Jean COTTIN

                   "The wife of Louis du Bois and their three children were taken captive by the Indians in 1663 and they were rescued only just in time to save their lives. The prisoners had succeeded in delaying their executions by pleasing the savges with songs. One entitled 'The Babylonish Captives' was, appropriately, the song which Catherine du Bois and her children were singing at the moment of their deliverers' arrival."

"On June 7th, 1663, an Indian war party raided the settlement, taking Catherine, three of their children, and others as prisoners. Louis, with Captain Martin Kreiger and a party of thirty men set out in pursuit of the Indians and their captives. They surprised and killed one of the Indian's rear guard, and took another captive. From him they learned the whereabouts of the main party, and on the second day found them. The Indians had bound the captives ot trees, in preparation for torture and death, but Catherine led the group in singing the 137th Psalm, which laments the affliction of the Israelites as they sat by Babylon's stream. So sweet was the sound of this soung that the savages hesitated. Louis and his party also heard them, surprised the Indians, and set the prisoners free."

"In the Second Esopus war, 1663, among the captives taken by the Minnisink Indians into the Catskill Mts., when they burned the village of Hurley, June 7, were Catharine du Bois and Macyken Van Meteren with some of their children. After ten weeks the Indians decided to celebrae their repeated escape from pursuit, by burning one of their prisoners. Catharine and her baby Sata (who afterwards became the wife of Joost Janse Van Meteren) were placed upon a pile of logs. The Hugunot mother began to sing a hymn learned in France. The charmed Indians withheld the torch and listened, demanding another and another song. Before the last hymn was finished, her husband Louis du Bois, with the Dutch soldiers and capt. Krieger arrived, and this time were successful in saving all the captives and punishing the Indians."

All of the above quotes with sources are from:
Barbara Fleming
barbpretz@aol.com
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~barbpretz
3245 Chadbourne Road
Shaker Heights, OH 44120