La Salle and the discovery of the great West - North Central ...

446 THE INNOCENT AND THE GUILTY. [1687.In a few days he reappeared, bringing Grollet withhim. Each wore a bunch of turkey-feathers dang-•ling from his head, and each had wrapped his nakedbody in a blanket. Three men soon after arrivedfrom Duhaut's camp, commissioned to receive thecorn which Joutel had purchased. They told himthat Duhaut and Liotot, the tyrants of the party, hadresolved to return to Fort St. Louis, and build avessel toescape to the West Indies, — "a visionaryscheme," writes Joutel, "for our carpenters were alldead ; and even if they had been alive, they were soignorant that they would not have known how to goabout the work; besides, we had no tools for it.Nevertheless, I was obliged toobey, and set out forthe camp with the provisions."On arriving, he found a wretched state of affairs.Douay and the two Caveliers, who had been treatedby Duhaut with great harshness and contempt, hadbeen told to make their mess apart; and Joutel nowjoined them. This separation restored them theirfreedom of speech, of which they had hitherto beendeprived ;but it subjected them to incessant hunger,as they were allowed only food enough to keep themfrom famishing. Douay says that quarrels were rifeamong the assassins themselves, — the malcontentsbeing headed by Hiens, who was enraged that Duhautand Liotot should have engrossed all the plunder.Joutel was helpless, for he had none to back him buttwo priests and a boy.He and his companions talked of nothing around