Newport daily independent., 1906-01-02
THE LAKE OF SACRIFICE.
Louisiana Body of Water About Which There Is an Indian
 Legend.

Lake Ca-ta-0u-la, the sacred lake Ox the Indians, Hes ensconced, as it were, in the deep solitude of the forest which skirts the Attakapas prairie on the east side of the Teche at about nine miles from the town of St Mar. tfnville. The beauty of its scenery and It's picturesque landscapes have probably no equal in the state. says the New Orleans States. It's waters have the transparency of crystal, snd it's depth averages from 90 to 100 feet
 The word Ca-ta-ou-ia means the lake of sacrifice. The following legend, az dramatic and tragical as the Biblical narrative of the death of Jephth&hs daughter, gives us the origin ot that name.
 The Tetfmetchec Indians, being threatened with dire calamity. ths aa- ture of which we know not, their prayermen consulted their oracles, and were informed that to propitiats tho great Manitou and to avert tire cal&mY. ty a fair maiden of the tribe was to be sacrificed to the cruel god and her soul drowned in the placid waters of Lake Ca-ta-ou-la.
 The beautiful At-ta-la, the fair daughter of the chief offered herself as willing victim to propitiate the Great Spirit.
 Dressed In all the fnery and pie turesqueness of apparel of an Indian princess, she repaired to the lake in whose waters she was to find & watery grave, followed by the weeping maid ems and the stern warriors of the tribe
 She glided In her light canoe on the waters of the lake until she had reached the middle of the stream, and with her eyes upraised and hands ex- tended toward the heavenly mansion ot the great Manitou, she offered him her youth and her life blood as sacrifice to propttiate him and to avert the calamity that threatened her people.
 With radiant smile she then turned toward the shore of the lake where knelt the weeping maidens. She waved her hand gently to them, bidding them an eternal adieu, and plunged into its waters, to be seen no more.
 Supersititous persons assert that even to this day In times of great calamity and misfortune, when tho moon spans the sky and shines serene In the high heavens, streaking with silvery fringe the gentle ripplss of the lake, a shadowy form is seen glid- Ing on it's waters in light canoe, with hands extended heavenward, and they say that all at once, uttertng a wild and unearthly shriek, the shadowy form plunges headlong into the waters and disappears, while the tsrror-strick- en denizens of the forest answer the shrieks with howls and lugubrious hoot- ings.
 From that time Lake Ca-ta-ou-la be- came the sacred lake of the Indians. and every year they repaired to this spot to propitiate the great Manitou with their offerings and sacrifices. Into it's crystalline waters they plunged themselves to get cleansed of their moral and physical impurities; into itn sacred waters they dipped their amu- lets and arrows to avert approaching calamities and to protect themselves against the devices of the evil spirit. He who could not make this yearly pilgrimage felt Respondent and un- happy, and his inability to follow the others in the saintly journey boded blm no good.
 If while performing his immersion in the lake one should happen to drown, his memory was execrated, and his death was considered the 5udg- nient of the great Manitcu as an atone ment for the crimes committed oy him.
 The lake is still called Ca-ta-ou-la~ the lake of sacrifice, but the great Manitou, like his Indian worshipers. is now a thing of the past.