How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
Certainly it was a great piece of luck for Father Latour and Father Vaillant, who lived so much among peons and Indians and rough frontiersmen, to be able to converse in their own tongue now and then with a cultivated woman. (6.1.4)
Fathers Latour and Vaillant think they've died and gone to heaven when they meet a cultured woman named Doña Isabella who speaks French. She is pretty much the only person they know in the world who can converse with them in their native language. This language reminds them of home and helps lift their spirits when they feel like they're spending their entire lives in a place that isn't quite "home" to them.
Quote #5
He wrote long letters to his brother and to old friends in France. (7.3.28)
Whenever Father Latour feels lonely or depressed about his life in New Mexico, he likes to sit down and write letters in French to his people back in France. Using the French language helps him reconnect with a sense of home, although it also reminds him just how out-of-place he is in New Mexico.
Quote #6
"The Indians call rainbow flower […] It is early for these." (7.4.9)
Jacinto is Father Latour's guide in the stark and beautiful New Mexico wilderness. He knows both the area and the cultures of the people who live in it. But every time he translates a Native American word for Father Latour, you get the sense that you're only seeing the tip of the iceberg, in terms of how much the guy actually knows. Again, Latour understands that there are many things that Jacinto will never be able to translate for him.