FATHER MORICE

word of reproach uttered, but the chief, being
now a good Christian, lost all memory of the
Indian spirit of revenge—‘an eye for an eye
and a tooth for a tooth,” and even offered
consolation to Father Morice in his sorrow
and affliction; thanking God that his son was
a practical Catholic and was, therefore, pre-
pared to meet his Eternal Judge.

One of the most difficult tasks of a mis-
sionary among the pagan Indians is the
breaking up of polygamous relations. Some-
times both polygamy and polyandry pre-
vailed among certain tribes of the Pacific
Coast Indians. In truth, among the Chil-
cotins and Babines, with whom Father
Morice labored for several years, the mar-
riage tie was very lightly treated. After the
death of their husbands, widows, according
to the ancestral custom, were reduced to
Slavery, a degrading state of bondage.
Father Morice thundered against both polyg-
amy and the slavery of widows and _ suc-
ceeded in destroying them.

On one occasion, however, his zeal to
safeguard the marriage tie and break up the
immoral relations that existed between the
Indian men and women almost cost him his
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