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and last Word. Prevent the Christians of the Sault and of the Mountain coming any more among us, to seduce our peo- ple to Montreal ; let them cease to dismember our country as they do every year. Answer. It is not my children of the Sault nor of the Moun- tain who dismember your country j it is yourselves who dismember it by your drunkenness and superstitions. Besides, there is full lib- erty to come and reside among us; no person is retained by force. The General added two presents to the above. By the first he said : You see the consideration which I have 120 DE LA barre's expedition for the request you have n.ade me. I ask you in return, if the Seneca, Cayuga or any other commit a similar insult against me, that you first give him some sense, and if he will not hear you, that you abandon him as one disaffected. By the last belt, he exhorted them to listen not to evil sayings, and told them to conduct Tegannehout back to Seneca and to inform these of the above conclusions. M. DE MEULLES TO THE MINISTER. [From the same.] My Lord — I thought you would be impatient to learn the suc- cess and result of the war the General had undertaken against the Iroquois which rendered it necessary for him to call a part of the people of this country together and make all neces- sary preparation, at his Majesty's expense, for this expedition. The troops have been as far as a place called La Famine, thirty leagues beyond Fort Frontcnac. The army consisted of nine hundred French and three hundred Savages, and from the Nia- gara side there was another army of six hundred men, one third of whom were French and the remainder Ottawas and Hurons, amounting: in all to eighteen hundred men. What Indians there were evinced the best disposition to fight the Iroquois to the death. Sieur de la Durantaye who brought the last six hundred men from Missilimakinak, has informed us that he learned from, a Miami Chief that more than a thousand Illinois were coming to our aid on learning that we were about to fight the Iroquois, to such a degree are they their irreconcileable enemies. Certainly, never was there remarked a better disposi- tion to fight and concjuer them and purge the country of that na- tion which will be eternally our enemy. All the French breathed nothing but war, and though they saw themselves obliged to abandon their families, they consoled themselves with the hope of liberating them by one victory from a nation so odious as the Iroquois, at whose hands they constantly dreaded ambushes and destruction. But the General did not think proper to TO HUXGRY BAY. ]21 push matters any farther, and without any necessity sent Sieur Le Moyne to the said Iroquois to treat of peace at a time v.'hen every one was in good health, and when all necessary provision was made of food, &c. to dare every enterprize ; and finally af- ter various comings and goings on one side and the other, the Ge- neral concluded peace such as you will see by the articles which I take the liberty to send you as written by the hand of his Se- cretary. This peace, my Lord, has astonished all the Officers who had the command in that army and all those who composed it, who have testified so deep a displeasure and so sovereign a contempt for the General's person that they could not prevent themselves evincing it to him. I assure you, my Lord, that had I strayed ever so little from my duty and not exhibited exteriorly, since his return, the respect I owe his character, the whole world would have risen against him and would have been guilty of some ex- cess. The said General excuses himself because of the sick and even says that the troops lacked food • to which I feel obliged to an- swer, being certain that he seeks every pretext and has recourse to every expedient to exculpate himself and perhaps to put the blame on me. 'Tis certain that there was a great number of sick among the Militia which he took with him to Fort Frontenac, who were in perfect good health on arriving there, but having encamped them for a fortnight in prairies between the woods and a pond, it is not surprizing that some fell sick. Again he made them camp at La Famine in places that were never inhabited, entirely surrounded by swamps, which contributed still considerably to the sickness in his army ; and had he remained there longer he would not have saved a man. This has caused every one to say that he did not care, that he had not the least desire to make war ; that he m-ade no use of his long sojourns except employing them in his negociations. Had he seriously wished to make war on the said Iroquois he would not have remained ten to twelve days at Montreal, fourteen or fifteen at Fort Frontenac and as many at La Famine, but would have remained merely a day or two, and 122 DE LA BARRe's EXPEDITION would have used the greatest despatch to fight the Iroquois, luid not uselessly consumed all his provisions ; he would have, indu- bitably surprised the said Iroquois who did not expect this war, especially as the greater number of their young men had been at war in the beginning of the spring. He says he lacked provisions ; though that were true, he would be the cause and could not but accuse himself of imprudence, having supplied him, generally, with whatever he required of me, of which the whole country is a witness, and with a little pre- caution or rather good faith he would have had every thing in abundance. He had determined not to leave until the 15*^ ^f August ; he departed on the 15*^" July. That did not prevent me furnishing all that he required of me, such as batteaux, ca- noes, arms, ammunition, and all the provision he desired. This is so true that there yet remained at the end of the island of Mon- treal, at a place called La Chine thirty-five thousand weight of flour and five of biscuit which he found on his return, and which he had requested me to retain for him at Montreal. Had he not halted and had he been disposed to push into the Iroquois Coun- try, the first convoy of provisions which accompanied him liad sufficed, the greater number of the militia, unwilling to wait for the King's supplies having laid in their own private stock, the greater part of which they brought back with them, which all the Captains in command will certify. This convoy consisted of eighteen canoes full of biscuit, pork, brandy and apparently other things which I do not precisely know having been loaded at Mont- real whilst I was at Quebec where I issued orders for the provi- Bions that the General had demanded of me and for attending to the harvest of tliose who had gone to the war. If it had been the General's design to make war, he should not have caused the cargoes of the eighteen canoes I have men- tioned to b(! put into barks thirty leagues from Montreal above the Rapids, instead of letting the voyage be continued by the canocmen who were paid to go to Fort Frontenac and who had already accomplished the roughest half of the road, and who, without a doubt, would have arrived in three days at the Fort, which was represented to him by all the officers who stated to TO HUNGRY BAY. 123 him thcit the barks required wind which being contrary would keep them raoie than three weeks from arriving. This turned out to be true. Notwithstanding all these reasons he absolutely in- sisted that all the said provisions should be put in the barks. Some have assured me that the canoes of said convoy were partly laden with merchandize, and not being very desirous to let the circumstance be known, he had caused the said barks to precede the canoes to put the goods secretly into them and keep the knowledge of it from every body. By these means he made use of these canoes to convey these merchandizes to the Fort at the King's expense, which he has always practised for t'vo years, ever pretending certain necessity to transport munitions of war, and to make use, by this means, of the conveyances for which the King is made to pay, under pretext to keep the Fort in good or- der. It is impossible to conceive the quantity of Brandy that he has caused to be conveyed thither during eighteen months, of which I have had most positive information, and of which I had the honour to advise you in my last. Others supposed that he had the said provisions put on board those barks in order to ob- tain time and by this address, to negotiate a peace with the Iro- quois, as he had sent Sieur Le Moyne to them who is a very brave man and who despaired of all these negotiations, stating openly that they ought to be whipt. All the delays at Montreal, the Fort, and at La Famine caused the useless consumption of a portion of the supplies which, however, did not fail ; other convoys having been received from time to time, but these were always wasted without any thing having been done. After the said General had determined in his own mind on this war, he sent the man named Bourbon, an inhabitant of this coun- try to Colonel Dongan to advise him that he was obliged to wage war against the Iroquois, requesting him not to afford them an) aid ; which he confided to me eight days after the departure o( the said Bourbon. This obliged me to tell him that I was asto- nished that he should have thus proceeded ; that the Iroquois having insulted us and intending to fight with and destroy them, I should not have deemed it proper to inform neighbours who have an interest in our destruction ; and that he afforded thereby an op- 124 DE LA barre's expedition portunity toCol. Dongan,who is an Englishman, and consequent- ly our born enemy, to give underhand information of our designs to the Iroquois, and convey secretly to them all that may be ne- cessary for their defence against us. I asked him if he did not perceive that the English would never desire our advantage, and that they would contribute all in their power to destroy us, though at peace as regards France ; that they would always be jealous of the Fur trade prosecuted by us in this Country, which would make them prottct the Iroquois always against us. This Bouiboii negotiation gave Colonel Dongan occasion to use some rhodomontade as the General has informed me ; and this assuredly it was that obliged him, having this information, to send an Englishman, who is in the habit of trading among the said Indians, to plant the Duke of York's arms among the On- nontagues, which is an Iroquois village, wishing by that act to take the first possession of the Country. We have not heard talk of any other movement on the English side, and it is even certain that they will never cause us any dread from that quarter and that they could not prevent us to achieve that conquest this year, had the General been willing to fight. You can hardly believe, my Lord, that the General has, alone, undertaken the war without having consulted any person, neither ofl^cers of the army nor gentlemen, nor the people of the country who are the most interested, nor any individual whosoever he might be, except Sier de la Chesnayne, wuth whom he acts in concert for the entire destruction and ruin of the country. He has again made peace in this manner without any communication with any of the officers or others of those who were near his person. What seems a wonder in the country is that one indi- vidual, subject of his Majesty like others, should, of his own will, make war and peace without having consulted or demanded the opinion of any person. His Majesty never acted thus. He has his Council of War, and when he is about towage it, he demands advice of those of his council, in communicating to them the reasons which he may have to do so, and even causes the publi- cation of manifests throughout the Kingdom, wishing to commu- nicate to his people the justice of his undertakings. But the TO HUNGRY BAY. 125 General has treated of peace, like a sovereign, with the said Iro- quois, having employed none of those who were nigh him and who were acquainted with the Iroquois tongue, except as Inter- preters. He dare not consult the officers, being certain that they would all have concluded on war; and but little was necessary to make them select a chief from among themselves to attack the enemy. The said General proceeds at the head of a small force to make war against the Iroquois, and far from doing that, he grants them all they ask. His principal design was to attack the Senecas, but instead of showing him any civility, they did not even condescend to come and meet him, and gave an insolent answer to those who proposed it to them. If people had any thing to say to them, let them take the trouble and come and meet them. There came altogether on this embassy only a certain sycophant who seeks merely a good dinner, and a real buffoon called among the French La Grande Gueule [Big Throat,] accompanied by eight or ten miserable fellows who fooled the General in a most shameful manner, which you will perceive by the articles of peace I have the honour to send you, and which I doubt not he also will send you. They will assuredly excite your pity. You will see he abandons the Illinois among whom M. de la Salle is about to es- tablish himself and who are the cause of this war, inasmuch as the Iroquois attacked them even in Fort St. Louis which the said Sieur de la Salle had erected among them, and of which the General took possession, having ousted and driven away those whom the said Sieur de la Salle had left in command there, and whither he sent Sieur de Bangy his lieutenant of the guards, who is still there. When he concluded this peace he already had His Majesty's letter eight days in his possession, but so far from conforming to its inteiitions, he consents to the slaughter of the Illinois who are our allies, and where His Majesty designed to plant a new Colo- ny or some powerful establishment under M. de la Salle's direc- tion. I consider it also my duty to inform your Lordship that the General quit La Famine the moment the peace was concluded without taking the least care of the troops, abandoning them al- ,26 DE LA BARRE S EXPEDITION too-ethcr to their own guidance, forbidding them on pain of death to leave the place until a long time after him, fearing to be sur- prised by the Iroquois, and having (so to say) lost his wits, caring little what became of the array. Certain it is that he went up to the Fort without taking information about any thing and returned In the same manner. The worst of this affair is the loss of the trade which I find in- evitable, because the Outawas and other Savages who came to our aid will hereafter entertain no respect for us, and will regard us as a people without courage and without resolution. I doubt not, my lord, but the General sends you a letter which he received from Father Lamberville, Jesuit, who is a missionary in an Iroquois village at Onnontagut^, whence those ambassadors came with whom peace was negotiated. The Father, who had learned the Gene- ral's intentions from Sieur Le Moyne, has been wise and sufficient- ly discreet, anticipating his design, to write to him in accordance with his views, and to ingeniously solicit that which must flatter and highly please him. But orie thing, is certain that all the Je- suits at Quebec, and particularly Father Bechefer have openly stated in Quebec for six weeks, that the country was destroyed if peace were concluded ; which is so true, that having communi- cated to him the two letters I wrote to the General, he highly ap- proved of them aad advised me to send them to the fort. I shall take leave to send you copies of them, requesting you very re- spectfully, to be persuaded that I speak to you without passion, and that I state nothing to you but what is most true and reliable, and because I feel obliged to let you know the truth as regards all things, without which you will never have the Itaft confidence in me. I should wish, my Lord, to avoid explaining myself in this manner, fearing you might infer that we were, the General and I, greatly disunited, which is quite contrary to the mannei in which we live together, since it is certain that we never had, pers^mally, the least difference wishing in that to conform myself to your wishes and His Majesty's orders, aware that it is the most asrured means that I can take to be agreeable to you, which is the fu>]e ambition T have in the world, and to prove to you that no po^- TO HUNGRY BAY. 127 son can be with more profound respect and greater devotedness than I, my Lord, Your very humble and very ob: serv'. This, my Lord, is only incidentally. I defer informing you of what has occurred in this country during this year, until the de- parture of the vessels. Quebec, the lO'h S^*" 1684. Demeulles. FATHER LAMBERVILLE, MISSIONARY AT OxNONDAGA, TO M. DE LA BARRE. [Onomlaga,] July 10, I68-I. Sir, — A general Assembly of all the Iroquois will be held here at which it is intended to unite against you, and to inform the Senecas that you wish to persuade the four Iroquois Nations not to aid them in case of war. I am surprised that M. Le Moyne or some other persons have not told you that all the villages were confederated, and that one could not be attacked w^ithoul becom- ing embroiled with the others. Did affairs permit, I should have much wished to tell you my thoughts on many things. My brother will inform you of all when he will have the honor to see you Tiie On[non]ta(TU(5s who have been spoken to, would like much to settle matters ; this is the reason my brother goes to you, whilst I still keej) them dispose(l to L'ive you satisfaction, in order to avoid if possible an infinitude of evils which will overtake Canada, and as I know- not whether you desire war without listening to proposals for peace, I wish to understand whether it is not fitter that I with- draw, if possible, rather than give occasion to the Iroquois to say that I deceived them,by propositions for peace. The Onontagu^s and other nations say, that it grieves them to take up arms against you wdio are their neighbour, and who form almost one country with them. They acknowledge that the Senecas are proud and insolent on account of their great number of warriors, but if you are desirous 128 DE LA barre's expeditiox to maintain peace by some satisfaction wliich they will imluce the Scntcas to make you, it will be very acceptable, so as not to be obliged to come to extremities which will be very disastrous. If war occurs, Sir, all those who have houses apart from fortified plat'es must at once abandon their dwellings, for the grain and the houses will be burned, and many will otherwise be brought away prisoners to be cruelly tormented and insulted. I always think that peace ought to be most precious to you, and that all the advantages that can be held out ought to cause you to shrink from war. A delay in order to arrange every thing more at lei- sure and after having received assistance from France, would ex- tricate you from much embarrassment which will follow from all sides. Pardon me if I give free expression to my thoughts; you will not at least disapprove of the zeal with w'^'' I am with much respect and submission Your very humble and Very Obedient Servant (Signed) DeLajviberville. FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. 11 July 1684. Sir, — A troop of Senecas on their way to buy their supplies and munitions of powder, lead, and arms are two days [distance] from here. They are expected in order to talk fully of affairs and to endeavour for the preservation peace to induce them to give you satisfaction. I believe if you are really desirous to come to an arrangement in which an effort will be made to satisfy you, and wherein wnll be prescribed the boundaries of war and trade, you would have leisure to provide with less trouble and embarrass- uicnt for 1 he security of Canada, either by erecting forts at La Famine or towards the Senecas under the pretext of establishing a blacksmith, or at La Galette according as you think proper. I do not believe that you will derive any advantage this year from war, if you wage it ; for not only will almost the whole of (he Iroquois prosecute the war in Canada, but you will not find TO HUNGRY BAY. 129 the Senecas in their villages, in which they give out they will not shut themselves up, but conceal themselves in the grass and pre- pare ambuscades every where for you. Regarding your declara- tion to the Iroquois that you had no ill will except against the Senecas, they convoked a general Diet here where they will con- clude to league themselves against you, if you will not accept tb.e propositions of peace for which the Onnontaguc wishes to obtain the consent of the Seneca who has already placed in security the old grain, and made a retreat in the woods for the children, women and old men, of which you will be ignorant. The Warriors are to prowl every where, killing without if pos- sible being killed. If their Indian corn be cut, it will cost much blood and men — You must also resolve to lose the harvest of the French grain to which the Iroquois will set fire. As for the French settlements, the Iroquois suppose that they are all aban- doned and that the people have retired within the forts ; other- W'ise, they would be a prey to the enemy. It is the opinion that if you begin the war, it will be of long duration, and that to feed those in Canada you will have to bring provisions from France. The Iroquois believes that he will destroy the Colony in case of war, for he will never fight by rule against us and will not shut himself up in any fort in which he might be stormed. Thus they are under the impression that, no person daring to come into un- known forests to pursue them, they can neither be destroyed nor captured, having a vast hunting ground in their rear, towards Merilande and Virginia, as well as places adjoining their villa- ges, wholly unknown to the French, If winter were not so cold in this country, that would be the time to wage war, for one can then see all around, and the trail cannot be concealed ; but every thing must be carried — provisions, arms, powder, and lead. You can not believe. Sir, with what joy the Senecas learned that you would, possibly, determine on war ; and from the report the sa- vai^es make them of the preparations-apparent at Kataroskouy, thfy say, that the French have a great desire to be stiijjt, roasted and eaten; and that they will see if their flesh, which they say is salt on account of the salt they make use of be as good as that of their other enemies whom they devour. 9 130 DE LA BARRe's EXPEDITION The envoy of the Governor of New York who is here promises the Iroquois goods at a considerable reduction ; 7 a 8 lbs. of pow der for a Beaver j as much lead as a man can carry for a Beaver, and so with the rest. Every thing considered, Sir, if you wdll be content with a sat- isfaction which we will endeavor to obtain for you from the Se- necas, you will prevent great evils which must fall on Canada in case of war ; you will divert from it famine and many misfor- tunes, especially will you avoid much confusion and great sutfer- ing 10 the French who will fall into the hands of the Iroquois, w'ho, as you are aware, exercise the most cruel and shameful cruelties towards their captives. Independent of there being no profit in fighting with this sort of banditti whom you, assuredly, will not catch and who will catch many of your people who will be surprised in every quarter. The man called Hannatakta and some others of influence told me they pitied you. These are their words — they besought you not to force them to wage w^ar against you ; that the five Nations would be obliged to unite against you ; that the French and the Iroquois being so near the one to the other, the w^ar would be too disas- trous to you, because, say they, our mode of fighting, of haras- sing, of living, of surprizing and flying to the woods will be the ruin of the French who are accustomed to fight against towns capable of defence or against armies who appear in tlie plains ; if there be misunderstanding it ought to be settled. All the Iro- quois are persuaded that before going to war you will try the ways of mildness and tell the Senecas to appease your anger for what they have plundered ; that if you begin by a desire to wage war and will not act as a father towards your children, they have already declared beforehand that they will all unite against you. TO HUNGRY BAY. 131 FROM THE- SAME TO THE SAME. July 13. 1684. My Lord — I have the honor to write to you by Father Millet who passes here in retiring from among the Iroquois who cannot be persuailed that you have determined on waging war against them, not having demanded any satisfaction of them for the merchandize of the Frenchmen whom the Senecas plundered. To turn away the scourge of war and the miseries which must follow it, especially among the French who will find themselves attacked by all the Iroquois if any hostile act is committed against the Se- necas, I have strongly urged the Onnontagues to give you satis- faction according to the instructions which the Christian Iroquois, your deputies here, had. To-morrow a great number of Senecas are expected with several Cayugas and the Ambassadors from the two Lower Nations to talk about business. The Senecas consequent on tiie declaration you made to them that you would proceed to their country, have concealed their old grain, prepared a distant retreat in the wooden fort for the security of their old men, women and children, and conveyed whatever they have of value out of their villages. The Warriors in great number have heard this news with much joy; they are determined to fight, not in their forts for they have none, and will not shut themseu-es up any wdiere, but under cover, behind trees, and in the grass where they will try to do you considera- ble injury, if you want war. The Onnontagues — men of busi- ness — wish to arrange matters, especially having lost nothing of theirs, except only some goods. Must the father and children, they ask, cut each others throats for clothes ? The children must satisfy the father to whom they owe honor and respect. Further, I, last year, guarantied by two Wampum belts — one to the Senecas and the other here — that if the Iroquois array met the French who were towards Illinois, and any acts of hostility should follow on one side or the other, they would mutually arrange the difficult}'- w^ithout it leading to any consequences, and this is what we are endeavoring to persuade the Senecas to 132 DE LA BARRE's EXPEDITION do. Father Millet, to whom I communicated all, and who has just passed, will tell you every thing and how apropos it would be that M. le Moine should come here to fetch those Chiefs and Warriors who will most willingly meet you under the safe con- duct which you will give them through M. le Moine (who can come here in all surety and without any fear) to be conducted to your rendezvous near Seneca or to the Fort, in order to settle matters in a friendly manner. The Iroquois say they will not commit any act of hostility against you, unless you commence either by attacking the Senecas or by refusing all satisfaction, for they remark, it is painful to come to blows with their Father. They all say that their mode of warfare will be disastrous to you, but that the respect they entertain towards you, and which w^e insinuate among them, withholds them until they are forced, they add, to wage a sor- rowful war, despite themselves, against you. They wish, first of all, they say, to avoid the reproach of not having kept their word which they gave. I told M. le Moine of the above. My brother expects to leave with your deputies to carry to you the result of the Iroquois Diet, where the Onnontagu6 who as- sumes to be a moderator, pretends to force the Senecas to disa- vow what two of their captains caused their warriors to do, and to quieten again your mind ; that is, they say, by some satisfac- tion which may afford you an honorable pretext to pay a friendly visit to Kaniatarontagouat [now, Irondequot Bay] and not to ap- pear there as an enemy. I forgot to inform you that the Iroquois say they have accepted the satisfaction they received for the death of their captain, Hann- henhax, killed by the Kiskakous, and that it would seem very strange to them that you should refuse the satisf\cti(m they wish to induce the Senecas to give you for the pillaged merchandize which, in their estimation is next to nothing compared with that important [council] fire In your childien's cabin. I pray God that lie conduct matters for ITis glory and the country's good and that He preserve you long, which is the wish, my Lord, of Your very humble & very ob* Serv*, J. DE LaMBERVILLE. TO HUNGRY BAY. 133 FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. 18 July, 1684. Sir — The Council convoked at Onnontagu6 was, at lengtli, held on the 16''» and 17^'^ of July. You will see by the memoir I enclose in this letter what you said to the Onnontagu^>s and what they reply by three Belts. Since you spoke, or I have made you speak to the Senecas assembled here in a body, Chiefs and Warriors, and their answer, we have spoken to them by three Belts and they have answered you by nine. These are twehe Belts which your ambassadors take to you. I know not if you will accept the trifling pains we have taken to Cctuse satisfaction to be given you, and to extricate you from the fatigues, the embarrassments and consequences of a disastrous war, and procure at the same time freedom of trade ; for the Se- necas informed me at night, by express, that they would give you more satisfaction than you expected, because they wished through respect for you, not to wage war any more against the Oumiamis, if you so wish it, and even any other nation if you insist on it. In fine, they do not wage war save but to secure a good peace. They return without striking a blow, without shed- ding blood, etc. The Seneca Iroquois offer you more than you would have believed. The Onnontagues considered their honour engaged to this meeting, and have put all sorts of machinery in motion to induce the Senecas to condescend to place their affairs in their hands. On the first day of the Council every thing was almost despaired of, and the plenipotentiaries all excited came to see me, saying they •gained nothing on the Senecas, and that up to that time they most willingly accepted war ; that they rejected the presents which you and they had made them. They sent me back a collection of belts, that the chiefs and warriors acted with great zeal in combatting the obstinacy of the Senecas so that having gained the Oneidas and Cayugas over to to their side, they came to liigh words. Deputies, notwithstanding, succeeded one another to sound me on the state of affairs and to learn the true cause of the withdrawal of our Mis-. 134 DE LA BARRE S EXPEDITIOI^ sionaries. Finally I told them that the real cause was, that the displeasure which they perceived you felt, and which they also en- tertained at being disparaged by the Senecas, had caused them to withdraw to you, until they should have satisfied you. At length the Onnontagues persuaded them to confide in them and to place their affairs in their hands — that if you did not accept their media- tion, they should unite according to their policy, with all the other Iroquois against you. La Grande Gueule and his triumvirate have assuredly signalized themselves in this rencounter. My brother, who will inform you of every thing, will relate matters more in de- tail. We, however, await your orders which you wnll please con- vey to us by M. le Moine whom the Onnontagues request you to send instantly to them at Choueguen [Oswego] in all security and without the least fear. FKOM THE SAME TO THE SAME. Onontaguc, this 17th August, 1684. My Lord — Your people have brought my brother back here with the greatest possible liiligence, liaving been wind bound three days, at one island. In order not to cause you any delay, which could only produce a useless consumpiion of provisions by your army, they arrived here with Sieur le Due at mitlnight and having passed the rest of the night in conferring together, we had tlie Chiefs and Warriors assembled at day light after hav- ing obtained information from La Grande Gueule and Gara- koritie. W^e declared our intentions in the presence of several Senecas who departed the same day to return to their country where they will communicate our approach. They carry one of your belts to reassure those who are alarmed by )our armament. The On- nontngUL's have dispatched some of theirs to notify the Oneida, the Mohawk iind the Cayuga to repair to Oihouegen [Oswego] to salute you and to reply to your pro|)Osals. They wish so much (o see M. le Moine here wlioin you promised them would come, thai it . appears that nothing could be done should he not arrive. Also, TO HUNGRY BAY. ' 135 as you advised them not to be troubled at the sight of your barks and Gendarmes, they give you notice, likewise, not to be sur- prised when you will see faces painted red and black at Ochou- egen. I gave a Cayuga letters for you some eight or ten days ago. I do not know if he will have delivered them. I believe I ad- vised you that Colonel Dongan had the Duke of York's placards of protection {des sauvegardes) affixed to the three upper Iroquois villages, and that he styled himself Lord of the Iroquois. A drunken man here tore these proclamations down and nothing remains but the post to which the Duke of York's arms were attached. I gave La Grande Gueule your belt under hand, and remarked to him the things wliich you wish him to effect. He calls him- self your best friend and you have done well to have attached to you this hoc, who has the strongest head and loudest voice among the Iroquois, The over coats (capots) and shirts which you have been so good as to send to be used on occasions are a most efficacious means to gain over, or to preserve public opinion. An honora- ble peace will be more advantageous to Canada than a war very uncertain as to its success. I am of opinion, w^hatever Messi's the Merchants may say, that you do them a good turn by inducing the Iroquois to give you satisfaction, and that the war would be very prejudicial to them. I am with all sort of respect and submission, My Lord, Your very humble and very obedient servant, J. DE Lamberville, Jesuit. FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. Onnontague, this 28th of August 1684. My Lord — M. le Moine's arrival has much pleased our burgo- masters who have exhibited towards him many attentions, and have promised to terminate matters with you in the manner you 136 DE LA BARRe's EXPEDITION desire. The Onnontagucs have called the Deputies of each Na- tion together as I have advised you. TheCayugas came here the first, ^vith two young Tionnoutatts to restore them to you. We expect the SenecaSjand as we were hoping that the Oneidas wouhl arrive to-day, one Arnaud,' whom Father Bruyas is well acquaint- ed with, came here on horseback from Mr. Dongan to tell the Iroquois that he did not wish them to talk with you without his permission, being complete master of their land and conduct towards you ; that they belonged to the King of England and the Duke of York, and that their Council fires were lighted at Albany and that he absolutely forbad them talking with you. Two words which we wdiispered in the ears of your pensioner, La Grande Gueule, caused us to see at once how unreasonable, in his opinion, was so strange a proceeding as that of Mr. Dongan, after having liimself exhorted the Iroquois to give us satisfaction in order to avoid a disastrous war which v\'ould have very bad [consequences. | When M. le Moine and I shall have the honour to see you, we shall give you the particulars of these things, and howLa GrandeGueule came to high words against this Messenger, exhorting all the warriors and chiefs not to listen to the proposals of a man who seemed to be drunk, so opposed to all reason was w'hat he uttered. We being two or three days' journey from here, the said Mes- senger produced three Belts of W^ampum. The first and second are from the Mohawks and Oneidas, who have promised Mr. Don- gan that they should not go to meet us ; the third was for the Onnontagucs to exhort them to give their wampum belt also, as assurance of the same thing. They answered by La Grande Gueule, that they esteemed themselves too highly honored by your having granted them the embassy of M. le Moine and by your having placed the affairs of the peace in their hands, to commit RO cowardly an action and so grave a fault as that which he seemed * Arnold Cornelis" Viele, a citizen of Albany, who acted as Interpreter be- tweentlie Whites and Indians. For his service in this capacity he had already obtained from the latter, 26'!" Sept\ 16S3, a tract of land called Wachkcerhoha, on the north bank of the Mohawk above Schenectady, the grant of which is in Alb. Deed Book C, 199.— Tr. TO HUNGRY BAY. 137 willing they should perpetrate. After many disputes, the Onnonta- gu(5s councilled among themselves, and concluded to enquire of M, le Moine if he would not wait the permission which Mr. Don- gan wished the Iroquois to have from him to talk wuth you, and if he would not tarry ten days more, and you remain at the Lake, to learn Mr. Dongan's final will. This is a piece of Iroquois cun- ning not to embroil themselves with Mr. Dongan, and to follow en- tirely what M. le Moine should say, whom they well knew woulil not wait so long, matters having advanced to the point at whi( h they are, and knowing, moreover, that delay was directly contrary to your instructions. The Iroquis requested M. le Moine himself* to communicate their opinion to the Cavalier, wliich he certainly chd in an excellent manner, and which you will be glad to learn when he will give an account of his negotiation. He has thought proper to send you one of his canoes at once to inform you hereof, and to assure you that as soon as the Onnon- tague deputies shall have arrived here, he will endeavour to des- patch them hence at the earliest moment to conduct them to you. If not he will leave with the Senecas w^ho are here. Tegannehout acted his part very well and harangued strongly against Mr. Don- gan's messenger and in favour of Onnontio. Good cheer and the w^ay you regaled him was a strengthening medicine which sustained his voice when it might perhaps have failed in another who had not experienced proofs of your friendship such as you did him the honour to give him. He will return with M. le Moine. The Cavalier says that before returning to his Master, he wishes to speak to the Senecas who are expected here. I caress some- what Tegannehout in order that he may win those of his Nation over to his opinion and not to suffer them to yield to the solicita- tions of Sieur Arnaud to whom the Onnontagues have given two wretched belts to say to Mr. Dongan that they could not do other than what he himself had urged them to do ; to wit, to settle matters peaceably with you, and to soothe his spirit if he were dissatisfied with them for not going to Albany whence they had returned very recently. A letter is sent you which he has given to M. le Moine. Whatever Sieur Arnaud may say, we have not neglected to 138 DE LA BARRE's EXPEDITION send for the Oneida deputies whom we expect to-morrow. Mon- sieur le Molne will use the greatest possible diligence to return to you, inasmuch as this delay is not veiy agreable to him. I am always, my Lord, Your very humble and very obedient servant, J. DE LaMBERVILLE. FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. Onontague, 27 Sept. 1G84. My Lord, — 1 return here after having been delayed ten days in the Lake by very strong head winds. A day before the Iroquois deputies met here, the Senecas sent Belts to the Iroquois villages to declare to them that shouhl you ilisembark in their country, they would attack you. Six or seven Molu gans {Lo^lps) were prepar- ino- to go to the assistance of the Iroquois, as the Outaoutes were aiding the French. The Seneca scouts have been as far as Kaion- houaoue, where you had concluded the peace, to be certain of the place at which your army had encamped. The Onnontagu6s be- lieved for several days that they had killed me. Tegannehout's arrival in tliis country will have calmed the minds in communicat- ino- your peace to them. No news have as yet been received from the Seneca. Some say they will shortly come hither to confer on important matters. If any one come from the For there I shall inform you of whatever I will have learned. Sieur Arnaud, Mr. Dongan's deputy, has not re-appeared here since my departure from Onnonta', though he had assured me that he should return in ten days. 'Tis said that his delay is caused by not having found his master at Orange (Albany), and that he has gone to Manath to inform him of the proceedings of the Onnonta- guo and of your arrival at Gainhouagui', [Hungry B''iy-] I had the honour of writing to you from the Fort whence I sent you a wampum belt from the Tionnontatps. I gave Sieur Hanna- taksa the belt of Wampum and the red Calumet in your name, to whom I said that you would be ever obliged to him if he would turn his arms to the left of Fort St. Louis, where the Illinois are TO HUNGRY BAY. 13& mingled with the Oumiamis, so as to give no cause of complaint. Uncertain as I was regarding matters on the side of the Senecas^ and fearful that the Senecas would create confusion on arrivino- here. o > I made some presents in your name to some captains who could best curb their insolence, so as to prevent the brewing of the storm. Your man of business, I mean La Grande Gueule, is not con cerned at any thing; he is a venal being whom you do well to keep in pay. I assured him that you would send him the jerkin you promised. The Cayu^as who are gone to war to the borders of Merinlande and Virginia have sent home some of their warriors to say that the English had killed three of their men, and that they having taken five Englishmen alive, had cut their throats after sub- jecting them to some bad treatment, and that they were still in the English country. After having spoken to you of others, I must acquit myself of a part of my duty, by thanking you very humbly for all the kind- nesses you have been pleased to shower on me. I should have wished you, in addition to the good health in which it pleased God to preserve you in the midst of an army weakened by diseases, greater satisfaction for the trouble you have taken for the public good. Individuals assuredly know that if you had not accepted peace, which is very favorable since no one has been killed on either side, the Colony would have been exposed to the mercy of the Iroquois who would pounce, in different directions, on defence- less settlements, the people of which they would carry off in order to pitilessly burn them. I pray God, who knows the sincerity of your intentions, to be your reward and to heap His blessings on you to the extent of the wishes of him who is entirely, my Lord Your very humble and very obedient servant, J, DE LaMBERVILLE. I told Colin that you woukl remember him and his comrade. The Tionnontates have sent to thank the Onnontagu-'s for hav- mg, by their obliging disposition, gained you over to treat for peace, and thus preserve the lives of many, and that they were attached to Onnonthio. Sieur la Grande [Gueule] has pronounced your pane- gyric here, and professes to keep the promise he made you, to cause 140 ' DE LA BAIIRe''s EXPEDITION the articles of peace to be observed. Some furs are to be collected this fall. He is treating on this subject with Hannagoge and Ga- nakonti6. There is no news yet from the Senecas. FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. Onnontague, this 9th Octob. 16S4. My Lord, — The message you sent here by three canoemen from Montreal shows you to be in reality a man of your word. Sieur Grande Gueule has been informed by express, who is gone to find him at his fishery eight leagues from here, that you have written. I shall cause him when he returns particularly to recollect his pro- mise to you to have satisfaction given you. I have spoken in his absence both privately and publicly, to influential persons and ob- tained promises from the chiefs and warriors that they would send two strings of wampum to the Senecas in three days to put them in mind of the word which the leader of those who pillaged the French canoes had himself brought here, from those of his own nation, that they had accepted all you had concluded at La Famine. I told them wliat you had concluded and had ordered me to acquaint tliem with. The report about the thousand Illinois is a mere ru- mor without any foundation, and M. duLut told me at Katareikoui, that he did not believe the truth of this news ; besides there cannot be any apprehension that they could have dared to undertake any tiling, having met neither Frenclimen nor Outaouas. All that they could make a demonstration against have more fuzileers than they. A party of 40 warriors will leave here in six days to attack the Illinois whom they may find among the Chanuennonni. I have presented the Captain a shirt in your name, to exhort the Seucius through whom he will pass, to keep their word with you. He has assured me that he will not lead his troop towards the quarter you forbad him. I notified him as well as the others that you had de- spatched a canoe to inform the Oumiamies and the Maskenses that you had included them in the peace, and that they could remain secure at the place whei-e they had been before they were at war with the L'oquois. The Senecas shall be equally notified of this in a TO HUXGRY BAY. 141 few days. You may rest assured, my Lord, that I shall spare no pains to have that satisfaction given you vv^hich you expect from the troquois. The frenchmen who came here told me that whilst you were at La Famine a false alarm reached Montreal that the Iroquois were coming ; that there was nothing but horror, flight and weep- ing at Montreal. What would so many poor people have done in their settlements if merely six hundred Iroquois had made an irrup- tion into the country in the condition in which it is. You form a better opinion than one hundred manufacturers of rhodomontades who were not acquainted with the Iroquois, and who reflect not that the country, such as it is, is not in'a condition to defend itself. Had I the honor to converse with you longer than your little leisure allowed me, I should have convinced you that you could not have advanced to Paniaforontogouat [Irondequoit bay] without having been utterly defeated in the state your army was in — which was rather an hospi- tal than a camp. To attack people within their entrenchments and fight banditti in the bush will require one thousand men more than you have. Then you can accomplish nothing without having a number of disciplined savages. I gave you already my thoughts, and believe I told you the truth, and that you deserved the title of " Liberator of the Country" by making peace at a conjuncture when you would have beheld the ruin of the country without pre- venting it. The Senecas had double pallisades stronger than the pickets of the fort and the first could not have been forced without great loss. Their plan was to keep only 300 men inside, and with 1200 others perpetually harass you. All the Iroquois were to col- lect together and fire only at the legs of your people to master them, and burn them at their leisure ; and after haAing cut them oif by a hundred ambuscades among the foliage and grass, pursue you in your retreat even to Montreal to spread desolation through- out its vicinity also ; and they had prepared for that purpose a quantity of canoes of eighteen men each which they kept con- cealed. But let us all speak of this war to thank God that He has preserved our Governor in the midst of so much sickness, and that He had compassion on Canada from which He turned away the scourge of war which would have laid it entirely desolate. The English of Merinlande who had killed three Iroquois, and 142 DE LA BARRe's EXPEDITION of whom the English Iroquois had killed five, are about lo h;.vc difRculties with that belligerent nation which has already killed more than twenty-nine of their men, and has been threatened with war should it continue to insult them. We shall see what the English of that quarter will do. Garakontie returned to day from Orange, where he told by a belt of Wampum how you had given peace to the public ; also how Colonel Dongan had urged the Iroquois to secure it by the satisfaction which he advised them to give you. M. Dongan left Orange when those who brought the Duke of York's Safeguards came to this place; it is supposed that Arnaud's visit here to pre- vent the Iroquois going to see you and to get them to hold a Council at Orange, w;is an intrigue of the Orange merchants who feared that their trade would be diminished by a conference held with you with arms in your hands ; for M. Dongan had probably departed from Orange when Arnaud left to come here. What the Iroquois know is, after having heard M. Dongan who exhorted them to an arrangement with you, it was in no wise probable that on the eve of a negotiation, he should have forbidden them to visit you without his permission. A man named La Cioix, in Indian Tegaiatannhara, who an- swered Garakontie on behalf of the Dutch, said that had you not made peace, knowing that the Safeguards of England were on the Iroquois, 800 Englishmen and 120U Mohegans, {Loups) who are between Mcrinland and New York, entirely distinctfrom the Cannongageh-ronnons whom you have with you, were all ready to march at the first word to aid the Iroquois. This man La Croix passes \vilh the Iroquois for a great liar ; he, possibly may have advanced this of his own accord, as well as many other things he has stated, which AT. Dongan perhaps would not approve, were he acquainted with them. I thank you most humbly for having furnished an opportu- nity for the transportation to us of a part of our necessaries. It is a continuance of your kin(huss towards us and towaids me in particular, who am sincerely and with much respect, My Lord, Your very humble & very obedient Servant, De Lamberville. R D 1. 4 B. fr)Q> TO HUNGRY BAY. 143 I shall give La Grande Gueule your jerkin as soon as he re- turns here. I had the honor to write to you by Colin ten days since. FROM THE MINISTER TO M. BARILLON, FRENCH AABASSADOR AT LONDON [Paris Doc. III.] Versailles, 10 March, 1685. Sir — The King has learned that the Governor of New York, instead of maintaining good correspondence with Sieur de la Barre, Governor of Canada, in conformity with the orders of the late King of England, has done what he could to prevent the Iroquois tieating with him ; that he offered them troops to serve against the French, and that he caused standards (flags) to be planted in their villages, though these nations had been always subject to France since their country was discovered by the French, without the English objecting thereto. His Majesty desires you to present his complaints to the King of England and to demand of him precise orders to oblige this Governor to confine himself within the limits of his government, and to observe different conduct towards Sieur Denonville, who is selected by His Majesty to succeed the said Sieur de la Baire. l.->'*^\ ' l^^'r .0 a'^ .f •^. o \^ 0^ 4- ^ <' ^ -p 4 /-"xW /%-^^^^^ /''%'^.^ '^^^- U ,^ ' |gtvX./^;S ■/>'^- .-^^ %/ne\/ ^o;VM?^-^o^ \-#y^ -o^ s ^ ^llf ^^ -/% ^1 -^_ O > 0-^' o o r< J>)', •, .0- v-^ o < ,^" o .40. ^0• * o ^ 6 >J A' ^ .o*.-':^--.":^ .<-:.S ^h^^ '^, J • - - -^ M0< V ^. J""-. ^!^ /'% v.^^^:^ /^. «fe^ /-^ f" ,. ^^, "' \'^' ,.. "••'- """ ^ .^ ■\ lOBaS EMS. RAn-^ QI14DING AUGUSTINE . ^ FLA. \> v^ V ->^. ^.^' -imi^ ^.^ /tfi<