V('''^: /'■'?•' THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. BY THE AUTHOR OF " HOCHELAGA. m TWO VOLUMES. VOL. L LONDON : RICHARD BENTLEY. IJufilist^r in ©rtinarg to |^et jTOarcstg. 1849. LONDON : BRADBURY AND EVANS, PRINTFRS, WHITEFRIARS. THE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA BARBARA INTRODUCTION. England and France started in a fair race for the magnificent prize of supremacy in America. The advantages and difficulties of each were much alike, but the systems by which they improved those advantages and met those difficulties, were essentially different. New France was colonised by a government, New England by a people. In Canada the men of intellect, influence, and wealth, were only the agents of the mother country ; they fulfilled, it is true, their colonial duties with zeal and abihty, but they ever looked to France for honour and approbation, and longed for a return to her shores as their best reward : they were in the colony but not of it ; they strove vigorously to repel invasion, to improve agriculture, and to encourage commerce for the sake of France, but not for Canada. The mass of the population of New France were descended from settlers sent out mthin a short time VI INTRODUCTION. after the first occupation of the country, and who were not selected for any pecuhar quahfications. They were not led to emigrate from the spirit of adventure, disappointed ambition, or pohtical discontent ; by far the larger proportion left their native country under the pressure of extreme want or in blind obedience to the will of their superiors. They were then estabhshed in points best suited to the interests of France, not those best suited to their own. The physical condition of the humbler emigrant however became better than that of his countrymen in the Old World ; the fertile soil repaid his labour with competence ; independence fostered self-reliance, and the unchecked range of forest and prairie inspired him with thoughts of freedom. But all these elevating tendencies were fatally counter- acted by the blighting influence of feudal organisation. Restrictions humiliating as well as injurious pressed upon the person and property of the Canadian. Every avenue to wealth and influence w^as closed to him and thrown open to the children of Old France. He saw whole tracts of the magnificent country lavished upon the favourites and military followers of the court, and through corrupt or capricious influences the privilege of exclusive trade granted for the aggrandisement of strangers at his expense. France founded a state in Canada ; she established a INTRODUCTION. Vll feudal and ecclesiastical fi'ame-work for the young- nation, and into that Procrustean bed the growth of population, and the proportions of society were forced. The State fixed governments at Montreal, Three Rivers, and Quebec ; there towns arose : she divided the rich banks of the St. Lawrence and of the Richelieu into seigneuries ; there population spread : she placed posts on the lakes and rivers of the far west ; there the fur-traders congregated : she divided the land into dioceses and parishes, and appointed bishops and curates ; a portion of all produce of the soil was exacted for their support : she sent out the people at her own cost, and acknowledged no shadow of popular rights ; she organised the inhabitants by an unsparing conscription, and placed over them officers either from the Old Country or from the favoured class of Seigneurs : she grasped a monopoly of every valuable production of the country, and yet forced upon it her own manu- factures to the exclusion of all others : she squandered her resources and treasures on the colony, but violated all principles of justice in a vain endeavour to make that colony a source of wealth : she sent out the ablest and best of her officers to govern on the falsest and worst of systems : her energy absorbed all individual energy ; her perpetual and minute interference aspired to shape and direct all will and motive of her subjects. viii INTRODUCTION. The State was everything, the people nothing. Finally, when the power of the State was broken by a foreign foe, there remained no power of the People to supply its place. On the day that the French armies ceased to resist, Canada was a peaceful province of British America. A few years after the French Crown had founded a State in Canada, a handful of Puritan refugees founded a People in New England. They bore with them from the ]\Iother Country little beside a bitter hatred of the existing government, and a stern resolve to perish or be free. One small vessel — the Mayflower — held them, their wives, their children, and their scanty stores. So ignorant Avere they of the country of their adoption, that they sought its shores in the depth of winter when nothing but a snowy desert met their sight. Dire hardships assailed them ; many sickened and died, but those who hved still strove bravely. And bitter was their trial ; the scowling sky above their heads, the frozen earth under their feet, and sorest of all, dee]) in their strong hearts the unacknowledged love of that venerable land which they had abandoned for ever. But brighter times soon came ; the snowy desert changed into a fair scene of life and vegetation. The woods rang with the cheerful sound of the axe ; the fields were tilled hopefully, the harvest gathered grate- fully. Other vessels arrived bearing more settlers, INTRODUCTION. IX men for the most part like those who had first landed. Their numbers swelled to hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands. They formed themselves into a community ; they decreed laws, stern and quaint, but suited to their condition. They had neither rich nor poor ; they admitted of no superiority save in their own gloomy estimate of merit ; they persecuted all forms of faith different from that which they themselves held, and yet they would have died rather than suffer the rehgious interference of others. Far from seeking or accepting aid from the government of England, they patiently tolerated their nominal dependence only because they were virtually independent. For pro- tection against the savage ; for relief in pestilence or famine ; for help to plenty and prosperity, they trusted alone to God in heaven, and to their own right hand on earth. Such in the main were the ancestors of the men of New England, and in spite of all subsequent admixture such in the main were they themselves. In the other British colonies also, hampered though they were by Charters, and proprietary rights, and alloyed by a Babel congregation of French Huguenots, Dutch, Swedes, Quakers, Nobles, Roundheads, Canadians, Rogues, Zealots, Infidels, Enthusiasts, and Felons, a general prosperity had created individual self-reliance, X INTRODUCTION. and self-reliance had engendered the desire of self- government. Each colony contained a separate vitality within itself They commenced mider a variety of systems ; more or less practicable, more or less liberal, and more or less dependent on the Parent State. But the spirit of adventure, the disaffection, and the disappointed ambition which had so rapidly recruited their population gave a general bias to their political feehngs which no arbitrary authority could restrain, and no institutions counteract. They were less intolerant and morose, but at the same time also less industrious and moral than their Puritan neighbours. Like them, however, they resented all interference from England as far as they dared, and constantly strove for the acquisition or retention of popular rights. The British colonists, left at fii-st in a great measure to themselves, settled on the most fertile lands, built their towns upon the most convenient harbours, directed their industry to the most profitable commerce, raised the most valuable productions. The trading spirit of the mother country became almost a passion when transferred to the New World ; enterprise and industry were stimulated to incredible activity by brilliant suc- cess and ample reward. As wealth and the means of subsistence increased, so multiplied the population. Early marriages were universal ; a numerous family INTRODUCTION. XI was the riches of the parent. Thousands of immigrants also from year to year swelled the living flood that poured over the wilderness. In a century and a half the inhabitants of British America exceeded nearly twenty-fold the people of New France. The relative superiority of the first over the last, was even greater in wealth and resources than in population. The merchant navy of the English colonies was already larger than that of many European nations, and known in almost every port in the world, where men bought and sold. New France had none. The French colonies were founded and fostered by the State with the real object of extending the dominion, increasing the power, and illustrating the glory of France. The ostensible object of settlement, at least that holding the most prominent place in all Acts and Charters, was to extend the true religion, and to minister to the glory of God. From the earliest time the ecclesiastical estabhshments of Canada were formed on a scale suited to these professed views. Not only was ample provision made for the spiritual wants of the European population, but the labours of many earnest and devoted men were directed to the enlightenment of the Heathen Indians. At first the Church and the civil government leant upon each other for mutual support and assistance, but after a time, when neither xn INTRODUCTION. of these powers found themselves troubled with popular opposition, their union grew less intimate ; their interests differed, jealousies ensued, and finally they became antagonistic orders in the community. The mass of the people, more devout than intelligent, sjinpathised with the priesthood ; this sympathy did not, however, interfere with unqualified submission to the government. The Canadians were trained to imphcit obedience to their rulers, spiritual and temporal : these rulers ventured not to imperil their absolute authority by educating their vassals. It is true there were a few seminaries and schools under the zealous administration of the Jesuits ; but even that instruction was unat- tainable by the general population ; those who walked in the moonlight which such reflected rays afforded, were not Hkely to become troublesome as sectarians or politicians. Much credit for sincerity cannot be given to those who professed to promote the education of the people, when no printing-press was ever permitted in Canada during the government of France. Canada, unprovoked by Dissent, was altogether free from the stain of religious persecution : hopelessly fettered in the chains of metropolitan power, she was also undisturbed by political agitation. But this calm was more the stillness of stagnation than the tranquillity of content. Without a press, without any semblance of mTRODUCTION. XUl popular representation, there hardly remained other alternatives than tame submission or open mutiny. By hereditary habit and superstition the Canadians were trained to the first, and by weakness and want of energy they were incapacitated for the last. Although the original charter of New England asserted the king's supremacy in matters of religion, a foil understanding existed that on this head ample latitude should be allowed ; ample latitude was accord- ingly taken. She set up a system of faith of her own, and enforced conformity. But the same spirit that had excited the colonists to dissent from the Church of England, and to sacrifice home and friends in the cause, soon raised up among them a host of dissenters from their own stern and pecuHar creed. Their clergy had sacrificed much for conscience-sake, and were generally " faithful, watchfol, painfol, serving their flock daily with prayers and tears," some among them also men of high European repute. They had often, however, the mortification of seeing their congregations crowding to hear the ravings of any knave or enthusiast who broached a new doctrine. Most of these mischievous fanatics were given the advantage of that interest and sympathy which a cruel and unnecessary persecution invariably excites. All this time freedom of individual judgment was the watchword of the persecutors. There is no xiv INTRODUCTION. doubt that strong measures were necessary to curb the furious and proftine absurdities of many of the seceders, who were the very outcasts of rehgion. On considering the criminal laws of the time, it would also appear that not a few of the outcasts of society also had found their way to New England. The code of Massachusetts contained the description of the most extraordinary collection of crimes that ever defaced a statute-book, and the various punishments allotted to each. In one grand point the pre-eminent merit of the Puritans must be acknowledged : they strove earnestly and conscientiously for what they held to be the truth. For this they endured with unshaken constancy, and persecuted with unremitting zeal. The suicidal policy of the Stuarts had, for a time, driven all the upholders of civil liberty into the ranks of sectarianism. The advocates of the extremes of religious and political opinion flocked to America, the furthest point from Kings and Prelates that they could conveniently reach. Engrafted on the stubborn temper of the Englishman, and planted in the genial soil of the West, the love of this civil and religious liberty grew up with a vigour that time only served to strengthen ; that the might of armies vainly strove to overcome. Thus, ultimately, the persecution under the Stuarts was the most powerful cause ever yet employed INTRODUCTION. XV towards the liberation of man in his path through earth to Heaven. For many years England generally refrained from interference with her American Colonies in matters of local government or in rehgion. They taxed them- selves, made their own laws, and enjoyed religious freedom in their own way. In one State only, in Virginia, was the Church of England established, and even there it was accorded very little help by the temporal authority : in a short time it ceased to receive the support of the majority of the settlers, and rapidl}^ decayed. On one point, however, the mother country claimed and exacted the obedience of the colonists to the imperial law. In her commercial code she would not permit the shghtest relaxation in their favour, whatever the peculiar circumstances of their condition might be. This short-sighted and unjust restriction was borne, partly because it could not be resisted, and partly because at that early time the practical evil was but lightly felt. Although the principle of repre- sentation was seldom specified in the earlier charters, the colonists in all cases assumed it as a matter of right : they held that their privileges as Englishmen accompanied them wherever they went, and this was generally admitted as a principle of colonial policy. In the 17th century England adopted the system of XVI INTEODUCTION. transportation to the American Colonies. The felons were, however, too limited in numbers to make any .serious inroad upon the morals or tranquillity of the settlers. Many of the convicts were men sentenced for pohtical crimes, but free from any social taint ; the labouring population therefore did not regard them with contempt, nor shrink from their society. It may be held, therefore, that this partial and peculiar system of transportation introduced no distinct element into the constitution of the American nation. The British colonisation in the New World differed essentially from any before attempted by the nations of modern Europe, and has led to results of immeasurable importance to mankind. Even the magnificent empire of India sinks into insignificance, in its bearings upon the general interests of the world, by comparison with the Anglo-Saxon empire in America. The success of each, however, is unexampled in history. In the great military and mercantile colony of the East an enormous native population is ruled by a dominant race, whose number amounts to less than a four-thousandth part of its own, but whose superiority in war and civil government is at present so decided as to reduce any efforts of opposition to the mere outbursts of hopeless petulance. In that golden land, however, even the Anglo-Saxon race cannot increase and multiply ; INTRODUCTION. XVU the children of Enghsh parents degenerate or perish under its fatal sun. No permanent settlement or infiision of blood takes place. Neither have we effected any serious change in the manners or customs of the East Indians ; on the other hand, we have rather assimi- lated om^s to theirs. We tolerate their various rehgions, and we learn their language ; but in neither faith nor speech have they approached one tittle towards us. We have raised there no gigantic monument of power either in pride or for utility; no temples, canals, or roads remain to remind posterity of our conquest and dominion. Were the English rule over India suddenly cast off, in a single generation the tradition of our Eastern empire would appear a splendid but baseless dream, that of our administration an allegory, — of our victories a romance. In the great social colonies of the West the very essence of vitality is their close resemblance to the parent State. Many of the coarser inherited elements of strength have been increased. Industry and adven- ture have been stimulated to an unexampled extent by the natural advantages of the country, and free institutions have been developed almost to license by general prosperity, and the absence of external danger. Their stability, in some one form or another, is undoubted : it rests on the broadest possible basis — on the universal b XVlll INTRODUCTION. will of the nation. Our vast empire in India rests only on the narrow basis of the superiority of a handfiil of Enghshmen ; should any untoward fate shake the Atlas strength that bears the burthen, the superincumbent mass must fall in ruins to the earth. With far better cause may England glory in the land of her revolted children than in that of her patient slaves : the prosperous cities and busy seaports of America are prouder memorials of her race than the servile splendour of Calcutta, or the ruined ramparts of Seringapatam. In the earUer periods the British Colonies were only the reflection of Britain ; in later days their light has served to illumine the pohtical darkness of the European Continent. The attractive example of American democracy proved the most important cause that has acted upon European society since the Reformation. Towards the close of George II.'s reign England had reached the lowest point of national degradation recorded in her history. The disasters of her fleets and armies abroad were the natural fruits of almost universal corruption at home. The admirals and gene- rals, chosen by a German king and a subservient ministry, proved worthy of the mode of their selection. An obsequious parliament served but to give the appa- rent sanction of the people to the selfish and despotic measures of the crown. Many of the best blood and INTRODUCTION. XIX of the highest chivahy of the land still held loyal devo- tion to the exiled Stuarts ; while the mass of the nation, disgusted by the sordid and unpatriotic acts of the existing dynasty, regarded it with sentiments of dislike but little removed from positive hostility. A sullen discontent paralysed the vigour of England, obstructed her councils, and blunted her sword. In the cabinets of Europe, among the colonists of America, and the milhons of the East alike, her once glorious name had sunk almost to a bye-word of reproach. But " the darkest hour is just before the dawn :" a new disaster, more humiliating, and more inexcusable than any which had preceded, at length goaded the passive indignation of the British people into irresistible action. The spirit that animated the men who spoke at Runny- mede, and those who fought on Marston Moor, was not dead, but sleeping. The free institutions which wisdom had devised, time hallowed, and blood sealed, were evaded but not overthrown. The nation arose as one man, and with a peaceful, but stern determination, demanded that these things should cease. Then for "the hour," the hand of the All Wise supplied "the man.'' The light of Pitt's genius, the fire of his patriotism, hke the dawn of an unclouded morning, soon chased away the chilly night which had so long darkened over the fortunes of his country. 62 XX INTRODUCTION. But not even the genius of the great minister, aided as it was by the awakened spirit of the British people, would have sufficed to rend Canada from France with- out the concurrent action of many and various causes : the principal of these was, doubtless, the extraordinary growth of our American settlements. When the first French colonists founded their military and ecclesiastical establishments at Quebec, upheld by the favour and strengthened by the arms of the mother country, they regarded with little uneasiness the unaided efforts of their English rivals in the South. But these dangerous neighbours rose with wonderfiil rapidity from few to many, fi^'om weak to powerful. The cloud, which had appeared no greater than " a man's hand " on the political horizon, spread rapidly wider and wider, above and below, till at length from out its threatening gloom the storm burst forth which swept away the flag of France. As a military event, the conquest of Canada was a matter of little or no permanent importance : it can only rank as one among the numerous scenes of blood that give an intense but morbid interest to our national annals. The surrender of Niagara and Quebec were but the acknowledgment or final symbol of the victor^-^ of English over French colonisation. For three years the admirable skill of Montcalm and the valour of his INTRODUCTION. XXI troops deferred the inevitable catastrophe of the colony : then the destiny was accomphshed. France had for that time played out her part in the history of the New World ; during 150 years her threatening power had served to retain the Enghsh colonies in interested loyalty to protecting England. Notwith- standing the immense material superiority of the British Americans, the fleets and armies of the mother country were indispensable to break the barrier raised up against them by the union, skill, and courage of the French. Montcalm's far-sighted wisdom suggested consolation even in his defeat and death. In a remarkable and almost prophetic letter, wliich he addressed to M. de Berryer during the siege of Quebec, he foretells that the British power in America shall be broken by suc- cess, and that when the dread of France ceases to exist, the colonists will no longer submit to European control. One generation had not passed away when his predic- tion was fully accomphshed. England by the conquest of Canada breathed the breath of life into the huge Frankenstein of the American Repubhc. The rough schooling of French hostility was neces- sary for the development of those qualities among the British colonists, which enabled them finally to break the bonds of pupilage, and stand alone. Some degree XXii INTRODUCTION. of united action had been effected among the several and widely different states ; the local governments had learned how to raise and support armies, and to con- sider miHtary movements. On many occasions the Provincial mihtia had borne themselves with distin- guished bravery in the field ; several of their ofl&cers had gained honourable repute ; already the name of Washington called a flush of pride upon each American cheek. The stirring events of the contest with Canada had brought men of abihty and patriotism into the strong light of active Hfe, and the eyes of their country- men sought their guidance in trusting confidence. Through the instrumentahty of such men as these the American Revolution was shaped into the dignity of a national movement, and preserved from the threatening evils of an insane democracy. The consequences of the Canadian war furnished the cause of the quarrel which led to the separation of the great colonies from the mother country. England had incurred enormous debt in the contest ; her people groaned under taxation, and the wealthy Americans had contributed in but a very small proportion to the cost of victories by which they were the principal gainers. The British Parhament devised an unhappy expedient to remedy this evil : it assumed the right of taxing the unrepresented colonies, and taxed them INTRODUCTION. XXllI accordingly. Vain was the prophetic eloquence of Lord Chatham ; vain were the just and earnest remon- strances of the best and wisest among the colonists : the time was come. Then followed years of stubborn and unyielding strife ; the blood of the same race gave sterner determination to the quarrel. The balance of success hung equally. Once again France appeared upon the stage in the Western World, and Lafayette revenged the fall of Montcalm. However we may regret the cause and conduct of the revolutionary war, we can hardly regret its result. The catastrophe was inevitable : the folly or wisdom of British statesmen could only have accelerated or deferred it. The child had outhved the years of pupilage ; the interests of the old and the young required a separate household. But we must ever mourn the mode of sepa- ration : a bitterness was left that three quarters of a century has hardly yet removed ; and a dark page remains in our annals, that tells of a contest begun in injustice, conducted with mingled weakness and seve- rity, and ended in defeat. The cause of human freedom, perhaps for ages, depended upon the issue of the quarrel. Even the patriot minister merged the apparent interests of England in the interests of mankind. By the light of Lord Chatham's wisdom we may read the dis- astrous history of that fatal war, with a resigned and XXIV INTRODUCTION. tempered sorrow for the glorious inheritance rent away from us for ever. The reaction of the New World upon the Old may- be distinctly traced through the past and the present ; but human wisdom may not estimate its influence on the future. The lessons of freedom learned by the French army, while aiding the revolted colonies against England, were not forgotten. On their return to their native country they spread abroad tidings that the new people of America had gained a treasure richer a thousand fold than those which had gilded the triumphs of Cortes or Pizarro — the inestimable prize of liberty. Then the down-trampled millions of France arose, and with avaricious haste strove for a like treasure. They won a specious imitation, so soiled and stained, however, that many of the wisest amongst them could not at once detect its nature. They played with the coarse bauble for a time, then lost it in a sea of blood. Doubtless the tempest that broke upon France had long been gathering. The rays that emanated from such false suns as Voltaire and Rousseau had already drawn up a moral miasma from the swamps of sensual ignorance : under the shade of a worthless government these noxious mists collected into the clouds from whence the desolating storm of the revolution burst. It was, however, the example of popular success in the INTRODUCTION. XXV New World, and the republican training of a portion of the French army during the American contest, that finally accelerated the course of events. A generation before the " Declaration of Independence " the struggle between the rival systems of Canada and New England had been watched by thinking men in Europe w^th deep interest, and the importance to mankind of its issue was fully felt. While France mourned the defeat of her armies, and the loss of her magnificent colony, the keen-sighted philosopher of Forney gave a banquet to celebrate the British triumph at Quebec, not as the triumph of England over France, but as that of freedom over despotism.^ The overthrow of French by British power in America, was not the effect of mere military superiority. The balance of general success and glory in the field is no more than shared with the conquered people. The morbid national vanity, which finds no delight but in the triumphs of the sword, will shrink from the study of this chequered story. The narrative of disastrous defeat and doubtful advantage must be endured before we arrive at that of the brilHant victory which crowned our arms with final success. We read with painful surprise of the rout and ruin of regular British regiments by ' See Appendix, No. I. XXvi INTRODUCTION. a crowd of Indian savages, and of the bloody repulse of tlie most numerous army that had yet assembled round our standards in America, before a few weak French battahons, and an unfinished parapet. For the first few years our prosecution of the Canadian war was marked by a weakness little short of imbecility. The conduct of the troops was indifferent, the tactics of the generals bad, and the schemes of the minister worse. The coarse but powerful wit of Smollett and Fielding, and the keen sarcasms of " Chrysal," convey to us no very exalted idea of the composition of the British army in those days. The service had sunk into contempt. The withering influence of a corrupt patronage had demorahsed the officers ; successive defeats incurred through the inefficiency of courtly generals had depressed the spirit of the soldiery, and were it not for the proof shown upon the bloody fields of La Feldt and Fontenoy we might almost suppose that English manhood had become an empty name. Many of the battalions shipped oft' to take part in the American contest were hasty levies without organi- sation or discipline : the colonel, a man of influence, with or without other qualifications as the case might be ; the officers, his neighbours and dependants. These armed mobs found themselves suddenly landed in a country, the natural difficulty of which would of itself INTRODUCTION. XXVll have proved a formidable obstacle, even though un- enhanced by the presence of an active and vigilant enemy. At the same time, there devolved upon them the duties and the responsibilities of regular troops. A due consideration of these circumstances tends to diminish the surprise which a comparison of their achievements with those recorded in our later military annals might create. Very different were the ranks of the American army from the magnificent regiments, whose banners now bear the crowded records of Peninsular and Indian victory ; who within the recollection of living men have stood as conquerors upon every hostile land, yet never once permitted a stranger to tread on England's sacred soil, but as a prisoner, fugitive, or friend. In Cairo and Copenhagen ; in Lisbon, Madrid, and Paris ; in the ancient metropolis of China ; in the capital of the young American Republic, the British flag has been hailed as the symbol of a triumphant power, or of a generous deHverance. Well may we cherish an honest pride in the prowess and military virtue of our soldiers; loyal alike to the crown and to the people ; facing in battle, with unshaken courage, the deadly shot and sweeping charge, and, with a still loftier valour, enduring in times of domestic troubles, the gibes and injuries of their misguided countrymen. XXviii INTRODUCTION. In the stirring interest excited by the progress and rivahy of our kindred races in America, the sad and solemn subject of the Indian people is almost forgotten. The mysterious decree of Providence which has swept them away may not be judged by human wisdom. Their existence will soon be of the past. They have left no permanent impression on the constitution of the great nation which now spreads over their country. No trace of their blood, language, or manners may be found among their haughty successors. As certainly as their magnificent forests fell before the advancing tide of civilisation, they fell also. Neither the kindness or the cruelty of the white man arrested or hastened their inevitable fate. They withered alike under the Upas-shade of European protection, and before the deadly storm of European hostility. As the snow in spring they melted away, stained, tainted, trampled down. The closing scene of French dominion in Canada was marked by circumstances of deep and pecuhar interest. The pages of romance can furnish no more striking episode than the battle of Quebec. The skill and daring of the plan which brought on the combat, and the success and fortune of its execution, are unparalleled. There a broad open plain, oflfering no advantages to either party, was the field of fight. INTRODUCTION. XXIX The contending armies were nearly equal in military strength if not in numbers. The chiefs of each were men already of honourable fame. France trusted firmly in the wise and chivalrous Montcalm : England trusted hopefiilly in the young and heroic Wolfe. The magnificent stronghold which was staked upon the issue of the strife, stood close at hand. For miles and miles around, the prospect extended over as fair a land as ever rejoiced the sight of man ; mountain and valley, forest and waters, city and sohtude, grouped together in forms of almost ideal beauty. The strife was brief, but deadly. The September sun rose upon two gallant armies arrayed in unbroken pride, and noon of the same day saw the ground where they had stood, strewn with the dying and the dead. Hundreds of the veterans of France had fallen in the ranks, from which they disdained to fly ; the scene of his ruin faded fast from Montcalm's darkening sight, but the proud consciousness of having done his duty deprived defeat and death of their severest sting. Not more than a musket-shot away lay Wolfe ; the heart that but an hour before had throbbed with great and generous impulse, now still for ever. On the face of the dead there rested a triumphant smile which the last agony had not overcast, a light of unfaihng hope that the shadows of the grrave could not darken. XXX INTRODUCTION. The portion of history here recorded is no frag- ment. Within a period comparatively brief, we see the birtli, the growth, and the catastrophe of a nation. The flag of France is erected at Quebec by a handful of hardy adventurers ; a century and a half has passed, and that flag is lowered to a foreign foe before the sorrowing eyes of a Canadian people. This example is complete as that presented in the hfe of an indivi- dual : we see the natural sequence of events ; the education and the character, the motive and the action, the error and the punishment. Through the following records may be clearly traced combinations of causes, remote, and even apparently opposed, uniting in one result, and also the surprising fertility of one great cause in producing many different results. Were we to read the records of history by the light of the understanding, instead of by the fire of the passions, the study could be productive only of un- mixed good ; their examples and warnings would afford us constant guidance in the paths of public and private virtue. The narrow and unreasonable notion of exclusive national merit, cannot survive a fair glance over the vast map of time and space which history laj'^s before us. We may not avert our eyes from those dark spots upon the annals of our beloved land where acts of violence and injustice stand recorded against her, nor INTRODUCTION. XXXI may we suffer the blaze of military renown to dazzle our judgment. Victory may bring glory to the arms, while it brings shame to the councils of a people : for the triumphs of war are those of the general and the soldier; increase of honour, wisdom and prosperity, are the triumphs of the nation. The citizens of Rome placed the images of their ancestors in the vestibule, to recal the virtues of the dead, and to stimulate the emulation of the living. We also should fix our thoughts upon the examples which history presents, not in a vain spirit of selfish nationality, but in earnest reverence for the great and good of all countries, and a contempt for the false, and mean, and cruel, even of our own. THE ERRATA TO VOL. I. P. 61— /w " cornibotz " read cornibolz. 63— /or reference to Appendix XIV. read XV. n—dek XV. 82— /or "traitre" in note 5, read traiter. - a/ter"deja" — w*er« di^tmguc. 89, note 8— /or "mene" read mener. _ _ for " Gruercheville" read Guercheville. 100— /or XVI. read XVU. —for XVII. read XVIII. 184— /or " Taraquai " read Paraguai. 188— /or XLI. read XLIII. 189— /or XLII. read XLIV. 234— tteZe reference to Appendix. S87— /or LXIY. rearf LXHI. j^^jLi^.i;±cn;cu. Acii ciway iiitu Liie laiia oi tne rising sun, and many a wondrous tale was told of that mys- terious empire, where one-third of our fellow men still stand apart from the brotherhood of nations. Among the various and astounding exaggerations induced by the vanity of the narrators, and the ignorance of their audience, none was more ready VOL. I. li THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, CHAPTER I. The philosophers of remote antiquity acquired the important knowledge of the earth's spherical form ; to their bold genius we are indebted for the outline of the geographical system now universally adopted. With a vigorous conception, but imperfect execution, they traced out the scheme of denoting localities by longitude and latitude : according to their teaching the imaginary equatorial line, encom- passing the earth, was divided into hours and degrees. Even at that distant period hardy adventurers had penetrated far aw^ay into the land of the rising sun, and many a w^ondrous tale was told of that mys- terious empire, where one-third of our fellow men still stand apart from the brotherhood of nations. Among the various and astounding exaggerations induced by the vanity of the narrators, and the ignorance of their audience, none was more ready VOL. I. « 2 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. than that of distance. The journey, the labour of a life ; each league of travel a new scene ; the day crowded with incident, the night a dream of terror or admiration. Then as the fickle will of the wanderer suggested, as the difficulties or encourage- ment of nature, and the hostility or aid of man impelled, the devious course bent to the north or south, was hastened, hindered, or retraced. By such vague and shadowy measurement as the speculations of these wanderers supplied, the sages of the past traced out the ideal limits of the dry land which, at the word of God, appeared from out the gathering together of the waters.^ ' " La spbericite de la terre etant reconnue, I'etendue de la terre ha- bitee en longitude determine, en meme temps la largeur de I'Atlantique entre les cdtes occidentales d'Europe et d'Afrique et les cotes orien- tales d'Asie par differens degres de latitude. Eratosthene (Strabo, ii., p. 87, Cas.) evalue la circonfercnce de I'equateur k 252,000 stades, et la largeur de la clilamyde du Cap Sacre (Cap Saint Vincent) a I'extremite dela grande ceinture de Taurus, pres de Thinse k 70,000 stades. En prolongeant la distance vers le sud est jusque au cap des Coliaques qui, d'apres les idees de Strabon sur la configuration de I'Asie, represente notre Cap Comorin, et avance plus k Test que la cote de Tbinse, la combinaison des donnees d'Eratosthene offre 74,600 et meme 78,000 stades. Or, en reduisant, par la difference de latitude, le perimetre equatorial au parallele de Rbodes, des portes Caspiennes et de Thinse c'est a dire, au parallele de 36° 0' et non de 36° 21', on trouve 203,872 stades, et pour largeur de la terre habitee, par le parallele de Rhodes, 67,500 stades. Strabon dit par conse- quence avec justesse, daus le fameux passage oii il semble predire I'existence du Nouveau Continent, en parlant de deux terres habitees dans la meme zone temperee boreale que les terres occupent plus du tiers de la circonfercnce du parallele qui passe par Thinse. Par cette supposition la distance de I'lberie aux Indes est au dela de 236° a pen pres 240°. Ou pent etre surpris de voir que le resultat le plus ancien est aussi le plus exact de tons ceux que nous trouvons en THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 3 The most eminent geographer before the time of Ptolemy, places the confines of Seres — the Cliina of to-day — at nearly two-thirds of the distance round the world, from the first meridian.^ Ptolemy descendant d'Eratosthene par Posidonius aux temps de Marin de Tyr et de Ptolemee. La terre habitee oft're effectivement, d'aprcs nos connoissances actuelles, entre les 36° et 37° 130 degres d'etendue en longitude ; il y a par consequent des cotes de la Chine au Cap Sacre a travers I'ocean de Test a I'ouest 230 degres. L'accord que je nonimerai accidentel de cette vraie distance et de revaluation d'Era- tosthene atteint done dix degres en longitude. Posidonius ' soup- gonne, (c'est I'expression de Strabon, lib. ii. p. 102, Cas.) que la longueur de la terre habitee laquelle est, selon lui, d'environ 70,000 stades, doit former la moitie du cercle entier sur lequel le mesure se prend, et qu' ainsi a partir de I'extremite occidentale de cette meme terre habitee, en naviguant avec un vent d'est continuel I'espace de 70,000 autres stades, ou arriverait dans I'lnde. " — Humboldt's Geographic du Nouveau Continent. ^ " La longuem- de la terre habitee comprise entre les nieridiens des lies Fortunees et de Sera etoit, d'apres Marin de T}^ (Ptol. Geogr. lib. i. cap. 11) de 15 heures ou de 225". C'etoit avancer les cotes de la Chine jusqu'au meridien des iles Sandwich, et reduire I'espace a parcourir des iles Canaries aux cotes orientales de I'Asie a 135°, erreur de 86^ en longitude. La grande extension de 23^" que les anciens donnoient a la mer Caspienne, contribuoit egalement beau- coup a augmenter la largeur de I'Asie. Ptolemee a laisse intacte, dans revaluation de la terre habitee, selon Posidonius, la distance des iles Fortunees au passage de I'Euphrate a Hierapolis. Les reduc- tions de Ptolemee ne portent que sur les distances de I'Euphrate a la Tour de Pierre et de cette tour a la metropole des Seres. Les 225' de Marin de Tyr deviennent, selon I'Almagest (lib. ii., p. 1) 180", selon la Geographic de Ptoleme'e (lib. i., p. 12) 177:^. Les cotes des Sinfe * reculent done du meridien des iles Sandwich vers celui des Carolines orientales, et I'espace a parcourir par mer en longitude n'etoit plus do 135^, mais de 180° a 182|^. II etoit dans les interets de * In opposition to the opinion of Malte Bnin and M. tic Josselin, Mr. Hugii Murniy is consiilcred to have satisfactorily proved the correctness of Ptolemy's asser- tion that the Seres or Sina; are identical with the Chinese. —See Trans, of the Royal Society of Edinlurgh, vol. viii., p. 171. B 2 4 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. reduces the proportion to one half. Allowing for the supposed vast extent of this unknown country to the eastward, it was evident that its remotest shores approached our western "vvorld. But, beyond the Pillars of Hercules, the dark and stormy waters of the Atlantic^ forbade adventure. The giant minds of those days saw, even through the mists of ignorance and error, that the readiest course to reach this distant land must lie tow^ards the setting sun, across the western ocean.* From over this Christophe Colomb de preferer de beaucoiip les caleuls de Marin de Tyr a ceux de Ptol^mee et a force de conjectures Colomb parvient a restreindre I'espace de I'Ocean qui lui restait a traverser des iles du cap Vert au Cathay de I'Asie orientale a 128^ " ( Vida del Almirante). — Humboldt's Geographic du Nouveau Continent, vol. ii., p. 364. ^ That the vast waters of the Atlantic were regarded with '/ awe and wonder, seeming to bound the world as with a chaos," needs no greater proof than the description given of it by Xerif al Edrizi, an eminent Arabian writer, whose countrymen were the boldest naviga- tors of the middle ages, and possessed all that was then known of geography. "The ocean," he observes, "encircles the ultimate bounds of the inhabited earth, and aU beyond it is unknown. No one has been able to verify anything concerning it, on account of its difficult and perilous navigation, its great obscurity, its profound depth, and frequent tempests ; through fear of its mighty fishes and its haughty winds ; yet there are many islands in it, some peopled, others uninhabited. There is no mariner who dares to enter into its deep waters ; or if any have done so, they have merely kept along its coasts, fearful of departing from them. The waves of this ocean, though they roU as high as mountains, yet maintain themselves with- out breaking ; for if they broke it would be impossible for ship to plough them." — Description of Spain, by Xerif al Edrizi : Conde's Spanish translation. Madrid, 1799. — Quoted by Washington Irving. * Aristotle, Strabo, Pliny, and Seneca arrived at this conclusion. The idea, however, of an intervening continent never appears to have suggested itself. — Humboldt's Cosmos. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 5 vast watery solitude no traveller had ever brought back the story of his wanderings. The dim light of traditionary memory gave no guiding ray, the faint voice of rumour breathed not its mysterious secrets. Then poetic imagination filled the void; vast islands were conjured up out of the deep, covered with unheard of luxuriance of vegetation, rich in mines of incalculable value, populous with a race of conquering warriors. But this magnificent vision was only created to be destroyed ; a violent earthquake rent asunder in a day and a night the foundations of Atlantis, and the waters of the western ocean swept over the ruins of this once mighty em- pire.^ In after ages we are told, that some Phoenician ^ In the Atlantic Ocean, over against the Pillars of Hercules, lay an island larger than Asia and Africa taken together, and in its vicinity were other islands. The ocean in which these islands were situated was surrounded on every side by mainland, and the Mediter- ranean, compared with it, resembled a mere harbour or narrow entrance. Nine thousand years before the time of Plato this island of Atlantis was both thickly settled and very powerful. Its sway extended over Africa, as far as Egypt, and over Europe as far as the Tyrrhenian Sea. The farther progress of its conquests, however, was checked by the Athenians, who, partly with the other Greeks, partly by themselves, succeeded in defeating these powerful invaders, the natives of Atlantis. After this a violent earthquake, which lasted for the space of a day and a night, and was accompanied with inundations of the sea, caused the islands to sink, and for a long period subsequent to this, the sea in that quarter was impassable by reason of the slime and shoals. — Plato, Tim. 24 — 29, 296 ; Crit. 108 — 110, 39, 43. The learned Gessner is of opinion that the Isle of Ceres, spoken of in a poem of very high antiquity, attributed to Orpheus, was a fragment of Atlantis. Kircher, in his " Mundus Subterraneus," and Beckman, in his " History of Islands," suppose the Atlantis to have been an island extending from the Canaries to 6 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. vessels, impelled by a strong east wind, were driven for thirty days across the Atlantic : there they found a part of the sea where the surface was covered with rushes and seaweed, somewhat resembling a vast inundated meadow.^ The voyagers ascribed these the Azores ; that it was really ingulfed in one of the convulsions of the globe, and that those small islands are mere fragments of it. Gosselin, in his able research into the voyages of the ancients, sup- poses the Atlantis of Plato to have been nothing more nor less than one of the nearest of the Canaries, viz. Fortaventura or Laucerote. Carli and many others find America in the Atlantis, and adduce many plausible arguments in support of their assertion. — Carli, Letters Amer. ; Fr. Transl., ii. 180. M. BaUly, in his " Letters sur r Atlantide de Platon," maintains the existence of the Atlantides, and their island Atlantis, by the authorities of Homer, Sanchoniathon, and Diodorus Siculus, in addition to that of Plato. Manheim maintains very strenuously that Plato's Atlantis is Sweden and Norway. M. BaUly, after citing many ancient testimonies, which concur in placing this famous isle in the north, quotes that of Plu- tarch, who confirms these testimonies by a circumstantial description of the Isle of Ogygia, or the Atlantis, which he represents as situated in the north of Europe. The following is the theory of Buffon : after citing the passage relating to the Atlantis, from Plato's "Timseus," he adds : "This ancient tradition is not devoid of pro- bability. The lands swallowed up by the waters were, perhaps, those which united Ireland to the Azores, and the Azores to the continent of America ; for in Ireland there are the same fossils, the same shells, and the same sea bodies as appear in x'\.merica, and some of them are found in no other part of Europe." — Buftbn's Nat. Hist. by Smellie, vol. i., p. 507. " The first authentic description of the Mar di Sargasso of Aristotle is due to Columbus. It spreads out between the nineteenth and thirty-fourth degrees of north latitude. Its chief axis lies about seven degrees to the westward of the island of Corvo. The smaller bank, on the other band, lies between the Bermudas and Bahamas. The winds and partial currents in different years shghtly affect the position and extent of these Atlantic "sea-weed meadows." No other sea in either hemisphere disjilays a similar extent of surface THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 7 strange appearances to some cause connected with the submerged Atlantis, and even in later years they were held by many as confirmation of Plato's marvellous story.' In the Carthaginian annals is found the mention of a fertile and beautiful island of the distant Atlantic. Many adventurous men of that maritime people were attracted thither by the delightful climate and the riches of the soil ; it was deemed of such value and importance that they proposed to transfer the seat of their republic to its shores in case of any irrepa- rable disaster at home. But at length the Senate, fearing the evils of a divided state, denounced the distant colony, and decreed the punishment of death to those who sought it for a home. If there be any truth in this ancient tale, it is probable that one of the Canary Islands was its subject.^ covered by plants collected in this way. These meadows of the ocean present the wonderful spectacle of a collection of plants covering a space nearly seven times as large as France. — Humboldt's Cosmos. '' See Appendix, No. II. * See Aristotle, De Mirah. Auscult., cap. Ixxxiv. 84, p. 836. Bekk. This work, "A Collection of Wonderful Narratives," is attri- buted to Aristotle ; the real compiler is unknown. According to Humboldt, it seems to have been written before the first Punic war. — Diodorus of Sicily, vol. xix. Aristotle attributes the discovery of the island to the Carthaginians ; Diodorus to the Phoenicians. The occurrence is said to have taken place in the earliest times of the Tyrrhenian dominion of the sea, during the contest hetween the Tyi-rhenian Pelasgi and the Phcenicians. The island of the Seven Cities (sec Appendix, No. II.) was identified with the island mentioned by Aristotle as having been discovered by the Carthaginians, and was inserted in the early maps under the name of Antilla. Paul 'Toscanelli, the celebrated physician of Florence, thus writes to Columbus: "From the island of Antilia, which you call the Seven 8 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, Although the New World in the West was unknown to the Ancients, there is no doubt that they enter- Cities, aud of which you have some knowledge," &c. In the middle ages conjectures were religiously inscribed upon the maps, as is proved by Antilia, St. Borondon (see Appendix), the Hand of Satan, Green Island, Maida Island, and the exact form of vast southern regions. Humboldt refers the name of Antilia so far back as the fourteenth century. The earliest date given by Ferdinand Columbus is 1436. " Beyond the Azores, but at no great distance towards the west, occurs the Ysola de Antilia, which we may conclude, even allowing the date of the map to be genuine (in the library of St. Mark, at Venice, date, 1436), to be a mere gratuitous or theoretic supposition, and to have received that strange name because the obvious and natural idea of antipodes has been anathematised by Catholic ignorance." He elsewhere says that "some Portuguese cosmographers have inserted the island described by Aristotle in maps under the name of AntiHa." — Hist, of the Discoxiery of America, by Don Ferdinand Columbus, in Ker, vol. iii., pp. 3 — 29. The origin of the name Antilia, or Antilia, is still a matter of con- jecture. Humboldt attributes to a " litterateur distingue " the solution of the enigma, from a passage in Aristotle's " de Mundo," Avhich speaks of the probable existence of unknown lands opposite to the mass of continents which we inhabit. " These countries, be they small or great, whose shores are opposed to ours, were marked out by the word porthornoi, which in the middle ages was translated by antinsulae.^' Humboldt- says that this translation is totally incorrect ; however, the idea of the " litterateur distingue" is evidently the same as Ferdinand Columbus's. The following is the hypothesis favoured by Humboldt : — " Peut-etre meme le nom d' Antilia qui parait pour la premiere fois sur une carte Venitienne de 1436 n'estil qu'une forme Portuguaise donnee a un nom geographique des Arabes. L'etymologie que hasarde M. Buace me parait tres ingenieuse. La syUabe initiale me parait la corruption de I'article Arabe. D'al Tinnin et d'Al tin on aura fait peu d pen Antinna et Antilia, comma par un deplacement analogue de consonnes, les Espagnols ont fait de crocodilo, corcodilo et cocodrilo. Le Dragon est al Tin, etl' Antilia est peut-etre. File des dragons marins." — Humboldt's .£^a;. Cn<., vol. ii., 211. Oviedo applies the relation of Aristotle to the Hesperian islands, and asserts that they were the " India " discovered by Columbus THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 9 tained a suspicion of its existence ; ^ the romance of Plato — the prophecy of Seneca, were but the off- springs of this vague idea. Many writers tell us it was conjectured that, by sailing from the coast of Spain, the eastern shores of India might be reached;^ " Perche egli (Colombo) conobbe come era in effetto che queste terre che egli ben ritrovava scritte, erano del tutto uscite dalla memoria degli uomin ; e io per me non dubito che si sapissero, e possedessero anticamente dalli Re de Spagna : e voglio qui dire quello che Aris- totele in questo caso ne scrisse, «fec. . . . io tengo che queste Indie siano quelle autiche e famose Isole Hesperide cose dette da Hespero 12 Re di Spagna. Or come la Spagna e I'ltalia tolsero U nome da Hespero 12 Re di Spagna cosi anco da questo istesso ex torsero queste isole Hesperidi, che noi diciamo, onde sensa alcun dubbio si de tenere, che in quel tempo queste isole sotto la signoria della Spagna stessero, e sotto un medesmo Re, che fu (come Beroso dice) 1658 anni prima che il nostro Salvatore nascesse. E perche al pre- sente siamo nel 1535 della salute nostra, ne segue che siano ora tre milo e cento novantatre anni che la Spagna e'l suo Re Hespero signoreg- giavano queste Indie o Isole Hesperidi. E come cosa sua par che abbia la divina giustizia voluto ritornargliele." — Hist. Gen. delV Indie de Gonzalo Fernando D'Oviedo, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 80, ^ " It is very possible that in the same temperate zone, and almost in the same latitude as Thinte (or Athens ?), where it crosses the Atlantic Ocean, there are inhabited worlds, distinct from that in which we dwell."* — Strabo, lib. i., p. 65, and lib. ii., p. 118. — It is surprising that this expression never attracted the attention of the Spanish authors, who, in the beginning of the sixteenth century, were searching everywhere in classical literature with the expecta- tion of finding some traces of acquaintance with the New World. - ^ " D'Anville a dit avec esprit que la plus grande des erreurs dans la geographic de Ptolemee a conduit les homnes a la plus grande * " The idea of such a locality in a continuation of the long axis of the Mediterranean was connected with a grand view of the earth by Eratosthenes (generally and exten- sively known among the ancients), according to which the entire ancient continent, in its widest expanse from west to east, in the parallel of about thirty-six degrees, pre- sents an almost unbroken line of elevation." — Humboldt's Cosmos. 10 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the length of the voyage, or the wonders that might lie in its course, imagination alone could measure or describe. Whatever might have been the suspicion or beUef "- of ancient time, we may feel assured that none then ventured to seek these distant lands, nor have we reason to suppose that any of the civilised European races gave inhabitants to the New World before the close of the fifteenth century. To the barbarous hordes of North-eastern Asia America must have long been known, as the land where many of their wanderers found a home. It is not surprising that from them no information was obtained ; but it is strange that the bold and adven- turous Northmen should have visited it nearly five hundred years before the great Genoese, and have suffered their wonderful discovery to remain hidden from the world, and to become almost forgotten among themselves.^ decouverte de terres nouvelles c'est, a dii'e la supposition que I'Asie s'etendait vers Test, au dela du 180 degre de longitude." Both Strabo and Aristotle speak of "the same sea-bathing oppo- site shores," Strabo, lib. i., p. 103 ; lib. ii., p. 162. Aristotle, Dc Ccelo, lib. ii., cap. 14, p. 297. The possibility of navigating from the extremity of Europe to the eastern shores of Asia, is clearly asserted by the Stagyrite, and in the two celebrated passages of Strabo. Aristotle does not suppose the distance to be very great, and draws an ingenious argument in favour of his supposition from the geography of animals. Strabo sees no obstacle to passing from Iberia to India, except the immense extent of the Atlantic Ocean. It is to be remembered that Strabo, as well as Eratosthenes, extend the appellation of Atlantic sea to every part of the ocean." — Hum- boldt's Geog. du Nowoeau Continent. " See Appendix, No. III. ^ " Au milieu de tant de discussions acerbes qu'une curieuse malignite THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 11 In the year 1001 the Icelanders touched upon the American coast, and for nearly two centuries subse- quent visits were repeatedly made by them and the Norwegians, for the purpose of commerce or for the gratification of curiosity. Biorn Heriolson, an Ice- lander, was the first discoverer : steering for Green- land he was driven to the south by tempestuous and unfavourable winds, and saw different parts of America, without however touching at any of them. Attracted by the report of this voyage, Leif, son of Eric the discoverer of Greenland, fitted out a vessel to pursue the same adventure. He passed the coast visited by Biorn, and steered south-west till he reached a strait between a large island and the mainland. Finding the country fertile and pleasant, he passed the winter near this place, and gave it the name of Vinland^ from the wild vine which grew there in et le gout d'une fausse erudition classique firent naitre sur le merite de Christophe Colomb, parmi ses contemporains, personne n'a pense aux navigations des Normands comme precurseurs des Genois. Cette idee ne se preseuta que soixante quatre ans apres la mort du grand homme. On savait par ces propres recits * qu'il etoit alle a Thule ' mais alors ce voyage vers le nord ne fit naitre aucun soup§on sur la priorite, de la decouverte . . . . Le merite d 'avoir reconnu la premiere decouverte de TAmerique septentrionale par les Normands appartient iudubitablement au geographe Ortelius, qui annonga cette opinion des I'annee 1570. ' Christophe Colomb, dit Ortelius, a seulement mis le Nouveau Monde en rapport durable de commerce et d'utilite' avec I'Europe' ( Theatr. Orbis Terr., on pp. 5, 6). Ce jugement est beaucoup trop severe." — Humboldt's Geog. du Nouveau Continent. * " Biorn first saw land in the island of Nantucket, one degree south of Boston, then in New Scotland, and lastly in Newfoundland." — Carl Christian Rafn, Antiquitates Amerkanw, 1845, p. 4, 421 ; Humboldt's Cosmos. 12 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. great abundance.^ The winter days were longer in tliis new country than in Greenland, and the weather was more temperate. "The country called 'the good Vinland ' (Vinland it goda) by Leif, included the shore between Boston and New York, and there- fore parts of the present states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, between the parallels of latitude of Civita Vecchia and Terracina, where, however, the average temperature of the year is between 46° and 52° (Fahr.) This was the chief settlement of the Normans. Their active and enterprising spirit is proved by the circumstance, that after they had settled in the south as far as 41° 30' north latitude, they erected three pillars to mark out the boundaries near the eastern coast of Baffin's Bay, in the latitude of 72° 55' upon one of the Women Islands north-west of the present most northern Danish colony of Upernavik. The Eunic inscription upon the stone, discovered in the autumn of 1824, contains, accord- ing to Rask and Finn Magnusen, the date of the year 1135. From this eastern coast of Baffin's Bay, the colonists visited, with great regularity on account of the fishery, Lancaster Sound and a part of Barrow's Straits, and this occurred more than six centuries before the bold undertakings of Parry and Ross. The locality of the fishery is very accurately described ; and Greenland priests, from the diocese of Gardar, conducted the first voyage of discovery in 1266. These north-western summer stations were called the Kroksjardar, heathen countries. Mention was early made of the Siberian wood, which was then collected, as well as of the numerous whales, seals, walrus, and Polar bears." — Rafn, Antiq. Amer., pp. 20, 274, 415 — 418, quoted by Humboldt. * One of the objections brought forward by Robertson against the Norman discovery of America is, that the wild vine has never since been found so far north as Labrador ; but modern travellers have ascertained that a species of wild vine grows even as far north as the shores of Hudson's Bay.* Since Robertson's time, however, the loca- lity of the first Norman settlement has been moved further south, and into latitudes where the best species of wild vines are abundant. * Sir A. Mackenzie's Travels in Iceland. 1812. Preliminary Dissertation by Dr. Holland, p. 46. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 13 Leif returned to Greenland in the spring; his brother Thorvald succeeded him, and remained two winters in Vinland exploring much of the coast and country.^ In the course of the third summer the natives, now called Esquimaux, were first seen ; on account of their diminutive stature the adventurers gave them the name of STzrcBlingar? These poor savages, irritated by an act of barbarous cruelty, attacked the Northmen with darts and arrows, and Thorvald fell a victim to their vengeance. A wealthy Icelander, named Thorfin, established a regular colony in Vinland soon after this event ; the settlers increased rapidly in numbers, and traded with the natives for furs and skins to great advan- tage. After three years the adventurers returned to Iceland enriched by the expedition, and reported favourably upon the new country. Little is known of this settlement after Thorfin's departure till early in the twelfth century, when a bishop of Greenland^ went there to promulgate the Christian faith among the colonists ; beyond that time scarcely a notice of its existence occurs, and the name and situation of the ancient Vinland soon passed away from the know- ledge of man. Whether the adventurous colonists ever returned, or became blended with the natives,^ ^ Rafn, Antxq. Amer. '' The Esquimaux were at that time spread much further south than they are at present. — Humboldt's Cosmos, vol. ii., p. 268. ** Eric XJpsi, a native of Iceland, and the first Greenland bishop, undertook to go to Vinland as a Christian missionary in 1121. ^ " The learned Grotius founds an argument for the colonisation of 14 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. or perished by their hands, no record remains to tell.^ Discoveries such as these by the ancient Scandi- Anierica by the Norwegians on the similarity between the names of Norway and La Norimbegue, a district bordering on New England." — Grotius, De Origine Gentium Americanarum, in quarto, 1642. See also the Controversy between Grotius and Jean de Laet. ^ Accurate information respecting the former intercourse of the Northmen with the continent of America reaches only as far as the middle of the fourteenth century. In the year 1349 a ship was sent from Greenland to Markland (New Scotland), to collect timber, and other necessaries. Upon their return from Markland, the ship was overtaken by storms, and compelled to land at Straumfjord, in the west of Iceland. This is the last account of the " Norman America," preserved for us in the ancient Scandinavian writings. The settle- ments upon the west coast of Greenland, which were in a very flou- rishing condition, until the middle of the fourteenth century, gradually declined from the fatal influence of monopoly of trade, by the invasion of the Esquimaux, by the black death which depopulated the north from the year 1347 to 1351, and also by the arrival of a hostile fleet, from what country is not known. By means of the critical, and most praiseworthy efi'orts of Christ- ian Rafn, and the Royal Society for Northern Antiquities in Copen- hagen, the traditions and ancient accounts of the voyage of the Normans to Helluland (Newfoundland), to Markland (the mouth of the River St. Laurence at Nova Scotia), and at Winland (Massachu- setts), have been separately printed, and satisfactorily commented upon. The length of the voyage, the direction in which they sailed, the time of the rising and setting of the sun are accurately laid down. The principal sources of information are the historical naiTations of Erik the Red, Thorsinn Karlsefue. and Snorre Thorbrandson, pro- bably written in Greenland itself, as early as the twelfth century, partly by descendants of the settlers born in Winland. Rafn, Antiq. Amer., pp. 7, 14, 16. The care with which the tables of their pedigrees was kept was so great, that the table of the family of Thorfinn Karlsefne, whose son Snorre Thorbrandson, was born in America, was kept from the year 1007 to 1811. The name of the colonised countries is found in the ancient THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 15 navians — fruitless to the world and almost buried in oblivion — cannot dim the glory of that transcend- ant genius to whom we owe the knowledge of a New World. The claim of the Welch to the first discovery of America, seems to rest upon no better original authority than that of Meridith-ap-Rees, a bard who died in the year 1477. His verses only relate that Prince Madoc, wearied with dissensions at home, searched the ocean for a new kingdom. The tale of this adventurer's voyages and colonisation was written 100 years subsequent to the early Spanish discoveries, and seems to be merely a fanciful com- pletion of his history : he probably perished in the unknown seas. It is certain that neither the ancient principality nor the world reaped any benefit from these alleged discoveries.^ In the middle of the thirteenth and the beginning of the fourteenth centuries, the Venetian Marco Polo,^ and the Englishman Mandeville,'* awakened the curiosity of Europe with respect to the remote parts of the earth. Wise and discerning men selected the more valuable portions of their observa- tions ; ideas were enlarged, and a desire for more perfect information excited a thirst for discovery. While this spirit was gaining strength in Europe, the wonderful powers of the magnet were revealed national songs of the natives of the Faroe islands. — Humboldt's Cosmos, vol ii., pp. 268 — 452. "^ See Appendix, No. IV. ^ See Appendix, No. V. ■* See Appendix; No. VI. 16 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. to the Western world.^ The invention of the mariner's compass aided and extended navigation more than all the experience and adventure of pre- ceding ages: the light of the stars, the guidance of the sea-coast, were no longer necessary ; trusting to the mysterious powers of his new friend, the sailor steered out fearlessly into the ocean, through the bewildering mists, or the darkness of night. The Spaniards were the first to profit by the bolder spirit and improved science of navigation. About the beginning of the fourteenth centm-y, they were led to the accidental discovery of the Canary Islands,^ and made repeated voyages thither, ° See Appendix, No. VII. ^ The numerous data which have come down to us from antiquity, and an acute examination of the local relations, especially the great vicinity of the settlements upon the African coast, which incontestably existed, lead me to believe that Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, and Romans, and probably even the Etruscans, were acquainted with the group of the Canary Islands. — Humboldt's' Cosmos, vol.ii.,p. 414. " Porrb occidentalis navigatio, quantum etiam fama assequi Plinius potuit, tantum ad Fortunatas Insulas cursum protendit, earum- que prajcipuam a multitudine canum Canariam vocatam refert." — Acosta, De Natura Novi Orhis, lib. i., cap. ii. Respecting the probability of the Semitic origin of the name of the Canary Islands, Pliny, in his latinising etymological notions, con- sidered them to be Dog Islands ! (Vide Credner's Biblical Repre- sentation of Paradise, in Illgen's Journal for Historical Theology, 1836, vol. vi., pp. 166 — 186.) — Humboldt's Cosmos, vol. ii., p. 414. The most fundamental, and, in a literary point of view, the most complete account of the Canary islands, that was written in ancient times down to the middle ages, was collected in a work of Joachim Jose da Costa de Macedo, with the title '* Memoria cem que se pre- tende provar que os Arabes nao connecerao as Canarias antes dos Portuguesques. 1844." (See also Viera y Clavigo, Notic. de la Hist, de Canaria.) — Humboldt's Cosmos. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 17 plundering* the wretched inhabitants, and carrying them off as slaves.'^ Pope Clement VI. conferred these countries as a kingdom upon Louis de la Cerda, of the royal race of Castile ; he, however, was power- less to avail himself of the gift, and it passed to the stronger hand of John de Bethancourt, a Norman baron.^ The countrymen of this bold adventurer explored the seas far to the south of the Canaries, and acquired some knowledge of the coast of Africa. The glory of leading the career of systematic exploration, belongs to the Portuguese :^ their ^ See Appendix, No. VIII. ^ " Jean de Bethancourt knew that hefore the expedition of Alvaro Beccara, that is to say before the end of the 14th century, Norman adventurers had penetrated as far as Sierra Leone (lat. 8° 30'), and he sought to follow their traces. Before the Portuguese, however, no European nation appears to have crossed the equator." — Humboldt. " Les Normands et les Arabes sont les seules nations qui, jusqu'au commencement du douzieme siecle, aient partage la gloire des grandes expeditions maritimes, le gout des aventures etranges, la passion du pillage et des couquetes ephemeres. Les Normands ont occupe suc- cessivement I'lslande et la Neustrie, ravage les sanctuaires de ritalie, conquis la Pouille sur les Grecs, inscrit leurs caracteres runiques jusque sur les Bancs d'un des lions que Morosini enleva au Piree d'Athenes pour en orner I'arsenal de Venise." — Humboldt's Qeog. du Nouveau Continent, vol. ii., p. 86. ^ " No nation," says Southey, " has ever accomplished such great things in proportion to its means as the Portuguese." Its early maritime history does, indeed, present a striking picture of enterprise and restless energy, but the annals of Europe afford no similar instance of rapid degeneracy. There was an age when less than 40,000 armed Portuguese kept the Avhole coasts of the ocean in awe from Morocco to China ; when 150 sovereign princes paid tribute to the treasury of Lisbon. But in all their enterprises they aimed at conquest and not at colonisation. The government at home exercised little control over the arms of its piratical mariners ; the VOL. I. c IS THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. attempts were not only attended with considerable snccess, but gave encouragement and energy to those efforts that were crowned by the discovery of a Avorld : among them the great Genoese was trained, and their steps in advance matured tlie idea, and aided the execution of his design. The nations of Europe had now begun to cast aside the errors and prejudices of their ancestors. The works of the ancient Greeks and Romans were eagerly searched for information, and former discoveries brought to light. ^ The science of the Arabians was introduced and cultivated by the Moors and Jews, and geometry, astronomy, and geography, were studied as essential to the art of navigation. In the year 1412, the Portuguese doubled Cape Non, the limit of ancient enterprise. For upwards of seventy years afterwards they pursued their ex- plorations with more or less of vigour and success along the African coast, and among the adjacent islands. By intercourse with the people of these countries they gradually acquired some knowledge of lands yet unvisited. Experience proved that the torrid zone was not closed to the enterprise of man.^ mother country derived no benefit from their achievements. To the ao-e of conquest succeeded one of effeminacy and corruption. — Meri- vale's Lectures on Colonisation, vol. i., p. 44. * See Appendix, No. IX. - The zones were imaginary bands or circles in the heavens, producing an effect of climate on corresponding belts on the globe of the earth. The frigid zones between the polar circles and the poles were considered uninhabitable and unnavigable, on account of the extreme cold. The torrid zone, lying beneath the track of the sun, or rather the central part of it, immediately about the equator, was THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 10 They found that the form of the continent con- tracted as it stretched southward, and that it tended towards the east. Then they brought to mind the accounts of the ancient Phoenician voyagers round Africa,^ long deemed fabulous, and the hope arose that they might pursue the same career, and win for themselves the magnificent prize of Indian commerce. In the year 1486 the adventurous Bartholomew Diaz * first reached the Cape of Good considered uninhabitable, unproductive, and impassable, on account of the excessive heat. The temperate zones, lying between the torrid and the frigid zones, were supposed to be the only parts of the globe suited to the purposes of life. Parmenides, according to Strabo, was the inventor of this theory of the five zones. Aristotle supported the same doctrine. He believed that there was habitable earth in the southern hemisphere, but that it was for ever divided from the part of the world already known by the impassable zone of scorching heat at the equator. (Aristot. Met. ii., cap. v.) Pliny supported the opinion of Aristotle concerning the burning zones. (Pliny, lib. i., cap. Ixvi.) Strabo (lib. ii.), in mentioning this theory, gives it likewise his support ; and others of the ancient philosophers, as well as the poets, might be cited, to show the general prevalence of the belief. — Cicero, Somnium Scipionis, cap. vi. ; Geminus, cap. xiii., p. 31 ; ap, Petavii Opus de Doctr. Tempor. in quo Uranologium sive Systemata var. Auctoruni. Amst. 1705, vol. iii. ^ See Appendix, No. X. * Barros, Dec. I., lib. iii., cap. iv., p. 190, says distinctly, " Bar- tholomeu Diaz, e os de sua conipantica per causa dos perigos, e tormentas, que em o dobrar delle passaram che puyeram nome Tormentoso. " The merit of the first circumnavigation, therefore, does not belong to Vasco de Gama, as is generally supposed. Diaz was at the Cape in May, 1487, and, therefore, almost at the same time that Pedro dc Covilham and Alonzo de Payva of Barcelona commenced their expedition. As early as December, 1487, Diaz himself brought to Portugal the account of his important discovery. The mission of Pedro Covilham and Aloiiso de Payva, in 1487, was set on foot by King John 11., in order to search for " the African c2 20 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. Hope; soon afterwards the information gained by Pedro de Covilham, in his overland journey, con- firmed the consequent sanguine expectations of success. The attention of Europe was now fully aroused, and the progress of the Portuguese was watched with admiration and suspense. But diu-ing this interval, while all eyes were turned with anxious interest towards the East, a little bark, leak}^ and tempest-tossed, sought shelter in the Tagus.^ It had come from the far west, — over that stormy sea priest Johannes." Believing the accounts which he had obtained from Indian and Arabian pilots in Calicut, Goa, Aden, as well as in Sofala, on the eastern coast of Africa, Covilham informed King- John II., by means of two Jews from Cairo, that if the Portuguese were to continue their voyages of discovery upon the western coast in a southerly direction, they woidd come to the end of Africa, whence a voyage to the Island of the Moon, to Zanzibar, and the gold country of Sofala, would be very easy. Accounts of the Indian and Arabian trading stations upon the east coast of Africa, and of the form of the southern extremity of the Continent, may have extended to Venice, thi-ough Egypt, Abyssinia, and Arabia. The triangular form of Africa was actually delineated upon the map of Sanuto, made in 1306, and discovered in the " Portulano della Mediceo-Lauren- ziana," by Count Baldelli in 1351, and also in the chart of the world by Fra Maiu-o. — Humboldt's Cosmos, vol. ii., pp. 290, 461. * Faria j Sousa complains that " the admiral entered Lisbon with a vain-glorious exultation, in order to make Portugal feel, by displaying the tokens of his discovery, how much she had erred in not acceding to his propositions." — Europa Portnguesa, t. ii., pp. 402, 403. Ruy de Pina asserts that King John was much importuned to kill Columbus on the spot, since, with his death, the prosecution of the undertaking, as far as the sovereigns of Castile were concerned, would cease, from want of a suitable pei'son to take charge of it ; but the king had too much magnanimity to adopt the iniquitous measure proposed. — VasconceUos, Vida del Rie Don Juan II., lib. vi. ; Garcia de Resende, Vide de Bom Joam II. ; Las Casas, Hist. Ltd., lib. i., cap. Ixxiv. ; MS. quoted by Prescott. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 21 where, from the creation until then, had brooded an impenetrable mystery. It bore the richest freight^ that ever lay upon the bosom of the deep, — the tidings of a New World. ^ It would be but tedious to repeat here all the well-known story of Christopher Columbus ; ^ his early dangers and adventures, his numerous voyages, his industry, acquirements, and speculations, and '' See Appendix, No. XI. '' " A Castilla y a Leon Niievo Mundo dib Colon," was the inscription on the costly monument that was raised over tlio remains of Columbus, in the Carthusian Monastery of La Cuevas at Seville. " The like of which," says his son Ferdinand, with as mucli truth as simplicity, "was never recorded of any man in ancient or modern times." — Hist, del Almirante, cap. cviii. His ashes were finally removed to Cuba, where they now repose in the cathedral church of its capital. — Navarrete, Coleccion de Viages, torn. ii. " E dandogli il titol di Don volsero che egli aggiungesse presso all'arme di casa sua quattro altre, cioe quelle del Regno de Castiglio di Leon, e il Mar Oceano con tutte I'isole e quattro anehore per dimostrare I'ufficio d'Ahnirante, con un motto d'intorno che dicea, * Per Castiglia e per Leon, Nuovo Mundo trovo Colon.' " — Ramusio, Discorso, tom. iii. The heir of Columbus was always to bear the arms of the admiral, to seal with them, and in his signature never to use any other title than simply " the Admiral." ^ See Appendix, No. XIL — In the middle ages the prevalent opinion was that the sea covered but one-seventh of the surface of the globe ; an opinion which Cardinal d'Ailly (Imago Mundi, cap. viii.) founded on the apocryphal fourth book of Ezra. Columbus, who always derived much of his cosmological knowledge from the Cardinal's work, was much interested in upholding this idea of the smallness of the sea, to which the misunderstood expression of the " the ocean-stream " contributed not a little. lie was also accustomed to cite Aristotle, and Seneca, and St. Augustine, in confirmation of this opinion. — Humboldt's Examen Critique de I' Hist, de la Geographie, tom. i., p, 186, 22 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. how at length the great idea arose in his mind, and matured itself into a conviction ; then how convic- tion led to action, checked and interrupted, but not Aveakened, by the doubts of pedantic ignorance,^ and the treachery,^ coolness, or contempt of courts. On Friday ^ the 3rd of August, 1493, a squadron of three ^ See especially the details of the conference held at Salamanca, (the great seat of learning in Spain) given in the 4th Chapter of Washington Irviug's "Columbus." One of the objections advanced was, that, admitting the earth to be spherical, and should a ship succeed in reaching in this way the extremity of India, she could never get back again ; for the rotundity of the globe would present a kind of mountain, up which it would be impossible for her to sail with the most favourable wind. — Hht. del Almirante, cap. ii. ; Hist, cle Chiapa por BemeseJ, lib. ii., cap. 27. ' Columbus was required by King John II., of Portugal, to furnish a detailed plan of his proposed voyages with the charts and other documents ; according to which, he proposed to shape his course for the alleged purpose of having them examined by the royal coun- cillors. He readily complied, but while he remained in anxious sus- pense as to the decision of the council, a caravel was secretly dispatched with instructions to pursue the route designated in the papers of Columbus. This voyage had the ostensible pretext of carrying provisions to the Cape de Verde islands ; the private instructions given, were carried iuto effect when the caravel departed thence. It stood westward for several days ; but then the weather grew stormy, and the pilots having no zeal to stimulate them, and seeing nothing but an immeasurable waste of wild trembling waves still extending before them, lost all courage to proceed. They put back to the Cape de Verde islands, and thence to Lisbon, excusing their own want of resolution by ridiculing the project of Columbus. On discovering this act of treachery, Columbus in.stantly quitted Portugal. — Hist, del Almirante, cap. viii. ; Herrera, Dec. I., lib. i., cap. vii. ; Munoz, Hist, del Nuevo Mundo, lib. ii. — Quoted by Prescott. ' " Le Vendredi n' etant pas regardedans la Chretiente comme uu jour de bon augure pour le commencement d'une entreprise, les historiens du 17™^ siecle, qui gemissaient deja sur les maux dont, selon eux, I'Europe a ete accable par la decouverte de lAmcrique, THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 23 small crazy ships, bearing ninety men, sailed from the port of Palos, in Andalusia. Columbus, the commander and pilot, was deeply impressed with sentiments of religion ; and, as the spread of Chris- tianity was one great object of the expedition, he and his followers before their departure had implored the blessing of Heaven ^ upon the voyage, from which they might never return. They steered at first for the Canaries, over a well- known course ; but on the 6th of September they sailed from Gomera, the most distant of those islands, and, leaving the usual track of navigation, stretched westward into the unknown sea. And still ever westward for six-and-thirty days they bent their course through the dreary desert of waters ; terrified ou fait remarque que Colomb est parti pour la premiere expe- dition vendredi, 3 aout 1492, et que la premiere terre d' Amerique a ete decouverte vendredi 12 Octobre de la meme annee. La reformation du calendrier appliquee au journal de Colomb, qui indique toujours a la fois, les jours de la semaine et la date du mois, feroit disparoitre le pronostic du jour fatal." — Humboldt's Geog. du Nouveau Continent, \o\.\n., p. 160. '■'• His first landing in the New World partook of the same cha- racter as his departure from the old. " Christoforo Colombo — primo con una bandiera nella quale era figurato il nostro Siguore Jesu Christo in croce, salto in terra, e quella pianto, e poi tutti gli alti smontarono, e inginocchiati baciarono la terra, tre volti piangendo di allegrezza. Di poi Colombo alzate le mani al cielo lagrimando disse, Signor Dio Eterno, Signore omnipotente, tu creasti il cielo, e la terra, e il mare con la tua santa parola, sia benedetto c glorificato il nome tuo, sia ringraziata la tua Maesta, la quale si e degnata per raano d' uno umil suo servo far ch' cl suo santo nome sia conosciuto o divulgato in questa altra parte del mondo." — Pietro Martirc, BelV Indie Occidentali, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 2 ; Oviedo, Hist. Gen. delV India. 24 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. by the changeless wind that wafted them hour after hour further into the awful solitude, and seemed to forbid the prospect of return ; bewildered by the altered hours of day and night, and more than all by the mysterious variation of their only guide, for the magnetic needle no longer pointed to the pole."* Then strange appearances in the sea aroused new fears : vast quantities of weeds covered the sur- face, retarding the motion of the vessels ; the sailors ^ Columbus not only has, incontestably, the merit of first discovering the line where there is no declination of the needle, but also of first inducing a study of terrestrial magnetism in Europe, by his observa- tions concerning the increasing declination as he sailed in a westerly direction from that line. It had been already easily recognised in the Mediterranean, and in all places where, in the twelfth century, the declination was as much as eight or ten degrees, even though their instruments were so imperfect that the ends of a magnetic needle did not point exactly to the geographical north or south. It is improbable that the Arabs or Crusaders drew attention to the fact of the compass pointing to the north-east and north-west in difterent parts of the world, as to a phenomenon which had long been known. The merit which belongs to Columbus is, not for the first observance of the existence of the declination, which is given, for example, upon the map of Andrew Bianca in 1436, but for the remark which he made on the 13th September, 1492, that about two degrees and a half to the east of the island of Corvo, the magnetic variation changed, and that it passed over from north-east to north-west. This discovery of a magnetic line without any variation indicates a remarkable epoch in nautical astronomy. It was celebrated with just praise by Oviedo, Casas, and Herrera. If with Livio Sanuto we ascribe it to the renowned mariner, Sebastian Cabot, we forget that his first voyage, which was undertaken at the expense of some mei*- chants of Bristol, and which was crowned with success by his touch- ing the main land of America, falls five years later than the first expedition of Columbus. — Humboldt's Cosmos, vol. ii., p. 318 ; Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i., cap. G. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 25 imagined that they had reached the utmost boundary of the navigable ocean, and that they were rushing blindly into the rocks and quicksands of some submerged continent. The master mind turned all these strange novelties into omens of success. The changeless wind was the favouring breath of the Omnipotent ; the day length- ened as they followed the sun's course ; an ingenious fiction explained the inconstancy of the needle ; the vast fields of sea- weed bespoke a neighbouring shore; and the flight of unknown birds^ was hailed with happy promise. But as time passed on, and brought no fulfilment of their hopes, the spirits of the timid began to fail, the flattering appearances of land had repeatedly deceived them ; they were now very far beyond the limit of any former voyage. From the timid and ignorant these doubts spread upwards, and by degrees the contagion extended from ship to ship : secret murmurs rose to conspiracies, com- plaints,' and mutiny. They affirmed that they had ah'eady performed their duty in so long pursuing an * " In sailing towards the West India Islands birds are often seen at the distance of 200 leagues from the nearest coast." — Sloane's Nat. Hist, of Jamaica, vol. i., p. 30. Captain Cook says, " No one yet knows to what distance any of the Oceanic birds go to sea ; for ray own part I do not believe that there is any one of the whole tribe that can be relied on in pointing out the vicinity of land." — Voyage towards the South Pole, vol. i., p. 275. The Portuguese, however, only keeping along the African coast and watching the flight of birds with attention, concluded that they did not venture to fly far from land. Columbus adopted this erro- neous opinion from his early instructors in navigation. 20 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. unknown and hopeless course, and that they would no more follow a desperate adventurer to destruc- tion. Some even proposed to cast their leader into the sea. The menaces and persuasions that had so often enabled Columbus to overcome the turbulence and fears of his followers, now ceased to be of any avail. He gave Avay to an irresistible necessity, and promised that he would return to Spain, if unsuccessful in their search for three days more. To this brief delay the mutineers consented. The signs of land now brought almost certainty to the mind of the great leader. The sounding line brought up such soil as is only found near the shore : birds were seen of a kind supposed never to venture on a long flight. A piece of newly cut cane floated past, and a branch of a tree bearing fresh berries was taken up by the sailors. The clouds around the setting sun wore a new aspect, and the breeze became warm and variable. On the evening of the 11th of October, every sail was furled, and strict watch kept, lest the ships might drift ashore during the night. On board the admiral's vessel all hands were invariably assembled for the evening hymn ; on this occasion a public prayer for success was added, and with those holy sounds Columbus hailed the appearance of that small shifting light,^ which " " Puesto que el amirante a los diez de la noche vio liimbre. . . . y era como una candelilla de cera que se alzaba y levantaba, lo cual a pocos pareciera ser indicio de tiei'ra. Pero el amirante THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, 27 crowned with certainty his long cherished hope,^ turned his faith into realisation,^ and stamped his name for ever upon the memory of man.^ It was by accident only that England had been deprived of the glory of these great discoveries. Columbus when repulsed by the Courts of Portugal and Spain, sent his brother Bartholomew to London.* to lay his projects before Henry VII., and seek tuvo por cierto estar junto a la tierra. Por lo qual qiiando dijeron la * Salve ' que acostumbran decir y cantar a su manera todos los marineros, y de liallan todos, vogo y amonestolos el aruirante que hiciesen buena guarda al castillo de proa, y mirasen bien por la tierra." — Diar. de Colon. Prem. Viag. 11 de Oct. ' " Let those who are disposed to faint under difficulties, in the prosecution of any great and worthy undertaking, remember that eighteen years elapsed after the time that Columbus conceived his enterprise before he was enabled to carry it into eflPect ; that most of that time was past in almost hopeless solicitation, amidst poverty, neglect, and taunting ridicule ; that the prime of his life had wasted away in the struggle, and that when his perseverance was finally crowned with success, he was about his fifty-sixth year. Tliis example should encourage the enterprising never to despair." — Wash- ington Irving 's Life of Golumhus, vol. i., p. 174. s << While Columbus lay on a sick bed by the river Belem, he was addressed in a dream by an unknown voice, distinctly uttering these words : ' Maravillosamente Dies hizo sonar tu nombre en la tierra ; de los atamientos de la Mar Oceana, que estaban cerradas con cadenas tan fuertes, te dio las Haves.' (Letter to the Catholic Monarch, July 7th, 1503.)" — Humboldt's Cosmos. " See Appendix, No. XIII. ' " The application to King Henry VII. was not made until 1488. us would appear from the inscription on a map, which Bartholomew presented to the king. Las Casas intimates, from letters and writings of Bartholomew Columbus, in his possession, that the latter accom- panied Bartholomew Diaz in his voyage from Lisbon, in 1486, along the coast of Africa, in the course of which he discovered the Cape of Good Hope." — Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i., cap. vii. 28 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. assistance for their execution. The king, although the most penurious of European princes, saw the vast advantage of the offer, and at once invited the great Genoese to his court. Bartholomew was, however, captured by pu-ates on his return voyage, and detained till too late, for in the meanwhile Isabella of Castile had adopted the project of Colum- bus, and supplied the means for the expedition. Henry VII. w^as not discouraged by this dis- appointment : two years after the discoveries of Columbus became known in England, the king entered into an arrangement with John Cabot, an adventurous Venetian merchant, resident at Bristol, and on the 5th of March, 1495, granted him letters patent for conquest and discovery. Henry stipulated that one-fifth of the gains in this enter- prise was to be retained for the crown, and that the vessels engaged in it should return to the port of Bristol. On the 24th of June, 1497, Cabot dis- covered the coast of Labrador, and gave it the name of Frimavista. This was, without doubt, the first visit of Europeans to the continent of North America,'^ since the time of the Scandinavian ^ " The American continent was first discovered under the auspices of the English, and the coast of the United States by a native of England (Sebastian Cabot told me that he was born in Bristowe)." — History of the Travayles in the East and West Indies, by R. Eden and R. Willes, 1577, fol. 267. Posterity hardly remembered that they* (the Cabots) had reached the American continent nearly four * " The only immediate fruit of Cabot's first enterprise is said to have been the importation from America of the first turkeys ever seen in Europe. Why this bird received the name it enjoys iu England has never been satisfactorily explained. By THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 29 voyages. A large island lay opposite to this shore : fi'om the vast quantity of fish frequenting the neighbouring waters, the sailors called it Bacallaos ;^ Cabot gave this country the name of St. John's, having landed there on St. John's day. Newfound- land has long since superseded both appellations. John Cabot returned to England in August of the same year, and was knighted and otherwise months before Columbus, on his third voyage, came in sight of the mainland. — Bancroft's Hist, of the United States, vol. i., p. 11. Charlevoix's " Histoire de la Nouvelle France," and the " Fastes Chro- nologiquos," endeavour to discredit the discoveries of John and Sebastian Cabot, but the testimonies of contemporary authors are decisive. Unfortunately no journal or relation remains of the voyages of the Cabots to North America, but several authors have handed down accounts of them, which they received from the lips of Sebas- tian Cabot himself. See Hakluyt, iii. 27 ; Galearius Butrigarius, in Ramusio, tom. ii. ; Ramusio, Preface to tom. iii. ; Peter Martyr ab Angleria, Dec. III., cap. vi. ; Gomara, Gen. Hist, of West Indies, b. ii., c. vi. In Fabian's Chronicle, the writer asserts that he saw, in the sixteenth year of Henry VII., two out of three men who had been brought from " Newfound Island " two years before). The grant made by Edward VI. to Sebastian Cabot of a pension, equal to 1000^. per annum of our money, attests that " the good and acceptable ser- vice" for which it was conferred, was of a very important nature. The words of the grant are handed down to us by Hakluyt, vol. iii. p. 31. — See- Life of Henry VII., by Lord Bacon ; Bacon's Works, vol, iii., pp. 356, 357. ^ Baccalaos was the name given by the natives to the cod-fish with which these waters abounded. Pietro Martire, who calls Sebastian Cabot his "dear and familiar friend," speaks of Newfoundland as Baccalaos ; also Lopez de Gomara, and Ramusio. the French it was called 'Coq d' Inde,' on account of its American original; America being then generally termed Western India." — Graham's Hist, of the United States, vol. i., p. 7. 30 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. rewarded by the king ; he survived but a very short time iu the enjoyment of his fame, and his son Sebastian Cabot, although only twenty-three years of age, succeeded him in the command of an expedition destined to seek a north-west passage to the South Seas. Sebastian Cabot sailed in the summer of 1498 : he soon reached Newfoundland, and thence proceeded north as far as the fifty-eighth degree. Having failed in discovering the hoped for passage, he returned towards the south, examining the coast as far as the southern boundary of Maryland and per- haps Virginia. After a long interval the enterprising mariner again, in 1517, sailed for America, and entered the bay* which a century afterwards received the name of Hudson. If prior discovery confer a right of possession, there is no doubt that the whole eastern coast of the North American continent may be justly claimed by the English race.^ ' Mr. Bancroft pronounces this " fact to be indisputable," though he acknowledges that "the testimony respecting this expedition is confused and difficult of explanation." Sebastian Cabot wrote "A Discourse of Navigation," in which the entrance of the strait, leading into Hudson's Bay, was laid down with great precision " on a card, drawn by his own hand." — Ortelius, Map of America in Theatrum Orbis Terrarum ; Eden and WiUis, p. 223 ; Sir H. Gilbert, in Hakluyt, vol. iii., pp. 49, 50 ; Bancroft, vol. i., p. 12. * The learned and ingenious author of the '* Memoirs of Sebastian Cabot " has brought forward strong arguments against the discovery of the continent of America by Jean Vas Cortereal in 1494. — Hum- boldt's Geog. du Nouveau Continent, vol. i., p. 279 ; vol. ii., p. 25. " The discoverer of the territory of our country was one of the most extraordinary men of his age. There is deep cause for regret, THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 31 Gaspar Cortereal was the next vo3ager in the succession of discoverers : he had been brought up in the household of the King of Portugal, but nourished an ardent spirit of enterprise and thirst for glory, despite the enervating influences of a court. He sailed early in the year 1500, and pursued the track of John Cabot as far as the northern point of Newfoundland ; to him is due the discovery of the Gulf of St. Lawrence,^ and he also pushed on northward by the coast of Labrador,'^ almost to the entrance of Hudson's Bay. The adventurer returned to Lisbon in October of the same year. This expe- dition was undertaken more for mercantile advan- tage than for the advancement of knowledge ; timber and slaves seem to have been the objects ; no less than fifty- seven of the natives were brought back to Portugal, and doomed to bondage. These unhappy savages proved so robust and useful, that great benefits were anticipated fi-om trading on their servitude;^ the dreary and distant land of their that time has spared so few memorials of his career. He gave England a continent, and no one knows his burial-place. ' — Bancroft, vol. i., p. 14. •"' Ramusio, vol. iii., p. 417. This discovery is also attributed to .Jacques Cartier, who entered the gulph on the 10th August, 1535, and gave it the name of the saint whose festival was celebrated on that cay. — Charlevoix. ' In an old map published in 1508, the Labrador coast is called Terra Corterealis. ^ It has been conjectured that the name Terra de Laborador was given to this coast by the Portuguese slave merchants, on account of the admirable qualities of the natives as labourers. — Picture of Quebec. 32 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. birth, covered with snow for half the year, was despised by the Portuguese, whose thoughts and hopes were ever turned to the fertile plains, the sunny skies, and the inexhaustible treasures of the East.9 But disaster and destruction soon fell upon these bold and merciless adventurers. In a second voyage the ensuing year, Cortereal and all his followers were lost at sea : when some time had elapsed without tidings of their fate, his brother sailed to seek them, but he too, probably, perished in the stormy waters of the North Atlantic, for none of them were ever heard of more. The King of Por- tugal feeling a deep interest in these brothers, fitted out three armed vessels and sent them to the north- ^ It was an idea entertained by Columbus, that, as he extended his discoveries to climates more and. more under the torrid influence of the sun, he should find the productions of natm-e sublimated by its rays to more perfect and precious qualities. He was strengthened in this belief by a letter written to him at the command of the queen, by one Jayme Ferrer, an eminent and learned lapidary, who, in the course of his trading for precious stones and metals, had been in the Levant, and in various parts of the East ; had conversed with the merchants of the remote parts of Asia and Africa, and the natives of India, Arabia, and Ethiopia, and was considered deeply versed in geography generally, but especially in the nature of those countries from whence the valuable merchandise in which he dealt was procured. In this letter, Ferrer assured Columbus that, according to his expe- rience, the rarest objects of commerce, such as gold, precious stones, drugs and spices, were chiefly to be found in the regions about the equinoctial line, where the inhabitants were black, or darkly coloured, and that until the admiral should arrive among people of such complexions, he did not think he would find those articles in great abundance. — Navarrete, Coleccion, torn, ii.. Document 68. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 33 west. Inquiries were made along the wild shores which Cortereal had first explored, without trace or tidings being found of the bold mariner, and the ocean was searched for many months, but the deep still keeps it secret. Florida was discovered in 1512 by Ponce de Leon, one of the most eminent among the followers of Columbus. The Indians had told him wonderful tales of a fountain called Bimini, in an island of these seas ; the fountain possessed the power, they said, of restoring, instantly, youth and vigour to those who bathed in its waters. He sailed for months in search of this miraculous spring, landing at every point, entering each port however shallow or dan- gerous, still ever hoping ; but in the weak and pre- sumptuous effort to grasp at a new life, he wasted away his strength and energy, and prematurely brought on those ills of age he had vainly hoped to shun. Nevertheless this wild adventure bore its wholesome fruits, for Ponce de Leon then first brought to the notice of Europe that beautiful land which, fi'om its wonderful fertility and the splendour of its flowers, obtained the name of Florida.^ The first attempt made by the French to share in the advantages of these discoveries, was in the year 1504. Some Basque and Breton fishermen at that time began to ply their calling on the Great Bank ' Ramuslo, vol. iii., p. 347 ; Charlevoix, vol. i., p. 36 ; See Osorio, History of the Portuguese, b. i. ; Barrow's Voyages, pp. 37 — 48; Ilcr- rera, Dec. I., lib. vii., cap. ix.; Ensayo Chronologico para la Ilistoria general de la Florida. En Madrid, 1723. — Quoted by Murray. VOL. I. D 34 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. of Newfoundland, and along the adjacent shores. From them the island of Cape Breton received its name. In 1506, Jean Denys, a man of Harfleur, drew a map of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Two years afterwards, a pilot of Dieppe, named Thomas Aubert, excited great curiosity in France by bringing over some of the savage natives from the New World : there is no record whence they were taken, but it is supposed from Cape Breton. The reports borne back to France by these hardy fishermen and adven- turers, were not such as to raise sanguine hopes of riches from the bleak northern regions they had visited: no teeming fertility or genial climate tempted the settler, no mines of gold or silver excited the avarice of the soldier;^ and for many years, the French altogether neglected to profit by their discoveries. In the meantime. Pope Alexander VI. issued a bull bestowing the whole of the New World upon the kings of Spain and Portugal.^ Neither England ^ " Les demandes ordinaires qu'on nous fait sont, ' Y a-t-il des tresors ? Y a-t-il de Tor et de I'argent ? ' Et personne ne de- mande, ' Ces peuples Fa sont il disposes a entendre la doctrine Chretienne ? ' Et quant aux mines, il y en a vraiment, mais il les faut fouiller avec Industrie, labeur et patience. La plus belle mine que je sache, c'est du bled et du vin, avec la nourriture du bestial ; qui a de ceci, il a de I'argent, et des mines, nous n'en vlvons point." — Marc L' Escarbot. ' This bold stretch of papal authority, so often ridiculed as chime- rical and absurd, was in a measure justified by the event, since it did, in fact, determine the principle on which the vast extent of unappro- priated empire in the eastern and western hemispheres was ultimately divided between two petty states of Europe. Alexander had not THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 35 nor France allowed the right of conferring this mag- nificent and undefined gift; it did not throw the slightest obstacle in the path of British enterprise and discovery, and the high-spirited Francis I. of France, refused to acknowledge the papal decree.* In the year 1523, Francis I. fitted out a squadron of four ships to pursue discovery^ in the west; the command was intrusted to Giovanni Verazzano of Florence, a navigator of great skill and experience, then residing in France : he was about thirty-eight years of age, nobly born, and liberally educated ; the causes that induced him to leave his own country and take service in France, are not known. It has often been remarked as strange, that three Italians should have directed the discoveries of Spain, Eng- land, and France, and thus become the instruments of dividing the dominions of the New World among alien powers, while their own classic land reaped neither glory nor advantage from the genius and even the excuse that he thought he was disposing of uncultivated and uninhabited regions, since he specifies in his donation both towns and castles : " Civitates et castra in perpetuum tenore pr?esentium donamus." '' "What," said Fi'ancis I., "shall the kings of Spain and Portu- gal divide all America between them, without sufifering me to take a share as their brother ? I would fain see the article in Adam's will that bequeaths that vast inheritance to them." — Encyclopaedia, vol. iv., p. 695. * "In the latter years of his life, Francis, by a strict economy of the public money, repaired the evils of his early extravagance, while at the same time he was enabled to spare sufficient for carrying on the magnificent public institutions he had undertaken, and for forwarding the progress of discovery, of the fine arts, and of literature." — Bacon's Life and Times of Francis I., pp. 399 — 401. d2 Mfl THE fONi.M'KST <>K CANAKA, courn^ro of licr sons Of t.liis first voyage the only nM'ord ivinnininsJ' is n lottcM' from N'ornzzano to l''rnnris I., d.-itod stli of .July, 1-''>-4, iiuuvly stating that lie had irturned in safety to I)iei)i)C. At the beginning of the following year Verazzano fitted out and armed a vessel ealled the Danphine, manned with a crew of thirty hands, and provisioned for eight months. He first direeted his eourse to Madeira; having reached that island in safety, he left it on the 17th of January and steered for the west. After a narrow escape from the violence of n tempest, and having proceeded for about nine huu dred leagues, a long low line of coast rose to view, never before seen by nneient or mod(M'n navigators. This country appeared thieUly peopled by a vigorous race, of tall stature and athletic form ; fearing to risk a landinir at first with his weak force, the adventurer contented himself with admiring at a distance the grandem- and beauty of the scenery, and enjoying the delightful mildness of the climate. From this place he followed the coast for about fifty leagues to the south without discovering any harbour or inlet where he might shelter his vessel : he then retraced his course and steered to the north. After some time Verazzano ventured to send a small l)oat on shore to examine the country more closely: num- bers of savages came to the water's edge to meet the strangers, and gazed on them with mingled feelings of surprise, admiration, joy, and fear. He again resumed his northward course, till driven by want of water, he armed the small boat and sent it once THE CONQUEST UP CANADA. 37 more towards the land to seek a supply ; the waves and surf, however, were so great that it could not reach the shore. The natives assembled on the beach, by their signs and gestures eagerly invited the French to approach: one young sailor, a bold swimmer, threw himself into the water, bearing some presents for the savages, but his heart failed him on a nearer approach, and he turned to regain the boat ; his strength was exhausted however, and a heavy sea washed him almost insensible up upon the beach. The Indians treated him with great kindness, and when he had sufficiently recovered, sent him back in safety to the ship.^ Verazzano pursued his examination of the coast with untiring zeal, narrowly searching every inlet for a passage through to the westward, until he reached the great island, known to the Breton fisher- men — Newfoundland. In this important voyage he surveyed more than two thousand miles of coast, nearly all that of the present United States, and a great portion of British Xortli America. A short time after Verazzano's return to Europe, he fitted out another expedition with the sanction of Francis I., for the establishment of a colony in the newly discovered countries. Nothing certain is known of the fate of this enterprise, but the bold navigator returned to France no more ; the dread inspired by his supposed fate' deterred the French king and ^ See Appendix, No. XIV. ' " Navigo anche lungo la detta terra I'anno 1524 un gran capi- tauo del Re Christianissimo Francesco, detto Giovanni da Verazzano, 38 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. people from any further adventure across the Atlantic during many succeeding years. In later times it has come to light that Verazzano was alive thirteen j^ears after this period :^ those best informed on the subject are of opinion, that the enterprise fell to the ground in consequence of Francis I. having been captured by the Emperor Charles V., and that the adventurer withdrew himself from the service of France, having lost his patron's support. The year after the failure of Verazzano's last enterprise, 1525, Stefano Gomez sailed from Spain for Cuba and Florida ; thence he steered northward in search of the long hoped for passage to India, till he reached Cape Race, on the south-eastern extremity Fiorentino, e scorse tutta la costa fino alia Florida, come per una sua lettera scritta al detto Re, particolarmente si vedia la qual sola abbiamo potuto avere perciocche I'altre si sono sniarrite nelli travagli della povera citta di Fiorenza e nell' ultimo viaggio che esso fece, avendo voluto smontar in terra con alcuni compagni, furono tutti morti da quel popoli, e in presentia di colo'ro che erano rimasi nelle navi, furono aiTostiti e maugeati," (Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 416.) The Baron La Houtan and La Potherie give the same account of Veraz- zano's end ; they are not, however, very trustworthy authorities. Le Beau repeats the same story ; but Charlevoix's words are, " Je ne trouve aucun fondement a, ce que quelques uns ont public, qu'ayant mis pied a terre dans un endroit ou il voulait batir un fort, les sauvages se jeterent sur lui, le massacrerent avec tons ses gens et le mangerent." A Spanish historian has asserted, contrary to all pro- bability, that Verazzano was taken by the Spaniards, and hung as a pirate. — D. Andres Gonzalez de Barcia, Ensayo Chronologico para la Ilistoria della Florida. ** Tiraboschi, Storia della Literatura Italiana, vol. vii., pp. 261, 262. — Quoted in the Picture of Quebec, to which valuable work J. C. Fisher, Esq., President of the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, largely contributed. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 89 of Newfoundland. The further details of his voyage remain unlvnown, but there is reason to suppose that he entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence and traded upon its shores. An ancient Castilian tradition existed that the Spaniards visited these coasts before the French, and having perceived no appearance of mines or riches, they exclaimed frequently, " Aca nada ; " ^ the natives caught up tlie sound, and when other Europeans arrived, repeated it to them. The strangers concluded that these words were a desig- nation, and from that time this magnificent country bore the name of Canada. ^ ^ Signifying "here is nothing." The insatiable thirst of the Spanish discoverers for gold is justified by the greatest of all disco- verers, the disinterested Columbus himself, on high religious principles. When acquainting their Castilian majesties with the abundance of gold* to be procured in the newly-formed countries, he thus speaks, " El oro es excelentlsimo, del oro se haee tesoro ; y con el quien lo tiene hace quanto quiere en el mundo, y elega a que echa las animas al paraiso." (Navarrete, Coleccion de los Viages, vol. i., p. 309..) A passage which the modern editor of his papers affirms to be in con- formity with many texts of Scripture. ' Father Hennepin asserts that the Spaniards were the first dis- coverers of Canada, and that finding nothing there to gratify their extensive desires for gold, they bestowed upon it the appellation of El Capo di Nada, " Cape Nothing," whence by corruption its present name. — NouvcUe Description cVun tres grand pays situe dans * The historian Herrera, writing in the light of experience, makes use of the strong expression, that " mines were a lure devised by the E^^l Spirit, to draw the Spaniards on to destruction." " L' Espagne," says Montesquieu, " a fait comme ce roi insense, qui demanda que tout cc qu 'il touchcroit se convertit en or, et qui fut oblige de reveiiir aux Dieux, p6ur les prier de finir sa misere." — Esprit des Loix, lib. xxi., cap. 22. " Les mines dii P^rou ct du Mexique ;ie valoient pas memo pour 1' Esp.agne cc qu' clle auroit tire' de son propre fonds en les cultivant. Avcc tant de tr^sors Philippe n. fit banqucroutc." — Millot. " Paturage ct labouragc," said the wise Sully, " valcnt micux que tout 1' or du Perou." 40 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. L'Amerique entre le Nouveau Mexique et la Mer Glaciale, clepuis Van 1667 jiisqu' en 1670. Par le Pere Louis Hennepin, Missionaire EecoUet a Utrecht, 1697. La Potherie gives the same derivation. Histoire de V Amerique Septentrionale par M. de Bacqueville de la Potherie, a Paris, 1722. The opinion expressed in a note of Charlevoix (Histoire de la Nouvelle France, vol. i., p. 13), is that deserving most credit. " D'autres dcriventce nom du mot Iroquois ' Kannata,' qui se prononce Cannada, et signifie un amas de cabanes." This derivation would reconcile the different assertions of the early discoverers, some of whom give the name of Canada to the whole valley of the St. Lawrence ; others, equally worthy of credit, confine it to a small district in the neigh- bourhood of Stadacona (now Quebec). Seconda Relatione di Jacques Gartier, in Ramusio, tom. iii., pp. 442, 447. " Questo popolo (di Ilochelaga) non partendo mai del loro paese, ne essendo vagabondi, come quelli di Canada e di Saguenay benche dette di Canada sieno lor suggetti con otte o novo altri villaggi posti sopra detto fiume." Father du Creux, who arrived in Canada about the year 1625, in his " Historia Canadensis," gives the name of Canada to the whole valley of the St. Lawrence, confessing, however, his ignorance of the etymo- logy : " Porro de Etymologia vocis Canada nihil satis certe potui comperire ; priscam quidem esse, constat ex eo, quod illam ante annos prope sexaginta passim usurpari audiebam puer." Dupon§eau, in the Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia, founds his conjecture of the Indian origin of the name of Canada upon the fact, that in the translation of the Gospel of St. Matthew into the Mohawk tongue, made by Brandt, the Indian Chief, the word Canada is always used to signify a village. The mistake of the early discoverers in taking the name of a part for that of the whole, is very pardonable in persons ignorant of the Indian language. It is highly improbable that at the period of its discovery the name of Canada was extended over this immense country. The migratory habits of the Aborigines are alone conclusive against it. They distinguished themselves by their difi'erent tribes, not by the country over which they hunted and rode at will. They more pro- bably gave names to localities than adopted their own from any fixed place of residence. The Iroquois and the Ottawas conferred their appellations on the rivers that ran through their hunting grounds, and the Huron tribe gave theirs to the vast lake now bearing their name. It has, however, never been pretended that any Indian tribe bore the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 41 name of Canada, and the natural conclusion therefore is, that the word " Canada" was a mere local appellation, without reference to the country ; that each tribe had their own " Canada," or collection of huts, which shifted its position according to their migrations. Dr. Douglas, in his "American History," pretends that Canada derives its name from Monsieur Kane or Cane, who he advances to have been the first adventurer in the River St. Lawrence. — Knox's Historical Journal, vol. i., p. 303. CHAPTER II. In the year 1534, Philip Chabot, Admiral of France, urged the king to establish a colony in the New World,^ by representing to him in glowing colom-s the great riches and power derived by the Spaniards from their transatlantic possessions. Francis I., alive to the importance of the design, soon agreed to carry it out. Jacques Cartier, an experienced navigator of St. Malo, was recommended by the admiral to be intrusted with the expedition, and was approved of by the king. On the 20th of April, 1534, Cartier sailed from St. Malo with tAvo ships of only sixty tons burden each, and 120 men for their crews :^ he directed his course westward, inclining rather to the north ; the winds proved so favom'able that on the twentieth day of the voyage he made Cape Bonavista in Newfoundland. But the harbours of that dreary country w^ere still locked up in the winter's ice, forbidding the approach of shipping : he then bent to the south-east, and at length found ' Hist, de la Nouvelle France, par le Pere Charlevoix, de la Com- pagnie de Jesus, vol. i., p. 11 ; Fastes Clironologiques, 1534. ^ Prima Relatione de Jacques Cartier della Terra Nuova, detta la Nuova Francia, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 435. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 43 anchorage at St. Catherine, six degrees lower in latitude. Having remained here ten days, he again turned to the north, and on the 21st of May reached Bird Island, fourteen leagues from the coast. Jacques Cartier examined all the northern shores of Newfoundland without having ascertained that it was an island, and then passed southward through the Straits of Belleisle. The country appeared everywhere the same bleak and inhospitable wilder- ness,^ but the harbours were numerous, convenient, and abounding in fish. He describes the natives, as well-proportioned men, wearing their hair tied up over their heads, like bundles of hay, quaintly interlaced with birds' feathers.^ Changing his course still more to the south, he then traversed the Gulf of St. Lawrence, approached the mainland, ^ '* Se la terra fosse cosi buono, come vi sono buoni porti, sarebbe un gran bene, ma ella non si debba chiamar Terra Nuova, anzi sassi c grebani salvatichi, e proprij luoghi da fiere, per cio cbe in tutto I'isola di Tramontana — [translated by Haklujt " the northern part of the island"] — io non vidi tanta terra che se ne potesse coricar un carro, e vi smontai in parecchi luoghi, e all' isola di Bianco Sabbione non v'e altro che musco, e piccioli spini dispersi, secchi, e morti, e in somma io penso che questa sia la terra che Iddio dette a Caino." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 436. The journal of the two first voyages of Cartier is preserved almost entire in the " Histoire de la Nouvelle France," by L'Escarbot ; there is an Italian translation in the third volume of Ramusio. They are written in the third person, and it does not appear that he was himself the author. •* " Sono uomini d'assai bella vita e grandezza ma indomiti e sal- vatichi : portano i capelli in cuna Icgati c stretti a guisa d'un pugno di fieuo rivolto, mettcudone in mezzo un legnetto, o altra cosa in vecc di chiodo, c vi Icgano insiemc certe pcnnc d'uccelli." — J. Car- tier, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 436. 44 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. and on the 9th of July, entered a deep bay ; from the intense heat ex]^)erienced there he named it the " Baye de Chaleurs." The beauty of the country, and the kindness and hospitahty of his reception, ahke charmed him ; he carried on a little trade with the friendly savages, exchanging Euro- pean goods for their furs and provisions. Leaving this bay, Jacques Cartier visited a con- siderable extent of the gulf-coast ; on the 24th July he erected a cross thirty feet high, with a shield bearing the fleurs-de-lys of France on the shore of Gaspe Bay.^ Having thus taken possession ^ of the country for his king in the usual manner of those days, he sailed, the 25th of July, on his home- ward voyage : at this place two of the natives were seized by stratagem, carried on board the ships, and borne away to France. Cartier coasted along the northern shores of the gulf till the 15th of August, and even entered the mouth of the River St. Lawrence, but the weather becoming stormy, he determined to delay his departure no longer : he passed again through the Straits of Belleisle, and * De Laet, vol. i., p. 58. *^ This was ingeniously represented to the natives as a religious ceremony, and, as such, excited nothing but the " grandissima ammi- razioue " of the natives present ; it was, however, differently under- stood by their Chief. *' Ma essendo noi ritornati alle nostra navi, venne il Capitano lor vestito d'im pella vecchia d'orso negro in una barca con tre suoi figliuoli, e ci fece un lungo sermone mostrandaci detta croce e facendo il segno della croee con due dita poi ci mostrava la terra tutta intorno di noi come s'avesse voluto dice che tutta era sua, e che noi non dovevamo piantar detta croce senza sua licenza." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 439. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 45 arrived at St. Malo on the 5th of September, 1534, contented with his success and full of hope for the future. Jacques Cartier was received with the considera- tion due to the importance of his report. The court at once perceived the advantage of an establishment in this part of America, and resolved to take steps for its foundation. Charles de Money, Sieur de la Mailleraj^e, vice-admiral of France, w^as the most active patron of the undertaking; through his influence Cartier obtained a more effective force, and a new commission, with ampler powers than before. When the preparations for the voyage w^ere com- pleted, the adventurers all assembled in the cathedral of St. Malo on Whitsunday, 1535, by the command of their pious leader; the bishop then gave them a solemn benediction with all the imposing ceremonials of the Romish Church. On the 19th of May Jacques Cartier embarked, and started on his voyage with fair wind and weather. The fleet consisted of three small ships, the largest being only 120 tons burthen. Many adventurers and young men of good family accom- panied the expedition as volunteers. On the morrow the wind became adverse, and rose to a storm ; the heavens loured over the tempestuous sea ; for more than a month the utmost skill of the mariners could only enable them to keep their ships afloat, wliile tossed about at the mercy of the waves. The little fleet w^as dispersed on the 25th of June : each vessel then made for the coast of Newfoundland as it best 46 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. might. The general's vessel, as that of Cartier was called, was the first to gain the land on the 7th July, and there awaited her consorts ; but they did not arrive till the •26th of the month. Having taken in supplies of fuel and water, they sailed in company to explore the Gulf of St. Lawrence. A violent storm arose on the 1st of August, forcing them to seek shelter. They happily found a port on the north shore, at the entrance of the great river, where, though difficult of access, there was a safe anchor- age. Jacques Cartier called it St. Nicolas, and it is now almost the only place still bearing the name he gave. They left their harbour on the 7th, coasting westward along the north shore, and on the 10th came to a gulf filled with numerous and beautiful islands.'^ Cartier gave this gulf the name of St. Lawrence, having discovered it on that saint's festival day.^ On the 15th of August they reached a long rocky island towards the south, W' hich Cartier named L'Isle de I'Assumption, now called Anticosti.^ Thence they continued their course, examining carefully both ^ " Trovavamo un molto bello e gran golfo pieno d'isole e buone entrate e passaggi, verso qual vento si possa fare." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn, iii., p. 441. ' " Cartbier donna au golphe le nom de St. Laurent, ou plutot il le donna a, une baye qui est entre I'isle d'Anticoste et la cote septen- trionale, d'ou ce nom s'est etendu a tout le golphe dont cette baye fait partie." — Hist, de la Nouvelle France, torn, i., p. 15- ' " Des sauvages I'appeUoient Natiscotec, le nom d'Anticosti parait lui avoir ete donne par les Anglais." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 16. This island is 125 miles long, and in its widest part 30 miles, dividing the River St. Lawrence into two channels. Throughout its whole extent THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 47 shores of the Great River, ^ and occasionally holding communication with the inhabitants, till on the 1st of September they entered the mouth of the deep and gloomy Saguenay. The entrance of this great tributary was all they had leisure to survey ; but the huge rocks, dense forests, and vast body of water, it has neither hay nor harhour sufficiently safe to shelter ships. It is uncultivated, being generally of an unprofitable soil, upon which any attempted improvements have met with very unpromising results. Since the year 1809, establishments have been formed on the island for the relief of shipwrecked persons ; two men reside there at two different stations all the year round, furnished with provisions for the use of those who may have the misfortune to need them. Boards are placed in different parts describing the distance and direction to these friendly spots ; instances of the most flagrant inattention have, however, occurred, which were attended with the most distressing and fatal consequences. " — Bonchetti, vol. i., p. 169. " At present the whole island might be purchased for a few hundred pounds. It belongs to some gentlemen in Quebec ; and you might, for a very small sum, become one of the greatest landowners in the world, and a Canadian seigneur into the bargain." — Grey's Canada. * This is the first discovery of the River St. Lawrence, called by the natives the River Hochelaga, or the River of Canada. Jacques Cartier accurately determined the breadth of its mouth ninety miles across. Cape Rosier, a small distance to the north of the point of Gaspe, is properly the place which marks the opening of the gigantic river. " V'e tra le terre d'ostro e quelle di tramontana la distantia di trenta leghe in circa, e piii di dugento braccia di fondo. Ci dis- sero anche i detti salvatichi e certificarono quivi essere il cammino e principio del gran fiume di Hochelaga e strada di Canada." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, tom. iii., p. 442. .1. Cartier always afterwards speaks of the St. Lawrence as the River of Hochelaga, or Canada. Charlevoix says, " Parceque le fleuve qu'on appelloit auparavant la Riviere de Canada se dccharge dans le Golphe de St. Laurent, il a insensibleraent pris le nom do Fleuve de St. Laurent, qu'il porte aujourd'hui (1720)." 48 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. forming a scene of sombre magnificence such as had never before met their view, inspired them with an exalted idea of the country they had discovered. Still passing to the south-west up the St. Lawrence, on the 6th they reached an island abounding in deli- cious filberts, and on that account named by the voyagers Isle aux Coudres. Cartier, being now so far advanced into an unknown country, looked out anxiously for a port where his vessels might winter in safety. He pursued his voyage till he came upon another island, of great extent, fertility, and beauty, covered with woods and thick clustering vines. This he named Isle de Bacchus ■? it is now called Orleans. On the 7th of September Donnacona, the chief of the country,^ came with twelve canoes filled by his ' " Lorsque Jacques Carthier decouvrit cette ile, il la trouva toute rempHe de vignes, et la nomma I'lle de Bacchus. Ce navigateur t'tait Breton, apres lui sont venus des Normands qui ont arrache les vignes et a Bacchus ont substitue Pom one et Ceres. En efFet elle produit de bon froment et d'excellent fruits." — Journal Historique, lettre ii., p. 102. Charlevoix also mentions that when he visited the islands in 1720, the inhabitants were famed for their skill in sorcery, and were sup- posed to hold intercourse with the devil ! The Isle of Orleans was in 1 676 created an earldom, by the title of St. Laurent, which, however, has long been extinct. The first Comte de St. Laurent was of the name of Berthelot. — Charlevoix, vol. v., p. 99. * " 11 signer de Canada (chiamato Donnacona per nome, ma per signore il chiamano Agouhanna)." — J. Carthier in Ramusio, tom. iii., p. 442. Agouhanna signified Chief or lord. Here, says Jacques Cartier, begins the country of Canada. " 11 settimo giorno di detto mese la vigilia della Madonna, dopo udita la messa ci partimmo dall' isola de' nocellari per andar all'insu THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 49 train, to hold converse with the strangers, whose ships lay at anchor between the island and the north shore of the Great River. The Indian Chief approached the smallest of the ships with only two canoes, fearful of causing alarm, and began an oration, accompanied with strange and uncouth ges- tures. After a time he conversed with the Indians who had been seized on the former voyage, and now acted as interpreters. He heard from them of their wonderful visit to the great nation over the salt lake, of the wisdom and power of the white men, and of the kind treatment they had received among the strangers. Donnacona appeared moved with deep respect and admiration ; he took Jacques Cartier's arm and placed it gently over his own bended neck, in token of confidence and regard. The admiral cordially returned these friendly demon- strations. He entered the Indian's canoe, and pre- sented bread and wine, which they ate and drank together. They then parted in all amity. After this happy interview, Jacques Cartier with his boats pushed up the north shore against the stream, till he reached a spot where a little river flowed into a " goodly and pleasant sound," forming a convenient haven.* He moored his vessels here di detta fiume, e arrivamo a quattordici isole distant! dall' isola de Noccllari intorno setto in otto leghe, e quivi e il principio della pro- vincia, e terra di Canada. — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn. iii. p. 442. ■• The writer of these pages, adds the testimony of an eye-witness to the opinion of the ingenious author of " the Picture of Quebec," as to the localities here described. The old wi-iters, even Charle- voix himself, have asserted that the " Port St. Croix was at the VOL. I. E 50 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. for the winter on the 16th of September, and gave the name of St. Croix to the stream, in honour of the day on which he first entered its waters : entrance of the river now called Jacques Cartier, which flows into the St. Lawrence, about fifteen miles above Quebec. Charlevoix, indeed, mentions that " Champlaia pretend que cette riviere est celle de St. Charles, mais," he adds, " il se trompe, &c." However, the localities are still unchanged ; though three centuries have since elapsed, the description of Jacques Cartier is easily recognised at the present day, and marks out the mouth of the little river St. Charles* as the first winter station of the Europeans in Canada. The follow- ing are J. Cartier's words — "per cercar luogo e porto sicuro da metter le nave, e andammo al contrario per detto fiume intorno di dieci leghe costezziando detta isola (di Bacchus) e in capo di quella trovammo un gorgo d' acqua bello e ameno — (" the beautiful basin of Quebec," as it is called in the " Picture of Quebec,") nel quel luogo e un picciol fiume e porto, dove per il flusso e alta I'acqua intorno a tre braccia, ne parve questo luogo comodo per metter le nostre navi, per il che quivi le mettemmo in sicuro, e lo chiamammo Santa Croce, percio che nel detto giorno v' eramo giunti. . . Alia riva e lito diqueir isola (di Bacchus verso ponente v'e un goejo d' acque molto bello e dilettevole, e convenientemente da mettere navilij, dove e uno stretto del detto fiume molto corrente e profondo ma non e lungo piu d' un terzo di lega intorno, per traverse del quale vi e una terra tutta di coUine di buona altezza . . . quive e la stanza e la terra di Donna- cona, e chiamasi il luogo Stadacona .... sotto la qual alta terra verso tramontana e il fiume e porto di Santa Croce, nel qual luogo e porto siamo stati dalli 15 di Settembre fine alii 16 di Maggio 1536, nel qual luogo le navi rimasero in secco." The "one place" in the River St. Lawrence "deep and swift running, " means, of course, that part directly oppposite the Lower Town, and no doubt it appeared, by comparison, " very narrow " to those who had hitherto seen the noble river only in its grandest forms. The town of Stada- cona stood on that part of Quebec which is now covered by the * It received this name, according to La Potherie, in compliment to Charles des Boiies, Grand Vicar of Pontoise, founder of the first mission of Recollets in New France. The River St. Charles was called Coubal Coubat by the natives, from its windings and meanderings. — Smith's Canada, vol. i., p. 104. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 51 Donnacona, accompanied by a train of 500 Indians, came to welcome his arrival with generous friend- ship. In the angle formed by the tributary stream and the Great River, stood the town of Stadacona, the dwelling-place of the Chief; thence an irregular slope ascended to a lofty height of table-land : from this eminence a bold headland frowned over the St. Lawrence, forming a rocky wall 300 feet in height. The waters of the Great River — here nar- rowed to less than a mile in breadth — rolled deeply and rapidly past into the broad basin beyond. When the white men first stood on the summit of this bold headland, above their port of shelter, most of the country was fresh from the hand of the Creator ; save the three small barks lying at the suburbs of St. Roch, witb part of those of St. John, looking towards the St. Charles. The area or ground adjoining, is thus described by Cartier as it appeared three centuries ago : " terra tanta buona, quanto sia possibile di vedere, e e molto fertile, plena di bellissimi arbori della sorte di quelU di Francia, come sarebbeno quercie, olmi, frassine, najare, nassi, cedri, vigne, specie bianchi, i quali producono 11 frutto cosi grosso come susine damaschini, e di molte altre specie d' arbori, sotto de quali vi nasce e cresce cosi bel canapo come quel di Francia, e nondimeno vi nasce senza semenza, e senza opera umana lavoro alcuno. — Jacques Cartier, in Ramusio, torn, ill., pp. 443, 449, 450. The exact spot in the River St. Charles, where the French passed the winter, is supposed, on good authority, to have been the site of the old bridge, called Dorchester Bridge, where there is a ford at low water, close to the Marine Hospital. That it was on the east bank, not far from the residence of Charles Smith, Esq., is evident from the river having been frequently crossed by the natives coming from Stadacona to visit the French. — Picture of Quebec, pp. 43 — 46. 1834. e2 52 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. mouth of the stream, and the Indian village, no sign of human habitation met their view. Far as the eye could reach, the dark forest spread; over hill and A^alley, mountain and plain; up to the craggy peaks, down to the blue water's edge ; along the gentle slopes of the rich Isle of Bacchus, and even from projecting rocks, and in fissures of the lofty precipice, the deep green mantle of the summer foliage hung its graceful folds. In the dim distance, north, south, east and west, where mountain rose above mountain in tumultuous variety of outline, it was still the same ; one vast leafy veil concealed the virgin face of Nature from the stranger's sight. On the eminence command- ing this scene of wild but magnificent beauty, a prosperous city now stands ; the patient industry of man has felled that dense forest, tree by tree, for miles and miles around; and where it stood, rich fields rejoice the eye : the once silent waters of the Great River below, now surge against hundreds of stately ships ; commerce has enriched this spot, art adorned it ; a memory of glory endears it to every British heart. But the name Quebec,^ still remains un- ' " Quebec en langue Algonquine signifie retrecissement. Les Abenaquis dont la langue est une dialecte Algonquine, le nomment Quelibec, qui veut dire ce qui est ferine, parceque de I'entree dela petite riviere de la Chaudiere par ou ces sauvages venaient a Quebec, le port de Quebec ne paroit qu' une grande barge." — Charlevoix, vol. i,, p. 50. " Trouvant un lieu le plus etroit de la riviere que les habitans du pays nomment Quebec ;" — "la pointe de Quebec, ainsi appellee des sauvages." — Champlain, vol. i., pp. 115, 124. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 53 changed ; as the savage first pronounced it to the white stranger, it stands to-day among the proudest records of our country's story. The Chief Donnacona and the French continued in friendly intercourse, day by day exchanging good offices and tokens of regard. But Jacques Cartier was eager for further discoveries ; the two Indian interpreters told him that a city of much larger size than Stadacona, lay further up the river, the capital of a great country ; it was called in the native tongue Hochelaga : thither he resolved to find his way. The Indians endeavoured vainly to dissuade their dangerous guests from this Others give a Norman derivation for tlie word : it is said that Quebec was so called after Caudebec, on the Seine. La Potherie's Avords are : "On tient que les Normands qui e'toient avec J. Cartier a sa premiere decouverte, apercevant en bout de I'isle d'Orleans, im cap fort eleve, s'ecrierent ' Quel bee ! ' et qu' a la suite du tems la nom de Quebec lui est reste. Je ne suis point garant de cette etymologie." Mr. Hawkins terms this " a derivation entirely illusory and improbable," and asserts that the word is of Norman origin. He gives an engraving of a seal belonging to William de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk, dated in the 7th of Henry V., or a. d. 1420. The legend or motto is, " Sigillum Willielmi de la Pole, Comitis Suffolckise, Domine de Hamburg et de Quebec." Suffolk was impeached by the Commons of England in 1450, and one of the charges brought against him was, his unbounded influence in Nor- mandy, where he lived and ruled like an independent prince ; it is not, therefore, improbable, that he enjoyed the French title of Quebec in addition to his English honours. The Indian name Stadacona, had perished before the time of Champlain, owing, probably, to the migration of the principal tribe and the succession of others. The inhabitants of Hochelaga, we are told by Jacques Cartier, were the only people in the surrounding neighbourhood who were not migratory. 54 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. expedition ; they represented the distance, the late- ness of the season, the danger of the great lakes and rapid currents ; at length they had recourse to a kind of masquerade or pantomime, to represent the perils of the voyage, and the ferocity of the tribes inhabiting that distant land. The interpreters earnestly strove to dissuade Jacques Cartier from proceeding on his enterprise, and one of them re- fused to accompany him. The brave Frenchman would not hearken to such dissuasions, and treated with equal contempt the verbal and pantomimic warnings of the alleged difficulties. As a precau- tionary measure to impress the savages with an exalted idea of his power as a friend or foe, he caused tAvelve cannon loaded with bullets to be fired in their presence against a wood : amazed and terrified at the noise, and the effects of this dis- charge, they fled howling and shrieking away. Jacques Cartier sailed for Hochelaga on the 19th of September ; he took with him the Hermerillon — one of his smallest ships, the pinnace and two longboats, bearing thirty-five armed men, with their provisions and ammunition. The two larger vessels and their crews were left in the harbour of St. Croix, protected by poles and stakes driven into the water so as to form a barricade. The voyage presented few of the threatened difficulties ; the country on both sides of the Great River was rich and varied, covered with stately timber, and abounding in vines. The natives were everywhere friendly and hospitable, all that they possessed was THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 55 freely offered to the strangers. At a place called Hochelai, the Chief of the district visited the French, and showed much friendship and confidence, pre- senting Jacques Cartier with a girl seven years of age, one of his own children. On the 29th, the expedition was stopped in Lake St. Pierre by the shallows, not having hit upon the right channel. Jacques Cartier took the resolution of leaving his larger vessels behind, and proceeding with his two boats ; he met with no further interrup- tion, and at length reached Hochelaga on the 2nd of October, accompanied by De Pontbriand, De la Pommeraye, and De Gozelle, three of his volunteers. The natives welcomed him with every demon- stration of joy and hospitality; above a thousand people, of all ages and sexes, came forth to meet the strangers, greeting them with affectionate kind- ness. Jacques Cartier, in return for their generous reception, bestowed presents of tin, beads, and other baubles upon all the women, and gave some knives to the men. He returned to pass the night in the boats, while the savages made great fires on the shore, and danced merrily all night long. The place where the French first landed was, probably, about eleven miles from the city of Hochelaga, below the rapid of St. Mary. On the day after his arrival Jacques Cartier proceeded to the town ; his volunteers, and some others of his followers, accompanied him, arrayed in full dress ; three of the natives undertook to guide them on their way. The road was well beaten, and 56 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. bore evidence of being much frequented ; the country through which it passed was exceedingly rich and fertile. Hochelaga stood in the midst of great fields of Indian corn ; it was of a circular form, containing about fifty large huts, each fifty paces long and from fourteen to fifteen wide, all built in the shape of tunnels, formed of wood, and covered with birch bark ; the dwellings were divided into several rooms, surrounding an open court in the centre, where the fires burned. Three rows of palisades encircled the town, with only one entrance ; above the gate, and over the whole length of the outer ring of defence there was a gallery, approached by flights of steps, and plentifully provided with stones and other missiles to resist attack. This was a place of considerable importance even in those remote days, as the capital of a great extent of country, and as having eight or ten villages subject to its sway. The inhabitants spoke the language of the great Huron nation, and were more advanced in civilisa- tion than any of their neighbours : unlike other tribes, they cultivated the ground, and remained stationary. The French were well received by the people of Hochelaga ; they made presents, the Indians gave fetes; their fire-arms, trumpets, and other warlike equipments filled the minds of their simple hosts with wonder and admiration, and their beards and clothing excited a curiosity which the difficulties of an unknown language prevented from being satisfied. So great was the veneration for the white men that the Chief of the town, and many of the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 57 maimed, sick and infirm came to Jacques Cartier, intreating* him, by expressive signs, to cure their ills. The pious Frenchman disclaim,ed any supernatural power, but he read aloud part of the Gospel of St. John, made the sign of the cross over the sufferers, and presented them with chaplets and other holy symbols ; he then prayed earnestly that the poor savages might be freed from the night of ignorance and infidelity. The Indians regarded these acts and words with deep gratitude and respectful admiration. Three miles from Hochelaga, there was a lofty hill, well tilled and very fertile ;^ thither Jacques Cartier bent his way after having examined the town. From the summit he saw the river and the country for thirty leagues around, a scene of singular beauty. To this hill he gave the name •"' " In mezzo di quelle campagnc, e posta la terra d'Hochelaga appresso e congiunta con una montagna coltivata tutta attorno o molto fertile, sopra la qual si vede molto lontano. Noi la ehiamammo il Monte Regal Pareechi uomini e donne ci vennero a condur e menar sopra la montagna, qui dinanzi detta, la qual ehiamammo Monte Regal, distante da detto luogo poco manco d'un miglio, sopra la quale esscndo noi, vedemmo e avemmo notitia di piu di trenta leghe attorno di quella, c verso la p^rte di tramontana si vede una continuazione di montagne, li quali corrono avante e ponente, c altra tante verso il mezzo giorno, fra le quali montagna e la terra, piu bella che sia possibile a veder." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn, iii., pp. 447, 448. " Cartier donna lo nom de Mont Royal a la montagne au pied do laqucllc ctoit la bourgade do Hochelaga. II dccouvrit de hi une grande ctenduc de pays dont la vue Ic charma, ct avec raison, car il en est peu au monde dc plus beau ct de meilleur." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 20. 58 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, of Mont Royal ; since extended to the large and fertile island on which it stands and to the city below. Time has now swept away every trace of Hochelaga : on its site the modern capital of Canada has arisen; 50,000 people of FAiropean race, and stately buildings of carved stone, replace the simple Indians and the huts of the ancient town. Jacques Cartier having made his observations returned to the boats attended by a great concourse, when any of his men appeared fatigued with their journey the kind Indians carried them on their shoulders. This short stay of the French seemed to sadden and displease these hospitable people, and on the departure of the boats they followed their course for some distance along the banks of the river. On the 4th of October Jacques Cartier reached the shallows where the pinnace had been left, he resumed his course the following day, and arrived at St. Croix on the 11th of the same month. The men who had remained at St. Croix had busied themselves during their leader's absence, in strengthening their position so as to secure it against surprise, a wise precaution under any circumstances among a savage people, but, especially in the neigh- bourhood of a populous town, the residence of a chief Avhose friendship they could not but distrust, in spite of his apparent hospitality. The day after Jacques Cartier's arrival, Donnacona came to bid him welcome, and intreated him to visit Stadacona. He accepted the invitation, and THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 59 proceeded with his volunteers and fifty sailors to the village, about three miles from where the ships lay. As they journeyed on, they observed that the houses were well provided and stored for the coming winter, and the country tilled in a manner showing that the inhabitants were not ignorant of agriculture ; thus they formed, on the whole, a favour- able impression of the docility and intelligence of the Indians during this expedition. When the awful and unexpected severity of the winter set in, the French were unprovided with necessary clothing and proper provisions ; the scurvy attacked them, and by the month of March twenty- five were dead, and nearly all were infected ; the remainder would probably have also perished, but that when Jacques Cartier was himself attacked with the dreadful disease, the Indians revealed to him the secret of its cure : this was the decoction of the leaf and bark of a certain tree, which proved so excellent a remedy, that in a few days all were restored to health.^ Jacques Cartier, on the 21st of April, was first led to suspect the friendship of the natives from seeing a number of strong and active young men make their appearance in the neighbouring town; these Avere probably the warriors of the tribe, who had just then returned from the hunting grounds where they had ' •' This tree is supposed to have been the Spruce Fir, Pmus Cana- densis. It is called ' Ameda' by the natives. Spruce-beer is known to be a powerful anti-scorbutic." — Champlain, Part i., p. 124. Charlevoix calls the tree, Epmette Blanche. 60 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. passed the winter, but there is now no reason to suppose that their presence indicated any hostihty. However Jacques Cartier, fearing treachery, deter- mined to anticipate it. He had ah-eady arranged to depart for France. On the 3rd of May he seized the chief, the interpreters, and two other Indians to pre- sent them to Francis I. : as some amends for this cruel and flagrant violation of hospitality, he treated his prisoners with great kindness ; they soon became satisfied with their fate. On the 6th of May he made sail for Europe, and after having encountered some difficulties and delays, arrived safely at St. Malo the 8th of July, 1536. The result of Jacques Cartier's expedition was not encouraging to the spirit of enterprise in France; no mines had been discovered,^ no rare and valuable ^ Any information given by tlie natives as to the existence of mines was vague and unsatisfactory. " Poscia ci mostrarono con segni, che passate dette tre cadute si poteva navigar per detto flume il spazio di tre lune : — noi pensammo che quelle sia il flume che passa per il passe dl Saguenay, e senza che li facessimo dimanda presero la catena del subiotto del capitano che era d'argento, e il manico del pugnale di uno de nostre compagni marinari, qual era d' ottonc giallo quanto 1' oro, e ci mostrarono che queilo veniva di sopra di detto flume. . . II capitan mostro loro del rame rosso, qual chiamano Caignetadze dimostrandoll con segni voltandosi verso detto paese li dimandava se veniva da quelle parti, e eglino cominciarono a crollar il capo, volendo dir no, ma ben ne significarono che veniva da Saguenay. " Pill ci hanno detto e fatto intendere, che in quel paese di Saguenay sono genti vestite di drappi come noi, . . . e che hanno gran quantita d' oro e rame rosso . . . e che gli uomini e donne di quella terra sono vestite di pelli come loro, noi li dimandammo se ci e oro e rame rosso, ci risposero di si. lo penso che questo luogo sia verso la Florida per quanto ho potuto intendere dalH loro segni c indicij." — J. Cartier, in Ramusio, torn. iii. pp. 448 — 450. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 61 productions found.^ The miserable state to which the adventurers had been reduced by the rigorous climate and loathsome diseases, the privations they had endured, the poverty of their condition, were suf- ficient to cool the ardour of those who might other- wise have wished to follow up their discoveries. But happily for the cause of civilisation some of those powerful in France judged more favourably of Jacques Cartier's reports, and were not to be disheartened by the unsuccessful issue of one under- taking; the dominion over such a vast extent of country, with fertile soil and healthy climate, inha- bited by a docile and hospitable people, was too great an object to be lightly abandoned. The presence of Donnacona, the Indian Chief, tended to keep alive an interest in the land whence he had come; as soon as he could render himself intelligible ' The only valuable the natives seemed to have in their possession was a substance called esurgny, white as snow, of which they made beads and wore them about their necks. This they looked upon as the most precious gift they could bestow on the white men. The mode in which it was prepared is said by Cartier to be the following : — When any one was adjudged to death for a crime, or when their enemies are taken in war, having first slain the person, they make long gashes over the whole of the body, and sink it to the bottom of the river in a certain place, where the esurgny abounds. After re- maining ten or twelve hours, the feody is drawn up and the esurgny or cornibotz is found in the gashes. These necklaces of beads the French found had the power to stop bleeding at the nose. It is sup- posed that in the aboA^c account the French misunderstood the natives or were imposed upon by them ; and there is no doubt that the " valuable substance " described by Cartier was the Indian Wampum. 62 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. ill the French language, he confirmed all that had been said of the salubrity, beauty, and richness of his native country. The pious Jacques Cartier most of all strove to impress upon the king the glory and merit of extending the blessed knowledge of a Saviour to the dark and hopeless heathens of the west; a deed well worthy of the prince who bore the title of Most Christian King, and Eldest Son of the Church. Jean Francois de la Roque, Lord of Roberval, a gentleman of Picardy, was the most earnest and energetic of those who desired to colonise the lands discovered by Jacques Cartier ; he bore a high repu- tation in his own province, and was favoured by the friendship of the king. With these advantages he found little difficulty in obtaining a commission to command an expedition to North America ; the title and authority of lieutenant-general and viceroy was conferred upon him ; his rule to extend over Canada, Hochelaga, Saguenay, Newfoundland, Belle Isle, Car- pon, Labrador, La Grand Baye, and Baccalaos, with the delegated rights and powers of the crown. This patent was dated 15th of January, 1540. Jacques Cartier was named second in command. The orders to the leaders of the expedition enjoined them to dis- cover more than had been hitherto accomplished, and if possible to reach the country of Saguenay, where from some reports of the Indians, they still hoped to find mines of gold and silver. The port of St. Malo was again chosen for the fitting out of the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, 63 expedition : the king furnished a sum of money to defray the expenses.^ Jacques Cartier exerted himself vigorously in preparing the little fleet for the voyage, and awaited the arrival of his Chief with the necessary arms, stores, and ammunition ; Roberval was meanwhile engaged at Honfleur in fitting out two other vessels at his own cost, and being urged to hasten by the king, he gave his lieutenant orders to start at once, with full authority to act as if he himself were present. He also promised to follow from Honfleur with all the required supplies. Jacques Cartier sailed on the 23rd of May, 1541, having provisioned his fleet for two years. Storms and adverse winds dispersed the ships for some time, but in about a month they all met again on the coast of New- foundland, where they hoped Roberval would join them. They awaited his coming for some weeks, but at length proceeded without him to the St. Lawrence ; on the 23rd of August they reached their old station near the magnificent headland of Quebec. Donnacona's successor as Chief of the Indians at Stadacona, came in state to welcome the French on their return, and to inquire after his absent country- men. They told him of the Chief's death, but con- cealed the fate of the other Indians, stating that they were enjoying great honour and happiness in France and would not return to their own country. The savages displayed no symptoms of anger, surprise ' See Appendix, No. XIV. 64 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. or distrust at this news, their countenances exhibited the same impassive calm, their manners the same quiet dignity as ever, but from that hour their hearts were changed, hatred and hostility took the place of admiration and respect, and a sad foreboding of their approaching destruction darkened their simple minds. Henceforth the French were hindered and molested by the inhabitants of Stadacona to such an extent, that it was deemed advisable to seek another settlement for the winter. Jacques Cartier chose his new position at the mouth of a small river three leagues higher on the St. Lawrence f here he laid up some of his vessels, under the protection of two forts, one on a level with the water, the other on the summit of an overhanging cliff ; these strong- holds communicated with each other by steps cut in the solid rock ; he gave the name of Charlesbourg Royal to his new station. The two remaining " The precise spot on which the upper fort of Jacques Cartier was built, afterwards enlarged by Roberval, has been fixed by an inge- nious gentleman at Quebec, at the top of Cape Rouge Height, a short distance from the handsome villa of Mr. Atkinson. A few months ago Mr. Atkinson's workmen in levelHng the lawn in front of the house, and close to the point of Cape Rouge Height, found beneath the surface some loose stones which had apparently been the founda- tions of some building or fortification. Among these stones were found several iron balls of difiierent sizes, adapted to the caUbre of the ship guns used at the period of Jacques Cartier's and Roberval's visit. Upon the whole, the evidence of the presence of the French at Cape Rouge may be considered as conclusive. Nor is there any good reason to doubt that Roberval took up his quarters in the part which Jacques Cartier had left. — Picture of Quebec, pp. 62—469. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 05 vessels of the fleet he sent back to France, with letters to the king, stating that Roberval had not yet arrived. Under the impression that the country of the Saguenay — the land of fabled wealth, could be reached by pursuing the line of the St. Lawrence, Jacques Cartier set forth to explore the rapids above Hochelaga on the 7th of September. The season 1541 being so far advanced he only undertook this expe- dition with a view to being better acquainted with the route, and to being provided with all necessary preparations for a more extensive exploration in the spring. In passing up the great river he renewed acquaintance with the friendly and hospitable chief of Hochelai, and there left two boys under charge of the Indians to learn the language. On the 11th he reached the sault or rapids above Hochelaga, where the progress of the boats was arrested by the force of the stream, he then landed and made his way to the second rapid. The natives gave him to under- stand that above the next sault there lay a great lake; Cartier having obtained this information, returned to where he had left the boats ; about 400 Indians had assembled and met him with demon- strations of friendship, he received their good offices and made them presents in return, but still regarded them with distrust on account of their unusual numbers. Having gained as much information as he could, he set out on his return to Charlesbourg Royal — his winter-quarters. The chief was absent when Jacques Cartier stopped at Hochelai on A'OL. I. F n() THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. descending the river ; he had gone to Stadacona to hold counsel with the natives of that district for the destruction of the white men. On arriving at Charlesbourg Royal, Jacques Cartier found con- firmation of his suspicions against the Indians ; they now avoided the French and never approached the ships with their usual offerings of fish and other provisions : a great number of men had also assem- bled at Stadacona. He accordingly made every possible preparation for defence in the forts, and took due precautions against a surprise. There are no records extant of the events of this winter in Canada, but it is probable that no serious encounter took place with the natives ; the French, however, must have suffered severely from the confinement rendered necessary by their perilous position, as well as from want of the provisions and supplies which the bitter climate made requisite. Roberval, though high-minded and enterprising, failed in his engagements with Jacques Cartier : he did not follow his adventurous lieutenant with the necessary and promised supplies till the spring of 1542 the succeeding year. On the 16th of April, 1542, he at length sailed from Rochelle with three large ves- sels, equipped principally at the royal cost. Two hundred persons accompanied him, some of them being gentlemen of condition, others men and women purposing to become settlers in the new world. Jean Alphonse, an experienced navigator of Saintonge, by birth a Portuguese, was pilot of the expedition. After a very tedious voyage, they entered the road THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 67 of St. John's, Newfoundland, on the 8th of June, where they found no fewer than seventeen vessels engaged in the inexhaustible fisheries of those waters. While Roberval indulged in a brief repose at this place, the unwelcome appearance of Jacques Cartier filled him with disappointment and surprise. The lieutenant gave the hostility of the savages and the weakness of his force as reasons for having aban- doned the settlement where he had passed the winter. He still, however, spoke favourably of the richness and fertility of the country, and gladdened the eyes of the adventurers by the sight of a sub- stance that resembled gold ore, and crystals that they fancied were diamonds, found on the bold head- land of Quebec. But, despite these flattering reports and promising specimens, Jacques Cartier and his followers could not be induced by entreaties or per- suasions to return. The hardships and dangers of the last terrible winter were too fresh in memory, and too keenly felt, to be again braved. They deemed their portion of the contract already com- plete, and the love of their native land overcame the spirit of adventure, Avhich had been weakened if not quenched, by recent disappointment and suffering. To avoid the chance of an open rupture with Roberval, the lieutenant silently weighed anchor during the night, and made all sail for France. This inglorious withdrawal from the enterprise para- lysed Roberval's power, and deferred the permanent settlement of Canada for generations then unborn. f2 68 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. Jacques Cartier died soon after his return to Europe.^ Having sacrificed his fortune in the pursuit of dis- covery, his heirs were granted an exclusive privilege of trade to Canada for twelve years, in consideration of his sacrifices for the public good ; but this gift was revoked four months after it was bestowed. Roberval determined to proceed on his expedition, although deprived of the powerful assistance and valuable experience of his lieutenant. He sailed from Newfoundland for Canada, and reached Cap Rouge, the place where Jacques Cartier had win- 1542 tered, before the end of June, 1542. He immediately fortified himself there, as the situation best adapted for defence against hostility, and for commanding the navigation of the Great River. Very little is known of Roberval's proceedings during the remain- der of that year and the following w^inter. The natives do not appear to have molested the new settlers ; but no progress whatever was made towards a permanent establishment. During the intense cold the scurvy caused fearful mischief among the French; no fewer than fifty perished from that dreadful malady during the winter. Demoralised by misery and idle- ness, the little colony became turbulent and lawless ; ^ Jacques Cartier was born at St. Malo, about 1500. The day of his birth cannot be discovered, nor the time and place of his death. Most probably he finished his useful life at St. Malo ; for we find, under the date of the 29th November, 1549, that the celebrated navigator with his wife, Catherine des Granges, founded an obit in the Cathedral of St. Malo, assigning the sum of four francs for that purpose. The mortuary registers of St. Malo make no mention of his death, nor is there any tradition on the subject. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 69 and Roberval was obliged to resort to extreme se- verity of punishment before quiet and discipline were re-established. Towards the close of April the ice broke up, and released the French from their weary and painful captivity ; on the 5th of June, Roberval set forth 1543 from Cap Rouge to explore the province of Sa- guenay, leaving thirty men and an officer to protect their winter quarters : this expedition produced no results, and was attended with the loss of one of the boats and eight men. In the mean time the pilot, Jean Alphonse, was dispatched to examine the coasts north of Newfoundland, in hopes of discover- ing a passage to the East Indies ; he reached the fifty-second degree of latitude and then abandoned the enterprise ; on returning to Europe he published a narrative of Roberval's expedition, and liis own voyage, with a tolerably accurate description of the River St. Lawrence, and its navigation upwards from the Gulf Roberval reached France in 1543; the war between Francis I. and the Emperor Charles V. for some years occupied his ardent spirit ; and supplied him with new occasions for distinction, till the death of the king, his patron and friend, in 1547. In the year 1549 he collected some adventurous 1549 men, and accompanied by his brave brother, Achille, sailed once again for Canada ; but none of this gallant band Avere ever heard of more. Thus for many a 3^ear were swallowed up in the stormy Atlantic, all the bright hopes of founding a new 70 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. nation in America:* since these daring men had failed, none others might expect to be successful. In the reign of Henry 11. attention was directed towards Brazil ; splendid accounts of its wealth and fertility were brought home by some French navi- gators who had visited that distant land. The admiral Gaspard de Coligni was the first to press upon the king the importance of obtaining a footing in South America, and dividing the magnificent prize with the Portuguese monarch. This celebrated man was convinced that an extensive system of colonisa- tion was necessary for the glory and tranquillity of France. He purposed that the settlement in the New World should be founded exclusively by persons * The name of America was first given to the New World in 1507. " L'opinion anciennement emise et encore tres repandue que Vespuce, dans rexercice de sou emploi dePiloto mayor, et charge de corriger les cartes hydrographiques de 1508 a 1512, ait profite de sa position pour appeler de son nom le Nouveau Monde, n'a aucun fondement. La denomination d'Amerique a ete proposee loin de Seville, en Lor- raine, en 1507, une annee avant la creation de I'office d'un Piloto mayor de Indias. Les Mappe Mondes qui portent le nom d'Amerique n'ont paru que 8 ou 10 ans apres la mort de Vespuce, et dans des pays sur lequels ni lui ni ses parents n'exergaient aucune influence. II est probable que Vespuce n'a jamais su quelle dangereuse gloire ou lui preparoit a Saint Die, dans un petit endroit, situe au pied des Vosges, et dont vi-aisembablement le nom meme lui etoit inconnu. Jusqu' h. I'epoque de sa mort, le mot Amerique, employe comme denomination dun continent ne s'est trouve impi'ime que dans deux seuls ouvrages, dans la Cosmographise Introductio de Martin Waldsee- miiller, et dans le Globus Mundi (Argentor, 1509). On n'a jusqu'ici aucun rapport direct de Waldseemiiller imprimateur de Saint Die, avec le navigateur Florentin." — Humboldt's Geogr. du Nouveau Continent, vol. v., p. 206. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 71 holding that reformed faith to which he was so deeply attached, and thus would be provided a refuge for those driven from France by religious proscrip- tion and persecution. It is believed that Cohgni's magnificent scheme comprehended tlie possession of the St. Lawrence and the Mississippi, gradually colo- nising the banks of these great rivers into the depths of the continent, till the whole of North America, from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico, should be hemmed in by this gigantic line of French outposts. However, the first proposition was to establish a colony on the coast of Brazil ; the king approved the project, and Durand de ViUegagnon, 1555 vice-admiral of Brittany, was selected to command, in 1555 ; the expedition, however, entirely failed owing to religious differences. Under the reigns of Francis IL and Charles IX., while France was convulsed with civil war, America seemed altogether forgotten. But Coligni availed himself of a brief interval of calm to turn attention once more to the Western World. He this time bethought himself of that country to which Ponce de Leon had given the name of Florida, from the exuberant productions of the soil, and the beauty of the scenery and climate. The River Mississippi ^ had been discovered by Ferdinand de Soto,^ about the time of Jacques Cartier's last * Nemccsi-Sipu, Fish River, Mccsisip by corruption. This river is called Cucagna by Garcilasso. *■ For the romantic details of Ferdinand de Soto's perilous enter- prise, sec Vega Garcilasso de Florida del Ynca, b. i., ch. iii. iv., 72 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. voyage, 1543 ; consequently the Spaniards had this additional claim upon the territory, which, they affirmed, they had visited in 1512, twelve years before the date of Verazzano's voyage in 1524. How- ever, the claims and rights of the different European nations upon the American continent, were not then of sufficient strength to prevent each state from pur- suing its own views of occupation. Cohgni obtained permission from Charles IX. to attempt the estab- lishment of a colony in Florida,' about the year 1562. The king was the more readily induced to approve of this enterprise, as he hoped that it would occupy the turbulent spirits of the Huguenots, many of them his bitter enemies, and elements of discord in his dominions. On the 18th of February, 1562 1562, Jean de Ribaut, a zealous Protestant, sailed from Dieppe, with two vessels and a picked crew ; many volunteers, including some gentlemen of condi- tion, followed his fortunes. He landed on the coast of Florida, near St. Mary's river, where he established Herrera, Dec. VI., b. vli., cb. ix. ; Purcbas, 4, 1532 ; " Purchas, his Pilgrimage, " otberwise called " Hackluytus Postbumus ; " a volu- minous compilation by a chaplain of Archbishop Abbot's, designed to comprise whatever had been related concerning the religion of all nations, from the earliest times. — Miss Aikin's Charles I., vol. i., p. 39. ' " La colonie Frangaise etabhe sous Charles IX. comprenoit la partie meridionnale de la Caroline Angloise, la Nouvelle Georgie, d'aujourd'hui (1740) San Matteo, appelle par Laudonniere Caroline en I'honneur du roi Charles, St. Augustin, et tout ce queles Espagnols ont sur cette cote jusqu'au Cap Frangois, n'a jamais etc appellee autreraent que la Floride Fran(.aise, ou la Nouvelle France, ou la France Occidentale. " — Charlevoix, torn, vi., p. 383. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 73 a settlement and built a fort. Two years afterwards, Coligni sent out a reinforcement under the command of Rene de Laudonniere ; this was the only portion of the admiral's great scheme ever carried into effect ; when he fell in the awful massacre of Saint Bartholomew, his magnificent project was aban- doned. After six years of fierce struggle with the 1558 Spaniards the survivors of this little colony returned to France.^ « See Appendix, Nos. XV., XVI. 74 CHAPTER III. Little or no effort was made to colonise any part of Canada for nearly fifty years after the loss of Roberval, but the Huguenots of France did not forget that hope of a refuge from religious persecu- tion which their great leader Coligiii had excited in their breasts. Several of the leaders of subsequent expeditions of trade and discovery to Canada and Acadia were Calvinists, until 1627, when Champlain, zealous for the Romish faith, procured a decree forbidding the free exercise of the reformed religion in French America. Although the French seemed to have renounced all plan of settlement in America by the evacuation of Florida, the fishermen of Normandy and Brittany still plied their calling on the Great Bank and along the stormy shores of Newfoundland, and up the Gulf and river of St. Lawrence. By degrees they began to trade with the natives, and soon the greater gains and easier life of this new pursuit transformed many of these hardy sailors into merchants. When, after fifty years of civil strife, the strong and wise.swayof HenrylV. restored rest to troubled THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 75 France, the spirit of discovery again arose. The Marquis de la Roche, a Breton gentleman, obtained from the king, in 1598, a patent granting the same 1598 powers that Roberval had possessed. He speedily armed a vessel, and sailed for Nova Scotia in the same year, accompanied by a skilful Norman pilot named Chedotel. He first reached Sable Island, where he left forty miserable wretches, convicts drawn from the prisons of France, till he might discover some favourable situation for the intended settlement, and make a survey of the neighbouring coasts. Whether La Roche ever reached the con- tinent of America remains unknown, but he certainly returned to France, leaving the unhappy prisoners upon Sable Island, to a fate more dreadful than even the dungeons or gallies of France could threaten. After seven years of dire suffering twelve of these unfortunates were found alive, an expedition having been tardily sent to seek them by the king. When they arrived in France they became objects of great curiosity ; in consideration of such unheard-of suffering their former crimes were pardoned, a sum of money was given to each, and the valuable furs collected during their dreary imprisonment, but fraudulently seized by the captain of the ship in which they were brought home, were allowed to their use. In the meantime the Marquis de la Roche, who had so cruelly abandoned these men to their fate, harassed by law-suits, overwhelmed with vexations, and ruined in fortune by the failure of his expedition, died miserably of a broken heart. 76 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. The misfortunes and ruin of the Marquis de la Roche did not stifle the spirit of commercial enter- prise which the success of the fur trade had excited. Private adventurers, unprotected by any especial privilege, began to barter for the rich peltries of IGOO the Canadian hunters. A Avealthy merchant of St. Malo, named Pontgrave, was the boldest and most successful of these traders ; he made several voyages to Tadoussac, at the mouth of the Saguenay, bringing back each time a rich cargo of rare and valuable furs. He saw that this commerce Avould open to him a field of vast wealth, could he succeed in obtaining an exclusive privilege to enjoy its advantages, and managed to induce Chauvin, a captain in the navy, to apply to the king for powers such as de la Roche had possessed : the application was successful, a patent was granted to Chauvin, and 1602 Pontgrave admitted to partnership. It was, how- ever, in vain that they attempted to establish a trading post at Tadoussac : ^ after having made two ' " Parceque les relations et les voyageurs parloient beaucoup de Tadoussac, les Geographes ont suppose que e'e'tait une ville, mais il n'y a jamais eu qu'une maison frangaise, et quelques cabanues de sauvages, qui y venoient au terns de la traite, et qui emportoient ensuite leurs cabannes ; comme on fait les loges d'une foire. II est vrai que ce port a ete lontems I'abord de toutes les nations sauvages du nord et de Test ; que les Frangois s'y rendoient des que la navi- gation etoit libre ; soit de France, soit du Canada ; que les mission- naires profitoient de I'occasion, et y venoient uegocier pour le ciel. . . . Au reste Tadoussac est un bon port, et on m'a assure que vingt cinq vaisseaux de guerre y pouvoient etre a I'abri de tons les vents, que I'aucrage y est sur, et que I'entree en est facile." — Charlevoix, torn. V. p. 96, 1721. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 77 voyages thither without reahsing their sanguine expectations of gain, Chauvin died while once more preparing to try his fortune. At this time the great object of colonisation was completely forgotten in the eager pursuit of the fur trade, till de Chatte, the governor of Dieppe, who succeeded to the privileges of Chauvin, founded a company of merchants at Rouen, for the further development of the resources of Canada. An 1G03 armament was fitted out under the command of the experienced Pontgrave; he was commissioned by the king to make further discoveries in the St. Lawrence, and to establish a settlement upon some suitable position on the coast. Samuel de Champlain, "Tadoussac, 140 miles below Quebec, is a post belonging to the Hudson Bay Company, and is the residence of one of its partners and an agent. They alone are allowed to trade with the Indians in the interior. At Tadoussac is a Roman Catholic chapel, a store and warehouse, and some eight or ten dwellings. Here is erected a flag- staff, surrounded by several pieces of cannon, on an eminence elevated about fifty feet, and overlooking the inner warehouse, where is a suflacient depth of water to float the largest vessels. This place was early settled by the French, who are said to have here erected the first dwelling built of stone and mortar in Canada, and the remains of it are still to be seen. The view is exceedingly picturesque from this point. The southern shore of the St. Lawrence may be traced even with the naked eye for many a league ; the undulating line of swow- white cottages stretching far away to the east and west ; while the scene is rendered gay and animated by the frequent passage of the merchant vessel ploughing its way towards the port of Quebec, or hurrying upon the descending tide to the gulf ; while, from the summit of the hill upon which Tadoussac stands, the sublime and impressive scenery of the Saguenay rises to view." — Picturesque Tourist, p. 267, (New York, 1844). 78 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. a captain in the navy, accepted a command in this expedition at the request of de Chatte ; he was a native of Saintonge, and had lately returned to France from the West Indies, where he had gained a high name for boldness and skill. Under the direction of this wise and energetic man the first successful efforts were made to found a permanent settlement in the magnificent province of Canada, and the stain of the errors and disasters of more than seventy years, was at length wiped away. Pontgrave and Champlain sailed for the St. 1603 Lawrence in 1603. They remained a short time at Tadoussac, where they left their ships, then trusting themselves to a small open boat with only five sailors, they boldly pushed up the great river to the sault St. Louis, where Jacques Cartier had reached many years before. By this time Hochelaga, the ancient Lidian city, had, from some unknown cause, sunk into such insignificance, that the adventurers did not even notice it, nor deem it worthy of a visit. But they anchored for a time under the shade of the magnificent headland of Quebec. On the return of the expedition to France, Champlain found to his deep regret that de Chatte, the worthy and powerful patron of the undertaking, had died during his absence : Pierre du Guast, sieur de Monts, had succeeded to the powers and privileges of the deceased, with even a more extensive commission. De Monts was a Calvinist, and had obtained from the king the freedom of religious faith for himself and his followers in America, but under the engage- THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 79 ment that the Roman Catholic worship should be established among the natives. Even his opponents admitted the honesty and patriotism of his character,^ and bore witness to his courage and ability, he was nevertheless unsuccessful; many of those under his command failed in their duty, and the jealousy, excited by his exclusive privileges and obnoxious doctrines,^ involved him in ruinous embarrassments. The trading company established by de Chatte was continued and increased by his successor. With this additional aid de Monts was enabled to fit out - '* The colony that was sent to Canada this year was among the numher of those things that had not my approbation ; there was no kind of riches to he expected from all those countries of the New World which are beyond the fortieth degree of latitude. His Majesty gave the conduct of this expedition to the Sieur de Monts." — Memoirs of Sully, h. xvi., p. 241, Eng. trans. ^ The pious Romanist, Champlain, thus details the inconveniences caused by the different creeds of the Frenchmen composing the expedition of de Monts. "II se trouva quelque chose k redire en cette entreprise, qui est en ce que deux religions contraires ne font jamais un grand fruit pour la gloire de Dieu parmi les infideles que Ton veut convertir, J'ai vu le ministre et notre cure s'entre battre a coups de poing, sur le differend de la religion. Je ne sgais pas qui etoit le plus vaillant et qui donnoit le meilleur coup, mas je sgais tres bien que le ministre se plaignoit quelquefois au Sieur de Monts d 'avoir cte battue, et vuidoit en cette fagon les points de contro- versie. Je vous laisse a penser si cela etoit beau a voir ; les sauvages etoient tantot d'une partie, tantot d'une autre, et les Frangois male's selon leurs diverses croyances, disoit pis que pendre de I'une et de 1 'autre religion, quoique le Sieur de Monts y apportat la paix le plus qu'il pouvoit." — Voyages de la Nouvelle France Occidentale, dite Canada, /aits par le Sieur de Champlain a Paris, 16.32. 80 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. a more complete armament than had ever hitherto been engaged in Canadian commerce. He sailed 1G04 from Havre on the 7th of March, 1604, with four vessels. Of these, two under his immediate com- mand were destined for Acadia. Champlain, Pout- rincourt, and many other volunteers, embarked their fortunes with him, purposing to cast their future lot in the New World. A third vessel was dispatched under Pontgrave to the Strait of Canso, to protect the exclusive trading privileges of the Company. The fourth steered for Tadoussac, to barter for the rich furs brought by the Indian hunters from the dreary wilds of the Saguenay. On the 6th of May de Monts reached a harbour on the coast of Acadia, where he seized and confis- cated an English vessel, in vindication of his exclusive privileges. Thence he sailed to the island of St. Croix, where he landed his people, and established himself for the winter. In the spring of 1605 he hastened to leave this settlement, where the want of wood and fresh water, and the terrible ravages of the scurvy, had disheartened and diminished the number of his followers. In the mean time 1605 Champlain had discovered and named Port Royal, now Annapolis, a situation which presented many natural advantages. De Monts removed the estab- lishment thither, and erected a fort, appointing Pontgrave to its command. Soon afterwards he bestowed Port Royal and a large extent of the neigh- bouring country upon de Poutrincourt, and the grant was ultimately confirmed by letters patent THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 81 from the king. This was the first concession of land made in North America since its discovery. When de Monts returned to France in 1(305, he found that enemies had been busily and successfully at work in destroying his influence at court. Com- plaints of the injustice of his exclusive privileges poured in from all the ports in the kingdom. It was urged that he had interfered with and thwarted the fisheries, under the pretence of securing the sole right of trading with the Indian hunters. These statements were hearkened to by the king, and all the Sieur's privileges were revoked. De Monts bore up bravely against this disaster. He entered into a new engagement with de Poutrincourt, who had followed him to France, and dispatched a vessel from Rochelle on the 13th of May to succour the colony in Acadia. The voyage was unusually pro- tracted, and the settlers at Port Royal, at length reduced to great extremities, feared that they had been abandoned to their fate. The wise and ener- getic Pontgrave did all that man could do to reassure them ; but finally, their supplies being completely exhausted, he was constrained to yield to the general wish, and embark his people for France. He had scarcely sailed, however, when he heard of the arrival of Poutrincourt and the long-desired sup- plies. He then immediately returned to Port Royal, where he found his chief already landed. Under able and judicious management* the colony increased * De Poutrincourt had been accompanied, in his last voyage from France, by Marc Lescarbot, well known as one of the best historians VOL. I. G 82 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. and prospered until 1614, when it was attacked and broken up by Sir Samuel Argal with a Virginian force.^ The enemies of de Monts did not relax in their of the early French colonists. His Memoirs and himself are thus described by Charlevoix : — " Un avocat de Paris, nomme Marc L'Escarbot, homme d'espi-it et fort attache a M. de Poutrincourt, avoit eu la curiosite de voir le Nouveau Monde. II animoit les uns, il picquoit les autres d'honneur, il se faisoit aimer de tons, et ne s'epargnoit lui-meme en rien. II inventoit tons les jours quelque chose de nouveau pour I'utilite publique, et jamais on ne comprit mieux de quelle ressource peut etre dans un uouvel etablissement, un esprit cultive par I'etude. . . .C'est a cet avocat, que nous sommes redevable des meiUeurs memoires que nous ayons de ce qui s'est passe sous ses yeux. On y voit un auteur exact, judicieux, et un homme, qui eut ete aussi capable d'etablir une colonie que d'en ecrire une histoire." (Charlevoix, vol. i., p. 185.) The title of L'Escarbot's work is : " Histoire de la Nouvelle France, par Marc L'Escarbot, Avocat en Parlement, temoin ocidaire d'une partie des choses y recitees : a. Paris, 1609." 5 " Argall se fondait sur une concession de Jacques I., qui avait permis k ses sujets de s'etablir jusqu'au quarante cinq degres, et il crut poiivoir profiter de la foiblcsse des Frangais pour les traitre en usurpateurs. ... Si Poutrincom-t avoit ete dans son fort avec trente hommes bien armes, Argall n'auroit pas meme eu I'assurance de I'attaquer .... en deux heures de tems le feu consuma tout ce que les Frangais possedoient dans une colonie oii I'on avait deja depense plus de cent mille ecus. . . . Celui qui y perdit davantage, fut M. de Poutrincourt qui, depuis ce tems la ne sougea plus a I'Amerique. II rentra dans le service, ou il s'etait deja par plusieurs belles actions et raourut au lit d'honnem*." — Jean de Laet. In 1621, James I. conferred Acadia upon Sir William Alexander, who gave it the name of Nova Scotia. At the treaty of St. Germain- en-Laye, in 1632, it was restored to the French ; again taken by the English, it was again restored to France by the treaty of Breda, in 1667. In 1710, when Acadia was taken by General Nicholson, the English perceived its importance for their commerce. They obtained its formal and final cession at the treaty of Utrecht, 1713. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 83 efforts till he was deprived of his high commission. A very insufficient indemnity was granted for the great expenses he had incurred. Still he was not dis- heartened : in the following year, 1607, he obtained a renewal of his privileges for one year, on condition that he should plant a colony upon the banks of the St. Lawrence. The trading company did not lose 1607 confidence in their principal, although his courtly influence had been destroyed ; but their object was confined to the prosecution of the lucrative com- merce in furs, for which reason they ceased to interest themselves in Acadia, and turned their thoughts to the Great River of Canada, where they hoped to find a better field for their undertaking. They equipped two ships at Honfleur, under the command of Champlain and Pontgrave, to establish the fur trade at Tadoussac. De Monts remained in France, vainly endeavouring to obtain an extension of his patent. Despite his disappointments, he fitted out some vessels in the spring of 1608, with the assistance of the Company, and dispatched them to the River St. Lawrence on the 13th April, under the same command as before. Champlain reached Tadoussac on the 3rd of June ; his views were far more extended than those of a mere merchant ; even honest fame for himself, and in- 1608 crease of glory and power for his country, were, in his eyes, objects subordinate to the extension of the Catholic faith. After a brief stay, he ascended the Great River, examining the shore with minute care, to seek the most fitting place where the first foun- o4 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. dation of French empire might be laid. On the 3rd 1608 of Jnly, 1608, he reached Quebec, where, nearly three quarters of a century before, Jacques Cartier had passed the winter. This magnificent position was at once chosen by Champlain as the site of the future capital of Canada : centuries of experience have proved the wisdom of the selection ; admirably situated for purposes of war or commerce, and com- pletely commanding the navigation of the Great River, it stands the centre of a scene of beauty that can nowhere be surpassed. On the bold headland overlooking the waters of the basin, he commenced his work by felling the trees, and rooting up the wild vines and tangled under- wood fi-om the virgin soil. Some rude huts were speedily erected for shelter; spots around them were cultivated to test the fertility of the land ; this labour was repaid by abundant production. The first permanent work undertaken in the new settle- ment, was the erection of a solid building as a magazine for their provisions. A temporary bar- rack on the highest point of the position for the officers and men, was subsequently constructed. These preparations occupied the remainder of the summer. The first snow fell on the 18th of Novem- ber, but only remained on the ground for two days : in December it again returned, and the face of 1609 nature was covered till the end of April. From the time of Jacques Cartier, to the establishment of Champlain, and even to the present day, there has been no very decided amelioration of the severity of THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 85 the climate : indeed, some of the earliest records notice seasons milder than many of modern days. The town of Stadacona, like its prouder neigh- bour of Hochelaga, seems to have dwindled into insignificance since the time when it had been an object of such interest and suspicion to Jacques Cartier. Some Indians still lived in huts around Quebec, but in a state of poverty and destitution, very different from the condition of their ancestors. During the winter of 1608, they suffered dire extremities of famine; several came over from the southern shores of the river, miserably reduced by starvation, and scarcely able to drag along their feeble limbs, to seek aid from the strangers. Cham- plain relieved their necessities and treated them wdth politic kindness. The French suffered severely from the scurvy during this first winter of their residence. On the 18th of April, 1609, Champlain, accom- 1609 panied by two Frenchmen, ascended the Great River with a war-party of Canadian Indians. After a time turning southward up a tributary stream, he came to the shores of a large and beautiful lake, abounding with fish ; the shores and neighbouring forests shel- tered, in their undisturbed solitude, countless deer and other animals of the chase. To this splendid sheet of water he gave his own name, which it still bears. To the south and Avest rose huge snow- capped mountains, and in the fertile valleys below dwelt numbers of the fierce and hostile Iroquois. Champlain and his savage allies pushed on to the 86 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, furthest extremity of the lake, descended a rapid, and entered another smaller sheet of water, after- wards named St. Sacrement. On the shore they encountered 200 of the Iroquois Avarriors ; a battle ensued ; the skill and the astonishing weapons of the white men soon gave their Canadian allies a com- plete victory. Many prisoners were taken, and, in spite of Champlain's remonstrances, put to death with horrible and protracted tortures. The brave Frenchman returned to Quebec, and sailed for Europe in September, leaving Captain Pierre Chauvin, an experienced officer, in charge of the infant settle- ment. Henry IV. received Champlain with favour, and called him to an interview at Fontainebleau : ^ the king listened attentively to the report of the new colony, expressing great satisfaction at its suc- cessful foundation, and favourable promise. But the energetic de Monts, to whom so much of this success was due, could find no courtly aid : the renewal of his privilege was refused, and its duration had already expired. By the assistance of the Merchant Company, he fitted out two vessels in the spring of 1610, under the tried command of Champlain and Pontgrave : the first was destined for Quebec, with some artisans, settlers, and necessary supplies for the colony ; the second was commissioned to carry on the fur trade at Tadoussac. Champlain sailed from 1610 Honfleur on the 8th of April, and reached the mouth of the Saguenay in eighteen days, a passage which " " It was at this time that the name of New France was first given to Canada." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 232. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 87 even all the modern improvements in navigation have rarely enabled any one to surpass in rapidity. He soon hastened on to Quebec, where, to his great joy, he found the colonists contented and prosperous ; the virgin soil had abundantly repaid the labours of cultivation, and the natives had in no wise molested their dangerous visitors. He joined the neighbour- ing tribes of Algonquin and Montagnez Indians, during the summer, in an expedition against the Iroquois. Having penetrated the woody country beyond Sorel for some distance, they came upon a place where their enemies where entrenched; this they took, after a bloody resistance. Champlain and another Frenchman were slightly wounded in the encounter. In 1612 Champlain found it necessary to revisit 1612 France ; some powerful patron was wanted to for- ward the interests of the colony, and to provide the supplies and resources required for its extension. The Count de Soissons readily entered into his views, and delegated to him the authority of vice- roy, which had been conferred upon the Count.' Soissons died soon after, and the Prince of Conde became his successor. Champlain was wisely con- tinued in the command he had so long and ably held, but was delayed in France for some time by difficulties on the subject of commerce with the merchants of St. Malo. Champlain sailed again from St. Malo on the 6th ' Champlain, part i., ]). 231; Charlevoix, vol. i. p. 236. 88 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. of March, 1613, in a vessel commanded by Pont- grave, and anchored before Quebec on the 7th of 1613 May. He found the state of affah's at the settlement so satisfactory that his continued presence was unnecessary ; he, therefore, proceeded at once to Montreal, and after a short stay at that island, explored for some distance the course of the Ottawa, which there pours its vast flood into the main stream of the St. Lawrence. The white men were filled with wonder and admiration at the magnitude of this great tributary, the richness and beauty of its shores, the broad lakes and deep rapids, and the eternal forests, clothing mountain, plain, and valley for countless leagues around. As they proceeded they found no diminution in the volume of water ; and when they inquired of the wandering Indian for its source, he pointed to the north-west, and indi- cated that it lay in the unknown solitudes of ice and snow, to which his people had never reached. After this expedition Champlain returned with his com- panion Pontgrave to St. Malo, where they arrived in the end of August. Having engaged some wealthy merchants of St. Malo, Rouen, and Rochelle in an association for the support of the colony, through the assistance of the 1614 Prince of Conde, viceroy of New France, he obtained letters patent of incorporation for the Company. The temporal welfare of the settlement being thus placed upon a secure basis, Champlain, who was a zealous Catliolic, next devoted himself to obtain spiritual aid. By his entreaties four Recollets were THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 89 prevailed upon to undertake the mission. These were the first ^ ministers of religion settled in Canada. They reached Quebec in the beginning of April, 1615, accompanied by Champlain, who, however, at once 1615 proceeded to Montreal. ^ Seven or eight years before the arrival of the PP. Recollcts at Quebec, Roman Catholic missionaries had found their way to Nova Scotia. They were Jesuits. It was remarkable that Henry IV., whose life had been twice attempted by the Jesuits,* should have earnestly urged their establishment in America. When Port Royal was ceded to Poutrincourt by de Monts, the king intimated to him that it was time to think of the conversion of the savages, and that it was his desire that the Jesuits should be employed in this work. Charlevoix acknowledges that de Poutrincourt was " un fort honnete homme, et sincerement attache a la religion Catholique," — neverthe- less his prejudices against Jesuits were so strong, that " il etoit bien re'solu de ne les point mene au Port Royal." On various pretexts he evaded obeying the royal commands, and when, the year after, the Jesuits were sent out to him, at the expense of Madame de Gruer- cheville, and by the orders of the queen's mother, he rendered their stay at Port Royal as uncomfortable as was consistent with his noble and generous character, — vigilantly guarding against their acquiring any dangerous influence. His former prejudices could not have been lessened by the assassination of Henry IV. f The two Jesuits selected by P. Cotton, Henry IV. 's confessor, for missionary labours in Acadia, were P. Pierre Blast and P. Enemond Masse. They were taken prisoners at the time of Argall's descent on Acadia, 1614, and conveyed to England. — Charlevoix, tom. i., pp. 189, 216. * By Barriere in 1593 ; by Jean Chatel in 1594. He finally perished by the hand of Ravaillac, in 1610. See Sully's Memoirs, bb. vi., vii.; Cayet, Chron. Noven., b. v. ; Pere de Chalons, tom. iii., p. 245, quoted by Sully. f Henri s' etait montr^ bienveillant pour les Jesuites, encore que les parlemens et tons ceux qui tenoient, a la magistrature resscntoicnt plus de prevention contrc ces rcligieux que les Hugonots cux-memes .... Henri IV. fit abattre la pyramide qui avait e't(5 elevee en m^moire de 1' attentat de Jean Chatel contre lui, parce que r inscription qu' cllc portait inculpait les Je'suites d' avoir excite k cct assassinat. — Sismondi : Jlistoire des Franfuis. See De Thou, tom. ix., pp. 696, 704 ; tom. x., pp. 26 a .30. 90 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. On arriving at this island he found the Huron and other allied tribes again preparing for an expe- dition against the Iroquois. With a view of gaining the friendship of the savages, and of acquiring a knowledge of the country, he injudiciously offered himself to join a quarrel in which he was no wise concerned. The father Joseph Le Caron accompanied him in the view of preparing the way for religious instruction, b}' making himself acquainted with the habits and language of the Indians. Champlain was appointed chief by the allies, but his savage followers rendered slight obedience to this authority. The expedition proved very disastrous : the Iroquois were strongly entrenched and protected by a quan- tity of felled trees; their resistance proved successful ; Champlain was wounded, and the allies were forced to retreat with shame and with heavy loss. 1615 The respect of the Indians for the French was much diminished by this untoward failure ; they refused to furnish Champlain with a promised guide to conduct him to Quebec, and he was obliged to pass the winter among them as an unwilling guest. He, however, made the best use of his time ; he visited many of the principal Huron and Algonquin towns, even those as distant as Lake Nipissing, and succeeded in reconciling several neighbouring nations. At the opening of the navigation, he gained over some of the Indians to his cause, and finding that 1G16 another expedition against the Iroquois was in pre- paration, embarked secretly and arrived at Quebec on the 11th of Jul}^ 1616, when he found that he THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 91 and the father Joseph were supposed to have been dead long since. They both sailed for France soon after their return from among the Hurons. In the following year, a signal service was ren- dered to the colony, by a worthy priest named Duplessys : he had been engaged for some time at Three Rivers in the instruction of the savages, and had happily so far gained their esteem, that some of his pupils informed him of a conspiracy amongst all the neighbouring Indian tribes for the utter destruc- of the French; 800 chiefs and warriors had assembled to arrange the plan of action. Duplessys contrived with consummate ability to gain over some of the principal Indians to make advances towards a recon- ciliation with the white men, and by degrees suc- ceeded in arranging a treaty, and in causing two chiefs to be given up as hostages for its observance. For several years Champlain was constantly obliged to visit France for the purpose of urging on the tardily provided aids for the colony. The court would not interest itself in the aftairs of New France since a Company had undertaken their conduct, and the merchants, always limited in their views to mere commercial objects, cared but little for the fate of the settlers so long as their warehouses were stored with the valual)le furs brought by the Indian hunters. These difficulties would doubtless have smothered the infant nation in its cradle, had it not been for the untiring zeal and constancy of its great founder. At every step he met with new trials from the indifference, caprice, or conti'adiction of his 92 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. associates, but with his eye steadily fixed upon the future, he devoted his fortune and the energies of his life to the cause, and rose superior to every obstacle. 1620 In 1620, the Prince of Conde sold the viceroyalty of New France to his brother-in-law the Marshal de Montmorenci for eleven thousand crowns. The marshal wisely continued Champlain as lieutenant- governor, and intrusted the management of colonial affau's in France to M. Dolu, a gentleman of known zeal and probity. Champlain being hopeful that these changes would favourably affect Canada, resolved now to establish his family permanently in that country. Taking them wdth him, he sailed from France in the above named yesir, and arrived at Quebec in the end of May. In passing by Tadoussac he found that some adventm*ers of Rochelle had opened a trade with the savages, in violation of the Company's privileges, and had given the fatal exam- ple of furnishing the hunters with fire-arms in exchange for their peltries. A great danger menaced the colony in the year 1621. The Iroquois sent three large parties of warriors to attack the French settlements. This 1621 savage tribe feared that if the w^hite men obtained a footing in the country, their alliance with the Huron s and Algonquins, of which the effects had alread}^ been felt, might render them too powerful. The first division marched upon sault St. Louis, where a few Frenchmen w^ere established. Happily there was w^arning of their approach ; the defenders, aided THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 93 by some Indian allies, repulsed them with much loss, and took several prisoners. The Iroquois had, however, seized Father Guillaume Poulain, one of the Recollets, in their retreat; they tied him to a stake, and were about to burn him alive, when they were persuaded to exchange the good priest for one of their own chiefs, who had fallen into the hands of the French. Another party of these fierce marauders dropped down the river to Quebec in a fleet of thirty canoes, and suddenly invested the Convent of the Recollets, where a small fort had been erected ; they did not venture to attack this little stronghold, but fell upon some Huron villages near at hand, and massacred the helpless inhabi- tants with frightful cruelty; they then retreated as suddenly as they had come. Alarmed by this ferocious attack, which weakness and the want of sufficient supplies prevented him from avenging, Champlain sent Father Georges le Brebeuf as an agent, to represent to the king the deplorable condition of the colony, from the criminal neglect of the Company. The appeal was successful ; the Company was suppressed, and the exclusive privi- lege transferred to Guillaume and Emeric de Caen, uncle and nephew. The king himself wrote to his worthy subject Champlain, expressing high approval of his eminent services, and exhorting him to continue in the same career. This high commendation served much to strengthen his hands in the exercise of his difficult authority. He was embarrassed by constant dis- 94 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. putes between the servants of the suppressed Com- l)any, and those who acted for the De Caens ; religious differences also served to embitter these dissensions, as the new authorities were zealous Huguenots. This year Champlain discovered that his ancient allies, the Hurons, purposed to detach themselves from his friendship and unite with the Iroquois for his destruction. To avert this danger he sent among them Father Joseph la Caron and two other priests, who appear to have succeeded in their mission of reconciliation. The year after he erected a stone fort^ at Quebec for the defence of the settlement, which then only numbered fifty souls of all ages and sexes. As soon as the defences were finished Champlain departed for France with his family, to press for aid from the government for the distressed colony. On his arrival he found that Henri de Levi, Duke de Ventadour, had purchased the vice-royalty of New France from the Marshal de Montmorenci, his uncle, with the view of promoting the spiritual welfare of Canada, and the general conversion of the heathen Indians to the Christian faith. He had himself long retired from the strife and troubles ^ When Champlain first laid the foundations of the fort in 1623, to which he gave the name of St. Lewis, it is evident that he was actuated hy views not of a political but a commercial character. When Montmagny rebuilt the fort in 1635 it covered about four acres of ground, and formed nearly a parallelogram. Of these works only a few vestiges remain, except the eastern wall, which is kept in solid repair. — Bonchette. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 95 of the world, and entered into holy orders. Being altogether under the influence of the Jesuits, he considered them as the means given by heaven for the accomplishment of his views. The pious and exemplary Father Lallemant, with four other priests and laymen of the Order of Jesus, undertook the mission, and sailed for Canada in 1 625. They were received without jealousy by their predecessors of the Recollets, and admitted under their roof on their first arrival. ^ The following year three other Jesuit fathers reached Quebec in a little vessel provided by themselves; many artisans accompanied them. By the aid of this reinforcement, the new settlement soon assumed the appearance of a town. The Huguenot de Caens used their powerful influence to foment the religious disputes now raging in the infant settlement f they were also far more interested in the profitable pursuit of the fur trade than in promoting the progress of colonisation ; for these reasons the Cardinal de Richelieu judged that their rule was injurious to the prosperity of the ' Charlevoix, toni. i. p. 247. " " Ce fut Guillaume de Caen qui les conduisit (les Jcsuites) a Quebec. II avoit donne sa parole au Due de Ventadour qu'il iie laisseroit les Jesuites manquer de rien ; cependant, des qu'ils furent debarqucs, il leur declara que, si les PP. Recollets ne vouloient pas les recevoir et les loger cliez eux, ils n'avoient point d'autre parti a prendre que retourner en France. Ils s'apergurent meme bientot qu'on avoit travaille a prev^nir centre eux les habitans de Quebec, en leur mettant entre les mains les t'crits les plus injurieux, que les Calvinistcs de France avoient publics contre leur compagnie. Mais leur presence eut bientot efface tons ces prejuges." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 248. 96 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, 1627 country; he revoked their privileges, and caused the formation of a numerous Company of wealthy and upright men ; to this he transferred the charge of the colony. This body was chartered under the name of " The Company of One Hundred Associates:"^ theii* capital was 100,000 crowns; their privileges as follows : — To be proprietors of Canada; to govern in peace and war; to enjoy the whole trade for fifteen years, (except the cod and whale fishery,) and the fui* trade in perpetuity ; untaxed imports and exports. The king gave them two ships of 300 tons bm-then each, and raised twelve of the principal members to the rank of nobility. The Company, on their part, undertook to introduce 200 or 300 settlers during the year 1628, and 16,000 more before 1643, providing them with all necessaries for three years, and settling them afterwards on a sufficient extent of cleared land for their future support. The articles of this agree- ment were signed by the Cardinal de Richelieu on the 19th of April, 1627, and subsequently approved by the king. At this time the Indians were a constant terror to the settlers in Canada : several Frenchmen had been assassinated by the ruthless savages, and their ^ Charlevoix highly extols this brilliant conception of the Cardinal de Richelieu, " at ne craint point d'avancer que la Nouvelle France seroit aujourd'hui la plus puissante colonic de TAmerique, si I'exeeu- tion avoit repondue a la beaute du projet, et si les membres de ce grand corps eussent profite des dispositions favorables du Souverain et de son ministre a leur egard." — Charlevoix, torn. i. p. 250; M^moires des Commissaires, vol. i. p. 346. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 97 countrymen were too feeble in numbers to demand the punishment of the murderers. Conscious of their strength, the natives became daily more insolent; no white man could venture beyond the settlement without incurring great danger. Building languished, and much of the cleared land remained uncultivated. Such was the disastrous state of the colony. The commencement of the Company's govern- ment was marked by heavy misfortune. The first vessels sent by them to America fell into the hands of the English, at the sudden breaking out of hostilities. In 16*28, Sir David Kertk, a French i628 Calvinist refugee in the British service, reached Tadoussac with a squadron, burned the fur houses of the free traders, and did other damage : thence he sent to Quebec, summoning Champlain to surrender. The brave governor consulted with Pontgrave and the inhabitants ; they came to the resolution of attempting a defence, although reduced to great extremities, and sent Kertk such a spirited answer that he, ignorant of their weakness, did not advance upon the town. He, however, captured a convoy under the charge of de Roquemont, with several families on board, and a large supply of provisions for the settlement This expedition against Canada was said to have been planned and instigated by de Caen, from a spirit of vengeance against those who had succeeded to his lost privileges. In July, 1629, Lewis and Thomas, brothers of Sir 1(529 David Kertk, appeared with an armament before Quebec. As soon as the fleet had anchored, a white VOL. I. H 98 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. flag with a summons to capitulate was sent ashore. This time the assailants were well informed of the defenders' distress; but offered generous terms, if Champlain would at once surrender the fort. He, having no means of resistance, was fain to submit. The English took possession the following day, and treated the inhabitants with such good faith and humanity, that none of them left the country. Lewis Kertk remained in command at Quebec; Champlain proceeded with Thomas to Tadoussac, where they met the admiral, Sir David, with the remainder of the fleet. In September they sailed for England, and Champlain was sent on to France, according to treaty.* When the French received the news of the loss of Canada, opinion was much divided as to the wisdom of seeking to regain the captured settlement.^ Some thought its possession of little value in proportion to the expense it caused ; while others deemed that the fur trade and fisheries were of great importance to the commerce of France, as well as a useful nursery for experienced seamen. Champlain strongly urged the government not to give up a country where they had already overcome the principal difficulties of settlement, and where, through their means, the * Champlain's proposals of capitulation (Smith's Canada, vol. i., p. 22) sufficiently prove that, down to 1629, France had scarcely any permanent footing in the country. By stipulating for the removal of "all the French" in Quebec, Champlain seems to consider that the whole province was virtually lost to France, and " the single vessel," which was to furnish the means of removal, reduces " all the French" in Quebec to a very small number. * Charlevoix. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 99 light of religion was dawning upon the darkness of heathen ignorance. His solicitations were success- ful, and Canada was restored to France at the same time with Acadia and Cape Breton, by the treaty of 1632 St. Germain-en-Laye. ^ At this period the fort of Quebec, surrounded by a score of hastily built dwell- ings and barracks, some poor huts on the Island of Montreal, the like at Three Rivers and Tadoussac, and a few fishermen's log-houses elsewhere on the banks of the St. Lawrence, were the only fruits of the discoveries of Verazzano, Jacques Cartier, Roberval, and Champlain, the great outlay of la Roche and de Monts, and the toils and sufferings of their followers, for nearly a century.^ By the treaty of St. Germain-en-Laye the Com- pany were restored to all their rights and privileges, and obtained compensation for the losses they had sustained, but it was some time before the English could be effectually excluded from the trade which ® Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 273. ^ " L'ile au Cap Breton (c'etoit bien peu de choses que I'etablisse- ment que nous avions alors dans cette ile) le fort de Quebec environne de quelques mcchantes maisons et de quelques baraques, deux ou trois cabanes dans I'lle de Montreal, autant peutetre a Tadoussac, et en quelques autres endroits sur le fleuve St. Laurent, pour la com- modite de la pecbe et de la Traite, un commencement d'habitation aux Trois Rivieres et les rivieres de Port Royal, voila en quoi con- sistoit la Nouvelle Fi-ance et tout le fruit des decouvertes de Verazani, de Jaques Cartier, de M. de Roberval, de Champlain, des grandes depenses de Marquis de la Roche, et de M. de Monts et de I'industrie d'un grand nouibre de Fran(jais qui auroient pu y faire uu grand etablissement, s'ils eussent cte bien conduits." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 274. h2 100 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. they had established with the Indians during their 1633 brief possession of the country. In 1633 Champlain was re-appointed governor of New France, and on his departure for the colony took with him many respec- table settlers : several Protestants were anxious to join him ; this, however, was not permitted. Two Jesuits, Fathers de Brebeuf and Enemond Masse, accompanied the governor ; they purposed to devote themselves to the conversion of the Indians to Chris- tianity and to the education of the youth of the colony. The Recollets had made but little progress in proselytism ; as yet very few of the natives had been baptised, nor were the Jesuits at first ^ much more successful : these persevering men were, however, not to be disheartened by difficulties, and they were supported by the hope that when they became better acquainted with the language and manners of their pupils, their instructions would yield a richer harvest.^ As New France advanced in population and prosperity, the sentiments of religion became strengthened among the settlers. On the first arrival of the Jesuits, Rene Rohault, the eldest son of the Marquis de Gamache, and himself one of the Order, adopted the idea of founding a college ^ See Appendix, XVI. " The Jesuits always retained the superior position they held from the first among the Roman Catholic missionaries of Canada. There is a well-known Canadian proverb, " Pour faire un Recollet il faut une hachette, pour un Pretre un ciseau, mais pour un Jesuite il faut un pinceau." See Appendix, XVII. for Professor Kalm's account of these three classes. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 101 at Quebec for the education of youth, and the conversion of the Indians, and offered 6000 crowns of gold as a donation to forward the object. The capture of the settlement by the English had, for a time, interrupted the execution of this plan ; but Rohault at length succeeded in laying the foundation of the building in December, 1635, to the great joy of the French colonists. In the same month, to the deep regret of all 1635 good men, death deprived his country of the brave, high-minded, and wise Champlain. He was buried in the city of which he was the founder; w^here, to this day, he is fondly and gratefully remembered among the just and good. Gifted with high ability, upright, active, and chivalrous, he was at the same time eminent for his christian zeal and humble piety. " The salvation of one soul," he often said, " is of more value than the conquest of an empire." To him belongs the glory of planting Christianity and civilisation among the snows of those northern forests ; during his life indeed a feeble germ, but sheltered by his vigorous arm — nursed by his tender care — the root struck deep. Little more than two centuries have passed since the faithful servant went to rest upon the field of his noble toils. And now a million and a half of Christian people dwell in peace and plenty upon that magnificent territory, which his zeal and wisdom first redeemed from the desolation of the wilderness. 102 CHAPTER IV. Having followed the course of discovery and settlement in New France up to the death of the man who stamped the fii'st permanent impression upon that country, it is now time to review its character and condition at the period when it became the abode of a civilised people. Cham- plain's deputed commission of governor gave him authority over all that France possessed or claimed on the continent and islands of North America ; Newfoundland, Isle Royal, and Acadia, were each portions of this vast but vague territory; and those unknown boundless solitudes of ice and snow, lying towards the frozen north, whose very existence was a speculation, were also, by the shadowy right of an European king, added to his wide dominion. Of that portion, however, called Canada, it is more especially the present subject to treat. Canada is a vast plain, irregular in elevation and feature, forming a valley between two ranges of high land; one of these ranges divides it to the north from the dreary territories of Hudson's Bay, the other to the south, from the republic of the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 103 United States and the British province of New Brunswick. None of the hills rise to any great height ; with one exception, Man's Hill in the State of Maine, 2000 feet is their greatest altitude above the sea. The elevated districts are, however, of very great extent, broken, rugged, and rocky, clothed with dense forests, intersected with rapid torrents, and varied with innumerable lakes. The great plain of Canada narrows to a mere strip of low land by the side of the St. Lawrence, as it approaches the eastern extremity. From Quebec to the Gulf on the north side, and towards Gaspe on the south, the grim range of mountains reaches almost to the water's edge ; westward of that city the plain expands, gradually widening into a district of great beauty and fertility ; again, westward of Montreal, the level country becomes far wider and very rich, including the broad and valuable flats that lie along the lower waters of the Ottawa. The rocky elevated shores of Lake Huron bound this vast valley to the west ; the same mountain range extends along the northern shore of Lake Superior; beyond lie great tracts of fertile soil, where man's industrious hand has not yet been aj^plied. Canada may be described as lying between the meridians of 57° 50', and 90° west; from the mouth of the Esquimaux river on the confines of Labrador, to the entrance of the stream connecting the waters of Lake Superior and the Rainy Lake, bordering on Prince Rupert's Land. The parallels of 42° and 52"^ inclose this country to the south and north. lOi THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. The greatest length is about 1300 miles, the breadth 700. A space of 348,000 square miles is inclosed within these limits. The great lakes in Canada give a character to that country distinct from any other in the Old World or the New. They are very numerous; some far exceed all inland waters elsewhere in depth and extent; they feed, without apparent diminution, the great river St. Lawrence ; the tempest ploughs their surface into billows that rival those of the Atlantic,^ and they contain more than half of all the fresh water upon the sm-face of the globe.^ * " The sea (If it may he so termed) on Late Ontario, is so high during a sharp gale, that it was at first thought the smaller class steam-hoats could not live on it ; and on Lake Superior, the waves almost rival those of the far-famed Cape of Storms, while the ground- swell, owing to the comparative shallowness, or little specific gravity of the fresh water, is such as to make the oldest sailor sick. Whether the water in the lowest depths of Lakes Superior and Ontario be salt or fresh, we cannot ascertain ; for the greater density of the former may keep it always below, or there may be a communication with the fathomless abysses of the ocean." — Montgomery Martin, p. 181. ^ " Beyond Lake Superior, stretching into the vast interior of North America, we find first a long chain of Uttle lakes connected by nar- row channels, and which, combined, form what in the early narratives and even treaties is called Long Lake. Next occur, still connected by the same channel, the larger expanses of Lake La Pluie, and Lake of the Woods. Another channel of about 100 miles connects this last with the Winnipeg Lake, whose length from north to south is almost equal to the Superior ; but in a few parts only it attains the breadth of 50 miles. The whole of this wonderful series of lakes, separated by such small intervals, may almost be considered as form- ing one inland sea. There is nothing parallel to this in the rest of the globe. The Tzad, the great interior sea of Africa, does not equal the Ontario. The Caspian, indeed, is considerably greater than THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 105 Superior^ is the largest and most elevated of these lakes ; it is crescent-shaped, convex to the north ; to the south-east and south-west its extremities are narrow points : the length through the curve is 360 geographical miles, the breadth in the widest part 140, the circumference 1500. The surface of this vast sheet of fresh water is 627 feet above the level of the Atlantic ; from various indications upon the shores there is good reason to conclude that at some remote period it was forty or fifty feet higher. The depth of Lake Superior varies much in different parts, but is generally very great ; at the deepest it is probably 1200 feet. The waters are miraculously pure and transparent ; many fathoms down the eye any of these lakes, almost equal to the whole united. But the Cas- pian forms the final receptacle of many great rivers, among which the Volga is of the first magnitude. But the northern waters, after forming this magnificent chain of lakes, are not yet exhausted, but issue forth from the last of them, to form one of the noblest river channels, either in the old or new continent."— jffi's^ori/ of Discove- ries and Travels in North America, by H. Murray, Esq., vol. ii., p. 458. ^ " Lake Superior is called also Keetcheegahmi, and Missisawgaie- gon. It is remarkable, that while every other large lake is fed by rivers of the first order, this, the most capacious on the surface of the globe, does not receive a third or even fourth-rate stream ; the St. Louis, the most considerable, not having a course of more than 150 miles. But whatever deficiency there may be in point of magni- tude, it is compensated by the vast number which pour in their copious floods from the surrounding heights. The dense covei'ing of wood, and the long continuance of frost, must also in this region greatly diminish the quantity drawn off" by evaporation." — Bouchette, vol. i., pp. 127, 128. Darby's View of the United States (1828), p. 200. 106 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. can distinctly trace the rock and shingle of the bottom, and follow the quick movements of the numerous and beautiful fish inhabiting these crystal depths. No tides vary the stillness of this inland sea, but when a strong prevailing wind sweeps over the surface, the waves are lashed to fury, and the waters, driven by its force, crowd up against the leeward shore. When in the spring the warm sun melts the mountain snows, and each little tributary becomes an impetuous torrent pouring into this gi-eat basin, the level of the surface rises many feet. Although no river of any magnitude helps to supply Lake Superior, a vast number of small streams fall in from among clefts and glens along the rugged shores ;'^ there are also many large islands, one. Isle * " The Pictured Rocks (so called from their appearance) are situated on the south side of the lake, towards the east end, and are really quite a natural curiosity ; they form a perpendicular wall 300 feet high, extending about twelve miles, with numerous projections and indentations in every variety of form, and vast caverns, in which the entering waves make a tremendous sound. The Pictured Rocks of Lake Superior have been described as ' surprising groups of over- hanging precipices, towering walls, caverns, M'aterfalls, and prostrate ruins, which are mingled in the most wonderful disorder, and burst upon the view in ever- varying and pleasing succession.' Among the more remarkable objects are the Cascade La Portaille, and the Doric Arch, The Cascade consists of a considerable stream precipitated from a height of 70 feet by a single leap into the lake, and projected to such a distance, that a boat may pass beneath the fall and the rock, perfectly dry. The Doric Arch has all the appearance of a work of art, and consists of an isolated mass of sandstone, with four pillars supporting an entablature of stone, covered with soil, and a beautiful grove of pine and spruce trees, some of which are 60 feet in height." — Montgomery Martin's History of Canaday vol. i.,p. 21L THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 107 Royale, is more than forty miles in length. In some places lofty hills ^ rise abruptly from the water's edge, in others there are intervals of lower lands for sixty or seventy miles, but everywhere stands the primeval forest, clothing height and hollow alike. At the south-eastern extremity of this lake, St. Mary's Channel carries the superabundant waters for nearly forty miles, till they fall into Lake Huron ; about midway between, they rush tumultuously down a steep descent with a tremendous roar through shattered masses of rock, filling the pure air above with clouds of snowy foam. Lake Huron is the next in succession and the second in magnitude of these inland seas. The out- line is very irregular, to the north and east formed by the Canadian territory, to the south-west by that of the United States. From where the Channel of St. Mary's enters this lake, to the furthest extremity is 240 miles, the greatest breadth is 220, the circum- ference about 1000 ; the surface is only 32 feet lower than that of Superior ; in depth and in pure transi)arency the waters of this lake are not surpassed by its great neighbour. Parallel to the north shore, runs a long narrow peninsula called Cabot Head, which together with a chain of islands ® " The Thunder Mountain is one of the most appalling objects of the kind that I have ever seen, being a bleak rock, about twelve hundred feet above the level of the lake, with a perpendicular face of its full height towards the west ; the Indians have a superstition, which one can hardly repeat without becoming giddy, that any person who may scale the eminence, and turn round on the brink of its fearful wall, will live for ever." — Simpson, vol. i., p. 33. 108 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. shuts in the upper waters so as almost to form a separate and distinct lake. The Great Manitoulin Island, the largest of this chain, is seventy-five miles in length. In the Indian tongue the name denotes it the abode of the Great Spirit,^ and the simple savages regard these woody shores with reverential awe. To the north and west of Lake Huron the shores are generally rugged and precipitous ; abrupt heights of from 30 to 100 feet rise from the water's edge, formed of clay, huge stones, steep rocks, and wooded acclivities ; further inland, the peaks of the Cloche mountains ascend to a con- siderable height. To the east, nature presents a milder aspect ; a plain of great extent and richness stretches away towards the St. Lawrence. Many streams pour their flood into this lake ; the principal are the Maitland, Severn, Moon, and French rivers ; they are broad and deep, but their sources lie at no great distance. By far the largest supply of water comes from the vast basin of Lake Superior through the channel of St. Mary. Near the north-western extremity of Huron, a narrow strait ^ connects it with Lake Michigan in the United States ; there is a * " The Indian appellation of ' Sacred Isles' first occurs at Lake Huron, and thence westward is met with in Superior, Michigan, and the vast and numerous lakes of the interior. Those who have been in Asia, and have turned their attention to the subject, will recognise the resemblance in sound between the North American Indian and the Tartar names." — Montgomery Martin's History of Canada, vol. i., p. 117. ^ " The remarkable post of Machillimackinack is a beautiful island THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 109 slight difference of level between these two great sheets of water, and a current constantly sets into the southern basin : this lake is also remarkable for its depth and transparency.^ At the southern extremity of Lake Huron, its overflow pours through a river about thirty miles in length into a small lake ; both lake and river bear the name of St. Clair.^ Thence the waters flow on through the broad but shallow stream of the Detroit or great rock, planted in the strait of the same name, which forms the connexion between Lakes Huron and Michigan. The meaning of the Indian word Machillimackinack, is Great Turtle. The island is crowned with a cap of 300 feet above the surrounding waters, on the top of which is a fortification. If Quebec is the Gibraltar of North America, Mackinaw (the vulgar appellation for this fort) is only second in its physical character, and in its susceptibilities of improvement as a military post. It is also a most important position for the facilities it affords in the fur-trade, between New York and the north-west." — Mr. Colton's American Lakes, vol. i., p. 92. The value of canals and steam navigation may be judged of from the fact, that, in 1812, the news of the declaration of war against Great Britain by the United States did not reach the post of Michil- limackinack (1107 miles from Quebec) in a shorter time than two months; the same place is now within the distance of ten days' journey from the Atlantic. * " So clear are the waters of these lakes, that a white napkin, tied to a lead, and sunk thirty fathoms beneath a smooth surface, may be seen as distinctly as when immersed three feet." — Col ton, vol. i., p. 93. ® " The St. Clair (according to Dr. Bigsby) is the only river of discharge for Lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron, which cover a surface of thirty-eight and a half million of acres, and are fed by numerous large rivers. Other able observers are of opinion that the Missouri and the Mississippi receive some of the waters of Superior and Michigan. Many persons think that a subterraneous communica- tion exists between all the great lakes, as is surmised to be the case between the Mediterranean and the Euxine." — Montgomery Martin. 110 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. until they fall into Lake Erie thirty miles below ; on either side the banks and neighbouring districts are rich in beauty and abundantly fertile. Lake Erie is shallow and dangerous, the anchor- age is bad, the harbours few and inconvenient. Long low promontories project for a considerable distance from the main land and embarrass the navigation. But the coasts both on the Canadian and American side are very fertile.^ Lake Erie is about 265 miles long, and 63 wide at its greatest breadth, the circumference is calculated at 658 miles, its surface lies 30 feet below the level of Lake Huron.^ The length of the lake stretches north-east, ^ " The Lake Erie is justly dignified by the illustrious name of Conti, for assuredly it is the finest lake upon earth. Its circumference extends to 230 leagues ; but it aS'ords everywhere such a charming prospect, that its banks are decked with oak-trees, elms, chesnut- trees, walnut-trees, apple-trees, plum-trees, and vines, which bear their fine clusters up to the very top of the trees, upon a sort of ground that lies as smooth as one's hand. Such ornaments as these are suflScient to give rise to the most agreeable idea of a landscape ia the world." — La Hontan, in Pinkerton, vol. siii., p. 343 (1683). " Le nom que le Lac Erie porte est celui d'une nation de la langue Huronne, qui etait etablie sur ses bords et que les Iroquois ont entierement detruite. Erie veut dire Chat, et les Eries sont nommes dans quelques relations la nation du Chat. Ce nom vient apparem- ment de la quantite de ces animaux qu'on trouve dans le pays. Quelques cartes modernes ont donne au Lac Erie le nom de Conti, mais ce nom n'a pas fait fortune, non plus que ceux de Conde, de Tracy, et d'Orleans, donnes au Lac Huron, au Lac Superieur, et au Lac Michigan." — Charlevoix, tom. v., p. 374 (1721). - "In extreme depth Lake Erie varies from forty to forty-five fathoms, with a rocky bottom. Lakes Superior and Hm'on have a stiff, clavey bottom, mixed with shells. Lake Erie is reported to be the only one of the series in which any current is perceptible. The THE CON'QUEST OF CANADA. Ill almost the same direction as the hne of the river St. Lawrence. The Niagara river flows from the north-eastern extremity of Lake Erie to Lake Ontario in a course of 33 miles, with a fall of not less than 334 feet. About twenty miles below Lake Erie is the grandest sight that nature has laid before the human eye — the Falls of Niagara. A stream three-quarters of a mile wide, deep and rapid, plunges over a rocky ledge 150 feet in height ; about two-thirds of the distance across from the Canadian side stands Goat Island, covered Avith stately timber : four times as fact, if it is one, is usually ascribed to its shallowness ; but the vast volume of its outline — the Niagara River — with its strong current, is a much more probable cause than the small depth of its water, which may be far more appropriately adduced as the reason why the navigation is obstructed by ice much more than either of the other great lakes. As connected with trade and navigation, this lake is the most important of all the great chain, not only because it is bordered by older settlements than any of them except Ontario, but still more because from its position it concentrates the trade of the vast west. The Kingston Herald notices a most extraordinary occur- rence on Lake Erie during a late storm (1836). A channel was made by the violence of the tempest through Long Point, N. Foreland, 300 yards wide, and from 11 to 15 feet deep. It had been in contemplation to cut a canal at this very spot, the expenses of which were estimated at 12,000^. The York Courier confirms this extra- ordinary intelligence, stating that the storm made a breach through the point near the main land, converted the peninsula into an island, and actually made a canal 400 yards wide, and eight or ten feet deep, almost at the very point where the proposed canal was to be cut ; and rendered nothing else now necessary in order to secure a safe channel for the vessels, and a good harbour on both sides, than the construction of a pier on the west side, to prevent the channel being filled up with sand." — Montgomery Martin. 112 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. great a body of water precipitates itself over the northern or Horse-shoe Fall as that which flows over the American portion. Above the cataract the river becomes very rapid and tumultuous in several places, particularly at the Ferry of Blackrock, where it rushes past at the rate of seven miles an hour ; within the last mile there is a tremendous indraught to the Falls. The shores on both sides of the Niagara river are of unsurpassed natural fertility, but there is little scenic beauty around to divert attention from the one object. The simplicity of this wonder adds to the force of its impression ; no other sight over the wide world so fills the mind with awe and admiration. Description may convey an idea of the height and breadth ^ — the vast body of water * — ^ " The Horse-shoe Cataract on the British side is the largest of the Falls. The curvatures have been geometrically computed at 700 yards, and its altitude, taken with a plumb line from the surface of the Table Rock, 149 feet ; the American fall, narrowed by Goat Island, does not exceed 375 yards in curvilinear length (the whole irregular semicircle is nearly three-quarters of a mile), its perpen- dicular height being 162 feet, or 13 feet higher than the top of the Great Fall, adding 57 feet for the fall ; the rapids thus give only a total of 219 feet, which is less than many other falls ; but their magnificence consists in the volume of the water precipitated over them, which has been computed at 2400 millions of tons per day, 102 millions per hour ! A calculation made at Queenston, below the Falls, is as follows : — The river is here half a mile broad, it averages 25 feet deep, current three miles an hour ; in one hour it wiU discharge a current of water three miles long, half a mile wide, and twenty-five feet deep, containing 1,111,400,000 cubic feet ; being 18,524,000 cubic feet, or 113,510,000 gallons of water each minute." — Montgomery Martin's History of Canada. * " The total area of the four great lakes which pour forth their THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 113 the profound abyss — the dark whirlpools — the sheets of foam^ — the plumy column of spray^ rising up against the sky — the dull deep sound that throbs through the earth, and fills the air for miles and miles with its unchanging voice^ — but of the mag- nitude of this idea, and the impression stamped upon the senses by the reality, it is vain to speak to those who have not stood beside Niagara. The descent of the land from the shores of Lake Erie to those of Ontario is general and gradual,^ waters to the ocean over the falls of Niagara, is estimated at 100,000 square miles." — Montgomery Martin. ^ Colonel Bouchette observes, that, according to the altitude of the sun, and the situation of the spectator, a distinct and bright iris is seen amidst the revolving: columns of mist that soar from the foamina: chasm, and shroud the broad front of the gigantic flood. Both arches of the bow are seldom entirely elicited, but the interior segment is perfect, and its prismatic hues are extremely glowing and vivid. The fragments of a plurality of rainbows are sometimes to be seen in various parts of the misty curtain. * Symptoms of the Falls are discerned from a vast distance. From Buffalo, twenty miles off, two small fleecy specks are distinctly seen, appearing and disappearing at intervals. These are the clouds of spray arising from the Falls ; it is even asserted that they have been seen from Lake Erie, a distance of fifty-four miles. — Weld, p. 374. ^ The sound of the Falls appears to have been heard at the dis- tance of twenty or even forty miles ; but these effects depend much on the direction of the wind, and the tranquil or disturbed state of the atmosphere. Mr. Weld mentions having approached the Falls within half a mile without hearing any sound, while the spray was but just discernible.— Weld, p. 374. ** " The shores of Lake Erie, though flat, are elevated about 400 feet above those of Lake Ontario, The descent takes place in the short interval between the two lakes traversed by the Niagara VOL. I. • I 114 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, and there is no feature in the neighbourhood of the Falls to mark its locality. From the Erie boundary the river flows smoothly through a level but elevated plain, branching round one large and some smaller islands. Although the deep tremulous sound of Niagara tells of its vicinity, there is no unusual appearance till within about a mile, when the waters begin to ripple and hasten on, a little further it dashes down a magnificent rapid, then again becomes tranquil and glassy, but glides past with astonishing swiftness. There are numberless points whence the fall of this great river may be well seen : the Channel. This descent is partly gradual, producing only a succession of rapids. It is at Queenstown, about seven miles below the present site of the Falls, that a range of hills marks the descent to the Ontario level. Volney conceives it certain that this must have been the place down which the river originally fell, and that the continued and violent action of its waves must have gradually worn away the rocks beneath them, and in the course of ages carried the Fall back to its present position, from which it continues gradually receding. Mr. Howison confirms the statement, that, in the memory of persons now living in Upper Canada, a considerable change has been observed. The whole course of the river downwards to Queenston is through a deep dell, bordered by broken and perpendicular steeps, rudely over- hung by trees and shrubs, and the opposite strata of which correspond ; affording thus the strongest presumption that it is a channel hewn out by the river itself." — H. Murray's Historical Description of America, vol. ii., p. 466. "It is now considered that there is clear geological proof that the Fall once existed at Queenstown. The 710,000 tons of water which each minute pour over the precipice of the Niagara, are estimated to carry away a foot of the cliff every year ; therefore we must suppose a period of 20,000 years occupied in the recession of the cataract to its present site." — Lyell's Geology. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 115 best is Table Rock at the top of the cataract — the most wonderful, is the recess between the falling flood and the cliff over which it leaps. For some length below Niagara the waters are violently agitated ; however, at the distance of half a mile a ferry plies across in safety. The high banks on both sides of the river extend to Queenston and Lewiston, eight miles lower, confining the waters to a channel of no more than a quarter of a mile in breadth, between steep and lofty cliffs; midway is the whirlpool,^ where the current rushes furiously round within encircling heights. Below Queenston the river again rolls along a smooth stream between ® " The mouth of the whirlpool is more than 1000 feet wide, and in length about 2000. Mr. Howison, in his sketches of Upper Canada, says, that the current of the river has formed a circular excavation in the high and perpendicular banks, resembling a bay. The current, which is extremely rapid, whenever it reaches the upper point of this bay, forsakes the direct channel, and sweeps wildly round the sides of it ; when, having made this extraordinary circuit, it regains its proper course, and rushes with perturbed velocity between two perpendicular precipices, which are not more than 400 feet asunder. The surface of the whirlpool is in a state of continual agitation. The water boils, mantles up, and wreathes in a manner that proves its fearful depth, and the confinement it suffers ; the trees that come within the sphere of the current, are swept along with a quivering zig-zag motion, which it is difiicult to describe. This singular body of water must be several hundred feet deep, and has not hitherto been frozen over, although in spring the broken ice that descends from Lake Erie descends in such quantities upon its surface, and becomes so closely wedged together, that it resists the current, and remains till warm weather breaks it up. The whirlpool is one of the greatest natural curiosities in the Upper Province, and its formation cannot be rationally accounted for." — Martin's History of Canada, p. 139. i2 116 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. level and cultivated banks, till it pours its waters into Lake Ontario. Ontario is the last^ and the most easterly of the ^ " This iuland sea, though the smallest of the great chain with which it is connected, is of such extent, that vessels in crossing it lose sight of land, and must steer their way hy the compass ; and the swell is often equal to that of the ocean. During the winter, the north-east part of Ontario, from the Bay of Quinte to Sacket's Harbour, is frozen across ; but the wider part of the lake is frozen only to a short distance from the shore. Lake Erie is frozen still less ; the northern parts of Huron and Michigan more ; and Superior is said to be frozen to a distance of seventy miles from its coasts. The navigation of Ontario closes in October ; ice-boats are some- times used when the ice is glare (smooth). One mentioned by Lieutenant de Roos, was twenty-three feet in length, resting on three skates of iron, one attached to each end of a strong cross-bar, fixed imder the fore-feet, the remaining one to the stern, from the bottom of the rudder, the mast and sail those of a common boat ; when brought into play on the ice, she could sail (if it may be so termed) with fearful rapidity, nearly twenty-three miles an hour. One has been known to cross from Toronto to Fort George or Niagara, a distance of forty miles, in little more than three quarters of an hour ; but, in addition to her speed before the wind, she is also capable of beating well up to windward, requiring, however, an experienced hand to manage her, in consequence of her extreme sensibility of the rudder during her quick motion." — Martin's His- tory of Canada. " The great earthquake that destroyed Lisbon, happened on the 1st November, 1755, and on Lake Ontario strong agitations of the water were observed from the month of October, 1755." — Lettera liarissima data nelle Indie nella Isola di Jamaica a 7 Julio del 1503 (Bassano, 1810, p. 29). " From some submarine centre in the Atlantic, this earthquake spread one enormous convulsion over an area of 700,000 square miles, agitating, by a single impulse, the lakes of Scotland and Sweden, and the islands of the West Indian Sea. Not, however, by a simultaneous shock, for the element of time comes in with the distance of undulation ; and, together with this, another complexity THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 117 chain oflakes.'^ The greatest length is 172 miles; at the widest it measures 59 miles across; the cir- cumference is 467 miles, and the surface is 334 feet below the level of Lake Erie. The depth of Ontario varies very much along the coast, being seldom more than from three to 50 fathoms ; and in the centre, a plummet, with 300 fathoms of line, has been tried in vain for soundings. A sort of gravel, small pieces of limestone, worn round and smooth by the action of water, covers the shores, lying in long ridges sometimes miles in extent. The waters, like those of the other great lakes, are very pure and beautiful, except where the shallows along the margin are of action in the transmission of earthquake movements through the sea, arising from the different rate of progression at different depths. In the fact that the wave of the Lisbon earthquake reached Plymouth at the rate of 2-1 miles per minute, and Barbadoes at 7"3 miles per minute ; there is illustration of the law, that the velocity of a wave is proportional to the square root of its depth, and becomes a sub- stitute for the sounding hne in fixing the mean proportional depth of different parts of this great ocean." — Humboldt. " " There are two lakes in Lower Canada, Matapediac and Memphramagog. The former is about IG miles long, and three broad in its greatest breadth, about 21 miles distant from the St. Lawrence river in the county of Rimouski ; amidst the islands that separate the waters running into the St. Lawrence, from those that run to the Bay of Chaleurs, it is navigable for rafts of all kinds of timber, with which the banks of the noble river Matapediac are thickly covered. Memphramagog Lake, in the county of Stan- stead, stretching its south extremity into the State of Vermont, is of a semi-circular shape, 30 miles long, and very narrow. It empties itself into the fine river St. Francis, by means of the river Magog, which runs through Lake Scaswaninepus. The Mem- phramagog Lake is said to be navigable for ships of 500 tons burthen." — Martin's, Hisloi'if of Canada, p. 102. ]18 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. stii-red up by violent winds : for a few days in June a yellow unwholesome scum covers the surface at the edge every year. There is a strange phenomenon connected with Ontario, unaccounted for by scientific speculation; each seventh year, from some inscru- table cause, the waters reach to an unusual height, and again subside, mysteriously as they arose. The beautiful illusion of the mirage spreads its dreamy enchantment over the surface of Ontario in the summer calms, mixing islands, clouds, and waters in strange confusion.^ The outline of the shores is much diversified, — to the north-east lie low lands and swampy marshes, — to the north and north-east extends a bold range of elevated grounds, — southward the coast becomes again flat for some distance inland, till it rises into the ridge of heights that marks the position of Niagara. The country bordering the lake is gene- rally rich and productive, and was originally covered with forest. A ridge of lofty land runs from the beautiful Bay of Quinte, on the north-west of the lake, westward along the shore, at a distance of nine ^ "It is worthy of remark, that the great lakes of Upper Canada are liable to the formation of the Prester or water-spout, and that several instances are recorded of the occurrence of that truly extra- ordinary phenomenon, the theory of which, however, is well known. Whether electricity be a cause or a consequence of this formidable meteor, appears, nevertheless, to be a question of some doubt among natural philosophers ; Gassendi being disposed to favour the former opinion, whilst Cavallo espouses the latter." — Bouchette's Topogra- phical and Statistical Description of Upper and Lower Canada, vol. i., p. 346. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 119 or more miles : from these heights innumerable streams flow into Ontario on one side, and into the lakes and rivers of the back country on the other. At Toronto the ridge recedes to the distance of twenty-four miles north-east from the lake, sepa- rating the tributary waters of Lakes Huron and Ontario ; thence merging in the Burlington Heights, it continues along the south-west side from four to eight miles distant from the shore to the high grounds about Niagara. Besides the great stream of Niagara, many rivers flow into Ontario both on the Canadian and American sides. The bays and harbours are also very nume- rous, affording great facilities for navigation and commerce : in this respect the northern shore is the most favoured — the Bays of Quinte and Burlington are especially remarkable for their extent and security."^ * " The most considerable harbours on the English side are Toronto (York, the former name, has recently changed to the Indian name of the place, Toronto) and Kingston. Toronto is situated near the head of Lake Ontario, on the north side of an excellent harbour, or elliptical basin, of an area of eight or nine miles, formed by a long, low, sandy peninsula or island, stretching from the land east of the town to Gibraltar Point abreast of a good fort. The town of Toronto, at that period York, was twice captured by the Americans, in April and August, 1813, owing to its defenceless state ; and a large ship of war, on the stocks, burnt. The Americans would not now find its capture such an easy task. Little more than forty years ago the site whereon Toronto now stands, and the whole country, to the north and west of it, was a perfect wilderness — the land is now fast clearing — thickly settled by a robust and industrious European- descended population, blessed with health and competence, and all sides indicating the rapid progress of civilisation. The other 120 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. The north-east end of Lake Ontario, where its waters pour into the St. Lawi-ence, is a scene of striking beauty;^ numerous wooded islands in end- less variety of form and extent divide the entrance of the Great River ^ into a labyi'inth of tortuous British town of importance on this shore is Kingston, formerly Cataraqui or Frontenac, distant from Toronto 184 miles, and from Montreal 180 miles. It is, next to Quebec and Halifax, the strongest British post in America, and next to Quebec and Montreal the first in commercial importance. It is advantageously situate on the north bank of Lake Ontario at the head of the river St. Lawrence, and is separated from Points Frederick and Henry by a bay, which extends a considerable distance to the N.W. beyond the town, where it receives the water of a river flowing from the interior. Point Frederick is a long narrow peninsula, extending about half a mile into the lake, distant from Kingston about three quarters of a mile on the opposite side of its bay. This peninsula forms the west side of a narrow and deep inlet called Navy Bay, from its being our chief naval depot on Lake Ontario." — Martin's History of Canada. ^ " The channel of the St. Lawrence is here so spacious that it is called the Lake of the Thousand Islands. The vast number implied in this name was considered a vague exaggeration, till the commis- sioners employed in fixing the boundary with the United States actually counted them, and found that they amounted to 1692. They are of every imaginable size, shape, and appearance ; some barely visible, others covering fifteen acres ; but in general their broken outline presents the most picturesque combinations of wood and rock. The navigator, in steering through them, sees an ever-changing scene ; sometimes he is inclosed in a narrow channel, then he dis- covers before him twelve openings like so many noble rivers ; and soon after a spacious lake seems to surround him on every side." — Bouchette, vol. i., p. 156 ; Howison's Sketches of Canada, p. 46. •^ " Tbe St. Lawrence traverses the whole extent of Lower Canada, as the lakes everywhere border and inclose Upper Canada. There is a difficulty in tracing its origin, or at least which of the tributaries of Lake Superior is to be called the St. Lawrence. The strongest claim seems to be made by the series of channels which connect all THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 121 channels, for twelve miles in breadth from shore to shore: this width gradually decreases as the stream flows on to Prescott fifty miles below ; a short dis- tance beyond that town the rapids commence,' and the great upper lakes, though, strictly speaking till after the Ontario, there is nothing which can very properly he called a rirer. There are only a numher of short canals connecting the different lakes, or rather separating one immense lake into a number of great branches. It seems an interesting question how this northern centre of the continent, at the precise latitude of about 50°, should pour forth so immense and overwhelming a mass of waters ; for through a great part of its extent it is quite a dead flat, though the Winnipeg, indeed, draws some tributaries from the Rocky Mountains. The thick forests with which the surface is covered, the slender evaporation which takes place during the long continuance of cold, and, at the same time, the thorough melting of the snows by the strong summer heat, seem to be the chief sources of this profuse and superabundant moisture." — H. Murray's Historical Account of Discoveries and Travels in North America, vol. ii., p. 459. 1829. ^ " The statements laid before Parliament thus enumerate and describe the five rapids of the St. Lawrence, which are impassable by steam, and occur between Montreal and Kingston, a distance, by the St. Lawrence river, of 171 miles, and by the Ridcau Canal 267 miles. The rapids vary in rapidity, intricacy, depth and width of channel, and in extent, from half a mile to nine miles. The Cedar Rapid, twenty-four miles from La Chine, is nine miles long, very intricate, running from nine to twelve miles an hour, and in some places only from nine to ten feet water in the channel. The Coteau du Lac Rapid, six miles above the former, is two miles long, equally intricate in channel, and in some places only sixteen feet wide. Long Sault, forty-five miles above the preceding, is nine or ten miles long, with generally the same depth of water throughout. It is intersected by several islands, through whose channels the water rushes with great velocity, so that boats are carried through it, or on it, at the rate of twenty-seven miles an hour ; at the foot of the rapid the water takes a sudden leap over a slight precipice, whence its name. From the Long Saidt to Prescott is forty-one miles shoal water, running from 123 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. thence to Montreal the navigation is interrupted for vessels of burthen; boats, rafts, and small steamers, however, constantly descend these tumultuous waters, and not unfrequently are lost in the dangerous attempt. The most beautiful and formidable of these rapids is called the Cedars, from the rich groves of that fragrant tree covering numerous and intricate islands which distort the rushing stream into narrow and perilous channels: the water is not more than ten feet deep in some places, and flows at the rate of twelve miles an hour. The river there widens into Lake St. Francis, and again into Lake St. Louis, which drains a large branch of the Ottawa at its south- western extremity. The water of this great tributary is remarkably clear and of a bright emerald colour; that of the St. Lawi-ence at this junction is muddy from having passed over deep beds of marl for several miles above its entrance to Lake St. Louis : for some distance down the lake the different streams can be plainly distinguished from each other. From the confluence of the first branches above Montreal these two great rivers seem bewildered among the nume- rous and beautiful islands, and Iiurrying past in strong rapids, only find rest again in the broad deep waters many miles beloAV. The furthest sources of the Ottawa river are unknown.^ It rises to importance at the outlet six to eiglit miles an hour, and impassable by steamboats. Then the Rapid Du Plas, half a mile long, and Rapid Galoose, one and half a mile long, intervene. ' ' ' "According to Mr. M'Gregor {Brit. Amer., vol. ii., p. 525), the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 123 from Lake Temiscaming, 850 miles west of its junc- tion with the St. Lawrence.^ Beyond the Falls and Ottawa, or Grand River, is said to have its source near the Rocky Mountains, and to traverse in its windings a distance of 2500 miles. The more sober statement of Bouchette attributes to the Ottawa a course of about 450 miles before joining the St. Lawrence." — Bouchette, vol. i., p. 187. " A tremendous scene is presented at the eastern part of Lake St. Louis, where the St. Lawrence and its grand tributary, the Ottawa, rush down at once and meet in dreadful conflict. The swell is then equal to that produced by a high gale in the British Channel, and the breakers so numerous, that all the skill of the boatmen is required to steer their way. The Canadian boatmen, however, are among the most active and hardy races in the world, and they have boats expressly constructed for the navigation of these perilous channels. The largest of these, called, it is not known why, the Durham boat, is used both here and in the rapids of the Mohawk. It is long, shallow, and nearly flat-bottomed. The chief instrument of steerage is a pole ten feet long, shod Avith iron, and crossed at short intervals with small bars of wood like the feet of a ladder. The men place themselves at the bow, two on each side, thrust their poles into the channel, and grasping successively the wooden bars, work their way towards the stern, thus pushing on the vessel in that direction. At other times by the brisk and vigorous use of the oar, they catch and dash through the most favourable lines of current. In this exhausting struggle, however, it is needful to have frequent pauses for rest, and in the most difficult passages there are certain positions fixed for this purpose, which the Canadians call pipes." — H. Murray's Hist. Bescr. of America, vol. ii., p. 473. ' " From the sea to Montreal this superb river is called the St. Lawrence, from thence to Kingston, in Upper Canada, the Cataraqui or Iroquois ; between Lakes Ontario and Erie, the Niagara; between Lakes Erie and St. Clair, the Detroit; between Lakes St. Clair and Huron, the St. Clair; and between Lakes Huron and Superior, the distance is called the Narrows or Falls of St. Mary. The St. Law- rence discharges to the ocean annually about 4,277,880 millions of tons of fresh water, of which 2,112,120 millions of tons may be reckoned melted snow ; the quantity discharged before the thaw 124 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. Portage des Allumettes, 110 miles above Hull, this stream has been little explored. There it is divided into two channels by a large island fifteen miles long: the southernmost of these expands into the width of four or five miles, and communicates by a branch of the river with the Mud and Musk Rat Lakes. Twelve miles further south the river again forms two branches, including an extensive and beautiful island twenty miles in length ; numerous rapids and cascades diversify this wild but lovely scene ; thence to the foot of the Chenaux, wooded islands in picturesque variety deck the bosom of the stream, and the bright blue waters here wind their way for three miles through a channel of pure white marble. Nature has bestowed abundant fertility as well as beauty upon this favoured district. The Gatineau river joins the Ottawa near Hull, after a course of great length. This stream is navigated comes on, being 4512 millions of tons per day for 240 days, and the quantity after the thaw begins, being 25,560 millions per day for 125 days, the depths and velocity when in and out of flood being duly considered : hence a ton of water being nearly equal to 55 cubic yards of pure snow, the St. Lawrence frees a country of more than 2,000 miles square, covered to the depth of three feet. The embouchure of this first-class stream is that part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence where the island of Anticosti divides the mouth of the river into two branches. According to Mr. M'Taggart, a shrewd and humorous writer, the solid contents in cubic feet of the St. Lawrence, embracing Lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan, Erie and Ontario, is estimated at 1,547,792,360,000 cubic feet, and the superfcial area being 72,930 square miles, the water therein would form a cubic column of nearly 22 miles on each side !" — Montgomery ]\Iartin's History of Canada. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 125 by canoes for more than 300 miles, traversing an immense valley of rich soil and picturesque scenery. At the foot of the Chenaux the magnificent Lake des Chats opens to view, in length about fifteen miles ; the shores are strangely indented, and num- bers of wooded islands stud the surface of the clear waters. At the foot of the lake there are falls and rapids ;^ thence to Lake Chaudiere, a distance of six miles, the channel narrows, but expands again to form that beautiful and extensive basin. Rapids again succeed, and continue to the Chaudiere Falls. The boiling pool into which these waters descend is of great depth : the sounding-line does not reach the bottom at the length of 300 feet. It is supposed that the main body of the river flows by a subterra- neous passage, and rises again half a mile lower down. Below the Chaudiere Falls the navigation is uninterrupted to Grenville, sixty miles distant. The current is scarcely perceptible ; the banks are low, and generally overflowed in the spring ; but the varying breadth of the river, the numerous islands, the magnificent forests, and the crystal purity of the waters, lend a charm to the somewhat monotonous '■ " Kinncl Lodge, the residence of the celebrated Highland chieftain M'Nab, is romantically situated on the south hank of the lake, about five miles above the head of the Chats Rapids, which are three miles long, and pass amidst a labyrinth of varied islands, until the waters of the Ottawa are suddenly precipitated over the Falls of the Chats, which to the number of fifteen or sixteen form a curved line across the river, regularly divided by woody islands, the falls being in depth from sixteen to twenty feet." — M. Martin's History of Canada. 136 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. beauty of the scene. At Grenville commences the Long Sault, a swift and dangerous rapid, which continues with intervals till it falls into the still Lake of the Two Mountains. Below the heights from whence this sheet of water derives its name, the well-known Rapids of St. Anne's discharge the main stream into the w^aters of the St. Lawrence.^ Below the Island of Montreal the St. Lawrence continues, in varying breadth and considerable depth, to Sorel, where it is joined by the Richelieu river from the south ; thence opens the expanse of Lake St. Peter, shallow and uninteresting ; after twenty- five miles the Great River contracts again, receives in its course the waters of the St. Maurice, and other large streams ; and 180 miles below Montreal the vast flood pours through the narrow channel that lies under the shadow of Quebec.^ Below this strait lies a deep basin, nearly four miles wide, formed by the head of the Island of Orleans : the main channel continues by the south shore. It ^ See Appendix, No. XIX. ^ "At Quebec, the river St. Lawrence narrows to 1314 yards ; yet the navigation is completely unobstructed, while there is formed near the city, a capacious harbour. About twenty-one miles lower, its waters beginning to mingle with those of the sea, acquire a saline taste, which increases till, at Kamauraska, seventy-five miles nearer its mouth, they become completely salt. Yet custom, with somewhat doubtful propriety, considers the river as continued down to the island of Anticosti, and bounded by Cape Rosier on the southern, and Min- gau settlement on the northern shore." — Bouchette's Top. and Stat. Descr, of Canada, vol. i., pp. 164 — 169. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 127 would be wearisome to tell of all the numerous and beautiful islands that deck the bosom of the St. Lawrence from Quebec to the Gulf. The river gra- dually expands, till it reaches a considerable breadth at the mouth of the Saguenay. There is a dark shade for many miles below where this great tribu- tary pours its gloomy flood into the pure waters of the St. Lawrence ; 120 miles westward it flows from a large circular sheet of water, called Lake St. John ; but the furthest sources lie in the unknown regions of the west and north. For about half its course, from the lake to Tadoussac at the mouth, the banks are rich and fertile ; but thence cliffs rise abruptly out of the water to a lofty height, — sometimes 2000 feet, — and two or three miles apart. The depth of the Saguenay is very great, and the sur- rounding scenery is of a magnificent but desolate character. Below the entrance of the Saguenay the St. Law- rence increases to twenty miles across, at the Bay of Seven Islands to seventy, at the head of the large and unexplored island of Anticosti to ninety, and at the points where it may be said to enter the Gulf between Gaspe and the Labrador coast, reaches the enormous breadth of 120 miles. In mid-channel both coasts can be seen ; the mountains on the north shore rise to a great height in a continuous range, their peaks capped with eternal snows. Having traced this vast chain of water com- munication from its remotest links, it is now time to speak of the magnificent territory which it 128 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. opens to the commerce and enterprise of civilised man. Upper or Western Canada* is marked off from the eastern province by the natural boundary of the Ottawa or Grand River. It consists almost throughout of one uniform plain. In all those districts hitherto settled or explored there is scai'cely a single eminence that can be called a hill, although traversed by two wide ridges, rising above the usual level of the country. The greater of these elevations passes through nearly the whole extent of the province from south-east to north-west, separating the waters falling into the St. Lawrence and the great lakes, from those tributary to the Ottawa : the highest point is forty miles north of Kingston, being also the most elevated level on that magnificent modern work, the Rideau Canal ;^ it is 290 feet above the Ottawa at By town, and 160 feet higher than the surface of Lake Ontario. Towards these waters the plain descends at the gradient of about four feet in the mile ; this declivity is imperceptible to the eye, and is varied by gently undulating slopes and inequalities. Beyond the broad rich valley lying to the north of this elevation there is a ■* See Appendix, No. XX. ^ " The Falls of the Rideau are about fifty feet in height, and 300 in breadth, being at the time we saw them more magnificent than usual, by reason of the high state of the waters. It is from their resemblance to a curtain that they are distinguished by the name of Rideau, and they also give this name to the river that feeds them, which again lends the same appellation to the canal that connects the Ottawa with Lake Ontario." — Simpson, vol. i., p. 16. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 129 rocky and mountainous country ; still farther north are seen snow-covered peaks of a great but unknown height ; thence to the pole extends the dreary region of the Hudson Bay territory. The lesser elevation begins near the eastern extremity of Ontario, and runs almost parallel with the shores of the lake to a point about twenty-four miles north-west from Toronto, where it separates the streams flowing into lakes Huron and Ontario : it then passes south-east between lakes Erie and Ontario, and terminates on the Genessee in the United States. This has a more perceptible elevation than the southern ridge, and in some places rises into bold heights. The only portion of the vast plain of Western Canada surveyed or effectually explored, is included by a line drawn from the eastern coast of lake Huron to the Ottawa river, and the northern shores of the great chain of lake and river ; this is however nearly as large as the whole of England. The natural features of Lower or Eastern Canada are unsurpassed by those of any other country in grace and variety : rivers, lakes, mountains, forests, prairies and cataracts are grouped together in endless combinations of beauty and magnificence. The eastern districts, beginning with the bold sea- coast and broad waters of the St. Lawrence, are high, mountainous, and clothed with dark forests on both sides, down to the very margin of the river. To the north, a lofty and rugged range of heights runs parallel with the shore as far westward as 130 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. Quebec ; thence it bends west and south-west to the banks of the Ottawa. To the south, the elevated ridge, where it reaches within sixty miles of Quebec, turns from the parallel of the St. Lawrence south- west and south into the United States ; this ridge, known by the name of the Alleghanies, rises abruptly out of the Gulf of St. Lawrence at Perce, between the Baye de Chaleur and Gaspe Cape, and is more distant from the Great River than that upon the northern shore. Where the Alleghanies enter the United States they divide the plains of the Atlantic coast from the basin of the Ohio ; their greatest height is about 4,000 feet above the level of the sea. The valley of the St. Lawrence lying between these two ranges of heights is marked by great diversities of hill, plain, and valley. Both from the north and south numerous rivers pour their tributary flood into the great waters of Canada ; of those east- ward of the Saguenay little is known beyond their entrance ; they flow tlirough cliffs of light-coloured sand, rocky wooded knolls, or in some places deep swampy mossbeds nearly three feet in depth. From the Saguenay to Quebec the mountain ridge along the shore of the St. Lawrence is unbroken, save where streams find their way to the Great River, but beyond this coast-border the country is in some places level, in others undulating, with hills of moderate height, and well watered vallies. From Quebec westward to the St. Maurice which joins the St. Lawrence at Three Rivers, the land rises in a gentle ascent from the banks of the Great River, and THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 131 presents a rich tract of fertile plains and slopes : in the distance a lofty chain of mountains protects this favoured district from the bitter northern blast. Along the north bank of the St. Lawrence from the St. Maurice, the country towards the Ottawa is slightly elevated into table ridges, Avith occasional abrupt declivities and some extensive plains. In this portion of Canada are included the islands of Montreal, Jesus, and Perrot, formed by the various branches of the Great River and the Ottawa where their waters unite. Montreal is the largest and most fertile of these islands; its length is thirty-two miles and breadth ten, the general shape is trian- gular. Isle Jesus is twenty-one miles by six in extent, and also very rich ; there are besides several other smaller islands of considerable fertility. Isle Perrot is poor and sandy. The remote country to the north of the Ottawa is but little known. On the south shore of the St. Lawrence, the peninsula of Gaspe is the most eastern district ; this large tract of country has been very little ex- plored : so far as it has been examined, it is uneven, mountainous, and intersected with deep ravines ; but the forests, rivers, and lakes, are very fine, and the vallies fertile. The sea-beach is low and hard,^ " Modern alluvial accumulations are rapidly increasing on some points of this coast, owing to the enormous mass of fresh water charged with earthy matter, that here mingles with the sea. The surface of the water at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, where the depth is 100 fathoms, is stated by Bayfield, to be turbid from this cause, — yet, that this discoloration is superficial is evident, for in the wake of a ship moving through the troubled surface, the clear blue waters of the sea are seen below. K 2 183 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. answering the purposes of a road ; at the Cape of Gasp^, however, there are some bold and lofty cliffs. Behind the beach the land rises into high round hills, well wooded ; sheltered from the Gaspe district to the Chaudiere river the country is not so stern as on the northern side of the St. Lawrence ; though somewhat hilly, it abounds in large and fertile vallies. The immediate shores of the river are flat, thence irregular ridges arise, till they reach an ele- vated table-land fifteen or twenty miles from the beach. From the Chaudiere river westward, extends that rich and valuable country now known by the name of the Eastern Townships. At the mouth of the Chaudiere, the banks of the St. Lawrence are bold and lofty ; but they gradually lower to the westward, till they sink into the flats of Baye du Febre, and form the marshy shores of Lake St. Peter, whence a rich plain extends to a great distance. This district contains several high isolated moun- tains, and is abundantly watered by lakes and rivers. To the south lies the territory of the United States. 1:33 CHAPTER V. Upon the surface of Canada are found manifest indications of that tremendous deluge, the effects of which are so plainly visible in the Old World. Huge boulder stones ^ abound in almost every part of the province ; sometimes they are seen rounded, piled in high heaps on extensive horizontal beds of lime- stone, swept together by the force of some vast flood. Masses of various kinds of shells lie in great quantities in hollows and vallies, some of them hun- dreds of feet above the level of Lake Ontario. Near to great rivers, and often where now no waters are ' " The neighbourhood of Quebec, as well as Canada in general, is much characterised by boulders, and the size and position of some of them is very striking. There are two crowning the height which overlooks the domain farm at Beauport, whose collective weight is little short, by computation, of forty tons. The Heights of Abraham also are, or rather were, crowded with them ; and it should never be forgotten that it was upon one of these hoary symbols, the debacles of the deluge, as they are supposed to be, that the immortal and mortal parts of two heroes separated from each other. It has often occurred to us, that one of the most suitable monuments to the memory of Wolfe and Montcalm might have been erected with these masses, in the form of a pyramid or pile of shot, instead of burying them, as in many instances has been done, in order to clear the ground." — Picture of Quebec, p. 456. 134 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. at hand, undulations of rocks are seen like those found in the beds of rapids where the channels are waved. These have evidently, at some remote period, been the courses of floods now no longer existing. On the shores of the Gulf of St. Law- rence detached boulder stones appear, some of enormous size, many tons in weight ; they must have come from a great distance, for nowhere in that region is there any rock of similar material. In the upper strata of the country, are abundant fossil remains of distinct animal existences now unknown; they are blended with the limestone in which they lie. It seems certain that the whole of Canada has been violently convulsed by some effort of nature, since the floods of the deluge passed away ; the mountains are abrupt and irregular in outline, and in some places cleft with immense chasms; the rivers also show singular contortions. North of Quebec and in St. Paul's Bay, are many traces of volcanic eruptions, and vast masses of alluvial rocks, bearing marks of vitrification, frequently appear on the surface of the earth. There is, besides, strong evidence that the American Conti- nent has lain for unknown ages beneath the great deep, or that it is of later formation than Europe or Asia. As far as it has been explored, the general geolo- gical structure of Canada exhibits a granite country, with some calcareous rocks of a soft texture in hori- zontal strata. The lower islands in the St. Lawrence THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 135 are merely inequalities of the vast granite strata which occasionally stand above the level of the waters; the whole neighbouring country appears as if the Great River had, at one time, covered it. The banks of the St. Lawrence are, in many places, formed of a schistus substance in a decaying state, but still granite is everywhere found in strata, inclined, but never parallel to the horizon. In the Gaspe district many beautiful quartz, and a great variety of cornelians, agates, copals, and jaspers have been found, and traces of coal have also been observed.^ ^ Gray says, in 1809, that " uo coal has ever yet been found in Canada, probably because it has never been thought worth search- ing after. It is supposed that coal exists in the neighbourhood of Quebec ; at any rate there can be no doubt that it exists in great abundance in the island of Cape Breton, which may one day become the Newcastle of Canada." — P. 287. " No idea can be formed of the importance of the American coal- seams, until we reflect on the prodigious area over which they are continuous. The elliptical area occupied by the Pittsburg seam is 225 miles in its largest diameter, while its maximum breadth is about 100 miles ; its superficial extent being about 14,000 square miles. " The Apalachian coal-field extends for a distance of 720 miles from north-east to south-west, its greatest width being about 180 miles. " The Illinois coal-field is not much inferior in dimensions to the whole of England." — Lyell's America, vol. ii., p. 31. *' It was the first time I had seen the true coal in America, and I was much struck with its surprising analogy in mineral and fossil characters to that of Europe ; . . . the whole series resting on a coarse grit and conglomerate, containing quartz pebbles, very like our millstone grit, and often called by the American, as well as the English miners, the ' Farewell Rock,' because when they have reached it in their borings, they take leave of all valuable fuel." — Ibid., vol. i., p. 61. 136 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. The north shore of the St. Lawrence, from thirty miles below Quebec eastward, and along the coast of Labrador, is generally of the primitive formations. Except in the marshes and swamps, rocks obtrude upon the surface in all quarters ; in many places deep fissures of from six inches to two feet wide, are seen bearing witness to volcanic violence; the Indians describe some of these rents as several miles long, and forty or fifty feet deep ; when covered with the thick underwood they are, at times, very dan- gerous to the traveller. These chasms are probably owing to some great subterranean action ; there is a manuscript in the Jesuits' College at Quebec, which records the occurrence of an earthquake on the 5th of February, 1663, at about half-past 5 p.m., felt through the whole extent of Canada : trees in the forests were torn up and dashed against each other, with inconceivable violence ; mountains were raised from their foundations and thrown into vallies, leaving awful chasms behind; from the openings issued dense clouds of smoke, dust, and sand ; many rivers disappeared, others were diverted from their course, and the great St. Lawrence became suddenly white as far down as the mouth of the Saguenay. The first shock lasted for more than half an hour, but the greatest violence was only for fifteen minutes. At Tadoussac, a shower of volcanic ashes descended upon the rivers, agitating the waters like a tempest. This tremendous earthquake extended simultaneously over 180,000 square miles THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 137 of country, and lasted for nearly six months almost Avithout intermission.^ In the neighbom-hood of Quebec, a dark clay slate generally appears, and forms the bed of the St. Law- rence, as far as Lake Ontario and even at Niagara ; boulders and other large masses of rock, however, of various kinds, occur in detached portions at many different places. The great elevated ridge of broken country, running towards the Ottawa river, at the distance of from fifty to one hundred miles from the north shore of Lake Ontario, and the course of the St. Lawrence, is rich in silver, lead, copper, and iron. On the north shore of the Saguenay, the rugged mountains abound in iron to such an extent, as to influence the mariner's com- pass. The iron mines of St. Maurice,'^ have been ' See Appendix, No. XXI. ■* Professor Kalm visited the iron-works of St. Maurice in 1748, eleven or twelve years aifter their first establishment. " The iron- work, which is the only one in this country, lies three miles to the west of Trois Rivieres, Here are two great forges, besides two lesser ones to each of the great ones, and under the same roof with them. The bellows were made of wood, and everything else as in the Swedish forges. The ore is got two and a half miles from the iron- works, and is carried thither on sledges. It is a kind of moor-ore (Tophus Tubalcaini : Linn. Syst. Nat., lib, iii., p.l87, note 5) which lies in veins within six inches or a foot from the surface of the ground. Each vein is from six to eighteen inches deep, and below it is a white sand. Tlie veins are surrounded with this sand on both sides, and covered at the top with a thin mould. The ore is pretty rich, and lies in loose lumps in the veins of the size of two fists, though there are a few which are near eighteen inches thick. These lumps are full of holes which are filled with ochre. The ore is so soft that it may be crushed between the fingers. They make use of a grey limestone, 138 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. long known and found abundantly productive of an admirable metal, inferior to none in the world ; it is remarkably pliant and malleable, and little subject which is broke in the neighbourhood, for promoting the fusibility of the ore ; to that purpose they likewise employ a clay marl, which is found near this place. Charcoals are to be had in great abundance here, because the country round this place is covered with wood which has never been stirred. The charcoals from evergreen-trees, that is from the fir kind, are best for the forge, but those of deciduous trees are best for the smelting-oven. The iron which is here made was to me described as soft, pliable, and tough, and is said to have the quality of not being attacked by rust so easily as other iron. This iron- work was first founded in 1737 by private persons, who afterwards ceded it to the king ; they cast cannon and mortars here of different sizes, iron stoves, which are in use all over Canada, kettles, See Appendix, No. XXXI. 168 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. Indian hemp^ is seen in abundance upon the Cana- dian soil, particularly in light and sandy places ; the bark is so strong that the natives use it for bow- strings ; the pod bears a substance that rivals down in softness and elasticity ; the culture is easy ; the root penetrating deep into the earth survives the frosts of winter, and shoots out fresh stalks every spring. When five or six years old it attains the greatest perfection. It may be added, that in these favoured provinces all European plants, fruits, vege- tables, grain,^ legumes, and every other production of the earth required for the subsistence or luxury of man, yield their increase even more abundantly than in the old continents. The animals originally belonging to America appear to be of an inferior race — neither so robust, fierce, or numerous as those of the other continents : ' " The Swedes gave the name of Indian hemp to Apocynum Can- nabinum, because the Indians appl}^ it to the same purposes as the Europeans do hemp ; for the stalk may be divided into filaments, and is easily prepared. This plant grows in abundance in old corn grounds, in woods, on hills, and on high glades. The Indians make ropes of this Apocynum, which the Swedes buy, and employ them as bridles, and for nets. These ropes are stronger, and kept longer in water, than such as were made of common hemp. The Swedes commonly got fourteen yards of these ropes for one piece of bread. On my journey through the country of the Iroquois, I saw the women employed in manufacturing this hemp. The plant is perennial, which renders the annual planting of it altogether unnecessary. Out of the root and stalk of this plant, when it is fresh, comes a white milky juice, which is somewhat poisonous. Sometimes the fishing tackle of the Indian consists entirely of this hemp." — Kalm, in Pinkerton, vol. xiii., p. 544. - See Appendix, No. XXXII. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 169 some are peculiar to the New World ; but there is reason to suppose that several species have become utterly extinct, and the spread of cultivation and increase of the human race rapidly extirpate many of those that still remain. America gives birth to no creature of equal bulk to the elephant and rhino- ceros, or of equal strength and ferocity to the lion and tiger. The particular qualities in the climate, stinting the growth and enfeebling the spirit of the native animals, have also proved injurious to such as have been transported to the Canadas by their present European inhabitants. The soil, as well as temperature, of the country seems to be rather un- favourable to the development of strength and perfection in the animal creation.^ The general quality of the natural grasses covering those boundless pastures is not good or sufficiently nu- tritious.'* The native animals of Canada are the buffalo, ^ Buftbn, Hist. Nat., torn, ix., pp. 13, 203 ; Acosta, Hist., lib. iv. cap. xxxiv. ; Pisonis Hist., p. 6; Herrera, Dec. IV., lib. iv., cap. i. ; lib. X. cap. xiii. ■* Canada has not the fine natural pastures of Ireland, England, Holland, and other countries enjoying a cool, moist, and equable climate. Artificial grasses, now a most valuable branch of British husbandr}', are peculiarly important in Canada, where so large a quantity of hay should be stored for winter use. They are also most useful in preparing the soil for grain crops, but have the dis- advantage of requiring to stand the severe winter, so trying to all except annual plants. Clover, which is supposed to yield three times the produce of natural grass, grows luxuriantly ; but in the second year its roots are often found to have been destroyed by frost. For this reason it is necessary to have recourse to the species named 170 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. bison, and musk bull, belonging to the ox kind. The buffalo is still found in herds of immense num- bers upon the prairies of the remote western country, where they have wandered from the hated neigh- bourhood of civilised man: the skin^ is invaluable to the Canadians as a protection from the keen wintry air, and is abundantly supplied to them by the hunters of the Hudson's Bay Company.^ This animal is about the size of an ox, with the head disproportionably large; he is of a lighter colour, less ferocious aspect, and inferior strength to those of the old world. Both the bison and musk ox are varieties of the domestic cow, with a covering of shaggy hair ; they possess considerable strength and activity. Timothy, Avliich is extremely hardy, and M-ill set at defiance even a Canadian winter. — Talbot, vol. i., p. 30-i ; Gould, p. 67. * " In the western parts of Lower Canada, and throughout Upper Canada, where it is customary for travellers to carry their own bedding with them, these skins are very generally made use of for the purpose of sleeping upon. For upwards of two months we scarcely ever had any other bed than one of the skins spread on the floor and a blanket to each person. The skins are dressed by the Indians with the hair on, and they are rendered by a pecu- liar process as pliable as cloth. When the buffalo is killed in the beginning of the winter, at which time he is fenced against the cold, the hair resembles very much that of a black bear ; it is then long, straight, and of a blackish colour ; but when the animal is killed in the summer, the hair is short and curly, and of a light brown colour, owing to its being scorched by the rays of the sun." — Weld, p. 313. ** Charlevoix says " que la peau, quoique ti'es forte, devient souple et moelleuse comme le meilleur chamois. Les sauvages en font des boucliers, qui sont tres legers, et que les bals de fusil ne percent pas aisement." — Tom. v., p. 193. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 171 There are different descriptions of deer: the black and grey moose or elk, the cariboo or reindeer,^ the stag^ and fallow deer.^ The moose deer^" is the largest wild animal of the continent ; it is often '' The lieiglit of the domesticated reindeer is ahout three feet ; of the wild ones, four. It lives to the age of sixteen years. The rein- deer is a native of the northern regions only. In America it does not extend further south than Canada. The Indians often kill numbers for the sake of their tongue only ; at other times they separate the flesh from the bones, and preserve it by drying it in the smoke. The fat, they sell to the English, who use it for frying instead of butter. The skins also are an article of extensive commerce with the English. — Rees's Cyclopcedia, art, Cervus Tarandus. Charlevoix says that the Canadian caribou differs in nothing from the Benne of Buffon except in the colour of its skin, which is brown or reddish. — Tom. v., p. 191. La Hontan calls the caribou a species of wild ass ; and Chai'levoix says that its form resembles that of the ass, but that it at least equals the stag in agility. * Pennant is persuaded that the stag is not a native of America, and considers the deer known in that country by the name of stag as a distinct species. The American stag is the Cervus Canadensis of Erxleben. The Americans hunt and shoot those animals not so much for the sake of the flesh as of the fat, which serves as tallow in making candles, and the skins, which they dispose of to the Hudson's Bay Company. They are caught principally in the inland parts, near the vicinity of the lakes. — Rees's Cyclopcedia, art. Cervus Elaphus. Charlevoix says that " le Cerf en Canada est absofument le m^me qu'en France, peut etre communement un peu plus grand." — Tom. v., p. 189. " The fallow deer in America have been introduced there from Europe ; for the animal called the American fallow is of a very different kind, and is peculiar to the New Continent. This, the Cervus Virginianus, inhabits all the provinces south of Canada. — Rees's Cyclopcedia, art> Cervus Virginianus. "> See Appendix, No. XXXIII. 172 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. seen upwards of ten feet high, and weighing twelve hundred-weight ; though savage in aspect the creature is generally timid and inoffensive even when attacked by the hunter, and like the sheep may be easily domesticated: the flesh and skin are both of some value. The black and brown bear^ is found in various parts of America, but chiefly in the north-west : some few are seen in the forests to the north of Quebec. This animal chooses for his lurking-place the hollow trunk of an old tree, which he prepares with sticks and branches, and a coating of warm moss; on the approach of the cold season he retires to his lair, and sleeps through the long winter till the return of spring enables him again to seek his prey. The bear is rather shy than fierce, but very powerful and dangerous when driven to extremities ; he displays a strong degree of instinct, and is very dexterous and cunning in procuring food : the flesh is considered a delicacy, and the skin highly prized for beauty and warmth. Foxes "^ are numerous ; they are of various colours and very cunning. Hares ^ are abundant and turn white in winter like those of Norway. The wolverine or carcajou is called by the hunters beaver-eater, and somewhat resembles a badger ; the skin is soft and handsome. A species of porcupine or urchin is found to the northward, and supplies the Indians with quills about four ' See Appendix, No. XXXIV. ^ See Appendix, No. XXXV. '' See Appendix, No. XXXVI. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 173 inches long, which, when dyed, are worked into showy ornaments. Squirrels^ and various other small quadrupeds with fine furs are abundant in the forests. The animals of the cat kind are the cougar or American lion, the loup-cervier, the catamount, and the manguay or lynx. Beavers ^ are numerous in North America ; these amphibious animals are about two feet nine inches in length, with very short fore feet and divided toes, while the hinder are membranous, and adapted for swimming ; the body is covered with a soft, glossy, and valuable fur ; the tail is oval, scaly, destitute of hair, and about a foot long. These industrious creatures dam up considerable streams, and construct dwellings of many compartments, to protect them from the rigour of the climate, as well as from their numerous enemies ; their winter food, consisting of poplar logs, pieces of willows, alder, and fragments of other trees, is collected in autumn, and sunk in the water near the habitation. The beaver exhibits an extraordinary degree of instinct, and may be easily tamed ; when caught or surprised by the approach of an enemy, it gives warning to its companions by striking the water with the flat of its tail. The musk rat and otter resemble the beaver in some of their habits, but are inferior in ingenuity, and of less value to the hunter. The walrus has now disappeared from the fre- quented waters of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but is * See Appendix, No. XXXVII. ' See Appendix, No. XXXVIII. 174 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. still found on the northern coasts of Labrador ; in shape he somewhat resembles the seal, but is of much greater size, sometimes weighing 4000 lbs. ; when protecting their young, or when wounded, they are dangerous from their immense tusks ; when out of the water, however, they are very helpless. Nearly all these wild animals are pursued by the Indians, and the hunters of the Hudson's Bay Com- pany,^ for their skins ; they are consequently grow- ing rarer, and their haunts become more remote each succeeding year : probably, at no distant time, they will be altogether extinct. The birds of Canada differ little fi'om those of the same names in Europe ; but the severe climate is generally uncongenial to them. There are eagles, vultures, hawks, falcons, kites, owls, ravens, crows, rooks, jays, magpies, daws, cuckoos, woodpeckers, hoopers, creepers, humming-birds, thrushes, black- birds, linnets, finches, sparrows, fly-catchers, pigeons, turkeys, ducks, geese, swans, grouse, ptarmigans, snipes, quails, and many others. The plumage of the American birds is very brilliant ; but the sweet voices that fill the European woods with melody are never heard. Many of the birds of Lower Canada are migratory ; the w^ater-fowl seek the cooler north during the heat of summer, and other species fly to the south to shun the wintry frosts. In the milder latitudes of Upper Canada, birds are ' See Appendix, No. XXXIX. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 175 more numerous ; they are known by the same names as those of corresponding species in England, but differ from them to some extent in plumage and character. In Lower Canada the reptiles are few and innocuous, and even these are not met with in the cultivated parts of the country ; in the Upper Pro- vince, however, they are more numerous; some species are very dangerous, others harmless and exquisitely beautiful. Two kinds of rattlesnakes^ are found here : one of a deep brown and yellow colour, and seldom more than thirty inches in length; it frequents marshes and low meadows, and is very dangerous to cattle, often fastening its fangs upon their lips while grazing. The other is a bright greenish 3'^ellow clouded with brown, and twice the size of the former. These reptiles are thicker in proportion to their length than any others ; the rattle is at the end of the tail, and consists of a number of dry horny shells inclosed within each other; when wounded or enraged the skin of the rattlesnake assumes a variety of beautiful colours; the flesh is wdiite as that of the most delicate fish, and is esteemed a great luxury by the Indians. Cold weather weakens or destroys their poisonous qualities ; in the spring, when they issue from their place of winter concealment, they are harmless till they have got to water, and at that time emit a sickening smell so as to injure " See Appendix, No. XL. 170 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. those who hunt them. In some of the remoter districts they are still numerous, but in the long settled parts of the country they are now rarely or never seen. Several varieties of lizards and frogs abound ; the latter make an astonishing noise in marshy places during the summer evening, by their harsh croaking; the land crab is found on the northern shore of Lake Erie. A small tortoise, called a terrapin,^ is taken in some rivers, creeks, and swampy grounds, and is used as an article of food : seals have been occasionally seen on the islands in Lake Ontario. Insects^ are very numerous and various, some of ^ *' While we were roaming along the shore of Lake Ontario we caught a species of tortoise (testudo picta), which was a gaily-coloured shell, and I carried it a day's journey in the carriage, and then turned it out, to see whether, as I was told, it would know its way back to Lake Ontario. I am bound to admit that its instinct on this occasion did not fail, for it made directly for a ravine, in the bottom of which was a stream that would lead it in time to the Genesee river, and this would carry it to its native lake if it escaped destruc- tion at the falls below Rochester, where the celebrated diver, Sam Patch, perished, after he had succeeded in throwing himself with impunity down several other great waterfalls. There is a fresh- water tortoise in Europe (Terrapena Europea) found in Hungary, Prussia, and Silesia, as far north as latitude 50° to 52°, It also occurs near Bourdeaux, and in the north of Italy, 44° and 45° north latitude, which precisely corresponds with the latitude of Lake Ontario." — Lyell's Travels in North America, vol. i., p. 25. ® " To the Malacodermous division belongs the remarkable genus Lampyris, which contains the insects commonly called glow-worms. The substance from which the luminous property results has been the subject of frequent experiment and observation. It is obviously THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 177 them both troublesome and mischievous: locusts or grasshoppers have been known to cause great destruction to the vegetable world. Mosquitoes and sandflies infest the Avoods, and tlie neighbourhood of water, in incredible numbers during the hot weather ; there are many moths and butterflies resembUng those seen in England. The beautiful firefly is very common in Canada, their phos- phorescent light shining wuth wonderful bright- ness through the shady forests in the summer nights. The lakes and rivers of Upper Canada abound in splendid fish of almost every variety known in England, and others peculiar to the country: sturgeon of 100 lbs. weight are frequently taken, and a giant species of pike, called the maskenongi, of more than 60 lbs. The trout of the upper lakes almost rivals the sturgeon in size but not in flavour ; the delicious whitefish, somewhat resembling a shad, is very plentiful, as is also the black bass, under the control of the animal, which, when approached, may fre- quently be observed to diminish, or put out its light. The only species with which we are acquainted in British America is Lampyrjs corusca. It occurs in Canada, and has been taken at least as far north as latitude 54°. It was originally described by Simmons as a native of Finland and Russia, on the authority of Uddman, but has not since been found there." — Murray, vol. iii., p. 277. " We saw numerous yellow butterflies very like a British species. Sometimes forty of them clustering on a small spot resembled a plot of primroses, and as they rose altogether, and flew off slowly on every side, it was like the play of a beautiful fountain." — Lyell's America, vol. i., p. 25. VOL. I. K 178 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. which is highly prized ; a fresh-water herring abounds in great shoals, but is inferior in delicacy to the corresponding species of the salt seas. Salmon are numerous in Lake Ontario, but above the Falls of Niagara they are never seen. 179 CHAPTER VI. Perhaps the saddest chapter in the history of the sons of Adam, is furnished by the Red Man of America. His origin is unknown, no records tell the tale of his ancient deeds. A foundliog in the human family, discovered by his stronger brethren wandering wild through the forests and over the prairies of the western desert; no fra- ternal welcome greeted this lost child of nature ; no soothing voice of affection fell upon his ear, no gentle kindness wooed him from his savage isolation. The hand of irresistible power was stretched out — not to raise him from his low estate and lead him into the brotherhood of civilised man, but to thrust him away with cruel and unjust disdain. Little more than three centuries and a half have elapsed, since the Indian first gazed with terror and admiration upon the white strangers, and already three-fourths of his inheritance are rent away, and three-fourths of his race have vanished from the earth ; while the sad remnant, few and feeble, faint and weary, " are fast travelling to the shades of n2 180 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. their fathers, towards the setting sun." ^ Year by year they wither away ; to them the close breath of civilised man is more destructire than the deadliest blight.^ The arts and appliances which the accu- mulated ingenuity of ages has i)rovided to aid the labour and enhance the enjoyments of others, have been but a curse to these children of the wilderness. That blessed light which shines to the miserable of this world through the vista of the " shadowy valley," cheering the fainting spirit with the earnest of a glorious future, sheds but a few dim and dis- torted rays upon the outskirts of the Red Man's forest land. All the relations of Europeans to the Indian have been alike fatal to him — whether of peace or war ; as t3Tants or suppliants ; as conquerors armed with ' '' Driven by tlie European populations towards tlie north-west of North America,* the savage tribes are returning, by a singular destiny, to expire on the same shore where they landed, in imknown ages, to take possession of America. In the Iroquois language, the Indians gave themselves the appellation of Men of Alioays (Ongou- eonoue) ; these men of always have passed away, and the stranger will soon have left to the lawful heirs of a whole world nothing but the mould of their graves." — Chateaubriand's Travels in America (Eng, Trans.), vol. ii., p. 93. ^ See Appendix, No. XLI. * De Tocqueville calculated that along the borders of the United States, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico, extending a distance of more than 1200 miles, as the bird flies, the whites advance every year at a mean rate of seventeen miles ; and he truly observes that there is a grandeur and solemnity in tliis gradual and continuous march of the European race towards the Rocky Mountains. He compares it to " a deluge of men rising, unabatedly, and daily driven onwards by the hand of God." — Democracy in America, vol. ii., cap. x. § 4 ; Lyell, vol. ii. p. 77. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 181 unknown weapons of destruction ; as the insidious purchasers of his hunting-grounds, betraying him into an accursed thirst for the deadly fire-water; as the greedy gold-seekers, crushing his feeble frame under the hated labours of the mine; as ship- wrecked and hungry wanderers, while receiving his simple alms, marking the fertility and defenceless- ness of his lands; as sick men enjoying his hos- pitality, and, at the same time, imparting that terrible disease^ which has swept off whole nations ; as woodmen in his forest, and intrusive tillers of his ground, scaring away to the far West those animals of the chase given by the Great Spirit for his food ; there is to him a terrible monotony of result. In the delicious islands of the Car- ribean Sea, and in the stern and magnificent regions of the north-east ; scarcely now remains a mound, or stone, or trace even of tradition, to point out the place where any among the departed millions sleep. The discovery of the American Indians brought to light not only a new race, but also a totally new condition of men. The rudest form of human society known in the Old World, was far advanced beyond that of the mysterious children of the West, in arts, knowledge, and government. Even among the simplest European and Asiatic nations the prin- ciple of individual possession was established ; the beasts of the field were domesticated to supply the ^ See Appendix, No. XLII. 182 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. food and aid the labours of man, and large bodies of people were united under the sway of hereditary chiefs. But the Red Man roamed over the vast forests and prairies of his undiscovered continent, accompanied by few of his fellows, unassisted by beasts of burden,* and trusting alone to his skill and fortune in the chase for a support. The first European visitors to the New World, were filled with such astonishment at the appearance and complexion of the Red Man, that they hastily con- cluded he belonged to a different species from them- selves. As the native nations became better known, their warriors, statesmen, and orators, commanded the admiration of the strangers. Espe- cially in the northern people, every savage virtue was conspicuous; they were gentle in peace, but terrible in war ; of a proud and noble bear- ing, honest, faithful, and hospitable, loving order though without laws, and animated by the strong- est and most devoted loyalty to their tribe. At the same time, while willingly recording their high and admirable qualities, pity for the devoted * " Generally speaking, the American races of mankind were characterised by a want of domestic animals, and this had consider- able influence on their domestic life." {Cosmos, note, vol. ii., p. 481.) Contrasting the Bedouin with the Red Indian, Volney observes, "the American savage is, on the contrary, a hunter and a butcher, who has had daily occasion to kill and slay, and in every animal has beheld nothing but a fugitive prey, which he must be quick to seize. He has thus acquired a roaming, wasteful, and ferocious disposition ; has become an animal of the same kind with the wolf and tiger ; has united in bands or troops, but not into organised societies." THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 183 race must not blind us to their ferocious and degrading vices. It was not until the end of the seventeenth cen- tury that the manners and characteristics of tliis strange race attracted to any considerable degree the attention of philosophers and theorists ; a chasm in human history then seemed about to be filled. Eager to throw light upon the subject, but too impatient to inquire into the facts necessary for the formation of opinions, the conclusions formed were often unjust to the native dignity of the Red Indian,^ and have been proved erroneous by subsequent and more perfect information. On the other hand, one of the most gifted but dangerous of modern philoso- phers, would exalt these untutored children of nature to a higher degree of honour and excellence than civilisation and knowledge can confer: he deemed that the elevation and independence of mind, result- ing from the rude simplicity of savage life, is sought * •' On ne prit pas d'abord les Americains pour des hommes, mais pour des orang-otangs, pour des grands singes, qu'on pouvoit detruire sans remords et sans reproche. XJn pape fit une Bulla originale dans laquelle il declara qu' ayant enrie de fonder des Eveclies dans les plus riches contrees de 1' Amcrique, il plaisoit a lui et au Saint Esprit de reconnoitre les Americains pour des hommes veritables ; de sorte que, sans cette decision d'une Italien, les habitans du Nouveau Monde seroient encore maintenant, aux yeux des fideles, une race d'animaux equivoques. . . . Qui auroit cru que malgrc cette sentence de Rome, on eut agite violemment au conseil de Lima, 1583, si les Americains avoient assez d'esprit pour etre admis aux sacrements de I'Eglise. Plusicurs cveques persisterent a les leur refuser pendant que les Je'suites faisoient communier tous les jours leurs Indiena 184 THE COXQUEST OF CANADA. in vain among the members of refined and organised societies.^ Ever3d:hing tended to render inquir}^ into the state of the rude tribes of America difficult and obscure ; in the generality of cases they presented character- istics of a native simplicity, elsewhere unknown; and even in the more favoured districts, where a degree of civilisation appeared, it had assumed a form and direction totally different from that of the Old World.7 esclaves au Paraquai, afin de les accoutumer, disoient-ils, a la disci- pline, et pour les detourner de 1 'horrible coutume de se nourrir de chair humain." — Becherches Philosophiques sur les Americains, De Pauw, torn, i., p, 35. ® Rousseau, opposed by Buffon, Volney, C ,^ THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 187 cheek of a harvest labourer will witness. Under the equator we find the jet black of the Negro ; then the olive-coloured Moors of the southern shores of the Mediterranean ; again, the bronzed face of the Spaniard and Italian ; next, the Frenchman, darker than those who dwell under the temperate skies of England ; and last, the bleached and pallid visages of the north. Along the arctic circle, indeed, a dusky tint again appears : that, however, may be fairly attributed to the scorching power of the sun, constantly over the horizon, through the brief and fiery summer. The natives remain generally in the open air during this time, fishing, or in the chase ; and the effect of exposure stamps them with a complexion which even the long-continued snows cannot remove. In the rigorous winter season, the people of those dreary countries pass most of their time in wretched huts, or subterranean dwellings, where they heap up large fires to warm their shivering limbs ; the smoke has no proper vent in these ill-constructed abodes; it fills the confined air, and tends to darken the complexions of those constantly exposed to its influence. The difference of colour in the human race is doubtless influenced by many causes, modifying the effect of position with regard to the tropics ; the great elevation of a particular district, its proximity sont constamment exposes. Ccfte erreur a ete i3artagee par un des voyageurs modernes les plus spirituels, mais des plus syste'matiques, par Volney." {Essai Politique sur la Mexiqne. )-~Eumho\dt's Geog. du Nouv. Continent, vol. v., p. 25. 188 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. to the sea, the shades of a vast forest, the exhala- tions from extensive marshes, all tend to diminish materially the power of a southern sun.^ On the other hand intensity of heat is aggravated by the neighbourhood of arid and sandy deserts, or rocky tracts. The action of long continued heat creates a more permanent effect than the mere darkening of the outer skin, it alters the character of those subtle juices that display their colour through the almost transparent covering.^ We see that from a con- stitutional peculiarity in individuals the painful variety of the albino is sometimes produced in the hottest countries. Certain internal diseases, and different medicines, change the beautiful bloom of the young and healthy into repulsive and unnatural tints. A peculiar secretion of the carbon abounding in the human frame produces the jet black of the negro's skin, and enables him to bear without incon- venience the terrible sultriness of his native land.^ The dark races, inferior in animal and intellectual j)owers to the white man, are yet nearly free from the deformities he so often exhibits, perhaps on account of a less susceptible and delicate structure. ^ Ou the influence of humidity much stress has been laid by M. d'Orbigny and Sir R. Schomburgh, each of whom has made the remark as the result of personal and independent observation on the inhabitants of the New World, that people who live under the damp shade of dense and lofty forests are comparatively fair. ^ See Appendix, No. XLI. ^ Mr. Jarrold asserts that the negro becomes the most perfect specimen of the human species, in consequence of his possessing the coarsest and most impassive integument. — Anthr apologia . THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 189 The Caucasian or European races, born and matured under a temperate climate, manifestly enjoy the highest gifts of man ; wherever they come in con- tact with their coloured brother he ultimately yields to the irresistible superiority, and becomes according to the caprice of their haughty will, the victim, the dependant, or the slave.* There are other characteristics different from, but generally combined with colour, which are influenced by constitutional varieties. The hair usually har- monises with the complexion, and like it shows the influence of climate. In cold countries the natural covering of every animal becomes rich and soft, the plentiful locks and manly beard of the European show a marked contrast to the coarse and scanty hair of the inhabitants of tropical countries. The development of mental power, and refined habits of life have also a strong but slow effect upon the out- ward form f certain African nations of a higher intel- * See Appendix, No. XLII. * " It is intellectual culture whicli contributes most to diversify the features. Barbarous nations have rather a physiognomy of tribe or horde than one peculiar to such or such an individual. The savage and civilised man are like those animals of the same species, several of which rove in the forest, while others connected with us share in the benefits and evils that accompany civilisation. The varieties of form and colour are frequent only in domestic animals. How great is the difference with respect to mobility of feature and variety of physiognomy between dogs again become savage in the New World, and tliose whose slightest caprices are indulged in the houses of the opulent. Both in men and animals the emotions of the soul are reflected in the features ; and the features acquire the habit of mobility in proportion as the emotions of the mind are more frequent, 190 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. ligence and civilisation than their rude neighbours, show much less of the peculiarities of the negro features. The refined Hindoo displays a delicate form and expression under his dark complexion. The black colour and the negro features are acci- dentally not necessarily connected, and it seems to require both climate and inferiority of intellect to unite them in the same race. When circumstances of climate or situation have effected peculiar appearances in a nation or tribe, the results will long survive the causes, when people are removed to widely different latitudes ; a dark colour is not easily effaced even under the influence of moderate temperature and heightened civilisation. For these reasons, there appear many cases where the complexion of the inhabitants and the climate of their country do not correspond, but the original characteristics will be found undergoing the process of gradual change, ultimately adapting themselves to more varied, and more durable. In every condition of man it is not the energy or the transient burst of the passions which give expression to the features ; it is rather that sensibiHty of the soul which brings us continually into contact with the external world, multiplies our sufferings and our pleasures, and reacts at once on the physiognomy, the manners, and the language. If the variety and mobility of the features embellish the domain of animated nature, we must admit also that both increase by civilisation without being pro- duced by it alone. In the great family of nations no other race unites these advantages to a higher degree than that of Caucasus or the European. It must be admitted that this insensibihty of the features is not peculiar to every race of men of a very dark com- plexion ; it is much less apparent in the African than in the natives of America." — Humboldt's Personal Narrative, vol. iii., p. 230. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 191 their new country and situation.^ The marked and peculiar countenances of the once " chosen people " vary, in colour at least, wherever they are seen over the world, although uninfluenced by any admixture of alien blood ; in England the children of Israel and the descendant of the Saxon are alike of a fair com- plexion, and on the banks of the Nile the Jew and the Egyptian show the same swarthy hue.^ At first sight this American race would appear to ofler evidence against the supposed influence of climate upon colour, as one general form and com- plexion prevail in all latitudes of the New World, from the tropics to the frozen regions of the north. Great varieties, however, exist in the shade of the ® Tacitus, in his speculations on the peopling of Britain, distin- guishes very beautifully between what may belong to the ultimate influences of the country, and what may pertain to an old unalterable type in the immigrated race. " Britanniam qui mortales initio coluerunt, indigenae an advecti, ut inter barbaros, parum compertum. Habitus corporis varii, atque ex eo argumenta ; namque rutilsa Caledoniam habitantium comfe, magni artus Germanicam originem adseverant. Silurum colorati vultus et torti plerumque crines, et posita contra Hispania, Iberos veteres trajecisse, easque sedes occu- passe fidem faciunt : proxinii Gallis et similes sunt, seu durante originis vi ; seu, procurrentibus in divisa terris, positio coeli corpori- bus habitum dedit." — Agricola, cap. ii. " No ancient author has so clearly stated the two forms of reason- ing, by which we still explain in our days the differences of colour and figure among neighbouring nations, as Tacitus. He makes a just distinction between the influence of climate and hereditary disposi- tions, and like a philosopher persuaded of our profound ignorance of the origin of things, leaves the question undecided." — Humboldt's Personal Narrative. ^ See Smith on The Variety of Complexion of the Human Species. 193 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. red or copper^ colour of the Indians. There are two extremes of complexion among mankind, — those of the northern European and the African negro ; between these there is a series of shades, that of the American Indian being about midway. The struc- ture of the New World, and the circumstances of its inhabitants, may account for the generally equal colour of their skin. The western Indian never becomes black, even when dwelling directly under the equator. He lives among stupendous mountain ranges, where cool breezes from the snowy heights sweep through the vallies and over the plains below. The vast rivers springing from under those lofty peaks inundate a great extent of country, and turn it into swamps, whence perpetual exhalations arise and lower the temperature. There are no fiery deserts to heat the passing wind, and reflect the rays of the sun ; a continual forest, with luxuriant foliage, and a dense underwood, spreads a pleasant shade over the surface of the earth. America, under the same latitudes, especially on the eastern coast, is everywhere colder than the Old World. The nearest approach to a black complexion is seen in the people of Brazil, a country comparatively low, and immediately under the equator. The inhabit- ants of the lofty Mexican table land are also very ^ Mr. Lawrence's precise definition is "an obscure orange or rusty- iron colour, not unlike the bark of the cinnamon tree." Amongst the early discoverers, Vespucius applies to them the epithet " rougeatre." Verazzano says, " souo di color berrettini e non molto dalli Saracini difFerenti." THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 193 dark, and on those arid plains the sun pours down its scorching rajs upon a surface ahnost devoid of sheltering vegetation. The habits of savage life, and the constant expo- sure to the elements, seem sufficient to cause a dark tint upon the human skin even in the temperate regions of America, Avhere the cold is far greater than in the same latitude in Europe. The inhabit- ants of those immense countries are badly clothed, imperfectly defended against the weather, miserably housed ; wandering in war or in the chase, exposed for weeks at a time to the mercy of the elements, they soon darken into the indelible red or copper colour of their race. On the north-west coasts, about latitude 50°, in Nootka Sound, and a number of other smaller bays, dwell a people more numerous and better provided with food and shelter than their eastern neighbours. They are free from a ^reat part of the toils and hardships of the hunter, and from the vicissitudes of the season. When cleansed from their filthy and fantastic painting, it appears that their complexion and features resemble those of the European.^ Modern discoveries have to a great extent dis- pelled the mystery of the Indian origin, and proved ^ Cook's Narrative calls their colour an effete white, like that of the southern nations of Europe. Meares expressly says, that some of the females, when cleaned, were found to have the fair complexions of Europe. Somewhat further north, at Cloak Bay, in lat. 54° 10', Humboldt remarks, that "in the midst of copper-coloured Indians, with small VOL. I. 194 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the fallacy of the numerous and ingenious theories formerly advanced with so much pertinacity and zeal. Since the north-west coasts of America and the north-east of Asia have been explored, little difficulty remains on this subject. The two con- tinents approach so nearly in that direction that they are almost within sight of each other, and small boats can safely pass the narrow strait. Ten degrees further south the Aleutian and Fox Islands^ form a continuous chain between Kamtschatka and the peninsula of Alaska, in such a manner as to leave the passage across a matter of no difficulty. The rude and hardy Tschutchi inhabiting the north- east of Asia frequently sail from one continent to the other.^ From the remotest antiquity this ignorant people possessed the wonderful secret of the exist- ence of a world hidden from the wisest and most adventurous of civilised nations. They were uncon- scious of the value of their vast discovery ; they passed over a stormy strait from one frozen shore to another, as stern and desolate as that they had left behind, and knew not that they had crossed one of the great boundaries of earth. When they first entered upon the Avilderness of America, probably the most adventurous pushed down towards the long eyes, there is a tribe with large eyes, European features, and a skin less dark than that of our peasantry. "^ — New Spain, vol. i., p. 145. Humboldt considers this as the strongest argument of an original diversity of race which has remained unaffected by climate. ' See Appendix, No. XLV. - Cochrane 'e Pedestrian Journey. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 195 genial regions of the south, and so through the long ages of the past the stream of population flowed slowly on, wave by wave, to the remotest limits of the east and south. The Indians resemble the people of north-eastern Asia in form and feature more than any other of the human race : their population is most dense along the districts nearest to Asia, and among the Mexicans, whose records of the past deserve credence, there is a constant tradition that their Aztec and Toultec chiefs came from the north- west. Everywhere but to the north, America is surrounded with a vast ocean unbroken by any chain of islands that could connect it with the Old World. Most probably no living man ever crossed this immense barrier before the time of Columbus. It is certain that in no part of America have any authentic traces been found of European civilisa- tion; the civilisation of America, such as it was, arose, as it flourished, in the fertile plains of Mexico^ and in the delightful valleys of Peru ;* there, where ^ Prescott remarks, that the progress made by the Mexicans in astronomy, and especially the fact of their having a general board for education and the fine arts, pi'oves more in favour of their advance- ment than the noble architectural monuments which they and their kindred tribes erected. " Architecture," he observes, " is a sensual gratification, and addresses itself to the eye ; it is the form in which the resources of a semi-civilised people are most likely to be lavished." — Conquest of Mexico, vol. i., p. 155 ; Lyell's America, vol. i., p. 115. * " Dans les regions anciennement agricoles de I'Amerique meri- dionale les conquerans Europeens n'ont fait que suivre les traces d' une culture indigene. Les Indiens sont restes attaches au sol qu'ils ont defriche depuis des sii^cles. Le Mexique seul compte un o2 190 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the bounty of nature supplied an abundance of the necessaries of life, the population rapidly multiplied, and the arts became objects of cultivation. There is something almost mysterious in the total difference between the languages of the Old and New World.^ All the tongues of civilised nations spring from a few original roots, somewhat analogous to each other; but it would seem that among wandering tribes dispersed over a vast extent of country, carrying on but little inter- course, and having no written record or traditionary million sept cent mille indigenes de race pure, dont le nombre augmente avec la meme rapidite que celui des autres castes. Au Mexique, a Guatemala, a Quito, au Perou, a Bolivia, la physionomie du pays, a I'exception de quelques grandes villes, est essentiellement Indienne ; dans les campagnes la variete des langues s'est conservee avec les mosurs, le costume et les habitudes de la vie domestique. 11 n'y a de plus que des troupeaux de vaches et de brebis, quelques cereales uouvelles et les ceremonies d'une culte qui se mele a d'an- tiques superstitions locales. 11 faut avoir vecu dans les hautes plaines de I'Amerique Espagnole ou dans la confederation Anglo- Americain pour sentir vivement combien ce contraste entre des peuples chassem-s et des peuples agricoles, entre des pays longtemps barbares ou des pays offrant d'anciennes institutions politiques et une k'gislation indigene tres developpee, a facilite ou entrave la conquete, influe sur les formes des premiers etablissement europeens, conseiTC meme de uos jours aux differentes parties de I'Amerique independante, un caractere ineffagable. Deja le pere Joseph Acosta qui a etudie sur les lieux memes les suites du grand di'ame sanguinaire de la conquete a bien saisi ces differences frappantes de civilisation progi'essive et d'absence entiere d'ordre social qu'offrait le nouveau-monde a I'epoque de Christopher Colomb, ou peu de tems apres la colonisation par les Espagnols. — Eist. Nat. y Moral., lib. vi., cap. ii. ; Humboldt's Geo- graphic du Nouveau Continent, torn, i., p. 130. * See Appendix, No. XLVI. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 197 recital to preserve any fixed standard, language undergoes a complete change in the course of ages. The great varieties of tongues in America, and their dissimilarity to each other, tend to confirm this supposition. In various parts of America remains are found which place beyond a doubt, the ancient existence of a people more numerous, powerful, and civilised than the present race of Indians. But the indica- tions of this departed people are not such as to bespeak their having been of very remote antiquity : the ruined cities of Central America, concealed by the forest growth of centuries, and the huge mounds of earth ^ in the valley of the Mississippi, and upon the table-lands of Mexico, their dwellings and mausoleums, although long swept over by the storm of savage conquest, afford no proofs of their having existed very far back into those dark ages when the New World was unknown to Europe. The history of these past races of men will probably for ever remain a sealed book, but there is no doubt that " "In both Americas It Is a matter of Inquiry what was the intention of the natives when they raised so many artificial hills, several of which appear to have served neither as mounds nor watch towers, nor the base of a temple. A custom established in Eastern Asia may throw some light on this important question. Two thousand three hundred years before our era, sacrifices were ofiered in China to the Supreme Being, Chan-Ty, on four great mountains called the Four Yo, The sovereigns finding it inconvenient to go thither in person, caused eminences representing these mountains to be erected by the hands of men near their habitations." — Voyage of Lord Macartney, vol. i., p. 58 ; Hager, Monument of Yu, p. 10, 1802. 198 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. a great population once covered those rich countries which the first EngUsh visitors found the wild hunt- ing-grounds for a few savage tribes.^ Probably the existing race of red men w^ere the conquerors and exterminators of the feeble but civilised aboriginal nations, and as soon as they possessed the land they split into separate and hostile communities, waging perpetual war with each other so as constantly to diminish their numbers. Far up the Mississippi and the Missouri the exploration of the country brings to light incontest- able proofs of the existence of the mysterious aboriginal race; wells artificially walled, and various other structures for convenience or defence, are frequently seen ; ornaments of silver, copper, and even brass are found, together with various articles of pottery and sculptm'ed stone ; sepulchres filled with vast numbers of human bones have often been discovered, and human bodies in a state of preservation are sometimes exhumed; on one of these the hair was yellow or sandy, and it is well known that an unvarying characteristic of the present red race is the lank black hair. A splendid robe of a kind of linen, made apparently from nettle fibres, and interwoven with the beautiful feathers of the wild turkey, ench-cled this long buried mummy. The number and the magnitude ^ Mr. Flint asserts " that the greatest population clearly has been in those positions where the most dense future population will be." — P. 166. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 199 of the mounds bear evidence that the concurrent labours of a vast assembly of men were employed in their construction.^ * " The bones of animals and snakes have sometimes been found mixed with human bones in these tumuh, and out of one near Cincin- nati were dug two large marine shells, one of which was the Cassis Coi-nutus of the Asiatic islands, the other the Fulgur Perversus of the coast of Georgia and East Florida, and this is an additional argument used in favour of the alleged intercourse existing anciently between the Indians of this part of North America and the inhabitants of Asia, and between them and those of the Atlantic. Manj'^ circum- stances still existing, give probability to the popular belief that the American Indians had their origin in Asia. In their persons, colour, and reserved disposition, they have a strong resemblance to the Malays of the Oriental Archipelago ; that is to say, to some of the Tartar tribes of Upper Asia ; and it is a remarkable circumstance that, like these, they shave the head, leaving only a single lock of hair. The picture language of the Mexicans, as corresponding with the ancient picture language of China, and the quipos of Peru with the knotted and party-coloured cords which the Chinese history informs us were in use in the early period of the empire, may also be adduced as corroborative evidence. The high cheek bones and the elongated eye of the two people, besides other personal resemblances, suggest the probability of a common origin." — Quarterly Review, No. LVIL, p. 13. *' The Iroquois and Hurons made hieroglyphic paintings on wood, which bear a striking resemblance to those of the Mexicans." — Lafitau, vol. ii., pp. 43, 225 ; La Houtan, p. 193. " A long struggle between two religious sects, the Brahmans and the Buddhists, terminated by the emigration of the Chamans to Thibet, Mongolia, China, and Japan. If tribes of the Tartar race have passed over to the north-west coast of America, and thence to the south and the east, towards the banks of Gila, and those of the Missouri, as etymological researches serve to indicate, we should be less surprised at finding among the semi-barbarous nations of the New Continent, idols and monuments of architecture, a hierogly- phical writing, and exact knowledge of the duration of the year, and 200 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. In the progress of early discovery and settlement, striking views were presented of savage life among the red men inhabiting the Atlantic coast ; but later researches along the banks of the Mississippi and its tributaries, and by the great Canadian lakes, exhibited this people under a still more re- markable aspect. The most prominent among the natives of the interior for power, policy, and courage, were the Iroquois or Five Nations ; ^ their traditions respecting the first state of the world, recalling to our minds the arts, the sciences, and religious opinions of the Asiatic nations." — Humboldt's Researches. In his description of a Mexican painting, Humboldt observes, — " The slave on the left is like the figure of those saints which we see frequently in Hindoo paintings, and which the navigator Roblet found ou the north-west coast of America, among the hieroglyphical paint- ings of the natives of Cox's Channel." — Marchant's Voyage, vol. i., p. 312. "It is probably by philosophical and antiquarian researches in Tartary that the history of those civilised nations of North America, of whose great works only the wreck remains, will alone be elucidated. — See Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. iii., chap. xxii. ; and Stephens's Central America, vol. i., p. 96 ; vol. ii., chap, xxvi., pp. 186, 357, 413, 433. See Appendix, No. XLVII. ^ " The five nations were the Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Cayugas, the Onondagas, and the Senecas. The Dutch called them Maquas, the French Iroquois, their appellation at home was the Mingoes, and sometimes the Aganuschion, or United People." — Governor Clinton's Discourse hefore Neio York Historical Society, 1811. The Iroquois have often among Europeans been termed the Romans of the West. — " Le nom d'Iroquois est purement frangois, et a ete forme du terme Hiro, qui signifie, J'ai clit, par lequel ces sauvages finissent tout leur discours, comme les Latins faisaient autrefois par leur Dixi ; et de Koue, qui est un cri, tantot de tristesse, lorsqu' on le prononce en trainant, et tautot de joie, lorsqu' on le prononce plus court. Leiu- nom propre est Agonnonsionni, qui veut dire, Faiseurs THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 201 territory extended westward from Lake Champlain, to the farthest extremity of Ontario, along the southern banks of the St, Lawrence, and of the Great Lake. Although formed by the alliance of five independent tribes, they always presented an united front to their foes, whether in defence or aggression. Their enemies, the Algonquins, held an extensive domain on the northern bank of the St. Lawrence ; these last were at one time the masters of all that portion of America, and were the most polished and mildest in manners of the northern tribes. They depended altogether for subsistence on the produce of the chase, and dis- dained those among their neighbours who at- temj)ted the cultivation of the soil. The Hurons^ de Cabannes ; parcequ'ils les batissent beaucoup plus solides, que la plupart des autres sauvages." — Charlevoix, torn, i., p. 421. Lafitau gives the Iroquois the same name of Agonnonsionni; they used to say of themselves, that the five nations of v?hich they were composed, formed but one " Cabane. " ' " Le Pere Brebeuf comptoit environ trente mille ames de vrais Hurons, distribucs en vingt villages de la nation. II y avoit outre cela, douze nations sedentaires et nombreuses, qui parloient leur langue. La plupart de ces nations ne subsistent plus, les Iroquois ces ont detruites. Les vrais Hurons sont reduits aujourd'hui k la petite mission de Lorette, qui est pres de Quebec, om. Ton voit le Christianisme fleurir avcc 1 'edification de tons les Fran§ais, h, la nation des Tionnontates qui sont ctablis au Detroit, et a une autre nation qui s'est refugiee a la Carolina." — Charlevoix, 1721. " The Tionnontates mentioned above, now bear the name of Wyan- dots, and are a striking exception to the degeneracy which usually attends the intercourse of Indians with Europeans. The Wyandots have all the energy of the savage warrior, with the intelligence and docility of civilised troops. They are Christians, and remarkable for 202 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. were a numerous nation, generally allied with the Algonquins, inhabiting the immense and fertile territory extending westward to the Great Lake, from which they take their name : they occupied themselves with a rude husbandry, which the fertile soil of the west repaid, by affording them an abun- dant subsistence; but they were more effeminate and luxurious than their neighbours, and inferior in savage virtue and independence. The above-named nations were those principally connected with the events of Canadian history. Man is less affected by climate in his bodily development than any other animal ; his frame is at the same time so hardy and flexible, that he thrives and increases in every variety of temperature and situation, from the tropic to the pole ; neverthe- less in extremes, such as these, his complexion, size, and vigour, usually undergo considerable modi- fications^ Among the red men of America, how- orderly and inoffensive conduct ; but as enemies, they are among the most dreadful of their race. They were all mounted (in the war of 1812-13), fearless, active, enterprising; to contend with them in the forest was hopeless, and to avoid their pursuit, impossible. " It is worthy of remark that the Wyandots are the only part of the Huron nation who ever joined in alliance with the English. The mass of the Hurons were always the faithful friends of the French, during the times of the early settlement of Canada." — Quarterly Review. ' The extremes of heat and cold are as unfavourable to intellectual as to physical superiority ;* a fact which may be easily traced throuschout the vast and varied extent of the two Americas. " As The most temperate climate lies between the 40th .and 30th degree of" latitude, THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 203 ever, there is a remarkable similarity of coun- tenance, form, manners, and habits, in every part of the continent ; no other race can show people speaking different languages, inhabiting widely dif- ferent cUmates, and subsisting on different food, who are so wonderfully alike.^ There are, indeed, far as the parallel of 53°, the temperature of the north-west coast of America is milder than that of the eastern coasts ; we are led to expect, therefore, that civilisation had anciently made some progress in this climate, and even in higher latitudes. Even in our own times, we perceive that in the 59th degree of latitude in Cox's Channel and Norfolk Sound, the natives have a decided taste for hieroglyphical paintings on wood." — Humholdt on the Ancient Inhabitants of America. It has been ascertained that this western coast is populous, and the race somewhat superior to the other Indians in arts and civilisation. — Ramusio, tomo., iii., pp. 297 — 303 ; Venegas' California, Part ii., §.". "From the happy coincidence of various circumstances, man raises himself to a certain degree of cultivation, even in climates the least favourable to the development of organised beings. Near the polar circle in Iceland in the twelfth century, we know the Scandinavians cultivated literature and the arts with more success than the inha- bitants of Denmark and Prussia." — Humboldt. ' Mr. Flint says, "I have inspected the northern, middle, and southern Indians for a length of ten years, my opportunities of obser- vation have, thei'efore, been considerable, and I do not undertake to form a judgment of their character without, at least, having seen much of it. I have been forcibly struck by a general resemblance in and it produces the most handsome and beautiful people. It is from this climate that the ideas of the genuine colour of mankind, and of the various degrees of beauty ought to be derived. The two extremes are equally remote from truth and from beauty. The civilised countries situated under this zone are Georgia, Circassia, the Ukraine, Turkey in Europe, Hungary, the south of Germany, Italy, Switzerland, France, and the northern parts of Spain. The natives of these territories are the most handsome and most beautiful people in the world. — BufTon, English trans, vol. iii. p. 205. 204 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. varieties of stature, strength, intellect, and self- respect to be found among them ; but the savage of the frozen north, and the Indian of the tropics, have the same stamp of person, and the same in- stincts.'* There is a language of signs common to all, conveying similar ideas, and providing a means of mutual intelligence to every red man from north to south. The North American Indians are generally of a tlieir countenance, make, conformation, manners, and habits. I believe that no race of men can show people who speak different lan- guages, inhabit different climes, and subsist on different food, and who are yet so wonderfully alike." — (1831.) Don Antonio UUoa, who had extensive opportunities of forming an opinion on the natives of both the continents of America, asserts that " if we have seen one American, we may be said to have seen all, their colour and make are so nearly the same." — Notic. Americanas, p. 308. See likewise, Garcia, Origin de los Indios, pp. 55 — 242 ; Torquemada, Monarch. Indiana, vol. ii., p. 571. " If we except the northern regions where we find men similar to the Laplanders, all the rest of America is peopled with inhabitants, among whom there is little or no diversity. This great uniformity among the natives of America seems to proceed from their living all in the same manner. All the Americans were, or still are, savages ; the Mexicans and Peruvians were so recently polished, that they ought not to be regarded as an exception. Whatever, therefore, was the origin of these savages, it seems to have been common to the whole. All the Americans have sprung from the same source, and have preserved, with little variation, the characters of their race ; for they have all continued in a savage state, and have followed nearly the same mode of life. Their climates are not so unequal with regard to heat and cold as those of the ancient continent, and their establishment in America has been too recent to allow those causes which produce varieties sufficient time to operate so as to render their effects conspicuous." — Buffon, Eng. trans., vol. iii., p. 188. ' See Appendix, No. XLVIII. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 205 fair height and proportion. Deformities or personal defects^ are rare among them ; and they are never seen to fall into corpulency. Their features, natu- rally pleasing and regular, are often distorted by absurd attempts to improve their beauty, or render their appearance more terrible. They have high cheek-bones, sharp and rather aquiline noses, and good teeth. Their skin is generally described as red or copper-coloured, approaching to the tint of cinna- mon bark, a complexion peculiar to the inhabitants of the New World. The hair of the Americans, like that of their Mongolian ancestors, is coarse, black, thin, but strong, and growing to a great length. Many tribes of both these races remove it from every part of the head except the crown, where a small tuft is left, and cherished with care. It is a uni- versal habit among the tribes of the New World to eradicate every symptom of beard : hence the early travellers were led to conclude that the smoothness of their faces resulted from a natural deficiency. One reason for the adoption of this strange custom was to enable them to paint themselves with greater ease. Among old men, who have become indifferent to their appearance, the beard is again seen to a small extent.^ * See Appendix, No. XLIX. * There would never have been any difference of opinion between physiologists, as to the existence of the beard among the Americans, if they had paid attention to what the first historians of the conquest of their country have said on this subject ; for example, Pigafetta, in 1519, in his Journal preserved in the Ambrosian library at Milan, and 206 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. On the continent, especially towards the north, the natives were of robust and vigorous constitution. Their sole employment was the chase of the nume- rous wild animals of the forest and prairies : from their continual activity, their frame acquired firm- ness and strength.^ But in the islands, where game was rare, and the earth supplied spontaneously an abundant subsistence, the Indians were compara- tively feeble, being neither inured to the exertions of the chase nor the labours of cultivation. Generally, the Americans were more remarkable for agility than strength, and are said to have been more like beasts of prey than animals formed for labour. Toil was hateful, and even destructive to them ; they broke down and perished under tasks that published (in 1800) by Amoretti, p. 18. — Benzoni, Hist, del Mundo Nuovo, p. 35, 1572 ; Bembo, Hist. Venet., p. 88, 1557 ; Humboldt's Personcd Narrative, vol. iii., p. 235. " The Indians have no beard, because they use certain receipts to extirpate it, which they wiU not communicate." — Oldmixon, vol. i., p. 286. " Experience has made known that these receipts were little shells which they used as tweezers ; since they have become acquainted with metals, they have invented an instrument consisting of a piece of brass wire rolled round a piece of wood the size of the finger, so as to form a special spring ; this grasps the hairs within its turns, and puUs out several at once. No wonder if this practice, continued for several generations, should enfeeble the roots of the beard. Did the practice of eradicating the beard originate from the design of depriv- ing the enemy of such a dangerous hold on the face ? This seems to me probable." — Volney, p. 412. ' When the statue of Apollo Belvedere was shown to Benjamin West on his first arrival at Rome, he exclaimed, '• It is a model from a young North American Indian." — Ancient America. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 207 would not have wearied a European. Experience proves that the physical strength of civilised man exceeds that of the savage.^ Hand to hand in war, in wrestling, leaping, and even in running for a short distance, this superiority usually appears. In a long journey, however, the endurance of the Indian has no parallel among Europeans. A red man has been known to travel nearly eighty miles between sunrise and sunset, without apparent fatigue. He performs a long journey, bearing a heavy burden, and indulg- ing in no refreshment or repose ; an enemy cannot escape his persevering pursuit, even when mounted on a strong horse. It has been already observed that the Americans are rarely or never deformed, or defective in their senses while in their wild state, but in those districts where the restraints of law are felt, an extraordinary number of blind, deaf, dwarfs and cripples, are observed. The terrible custom among the savage tribes of destroying those children who do not promise a vigorous growth, accounts for this apparent anomaly : infancy is so long and helpless that it weighs as a heavy burden upon a wandering people; food is scanty and uncertain of supply, hunters and their families must range over exten- sive countries, and often remove from place to * " It is a notorious fact that every European who has embraced the savage life has become stronger and better enured to every excess than the savages themselves. The superiority of the people of Vir- ginia and Kentucky over them has been confirmed not only in troop opposed to troop, but man to man, in all their wars." — Voluey, p. 417. 208 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. place. Judging that children of feeble or defective formation are not likely to survive the hardships of this errant life, they destroy all such unpromising offspring,^ or desert them to a slower and more dreadful fate. The lot of all is so hard that few born with any great constitutional defect could long survive, and arrive at maturity. In the simplicity of savage life, where labour does not oppress, nor luxury enervate the human frame, and where harassing cares are unknown, we are led to expect that disease and suffering should be comparatively rare, and that the functions of nature should not reach the close of their gradual decay till an extreme old age. The decrepit and shi'i veiled forms of many American Indians would seem to indicate that they had long passed the ordinary time of life. But it is difficult or impossible to ascertain their exact age, as the art of counting is generally unknown among them, and they are strangely forgetful and indifferent to the past. Their longevity, however, varies considerably according to ® Yet iufantlcide is condemned amongst the Red Indians, both by their theology and their feelings. Dr. Richardson relates that those tribes who hold the idea that " the souls of the departed have to scramble up a great mountain, at whose top they receive the reward of their good or bad deeds, declare that women who have been guilty of infanticide never reach the top of this mountain at all. They are compelled instead to travel around the scenes of their crimes with branches of trees tied to their legs. The melancholy sounds which are heard in the still summer evenings, and which the ignorance of the white people looks upon as the screams of the goat-suckers, are really, according to my iuformant, the moanings of these unhappy beings." — Franklin's Journey to the Polar Seas, pp. 77, 78. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 209 differences of climate and habits of life. These children of nature are naturally free from many of the diseases afflicting civilised nations ; they have not even names in their language to dis- tinguish such ills, the offspring of a luxury to them unknown. The diseases of the savage, how- ever, though few, are violent and fatal ; the severe hardships of his mode of life produce maladies of a dangerous description. From improvidence they are often reduced for a considerable time to a state bordering on starvation ; when successful in the chase, or in the seasons when earth supplies her bounty, they indulge in enormous excesses; these extremes of want and abundance prove equally pernicious ; for, although habit and necessity enable them at the time to tolerate such sudden transitions, the constitution is ultimately injured : disorders arising from these causes strike down numbers in the prime and vigour of youth, and are so common that they appear the necessary consequences of their mode of life. The Indian is likewise peculiarly subject to consumption, pleurisy, asthma, and para- lysis, engendered by the fatigues and hardships of the chase and war, and constant exposure to extremes of heat and cold. Experience supports the conclusion that the average life is greater among people in an advanced condition of society, than among those in a state of nature ; among savages all are affected by circumstances of over-exertion, privation, and excess, but in civilised societies the diseases of luxury only affect the few. VOL. I. P 210 CHAPTER VII. The Indian is endowed with a far greater acuteness of sense than the European ; despite the dazzhng brightness of the long-continued snows, and the injurious action of the smoke of burning wood to which he is constantly exposed, he possesses extra- ordinary quickness of sight. He can also hear and distinguish the faintest sounds, alike through the gentle rustling of tlie forest leaves and in the roar of the storm ; his power of smell is so delicate that he scents fire long before it becomes visible. By some peculiar instinct the Indian steers through the trackless forests, over the vast prairies, and even across wide sheets of water with unerring certainty. Under the gloomiest and most obscure sky he can follow the course of the sun,^ as if directed by a ' "At night the savages direct their course hy the polar star ; they call it the motionless star. It is a curious coincidence that the con- stellation of the Bear should he called by the savages the Bear. This is certainly a very ancient name among them, and given long before any Europeans visited the country. They turn into ridicule the large imaginary tail which astronomers have given to an animal that has scarcely any such appendage, and they call the three stars that compose the tail of the Bear, three hunters who are in pursuit of THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 211 compass. These powers would seem innate in this mysterious race ; they can scarcely be the fruit of observation or practice, for children who have never left their native village can direct their course through pathless solitudes as accurately as the experienced hunter. In the early stages of social progress, when the life of man is rude and simple, the reason is little exercised, and his wants and wishes are limited within narrow bounds ; consequently his intellect is feebly developed, and his emotions are few but concentrated. These conditions were generally observable among the rudest tribes of the American Indians. There are, however, some very striking pecu- liarities in the intellectual character of the red men. Without any aid from letters or education, some of the lower mental faculties are developed in a remarkable degree. As orators, strategists and politicians, they have frequently exhibited very great power.^ They are constantly engaged in it. The second of these stars has a very small one, very close to it. This, they say, is the kettle of the second hunter, who is the bearer of the baggage and the provision belonging to all three.* The savages also call the Pleiades ' the Dancers,' and Hygin tells us that they were thus called by the ancients because they seem, from the arrangement of their stars, to bo engaged in a circular dance." — Lafitau, vol. ii., p. 236. Hygin., lib. ii., art. Taurus. - See Appendix, No. L. * " Even at the present time," (1 720), Lafitau -writes, " these three stars are called in Italy, i tre cavalli" — the three knights —on the celestial globe of Caronelli. p2 212 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. dangerous and difficult enterprises, where ingenuity and presence of mind are essential for their preser- vation. They are vigorous in the thought which is allied to action, but altogether incapable of speculation, deduction, or research. The ideas and attention of a savage are confined to the objects relating to his subsistence, safety, or indulgence: everything else escapes his observation or excites little interest in his mind. Many tribes appear to make no arrangement for the future ; neither care nor forethought prevents them from blindly following a present impulse, regardless of its consequences. The natives of North America were divided into a number of small communities ; in the relation of these to each other war or negotiation was constantly carried on ; revolutions, conquests, and alliances frequently occurred among them. To raise the power of his tribe, and to weaken or destroy that of his enemy, was the great aim of every Indian. For these objects schemes were pro- foundly laid, and deeds of daring valour achieved : the refinements of diplomacy were employed, and plans arranged with the most accurate calculation. These peculiar circumstances also developed the power of oratory to an extraordinary degree;^ upon ^ Charlevoix says, that the eloquence of the savages was such as the Greeks admired in the barharians, " strong, stern, sententious, pointed, perfectly undisguised." Decanesora's oratory was greatly admired by the most cultivated amongst the English : his bust was said to resemble that of Cicero. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 213. all occasions of importance speeches were delivered with eloquence, and heard with deep attention. When danger threatened, or opportunity of aggran- disement or revenge offered itself, a council of the tribe was called, where those most venerable from age and illustrious for wisdom deliberated for the public good. The composition of the Indian orator is studied and elaborate, the language is vigorous and at the same time highly imaginative ; all ideas are expressed by figures addressed to the senses ; the sun and stars, mountains and rivers, lakes and forests, hatchets of war, and pipes of peace, fire and water, are employed as illustrations of his subject with almost oriental art and richness. His eloquence is unassisted by action or varied intonation, but his earnestness excites the sympathy of the audience, and his persuasion sinks into their hearts.* The celebrated address of Logan is too well known to be cited here. Mr. Jefferson says of it, "I may challenge the whole orations of Demosthenes and Cicero, and of any other more eminent oi'ator, if Europe has furnished more eminent, to produce a single passage superior to the speech of Logan." An American statesman and scholar, scarcely less illustrious than the former, has expressed his readiness to subscribe to this eulogium. — Clinton's Historical Discourse, 1811. ■* Catlin gives the following account of a native preacher, known by the name of the Shawnee Prophet : — *' I soon learned that he was a very devoted Christian, regularly holding meetings in his tribe on the Sabbath, preaching to them and exhorting them to a belief in the Christian religion, and to an abandonment of the fatal habit of whiskey-drinking. I went on the Sabbath to hear this eloquent man preach, when he had his people assembled in the woods ; and although 1 could not understand his language, 1 21-i THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. The want of any written or hieroglyphic records of the past among the northern Indians was, to some extent, supplied by the accurate memories of their old men; they were able to repeat speeches of four or five hours duration, and delivered many years before, without error or even hesitation, and to hand them down from generation to generation with equal accuracy, their recollection being only assisted by small pieces of wood corresponding to the dif- ferent subjects of discourse. On great and solemn occasions, belts of wampum were used as aid to recollection whenever a conference was held with a neighbouring tribe, or a treaty or compact is negotiated ; one of these belts, differing in some respects from any other hitherto used, was made for the occasion ; each person who speaks holds this in his hand by turns, and all he says is recorded in the " living books " of the bystanders' memory in connexion with the belt. When the conference ends, this memorial is deposited in the hands of the principal chief. As soon as any im- portant treaty is ratified, a broad wampum belt of unusual splendour is given by each contracting was surprised and pleased with the natural ease, and emphasis, and gesticulation which carried their own evidence of the eloquence of his sermon. I was singularly struck with the nohle efforts of this cham- pion of the mere remnant of a poisoned race, so strenuously labouring to rescue the remainder of his people from the deadly bane that has been brought amongst them by enlightened Christians. It is quite certain that his exemplary endeavours have completely abolished the practice of drinking whiskey in his tribe." — Catliu, vol. ii., p. 98. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 215 party to the other, and these tokens are deposited among the other belts, that form, as it were, the archives of the nation. At stated intervals they are reproduced before the people, and the events which they commemorate are circumstantially recalled. Certain of the Indian women are in- trusted with the care of these belts; it is their duty to relate to the children of the tribe the circumstances of each treaty or conference, and thus is kept alive the remembrance of every important event. On the matters falling within his limited com- prehension, the Indian often displays a correct and solid judgment ; he pursues his object without hesi- tation or diversion. He is quickly perceptive of simple facts or ideas ; but any artificial combination or mechanical contrivance, he is slow to compre- hend ; especially as he considers everything beneath his notice which is not necessary to his advantage or enjoyment. It is very difficult to engage him in any labour of a purely mental character ; but he often displays vivacity and ardour in matters that interest him, and is frequently quick and happy in repartee.^ The red man is usually characterised by a certain savage elevation of soul and calm self-possession, ' " W^hatever may be the estimate of the Indian character in other respects, it is with me an undoubting conviction, that thej are by nature a shrewd and intelligent race of men, in no wise, as regards combination of thought or quickness of apprehension, inferior to uneducated white men. This inference I deduce from havinor 216 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. that all the aid of religion and philosophy cannot enable his civilised brethren to surpass ; master of his emotions, the expression of his countenance rarely alters for a moment even under the most severe and sudden trials. The prisoner, uncertain as to the fate that may befal him, preparing for his dreadful death, or racked by agonising tortures, still raises his unfaltering voice in the instructed Indian children.* I draw it from having eeenthe men and women in all situations calculated to try and call forth their capa- cities. When they examine any of our inventions, steam boats, steam mills, and cotton factories for instance ; when they contem- plate any of our institutions in operation ; by some quick analysis or process of reasoning, they seem immediately to comprehend the principle or the object. No spectacle affords them more delight than a large and orderly school. They seem instinctively to comprehend, at least they explained to me that they felt, the advantages which this order of things gave our children over theirs." — Flint's Ten Years in the Valley of the Mississippi, 1831. Mr. Flint, an experienced and intelligent observer takes so dark a view of the moral character of the Red Indian that his favourable opinion of their mental faculties may be looked upon as probably accurate, though differing strongly from that more generally held. On the other side of the question, among the early writers may be cited, M. Bouguer, Voyage au Perou, p. 102 : Voyage d' JJlloa, tom. i., pp. 335 — 337. " They seem to live in a perpetual infancy," is the striking expression of De la Condamine, Voyage de la Riv. Amazon, pp. 52, 53, Chauvelon, Voyage a la Martinique, pp. 44, 50. P, Venegas, Hist, de la Californie. * All those ■who have expressed an opinion on the subject seem to agree that children of most native races are fully, or more than a match, for those of Europeans, in aptitude for intellectual acquirement. Indeed, it appears to be a singular law of Nature, that there is less precocity in the European race than almost any other. In those races in which we seem to have reason for believing that the intellectual organisa- tion is lower, perception is quicker, and maturity earlier." — Merivale On Colonization, vol. ii,, p. 197. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 217 death song, and turns a fearless front towards his tormentors.^ The art of numbering was unknown in some " " Thus, on the whole, it may be said that the virtues of the savages are reducible to intrepid courage in danger, unshaken firm- ness amid tortures, contempt of pain and death, and patience under all the anxieties and distresses of life. No doubt these are useful qualities, but they are all confined to the individual, all selfish, and without any benefit to the society. Farther, they are proofs of a life truly wretched, and a social state so depraved or null, that a man, neither finding nor hoping any succour or assistance from it, is obliged to wrap himself up in despair and endeavour to harden him- self against the strokes of fate. Still it may be urged that these men, in their leisure hours, laugh, sing, play, and live without care for the past as well as for the future. Will you then deny that they are happier than we ? Man is such a pitiable and variable creature, and habits have such a potent sway over him, that in the most disas- trous situations he always finds some posture that gives him ease, something that consoles him, and by comparison with past sufibring appears to him well-being and happiness ; but if to laugh, sing, or play constitute bliss, it must likewise be granted that soldiers are perfectly happy beings, since there are no men more careless or more gay in dangers, or on the eve of battle ; it must be granted too, that during the Revolution, in the most fatal of our gaols, the Concier- gerie, the prisoners were very happy, since they were in general more careless and gay than their keepers, or than those who only feared the same fate. The anxieties of those who were at large, were as numerous as the enjoyments they wished to preserve ; they who were in the other prisons felt but one, that of preserving their lives. In the Conciergerie, where a man was condemned in expectation or in reality, he had no longer any care ; on the contrary every moment of life was an acquisition, the gain of a good that was considered as lost. Such is nearly the situation of a soldier in war, and such is really that of the savage throughout the whole course of his life. If this be happiness, wretched indeed must be the country where it is an object of envy. In pursuing my investigation I do not find that 1 am led to more advantageous ideas of the liberty of the savage ; 218 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. American tribes, and even among the most advanced it was very imperfect ; the savage had no property to estimate, no coins to count, no variety of ideas to enumerate. Many nations could not reckon above three, and had no words in their language to distinguish a greater number ; some proceeded as on the contrary, I see in him only the slave of his wants and of the freaks of a sterile and parsimonious nature. Food he has not at hand ; rest is not at his command ; he must run, weary himself, endure hunger and thirst, heat and cold, and all the inclemency of the elements and seasons ; and as the ignorance in which he was born and bred gives him or leaves him a multitude of false and irra- tional ideas, and superstitious prejudices, he is likewise the slave of a number of errors and passions, from which civilised man is ex- empted, by the science and knowledge of every kind that an improved state of society has produced." — Volney's Travels in the United States, p. 467. *' Their impassible fortitude and endurance of suffering are, after all, in my mind, the result of a greater degree of physical insensi- bility. It has been told me, and I believe it, that in amputation and other surgical operations, their nerves do not shrink, do not show the same tendency to spasm, with those of the whites. When the savage, to explain his insensibility to cold, called upon the white men to recollect how little his own face was affected by it, in consequence of its constant exposure, he added, ' My body is all face.'* This increasing insensibility, transmitted from generation to generation, finally becomes inwrought with the whole web of animal nature, and the body of the savage seems to have little more sensibility than the hoofs of horses." — Flint's Ten Years in the Valley of the Mississippi. See also Ulloa's Notic. Amer., p. 313. Charlevoix quotes a passage from Cicero to the effect that " I'habitude au travail donne de la facilite a supporter la douleur." —2 Tusc. 25. * Delicacy of sliin is observed to he in proportion to civilisation amongst nations, in proportion to degrees of refinement among individuals. — Sharon Turner. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 219 far as ten, others to twenty ; when they desired to convey an idea of a larger amount, they pointed to the hair of the head, or declared that it could not be counted. Computation is a mystery to all rude nations ; when, however, they acquire the knowledge of a number of objects, and find the necessity of combining or dividing them, their acquaintance Avith arithmetic increases ; the state of this art is therefore, to a considerable extent, a criterion of their degree of progress. The wise and politic Iroquois had advanced the farthest, but even they had not got beyond one thousand; the smaller tribes seldom reached above ten. The first ideas are suggested to the mind of man by the senses: the Indian acquires no other. The objects around him are all important ; if they be available for his present purposes they attract his attention, otherwise they excite no curiosity : he neither combines nor arranges them, nor does he examine the operations of his own mind upon them; he has no abstract or universal ideas, and his reasoning powers are generally employed upon matters merely obvious to the senses. In the languages of the ruder tribes there were no words to express anything that is not material, such as faith, time, imagination, and the like. When the mind of the savage is not occupied with matters relating to his animal existence, it is altogether inactive. In the islands, and upon the exuberant plains of the south, where little exertion of inge- nuity was required to obtain the necessaries of life, 220 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the rational faculties were frequently dormant, and the countenance remained vacant and inexpressive. Even the superior races of the north loiter away their time in thoughtless indolence, when not engaged in war or the chase, deeming other objects unworthy of their consideration. Where reason is so limited in a field for exertion, the mind can hardly acquire any considerable degree of vigour or enlargement. In civilised life men are urged to activity and perseverance by a desire to gratify numerous artificial wants; but the necessities of the Indian are few, and provided for by nature almost spontaneously. He detests labour, and will sometimes sit for whole days together without uttering a word, or changing his posture. Neither the hope of reward nor the prospect of future want can overcome this inveterate indolence. Among the northern tribes, however, dwelling under a rigorous climate, some efforts are employed, and some precautions taken, to procure subsistence ; but the necessary industry is even there looked upon as a degradation : the greater part of the labour is performed by women, and man will only stoop to those portions of the work which he consi- ders least ignominious. This industry, so oppressive to one half of the community, is very partial, and directed by a limited foresight. During one part of the year they depend upon fishing for a subsistence, during another upon the chase, and the produce of the ground is their resource for the third. Regard- less of the warnings of experience, they neglect to THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 221 apportion provision for their wants, or can so little restrain their appetites, that, from imprudence or extravagance, they often are exposed to the miseries of famine like their ruder neighbours. Their suffer- ings are soon forgotten, and the horrors of one year seem to teach no lesson of providence for tlie next. The Indians for the most part are very well acquainted with the geography of their own country. When questioned as to the situation of any parti- cular place, they will trace out on the ground with a stick, if opportunity offer, a tolerably accurate map of the locality indicated. They will show the course of the rivers, and, by pointing toAvards the sun, explain the bearings of their rude sketch. There have been recorded some most remarkable instances of the accuracy with which they can travel towards a strange place, even when its description had only been received through the traditions of several generations, and they could have possessed no per- sonal knowledge whatever of the surrounding country. The religion of the natives of America cannot but be regarded with an interest far deeper than the gratification of mere curiosity. The forms of faith, the rites, the ideas of immortality; the beUef in future reward, in future punishment; the recogni- tion of an invisible Power, infinitely surpassing that of the warrior or the chief ; the dim traditions of a first parent, and a general deluge, — all these, among a race so long isolated from the rest of the human 222 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. family, distinct in language, habits, form and mind, and displaying, when societies began to exist, a civilisation utterly dissimilar from any before known, afford subject for earnest thought and anxious inquiry. Those who in the earlier times of Ameri- can discovery supplied information on these points, were generally little qualified for the task. Priests and missionaries alone had leisure or inclination to pursue the subject ; and their minds were often so preoccupied with their own peculiar doctrines, that they accommodated to them all that fell under their observation, and explained it by analogies which had no existence but in their own zealous imagina- tions. They seldom attempted to consider what they saw or heard in relation to the rude notions of the savages themselves. From a faint or fancied similarity of peculiar Indian superstitions to certain articles of Christian faith, some missionaries ima- gined they had discovered traces of an acquaintance with the divine mysteries of salvation; they con- cluded that the savage possessed a knowledge of the doctrine of the Trinity,^ of the Incarnation, of ^ Conical atones, wrapped up in 100 goat skins, were the idols preserved in the temple of the Natchez. Many authors assert that the Amazons and many eastern people had nothing in their temples but these pyramidal stones, which represented to them the Divinity. " Peut-etre aussi vouloient ils (les fondatem-s des Pyramides) figurer en meme tems la Divinite, et ce qui leur restoit d'idees du mystere de la Sainte Trinite, dans les trois faces de ces pyramides. Du moins est ce ainsi qu'aux Indes un Brame paroissoit concevoir les choses et s'expliquer d'apres les anciennes. ' II faut,' disoit il, ' se representer Dieu et ses trois noms differents qui repondent a ces trois THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 223 the sacrifice of a Saviour, and of sacraments, from their own interpretation of certain expressions and ceremonies.^ But little confidence can be placed in any evidence derived from such sources. principaux attributs, a peu pres sous I'idee de ces Pyramides trian- gulaires qu'on voit elevees devaut la poste de quelques temples." — Lettre du Pere Bouchet a M. Huet, Eveque cCAvranches. Three logs are always employed to keep up the fire ia the Natchez temple. — Lafitau, vol. i., p. 167. Extract from a dialogue between John Wesley and the Chickasaw Indians : — " Wesley. Do you believe there Is One above who is over all things ? " Answer. We believe there are four beloved things above, — the clouds, the sun, the clear sky, and He that lives in the clear sky. " Wesley. Do you believe there is but One who lives in the clear sky ? " Answer. We believe there are two with Him, three in all." — Wesley's Journal, No. I., p. 39. ^ See Stephens's " Incidents of Travel in Central America," vol. ii., p. 346. " Les croix qui ont tant excite la curiosite des conquistadores £t Coqumel, a Yucatan, et dans d'autres contrees de I'Amerique ne sont pas ' des contes de moines,' etmeritent, comme tout ce qui a rapport au culte des peuples indigenes du Nouveau Continent, un examen plus serieux. Je me sers du mot culte, car un relief conserve dans les ruines de Palenque, de Guatemala, et dont je possede une copie, ne me parait laisser aucun doute qu' une figure symbolique en forme de croix ^toit un objet d' adoration. II faut faire observer cependant qu'a cette croix manque le prolongement superieur, et qu'elle forme plutot la letti'e tcm. Des idees qui n'ont aucun rapport avec le Christian- isme ont pu etre symboliquement attachees a cet embleme Egyptien d'Hermes, si celebre parmi les Chretiens depuis la destruction du temple de Serapis a Alexandrie sous Theodose le Grand. (Rufinus, Hist. Eccles., lib. ii., cap. xxix., p. 294 ; Zozomenes, Eccl. Hist., lib. iii., cap. xv.) Un b£ton termine par une croix se voit dans la main d'Astartc sur les monnaies de Sidon au 3me siecle avant notre 224 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. The earlier travellers in the interior of the New World received the impression that the Indians had no religious belief; they saw neither priests, temples, idols, nor sacrifices among any of the various and numerous tribes. A further knowledge of this strange people disproved the hastily formed opinion, and showed that their whole life and all their actions were influenced by a belief in the spiritual world.^ It is now known that the American Indians were preeminent among savage nations for the superior purity of their religious faith,^ and indeed over even the boasted elegance of poetical mytho- ere. En Scandinavie, un signe de I'alphabet runique figurait le marteau de Thor, tres semblable a la croix du relief de Palenque. On marquoit de cette rune, dans les terns payens, les objets qu'on vouloit sanctifier." (Voyez I'excellent Traitede M. Guillaume Grimm, Uher Deutsche JRunen, p. 242.) — Humboldt, Geographie de Nouveau Continent, vol. ii., p. 356, " Laet avoue qu' Herrera parle d'une espece de bapteme, et de con- fession usitee dans Yucatan et dans les isles voisines, mais il ajoute qu'il est bien plus naturel d'attribuer toutes ces marques equivoques de Cbristianisme qu'on a cru apercevoir en plusieurs provinces du Nouveau Monde au demon qui a toujours affecte de contrefaire le culte du vrai Dieu." Cbarlevoix adds, " Cette remarque est de tous les bons auteurs qui ont parle de la religion des peuples nouveUement decouverts, et fondee sur I'autorite des peres de I'Eglise." — Charlevoix, torn, v., p. 28. ' See Appendix, No. LI. " " The most sensual, degraded, and least intellectual tribes of Northern Asia and America, have purer notions of a spiritual Deity, than were possessed of old by the worshippers of Jupiter and Juno under Pericles. " — Progression by Antagonism. This, according to Lord Lindsay's theory, is to be accounted for by the absence of imagination, these nations being only governed by Sense and Spirit, to the exclusion of intellect in either of its manifes- tations, Imagination, or Reason. — Pp. 21, 2G. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 225 logy. From the reports of all those worthy of credence, who have lived intimately among these children of the forest, it is certain that they firmly believe in the power and unity of the Most High God, and in an immortality of happiness or misery. They worship the Great Spirit, the Giver of life, and attribute to him the creation of the world, and the government of all things with infinite love, wisdom, and power. Of the origin of their religion they are altogether ignorant. In general they believe that after the world was created and supplied with animal life by the Great Spirit, he formed the first red man and woman, who were very large of stature and lived to an extreme old age ; that he often held council with his creatures, gave them laws and instructed them, but that the red children became rebels against their Great Father, and he then withdrew himself with sorrowful anger from among them, and left them to the vexations of the Bad Spirit. But still this merciful Father, from afar ofi" where he may be seen no more, showers down upon them all the blessings they enjoy. The Indians are truly filial and sincere in their devotions; they pray for what they need and return hearty thanks for such mercies as they have enjoyed.^ ^ " At the breaking up of the winter," says Hunter, " after having supplied ourselves with such things as were necessary, and the situa- tion afforded, all our party visited the spring from which we had procured our supplies of water, and there offered up our orisons to the Great Spirit for having preserved us in health and safety, and for having supplied all our wants. This is the constant practice of VOL. I. Q 226 ■ THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. They supplicate him to bestow courage and skill upon them in the battle; the endurance which enables them to mock the cruel tortures of their enemies is attributed to his aid : their preparation for war is a long continued religious ceremony ; their march is supposed to be under omnipotent guidance, and their expeditions in the chase are held to be not unworthy of divine superintendence. They reject all idea of chance on the fortune of war, and believe firmly that every result is the decision of a Superior Power .^ Although this elevated conception the Osages, Kansas, and many other nations of Indians on breaking up their encampments, and is by no means an unimportant cere- mony." The habitual piety of the Indian mind is remarked by Heckewelder, and strongly insisted upon by Hunter, and it is satis- factorily proved by the whole tenor of his descriptions, where he throws himself back, as it were, into the feelings peculiar to Indian life. And, indeed, after hearing at a council the broken fragments of an Indian harangue, however imperfectly rendered by an ignorant interpreter, or reading the few specimens of Indian oratory which have been preserved by translation, no one can fail to remark a per- petual and earnest reference to the power and goodness of the Deity. " Brothers ! we all belong to one family ; we are all children of the Great Spirit," was the commencement of Tecumthe's harangue to the Osages ; and he afterwards tells them : " When the white men first set foot on our grounds they were hungry ; they had no places on which to spread their blankets or to kindle their fires. They were feeble, they could do nothing for themselves. Our fathers commiserated their distress, and shared freely with them whatever the Great Spirit has given to his red children." — Quarterly Review. ^ On the remarkable occasion on which our forces were compelled, in 1813, to evacuate the Michigan territory, Tecumthe, in the name of his nation, refused to consent to retreat ; he closed his denial with these words, " Our lives are in the hand of the Great Spirit : He gave the lands which we possess to om- fathers ; if it be his THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 227 of the One God* is deeply impressed upon the Indian's mind, it is tainted with some of the alloy which ever must characterise the uninspired faith. Those who have inquired into the religious opinions of the uneducated and laborious classes of men, even in the most enlightened and civilised commu- nities, find that their system of belief is derived from instruction, and not from instinct or the results of their own examination : in savage life it is vain to expect that men should reason accurately, from cause to effect, and form a just idea of the Creator from the creation. The Indian combines the idea of the Great Spirit with others of a less perfect nature. The word used by him to indicate this Sovereign Being, does not convey the notion of an immaterial nature; it signifies with him some one possessed of lofty and mysterious powers, and in this sense may be applied to men and even to animals. will, our bones shall whiten upon tliem, but we will never quit them," An old Oneida chief, who was blind from years, observed to Hecke- welder, "I am an aged hemlock ; the winds of one hundred years have whistled through my branches ; I am dead at the top. Why I yet live, the great, good Spirit only knows." This venerable father of the forest lived long enough to be converted to Christianity — Quarterly Revieiv. * A Huron woman, under the instruction of a missionary, who detailed to her the perfections of God, exclaimed in a species of ecstacy, " I understand, I understand ; and I always felt convinced that our Areskoui was exactly such an one as the God you have described to me." — Lafitau, tom. i., p. 127. The Great Spirit was named Areskoui amongst the Hurons ; Agriskoue among the Iroquois ; Manitou amongst the Algonquins. q2 228 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, To the first inquirers into the religious faith of the native Americans, the subject of their mythology presented very great difficulties and complications; those Indians who attempted to explain it to Europeans, had themselves no dis- tinct or fixed opinions. Each man put forward peculiar notions, and was constantly changing them, without attempting to reconcile his self-con- tradictions. Some of the southern tribes who were more settled in their religious faith, exhibited a remark- able degree of bigotry and spiritual pride. They called the Europeans "men of the accursed speech:" while they styled themselves "the beloved of the Great Spirit." The Canadian and other northern nations, however, were less intolerant, and at any time easily induced to profess the recantation of their heathen errors for some small advantage. Among these latter, the hare was deemed to possess some mystic superiority over the rest of the animal creation ; it was even raised to be an object of worship, and the Great Hare was confounded in their minds with the Great Spirit. The Algonquins believed in a Water God, who opposes himself to the benevolent designs of the Great Spirit ; it is strange that the name of the Great Tiger should be given to this Deity, as the country does not produce such an animal, and from this it appears probable, that the tradition of his existence had come from else- where. They have also a third Deity who presides over their winter season. The gods of the Indians THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 229 have bodies like the sons of men, and subsist in like manner with them, but are free from the pains and cares of mortality ; the term " spirit " among them only signifies a being of a superior and more excellent nature than man. However, they believe in the omnipresence of their deities, and invoke their aid in all times and places. Besides the Great Spirit and the lesser deities above mentioned, every Indian has his own Manitou, Okki, or guardian power; this divinity's presence is represented by some portable object, often of the most insignificant nature, such as the head, beak, or claw of a bird, the hoof of a deer or cow. No youth can be received among the brotherhood of warriors, till he has placed himself, in due form, under the care of this familiar. The ceremony is deemed of great importance : several days of strict fasting are always observed in preparation for the important event, and the youth's dreams are carefully noted during this period. While under these circum- stances, some object usually makes a deep impres- sion upon his mind; this is then chosen for his Manitou or guardian spirit, and a specimen of it is procured. He is next placed for some time in a large vapour bath, and having undergone the process of being steamed, is laid on the ground, and the figure of the Manitou is pricked on his breast with needles of fishbone, dipt in vermi- lion ; the intervals between the scars are then rubbed with gunpowder, so as to produce a mixture of red and blue. When this operation is performed, 230 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. he cries aloud to the Great Spirit, invoking aid, and praying to be received as a warrior. The Indian submits with resignation to the chastening will of the Great Spirit ; when overtaken by any disaster, he diligently examines himself to discover what omission of observance or duty has called down the punishment, and endeavours to atone for past neglect by increased devotion. But if the Manitou be deemed to have shown want of ability or inclination to defend him, he upbraids the guardian power with bitterness and contempt, and threatens to seek a more effectual protector. If the Manitou continue useless, this threat is fulfilled. Fasting and dreaming are again resorted to in the same manner as before, and the vision of another Manitou is obtained. The former representation is then, as much as possible, effaced ; the figure of the newly adopted amulet painted in its place. All the veneration and confidence forfeited by the first Manitou, is now transferred to the successor.^ It is also part of the Indian's religious belief, that there are inferior spirits to rule over the elements, under the control of the Suj^reme Power, he being so great that he must, like their chiefs, have attendants to execute his behests. These inferior spirits see what passes on earth, and report it to their Great Ruler: the Indian, trusting to their good offices, invokes these spirits of the air in times of peril, and endeavours to propitiate them by throw- ing tobacco or other simple offerings to the winds or ' See Appendix, No. LII. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 23l upon the waters. But amidst all these corrupt and ignorant superstitions, the One Spirit, the Creator and Ruler of the World, is the great object of the red man's adoration. On him they rest their hopes — to him they address their daily prayers, and render their solemn sacrifice. The worship of the Indians, although frequently in private, is generally little regulated either by ceremonies or stated periodical devotions. But there are at times great occasions when the whole tribe assembles for the purpose,^ such as in declaring war or proclaiming peace, or when visited by storms or earthquakes. Their great feasts all partake of a religious character ; everything provided must be consumed by the assembly, as being consecrated to the Great Spirit. The Ottawas seem to have had a more complicated mythology than any other tribe : they held a regular festival in honour of the sun ; and while rendering thanks for past benefit, prayed that it might be continued to the future. They have also been observed to erect an idol in their village, and offer it sacrifice; this ceremony was, however, very rare. Many western tribes visit the ^ Every spring the Ai-kansas go in a body to some retired place, and there turn up a large space of land, which they do with the drums beating all the while. After this they call it the Desart, or the Field of the Spirit, and thither they go when they are in their enthusiastic fits, and there wait for inspiration from their pre- tended deity. In the meanwhile, as they do this every year, it proves of no small advantage to them, for by this means they turn up all their land by degrees, and it becomes abundantly more fruitful.— Touti. 232 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. spring whence they have been supplied with water during the winter, at the breaking up of the ice, and there offer up their grateful worship to the Great Spirit for having preserved them in health and safety, and having supplied their wants. This pious homage is performed with much ceremony and devotion. Among this rude people, who were at one time supposed to have been without any religion, habi- tual piety may be considered the most remarkable characteristic ; every action of their lives is con- nected with some acknowledgment of a Superior Power. Many have imagined that the severe fasts sometimes endured by the Indians were only for the purpose of accustoming themselves to support hunger ; but all the circumstances connected with these voluntary privations leave no doubt that they were solemn religious exercises. Dreams and visions during these fasts were looked upon as oracular, and respected as the revelations of Heaven. The Indian frequently propitiates the favour of the inferior spirits by vows; when for some time un- successful in the chase, or suffering from want in long journies, he promises the genius of the spot to bestow upon one of his chiefs in its honour a portion of the first fruits of his success ;^ if the chief be too distant to receive the gift, it is burned in sacrifice. ' Lafitau asserts that the first beast killed by a young hunter was always offered in sacrifice. — Vol. i. p. 515. See Catlin's description of the sacrifices and ceremonies practised when the first fruits of corn are ripe. — Catlin, vol. i., p. 189. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 233 The belief of the Indian in a future state, although deeply cherished and sincere, can scarcely be re- garded as a defined idea of the immortality of the soul.^ There is little spiritual or exalted in his con- ception. When he attempts to form a distinct notion of the spirit, he is blinded by his senses ; he calls it the shadow or image of his body, but its acts and enjoyments are all the same as those of its earthly existence. He only pictures to himself a continuation of present pleasures. His heaven is a delightful country far away beyond the unknown western seas, where the skies are ever bright and serene, the air genial, the spring eternal, and the forests abounding in game ; no war, disease, or torture are known in that happy land; the suf- ferings of life are endured no more, and its sweetest pleasures are perpetuated and increased ; his wife is tender and obedient, his children dutiful and affec- tionate. In this country of eternal happiness, the Indian hopes to be again received into the favour of the Great Spirit, and to rejoice in his glorious pre- sence.^ But in his simple mind there is a deep and ' Peter Martyr speaks of the general opinion among the early dis- coverers, that the Indians believed in a species of immoi'tality. " They confess the soul to he immortal ; having put off the hodily clothing they imagine it goeth forth to the woods and the mountains, and that it liveth there perpetually in caves ; nor do they exempt it from eating or drinking, hut that it should be fed there. The answering voices heard from caves and hollows, which the Latines call echoes, they suppose to he the souls of the departed wandering through those places." — Peter Martyr, Dccad. VIII., cap. ix. M. Lock's Trans lation, 1612. ' " Uue jeune sauvagesse voyant sa sceur mourante, par la quantity 234. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. enduring conviction that admission to this delightful country of souls can only be attained by good and noble actions in this mortal life.^ For the bad men there is a fate terribly different — endless afflictions, want, and misery ; a land of hideous desolation ; barren, parched, and dreary hunting-grounds, the abode of evil and malignant spirits, whose office is to torture, whose pleasure is to enhance the misery of the condemned. It is also almost universally believed that the Great Spirit manifests his T^Tath or his favour to the evil and the good in their journey to the land of souls. After death the Indian believes that he is supplied with a canoe ; and if he has been a virtuous warrior, or otherwise worthy, he is guided across the vast deep to a haven of eternal happiness and peace by the hand of the Great Spirit. But if his life be stained with cowardice, vice, or negligence of duty, he is abandoned to the malignity of evil genii, driven about by storms and de cigue qui elle avoit pris dans un depit, et determine a ne faire aucim remede pour se garantir de la mort, pleuroit a chaudes larmes, et s'efforgoit de la toucher par les liens du sang, et de I'amitie qui les unissoit ensemble. Elle lui disoit sans cesse, ' C'en est done fait ; tu veux que nous ne nous retrouvions jamais plus, et que nous ne nous revoyions jamais ? ' Le missionnaire, frappe de ces paroles, lui en demanda la raison, 'II mesemble,' dit-il, * que vous avez un pays des ames, oii vous devez tons vous reiinir a vos aneetres ; pourquoi done est ce que tu paries ainsi a la soeur ? ' 'II est vrai,' reprit-elle, ' que nous aliens tons au pays des ^mes ; mais les mecliauts, et ceux en parti- culier, qui se sont detruits eux-memes par un mort violente, y portent la peine de leur crime ; ils y sont separes des autres, et n'ont point de communication avee eux ; c'est la le sujetde mes peines.' " — Lafitau, tom. i., p. 404. See Appendix, No. Lll. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 235 darkness over that unknown sea, and at length cast ashore on the barren land, where everlasting torments are his portion/ The Indians generally believe in the existence of a Spirit of Evil, and occasionally pray to him in deprecation of his wrath. They do not doubt his inferiority to the Great Spirit, but they believe that he has the power to inflict torments and punishments upon the human race, and that he has a malignant delight in its exercise. The souls of the lower animals are also held by ^ Hunter gives the following view of the Indian mythology, while describing his own and his companions' first sight of the Pacific Ocean: "Here the surprise and astonishment of our whole party was indescribably great. The unbounded view of waters, the inces- sant and tremendous dashing of the waves along the shore, accom- panied with a noise resembling the roar of loud and distant thunder, filled our minds with the most sublime and awful sensation, and fixed on them as immutable truths the tradition we had received from our old men, that the great waters divide the residence of the Great Spirit from the temporary abodes of his red children. We have contemplated in silent dread the immense difSculties over which we should be obliged to triumph after death before we could arrive at those delightful hunting-grounds, which are unalterably destined for such only as do good, and love the Great Spirit. We looked in vain for the stranded and shattered canoes of those who had done wickedly ; we could see none, and were led to hope they were few in number. We offered up our devotions, or I might say our minds were serious ; and our devotions continued all the time we were in this country, for we had ever been taught to believe that the Great Spirit resided on the western side of the Rocky Mountains ; and this idea continued throughout the journey, notwithstanding the more specific boun- dary assigned to Him by our traditionary dogmas." — Memoirs of a Captivity among the North Anierican Indians from Childhood to the Age of Nineteen. By John D. Hunter, p. 69, 1824. — See Appendix, No. LI II. 236 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the red man to be immortal : he recognises a cer- tain portion of understanding in them, and each creature is supposed to possess a guardian spirit peculiar to itself. He only claims a superiority in degree of intelligence and power over the beasts of the field. Man is but the liing of animals. In the world of souls are to be found the shades of every thing that breathes the breath of life. However, he takes little pains to arrange or develope these strange ideas. The enlightened heathen philosophers of antiquity were not more successful. To penetrate the mysteries of the future has always been a favourite object of superstition,^ and has been attempted by a countless variety of means. The Indian trusts to his dreams for this revelation, and invariably holds them sacred. Before he engages in any important undertaking, particularly in war, diplomacy, or the chase ; the dreams of his principal chiefs are carefully watched and examined; by their interpretation his conduct is guided. In this manner the fate of a whole nation has often been decided by the chance visions of a single man. The Indian considers that dreams are the mode by which the Great Spirit condescends to hold converse with man ; thence arises his deep veneration for the omens and warnings they may shadow forth.^ Many other superstitions, besides those of prog- nostics from dreams, are cherished among the Indians. Each remarkable natural feature, such as a great cataract, a lake, or a difficult and " See Appendix, No. LIV. ^ See Appendix, No. LV. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 237 dangerous pass, possesses a spirit of the spot, whose favour they are fain to propitiate by votive offer- ings : skins, bones, pieces of metal, and dead dogs are hung up in the neighbourhood, and dedicated to its honour. Supposed visions of ghosts are sometimes, but rarely, spoken of: it is, however, generally believed that the souls of the dead con- tinue for some time to hover round the earthly remains : dreading, therefore, that the spirits of those they have tortured, watch near them to seek opportunity of vengeance, they beat the air violently with rods, and raise frightful cries to scare the shadowy enemy away. Among some of the Indian tribes, an old man performed the duty of a priest at their religious festivals ; he broke the bread and cast it in the fire, dedicated the different offerings, and officiated in the sacrifice. It was also his calling to declare the omens from dreams and other signs, as the warnings of heaven. These religious duties of the priest were totally distinct from the office of the juggler, or " medicine-man," although some observers have confounded them together. There were also vestals in many nations of the continent who were supposed to supply by their touch a precious medicinal efficacy to certain roots and simples. The "medicine-men," or jugglers, undertook the cure of diseases, the interpretation of omens, the exorcising of evil spirits, and magic in all its branches. They were men of great consideration 238 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. in the tribe, and were called in and regularly paid as physicians ; but this position could only be attained by undergoing certain ordeals, which were looked upon as a compact with the spirits of the air. The process of the vapour bath was first endured ; severe fasting followed, accompanied by constant shouting, singing, beating a sort of drum, and smoking. After these preliminaries the jugglers were installed by extravagant ceremonies, per- formed with furious excitement and agitation. They possessed, doubtless, some real knowledge of the healing art ; and in external wounds or injuries, the causes of which are obvious, they applied powerful simples, chiefly vegetable, with considerable skill. With decoctions from ginseng, sassafras, hedisaron, and a tall shrub called bellis, they have been known to perform remarkable cures in cases of wounds and ulcers. They scarified the seat of inflammation or rheumatic pain skilfully with sharp-pointed bones, and accomplished the cupping process by the use of gourd shells as substitutes for glasses. For all internal complaints, then* favourite specific was the vapour bath which they formed with much inge- nuity from their rude materials. This was doubtless a very efficient remedy, but they attached to it a supernatural influence, and employed it in the ceremonies of solemn preparation for great councils. All cases of disease, when the cause could not be discovered, were attributed to the influence of malignant spirits. To meet these the medicine-man or juggler invested himself with his mysterious THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 239 character, and endeavoured to exorcise the demon by a great variety of ceremonies, a mixture of delusion and imposture. For this purpose he arrayed himself in a strange and fanciful dress, and on his first arrival began to sing and dance round the sufferer, invoking the spirits with loud cries. When exhausted with these exertions, he attributed the hidden cause of the malady to the first unusual idea that suggested itself to his mind, and in the con- fidence of his supposed inspiration, proclaimed the necessary cure. The juggler usually contrived to avoid the responsibility of failure by ordering a remedy impossible of attainment when the patient was not likely to recoA^er. The Iroquois believed that every ailment was a desire of the soul, and when death followed it was from the desire not having been accomplished. Among many of the Indian tribes the barbarous custom of putting to death those who were thought past recovery, existed, and stiU exists. Others abandoned these unfortunates to perish of hunger and thirst, or under the jaws of the wild beasts of the forest. Some nations put to death all infants who had lost their mother, or buried them alive in her grave, under the impression that no other woman could rear them, and that they must perish by hunger. But the dreadful custom of deserting the aged and emaciated among the wandering tribes is universal."* When these miserable creatures become incapable of waUiing or riding, and there ■• See Appendix, No. LVI, 240 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. is no means of carrying them, they themselves uniformly insist upon being abandoned to their fate, saying, that they are old and of no further use — they left their fathers in the same manner — they wish to die, and their children must not mourn for them. A small fire and a few pieces of wood, a scanty supply of meat, and perhaps a buffalo skin, are left as the old man's sole resources ; when in a few months the wandering tribe may revisit the spot where he was deserted, a skull, and a few scattered bones will be all that the wolves and vultures have left as tokens of his dreadful fate. The Indian father and mother display great ten- derness for their children,^ even to the weakness of unlimited indulgence ; this affection however appears * " While I remained among the Indians a couple, whose tent was adjacent to mine, lost a son, of four years of age. The parents were so much affected at the death of their child, that they observed the usual testimonies of grief with such extreme rigour as through the weight of sorrow and loss of blood to occasion the loss of the father. The woman, who had hitherto been Inconsolable, no sooner saw her husband expire than she dried up her tears, and appeared cheerful and resigned. I took an opportunity of asking her the reason of so extraordinary a transition, when she informed me that her child was so young, It would have been unable to support Itself in the world of spirits, and both she and her husband were apprehensive that its situation would be far from happy. No sooner, however, did she behold her husband depart for the same place, who not only loved the child with the tenderest affection, but was a good hunter, and would be able to provide plentifully for its support, than she ceased to mourn. She said she had now no reason to continue her tears, as the child on whom she doated was under the care and protection of a fond father, and she had now only one wish remaining ungratifled, that of herself being with them." — Carver. THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 241 to be merely instinctive, for they use no exertion whatever to lead their offspring to the paths of virtue. Children on their part show very little filial affection, and frequently treat their parents, especially their father, with indignity and violence. This vicious characteristic is strongly exemplified in the horrible custom above described. When the Indian believes that his death is at hand, his conduct is usually stoical and dignified. If he stiU retain the power of speech, he harangues those who surround him in a funeral oration, advising and encouraging his children, and bidding them and all his friends farewell. During this time, the relations of the dying man slay all the dogs they can catch, trusting that the souls of these animals will give notice of the approaching depar- ture of the warrior for the world of spirits ; they then take leave of him, wish him a happy voyage, and cheer him with the hope that his children will prove worthy of his name. When the last moment arrives, all the kindred break into loud lamenta- tions, till some one high in consideration desires them to cease. For weeks afterwards, however, these cries of grief are daily renewed at sunrise and sunset. In three days after death the funeral takes place, and the neighbours are invited to a feast of all the provisions that can be procured, which must be all consumed. The relations of the deceased do not join in the banquet ; they cut off their hair, cover their heads, blacken their VOL. I, » 242 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. faces, and for a long time deny themselves every amusement.^ The deceased is buried with his arms and orna- ments, and a supply of provisions for his long journey ; the face is painted, and the body arrayed in the richest robes that can be obtained : it is then laid in the grave in an upright posture, and skins are carefully placed around that it may not touch the earth. At stated intervals of eight, ten, or twelve years, the Indians celebrate the singular ceremony of the Festival of the Dead ; till this has been performed, the souls of the deceased are supposed still to hover round their earthly remains. At this solemn festival, the people march in procession to the burial ground, open the tombs, and continue for a time gazing on the mouldering " Captain Franklin says of the Chippewyans, "no article is spared by these unhappy men when a near relative dies ; their clothes and tents are cut to pieces, their guns broken, and every other weapon rendered useless if some person do not remove these articles from their sight." '* When the French missionaries asked the Indians why they deprived themselves of their most necessary articles in favour of the dead, they answered, ' that it was not only to evidence their love for their departed relatives, but that they might avoid the sight of objects which, having been used by them, would continually renew their grief.' The same delicacy of feeling, so inconsistent with the coarse- ness of the red man's nature, was manifested in their custom of never uttering the names of the dead ; and if these names were borne by any of the other members of the family, they laid them aside during the whole of their mourning. And it was esteemed the greatest insult that could be oifered, to say to any one, ' Your father is dead, your mother is dead.' " — Charlevoix, tom, vi., p. 109. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 243 relics in mournful silence. Then, while the women raise a loud wailing, the bones of the dead are care- fully collected, wrapped in fresh and valuable robes, and conveyed to the family caban.^ A feast is then held for several days, with dances, games, and prize combats. The relics are next carried to the council-house of the nation, where they are publicly displa3^ed, with the presents destined to be interred Avitli them. Sometimes the remains are even carried on bearers from village to village. At length they are laid in a deep pit, lined with rich furs; tears and lamentations are again renewed, and for some time fresh provisions are daily laid, by this simple people, upon the graves of their departed friends. ' Pere Brebeuf, Relation de la Nouvelle France ; Charlevoix ; Lafitau. Catlin desciiues the same ceremonies. It has been often said that the care taken by the Indians for the deceased corpses of their ancestors was in consequence of a universally received tradition that these corpses were to rise again to immortal life. n2 244 CHAPTER VIII. In the warmer and milder climates of America none of the rude tribes were clothed ; for them there was little need of defence against the weather, and their extreme indolence indisposed them to any exertion not absolutely necessary for their subsistence. Others were satisfied with a very slight covering, but all delighted in ornaments. They dressed their hair in different forms, stained their skins, and fastened bits of gold, or shells, or bright pebbles, in their noses and cheeks. They also frequently endea- voured to alter their natural form and feature ; as soon as an infant was born, it was subjected to some cruel process of compression, by which the bones of the skull, while still soft, were squeezed into the shape of a cone, or flattened or otherwise distorted.' ^ " The custom of squeezing and flattening the head is still strictly adhered to among the Chinooks. The people bearing the name of Flat Heads are very numerous, but very few amongst them actually practise the custom. Amongst the Chinooks it is almost universal. The process is thus effected : — The child is placed on a thick plank, to which it is lashed with thongs to a position from which it cannot escape, and the back of the head supported by a sort of pillow made of moss or rabbit-skins, with an inclined piece resting on the forehead of the child. This is every day drawn down a little tighter by means of a cord, which holds it in its place, until at length it touches the THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 2^5 But in all efforts to adorn or alter their persons, the great object was to inspire terror and respect. The wai'rior was indifferent to the admiration of woman nose ; thus forming a straight line from the crown of the head to the end of the nose. This process is seemingly a cruel one, though I doubt whether it causes much pain, as it is done in earliest infancy, whilst the bones are soft and cartilagiuous, and easily pressed into this distorted shape, by forcing the occipital up and the frontal down; so that the skull at the top in profile will show a breadth of not more than an inch and a half or two inches, when in a front view it exhibits a great expansion on the sides, making it at the top nearly the width of one and a half natural heads. By this remarkable operation the brain is singularly changed from its natural state, but in all probability not in the least diminished or injured in its natural functions. This belief is drawn from the testimony of many credible witnesses who have closely sci'utinised them, and ascertained that those who have the head flattened are in no way iufeinor in intellectual powers to those whose heads are in their natural shapes. This strange custom existed precisely the same until recently among the Choctaws and Chickasaws, who occupied a large part of the States of Mississippi and Alabama, where they have laid their bones, and himdreds of their skulls have been procured, bearing marks of a similar treatment with similar results." — Catlin's American Indians, vol. ii., p. 112. With respect to the origin of this singular custom, Humboldt is inclined to think that it may be traced from the natural inclination of each race to look upon their own personal peculiarities as the standard of beauty. He observes that the pointed form of the heads is very striking in the Mexican drawings, and continues thus : — " If we examine osteologically the skulls of the natives of America, we see that there is no race on the globe in which the frontal bone is more flattened or which have less forehead.* (Blumenbach, Decas Quinta Craniorum, tab. xlvi., p. 14. 1808.) This extraordinary flattening * " L' anatomic comparee en offrc une autre confirmation dans la proportion cou- stante du volume dee lobes c^r^rales avec le degi'e d' intelligence des animaux." — Cuvier'« Report to the Institute on Flour en e Experiments in 1822. 246 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. whom he enslaved and despised, and it was only for war or the council that he assumed his choicest ornaments, and painted himself with unusual care. The decorations of the women were few and simple ; all those that were precious and splendid were reserved for their haughty lords. In several tribes the wives had to devote much of their time to adorning their husbands, and could bestow little attention upon themselves. The different nations remaining unclothed show considerable sagacity in anointing themselves in such a manner as to provide against the heat and moisture of the climate. Soot, the juices of herbs having a green, yellow, or vermilion tint, mixed with oil and grease, are lavishly employed upon their skin to adorn it and exists among people of the copper-coloured race, who have never been acquainted with the custom of producing artificial deformities, as is proved by the skulls of Mexican, Peruvian, and Aztec Indians, which M. Bonpland and myself brought to Europe, and several of which are deposited in the Museum of Natural History at Paris. The negroes prefer the thickest and most prominent lips, the Calmucks perceive the line of beauty in turned-up noses. M. Cuvier observes, {Leqons d'Anatomie Comparee, tom. ii., p. 6), that he Grecian artists, in the statues ©f heroes, raised the facial line from 85° to 100°, or beyond the natural form. I am led to think that the barbarous custom, among certain savage tribes in America, of squeezing the heads of children between two planks, arises from the idea that beauty consists in this extraordinary compression of the bone by which Nature has characterised the American race. It is no doubt from following this standard of beauty that even the Aztec people, who never disfigured the heads of their children, have represented their heroes and principal divinities with heads much flatter than any of the Cai'ibs I saw on the Lower Orinoco." — Humboldt's Researches on the Ancient Inhabitants of America* THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 247 render it impervious. By this practice profuse per- spiration is checked, and a defence is afforded against the innumerable and tormenting insects that abound everywhere in America.^ Black and red are the favourite colours for painting the face. In war, black is profusely laid on, the other colours being only ^ " Ces huiles leur sont absolument necessaires, et ils sont manges de verraine quand elles leur manquent." — Lafitau, torn, i., p. 59. It is supposed by Volney that the fatal effects of the small-pox among the Indians are to be attributed to the obstacle that a skin thus hardened opposes to the eruption. — P, 416. In the most detailed account given of the ravages of this disease, Catlin par- ticularly mentions that no eruption was visible in any of the bodies of the dead. Forster, the English translator of Professor Kalm's Travels in America, held the same opinion as Volney. " When the Kalmucks in the Russian dominions get the small-pox, it has been observed that very few escape. Of this, I believe, no other reason can be alleged than that the small-pox is always dangerous, either when the open pores of the skin are too numerous, which is caused by opening them in a warm-water bath, or when they are too much closed, which is the case with all the nations that are dirty and greasy. All the American Indians rub their body Avith oils, the Kalmucks rub their bodies and their fur coats with grease ; the Hottentots are also, I believe, patterns of filthiness ; this shuts up all the pores, hinders perspiration entirely, and makes the small-pox always fatal among these nations." — Note by the translator of Kalm, p. 532. " The ravages which the small-pox made this year (1750) among their Mohawk friends, was a source of deep concern to these revered philanthropists. These people having been accustomed from early childhood to anoint themselves with bear's grease, to repel the innumerable tribes of noxious insects in summer, and to exclude the extreme cold in winter, their pores are so completely shut up, that the small-pox does not rise upon them, nor have they much chance of recovery from any acute disorder." — Memoirs of an American Lady, vol. i., p. 322. 248 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, used to heighten its effect, and give a terrible ex- pression to the countenance.^ The breast, arms, and legs of the Indian are tattooed with sharp needles or pointed bones, the colours being carefully rubbed in. His Manitou, and the animal chosen as the symbol of his tribe, are first painted, then all his most remarkable exploits, and the -enemies he has slain or scalped ; so that his body displays a pic- torial history of his life."^ In the severe climate of the north the Indian's dress is somewhat more ample. Instead of shoes, he wears a strip of soft leather wrapped round the foot, called the moccasin. Upwards to the middle of the thigh a piece of leather or cloth, fitting closely, serves instead of pantaloons and stockings : it is usually sewed on to the limb, and is never removed. Two aprons, each about a foot square, are fastened to a girdle round the waist, and hang before and behind. This is their permanent dress. ^ M. de Tracy, when Governor of Canada, was told by his Indian allies, that with his good-humoured face he would never inspire the enemy with any degree of awe. They besought him to place himself under their brush, when they would soon make him such that his very aspect would strike terror. — Creuxius, Nova Francia, p. 62 ; Charlevoix, torn, vi., p. 40. ^ St. Isidore of Seville, and Solinus, give a similar description of the manner of painting the body in use among the Picts. " The operator delineates the figures with little points made by the prick of a needle, and into these he insinuates the juice of some native plants, that their nobility thus written, as it were, upon every limb of their body, might distinguish them from ordinary men by the number of the figures they were decorated with." — Isidor. Origin., lib. xix., cap. xxiii. ; Solin., De Magna Britannia, cap. x.xv. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 249 On occasions of ceremony, however, and in cold weather, they also wear a short shirt, and over all a loose robe, closed or held together in front. Now an English blanket is generally used for this gar- ment ; but before the produce of European art was known among them, the skins of wild animals fur- nished all their covering. The chiefs usually wear a sort of breastplate, covered with shells, pebbles, and pieces of glittering metal. Those who commu- nicate with Europeans display beads, rings, bracelets, and other gauds, instead. The ear, too, is cum- brously ornamented with showy pendants, and the tuft of hair on the crown of the head is interwoven with feathers, the wings of birds, shells, and many fantastic ornaments. Sometimes the Indian warrior wears buffalo horns,^ reduced in size and polished, on his head : this, however, is a distinction only for ^ " These horns are made of ahout a third part of the horn of a buffalo bull, the horn having been split from end to end, and a third part of it taken and shaved thin and light and highly polished. They are attached to the top of the head-dress on each side, in the same place as they rise and stand on the head of a buffalo, rising out of a mat of ermine skins and tails which hangs over the top of the head-dress, somewhat in the form that the large and profuse locks of hair hang and fall over the head of a buffalo bull. This custom is one which belongs to all north-eastern tribes, and is no doubt of very ancient origin, having purely a classic meaning. No one wears the head-dress surmounted with horns except the dignitaries who are very high in authority, and whose exceeding valour, worth, and power is admitted by all the nation. This head-dress is used only on certain occasions, and they are very seldom ; when foreign chiefs, Indian agents, or other important personages visit a tribe, or at war parades : — sometimes when a chief sees fit to send a war party to battle, he decorates his head with this symbol of power to stimulate his men ; 250 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, those renowned in war or in the council. The dress of the women varies but httle from that of the men, except in being more simple. They wear their hair long and flowing, and richly ornamented, whenever they can procure the means. The dwellings of the Indians usually receive much less attention than their personal appearance. Even among tribes comparatively far advanced in civi- lisation, the structure of their houses or cabans was very rude and simple. They were generally wi-etched huts, of an oblong or circular form, and sometimes so low, that it was always necessary to preserve a sitting or lying posture while under their shelter. There were no windows ; a large hole in the centre of the roof allowed the smoke to escape ; and a sort of curtain of birch bark occupied the place of the door. These dwellings are sometimes 100 feet long, when they accommodate several families. Four cabans generally form a quadrangle, each open to the inside, with the fire in the centre common to all. and throws himself into the foremost of the hattle, inviting the enemy to concentrate his shafts upon them. The horns upon these head- dresses are hut loosely attached at the bottom, so that they easily fall backward or forward ; and by an ingenious motion of the head, which is so slight as to be almost imperceptible, they are made to balance to and fro, and sometimes one backwards and the other forwards like a horse's ears, giving a vast deal of expression and force of character to the appearance of the chief who is wearing them. This is a remarkable instance, like hundreds of others, of a striking similarity to Jewish customs, to the Kerns (or Keren, in Hebrew), the hoi'ns worn by the Abyssinian cliiefs and Hebrews as a symbol of power and command ; worn at great parades and celebrations of victories. — Catlin, vol. i. p. 104. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 251 The numerous and powerful tribes formerly inha- biting Canada and its borders usually dwelt in huts of a very rude description. In their expeditions, both for war and the chase, the Indians erect temporary cabans in a remarkably short space of time. A few poles, raised in the shape of a cone, and covered with birch bark, form the roof, and the tops of pine branches make a fragrant bed. In winter the snow is cleared out of the place where the caban is to be raised, and shaped into walls, which form a shelter from the wind. The permanent dwellings were usually grouped in villages, surrounded with double and even triple rows of palisades, interlaced with branches of trees, so as to form a cohipact barrier, and offering a considerable difficulty to an assailing foe. The furniture in these huts was very scanty. The use of metal being unknown, the pots or vessels for boiling their food were made of coarse earthenware, or of soft stone hoUowed out with a hatchet. In some cases they were made of wood, and the water was boiled by throwing in a number of heated stones. The Indian displays some skill in the construction of canoes, and they are admirably adapted for his purpose. They are usually made of the bark of a single tree, strengthened by ribs of strong wood. These light and buoyant skiffs float safely on stormy or rapid waters under the practised guid- ance of the Indian, and can with ease be borne on his shoulder from one river or lake to another. 253 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. Canoes formed out of the trunk of a large tree are also sometimes used, especially in winter, for the purpose of crossing rivers when there is floating ice, their great strength rendering them capable of enduring the collision with the floating masses, to which they are liable. Even among the rudest Indian tribes a regular union between man and wife was universal, although not attended with ceremonials. The marriage con- tract is a matter of purchase. The man buys his wife of her parents, — not with money, for its value is unknown, — but with some useful and precious arti- cle, such as a robe of bear, or other handsome skin, a horse, a rifle', powder and shot. When the Indian has made the bargain with his wife's parents, he takes her home to his caban, and from that time she becomes his slave. There are several singular modes of courtship among some of the tribes, but gene- rally much reserve and consideration are exhibited.^ ^ " When a young Indian becomes attached to a female, he does not frequent the lodge of her parents or visit her elsewhere, oftener perhaps than he would, provided no such attachment existed. Were he to pm-sue an opposite course before he had acquired either the reputation of a warrior or a hunter, and suffer his attachment to be known or suspected by any personal attention, he would become the derision of the warriors and the contempt of the squaws. On meeting, however, she is the first, excepting the elderly people, who engages his respectful and kind inquiries ; after which no conversation passes between them, except it be with the language of the eyes, which, even among savages, is eloquent, and appears to be well understood. The next indications of serious intentions on the part of the young himter is the assumption of more industrious habits. He rises by daybreak, and with his gun or bow, visits the woods and prairies, in THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. 253 In many respects, however, the morals and manners of the Indians are such as might be expected in communities where the precepts of Christianity are unknown, and where even the artificial light of civilisation is wanting. There are occasionally instances of a divorce being resorted to from mere caprice ; but usually the marriage tie is regarded as a perpetual covenant. As the wife toils incessantly, and procures a great part of the subsistence, she is considered too valuable a servant to be lightly lost. search of the most rare and esteemed game. He endeavom-s to acquire the character of an expert and industrious hunter, and when- ever success has crowned his efforts, never fails to send the parents of the object of his affections some of the choicest he has procured. His mother is generally the bearer, and she is sure to tell from what source it comes, and to dilate largely on the merits and excellences of her son. The girl, on her part, exercises all her skill in preparing it for food, and when it is cooked, frequently sends some of the most delicious pieces, accompanied by other small presents, such as nuts, moccasins, &c., to her lover. These negotiations are usually carried on by the mothers of the respective parties who consider them confi- dential, and seldom divulge even to the remaining parents, except one or both of the candidates should be the offspring of a chief, when a deviation from this practice is exacted and generally observed. After an Indian has acquired the reputation of a warrior, expert hunter, or swift runner, he has little need of minor qualifications or of much address or formality in forming his matrimonial views. The young squaws sometimes discover their attachment to those they love by some act of tender regard, but more frequently through the kind offices of some confidant or friend. Such overtures generally succeed, but should they fail it is by no means considered disgraceful, or in the least disadvantageous to the female ; on the contrary, should the object of her affections have distinguished himself especially in battle, she is the more esteemed on account of the judgment she displayed in her partiality for a respectable and brave warrior." — Hunter, pp. 235—237. 254 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. Among the chiefs of the tribes to the west and south polygamy is general, and the number of these wife-servants constitute the principal wealth ; but among the northern nations this plurality is very rarely possessed. The Indian is seldom seen to bestow the slightest mark of tenderness upon his wife or children : he, however, exerts himself to the utmost for their welfare, and will sacrifice his life to avenge their wrongs. His indomitable pride prompts him to assume an apparent apathy, and to control every emotion of affection, suffering, or sorrow. Parents perform few duties towards their children beyond procuring their daily bread. The father is by turns occupied in war and the chase, or sunk in total indolence ; while the mother is oppressed by the toils of her laborious bondage, and has but little time to devote to her maternal cares. The infant is fastened to a board, cushioned with soft moss, by thongs of leather, and is generally hung on the branch of a tree, or, in travelling, carried on the mother's back.^ When able to move, it is freed from this confinement, and allowed to make its way about as it pleases. It soon reaches some neigh- bouring lake or river, and sports itself in the water all day long. As the child advances in years it enjoys perfect independence ; it is rarely or never reproved or chastised. The youths are early led to emulate the deeds of their fathers; they practise with the bow, and other weapons suited to a ^ See Appendix, No. LVII. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 255 warrior's use; and, as manhood approaches, they gradually assume the dignified gravity of the elders. In some tribes the young men must pass through a dreadful ordeal when they arrive at the age of manhood, which is supposed to prepare them for the endurance of all future sufferings, and enables the chiefs to judge of their courage, and to select the bravest among them to lead in difficult enterprises. During four days previous to this terrible torture the candidates observe a strict fast, and are denied all sleep. When the appointed day arrives certain strange ceremonies of an allegorical description are performed, in which all the inhabitants of the village take part. The candidates then repair to a large caban, where the chiefs and elders of the tribe are assembled to witness the ordeal. The torture commences by driving splints of wood through the flesh of the back and breasts of the victim ; he is next hoisted off the ground by ropes attached to these splints, and suspended by the quivering flesh, while the tormentors twist the hanging body slowly round, thus exquisitely enhancing the agony, till a death-faint comes to the relief of the candidate : he is then lowered to the ground and left to the care of the Great Spirit. When he recovers animation, he rises and proceeds on his hands and feet to another part of the caban ; he there lays the little finger of the left hand upon a buffalo skull as a sacrifice to the Great Spirit, and another Indian chops it off: The fore-finger is also frequently 25 G THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. offered up in the same manner: this mutilation does not interfere with the use of the bow, the only weapon for which the left hand is required. Other cruel tortures are inflicted for some time, and at length the wretched victim, reeling and staggering from the intensity of his suffering reaches his own dwelling, where he is placed under the care of his friends. Some of the famous warriors of the tribe pass through this horrible ordeal repeatedly, and the oftener it is endured the greater is their estimation among their people. No bandages are applied to the wounds thus inflicted, nor is any attention paid to their cure, but from the extreme exhaustion and debility caused by want of sustenance and sleep, circulation is checked and sensibility diminished ; the bleeding and inflammation are very slight, and the results are seldom injurious. The native tribes are engaged in almost perpetual hostility against each other. War is the great occupation of savage life, the measure of merit, the highroad of ambition, and the source of its intensest joy — revenge.^ In war the Indian character presents the darkest aspect, the finer and gentler qualities are veiled or dormant, and a fiendish ferocity assumes full sway. It is waged to exterminate, not to reduce. The enemy is assailed with treachery, and ^ " They firmly believe that the spirits of those who are killed by the enemy without equal revenge of blood, find no rest, and at night haunt the houses of the tribe to which they belonged ; but when that kin- dred duty of retaliation is justly executed, they immediately get ease and power to fly away." — Adair's Account of the American Indians. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 257 if conquered treated with revolting cruelty. The glory and excitement of war are dear to the Indian, but when the first drop of blood is shed, revenge is dearer still. He thirsts to offer up the life of an enemy to appease the departed spirit of a slaughtered friend. Thus each contest generates another even more embittered than itself The extension or defence of the hunting- grounds is often a primary cause of hostility among the native nations, and the increase of the power of their tribe by incorporating with them such of the vanquished as they may spare from a cruel death is another frequent motive. The savage pines and chafes in long continued peace, and the prudence of the aged can with difficulty restrain the fierce impetuosity of the young. Individual quarrels and a thirst for fame often lead a single savage to invade a hostile territory against the counsels of his tribe, but when war is determined by the general voice, more enlarged views, and a desire of aggrandisement guide the proceedings. As soon as the determination of declaring war is formed, he who is chosen by the nation as the chief, enters on a course of solemn preparation, intreating the aid and guidance of the Great Spirit. As a signal of the approaching strife, he marches three times round his winter dwelling, bearing a large blood-red flag, variegated Avith deep tints of black. When this terrible emblem is seen, the young warriors crowd around to hearken to the words of their chief. He then addresses them in a strain VOL. I. S 258 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. of impassioned but rude and ferocious eloquence, calling upon them to follow him to glory and revenge. When he concludes his oration, he throws a wampum-belt on the ground, which is respectfully lifted up by some warrior of high renown, who is judged worthy of being second in command. The chief now paints himself black, and commences a strict fast, only tasting a decoction of consecrated herbs to assist his dreams, which are strictly noted and interpreted by the elders. He then washes off the black paint. A huge fire is lighted in a public place in the village, and the great war-cauldron set to boil; each warrior throws something into this vessel, and the allies who are to join the expedition also send offerings for the same purpose. Lastly, the sacred dog is sacrificed to the God of War, and boiled in the cauldron, to form the chief dish at a festival, to which only the warriors and men great in council are admitted. During these ceremonies the elders watch the omens with deep anxiety, and if the promise be favourable, they prepare for immediate departure. The chief then paints himself in bright and varied colours, to render his appearance terrible, and sings his war-song, announcing the nature of the projected enterprise. His example is followed by all the warriors, who join a war-dance, while they proclaim with a loud voice the glory of their former deeds, and their determination to destroy their enemies. Each Indian now seizes his arms, the bow and quiver hang over the left shoulder, the tomahawk THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 259 from the left hand, and the scalping-knife ^ is stuck in the girdle. A distinguished chief is appointed to take charge of the Manitous or guardian powers of each warrior ; they are collected, carefully placed in a box, and accompany the expedition as the ark of safety. Meanwhile the women incite the warriors to vengeance, and eagerly demand captives for the torture to appease the spirits of their slaughtered relatives, or sometimes indeed to supply their place. When the war party are prepared to start, the chief addresses his followers in a short harangue ; they then commence the march, singing and shouting the terrible war-whoop. The women proceed with the expedition for some distance ; and when they must ' " The modern scalping-knife is of civilised manufacture, made expressly for Indian use. and carried into the Indian country hy thousands and tens of thousands, and sold at an enormous price. In the native simplicity of the Indian he shapes out his rude hatchet from a piece of stone, heads his arrows and spears with flints, and his knife is a sharpened bone, or the edge of a broken silex. His untutored mind has not been ingenious enough to design or execute anything so savage or destructive as these civilised refine- ments on Indian barbarity. The scalping-knife, in a beautiful scab- bard which is carried under the belt, is generally used in all Indian countries where knives have been introduced. It is the size and shape of a butcher's knife with one edge, manufactured at Sheffield perhaps for sixpence, and sold to the poor Indians in these wild regions for a horse. If I should ever cross the Atlantic with my col- lection, a curious enigma would be solved for the English people who may inquire for a scalping-knife, when they find that every one in my collection (and hear also that nearly every one that is to be seen in the Indian country, to the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean,) bears on its blade the impress of G. R." — GatVm's American Tndians, vol. i., p. 236. s2 260 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. return, exchange endearing names with their hus- bands and relations, and express ardent wishes for victory. Some little gift of affection is usually exchanged at parting. Before striking the first blow, the Indians make open declaration of war. A herald, painted black, is sent, bearing a red tomahawk, on one side of which are inscribed figures representing the causes of hostilities. He reaches the enemy's principal village at midnight, throws down the tomahawk in some conspicuous place, and disappears silently. When once warning is thus given, every stratagem that cunning can suggest, is employed for the enemy's destruction. As long as the expedition continues in friendly countries, the warriors wander about in small parties for the convenience of hunting ; still, how- ever, keeping up communication by means of sounds imitating the cries of birds and beasts. None ever fail to appear at the appointed place of meeting upon the frontier, where they again hold high festival, and consult the omens of their dreams. When they enter the hostile territory a close array is observed, and a deep silence reigns. They creep on all fours, walk through water, or upon the stumps of trees to avoid leaving any trace of their route. To conceal their numbers they sometimes march in a long single file, each stepping on the foot-print of the man before him. They sometimes even wear the hoofs of the buffalo or the paAvs of the bear, and run for miles in a winding course to THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 2 til imitate the track of those animals. Every effort is made to surprise the foe, and they frequently lure him to destruction by imitating from the depths of the forest the cries of animals of the chace. If the expedition meet with no straggling party of the enemy, it advances with cautious stealth towards some j^rincipal village ; the warriors creep on their hands and feet through the deep woods, and often even paint themselves the colour of dried leaves to avoid being perceived by their intended victims. On approaching the doomed hamlet, they examine it carefully but rapidly, from some tree- top or elevated ground, and again conceal them- selves till nightfall in the thickest covert. Strange to say these subtle warriors neglect altogether the security of sentinels, and are satisfied with searching the surrounding neighbourhood for hidden foes ; if none be discovered they sleep in confidence, even when hostile forces are not far off. They weakly trust to the protecting power of their Manitous. When they have succeeded in reaching the village, and concealing themselves unobserved, they wait silently, keeping close watch till the hour before dawn, when the inhabitants are in the deepest sleep. Then crawling noiselessly like snakes through the grass and underwood, till they are upon the foe, the chief raises a shrill cry and the massacre begins. Discharging a shower of arrows they finish the deadly work with the club and tomahawk. The great object however of the conquerors is to take the enemy alive, and reserve him to grace their 2G3 THE COXQTJEST OF CANADA. triumph and rejoice their eyes by his torture. When resistance is attempted this is often im- possible, and an instant death saves the victim from the far greater horrors of captivity and pro- tracted torment. When an enemy is struck down, the victor places his foot upon the neck of the dead or dying man, and with a horrible celerity and skill tears off the bleeding scalp.^ This trophy is ever preserved with jealous care by the Indian warriors. After any great success the war party always return to their villages, more eager to celebrate the victory than to improve its advantages. Their women and old men await their return in longing expectation. The fate of the war is announced from afar off by well-known signs ; the bad tidings are first told. A herald advances to the front of the returning party and sounds a death-whoop for each of their warriors who has fallen in the fray. Then after a little time the tale of victory is told, and the number of prisoners and of the slain declared. All lamentations are soon hushed, and congratulations and rejoicing succeed. During- the retreat, if the war party be not hard pressed by the enemy, prisoners are treated with some degree of hmnanity, but are very closely guarded. When the expedition has returned to the village, the old men, women, and children, form themselves into two lines ; the prisoners are compelled to pass between them, and ^ See Appendix, No. LVIIL THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 263 are cruelly bruised with sticks and stones, but not vitally injured by their tormentors. A council is usually held to decide the fate of the prisoners, the alternatives are, to be adopted into the conquering nation, and received as brothers, or to be put to death in the most horrible torments ; thus either to supply the place of Avarriors fallen in battle, or to appease the spirits of the departed by their miserable end. The older warriors among the captives usually meet tlie hardest fate, the younger are most frequently adopted by the women, their Avounds are cured, and they are thenceforth received in every respect as if they belonged to the tribe. The adopted prisoners go out to war against their former countrymen, and the new tie is held even more binding than the old. The veteran warrior, whose tattooed skin bears record of slaughtered enemies, meets with no mercy ; his face is painted, his head crowned with flowers as if for a festival, black moccasins are put upon his feet, and a flaming torch is placed above him as the signal of condemnation. The women take the lead in the diabolical tortures to which he is subjected, and rage around their victim with horrible cries. He is, however, allowed a brief interval to sing his death-song, and he often continues it even through the whole of the terrible ordeal. He boasts of his great deeds, insults his tormentors, laughing at their feeble efforts, exults in the vengeance that his nation will take for his death, and pours forth insulting reproaches and threats. The song is then 264 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. taken up by the woman to whose particular revenge he has been devoted. She calls upon the spirit of her husband or son to come and witness the sufferings of his foe. After tortures too various and horrible to be particularised, some kind wound closes the scene in death, and the victim's scalp is lodged among the trophies of the tribe. To endure with unshaken fortitude ^ is the greatest triumph of an Indian warrior and the highest confusion to his enemies, but often the proud spirit breaks under the pangs that rack the quivering flesh, and shouts of intolerable agony reward the demoniac ingenuity of the tormentors. Many early writers considered that the charge of cannibalism^ against the Indians was well founded ; ^ The savage Cantabrians and the first inhabitants of Spain sang songs of triumph as they were led to death and while they hung on the cross. Strabo mentions this as a mark of their ferocity and barbarism. — Strabo, lib. iii., p. 114. ^ The American word " cannibal," of a somewhat doubtful signifi- cation, is probably derived from the language of Hayti or that of Porto Rico. It has passed into the languages of Europe, since the end of the fifteenth century, as synonymous with that of Anthropo- phagi. " Edaces humanarum carnium novi heluones Anthropophagi, Caribes, alias Canibales appellati," says Peter Martyr of Anghiera, in the third decade of his Oceanics, dedicated to Pope Leo X. " We were assured by all the missionaries whom we had an opportunity of consulting, that the Caribbees are perhaps the least anthropophagous nation of the New Continent. We may conceive that the fury and despair with which the unhappy Caribbees defended themselves against the Spaniards when, in 1704, a royal decree declared them slaves, may have contributed to the reputation they have acquired of ferocity. The licendiado Rodrigo de Figuera was appointed by the Court in 1520 to decide which of the tribes of South America might THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 2G5 doubtless in moments of fury portions of an enemy's flesh have been rent off and eaten. To devour a foeman's heart is held by them to be an exquisite vengeance. They have been known to drink draughts of human blood, and in circumstances of scarcity they do not hesitate to eat* their captives. It is certain that all the terms used by them in describing the torture of prisoners relate to this horrible practice, yet as they are so figurative in every expression, these may simply mean the fullest gratification of revenge. The evidence upon this point is obscure and contradictory ; the Indian cannot be altogether acquitted or found guilty of this foul imputation. The brief peace that affords respite amidst the continual wars of the Indian tribes, is scarcely more than a truce. Nevertheless, it is concluded with considerable form and ceremony. The first advance towards a cessation of hostilities, is usually made through the chief of a neutral power. The nation professing the first overture dispatches some men of be regarded as of Caribbee race, or as Cannibals, and which were Guatiaos, that is, Indians of peace, and friends of the Castilians. Every nation that conld be accused of having devoured a prisoner after a battle, was arbitrarily declared of Caribbee race. All the tribes designated by Figuera as Caribbees were condemned to slavery, and might at will be sold or exterminated in war. " — Humboldt's Personal Narrativ-s , vol. vi., p. 35. Charlevoix and Lafitau speak of the cannibalism of the North American Indians as a generally acknowledged fact : Lafitau mentiona the Abcnaquis as the only tribe who held it in detestation. — Lafitau, vol. ii., p. 307. 26Q THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. note as ambassadors, accompanied by an orator, to contract the negociation. They bear with them the calumet^ of peace as the symbol of their purpose, and a certain number of wampum belts ^ to note the * " On ne peut gu^res douter que les sauvages en faisant furaer dans le Calumet ceux dont ils recherchent I'alliance ou le commerce, n'ayent intention de prendre le soleil pour temoin et en quelque fagon pour garant de leurs traites, car ils ne manquent jamais de pousser la fumee vers cette astre : . . . Fumer done dans la meme pipe, en signe d'alliauce, est la meme chose que de boire dans la meme coupe, comma il s'est de tout terns pratique dans j^lusieurs nations." — Charlevoix, torn, v., p. 313. Calumet in general signifies a pipe, being a Norman word, derived from Chalumeau. The savages do not understand this word, for it was introduced into Canada by the Normans when they first settled there ; and has still continued in use among the French planters. The calumet or pipe, is called in the Iroquois language ganondaoe, and by the other savage natives, poagau. Ambassadors were never safe amongst any of the savage tribes who do not smoke the calumet. — Lafitau, vol. ii., p. 313. At the time of the early French writers on Indian customs, the calumet, since almost universally in use, was only known amongst the tribes inhabit- ing Louisiana, who in many respects were more advanced in civilisa- tion than those of the cold northern regions. ^ Wampum is the Indian name of ornaments manufactured by the Indians from varicoloured shells* which they get on the shore of the * " Among the numerous shells which are found on the sea-shore, there are some ^vhich hy the English here are called clams, and which bear some resemblance to the human ear. They have a considerable thickness, and are chiefly white, excepting the pointed end, which both within and without hath a blue colour, between purple and violet. The shells contain a large animal, which is eaten both by Indians and Europeans. The shells of these clams are used by the Indians as money, and make what they call their wampum ; they likewise serve theu- women for an ornament when they intend to appear in full dress. These wampums are properly made of the purple part of the shells, which the Indians value more than the white parts. A traveller who goes to trade with the Indians, and is well stocked with them, may become a considerable gainer, but if he take gold coin or bullion he will undoubtedly be a loser; for the Indians who live farther up the country put little or no value on THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 267 objects and conditions of the negociation. The orator explains the meaning- of the belts to the hostile chiefs, and if the proposition be received, resh water streams, and file or cut Into bits of half an inch, or an inch in length, and perforate, giving them the shape of pieces of broken-pipe stems, which tliej string on deer's sinews, or weave them ingeniously into war-belts for the waist. The wampum is evidently meant in the description of the esurgny or cornibolz, given by Verazzano in Ramusio, which has so much puzzled translators and commentators. Lafitau and Charlevoix both describe it under the name of porcelaine. "La Porcelaine dont nous parlous ici, est bien differente de ces ouvrages de Porcelaine qu' on apporte de la Chine ou du Japan* dont la matiere est une terre beluttee et preparee. Celle ci est tiree de certains coquillages de mer, connues en geuerale sous le nom de Por- celaines, — celles dont nos sauvages se servent sont canelees, et semblable pour leur figure aux coquilles de St. Jacques. — II y a de porcelaine de deux sortes, I'une est blanche, et c'est la plus commune. L'autre est d'un violet obscur ; plus elle tire sur le noir plus elle est estimee. La porcelaine qui sert pour les affaires d'etat est toute travaille'e au petits cylindres de la longueur d'un quart de pouce et gros a proportion. On les distribue en deux manieres, en branches et en colliers. Les branches sont composees de cylindres enfiles sans ordre, a. la suite les ixns des autres comme des grains de chapelet. the metals which we reckon so precious, as I have frequently observed in the course of my travels. The Indians formerly made their own wampums, though not without a great deal of trouble ; but at present the Europeans employ themselves in that way, and get considerable profit by it." — Kalm in Pinkerton, vol. xiii., p. 455. * " Marsden et la Comte Baldelli ont rappele', dans leur savans commentaires du Mili- one de Marco Polo, que c' est le nom de la coquille du genere Cypreea a dos bombe (por- cellanor, de porcello, en latin porcellus, pourcelaiiie du pere Trigault) qui a donne lieu a la denomination de porcelaine par laquelle les peuples occidentaux ont designe les Vasa Sinica. Marco Polo se sert du mot porcellaue, et pour les coquilles karis, ou courics, cmploye'es conime monnaie dans rindc, et pour la poterie fine de la Chine. . . . La blancheur lustr^e de plusieurs cspeces de la famille des Buccinoides, appellees de pourcelaines au moion age, a sans doute suffi pour faire donner aux beaux vases c6rauiiques de la Chine une denomination analogue. Ces coquilles ne sont pas entries dans la composition de la porcelaine," — Humboldt, Geog. du Nouveau Continent, torn, v., p. 106. 268 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. the opposite party accept the proffered symbols, and the next day present others of a similar import. The calumet is then solemnly smoked, and the burial of a war hatchet for each party and for each all3% concludes the treaty. The negociations consist more in presents, speeches, and ceremonies, than in La porcelaine en est ordinairement toute blanche, et on ue s'en sert que pour des affaires d'une legere consequence. Les colliers sont de larges ceintures, ou les petits cjlindres blancs et pourpre sont disposes par rangs et assujettes par de petites bandelettes de cuir, dont on fait un tissu assez propre. Leur longeur, leur largueur et les grains de couleur se proportionuent a I'importance de I'aftaire. Les colliers communs et ordinaires sont de onze rangs de cent quatre-vingt grains cbacun. Le fisc, ou le tresor public consiste principalement en ces sortes de colliers Les sauvages n' ont rien de plus precieux que leur Porcelaine; ce sont leurs bijoux, leurs pierreries. lis en comptent jusqu' aux grains, et cela leur tient lieu de toute richesse." — Lafitau, 1720. Catlin writes thus in 1842 : — " Amongst the numerous tribes who have formerly inhabited the Atlantic coast, wampum has been invariably manufactured and highly valued as a circulating medium (instead of coins, of which the Indians have no knowledge) ; so many strings, or so many hands breadth, being the fixed value of a horse, a gun, a robe, &c. It is a remarkable fact that after I passed the Mississippi, I saw but very little wampum used, and on ascending the Missouri, I do not recollect to have seen it worn at all by the Upper Missouri Indians, although the same materials for its manu- facture are found in abundance in those regions. Below the Lions and along the whole of our western frontier, the different tribes are found loaded and beautifully ornamented with it, which they can now afi'ord to do, for they consider it of little value, as the fur traders have ingeniously introduced an imitation of it manufactured by steam or otherwise, of porcelain or some composition closely resembling it, with which they have flooded the whole Indian country, and sold at so reduced a price as to cheapen and consequently destroy the value and meaning of the original wampum, a string of which can now but very rarely be found in anj" part of the country." — Catlin, vol. i., p. 223. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 269 any demands upon each other : there is no property to provide tribute, and the victors rarely or never require the formal cession of any of the hunting- grounds of the vanquished. The unrestrained passions of individuals, and the satiety of long- continued peace, intolerable to the Indian, soon again lead to the renewal of hostility. The successful hunter ranks next to the brave warrior in the estimation of the savage. Before start- ing on his grand expeditions, he prepares himself by a course of fasting, dreaming, and religious observ- ances, as if for war. He hunts with astonishing dexterity and skill, and regards this pursuit rather as an object of adventure and glory than as an industrious occupation. With regard to cultivation and the useful arts, the Indians are in the very infancy of progress.^ Their villages are usually not less than eighteen miles apart, and are surrounded by a narrow circle of imperfectly cleared land, slightly turned up with a hoe, or scraped with pointed sticks,^ scarcely interrupting the continuous expanse of * " Avant (I'avoir I'usage des moulins, ils brisaient leurs grains dans les piles, ou des mortiers de bois, avec des pilons de nieme matiere. Hesiode nous donne la mesure de la pile et du pilon des anciens, et de nos sauvages, dans ces paroles, ' Coupez moi une pile de trois pieds de liaut, et un pilon de la longueur de trois coudees.' (Ilesiod. Opera et Dies, lib. v., 411 ; Servius in lib. ix., jEneid. Init.) Caton met aussi la pile et le pilon, au nombre des meubles rustiques de son temps. Les Pisons prirent leur nom de cette maniei'e de piler le bled." — Lafitau. ' " II leur suffit d'lm morceau de bois recourbe de trois doi^ts de 270 THE CONQUEST OP CANADA. the forest. They are only acquainted with the rudest sorts of clay manufactures, and the use of the metals (except by European introduction) is altogether unknown.^ Their women, however, display considerable skill in weaving fine mats, in staining the hair of animals, and working it into brilliant coloured embroideries. The wampum-belts are made with great care and some taste. The calumet is also elaborately carved and ornamented ; and the painting and tattooing of their bodies some- times presents well-executed and highly descriptive largeur, attache a un long mouche qui lem- sert a sarcler la terre, et a la remuei- legerement. " — Lafitau, torn, ii., p. 76. Catlin says that the tribe of Mandans raise a great deal of corn. This is all done by the women, who make their hoes of the shoulder- blades of the buffalo or elk, and dig the ground over instead of ploughing it, which is consequently done with a vast deal of labour. — Vol. i., p. 121. ^ "Nothing so distinctly marks the uncivilised condition of the North American Indian as his total ignorance of the art of metal- lurgy. Forged iron has been in use among the inhabitants of our hemisphere from time immemorial ; for though the process employed for obtaining the malleability of a metal in its malleable state is very complicated, yet M. de Marian has clearly proved that the several eras at which writers have pretended to fix the discovery are entirely fabulous." — Lettres sur la Chine. Consequently, the weapons of brass and other Instruments of metal found in the dykes of Upper Canada, Florida,