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Title: Voyages of Samuel De Champlain — Volume 02
Author: Champlain, Samuel de
Language: English
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Transcriber's Notes:
The original text of this edition used tall-s. These have been replaced
with ordinary 's'. The original footnotes have been converted to endnotes
and placed at the end of each chapter. The original numbering has been
retained. The number 176-1/2 and presence of two notes numbered [283] are
both original.
THE
PUBLICATIONS OF THE PRINCE SOCIETY
Established May 25th, 1858.
CHAMPLAIN'S VOYAGES.
VOYAGES
OF
SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH
BY CHARLES POMEROY OTIS, PH.D.
WITH HISTORICAL ILLUSTRATIONS,
AND A
MEMOIR
BY THE REV. EDMUND F. SLAFTER, A.M.
VOL. II.
1604-1610.
HELIOTYPE COPIES OF TWENTY LOCAL MAPS.
Editor:
THE REV. EDMUND F. SLAFTER, A.M.
PREFACE.
Champlain's edition of 1613 contains, in connection with the preliminary
matter, two pieces of poetry, one signed L'ANGE, Paris, the other MOTIN.
They were contributed doubtless by some friend, intended to be
complimentary to the author, to embellish the volume and to give it a
favorable introduction to the reader. This was in conformity to a
prevailing custom of that period. They contain no intrinsic historical
interest or value whatever, and, if introduced, would not serve their
original purpose, but would rather be an incumbrance, and they have
consequently been omitted in the present work.
Champlain also included a summary of chapters, identical with the headings
of chapters in this translation, evidently intended to take the place of an
index, which he did not supply. To repeat these headings would be
superfluous, particularly as this work is furnished with a copious index.
The edition of 1613 was divided into two books. This division has been
omitted here, both as superfluous and confusing.
The maps referred to on Champlain's title-page may be found in Vol. III. of
this work. In France, the needle deflects to the east; and the dial-plate,
as figured on the larger map, that of 1612, is constructed accordingly. On
it the line marked _nornordest_ represents the true north, while the index
is carried round to the left, and points out the variation of the needle to
the west. The map is oriented by the needle without reference to its
variation, but the true meridian is laid down by a strong line on which the
degrees of latitude are numbered. From this the points of the compass
between any two places may be readily obtained.
A Note, relating to Hudson's discoveries in 1612, as delineated on
Champlain's small map, introduced by him in the prefatory matter,
apparently after the text had been struck off, will appear in connection
with the map itself, where it more properly belongs.
E. F. S.
BOSTON, 11 BEACON STREET,
October 21, 1878.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE
CHAMPLAIN'S DEDICATION OF HIS WORK TO THE KING
ADDRESS TO THE QUEEN REGENT
EXTRACT FROM THE LICENSE
VOYAGE 1604 TO 1608
FIRST VOYAGE AS LIEUTENANT, 1608 TO 1610
SECOND VOYAGE AS LIEUTENANT, 1610
LOCAL MAPS:
Port de la Hève
Port du Roissignol
Port du Mouton
Port Royal
Port des Mines
Rivière St. Jehan
Isle de Sainte Croix
Habitation de L'Isle Ste. Croix
Quinibequy
Chouacoit R.
Port St. Louis
Malle Barre
L'Abitation du Port Royal
Le Beau Port
Port Fortuné
The Attack at Port Fortuné
Port de Tadoucac
Quebec
Abitation de Quebecq
Defeat of the Iroquois at Lake Champlain
INDEX
THE VOYAGES
OF SIEUR DE CHAMPLAIN,
Of Saintonge, Captain in ordinary to the
King in the Marine.
OR,
_A MOST FAITHFUL JOURNAL OF OBSERVATIONS
made in the exploration of New France, describing not only the countries,
coasts, rivers, ports, and harbors, with their latitudes and the various
deflections of the Magnetic Needle, but likewise the religious belief of
the inhabitants, their superstitions, mode of life and warfare; furnished
with numerous illustrations_.
Together with two geographical maps: the first for the purposes of
navigation, adapted to the compass as used by mariners, which deflects to
the north-east; the other in its true meridian, with longitudes and
latitudes, to which is added the Voyage to the Strait north of Labrador,
from the 53d to the 63d degree of latitude, discovered in 1612 by the
English when they were searching for a northerly course to China.
PARIS.
JEAN BERJON,
Rue St. Jean de Beauvais, at the Flying Horse,
and at his store in the Palace,
at the gallery of the Prisoners.
MDCXIII.
_WITH AUTHORITY OF THE KING_.
TO THE KING.
_Sire,
Your Majesty has doubtless full knowledge of the discoveries made in your
service in New France, called Canada, through the descriptions, given by
certain Captains and Pilots, of the voyages and discoveries made there
during the past eighty years. These, however, present nothing so honorable
to your Kingdom, or so profitable to the service of your Majesty and your
subjects, as will, I doubt not, the maps of the coasts, harbors, rivers,
and the situation of the places described in this little treatise, which I
make bold to address to your Majesty, and which is entitled a Journal of
Voyages and Discoveries, which I have made in connection with Sieur de
Monts, your Lieutenant in New France. This I do, feeling myself urged by a
just sense of the honor I have received during the last ten years in
commissions, not only, Sire, from your Majesty, but also from the late
king, Henry the Great, of happy memory, who commissioned me to make the
most exact researches and explorations in my power. This I have done, and
added, moreover, the maps contained in this little book, where I have set
forth in particular the dangers to which one would be liable. The subjects
of your Majesty, whom you may be pleased hereafter to employ for the
preservation of what has been discovered, will be able to avoid those
dangers through the knowledge afforded by the maps contained in this
treatise, which will serve as an example in your kingdom for increasing the
glory of your Majesty, the welfare of your subjects, and for the honor of
the very humble service, for which, to the happy prolongation of your days,
is indebted,
SIRE,
Your most humble, most obedient,
and most faithful servant and subject,
CHAMPLAIN_.
TO THE QUEEN REGENT,
MOTHER OF THE KING.
MADAME,
Of all the most useful and excellent arts, that of navigation has always
seemed to me to occupy the first place. For the more hazardous it is, and
the more numerous the perils and losses by which it is attended, so much
the more is it esteemed and exalted above all others, being wholly unsuited
to the timid and irresolute. By this art we obtain knowledge of different
countries, regions, and realms. By it we attract and bring to our own land
all kinds of riches, by it the idolatry of paganism is overthrown and
Christianity proclaimed throughout all the regions of the earth. This is
the art which from my early age has won my love, and induced me to expose
myself almost all my life to the impetuous waves of the ocean, and led me
to explore the coasts of a part of America, especially of New France, where
I have always desired to see the Lily flourish, and also the only religion,
catholic, apostolic, and Roman. This I trust now to accomplish with the
help of God, assisted by the favor of your Majesty, whom I most humbly
entreat to continue to sustain us, in order that all may succeed to the
honor of God, the welfare of France, and the splendor of your reign, for
the grandeur and prosperity of which I will pray God to attend you always
with a thousand blessings, and will remain,
MADAME,
Your most humble, most obedient,
and most faithful servant and subject,
CHAMPLAIN.
EXTRACT FROM THE LICENSE.
By letters patent of the KING, given at Paris the ninth of January, 1613,
and in the third year of our reign, by the King in his Council, PERREAU,
and sealed with the simple yellow seal, it is permitted to JEAN BERJON,
printer and bookseller in this city of Paris, to print, or have printed by
whomsoever it may seem good to him, a book entitled _The Voyages of Samuel
de Champlain of Saintonge, Captain in ordinary for the King in the Marine,
&c._, for the time and limit of six entire consecutive years, from the day
when this book shall have been printed up to the said time of six years. By
the same letters, in like manner all printers, merchant booksellers, and
any others whatever, are forbidden to print or have printed, to sell or
distribute said book during the aforesaid time, without the special consent
of said BERJON, or of him to whom he shall give permission, on pain of
confiscation of so many of said books as shall be found, and a
discretionary fine, as is more fully set forth in the aforesaid letters.
VOYAGES
OF
SIEUR DE CHAMPLAIN.
VOYAGE IN THE YEAR 1604.
CHAPTER I.
THE BENEFITS OF COMMERCE HAVE INDUCED SEVERAL PRINCES TO SEEK AN EASIER
ROUTE FOR TRAFFIC WITH THE PEOPLE OF THE EAST.--SEVERAL UNSUCCESSFUL
VOYAGES.--DETERMINATION OF THE FRENCH FOR THIS PURPOSE.--UNDERTAKING OF
SIEUR DE MONTS: HIS COMMISSION AND ITS REVOCATION.--NEW COMMISSION TO SIEUR
DE MONTS TO ENABLE HIM TO CONTINUE HIS UNDERTAKING.
The inclinations of men differ according to their varied dispositions; and
each one in his calling has his particular end in view. Some aim at gain,
some at glory, some at the public weal. The greater number are engaged in
trade, and especially that which is transacted on the sea. Hence arise the
principal support of the people, the opulence and honor of states. This is
what raised ancient Rome to the sovereignty and mastery over the entire
world, and the Venetians to a grandeur equal to that of powerful kings. It
has in all times caused maritime towns to abound in riches, among which
Alexandria and Tyre are distinguished, and numerous others, which fill up
the regions of the interior with the objects of beauty and rarity obtained
from foreign nations. For this reason, many princes have striven to find a
northerly route to China, in order to facilitate commerce with the
Orientals, in the belief that this route would be shorter and less
dangerous.
In the year 1496, the king of England commissioned John Cabot and his son
Sebastian to engage in this search. [1] About the same time, Don Emanuel,
king of Portugal, despatched on the same errand Gaspar Cortereal, who
returned without attaining his object. Resuming his journeys the year
after, he died in the undertaking; as did also his brother Michel, who was
prosecuting it perseveringly. [2] In the years 1534 and 1535, Jacques
Cartier received a like commission from King Francis I., but was arrested
in his course. [3] Six years after, Sieur de Roberval, having renewed it,
sent Jean Alfonse of Saintonge farther northward along the coast of
Labrador; [4] but he returned as wise as the others. In the years 1576,
1577, and 1578, Sir Martin Frobisher, an Englishman, made three voyages
along the northern coasts. Seven years later, Humphrey Gilbert, also an
Englishman, set out with five ships, but suffered shipwreck on Sable
Island, where three of his vessels were lost. In the same and two following
years, John Davis, an Englishman, made three voyages for the same object;
penetrating to the 72d degree, as far as a strait which is called at the
present day by his name. After him, Captain Georges made also a voyage in
1590, but in consequence of the ice was compelled to return without having
made any discovery. [5] The Hollanders, on their part, had no more precise
knowledge in the direction of Nova Zembla.
So many voyages and discoveries without result, and attended with so much
hardship and expense, have caused us French in late years to attempt a
permanent settlement in those lands which we call New France, [6] in the
hope of thus realizing more easily this object; since the voyage in search
of the desired passage commences on the other side of the ocean, and is
made along the coast of this region. [7] These considerations had induced
the Marquis de la Roche, in 1598, to take a commission from the king for
making a settlement in the above region. With this object, he landed men
and supplies on Sable Island; [8] but, as the conditions which had been
accorded to him by his Majesty were not fulfilled, he was obliged to
abandon his undertaking, and leave his men there. A year after, Captain
Chauvin accepted another commission to transport Settlers to the same
region; [9] but, as this was shortly after revoked, he prosecuted the
matter no farther.
After the above, [10] notwithstanding all these accidents and
disappointments, Sieur de Monts desired to attempt what had been given up
in despair, and requested a commission for this purpose of his Majesty,
being satisfied that the previous enterprises had failed because the
undertakers of them had not received assistance, who had not succeeded, in
one nor even two years' time, in making the acquaintance of the regions and
people there, nor in finding harbors adapted for a settlement. He proposed
to his Majesty a means for covering these expenses, without drawing any
thing from the royal revenues; viz., by granting to him the monopoly of the
fur-trade in this land. This having been granted to him, he made great and
excessive outlays, and carried out with him a large number of men of
various vocations. Upon his arrival, he caused the necessary number of
habitations for his followers to be constructed. This expenditure he
continued for three consecutive years, after which, in consequence of the
jealousy and annoyance of certain Basque merchants, together with some from
Brittany, the monopoly which had been granted to him was revoked by the
Council to the great injury and loss of Sieur de Monts, who, in consequence
of this revocation, was compelled to abandon his entire undertaking,
sacrificing his labors and the outfit for his settlement.
But since a report had been made to the king on the fertility of the soil
by him, and by me on the feasibility of discovering the passage to China,
[11] without the inconveniences of the ice of the north or the heats of the
torrid zone, through which our sailors pass twice in going and twice in
returning, with inconceivable hardships and risks, his Majesty directed
Sieur de Monts to make a new outfit, and send men to continue what he had
commenced. This he did. And, in view of the uncertainty of his commission,
[12] he chose a new spot for his settlement, in order to deprive jealous
persons of any such distrust as they had previously conceived. He was also
influenced by the hope of greater advantages in case of settling in the
interior, where the people are civilized, and where it is easier to plant
the Christian faith and establish such order as is necessary for the
protection of a country, than along the sea-shore, where the savages
generally dwell. From this course, he believed the king would derive an
inestimable profit; for it is easy to suppose that Europeans will seek out
this advantage rather than those of a jealous and intractable disposition
to be found on the shores, and the barbarous tribes. [13]
ENDNOTES:
1. The first commission was granted by Henry VII. of England to John Cabot
and his three sons, Lewis, Sebastian, and Sancius, March 5, 1496.--
_Rymer's Foedera_, Vol. XII. p. 595. The first voyage, however, was made
in 1497. The second commission was granted to John Cabot alone, in
1498.--_Vide Hakluyt_, 1600, London, ed. 1810, Vol. III. pp. 25-31.
2. Cortereal made two voyages under the patronage of Emmanuel, King of
Portugal, the first in 1500, the second in 1501. In the latter year, he
sailed with two ships from Lisbon, and explored six hundred miles or
more on our northern coast. The vessel in which he sailed was lost; and
he perished, together with fifty natives whom he had captured. The other
vessel returned, and reported the incidents of the expedition. The next
year, Michael Cortereal, the brother of Gaspar, obtained a commission,
and went in search of his brother; but he did not return, and no tidings
were ever heard of him.
3. Jacques Cartier made three voyages in 1534, 1535, and 1540,
respectively, in which he effected very important discoveries; and
Charlevoix justly remarks that Cartier's Memoirs long served as a guide
to those who after him navigated the gulf and river of St. Lawrence. For
Cartier's commission, see _Hazard's State Papers_, Vol. I. p. 19.
4. Roberval's voyage was made in 1542, and is reported by Jean Alfonse.--
_Vide Hakluyt_, 1600, London, ed. 1810, Vol. III. p. 291. On an old map,
drawn about the middle of the sixteenth century, Roberval is represented
in a full-length portrait, clad in mail, with sword and spear, at the
head of a band of armed soldiers, penetrating into the wilds of Canada,
near the head-waters of the Saguenay. The name, "Monsr. de Roberual," is
inserted near his feet,--_Vide Monuments de la Géographie_, XIX., par
M. Jomard, Paris.
5. For the narrative of the voyages of Frobisher, Gilbert, and Davis, _vide
Hakluyt_, Vol. III. Of the fleet of five vessels commanded by Sir
Humphrey Gilbert, in 1583, the Ralegh put back to England, on account of
sickness on board; the Golden Hinde returned safely to port; the
_Swallow_ was left at Newfoundland, to bring home the sick; the
_Delight_ was lost near Sable Island; and the _Squirrel_ went down on
its way to England, some days after leaving Sable Island. Thus two only
were lost, while a third was left.
There must have been some error in regard to the voyage of Captain
Georges. There is no printed account of a voyage at that time by any one
of this name. There are two theories on which this statement may be
explained. There may have been a voyage by a Captain Georges, which, for
some unknown reason, was never reported; or, what is more likely,
Champlain may refer to the voyage of Captain George Weymouth, undertaken
in 1602 for the East Ind. Company, which was defeated by the icebergs
which he encountered, and the mutiny of his men. It was not uncommon to
omit part of a name at that period. Of Pont Gravé, the last name is
frequently omitted by Champlain and by Lescarbot. The report of
Weymouth's voyage was not printed till after Champlain wrote; and he
might easily have mistaken the date.
6. The name of New France, _Novus Francisca_, appears on a map in Ptolemy
published at Basle in 1530.
7. The controlling object of the numerous voyages to the north-east coast
of America had hitherto been to discover a shorter course to India. In
this respect, as Champlain states above, they had all proved
failures. He here intimates that the settlements of the French on this
coast were intended to facilitate this design. It is obvious that a
colonial establishment would offer great advantages as a base in
prosecuting searches for this desired passage to Cathay.
8. For some account of this disastrous expedition, see _Memoir_, Vol. I.
9. _Vide Memoir_, Vol. I.
10. It will be observed that Champlain does not mention the expedition sent
out by Commander de Chastes, probably because its object was
exploration, and not actual settlement.--_Vide_ an account of De
Chastes in the _Memoir_, Vol. I.
11. In Champlain's report of the voyage of 1603, after obtaining what
information he could from the natives relating to the St. Lawrence and
the chain of lakes, he says they informed him that the last lake in the
chain was salt, and he therefore believed it to be the South Sea. He
doubtless enlarged verbally before the king upon the feasibility of a
passage to China in this way.
12. The commission here referred to was doubtless the one renewed to him in
1608, after he had made his searches on the shores of New England and
Nova Scotia, and after the commission or charter of 1603 had been
revoked.
Champlain is here stating the advantages of a settlement in the
interior, on the shores of the St. Lawrence, rather than on the
Atlantic coast.
13. In this chapter, Champlain speaks of events stretching through several
years; but in the next he confines himself to the occurrences of 1603,
when De Monts obtained his charter.
CHAPTER II.
DESCRIPTION OF SABLE ISLAND; CAPE BRETON; LA HÈVE; PORT AU MOUTON; PORT
CAPE NEGRE; SABLE BAY AND CAPE; CORMORANT ISLAND; CAPE FOURCHU; LONG
ISLAND; BAY OF SAINT MARY; PORT SAINT MARGARET; AND OF ALL NOTEWORTHY
OBJECTS ALONG THIS COAST.
Sieur de Monts, by virtue of his commission [14] having published in all
the ports and harbors of this kingdom the prohibition against the violation
of the monopoly of the fur-trade accorded him by his Majesty, gathered
together about one hundred and twenty artisans, whom he embarked in two
vessels: one of a hundred and twenty tons, commanded by Sieur de Pont
Gravé; [15] another, of a hundred and fifty tons, in which he embarked
himself, [16] together with several noblemen.
We set out from Havre de Grâce April 7th, 1604, and Pont Gravé April 10th,
to rendezvous at Canseau, [17] twenty leagues from Cape Breton. [18] But
after we were in mid-ocean, Sieur de Monts changed his plan, and directed
his course towards Port Mouton, it being more southerly and also more
favorable for landing than Canseau.
On May 1st, we sighted Sable Island, where we ran a risk of being lost in
consequence of the error of our pilots, who were deceived in their
calculation, which they made forty leagues ahead of where we were.
This island is thirty leagues distant north and South from Cape Breton, and
in length is about fifteen leagues. It contains a small lake. The island is
very sandy, and there are no trees at all of considerable size, only copse
and herbage, which serve as pasturage for the bullocks and cows, which the
Portuguese carried there more than sixty years ago, and which were very
serviceable to the party of the Marquis de la Roche. The latter, during
their sojourn of several years there, captured a large number of very fine
black foxes, [19] whose skins they carefully preserved. There are many
sea-wolves [20] there, with the skins of which they clothed themselves
since they had exhausted their own stock of garments. By order of the
Parliamentary Court of Rouen, a vessel was sent there to recover them. [21]
The directors of the enterprise caught codfish near the island, the
neighborhood of which abounds in shoals.
On the 8th of the same month, we sighted Cap de la Hève, [22] to the east
of which is a bay, containing several islands covered with fir-trees. On
the main land are oaks, elms, and birches. It joins the coast of La Cadie
at the latitude of 44° 5', and at 16° 15' of the deflection of the magnetic
needle, distant east-north-east eighty-five leagues from Cape Breton, of
which we shall speak hereafter.
On the 12th of May, we entered another port, [23] five leagues
from Cap de la Hève, where we captured a vessel engaged
in the fur-trade in violation of the king's prohibition. The
master's name was Rossignol, whose name the port retained,
which is in latitude 44° 15'.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
PORT DE LA HÈVE.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. The place where vessels anchor.
_B_. A small river dry at low tide.
_C_. Places where the savages have their cabins.[Note: The letter C is
wanting, but the location of the cabins is obvious.]
_D_. Shoal at the entrance of the harbor. [Note: The letter D is also
wanting, but the figures sufficiently indicate the depth of the
water.]
_E_. A small island covered with wood. [Note: The letter E appears twice by
mistake.]
_F_. Cape de la Hève [Note: The letter F is likewise wanting. It has been
supposed to be represented by one of the E's on the small island, but
Cap de la Hève, to which it refers, was not on this island, but on the
main land. The F should have been, we think, on the west of the
harbor, where the elevation is indicated on the map. _Vide_ note 22.]
* * * * *
On the 13th of May, we arrived at a very fine harbor, where there are two
little streams, called Port au Mouton, [24] which is seven leagues distant
from that of Rossignol. The land is very stony, and covered with copse and
heath. There are a great many rabbits, and a quantity of game in
consequence of the ponds there.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
PORT DU ROSSIGNOL.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. A river extending twenty-five leagues inland.
_B_. The place where vessels anchor.
_C_. Place on the main land where the savages have their dwellings.
_D_. Roadstead where vessels anchor while waiting for the tide.
_E_. Place on the island where the savages have their cabins.
_F_. Channel dry at low tide.
_G_. Shore of the main land. The dotted places indicate the shoals.
NOTE. It would seem as if in the title Rossynol, on the map, the two dots
on the _y_ instead of the _n_ were placed there by mistake.
* * * * *
As Soon as we had disembarked, each one commenced making huts after his
fashion, on a point at the entrance of the harbor near two fresh-water
ponds. Sieur de Monts at the Same time despatched a shallop, in which he
sent one of us, with some savages as guides as bearers of letters, along
the coast of La Cadie, to search for Pont Gravé, who had a portion of the
necessary supplies for our winter sojourn. The latter was found at the Bay
of All-Isles, [25] very anxious about us (for he knew nothing of the change
of plan); and the letters were handed to him. As soon as be had read them,
he returned to his ship at Canseau, where he seized some Basque vessels
[26] engaged in the fur-trade, notwithstanding the prohibition of his
Majesty, and sent their masters to Sieur de Monts, who meanwhile charged me
to reconnoitre the coast and the harbors suitable for the secure reception
of our vessel.
With the purpose of carrying out his wishes, I set out from Port Mouton on
the 19th of May, in a barque of eight tons, accompanied by Sieur Ralleau,
his secretary, and ten men. Advancing along the coast, we entered a harbor
very convenient for vessels, at the end of which is a small river,
extending very far into the main land. This I called the Port of Cape
Negro, [27] from a rock whose distant view resembles a negro, which rises
out of the water near a cape passed by us the same day, four leagues off
and ten from Port Mouton. This cape is very dangerous, on account of the
rocks running out into the sea. The shores which I saw, up to that point,
are very low, and covered with such wood as that seen at the Cap de la
Hève; and the islands are all filled with game. Going farther on, we passed
the night at Sable Bay, [28] where vessels can anchor without any danger.
The next day we went to Cape Sable, [29] also very dangerous, in
consequence of certain rocks and reefs extending almost a league into the
sea. It is two leagues from Sable Bay, where we had spent the night before.
Thence we went to Cormorant Island, [30] a league distant, so called from
the infinite number of cormorants found there, of whose eggs we collected a
cask full. From this island, we sailed westerly about six leagues, crossing
a bay, which makes up to the north two or three leagues. Then we fell in
with several islands [31] distant two or three leagues from the main land;
and, as well as I could judge, some of them were two leagues in extent,
others three, and others were still smaller. Most of them are very
dangerous for large vessels to approach, on account of the tides and the
rocks on a level with the water. These islands are filled with pines, firs,
birches, and aspens. A little farther out, there are four more. In one, we
saw so great a quantity of birds, called penguins, [32] that we killed them
easily with sticks. On another, we found the shore completely covered with
sea-wolves, [33] of which we captured as many as we wished. At the two
others there is such an abundance of birds of different sorts that one
could not imagine it, if he had not seen them. There are cormorants, three
kinds of duck, geese, _marmettes?_, bustards, sea-parrots, snipe, vultures,
and other birds of prey; gulls, sea-larks of two or three kinds; herons,
large sea-gulls, curlews, sea-magpies, divers, ospreys, _appoils?_, ravens,
cranes, and other sorts which I am not acquainted with, and which also make
their nests here. [34] We named these Sea-Wolf Islands. They are in
latitude 43° 30', distant from four to five leagues from the main land, or
Cape Sable. After spending pleasantly some time there in hunting (and not
without capturing much game), we set out and reached a cape, [35] which we
christened Port Fourchu from its being fork-shaped, distant from five to
six leagues from the Sea-Wolf Islands. This harbor is very convenient for
vessels at its entrance; but its remoter part is entirely dry at low tide,
except the channel of a little stream, completely bordered by meadows,
which make this spot very pleasant. There is good codfishing near the
harbor. Departing from there, we sailed north ten or twelve leagues without
finding any harbor for our vessels, but a number of very fine inlets or
shores, where the soil seems to be well adapted for cultivation. The woods
are exceedingly fine here, but there are few pines and firs. This coast is
clear, without islands, rocks, or shoals; so that, in our judgment, vessels
can securely go there. Being distant quarter of a league from the coast, we
went to an island called Long Island, [36] lying north-north-east and
south-south-west, which makes an opening into the great Baye Françoise,
[37] so named by Sieur de Monts.
This island is six leagues long, and nearly a league broad in some places,
in others only quarter of a league. It is covered with an abundance of
wood, such as pines and birch. All the coast is bordered by very dangerous
rocks; and there is no place at all favorable for vessels, only little
inlets for shallops at the extremity of the island, and three or four small
rocky islands, where the savages capture many sea-wolves. There are strong
tides, especially at the little passage [38] of the island, which is very
dangerous for vessels running the risk of passing through it.
From Long Island passage, we sailed north-east two leagues, when we found a
cove [39] where vessels can anchor in safety, and which is quarter of a
league or thereabouts in circuit. The bottom is all mire, and the
surrounding land is bordered by very high rocks. In this place there is a
very good silver mine, according to the report of the miner, Master Simon,
who accompanied me. Some leagues farther on there is a little stream called
river Boulay [40] where the tide rises half a league into the land, at the
mouth of which vessels of a hundred tons can easily ride at anchor. Quarter
of a league from here there is a good harbor for vessels, where we found an
iron mine, which our miner estimated would yield fifty per cent [41]
Advancing three leagues farther on to the northeast [42] we saw another
very good iron mine, near which is a river surrounded by beautiful and
attractive meadows. The neighboring soil is red as blood. Some leagues
farther on there is still another river, [43] dry at low tide, except in
its very small channel, and which extends near to Port Royal. At the
extremity of this bay is a channel, also dry at low tide [44] surrounding
which are a number of pastures and good pieces of land for cultivation,
where there are nevertheless great numbers of fine trees of all the kinds
previously mentioned. The distance from Long Island to the end of this bay
may be some six leagues. The entire coast of the mines is very high,
intersected by capes, which appear round, extending out a short distance.
On the other side of the bay, on the south-east, the land is low and good,
where there is a very good harbor, having a bank at its entrance over which
it is necessary to pass. On this bar there is a fathom and a half of water
at low tide; but after passing it you find three, with good bottom. Between
the two points of the harbor there is a pebbly islet, covered at full
tide. This place extends half a league inland. The tide falls here three
fathoms, and there are many shell-fish, such as muscles, cockles, and
sea-snails. The soil is as good as any that I have seen. I named this
harbor Saint Margaret. [45] This entire south-east coast is much lower than
that of the mines, which is only a league and a half from the coast of
Saint Margaret, being Separated by the breadth of the bay, [46] which is
three leagues at its entrance. I took the altitude at this place, and found
the latitude 45° 30', and a little more,[47] the deflection of the magnetic
needle being 17° 16'.
After having explored as particularly as I could the coasts, ports, and
harbors, I returned, without advancing any farther, to Long Island passage,
whence I went back outside of all the islands in order to observe whether
there was any danger at all on the water side. But we found none whatever,
except there were some rocks about half a league from Sea-Wolf Islands,
which, however, can be easily avoided, since the sea breaks over them.
Continuing our voyage, we were overtaken by a violent wind, which obliged
us to run our barque ashore, where we were in danger of losing her, which
would have caused us extreme perplexity. The tempest having ceased, we
resumed the sea, and the next day reached Port Mouton, where Sieur de Monts
was awaiting us from day to day, thinking only of our long stay, [48] and
whether some accident had not befallen us. I made a report to him of our
voyage, and where our vessels might go in Safety. Meanwhile, I observed
very particularly that place which is in latitude 44°.
The next day Sieur de Monts gave orders to weigh anchor and proceed to the
Bay of Saint Mary, [49] a place which we had found to be Suitable for our
vessel to remain in, until we should be able to find one more advantageous.
Coasting along, we passed near Cape Sable and the Sea-Wolf Islands, whither
Sieur de Monts decided to go in a shallop, and see some islands of which we
had made a report to him, as also of the countless number of birds found
there. Accordingly, he set out, accompanied by Sieur de Poutrincourt, and
several other noblemen, with the intention of going to Penguin Island,
where we had previously killed with sticks a large number of these
birds. Being somewhat distant from our ship, it was beyond our power to
reach it, and still less to reach our vessel; for the tide was so strong
that we were compelled to put in at a little island to pass the night,
where there was much game. I killed there some river-birds, which were very
acceptable to us, especially as we had taken only a few biscuit, expecting
to return the same day. The next day we reached Cape Fourchu, distant half
a league from there. Coasting along, we found our vessel in the Bay of
Saint Mary. Our company were very anxious about us for two days, fearing
lest some misfortune had befallen us; but, when they saw us all safe, they
were much rejoiced.
Two or three days after our arrival, one of our priests, named Mesire Aubry
[50] from Paris, got lost so completely in the woods while going after his
sword, which he had forgotten, that he could not find the vessel. And he
was thus seventeen days without any thing to subsist upon except some sour
and bitter plants like the sorrel, and some small fruit of little substance
large as currants, which creep upon the ground. [51] Being at his wits'
end, without hope of ever seeing us again, weak and feeble, he found
himself on the shore of Baye Françoise, thus named by Sieur de Monts, near
Long Island, [52] where his strength gave out, when one of our shallops out
fishing discovered him. Not being able to shout to them, he made a sign
with a pole, on the end of which he had put his hat, that they should go
and get him. This they did at once, and brought him off. Sieur de Monts had
caused a search to be made not only by his own men, but also by the savages
of those parts, who scoured all the woods, but brought back no intelligence
of him. Believing him to be dead, they all saw him coming back in the
shallop to their great delight. A long time was needed to restore him to
his usual strength.
ENDNOTES:
14. _Vide Commission du Roy au Sieur de Monts, pour l'habitation és terres
de la Cadie, Canada, et autres endroits en la Nouvelle-France_,
Histoire de a Nouvelle-France, par Marc Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, Qvat.
Liv. p. 431. This charter may also be found in English in a _Collection
of Voyages and Travels compiled from the Library of the Earl of Oxford,
by Thomas Osborne_, London, 1745, Vol. II. pp. 796-798; also in
_Murdoch's History of Nova Scotia_, Halifax, 1865, Vol. I. pp. 21-24.
15. The second officer, or pilot, was, according to Lescarbot, Captain
Morel, of Honfleur.
16. This was under the direction of De Monts himself; and Captain Timothée,
of Havre de Grâce, was pilot, or the second officer.
17. Lescarbot writes this name Campseau; Champlain's orthography is
Canceau; the English often write Canso, but more correctly Canseau. It
has been derived from _Cansoke_, an Indian word, meaning _facing the
frowning cliffs_.
18. The Cape and Island of Cape Breton appear to have taken their name from
the fisherman of Brittany, who frequented that region as early as 1504
--_Vide Champlain's Voyages_, Paris 1632, p. 9.
Thévet sailed along the coast in 1556, and is quoted by Laverdière, as
follows: "In this land there is a province called Compestre de Berge,
extending towards the south-east: in the eastern part of the same is
the cape or promontory of Lorraine, called so by us; others have given
it the came of the Cape of the Bretons, since the Bretons, the
Bisayans, and Normans repair thither, and coast along on their way to
Newfoundland to fish for codfish."
An inscription, "_tera que soy descuberta per pertonnes_," on an Old
Portuguese map of 1520, declares it to be a country discovered by the
Bretons. It is undoubtedly the oldest French name on any part of North
America. On Gastaldo's map in Mattiolo's Italian translation of
Ptolemy, 1548, the name of Breton is applied both to Nova Scotia and to
the Island of Cape Breton.
19. Winthrop says that Mr. John Rose, who was cast away on Sable Island
about 1633, "saw about eight hundred cattle, small and great, all red,
and the largest he ever saw: and many foxes, wherof some perfect
black."--_Whinthrop's Hist. New Eng._, Boston, 1853, Vol. I. p. 193.
Champlain doubtless obtained his information in regard to the cattle
left upon Sable Island by the Portuguese from the from the report of
Edward Haies on the voyage of Sir Humphrey Gilbert in 1583:
"Sablon lieth to the seaward of Cape Briton about twenty-five leagues,
whither we were determined to goe vpon intelligence we had of a
Portugal (during our abode in S. Johns) who was himselfe present, when
the Portugals (aboue thirty yeeres past) did put in the same Island
both Neat and Swine to breede, which were since exceedingly multiplied.
This seemed vnto vs very happy tidings, to haue in an Island lying so
neere vnto the maine, which we intended to plant vpon. Such store of
cattell, whereby we might at all times conueniently be relieued of
victuall, and serued of store for breed."--_Edward Haies in Hakluyt's
Voyages_, London, ed. 1810. Vol. III. p. 197.
20. "Loups marins," seals.
21. "The forty poor wretches whom he left on Sable Island found on the
seashore some wrecks of vessels, out of which they built barracks to
shield themselves from the severity of the weather. They were the
remains of Spanish vessels, which had sailed to settle Cape Breton.
From these same ships had come some sheep and cattle, which had
multiplied on Sable Island; and this was for some time a resource for
these poor exiles. Fish was their next food; and, when their clothes
were worn out, they made new ones of seal-skin. At last, after a lapse
of seven years, the king, having heard of their adventure, obliged
Chedotel, the pilot, to go for them; but he found only twelve, the rest
having died of their hardships. His majesty desired to see those, who
returned in the same guise as found by Chedotel, covered with
seal-skin, with their hair and beard of a length and disorder that made
them resemble the pretended river-gods, and so disfigured as to inspire
horror. The king gave them fifty crowns apiece, and sent them home
released from all process of law."--_Shea's Charlevoix_, New York,
1866, Vol. I. p. 244. See also _Sir William Alexander and American
Colonization_, Prince Society, 1873, p. 174; _Murdoch's Nova Scotia_,
Vol. I. p. 11; _Hakluyt_, Vol. II. pp. 679. 697.
22. This cape still bears the same name, and is the western point of the
bay at the mouth of a river, likewise of the same name, in the county
of Lunenberg, Nova Scotia. It is an abrupt cliff, rising up one hundred
and fifty feet above the level of the sea. It could therefore be seen
at a great distance, and appears to have been the first land sighted by
them on the coast of La Cadie. A little north of Havre de Grâce, in
Normandy, the port from which De Monts and Champlain had sailed, is to
be seen the high, commanding, rocky bluff, known as _Cap de la Hève_.
The place which they first sighted, similar at least in some respects,
they evidently named after this bold and striking headland, which may,
perhaps, have been the last object which they saw on leaving the shores
of France. The word _Hève_ seems to have had a local meaning, as may be
inferred from the following excerpt: "A name, in Lower Normandy, for
cliffs hollowed out below, and where fishermen search for crabs."--
_Littré_. The harbor delineated on Champlain's local map is now called
Palmerston Bay, and is at the mouth of Petit River. The latitude of
this harbor is about 44° 15'. De Laet's description is fuller than that
of Champlain or Lescarbot.--_Vide Novus Orbis_, 1633, p. 51.
23. Liverpool, which for a long time bore the name of Port Rossignol; the
lake at the head of the river, about ten miles long and two or three
wide, the largest in Nova Scotia, still bears that appellation. The
latitude is 44° 2' 30".
24. "Lequel ils appelèrent _Le Port du Mouton_, à l'occasion d'un mouton
qui s'estant nové revint à bord, et fut mangé de bonne guerre."--
_Histoire de la Nouvelle-France_, par Marc Lescarbot, Paris, 1612,
Qvat. Liv. p. 449. It still bears the name of Port Mouton, and an
island in the bay is called Mouton Island.
25. _Baye de Toutes-isles_. Lescarbot calls it "La Baye des Iles:" and
Charlevoix, "Baye de toutes les Isles." It was the bay, or rather the
waters, that stretch along the shores of Halifax County, between Owl's
Head and Liscomb River.
26. The confiscated provisions taken in the vessels of the Basque
fur-traders and in that of Rossignol were, according to Lescarbot,
found very useful. De Monts had given timely notice of his monopoly;
and, whether it had reached them or not, they were doubtless wrong in
law. Although De Monts treated them with gentleness, nevertheless it is
not unlikely that a compromise would have been better policy than an
entire confiscation of their property, as these Basques afterwards, on
their return to France, gave him serious inconvenience. They were
instrumental mainly in wresting from him his charter of La Cadie.
27. _Le Port du Cap Negré_. This port still bears the name of Negro
Harbor. It is situated at the mouth of the Clyde, the small river
referred to in the text.
28. Near Cape Sable Island, at what is now known as Barrington Harbor.
29. This is still called Cape Sable, and is the southern point of Sable
Island, or, more properly, the cluster of rock, and islets that
surround its southern extremity.
30. _Isle aux Cormorans_. It is difficult to distinguish with certainty the
island here referred to, but it was probably Hope Island, as this lies
directly in their way in crossing the bay, six leagues wide, which is
now known as Townsend Bay. The bird here mentioned was the common
cormorant. _Graculus carbo_, of a glossy greenish-black color, back and
wings bronzy-gray; about three feet in length, and is common on our
northern Atlantic coast: eminently gregarious, particularly in the
breeding season, congregating in vast flocks. At the present time, it
breeds in great numbers in Labrador and Newfoundland, and in the winter
migrates as far south as the Middle States. They feed principally upon
fish, lay commonly two eggs, of a pale greenish color, overlaid with a
white chalky substance.--_Vide Cones's Key to Nor. Am. Birds_. Boston,
1872. p. 302.
31. A cluster of islands now known as the Tousquet or Tusket Islands.
Further on, Champlain says they named them _Isles aux loups marins_.
Sea-Wolf Islands. About five leagues south of them is an island now
called Seal Island. The four more which he saw a little further on were
probably in Townsend Bay.
32. This is the Auk, family _Alcidae_, and must not be confounded with the
penguin of the southern hemisphere, although it is described by the
early navigators of the Northern Atlantic under that appellation. In
Anthony Parkhurst's letter to Hakluyt, 1578, he says: "These birds are
also called Penguins, and cannot flie, there is more meate in one of
these then in a goose: the Frenchmen that fish neere the grand baie, do
bring small store of flesh with them, but victuall themselves alwayes
with these birds."--_Hakluyt_, London, ed. 1810, Vol. III. p. 172.
Edward Haies, in his report of the voyage of Sir Humphrey Gilbert in
1583, say's: "We had sight of an Island named Penguin, of a foule there
breeding in abundance, almost incredible, which cannot flie, their
wings not able to carry their body, being very large (not much lesse
then a goose), and exceeding fat: which the Frenchmen use to take
without difficulty upon that Island, and to barrell them up with salt."
_Idem_, p. 191.
The Auk is confined to the northern hemisphere, where it represents the
penguins of the southern. Several species occur in the Northern
Atlantic in almost incredible numbers: they are all marine, feed on
fish and other animal substances exclusively, and lay from one to three
eggs on the bare rocks. Those seen by Champlain and other early
navigators were the Great Auk. _Alca impennis_, now nearly extinct. It
was formerly found on the coast of New England, as is proved not only
by the testimony of the primitive explorers, but by the remains found
in shell-heaps. The latest discovery was of one found dead near
St. Augustine, in Labrador, in 1870. A specimen of the Great Auk is
preserved in the Cambridge Museum.--_Vide Coues's Key to North Am.
Birds_, Boston, 1872. p. 338.
33. The sea-wolf or _loup marin_ of Champlain is the marine mammiferous
quadruped of the family Phocidae, known as the seal. Sea-wolf was a
name applied to it by the early navigators.--_Vide Purchas's Pilgrims_,
London, 1625. Vol. IV. p. 1385. Those here mentioned were the common
seal, _Phoca vitulina_, which are still found on the coasts of Nova
Scotia, vulgarly known as the harbor seal. They are thinly distributed
as far south as Long Island Sound, but are found in great numbers in
the waters of Labrador and Newfoundland, where they are taken for the
oil obtained from them, and for the skins, which are used for various
purposes in the arts.
34. The names given to these birds were such, doubtless, as were known to
belong to birds similar in color, size, and figure in Europe. Some of
them were probably misapplied. The name alone is not sufficient for
identification.
35. This cape, near the entrance to Yarmouth, still bears the same name,
from _fourchu_, forked. On a map of 1755, it is called Forked Cape, and
near it is Fork Ledge and Forked Harbor.--_Memorials of English and
French Commissaries_, London, 1755.
36. It still retains the name given to it by Champlain. It forms a part of
the western limit of St. Mary's Bay, and a line drawn from it to the
St. Croix, cutting the Grand Manan, would mark the entrance of the Bay
of Fundy.
37. The Bay of Fundy was thus first named "Baye Françoise" by De Monts, and
continued to be so called, as will appear by reference to the early
maps, as that of De Laet, 1633; Charlevoix, 1744; Rouge, 1778. It first
appears distinctly on the carte of Diego Homem of 1558, but without
name. On Cabot's Mappe-Monde, in "Monuments de la Géographie," we find
_rio fondo_, which may represent the Bay of Fundy, and may have
suggested the name adopted by the English, which it still retains. Sir
William Alexander's map, 1624, has Argal's Bay; Moll's map, 1712, has
Fundi Bay; that of the English and French Commissaries, 1755, has Bay
of Fundy, or Argal.
38. This strait, known by the name Petit Passage, separates Long Island
from Digby Neck.
39. A place called Little River, on Digby Neck.
40. Now known as Sandy Cove.
41. Lescarbot says of this iron mine, and of the silver mine above, that
they were proved not to be abundant.
42. This was probably near Rossway.
43. This was clearly Smith Creek or Smelt River, which rises near Annapolis
Basin, or the Port Royal Basin of the French.
44. He here doubtless refers to North Creek, at the north-eastern extremity
of St. Mary's Bay.
45. Now Weymouth Harbor, on the south-eastern shore of St. Mary's Bay, at
the mouth of Sissibou River, and directly opposite Sandy Cove, near the
iron mine mentioned above.
46. The distance across the bay at this point, as here stated, is nearly
accurate.
47. This is clearly a mistake; the true latitude at the Petit Passage is
44° 23'. It may here be remarked that Champlain's latitudes are very
inaccurate, often varying more than half a degree; doubtless owing to
the imperfection of the instruments which were employed in taking them.
48. They had been occupied in this exploration about three weeks, Lescarbot
says a month, but this is an overstatement. By a careful examination of
the text, it will appear that they departed from Port Mouton on the
19th of May, and that several days after their return, not less than
nine, they were again in St. Mary's Bay, on the 16th of June. They had
been absent, therefore, about twenty-one days. The latitude of Port
Mouton, stated a little below to be 44°, is in fact 43° 57'.
49. This bay, still retaining its ancient appellation, was so named by
Champlain on his first visit. "Ceste baye fut nommée la baye Saincte
Marie."--_Champlain's Voyages_, 1632, Quebec ed., Vol. V. p. 716.
50. Nicholas Aubry, a young Parisian of good family, "vn certain homme
d'Église," as Lescarbot says, probably not long in holy orders, had
undertaken this voyage with De Monts to gratify his desire to see the
New World, though quite against the wishes of his friends, who had sent
in vain to Honfleur to prevent his embarkation. After the search made
by De Monts, with the sounding of trumpets and the discharge of cannon,
they left St. Mary's Bay, having given up all expectation of his
recovery. Some two weeks afterward, an expedition was Sent out to
St. Mary's Bay, conducted by De Champdoré, an experienced pilot, with a
mineralogist, to search for silver and iron ore. While Some of the
party were on a fishing excursion, they rescued him, as stated in the
text. The safe return of the young and too venturesome ecclesiastic
gave great relief to De Monts, as Lescarbot says a Protestant was
charged to have killed him, because they quarrelled sometimes about
their religion.--_Vide Histoire de Nouvelle-France_, par Mare
Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, Qvat. Liv. p. 453.
51. The partridge-berry, Mitchella, a trailing evergreen, bearing scarlet
berries, edible but nearly tasteless, which remain through the winter.
It is peculiar to America, and this is probably the first time it was
noticed by any historical writer.
52. He was on the western side of Digby Neck, at its southern extremity,
near the Petit Passage on the shore of the Bay of Fundy.
CHAPTER III.
DESCRIPTION OF PORT ROYAL AND THE PECULIARITIES OF THE SAME.--ISLE HAUTE.--
PORT OF MINES.--BAYE FRANÇOISE.-THE RIVER ST. JOHN, AND WHAT WE OBSERVED
BETWEEN THE PORT OF MINES AND THE SAME.--THE ISLAND CALLED BY THE SAVAGES
MANTHANE.--THE RIVER OF THE ETECHEMINS, AND SEVERAL FINE ISLANDS THERE.--
ST. CROIX ISLAND, AND OTHER NOTEWORTHY OBJECTS ON THIS COAST.
Some days after, Sieur de Monts decided to go and examine the coasts of
Baye Françoise. For this purpose, he set out from the vessel on the 16th of
May,[53] and we went through the strait of Long Island.[54] Not having
found in St. Mary's Bay any place in which to fortify ourselves except at
the cost of much time, we accordingly resolved to see whether there might
not be a more favorable one in the other bay. Heading north-east six
leagues, there is a cove where vessels can anchor in four, five, six, and
seven fathoms of water. The bottom is sandy. This place is only a kind of
roadstead.[55] Continuing two leagues farther on in the same direction, we
entered one of the finest harbors I had seen along all these coasts, in
which two thousand vessels might lie in security. The entrance is eight
hundred paces broad; then you enter a harbor two leagues long and one
broad, which I have named Port Royal.[56] Three rivers empty into it, one
of which is very large, extending eastward, and called Rivière de
l'Équille,[57] from a little fish of the size of an _esplan?_, which is
caught there in large numbers, as is also the herring, and several other
kinds of fish found in abundance in their season. This river is nearly a
quarter of a league broad at its entrance, where there is an island [58]
perhaps half a league in circuit, and covered with wood like all the rest
of the country, as pines, firs, spruces, birches, aspens, and some oaks,
although the latter are found in small numbers in comparison with the other
kinds. There are two entrances to the above river, one on the north, the
other on the south side of the island. That on the north is the better, and
vessels can there anchor under shelter of the island in five, six, seven,
eight, and nine fathoms. But it is necessary to be on one's guard against
some shallows near the island on the one side, and the main land on the
other, very dangerous, if one does not know the channel.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
PORT AU MOUTON.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Place where vessels lie.
_B_. Place where we made our camp.
_C_. A pond.
_D_. An island at the entrance to the harbor, covered with wood.
_E_. A river very shallow.
_F_. A pond.
_G_. A very large brook coming from the pond F.
_H_. Six little islands in the harbor.
_L_. Country, containing only copse and heath of very small size.
_M_. Sea-shore.
NOTE.--The wanting letter L should probably be placed where the trees are
represented as very small, between the letters B and the island F.
* * * * *
We ascended the river some fourteen or fifteen leagues, where the tide
rises, and it is not navigable much farther. It has there a breadth of
sixty paces, and about a fathom and a half of water. The country bordering
the river is filled with numerous oaks, ashes, and other trees. Between the
mouth of the river and the point to which we ascended there are many
meadows, which are flooded at the spring tides, many little streams
traversing them from one side to the other, through which shallops and
boats can go at full tide. This place was the most favorable and agreeable
for a settlement that we had seen. There is another island [59] within the
port, distant nearly two leagues from the former. At this point is another
little stream, extending a considerable distance inland, which we named
Rivière St. Antoine. [60] Its mouth is distant from the end of the Bay of
St. Mary some four leagues through the woods. The remaining river is only a
small stream filled with rocks, which cannot be ascended at all on account
of the small amount of water, and which has been named Rocky Brook. [61]
This place is in latitude [62] 45°; and 17° 8' of the deflection of the
magnetic needle.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE MAP
PORT ROYAL
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Our habitation. [Note: On the present site of Lower Granville.]
_B_. Garden of Sieur de Champlain.
_C_. Road through the woods that Sieur de Poutrincourt had made.
_D_. Island at the mouth of Équille River.
_E_. Entrance to Port Royal,
_F_. Shoals, dry at low tide.
_G_. River St. Antoine. [Note: The stream west of river St. Antoine is the
Jogging River.]
_H_. Place under cultivation for sowing wheat. [Note: The site of the
present town of Annapolis.]
_I_. Mill that Sieur de Poutrincourt had made.
_L_. Meadows overflowed at highest tides.
_M_. Équille River.
_N_. Seacoast of Port Royal.
_O_. Ranges of mountains.
_P_. Island near the river St. Antoine.
_Q_. Rocky Brook. [Footnote: Now called Deep Brook.]
_R_. Another brook. [Note: Morris River.]
_S_. Mill River. [Note: Allen River.]
_T_. Small lake.
_V_. Place where the savages catch herring in the season.
_X_. Trout brook. [Note: Trout Brook is now called Shäfer's Brook, and the
first on the west is Thorne's, and the second Scofield's Brook.]
_Y_. A lane that Sieur de Champlain had made.
* * * * *
After having explored this harbor, we set out to advance farther on in Baye
Françoise, and see whether we could not find the copper mine, [63] which
had been discovered the year before. Heading north-east, and sailing eight
or ten leagues along the coast of Port Royal,[64] we crossed a part of the
bay Some five or six leagues in extent, when we arrived at a place which we
called the Cape of Two Bays;[65] and we passed by an island a league
distant therefrom, a league also in circuit, rising up forty or forty-five
fathoms. [66] It is wholly surrounded by great rocks, except in one place
which is sloping, at the foot of which slope there is a pond of salt water,
coming from under a pebbly point, having the form of a spur. The surface of
the island is flat, covered with trees, and containing a fine spring of
water. In this place is a copper mine. Thence we proceeded to a harbor a
league and a half distant, where we supposed the copper mine was, which a
certain Prevert of St. Malo had discovered by aid of the savages of the
country. This port is in latitude 45° 40', and is dry at low tide. [67] In
order to enter it, it is necessary to place beacons, and mark out a
sand-bank at the entrance, which borders a channel that extends along the
main land. Then you enter a bay nearly a league in length, and half a
league in breadth. In some places, the bottom is oozy and sandy, where
vessels may get aground. The sea falls and rises there to the extent of
four or five fathoms. We landed to see whether we could find the mines
which Prevert had reported to us. Having gone about a quarter of a league
along certain mountains, we found none, nor did we recognize any
resemblance to the description of the harbor he had given us. Accordingly,
he had not himself been there, but probably two or three of his men had
been there, guided by some savages, partly by land and partly by little
streams, while he awaited them in his shallop at the mouth of a little
river in the Bay of St. Lawrence.[68] These men, upon their return,
brought him several small pieces of copper, which he showed us when he
returned from his voyage. Nevertheless, we found in this harbor two mines
of what seemed to be copper according to the report of our miner, who
considered it very good, although it was not native copper.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE MAP.
PORT DES MINES.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. A place where vessels are liable to run aground.
_B_. A Small river.
_C_. A tongue of land composed of Sand.
_D_. A point composed of large pebbles, which is like a mole.
_E_. Location of a copper mine, which is covered by the tide twice a day.
_F_. An island to the rear of the Cape of Mines. [Note: Now called
Spencer's Island. Champlain probably obtained his knowledge of this
island at a subsequent visit. There is a creek extending from near
Spencer's Island between the rocky elevations to Advocate's Harbor, or
nearly so, which Champlain does not appear to have seen, or at least
he does not represent it on his map. This point, thus made an island
by the creek, has an elevation of five hundred feet, at the base of
which was the copper mine which they discovered.--_Vide_ note 67.]
_G_. Roadstead where vessels anchor while waiting for the tide.
_H_. Isle Haute, which is a league and a half from Port of Mines.
_I_. Channel.
_L_. Little River.
_M_. Range of mountains along the coast of the Cape of Mines.
* * * * *
The head [69] of the Baye Françoise, which we crossed, is fifteen leagues
inland. All the land which we have seen in coasting along from the little
passage of Long Island is rocky, and there is no place except Port Royal
where vessels can lie in Safety. The land is covered with pines and
birches, and, in my opinion, is not very good.
On the 20th of May,[70] we set out from the Port of Mines to seek a place
adapted for a permanent stay, in order to lose no time, purposing
afterwards to return, and see if we could discover the mine of pure copper
which Prevert's men had found by aid of the savages. We sailed west two
leagues as far as the cape of the two bays, then north five or six leagues;
and we crossed the other bay,[71] where we thought the copper mine was, of
which we have already spoken: inasmuch as there are there two rivers, [72]
the one coming from the direction of Cape Breton, and the other from Gaspé
or Tregatté, near the great river St. Lawrence. Sailing west some six
leagues, we arrived at a little river,[73] at the mouth of which is rather
a low cape, extending out into the sea; and a short distance inland there
is a mountain,[74] having the shape of a Cardinal's hat. In this place we
found an iron mine. There is anchorage here only for shallops. Four leagues
west south-west is a rocky point [75] extending out a short distance into
the water, where there are strong tides which are very dangerous. Near the
point we saw a cove about half a league in extent, in which we found
another iron mine, also very good. Four leagues farther on is a fine bay
running up into the main land;[76] at the extremity of which there are
three islands and a rock; two of which are a league from the cape towards
the west, and the other is at the mouth of the largest and deepest river we
had yet seen, which we named the river St. John, because it was on this
saint's day that we arrived there.[77] By the savages it is called
Ouygoudy. This river is dangerous, if one does not observe carefully
certain points and rocks on the two sides. It is narrow at its entrance,
and then becomes broader. A certain point being passed, it becomes narrower
again, and forms a kind of fall between two large cliffs, where the water
runs so rapidly that a piece of wood thrown in is drawn under and not seen
again. But by waiting till high tide you can pass this fall very easily.
[78] Then it expands again to the extent of about a league in some places,
where there are three islands. We did not explore it farther up.[79] But
Ralleau, secretary of Sieur de Monts, went there some time after to see a
savage named Secondon, chief of this river, who reported that it was
beautiful, large, and extensive, with many meadows and fine trees, as oaks,
beeches, walnut-trees, and also wild grapevines. The inhabitants of the
country go by this river to Tadoussac, on the great river St. Lawrence,
making but a short portage on the journey. From the river St. John to
Tadoussac is sixty-five leagues.[80] At its mouth, which is in latitude
45° 40', there is an iron mine.[81]
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
RIVIÈRE ST. JEHAN.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Three islands above the falls. [Note: The islands are not close
together as here represented. One is very near the main land on one
shore, and two on the other.]
_B_. Mountains rising up from the main land, two leagues south of the
river.
_C_. The fall in the river.
_D_. Shoals where vessels, when the tide is out, are liable to run aground.
_E_. Cabin where the savages fortify themselves.
_F_. A pebbly point where there is a cross.
_G_. An island at the entrance of the river. [Note: Partridge Island.]
_H_. A Small brook coming from a little pond. [Note: Mill Pond.]
_I_. Arm of the sea dry at low tide. [Note: Marsh Creek, very shallow but
not entirely dry at low tide.]
_L_. Two little rocky islets. [Note: These islets are not now represented
on the charts, and are probably rocks near the shore from which the
soil may have been washed away since 1604.]
_M_. A small pond.
_N_. Two brooks.
_O_. Very dangerous shoals along the coast, which are dry at low tide.
_P_. Way by which the savages carry their canoes in passing the falls.
_Q_. Place for anchoring where the river runs with full current.
* * * * *
From the river St. John we went to four islands, on one of which we landed,
and found great numbers of birds called magpies,[82] of which we captured
many small ones, which are as good as pigeons. Sieur de Poutrincourt came
near getting lost here, but he came back to our barque at last, when we had
already gone to search for him about the island, which is three leagues
distant from the main land. Farther west are other islands; among them one
six leagues in length, called by the savages Manthane,[83] south of which
there are among the islands several good harbors for vessels. From the
Magpie Islands we proceeded to a river on the main land called the river of
the Etechemins,[84] a tribe of savages so called in their country. We
passed by so many islands that we could not ascertain their number, which
were very fine. Some were two leagues in extent, others three, others more
or less. All of these islands are in a bay,[85] having, in my estimation, a
circuit of more than fifteen leagues. There are many good places capable of
containing any number of vessels, and abounding in fish in the season, such
as codfish, salmon, bass, herring, halibut, and other kinds in great
numbers. Sailing west-north-west three leagues through the islands, we
entered a river almost half a league in breadth at its mouth, sailing up
which a league or two we found two islands: one very small near the western
bank; and the other in the middle, having a circumference of perhaps eight
or nine hundred paces, with rocky sides three or four fathoms high all
around, except in one small place, where there is a sandy point and clayey
earth adapted for making brick and other useful articles. There is another
place affording a shelter for vessels from eighty to a hundred tons, but it
is dry at low tide. The island is covered with firs, birches, maples, and
oaks. It is by nature very well situated, except in one place, where for
about forty paces it is lower than elsewhere: this, however, is easily
fortified, the banks of the main land being distant on both sides some nine
hundred to a thousand paces. Vessels could pass up the river only at the
mercy of the cannon on this island, and we deemed the location the most
advantageous, not only on account of its situation and good foil, but also
on account of the intercourse which we proposed with the savages of these
coasts and of the interior, as we should be in the midst of them. We hoped
to pacify them in the course of time, and put an end to the wars which they
carry on with one another, so as to derive service from them in future, and
convert them to the Christian faith. This place was named by Sieur de Monts
the Island of St. Croix. [86] Farther on, there is a great bay, in which
are two islands, one high and the other flat; also three rivers, two of
moderate size, one extending towards the east, the other towards the north,
and the third of large size, towards the west. The latter is that of the
Etechemins, of which we spoke before. Two leagues up this there is a
waterfall, around which the savages carry their canoes some five hundred
paces by land, and then re-enter the river. Passing afterwards from the
river a short distance overland, one reaches the rivers Norumbegue and
St. John. But the falls are impassable for vessels, as there are only rocks
and but four or five feet of water.[87] In May and June, so great a number
of herring and bass are caught there that vessels could be loaded with
them. The soil is of the finest sort, and there are fifteen or twenty acres
of cleared land, where Sieur de Monts had some wheat sown, which flourished
finely. The savages come here sometimes five or six weeks during the
fishing Season. All the rest of the country consists of very dense forests.
If the land were cleared up, grain would flourish excellently. This place
is in latitude 45° 20',[88] and 17° 32' of the deflection of the magnetic
needle.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
ISLE DE SAINTE CROIX.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. A plan of our habitation.
_B_. Gardens.
_C_. Little islet serving as a platform for cannon. [Note: This refers to
the southern end of the island, which was probably separated at high
tide, where a cannon may be seen in position.]
_D_. Platform where cannon were placed.
_E_. The Cemetery.
_F_. The Chapel.
_G_. Rocky shoals about the Island Sainte Croix.
_H_. A little islet. [Note: Little De Monts's Island, Sometimes called
Little Dochet's Island.]
_I_. Place where Sieur de Monts had a water-mill commenced.
_L_. Place where we made our coal.
_M_. Gardens on the western shore.
_N_. Other gardens on the eastern shore.
_O_. Very large and high mountain on the main land. [Note: This "mountain"
is now called Chamcook Hill. Its height is 627 feet. At the northern
end of the island on the right there is an extensive sandy shoal, dry
at low tide, of a triangular shape as formerly, and has apparently
changed very little since the days of Champlain.]
_P_. River of the Etechemins flowing about the Island of St. Croix.
* * * * *
ENDNOTES:
53. For May read June. It could not have been in May, since Champlain Set
out from Port Mouton on his exploring expedition on the 19th of May,
which must have been a month previous to this.
54. What is now called the Petit Passage, the narrow strait between Long
Island and Digby Neck.
55. Gulliver's Hole, about two leagues south-west of Digby Strait.
56. Champlain here names the whole harbor or basin Port Royal, and not the
place of habitation afterward so called. The first settlement was on
the north side of the bay in the present hamlet of Lower Granville, not
as often alleged at Annapolis.--_Vide_ Champlain's engraving or map of
Port Royal.
57. "Équille." A name, on the coasts between Caen and Havre, of the fish
called lançon at Granville and St. Malo, a kind of malacopterygious
fish living on sandy shores and hiding in the sand at low tide.--
_Littré_. A species of sand eel. This stream is now known as the
Annapolis River. Lescarbot calls it Rivière du Dauphin.
58. This island is situated at the point where the Annapolis River flows
into the bay, or about nine miles from Digby, straight. Champlain on
his map gives it no name, but Lescarbot calls it Biencourville. It is
now called Goat Island.
59. Lescarbot calls it Claudiane. It is now known as Bear Island. It was
Sometimes called Ile d'Hébert, and likewise Imbert Island. Laverdière
suggests that the present name is derived from the French pronunciation
of the last syllable of Imbert.
60. At present known as Bear River; Lescarbot has it Hebert, and
Charlevoix, Imbert.
61. On modern maps called Moose River, and sometimes Deep Brook. It is a
few miles east of Bear River.
62. The latitude is here overstated: it should be 44° 39' 30".
63. On the preceding year, M. Prevert of St. Malo had made a glowing report
ostensively based on his own observations and information which he had
obtained from the Indians, in regard to certain mines alleged to exist
on the coast directly South of Northumberland Strait, and about the
head of the Bay of Fundy. It was this report of Prevert that induced
the present search.
64. Along the Bay of Fundy nearly parallel to the basin of Port Royal would
better express the author's meaning.
65. Cape Chignecto, the point where the Bay of Fundy is bifurcated; the
northern arm forming Chignecto Bay, and the southern, the Bay of Mines
or Minas Basin.
66. Isle Haute, or high island.--_Vide Charlevoix's Map_. On Some maps this
name has been strangely perverted into Isle Holt, Isle Har, &c. Its
height is 320 feet.
67. This was Advocate's Harbor. Its distance from Cape Chignecto is greater
than that stated in the text. Further on, Champlain calls it two
leagues, which is nearly correct. Its latitude is about 45° 20'. By
comparing the Admiralty charts and Champlain's map of this harbor, it
will be seen that important changes have taken place since 1604. The
tongue of land extending in a south-easterly direction, covered with
trees and shrubbery, which Champlain calls a sand-bank, has entirely
disappeared. The ordinary tides rise here from thirty-three to
thirty-nine feet, and on a sandy shore could hardly fail to produce
important changes.
68. According to the Abbé Laverdière, the lower part of the Gulf was
sometimes called the Bay of St. Lawrence.
69. They had just crossed the Bay of Mines. From the place where they
crossed it to its head it is not far from fifteen leagues, and it is
about the same distance to Port Royal, from which he may here estimate
the distance inland.
70. Read June.--_Vide antea_, note 53.
71. Chignecto Bay. Charlevoix has Chignitou _ou Beau Bassin_. On De Laet's
Map of 1633, on Jacob von Meur's of 1673, and Homenn's of 1729, we have
B. de Gennes. The Cape of Two Bays was Cape Chignecto.
72. The rivers are the Cumberland Basin with its tributaries coming from
the east, and the Petitcoudiac (_petit_ and _coude_, little elbow, from
the angle formed by the river at Moncton, called the Bend), which flows
into Shepody Bay coming from the north or the direction of Gaspé.
Champlain mentions all these particulars, probably as answering to the
description given to them by M. Prevert of the place where copper mines
could be found.
73. Quaco River, at the mouth of which the water is shallow: the low cape
extending out into the sea is that on which Quaco Light now stands,
which reaches out quarter of a mile, and is comparatively low. The
shore from Goose River, near where they made the coast, is very high,
measuring at different points 783, 735, 650, 400, 300, 500, and 380
feet, while the "low cape" is only 250 feet, and near it on the west is
an elevation of 400 feet. It would be properly represented as "rather a
low cape" in contradistinction to the neighboring coast. Iron and
manganese are found here, and the latter has been mined to some extent,
but is now discontinued, as the expense is too great for the present
times.
74. This mountain is an elevation, eight or ten miles inland from Quaco,
which may be seen by vessels coasting along from St. Martin's Head to
St. John: it is indicated on the charts as Mt. Theobald, and bears a
striking resemblance, as Champlain suggests, to the _chapeau de
Cardinal_.
75. McCoy's Head, four leagues west of Quaco: the "cove" may be that on the
east into which Gardner's Creek flows, or that on the west at the mouth
of Emmerson's Creek.
76. The Bay of St. John, which is four leagues south-west of McCoy's
Head. The islands mentioned are Partridge Island at the mouth of the
harbor, and two smaller ones farther west, one Meogenes, and the other
Shag rock or some unimportant islet in its vicinity. The rock mentioned
by Champlain is that on which Spit Beacon Light now stands.
77. The festival of St. John the Baptist occurs on the 24th of June; and,
arriving on that day, they gave the name of St. John to the river,
which has been appropriately given also to the city at its mouth, now
the metropolis of the province of New Brunswick.
78. Champlain was under a missapprehension about passing the fall at the
mouth of the St. John at high tide. It can in fact only be passed at
about half tide. The waters of the river at low tide are about twelve
feet higher than the waters of the sea. At high tide, the waters of the
sea are about five feet higher than the waters of the river.
Consequently, at low tide there is a fall outward, and at high tide
there is a fall inward, at neither of which times can the fall be
passed. The only time for passing the fall is when the waters of the
sea are on a level with the waters of the river. This occurs twice
every tide, at the level point at the flood and likewise at the ebb.
The period for passing lasts about fifteen or twenty minutes, and of
course occurs four times a day. Vessels assemble in considerable
numbers above and below to embrace the opportunity of passing at the
favoring moment. There are periods, however, when the river is swollen
by rains and melting snow, at which the tides do not rise as high as
the river, and consequently there is a constant fall outward, and
vessels cannot pass until the high water subsides.
79. They ascended the river only a short distance into the large bay just
above the falls, near which are the three islands mentioned in the
text.
80. The distance from the mouth of the river St. John to Tadoussac in a
direct line is about sixty-five leagues. But by the winding course of
the St. John it would be very much greater.
81. Champlain's latitude is inexact. St. John's Harbor is 45° 16'.
82. _Margos_, magpies. The four islands which Champlain named the Magpies
are now called the Wolves, and are near the mouth of Passamaquoddy
Bay. Charlevoix has _Oiseaux_, the Birds.
83. Manan. Known as the Grand Manan in contradistinction to the Petit
Manan, a small island still further west. It is about fourteen or
fifteen miles long, and about six in its greatest width. On the south
and eastern side are Long Island, Great Duck, Ross, Cheyne, and White
Head Islands, among which good harborage may be found. The name, as
appears in the text, is of Indian origin. It is Sometimes Spelled
Menarse, but that in the text prevails.
84. The St. Croix River, sometimes called the Scoudic.
85. Passsmaquoddy Bay. On Gastaldo's map of 1550 called Angoulesme. On
Rouge's "Atlas Ameriquain," 1778, it is written Passamacadie.
86. The Holy Cross, _Saincte Croix_, This name was suggested by the
circumstance that, a few miles above the island, two streams flow into
the main channel of the river at the same place, one from the east and
the other from the west, while a bay makes up between them, presenting
the appearance of a cross.
"Et d'autant qu'à deux lieues au dessus il y a des ruisseaux qui
viennent comme en croix de décharger dans ce large bras de mer, cette
île de la retraite des François fut appelée SAINCTE CROIX."--_His.
Nouvelle France_ par Lescarbot, Paris. 1612, Qvat Liv. pp. 461, 462.
It is now called De Monts's Island. It has been called Dochet's Island
and Neutral Island, but there is great appropriateness in calling it
after its first occupant and proprietor, and in honor of him it has
been so named with suitable ceremonies.--_Vide Godfrey's Centennial
Discourse_, Bangor, 1870, p. 20. The United States maintain a light
upon the island, which is seventy-one feet above the level of the sea,
and is visible twelve nautical miles. The island itself is moderately
high, and in the widest part is one hundred and eighty paces or about
five hundred and forty feet. The area is probably not more than six or
seven acres, although it has been estimated at twice that. It may have
been diminished in some slight degree since the time of Champlain by
the action of the waves, but probably very little. On the southern
extremity of the island where De Monts placed his cannon, about
twenty-five years ago a workman in excavating threw out five small
cannon-balls, one of which was obtained by Peter E. Vose, Esq., of
Dennysville, Me., who then resided near the island, and was conversant
with all the circumstances of the discovery. They were about a foot and
a half below the surface, and the workman was excavating for another
purpose, and knew nothing of the history of the island. At our
solicitation, the ball belonging to Mr. Vose has recently been
presented to the New England Historic Genealogical Society, of which he
is a member. It is iron, perfectly round, two and a quarter inches in
diameter, and weighs 22 oz. avoirdupois. There can be no reasonable
doubt that these balls are relics of the little French colony of 1604,
and probably the only memorial of the kind now in existence.
87. The description in the text of the environs of the Island of St. Croix
is entirely accurate. Some distance above, and in view from the island,
is the fork, or Divide, as it is called. Here is a meeting of the
waters of Warwig Creek from the east, Oak Bay from the north, and the
river of the Etechemins, now called the St. Croix, from the west. These
are the three rivers mentioned by Champlain, Oak Bay being considered
as one of them, in which may be seen the two islands mentioned in the
text, one high and the other low. A little above Calais is the
waterfall, around which the Indians carried their bark canoes, when on
their journey up the river through the Scoudic lakes, from which by
land they reached the river St. John on the east, or, on the west,
passing through the Mettawamkeag, they reached the Norumbegue, or
Penobscot River.
88. The latitude of the Island of St. Croix is 45° 7' 43".
CHAPTER IV.
SIEUR DE MONTS, FINDING NO OTHER PLACE BETTER ADAPTED FOR A PERMANENT
SETTLEMENT THAN THE ISLAND OF ST. CROIX, FORTIFIES IT AND BUILDS
DWELLINGS.--RETURN OF THE VESSELS TO FRANCE, AND OF RALLEAU, SECRETARY OF
SIEUR DE MONTS, FOR THE SAKE OF ARRANGING SOME BUSINESS AFFAIRS.
Not finding any more suitable place than this island, we commenced making a
barricade on a little islet a short distance from the main island, which
served as a station for placing our cannon. All worked so energetically
that in a little while it was put in a state of defence, although the
mosquitoes (which are little flies) annoyed us excessively in our work.
For there were several of our men whose faces were so swollen by their
bites that they could scarcely see. The barricade being finished, Sieur de
Monts sent his barque to notify the rest of our party, who were with our
vessel in the bay of St. Mary, to come to St. Croix. This was promptly
done, and while awaiting them we spent our time very pleasantly.
Some days after, our vessels having arrived and anchored, all disembarked.
Then, without losing time, Sieur de Monts proceeded to employ the workmen
in building houses for our abode, and allowed me to determine the
arrangement of our settlement. After Sieur de Monts had determined the
place for the storehouse, which is nine fathoms long, three wide, and
twelve feet high, he adopted the plan for his own house, which he had
promptly built by good workmen, and then assigned to each one his location.
Straightway, the men began to gather together by fives and sixes, each
according to his desire. Then all set to work to clear up the island, to go
to the woods, to make the frame work, to carry earth and other things
necessary for the buildings.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
HABITATION DE L'ISLE STE. CROIX.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Dwelling of Sieur de Monts.
_B_. Public building where we spent our time when it rained.
_C_. The storehouse.
_D_. Dwelling of the guard.
_E_. The blacksmith shop.
_F_. Dwelling of the carpenters.
_G_. The well.
_H_. The oven where the bread was made.
_I_. Kitchen.
_L_. Gardens.
_M_. Other gardens.
_N_. Place in the centre where a tree stands.
_O_. Palisade.
_P_. Dwellings of the Sieurs d'Orville, Champlain, and Champdoré.
_Q_. Dwelling of Sieur Boulay, and other artisans.
_R_. Dwelling where the Sieurs de Genestou, Sourin, and other artisans
lived.
_T_. Dwelling of the Sieurs de Beaumont, la Motte Bourioli, and Fougeray.
_V_. Dwelling of our curate.
_X_. Other gardens.
_Y_. The river surrounding the island.
* * * * *
While we were building our houses, Sieur de Monts despatched Captain
Fouques in the vessel of Rossignol, [89] to find Pont Gravé at Canseau, in
order to obtain for our settlement what supplies remained.
Some time after he had set out, there arrived a small barque of eight tons,
in which was Du Glas of Honfleur, pilot of Pont Grave's vessel, bringing
the Basque ship-masters, who had been captured by the above Pont Gravé [90]
while engaged in the fur-trade, as we have stated. Sieur de Monts received
them civilly, and sent them back by the above Du Glas to Pont Gravé, with
orders for him to take the vessels he had captured to Rochelle, in order
that justice might be done. Meanwhile, work on the houses went on
vigorously and without cessation; the carpenters engaged on the storehouse
and dwelling of Sieur de Monts, and the others each on his own house, as I
was on mine, which I built with the assistance of some servants belonging
to Sieur d'Orville and myself. It was forthwith completed, and Sieur de
Monts lodged in it until his own was finished. An oven was also made, and a
handmill for grinding our wheat, the working of which involved much trouble
and labor to the most of us, since it was a toilsome operation. Some
gardens were afterwards laid out, on the main land as well as on the
island. Here many kinds of seeds were planted, which flourished very well
on the main land, but not on the island, since there was only sand here,
and the whole were burned up when the sun shone, although special pains
were taken to water them.
Some days after, Sieur de Monts determined to ascertain where the mine of
pure copper was which we had searched for so much. With this object in
view, he despatched me together with a savage named Messamoüet, who
asserted that he knew the place well. I set out in a small barque of five
or six tons, with nine sailors. Some eight leagues from the island, towards
the river St. John, we found a mine of copper which was not pure, yet good
according to the report of the miner, who said that it would yield eighteen
per cent. Farther on we found others inferior to this. When we reached the
place where we supposed that was which we were hunting for, the savage
could not find it, so that it was necessary to come back, leaving the
search for another time.
Upon my return from this trip. Sieur de Monts resolved to send his vessels
back to France, and also Sieur de Poutrincourt, who had come only for his
pleasure, and to explore countries and places suitable for a colony, which
he desired to found; for which reason he asked Sieur de Monts for Port
Royal, which he gave him in accordance with the power and directions he had
received from the king. [91] He sent back also Ralleau, his secretary, to
arrange some matters concerning the voyage. They set out from the Island of
St. Croix the last day of August, 1604.
ENDNOTES:
89. This was the vessel taken from Captain Rossignol and confiscated.--
_Vide antea_, pp. 10, 12; also note 26.
90. Champlain and others often write only Pont for Pont Gravé. Lescarbot
says Gravé was his surname.--_Vide Histoire de la Nou. Fran_., Paris,
1612, Qvat. Liv. p. 501. To prevent any confusion, we write it Pont
Gravé in all cases.
91. De Monts's charter provided for the distribution of lands to colonists.
This gift to De Poutrincourt was confirmed afterwards by the king. We
may here remark that there is the usual discrepancy in the orthography
of this name. Lescarbot, De Laet, and Charlevoix write Poutrincourt. In
his Latin epitaph, _vide Murdoch's Nova Scotia_, Vol. I. p. 59, it is
Potrincurtius, while Champlain has Poitrincourt. In Poutrincourt's
letter to the Roman Pontiff, Paul V., written in Latin, he says, _Ego
Johannes de Biencour, vulgo De Povtrincovr a vitae religionis amator et
attestor perpetuus_, etc. This must be conclusive for Poutrincourt as
the proper orthography.--_Vide His. Nov. Fra._, par Lescarbot, Paris,
1612, p. 612.
CHAPTER V.
OF THE COAST, INHABITANTS, AND RIVER OF NORUMBEGUE, AND OF ALL THAT
OCCURRED DURING THE EXPLORATION OF THE LATTER.
After the departure of the vessels, Sieur de Monts, without losing time,
decided to send persons to make discoveries along the coast of Norumbegue;
and he intrusted me with this work, which I found very agreeable.
In order to execute this commission, I set out from St. Croix on the 2d of
September with a patache of seventeen or eighteen tons, twelve sailors, and
two savages, to serve us as guides to the places with which they were
acquainted. The same day we found the vessels where Sieur de Poutrincourt
was, which were anchored at the mouth of the river St. Croix in consequence
of bad weather, which place we could not leave before the 5th of the month.
Having gone two or three leagues seaward, so dense a fog arose that we at
once lost sight of their vessels. Continuing our course along the coast, we
made the same day some twenty-five leagues, and passed by a large number of
islands, banks, reefs, and rocks, which in places extend more than four
leagues out to Sea. We called the islands the Ranges, most of which are
covered with pines, firs, and other trees of an inferior sort. Among these
islands are many fine harbors, but undesirable for a permanent settlement.
The same day we passed also near to an island about four or five leagues
long, in the neighborhood of which we just escaped being lost on a little
rock on a level with the water, which made an opening in our barque near
the keel. From this island to the main land on the north, the distance is
less than a hundred paces. It is very high, and notched in places, so that
there is the appearance to one at sea, as of seven or eight mountains
extending along near each other. The summit of the most of them is
destitute of trees, as there are only rocks on them. The woods consist of
pines, firs, and birches only. I named it Isle des Monts Déserts.[92] The
latitude is 44° 30'.
The next day, the 6th of the month, we sailed two leagues, and perceived a
smoke in a cove at the foot of the mountains above mentioned. We saw two
canoes rowed by savages, which came within musket range to observe us. I
sent our two Savages in a boat to assure them of our friendship. Their fear
of us made them turn back. On the morning of the next day, they came
alongside of our barque and talked with our savages. I ordered some
biscuit, tobacco, and other trifles to be given them. These savages had
come beaver-hunting and to catch fish, some of which they gave us. Having
made an alliance with them, they guided us to their river of Pentegoüet,
[93] so called by them, where they told us was their captain, named
Bessabez, chief of this river. I think this river is that which several
pilots and historians call Norumbegue, [94] and which most have described
as large and extensive, with very many islands, its mouth being in latitude
43°, 43° 30', according to others in 44°, more or less. With regard to the
deflection, I have neither read, nor heard any one say any thing. It is
related also that there is a large, thickly settled town of savages, who
are adroit and skillful, and who have cotton yarn. I am confident that most
of those who mention it have not seen it, and speak of it because they have
heard persons say so, who knew no more about it than they themselves. I am
ready to believe that some may have seen the mouth of it, because there are
in reality many islands, and it is, as they say, in latitude 44° at its
entrance. But that any one has ever entered it there is no evidence, for
then they would have described it in another manner, in order to relieve
the minds of many of this doubt.
I will accordingly relate truly what I explored and saw, from the beginning
as far as I went.
In the first place, there are at its entrance several islands distant ten
or twelve leagues from the main land, which are in latitude 44°, and 18°
40' of the deflection of the magnetic needle. The Isle des Monts Déserts
forms one of the extremities of the mouth, on the east; the other is low
land, called by the savages Bedabedec, [95] to the west of the former, the
two being distant from each other nine or ten leagues. Almost midway
between these, out in the ocean, there is another island very high and
conspicuous, which on this account I have named Isle Haute. [96] All around
there is a vast number of varying extent and breadth, but the largest is
that of the Monts Déserts. Fishing as also hunting are very good here; the
fish are of various kinds. Some two or three leagues from the point of
Bedabedec, as you coast northward along the main land which extends up this
river, there are very high elevations of land, which in fair weather are
seen twelve or fifteen leagues out at Sea. [97] Passing to the South of the
Isle Haute, and coasting along the same for a quarter of a league, where
there are some reefs out of water, and heading to the west until you open
all the mountains northward of this island, you can be sure that, by
keeping in sight the eight or nine peaks of the Monts Déserts and
Bedabedec, you will cross the river Norumbegue; and in order to enter it
you must keep to the north, that is, towards the highest mountains of
Bedabedec, where you will see no islands before you, and can enter, sure of
having water enough, although you see a great many breakers, islands, and
rocks to the east and west of you. For greater security, one should keep
the sounding lead in hand. And my observations lead me to conclude that one
cannot enter this river in any other place except in small vessels or
shallops. For, as I stated above, there are numerous islands, rocks,
shoals, banks, and breakers on all sides, so that it is marvellous to
behold.
Now to resume our course: as one enters the river, there are beautiful
islands, which are very pleasant and contain fine meadows. We proceeded to
a place to which the savages guided us, where the river is not more than an
eighth of a league broad, and at a distance of some two hundred paces from
the western shore there is a rock on a level with the water, of a dangerous
character.[98] From here to the Isle Haute, it is fifteen leagues. From
this narrow place, where there is the least breadth that we had found,
after sailing some seven or eight leagues, we came to a little river near
which it was necessary to anchor, as we saw before us a great many rocks
which are uncovered at low tide, and since also, if we had desired to sail
farther, we could have gone scarcely half a league, in consequence of a
fall of water there coming down a slope of seven or eight feet, which I saw
as I went there in a canoe with our savages; and we found only water enough
for a canoe. But excepting the fall, which is some two hundred paces broad,
the river is beautiful, and unobstructed up to the place where we had
anchored. I landed to view the country, and, going on a hunting excursion,
found it very pleasant so far as I went. The oaks here appear as if they
were planted for ornament. I saw only a few firs, but numerous pines on one
side of the river; on the other only oaks, and some copse wood which
extends far into the interior.[99] And I will state that from the entrance
to where we went, about twenty-five leagues, we saw no town, nor village,
nor the appearance of there having been one, but one or two cabins of the
savages without inhabitants. These were made in the same way as those of
the Souriquois, being covered with the bark of trees. So far as we could
judge, the Savages on this river are few in number, and are called
Etechemins. Moreover, they only come to the islands, and that only during
some months in summer for fish and game, of which there is a great
quantity. They are a people who have no fixed abode, so far as I could
observe and learn from them. For they spend the winter now in one place and
now in another, according as they find the best hunting, by which they live
when urged by their daily needs, without laying up any thing for times of
scarcity, which are sometimes severe.
Now this river must of necessity be the Norumbegue; for, having coasted
along past it as far as the 41° of latitude, we have found no other on the
parallel above mentioned, except that of the Quinibequy, which is almost in
the same latitude, but not of great extent. Moreover, there cannot be in
any other place a river extending far into the interior of the country,
since the great river St. Lawrence washes the coast of La Cadie and
Norumbegue, and the distance from one to the other by land is not more than
forty-five leagues, or sixty at the widest point, as can be seen on my
geographical map.
Now I will drop this discussion to return to the savages who had conducted
me to the falls of the river Norumbegue, who went to notify Bessabez, their
chief, and other savages, who in turn proceeded to another little river to
inform their own, named Cabahis, and give him notice of our arrival.
The 16th of the month there came to us some thirty savages on assurances
given them by those who had served us as guides. There came also to us the
same day the above named Bessabez with six canoes. As soon as the savages
who were on land saw him coming, they all began to sing, dance, and jump,
until he had landed. Afterwards, they all seated themselves in a circle on
the ground, as is their custom, when they wish to celebrate a festivity, or
an harangue is to be made. Cabahis, the other chief, arrived also a little
later with twenty or thirty of his companions, who withdrew one side and
enjoyed greatly seeing us, as it was the first time they had seen
Christians. A little while after, I went on shore with two of my companions
and two of our savages who served as interpreters. I directed the men in
our barque to approach near the savages, and hold their arms in readiness
to do their duty in case they noticed any movement of these people against
us. Bessabez, seeing us on land, bade us sit down, and began to smoke with
his companions, as they usually do before an address. They presented us
with venison and game.
I directed our interpreter to say to our savages that they should cause
Bessabez, Cabahis, and their companions to understand that Sieur de Monts
had sent me to them to see them, and also their country, and that he
desired to preserve friendship with them and to reconcile them with their
enemies, the Souriquois and Canadians, and moreover that he desired to
inhabit their country and show them how to cultivate it, in order that they
might not continue to lead so miserable a life as they were doing, and some
other words on the same subject. This our savages interpreted to them, at
which they signified their great satisfaction, saying that no greater good
could come to them than to have our friendship, and that they desired to
live in peace with their enemies, and that we should dwell in their land,
in order that they might in future more than ever before engage in hunting
beavers, and give us a part of them in return for our providing them with
things which they wanted. After he had finished his discourse, I presented
them with hatchets, paternosters, caps, knives, and other little
knick-knacks, when we separated from each other. All the rest of this day
and the following night, until break of day, they did nothing but dance,
sing, and make merry, after which we traded for a certain number of
beavers. Then each party returned, Bessabez with his companions on the one
side, and we on the other, highly pleased at having made the acquaintance
of this people.
The 17th of the month I took the altitude, [100] and found the latitude 45°
25'. This done, we set out for another river called Quinibequy, distant
from this place thirty-five leagues, and nearly twenty from Bedabedec. This
nation of savages of Quinibequy are called Etechemins, as well as those of
Norumbegue.
The 18th of the month we passed near a small river where Cabahis was, who
came with us in our barque some twelve leagues; and having asked him whence
came the river Norumbegue, he told me that it passes the fall which I
mentioned above, and that one journeying some distance on it enters a lake
by way of which they come to the river of St. Croix, by going some distance
over land, and then entering the river of the Etechemins. Moreover, another
river enters the lake, along which they proceed some days, and afterwards
enter another lake and pass through the midst of it. Reaching the end of
it, they make again a land journey of some distance, and then enter another
little river, which has its mouth a league from Quebec, which is on the
great river St. Lawrence. [101] All these people of Norumbegue are very
swarthy, dressed in beaver-skins and other furs, like the Canadian and
Souriquois savages, and they have the same mode of life.
The 20th of the month we sailed along the western coast, and passed the
mountains of Bedabedec, [102] when we anchored. The same day we explored
the entrance to the river, where large vessels can approach; but there are
inside some reefs, to avoid which one must advance with sounding lead in
hand. Our Savages left us, as they did not wish to go to Quinibequy, for
the savages of that place are great enemies to them. We sailed some eight
leagues along the western coast to an island [103] ten leagues distant from
Quinibequy, where we were obliged to put in on account of bad weather and
contrary wind. At one point in our course, we passed a large number of
islands and breakers extending some leagues out to sea, and very dangerous.
And in view of the bad weather, which was so unfavorable to us, we did not
sail more than three or four leagues farther. All these islands and coasts
are covered with extensive woods, of the same sort as that which I have
reported above as existing on the other coasts. And in consideration of the
small quantity of provisions which we had, we resolved to return to our
settlement and wait until the following year, when we hoped to return and
explore more extensively. We accordingly set out on our return on the 23d
of September, and arrived at our settlement on the 2d of October following.
The above is an exact statement of all that I have observed respecting not
only the coasts and people, but also the river of Norumbegue; and there are
none of the marvels there which some persons have described. I am of
opinion that this region is as disagreeable in winter as that of our
settlement, in which we were greatly deceived. [104]
ENDNOTES:
92. The natives called this island Pemetiq. _Isle que les Saunages
appellent Pemetiq.--Vide Relation de la Nouvelle-France_, par F. Biard.
1616. Relations des Jésuites, Quebec ed. 1858. p. 44. When the attempt
was made in 1613 to plant a colony there on the Marchioness de
Guercheville, the settlement was named St. Sauveur. This island was
also by the English called Mount Mansell. But the name given to it by
Champlain has prevailed, and still adheres to it.
The description here given of the barrenness of the island clearly
suggests the origin of the name. Desert should therefore be pronounced
with the accent on the first syllable. The latitude of the most
northern limit of the island is 44° 24'.
93. Penobscot. The name of this river has been variously written Pentagoet,
Pentagwet, Pemptegoet, Pentagovett, Penobskeag, Penaubsket, and in
various other ways. The English began early to write it Penobscot. It
is a word of Indian origin, and different meanings have been assigned
to it by those who have undertaken to interpret the language from which
it is derived.
94. The Abbé Laverdière is of the opinion that the river Norumbegue was
identical with the Bay of Fundy. His only authority is Jean Alfonse,
the chief pilot of Roberval in 1541-42. Alfonse says; "Beyond the cape
of Noroveregue descends the river of the said Noroveregue, which is
about twenty-five leagues from the cape. The said river is more than
forty leagues broad at its mouth, and extends this width inward well
thirty or forty leagues, and is all full of islands which enter ten or
twelve leagues into the sea, and it is very dangerous with rocks and
reefs." If the cape of Norumbegue is the present Cape Sable, as it is
supposed to be, by coasting along the shores of Nova Scotia from that
cape in a north-westerly direction a little more than twenty leagues,
we shall reach St. Mary's Bay, which may be regarded as the beginning
of the Bay of Fundy, and from that point in a straight line to the
mouth of the Penobscot the distance is more than forty leagues, which
was the breadth of the Norumbegue at its mouth, according to the
statement of Alfonse. The Abbé Laverdière is not quite correct in
saying that the river Norumbegue is the same as the Bay of Fundy. It
includes, according to Alfonse, who is not altogether consistent with
himself, not only the Bay of Fundy, but likewise the Penobscot River
and the bay of the same name, with its numerous islands. Alfonse left a
drawing or map of this region in his Cosmography, which Laverdière had
not probably seen, on which the Bay of Fundy and the Penobscot are
correctly laid down, and the latter is designated the "_Rivière de
Norvebergue_." It is therefore obvious, if this map can be relied upon,
that the river of Norumbegue was identical, not with the Bay of Fundy,
but with the Penobscot, in the opinion of Alfonse, in common with the
"plusieurs pilottes et historiens" referred to by Champlain.--_Vide
copy of the Chart from the MS. Cosmography of Juan Alfonse_ in
Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, in Mr. Murphy's Voyage of Verrazzano,
New York, 1875.
95. An indefinite region about Rockland and Camden, on the western bank of
the Penobscot near its mouth, appears to have been the domain of the
Indian chief, Bessabez, and was denominated Bedabedec. The Camden Hills
were called the mountains of Bedabedec, and Owl's Head was called
Bedabedec Point.
96. Isle Haute, _high island_, which name it still retains. Champlain wrote
it on his map, 1632, "Isle Haulte." It has been anglicized by some into
Isle Holt. It is nearly six miles long, and has an average width of
over two miles, and is the highest land in its vicinity, reaching at
its highest point four hundred feet above the level of the sea.
97. Camden Hills or Mountains. They are five or six in number, from 900 to
1,500 feet high, and maybe seen, it is said, twenty leagues at sea. The
more prominent are Mt. Batty, Mt. Pleasant, and Mt. Hosmer, or Ragged
Mountain. They are Sometimes called the Megunticook Range. Colonel
Benjamin Church denominates them "Mathebestuck's Hills,"--_Vide
Church's History of King Philip's War_, Newport, 1772, p. 143. Captain
John Smith calls them the mountains of Penobscot, "against whose feet
doth beat the sea." which, he adds, "you may well see sixteen or
eighteen leagues from their situation."
98. This narrow place in the river is just above Castine, where Cape
Jellison stretches out towards the east, at the head of the bay, and at
the mouth of the river. At the extremity of the cape is Fort Point, so
called from Fort Pownall, erected there in 1759, a step rocky elevation
of about eighty feet in height. Before the erection of the fort by
Governor Pownall, it was called Wafaumkeag Point.--_Vide Pownall's
Journal_, Col. Me. His. Soc., Vol. V. p. 385. The "rock" alluded to by
Champlain is Fort Point Ledge, bare at half tide, south-east by east
from the Point, and distant over half a mile. Champlain's distances
here are somewhat overestimated.
99. The terminus of this exploration of the Penobscot was near the present
site of the city of Bangor. The small river near the mouth of which
they anchored was the Kenduskeag. The falls which Champlain visited
with the Indians in a canoe are those a short distance above the
city. The sentence, a few lines back, beginning "But excepting this
fall" is complicated, and not quite logical, but the author evidently
means to describe the river from its mouth to the place of their
anchorage at Bangor.
100. The interview with the Indians on the 16th, and the taking of the
altitude on the 17th, must have occurred before the party left their
anchorage at Bangor with the purpose, but which they did not
accomplish that year, of visiting the Kennebec. This may be inferred
from Champlain's statement that the Kennebec was thirty-five leagues
distant from the place where they then were, and nearly twenty leagues
distant from Bedabedec. Consequently, they were fifteen leagues above
Bedabedec, which was situated near the mouth of the river. The
latitude, which they obtained from their observations, was far from
correct: it should be 44° 46'.
101. The Indian chief Cabahis here points out two trails, the one leading
to the French habitation just established on the Island of St. Croix,
the other to Quebec; by the former, passing up the Penobscot from the
present site of Bangor, entering the Matawamkeag, keeping to the east
in their light bark canoes to Lake Boscanhegan, and from there passing
by land to the stream then known as the river of the Etechemins, now
called the Scoudic or St. Croix. The expression "by which they come to
the river of St. Croix" is explanatory: it has no reference to the
name of the river, but means simply that the trail leads to the river
in which was the island of St. Croix. This river had not then been
named St. Croix, but had been called by them the river of the
Etechemins.--_Vide antea_, p. 31.
The other trail led up the north branch of the Penobscot, passing
through Lake Pemadumcook, and then on through Lake Chefuncook, finally
reaching the source of this stream which is near that of the
Chaudière, which latter flows into the St. Lawrence, near Quebec. It
would seem from the text that Champlain supposed that the Penobscot
flowed from a lake into which streams flowed from both the objective
points, viz. St. Croix and Quebec: but this was a mistake not at all
unnatural, as he had never been over the ground, and obtained his
information from the Indians, whose language he imperfectly
understood.
102. Bedabedec is an Indian word, signifying cape of the waters, and was
plainly the point known as Owl's Head. It gave name to the Camden
Mountains also. _Vide antea_, note 95.
103. Mosquito and Metinic Islands are each about ten leagues east of the
Kennebec. As the party went but four leagues further, the voyage must
have terminated in Muscongus Bay.
104. An idle story had been circulated, and even found a place on the pages
of sober history, that on the Penobscot, or Norumbegue, as it was then
called, there existed a fair town, a populous city, with the
accessories of luxury and wealth. Champlain here takes pains to show,
in the fullest manner, that this story was a baseless dream of fancy,
and utterly without foundation. Of it Lescarbot naïvely says, "If this
beautiful town hath ever existed in nature, I would fain know who hath
pulled it down, for there are now only a few scattered wigwams made of
poles covered with the bark of trees and the skins of wild beasts."
There is no evidence, and no probability, that this river had been
navigated by Europeans anterior to this exploration of Champlain. The
existence of the bay and the river had been noted long before. They
are indicated on the map of Ribero in 1529. Rio de Gamas and Rio
Grande appear on early maps as names of this river, but are soon
displaced for Norumbega, a name which was sometimes extended to a wide
range of territory on both sides of the Penobscot. On the Mappe-Monde
of 1543-47, issued by the late M. Jomard, it is denominated
Auorobagra, evidently intended for Norumbega. Thevet, who visited it,
or sailed along its mouth in 1556, speaks of it as Norumbegue. It is
alleged that the aborigines called it Agguncia. According to Jean
Alfonse, it was discovered by the Portuguese and Spaniards.--_Vide
His. de la N. France_, par M. Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, Qvat. Liv.
p. 495. The orthography of this name is various among early writers,
but Norumbegue is adopted by the most approved modern authors.
CHAPTER VI.
OF THE MAL DE LA TERRE, A VERY DESPERATE MALADY.--HOW THE SAVAGES, MEN AND
WOMEN, SPEND THEIR TIME IN WINTER.--AND ALL THAT OCCURRED AT THE SETTLEMENT
WHILE WE WERE PASSING THE WINTER.
When we arrived at the Island of St. Croix, each one had finished his place
of abode. Winter came upon us sooner than we expected, and prevented us
from doing many things which we had proposed. Nevertheless, Sieur de Monts
did not fail to have some gardens made on the island. Many began to clear
up the ground, each his own. I also did so with mine, which was very large,
where I planted a quantity of foods, as also did the others who had any,
and they came up very well. But since the island was all sandy, every thing
dried up almost as soon as the Sun shone upon it, and we had no water for
irrigation except from the rain, which was infrequent.
Sieur de Monts caused also clearings to be made on the main land for making
gardens, and at the falls three leagues from our Settlement he had work
done and some wheat sown, which came up very well and ripened. Around our
habitation there is, at low tide, a large number of shell-fish, such as
cockles, muscles, sea-urchins, and Sea-snails, which were very acceptable
to all.
The snows began on the 6th of October. On the 3d of December, we saw ice
pass which came from some frozen river. The cold was sharp, more severe
than in France, and of much longer duration; and it scarcely rained at all
the entire winter. I suppose that is owing to the north and north-west
winds passing over high mountains always covered with snow. The latter was
from three to four feet deep up to the end of the month of April; lasting
much longer, I suppose, than it would if the country were cultivated.
During the winter, many of our company were attacked by a certain malady
called the _mal de la terre_; otherwise scurvy, as I have since heard from
learned men. There were produced, in the mouths of those who had it, great
pieces of superfluous and drivelling flesh (causing extensive
putrefaction), which got the upper hand to such an extent that scarcely
anything but liquid could be taken. Their teeth became very loose, and
could be pulled out with the fingers without its causing them pain. The
superfluous flesh was often cut out, which caused them to eject much blood
through the mouth. Afterwards, a violent pain seized their arms and legs,
which remained swollen and very hard, all spotted as if with flea-bites;
and they could not walk on account of the contraction of the muscles, so
that they were almost without strength, and suffered intolerable pains.
They experienced pain also in the loins, stomach, and bowels, had a very
bad cough, and short breath. In a word, they were in such a condition that
the majority of them could not rise nor move, and could not even be raised
up on their feet without falling down in a swoon. So that out of
seventy-nine, who composed our party, thirty-five died, and more than
twenty were on the point of death. The majority of those who remained well
also complained of slight pains and short breath. We were unable to find
any remedy for these maladies. A _post mortem_ examination of several was
made to investigate the cause of their disease.
In the case of many, the interior parts were found mortified such as the
lungs, which were so changed that no natural fluid could be perceived in
them. The spleen was serous and swollen. The liver was _legueux?_ and
spotted, without its natural color. The _vena cava_, superior and inferior,
was filled with thick coagulated and black blood. The gall was tainted.
Nevertheless, many arteries, in the middle as well as lower bowels, were
found in very good condition. In the case of some, incisions with a razor
were made on the thighs where they had purple spots, whence there issued a
very black clotted blood. This is what was observed on the bodies of those
infected with this malady.[105]
Our surgeons could not help suffering themselves in the same manner as the
rest. Those who continued sick were healed by spring, which commences in
this country in May.[106] That led us to believe that the change of season
restored their health rather than the remedies prescribed.
During this winter, all our liquors froze, except the Spanish wine. Cider
was dispensed by the pound. The cause of this loss was that there were no
cellars to our storehouse, and that the air which entered by the cracks was
sharper than that outside. We were obliged to use very bad water, and drink
melted snow, as there were no springs nor brooks; for it was not possible
to go to the main land in consequence of the great pieces of ice drifted by
the tide, which varies three fathoms between low and high water. Work on
the hand-mill was very fatiguing, since the most of us, having slept
poorly, and suffering from insufficiency of fuel, which we could not obtain
on account of the ice, had scarcely any strength, and also because we ate
only salt meat and vegetables during the winter, which produce bad blood.
The latter circumstance was, in my opinion, a partial cause of these
dreadful maladies. All this produced discontent in Sieur de Monts and
others of the settlement.
It would be very difficult to ascertain the character of this region
without spending a winter in it; for, on arriving here in summer, every
thing is very agreeable, in consequence of the woods, fine country, and the
many varieties of good fish which are found there. There are six months of
winter in this country.
The savages who dwell here are few in number. During the winter, in the
deepest snows, they hunt elks and other animals, on which they live most of
the time. And, unless the snow is deep, they scarcely get rewarded for
their pains, since they cannot capture any thing except by a very great
effort, which is the reason for their enduring and suffering much. When
they do not hunt, they live on a shell-fish, called the cockle. They clothe
themselves in winter with good furs of beaver and elk. The women make all
the garments, but not so exactly but that you can see the flesh under the
arm-pits, because they have not ingenuity enough to fit them better. When
they go a hunting, they use a kind of show-shoe twice as large as those
hereabouts, which they attach to the soles of their feet, and walk thus
over the show without sinking in, the women and children as well as the
men. They search for the track of animals, which, having found, they
follow until they get sight of the creature, when they shoot at it with
their bows, or kill it by means of daggers attached to the end of a short
pike, which is very easily done, as the animals cannot walk on the snow
without sinking in. Then the women and children come up, erect a hut, and
they give themselves to feasting. Afterwards, they return in search of
other animals, and thus they pass the winter. In the month of March
following, some savages came and gave us a portion of their game in
exchange for bread and other things which we gave them. This is the mode of
life in winter of these people, which seems to me a very miserable one.
We looked for our vessels at the end of April; but, as this passed without
their arriving, all began to have an ill-boding, fearing that some accident
had befallen them. For this reason, on the 15th of May, Sieur de Monts
decided to have a barque of fifteen tons and another of seven fitted up, so
that we might go at the end of the month of June to Gaspé in quest of
vessels in which to return to France, in case our own should not meanwhile
arrive. But God helped us better than we hoped; for, on the 15th of June
ensuing, while on guard about 11 o'clock at night, Pont Gravé, captain of
one of the vessels of Sieur de Monts, arriving in a shallop, informed us
that his ship was anchored six leagues from our settlement, and he was
welcomed amid the great joy of all.
The next day the vessel arrived, and anchored near our habitation. Pont
Gravé informed us that a vessel from St. Malo, called the St. Estienne,
was following him, bringing us provisions and supplies.
On the 17th of the month, Sieur de Monts decided to go in quest of a place
better adapted for an abode, and with a better temperature than our own.
With this view, he had the barque made ready, in which he had purposed to
go to Gaspé.
ENDNOTES:
105. _Mal de la terre_. Champlain had bitter experiences of this disease in
Quebec during the winter of 1608-9, when he was still ignorant of its
character; and it was not till several years later that he learned
that it was the old malady called _scurbut_, from the Sclavonic
_scorb_. Latinized into _scorbuticus_. Lescarbot speaks of this
disease as little understood in his time, but as known to Hippocrates.
He quotes Olaus Magnus, who describes it as it appeared among the
nations of the north, who called it _sorbet_, [Greek: kachexia], from
[Greek: kakos], bad, and [Greek: exis], a habit. This undoubtedly
expresses the true cause of this disease, now familiarly known as the
scurvy. It follows exposure to damp, cold, and impure atmosphere,
accompanied by the long-continued use of the same kind of food,
particularly of salt meats, with bad water. All of these conditions
existed at the Island of St. Croix. Champlain's description of the
disease is remarkably accurate.
106. This passage might be read, "which is in this country in May:" _lequel
commence en ces pays là est en May_. As Laverdière suggests, it looks
as if Champlain wrote it first _commence_, and then, thinking that the
winter he had experienced might have been exceptional, substituted
_est_, omitting to erase _commence_, so that the sentence, as it
stands, is faulty, containing two verbs instead of one, and being
susceptible of a double sense.
CHAPTER VII.
DISCOVERY OF THE COAST OF THE ALMOUCHIQUOIS AS FAR AS THE FORTY-SECOND
DEGREE OF LATITUDE, AND DETAILS OF THIS VOYAGE.
On the 18th of June, 1605, Sieur de Monts set out from the Island of
St. Croix with some gentlemen, twenty sailors, and a savage named
Panounias, together with his wife, whom he was unwilling to leave behind.
These we took, in order to serve us as guides to the country of the
Almouchiquois, in the hope of exploring and learning more particularly by
their aid what the character of this country was, especially since she was
a native of it.
Coasting, along inside of Manan, an island three leagues from the main
land, we came to the Ranges on the seaward side, at one of which we
anchored, where there was a large number of crows, of which our men
captured a great many, and we called it the Isle aux Corneilles. Thence we
went to the Island of Monts Déserts, at the entrance of the river
Norumbegue, as I have before stated, and sailed five or six leagues among
many islands. Here there came to us three savages in a canoe from Bedabedec
Point, where their captain was; and, after we had had some conversation
with them, they returned the same day.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
QUINIBEQUY.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. The course of the river.
_B_. Two islands at the entrance of the river.
_C_. Two very dangerous rocks in the river.
_D_. Islets and rocks along the coast.
_E_. Shoals where at full tide vessels of sixty tons' burden may run
aground.
_F_. Place where the savages encamp when they come to fish.
_G_. Sandy shoals along the coast.
_H_. Pond of fresh water.
_I_. Brook where shallops can enter at half tide.
_L_. Islands to the number of four just within the mouth of the river.
* * * * *
On Friday, the 1st of July, we set out from one of the islands at the mouth
of the river, where there is a very good harbor for vessels of a hundred or
a hundred and fifty tons. This day we made some twenty-five leagues between
Bedabedec Point and many islands and rocks, which we observed as far as the
river Quinibequy, at the mouth of which is a very high island, which we
called the Tortoise. [107] Between the latter and the main land there are
some scattering rocks, which are covered at full tide, although the sea is
then seen to break over them. [108] Tortoise Island and the river lie
south-south-east and north-north-west. As you enter, there are two
medium-sized islands forming the entrance, one on one side, the other on
the other; [109] and some three hundred paces farther in are two rocks,
where there is no wood, but some little grass. We anchored three hundred
paces from the entrance in five and six fathoms of water. While in this
place, we were overtaken by fogs, on account of which we resolved to enter,
in order to see the upper part of the river and the savages who live there;
and we set out for this purpose on the 5th of the month. Having made some
leagues, our barque came near being lost on a rock which we grazed in
passing. [110] Further on, we met two canoes which had come to hunt birds,
which for the most part are moulting at this season, and cannot fly. We
addressed these savages by aid of our own, who went to them with his wife,
who made them understand the reason of our coming. We made friends with
them and with the savages of this river, who served us as guides.
Proceeding farther, in order to see their captain, named Manthoumermer, we
passed, after we had gone seven or eight leagues, by some islands, straits,
and brooks, which extend along the river, where we saw some fine
meadows. After we had coasted along an island [111] some four leagues in
length, they conducted us to where their chief was [112] with twenty-five
or thirty savages, who, as soon as we had anchored, came to us in a canoe,
separated a short distance from ten others, in which were those who
accompanied him. Coming near our barque, he made an harangue, in which he
expressed the pleasure it gave him to see us, and said that he desired to
form an alliance with us and to make peace with his enemies through our
mediation. He said that, on the next day, he would send to two other
captains of savages, who were in the interior, one called Marchin, and the
other Sasinou, chief of the river Quinibequy. Sieur de Monts gave them some
cakes and peas, with which they were greatly pleased. The next day they
guided us down the river another way than that by which we had come, in
order to go to a lake; and, passing by some islands, they left, each one of
them, an arrow near a cape [113] where all the savages pass, and they
believe that if they should not do this some misfortune would befall them,
according to the persuasions of the devil. They live in such superstitions,
and practise many others of the same sort. Beyond this cape we passed a
very narrow waterfall, but only with great difficulty; for, although we had
a favorable and fresh wind, and trimmed our sails to receive it as well as
possible, in order to see whether we could not pass it in that way, we were
obliged to attach a hawser to some trees on shore and all pull on it. In
this way, by means of our arms together with the help of the wind, which
was favorable to us, we succeeded in passing it. The savages accompanying
us carried their canoes by land, being unable to row them. After going over
this fall, we saw some fine meadows. I was greatly surprised by this fall,
since as we descended with the tide we found it in our favor, but contrary
to us when we came to the fall. But, after we had passed it, it descended
as before, which gave us great Satisfaction. [114] Pursuing our route, we
came to the lake, [115] which is from three to four leagues in length. Here
are some islands, and two rivers enter it, the Quinibequy coming from the
north north-east, and the other from the north-west, whence were to come
Marchin and Sasinou. Having awaited them all this day, and as they did not
come, we resolved to improve our time. We weighed anchor accordingly, and
there accompanied us two savages from this lake to serve as guides. The
same day we anchored at the mouth of the river, where we caught a large
number of excellent fish of various sorts. Meanwhile, our savages went
hunting, but did not return. The route by which we descended this river is
much safer and better than that by which we had gone. Tortoise Island
before the mouth of this river is in latitude [116] 44°; and 19° 12' of the
deflection of the magnetic needle. They go by this river across the country
to Quebec some fifty leagues, making only one portage of two leagues. After
the portage, you enter another little stream which flows into the great
river St. Lawrence [117]. This river Quinibequy is very dangerous for
vessels half a league from its mouth, on account of the small amount of
water, great tides, rocks and shoals outside as well as within. But it has
a good channel, if it were well marked out. The land, so far as I have seen
it along the shores of the river, is very poor, for there are only rocks on
all sides. There are a great many small oaks, and very little arable land.
Fish abound here, as in the other rivers which I have mentioned. The people
live like those in the neighborhood of our settlement; and they told us
that the savages, who plant the Indian corn, dwelt very far in the
interior, and that they had given up planting it on the coasts on account
of the war they had with others, who came and took it away. This is what I
have been able to learn about this region, which I think is no better than
the others.
On the 8th of the month, we set out from the mouth of this river, not being
able to do so sooner on account of the fogs. We made that day some four
leagues, and passed a bay [118], where there are a great many islands. From
here large mountains [119] are seen to the west, in which is the
dwelling-place of a savage captain called Aneda, who encamps near the river
Quinibequy. I was satisfied from this name that it was one of his tribe
that had discovered the plant called Aneda, [120] which Jacques Cartier
said was so powerful against the malady called scurvy, of which we have
already spoken, which harassed his company as well as our own, when they
wintered in Canada. The savages have no knowledge at all of this plant, and
are not aware of its existence, although the above-mentioned savage has the
same name. The following day we made eight leagues. [121] As we passed
along the coast, we perceived two columns of smoke which some savages made
to attract our attention. We went and anchored in the direction of them
behind a small island near the main land, [122] where we saw more than
eighty savages running along the shore to see us, dancing and giving
expression to their joy. Sieur de Monts sent two men together with our
savage to visit them. After they had spoken some time with them, and
assured them of our friendship, we left with them one of our number, and
they delivered to us one of their companions as a hostage. Meanwhile, Sieur
de Monts visited an island, which is very beautiful in view of what it
produces; for it has fine oaks and nut-trees, the soil cleared up, and many
vineyards bearing beautiful grapes in their season, which were the first we
had seen on all these coasts from the Cap de la Hève. We named it Isle de
Bacchus [123]. It being full tide, we weighed anchor and entered a little
river, which we could not sooner do; for there is a bar, there being at low
tide only half a fathom of water, at full tide a fathom and a half, and at
the highest water two fathoms. On the other side of the bar there are
three, four, five, and six fathoms. When we had anchored, a large number of
savages came to the bank of the river, and began to dance. Their captain at
the time, whom they called Honemechin [124], was not with them. He arrived
about two or three hours later with two canoes, when he came sweeping
entirely round our barque. Our savage could understand only a few words, as
the language of the Almouchiquois [125] (for that is the name of this
nation) differs entirely from that of the Souriquois and Etechemins. These
people gave signs of being greatly pleased. Their chief had a good figure,
was young and agile. We sent some articles of merchandise on shore to
barter with them; but they had nothing but their robes to give in exchange,
for they preserve only such furs as they need for their garments. Sieur de
Monts ordered some provisions to be given to their chief, with which he was
greatly pleased, and came several times to the side of our boat to see us.
These savages shave off the hair far up on the head, and wear what remains
very long, which they comb and twist behind in various ways very neatly,
intertwined with feathers which they attach to the head. They paint their
faces black and red, like the other savages which we have seen. They are an
agile people, with well-formed bodies. Their weapons are pikes, clubs, bows
and arrows, at the end of which some attach the tail of a fish called the
signoc, others bones, while the arrows of others are entirely of wood. They
till and cultivate the soil, something which we have not hitherto
observed. In the place of ploughs, they use an instrument of very hard
wood, shaped like a spade. This river is called by the inhabitants of the
country Choüacoet. [126]
The next day Sieur de Monts and I landed to observe their tillage on the
bank of the river. We saw their Indian corn, which they raise in gardens.
Planting three or four kernels in one place, they then heap up about it a
quantity of earth with shells of the signoc before mentioned. Then three
feet distant they plant as much more, and thus in succession. With this
corn they put in each hill three or four Brazilian beans, [127] which are
of different colors. When they grow up, they interlace with the corn, which
reaches to the height of from five to six feet; and they keep the ground
very free from weeds. We saw there many squashes,[128] and pumpkins, [129]
and tobacco, which they likewise cultivate. [130]
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
CHOUACOIT R.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. The river.
_B_. Place where they have their fortress.
_C_. Cabins in the open fields, near which they cultivate the land and
plant Indian corn.
_D_. Extensive tract of land which is sandy, but covered with grass.
_E_. Another place where they have their dwellings all together after they
have planted their corn.
_F_. Marshes with good pasturage.
_G_. Spring of fresh water.
_H_. A large point of land all cleared up except some fruit trees and wild
vines.
_I_. Little island at the entrance of the river.
_L_. Another islet.
_M_. Two islands under shelter of which vessels can anchor with good
bottom.
_N_. A point of land cleared up where Marchin came to us.
_O_. Four islands.
_P_. Little brook dry at low tide.
_Q_. Shoals along the coast.
_R_. Roadsted where vessels can anchor while waiting for the tide.
NOTES. Of the two islands in the northern part of the bay, the larger,
marked _M_, is Stratton Island, nearly half a mile long, and a mile and a
half from Prout's Neck, which lies north of it. A quarter of a mile from
Stratton is Bluff Island, a small island north-west of it. Of the four
islands at the southern end of the bay, the most eastern is Wood Island, on
which the United States maintain a light. The next on the west, two hundred
and fifty yards distant, is Negro Island. The third still further west is
Stage Island. The fourth, quarter of a mile west of the last named, is
Basket Island. The neck or peninsula, south-west of the islands, is now
called the POOL, much resorted to as a watering-place in the summer. The
island near the mouth of the river is Ram Island, and that directly north
of it is Eagle Island. From the mouth of the River to Prout's Neck, marked,
is one of the finest beaches in New England, extending about six nautical
miles. Its Southern extremity is known as Ferry, the northern Scarborough,
and midway between them is Old Orchard Beach, the latter a popular resort
in the summer months of persons from distant parts of the United States and
Canada.
* * * * *
The Indian corn which we saw was at that time about two feet high, some of
it as high as three. The beans were beginning to flower, as also the
pumpkins and squashes. They plant their corn in May, and gather it in
September. We saw also a great many nuts, which are small and have several
divisions. There were as yet none on the trees, but we found plenty under
them, from the preceding year. We saw also many grape-vines, on which there
was a remarkably fine berry, from which we made some very good verjuice.
We had heretofore seen grapes only on the Island of Bacchus, distant nearly
two leagues from this river. Their permanent abode, the tillage, and the
fine trees led us to conclude that the air here is milder and better than
that where we passed the winter, and at the other places we visited on the
coast. But I cannot believe that there is not here a considerable degree
of cold, although it is in latitude 43° 45'. [131] The forests in the
interior are very thin, although abounding in oaks, beeches, ashes, and
elms; in wet places there are many willows. The savages dwell permanently
in this place, and have a large cabin surrounded by palisades made of
rather large trees placed by the side of each other, in which they take
refuge when their enemies make war upon them. [132] They cover their cabins
with oak bark. This place is very pleasant, and as agreeable as any to be
seen. The river is very abundant in fish, and is bordered by meadows. At
the mouth there is a small island adapted for the construction of a good
fortress, where one could be in security.
On Sunday, [133] the 12th of the month, we set out from the river
Choüacoet. After coasting along some six or seven leagues, a contrary wind
arose, which obliged us to anchor and go ashore, [134] where we saw two
meadows, each a league in length and half a league in breadth. We saw there
two savages, whom at first we took to be the great birds called bustards,
to be found in this country; who, as soon as they caught sight of us, took
flight into the woods, and were not seen again. From Choüacoet to this
place, where we saw some little birds, which sing like blackbirds, and are
black excepting the ends of the wings, which are orange-colored, [135]
there is a large number of grape-vines and nut-trees. This coast is sandy,
for the most part, all the way from Quinibequy. This day we returned two
or three leagues towards Choüacoet, as far as a cape which we called Island
Harbor, [136] favorable for vessels of a hundred tons, about which are
three islands. Heading north-east a quarter north, one can enter another
harbor [137] near this place, to which there is no approach, although there
are islands, except the one where you enter. At the entrance there are some
dangerous reefs. There are in these islands so many red currants that one
sees for the most part nothing else, [138] and an infinite number of
pigeons, [139] of which we took a great quantity. This Island Harbor [140]
is in latitude 43° 25'.
On the 15th of the month we made twelve leagues. Coasting along, we
perceived a smoke on the shore, which we approached as near as possible,
but saw no savage, which led us to believe that they had fled. The sun set,
and we could find no harbor for that night, since the coast was flat and
sandy. Keeping off, and heading south, in order to find an anchorage, after
proceeding about two leagues, we observed a cape [141] on the main land
south a quarter south-east of us, some six leagues distant. Two leagues to
the east we saw three or four rather high islands, [142] and on the west a
large bay. The coast of this bay, reaching as far as the cape, extends
inland from where we were perhaps four leagues. It has a breadth of two
leagues from north to south, and three at its entrance. [143] Not observing
any place favorable for putting in, [144] we resolved to go to the cape
above mentioned with short sail, which occupied a portion of the night.
Approaching to where there were sixteen fathoms of water, we anchored until
daybreak.
On the next day we went to the above-mentioned cape, where there are three
islands [145] near the main land, full of wood of different kinds, as at
Choüacoet and all along the coast; and still another flat one, where there
are breakers, and which extends a little farther out to Sea than the
others, on which there is no wood at all. We named this place Island Cape,
[146] near which we saw a canoe containing five or six savages, who came
out near our barque, and then went back and danced on the beach. Sieur de
Monts sent me on shore to observe them, and to give each one of them a
knife and some biscuit, which caused them to dance again better than
before. This over, I made them understand, as well as I could, that I
desired them to show me the course of the shore. After I had drawn with a
crayon the bay, [147] and the Island Cape, where we were, with the same
crayon they drew the outline of another bay, [148] which they represented
as very large; here they placed six pebbles at equal distances apart,
giving me to understand by this that these signs represented as many chiefs
and tribes. [149] Then they drew within the first mentioned bay a river
which we had passed, which has shoals and is very long. [150] We found in
this place a great many vines, the green grapes on which were a little
larger than peas, also many nut-trees, the nuts on which were no larger
than musket-balls. The savages told us that all those inhabiting this
country cultivated the land and sowed seeds like the others, whom we had
before seen. The latitude of this place is 43° and some minutes. [151]
Sailing half a league farther, we observed several savages on a rocky
point, [152] who ran along the shore, dancing as they went, to their
companions to inform them of our coming. After pointing out to us the
direction of their abode, they made a signal with smoke to show us the
place of their settlement. We anchored near a little island, [153] and sent
our canoe with knives and cakes for the savages. From the large number of
those we saw, we concluded that these places were better inhabited than the
others we had seen.
After a stay of some two hours for the sake of observing those people,
whose canoes are made of birch bark, like those of the Canadians,
Souriquois, and Etechemins, we weighed anchor and set sail with a promise
of fine weather. Continuing our course to the west-south-west we saw
numerous islands on one side and the other. Having sailed seven or eight
leagues, we anchored near an island, [154] whence we observed many smokes
along the shore, and many savages running up to see us. Sieur de Monts sent
two or three men in a canoe to them, to whom he gave some knives and
paternosters to present to them; with which they were greatly pleased, and
danced several times in acknowledgment. We could not ascertain the name of
their chief, as we did not know their language. All along the shore there
is a great deal of land cleared up and planted with Indian corn. The
country is very pleasant and agreeable, and there is no lack of fine trees.
The canoes of those who live there are made of a single piece, and are very
liable to turn over if one is not skilful in managing them. We had not
before seen any of this kind. They are made in the following manner. After
cutting down, at a cost of much labor and time, the largest and tallest
tree they can find, by means of stone hatchets (for they have no others
except some few which they received from the Savages on the coasts of La
Cadie, [155] them in exchange for furs), they remove the bark, and round
off the tree except on one side, where they apply fire gradually along its
entire length; and sometimes they put red-hot pebble-stones on top. When
the fire is too fierce, they extinguish it with a little water, not
entirely, but so that the edge of the boat may not be burnt. It being
hollowed out as much as they wish, they scrape it all over with stones,
which they use instead of knives. These stones resemble our musket flints.
On the next day, the 17th of the month, we weighed anchor to go to a cape
we had seen the day before, which seemed to lie on our south
south-west. This day we were able to make only five leagues, and we passed
by some islands [156] covered with wood. I observed in the bay all that the
savages had described to me at Island Cape. As we continued our course,
large numbers came to us in canoes from the islands and main land. We
anchored a league from a cape, which we named St. Louis, [157] where we
noticed smoke in several places. While in the act of going there, our
barque grounded on a rock, where we were in great danger, for, if we had
not speedily got it off, it would have overturned in the sea, since the
tide was falling all around, and there were five or six fathoms of
water. But God preserved us, and we anchored near the above-named cape,
when there come to us fifteen or sixteen canoes of savages. In some of them
there were fifteen or sixteen, who began to manifest great signs of joy,
and made various harangues, which we could not in the least understand.
Sieur de Monts sent three or four men on shore in our canoe, not only to
get water, but to see their chief, whose name was Honabetha. The latter had
a number of knives and other trifles, which Sieur de Monts gave him, when
he came alongside to see us, together with some of his companions, who were
present both along the shore and in their canoes. We received the chief
very cordially, and made him welcome; who, after remaining some time, went
back. Those whom we had sent to them brought us some little squashes as big
as the fist, which we ate as a salad, like cucumbers, and which we found
very good. They brought also some purslane, [158] which grows in large
quantities among the Indian corn, and of which they make no more account
than of weeds. We saw here a great many little houses, scattered over the
fields where they plant their Indian corn.
There is, moreover, in this bay a very broad river, which we named River du
Guast. [159] It stretches, as it seemed to me, towards the Iroquois, a
nation in open warfare with the Montagnais, who live on the great river
St. Lawrence.
ENDNOTES:
107. _Isle de la Tortue_, commonly known as Seguin Island, high and rocky,
with precipitous shores. It is nearly equidistant from Wood, Pond, and
Salter's Islands at the mouth of the Kennebec, and about one mile and
three quarters from each. The United States light upon it is 180 feet
above the level of the sea. It may be seen at the distance of twenty
miles.
108. Ellingwood Rock, Seguin Ledges, and White Ledge.
109. Pond Island on the west, and Stage Island on the east: the two rocks
referred to in the same sentence are now called the Sugar Loaves.
110. This was apparently in the upper part of Back River, where it is
exceedingly narrow. The minute and circumstantial description of the
mouth of the Kennebec, and the positive statement in the text that
they entered the river so described, and the conformity of the
description to that laid down on our Coast Survey Charts, as well as
on Champlain's local map, all render it certain that they entered the
mouth of the Kennebec proper; and having entered, they must have
passed on a flood-tide into and through Back River, which in some
places is so narrow that their little barque could hardly fall to be
grazed in passing. Having reached Hockomock Bay, they passed down
through the lower Hell Gate, rounded the southern point of West Port
or Jerremisquam Island, sailing up its eastern shore until they
reached the harbor of Wiscasset; then down the western side, turning
Hockomock Point, threading the narrow passage of the Sasanoa River
through the upper Hell Gate, entering the Sagadahoc, passing the
Chops, and finally through the Neck, into Merrymeeting Bay. The
narrowness of the channel and the want of water at low tide in Back
River would seem at first blush to throw a doubt over the possibility
of Champlain's passing through this tidal passage. But it has at least
seven feet of water at high tide. His little barque, of fifteen tons,
without any cargo, would not draw more than four feet at most, and
would pass through without any difficulty, incommoded only by the
narrowness of the channel to which Champlain refers. With the same
barque, they passed over the bar at Nauset, or Mallebarre, where
Champlain distinctly says there were only four feet of water.--_Vide
postea_, p. 81.
111. West Port, or Jerremisquam Island.
112. This was Wiscasset Harbor, as farther on it will be seen that from
this point they started down the river, taking another way than that
by which they had come.
113. Hockomock Point, a rocky precipitous bluff.
114. The movement of the waters about this "narrow waterfall" has been a
puzzle from the days of Champlain to the present time. The phenomena
have not changed. Having consulted the United States Coast Pilot and
likewise several persons who have navigated these waters and have a
personal knowledge of the "fall," the following is, we think, a
satisfactory explanation. The stream in which the fall occurs is
called the Sasanoa, and is a tidal current flowing from the Kennebec,
opposite the city of Bath, to the Sheepscot. It was up this tidal
passage that Champlain was sailing from the waters of the Sheepscot to
the Kennebec, and the "narrow waterfall" was what is now called the
upper Hell Gate, which is only fifty yards wide, hemmed in by walls of
rock on both sides. Above it the Sasanoa expands into a broad bay.
When the tide from the Kennebec has filled this bay, the water rushes
through this narrow gate with a velocity Sometimes of thirteen miles
an hour. There is properly no fall in the bed of the stream, but the
appearance of a fall is occasioned by the pent-up waters of the bay
above rushing through this narrow outlet, having accumulated faster
than they could be drained off. At half ebb, on a spring tide, a wall
of water from six inches to a foot stretches across the stream, and
the roar of the flood boiling over the rocks at the Gate can be heard
two miles below. The tide continues to flow up the Sasanoa from the
Sheepscot not only on the flood, but for some time on the ebb, as the
waters in the upper part of the Sheepscot and its bays, in returning,
naturally force themselves up this passage until they are sufficiently
drained off to turn the current in the Sasanoa in the other direction.
Champlain, sailing from the Sheepscot up the Sasanoa, arrived at the
Gate probably just as the tide was beginning to turn, and when there
was comparatively only a slight fall, but yet enough to make it
necessary to force their little barque up through the Gate by means of
hawsers as described in the text. After getting a short distance from
the narrows, he would be on the water ebbing back into the Kennebec,
and would be still moving with the tide, as he had been until he
reached the fall.
115. Merrymeeting Bay, so called from the meeting in this bay of the two
rivers mentioned in the text a little below, viz., the Kennebec and
the Androscoggin.
116. The latitude of Seguin, here called Tortoise Island, is 43° 42' 25".
117. The head-waters of the Kennebec, as well as those of the Penobscot,
approach very near to the Chaudière, which flows into the St.
Lawrence near Quebec.
118. Casco Bay, which stretches from Cape Small Point to Cape Elizabeth. It
has within it a hundred and thirty-six islands. They anchored and
passed the night somewhere within the limits of this bay, but did not
attempt its exploration.
119. These were the White Mountains in New Hampshire, towering above the
sea 6,225 feet. They are about sixty miles distant from Casco Bay, and
were observed by all the early voyagers as they sailed along the coast
of Maine. They are referred to on Ribero's Map of 1529 by the Spanish
word _montañas_, and were evidently seen by Estevan Gomez in 1525,
whose discoveries are delineated by this map. They will also be found
on the Mappe-Monde of about the middle of the sixteenth century, and
on Sebastian Cabot's map, 1544, both included in the "Monuments de la
Géographie" of Jomard, and they are also indicated on numerous other
early maps.
120. This conjecture is not sustained by any evidence beyond the similarity
of the names. There are numerous idle opinions as to the kind of plant
which was so efficacious a remedy for the scurvy, but they are utterly
without foundation. There does not appear to be any means of
determining what the healing plant was.
121. The four leagues of the previous day added to the eight of this bring
them from the Kennebec to Saco Bay.
122. The small island "proche de la grande terre" was Stratton Island: they
anchored on the northern side and nearly east of Bluff Island, which
is a quarter of a mile distant. The Indians came down to welcome them
from the promontory long known as Black Point, now called Prout's
Neck. Compare Champlain's local map and the United States Coast Survey
Charts.
123. Champlain's narrative, together with his sketch or drawing,
illustrating the mouth of the Saco and its environs, compared with the
United States Coast Survey Charts, renders it certain that this was
Richmond Island. Lescarbot describes it as a 'great island, about half
a league in compass, at the entrance of the bay of the said place of
Choüacoet It is about a mile long, and eight hundred yards in its
greatest width.--_Coast Pilot_. It received its present name at a very
early period. It was granted under the title of "a small island,
called Richmond," by the Council for New England to Walter Bagnall,
Dec. 2, 1631.--_Vide Calendar of Eng. State Papers_, Col. 1574-1660,
p. 137. Concerning the death of Bagnall on this island a short time
before the above grant was made, _vide Winthrop's Hist. New Eng._,
ed. 1853, Vol. I. pp. 75, 118.
124. Lescarbot calls him Olmechin.--_Histoire de la Nouvelle France_, par
M. Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, p. 558.
125. They had hoped that the wife of Panounias, their Indian guide, who was
said to have been born among the Almouchiquois, would be able to
interpret their language, but in this they appear to have been
disappointed.--_Vide antea_, p. 55.
126. From the Indian word, M'-foo-ah-koo-et, or, as the French pronounced
it, _Choüacoet_, which had been the name, applied by the aborigines to
this locality we know not how long, is derived the name Saco, now
given to the river and city in the same vicinity. The orthography
given to the original word is various, as Sawocotuck, Sowocatuck,
Sawakquatook, Sockhigones, and Choüacost. The variations in this, as
in other Indian words, may have arisen from a misapprehension of the
sound given by the aborigines, or from ignorance, on the part of
writers, of the proper method of representing sounds, joined to an
utter indifference to a matter which seemed to them of trifling
importance.
127. _Febues du Brésil_. This is the well-known trailing or bush-bean of
New England, _Phaseolus vulgaris_, called the "Brazilian bean" because
it resembled a bean known in France at that time under that name. It
is sometimes called the kidney-bean. It is indigenous to America.
128. _Citrouilles_, the common summer squash, _Cucurbita polymorpha_, as
may be seen by reference to Champlain's map of 1612, where its form is
delineated over the inscription, _la forme des sitroules_. It is
indigenous to America. Our word squash is derived from the Indian
_askutasquash_ or _isquoutersquash_. "In summer, when their corne is
spent, Isquoutersquashes is their best bread, a fruit like the young
Pumpion."--_Wood's New England Prospect_, 1634, Prince Society ed.,
p. 76. "_Askutasquash_, their Vine aples, which the _English_ from
them call _Squashes_, about the bignesse of Apples, of severall
colours, a sweet, light, wholesome refreshing."--_Roger Williams,
Key_, 1643, Narragansett Club ed., p. 125.
129. _Courges_, the pumpkin, _Cucurbita maxima_, indigenous to America. As
the pumpkin and likewise the squash were vegetables hitherto unknown
to Champlain, there was no French word by which he could accurately
identify them. The names given to them were such as he thought would
describe them to his countrymen more nearly than any others. Had he
been a botanist, he would probably have given them new names.
130. _Petum_. Tobacco, _Nicotiana rustica_, sometimes called wild tobacco.
It was a smaller and more hardy species than the _Nicotiana tabacum_,
now cultivated in warmer climates, but had the same qualities though
inferior in strength and aroma. It was found in cultivation by the
Indians all along our coast and in Canada. Cartier observed it growing
in Canada in 1535. Of it he says: "There groweth also a certain kind
of herbe, whereof in Sommer they make a great prouision for all the
yeere, making great account of it, and onely men vse of it, and first
they cause it to be dried in the Sunne, then weare it about their
neckes wrapped in a little beasts skinne made like a little bagge,
with a hollow peece of stone or wood like a pipe; then when they
please they make pouder of it, and then put it in one of the ends of
the said Cornet or pipe, and laying a cole of fire vpon it, at the
other ende sucke so long, that they fill their bodies full of smoke,
till that it commeth out of their mouth and nostrils, euen as out of
the Tonnell of a chimney. They say that this doth keepe them warme and
in health: they neuer goe without some of it about them. We ourselues
haue tryed the same smoke, and hauing put it in our mouthes, it seemed
almost as hot as Pepper."--_Jacques Cartier, 2 Voyage_, 1535;
_Hakluyt_, London, ed. 1810, Vol. III. p. 276.
We may here remark that the esculents found in cultivation at Saco,
beans, squashes, pumpkins, and corn, as well as the tobacco, are all
American tropical or subtropical plants, and must have been
transmitted from tribe to tribe, from more southern climates. The
Indian traditions would seem to indicate this. "They have a
tradition," says Roger Williams, "that the Crow brought them at first
an _Indian_ Graine of Corne in one Eare, and an _Indian_ or _French_
Beane in another, from the Great God _Kautantouwit's_ field in the
Southwest from whence they hold came all their Corne and Beanes."--
_Key to the Language of America_, London, 1643, Narragansett Club ed.,
p. 144.
Seventy years before Champlain, Jacques Cartier had found nearly the
same vegetables cultivated by the Indians in the valley of the
St. Lawrence. He says: "They digge their grounds with certaine peeces
of wood, as bigge as halfe a sword, on which ground groweth their
corne, which they call Ossici; it is as bigge as our small peason....
They haue also great store of Muske-milions. Pompions, Gourds,
Cucumbers, Peason, and Beanes of euery colour, yet differing from
ours."--_Hakluyt_, Vol. II. p. 276. For a full history of these
plants, the reader is referred to the History of Plants, a learned and
elaborate work now in press, by Charles Pickering, M.D. of Boston.
131. The latitude of Wood Island at the mouth of the Saco, where they were
at anchor, is 43° 27' 23".
132. The site of this Indian fortification was a rocky bluff on the western
side of the river, now owned by Mr. John Ward, where from time to time
Indian relics have been found. The island at the mouth of the river,
which Champlain speaks of as a suitable location for a fortress, is
Ram Island, and is low and rocky, and about a hundred and fifty yards
in length.
133. For Sunday read Tuesday.--_Vide Shurtless's Calendar_.
134. This landing was probably near Wells Neck, and the meadows which they
saw were the salt marshes of Wells.
135. The Red-wing Blackbird, _Ageloeus phoeniceus_, of lustrous black, with
the bend of the wing red. They are still abundant in the same
locality, and indeed across the whole continent to the Pacific
Ocean.--_Vide Cones's Key_, Boston, 1872, p. 156; _Baird's Report_,
Washington, 1858, Part II. p. 526.
136. _Le Port aux Isles_. This Island Harbor is the present Cape Porpoise
Harbor.
137. This harbor is Goose Fair Bay, from one to two miles north-east of
Cape Porpoise, in the middle of which are two large ledges, "the
dangerous reefs" to which Champlain refers.
138. This was the common red currant of the gardens, _Ribes rubrum_, which
is a native of America. The fetid currant, _Ribes prostratum_, is also
indigenous to this country. It has a pale red fruit, which gives forth
a very disagreeable odor. Josselyn refers to the currant both in his
Voyages and in his Rarities. Tuckerman found it growing wild in the
White Mountains.
139. The passenger pigeon, _Ectopistes migratorius_, formerly numerous in
New England. Commonly known as the wild pigeon. Wood says they fly in
flocks of millions of millions.--_New England Prospect_, 1634; Prince
Society ed., p. 31.
140. Champlain's latitude is less inaccurate than usual. It is not possible
to determine the exact point at which he took it. But the latitude of
Cape Porpoise, according to the Coast Survey Charts, is 43° 21' 43".
141. Cape Anne.
142. The point at which Champlain first saw Cape Anne, and "isles assez
hautes," the Isles of Shoals, was east of Little Boar's Head, and
three miles from the shore. Nine years afterward, Captain John Smith
visited these islands, and denominated them on his map of New England
Smith's Isles. They began at a very early date to be called the Isles
of Shoals. "Smith's Isles are a heape together, none neere them,
against Accominticus."--_Smith's Description of New England_. Rouge's
map, 1778, has Isles of Shoals, _ou des Ecoles_. For a full
description and history of these islands, the reader is referred to
"The Isles of Shoals," by John S. Jenness, New York, 1875.
143. Champlain has not been felicitous in his description of this bay. He
probably means to say that from the point where he then was, off
Little Boar's Head, to the point where it extends farthest into the
land, or to the west, it appeared to be about twelve miles, and that
the depth of the bay appeared to be six miles, and eight at the point
of greatest depth. As he did not explore the bay, it is obvious that
he intended to speak of it only as measured by the eye. No name has
been assigned to this expanse of water on our maps. It washes the
coast of Hampton, Salisbury, Newburyport, Ipswich, and Annisquam. It
might well be called Merrimac Bay, aster the name of the important
river that empties its waters into it, midway between its northern and
southern extremities.
144. It is to be observed that, starting from Cape Porpoise Harbor on the
morning of the 15th of July, they sailed twelve leagues before the
sail of the night commenced. This would bring them, allowing for the
sinuosities of the shore, to a point between Little Boar's Head and
the Isles of Shoals. In this distance, they had passed the sandy
shores of Wells Beach and York Beach in Maine, and Foss's Beach and
Rye Beach in New Hampshire, and still saw the white Sands of Hampton
and Salisbury Beaches stretching far into the bay on their right. The
excellent harbor of Portsmouth, land-locked by numerous islands, had
been passed unobserved. A sail of eighteen nautical miles brought them
to their anchorage at the extreme point of Cape Anne.
145. Straitsmouth, Thatcher, and Milk island. They were named by Captain
John Smith the "Three Turks' Heads," in memory of the three Turks'
heads cut off by him at the siege of Caniza, by which he acquired from
Sigismundus, prince of Transylvania, their effigies in his shield for
his arms.--_The true Travels, Adventures, and Observations of Captaine
John Smith_, London, 1629.
146. What Champlain here calls "le Cap aux Isles," Island Cape, is Cape
Anne, called Cape Tragabigzanda by Captain John Smith, the name of his
mistress, to whom he was given when a prisoner among the Turks. The
name was changed by Prince Charles, afterward Charles I., to Cape
Anne, in honor of his mother, who was Anne of Denmark.--_Vide
Description of New England_ by Capt. John Smith, London, 1616.
147. This was the bay west of a line drawn from Little Boar's Head to Cape
Anne, which may well be called Merrimac Bay.
148. Massachusetts Bay.
149. It is interesting to observe the agreement of the sign-writing of this
savage on the point of Cape Anne with the statement of the historian
Gookin, who in 1656 was superintendent of Indian affairs in
Massachusetts, and who wrote in 1674. He says: "Their chief sachem
held dominion over many other petty governours; as those of
Weechagaskas, Neponsitt, Punkapaog, Nonantam, Nashaway, and some of
the Nipmuck people, as far as Pokomtacuke, as the old men of
Massachusetts affirmed." Here we have the six tribes, represented by
the pebbles, recorded seventy years later as a tradition handed down
by the old men of the tribe. Champlain remarks further on, "I observed
in the bay all that the savages had described to me at Island Cape."
150. This was the Merrimac with its shoals at the mouth, which they had
passed without observing, having sailed from the offing near Little
Boar's Head directly to the head of Cape Anne, during the darkness of
the previous night.
151. The latitude of the Straitsmouth Island Light on the extreme point of
Cape Anne is 42° 39' 43". A little east of it, where they probably
anchored, there are now sixteen fathoms of water.
152. Emmerson's Point, forming the eastern extremity of Cape Anne, twenty
or twenty-five feet high, fringed with a wall of bare rocks on the
sea.
153. Thatcher's Island, near the point just mentioned. It is nearly half a
mile long and three hundred and fifty yards wide, and about fifty feet
high.
154. It is not possible to determine with absolute certainty the place of
this anchorage. But as Champlain describes, at the end of this
chapter, what must have been Charles River coming from the country of
the Iroquois or the west, most likely as seen from his anchorage,
there can be little doubt that he anchored in Boston Harbor, near the
western limit of Noddle's Island, now known as East Boston.
155. The fishermen and fur-traders had visited these coasts from a very
early period.--_Vide antea_, note 18. From them they obtained the axe,
a most important implement in their rude mode of life, and it was
occasionally found in use among tribes far in the interior.
_La Cadie_. Carelessness or indifference in regard to the orthography
of names was general in the time of Champlain. The volumes written in
the vain attempt to settle the proper method of spelling the name of
Shakespeare, are the fruit of this indifference. La Cadie did not
escape this treatment. Champlain writes it Arcadie, Accadie, La Cadie,
Acadie, and L'Acadie; while Lescarbot uniformly, as far as we have
observed, La Cadie. We have also seen it written L'Arcadie and
L'Accadie, and in some, if not in all the preceding forms, with a
Latin termination in _ia_. It is deemed important to secure
uniformity, and to follow the French form in the translation of a
French work rather than the Latin. In this work, it is rendered LA
CADIE in all cases except in quotations. The history of the name
favors this form rather than any other. The commission or charter
given to De Monts by Henry IV. in 1603, a state paper or legal
document, drawn, we may suppose, with more than usual care, has La
Cadie, and repeats it four times without variation. It is a name of
Indian origin, as may be inferred by its appearing in composition in
such words as Passamacadie, Subenacadie, and Tracadie, plainly derived
from the language spoken by the Souriquois and Etechemins. Fifty-five
years before it was introduced into De Monts's commission, it appeared
written _Larcadia_ in Gastaldo's map of "Terra Nova del Bacalaos," in
the Italian translation of Ptolemy's Geography, by Pietro Andrea
Mattiolo, printed at Venice in 1548. The colophon bears date October,
1547. This rare work is in the possession of Henry C. Murphy, LL.D.,
to whom we are indebted for a very beautiful copy of the map. It
appeared again in 1561 on the map of Ruscelli, which was borrowed, as
well as the whole map, from the above work.--_Vide Ruscelli's map in
Dr. Kohl's Documentary History of Maine_, Maine Hist. Soc., Portland,
1869, p. 233. On this map, Larcadia stands on the coast of Maine, in
the midst of the vast territory included in De Monts's grant, between
the degrees of forty and forty-six north latitude. It will be
observed, if we take away the Latin termination, that the
pronunciation of this word as it first appeared in 1547, would not
differ in _sound_ from La Cadie. It seems, therefore, very clear that
the name of the territory stretching along the coast of Maine, we know
not how far north or south, as it was caught from the lips of the
natives at some time anterior 1547, was best represented by La Cadie,
as pronounced by the French. Whether De Monts had obtained the name of
his American domain from those who had recently visited the coast and
had caught its sound from the natives, or whether he had taken it from
this ancient map, we must remain uninformed. Several writers have
ventured to interpret the word, and give us its original meaning. The
following definitions have been offered: 1. The land of dogs; 2. Our
village; 3. The fish called pollock; 4. Place; 5. Abundance. We do not
undertake to decide between the disagreeing doctors. But it is obvious
to remark that a rich field lies open ready for a noble harvest for
any young scholar who has a genius for philology, and who is prepared
to make a life work of the study and elucidation of the original
languages of North America. The laurels in this field are still to be
gathered.
156. The islands in Boston Bay.
157. This attempt to land was in Marshfield near the mouth of South River.
Not succeeding, they sailed forward a league, and anchored at Brant
Point, which they named the Cape of St. Louis.
158. This purslane, _Portulaca oleracea_, still grows vigorously among the
Indian corn in New England, and is regarded with no more interest now
than in 1605. It is a tropical plant, and was introduced by the
Indians probably by accident with the seeds of tobacco or other
plants.
159. Here at the end of the chapter Champlain seems to be reminded that he
had omitted to mention the river of which he had learned, and had
probably seen in the bay. This was Charles River. From the western
side of Noddle's Island, or East Boston, where they were probably at
anchor, it appeared at its confluence with the Mystic River to come
from the west, or the country of the Iroquois. By reference to
Champlain's large map of 1612, this river will be clearly identified
as Charles River, in connection with Boston Bay and its numerous
islands. On that map it is represented as a long river flowing from
the west. This description of the river by Champlain was probably from
personal observation. Had he obtained his information from the
Indians, they would not have told him that it was broad or that it
came from the west, for such are not the facts; but they would have
represented to him that it was small, winding in its course, and that
it came from the south. We infer, therefore, that he not only saw it
himself, but probably from the deck of the little French barque, as it
was riding at anchor in our harbor near East Boston, where Charles
River, augmented by the tide, flows into the harbor from the west, in
a strong, broad, deep current. They named it in honor of Pierre du
Guast, Sieur de Monts, the commander of this expedition. Champlain
writes the name "du Gas;" De Laet has "de Gua;" while Charlevoix
writes "du Guast." This latter orthography generally prevails.
CHAPTER VIII.
CONTINUATION OF THE DISCOVERIES ALONG THE COAST OF THE ALMOUCHIQUOIS, AND
WHAT WE OBSERVED IN DETAIL.
The next day we doubled Cap St. Louis, [160] so named by Sieur de Monts, a
land rather low, and in latitude 42° 45'. [161] The same day we sailed two
leagues along a sandy coast, as we passed along which we saw a great many
cabins and gardens. The wind being contrary, we entered a little bay to
await a time favorable for proceeding. There came to us two or three
canoes, which had just been fishing for cod and other fish, which are found
there in large numbers. These they catch with hooks made of a piece of
wood, to which they attach a bone in the shape of a spear, and fasten it
very securely. The whole has a fang-shape, and the line attached to it is
made out of the bark of a tree. They gave me one of their hooks, which I
took as a curiosity. In it the bone was fastened on by hemp, like that in
France, as it seemed to me, and they told me that they gathered this plant
without being obliged to cultivate it; and indicated that it grew to the
height of four or five feet. [162] This canoe went back on shore to give
notice to their fellow inhabitants, who caused columns of smoke to arise on
our account We saw eighteen or twenty savages, who came to the shore and
began to dance. Our canoe landed in order to give them some bagatelles, at
which they were greatly pleased. Some of them came to us and begged us to
go to their river. We weighed anchor to do so, but were unable to enter on
account of the small amount of water, it being low tide, and were
accordingly obliged to anchor at the mouth. I went ashore, where I saw many
others, who received us very cordially. I made also an examination of the
river, but saw only an arm of water extending a short distance inland,
where the land is only in part cleared up. Running into this is merely a
brook not deep enough for boats except at full tide. The circuit of the bay
is about a league. On one side of the entrance to this bay there is a point
which is almost an island, covered with wood, principally pines, and
adjoins sand-banks, which are very extensive. On the other side, the land
is high. There are two islets in this bay, which are not seen until one
has entered, and around which it is almost entirely dry at low tide. This
place is very conspicuous from the sea, for the coast is very low,
excepting the cape at the entrance to the bay. We named it the Port du Cap
St. Louis, [163] distant two leagues from the above cape, and ten from the
Island Cape. It is in about the same latitude as Cap St. Louis.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
PORT ST. LOUIS.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Indicates the place where vessels lie.
_B_. The channel.
_C_. Two islands. [Note: Clark's Island is now the sole representative of
the two figured by Champlain in 1605. The action of the waves has
either united the two, or swept one of them away. It was named after
Clark, the master's mate of the "May Flower," who was the first to
step on shore, when the party of Pilgrims, sent out from Cape Cod
Harbor to Select a habitation, landed on this island, and passed the
night of the 9th of December, O. S. 1620. _Vide_ Morton's Memorial,
1669, Plymouth Ed. 1826. p. 35: Young's Chronicles, p. 160; Bradford's
His. Plym. Plantation, p. 87. This delineation removes all doubt as to
the missing island in Plymouth Harbor, and shows the incorrectness of
the theory as to its being Saquish Head, suggested in a note in
Young's Chronicles, p. 64. _Vide_ also Mourt's Relation, Dexter's ed.,
note 197.]
_D_. Sandy downs. [Note: Saquish Neck]
_E_. Shoals.
_F_. Cabins where the savages till the ground.
_G_. Place where we beached our barque.
_H_. Land having the appearance of an island, covered with wood and
adjoining the sandy downs. [Note: Saquish Head, which seems to have
been somewhat changed since the time of Champlain. Compare Coast
Survey Chart of Plymouth Harbor, 1857.]
_I_. A high promontory which may be seen four or five leagues at
sea. [Note: Manomet Bluff.]
* * * * *
On the 19th of the month, we set out from this place. Coasting along in a
southerly direction, we sailed four or five leagues, and passed near a rock
on a level with the surface of the water. As we continued our course, we
saw some land which seemed to us to be islands, but as we came nearer we
found it to be the main land, lying to the north-north-west of us, and that
it was the cape of a large bay, [164] containing more than eighteen or
nineteen leagues in circuit, into which we had run so far that we had to
wear off on the other tack in order to double the cape which we had
seen. The latter we named Cap Blanc, [165] since it contained sands and
downs which had a white appearance. A favorable wind was of great
assistance to us here, for otherwise we should have been in danger of being
driven upon the coast. This bay is very safe, provided the land be not
approached nearer than a good league, there being no islands nor rocks
except that just mentioned, which is near a river that extends some
distance inland, which we named St. Suzanne du Cap Blanc, [166] whence
across to Cap St. Louis the distance is ten leagues. Cap Blanc is a point
of sand, which bends around towards the south some six leagues. This coast
is rather high, and consists of sand, which is very conspicuous as one
comes from the Sea. At a distance of some fifteen or eighteen leagues from
land, the depth of the water is thirty, forty, and fifty fathoms, but only
ten on nearing the shore, which is unobstructed. There is a large extent
of open country along the shore before reaching the woods, which are very
attractive and beautiful. We anchored off the coast, and saw some savages,
towards whom four of our company proceeded. Making their way upon a
sand-bank, they observed something like a bay, and cabins bordering it on
all sides. When they were about a league and a half from us, there came to
them a savage dancing all over, as they expressed it. He had come down from
the high shore, but turned about shortly after to inform his fellow
inhabitants of our arrival.
The next day, the 20th of the month, we went to the place which our men had
seen, and which we found a very dangerous harbor in consequence of the
shoals and banks, where we saw breakers in all directions. It was almost
low tide when we entered, and there were only four feet of water in the
northern passage; at high tide, there are two fathoms. After we had
entered, we found the place very spacious, being perhaps three or four
leagues in circuit, entirely surrounded by little houses, around each one
of which there was as much land as the occupant needed for his support. A
small river enters here, which is very pretty, and in which at low tide
there are some three and a half feet of water. There are also two or three
brooks bordered by meadows. It would be a very fine place, if the harbor
were good. I took the altitude, and found the latitude 42°, and the
deflection of the magnetic needle 18° 40'. Many savages, men and women,
visited us, and ran up on all sides dancing. We named this place Port de
Mallebarre. [167]
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
MALLEBARRE.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. The two entrances to the harbor.
_B_. Sandy downs where the savages killed a sailor belonging to the barque
of Sieur de Monts.
_C_. Places in the harbor where the barque of Sieur de Monts was.
_D_. Spring on the shore of the harbor.
_E_. A river flowing into the harbor.
_F_. A brook.
_G_. A small river where quantities of fish are caught.
_H_. Sandy downs with low shrubs and many vines.
_I_. Island at the point of the downs.
_L_. Houses and dwelling-places of the savages that till the land.
_M_. Shoals and sand-banks at the entrance and inside of the harbor.
_O_. Sandy downs.
_P_. Sea-coast,
_q_. Barque of Sieur de Poutrincourt when he visited the place two years
after Sieur de Monts.
_R_. Landing of the party of Sieur de Poutrincourt.
NOTES. A comparison of this map with the Coast Survey Charts will show very
great changes in this harbor since the days of Champlain. Not only has the
mouth of the bay receded towards the south, but this recession appears to
have left entirely dry much of the area which was flooded in 1605. Under
reference _q_, on the above map, it is intimated that De Poutrincourt's
visit was two years after that of De Monts. It was more than one, and was
the second year after, but not, strictly speaking, "two years after."
* * * * *
The next day, the 21st of the month, Sieur de Monts determined to go and
see their habitation. Nine or ten of us accompanied him with our arms; the
rest remained to guard the barque. We went about a league along the coast.
Before reaching their cabins, we entered a field planted with Indian corn
in the manner before described. The corn was in flower, and five and a half
feet high. There was some less advanced, which they plant later. We saw
many Brazilian beans, and many squashes of various sizes, very good for
eating; some tobacco, and roots which they cultivate, the latter having the
taste of an artichoke. The woods are filled with oaks, nut-trees, and
beautiful cypresses, [168] which are of a reddish color and have a very
pleasant odor. There were also several fields entirely uncultivated, the
land being allowed to remain fallow. When they wish to plant it, they set
fire to the weeds, and then work it over with their wooden spades. Their
cabins are round, and covered with heavy thatch made of reeds. In the roof
there is an opening of about a foot and a half, whence the smoke from the
fire passes out. We asked them if they had their permanent abode in this
place, and whether there was much snow. But we were unable to ascertain
this fully from them, not understanding their language, although they made
an attempt to inform us by signs, by taking some sand in their hands.
Spreading it out over the ground, and indicating that it was of the color
of our collars, and that it reached the depth of a foot. Others made signs
that there was less, and gave us to understand also that the harbor never
froze; but we were unable to ascertain whether the snow lasted long. I
conclude, however, that this region is of moderate temperature, and the
winter not severe. While we were there, there was a north-cast storm, which
lasted four days; the sky being so overcast that the sun hardly shone at
all. It was very cold, and we were obliged to put on our great-coats, which
we had entirely left off. Yet I think the cold was accidental, as it is
often experienced elsewhere out of season.
On the 23d of July, four or five seamen having gone on shore with some
kettles to get fresh water, which was to be found in one of the sand-banks
a short distance from our barque, some of the savages, coveting them,
watched the time when our men went to the spring, and then seized one out
of the hands of a sailor, who was the first to dip, and who had no
weapons. One of his companions, starting to run after him, soon returned,
as he could not catch him, since he ran much faster than himself. The other
savages, of whom there were a large number, seeing our sailors running to
our barque, and at the same time shouting to us to fire at them, took to
flight. At the time there were some of them in our barque, who threw
themselves into the sea, only one of whom we were able to seize. Those on
the land who had taken to flight, seeing them swimming, returned straight
to the sailor from whom they had taken away the kettle, hurled several
arrows at him from behind, and brought him down. Seeing this, they ran at
once to him, and despatched him with their knives. Meanwhile, haste was
made to go on shore, and muskets were fired from our barque: mine, bursting
in my hands, came near killing me. The savages, hearing this discharge of
fire-arms, took to flight, and with redoubled speed when they saw that we
had landed, for they were afraid when they saw us running after them. There
was no likelihood of our catching them, for they are as swift as horses.
We brought in the murdered man, and he was buried some hours later.
Meanwhile, we kept the prisoner bound by the feet and hands on board of our
barque, fearing that he might escape. But Sieur de Monts resolved to let
him go, being persuaded that he was not to blame, and that he had no
previous knowledge of what had transpired, as also those who, at the time,
were in and about our barque. Some hours later there came some savages to
us, to excuse themselves, indicating by signs and demonstrations that it
was not they who had committed this malicious act, but others farther off
in the interior. We did not wish to harm them, although it was in our power
to avenge ourselves.
All these savages from the Island Cape wear neither robes nor furs, except
very rarely: moreover, their robes are made of grasses and hemp, scarcely
covering the body, and coming down only to their thighs. They have only the
sexual parts concealed with a small piece of leather; so likewise the
women, with whom it comes down a little lower behind than with the men, all
the rest of the body being naked. Whenever the women came to see us, they
wore robes which were open in front. The men cut off the hair on the top of
the head like those at the river Choüacoet. I saw, among other things, a
girl with her hair very neatly dressed, with a skin colored red, and
bordered on the upper part with little shell-beads. A part of her hair
hung down behind, the rest being braided in various ways. These people
paint the face red, black, and yellow. They have scarcely any beard, and
tear it out as fast as it grows. Their bodies are well-proportioned. I
cannot tell what government they have, but I think that in this respect
they resemble their neighbors, who have none at all. They know not how to
worship or pray; yet, like the other savages, they have some superstitions,
which I shall describe in their place. As for weapons, they have only
pikes, clubs, bows and arrows. It would seem from their appearance that
they have a good disposition, better than those of the north, but they are
all in fact of no great worth. Even a slight intercourse with them gives
you at once a knowledge of them. They are great thieves and, if they cannot
lay hold of any thing with their hands, they try to do so with their feet,
as we have oftentimes learned by experience. I am of opinion that, if they
had any thing to exchange with us, they would not give themselves to
thieving. They bartered away to us their bows, arrows, and quivers, for
pins and buttons; and if they had had any thing else better they would have
done the same with it. It is necessary to be on one's guard against this
people, and live in a state of distrust of them, yet without letting them
perceive it. They gave us a large quantity of tobacco, which they dry and
then reduce to powder. [169] When they eat Indian corn, they boil it in
earthen pots, which they make in a way different from ours. [170]. They
bray it also in wooden mortars and reduce it to flour, of which they then
make cakes, like the Indians of Peru.
In this place and along the whole coast from Quinibequy, there are a great
many _siguenocs_, [171] which is a fish with a shell on its back like the
tortoise, yet different, there being in the middle a row of little
prickles, of the color of a dead leaf, like the rest of the fish. At the
end of this shell, there is another still smaller, bordered by very sharp
points. The length of the tail-varies according to their size. With the end
of it, these people point their arrows, and it contains also a row of
prickles like the large shell in which are the eyes. There are eight small
feet like those of the crab, and two behind longer and flatter, which they
use in swimming. There are also in front two other very small ones with
which they eat. When walking, all the feet are concealed excepting the two
hindermost which are slightly visible. Under the small shell there are
membranes which swell up, and beat like the throat of a frog, and rest upon
each other like the folds of a waistcoat. The largest specimen of this fish
that I saw was a foot broad, and a foot and a half long.
We saw also a sea-bird [172] with a black beak, the upper part slightly
aquiline, four inches long and in the form of a lancet; namely, the lower
part representing the handle and the upper the blade, which is thin, sharp
on both sides, and shorter by a third than the other, which circumference
is a matter of astonishment to many persons, who cannot comprehend how it
is possible for this bird to eat with such a beak. It is of the size of a
pigeon, the wings being very long in proportion to the body, the tail
short, as also the legs, which are red; the feet being small and flat. The
plumage on the upper part is gray-brown, and on the under part pure white.
They go always in flocks along the sea-shore, like the pigeons with us.
The savages, along all these coasts where we have been, say that other
birds, which are very large, come along when their corn is ripe. They
imitated for us their cry, which resembles that of the turkey. They showed
us their feathers in several places, with which they feather their arrows,
and which they put on their heads for decoration; and also a kind of hair
which they have under the throat like those we have in France, and they say
that a red crest falls over upon the beak. According to their description,
they are as large as a bustard, which is a kind of goose, having the neck
longer and twice as large as those with us. All these indications led us to
conclude that they were turkeys. [173] We should have been very glad to
see some of these birds, as well as their feathers, for the sake of greater
certainty. Before seeing their feathers, and the little bunch of hair which
they have under the throat, and hearing their cry imitated, I should have
thought that they were certain birds like turkeys, which are found in some
places in Peru, along the sea-shore, eating carrion and other dead things
like crows. But these are not so large; nor do they have so long a bill, or
a cry like that of real turkeys; nor are they good to eat like those which
the Indians say come in flocks in summer, and at the beginning of winter go
away to warmer countries, their natural dwelling-place.
ENDNOTES:
160. It will be observed that, after doubling this cape, they sailed two
leagues, and then entered Plymouth Harbor, and consequently this cape
must have been what is now known as Brant Point.
161. The latitude is 42° 5'.
162. This was plainly our Indian hemp, _Asclepias incarnata_. "The fibres
of the bark are strong, and capable of being wrought into a fine soft
thread; but it is very difficult to separate the bark from the stalk.
It is said to have been used by the Indians for bow-strings."--_Vide
Cutler in Memoirs of the American Academy_, Vol. I. p. 424. It is the
Swamp Milkweed of Gray, and grows in wet grounds. One variety is
common in New England. The Pilgrims found at Plymouth "an excellent
strong kind of Flaxe and Hempe"--_Vide Mourt's Relation_, Dexter's
ed. p. 62.
163. _Port du Cap St. Louis_. From the plain, the map in his edition of
1613, drawing of this Harbor left by Champlain, and also that of the
edition of 1632, it is plain that the "Port du Cap St. Louis" is
Plymouth Harbor, where anchored the "Mayflower" a little more than
fifteen years later than this, freighted with the first permanent
English colony established in New England, commonly known as the
Pilgrims. The Indian name of the harbor, according to Captain John
Smith, who visited it in 1614. was Accomack. He gave it, by direction
of Prince Charles, the name of Plymouth. More recent investigations
point to this harbor as the one visited by Martin Pring in 1603.--
_Vide Paper by the Rev Benj. F. De Costa, before the New England
His. Gen. Society_, Nov. 7, 1877, New England His. and Gen. Register,
Vol. XXXII. p. 79.
The interview of the French with the natives was brief, but courteous
and friendly on both sides. The English visits were interrupted by
more or less hostility. "When Pring was about ready to leave, the
Indians became hostile and set the woods on fire, and he saw it burn
'for a mile space.'"--_De Costa_. A skirmish of some seriousness
occurred with Smith's party. "After much kindnesse upon a small
occasion, wee fought also with fortie or fiftie of those: though some
were hurt, and some slaine, yet within an hour after they became
friends."--_Smith's New England_, Boston, ed. 1865, p. 45.
164. Cape Cod Bay.
165. They named it "le Cap Blanc," the White Cape, from its white
appearance, while Bartholomew Gosnold, three years before, had named
it Cape Cod from the multitude of codfish near its shores. Captain
John Smith called it Cape James. All the early navigators who passed
along our Atlantic coast seem to have seen the headland of Cape
Cod. It is well defined on Juan de la Cosa's map of 1500, although no
name is given to it. On Ribero's map of 1529 it is called _C. de
arenas_. On the map of Nic. Vallard de Dieppe of 1543, it is called
_C. de Croix_.
166. Wellfleet Harbor. It may be observed that a little farther back
Champlain says that, having sailed along in a southerly direction four
or five leagues, they were at a place where there was a "rock on a
level with the surface of the water," and that they saw lying
north-north-west of them Cap Blanc, that is, Cape Cod; he now says
that the "rock" is near a river, which they named St. Suzanne du Cap
Blanc, and that from it to Cap St. Louis the distance is ten
leagues. Now, as the distance across to Brant Point, or Cap St. Louis,
from Wellfleet Harbor, is ten leagues, and as Cap Blanc or Cape Cod is
north-northwest of it, it is plain that Wellfleet Harbor or Herring
River, which flows into it, was the river which they named St. Suzanne
du Cap Blanc, and that the "rock on a level with the water" was one of
the several to be found near the entrance of Wellfleet Bay. It may
have been the noted Bay Rock or Blue Rock.
167. _Port de Mallebarre_, Nauset Harbor, in latitude 41° 48'. By comparing
Champlain's map of the harbor, it will be seen that important changes
have taken place since 1605. The entrance has receded a mile or more
towards the south, and this has apparently changed its interior
channel, and the whole form of the bay. The name itself has drifted
away with the sands, and feebly clings to the extremity of Monomoy
Point at the heel of the Cape.
168. Not strictly a cypress, but rather a juniper, the Savin, or red cedar,
_Juniparus Virginiana_, a tree of exclusively American origin; and
consequently it could not be truly characterized by any name then
known to Champlain.
169. The method of preparing tobacco here for smoking was probably not
different from that of the Indian tribes in Canada. Among the Huron
antiquities in the Museum at the University Laval are pipes which were
found already filled with tobacco, so prepared as to resemble our
fine-cut tobacco.--_Vide Laverdière in loco_.
170. The following description of the Indian pottery, and the method of its
manufacture by their women, as quoted by Laverdière from Sagard's
History of Canada, who wrote in 1636, will be interesting to the
antiquary, and will illustrate what Champlain means by "a way
different from ours:"--
"They are skilful in making good earthen pots, which they harden very
well on the hearth, and which are so strong that they do not, like our
own, break over the fire when having no water in them. But they cannot
sustain dampness nor cold water so long as our own, since they become
brittle and break at the least shock given them; otherwise they last
very well. The savages make them by taking some earth of the right
kind, which they clean and knead well in their hands, mixing with it,
on what principle I know not, a small quantity of grease. Then making
the mass into the shape of a ball, they make an indentation in the
middle of it with the fist, which they make continually larger by
striking repeatedly on the outside with a little wooden paddle as much
as is necessary to complete it. These vessels are of different sizes,
without feet or handles, completely round like a ball, excepting the
mouth, which projects a little."
171. This crustacean, _Limulus polyphemus_, is still seen on the strands of
New England. They are found in great abundance in more southern
waters: on the shores of Long Island and New Jersey, they are
collected in boat-loads and made useful for fertilizing purposes.
Champlain has left a drawing of it on his large map. It is vulgarly
known as the king-crab, or horse-foot; to the latter it bears a
striking similarity. This very accurate description of Champlain was
copied by De Laet into his elaborate work "Novvs Orbis," published in
1633, accompanied by an excellent wood-engraving. This species is
peculiar to our Atlantic waters, and naturally at that time attracted
the attention of Europeans, who had not seen it before.
172. The Black skimmer or Cut-water, _Rhynchops nigra_. It appears to be
distinct from, but closely related to, the Terns. This bird is here
described with general accuracy. According to Dr. Coues, it belongs
more particularly to the South Atlantic and Gulf States, where it is
very abundant; it is frequent in the Middle States, and only
occasionally seen in New England. The wings are exceedingly long; they
fly in close flocks, moving simultaneously. They seem to feed as they
skim low over the water, the under-mandible grazing or cutting the
surface, and thus taking in their food.--_Vide Coues's Key to North
American Birds_, Boston, 1872, p. 324.
Whether Champlain saw this bird as a "stray" on the shores of Cape
Cod, or whether it has since ceased to come in large numbers as far
north as formerly, offers an interesting inquiry for the
ornithologists. Specimens may be seen in the Museum of the Boston
Society of Natural History.
173. Champlain was clearly correct in his conclusion. The wild Turkey,
_Meleagris gallopavo_, was not uncommon in New England at that
period. Wood and Josselyn and Higginson, all speak of it fully:--
"Of these, sometimes there will be forty, threescore and a hundred of
a flocke; sometimes more, and sometimes lesse; their feeding is
Acornes, Hawes, and Berries; some of them get a haunt to frequent our
_English_ corne: In winter, when the snow covers the ground, they
resort to the Sea shore to look for Shrimps, and such small Fishes at
low tides. Such as love Turkie hunting, most follow it in winter after
a new-falne Snow, when hee may followe them by their tracts; some have
killed ten or a dozen in half a day; if they can be found towards an
evening and watched where they peirch, if one come about ten or eleven
of the clock, he may shoote as often as he will, they will sit,
unlesse they be slenderly wounded. These Turkies remaine all the yeare
long, the price of a good Turkey cocke is foure shillings; and he is
well worth it for he may be in weight forty pound: a Hen, two
shillings."--_Wood's New England Prospect_, 1634, Prince Society ed.,
Boston, p. 32.
"The _Turkie_, who is blacker than ours; I haue heard several credible
persons affirm, they haue seen _Turkie Cocks_ that have weighed forty,
yea sixty pound; but out of my personal experimental knowledge I can
assure you, that I haue eaten my share of a _Turkie Cock_, that when
he was pull'd and garbidg'd, weighed thirty [9] pound; and I haue also
seen threescore broods of young _Turkies_ on the side of a marsh,
sunning themselves in a morning betimes, but this was thirty years
since, the _English_ and the _Indians_ having now destroyed the breed,
so that 'tis very rare to meet with a wild _Turkie_ in the Woods: But
some of the _English_ bring up great store of the wild kind, which
remain about their Houses as tame as ours in _England_."--_New
England's Rarities_, by John Josselyn, Gent., London, 1672,
Tuckerman's ed., pp. 41, 42.
"Here are likewise abundance of Turkies often killed in the Woods,
farre greater then our English Turkies, and exceeding fat, sweet, and
fleshy, for here they haue aboundance of feeding all the yeere long,
as Strawberriees, in Summer at places are full of them and all manner
of Berries and Fruits."--_New England Plantation_, by Francis
Higginson, London, 1630. _Vide_ also _Bradford's Hist. Plym.
Plantation_, 1646, Deane's ed., Boston, 1856. p. 105.
It appears to be the opinion among recent ornithologists that the
species of turkey, thus early found in New England, was the _Meleagris
Americana_, long since extirpated, and not identical with our
domesticated bird. Our domestic turkey is supposed to have originated
in the West Indies or in Mexico, and to have been transplanted as
tamed to other parts of this continent, and to Europe, and named by
Linnaeus. _Meleagris gallopavo_.--_Vide Report on the Zoology of
Pacific Railroad Routes_, by Baird, Washington, 1858. Vol. IX. Part
II. pp. 613-618; _Coues's Key_, Boston, 1872, pp. 231, 232.
CHAPTER IX.
RETURN FROM THE DISCOVERIES ALONG THE COAST OF THE ALMOUCHIQUOIS.
We had spent more than five weeks in going over three degrees of latitude,
and our voyage was limited to six, since we had not taken provisions for a
longer time. In consequence of fogs and storms, we had not been able to go
farther than Mallebarre, where we waited several days for fair weather, in
order to sail. Finding ourselves accordingly pressed by the scantiness of
provisions, Sieur de Monts determined to return to the Island of St. Croix,
in order to find another place more favorable for our settlement, as we had
not been able to do on any of the coasts which we had explored on this
voyage.
Accordingly, on the 25th of July, we set out from this harbor, in order to
make observations elsewhere. In going out, we came near being lost on the
bar at the entrance, from the mistake of our pilots, Cramolet and
Champdoré, masters of the barque, who had imperfectly marked out the
entrance of the channel on the southern side, where we were to go. Having
escaped this danger, we headed north-east [174] for six leagues, until we
reached Cap Blanc, sailing on from there to Island Cape, a distance of
fifteen leagues, with the same wind. Then we headed east-north-east sixteen
leagues, as far as Choüacoet, where we saw the savage chief, Marchin, [175]
whom we had expected to see at the Lake Quinibequy. He had the reputation
of being one of the valiant ones of his people. He had a fine appearance:
all his motions were dignified, savage as he was. Sieur de Monts gave him
many presents, with which he was greatly pleased; and, in return, Marchin
gave him a young Etechemin boy, whom he had captured in war, and whom we
took away with us; and thus we set out, mutually good friends. We headed
north-east a quarter east for fifteen leagues, as far as Quinibequy, where
we arrived on the 29th of the month, and where we were expecting to find a
savage, named Sasinou, of whom I spoke before. Thinking that he would come,
we waited some time for him, in order to recover from him an Etechemin
young man and girl, whom he was holding as prisoners. While waiting, there
came to us a captain called Anassou, who trafficked a little in furs, and
with whom we made an alliance. He told us that there was a ship, ten
leagues off the harbor, which was engaged in fishing, and that those on her
had killed five savages of this river, under cover of friendship. From his
description of the men on the vessel, we concluded that they were English,
and we named the island where they were La Nef; [176] for, at a distance,
it had the appearance of a ship. Finding that the above-mentioned Sasinou
did not come, we headed east-south-east, [176-1/2] for twenty leagues, to
Isle Haute, where we anchored for the night.
On the next day, the 1st of August, we sailed east some twenty leagues to
Cap Corneille, [177] where we spent the night. On the 2d of the month, we
sailed north-east seven leagues to the mouth of the river St. Croix, on the
western shore. Having anchored between the two first islands, [178] Sieur
de Monts embarked in a canoe, at a distance of six leagues from the
settlement of St. Croix, where we arrived the next day with our barque. We
found there Sieur des Antons of St. Malo, who had come in one of the
vessels of Sieur de Monts, to bring provisions and also other supplies for
those who were to winter in this country.
ENDNOTES:
174. Champlain is in error as to the longitude of Mallebarre, or Nauset
harbor, from which they took their departure on the 25th of July,
1605. This port is about 38' east of Island Cape, or Cape Anne, and
about 16' east of the western point of Cap Blanc, or Cape Cod; and, to
reach their destination, they must have sailed north-west, and not
north-east, as he erroneously states.
175. They had failed to meet him at the lake in the Kennebec; namely,
Merrymeeting Bay.--_Vide antea_, p. 60.
176. The island which they thus named _La Nef_, the Ship, was Monhegan,
about twenty-five nautical miles east from the mouth of the Kennebec,
a mile and a third long, with an elevation at its highest point of a
hundred and forty feet above the level of the sea, and in latitude 43°
45' 52". Champlain's conjecture as to the nationality of the ship was
correct. It was the "Archangel," commanded by the celebrated explorer,
Captain George Weymouth, who under the patronage of the Earl of
Southampton came to explore our Atlantic coast in the spring of 1605,
for the purpose of selecting a site for an English colony. He anchored
near Monhegan on the 28th of May, N. S.; and, after spending nearly a
month in reconnoitring the islands and mainland in the vicinity, and
capturing five of the natives, he took his departure for England on
the 26th of June. On the 5th of July, just 9 days after Weymouth left
the coast, De Monts and Champlain entered with their little barque the
mouth of the Kennebec. They do not appear to have seen at that time
any of the natives at or about the mouth of the river; and it is not
unlikely that, on account of the seizure and, as they supposed, the
murder of their comrades by Weymouth, they had retired farther up the
river for greater safety. On the return, however, of the French from
Cape Cod, on the 29th of July, Anassou gave them, as stated in the
text, a friendly reception, and related the story of the seizure of
his friends.
To prevent the interference of other nations, it was the policy of
Weymouth and his patron not to disclose the locality of the region he
had explored; and consequently Rosier, the narrator of the voyage, so
skilfully withheld whatever might clearly identify the place, and
couched his descriptions in such indefinite language, that there has
been and is now a great diversity of opinion on the subject among
local historians. It was the opinion of the Rev. Thomas Prince that
Weymouth explored the Kennebec, or Sagadahoc, and with him coincide
Mr. John McKeen and the Rev. Dr. Ballard, of Brunswick. The
Rev. Dr. Belknap, after satisfactory examinations, decided that it was
the Penobscot; and he is followed by Mr. William Willis, late
President of the Maine Historical Society. Mr. George Prince, of Bath,
has published an elaborate paper to prove that it was St. George's
River; and Mr. David Cushman, of Warren, coincides in this view. Other
writers, not entering into the discussion at length, accept one or
another of the theories above mentioned. It does not fall within the
purview of our present purpose to enter upon the discussion of this
subject. But the statement in the text, not referred to by any of the
above-mentioned writers, "that those on her had killed five savages
_of this river," que ceux de dedans avoient tué cinq sauuages d'icelle
rivière_, can hardly fail to have weight in the decision of this
interesting question.
The chief Anassou reported that they were "killed," a natural
inference under the circumstances; but in fact they were carefully
concealed in the hold of the ship, and three of them, having been
transported to England and introduced into his family, imparted much
important information to Sir Ferdinando Gorges, whose distinguished
career was afterward so intimately connected with the progress of
American colonization. For the discussion touching the river explored
by Weymouth, _vide Prince's Annals_, 1736, _in loco; Belknap's
American Biography_, 1794, Vol. II., art. Weymouth; _Remarks on the
Voyage of George Waymouth_, by John McKeen, Col. Me. His. Society,
Vol. V. p. 309; _Comments on Waymouth's Voyage_, by William Willis,
idem, p. 344; _Voyage of Captain George Weymouth_, by George Prince,
Col. Me. His. Soc., Vol. VI. p. 293; _Weymouth's Voyage_, by David
Cushman, _idem_, p. 369; _George Weymouth and the Kennebec_, by the
Rev. Edward Ballard, D. D., Memorial Volume of the Popham Celebration,
Portland, 1863, p. 301.
176-1/2. _We headed east south-east_. It is possible that, on leaving the
mouth of the Kennebec, they sailed for a short distance to the
south-east; but the general course was to the north-east.
177. _Cap Corneille_, or Crow Cape, was apparently the point of land
advancing out between Machias and Little Machias Bays, including
perhaps Cross Island. De Monts and his party probably anchored and
passed the night in Machias Bay. The position of Cap Corneille may be
satisfactorily fixed by its distance and direction from the Grand
Manan, as seen on Champlain's map of 1612, to which the reader is
referred.
178. This anchorage was between Campobello and Moose Island, on which is
situated the town of Eastport.
CHAPTER X.
THE DWELLING-PLACE ON THE ISLAND OF ST. CROIX TRANSFERRED TO PORT ROYAL,
AND THE REASON WHY.
Sieur De Monts determined to change his location, and make another
settlement, in order to avoid the severe cold and the bad winter which we
had had in the Island of St. Croix. As we had not, up to that time, found
any suitable harbor, and, in view of the short time we had for building
houses in which to establish ourselves, we fitted out two barques, and
loaded them with the frame-work taken from the houses of St. Croix, in
order to transport it to Port Royal, twenty-five leagues distant, where we
thought the climate was much more temperate and agreeable. Pont Gravé and I
set out for that place; and, having arrived, we looked for a site favorable
for our residence, under shelter from the north-west wind, which we
dreaded, having been very much harassed by it.
After searching carefully in all directions, we found no place more
suitable and better situated than one slightly elevated, about which there
are some marshes and good springs of water. This place is opposite the
island at the mouth of the river Equille. [179] To the north of us about a
league, there is a range of mountains, [180] extending nearly ten leagues
in a north-east and south-west direction. The whole country is filled with
thick forests, as I mentioned above, except at a point a league and a half
up the river, where there are some oaks, although scattering, and many wild
vines, which one could easily remove and put the soil under cultivation,
notwithstanding it is light and sandy. We had almost resolved to build
there; but the consideration that we should have been too far up the harbor
and river led us to change our mind.
Recognizing accordingly the site of our habitation as a good one, we began
to clear up the ground, which was full of trees, and to erect houses as
soon as possible. Each one was busy in this work. After every thing had
been arranged, and the majority of the dwellings built, Sieur de Monts
determined to return to France, in order to petition his Majesty to grant
him all that might be necessary for his undertaking. He had desired to
leave Sieur d'Orville to command in this place in his absence. But the
climatic malady, _mal de la terre_, with which he was afflicted would not
allow him to gratify the wish of Sieur de Monts. On this account, a
conference was held with Pont Gravé on the subject, to whom this charge was
offered, which he was happy to accept; and he finished what little of the
habitation remained to be built. I, at the same time, hoping to have an
opportunity to make some new explorations towards Florida, determined to
stay there also, of which Sieur de Monts approved.
ENDNOTES:
179. In the original, Champlain has written the name of this river in this
particular instance _Guille_, probably an abbreviation for _Anguille_,
the French name of the fish which we call the eel. Lescarbot says the
"river was named _L'Equille_ because the first fish taken therein was
an _equille_."--Vide antea, note 57.
180. The elevation of this range varies from six hundred to seven hundred
feet.
CHAPTER XI
WHAT TOOK PLACE AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF SIEUR DE MONTS, UNTIL, NO TIDINGS OF
WHAT HE HAD PROMISED BEING RECEIVED, WE DEPARTED FROM PORT ROYAL TO RETURN
TO FRANCE.
As soon as Sieur de Monts had departed, a portion of the forty or
forty-five who remained began to make gardens. I, also, for the sake of
occupying my time, made one, which was surrounded with ditches full of
water, in which I placed some fine trout, and into which flowed three
brooks of very fine running water, from which the greater part of our
settlement was supplied. I made also a little sluice-way towards the shore,
in order to draw off the water when I wished. This spot was entirely
surrounded by meadows, where I constructed a summer-house, with some fine
trees, as a resort for enjoying the fresh air. I made there, also, a little
reservoir for holding salt-water fish, which we took out as we wanted them.
I took especial pleasure in it, and planted there some seeds which turned
out well. But much work had to be laid out in preparation. We resorted
often to this place as a pastime; and it seemed as if the little birds
round about took pleasure in it, for they gathered there in large numbers,
warbling and chirping so pleasantly that I think I never heard the like.
The plan of the settlement was ten fathoms long and eight wide, making the
distance round thirty-six. On the eastern side is a store-house, occupying
the width of it, and a very fine cellar from five to six feet deep. On the
northern side are the quarters of Sieur de Monts, handsomely finished.
About the back yard are the dwellings of the workmen. At a corner of the
western side is a platform, where four cannon were placed; and at the other
corner, towards the east, is a palisade shaped like a platform, as can be
seen from the accompanying illustration.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
L'ABITASION DU PORT ROYAL.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Dwelling of the artisans.
_B_. Platform where the cannon were placed.
_C_. The store-house.
_D_. Dwelling of Sieur de Pont Gravé and Champlain.
_E_. The blacksmith's shop.
_F_. Palisade of pickets.
_G_. The bakery.
_H_. The kitchen.
_O_. Small house where the equipment of our barques was stored. This Sieur
de Poutrincourt afterwards had rebuilt, and Sieur Boulay dwelt there
when Sieur de Pont Gravé returned to France.
_P_. Gate to our habitation.
_Q_. The Cemetery.
_R_. The River.
NOTES. The habitation of Port Royal was on the present site of the hamlet
of Lower Granville in Nova Scotia. _I_. Points to the garden-plots. _K_.
Takes the place of _Q_, which is wanting on the map, and marks the place of
the cemetery, where may be seen the crucifix, the death's-head, and
cross-bones. _L_. Takes the place of _R_, which is wanting, to indicate the
river. _M_. Indicates the moat on the north side of the dwelling. _N_.
Probably indicates the dwelling of the gentlemen, De Monts and others.
* * * * *
Some days after the buildings were completed, I went to the river St. John
to find the savage named Secondon, the same that conducted Prevert's party
to the copper mine, which I had already gone in search of with Sieur de
Monts, when we were at the Port of Mines, though without success. [181]
Having found him, I begged him to go there with us, which he very readily
consented to do, and proceeded to show it to us. We found there some
little pieces of copper of the thickness of a sou, and others still thicker
imbedded in grayish and red rocks. The miner accompanying us, whose name
was Master Jacques, a native of Sclavonia, a man very skilful in searching
for minerals, made the entire circuit of the hills to see if he could find
any gangue, [182] but without success. Yet he found, some steps from where
we had taken the pieces of copper before mentioned, something like a mine,
which, however, was far from being one. He said that, from the appearance
of the soil, it might prove to be good, if it were worked; and that it was
not probable that there could be pure copper on the surface of the earth,
without there being a large quantity of it underneath. The truth is that,
if the water did not cover the mines twice a day, and if they did not lie
in such hard rocks, something might be expected from them.
After making this observation, we returned to our settlement, where we
found some of our company sick with the _mal de la terre_, but not so
seriously as at the Island of St. Croix; although, out of our number of
forty-five, twelve died, including the miner, and five were sick, who
recovered the following spring. Our surgeon, named Des Champs, from
Honfleur, skilful in his profession, opened some of the bodies, to see
whether he might be more successful in discovering the cause of the
maladies that our surgeons had been the year before. He found the parts of
the body affected in the same manner as those opened at the Island of
St. Croix, but could discover no means of curing them, any more than the
other surgeons.
On the 20th of December, it began to snow, and some ice passed along before
our Settlement. The winter was not so sharp as the year before, nor the
snow so deep, or of so long duration. Among other incidents, the wind was
so violent on the 20th of February, 1605, [183] that it blew over a large
number of trees, roots and all, and broke off many others. It was a
remarkable sight. The rains were very frequent; which was the cause of the
mild winter in comparison with the past one, although it is only
twenty-five leagues from Port Royal to St. Croix.
On the first day of March, Pont Gravé ordered a barque of seventeen or
eighteen tons to be fitted up, which was ready, on the 15th, in order to go
on a voyage of discovery along the coast of Florida. [184] With this view,
we set out on the 16th following, but were obliged to put in at an island
to the south of Manan, having gone that day eighteen leagues. We anchored
in a sandy cove, exposed to the sea and the south wind. [185] The latter
increased, during the night, to such an impetuosity that we could not stand
by our anchor, and were compelled, without choice, to go ashore, at the
mercy of God and the waves. The latter were so heavy and furious that while
we were attaching the buoy to the anchor, so as to cut the cable at the
hawse-hole, it did not give us time, but broke straightway of itself. The
wind and the sea cast us as the wave receded upon a little rock, and we
awaited only the moment to see our barque break up, and to save ourselves,
if possible, upon its fragments. In these desperate straits, after we had
received several waves, there came one so large and fortunate for us that
it carried us over the rock, and threw us on to a little sandy beach, which
insured us for this time from shipwreck.
The barque being on shore, we began at once to unload what there was in
her, in order to ascertain where the damage was, which was not so great as
we expected. She was speedily repaired by the diligence of Champdoré, her
master. Having been put in order, she was reloaded; and we waited for fair
weather and until the fury of the sea should abate, which was not until the
end of four days, namely, the 21st of March, when we set out from this
miserable place, and proceeded to Port aux Coquilles, [186] seven or eight
leagues distant. The latter is at the mouth of the river St. Croix, where
there was a large quantity of snow. We stayed there until the 29th of the
month, in consequence of the fogs and contrary winds, which are usual at
this season, when Pont Gravé determined to put back to Port Royal, to see
in what condition our companions were, whom we had left there sick. Having
arrived there, Pont Gravé was attacked with illness, which delayed us until
the 8th of April.
On the 9th of the month he embarked, although still indisposed, from his
desire to see the coast of Florida, and in the belief that a change of air
would restore his health. The same day we anchored and passed the night at
the mouth of the harbor, two leagues distant from our settlement.
The next morning before day, Champdoré came to ask Pont Gravé if he wished
to have the anchor raised, who replied in the affirmative, if he deemed the
weather favorable for setting out. Upon this, Champdoré had the anchor
raised at once, and the sail spread to the wind, which was
north-north-east, according to his report. The weather was thick and rainy,
and the air full of fog, with indications of foul rather than fair weather.
While going out of the mouth of the harbor, [187] we were suddenly carried
by the tide out of the passage, and, before perceiving them, were driven
upon the rocks on the east-north-east coast. [188] Pont Gravé and I, who
were asleep, were awaked by hearing the sailors shouting and exclaiming,
"We are lost!" which brought me quickly to my feet, to see what was the
matter. Pont Gravé was still ill, which prevented him from rising as
quickly as he wished. I was scarcely on deck, when the barque was thrown
upon the coast; and the wind, which was north, drove us upon a point. We
unfurled the mainsail, turned it to the wind, and hauled it up as high as
we could, that it might drive us up as far as possible on the rocks, for
fear that the reflux of the sea, which fortunately was falling, would draw
us in, when it would have been impossible to save ourselves. At the first
blow of our boat upon the rocks, the rudder broke, a part of the keel and
three or four planks were smashed, and some ribs stove in, which frightened
us, for our barque filled immediately; and all that we could do was to wait
until the sea fell, so that we might get ashore. For, otherwise, we were in
danger of our lives, in consequence of the swell, which was very high and
furious about us. The sea having fallen, we went on shore amid the storm,
when the barque was speedily unloaded, and we saved a large portion of the
provisions in her, with the help of the savage, Captain Secondon and his
companions, who came to us with their canoes, to carry to our habitation
what we had saved from our barque, which, all shattered as she was, went to
pieces at the return of the tide. But we, most happy at having saved our
lives, returned to our settlement with our poor savages, who stayed there a
large part of the winter; and we praised God for having rescued us from
this shipwreck, from which we had not expected to escape so easily.
The loss of our barque caused us great regret, since we found ourselves,
through want of a vessel, deprived of the prospect of being able to
accomplish the voyage we had undertaken. And we were unable to build
another; for time was pressing, and although there was another barque on
the stocks, yet it would have required too long to get it ready, and we
could scarcely have made use of it before the return from France of the
vessels we were daily expecting.
This was a great misfortune, and owing to the lack of foresight on the part
of the master, who was obstinate, but little acquainted with seamanship,
and trusting only his own head. He was a good carpenter, skilful in
building vessels, and careful in provisioning them with all necessaries,
but in no wise adapted to sailing them.
Pont Gravé, having arrived at the settlement, received the evidence against
Champdoré, who was accused of having run the barque on shore with evil
intent. Upon such information, he was imprisoned and handcuffed, with the
intention of taking him to France and handing him over to Sieur de Monts,
to be treated as justice might direct.
On the 15th of June, Pont Gravé, finding that the vessels did not return
from France, had the handcuffs taken off from Champdoré, that he might
finish the barque which was on the stocks, which service he discharged very
well.
On the 16th of July, the time when we were to leave, in case the vessels
had not returned, as was provided in the commission which Sieur de Monts
had given to Pont Gravé, we set out from our settlement to go to Cape
Breton or to Gaspé in search of means of returning to France, since we had
received no intelligence from there.
Two of our men remained, of their own accord, to take care of the
provisions which were left at the settlement, to each of whom Pont Gravé
promised fifty crowns in money, and fifty more which he agreed to estimate
their pay at when he should come to get them the following year. [189]
There was a captain of the savages named Mabretou, [190] who promised to
take care of them, and that they should be treated as kindly as his own
children. We found him a friendly savage all the time we were there,
although he had the name of being the worst and most traitorous man of his
tribe.
ENDNOTES:
181. _Vide antea_, pp. 25, 26.
182. _La gangue_. This is the technical word for the matrix, or substance
containing the ore of metals.
183. For 1605, read 1606.
184. Florida, as then known, extended from the peninsula indefinitely to
the north.
185. Seal Cove, which makes up between the south-west end of the Grand
Manan and Wood Island, the latter being South of Manan and is plainly
the island referred to in the text. This cove is open to the South
wind and the sea in a storm. Wood Island has a sandy shore with
occasional rocks.
186. _Port aux Coquilles_, the harbor of shells. This port was near the
northeastern extremity of Campobello Island, and was probably Head
Harbor, which affords a good harbor of refuge.--_Vide_ Champlain's Map
of 1612, reference 9.
187. By "harbor" is here meant Annapolis Bay. This wreck of the barque took
place on the Granville side of Digby Strait, where the tides rise from
twenty-three to twenty-Seven feet.
188. North-east. The text has _norouest_, clearly a misprint for _nordest_.
189. These two men were M. La Taille and Miquelet, of whom Lescarbot speaks
in terms of enthusiastic praise for their patriotic courage in
voluntarily risking their lives for the good of New France. _Vide
Histoire Nouvelle France_, Paris, 1612, pp. 545, 546.
190. _Mabretou_, by Lescarbot written Membertou.
CHAPTER XII.
DEPARTURE FROM PORT ROYAL TO RETURN TO FRANCE.--MEETING RALLEAU AT CAPE
SABLE, WHICH CAUSED US TO TURN BACK.
On the 17th of the month, in accordance with the resolution we had formed,
we set out from the mouth of Port Royal with two barques, one of eighteen
tons, the other of seven or eight, with the view of pursuing the voyage to
Cape Breton or Canseau. We anchored in the strait of Long Island,[191]
where during the night our cable broke, and we came near being lost, owing
to the violent tides which strike upon several rocky points in and about
this place. But, through the diligent exertions of all, we were saved, and
escaped once more.
On the 21st of the month there was a violent wind, which broke the irons of
our rudder between Long Island and Cape Fourchu, and reduced us to such
extremities that we were at a loss what to do. For the fury of the sea did
not permit us to land, since the breakers ran mountain high along the
coast, so that we resolved to perish in the sea rather than to land, hoping
that the wind and tempest would abate, so that, with the wind astern, we
might go ashore on some sandy beach. As each one thought by himself what
might be done for our preservation, a sailor said that a quantity of
cordage attached to the stern of our barque, and dragging in the water,
might serve in some measure to steer our vessel. But this was of no avail;
and we saw that, unless God should aid us by other means, this would not
preserve us from shipwreck. As we were thinking what could be done for our
safety, Champdoré, who had been again handcuffed, said to some of us that,
if Pont Gravé desired it, he would find means to steer our barque. This we
reported to Pont Gravé, who did not refuse this offer, and the rest of us
still less. He accordingly had his handcuffs taken off the second time,
and at once taking a rope, he cut it and fastened the rudder with it in
such a skilful manner that it would steer the ship as well as ever. In this
way, he made amends for the mistakes he had made leading to the loss of the
previous barque, and was discharged from his accusation through our
entreaties to Pont Gravé who, although Somewhat reluctantly, acceded to it.
The same day we anchored near La Baye Courante, [192] two leagues from Cape
Fourchu, and there our barque was repaired.
On the 23d of July, we proceeded near to Cape Sable.
On the 24th of the month, at two o'clock in the afternoon, we perceived a
shallop, near Cormorant Island, coming from Cape Sable. Some thought it was
savages going away from Cape Breton or the Island of Canseau. Others said
it might be shallops sent from Canseau to get news of us. Finally, as we
approached nearer, we saw that they were Frenchmen, which delighted us
greatly. When it had almost reached us, we recognized Ralleau, the
Secretary of Sieur de Monts, which redoubled our joy. He informed us that
Sieur de Monts had despatched a vessel of a hundred and twenty tons,
commanded by Sieur de Poutrincourt, who had come with fifty men to act as
Lieutenant-General, and live in the country; that he had landed at Canseau,
whence the above-mentioned vessel had gone out to sea, in order, if
possible, to find us, while he, meanwhile, was proceeding along the coast
in a shallop, in order to meet us in case we should have set out, supposing
we had departed from Port Royal, as was in fact the case: in so doing, they
acted very wisely. All this intelligence caused us to turn back; and we
arrived at Port Royal on the 25th of the month, where we found the
above-mentioned vessel and Sieur de Poutrincourt, and were greatly
delighted to see realized what we had given up in despair. [193] He told us
that his delay had been caused by an accident which happened to the ship in
leaving the boom at Rochelle, where he had taken his departure, and that he
had been hindered by bad weather on his voyage. [194]
The next day, Sieur de Poutrincourt proceeded to set forth his views as to
what should be done; and, in accordance with the opinion of all, he
resolved to stay at Port Royal this year, inasmuch as no discovery had been
made since the departure of Sieur de Monts, and the period of four months
before winter was not long enough to search out a site and construct
another settlement, especially in a large vessel, unlike a barque which
draws little water, searches everywhere, and finds places to one's mind for
effecting settlements. But he decided that, during this period, nothing
more should be done than to try to find some place better adapted for our
abode. [195]
Thus deciding, Sieur de Poutrincourt despatched at once some laborers to
work on the land in a spot which he deemed suitable, up the river, a league
and a half from the settlement of Port Royal, and where we had thought of
making our abode. Here he ordered wheat, rye, hemp, and several other kinds
of seeds to be sown, in order to ascertain how they would flourish. [196]
On the 22d of August, a small barque was seen approaching our settlement.
It was that of Des Antons, of St. Malo, who had come from Canseau, where
his vessel was engaged in fishing, to inform us that there were some
vessels about Cape Breton engaged in the fur-trade; and that, if we would
send our ship, we might capture them on the point of returning to
France. It was determined to do so as soon as some supplies, which were in
the ship, could be unloaded. [197]
This being done. Pont Gravé embarked, together with his companions, who had
wintered with him at Port Royal, excepting Champdoré and Foulgeré de Vitré.
I also stayed with De Poutrincourt, in order, with God's help, to complete
the map of the coasts and countries which I had commenced. Every thing
being put in order in the settlement. Sieur de Poutrincourt ordered
provisions to be taken on board for our voyage along the coast of Florida.
On the 29th of August, we set out from Port Royal, as did also Pont Gravé
and Des Antons, who were bound for Cape Breton and Canseau, to seize the
vessels which were engaging in the fur-trade, as I have before stated.
After getting out to sea, we were obliged to put back on account of bad
weather. But the large vessel kept on her course, and we soon lost sight of
her.
ENDNOTES:
191. Petit Passage, leading into St. Mary's Bay.
192. _La Baye Courante_, the bay at the mouth of Argyl or Abuptic River,
sometimes called Lobster Bay.--_Vide Campbell's Yarmouth County_.
N.S., p. 13. The anchorage for the repair of the barque near this bay,
two leagues from Cape Fourchu, was probably near Pinckney Point, or it
may have been under the lee of one of the Tusquet Islands.
193. Lescarbot, who with De Poutrincourt was in this vessel, the "Jonas,"
gives a very elaborate account of their arrival and reception at Port
Royal. It seems that, at Canseau, Poutrincourt, supposing that the
colony at Port Royal, not receiving expected succors, had possibly
already embarked for France, as was in fact the case, had despatched a
small boat in charge of Ralleau to reconnoitre the coast, with the
hope of meeting them, if they had already embarked. The "Jonas" passed
them unobserved, perhaps while they were repairing their barque at
Baye Courante. As Ralleau did not join the "Jonas" till after their
arrival at Port Royal, Poutrincourt did not hear of the departure of
the colony till his arrival. Champlain's dates do not agree with those
of Lescarbot, and the latter is probably correct. According to
Lescarbot, Poutrincourt arrived on the 27th, and Pont Gravé with
Champlain on the 31st of July. _Vide His. Nou. France_, Paris, 1612,
pp. 544, 547.
194. Lescarbot gives a graphic account of the accident which happened to
their vessel in the harbor of Rochelle, delaying them more than a
month: and the bad weather and the bad seamanship of Captain Foulques,
who commanded the "Jonas," which kept them at sea more than two months
and a half.--_Vide His. Nou. France_, Paris. 1612, p. 523, _et seq._
195. Before leaving France, Poutrincourt had received instructions from the
patentee, De Monts to seek for a good harbor and more genial climate
for the colony farther south than Mallebarre, as he was not satisfied
either with St. Croix or Port Royal for a permanent abode.--_Vide
Lescarbot's His. Nou. France_, Paris, 1612, p. 552.
196. By reference to Champlain's drawing of Port Royal, it will be seen
that the place of this agricultural experiment was on the southern
side of Annapolis River, near the mouth of Alien River, and on the
identical soil where the village of Annapolis now stands.
197. It appears that this fur-trader was one Boyer, of Rouen, who had been
delivered from prison at Rochelle by Poutrincourt's lenity, where he
had been incarcerated probably for the same offence. They did not
succeed in capturing him at Canseau.--_Vide His. Nou. France_, par
Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, p. 553.
CHAPTER XIII.
SIEUR DE POUTRINCOURT SETS OUT FROM PORT ROYAL TO MAKE DISCOVERIES.--ALL
THAT WAS SEEN, AND WHAT TOOK PLACE AS FAR AS MALLEBARRE.
On the 5th of September, we set out again from Port Royal.
On the 7th, we reached the mouth of the river St. Croix, where we found a
large number of savages, among others Secondon and Messamouët. We came
near being lost there on a rocky islet, on account of Champdoré's usual
obstinacy.
The next day we proceeded in a shallop to the Island of St. Croix, where
Sieur de Monts had wintered, to see if we could find any spikes of wheat
and other seeds which we had planted there. We found some wheat which had
fallen on the ground, and come up as finely as one could wish; also a large
number of garden vegetables, which also had come up fair and large. It gave
us great satisfaction to see that the soil there was good and fertile.
After visiting the island, we returned to our barque, which was one of
eighteen tons, on the way catching a large number of mackerel, which are
abundant there at this season. It was decided to continue the voyage along
the coast, which was not a very well-considered conclusion, since we lost
much time in passing over again the discoveries made by Sieur de Monts as
far as the harbor of Mallebarre. It would have been much better, in my
opinion, to cross from where we were directly to Mallebarre, the route
being already known, and then use our time in exploring as far as the
fortieth degree, or still farther south, revisiting, upon our homeward
voyage, the entire coast at pleasure.
After this decision, we took with us Secondon and Messamouët, who went as
far as Choüacoet in a shallop, where they wished to make an alliance with
the people of the country, by offering them some presents.
On the 12th of September, we set out from the river St. Croix.
On the 21st, we arrived at Choüacoet, where we saw Onemechin, chief of the
river, and Marchin, who had harvested their corn. We saw at the Island of
Bacchus [198] some grapes which were ripe and very good, and some others
not yet ripe, as fine as those in France; and I am sure that, if they were
cultivated, they would produce good wine.
In this place. Sieur de Poutrincourt secured a prisoner that Onemechin had,
to whom Messamouët [199] made presents of kettles, hatchets, knives, and
other things. Onemechin reciprocated the same with Indian corn, squashes,
and Brazilian beans; which was not very satisfactory to Messamouët, who
went away very ill-disposed towards them for not properly recognizing his
presents, and with the intention of making war upon them in a short time.
For these nations give only in exchange for something in return, except to
those who have done them a special service, as by assisting them in their
wars.
Continuing our course, we proceeded to the Island Cape, [200] where we
encountered rather bad weather and fogs, and saw little prospect of being
able to spend the night under shelter, since the locality was not favorable
for this. While we were thus in perplexity, it occurred to me that, while
coasting along with Sieur de Monts, I had noted on my map, at a distance of
a league from here, a place which seemed suitable for vessels, but which we
did not enter, because, when we passed it, the wind was favorable for
continuing on our course. This place we had already passed, which led me
to suggest to Sieur de Poutrincourt that we should stand in for a point in
sight, where the place in question was, which seemed to me favorable for
passing the night. We proceeded to anchor at the mouth, and went in the
next day. [201]
Sieur de Poutrincourt landed with eight or ten of our company. We saw some
very fine grapes just ripe, Brazilian peas, [202] pumpkins, squashes, and
very good roots, which the savages cultivate, having a taste similar to
that of chards. [203] They made us presents of some of these, in exchange
for little trifles which we gave them. They had already finished their
harvest. We saw two hundred savages in this very pleasant place; and there
are here a large number [204] of very fine walnut-trees, [205] cypresses,
sassafras, oaks, ashes, and beeches. The chief of this place is named
Quiouhamenec, who came to see us with a neighbor of his, named Cohoüepech,
whom we entertained sumptuously. Onemechin, chief of Choüacoet, came also
to see us, to whom we gave a coat, which he, however, did not keep a long
time, but made a present of it to another, since he was uneasy in it, and
could not adapt himself to it. We saw also a savage here, who had so
wounded himself in the foot, and lost so much blood, that he fell down in a
swoon. Many others surrounded him, and sang some time before touching him.
Afterwards, they made some motions with their feet and hands, shook his
head and breathed upon him, when he came to himself. Our surgeon dressed
his wounds, when he went off in good spirits.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
LE BEAU PORT. [Note: _Le Beau Port_ is Gloucester.]
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Place where our barque was.
_B_. Meadows.
_C_. Small island. [Note: Ten-Pound Island. It is forty rods long and
thirty feet high. On it is a U. S. Light, fifty feet above the
sea-level.]
_D_. Rocky cape.
_E_. Place where we had our shallop calked. [Note: This peninsula is now
called Rocky Neck. Its southern part and the causeway which connects
it with the main land are now thickly settled.]
_F_. Little rocky islet, very high on the coast. [Note: This is Salt
Island.]
_G_. Cabins of the savages and where they till the soil.
_H_. Little river where there are meadows. [Note: This is the small stream
that flows into Fresh-Water Cove.]
_I_. Brook.
_L_. Tongue of land covered with trees, including a large number of
sassafras, walnut-trees, and vines. [Note: This is now called Eastern
Point, is three quarters of a mile long, and about half a mile in its
greatest width. At its southern extremity is a U. S. Light, sixty feet
above the sea-level. The scattering rocks figured by Champlain on its
western shore are now known as Black Bess.]
_M_. Arm of the sea on the other side of the Island Cape. [Note: Squam
River, flowing into Annisquam Harbor.]
_N_. Little River.
_O_. Little brook coming from the meadows.
_P_. Another little brook where we did our washing.
_Q_. Troop of savages coming to surprise us. [Note: They were creeping
along the eastern bank of Smith's Cove.]
_R_. Sandy strand. [Note: The beach of South-East Harbor.]
_S_. Sea-coast.
_T_. Sieur de Poutrincourt in ambuscade with some seven or eight
arquebusiers.
_V_. Sieur de Champlain discovering the savages.
NOTES: A comparison of his map with the Coast Survey Charts will exhibit
its surprising accuracy, especially when we make allowance for the fact
that it is merely a sketch executed without measurements, and with a very
brief visit to the locality. The projection or cape west of Ten-Pound
Island, including Stage Head, may be easily identified, as likewise Fort
Point directly north of the same island, as seen on our maps, but
north-west on that of Champlain, showing that his map is oriented with an
inclination to the west. The most obvious defect is the foreshortening of
the Inner Harbor, which requires much greater elongation.
* * * * *
The next day, as we were calking our shallop, Sieur de Poutrincourt in the
woods noticed a number of savages who were going, with the intention of
doing us some mischief, to a little stream, where a neck connects with the
main land, at which our party were doing their washing. As I was walking
along this neck, these savages noticed me; and, in order to put a good face
upon it, since they saw that I had discovered them thus seasonably, they
began to shout and dance, and then came towards me with their bows, arrows,
quivers, and other arms. And, inasmuch as there was a meadow between them
and myself, I made a sign to them to dance again. This they did in a
circle, putting all their arms in the middle. But they had hardly
commenced, when they observed Sieur de Poutrincourt in the wood with eight
musketeers, which frightened them. Yet they did not stop until they had
finished their dance, when they withdrew in all directions, fearing lest
some unpleasant turn might be served them. We said nothing to them,
however, and showed them only demonstrations of gladness. Then we returned
to launch our shallop, and take our departure. They entreated us to wait a
day, saying that more than two thousand of them would come to see us. But,
unable to lose any time, we were unwilling to stay here longer. I am of
opinion that their object was to surprise us. Some of the land was already
cleared up, and they were constantly making clearings. Their mode of doing
it is as follows: after cutting down the trees at the distance of three
feet from the ground, they burn the branches upon the trunk, and then plant
their corn between these stumps, in course of time tearing up also the
roots. There are likewise fine meadows here, capable of supporting a large
number of cattle. This harbor is very fine, containing water enough for
vessels, and affording a shelter from the weather behind the islands. It is
in latitude 43°, and we gave it the name of Le Beauport. [206]
The last day of September we set out from Beauport, and, passing Cap
St. Louis, stood on our course all night for Cap Blanc. [207] In the
morning, an hour before daylight we found ourselves to the leeward of Cap
Blanc, in Baye Blanche, with eight feet of water, and at a distance of a
league from the shore. Here we anchored, in order not to approach too near
before daylight, and to see how the tide was. Meanwhile, we sent our
shallop to make soundings. Only eight feet of water were found, so that it
was necessary to determine before daylight what we would do. The water sank
as low as five feet, and our barque sometimes touched on the sand, yet
without any injury, for the water was calm, and we had not less than three
feet of water under us. Then the tide began to rise, which gave us
encouragement.
When it was day, we saw a very low, sandy shore, off which we were, and
more to the leeward. A shallop was sent to make soundings in the direction
of land somewhat high, where we thought there would be deep water; and, in
fact, we found seven fathoms. Here we anchored, and at once got ready the
shallop, with nine or ten men to land and examine a place where we thought
there was a good harbor to shelter ourselves in, if the wind should
increase. An examination having been made, we entered in two, three, and
four fathoms of water. When we were inside, we found five and six. There
were many very good oysters here, which we had not seen before, and we
named the place Port aux Huistres. [208] It is in latitude 42°. Three
canoes of savages came out to us. On this day, the wind coming round in our
favor, we weighed anchor to go to Cap Blanc, distant from here five leagues
north a quarter north-east, and we doubled the cape.
On the next day, the 2d of October, we arrived off Mallebarre, [209] where
we stayed some time on account of the bad weather. During this time, Sieur
de Poutrincourt, with the shallop, accompanied by twelve or fifteen men,
visited the harbor, where some hundred and fifty savages, singing and
dancing according to their custom, appeared before him. After seeing this
place, we returned to our vessel, and, the wind coming favorable, sailed
along the coast towards the south.
ENDNOTES:
198. Richmond Island.--_Vide antea_, note 123. The ripe grapes which he saw
were the Fox Grape. _Vitis labrusca_, which ripens in September. The
fruit is of a dark purple color, tough and musky. The Isabella, common
in our markets, is derived from it. It is not quite clear whether
those seen in an unripe state were another species or not. If they
were, they were the Frost Grape, _Vitis cardifolia_, which are found
in the northern parts of New England. The berry is small, black or
blue, having a bloom, highly acid, and ripens after frosts. This
island, so prolific in grapes, became afterward a centre of commercial
importance. On Josselyn's voyage of 1638, he says: "The Six and
twentieth day, Capt. _Thomas Cammock_ went aboard of a Barke of 300
Tuns, laden with Island Wine, and but 7 men in her, and never a Gun,
bound for Richmond's Island, Set out by Mr. _Trelaney, of Plimouth_"--
_Voyages_, 1675, Boston, Veazie's ed., 1865, p. 12.
199. Messamouët was a chief from the Port de la Hève, and was accompanied
by Secondon, also a chief from the river St. John. They had come to
Saco to dispose of a quantity of goods which they had obtained from
the French fur-traders. Messamouët made an address on the occasion, in
which he stated that he had been in France, and had been entertained
at the house of Mons. de Grandmont, governor of Bavonne.--_Vide
His. Nou. France_, par Lescarbot, Paris, 1612, p. 559, _et seq._
200. Cape Anne.
201. Gloucester Bay, formerly called Cape Anne Harbor, which, as we shall
see farther on, they named _Beauport_, the beautiful harbor.
202. Brazilian peas. This should undoubtedly read Brazilian beans. _Pois du
Brésil_ is here used apparently by mistake for _febues de Brésil_.--
Vide antea, note 127.
203. Chards, a vegetable dill, composed of the footstocks and midrib of
artichokes, cardoons, or white beets. The "very good roots," _des
racines qui font bonnes_, were Jerusalem Artichokes, _Helianthus
tuberofus_, indigenous to the northern part of this continent. The
Italians had obtained it before Champlain's time, and named it
_Girasole_, their word for sunflower, of which the artichoke is a
species. This word, _girasole_, has been singularly corrupted in
England into _Jerusalem_; hence Jerusalem artichoke, now the common
name of this plant. We presume that there is no instance on record of
its earlier cultivation in New England than at Nauset in 1605, _vide
antea_, p. 82, and here at Gloucester in 1606.
204. Under the word _noyers_, walnut-trees, Champlain may have comprehended
the hickories, _Carya alba_ and _porcina_, and perhaps the butternut,
_Juglans cinerea_, all of which might have been seen at Gloucester. It
is clear from his description that he saw at Saco the hickory, _Carya
porcina_, commonly known as the pig-nut or broom hickory. He probably
saw likewise the shag bark, _Carya alba_, as both are found growing
wild there even at the present day.--_Vide antea_, p. 67. Both the
butternut and the hickories are exclusively of American origin; and
there was no French name by which they could be more accurately
designated. _Noyer_ is applied in France to the tree which produces
the nut known in our markets as the English walnut. Josselyn figures
the hickory under the name of walnut.--_Vide New Eng. Rarities_,
Tuckerman's ed., p. 97. See also _Wood's New Eng. Prospect_, 1634,
Prince Soc. ed., p. 18.
205. The trees here mentioned are such probably as appeared to Champlain
especially valuable for timber or other practical uses.
The cypress, _cyprès_, has been already referred to in note 168. It is
distinguished for its durability, its power of resisting the usual
agencies of decay, and is widely used for posts, and sleepers on the
track of railways, and to a limited extent for cabinet work, but less
now than in earlier times. William Wood says of it: "This wood is more
desired for ornament than substance, being of color red and white,
like Eugh, smelling as sweet as Iuniper; it is commonly used for
seeling of houses, and making of Chests, boxes and staves."--_Wood's
New Eng. Prospect_, 1634, Prince Soc. ed., p. 19.
The sassafras, _Sassafras officinate_, is indigenous to this
continent, and has a spicy, aromatic flavor, especially the bark and
root. It was in great repute as a medicine for a long time after the
discovery of this country. Cargoes of it were often taken home by the
early voyagers for the European markets; and it is said to have sold
as high as fifty livres per pound. Dr. Jacob Bigelow says a work
entitled "Sassafrasologia" was written to celebrate its virtues; but
its properties are only those of warm aromatics. Josselyn describes
it, and adds that it does not "grow beyond Black Point eastward,"
which is a few miles north-east of Old Orchard Beach, near Saco, in
Maine. It is met with now infrequently in New England; several
specimens, however, may be seen in the Granary Burial Ground in
Boston.
Oaks, _chesnes_, of which several of the larger species may have been
seen: as, the white oak, _Quercus alba_; black oak, _Quercus
tinfloria_; Scarlet oak, _Quercus coccinea_; and red oak, _Quercus
rubra_.
Ash-trees, _fresnes_, probably the white ash, _Fraxinus Americana_,
and not unlikely the black ash, _Fraxinus sambucifolia_, both valuable
as timber.
Beech-trees, _hestres_, of which there is but a single Species, _Fagus
ferruginca_, the American beech, a handsome tree, of symmetrical
growth, and clean, smooth, ash-gray bark: the nut, of triangular
shape, is sweet and palatable. The wood is brittle, and used only for
a few purposes.
206. Le Beauport. The latitude of Ten-Pound Island, near where the French
barque was anchored in the Harbor of Gloucester, is 42° 36' 5".
207. The reader may be reminded that Cap St. Louis is Brant Point; Cap
Blanc is Cape Cod; and Baye Blanche is Cape Cod Bay.
208. _Le Port aux Huistres_, Oyster Harbor. The reader will observe, by
looking back a few sentences in the narrative, that the French
coasters, after leaving Cap St. Louis, that is, Brant Point, had aimed
to double Cape Cod, and had directed their course, as they supposed,
to accomplish this purpose. Owing, however, to the strength of the
wind, or the darkness of the night, or the inattention of their pilot,
or all these together, they had passed to the leeward of the point
aimed at, and before morning found themselves near a harbor, which
they subsequently entered, in Cape Cod Bay. It is plain that this
port, which they named Oyster Harbor, was either that of Wellfleet or
Barnstable. The former, it will be remembered, Champlain, with De
Monts, entered the preceding year, 1605, and named it, or the river
that flows into it, St. Suzanne du Cap Blanc.--_Vide antea_, note
166. It is obvious that Champlain could not have entered this harbor
the second time without recognizing it: and, if he had done so, he
would not have given to it a name entirely different from that which
he had given it the year before. He was too careful an observer to
fall into such an extraordinary mistake. We may conclude, therefore,
that the port in question was not Wellfleet, but Barnstable. This
conclusion is sustained by the conditions mentioned in the text. They
entered, on a flood-tide, in twelve, eighteen, and twenty-four feet of
water, and found thirty or thirty-six when they had passed into the
harbor. It could hardly be expected that any harbor among the shifting
sands of Cape Cod would remain precisely the same, as to depth of
water, after the lapse of two hundred and fifty years. Nevertheless,
the discrepancy is so slight in this case, that it would seem to be
accidental, rather than to arise from the solidity or fixedness of the
harbor-bed. The channel of Barnstable Harbor, according to the Coast
Survey Charts, varies in depth at low tide, for two miles outside of
Sandy Neck Point, from seven to ten feet for the first mile, and for
the next mile from ten feet to thirty-two on reaching Beach Point,
which may be considered the entrance of the bay. On passing the Point,
we have thirty-six and a half feet, and for a mile inward the depth
varies from twelve to twenty feet. Add a few feet for the rise of the
tide on which they entered, and the depth of the water in 1606 could
not have been very different from that of to-day. The "low sandy
coast" which they saw is well represented by Spring Hill Beach and
Sandy Neck; the "land somewhat high," by the range of hills in the
rear of Barnstable Harbor. The distance from the mouth of the harbor
to Wood End light, the nearest point on Cape Cod, does not vary more
than a league, and its direction is about that mentioned by
Champlain. The difference in latitude is not greater than usual. It is
never sufficiently exact for the identification of any locality. The
substantial agreement, in so many particulars with the narrative of
the author, renders it quite clear that the _Port aux Huistres_ was
Barnstable Harbor. They entered it on the morning of the 1st of
October, and appear to have left on the same day. Sandy Neck light, at
the entrance of the harbor, is in latitude 41° 43' 19".
209. Nauset Harbor.
CHAPTER XIV.
CONTINUATION OF THE ABOVE DISCOVERIES, AND WHAT WAS OBSERVED OF PARTICULAR
IMPORTANCE.
When we were some six leagues from Mallebarre, we anchored near the coast,
the wind not being fair, along which we observed columns of smoke made by
the savages, which led us to determine to go to them, for which purpose the
shallop was made ready. But when near the coast, which is sandy, we could
not land, for the swell was too great. Seeing this, the savages launched a
canoe, and came out to us, eight or nine of them, singing and making signs
of their joy at seeing us, and they indicated to us that lower down there
was a harbor where we could put our barque in a place of security. Unable
to land, the shallop came back to the barque; and the savages, whom we had
treated civilly, returned to the shore.
On the next day, the wind being favorable, we continued our course to the
north [210] five leagues, and hardly had we gone this distance, when we
found three and four fathoms of water at a distance of a league and a half
from the shore. On going a little farther, the depth suddenly diminished
to a fathom and a half and two fathoms, which alarmed us, since we saw the
sea breaking all around, but no passage by which we could retrace our
course, for the wind was directly contrary.
Accordingly being shut in among the breakers and sand-banks, we had to go
at hap-hazard where there seemed to be the most water for our barque, which
was at most only four feet: we continued among these breakers until we
found as much as four feet and a half. Finally, we succeeded, by the grace
of God, in going over a sandy point running out nearly three leagues
seaward to the south-south-east, and a very dangerous place. [211] Doubling
this cape, which we named Cap Batturier, [212] which is twelve or thirteen
leagues from Mallebarre, [213] we anchored in two and a half fathoms of
water, since we saw ourselves surrounded on all sides by breakers and
shoals, except in some places where the sea was breaking to go to a place,
which, we concluded to be that which the savages had indicated. We also
thought there was a river there, where we could lie in security.
When our shallop arrived there, our party landed and examined the place,
and, returning with a savage whom they brought off, they told us that we
could enter at full tide, which was resolved upon. We immediately weighed
anchor, and, under the guidance of the savage who piloted us, proceeded to
anchor at a roadstead before the harbor, in six fathoms of water and a good
bottom; [214] for we could not enter, as the night overtook us.
On the next day, men were sent to set stakes at the end of a sand-bank
[215] at the mouth of the harbor, when, the tide rising, we entered in two
fathoms of water. When we had arrived, we praised God for being in a place
of safety. Our rudder had broken, which we had mended with ropes; but we
were afraid that, amid these shallows and strong tides, it would break
anew, and we should be lost. Within this harbor [216] there is only a
fathom of water, and two at full tide. On the east, there is a bay
extending back on the north some three leagues, [217] in which there is an
island and two other little bays which adorn the landscape, where there is
a considerable quantity of land cleared up, and many little hills, where
they cultivate corn and the various grains on which they live. There are,
also, very fine vines, many walnut-trees, oaks, cypresses, but only a few
pines. [218] All the inhabitants of this place are very fond of
agriculture, and provide themselves with Indian corn for the winter, which
they store in the following manner:--
They make trenches in the sand on the slope of the hills, some five to six
feet deep, more or less. Putting their corn and other grains into large
grass sacks, they throw them into these trenches, and cover them with sand
three or four feet above the surface of the earth, taking it out as their
needs require. In this way, it is preserved as well as it would be possible
to do in our granaries. [219]
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
_PORT FORTUNÉ_.
_The figures indicate fathoms of water_.
_A_. Pond of salt water. [Note: This is now called Oyster Pond.]
_B_. Cabins of the Savages and the lands they cultivate.
_C_. Meadows where there are two little brooks.
_C_. Meadows on the island, that are covered at every tide. [Note: The
letter _C_ appears twice in the index, but both are wanting on the
map. The former seems to point to the meadows on the upper left-hand
corner: the other should probably take the place of the _O_ on the
western part of the island above _F_.]
_D_. Small mountain ranges on the island, that are covered with trees,
vines, and plum-trees. [Note: This range of hills is a marked feature
of the island.]
_E_. Pond of fresh water, where there is plenty of game. [Note: This pond
is still distinguished for its game, and is leased by gentlemen in
Boston and held as a preserve.]
_F_. A kind of meadow on the island. [Note: This is known as Morris Island;
but the strait on the north of it has been filled up, and the island
is now a part of the main land.]
_G_. An island covered with wood in a great arm of the sea. [Note: This
island has been entirely obliterated, and the neck on the north has
likewise been swept away, and the bay now extends several leagues
farther north. The destruction of the island was completed in 1851, in
the gale that swept away Minot's Light. In 1847, it had an area of
thirteen acres and an elevation of twenty feet.--_Vide Harbor
Com. Report_, 1873.]
_H_. A sort of pond of salt water, where there are many shell-fish, and,
among others, quantities of oysters. [Note: This is now called the
Mill Pond.]
_I_. Sandy downs on a narrow tongue of land.
_L_. Arm of the sea.
_M_. Roadstead before the harbor where we anchored. [Note: Chatham Roads,
or Old Stage Harbor.]
_N_. Entrance to the harbor.
_O_. The harbor and place where our barque was.
_P_. The cross we planted.
_Q_. Little brook.
_R_. Mountain which is seen at a great distance. [Note: A moderate
elevation, by no means a mountain in our sense of the word.]
_S_. Sea-shore.
_T_. Little river.
_V_. Way we went in their country among their dwellings: it is indicated by
small dots. [Note: The circuit here indicated is about four or five
miles. Another path is indicated in the same manner on the extreme
northern end of the map, which shows that their excursions had been
extensive.]
_X_. Banks and shoals.
_Y_. Small mountain seen in the interior. [Note: This is now called the
Great Chatham Hill, and is a conspicuous landmark.]
_Z_. Small brooks.
_9_. Spot near the cross where the savages killed our men. [Note: This is a
creek up which the tide sets. The other brook figured on the map a
little south of the cross has been artificially filled up, but the
marshes which it drained are still to be seen. These landmarks enable
us to fix upon the locality of the cross within a few feet.]
* * * * *
We saw in this place some five to six hundred savages, all naked except
their sexual parts, which they cover with a small piece of doe or
seal-skin. The women are also naked, and, like the men, cover theirs with
skins or leaves. They wear their hair carefully combed and twisted in
various ways, both men and women, after the manner of the savages of
Choüacoet. [220] Their bodies are well-proportioned, and their skin
olive-colored. They adorn themselves with feathers, beads of shell, and
other gewgaws, which they arrange very neatly in embroidery work. As
weapons, they have bows, arrows, and clubs. They are not so much great
hunters as good fishermen and tillers of the land.
In regard to their police, government, and belief, we have been unable to
form a judgment; but I suppose that they are not different in this respect
from our savages, the Souriquois and Canadians, who worship neither the
moon nor the sun, nor any thing else, and pray no more than the beasts.
[221] There are, however, among them some persons, who, as they say, are in
concert with the devil, in whom they have great faith. They tell them all
that is to happen to them, but in so doing lie for the most part. Sometimes
they succeed in hitting the mark very well, and tell them things similar to
those which actually happen to them. For this reason, they have faith in
them, as if they were prophets; while they are only impostors who delude
them, as the Egyptians and Bohemians do the simple villagers. They have
chiefs, whom they obey in matters of war, but not otherwise, and who engage
in labor, and hold no higher rank than their companions. Each one has only
so much land as he needs for his support.
Their dwellings are separate from each other, according to the land which
each one occupies. They are large, of a circular shape, and covered with
thatch made of grasses or the husks of Indian corn. [222] They are
furnished only with a bed or two, raised a foot from the ground, made of a
number of little pieces of wood pressed against each other, on which they
arrange a reed mat, after the Spanish style, which is a kind of matting two
or three fingers thick: on these they sleep. [223] They have a great many
fleas in summer, even in the fields. One day as we went out walking, we
were beset by so many of them that we were obliged to change our clothes.
All the harbors, bays, and coasts from Choüacoet are filled with every
variety of fish, like those which we have before our habitation, and in
such abundance that I can confidently assert that there was not a day or
night when we did not see and hear pass by our barque more than a thousand
porpoises, which were chasing the smaller fry. There are also many
shell-fish of various sorts, principally oysters. Game birds are very
plenty.
It would be an excellent place to erect buildings and lay the foundations
of a State, if the harbor were somewhat deeper and the entrance safer.
Before leaving the harbor, the rudder was repaired; and we had some bread
made from flour, which we had brought for our subsistence, in case our
biscuit should give out. Meanwhile, we sent the shallop with five or six
men and a savage to see whether a passage might be found more favorable for
our departure than that by which we had entered.
After they had gone five or six leagues and were near the land, the savage
made his escape [224], since he was afraid of being taken to other savages
farther south, the enemies of his tribe, as he gave those to understand who
were in the shallop. The latter, upon their return, reported that, as far
as they had advanced, there were at least three fathoms of water, and that
farther on there were neither shallows nor reefs.
We accordingly made haste to repair our barque, and make a supply of bread
for fifteen days. Meanwhile, Sieur de Poutrincourt, accompanied by ten or
twelve arquebusiers, visited all the neighboring country, which is very
fine, as I have said before, and where we saw here and there a large number
of little houses.
Some eight or nine days after, while Sieur de Poutrincourt was walking out,
as he had previously done, [225] we observed the Savages taking down their
cabins and sending their women, children, provisions, and other necessaries
of life into the woods. This made us suspect some evil intention, and that
they purposed to attack those of our company who were working on shore,
where they stayed at night in order to guard that which could not be
embarked at evening except with much trouble. This proved to be true; for
they determined among themselves, after all their effects had been put in a
place of security, to come and surprise those on land, taking advantage of
them as much as possible, and to carry off all they had. But, if by chance
they should find them on their guard, they resolved to come with signs of
friendship, as they were wont to do, leaving behind their bows and arrows.
Now, in view of what Sieur de Poutrincourt had seen, and the order which it
had been told him they observed when they wished to play some bad trick,
when we passed by some cabins, where there was a large number of women, we
gave them some bracelets and rings to keep them quiet and free from fear,
and to most of the old and distinguished men hatchets, knives, and other
things which they desired. This pleased them greatly, and they repaid it
all in dances, gambols, and harangues, which we did not understand at all.
We went wherever we chose without their having the assurance to say any
thing to us. It pleased us greatly to see them; show themselves so simple
in appearance.
We returned very quietly to our barque, accompanied by some of the savages.
On the way, we met several small troops of them, who gradually gathered
together with their arms, and were greatly astonished to see us so far in
the interior, and did not suppose that we had just made a circuit of nearly
four or five leagues about their territory. Passing near us, they trembled
with fear, lest harm should be done them, as it was in our power to do. But
we did them none, although we knew their evil intentions. Having arrived
where our men were working, Sieur de Poutrincourt inquired if every thing
was in readiness to resist the designs of this rabble.
He ordered every thing on shore to be embarked. This was done, except that
he who was making the bread stayed to finish a baking, and two others with
him. They were told that the savages had some evil intent, and that they
should make haste to embark the coming evening, since they carried their
plans into execution only at night, or at daybreak, which in their plots is
generally the hour for making a surprise.
Evening having come, Sieur de Poutrincourt gave orders that the shallop
should be sent ashore to get the men who remained. This was done as soon as
the tide would permit, and those on shore were told that they must embark
for the reason assigned. This they refused in spite of the remonstrances
that were made setting forth the risks they ran and the disobedience to
their chief. They paid no attention to it, with the exception of a servant
of Sieur de Poutrincourt, who embarked. Two others disembarked from the
shallop and went to the three on shore, who had stayed to eat some cakes
made at the same time with the bread.
But, as they were unwilling to do as they were told, the shallop returned
to the vessel. It was not mentioned to Sieur de Poutrincourt, who had
retired, thinking that all were on board.
The next day, in the morning, the 15th of October, the savages did not fail
to come and see in what condition our men were, whom they found asleep,
except one, who was near the fire. When they saw them in this condition,
they came, to the number of four hundred, softly over a little hill, and
sent them such a volley of arrows that to rise up was death. Fleeing the
best they could towards our barque, shouting, "Help! they are killing us!"
a part fell dead in the water; the others were all pierced with arrows, and
one died in consequence a short time after. The savages made a desperate
noise with roarings, which it was terrible to hear.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
THE ATTACK AT PORT FORTUNE.
The figures indicate fathoms of water.
_A_. Place where the French were making bread.
_B_. The savages surprising the French, and shooting their arrows at them.
_C_. French burned by the Savages.
_D_. The French fleeing to the barque, completely covered with arrows.
_E_. Troops of savages burning the French whom they had killed.
_F_. Mountain bordering on the harbor.
_G_. Cabins of the savages.
_H_. French on the shore charging upon the Savages.
_I_. Savages routed by the French.
_L_. Shallop in which were the French.
_M_. Savages around our shallop, who were surprised by our men.
_N_. Barque of Sieur de Poutrincourt.
_O_. The harbor.
_P_. Small brook.
_Q_. French who fell dead in the water as they were trying to flee to the
barque.
_R_. Brook coming from certain marshes.
_S_. Woods under cover of which the savages came.
* * * * *
Upon the occurrence of this noise and that of our men, the sentinel, on our
vessel, exclaimed, "To arms! They are killing our men!" Consequently, each
one immediately seized his arms; and we embarked in the shallop, some
fifteen or sixteen of us, in order to go ashore. But, being unable to get
there on account of a sand-bank between us and the land, we threw ourselves
into the water, and waded from this bank to the shore, the distance of a
musket-shot. As soon as we were there, the savages, seeing us within arrow
range, fled into the interior. To pursue them was fruitless, for they are
marvellously swift. All that we could do was to carry away the dead bodies
and bury them near a cross, which had been set up the day before, and then
to go here and there to see if we could get sight of any of them. But it
was time wasted, therefore we came back. Three hours afterwards, they
returned to us on the sea-shore. We discharged at them several shots from
our little brass cannon; and, when they heard the noise, they crouched down
on the ground to avoid the fire. In mockery of us, they beat down the cross
and disinterred the dead, which displeased us greatly, and caused us to go
for them a second time; but they fled, as they had done before. We set up
again the cross, and reinterred the dead, whom they had thrown here and
there amid the heath, where they kindled a fire to burn them. We returned
without any result, as we had done before, well aware that there was
scarcely hope of avenging ourselves this time, and that we should have to
renew the undertaking when it should please God.
On the 16th of the month, we set out from Port Fortuné, to which we had
given this name on account of the misfortune which happened to us there.
This place is in latitude 41° 20', and some twelve or thirteen leagues from
Mallebarre. [226]
ENDNOTES:
210. Clearly a mistake. Champlain here says they "continued their course
north," whereas, the whole context shows that they must have gone
south.
211. "The sandy point" running out nearly three leagues was evidently the
island of Monomoy, or its representative, which at that time may have
been only a continuation of the main land. Champlain does not
delineate on his map an island, but a sand-bank nearly in the shape of
an isosceles triangle, which extends far to the south-east. Very great
changes have undoubtedly taken place on this part of the coast since
the visit of Champlain. The sand-bar figured by him has apparently
been swept from the south-east round to the south-west, and is perhaps
not very much changed in its general features except as to its
position. "We know from our studies of such shoals," says
Prof. Mitchell, Chief of Physical Hydrography, U. S. Coast Survey,
"that the relative order of banks and beaches remains about the same,
however the system as a whole may change its location."--_Mass.
Harbor Commissioners' Report_. 1873, p. 99.
212. _Batturier_. This word is an adjective, formed with the proper
termination from the noun, _batture_, which means a bank upon which
the sea beats, reef or sand-bank. _Cap Batturier_ may therefore be
rendered sand-bank cape, or the cape of the sand-banks. _Batturier_
does not appear in the dictionaries, and was doubtless coined by
Champlain himself, as he makes, farther on, the adjective _truitière_,
in the expression _la rivière truitière_, from the noun, _truite_.
213. The distances here given appear to be greatly overstated. From Nauset
to the southern point of Monomoy, as it is to-day, the distance is not
more than six leagues. But, as the sea was rough, and they were
apparently much delayed, the distance might naturally enough be
overestimated.
214. The anchorage was in Chatham Roads, or Old Stage Harbor.
215. Harding's Beach Point.
216. They were now in Stage Harbor, in Chatham, to which Champlain, farther
on gives the name of Port Fortuné.
217. This is the narrow bay that stretches from Morris Island to the north,
parallel with the sea, separated from it only by a sand-bank, and now
reaching beyond Chatham into the town of Orleans. By comparing
Champlain's map of Port Fortuné with modern charts, it will be seen
that the "bay extending back on the north some three leagues"
terminated, in 1606, a little below Chatham Old Harbor. The island on
Champlain's map marked G. was a little above the harbor, but has been
entirely swept away, together with the neck north of it, represented
on Champlain's map as covered with trees. The bay now extends, as we
have stated above, into the town of Orleans. The island G, known in
modern times as Ram Island, disappeared in 1851, although it still
continued to figure on Walling's map of 1858: The two other little
bays mentioned in the text scarcely appear on Champlain's map; and he
may have inadvertently included in this bay the two that are farther
north, viz. Crow's Pond and Pleasant Bay, although they do not fall
within the limits of his map.
218. _Vide antea_, notes 168, 204, 205.
219. Indian corn, _Zea mays_, is a plant of American origin. Columbus saw
it among the natives of the West Indies, "a sort of grain they call
Maiz, which was well tasted, bak'd, or dry'd and made into flour."--
_Vide History of the Life and Actions of Chris. Columbus by his Son
Ferdinand Columbus, Churchill's Voyages_, Vol. II. p. 510.
It is now cultivated more or less extensively in nearly every part of
the world where the climate is suitable. Champlain is the first who
has left a record of the method of its cultivation in New England,
_vide antea_, p. 64, and of its preservation through the winter. The
Pilgrims, in 1620, found it deposited by the Indians in the ground
after the manner described in the text. Bradford says they found
"heaps of sand newly padled with their hands, which they, digging up,
found in them diverce faire Indean baskets filled with corne, and some
in eares, faire and good, of diverce collours, which seemed to them a
very goodly sight, haveing never seen any such before:"--_His. Plym.
Plantation_, p. 82. Squanto taught the English how to "set it, and
after how to dress and tend it"--_Idem_, p. 100.
"The women," says Roger Williams, "set or plant, weede and hill, and
gather and barne all the corne and Fruites of the field," and of
drying the corn, he adds, "which they doe carefully upon heapes and
Mats many dayes, they barne it up, covering it up with Mats at night,
and opening when the Sun is hot"
The following are testimonies as to the use made by the natives of the
Indian corn as food:--
"They brought with them in a thing like a Bow-case, which the
principall of them had about his wast, a little of their Corne
powdered to Powder, which put to a little water they eate."--_Mourts
Relation_, London, 1622, Dexter's ed., p. 88.
"Giving us a kinde of bread called by them _Maizium_."--_Idem_,
p. 101.
"They seldome or never make bread of their _Indian_ corne, but seeth
it whole like beanes, eating three or four cornes with a mouthfull of
fish or flesh, sometimes eating meate first and cornes after, filling
chinckes with their broth."--_Wood's New Eng. Prospect_, London, 1634.
Prince Society's ed., pp. 75, 76.
"Nonkekich. _Parch'd meal_, which is a readie very wholesome, food,
which they eate with a little water hot or cold: ... With _spoonfull_
of this _meale_ and a spoonfull of water from the _Brooke_, have I
made many a good dinner and supper."--_Roger Williams's Key_, London,
1643, Trumbull's ed., pp. 39, 40.
"Their food is generally boiled maize, or Indian corn, mixed with
kidney beans or Sometimes without.... Also they mix with the said
pottage several sorts of roots, as Jerusalem artichokes, and ground
nuts, and other roots, and pompions, and squashes, and also several
sorts of nuts or masts, as oak-acorns, chesnuts, walnuts: These husked
and dried, and powdered, they thicken their pottage therewith."--
_Historical Collections of the Indians_, by Daniel Gookin, 1674,
Boston, 1792. p. 10.
220. The character of the Indian dress, as here described, does not differ
widely from that of a later period.--_Vide Mourt's Relation_, 1622,
Dexter's ed., p. 135: _Roger Williams's Key_, 1643, Trumbull's ed.,
p. 143, _et seq.; History of New England_, by Edward Johnson, 1654,
Poole's ed., pp. 224, 225.
Champlain's observations were made in the autumn before the approach
of the winter frosts.
Thomas Morton, writing in 1632, says that the mantle which the women
"use to cover their nakednesse with is much longer then that which the
men use; for as the men have one Deeres skinn, the women haue two soed
together at the full length, and it is so lardge that it trailes after
them, like a great Ladies trane, and in time," he sportively adds, "I
thinke they may have their Pages to beare them up."--_New Eng.
Canaan_, 1632, in Force's Tracts, Vol. II, p. 23.
221. This conclusion harmonizes with the opinion of Thomas Morton, who says
that the natives of New England are "_sine fide, sine lege, et sine
rege_, and that they have no worship nor religion at all."--_New Eng.
Canaan_, 1632, in Force's Tracts, Vol. II. p. 21.
Winslow was at first of the same opinion, but afterward saw cause for
changing his mind.--_Vide Winslow's Relation_, 1624, in Young's
Chronicles, P 355. See also _Roger Williams's Key_, Trumbull's ed.,
p. 159.
222. "Their houses, or wigwams," says Gookin, "are built with small poles
fixed in the ground, bent and fastened together with barks of trees,
oval or arborwise on the top. The best sort of their houses are
covered very neatly, tight, and warm with the bark of trees, stripped
from their bodies at such seasons when the sap is up; and made into
great flakes with pressures of weighty timbers, when they are green;
and so becoming dry, they will retain a form suitable for the use they
prepare them for. The meaner sort of wigwams are covered with mats
they make of a kind of bulrush, which are also indifferent tight and
warm, but not so good as the former."--_Vide Historical Collections_,
1674, Boston, 1792, p. 9.
223. The construction of the Indian couch, or bed, at a much later period
may be seen by the following excerpts: "So we desired to goe to rest:
he layd us on the bed with himselfe and his wife, they at one end and
we at the other, it being only plancks layd a foot from the ground,
and a thin mat upon them."--_Mourt's Relation_, London. 1622, Dexter's
ed., pp. 107, 108. "In their wigwams, they make a kind of couch or
mattresses, firm and strong, raised about a foot high from the earth;
first covered with boards that they split out of trees; and upon the
boards they spread mats generally, and sometimes bear skins and deer
skins. These are large enough for three or four persons to lodge upon:
and one may either draw nearer or keep at a more distance from the
heat of the fire, as they please; for their mattresses are six or
eight feet broad."--_Gookin's Historical Collections_, 1674, Boston,
1792, p. 10.
224. This exploration appears to have extended about as far as Point
Gammon, where, being "near the land," their Indian guide left them, as
stated in the text.
225. On the map of Port Fortuné, or Chatham, the course of one of these
excursions is marked by a dotted line, to which the reader is
referred.--_Vide_ notes on the map of Port Fortuné.
226. _Port Fortuné_, perhaps here used, to signify the port of chance or
hazard; referring particularly to the dangers they encountered in
passing round Monomoy to reach it. The latitude of Stage Harbor in
Chatham is 41° 40'. The distance from Mallebarre or Nauset to Port
Fortuné, or Stage Harbor, by water round the Southern point of Monomoy
is at the present time about nine leagues. The distance may possibly
have been greater in 1606, or Champlain may have increased the
distance by giving a wide berth to Monomoy in passing round it.
CHAPTER XV.
THE INCLEMENCY OF THE WEATHER NOT PERMITTING US AT THAT TIME TO CONTINUE
OUR DISCOVERIES, WE RESOLVED TO RETURN TO OUR SETTLEMENT. WHAT HAPPENED TO
US UNTIL WE REACHED IT.
After having gone some six or seven leagues, we sighted an island, which we
named La Soupçonneuse, [227] because in the distance we had several times
thought it was not an island. Then the wind became contrary, which caused
us to put back to the place whence we had set out, where we stayed two or
three days, no savage during this time presenting himself to us.
On the 20th, we set out anew and coasted along to the south-west nearly
twelve leagues, [228] where we passed near a river which is small and
difficult of access in consequence of the shoals and rocks at its mouth,
and which I called after my own name. [229] This coast is, so far as we
saw, low and sandy. The wind again grew contrary and very strong, which
caused us to put out to sea, as we were unable to advance on one tack or
the other; it, however, finally abated a little and grew favorable. But all
we could do was to return again to Port Fortuné, where the coast, though
low, is fine and good, yet difficult of access, there being no harbors,
many reefs, and shallow water for the distance of nearly two leagues from
land. The most that we found was seven or eight fathoms in some channels,
which, however, continued only a cable's length, when there were suddenly
only two or three fathoms; but one should not trust the water who has not
well examined the depth with the lead in hand.
Some hours after we had returned to port, a son of Pont Gravé, named
Robert, lost a hand in firing a musket, which burst in several pieces, but
without injuring any one near him.
Seeing now the wind continuing contrary, and being unable to put to sea, we
resolved meanwhile to get possession of some savages of this place, and,
taking them to our settlement, put them to grinding corn at the hand-mill,
as punishment for the deadly assault which they had committed on five or
six of our company. But it was very difficult to do this when we were
armed, since, if we went to them prepared to fight, they would turn and
flee into the woods, where they were not to be caught. It was necessary,
accordingly, to have recourse to artifice, and this is what we planned:
when they should come to seek friendship with us, to coax them by showing
them beads and other gewgaws, and assure them repeatedly of our good faith;
then to take the shallop well armed, and conduct on shore the most robust
and strong men we had, each one having a chain of beads and a fathom of
match on his arm; [230] and there, while pretending to smoke with them
(each one having an end of his match lighted so as not to excite suspicion,
it being customary to have fire at the end of a cord in order to light the
tobacco), coax them with pleasing words so as to draw them into the
shallop; and, if they should be unwilling to enter, each one approaching
should choose his man, and, putting the beads about his neck, should at the
same time put the rope on him to draw him by force. But, if they should be
too boisterous, and it should not be possible to succeed, they should be
stabbed, the rope being firmly held; and, if by chance any of them should
get away, there should be men on land to charge upon them with swords.
Meanwhile, the little cannon on our barque were to be kept ready to fire
upon their companions in case they should come to assist them, under cover
of which firearms the shallop could withdraw in security. The plan
above-mentioned was well carried out as it had been arranged.
Some days after these events had transpired, there came savages by threes
and fours to the shore, making signs to us to go to them. But we saw their
main body in ambuscade under a hillock behind some bushes, and I suppose
that they were only desirous of beguiling us into the shallop in order to
discharge a shower of arrows upon us, and then take to flight.
Nevertheless, Sieur de Poutrincourt did not hesitate to go to them with ten
of us, well equipped and determined to fight them, if occasion offered. We
landed at a place beyond their ambuscade, as we thought, and where they
could not surprise us. There three or four of us went ashore together with
Sieur de Poutrincourt: the others did not leave the shallop, in order to
protect it and be ready for an emergency. We ascended a knoll and went
about the woods to see if we could not discover more plainly the ambuscade.
When they saw us going so unconcernedly to them, they left and went to
other places, which we could not see, and of the four savages we saw only
two, who went away very slowly. As they withdrew, they made signs to us to
take our shallop to another place, thinking that it was not favorable for
the carrying out of their plan. And, when we also saw that they had no
desire to come to us, we re-embarked and went to the place they indicated,
which was the second ambuscade they had made, in their endeavor to draw us
unarmed to themselves by signs of friendship. But this we were not
permitted to do at that time, yet we approached very near them without
seeing this ambuscade, which we supposed was not far off. As our shallop
approached the shore, they took to flight, as also those in ambush, after
whom we fired some musket-shots, since we saw that their intention was only
to deceive us by flattery, in which they were disappointed; for we
recognized clearly what their purpose was, which had only mischief in view.
We retired to our barque after having done all we could.
On the same day, Sieur de Poutrincourt resolved to return to our settlement
on account of four or five sick and wounded men, whose wounds were growing
worse through lack of salves, of which our surgeon, by a great mistake on
his part, had brought but a small provision, to the detriment of the sick
and our own discomfort, as the stench from their wounds was so great, in a
little vessel like our own, that one could scarcely endure it. Moreover, we
were afraid that they would generate disease. Also we had provisions only
for going eight or ten days farther, however much economy might be
practised; and we knew not whether the return would last as long as the
advance, which was nearly two months.
At any rate, our resolution being formed, we withdrew, but with the
satisfaction that God had not left unpunished the misdeeds of these
barbarians. [231] We advanced no farther than to latitude 41° 30', which
was only half a degree farther than Sieur de Monts had gone on his voyage
of discovery. We set out accordingly from this harbor. [232]
On the next day, we anchored near Mallebarre, where we remained until the
28th of the month, when we set sail. On that day the air was very cold,
and there was a little snow. We took a direct course for Norumbegue or
Isle Haute. Heading east-north-east, we were two days at sea without
seeing land, being kept back by bad weather. On the following night, we
sighted the islands, which are between Quinibequy and Norumbegue. [233]
The wind was so strong that we were obliged, to put to sea until daybreak;
but we went so far from land, although we used very little sail, that we
could not see it again until the next day, when we saw Isle Haute, of which
we were abreast.
On the last day of October, between the Island of Monts Déserts and Cap
Corneille, [234] our rudder broke in several pieces, without our knowing
the reason. Each one expressed his opinion about it. On the following
night, with a fresh breeze, we came among a large number of islands and
rocks, whither the wind drove us; and we resolved to take refuge, if
possible, on the first land we should find.
We were for some time at the mercy of the wind and sea, with only the
foresail set. But the worst of it was that the night was dark, and we did
not know where we were going; for our barque could not be steered at all,
although we did all that was possible, holding in our hands the sheets of
the foresail, which sometimes enabled us to steer it a little. We kept
continually sounding, to see if it were possible to find a bottom for
anchoring, and to prepare ourselves for what might happen. But we found
none. Finally, as we were going faster than we wished, it was recommended
to put an oar astern together with some men, so as to steer to an island
which we saw, in order to shelter ourselves from the wind. Two other oars
also were put over the sides in the after part of the barque, to assist
those who were steering, in order to make the vessel bear up on one tack
and the other. This device served us so well, that we headed where we
wished, and ran in behind the point of the island we had seen, anchoring in
twenty-one fathoms of water until daybreak, when we proposed to reconnoitre
our position and seek for a place to make another rudder. The wind abated.
At daybreak, we found ourselves near the Isles Rangées, [235] entirely
surrounded by breakers, and we praised God for having preserved us so
wonderfully amid so many perils.
On the 1st of November, we went to a place which we deemed favorable for
beaching our vessel and repairing our helm. On this day, I landed, and saw
some ice two inches thick, it having frozen perhaps eight or ten days
before. I observed also that the temperature of the place differed very
much from that of Mallebarre and Port Fortuné; for the leaves of the trees
were not yet dead, and had not begun to fall when we set out, while here
they had all fallen, and it was much colder than at Port Fortuné.
On the next day, as we were beaching our barque, a canoe came containing
Etechemin savages, who told the savage Secondon in our barque that
Iouaniscou, with his companions, had killed some other savages, and carried
off some women as prisoners, whom they had executed near the Island of
Monts Déserts.
On the 9th of the month, we set out from near Cap Corneille, and anchored
the same day in the little passage [236] of Sainte Croix River.
On the morning of the next day, we landed our savage with some supplies
which we gave him. He was well pleased and satisfied at having made this
voyage with us, and took away with him some heads of the savages that had
been killed at Port Fortuné. [237] The same day we anchored in a very
pretty cove [238] on the south of the Island of Manan.
On the 12th of the month, we made sail; and, when under way, the shallop,
which we were towing astern, struck against our barque so violently and
roughly that it made an opening and stove in her upper works, and again in
the recoil broke the iron fastenings of our rudder. At first, we thought
that the first blow had stove in some planks in the lower part, which would
have sunk us; for the wind was so high that all we could do was to carry
our foresail. But finding that the damage was slight, and that there was no
danger, we managed with ropes to repair the rudder as well as we could, so
as to serve us to the end of our voyage. This was not until the 14th of
November, when, at the entrance to Port Royal, we came near being lost on a
point; but God delivered us from this danger as well as from many others to
which we had been exposed. [239]
ENDNOTES:
227. _La Soupçonneuse_, the doubtful, Martha's Vineyard. Champlain and
Poutrincourt, in the little French barque, lying low on the water,
creeping along the shore from Chatham to Point Gammon, could hardly
fail to be doubtful whether Martha's Vineyard were an island or a part
of the main land. Lescarbot, speaking of it, says, _et fut appelée
l'Ile Douteuse_.
228. Nearly twelve leagues in a southwesterly direction from their
anchorage at Stage Harbor in Chatham would bring them to Nobska Point,
at the entrance of the Vineyard Sound. This was the limit of
Champlain's explorations towards the south.
229. "Called after my own name." viz. _Rivière de Champlain_.--_Vide_ map,
1612. This river appears to be a tidal passage connecting the Vineyard
Sound and Buzzard's Bay, having Nouamesset and Uncatena Islands on the
south-west, and Nobska Point, Wood's Boll, and Long Neck on the
north-east. On our Coast Survey Charts, it is called Hadley River. Its
length is nearly two miles, in a winding course. The mouth of this
passage is full of boulders, and in a receding tide the current is
rough and boisterous, and would answer well to the description in the
text, as no other river does on the coast from Chatham to Wood's
Holl. On the small French barque, elevated but a little above the
surface of the water, its source in Buzzard's Bay could not be
discovered, especially if they passed round Nobska Point, under the
lee of which they probably obtained a view of the "shoals, and rocks"
which they saw at the mouth of the river.
230. _A fathom of match on his arm_. This was a rope, made of the tow of
hemp or flax, loosely twisted, and prepared to retain the fire, so
that, when once lighted, it would burn till the whole was consumed. It
was employed in connection with the match-lock, the arm then in common
use. The wheel-lock followed in order of time, which was discharged by
means of a notched wheel of steel, so arranged that its friction, when
in motion, threw sparks of fire into the pan that contained the
powder. The snaphance was a slight improvement upon the wheel-lock.
The flint-lock followed, now half a century since superseded by the
percussion lock and cap.
231. They did not capture any of the Indians, to be reduced to a species of
slavery, as they intended; but, as will appear further on, inhumanly
butchered several of them, which would seem to have been an act of
revenge rather than of punishment. The intercourse of the French with
the natives of Cape Cod was, on the whole, less satisfactory than that
with the northern tribes along the shores of Maine, New Brunswick, and
Nova Scotia. With the latter they had no hostile conflicts whatever,
although the Indians were sufficiently implacable and revengeful
towards their enemies. Those inhabiting the peninsula of Cape Cod, and
as far north as Cape Anne, were more suspicious, and had apparently
less clear conceptions of personal rights, especially the rights of
property. Might and right were to them identical. Whatever they
desired, they thought they had a right to have, if they had the power
or wit to obtain it. The French came in contact with only two of the
many subordinate tribes that were in possession of the peninsula;
viz., the Monomoyicks at Chatham, and the Nausets at Eastham. The
conflict in both instances grew out of an attempt on the part of the
natives to commit a petty theft. But it is quite possible that the
invasion of their territory by strangers, an unpardonable offence
among civilized people, may have created a feeling of hostility that
found a partial gratification in stealing their property; and, had not
this occasion offered, the stifled feeling of hostility may have
broken out in some other form. In general, they were not subsequently
unfriendly in their intercourse with the English. The Nausets were,
however, the same that sent a shower of arrows upon the Pilgrims in
1620, at the place called by them the "First Encounter," and not more
than three miles from the spot where the same tribe, in 1605, had
attacked the French, and Slain one of De Monts's men. It must,
however, be said that, beside the invasion of their country, the
Pilgrims had, some days before, rifled the granaries of the natives
dwelling a few miles north of the Nausets, and taken away without
leave a generous quantity of their winter's supply of corn; and this
may have inspired them with a desire to be rid of visitors who helped
themselves to their provisions, the fruit of their summer's toil,
their dependence for the winter already upon them, with so little
ceremony and such unscrupulous selfishness; for such it must have
appeared to the Nausets in their savage and unenlightened state. It is
to be regretted that these excellent men, the Pilgrims, did not more
fully comprehend the moral character of their conduct in this
instance. They lost at the outset a golden opportunity for impressing
upon the minds of the natives the great practical principle enunciated
by our Lord, the foundation of all good neighborhood, [Greek: Panta
oun osa an thelaete ina poiosin hymin hoi anthropoi, houto kai hymeis
poieite autois. Matth]. vii 12.--_Vide Bradford's Hist. Plym.
Plantation_, pp. 82, 83; _Mourt's Relation_, London, 1622, Dexter's
ed., pp. 21, 22, 30, 31, 55.
232. The latitude of Nobska Point, the most southern limit of their voyage,
is 41° 31', while the latitude of Nauset Harbor, the southern limit of
that of De Monts on the previous year, 1605, is 41° 49'. They
consequently advanced but 18', or eighteen nautical miles, further
south than they did the year before. Had they commenced this year's
explorations where those of the preceding terminated, as Champlain had
advised, they might have explored the whole coast as far as Long
Island Sound. _Vide antea_, pp. 109, 110.
233. Between the Kennebec and Penobscot.
234. _Vide antea_, note 177.
235. _Isles Rangées_, the small islands along the coast south-west of
Machias. _Vide_ map of 1612.
236. _Petit passage de la Rivière Saincte Croix_, the southern strait
leading into Eastport Harbor. This anchorage appears to have been in
Quoddy Roads between Quoddy Head and Lubeck.
237. In reporting the stratagem resorted to for decoying the Indians into
the hands of the French at Port Fortuné, Champlain passes over the
details of the bloody encounter, doubtless to spare himself and the
reader the painful record; but its results are here distinctly
stated. Compare _antea_, pp. 132, 133.
238. Sailing from Quoddy Head to Annapolis Bay, they would in their course
pass round the northern point of the Grand Manan; and they probably
anchored in Whale Cove, or perhaps in Long Island Bay, a little
further south. Champlain's map is so oriented that both of these bays
would appear to be on the south of the Grand Manan. _Vide_ map of
1612.
239. Champlain had now completed his survey south of the Bay of Fundy. He
had traced the shore-line with its sinuosities and its numberless
islands far beyond the two distinguished headlands, Cape sable and
Cape Cod, which respectively mark the entrance to the Gulf of Maine.
The priority of these observations, particularly with reference to the
habits, mode of life, and character of the aborigines, invests them
with an unusual interest and value. Anterior to the visits of
Champlain, the natives on this coast had come in contact with
Europeans but rarely and incidentally, altogether too little
certainly, if we except those residing on the southern coast of Nova
Scotia, to have any modifying effect upon their manners, customs, or
mode of life. What Champlain reports, therefore, of the Indians, is
true of them in their purely savage state, untouched by any influences
of European civilization. This distinguishes the record, and gives to
it a special importance.
CHAPTER XVI.
RETURN FROM THE FOREGOING DISCOVERIES, AND WHAT TRANSPIRED DURING THE
WINTER.
Upon our arrival, Lescarbot, who had remained at the settlement, assisted
by the others who had stayed there, welcomed us with a humorous
entertainment. [240]
Having landed and had time to take breath, each one began to make little
gardens, I among the rest attending to mine, in order in the spring to sow
several kinds of seeds which had been brought from France, and which grew
very well in all the gardens.
Sieur de Poutrincourt, moreover, had a water-mill built nearly a league and
a half from our settlement, near the point where grain had been planted.
This mill [241] was built at a fall, on a little river which is not
navigable on account of the large number of rocks in it, and which falls
into a small lake. In this place, there is such an abundance of herring in
their season that shallops could be loaded with them, if one were to take
the trouble to bring the requisite apparatus. The savages also of this
region come here sometimes to fish. A quantity of charcoal was made by us
for our forge. During the winter, in order not to remain idle, I undertook
the building of a road along the wood to a little, river or brook, which we
named La Truitière, [242] there being many trout there. I asked Sieur de
Poutrincourt for two or three men, which he gave me to assist in making
this passage-way. I got along so well that in a little while I had the road
through. It extends through to trout-brook, and measures nearly two
thousand paces. It served us as a walk under the shelter of the trees,
which I had left on both sides. This led Sieur de Poutrincourt to determine
to make another through the woods, in order that we might go straight to
the mouth of Port Royal, it being a distance of nearly three leagues and a
half by land from our settlement. He had this commenced and continued for
about half a league from La Truitière; but he did not finish it, as the
undertaking was too laborious, and he was occupied by other things at the
time more necessary. Some time after our arrival, we saw a shallop
containing savages, who told us that a savage, who was one of our friends,
had been killed by those belonging to the place whence they came, which was
Norumbegue, in revenge for the killing of the men of Norumbegue and
Quinibequy by Iouaniscou, also a savage, and his followers, as I have
before related; and that some Etechemins had informed the savage Secondon,
who was with us at that time.
The commander of the shallop was the savage named Ouagimou, who was on
terms of friendship with Bessabez, chief of the river Norumbegue, of whom
he asked the body of Panounias, [243] who had been killed. The latter
granted it to him, begging him to tell his friends that he was very sorry
for his death, and assuring him that it was without his knowledge that he
had been killed, and that, inasmuch as it was not his fault, he begged him
to tell them that he desired they might continue to live as friends. This
Ouagimou promised to do upon his return. He said to us that he was very
uneasy until he got away from them, whatever friendship they might show
him, since they were liable to change; and he feared that they would treat
him in the same manner as they had the one who had been killed.
Accordingly, he did not tarry long after being dismissed. He took the body
in his shallop from Norumbegue to our settlement, a distance of fifty
leagues.
As soon as the body was brought on shore, his relatives and friends began
to shout by his side, having painted their entire face with black, which is
their mode of mourning. After lamenting much, they took a quantity of
tobacco and two or three dogs and other things belonging to the deceased,
and burned them some thousand paces from our settlement on the
sea-shore. Their cries continued until they returned to their cabin.
The next day they took the body of the deceased and wrapped it in a red
covering, which Mabretou, chief of this place, urgently implored me to give
him, since it was handsome and large. He gave it to the relatives of the
deceased, who thanked me very much for it. After thus; wrapping up the
body, they decorated it with several kinds of _matachiats_; that is,
strings of beads and bracelets of diverse colors. They painted the face,
and put on the head many feathers and other things, the finest they had.
Then they placed the body on its knees between two sticks, with another
under the arms to sustain it. Around the body were the mother, wife, and
others of the relatives and friends of the deceased, both women and girls,
howling like dogs.
While the women and girls were shrieking, the savage named Mabretou made an
address to his companions on the death of the deceased, urging all to take
vengeance for the wickedness and treachery committed by the subjects of
Bessabez, and to make war upon them as speedily as possible. All agreed to
do so in the spring.
After the harangue was finished and the cries had ceased, they carried the
body of the deceased to another cabin. After smoking tobacco together,
they wrapped it in an elk-skin likewise; and, binding it very securely,
they kept it until there should be a larger number of savages present, from
each one of whom the brother of the deceased expected to receive presents,
it being their custom to give them to those who have lost fathers, mothers,
wives, brothers, or sisters.
On the night of the 26th of December, there was a southeast wind, which
blew down several trees. On the last day of December, it began to snow,
which continued until the morning of the next day. On the both of January
following, 1607, Sieur de Poutrincourt, desiring to ascend the river
Équille, [244] found it at a distance of some two leagues from our
settlement sealed with ice, which caused him to return, not being able to
advance any farther. On the 8th of February, some pieces of ice began to
flow down from the upper part of the river into the harbor, which only
freezes along the shore. On the both of May following, it snowed all night;
and, towards the end of the month, there were heavy hoar-frosts, which
lasted until the 10th or 12th of June, when all the trees were covered with
leaves, except the oaks, which do not leaf out until about the 15th. The
winter was not so severe as on the preceding years, nor did the snow
continue so long on the ground. It rained very often, so that the savages
suffered a severe famine, owing to the small quantity of snow. Sieur de
Poutrincourt supported a part of them who were with us; namely, Mabretou,
his wife and children, and some others.
We spent this winter very pleasantly, and fared generously by means of the
ORDRE DE BON TEMPS, which I introduced. This all found useful for their
health, and more advantageous than all the medicines that could have been
used. By the rules of the order, a chain was put, with some little
ceremonies, on the neck of one of our company, commissioning him for the
day to go a hunting. The next day it was conferred upon another, and thus
in succession. All exerted themselves to the utmost to see who would do the
best and bring home the finest game. We found this a very good arrangement,
as did also the savages who were with us. [245]
There were some cases of _mal de la terre_ among us, which was, however,
not so violent as in the previous years. Nevertheless, seven died from it,
and another from an arrow wound, which he had received from the savages at
Port Fortuné. [246]
Our surgeon, named Master Estienne, opened some of the bodies, as we did
the previous years, and found almost all the interior parts affected. Eight
or ten of the sick got well by spring.
At the beginning of March and of April, all began to prepare gardens, so as
to plant seeds in May, which is the proper time for it. They grew as well
as in France, but were somewhat later. I think France is at least a month
and a half more forward. As I have stated, the time to plant is in May,
although one can sometimes do so in April; yet the seeds planted then do
not come forward any faster than those planted in May, when the cold can no
longer damage the plants except those which are very tender, since there
are many which cannot endure the hoar-frosts, unless great care and
attention be exercised.
On the 24th of May, we perceived a small barque [247] of six or seven tons'
burthen, which we sent men to reconnoitre; and it was found to be a young
man from St. Malo, named Chevalier, who brought letters from Sieur de Monts
to Sieur de Poutrincourt, by which he directed him to bring back his
company to France. [248] He also announced to us the birth of Monseigneur,
the Duke of Orleans, to our delight, in honor of which event we made
bonfires and chanted the _Te Deum_. [249]
Between the beginning and the 20th of June, some thirty or forty savages
assembled in this place in order to make war upon the Almouchiquois, and
revenge the death of Panounias, who was interred by the savages according
to their custom, who gave afterwards a quantity of peltry to a brother of
his.[250] The presents being made, all of them set out from this place on
the 29th of June for Choüacoet, which is the country of the Almouchiquois,
to engage in the war.
Some days after the arrival of the above Chevalier, Sieur de Poutrincourt
sent him to the rivers St. John [251] and St. Croix [252] to trade for
furs. But he did not permit him to go without men to bring back the barque,
since some had reported that he desired to return to France with the vessel
in which he had come, and leave us in our settlement. Lescarbot was one of
those who accompanied him, who up to this time had not left Port Royal.
This is the farthest he went, only fourteen or fifteen leagues beyond Port
Royal.
While awaiting the return of Chevalier, Sieur de Poutrincourt went to the
head of Baye Françoise in a shallop with seven or eight men. Leaving the
harbor and heading northeast a quarter east for some twenty-five leagues
along the coast, we arrived at a cape where Sieur de Poutrincourt desired
to ascend a cliff more than thirty fathoms high, in doing which he came
near losing his life. For, having reached the top of the rock which is very
narrow, and which he had ascended with much difficulty, the summit trembled
beneath him. The reason was that, in course of time, moss had gathered
there four or five feet in thickness, and, not being solid, trembled when
one was on top of it, and very often when one stepped on a stone three or
four others fell down. Accordingly, having gone up with difficulty, he
experienced still greater in coming down, although some sailors, men very
dexterous in climbing, carried him a hawser, a rope of medium size, by
means of which he descended, This place was named Cap de Poutrincourt,
[253] and is in latitude 45° 40'.
We went as far as the head of this bay, but saw nothing but certain white
stones suitable for making lime, yet they are found only in small
quantities. We saw also on some islands a great number of gulls. We
captured as many of them as we wished. We made the tour of the bay, in
order to go to the Port aux Mines where I had previously been, [254] and
whither I conducted Sieur de Poutrincourt, who collected some little pieces
of copper with great difficulty. All this bay has a circuit of perhaps
twenty leagues, with a little river at its head, which is very sluggish and
contains but little water. There are many other little brooks, and some
places where there are good harbors at high tide, which rises here five
fathoms. In one of these harbors three or four leagues north of Cap de
Poutrincourt, we found a very old cross all covered with moss and almost
all rotten, a plain indication that before this there had been Christians
there. All of this country is covered with dense forests, and with some
exceptions is not very attractive. [255]
From the Port aux Mines [256] we returned to our settlement. In this bay
there are strong tidal currents running in a south-westerly direction.
On the 12th of July, Ralleau, secretary of Sieur de Monts, arrived with
three others in a shallop from a place called Niganis, [257] distant from
Port Royal some hundred and sixty or hundred and seventy leagues,
confirming the report which Chevalier had brought to Sieur de Poutrincourt.
On the 3d of July, [258] three barques were fitted out to send the men and
supplies, which were at our settlement, to Canseau, distant one hundred and
fifteen leagues from our settlement, and in latitude 45° 20', where the
vessel [259] was engaged in fishing, which was to carry us back to France.
Sieur de Poutrincourt sent back all his companions, but remained with eight
others at the settlement, so as to carry to France some grain not yet quite
ripe. [260]
On the 10th of August, Mabretou arrived from the war, who told us that he
had been at Choüacoet, and had killed twenty savages and wounded ten or
twelve; also that Onemechin, chief of that place, Marchin, and one other,
had been killed by Sasinou, chief of the river of Quinibequy, who was
afterwards killed by the companions of Onemechin and Marchin. All this war
was simply on account of the savage Panounias, one of our friends who, as I
have said above, had been killed at Norumbegue by the followers of
Onemechin and Marchin. At present, the chiefs in place of Onemechin,
Marchin, and Sasinou are their sons: namely, for Sasinou, Pememen; Abriou
for his father, Marchin; and for Onemechin, Queconsicq. The two latter were
wounded by the followers of Mabretou, who seized them under pretence of
friendship, as is their fashion, something which both sides have to guard
against. [261]
ENDNOTES:
240. Lescarbot, the author of a History of New France often referred to in
our notes, published a volume entitled "LES MUSES DE LA NOUVELLE
FRANCE," in which may be found the play entitled LE THEATRE DE
NEPTUNE, which he composed to celebrate the return of this expedition.
241. The mill is represented on Champlain's map of Port Royal as situated
on the stream which he calls _Rivière du Moulin_, the River of the
Mill. This is Allen River; and the site of the mill was a short
distance south-east of the "point where corn had been planted," which
was on the spot now occupied by the village of Annapolis.
242. _Vide antea_, note 212. see also the map of Port Royal, where the road
is delineated, p. 24.
243. This Indian Panounias and his wife had accompanied De Monts in 1605,
on his expedition to Cape Cod.--_Vide_ antea, p. 55.
244. Now the Annapolis River.
245. The conceit of this novel order was a happy one, as it served to
dispel the gloom of a long winter in the forests of La Cadie, as well
as to improve the quality and variety of their diet. The _noblesse_,
or gentlemen of the party, were fifteen, who served in turn and for a
single day as caterer or steward, the turn of each recurring once in
fifteen days. It was their duty to add to the ordinary fare such
delicate fish or game as could be captured or secured by each for his
particular day. They always had some delicacy at breakfast; but the
dinner was the great banquet, when the most imposing ceremony was
observed.
246. Champlain does not inform us how many of Poutrincourt's party were
killed in the affray at Chatham. He mentions one as killed on the
spot. He speaks of carrying away the "dead bodies" for burial. He also
says they made a "deadly assault" upon "five or six of our company;"
and another appears to have died of his wounds after their return to
Port Royal, as stated in the text.
247. _Une petite barque_. The French barque was a small vessel or large
boat, rigged with two masts; and those employed by De Monts along our
coast varied from six to eighteen tons burden, and must not be
confounded with our modern bark, which is generally much larger.
The _vaisseau_, often mentioned by Champlain, included all large
vessels, those used for fishing, the fur-trade, and the transportation
of men and supplies for the colony.
The _chaloupe_ was a row-boat of convenient size for penetrating
shallow places, was dragged behind the barque in the explorations of
our coast, and used for minor investigations of rivers and estuaries.
The _patache_, an advice-boat, is rarely used by Champlain, and then
in the place of the shallop.
248. It Seems that young Chevalier had come out in the "Jonas," the same
ship that had brought out Poutrincourt, Lescarbot, and others, the
year before. It had stopped at Canseau to fish for cod. It brought the
unwelcome news that the company of De Monts had been broken up; that
the Hollanders, conducted by a "French traitor named La Jeunesse," had
destroyed the fur-trading establishments on the St. Lawrence, which
rendered it impracticable to sustain, as heretofore, the expenses of
the company. The monopoly of the fur-trade, granted to De Monts for
ten years, had been rescinded by the King's Council. "We were very
sad," says Lescarbot, "to see so fine and holy an undertaking broken
off, and that so many labors and perils endured had resulted in
nothing: and that the hope of establishing there the name of God and
the Catholic Faith had disappeared. Notwithstanding, after M. de
Poutrincourt had a long while mused hereupon, he said that, although
he should have none to come with him, except his family, he would not
forsake the enterprise."--_His. Nou. France_, par M. Lescarbot.
Paris, 1612. pp. 591-2.
249. On the 16th of April, 1607, was born the second son of Henry IV. by
Marie de Medicis, who received the title, Le Duc d'Orléans. In France,
public rejoicings were universal. On the 22d of the month, he was
invested with the insignia of the Order of St. Michael and the Holy
Ghost with great pomp, on which occasion a banquet was given by the
King in the great hall at Fontainebleau, and in the evening the park
was illuminated by bonfires and a pyrotechnic display, which was
witnessed by a vast concourse of people. The young prince was baptized
privately by the Cardinal de Gondy, but the state ceremonies of his
christening were delayed, and appear never to have taken place: he
died in the fifth year of his age, never having received any Christian
name.--_Vide the Life of Marie de Medicis_, by Miss Pardoe, London,
1852, Vol. I. p. 416; _Memoirs of the Duke of Sully_, Lennox, trans.,
Phila., 1817, Vol. IV. p. 140. In New France, the little colony at
Port Royal attested their loyalty by suitable manifestations of
joy. "As the day declined," Says Lescarbot, "we made bonfires to
celebrate the birth of Monseigneur le Duc d'Orléans, and caused our
cannon and falconets to thunder forth again, accompanied with plenty
of musket-shots, having before for this purpose chanted a _Te Deum_."
--_Vide His. Nou. France_, Paris, 1612, p.594.
250. Lescarbot says that about four hundred set out for the war against the
Almouchiquois, at Choüacoet, or Saco. The savages were nearly two
months in assembling themselves together. Mabretou had sent out his
two sons, Actaudin and Actaudinech, to summon them to come to Port
Royal as a rendezvous. They came from the river St. John, and from the
region of Gaspé. Their purpose was accomplished, as will appear in the
sequel.
251. At St. John, they visited the cabin of Secondon, the Sagamore, with
whom they bartered for some furs. Lescarbot, who was in the
expedition, says, "The town of Ouïgoudy was a great enclosure upon a
hill, compassed about with high and small trees, tied one against
another; and within it many cabins, great and small, one of which was
as large as a market-hall, wherein many households resided." In the
cabin of Secondon. they saw some eighty or a hundred savages, all
nearly naked. They were celebrating a feast which they call _Tabagie_.
Their chief made his warriors pass in review before his guests.--_Vide
His. Nou. France_, par M. Lescarbot. Paris, 1612. p. 598.
252. They found sack at St. Croix that had been left there by De Monts's
colony three years before, of which they drank. Casks were still lying
in the deserted court-yard: and others had been used as fuel by
mariners, who had chanced to come there.
253. De Laet's map has C. de Poutrincourt; the map of the English and
French Commissaries, C. Fendu or split Cape. Halliburton has Split
Cape, so likewise has the Admiralty map of 1860.
It is situated at the entrance of the Basin of Mines, and about eight
miles southwest of Parrsborough. The point of this cape is in latitude
45° 20'.
254. _Vide antea_, p. 26.
255. The author is here speaking of the country about the Basin of Mines.
The river at the head of the bay is the Shubenacadie. It is not easy
to determine where the moss-covered cross was found. The distance from
Cap de Poutrincourt is indefinite, and the direction could not have
been exactly north. There is too much uncertainty to warrant even a
conjecture as to its locality.
256. The port aux Mines is Advocate's Harbor.--_Vide antea_, p. 26, and
note 67.
257. Niganis is a small Bay in the Island of Cape Breton, south of Cape
North: by De Laet called _Ninganis_; English, and French Commissaries,
_Niganishe_; modern maps, _Niganish_.
258. The _3d of July_ was doubtless an error of the printer for the 30th,
as appears from the later date in the preceding paragraph, and the
statement of Lescarbot, that he left on the 30th of July. He says they
had one large barque, two small ones, and a shallop. One of the small
ones was sent before, while the other two followed on the 30th; and he
adds that Poutrincourt remained eleven days longer to await the
ripening of their grain, which agrees with Champlain's subsequent
statement, that he left with Poutrincourt on the 11th of
August.--_Vide His. Nou. France_, 1612, p. 603.
259. The "Jonas."--_Vide antea_, p. 146.
260. _Vide antea_, note 258.
261. The implacable character of the American Indian is well illustrated in
this skirmish which took place at Saco. The old chief Mabretou, whose
life had been prolonged through several generations, had inspired his
allies to revenge, and had been present at the conflict. The Indian
Panounias had been killed in an affray, the particular cause of which
is not stated. To avenge his death, many lives were lost on both
sides. The two chiefs of Saco were slain, and in turn the author of
their death perished by the hand of their friends. Lescarbot informs
us that Champdoré, under Poutrincourt, subsequently visited Saco, and
concluded a formal peace between the belligerent parties, emphasizing
its importance by impressive forms, and ceremonies.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE SETTLEMENT ABANDONED.--RETURN TO FRANCE OF SIEUR DE POUTRINCOURT AND
ALL HIS COMPANY.
On the 11th of August, we set out from our settlement in a shallop, and
coasted along as far as Cape Fourchu, where I had previously been.
Continuing our course along the coast as far as Cap de la Hève, where we
first landed with Sieur de Monts, on the 8th of May, 1604, [262] we
examined the coast from this place as far as Canseau, a distance of nearly
sixty leagues. This I had not yet done, and I observed it very carefully,
making a map of it as of the other coasts.
Departing from Cap de la Hève, we went as far as Sesambre, an island so
called by some people from St. Malo, [263] and distant fifteen leagues from
La Hève. Along the route are a large number of islands, which we named Les
Martyres, [264] since some Frenchmen were once killed there by the savages.
These islands lie in several inlets and bays. In one of them is a river
named St. Marguerite, [265] distant seven leagues from Sesambre, which is
in latitude 44° 25'. The islands and coasts are thickly covered with pines,
firs, birches, and other trees of inferior quality. Fish and also fowl are
abundant.
After leaving Sesambre, we passed a bay which is unobstructed, of seven or
eight leagues in extent, with no islands except at the extremity, where is
the mouth of a small river, containing but little water. [266] Then,
heading north-east a quarter east, we arrived at a harbor distant eight
leagues from Sesambre, which is very suitable for vessels of a hundred or a
hundred and twenty tons. At its entrance is an island from which one can
walk to the main land at low tide. We named this place Port Saincte
Helaine, [267] which is in latitude 44° 40' more or less.
From this place we proceeded to a bay called La Baye de Toutes Isles, [268]
of some fourteen or fifteen leagues in extent, a dangerous place on account
of the presence of banks, shoals, and reefs. The country presents a very
unfavorable appearance, being filled with the same kind of trees which I
have mentioned before. Here we encountered bad weather.
Hence we passed on near a river, six leagues distant, called Rivière de
l'Isle Verte,[269] there being a green island at its entrance. This short
distance which we traversed is filled with numerous rocks extending nearly
a league out to sea, where the breakers are high, the latitude being 45°
15'.
Thence we went to a place where there is an inlet, with two or three
islands, and a very good harbor, [270] distant three leagues from l'Isle
Verte. We passed also by several islands near and in a line with each
other, which we named Isles Rangées, [271] and which are distant six or
seven leagues from l'Isle Verte. Afterwards we passed by another bay [272]
containing several islands, and proceeded to a place where we found a
vessel engaged in fishing between some islands, which are a short distance
from the main land, and distant four leagues from the Rangées. This place
we named Port de Savalette, [273] the name of the master of the vessel
engaged in fishing, a Basque, who entertained us bountifully; and was very
glad to see us, since there were savages there who purposed some harm to
him, which we prevented. [274]
Leaving this place, we arrived on the 27th of the month at Canseau, distant
six leagues from Port de Savalette, having passed on our way a large number
of islands. At Canseau, we found that the three barques had arrived at port
in safety. Champdoré and Lescarbot came out to receive us. We also found
the vessel ready to sail, having finished its fishing and awaiting only
fair weather to return. Meanwhile, we had much enjoyment among these
islands, where we found the greatest possible quantity of raspberries.
All the coast which we passed along from Cape Sable to this place is
moderately high and rocky, in most places bordered by numerous islands and
breakers, which extend out to sea nearly two leagues in places, and are
very unfavorable for the approach of vessels. Yet there cannot but be good
harbors and roadsteads along the coasts and islands, if they were explored.
As to the country, it is worse and less promising than in other places
which we had seen, except on some rivers or brooks, where it is very
pleasant; but there is no doubt that the winter in these regions is cold,
lasting from six to seven months.
The harbor of Canseau [275] is a place surrounded by islands,
to which the approach is very difficult, except in fair weather, on account
of the rocks and breakers about it. Fishing, both green and dry, is carried
on here.
From this place to the Island of Cape Breton, which is in latitude 45° 45'
and 14° 50' of the deflection of the magnetic needle, [276] it is eight
leagues, and to Cape Breton twenty-five. Between the two there is a large
bay, [277] extending Some nine or ten leagues into the interior and making
a passage between the Island of Cape Breton and the main land through to
the great Bay of St. Lawrence, by which they go to Gaspé and Isle Percée,
where fishing is carried on. This passage along the Island of Cape Breton
is very narrow. Although there is water enough, large vessels do not pass
there at all on account of the strong currents and the impetuosity of the
tides which prevail. This we named Le Passage Courant, [278] and it is in
latitude 45° 45'.
The Island of Cape Breton is of a triangular shape, with a circuit of about
eighty leagues. Most of the country is mountainous, yet in some parts very
pleasant. In the centre of it there is a kind of lake, [279] where the sea
enters by the north a quarter north-west, and also by the south a quarter
Southeast. [280] Here are many islands filled with plenty of game, and
shell-fish of various kinds, including oysters, which, however, are not of
very good flavor. In this place there are two harbors, where fishing is
carried on; namely, Le Port aux Anglois, [281] distant from Cape Breton
some two or three leagues, and Niganis, eighteen or twenty leagues north a
quarter north-west. The Portuguese once made an attempt to settle this
island, and spent a winter here; but the inclemency of the season and the
cold caused them to abandon their settlement.
On the 3rd of September, we set out from Canseau. On the 4th, we were off
Sable Island. On the 6th, we reached the Grand Bank, where the catching of
green fish is carried on, in latitude 45° 30'. On the 26th, we entered the
sound near the shores of Brittany and England, in sixty-five fathoms of
water and in latitude 49° 30'. On the 28th, we put in at Roscou, [282] in
lower Brittany, where we were detained by bad weather until the last day of
September, when, the wind coming round favorable, we put to sea in order to
pursue our route to St. Malo, [283] which formed the termination of these
voyages, in which God had guided us without shipwreck or danger.
END OF THE VOYAGES FROM THE YEAR 1604 TO 1608.
ENDNOTES:
262. _Vide antea_, p. 9 and note 22.
263. Sesambre. This name was probably suggested by the little islet,
_Cézembre_, one of several on which are military works for the defence
of St. Malo. On De Laet's map of 1633, it is written _Sesembre_; on
that of Charlevoix. 1744, _Sincenibre_. It now appears on the
Admiralty maps corrupted into Sambro. There is a cape and a harbor
near this island which bear the same name.
264. The islands stretching along from Cap de la Hève to Sambro Island are
called the _Martyres Iles_ on De Laet's map, 1633.
265. The bay into which this river empties still retains the name of
St. Margaret.
266. Halifax Harbor. Its Indian name was Chebucto, written on the map of
the English and French Commissaries _Shebûctû_. On Champlain's map,
1612, as likewise on that of De Laet, 1633, it is called "_Baye
Senne_," perhaps from _saine_, signifying the unobstructed bay.
267. Eight leagues from the Island Sesambre or Sambro Island would take
them to Perpisawick Inlet, which is doubtless _Le Port Saincte
Helaine_ of Champlain. The latitude of this harbor is 44° 41',
differing but a single minute from that of the text, which is
extraordinary, the usual variation being from ten to thirty minutes.
268. Nicomtau Bay is fifteen leagues from Perpisawick Inlet, but _La Baye
de Toutes Isles_ is, more strictly speaking, an archipelago, extending
along the coast, say from Clam Bay to Liscomb Point, as may be seen by
reference to Champlain's map, 1612, and that of De Laet, 1633,
Cruxius, 1660, and of Charlevoix, 1744. The north-eastern portion of
this archipelago is now called, according to Laverdière, Island Bay.
269. _Rivière de l'Isle Verte_, or Green Island River, is the River
St. Mary; and Green Island is Wedge Island near its mouth. The
latitude at the mouth of the river is 45° 3'. This little island is
called _I. Verte_ on De Laet's map, and likewise on that of
Charlevoix; on the map of the English and French Commissaries, Liscomb
or Green Island.
270. This inlet has now the incongruous name of Country Harbor: the three
islands at its mouth are Harbor, Goose, and Green Islands. The inlet
is called Mocodome on Charlevoix's map.
271. There are several islets on the east of St. Catharine's River, near
the shore, which Laverdière suggests are the _Isles Rangées_. They
are exceedingly small, and no name is given them on the Admiralty
charts.
272. Tor Bay.
273. _Le Port de Savalette_. Obviously White Haven, which is four leagues
from the Rangées and six from Canseau, as stated in the text.
Lescarbot gives a very interesting account of Captain Savalette, the
old Basque fisherman, who had made forty-two voyages into these
waters. He had been eminently successful in fishing, having taken
daily, according to his own account, fifty crowns' worth of codfish,
and expected his voyage would yield, ten thousand francs. His vessel
was of eighty tons burden, and could take in a hundred thousand dry
codfish. He was well known, and a great favorite with the voyagers to
this coast. He was from St. Jean de Luz, a small seaport town in the
department of the Lower Pyrenees in France, near the borders of Spain,
distinguished even at this day for its fishing interest.
274. The Indians were in the habit of selecting from day to day the best of
Savalette's fish when they came in, and appropriating them to their
own use, _nolens volens_.
275. _Canseau_. Currency has been given to an idle fancy that this name was
derived from that of a French navigator, but it has been abundantly
disproved by the Abbé Laverdière. It is undoubtedly a word of Indian
origin.
276. The variation of the magnetic needle in 1871, fifteen miles South of
the Harbor of Canseau, was, according to the Admiralty charts, 23
degrees west. The magnetic needle was employed in navigation as early
as the year 1200, and its variation had been discovered before the
time of Columbus. But for a long period its variation was supposed to
be fixed; that is to say, was supposed to be always the same in the
same locality. A few years before Champlain made his voyages to
America, it was discovered that its variation in Paris was not fixed,
but that it changed from year to year. If Champlain was aware of this,
his design in noting its exact variation, as he did at numerous points
on our coast, may have been to furnish data for determining at some
future day whether the variation were changeable here as well as in
France. But, whether he was aware of the discovery then recently made
in Paris or not, he probably intended, by noting the declination of
the needle, to indicate his longitude, at least approximately.
277. Chedabucto Bay.
278. The Strait of Canseau. Champlain gives it on his map, 1612. _Pasage du
glas;_ De Laet, 1633, _Passage du glas;_ Creuxius, 1660, Fretum
Campseium; Charlevoix, 1744, _Passage de Canceau_. It appears from the
above that the early name was soon superseded by that which it now
bears.
279. Now called _La Bras d'Or_, The Golden Arm.
280. There is, in fact, no passage of La Bras d'Or on the south-west; and
Champlain corrects his error, as may be seen by reference to his map
of 1612. It may also be stated that the sea enters from the
north-east. _Nordouest_ in the original is here probably a
typographical error for _nordest_. There are, indeed, two passages,
both on the north-east, distinguished as the Great and the Little Bras
d'Or.
281. _Le Port aux Anglois_, the Harbor of the English. On De Laet's map,
Port aux Angloix. This is the Harbor of Louisburgh, famous in the
history of the Island of Cape Breton.
282. Roscofs, a small seaport town. On Mercator's Atlas of 1623, it is
written Roscou, as in the text.
283. According to Lescarbot, they remained at St. Malo eight days, when
they went in a barque to Honfleur, narrowly escaping
shipwreck. Poutrincourt proceeded to Paris, where he exhibited to
Henry IV. corn, wheat, rye, barley, and oats, products of the colony
which he had so often promised to cherish, but whose means of
subsistence he had now nevertheless ungraciously taken away.
Poutrincourt also presented to him five _oustards_, or wild geese,
which he had bred from the shell. The king was greatly delighted with
them, and had them preserved at Fontainebleau. These exhibitions of
the products of New France had the desired effect upon the generous
heart of Henry IV.; and De Monts's monopoly of the fur-trade was
renewed for one year, to furnish some slight aid in establishing his
colonies in New France.
THE VOYAGES
TO THE
GREAT RIVER ST. LAWRENCE,
MADE BY
SIEUR DE CHAMPLAIN,
CAPTAIN IN ORDINARY TO THE KING IN THE MARINE,
FROM THE YEAR 1608 TO THAT OF 1612.
CHAPTER I.
DETERMINATION OF SIEUR DE MONTS TO MAKE EXPLORATIONS IN THE INTERIOR; HIS
COMMISSION, AND ITS INFRINGEMENT BY THE BASQUES, WHO DISARMED THE VESSEL OF
PONT GRAVÉ; AND THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THEM WHICH THEY SUBSEQUENTLY MADE.
Having returned to France after a stay of three years in New France, [283]
I proceeded to Sieur de Monts, and related to him the principal events of
which I had been a witness since his departure, and gave him the map and
plan of the most remarkable coasts and harbors there.
Some time afterward, Sieur de Monts determined to continue his undertaking,
and complete the exploration of the interior along the great river
St. Lawrence, where I had been by order of the late King Henry the Great
[284] in the year 1603, for a distance of some hundred and eighty leagues,
commencing in latitude 48° 40', that is, at Gaspé, at the entrance of the
river, as far as the great fall, which is in latitude 45° and some minutes,
where our exploration ended, and where boats could not pass as we then
thought, since we had not made a careful examination of it as we have since
done. [285]
Now after Sieur de Monts had conferred with me several times in regard to
his purposes concerning the exploration, he resolved to continue so noble
and meritorious an undertaking, notwithstanding the hardships and labors of
the past. He honored me with his lieutenancy for the voyage; and, in order
to carry out his purpose, he had two vessels equipped, one commanded by
Pont Gravé, who was commissioned to trade with the savages of the country
and bring back the vessels, while I was to winter in the country.
Sieur de Monts, for the purpose of defraying the expenses of the
expedition, obtained letters from his Majesty for one year, by which all
persons were forbidden to traffic in peltry with the savages, on penalties
stated in the following commission:--
HENRY BY THE GRACE OF GOD KING OF FRANCE AND NAVARRE, to our beloved and
faithful Councillors, the officers of our Admiralty in Normandy, Brittany,
and Guienne, bailiffs, marshals, prevosts, judges, or their lieutenants,
and to each one of them, according to his authority, throughout the extent
of their powers, jurisdictions, and precincts, greeting:
Acting upon the information which has been given us by those who have
returned from New France, respecting the good quality and fertility of the
lands of that country, and the disposition of the people to accept the
knowledge of God, We have resolved to continue the settlement previously
undertaken there, in order that our subjects may go there to trade without
hinderance. And in view of the proposition to us of Sieur de Monts,
Gentleman in Ordinary of our chamber, and our Lieutenant-General in that
country, to make a settlement, on condition of our giving him means and
supplies for sustaining the expense of it, [286] it has pleased us to
promise and assure him that none of our subjects but himself shall be
permitted to trade in peltry and other merchandise, for the period of one
year only, in the lands, regions, harbors, rivers, and highways throughout
the extent of his jurisdiction: this We desire to have fulfilled. For these
causes and other considerations impelling us thereto, We command and decree
that each one of you, throughout the extent of your powers, jurisdictions,
and precincts, shall act in our stead and carry out our will in distinctly
prohibiting and forbidding all merchants, masters, and captains of vessels,
also sailors and others of our subjects, of whatever rank and profession,
to fit out any vessels, in which to go themselves or send others in order
to engage in trade or barter in peltry and other things with the savages of
New France, to visit, trade, or communicate with them during the space of
one year, within the jurisdiction of Sieur de Monts, on penalty of
disobedience, and the entire confiscation of their vessels, supplies, arms,
and merchandise for the benefit of Sieur de Monts; and, in order that the
punishment of their disobedience may be assured, you will allow, as We have
and do allow, the aforesaid Sieur de Monts or his lieutenants to seize,
apprehend, and arrest all violators of our present prohibition and order,
also their vessels, merchandise, arms, supplies, and victuals, in order to
take and deliver them up to the hands of justice, so that action may be
taken not only against the persons, but also the property of the offenders,
as the case shall require. This is our will, and We bid you to have it at
once read and published in all localities and public places within your
authority and jurisdiction, as you may deem necessary, by the first one of
our officers or sergeants in accordance with this requisition, by virtue of
these presents, or a copy of the same, properly attested once only by one
of our well-beloved and faithful councillors, notaries, and secretaries, to
which it is Our will that credence should be given as to the present
original, in order that none of our subjects may claim ground for
ignorance, but that all may obey and act in accordance with Our will in
this matter. We order, moreover, all captains of vessels, mates, and second
mates, and sailors of the same, and others on board of vessels or ships in
the ports and harbors of the aforesaid country, to permit, as We have done,
Sieur de Monts, and others possessing power and authority from him, to
search the aforesaid vessels which shall have engaged in the fur-trade
after the present prohibition shall have been made known to them. It is Our
will that, upon the requisition, of the aforesaid Sieur de Monts, his
lieutenants, and others having authority, you should proceed against the
disobedient and offenders, as the case may require: to this end. We give
you power, authority, commission, and special mandate, notwithstanding the
act of our Council of the 17th day of July last, [287] any hue and cry,
Norman charter, accusation, objection, or appeals of whatsoever kind; on
account of which, and for fear of disregarding which, it is Our will that
there should be no delay, and, if any of these occur, We have withheld and
reserved cognizance of the same to Ourselves and our Council, apart from
all other judges, and have forbidden and prohibited the same to all our
courts and judges: for this is Our pleasure.
Given at Paris the seventh day of January, in the year of grace, sixteen
hundred and eight, and the nineteenth of Our reign. Signed, HENRY.
And lower down, By the King, Delomenie. And sealed with the single label of
the great seal of yellow wax.
Collated with the original by me, Councillor, Notary, and secretary of the
King.
I proceeded to Honfleur for embarkation, where I found the vessel of Pont
Gravé in readiness. He left port on the 5th of April. I did so on the 13th,
arriving at the Grand Bank on the 15th of May, in latitude 45° 15'. On the
26th, we sighted Cape St. Mary,[288] in latitude 46° 45', on the Island of
Newfoundland. On the 27th of the month, we sighted Cape St. Lawrence, on
Cape Breton, and also the Island of St. Paul, distant eighty-three leagues
from Cape St. Mary.[289] On the 30th, we sighted Isle Percée and
Gaspé,[290] in latitude 48° 40', distant from Cape St. Lawrence from
seventy to seventy-five leagues.
On the 3d of June, we arrived before Tadoussac, distant from Gaspé from
eighty to ninety leagues; and we anchored in the roadstead of
Tadoussac,[291] a league distant from the harbor, which latter is a kind of
cove at the mouth of the river Saguenay, where the tide is very remarkable
on account of its rapidity, and where there are sometimes violent winds,
bringing severe cold. It is maintained that from the harbor of Tadoussac it
is some forty-five or fifty leagues to the first fall on this river, which
comes from the north-north-west. The harbor is small, and can accommodate
only about twenty vessels. It has water enough, and is under shelter of the
river Saguenay and a little rocky island; which is almost cut by the river;
elsewhere there are very high mountains with little soil and only rocks and
sand, thickly covered with such wood as fir and birch. There is a small
pond near the harbor, shut in by mountains covered with wood. There are two
points at the mouth: one on the south-west side, extending out nearly a
league into the sea, called Point St. Matthew, or otherwise Point aux
Allouettes; and another on the north-west side, extending out one-eighth of
a league, and called Point of all Devils.[292] from the dangerous nature of
the place. The winds from the south-south-east strike the harbor, which are
not to be feared; but those, however, from the Saguenay are. The two points
above mentioned are dry at low tide: our vessel was unable to enter the
harbor, as the wind and tide were unfavorable. I at once had the boat
lowered, in order to go to the port and ascertain whether Pont Gravé had
arrived. While on the way, I met a shallop with the pilot of Pont Gravé and
a Basque, who came to inform me of what had happened to them because they
attempted to hinder the Basque vessels from trading, according to the
commission obtained by Sieur de Monts from his Majesty, that no vessels
should trade without permission of Sieur de Monts, as was expressed in it;
and that, notwithstanding the notifications which Pont Gravé made in behalf
of his Majesty, they did not desist from forcibly carrying on their
traffic; and that they had used their arms and maintained themselves so
well in their vessel that, discharging all their cannon upon that of Pont
Gravé, and letting off many musket-shots, he was severely wounded, together
with three of his men, one of whom died, Pont Gravé meanwhile making no
resistance; for at the first shower of musketry he was struck down. The
Basques came on board of the vessel and took away all the cannon and arms,
declaring that they would trade, notwithstanding the prohibition of the
King, and that when they were ready to set out for France they would
restore to him his cannon and ammunition, and that they were keeping them
in order to be in a state of security. Upon hearing all these particulars,
I was greatly annoyed at such a beginning, which we might have easily
avoided.
Now, after hearing from the pilot all these things, I asked him why the
Basque had come on board of our vessel. He told me that he came in behalf
of their master, named Darache, and his companions, to obtain assurance
from me that I would do them no harm, when our vessel entered the harbor.
I replied that I could not give any until I had seen Pont Gravé. The Basque
said that, if I had need of any thing in their power, they would assist me
accordingly. What led them to use this language was simply their
recognition of having done wrong, as they confessed, and the fear that they
would not be permitted to engage in the whale-fishery. After talking at
length, I went ashore to see Pont Gravé, in order to deliberate as to what
was to be done. I found him very ill. He related to me in detail all that
had happened. We concluded that we could only enter the harbor by force,
and that the settlement must not be given up for this year, so that we
considered it best, in order not to make a bad cause out of a just one, and
thus work our ruin, to give them assurances on my part so long as I should
remain there, and that Pont Gravé should undertake nothing against them,
but that justice should be done in France, and their differences should be
settled there.
Darache, master of the vessel, begged me to go on board, where he gave me a
cordial reception. After a long conference, I secured an agreement between
Pont Gravé and him, and required him to promise that he would undertake
nothing against Pont Gravé, or what would be prejudicial to the King and
Sieur de Monts; that, if he did the contrary, I should regard my promise as
null and void. This was agreed to, and signed by each.
In this place were a number of savages who had come for traffic in furs,
several of whom came to our vessel with their canoes, which are from eight
to nine paces long, and about a pace or pace and a half broad in the
middle, growing narrower towards the two ends. They are very apt to turn
over, in case one does not understand managing them, and are made of birch
bark, strengthened on the inside by little ribs of white cedar, very neatly
arranged; they are so light that a man can easily carry one. Each can carry
a weight equal to that of a pipe. When they want to go overland to a river
where they have business, they carry them with them. From Choüacoet along
the coast as far as the harbor of Tadoussac, they are all alike.
ENDNOTES:
283. Champlain arrived on the shores of America on the 8th of May, 1604,
and left on the 3rd of September, 1607. He had consequently been on
our coast three years, three months, and twenty-five days.
284. _The late King Henry the Great_. Henry IV. died in 1610, and this
introductory passage was obviously written after that event, probably
near the time of the publication of his voyages in 1613.
285. In the preliminary voyage of 1603, Champlain ascended the St. Lawrence
as far as the falls of St. Louis, above Montreal.
286. The contribution by Henry IV. did not probably extend beyond the
monopoly of the fur-trade granted by him in this commission.
287. This, we presume, was the act abrogating the charter of De Monts
granted in 1603.
288. This cape still retains its ancient name, and is situated between
St. Mary's Bay and Placentia Bay.
289. Cape St. Lawrence is the northernmost extremity of the Island of Cape
Breton, and the Island of St. Paul is twenty miles north-east of it.
290. The Isle Percée, or pierced island, is a short distance north of the
Island of Bonaventure, at the entrance of Mal Bay, near the village of
Percée, where there is a government light. Gaspé Bay is some miles
farther north. "Below the bay," says Charlevoix, "we perceive a kind
of island, which is only a steep rock about thirty fathoms long, ten
high, and four in breadth: it looks like part of an old wall, and they
say it joined formerly to _Mount Ioli_, which is over against it on
the continent. This rock has in the midst of it an opening like an
arch, under which a boat of Biscay may pass with its sail up, and this
has given it the name of the _pierced island_."--_Letters to the
Duchess of Lesdiguières_, by Francis Xavier de Charlevoix, London,
1763, p. 12.
291. The position in the roadstead was south-east of the harbor, so that
the harbor was seen on the north-west. Charlevoix calls it Moulin
Baude. The reader will find the position indicated by the letter M on
Champlain's map of the Port of Tadoussac. Baude Moulin (Baude Mill),
directly north of it, was probably a mill _privilege_. Charlevoix, in
1720, anchored there, and asked them to show him the mill; and they
showed him some rocks, from which issued a stream of clear water. He
adds, they might build a water-mill here, but probably it will never
be done.
292. _Pointe de tous les Diables_. Now known as Pointe aux Vaches, _cows_.
The point on the other side of the river is still called Pointe aux
Alouettes, or Lark Point.
CHAPTER II.
OF THE RIVER SAGUENAY, AND THE SAVAGES WHO VISITED US THERE.--OF THE ISLAND
OF ORLEANS, AND ALL THAT WE OBSERVED THERE WORTHY OF NOTE.
After this agreement, I had some carpenters set to work to fit up a little
barque of twelve or fourteen tons, for carrying all that was needed for our
settlement, which, however, could not be got ready before the last of June.
Meanwhile, I managed to visit some parts of the river Saguenay, a fine
river, which has the incredible depth of some one hundred and fifty to two
hundred fathoms. [293] About fifty leagues from the mouth of the harbor,
there is, as is said, a great waterfall, descending from a very high
elevation with great impetuosity. There are some islands in this river,
very barren, being only rocks covered with small firs and heathers. It is
half a league broad in places, and a quarter of a league at its mouth,
where the current is so strong that at three-quarters flood-tide in the
river it is still running out. All the land that I have seen consists only
of mountains and rocky promontories, for the most part covered with fir and
birch, a very unattractive country on both sides of the river. In a word,
it is mere wastes, uninhabited by either animals or birds; for, going out
hunting in places which seemed to me the most pleasant, I found only some
very small birds, such as swallows and river birds, which go there in
summer. At other times, there are none whatever, in consequence of the
excessive cold. This river flows from the north-west.
The savages told me that, after passing the first fall, they meet with
eight others, when they go a day's journey without finding any. Then they
pass ten others, and enter a lake, [294] which they are three days in
crossing, and they are easily able to make ten leagues a day up stream. At
the end of the lake there dwells a migratory people. Of the three rivers
which flow into this lake, one comes from the north, very near the sea,
where they consider it much colder than in their own country; and the other
two from other directions in the interior, [295] where are migratory
savages, living only from hunting, and where our savages carry the
merchandise we give them for their furs, such as beaver, marten, lynx, and
otter, which are found there in large numbers, and which they then carry to
our vessels. These people of the north report to our savages that they see
the salt sea; and, if that is true, as I think it certainly is, it can be
nothing but a gulf entering the interior on the north. [296] The savages
say that the distance from the north sea to the port of Tadoussac is
perhaps forty-five or fifty days' journey, in consequence of the
difficulties presented by the roads, rivers, and country, which is very
mountainous, and where there is snow for the most part of the year. This is
what I have definitely ascertained in regard to this river. I have often
wished to explore it, but could not do so without the savages, who were
unwilling that I or any of our party should accompany them. Nevertheless,
they have promised that I shall do so. This exploration would be desirable,
in order to remove the doubts of many persons in regard to the existence of
this sea on the north, where it is maintained that the English have gone in
these latter years to find a way to China. [297]
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
PORT DE TADOUCAC.
_The figures indicate the fathoms of water_.
_A_. A round mountain on the bank of the river Saguenay.
_B_. The harbor of Tadoussac.
_C_. A small fresh-water brook.
_D_. The encampment of the savages when they come to traffic.
_E_. A peninsula partly enclosing the port of the river Saguenay.
_F_. Point of All Devils.
_G_. The river Saguenay.
_H_. Point aux Alouettes.
_I_. Very rough mountains covered with firs and beeches.
_L_. The mill Bode.
_M_. The roadstead where vessels anchor while waiting for wind and tide.
_N_. A little pond near the harbor.
_O_. A small brook coming from the pond and flowing into the Saguenay.
_P_. Place without trees near the point where there is a quantity of grass.
* * * * *
I set out from Tadoussac the last day of the month to go to Quebec. [298]
We passed near an island called Hare Island, [299] distant six leagues from
the above-named port: it is two leagues from the northern, and nearly four
leagues from the southern shore. From Hare Island we proceeded to a little
river, dry at low tide, up which some seven hundred or eight hundred paces
there are two falls. We named it Salmon River, [300] since we caught some
of these fish in it. Coasting along the north shore, we came to a point
extending into the river, which we called Cap Dauphin, [301] distant three
leagues from Salmon River. Thence we proceeded to another, which we named
Eagle Cape, [302] distant eight leagues from Cap Dauphin. Between the two
there is a large bay, [303] at the extremity of which is a little river dry
at low tide. From Eagle Cape, we proceeded to Isle aux Coudres, [304] a
good league distant, which is about a league and a half long. It is nearly
level, and grows narrower towards the two ends. On the western end there
are meadows, and rocky points extending some distance out into the river.
On the south-west side it is very reefy, yet very pleasant in consequence
of the woods surrounding it. It is distant about half a league from the
northern shore, where is a little river extending some distance into the
interior. We named it Rivière du Gouffre, [305] since abreast of it the
tide runs with extraordinary rapidity; and, although it has a calm
appearance, it is always much agitated, the depth there being great: but
the river itself is shallow, and there are many rocks at and about its
mouth. Coasting along from Isle aux Coudres, we reached a cape which we
named Cap de Tourmente, [306] five leagues distant; and we gave it this
name because, however little wind there may be, the water rises there as if
it were full tide. At this point, the water begins to be fresh. Thence we
proceeded to the Island of Orleans, [307] a distance of two leagues, on the
south side of which are numerous islands, low, covered with trees and very
pleasant, with large meadows, having plenty of game, some being, so far as
I could judge, two leagues in length, others a trifle more or less. About
these islands are many rocks, also very dangerous shallows, some two
leagues distant from the main land on the South. All this shore, both north
and South, from Tadoussac to the Island of Orleans, is mountainous, and the
soil very poor. The wood is pine, fir, and birch only, with very ugly
rocks, so that in most places one could not make his way.
Now we passed along south of the Island of Orleans, which is a league and a
half distant from the main land and half a league on the north side, being
six leagues in length, and one in breadth, or in some places a league and a
half. On the north side, it is very pleasant, on account of the great
extent of woods and meadows there; but it is very dangerous sailing, in
consequence of the numerous points and rocks between the main land and
island, on which are numerous fine oaks and in some places nut-trees, and
on the borders of the woods vines and other trees such as we have in
France. This place is the commencement of the fine and fertile country of
the great river, and is distant one hundred and twenty leagues from its
mouth. Off the end of the island is a torrent of water on the north shore,
proceeding from a lake ten leagues in the interior: [308] it comes down
from a height of nearly twenty-five fathoms, above which the land is level
and pleasant, although farther inland are seen high mountains appearing to
be from fifteen to twenty leagues distant.
ENDNOTES:
293. The deepest sounding as laid down on Laurie's Chart is one hundred and
forty-six fathoms. The same authority says the banks of the river
throughout its course are very rocky, and vary in height from one
hundred and seventy to three hundred and forty yards above the stream.
Its current is broad, deep, and uncommonly vehement: in some places,
where precipices intervene, are falls from fifty to sixty feet in
height, down which the whole volume of water rushes with tremendous
fury and noise. The general breadth of the river is about two and a
half miles, but at its mouth its width is contracted to three-quarters
of a mile. The tide runs upward about sixty-five miles from its mouth.
294. If the Indians were three days in crossing Lake St. John here referred
to, whose length is variously stated to be from twenty-five to forty
miles, it could hardly have been the shortest time in which it were
possible to pass it. It may have been the usual time, some of which
they gave to fishing or hunting. "In 1647, Father Jean Duquen,
missionary at Tadoussac, ascending the Saguenay, discovered the Lake
St. John, and noted its Indian name, Picouagami, or Flat Lake. He was
the first European who beheld that magnificent expanse of inland
water."--_Vide Transactions, Lit. and His. Soc. of Quebec_, 1867-68,
p. 5.
295. The first of these three rivers, which the traveller will meet as he
passes up the northern shore of the lake, is the Peribonca flowing
from the north-east. The second is the Mistassina, represented by the
Indians as coming from the salt sea. The third is the Chomouchonan,
flowing from the north-west.
296. There was doubtless an Indian trail from the head-waters of the
Mistassina to Mistassin Lake, and from thence to Rupert River, which
flows into the lower part of Hudson's Bay.
297. The salt sea referred to by the Indians was undoubtedly Hudson's Bay.
The discoverer of this bay, Henry Hudson, in the years 1607, 1608, and
1609, was in the northern ocean searching for a passage to Cathay. In
1610, he discovered the strait and bay which now bear his name. He
passed the winter in the southern part of the bay; and the next year,
1611, his sailors in a mutiny forced him and his officers into a
shallop and abandoned them to perish. Nothing was heard of them
afterward. The fame of Hudson's discovery had reached Champlain
before the publication of this volume in 1613. This will be apparent
by comparing Champlain's small map with the TABULA NAUTICA of Hudson,
published in 1612. It will be seen that the whole of the Carte
Géographique de la Nouvelle France of Champlain, on the west of
Lumley's Inlet, including Hudson's Strait and Bay, is a copy from the
Tabula Nautica. Even the names are in English, a few characteristic
ones being omitted, such as Prince Henry, the King's Forlant, and Cape
Charles.--_Vide Henry Hudson the Navigator_, by G. M. Asher, LL.D.,
Hakluyt Society, 1860, p. xliv.
298. This was June 30, 1608.
299. _Isle aux Lièvres_, or hares. This name was given by Jacques Cartier,
and it is still called Hare Island. It is about ten geographical miles
long, and generally about half or three-quarters of a mile wide.
300. _Rivière aux Saulmons_. "From all appearances," says Laverdière, "this
Salmon River is that which empties into the 'Port à l'Équilles,' eel
harbor, also called 'Port aux Quilles,' Skittles Port. Its mouth is
two leagues from Cape Salmon, with which it must not be confounded."
It is now known as Black River.
301. _Cap Dauphin_, now called Cape Salmon, which is about three leagues
from Black River.
302. _Cap à l'Aigle_, now known as Cap aux Oies, or Goose Cape. The Eagle
Cape of to-day is little more than two leagues from Cape Salmon, while
Goose Cape is about eight leagues, as stated in the text.
303. The bay stretching between Cape Salmon and Goose Cape is called Mal
Bay, within which are Cape Eagle, Murray Bay, Point au Ries, White
Cape, Red Cape, Black Cape, Point Père, Point Corneille, and Little
Mal Bay. In the rear of Goose Cape are Les Éboulemens Mountains, 2,547
feet in height. On the opposite side of the river is Point Ouelle, and
the river of the same name.
304. _Isle aux Coudres_, Hazel Island, so named by Jacques Cartier, still
retains its ancient appellation. Its distance from Goose Cape is about
two leagues. The description of it in the text is very accurate.
305. _Rivière du Gouffre_. This river still retains this name, signifying
whirlpool, and is the same that empties into St. Paul's Bay, opposite
Isle-aux Coudres.
306. _Cap de Tourmente_, cape of the tempest, is eight leagues from Isle
aux Coudres, but about two from the Isle of Orleans, as stated in the
text, which sufficiently identifies it.
307. _Isle d'Orléans_. Cartier discovered this island in 1635, and named it
the Island of Bacchus, because he saw vines growing there, which he
had not before seen in that region. He says, "Et pareillement y
trouuasmes force vignes, ce que n'auyons veu par cy deuant à toute la
terre, & par ce la nommasmes l'ysle de Bacchus."--_Brief Récit de la
Navigation Faite en MDXXXV._, par Jacques Cartier, D'Avezac ed.,
Paris, 1863, pp. 14, 15. The grape found here was probably the Frost
Grape, _Vitis cordifolia_. The "Island of Orleans" soon became the
fixed name of this island, which it still retains. Its Indian name is
said to have been _Minigo_.--_Vide_ Laverdière's interesting note,
_Oeuvres de Champlain_, Tome II, p. 24. Champlain's estimate of the
size of the island is nearly accurate. It is, according to the
Admiralty charts, seventeen marine miles in length, and four in its
greatest width.
308. This was the river Montmorency, which rises in Snow Lake, some fifty
miles in the interior.--_Vide_ Champlain's reference on his map of
Quebec and its environs. He gave this name to the river, which it
still retains, in honor of the Admiral Montmorency, to whom he
dedicated his notes on the voyage of 1603.--_Vide Laverdière_, in
loco; also _Champlain_, ed. 1632; _Chiarlevoix's Letters_, London,
1763, p. 19. The following is Jean Alfonse's description of the fall
of Montmorency: "When thou art come to the end of the Isle, thou shall
see a great River, which falleth fifteene or twenty fathoms downe from
a rocke, and maketh a terrible noyse."--_Hakluyt, Vol. III. p. 293.
The perpendicular descent of the Montmorency at the falls is 240 feet.
CHAPTER III.
ARRIVAL AT QUEBEC, WHERE WE CONSTRUCTED OUR PLACE OF ABODE; ITS SITUATION.
--CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE SERVICE OF THE KING AND MY LIFE. BY SOME OF OUR
MEN--PUNISHMENT OF THEM, AND ALL THAT TRANSPIRED OF THE AFFAIR.
From the Island of Orleans to Quebec the distance is a league. I arrived
there on the 3d of July, when I searched for a place suitable for our
settlement, but I could find none more convenient or better situated than
the point of Quebec, so called by the savages, [309] which was covered with
nut-trees. I at once employed a portion of our workmen in cutting them
down, that we might construct our habitation there: one I set to sawing
boards, another to making a cellar and digging ditches, another I sent to
Tadoussac with the barque to get supplies. The first thing we made was the
storehouse for keeping under cover our supplies, which was promptly
accomplished through the zeal of all, and my attention to the work.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
QUEBEC.
_The figures indicate the fathoms of water_.
_A_. The site where our habitation is built. [Note 1]
_B_. Cleared land where we sow wheat and other grain. [Note 2]
_C_. The gardens.[Note 3]
_D_. small brook coming from marshes. [Note 4]
_E_. River where Jacques Cartier passed the winter, which in his time he
called St. Croix, and which name has been transferred to a place
fifteen leagues above Quebec. [Note 5]
_F_. River of the marshes. [Note 6]
_G_. Place where was collected the grass for the animals brought here.
[Note 7]
_H_. The grand fall of Montmorency, which descends from a height of more
than twenty-five fathoms into the river. [Note 8]
_I_. The end of the Island of Orleans.
_L_. A very narrow point on the shore east of Quebec. [Note 9]
_M_. Roaring river which extends to the Etechemins.
_N_. The great river of St. Lawrence.
_O_. Lake in the roaring river.
_P_. Mountains in the interior; bay which I named New Biscay,
_q_. Lake of the great fall of Montmorency. [Note 10]
_R_. Bear Brook. [Note 11]
_S_. Brook du Gendre. [Note 12]
_T_. Meadows overflowed at every tide.
_V_. Mont du Gas, very high, situated on the bank of the river. [Note 13]
_X_. Swift brook, adapted to all kinds of mills.
_Y_. Gravelly shore where a quantity of diamonds are found somewhat better
than those of Alanson.
_Z_. The Point of Diamonds.
_9_. Places where the savages often build their cabins. [Note 14]
NOTES. The following notes on Champlain's explanation of his map of Quebec
are by the Abbé Laverdière, whose accurate knowledge of that city and its
environs renders them especially valuable. They are given entire, with only
slight modifications.
1. That is properly the point of Quebec, including what is at present
enclosed by La Place, the street Notre Dame, and the river.
2. This first clearing must have been what was called later the Esplanade
du Fort, or Grande Place, or perhaps both. The Grande Place became, in
1658, the fort of the Hurons: it was the space included between the Côte
of the lower town and the Rue du Fort.
3. A little above the gardens, on the slope of the Côte du Saut au Matelot,
a cross is seen, which seems to indicate that at that time the cemetery
was where it is said to be when it is mentioned some years later for the
first time.
4. According to the old plans of Quebec, these marshes were represented to
be west of Mont Carmel, and at the foot of the glacis of the Citadel.
The brook pulled eastward of the grounds of the Ursulines and Jésuites,
followed for some distance the Rue de la Fabrique as far as the
enclosure of the Hôtel Dieu, to the east of which it ran down the hill
towards the foot of the Côte de la Canoterie.
5. The river St. Charles. The letter E does not indicate precisely the
place where Jacques Quartier wintered, but only the mouth of the river.
6. Judging from the outlines of the shore, this brook, which came from the
south-west, flowed into the harbor of the Palais, towards the western
extremity of the Parc.
7. This is probably what was called later the barn of the Messieurs de la
Compagnie, or simply La Grange, and appears to have been somewhere on
the avenue of Mont Carmel.
8. The fall of Montmorency is forty fathoms or two hundred and forty French
feet, or even more.
9. Hence it is seen that in 1613 this point had as yet no name. In 1629,
Champlain calls it Cap de Lévis: it can accordingly be concluded that
this point derives its name from that of the Duc de Ventadour, Henri de
Lévis, and that it must have been so named between the years 1625 and
1627, the time when he was regent.
10. The Lake of the Snows is the source of the western branch of the
Rivière du Saut.
11. La Rivière de Beauport, which is called likewise La Distillerie.
12. Called later Ruisseau de la Cabaneaux Taupiers. Rivière Chalisour, and
finally Rivière des Fous, from the new insane asylum, by the site of
which it now passes.
13. Height where is now situated the bastion of the Roi à la Citadelle.
This name was given it, doubtless, in memory of M. de Monts, Pierre du
Guast.
14. This figure appears not only at the Point du Cap Diamant, but also
along the shore of Beauport, and at the end of the Island of Orleans.
* * * * *
Some days after my arrival at Quebec, a locksmith conspired against the
service of the king. His plan was to put me to death, and, getting
possession of our fort, to put it into the hands of the Basques or
Spaniards, then at Tadoussac, beyond which vessels cannot go, from not
having a knowledge of the route, nor of the banks and rocks on the way.
In order to execute his wretched plan, by which he hoped to make his
fortune, he suborned four of the worst characters, as he supposed, telling
them a thousand falsehoods, and presenting to them prospects of acquiring
riches.
These four men, having been won over, all promised to act in such a manner
as to gain the rest over to their side; so that, for the time being, I had
no one with me in whom I could put confidence, which gave them still more
hope of making their plan succeed: for four or five of my companions, in
whom they knew that I put confidence, were on board of the barques, for the
purpose of protecting the provisions and supplies necessary for our
settlement.
In a word, they were so skilful in carrying out their intrigues with those
who remained, that they were on the point of gaining all over to their
cause, even my lackey, promising them many things which they could not have
fulfilled.
Being now all agreed, they made daily different plans as to how they should
put me to death, so as not to be accused of it, which they found to be a
difficult thing. But the devil, blindfolding them all and taking away their
reason and every possible difficulty, they determined to take me while
unarmed, and strangle me; or to give a false alarm at night, and shoot me
as I went out, in which manner they judged that they would accomplish their
work sooner than otherwise. They made a mutual promise not to betray each
other, on penalty that the first one who opened his mouth should be
poniarded. They were to execute their plan in four days, before the
arrival of our barques, otherwise they would have been unable to carry out
their scheme.
On this very day, one of our barques arrived, with our pilot, Captain
Testu, a very discreet man. After the barque was unloaded, and ready to
return to Tadoussac, there came to him a locksmith, named Natel, an
associate of Jean du Val, the head of the conspiracy, who told him that he
had promised the rest to do just as they did; but that he did not in fact
desire the execution of the plot, yet did not dare to make a disclosure in
regard to it, from fear of being poniarded.
Antoine Natel made the pilot promise that he would make no disclosure in
regard to what he should say, since, if his companions should discover it,
they would put him to death. The pilot gave him his assurance in all
particulars, and asked him to state the character of the plot which they
wished to carry out. This Natel did at length, when the pilot said to him:
"My friend, you have done well to disclose such a malicious design, and you
show that you are an upright man, and under the guidance of the Holy
Spirit. But these things cannot be passed by without bringing them to the
knowledge of Sieur de Champlain, that he may make provision against them;
and I promise you that I will prevail upon him to pardon you and the rest.
And I will at once," said the pilot, "go to him without exciting any
suspicion; and do you go about your business, listening to all they may
say, and not troubling yourself about the rest."
The pilot came at once to me, in a garden which I was having prepared, and
said that he wished to speak to me in a private place, where we could be
alone. I readily assented, and we went into the wood, where he related to
me the whole affair. I asked who had told it to him. He begged me to pardon
him who had made the disclosure, which I consented to do, although he ought
to have addressed himself to me. He was afraid, he replied, that you would
become angry, and harm him. I told him that I was able to govern myself
better than that, in such a matter; and desired him to have the man come to
me, that I might hear his statement. He went, and brought him all trembling
with fear lest I should do him some harm. I reassured him, telling him not
to be afraid; that he was in a place of safety, and that I should pardon
him for all that he had done, together with the others, provided he would
tell me in full the truth in regard to the whole matter, and the motive
which had impelled them to it. "Nothing," he said, "had impelled them,
except that they had imagined that, by giving up the place into the hands
of the Basques or Spaniards, they might all become rich, and that they did
not want to go back to France." He also related to me the remaining
particulars in regard to their conspiracy.
After having heard and questioned him, I directed him to go about his
work. Meanwhile, I ordered the pilot to bring up his shallop, which he
did. Then I gave two bottles of wine to a young man, directing him to say
to these four worthies, the leaders of the conspiracy, that it was a
present of wine, which his friends at Tadoussac had given him, and that he
wished to share it with them. This they did not decline, and at evening
were on board the barque where he was to give them the entertainment. I
lost no time in going there shortly after; and caused them to be seized,
and held until the next day.
Then were my worthies astonished indeed. I at once had all get up, for it
was about ten o'clock in the evening, and pardoned them all, on condition
that they would disclose to me the truth in regard to all that had
occurred; which they did, when I had them retire.
The next day I took the depositions of all, one after the other, in the
presence of the pilot and sailors of the vessel, which I had put down in
writing; and they were well pleased, as they said, since they had lived
only in fear of each other, especially of the four knaves who had ensnared
them. But now they lived in peace, satisfied, as they declared, with the
treatment which they had received.
The same day I had six pairs of handcuffs made for the authors of the
conspiracy: one for our surgeon, named Bonnerme, one for another, named La
Taille, whom the four conspirators had accused, which, however, proved
false, and consequently they were given their liberty.
This being done, I took my worthies to Tadoussac, begging Pont Gravé to do
me the favor of guarding them, since I had as yet no secure place for
keeping them, and as we were occupied in constructing our places of abode.
Another object was to consult with him, and others on the ship, as to what
should be done in the premises. We suggested that, after he had finished
his work at Tadoussac, he should come to Quebec with the prisoners, where
we should have them confronted with their witnesses, and, after giving them
a hearing, order justice to be done according to the offence which they had
committed.
I went back the next day to Quebec, to hasten the completion of our
storehouse, so as to secure our provisions, which had been misused by all
those scoundrels, who spared nothing, without reflecting how they could
find more when these failed; for I could not obviate the difficulty until
the storehouse should be completed and shut up.
Pont Gravé arrived some time after me, with the prisoners, which caused
uneasiness to the workmen who remained, since they feared that I should
pardon them, and that they would avenge themselves upon them for revealing
their wicked design.
We had them brought face to face, and they affirmed before them all which
they had stated in their depositions, the prisoners not denying it, but
admitting that they had acted in a wicked manner, and should be punished,
unless mercy might be exercised towards them; accursing, above all, Jean du
Val, who had been trying to lead them into such a conspiracy from the time
of their departure from France. Du Val knew not what to say, except that he
deserved death, that all stated in the depositions was true, and that he
begged for mercy upon himself and the others, who had given in their
adherence to his pernicious purposes.
After Pont Gravé and I, the captain of the vessel, surgeon, mate, second
mate, and other sailors, had heard their depositions and face to face
statements, we adjudged that it would be enough to put to death Du Val, as
the instigator of the conspiracy; and that he might serve as an example to
those who remained, leading them to deport themselves correctly in future,
in the discharge of their duty; and that the Spaniards and Basques, of whom
there were large numbers in the country, might not glory in the event. We
adjudged that the three others be condemned to be hung, but that they
should be taken to France and put into the hands of Sieur de Monts, that
such ample justice might be done them as he should recommend; that they
should be sent with all the evidence and their sentence, as well as that of
Jean du Val, who was strangled and hung at Quebec, and his head was put on
the end of a pike, to be set up in the most conspicuous place on our fort.
ENDNOTES:
309. Champlain here plainly means to say that the Indians call the narrow
place in the river _Quebec_. For this meaning of the word, viz.,
narrowing of waters, in the Algonquin language, the authority is
abundant. Laverdière quotes, as agreeing with him in this view,
Bellenger, Ferland, and Lescarbot. "The narrowing of the river," says
Charlevoix, "gave it the name of _Quebeio_ or _Quebec_, which in the
_Algonquin_ language signifies _contraction_. The Abenaquis, whose
language is a dialect of the Algonquin, call it Quelibec, which
signifies something shut up."--_Charlevoix's Letters_, pp. 18, 19.
Alfred Hawkins, in his "Historical Recollections of Quebec," regards
the word of Norman origin, which he finds on a seal of the Duke of
Suffolk, as early as 1420. The theory is ingenious: but it requires
some other characteristic historical facts to challenge our belief.
When Cartier visited Quebec, it was called by the natives Stadacone.
--_Vide Cartier's Brief Récit_, 1545, D'Avezac ed., Paris, 1863,
p. 14.
CHAPTER IV.
RETURN OF PONT GRAVÉ TO FRANCE.--DESCRIPTION OF OUR QUARTERS AND THE PLACE
WHERE JACQUES CARTIER STAYED IN 1535.
After all these occurrences, Pont Gravé set out from Quebec, on the 18th of
September, to return to France with the three prisoners. After he had gone,
all who remained conducted themselves correctly in the discharge of their
duty.
I had the work on our quarters continued, which was composed of three
buildings of two stories. Each one was three fathoms long, and two and a
half wide. The storehouse was six fathoms long and three wide, with a fine
cellar six feet deep. I had a gallery made all around our buildings, on the
outside, at the second story, which proved very convenient. There were
also ditches, fifteen feet wide and six deep. On the outer side of the
ditches, I constructed several spurs, which enclosed a part of the
dwelling, at the points where we placed our cannon. Before the habitation
there is a place four fathoms wide and six or seven long, looking out upon
the river-bank. Surrounding the habitation are very good gardens, and a
place on the north side some hundred or hundred and twenty paces long and
fifty or sixty wide. Moreover, near Quebec, there is a little river, coming
from a lake in the interior, [310] distant six or seven leagues from our
settlement. I am of opinion that this river, which is north a quarter
north-west from our settlement, is the place where Jacques Cartier
wintered, [311] since there are still, a league up the river, remains of
what seems to have been a chimney, the foundation of which has been found,
and indications of there having been ditches surrounding their dwelling,
which was small. We found, also, large pieces of hewn, worm-eaten timber,
and some three or four cannon-balls. All these things show clearly that
there was a settlement there founded by Christians; and what leads me to
say and believe that it was that of Jacques Cartier is the fact that there
is no evidence whatever that any one wintered and built a house in these
places except Jacques Cartier, at the time of his discoveries. This place,
as I think, must have been called St. Croix, as he named it; which name
has since been transferred to another place fifteen leagues west of our
settlement. But there is no evidence of his having wintered in the place
now called St. Croix, nor in any other there, since in this direction there
is no river or other place large enough for vessels except the main river
or that of which I spoke above; here there is half a fathom of water at low
tide, many rocks, and a bank at the mouth; for vessels, if kept in the main
river, where there are strong currents and tides, and ice in the winter,
drifting along, would run the risk of being lost; especially as there is a
sandy point extending out into the river, and filled with rocks, between
which we have found, within the last three years, a passage not before
discovered; but one must go through cautiously, in consequence of the
dangerous points there. This place is exposed to the north-west winds; a
half fathoms. There are no signs of buildings here, nor any indications
that a man of judgment would settle in this place, there being many other
better ones, in case one were obliged to make a permanent stay. I have been
desirous of speaking at length on this point, since many believe that the
abode of Jacques Cartier was here, which I do not believe, for the reasons
here given; for Cartier would have left to posterity a narrative of the
matter, as he did in the case of all he saw and discovered; and I maintain
that my opinion is the true one, as can be shown by the history which he
has left, in writing.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
ABITATION DE QUEBECQ.
_A_. The storehouse.
_B_. Dove-cote.
_C_. A building where our arms are kept, and for lodging our workmen.
_D_. Another building for our workmen.
_E_. Dial.
_F_. Another building, comprising the blacksmith's shop and the lodgings of
the mechanics.
_G_. Galleries extending entirely round the dwellings.
_H_. The dwelling of Sieur de Champlain.
_I_. Gate to the habitation where there is a drawbridge.
_L_. Promenade about the habitation ten feet wide, extending to the border
of the moat.
_M_. Moat extending all round our habitation.
_N_. Platforms, of a tenaille form, for our cannon.
_O_. Garden of Sieur de Champlain.
_P_. The kitchen.
_Q_. Open space before the habitation on the bank of the river.
_R_. The great river St. Lawrence.
* * * * *
As still farther proof that this place now called St. Croix is not the
place where Jacques Cartier wintered, as most persons think, this is what
he says about it in his discoveries, taken from his history; namely, that
he arrived at the Isle aux Coudres on the 5th of December, [312] 1535,
which he called by this name, as hazel-nuts were found there. There is a
strong tidal current in this place; and he says that it is three leagues
long, but it is quite enough to reckon a league and a half. On the 7th of
the month, Notre Dame Day, [313] he set out from this island to go up the
river, in which he saw fourteen islands, distant seven or eight leagues
from Isle aux Coudres on the south. He errs somewhat in this estimation,
for it is not more than three leagues. [314] He also says that the place
where the islands are is the commencement of the land or province of
Canada, and that he reached an island ten leagues long and five wide, where
extensive fisheries are carried on, fish being here, in fact, very
abundant, especially the sturgeon. But its length is not more than six
leagues, and its breadth two; a fact well recognized now. He says also that
he anchored between this island and the main land on the north, the
smallest passage, and a dangerous one, where he landed two savages whom he
had taken to France, and that, after stopping in this place some time with
the people of the country, he sent for his barques and went farther up the
river, with the tide, seeking a harbor and place of security for his ships.
He says, farther, that they went on up the river, coasting along this
island, the length of which he estimates at ten leagues; and after it was
passed they found a very fine and pleasant bay, containing a little river
and bar harbor, which they found very favorable for sheltering their
vessels. This they named St. Croix, since he arrived there on this day; and
at the time of the voyage of Cartier the place was called Stadaca, [315]
but we now call it Quebec. He says, also, that after he had examined this
place he returned to get his vessels for passing the winter there.
Now we may conclude, accordingly, that the distance is only five leagues
from the Isle aux Coudres to the Isle of Orleans, [316] at the western
extremity of which the river is very broad; and at which bay, as Cartier
calls it, there is no other river than that which he called St. Croix, a
good league distant from the Isle of Orleans, in which, at low tide, there
is only half a fathom of water. It is very dangerous for vessels at its
mouth, there being a large number of spurs; that is, rocks scattered here
and there. It is accordingly necessary to place buoys in order to enter,
there being, as I have stated, three fathoms of water at ordinary tides,
and four fathoms, or four and a half generally, at the great tides at full
flood. It is only fifteen hundred paces from our habitation, which is
higher up the river; and, as I have stated, there is no other river up to
the place now called St. Croix, where vessels can lie, there being only
little brooks. The shores are flat and dangerous, which Cartier does not
mention until the time that he sets out from St. Croix, now called Quebec,
where he left his vessels, and built his place of abode, as is seen from
what follows.
On the 19th of September, he set out from St. Croix, where his vessels
were, setting sail with the tide up the river, which they found very
pleasant, as well on account of the woods, vines, and dwellings, which were
there in his time, as for other reasons. They cast anchor twenty-five
leagues from the entrance to the land of Canada; [317] that is, at the
western extremity of the Isle of Orleans, so called by Cartier. What is
now called St Croix was then called Achelacy, at a narrow pass where the
river is very swift and dangerous on account of the rocks and other things,
and which can only be passed at flood-tide. Its distance from Quebec and
the river where Cartier wintered is fifteen leagues.
Now, throughout the entire extent of this river, from Quebec to the great
fall, there are no narrows except at the place now called St. Croix; the
name of which has been transferred from one place to another one, which is
very dangerous, as my description shows. And it is very apparent, from his
narrative, that this was not the site of his habitation, as is claimed; but
that the latter was near Quebec, and that no one had entered into a special
investigation of this matter before my doing so in my voyages. For the
first time I was told that he dwelt in this place, I was greatly
astonished, finding no trace of a river for vessels, as he states there
was. This led me to make a careful examination, in order to remove the
suspicion and doubt of many persons in regard to the matter. [318]
While the carpenters, sawers of boards, and other workmen, were employed on
our quarters, I set all the others to work clearing up around our place of
abode, in preparation for gardens in which to plant grain and seeds, that
we might see how they would flourish, as the soil seemed to be very good.
Meanwhile, a large number of savages were encamped in cabins near us,
engaged in fishing for eels, which begin to come about the 15th of
September, and go away on the 15th of October. During this time, all the
Savages subsist on this food, and dry enough of it for the winter to last
until the month of February, when there are about two and a half, or at
most three, feet of snow; and, when their eels and other things which they
dry have been prepared, they go to hunt the beaver until the beginning of
January. At their departure for this purpose, they intrusted to us all
their eels and other things, until their return, which was on the 15th of
December. But they did not have great success in the beaver-hunt, as the
amount of water was too great, the rivers having overrun their banks, as
they told us. I returned to them all their supplies, which lasted them only
until the 20th of January. When their supply of eels gave out, they hunted
the elk and such other wild beasts as they could find until spring, when I
was able to supply them with various things. I paid especial attention to
their customs.
These people suffer so much from lack of food that they are sometimes
obliged to live on certain shell-fish, and eat their dogs and the skins
with which they clothe themselves against the cold. I am of opinion that,
if one were to show them how to live, and teach them the cultivation of the
soil and other things, they would learn very aptly. For many of them
possess good sense, and answer properly questions put to them. They have a
bad habit of taking vengeance, and are great liars, and you must not put
much reliance on them, except judiciously, and with force at hand. They
make promises readily, but keep their word poorly. The most of them observe
no law at all, so far as I have been able to see, and are, besides, full of
superstitions. I asked them with what ceremonies they were accustomed to
pray to their God, when they replied that they had none, but that each
prayed to him in his heart, as he wished. That is why there is no law among
them, and they do not know what it is to worship and pray to God, living as
they do like brute beasts. But I think that they would soon become good
Christians, if people would come and inhabit their country, which they are
for the most part desirous of. There are some savages among them, called by
them Pilotais, whom they believe have intercourse with the devil face to
face, who tells them what they must do in regard to war and other things;
and, if he should order them to execute any undertaking, they would obey at
once. So, also, they believe that all their dreams are true; and, in fact,
there are many who say that they have had visions and dreams about matters
which actually come to pass or will do so. But, to tell the truth, these
are diabolical visions, through which they are deceived and misled. This is
all I have been able to learn about their brutish faith. All these people
are well proportioned in body, without deformity, and are agile. The women,
also, are well-formed, plump, and of a swarthy color, in consequence of
certain pigments with which they rub themselves, and which give them a
permanent olive color. They are dressed in skins: a part only of the body
is covered. But in winter they are covered throughout, in good furs of elk,
otter, beaver, bear, seals, deer, and roe, of which they have large
quantities. In winter, when the snow is deep, they make a sort of snow-shoe
of large size, two or three times as large as that used in France, which
they attach to their feet, thus going over the snow without sinking in;
otherwise, they could not hunt or walk in many places. They have a sort of
marriage, which is as follows: When a girl is fourteen or fifteen years
old, and has several suitors, she may keep company with all she likes. At
the end of five or six years, she takes the one that pleases her for her
husband, and they live together to the end of their lives. But if, after
living some time together, they have no children, the man can disunite
himself and take another woman, alleging that his own is good for nothing.
Hence, the girls have greater freedom than the married women.
After marriage, the women are chaste, and their husbands generally
jealous. They give presents to the fathers or relatives of the girls they
have wedded. These are the ceremonies and forms observed in their
marriages. In regard to their burials: When a man or a woman dies, they dig
a pit, in which they put all their property, as kettles, furs, axes, bows,
arrows, robes, and other things. Then they place the body in the pit and
cover it with earth, putting, on top many large pieces of wood, and another
piece upright, painted red on the upper part. They believe in the
immortality of the soul, and say that they shall be happy in other lands
with their relatives and friends who are dead. In the case of captains or
others of some distinction, they celebrate a banquet three times a year
after their death, singing and dancing about the grave.
All the time they were with us, which was the most secure place for them,
they did not cease to fear their enemies to such an extent that they often
at night became alarmed while dreaming, and sent their wives and children
to our fort, the gates of which I had opened to them, allowing the men to
remain about the fort, but not permitting them to enter, for their persons
were thus as much in security as if they had been inside. I also had five
or six of our men go out to reassure them, and to go and ascertain whether
they could see any thing in the woods, in order to quiet them. They are
very timid and in great dread of their enemies, scarcely ever sleeping in
repose in whatever place they may be, although I constantly reassured them,
so far as I could, urging them to do as we did; namely, that they should
have a portion watch while the others slept, that each one should have his
arms in readiness like him who was keeping watch, and that they should not
regard dreams as the actual truth to be relied upon, since they are mostly
only false, to which I also added other words on the same subject. But
these remonstrances were of little avail with them, and they said that we
knew better than they how to keep guard against all things; and that they,
in course of time, if we continued to stay with them, would be able to
learn it.
CHAPTER V.
SEEDS AND VINES PLANTED AT QUEBEC.--COMMENCEMENT OF THE WINTER AND ICE.--
EXTREME DESTITUTION OF CERTAIN INDIANS.
On the 1st of October, I had some wheat sown, and on the 15th some rye. On
the 3d, there was a white frost in some places, and the leaves of the trees
began to fall on the 15th. On the 24th, I had some native vines set out,
which flourished very well. But, after leaving the settlement to go to
France, they were all spoiled from lack of attention, at which I was much
troubled on my return. On the 18th of November, there was a great fall of
snow, which remained only two days on the ground, during which time there
was a violent gale of wind. There died during this month a sailor and our
locksmith [319] of dysentery, so also many Indians from eating eels badly
cooked, as I think. On the 5th of February, it snowed violently, and the
wind was high for two days. On the 20th, some Indians appeared on the other
side of the river, calling to us to go to their assistance, which was
beyond our power, on account of the large amount of ice drifting in the
river. Hunger pressed upon these poor wretches so severely that, not
knowing what to do, they resolved, men, women, and children, to cross the
river or die, hoping that I should assist them in their extreme want.
Having accordingly made this resolve, the men and women took the children
and embarked in their canoes, thinking that they could reach our shore by
an opening in the ice made by the wind; but they were scarcely in the
middle of the stream when their canoes were caught by the ice and broken
into a thousand pieces. But they were skilful enough to throw themselves
with the children, which the women carried on their backs, on a large piece
of ice. As they were on it, we heard them crying out so that it excited
intense pity, as before them there seemed nothing but death. But fortune
was so favorable to these poor wretches that a large piece of ice struck
against the side of that on which they were, so violently as to drive them
ashore. On seeing this favorable turn, they reached the shore with as much
delight as they ever experienced, notwithstanding the great hunger from
which they were suffering. They proceeded to our abode, so thin and haggard
that they seemed like mere skeletons, most of them not being able to hold
themselves up. I was astonished to see them, and observe the manner in
which they had crossed, in view of their being so feeble and weak. I
ordered some bread and beans to be given them. So great was their
impatience to eat them, that they could not wait to have them cooked. I
lent them also some bark, which other savages had given me, to cover their
cabins. As they were making their cabin, they discovered a piece of
carrion, which I had had thrown out nearly two months before to attract the
foxes, of which we caught black and red ones, like those in France, but
with heavier fur. This carrion consisted of a sow and a dog, which had
sustained all the rigors of the weather, hot and cold. When the weather was
mild, it stank so badly that one could not go near it. Yet they seized it
and carried it off to their cabin, where they forthwith devoured it half
cooked. No meat ever seemed to them to taste better. I sent two or three
men to warn them not to eat it, unless they wanted to die: as they
approached their cabin, they smelt such a stench from this carrion half
warmed up, each one of the Indians holding a piece in his hand, that they
thought they should disgorge, and accordingly scarcely stopped at all.
These poor wretches finished their repast. I did not fail, however, to
supply them according to my resources; but this was little, in view of the
large number of them. In the space of a month, they would have eaten up all
our provisions, if they had had them in their power, they are so
gluttonous: for, when they have edibles, they lay nothing aside, but keep
consuming them day and night without respite, afterwards dying of hunger.
They did also another thing as disgusting as that just mentioned. I had
caused a bitch to be placed on the top of a tree, which allured the martens
[320] and birds of prey, from which I derived pleasure, since generally
this carrion was attacked by them. These savages went to the tree, and,
being too weak to climb it, cut it down and forthwith took away the dog,
which was only skin and bones, the tainted head emitting a stench, but
which was at once devoured.
This is the kind of enjoyment they experience for the most part in winter;
for in summer they are able to support themselves, and to obtain provisions
so as not to be assailed by such extreme hunger, the rivers abounding in
fish, while birds and wild animals fill the country about. The soil is very
good and well adapted for tillage, if they would but take pains to plant
Indian corn, as all their neighbors do, the Algonquins, Ochastaiguins,
[321] and Iroquois, who are not attacked by such extremes of hunger, which
they provide against by their carefulness and foresight, so that they live
happily in comparison with the Montagnais, Canadians, and Souriquois along
the seacoast. This is in the main their wretched manner of life. The show
and ice last three months there, from January to the 8th of April, when it
is nearly all melted: at the latest, it is only seldom that any is seen at
the end of the latter month at our settlement. It is remarkable that so
much snow and ice as there is on the river, and which is from two to three
fathoms thick, is all melted in less than twelve days. From Tadoussac to
Gaspé, Cape Breton, Newfoundland, and the Great Bay, the snow and ice
continue in most places until the end of May, at which time the entire
entrance of the great river is sealed with ice; although at Quebec there is
none at all, showing a strange difference for one hundred and twenty
leagues in longitude, for the entrance to the river is in latitude 49° 50'
to 51°, and our settlement [322] in 46° 40'.
ENDNOTES:
310. The river St. Charles flows from a lake in the interior of the same
name. It was called by the Montagnais, according to Sagard as cited by
Laverdière, _in loco_, "Cabirecoubat, because it turns and forms
several points." Cartier named it the Holy Cross, or St. Croix,
because he says he arrived there "that day;" that is, the day on which
the exaltation of the Cross is celebrated, the 14th of September,
1535.--_Vide Cartier_, Hakluyt, Vol. III. p. 266. The Récollects gave
it the name of St. Charles, after the grand vicar of Pontoise, Charles
des Boues.--_Laverdière, in loco_. Jacques Cartier wintered on the
north shore of the St. Charles, which he called the St. Croix, or the
Holy Cross, about a league from Quebec. "Hard by, there is, in that
river, one place very narrow, deep, and swift running, but it is not
passing the third part of a league, over against the which there is a
goodly high piece of land, with a towne therein: and the country about
it is very well tilled and wrought, and as good as possibly can be
seene. This is the place and abode of Donnacona, and of our two men we
took in our first voyage, it is called Stadacona ... under which towne
toward the North the river and port of the holy crosse is, where we
staied from the 15 of September until the 16 of May, 1536, and there
our ships remained dry as we said before."--_Vide Jacques Cartier,
Second Voyage_, Hakluyt, Vol. III. p. 277.
311. The spot where Jacques Cartier wintered was at the junction of the
river Lairet and the St. Charles.
312. Cartier discovered the Isle of Coudres, that is, the isle of filberts
or hazel-nuts, on the 6th of September, 1535.--_Vide Cartier_, 1545,
D'Avezac ed., Paris, 1863, p. 12. This island is five nautical miles
long, which agrees with the statement of Champlain, and its greatest
width, is two miles and a quarter.
313. Notre Dame Day, _iour de nostre dame_, should read "Notre Dame Eve."
Cartier says, "_Le septiesme iour dudict moys iour nostre-dame_,"
etc.--_Idem_, p. 12. Hakluyt renders it, "The seventh of the moneth
being our Ladees even."--Vol. III. p. 265.
314. As Champlain suggests, these islands are only three leagues higher up
the river; but, as they are on the opposite side, they could not be
compassed in much less than seven or eight leagues, as Cartier
estimates.
315. This was an error in transcribing. Cartier has Stadacone.--_Vide Brief
Récit_, 1545, D'Avezac ed., p. 14.
316. The distance, according to Laurie's Chart, is at least twenty-six
nautical miles.
317. Canada at this time was regarded by the Indians as a limited
territory, situated at or about Quebec. This statement is confirmed by
the testimony of Cartier: "Ledict Donnacona pria nostre cappitaine de
aller le lendemain veoir Canada, Ce que luy promist le dist
cappitaine. Et le lendemam, 13. iour du diet moys, ledict cappitaine
auecques ses gentilz homines accompaigne de cinquante compaignons bien
en ordre, allerèt veoir ledict Donnacona & son peuple, qui est distàt
dou estoient lesdictes nauires d'une lieue."--_Vide Brief Récit_,
1545, D'Avezac ed., p. 29. Of the above the following is Hakluyt's
translation: "Donnacona their Lord desired our Captaine the next day
to come and see Canada, which he promised to doe: for the next day
being the 13 of the moneth, he with all his Gentlemen and fiftie
Mariners very well appointed, went to visite Donnacona and his people,
about a league from our ships."
Their ships were at this time at St. Croix, a short distance up the
St. Charles, which flows into the St. Lawrence at Quebec; and the
little Indian village, or camp, which Donnacona called Canada, was at
Quebec. Other passages from Cartier, as well as from Jean Alfonse,
harmonize with this which we have cited. Canada was therefore in
Cartier's time only the name of a very small territory covered by an
Indian village. When it became the centre of French interests, it
assumed a wider meaning. The St. Lawrence was often called the River
of Canada, then the territory on its shores, and finally Canada has
come to comprehend the vast British possessions in America known as
the "Dominion of Canada."
318. The locality of Cartier's winter-quarters is established by Champlain
with the certainty of an historical demonstration, and yet there are
to be found those whose judgment is so warped by preconceived opinion
that they resist the overwhelming testimony which he brings to bear
upon the subject. Charlevoix makes the St. Croix of Cartier the
Rivière de Jacques Cartier.--_Vide Shea's Charlevoix_, Vol. I. p. 116.
319. Unless they had more than one locksmith, this must have been Antoine
Natel.--_Vide antea_, p. 178.
320. _Martres_. The common weasel, _Musltla vulgaris_.
321. _Ochastaiguins_. This, says Laverdière, is what Champlain first called
the Hurons, from the name of Ochateguin, one of their chiefs. Huron
was a nickname: the proper name of this tribe was Wendot or
Wyandot. They occupied the eastern bank of Lake Huron and the southern
shores of the Georgian Bay. The knowledge of the several tribes here
referred to had been obtained by Champlain, partly from his own
observation and partly from the Indians. The Algommequins or
Algonquins, known at this time to Champlain, were from the region of
the Ottawa. The Yroquois or Iroquois dwelt south of the St. Lawrence
in the State of New York, and comprised what are generally known as
the Five Nations. The Montagnais or Montaignets had their great
trading-post at Tadoussac, and roamed over a vast territory north and
east of that point, and west of it as far as the mountains that
separate the waters of the Saguenay and those of the Ottawa. The name
was given to them by the French from this mountain range. The
Canadians were those about the neighborhood of Quebec. The Souriquois
were of Nova Scotia, and subsequently known as Micmacs. Of most of
these different tribes, Champlain could speak from personal knowledge.
322. Laverdière gives the exact latitude of Quebec at the Observatory, on
the authority of Captain Bayfield, as 46° 49' 8".
CHAPTER VI.
THE SCURVY AT QUEBEC.--How THE WINTER PASSED.--DESCRIPTION OF THE PLACE.--
ARRIVAL AT QUEBEC OF SIEUR DES MARAIS, SON-IN-LAW OF PONT GRAVÉ.
The scurvy began very late; namely, in February, and continued until the
middle of April. Eighteen were attacked, and ten died; five others dying of
the dysentery. I had some opened, to see whether they were tainted, like
those I had seen in our other settlements. They were found the same. Some
time after, our surgeon died. [323] All this troubled us very much, on
account of the difficulty we had in attending to the sick. The nature of
this disease I have described before.
It is my opinion that this disease proceeds only from eating excessively of
salt food and vegetables, which heat the blood and corrupt the internal
parts. The winter is also, in part, its cause; since it checks the natural
warmth, causing a still greater corruption of the blood. There rise also
from the earth, when first cleared up, certain vapors which infect the air:
this has been observed in the case of those who have lived at other
settlements; after the first year when the sun had been let in upon what
was not before cleared up, as well in our abode as in other places, the air
was much better, and the diseases not so violent as before. But the country
is fine and pleasant, and brings to maturity all kinds of grains and feeds,
there being found all the various kinds of trees, which we have here in our
forests, and many fruits, although they are naturally wild; as, nut-trees,
cherry-trees, plum-trees, vines, raspberries, strawberries, currants, both
green and red, and several other small fruits, which are very good. There
are also several kinds of excellent plants and roots. Fishing is abundant
in the rivers; and game without limit on the numerous meadows bordering
them. From the month of April to the 15th of December, the air is so pure
and healthy that one does not experience the slightest indisposition. But
January, February, and March are dangerous, on account of the sicknesses
prevailing at this time, rather than in summer, for the reasons before
given; for, as to treatment, all of my company were well clothed, provided
with good beds, and well warmed and fed, that is, with the salt meats we
had, which, in my opinion, injured them greatly, as I have already stated.
As far as I have been able to see, the sickness attacks one who is delicate
in his living and takes particular care of himself as readily as one whose
condition is as wretched as possible. We supposed at first that the
workmen only would be attacked with this disease; but this we found was not
the case. Those sailing to the East Indies and various other regions, as
Germany and England, are attacked with it as well as in New France. Some
time ago, the Flemish, being attacked with this malady in their voyages to
the Indies, found a very strange remedy, which might be of service to us;
but we have never ascertained the character of it. Yet I am confident that,
with good bread and fresh meat, a person would not be liable to it.
On the 8th of April, the snow had all melted; and yet the air was still
very cold until April, [324] when the trees begin to leaf out.
Some of those sick with the scurvy were cured when Spring came, which is
the season for recovery. I had a savage of the country wintering with me,
who was attacked with this disease from having changed his diet to salt
meat; and he died from its effects, which clearly shows that salt food is
not nourishing, but quite the contrary in this disease.
On the 5th of June, a shallop arrived at our settlement with Sieur des
Marais, a son-in-law of Pont Gravé, bringing us the tidings that his
father-in-law had arrived at Tadoussac on the 28th of May. This
intelligence gave me much satisfaction, as we entertained hopes of
assistance from him. Only eight out of the twenty-eight at first forming
our company were remaining, and half of these were ailing.
On the 7th of June, I set out from Quebec for Tadoussac on some matters of
business, and asked Sieur des Marais to stay in my place until my return,
which he did.
Immediately upon my arrival, Pont Gravé and I had a conference in regard to
some explorations which I was to make in the interior, where the savages
had promised to guide us. We determined that I should go in a Shallop with
twenty men, and that Pont Gravé should stay at Tadoussac to arrange the
affairs of our settlement; and this determination was carried out, he
spending the winter there. This arrangement was especially desirable, since
I was to return to France, according to the orders sent out by Sieur de
Monts, in order to inform him of what I had done and the explorations I had
made in the country.
After this decision, I, set out at once from Tadoussac, and returned to
Quebec, where I had a shallop fitted out with all that was necessary for
making explorations in the country of the Iroquois, where I was to go with
our allies, the Montagnais.
ENDNOTES:
323. His name was Bonnerme.--_Vide antea_, p. 180.
324. Read May instead of April.
CHAPTER VII.
DEPARTURE FROM QUEBEC AND VOYAGE TO THE ÎLE ST. ÉLOI.--MEETING THERE WITH
THE ALGONQUINS AND OCHATAIGUINS.
With this purpose, I set out on the 18th of the month. Here the river
begins to widen, in some places to the breadth of a league or a league and
a half. The country becomes more and more beautiful. There are hills along
the river in part, and in part it is a level country, with but few rocks.
The river itself is dangerous in many places, in consequence of its banks
and rocks; and it is not safe sailing without keeping the lead in hand. The
river is very abundant in many kinds of fish, not only such as we have
here, but others which we have not. The country is thickly covered with
massive and lofty forests, of the same kind of trees as we have about our
habitation. There are also many vines and nut-trees on the bank of the
river, and many small brooks and streams which are only navigable with
canoes. We passed near Point St. Croix, which many maintain, as I have said
elsewhere, is the place where Jacques Cartier spent the winter. This point
is sandy, extending some distance out into the river, and exposed to the
north-west wind, which beats upon it. There are some meadows, covered
however every full tide, which falls nearly two fathoms and a half. This
passage is very dangerous on account of the large number of rocks
stretching across the river, although there is a good but very winding
channel, where the river runs like a race, rendering it necessary to take
the proper time for passing. This place has deceived many, who thought
they could only pass at high tide from there being no channel: but we have
now found the contrary to be true, for one can go down at low tide; but it
would be difficult to ascend, in consequence of the strong current, unless
there were a good wind. It is consequently necessary to wait until the tide
is a third flood, in order to pass, when the current in the channel is six,
eight, ten, twelve, and fifteen fathoms deep.
Continuing our course, we reached a very pleasant river, nine leagues
distant from St. Croix and twenty-four from Quebec. This we named
St. Mary's River. [325] The river all the way from St. Croix is very
pleasant.
Pursuing our route, I met some two or three hundred savages, who were
encamped in huts near a little island called St. Éloi, [326] a league and a
half distant from St. Mary. We made a reconnoissance, and found that they
were tribes of savages, called Ochateguins and Algonquins, [327] on their
way to Quebec, to assist us in exploring the territory of the Iroquois,
with whom they are in deadly hostility, sparing nothing belonging to their
enemies.
After reconnoitring, I went on shore to see them, and inquired who their
chief was. They told me there were two, one named Yroquet, and the other
Ochasteguin, whom they pointed out to me. I went to their cabin, where they
gave me a cordial reception, as is their custom.
I proceeded to inform them of the object of my voyage, with which they were
greatly pleased. After some talk, I withdrew. Some time after, they came to
my shallop, and presented me with some peltry, exhibiting many tokens of
pleasure. Then they returned to the shore.
The next day, the two chiefs came to see me, when they remained some time
without saying a word, meditating and smoking all the while. After due
reflection, they began to harangue in a loud voice all their companions who
were on the bank of the river, with their arms in their hands, and
listening very attentively to what their chiefs said to them, which was as
follows: that nearly ten moons ago, according to their mode of reckoning,
the son of Yroquet had seen me, and that I had given him a good reception,
and declared that Pont Gravé and I desired to assist them against their
enemies, with whom they had for a long time been at warfare, on account of
many cruel acts committed by them against their tribe, under color of
friendship; that, having ever since longed for vengeance, they had
solicited all the savages, whom I saw on the bank of the river, to come and
make an alliance with us, and that their never having seen Christians also
impelled them to come and visit us; that I should do with them and their
companions as I wished; that they had no children with them, but men versed
in war and full of courage, acquainted with the country and rivers in the
land of the Iroquois; that now they entreated me to return to our
settlement, that they might see our houses, and that, after three days, we
should all together come back to engage in the war; that, as a token of
firm friendship and joy, I should have muskets and arquebuses fired, at
which they would be greatly pleased. This I did, when they uttered great
cries of astonishment, especially those who had never heard nor seen the
like.
After hearing them, I replied that, if they desired, I should be very glad
to return to our settlement, to gratify them still more; and that they
might conclude that I had no other purpose than to engage in the war, since
we carried with us nothing but arms, and not merchandise for barter, as
they had been given to understand; and that my only desire was to fulfill
what I had promised them; and that, if I had known of any who had made evil
reports to them, I should regard them as enemies more than they did
themselves. They told me that they believed nothing of them, and that they
never had heard any one speak thus. But the contrary was the case; for
there were some savages who told it to ours. I contented myself with
waiting for an opportunity to show them in fact something more than they
could have expected from me.
ENDNOTES:
325. This river is now called the Sainte Anne.
326. A small island near Batiscan, not on the charts.
327. Hurons and Algonquins.
CHAPTER VIII.
RETURN TO QUEBEC.--CONTINUATION AFTERWARDS WITH THE SAVAGES TO THE FALL OF
THE RIVER OF THE IROQUOIS.
The next day, we set out all together for our settlement, where they
enjoyed themselves some five or six days, which were spent in dances and
festivities, on account of their eagerness for us to engage in the war.
Pont Gravé came forthwith from Tadoussac with two little barques full of
men, in compliance with a letter, in which I I begged him to come as
speedily as possible.
The savages seeing him arrive rejoiced more than ever, inasmuch as I told
them that he had given some of his men to assist them, and that perhaps we
should go together.
On the 28th of the month, [328] we equipped some barques for assisting
these savages. Pont Gravé embarked on one and I on the other, when we all
set out together. The first of June, [329] we arrived at St. Croix, distant
fifteen leagues from Quebec, where Pont Gravé and I concluded that, for
certain reasons, I should go with the savages, and he to our settlement and
to Tadoussac. This resolution being taken, I embarked in my shallop all
that was necessary, together with Des Marais and La Routte, our pilot, and
nine men.
I set out from St. Croix on the 3d of June [330] with all the savages. We
passed the Trois Rivières, a very beautiful country, covered with a growth
of fine trees. From this place to St. Croix is a distance of fifteen
leagues. At the mouth of the above-named river [331] there are six islands,
three of which are very small, the others some fifteen to sixteen hundred
paces long, very pleasant in appearance. Near Lake St. Peter, [332] some
two leagues up the river, there is a little fall not very difficult to
pass. This place is in latitude 46°, lacking some minutes. The savages of
the country gave us to understand that some days' journey up this river
there is a lake, through which the river flows. The length of the lake is
ten days' journey, when some falls are passed, and afterwards three or four
other lakes of five or six days' journey in length. Having reached the end
of these, they go four or five leagues by land, and enter still another
lake, where the Sacqué has its principal source. From this lake, the
savages go to Tadoussac. [333] The Trois Rivières extends forty days'
journey of the savages. They say that at the end of this river there is a
people, who are great hunters, without a fixed abode, and who are less than
six days' journey from the North Sea. What little of the country I have
seen is sandy, very high, with hills, covered with large quantities of pine
and fir on the river border; but some quarter of a league inland the woods
are very fine and open, and the country level. Thence we continued our
course to the entrance of Lake St. Peter, where the country is exceedingly
pleasant and level, and crossed the lake, in two, three, and four fathoms
of water, which is some eight leagues long and four wide. On the north
side, we saw a very pleasant river, extending some twenty leagues into the
interior, which I named St. Suzanne; on the south side, there are two, one
called Rivière du Pont, the other, Rivière de Gennes, [334] which are very
pretty, and in a fine and fertile country. The water is almost still in the
lake, which is full of fish. On the north bank, there are seen some slight
elevations at a distance of some twelve or fifteen leagues from the lake.
After crossing the lake, we passed a large number of islands of various
sizes, containing many nut-trees and vines, and fine meadows, with
quantities of game and wild animals, which go over from the main land to
these islands. Fish are here more abundant than in any other part of the
river that we had seen. From these islands, we went to the mouth of the
River of the Iroquois, where we stayed two days, refreshing ourselves with
good venison, birds, and fish, which the savages gave us. Here there sprang
up among them some difference of opinion on the subject of the war, so that
a portion only determined to go with me, while the others returned to their
country with their wives and the merchandise which they had obtained by
barter.
Setting out from the mouth of this river, which is some four hundred to
five hundred paces broad, and very beautiful, running southward, [335] we
arrived at a place in latitude 45°, and twenty-two or twenty-three leagues
from the Trois Rivières. All this river from its mouth to the first fall,
a distance of fifteen leagues, is very smooth, and bordered with woods,
like all the other places before named, and of the same forts. There are
nine or ten fine islands before reaching the fall of the Iroquois, which
are a league or a league and a half long, and covered with numerous oaks
and nut-trees. The river is nearly half a league wide in places, and very
abundant in fish. We found in no place less than four feet of water. The
approach to the fall is a kind of lake, [336] where the water descends, and
which is some three leagues in circuit. There are here some meadows, but
not inhabited by savages on account of the wars. There is very little water
at the fall, which runs with great rapidity. There are also many rocks and
stones, so that the savages cannot go up by water, although they go down
very easily. All this region is very level, covered with forests, vines,
and nut-trees. No Christians had been in this place before us; and we had
considerable difficulty in ascending the river with oars.
As soon as we had reached the fall, Des Marais, La Routte, and I, with five
men, went on shore to see whether we could pass this place; but we went
some league and a half without seeing any prospect of being able to do so,
finding only water running with great swiftness, and in all directions many
stones, very dangerous, and with but little water about them. The fall is
perhaps six hundred paces broad. Finding that it was impossible to cut a
way through the woods with the small number of men that I had, I
determined, after consultation with the rest, to change my original
resolution, formed on the assurance of the savages that the roads were
easy, but which we did not find to be the case, as I have stated. We
accordingly returned to our shallop, where I had left some men as guards,
and to indicate to the savages upon their arrival that we had gone to make
explorations along the fall.
After making what observations I wished in this place, we met, on
returning, some savages, who had come to reconnoitre, as we had done. They
told us that all their companions had arrived at our shallop, where we
found them greatly pleased, and delighted that we had gone in this manner
without a guide, aided only by the reports they had several times made to
us.
Having returned, and seeing the slight prospect there was of passing the
fall with our shallop, I was much troubled. And it gave me especial
dissatisfaction to go back without seeing a very large lake, filled with
handsome islands, and with large tracts of fine land bordering on the lake,
where their enemies live according to their representations. After duly
thinking over the matter, I determined to go and fulfil my promise, and
carry out my desire. Accordingly, I embarked with the savages in their
canoes, taking with me two men, who went cheerfully. After making known my
plan to Des Marais and others in the shallop, I requested the former to
return to our settlement with the rest of our company, giving them the
assurance that, in a short time, by God's' grace, I would return to them.
I proceeded forthwith to have a conference with the captains of the
savages, and gave them to understand that they had told me the opposite of
what my observations found to be the case at the fall; namely, that it was
impossible to pass it with the shallop, but that this would not prevent me
from assisting them as I had promised. This communication troubled them
greatly; and they desired to change their determination, but I urged them
not to do so, telling them that they ought to carry out their first plan,
and that I, with two others, would go to the war with them in their canoes,
in order to show them that, as for me, I would not break my word given to
them, although alone; but that I was unwilling then to oblige any one of my
companions to embark, and would only take with me those who had the
inclination to go, of whom I had found two.
They were greatly pleased at what I said to them, and at the determination
which I had taken, promising, as before, to show me fine things.
ENDNOTES:
328. The reader will observe that this must have been the 28th of June,
1609.
329. Read 1st of July.
330. Read 3d of July.
331. The river is now called St. Maurice; and the town at its mouth, Three
Rivers. Two islands at the mouth of the river divide it into three;
hence, it was originally called Trois Rivières, or Three Rivers.
332. Laverdière suggests that Champlain entered this lake, now for the
first time called St. Peter, in 1603, on St. Peter's day, the 29th
June, and probably so named it from that circumstance.
333. From the carrying-place they enter the Lake St. John, and from it
descend by the Saguenay to Tadoussac. In the preceding passage, Sacqué
was plainly intended for Saguenay.
334. Of the three rivers flowing into Lake St. Peter, none retains the name
given to them by Champlain. His _St. Suzanne_ is the river du Loup;
his _Rivière du Pont_ is the river St. François; and his _De Gennes_
is now represented by the Yamaska. Compare Champlain's map of 1612
with Laurie's Chart of the river St. Lawrence.
335. This is an error: the River of the Iroquois, now commonly known as the
Richelieu, runs towards the north.
336. The Chambly Basin. On Charlevoix's Carte de la Rivière Richelieu, it
is called Bassin de St. Louis.
CHAPTER IX.
DEPARTURE FROM THE FALL OF THE IROQUOIS RIVER.--DESCRIPTION OF A LARGE
LAKE.--ENCOUNTER WITH THE ENEMY AT THIS LAKE; THEIR MANNER OF ATTACKING THE
IROQUOIS, AND THEIR BEHAVIOR IN BATTLE.
I set out accordingly from the fall of the Iroquois River [337] on the 2d
of July. [338] All the savages set to carrying their canoes, arms, and
baggage overland, some half a league, in order to pass by the violence and
strength of the fall, which was speedily accomplished. Then they put them
all in the water again, two men in each with the baggage; and they caused
one of the men of each canoe to go by land some three leagues, [339] the
extent of the fall, which is not, however, so violent here as at the mouth,
except in some places, where rocks obstruct the river, which is not broader
than three hundred or four hundred paces. After we had passed the fall,
which was attended with difficulty, all the savages, who had gone by land
over a good path and level country, although there are a great many trees,
re-embarked in their canoes. My men went also by land; but I went in a
canoe. The savages made a review of all their followers, finding that there
were twenty-four canoes, with sixty men. After the review was completed, we
continued our course to an island, [340] three leagues long, filled with
the finest pines I had ever seen. Here they went hunting, and captured
some wild animals. Proceeding about three leagues farther on, we made a
halt, in order to rest the coming night.
They all at once set to work, some to cut wood, and others to obtain the
bark of trees for covering their cabins, for the sake of sheltering
themselves, others to fell large trees for; constructing a barricade on the
river-bank around their cabins, which they do so quickly that in less than
two hours so much is accomplished that five hundred of their enemies would
find it very difficult to dislodge them without killing large numbers. They
make no barricade on the river-bank, where their canoes are drawn up, in
order that they may be able to embark, if occasion requires. After they
were established in their cabins, they despatched three canoes, with nine
good men, according to their custom in all their encampments, to
reconnoitre for a distance of two or three leagues, to see if they can
perceive any thing, after which they return. They rest the entire night,
depending upon the observation of these scouts, which is a very bad custom
among them; for they are sometimes while sleeping surprised by their
enemies, who slaughter them before they have time to get up and prepare for
defence. Noticing this, I remonstrated with them on the mistake they made,
and told them that they ought to keep watch, as they had seen us do every
night, and have men on the lookout, in order to listen and see whether they
perceived any thing, and that they should not live in such a manner like
beasts. They replied that they could not keep watch, and that they worked
enough in the day-time in the chase, since, when engaged in war, they
divide their troops into three parts: namely, a part for hunting scattered
in several places; another to constitute the main body of their army, which
is always under arms; and the third to act as _avant-coureurs_, to look out
along the rivers, and observe whether they can see any mark or signal
showing where their enemies or friends have passed. This they ascertain by
certain marks which the chiefs of different tribes make known to each
other; but, these not continuing always the same, they inform themselves
from time to time of changes, by which means they ascertain whether they
are enemies or friends who have passed. The hunters never hunt in advance
of the main body, or _avant-coureurs_, so as not to excite alarm or produce
disorder, but in the rear and in the direction from which they do not
anticipate their enemy. Thus they advance until they are within two or
three days' march of their enemies, when they proceed by night stealthily
and all in a body, except the _van-couriers_. By day, they withdraw into
the interior of the woods, where they rest, without straying off, neither
making any noise nor any fire, even for the sake of cooking, so as not to
be noticed in case their enemies should by accident pass by. They make no
fire, except in smoking, which amounts to almost nothing. They eat baked
Indian meal, which they soak in water, when it becomes a kind of porridge.
They provide themselves with such meal to meet their wants, when they are
near their enemies, or when retreating after a charge, in which case they
are not inclined to hunt, retreating immediately.
In all their encampments, they have their Pilotois, or Ostemoy, [341] a
class of persons who play the part of soothsayers, in whom these people
have faith. One of these builds a cabin, surrounds it with small pieces of
wood, and covers it with his robe: after it is built, he places himself
inside, so as not to be seen at all, when he seizes and shakes one of the
posts of his cabin, muttering some words between his teeth, by which he
says he invokes the devil, who appears to him in the form of a stone, and
tells him whether they will meet their enemies and kill many of them. This
Pilotois lies prostrate on the ground, motionless, only speaking with the
devil: on a sudden, he rises to his feet, talking, and tormenting himself
in such a manner that, although naked, he is all of a perspiration. All the
people surround the cabin, seated on their buttocks, like apes. They
frequently told me that the shaking of the cabin, which I saw, proceeded
from the devil, who made it move, and not the man inside, although I could
see the contrary; for, as I have stated above, it was the Pilotois who took
one of the supports of the cabin, and made it move in this manner. They
told me also that I should see fire come out from the top, which I did not
see at all. These rogues counterfeit also their voice, so that it is heavy
and clear, and speak in a language unknown to the other savages. And, when
they represent it as broken, the savages think that the devil is speaking,
and telling them what is to happen in their war, and what they must do.
But all these scapegraces, who play the soothsayer, out of a hundred words,
do not speak two that are true, and impose upon these poor people. There
are enough like them in the world, who take food from the mouths of the
people by their impostures, as these worthies do. I often remonstrated with
the people, telling them that all they did was sheer nonsense, and that
they ought not to put confidence in them.
Now, after ascertaining from their soothsayers what is to be their fortune,
the chiefs take sticks a foot long, and as many as there are soldiers. They
take others, somewhat larger, to indicate the chiefs. Then they go into the
wood, and seek out a level place, five or fix feet square, where the chief,
as sergeant-major, puts all the sticks in such order as seems to him best.
Then he calls all his companions, who come all armed; and he indicates to
them the rank and order they are to observe in battle with their enemies.
All the savages watch carefully this proceeding, observing attentively the
outline which their chief has made with the sticks. Then they go away, and
set to placing themselves in such order as the sticks were in, when they
mingle with each other, and return again to their proper order, which
manoeuvre they repeat two or three times, and at all their encampments,
without needing a sergeant to keep them in the proper order, which they are
able to keep accurately without any confusion. This is their rule in war.
We set out on the next day, continuing our course in the river as far as
the entrance of the lake. There are many pretty islands here, low, and
containing very fine woods and meadows, with abundance of fowl and such
animals of the chase as stags, fallow-deer, fawns, roe-bucks, bears, and
others, which go from the main land to these islands. We captured a large
number of these animals. There are also many beavers, not only in this
river, but also in numerous other little ones that flow into it. These
regions, although they are pleasant, are not inhabited by any savages, on
account of their wars; but they withdraw as far as possible from the rivers
into the interior, in order not to be suddenly surprised.
The next day we entered the lake, [342] which is of great extent, say
eighty or a hundred leagues long, where I saw four fine islands, ten,
twelve, and fifteen leagues long, which were formerly inhabited by the
savages, like the River of the Iroquois; but they have been abandoned since
the wars of the savages with one another prevail. There are also many
rivers falling into the lake, bordered by many fine trees of the same kinds
as those we have in France, with many vines finer than any I have seen in
any other place; also many chestnut-trees on the border of this lake, which
I had not seen before. There is also a great abundance of fish, of many
varieties: among others, one called by the savages of the country
_Chaousarou_ [343] which varies in length, the largest being, as the people
told me, eight or ten feet long. I saw some five feet long, which were as
large as my thigh; the head being as big as my two fists, with a snout two
feet and a half long, and a double row of very sharp and dangerous teeth.
Its body is, in shape, much like that of a pike; but it is armed with
scales so strong that a poniard could not pierce them. Its color is
silver-gray. The extremity of its snout is like that of a swine. This fish
makes war upon all others in the lakes and rivers. It also possesses
remarkable dexterity, as these people informed me, which is exhibited in
the following manner. When it wants to capture birds, it swims in among the
rushes, or reeds, which are found on the banks of the lake in several
places, where it puts its snout out of water and keeps perfectly still: so
that, when the birds come and light on its snout, supposing it to be only
the stump of a tree, it adroitly closes it, which it had kept ajar, and
pulls the birds by the feet down under water. The savages gave me the head
of one of them, of which they make great account, saying that, when they
have the headache, they bleed themselves with the teeth of this fish on the
spot where they suffer pain, when it suddenly passes away.
Continuing our course over this lake on the western side, I noticed, while
observing the country, some very high mountains on the eastern side, on the
top of which there was snow. [344] I made inquiry of the savages whether
these localities were inhabited, when they told me that the Iroquois dwelt
there, and that there were beautiful valleys in these places, with plains
productive in grain, such as I had eaten in this country, together with
many kinds of fruit without limit. [345] They said also that the lake
extended near mountains, some twenty-five leagues distant from us, as I
judge. I saw, on the south, other mountains, no less high than the first,
but without any snow. [346] The savages told me that these mountains were
thickly settled, and that it was there we were to find their enemies; but
that it was necessary to pass a fall in order to go there (which I
afterwards saw), when we should enter another lake, nine or ten leagues
long. After reaching the end of the lake, we should have to go, they said,
two leagues by land, and pass through a river flowing into the sea on the
Norumbegue coast, near that of Florida, [347] whither it took them only two
days to go by canoe, as I have since ascertained from some prisoners we
captured, who gave me minute information in regard to all they had personal
knowledge of, through some Algonquin interpreters, who understood the
Iroquois language.
Now, as we began to approach within two or three days' journey of the abode
of their enemies, we advanced only at night, resting during the day. But
they did not fail to practise constantly their accustomed superstitions, in
order to ascertain what was to be the result of their undertaking; and they
often asked me if I had had a dream, and seen their enemies, to which I
replied in the negative. Yet I did not cease to encourage them, and inspire
in them hope. When night came, we set out on the journey until the next
day, when we withdrew into the interior of the forest, and spent the rest
of the day there. About ten or eleven o'clock, after taking a little walk
about our encampment, I retired. While sleeping, I dreamed that I saw our
enemies, the Iroquois, drowning in the lake near a mountain, within sight.
When I expressed a wish to help them, our allies, the savages, told me we
must let them all die, and that they were of no importance. When I awoke,
they did not fail to ask me, as usual, if I had had a dream. I told them
that I had, in fact, had a dream. This, upon being related, gave them so
much confidence that they did not doubt any longer that good was to happen
to them.
When it was evening, we embarked in our canoes to continue our course; and,
as we advanced very quietly and without making any noise, we met on the
29th of the month the Iroquois, about ten o'clock at evening, at the
extremity of a cape which extends into the lake on the western bank. They
had come to fight. We both began to utter loud cries, all getting their
arms in readiness. We withdrew out on the water, and the Iroquois went on
shore, where they drew up all their canoes close to each other and began to
fell trees with poor axes, which they acquire in war sometimes, using also
others of stone. Thus they barricaded themselves very well.
Our forces also passed the entire night, their canoes being drawn up close
to each other, and fastened to poles, so that they might not get separated,
and that they might be all in readiness to fight, if occasion required. We
were out upon the water, within arrow range of their barricades. When they
were armed and in array, they despatched two canoes by themselves to the
enemy to inquire if they wished to fight, to which the latter replied that
they wanted nothing else; but they said that, at present, there was not
much light, and that it would be necessary to wait for daylight, so as to
be able to recognize each other; and that, as soon as the sun rose, they
would offer us battle. This was agreed to by our side. Meanwhile, the
entire night was spent in dancing and singing, on both sides, with endless
insults and other talk; as, how little courage we had, how feeble a
resistance we would make against their arms, and that, when day came, we
should realize it to our ruin. Ours also were not slow in retorting,
telling them they would see such execution of arms as never before,
together with an abundance of such talk as is not unusual in the siege of a
town. After this singing, dancing, and bandying words on both sides to the
fill, when day came, my companions and myself continued under cover, for
fear that the enemy would see us. We arranged our arms in the best manner
possible, being, however, separated, each in one of the canoes of the
savage Montagnais. After arming ourselves with light armor, we each took an
arquebuse, and went on shore. I saw the enemy go out of their barricade,
nearly two hundred in number, stout and rugged in appearance. They came at
a slow pace towards us, with a dignity and assurance which greatly amused
me, having three chiefs at their head. Our men also advanced in the same
order, telling me that those who had three large plumes were the chiefs,
and that they had only these three, and that they could be distinguished by
these plumes, which were much larger than those of their companions, and
that I should do what I could to kill them. I promised to do all in my
power, and said that I was very sorry they could not understand me, so that
I might give order and shape to their mode of attacking their enemies, and
then we should, without doubt, defeat them all; but that this could not now
be obviated, and that I should be very glad to show them my courage and
good-will when we should engage in the fight.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OP THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
DEFEAT OF THE IROQUOIS AT LAKE CHAMPLAIN.
_A_. The fort of the Iroquois.
_B_. The enemy.
_C_. Canoes of the enemy, made of oak bark, each holding ten, fifteen, or
eighteen men.
_D_. Two chiefs who were killed.
_E_. One of the enemy wounded by a musket-shot of Sieur de Champlain.
_F_. Sieur de Champlain.
_G_. Two musketeers of Sieur de Champlain.
_H_. Montagnais, Ochastaiguins, and Algonquins.
_I_. Canoes of our allied savages made of birch bark.
_K_. The woods.
NOTES. The letters _A_, _F_, _G_, and _K_, are wanting but the objects to
which they point are easily recognized. The letter _H_ has been placed on
the canoes of the allies instead of the collected body of the allies
immediately above them.
* * * * *
As soon as we had landed, they began to run for some two hundred paces
towards their enemies, who stood firmly, not having as yet noticed my
companions, who went into the woods with some savages. Our men began to
call me with loud cries; and, in order to give me a passage-way, they
opened in two parts, and put me at their head, where I marched some twenty
paces in advance of the rest, until I was within about thirty paces of the
enemy, who at once noticed me, and, halting, gazed at me, as I did also at
them. When I saw them making a move to fire at us, I rested my musket
against my cheek, and aimed directly at one of the three chiefs. With the
same shot, two fell to the ground; and one of their men was so wounded that
he died some time after. I had loaded my musket with four balls. When our
side saw this shot so favorable for them, they began to raise such loud
cries that one could not have heard it thunder. Meanwhile, the arrows flew
on both sides. The Iroquois were greatly astonished that two men had been
so quickly killed, although they were equipped with armor woven from cotton
thread, and with wood which was proof against their arrows. This caused
great alarm among them. As I was loading again, one of my companions fired
a shot from the woods, which astonished them anew to such a degree that,
seeing their chiefs dead, they lost courage, and took to flight, abandoning
their camp and fort, and fleeing into the woods, whither I pursued them,
killing still more of them. Our savages also killed several of them, and
took ten or twelve prisoners. The remainder escaped with the wounded.
Fifteen or sixteen were wounded on our side with arrow-shots; but they were
soon healed.
After gaining the victory, our men amused themselves by taking a great
quantity of Indian corn and some meal from their enemies, also their armor,
which they had left behind that they might run better. After feasting
sumptuously, dancing and singing, we returned three hours after, with the
prisoners. The spot where this attack took place is in latitude 43° and
some minutes, [348] and the lake was called Lake Champlain. [349]
ENDNOTES:
337. The River of the Iroquois, so called by Champlain, was long known by
that name, says Charlevoix, because these Indians generally descended
it, in order to make their inroads into the colony. Fort Richelieu, at
the mouth of the river, erected in 1641, was named after the
celebrated Cardinal, the river having already taken his name. This
fort having been demolished, another was built by M. de Sorel, a
French officer in command, which took his name, as likewise did the
river. A fort was built on the same river at the present village of
Chambly in 1664, and called Fort St. Louis. This wooden structure was
replaced by another of stone, erected prior to 1721, to which the name
of Chambly was given, as likewise by some writers to the river. The
river has likewise sometimes been called the St. Johns, but the
prevailing name is the Richelieu.
338. Read the 12th of July.
339. This fall is now avoided, and the navigation of the Richelieu secured
by a canal connecting Chambly Basin and St. Johns, a distance of about
ten miles.
340. It is not entirely certain what island is here referred to. It has
been supposed to be the Island of St. Thérèse. But, taking all of
Champlain's statements into consideration, the logical inference would
be that it is the Isle aux Noix.
341. "These two words were used in Acadie to indicate the _jongleur_, or
sorcerer. The word _pilotois_, according to P. Biard, Rel. 1611,
p. 17, came from the Basques, the Souriquois using the word _autmoin_,
which Lescarbot writes _aoutmoin_, and Champlain _ostemoy_.
P. Lejeune, in the Relation of 1636, p. 13, informs us that the
Montagnais called their Sorcerers _manitousiouekbi_: and according to
P. Brébeuf. Rel. 1635. p.35. the Hurons designated theirs by the name
_arendiouane_."--_Laverdière, in loco_.
342. The distances are here overstated by more than threefold, both in
reference to the lake and the islands. This arose, perhaps, from the
slow progress made in the birch canoes with a party of sixty
undisciplined savages, a method of travelling to which Champlain was
unaccustomed; and he may likewise have been misled by the
exaggerations of the Indians, or he may have sailed to comprehend
their representation of distances.
343. Of the meaning of _chaousarou_, the name given by the Indians to this
fish, we have no knowledge. It is now known as the bony-scaled pike,
or gar pike, _Lepidosteus osseus_. It is referred to by several early
writers after Champlain.
"I saw," says Sagard, "in the cabin of a Montagnais Indian a certain
fish, which some call Chaousarou, as big as a large pike. It was only
an ordinary sized one, for many larger ones are seen, eight, nine, and
ten feet long, as is said. It had a snout about a foot and a half
long, of about the same shape as that of the snipe, except that the
extremity is blunt and not so pointed, and of a large size in
proportion to the body. It has a double row of teeth, which are very
sharp and dangerous;... and the form of the body is like that of a
pike, but it is armed with very stout and hard scales, of silver gray
color, and difficult to be pierced."--_Sagard's History of Canada_,
Bk. _iii_. p. 765; _Laverdière_. Sagard's work was published in 1636.
He had undoubtedly seen this singular fish; but his description is so
nearly in the words of Champlain as to suggest that he had taken it
from our author.
Creuxius, in his History of Canada, published at Paris in 1664,
describes this fish nearly in the words of Champlain, with an
engraving sufficiently accurate for identification, but greatly
wanting in scientific exactness. He adds, "It is not described by
ancient authors, probably because it is only found in the Lake of the
Iroquois;" that is, in Lake Champlain. From which it may be inferred
that at that time it had not been discovered in other waters. By the
French, he says, it is called _piscis armatus_. This is in evident
allusion to its bony scales, in which it is protected as in a coat of
mail.
It is described by Dr. Kay in the Natural History of New York,
Zoölogy, Part I. p 271. On Plate XLIII. Fig. 139, of the same work,
the reader will observe that the head of the fish there represented
strikingly resembles that of the chaousarou of Champlain as depicted
on his map of 1612. The drawing by Champlain is very accurate, and
clearly identifies the Gar Pike. This singular fish has been found in
Lake Champlain, the river St. Lawrence, and in the northern lakes,
likewise in the Mississippi River, where is to be found also a closely
related species commonly called the alligator gar. In the Museum of
the Boston Society of Natural History are several specimens, one of
them from St. John's River, Florida, four feet and nine inches in
length, of which the head is seventeen and a half inches. If the body
of those seen by Champlain was five feet, the head two and a half feet
would be in about the usual proportion.
344. The Green Mountain range in Vermont, generally not more than twenty or
twenty-five miles distant. Champlain was probably deceived as to the
snow on their summits in July. What he saw was doubtless white
limestone, which might naturally enough be taken for snow in the
absence of any positive knowledge. The names of the summits visible
from the lake are the following, with their respective heights. The
Chin, 4,348 feet; The Nose, 4,044; Camel's Hump, 4,083; Jay's Peak,
4,018; Killington Peak, 3,924. This region was at an early period
called _Irocosia_.
345. This is not an inaccurate description of the beautiful as well as rich
and fertile valleys to be found among the hills of Vermont.
346. On entering the lake, they saw the Adirondack Mountains, which would
appear very nearly in the south. The points visible from the lake were
Mt. Marcy, 5,467 feet high above tide-water; Dix's Peak, 5,200; Nipple
Top, 4,900; Whiteface, 4,900; Raven Hill, 2,100; Bald Peak, 2,065.--
_Vide Palmer's Lake Champlain_, p. 12.
347. The river here referred to is the Hudson. By passing from Lake
Champlain through the small stream that connects it with Lake George,
over this latter lake and a short carrying place, the upper waters of
the Hudson are reached. The coast of Norumbegue and that of Florida
were both indefinite regions, not well defined by geographers of that
day. These terms were supplied by Champlain, and not by his
informants. He could not of course tell precisely where this unknown
river reached the sea, but naturally inferred that it was on the
southern limit of Norumbegue, which extended from the Penobscot
towards Florida, which latter at that time was supposed to extend from
the Gulf of Mexico indefinitely to the north.
348. This battle, or Skirmish, clearly took place at Ticonderoga, or
_Cheonderoga_, as the Indians called it, where a cape juts out into
the lake, as described by Champlain. This is the logical inference to
be drawn from the whole narrative. It is to be observed that the
purpose of the Indians, whom Champlain was accompanying, was to find
their enemies, the Iroquois, and give them battle. The journey, or
warpath, had been clearly marked out and described by the Indians to
Champlain, as may be seen in the text. It led them along the western
shore of the lake to the outlet of Lake George, over the fall in the
little stream connecting the two lakes, through Lake George, and
thence to the mountains beyond, where the Iroquois resided. They found
the Iroquois, however, on the lake; gave them battle on the little
cape alluded to; and after the victory and pursuit for some distance
into the forest, and the gathering up of the spoils, Champlain and his
allies commenced their journey homeward. But Champlain says he saw the
fall in the stream that connects the two lakes. Now this little stream
flows into Lake Champlain at Ticonderoga, and he would naturally have
seen the fall, if the battle took place there, while in pursuit of the
Iroquois into the forest, as described in the text. The fall was in
the line of the retreat of the Iroquois towards their home, and is
only a mile and three-quarters from the cape jutting out into the lake
at Ticonderoga. If the battle had occurred at any point north of
Ticonderoga, he could not have seen the fall, as they retreated
immediately after the battle: if it had taken place south of that
point, it would have been off the war-path which they had determined
to pursue. We must conclude, therefore, that the battle took place at
Ticonderoga, a little north of the ruins of the old Fort Carillon,
directly on the shore of the lake. If the reader will examine the plan
of the battle as given by Champlain's engraving, he will see that it
conforms with great exactness to the known topography of the place.
The Iroquois, who had their choice of positions are on the north, in
the direction of Willow Point, where they can most easily retreat, and
where Champlain and his allies can be more easily hemmed in near the
point of the cape. The Iroquois are on lower ground, and we know that
the surface there shelves to the north. The well-known sandy bottom of
the lake at this place would furnish the means of fastening the
canoes, by forcing poles into it, a little out from the shore during
the night, as they actually did. On Champlain's map of 1632, this
point is referred to as the location of the battle; and in his note on
the map. No. 65, he says this is the place where the Iroquois were
defeated by Champlain. All the facts of the narrative thus point to
Ticonderoga, and render it indisputable that this was the scene of the
first of the many recorded conflicts on this memorable lake. We should
not have entered into this discussion so fully, had not several
writers, not well informed, expressed views wholly inconsistent with
known facts.
349. The Indian name of Lake Champlain is _Caniaderiguaronte_, the lake
that is the gate of the country.--_Vide Administration of the
Colonies_, by Thomas Pownall. 1768, p. 267. This name was very
significant, since the lake and valley of Champlain was the "gate," or
war-path, by which the hostile tribes of Iroquois approached their
enemies on the north of the St. Lawrence, and _vice-versa_.
CHAPTER X.
RETURN FROM THE BATTLE, AND WHAT TOOK PLACE ON THE WAY.
After going some eight leagues, towards evening they took one of the
prisoners, to whom they made a harangue, enumerating the cruelties which he
and his men had already practised towards them without any mercy, and that,
in like manner, he ought to make up his mind to receive as much. They
commanded him to sing, if he had courage, which he did; but it was a very
sad song.
Meanwhile, our men kindled a fire; and, when it was well burning, they each
took a brand, and burned this poor creature gradually, so as to make him
suffer greater torment. Sometimes they stopped, and threw water on his
back. Then they tore out his nails, and applied fire to the extremities of
his fingers and private member. Afterwards, they flayed the top of his
head, and had a kind of gum poured all hot upon it; then they pierced his
arms near the wrists, and, drawing up the sinews with sticks, they tore
them out by force; but, seeing that they could not get them, they cut
them. This poor wretch uttered terrible cries, and it excited my pity to
see him treated in this manner, and yet showing such firmness that one
would have said, at times, that he suffered hardly any pain at all. They
urged me strongly to take some fire, and do as they did. I remonstrated
with them, saying that we practised no such cruelties, but killed them at
once; and that, if they wished me to fire a musket-shot at him, I should be
willing to do so. They refused, saying that he would not in that case
suffer any pain. I went away from them, pained to see such cruelties as
they practised upon his body. When they saw that I was displeased, they
called me, and told me to fire a musket-shot at him. This I did without his
feeing it, and thus put an end, by a single shot, to all the torments he
would have suffered, rather than see him tyrannized over. After his death,
they were not yet satisfied, but opened him, and threw his entrails into
the lake. Then they cut off his head, arms, and legs, which they scattered
in different directions; keeping the scalp which they had flayed off, as
they had done in the case of all the rest whom they had killed in the
contest. They were guilty also of another monstrosity in taking his heart,
cutting it into several pieces, and giving it to a brother of his to eat,
as also to others of his companions, who were prisoners: they took it into
their mouths, but would not swallow it. Some Algonquin savages, who were
guarding them, made some of them spit it out, when they threw it into the
water. This is the manner in which these people behave towards those whom
they capture in war, for whom it would be better to die fighting, or to
kill themselves on the spur of the moment, as many do, rather than fall
into the hands of their enemies. After this execution, we set out on our
return with the rest of the prisoners, who kept singing as they went along,
with no better hopes for the future than he had had who was so wretchedly
treated.
Having arrived at the falls of the Iroquois, the Algonquins returned to
their own country; so also the Ochateguins, [350] with a part of the
prisoners: well satisfied with the results of the war, and that I had
accompanied them so readily. We separated accordingly with loud
protestations of mutual friendship; and they asked me whether I would not
like to go into their country, to assist them with continued fraternal
relations; and I promised that I would do so.
I returned with the Montagnais. After informing myself from the prisoners
in regard to their country, and of its probable extent, we packed up the
baggage for the return, which was accomplished with such despatch that we
went every day in their canoes twenty-five or thirty leagues, which was
their usual rate of travelling. When we arrived at the mouth of the river
Iroquois, some of the savages dreamed that their enemies were pursuing
them. This dream led them to move their camp forthwith, although the night
was very inclement on account of the wind and rain; and they went and
passed the remainder of the night, from fear of their enemies, amid high
reeds on Lake St. Peter. Two days after, we arrived at our settlement,
where I gave them some bread and peas; also some beads, which they asked me
for, in order to ornament the heads of their enemies, for the purpose of
merry-making upon their return. The next day, I went with them in their
canoes as far as Tadoussac, in order to witness their ceremonies. On
approaching the shore, they each took a stick, to the end of which they
hung the heads of their enemies, who had been killed, together with some
beads, all of them singing. When they were through with this, the women
undressed themselves, so as to be in a state of entire nudity, when they
jumped into the water, and swam to the prows, of the canoes to take the
heads of their enemies, which were on the ends of long poles before their
boats: then they hung them about their necks, as if it had been some costly
chain, singing and dancing meanwhile. Some days after, they presented me
with one of these heads, as if it were something very precious; and also
with a pair of arms taken from their enemies, to keep and show to the
king. This, for the sake of gratifying them, I promised to do.
After some days, I went to Quebec, whither some Algonquin savages came,
expressing their regret at not being present at the defeat of their
enemies, and presenting me with some furs, in consideration of my having
gone there and assisted their friends.
Some days after they had set out for their country, distant about a hundred
and twenty leagues from our settlement, I went to Tadoussac to see whether
Pont Gravé had returned from Gaspé, whither he had gone. He did not arrive
until the next day, when he told me that he had decided to return to
France. We concluded to leave an upright man, Captain Pierre Chavin of
Dieppe, to command at Quebec, until Sieur de Monts should arrange matters
there.
ENDNOTES:
350. The Indian allies on this expedition were the Algonquins
(_Algoumequins_), the Hurons (_Ochatequins_), and the Montagnais
(_Montagnets_). The two former, on their way to Quebec, had met
Champlain near the river St. Anne, and joined him and the Montagnais,
who belonged in the neighborhood of Tadoussac, or farther east.--_Vide
antea_, p. 202. They now, at the falls near the Basin of Chambly,
departed to their homes, perhaps on the Ottawa River and the shores of
Lake Huron.
CHAPTER XI.
RETURN TO FRANCE, AND WHAT OCCURRED UP TO THE TIME OP RE-EMBARKATION.
After forming this resolution, we went to Quebec to establish him in
authority, and leave him every thing requisite and necessary for the
settlement, together with fifteen men. Every thing being arranged, we set
out on the first day of September [351] for Tadoussac, in order to fit out
our vessel for returning to France.
We set out accordingly from the latter place on the 5th of the month, and
on the 8th anchored at Isle Percée. On Thursday the 10th, we set out from
there, and on the 18th, the Tuesday following, we arrived at the Grand
Bank. On the 2d of October, we got soundings. On the 8th, we anchored at
Conquet [352] in Lower Brittany. On Saturday the 10th, we set out from
there, arriving at Honfleur on the 13th.
After disembarking, I did not wait long before taking post to go to Sieur
de Monts, who was then at Fontainebleau, where His Majesty was. Here I
reported to him in detail all that had transpired in regard to the winter
quarters and our new explorations, and my hopes for the future in view of
the promises of the savages called Ochateguins, who are good Iroquois.
[353] The other Iroquois, their enemies, dwell more to the south. The
language of the former does not differ much from that of the people
recently discovered and hitherto unknown to us, which they understand when
spoken.
I at once waited upon His Majesty, and gave him an account of my voyage,
which afforded him pleasure and satisfaction. I had a girdle made of
porcupine quills, very well worked, after the manner of the country where
it was made, and which His Majesty thought very pretty. I had also two
little birds, of the size of blackbirds and of a carnation color; [354]
also, the head of a fish caught in the great lake of the Iroquois, having a
very long snout and two or three rows of very sharp teeth. A representation
of this fish may be found on the great lake, on my geographical map. [355]
After I had concluded my interview with His Majesty, Sieur de Monts
determined to go to Rouen to meet his associates, the Sieurs Collier and Le
Gendre, merchants of Rouen, to consider what should be done the coming
year. They resolved to continue the settlement, and finish the explorations
up the great river St. Lawrence, in accordance with the promises of the
Ochateguins, made on condition that we should assist them in their wars, as
I had given them to understand.
Pont Gravé was appointed to go to Tadoussac, not only for traffic, but to
engage in any thing else that might realize means for defraying the
expenses.
Sieur Lucas Le Gendre, of Rouen, one of the partners, was ordered to see to
the purchase of merchandise and supplies, the repair of the vessels,
obtaining crews, and other things necessary for the voyage.
After these matters were arranged, Sieur de Monts returned to Paris, I
accompanying him, where I stayed until the end of February. During this
time, Sieur de Monts endeavored to obtain a new commission for trading in
the newly discovered regions, and where no one had traded before. This he
was unable to accomplish, although his requests and proposals were just and
reasonable.
But, finding that there was no hope of obtaining this commission, he did
not cease to prosecute his plan, from his desire that every thing might
turn out to the profit and honor of France.
During this time, Sieur de Monts did not express to me his pleasure in
regard to me personally, until I told him it had been reported to me that
he did not wish to have me winter in Canada, which, however, was not true,
for he referred the whole matter to my pleasure.
I provided myself with whatever was desirable and necessary for spending
the winter at our settlement in Quebec. For this purpose I set out from
Paris the last day of February following, [356] and proceeded to Honfleur,
where the embarkation was to be made. I went by way of Rouen, where I
stayed two days. Thence I went to Honfleur, where I found Pont Gravé and Le
Gendre, who told me they had embarked what was necessary for the
settlement. I was very glad to find that we were ready to set sail, but
uncertain whether the supplies were good and adequate for our sojourn and
for spending the winter.
ENDNOTES:
351. September, 1609.
352. A small seaport town in the department of Finisterre, twelve miles
west of Brest.
353. The Ochateguins, called by the French Hurons, were a branch of the
Iroquois. Their real name was Yendots. They were at this time allied
with the Algonquins, in a deadly war with their Iroquois cousins, the
Five Nations.--_Vide Gallatins Synopsis_, Transactions of Am. Antiq.
Society, Cambridge, 1836, Vol. II. p. 69, _et passim_.
354. The Scarlet tanager, _Pyranga rubra_, of a scarlet color, with black
wings and tail. It ranges from Texas to Lake Huron.
355. _Vide antea_, p. 216; and map. 1612.
356. Anno Domini 1610.
SECOND VOYAGE
OF
SIEUR. DE CHAMPLAIN
TO NEW FRANCE, IN THE YEAR 1610.
CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM FRANCE TO RETURN TO NEW FRANCE, AND OCCURRENCES UNTIL OUR
ARRIVAL AT THE SETTLEMENT.
The weather having become favorable, I embarked at Honfleur with a number
of artisans on the 7th of the month of March. [357] But, encountering bad
weather in the Channel, we were obliged to put in on the English coast at a
place called Porlan, [358] in the roadstead of which we stayed some days,
when we weighed anchor for the Isle d'Huy, [359] near the English coast,
since we found the roadstead of Porlan very bad. When near this island, so
dense a fog arose, that we were obliged to put in at the Hougue. [360]
Ever since the departure from Honfleur, I had been afflicted with a very
severe illness, which took away my hopes of being able to make the voyage;
so that I embarked in a boat to return to Havre in France, to be treated
there, being very ill on board the vessel. My expectation was, on
recovering my health, to embark again in another vessel, which had not yet
left Honfleur, in which Des Marais, son-in-law of Pont Gravé, was to
embark; but I had myself carried, still very ill, to Honfleur, where the
vessel on which I had set out put in on the 15th of March, for some
ballast, which it needed in order to be properly trimmed. Here it remained
until the 8th of April. During this time, I recovered in a great degree;
and, though still feeble and weak, I nevertheless embarked again.
We set out anew on the 18th of April, arriving at the Grand Bank on the
19th, and fighting the Islands of St. Pierre on the 22nd. [361] When off
Menthane, we met a vessel from St. Malo, on which was a young man, who,
while drinking to the health of Pont Gravé, lost control of himself and was
thrown into the Sea by the motion of the vessel and drowned, it being
impossible to render him assistance on account of the violence of the wind.
On the 26th of the month, we arrived at Tadoussac, where there were vessels
which had arrived on the 18th, a thing which had not been seen for more
than sixty years, as the old mariners said who sail regularly to this
country. [362] This was owing to the mild winter and the small amount of
ice, which did not prevent the entrance of these vessels. We learned from a
young nobleman, named Sieur du Parc, who had spent the winter at our
settlement, that all his companions were in good health, only a few having
been ill, and they but slightly. He also informed us that there had been
scarcely any winter, and that they had usually had fresh meat the entire
season, and that their hardest task had been to keep up good cheer.
This winter shows how those undertaking in future such enterprises ought to
proceed, it being very difficult to make a new settlement without labor;
and without encountering adverse fortune the first year, as has been the
case in all our first settlements. But, in fact, by avoiding salt food and
using fresh meat, the health is as good here as in France.
The savages had been waiting from day to day for us to go to the war with
them. When they learned that Pont Gravé and I had arrived together, they
rejoiced greatly, and came to speak with us.
I went on shore to assure them that we would go with them, in conformity
with the promises they had made me, namely, that upon our return from the
war they would show me the Trois Rivières, and take me to a sea so large
that the end of it cannot be seen, whence we should return by way of the
Saguenay to Tadoussac. I asked them if they still had this intention, to
which they replied that they had, but that it could not be carried out
before the next year, which pleased me. But I had promised the Algonquins
and Ochateguins that I would assist them also in their wars, they having
promised to show me their country, the great lake, some copper mines, and
other things, which they had indicated to me. I accordingly had two strings
to my bow, so that, in case one should break, the other might hold.
On the 28th of the month, I set out from Tadoussac for Quebec, where I
found Captain Pierre, [363] who commanded there, and all his companions in
good health. There was also a savage captain with them, named Batiscan,
with some of his companions, who were awaiting us, and who were greatly
pleased at my arrival, singing and dancing the entire evening. I provided a
banquet for them, which gratified them very much. They had a good meal, for
which they were very thankful, and invited me with seven others to an
entertainment of theirs, not a small mark of respect with them. We each
one carried a porringer, according to custom, and brought it home full of
meat, which we gave to whomsoever we pleased.
Some days after I had set out from Tadoussac, the Montagnais arrived at
Quebec, to the number of sixty able-bodied men, en route for the war. They
tarried here some days, enjoying themselves, and not omitting to ply me
frequently with questions, to assure themselves that I would not fail in my
promises to them. I assured them, and again made promises to them, asking
them if they had found me breaking my word in the past. They were greatly
pleased when I renewed my promises to them.
They said to me: "Here are numerous Basques and Mistigoches" (this is the
name they give to the Normans and people of St. Malo), "who say they will
go to the war with us. What do you think of it? Do they speak the truth?"
I answered no, and that I knew very well what they really meant; that they
said this only to get possession of their commodities. They replied to me:
"You have spoken the truth. They are women, and want to make war only upon
our beavers." They went on talking still farther in a facetious mood, and
in regard to the manner and order of going to the war.
They determined to set out, and await me at the Trois Rivières, thirty
leagues above Quebec, where I had promised to join them, together with four
barques loaded with merchandise, in order to traffic in peltries, among
others with the Ochateguins, who were to await me at the mouth of the river
of the Iroquois, as they had promised the year before, and to bring there
as many as four hundred men to go to the war.
ENDNOTES:
357. In the title above, Champlain calls this his SECOND VOYAGE, by which
he means doubtless to say that this is the second voyage which he had
undertaken as lieutenant. The first and second voyages, of 1603 and of
1604, were not made under his direction.
358. Portland in Dorsetshire, England.
359. _Isle d'Huy_. This plainly refers to the Isle of Wight. On Ortelius's
carte of 1603. it is spelled Vigt: and the orthography, obtained
probably through the ear and not the eye, might easily have been
mistaken by Champlain.
360. _La Hougue_. There are two small islands laid down on the carte of
Ortelius. 1603, under the name _Les Hougueaux_, and a hamlet nearby
called Hougo, which is that, doubtless, to which Chaimplain here
refers.
361. Comparing this statement with the context, it will be clear that the
passage should read the 8th, and not the 18th of April. The "Islands
of St. Pierre," _Isles S. Pierre_, includes the Island of St. Peter
and the cluster surrounding it.
362. M. Ferland infers from this statement that the Basques, Normans, and
Bretons had been accustomed for the last sixty years, from the last
voyage of Roberval in 1549, to extend their fishing and fur-trading
voyages as far as Tadoussac.--_Vide Cours d'Hist. du Canada_, as cited
by Laverdière.
363. Captain Pierre Chavin, of Dieppe. _Vide antea_, p. 227.
CHAPTER II.
DEPARTURE FROM QUEBEC TO ASSIST OUR ALLIED SAVAGES IN THEIR WAR AGAINST THE
IROQUOIS, THEIR ENEMIES; AND ALL THAT TRANSPIRED UNTIL OUR RETURN TO THE
SETTLEMENT.
I set out from Quebec on the 14th of June, to meet the Montagnais,
Algonquins, and Ochateguins, who were to be at the mouth of the river of
the Iroquois. When I was eight leagues from Quebec, I met a canoe,
containing two savages, one an Algonquin, and the other a Montagnais, who
entreated me to advance as rapidly as possible, saying that the Algonquins
and Ochateguins would in two days be at the rendezvous, to the number of
two hundred, with two hundred others to come a little later, together with
Yroquet, one of their chiefs. They asked me if I was satisfied with the
coming of these savages. I told them I could not be displeased at it, since
they had kept their word. They came on board my barque, where I gave them a
good entertainment. Shortly after conferring with them about many matters
concerning their wars, the Algonquin savage, one of their chiefs, drew from
a sack a piece of copper a foot long, which he gave me. This was very
handsome and quite pure. He gave me to understand that there were large
quantities where he had taken this, which was on the bank of a river, near
a great lake. He said that they gathered it in lumps, and, having melted
it, spread it in sheets, smoothing it with stones. I was very glad of this
present, although of small value. [364]
Arriving at Trois Rivières, I found all the Montagnais awaiting me, and the
four barques as I stated above, which had gone to trade with them.
The savages were delighted to see me, and I went on shore to speak with
them. They entreated me, together with my companions, to embark on their
canoes and no others, when we went to the war, saying that they were our
old friends. This I promised them, telling them that I desired to set out
at once, since the wind was favorable; and that my barque was not so swift
as their canoes, for which reason I desired to go on in advance. They
earnestly entreated me to wait until the morning of the next day, when we
would all go together, adding that they would not go faster than I should.
Finally, to satisfy them, I promised to do this, at which they were greatly
pleased.
On the following day, we all set out together, and continued our route
until the morning of the next day, the 19th of the month, when we arrived
at an island [365] off the river of the Iroquois, and waited for the
Algonquins, who were to be there the same day. While the Montagnais were
felling trees to clear a place for dancing, and for arranging themselves
for the arrival of the Algonquins, an Algonquin canoe was suddenly seen
coming in haste, to bring word that the Algonquins had fallen in with a
hundred Iroquois, who were strongly barricaded, and that it would be
difficult to conquer them, unless they should come speedily, together with
the Matigoches, as they call us.
The alarm at once sounded among them, and each one got into his canoe with
his arms. They were quickly in readiness, but with confusion; for they were
so precipitous that, instead of making haste, they hindered one another.
They came to our barque and the others, begging me, together with my
companions, to go with them in their canoes, and they were so urgent that I
embarked with four others. I requested our pilot, La Routte, to stay in the
barque, and send me some four or five more of my companions, if the other
barques would send some shallops with men to aid us; for none of the
barques were inclined to go with the savages, except Captain Thibaut, who,
having a barque there, went with me. The savages cried out to those who
remained, saying that they were woman-hearted, and that all they could do
was to make war upon their peltry.
Meanwhile, after going some half a league, all the savages crossing the
river landed, and, leaving their canoes, took their bucklers, bows, arrows,
clubs, and swords, which they attach to the end of large sticks, and
proceeded to make their way in the woods, so fast that we soon lost sight
of them, they leaving us, five in number, without guides. This displeased
us; but, keeping their tracks constantly in sight, we followed them,
although we were often deceived. We went through dense woods, and over
swamps and marshes, with the water always up to our knees, greatly
encumbered by a pike-man's corselet, with which each one was armed. We were
also tormented in a grievous and unheard-of manner by quantities of
mosquitoes, which were so thick that they scarcely permitted us to draw
breath. After going about half a league under these circumstances, and no
longer knowing where we were, we perceived two savages passing through the
woods, to whom we called and told them to stay with us, and guide us to the
whereabouts of the Iroquois, otherwise we could not go there, and should
get lost in the woods. They stayed to guide us. After proceeding a short
distance, we saw a savage coming in haste to us, to induce us to advance as
rapidly as possible, giving me to understand that the Algonquins and
Montagnais had tried to force the barricade of the Iroquois but had been
repulsed, that some of the best men of the Montagnais had been killed in
the attempt, and several wounded, and that they had retired to wait for us,
in whom was their only hope. We had not gone an eighth of a league with
this savage, who was an Algonquin captain, before we heard the yells and
cries on both sides, as they jeered at each other, and were skirmishing
slightly while awaiting us. As soon as the savages perceived us, they began
to shout, so that one could not have heard it thunder. I gave orders to my
companions to follow me steadily, and not to leave me on any account. I
approached the barricade of the enemy, in order to reconnoitre it. It was
constructed of large trees placed one upon an other, and of a circular
shape, the usual form of their fortifications. All the Montagnais and
Algonquins approached likewise the barricade. Then we commenced firing
numerous musket-shots through the brush-wood, since we could not see them,
as they could us. I was wounded while firing my first shot at the side of
their barricade by an arrow, which pierced the end of my ear and entered my
neck. I seized the arrow, and tore it from my neck. The end of it was armed
with a very sharp stone. One of my companions also was wounded at the same
time in the arm by an arrow, which I tore out for him. Yet my wound did
not prevent me from doing my duty: our savages also, on their part, as well
as the enemy, did their duty, so that you could see the arrows fly on all
sides as thick as hail. The Iroquois were astonished at the noise of our
muskets, and especially that the balls penetrated better than their
arrows. They were so frightened at the effect produced that, seeing
several, of their companions fall wounded and dead, they threw themselves
on the ground whenever they heard a discharge, supposing that the shots
were sure. We scarcely ever missed firing two or three balls at one shot,
resting our muskets most of the time on the side of their barricade. But,
seeing that our ammunition began to fail, I said to all the savages that it
was necessary to break down their barricades and capture them by storm; and
that, in order to accomplish this, they must take their shields, cover
themselves with them, and thus approach so near as to be able to fasten
stout ropes to the posts that supported the barricades, and pull them down
by main strength, in that way making an opening large enough to permit them
to enter the fort. I told them that we would meanwhile, by our
musketry-fire, keep off the enemy, as they endeavored to prevent them from
accomplishing this; also that a number of them should get behind some large
trees, which were near the barricade, in order to throw them down upon the
enemy, and that others should protect these with their shields, in order to
keep the enemy from injuring them. All this they did very promptly. And, as
they were about finishing the work, the barques, distant a league and a
half, hearing the reports of our muskets, knew that we were engaged in
conflict; and a young man from St. Malo, full of courage, Des Prairies by
name, who like the rest had come with his barque to engage in peltry
traffic, said to his companions that it was a great shame to let me fight
in this way with the savages without coming to my assistance; that for his
part he had too high a sense of honor to permit him to do so, and that he
did not wish to expose himself to this reproach; Accordingly, he determined
to come to me in a shallop with some of his companions, together with some
of mine whom he took with him. Immediately upon his arrival, he went
towards the fort of the Iroquois, situated on the bank of the river. Here
he landed, and came to find me. Upon seeing him, I ordered our savages who
were breaking down the fortress to stop, so that the new-comers might have
their share of the sport. I requested Sieur des Prairies and his companions
to fire some salvos of musketry, before our savages should carry by storm
the enemy, as they had decided to do. This they did, each one firing
several shots, in which all did their duty well. After they had fired
enough, I addressed myself to our savages, urging them to finish the
work. Straightway, they approached the barricade, as they had previously
done, while we on the flank were to fire at those who should endeavor to
keep them from breaking it down. They behaved so well and bravely that,
with the help of our muskets, they made an opening, which, however, was
difficult to go through, as there was still left a portion as high as a
man, there being also branches of trees there which had been beaten down,
forming a serious obstacle. But, when I saw that the entrance was quite
practicable, I gave orders not to fire any more, which they obeyed. At the
same instant, some twenty or thirty, both of savages and of our own men,
entered, sword in hand, without finding much resistance. Immediately, all
who were unharmed took to flight. But they did not proceed far; for they
were brought down by those around the barricade, and those who escaped were
drowned in the river. We captured some fifteen prisoners, the rest being
killed by musket-shots, arrows, and the sword. When the fight was over,
there came another shallop, containing some of my companions. This although
behind time, was yet in season for the booty, which, however, was not of
much account. There were only robes of beaver-skin, and dead bodies,
covered with blood, which the savages would not take the trouble to
plunder, laughing at those in the last shallop, who did so; for the others
did not engage in such low business. This, then, is the victory obtained by
God's grace, for gaining which they gave us much praise.
* * * * *
CHAMPLAIN'S EXPLANATION OF THE ACCOMPANYING MAP.
FORT DES IROQUOIS.
_A_. The fort of the Iroquois.
_B_. The Iroquois throwing themselves into the river to escape the pursuit
of the Montagnais and Algonquins who followed for the purpose of
killing them.
_D_. Sieur de Champlain and five of his men.
_E_. The savages friendly to us.
_F_. Sieur des Prairies of St. Malo with his comrades.
_G_. Shallop of Sieur des Prairies.
_H_. Great trees cut down for the purpose of destroying the fort of the
Iroquois.
* * * * *
The savages scalped the dead, and took the heads as a trophy of victory,
according to their custom. They returned with fifty wounded Montagnais and
Algonquins and three dead, singing and leading their prisoners with them.
They attached to sticks in the prows of their canoes the heads and a dead
body cut into quarters, to eat in revenge, as they said. In this way, they
went to our barques off the River of the Iroquois.
My companions and I embarked in a shallop, where I had my wound dressed by
the surgeon, De Boyer, of Rouen, who likewise had come here for the purpose
of traffic. The savages spent all this day in dancing and singing.
The next day, Sieur de Pont Gravé arrived with another shallop, loaded with
merchandise. Moreover, there was also a barque containing Captain Pierre,
which he had left behind, it being able to come only with difficulty, as it
was rather heavy and a poor sailer.
The same day there was some trading in peltry, but the other barques
carried off the better part of the booty. It was doing them a great favor
to search out a strange people for them, that they might afterwards carry
off the profit without any risk or danger.
That day, I asked the savages for an Iroquois prisoner which they had, and
they gave him to me. What I did for him was not a little; for I saved him
from many tortures which he must have suffered in company with his
fellow-prisoners, whole nails they tore out, also cutting off their
fingers, and burning them in several places. They put to death on the same
day two or three, and, in order to increase their torture, treated them in
the following manner.
They took the prisoners to the border of the water, and fastened them
perfectly upright to a stake. Then each came with a torch of birch bark,
and burned them, now in this place, now in that. The poor wretches, feeling
the fire, raised so loud a cry that it was something frightful to hear; and
frightful indeed are the cruelties which these barbarians practise towards
each other. After making them suffer greatly in this manner and burning
them with the above-mentioned bark, taking some water, they threw it on
their bodies to increase their suffering. Then they applied the fire anew,
so that the skin fell from their bodies, they continuing to utter loud
cries and exclamations, and dancing until the poor wretches fell dead on
the spot.
As soon as a body fell to the ground dead, they struck it violent blows
with sticks, when they cut off the arms, legs, and other parts; and he was
not regarded by them as manly, who did not cut off a piece of the flesh,
and give it to the dogs. Such are the courtesies prisoners receive. But
still they endure all the tortures inflicted upon them with such constancy
that the spectator is astonished.
As to the other prisoners, which remained in possession of the Algonquins
and Montagnais, it was left to their wives and daughters to put them to
death with their own hands; and, in such a matter, they do not show
themselves less inhuman than the men, but even surpass them by far in
cruelty; for they devise by their cunning more cruel punishments, in which
they take pleasure, putting an end to their lives by the most extreme
pains.
The next day there arrived the Captain Yroquet, also another Ochateguin,
with some eighty men, who regretted greatly not having been present at the
defeat. Among all these tribes there were present nearly two hundred men,
who had never before seen Christians, for whom they conceived a great
admiration.
We were some three days together on an island off the river of the
Iroquois, when each tribe returned to its own country.
I had a young lad, who had already spent two winters at Quebec, and who was
desirous of going with the Algonquins to learn their language. Pont Gravé
and I concluded that, if he entertained this desire, it would be better to
send him to this place than elsewhere, that he might ascertain the nature
of their country, see the great lake, observe the rivers and tribes there,
and also explore the mines and objects of special interest in the
localities occupied by these tribes, in order that he might inform us upon
his return, of the facts of the case. We asked him if it was his desire to
go, for I did not wish to force him. But he answered the question at once
by consenting to the journey with great pleasure.
Going to Captain Yroquet, who was strongly attached to me, I asked him if
he would like to take this young boy to his country to spend the winter
with him, and bring him back in the spring. He promised to do so, and treat
him as his own son, saying that he was greatly pleased with the idea. He
communicated the plan to all the Algonquins, who were not greatly pleased
with it, from fear that some accident might happen to the boy, which would
cause us to make war upon them. This hesitation cooled the desire of
Yroquet, who came and told me that all his companions failed to find the
plan a good one. Meanwhile, all the barques had left, excepting that of
Pont Gravé, who, having some pressing business on hand, as he told me, went
away too. But I stayed with my barque to see how the matter of the journey
of this boy, which I was desirous should take place, would result. I
accordingly went on shore, and asked to speak with the captains, who came
to me, and we sat down for a conference, together with many other savages
of age and distinction in their troops. Then I asked them why Captain
Yroquet, whom I regarded as my friend, had refused to take my boy with
him. I said that it was not acting like a brother or friend to refuse me
what he had promised, and what could result in nothing but good to them;
taking the boy would be a means of increasing still more our friendship
with them and forming one with their neighbors; that their scruples at
doing so only gave me an unfavorable opinion of them; and that if they
would not take the boy, as Captain Yroquet had promised, I would never have
any friendship with them, for they were not children to break their
promises in this manner. They then told me that they were satisfied with
the arrangement, only they feared that, from change of diet to something
worse than he had been accustomed to, some harm might happen to the boy,
which would provoke my displeasure. This they said was the only cause of
their refusal.
I replied that the boy would be able to adapt himself without difficulty to
their manner of living and usual food, and that, if through sickness or the
fortunes of war any harm should befall him, this would not interrupt my
friendly feelings towards them, and that we were all exposed to accidents,
which we must submit to with patience. But I said that if they treated him
badly, and if any misfortune happened to him through their fault, I should
in truth be displeased, which, however, I did not expect from them, but
quite the contrary.
They said to me: "Since then, this is your desire, we will take him, and
treat him like ourselves. But you shall also take a young man in his place,
to go to France. We shall be greatly pleased to hear him report the fine
things he shall have seen." I accepted with pleasure the proposition, and
took the young man. He belonged to the tribe of the Ochateguins, and was
also glad to go with me. This presented an additional motive for treating
my boy still better than they might otherwise have done. I fitted him out
with what he needed, and we made a mutual promise to meet at the end of
June.
We parted with many promises of friendship. Then they went away towards the
great fall of the River of Canada, while I returned to Quebec. On my way, I
met Pont Gravé on Lake St. Peter, who was waiting for me with a large
patache, which he had fallen in with on this lake, and which had not been
expeditious enough to reach the place where the savages were, on account of
its poor sailing qualities.
We all returned together to Quebec, when Pont Gravé went to Tadoussac, to
arrange some matters pertaining to our quarters there. But I stayed at
Quebec to see to the reconstruction of some palisades about our abode,
until Pont Gravé should return, when we could confer together as to what
was to be done.
On the 4th of June, Des Marais arrived at Quebec, greatly to our joy; for
we were afraid that some accident had happened to him at sea.
Some days after, an Iroquois prisoner, whom I had kept guarded, got away in
consequence of my giving him too much liberty, and made his escape, urged
to do so by fear, notwithstanding the assurances given him by a woman of
his tribe we had at our settlement.
A few days after, Pont Gravé wrote me that he was thinking of passing the
winter at the settlement, being moved to do so by many considerations. I
replied that, if he expected to fare better than I had done in the past, he
would do well.
He accordingly hastened to provide himself with the supplies necessary for
the settlement.
After I had finished the palisade about our habitation, and put every thing
in order, Captain Pierre returned in a barque in which he had gone to
Tadoussac to see his friends. I also went there to ascertain what would
result from the second trading, and to attend to some other special
business which I had there. Upon my arrival, I found there Pont Gravé, who
stated to me in detail his plans, and the reasons inducing him to spend the
winter. I told him frankly what I thought of the matter; namely, that I
believed he would not derive much profit from it, according to the
appearances that were plainly to be seen.
He determined accordingly to change his plan, and despatched a barque with
orders for Captain Pierre to return from Quebec on account of some business
he had with him; with the intelligence also that some vessels, which had
arrived from Brouage, brought the news that Monsieur de Saint Luc had come
by post from Paris, expelled those of the religion from Brouage,
re-enforced the garrison with soldiers, and then returned to Court; [366]
that the king had been killed, and two or three days after him the Duke of
Sully, together with two other lords, whose names they did not know. [367]
All these tidings gave great sorrow to the true French in these quarters.
As for myself, it was hard for me to believe it, on account of the
different reports about the matter, and which had not much appearance of
truth. Still, I was greatly troubled at hearing such mournful news.
Now, after having stayed three or four days longer at Tadoussac, I saw the
loss which many merchants must suffer, who had taken on board a large
quantity of merchandise, and fitted out a great number of vessels, in
expectation of doing a good business in the fur-trade, which was so poor on
account of the great number of vessels, that many will for a long time
remember the loss which they suffered this year.
Sieur de Pont Gravé and I embarked, each of us in a barque, leaving Captain
Pierre on the vessel. We took Du Parc to Quebec, where we finished what
remained to be done at the settlement. After every thing was in good
condition, we resolved that Du Parc, who had wintered there with Captain
Pierre, should remain again, and that Captain Pierre should return to
France with us, on account of some business that called him there.
We accordingly left Du Parc in command there, with sixteen men, all of whom
we enjoined to live soberly, and in the fear of God, and in strict
observance of the obedience due to the authority of Du Parc, who was left
as their chief and commander, just as if one of us had remained. This they
all promised to do, and to live in peace with each other.
As to the gardens, we left them all well supplied with kitchen vegetables
of all sorts, together with fine Indian corn, wheat, rye, and barley, which
had been already planted. There were also vines which I had set out when I
spent the winter there, but these they made no attempt to preserve; for,
upon my return, I found them all in ruins, and I was greatly displeased
that they had given so little attention to the preservation of so fine and
good a plot, from which I had anticipated a favorable result.
After seeing that every thing was in good order, we set out from Quebec on
the 8th of August for Tadoussac, in order to prepare our vessel, which was
speedily done.
ENDNOTES:
364. This testimony of the Algonquin chief is interesting, and historically
important. We know of no earlier reference to the art of melting and
malleating copper in any of the reports of the navigators to our
northern coast. That the natives possessed this art is placed beyond
question by this passage, as well as by the recent discovery of copper
implements in Wisconsin, bearing the marks of mechanical fusion and
malleation. The specimens of copper in the possession of the natives
on the coast of New England, as referred to by Brereton and Archer,
can well be accounted for without supposing them to be of native
manufacture, though they may have been so. The Basques. Bretons,
English, and Portuguese had been annually on our northern coasts for
fishing and fur-trading for more than a century, and had distributed a
vast quantity of articles for savage ornament and use; and it would,
therefore, be difficult to prove that the copper chains and collars
and other trinkets mentioned by Brereton and Archer were not derived
from this source. But the testimony of the early navigators in the
less frequented region of the St. Lawrence is not open to this
interpretation. When Cartier advanced up the Gulf of Lawrence in 1535,
the savages pointed out the region of the Saguenay, which they
informed him was inhabited, and that from thence came the red copper
which they called _caignetdaze_.
"Et par les sauuaiges que auions, nous a essé dict que cestoit le
commencement du Saguenay & terre habitable. Et que de la ve noit le
cuyure rouge qu'ilz appellent caignetdaze."--_Brief Récit_, par
Jacques Cartier, 1545. D'Avezac ed., p. 9. _Vide idem_, p. 34.
When Cartier was at Isle Coudres, say fifty miles below Quebec, on his
return, the Indians from the Saguenay came on board his ship, and made
certain presents to their chief, Donnacona, whom Cartier had captured,
and was taking home with him to France. Among these gifts, they gave
him a great knife of red copper, which came from the Saguenay. The
words of Cartier are as follows:--
"Donnerent audict Donnaconan trois pacquetz de peaulx de byeures &
loups marins avec vng grand cousteau de cuyure rouge, qui vient du
Saguenay & autres choses."--_Idem_, p. 44.
This voyage of Cartier, made in 1535, was the earliest visit by any
navigator on record to this region. It was eighty years before the
Recollects or any other missionaries had approached the Gulf of
St. Lawrence. There was, therefore, no intercourse previous to this
that would be likely to furnish the natives with European utensils of
any kind, particularly knives of _red copper_. It is impossible to
suppose that this knife, seen by Cartier, and declared by the natives
to have come from the Saguenay, a term then covering an indefinite
region stretching we know not how far to the north and west, could be
otherwise than of Indian manufacture. In the text, Champlain
distinctly states on the testimony of an Algonquin chief that it was
the custom of the Indians to melt copper for the purpose of forming it
into sheets, and it is obvious that it would require scarcely greater
ingenuity to fabricate moulds in which to cast the various implements
which they needed in their simple arts. Some of these implements, with
indubitable marks of having been cast in moulds, have been recently
discovered, with a multitude of others, which may or may not have
passed through the same process. The testimony of Champlain in the
text, and the examples of moulded copper found in the lake region,
render the evidence, in our judgment, entirely conclusive that the art
of working copper both by fusion and malleation existed among the
Indians of America at the time of its first occupation by the French.
During the period of five years, beginning in 1871, an enthusiastic
antiquary, Mr. F. S. Perkins, of Wisconsin, collected, within the
borders of his own State, a hundred and forty-two copper implements,
of a great variety of forms, and designed for numerous uses, as axes,
hatchets, spear-heads, arrowheads, knives, gouges, chisels, adzes,
augers, gads, drills, and other articles of anomalous forms. These are
now deposited in the archives of the Historical Society of
Wisconsin. Other collections are gradually forming. The process is of
necessity slow, as they are not often found in groups, but singly,
here and there, as they are turned up by the plough or spade of other
implements of husbandry. The statement of Champlain in the text, and
the testimony of Carrier three-quarters of a century earlier, to which
we have referred, give a new historical significance to these recent
discoveries, and both together throw a fresh light upon the
prehistoric period.
365. This was the Island St. Ignace, which lies opposite the mouth of the
river Iroquois or Richelieu. Champlain's description is not
sufficiently definite to enable us to identify the exact location of
this conflict with the savages. It is, however, evident, from several
intimations found in the text, that it was about a league from the
mouth of the Richelieu, and was probably on the bank of that river.
366. For some account of Saint Luc, see Memoir, Vol. I. By those of the
religion, _ceux de la Religion_, are meant the Huguenots, or
Protestants.
367. The assassination of Henry IV. occurred on the 14th of May, 1610; but
the rumor of the death of the Duke of Sully was erroneous. Maximelien
de Béthune, the Duke of Sully, died on the 22d of December, 1641, at
the age of eighty-two years.
CHAPTER III.
RETURN TO FRANCE.--MEETING A WHALE;--THE MODE OF CAPTURING THEM.
On the 13th of the month, we set out from Tadoussac, arriving at Île Percée
the next day, where we found a large number of vessels engaged in the
fishery, dry and green.
On the 18th of the month, we departed from Île Percée, passing in latitude
42°, without sighting the Grand Bank, where the green fishery is carried
on, as it is too narrow at this altitude.
When we were about half way across, we encountered a whale, which was
asleep. The vessel, passing over him, awakening him betimes, made a great
hole in him near the tail, without damaging our vessel; but he threw out an
abundance of blood.
It has seemed to me not out of place to give here a brief description of
the mode of catching whales, which many have not witnessed, and suppose
that they are shot, owing to the false assertions about the matter made to
them in their ignorance by impostors, and on account of which such ideas
have often been obstinately maintained in my presence.
Those, then, most skilful in this fishery are the Basques, who, for the
purpose of engaging in it, take their vessels to a place of security, and
near where they think whales are plenty. Then they equip several shallops
manned by competent men and provided with hawsers, small ropes made of the
best hemp to be found, at least a hundred and fifty fathoms long. They are
also provided with many halberds of the length of a short pike, whose iron
is six inches broad; others are from a foot and a half to two feet long,
and very sharp. Each shallop has a harpooner, the most agile and adroit man
they have, whose pay is next highest to that of the masters, his position
being the most dangerous one. This shallop being outside of the port, the
men look in all quarters for a whale, tacking about in all directions. But,
if they see nothing, they return to the shore, and ascend the highest point
they can find, and from which they can get the most extensive view. Here
they station a man on the look-out. They are aided in catching sight of a
whale both by his size and the water he spouts through his blow-holes,
which is more than a puncheon at a time, and two lances high. From the
amount of this water, they estimate how much oil he will yield. From some
they get as many as one hundred and twenty puncheons, from others less.
Having caught sight of this monstrous fish, they hasten to embark in their
shallops, and by rowing or sailing they advance until they are upon him.
Seeing him under water, the harpooner goes at once to the prow of the
shallop with his harpoon, an iron two feet long and half a foot wide at the
lower part, and attached to a stick as long as a small pike, in the middle
of which is a hole to which the hawser is made fast. The harpooner,
watching his time, throws his harpoon at the whale, which enters him well
forward. As soon as he finds himself wounded, the whale goes down. And if
by chance turning about, as he does sometimes, his tail strikes the
shallop, it breaks it like glass. This is the only risk they run of being
killed in harpooning. As soon as they have thrown the harpoon into him,
they let the hawser run until the whale reaches the bottom. But sometimes
he does not go straight to the bottom, when he drags the shallop eight or
nine leagues or more, going as swiftly as a horse. Very often they are
obliged to cut their hawser, for fear that the whale will take them
underwater. But, when he goes straight to the bottom, he rests there
awhile, and then returns quietly to the surface, the men taking aboard
again the hawser as he rises. When he comes to the top, two or three
shallops are stationed around with halberds, with which they give him
several blows. Finding himself struck, the whale goes down again, leaving a
trail of blood, and grows weak to such an extent that he has no longer any
strength nor energy, and returning to the surface is finally killed. When
dead, he does not go down again; fastening stout ropes to him, they drag
him ashore to their head-quarters, the place where they try out the fat of
the whale, to obtain his oil. This is the way whales are taken, and not by
cannon-shots, which many suppose, as I have stated above.
To resume the thread of my narrative: after wounding the whale, as
mentioned, we captured a great many porpoises, which our mate harpooned to
our pleasure and amusement. We also caught a great many fish having a
large ear, with a hook and line, attaching to the hook a little fish
resembling a herring, and letting it trail behind the vessel. The large
ear, thinking it in fact a living fish, comes up to swallow it, thus
finding himself at once caught by the hook, which is concealed in the body
of the little fish. This fish is very good, and has certain tufts which are
very handsome, and resemble those worn on plumes.
On the 22d of September, we arrived on soundings. Here we saw twenty
vessels some four leagues to the west of us, which, as they appeared from
our vessel, we judged to be Flemish.
On the 25th of the month, we sighted the Isle de Grenezé, [368] after
experiencing a strong blow, which lasted until noon.
On the 27th of the month, we arrived at Honfleur.
ENDNOTES:
368. Guernsey, which lay directly before them as they advanced up the
English Channel, and was the first large island that met the eye on
their way to Honfleur.
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