and black, their faces besmeared as black as any coals,
with horns on their heads more than a yard long.' The
canoe came rushing swiftly down the stream, and floated
past the ships, the 'devils' who occupied the craft making
no attempt to stop, not even turning towards the ships,
but counterfeiting, as it were, the sacred frenzy of
angry deities. The devil in the centre shouted a fierce
harangue into the air. No sooner did the canoe pass the
ships than Donnacona and his braves in their light barques
set after it, paddling so swiftly as to overtake the
canoe of the 'devils' and seize the gunwale of it in
their hands.

The whole thing was a piece of characteristic Indian
acting, viewed by the French with interest, but apparently
without the faintest alarm. The 'devils,' as soon as
their boat was seized by the profane touch of the savages,
fell back as if lifeless in their canoe. The assembled
flotilla was directed to the shore. The 'devils' were
lifted out rigid and lifeless and carried solemnly into
the forest. The leaves of the underbrush closed behind
them and they were concealed from sight, but from the
deck of the ship the French could still hear the noise
of cries and incantations that broke the stillness of
the woods. After half an hour Taignoagny and Domagaya
issued from among the trees. Their walk and their actions
were solemnity itself, while their faces simulated the
religious ecstasy of men who have spoken with the gods.
The caps that they had worn were now placed beneath the
folds of their Indian blankets, and their clasped hands