USA > Maine > A history of the discovery of Maine > Part 37
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Having accomplished this, and made a certain captain,
428
RIBAULT'S FIRST VOYAGE, 1562.
Albert de la Pieria, " a soldier of great experience," com- mander of Charlesfort, he took leave of his countrymen, and left Port Royal on the 11th day of June, sailing north "with the intention to explore the east coast of New France " (North America) as far as the fortieth degree of north lati- tude .*
Ribault gives no reason for limiting himself to this lati- tude, or why he did not proceed further north, according to his instructions. But we can scarcely doubt, that in this he was governed by the example of Verrazano, who had found at New York a most beautiful harbor, from which he had been suddenly driven in a squall, to his no small regret. He had, in nearly the same latitude, remained a fortnight in the admirable harbor of our present Newport, of which he had spoken in high terms of praise in his letter to Francis I.
Ribault, as well as Coligny, was without doubt, as I have said, acquainted with Verrazano's voyage and report ; and had therefore in view these localities in sailing north, although he did not advance far in this direction.
He soon found himself in shallow water, and the weather appears to have been cloudy and threatening .; One morn- ing he assembled all his officers and men, and in a general consultation laid before them the reasons for a quick and direct return to France. The principal were the following : the want of provisions, a portion of which they had left with their colonists ; the crew had also been weakened by the same cause, and were not sufficient to man the boats properly, # the two vessels not being able to spare thirty such men as were left in the fort ; and it was also said, that it would be useful to carry to Admiral Coligny the news of what had been done, as soon as possible, so that proper measures might be speedily taken for sending relief and reinforcements to the
* Ribault, 1. c. p. 114. t Ibid. # I bid.
429
RIBAULT'S FIRST VOYAGE, 1562.
colony. It was urged, in addition, by some who had before been in the north, that the weather would grow worse, and dangers increase, if they should proceed further ; and that vessels, designed for exploring in that quarter, should be better provided with cables and other equipments .*
Ribault and his officers therefore concluded to leave the coast, give up their further progress to the north-east, and " to take their way toward the east, which was the true route and course for France;" f which they consequently did.
The place of that consultation, and the termination of Ri- bault's north-eastern progress along our coast, were probably the shoals off Cape S. Romain ; for that is the only place where, in this latitude, at a distance of five leagues from shore, such low soundings are found as are described in Ribault's report.
It seems clear from the reasons given in the general con- sultation above spoken of, that the suspension of a further survey of the north-east coast as far as Cape Breton, or at least to 40° N., was owing to the establishment of the fort and colony at Port Royal, which was contrary to Ribault's commission. By this accidental, hasty, and unfortunate col- onization, to which he had been induced by his enthusiasm for those southern regions, he had so diminished his crew, his supplies, and equipment, that he was unable to proceed further. Anxiety and care for the small colony he had left on a wild coast pressed upon him, so that he felt obliged to neglect his instructions for exploration, and hasten to France to procure relief for his colonists.
It was, I think, a great mistake in Ribault to plant a colony from an armament not fitted out for such a purpose, but only
* Ribault, I. c. p. 114.
t Laudonnière's report in the work, "L'histoire notable do la Florida," p. 21. Paris, 1586.
430
RIBAULT'S FIRST VOYAGE, 1562.
for a preliminary exploring voyage. He ought steadily and promptly to have surveyed the whole east coast, as was , intended at the outset, and to have brought home to Coligny exact reports of all its harbors and ports, as he was ordered to do. Coligny could then have selected the most favorable locality for his future colony, and have fitted out an expedi- tion better adapted for a permanent settlement.
It was a mistake in Ribault to have colonized at all; and a still greater, that he planted where he did. He built his nest too near the colonies of the Spaniards, who were of course jealous of such a proceeding, and consequently soon attacked the fort and overwhelmed the colony. It is probable that he was influenced in this selection of a site by the general im- pression, that gold, spices, and other rich commodities were found only at the south, and that the north was cold, poor, and barren.
Verrazano had clearly enough designated the place where the French, under Ribault, ought to have colonized. They should have gone to New York or Narraganset Bay, which had been declared by Verrazano to offer the best harbors on the whole east coast. There they would have been at a good distance from territory claimed by Spain, and quite near to the regions of Newfoundland, where the French shipping and fishing interests were so great, and to Canada, of which the French had long before taken possession, and where nobody would contest their priority.
It is inconceivable, that the leading men could have con- sidered attentively the report of Verrazano, which had long been printed in Ramusio, and not have been led by it to per- ceive, that Newport and New York harbors were the most favorable points for the establishment of French colonies, and superior to any others on the coast. If Coligny had taken the trouble, while studying Verrazano's report more closely,
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431
RIBAULT'S FIRST VOYAGE, 1562.
to examine his description of the coast, he probably would have corrected Ribault's mistake, and have sent an expedi- tion to remove his misplaced colonists in the south, and have ordered them to be conducted to the north. There the French Protestants would really have found a safe asylum, free from annoyance by Spain, and might have had a permanent and prosperous settlement ; so that we might now have a New York with a French, instead of a Dutch substratum. The history of New England might also have been affected and changed by such a proceeding.
Ribault, without doubt, was a brave soldier and an excel- lent man, although perhaps too enthusiastic and impulsive ; but we cannot say much for his cosmographical and nautical information and intelligence. If he had known something of great circle-sailing, or, as old Sebastian Cabot expressed it, " of the reasons of the sphere," he would not have said, as he did, " that the true route from the coasts of South Caro- lina to northern France lay to the east." If he had meas- ured his return-route on the globe, and not on a plane chart, he would have known, that his true and shortest course lay along the same shores which he was commissioned to ex- plore, as far as Cape Breton and Newfoundland. On his homeward voyage, he might have sailed on this route, not far from our coast, and while returning toward France have made valuable discoveries by the way.
We do not exactly know on what track he returned, as he is very brief on this point ; probably it was north of the Azores. According to the testimony of Laudonnière,* he arrived in France on the 20th of July, which would be a quick voyage of only five weeks from Port Royal to Havre de Grace, if, as is reported, he left on the 11th of June.
* Laudonnière, 1. c. p. 21.
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432
FATE OF RIBAULT'S COLONY, 1562-63.
3. THE FATE OF THE FRENCH SETTLEMENT AT PORT ROYAL, 1562-1563.
On his arrival in France, Ribault found the country in a state of great commotion. The civil war between the Hu- guenots and the Catholics was raging, and neither the king nor the admiral had time to listen to Ribault's solicitations, to send relief to the settlers left in " French Florida."
Those colonists remained, therefore, during the remainder of 1562 and the following winter, without assistance from France ; and after many trials and sufferings, they were at last forced, in 1563, to abandon their settlement and the new country. The particulars of their operations and movements during this time, belong to the special history of Carolina, and must be omitted here. But as the fate of the colonists, and their homeward voyage, are not without interest for our particular object, I will briefly relate them ; pointing out those circumstances and events which exerted an influence on the further development of American discovery .*
In the midst of their sufferings from hunger and destitu- tion, discontent and discord sprang up among the colonists. Their captain, Albert, was unable to quell the mutinous spirit of which he became the victim, being murdered by his revolted soldiers. In his place a man by the name of Barre was elected as chief, and under his command it was concluded to construct a small vessel to carry the colonists back to France, if no supplies should in the mean time come to their relief.
Under many difficulties, and with the assistance of friendly
* The principal source of information for the history of this French col- ony is Laudonniere's account in "L'Histoire Notable," etc., fols. 21-32, Paris, 1536, who appears to have derivel his information from some of the sur- viving colonists.
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433
FATE OF RIBAULT'S COLONY, 1562-63.
Indians, who furnished them with wood, ropes, and provis- ions, they finished their vessel; and no relief having come from France, they put to sea. A most favorable wind accom- panied them for a good while ; but when they had made about a third of their passage, they were met by calms, and were able in three weeks to proceed only twenty-five leagues. For want of water and provisions they fell into great dis- tress, and at last came to the most horrid extremities, so that they sacrificed one of their company in order to sustain the rest.
In this extremity, however, after having worked their way along for a considerable distance, they had the good fortune to discover land. Soon after an English bark appeared, and " gave them meat and drink ;" and " having put on land those that were most feeble," carried the rest to England .*
. This English vessel is said to have had on board a French sailor, " who the year before had returned from Florida with Ribault."¡ This incident, thus particularly mentioned, may show, that even then the English were making some prepa- ration for a meditated expedition to some part of the south- east coast.# This English vessel, guided by a Frenchman from Florida, may have been one of the English pioneers to those regions. Other French Protestant sailors, who, during the civil wars could find no employment in their own coun- try, may have gone over to England, and entered the English service.
The French sailors picked up by this English vessel, on
* Laudonnière, 1. c. fols. 31. 1, 32. 1.
f Laudounière, 1. c. fol. 31. 2.
# [It is expressly mentioned by Landonnière, in connection with this in- cident, that the English queen " purposed at that time to send into Flori- da;" and Hakluyt adds in the margin, " It seemeth he meaneth the voyage intended by Stukely." See Hakluyt's Voyages and Navigations, vol. 3, p. 319, ed. 1000 .- ED.]
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434
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1564.
arriving in England, probably in the autumn of 1563, were presented to Queen Elizabeth. The fate of this French col- ony in Florida having thus become known in England, sooner probably than in France, and the narrative of it having been published in English, sooner than in French,* must have led the British queen to turn her thoughts thus early toward the coasts, which soon after, in her honor, 'were named Virginia : and have bespoken the interest of the English Government and people for those enterprises, by which the English race was first transferred to American soil.
4. SECOND EXPEDITION OF THE FRENCH TO FLORIDA, UNDER CAPTAIN RENE DE LAUDONNIERE, IN 1564.
When Ribault returned home in July 1562, a most furi- ous civil and religious war was raging in France, and neither Coligny nor the king remembered the colony in America. But at the close of 1563, peace was concluded among the contending parties, and Coligny reminded the king of the poor companions of Ribault left among savages on a wild coast, and laid before him a plan for another expedition for their relief.
The king gave permission to the admiral to carry relief to his brethren and countrymen ; and thereupon three vessels were fitted out, the command of which was given to Captain René Laudonnière, "a man of much nautical experience," and one of Ribault's officers on the first expedition.
We are not told why Ribault was not again made the com- mander ; perhaps his proceedings in those points to which I have alluded were not approved. Nor do we know the par-
* [See Hakluyt, Epistle Dedicatorie, in his "Divers Voyages," p. 17, London edition, 1830. Also, Oldys' Life of Sir Walter Raleigh, p. 80, Oxford, 1829. Also, Parkman's "Pioneers of France," p. 32 .- ED.]
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435
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1564.
ticulars of this new expedition in regard to its outfit, or the instructions given to Laudonnière. He himself only says, that he was sent out " pour aller chercher et secourir les gens de Ribault " (to look for Ribault's men, and succor them) .*
It is observable, that Jacques Le Moyne, f a special "painter " and " mathematician," was one of the officers of the vessels. Coligny commissioned him " to make an accu- rate description and map of the country, and drawings of all curious objects." It is rare to see officers of this kind ap- pointed for exploring expeditions in the sixteenth century. Le Moyne made the map and drawings required of him, and wrote also a short report of the expedition ; but for some time after his return, he kept them to himself. Probably not find- ing much favor with his king, he afterwards went to Eng- land, where he died. After his death, Theodore de Bry bought the manuscripts of his widow in 1587, and procured a Latin translation of the report, which he published, with engravings of the maps and drawings, in his work : " Brevis narratio eorum, qua in Florida . . . acciderunt, etc." (a short narrative of what happened in Florida, ¿ etc).
Le Moyne, in his report, gives us some hints about the character and destination of the expedition. He says that the king gave to Laudonniere one hundred thousand francs for the outfit, and made him his " locum tenens in the new coun- try," and that the Admiral Coligny directed him to engage for the expedition as many mechanics and artisans as possible.§
From the greater number of ships, and the more ample equipment, we may conclude that this expedition was in- tended, not only to provide relief for the remnant of the first colony, but to establish a colony on a larger scale.
* Landonnière, I. c. fol. 33. 1.
f [Called James Morgues by Hakluyt, 3, p. 301, ed. 1600 .- ED. ]
# See De Bry, " Secunda pars Americe."
§ See Le Moyne, in De Bry, p. C.
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436
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1564.
The party was joined by several young noblemen of the best families of France, who equipped themselves at their own expense, and " who were desirous to see and explore new regions." Some veteran soldiers were added, and "two of the most celebrated French mariners of the age, the brothers Michael and Thomas Le Vasseur, were engaged as pilots ; so that I can firmly assert," says Le Moyne, " that in this expedition went out many men well versed and distin- guished in all the arts."
The ships sailed from Havre on the 22d of April, 1564, and proceeded not on Ribault's new "French route," but on the old Spanish track, used from the time of Columbus, south- wards to the Canaries, and thence with the trade-winds to the Lesser Antilles. At St. Domingo they took in water, and thence proceeded along the Lucayan Islands to Florida, or what they called " Nouvelle France," and more particularly "La Floride Française," at which they arrived on the 22d of June, two months after their departure. The land-fall was made in 30° N., and north of " Cape François," not far from the mouth of Ribault's River May, the present St. Mary's River.
Laudonnière entered the mouth of the river in his boats, discovered many delightful spots, numerous cultivated fields, a large population, and altogether such a cheerful-looking country, that he exclaims, " the place is so pleasant, that those which are melancholicke would be inforced to change their humor."
Taking into consideration that " Port Royal," though a most excellent harbor, did not offer rich supplies, and was poor in provisions, as had been proved by the Frenchmen who had suffered there the year before ;* and considering
* Laudonnière, 1. c. fol. 43. 2. From this passage it is quite clear, that Laudonnière had been informed in France of the return of Ribault's men to England.
437
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1561.
further, that for the present it was more desirable to secure for his colony a fertile and agreeable place with only a tolerable harbor, than to have the best harbor with a poor country ; he resolved to establish his intended colony at the mouth of the River May.
On the southern side of the river, the same side where the king's pillar had formerly been erected by Ribault, a few leagues from the mouth, Laudonnière built a fort, called, in honor of Charles IX, " La Caroline," and erected around it various structures for lodgings and storage.
Having gained in this manner a firm foot-hold, he de- spatched one of his vessels, "the Isabeau," to France, to carry home the news of his arrival, and his plan of settle- ment in the new world, and to ask for succor. He then made explorations into the interior, as well as along the " River May " and the neighboring "Rivière des Dauphins," the present St. John's River.
It must be remembered, that on Ribault's first voyage, the French had understood from the Indians, that "Cevola," the famous country of the Seven Cities, and " the other sea," which they took to be the South Sea, were distant only a boat's voyage of twenty days. Laudonniere had seen among them a large piece of silver, which he thought must have come from silver mines in the interior ; though it was probably Mexican silver cast upon the Florida Keys in the numerous shipwrecks already happening in that region. The St. John, being deep and broad at its mouth, was supposed by Laudon- nière to be a great river, from which the most important re- sults might be expected.
He ordered his carpenter, Jean des Hayes of Dieppe, to construct two barks, each forty feet in length, and fit for river navigation ;* and employed his officers during the whole
* Le Moyne, I. c. p. 9.
438
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1564.
summer, in a series of excursions up the river nearly to its source. In a geographical history of the interior of Florida, these French boat-excursions should be fully considered ; but we will only state here, that on these occasions a great part of the States of Florida and Georgia were explored and de- scribed.
On one of these excursions, some Indians were found in the west, who reported wonderful things of the " Montagnes de Palassi " (Appalachian Mountains). They said, that at the foot of these mountains was a spring " which carried with it silver and copper." They gave to the French a piece of this copper, which afterwards proved to be pure gold .*
Laudonnière had intended, when succor should arrive from France, to transplant his colony to some place nearer to those mountains, on the borders of a river which had its course from the north, and which Le Moyne laid down on his map in large and conspicuous figures, as a fountain of silver and gold, springing out of the "Palassi Mountains," to which was added a long and interesting inscription. Both the fountain and inscription were copied in several subsequent maps, and had no little influence on the subsequent English expeditions to these regions. Whether the French took the name, " Palassi," or " Apalatsi," from De Soto's " Apalache," or learned it in the country itself, we are not informed .;
Nothing, however, of this coveted wealth fell to the lot of Laudonnière's men ; but instead of it want and hunger were soon felt ; and discontent, discord, and mutiny began to pre- vail in their camp. Many of them were dissatisfied with the manner in which Laudonniere conducted the affairs of the colony ; some even conspired against him, and proposed to
* It was at a later date tried by the gold assayers of Ribault.
t Laudonniire, 1. c. fol 76. 1.
439
LAUDONNIERE'S EXPEDITION, 1504.
elect another captain, who would give them less work, and procure for them gold and silver in greater abundance.
On the 4th of November, another French vessel, com- manded by Captain Bourdet, arrived off the River May .* It was one of those numerous French privateers which probably had often visited those regions, but without leaving any report of their adventures and discoveries along the east . coast. Laudonnière delivered to Bourdet some seven or eight of his most turbulent and mutinous men to carry to France, and took in exchange for them as many of Bourdet's crew. But those he received were even worse than those he gave ; for Bourdet's men were probably accustomed to fill their pockets in an easier way than it was possible to do in a regular plantation ; they therefore persuaded some of Laudonnière's soldiers, to take possession of the ships of the colony, and to give chase to richly laden Spanish vessels. This proposition was at once adopted and carried into effect by a seditious party ; and Laudonniere was obliged to transfer to the mutineers some of his best and most faithful pilots.
These French rebels had many interesting adventures in the Spanish seas, where they did much mischief, capturing and destroying Spanish vessels, and exciting the anger of the Spaniards, who now had good reason to consider this French colony as a nest of pirates, and treated them accordingly. Some of these French mutineers were captured by the Span- iards, who used one of them as a guide to show where the French colony was situated .; One of the French piratic ves- sels returned to the River May in March 1565, after many adventures, the well-disposed portion of the crew having over- powered the mutineers ; and Laudonniere, after having con- demned and shot the ringleaders, received the rest back into his service.
* Laudonnière, I. c. fol. 61.2 seq.
t Laudonnière, I. c. fols. 62,2-68.
440
VOYAGE OF HAWKINS, 1565.
Hoping that before the end of April 1565, they would receive relief and succor from France, Laudonnière for some time freely used the provisions which they had mostly gath- ered on foraging excursions from the Indians. But when the month of May approached, and no succor appeared, they fell into extreme want and misery, and decided to return to France. For this purpose they built and put in readiness two little brigantines, commenced the destruction of their fort, taking its useful contents on board their vessels. They were just on the eve of putting to sea, when, on the 3d of August, four sails were descried coming to anchor off the river. They were soon ascertained to be English vessels, commanded by Master John Hawkins, then returning from his second great expedition to the Spanish West Indies.
This voyage of Hawkins, as the first English expedition , to these parts of the American east coast which has come to our knowledge, and as the immediate precursor of other English undertakings to the same regions, forms an im- portant link in the chain of maritime explorations by which this coast has been made known to the world; and must be exhibited somewhat more circumstantially. I will therefore leave Laudonnière and his colony for a while, and proceed to tell the story of Hawkins.
5. VOYAGE OF CAPTAIN JOHN HAWKINS ALONG THE COAST OF NORTH AMERICA, FROM FLORIDA TO NEWFOUND- LAND, IN 1565.
Captain John Hawkins * may, with strict justice, be called the English discoverer of the West Indies. Though Eng- lishmen had been there before him, he was the first to con-
* After having finished his most famous voyages, Hawkins was made a knight, and is usually called Sir John Hawkins.
4.41
VOYAGE OF HAWKINS, 1563.
. duct an English fleet through the waters of the West In- dia Islands ; and this he did repeatedly, and every time on a larger scale. Having been attended in all his expeditions by several ships requiring large crews, he brought those regions to the knowledge of many English mariners, and may be said to have founded a school of English West India naviga- tion. He gave an impulse to many subsequent English voy- ages to America, and particularly to the adventures directed to that part of the east coast afterwards named Virginia.
This branch of English navigation originated in much the same way, as the western adventures of the Spaniards. In both cases the first step was, to gain knowledge of the isl- ands lying west of Africa. "Master John Hawkins," like Columbus, " having made divers voyages to the isles of Cana- · ries, and there having grown in favor and love with the peo- ple, informed himself amongst them by diligent inquisition of the state of the West India."
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