As has been already stated, the Acadians of Louisiana are a simple and ingenuous people; no romance hovers around them other than that which clusters about the virtuous lives of home-loving cottagers. As a population, though not enterprising, they are industrious; the women Spinning and weaving, the men tilling their farms and herding their cattle. Many of them live upon the bayous opening into the Gulf and are excellent sailors, giving proof of their Norman and Breton ancestry. One of the most pleasing features of their social life is the general amenity and the self-respect of their bearing. They exercise an unostentatious hospitality, and the stranger within their gates is kindly welcomed; but, as French is the only language used among them, the-difference of speech offers an effectual barrier to the outside world. Their French is not, as is erroneously supposed, a rude patoz's, but conforms very closely to the prevailing dialect of Normandy and is very little removed from a good French vernacular. It varies, however, with different localities.

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