USA > Louisiana > Sketches, historical and descriptive, of Louisiana > Part 2
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Such indeed was the wretched condition of that Colony in 1628, owing in part to Indian wars, and in part to the religious dissensions among the settlers, that the crown was easily prevailed on to grant the province to a Compa- ny : But as the conditions of the transfer were not fulfil- led, the grant was eventually rescinded. The next year an English squadron appeared in the river St. Lawrence, when Quebec and all Canada submitted without a strug- gle. In 1631 this conquest was abandoned ; and the French four years afterwards extended their discoveries to Lakes Huron and Michigan.
The war with the Iroquois proved destructive and ruin- ous to the French. They at first engaged in it from choice, and were soon obliged to continue it from necessity. The French ministry witnessed the retrograde tendency of the province, and reflected with pain on its defenceless condi- tion, liable to become an easy prey to the first foreign or domestic invader. Such indeed was the crisis of affairs about the year 1660, that the existence of Canada in a great measure depended on the extirpation of the Iroquois ; and it was resolved to make one great effort to humble that people. In the course of the four subsequent years, two
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· large reinforcements arrived from France, and the war was prosecuted with vigor *.
A new difficulty opposed itself to the French. In 1664 the English dispossessed the Dutch of New Belgiat, or New York, who immediately furnished the Iroquois with the means of carrying on the war to advantage. Even at that early day the progress of the settlements of the two nations afforded reciprocal uneasiness, and each endeavou- red to circumscribe the other as much as possible. The . English planted themselves among the Iroquois, partly for the purposes of trade, and partly to extend their claims by new discoveries. The French were actuated by similar motives ; but the frequent and powerful incursions of their enemies, and the unfriendly disposition of the Indians about the lakes, kept them in a state of war, and rendered it un- safe for them to leave their settlements. During this time their rivals remained at peace, and pursued their trade without interruption.
Canada stood in need of large reinforcements to supply her losses. One arrived in 1667, when it was found on examination, that 3000 men were ready for the field. In this enumeration the settlers, as well as regular troops, were included.
About this period the French authorities in Canada, for the first time, viewed their situation in its true light. The destruction of the natives was of no use to them ; on the contrary, the more they killed or drove away, the less re- mained to yield them commerce. A predatory contest with barbarians was prolific of blood, but not of glory; it
" A memorable event took place in 1663. Canada was terribly sha- ken by an earthquake ; and, according to contemporary writers, it buried a lofty chain of mountains, 300 miles long, and changed this immense tract into a plain.
¡ This was confirmed to the English by the treaty of Breda, in 1667.
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interrupted the prosperity of the settlements, and evidently pointed to their ultimate extinction. The Iroquois enter- tained the same sentiments. A war of sixty years' conti- nuance, carried on with various success, operated to the injury of both, and both secretly sighed for some remission from the toils and waste of perpetual hostility. The French ventured to make proposals on the subject ; and a peace was. concluded in 1668.
Both parties were extremely pleased at this event ; the Indians, because it removed their fears of total ruin ; the French, because the navigation of the lakes was less pre- carious, and an extended trade and intercourse appeared practicable.
The first symptom of Canadian prosperity manifested itself at this period. As the days of adversity appeared to be past, the troops were disbanded, and a suitable quan- tity of land bestowed on them as a reward for their servi- ces. An unsuccessful attempt made by the English on Quebec in 1691, caused a temporary alarm : But the peace of Ryswick in 1697, put an end to the disputes about these regions; and Canada was no more menaced till it was forever wrested from the crown of France.
It was extremely unfortunate for the French, that they entertained erroneous conceptions of Canada, and of the means of wealth it afforded. The romantic tales published by some of the first adventurers, particularly by those who had a deep interest in colonizing the Country, led them into error. Many of the agriculturalists of France ex- changed their fruitful fields and vineyards for the inhos- pitable wilds of the new world, not to pursue their former occupations, but to seize on opulent fortunes. The success of the Spaniards served to increase their expectations. Great indeed was their disappointment when they came to realise their condition. The Indian trade furnished the only means of subsistence. They took no pains to ascertain the quality of their lands, or the different grains
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suited to the climate. They seldom aimed at more than the cultivation of gardens. The consequence was, that po- verty dwelt in almost every mansion. The labor of nine tenths of the population on the distant lakes and rivers, exposed to hunger, nakedness and death, served only to augment the wealth of a few traders and merchants. Hence the colony, poor at first, was never able to pros- per. The physical strength of a people depends more on agriculture than any other pursuit; and the progeny of the ancient French, with the sad experience of more than two hundred years before their eyes, appear to be still ig- norant of this truth. The inhabitants of the Spanish pro- vinces are extremely poor, though planted in a fruitful soil, and in a world of precious metals. The French and Spanish colonists were ever engaged in the pursuit of phantoms ; and this pursuit will probably be continued as long as there remains a vestige of peltry, or of mineral wealth.
. During the long war with the Iroquois, the French traders were not allowed to pass beyond the bounds of the settlements ; while the English extended their inter- , course, much indeed to the injury of their rivals. The peace, however, released them from these restraints ; and the French authorities, for the first time, permitted their traders to carry goods into the Indian nations, and at the same time granted them exclusive privileges as induce- ments to enterprise. Prompted by the thirst of gain, the Colony became much weakened by a wide dispersion of its members, many of whom exposed theinselves to great dangers, and some to inevitable destruction. These ex- clusive privileges were found to be impolitic, and their dissolution was pronounced. Other measures were de- vised to supply the Indians, and to circumscribe the En- glish,
The most important of these was the establishment of a chain of military posts from Quebec, along the lakes, to
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Michillimakinak ; and the respective commandants of them were alone authorised to carry on the Indian trade. 'This measure was likewise found to be pernicious. The com- mandants put too high a price on their commodities, by which means the English were enabled to undersell them. The French authorities, therefore, again took the trade into their own hands.
In establishing this chain of posts, the French were ac- tuated by other motives than the acquisition of the Indian trade, and the interdiction of the English ; they aimed to immortalize themselves by new discoveries. 'An inland passage to China was considered as practicable. They , were apprised of the information received by Cartier about : 150 years before, that there was a great river to the south west, where Silver and Gold abounded. These prospects were strengthened by subsequent enquiries, and they pre- pared to gratify their curiosity.
It must not be forgotten, that the French, as well as Spaniards, usually confided their inland voyages of disco- very to one or more Catholic missionaries, at least none was undertaken without them. No doubt these pious Priests were actuated by a laudable zeal to propagate their religion, and at the same time to become acquainted with unknown Countries. Certain it is, that we are in- debted to this order of men for most of the knowledge we have, correct or spurious, of the early history of the French and Spanish Colonies.
There is some dispute as to the time when, and by whoin, the Mississippi was first discovered. No less than three nations contend for the honor of this discovery. The English allege that Wood discovered it in 1654, and Bolt in 1670; but without much foundation. The Spa- niards are persuaded, that it was seen by Ferdinand de Soto, and even crossed by him as early as 1541 near the Chickasaw nation. This is questioned by the French on the ground that, when they entered the country, no ves-
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tige of his wars remained, nor had the Indians any tradi- tion of him. But the journal of his expedition affords in- dubitable proofs, that he explored the interior of Florida, and that he discovered and crossed the Mississippi. The . description it contains of that great river, and of the Coun- try on each side of it, could not have been given by any other than an eye-witness. If no monuments remain of him, it is because his march was rapid ; as he was in pur- suit of mines, which eluded his grasp, he had the strong- est temptation to accelerate his movements.
There is some dispute among the French, by whom of their own nation the Mississippi was first discovered. But this honor is unquestionably due to two Missionaries of Canada by the names of Jolliet and Marquette*, who tra- versed the lakes, with five men only to assist them, and entered that river by way of the Ouisconsing. Jolliet says , in his journal, that they entered the Mississippi June 15, 1674; but as he had lost all his papers, and wrote from memory only, he probably mistook the year, as Marquette, in the journal left by him, states this discovery to be June 15, 1673. They descended that river to the Arkansas, a distance of about 990 miles, and then returned to Cana- da by way of the Illinois. They have described the Country and Rivers so accurately as to render it certain, that they made the discoveries attributed to them.
This bold adventure opened a wide field of specula-
* Charlevoix relates, that Marquette was a native of Leon in Picar- dy, born of reputable parents, and an illustrious Missionary of New France. He travelled over all the parts of it then known, and made several important discoveries, the last of which was the Mississippi. On the 18th of May 1675, while on his way from Chickago to Michilli- mackinac, he entered a river bearing bis own name, when he let drop some expressions, which plainly indicated, that he should end his days in that place. Soon after the boat landed, he erected his altar, and said mass; after which, he retired a short distance to return thanks, desiring the men with him to absent themselves for half an hour. They did so, and on their return, found bim dead.
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tion, which seemed to promise an ample reward for the greatest toils and dangers. M. de la Salle, the proprietor and commander of Fort Frontinac, situated at the lower end of lake Ontario, resolved to gratify his curiosity in exploring a Country, represented as the finest in the. world. The reparation of an exhausted fortune furnish- .. ed not the least of the motives, which stimulated him to undertake the arduous enterprise. The discovery and settlement of the Country about the mouth of the Missis- sippi evidently assured wealth and fame ; and happily his talents, courage, and activity, were admirably calculated to inspire the adventurers with the most flattering hopes of success.
It was not easy to make the necessary preparations for this voyage ; an almost insuperable difficulty arose from the want of means, which caused considerable delay. M. de la Salle was at last enabled to build a small vessel, in which he sailed from the lower end of Lake Erie near the close of the summer of 1679. His party at first con- sisted of Father Louis Hennepin, a Franciscan Friar, and thirty four men; and on his voyage over the Lakes he was joined by several more. On their arrival in Lake Michigan, the vessel was loaded with peltries, and order- ed to return ; but her progress was soon arrested by the Indians, who doomed her to the flames, and the crew to the scalping-knife. M. de la Salle and his followers, now thirty two in all, descended the Illinois river, and in Ja- nuary 1680 halted at an Indian village on its banks, about 150 miles from the Mississippi. The Iroquois had exten- ded their destructive ravages to this Country, where they obtained 800 prisoners at one time, and carried them into slavery ; and this circumstance induced the Iilinois In- dians to treat their new visitors with great hospitality. Here the French, for their better security, built a Fort, and aptly named it Crevecoeur, or broken heart. As soon as they were secure in winter quarters, M. de la Salle
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selected three men, and with them returned to Canada over land in pursuit of additional supplies and adven- turers.
The original plan was, that M. de la Salle should pro- ceed to the mouth of the Mississippi, while Father Hen- nepin penetrated that river to its source ; and accordingly .. M. de la Salle, when he set out for Canada, directed him to prosecute the enterprise with all possible despatch. Father Hennepin therefore set out, with two men only with him, and entered the Mississippi March 8th, 1680. But he pretends, that he departed from his instructions, and, instead of the source, resolved to find the mouth of that river ; at which, if he be believed, he arrived on the 25th of the same month. On the first of April, according to his account, he set out on his return, and ascended the Mississippi to the falls of St. Anthony, where he and his two men were made prisoners, robbed of their property, and taken to some Indian villages situated on one of the upper branches of that river. They were soon liberated, and returned to Canada by way of the Ouisconsing. Fa- ther Hennepin went immediately to France, where he published a splendid account of the vast Country he had discovered, which he named LOUISIANA, in honor of Louis XIV, and dedicated it to the great Colbert. No mention is made in this publication of his descending the Mississippi.
The writers of history and geography seem to have ta- ken it for granted, that Father Hennepin was the first who discovered the Mississippi, and the first who traversed that river to its mouth. It has already appeared, that Jolliet and Marquette entered the Mississippi several years be- fore him ; and it will soon be found, that Father Henne- pin never descended that river, as he has stated, and that the first discovery of the mouth of it must be attributed to M. de la Salle.
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That Father Hennepin entered the Mississippi, and as- cended it to the falls of St. Anthony, there can be no man- ner of doubt. But the truth of what he states, relative to bis descent and discovery of the mouth of that river, may be safely questioned on several grounds.
I. He endeavors to create a belief, that he was the first, among the Europeans, who obtained a view of the Mis- sissippi. If he was unacquainted with the discoveries of Ferdinand de Soto, he could not be ignorant of those made by Jolliet and Marquette ; and when he alleges, that Jol. liet, by his own confession, went no further than the Hu- rons and Outtaonats, it was to make himself considered as the first discoverer of a new Country, and to snatch the laurels from two contemporary travellers of integrity and virtue. The separate journals of Jolliet and Marquette were published, and they afford a pretty accurate descrip- tion of the Country, its rivers, and productions. What they call Painted Monsters on the side of a high perpen- dicular rock, apparently inaccessible to man, between the Missouri and Illinois, and known to the moderns by the name of Piesa, still remain in a good degree of preserva- tion. They mention the Missouri by the name of Pekita- moni, and accurately describe the peculiar color of its waters.
II. The various distances laid down by him are much too short; whereas it is usual for travellers in unknown regions to consider them much greater than they really are. The account of the upper Mississippi, as given by Hennepin himself, may be adduced as an instance of this.
III. If his statement be correct, he descended from the mouth of the Illinois river to the mouth of the Mississippi (a distance of more than 1350 miles) in seventeen days, though he devoted the nights to sleep on shore, spent some time among the Indians, and still more in procuring pro- visions from the woods. It is therefore difficult to con-
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ceive, that he performed the voyage in so short a period ; particularly as it usually requires about the same number of days, at the same season of the year, for one of our trading boats to descend from St. Louis to New-Orleans.
IV. He has neglected to describe the mouth of the Mississippi, and the Country about the Delta. These are so singular in many respects, and of such importance to a maritime nation, that the omission was unpardonable, if he had it in his power to gratify curiosity, or to afford useful information to his Government. His silence, there- fore, must be attributed to his total ignorance of what he pretends to have discovered.
V. How shall we account for his rapid ascent against the current of the Mississippi ! If we believe him, he and the two men with him rowed a Canoe from the mouth of that river to the Illinois in twenty four days ! Seventy and eighty days are usually allowed to our trading Row-Boats,, assisted too by Sails, to ascend from New Orleans to St. Louis ; a voyage about 140 miles shorter than the preten- ded one of Hennepin : And yet, according to his declara- tion, he performed it in one third of the time, and under circumstances calculated to retard his progress.
VI. The reasons assigned by him, in the English Edi- tion of his book, for not including his discoveries on the Lower Mississippi in his first publication, dedicated to Colbert, are by no means satisfactory. 'To omit this, be- cause he had departed from his instructions, and because he wished M. de la Salle to rcap the honors of the disco- very, manifests an extreme delicacy, which neither the importance of the subject, nor the character of Hennepin, will justify. He complains, that M. de la Salle had inju- red him in France on account of the Mississippi transac- tions, and that he was obliged to seek safety in England. Here he published, in 1698, a new Edition of his travels, in which he included his discovery of the mouth of the Mississippi, and dedicated it to King William. At this
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period M. de la Salle was dead ; and it is asserted on good authority, that some of his papers fell into the hands of Hennepin. It is, therefore, reasonable to conclude, that, to revenge himself on the memory of M. de la Salle, and to arrogate to himself the honor of an important discovery, he appropriated the papers of his deceased rival to his own use. It is equally reasonable to conclude, that the notes of M. de la Salle were incomplete, designed only as hints to aid the memory in detailing occurrences more at large, and unintelligible, perhaps, to every body but the writer. The few accurate hints he has given of the Mississippi, and of the Country, between the Illinois and Arkansas, furnish no proof, that he visited or explored them. IIe either purloined them from the notes of M. de la Salle, or from the remarks of Jolliet, who frequently detailed to him and others the particulars of his discoveries. It is also worthy of notice, that it was eleven years after the death of M. de la Salle before Hennepin pretended to the discovery of the Lower Mississippi. During this time M. Tonti had descended from the Illinois to that place ; and the information derived from him and his party, enabled Hennepin to impose on the world, a volume of surrepti- tious discoveries. Peter Kalm, the Swedish naturalist, in his account of Niagara fall, published in the Annual Re- gister for 1759, speaks thus of his character : " Father " Hennepin calls the fall six hundred feet perpendicular : " But he has gained little credit in Canada ; the name of " honor they give him there, is, the great liar ; he writes " of what he saw in places where he never was." These circumstances seem to destroy the authority of IIennepin ; his pretensions to the discovery of the mouth of the Mis- sissippi, are founded in fraud and imposture.
M. de la Salle was extremely pleased with the Country about the Illinois river. On his return to Canada, as has been already stated, he endeavoured to persuade his Countrymen to accompany him to the Mississippi. 1
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disposition for enterprise prevailed among them ; but they were poor, and the repeated losses of M. de la Salle had deprived him of all resources, except those of his fertile genius. M. Tonti, whom he left in command of Fort Cre- vecœur, followed him to Canada ; by their united exertions supplies were eventually procured, as likewise a considera- ble number of adventurers, who were inclined to seek their fortunes in unknown regions. They set out with the de- sign of forming new settlements, and in 1683 arrived on the Mississippi. They established themselves on the east side of that river ; and Cahokia, Kaskaskia, and some other villages, were founded at this period. M. de la Salle, after he had regulated the affairs of his little Colony, left M. Tonti in command, and then proceeded with a number of men to the mouth of the Mississippi, where he made such observations as time and other circumstances permitted. He speedily returned to Quebec, and from thence passed over to France, and communicated the par- ticulars of his discoveries to the French ministry.
The certainty of a great inland water communication from the gulf of St. Lawrence to that of Mexico, a dis- tance of about 3,500 miles, awakened the surprise and cu- riosity of the French Cabinet. This discovery was the foundation of that policy, which was ultimately adopted to extend round the English settlements a strong cordon, calculated to draw them gradually into the embraces of France. This policy had less of hypothesis in it than was at first believed by the English. To carry it into effect, the French adopted the most artful and prudent precau- tions, and all their subsequent colonial measures tended to this point.
A strong settlement was already formed on the Upper Mississippi, and it was deemed of primary importance to form another at the mouth of that river. M. de la Salle was therefore supplied with four ships, their, several crews, . and 120 landsmen. After various difficulties and delays,
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occasioned by storms and other accidents among the West India Islands, he at length made the continent, and landed his Colony, February 18th, 1685. Deceived by the cur- rents in the gulf, or by his former observations, he sailed about three hundred miles to the westward of his destina- tion, and debarked his settlers at the mouth of the river Guadaloupe, on the west side of the bay of St. Bernard, in about N. Lat. 29 degrees. Here they were strongly opposed by the Indians, and a Fort was erected for their security. Ifere several other misfortunes awaited them, sufficient to check the ardor, and to break down the spi- rits of ordinary men. All their Vessels, and part of their provisions and stores, were soon destroyed either by the violence of the winds, or the negligence of the Officers and Pilots. The diseases contracted in St. Domingo as- sumed a fatal type on their arrival, and about one hun- dred of the adventurers miserably perished. A voyage over land to the Illinois Country, where M. Tonti com- manded, seemed alone to promise the means of relief.
Such indeed was the painful situation of the Colony, that it required more than ordinary firmness and caution in M. de la Salle to remedy the evils of it. In April 1680 he selected twenty of his best men, and proceeded by land in a north-east direction about 450 miles ; but was obliged to return on account of the desertion of four of his men, the sickness of himself and others, and the want of am- munition. In this excursion he visited many powerful na- tions of Indians, who in general treated him with kindness, and this created a spirit of desertion among his men.
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