO\l 
 
 /, Mussitu 
 
 ^;] This inci.lciit Is tr.ir. as writ as il..- marnaftc that followed. .;» lU,„a,uU . 
 50 f'« for twus, ux Je, is very timinion. 
 
THE ACAIUASS 01' I.Of'lSIANA. 
 
 33 
 
 IMiildlogiK', oil ronihril 5' est fiittrrt- on vcut lotiinins nsler; y a 
 (iU(''(iiU' chosf comiiK' qui tlirait qui vous ainarre -' la. 
 
 On (lit If Cadifti coiuiall pas i\ rieu pant- (pi'il a jyas (riiHlucatioii, 
 umis il faiit li doniier eiiie cliosc, il ainie sou pays, sa laniilU- it st-s 
 amis, ft si y en a tpii roUKissent tpiand un les apjirllf Aiadit-ns, 
 uiiiuan jf vas vous iliif, Mussiiu riiilnldj^ui-, i'fu suis bitii lier. i'en- 
 si'Z-vous pas (jUf i'avons raison ? 
 
 Jf \(>us sali\f iK- loiu, 
 
 15a 1 IS ( Ikosiioiar. 
 
 I hope that this l)ri<.^f sk'tch ot the Ai-adiaiis of Louisiana and 
 c»f their dialect will be an introduction to a more complete study 
 of the subject hereafter. 
 
 AlCKI FOKTIKR. 
 
 I'lM.ANli UnIVKHSITV '\V I,()IIS1A.N*. 
 
 51 Oil I'lfti fit »'•. y.i Another iiaiitii;*! term I'oi iittaike.