Superior court northern Circuit April Term 1820 in chancery

John P Cabanne Antoine Chenier vs Louis Beaudoin & C Brown St. Louis Injunction

Carr & Harper Solicitors

The answer of Louis Beaudoin to the Bill of complaint of John P Cabanne of Antoine Chenier Complainants -

The said Defendant saving & reserving to himself now and at all times hereafter all of all manner of benefit and advantage of exception to the manifold uncertainties and imperfections in the complainants said bill of complaint contained for answer thereunto , or unto so much thereof as materially concerns this Defendant to make answer unto he answereth and saith - that true it is sometime in the month of October one thousand eight hundred of fifteen he entered into a contract with the said complainants to go for them as a clerk or trader up the Missouri river , and its tributory waters, to trade with the indians for which the said complainants agreed to pay him the sum of three hundred dollar but there was no express agreement as to the manner in which the said defendant should conduct himself in the said business - but it was left to be governed by the ordinary operations of law as other agreements of that hired one. This Defendant can not be supposed to have contracted, for any very of his clerkship during the voyage - as he can neither read nor write - which was never known to the said complainants of this defendant consisted in his knowledge of the Indian tongues , & of the Indians, with whom he was going to trade. His his manners, & habits, have been known to the complainants for this great many years, and he has acquired no new habits during that voyage

This Defendant was not sent alone on the said trading voyage - nor was he solely entrusted with the management of the goods, this brother Joseph Beaudoin was employed by the said complainants on the same voyage , and was authorized to trade a part of the said good with the Indians. The object of intention was , that the said goods should be taken up the Missouri to the Indians trading ground and should then be divided and sent to different trading ground, as might them be thought best for the interest of the employers . This Defendant does not know the amount of goods which the said complainants sent on that voyage . This defendant proceeded up the Missouri according to his agreement and traded with the Otos of Iowa when he traded together with his brother for a considerable length of time. He then took part of the said good & left his brother and went among the Panis & traded until the trading season was over when he returned to St. Louis with the avails of his voyage and delivered them up to the Complainants together with all the papers relating to the same. The said Complainants received the petitions & papers from this Defendant without expressing any dissatisfaction, as this Defendant knew of at that time. Some time afterwards when called on for the pay they began to frame excuses , sometimes of one kind, some time of another to delay him - After that they began to claim some reduction of the wages of this Defendant, on the ground that some of the goods had been stolen by the Indians - which were not stolen however from the inventory of this Defendant - but from the inventory

of Joseph Beaudoin , at other times they pretended other excuses with as those alledged in their bill of complaint, against paying the stipulated amount of wages - but they offered to pay this Defendant one hundred of fifty dollars for his said services and the said Chenier gave this Defendant to understand, that if he would marry the said Chenier '' sister, he would pay him the whole. This defendant, which he was in the employment of the said complainants conducted their business faithfully awarding to the best of his judgment. As to his being frequently intoxicated as stated in the said complainants bill, true or false , this Defendant conceives he is not bound to answer the same as they have not alledged that it any way interfered with his business. They might have as well alledged that he grossly misconducted himself by profanely swearing - or in committing fornication - or any other immorality, and have required him to answer it. As to quarelling with the Indians and driving them away, he did; not never wantonly by or without good cause - It was in deference of the entrust of his employers that he did it. To protect their property & rights he has more than once been obliged to oppose the indian with force at the iminent hazard of his life. He has been through danger and involuntary hard ship, which the regular trader among civilized proper knows nothing of and he has been obliged to conduct himelf according to the circumstances in which he was placed, and the manners of the people with whom he was trading - It might not be considered correct to behave rudely to a white customer , for the same conduct, which would render it necessary of people to turn away an indian. The conduct of a trade with the Indian must be justified or condemned by all the circumstances attending his with them, which cannot in general be fully known, to any, but himself. This Defendant can say that how much he may have erred in judgment - he has always done, what he thought under the circumstances was best for his employers He has never driven away indians proffering to trade with him, or refused to trade with them - when he thought he could trade to advantage but on the contrary he has used every inducement of exertion in his power to gain their trade. One of the particular instances of misconduct relied upon by the Complainants against this Defendant was in driving away the Iowas . In order to show how the good transaction may be made bad by the manner in which it may be related by persons unacquainted with the circumstances, it is only necessary to relate the parts as they really occurred on that occasion . The Iowas had been engaged to come & trade by the promise of 2 small kegs of whiskey , containing 1 gallon each . - They came, & in order to summon their good will some whiskey was dealt out to them . They became noisy and unquestioned . They demanded more whiskey and threatened to take it by force if it was not given to them. This Defendant thought it high time to turn them out of the store , which he effected with some difficulty and flung their funds out after them, as he conceived he had no right to obtain them

the Indians then commenced an attack upon the store , and attempted to break it open and they actually did get in, and break up a small keg of whiskey - and yet this Defendant is found fault with for offering them. As to trading the goods at improper seasons he may have done so , tho he is not sensible of it He was always governed in his trade by his best judgment - But as to his selling any of the goods to other traders it is untrue in fact - As to the returns of the said voyage amounting to no more than two thousand and ten dollars, this defendant is unable to say; as all the papers relating to the said voyage were given up to the said Complainants upon his return But this he can state that only part of the goods probably about one half were traded by him - that his brother traded a considerable part - and further that a part of the said goods were stolen from the said Joseph Beaudoin by the Otos at the time this Dependant was with the Panis consisting of knives handkerchiefs , vermillion and about 2 hundred pounds , of balls - this Defendant never embezzled any of the said goods - but traded all that came to his possession to the best advantage he could ; or returned them to the said complainant together with the avails of those her sold -

This Dependant is not much indebited: nor is he insolvent - he is fully able to pay all debts that he owes - and he is as willing to pay them, as the Complainants are there, - and he hopes or either more so - He denies that the said Complainants have any cause of action against him But even if they had, he believes that they would not find half the difficulty in collecting a judgment against him. - that he has found in getting his honest dues from them - He feels himself able to pay $5.00 above all his just debts - without that, there is any other matter as thing material or necessary for this Defendant to make answer unto and not herein of hereby will & sufficient by answered unto confessed or avoided - traversed or denied , is true - Wherefore he prays that the injunction granted in this case may be dissolved and that he may have his reasonable costs & charges in this behalf most wrongfully sustained as judged to him

Louis Beaudoin the within respondant being duly sworn his oath saith that the matter fact States in the within answer, as of his own knowledge , are true , and those resulting from the information of others, he believes the same to be true -

Know All men by These presents that we John P Cabanne Antoine Chenier as principals as Marie P Leduc as surety are held and verily bound unto Louis Beaudoin his heirs and assigns with sum of seven hundred and fifty dollars lawful money of the United States , to be paid to the said Louis Beaudoin his heirs and assigns to which payment well and truly to be made we bind ourselves our heirs executors and administrators firmly by these presents sealed with our seals and dated this twenty fourth day of september in the year of our Lord one thousand and eight hundred and nineteen

Whereas the above bounded year John P . Cabanne and Antoine Chenier have this day obtained from the Honorable the Superior court of the Territory of Missouri sitting as a court of chancery an injunction to stay proceedings at law upon a certain judgment rendered in the circuit court of the county of St louis is a certain case wherein the said Louis Beaudoin is plaintiff and the said Cabanne & Chenier are defendants until the final hearing of this case

now This condition of the above obligation is such that if the said John P . Cabanne & Antoine Chenier shall pay all the money due or to be due on the judgment aforesaid and costs to the Said Louis Beaudoin and also all Such costs and damages as shall be awarded against them in case the injunction shall be dismissed then this obligation to be void else to be and remain in full force & virtue Test