HAN A
SAMUEL de CHAMPLAIN
ND GENERAL DL
OF
NEW
nt *.
HISTOKY AND GENEKAL DESCRIPTION
OF
NEW FRANCE
BT
REV. P. F. X. DE CHARLEVOIX, 8. J.
TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL EDITION AND EDITED, WITH NOTES, BT
DR. JOHN GILMARY SHEA
WITH A NEW MEMOIR AND BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE TRANSLATOR
BT
NOAH FARNHAM MORRISON
SIX VOLUMES VOL. II
NEW YORK
FRANCIS P. HARPER 1900
5051
Cf/3-
Entered McorJing to Act of Congress, to the year 18M,
BT JOHN OILM ARY SHEA,
In th. Olerk't Office of the District Ooort of the United SUtea fur the Southern District of New York.
PREFACE.
IN presenting the second volume of this history no remark seems necessary ; yet to avoid a misconception on the part of some, it may be well to state explicitly that the notes in this edition, embracing all citations of authorities, are the work of the translator, excepting only the few occasional notes to which the name of Cbarlevoix is added in italics. It may also be added, as a guide to the reader, that the orthog- raphy of proper names in the text is that given by Charlevoiz. In the notes it is given as found in the autograph of the individual.
I am indebted to Dr. John Torrey for valuable assistance in identi- fying some of the plants described by the author, and to Mr. Park- man and his publishers, and to the Sulpitians of Paris for the use of the portraits of Menendez and Olier presented in this and the previous volume.
The new edition of Champlain's Voyages, edited by the Abbe Laver- diere, who kindly put his proof-sheets at my service, has been of great assistance ; and I owe to him also an account of his discovery of Cham- plain's tomb.
J. G. 8.
CONTENTS.
BOOK IV.
State of Quebec in 1610. Mr. do Champlain joins his allies in an expedition against the Iroquois. The settlement of the Dutch in New Netherland. Continuation of Mr. de Champlain's expedition. Indian want of precaution in war. Impostures of medicine-men. Reflection on this point. Discovery of a lake to which Mr. de Champlain gives his name. Lake of the Blessed Sacrament. The allies and the Iroquoie meet and recogniie each other. They engage. Victory of the allies, and Mr. de Champlain's share therein. Cruelties of the victors. Reception of the Montagnez in their village after their victory. Mr. de Champlain returns to France. Name of New France given to Canada. Second expedition of Mr. de Champlain and his allies against the Iroquois. Vigorous defence and defeat of the latter. The Count de Soissons puts himself at the head of Canadian affairs. His death. The Prince succeeds him, and assumes the title of viceroy of New France. The Recollect Fathers arrive at Quebec. Champlain's third expedition against the Iroquois. How to act with Indians. Attack on the Iroquois fort. Champlaia is wounded and forced to retreat He winters in the Huron country against his will. A Recollect Brother renders a great service to the colony. New_EnnosJs greatly neglected. Marshal de Montmorency viceroy of New France. The Iro- quois undertake to destroy the French colony. The Canada Company is sup- pressed. Quebec fortified. The Duke de Ventadour viceroy of New France. Five Jesuits arrive in Canada. A Recollect Father drowned, and his Huron companions suspected of causing his death. The__ilfiauit&~m.out great opposition in Canada. \VrrU-li.-d stat.' of t!i.« ml. my Company of & Hiiniln*! Ansooiiit.-H for tin- m-ttli'- ment of Now France ; its privileges, and what it undertakes. Hostility of the English. They demand the surrender of Quebec. Champlain's reply. The Eng- lish capture a French squadron. Mr. de Champlain'g embarrassment. Quebec again summoned by the English. Conditions on which the place surrendered. Good usage. Most of the settlers remain in the country. Emery de Caen, coming to the relief of Quebec, is captured by the English. A French Calvinist projector and guide of the English expedition. He dies frantic Bad faith of the English
jf CONTENTS.
admiral. Some advise against demanding the restitution of Canada. Reply to their arguments. Champlain's opinion. Canada restored to France. In what condition. Why the English neglected Acadia.
BOOK V.
De Champlain appointed governor-general of New France. Character -of the SUTOITB. The Company of a Hundred Associates will not permit the return of the Recollects to Canada The conduct of the English had made the Indians regret the French. Several Jesuits arrive at Quebec. Success of their first labors. Protestants excluded from New France. Judicious choice of the first colonists. CJiarattfiT-of thfl first r"il"gnnari0° Settlement in the Huron country projected. De Champlain wishes to oblige the Indians to take missionaries with them. They refuse. Why 1 Good and bad qualities of the Hurons. Origin of the tribe. Extent and nature of their country. Why de Champlain wished to plant a settlement there and the missionaries to make it a central point. Two Jesuits proceed thither. A third follows. Hardships of the journey. First permanent Huron mission. Difficulties in converting these Indians. Their conduct towards the missionaries. Efforts of the medicine-men to prevent the progress of the faith. Other difficulties. Won- ders wrought, and their effect. Conduct of the missionaries. What passed at a council. New persecution, appeased at first. The Word of God begins to bear fruit among the Hurons. Why the baptism of some chiefs is deferred. Why the tribe becomes more docile. Character of other Indian nations. Progress of reli- gion. College of Quebec founded. First effects. Death of Mr. de Champlain. The Chevalier de Montmagni succeeds him. Seminary
for Indian boys projected. Number of missionaries among the Hurons. The colony languishes through the fault of the Company of a Hundred Associates. The Iroquois deceive the Hurons by a pretended peace. War renewed. Various missionary expeditions. The Iroquois insult Three Rivers. Epidemic among the Hurons. Interest in France for the conversion of the Indians. Foundation of Sillery. Edifying conduct of the people of Quebec. Establishment of the Hos- pital and Ursuline nuns. Their reception. Their fervor. Courage of Madame de la Peltrie, foundress of the TTnuilinM, Fjrjfl 1«>v>«i »f tlio nnr^ The colony still neglected by the Company of New France. The war between the Hurons and Iroquois continued. The first Iroquois Christian. Position of the Huron mission. Singular adventure of Father Jerome Lallemant. Sufferings of the missionaries ; their occupations ; manner of instructing. Reflections on the conversion of Indians. State of the missions at Three Rivers, Tadonssac, and around the Gulf. The pretended worship of the cross among the Gaspe Indians. Noble conduct of the 1 1 u n in--. Their reward. Defeat of an Iroquois party. Many Iroquois prison- ers baptized at death. Scheme of the Iroquois to draw the French awny from the Hurons. They treat with the former in bad faith. Embarrassed position of the governor-general. The settlement of Montreal projected. Begun. Tradition as to the ancient inhabitants of that island.
CONTENTS.
BOOK VI.
Fort Richelieu. Numerous conversions among the Huron*. A famous Huron chief. Ilia calling to Christianity. Ilia baptism and fervor. Reflection on Indian harangue*. Missionary excursion to the Saulteura or Chippewas. The Dutch supply the Iroquois with arms and ammunition. Supineness of the Huron*. Many surprised by the Iroqnois. Several taken, and with them Father Jogm* and two other Frenchmen, who allow themselves to be captured. Their treat' ment. Abandoned to the fury of a war-party whom they met. Father Jogues again refuses to escape. The prisoners tortured in three village* successively. Their piety and fervor. All spared but three chiefs, who die as Christian heroes. The Dutch apply for the French prisoners. Refused. Martyrdom of Ren« Ooupil. Father Jogues avails himself of his captivity to make the true God known to the Iroquois. Wonderful conversion of one of these Indians, followed by several others. The Neutral nation destroyed by the Iroquois. Fruits of grace in this nation. Judgment of God on a Huron village. Noble conduct of a Huron Chris- tian, and its results. Information given to the governor-general by Father Jognes. Ineffectual efforts made for his delivery. Hears that his death is fixed upon. A Dutch officer offers to save him. He accepts the offer. His escape. He arrives in England, and is stripped by robbers. Reaches France. Solicits permission from the Pope to say Mass with his mutilated hands. The Pope's reply. The character of this missionary. 'His return to Canada. What he learns there of his mission. Fervor and sanctity of the Hurons. Miraculous conversion of an Algonquin chief. Fervor of the Algonquin missions. »'alnm»l«B against the Jesuits in France. The New France Company justifies them. Father Bresaani exposes himself to a great danger. Taken by the Iroquois. Sufferings during his captivity. Delivered, and goes to France. Sad state of the colony. The governor-general endeavors to make peace with the Iroqnois. What occurred between him and some Hurons. The latter agree to treat. The Iroquois seem favorable. Public audience given to their deputies, and what occurred. Peace ratified by the cantons. Father Bressani returns to the Hurons. Death of Fathers Enemond Masse and Anne de Nolle. The Sokokis endeavor to break the peace. The Iroquois ratify it again. Father Jogues visits the Iroquois twice. Hostilities renewed between the Iroquois and Hurons. Extent and situation of the Iroquois country. Origin of their name. Peculiarities of each canton. Fruit-trees. Anim«l« and diamonds. The Iroqnois attack a Huron village. Noble conduct of three Hurons. Progress of religion during the peace. Father Jognes, returning to the Iroquois, is abandoned by his guides. He is received by the Mohawks as if be had been a prisoner of war. What prejudiced the Indians against him. His death. His murderer is con- verted. The Mohawks renew the war. Singular adventure of an Algonquin Christian woman, and her escape from the hands of the Iroqnois. Who were the Abenaquis. They ask and obtain a missionary. Their character. Reception of Father Drr uillettes by the Capuchin Fathers. The first labors of this missionary. Mr. de Montmagni recalled. Mr. d'Aillebout succeeds him. Character of both.
CONTENTS.
BOOK VII.
State of the colony In IMS. Mimiu>Mgilll|fint 2lj^° Hurons. The Huron town of St. Joseph destroyed by the Iroquoi*. Heroic death of the Jesuit Father Anthony DanieL Project of an alliance between the English and French colonies in America. Deputation of the Jesuit Father Dreoillettes and the Siear Godefroy, councillor of the Council of Quebec, to Boston, —Apathy of the Hurons. Two Huron towns destroyed by the Iroquois. Fathers de Brebeuf and Lallemant taken. Various engagements between tho Hurons and Iroquois. Fathers de Brebeuf and Lallemant burnt. Dispersion of the Hurons. Most retire to St. Joseph's Isle. Their sufferings there. Their fervor. Rashness of the Hurons of the town of St. John. A town destroyed by the Iroquois. Heroic death of Father Gamier, the pastor. Death of Father Chabanel. Hurons conspire against all the missionaries The firmness of two of these Fathers disconcerts their plans. Singular interposi- tions of Providence in favor of the Christians. New misfortunes befall the Hurons. Several descend to Quebec. Their reception. What became of the rest. Desti- tution of the former. Their rashness. Untoward expedition, in which many Christians perish. Account of an Algonquin burnt by the Iroquois. Fervor of the Christians. The use of liquors begins to produce great disorders in some mis- sions. Mr. de Lauson appointed governor-general of New France. The governor of Three Rivers killed by the Iroquois. Ravages of these savages in the North. Progress of the fiiith among the Abenaquis nations. Father Batecx starts nortb ward with a presentiment that he will not return. He is killed by the Iroquois. Several missionaries return to Europe. Progress of the colony of Montreal. New negotiations for peace. Capture of Father Poncet by the Mohawks. His sufferings and deliverance. Hig perils in returning to Quebec. Peace concluded. Father le Moyne goes to Onondaga to ratify the treaty. Fervor of the Huron captives among the Iroquois. Danger of Father le Moyne from the perfidy of the Mohawks. Piety of the Hurons on Isle Orleans. The Mohawks endeavor to break off the peace. They renew hostilities and assassinate a Jesuit lay-brother. Exploit of an Algonquin squaw. The Mohawks make peace again, and a missionary is given to them. Two other missionaries go to Onondaga. They settle there. Fruit of their first labors. Destruction of the Eriez nation by the Iroquois. Project of a French colony at Onondaga. Hostility of the Mohawks. They carry off part of the Hurons from Isle Orleans. Adventures of the Ottawas after the destruction of the Hurons. Missionaries are given to some of them. They are attacked by the Mohawks. Father Garreau mortally wounded. The French reach Onomlaga. Their reception. A part of the Hurons on Isle Orleans ofler to give themselves to the Mohawks, and repent. Pride of the Mohawks. Dilemma of the Hurons. A whole tribe surrenders to the Mohawks. The Onondagas come to Quebec for the same purpose. Reply made to them.
BOOK IV.
6PVEJUVO&S OFNffWf'JtANCE.
HISTORY
An GENERAL DESCRIPTION
or
NEW FKANCE:
WUIRIIJT WILL BI rouvn
ALL THAT RELATES TO THE DISCOVERIES AND CONQUESTS OF THE FRENCH IN NORTH AMERICA.
BOOK IV.
AFTER the foundation of Quebec, and Madame de 1609-15. Guercheville's refusal to unite with Mr. de Monts, the latter had still influence enough to form a new company. Messrs, de Champlain and de Pontgrave adhered to his interests more strongly than ever, and embarked in 1610 — the latter, to continue the trade at Tadoussac ; the former, to visit and advance his settlement at Quebec.
He found every thing there in as good a condition as he gut* of could reasonably expect. He had caused barley and mo. wheat to be sowed the year before, and the crop of both grains had been abundant. He had also planted vines ; but his people pulled them up during his absence, and in fact there was no prospect of their thriving. All the set- tlers were in good health, and seemed contented. The Indians living in the neighborhood were the Algonquins.'
1 Formerly called Algotunekioa. — Charletoiz.
8
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1609.
Mr.de
The Montagnez -were lower down towards Tadoussac ; and it was the more easy for the French to form an alliance with these two nations, as, far from being a burden, the French aided them in their necessities, which were at times extreme, especially when hunting failed them, as happened quite frequently.
But the greatest advantage which these savages ex- r pected from the French, was to be aided by them against the Iroquois. In the year 1609, Champlain, who had win- tered at Quebec,' having been joined there in the spring by Pontgrave* when a party composed of Hurons, Algon- quins,' and Montagnez, was preparing to march against
' Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1618), pp. 177-204
* He left Quebec, June (». «., May) 7, to meet Dnpont-Gravg at Tadous- sac (ib., p. 205) ; and then having concerted with him an expedition to the Iroquois country, returned to Quebec, whence he set out, June (May) 18, and went up to a river which he calls St. Mary's, and which Mr. Ferland thicks the St. Anne de la Ferade (ib., p. 208 ; Ferland, i., p. 160). Here he met a party of Hu- rons and one of Algonquins, with whom he returned to Quebec.
' The Algonquins and Montagcais were tribes of the same stock. The former tribe has indeed given it* name to the whole family of kindred tribes occupying a great part of North America. As to the pos- itive locality of the Algonqnins and Montagnais there are most remarkable differences of opinion. Charlevoix here places the Algon- quins near Quebec, and the Montag- nais lower down, near Tadoussac. De la Potherie (Histoire de I'Ame'- rique Septentrionale, i., p. 294) puts the Montagnais on the Sagucnny, and Algonquins, to the number of fifteen hundred, between Quebec and
Sillery — a statement utterly improb- able— with others at Three Rivers, Saguenay, and inland (p. 296); al- though he admits the Ottawa to have been their original country (p. 288). More recent historians agree as little. Mr. (iurncau (Histoire du Canada, i., p. 86) places the Algonquins on the St. Lawrence, from a little below Quebec to the St. Maurice, with one tribe at Montreal ; the Ottawa*, on the river of that name ; and the Montagnais, on the Saguenay and Lake St. John. The Abbe Ferland (Coure d'Histoire, p. 91) puts the Al- gonquins around Quebec and up the St. Lawrence to St. Peter's Lake ; and the Montagnais, on the Sague- nay and two or three other rivers. According to de Laet, the Indians from the Saguenay to the gulf of the St. Lawrence were the Cana- dians (lib. ii., ch. 8). Lescarbot (His- toire de la Nouvelle France, p. 287) says the people of Gaspe and Chaleur Bay called themselves Canadacoa. Sagard, in his Histoire du Canada (p. 152), and Champlain (Voyages, 1682, p. 131)placetheCanadiansthere. The present Naskapees most probably rep- resent these Canadians. The Mon- tagnais, according to Sagard (His-
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
common enemy, allowed himself to be persuaded to 1609. accompany them. He did not doubt, that with three v— -r— -' nations on his side, still quite numerous, and interested to remain inseparably united to the French, he would find it easy to subdue successively all those which might under- take to oppose his designs, and to all appearance his pro- ject was certain of success ; but he did not foresee that the Iroqnois, who alone for some time held their own against all t he Indians for a hundred leagues around them, would soon be backed by neighbors, jealous of France, and soon to become more powerful than ourselves in that part of America.1
It was, in fact, in this same year that Henry Hudson, Settlement an Englishman, but then in the service of the Dutch East Dutch in India Company, sailing with orders to make a new attempt 'H»D<L to find a passage to China north of America, after seeking
toire da Canada, p. 27), were to called by the French from the fart that they made their winter hunt in the mountains. He placet them around Quebec (ib., p. 169), and allude* to them repeatedly as the nearest: I "ham plain also (Voyages, ed. 1682, p. 131 ; ed. 1013, Laverdiere, p. 160). Father Masst' labored at Quebec, and Champlain give* Montagnais prayers by him (Voyage*, 1632, Doctrine, etc., p. 16). The earliest Jesuit Relations give the tame district to the Mon- tagnais (Relation, 1633, p. 11 ; 1633, pp. 3, 8, 16, etc. ; 1634, pp. 12, 49). The Relation of 1<>:15 even speaks of them as being as far up as Three Rivers p. 21). None of these early writer* ppeak. of Algonquins near Quebec or Three Rivers, except as camping for a time. The Al- gommequins (Champlain. Voyages, edition 1613, pp. 169. 295)— Al- goumequins (Sagard, Grand Voy- age, p. 76 ; Histoire du Canada, p. 901 ; Brebenf, Relation des Hnrons, 1635) — were clearly on the Ottawa
River, which Champlain call* the Great River of the Algonqnins. Un- der the general name Algonquin* were comprised the Iroqnet, Petite Nation, and Algonquins de 1'Isle; the next tribe beyond being the Ni- pitting* (Epicerinyen : Sagard, HI*, toire, p. 193 ; Grand Voyage, p. 74 ; Champlain, Voyage (1613), p. 811). For the origin of the war against the Iroquois, see Perrot, Mceurs et Coustumes de Sawages, p. 0. In Champlain's expedition, as we shall see, the Hnrons and Algon- quins came down, and the Mon- tagnais went up, to the Sorel. The Montagnais still subsist, but have fallen down the St. Lawrence to the Sagnenay. The Algonqnins and Nipissinga are now represented by the little community at the Lake of the Two Mountains.
1 Mr. Faillon, in his Histoire de la Colonie Francaise (1., pp. 186-40), se- verely criticises Champlain's engag- ing in this war, but there is much to excuse him.
10 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1609. it in vain, landed on Cape Cod ; then continued to range v—- v~— ' the coast, always keeping southward, and at 40° N. discov- Th« Dntch ered a great bay, which he entered. He perceived a river, d. which he ascended for sixty leagues, giving it the name of Manhatte, that of the inhabitants of the country.'
The next year, some merchants of Amsterdam sent ships into this river, to trade there.' In 1615, a fort was built where the city of Manhatte now stands ;' and this whole country assumed the name of New Netherland.' In the course of time the Dutch built Fort Orange, much fur- ther north.' Eichard Blome, the author of " British Amer- ica," pretends that Hudson sold that country to the Dutch, without the consent of the king of Great Britain, his sovereign, but that Samuel Argall, when governor of Vir- ginia, expelled them ; that they obtained of James I. merely liberty to water there on their way from Brazil ; and that since that time they have had no settlement there.' But apart from the improbability of this account,
1 For Hudson's voyages, see Col. have been given by the Dutch from
N. Y. Hist. Soc., series 1, vol. i. ; a tribe living there,
series 2, vols. Landii. ; O'Callaghan's « De Laet, Novus Orbis, p. 70;
New Netherland, i., p. 33. Hon. H. N. Y. Colonial Documents, i., p. 811 ;
C. Murphy, Henry Hudson in Hoi- O'Callaghan, New Netherland, i., p.
land, 1859 ; J. M. Read, Jr., Hist. 68 ; Brodhead's, New York i., p. 44.
Enquiry 1866- He reached the coast ' By Corstiaensen.
at the mouth of the Penobscot. It ' The name New Netherland was
is not stated that he landed on Cape first given after the exploration of
Cod. He went down to the Chesa- Adrian Block, Hendrick Corstiaen-
peake, entered the Delaware, and sen, and Cornells Jacobeen Mey, in
on the 8d of September rounded 1614: O'Callaghan, New Netherland,
Sandy Hook, and entered " The L, p. 72.
Great North River of New Nether- • The fort at Albany was built on
land." Hudson did not call the an island, in 1614 : O'Callaghan,
river Manhattan. It was so called New Netherland, i., p. 76.
In 1614. Menate is an Algonquin • Blome, The Present State of his
word, meaning island, and was the Majesty's lies and Territories in
universal French name for the island America (London, 1687), p. 202. For
where New York stands. It was a discussion of the pretended Argall
also applied to Long Island. Zeis- claim, see Folsom, in New York
berger, Spelling-Book, p. 22. The Historical Collection, ii., p. 333. It
Albany Records (xviii., p. 348), rests on Plantagenet's New Albion
like De Laet (p. 70), make it to (Force's Tracts), ii. p. 18.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 11
the author contradicts himself ; for he immediately says 1609. tint in 1664 commissioners sent by King Charles II. took "-— v--' from them the city of Manhattan, which they called New The Dutch Amsterdam ; and that thirteen years after, Sir Robert Carr took from them the fort and town of Orange, which was afterwards called Albany.'
It is, moreover, certain that the Dutch up to that time possessed a good part of that province ; that they had as neighbors on the west the Swedes, who had called New Sweden what now bears the name of New Jersey ; and that New Netherland subsisted under that name till the reign of Charles II. Then the English, who had often troubled the Dutch there, obliged them to yield it up in exchange for Surinam ; giving, however, private indi- viduals settled there liberty to remain, as most in fact did.' Charles II. gave the domain to the Duke of York, his brother,' and subsequently his successor ; and from that time New Netherland changed its name to New York. Orange was styled Albany ; but as a great many Dutch families remained there, they continued to call it Orange, and the French in Canada give it no other name. Above this city there is a fort and town on the border of the Iro- quois cantons, and called Corlar,' from which these In- dians are accustomed to give the name of Corlar to the governor of New York.
To close this digression, the necessity of which will be seen hereafter, the Dutch, while masters of this province — one of the most fertile in North America — never declared openly against us, as the English have since done on
1 Blome (The Present State) Bays ' March 22, 1664 When Charlea
thirteen dayi, not yean. II. recovered it from Holland In
1 New Netherlaud Burrendered, 1674, he issued a new grant to hi*
Sept. 6, 1664. See Article* of Ca- brother.
pitulation in O'Callaghan, New Neth- • Schenectady, called by the In-
i-rland, 1., p. 532. It was recaptured dians Corlar, from one of the leaden
by the Dutch in 1073, and the next in the settlement in the place, A rend t
year given np in return for Suri- Van Curler, aa to whom tee O'Calla-
nam. ghan'a New Netherland, ii., p. 323.
12 BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
1609. every possible occasion : but by giving arms and ammu- nition to the Iroquois, with whom Mr. de Champlain had unfortunately embroiled himself in behalf of his allies, they enabled those savages to do us great injury, and compelled us to supply the other Indians with fire-arms, of which good policy required that they should not learn the use. We must, however, do Mr. de Champlain the justice to say, that his intention was solely to humble the Iroquois, in order to succeed in uniting all the nations of Canada to our alliance by a solid peace, and that it is not his fault if circumstances which he could not foresee turned events quite differently from what he had believed.
Chun- Be that as it may, he embarked on the river with his allies.' He then entered a river, long known as the River °f *^e Iroquois, because those Indians generally descended it in order to make their inroads into the colony, but which now bears the name of Sorel. After ascending it fifteen leagues, he reached the foot of a rapid' which it was impos- sible to pass in boats. Neither this difficulty, nor the bad faith of the Indians — who had assured him that he could go to the Iroquois without any obstacle — repelled him. He sent back his boat to Quebec, and continued to follow his allies with two Frenchmen, who would not leave him.'
Want of The rapid passed, they began to advance with a little
precaution .
In the war- more precaution. They camped early, and intrenched themselves on the land-side with a strong abatis of trees ; for it is not the Indian custom to fortify on the water- side, as they are never attacked in that direction. Care is taken only to arrange the canoes on the bank of the lake or river ; and the surprise must be complete indeed, if they have not time to embark and get out of peril before the intrenchment is carried. As soon as they have
' He left Quebec with them, May * Now known as the Chambly
28, 1609 : Champlain, Voyages (ed. Rapids.— Charier. Champlain, Voy-
1613), p. 211. The date is really, ages (ed 1613), p. 214 ; Laverdiere'a
however, Jnne. See Laverdiere'g ed., p. 184.
ed., p. 178. • Ib., p. 217.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 13
encamped, it is customary to send oat scouts, but it is al- 1609. most entirely for form's sake. The scouta do not go very far ; and as soon as they return without seeing any thing all rest very quietly. They never think of putting senti- nels at tho entrance of the camp, where no one watches. These savages are daily the dupes of this foolish confi- dence, but they do not correct the error. The Iroquois alone use more circumspection in war, and there is no doubt that it is one of the principal causes of the superi- ority which they have acquired over the enemies who have never yielded to them in valor, and might easily have crushed them by numbers.
Champlain in vain warned his allies of the peril to which i they exposed themselves by such irregular conduct. All of the reply they made him was, that people who had labored all day needed rest at night. Nevertheless, when they thought themselves near the enemy, he induced them to make their scouts more exact in the discharge of their duties, to march only by night, and not light any fires by day. What contributed the more to this security, which so troubled the French, was the confidence of the Indians in their medicine-men, whom Champlain styles Pilotois* and Ostemoy. The first thought of the one who accompanied the army was to make a little cabin of skins, as soon as they landed to encamp. He covered it with the same skin that served him as a garment ; then he entered it, stark-naked, and the warriors came and ranged themselves around him. He began then to utter words unintelligible to all, said to be a prayer to invoke the god of war. A moment after, he announced that the divinity had come at his call, and made known the information which he had received from him. He at last rose ; for all this time he had remained
> Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), p. 221 : Laverdit-re's edition, p. 187.
l>. L'-JO. Their first halt was on St. Pilotois is a Basque word : Biard,
Teresa Island : Laverdiere's edition, Relation (1611), p. 17. The word
p. 186. ottfmoy, given by Leacarbot, aovt-
i Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1618), main, 1* Micmac. : Laverdiire, p. 187.
14 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1609. prostrate on the ground. He cried out ; he worked him-
v— "•« self up ; he seemed beside himself ; and the perspiration
Impostnrea streamed from every part of his body.
of joggien. lj,jie cabiD) to0j sometimes shook ; and those present
never doubted but that this movement was caused by the presence of the spirit. They took great care to call the attention of Mr. de Champlain to this pretended wonder ; but he had seen the medicine-man shake the poles, and laughed at them. They told him, one day, that he was going to see fire come out of the top of the cabin ; but he looked in vain : the fire did not appear. It would perhaps have appeared, had Mr. de Champlain been less attentive ; for these impostors usually take precautions to provide themselves with all needed to light a fire. The language employed in these invocations has nothing in common with any Indian language, and consists probably only in uncouth sounds, produced on the spot by an excited ima- gination, and which these charlatans had succeeded in passing off as a divine language. They take different tones : sometimes they swell their voice ; then counterfeit a shrill, tiny voice, like that of our puppets : and this is supposed to be the spirit addressing them.'
For the most part, just the contrary of what they pre- dict occurs ; but they lose none of their credit on that account, and always find some means of escape to save their honor. It is ever the case, that men so ingenious in deceiving others are surprisingly easy to be themselves deceived on points where it is most important for them to avoid being misled. They are not only never on their guard against illusion, but seem to rush headlong into it. Antiquity, learned and wise, plunged on this point into the same and grosser extravagances than our Indians. The knowledge of the true God, and the incontestable principles of a divine religion, did not shield the chosen people, the depositaries of Truth. It was neither savages
» ChampUin, Voyages (ed. 1613), p. 221.
"S
~l *
mf
V
ftasi
flvnCf cute Fom/nt<)
•yde chis couy
fay* Crrtar
Capte laTfrvnere die Richelieu
Lac C liiiiiii|,uit Jlreffe'e-
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 15
nor infidels who said, "Speak unto us pleasant things: 1609. see errors unto us." (Is. xxx. 10.) "— v— — '
To return to our warriors. All the country which Mr. Lake de ( 'li;i in plain traversed in this expedition seemed to him very beautiful, and is really so. The islands teemed with y stags, fallow-deer, and other like animals, which kept up a bountiful supply for the army. Great numbers of beavers were also seen, the proximity of the Iroquois not permitting hunters to stop long there to take them ; so that, by favor of war, these amphibious creatures en- joyed profound peace. Fish, too, swarmed, not only in the river, but also in a great lake through which it runs, and to which Mr. de Champlain gave his own name, and which still preserves it. It is more than twenty leagues long by ten or twelve wide at the middle, and in shape approaches an oval.1
About the middle of this lake, very high mountains are L«ke St. discovered on the south and west,' the more distant of which, lying some twenty-five leagues off, seem almost perpetually covered with snow. The valleys between them are very fertile, and at the time I speak of were all inhabited by Iroquois.' Now there are none except at the south, and it was there that our warriors designed to make an irruption. On leaving Lake Champlain, another rapid must be passed ; after which you enter a second lake, which is only four or five leagues long, and is called Lake St. Sacrement.' The place to which the Indians wished to go was still further ; but the enemy spared
1 Champlain (Voyage*, ed. 1618, pp. thinks the Hurong meant the Mo-
223-4) says, eighty or one hundred hegann, conquered by the Mohawks:
leagues in extent. Champlain (1613), p. 191.
1 Champlain cays, east and south. « Lake George— in Mohawk, Andi-
What Charlevoix Bays, Champlain atarocte. Champlain gives it no
applies to those on the east (p. 226). name. The French term was given
1 The Indians told Champlaia so by the missionary, Father Isaac
(Voyages, ed. 1013, p. 220), but noth- Jognes : Relation de la Nonvell*
ing seems to sustain it. Larerdiere France <1M8), p. 15.
16 msTcmr OF NEW FRANCE.
1609. them a part of the march, and by mere chance met them
»"~-~ on Lake Champlain. The two For some time the allies daily inquired of the French
meet commander whether he had not seen Iroquois in his dreams. His constant reply in the negative troubled them greatly. At last, whether he wished to relieve their minds, or really dreamed it, from constantly hearing the thing talked of, he told them that during his sleep he thought he had seen Iroquois drowning in the lake, but that he attached no importance to the dream. They did not think so, and no longer doubted of their victory. Some days after, the enemy whom they expected to sur- prise in their village, appeared about ten o'clock in the evening. The joy on both sides was great, and evinced by loud cries.'
Indians never fight on the water, unless surprised or too far from the shore, which was not the case here. Our braves accordingly made for the shore as soon as they saw the position of affairs. Both parties at once set to work to intrench, and this was soon done." Then the Al- gonquins sent to ask the Iroquois whether they wished to fight at once ; but the latter replied that it was too dark, that they could not see each other, and must wait till day- light. The allies agreed, and all slept soundly' after tak- ing due precautions. The next morning, at daybreak, Champlain placed his two Frenchmen and some Indians in the woods, to take the enemy on the flank.' The Iro-
1 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), side by side, tied to poles, so as not pp. 227, 238. He gives his dream as to drift, and to fight all together if real. The place where they found need be ; and we were an arrow- the Iroquois he describee as "au shot (from the shore) towards the bout d'un cap qui advance dans le (deep) water on the side of their bar- lac du costS de 1'occident" (p. 228) ; ricades :" Voyages (ed. 1613), p. 228. 43° and some minutes (p. 232). Fer- > Or rather danced and sang all land thinks it Ticonderoga ; Larer- night : Ib., p. 229. diere, Crown Point. « Champlain says that he and his
* Champlain's allies did not land Frenchmen were each in a canoe of
or erect a barricade. "Oure also the Montagnais, and that they landed
kept all night their canoes ranged in the morning.
HISTORr OF NEW FRANCE. 17
quois were two hundred strong, all picked, determined 1609. men,1 who counted surely on making short work of this handful of Algonquins and Hurons, whom they did not suspect of having taken the field to meet them.
They were, however, mistaken. The allies were not in- They en- ferior to them in numbers, but had allowed only a part of their warriors to be seen. Both sides were as yet armed only with arrows, and those on our side based all their hopes on the fire-arms of the French ; and they recom- mended Champlain to fire at the chiefs, whom they pointed out.' These chiefs, three in number, were dis- tinguished by birds' feathers or tails, of a larger size than those worn by their soldiers ; for all wear them as a gen- eral rule, each one arranging them according to his fancy. The Algouquins and Hurons first sallied from their in- trenchments, and ran two hundred paces towards the Iroquois.' When they came in sight of the enemy, they halted and divided into two bands, leaving the centre free to Mr. de Champlain, who came forward and put himself at their head.4
His figure and arms were something new for the Iro- 0ef«u of quois, whose surprise knew no bounds, when, at the first ^"oiTT shot of his arquebuse, in which he had put four balls, they juiy so. beheld two of their chiefs fall dead, and the third danger- ously wounded. At this first success the allies raised loud cries of joy, and some discharge of arrows followed — not, however, producing any great result. Champlain was about to load again, when, one of the two other French- men having also brought down some Iroquois, all were
1 " Who came slowly towards us • " Marching gome twenty pace*
with a gravity and assurance that ahead till I was within thirty paces
pleased me much." — Champlain. of the enemy, when they perceived
1 Described. me and halted to regard me, and I
i Champlain makes the Iroquois them. As I saw them moving to
come out first (p. 239), and on the fire at as, I raised my arquebuse and
next page says : " As soon as we aimed directly at one of the three
landed, they began to run some two chiefs :" Champlain, Voyages (ed.
hundred paces," etc. 1613), p. 230.
VOL. H.— 2
18 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1609. thrown into disorder and thought only of flight. They v— •~Y— — ' were hotly pursued, several killed, and some made pris- oners. On the side of the allies none were killed, and only fifteen or sixteen wounded, who soon recovered.' The enemy, in their flight, abandoned maize flour, which the victors sadly needed, their provisions having entirely failed. They began by appeasing their gnawing hunger ; then they spent two hours dancing and singing on the battle-field. At last they took up their homeward march ; for among these tribes the victors are on the retreat as soon as the vanquished, and frequently in as great dis- order and haste as if pursued by a victorious enemy.' Cruelty of After eight leagues' march, our braves halted, and tak- Dre' ing one of their captives, reproached him with all the cruelties which he had been guilty of to their clansmen who had fallen into his hands, and told him he must expect similar treatment ; adding, that if he had courage, he would show it by singing. He at once intoned his death-chant, then his war-song, and all others that he knew, but in a sad tone enough, says Champlain, who had yet to learn that all Indian music has a lugubrious strain. His execution, attended with all those horrors of which we shall speak hereafter, amazed the French, who in vain used every effort to arrest it. Nevertheless, after some time, seeing that the French commander was displeased at their want of courtesy, they told him that if he wished to finish the wretch and shorten his sufferings, it was his to say so. One shot from his arquebuse required no second to close the scene.
As soon as the man was dead, the Indians opened him, threw his entrails into the lake, cut off his head,
' Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), « Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613),
p. 281. The third, wounded by p. 232. After giving the latitude of
Champlain, was apparently not a the place, he adds, "and it was
chief ; and he does not say that his named Lake Champlain" (p. 232).
companions shot any, though one The Mohawk name is Caniataga-
fired : ed. 1032, p. 152. rente.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 19
arms, and legs, scattered his limbs on one side and an- 1609. other, without touching the trunk, although it was the «• ' custom to eat at least a part. They kept only the scalp, which they put with the rest, and the heart, which they cut into small pieces and gave to the prisoners to eat. Among these was the dead man's own brother. They put it in his mouth as in the others, but he spat it out at once.'
The next night, a Montagnez having dreamed that they Reception were pursued, the retreat became a perfect flight, and they tagnei in no longer halted anywhere till they were out of all danger. l ' "
The Algonquins remained at Quebec, the Hurons returned home, and the Montagnez to Tadonssac, where Mr. de Champlain followed them.' The moment they discerned the lodges of their village, they cut long poles, on which they tied the scalps which fell to their share, and carried them in triumph. At the sight of this, the women ran out, and jumping into the water, swam out to the canoes. They then took the scalps from their husbands' hands and tied them around their necks. The warriors had offered one to Champlain, and made him a present of some bows and arrows from the Iroquois spoils, the only ones then permitted, begging him to show them to the king on his arrival in France, to which he had told them he was about to sail.'
He had hoped to find a ship at Tadoussac ; but there Champlain being none there, he went up to Quebec. Pontgrav6 arrived there soon after, and they embarked together in the month of September, 1609,' leaving the colony under
> All did : Champlain, Voyage* ' lb., p. 287 ; Sagard, Hist , p. 456. (ed. 1613), p. 234. « Champlain says nothing of not
1 The allies parted company at finding a vessel at Tadouasac. He
Clinml'ly Rapids — the Algonquins went to meet Dnpont Uravu there,
and Hurons going to their own and both went to Quebec together,
country, and Champlain returning put Captain Peter Chavin of Dieppe
with the Montagnais. The panic in command, returned to Tadouswc,
took place just as the Montagnais sailed thence Sept. 6, and arrived at
reached the mouth of the Sorel : Ib , Conquet in Brittany October 8 : Voy.,
p. 236 ; ed. 1682, p. 154. p. 288.
20
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1609.
The name
of New
Franc*
(riven to
Canada.
Cham- plain'g sec- ond expedi- tion against the Iro- quoia.
the orders of Pierre Chavin, a worthy man. Champlain was well received by the king, of whom he had an audi- ence at Fontainebleau, to render an account of the condi- tion in which he had left New France. It was at this time that that name was given to Canada.' Mr. de Monts was making his last efforts, especially with Madame de Guercheville, to recover his privilege. He did not suc- ceed, as I have stated : but his associates, of whom Mes- sieurs le Gendre and Collier were the leading men, did not abandon him ; and as the settlement of Quebec had been made in the name of their company, which always recog- nized him as their chief, he equipped two ships, giving command to Messieurs de Champlain and de Pontgrave.' They embarked at Honfleur on the 7th of March, 1610, but had scarcely gone to sea, when Champlain fell sick and had to be taken ashore. Soon after, his vessel having been forced to put back, he was able to resume command. He weighed anchor' April 8, and on the 26th reached Ta- doussac. He left it on the 28th, after assuring the Mon- tagnez that he was come to fulfil his promise of the year before, to accompany them again in war against the Iro- quois. In fact, they had waited his return to take the field ; and he had scarcely reached Quebec when they
i Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), p. 238 ; but there is not a word about New France in Champlain here, and he gives (p. 163) a commission of 1608 in which the name occurs twice. Charlevoix is clearly in error. The first use of the name known is on the copper globe of Euphrosynus tJlpiug, belonging to Buckingham Smith, esq., dated 1542, in which the country is called Verrazana give Nona Oallia. See Historical Maga- zine, vi., p. 203 ; ix., p. 169. It ap- pears next in Carder's Brief Recit (1545), p. 46, verso : " Hochelaga & Canada, aultrement appellee par nous la nouvelle France ;" and from
Mr. d'Avezac's not noting any vari- ance, the words must appear in all the manuscripts of the second voy- age. Biard (Relation de hi Nou- velle France, Queb. ed., p. 2) ascribes the name to Verrazani. Mr. Fail- Ion (Histoire dela Colonie Francaise, p. 511) discusses the question, but not with his usual felicity.
' Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), pp. 239, 240. Mine, de Guercheville is not mentioned.
1 Charlevoir's date is correct. Champlain says April 18, but the context shows the error. See l.a- verdiere's Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), p. 206.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 21
came in to the number of sixty warriors. The Algonquins 1609. were also in readiness ; and all immediately proceeded *" ""*"• towards Sorel River, where other Indians had promised to assemble. Champlain followed close, in a bark ; bat he did not find the number of warriors that he was led to expect.1
He learned at the same time that a party of one hundred Iroquois was not far off ; and he was told that if he wished to surprise them, there was not a moment to lose — that he must leave his bark and embark in canoes. He consented. Four Frenchmen followed him ; the others remaining to guard the bark. The allies had not paddled for more than half an hour, when they sprang ashore, without a word to the French, and leaving their canoes unguarded, began to run at full speed through the woods. Champlain was greatly embarrassed. He soon lost sight of the In- dians, who had not even given him a guide. He had to march through a swampy tract, where he went into the water at every step. Mosquitos and other like insects blinded him and darkened the air, and there was no beaten path. After running some time at hazard, fearing every moment to lose the way, he knew not what course to take, when he perceived an Indian moving in the same direc- tion. He called him and begged him to be his guide.
Some moments after, an Algonquin chief came to beg The iro- him to quicken his steps, as they were engaging the Ire- qnuck«d. quois. He redoubled his speed, and ere long heard the ' cries of the combatants. Our allies had found the enemy in quite a good intrencliment, and in attempting to force it had been repulsed, with loss. They recovered courage at the sight of the French, and returned to the charge as soon as they came up. The combat became very furious, and Champlain on arriving was struck by an arrow, which pierced the tip of his ear and entered his neck. This wound
1 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), Sorel with the MonUgnaia alone, pp. 241-8. Champlain went to the and met the Algonquin* there.
22 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1610. did not, however, prevent his firing, as long as his powder v— — r— -- and balls lasted ; and his own men supported him well, The iro- although one of them was wounded in the arm. "attacked6 The Iroquois, who were not yet accustomed to defend
'0 themselves against fire-arms, began to slacken their vol- leys, and sought to cover themselves from the arquebuses, which had brought several down ; but our men, who had not counted on so long a resistance, soon ran out of am- munition. Then Champlain proposed to the allies to assault the intrenchment. As they relished the advice, he put himself at their head, with his four Frenchmen, and in spite of the vigorous defence of the besieged, they soon made a pretty wide breach. At this juncture, a young man of St. Malo, named des Prairies, whom Champlain had left in his bark, came up with five or six of his com- rades. This timely re-enforcement enabled the assailants to withdraw a little to rest, while the new-comers kept up a fire on the enemy.
The Indians soon renewed the assault, and the French placed themselves on their wings to support them. The Iroquois could not stand so many redoubled blows. Almost all were killed or taken. Some, in endeavoring to reach the bank of the river, were thrown in and drowned. The affair being completely ended, another party of French came up, who wished to console themselves for having had no share in the victory by sharing the booty. They seized the beaver-skins that covered the Iroquois whom they saw stretched on the ground, and the Indians were shocked at it.1 The latter, on their part, began to wreak their usual cruelties on the prisoners, and devoured one of those who had been killed, which horrified the French. Thus these savages gloried in a disinterested- ness which they were surprised not to find in our nation,
1 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), for taking things from " des mortg
pp. 249-54. He does not say the In- plains de sang, que les sauvages ne
diana were shocked, but that they vonloiSt prtdre la peine de despou-
ridiculed (Be moquoiet) the French iller."
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
23
and could not see that there is much less wrong in strip- 1610. ping the dead than in feeding on their flesh like wild beasts, and violating all the laws of humanity by delight- ing to torment in the most unworthy manner enemies no longer able to defend themselves.
Champlain asked them for one of their prisoners, and they gave one with a good grace.' He also induced the Hurons, who were going back to their own country, to take a Frenchman along, so that he might learn their language ; but it was on condition that he should take to France a young Huron, to bring them back tidings of a kingdom of which so many marvels had been told them. He really took one over the same year,' bringing him back the next spring. He conducted him to Montreal, where he chose a place for a settlement which he designed estab- lishing,' but which he did not begin, being obliged to return to France, where the king's death had completely ruined Mr. de Monts.
That gentleman, by losing his master, lost all his re- The Count maining credit, and was no longer in a condition to under- take any thing. He exhorted Champlain, who had never forsaken him, not to lose courage, and to seek some
1611.
i Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1618), p. 886 ; ed. 1683, pp. 166-44.
• This Indian he subsequently called Salgnon : C'liainplain, Voy- ages (ed. 1618), p. 288 ; Leecarbot, liv. r., c. 5. Champlain, hearing of the death of Henry IV. and trouble* in France, sailed from Quebec, Aug 8, leaving du Pare in command at Quebec, and reached Honfleur, Sept. 87, 1610 : Voyage* (1613), pp. 261- 70 ; Larerdiire, p. 229. On Dec. 29 he signed, at Paris, a contract of marriage with Helen Boulle, daugh- ter of Nicholas Boullt', secretary of the king's chamber — his betrothed being then only twelve years old : Chronique de 1'ordre dee Ursulines ; I Jiverd it-re's Champlain, p. 245. He
sailed again from Honfleur, March 1, 1611 (Voyag., ed. 1613, p. 271) ; Laver- diere's ed., p. 231), and after a voy- age of great danger from icebergs, reached Tadoussac, May 18 (ib., 283), and by the 28th was at Saut St. Louis (ib., 289 ; Laverdlere's ed, p. 244 ; ed. 1632, p. 167).
1 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1613), pp. 285-7. On this occasion he named St. Helen's Island, apparently in honor of his wife; and after meet- ing several bands of Western In- dians, returned to Tadouasac and embarked for France, Aug. 11 (ib., p. 318), and reached Rochelle, Sept. 10, 1611 (Ib., p. 814 : Uverdiere, p. 265 ; ed. 1682, p. 181).
24 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1612-13. powerful protector for his young colony. Yielding to his counsel, Champlain applied to Charles de Bourbon, Comte de Soissons, who received him very favorably, accepted the proposal made to him to become the Father of New France, obtained from the queen-regent all author- ity necessary to maintain and advance what had been already done, and appointed Champlain himself his lieu- tenant, with full, unrestricted power.1 The Princo The death of this prince, soon after, did not disturb
de Condi
succeeds affairs in America, as the Prince de Conde accepted tho position and retained Champlain in the office with which the Count de Soissons had honored him.1 Champlain had, however, some trouble, caused by difficulties made by the St. Malo merchants in regard to trade ; and this kept him in France all the year 1612. He sailed again on the 6th March, 1613, in a vessel commanded by Pontgrave, just returned from Acadia, and they anchored before Que- bec on the 7th of May. They found the settlement in such good condition, that deeming their presence unnecessary, they ascended to Montreal.' After some stay there, Pont- grave descended to Quebec, and Champlain made an ex- cursion on the great river of the Ottawas (Outaouais) ;'
1 Commission, October 15, 1612. and grand master of France, was
Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632), p. made viceroy, Nov. 20, 1612. He was
228. In it the Count de Soissons arrested in 1616. Henry was the
styles himself lieutenant-general in father of the great Conde. Cham-
the country of New France. — Cfiarle- plain, Quatrieme Voyage, pp. 7, 8.
voix. Champlain (ed. 1613), Quatri- Champlain's new commission is dated
erne Voyage, p. 67 ; ed. 1632, p. 209. Nov. 22, 1612. The date of the patent of viceroy to ' Quat. Voyage, pp. 9-12 ; Laver-
Charles de Bourbon, Count de Sois- diere, p. 287.
sons, peer and grand master of « Laverdiere, pp. 13-33. He went
France, is Oct. 8, 1612. Moreau de as far as the Algonquins de 1'Isle,
St. Mery, Lois et Constitutions des commanded by Tessouat, at the pres-
Colonies Francaise, Memoires de la ent De des Allumettes. Ferland,
SocietS Hist, de Montreal, p. 105 ; Cours d'Histoire, p. 164 ; Laverdi-
Laverdiere's Champlain, Voyages ere's Champlain (1613), p. 307. He
(ed. 1613), p. 285. He died, Nov. 1, made the excursion, deceived by
1612, aged forty-seven. Nicholas de Vignau, who pretendod
' Henry de Bourbon II., Prince de to have seen the North Sea. Qua-
CondS, first prince of the blood, peer trit-me Voyage, p. 15.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 26
after which he rejoined Pontgrav6, with whom he em- 1614-15. barked for St. Malo, anchoring there in the latter days of *-"~T~--' August.1
He there concluded a new agreement of association The R«coi- with merchants of that town, Rouen, and Rochelle. The »t Qa«b«c. prince, who had assumed the title of viceroy of New France, approved it, obtained a royal patent for the asso- ciates, and gave it his confirmation. Mr. de Champlain then, feeling no doubt but that a colony in which so many wealthy men had become interested, and which had at its head the first prince of the blood, would soon assume a solid form in the material order, thought seriously of giv- ing it spiritual succor, of which it had been hitherto entirely destitute. He asked and obtained four Recollects,* whom his company joyfully agreed to supply with all necessaries, and he undertook in person to carry them to Canada. They arrived on the 25th of March* at Tadous- sac ; but without stopping there, landed a few days later at Quebec, whence Mr. de Champlain ascended immediately to Montreal.'
There he found Hurons, with some of their allies, who drew him into a third expedition against the Iroquois.' It
' He doe* not mention Pontgrave'. tivoglio, in the name of Pope Paul
He embarked near Bant St. Louie, V., March 20, 1618, and the king's
June 27, in the ship of de Maison- permission, are in Sagard, pp. 12, 18.
neuve, and reached St. Malo, Aug. Le Cleroq, !., pp. 37, 44.
20 : IK. p. 51 ; Laverdiere's ed., p. 822. > They left Honfleor, April 24, and
i Champlain, Voyages, etc., depots arrived May 25, 1610 : Canada Doe.,
1615, jusqu'a la fin de 1818 (Paris, series 2, v. 1., p. 2 ; Sagard, Hist, da
1619), p. 7 ; Laverdiere's Champlain Canada, pp. 12,86 ; Le Cleroq, v. i., p.
(1619), p. 4 ; Sagard, Histoire da 66. Champlain (Voyages, etc., 1619)
Canada, p. 11. Champlain says that has August for April,
he applied for them. Sagard omits • Champlain did not go up in the
all allusion to Champlain in the mat- first boats, but stopped at Quebec :
ter. These first missionaries were Voyages (ed. 1619), p. 10. Father le
Father Denis Jamay. commissary ; Caron went up ahead to Riviere des
Fathers John d'Olbeau and Joeeph Prairies, and said the first Mass
le Caron, with Brother Parificus du offered in Canada, June 24 : Laver-
Plessis: Ib ; Le Cleroq. Etablisse- diere's Champlain (1619), p. 11.
im-nt de la Foi, i., p. 66. The facul- > " The Sieur du Pont and I con.
ties granted by the nuncio, Quy Ben- sidered that it was very necessary to
26 HISTOBY OF NEW FRANCE.
1615. is evident that by this compliance he took the true course ^~Y— ' to gain the friendship of the Indians, and know widely a Ch»m- country where they were about to establish a trade useful expedition to France, and Christianity among a great number of idol- "Iroquois.'* atrous tribes ; but he exposed himself greatly, and did not reflect that this easy condescension to all the wishes of these savages was no way to secure the respect due to the rank with which he was invested. He had, too, duties more important, than thus like a knight-errant trav- ersing forests and lakes with Indians, who did not even maintain courtesy towards him, and by whom he was in no position to make himself feared. He might easily have sent in his stead some Frenchman capable of care- fully observing every thing ; while his own presence at Quebec would have much more advanced the colony, and given it a solidity which he too late repented not having secured to it.
This was not all. Seeing himself obliged to go down to Quebec, he asked the Indians to delay their departure till his return, which would be speedy ; but they, forgetting their promise to him not to start without him, soon wearied of waiting, and set out with some Frenchmen1 who had remained at Montreal, and the Recollect, Father Joseph le Caron.1 This religious wished to avail himself of the opportunity to adapt himself to the mode of life of these nations, to whom he purposed announcing Jesus Christ, and to learn their language more promptly, by putting himself in the necessity of speaking it. Mr. de
assist them, both to oblige them more ' Sagard, Histoire du Canada, p.
to love us and to facilitate my enter- 27. Champlain (Voyages, ed. 1619,
prises and discoveries, which to ap- p. 16) regrets the departure of the
pcarance could not be made but by twelve Frenchmen, as only four or
their means, and also that this would five could handle fire-arms ; and in
be a road and preparation to come such enterprises, " the best are not
to Christianity :" Voyages, pp. 18, too good."
14. Laverdiere's edition (p. 14) de- » Le Clercq, Etablissement de la
fends Champlain against Charlevoir Foi, vol. i., pp. 72-7 ; Sagard, His-
and Faillon. toire du Canada, p. 27.
HI8TOBT OF NEW FRANCE. 27
Champlain, with whom he had come to Montreal, had not 1615. approved his design ; but Father le Caron's zeal blinded >—»•—' him to all other considerations.'
Mr. de Champlain might have considered himself re- HOW to «* leased from his engagement ; and his experience should dun*, have taught him, that to secure the esteem of these bar- barians, it is good not to allow them to despise us with impunity. You must even, outwardly, give contempt for contempt, if you would repress their insolence. They do ( not understand acting otherwise from virtuous motives — I mean such as are not enlightened by the truths of the • gospel. As they often see Europeans act solely from interest or still more censurable motives, it seldom occurs to them that any consideration can be entertained for them from more noble views. Moreover, there are no men in the world more prejudiced in their favor, or capable of profiting by every thing to be confirmed in this good opinion which they have of themselves. The only thing, then, that can here excuse Mr. de Champlain for running after the Hurons, who did not deign to wait for him, is to say, that he did it apparently not to abandon to their dis- cretion a religious whom his zeal rather than his prudence had induced to follow them.
Be that as it may, he embarked with two Frenchmen chunpUin and ten Indians, whom he found on arriving at Montreal ;' »nd°m»k«» but using all diligence, he overtook the Hurons only at their village.' He found them forming a large war-party, of which they offered him the command ; and he accepted it the more readily, as, besides the two Frenchmen who had come with him, Father Joseph had brought ten4 others,
i Champlain, Voyage* (ed. 1619), p. the bear tribe), aa Champlain here
11, reno, 12 ; Laverdiftre's ed., p. calls them, which he reached wa>
18; Le Cleroq, Eublissement de la OtoOacha — probably Toanche (La-
Foi, i., p. 73. verdit're, p. 26)— where he arrived,
• July 9, 1615 : Voyages (ed. 1619), August 1, by the way of the Ottawa
p. 17. and Lake Nlpisalng : Ib., p. 84,
1 The first Tillage of the Horona, verso,
or Attigonantan (Attignaonantan, • Twelve : Laverdiere's Cham-
28
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1615.
who awaited him. Without delay they inarched on the enemy,1 who were so intrenched that it was not easy to approach them. Besides occupying a kind of fort, quite well constructed, they had obstructed the approaches by great abatis of trees, and had raised galleries around from which they could fire down on an enemy without exposing themselves. Accordingly, the first attack succeeded so ill, that it was not deemed expedient to try a second."
They next attempted to set fire to the abatis of wood, in hope that the flames would reach the fort ; but the be- sieged had provided for this by laying in a great supply of water. A machine was then prepared higher than the galleries, on which the French arquebusiers were stationed.
plain (1019), p. 19. The Hurons as- sembled their forces at Cahiague, a palisaded town (p. 26).
' They crossed the Severn near its month, went up Lake Simcoe and Talbot River, and thence by a port- age passed to Balsam Lake, and de- scended the chain of lakes and the Otonabee and Trent to Quinte1 Bay, where they reached Lake Ontario (Lac dee Entonohonorons), in view of the Thousand Isles. Compare Fer- land,Cours d'Hiet.,i., p. 174 ; Cham- plain, pp. 31-5 ; Parkman, Pioneers of France ; Langton in Trans. Lit: and Hist. Soc. Quebec, new series, part ii., p. 68. They crossed the lake, a distance of fourteen leagues, and then concealing their canoes, marched twenty-fi ve or thirty leagues inland.
1 The Entouohonorons were in a town with four palisades. Cham- plain describes his attack, the mak- ing of a cavalier, his own wounds, and the misconduct of the Hurons : Voyages (ed. 1019), pp. 87-47. The siege lasted from Oct. 10 to Oct. 17. See N. T. Doc. History, p. Ill, for a translation of Cham plain's narrative, his map, and view of the Entwoho-
noron town. Historians differ as to their identity. Mr. Ferland (p. 174), Laverdiere (Champlain, 1019, p. 83), and Parkmau (Pioneers, p. 375), suppose them to be the Sen- ecas ; but the Chot/ontouarofion (evi- dently Chonontouaronon), a tribe ly- ing between the Hurons and Entwo- honorons (Champlain, Voyages, 1619, p. 30), are more probably the Sonon- touaronon or Senecas ; and it is hard- ly safe to identify the Senecas with the Entwohonorons, as the first step in locating the town. The Entwo- honoron had been compelled to re- move some forty or fifty leagues (p. 79), and are perhaps the Wenroronon subsequently driven by the Iroquois across into Canada. Marshall, fol- lowed by Brodhead and Clark, makes the town near Lake Onondaga ; O'Callaghan and Parkman, Lake Canandaigua. Sagard, unfortunate- ly, had not access to papers to give le Caron's account of this wintering with the Hurons, and he seldom al- ludes to Champlain. In his diction- ary (Verbo Nations) he has Les Yro- qnois, Sontouhoironon, Aguierho- non, Onontagueronon, but does not allude to the Entonohonoron.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 29
This manoeuvre disconcerted the enemy somewhat, and 1615. they would perhaps have succeeded in reducing them, had '— -v^-' the Hurons done their duty ; but their great number had rendered them so presumptuous, that it was never pos- sible for the commander to make them fight in order. Moreover, he was severely wounded in the leg and knee ; and this accident having made the Indians pass from an excess of presumption to discouragement, they had to retire with loss and shame.
The retreat was quite well made, and although they ue is o\>i\g- were pursued, not a man was lost. The youngest and "ViuTth?' bravest had placed the weakest and the wounded in the HaroM- middle, the latter carried in baskets ; and in this way they mode twenty-five leagues without stopping.' Mr. de Champlain was soon cured ; but when he wished to start back to Quebec, he could never obtain a guide, as he had been promised, and with whom he could not at all dis- pense. The Hurons even added insolence to their refusal.1 He had therefore to make up his mind to winter with these savages ; but no one was better able to adopt his own course or turn all to account. He visited all the Huron towns, and some of those which the Algonquin* then had in the neighborhood of Lake Nipissing. He reconciled some neighboring nations with the Hurons ; and as soon as the rivers were navigable, learning that they wished him to engage in a new expedition against the Iroquois, he gained some Indians whom he had attracted by his kind manners, and embarking secretly with them and Father Joseph, arrived at Quebec, July 11, 1616,' where all had given him and the Recollect Father up for dead. While Mr. de Champlain had been engaged in his excur- sions to learn the condition of the country, Father Joseph
1 Champlain. Voyages (ed. 1619), July 0 : Canada Doc., ii., pp. 1, 8.
r 47. Sagard (Hirtoire da Canada, p. 81)
• lb., p. 48. saji le Caron left the Huron village,
» Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1619), May 20, bnt does not mention Cham-
p. 115. The Recollect Memorial eayt plain.
30 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1617. had also gone from village to village to lay the plan of the '-"~T~^' missions which he proposed to establish among the Hurons, and he had turned every moment to profit in studying the language. But he had no time to make great progress, this study not being a matter of one or two years, give it what application you will.1
A Recollect Mr. de Champlain and Father Joseph did not remain over a month at Quebec after their return. They em-
v1c«"toBth8 barked,' with the Superior of the Mission, to return to colony. J1ranc6) and there remained in the colony only one priest, Father John d'Olbeau, and Brother Pacificus Duplessys, who had been appointed to instruct the children of the French and Indians recently settled at Three Rivers, and where he rendered, the next year, a still more essential service to New France. Our allies, by I know not what discontent, had plotted to make away with the French. It seems evident, however, that they came to this resolve only in their fear that Mr. de Champlain, just returned from France," would take summary vengeance for the death of two settlers' whom they had murdered, perhaps to rob. The fact is, that they assembled at Three Eivers, to the number of eight hundred,' to deliberate on the means of cutting off all the French at once ; that Brother Pacificus was warned of their design by one of them ; that he gained several others ; that he gradually brought all the rest to take steps towards a perfect reconciliation, and that he undertook to negotiate with the commandant.
i AB to le Caron's Huron mission, Histoire du Canada, p. 31 ; Le Cleroq,
Bee Sagard, Histoire du Canada, pp. Etablissement, i., p. 100.
27-80, briefly, and le Cleroq, Etab- ' Champlain sailed from Honfleur,
liasement, i., pp. 72-88. Le Caron May 24, 1618 (p. 122), and reached
returned in March, 1617, and cele- Quebec, June 27 (p. 138).
brated the first marriage with the « A locksmith and Charles Pillot,
usual ceremonies ; the parties being killed in April, 1617. The lock-
Stephen Jonqnest and Anne Hebert : smith had beaten an Indian, who
Sagard, p. 41. killed him and his companion in re-
* July 20. They reached Honfleur, venge.
Sept. 10, 1616 : Champlain, Voyages, • Sagard, Hist, du Canada, p. 42.
1615-8 (ed. 1619), p. 178 ; Sagard, He gives no date to the Indian plot.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
31
Meanwhile, Mr. de Champlain insisted on having the mur- 1617. derere of the two Frenchmen. They sent him one, and he the least guilty, with much furs to cover the dead.1 They had to accept this kind of satisfaction : the thing was arranged, and the Indians gave two of their chiefs as hostages.*
Champlain did nothing scarcely but go and come be- Th» colony tween Quebec and France,' to obtain supplies, which were seldom furnished to the extent he called for.4 The court took no interest in New France, leaving it in the hands of individuals of limited views, with no other object but trade, who sought only to fill their stores with furs, cared very little for all else, making but reluctantly advances for settlements in a colony in which they took no interest, and seldom making them in season.' The prince thought he did much in lending his name ; and besides the troubles of the regency, which then cost him his liberty, and the in- trigues set on foot to deprive him of his title of viceroy* and annul the commission of Marshal de Tin-mines — to whom he had confided Canada during his imprisonment/ — the want of concert among the associates, the commer- cial jealousy which embroiled the merchants with one another, — all these often threatened to smother the young
1 That is to gay, indemnify the relative*.— Charltwiac. At to this transaction, see Champlain (ed. 1619), pp. 183-87; Sagard, Histoire, pp. 42-5.
1 Two boys, Nigamon and Tebachi, were given : Le Clercq, Etablisse- ment, i . p. 122 ; Champlain, p. 187.
> He sailed from Quebec, July 26, 1618, and reached Honfleur, 28th August: Voyages 1615-6, pp. 167, 168. The Recollecte Paul and Pa- cificus accompanied them : Ib. ; 8a- gard, Histoirv, p. 49.
4 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1682\ p. 110 ; Le Clercq, Etabliasement de la Foi, i., pp. 108-11.
• Sagard, Histolre du Canada, p.
82 ; Le Clercq, Etabliasement de la Fol, i., pp. 96, 169-71 ; Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632), pp. 217, 218.
• The Prince de Condu was arrest- ed by Thlmlnes, at the Louvre, in September, 1616, and confined three years at Vincennes. Themines was made marshal of France.
' Marshal Pons de Lausi£re.Th£- mines-Cardaillac. He obtained the rank of king's lieutenant in New France from the queen regent. He died governor of Brittany, Nov. 1, 1627, aged seventy-four. Champlain explains how Tht'mines came to ob- tain the position, and he considered it as held only during Condi's im- prisonment
32 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1620, i colony in its cradle.' And we cannot too greatly admire the courage of Mr. de Champlain, who could not take a step without meeting fresh obstacles, who expended his own energies without ever dreaming of seeking any real personal advantage, and who never renounced an enter- prise for which he had constantly to endure the caprices of some and the opposition of others.
In 1620 the prince, for eleven thousand crowns, trans- renoi'v'ioo- ferred his viceregalty to his brother-in-law, the Marshal de rofcran<*ew Montmorenci.' The new viceroy retained Champlain as lieutenant, and confided the management of the colonial affairs in France to Mr. Dolu, the grand audiencier, whose zeal and probity he knew. Then Champlain, satisfied that New France was about to assume another aspect, took out his family. He arrived in the month of May,1 and found at Tadoussac Rochelle traders, who, to the damage of the company and against the express orders of the king, were trading with the Indians. They had even done worse, for they had sold these savages fire-arms, a thing previously wisely avoided.'
The iro- " The next year the Iroquois appeared in arms in the very centre of the colony. These savages, fearing that ch co- should the French multiply in the country, the Hurons lony- and Algonquins by their aid would regain their superiority over the league, resolved to free themselves of the French before they had time to fortify themselves more strongly. They accordingly raised three large parties to attack us separately. The first marched towards Sault St. Louis, where they found some Frenchmen guarding the passage. They had been warned, and though few in number, with the help of some Indian allies, they repulsed the enemy.
1 Advis an Roy BUT lea Affaires de ' Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632),
la Nouvelle France, p. 7. part it, p. 1.
• The Duke de Montmorency held • Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632),
the position till 1624. He joined part it., p. 2. The Recollect convent
Oaston in his revolt against I/ouU at Quebec was founded this year
XIII., was taken at the battle of Cas- (1020), June 3, and dedicated to Our
telnaudary, and executed, Oct. 30, I-ady of the Angels : Memorial, p. 4 •
1632. Sagard, Hist., p. 56. But see p. 50.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 33
Several Iroquois were killed ; some remained prisoners ; 1622. the rest escaped. Our men, however, learning that these fugitives were carrying off the Recollect Father, William Poulain, gave chase. Unable to overtake them, they re- leased one of their prisoners, giving him his liberty, and charging him to propose the exchange of the missionary for one of their chiefs. This man arrived at the moment when all preparations were made to burn the religions. The proposition which he bore was accepted, and the ex- change made in good faith.1
The second company embarked in thirty canoes, ap- The c»n«u preached Quebec, and proceeded to invest the Recollect convent on the St. Charles River, where there was a little fort. Not daring to attack this place, they fell on some Hurons not far off, surprised several, and burnt them. They then ravaged the neighborhood of the convent and retired.' The memoir from which I draw this does not say what became of the third party, but it adds that the Iroquois had sufficiently declared their intention to exter- minate all the French. Mr. de Champlain was far from having sufficient strength to repress these savages. Hence he deemed it his duty to lay before the king and the Duke de Montmorenci the necessity of relieving the colony, and the disregard shown to that time by the company of his repeated instances to induce them to fulfil their obliga- tions. He accordingly, with the consent of the most not- able inhabitants, deputed Father George le Baillif to his majesty, to whom that religious was personally known. He was very well received by the king, and obtained all he asked.' The company was suppressed, and two private individuals, William de Caen and his nephew, Emeric de Caen, entered on all their rights.4
1 Le Clercq, Etnbliasement de la ' Sagard, Higtoire da Canada, p.
Km, i., )>. 206. The event belongs 72 ; Le Clercq, EUbllssement, i., p.
evidently to 1622. Sagard makes 170. Both give the address, dated
no allusion to the circumstance, but August 18, 1621, with the letter to
notes Poulain's arrival in 1619 (p. 49). the king.
• Ib . p. 209. • This new company, called the VOL. It. —3
34 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1623-25. Mr. de Champlain learned the fact by a letter of the *-~Y— ' viceroy, who enjoined him to sustain these merchants Bute of duly.1 He at the same time received a letter from the king himself, by which his majesty assured him that he was well satisfied with his services, and exhorted him to give continued proofs of his fidelity.1 This favor did not increase his fortune — and it may in truth be said that this was what least occupied his mind — but it gave him an authority needed more than ever then, especially on account of differences arising daily between the factors of the old company and those of the Sieurs de Caen, and which might lead to unpleasant results. With all the efforts made to people Quebec, it could number in 1622 only fifty souls, including women and children.' Commerce was not very open ; but a successful trade was always carried on at Tadoussac, and another had been opened at Three Rivers, twenty-five leagues above Quebec. | William de Caen came to the spot himself, and although It!fl£n » Calvinist, he lived quite well with all. He had confided the direction of his affairs to the Sieur de Pontgrave, but that director's health obliged him to return to France in 1623.4 This was a real loss to New France, which owes much to him. The same year, Mr. de Champlain was warned, on good authority, that the Hurons were thinking of abandoning our alliance and joining the Iroquois.*
Montmorency company, consisted of » Sagard says (Histoire, p. 166) : William and Ezechiel de Caen and " All things considered, all the build- William Robin, merchants ; Francis ings of New France consisted of the de Troyes, president of the treas- little fort, the merchants' house, urers of France at Orleans ; Jacques Widow Hebert's house, and our little de Troyes, merchant ; Claude le convent." Champlain (Voyages, ed. Ragois, Arnould de Nouveau, Pierre 1632, p. 76) says that when he left de Verton, and Francis Herve : Fer- Quebec, in 1624, it had only fifty-one land, Coure d'Histoire, i., p. 200. inhabitants.
1 This was done in 1621 : Mont- « Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632),
morency to Champlain, Feb. 2, 1621, part ii., p. 62.
In Champlain (ed. 1632), part ii., p. 8, • Champlain (ib., p. 54) speaks of a
and le Clercq, Elablissement de la plot to cut the French off. Le Clercq
Foi, i., p. 172. (Etab., i., p. 247) speaks of fears that
» Champlain (ed. 1632), part ii., p. 8. the Hurons would join the Iraquois.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 36
This obliged him to send back to them Father Joseph le 1623-15. Caron, whom Father Nicholas Viel and Brother Gabriel Saghart,1 who had just arrived from France, chose to accompany. The next year the commandant built the fort of Quebec with stone.' He apparently designed to put an end to his travels, and devote himself entirely to the government of his colony ; but he had scarcely fin- ished the fort, when he returned to France with hia family.' He found the Marshal de Montmorenci negoti- ating a sale of his viceroyalty to his nephew, Henry de Levi, duke de Ventadour,' and a bargain was soon struck.
This gentleman had retired from court, and had even TheDuk* taken holy orders. It was not to plunge anew into worldly turmoil that he took the direction of the affairs of New France, but to effect the conversion of the Indians ; and as his spiritual directors were Jesuits, he looked to them to carry out his project. He laid the matter before the king in council ; and his majesty assented the more willingly, as the Recollect Fathers, far from opposing it, had first opened the matter to the Duke de Ventadour. All then concurring to the same end, Father Charles Lal- lemant, who had accompanied Mr. de la Saussaye to Pentagoet ; Father Enemond Masse, of whom we have al- ready spoken ; and Father John de Brebenf,' with two lay
1 Brother Gabriel Sagard Th.'-odat > Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1682),
ia the historian, author of the His- pp. 75, 76. He left Quebec, Aug. 15,
toire du Canada (Paris, 1636, 1865), and reached Dieppe, Oct. 1. Emery
and the Grand Voyage da Pais dee de Caen was left in command.
Huron* (Paris, 1632, 1865). He left « Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1682),
Pari» with Father Viel, March 18, pp. 77,78; Sagard, Histolre, p. 862.
1624 (Grand Voyage, p. 6 ; Histoire, The Duke de Ventadoor obtained hi*
p. 113), and reached Quebec, June patent, March, 1625 (Champ^ 1638, p.
28 (Champlain, Voyages, 1632, p. 54). 78), and held the viceroyalty till June,
He mentions their departure without 1627, when he resigned : Memoires
assigning the cause here given by de la Soc. Hist, de Montreal, p. 107.
Clmrlcvuii (Grand Voyage, p. 41 ; Montmorenci left his name to a fall
Histoire, pp. 158, 174.) and Levi to a point near Quebec.
' He collected materials and began ' Creuxius, Historia Canadensis,
the work : Voyages (ed. 1632), p. 75. p. 5 ; Lalemant, Relation (1625), p. 5;
36 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1623-25. brothers, were assigned to the Canada mission, and in 1625 were ready to sail.
William de Caen took them to Quebec, and with them "nada. * the Recollect Father Joseph de I)aillon, of the illus- trious house of du Lude.1 He gave his word to the Duke de Ventadour that the Jesuits should want for nothing ; yet as soon as they landed he told them, that if the Recollect Fathers would not receive and lodge them in their house, there was no alternative but to return to France. They even perceived, ere long, that pains had been taken to prejudice the inhabitants of Quebec against them, by circulating among them the most violent things published by the Calvinists of France against their society. But their presence soon effaced all these preju- dices, the libels were publicly burned, and the new mis- sionaries were not long a burden to the Recollects, who had obliged them to accept their house, then less than a quarter of a league from the town, on the St. Charles River.'
Tragical A few days after their arrival, Fathers de Daillon and Recollect de Brebeuf embarked for Three Rivers, where they met Father. g^^g w^o offered to take them to their country. The two missionaries had left Quebec solely with this view, and were preparing to avail themselves of the oppor- tunity offered, when news came that caused them to re- trace their steps.' Father Nicholas Viel, the Recollect, after spending nearly two years among the Hurons, desired to make a visit to Quebec, in order to spend some time in retirement there. Some Indians, preparing to make the
Le Clercq, Etablissement de la. Foi, « The site ia now occupied by the
i., pp. 297-304. general hospital. — Chart. Ferland,
1 Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1032), Coursd'Hiatoiredu Canada,!., p. 188.
p. 84 ; Sagard, Hist-oire du Canada, Le Clercq (i., p. 311) says the Jesuits
p. 862 ; Lalemant, Relation de hi remained in that house two years —
Nouvelle France (1625), j>. 5. The parts of 1625-6, apparently.
Recollect's name is given by Sagard, ' Sagard, Histoire du Canada, p.
Joseph de la Roche Daillon (p. 564) ; 868 ; Lalemant, Relation (1625), p.
by le Clercq (Etablissement, i., p. 5 ; Creuzius, Historia Canadensis,
304), Joseph de la Roche d'Allion. p. G.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 37
same voyage, offered him a place in their canoe, which he 16261 accepted. Instead of taking the ordinary route, they fol- '-•"* "•-" lowed the channel which separates Montreal Island and Isle Jesus, and which is commonly called Riviere des Prairies. Midway in this channel is a rapid ; but the Indians, instead of landing and making what is called a portage, endeavored to shoot it with their canoe. Whether they did it unskilfully or intentionally, the canoe capsized. Father Viel and a young convert who accompanied him were drowned. From this accident the rapid received the name of Sault au Recollect (the Recollect's Rapid), which it still retains. As all the Hurons escaped, and had, it was said, seemed ill-disposed towards the missionary, there were strong suspicions that the capsizing was not accidental ; the more so as the savages seized the best part of the good Father's baggage. Be that as it may, there was no one at Three Rivers who was not of opinion that Fathers de Daillon and de Brebeuf should postpone their voyage for a time.1
The next year, tnree Jesuits, Fathers Philibert Noyrot, The Jesuit* Anne de Noue, and a brother, arrived at Quebec on a small vessel which they had chartered, and on which they brought over some mechanics.' By this help Quebec assumed the form of a town ; for till then it was a mere
1 Sagard (Htatolre du Canada, pp. In.'.l . xii., p. 130: Creuxius, Hint.
808, 874) mentions the death of Father Canad., p. 8. Champlain sailed from
Vlel incidentally, but gives node- France. April 20, 1626, with the
tails. Father Lalemant does the Recollect le Caron (ib., p. 86). He
same in a letter, July 38, 1635 : So- found that absolutely nothing had
gard, Hixtoiro du Canada, p. 868 ; been done in his absence. He im-
Le Clercq, Etablissement, i., p. 312. mediately set to work. In 1627,
(LeCleroqgivesmoredetall,i.,p.321); Fathers de Brebeuf, de Noue, andde
Le Jeune, Relation (1684), p. 92. la Roche went to the Hurons : 8a-
' Tln-y brought over, in 1626, gard, Histoire du Canada, p. 874 ; twenty mi-chanics, with provisions, Lalemant, Relation (1626), p. 8 ; Let- chartering a vessel of eighty tons ter of August 1, 1626. The last for three thousand five hundred named penetrated to the Attiwan- livre* : Champlain, Voyages (ed. daronk or Neuters, a tribe lying 16:52', p. 86. Noyrot returned almost on both sides of the Niagara. See immediately : Lalemant, Letter of his interesting letter : Sagard, His- August 1, 1686, in Canyon, Doc- toire, p. 880 ; Le Cleroq, i., p. 346.
38 H1STOBT OF NEW FRANCE.
1627. habitation, and not called by any other name.' The ex- v-~-' perience and talent of Father Enemond Masse for a new settlement — of which, according to the memoirs of Cham- plain and Lescarbot, he had given marked proofs at Port Koyal — contributed greatly ; but he and his associates soon found, on the St. Lawrence, the opposition which they had experienced in Acadia, and which cost France that province. Mr. de Ventadour, learning from some Catholics of Quebec the misconduct of William de Caen towards these missionaries, wrote to him in a tone which greatly mortified him. He did not doubt but that those who had been the occasion and subject of these com- plaints had themselves drawn these reproaches on him ; and the retaliation fell on them.
Wretched On the other hand, the Indians continued to give great e uneasiness. They had again assassinated colonists, and &s the French were not strong enough yet to demand satisfaction, impunity rendered the savages more inso- lent, so that settlers were no longer sure of their lives if they went the least distance from their houses. Such was the condition of the colony when Mr. de Champlain re- turned to Quebec in 1627.' The buildings had not pro- gressed in his absence, and the cleared lands remained for the most part untilled. The partners of the Sieurs de Caen thought only of the fur-trade, and minds grew daily more exasperated in regard to religion. All this, pictured warmly to the king's council, induced Cardinal Eichelieu to put the commerce of New France into other hands, and to hearken to the proposition made him to form a com- pany of one hundred associates on a plan laid before him.*
' This \B exaggerated. Lalemant de 1'Incarnation, p. 589 ; Faillon.
gives the whole number of French in Histoire de la Colonie Fran<;aise, i.,
the colony as forty-three. The col- p. 223.
onists introduced by the Jesuits were « This should be 1626. See note 2,
soon compelled to return, and Que- p. 87 ; Crenxius, Hist., p. 9. bee was not called a city till 1663 : » A great company, called the Mor
Lettree Uistoriques de la M. Marie bihan Company, was projected, but
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 39
Nothing was ever better devised, and I do not hesitate 1627. to assert that New France would now be the most power- ^—~r~~' ful colony in America, had the execution corresponded Company of with the beauty of the project, and had the members of that great body profited by the favorable disposition of the sovereign and his prime minister. The memoir pre- "** °°lon'' sented to Cardinal de Richelieu by Messieurs de Roque- April ». jni'iit, Houel, de Lattaignant, Dablon, du Chesne, and Castillon, agreed — 1st. That in the ensuing year, 1628, the associates would send over to New France two or three hundred mechanics of all trades ; and before the year 1643 they promised to increase the number of inhabitants to sixteen thousand ;' to lodge, support, and supply them with every thing for three years ; then to assign them as much cleared lands as would be necessary for their sup- port, and to furnish grain to sow. 2d. That the settlers should be native-born Frenchmen and Catholics, and that care should be taken that no foreigner or heretic entered the country. 3d. That in each settlement there should be at least three priests, whom the Company undertook to supply absolutely with all required for themselves in per- son or their ministry for fifteen years, after which they might subsist by means of the cleared lands assigned to them. To compensate the Company for all this expense — 1st. The king assigned to the associates and their repre- sentatives, forever, the fort and habitation of Quebec ; all the country of New France, including Florida, which his majesty's predecessors had settled ; all the course of the Great River and the streams emptying into it, or which in that extent of country reach the sea ;' the islands, ports, harbors, mines, according to the ordinance, fisheries, etc. : his majesty reserving only the right of fealty and homage,
never received a legal existence : aand : Creurius, Historia Canadenaii,
Bergeron, Traitii de la Navigation ; p. 15; Mercure Fran<;ai«, xiv.. part
Ferland, Coura d'Histoire, L, p. 2, p. 232 ; Memoire del Comnii*-
232. sain*, ii., p. 464.
1 The real Dumber was four thou- ' Its western limit wag Lake Huron.
40 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1627. with a gold crown of eight marks' weight at each change of king, and support for the officers of supreme justice, to be named and presented by the said associates when it should be deemed proper to establish them ; power to cast cannon, build fortified places, forge all kinds of arms offensive and defensive, and do generally every thing necessary for the safety of the country and the preserva- tion of trade. 2d. His majesty conceded to them the right to grant lands in such quantity as they deemed expedient ; to give them such titles, honors, rights, and power as they chose, according to the qualities, condition, and merit of the person, with such charges, reservations, and conditions as should be deemed just ; but that in case of the erection of duchies, marquisates, countships, and baronages, letters of confirmation should be taken out from the king, on the presentation of Cardinal de Richelieu, grand master, chief, and superintendent of the trade and commerce of France. 3d. That the associates might enjoy, fully and peaceably, what was granted them, his majesty revoked all conces- sions made of said lands, ports, or portions thereof ; he granted to the associates in perpetuity the trade in leather, skins, and furs ; and for fifteen years only — commencing January 1, 1628, to the last of December, 1643 — all other trade by land or sea, made in any manner whatever, in the extent of said country and as far as it might extend, ex- cepting only the cod and whale fishery, which his majesty wished to be free to all his subjects ; revoking all conflict- ing concessions, and especially the articles granted to "William de Caen, interdicting for the said time all trade granted either to the said de Caen and his associates or others, under penalty of confiscation of the vessels and goods to the profit of the Company, unless Cardinal de Richelieu should give leave, passport, or permission to any one for all the places mentioned. 4th. The king intended, nevertheless, that the French settled in the same parts, who were neither supported nor maintained at the expense of the Company, shoxild be at full liberty to trade
BIBTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 41
with the Indians for furs, on condition that they sold their 1627 beaver-skins only to the factors of the Company, -who should be obliged to buy them at forty sous tournois a skin, if good and well-conditioned, with a prohibition against their selling to others under pain of confiscation. 5th. The king agreed to present to the associates two ships of war of two or three hundred tons each, but without sup- plies ; that if these vessels should in any way whatever be lost, the Company should replace them at its own expense, except in case of their being taken by the king's enemies in open war. 6th. In case the Company failed to send over, in the first ten years, fifteen hundred French of both sexes, it was agreed that it should refund to his majesty the estimated cost of the outfit of the two ships of war ; and that, if in the remaining years it again failed to send over the stipulated number of men and women, except in case of capture of ships by the enemy, the Com- pany was to make the same restitution, and be deprived of the trade granted it by the present articles. 7th. The king permitted it to embark on the said vessels such cap- tains, soldiers, and sailors as it chose : on condition, how- ever, that the captains, on its recommendation, should take their commissions or authority from his majesty, aa should, too, the commandants of posts and forts, already erected or to erect, in the extent of the countries granted. As to the other vessels employed by the associates, they might give command to such persons as they deemed proper, in the usual manner. His majesty also gave the Company four bronze culverins, heretofore granted to the Molucca Company.
The king did not limit his favors and precautions here. To excite his subjects to emigrate to New France, and es- tablish all kinds of manufactures there, his majesty de- clared— 1st. That all those mechanics whom the Company agreed to send over should be reputed master mechanics, if they chose to return after plying their trade and busi- ness there for six years, and should be privileged to keep
42 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1617. open shop in Paris and other cities on their bringing back an authentic certificate of their service ; and for this pur- pose there should annually, at each embarkation, be filed in the Office of the Admiralty a list of those sent to New France by the Company. 2d. That as goods, of whatever quality, coming from said countries, and especially those manufactured there, would be the fruits of French indus- try, they should for fifteen years be free from all imposts and subsidies, although transported and sold in the king- dom ; that likewise all munitions of war, provisions, and other necessaries for victualling and embarking, to be made for New France, should enjoy the same exemptions and franchises during the said term of fifteen years. 3d. That it should be lawful for all persons, of any rank whatever, —ecclesiastics, nobles, officers, and others, — to enter the said Company without compromising the privileges granted to their orders ; that those of the Company might, at their discretion, admit to the association those who presented themselves ; that if any were not noble by extraction, his majesty would ennoble to the number of twelve, who should thereafter enjoy all privileges of nobility, which should descend to their children born or to be born in lawful wedlock ; that for this purpose his majesty would furnish the said associates twelve patents of nobility, signed, sealed, and issued with names in blank, to be filled with those of the said twelve associates, and that these Letters Patent should be distributed by the Cardinal Grand Master to those who should be presented by the Company. 4th. That the descendants of the French settled in said country, and the Indians who should be brought to the knowledge of the faith and make profession thereof, should be deemed and reputed native Frenchmen, and as such should be allowed to come and reside in France, at their option, and there acquire, dispose by will, and take by de- vise, bequest, and gift in the same manner as real natives of the kingdom and Frenchmen born, without being held to take out any letters of declaration or naturalization.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 43
In fine, the king promised, in case any civil or foreign 1628. war occurred to prevent the fulfilment of the present ar- ticles, to grant the associates such further delay as his council should deem meet ; to issue and ratify in the proper office all letters necessary for the execution of the preced- ing articles, and in case of opposition to their verification liis majesty reserved cognizance thereof to himself. Louis XIII. closed by saying, that if the associates, in the course of time, found it necessary to explain or amplify any of the articles, or add new ones, relief should be provided, according to the exigency, on their remonstrance ; that they should also be at liberty to draw up such articles of associa- tion, rules, and ordinances as they deemed necessary for the maintenance of their society ; which articles, rules, and ordinances being approved by the grand master, authorized by his majesty, and duly registered, should be thereafter inviolably observed according to their form and tenor, as well by the said associates as by those already settled and to settle thereafter in New France.
These articles were signed April 19, 1627,' by Cardinal de Bichelieu and by those who had presented the project. The king approved them by an edict dated in the month of May, in the camp before Bochelle ; and this edict explains in the greatest detail what I have just given in brief. This done, the Duke de Ventadour resigned into his majesty's hands his rank of viceroy. The company, which took the name of the Company of New France, soon numbered one hundred and seven associates, of whom Cardinal de Riche- lieu and Marshal Defiat, superintendent of finances, were the chief. The Commander de Razilli, Mr. de Champlain, the Abb6 de la Magdelaine, and several other persons of condition, entered into it. The rest were made up of able and wealthy merchants, and of the principal burghers of Paris and other commercial cities.' In fine, there was
1 Mcrcurc Fnun;ais, ziv., p. 288 ; toire de la Colonie Franchise, p. 228. Edits d Ordonnance8, i., p. 6. AH to » A list is given in Creozios, His- an error in the last, see Faillon, His- toria Canadensis. Among others is
44 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1628. every reason to hope that New France was about to be- come a prominent object of ministerial attention, being supported by so powerful a Company.
Its institution was marked, however, by an epoch of very llties' ill omen. The first ships sent by it to America were taken by the English,1 to whom the siege of la Kochelle afforded a pretext for committing hostilities against France, al- though the two countries were at peace. The next year David Kertk,' a Frenchman born at Dieppe, but a Calvin- ist refugee in England, instigated it is said by William de Caen, who wished to take revenge for the loss of his ex- clusive monopoly, penetrated to Tadoussac with a squad- ron, and sent parties to burn the houses and kill the cattle at Cape Tourmente.1 The man intrusted with this task had orders to proceed then to Quebec and summon the commandant to surrender the fort.4
Mr. de Champlain was there with Mr. de Pontgrave, re- n- cently returned from France on business of Mr. de Monts n^ hi8 society. After deliberating together and sounding reP'y- the chief settlers, they resolved to make a defence ; and Champlain returned so bold an answer to the summons of the English captain, that he deemed it prudent to retire.' Yet they were actually reduced in the town to seven ounces of bread a head each day, and there were not over five
the name of Sebastian Cramoisy, (155); Sagard, Hist., pp. 916-20. S*.
printer to the king, whose press is gard and Champlain make no snch
go familiar to readers of early works accusation against de Caen, and Fail,
relating to Canada. Ion (Histoire de la Colonie Fran-
> Creuxius, p. 19. caise, i., p. 238) defends de Caen.
« This name is variously written — ' Champlain, Voyages (ed. 1632),
" Qver" (Champlain, 1632, p. 158) ; p. 157. The English bark returned
"Quer" (ib., p. 157); "Kertk" (ib., to Tadonssac, and a shallop brought
p. 219) ; " Kerque" (Sagard, p. 921) ; np the prisoners and Kirk's letter :
" Kersius" (CreuxinB, p. 17). It is, in Sagard, Higtoire du Canada, pp. 921-
English documents, " Kyrcke." He 2 ; Creuxius, Hist., p. 17.
was born at Dieppe, of a Scotch fa- ' See the summons — dated July
ther, and was a wine-merchant at 8, 1628— and Champlain's answer :
Bordeaux and Cognac (Champlain, Champlain, Voyages (1632), p. 157 ;
1632, pp. 256, 257.) Sagard, Histoire du Canada, pp.
• Champ., Voyag. (ed. 1632), p. 455 922-4.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCK. 46
pounds of powder in the magazine.' Kertk was doubtless 1629. unaware of this critical situation : moreover, he thought *• ""v— that he would fare better with a fleet of the new company, commanded by Mr. de Roquemont, one of its members, which was bringing families and supplies of all kinds to Quebec. He had been notified of its departure by Wil- liam de Caen, yet to all appearance he would fail in this enterprise.
Mr. de Roqnemont's misfortune was, indeed, less the re- Th« Enf-
. . I ith caplun
suit of this heretic's perfidy than of his own imprudence. » French On arriving at the roadstead of Gaspe, he detached a bark to inform Mr. de Champlain of the succor he was bring- ing,' and to transmit the king's patent creating him gov- ernor and his lieutenant-general in all New France, with orders to make an inventory of all the effects belonging to the Sieurs de Caen.' A few days after dispatching this bark, he learned that Kertk was not far off; and he at once weighed anchor to go and meet him, without reflect- ing that he exposed himself to the risk of an engagement of doubtful issue, because his ships were very heavily laden and much encumbered, and that they were, more- over, the only resource of a colony on the verge of ruin.4 He was not long in finding the English. He attacked them
1 Champlain, Voyage* (ed. 1632), > Champlain, Voyage* (ed. 1882), p. 160. He say* he had not fifty part il.. pp. 161-3. His commission pounds of cannon-powder. The In- in, " To (etc.) the Sieur de Cham- dians were ill-disposed, a chief, plain, commanding in New France Mahican-Aticq, having killed two in the absence of our dear and well- Frenchmen. This induced distrust beloved cousin. Cardinal Richelieu, and prevented the fisheries : Sagard, grand matter, chief and superin- HiMoire du Canada, p. 895, etc. ; Le tendent-general of the navigation and Cleroq, i., p. 877. In their distress, commerce of France." Richelieu gor- two Recollect*, Father le Caron and erned Canada, after the resignation Brother Oervais, set out to winter of Ventadonr, under this title, and with the Algonquins : but meeting not as viceroy. Father .Wt-])h de la Roche, and hear- 4 Champlain criticises de Roque- injr < 'f the withdrawal of the English, mont fully (Voyages, part il., pp. returned to (jut-bee: Sagard, His- 164,165). Sagard, on the authority toire du Canada, pp. 927-33. of two of his order, states that de
< Bagard, Histoire da Canada, p. Roquemont could not avoid the en-
989 ; Creuxius, Hint. Can., p. 19. gagement (Hist, du Canada, p. !
46
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
'°29-
Ch»mp-
ment-
and fought well. But besides the inability of his vessels to manoeuvre as well as those of Kertk, they were of inferior force. They were soon crippled and compelled to surren- der ;' so that the bark, after inspiring a brief joy at Que- bec, " only served to increase," says Champlain in his Me- moirs, " the number of mouths to eat his peas."*
The harvest, which was very scanty, the eel-fishery, and some elk brought in by the Indians from their hunt, re- stored for two or three months a little ease to the town and its people ;' but this exhausted, they were plunged into greater scarcity than ever. One resource remained, on which great hopes were built. Father Philibert Noyrot, superior of the Jesuits, and Father Charles Lallemant had gone to France for aid, and had found in the generosity of their friends wherewith to charter a vessel and load it with provisions.' They embarked themselves, together with Father Alexander de Vieuxpont and a brother named Louis Malot ; but this vessel never reached Quebec. A violent southeast wind drove it on the coast of Acadia, where it was wrecked. Father Noyrot and Brother Malot were lost. Father Vieuxpont joined Father Viinond on the island of Cape Breton ; and Father Lallemant having em- barked in a Biscayan vessel to carry the news of the mis- fortune to France, was again wrecked near San Sebastian, but fortunately escaped.'
1 The action took place July 18, 1628 (Sagard, Histoire du Canada, p. 939). Fathers Lalemant and Ra- gueneau were taken and carried to London (Crenxius, p. 19).
1 Champlain, pp. 164, 185 ; Sagard, Histoire dn Canada, p. 940, 950 ; Creuxius, Historia Canadensis, p. 19. Sagard gives in his history (ch. ii., x.) an account of the loss of de Roque- mont's fleet, and especially of one ship carrying two Recollects, Fa- there Daniel Bonnier and Francis Girard.
* They bought the eels, etc., of the Indiana with beaver-skins : Cham- plain, Voyages, p. 167 ; Sagard, His- toire du Canada, pp. 974, 975 ; Creux- ius, p. 22.
4 This vessel, carrying Noyrot, was not with de Roquemont's fleet, and put bnck to France. Lnlemant, who had been carried to London, rejoined Noyrot, and then the vessel sailed again : Creuiius, Historia Canadensis, p. 20.
' Letter of Father Charles Lale- maat to the superior of the college
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 47
The extremity to which the colony was reduced was not, 1 629. however, what most disturbed the governor. The In- dians, from the time of the English coming, seemed greatly alienated from the French ; and it must be avowed that the latter had given them some ground. There was much mixture among the settlers ; the Huguenots brought over ' by the Sieur de Caen were not very submissive to lawful authority, and all Champlain's firmness could not check the disorders to be expected from men not over-loyal to the State.
In this sad position, the governor first thought that the best course for him to adopt would be, in case he were not relieved in season, to go and make war on the Iroquois, and live at their expense. The last incursions of these Indians, and some hostilities which they had recently committed, furnished him just ground ; but when he came to think of setting out, no powder could be found. He had, therefore, to remain at Quebec, where there was absolutely nothing to support a hundred people shut up there, and reduced now to hunting for roots in the woods like animals.1 In this state, next to news of the arrival of ships from France, they could scarcely receive any more agreeable than that of the return of the English.
Accordingly, when at the close of July — that is to say, three months after their provisions had entirely failed — word was brought to Mr. de Champlain that English sails were seen behind Pointe de Levi,1 not doubting but that
at Parle, Bordeaux, Nov. 22, 1629 ; men, women, and children to Gaspe :
Champlain (ed. 1682), p. 276 ; in Sagard, Histoire da Canada, p. 977.
English in Shea, Perils of the Ocean In July he sent a Frenchman to the
and Wilderness, p. 9. Creuxius Abenaquioue, who offered to keep
(Historia Canadensis, pp. 40-4), gives twenty or twenty-five till spring (ib.,
a sketch also of Noyrot and Malot. 979, 980). The population of Que-
1 Champlain, Deposition, Nov. 9, bee at its capture is not given. It
1629 (State-paper office, col. series, did not, however, exceed one hun-
v , art. 34) ; Voyages (ed. 1632), pp. dred.
207, 218 ; Eustace Boulle's Depoai- • Sagard (Histoire, pp. 986, 987),
tion (State-paper office, col. series, v., says the intelligence was received
art. 85); 1'Abeille, x., No. 11. Cham- July 19, 1629; Creuxius, Hintoria
plain sent Boullr with twenty-nine Canadensis, p. 20.
48 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1629. it was Kertk's squadron, he regarded that commander less ^••"v— ' as an enemy than as a deliverer to whom he owed his own and his colony's escape from starvation. It was but a few hours after receiving this intelligence that he saw a boat approach bearing a white flag. The officer in command, after advancing to about the middle of the harbor, stopped, as if to ask permission to approach. This was given at first by raising a flag similar to his own ; and as soon as he landed, he presented to the governor a letter from Louis and Thomas Kertk, brothers of Admiral David Kertk.1
This letter contained a summons in extremely polite terms. The two brothers, one of whom was to command at Quebec and the other directed the fleet, the greater part of which remained with Thomas at Tadoussac, gave Mr. de Champlain to understand that they were aware of the sad state of his colony : that, nevertheless, if he would surrender his fort, they would allow him to make his own conditions. What had so well informed the English of the situation of Quebec, was the capture of the Sieur Boule, Champlain's lieutenant and brother-in-law, whom the gov- ernor had dispatched to represent to the Company the pressing need of succor in which he stood. From some of his sailors, the English had artfully drawn the object of their voyage.*
Conditions The governor was far from refusing the offer made him. render. He accepted it,1 but begged the commander not to ap- proach any nearer till all was agreed upon. The officer went back with this answer, and the evening of the same day he returned to Quebec to ask the articles of capitula-
1 See letter in Champlain, part ii., • Sagard, Histoire du Canada, p.
p. 215 ; Sagard, Histoire du Canada, 984 ; Creuxius, Historia Canadensis,
p. 988 ; Creuxins, Historia Cana- p. 25 ; Champlain, Voyages (1632),
denaU, p. 27. It is dated July 19, p. 230.
1629. The English fleet, six ships « Sagard, Higtoire du Canada, p.
and two pinnaces, left Qravesend 989; Champlain (Letter to Kirk,
March 26, 1629 : Deposition of Cap- July 19, 1629), Voyages, (ed. 1632),
tain David Kyrcke (State-paper of- p. 215 ; Creuxius, Historia Cana-
fice col., series v., art. 37). densis, p. 29.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. <9
ti> >n. Champlain gave his in writing, and they provided :' 1629. 1st. That before any further steps, the Messieurs Eertk should show their commission from the king of Great Britain, and a power from their brother Admiral David ; '2d. That they should furnish him a vessel to proceed to France with all the Frenchmen, without excepting any, not even two Indian girls belonging to him ; 3d. That the military should march out with their arms and all effects that they could carry ; 4th. That the vessel to be given them should be fully rigged and be provisioned, the last to be paid for in furs, the surplus of which to be carried off by the owners ; 5th. That no insult or violence should be done to any one ; 6th. That the ship should be given up three days after the arrival of the French at Tadoussac, and that barks should be given to convey them to that port. There was little difficulty as to the main articles. Louis Kertk replied that his brother, Thomas Eertk, who had remained at Tadoussac, had the commission and authority demanded, and that he would produce them when he had the honor to see Mr. de Champlain ; that there would be no difficulty as to giving a vessel, aud that if it was not large enough to carry all the French, there would be room on the squadron for any that wished to embark in it, — with the pledge of being well treated and of being transported to France as soon as they set foot in an English port. The article as to the two Indian girls was at first refused, but subsequently granted. It was agreed that the officers should march out with their arms and baggage, and in general all that belonged to them ; the soldiers with arms, clothing, and a beaver robe for each ; the religious with their books ;' but every thing else to be left in the fort. Champlain considered himself very fortunate in obtaining
1 Bee articIes(Chaniplain, Voyages, conducted by Father le Caron : 9a-
part ii., p. 316). The third article gard, pp. 989-81.
wai not confined to the military, but ' And clothe*. See articles, Cham
included all, and named the religious plain, p. 218; Crenxloa, Historia
expressly. The negotiations were Canadenaia, p. 27.
VOL. II.— 4
50 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1629. these conditions, and thought it not worth while to press the others.
The next day, July 20, Louis Kertk anchored in the road- stead with his three ships, his own a vessel of one hundred tons, carrying ten guns ; the other two, pataches of fifty tons and six guns.1 The governor went on board to visit him, and was well received. He asked and obtained sol- diers to guard the chapel, and protect the two religious houses (Jesuit and Recollect)' from all insult. Kertk then landed at Quebec and took possession of the fort, then of the warehouse, the keys of which he committed to one Le Baillif, of Amiens, who had gone over to the enemy with three other Frenchmen, Stephen Brule, of Champigni ; Nicholas Marsolet, of Eouen ; and Peter Kaye, of Paris. The last was one of the most wicked men that could pos- sibly be seen ; and, as is usually the case, only these trai- tors abused their position.' The commandant would not allow Mr. de Champlain to leave his quarters, permitting him even to have Mass said there. He carried his polite- ness so far, as to give him a copy, in his own handwriting, of the inventory he had drawn up of all found in the place when he entered.' Most of the I* was for the English interest to retain in the country tho °^ the settlers who had cleared lands, at least Kertk Bought so . an(j ^o induce them to remain, he made them the most tempting offers. He even assured them that if, after remaining a year, they were not satisfied, he would convey them back to France. As his conduct had greatly prepossessed them in his favor, and several would have been obliged to beg their bread if they crossed the sea, almost all concluded to remain ; but the governor, while giving his consent to this, warned them that if, at the end I of a year, the king did not retake Canada, they would do ' wrong to remain any longer deprived of the sacraments
1 Pataches of forty tons: Cham- CreuxiuB, Historia Canadensis, p 29 plain, p. 219. > Champlain, p. 220.
* Hebert's house was also protected: 4 Ib., p. 221.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 51
and other spiritual succor, as the salvation of their souls j 1629. should be dearer to them than all the property they could V~T~--' possess.'
All things being thus arranged, and Thomas Kertk hav- Emerr a« ing joined his brother, Champlain started with him, on the ken t» the 24th, for Tadoussac,1 where David, the admiral, had pro- ceeded shortly before. On this voyage, victors and van- quished had well-nigh changed fortunes. Emery de Caen, who was going to Quebec, ignorant of all that had occur- red, met the ship of Thomas Kertk, in which Champlain was, and which had got separated from the two pataches with which it set out. He attacked it, and was on the point of carrying it, when calling out " Quarter," to in- duce the English to surrender, Thomas Kertk took this word in an opposite sense, and cried out, on his side, " Good quarter." At these words the ardor of the French relaxed. De Caen perceiving it, wished to rally them, and prepared for a last effort ; but Mr. de Champlain appeared and advised him to profit by his advantage to secure good terms before the pataches came up, which had crowded sail, and were now quite near.
Certainly, had all the French done their duty, the Eng- lish ship would have been taken before assistance arrived. The commander's fear drove him to a dastardly step ; for he threatened to kill Mr. de Champlain if he did not stop the action. This Champlain did not do, however, till time had been given for the pataches to come up." It was, in fact, a stratagem to enable de Caen to anticipate their arrival, for he would have made short work of the pataches after
1 Cbamplain, p. 225. Champlain Paris, and had been a colonist at
advised the Hebert and Couillard Port Royal, thus doubly identified
families to remain till after harvest with French colonization.
They were the only families of sett- ' Champlain, p. 226.
lers : Relation (1082), p. 8 ; Pieces, » Champlain, Voyages, pp. 228,
etc., relatifs a la tenure seigneuriale, 229 ; Creuzius, Historia Canadensis,
3?a. Any others that remained were pp. 80, 31. Sagard says that the
simple employees, unless Abraham Huguenots threw down their arms
.Miirnn's family was there. Louis (Histoire, p. 999) ; but de Caen seemi
ilebert was an apothecary from above suspicion.
52 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1629. taking the ship ; and then there would have been nothing *— ~Y— -^ to prevent the French from returning to Quebec, where Louis Kertk was not in a position to offer any resistance. Emery de Caen acted like a brave man, but he was not seconded by his crew, composed, apparently, of his co- religionists, who then fought reluctantly against the Eng- lish, on account of the siege of la Rochelle.
A French I* was even ascertained later that, besides the four trai- *ors *^e*dy mentioned, and who were of the same sect, one named James Michel, a furious Calvinist, had pre-
terprise. sented memoirs to the English admiral to induce him to undertake this expedition, and the traitor was actually on the squadron with the title of rear-admiral.' Those who accuse William de Caen of having also betrayed his country on this occasion, have probably formed this judg- ment only because they believed Michel to have acted by his orders. This squadron, moreover, was not near as strong as was given out. It was composed only of five ves- sels, of three or four hundred tons, well enough supplied with provisions and munitions, but with a small force of men. If Emery de Caen had arrived a week sooner, he would have revictualled Quebec, and Mr. de Champlain could not have been reduced there. David Kertk was also fortunate in this, that peace having been declared between the two crowns soon after his departure from England, the commander de Eazilli, who was equipping to go to the relief of New France," received counter orders, and was dispatched to Morocco. The court of France doubtless supposed that Kertk also received orders not to proceed ; but he had already sailed, a fact not known at Paris.
Meanwhile that admiral would not return to England without visiting his conquest. He accordingly ascended to Quebec, and on his return to Tadoussac he told Champlain that he considered the position of the town admirable ;
1 Champlain, Voyages, p. 230 ; * Champlain, Voyages, part ii., pp. Creuxius, Historia Canadensta, p. 33. 230, 231.
HISTOBT OF NEW FRANCE. 63
that if retained by England it would soon be on a differ- 1629. ent footing, as they would turn many things to account which the French had neglected or overlooked. I will not enter into the detail of what then passed ; it would lead me too far, and is not very interesting. The admiral was not nearly as generous as his brother Louis, and even the latter did not maintain his character to the end. Cham- plain, and in a still greater degree the Jesuits, were to ex- perience much ill treatment at the hands of both.1
The perfidious Michel had persuaded them that these
religious were very rich ; but the English were soon un- deceived, and vented some of their disgust on the informer. The three brothers were indebted to him for the whole suc- cess of this campaign and the previous one ; they were good merchants who had grown rich by trade, but who knew nothing of war. Michel was a naval man and a brave soldier. In the engagement with Mr. de Roquemont he had saved David Kertk's ship from being grappled by that commander, who could not reply to his broadsides, but would easily have carried him by boarding ; Michel had, too, served as guide and pilot to his two brothers, who did not know the St. Lawrence, and but for him would never have dared to enter so far.
But whether treason inspires with a kind of horror even those who profit by it ; or that traitors take umbrage at every thing, a general effect of remorse of conscience ; or, finally, the disappointment of the English on seeing how little their conquest had enriched them ; or discontent on the part of the renegade, who deemed his services ill rewarded, there was soon more than a coolness between them. He was even the first to give vent. He openly made loud complaints of the English, and especially of the admiral. He declaimed still more furiously against the Jesuits and men of St. Malo ; and his violence went so far, that more than once it resulted in attacks of frenzy.
• Champlain, part ii , ch. v. ; Creoxius, Hirt. Canadeoais, p. 30, Me.
64 BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
1629. Champlain sought to turn the wretched man's feelings
f—' towards the English to his good, by recalling him to the
His tragic faith of his fathers and the service of his king. On recov- ering from his frenzy, Champlain took him aside and used the gentlest language, most fitted to touch a heart that was not hardened beyond all redemption. But his cup of iniquity was full, and God no longer deferred his chastise- ment. His fury increased to such a point, that he could no longer be seen or heard without horror. He at last, fell into a lethargic swoon which lasted thirty-five hours, and these past, he expired.1 All military honors were paid to his remains, and he was interred with all the ceremonies used in the Protestant churches ; but the funeral over, the English only thought of drinking deeply, and they never showed more hilarity.
The admiral spent the rest of the summer in careening his ships, which they greatly needed. He set sail in Sep- tember, and on the 20th of October anchored in the port of Plymouth, where he learned that the differences between the two crowns were settled.' He was not una- ware of it ; and it is even asserted that he had absolute knowledge of it before the capture of Quebec, but had deemed that he might pretend ignorance. He had been at great expense to fit out his vessels, and had flattered himself with the hope of finding in New France more than would be needed to cover his outlay. He was much aston- ished to see himself lord only of a rock inhabited by a hundred persons exhausted by a long famine, whom he had in the first place to feed ; a warehouse with but a small stock of skins ; some poorly built and worse furnished houses. So all that he gained by his want of good faith was his own ruin, unrelieved even by the consolation of laboring for the prince he served.'
' Champlain, pp. 356, 262 ; Creux- ber 9, 1629 : Sagard, Histoire dn
ins, Higtoria Canadensis, p. 84. Canada, p. 1001.
• Champlain, p. 266. The Recol- ' Charlevoix here leaves us in the
lecte and Jesuits sailed Septem- dark as to Champlain. Kertk car-
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 66
The court of France was at first much shocked at this 1629. invasion of the English, after a treaty had been signed,
which prevented them opposing it ; but apart from reasons Some «d- of honor, many doubted whether there had been any real »»kipif the loss, and whether it was worth the while to demand the
restitution of Quebec. They represented that the climate was too severe ; that the outlay exceeded the return ; that the kingdom could not undertake to settle so vast a coun- try, without greatly weakening its own strength. More- over, said they, how are we to settle it ; and what use will it be if we do settle it? The East Indies and Brazil have depopulated Portugal ; Spain sees many of its prov- inces almost deserted since the conquest of America. Both kingdoms have, indeed, gained wherewith to balance this loss, if the loss of men can be balanced ; but in the fifty years that we have known Canada, what have we derived from it ? This country can, then, be of no use to us, or we must admit that the French are not suited for founding colonies. Yet we have thus far dispensed with them, and even the Spaniards would perhaps like to begin anew. Who but knows that Charles V., with all the gold and silver which Peru and Mexico supplied, never could master France, and often beheld his enterprises miscarry from want of means to pay his troops ; while his rival, Francis I., found in his coffers means to repair his losses and cope with a prince whose empire was more vast than that of the first Caesars ? Let us improve France, keep her men, profit by her advantages for trade, turn to account
ried him to England. He arrived at that he was held for ransom (" Con- Plymouth on the 20th October, and cerning Capt. Kerke's French pri»- London on the 29th (Voyages, ed. on," printed in 1'Abeille, vol. x., No. 1632, p. 266). At Plymouth he heard 10). Sagard says the religions of the peace concluded at Suse, April reached Plymouth, Oct. 18. and Ca- •J I 1029 (Mem. desCommis., ii., p. 1), lais, Oct. 29. Kirk, in a petition to and wrote to induce the French to the Board of Trade, claimed to have demand the restoration of Quebec, taken eighteen French veeaeU, with which he claimed at London through one hundred and thirty-five cannon, the French ambassador (Champlain, going to the relief of Port Royal and Voyages, p. 266). It would seem Quebec (Mem. des Com., ii., p. 275).
66 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1629. the industry of her inhabitants, and we shall see all the ^— Y— ^ wealth of Asia, Africa, and the New World enter our ports. Reply to To this, others replied that the climate of New France BODS, moderated as the country was explored ; that this could not be doubted, as it lay in the same latitude as the most temperate regions of Europe ; that the climate is healthy, the soil fertile ; that with moderate toil, all the comforts of life may be procured ; that we must not judge France by Spain and Portugal, which had been drained of men by the wars of the Moors and their expulsion, before the discovery of both Indies, and which, in spite of this loss, had undertaken to settle immense countries ; that we must not fall into the same faults, but send to America every year a small number of families and disbanded sol- diers, with girls taken from the hospitals, and settle them so that they may extend in proportion as they increase ; that experience showed French women to be fruitful there ; that children are brought up without difficulty, become robust, well made, and of very fine blood ; that the cod- fishery alone was enough to enrich a kingdom, required but little outlay, and was an excellent school to train sailors, but to derive all the advantages it was capable of producing, it would have to be made sedentary — that is to say, employ the colonists themselves in it ; that furs might also become an important object of trade, if care was taken not to exhaust the source of supply by endeav- oring to enrich themselves at once. The forests which covered the country, and are undoubtedly the finest in the world, could be turned to profit in building ships. Finally, that the sole motive of preventing the English becoming too powerful in this part of America, by joining the two shores of the St. Lawrence to the many provinces where they had already thriving colonies, was enough to induce us to recover Quebec at any price."
1 Charlevoix derives these discus- shows that there is no authority for mons from le Clercq (Etablissement them, and details the steps taken by de la Foi, i., p. 419) ; but Mr. Faillon France to recover Canada, and the
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 67
As to the objection that we had made but little progress 1629. in Canada, after so many years, Champlain threw the fault ^-^v— ' on the private associations which had had the direction of Ch»in- the colony. I shall give his own words without any addi- opinion. tion : "While an association, in a country like this, holds the purse, it pays, gives, and assists whom it pleases. Those who command for his majesty gain little obedience, having no one to assist except by the consent of the Company's agents, who relish nothing as little as those placed there by the king (or viceroys),as not depending on themselves, — not desiring them to see and judge what they do, nor their conduct and action in such affairs ; they wish to draw all to themselves ; are careless of what happens, provided they profit by it. They oppose forts and fortresses, except when the moment of need comes, and then there is no time. When I spoke to them of fortifying, they thought it a grievance. In vain I showed them the evil consequences that might result ; they were deaf : and all this was simply fear on their part, that, if a fort was built, they would be mas- tered, and have law prescribed to them. And entertaining these thoughts, they left the country and us a prey to pirates or enemies. I wrote enough to the gentlemen of the council. It needed some one to give orders, which never came ; and if his majesty had only left trade free to the associates, to have their stores and clerks, while the rest of the men should be in the full power of the king's lieutenant in the country, to employ them as he deemed necessary, either in his majesty's service or in fortifying or clearing the ground, so as to avoid famine, which might at any time happen if any thing befell the ships, — if this plan were adopted, more progress and advance would be seen in ten years than in thirty by the course pursued."1
To the motives of policy and interest, which had not persuaded the majority of the council, others were added
cause of the delay in its restoration : ' Champlain, Voyage* (ed. 1632), Histoire de la Colonle Fnuujaise, p. p. 11. He refers to matter* In 1821, 235, n. and not to the time of the capture.
58 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1629. which decided Louis XIH. not to abandon Canada. V-^-Y-— ' These were motives of honor and religion ; and no one Canada re- gave them greater force than Champlain, who had much France, piety, and was a patriotic Frenchman. Negotiations were accordingly begun to recover Quebec from the hands of the English ;' and to give life to the negotiations, six vessels were fitted out, to be under the orders of the Com- mander de Eazilly. This had its effect. The court of England, at the instance of Lord Montague, restored, with a good grace, what France was preparing to take by force. The treaty was signed at St. Germain-en-Laye, March 29, 1632,' including also Acadia and the island of Cape Breton (now called He Eoyale).
The oondi- ^ur settlement on that island was not much of an affair : Won of New yet thjg post, the fort of Quebec, surrounded by a few wretched houses and some sheds ; two or three cabins on the island of Montreal ; as many perhaps at Tadouasac, and at some other points on the Eiver St. Lawrence, to accommodate fishers and traders ; a settlement begun at Three Rivers, and the ruins of Port Eoyal ; this was all that constituted New France — the sole fruit of the discov- eries of Verrazaui, Jacques Cartier, Mr. de Eoberval, Champlain, of the great expenses of the Marquis de la Eoche and Mr. de Monts, and of the industry of many Frenchmen, who might have built up a great colony had they been well directed.
1 Champlain endeavored to obtain restitution of Quebec, pure and a restoration through the French simple, take it ; if not, it is better to ambassador at London, bnt after re- let the matter drag on." In April, maining six weeks, found it would 1630, Chateauneuf was assured that be a tedious matter. lie accordingly all should be restored : Faillon, His- returned to France and kid the mat- toire de la Colonie Francaise, i., p. ter before the court. Richelieu, in 257, n., and authorities cited. Nov., 1029, ordered Mr. de Chateau- * The treaty is given in Memoixes neuf to press the demand. The des Commissaires, ii., p. 5. It pur- English government replied that it ports to give back and restore New could not then restore it. France, in France, Acadia, and Canada. Port return, refused to restore some Eng- Royal, the fort of Quebec, and Cape 1i«h ships ; and Richelieu wrote, in Breton are mentioned as fortified December : " If they consent to the places : lb., p. 6.
BISTORT OF NEW FBANCB. 5
The ease with which the English restored Acadia to 1629. France, came, doubtless, from the fact that they had as v— "f-~' yet taken no steps to settle there, as well as from its dis- ,,w!17.tll«
Entflinh n»
tance from New England, where it was most important Kiecud to fortify themselves before thinking of new enterprises. I have said, indeed, that in 1621 the king of Great Britain had granted to William Alexander, earl of Stirling, all the countries from which we had been expelled by the Eng- lish.1 It is also true that the next year that nobleman sent to his newly acquired territories an officer to select a suitable place for a settlement ; but this agent, sailing too late, had to winter in Port St. John, Newfoundland. He then passed over to Acadia ; entered Port au Mouton, changing the name to St. Luke's Bay ; then entered another, two leagues off, which he called Fairport or Black Port. He did not stop there, but returning to Newfoundland, soon after sailed to England.' From that time the Earl of Stirling, for reasons unknown to me, did nothing to turn his noble domain to advantage.'
1 See charter, Memoires des Com- Sagard at all. Chevalier, while he
mUiiaires du Roy, i., xxxiv.. ii., p. (nils to give one single item for 8a-
198. The patent was continued by gard's biography, supposes him a
a novodamus on July 12, 1625 (ib., priest ; but Father le Clercq, in hia
ii . p. 226). Premier Etabliasement, says ex.
' De Laet, NOTUS Orbis, pp. 61, 63. pressly that he was a lay-brother.
' In 1628, with the aid of David He was, however, evidently a man Kirk, he reduced Port Royal, Ste. of education, observing and garrn- ( 'mix, and Pentagoet (Kirk in Mem. loos. The most precious part of hia des Commiss., ii., p. 276 : Deuchar, work is his Huron dictionary. Char- Memorial ; Halibnrton, ii., p. 43). levoix (see vol. I., p. 78) underrates He conveyed part of tbU to the elder its value. It is doubtless imperfect de la Tour in 1630, but England re- and inexact, but nevertheless stands stored Acadia by the treaty of St. as the best printed vocabulary of the Germain. With the capture of Que- language ; although Potter's Racines bee, we lose as a guide Sagard, Hnronnes la much more full and whose works are more rich in ao philosophic. Le Clercq never cites counts of Indian life than in details Sagard ; and speaking of the Huron as to the colony. Emile Chevalier dictionary, attributes the first to gives a long, rambling, incorrect Father le Caron and Father Viel, sketch of him in the late Paris edi- and says that Father George present- tion, and naively supposes that Fer- ed the Huron, as well as Algonquin land, Garneau, and other writers on and Mnntagnais dictionaries, to the this side the Atlantic, had never read king, in 1629.
BOOK V.
HISTORY OF NBW FRANCE.
BOOK V.
Bl one of the articles of the treaty of St. Germain, 1632-3. •which replaced France in possession of Canada, all the >-— v— ' effects found at Quebec — and of which, as we have seen, M*rcl an inventory had been drawn up1 — were to be restored, as well as the vessels taken on both sides, with their cargoes, or an equivalent ; and as the Sieurs de Caen were chiefly interested in this restitution, Emery de Caen was first sent alone to America, to bear the treaty to Louis Eertk, and require its execution. The king even deemed it proper to surrender to him all the trade in furs for one year, to com- pensate him for his losses during the war.' He sailed for Quebec in April of this same year (1632), and on his arrival, the English governor surrendered to him the place aud all the property belonging to him.' Nevertheless, all that year and the next, the English kept up trade with the Indians ; and it cost no little trouble to stop this traffic, which was expressly forbidden the subjects of the king of Great Britain by the treaty of St. Germain.4
In 1633 the Company of New France resumed all its rights ;' and Acadia was granted to the Commander de Bazilly, one of its chief members, on condition of his
1 This inventory i» given in etc., Mercure Fran<;als, xviii ; Creux-
1'Abeille, x., No. 4. ins, Historia Canadensis, p. 105 ; Le
1 Creuxios, Historta Canadensis, Jenne, Relation de la Nouv. France
p. 104 ; Mercure Francais, xviii. ; Le (1632), p. 8 ; Canada Documents. II.,
Jenne, Relation de la Nouv. France i., p. 54.
(1682), p. 1 ; Champlain, Voyage* « Acte de protestation faite par le
(ed. 1633), p. 309. Capit&lne Emery de Caen, Canada
' July 13 : Relation du Voyage fait Documents, II., i., p. 62. a Canada pour la price de po»ee»ion, • Relation de la N. F. (1633), p. 1.
64 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1633. planting a colony there.' He did, in fact, form a small
«.— y—.- settlement at Port la Haive, where it was so easy and im-
M. de portant to make one, that would soon, with small outlay,
c!^â„¢P!^n enable that great peninsula to yield large returns.' The
appointed same year, Mr. de Charnplain, whom the Company had
of New presented to the king by virtue of the power conferred by
his majesty, was again appointed governor of New France,'
and set out with a squadron which carried much more
than all then in Canada was worth, taking with him
Fathers de Brebeuf and Enemond Masse. He found
several of the old settlers there. He brought new ones,
and exhorted both to take lessons from the faults that
caused the past misfortunes.4
Character jTia first view was to bind the Huron nation to him, and
OI tllO nil*
»• to begin by subjecting it to the yoke of the gospel, con- vinced that there is no bond more indissoluble than that of religion. Thus far, they had rather prepared the way for the establishment of Christianity among these Indians, than begun a work which required a greater knowledge than had hitherto been acquired of their language, their customs, their belief, and national character. The Recol- lect Fathers, during their stay among them, had gained some to Christ, but had been able to baptize only a few. Fathers de Brebeuf and de Noue had also made some proselytes ; but Christianity had not yet taken root among this people, which did not seem easy to convert. Never- theless, men flattered themselves that when the Indians had a somewhat longer intercourse with the missionaries, they would become more docile ; and this hope was based on
1 The commander, Isaac deRazilly, 1632: Memoires des CommissaireB,
was gent out to receive the country ii.. p. 491 ; i., p. 44.
in the name of the Company of New ' Denys : Description des Cotes de
France : Agreement Mar. 27, 1682 ; I'Am^rique Septentrionale, pp. 86,
Canada Doc., II., i., p. 56 ; Cham- 94-9. La Ileve was in hia brother's
plain, Voyages, 1632, p. 309. He was grant : Ferland, i., p. 255.
made lieutenant-general for the king: * Lieutenant of Cardinal Richelieu
commission, May 10, 1632, 1657. and General of the Fleet : Merc.
The New France Company granted Franc;., xix., p. 817.
him the St. Croix River, May 19, * Relation de la N. F., 1633, p. 25.
HWTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 65
the character of their solid, judicious, elevated mind, j 1633. capable of reflecting, as well as on the fact of its being the most sedentary and laborious of all the nations yet known on this continent.
But to execute this project, a certain number of laborers was needed, and it was necessary to put them in a position to draw their subsistence from some other source than a country which had no little difficulty in supporting its settlers. Now, this was not easy to provide for. The Company had been induced to believe, that in a rising colony, mendicant religious would be rather a burden than a service to the settlers, who scarcely had the neces- saries of life. It was, therefore, not minded to send back the Recollect Fathers — at first, at least ; and it found means to induce the king's council to adopt its reasoning.1 For the same reason, the Jesuits had to draw from France all that they might need ; and there was a fear that their past losses had cooled the zeal of those who had hitherto contributed most to expenses that proved useless. Hap- pily, these fears proved vain. Almost all those who were, in the outset, interested in behalf of New France, felt bound to put the Jesuits not only in a position indepen- dent of the settlers, as for their support and the functions of the ministry, but also to contribute to the settlement of the country ; giving meanwhile, however, their principal attention to the instruction of the French and the conver- sion of the Indians.
Accordingly, in 1632 (that is to say, immediately after the signing of the treaty of St. Germain), Fathers Paul le Jeune and Anne de Noue embarked for Quebec.' They
i CharleToix's reasoning is an- Fiillon, in his Histoire de U Colooie
doubted!? unto, sa the first offer WM Canadienne (1., p. 383, n.), a capable
made neither to Kecollecti nor Jesu- and impartial writer, defends the
• ita, but to the Capuchins. See Docu- Jesuit* from the charge of having
ment of Cardinal Richelieu In Mar- excluded the ReooUecto, at this time,
tin, Relation Abrlgta de Quelques from the mission
Missions, etc., par le P. F. J. Bre»- * Le Jeone, Relation de la Nouv.
sani (Montreal, 1853). p. 805. Mr. France (1083), p. 1. VOL. II.— 5
66 HISTOBT OF NEW FRANCE.
1633. found the few proselytes previously made in the neighbor- V-~Y— — ' hood of that city no longer in the same sentiments as at The con- their departure ; but it required no great effort to regain
English * them. The English, during their brief rule in the country,
. had failed to gam the good-will of the Indians. The Hurons did not appear at Quebec while they were there.' The others, nearer the capital, many of whom, from private dissatisfaction, had openly declared against us on the approach of the English squadron, showed themselves very seldom. All were somewhat disconcerted when, on attempting to take with the new-comers the liber- ties which the French made no difficulty in permit- ting, they perceived that this manner did not please them.
It was much worse soon after, when they saw them- selves driven with cudgels from houses which they had previously entered as freely as they did their own cabins. They accordingly resolved to draw off ; and nothing sub- sequently bound them more firmly to our interest than this difference in the manner and character of the two nations whom they had seen settle in the neighborhood. The missionaries, who were soon informed of the im- pression thus made on them, wisely profited by it to gain them to Christ and attach them to the French nation.1
Success of Fathers Enemond Masse and John de Brebeuf arrived, boi/ofth'f as * have already said, the next year, with Mr. de mission- Champlain ; and in less than fifteen years the number of " evangelical laborers was fifteen priests, without counting three or four lay-brothers, some of whom were devoted to the instruction of children. These religious rightly deemed their first care due to the Household of the Faith ; and as there was no longer any mixture of creed among the set- tlers, God showered down on their labors such abundant
1 This Hiay be BO, but I find no * Relation de la Nonvelle France authority for the statement. (1633), p. 30, etc.
anes.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 67
blessings, that in a few months a groat moral improve- 1633. ment was visible.1 v-— v— -'
The court had given positive orders to prevent any Prou*unu Protestant emigration to New France, or the exercise of {"£"&£*- any religion but the Catholic there. According to all ap- pearances, his majesty had been informed, what the court had apparently been ignorant of previously, namely, that the English enterprise against Canada resulted from the in- trigues of William de Caen or the other Calvinists of whom I have spoken ; and experience, on more than one occa- sion, had taught him not to place the Huguenots too near the English in a country where there was not a power to keep them in their duty and in submission to lawful au- thority."
Qreat attention even had been paid to the selection of judicio« those who offered to go and colonize New France ; and it is not true that the young women sent over, from time to time, to marry the new settlers, were taken from suspicious places, as some ill-informed travellers have asserted in their works.' Steps were always taken to be assured of their morality before they embarked, and their conduct in Canada is a proof that the precaution was suc- cessful. In a short time, almost all who composed the new colony were seen to follow the example of their gov- ernor, and make an open and sincere profession of piety.
The same attention was continued in subsequent years, and there soon arose in this part of America a generation of true Christians, among whom reigned the simplicity of the primitive ages of the Church, and whose posterity have not lost sight of the great example left them by then- ancestors. The consolation which such a change afforded
1 Relation* de la Nonvelle France » This if In answer to a charge
(1632-6). The number of mission- of la Hontan (vol. i., p. 11). Long
aries was really sixteen. Bee list in after this date, a girl arriving in a
Carayon, Documents Inedita, xiv., state of pregnancy, was sent back
p. ill. with the remark, that such cattle
' Mercure Francis, xiv., p. 236 ; were not wanted. Ferland (Not««
Edits et Ordonnances Royaux, p. 7. BUT les Registres de Notre-Dame de
68 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1633. the laborers appointed to cultivate this transplanted vine- v— v-— ' yard, so sweetened the crosses of the most painful mission ever perhaps established in the New World, that what they wrote to their brethren in France created among them a real eagerness to go and share their labors. Character The annual Kelations which we have of these happy °mU8io"ly times, and the constant tradition preserved in the country, *"**• both attest that there was an indescribable unction at- tached to this Indian mission, which made it preferred to many others infinitely more brilliant and even more fruit- ful. This doubtless arose from the fact, that nature find- ing nothing there, either to afford the comforts of life or to flatter vanity — the ordinary shoal of brilliant success, even in the holiest ministry — Grace worked without an obstacle. Moreover, the Lord, who never allows himself to be overcome in generosity, communicated him- self unreservedly to men who sacrificed themselves with- out reserve ; who, dead to all, entirely detached from themselves and the world, possessed their souls in unal- terable peace, and were perfectly established in that spir- itual childhood which Jesus Christ has recommended to his disciples as their most distinctive characteristic.
This is the portrait, to the life, of the first missionaries of New France, drawn by those who knew them closely, and the sequel of this history will convince those least - prepossessed in their favor that it is not too highly col- ored. I knew some of them in my youth, and found them as I have just depicted — bent beneath the labors of a long apostleship, and in bodies wasted by hardship and broken with age, preserving still all the vigor of the apostolic spirit. I have deemed it a duty to render them here the same justice as was universally rendered by the country.
Among the number of idolatrous nations which opened to the missionaries so vast a field for the exercise of their
Quebec) appeals to the pariah regis- only two cases of illegitimate birth, tew, which, from 1621 to 1690, show See Boucher, Hist. Verit., p. 155.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. O
zeal, none appeared to these religious to deserve their first 1634. attention more than the Huron. Mr. de Champlain had s— ~»"~ long projected a settlement in the country of these In- Settlement dians. He revived the idea when, on his return from France in 1633, he found no less than seven hundred awaiting him at Quebec.1 He imparted his design to them. They all applauded it, but when he least expected it, changed their minds. It is perfectly useless to ask these savages the grounds of these changes. They often have none, except the right, to which they profess to adhere, of not fettering their liberty and of never giving an irrevo- cable decision.*
The governor, who knew them well, felt bound, never- ChunpUin theless, to express his surprise and show his displeasure. obitoThmn He even spoke to them as a man who felt himself no ,i0n»ii» to longer, as in former years, in a position to be offended theirtr£01"1- with impunity, and he had reason to believe that he had rendered them more docile. In this supposition, he wished to act with hauteur ; and in concert with Father le Jeune, superior of the mission, he made all prepara- tions for the voyage of Fathers de Brebeuf and de None, who had been appointed to accompany these Indians. The latter not only accepted them, but a jealousy was even observed among the chiefs of the different villages as to which should possess the missionaries ;' but an un- foreseen accident defeated all the governor's measures, and he saw that he had evinced too much eagerness for a thing which he should have made the savages desire.
An Algonquin had killed a Frenchman, and Mr. de Theyr*- Champlain held this murderer in prison, firmly resolved to make an example of him.' He deemed this severity the more necessary, as it was believed to be at hut estab- lished that the Recollect Father Viel was not drowned as
' Le Jeune, Relation de U Nour. Gremlin, HtotorU Oanadamto. p. 119. France (1632), p. 14. ' Le Jeune. Relation (1683). p. 88.
' Relation (1638), pp. 34-43 ; « Ib., p. 80.
70 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1634. had been supposed at first, but had been murdered by his Huron guides for his effects, and that they had thrown his body into the river to conceal their crime.1 The Indians themselves said openly, that to prevent such crimes, which in their results would be fatal alike to them and the French, they should not be left unpunished. But these Indians, after having thus spoken in public
thi* refusal ^^ ajj ^ equity to be expected from the most reason- rable men in the world, quite often change their tone when it comes to execute the judgment dictated by themselves, and you must not always expect them to cover with a plausible pretext their inconsistent conduct. The Hurons on this occasion did, however. The day of their departure being fixed upon, one of their chiefs declared bluntly that he could not take any missionary or even any Frenchman in his canoes, unless the governor first set at liberty the Algonquin who was in irons. He was told that he had him- self judged him deserving of death. " I agree," he replied, " that it is right to punish an assassin ; but the relatives, friends, all the youth of this man's village, have demanded him back from us, and they await us at the passage, in the hope that we will restore him to their hands. If their expectation is defeated and they perceive any Frenchmen among us, they will without fail fall upon us, and we can- not withdraw them from the fury of the tribe without being involved in a combat which will turn our allies into enemies. We cannot even answer for the result ; and what grief we shall feel if we see those confided to our care slaughtered before our eyes and in our very arms !'"
Defects and The French tried in vain to banish the real or pretended ^ears °f this man : they effected nothing. In vain even other chiefs said that they assumed the whole affair : he had adopted his course, and he declared that he would allow no Frenchman to embark. The governor no longer doubted but that he acted in concert with the Algonquins,
1 Le Jeune. Relation (1634), p. 92. ' Ib. (1683), p. 40.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 71
and deeming it unwise to relent in regard to the prisoner, 1634. and imprudent to risk a single Frenchman with people so v-^"v"**-> ill-disposed, he advised the two missionaries to defer their voyage to another opportunity.1
r The conduct of this Huron chief portrays well the char- acter of this nation, the ablest of all in Canada, but against whom we must always be most on our guard. They carry dissimulation to an excess not easily believed if it had not been experienced. This trait had contributed to make it feared and respected by other Indians, as much as its industry, its readiness in expedients and resources, its eloquence and bravery. In one word, it is of all the con- tinent the nation distinguished by most defects and most good qualities.
r Champlain calls the Hurons Ochcwteguin.*,' and con- origin of founds them with the Iroquois,' whom he doubtless sup- ' posed to form only one nation with them, on account of the conformity which he had remarked between the lan- .guage of the two.' He may, too, have heard them called Ochasteguins by some other Indians. But their real name is Yendat.' The word Huron comes from the French, who seeing these Indians with the hair cut very short, and standing up in a strange fashion, giving them a fearful air, cried out, the first time they saw them, QueUe hures! (What boars' heads!) and so got to call them Hurons.'
If we believe their oldest traditions, this nation in its first origin was composed of two towns only,' which in
1 Le Jeune, Relation, p. 43. ' Misprint for Wendmt. Sagard,
1 From a chief of that name : Voy . in hi* dictionary (Verb. Nation),
(Lav. ed. 1C13), p. 169; 1632,p. 184; gtre* Houandate (Relation de la
1 He calls them good Iroquois. Nourelle France, 1639, p. 50). Wy-
4 He seems to have distinguished andot in our English writers, though
clearly the Ochastegnlns or Hurons the tribe now called Wyandots are
(ed. 1682, p. 131), seventeen villages ; really Tionontates or Petuns (His-
Tionontates or Petuns, the Neuters, torical Magazine, v., p. 362).
the Antouhonoront, fifteen Tillages ; • H. Lalemant, in Relation (1689),
the Iroquois and the Carantouanis, p. 51.
apparently the Susquchannas. * Two tribes, the Attignawantan
72 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1634. Jime divided into four, or adopted two others ;' for the old men whom the missionaries questioned on this point did not agree among themselves. The adoption of various neighboring nations made these four tribes more power- ful than all other nations, by their care to keep always united in one body. This the Algouquins neglected to do, who were originally much more numerous than the rHurons ; for although the tribes adopted by the latter always preserved their primitive names, they also took the generic name, which was that of the original two, and spoke the same language, with some inconsiderable differ- ences. Yet some give themselves the name of Ontaouon- ^ues, — that is to say, those who speak the best language.' This uniformity of language would even lead us to infer that the confederation or adoption of these tribes had only recalled them to their primitive stock ; while the Iroquois and Andastouez,' who are certainly of the same stock, having never united after their separation, have also much more altered their languages, which are evi- dently Huron dialects, as I have elsewhere remarked.' I have also spoken in the same place of the division not only of the whole nation, but also of each canton or town, into three principal families;* I content myself with re-
and the Attigneenongnaliac, calling the Huron Relations, and Gandasto
each other brother and sister. H. gn€ in the later Iroquois Relations,
Lalemant, Relation de la Noavelle where the Iroquois dialect is used
France (1639). giving the guttural as g) were so
' ' The two adopted were the Aren- called from andaeta, a roof-pole,
dah (ronons) and. Tohontaenrat (H. Hence Crenxins, on his map, calls
Lalemant, Relation, 1639) ; Sagard them Natio Perticarum, and places
mentions only the former tribe them on the Susquehanna. They
JGrand Voyage du pays des flurons, were the Susquehannas, known also
p. 115), and calls them Enarhonon, as Minquas and Conestogas. (See
or Renarhonon (Dictionnaire, Verbo Historical Magazine, vol. ii., p. 294).
Nation). Campanius has preserved a vocabu-
1 This expression, Onkwe Honwe, lary in his Nya Sverige (Stockholm,
is also used by the Iroquois, and 1702), p. 180.
means trut men. Cuoq, Etudes 4 Charlevoix, Journal, p. 189.
Fhilologiques sur quelqnes Langues * The fullest discussion of these
Sanvages, Montreal, 1866, p. 13. families is in Morgan, League of
'The Andastonez (Andasto.e, in the Iroquois (Rochester, 1851.)
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 73
marking here, that the uniformity on this point which ^ prevailed throughout the whole nation, and those sprung from it, at the time of the discovery of Canada, is a proof that if the three families are not branches of the same stem, their union is at least of very high antiquity, and dates anterior to the separation of the Iroquois and Hurons.
The country occupied by the Hurons at the beginning of the last century, had Lake Erie on the south, Lake Exunt and Huron on the west, and Lake Ontario on the east. It is the Huron situated between the forty-second and forty-fifth degrees rof north latitude.1 There was quite a number of towns, and the whole nation comprised from forty to fifty thou- sand souls, although even then greatly diminished by its ^wars with the Iroquois. This country is not, generally speaking, the most fertile in all New France, but there are districts extremely so ; and if it was sufficiently peo- pled, as our best provinces are, it would easily, if well cul- tivated, support all the inhabitants. Moreover, the air there is very healthy. We long kept quite a number of Frenchmen there, who suffered much from hunger and other hardships incident to war, but not one died of dis- ease, and very few in fact were sick.
There are extensive prairies there which would bear wheat and all other grains that might be sowed ; the forests are full of very fine trees, especially cedars of pro- digious size, and high in proportion. The country is well Irrigated, and the water is very good. There are stones there, it is said, that melt like metal, and have some veins ,pf silver; but I do not know how much credit is to be given to what we read in some Relations about two sin-
' This is too great an extent for tlie or eight wide. Brebeuf (Relation,
Huron country. Sagard (Grand Voy- 1685. p. 88) says : " It is not Urge ;
age, p. 113) and Brewani (Breve Re- it* longest extent may be traversed
latione, p. 5) put it 44Je N. In the in three or four days." Du Creux,
Relation of 1680 (p. 50) Father Je- in his map, locates it exactly. Fa-
rome Lalemant puts it at 454°, and thor Martin and Mr. Tache have ex-
says that their country was twenty plored it accurately, and identified
or twenty-five leagues long by seven most of the village sites.
74 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1634. gular animals peculiar to this country and not found else- ^•^Y— — ' -where. One is a bird that mews like a cat ; the other a kind of hare that sings like a bird, and has a very delicate flesh.1
Cham- Champlain had for several reasons wished missionaries f son* tor to accompany the Hurons to their towns. He believed these Indians better fitted than the rest to accredit Christianity. By missions he wished to prepare the way for a settlement, which he projected in their country, situated very advantageously for trade, and from which it would be very easy, by means of the lakes, that almost encircle it, to continue exploration to the extremity of North America. It was, finally, easy to bind closely to the French a nation from whom we had apparently much to fear and to hope in the consolidation and progress of the French colony. No project could be more wise. The misfortune of New France was, that its founder was taken away at the very time when it most needed his experi- ence, and that his successors either did not enter into his views, or were not in a position to carry them out, nor consequently enable the Huron nation to regain, while it was yet time, that superiority in arms which the Iroquois had already begun to acquire over them.
And the The missionaries, on their side, were persuaded that by riels to make fixing the centre of their mission in a country which was a* *^e 8ame ^me ^6 centre of Canada, it would be easy |or them to bear the light of the gospel to all parts of this vast continent ; and nothing would have prevented the execution of this project, if Champlain's plan had always been followed. Several nations had already begun to trade with us, the Montagnez below Quebec, the Algonquins above, in the neighborhood, and in an island formed by the great Ottawa river above Montreal ; and the rest, under the name of Nipissings or Nipis-
1 Breesani, p. 7 ; Relation (1634), note), or more probably the prairie p. 36. The catbird (turdut felivox) squirrel (tpermophttus FranJelinii). and the woodchuck (arctomyi mo- Patent Report, 1856, Agric., p. 80.
UI9TOBY OF NEW FHANCB. 75
siriniens, around a lake of the same name ; and filially, 1634. the Ottawas, who were scattered at various points along v-~~r— •* the river, of which they claimed to be absolute masters, to such an extent that they had established a toll on all canoes ascending or descending.
It only remained to gain the Iroquois, and the point was of infinite importance. Success would have been comparatively easy, if, at first, these Indians had seen us strong enough to impose the law upon them, or at least turn the scale in favor of their antagonists, who were our allies. A thousand men maintained in the Huron coun- try, with three or four forts, would have been enough ; but the necessity was not perceived till it was too late.1 The opportunity of bringing the Iroquois to terms, and per- haps binding them to us forever, was all the better then, as they had not yet had any intercourse with the Dutch settled near them,' and our allies were well disposed to unite in a last effort against them.
The present object was to introduce missionaries among Fathen d» the Hurons, and those appointed to begin this good work and D*ni«i impatiently waited the return of some Indians who had promised to come for them. They arrived at last, but so few in number and so badly equipped that it was very evident that they did not intend to keep their word. They did not omit, however, to betoken great good-will at first ; but, when asked to fulfil the promise, they excused themselves on the ground of their being so fatigued with their voyage that they would scarcely have strength to carry back their canoes empty.
> CbarleToiz Bpeak* of this u an a long valley, presenting to a foe
easy matter ; but a simpler way a weak flank, easily pierced, ran
than his large force and forts in the never be strong. The possession of
Huron country would hare been for New York was essential. - France to take possession of New • The first treaty between the
Motherland, as the English subse- Dutch and Mohawks, at Norman's
quentiy did. The IroquoU, then de- Kill, was In 1618 (O'Callaglian, New
pendent on the French for trade, Netherland, i.,p. 78i. The Mohawk*
would have to make terms. Canada, obtained firearms as early as 1621.
76 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1634. It was in vain that the Fathers removed this difficulty by offering to embark with no luggage but simply their chapel service, and to help them paddle ; for nothing puts men alleging a false motive to conceal ill-will in worse humor, than a reasonable proposition to which there is no reply. The Hurons at last evinced their unfriendliness by ,va formal stubborn refusal. It was only by dint of persua- sions and presents, made with more zeal than prudence, that they were induced to consent to give a place in their canoes to Fathers de Brebeuf and Daniel and their serv- ant. Father Davost, who was to accompany them, was forced to await another opportunity.1
Father D»- He did not wait long : three canoes of Hurons having thern.°Their come to Three Bivers a few days later, he was taken on
. the terms offered by himself and the other two Fathers, and these Indians took good care that they were strictly fulfilled. Two Frenchmen embarked with Father Davost,' and at the end of August reached their journey's end, where they found the two first Jesuits, who had arrived Aug. 5. three weeks before, but in a wretched plight. The surly humor of their conductors had been augmented by sick- ness, which broke out among them on the route, and it subjected them to many unpleasant moments. They were even more than once in danger of being killed, or left without food or guide in totally deserted spots.
Nor did the Hurons show any indulgence in exacting the promise to paddle, — a very painful exercise, when kept up long by one unaccustomed to it. Finally, one of them lost part of his baggage, which was stolen.' The Hurons had already, in the minds of the French, a reputation as bold and adroit thieves. They are not alone now ; and even among those in whom you find most disinterestedness and
1 Relation de la NonTelle France (1634), p. 90 ; Relation (1685), p. 25 ;
(1634), pp. 89, 89 ; Brebeu£ Relation Creuiina, p. 158.
(1685), p. 24 ; Creuiins, Historia » Relation de la Nouvelle France
CanadenaiB, p. 158. (1685), pp. 25, 26 ; Creuiiuu, Historia
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France Canadenoig, pp. 160-2.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCS. 77
fidelity, you mast always except eatables, — too tempting an 1635. object for the ever hungry savage, accustomed to view as ^—*— ' common property whatever is necessary for life.' These preliminaries were not, it would seem, such as to Kir« p«r-
, nunf nt
augur well for the success of the missionaries undertaking, minion These religious were, nevertheless, regarded quite favor- *HU°!M.* ably in the towns which they visited ; but this did not pre- vent them, in the midst of a capricious and ferocious people, without support or resource, and according to the expression of Christ, like sheep amid wolves, from having much to suffer, and being in almost constant danger of their lives. But to apostolic men these are but the assured pledges of an abundant harvest, and, full of confidence in the promises of the Lord of the vineyard, they thought only of putting their hands to the work. Taking up their residence in a town called Ihouhatiri,' they began by August s. erecting a little chapel, which they dedicated to St. Joseph, and even gave the town the name of that holy patriarch. The fruit of their labors during the first year was not Obsudw to
. ... tb« oonv«r-
very great — they were confined to the baptism of five or »>OD of th« .six adults ;' but they were consoled by the happiness which they had in assuring the eternal salvation of a great number of children, who expired almost immediately after receiving the robe of justice. The difficulty experienced by these missionaries in converting the Hurons did not flow from their difficulty in obtaining a hearing, or even an admission that the Christian religion was based on reason. In fact, a savage must not be regarded as con- vinced as soon as he seems to approve the statements made him, because in general they dislike nothing so much as disputes ; and sometimes, from mere complacency, some- times from some interested motive, more frequently from indolence and sloth, they give every mark of perfect con-
1 Sagard, Hictoire du Canada, p. 30 ; Creuiiu*, UUt. Canad., pp. 162.
409 ; Brebeuf, Relation (1686), p. 168. Caragouha of Champlain, Vojr.
120 ; Brewani, Breve Rela.. p. 13. 1619. (Ed. Laverdiere, p. 28.)
•ttonatlria, Relation (1635), p. * Relation (1635), pp. 87, 88.
78 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635. viction in matters which they have not paid the slightest ^-~Y— ^ attention to, or in fact understood.
They have been seen to frequent our churches for years with an assiduity, modesty, exterior reverence, and every mark of sincere desire to know and embrace the truth; then draw off, saying coldly to the missionary, flattered with the hope of soon begetting them in Christ : " Thou hadst no one to pray with thee. I took pity on thy lone- liness, and wished to keep thee company : now that others are inclined to render thee the same service, I retire." This instance I heard from a missionary to whom it had happened at Michillimakinac. I have even read some- where that some carried dissimulation or complacency so far as to ask and receive baptism, and fulfil for a time, with edification, all the duties of Christianity ; then declare that they had done so only to please the missionary, who had pressed them to change their religion.
On the other hand, the refusal of these barbarians to sub- mit to the truths announced to them, is not always a proof that they are not convinced. Some have been met who had no doubt left as to the most incomprehensible articles of our faith, and who publicly avowed it, but would not listen to any suggestion of their conversion. Deplorable obduracy, but which should excite our surprise the less, from our daily seeing examples of it in the very bosom of Christendom. As an Iroquois lay on his death-bed, some fire fell on the robe which covered him. As he saw them endeavoring to extinguish it, he said : " It is not worth while. I know that I shall burn for all eternity ; whether it begins a little sooner or a little later, is not worth all the trouble you are taking." Old missionaries have assured me that these cases of despair are not as rare as would naturally be supposed.'
But it was not so soon that such testimonies in favor of
1 These cases are given, apparently, voii does not seem to quote any from oral information, as Charle- authority.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 79
the truth were extorted from the very lips of those who 1 635. closed their eyes to the light ; or that the missionaries v-~v— ' saw it triumph over the prejudices of birth and education among gross and superstitions tribes. Even for a long time true and solid conversions were very rare. It was only in patience that the Saviour promised to the preach- ing of the gospel an abundant harvest ; and the mission- aries of Canada understood from the outset the necessity of this virtue, by their repeated experience of the duplicity and other defects of the tribes confided to their vigilance and zeal. At first some Hurona took a stand which perplexed the Conduct of
the Huron*
missionaries. " Yon tell us very fine stories," said one of toward* them to Father Brebeuf, " and there is nothing in what you say that may not be true ; but that is good for yon who come across the seas. Do you not see that, as we in- ^ habit a world so different from yours, there must be
^another heaven for us, and another road to reach it?'" Firm in this position, and to all that the missionaries said to convince them of its extravagance opposing only argu- ments too absurd to be seriously refuted, they gave no hope of conversion but that which is the fruit of confi- dence in God. It is in such circumstances that an apos- tolic laborer feels sensibly that it belongs only to Him, who has fashioned the heart of man, to touch and change it. This knowledge humbles him, and humiliation pre- pares him to become a fit instrument to execute the miracles of the grace of Jesus Christ.
f To the obstacles inherent in the disposition of these Effort* of people, and those formed by their passions, must be added cin« men to external ones ; and the most difficult of these to overcome progre«* of were those raised by the medicine men.' These charlatans, fearing to lose the estimation acquired by the exercise of t lu-ir art if the missionaries gained credit in the country,
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France nepin. Le«Ma>uMde«S».uvag.,p. 101. (1635), p. 84. See 1687, p. 187 ; Hen- ' Brenanl, Breve Relation?, p. 62.
80 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635. x undertook to render them odious and contemptible ; and at "-^v^— ' first they succeeded without much exertion, not only be- cause they had to deal with an extremely superstitious and suspicious nation, but also because many had already got it into their heads that the religion of the French did not suit them, and would even be fatal to them, if it was
established in their midst.1
Other diffl- T^16 medicine-men, therefore, easily succeeded in throw- ouities. ^g 8USpicion over all the actions of the Fathers, and especially their prayers, which they represented as witch- craft ; so that those religious were obliged to hide, in order f ^to say their breviary and perform their other devotions. Independent of this unfortunate prejudice, it required them to effect an almost complete reform in the ideas of a people
'jealous of its reputation for being better thinkers than others ; to impose severe laws and strict obligations on men whose ideal of glory and happiness was to be ham- pered in nothing, j If we call to mind all the obstacles that
Jheart-rooted libertinage, so hard to conquer when it has known no check, raised to the holy maxims of Christianity in the. savages, who knew no rules but those of a perverted reason, and a nature accustomed to obey every inclination, — then we can understand the position of the three stran- gers, to whom men such as I have depicted, already began to ascribe all their misfortunes.*
It is true that the Hurons were then in a very sad position ; for this nation, so flourishing of old, and which had, time out of mind, been regarded as the mistress of the others, now not only scarcely ventured to take the
Afield against the Iroquois, but was also a prey to diseases, which finally depopulated their land. With well-consti- tuted minds, capable of rising above prejudice, nothing would have been more easy than to profit by these ac-
1 Relation de la N. F., 1765, p. 35. ond part to the difficulties which
s Relation de la Nonvelle France beset the missionaries (pp. 29-71).
(1686), p. 83. Father Bressani, in Compare le Clercq, i., p. 279 ; Henno-
* | his Breve Relatione, devotes hia sec- pin, Les Moeurs des Sauvages, p. 100.
H13TOBT OF NEW FRANCE. 81
cumulated misfortunes to turn them to the Author of all '635. good ; but the Hurons, persuaded that the presence of the '~r~-*'m-' missionaries was the crowning evil, replied to every argu- ment brought forward to convince them of the superiority of the God of the Christians over the spirits whom they adored : " Every nation has its gods : our misfortune is to have gods weaker than yours, and unable to prevent
^ur destruction."1
To heal their imagination on this point, during a drought Wonder. which threatened the country with a general famine, udtMir Father de Brebeuf invoked the Almighty, and his prayer was followed by abundant rain. He did the same on an- other occasion, and with similar success.' These wonders {<>r some time arrested the murmurs. The great number of dying children, who were seen to be baptized and die immediately, had also led these poor blinded people to consider baptism as a spell cast by the Fathers on the children to kill them ; but it happened that some sick people, whose cure was beyond all hope, recovered perfect health as soon as they received the sacrament of regen- eration, and these unexpected cures recalled the better dis- posed, but only for a short time : the impression made on their minds by these marvellous events was soon effaced,
Land the work was always to be begun anew.
Sometimes the profound ignorance of these savages, which made them so frequently attribute to supernatural causes many things in which there was nothing to exceed the powers of nature, led them to the opposite extreme ; as happens to those who, for fear of being over-credulous, rush into an incredulity that reason itself disavows. But these changes in minds arraying themselves irrationally, and with no certain rule, against religion, were not fre- quent among a people who care little for what does not strike the senses ; and the troubles and disgust of the
1 Relation de 1» Nonrelle Fnnoe ' Breemni, Breve Bel., p. 88 ; BeL (1686X p. 83. de U NoureUe Prance (1686), p. 88.
VOL. H.-6
82 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
i<>35- apostolical laborers arose almost always from their exces- v-~"^~" siye credulity.
Every thing that the Indians saw in the hands of the missionaries, but of which they did not know the use, was, / according to them, a charm intended to draw down on them death or misfortune. The missionaries had to keep locked up the most trifling articles belonging to the chapel, and they were even obliged to put out of sight a clock and a weather-cock, the former of which the Indians ^said brought death, and the other always bad weather ;' — a deplorable excess, doubtless, but less criminal before God than the blindness which draws so many pseudo-savants into irreligion, if we consider the ignorance which urged on these barbarians, devoid of all the natural knowledge by means of which they might have risen, with the grace of Christ, to know the Author of nature.
COUTM of The firmness and magnanimity of which the three re- ligious gave striking proofs amid the perils that surrounded
them, the sound arguments they employed to reach the capacity of their hearers, their natural and palpable ex- planations of every thing which they saw excite the least suspicion, and the unwavering patience with which they endured the most shameful treatment, in time dissipated the unfavorable impressions against them, and they not only succeeded in calming the first fury of a people whom the satellites of Satan never ceased to irritate and envenom against them, but even acquired a great ascendency over their minds. This, however, came only by degrees, and after many years of suffering.
what b»p- Father de Brebeuf was one day called before a general
pcSSnoU.* council. His reception there convinced him that his death
was decided. He was first reproached with all the evils
endured by the nation since his arrival in the country ; and
they attempted to prove that these evils could have no
1 Breeeaiu, Breve Relations, p. 64 ; Crenxins, Historia Canadenuie, pp. Relation de la Nonvelle France 172, etc. ; Marie de I'lncarnution, (1638), p. 87 ; Relation (1640). p. 56 ; Lettres Historiques, p. 8.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 88
other cause than his witchcraft and that of his companions. 1635. The servant of God, without betraying any alarm at the *-"~T~~-' danger in which he stood, first explained the general prin- ciples of Christian doctrines. He then proved that the scourges, which had for some time visited them, might well be strokes of the justice of the God whom he preached ; that this God, who was sanctity itself, thereby punished the disorders prevalent among them, and, jealous of his glory, chastised their obstinate refusal to acknowledge Him as their Creator and Sovereign Lord.
Some wished to reply, but he silenced them by showing the absurdity of their principles. He then resumed his discourse, and said that before Jesus Christ had been announced to them there might bo some excuse for their infidelity ; but as they could no longer pretend ignorance, they would be inexcusable if they persisted in their obsti- nacy ; that till then, God, good as he was just, had chas- tened them as a father ; that perhaps he would weary, and take a rod of iron which would crush them. Then many begged him to instruct them. He did so, and spoke at length. They seemed to listen with pleasure, although no one expressed conviction. As he left the cabin, he was surprised to see one of those who on all occasions had most openly declared against the Christian religion, fall toma- hawked at his feet. Thinking the blow was intended for him, he stopped, and asked whether they had not mistaken. " No," replied the one who dealt the blow, " this wretch was a sorcerer, of whom it was deemed time to free the village."1
Some time after, these vexations broke out more fan- New p«n» ously than ever ; and this new persecution was caused by p^ed'at" some Indians who, returning from the neighborhood of Manhattan, declared that the Europeans' settled in those
• Relation de la Nouvclle France 1640 ; Brcbeuf, Letter, May 20, 1637 ;
(1638), p. 37 ; Bressani, Breve Rela- Crtuiius, Hirtoria Canadeniis, p.
tione, pp. 65, 66 ; Gamier, Lettrei 326, etc.
InediU (1638) ; Marie de 1'lncarna- 9 The Dutch.— Charletoix. Man-
tion, Lettrea (1638), September 18, hatte in almost always employed by
84 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635. parts had warned them to beware of the French religious, — •~T~«-'1 who were pernicious men, spreading trouble and desola- tion everywhere, and for that reason not tolerated in Holland. But the storm did not last. The wisest of the Hurons, who had begun to open their eyes, showed that, in so important a matter, they should judge by what they saw ; that prudence required them to examine the charac- ter and conduct of men to whom so much evil was im- puted, and in whom, as yet, nothing was seen which re- sembled the odious description given by strangers, who •were probably their enemies.1
The word But what more than all else gave room to believe that gins to fruc- the day of mercy was about to dawn for the Huron nation, th/Hurons. was that the afflictions, which had been hitherto a stum- bling-block in the way of religion, began to prepare them for impressions of grace. If nothing proves its divinity better thau this power to elicit acknowledgment of it in adversity, those who preach the faith to the heathen have no more sensible mark that God has taken possession of their hearts, than when he draws them to him by the way of tribulation. The presentiments of the missionaries were just, and their hopes well grounded. Many of the most esteemed chiefs in the nation declared in favor of the Christian religion, and solicited baptism with much ear- nestness. But great as were the advantages to be hoped for from such conquests, the Fathers deemed it unwise to yield so easily to the desires of these new proselytes. The
French writers of the seventeenth 59. They may be the Antouohono-
and eighteenth centuries to signify ron, attacked by Champlain in 1615.
New York. Bressaui (in his Breve Some have supposed that they gave
Relation, p. 67) says that Indians name to Lake Ontario, but this is an
from the country of the Onenronro- error. Ontara, in Huron and Iroquois
nons, who had traded with the Eng- (Sagard, Diet. ; Hennepin, Nouv. Dec.,
lish, Dutch, and other Protestants, p. 31 ; Bruyas, Raciues, etc.), means
so stated. As to these Wenron, see a lake ; Ontariio, beautiful lake.
Champlain (ed. 1632, p. 129), where ' Relation de la Nouvelle France
he speaks of the Ouentouoronons, (1638), p. 36 ; Bressani, Breve Rela-
friends of the Iroquois : Crenxius, tione, p. 67 ; Creuzius, Higtoria Ca-
Hist. Canad., p. 238 ; Bel. (1639), p. nadensis, p. 229.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. Bo
more capable they were of contributing by their influence to 1635-6. the conversion of others, the more necessary it was deemed to try them, and be assured of their constancy.'
They instructed them thoroughly, so as to enable them why th« to give a reason for their faith, and meet difficulties that might be raised ; for it must not be supposed that the mis- sionaries had only to contend with brutality and absurd prejudices in the Indians. Even if these people had not all the solidity of mind and good sense attributed to them by those who have had most intercourse with them, the experience of all times and countries shows that, as the weakest men find strength, in a pressing need, to defend themselves against an unjust aggressor, so the least pene- trating minds never lack specious reasons for declining to yield when pressed to receive a doctrine against which all their passions revolt. Hence, I have heard old mission- aries assert frequently that Indians had made to them all the objections raised by the most learned Greeks and Romans against the first apologists of Christianity.'
Three things especially tended to free the Hurons from wh«t ren- tlieir prejudices, and arm them against the seduction which peo^Tem"™ had so long kept them in error. In the first place, they <"ooUl- made solid reflections on the sanctity of the religion preached to them, and on the purity of its moral code. The missionaries were extremely surprised to hear them express themselves on these two points, as men who had overlooked none of the maxims and principles of Chris- tianity, but saw clearly the connection between these prin- ciples and the consequences which their instructors de- duced from them. In the second place, they soon con- ceived a high idea of these religious, and never wearied in admiring their ability, prudence, and the justness and force of their arguments. The great examples of virtue which they saw them practise, made still greater impres-
1 Breutni, Breve Relations, p. ' Creoiiua, HUtoria Canadencfai 69. p. 230
86 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635-6. sion on them. They were especially struck with their ^-— v~-' courage and disinterestedness, and with their contempt Huron of life. It did not seem reasonable to believe that such men were mistaken in the affair of religion. In the third place, they agreed that one must have lost all sense to imagine that men who had no interest in leading them into error would, merely to do it, have undertaken such long voyages, run such risks, exposed themselves to so much hardship, exiled themselves so far from friends and kin- dred to spend their days with unknown tribes, and remain Lthere in spite of the cold welcome they had received and the manner in which they continued to be treated. These t reflections, made at first only by a few individuals, less rooted in prejudice, soon spread to the masses, and sud- denly changed the face of affairs ; but the missionaries had yet another reason for acting cautiously with this people, and not receiving into the number of neophytes all who presented themselves.
They carry \ This was the reluctance which most evinced to renounce caution too j practices, indifferent in {hemselves, but suspected by the fcr" i missionaries as not exempt from superstition. These In- dians in vain protested that they did not acknowledge any thing supernatural in them. All appeared suspicious in a dissembling nation, borne by an almost irresistible bent to attribute every thing to spirits. After all, laudable as mistrust and strictness are in this matter, they should not \ be excessive. Missionaries afterwards admitted that they ! had carried their precautions somewhat too far, and had I thus retarded the work of God.
Character of What was done in the Huron country to establish the faith, or at least prepare the Indians for it, was done also at Three Rivers, which began to be the rendezvous of the northern nations, in the neighborhood of Quebec, and at Tadoussac, to draw into the bosom of the Church the Al- gonquins, the Montagnez, and in general all with whom the French had any intercourse. The difficulties were everywhere about equally great at first, but differed
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 87
according to the various dispositions of the tribes whom they undertook to instruct. Much superstition in all : here more rudeness, but more simplicity ; more extrav- AI agances to contend with, but more ease in suppressing them ; harder minds, but hearts more docile ; more hard- ships and labors, especially when forced to follow the In- dians in their winter hunts,' but less risks to run. There was, too, less to combat in order to persuade these latter ! but more resource was found in the reflection and penetra- tion of the former. Moreover, the nomadic life of the Al- gonquin tribes prevented any calculation on individuals, and an absence of some months often ruined the labors of several years.
Qrace operated, moreover, very differently in the two Pngntt of nations. It found in the Hurons more rebellions hearts, but more constancy in good, when once embraced. They gave more hope of continued progress, but it was slower. The Algonquins offered to grace a heart more easily moulded, and presented obstacles more easily removed ; but it found less solidity and less disposition for great virtues. Grace triumphed over both, and corrected their defects ; but it cost the sweat and the blood of many of those whom she employed to work out the wonderful change.'
Meanwhile, New France was settled from day to day, Foundation and piety increased with the number of its inhabitants. i°gi O'f QU*. Nothing perhaps contributed more to this happy progress than an establishment commenced in the year 1635. Ten years before — that is to say, at the time when the Jesuits first went to Canada — Rene Bohault, eldest son of the Marquis de Gamache, having obtained the consent of his family to enter the Society of Jesus, his parents, who loved him tenderly, and learned from his own lips that he ardently desired to see a college founded at Quebec,
1 Le Jeune, in Relation de la Nou- ' See the Relation* in general, velle France, 1684, p. 51 ; Breuani, 1688 to 1639 ; Breoani, Breve Belat. ; Breve Relatione, p. 55. Le Cleroq, Relat. de la Oatpeiie, etc.
88
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635-6. wished to gratify his wishes on this point also. They wrote v^~v~"-' to Father Mutius Vitelleschi, general of the Jesuits, and offered him six thousand gold crowns for this foundation. The donation was thankfully received, but the capture of Quebec by the English suspended the execution of the project.'
First effect It was necessary then to wait some time till the capital ° d»UoDUD had taken form and the colonists were in a condition to profit by this establishment. The affair was finally com- menced in the month of December, 1635 ; but the joy it Death of gave was soon troubled by the loss of its governor, which Imp ' the French colony sustained a few days after. He died at Quebec this same year, generally and justly regretted."
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1641, p. 56; Relation, 1630, p. 4. Creuxius (Historia Canadensis, p. 7) gives the letters of Father Mutius Vitelleschi, establishing Nicholas Ro- hftut, Marquis de Qamache, Baron of Longroy and Hincheville, Seigneur of Beauchamp, Mareuil, and Bon- nincour, etc., and his wife, Frances Mangot, founders of the college. Creuxius gives the amount as six- teen thousand gold crowns. This is supported by de Belmont (Histoire du Canada, Quebec, 1840, p. 1), and by a manuscript list of benefactors of the Canada mission, in the hand- writing of Father Ragueneau, "Mar. 15, 1626, Marquis de Gamache, 48,000 livres."
9 Champlain died December 25, 1635, after an illness of two months and a half (Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1636, p. 56 ; Creuiius, His- toria Canadensis, p. 183). He was born at Brouage, in Xaintonge, in 1567 or 1570, of a respectable family, his father being styled noble. Dur- ing the civil wars he fought for the king in Brittany, under d'Aumont de St. Luc and Brissac (Faillon, His- toire de la Colonie Francaise, vol. 1, note xxi., p. 550). His uncle held a
high rank in the Spanish navy ; and Champlain had just returned from a voyage to Mexico in the Spanish service when he was induced to sail to New France, with which his after- career was identified, and in which he was laid, after many years of adventure and struggle. He mar- ried Helen Boulle, sister of a fellow- navigator, who, though at the time a Protestant, returned to the ancient faith, and, on her hus- band's death, became an Ursuline nun, under the name of Mother Helen de St. Augustine. She died at Meaux, December 20, 1654, at the age of fifty-six, in a convent which she had founded (Croniqne de 1'Ordre des Urgnlines ; Les Ursu- lines de Quebec, p. 352). They left no issue, the only heir appearing to claim any right in his estate being a cousin. Champlain wrote a jour- nal of his voyage to Mexico, of which a tolerable translation has been published by the Hakluyt So- ciety ; Des Sauvages, 1603 ; Voy- ages, 1613 ; Voyages, 1619 ; Voy- ages, 1632. A copy of his portrait by Moncornet is here given. For the discovery of his tomb, see note at end of this volume.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 89
Mr. de Cham plain -was, beyond contradiction, a man of 1635-6. merit, and may well be called THE FATHER OP NEW FRANCE. He had good sense, much penetration, very upright views, and no mtm was ever more skilled in adopting a course in the most complicated affairs. What all admired most in him was his constancy in following up his enterprises ; his firmness in the greatest dangers ; a courage proof against the most unforeseen reverses and disappointments ; ardent and disinterested patriotism ; a heart tender and compas- sionate for the unhappy, and more attentive to the inter- ests of his friends than his own ; a high sense of honor, and great probity. His memoirs show that he was not ignorant of any thing that one of his profession should know ; and we find in him a faithful and sincere historian, an attentively observant traveller, a judicious writer, a good mathematician, and an able mariner.
But what crowns all these good qualities is the fact, that in his life, as well as in his writings, he shows himself always a truly Christian man, zealous for the service of God, full of candor and religion. He was accustomed to say, what we read in his memoirs, " that the salvation of a single soul was worth more than the conquest of an empire, and that kings should seek to extend their domain in heathen countries only to subject them to Christ." He thus spoke, especially to silence those who, unduly preju- diced against Canada, asked what France would gain by settling it. Our kings, it is known, always spoke like Champlain on this point ; and the conversion of the Indians was the chief motive which, more than once, pre- vented their abandoning a colony the progress of which was so long retarded by our impatience, our inconstancy, and the blind cupidity of a few individuals. To give it a more solid foundation, it only required more respect for the suggestions of Mr. de Champlain, and more season- able relief on the part of those who placed him in his position. The plan which he proposed was but too well justified by the failure of opposite maxims and conduct.
90 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1635-6. Lescarbot reproaches him with credulity. It is the fault v— •v^-' of upright minds, and we cannot, in fact, overlook what he chwnpiain. says of the Gourou,1 and the monstrous face of the Ar- mouchiquois Indians.' He had been deceived by one Pre- vert, of St. Malo, who often delighted in inventing such stories, which he related with great assurance ; as when he one day protested, in presence of Mr. de Poutrincourt, that he had seen an Indian playing ball with the devil. He was asked what shape this devil assumed, and he replied that he had seen only the bat, which seemed to be moved by an invisible hand. Champlain could not understand how a man who had no interest in lying could do so in sport, and actually believed Prevert's story. As it is impossible to be faultless, it is well to have only those faults that would be virtues were all men what they should be." College of To return to the college of Quebec, the Jesuits pro- Quebec. cee(je(j without delay to fulfil the obligations which they had just contracted by accepting this foundation. They felt all its importance, and, in fact, nothing could have been more seasonable for the progress of the colony. Many Frenchmen, certain of being able to give their sons an education not attainable then in many towns in France, settled in New France ;' and the Indians, who were duly im- pressed with an idea of the advantage they might derive from such an establishment, came from all parts in num- bers to the neighborhood of Quebec.
As they were invariably well treated at the college by free
bestowal of food for the body, they were rendered docile
Jto receive that of the soul, and some cheerfully intrusted
their sons to persona who undertook to bring them up.'
By this means they were more and more civilized ; and as
1 Lescarbot, Hietoire de la Nou- ' Lescarbot, Histoire de la Nou- Telle France (ed. 1618), pp. 897, 402. velle France, ed. 1618, p. 403. Champlain, Dee Sauvages, 1603, ch. . « As to the origin of the settlers of lii. xiii. Qougou, gourou, means this epoch, gee Ferland, Notes sur remorse of conscience. leg Registres, p. 40.
' Champlain, Voy. (ed. 1613), p. 8. « Relation de la N. F., 1636, p. 44.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
91
they acquired affection for the French nation, they were "635-6. found better disposed to become good Christians. There ' •J~^~m-' can be no doubt that, had it been possible to keep con- stantly a number of Indian boys in this house, the pro- gress of Christianity would have been more prompt and durable among these people ; but the funds were not suffi- cient to sustain this good work, and, besides, other and in- superable difficulties arose subsequently, of which I shall speak hereafter.
The good example of those whose position renders it Mr. da always efficacious when accompanied by wisdom and power, also contributed to form true Christians in this new colony. Mr. de Montmagny, who succeeded Mr. do Champlain in the government of Canada,' and Mr. de Lisle, who commanded at Three Rivers, both knights of Malta, openly professed the piety which became their call- ing, and showed a zeal for order to which their firmness and exactitude insured success.' The divine service was celebrated with all the pomp that the poverty of the set- tlers permitted ; but piety and modesty are the true orna- ments of the temple of a God who is jealous only of being adored in spirit and in truth, and these virtues reigned with lustre among the new settlers.
One of the first cares of the Chevalier de Montmagny, project of* after investigating the condition of his government, was to regulate the seminary for Indian boys in the Jesuit college." This had been projected the year before, and it was deemed best to begin with the Hurons, among whom several families had just embraced Christianity. It
1 The government, till the arrival of Mootmagny, was administered by Mark Anthony Bru-de-fer (de) ( 'ha- toautort, governor of Three Rlvew : Viger, I.isu- ; Relation, 1686, p. 2 ; Creuxius, Hiatoria CanadensU, p 184 ; Ferland, Coure d'Hlrtoire, 1., p. 279. The Chevalier de Mont- magny wag appointed March 10,
1637, and reached Quebec June 10- 11: Ferland, p. 279; Faillon, HI* toire de la Colonie Francatae, p. 289 ; Creuiius, Hiatoria Canadenaig, p. 208.
* Relation de la Nonvelle France. 1688, p. 44 ; 1640, p. 41 ; 1687, p. 8.
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1637, p. 88.
92 HISTORY OF NEW PRANCE.
1635-6. was considered, too, that they would be so many hostages v— ~Y~-' for the fidelity of their parents. The Huron Christians were, accordingly, invited to send their children to Quebec, to be instructed in the principles of religion and trained in good habits. They made no objection at first, and t promised compliance ; but when the time for fulfilment came, Father Daniel, who undertook to bring them, of all the boys on whom they had reckoned, was able to embark only three or four, whose parents were absent ; and even these few he got no further than Three Eivers, where their parents meeting him, reclaimed them, although they had consented to their journey. This conduct did not surprise the missionaries, already aware of the extreme attachment of these savages to their children, and their invincible repugnance to parting with them.1
A number Father Daniel was too near Quebec not to visit it before uiaa'amoog returning to his mission. A letter of Father le Jeune rep- the Hnrons. regents njm as arriving in a canoe, paddle in hand, accom- panied by three or four Indians, barefooted, completely exhausted, his breviary hanging to his neck, a shirt falling to pieces, and a tattered cassock on his attenuated body, but with a happy countenance, charmed with the life he led, and, by his air and words, inspiring all with the desire of sharing the crosses to which the Lord imparted so much unction.' Many went, indeed, and before the end of 1636 they numbered six priests scattered in the different Huron towns, to which several Frenchmen had followed them.1 The colony It was a favorable moment to plant a good settlement s' in that country ; the interest of both Indians and French required it. Mr. de Champlain had had nothing more at heart, and the Chevalier de Montmagny, in this as in all other respects, entered into his predecessor's views, but he
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, s They were six in May, 1637
1687, p. 55 ; Creniius, Hietoria (Letter of Father de Brebeuf, May
CanadensiB, p. 208. 20, 1637) ; Carayon, Documents In-
8 Relation de la Nonvelle France, Sdits, xii., p. 161 ; but only three
1686, p. 71. early in 1637 (ib., p. 165).
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
93
lacked both men and means. Except the far-trade, which, 1635-6. though tolerably flourishing, enriched only the traders v— — Y— - ' and a few of the settlers, every thing languished for want of aid : so that the annals of New France, during its early years, treat almost exclusively of the apostolic labors of the missionaries among the Indians, of which they give very edifying accounts. These were at the time extremely relished in France, but would find few readers now.1
It is not easy to see by what fatality a company as pow- erful as that which controlled Canada, and regarding that vast country as its domain, thus abandoned a colony of which such great hopes had been conceived, and where the wonderful concert of all the members composing it, the only one perhaps in the New World showing such perfec- tion, assured the success of any enterprise undertaken there, had the hundred associates chosen to make the necessary advances. Several nations had been flattered with the hope that our alliance would enable them to re- duce their enemies ; and it was, the saddest point of all, that this made them succumb the sooner, because, relying on the aid expected from us, and which failed them in their need, they were not sufficiently on their guard.*
The Iroquois, on their side, never slept, and, to give the Hurons no time to profit by their union with the French, they resorted to a stratagem which succeeded. This was to divide them, and then annihilate them in detail. They began by treating of peace with the body of the nation ; then, under different pretexts, they attacked the towns more remote from the centre, persuading the rest that these were only private quarrels, in which they had no interest to in- terfere. The Hurons did not open their eyes till, so to say, they beheld at their doors a conquering enemy, whose very
\
Th« Iro-
quoil de- ceive the
I* ace.
1 Their popularity has revived. Bee Dr. O'Callaghan's paper before tbe New York Historical Society (Proceedings, 1847, pp. 140-58: Mon- treal, 1850), which led to a reprint of
all the Relations, in three Tola, 80, Quebec. 1858.
1 The tribes here referred to are the Borons, Tionontates or Petuns, Algonquin*, Ni pi wings.
94 HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE.
1636. name filled the whole country with alarm. Then the Iro- %—l •V"-1' quois raised the mask. The panic increased daily among the Hurons, and they lost all judgment, to such an extent that they could scarcely be recognized. Every step they ijnade was a mistake, and nothing now humbles the feeble remnant of that nation so much as the remembrance of their prodigious blindness.
Renewal of Immediately after Mr. de Champlain's last expedition against these Indians, mentioned in the previous book, they treated with the Huron nation ; and there is no doubt that, had not that nation relied on the peace just con- cluded, neither the French nor the missionaries would have found them so haughty and indocile as they appeared both before and after the capture of Quebec. Yet the Iroquois soon renewed hostilities, but in the manner just explained, declaring them to be only private quarrels ; and the body of the nation was reassured on the faith of a treaty which it had concluded with the Cantons.
At last, early in 1636,' the Iroquois threw off the mask, and appeared in arms in the midst of the Huron country.' Tet this irruption did not succeed. The few French who had followed the missionaries to those parts presented so bold a front, that the enemy judged it proper to retire. This retreat made the Hurons relapse into their first se- curity, and the Iroquois profited by it to persevere in the plan of campaign which they had at first adopted. At the end of the following year a re-enforcement of evangeli- cal laborers reached St. Joseph, and they were enough to assign one to each of the principal towns, and leave some to make excursions among the neighboring tribes.3 VaHom ex- These were made especially in the direction of Lake Ni-
the mis- pissing ; but Fathers Garnier and Chastelain, who were aionaries.
1 They attacked the Hurons as ' Chastelain and Gamier went up :
early aa 1634 : Relation, 1634, p. Relation, 1687, p. 105 ; Letter of
88. Father de Brebeuf, May 20, 1637, in
* Relation de la Nourelle France Oarayon, Documents Inedits, xii., p.
1636, p. 94. 161.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 95
appointed, derived from their painful expedition only the '637. consolation of having suffered much and sent several chil- *-^f~m-' dren to join the company of the spotless Lamb, by admin- istering baptism to them as they were about to expire.1 Among the nations whom they visited, their memoirs note the Byssiriniens.' I have made every effort to ascertain who these Indians were, and where they resided, and can- not even ascertain to which of the two mother tongues, the Huron or Algonquin, they belonged. This nation not being mentioned after this time, was apparently then de- stroyed by the Iroquois, like several others whose names have reached us.'
The missionaries, undiscouraged by the fruitlessness of these first excursions, continued the succeeding years, almost invariably with the same want of success. They were sent and went joyfully, sure at least of the merit of obedience, and flattering themselves that it would at last give fruit to their toil. They knew, moreover, that they were accomplishing the promise of the Saviour of the world, by preaching his gospel to every creature ; that their ministry was confined to planting, watering, culti- vating ; that the increase depended on God alone, and does not affect the reward promised to the laborers whom the Father of the family sends into his vineyard.4 ' But what chiefly retarded the work of God in these re- Th« Iro- mote parts, was the blockade of the roads by the Iroquois, Vh°rM R!T-*
kept all these nations in alarm. In spite of all the precautions taken by the Chevalier de Montmagny to con- ceal the weakness of the colony, they were soon informed,
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, lion for 1637 (p. 190) says Bissirin-
1637, p. 73. iene or Sorcerers, which identifier
1 Ib., p. 150. them as the NiplaBiriniens — called
* It may be, that in printing the Askirouanehronon, or Sorcerers, by
Relation, ByseirinienB was pat for the Hurong (Relation, 1639, p. 88 ;
NipissirinienB ; for I find the Nipis- 1641, p. 81). The name U apparent-
sings, the real Algonquin*, tome- ly Water Indians, nibiah irini. times thus called.— Charlev. There 4 See Relations Huronne*. 1687,
is no doubt on the point. The Rela- et seq.
96 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1637. and not only lost all fear that the French would interfere *-"~T~"-' with their driving their enemies to the wall, but, in the month of August, 1637, five hundred of these Indians had the boldness to come and insult the governor at Three Eivers, where he was, and carry off before his eyes, with- out his being able to prevent it, thirty Hurous coming down to Quebec with a load of furs.1
Epidemic The year 1638 began with the Huron missionaries in a *Hurons.e way to give hopes of harvest abundant enough to atone for the sterility of previous years. The country was vis- ited by an epidemic, which from one town soon spread to all, and threatened the destruction of the whole nation. It was a kind of dysentery, which, in a few days, hurried to the grave all whom it attacked. The French were no more exempt than the Indians, but they all recovered. This produced two good effects : first, those Indians were un- deceived who persisted in believing that every accident that befell them was caused by witchcraft : this they could not ascribe to the missionaries, seeing that even they did not escape the malady : second, that the Indians learned to treat the sick better than they had done, observing that the French easily recovered by means of the treatment they adopted ; for skilful as these people are in curing wounds and fractures, they are unable to treat internal diseases, which require attention and experience in the physician, with patience and docility in the patient. Fi- nally, the charity and generosity with which they beheld the missionaries part with all their remaining remedies iand palliatives to relieve them, and the surpiisiug cures they effected, gained the hearts of those even who till then had been loudest in their opposition.'
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, which Father Brebeuf gave, after the
1637, pp. 88, 89 ; Creuxius, Ilistoria Indian fashion, his atsataion (death-
CanadensU. banquet) : Relation, 1638, p. 44. The
* Relat. de la Nour. France, 1638, following Relation (1639) does not
pp. 33-59. The year 1637 was the altogether justify the progress here
time of their great persecution, in indicated.
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE. 97
It was not in Canada only that an interest was taken in 1638. the conversion of the heathen. The Jesuits, in their let- ^^ ~f— •• ters to France, had represented that were they in a posi- interest in tion to relieve the wretchedness of many wandering Indians, many would be gained to Christ ; that to effect this it was only necessary to assemble all who could be induced to lead a more sedentary life, in order to accustom them gradually to cultivate the ground and earn their food and clothing by their labor and industry. These representa- tions induced many pious persons to enter into a holy emulation to contribute to a work so vitally connected with God's glory. Whole communities in Paris and the prov- inces imposed on themselves penitential works, and offered public prayers to move heaven in favor of the Canada In- dians.1
All the nobles of the court, the princesses of the blood, the queen herself, entered into the missionaries' views ; and when these religious proposed to establish at Quebec Ursulines and Hospital nuns, a great many sisters of the two orders most earnestly solicited the preference when the enterprise was to be carried out,' capable as it was of alarming those of their sex, and so new to their profes- sion. But no one seconded more efficaciously the zeal of the preachers of the gospel than the Commander de Sil- lery. This nobleman, who embraced nothing more readily than what would advance God's glory, relished exceed- ingly the project of an Indian town, as proposed to him by the Jesuits, to be composed only of Christians and proselytes, where they would be sheltered from the insults of the Iroquois by the speedy succor they could obtain from the French, and guarded against famine by the care to be taken to make them cultivate the ground.'
1 ReUtioQ de la Nourelle France, 1638, p. 17 ; Letters of Sillery and
1635, p. 2 ; 1636, p. 3 ; 1689, p. 6 ; Monttntgnj, in the Vie de I'illnrtre
Crruxina, Historia Canaden»i». p. Serriteur de Dieu. Noel Brulart de
-' ' -' Sillery, CUeralier de Malte. et Bailly
1 Relation, 1637, p. 5. Commandenr Grand' Croii dan*
> Relation de la Nouvelle France, lordre (12o, Part*, 1843), pp. 71-4 ;
VOL. II.— 7
98 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
163$. With this view, he sent workmen to Quebec in 1637, and ^— -Y— ^ recommended Father le Jeune, to whom he directed them, Foundation to select an advantageous spot for the settlement. The of Syiien. stlperior conducted them, immediately after their arrival, to a point four miles above the city, on the river, and there they first began to prepare shelter for themselves.' The place has since always borne the name of Sylleri. These preparations, the object of which it had been deemed inexpedient to disclose to the Indians, led some Montagnez to conceive the idea of profiting by the new settlement ; and they opened the matter to Father le Jeune, who as- sored them that, for his part, they would have no difficulty in obtaining their wish ; but he added that he could de- cide nothing without the consent of the master of the set- tlement.
He was, however, well aware of the commander's inten- tion ; but his experience made him consider this reserve necessary with Indians, who easily persuade themselves that what is too easily given is due to them or given from motives of interest. The precipitate zeal which, ignorant of the Indian character, led sometimes to an opposite course, was sure to be followed by tardy regret.' The con- sent of the Chevalier de Sylleri arrived the next year by the return of vessels from France ; and twelve1 large Christian families took possession of the place intended for them, and made it their home. They were not long alone, and in a few years this settlement became a consid-
Letters of Father la Jenne (ib., pp. died Sept. 26, 1640. The church 164-<J). Sillery was born in Decem- which he founded and was buried in ber, 1577, his family being allied to having been given to a Protestant that of Villegagnon, already known congregation, the Visitation nuns, in in this history. He was ambassador 1835, removed liis body to their con- to Madrid and also to Rome, living vent in the Rue St. Etienne de Mont, in great splendor. He finally re- and subsequently to the Rue d'Enfer. nounced the world, and receiving ' Rel. de la Nouv. FT., 1638, p. 17. orders, lived in retirement. He was ! Ib., p. 18.
a friend of St. Vincent de Paul and 8 This should be two. The fam-
St. Jane Frances de Chantal, and ilies of Negabamat and Nenaskou-
greatly aided their good works. He mat were the first : Rel., 1639, p. 19.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 99
erable town, composed of fervent Christians, who cleared 1638. a pretty large tract, and were gradually formed to all the """" ~v~" duties of civil society.1
The neighborhood of Quebec and the exemplary conduct Edifying of its people contributed not a little to ground the new in- tSeDinh°»b?t- habitants of Sylleri in piety, and inspire them with a kind of government suited to their character. All led a very regular life, and most of them displayed a fervor which filled old Christians with shame, impressing them with the importance of not being outstripped in piety and regu- larity by savage neophytes. All know how most colonies in America were formed ; but we must do this justice to New France, that the origin of almost all the families still subsisting there is pure, and free from those stains which opulence effaces with difficulty. Its first settlers were either mechanics, who were always engaged in useful la- bors, or persons of good family, who emigrated with the sole view of living there in greater quiet, and preserving more certainly their religion ; a thing impossible then in many provinces of France, where the Huguenots were very powerful. I fear contradiction on this point less, as I lived with some of these first settlers, then almost centenarians, their children, and many of their grandchildren, all most worthy people, estimable for their probity, their candor, and the solid piety which they professed, as well as for their whitened locks and the remembrance of the services which they had rendered the colony.'
Not but that in these first years, and still more as time wore on, faces were met with of persons whom the involved state of their affairs or misconduct had forced to leave France, and others of whom the authorities sought to purge the state and families ; but as persons of these classes came only in small bodies, and great care was taken not to leave them together, the colonists had almost always the conso-
1 Relation de la Nonvelle Fiance, > Ferl«nd, Not<* tar 1<* RegMras 1839, p. 19. de Quebec.
100 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1638. latioii of soon seeing them reform, in consequence of the
v— -Y— -^ good example before their eyes, and make a duty of the
necessity they were under of living like true Christians,
in a country where every thing allured them to good and
withdrew them from evil.1
Establish- Two things were still wanting to this well-regulated mHospftaiie colony, namely, a school for the instruction of girls and a hospital for the treatment of the sick. The Jesuits had, for some years, taken steps to obtain these two advan- tages ; but they carried their views further. In soliciting the foundation of a hospital, they had the design of aid- ing the colonists, most of whom were poor and without resource in sickness ; but it was also their aim to win the Indians more and more, by taking care of their sick in a house entirely devoted to charity :' and their project of bringing over Ursulines from France contemplated the education of little Indian girls, as well as that of the daugh- ters of the French.
The former of these two projects was approved almost as soon as proposed, and its execution experienced no de- lay. The Duchess d'Aiguillon1 wished to be the foundress of the Hotel-Dieu ;' and she applied to the Hospital nuns of Dieppe for sisters suited for such an undertaking. These pious recluses accepted with joy and gratitude so beautiful an opportunity of sacrificing every thing they held dear in the world to serve the sick poor in Canada. All offered to go ; all with tears asked to be selected ; but only three were chosen, and they held themselves in readi- ness to go by the first vessels.'
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, a Montauban, chez Jeroeme Legier,
1636, p. 42 ; Ferland, Cours d'His- imprimeur du Roy, 1751, p. 2.
toire, pp. 274, 511. * Juchereau, Higtoire de 1'Hotel-
• Relation de la Nouvelle France, Dieu, p. 4 ; Ragueneau, La Vie de la
1635, p. 2 ; 1636, p. 5. Mere Catherine de Saint Augustin,
3 Duchess d'Aiguillon, niece of Religievse Hoepitaliere de la Miseri- Cardinal Richelieu. corde de Quebec en la Nouvelle
4 Relation de la Nouvelle France, France, a Paris, Florentin Lambert. 1638, p. 2 ; 1639, p. 6 ; Juchereau M.DC.LXXI, p. 40.
Histoire de 1'Hotel-Dieu de Quebec,
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 101
The foundation of the Ursulines was attended with 1639. greater difficulty. The Canada Company would not touch it, deeming it, probably, not of such urgent necessity. This affair had been more than once on the point of exe- cution, and had always failed at the moment when success seemed certain. At last a young widow of rank, Madame de la Peltrie, came forward, whose plans were found more practicable and whose courage was more constant.' I have related in another work,' in detail, the wonderful cir- cumstances that occurred, and the manner in which the illustrious foundress, after surmounting apparently invin- cible obstacles, devoted her means and her person to the good work, which Providence had shown her, and con- firmed by a striking miracle.'
From Alencon, where she resided, she proceeded to Paris, to settle the business of the foundation ; then to Tours, to obtain Ursuline nuns. Thence she drew the il- lustrious Mary of the Incarnation, the Teresa of New France, to use the expression of the greatest men of the last century ; and Mary of St. Joseph, whom New France, who possessed her for a little while, regards as one of its tutelary angels. Thence she repaired to Dieppe, where she had ordered a vessel to be chartered. There she acquired
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, dame Magdalen de Chauvigny,
1639, p. 6. daughter of Mr. de Chauvigny, Sieur
' Charlevoix, Tie de la Mere Ma- de Vaubegon, wat born at Alenfon,
rie de 1' Incarnation, Institutrice & in 1603. At the age of seventeen
premiere Superieure dee Unulinei she married Charles de Grival, Sei-
de la Nouvelle France, a Paris, chez gneur de la Peltrie, a gentleman of
Louis-Ant. Thomelin, MDCCXXIV, the house of Touvoys, who died five
p. 105, etc. years after. When about carrying
1 Mother St. Thomas, Life of Ma- out her Canadian project she went
dame do la Peltrie (Magdalen de through a formal marriage ceremony
Chauvigny), New York, 1859, p 26, with Mr. de Bernleres. treasurer of
etc. ; Cangnin, Histoire de la Mere France, so as to free herself from the
Mariudel'Incamation, Quebec, 1864, legal control of her family. She
80, p. 207, etc. ; Choix dee Lettres never became an Ursuline, but do-
Historiqaes de la Vt'm'rable Mere voted her life and services to them.
Marie de 1'Incarnation, Clennont- She died in the convent at Quebec,
Ferrand, 12o, 1857, p. 1, etc. Ma- Nov. 18, 1671, aged sixty-eight.
102
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639.
Their re- ception.
Their fer- vor.
a third Ursuline, and, on the 4th of May, 1639, she em- barked with the Hospital nuns and Father Bartholomew Vimond, who was going out to succeed Father le Jeune as Superior-General of the Missions, and who was also con- ducting a fresh supply of apostolic laborers. After a long and dangerous voyage, this large party reached Quebec on the 1st of August.1
Nothing was omitted to impress on the Indians how much the French had their interest at heart, and the sal- vation of their souls, when women even and young girls, brought up in abundance and luxury, without shrinking from the perils of the sea, left a pleasant, tranquil life to come to instruct their children and take care of their sick. The day when so many persons thus ardently de- sired arrived was a holiday for the whole city ; all labor ceased, and the shops were closed. The governor received these heroines at the river-side, at the head of his troops, who were under arms, and with the sound of cannon. After the first compliments, he led them, amid the accla- mations of the people, to the church, where the Te Deum was chanted in thanksgiving.'
These pious women, on their side, and their noble con- ductress, in the first transport of their joy kissed the earth for which they had so long sighed, which they promised themselves to water with their sweat, and did not even despair of dyeing with their blood. French mingled with Indians, pagans even confounded with Christians, for several days untiringly continued to make all resound with their cries of joy, and give a thousand blessings to Him who alone could inspire the feeblest of mankind with
1 Charlevoix, Vie de la Mere Ma- pie de I'lncarnation, pp. 255-63 ; Chaumonot, Vie du R. P. Pierre Joseph Marie Chaumonot, New York, 1858, p. 50. They came in a barque commanded by James Vastcl, Cap- tain Bontempe commanding the fleet : Leg Unulinea de Quebec, de-
puis leur etablissement jnsqu'a noa jours, Quebec, 1863, 80, i., p. 21.
5 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1639, p. 8; Charlevoix, Vie de la Mere Marie de I'lncarnation, p. 263 ; Creuzius, Hist. Canad., p. 253. The official act of reception is given in the Ureulines de Quebec, i., p. 21, n.
HI8TORT OF NEW FRANCE. 103
such courage and fortitude. At the sight of the Indian 1639. cabins, to which the nuns were conducted the day after "-— v~— ' their arrival, they were seized with new transports of joy. The poverty and untidiness prevailing in them all did not repel them ; and a sight so capable of chilling their zeal served only to give it new life. They evinced a great im- patience to begin the exercise of their functions.'
Madame de la Peltrie, who had never desired to be
rich, and who had so cheerfully become poor for Christ's ui*<3uie* sake, could not refrain from saying that she wished to have at her disposal enough to draw all the nations of Canada to a knowledge of the true God ; and she took a firm resolution, which she observed her whole life, to spare herself in nothing where the salvation of souls was to be effected. Her zeal led her even to till the soil with her own hands, to have wherewith to relieve the poor neo- phytes. In a few days she had stripped herself of all she had retained for her own use, so as to reduce herself to want of actual necessaries, in order to clothe the children brought lo her almost naked ; and her whole life, which was prolonged many years, was but a series of acts of the most heroic charity. They have forever endeared her memory to all New France, where the fruit of her good work is perpetuated, to the great advantage of all that colony."
After the visits of which I have spoken, the nuns of mt Uboil the two institutes embraced each other affectionately, and of tbenunfc then separated to enter their several cloisters, the Ursu- lines at Quebec,' and the Hospital nuns at Sylleri,' where
1 Relation de Ik Nouvelle France, occupied by a Mr. Blanchard : Lea
1039, p. 8 ; JurliiTfiui. Hi.it.iin- de Ursnlines de Quebec, i , p. 37. I'Hot.-l I>ii-u, p. 14 ; Charlevoii, Vie « Relation de la Noorelle France.
de la Mere Marie de 1'Incarnation, 1689. p. 8. They did not go to 811-
p. 264. lery to reside. A howe had been
* Relation de la Nonvello France, commenced at Quebec ; bat finding
1672, pp. 57, 65 ; Creuxius, Historia it unsuitable, they occupied tempo-
Canadensis, pp. 255, 25«. rarily a new house, assigned to them
•This first convent was in the by the governor (Jnchereau, Histoir*
lower town, on the quay, a site now de 1'Hotel-Dieu, pp. 15, 17).
104 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639. the number of Indians increased from day to day, and
v— -Y— -^ where they could readily receive the sick from the city and
country. Nothing could be more cramped or less furnished
than these convents. The servants of the Lord took
all the inconvenience for themselves, the sick and their
pupils experiencing none of it. Yet God wished to subject
. both to the severest trials. The Ursuline seminary was
first attacked by small-pox,' and an epidemic brought to
the hospital more sick than there were beds or even rooms
to put them in."
These afflictions did not disconcert the nuns. They provided for all in a way not easily conceived, and never was seen more clearly what the power of charity can effect. What surprised all was, that in such a prostration, BO extreme a change of life and climate, with coarse food, great hardships, and the privation of all the comforts which custom has made necessaries of life, these holy women, incessantly amid the sick, long enjoyed, almost without exception, perfect health,1 and were able to add to their painful labors the study of Indian languages.4 The Canada So much spiritual succor, arriving at once from France, etiii'neg- could not but give a great impulse to religious affairs. '"colony*1 Grea* changes indeed took place among the Indians, and it was only necessary to follow up these first steps to bring most of the nations of Canada into the bosom of the Church. The outlay made at Sylleri to gather the newly converted and those who were anxious to be instructed ; the two establishments just mentioned ; all the missions re-enforced by unwearied men, who never spared them- selves ; the piety and charity of the chief settlers, who refused nothing to aid them, even to lending their own beds for the use of the sick, made this one of those precious moments which it is all-important to seize, and
1 Charlevoix's Life, p. 265 ; Creux- 3 The nuns all fell sick : Juche-
ius, p. 258 ; Les Ureulines de Que- reau, p. 20.
bee, i., p. 39. 4 Ib., p. 18 ; Les Ureulines de Que-
* Juchereau, p. 19. bee, i., p. 28.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
106
which never return when allowed to pass without being improved to the utmost.
Minds in France and America were certainly in the best possible disposition to settle the colony and establish all branches of trade that so good a foundation could pro- duce ; but the Company of a Hundred Associates remained in a perfectly inexplicable inaction, and the result was that the missions and communities, which should have drawn their chief aid from the colony, were almost its only support. Yet the fund on which the missionaries and nuns subsisted was in a great measure only precarious. It could not be expected to continue always on the same footing, and, in fact, gradually diminished.
The war broke out again with new fierceness between the Iroqnois and Hurons ; but although the former often had the advantage, for the reasons given already, the lat- ter, who had lost none of their pristine valor, occasionally retrieved their fortunes. One day, when the missionaries were all assembled in a town to confer upon their affairs, tidings came of the defeat of a considerable party of Iro- qnois, and a prisoner was brought in who was burnt, but who had the happiness of passing through this species of hell to the abode of the elect — at least, if we may judge by the dispositions in which he seemed to die. As he is the first adult of this nation known to have received bap- tism, I have deemed it not amiss to give the principal cir- cumstances of his death, which I draw from the details of his torture, given, in one of his letters, by Father de Bre- beuf, an eye-witness.1
As soon as the prisoner reached the village, the sachems The first held a council to decide his fate ; and the conclusion was that he should be put in the hands of an old chief, in order to replace, if he so chose, one of his nephews taken by the Iroquois, or to dispose of him as he saw fit. On
1 It. 1 . 1037 (Huron), p. 100. Creox- Ins (1., p. 609) refers to an Iroquois Anguetinian in Spain. Andrei de
S. Nicolas (HiitorU General de lot Religiosos Desc. de 8. Agustin, Ma- drid, 1664) may explain it
106 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639. the other hand, Father de Brebeuf was no sooner informed •—— r— - ' of what was passing than he hastened to the prisoner, deter- mined not to leave his side till he had opened to him the way of salvation. He first perceived him amid a band of warriors, clothed in a new beaver robe, with a wampum belt around his neck, and another around his head, like a diadem. He was made to sing without giving him a moment's relaxation, but he was not ill-treated. What most astonished the missionary was that he was as tran- quil, and had a countenance^ as serene, "as If he had suf- fered nothing or was sure of his life ; yet he had endured much in the first days of his captivity, and had more to fear than to hope from the future.
Father de Brebeuf was invifed to make him sing, ac- cording to custom : but he excused himself, and approach- ing him a little nearer, he remarked that one of his hands had been crushed between stones, and one of his fingers torn off ; that two fingers of the other hand were gone, cut off with an axe ; and that the only dressing applied to these wounds was a few leaves, bound with strips of bark. In addition to this, the joints of his arms were burnt, and on one he had a deep gash. He had been reduced to this state on his march ; for, from the moment he had entered the first Huron town, he had received only good treat- ment. Every cabin had feasted him, and a young woman had been assigned him to act as a wife. In a word, to see him among these Indians, no one would have supposed that people who showed him so much friendship would be so many demons furiously tormenting him.
Father de Brebeuf, who had every liberty to converse with him, began by telling him that although he could do nothing to mitigate his pains, he wished, at least, to teach him to suffer them — not precisely as a brave, to acquire a glory that would be useless to him after death, but from a more solid and elevated motive ; that this motive was the well-grounded hope that his pains would be followed by a perfect and endless happiness. He then briefly explained
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 107
to him the most essential articles of Christian doctrine, and 1639. he found him not only docile, but, contrary to the usual custom of Indians, very attentive, and taking pleasure in what was told him. He profited by this good disposition, and believed that he saw Grace working powerfully in the heart of this captive. He completed his instruction, bap- tized him, and called him Joseph.1
He then obtained permission to take him with him every evening and keep him during the night. He would have desired more, but the fate of the prisoner did not depend on those from whom he could have obtained his deliverance. His wounds gave him much to suffer, as they swarmed with worms. He earnestly asked that they should be taken out ; but it was impossible to do this, the vermin burying themselves at every attempt to extract them. The feasts continued, always in his name ; and he did the honors, singing till he was hoarse. He was then taken from town to town, compelled to sing all the way. He had no rest, except when Father de Brebeuf or some other missionary had permission to entertain him. Then he was not only not interrupted, but all the Indians gath- ered around to hear the Father, and many profited by what they heard. »
At last they reached the village of the chief to whom the prisoner had been given,' and who had not yet de- clared the decision to which he had come. Joseph ap- peared before this sovereign arbiter of his destiny with the countenance of a man to whom life and death are in- different. He was not long in suspense as to what was to befall him. " Nephew," said the old chief, " you cannot conceive the joy I feel in learning that yon are mine. I
1 Relation, 1637, p. 112. He was juut been adopted as patron of the a Seneca, bat as his tribe was then country (Relation, 1037, p. 5). at peace with the Huron*, he went * The name of this chief wa« Sa- to Onondaga and joined a war part/ ouandaouascouajr, of the Tillage there i Relation, p. 111). The name Tondakhra : Relation de la Non- Joseph was given, as St. Joseph had velle France, 1637, p. 118.
108 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639. at first imagined that he whom I had lost had risen again, and I resolved to put you in his place. I had already prepared a mat for you in my cabin, and it gave me great pleasure to think that I was to spend the rest of my days peacefully with you ; but the condition in which I see you forces me to change my resolution. It is evident that with the pain and trouble you endure life can be but a burden, and you will doubtless thank me for shortening it. It is those who mutilated you thus who put you to death.1 Courage, then, nephew ! Prepare for this evening. Show that you are a man, and be not depressed by fear of torture."
The prisoner heard this as though it did not concern him. He replied, in a firm tone, " This goes well !" Then the sister of the one whom he was to replace came and offered him food, as if he had really been her brother, serving him with every appearance of the most sincere and cordial friendship. The old chief himself caressed him, put his pipe in his mouth ; and seeing him all drenched in sweat, wiped it off, and gave him all possible marks of truly fatherly affection.
Towards noon the prisoner made his farewell feast,3 at the expense of his uncle ; and all being assembled, he said : " Brothers, I am going to die ; enjoy yourselves boldly around me ; think that I am a man ; and rest assured that I fear neither death nor any torment you can inflict upon me." He then sang, several warriors joining with him ; after which the food was served up. There is no invitation to these banquets : every one has a right to go ; but most of them bring no platter, and come as mere spectators. The banquet over, the prisoner was taken to the place of torture, a cabin set apart for this use. Each village has one of this class, styled the cabin of blood or of
1 The Tohontaenras, who gnbee- ' This farewell feast was called,
quently surrendered to the Senecas in Huron, Astataion : Rel. 1637, p.
and removed to their country : Rela- 113 ; Atsataion, 1638, p. 44. Chitsa-
tion, 1651, p. 4. tayon : Sagard, Diet. v. Festin.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 109
teveral heads,1 and it is always the cabin of a war-chief. As 1639. soon as a prisoner sets foot in it, it is no longer in the power of any one to spare his life. It is not, however, always the place of execution, which may be performed anywhere.
Towards eight o'clock at night eleven fires were lighted, about six feet apart. All ranged themselves in a line on either side, the old men behind, on a sort of platform, and the young men, who were to be actors, in the front rank. As soon as the prisoner entered, an old man advanced, exhorted the youth to do well ; adding that this was an important action,. and that Areskouy' would look down upon them. This short harangue was received with ap- plause, or rather with yells, wild enough to strike terror into the stoutest. The captive at the same time appeared amid the assembly, between two missionaries, and the cries redoubled as he was seen. He was next seated on a mat and his hands bound.
He then rose and went around the cabin, dancing and singing his death-song. This done, he returned to his place, and sat down on the mat again. Then a war-chief took off his robe ; and showing him thus naked to the assembly, said : " Such a one (naming another chief)' takes this captive's robe ; the inhabitants of such a village* will cut off his head and give it, with an arm, to such a one' (whom he named again), who will make a feast of it." Then began a most tragic and horrible scene ; and Father de Brebeuf, who was present at the whole, gives a descrip-
1 Otinontsiikiaj ondaon : Relation form in properly A.rwikoni, the early
de la Nouyelle France, 1087, p. 114. writer* using what they called an
r ' The god of war, the same w Te- iota subscript to designate a kind of
haronhiaouagon : Relation de la Nou- pause and peculiar vowel Bound,
yelle France, 1070, pp. 47, 66 ; Rela- The Iroquoin pronounced it lew ob-
tion, 1671, p. 17; LafiUn, Mo-ore scnrely, and the missionaries among
dec S»uv»ges, i., p. 126. The wor- them wrote it " Agreikoue. '
ship of A reekony h»s been succeeded ' Oteiondi.
by "that of Hawenniio, really the • The Ataronchronon*.
God of the Christians. The Huron * Ondewone.
110 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639. tion that makes one shudder. This missionary induced v— ^r— - ' the executioners, from time to time, to give their victim some relaxation. He profited by it to exhort him to offer his sufferings to a God who could reward him for them, and who had himself undergone for us every indignity and torment.
While he spoke all kept silence and listened attentively. Joseph replied to all as though he felt no pain ; and during his whole torture nothing escaped him which his charitable instructors could rebuke. He even spoke at times of the affairs of his tribe, as though he were in the midst of his family and friends. His tortures were pro- longed, because the old men had declared that it was im- portant that the rising sun should find him still alive. As soon as day broke he was led out of the village and no longer spared. At last, when they saw him about to ex- pire, for fear that he should die otherwise than by steel, as his sentence required, they cut off his foot, hand, and head. The distribution was made as had been directed, and the rest of the body was put into the kettle.1 situation of The Huron mission then had great contradictions to ' mission, experience, but they were checkered with success that gave the Fathers great hopes. The details which they give in their letters are truly touching ; and these letters are written with so much simplicity and candor, that we cannot be surprised that they excited the interest of so many persons of piety in the conversion of the heathen in Canada. On the one hand, we see savages drawn by the secret impression of grace, and, by the charity of their masters in Christ, present themselves in crowds for bap- tism ; numbers of Iroquois prisoners enter, like this one just described, into the way of salvation, and by the same gate as he, and show, till the last sigh, sentiments that touched their very enemies ; finally, unhoped-for conver-
1 Relation, 1637, p. 118 ; Letter of Documents Inedite, xii., p. 181. Sea Father Francis du Peron, Carayon, Sagard, Histoire da Canada, p. 453.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. Ill
Hions, where the finger of God makes its operation felt 1639. even by the most incredulous. VJ^T"^"
On the other hand, they show the preachers of the gos- pel ever on the point of fulling victims of a popular out- break, excited by some unforeseen accident ; by the resentment of a father, who imagines that the prayer or baptism caused the death of his child ; by the caprice of some ill-disposed man, in whom a pretended dream or an evil report has heated the bile or disordered the imagina- tion. The missionaries had the same attacks to meet in other nations ; and among the various examples which I find in my authorities, I select one, too characteristic of the Indians to pass in silence.
Father Jerome Lallemant, brother of Father Charles singular Lallemant, of whom I have already spoken, was on his way to the Hurons, by the way of the great Ottawa River. He met some Algonquins, who had pitched their cabins on the banks of that river, and his Huron guides thought fit to stop some time with them. The missionary took the opportunity to recite his breviary, and retired a little apart. He had scarcely begun, when he was called and taken to a cabin. Here he was told to sit down beside an Algonquin, whose dark and angry brow heightened the sinister expression of a malignant face.
The missionary was no sooner seated beside him than the Indian, looking at him askant, reproached him that a Frenchman, passing through his village, had bled one of his sick relatives and killed him. With these words he burst out in a fury, seized an axe with one hand and a rope in the other, and told the missionary to prepare to die, to appease the manes of his kinsman, and that he only gave him his choice of the mode of his death. The Father could only use reason with the madman, but he was in no condition to hear it. He even sprang on the mission- ary, and was endeavoring to strangle him ; but either his fury had not reached its height, or left him too little self- possession to know what he was doing. His cord got
112 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1639. entangled in the collar of the missionary's cassock, so that though he pulled with all his might, he did not do him much harm.
After toiling in vain, he perceived his stupidity, and wished to loosen the collar, but failing to do so, raised the hatchet to tomahawk the missionary, who escaped from his hands. The Hurons stood by, unmoved spectators of this scene, as a thing that did not concern them in the least ; but two Frenchmen, attracted by the noise, rushed violently on the Algonquin and were going to kill him, when Father Lallemant interposed, representing the con- sequences that might ensue from the death of this man. He added that it was better to tell the Hurons plainly that the governor -general would hold them responsible if any thing befell a missionary confided to them ; and the Frenchmen followed the advice.
The Hurons then held a council, after which they told the Algonquin that Father Lallemant was under their safeguard. This declaration at first had no great effect ; and as those who made it went no further, without sus- taining the Frenchmen, and the Algonquin was well attended, the missionary was still for a time in very great danger. At last, seeing the savage a little calmer, either because weariness had moderated his fury or because he had really never intended to go to extremes, the Hu- rons told him that if he would release the Father, they would cover the dead man — that is to say, would make him some present to console him for the loss of his kins- man. This proposition completely calmed him. The Hurons gave him some furs, calculating shrewdly that they would be no losers, and at once embarked with the missionary.1
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, des Sauvages, p. 95) gives an incor-
1638, p. 30 ; Letter of Father Francis rect account, assigning it to the year
du Peron, April 27, 1639, Carayon, 1650. Father Tailhan, in his note
Documents Inedits, xii., p. 168. Per- (p. 245), seems to have overlooked
rot (Moeurs, Coustumes, et Relligion the Relation of 1638.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 113
This was not the only unpleasant adventure that befell 1 640. Father Lallemaut on this voyage, and there was not one ' -*~f~"-' of his fellow-missionaries who did not experience some- 8off«rin»
thing of the kind. Several were even severely beaten. Nothing better testified the weakness of the colony, from which the Indians every day learned more clearly that they had little to fear or hope. On the other hand, the extreme desire of the missionaries to bring all these na- tions under the yoke of the faith made them endure this ill-treatment, and their passion for sufferings made them find consolation even in them, — the more so, as they often resulted from the success of their labors and were the glorious marks of their victory.
Nothing was more apostolical than the life which they Their led. All their moments were numbered by some heroic p** action, by conversions or sufferings, which they regarded as real compensation when their labors had not produced all the fruit which they had anticipated. From four o'clock in the morning, when they rose, unless travelling, till eight, they generally spent secluded. It was the time of prayer, and the only one which they had for their exer- cises of piety. At eight o'clock each one went whither duty called. Some visited the sick; others followed in the fields those engaged in cultivating the earth ; others visited neighboring towns, which were destitute of pastors. These excursions produced several good effects ; for, in the first place, few or no children died unbaptized. Even adults, who had refused instruction in health, yielded in sickness. They could not resist the ingenious and con- stant charity of their physicians. In the second place, these Indians, day by day, became more familiar with the missionaries. This intercourse civilized their manners and insensibly dispelled their prejudices. Nor was any thing more edifying than the conduct of the new Chris- tians. The more they cost the missionaries to win them to Jesus Christ, the greater was the consolation to see sentiments in their hearts where grace found no obstacle
VOL. II.— 8
114 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. to its operation. Their prayers and other exercises of s— ~r— — ' piety were made in common and at fixed hours, and there Life of the were few who did not approach the sacraments at least
mission- , .
once a week.
The frequent cures effected by the remedies which the missionaries liberally distributed gained them still more , credit ; the medicine-men lost much of theirs ; and this led to the abolition of many bad customs, superstitious practices, and indecent ceremonies. One religious always remained in the house to keep school, to lead the public prayers at the fixed hours in the chapel, and to receive the visits of the Indians, who are extremely importunate. Towards the close of the day all assembled to hold a kind of conference, where each proposed his doubts, communicated his views, explained difficulties arising as to the language. They animated and consoled each other, measures were concerted to advance the work of God, and the day closed with the same exercises which began it.*
Their man- Besides the instructions regularly given to the neophytes and proselytes in the chapel, there were occasionally pub- lic ones for all. Before commencing them, one of the mis- sionaries went around, bell in hand, like St. Francis Xavier, not only through the whole village, but also through the neighborhood, and endeavored to induce all he met to follow him. These instructions were often made in the form of conferences, where each one was at liberty to speak. Among the Indians this never leads to any confusion. They rarely left these assemblies without making some conquest. In fine, besides these public con- ferences, there were private ones, to which only the chiefs and other persons of rank were invited. Here certain articles of religion were carefully discussed which it was not deemed wise to explain so soon to the multitude ; but
1 Letter of Father Francis du ' Relation de la NouTelle France, Peron, April 37, 1639 ; Carayon, 1C39, p. 52 ; Creuiius, Hietoria Ca- Documents Inedite, IJM., p. 177. nadensis, p.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 115
only to those who were known to be better able to under- 1640. stand them, and whose authority might greatly aid the V-~Y^-/ progress of the gospel.'
I have thought fit to enlarge a little on the obstacles encountered in converting the Indians of Canada. At m least, those who are of the persuasion that the Faith has made no progress among these Indians cannot accuse me of having dissembled them ; nor do I fear to be suspected of exaggerating the fatigues, the sufferings, and the perse- verance of the apostolic laborers, who have irrigated with their sweat and blood this part of the vineyard, which the Father of the family had confided to them. All New France, for more than a century, renders so public a testi- mony to the severe and truly apostolic life which they led, and the eminent sanctity of many, that it cannot be allowed to doubt, and is impossible to deny it. What I shall say hereafter of the blessings which heaven poured down on their labors rests on the same testimony.
Yet, without making a parallel between the apostles and the first founders of the Christian Church, I believe I may in justice ask on what grounds they would pretend to doubt the reality of the conversions, which I cannot avoid mentioning without being wanting to what the fidelity of history requires ; great examples of virtue, seen in prac- tice among a great number of neophytes, and wonders which God has worked in their favor ? Experience teaches us that three sorts of persons will be extremely on their guard on all these points. Those who, having known Indians, while agreeing that they are not devoid of a kind of ability, maintain that they are altogether limited as to all that does not fall under the senses or has no relation to their affairs, of which the sphere is very restricted ; \ whence they conclude that it is impossible to impress them sufficiently with the great truths of our religion to
1 Relation, 1639, p. 64 ; Father 1688, MS. All testimony ihowi the Charlec Gamier, Letter, April 28, extent of instruction given.
116 mSTORT OP NEW FRANCE.
1640. make even ordinary Christians. Others, regarding only v— ~Y— -- the dissembling and unstable character of these Indians, Objection* imagine that they cannot be gained and fixed so as to ground them in the sincere and constant practice of Chris- tian virtues. A third class proclaim against the very name of all that surpasses the ordinary strength and course of nature ; and if we see them daily treat as false the best- attested miracles, most solemnly approved by the Church, with what hauteur will they not reject all related in this sort of a Christendom, composed of neophytes who had, they will say, to be made men before they could be ren- dered adorers of Jesus Christ !
But none of these reflect sufficiently — 1st. That the con- version of an infidel, as well as the conversion of a sinner, can be the work of grace alone, before which obstacles dis- appear, whether the greatest or the least. It overcame the Jews, to whom Christ crucified was a stumbling-block ; and the Gentiles, who regarded his cross as folly. It can raise up children to Abraham from the very stones (Matt. iii. 9) — that is to say, make the most lively faith and ardent charity germinate in the hardest hearts and most brutish minds. And should prejudice go so far as to doubt, with some, whether the American Indians are men, may we not answer, with the most celebrated doctors of the Church : " Men and beast thou wilt preserve, O Lord" (Ps. xxxv. 7). Now that the all-powerful operation of grace has wrought these great changes, is it lawful for any man to set limits to it, and say that it could not raise these new Christians to the most eminent sanctity, if they were but faithful to it ?
i- 2d. That the promises made by the Saviour of the world to his disciples, whether for the conversion of the world or the supernatural means by which he was to co-operate with them, apply to all who, till the flock of the elect is gathered together, receive a lawful mission to labor for this assembling. If miracles, according to Saint Augus- tine, were necessary in the commencement of the Church,
BISTORT OP NEW FRANCE. 117
they are, by the same principle, in all nascent churches; 1640. and the power of casting out evil spirits, granted, not to v— v— ^ the first preachers of the gospel alone, but to the faithful, objections and which forms part of the deposit intrusted to the * Church for all times, presupposes the empire of the evil spirits over all who have not received the sacred character imprinted on us by the sacrament of regeneration.
3d. That of all nations in the world, there is none for which the kingdom of heaven is not open (Matt, xxviii. 18), nor to which the apostles and their successors were not expressly enjoined to announce the gospel — " Teach ye all nations ;" and that to attempt to exclude a single one from the benefit of redemption and the treasures of heaven which it contains, would be to gainsay the whole Bible, which speaks in the most formal terms on the point
They may say, then, what they list to dim the glory of the apostles of the New World, but they cannot deny that they are of those to whom our Lord has said, " Go, teach all nations." If they did not receive their mission imme- diately from Him, they received it from those who had authority to give it ; and, intrusted with an important part of the work, could rely on the same aid, and be assured of the same assistance from Him who promised to be with those sent to preach His law, to the end of time. Nay, more. The august ministry with which they were honored would naturally form in our minds this precon- ceived idea, that they were in general what they should have been ; and all that we relate of their heroic virtues — of what they did and suffered in the exercise of the min- istry— is so probable, that we might be surprised if they were not such men. Only those who venture to assert that, in spite of our Saviour's promise, the gates of hell have prevailed against the Church, can refuse to acknow- ledge that she has still, and will have to the end, apostles, martyrs, saints, in all conditions and countries to which her sway extends, and that the power of miracles will never fail her.
118 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. All that I have hitherto said regards especially the sed- '-•~T~m-' entary missions — that is to say, those of the Hurons and Bute of the Sylleri ; bat they endeavored to proceed in the same Thr*e°Biv. spirit, and follow the same rule, as far as possible, in all ***• the others. At Three Kivers, besides the Algonquins, who were ordinarily there in pretty large numbers, several nations from the most remote quarters of the North began to appear and remain during the pleasant season. The most important was the Attikamegues, whose chief resi- dence was in the vicinity of Lake St. Thomas, which you find at 60° N., as you ascend the river, whose three mouths give name to this post. It did not require much to make this tribe relish the truths of Christianity. They were naturally docile, of a gentle disposition, and from the first conceived such an attachment to the French, that nothing could ever detach them.1 Yet the progress of the faith among them was quite slow ; because, as winter ap- proached, they returned home, and when they descended the next year, it was necessary to begin their instruction anew, as on the first day.
Tadonss»c. A little flock of Christians was also formed at Tadous- sac, a place long frequented more than any other by the Montagnez, the Papinachois, the Bersiamites, and the Porcupine tribe. They sometimes arrived all together, and more frequently one after another ; but when their trade was over they returned home, or rather scattered in the forests and mountains, except a small number who wintered in the neighborhood of Tadoussac and gave the missionaries abundant occupation. From time to time some of these Fathers followed the Montagnez in their winter hunts, for which these Indians always selected the most frightful and uninhabitable places, because the game they Bought was more plentiful there.'
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, called Poiseon Blanc or Whitefish, De
1638, p. 21 ; 1041, p. 32 ; 1643, pp. la Potherie, Hist, de 1'Am. Sept., i.,
8-88 ; 1647, pp. 56-61 ; Crenxins, p. 294. See Creuxius, p. 867. Hietoria Canadensis, pp. 283, etc., * Relation, 1638, p. 2 ; 1641, pp. 3
362, etc. The Attikamegues are also 60 ; 1613, pp. 32-6.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 119
Miscou Island and the shores of the Gulf of St. Law- 1640. rence were also at the time one of the ordinary resorts of *•" ~v— ' the Indians, the fisheries being very productive there ; but Around tb« the colony did not profit by fish or furs. French merchants, devoted solely to the gain they actually made, controlled the trade, without taking any steps to render it durable and solid. The ministry did not interfere with it or Acadia, which was also in private hands, and shut its eyea to the importance of these separate posts, which might have been a mutual support, had care been taken to fortify them and settle them gradually.
The Indians who came to trade on the Gulf of St. Law- rence were the same as those of Acadia ; but they were more commonly called, in these parts, Gaspesians, from Cape Gaspc, where most of the vessels first anchored.1 They were very mild, but remained so little at any one place that the missionaries, with all their care, could scarcely succeed in instructing them in the truths of reli- gion. Father Charles Tursis had just fallen a victim to his zeal, having died of hardship in Isle Miscou, although, in a period of two years, he had baptized only one child.1 Fathers Julian Perrault and Martin Lionnes,' who were in his neighborhood, were not more successful, or less coura- geous or patient, in the exercise of this unfruitful apos- tolate.
In a word, wherever trade attracted the Indians a mis- sionary was found to announce Christ to them ; but their short stay in any one place did not permit the seed of the word of God to germinate in their hearts. It was only after a plan was devised of making them a little more
1 For the Miscou mission, see Re- ' Martin de Ldonne was there later,
lati, -n. 1635. p. 8 ; 1686. p. 75 ; 1643. He arrived August 15. 1648 (Journal
p. 43, etc. As to the Identity of the du Superieur del Jesuites, BIS. BeL.
Gasperians and Micmaca, see His- 1643. p. 36). He died in Acadia,
torical Magazine, vol. v., p. 284. January 16, 1661 (Canyon, Docu-
1 Cbarlei Turgis died May 4, 1687 menta Inedits, zir., p. 1 14). PerraoH
(Relation, 1637, p. 103). He had give* an account of his missions in
baptized one or two. Cape Breton in the Relation of 1635.
120 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. sedentary, that their admirable disposition for Chris- ^^ •Y-— ' tianity was understood and turned to account, as we shall see in the sequel. But I do not think myself bound to include in these favorable dispositions the worship of the cross, said to have obtained, from time out of mind, in all this eastern part of Canada.
The wor- Mr. de St. Vallier, bishop of Quebec, in a letter which * he published on his return from his first visitation of his diocese, speaks of this worship as an attested and indubi- table fact.' He had it from the Becollect Father Christian le Clercq, who has taken great pains to give it currency,* but who has had as many gainsayers as he has well- informed readers. Moreover, this religious was the only one who had advanced this paradox, none of those who lived among those Indians before him — many of whom knew their language and studied their traditions better than he was able to do — having discovered any thing of the kind. What misled the historian was apparently this:
A letter of Father Julian Perrault, written in 1635, informs us that these Indians took pleasure in imitating all that they see Europeans d6 : that having especially remarked that they often made the sign of the cross on themselves, they did the same. When they met a Euro- pean they made the cross on different parts of their body, but without the least idea of its being a mark of religion.3 This custom, already of long date when Father Christian le Clercq resided among the Gaspesians, and perhaps be- come a superstitious practice, induced that missionary to believe it so originally. It may also be, that on question-
1 E»tat Present de 1'Egliee, etc., p. 2 Le Clercq, Nouvelle Relation de
14 (ed. Quebec). Mgr. de St. Valier la Gaspesie, p. 172, etc. He admits
does not quote le Clercq, but gives that in his time they had lost their
as authority Mr. de Fronsac, son of respect for the cross (ib., p. 187).
Mr. Denyg, who had it from an In- 3 Relation de la Nouvelle France,
dian who died a few years before, 1635 (ed. Quebec), p. 43. Perrault
aged one hundred or one hundred says they painted the cross on t licit
and twenty : Estat Present, p. 14. persons.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 121
ing some of these Indians, these savages, often confused 1640. in their traditions, have perhaps seemed to him to include *•"-*-"•' it among their most ancient.
Meanwhile, the war between the Iroquois and our allies
increased in fury. The former, falling unexpectedly upon ° root. * a distant nation, whose name I have been unable to ascer- tain,' committed a fearful massacre, and compelled all who escaped to seek a refuge elsewhere. They found one among the Hurons, who were no sooner aware of their misfortunes than they went to meet them with provisions, and received them with an affection that would have done honor to a Christian people. The missionaries, whom it would ill become to be outdone in charity by heathen, hastened on their side to the relief of these poor exiles, and they had the consolation of seeing several for whom misfortune proved the stroke of predestination.'
Their joy redoubled when, resuming their ministry, Their r«- which had not yet borne all the fruit they had reason to expect, they perceived that God — touched, doubtless, by the generosity of the Hurons, as He was of old by the alms of the centurion Cornelius — had changed their hearts, and that the very men who had most persistently turned a deaf ear to their exhortations were most earnest in their entreaty to be admitted in the ranks of the prose- lytes. But this was not the only reward bestowed by the Almighty on these charitable Indians.
Some time after, three hundred Huron and Algonquin warriors having taken the field, a small body of ad- venturers in the van came upon a hundred Iroquois, who attacked them, but who, notwithstanding the ad- vantage of numbers, failed to capture more than one
1 The Relation de la Nouvelle quois ; hence in New York. They
France for 1639 (pp. 55, 59) give* the are perhaps the tribe attacked by
name as Weanohronon or Wen- Champlain, but driven further wert.
rohronon. Their country was eighty See ante, p. 28, 84.
leagues from Oraoaane, on the fron- '' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
tier of the Neuters towards the Iro- 1639, p. 60.
122 fflSTOBT OF NEW PRANCE
1640. man. Satisfied with even this trifling success, and fearing '*-~~^<~-' to engage a larger party if they advanced, they were about Defeat of to retreat, when the prisoner told them that the band to ""party" " which he and his comrades belonged was much weaker than their party. Deceived by his story, they resolved to await the allies at a point where, as their captive assured them, they intended to pass, taking no precaution except to throw up a kind of intrenchment to prevent a surprise.1 The Hurons and Algouquins soon appeared ; and the Iroquois, desperate at being thus duped, wreaked a fearful but not unexpected vengeance on him who had involved them in such a disaster. The majority then counselled flight ; but a brave, raising his voice, said : " Brothers, if we resolve to commit such an act of cowardice, at least wait till the sun sinks in the west, that he may not see us." These few words had their effect. They resolved to fight to their last breath, and did so with all the courage that could be inspired by hate, and the fear of dishonor by fleeing from enemies so often vanquished ; but they were opposed to men who were not inferior to them in cour- age, and were here three to one.
After a very stubborn fight, seventeen or eighteen Iro- quois were left on the field, their intrenchment stormed, and all the survivors disarmed and taken. The Hurons took to their village the captives that fell to their lot,* and outdid themselves in cruelty to these wretches ; but God seems to have permitted their misfortune only to dis- play his mercy in their regard. The missionaries, who were accorded liberty to converse with them freely, found their docility astonishing. They instructed them suffi- ciently in our holy mysteries, and baptized them all. These neophytes then sustained the frightful torture to which they were subjected — not with that brutal insensi- bility and ferocious pride in which these savages glory on
1 Creuriua, Hiatoria CanadenaJa, ' Relation, 1639, p. 69 ; Creuxiua. p. 241. HiBtorla Canadensia, p. 241.
HISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
such occasions, but with patience, sentiments, and courage worthy of Christianity, and which their executioners could not fail to attribute to the power of baptism.' St^ni pri-
This happy prejudice greatly advanced the cause of baptuxiu religion, and authorized the faithful to profess it more openly than they had yet dared to do ; for till then several had not complete liberty in cabins where they did not form a majority. Some even had been ill-treated for their religion ; and when a Christian fell sick, nothing was left untried to force him to call in the medicine-men. Many allowed themselves to be seduced, and some mis- sionaries were of opinion that on more than one occasion the prestiges of these charlatans were attended with operations visibly diabolical.
Yet the allies lost all benefit of the advantage which 8t™t««m
ofthalro-
they had gained by their not acting in concert. The can- quoi* to de- tons, on their side, more aroused than ever by the check French which they had received, resolved to take a memorable ven- Huron*. geance ; but not to draw too many united forces on them at once, they set every engine at work to prevent the French from assisting their allies, and at the same time to create in the latter a distrust of us. They sent out three hun- dred warriors, divided into several bands ; and all the Indians that fell into their hands were treated with the inhumanity habitual to these barbarians. On the con- trary, some Frenchmen, taken prisoners in the vicinity of Three Rivers, received no injury.
Some time after, several parties appeared in the neigh- borhood of the same fort, and for several months held in check all the French settlements. Then, when least ex- pected, they offered to make peace, on condition that our allies should not be included. This proposition was made to Mr. de Champflours, who had recently succeeded the Chevalier de Lisle as governor of Three Rivers, and was brought in by a French prisoner named Marguerie. The
1 Relation, 1639, p. 67 ; Creuxiua, Higtoria CanadenaU, p. 241.
124 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. man added that neither he nor his fellow-prisoners could '-"~T~"-' do aught but praise the treatment they had received from the Iroquois, but that he did not think withal that it was very prudent to treat with them.
They tre»t The advice was sound : but they were not in a position former'to to make war ; so they concluded to negotiate, keeping, Jtb' however, well on their guard. The Chevalier de Mont- magny, notified by Mr. de Champflours of what was occur- ring, ascended to Three Eivers in a well-armed barque, and sent the Sieur Nicolet and Father Kagueneau to the Iroquois to ask back the French prisoners whom they retained, and to learn their disposition in regard to peace. These deputies were well received. They were seated as mediators, on a buckler.1 The prisoners were then brought to them bound, though but slightly. A war-chief imme- diately made a very studied harangue, in which he en- deavored to persuade them that his nation had nothing so much at heart as to live on good terms with the French.
In the midst of his discourse he approached the pris- oners, unbound them, and flung their bonds over the pal- isade, saying : " Let the river carry them so far, that they be no more spoken of." At the same time he presented a belt to the two deputies, and begged them to receive it as a pledge of the liberty which he restored to the children of Ononthio.* Then taking two packs of beaver, he laid them at the feet of the prisoners, adding that it was un- reasonable to send them back naked, and that he gave them material for robes. He then resumed his discourse, and said that all the Iroquois cantons ardently desired a durable peace with the French, and that in their name he begged Ononthio to hide under his clothes the hatchets of the Algonquins and Hurons while the peace was in nego-
1 See Sagard, Histoire, p. 447. these Indians, and all others after * Ononthio, in Huron and Iroqnois, their example, called the governor- means Great Mountain, and this, general of New France, Ononthio, they were told, was the name of Mr. and the king of France, the great de Montmagny. From this time Ouonthio. — Charlewix.
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE. 125
tiation ; declaring that on their side they would commit 1640. no hostility. '~^ T~"~"
He was still speaking, when two Algonquin canoes hay- ing appeared in sight of the spot where the council was held, the Iroquois gave them chase. The Algonquins, seeing no prospect of resisting so large a force, jumped overboard and swam away, leaving their canoes, which were plundered before the eyes of the governor-general. This outrage showed how little reliance could be placed on the word of these savages, and negotiations were broken off at once. The Iroquois having now no veil to hide their perfidy, threw off the mask and spoke with great insolence. The Chevalier de Montmagny under- took to bring them to reason, but they escaped at the moment when he thought he had them ; and to complete his chagrin, he learned almost at the same time that a number of Huron canoes, coming down to Quebec, loaded with furs, had fallen into their hands.
The position of the general was undoubtedly a sad one, Position of exposed daily to similar affronts for want of troops enough Dor-g«n- jnst to keep in equilibrium the balance between two bands of Indians who, all together, could not have kept in the field against four or five thousand Frenchmen. But the Company of the Hundred Associates would not shake off their lethargy ; and the French colony, instead of increas- ing day by day, declined in strength and numbers. An enterprise, undertaken about this time, to settle and fortify the island of Montreal, was some consolation to the Chev- alier de Montmagny, and for a time flattered him with the hope that the Iroquois would no longer dare to come and brave him, as they had just done under his very cannon.
The first missionaries had from the outset recognized the Project*! importance of occupying the island of Montreal, but the m(Dt »t" Canada Company did not enter into their views. It needed 3 again private individuals to assume the execution of a design so advantageous to New France, which the Iroquois war rendered actually necessary. Some persons of rank, even
126 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. more estimable for their piety and zeal for religion, formed v~-~t~~— ' a society which proposed to do on a grand scale at Mon- treal what had been attempted more modestly at Sylleri. There was to be on this island a French town, well fortified and able to resist all insults. The poor were to be received there and enabled to live by their labor. It was proposed to occupy the rest of the island with Indians of all nations whatsoever, provided they professed Christianity or wished to be instructed in our holy mysteries ; and they were more persuaded that numbers would corne, from the fact that, besides being a secure asylum against the pursuit of their enemies, it would always afford prompt succor in sickness and against starvation. It was proposed, even, to civilize them in time, and accustom them to live solely by the labor of their own hands.'
It \B in p»rt The number of those who entered the association was )ut' thirty-five,* — too many to allow prolonged action in con- 1640-2. cert : yet it began in a manner that augured success. Under the grant of the island made by the king* they took possession, in 1640, at the close of a solemn Mass, cele- brated under a tent. The next year Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, a gentleman of Champagne, him- self an associate, brought out several families from France. He arrived in Quebec with Mademoiselle de Manse, a lady of good family, appointed to take charge of persons of her sex.4 The Chevalier de Montmagny and the superior- general of the Jesuits conducted them to Montreal ; and
1 For the history of the association, pany of New France, Dec. 17,1640 thus briefly alluded to, the main (ib., p. 395). Mr. Faillon makes no spirit of which was Mr. Olier, the allusion to a royal grant, but men- founder of the Sulpitians, see Fail- tions a royal approval of the grant Ion, Histoire de la Colonie Fran<;aise and the concession of certain powers en Canada, i., pp. 379-493. (p. 409).
' Mr. Faillon (p. 437) says the pre- « Relation de la Nouvelle France,
else number is not known. Dollier 1642, p. 37 ; Belmont, Histoire du
de Casson says forty. Canada ; Faillon, Histoire, p. 424.
* The island was ceded to the Mile. Mance arrived at Quebec Aug.
associates Aug. 7, 1640, by Mr. de 8, 1641, and Maisonneuve Aug. 24
Lanson (ib., p. 894), and by the Com- (Faillon, pp. 420-2).
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE. 127
on the 15th of October Monsieur de Maisonnenve was 1641-2. declared governor of the island.' *-*~-<-^'
On the 17th of May following,' the place chosen for the French settlement was blessed by the same superior,' who celebrated the holy mysteries there, dedicated to the Mother of Qod a little chapel, hastily erected, and left the Blessed Sacrament in it. This ceremony had been preceded three months before — that is, towards the close of February — by another. All the associates re- paired, one Thursday morning, to Notre-Dame de Paris ; the priests said Mass ; the others received at Our Lady's altar ; and all besought the Queen of Angels to take the island of Montreal under her protection.' Finally, on the 15th of August, the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin was solemnized on the island, amid an extraordi- nary gathering of French and Indians.' Nothing was overlooked, on this occasion, to draw down the blessing of heaven on the useful establishment, and to give the heathen an exalted idea of the Christian religion.
On the evening of the same day Monsieur de Maison- Tradition u neuve wished to visit the mountain which has given name cieminh.b- to the island ; and two old Indians who accompanied him, ' " having led him to the summit, told him that they be- longed to the nation which had formerly inhabited that country. "We were," they added, " very numerous, and all the hills you see to the south and east were inhabited. The H un ms drove our ancestors out. One part took refuge with the Abenaquis ; others retired to the Iroquois cantons ; some remained with our conquerors.'" The gov- ernor begged them to invite their brethren to assemble again in their old possessions, where they should lack for nothing, and be protected against any attempt to disturb
1 Relation de la N. FT., 1682, p. 87. • Rev. Bartholomew Vlmoot.
' Dollier de Casaon (Hist, de MOD. .« Relation de 1* N. P., 1642, p. 87.
treat, MS.) and Faillon (Hist de la Mr. Faillon (p. 436) aays Peb. 2.
Col. FmtfaiBe, 1., p. 489), Vie de Mile. • Ib., p. 88.
Man*e (I., xl.) »ay May 18 : Le Clercq, • Compare Perrault, Mceuri, etc^
Premier Etab. de la Foi, p. 50. pp. 9, 165.
128
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
them.' They promised to do all that depended on them, but apparently failed to bring together the remnants of this dispersed nation,* which may perhaps be the Iroquets mentioned in my journal.'
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1642, p. 38.
* Creuxiua (Historia C'anadensis, p. 874) speaks of traces of the ancient town as still remaining in his time, and the Algonquins called it Minitik Bten entagSgiban — " island where there was a town (Relation, 1642, p. 86).
•Journal, pp. 110, 111. They were undoubtedly the Iroquet. See Re- lation, 1646, p. 84. Charlevoix sup- poses them to have been Hurons ; but they were Algonquins, and were called by the Hurons Onontchatarc- nons : Relation, 1633, p. 29 ; 1643, p. 61. It is not necessary to suppose them the inhabitants of Hochelaga. A Huron town generally had Algon- quins camping near, and the account of the origin of the war between the Iroquois and Algonquins shows this to have been the case in early
times. The statement, however, here given clashes with that of Per- rault (Moeurs, Coustumes, etc., dee Sauvages, pp. 9, 165), followed by de la Potherie (Histoire de I'Amerique Septentrionale, i., p. 288) ; unless we are to suppose Hurons in early times to hare expelled the Iroquet, and that then the Iroquois and Algon- quins settled there till their war came off, when Hochelaga was de- stroyed, and the Iroquois fell back to New York and the Algonquins to the Ottawa. It is more likely, how- ever, that in this incidental mention of an Indian's remarks, the words Huron and Iroquois have been trans- posed. If the chief said hia ances- tors were driven out by the Iroqnois, and that some took refuge with the H urons. the account will agree with all others that have been handed down. See Journal, p. 109.
Fondaieur -iu Semmaire de SaanL-Sulpice. mbre 1608. mort le 2 Avnl
NOTE ON MONTREAL.
WHEN Charlevoix wrote, nothing had been published bearing on the set- tlement of the Island of Montreal except the tract, " Les Veritables Motifs," which appeared in 1674. (See vol. i., p. 82.) The Society of Montreal published no statements, and the Sulpitiana had not the rule of writing to their Superiors, which, established by St. Ignatius in the case of the Jesuits, in order to keep alive a feeling of brotherhood and edifi- cation among the widely-scattered members of the order, has led to the preservation of so much information.
The early history of the movement has, however, in our day, found an investigator and chronicler in the laborious zeal of Mr. Faillon of St. Sul- pice, who has issued a series of valuable works, all bearing on the history of Montreal. He treats the origin of the settlement as entirely supernat- ural : Histoire de le Colonie Frangaise, i., p. 382 ; Vie de Mile. Mance, vol. i. The first one impelled to undertake the settlement was a gentle- man named Jerome le Royer de la Dauversiere, of la Fleche, in Anjou. The second, similarly moved, in 1636, was a young clergyman, Rev. John James Olier,' who subsequently instituted the seminary of St Sul-
1 The Rev. John James Olier de Ver- neuil wu born at Paris, September 90, 1680, second son of James Olier, secretary to Henry IV., and master of requests in that king's palace. After a careful educa- tion under his father's care, he embraced the ecclesiastical state, and became Inti- mately connected with St. Vincent de Paul; influenced by whose example he began to give missions in Auvergne, where he held the abbey of Pebrac, and effected great good. Refusing a bishopric and the ooadjutorahip of Chalons sur Marno, he accepted the parish of St. Sulpice, at Paris, in 1642, then In great disorder. Aided by some clergyman with whom he had lived in community at Vaugirard, he entirely reformed his parish, and then began a long contemplated work, the founding of a theological seminary for the proper training of candidates for the priest-
Vou II.— 9
hood. This he effected, with the royal ap- probation, in 1040. His institute, known as the Seminary of St Snlpice, has ren- dered Immense service to religion, and soon led to similar establishments in other parts of France, under the direction of his community, commonly styled Sulpitiana. In America they have seminaries at Mon- treal and Baltimore.
Mr. Olier resigned his parish in 1692, and retired to his seminary, where he died April 2, 1657, at the age of forty-nine, revered by the best and holiest men in France. He wrote a Treatise on Holy Orders, a Christian Catechism of the In- terior Life, A Christian's Day ; his letters have also been published. His life was written briefly by Father Qiry ; more at length by Mr. Nagot, of St. Snlpice, In 1818 ; and by Mr. Faillon of the congregation (3 vols., 8vo ; Paris. 1893).
130 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
pice at Paris. They finally met and resolved to obey the common in- spiration. The next who joined was Peter Chevrier, Baron of Fancamp, who, in 1640, sent out provisions and tools to Quebec to serve for the coming settlers. The celebrated Baron de Renty and two others were subsequently associated. John de Lauson, the proprietor of the Island of Montreal, induced by Father Charles Lalemant, ceded it to these gentlemen, August 17, 1640. To remove all doubts, the associates also obtained a grant from the New France Company on the 17th December, 1640 ; ratified and approved by the King, February 13, 1644 : Edits et Ordonnances Royaux, Quebec, pp. 20, 24. The associates engaged to send out forty settlers, to be employed in clearing and cultivating ; to increase the number annually ; to supply them with two sloops, cattle, farm-hands ; after five years, to erect a seminary, maintain ecclesiastics as missionaries and teachers, also nuns as teachers and hospitallers. On its side, the New France Company agreed to transport thirty settlers : Archives du Seminaire de St. Sulpice, quoted by Faillon, i., p. 401. A leader of the new colony was found in Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maison- neuve, a gentleman of Champagne, who had applied to Father Lalemant to aid him in getting service in Canada.
The six associates then contributed twenty-five thousand crowns to begin the settlement ; and Mr. de Maisonneuve embarked with his col- onists, on three vessels, from Rochelle and Dieppe, in the summer of 1641, and arrived himself at Quebec on the 20th of August. Mile. Mance had reached there previously, as had those who came in the third vessel.
The Chevalier de Montmagny, in consequence of the hostility of the Iroquois, endeavored to persuade Mr. de Maisonneuve to winter at Que- bec, but he went on resolutely. After being installed governor, as stated by Charlevoix, he wintered his colonists at Quebec, where he had a store- house and dwelling, and at Sainte Foy and St. Michel, where Mr. Peter de Pniseaux, Sieur de Montrenault, offered him a hospitable welcome. Here, during the winter, boats were built and timber prepared for houses ; and on the 8th of May they embarked, and, as stated in the text, arrived nine days after, and having heard Mass, began an intrench- nicnt around their tents. This fort and all in it were nearly swept away by an inundation, but the next spring the necessary buildings were all erected. In 1643 d'Ailleboust brought over more settlers, reaching Que- bec on the 15th of August, the day alluded to by Charlevoix.1
1 Le Clercq, Etablieeement de la Foi, ii. 45-60, is devoted to Montreal.
BOOK VI.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 133
BOOK VI.
THE assurance of the Iroquois, in appearing in arms in 1642. sight of Three Rivers, and the boldness with which they had insulted the Chevalier de Montmagny, gave that gen- eral deep subject for thought. He. rightly deemed it a duty to omit no precaution against a surprise, and put himself in a position to meet all the efforts of a nation which no longer used any disguise, and seemed bent on employing alike artifice and strength to gain the mastery of the whole country, — the more especially as the Dutch of New Netherland, if not openly declaring in their favor, would undoubtedly furnish them with aid in more than one way.
It was accordingly resolved to erect a fort at the mouth Fort of the river which then bore their name, and is now called Sorel River, this being the route they generally took to come down into the colony. It was completed in a short time, notwithstanding all the attempts of seven hundred Iroquois to oppose it. They fell upon the workmen when they least expected it, but were repulsed with loss. The fort received the name of Richelieu, already given to the river, and a pretty strong garrison was stationed here.1 Had the Canada Company been willing to incur a similar expense for the defence of the Huron country, those
1 Montmagny arrived, with work- were led by Corporal do Rocher, the
men, cannon, and soldiers, Aug. 13, governor being on a vessel in the
1042 : Relat. de la Nouvelle France, stream : Crvuiius, Hist. Canad., p.
1642, pr250 ; Crenxius, Hist. Canad.. 51. The Indians were two hundred,
p. 301. The French, in this action. See poet, p 143.
134 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. Indians would have escaped many evils ; and so, too, would the whole colony, which soon felt the result of the misfor- tunes that overwhelmed the Hurons in the succeeding years. 1 Numerous The moment was an auspicious one to erect a strong •mong the barrier against the Iroquois at that point, all the Huron ""' towns being in movement to embrace Christianity, and, as a necessary consequence, adhere more firmly to us. Aha- sistari, one of the most esteemed chiefs of the nation, was the instrument especially used by Heaven to effect a change which seemed to the missionaries miraculous ; for the very men who had till then been most rebellious to grace, now showed most ardor for instruction and baptism. Astonishing things were told of this chief.1 He was, indeed, a very brave man, to whom actions of more than ordinary valor had, perhaps, led men to attribute still more brilliant achievements. It is certain, however, that his merit alone, and the credit he enjoyed in all his nation, had long made the missionaries conceive a strong desire of winning him to Christ. History of a There was no great probability of success, this Indian
chief, being extremely attached to his superstitions; but the difficulty of these great conversions is what often reassures apostolic men, who know that grace, which is all-powerful, is often pleased to triumph over those who resist its inspi- rations most stubbornly. They were, therefore, not dis- heartened, and continued to make frequent visits to the Huron chief, although he always received them quite ill. Yet he yielded at last, and even began to look upon them with favor. They gradually found him less removed from the Kingdom of God, and at last he began to relish their conversations on religion.3
They then devoted themselves more than ever to his instruction. He heard them attentively, proposed his
1 Relation Huronne, 1642, p. 58. s He never showed any aversion He was a chief of the Altinguee- to the faith : Relation de la Nouvell* nongnahak. France, 1643, p. 58.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 135
doubts, and when they were explained, manifested his con- 1642. viction. He requested baptism, but the Fathers' thought it unwise to admit to the bosom of the Church, on a single request, a proselyte of this character, deeming it proper to make him long desire that favor. One day, when he was earnestly soliciting it at one of the public conferences that I have described, the missionary who presided asked him to inform the assembly what had given him his first desire to become a Christian ; and he replied in these words, which I take, literally, from the missionary's own letter :
" This thought engaged my mind even before you came HU rooa to this country. I often ran great risks, and on many oc-
casions I happily escaped, when all my comrades perished at my side. Some powerful genius, I said to myself, must bear especial watch over my days, and I could never banish the thought that this genius must be infinitely superior to those who are honored among us. Nor could I avoid regarding as silly all that is told us of dreams. No sooner had I heard Jesus spoken of, than I felt assured that he was the protector to whom I had so often been indebted for liberty and life. Stubborn an adherent as I may have since appeared of our practices and traditions, I nevertheless felt interiorly moved to adore Him alone ; and if I have so long deferred obeying this impulse of my heart, it was because I wished to be instructed before making the avowal. Even when I seemed least disposed to hear you, I undertook no enterprise without commend- ing myself to Jesus, and I put all my trust in him. For a long time I have invoked him every morning; to him I attribute every success ; and in his name I ask baptism from you, that he may be merciful to me after death."*
The missionaries thought it wrong to withhold this Hiib»ptUm satisfaction longer from a man so well prepared. He was ""
1 The missionaries at this town * This address ia more simply and were Fathers Oarnier and le Moyne : beautifully given in the Relation, Relation, I'M-1, p. 76 1042, p. 59
136 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. baptized the same day1 by the name of Eustace. He soon after raised a large war-party, in which he would receive none but Christians. His band being ready to start, he led it to the missionary of his town, in whose presence he thus addressed them :
" Brethren, we all serve one same Master ; let us then be but one heart and one mind. We must carefully avoid all intercourse with the pagans ; and all our brethren, who are in need and affliction, must find consolation and solace in us. Let us carefully hide the faults of Christians from the eyes of the heathen, and, on all occasions, let them see that religion unites us more closely than the ties of blood and interest ever did. As to our kindred, who do not profess the same religion as ourselves, it is good that they know that death will separate them from us forever, and our ashes cannot even be mingled .with theirs. Let us publish everywhere, but by example rather than by word, the holiness and excellence of faith in Jesus, and endeavor, if possible, to make all the world embrace it."
Beflections If the Canada Indians spoke thus only on the relations of the missionaries, I admit that I would have held such harangues as very suspicious, whatever veneration I might have for those who gave them, and notwithstanding the air of sincerity which greatly prepossesses us in their favor. Still, not only should the experience of all ages con- vince us that good sense, native eloquence, and exalted sentiments are found wherever man exists, and do not always depend on education ; but I do not hesitate to say that those who have seen these savages will not accuse me of attributing to them an elevation, a pathos, an energy foreign to them.' Did not the Greeks themselves admit that there was more nobility in the simplicity of the speeches of Barbarians than in the studied harangues of
1 Holy Saturday : Letter of F. * Compare Colden, History Fiv« Charles Gamier, May 22, 1642. Nations. New York, 1727.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 137
Athens ?' Moreover, there is no doubt but that the Holy 1642. Qhost inspired this neophyte. '-"~T^-'
About the same time some Jesuits received a deputation Eiconion from the Saulteurs, inviting them to visit the tribe. These Indians then occupied the country around a rapid, in the midst of the channel by which Lake Superior empties into Lake Huron. This rapid has since been styled Sault Sainte Marie, and from it we have given these Indians, who are an Algonquin tribe, with a name (Paiioirigoiieieu- hak) very hard to pronounce, that of Saulteurs.' The missionaries were not displeased with the opportunity thus presented of knowing the countries lying beyond Lake Huron, which no one of them had yet traversed. Fathers Isaac Jogues and Charles Raimbaut were detached to ac- company the Chippeway deputies, and their visit had every success that could be reasonably expected. They were well received by these Indians, who seemed very good people ; but the missionaries, having been recalled when they began to instruct them, the seed of the divine word had not time to bear fruit,' and the nation, not being as well disposed when the missionaries returned some years later, this happy commencement had no result ; so that, down to this day, there are very few Christians among the- Indians of the Sault.4
Meanwhile the Iroquois, assured of support from the Dutch at Manhattan, who already furnished them with
1 Strabo, lib. Til. ject wu, not to establish a perma-
1 Pauoitigoueieuhak, the Outchi- nent minion, bnt only to see the
pom's, Ojibways or Chippeways. We field : Relation de la Nouvelle France,
shall hereafter translate Satiltetirt 1642, p. 97. Father Charles Raym-
by Ctiippueay. banlt died soon after, at Quebec,
1 Chippeway missions still exist Oct. 22, 1042 — the first of hi* order, in Canada and the United States— The country on the lakes had al-
the latter under Bishop Frederic ready been visited, and to some
Baraga, of Sault Ste. Marie, author extent explored, by John Nicollet,
of an Ojibwsy grammar and die- who in 1639 made a treaty with the
tionary. tribes on Green Bay. As to him, see
4 They left St. Mary's in Septem- Ferland, Notes snr les Registres de
bcr, and, after seventeen days' sail, Quebec, p. 80 ; Discovery and Ex-
reached Sault Ste. Marie. Their ob- ploration of the Mississippi, p. xxi
138 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. arms and ammunition, and to whom they sold the furs v— — ""'—', swept away from our allies, continued their raids and The Dutch plundering. The rivers and lakes swarmed with their war- "r^qJota* parties, and trade was no longer possible, except at great andhammu- Tls^- T^e Chevalier de Montmagny complained to the mtion. Governor of New Netherland, who contented himself with a courteous but very vague letter, and made no change in his course ; there was even a suspicion that he, or at least those under his orders, urged on the Iroquois against us, / although it had been agreed that the allies of the two nations should commit no hostilities on the two colonies, and the French had faithfully kept the agreement.' indolence It is true that our Indians were neither in a state nor a ° rone. ™" humor to trouble the Dutch ;' far from seeking to raise up new enemies, they scarcely thought of defending them- selves from the Iroquois. The Hurons especially, either from indolence or fear of provoking an enemy who had acquired a superiority over them, which they could no longer dissemble, or because they were not yet fully per- suaded that the Iroquois aimed at their whole nation, saw their frontiers desolated without taking any steps to check a conflagration which surrounded them on all sides. These losses, nevertheless, as to which they remained so tranquil, weakened them so at last that terror spread through all their towns ; and when the enemy no longer saw fit to cloak his real design by any pretext, he found, as he had anticipated, a terrified people, incapable of offer- ing the slightest resistance. The consequence was that the Huron Church, cultivated with so much toil, had scarcely begun to bear fruit unto salvation, when its pastors were smitten, and the flock not only dispersed, but almost entirely destroyed. Father Jogues, whom we mentioned above, was the first
1 This correspondence escapes the * Montmagny is said to have
researches of O'Callaghan and Brod- prevented war-parties against the
head in New York, and of Ferland, Dutch : Relation de la Nouvell*
Faillon, Martin, and others in Canada. France, 1643, p. 62.
HISTORT OP NEW FRANCE 139
on whom the storm fell.' On his return from Sault Ste. 1642. Marie he had received orders to go down to Quebec, for a T-— ' matter which admitted of no delay.' He was not ignorant Several u» of the dangers that beset the way ; he obeyed, neverthe- the iro* less, without a reply, and embarking on the 13th of June, qn° 1642, he arrived at Quebec, without any untoward circum- stance. On the 1st of August* he set out to return, with a convoy of thirteen canoes, well armed, and manned by brave men.
The strength of this escort was, apparently, the cause of its ruin, by inspiring all in it with overweening confidence. It was afterwards ascertained, from the letters of Father Jogues, that the chiefs of this band, which consisted mostly of Christians or proselytes, thought far less of guarding against any sudden attack of the enemy, than of exhorting their men to suffer for Christ ; and most of them manifested sentiments which filled him with confusion. The wonder is that they persevered till death in these heroic dispositions. It is not astonishing that He, who can turn even crime to good, sometimes, for his own glory, permits men to stray from the laws of prudence.
Be that as it may, the Hurons were not more than fifteen or sixteen leagues from Quebec,4 when, on the day after
1 Relation de 1* Nouvelle France, tiply citations, the references win
1649, p. 2. be to Tanner, except where the man-
' The main authority for the cap- uscript differs. Betides this paper, tivity of Father Jogues la his Latin which the Relations give in sub- letter, of Aug. 5, 1643, written at stance only, there are letters and Renssalaerswyck. It is published accounts In those volumes, and a In Alegambe, Mortes Illustrea, and narrative from his lips, by Father in Tanner, Societas Mllitans, p. 511, Buteux, still unpublished. Creux- although with variations from a ius (Historia Canadensb) gives sworn copyof theoriginal, preserved Jogues* captures and sufferings, pp. at Montreal. It is given by Father 389-64, 878-03. Breasanl, in Italian, in his Breve ' Aug. 2, according to the letter of Relatlone, p. 77 ; in French, in Mar- Aug. 5, 1643, MS. (see Martin's Bros- tin's Bressani, p. 188 ; and in Eng- sanl, p. 190) ; although the Relation lish, in the Jogues Papers (N. T. de la Nouvelle France, 1647. p. 18, Historical Society Coll., series II.. vol. iay» they left Three Rivers Aug. 1. ii.), and Shea's Perils of the Ocean * From Three Rivers : Mary of the and Wilderness, p. 16. Not to mnl- Incarn., letter Sept. 29, 1643.
140
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642.
Most are
their departure,1 at dawn, as they were about to embark, they perceived an Iroquois trail on the bank of the river ; but they despised an enemy to whom they deemed them- selves far superior in numbers, and whom they conse- quently deemed not rash enough to begin an attack. They pursued their way without taking any precaution against surprise, and became the dupes of this unpar- donable security. The Iroquois braves were seventy in number. One division lay in ambush, behind some bushes that covered a point close at hand, which the party had to pass ; the other had crossed the river and concealed themselves in the woods.1
As soon as the Hurons came within reach of the first party, a well-delivered volley of musketry wounded several and riddled every canoe. This sudden and unforeseen attack threw the Christians into disorder ; but some of the most agile promptly sprang ashore, and succeeded in escaping. The bravest, supported by three or four French- men, who accompanied Father Jogues, for some time made a resolute defence in their canoes ; but, as the water poured in, and there was no means of flight, they were at last obliged to surrender, except a few who escaped in the confusion caused among the Iroquois by their resistance ; the rest were seized and bound.
It had depended on Father Jogues himself to follow the . first who took flight ; they indeed did all they could to in- *eloner"8 duce him ; but the servant of God, as calm amid this tumult as if he had been at full liberty, baptized a catechu- men, and prepared him for any event. To those who urged him to seek safety he replied that they did right to escape, but that it did not become him to abandon his children when they most needed his assistance. Charity, exacted by duty, does not fully satisfy an apostolic heart. The combat ended, the Hurons all taken or fled, Father
Father
1 Second day after their departure (MS.) Martin (Bressani, p. 190} and Ferland (i., p. 316) think the place of
capture the islands in Lac St. Pierre, forty -five leagues from Quebec. » They all landed and fought on
FATHER ISAAC JOGUES. S.J.
K. AURIESVI LLE. N.Y. OCT. I 8 â„¢ I6AS
141
it bat
r martyrdom, and he bettered that »).«• tor wh render the captivea, bj conaohag
horting tlwta to death, was a sufficiently justifiable !.:
exposing himself to it, and he would not miaa the opportui;
He accordingly advanced t.< seemed to pay no atteatioa •
king \vr ii*
^ would not'
'•-ireaaw. A Free *r:;-oj iLr- i. ;im from th-
:..vM«-.iat. It* wa« BO wooer out
uig«r than b« waa MUt-d wit-
;tr<-:iriK that ho could longer be of am
-, he used as <ok int., »i...
danger .MK he had aeed 4o i>ea
-. •<;*.•., *»•
vMooBMUttod. Oodlai* bn»l Wfii Mtced a« aooa a* he »j jw
M"rt- v ; v^r, Mmi e of the beat i
'.
il'lftd ; i
i among
•here, til), -Keing the approach of ; >-ntw« WM iwxurwgd «MM
MM other i «n- 1. • '.i' v brok* »iM flwi . /MM afU*. *n.l dj ji- .
Tan pbnMto ui!s- >•*•» !•
(MMtwi l*'jt '^f 'i«-* • i fiintito Mt»nii«4|fitf« j *
BO put la Ow*.
»t Motttr**!, *r«- botfc 4«Mi«4iMl ',««« ' n-1 MA th'n eowpMOoM uf 'f u>
."•r J.^urt . Tmni-r, K«r 1*0*1, CVion d^M*
the urn*
thing
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
Jogues had discharged his ministry to its full extent; but he sighed for martyrdom, and he believed that the services which he could render the captives, by consoling and ex- horting them to death, was a sufficiently justifiable motive for exposing himself to it, and he would not miss the opportunity.1
He accordingly advanced towards the Iroquois, who A French- seemed to pay no attention to him, thinking only of em- barking with their capture, and he made himself the prisoner of the first one he met, saying that he would not be separated from his beloved children, whose sad fate he but too clearly foresaw. A Frenchman, Willam Couture, with whom the holy man had come down from the Huron country, had fled among the first ; but he was no sooner out of danger than he was seized with shame for having aban- doned Father Jogues, and, without reflecting that he could no longer be of any service to him in the hands of the Iroquois, he used as much exertion to rush back into the danger as he had used to escape it.'
Father Jognes was pained to see him again, and re- proached him gently with his imprudence in a course that could avail no one ; but the error was committed. Couture had been seized as soon as he appeared, and bound with the other captives. Moreover, some of the best Iroquois runners had started in pursuit of the fugitives, and brought in several. As they arrived, the sighs of Father Jogues redoubled ; and in a letter which he wrote to his Provincial in France, soon after his arrival among the Iro- quois, he declares that he felt, on this occasion, the reverse
shore, till, seeing the approach of p. 512. Couture was recovered gome the other band, they broke and fled : years after, and dying in 1702, aged Tanner, p. 512. The Latin phrase is ninety-four, left a numerous poster- general, but Jogues evidently took ity in Canada. Monseigneur Tor- no part in the fight. geon, Archbishop of Quebec, and
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, Monseignenr Bonrget, Bishop of
1647, p. 18 ; Letter of Aug. 5, Tan- Montreal, are both descended from
ner, p. 512, and MS. this companion of Father Jogues :
' Letter of Father Jogues : Tanner, Ferland, Coun d'Histoire, 1., p. 317.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1 642. of the maxim so universally received, that " misery loves
^— •"•*——' company."
HOW ail are The first thing the captors did, when they no longer feared pursuit, was to inform their prisoners not to expect any quarter. Couture, at the commencement of the attack,' having killed an Iroquois, was a marked man, and the first to feel the rage of the savages. They first crushed all his fingers, after tearing out the nails with their teeth. Then they ran a sword through his right hand. Father Jogues could not behold him mutilated in this way without being moved to his heart's core ; he ran to embrace the young man, and as he wished to encourage him by the thought of the eternal truths, he found him in sentiments which charmed him, and more absorbed, he says, in his Saviour's sufferings than in his own.
At that moment three or four Iroquois, rushing with a kind of fury on the missionary, rained down on his head and naked body — for they had begun by stripping all the prisoners — so many blows with their clubs and stones, that they thought they had killed him. He lay for a consider- able time, indeed, senseless. He had scarcely begun to recover when they tore out all his nails and gnawed off his two forefingers with their teeth." Another Frenchman, named Ren6 Goupil, quite an able surgeon, who had been recently received by the Jesuits as a brother,' was treated in the same way ; but nothing was done, that day, to the other prisoners.
Some time after the booty was divided, and the captives, twenty-two in number, were also distributed, contrary to custom ; this allotment being generally made in the village from which the war-party sets out. At last they took up
1 He killed a great chief, on his had entered the novitiate of the So-
way back to join the missionary : ciety, but was forced by ill health to
Relation de la N. F., 1647, p. 19. leave. He then came to Canada and
1 Tanner, p. 518. became a donne of the mission. He
1 Jogues (Notice BUT Rene Goupil, p. had some surgical knowledge, which
23) says he was a native of Angers, proved useful.
HJSTOBI OF NEW FRANCK
148
their march, which lasted four weekn.' The wounds of Fa (her Jogues and the two Frenchmen had not been dressed, 11 1 H 1 worms were soon engendered ; jet the prisoners had to march from morning till night, with nothing scarcely given them to eat : but the holy missionary was touched only at the sight of his beloved neophytes, destined to the stake, four or five of them being main columns of the Huron Church. He dared not flatter himself with the same lot, unable to believe that the Iroquois would, in his case, proceed to extremities, and by putting him to death make irreconcilable enemies of the French.
After eight days' march they met a party of two hundred Iroquois, going to try their fortune. Great was their joy at the sight of so many prisoners, who were turned over to them for some time, and whom they treated with incredible barbarity,* after firing a general volley in honor of AgreskoueV The Indians imagine that the more cruel they show themselves on these occasions, the greater will be the success of their expedition. This party was, how- ever, deceived in its expectations; for, having appeared before Fort Richelieu, they found there the Chevalier de Montmagny, who killed several, and compelled the rest to retire in disorder.'
In the event just mentioned, Father Jogues was not more spared than the rest, but he was not so mutilated as to disable him from rendering the services required of slaves. This confirmed his belief that the Iroquois would not, by putting him to death, deprive themselves of the advantage they might derive from a hostage of his char- acter.' From the spot where the two parties met, they
1642.
They m«*t • put; »nd
abandon the prison- en to their
caprice.
Father
Joguea
again re-
fuae* to
1 Two weeks only.
• This took place on the eighth day. on an island in Lake Cham- plain (Jogues, Letter, Tanner, p. 518). After tearing the lake on the 10th, they marched four days on foot.
* The war-god of the Huron* and Iroquois. Ante, p. 109.
4 This la the same event referred to on p. 181 : Tanner, pp. 513, 518 ; Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1042, pp. 50, 51 ; Lettrea de Marie de 1'In- carnation, p. 365.
> There is no trace of inch reflec- tions in the writings of Father Jogues.
144 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1 642. made ten days' journey in canoes, after which they had to v— "^f~~^ march again, and the prisoners, most of whom could scarcely stand, were, moreover, loaded with the baggage of their pitiless masters.
Father Jogues, in his memoirs, states that the first days his captors did not stint them in food, but that this gradu- ally diminished, and that, towards the close of his march, he was no less than three times for twenty-four hours without tasting food, their provisions having almost entirely failed, on account of the circuitous path which they had been obliged to take to avoid encountering hostile war- parties. He adds, that neither he nor Goupil, his com- panion, were bound like the rest at night, so that they might easily have escaped ; but the reasons which had prevented him at first diverted him to the last, and the young surgeon would never consent to abandon him.1 Tne pri»- At last the whole troop arrived in a village of the Mo- d in hawk canton,* where the captives were again told that they
Ug«f auc^ were doomed to the stake. Here they were treated with V9ly- such inhumanity that not a spot on their bodies was left without a bruise or a wound, not a feature recognizable. After enduring the first fury of the women and children, they had to ascend a kind of scaffold, and at a signal the three Frenchmen received some blows with a scourge on the shoulders; then an old man approached Father Jogues, attended by an Algonquin woman, a slave, to whom he gave a knife, ordering her to cut off the mission- ary's right thumb.
This woman, who was a Christian, at first stood as if stupefied, then declared that what she was ordered to do was utterly impossible. The old man, however, resorted to such terrible threats that she obeyed. The holy man afterwards declared that his fear of seeing the woman tor- tured on his account, and the joy which he subsequently felt on seeing her escape the peril by her obedience,
1 Jogues, Notice eai Renfi Qoupil, ' August 14. Jogues (Societas P- 80. Militans, p. 515) calls it Andagoron.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE 145
enabled him to endure the pain which she gave him ; jet 1642. she made him suffer more exquisite torture by the irreso- lute and trembling manner in which she performed the operation, than if cruelty had guided her hand.'
The prisoners remained on this scaffold a day and a half, surrounded by a confused crowd of savages, who were allowed to subject them to any treatment short of death. They were then taken to a second village. Here, contrary to custom, they had to run the gauntlet ; whereas, accord- ing to rule, this should be practised only in the first town they enter. There Father Jogues, unable longer to endure his nakedness, asked an Iroqnois whether he was not ashamed to leave him in that state after having had so large a share in the booty. The Indian seemed to feel the re- proach, for he went and got a box-covering and gave it to the missionary, who used it as best he could to cover him- self ; but as the surface of his body was all raw, this cloth, rough in itself and bristling with bits of straw, caused him such acute pain that he was forced to abandon it. Then the sun, pouring down on his wounds, set bleeding afresh by this cloth, formed a crust which fell off, from time to time, in pieces.'
It is impossible to detail the cruel and unworthy treat- ment which the captives endured in the second village, especially at the hands of the young. The torture lasted two days, and no one thought of giving them any food. At night they were tied and shut up together in a cabin, but pain and hunger prevented sleep from bringing any truce to their miseries. They were treated with nearly as great inhumanity in a third village, where four Hurons were brought in captives by another war-party.'
These were catechumens whom Father Jogues recog-
1 Tanner, p. 515. tribe. The tribe waa typically, and
• Ib., p. 516. at a unit, " The Great She Bear"
> The Mohawks were the Iroquois (" Ganniagpari") : Bruyan, Racines
canton nearest to the Dutch, who Agnierea. This term, in Algonquin,
adopted the Algonquin name for the was " Mnqna," or, aa the earlier
VOL. U.— 10
146
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
l642- nized and baptized. At this same place Couture had "~~*~"' a finger cut off, and would not have escaped at that had
Dutch writers give it, " Mahakuaa*" (" Megapolensis" in N. T. Hist. Soc. ColL, series H, vol. lii., p. 158). This word became ultimately " Mohawk." See intermediate forms in O'Calla- ghan's Index to the New York Coll. Document* The tribe, as in- dividuals, called themselves " Ga- guiegueliaga" or " Eajinjahaga ;" the last syllable, haga, meaning people (Bruyas, Megapolensis). They were not a numerous tribe, and con- tained only the three primitive fam- ilies— the Tortoise, Anaware; the Bear, OcHcari ; and the Wolf, Ok- ndho (Megapolensis, p. 159). They generally formed three towns ; but, after a lapse of over two centuries, the data are too indefinite to deter- mine their site with absolute accu- racy. Father Jogues names three towns — Ossernenon, Andagoron or Qandagoron, and Teonontogen — which he calls the most remote of the canton. The first was, according to the text of the Latin letter, twenty leagues from the Dutch post. Me- gapolensis gives three towns — As- seruea, of the Tortoise ; Banagiro, of the Bear ; and Thenondiogo, of the Wolf family (p. 159). Joguee, on hie second visit, descended the Oi'ogue, or Upper Hudson, to Fort Orange, and then followed the trail to the first town, OnengiHre — former- ly Ossernenon. Wentworth Green- halgh, in 1677 (Doc. Hist., i., p. 11), gives four towns — Cahniaga, Cana- gorha, Canajorha, and Tionondogue. The Jesuit missionaries, who subse- quently established permanent Mo- hawk missions, call Gandawagu€ the modern Caughnawaga, the place of Goupil's and Jogues' death (Relation. 1668, p. 6 ; 1670, p. 23). As to Teonon- togen there seems no doubt, its name
having been retained by the village near Fort Hunter. Greenhalgh de- scribes it as having a double stock- ade, as containing thirty houses, and being on a hill a bow-shot from the river (Doc. Hist., i., p. 11). It was then north of the river, but was, soon after, removed (ib., ii., p. 50) ; and Morgan (League of the Iroqnois, map) represents it as south of the Mohawk. Father Jogues, in repre- senting it as the most remote, means remote from the French, it being evidently nearest to the Dutch. The Andagoron or Gandagoron of Jogues is apparently the Canagorha of Greenhalgh. It was on a flat, with only one stockade and sixteen houses, and may be the Qanegahaga of Morgan (p. 416), in Danube, Her- kimer County, opposite E. Canada Creek. The Ossernenon, Osserrion, or OneugSire of Joguee will then be the Cahniaga of Greenhalgh, the GandaHague of 1668-70, and Caugh- nawaga of our times. This is the only town placed by Morgan north of the Mohawk. He places it near the mouth of the creek. Green- halgh describes Cahniaga as doubly Blockaded, with four ports, each four feet wide, containing twenty-four houses, and situate on the edge of a hill, about a bow-shot from the river- side— meaning, apparently, Caugh- nawaga Creek — the Mohawk being, as we may infer from Joguee' account of Goupil's death, three quarters of a mile distant (Notice sur Rene Goupil, etc., p. 41). See, too, Rela- tion, 1653, p. 15. This is, too, evi- dently the Andaraque ( AndaSague), taken by Courcelle in October, 1666 (Doc. Hist., i., p. 77), with ite triple palisades and supply of water in tanks.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 147
not a man belonging to the town taken him from his tor- l642- turers to his own cabin, where he would not permit him to be touched. Nothing was more consoling to the mis- f P**J ^PjJ sionary than the piety of this young man, and in general p^neâ„¢. of all his comrades in bondage. Not one, amid these great and fearful tortures, failed to maintain his fervor ; some even seemed afflicted at the insufficiency of their sufferings.'
At last, after seven weeks" constant martyrdom, all, The live, of contrary to their expectation and in spite of oft-repeated chi<& threats, were informed that none were to be put to death except three chiefs. Among these was the brave Eustace, whose conversion has been recently related. He, as well as the other two, received his death-sentence as a sincere Christian, and, till their last breath, they carried their heroism as far as imagination can conceive. As soon as they had been given up to the deputies of the villages where they were to be burnt, the other captives' were led back to the first village of the three, through which they had been paraded. Here they were to be distributed.
Up to this time, as they belonged to no one individually, Somcofth* no one took any care of them, and, on reaching this vil- f,iwUfor *£«
lage, they were in a state of complete exhaustion ; more- over, they were soon thrown back into a state of suspense as to their fate, from which they had just been delivered. The war-party, repulsed at Fort Richelieu, came back, breathing only vengeance. The chief, and some of the bravest, had been killed, while the number of wounded was considerable.' The prisoners, after having been so long the object of the insolence of victory, were now doomed to experience the rage and disappointment of defeat ; and, notwithstanding the hopes which had been
i Tanner, p. 610. was held, to Os&ernenon, and Couture
1 Ib. The Latin letter aaji seven to Teonontogen. days. « Tanner, pp. 513, 518. See ante, p.
* Jogne* and Goupil were taken 133. The Relation, 1643, Bays three
from Andagoron, where the council hundred.
>ly for Trench.
148 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. kindled in their hearts, they expected it to cost them their *-~~~r~~' lives. The friends and kindred of the dead counted upon it, when the Dutch, who were by chance in the village, asked that the three Frenchmen should be given up to them.1 They are re- This request embarrassed the Iroquois, and led to a >ed- kind of negotiation, in which the fury enkindled against the prisoners somewhat abated ; but this was all the benefit which the French derived. The council at last replied to the Dutch, that the French were no longer at their dis- posal, it having been decided to restore them to their countrymen. This was a mere pretext, but whether the Dutch understood it or not, they pressed the matter no further, and retired. Some of the more moderate of the Iroquois had, indeed, advised that Father Jogues and his two companions should be sent back to Ononthio, but all the others opposed it strongly. The three Frenchmen were then given to different masters ; Couture's was in another village, and was apparently the same chief who had already rescued him from the hands of his torturers.9 Martyrdom Bene Goupil knew his only at the moment when that GOOD?* savage dealt him a blow on the head with his tomahawk, of which he expired a moment after. He was a young man of great innocence of life and of admirable ingenu- ousness. Although he had commenced his novitiate at Rouen, he was sent to Canada in his secular habit, that he might exercise his profession with more liberty and deco- rum ; but though he did not wear the religious habit, his conduct was not the less strict, and his piety merited the first crown of martyrdom in New France ; for his master's motive in thus depriving him of life was, that an old man having seen him make the sign of the cross on a child, had
1 Father Jogues, in his letter (Tan- pp. 385, 468, 464 ; De Vries, Voyage*
ner, p. 518), says the Dutch official from Holland to America, translated
(Van Curler) came " de liberatione from the Dutch by Henry C. Murphy,
nostra acturus," not by chance (Re- New York, 1853, p. 137. Van Cur-
lation de la Nouvelle France, 1643, ler was accompanied by Jacob Jansen
p. 64). For Van Curler's own account, and John Labadie.
«ee O'Callaghan, New Netherland, i., * Tanner, p. 518.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 14y
told his master that if he kept Rene' he would kill the 1642. whole village with his spells. v—~ r— '
Father Jogues, who had admired his virtue in life, did not scruple to invoke him, after so precious a death, as a confessor of Christ. He even expected to share his crown. He witnessed the execution, and not doubting but that they had also resolved to make way with him, he was about to kneel at the murderer's feet to receive his death- blow in that posture ; but the Indian bade him rise, be- cause, though he deemed him as guilty as his comrade, he had no power of life or death over him. The apostolic man, again disappointed in his hope of martyrdom, thought thence forward only of sanctifying his chains, and rendering his bondage useful to those who had done him so much evil1
At first he was rather closely watched, but in the sequel Father he had a little more liberty, and he even traversed, unop- proflu"? posed by his master, the whole Mohawk canton in which '
he was, and the only one which, till then, had openly declared against us. In one of his excursions an event w occurred which gave him great consolation. As he went from cabin to cabin, in a village near his own, to see 8ioiu- whether he could find any dying children on whom he could confer baptism, he heard a voice at a distance calling him ; he ran to the spot, and entering the cabin from which the sound came, he beheld a sick man, who looked at him steadily and asked whether the missionary did not recognize him. He replied that he did not recollect having seen him. " And I," said the Indian, " recognize you welL Do you recollect the day when you were hung up by the arms with ropes, that cut deep into you and gave you such intense pain?" " I remember it well," replied the mission- ary. "And I," continued the Indian, "was the one who took pity on you and cut you down.'"
1 Jngnet, Novnm Belgium ... ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
et Notice BUT Rene Qoupil, pp. 22- 1847, p. 32 ; 1643, p. 81 ; Creuxiua.
44 ; Tanner, p. 518. Ren« was killed Historia Canadenste, p. 381. on St. Michael's day, Sept. 29.
160 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. The servant of God, overjoyed to find a man whom he had long sought to express his gratitude, threw himself upon his neck and embraced him : " Brother," he said, " it depends only on yourself to let me render to you, a hun- dredfold, all the good yon did me, and the memory of which is as fresh in my mind as it was at that moment, when you did me so great a charity. An enemy, more cruel than all who then tortured me, holds you in fetters : you are, perhaps, at the last moment of your life, and if, before that fatal moment which will close your existence, you do not throw off the yoke of this pitiless master, what will become of you ? I shudder for you when I think of it. Eternal flames will surround and burn but never consume you. The most horrible torments you have ever conceived to glut your vengeance on your enemies, do not approach what will be suffered through all eternity by those who do not die Christians."
These few words, pronounced in that tone which renders apostolic men so powerful in words, made all the impres- sion the missionary could desire on a heart in which charity had paved the way for the operations of grace. The sick man asked to be instructed ; and the missionary had scarcely begun to explain the chief mysteries of the faith than he perceived that an unseen master anticipated his teaching, and impressed the truths of Christianity in this predestined soul. The sick man opposed no doubts to our most incomprehensible mysteries. He believed, was baptized, and died, a few days after, in the arms of the servant of God, in all the sentiments which character- ize the death of the saints.1
A conquest of this kind was more than enough to make his bondage precious to the man of God ; but it was not the only one, and ere long the whole Mohawk canton, which he had bedewed with his blood, produced an abundant harvest. Another Indian, wishing to save his life, re-
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, p. 32.
HISTOIir OF NEW FRANCE. 151
ceived on bis arm a blow of a tomahawk, aimed at his life, 1641. and heaven rewarded him in the same manner as it did ^-^v— •" the Indian I have just mentioned.' Many other sick Ore«t num- Indians listened with docility to the instructions of the convor- holjr missionary,, in whom they were always accompanied by all that the most tender and ingenious charity can inspire a great heart ; and by his earnest care a great number of children went to swell the choir in heaven that follows the Lamb without spot.' These conversions cost him much toil. The mere journeys were a great torture to a man whose strength was exhausted, and who was forced to live almost entirely on roots. Not that the In- dians refused him the necessaries of life ; but as, gen- erally, nothing was set before him that had not been first offered to Agreskouc, he did not believe that he could in conscience touch it.'
It was about this same time that a nation dwelling Hooter na. about south-southwest of the Huron country, and four or five days' journey off, was visited by the Jesuits, who announced to it the kingdom of God.' These Fathers give it, in their memoirs, no name but that of the Neutral nation, apparently because they declined to take any part in the war then desolating the whole country.' But it
i This case Is misplaced here, meaning " people of a language a
The Indian wounded in the arm, little different" (Relation de la Nouv.
while trying to save Father Jogues, Franc.-, 1641, p. 72). The Jesuit*
was Klotaaeton, wounded when the were not the first to visit them, as
missionary was killed, in 1647 : Be- remarked below,
lation, 1648, p. 6; Creuxius, His- 'The name Neater U given by
toria Canadensis, p. 600. Champlain, Voyages, ed. 1610, and
1 Relation de la N. F , 1647, p. ed. 1682, p. 278 ; Table, p. 7 ; 8a-
81 ; 1648, p. 81 ; Tanner, p. 529. gard, Grand Voyage, p. 211. Dail-
' Tanner, p. 521. Ion's letter, July 18, 1627 (in Sagard,
4 The Neuters lay on both sides of pp. 880-B2. Le Clercq, i., p. 360)
the Niagara (Relation, 1641, p. 71). describes their country, which evi-
Bresaani makes them one hundred dently included oil-springs, since he
miles from the Hnrons, and extend- mentions among their products very
ing over a territory of one hundred good oil, which they call a touron-
and fifty miles (Martin's Breesani, ton. Sagard (p. 893) says the word
p. 62). The HUTODS and Neuters means "Oh, how much there is I" not
called each other Attiwandaronk, inapplicable to the oil in that region.
152 BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
1642. could not, in the sequel, avoid its utter destruction ; although, to shield itself from the fury of the Iroquois, who, unprovoked, had made several incursions into their territory, they offered to take their side and join them against the Hurons, from whom, apparently, they sprang. This step did not save them. The Iroquois were then in a destructive mood ; and as lions, when once they have tasted blood, cannot glut themselves with it, and no more spare those who feed and fondle them than those who hunt them, these barbarians swooped down without dis- tinction on all whom they met in their course : and now no trace is left of the Neutral nation. These Indians were, it is said, larger, stronger, and better made than most of the rest. They had almost all the manners and customs of the Hurons, except that they were even more cruel to their prisoners of war; for they burnt women with the same cruelty as men, while the Hurons killed them on the spot. They also showed less modesty, were not so sedentary, and lived rather by hunting than by agriculture, cultivating the ground but little.1 God had his elect among these savages, but only few in
3m mis- number, and Fathers Chaumonot and de Brebeuf were his instruments to separate the few good grains scattered in the mass of tares.1 As early as 1626, Father de Daillon, a Itecollect, penetrated to their country ; but as he did not know their language, he could announce Christ only by 1643. signs. This holy religious suffered greatly on this excur- sion ; but he was consoled by the hope that his sweat would fertilize that sterile field.'
The two Jesuits whom I have just named had been in- vited by the leading men to visit the tribe ; but they did not find the Neuters by far so favorably disposed
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, 3 See hia interesting letter in Sa-
1641, p. 78. gard, Histoire du Canada, p. 880-92
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, — abridged in le Clercq, Etablisse-
1641, pp. 71-81 ; Chaumonot, Auto- ment de la Foi, i., p. 346 ; Relation
biographie, p. 53. de la N. F., 1641, p. 74.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 153
to hearken to them. Still, their charity to the sick, their 1643. mildness and their patience, won the hearts of some, V-"~T~--' whom they succeeded in making fervent proselytes. This first success would have had consoling results, had it been possible for these missionaries to prolong their stay among this people ; but they were soon recalled to the Hnrons, whose misfortunes increased daily.1 It was not only war that desolated them : famine and dis- Judgment
.,,.,, . ., -x, ., of God on •
ease inflicted no less serious ravages among ulfm: — »nt if Huron »u- alTthese complicated evils were stumbling-blocks for the hardened, they strengthened the faith and increased the piety of the true faithful. They were even the instru- ments employe^ \iy fl~i\ t^ dm" mury T* th? hrntlipn to his worship. Clearly defined marks of the vengeance of an offended Deity contributed also. Soon after Father Jognes' capture a whole Huron village was destroyed. The Iroquois entered at daybreak, and the sun rose on every cabin in ashes, every inhabitant, of whatever age or sex, slaughtered by the conquerors. Only some score escaped through the flames. This village had never been willing to receive the gospel, and had carried its impiety so far as to defy the God of the Christians. Its destruction was regarded as a chastisement of heaven, and many profited by so striking a mark of God's wrath.1
A less melancholy event produced no less salutary results for the Huron nation. One of the war-parties was setting out, when the idolaters, forming the majority, wished as usual to consult the god of war ; and the medi- cine-man, to whom they applied to know his will, promised them victory if they went southward. While they were engaged in their superstitious rites the Christians assem- bled apart to pray ; and when they learned the demon's answer, or that of his tool, the youngest, armed with a holy
1 Relation de 1* N. F., 1041, p. 75. town of Ehwm«. See Relation d» la 1 Thia alludes, apparently, to the Nonvelle France, 1041, p. 69.
154 HISTOBY OF NEW FRANCE.
1643. indignation, and with gestures that attracted the attention of the whole village, conjured the Almighty not to permit success to verify the word of the father of .lies. " Thy own Glory is at stake," he added ; " show that Thou art the only arbiter of our lot. If the promises of the enemy of our salvation are accomplished, these men will blas- pheme Thy holy name ; but let us rather perish all than witness so great an evil." '
These sentiments will perhaps appear to some above the scope of an Indian, and especially of an Indian con- vert ; but it must be remembered that they can come in no man, but from Him to whom it is as easy to inspire the most gross as the most cultivated of men. The young man did not stop there ; for addressing his fellow-braves, he said : " My brethren, let us beware of yielding to the enemy of our souls, by following the route he marks out. Let us go westward. We shall, to all appearance, run greater risk, but the God of armies will be on our side." 'rThe two bands accordingly separated. The Christians met none of the enemy and no mishap : the idolaters were defeated with severe loss. Then several Indians, struck by an event which attested the ignorance and impotence of Agreskoue, or rather the imposture of the medicine- men, openly declared for the Deity whose power the , joung Christian had so greatly exalted.1 Information Meanwhile, tidings reached Quebec from Father Jogues, 8Fathery who was supposed to be dead. One of the Hurons taken n- with him escaped and reached the Chevalier de Mont- magny> He told him that the missionary was in the hands of an Iroquois chief, who had no power over him, the canton having declined to waive its right to dispose of hiâ„¢ ; that it seemed, from time to time, disposed to send him back ; but that the holy man was in constant danger, and his life hung by a thread, amid a fierce, capricious, and superstitious people, whom the Dutch plied with
1 Eolation de 1» N. F., 1044, p. 70. • Ib
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 155
ill-inks that filled all the land with drunkards and caused j 1643. fearful disorders.'
r A few days after, the governor-general received a letter from Father Jogues himself. It stated that the whole Iroquois nation was in arms, and seemed resolved to give the Hurons no truce till it destroyed them ; that their project was to ruin all their villages, take all the prisoners they could, so as to incorporate them in their cantons and to fill up the losses made by war ; that if the French delayed any longer to assist an allied nation, already num- bering many Christians, whose trade was useful, not to say necessary, to the French colony, its loss was certain ; and then men would repent, when too late, for not having sustained it. He added that they should not be withheld by fears of what might happen to him if the efforts of the Iroquois were repulsed ; that they should be convinced, once for all, that the way to bring these savages to terms and assure the safety of his own person, was not to humor them at the expense of our allies, but to inspire them with respect for the French name ; that under any event he would be overjoyed to sacrifice his life for the cause of religion, the good of the colony, the honor of France, and the preservation of his beloved Hurons.'
The governor admired the devotedness of the mission- ary ; and, in his inability to give the Hurons the aid t»Mtm they required, deemed that nothing should be neglected, and no time lost, to save a man whose captivity had already cost so many tears. He had just learned that some Algonquins had brought into Quebec a Sokoki cap- tive. This tribe, lying near New England, was then allied to the Iroquois. He ransomed the captive ; and though he had been very badly treated by those in whose hands he was, he was so well cared for, by the governor's orders, that he was perfectly cured. He was then loaded with
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France. Nonvelle France, 1643, p. 66 ; Peril* 1643, p. 63 ; 1644, p. 71. of the Ocean and Wilderness, p.
1 See the letter, Relation de la 68.
156 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1643. presents and put in the hands of an Ab&iaquis, who led
••— f— ' him back to his village.1
This man not only avowed openly his obligations to the French, but also induced his tribe to send and ask Father Jogues from the Mohawks. Deputies were appointed, who supported their request with presents. These depu- ties were well received and their presents accepted. They, in fact, no longer doubted the success of their negotiation, because there is nothing more sacred among the Indians than the obligation incurred by such an acceptance. Nevertheless, when the time came for explanation, the Mohawks declared bluntly that they were determined not to restore the missionary to liberty.*
He ie»rns About the month of July, this same year, the village where the servant of God was sent off a large party to
led' fish. He had changed masters, and was now in the hands of an old woman, on whose treatment he had reason to congratulate himself. As she resolved to go with the party, he was obliged to attend her. He had scarcely reached the destination, when he heard that some Huron prisoners had been brought down to the village he had left, and burned. He experienced a poignant grief at having been unable to be present and attend them in death ; and fearful that the scene should be renewed in his absence, he sought and obtained permission to return.' On his way he passed a Dutch settlement, which he entered, and was there assured that he would be infallibly burned on his arrival in the village. The proof alleged for this was the fact, that an Iroquois party having been again repulsed at Fort Richelieu, this check was attributed to him ; because a Huron had deserted from that party
1 Relation de la N. F. 1643, pp. is styled by Druilletes (Narre du
44, 77. The Sokokiois (Soquakiaks, Voyage) the river of the Sokokis, those of the Southernland), were an Manrault, Hist, des Ab., p. 5, 132. Algonquin tribe, lying between the * Relation de la N. F., 1648, p- 77. Mohegans and the Abenakis. The •*• Relation de la Nouvelle France,
Connecticut (Kunateguk, Longriver) 1467, p. 33 ; 1643, p. 75.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 157
and carried a letter from the missionary to the governor 1643. of the French. This was the letter already mentioned, ' ^«~l- and all the circumstances were exactly true.1 The holy man subsequently avowed that this information at first filled him with alarm, but that, after gathering strength from prayer, he, without a struggle, offered to God the sacrifice of his life. Thus the Almighty permits the great- est souls to feel, from time to time, all their weakness, in order that they may in nowise depend on their own virtues ; but when they humble themselves in His pres- ence, by acknowledging their need of His aid, He is never wanting.
The servant of God accordingly prepared to pursue his way, resolved to meet any event, when a Dutch officer, who commanded in that district, arrived at the post. Perceiving a European led by a band of Indians, he asked who he was. He was told that he was Father Jogues, and they added that he was on the point of being burned. He was touched ; and as he sought an opportunity to gratify the Chevalier de Montmagny, from whom he had recently received a service, he felt that he could do nothing more agreeable to that governor than to obtain the liberty of the missionary.' He formed a plan ; and it is even asserted that orders to that effect had been sent out to all the commandants in New Netherland by the States- General, in consequence of the most urgent request of the Queen-Regent of France.
Be that as it may, the officer, after deliberating for a A Dutch ot- time on the means of carrying out his project, called to deli Father Jogues and told him that there was a vessel at anchor quite near the post, which was to weigh forthwith for Virginia ; that he would be secure there, and once at Jamestown, would find convenient opportunities for going to any point he chose. The holy religious, after
1 Relation de la NonreUe France, ' Relation de la Nonvelle France, IMS, p. 75 ; Memoir*, MS. 1643, p. 76.
158 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1643. testifying his gratitude, asked a night to deliberate on v— -Y— ' his offer. This surprised the commandant not a little, for he could not conceive how a man in so critical a position could hesitate for a moment to extricate himself. He »ccepte The servant of God spent the whole night in prayer : and after considering that his death was certain if he re- turned to his village ; that such a death could be of no benefit, but, on the contrary, only remove still further all hope of peace between the Iroquois and the French ; that not having started on his parole, but under an escort assigned by bis captors to watch him, he was not bound to refuse the means of escape offered ; and that by saving his life he might also be useful to the tribes in Canada, he returned to the commandant early next morning and told him that he put himself at his disposal. This officer, with- out losing a moment, began by inducing the Indians not to start that day, as they intended. He then went to make sure of the crew of the vessel, and all being well- disposed, he notified Father Jogues to come the next night to the sea-shore, where he would find a boat ready to take him on board.
He escapes. The difficulty was to baffle the vigilance of his guards, much greater by night than by day, and to avoid meeting other Iroquois, who kept coming and going incessantly in that quarter. He was shut up at night in a barn, and as they did not give him an opportunity to examine whether there was any other outlet than the ordinary door by which he could steal away, as soon as he was shut \ip with his guardians he made a pretext for going out. He was scarcely however outside, when a dog, set loose on a neighboring farm, ran on him and bit him in the leg. He went in badly wounded, and the barn-door was immediately barricaded, so that he could not open it without great noise. All the Indians then lay down around their prisoner.1
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, nadensis, p. 389 ; Buteux, NarrS, 1643, p. 76 ; Creuiius, Ilistoria Ca- MS.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 159
The servant of God then deemed flight impossible, and 1643. easily persuaded himself that heaven did not approve it. He bowed to its decrees and slept calmly. A little before daybreak a servant of the place entered by a door which the Indians had not noticed. Father Jogues, who awoke or was no longer asleep, motioned to the man to quiet the dogs ; he rose softly, went out with him and made his way to the riverside. He found the boat, but without sailors, and so high up on the bank that he could not succeed in getting it afloat. He got as near the vessel as he could, and called to them to send some one to him. No reply came. He went back to the boat, imploring the Almighty to increase his strength if it was His will that he should escape from the hands of the Iroqnois. His renewed efforts succeeded ; the boat was at last pushed into the water and he reached the vessel.'
He was well received, put down in the hold, and a case laid on the hatchway, so that if the Indians came on board they might be left to search all over without any fear of their finding him. On two occasions he spent twenty-four hours in this kind of dungeon, shut out from the light of day and almost stifled. At the end of that time they came to tell him that the Iroquois insisted, with violent threats, that he should be given up, and the tone of their remarks induced him to believe that they did not wish to get into trouble with them. Like Jonas, he replied : " If for my sake this great tempest is upon yon, cast me into the sea." He was then informed that the commandant wished to see him at his house. He made no reply, and in spite of the sailors, who would have kept him by force, got into the boat and was taken back to the post.'
The commandant assured him that he would be safe in his house ; adding, that all in the place agreed that it was best for him to leave the vessel, then on the point of sail- ing, so that they could assure the Indians that he had not
1 Rel., 1648, p. 77 ; Buteur, Ma • Rd., 1843, p. 78 ; 1647. p. 38.
160 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1643. gone, and thus treat more amicably with them. Father "-— v— ' Jogues conceived fully the extent of his danger, but as escape no longer depended on him, he told the officer to dispose of him as he chose. Two weeks after, that is to say, about the middle of September, several Indians came from the village where he had been a slave, bent apparently •on forcing the Dutch to give him up.'
H« arrives The commander was greatly embarrassed. He was in no ' condition to resist the Indians if they resorted to violence. He offered to ransom their prisoner, and finally succeeded in inducing them to accept some presents. He then sent Father Jogues to Manhattan,1 where he embarked in a small vessel of fifty tons, which sailed on the 5th of No- vember for Holland. The voyage was a favorable one ; but a high wind, that sprang up as they were entering the British Channel, compelled the captain to put in at Fal- mouth, in England. As soon as they came to anchor all the crew landed, leaving only a single man to guard the vessel. In the evening robbers came on board and seized all that suited them, leaving Father Jogues almost naked.' He crosses He would have died of cold and hunger had not a French France, ship come by chance to anchor in the same port. The 44" captain, informed of the missionary's condition, gave him seasonable relief. On Christmas eve, Father Jogues hear- ing that a collier was about to start for Brittany, asked a passage on board : it was cheerfully granted, and he landed, in a sailor's garb, between Brest and St. Paul de Leon.4 On the 5th of January' he presented himself, in the
1 For his condition while concealed * O'Callaghan, New Netherland,
on shore, see Relation de la Non- i., p. 336 ; Relation de la Nouvelle
velle France, 1647, p. 33. France, 1643, pp. 79, 81.
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, « This port is properly St. Pol de
1047, p. 34. Father Jogues wrote Leon : Relation de la N. F., 1647,
an interesting description of the p. 84. Creuxius gives some details
Dutch colony: Novum Belgium, De- as to his landing in France, which
scription de Nieuw Netherland et are not in the Relation : Historia
Notice sur Rene Goupil, New York, Canadensia, p. 391.
1862. Published also separately, • Jogues, Letter of January 5,
in English, with notes, in 4o. 1644.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 161
same guise, at the door of the College at Bennee, and 1644. asked for the rector, for whom, he said, he had tidings of Father Jogues. The rector came down at once, and the supposed sailor, without uttering a word, handed him an open letter given him by the Qovernor of Manhattan, with the view of obtaining for him in Holland whatever he might need to reach France.'
The rector, before reading the paper, asked him what He aiU • had become of Father Jogues. The holy man looked at tionPtouy him with a smile. The rector recognized him then, fell on hu*mu7iu!t- his neck, bathed him in tears, and was so affected that for Th«h?op«'» a time he clasped him to his heart, unable to utter a word. "plj~ The servant of God remained a few days at Bennes and set out for Paris, where his escape was known and he him- self impatiently expected. The Queen Mother wished to see him, and gave him a welcome worthy of her piety.* The Pope, from whom he solicited permission to celebrate the divine mysteries with his mutilated hands, replied that it would be unjust to refuse a martyr of Christ the right to drink the blood of Christ: " Indignum esset Christi mar- tyrem, Christi non bibere sanguinem."
It must be confessed that the holy missionary was then Hit in a delicate position for virtue less solid than animated ° him. Nothing is so apt to seduce a heart, where a spark of ambition and self-love remains, as to see one's self honored on such just grounds, as a saint who has done and suffered what seems to exceed the powers of man. But Father Jogues, taught that God is jealous not only of the glory which emanates from his own excellence but also of that which he derives from our virtues, which we owe to his grace, would not expose himself to lose the fruit of his toils and sufferings by the least feeling of complacency. Never was man more deeply grounded in humility ; it was his especial characteristic, and he was,
1 Relation de In Nouvelle France, ' Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1647, p. 35. 1647, p. 85.
VOL. n — 11
162 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1644. therefore, far removed from any idea that he had done s~" "v— ' aught for which Heaven should lay up any reward. He retnrns He was not even tempted to remain in France, where he
to Canada. .
News which received applause, and he in fact remained only till the
there, departure of the first vessels that sailed for Quebec. He
found the affairs of New France in a pitiful state. His
Tbeloved Hurons were everywhere a prey to the Iroquois, and for some time no tidings from their country had
•Beached Quebec, unless to announce the defeat of a party or the destruction of a town. The number of Christians, nevertheless, increased daily, and their faith gathered strength in these very adversities which had so long re- tarded their conversion.
These times of storm and persecution have been in all infant churches seasons of plenty in all heavenly benedic- tion, and have never failed to be fruitful in good Christians. Canada, to the close of the last century, was a very strik- ing proof this truth, and we have seen many illustrious witnesses. I enjoyed even the happiness of living with some of those who were actors on that bloody stage, and who could, like Saint Paul, show on their bodies the marks of Christ. But not only were the apostles of New France not unworthy of being compared with the founders of the noblest churches, but some of their neophytes also re- called the fairest days of the Primitive Church; and I should deem myself wanting the fidelity of history were I, in deference to what is called the taste of our age, to pass over in silence the more wonderful facts of this kind that I find in the annals of Canada, and more capable of glorify- ing him who, from the heart of barbarism, could raise up true children to Abraham.1
At the very time that God seemed to have abandoned the Hurons to the fire and steel of the Iroquois, it was im- possible to enter a town without meeting some of those
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 409 ; Lettre de M. Marie de 1'Incar- 1647, p. 36. nation, a la Superieurn dea Ursu-
' Creuxius, Historia Canadensis, p. lines, Sept. 29, 1642.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 163
chosen souls whom grace raises above man, to confound 1644. those whose passions lower them beneath the grade of ^-^Y-— ^ beasts. The apostolical spirit animated many ; there were Fervor *nd three who undertook to preach the gospel to the Neuter nation,' where the missionaries, on account of their small number, could not make a long stay, and the Lord blessed their zeal beyond their hopes. To the lively and pathetic eloquence natural to these people, they added the force of example, always more persuasive than the most eloquent words.
Among these new apostles was one, Joseph Taonde- choren, who had been taken with Father Jogues, and had been indeed the first to bear to Quebec tidings of the holy missionary.' One day a number of heathens, who were in company with him, expressed great surprise at his never allowing a single word to escape him evincing the slightest resentment against the Iroquois who had treated him so cruelly. " It is," he replied, " because God diffuses over sufferings endured for his sake joys so pure and consola- tions so striking, that no animosity can be felt against those who have been the instruments." He then spoke so forcibly on the excellence of the Christian religion, and the miraculous manner in which it changes the heart of man, that most were moved and many convinced of the necessity of embracing it.'
The island of Montreal was gradually filling up with settlers, and the piety of these new colonists gradually prepared the Indians who had intercourse with them to submit to the yoke of the Faith. Their most frequent intercourse was with the Algonquins, living on an island formed by the Ottawa ; but their chief seemed imbued
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' Relation de la Nonvelle France,
1644, pp. 96, 97. They were Barna- 1644, p. 82.
by Otainonannhont, Stephen Totiri, ' Tewf-ehm, called by the French
and his brother. le Borgne de Vide ; Relation de la
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, Nouvelle France, 1643, p. 54 ; Creux-
1644, p. 81. ins. Hietoria Canadengii, p. 373.
164 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1644. with an unconquerable aversion to Christianity, and ally ^— -Y— - ' as he was, or sought to be deemed, of the French, the Miraculous missionaries found in him a more difficult antagonist than °2f »nrAi-n the Iroquois themselves. It was not that he was more wrapped up in his superstitious practices, but he was a man violent to ferocity, extremely haughty, and ill- disposed.
God seems at times to delight in triumphing over some of these intractable hearts and perverse souls, whose con- quest all must admit to be solely the work of His all- powerful mercy. Such was, to all appearance, the conver- sion of the Algonquin chief. Every thing was supernatural in the manner in which the unexpected change was wrought. This savage had a nephew,1 who took it into his head to settle on the island of Montreal Mr. de Maisonneuve, to whom he went, neglected no argument to confirm his intention ; and as his main object was to gain frim to Christ, he begged Father "Vimond and Father Poncet, who were happily then with him, to instruct the Algonquin in our mysteries.
They joyfully consented, and found in this man and in his wife so much mildness and docility, that, after the ordinary trials to test their constancy, they baptized them both. These two converts had promised to settle on the island, and they kept their word. They did more. The grace of the sacrament had enkindled in them a zeal for the salvation of souls — a zeal soon blessed with fruit ; but the conversion most yearned for was that of their uncle. Although they saw no human probability of success, they nevertheless undertook it, and were preparing to visit him in his village, when they learned that he had started for the winter hunt. This mischance grieved them, but they soon saw that Divine Providence has modes of action un- known to men ; and if they had not the honor of contrib-
1 Joseph ^masasikSeie : Relation la Colonie Franijaise, i., p. 460. His de la N. F., 1648, p. 54 ; Creuxius, tribe was the Kichesipirini, called by Hist. Canad., p. 378 ; Faillon, Hist, de the Hurons Hehonqneronon.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 165
uting to a con version so desired, except perhaps by wrest- 1644. ing it from Heaven by their prayers, the manner in which it was effected gave them no less consolation, and strength- ened their faith.
One day, when the husband was conversing with Father Vimond on the matter, they were both extremely surprised to see the chief enter the room where they were ; bat their astonishment increased all the more when, in reply to a question as to the motive of his coming, he stated that he was there to become a Christian. Father Vimond asked the motive for so sudden a resolution, at variance with all his previously expressed sentiments. He declared that it was impossible for him to tell it ; that, as he was proceeding from Fort Richelieu to Three Rivers, a sudden change took place in his mind, which he did not under- stand ; and that, by a movement which he could not control, he had taken his way back to Montreal, to be instructed in the doctrine of the Christians. He added that his wife was in the same disposition as himself. Then addressing Father Vimond : " Father," said he, " I am not well : nevertheless, if you refuse me this favor which I ask, I am resolved to go to the Hurons, where I hope they will grant it."1
His nephew listened to all this like a man who knows not whether he dreams or is awake ; then, unable to con- tain the joy that transported him, he ran to Mr. de Mai- sonneuve to inform him what he had seen and heard. The governor wished to examine in person so improbable a fact ; and finding it real, embraced the convert, assured him of his friendship, and told him that he would under- take to induce the superior-general to gratify his desire. Father Vimond was not less eager to see the accomplish- ment of a work the results of which could not fail to be so advantageous to religion ; but the affair was not one to bo
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, nadensU, p. 373 ; Faillon, H igtoiiv de 1(143, p. 56 ; Creuxioa, HUtorU Ca- la Colonie Fnmijatae, I., p. 461.
166 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1644. treated precipitately. Moreover, numbers of other In- *•"• ~Y— — ' dians came in daily for instruction ; and two priests, who had also other duties to fulfil, were unequal to so great a task.
This last difficulty, however, was soon raised. All, including the governor himself, aided the missionaries in instructing the catechumens — women taking charge of those of their own sex ; and as it was perceived that grace acted even more efficaciously within than the most touching exhortation could without, at the end of eight days' assiduous labor all were deemed in a condition to receive baptism. Mr. de Maisonneuve was god-father to the Chief of the Isle, and Madame de la Peltrie god- mother— a sally of somewhat restless zeal (soon, however, to resume its even tenor) having brought her to Mon- treal.'
Fervor of Father Vimond never had reason to repent his facili ty in
lquin mui receiving these Indians into the fold committed to his vigi-
"onB' lance. Time did not relax their fervor. The whole was done
by a kind of inspiration, and all recognized visibly what is
one of the most important points of the science peculiar
to apostolic men — that if the Author of Nature sometimes
goes beyond the laws which he himself has established in
the ordinary course of events, there are also occasions
where his ministers should not confine themselves too
scrupulously to the rules of measured prudence.
The whole Algonquin nation felt the effect of the events just occurred at Montreal, and gradually the number of Christians there exceeded that of the heathen. Three Bivers' and Tadoussac' had also their Indian missionaries.
1 Tess»ehat— called, in Huron, On- he inhabited is the present He des
deeson, and by the French, le Borgne Allumettes. It was here that Father
de I'lsle (Rel., 1646, p. 7) — was bap- Jerome Lalemant was assailed. See
tized March 9, 1643 : Relation de la ante, p. 111.
NouveUe France, 1643, p. 54 ; Creux- ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
ing, Historia Canadensis, p. 376 ; 1643, p. 45.
Faillon, Histoire de la Colonie Fran- 3 Relation de la Nouvelle France,
caise, i., p. 461. The island which 1643, p. 32 ; 1644, p. 55.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 167
Neophytes were seen undertaking prolonged journeys, in 1644. the most inclement season, solely with the view to an- nounce Christ to tribes far remote ; and those who could not leave their towns for so long a period did not allow their zeal to remain inactive. In public and private meet- ings they incessantly inculcated obedience to their pastors and submission to the sacred laws of the Church. Those who had any authority over the multitude could not bring themselves to allow any fault to pass unpunished, little as it might have attracted notice or given scandal, and it was often somewhat difficult to moderate their severity in the matter.
At Sylleri especially men admired what the first-fruits of grace in a new-formed Christian fold could effect* This town was not exposed, as it was some time after, to the attacks of the Iroquois ; but however little its inhab- itants went from it, they ran the risk of being carried off, and this had already happened to several. Deprived thus of all recourse to the chase, on which these tribes cannot avoid relying, they were often reduced to want of the actual necessaries of life. The French did all in their power to relieve their more pressing wants ; but being themselves generally poor, their charity was a feeble re- source for so many famishing creatures. Besides the little taste and skill ever shown by Algonquin tribes for the cultivation of the earth, these Christians, often com- pelled to shut themselves up in the palisades of their towns to escape the Iroquois war-parties that were in the field, were unable either to till their fields in safety or to count on reaping the little they had sowed.
This wretched state, to which there was no apparent remedy, did not, however, diminish the confidence of these fervent proselytes in Divine Providence. Ill-disposed men in vain used every stratagem to withdraw them from the service of a God who, they said, forsook them, and let
> Relation de la NouveUe France, 1643, pp. 8, 13 ; 1044, p. 4.
168 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1644. their enemies and his own triumph. Not only was their faith proof to a temptation which often overcomes those born and brought up in the bosom of the Church, but it did not even cool their zeal, and their numbers daily increased. Proselytes came to Sylleri from the far North, and it was not unusual to see the very men entering the fold who had used the greatest exertions to scatter it. Such was the situation of Christianity in New France,
mVFrance m when news came that astounded every man of honor in "5«mlt» of* the colony. Who, in fact, could imagine that mission- Canada. .^ whOBe sanctity, labors, and disinterestedness were
admired by all, could all at once see themselves under the necessity of making statements to justify their conduct, and persuade the public that it was not interests of trade that kept them in the midst of barbarism, exposed to all the dangers that we have witnessed? Tet this was ^ asserted in Europe; and destitute of all probability as these calumnies were, they were spread with the greater assurance, as many gave them credence.
The Company of One Hundred Associates was no less amazed at these clamors than the inhabitants of New France, who saw the falsehood with their very eyes. As the Company was most deeply interested in preventing the trade imputed to the Jesuits, and better able to know the facts by means of the agents which it maintained in Canada, it deemed itself bound in honor to defend the accused, and did so by an authentic declaration, which is in these words :
Their justi- " The Directors and Associates in the Company of New France, called Canada, having heard that some persons are persuaded, and spread the report, that the Society of the Jesuit Fathers has a share in the embarkation, returns, and trade carried on with that country — seeking by this means to lower and destroy the esteem and value of the great labors which those missionaries undertake in said country, with incredible pain and hardship, at the peril of their life, for the service and glory of God, in converting
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 169
the Indians to the faith of Christianity and the Roman 1644. Catholic Apostolic religion, in which they have made and "-^v-"-' daily make great progress — of which the said Company is particularly informed, have deemed themselves bound by the obligation of Christian charity to disabuse those who entertain this belief by the Declaration and Certificate, which they make by these presents, that the said Jesuit Fathers are not associates in the said Company of New France, either directly or indirectly, and have no interest in the sales of goods made there. In testimony whereof, the present Declaration has been signed by the said Directors and Associates, and sealed with the seal of said Company, the first day of December, 1643.
" I)E LA FERTE, AbW de la Magdeleine.
MABGONET. VERDEBR.
BERRUYER. FLECKIAD.
ROBINEAC. CASET.
SABOUET. BOUHOUET.
BERRUYEB. CLARENTIN.
"Compared with the original by a Councillor, Secre- tary to the King, House, and Crown of France.
" JOLLY.'"
This document had its effect with those who had no need of being undeceived ; and it was not without some indignation on their part that they, some time after, beheld the Jesuits of Canada, so revered in Old and New France, play, in the " Provincial Letters," the part of traders :' but their justification was the news received in the following years, telling that, while they were thus blackened in their own country, all without exception
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, was thus ingeniously made into
1643, p. 83. trade. On this point see Lejenne
' Letter v. Beaver-skins, in Ca- Relation de la Nouvelle France,
nada and in New Netherland, were 1686, p. 178. Relations Incites,
regarded as money ; just ae, in Vir- 1672-9, il., 841. De la Potherie,
ginia, tobacco, its staple, was a rec- Histoire de I'Ame'rique Septentri-
ognized value. The receipt by the onale, L, 267. missionaries of amounts in beaver
170 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1 644. were confronting, with a courage worthy of their vocation, ^-^Y— ^ the stake and all the horrors of captivity ; that many had already perished beneath the fire and steel of the Iro- quois ; that others were languishing in fetters ; and that the places of those who had fallen victims to their zeal were immediately filled up by their brethren, whom desire of a similar lot had made jealous of their sufferings. Here is the first proof.
For three whole years the Huron missionaries had received no supplies from Quebec, so that their habits were falling to pieces ; and wine having failed for Mass, they were obliged to gather wild grapes in the woods to serve their need, and for want of flour, were on the point of being obliged to forego the celebration of the holy mys- teries. Their extremity was not unknown at Quebec, but it was not easy to remedy it. At last some Hurons, who had exposed themselves in winter to the perils of a jour- ney on the ice to Quebec, were loaded, on their return, with all that the missionaries needed.1 They earnestly desired to have a Jesuit to accompany them — the more especially as, besides the fact that Father Jogues had not yet returned from France, Father Davost' was past all exertion and died soon after ; but the superior-general did not dare to propose to any one a mission of which he saw all the danger.
Father Father Francis Joseph Bressani, a Roman Jesuit, to exposes' whom all that befell him in America had been foretold h'gTeatt0 â„¢ France, and whose courage had only derived fresh danger, gfrength trom the prediction, no sooner understood the difficulty in which his superior stood than he offered to attend the convoy, and his offer was accepted. He em- barked in the latter part of April, 1644,' with a young
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, to France : Carayon, Documents In-
1644, p. 39. 6dite, »v.. p. 112 ; Relation de la
* Father Ambrose Davost arrived Nouvelle France, 1643, p. 80. in Canada in May. 1683, and died ' April 27, 1644 : Bresaani, Breve
at sea in 1643, on his passage back Relatione, p. 32 (see ante, vol. i.,
HISTORT OF NEW FRANCE. 171
Frenchman and six Huron*, two of whom had recently escaped from the hands of the Iroquois. Their journey, as far as Three Rivers, was successful enough ; but an accident, which delayed them a whole day at the entrance of Lake St. Pierre, threw them into the hands of their enemies. The missionary's canoe was wrecked ; the next night there was a heavy fall of snow, delaying the party still more ; and some of them, firing imprudently at wild- geese,1 disclosed their presence to an Iroquois party not far off, who at once formed an ambuscade.
The next day* Father Bressani, doubling a point, sud- H* is taken denly found himself in the midst of three hostile canoes, ' The disadvantage being too great, DO combat ensued. The two other Huron canoes, which followed, seeing the mis- sionary taken, plied their paddles to escape, but two Iro- quois canoes, still better manned, awaited them behind another point, and stopped them. The Christians, although only two in each canoe, and much encumbered with bag- gage, resolved to defend themselves ; one of the bravest aimed at an Iroquois, but was anticipated by another, who shot Him dead in his canoe. No more was needed to make his comrade and those in the other canoe throw down their arms. They were instantly taken and bound.' r The Iroquois then proceeded to divide their booty ; for since they had begun to make war on the French, or rather since they had seen how the French acted on such occa- sions, they were no longer content, as of old, with the glory
p. 80) ; Relation Abregeo da Breve Relation.', p. 33. He nukes
Quelqui'g Missions del Fires de la the place of capture twenty -two or
Compagnie de Jeans dans la Nouvelle twenty-four miles bom Three Riven,
France, by Father Felix Martin, 8. J , and seven or eight from Fort Ricbe-
Montreal, 1893, pp. 13-15 ; Relation lien.
de la Nouvelle France, 1644, p. 89. ' The attacking party numbered For a life of Father Bressani, see twenty-seven : Bressani, p. 83 ; Mar- tin- French translation of his Breve tin's edition, p. 117. The account in Rtdatione. the Relation de la Nouvelle France,
1 They fired at an eagle, lays 1644 (p. 41). differs slightly. The
Breasani, Breve Relatione, p. 89. Huron killed was Bert rand Sotrk*-
1 Next day but one : Bressani, kon.
172 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
' °44- of victory, but the hope of plunder had full as much to do ~" with their war-parties as the desire of injuring their j enemies. They began, moreover, to understand their de- pendence on their Dutch neighbors, and the booty swept from their enemies enabled them to obtain from New Netherland munitions needed to carry on the war. His suffer- The booty divided, these savages cut up the body of the 'h£>cap£v-g fallen Huron, cooked and ate it. They then exultingly lty' took up their march homeward, leading off their prisoners, whom they almost allowed to perish on the way, yet forced to paddle without respite. As they approached their journey's end they met a fishing-party, to whom they abandoned the prisoners for a time ; these received the captives with a severe bastinado. The Hurons escaped with that; but the missionary had his left hand cloven open between the third and little finger.' As soon as he reached the first village of the Mohawk canton3 he was subjected to horrible treatment, till he finally fell, without consciousness or motion. To restore him, they cut off his left thumb and two fingers of his right hand.'
A storm, which came up, dispersed the crowd, and the missionary was left alone, stretched on a kind of scaffold, unable to rise and rapidly losing blood. In the evening he was taken to a cabin, where his nails were >burnt and his feet distorted. Here, given up without reserve to the fierce and malignant youth, he was loaded with outrages and treated with the utmost barbarity. He was there left, after dung had been forced into his mouth. The next day they began again, and surpassed even what they had in- flicted on him the night before. They carried inhumanity BO far as to lay food for their dogs on his naked body, that
1 This fishing-party of four hun- tione, p. 37 ; Martin's edition, pp.
dred was on the Upper Hudson. He 120-8 ; Relation de la Nouvelle
was tortured here for several days, France, 1644, pp. 43, 44.
BO that he writes, " I would not have * May 30 : Bressani, Breve Rela-
believed that man could have BO tione, p. 38.
hard a life :" Breesani, Breve Rela- ' Ib.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 173
those ever- famishing animals might tear him, as they did 1644. in several places.1 '—„—.»
At the end of a few days — his body nothing more than one wound, swarming in every part with worms — he be- came so loathsome that nobody could endure the stench. He suffered excruciating pain, especially in one leg, where an aposthume ulcer had formed, that deprived him of even a moment's sleep. Providence made the cruelty of his torturers remedy this evil ; for one of the savages, wishing to inflict a new wound, struck his knife into the tumor and laid it open. The last act of the tragedy was now alone left, and all seemed to prepare for it This thought alone gave the prisoner a shock which sometimes even made him insensible to his sufferings.1
Humiliated to find himself still so weak, he had recourse 1645. to prayer, and implored the Almighty to be his strength He ;« deli* and support ; especially not to permit him to dishonor, by
cowardice, his religion and his august ministry, which he had come so far to exercise. At this moment he perceived old men coming from the council held to decide his fate, and soon after word was brought to him that the resolution was taken not to put him to death. This was the last thing that he anticipated, and all shared his astonishment, in view of the fearful state to which he had been reduced. The very men who took part in the council could not ex- plain why they had taken the step.'
The holy man returned thanks to Him who moulds hearts as pleases him, and humbled himself in His sight, avowing his unworthiness of the grace of martyrdom. He was given to a matron, who treated him very humanely ; but the stench exhaled by his body rendered him insup-
1 Bressonl, Breve Kelatione, p. 30 ; Martin'i edition, p. 127. The de- Martin's edition, p. 124 ; Relation de cixion was made Jane 19 (says the la Nouvelle France, 1044, p. 44. Relation de la Nouvelle France,
1 Bremani, Breve Relatione, p. 80 ; 1644, p. 44), and by an assembly of
Martin's edition, p. 125. two thousand : C'reozius, Itistoria
' Breasani, Breve Relatione, p. 44 ; Canadensis, p. 402.
174 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1645. portable to the whole cabin, and there being no prospect, v~" "v— •* mutilated as he was, that he would ever be in a condition to render any service, his mistress sent him to the nearest Dutch post to sell him, if any one there would buy him. The Dutch received him cordially, satisfied the Indians, and gave him proper medical care.' As soon as he was able to endure a voyage he was placed on a vessel, which landed him in Eochelle towards the close of November.* 8«doondi- To return to the Iroquois. Bent, as these savages colony, seemed to be, on pushing the war to extremity against us as well as against our allies, they nevertheless, from time to time, showed some inclination to peace. The Chevalier de Montmagny ardently desired it, both because he saw himself not in a condition to sustain a war, and because, even could he do so successfully, he had nothing to gain. Even had it been possible for him to conceal his weakness from his enemies, he might, indeed, have profited, by some fortunate occasion, to make terms not inconsistent with the honor of France ; but this resource was wanting, and the Iroquois boasted aloud that they would soon force the French to return across the sea."
Thus satisfied as the governor was that the means of disarming these savages was not to seek them, he never saw a moment when he could assume the tone which alone could have retained them in a strict neutrality towards us.
1 Bressani, Breve Relatione, pp. a life by Rev. Felix Martin, 8. J., in
43, 43. This work contains three his French edition of Bressani ;
letters of the author, dated July 15, Relation Abregee, Montreal, 1852 ;
1644, Aug. 31, 1644, and a third from also Oeuxius, Historia Canadensis,
Isle de Rhe, Nov. 16, 1644. He was pp. 895-403 ; Relation de la Nou-
given up to the Dutch Aug. 19, 1644. velle France, 1644, pp. 41-5, etc. ;
Kieft's passport, dated Sept. 20, is in Shea, Perils of the Ocean and Wil-
Creuxius, Historia Canadensis, p. derness, pp. 104-30. Father Bres-
403. See O'Callaghan's New Neth- sani, a native of Rome, entered the
erland, i., pp. 336, 337. Mother Ju- Society of Jesus at the age of fif-
chereau (Histoire de 1'Hotel Dieu) teen, came to Canada in 1643, and
aays he went to Rome and was pro- died at Florence, Sept. 9, 1672.
sented to Pope Innocent X., who re- * Nov. 15 : Relation de la Non-
ceived him as an apostle and kissed velle France, 1644, p. 45.
his scars (p. 53). For Bressani, see » Relation de la N. F., 1644, p. 105.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 175
Forced, therefore, to steps unbecoming his character, he 164$- endeavored, in his inability to do otherwise, to corer them ^ — •*"• with some fair pretext, and at the risk of being the dupe of insincere advances of an enemy at once wily and savage, he pretended to believe them sincere, with the view, either of delivering some captive, or sending some convoy safely through, and thus save trade from total ruin ; or, indeed, to secure some months' truce, if only to gain means to breathe.
Some time after the capture of Father Bressani, Mr. de Th« gw- Champflour, governor of Three Rivers, informed him that «ni enluT- some Hurons had just reached his post with three Iroquois p«»« with prisoners; that they had given one1 to the Algonquins, whom, with much difficulty, he had persuaded not to put their captive to death till they heard from him. On this information the general proceeded to Three Rivers, as- sembled the chief men of the two nations, and told them that if they would put their prisoners at his disposal, he hoped to use them to establish a durable peace between them and the Iroqnois.'
He then displayed the goods, with which he expected to purchase their compliance with his wishes ; and he added, that to prevent being deceived by their common foe, he would at first send back only one of these captives, and that he would at the same time notify the cantons that, if they wished to save the lives of the other two, they mnst, without delay, send deputies, with full powers, to treat of terms to restore tranquillity in the land. As soon as he ceased, an Algonquin chief arose, and taking by the hand the prisoner given to his tribe, presented him to the gov- ernor, saying that he could refuse his Father nothing ;' that if he accepted his presents, it was only to have wherewith to wipe away the tears of a family in which this captive
1 Tokhrahrnehiaron : Relation de * Relation de 1* NouveUe France,
la Nouvelle France, 1640, p. 25; 1644, pp. 46, 47.
Creuxius, Historia Canadenrie, p. ' Ib., p. 47. 418.
176 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1645. was to replace a lost member : that, moreover, lie would ^-^Y^— ' be charmed to have peace restored ; but that to him the
thing seemed surrounded with difficulties.' Wh»t The governor then turned towards the Hurons to hear
passed be- tween him their answer also, but one of them, taking up the word,
Hurons. replied, haughtily, that he was a warrior, not a trader ; that he had not left his town to traffic, but to carry on war ; that his stuff's and his kettles did not tempt him ; that if he was so anxious for his prisoners, he might take them — he could easily replace them, or die in the endeavor ; that if that misfortune befell him, he would have at least the consolation of dying like a man ; but that his nation would say that Ononthio had caused his death.
This reply embarrassed the governor-general, but an- other Huron, a Christian, soon extricated him from his dilemma.
" Ononthio," said he, " let not the words of my brother indispose you against us. If we cannot consent to give you up our prisoners, it is for reasons that you will not dis- approve. "We should lose honor if we did so. You see no old man among us ; young people, as we are, are not masters of their actions, and warriors would be dishonored if, instead of returning home with captives, they made their appearance with goods. What would you say your- self, father, to your soldiers if you saw them come back from the war in the guise of merchants ? The mere wish which you express to have our slaves might take the place of ransom ; but it does not lie with us to dispose of them. Our brothers, the Algonquins, could do what you ask of them, because they are with their sachems, who are an- swerable to no man for their conduct ; not being restrained by the same motives as ourselves, they could not, in courtesy, refuse you so trifling a matter. Our sachems, when they know our intentions, will, doubtless, pursue the same course. We all desire peace ; we enter into your
1 Relation de la N. F., 1644, p. 47 ; Creuxius, Hist. Can., pp. 414-0.
HI9TOUT OF NEW FRANCE. 177
views; we have even anticipated them, for we have done 1645. no harm to our prisoners ; we have treated them as men v— •>"•••' who are to be our friends ; but it does not become us to forestall the consent of our seniors, nor deprive them of so brilliant an opportunity of showing our Father how they respect his will.
" Another reason also restrains us, and I am sure that it will be as legitimate as the first in your eyes. We know that the river is covered with our enemies ; if we meet a force superior to us, what will your presents avail, except to embarrass us, and animate them the more to the combat, to profit by our booty? But if they see among us some of their brethren, who show that we desire peace ; that Onon- thio wishes to be the father of all the nations, that he can no longer permit his children, whom he bears alike in his bosom, to continue to destroy each other, the arms will fall from their hands ; our prisoners will save our lives, and they will labor much more efficaciously for peace than if too great anxiety is shown to set them free." '
The Chevalier de Montmagny had no reply to make to The Hn- language so studied and judicious ; he even saw how advan- to°ue«f Ti tageous it would be to let the first advances for peace be p"*°"' made by the Hurons, and he omitted nothing to induce them to it. He, accordingly, replied to the brave who had just spoken so wisely, that he strongly approved his reasons, and that, after all, peace was far more their affair than his. Still, learning that Father de Brebeuf wished to avail himself of this occasion to return to his church, whose pressing needs had forced him to descend to Quebec, and whither he was taking two new missionaries,' he deemed it wrong to leave them exposed to the miseries which had overtaken Fathers Jogues and Bressani, and he gave them an escort large enough to protect them from all insult.
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, tails C'habanel : Relation de la Non- 1644, p. 48. velle France, 1644, p. 49 ; 1645, p. ' Fathers Leonard Garreau and Na- 40. VOL. II — 12
178 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1645. Their journey was, in fact, without mishap, and on
"— •"*—"•' their arrival in the Huron country, it was decided, in a
The Iro- general council, to send the two Iroquois prisoners to the
sincerely Chevalier de Montmagny. That governor had already set
'8pe»ce. ° at liberty the prisoner placed in his hands by the Algon-
quins ;' and the cantons, to show their inclination for
peace, had sent back Couture, the young Frenchman who
allowed himself to be taken with Father Jogues.' He
was attended by the same Iroquois prisoner just men-
tioned, and by deputies from the cantons, invested with
full powers, as the governor-general had required.
Public an- As soon as their arrival at Three Kivers was known,
given them, de Montmagny repaired to that place with Father Vimond,
and, after regaling them, set a day' on which to give them there- audience. On that day the general appeared in the place of the fort of Three Bivers, which he had had covered with sails from the ships. He was seated in an armchair, with Mr. de Champflour and Father Vimond4 at his side, and many officers, and the chief inhabitants of the colony around. The Iroquois deputies, to the number of five, were at his feet, seated on a mat ; they had chosen that spot to show more respect to Ononthio, whom they never addressed except as their father.
The Algonquins, Montagnez, Attikamegues, and some other Indians of the same language, were opposite, and the Hurons remained intermingled with the French. All the middle of the place was open, to allow evolutions to be made without interruption, for this kind of action is a sort of comedy, where very sensible things are said and
1 He set out May 21 : Lettres His- Cape Breton Sept. 18, 1629, and
toriques de la M. Marie de 1'Incar- after a year's stay returned to
nation, p. 115. France. He came to Quebec in
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, August, 1639, and was superior
1645, p. 23 ; Lettreg Historiquee de from 1639 to 1645. He returned to
la M. Marie de 1'Incamation, p. 116. France Oct. 26, 1659, and died at
' July 2, 1645 : Creuxins, Hietoria Vannes, July 13, 1667. He prepared
Canadenins, p. 417. six volumes of the published Rela-
4 Bartholomew Vimont came to tions.
H1BTOBY OF NEW FRANCE. 179
expressed by quite absurd gestures and manners. With 1645. the western nations it is customary to plant in the middle '-^-ir-— ' a great calumet, as is sometimes also practised among the others ; for since, by our influence, all these nations have more affairs to arrange with each, they have bor- .rowed many usages from each other, and especially that of the calumet, which they now commonly use in their treaties.
The Iroqnois had brought seventeen belts, which were as many words, that is to say, propositions that they were to make ; and to expose them to the sight of all as they explained them, they had planted two posts, with a cord between them, on which to hang the belts. All being ranged in the order described, the orator of the cantons' rose, took a belt, presented it to the governor- general, and said : " Ononthio, give ear to my voice ; all the Iroquois speak by my mouth. My heart has no evil thought ; all my intentions are upright. We wish to forget all our songs of war, and let them give place to chants of joy." He immediately began to sing, his col- leagues keeping time with their he, drawn in cadence from the bottom of the chest ; and while chanting, he walked with great strides and gesticulated in a manner ludicrous enough.
He often looked up to the sun, nibbed his arms as if to prepare for the struggle ; at last he resumed a calmer air, and continued his speech. " The belt which I present yon, Father, thanks you for giving life to my brother; you have rescued him from the teeth of the Algonqnins, but how could you let him set out alone? Had his canoe turned, who was to help him to right it ? Had he drowned or perished by any accident, you would have had no tid- ings of peace, and perhaps have cast the blame on us, when it rested solely on yourselves." With these words
1 Kiotneton, or the Hook (Cro- Marie de I'lncarnation, p. 118. Hi* chet) : Lettre* Hiatoriqnes de la M. associate wai AniPgan.
180 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1645. he hung the belt on the cord, took another, and binding it on Couture's arm, he again turned to the governor and said :
" Father, this belt brings back your subject : but I was far from saying, 'Nephew, take a canoe, and return to your country.' I should never have been tranquil till I had sure tidings of his arrival. My brother, whom you sent back, has suffered much, and run great risk : he had to carry his pack alone, row all day, drag hia canoe over the rapids, be always on the watch against surprise." The orator accompanied his words with very expressive gestures. The spectators sometimes seemed to see a man urging on his canoe with a pole,' sometimes turn off a wave with a paddle ; sometimes he seemed out of breath, then took heart again, and for some time remained calm enough.
He then pretended to strike his foot against a stone, while carrying his baggage ; then he limped, as if lamed ; " Even," he cried, after all this pantomime, " if he had been aided to pass the most difficult spots ! Indeed, Father, I do not know where your mind was, to send back one of your children alone and unaided. I did not do the same with regard to Couture. I said to him, ' Let us go, nephew ; follow me, I will restore you to your family at the risk of my life.' "
The other belts referred to the peace, the conclusion of which was the subject of this embassy. Each had its special signification, and the orator explained them in as graphic a manner as he had done the two former.
One smoothed the roads, the other calmed the rivers/ another buried the hatchet ; there were presents, to show that henceforward they might visit them without fear or distrust ; the feasts that they would give each other ; the alliance between all these nations ; their intention, always entertained, of restoring Father Jogues and Father Bres-
1 Called, In French, piequer defond.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 181
eani ; their impatience to see them again; the welcome 1645. they were preparing to give them ; their thanks for the ~~— ~v—' deliverance of the last three Iroquois captives. Each of these articles was expressed by a belt ; and even had the orator not spoken, his gestures would have made all he intended to say intelligible. The most surprising point was that he played his part for three hours, without seeming excited by it : he was also the first to give the signal for a sort of feast, which closed the session, and consisted of chants, dances, and banquets.'
Two days after, the Chevalier de Montmagny replied to Reply of tin the propositions of the Iroquois ; for a reply is never general, made the same day. The assembly was as well attended as before, and the governor-general made as many presents as he had received belts. Couture spoke in his name, in Iroquois, but without gesticulation and without interrupting his speech." On the contrary, he affected a gravity becoming the one for whom he acted as inter- preter. When he closed, Pieskaret, an Algonquin chief, rose and made his presents. " Here," said he, " is a stone which I set on the grave of all who fell during the war, tli.-it no one may go to move their bones, or think of revenging them." This chief was one of the bravest men ever seen in Canada, and almost incredible stories am told of his prowess.'
Negabamat, chief of the Montagnez, then presented a moose-skin, to make, he said, moccasins for the Iroquois deputies, that they might not gall their feet on their home- ward march. The other nations did not speak, apparently
1 Tbe proceeding* are given in do- ' AM to Simon Piescaret, we Creux-
tail in the Relation de la Nouvelle ius, Hirtoria CanadensU, p. 465 ;
France, HU.->, pp. 33-7 ; Lettrea Hiu- Relation, 1041. p. 34 ; 104;}, p. 59 ;
toriqnes de la M. Marie de 1'Incar- 1645, p. 28 ; 1647, pp. 4, 68, 72 ; 1650,
nation, pp. 120-8; Creuxius, His- p.43;Prrrut,Ma>urs,G>ustumes,etc.,
toria Canad.-neig, pp. 418-20. pp. 107-9 ; De la Potherie, Uiatoire
• The Relation de la Nouvelle de 1'Ameriqne Septentrionale, i., p.
France, 1645, p. 27, aayi the 14th. 297 ; Golden, Five Nation* (New
Couture is not mentioned. York, 1737), p. 11.
182 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1645- because they had neither chiefs nor orators. The session s— "v— ^ closed with three salvos of artillery, to proclaim, as the governor explained to the Indians, the news of the peace in all directions. The Superior of the Jesuits also regaled the ambassadors, who addressed him in the most cordial words. Good cheer makes these people very eloquent, and there is no eulogium which you may not anticipate when you give them a hearty meal. These praises must not indeed be taken too literally ; but they cost little, for it IB not necessary to go to great expense to satisfy people who find any thing and every thing palatable.' The peace The next day the deputies took up their homeward thettntona. march.* Two Frenchmen, two Hurons, and two Algon- quins embarked with them, and three Iroquois remained as hostages in the colony.' The treaty was ratified by the Mohawk canton, the only one hitherto openly at war with us. The two Frenchmen and their four Indian com- panions returned at the time set for them — that is to say, about the middle of September.' They brought back word that all the Iroquois solicited missionaries, that the Hurons and Algonquins of the Island' had also acceded to the treaty, and that all appeared tranquil.
At this juncture Father Bressani arrived at Quebec, and barely took a few days to recruit before setting out with Father Poncet to return to the Hurons. On departing, he expressed an earnest desire to be placed among the mis-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, tion de la Nonvelle France, 1645, p.
1645, p. 28. 30 ; Creuxius, ilistoria Canadensig,
' Saturday, July 15 : Relation de p. 428. Just before, a flotilla of
la Nouvelle France, 1645, p. 28; sixty canoes came down from the
Lettres Historiques, p. 133 ; Creux- Huron country, and others from the
ius, Historia Canadensis, p. 422. Upper Algonquins. There was an-
* This was on September 23, after other general assembly, and Cou-
the ratification. See Relation de la ture explained the eighteen Iroquois
Nouvelle France, 1645, p. 35. belts : Relation de la Nouvelle
4 They returned, September 17, France, 1645, p. 80 ; Lettres Histo-
with Couture, and set out again on riques de la M. Marie de 1'Incarna-
the 22d with all the Mohawk pris- tion, pp. 129, 184. oners : Lalemant, Journal ; R«la- 6 The Kichieipirini
HISTORY OK NEW FRANCE.
183
sionaries to the Iroquois, if missionaries were accorded to 1 645. the cantons. He even made a collection for his old tor- v-— v— ^ hirers, to teach them what kind of vengeance Christianity Father inculcates, — a sentiment well worthy of an apostolic man return* to and a confessor of Christ, but whose nobility these sav- ages were not capable of appreciating, and failed to profit
by-1
The next winter was marked by a scene never before wit- nessed since the arrival of the French in Canada. The Iro- quois, Hurons, and Algonqnins, mingling together, hunted as peacefully as though all were of the same nation. By means of this good understanding the Huron missionaries received all the succor of which they had been so long deprived, made apostolic excursions in all security, and joyfully gathered their sheaves which they had sowed in tears ; but these halcyon days did not last, and the calm seems to have been granted only to give them time to gain breath and prepare for new combats.'
At the beginning of this same year, 1646, New France Death of lost two of its first missionaries. Father Enemond Masse died at Sylleri, in the exercise of a zeal that nothing ever repelled, and which, sustained by great talents, was al- ways very fruitful. He was not as yet far advanced in years, but his travels and his hardships had worn on him extremely.* Father Anne de Noue soon followed him.
1646
1 Relation de U Nourelle France, 1649, p. 78 ; Lettren Historiquea de la M. Marie de 1'Incarnatton, p. 136.
• This brief peace enabled the col- ony to develop again ita trade in furs. Twenty-two of the soldiers from France accompanied the Hu- rons to the West in 1044, and re- turned with a large convoy the next year. The fleet, which sailed for France on Oct. 24, 1645, carried out thirty thousand pounds of beaver, Another point in connection with Canada should be noted here. This was the effort made by the Society
of Montreal to hare an episcopal tee established at Montreal. The Rev. Mr. Legauflre, a zealous and wealthy clergyman of their society, was proposed, and on his sodden death the matter was taken up by Cardinal Mazarin and the French bishops ; but finally fell through : Faillon, Higtoire de la Colonie Fran- caise, U., pp. 47-58.
' Father Enemond Masse (or Masse, as the Relations and Cbamplaln write) died May 11-12 (Lalemant, Journal, says May 1G) — snbseqncnt- ly, therefore, to the death of De None.
184 BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. He set out from Three Rivers on the 30th of January, to go and confess the garrison of Fort Richelieu, and pre- pare them to celebrate the feast of Candlemas. He wan- dered from the two soldiers and the Huron who accom- panied him, in attempting to go on ahead ; but he lost his way beyond recovery, and on the very day of the feast he was found dead, kneeling amid the snow.1
His body was carried to Three Rivers, where he was in great odor of sanctity. His obsequies were celebrated with all possible pomp ; but more prayers were addressed to him than recited for him. Many even have declared that they found it impossible to pray for him. Others, at the sight of his body, were penetrated with a sincere repentance for their sins and made long-deferred confes- sions : so that we may say that his bones prophesied even more happily than those of Eliseus, which restored bodily life to a corpse by the mere touch ; whereas many recovered spiritual life on casting their eyes on the sad remains of a missionary fallen in the exercise of his ministry."
The colony had scarcely begun to enjoy the delights of peace, when war had well-nigh been enkindled anew.
The Journal here has after Masse's ' Relation de la Nouvelle France, name the words, "premier mission- 1640, p. 11; Bressani, Breve Rela- naire du Canada," in Charlevoix's tione, pp. 73-5 ; Creuxius, Historia handwriting ; yet, with the Journal Canadensis, p. 449. to guide him, he made de Noue's * Lalemant, Journal, February 12, death follow : Relation de la Nou- 1645 ; Bressani, Breve Relation.-, pp. velle France, 1646, p. 11 ; Breesani, 73, 74; Relation de la Nouvelle Breve Relatione, p. 75; Lettres His- France, 1646, pp. 9-11 ; Lettres His- toriqueg de la M. Marie de 1'Incar- toriques de la M. Marie de 1'Incar- nation, pp. 148-52 ; Creuxius, Hie- nation, p. 152 ; Memoires touchant toria Canadensis, p. 445. Enemond lee vertus, (manuscript, 1652) , Masse was born at Lyons ; and hav- Creasing, Historia Canadensig, p. ing been sod us to Father Colon, 440. He was of a noble family, his was sent to Acadiain 1611. He was father being Lord of Prieres, near at St. Sauveur when it wag attacked Rheims. A page at court, he be- by Argal. He returned to Canada came a religious and a missionary. in 1625, and was carried off by Kirk. He came to Canada July 14, 1626 He again returned in 1633, and died He died at the age of sixty-three at the age of 72. says Du Creux.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 186
Three Indians of Sjlleri, having gone a short distance 1646. from their town, were murdered. Another, travelling *—*i~-' with his wife, was attacked and dangerously wounded. TbeSoko- His wife was scalped and left for dead. Both were or'tolrecT found in a pool of blood and carried to the Hotel l Dieu, where the husband died, but the wife recovered. All suspicions fell at first on the Iroquois ; but it was subsequently ascertained that the assassins were So- kokis, who, embittered against the Algonquins, had used every device to divert the Iroquois from concluding peace with them, and failing, now sought all means to break it off.1
These accidents had, therefore, no evil consequences. The iro- On the contrary, the treaty of the preceding year was q°it anew. ratified by new deputies, who came to deplore Father Masse and Father de None,' and cover the two illustrious dead — that is to say, offer condolence and presents to the Jesuits on the death of their brethren. But as the French had as yet negotiated only with the Mohawk canton directly, these deputies warned the governor-general to be on his guard against the others till they were all included by name in the treaty ; which would have been done already, they added, had Ononthio anticipated them by restoring to liberty some braves of those cantons held as prisoners by our allies.
To all appearance de Montmagny would not have omit- ted so trifling a matter to secure the peace of the colony ; but I find nothing in my memoirs. We shall even see the four cantons soon fanning the embers of discord and set- ting all Canada in flames. It is certain that the wisest
'This Indian, Vincent, died March Dieppe in 1689 (ante, p. 100). They
14: Lalemant, Journal, March 14, Boon after established a house at
and preliminary Estat du Pays. Sillery : Jnchereau, Higtoire de 1'Ho-
The three Montagnais were killed tel Dieu de Quebec, p. 27.
October 12 : Relation de la Nouvelle * Relation de la Nouvelle France,
France, 1646, p. 3. The Hotel Dieu 1646, p. 6 ; Creuriua, Historia Cana-
U the hospital under the care of the densi*, p. 449 ; De la Potherie, Hint.
Hospital Nuns, who came from de 1'Ani. Sept., ii., p. 44.
Father
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
course was then taken to maintain, at least, the alliance with the Mohawks, and gain that canton to Christ.1
Father Jogues had sown the seed of the Word there during his captivity. He knew the language ; he ardently desired to profit by the peace to preach the gospel there publicly ;* and he obtained without any difficulty permis- sion to accompany the last deputies when they were returning home : but the governor-general exacted from him, that after they succeeded in including ah1 the cantons in the treaty, he would return to report the disposition in which he found the Iroquois nation. I even find, in some memoirs, that the Algonquins advised the missionary not to appear in his habit, on this first visit, nor speak of religion, and that their advice was followed.' Be that as it may, the servant of God embarked on the 16th of May,4 accompanied by the Sieur Bourdon, one of the leading men of Quebec,' — two Algonquins following them in an- other canoe, loaded with presents to distribute among the Iroquois cantons, in the name of their nation.' On the
1 Creuxius, Historia Canadenaia, p. 449.
' He had been at Montreal, and there drew up his account of New Netherland and of Rene Gonpil, and gave Father Buteux an account of Ma captivity, which the latter com- mitted to writing, and which ig ex- tant
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1646, p. 15.
4 From Three Rivers. They left Fort Richelieu the 18th. Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1647, p. 36 ; Lettres Historiques de la M. Marie de 1'Incarnation, p. 146 ; Creuxius, Historia Canadensis, p. 451.
' John Bourdon, proprietor of the fiefg of St. John and St. Francis in the dependency of Quebec, chief-en- gineer and subsequently procurator- general of New France, came over in 1633 or 1034. In 1637 he obtained
the seigneury of Dombourg (now Neuville «nd Pointe aux Trembles) : Ferland, Notes sur les Registres de Quebec, pp. 26, 75.
' A journal of this journey of Father Jogues was among the ar- chives of the Jesuits, which passed into the hands of the English Qov- ernment. Smith had it in com- piling his history of Canada (2 vols. 80, Quebec, 1815) ; but it has never since appeared. It is given appar- ently in substance in the Relation of 1646, p. 15, which Charlevoix seems to have overlooked. The missionary went by way of Lake George, called by the Mohawks An- diatarocte — " where the lake closes" — (Onjadaracte, N. Y. Coll. Doc., iii., p. 559), but to which he gave the name of Lake St. Sacrement — Lake of the Blessed Sacrament — from his reaching it on the eve of Corpus
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCE.
187
5th of June' they reached the first Mohawk town, where they were welcomed with every mark of sincere friendship. Father Jogues was recognized by some who had most cruelly ill-used him, and who now paid him endless cour tesy. What followed I know not ;' but the missionary certainly did not go beyond the canton of tiie Mohawks, where he left his box, saying that he wished to fix his residence there, and that it would not be long before he returned.'
Ho then set out again for Fort Richelieu, where he arrived on the 27th of the same month.' Finding de Montmagny there, he assured him that he could rely on the Mohawks ; but we must infer that the governor did not attach more weight than he should to this testimony. He was too enlightened not to perceive that a religious, situated as Father Jogues was, would see in these Indians all that he desired to see, and that he had really no other
1646.
ChrUti, May 29. They forded the upper Hudson (Ologuet, and then struck the river again at Osgaragut'. a herring-fishing post, whence they descended in canoe* to Fort Orange (Albany), where they remained from the 4th to the 16th of June, accord- ing to the Relation ; but the last date is evidently an error for 6th. Charlevoix is in error, therefore, in asserting that he did not go beyond the canton of the Mohawks. From Albany Jogues wrote to his benefac- tor, Megapolensis.
1 He remained at Fort Orange till the 6th, and the next evening reached Osserrlon or OneugiMre. which the missionary called Holy Trinity : Relation, 1646, p. IS.
1 On the 10th of June, according to the Relation, 1646, the French envoys met the sachems. Father Jognes delivered the presents, ex- pressed the joy felt by the French on receiving their ambassadors, and the general satisfaction at the con-
clusion of peace. He assured them that a council-fire was lighted at Three Rivers. He then gave wam- pum to redeem some prisoners still held, and to keep a fire for the French in the Wolf family. He then spoke for the Algonquins, and gave a present to some Onondagas who were present, to prepare the way to their towns. The sachems answered with pomp and marks of good-will : Relation de 1* Nouvelle France, 1646, p. 16.
> This box proved fatal. The Mo- hawks eyed it suspiciously ; and though Jognes opened It, to disa- buse them, he did not dispel the fears of the superstitious Mohawks: Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1646, p. 16 ; Memoiree sur lea vertus, etc., MS.
4 They left the Mohawk castle, June 16, and making canoes at Lake George, reached Fort Richelieu on the 27th : Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1646, p. 17.
188 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. reason for believing them sincerely changed in our regard ^-~ -v~— ' than his extreme zeal and hope of making them Chris- tians. Yet, averse as he was to expose to the caprice of an inconstant people a man who had been too badly treated at their hands to be ever regarded favorably by them, he consented to his keeping his word.
Hostilities The servant of God, at the summit of his desires, and tweenthe already in imagination beholding the Iroquois crowding Mufflo- around him to be instructed in our mysteries, set out on ron8' the 24th of September, accompanied by some Indians and a Frenchman.' It was soon after ascertained that hostil- ities had been renewed between the upper Iroquois and the Hurons.* The upper Iroquois comprised the four cantons who had not concurred in the treaty of peace.' The lower Iroquois are the Mohawks alone, although some include also the canton of Oneida.4 But to under- stand clearly what we have to say of this nation, which enters so largely into the history that I am writing, it is necessary to know the situation and nature of the country which it occupies, and the five cantons that compose it. Extent and The Iroquois country* extends between 41° and 44° N., "the'ir"-0 about seventy or eighty leagues from east to west, from the upper part of the river which has successively borne their name, those of Richelieu and Sorel — that is to say, from Lake St. Sacrement to Niagara — and a little over forty leagues from north to south, or rather from north- east to southwest — from the source of the little river of the Mohawks to the Ohio. It is bounded, there- fore, on the south by this last river and by Pennsylvania ; on the west by Lake Ontario ; Lake Erie on the north-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, he was warned to be on his guard :
1646, p. 17 ; 1647, p. 3 ; Lettres His- Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1647,
toriqneg de la M. Marie de 1'Incarna- p. 17.
tion, p. 161. s Relation de la Nonvelle France,
* Registre de VUlemarie, llth 1646, p. 64.
August, 1646 ; Relation, 1646, pp. 4 Lafitau, Mceurs des Sauvages, i .
35, 51, 52. Father Jogues knew p. 102.
this before leaving the Mohawk, as 6 Compare Smith's New York.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 189
west; on the north by Lake St. Sacrement and the 1646. Kiver St. Lawrence ; by New York partly on the south and partly on the southeast. It is watered by several rivers. The soil varies in different parts, but is, generally speaking, very fertile.
The Mohawk canton is the most northerly of all, and Origin of nearest to New York. Those of Oneida, Onondaga, Caynga, and Seneca follow in the order in which I have just named them, going west, inclining a little towards the south, which has given them the name of Upper Cantons ; unless it is inferred that they derive their name from being met in that order as you ascend the St. Law- rence and Lake Ontario, which that river traverses. The : name Iroqnois is purely French, and is formed from the term Hiro or Hero, which means / have said — with which these Indians close all their addresses, as the Latins did of old with their dixi — and of Koue, which is a cry some- times of sadness, when it is prolonged, and sometimes of joy, when it is pronounced shorter.1 Their proper name is Agonnonsionni, which means cabin-makers* because they build them much more solid than other Indians.
Through the Mohawk canton, which was at the time of which we are writing the most populous of all, a pretty river meanders agreeably, for seven or eight leagues, be- tween two beautiful prairies.' That of Onondaga contains a beautiful lake, called Gannentaha,1 in the vicinity of
1 Charlevoix, Journal, p. 32 ; La- den, as Rodinunchsionni (History of
fitau, Mceura d<* Sauvages, i., p. the Five Nations, N. T., 1737, p. 1) ;
82. Do Huron, taking Iroquoiu to Morgan, the Seneca form, Hode-
be an Indian name, makes them de- noaaunee. The translation, " cabin-
grand from the Y roans of Herodotus : makers," is an error. It is a ver-
De Origine Gentium, p. 184. bal form, meaning " they make (>'. «.,
1 (Tmrlevoix here follows Lafitau, constitute) a cabin ;" hence the
Moeursdee Sauvagee, i.,p. 102. The "completed cabin" itself. This is
Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1654, the interpretation of Hruyas, sup.
p. 11, says Hotinnonchiendi— that is ported by Dr. Wilson, a well-in-
to say, " the completed cabin." See formed modern Iroquois authority,
also 1060, p. 88. This is a Huron ' The Cohoes were apparently un-
form. Father Bruyas gives the Mo- known to Charlevoix.
hawk form as Hotinonsionni ; Ool- < Onondaga Lake.
190 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. which there are several salt-springs, with the edges always v-~v— - ' covered with very fine salt. Two leagues further towards The oharao- the canton of Cayuga is a spring of milk-white water, of e™h'can°- very sharp odor, and resolving itself, when set on fire, xm' into a kind of salt as acrid as caustic.1 This whole canton is charming, and the soil adapted to every crop. That of Oneida lies between Mohawk and Onondaga, and is in no respect inferior to either ; but the canton of Cayuga sur- passes all in excellence of soil and mildness of climate. The inhabitants even show some slight effect, and have always seemed the most tractable of all the Iroquois. In the extensive tract of country occupied by the Senecas there are charming spots, and, generally speaking, the soil is good. Earth is said to have been discovered which, when well washed, yields a very pure sulphur ; and in the same place is a spring, the water of which, well boiled, turns into sulphur. It is added that this water takes fire spontaneously when violently agitated.' Further on, ap- proaching the country of the ancient Eriez, there is a thick, oily, stagnant water, which takes fire like brandy.1
The bay of the Cayugas and that of the Senecas, and the great marsh in the latter canton, I have spoken of elsewhere as places that appeared to me delicious. I may add, that coasting along the whole country from the On- ondaga to the Niagara rivers, I saw nothing but fertile, well-wooded and well-watered lands, if you except some sandy beaches which do not run inland ; but it may be that parts where I did not land are not equally so.4 Throughout the territory of the five cantons' all our
1 Bel., 1657, p. 88. Probably a ogy, iv. Dist., p. 309. See Sagard,
spring near Camillus. The color is Histoire du Canada, p. 889 ; also
from sulphur in a state of suspension. Charlevoix, Journal, p. 224.
' There is one quite like it six « Journal, pp. 214, 224. The Bay
leagues from Grenoble. — Charlmoix. of the Cayugas may be Port Bay.
These sulphur-springs are probably 6 The French names of the Five
those on Oak Orchard Creek. Nations are, Agniegue, Onneiout,
* These are apparently the Chau- Onnontague (pronounced Onontake),
tauque gas-springs, near Fredonia Goyogouin (Oyogouin), and Tsonnon-
and Portland : N. Y. Nat. Hist. Geol- touan. — Cfutrlevoix.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 191
European fruit-trees can be successfully cultivated. Sev- 1646. eral grow there without any cultivation, and others are "—• "v— • •" found which are unknown to us. The forests abound in Fruit-tro**. chestnut-trees and nut-trees of two kinds — one bearing a very sweet, and the other a very bitter,' nut ; but by pass- ing this last through the ashes, they extract A good oil from it by means of the mill, fire, and water, in the same manner that we do from the sunflower. There are, in sev- eral parts, seedless cherries, very good to eat ;* a tree with a flower resembling our white lilies,' and a fruit of the size and color of an apricot, but with the taste and smell of citron.4 There is a wild citron there, which is only a plant. The fruit, as large as a china-orange, is very agreeable to the taste and very refreshing. It rises from between two heart-shaped leaves, but the root of the plant is poison- ous.' There are apple-trees, with fruit of the shape of a goose's egg and a seed that is a kind of bean. This fruit is fragrant and very delicate. It is a dwarf tree, requiring a rich, moist soil.' The Iroquois obtained it from the country of the Eriez. From the same quarter they also introduced a plant which we call the universal plant, the leaves of which, bruised, close all kinds of wounds. These leaves are of the size of a hand and shaped like a fleur-de- lis. The root of this plant has the odor of laurel.' These Indians have a number of other roots, fit for dyeing, some of which give very brilliant colors.
1 BeL, 1667, p. 88. The pignut moirpedel'AmeriqueSeptentrionale,
(Carya glabra). The IM mean* the ii., p. 61. According to Dr. Torrey,
Indian*. Sagard (Hist., p. 785). these most be the podophyllum pd-
• Atoka : Rel., 1657, pp. 11, 88. tatnm (mandrake, may-a^ple). It it
Toca : Sagard, Dictionnaire, rerbo much used by Mine schools as a sub-
Plantve ; Histoire da Canada, p. 779. stitute for mercury. See Coe's Con-
Dr. John Torrcy suppose* it to be centrated Organic Medicines, p. 225.
a physftlis— the winter-cherry. ' Probably the pawpaw (airimlna
•The tulip-tree (liriodendrontulipi- triloba), called by the Canadian
fera). See PlanttedeTAm. Sept.. p.O. French adminier or aaminier. Bee
« • • Relation de la N. F., 1657, p. Dumont, Memoirei de la Loniaiane.
88. Compare Champlain. Voyages, ' Rel., 1657, p. 88. Dr. Torrey is
1610, ed. Laverdiere, p. 81 and note ; acquainted with no native plant to
«d. 1682, p. 248 ; La Hontan, Me- which the description corresponds.
192 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. Besides rattlesnakes, which are found among the Iro- v— — Y— — ' quois, as in all the more southerly provinces of North Animals America, there is a black-snake, which runs up trees, and monds. is not venomous. This reptile has a mortal enemy, un- worthy apparently of him, but nevertheless waging a cruel war upon him. It is a little bird, which pounces upon him as soon as it perceives him, and with one blow of its beak lays him dead.1 The asps of these cantons are much longer than ours. Tigers are found there, of a light gray, not striped. They have a very long tail, and pursue the porcupines.1 The Iroquois kill them on the trees more frequently than on the ground. They are good eating, even in the opinion of the French, who esteem the flesh as equal to mutton. All have a very fine hair, in some cases reddish in color, and their skins are very good fur. -
But the finest peltry of this country is the skin of the black-squirrel.' This animal is as large as a three months' kitten, very lively, gentle, and easily tamed. Of this skin the Iroquois make robes, for which they command seven or eight dollars apiece. The pigeons are there, as else- where, birds of passage. A missionary observed, hi an Iroquois canton, that every morning, from six o'clock till eleven, the air above a gorge in the river, about a quarter of a league wide, was seen to be completely darkened by the number of these birds ; that afterwards they all de- scended to bathe in a large pond near by, and then disap- peared. He adds, that only the males are then seen, but that the females come in the afternoon to go through the same manoeuvre. Finally, there are in the Iroquois coun- try stones containing diamonds, some all ready cut, and sometimes valuable.4
I now return to the new acts of hostility, which soon
1 The kingbird (tyrannus intre- color) : N. T. Nat. Hist., Zoology, i.,
pidus), of which such stories are p. 47.
Btill told : N. Y. Nat. Hist., Zoology, * Black-squirrel (sciurus niger) :
i., p. 117. N. Y. Nat. Hist., Zoology, i.( p. 60 .
f The American panther (fells con- 4 Charlevoix, Journal, p. 171
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 193
rekindled a fire which had coat BO much to extinguish, or 1646. rather wliich had only been covered up with ashes. *— — Y-^
The Iroquois were the aggressors. A bond of their Th«lro- braves approached a Huron village, with a view of carry- q ."nJlon ing off prisoners. Though they found them on their ""•«•• guard, they were reluctant to retire without effecting any thing. They concealed themselves in a wood, and there passed the night, during which a Huron, posted in a kind of redoubt, kept up a great noise to show that he was not asleep. Towards daybreak he ceased his clamor. Two Iroquois immediately left the band, and gliding along to the foot of the palisade, remained some time listening. Not hearing a sound, one of the two climbed into the re- doubt, and finding two men there sound asleep, toma- hawked one, scalped the other, and escaped.'
The former died on the spot. The cries of the second Exploit of roused the whole village.1 On running up, they found one of the two men dead ; the other bleeding to death. The young men instantly took the field, and long followed the enemy's trail ; but he had too much of a start, and they could not overtake him. The Hurons soon had their revenge. Three warriors took the war-path, and after - twenty days' march reached a Seneca village. It was night, all the cabins were closed, and the inhabitants buried in sleep. Our adventurers cut through the side of a cabin and entered, without awakening any one. They then lit a light, and by its aid each chose a man whom he killed and scalped. They then set fire to the cabin and escaped. They were pursued, but to no purpose, for they brought safely back to their village the trophies of their victory.'
The missionaries beheld with sorrow these marks of a close of the peace. So well had they profited by its brief
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' St. Joseph's.
1640, p. 55. It must have occurred ' Relation de la Nonrelle France,
In 1645. 1646, p. 55.
VOL. II— 18
194 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. duration, that Christianity might already be regarded as the prevailing religion among the Hurons. The gospel of began to be known, too, among several other tribes, for
duriifg0ihe which they were indebted chiefly to the Hurons them- fmc*' selves. The Indians near Quebec and Montreal showed no less zeal. Not a year passed without giving their pastors new occasions for chanting the praises of God in some tongue in which His Holy Name had never yet been uttered ; but the Iroquois soon disturbed this tranquillity, so necessary to the propagation of the Faith and the con- solidation of the colony, which, deprived of all relief, was sunk in inaction.1 Father It was not long before Father Jogues lost faith in the
turning to good intentions in which he had supposed the Iroquois to b6- Even before putting himself in the hands of those who were to take him to the town intended as his guides. resi,jence, either from a presentiment, or from a conjec- ture based on new and surer information than had pre- viously arrived, the missionary, in his last farewells to his friends at Quebec, and by letter to those in France, em- ployed the expressions of a man who expected to go to the Mohawks, not to convert them, but with a kind of as- surance that he would speedily terminate his sacrifice there. He soon had no doubtful proof.1 He had scarcely passed Three Elvers when he beheld himself deserted by all his guides. He remained alone with a young Frenchman named la Lande, perfectly at a loss how to continue his journey.'
Any one but him would have retraced his steps, and this prudence seemed even to demand ; but the prudence of the saints is not guided by ordinary rules, and is at least to be respected. Convinced as the servant of God was that he was to water with his blood a land that would produce saints, he was not a man to recoil at the moment
1 Relations de la Nonvelle France, Relation de la Nouvelle Franco, 1044, 1645, 1646. 1647, p. 37.
1 Ibo et non redibo. See his letter : * Creuxius, Hist. Canad., p. 458
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 196
when he beheld all preparing for the accomplishment of 1 646. his desires. He pursued his way, and with much hard- v— ~v~- ship reached a Mohawk village, where he was received, with little exception, as though he had been a prisoner of war. He and his companion were stripped almost naked ; nor were blows from fist or club spared.1
The reason for this strange change was never well what known. Two letters from New Netherland— one written by the governor himself to Mr. de Montmagny, the other by a private individual to Sieur Bourdon, Father Jogues' companion the preceding year — after giving some details of the holy missionary's death, ascribe it to the conviction in which the Mohawks were, that he had left the devil in their country.1 The letter to the Sieur Bourdon added, that this perfidy was exclusively the work of the Bear tribe — the Wolf and Tortoise having done all in their power to save the lives of the two Frenchmen, even to telling the Bear : " Kill us, rather than thus massacre men who have done us no harm, and come among us on the faith of a treaty.'" Both letters warned the French gov- ernor that the Iroquois designed to take him by surprise, and that four hundred men were on the point of setting out to strike simultaneously at the French colony.
There is then every likelihood that this nation had con- ceived the same distrust of the gospel laborers as had been at first entertained by the Hurons ; and what sus- tains this conjecture is the fact, that diseases having made great ravages that year in the Mohawk canton, and worms having destroyed almost all their grain, the mob were easily convinced that these misfortunes resulted from a vBpell which Father Jogues had left them in his box. Some pagan Hnrons who had settled in this canton,
1 Letter of Jan LaUdie, in MS. original letters U preserved in the
Mi-moire* inr lee Vertus, and in Re- Memoireg BUT lea Vertua, etc : CrenT-
Ifttion, 1647, p. 38. ins, Historia Canadeneis, p. 459.
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
1047, p. 87. A iworn copy of the 1647, p 88.
196 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1640. bringing with them their pristine prejudices against the Christian religion, did not let so fine an occasion pass for communicating them to the Iroquois. They first seized this, and told the Mohawks that the disasters of which they complained began precisely at the time when they solicited missionaries.
Hi« death. Be that as it may, the apostolic man, seeing himself welcomed in the manner that I have described, asked whether any thing had happened since his departure to predispose the nation against him. The only reply made him was, that he, with his companion, was condemned to death ; yet that they should not be burned, but toma- hawked, and their heads set up on the palisades, that they might be recognized by any of the French who might pass by the village. In vain did the servant of God rep- resent to them the unworthy character of such a course ; the confidence with which he had come to put himself into their hands ; their invitations given to induce him to come and live among them ; their word so solemnly pledged to him ; the conduct of the French towards them ; their treaties, their oaths, and the little they had to gain by the war into which they were about to plunge anew. A fearful, gloomy silence showed him that he spoke in vain. He accordingly thought only of preparing for death, and fitting for it the young man who had so faith- fully clung to him.
October IT. During the whole of the ensuing day, the 17th of Oc- tober, they said not a word to him till evening. Then a Huron came to conduct Father Jogues to his cabin, under the pretext of giving him food; for neither he nor his companion had as yet tasted any thing that day. The missionary followed the Huron ; and as he was entering his cabin, an Iroquois, hidden behind the door, dealt him a blow with his tomahawk on the head, and laid him dead at his feet. La Lande met the same fate a moment after.'
1 Lalande, a native of Dieppe, was Bressani, Breve Relatione, p. 105 ; kilted the next day : Memoires, MS. ; Relation de la Nouv. France, 1648,
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 197
Their heads were then cut off and set up cm the palisade, 1646. and their bodies thrown into the river.1
Such was the end of a ninu whose virtues and courage the Iroquois themselves, years after, could not weary in der«r. admiring. Hi« murderer fell, the next year, into the hands of the French, who delivered him to the Algon- quins. The latter burned him ; but apparently the holy martyr did not abandon him in his last moments, for he died a Christian.' Many favors obtained by the interces- sion of Father Jogues have been made public, and we may affirm that the last century gave to the Church few saints of a more marked character ; but I leave the detail of these marvels to those who shall undertake to write ^ > his life.1 w<«tH
The Mohawks thus violating the law of nations, ex- The Mo- pected to see all the nations unite to make war on them, "w tfa« and resolved to anticipate them. They took the field in every direction, before news could spread of what they had done on the Mohawk. One of their parties met Pies- karet alone, but durst not attack him, convinced that he would have killed half their number, as he had done on
p. 0. Charlevoix here gives October Breasani, Breve Relatione, pp. 77-
17 M the date ; but Breasani, Tan- 108 ; the Relation* de I* Nouvelle
ner, and Alegambe. the Relation of France, especially 1047, p. 39 ; and
1640-7 (p. 3), and the MS. Memoires the manuscript of 1058, Memoires
touchant lea Vertus, etc., the 18th. Bar les Vertug des Perec de Node,
1 Isaac Joguea was born at Or- Jogues, Daniel, Brebeuf, Lalemant,
leans, January 10, 1607, and entered Gamier, et Chabanel ; Buteux,
the Society of Jesus at Rouen, in Narre de la prise du P. Jogues.
October, 1024. He sought the Ktlii- Father Felix Martin has written his
opian minion, but on his ordina- life at length. His family preserve
tion, in 1630, he was sent to Canada, his portrait and letters, and the for-
After a short stay at Miscou and mer is used in this work. The tid-
Quebec, he proceeded to the Huron ings of his death reached Canada in
country, and labored there till, as June, 1647: Lalemant, Journal, June
stated in the text, he came down to 4, 1047.
Quebec in 1643. His subsequent * Relation de la Nonrelle France,
sufferings and death are related In 1647, p. 73. He was put to death in
the text. His life is given in Ale- October, 1647.
gambe, Mortes Hlustres, p. 610 : ' Relation, 1650, p. 45 ; Creuxius,
Tanner, Societas Militans, p. 511 ; Historla Canadensis, p. 499.
198
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. several previous occasions. They were not ashamed to meet him as a friend, and, while he mistrusted nothing, stab him from behind.1 Others learning where several Christian Indians were gathered to hunt, fell suddenly on them, killed some, carried off others as prisoners — wreak- ing the most unheard-of cruelties on them.
Hatred of Christianity thenceforward redoubled the rage of these savages, and made the faithful who fell into their hands genuine martyrs." Neither age nor sex any longer preserved them from the stroke, as before ; and we are assured that on the occasion of which I am speaking they crucified a child three years old, and let it expire in torments — a torture hitherto unheard of among these na- tions, and to be ascribed only to the rage which filled their hearts against the religion proclaimed to them of a God who died on the cross.' The French received the first tidings of these hostilities from some Algonquin women, who had escaped from the hands of their tor- turers by resolution and courage that would have elicited admiration in the bravest of men.' The history of one of these deserves to be known.
Singular She had been for ten days a prisoner in a Mohawk vil- lage, and was as yet in ignorance of her final doom. She had, however, more ground for fear than for hope ; be- cause she had been stripped totally naked on entering the village, and had been unable to obtain the least thing to cover herself. One night, while lying as usual in a cabin, bound hand and foot with cords which were made fast to as many stakes, and surrounded by Indians who lay on the cords, she perceived that they were all sound asleep.
roqu0'8'
1 Relation de la. Nouvelle France, 1647, p. 47 ; Creusius, Historia Ca- nadensis, p. 465 ; De la Potherie, Histoire de 1'Amfirique Meridionale, i., p. 304 ; Colden, History of the Five Nations (N. Y., 1727), p. 18 ; Lalemant, Journal, March 22, 1647.
9 See Benedict XIV., De Canoniza-
tione ; Allocution of Pope Pius VI. on the death of Louis XVI., as to what constitutes martyrdom.
" Creuxins, Historia Canadensis, p. 468 ; Relation, 1647, p. 16.
4 Creuxius, Hietoria Canadensis, p. 470 ; Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1647, p. 8.
HISTORY OF NEW FBAN< K. 199
She immediately endeavored to extricate one hand, and 1646. succeeding in this, without much difficulty unbound her- self completely."
On this, she rose, went softly to the cabin-door, took a hatchet, and brained the one who lay readiest to her hand. She then sprang to a hollow tree, large enough to conceal her entirely, and which she had already observed quite near the cabin. The noise made by the dying man soon roused the whole village ; and as no doubt was enter- tained of their prisoner's flight, all the young men started in pursuit. All this she marked from her shelter, and she perceived that her pursuers all took one direction, and that the rest had returned to their cabins, leaving no one near her tree. She immediately stole out, and taking just the opposite direction from that of the braves, she reached the woods undiscovered.
No one thought of taking that direction all that night ; but when day came, her trail was discovered and followed. The start she had gained gave her two days over her enemies. On the third day she heard a noise. Being on the bank of a lake, she waded in up to her neck ; and the moment she perceived the Mohawks, she plunged entirely under, behind some flags, under cover of which she put her head above water occasionally, to breathe and watch. She saw her pursuers, after a careful scrutiny all around, retrace their steps. She let them get to some distance ; then she crossed the marsh and continued her route.
She travelled thirty-five days, living solely on roots and berries. At last she struck the St. Lawrence, a little below St. Peter's Lake ; and not daring to remain in the neighborhood of the River Sorel, for fear of being sur- prised by some Iroquois war-party, she hastily made a sort of raft to cross the river. As she approached Three s, without well knowing where she was, she discov-
1 Creuxius, Historia Canadenato, p. 477 ; Relation, 1647, p. 15.
200 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. ered a canoe, and fearing lest it might be an Iroquois, she •"v— ^ plunged into the depths of the woods, where she remained till sunset. She then approached the river again, and a moment after perceived the fort of Three Rivers.
Almost at the same time she was discovered by some Hurons, whom she recognized. She immediately hid her- self behind a bush, and cried out to them that she was not in a state to show herself decently, and begged them to give her some covering. They threw her a robe, and when she had wrapped it around her, she came up and was brought to the fort. Here the account she gave of her adventures was with difficulty credited ; but so many similar examples occurred subsequently, that at last nothing of the kind any longer excited surprise. Men comprehended, at least, that fear of death or torture can make the feeblest undertake and accomplish what the most hardy would not, under other circumstances, think of attempting.1
While the Iroquois by their perfidy cast aside the occa- sion offered them by Heaven of sharing in its graces, and renewed their ravages against our allies and their hostil- ities in the French colony, another nation — which yields to no other on this continent in valor, which surpasses all in mildness and docility, and which was then quite popu- lous— came forward spontaneously to swell the fold of Indian believers, and by its conversion to Christianity be- came a barrier for New France which all its enemies never could force.'
Who were These were the Abenaquis. I have elsewhere remarked
qnis. that this people inhabited the southern part of New
France, which extends from Penobscot to New England,
and that the portion of the nation living in the vicinity of
the Kennebec were called Canibas." The subsequent
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, Maurault, Hist, des Aben., p. 11.
1647, p. 16 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- 3 Vol. I., p. 264. For the meaning
nadensis, p. 479. of Abenaqui, see Hist. Mag., iv., p.
1 Relation de la N. F., 1647, p. 51 ; 180 ; Vetromile's Abnakis, p. 50.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 201
necessity of defending themselves against the English and 1646. their allies having forced them to unite with the Ete- ' ^~m- chemins or Malecites, living near the Penobecot, and the Micmacs or Sonriquois, the native inhabitants of Acadia and all the eastern coast of Canada, the close onion formed between these three nations, their attachment to oar interests and to the Christian religion, and striking correspondence between their dialects, have quite com- monly led to include them all under the general name of Ab£naqui nations ; and I shall hereafter conform to this usage, where it is not necessary to distinguish one of these tribes from another.' For some time the Canibas had frequented Sylleri. and They uk
and obtftia
some were even baptized there.' On their return home »nii»ion- they inspired their countrymen with the desire of imitat- ing them, and the whole nation sent to the governor- general and the superior of the Jesuits to solicit a mis- sionary. A people with a reputation for bravery, and able by its position between us and the English to be of great service to us in case of a rupture with New Eng- land, was an acquisition not to be neglected. The depu- ties were very well received at Quebec, and Father Gabriel Dreuillettes set out with them in the latter part of August, 1646.'
1 As to these tribes, Bee the Re- ' A chief was baptized at Sillery in
lations de la Nouvelle France, 1648 ; Crenxins, Hist. Canadeosis, p.
for 1687, 1640, 1641, 1048, 1644, 872. Canibrainnoaks means " Those
1646, 1647, 1650 to 1653,1660 to dwelling near the Lakes :" Maurault,
1664 ; Lett res Edifiantes ; Letters Hist, des Abnakig.
of F. Rale and F. de I* Chagee. ' The Abnaki mission, and that of
Williamson's Maine, i., p. 463. His- the Mohawks under Father Jogues,
torie dee Abnakig par l'Abb£ J. A. were both decided upon on April
Mauranlt. Sorel, 1866. Rale's die- 26, 1646. The Abnaki Mission
tionary is the great treasury for the ^«« called that of the Assumption.
Abnaki language. For the Micmac Father Drnillettes iet ont, August
hieroglyphics and their origin, see 29, with two Indian canoes, under
Historical Magazine, v., p. 889 -^Cro-^ Claude, a good Christian : Journal
naca delle Mission! Francescanl, of the Superior (MS.); Relation
r'H Mil- .!•• In NMUV. •!!•• I'm: > ••. !''.!?. ji.
mac"PraytT-Boo>, Vienna. Crenxins,HistoriaCaDadensis,p. 483.
202 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. His journey was loug and painful.' The Abenaquis, as *— -r— ' well as their neighbors, are indolent. We have never suc- Their char- ceeded in inducing them to cultivate the ground, and they aoter' have even less forecast for the future than other Indians. The consequence is, that few more frequently suffer from hunger and a want of the merest necessaries of life. But their affection for their missionaries, their good disposi- tion, their sincere attachment to the French, the essential services which they have rendered to New France (which would perhaps not now exist had it not had these Indians to oppose to the Iroquois and English), and still more> their unshaken constancy in the Faith, have greatly lightened for the evangelical laborers the rigors of this painful mission.
Father On the banks of the Kennebec, Father Dreuillettes ^iromed* found some Capuchin Fathers, who had a hospice there. Canadians These religious had a house also at Pentagoet, and acted as chaplains, not only to the French settled on all that coast and that of Acadia, but also to those whom trade allured thither. They received the Jesuit missionary with great joy and all possible cordiality. They had long desired to see missions established among the Indians of those quarters, whom they deemed very fit for the King- dom of God ; and they had even themselves entertained the idea of visiting Quebec, to induce the Fathers of the Society not to leave any longer untilled a soil so well pre- pared to receive the seeds of the Faith.1
Father Dreuillettes epent the whole winter and spring in visiting the different towns of that country, baptized many children and some dying adults, finding in all a great desire for religious instruction. Even medicine-men
1 He apparently went up the Chau- Ignatius, of Paris) welcomed him at
diere, and then made a portage to first, they were forced, apparently,
the Kennebec. by the Fishing Companies, to write
' As to the Capuchin missions, see to Quebec and ask that he should Historical Magazine, vols. viii. and not return : Journal of the Sa- il. Though the Superior (Father perior.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 203
declared themselves his disciples, and burned all that they 1646. had used in their divinations.' The harvest seemed to '-"-v~"' him so ripe and abundant that, when the roads became HU «™t im- passable, he felt it his dutj to return to Quebec, to lay th!i"AMn«5 before his superior the condition in which he found affaire qu1*' among the Abenaqui nations.' On his report steps were taken to found a mission, which promised the same fruits of benediction as were already gathered in the most flour- ishing, and where the missionaries hoped to labor with great success, as there was nothing to be dreaded from the Iroquois there.'
The affairs of New France were in this state, when the RoaUl at evalier de Montmagny received orders to resign his
Ch
government to Mr. d'Ailleboust, who had been for some e°J' time in command at Three Rivers, and to return to France.' The disobedience of the Commander de Poinci, governor-general in the West Indies — who had refused to receive a successor sent by the king, maintained himself in his post in spite of the court, and gave an example of rebellion which some minor governors began to follow — induced the king's council to adopt a resolution not to leave colonial governors in office for more than three years, for fear that they should grow to regard their domain as a country where they had too long been masters.
General laws have their objections, and it is unfortu- nate to be placed in circumstances where it is impossible to remedy by necessary exceptions their action, when prejudicial to the common good. A well-selected governor cannot be left too long at the head of a new colony. One
1 Eolation de la NoureUe France, Relation de U NouveUe France, 1647,
1647, p. 58 ; Creuxius, Hialoria Ca- p. 56.
nadenslB, p. 484. > Father Druillettea was not sent
* He reached Sillory, Jane 16 back, in consequence of letters from
(Journal of the Superior)— although the Oapuchins : Journal of the Ba-
the Relation de la NouveUe France, perlor, July &-4, 1647.
1647, p. 56, says 15th— after forming « The news came first in the fall
% friendship with John Window : of 1647. Bee note, p. 305.
204 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. devoid of the talents required for a post of this impor- '-"^T1— ' tance, or with qualities detrimental to the service of his prince, cannot be removed too soon : bnt except in case of marked incapacity and •well-grounded fears of misconduct, nothing can happen more fatal to the progress of a colony which is not well established than the frequent change of governors; inasmuch as solid foundations require a great uniformity of conduct, and projects must be followed out which cannot ripen or be executed except with time, and a new governor rarely approves the views of his pre- decessor or fails to consider that he has better. His successor will pass the same judgment on his in their turn ; and thus, by ever beginning anew, a colony will never leave its infancy, or make but slow progress. Bnt yet there are circumstances where prudence forbids a prince to follow a course which is really the most ex- pedient. Sad extreme to which these gods of earth are sometimes reduced, where the inability to which they are brought, of remedying an evil except by an evil, is well fitted to impress them with a sense of their weakness.
His charao- The Chevalier de Montmagny fell into none of the '*'" hi*1"1' errors of which I have spoken. On the contrary, he studiously modelled his conduct on that of his prede- cessor, and confined himself to following, as far as in him lay, the plan which Mr. de Champlain had traced in his memoirs. Hence it is certain that, had the Canada Com- pany seconded him, he would have put the colony on a very good footing, and he is greatly to be praised for having sustained it as he did with so little power. His life, moreover, was so exemplary, and he displayed on all occasions so much wisdom, piety, religion, and disinter- estedness ; he spared himself so little when the insolence of the Iroquois was to be repressed ; and he knew so well how to maintain his dignity in the most delicate circum- stances, that he endeared himself equally to French and Indians, and the court even long proposed him to the
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
205
governors of new colonies as a model who could not be too much studied.'
His successor' was a worthy man, full of religion and good-will. He bad belonged to the Society of Montreal, entirely made up of pious persons, zealous for the conver- sion of the heathen. He commanded in that island during a voyage which Mr. de Maisonneuve had been obliged to make to France. Thence he had passed to the govern-
1646.
1 The Chevalier de Montmagny left Canada on the Admiral, Sept. 83, 1648. Ferland, who eulogizes the character of thii governor, a* do the Relation* (Relation, 1648, p. 2 ; Creuxiiu, Hlstoria Canaden*!*, p. SO ; and Mother Juchereau, in her Histoire de 1 'Hotel Dien, p. 76), adds : " We find nothing very authentic a* to him after this. Mr. Aubertde la Chenaye Bays, nevertheless, that he died at St. Kitt's, in the boose of his kinsman, Mr. de Poincy; but this assertion is supported by no proof:" Cours d'Histoire, i., p. 863. His removal may have come, too, from the opposition between him and the new colony at Montreal. Bee Memoire de Mr. de la Chenaye, in 1690; Faillon. HiBtoire de la Colonie Francaise, ii., p. 91.
1 Louis d'Ailleboust, Seigneur de Conlongre, was a gentleman of Champagne, of a family already dis- tinguished in medicine and the Church. He went to Canada in 1648, from purely religions motive*. He led out a number of colonist*, and did much for the new town. Business requiring his return, he sailed for France, Oct. 21, 1647 (Journal of the Superior of the Jesu- its). Having concluded his affaire, be sailed back, and arrived on the 20th August, 1648 : Journal of the Superior ; Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1648, p. 2. He brought out
a new Royal Begulation, dated March 5, 1648, modifying in some particulars that of March 27, 1647, which may be considered the first Canadian charter: Canadian Col. Doc., II., i., p. 178. By that of IMS the governor was to be chosen for three years, but might be reap- pointed. He was to have a council, comprising the bishop (or, till there was one, the Superior of the Jesuits), the last governor, and two inhab- itant* chosen by the council and the syndics of Quebec, Montreal, and Three Riven. If there was no ex- governor in the colony, an inhab- itant was chosen in hi* place. This regulation was long in force, and in 1719 complaint was made that it was not followed strictly. Under these charters the general of the fleet and the syndics had a right to appear in council, with a deliberative voice as to matters relating to their constituent*. The council appointed officers and fixed salaries: officers to be elected annually and report annually. Settlers could buy furs of Indians with colonial goods, but were compelled to take furs to pub- lic stores: Ferland, Cours d'His- toire, i., pp. 3S6, 368. Madame d'Ailleboust (Barbara de Boulogne), though reluctant at first to come to Canada, took, nevertheless, a prom- inent part in many of the good works begun at Montreal.
206
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1646. ment of Three Rivers.1 Thus he knew Canada perfectly, and was not ignorant of its necessities. He accordingly omitted nothing that depended on him to provide for them ; but as he was not better served than those who preceded him, New France continued, under his adminis- tration, to encounter misfortunes which it would be unjust to ascribe to him.
1 Creuxius (Historia Canadensis, boost was governor of Montreal
p. 502) says the same, but Faillon daring the absence of Maisonneuve.
(Ilistoire de la Colonie Franchise, ii., He was never governor of Thre*
p. 80) corrects the error. D'Aille- Rivera.
BOOK VII
A
JESUIT MISSIONARIES
J
une*.
&.
i
FOUNDERS OF CONVENT 8.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANC*
BOOK VII.
QUEBEC and all the French settlements were then quite 1648. tranquil, and the Indians who had settled among as, or v -*•»' came to trade, profited by this calm. Commerce was suu of the confined chiefly to peltries, and it was especially at Three Hirers and Tadoussac that the Indians assembled to trade. Most of them came from the northern parts, and they were all instructed in the Christian truths. These they communicated to their neighbors, and they never failed to return with proselytes, who were then finally prepared for baptism. Sylleri, too, daily increased in population and fervor ; but the Huron church, although the most numerous of all, and fruitful in great examples of virtue, was a source of constant disquiet and alarm to the missionaries.
Nevertheless, this same year, 1648, brought some new Uolbrta gleams of hope that the Hurons and IroquoLs would settle n°oiiiTra*ot their differences. The Andastes or Andastoez,1 a then "* powerful and warlike nation, sent offers of aid to the former, who at the time had gained important advantages over their enemies.' It was a favorable opportunity* to
1 Andastoe (says the Relation de 1048, p. 68. Da Creux '• map
la Nouvelle France, 1648, p. 66) Is a give* geographical data not in
country beyond the Neuter nation, the Relations. The Huron enroy,
one hundred and fifty leagues S. E. Charles Ondaaiondiont, who reached
i 9. from the Hurons, in a straight Andastoe early in June, there learned
line, or two hundred leagues by the the death of Father Jogues.
trails, of Huron language. They ' Father Bressani, who descended
were near the Swedes. Ante, p. 73. to Quebec in July, brought new* at
' Relation de la NonTelle France, a defeat of an Iroqnois party by the VOL. II.— 14
210 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1648. regain their pristine superiority over the Iroquois, but they would not profit by it except to enable them to obtain a favorable peace ; and by not taking the surest means to succeed in this, which was a vigorous preparation for war, they fell a dupe to the duplicity and bad faith of their enemy.
To all appearance they declined the offers of the An- dastes, or at least failed to do what they could to profit by the offers of that nation ; and, in fact, I find no mention of any diversion made by those Indians in their favor. Thus the overweening confidence of the Hurons was really what began to enfeeble them, and at last destroyed the nation ; for while the Onondagas amused them with nego- tiations, the Mohawks and Senecas suddenly fell on two large hunting-parties from the town of St. Ignatius, and totally routed them. ' Then for a time no hostilities were heard of, and this was enough to plunge the Hurons again into their former security. This was the object of the Mohawks. They took up arms secretly, and appeared in the field on a side where they were least expected.
Father Anthony Daniel ministered alone to a whole can- ton, his ordinary residence being the town of St. Joseph, the first where they had undertaken to plant the gospel* On the 4th of July, very early in the morning, while that religious was celebrating the holy mysteries, he heard a
Hurons, who killed or took thirty, none, a Neuter tribe next to the
The superior of the Jesuits was BO Huions.
confident, that, as two hundred and * This St. Joseph wag not the town
fifty Hurone came down, he Bent up Caragouhaor Ihonatiria. Champlain,
Fathers Lalemant, Daran, and Ores- 1619 (Laverdiere's edition, p. 28,
Ion — with two other Fathers, one note), where the mission began (ante,
lay-brother, three boys, nine me- p. 77), that town having been aban-
chanics, eight soldiers — and they doned in 1038. Rel. de la N. France,
were to take in four more at Mon- 1688, p. 59 ; 1689, p. 56. The name
treal, with a cannon ; Journal of Su- St. Joseph was then transferred to
perior of Jesuits, July, August, 1648. Teananstoyae (Ib. letter of F. Charles
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, Gamier, MS.), the Tequenonkiaye of
1648, p. 49 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- Champlain (Voy. 1619, p. 28, ed.
nadensis, pp. 528, 524. The Benecas Laverdiere) and of Sagard (Hist, du
at this time attacked the Aondiro- Can., p. 208); called also Ossossane.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 211
confused noise of people running in all directions, ex- 1648. claiming, " They are killing us !" There was scarcely any- ^-~v— ••' body in the village at the time but old men, women, and A Huron children. The enemy, informed of this, had made his approach by night, and attacked at daybreak. At the first alarm given by the cries of the dying, the chapel was deserted. The priest had time only to terminate the sac- rifice, lay aside the sacerdotal vestments, shut them up with the sacred vessels, and run to the quarter from which the cries proceeded.'
No sooner had he reached it than the most sad and painful spectacle met his eyes : his beloved neophytes massacred unresistingly ; the enemy, like a pack of fam- ished wolves who find a sheepfold open, giving no quarter to the most tender age or feeble sex ; old men, almost decrepit, gathering a remnant of strength from despair, fighting with no probability of success ; no one able to make sufficient effort to arrest the first onset of the assail- ants. He approached those who seemed disposed to die, at least, with arms in their hands, and warned them that these enemies, who could deprive them of bodily life, had no power over their souls, and that eternity depended on their dying in the sentiments which he had so often incul- cated upon them.'
He beheld himself at the same time surrounded by women and children, whom they pursued, tomahawk in hand, and who conjured him to take pity on them. Pa- gans even, whose obstinacy he had failed to overcome, threw themselves at bis feet, and implored baptism.
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, t re da P. Ragneoeau tn Oarayon,
1649, p. 8 ; Creuxiui, Hiatoria Cana- Document* Ineditt, xli., pp. 240-8 ;
denmi, p. 525 ; Gobat, Narratio His- Bresuani, Breve Relatlone, p. 109 ;
torica eorum qun Societal Jean in Tanner, Societal Miliuun, p. 678 ;
Nova Francia, fortiter egit et pama Alegambe, Morte* lUostreft, p. 643 ;
eat, anno M.IK'.XLIIX & XLIX, Chanmonot, Autobiographic, New
Oeniponti, 1660, p. 18 ; Memoirea York, 1868, p. 69.
touchant lei Vertui de« Peres de ' Relation de la Noavelle France,
None, JogT>e», Daniel, etc., MS. ; Let- 1649, p. 8.
212 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1648. There was not a moment to lose. The apostolic mau
' -*~-w~*-' exhorted both classes, in a few words, to implore God's
Death of pardon for their sins ; then he dipped a handkerchief in
Anthony water, and baptized by aspersion those who pressed for-
D*mel' ward to receive the sacrament. At that moment the palisades were carried on every side ; and the blood which streamed from all the cabins and in the square, rekindling the fury of the victors, nothing scarcely was to be seen but the dead and dying.1
Those whose age and strength enabled them to seek safety in flight then earnestly implored the missionary to escape with them ; but he constantly refused, and recol- lecting some sick persons whose baptism he had deferred, he ran to their cabins and baptized them. He then returned to the chapel, to get the altar vessels and vest- ments and put them in a secure spot. There he gave a general absolution to some who had come for the purpose. Then his only thought was to offer to God the sacrifice of his life.1
The Iroquois, on their side, no longer finding any one to oppose them, set fire to the cabins, and approached the chapel, uttering fearful yells. The servant of God, when he saw them coming, exhorted all who remained with him to take to the woods ; and to gain time for them, went forward himself to meet the enemy. Astonished at such resolution, the savages recoiled some paces. But recov- ering from their panic, they surrounded the holy man ; and not yet daring to approach him, alone and unarmed as he was, they pierced him with arrows. Bristling as he was with the shafts, he still spoke with surprising energy, — now to God, to whom he offered his blood, shed for the flock which He had confided to his care ; now to his mur- derers, whom he reproached with their perfidy and men-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1649, p. 4 ; Lettre du P. Charles 1649, p. 3. Gamier, 25 Avril, 1649 ; Raguenean,
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, Vie de la Mere Catherine, p. 53.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANC* 213
aced with the wrath of Heaven, — assuring them, neverthe- less, that they would ever find the Lord ready to receive them into favor, if they had recourse to his bounty.
At last, one of the most resolute advanced and pierced Anthony his heart with a kind of partisan, and hud him dead at Umni*L his feet. All immediately fell on his body, and there was not one of these furies who did not dip his hands in the blood. They then stripped the torn and bleeding body, and after treating it with a thousand indignities, flung it into the blazing chapel. The Huron nation was inconsolable for the death of this missionary, and there was no one in the colony who did not revere him as a victim of the most heroic charity. Seven hundred per- sons perished in this disaster,1 and the town of St. Joseph was never restored. Those who escaped, and those who were absent at the time, took refuge at the town of St. Mary's — a metropolis, as it were, of the country — where they were left in quiet for the rest of the year and down to the ensuing spring.'
"Almost at the same time that this was occurring amongst the Hurons, the French, not without some aston- ishment, beheld an envoy arrive at Quebec from New England, sent to propose a perpetual alliance between the two colonies, independent of any rupture that might ensue between the two crowns.' Mr. d'Aillebout, finding
1 Relation de la N. F., 1049, p. 5. obedient, and pious, ia the character
* Relation de la Nouvt-lle France, given by hi* contemporaries. 1649, p. 5 ; Oobat, Narratio Histo- « Druillettes, Narre da Voyage
rica, pp. 20-33 ; Marie de 1'Incarna- faict pour la Mission de« Abnaquiois
tion, Lettres Historiquee, p. 192 ; et dec Connoissancea Urez de la Nou
Chaumonot, Autobiographic, p. 59 ; veils Angleterre et des disposition*
Uarnler, Lettrea, MS. Father An- dee Magistrate de cette Republique
tliony Daniel— called by the Hurons, pour le secours centre lea IroquoU,
Antwen — was born at Dieppe, in fes annles 1650 & 1691, p. 31 ; Rela-
Normamly, in 1601, and entered the tion de la Nourelle France, 1652, p.
Society of Jesus at the age of twenty. 26. The elder Wlnthrop was the
Sent to Canada in 1633, he labored first proposer of this step, according
first at Cape Breton ; but from July, to Druillettea, and wrote, in 1947.
1634, to liis death, July 4, 1648, on Epistola ad Domlnum Joannem
the Huron mission. Meek, humble, Winthrop, New York. 1864, p. 6.
214 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1648. the proposition favorable, by the advice of his council, de- puted Father Dreuillettes to Boston, as plenipotentiary, to conclude and sign the treaty ; but on condition that the tions with English should join us in making war on the Iroquois.
8Und.Dg I do not exactly know what was then the success of this first journey of the missionary ;' but it is certain that the negotiation, after languishing for a time, was resumed with more earnestness in 1651. This is attested by the following documents, preserved in the Depot de la Marine, and which I deem it proper to insert, as being the only papers I could discover relating to this affair. The first is & letter addressed by the Council of Quebec to the Com- missioners of New England, as follows :
" GENTLEMEN — Some years since, the gentlemen of Bos- ton having proposed to us to establish trade between New France and New England, the Council established by his majesty in this country unites its replies to the letters which our governor had written to your parts, the tenor whereof was, that we would willingly desire this trade, and therewith the union of hearts and minds between our col- onies and yours ; but that we desired, at the same time, to enter into an offensive and defensive league with you against the Iroquois, our enemies, who would prevent this
1 Yet the archives of the College referred him to Plymouth, as the of Quebec contained Druillettee' nar- Eennebec was under the jurisdiction rative of hie voyage. See Druil- of that colony. Governor Bradford lettee, NarrS du Voyage, etc., 1855, welcomed him ; but the French en- and a translation in the Collections voy found that any aid against the of the N. Y. Hist. Society, series H., Iroquois could be decided only by vol. iii. ; also Epistola ad Doininum the Commissioners of the United Dom. Joannem Winthrop ; and let- Colonies, and he endeavored to in- ter in Ferland's Notes sur le Begistre fluence the delegates to that body, de Quebec, p. 95. He set out Aug. 31, After doing all in his power to dis- 1650, and after much suffering pose the magistrates favorably, he reached Norridgewalk. After a returned to the Kennebec, visiting short stay, he proceeded to Cous- the New England Indian apostle, sinoc (Augusta), and presented his Eliot, on his way. He reached his credentials to John Winslow, the mission safely, and in the spring re- Plymouth agent, who kindly accom- turned to Quebec : Jesuit Jour., June, panied him to Boston. HesawGov- 1651. The documents here given are emor Dudley of MasBachusett*, who in Canad. Col. Doc., 11., i., pp. 10-12.
HI8TOUY OF NEW FRANCE. 216
trade, or at least render it less advantageous both for you 1648. and for us. The obligation which, it seems to us, yon *~~-~*~~' should feel to repress the insolence of these Iroquois sav- Letter to ages — who massacre the Sokokinois and Ab6naquiuois, •ioo«m'of your allies— and the ease with which you could carry on u£ the war, by our taking it up properly, are two reasons which hare induced us to follow up this matter with yon in your Court of Commissioners. We have requested oar governor to write to you efficaciously. This is to join our exertions to his, and to assure you of the disposition of our hearts, and of those of all in New France, for this trade with New England, and for the designs of this war against the Iroquois, who should be our common foe. Besides the Sieur de Dreuillettes, who already this winter began to negotiate this matter, we have been pleased that Sieur Godefroy, councillor of our body, be associated. The merit of these two deputies leads us to hope a happy result for the design. They are invested with necessary powers to that end, — that is to say, both to establish firmly trade between you and us, and to relieve you of the ex- pense necessary to be incurred in the war in question against the Iroquois. We beg you to give them a hear- ing, and- to act with them as you would do with us, with the frankness natural to Englishmen as much as to us Frenchmen. We cannot doubt but that God will bless your arms and ours, when they are employed in the defence of Christian Indians, both your allies and ours, against heathen savages, who have neither faith, nor God, nor any justice in their course, as you may learn more at length from the said Sieurs our deputies, who will assure you of the sincere desire we entertain that Heaven may ever continue to bless your provinces, and load you, gentlemen, with its favors.
" Done in the chambers of our Council, established by the king, at Quebec, in New France, this 20th of June, 1651."
The second concerns the nomination of Sieur Godefroy to treat conjointly with Father Dreuillettes, and is en-
216 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1648. titled, " Extract from the Kegisters of the Ancient Council
' • ' of this Country, June 20, 1651 :"
Register of " The Council assembled at nine o'clock in the morning of Quebec, — present: the governor; the reverend Father Superior ; Messieurs de Mauze,' de Godefroy, and Menoil — on the proposition made to the Council, touching a certain re- scription made by the Council, in the year 1648, to the end that a union be made between the colonies of New France and New England, to carry on commerce with each other. The Council, desiring to meet their wishes, has nominated, and nominate, Sieur Godefroy,1 one of the councillors of the Council established by his majesty in this country, to proceed with the Kev. Father Dreuillettes, to the said New England, to the said Commissioners, to treat and act with them according to the power given to them by the Council, a copy whereof is inserted in the liasse, as also a copy of the letter written to the said Com- missioners of New England by the Council. And as to merchandise brought by one Thomas Yost,1 on the assur- ance and good faith of Rev. Father Dreuillettes, the Council has decided to send and meet him, to point out a place where he may deliver them, and that in its time.
" Louis d'Ailleboust, lieutenant-general for the king, and governor of all New France, etc., greeting :
" Having been solicited and entreated, both by the Christian Indians depending on our government and by the Abenaquinois, living on the river of Kinibequi, and others their allies, to protect them against the incursion of the Iroquois, their common enemies, as it had been heretofore practised by Sieur de Montmagny, our prede- cessor in this government, and having anew shown us
1 Maun- : Jesuit Jour., June, 1650. de Repentigny : Ferland, Notes, p. 67.
1 John Paul Godefroy, ship-cap- 3 Yau, in the Narr.:, p. 18. Ap-
tain, eon of R. Godefroy, Esq., of St. parently Thomas Yco or Yow, who
Nicholas des Champs, at Paris. He in 1652 projected the conduit in
was an early settler, and in 1646 Ann street, Boston : Savage, Geneal
married Mary Magdalen le Gardeur Diet., iv., p. 668.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 217
that all their nations were on the point of being totally 1648. destroyed unless we speedily brought a remedy — We, for these causes and the good of this colony, and following the express orders given us in the name of the queen- regent, mother of the king, to protect the Indians against their said enemies, have deputed, and depute, with the advice of the Council established in this country and some of the most notable inhabitants, the Sieurs Gabriel Dreu- illettes, preacher of the gospel to the Indian nations, and John Godefroy, one of the councillors of the said Council, ambassadors for them to the gentlemen of New England, to treat, either with the governors and magistrates of New England, or with the General Court of Commis- sioners and Deputies of the United Colonies, for assist- ance in men, and munitions of war, and supplies, to attack the said Iroquois in the most proper and con- venient places ; as also to agree upon articles which shall be deemed necessary to assure this treaty, and to grant to the said people of New England the trade which they have desired from us by their letters in the year 1C47, with the articles, clauses, and conditions which they shall therein see necessary, awaiting the arrival of the ambas- sador whom we shall send on our behalf to ratify and establish finally what they may have agreed upon.
" We accordingly pray all governors, lieutenants-gen- eral, captains, and others, to let them pass freely, etc." '
To all appearance, it was this condition of making war on the Iroquois which broke off the negotiation ; and it was, in fact, exacting much from the English, who were far enough removed from the Iroquois to have aught to fear from them, and who were engaged exclusively in trade and agriculture.' It is certain that the alliance was not
1 Before the date of these papers design, or to grant them liberty to
the colony of Plymouth decided go through their jurisdiction for the
against the French request. " The aforesaid purpose :" Records of the
court declare themselves not to be Colony of Plymouth, June 5, 1651. willing either to aid them in their ' Druillettei and Godefroy reached
218 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1648. made — at least, on the footing proposed. On the other hand, the Iroquois having been for six months without making any new attempt, the Indians once more forgot
rons. that they had to deal with an enemy against whom they should never cease for a single day to be on their guard.
In regard to the Hurons, it was not the fault of their missionaries that they were supine ; but these religious, unable to persuade their neophytes to adopt, for their own preservation, the precautions which prudence dictated, redoubled their exertions to sanctify them and prepare them for any event. On this score they were met by per- fect docility. They found no difficulty in inspiring senti- ments most suitable to the sad situation to which they reduced themselves by their inconceivable lethargy and blindness — unexampled, perhaps, in history. What con- soled the pastors was to see them, when necessary, face death with a courage which inspired them, in turn, to die as Christian heroes. Father Jogues and Father Daniel soon had imitators, who gave the Indian Christians the most exalted idea of their zeal and constancy. TWO Huron On the 16th of March, 1649, a party of one thousand Iro- •troyed by quois fell suddenly, before daybreak, on the town of St. quou. Ignatius. It was strongly enough fortified against any In-
1649. dian attack, but it contained at the time only four hundred souls, and no watch was kept. The assailants accordingly had no trouble except to set fire to the palisades and mas- sacre people, — some asleep, and others not spared time enough to understand their position. Only three men escaped1 to St. Louis, which was not far distant, to give the alarm there.
Boston, but could not alter the de- and St. Louis, see Relation de la ciaion adopted by Plymouth. The Nouvelle France, 1649, p. 17 ; Creux- general court refused : Hazard, ii. , ins, Historia Canadenas, p. 537 ; p. 183. Memoires sur les Vertus, etc., MS ; 1 The Iroquois lost only ten in the (Jobat, Relatio Historic*, p. 87 ; Bres- attack : Relation de la Nouvelle sani, Breve Relatione, p. 107 ; Tan- France, 1649, p. 10. For the full ner, Societas Militans, p. 533 ; Gar- iletailn of the loss of St. Ignatius nier, Lettres, MS.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 219
The women and children immediately fled to the woods,' 1648. and only eighty men remained, resolved to defend them- *— y~-' selves to the last, and who would have done better to reserve themselves for a better opportunity. The town was, indeed, pretty well intrenched, and the first ap- proaches of the enemy, who came close on the three fugi- tives, cost him dear. He was even twice repulsed ; but under cover of a heavy fire of musketry, which brought down the bravest of the besieged, a division of the Iro- quois attacked a point in the palisade, and effecting a breach, entered the intrenchment, leading on the whole force. Then it became a massacre, and all the Hurons were soon hora de combat.'
They had with them Fathers John de Brebeuf and Fathered* Gabriel Lallemant, a nephew of Father Charles and Md°L»u«. Jerome Lallemant, of whom we have spoken ; and they "unt uken' had been unable to induce either of them to seek a place of safety. Yet it would have been better had they sep- arated, and Father de Brebeuf used his authority to oblige his companions to follow those who fled ; but the recent example of Father Daniel, and the danger in which a number of catechumens were of dying unbaptized, made both believe that they should not leave them. They accordingly took post, one at each extremity of the line of attack, always in the most exposed spots, engaged solely in baptizing the dying and encouraging the combatants to have God only in view.
At last all the Hurons were killed or taken, and the two missionaries were in the number of the latter. The vic- tors then set fire to the cabins, and returned, with their prisoners and all the booty, to St. Ignatius, where they
1 To the number of over five ban- thirty IroqaoU were killed and many
dred : Relation de la Nouv. France, wounded : ll>., p. 11. The flame* of
1040, p. 11. St. Louis were distinctly seen by the
1 St. Louis wu but one league missionaries at St. Mary's, which
distant : Relation de hi Nouvelle was only a league distant : Ib. ;
France, 1649, p. 10. In the assault, Creusins, Hist. Canadensis, p. 888.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. had left their provisions and a reserve corps to cover their retreat in case of repulse. As the sound of these two attacks had drawn a number of Huron warriors to the ground, the next two days were spent in skirmishes, the issue of which varied greatly, and especially near St. Mary's, which was only a league from St. Louis.
This was a pretty populous town, many Frenchmen residing there with the missionaries, and a careful watch being always kept. Nevertheless, two hundred Iroquois approached on the 17th, to see what face they made ; but, advancing somewhat too far, they fell into an ambuscade. Many were killed, several taken, and the rest pursued to St. Louis, where the main body was encamped. The Hurons, ignorant of this, were in turn taken by surprise. "When they least expected it they found themselves con- fronted by eight hundred men, and no means of escape left. Yet they did not lose heart. They fought all day ; and, in spite of the inequality of numbers, the advantage was for a long time on the Huron side. But at last, spent with weariness, unable to wield their arms, reduced to a handful, and most of them wounded, they were all made prisoners.
They were the bravest men of the nation,1 and great was the consternation at St. Mary's when their defeat became known. Fears were even entertained that the place could not resist an assault if the enemy attempted it ; and the whole of the ensuing day passed in anxiety and alarm, the more founded, as the Iroquois were actu- ally approaching. To avert the threatened misfortune they had recourse to Heaven, and invoked St. Joseph,'
; ' The Hurons who sallied out Louis and stormed it, taking thirty
•were Atinniaoenten or Bears, the prisoners. Here they intrenched,
elite of the Christians of the towns and held it till all were killed or
of the Conception and Magdalen, taken. The Iroquois lost nearly one
Their skirmishers in front were hundred : Relation de la Nouvelle
routed by the Iroquois, with loss ; France, 1649, p. 12 ; Gobat, Relatio
but they drove the Iroquois behind Historica, p. 79.
the still standing palisade of St. 3 Creuxius, Hist. Canad., p. 543.
J©i»H IDS BKXIBSU/,
FOUffUJSR Of TffK ffURQtf Jf£S£KW.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
whoso festival occurred on the following day.' Nor were 1649. the vows of the afflicted suppliants unheard. On the '— "~ T~"~' morning of the 19th tidings came that the Iroqnois had retreated in disorder, as though seized with a panic terror. But the joj inspired by so sudden a retreat was, ere long, changed into mourning, by the afflicting intelligence received of the two missionaries who had been taken on the 16th.
From St. Ignatius (to which, as already stated, they Fstbtnd* were first conducted) they were led back to St. Louis,' and iu>d L»u»- there received as prisoners of war usually are. They spared them the less, inasmuch as their sentence was passed, and it was resolved to carry them no further. Father de Brebeuf, whom twenty years of toil well adapted to stifle all natural sentiments ; a mental character of a firmness beyond proof ; a virtue nurtured in- the ever-
' Relation de la N. F., 1049, p. 13; Oobat, Kelatio Hiitorica, p. 83.
1 There seems no authority for this. Bressani (Breve Relatione. pp. 109, 110) and Crenxius (Historia Ca- nadensiH, p. 638) say they died at St. Ignatius. Father Charles Oar- nier, in a letter of April 25, 1649, say* the Iroquoi* took the mission- aries to their fort, a league or go from St. Louis. The bodies of the missionaries were carried to St. Mary's by Francis Malherbe, after- wards a Jesuit lay brother : Cotem- porary Circular in Rapport sur les Missions du Diocese de Quebec, No. 17, p. 53. They were buried on Sunday, the 21st of March: Rela- tion, 1049, p. 15; Uobat, Relatio Histories, p. 114. Their remains were subsequently removed to Que- bec ; and the head of Father Bre- beuf, incased in a silver bust, is t-till preserved at the Hotel Dieu in that city, and doubtless a portrait, as it Is said to hare been sent by his fam- ily. The engraving is from a care-
ful sketch of this bust, made by the Rev. Felix Martin, S. J. John de Brebeuf — called by the Hnroni Echon — was born at Bayrax, in Normandy, March 25, 1593, of a noble family. He entered the So- ciety of Jesus at Rouen, Oct. 5, 1617, and was ordained in 1622. He came to Canada June 19, 1625, and was on the Huron mission from 1624 to 1629, from 1634 to 1641, and from 1641 to his death. He wrote a Hu- ron catechism (published separately and in Champlain), a Huron gram- mar, two Relations, and letters pub- lished in Canyon, Doc. Im'dite, vol. xii . For his life, see Alegambe, Tan- ner, Societal Mtlitans, p. 538 ; Bres- mni, Breve Relatione, p. 107 ; ReL de la Nonvelle France, 1649, p. 17; Uobat, Relatio Histories, p. 128 ; also a manuscript of 1652, "Memoirea touchant les Vertus des Peres de None, Jogues, Daniel, Brebenf, Lalle- maiit. Gamier, et Chabanrl." There is an unpublished life by Father Felix Martin.
222 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. proximate view of a cruel death, and carried so far as to make it the object of his most ardent desires ; warned, moreover, by more than one heavenly token that his vows were heard, laughed alike at their threats and the torture itself : but the sight of his beloved neophytes, cruelly treated before his eyes, shed deep bitterness over the joy which he felt on seeing his hopes realized.'
Hi a companion, who had but just entered the apostolic career — to which he brought more courage than strength, and who was of a sensitive and delicate constitution — was especially, to his last sigh, a great subject of grief and anxiety to Father de Brebeuf. The Iroquois knew well, at once, that they had to deal with a man who would not gratify them by the least exhibition of weakness ; and as though fearful that he would impart his intrepidity to others, they, after a time, separated him from the mass of prisoners, made him ascend a scaffold alone, and fell upon him in such a manner that they seemed beside them- selves with rage and despair.
All this did not prevent the servant of God from speak- ing in a loud voice — sometimes to the Hurons, who no longer saw, though they heard him ; sometimes to his tor- turers, whom he exhorted to fear the wrath of Heaven, if they continued to persecute the adorers of the true God. This liberty astonished the savages, and they were shocked by it, accustomed as they were to endure the bravado of their prisoners on similar occasions. They wished to silence him, and failing, cut off his lower lip and the ex- tremity of his nose, applied burning torches all over his body, burnt his gums, and finally ran a red-hot iron down his throat.'
The invincible missionary, seeing himself deprived of
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1649, pp. 14, 15 ; Creuiius, Hwtoria
1649, p. 15 ; Memoire touchant lee Canadensis, p. 539 ; Gobat, Relatio
vertus des Peres de Noue, etc., MS. ; Historica, p. 103. But there is no
Gobat, Narratio Historica, p. 87. allusion to the hot iron being thrust
5 Relation de la Nouvelle France, down his throat.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCR 223
speech by this last stroke, maintained an assured counte- 1649. nance, and so firm a look, that he still seemed to give the — »— -' law to his enemies. A moment after, his companion was brought to him in a state capable of moving a heart like his, as tender and compassionate for others' ills as he was insensible to his own. The young religious had been first stripped naked, and then, after being tortured for a time, had been wrapped from head to foot in fir-bark, to which they now prepared to set fire.
As soon as he perceived the frightful condition to which Father de Brebeuf had been reduced, he shuddered, then addressed him in the words of the apostle : " We have been made a spectacle to the world, to angels and to men" (1 Col. iv. 9). Father de Brebeuf replied by a gentle inclination of the head ; and at that moment Father Lal- lemant, finding himself alone, ran to throw himself at his feet, respectfully kissed his wounds, and conjured him to redouble his prayers to the Almighty, in order to obtain for him patience and faith, which, as he added with much confusion, he saw every moment at the point of escaping him. He was instantly seized again, and fire applied to the bark with which he was covered.1
His executioners stopped for a time to enjoy the pleas- ure of seeing him burn slowly, and hear the sighs and groans which he could not help uttering. Then they left him for a season to heat hatchets red-hot, and making them into a collar, placed them on the neck of Father de Brebeuf. But this new torture did not shake the holy martyr's constancy more than the others had done ; and as the savages sought some new torment, to endeavor to crush a courage which maddened them, an apostate Huron cried out to pour boiling water on the heads of the two
1 Both were enveloped In bark, mant do not appear in the Relation*,
which was set on fire : Relation, The news of the death of Daniel,
1649, p. 14 ; C'reuxius, HUtoria C'a- Brebeuf, and Laleniant reached Qne-
nadensid, pp. 589, 540. Some of the bee, July 20. 1649 : Journal of the
details here given as to Father Lale- Superior.
224 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. missionaries, in punishment for casting cold water on the heads of others, and thereby causing all the miseries of his nation. The Iroquois relished the counsel. Water was heated, and slowly poured over the heads of the two confessors of Christ.
Meanwhile, the dense smoke which rose from the bark in which Father Lallemaut was wrapped filled his mouth, and for a time he was unable to articulate a single word. His bonds being consumed, he raised his hands to heaven, to implore the help of Him who is the strength of the weak ; but they beat his hands down again with heavy blows of ropes. At last, when the two bodies were all one wound, this spectacle, far from horrifying the Iroquois, only put them in a good humor. They said to one an- other that the flesh of the French must be good, and they slashed off large shoes from both and ate them. Then adding mockery to cruelty, they said to Father de Bre- beuf : " You assured us, but a moment since, that the more we suffer on earth the more happy we shall be in heaven. Out of friendship for you we study to increase your sufferings, and you will be indebted to us for it." '
Some moments after they took off his scalp, and, as he still breathed, a chief opened his side ; and as the blood welled copiously out, all the savages ran up to drink it. Then the same one who laid him open, seeing the heart, tore it out and devoured it.
Father de Brebeuf was of the diocese of Bayeux, and uncle to the translator of Lucan's Pharsalia. He was of commanding stature, and, notwithstanding his extreme abstinence and twenty years of a most painful apostleship, he was quite corpulent. His life was a constant heroism ; his death, the astonishment of his very executioners.'
As soon as he had expired, Father Lallemaut was led back to the cabin where his martyrdom had com-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, * Relation de la Nonvelle France, 1649, p. 14 1649, p. 25.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. ' 226
menced.1 It is not even certain whether he remained near 1649. Father de Brebeuf till the latter breathed his last sigh. He N-~v-— ' had been brought there only to weaken his companion and D««th or bend, if possible, that hero's courage. It is, at least, authenticated by the testimony of several Iroquois, who were actors in that tragic scene, that Father de Brebeuf died on the 16th, and was only three hours at the stake ; while the torture of Father Lallemant lasted seventeen hours, so that he died only on the 17th.
Be that as it may, as soon as he re-entered his cabin, he received a hatchet-stroke under the left ear, which clove open his skull and dashed out his brains. An eye was then plucked out, and a burning coal put in its stead.
Tliis is all that is known of what he underwent till he expired — all who witnessed his death contenting them- selves with saying that his executioners outdid each other in cruelty. They added, that from time to time he uttered shrieks capable of piercing the hardest hearts, and that he sometimes seemed beside himself ; but that he was instantly seen to rise above pain, and offer his sufferings to God with admirable fervor. Thus the flesh was often weak, and ready to yield ; but the spirit was ever ready to raise it up, and sustained it to the end.'
Father Lallemant was a native of Paris, where both his father and grandfather had held the office of lieutenant- criminel. He was extremely thin, and had only been six mouths in New France. He died in his thirty-ninth year.'
1 The Relation has nothing of and followed his uncle* to Canada,
this. He arrived at Quebec, Sept. 20,
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1046. but was on the Huron mission
1649 (p. 15), and Gobat (Relatio His- only from Aug. 6, 1648 : Journal of
torica. pp. 106-12) say both eyes. Superior of Jesuit*, July and August,
They describe the bodies as found, 1648. His Indian name was Ati-
which gave the best testimony of ronta. He signed his name both
the cruelties practised. Lalemant and Lalement, although
' Father (labrifl Lalemant was tin- other members of the family
born Oct. 31, 1610. He entered the used the first form. That of Charts-
Society of Jesus, March 24, 1630, voix (Lallemant) has no authority.
VOL. II.— 15
226 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. After such severe checks, the Hurons utterly despaired N— ~Y— ^ of being able to hold their ground ; and in less than a D»p«rsion week all the towns around St. Mary's were deserted.' Of Huron*, most there remained only the site which they had occu- pied, the inhabitants having fired them as they retreated, some to the forests, others to the neighboring tribes. As those who remained at St. Mary's durst not go out, because they had no doubt but that the Iroquois still kept rthe field, famine was soon felt in the town, and there was no apparent means of a speedy remedy. This gave the missionaries the idea of gathering the scattered remnants of the nation in some quite remote spot, that they might * live exempt from fear of being disturbed there by an
enemy whom they were no longer in a position to resist.' Most retire r They^proposed Manitouline Island, which lies north of h's isT- Lake Huron. This island is about forty leagues long from Dd' east to west, but very narrow across. The shores abound In fish ; the soil in many places very good ; and as it was not inhabited, it contained an immense quantity of deer. Still the missionaries' proposition was not received, for the Hurons could not bring themselves to so distant an exile from their country, which they were loth to abandon, Lthough without courage to defend ; and the missionaries were obliged to yield to their wishes and follow them to St. Joseph's Island, which is but a short distance from the mainland where they were.1
This transmigration took place on the 25th of May ;4 and in a short time there rose on this little island a town of a ^hundred cabins — some of eight, others of ten, fires — with- out counting a very great number of families scattered in
1 St. Mary's was situated on the nadensis, p. 557 ; Qobat, Relatio
River Wye, near Penetanguishene : Historica, p. 113. Chanmonot, in
Martin's Bressani, p. 90. his letter of June 1, 1649, gives the
* Bressani, Breve Relatione, p. Indian name, AhSendoe. According 122; Relation de la Nouvelle France, to Rev. F. Martin, it is the present 1649, p. 25 ; Gobat, Rel. Hist., p. 199. Charity or Christian Island, near
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, Penetanguishene.
1649, p. 27 ; Creuxins, Historia Ca- 4 May 15 : Rel. de N. F., 1649, p. 30.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 227
the neighborhood and along the shore, for greater ease in 1649. hunting and fishing.' The summer wore away peacefully '•— v— -' enough ; fervor grew up amid this transplanted Christian Tb«ir fcr- flock ; and the missionaries had the consolation of baptiz- ing as many as three thousand idolaters. But as they I -I .• i n t • -t 1 little or nothing, as the fishery was unproductive, and the resources of the chase soon exhausted, they had not gone far into the autumn before provisions began to fail. They were soon after reduced to extremities which horrify us. It is enough to mention that they were driven to dis- inter half-decayed bodies, to devour them ; that mothers ate the babes that starved to death on their breasts ; and children did not shrink from feeding on the bodies of those to whom they owed their being.1
A famine, productive of such terrible scenes, could not but entail great diseases. In fact, maladies broke out of a contagions character, and the more destructive among people who cannot control themselves sufficiently to avoid contagion. But it was amid this very desolation that the evangelical laborers gathered the most precious fruits of their labors. All these scourges and horrors of death ever before their eyes, found among the Christians only submissive hearts. There was not one of these neophytes who wavered the least in the most perfect resignation to the orders of Heaven — who did not kiss with respect, and even with thanksgiving, the hand that smote him.'
These are the virtues to which the Indians are most inclined by their calm and patient character. Their natu- ral sloth and indolence dim somewhat the lustre, and they
1 On leaving St. Mary's, Jane 14, ins, HiitorU Canadeniu, p. 560 ;
1649 (Relation, 1650, p. 3), the mis- Brenani, Breve Kelatione, p. 124.
tionariee set fire to all their mission- For an account of the suffering*,
buildings, totally destroying the see also Chaumonot, Autobiogra-
fruit of their long labors of nine or phie, pp. ti'J-4.
ten rears : Oreuxius, Historia Cana- ' Relation, 1650, p. 4 ; Bressani,
densis, p. 557 ; Relation de la Nou- Breve Relatione, p. 125 ; Canyon,
TeUe France, 1649, p. 80 ; 1650, p. 2. Documents Im'ditt, xii., p. 240 ;
* Relation, 1650, p. 4 ; Carayon. Crenxius, Historia CanadeniU, p.
Documents Inedita, p. 248 ; Creux- 561.
228 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. are perhaps the only Christians to whom it could be said, *•— ~v— -^ " Do for self-preservation what you are doing for the sal- vation of your souls." Yet it is somewhat marvellous to see men, just fresh from their old prejudices against Chris- tianity, not relapsing into them on an occasion so apt to throw them back ; and their faith must have been solid indeed to stand unshaken amid so many disasters, which the enemies of the gospel never failed to ascribe to its introduction.
Bashnessof To crown their misfortunes, it was heard that three of st. John! hundred Iroquois were in the field ; and as it was not known in which direction they would turn their arms, the sachems of the nation sent in all directions to warn the people to be on their guard. This advice especially regarded the Tionnontatez Hurons,1 who, after the evacu- ation of St. Mary's, were most exposed to the incursions of the enemy. Their canton was one of the most popu- lous, the single town which bore the name of St. John containing more than six hundred families. The enter- prise of the three hundred Iroquois was there regarded as a bravado ; and to show that they did not fear them, all who could carry arms took the field in search of them. The enemy, soon informed of this imprudent step, re- solved to take advantage of it. Adopting a false route, they advanced by a circuitous march, and arrived in sight of St. John's at daybreak.* Father Charles Garnier and Father Natalis Chabanel had for some time directed a
1 This tribe, the Tionontates — or, sani, Breve Relations, p. 6. They
as our early writers give it, Dinon- raised and sold tobacco, whence the
dadic-s — were not called Hurons by French called them Petuns or Petu-
the early French. Sagard, in his Die- neux. Their two towns were, Ekaren-
tionary (verbo Nations) gives them niondi or St. Mathias, and Oharita or
as a distinct nation, " Les Petuueui, St. John the Evangelist : Letter of
Quieunontat^ronons." See also His- Father C. Garnier, Aug. 15, 1648. toire du Canada, p. 209. Their * Creuxius (Historia Canadensis,
country lay in the mountains (Quieu- p. 564) says that the attack was
noiitoitte means mountain), on the made towards evening. Bressaui
shores of Lake Huron, thirty-five or (Breve Relatione, p. 114) and the
forty miles from St. Mary's : Bros- Relation de la Nouvelle France,
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
numerous Christian congregation there ; but two days 1649. before, the latter had been called elsewhere, and Father '-—*—' Oarnier remained alone. He was actually visiting the Their town cabins, when the Iroquois rawed the warwhoop. Seeing "v OuT^o- at a glance that all was lost, he first ran to the chapel, qooU' which he found full of panic-stricken Christians. He told these that there was no safety except in flight. He ex- horted them to lose no time in bootless deliberation or unavailing tears. He said that he would himself go and die to facilitate their escape, and that as long as he had a breath of life he would not abandon those who should need his ministry ; and he begged them never to forget the lessons he had given them.1
He immediately went out and returned to the cabins, Heraio some of which were already on fire. He baptized all the Father o«r- catechumens whom he met, and at last reached the open square, where naught but dead and wounded were to be seen. Some implored him to retire, but this counsel he utterly rejected. He remained amid the carnage, animat- ing his beloved neophytes by his presence and words to die well. The Iroquois seemed for a time to admire and respect him ; but at last one of the savages discharged his musket at him. One ball entered the lower part of his chest ; the other, grazing the belly, sank into his thigh. He at once fell senseless, and his murderer, believing him dead, stripped him. Recovering some time after, and hearing no one near, he raised his head ; and perceiving, some ten paces from him, a Huron who was breathing his last, he made an effort to rise and go to absolve him, but he fell instantly. Again he rose, but he was unable to take a step ; and at that moment an Iroquois ran up, who twice sank his tomahawk into his vitals, and he expired on the spot, in the act, and, so to say, on the very bosom, of charity.'
1650 (p. 8) nuJce the error of the Pe- Creoxlu*, Hurt. Canad.. p. 564 ; Dm* tuns to have been in not waiting. sani, Breve RcUtiona, p. 114.
1 Relation de la N. F., 1650, p. 9 ; ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
230 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1649. Father Garnier was a native of Paris, and to enter the
*— • ~Y— ' apostolic career had sacrificed a brilliant fortune, resisting
Death of the tears of his family, who loved him tenderly. He made
Chsb»nei. this sacrifice too generously not to merit from God the
grace of consummating it in the most heroic manner.1
Father Chabanel had been, as we have seen, recalled from St. John's two days before the desolation of that town, the motive of his recall being that the Superior did not wish to have two missionaries at the same time in a place so exposed as that to the inroads of the Iroquois. But they were both equally ripe for heaven ; and if one, by obedience, escaped the steel of the Iroquois, this very obedience obtained for him death in another form, which, while it possessed less lustre in the eyes of men, was per- haps none the less precious before Him who judges accord- ing to the dispositions of our heart, and who accounts no less what we have desired to do for his sake than what we really accomplish and suffer.
Father Chabanel left St. John's on the 5th or 6th of December, accompanied by some Christians. The night that followed Father Gander's death surprised them in a wood ; and all his fellow-travellers having fallen asleep, he heard the yells of Iroquois and the death-song of Huron prisoners. He awakened his party, who needed no second counsel to escape. He attempted to follow them, but not being as fleet of foot, soo"n lost sight of them ; and from that time it was never known absolutely what became of him. Some time after, a Huron apostate said that he had met him on the bank of a river, which he helped him to cross, and that they then parted ; but there were subsequently many grounds for suspecting the wretch
1660, p. 9 ; Creuiius, Hietoria Cana- of the members having entered re-
deneis, p. 565 ; Carayon, Doc. Ined., ligious orders. After a holy youth,
rii., p. 248 ; Memoiree, etc., p. 247. he entered the Society of Jesus,
1 Father Charles Garnier was born Sept. 5, 1624, and throughout his
at Paris, in 1605, of a distinguished life seems to have impressed alike
and eminently pious family, several the cultivated white man and the
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
231
vie*
of having killed him, either to secure his effects, or out 1649. ofmere hatred to religion.1 v— •v™-'
! ^While the Iroquois were thus desolating the Huron Some Ha- church, a new storm, excited by Hurons themselves, had °ipin° well-nigh swept away the remaining pastors, and with *5iui!!on- thfiu all hope of any restoration of Christianity. Idolaters of that nation, which still formed the majority in a town to which the missionaries had given the name of St. I Matthew, concluding that the only means of putting an end to their misfortunes was to rid themselves of the preachers of the gospel, resolved on the step. The better to carry oat their design, they undertook to bring Chris- tians into it, and with this view declared that they had seen belts, sent by the governor-general of the French to the Iroquois cantons, to urge them to drive the Hurons to extremity — assuring them that the missionaries who were among them would deliver the Hurons up into their hands.1 '
After what had occurred, the calumny had not even a show of probability. But is this always required of
1650.
untutored Indian with a sense of lii.t more than ordinary holiness. After his arrival In Canada, in 1686, he was at once sent to Upper Cana- da, and spent all the rest of his life on the Huron mission, entirely dis- engaged from earthly things, and devoted to his great work : Creux- ius, Historia Canadensis, pp. 567-78 ; Bressani, Breve Relatione, p. 114; Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1650, pp. 9-15 ; Tanner, Societas Mllitans, p. 539 : Memoires BUT les Yertus, MS. : Lettres Inedites da P. Charles Gamier, MS. ; Alt-gam be, Heroes, p. 659 ; Drews' Fasti, IT., p. 295 : Chaumonot, Autobiographic ; Euloginm P. C. Gamier, 1649, MS. ; Ragucneau, Vie de la M. Catherine de St. Angustin, p. 54. His Indian name was Ouracha,
1 This missionary was, as subse- quently proved, killed by Louis Honareenhaz. a Huron apostate : Ragueneau, Memoir?* sur les Ver- tus, etc. Father Natalis Chabanel was a native of the south of France, born In 1613. He entered the So- ciety of Jesus at the age of seven- teen. He was sent to Canada in 1643, and labored among Hurons and Algonquin*— overcoming an Intense repugnance to the Indians and their life: Relation de la Nouv. France, 1650, p. 16 ; Creuxlus, Historia Ca- nadensis, pp. 578-8 ; Brewani, Breve Relatione, p. 115 ; Martin's edition, p. 275 ; Ragueneau, Vie de la M Catherine de St. Augustin, p. 54.
' K'-lation de la Nouvelle France, 1650, p. 19 ; CreuxiuB, Historia G*. p.580.
232 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1650. calumniators before crediting their words? And have
"— Y~—' the most polished nations a right to reproach savages on
this point? There is, then, no very great reason to
wonder that these words made an impression on people
who no longer knew to what to ascribe the misfortunes
that overwhelmed them. Moreover, those who circulated
the reports took care to cloak their design with a coloring
of zeal for the public good ; and in fact, they asked of
those whom they seduced only not to oppose them.
The firm- A few days after, two missionaries' arrived at St.
ness of two . . ,
of the Fa- Matthew, and on entering the village were much surprised
there dig- , ,, , .
concerts to hear the cries usually made when pnsoners were ' iures.ea' brought in. They kept, however, an unmoved counte- nance, and none durst lay hands on them. The conspira- tors contented themselves with hooting, which the mis- sionaries despised. They visited all the cabins, and heard all that had been said about them. They saw the great- ness of the peril in which they were, but betrayed no alarm. This assurance, and the conviction felt by many that the God of the Christians had bound the hands of their enemies, opened the eyes of the most prejudiced, and before the close of the day no less than seventeen sought baptism.' Bingniar in- From time to time, Heaven gave striking manifestations
terpooitions , , . ., .
of Proyi- of visible protection over the pastors and their nocks. A behalf of Huron, taken in battle, was on the point of being bound Christians. to be burned He fervently asked God to be
delivered from that terrible form of death, and his prayer was instantly heard. He was unbound, and his life spared, to the great astonishment of all. Even those who spared him could not explain why they had done so.' A good old woman of St. Joseph's Island — who, of all the prayers that they had endeavored to teach her, had
1 Father Leonard Garreau and Fa- ' Relation, 1650, p. 20. The seven-
ther Adrian Grelon. The latter Bub- teen -were not baptized the first day.
sequently, in China, met one of his The missionaries were not so rapid.
old Huron flock ; Journal, p. 30. 8 Peter Outoure' ; Rel., 1650, p. 21.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 233
been able to retain only these words, " Jesus, have mercy 1650. on me'" — while sailing on Lake Huron, was overtaken by such intense cold, that all who accompanied her died. She said her ordinary prayer with all the fervor of her heart ; and she afterwards declared, that every time she repeated it, a sensible warmth animated her, which lasted till relief came. If this result is not attributed to a miracle, we must recognize in it a fervor of mind strong enough to act on the senses, which is one of the great marvels of grace.'
r Famine, and sickness, its inevitable sequent, had driven New mi*- t his woman and many others, persons of every age and the Huron*, sex, to leave St. Joseph's Isle in midwinter. They sup- posed the ice strong enough to bear them ; but it broke under them, drowning many, while others perished of cold. Several other bands took refuge in out-of-the-way places, where they thought they would be secure against the pursuit of the Iroquois ; but these savages discovered their retreat, and committed a fearful carnage among those wretched people, who, happily for them, had not left their island without putting in order the affairs of their conscience.'
Those who remained at St. Joseph's, not amounting to M»DJ d» three hundred in number, learning the sad fate of their Quebec, brethren, had no doubt but that the Iroquois would attack them without delay ; and after holding many councils on their best course to adopt in order to avoid the same fate, they came to this conclusion. The most important men went to Father Ragueneau, who then governed the mis- sion, and told him that in the deplorable state to which they were reduced they could see but one single means of preventing the total ruin of their nation.4 This was, that
1 Jexxu Uitenr. p. 579 ; Ragneneau, Letter of March
> Relation de la Nonvelle France, 13, 1650, in Canyon, xii., ]<
1650, p. 23. ' Relation de la N. P., 1650, p. 24 ;
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, Breaani, Breve Relatione, p. 125 ;
1650, p. 24 ; Crcuiiua, Hist. Canad., CreoxiuB. Hist. Canadeneia, p. 584.
234 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1650. the Fathers should put themselves at their head, unite all
~~" •"~f—- ' the dispersed Hurons who could be got together, and lead
Emigrate to them to Quebec, where, under the protection of the French
fort, and of their father, Ononthio, they could peacefully
cultivate the lands that might be assigned to them, and
where they would only think of employing in God's service
the days that were spared to them.1
Before replying, Father Ragueneau wished to consult the other missionaries who were in the neighborhood, and all agreed with the Indians. This seemed, in fact, the only resource left to this ill-starred people. All the coun- try was in the utmost consternation. Nothing was to be seen but towns destroyed or abandoned, already begin- ing to swarm with wild beasts, whose place in the forests and mountains the men, women, and children had gone to occupy. There was not, indeed, a moment to lose, if they wished to save the sad remnants of a nation once so flour- ishing.'
They accordingly began their march1 without further deliberation, and without very well knowing how to live by the way ; but famine stared them equally in the face if they remained in the island or the woods. The danger, too, of falling into the hands of some Iroquois party was equally great ; for it is true that the smallest force of war- riors would have sufficed to cut to pieces all this confused multitude, panic-stricken and reduced, by hardships and disease, to extreme weakness. They chose the route by the great river of the Outouais ; and although fresh trails of Iroquois were met day by day,4 they were so fortunate as to escape being discovered by those savages. About midway these poor exiles met Father Bressani, who,
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' They left St. Joseph's bland,
1650, p. 24 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- June 10, 1650— Bressani (Breve Re-
nadensis, p. 585 ; Bressani, Breve latione) says, in May. They reached
Relatione, p. 126. Quebec, July 28, 1650 : Relation de
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, la Nouvelle France, 1650, p. 28.
1650, p. 25 ; Creuxiua, Historia Ca- * The country was almost a dee-
nadensis, p. 586. ert : Relation, 1650, p. 26.
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE. 235
having wintered at Quebec, was returning, pretty well »6$o. attended, to his old mission, utterly unconscious of its v— •*•—- ' fate.1 P~««>of
Atiroota.
He had been escorted for some distance by forty Frenchmen, but a few days after the departure of the escort, had been surprised at night by ten Iroquois. Atironta, a famous Huron chief, a brave man and a good Christian, was killed on the spot, and the missionary received three arrow wounds while he was running around to rouse his party ; but the Iroquois having been tardy in effecting their retreat, were at once surrounded, six of them killed, two taken, and two escaped. The Hurons, who lost seven of their party, continued their march, mortified to have been thus surprised by a handful of ad- venturers.'
They were still more alarmed when they learned the How th«j desolation of the country. They saw that their best course was to retrace their steps with the other party, and so they did. They all arrived together at Montreal, where nothing was forgotten to retain them ; but they did not deem themselves secure enough there, and, after two days' rest, re-embarked, and reached Quebec on the 28th of July, 1650. Mr. d'Aillebout gave them a cordial wel- come ; but there were so few persons of means in the colony, that after the communities and some of the chief men of the town had undertaken to support a number of families, in proportion to their ability, there remained more than two hundred souls, with no resource but Provi- dence. Nor did Providence fail them. They subsisted, for a long time, without its being possible to conceive what enabled them to subsist.' J
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, 26 ; Creoxitu, HUt. Canad., p. 588 ;
1650, p. 27 ; Crenxiua, Hist Canad , Belmont, Hiatoire da Canada, p. 5. p. 987 ; Ragueneau, Vie de la M. ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
Catherine de St Augnatin, p 54. 1650, p. 28 ; Crenzius, Hwtoria fa-
* The escort did not leave Bres- nadensfo, p. 589 ; Juchereau, Hi*-
sani : Martin's Broamil, p. 43 ; Rela- toire de 1' Hotel Dieu, p. 70 ; Lea Ur-
tion de la Nouvelle France, 1650, p. sulines de Quebec, 1., p. 143.
236 HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE.
1650. The fate of those who could not bring themselves tc v-~v— ' abandon their native land was very sad. Some threw The fate of themselves into the hands of neighboring nations, on 6§t' whom they soon drew the arms of the Iroquois.1 Others went towards the English, and settled in what is now called Pennsylvania.' A large party, drawn by the Iro- quois into an ambuscade, under pretext of treating with them, detecting the perfidy of those savages, met strata- gem by a stratagem, which succeeded. They surprised those who expected to take them by surprise, killed many, then went and encamped on Manitoualin Island, whence, soon after, they descended to Quebec, to join their coun- trymen.'
1650-1. Almost all the inhabitants of the two towns of St. Michael and St. John the Baptist took a very perilous course, which was, nevertheless, attended with success. They voluntarily presented themselves to the Iroquois, offered to live with them, and were well received.' At last the enemy, knowing that many were wandering up and down, unable to settle anywhere, set the young men after them. Almost all were taken. No quarter was given. And to show how far the terror of the Iroquois name had seized all the nation, not only the Huron country, but also the whole course of the Ottawa Eiver, which had been so thickly peopled a few years before, were almost entirely deserted, without its being possible to say what had become of most of the people.'
At least the Hurons who had taken refuge at Quebec would, it was hoped, be beyond the reach of the miseries
1 These were the Attiwandaronk France, 1651, p. 5 ; Creuxius, Histo-
or Neuters : Creuxius, p. 589 ; Re- ria CanadensiB, p. 590.
lation de la Nouv. France, 1651, p. 4. 4 Relation, 1651, p. 4 ; Creuxius,
8 Among the Snsquehannas or An- Hist. Canad., p. 590. These formed
dastes, later known as Conestogas : the nation. Their town, in the Sen-
Creuxins, p. 590 ; Relation de la eca country, was Gandougarae.
Nouvelle France, 1651, p. 4. 5 Relation, 1651, p. 5. The Xipis-
' This party was led by Stephen sings were nearly destroyed : Rela-
Annaotaha : Relation de la Nouvelle tion, 1650, p. 26.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 237
which overwhelmed the others. Nothing was apparently 1650-1. easier than to put them in a condition to have the neces- "—• "v— ' sities of life without becoming a burden to the colony, Tb« Ho- which might in time have drawn some advantage from them ; and Father Jerome Lallcmant, the superior-general of the missions, went to France1 expressly to consult the directors of the Canada Company in regard to their case. 'He warmly represented the importance of not allowing so many Christians to perish, after they had thrown them- selves into our bosom ; the facility of providing for their support ; and the advantage to be derived, both for the increase of trade and the defence of the colony.
He spoke in vain. None listened. The consequence Tb«ir want was that, as we shall soon see, the French colony fell into meet, such contempt, that for several years the Iroquois acquired the same ascendency over them that we had allowed them to assume over our allies. The latter, on their side, acted badly. A vertigo seemed to seize these Indians. No sooner were they beneath the guns of Quebec than they passed at a bound from the depths of discouragement to the height of presumption. They thought themselves now invincible ; and although they had very few warriors among them, they proposed nothing less than retaliating on the Iroquois all the injury they had received.
They induced the inhabitants of Sylleri to join them, and formed a war-party, before which they imagined the Five Cantons would never stand.' The Algonqnins of Three Rivers, and some Hurons who happened to be at the same place, also swelled the force. This army marched against the Mohawks ; and as they were all Christians, they gave their expedition the air of a crusade by announcing that they took up arms only to force the implacable enemy of Christianity to retire from the lands
1 Lalcmant wiled, Nor. 2, 1650, on ' Exaggerated. See Relation de
the Chasseur, with BreMani and some la N. F., 1650, p. 30. It was an Al-
brothers : Raguenean, Journal, Nov. gonquln war-party, tinder John Ou-
2, 1650 ; Relation, 1050, p. 48. tagonalnoo.
238 HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE.
1650-1. of the faithful, and thus enable the missionaries to make
--"v— -^ true religion flourish.
Disastrous As they approached the village where they resolved to in which ' make their first attack, a Huron and an Algonquin were
Christians detached as scouts. They separated, and the Huron fall- ing into the hands of an Iroquois party, without hesita- tion betrayed his faith, his nation, and his allies, to save his life. " Brethren," said he, on approaching the enemy, "I have long sought some of you. I set out for my country, where I know the Iroquois and Hurons are now only one people, and have only one land. To travel more securely I joined an Algonquin party, which I met on the war-path against you. I left it, two days ago, to warn you to be on your guard."
The traitor did more. He acted as guide to the Mo- hawks, who, advancing on the Christians, found them all asleep. They woke, indeed, only at a volley of musketry ; and as the enemy had time and opportunity to choose where to strike, the bravest of the allies lay dead on the spot, before any of the party had time to fly to arms. Yet many fought bravely, and under cover of their resistance a considerable number escaped in the woods. All the rest were killed or taken and burnt at the stake, except two, who escaped, and brought in all the details of this sad adventure.1
Aeootmt of All the other captives honored their religion, in defence
onin, burnt of which they had taken up arms ; but the most dis- 7quoi»r° tinguished among them was a young Algonquin, Joseph Onohare.' He had been brought up almost from child- hood at Sylleri, and although naturally of a hard and haughty disposition, grace and education had entirely corrected the defect, and he attained a degree of perfec- tion uncommon in the very heart of Christendom. A year before his death an event befell him which deeply im-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, apparently Louis Skandarhietse : 1650, p. 80 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- Lalemant, Journal, June 15, 1650. nadensis, p. 593. The traitor was * Onaharo.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 239
pressed those who witnessed it. He had joined a war- 1650-1. party, under a renowned chief — an idolater, however, and s— v— ' very superstitious — who would not take the field without
consulting his manitou. Onohard in vain employed every effort to divert him. The chief called a medicine-man, who put up his sweating-cabin, and had no sooner entered it than it began to shake in the most surprising manner.
The man — to whom, even, the thing appeared most extraordinary — proceeded, notwithstanding, to utter hia usual cries and howls ; but some time after he suddenly changed his tone, and culling to Onoharc, who was not far off, assailed him with furious threats. The noble Christian at once approached, and, convinced that it was the devil who spoke by the mouth of his minister, ex- claimed : " I adore Him who, out of nothing, created heaven and earth. He is my Sovereign Lord and yours ; and in spite of yourself you are compelled to acknowledge Him as such, even as I do." While still speaking, al- though there was no one near him, he felt himself struck so violently on the side that he almost lost breath and movement. Three days after, still feeling great pain, he fervently implored God to restore him. His prayer was heard, and he set out on the war-path with the rest.1
During the march another Indian, who had apparently had a bad dream, came to him one morning in great excitement, and told him that he was very sorry he had started on that expedition with him — that his obstinate refusal to consult the spirits would inevitably draw down some reverse on the party. The fervent Christian took pity on the blindness of this man, and endeavored to dis- abuse him of his errors. While they were speaking, they perceived two Iroquois, and rushed upon them. Onohar6 overtook one and killed him at a single blow. The other escaped. The young Christian then returned to his com- rade, who had not made any very earnest endeavor to
' Relation de la N. F., 1650, pp. 81, 82 ; CreuxiM, Hint Cu»»d., p. 59«.
240 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1650-1. reach the enemy, and told him that his mauitou had
>~""'v~— ' doubtless warned him against any undue exposure of his
Joseph person. " Know, then, once for all," he added, " that a
Christian who is faithful to his God fears nothing, and
that your demons can render no assistance to those who
invoke them."
It was in the closing act of this neophyte's life that he appeared the greatest. He had prepared for it by a gen- eral confession and frequent communions. From the out- set of the expedition in which he was taken, he had a presentiment that he would never return ; and as it was to battle against the enemies of God, he consoled himself with the hope of martyrdom. Filled with this idea, his joy increased at the thought of the sufferings he might have to undergo ; nor was he wanting to himself in the midst of his tortures. He constantly exhorted his com- panion to patience ; and his executioners wishing to silence him, he boldly told them that it was not in their power to prevent his publishing the praises of his God and laboring for His glory. This reply roused them to fury ; but in vain did they devise the most unheard-of tortures to force him to silence. They could not shake his courage or extort a sigh. He ceased to bless the Almighty only when he ceased to live.1
Fervor of This great defeat, and many other less important checks which followed in quick succession, caused inex- pressible grief to the missionaries and those who took an interest in the progress of the gospel and the advance- ment of the colony ; but what somewhat consoled the former .was, that the relatives and friends of those who fell in that engagement were moved by no mere affections of flesh and blood in the regret which they showed for their loss, but displayed only sentiments worthy of their religion. No murmur was heard among them against the Providence of a God who indeed put their faith and virtue
1 Relation de la N. F., 1050, p. 33 ; Creuxiua, Hist. Canad., p. 598.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE 241
to a severe test, but who showed Himself no less power- 1650-1. ful, or less a Father, by inspiring them with a heroic '— -Y— •* resignation.'
These reflections, made by the infidels themselves, con- verted many. The most stiff-necked, in the very midst of their invectives, felt suddenly changed in a manner which astonished them ; and the Iroquois had, during a whole year, an example of that great power of grace which several of them could not but recognize. They had among their prisoners a blind young Algonquin squaw; and although she was utterly incapable of rendering them any service, they let her live, without well knowing why.
A Christian, well instructed in her religion, she had the courage to assume among her conquerors the office of catechist ; and God wrought many conversions by her ministry. Some of these excited great attention, and exasperated the sachems of the village against her. She was not insensible to the danger to which her zeal exposed her, but nothing could diminish its fervor. She was seriously warned to be cautious in her proceedings ; threats were made against her, and she had every reason to fear their being carried into effect. Nothing, however, deterred her ; and God, whom she served with so much courage, continued to protect her in a manner incompre- hensible to those who, able to crush her by a word, never dared to attempt her life or cause her the least uneasiness.*
This was attested then by all who lived in New France or made any stay there, and we have even seen witnesses V/f- of it who could not be suspected of exaggeration. I have, , perhaps, dwelt a little more on these details than will please some who will read this history ; but I have deemed it necessary, in order to give a just idea of this Indian
1 Relation de U Noavelle France, • Relation de la Nourelle France,
1090, p. 33 ; Creuxios, Hiatoria Ca- 1600, p. 36 ; Creuxini, Hiatoria Ca-
nadensis. p 599. nademU, p. 899.
VOL. II —16
242 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1650-1. >, church, some writers, who saw it only in its decline, having ^— "v— -7 endeavored to dim its lustre.' Whatever may have been their motives — and I leave the judgment to Him who alone has the power and right to sound the heart — what credit can be given to the authority of men who have had no other proofs for treating as false what occurred far from them, or before their day, than the fact that they were not witnesses ?
The brandy At the time of which I speak, fervor was still every- 'glns to where very great, and told of the persecution and adver- e*d8e™'Si>r" sity which are almost always its attendants. Yet there 8°5on8.19 , began to be some disorders among the Christians who fre- ' quented Tadoussac ; and, to the shame of the Europeans, it was they who gave occasion to the disgrace, while sav- ages, scarcely baptized, used every exertion to arrest it. This was especially intoxication, for which the Indians have a tendency, which they did not know before they had means to gratify it, and of which they can scarcely be said to be masters when they have begun to form the habit.
The heads of the colony had too much religion and zeal not to oppose a trade which served as a bait to vice and fomented it ; nor were they suspected, as some of their successors have been, of desiring to swell their incomes at I the expense of religion and order. But at Tadoussac '. there were only missionaries without commandants, be- cause we had never had a permanent settlement there ; and whatever influence these religious derived from their character, their virtue, and the orders of the governor- general, they felt daily how feeble a rein an unarmed authority is against certain passions, and that the interest of religion is a motive almost incapable of touching hearts ruled by cupidity.*
1 Charlevoix alludes, probably, to toire de I'Amerique Septentrionale,
Le Clercq, Etablissement de la Foi, i., p. 303.
i., p. 533 ; La Hontan, vol. i., p. 21 2 Relation de la Nouvelle France,
and preface ; De la Potherie, Hiu- 1650, p. 40. The missionaries rtrug-
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
The evil, in a short time, made such progress that the 1650-1. Indian chiefs earnestly besought Mr. d'Aillebout to build v— v-~ a prison, to confine those who, by their scandals, would trouble the piety of their brethren.1 Besides the Mon- tagnez, who were the native inhabitants of the neighbor* hood of Tadoussac, there were also often seen, at this same post, Bersiamites, Papinachois, and Oumamioueks.' Among all these were Christians who were indebted for the first knowledge of the true God to Indian converts, and whose instruction had been completed at Tadoussac, where the missionaries never failed to be at the trading season.
Things were, in every respect, on a better footing at Three Rivers, where there was a vigilant and zealous gov- ernor, Mr. Duplessis Bochart ; where the Jesuits had a house ; and where several northern nations came down for the fur-trade. They were especially attracted by the Attikamegues, and the great examples of virtue of this good people prepared their hearts for the impressions of grace. A certain number were baptized every year, and these neophytes did not deem themselves truly Christians till they had made conquests for Christ. Moreover, they saw nothing in the conduct of the French that did not tend to edify. The preceding winter Father Dreuillettes had visited all the districts lying north of Three Rivers. He met Christians, and Christians perfectly instructed, where he did not expect to find even men. He increased the number, administered the sacraments, promised to
gled long but unsuccessfully against 1650, p. 40 ; Cieuxio*, Hietoria Ca-
the wiling of spirituous liquors to nadenais, p. 60S.
the Indian*. They succeeded, how- * The Bersiamitea are not men-
ever, oaly in drawing odium on tioned in the Relation, I860, p. 41.
themselves. See Shea, Discovery They were nest to Tadoussac, and
and Exploration of the Mississippi the Papinachoia below them, on the
Valley, p. 70 : Histoire de 1'Eau- St. Lawrence : Relation, 1G«2, p. 18.
de-Vie en Canada, Quebec, 1840, The Oumamionek lay inland, north-
p. 39. east of TadouMac : Relation de la N.
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, F., 1652, p. 20.
244
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1650-1. visit them as soon as possible, and left them1 in a diapo- ' — "v— • ' sition from which he could, he believed, derive every
hope.
Mr. de Lau- ' At last, the year 1650* — so fatal to New France by the en. almost complete destruction of the Huron nation, and by all the misfortunes that resulted from it — closed with a change of governor-general. Mr. de Lauson, one of the leading members of the Canada Company, was appointed to succeed Mr. d'Aillebout, whose three years had expired ; but he did not reach Quebec till the next year.' Mr. d'Aillebout left without regret a position in which he could only be a witness of the desolation of the colony, and to whom they afforded no means of maintaining his dignity. The new governor had always been more inter- ested than any other in the affairs of the company. It was he chiefly who had effected in England the restoration of Quebec. His piety, his uprightness, his good inten- tions were known, and he had always seemed to take a deep interest in every thing that concerned Canada.
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1650, pp. 33, 49 ; ib., 1048, pp. 27, 32 ; Creuxius, Historia Canadensis, p. 522.
1 This should be 1051. See Pro- vision de Gouverneur de la Nou- velle France pour le Sieur de Lau- zon, Jan. 17, 1651 ; Can. Doc., II., i., p. 172 ; Commission, March 20, 1651 ; ib., p. 202. Complem. des Ord., p. 16.
1 Belmont, Histoire du Canada, Quebec, 1640, p. 6. John de Lauson •was one of the leading men in the Company of New France, and, as member of the Council of State, had long taken a deep interest in the colony. In 1627 he was made in- tendant of New France. He was subsequently sent by King Louis XIII. to England, to obtain the res- titution of Quebec, after its capture by Kirk: Creuxius, Historia C'ana- densis, p. 629. He was president
and superintendent of the new com- pany (Le Clercq, Etabliesement de la Foi, vol. i., p. 433), and as such opposed the return of the Recollects : Ib., pp. 453-7. He was appointed governor, on the nomination of the company, January 17, 1651, and ar- rived at Quebec October 13, 1651 : Ragneneau, Journal ; Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1651, p. 1 ; Creui- ius, Historia Canadensis, p. 629. He was governor till 1656, when he re- turned to France and became sub- dean of the King's Council and re- sided in the cloister of Notre Dame with one of his sons, a canon there : Ferland, Histoire du Canada, p. 434 ; Memoires et Documents publies par la Soc. Hist, de Montreal, p. 83. He died at Paris, Feb. 16, 1666, aged eighty -two : Ragueneau, Vie de la Mfere Catherine, p. 320. His career in Canada was not happy.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
But he found it in a state even far more deplorable 1650-1. than Father Lallemaut had represented, and the colony was daily wasting away. The Iroquois, emboldened by their recent victories, began to regard our forts and intrenchmeuts as barriers no longer capable of stopping them. They spread in great bands through all the French settlements, and men were nowhere safe from their insults. A sad event had also just increased their insolence. One of their parties having approached Three Rivers, Duplessis Bochart, the governor, marched out against them in person. In vain representations were made against his useless exposure of his life, when all his valor was unavailing against an enemy whose chief strength is in surprise, and whom their natural agility and the neighborhood of the forests always afford a sure retreat ; and that, in fine, there was nothing to be gained in fighting men who had nothing to lose. He turned a deaf ear to all ; but he paid the penalty of his obstinacy. He was killed ; and his death not only deprived the colony of a good officer and a worthy man, but it gave new lustre to the arms of the Iroquois.1
The war which they unrelentingly continued against the feeble remnant of the Huron nation, and against every , tribe that offered them shelter, daily increased the terror of their name, and their forces increased by the number of captives whom they brought in from all parts and used to replace those of their braves who fell. At last, Sylleri, become no longer safe with palisades, had to be sur- rounded with walls, and cannon mounted there. The most fearful deserts and most impenetrable cantons of the North no longer afforded secure retreats against the rage
1 Du Pteasis Bochart Querbodo had filled important office* for over twenty years. His wife wag Elimi- nate dot Prea. As to him, see R»- gueneau, Vie de la Mere Catherine, p. 04 ; Ferland. Conn d'Hietoire, i.,
p. • 406 ; Memoirs* et Documents publics, etc., p. 87 ; Belmont, His- toire da Canada, p. 7 ; Relation de la N. P., 1653, p. 89. The party at- tacking was Oneldas, with a few Mohawks. Besides dn Pleasis, one
246 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1652. of these savages and the dropsical thirst for human blood v— -Y— -^ which impelled them.1
Father BU- Father James Buteux had spent all the spring of 1651' theUAtUka- in visiting these vast districts. He found all the Attika- megues Christians or catechumens, although no priest had ever resided among them. Their innocence charmed him. They had erected a chapel, where they assembled regu- larly to offer up their prayers in common ;' and after the missionary had gratified their eagerness to hear the Word of God and partake of the sacraments of the Church, they conducted him to a nation still more remote,' where this religious had the happiness of making our holy Law appreciated by a small number of the elect.
He confidently expected to complete next year what he had as yet only been able to sketch ; but he had scarcely returned to the colony when the Iroquois' made an irrup- tion into those remote parts, filled them with blood and carnage, and did not leave a single village whose inhab- itants were not butchered or dispersed. The tidings hav- ing reached Mr. de Lauson, convinced him of the neces- sity of presenting a barrier to this torrent ; but he had brought no re-enforcement from France, and he was far from finding in the colony forces sufficient to restore of security and tranquillity. The only part of New France where the Iroquois had not dared, and never dared, to carrT ^heir victorious arms, was the country occupied by the Abenaqui nations. Father Dreuillettes had, as we have seen, there laid the foundations of a church which
soldier was killed and one mortally 8 Relation de la Nouvelle France,
wounded. Twelve were taken : Ra- 1651, p. 20 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca-
gueneau, Journal, Aug., 1652. nadensis, p. 622 ; Marie de 1'Incar-
1 Buteux mentions (Relation, 1651, nation, Lettres Historiques, p. 141.
p. 26) that they penetrated to Lake * Father Buteux mentions visits
Kisakami, which, he would have to two other gatherings of Indians,
supposed, they could neither dis- apparently Attikamegues (Relation,
cover nor reach. 1651, p. 24), although he speaks of
* He set out March 27, 1651, with belts given to the ErigoQechkak.
Mr. de Nonnanville : Relation, 1651 , ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
p. 16 ; Crenxius, Hist.Can., p. 620. 1651, p. 20 : 1652, p. 1.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. **.
gave great hopes. I have been unable to ascertain the 1652. reasons which induced him to interrupt his apostolic '— •"T'--' labors among these tribes,' in order to go and exercise his Progma of
the Faith
zeal in the furthest extremes of the North. But it is among th« certain that no missionary then labored with greater fruit in Canada, because Heaven had rendered him powerful in works as well as in words.
The Indians who accompanied him in his excursions spoke of nothing but the wonders wrought by his means, . which, joined to the eminent virtues which they saw him practise, facilitated all that he undertook for the glory of God. The French had the same opinion of his sanctity and his influence with the Almighty. I knew a lady at Three Rivers — Madame de Cournoyer, wife of a captain in the marine forces — who, having during her infancy fallen into a languor deemed by the physicians incurable, was healed the moment the servant of God made the sign of the cross on her forehead. The circumstances of the case were stated to me by the mother' of the lady herself, who held her in her arms when she was restored.
It seems, nevertheless, that Father Dreuillettes never entirely lost sight of his beloved Abenaquis, among whom his credit became so great, that the English, whose inter- est led them to propitiate these Indians, then neighbors, thought it their duty carefully to cultivate his friendship ; and they always showed great regard for him. On his side, he corresponded in a manner that satisfied them fully ; and he availed himself so well of this good under-
1 See ante, p. 208. Father Druil- son of Mr. Oodefroy, who had been
letfeM went to the Abnakis in 1650, ambassador to Boston with Father
Sept 1 : Relation de la Nourelle Dreulllettea. — CAarlrtoiz. Be prob-
France, 1651, p. 15 (Ragueneau, ably confounds John Paul Uodefroy
Journal, Sept. 1, 1650), and again in of Quebec with John Oodefroy from
June, 1051, after a two weeks' stay Linot.it. in the pay* de Caux. who
In the colony : Relation de la Nou- resided at Three Rivers, and waa the
velle France, 1653, p. 23. ancestor of the Oodefroys de Lin-
i Madame de Linetot, wife of a tot : Ferland, Note* tor le Registre
major of Three Rivers, who was a de Quebec, p. 68.
248 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
16152. standing to advance the work of God, that in a short time v~""~*-~-^ he beheld himself at the head of a numerous and flourish- ing church. In the sequel, when the Abenaquis were attached to the French by the bond of religion, New Eng- land had every reason to repent her having unwisely made them irreconcilable enemies.1
Father Bu- About the same time some families of Attikamegues northward invited Father Buteux to accompany them to their coun- try, in order to assemble the sad remnants of the nation. He consented the more willingly, as several other tribes, return. wjjQ ^ noj. ^^ fo^ Christ, were to be at the rendezvous appointed by the Attikamegues. The day of departure was fixed for the 4th of April, 1652, and the evening previous the missionary wrote to his superior a note couched in these terms :' " They at last give me hope, Reverend Father, that we are about to start. God grant that they do not change their purpose, and that Heaven may be the bourn of our journey. Our convoy is com- posed of sixty persons, men, women, and children. All are in extreme languor. As to provisions, they are in the hands of Him who nourishes the birds of heaven. I set out burdened with my sins and my misery, and I greatly need prayers on my behalf. My heart tells me that the time of my happiness approaches. Dominus est : quod 1 1- mum est in oculis suis faciat.'"
He a killed There was need, indeed, to be prepared for any event, yquoi8.r° to undertake such a journey. After the religious had suf- fered for a month all the hardships of want of provisions and most frightful routes, it was deemed best for the party to separate, both to subsist more easily and to be better able to avoid hostile war-parties ; but, before sep- arating, all wished to confess and receive the Sacrament of the Altar. Father Buteux retained with him only a
1 Father Gabriel Druillettes ar- J Relation de la Nouvelle France. rived in Canada, Aug. 15, 1643. He 1652, p. 2. died at Quebec, April 8, 1681. ' 1 Kings, iii. 18.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 24.
young Frenchman and a Huron ; and, as the rivers began 165 2. to be navigable, they built a small canoe and embarked.1 -^v— -'
The next day they were obliged to make several port- n««ih of ages, and they were engaged on the third, when the Huron, who was somewhat in advance, felt himself sud- denly seized from behind. The missionary and the Frenchman were at the same time stretched on the ground by a volley of musketry. The former received two balls in the breast ; a third broke his right arm. He had but time to say two words to his companion, who was no less severely wounded, to exhort him to die well, and to offer voluntarily to God the sacrifice of his life. The Iroquois at once dispatched both, stripped them, and flung their bodies into the river."
The Huron was destined to the stake, but he had the adroitness to effect his escape. He reached Three Rivers on the 8th of June.' A body of young Indians were at once dispatched' to look for the missionary's body, but they could not find it. Thus scarcely a year passed that did not see the soil of New France bedewed with the blood of some missionary. In fact, the destruction of the Huron towns had left several unemployed ; but they were almost all spent witli their toils and labors, and no longer of an age to acquire new languages, so that they were obliged to return to Europe.' Among these was Father Bres-
1 Relation de la Nonvelle France, and Algooqoins. He was a man of
1652, p. 2 ; CrruxJus, Historia Cana- prayer, mortification, and zeal. He
dearie, p. 657. The Frenchman was was killed, May 10, 1652 : Relation
Fontarabie, and the Huron, Thomas dela Nonvelle France, 1652 ; Crenx-
Tsondoutannen : Kagueneau, Jour- Ins, Historia Canadends, p. 657 ;
ual. Tanner, Die Gesellgchaft Jeeu bias
' Relation de la Nouvelle France, zur Vergiessung ihres Blntes, etc.,
1652, p. 1 ; Crenxius, Historia Cana- Prague, 1683, p. 694.
densig, p. 657. Father James Bu- * Ragueneau, in his Journal, says
teux was a native of Abbeville, in May 26, though the Relation gives
Picardy, born in April, 1600. He June 8.
entered the Society of Jesus at ' Not from Three Rivers, appar-
Rouen, Oct. 3, 1620, and was sent to ently, but from the Aitikanu-gue**
Canada in 1634. He was eighteen camp : Relation, 1652, p. 3.
years a missionary to the Montagnais * No missionaries ret n rned in 1 653.
260 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1652. sani,1 who afterwards preached in the greatest cities of Italy "— ~v~— ' with an applause, due less to his truly pathetic style than
to his character of confessor of Christ, and the glorious marks which he bore on his body. He also produced everywhere the greater fruit, inasmuch as he could with more justice propose Christian morality in all its purity, and say with the apostle — " I bear the marks of the Lord Jesus in my body." (Gal. vi. 17.)
Progress of The Isle of Montreal did not suffer less from the incur-
of MonD-y sioris of the Iroquois than the other quarters of New
ea' France, and Mr. de Maisonneuve was obliged to go to
1653. Paris, to seek the relief that he failed to obtain by his letters.1 He returned in 1653, with a re-enforcement of a hundred settlers ; but the most fortunate acquisition which he made on this voyage was that of a virtuous vir- gin, Margaret Bourgeois, a native of Langres, whom he brought to Montreal to take care of his house, and who subsequently rendered her name dear and worthy to all the colony, by her eminent virtue, and by the institute of the Sisters of the Congregation — an institute whose utility increases daily with the number of those who have em- braced it. I have spoken more at length of it in my journal.'
In 1650, Bressani, Lalemant, Daran, and Vie de Marguerite Bourgeoys,
Greslon, P. Pijart, Duperon, and i., p. 34, etc.) that she came to teach.
HI miii returned: Journal, Sept. — Margaret Bourgeoys was born at
Nov., 1650. Troyes, in Champagne, April 17,
1 Bressani went, really, Nov. 2, 1620 — her father, Abraham Bour-
1650. geoys, an honest shopkeeper, and
* He went in 1651 : Dollier de her mother, Guillemette Gamier,
Casson, Histoire de Montreal, 1650- being by no means wealthy. Her
1 ; Belmont, Histoire du Canada, p. inclination was for the religious
6 ; Faillon, Histoire de la Colonie state, but difficulties intervened, and
Franchise, ii., p. 131 ; Vie de la she endeavored, though unsucoess-
Soeur Bourgeoys, 1818, p. 33. fully, to form a congregation of Sis-
' Faillou, while stating that Mar- ters in the house of Madame de
garet Bourgeoys did act as house- Chuly, sister of Madame de Chome
keeper for Maisonneuve for four dey, to whose residence she retired
years (Histoire de la Colonie Fran- also on her father's death. The visit
<;aise, ii., p. 217), shows (ib.( p. 176, of Maisonneuve seemed to offer her
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
Soon after Mr. de Maisouneuve's return, an event oc- 1653. curred in the island which was regarded by all the colony "— ~v— as an effect of the visible protection of the Mother of God, ireqaos* to whom it was especially consecrated, and where all really lived a life to merit her favors. Twenty-six men were surprised and surrounded by two hundred Iroquois, who fired several volleys at them, without wounding a man, while not one of their shots failed to tell. The astonishment of the Indians was extreme. They did not think it wise to give the French time to load again, but fled in all haste.1
The governor was taking steps to prevent such sur- prises, when sixty Onondagas appeared in view of his fort
• field for her design, and she em- barked with him and hia new com- pany of settler*, June 20, 1658, on the St. Nicholas, of Nantes, Captain Peter le Season. They reached Que- bec, Sept. 22. She opened her school In a stable at Montreal, Nov. 29, 1007. Two years after, with other ladles whom she bad Induced to join her in France, she founded the congregation of Our Lady, recognised in 1669, and formally established in 1676. After seeing her order extend on every side the blessings of edu- cation, she died, January 12, 1700. See Vie de la Soiur Bourgeoys, 12o., Montreal, 1818; Vie de la Sceur Bourgeoya, Fondatrice de la Congre- gation de Notre Dame de Villemarie en Canada, Paris, 2 vols. 80, 1852 ; Hiatoire de 1'Hotel Dieu de Quebec, p. 123 ; Le Clercq, Etab., ii , p. 59.
1 Mem. de la Soc. Hist, de Mon- treal, p. 134 ; Relation, 1658, p. 3 ; Creuxius, HUt, p. 663. Evidently the action of October It, 1652. •!<•- scribed by DolUer de Canon. M. des Musseaux, governor of Montreal, sent out Major Lambert Closse, with a scouting party of twenty-four. Three in the van were suddenly
fired upon, and one killed. Another escaped to a wretched house, in which the rest of the party also took refuge, with a colonist. Here they held out, doing terrible execution on the enemy until their ammunition was nearly exhausted. Then Baston, a brave soldier, made his way to the fort, and brought up a re-enforos- ment of ten men, with two small cannon loaded with grape. By the help of these he reached Closse safe- ly. When the Iroquois had sus- tained a few more deadly volleys, they fled, having, out of two hun- dred, lost (says de Belmont, Hia- toire du Canada, pp. 6, 7), twenty killed and fifty wounded. Mother Jucbereau (Histolre de 1'Hotel Diau de Quebec, p. 38) gives an account of a gallant action of Major Closse, who. at the head of twenty, rescued four who were be- sieged In a redoubt, and in the action killed thirty-two Iroquois, losing only four. She gives no date, and it may be a fuller version of this same aflkir ; though Mr. Per- land (Histoire. vol. 1., p. 400) seems to identify it with an action of Jane 18. 1651 ; Jesuit Journal, July 30.
252 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE
1653. Some detached from the body, and approaching with great '— •» ~-' confidence, made signs that they wished to speak.' Their New ne(fo- small number led to their being admitted without diffi- ""peace. °* culty into the fort, and they declared that their canton was disposed to peace, if the French would treat with them. They accompanied this proposition with presents, and Mr. de Maisonneuve, on accepting them, called their attention to the fact that the French nation was far from that perfidy which had so often made them abuse the con- fidence placed in their words — that he might on this occasion resort to reprisals and treat them as spies, all their past conduct giving him the right — but that Chris- tians act on far different principles.
They admitted all this, and declared that the French would soon have certain proofs of their sincerity. They accordingly set out to convey the governor's propositions to their sachems, and passing homeward through the can- ton of Oneida, they induced the chiefs of that canton to join them. That of Cayuga did the same, and even sent deputies in its name to Montreal, with a belt, to warn the governor that there were five hundred Mohawks in the field, aiming at Three Bivers." Mr. de Lauson, to whom de Maisonneuve imparted this intelligence, dili- gently armed all the Hurons whom he could assemble. The Hurons, coming up with a considerable body of Mo- hawks, well posted, attacked them so resolutely that they killed a great number, captured the chief and several of the leading warriors, and put the rest to flight.'
Another party of these Indians met with better success. It advanced to the gates of Quebec, where all summer long it gave constant alarm, committed great ravages on
1 June 26, 1653 : Relation de la ' This exploit of the Hurons is
Nouvelle France, 1653, p. 4 ; Marie apparently that described as having
del'Incarnation,Lettre,8ept.6, 1653. occurred at Montreal, August 15:
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, Relation de la Nouvelle France, 1653,
1653, p. 4 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- pp. 5, 9 ; Le Mercier, Journal, Aug
nadensiB, p. 66a 21, 1653.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 263
all wides, massacred several of the French, and made some 1653. prisoners, among whom was Father Poncet.1 This mis- '—*—•' sionary was greatly beloved in the colony ; and it was no Captnr* of sooner known in the capital that he was in the hands of r*n«t the Iroquois, than forty French and many Indians took up the pursuit of the Mohawks, determined not to come back without rescuing him. They were, however, re- tained at Three Rivers, to re-enforce the garrison of that post, which the enemy held blockaded on all sides.'
Before reaching that town they perceived two heads drawn on the trunk of a tree, with Father Poncet's name below, and that of a Frenchman who had been taken with that religious. They also found on the ground a little book, in which the missionary had written these words : " Six Hurons, naturalized as Iroqnois, and four Mohawks, are carrying us off, and have not yet done us any harm." He could not say as much a few days after ; for he was not spared, any more than Father Jogues and Father Bressaui had been, in similar circumstances, either during the march or on his arrival in the Mohawk canton.'
1 Father [Joseph Anthony] Poncet pastor at Quebec till 1607, when the [de la Riviere] was ancle of the late Abbl de Qneylns, assuming juris- bishopofUse*. — Cfuirleroiz. He was diction, deprived him. Hewuthea a native of Paris, and studied at tent to Onondaga, but recalled, and Borne : Chaumonot , Autobiographic, returned to France, Sept. 18, 1657 : p. 39. He was instrumental In in- Deqnen, Journal (MS.) He then during Mother Mary of the Incarna- labored in Brittany, and was French tion to come to Canada, in which he penitentiary at Loretto, and after arrived, August 1, 1639. Belabored several Tears' mission life in the in the Huron country at Montreal, West Indies, died in Martinique, and especially at Quebec : Relations; June 18, 1675, aged sixty-five: Charlevoix, Vie de la M. Marie de Champion, Vie dn P. Rigoleu, p. 78 ; 1'Inrarnation, p. 198. He was taken, Amerikanisches Martyrologinm in Aug. 20. 1653, above Sillery, while DieKatholischesKirehelnden V.S^ endeavoring to get a poor widow's Regensburg, 1864, p. 882. field reaped for her : Relation de la ' Father le Merder, Journal, Aug. Nouvelle France. 1653, p. 9 ; Creux- 21, 1658 (MS.) ; Relation de 1* Non- ius, Historia C'anadensis, p. 672 ; Le velle France, 1653, p. 10. Mercirr, Journal, Aug. 21, 1658 ; ' Relation de la Nouvelle France, Belmont, Histoire du Canada, p. 7. 1653, p. 10 ; Le Merder, Journal .\ti.-r his captivity, he was again (MS.); Marie de 1 Incarnation, Let-
54 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1653. One day, when they were assembled to deliberate on ' -'"T"'-* uis fate and that of his companion, a woman presented a His suffer- branch of wampum,' to obtain permission to cut off one of his fingers ; and having secured it, an Indian approached the missionary and took his right hand. While he was examining his fingers, one after the other, the missionary, who had a presentiment that he would not be put to death, asked the Almighty that his left rather than his right hand should be mutilated. The Indian instantly dropped the hand which he held, took up the other, and made a boy cut off the forefinger. During the operation the servant of God chanted the VexiUa ; and at its close, the branch of wampum was hung around his neck, and his finger given to the woman who had solicited it."
The next day he was led from village to village,1 and everywhere had much to suffer, especially from the young, to whom he was abandoned, and who treated him with more than barbarous petulance. At last a council was held, which decided to burn the young Frenchman, and put the missionary at the discretion of an old matron, whose brother had been captured or slain. The young Frenchman was at once executed, but Poncet's mistress spared his life.' Three days after, an Iroquois came from Three Kivers, and reported that they were on the point of concluding peace ; that Ononthio demanded, as a prelim- inary, the liberation of Father Poncet ; and that it had been necessary to give him hostages, whose lives depended
tre, Sept. 6, 1653 ; Creuxius, His- been made in France for the trade
toria Canadensis, p. 673 ; Belmont, on the coast of Africa. The eipreB-
Histoire du Canada, p. 7. sion, branche de porcdaine, corre-
1 A branch of wampum is a long gponds, apparently, to the fathom of
thread, on which several beads of wampum of early New York writers.
wampum are strung. — Chwlevoix. i Relation de la Nouvelle France,
The wampum, or clam-shell beads, 1653, pp. 10-12.
are called by Charlevoix, as by ear- ' Poncet mentions but one of the
Her French writers, poreelaine, ap- villages.
parently from their resemblance to * Relation de la Nouvelle France,
the porcelain beads which had long 1653, p. 14.
HISTOBT OF NEW FRANCE.
on the missionary's, and that he had come in all haste to 1653. give information.'
This intelligence in a moment changed the prisoner's He it position. They first took him to Orange,' to have clothes
him — for his own had been, according to custom, torn to pieces. On returning to the Mohawks, he was led, in a kind of triumph, through several towns, and every- where greeted with marks of the sincerest friendship. At last, on the 15th of October,' he set out for Quebec, with a deputy from the canton, who bore presents for the governor-general and the superior of the missions. They had been two days on the march, when they were over- taken by an express, sent to tell the deputy that the hos- tages who had been placed in the hands of the French were in irons, that some had even been tomahawked, and that he should come to a decision on the matter before going any further.
This information embarrassed the deputy ; but as he n»njr«nh»t esteemed Father Poncet, he contented himself with the missionary's assurance that no harm should befall him, and continued his route. This first alarm was followed by some others, which would have put the missionary in great danger, if he had not had to deal with a man pre- possessed in his favor. Those familiar with the Indians are not surprised at these incidents, for nothing is more ordinary among these savages than to spread such base- less rumors. They sometimes spring from the mere itch- ing to announce something new and unexpected, or from the mere love of talk and of mischief-making.'
< Relation de la Nouvelle France, Oct. 8 : Relation de la Nouvelle
1653, pp. 0, 14. France, 1653, p. 16 ; Creuxiu*, His-
1 He was there Sept. 20, and com- toria Canadensis, p. 681.
plains of the cold reception given ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
him by the governor of Fort Orange, 1653, pp. 16, 17. An event belong-
although a letter from Governor de ing to the year 1658 may be inserted
Lauson was handed to that officer here from the Jesuit Journal. Fa-
by an Iroquois. ther Ragueneau says, under the
1 He left the last Iroquois town, month of May : " The 26th. a coon-
256 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1653 It is most frequently to defeat some operation that they do not approve ; and it is most probable that, in the present case, the author of this rumor sought only to set all at variance. The fact was, that an Algonquin had been put in prison at Quebec for intoxication, and that not one of the Iroquois hostages had been molested. Father Poncet, fortunately delivered from these perils by the confidence which his conductor had in him, nearly per- ished in port. While shooting the Sault St. Louis, his canoe struck, and he was in great danger of drowning. At last, on the 5th of November, he reached Quebec, where he was received, as it were, in triumph, and where, during the entire term of his captivity, they had not failed a single day to offer public prayers for his deliverance.1 Peace con- Peace was already concluded ; and in spite of past eluded. experience Of the levity and perfidy of the Iroquois, the people chose to flatter themselves that it would be dur- able. The Five Cantons had come to the step without any concert with each other, and the Mohawks had made advances at a tune when they seemed most embittered against us and had nothing to fear on our side. This made all regard it as the work of Him who alone can give peace to the world; but He, apparently, wished but to suspend for a brief period the fury of the enemies of His name, who had not executed all the sentences of His jus- tice, and give a colony, where He had a great number of true worshippers, time to breathe."
dl was held at the fort with four friendly, and remotely allied to the
Indian ambassadors, come from New Montagnais. These ambassadors
England, who had brought a letter brought thirty -six fine large belts
from Mr. John Heliot, minister of for the presents which they made to
those quarters, which letter wit- thank us that their people had not
nessed that the four Indians, taken been treated hostilely."
prisoners of war the preceding au- ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
tumn by the Algonquins Atontrato- 1C53, p. 17 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca-
ronons, were neither Sokokis nor nadensis, p. 682. Le Mercier (Jour-
Iroquois, but were allies of the Eng- nal) says he reached Quebec, Nov. 4.
lish. . . . The resolution of the ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
council was, that this nation was 1053, pp. 17-20. The Mohawks
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 257
The next year, Father le Moyne was sent to Onondaga 1654. to ratify the treaty in the name of the governor-general, '*—~r~-' and all passed with great satisfaction on both sides. The F*th«r u
If orn* POM
missionary told the Indians that he wished to have his
cabiu in their canton, and his offer was not only accepted, but a site was marked out, of which he took possession. He was then feasted in several towns, loaded with pres- ents on behalf of all the sachems, and taken back to Quebec according to their promise.'
But the joy inspired by the happy success of his nego- F«rror or tiation was nothing compared to that which he felt at the sight of a multitude of Huron captives, who formed amid the heathen a church quite similar to that of the Jews during the captivity of Babylon. Their faith had been put to the severest tests, and was only the more lively.' The example of their virtues, and the pathetic exhorta- tions of some of them, had inspired the Iroqnois with an exalted esteem for the religion which they professed. Several even seemed disposed to embrace it. Father le Moyne baptized some ; and his extreme desire to see an Iroquois church well established, as soon as possible, made him, on his return, observe silence as to an event which befell him on his route, and which was only subse- quently learned from the Iroquois themselves.
He was in a canoe with two Onondagas. Hurons and
made their presents, Nor. 6, and Belmont, Histolre du Canada, p. 7 ;
t li.'y were returned on the 9th : Le Faillon, Hiatoire de la Colonie Fran-
Mercier, Journal ; M. Marie de 1'Ia- faise, p. 168.
carnation, Lettres Historiqueg, p. ' He left Quebec, July 2, 1054, and
236. A large Iroqnois party men- returned to it. Sept 11 : Relation de
aced Three Riven, but they were la Nouvelle France, 1654, p. 11 ;
brought to terms of peace by the Creoxins, Hiatoria Canadensia, p.
defeat of a party near Montreal by 70S ; M. Marie de 1'Incarnation, Let-
the Huron chief, Annontaha or Ka- tree Historiqnes, p. 226. He at this
nontago. The brave Huron took time discovered the Onondaga salt-
prisoners several great war-chiefs, springs : N. T. Doc. Hist, i., p. 88.
and went to Three Riven to pro- * Relation de la Nouvelle France,
pose negotiation : Le Mercier, 1654, p. 18 ; Creuiius, HUtoria Ca-
Journal, Aug. 21, 1653 ; Dollier de nadensis, p. 707 ; M. Marie de 1'In-
Caason, Histoire de Montreal (MS.) ; carnation, Lettres Historiques, p. 888. VOL. II.— 17
258 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1654. Algonquins followed in others. As they approached Mon- v— ~~i~~^ treal, they were quite surprised to see themselves siir- Adventure rounded by several canoes, full of Mohawks, who poured °Moyne, by upon them a volley from all their muskets. The Hurons tbe0?thtdy and Algonquins were all killed, as well as one of the On- on(jagas — Father le Moyne being taken and bound as a prisoner of war. The surviving Onondaga was told that he might return home ; but he protested that he could not abandon the missionary, who had been confided to him by the sachems of his canton, and he menaced the Mohawks with all the wrath of the Upper Iroquois.
At first they laughed at this threat ; but when they saw that the Onondaga held firm, they changed their tone, unbound the prisoner, and put him in the hands of his faithful conductor, who took him to Montreal.1 Mother Mary of the Incarnation, in her well-written and highly- esteemed letters, full of excellent notices of these times, relates the event somewhat differently. She adds, that the conduct of the Mohawks was disavowed by their can- ton, who threw the blame on a Hollander, born of a Mo- hawk mother, who had been brought up in his mother's cabin, lived with the Indians, and is known in our Rela- tions only under the name of Batard Flamand — the Flemish Bastard." Be that as it may, this accident, known quite late, made no alteration in the arrangement made by the treaty of peace concluded between the two nations. This was not even the only insult received from the Iroquois, and as to which it was deemed prudent by the French authorities to close their eyes.1
There were then six hundred Hurons in Isle Orleans,
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, nal of le Mercier is lost for this
1654, p. 38. Creuxius (Historia Ca- period, and the Relation of 1655 was
nadensis, p. 715) supposes this to be carried off by robbers : Ferland,
on his return from Onondaga ; but Cours d'Histoire, i., p. 419.
there is nothing in the Relation to * Relation de la Nouvelle France,
make us suppose it to be so. It was 1654, p. 11.
apparently going from Quebec to * Copie de deux Lettres, 1655.
Montreal, subsequently. The Jour- p. 2.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
where they began to support themselves by their own 1654. labor. AH they were the flower of the Christians of that uution; as they had not abandoned the Lord in the miseries wherewith he had permitted them to be afflicted ; and as they had borne the scandal of the Cross with patience and resignation, especially admirable in neo- phytes, it is easy to conceive their fervor at a time when every thing led them to gratitude towards Him who giveth death and quickeneth, always for the good of His elect. Besides, they lacked no assistance which could serve to nourish their piety. The most fervent had been formed into two sodalities, one for men and the other for women ; and these associations produced among these fervent In- dians the same fruits of holiness that were then admired in all parts of the Christian world where they were estab- lished.1 And this we say, notwithstanding what is written by an author who had every reason to distrust his infor- mation, and whose profession should have rendered him more reserved in speaking of things as to which he could not be personally informed.'
The desire of imitating the Queen of Virgins made a number of the young women embrace celibacy ; and the edifying conduct of these spouses of Christ invested with respect, in the eyes of the Indians, a state which had, a few years before, been despised. The other sedentary missions gave no less edification to the French ; and the tranquillity brought about by the peace gave hopes that all the nations of the North and East would soon embrace Christianity — nothing, it seems, any longer preventing their approaching us, or our missionaries visiting them.
Meanwhile, the Mohawks were laboring underhand, and sought an opportunity to trouble the repose which we and our allies enjoyed. Interest, a motive hitherto little known among these people, but which had been inspired
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' Le Clercq, EUbliwement de 1* 1654, p. 20. Fol, 1., p. 589.
260 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1654. by European commerce and example, was the main
« ground of their discontent ; and their jealousy against the
The Mo- other cantons had sowed the seeds of great contentions XeToff among them. As long as the war lasted, that nation had the peace, ^aded exclusively with the Dutch, which greatly dis- pleased the Upper Cantons, because the trail which they were obliged to take to reach Orange was very long, and compelled them to pass through the lands of the Mo- hawks, who thus held them in a kind of dependence ; and besides, the Mohawks, supported by their propinquity to the Dutch, were able to dictate terms to the whole country.'
They re- All these advantages ceased with the peace, which hand opened trade between the French and the Upper Can- tons. It is not, therefore, astonishing that the latter showed so much eagerness to conclude the treaty, or that the Mohawks manifested repugnance, and repented as soon as they had concurred in it. Moreover, they never wished it to extend to our allies ; and, in fact, they did not arrest, or discontinued for only a brief term, their war-parties against them. They soon wearied of observ- ing the conditions agreed upon by them with us, and which consisted in their not appearing in arms in the colony, and not disturbing the missionaries in their func- tions. A Jesuit lay-brother, John Liegeois, was found near Sylleri, pierced by two musket-balls, his head sev- ered from the body, and the scalp gone.'
It was then evident that there was no longer any room for temporizing with such an enemy, who was without self-control ; and it was deemed necessary to reduce him
> Copiede deux Lettres, 1655, p. 8. He had been in the colony from
See also Relation de la Nouvelle 1634, and rendered important ser-
France, 1646, pp. 16, 17; vices. He had just put up a fort or
« Copie de deux Lettres, 1655, p. 2 ; blockhouse at SUlery, and went into
M. Marie de 1'Incarnation, Lettres a wood to see whether there were any
Historiques, p. 236 ; Creuxius, His- signs of the enemy, when he was
toria Canadensis, p. 733. Brother surprised and killed : Sketch in Jes-
Liegeois was killed, May 29, 1655. nit Journal, close of 1656.
HISTOBY OF NEW FBANCE. 261
in all haste, while there was a hope that he would not be 1654. sustained by the other cantons. Accordingly, so many v»v— ' detachments were sent out, that they finally succeeded in Exploit of inspiring those savages with alarm ; and nothing, perhaps, q*?,, »qS,». contributed to this more than the exploit of an Algonquin squaw of Sylleri. She was in the field with her husband and children, when five Mohawks suddenly started up, rushed on her unsuspecting husband, and bound him. The children were too small to escape, and for the same reason they neglected to bind the woman. The Mohawks paid dearly for this confidence. At a moment when they least expected it, the courageous Christian seized a hatchet, drove it into the head of the chief of the party, and then tomahawked another who ran up to his assist- ance. The remaining three, astonished at such boldness, at once fled, leaving our heroine with her husband, whose bonds she cut, and her children, whom she took back in triumph to the village.1
These reverses disgusted the Mohawks. They once more The Mo. solicited peace, and this time without any restriction ; and b*7w§thT as they were very earnest to have a missionary, and P^"- A Father le Moyne still more earnest to obtain permission '» tf to go among them, their wishes were gratified.' The mis- sionary was well received, and this was sufficient to con- vince him that the Mohawks really wished to live on good terms with all the world. He was not disabused, even after one of these savages, taking the part of a maniac or possessed person, ran the whole night long through the various cabins, tomahawk in hand, yelling that he meant to kill Ondesson. This was the missionary's Iroquois name, and had been borne by Father Jogues before him.'
This madman would, apparently, have carried out his threat, had he found minds at all disposed to approve it ; but
1 Cople de deux Lettres, 1655, p. 2 ; > OndeMook : Relation, 1639, p. 53.
Creuxius, Hist. Canad., p. 743. It wai also the Huron name of Tea-
* Copie de deux Lettren. 1655, p. aouat or le Borgne de 1'Iile : Bela-
2 ; Creuxiug, Hist. Canad., p. 743. tion, 1637. p. 146.
HISTORY OF NEW FKANCE.
1654. no one moved. As to Father le Moyne, neither an incident
*— -v- "-" showing so conclusively that it was not yet time to trust
to the Mohawks, nor many other events, coming in quick
succession, could undeceive him. Persuaded that, by dint
of cultivating that savage people, they would ultimately
tame them, he did not take pains enough to study their
character — a study very necessary to any one who forms a
project so difficult as that of destroying all the prejudices
of the mind and all the passions of the heart.'
Two other ^ne Onondagas seemed to act with more frankness, and
mission- fathers Chaumonot and Dablon were sent to them.3 The
aries pro- ceed to On- former was of Italian origin,' and at the time the oldest of
AnHncra
the missionaries in New France, where he labored to an
ondaga. 1655.
extreme old age with unwearied zeal, and where his mem-
1 Copie de deui Lettres, 1655, p. 2 ; M. Marie de 1'J non-nation, Let- tree Historiques, pp. 235-9. They are not so severe on le Moyne.
8 Copie de deux Lettres, 1655, pp. 2-6 ; CreuxiuB, Historia Canadensis, p. 746. Chaumonot (in his Auto- biographie, p. 66) nays that Menard was selected, but that he was sent at the instance of Governor de Lau- son : M. Marie de 1 'Incarnation, Let- tree Historiques, p. 240.
5 Peter Joseph Mary Chaumonot was not of Italian origin. Charlevoix was misled by an allusion of Dablon to his Italian style. From his own very curious account of his life it ap- pears that he was born near Chatil- lon-eur-Seine, in 1611, and after running away, and meeting many strange adventures, entered the Jes- uit novitiate in Rome, on the 18th of May, 1632. Father Poncet in- duced him to solicit the American mission, and they came out together in 1639. Chaumonot was at once sent to the Huron mission, and there spent eleven years, visiting Hurons, Petuns, and Neuters. He founded
the colony on Isle Orleans. After his return from Onondaga, he re- sumed his care of the Hurons at Quebec, Beauport, and finally at Lorette, which he founded. During a visit to Montreal, he established a still-subsisting confraternity of the Holy Family. He died, February 21, 1693. His Indian name was Hechon. Besides his Autobiogra- phy (with sequel, New York, 1858), he wrote a thorough Huron gram- mar, of which a translation has been published in the Transactions of the Quebec Literary and Histori- cal Society, vol. ii., and several let- ters, preserved in the Relations and in Carayon, Documents Ineditt. Claude Dablon was apparently from Dieppe. He arrived in 1655, and after laboring at Onondaga, explored the Upper Saguenay, and attempted to reach Hudson's Bay. In 1668 he was sent to Lake Superior. He be- came superior of the missions in 1670, and was in office in 1688. He died at Quebec, in 1697. He is the author of the Relations for 1671 to 1679.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
ory is still iti benediction. Father Dablon had but just 1655. arrived from France, and rapidly acquired a high reputa- ^-•"r""—' tion for wisdom and virtue. These two laborers set out from Quebec, September 19, 1655, with the deputies of Onondaga who had come to invite them, attended by a great number of Indians of the same nation. They did not even wait till they reached their missionary destina- tion before commencing the labors of the apostolate.'
The first deputy was accompanied by his wife, who was extremely delighted with all that she saw among the Christians, especially in the two communities of nuns. She incessantly questioned Father Chaumonot as to oar ceremonies and mysteries. Seven or eight Iroquois united with her to receive instructions. They were touched by the missionary's words, and on reaching their country were in a condition to receive baptism, which was admin- istered to them with great pomp. What the examples of French piety had produced in the heart of the Iroquois woman just mentioned, the fervor and zeal of the Huron captives produced in the different towns in which they had been dispersed, and the missionaries everywhere found a sincere appreciation of Christianity and hearts disposed to embrace it.'
They reached that canton on the 5th of November, and They pUni they had every reason to augur well for the future from the reception extended to them in the principal town. The presents which they bore, in the name of Mr. de Lau- sou, were accepted with respect, and presents delivered in return.' A site was then assigned to the missionaries for a residence ; and as soon as they were lodged, the Fathers
1 Copie de deox Lettree, p. 3 ; Re- In the N. T. Documentary HLrtory.
lation de la N. F., 1656, p. 7 ; Oreur- 1. The woman referred to U Teotoo-
ius, HiitorU Canadenaig, p. 748. haracon : Relation, 1606, pp. 13, 23 ;
* They set out from Quebec, Sept. Crenxiua, Hist. Canad., p. 761 ; Let-
19, 1093 ; left Montreal, Oct. 7 ; and tree Hirtoriqoet, p. 941. reached Onondaga, Nov. 5 : Rela- ' Relation de la Nouvelle Franc*,
tion do la Nouvelle France, 1656, pp. 1656, p. 15 ; Creuxius, Iliatoria Cfc-
7-12. This full diary U In English nadenaia, p. 761.
264 HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE.
1655. informed the sachems that they desired to declare, in full *-*~T~^' council, and, if possible, in a general assembly of the can- ton, the intentions of those who had sent them. This proposition was well received, and the assembly was a Tery large one.1 * *
Father Chaumonot there discoursed of the Christian faith in a manner which filled all his hearers with aston- ishment. He insisted strongly on the marvellous change which Christianity works in the hearts of those who embrace it sincerely, and the effect of this part of his address derived additional weight from the fact of their having evident examples before their eyes. At the close of his discourse, an orator thanked him, in the name of all, for the zeal which he showed for leading them to an eternal felicity, and told him that, compared with the French, other Europeans did not know how to talk." Fruits of They at once began to build a chapel ;' and so many
laborâ„¢' lent a hand, that it was finished in one day, and that very day a catechumen was baptized in it." Thenceforward the missionaries exercised all their functions with the same freedom as though they were in the midst of the French colony, and they found many hearts of which the Holy Ghost had already taken possession. A young maiden, not yet baptized, refused the two best matches in her town, for the sole reason that her suitors were idol-
1 Relation de la Ncravelle France, Dutch : Relation de la Nonvelle
1656, p. 14. De Lauson had conceded France, 1656, p. 17.
to them a tract ten leagues square, 4 The presents were returned on
at or near Onondaga : Archives, Bn- the 16th, and the chapel question
reau des Terres. taken up the 17th : Relation de la
* The meeting at which the pres- Nouvelle France, 1656, p. 20 ; Creux-
enta were given, and the one where ius. Hist. Canad., pp. 770, 771.
Chaumonot spoke BO ably, were the * Relation de la NouvelJe France,
same : Relation, p. 15 ; Creuxins, p. 1656, p. 20. Three children were
761. The Onondaga presents were baptized, Nov. 18, the day of its
given in the name of the Sagochien- erection : Creuxius, Historia Cana-
daguete, called by our writers Ato- densis, p. 771. Chaumonot (in his
tarho. Autobiographic, p. 67) gives inter
1 The comparison was with the esting details.
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE. 265
aters. A few days after, a war-chief having in vain 165$. solicited her to sin, resorted to violence to compel her ; but the noble convert had the fortitude to wrest herself from his hands, and escape to a place free from his persecutions. After such a trial, Father Chaumonot thought it wrong to hesitate any longer to confer baptism, which she solicited with great earnestness ; and he had the consolation of hearing the heathens themselves say that she deserved to be a Christian — a decisive testimony in favor of a religion whose sanctity not even libertinage and hardness of heart could prevent men from acknowl- edging.1
A woman, much esteemed in the canton, was one of the first to take her place among the postulants for baptism, and her whole family followed her example. Some of the heathen wished to persuade her that she would regret it, and, shortly after, she sank into an extreme languor. She had a grandson, ten or twelve years old, to whom she was greatly attached. This child was attacked by the same disease as his grandmother, and soon wasted away to such an extent that his very sight inspired horror. The ene- mies of Christianity did not fail to hum these accidents to account ; but their triumph was brief enough. Qod in- spired the sufferers with a constancy and resignation which became the topic of conversation and the admira- tion of the whole town ; and the moment they received baptism, they recovered perfect health.'
This marvel, which was followed by several others, did not, however, save the two religious from experiencing many contradictions and running many risks, chiefly at the hands of some Hurons, who, being hardened in heart while they were in their own country, kept constantly in- sinuating in the minds of the Iroquois, that if they per- mitted the introduction of this strange religion, it would in
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' The woman here referred to !• 1666, p. 28 ; Creuxlu*, Hlatoria C*. Teotonharaaon, their ho*t<M : Rela- nadendB, p. 774. tion de la Nonv. France, 1656, p. 23.
266 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1655. time commit the same ravages as had been seen every- ^-~Y— - ' where that it had been preached :' and as nothing makes a greater impression on the mind of these nations than dreams, they imagined new ones every day,1 to endeavor to bring the Onondagas to their object ; but they did not succeed, before care had been taken to forewarn the Indians on this point.
Deatruo- It was about the same time that the Iroquois completed Brie nation, their destruction of the nation of the Eries or of the Cat. This war had not at first been favorable to them ; but they were not disheartened, and at last got the upper hand so completely, that, but for the great lake which still bears the name of that nation, we should not even know that it had existed.' It was reasonably feared that this new success would make the Iroquois resume their for- mer haughtiness towards the French, but the Onondagas only appeared better disposed to unite themselves more closely with them. To this end they made advances which were deemed sincere, inasmuch as at bottom their own interest dictated the step.4 At last Father Dablon,
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, number of wild-cats in their coun-
1656, p. 25 ; Creuxius, Historia Ca- try : Relation, 1654, p. 10. In 1654
nadensis, p. 775. they were supposed to have two
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, thousand braves, excellent bowmen,
1656, p. 25 ; Crenxius, Historia Ca- with poisoned arrows : Ib. None of
nadensis, p. 776. the Relations give any more definite
1 The Eriehronnon (Relation, 1654, information as to their location, and
p. 9), Riquehronnons (Relation, 1660, of their towns but one name, Kentai-
p. 7) — (misprinted Rigneronnon, Re- enton, has been preserved, and that
lation, 1661, p. 29) — were called, cannot be identified. Catharine
evidently, Eri,e by the Hurons, and Qanneaktena, foundress of the In-
Rique by the Onondagas. They at dian village at La Prairie, was
one time dwelt on the southern from this town : Chauchetiere, MS.
shore of Lake Erie, but were com- 4 This colony to Onondaga was
pelled to retire very far inland promised in the spring of 1654 (Re-
by western enemies. They had lation de la Nouvelle France, p. 19) ;
many towns, cultivated the earth, but de Lauson had no means to
and spoke a dialect of the Huron : effect it, and he sent missionaries,
Relation, 1648, p. 46 ; Bressani, Breve chiefly to gain time. A council held
Relatione, p. 6. They were called Feb. 29, 1656, in which a rupture
by the French Cat nation, from the was threatened, made it necessary
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 267
in concert with them, proceeded to Quebec, to endeavor 1655. to induce Mr. de Lauson to send a good number of French among them.1
He started on the 2d of March, 1656, with a numerous Proj«ot of • escort, and reached Quebec only in the early part of April.1 He had no difficulty in bringing Mr. de Lauson into the views of the Iroquois ; and notwithstanding all 1656. that was told that general by a Huron, who had lived long among the Onoudagas, to dissuade him from trusting to those Indians, he could not alter his resolve.' Fifty Frenchmen were chosen to go and form the proposed set- tlement, and the Sieur Dupuys, an officer of the garrison, was assigned to them as commandant/ Father Francis le Mercier, who had succeeded Father Jerome Lallemant in the office of superior-general of the missions, wished to conduct in person those of his religious whom he had selected to establish the first Iroquois church. These were Fathers Fremin, Mesnard, and Dablon.' Their departure was fixed for the 7th of May ; and although the harvest had been by no means abundant, the Sieur Du- puys was plentifully supplied with means to support all
for Dablon to go, especially as there him : Lettres Historiques, p. 531. He
was a report that Onondagas were took ten soldiers of the garrison (R«l.,
Imprisoned at Montreal : Chaumonot 1008, p. 3), and apparently forty other
Autobiographic, p. 68 ; Relation de Frenchmen : Relation, 1896, p. 38. la Nouvelle France, 1656, p. 85 ; ' Francis le Mercier entered the
C'reuiiug, Hist. Canadensis, p. 791. order Oct. 14, 1630 ; came to Canada
1 In July, 1665, the Duke de Damp- in 1680 ; was on the Huron mission
Tille, Count de Biron, was again till it* ruin ; Superior from 1653 to
made viceroy of New France: Mem. 1656, and from 1665 to 1670, and as
Hist Soc. Montreal, p. 110. such published six Relations. He was
» He reached Montreal, March 30, for a time director of M. Mary of the
1656 : Creuiius, Hist Canad., p. 793. Incarnation. After leaving Canada
• Relation de la N. F., 1656, p 38. in 1678, he was sent to the West In-
4 Zachary da Puys was comman- dies as visitor, and died at Marti-
dant of the fort of Quebec (Ferland, nique, June 12, 1600. Jerome Lale-
Cours d'Histoire, L, p. 486) and be- mant, born at Paris In 1593, came
came subsequently Major of Mon- to Canada in 1638 ; on Huron mis-
treal : Faillon, ii., pp. 388, 517 ; Mem. sion till 1645 ; Superior from 1644 to
Soc. Hist Montreal, p. 135. M. Mary 1650 ; in France from 1656 to 1659 ;
of the Incarnation speaks highly of again Superior, 1659 to 1665 ; died
268 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. his party during a whole year, as well as seed to sow the *•— ~v~ — ' lands of which he should take possession.1 Hostility of The news of this enterprise having spread around, gave the Mohawks much serious thought, and reawakened all their jealousy of the Onondagas. A general assembly of the whole canton was held to deliberate on this affair, which seemed of the highest importance. The conclusion was, to resort to every means in order to thwart the new settlement. In consequence of this deliberation, a party of four hundred men was raised and sent out, with orders to scatter Dupuys' troop or cut it in pieces. They missed it, however, and then, in revenge, plundered some isolated canoes, and even wounded some of the occupants. After that, these traitors, pretending to be mistaken, said : " "We did not know that you were Frenchmen. We took you for Hurons or Algonquins." *
They carry It was not deemed by the French at the moment politic f to follow up this insult, in hopes of being soon in a posi- tion *° render their vengeance more certain and decisive, if the Mohawks did not spontaneously make reparation ; but they soon after showed that nothing was further from their thoughts. They approached Isle Orleans, and one morning,' before sunrise, they fell on a band of ninety Hurons, of all ages and sexes, who were at work in a field, killed six, bound all the rest,4 and putting them in their
at Quebec, January 26, 1673. James tion, 1657, and from p. 11 it seems
Fremin was apparently recently ar- that they did not take provisions
rived. He was in Onondaga from enough to last till they got to Onon-
1656 to 1658; then at Miscon, daga.
Three Rivers, and Cape de la ' Relation de la Nouvelle France,
Madeleine. Selected for the Cayu- 1657, p. 9. A lay-brother is the
ga mission in 1666, he was mis- only one mentioned as wounded,
sionary on the Mohawk from 1667 " May 20, 1656 : Rel., 1657, p. 5 ;
to 1671. He died at Quebec, July 2, Chaumonot, Autobiographic, p. 78.
1691. Two lay-brothers, Brother 4 The Relation for 1657 does not
Ambrose Broar and Brother Joseph give the total number or that of
Bonreier, also went : Relation, 1656, the killed. It cays indefinitely (p.
p. 38 ; Relation, 1657, p. 9 ; Creui- 6), " Our loss was seventy-one per-
ius, Historia Canadensis, p. 794. sons, with a great number of young
1 I do not find this in the Rela- women."
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 269
canoes, passed haughtily before Quebec, making their 1656. prisoners sing in front of the fort,' as if to defy the gov- ' ^T^-" ernor-general to come and rescue them from their hands, carried them off to their village unpursued,' burned the chief among them, distributed the rest among the cantons, and retained them in a harsh captivity.'
Mr. de Lauson has been severely censured for having put up with such insolence : and his inaction, it must be confessed, while they were carrying off, so to say, from between his arms, allies whose preservation equally con- cerned the honor of the French name and that of religion, casts a stain on his memory which all his virtue cannot efface ; but it is because there are misfortunes which men do not forgive, and which, to their way of thinking, dis- honor a man as much as the greatest cowardice. The Hurons, in consequence of a presumptuous confidence, had allowed themselves to be surprised. To rescue them from the Mohawks would have required the calling out of five or six hundred men ; and even if the governor-general had had them ready, the time necessary to arm and em- bark them would have given the savages a greater start than was needed to baffle any efforts of a pursuing party.
A young Huron* of this ill-starred band, who escaped from the village where he was a captive, subsequently gave most edifying details of the piety and constancy of these fervent neophytes, many of whom were treated with unparalleled inhumanity, especially one of their chiefs, whose tortures lasted three days, during which he never
1 Penot, Memoire, etc., p. 106. " great batfc-1, in which the Quato.
De la Potherie devote* only one ghie* (i. <•., Huron*) were entirely
page (Htotoire de 1'Amerique Sep. destroyed."
tentrionale, pp. 126", 126) to the ' M. Marie de rincarnation, Let-
history of the Huron*. tre* Htetoriqne*, pp. 582. 638. The
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, detail* of this itirprite were ascer-
1657, p. 6 ; Penot, Mceurs, etc., de« tained from Joachim Ondakoot, who
Sauvage*. p. 84. Colden (in hi* Hi*- wa* relieved by the colony going to
tory of the Five Nation*, N. T., 1727, Onondaga : Relation, 1657, p. 11.
p. 17) allude* to thi* §urpri*e a* a * Joachim Ondakont.
270 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
ceased praising the Lord, although he discovered from the outset that it was his perseverance in this holy exer- cise which irritated his torturers and made them prolong his martyrdom.1
Adventures A fortnight after the occurrence of this misfortune,
of|£k2tte thirty Ottawas1 landed at Quebec, guided by two French-
*tion of the" men.' and loaded with furs. But before entering into
Hurons. the resuits flowing from this voyage, it will be well to
resume matters a little further back.
The Iroquois had no sooner expelled the Hurons from their country, than they undertook to inflict the same treatment on all their allies. The Ottawas were of this number ; and as they saw themselves no longer in a posi- tion to resist the conquerors of one of the bravest and most powerful nations on the continent, they did not deem it proper to wait till the Iroquois came to burn their towns and butcher them there.
Some had already retired to Saguinaw Bay, others to Thunder Bay (both on Lake Huron), a number to Mani- toualin4 Island, and that of Michillimakinac ; but the mass of the nation remained on the banks of the great river* which bears their name, till the entire destruction
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ante, p. 8. The Ottawas, a small
1657, p. 25. tribe allied to the Outchipoues, or
* The French form ia Outaouais ; Ojibways, always resided west of but as it will be of constant occur- the Hurons. They are first called rence, Jhe ordinary English form Andatahoilat (Sagard, Dictionnaire, will be adopted hereafter. r. Nations ; Histoire du Canada, p.
* These two Frenchmen had set 200) ; Ondatauauat (Breesani, p. 6) ; out, Aug. 6, 1654 (Relation de la Ondataouatouat (Relation, 1654, p. Nouvelle France, 1656, p. 38), and 9) — a Huron term, perhaps from on- returned in the latter part of August, data, wood, and equivalent to Gens 1656 : Ib. ; Perrot, Mosurs, etc., des Bois. Du Creux. in his map, p. 83. places them on Manitouline Island,
•These were all apparently old as does Champlain (map, p. 7),
resorts. Thunder Bay is said to be Bressani (Breve Relatione, p. 6),
called from a chief of that name. and the Relation de la Nouvelle
5 Charlevoii here follows out his France, 1671, p. 31. The Hurons,
erroneous idea that the Ottawas at a later date, gave this name to
were on the Ottawa River. See the Illinois : Potier (MS).
HISTORY OP NEW FRANCE.
271
of the Huron towns. Then they joined the Tionnontatez 1656. Hurons,1 with whom they penetrated far into the southern ^-"-Y-— •* regions. They first formed an alliance with the Sioux, Tb«otu- then fell out with them, and, to their cost, trained to war that nation, till then by no means brave, and little known east of the Mississippi. They then broke up into several bands, and the wretched state to which they were reduced spread everywhere the terror of the Iroquois name.'
At last, in consequence of their wanderings in those vast countries, and their division into several bands, some of which have never since appeared, both were BO
1 Some of the Huron* fled to Mani- tooline (Relation, 1601, p. 5); the Tionontates to MlrfitlHmakhiM Island (Relation, 1671, p. 87). In 1652 they were at Teaontorai— ? the Noquet Islands— {Relation, 1672, p. 85; Perrot, p. 80), and the next year were about to retreat Into Lake Superior, to Aotonatendie (Ragne- neau, Journal, July, 1658), near the great lake which we call "of the Puants" (Relation, 1654, p. 9)— probably the Point* du St. Esprit, Chagoimegon (Rol., 1667, p. 9 ; 107:2, p. 35). In 1658 they were among the Pottawotamies (Relation 1658, p. 21 V and in 1659 they were on the Mis- sissippi (Relation, 1660, p. 12 ; Per- rot, p. 83). Here they came into contact with the Sioux, and falling out with them, ascended Black River (Perrot, p. 87), although the Ottawa*, who had till then kept them company, marched on to Clia- goimikon (Perrot, p. 87). Here Me- nard evidently found the Ottawa*, and was going from their village to that of the Hnrons on Black River when he lost his life (Relation, 1668, p. 21 ; Perrot, p. 91). A remnant of the Neuters was apparently blended with these Tionontates. After the
overthrow of the Huron* and Tio- nontates, six hundred Iroquois, in 1650, attacked the Neuters, but were routed by Tahontaenrat, who killed two hundred (Raguenean, Journal, April, 1651). Another Iroqnois army, of twelve hundred, invaded the Neu- ter territory the next winter (ib.) These took Te Otondiation, and des- olated the Neuter country (ib., Sept, 1651); but the Neuters formed an alliance with the Andastes, and gained such advantages that the Seneca women and children fled from their towns (ib., April 19, 1652). The last Neuter town was opposite Detroit (Perrot). After this a rem- nant of eight hundred fled to Skan- chioe, and in the (all of 1658 were preparing to join the Tionontates at A.otonatendie, three leagues beyond the Rapid Skia.e or Sanlt St. Mary, which was a general resort of Otta- was, Chippeways, Niplssings (Jour., July, 1653). Here we lose trace, and cannot tell whether they actu- ally united with the Hurons or sub- mitted to the Iroqnois. Most prob- ably they did both, as, some yean later, they formed a considerable part of the Senecas. • Perrot, Memoire, pp. 86, 87.
272 HiSToar OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. reduced in numbers, that it may be said that not a twen- ' f^~" tieth part now exists.1 It was one of these detached The otto- bands of the Ottawa nation, who had been joined by some Hurons, that the two Frenchmen just mentioned had brought from the shores of Lake Michigan to Quebec, where their welcome was the more cordial from the praise bestowed by their guides on the treatment which they had received. Intercourse with the Hurons had some- what improved the manners of that people, one of the rudest in Canada, and had even given them some slight tincture of Christianity."
The two Frenchmen, who were worthy men, had bap- tized some of their children at the point of death,' and these little innocents went to take possession of heaven in the name of their nation ; but notwithstanding these fair hopes, the assiduous care of the missionaries never could induce the Ottawas to relish the things that are of God. There are few nations on the whole continent where more effort has been made to produce Christians and more unsuccessfully ;' but there was then no reason to judge so, and the peltries, with which those who had just arrived at Quebec were loaded, made Mr. de Lauson believe it his duty not to neglect this occasion of extend- ing the trade of the colony.
Thirty young men offered to accompany the Ottawas on their return ;' and Father le Quien,' who governed the mission during the absence of Father le Mercier, allowed himself to be persuaded to give them Fathers Dreuillettes and Garreau, with Louis le Boesme, a lay-brother, who
1 Neither the Relations nor Per- • His name was John Dequen, as
rot convey this idea his own autograph attests. In the
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, Relation de la Nouvelle France for
1656, p. 39. 1666, written by him, it is printed
1 Ib- De Qven. He came to Canada in
4 The present missionaries have at 1635, and labored chiefly at Quebec,
last succeeded. He was Superior from 1656 to 1650,
• Relation de la Nouvelle France, and died at Quebec Oct. 8, 1659, serv-
1656, p. 40. ing the sick in time of pestilence.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
878
had been brought up by Father de Brebeuf in the Huron missions. This convoy started from Quebec a little before mid-August, and the next day, as it approached Three Rivers, it was warned by a canoe, dispatched by the governor of that town, that there was a party of Mohawks in the neighborhood. This party had already discerned the Ottawas, and laid an ambuscade for them ; bat they did not fall into it, and arrived safely at Three Rivers.'
The French who accompanied them then reflected that these Indians were very ill equipped, and that they could not escape an encounter with a foe whose forces might increase at any moment. They accordingly resolved to proceed no further ; and there were only three who were unwilling to abandon the Jesuits.' The Ottawas were no sooner embarked than they perceived that the Mohawks were at their heels ; yet this did not induce them to use greater precaution as they advanced. They had pur- chased fire-arms, the use of which was new to them. They delighted to try them, and so kept the Mohawks in- formed of their route. Their pursuers thus had time and means to choose a suitable place to surprise them or attack them advantageously.'
Such an opportunity presented itself on the banks of the Lake of the Two Mountains, which is the discharge of the Great River into the river St. Lawrence, above the island of Montreal. Here they intrenched themselves on a little hill, which gave them a lookout for a great dis- tance, and they posted a considerable number of men with guns in the bushes, on an advanced point close to which the Ottawas had to pass. Six canoes, containing Hurons exclusively, with Father Garrean, were at the head of this convoy, and, when they came within reach, the Mohawks poured a volley on them,4 killing and wounding a great
> Relation da U N. F., 1006, p. 40. - Relation de la Nouvelle France,
1056, p. 40. Ch»rlevoir does not dentil, p. 796.
1696.
M ... • •Tie* »re (i ran to
- ::..- ,(
Th«y an Ltucked by tha Mo- hawk*.
1 ReUtion de la Nonrelle France, 1650, p. 40 ; Creuxlus. HUtoria Cana-
tollow the authority predtely. VOL. II.— 18
Relation de U N. F., 1656, p. 41.
274 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1636. many. They then rushed on, tomahawk in hand, and v— -v—-/ made prisoners of all who had not perished at the first F«ther Gar- volley. Among these captives was the missionary, whose
re»n mor- . '
uiiy spine was broken by a musket-ball.
At the first sound of the attack the Ottawas plied their paddles to relieve or avenge their comrades. On reach- ing the point where the Huron canoes had remained with the corpses of the slain, they landed without opposition, and in the ardor which possessed them had well-nigh carried all the Mohawk defences ; but after a pretty stub- born fight, in which much blood was shed on either side, the assailants were obliged to draw off. Yet they did not retire far, but intrenched on their side, firmly resolved, to all appearance, not to leave the spot till they had satis- faction of the Iroquois ; but the next night they secretly decamped, and in the morning nothing was found in their intrenchment but the two Jesuits, with the three French- men who accompanied them."
As soon as the chief of the Mohawk party was informed of it, he went to visit the two religious. This chief was the Flemish Bastard, already mentioned. His compliment rolled entirely on the sorrow which he declared he felt for the wound of Father Garreau, and he protested that the missionary had not been recognized till after the first charge, in which he had been wounded. Nothing was less sincere than this excuse ; for the missionary had no sooner fallen into the hands of the Mohawks than they stripped him naked, in spite of his wound, and from that time they had given him neither food nor drink, nor even thought of dressing his wound.1 The next day,' the 2d of Septem-
1 Relation, 1656, p. 41 ; Creuxius, gave up to the French to be shot.
Hist. Can., p. 796 ; Belmont, Hist, du » Druillettes and the lay-brother
Canada, p. 9 ; Perrot, Memoire, etc., Garreau were already in the hands
p. 84 ; Pijart, Relation (MS.) de la of the Mohawks : Relation de la
Mort du P. Garreau. According to Nouvelle France, 1656, p. 41.
Perrot, Father Garreau was shot by 3 Relation de la Nouvelle France,
a Frenchman who had joined the 1656, p. 42.
Iroquois, but whom the Mohawks * He was shot on Wednesday, Aug.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 275
her, he was taken to Montreal bj some Mohawks, who, 1656. with a very ill grace, presented two belts — one to show N-— v— •* their regret for having fired upon him, without knowing Death of him : the other to wipe away the tears of his fellow- r*«a. religions.1
Father Claude Pijart, who was fortunately at Montreal, received the wounded priest, who was now beyond all remedy, and who expired on the 4th,' in his arms, implor- ing of the Almighty the conversion of his murderers. Fa- ther Leonard Garreau was a native of Limoges,' and New France lost in him an excellent laborer. After his death, Father Dreuillettee, with their companion, turned back towards Quebec, whence the former soon returned to the Abenaquis.4
There was no longer any ground for doubting the dis- satisfaction with which the Mohawk canton regarded the good understanding between the Upper Iroquois and the French, or that it sought all means of breaking it off. The French, on their side, flattered themselves that, if the four upper cantons remained firm in their alliance, the Mohawks would be forced, sooner or later, to follow their example, or at least remain quiet, for fear of being over- whelmed by them ; and great hopes were based on the settlement about to be made at Onondaga. Mr. Dupuys, after a short stay at Three Rivers and Montreal, had left the last-named island on the 8th of June, and the same
30, and it WM not till Saturday that His lather had fought gallantly un-
thcy carried him to Montreal : Re- der Henry IV., and was renowned
ktion de la Nouvelle France, 1650, for hii extensive and discriminating
p. 42 ; Creoxins, Historia Canadensis, charities. He entered the Society
p. 799. of Jesus, Sept. 27, 1628. He came
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, to Canada in August, 1643, and had
1656, p. 42. been constantly and actively em-
' He died on the 2d : Relation de ployed in the Huron and Algonquin
la Nouv. France, 1656, p. 42 ; Creux- missions. l)u Crenx (in his History,
iuo, Historia Canadensis, p. 799 ; Pi- pp. 799-810) write* somewhat at
jart, Relation (MS.) length.
> Leonard Qarreau was born at • I find no authority for the last
St. Aredius de Perche, Oct 11, 1609. statement, and doubt it
270 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. day he fell upon a Mohawk party, whom he plundered, in *•— ~Y— - ' retaliation for the canoes which those Indians had robbed
a short time before.1 The French On the 29th, about nine in the evening, the voice of a
'ondaga? man in pain was heard in the camp. The commander at once ordered the drums to beat, and an Indian was seen approaching, though with great difficulty. It was the young Huron who had escaped, as already related, after the incursion into Isle Orleans. The skin of his body was half roasted, and for seventeen days that he had been wandering he had tasted no food but berries. The Onon- dagas who accompanied the French made him a drink which soon restored his stomach. Food was then given, and the poor creature sent to Quebec.'
Their re- The rest of their voyage was prosperous, except that
oeption. ^gy suffered considerably from want of provisions, their supply not having been properly managed. They had reckoned, as usual, on fishing and hunting. Both these resources failed, and the French, who were not accus- tomed to fast like the Indians, would almost all have died of starvation, had not the Onondaga sachems sent out canoes, loaded with provisions, to meet them. By this means they learned, moreover, that a large number of Iro- quois, of all the cantons, and many other Indians, awaited them on the banks of Lake Gannentaha;* and Mr. Du- puys, on his side, prepared to make his entrance into the country.
Before reaching the spot where the Indians had halted,
July 11. he landed five small pieces of cannon, and fired a volley. He then re-embarked, and sailing on in fine order,4 he entered the lake, where, in less than fifteen minutes, he fired two general volleys of musketry. To
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, taba means Material for the Council
1657, p. 10. Fire. Morgan.
* Relation de la Nouvelle France, Their banner was of white sUk,
1657, p. 11. with the monogram of Jesus em-
' Now Lake Onondaga. Qannen- broidered : Relation, 1657, p. 10.
BISTORT OF NEW FRANCS. 277
judge by appearances, he was received in the most re- 1656. spectful and cordial manner in the world. Harangues, v-~v— -^ banquets, chants, dances — nothing was spared. The next St. Mary's day, July 12, the Te Deum was chanted at the close of a uh«! solemn Mass ; then the sachems offered the presents usu- ally made in treaties of alliance ; and on the 16th all the French received communion with a piety which was an excellent example, and produced a great impression on the minds of the Indians. The next day they began to prepare their quarters, and Father le Mercier proceeded to visit the town of Onondaga, where he was received with great ceremony.1
On the 24th a general council was held, and Father Chau- monot there spoke of the Christian religion with the same eloquence and the same success as he had done on his arrival in the canton.' The same day, deputies came from the canton of Cayuga to solicit a missionary, and Father Mesnard was granted to them.' All was now apparently in movement, in the canton of Onondaga, to embrace Christianity, and it became necessary to increase by more than one-half the chapel, no longer able to hold all who sought instruction in our mysteries. In the month of August there were excessive heats, which caused great maladies, but, by the good care of the Indians, all the sick soon recovered.'
This last mark of affection on the part of this people convinced the most incredulous that the Onondagas could be depended upon in future ; yet the wisest thought precautions necessary, at least against fickleness, and it proved fortunate that their advice was followed. To hold this canton in check, and by its means the rest, required only the erection of a fort. But all the resources of Can-
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, ' Relation d« la Nouvelle France,
1657, p. 14. It U represented ai five 16S7, p. 10.
leagues from St. Mary's Le Her- ' Ib. (p. 19; does not itate the d»jr.
cier was called, by the Onondagas. * Relation de la Nourelln France,
Achiendase. 1857, p. 19.
278 nisTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. ada would not have sufficed to meet such an expense, and
>-— v— •' among the associates in the New France Company no one had less credit, or was less hearkened to, than those who were best informed as to the country.
Some of the While these things were passing at Onondaga, the Hurons on Isle Orleans, no longer deeming themselves "othe secure, took refuge in Quebec ; and in a moment of resent-
Mohawks, meDt at having been abandoned by the French, they sent secretly to propose to the Mohawks to receive them into their canton, so as to form only one people with them.'
They had no sooner taken this step than they repented ; but the Mohawks took them at their word, and seeing that they endeavored to withdraw their proposition, re- sorted to measures to compel them to adhere to it. They began by letting loose upon them several parties, who butchered or carried off all who went out apart in the- fields ; and when they supposed that these hostilities had rendered them more tractable, they sent thirty deputies to Quebec to bring them in." H»ughti- Nothing could exceed the haughtiness with which these
"Mohawk6 envoys discharged their commission. They first applied envoys. fa ^jr fte LausOn, and asked to be heard in a general assembly of the Hurons and French ; and the governor- general having consented, the chief of the deputation first addressed the Hurons, saying : " Brother, it is now some time' since you stretched out your hands to beg me to lead you to my country ; but as often as I get ready to do BO you draw back, and it is to punish you for your incon- stancy that I have struck you with my hatchet. Believe me. Give me no more ground to treat you thus. Arise and follow me." With these words, he presented two belts — one, he said, to help the Hurons to rise ; the other
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, who encamped three or four days'
1657, p. 19. march from Quebec, and sent tMrty
' The Relation (1657, p. 20) does to the Hurona to summon them to
not mention hostilities. It say8 a go.
party of one hundred was sent, 3 Four years.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. 279
to assure them that henceforward the Mohawks would live 1656. with them as with their brethren.'
He then turned towards the general, and spoke to him in these words : " Ononthio, lift up your arms and let your children go, whom you hold clasped to your bosom ; for, should they commit any folly, it is to be feared, that while intending to chastise them, my blows may reach you. This is to open your arms." And he presented a belt. " I know," he continued, " that the Huron loves the prayer ; that he acknowledges and adores the Author of all things ; that in all his necessities he has recourse to Him. I wish to do the same. Consent that Ondesson (Father le Moyne) — who has left me, I know not why — return with the Huron to instruct me ; and as I have not canoes enough to take so many, do me the favor to lend me yours." He supported these two requests with two other belts, and retired.'
The reader will doubtless have much difficulty in under- standing what obliged Mr. de Lauson* to suffer such inso- lence at a time when he had no other enemy on his hands except the single canton of the Mohawks. Perhaps he wished to see, before coming to a rupture with them, in what way affairs would turn at Onoudaga. But the fact is that he manifested to the Mohawks no resentment at the haughty discourse of their orator. This the Hurons marked well, and they were greatly embarrassed. Past experience and the conduct of the Iroquois made them
1 Relation de la Nouvelle France, he went to France, and baring been 1097, p. 90. ordained, return -d in 1659 with t ib. Bishop Laval. In 1672 he returned • The acting governor at this time with hU daughter to France : Bel- waa Mr. Charles de Lauson de Char- mont, Histoire du Canada, p. » ; Me- ny, son of the governor. He came moires de la Soc. Hist de Montreal, to Canada, June 28, 1692. In Au- p. 80. Jochereaa (Histoire de 1'Ho- gust, 1652, he married Mary Louisa tel Dieu, p. 110) is mistaken in sup- Gi&rd, who died in 1656. After posing that John de Lauson, the hi* father's d-jparture, in the sum- seneschal, was left as governor. See mor of 1656, he administered the Faillon, HJMoire de la Colonie Fran- government till Sept. 18, 1657, when caise, II., p. 859.
280 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. fear the worst, and their destruction seemed certain, take """' •""*•"—'' which course they would. In this perplexity they divided. Some declared that they would not leave the French ; others resolved to give themselves to the Onondagas, with whom they had already entered into engagements. Only the Bear family kept its word given to the Mohawks.'
These resolutions taken, the council reassembled ; and although the governor-general had taken, apparently, no measures to have his rank respected, he chose to be pres- ent. Father le Moyne, who acted as his interpreter, spoke first, and said : " Ononthio loves the Hurons. They are his children ; but he does not keep them in leading- strings. They are old enough to act for themselves. He opens his arms and leaves them at liberty to go whither they will. For my part, I will follow them wherever they go. If they go to you, Mohawk, I will instruct you also in what manner it is necessary to pray and adore the Maker of all things ; but I dare not hope that you will listen to me. I know you, and know how far your indo- cility goes ; but I will console myself with the Hurons. As to the canoes you ask, you see well enough that we have scarcely what we need. If you have not enough, make some.'"
The whole The chief of the Bear family of the Hurons' then spoke, gives Itself " Brothers," said he, " I am yours. I throw myself with closed eyes into your canoes, prepared for every thing, even to die. But I wish to go at first alone, with my own cabin.* I will not permit others to embark with me. If hereafter the rest of my nation wishes to come and join me, I will not oppose it ; but I am glad to be able to let them see
1 The Attignenonhac, or Cord fam- 1657, p. 21. Le Moyne's remarks ily, resolved to stay ; the Arendar- closed, not opened, the conference, rhonon, or Rock, to go to Onondaga ; 3 Atsena or le Plat, and the Attignaouantan, or Bear, to 4 The word cabin is used to mean join the Mohawks : Relation de la family. — Charlacoix. The expression Nouvelle France, 1657, p. 20. See is not, however, given in the re- ante, p. 71, n. marks of the Bear-Chief in the Re-
• Relation de la Nonvelle France, lation, 1657, p. 21.
HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE. JM
first in what manner yon treat me." He then threw down 1656. three belts, which had no object except to induce the Mo- '•""*•"-' hawks to act honorably with him, and omit nothing to make him forget what a sacrifice he made for his sake, and also to ease his journey. The deputies accepted the belts, and seemed very well satisfied. They then set to work to make canoes, and when they were completed, they embarked, with the Hurons and Father le Moyne.'
A few days after their departure, deputies from Onon- O°°JM>*11' daga reached Quebec, to require the Hurons who had Qo«be« offered themselves to their canton to keep their word. They were much shocked to learn that the Bear family had followed the Mohawks. The Hurons made a poor excuse, and were the more embarrassed, as the French would not embroil themselves with that canton, which took a very high tone. At last, the governor-general told the deputies, though in very guarded terms, that they were wanting in respect to their Father ; that a part of the Hurons were disposed to follow them, but that their wives and children were afraid of their weapons, and that it was not in the guise of warriors that they should come to seek friends and brethren ; that if they wished to do things regularly, they should return home ; that the Hurons would keep their word with them when they were able to regard them no longer as enemies ; and to show them that what he said was not a pretext, the Hurons would go to Montreal to await them, and would give hostages.'
This reply seemed to appease them. They were feasted, and returned in apparent satisfaction. Nevertheless, these frequent altercations, the dissolution of a numerous Chris- tian body on which the most legitimate hopes had been based, and the hostility of the Mohawks, caused great un-
1 The Borons let oat August 31, ' Relation de 1* NouveUe France, and Father leMoyne followed on the 1697, p. 88. It dot* not mention 26th ; Relation, 1658, p. 9. the gorernor'i action.
282 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
1656. easiness both in the governor-general and the mission- aries. It is true that the latter had matter for consola- tion in the numerous conversions daily wrought among the very tribes which had shown the greatest opposition to the gospel, as well as in the treasures of grace and virtue which they remarked more and more in their neo- phytes. The memoirs of that time are full of most edify- ing traits of the fervor of these Indian Christians, which I suppress with regret. Thus did the Almighty keep these evangelical laborers in constant alternations of fear and hope, quickening in them the two virtues most necessary in the work of apostleship, distrust in themselves and confidence in Him whose ministers they were.
DISCOVERY OF CHAMPLAIN'S TOMB.
THE Relation which details the circumstances of the death of Champlain throws no light on the place of his interment The Relation for the year 1643, p. 3, in noticing the burial of Father Raymbault, states that he WM " interred near the body of late Mr. de Champlain, who is in a private vault (sepulchre) erected expressly to honor the memory of that distin- guished personage, to whom New France is under such obligation."
A register states that this was in Champlain's chapel. Mr. Ferland, with many other students, took this to be the Governor's chapel, attached to the Church of Notre Dame de Recouvrance, at or near the site of the present English cathedral.
The Abb6 Laverdidre, while editing a new edition of Champlain's voy- ages, was anxious to decide the point. He was soon satisfied that this chapel was in the Lower Town, and that it was the Recollect Chapel built in 1615. Investigation and the light of documents proved that this was in the Anse of the Cul-de-Sac, on a street still called Champlain Street, where an ancient cemetery exists. Arrived at this stage, Mr. La. verdiere and the Abb6 Casgrain, who had joined in his researches, were overwhelmed with disappointment to find that only ten years since the water-works had run directly through the ground. Application to H. O'Donnell, Esq., the assistant-engineer who directed the works, brought ont the fact that he had come, at the foot of the stairs called Little Champlain Street, upon a vault containing a coffin and human remains apparently of some distinguished person ; and that he had at the time preserved a plan of the locality and sketches of two of the bones. Remains of three bodies were found near. The body in the vault was undoubtedly Cham- plain's ; those near it, the remains of Father Raymbault, the Recollect Brother Pacificus du Plessis, and of Mr. de Re, known to have been in* terred near Champlain's vault.
2S4 HISTORY OF NEW FRANCE.
Part of the ancient vault was preserved in the new works, and the Abbes Laverdiere and Casgrain descending into it, November 10, 1866, found it about eight feet square, and about fourteen feet from the corner of Sous-le-Fort Street. The body had lain in the direction of Champlain Street. They were able on the wall still to trace in part the name SAMVEL DE CHAMPLAIN. It now remained to find the bones. These had at the time been placed in a box and conveyed to the Parish Church, where they were kept for about three years, and there being no prospect of their identification, the box was, by direction of the Rev. Edmund Langevin, buried near the cathedral, with injunctions to mark the spot. This was neglected, but hopes are still entertained of its recovery, when Quebec will do honor to the remains of its illustrious founder.
A more curious and persistent search has seldom been made than this, so honorable to the Abb6 Laverdi&re. (See Decouverte du Tombeau de Champlain, par MM. lea Abbes Laverdiere et Casgrain. Quebec, 1866. 80, 19 pp., three plane.)
DIRECTIONS TO THE BINDER
PORTRAIT or CHAMPLJU* (to face title).
FAC-U1OLE8 OF SIGNATURES 7
MAP OF LAKE CHAMFLAIH 15
PORTRAIT OF MR. OI.IKK 120
PORTRAIT OF FATHER ISAAC Joouxa 141
MAP OF MOMI: KM. 10
FAC-aUOLES OF SIGNATURES MM
Bun OF FATHER BREBEUF Ml
Charlevoix, Pierre Fra 5057 Xavier de
C4J- History and general
v.2 description of New Frai
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