Volume 2 Chapter Preface
[Page i]
HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS
OF
L O U I S I A N A,
EMBRACING TRANSLATIONS OF
MANY RARE AND VALUABLE DOCUMENTS
RELATING TO THE
NATURAL, CIVIL AND POLITICAL
HISTORY OF THAT STATE.
COMPILED WITH
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES,
AND AN
INTRODUCTION,
BY
B. F. FRENCH,
Member of the Louisiana Historical Society; of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science;
Honorary Member of the Historical Society of
Pennsylvania; Corresponding Member of the Academy of
Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, etc. etc.
PART II.
SECOND EDITION.
PHILADELPHIA:
DANIELS AND SMITH.
New York, G P. Putman; Boston, LITTLE AND BROWN;
New Orleans, B.M.
NORMAN; London, JOHN CHAPMAN; Paris, GALIGNANI AND CO.
1850.
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ENTERED according to the Act Of Congress,
in the year 1850, by
B. F. FRENCH,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania.
PHILADELPHIA:
PRINTED BY T. K. & P. G. COLLINS.
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TO THE
MEMBERS OF THE LOUISIANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
THIS VOLUME
IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED
BY
BENJAMIN F. FRENCH.
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PREFACE.
IN preparing this volume for the press, it has been my object to
clear up as much as possible, by the publication of important narratives,
all doubts respecting the claim of Spain to the first discovery, and of
France to the first settlement and exploration of the Mississippi River.
In the sixteenth century, the name of Florida was given to all that
country lying south of Virginia, and extending westward to the Spanish
possessions in Mexico, including, of course, the present State of
Louisiana. It was inhabited by several powerful tribes of warlike
Indians, who subsequently resisted every attempt of England, France and
Spain, to subjugate them. In 1512, Ponce de Leon, a companion of
Columbus, sailed for Florida, and effected a landing near the present town
of St. Augustine. He was attacked by the natives, and driven back with
severe loss to his ships, mortally wounded. He returned with the wreck of
his expedition to Cuba, where he shortly afterwards died.
In 1520, Vasquez de Ayllon fitted out another expedition to take
possession of Florida, but he was slain by the Indians, and his fleet
returned to Cuba. In 1528, Pamfilo de Narvaez sailed from Cuba with four
ships and a strong military force to conquer the country. He arrived in
tbe Bay of Espiritu Santo (Tampa Bay), on the 12th of April, where he
landed his army. After penetrating the country some hundreds of miles,
and suffering severe loss and incredible hardships, he returned to the
sea-coast, and embarked the miserable remnant of his army in five frail
vessels for Cuba. During his voyage a severe storm arose, in which he
suffered shipwreck, and only a portion of his army ultimately reached
Mexico in 1537.
In 1539, Hernando de Soto, the companion of Pizarro in the conquest
of Peru, obtained permission of Charles the Fifth to conquer the country,
and the title of governor and captain-general was conferred upon him.
After nearly fourteen months spent in preparation, he set sail from Spain
on the 6th of April, 1538, and on the 31st May, 1539, he arrived in the
bay of Espiritu Santo, where he landed his army. He penetrated the
interior of the country, and passed down the valley of the Coosa River.
He marched from thence to Alabama river, where he fought a great battle
with the Indians. Leaving Mauvila, he marched northward and westward, and
spent the second winter in Mississippi, where he lost a part of his army
in a battle with the Chickasaws. Thence he bent his course to the
Mississippi River, which he crossed in the latitude of the Chickasaw
Bluffs, and
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PREFACE.
spent the next winter in the mountainous region of Arkansas. In the
following spring he returned to the Mississippi River, where he died. The
account of this famous expedition was written by Garcilaso de la Vega, and
a gentleman of Elvas, and published in Spain some years afterwards. "It
may be doubted," says Mr. Sparks, "whether either of these works can be
trusted as affording genuine historical materials. They have been cited
by respectable writers in default of other authorities; but they border so
closely upon the regions of romance that they may as justly be ranked in
this class of compositions as in that of history. This is generally
conceded in regard to Garcilaso de la Vega, but his predecessor, the
gentleman of Elvas, is thought to have higher claims."
Since the above was written by Mr. Sparks, another account of this
expedition into Florida and Louisiana has been found in manuscript, in
Spain, written by Luis Hernandez de Biedma (facteur de sa Majesté), and
presented by him to the king in 1544, which seems to have furnished the
materials for these histories, and establishes beyond a doubt the claim of
Spain to the discovery of the Mississippi River, and the extensive country
lying on both sides of it. It is written in a plain and unpretending
style, and gives apparently a faithful account of the countries traversed
by De Soto-- the manners and customs of the Indians--their towns and
villages--the mountains, rivers, and valleys--the currents, islands, and
other physical features of the great Mississippi valley and river; and
finally the preparation and departure of his successor Luis de Moscoso,
from the mouth of the Arkansas, until his arrival in the river of Panuco
in 1543. A translation of this rare and curious manuscript, together with
an autograph letter of the Adelantado de Soto is now published for the
first time in this volume. After the death of Hernando de Soto, more than
a century elapsed before any further attempt was made to explore the
Mississippi. In 1673, M. Talon, the French governor of Canada, took
measures to secure the dominion of France over all the countries lying
south and west of the Canadian lakes; and, anxious to discover the
sources, course, and direction of the great river which had been mentioned
to the French missionaries by the Indians of the west, to flow towards the
south, he sent Marquette and Joliet to explore it to the sea. They
embarked in May, and proceeded down the river as far as the Arkansas, from
whence they returned to Canada, and published an account of their voyage
in the French language several years after. But it was left for the
greatest traveler of his age, the Sieur Robert Cavalier de la Salle, to
finish what they had begun. He set out from Canada in 1682, and reached
its mouths on the 9th of April, and took possession of the country in the
name of his sovereign, and called it Louisiana. The valuable and rare map
accompanying this volume is a well- executed fac simile of the original.
It aspires to a degree of accuracy that is of great importance both to the
historian and antiquarian. It preserves not only the Indian names of the
lakes and rivers, but traces the routes of the early explorers, and lays
down the localities of the numerous Indian tribes who once held sway over
this extensive country.
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CONTENTS.
An Account of the Louisiana Historical Society . . . . . . . . l
A Discourse on the Life, Writings, and Character of
the Hon. Francis X. Marlin, LL. D., first President of
the Louisiana Historical Society, . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
An Analytical Index of all the public documents in Paris
relating to the Discovery and early Settlement of
Louisiana, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
A Translation of an original letter of Hernando de Soto on
the Conquest of Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
A Translation of a recently-discovered manuscript Journal
of the Expedition of Hernando de Soto into Florida, by
Luis Hernandez de Biedma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97
A Narrative of the Expedition of Hernando de Soto into
Florida, by a Gentleman of Elvas, translated from the
Portuguese by Richard Hackluyt, in 1609 . . . . . . . . . . 114
A description of the English province of Carolana, by the
Spaniards called Florida, and by the French la Louisiane.
As also of the great and famous river Meschacebe or
Mississippi, the five vast navigable lakes of fresh water,
and the parts adjacent. Together with an account of
the commodities of the growth and production of the said
province, by Daniel Coxe, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
A TranslatIon of Marquette and Joliet's account of a Voyage
to Discover the Mississippi River, in 1673 . . . . . . . . .279
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Volume 2 Chapter 1
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LOUISIANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
New Orleans, May 1, 1850. To B. F.
French, Esq.
Dear Sir:--
Agreeably with your request, I hand you the following paper, showing
the progress as well as origin of our Historical Society, which you are at
liberty to publish in the forthcoming volume of your Historical
Collections of our State.
The Society was originally established in 1836, as appears from some
of its records delivered to me by its then Secretary, Louis Janin, Esq.,
of this city. The first President was Hon. H. Bullard. Secretaries, Mr.
Harrison, a prominent young lawyer of that time, and editor of " Louisiana
Condensed Reports," and Mrs Janin. Among the officers are recorded the
names of Martin, Porter Romac Canonge, Barton; and among tile members,
Clapp, Gray, Eustis, McCaleb, Ingalls, Winthrop, Rost, Watts, Deblieux,
Leonard, etc. The papers of the old Society which are preserved are very
few among them the able address of Judge Bullard, which you have published
in the first volume of your Collections, and the Constitution. We extract
this from its preamble.
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"The undersigned, citizens of Louisiana, wishing to unite their
labors in investigating the history and geography of the country formerly
possessed by France and Spain, under the name of Louisiana, being
assembled in New Orleans on the 15th day of January, 1836, and having
agreed to associate themselves together, to adopt, &c. &c. &c."
Among old memoranda, I find a resolution to inquire of Hon. John
Dutton relative to settlement of Acadian Coast and Indian tribes; of Dr.
Sibley, Bullard and Carr, about Natchitoches; of Sir William Dunbar's
representatives, about old papers, and in regard to late Historical
Society at Baton Rouge; of Mr. Taylor relative to Lafourche and the little
colony of Spaniards; of Col. Skipwith about Baton Rouge Convention, etc.
etc.
The Society appears soon after to have fallen into decay, for some
reason or other, and become almost entirely extinct.
In June, 1846, the Society was again revived by a meeting of the
following gentlemen, at the State House, New Orleans.
JOHN PERKINS,
J.D. B. DE BOW,
E. J FORSTALL,
HON. C. GAYARRE,
GEN. JOSEPH WALKER,
ALFRED HENNEN.
Gen. Walker was called to the chair, and J. D. B. De Bow appointed
Secretary. A committee to draft Constitution, consisting of Dr. Hawkes,
Alfred Hennen, and J. D. B. De Bow, reported the following, which was
adopted.
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CONSTITUTION
OF THE
LOUISIANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ADOPTED JULY 1, 1846.
The preservation of books, pamphlets, manuscripts, and records
containing historical facts, biographical anecdotes, temporary projects,
and beneficial speculations, conduces to mark the genius, delineate the
manners, and trace the progress of society in the United States, and must
always have a useful tendency to rescue the true history of the country
from the ravages of time, and the effect of ignorance or neglect. A
collection of observations and descriptions in natural history and
topography, together with specimens of natural and artificial curiosities,
and a selection of everything which can improve and promote the historical
knowledge of our country, either in a physical or political view, has long
been considered as a desideratum. Such is the introductory language of
the Massachusetts Historical Society, the oldest association of the kind
in any of the States of the Union, and in no language more forcible and
comprehensive, it is conceived, can the objects of the Society we are
about to organize be expressed.
ARTICLE I.
This Society shall be called the Historical Society of Louisiana.
ARTICLE II.
It shall consist of resident and honorary members, the former to be
of the State of Louisiana, the latter of other States.
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ARTICLE III.
The officers of the Society shall be a President, six Vice-
Presidents, two Secretaries, whereof one shall be a recording, and the
other a corresponding Secretary, a Treasurer and Librarian elected
annually, and by ballot.
ARTICLE IV.
There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of seven members
appointed annually by the President, whose duty it shall be to solicit and
receive donations, to recommend plans for promoting the ends of the
Society, to digest and prepare business, and to execute such other duties
as may be entrusted to them from time to time, reporting the result at the
regular meetings of the Society.
ARTICLE V.
The Society shall meet regularly on the first Wednesday evening of
each month.
ARTICLE VI.
All resident members shall contribute for the use of the Society five
dollars annually, to be paid over to the Treasurer.
ARTICLE VII.
Members shall be elected by ballot, on their names being presented to
the Society, but no individual can be elected a member without receiving
the votes of four-fifths of those present.
ARTICLE VIII.
This Constitution shall not be altered, or amended, or abrogated,
without a vote of four-fifths of the members present, previous notice of
one month having been given.
An election for officers resulted in Hon. François Xavier Martin
being elected the President.
J. D. B. De Bow, from the Executive Committee, reported the following
circular letter :--
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CIRCULAR OF THE LOUISIANA HISTORICAL
SOCIETY.
For the purpose of eliciting information in relation to the various
subjects proper for the cognizance of Historical Associations, the
following queries are published. They will be sent to the members of the
Society at large, and it is to be hoped will receive a due portion of
regard. A general invitation is, however, extended to all persons who may
have it in their power, in any manner, to promote the objects of the
association. If the Louisiana Historical Society does not publish its
"Collections" as other societies have, much will have been gained by
preserving them among its archives as subjects for the future historian.
Letters on any and every subject interesting to the Society will be
received with pleasure, and they may either be addressed to the President,
to the Executive Committee, or to the Secretary.
HON. F. XAVIER MARTIN, President.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
J. P. Benjamin, Alfred Hennen,
E. J. Forstall, L. Janin,
Dr. Hawkes, Prof. J. L. Riddell,
J. D. B. De Bow.
QUERIES.
1. Time of settlement of your parish; dates of oldest land grants;
number and condition first settlers; whence emigrating; other facts
relating to settlement and history?
2. Indian name parish; what tribes originally; what relics or
monuments of them; if Indians still, in what condition?
3. Biography, anecdotes, &c., of individuals distinguished in your
vicinity in the past for ingenuity, enterprise, literature, talents, civil
or military, &c. ?
4. Topographical descriptions of your parish, mountains, rivers,
ponds, animals, vegetable growth, rocks, minerals, sands, clays, chalk,
flint, marble, pitcoal, pigments, medicinal and poisonous substances, &c.?
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5. Former and present state of cultivation in parish; changes taking
place; introduction of cotton, sugar and rice; what lands occupied and
unoccupied; quality of soil; improvements suggested in cultivation and new
growths; improvements ill communication, roads, bridges, canals, &c.;
value of land; kind and qualities of timber; density of population,
capacity of raising stock, &c.?
6. Instances of longevity and fecundity; observations on diseases in
your section; on the weather, climate, healthy or otherwise on the
necessity of summer seats, &c. ?
7. Increase and progress of population in your parish, distinguishing
blacks and whites; advantages of schools and libraries enjoyed; proportion
educated?
8. Churches or chapels in the parish; when and by whom erected; how
supplied with clergy; how supported and attended; oldest interments,
church vaults, &c.?
9. Date, extent, consequences and other circumstances of droughts,
freshets, whirlwinds, storms, lightning, hurricanes, or other remark-able
physical events in your section, from remote periods other meteorological
phenomena?
10. Literary productions emanating from your neighborhood; your
literary, scientific or art associations, if any; what manuscripts,
private records, letters, journals, &c., or rare old books, interesting in
their relation to the history of Louisiana, are possessed by individuals
within your knowledge state any other matters of interest?
Judge Martin, who has writtten the history of the State, and was a
curious collector of old documents, stated in some of his remarks before
the Society, the following, which was noted by the Secretary.
There was an old Spanish book or manuscript regarding Louisiana, its
physical history, &c., once consulted by him, having borrowed it from the
owner, Don Seriaco de Ceraos, who died in 1515. The daughter of a
physician sent out by the King of France to this city, married Judge
Watts. He may have left some papers. Hon. Edward Everett was chairman of
a committee of Congress to purchase the French and Spanish books collected
by the Spanish
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consul. Bishop Blanc might obtain from the curates of our parishes much
valuable information. Sir William Dunbar left valuable papers,
information of which might be had from Mr. Robert Ogden.
In the fall of 1846, the Hon. B. F. Porter of Alabama delivered a
public address before the Society.
In December of the same year, our venerable President, Judge Martin,
died at his residence in this city. An eulogium was pronounced over his
remains by the Hon. H. A. Bullard.
The Society has received interesting letters from Hon. Joel R.
Poinsett, and Wm. Gilmore Simms, of South Carolina; Hon. Thomas H. Benton,
Missouri; Hon. Lewis Cass, Michigan; Hon. H. Clay, Kentucky; Professor
Stephens, of Georgia; Mr. Greenhow, of Washington, D. C.; Judge Bry,
Ouachita, &c.
Dr. Wurdeman, of South Carolina, presented the Society a few books
relating to Cuba; and Senator Johnson, of Louisiana, has regularly
furnished Congressional and other documents.
In the summer of 1847 the Society was incorporated, and Hon. H.
Bullard elected President. The Secretaries, John Perkins and J. D. B. De
Bow, were appointed to visit the various societies at the north, and open
interchanges of documents and correspondence. This duty they regularly
performed.
Hon. T. H. McCaleb was requested to correspond with the heirs of the
late Judge Porter about documents; and Judge Bullard, with Mr. Bouligny,
about his papers regarding the landing of O'Reilly.
Hon. Charles Gayarré was elected to deliver the annual address, which
he did, upon the "Romance of the History of Louisiana."
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Under the auspices of the Society, the legislature, in 1847, made an
appropriation of two thousand dollars, to procure copies of original
documents from Spain.
The agent employed was Sr. Pascual de Gayangos, and he seems to have
entered upon his duties and prosecuted them with much disinterested zeal.
His labors were mainly directed to the archives in the city of Seville,
whither they had been transported from the city of Madrid in 1828. Some
researches were made in Madrid. The papers in both places were found to
be in extreme disorder, tied up in bundles, not even labelled, and without
classification. The time allowed for examination was very small, the
archives being opened only three hours in the day, for five days in the
week. It is not permitted to make extracts, except by the officers of the
establishment, and this increased the delay and the expense, as the rates
were high. Besides, the offices are closed on every holiday--and
sometimes for long vacations. There appears to have been a further
embarrassment in the refusal of the Duke of Sotomayor to permit the
examination of the papers of his father, while Minister to the United
States, on the ground that he was concerned in secret correspondence for
the separation of a part of the United States. Mr. Saunders made a
personal representation, which obtained an order that Mr. Gayangos might
examine all the papers in the office of Grace and Justice, where all that
relates to Louisiana is said to be, but have no Copies without the consent
of the Minister. Mr. Saunders, in his letter to Mr. Gayangos, expresses
the opinion that the important secret papers had been taken away. In a
subsequent letter, the agent states that he has been unable to find the
secret papers relating to the correspondence of Gen. Wilkinson with the
Consul of Spain.
In another letter, he speaks of having obtained proofs by their own
correspondence, of the intrigue in which Wilkinson and others were
concerned, to separate Kentucky, Ohio, and other States from the Union.
It seems, at this day, that men must have been crazy to entertain such a
notion, but nevertheless, the charge has been often made, and now appears
to be susceptible of documentary evidence.
Sr. Gayangos has sent to Mr. Gayarré several bundles of important
documents, derived from these sources. He has not yet had access to the
Foreign Office, nor quite completed his examinations into the office of
Grace and Justice--Gracia y Justicia.
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The papers received are in the custody of the Secretary of State, and
have not yet been examined.
The State has purchased about a thousand pages of manuscripts (in two
quarto volumes,) being principally short extracts taken from memoirs,
letters, reports, &c., by Mr. Magne, one of the editors of the
"L'Abeille," during his residence in Paris.
Mr. Forstall has also given a full and elaborate index and analysis
of the documents relating to Louisiana, in Paris.
In the summer of 1848, John Perkins, Esq., was delegated by the
Society to make researches in Europe for interesting matter relative to
Louisiana. What he has yet achieved will appear from the following most
interesting letter.
Paris, March 24, 1849. Sir:-I
owe you an apology for the little allusion I have heretofore made to the
historical researches in which you feel so much interest. I assure you
they have not been out of my mind; but my health was so delicate for the
first three months after my arrival at Paris, that I seldom left my room,
except for a ride, and was never free from pain. Of course, work was out
of the question. I, however, through the kindness of our Consul, Mr.
Walsh, made the acquaintance of a gentleman who, writing the history of La
Salle, had occasion thoroughly to examine all the papers relating to the
early settlement of our State, and I found from him that the field was
much wider than I expected. Not only is the Marine Department rich in
materials of historical interest to Louisiana, but there are also in the
War and Foreign Departments, the archives and different public libraries
of Paris, many documents of a most interesting kind, that seem to have
escaped the attention of Mr. Forstall, and even of Mr. Gayarré.
I have now, through the assistance of our Minister, Mr. Rush, and the
courtesy of the gentlemen at the head of the different departments, been
permitted unrestricted examination of these papers, and their value cannot
be exaggerated. The want of system, and the
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loose manner in which they were thrown together, complained of by Mr.
Forstall, and that rendered Mr. Broadhead's researches for the State of
New York so laborious, are only to a certain extent remedied. There are
still mingled in large volumes papers without order of date, and some of
no date, whose epoch can be assigned only by a knowledge of the date of
the events to which they refer. The present Government has, however,
appointed a commission to classify and arrange, with a view to future
publication, the most important papers touching French colonial
settlements in America, and it is expected that by the end of another
year, there will be published all that relates particularly to Louisiana,
up to the period of the discovery by sea of the mouth of the Mississippi,
by D'Iberville, in 1697, and the first establishment of Louisiana, in
accordance with the project of M. De Rémonville. M. Margry expects to
publish his life of La Salle about the same time. These two publications
will cover everything of interest up to that date. The period of
sixty-six years, that extends from that time to the termination of the
French rule in 1763, the epoch of the cession of Louisiana to Spain, is
full of interest; and the documents derive more than merely historical
interest from the minute details given of the agriculture, climate, and
diseases of the new settlement.
From that date to the sale of Louisiana to Jefferson, the papers are
less numerous, and treat of circumstances more generally known. There are
a few, however, even of this epoch, of much interest. Under the
circumstances, I conclude it would most subserve the purposes of our
Historical Society to begin with a transcript of the papers where the
publication on the part of the French Government ceases. Accordingly, I
hope to send you during the ensuing season a digest, chronologically
arranged, of all the papers in the different archives of the French
Government referring to Louisiana, from the date of D'Iberville landing in
1697, down to its final acquisition in 1803 by the United States. The
labor of this composition has been great much more than I could have
achieved even with health by myself. I have been fortunate in securing
the services of Mr. Margry, to whose minute familiarity with the archives
of the Government and the early history of our State must be ascribed any
merit that the digest may be found to possess.
When I tell you that it fills a large quarto of 500 closely written
pages, you will see how impossible the idea I first conceived of sending
home certified copies of the documents themselves. Louisiana
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ought to have them. She owes it to herself to collect this proper
patrimony of her sons, in the record of an early history abounding in
vivid incident, and illustrated with a display of the noblest traits of
man's nature. New York has set a good example in the large appropriation
that enabled our present Secretary of Legation, Mr. Brodhead, to pursue
his researches for four years in France, England, and the Hague. He who
would now write a history of that State must begin by complimenting the
enlightened spirit that places all his materials in the hall of her
Historical Society. Massachusetts two years since made a similar
collection at the instance of Messrs. Sparks and Everett, whose personal
examination of the different foreign archives taught them the value of
manuscripts, now fortunately within the reach of every student of Harvard.
If the memoranda I send can assist in anyway the Historical Society of
Louisiana, in accomplishing the purpose of its institution, and in
attracting attention to the interest of our early history, I shall be
gratified, and shall feel that I have acknowledged in some sort, the
politeness of Gov. Johnson's note calling my attention to the subject.
With much regard, your friend,
JOHN PERKINS.
J. D. B. De Bow, Esq.
The Louisiana Historical Society has yet scarcely more than passed
its infancy. It will be for those who come after us to adorn and complete
the edifice whose foundation we have but barely laid.
I annex a list of regular and honorary members, but few of whom have
taken any active part in the business of the Society.
Your obedient servant,
J. D. B. DE BOW,
Secretary.
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[Page 12]
M E M B E R S
OF THE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF LOUISIANA.
Hon. H. A. Bullard, President, New Orleans.
J. D. B. De Bow, Esq., Secretary, "
Hon. F. X. Martin, "
Hon. Isaac Johnson, "
Hon. Joseph Walker, "
Hon.Solomon W.Downs, "
Henry Johnson, "
Hon. George Eustis, "
Hon. Thomas Slideil, "
Hon. Geo. Strawbridge, "
Hon. C. Gayarré, "
Hon. Charles Watts, "
Rev. Dr. F. L. Hawks, "
Benj. F. French, Esq. "
E. J. Forstall, Esq. "
Miles Taylor, Esq. "
Seth Lewis, Esq. "
Professor C. J. Forshey, "
A. M. Michel, Esq. "
Bernard Marigny, Esq. "
E. Mazureau, Esq. "
Lucius Duncan, Esq. "
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LIST OF MEMBERS.
Alexander Gordon, Esq. New Orleans.
Hon. Seth Barton, Esq. "
Maunsel White, Esq. "
J. Nicholson, Esq. "
Sidney Johnson, Esq. "
Hon. A. B. Roman, "
Hon. Trasimond Lundry, "
Hon. Isaac Preston, "
Hon. P. A. Rost, "
Hon. Henry Bry, Monroe.
Hon. Pierre Soule New Orleans.
Hon. Henry Carleton, "
David Randall, Esq. Donaldsonville.
Lafayette Saunders, Esq. Feliciana.
Thomas Beatty, Esq. Thibodeaux.
Judge Butler Feliciana.
John Dutton, Esq. Plaquemines.
J. Winchester, Esq. St. James.
Judge Jones Tammany.
G. Walterston, Esq. Livingston.
Col. Nicholas, Ascension.
Judge Guion, La Fourche.
C. Morgan, Esq. Point Coupée.
J. B. Carr, Esq. Natchitochcs.
Dr. R. H. Sibley, Rapides.
Dr. W. Davidson, "
Judge King, St. Landry.
J. K. Elgee, Esq. Rapides.
Hon. B. F. Porter, Alabama.
Samuel J. Peters, Esq. New Orleans.
Dr. W. Kennedy, "
Dr. T. Clapp, "
Dr. Weddersfrandt, "
Dr. W. M. Carpenter, "
Dr. A. B. Cenas, "
Dr. F. Lebeau, "
Dr. F. A. Jones, "
Dr. Harrison, "
Dr. W. B. Hart, "
Dr. C. Luzenberg "
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Page 14
Dr. F. Axson, New Orleans.
Dr. W. McCauley, "
Dr. E. H. Barton, "
Dr. J. L. Riddell, "
Judge Deblieux, "
Judge Leonard, "
John R. Grimes, Esq. "
Hon. R. H. Wilde, "
Hon. T. H. McCaleb, "
Judge Morphy, "
Thomas J. Duraut, Esq. "
Judge Labranche, "
H. B. Cenas, Esq. "
J. L. Sigur, Esq. "
W. E. Elmore, Esq. "
Professor Dimitry, "
M. M. Cohen, Esq. "
B. M. Norman, Esq. "
E. A. Bradford, Esq. "
General Planche, "
Bishop Leonidas Polk, "
Bishop Blanc, "
Judge Canonge, "
Martin Blache, Esq. "
Edward Simon, Esq. "
J. Dunbar, Esq. "
W. Micon, Esq. "
Levi Pierce, Esq. "
A. Moise, Esq. "
Gustavus Schmidt, Esq. "
C. Roselius, Esq. "
A. Maybin, Esq. "
R. Ogden, Esq. "
W. Relf, Esq. "
Charles Derbigny, Esq. "
H. Bullard, Jr., Esq. "
W. Walker, Esq. "
L. Janin, Esq. "
A. Hennen, Esq. "
J. Perkins, Esq. "
J. Winthrop, Esq. "
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Page 15
HONORARY MEMBERS.
W. Gilmore Simms, South Carolina.
Joel R. Poinsett, "
Thomas Benten, Missouri.
Lewis Cass, Michigan.
Henry Clay, Kentucky.
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[Page 16]
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[Page 17]
A DISCOURSE
ON
THE LIFE, CHARACTER, AND WRITINGS
OF THE
HON. FRANCOIS XAVIER MARTIN, LL. D.
LATE SENI0R JUDGE OF THE SUPREME COURT, AND FIRST PRESIDENT
OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF LOUISIANA.
BY
HENRY A. BULLARD,
ONE OF THE LATE COLLEAGUES OF THE DECEASED.
Gentlemen:--
It has been the usage of most polished nations, on the demise of men
who had become eminent in any of the departments of public affairs, to set
apart a short time to be devoted to the consideration of their merits and
their services. If they had deserved well of their country--if they had
left their impress on the generation in which they flourished, it is
proper that their memory should go down to posterity accompanied by the
testimonials of their cotemporaries. This is less important in relation
to the successful soldier who has fought the battles of his country, and
the distinguished statesman who has skillfully piloted the vessel of
state, because history is almost exclusively devoted to recount their
exploits and blazon their triumphs; but those whose fame is to be measured
by their usefulness, during a long and noiseless career, in the more
tranquil and less ambitious pure suits of life, and especially in the
magistracy, ought not to be permitted to pass off the stage without
dwelling for a few moments upon their merits, and holding them up as
examples worthy of being followed by the generation which is to succeed
us.
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Page 18
It was in compliance with this usage that the Bar of New Orleans, on
the demise of François Xavier Martin, did me the honor, as the oldest of
the late colleagues of the deceased, to request me to pronounce, on this
occasion, a discourse upon his life and character. Of a man whom I have
known for more than thirty years, nearly twelve of which were passed in
the discharge of arduous duties by his side, it is impossible for me to
speak in the set phrase of common-place eulogium--such language would be
unsuited to the occasion--unworthy of him and of myself. I shall endeavor
rather, by spreading before you what he has accomplished, and what he has
written, to let him portray himself, and thereby show you what eminent
qualities he possessed as a scholar, a jurist, and a man.
Judge Martin was born at Marseilles, in France, on the 17th of March,
1762, and descended from one of the most ancient and respectable families
of Provençe. His father was a merchant of high standing, a man of piety
and extreme exactness in the management of his business. He was the third
of a large number of children. His early education was strictly domestic,
and his studies were conducted by a learned ecclesiastic, who acted at the
same time as chaplain of the family. Under his tuition he acquired a
critical knowledge of the Latin language, and the elements of the English
and Italian. As he was destined for commercial pursuits, his education, up
to the age of seventeen, was such as to qualify him for that profession.
So exact was his knowledge of Latin, and his recollection of some of the
classics, that he was fond of reciting, at a very advanced age, long
passages from Horace, who was his favorite author.
He had one uncle, who was connected with the French army in Canada,
in the commissary department, about the time of the conquest of that
province by Great Britain; and another in Martinique, who had the supply
of provisions from the French navy in those seas, and who had amassed a
considerable fortune. He was a bachelor, and somewhat advanced in years.
Young Martin, at the age of about seventeen or eighteen years, sailed for
Martinique, with a view of joining his uncle, and going into business
under his auspices, and by his assistance. He had not been long there,
before his uncle concluded to return to France, where he died soon
afterwards. He withdrew his capital from business, but left his nephew
the means of commencing an establishment on his own account; but through
youth and inexperience, he was unsuccessful. How long he remained in the
island, I have not been able to learn with much precision--it is supposed
about three or four years. Having been interested in
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Page 19
commercial adventures to the Carolinas, where the person concerned with
him had died, he embarked on board a schooner bound for North Carolina, in
hopes of recovering something which was due to him. In this also he was
unsuccessful. It was under such circumstances that the subject of this
memoir found himself in Newbern, North Carolina, at the age of about
twenty, destitute of resources, among strangers whose language he
understood imperfectly, if he could speak it at all. But he did not
suffer himself to despair; ashamed to return to his native place, he
determined to employ to the best account the means which his early
education had furnished him. He engaged in various pursuits, and among
others the teaching of the French language. It occurred to him that
something might be done in the printing business, of which be was at that
time entirely ignorant. He offered himself to the only master printer
then in Newbern, by the name of James Clark, a kind-hearted man, who gave
him employment in his office. But finding that young Martin knew nothing
of the practical business of a compositor, he made the remark to him. The
excuse given by Martin was that the types are distributed in the boxes
differently in France, and that it would take some time to get the run of
them. The good easy man was patient with him, until he became a very
expert compositor, and continued for some time in his employment. In the
mean time, he became more generally known, acquired a better knowledge of
English, and wherever he was known was respected for his industry and
diligence. He finally either bought out his first employer, or with the
assistance of friends purchased an old font of types and a press, and set
up for himself as a printer. He published a newspaper, school books,
almanacs, the journals and acts of the general assembly, and did other
jobs of that kind, until his establishment became somewhat lucrative.
His connection with the press inspired him with the idea of devoting
himself to the study of the law. In this he was encouraged by several
friends, but especially by one who was at the same time eminent in the
profession, and possessed a liberal mind. That man was Abner Nash, who
had become acquainted with him, discovered his capacity, his classical
attainments, and his constancy in adverse fortune. It was under the
auspices, and with the assistance of Mr. Nash, that he prosecuted his
legal studies. Judge Martin always spoke of that gentleman as his early
benefactor and friend.
He was of course first educated in the common law, and at that time
acquired the accurate and extensive knowledge of its principles which
marked his whole future career in his profession. He was a great admirer
of those strong barriers
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Page 20
which that system of laws throws around the personal rights of the
citizen, against the invasions of arbitrary power--of its broad
distinctions, the flexibility with which it adapts itself to the
progressive changes of society, and the complex transactions of man.
Hence he sometimes felt himself cramped by the restraints of a written
code--and I remember that perhaps on more than one occasion, when reminded
by counsel of that injunction of the Louisiana code which forbids the
judge disregard the words of a law under the pretext of pursuing its
spirit, he replied, "Certainly never under the pretext of pursuing its
spirit; but if in the sincere desire to ascertain the will of the
lawgiver, you discover that it would be violated by giving a literal
interpretation to the words he has employed to express it, you are bound
to give those words a reasonable interpretation, rather than that which
corrodes the text and frustrates in truth the will of the legislator."
I have not been able to ascertain precisely at what period he was
admitted to the bar. But it is certain that he engaged in practice to a
considerable extent, became extensively known as a sound and able lawyer,
and one of the most distinguished sons of North Carolina. William Gatson,
who at different periods of his life was remarkable for his eloquence as a
member of Congress, and his ability and learning as a judge of the Supreme
Court of float State, was a student in his office.
During the earlier part of his career as a lawyer, he prepared and
published a small treatise on the duties of sheriffs, and another relating
to the duties of justices of the peace, and a third upon executors and
administrators. These works were useful compilations to that class of
public officers. They were prepared by him partly to profit by the
printing of them himself, but principally with a view of impressing more
deeply on his own mind the principles and rules of those branches of the
law. It was indeed his favorite mode of study, and one which he
frequently recommended to young men to pursue.
At a later period, he was encouraged by the legislature of North
Carolina to prepare a compilation of the British statutes which were in
force in that State at the period of the revolution. It was a work of
immense labor to examine critically the whole body of British statutory
law, with a view of ascertaining which of them were applicable to that
colony. I have often heard him express his surprise at finding how very
few acts of Parliament existed which had any relation to the general
principles of the English law, which appear to have been left almost
exclusively to the courts of justice. Most of them
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Page 21
related to mere fiscal regulations, and there was not to be found a single
enactment which related to the order of descent and the distribution of
estates. The whole rested upon immemorial usage. We certainly did not
inherit from our English ancestors our rage for excessive legislation.
It was while preparing this work that the idea occurred to him of
collecting materials for the history of North Carolina, which was not,
however, published until 1827, but may as well be mentioned in this
connection. As early as 1791 his attention was turned to that subject;
but having been employed in 1803, by the legislature of North Carolina, to
publish a revisal of the acts of the General Assembly, passed during the
proprietary, royal, and state governments, he acquired in carrying out the
views of the legislature such information as suggested to him the idea of
collecting more ample material for such a history. Having been afterwards
elected a member of the House of Commons, as the representative of the
town of Newbern, he had access to the records of the State. These
materials, so far as they related to transactions before the revolution,
he had already arranged before he came to Louisiana. The history was
published in New Orleans, in two volumes, octavo. It relates to the
history of the Carolinas before the revolution, preceded by a sketch of
the discovery and first settlement of the other British colonies in North
America. This work evinces great labor and research. It appears from the
preface that the author had prepared ample notes and materials for a
continuation of his history through the war of the revolution, and
bringing it down to the year 1810, when he left North Carolina. But the
continuation of the work never was written out.
In the year 1802, Judge Martin gave to the profession the first
translation into English of the treatise of Pothier on Obligations. Its
publication preceded by about four years the appearance of that of Evans,
in England, with ample and useful notes--and its circulation, though
extensive in the United States, was probably curtailed by that
circumstance. While the publication of this work in English was a
valuable addition to the library of the American bar, as it embodies the
quintessence of the law of contracts and obligations in general, equally
authoritative wherever the written reason of the Roman law is respected,
the preparation of it for the press tended to imprint more deeply on the
mind of the translator the principles of that branch of the civil law, and
to direct his attention to the original sources from which they flowed.
He thus became thoroughly acquainted with that great work, the masterpiece
of its author--and
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Page 22
so completely master of the subject, that it appeared to have become a
part of the texture of his own mind--and to the fast he exhibited a
surprising familiarity with the principles which it unfolds with equal
simplicity and precision.
It was thus that François Xavier Martin, thrown in his youth among
strangers, with whose language he was imperfectly acquainted, by unwearied
diligence and rigid economy, uniting the study and practice of the law,
with the superintendence of a printing press, not only emerged from
poverty to an easy competency, but became the associate of the ablest men
of his day in North Carolina, and acquired those stores of knowledge, both
of the civil and the common law, which prepared him for eminence and
usefulness in the new and more extended theatre to which he was soon
afterwards called.
Those who have experienced in themselves that sinking of the heart,
that utter solitude of soul, which is produced by being cast in youth,
destitute and among strangers, without a profession--far from the
endearments of home-- without experience--without a guide--without a
patron--chilled by the cold indifference of the surrounding crowd--even
although those among whom he is thrown may be connected with him by the
sympathies of a common language and a kindred origin, may form some
conception of that firmness of purpose, that energy of character, which
enabled the subject of this notice, under circumstances still more
discouraging, to triumph over "the slings and arrows of outrageous
fortune."
So favorably was Mr. Martin known at that time to the public, that as
early as the winter of 1809, towards the close of Mr. Jefferson's
administration, he was designated as a proper person to be appointed one
of the Judges of the Superior Court of the Territory of Mississippi. His
commission was issued under the signature of Mr. Madison, on the 7th of
March, 1809, three days after his inauguration as President of the United
States. He continued but a short time in that Territory, and on the death
of Judge Thompson he was commissioned on the 21st of March, 1810, a Judge
of the Superior Court of the Territory of Orleans, and shortly afterwards
entered upon the duties of that office in this city.
Before I proceed to detail the labors of the deceased in Louisiana,
let us pause for a few moments and consider the condition of things here
at that time, and especially the state of our Jurisprudence.
Seven years before the period of which I am speaking, Louisiana was a
Spanish Province; governed by a system of laws written in a language
understood by only a small part of the population, and which
Select Picture 6 to view Page 22
PICTURE 6
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Page 23
had been forced upon the people at the point of the bayonet by O'Reilly,
and which superseded the ancient French laws by which the Province had
been previously governed. Upon the change of Government, the writ of
habeas corpus, that great bulwark of personal liberty, had been
introduced, together with the system of proceedings in criminal cases, and
the trial by Jury, according to the principles of the Common Law. In 1808
was promulgated the Digest of the Civil Laws, then in force in Louisiana,
commonly called the Old Code. That compilation was little more than a
mutilated copy of the Code Napoleon. But instead of abrogating all
previous laws, and creating an entire system, as had been done in France
by the Code Napoleon, superseding the discordant customs, ordinances and
laws in the different departments, our code was considered as a
declaratory law, repealing such only as were repugnant to it, and leaving
partially in force the voluminous codes of Spain. The Superior Court had
already been organized for some years, and was composed of three Judges,
any one of whom formed a quorum: and as the several Judges then sat
separately in the different Districts, each could pronounce a judgment in
the last resort. There was no means of establishing uniformity of
decision: no publicity had been given to the decisions, and the public was
without any guarantee for their uniformity. The law was wholly unsettled,
and in a state of chaos. The Court of Cassation in France had begun, it
is true, to fix the interpretation of their Code, but the rules applicable
to ours were obviously different in many respects, in consequence of the
manifest difference in their creating and repealing clauses. It became
necessary to study and compare the French and the Spanish Codes, and
although the Roman Law never had, proprio vigore, any binding force here,
yet in doubtful cases, or in cases in which the positive law was silent,
it might well be consulted as the best revelation of the principles of
eternal justice, and, as it were, an anticipated commentary upon the Code.
Judge Martin felt at once the difficulty of the task before him, and
be determined to commence without delay the publication of Reports of
cases decided by the Superior Court. He was induced to undertake that
labor for the double purpose of giving publicity to the decisions of the
Court, in the nature of a compte rendu to the people, and thus guarding
against misrepresentations or misapprehensions, and to insure to a certain
extent uniformity of decision. The first volume appeared in the spring of
1811, and a second in 1813, bringing down the decisions of the Court from
1809 to the establishment of the State Government.
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Page 24
At that period, a Supreme Court was created, having appellate
jurisdiction only. That Court was at first composed of Judges Hall,
Matthews and Derbigny, and Judge Martin was appointed the first
Attorney-General of the State, on the 19th of February, 1813. He was an
able criminal lawyer; and although it has been said he was not eloquent,
yet he is admitted to have discharged the duties of that office with zeal
and ability. After the resignation of Hall, he was appointed a Judge of
the Supreme Court on the first of February, 1815. From that period he
continued in office until the 18th of March, 1846--a period of more than
thirty-one years. He entered on his eighty-fifth year on the very day he
was superseded by the appointments under the new constitution.
The time at which Judge Martin was appointed to the Supreme Court,
will ever form a memorable epoch in the history of Louisiana. A powerful
invading army menaced the Capital: the citizens were in arms: Martial law
had been proclaimed by the General in command, and by an act of the
Legislature passed on the 18th of December previous, all judicial
proceedings in civil cases were suspended until the first of May: no
business was transacted at the January and February terms of the Court.
In the mean time, the enemy had been repulsed and peace restored.
Official information, however, had not yet reached here of the treaty of
Ghent, and when the Court met early in March, martial law was still in
force. A motion was then made that the Court should proceed to the trial
of a particular case then pending. This motion was resisted on two
grounds: first, that the city and its environs were, by general orders of
the officer commanding the Military District, put, on the 15th of December
previous, under strict Martial Law; and secondly, that by the third
section of an act of Assembly, approved on the 18th of December, all
proceedings in any civil case were suspended.
It was upon this occasion that Judge Martin pronounced his first
opinion as a Judge of the Supreme Court, and the judgment of that Court
upon these two important questions of Constitutional Law. In answer to
the bold and novel assertion that by the proclamation of martial law the
officer who issued it had conferred upon himself, over all his
fellow-citizens within the space he had described, a supreme and unlimited
authority, which being incompatible with the exercise of the functions of
Civil Magistrates, necessarily suspends them, he declared that the
exercise of an authority vested by law in that Court could not be
suspended by any man. He then went into the question as to the power of
the Executive, or any subordinate
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Page 25
acting under his authority, to suspend the regular operation of the laws,
aid the writ of habeas corpus; and he demonstrated by unanswerable
arguments, and by the highest authority both in the United States and in
England, that it can only be done by Legislative authority. He showed
that in England, martial law could not be declared to the extent contended
for but by the authority of Parliament, and that even during the invasion
of the Pretender, the Crown did not assume that power, but referred it to
the decision of Parliament. The second point involved also an important
question of constitutional law, and the application of that clause in the
Constitution of the United States, which prohibits the State Legislatures
from passing any law impairing the obligation of contracts. Upon this
part of the case, he argued that the obligation of the contract referred
to in the Constitution consisted in the necessity every man is under, in
foro legis, to do or not to do a particular thing: that the Constitution
spoke of the legal obligation rather than the moral, and that any law
assuming to interfere between the debtor and the creditor, and absolutely
recalling the power which the creditor enjoys of compelling his debtor, in
foro legis, to perform his contract, would be a law impairing its
obligation: and that a law destroying or impairing the remedy is as
unconstitutional as one affecting the right in the same manner. He goes on
to show that a law procrastinating the creditor in his remedy, generally
speaking, destroys a part of the right, on the principle that he who pays
later pays less--mimus solvit que serius solvit. But he continues: "It
does not necessarily follow that an act called for by other circumstances
than the apparent necessity of relieving debtors, one of the consequences
of which is nevertheless to work some delay in the prosecution of suits,
and consequently to retard the recovery and payment of debts, must always
be declared unconstitutional. In making a contract, each party must know
that his legal remedy must depend on the laws of the country in which he
may institute his suit. That the lex loci as to his remedy, even in the
States that compose the Federal Union, is susceptible of juridical
improvement. That the number of Courts of original and appellate
jurisdiction, the nature and extent of the respective jurisdiction of
these, the number, time and duration of their sessions, must from time to
time, especially in new and growing settlements, be regulated by the
Legislature, according to the wants and exigencies of the country." He
adds that in times of war, domestic commotion or epidemy, circumstances
may imperiously demand for a while even a total suspension of judicial
proceedings: that under such circumstances, the
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Page 26
Courts might of their own authority be justified in adjourning, and that
the Legislature might well declare the necessity of such an adjournment,
and, with a view to that order and regularity which uniformity produces,
fix a day on which judicial business might be resumed, without impairing
the obligation of contracts. The act of the Legislature was therefore
declared to be of binding force.
These two great principles, that the habeas corpus cannot be
constitutionally suspended by any Executive or Military authority, and
that the Legislative power is itself incapable of impairing the obligation
of private contracts, form the very basis of constitutional freedom in a
government of laws. Without the first there would be no guard against
arbitrary imprisonment--no safety for personal liberty; and without the
second, private rights would be at the mercy of arbitrary legislation.
The Courts, governed by the Constitution as the supreme and paramount law,
are guardians of both.
The elaborate treatises and numerous adjudged cases published since
that day have thrown but little additional light upon that part of
Constitutional Law. These principles have been, it is believed, uniformly
recognized as sound, and especially by very recent decisions of the
Supreme Court of the United States. Indeed, it may be asserted without
hesitation that Judge Martin was an able constitutional lawyer, well
acquainted with the complex machinery of our American Governments. It is
a branch of public law, with which the Jurists of England and of the
Continent are very imperfectly acquainted, because it is here alone that a
great central power exists, round which numerous co-ordinate, though
limited sovereignties, revolve, in well defined orbits, and their
centrifugal tendencies are controlled and counteracted by the insensible
attraction of the great centre; and where the Judicial tribunals are
invested with the power of pronouncing, in all cases assuming a Judicial
form, upon the validity of acts of ordinary legislation emanating from
either, and thus maintaining the harmony and regularity of the whole
system.
And here let me remark, once for all, that Judge Martin exhibited on
that occasion, as well as every other, during his long Judicial career,
the highest degree of moral courage and firmness of purpose. Nothing could
deter him from the fearless expression of his opinion, without the
slightest regard to persons. To him, it was quite immaterial who the
parties were; as much so as it is to the Geometrician by what letters may
happen to be designated the angle he is about to measure. The first
opinion pronounced by him affords also a fair sample of
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Page 27
his style as a writer. It is true his style underwent a great change at a
more advanced period of life--but at the time I am speaking of, it was
plain and strong, and free from ambiguity, and much more copious than in
after life. He came at last to pride himself upon the terseness of his
style and his great brevity, and often repeated the injunction of the
poet:
"Sæpe stylum vertas, iterum quæ digna legi sint
Scripturus--;"
though he sometimes appears to have forgotten another caution of the same
author:
"Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio."
Judge Martin did not lose by removing to Louisiana his
fondness for book-making. Besides other publications which I shall have
occasion to mention, he published in 1816 his Digest of the Territorial
and State Statutes up to that time, called "Martin's Digest," in two
volumes, in French and English. This work was undertaken under a
resolution of the General Assembly. It is, mentioned mainly to show with
what indefatigable industry he pursued his labors, besides those of the
Bench, and his constant devotion to studies connected with his profession.
His Digest was in constant use by the profession for many years.
He continued to publish his Reports of the Decisions of the
Supreme Court until 1830, and, including the two small volumes containing
the Decisions of the Superior Court, already mentioned, he produced twenty
volumes, embracing the entire period from 1809 to 1830. During nearly all
that time from 1810 he was one of the Judges, and performed his full share
of the labor of the Court. The opinions prepared by him exhibit evidences
of deep learning and extensive research, while at the same time he
superintended himself the printing and publication of his Reports.
But what is most surprising is that, while thus engaged in groping
his way with his colleagues through the labyrinth of our earlier law,
often bewildered by the cross-lights of conflicting codes and discordant
commentators--while thus assiduously employed, and doing his full share in
reducing it to something like a regular system--he should have found time
to collect, from various sources, both public and private, very ample
materials for a History of Louisiana. His History was put to press in
1827, and narrates the principal events in the Province, Territory and
State, from its first settlement down to the Treaty of Ghent. It contains
many curious and interesting statistical
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Page 28
tables, showing the comparative state of commerce, agriculture, and
population, at different periods. Its pages exhibit to the young
Louisianian, to use the language of the author in his preface, his remote
progenitors--a handful of men, left on the sandy shore of Biloxi, harassed
during the day by the inroads, disturbed at night by the yells, of hostile
Indians--the incipient state of civil government under the authority of
the Crown--the tardy progress of agriculture and trade under the
monopolies of Crozat and the Western Company--the massacre of the French
among the Natchez--the destruction of that nation and the subsequent war
with the Chickasaws--the slow advances of the Colony after the Crown
resumed its government--the cession to Spain, and the languishing state of
his country while a Colony of that Kingdom--and may afterwards behold the
dawn of liberty on his natal soil under the Territorial Government of the
United States, and finally the rise of Louisiana to the rank of a
sovereign State. The subject is one full of romantic interest, and though
not treated by our author in the most attractive form, yet the work is
always referred to with entire confidence in the historical accuracy of
its statements, and of the events which it records. It is faithful
repository of materials for a more extended and elaborate history. It is,
however, upon the juridical labors of Judge Martin that his fame must
hereafter rest. He became, at the same time, so extensively and favorably
known as a jurist and a scholar, that he was elected in 1817, a member of
the Academy of Marseilles, his native place. Some years afterwards the
University of Nashville, in Tennessee, conferred on him the degree of
Doctor of Laws; and in 1841, the University of Cambridge, the oldest
College in North America, honored him with the same degree.
It is manifestly impossible to speak of the judicial labors
of Judge Martin, without embracing a view of those of his colleagues, at
least as low down as 1834, when Judge Porter retired. It was during that
period the greatest changes took place in our positive Legislation, and in
the development of our Jurisprudence. In 1825 the Code was amended, and
among the amendments were embraced many of the principles already settled
by the Supreme Court. About the same period, the Code of Practice was
promulgated; and its first effect was to unsettle the practice, and to
give rise to an infinite numher of intricate and difficult questions; and
finally, in 1828, all the old Civil Laws of the country were abrogated.
From that period the Spanish Law ceased to have any force here, and it was
no longer necessary to recur to it as the guide of decision, except in the
few cases which
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Page 29
arose before that period. The study of the Spanish law was no longer
prosecuted, except as a matter of curiosity, and the adjudged cases, which
turned upon some principle or exception of the Spanish law, could not
always be safely followed under the new legislation of the State. The new
Code introduced many important modifications, particularly relating to
restrictions upon testamentary dispositions--changing the rules of
inheritance--providing something like a regular administration of estates,
and in other respects profiting by the able commentaries which had already
appeared in France upon the Napoleon Code. The system was much more
complete, though not entirely free from provisions--apparently
contradictory--but it was certainly a great approximation to what Lord
Bacon in one of his aphorisms regards as the best law--that which leaves
the least room for the discretion to the Judge.
It cannot be expected that I should enter on this occasion much at
large on the labors of the Court during the period I have mentioned. There
is, however, one class of cases depending upon that branch of
international Jurisprudence, called the conflict of laws, which engaged
its attention more frequently than perhaps any other Court is the United
States. This arose from our peculiar position. This great commercial
emporium, having relations with most of the States of the Union, and most
of the nations of Europe, which are governed by different laws, and many
emigrants being married abroad and under other Regimes, and acquiring
property here, innumerable questions arose touching the rights of the
parties, and the construction of contracts executed abroad, or entered
into here, to have their effect elsewhere. These questions were often
perplexing, and it is generally conceded that the decisions of that Court
threw great light upon the subject, and satisfactorily solved most of the
questions thus presented. Such at least is the opinion of Judge Story, as
expressed by him in perhaps the most learned, though not the most
satisfactory of his able Treatises upon different branches of the law--I
mean his Commentaries on the Conflict of Laws. There is one opinion,
however, delivered by Judge Martin, upon which a single remark may not be
amiss--I allude to the case of Humphreys & Dupau. The question was
whether a promissory note, made here and payable in New York, bearing a
rate of interest not permitted by the laws of New York, was valid or
usurious. The Judge put forth on that occasion all hid learning,
ingenuity, and even subtlety, to show that the validity of the contract,
though to be executed in New York, was to be tested by the laws of
Louisiana. The decision did not escape the censure of
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Judge Story, who, in his first edition of his Conflict of Laws, comments
on it somewhat at length, and endeavors to show that it is erroneous in
itself, and even unsupported by the authorities cited in support of it.
Judge Martin never possessed any improper obstinacy or pride of opinion;
on the contrary, he was always open to conviction, and often yielded his
first conclusions to the force of argument and authority. But on that
occasion he was tenacious of his opinion--so much so that when he visited
the North some years afterwards, he repaired to Cambridge for the purpose
principally of discussing with his critic the doctrines maintained by him
in the case above alluded to. He thought he had on the way enlisted
Chancellor Kent as an ally in the Controversy; whether it was so is
questionable. He, however, repaired to Cambridge, and a long discussion
ensued. As usual among lawyers, each maintained his ground, and each was
confirmed in his opinion by his own arguments. In the next edition of the
Conflict of Laws, the learned author returns to the charge, and combats,
at much greater length, the soundness of that decision. Under such
circumstances, it may well be doubted, to say the least of it, but it will
depend on others whether it shall be ultimately overruled.
"Non nostrum est tantas componere lites."
Not only was Judge Martin aided in moulding into form and
symmetry our system of Jurisprudence, by the quick perception of what is
just, and the instinctive sense of equity of Mathews, and the more ardent
industry and extensive research and erudition of Porter, and previously by
the unpretending but extensive learning of Derbiguy, but the period
between the organization of the Territorial Government and the repeal of
the Spanish Law was the classical age of the Bar of Louisiana. The Court
was assisted in its researches, and enlightened in its path, by the
various learning and elegant scholarship, and profound knowledge of
different systems of Jurisprudence of Livingston and Brown, Workman and
Moreau Lisbet, and Duncan and numerous others. It does not become me to
speak of the survivors of that distinguished corps. They form the living
and brilliant link which connects that generation of lawyers with the
present. It was then the source of the Roman, Spanish, and French laws
were extensively explored, and a taste for comparative Jurisprudence was
created for the first time in the United States. The principles of the
common, the customary, and the Roman laws were invoked together, and
placed in juxtaposition. The illustrious writers on
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Jurisprudence of the 16th century in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany
were consulted and compared. The most antiquated of the Gothic Codes were
studied, not as monuments of literary curiosity, but as fragments of
pre-existing systems of human laws, originating either with the Romans or
their barbarian conquerors. The whole of these various and often
discordant materials were fused into one mass, and the Court left to
select such principles as appeared most consonant with the general scope
and enactments of the Codes. Whoever has read the first twenty- five
volumes of our Reports cannot fail to have observed what vast stores of
legal erudition were brought to light in the discussion of leading cases,
and how much the range has been narrowed since our jurisprudence has
become better settled, under the more full and explicit text of the new
Code.
It is thus we have witnessed the formation, even its process of
crystallization, as it were, of the existing Jurisprudence of Louisiana.*
*The jurisprudence of Louisiana is a mixture of the Roman, French, and
Spanish law, tinctured with no inconsiderable portion of the common law of
England, as understood and expounded in the sister States of the Union,
especially in criminal and commercial matters. These different elements
of law are, however, blended in so confused a manner, that it is often
extremely difficult to trace the lines of demarcation, or to determine
what the law is on any given subject.
When the province of Louisiana was transferred to the United States,
the colonial laws of Spain did, at least to a certain extent, govern the
country, although in point of fact, beyond the precincts of the capital,
the military posts scattered far apart over its immense territory, and the
settlements contiguous to and dependent on them, there were neither
judges, nor any regular administration of justice.
The indolent, arbitrary, and yet paternal government of Spain felt
really little interest in the prosperity of the colony, from which it
derived no revenue, and which it had acquired and preserved, rather with a
view of debarring all foreign access to New Spain, than from any desire of
enriching itself by the productions of the soil, or to profit by the
exhaustless resources of the country, which the industry and enterprise of
its present possessors have so successfully explored. Spain, nevertheless,
with its habitual love of display, had established a colonial government,
surrounded with the insignia of royalty, and having an administrative
hierarchy dependent on it, which, though of little practical utility, and
attended with much useless expense, still gave to the whole a semblance of
power and regularity, which was sufficient, under ordinary circumstances,
to inspire respect on the part of the colonists.
When the United States had acquired possession of Louisiana, this
form of government necessarily disappeared, and the new one introduced was
framed with the simplicity and economy suited to republican habits and
institutions.
Changes in the legislation, as well as in the administration of the
laws of the country, became of course indispensable but they were made
with great
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Its ingredients are derived from various sources, and after being filtered
through numerous codes, meet in one harmonious mass. The
caution, and care was taken neither to shock received opinions, nor to
change abruptly institutions which had the sanction of long usage, and to
which the inhabitants had become attached. Notwithstanding all these
precautions, murmurs and discontents were often heard shortly after the
cession of the colony, which the firm and conciliating conduct of Congress
and of Mr. Jefferson soon succeeded in appeasing, and which a few years of
increasing prosperity wholly effaced.
In the meantime, the territory of Orleans was severed from the rest
of the ancient French colony of Louisiana, and erected into a distinct
portion of the Union, the executive department of which was under the
direction of a governor, the legislative in the hands of a council, and
the judiciary under the direction of three judges, elected every four
years, and certain inferior magistrates.
The highest court of judicature, called the Superior Court of the
territory of Orleans, was composed of three judges, of which one
constituted a quorum, and was invested with original and appellate
jurisdiction in criminal and civil causes.
The criminal law, which had governed Louisiana prior to its transfer,
was entirely abolished, and in its place were substituted certain penal
statutes providing for the punishment of offences, which they did not
define, but left the definitions to be sought for at common law, in
reference to which all future criminal proceedings were to be conducted.
Civil suits were brought by petition, and the practice was simple.
In relation to the civil jurisprudence of the country, the necessity
was immediately felt of reducing it to some sort of order, to enable those
who had been appointed to govern, as well as to judge, to know what it
was, a fact of which, at the time of their appointment, they were
profoundly ignorant. The legislative council, having made a vain attempt
to "procure a civil and criminal code for the "territory," to use the
language of Judge Martin, the first territorial legislature appointed, in
the year 1806, Messrs. James Brown and Moreau Lislet, two members of the
bar, to prepare a digest of the laws in force in the territory. These
gentlemen, having finished the task imposed on them in 1505, reported "a
Digest of the civil laws now in force in the Territory of Orleans, with
alterations and amendments, adapted to the present form of government,"
which was adopted by the Legislature, and constitutes what is at present
called the old Civil Code.
The gentlemen thus appointed to prepare a digest of the laws in force
in Louisiana, instead of looking to the Spanish colonial law, and
consulting exclusively the Partidas and the Recopilacion de las Indias,
&c., as they surely would have done had the Spanish law alone been in
force, transcribed literally, and incorporated into their Digest large
portions of the projét of the Code Napoleon. The reasons assigned for this
by Judge Martin is, that no copy of the Code Napoleon, although
promulgated in 1804, had as yet reached New Orleans. The same learned,
and we must add, accurate writer, in all which concerns contemporaneous
events, speaks of this conduct on the part of the compilers of the Digest
as praiseworthy, adding that, "although the project is necessarily much
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protection of wives, incautiously engaged for the contracts of their
husbands, rests upon a Roman Senatus Consultum--their ultimate rights in
the property acquired during the marriage, upon the customs of the erratic
tribes that overrun Gaul, and were carried by the Visigoths across the
Pyrenees. The wisdom of Alphonso is found infused into many of the
institutions which owe their origin to Alfred the Great. The common law
has paid back a part of what it had borrowed from the Roman Jurisprudence.
The commercial law, standing out almost independently of the Code, rests
in a great measure more imperfect than the Code, it was far superior to
anything that any two individuals could have produced early enough to
answer the expectations of those who employed them."
Judge Martin says-- "The Fuero Viejo, Fuero Juzgo, Partidas,
Recopilaciones, Leyes de las Indias, Autos Acordados, and Royal Schedules
remained part of the written law of the territory, when not repealed
expressly, or by a necessary implication." And he adds:--
"Of these musty laws the copies were extremely rare; a complete
collection of them was in the hands of no one, and of very many of them
not a single copy existed in the province."
"To explain them, Spanish commentators were consulted, and the Corpus
Juris Civilis, and its own commentators were resorted to, and to eke out
any deficiency, the lawyers, who came from France or Hispaniola, read
Pothier D'Aguesseau, Dumoulin," &c.
The result of the labors of Messrs. Brown and Moreau Lislet was a
Digest, containing upwards of 500 pages, printed in English and French,
and divided into three books, of which the first treats of persons; the
second of things or estates; and the third of the different manner of
acquiring the property of things. Each book is subdivided into titles,
and each title into chapters and articles. This Digest is the groundwork
of the Civil Code actually in force in Louisiana, from which it does not
differ very essentially.
Louisiana having become a State in 1812, organized in 1813 a Supreme
Court, composed of three judges, which, in conformity with the 2d section
of the 4th article of the Constitution of the State, had "appellate
jurisdiction only, which jurisdiction shall extend to all civil cases,
when the matter in dispute shall exceed the sum of three hundred dollars."
It is from this period that the jurisprudence of the State began to assume
some definite form, and to extend itself so as to embrace the numerous
controversies which soon arose among an intelligent, commercial, and
litigious population.
The Supreme Court thus formed and constituted, had most arduous and
difficult duties to perform--duties which required, besides the patience,
learning and integrity always requisite to discharge the functions of a
judge, incessant and laborious researches into the ancient jurisprudence
of Rome, France and Spain, joined to a through knowledge of constitutional
law, and an intimate acquaintance with the habits and wants of the people,
on whom the decisions were to operate.
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upon the usages of commercial States, but more especially of the United
States and Great Britain, but slightly modified by positive local
legislation. The whole body of our law thus forms a system, most admired
by those who understand it best, and who can trace back its principles to
the sources from which they originally flowed. Of the spring-heads of our
law it may be said, as it has been of the waters of Castalia:
"There shallow drafts intoxicate the brain,
But drinking deeply sobers us again." If I might be allowed to
enlarge still further upon this interesting topic, I would say that the
same process of the formations of laws has been going on in all ages, and
in every region within the range of history. Conquest, and commerce, and
the migration and intermingling of races have everywhere brought about
changes of laws. The oracular obscurities of the twelve tables were
brought by the Decemvirs from Greece. At a later period, the same laws,
developed and improved, were disseminated everywhere by the victorious
legions of the Republic. They became mingled with local usages, which
were respected by the conquerors. The migratory Germanic tribes carried
with them their customs, which acquired the force of laws--and hence many
of the different customs and fueros which prevailed in France and in
Spain. The Norman conquest introduced into England many of the customs of
that province, and the law itself was administered by Normans in Norman
French. Hence we may trace to the customs of Normandy the widow's third,
and other peculiarities of the English Law. The Military Feudality of the
middle ages upset the whole system of land titles and tenures, and
established that relation of lord and vassal, a fruitful source of
innumerable laws and customs. In Rome, not only the edicts of the Prætor
often modified the existing laws, but the wildest decrees of the plebeian
order were respected, even under the reign of the Caesars. The Saracen
conquest of Spain left indelible impressions on the laws and institutions
of the peninsula and the Alcalde of the present day derives his name from
and exercises similar functions to those of the Cadis of Bagdad. Even
among ourselves, local usages, and the usages of trade are referred to in
order to aid in the construction of local contracts. Law is not, then,
always the solemn expression of Legislative will. The whole doctrine of
Bills of Exchange originated in, and is based upon, the customs of
merchants, and the Maritime Law upon the practice of States and Towns
engaged in navigation and trade. The customs of Paris
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became the law of Louisiana by the charter of Crozat, and were swept away
in their turn by the ordinance of O'Reilly. Indeed, the internal history
of the law--that is to say, a history of its different elements, tracing
them from their origin through the successive and often insensible
modifications to their amalgamation as they are now found, combined and
harmonizing together--such an analysis, I say, constituting the chemistry
of legal science, would require almost endless research and labor. The
same process of fusion and diffusion is still going on under the auspices
of the great principle of the comity of nations. The able and learned
works upon most of the branches of Jurisprudence by Story and Kent, tend
to demonstrate to what extent the Roman is blended with the common law,
and to what extent both have been improved by the mutual infusion of
principles. Whenever the municipal law has not expressly provided for a
particular case, a principle in itself reasonable is sometimes adopted
from a foreign system by the tribunals, and thus becomes at last an
element of our own Jurisprudence. The whole law of Evidence, with the
exception of a few elementary principles, is borrowed from the common law.
The practice of the Federal tribunals, professing to be governed by State
laws, threatens us with alarming innovations, by introducing among us the
discretion of a Master in Chancery, to decide upon important interests,
and by their forms of execution menacing the overthrow, in favor of
foreign creditors, of our equitable system of distribution of a debtor's
effects, and making his property anything but the common pledge of his
creditors. How far such innovations can be tolerated it is not for me to
say.
I have entered into these details principally with a view of enabling
you to form a more just estimate of the intricacy of the subject, and of
the great labor and research required by the Court in the administration
of justice under laws so unsettled, and of such various origin and
discordant materials, and especially to fix the just value of the services
of Judge Martin, who during that entire period, and even as late as 1846,
continued to labor with unmitigated zeal and industry, combining all the
learning required for such a task with a constant devotion to public
duties.
He almost always enjoyed a vigorous health, maintained by great
temperance and daily exercise. His temperance was indeed remarkable.
Though a native of the country of the vine, he never had tasted wine, as
he has often assured me, until approaching the age of sixty, and then in
great moderation, and never in his whole life had he tasted ardent spirits
of any kind. Being a bachelor, he was
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undisturbed by domestic cares and duties. All the powers of his mind were
devoted to the law, rather as a profound thinker than a great reader. He
investigated particular subjects deeply, rather than attempting to keep up
by regular reading with the legal erudition of the day. He rarely
indulged even in a momentary flirtation with the Muses, and I have never
heard him speak of any other poets than Virgil, Horace, and Boileau. With
works of imagination his acquaintance was extremely limited, and he never
enjoyed the romantic literature of the age, though cotemporary with Sir
Walter Scott, and the great writers of the French school. The law had no
such rival in his affections, and all the rays of a vigorous intellect
were converged to one focus. He enjoyed at the same time a constant
serenity of mind, and possessed an equanimity at all times, and under all
circumstances, most remarkable. He was never querulous nor petulant, and
even in the ardor of debate in consultation with his colleagues he
possessed the most perfect self-control, and never became angry or
impatient. It was perhaps on such occasions that he displayed to the
greatest advantage all the vigor and acuteness of his mind, and the
resources of his learning. Those who have contended with him best know
how expert and powerful a wrestler he was--and yet he often detected the
fallacy of his own reasoning, and convinced himself that he had been
originally wrong. His great peculiarity was in pushing first principles
to their most remote, ultimate consequences, let them end where they
might. His method of reasoning was sometimes eminently Socratic, and it
was necessary in discussions with him to be extremely cautious how you
admitted his premises. If you answered unguardedly a series of questions
affirming the remote principle from which he started, you ran the risk of
finding yourself involved at last in a mesh of sophisms, and convicted on
your own confessions. It often happened that he would return the next day
after a protracted discussion, and say, "Well, I have consulted my pillow
on that question, and after all I believe I was wrong."
Judge Martin was an agreeable companion. His conversation was
always amusing and entertaining. He was uniformly calm and quiescent, and
never querulous or garrulous, notwithstanding his very advanced age and
its increasing infirmities. He was sometimes facetious, and many of you
probably remember the case in which he spoke of the violent proceedings of
a mob, to tear down a house in order to get rid of the obnoxious tenants,
as the service of the frontier writ of ejectment. Never disposed to be
censorious, he was, when the occasion required it, inexorable in his
denunciation of the fraudulent conduct
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of parties litigant before the Court, exposing their turpitude to public
censure with an unsparing severity. This he could do with great propriety
and consistency, for he felt the full force of, and himself acted up to
the great precepts of the law--"honesté vivere"--"alterum non
loedere"--"et suum cuique tribuere."
Judge Martin's general health continued in a great measure unimpaired
to a good old age. He rarely lost a single day in his attendance at
Court, or at the stated times for consultation. But his eyesight began to
fail many years ago, and as early as 1836 he became so blind as to be no
longer capable of writing his opinions, and from that period he dictated
to an amanuensis. But he bore this great privation with remarkable
fortitude, and it did not seem to disturb the habitual serenity and
cheerfulness of his disposition. He continued, however, to hope for the
restoration of his sight; consulted numerous oculists, but never found but
one disposed to attempt an operation, and he promised too much, and was
distrusted. To the last, even at the age of 84, he never exhibited any of
the usual marks of extreme old age- -although his memory was somewhat
impaired, his reasoning powers were still vigorous; he had none of the
garrulity of age, and his existence closed without the usual evening
twilight of intellect.
In the summer of 1844, he visited his native France, for the first
time since he had left there in his youth. He remained in Paris some
weeks, and his eyes were examined by the ablest oculists of that capital.
But they declined attempting an operation, it having been well ascertained
that the case was hopeless--a confirmed gutta serena. He Returned to
Louisiana in the autumn of the same year, and resumed his duties on the
bench.
The long and painful struggle of Judge Martin in his youth against
poverty exerted a great influence upon his habits and turn of mind through
life. The accumulation of wealth by constant economy became habitual with
him, at the same time that he was scrupulously honest and fair in all his
dealings. Indeed, he had always a strong and abiding sense of what is
just, which showed itself in his conduct, both as a man and as a judge.
His reports form the most useful of his works. They constitute the
first chart of a coast at that time in a great measure unexplored--and
although not complete, and leaving much for his successors to supply, yet
they served at least to show the intricacy of the navigation, and to point
out many of its difficulties and dangers. Such a publication was a
novelty at the time in this State, and the
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want of it could not have been supplied by the Reports of any other State
or country. While it tended to produce uniformity of decision at home, it
made our peculiar jurisprudence better known abroad. It exhibited some of
its peculiarities and excellencies in such strong light that it has
contributed in some particulars, and especially that part of our system,
which guards so effectually the rights of married women, to recommend in
several of the States the adoption of similar provisions.
There are some strong points of resemblance between Judge Martin and
Peter Stephen Duponceau, who declined the appointment of Judge in the
Territory of Orleans, about the time that office was accepted by Judge
Martin. Both were Frenchmen by birth, and arrived at an early period in
the United States, and identified themselves with the country; both wrote
in the English language; both were jurists and civilians of eminence; each
gave to the profession a translation of a foreign work of great merit--
Martin, the Treatise of Pothiers on Obligations--Duponceau, that of
Binkersh k on Public Law, and both contributed to create a taste for such
studies. Martin was more exclusively a lawyer, although, as we have seen,
he published two works of History. Duponceau was the more elegant and
accomplished scholar, and particularly distinguished as a Philologist, and
so thoroughly versed in the aboriginal languages of this continent as to
have received the reward of the French Institute for the best essay on
that subject. He published also an original Treatise on the Constitution
of the United States, and another on the Jurisdiction of the Federal
Courts. The style of Martin was more wrote with great purity in a
language which was not their vernacular pointed and brief--that of
Duponceau more polished and copious. Both wrote with great purity in a
language which was not their vernacular tongue. While Martin was
satisfied with usefulness on the Bench, Duponceau prosecuted a more
extensive line of studies and pursuits, and was assiduous and useful,
among other things, in his efforts to introduce the culture of silk in the
United States. Both lived to a very advanced age, were respected and
honored by the public for the purity of their lives, and their profound
learning and usefulness, and both in turn reflected honor on the land of
their adoption.
A great majority of the most eminent lawyers in the United States and
in England have passed through the same severe ordeal of early poverty.
It is a stern but salutary discipline. Few professional men, who were
born to affluence and nurtured in luxury and ease, have made a
distinguished figure in after life. It is adversity which teaches us the
importance of relying upon ourselves, and draws out
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all the energies and resources of the mind. Nothing discourages and
nothing daunts such men. They feel that time and perseverance will not
fail to reward their solitary studies, and gratify their long deferred
hopes of distinction. The lives of such men are without any striking
event or incidents on which the attention of the biographer is fixed;
they pursue the even tenor of their way, contented with the cultivation of
the intellectual powers, and the distinction which their profession gives
them in society.
The example of such men is cheering in the highest degree to whose who
are just entering on a professional career. Let them learn never to
despair. If true to themselves, and devoted to their studies, under
whatever disadvantages of early fortune they may labor--however hard the
struggle with want, and competition, it will come at last the noblest and
purest of all triumphs, that of an innate energy of soul over adversity
and want and neglect. If their studies are commensurate with the almost
boundless field of the science to which they are devoted, embracing, in
the language of Justinian, "divinarum atque humanarum rerum notitia--
justi atque injusti scientia," they are prepared to act a distinguished
part in any of the departments of public affairs to which they may be
called in after life. The profession in the United States has always been
the high road to honorable distinction. Many of those who by their
intelligence, influence and eloquence prepared the public mind for
revolution to resist the encroachments of power, were lawyers who had
studied deeply the true theory of popular government. They afterwards
were lawyers who prepared and sustained the Declaration of
Independence--and especially those who devised the admirable Constitution
under which we live and prosper, and who were among its first expounders.
The profession here deals not only with private rights, and the
controversies between man and man--their studies embrace the great
relations of the governed with the governor--they regard public offices as
public trusts--and discuss freely the limitations of delegated power, and
the duties and attributes of restricted sovereignty. The lawyer who
fearlessly and boldly advocates such principles is already half a
statesman. The profession in this country have always been, and from the
nature of their studies must always be, the advocates and supporters of
free government and popular institutions.
François Xavier Martin, let it not be forgotten, was a foreigner by
birth, and a naturalized citizen of the United States. He was received as
a brother--became early identified with the country, and had no connection
for more than sixty years with the political vicissitudes
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of his native land. He was thoroughly American in his feelings and
opinions. He was an American lawyer and an American magistrate. If
strict integrity of life--if a love of truth, for the sake of truth and
justice--if a fearless independence and impartiality in the discharge of
public duties--if a profound knowledge of law and the most exemplary
devotion to duty during a long life constitute the elements of greatness,
surely he may well be pronounced great.
What a commentary this upon the liberal institutions of this widespread
Republic, and the generous spirit of a vast majority of its citizens! It
opens wide its arms to receive and cherish all those who, driven by
political calamities, or impelled by a hope of ameliorating their
condition in life, are wafted to our shores. They bring with them the
arts and industry and learning of their country. It matters not what may
have been the land of their nativity--it matters not what may have been
the religion of their fathers or their own, or in what language their
first thoughts may have been uttered--they are welcomed as men and as
brothers--they become gradually assimilated to the common mass of
citizens, and their origin is perhaps forgotten in a second generation. We
become one in feeling--one in opinion, and participators in and
contributors to the common renown of our great Republic. The Bar of New
Orleans, at whose request I appear before you, is at this moment composed
of men who were born in most of the polished nations of the globe--France,
Germany, Belgium, England, the United States, Ireland, and Sweden. They
all contribute to the stock of learning for which the Bar is so eminently
distinguished. In proportion as our country spreads itself, wider and
wider, by the peaceful conquests of civilization, those who take refuge
here from other countries, forgetting their native land for that of
citizens; and if a frenzy for foreign conquest by arms should seize us, it
may be pleaded at least as an excuse for us that we are influenced by no
selfish and narrow views; but those conquests will extend still further
the influence of free institution, and furnish a refuge and a home for the
oppressed of other lands. It is thus our government is destined to
illustrate the noble thought of a living poet:
"Man is one;
And he hath one great heart. It is thus we feel,
With a gigantic throb athwart the sea,
Each other's rights and wrongs; thus are we men."--Festus.
_____________________________________________________________________
Volume 2 Chapter 3
[Page 41]
AN
ANALYTICAL INDEX
OF THE
WHOLE OF THE PUBLIC DOCUMENTS
RELATIVE TO
LOUISIANA,
DEPOSITED IN THE ARCHIVES OF THE DEPARTMENT
"DE LA MARINE ET DES COLOMES"
ET
"BIBLIOTHEQUE DU ROI"
AT PARIS.
BY EDMUND J. FORSTALL.
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[Page 42]
[Blank Page]
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[Page 43]
AN
ANALYTICAL INDEX, &C.
__________________
PORTFOLIO NO. I.
1st. Remarks on the province of Louisiana, 5th August, 1751--depth of
water at the Balize 14 feet--war with Indians--mode of warfare required:
detachment from the main body, always within reach of assistance, and the
main body always within reach of supplies, &c.
2d. 1716, 11th February--memorial of the regency
council--advantages of New Orleans developed--proximity to Vera Cruz and
Havana--river courses and latent wealth of the interior--fertility of the
soil, favorable to tobacco, rice, and cacao--only issue to the Gulf of
Mexico--party of twenty Canadians exploring the Red River--voyage
performed in three months--their visit to the province of Leon in
Mexico-copper mines discovered--iron, lead, gold and silver found in
abundance--plan of colonization presented-this memorial is signed by L. A.
de Bourbon and the Marshall d'Estrées, and is approved by the "conseil de
Regence."
3d. Statistical account by Mr. de Kerlerec of the Indians inhabiting
the Mississippi and the Missouri--prospects of the colony--this report is
signed Kerlerec, 12th December, 1758.
4th. 1712--memorial respecting the situation of Louisiana--project to
deepen the pass from the river to the lake Maurepas, from Tunicas, about
seventy-three leagues from New Orleans, by cutting a point of
land--pirogues are stated as being then in communication with the lakes
through that pass. This memorial is signed "Dartagnette."
5th. 1712-1726--laws and ordinances relative to Louisiana.
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6th. History of the irruptions of the North Americans upon the lands
of Louisiana. This document is signed by "Villars, Favre Daunoy," April,
1778.
7th. Account of the death of Lasalle.
8th. 1680--memorial explaining the reasons which led France in 1680,
to undertake the colonization of the country north of the Gulf of Mexico.
This memorial is signed by "De la Boulay."
9th. l725--questions propounded to Mr. de la Chaise by the "Copaganie
des Indes"--and his answers thereto.
10th. 1740--memoir of the Engineer Duvergés recommending certain
works at the Balize.
11th. 1748--Letter from Mr. de Vaudreuil respecting the Balize
--depth of the water at one of the passes 18 feet.
12th. Letter to the French minister respecting wax from a certain
tree, 1748.
13th. 7, Dec. 1759--Letter to the French minister from Mr. de
Richemore, recommending two financial plans.
14th. Letter from Mr. de Richemore to ministers, containing an
account of all the officers and cadets in service.
15th. April, 1764--memorial from Mr. Brand, praying for an exclusive
privilege to establish a printing office in New Orleans.
16th. April, 1764--letter from Mr. d'Abaddie to the Duke of Choiseul,
showing the advantages of the colony--speaking of the first experiments in
the culture of the cane, and forwarding samples of sugars from the estate
of Chevalier de Masan.
17th. June, 1764--letter from the same, complaining of the
demoralization produced by the circulation of depreciated paper, and the
immoderate use of ardent spirits, even by the higher class of society.
18th. Memorial of the merchants of New Orleans to Mr. d'Abaddie,
"Directeur General Commandant la Province de la Louisiana."
19th. 4th Dec. 1768--letter from Gov. Ulloa to the Marquis de
Grimaldi, announcing the revolution in Louisiana-his expulsion and his
arrival at Havana.
20th. Statement by Gov. Ulloa of the events in Louisiana--a document
containing about 300 hundred pages, very full and very well drawn up;
whereby it is clearly demonstrated that Aubry in the whole matter was the
principal informer. That the plan was not for the purpose of remaining
under a kingly dominion, but that the end was freedom--that for that
purpose Messrs. Noyan and Masan were deputed to the English Governor of
Florida, then residing at Pensacola, for the purpose of securing the
protection of the British Government
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in behalf of the intended Republic. That the Governor of Florida having
refused all aid, the address to France was resorted to by the rebels as
the means of concealing their plan. That the leaders were Mr. de
Lafrenière, a creole, Mr. Foucault, Mr. Villeré, brother-in-law of
Lafrenière; Mr. Heri, Messrs. Noyan, Verret, Marquis; four brothers, Le-
Roy, who have since assumed the name of Lafrenière; Lere, Banlieu and
Chauvain, Judice, de Lery, Darimsbourg, Hardi de Boisblanc, Thomassin,
Fleurian, Cabaré, Ducros and Millet--that their place of meeting was at a
Mad. Pradel's, near the city of New Orleans, where they collected to the
number of 500. The plan embraced the whole of Louisiana. This document
is full of interest, and shows the cause of the lukewarmness of the French
Government in the whole matter. The whole statement of Gov. Ulloa is
corroborated by the French Gov. Aubry, who it appears, with the French
troops under his command, was treated as an enemy as well as Ulloa. Thus
Lafrenière, his brother-in-law Villeré, Marquis, and their associates,
died victims of their love for liberty, and not of their love for France,
as generally believed.
21st. Memorial of the inhabitants and merchants of Louisiana to the
King of France, explaining the causes which led to the expulsion of Ulloa.
This document, penned by Lafrenière, was drawn up it appears after the
failure of the application to the British Government for protection, on
the standard of liberty being raised-it is couched in fine language,
contains valuable statistical information, and shows that Louisiana in its
infancy contained talented men and noble souls.
22d. Letter from the Marquis de Grimaldi to the Count of Fuentes,
then Ambassador to the Court of France, giving an account of a council of
state, wherein the whole matter of the Louisiana Rebellion is taken
up--the council having with only one dissenting voice decided to consider
Louisiana as a Spanish possession. The Marquis announces the appointment
of Gen. O'Reilly with extraordinary powers, modified, however, by the King
of Spain, so as confine to expulsion all cases deserving greater
punishment. The Ambassador in the same letter is desired to demand of the
King of France to disapprove the conduct of his subjects in Louisiana.*
23d. Letter from Aubry to the Duke of Choiseul, wherein he tries to
show that to France Louisiana can be of no advantage-and that
* The ministers who met to decide upon the fate of Louisiana, after
the expulsion of Ulloa, were the Dukes d'Alba, Munian, the Counts
d'Aranda, Musquir, Arriega, and the Marquis de Grimalda.
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to Spain it can be of no other advantage than to protect its Mexican
possessions against smuggling. This letter bears date 1768.
24th. Letter from the same to the same, bearing date 24th August,
1769-- referring to his former accounts of the doings of the rebels from
29th Oct. 1768, to 20th May, 1769--confirming all the statements of
Ulloa--he announces the arrival, at a moment when he considered all lost,
of a liberator, Gen. O'Reilly, with 3000 troops--he gives an account of
the transfer of the government to that general--he appears then to have
considered the whole matter as ended, and that the past would have been
forgotten--the leaders having by his advice quietly submitted.
25th. 1765--16th Nov. Decree prohibiting the introduction of slaves
from Martinique, on account of their propensity to poisoning.
26th. 1766, 29th Sept.--letter from Aubry and Foucault, notifying the
refusal of the French troops to enter into the service of Spain.
27th. 1716--letter from Mr. Duclos to the French minister relative to
Natchez.
28th. No date--finances of Louisiana--first account of the
introduction of government paper money in Louisiana by Ordinance of the
King of France, bearing date 14th Sept. 1735-amount issued 200,000 livres.
The reasons alleged for this issue are the same which were given by some
of our modern financiers, to justify their application to the Bank of the
United States for their depreciated paper, to enable the New Orleans banks
to resume specie payment. At that epoch the King of France was a
merchant, had public stores, and the circulation of his paper money was to
have been obtained by its being made legal tender for all goods purchased
from the public stores. This document is not dated, and appears to have
been written in 1744-5.
29th. No date--opinion of Messrs. Bienville and Salmon regarding the
emission of paper money, which they recommend.
30th. Statistics of the Indian nations from Mobile to Carolina--plan
presented to secure the trade then carrying on between the Indians and
Carolina. This document is without date, and appears to have been drawn
up under the administration of Gov. de Kerlerec.
31st. 1740--Muster roll of all the officers and cadets in Louisiana.
32d. 1710, 13th May-instruction of the King of France to Mr. De la
Mothe Cadillac, as Governor of Louisiana. This document shows the great
difficulties the first inhabitants had to labor under.
33d. 1743, 21st July--letter from Vaudreuil Salmon, touching the
waxtree.
34th. Memorial of Dr. Brat on the same subject.
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35th. Memorial on Natchitoches. This document is interesting; that
country is there represented as favorable to all the agricultural products
of Europe, and to cotton, tobacco, &c. It bears no date, and appears to
have been drawn up by Mr. St. Denis.
36th. 1765--report of the arrival of 193 Acadians sent to Opelousas.
37th. 1764, 7th June--memorial of the merchants of New Orleans to Mr.
d'Abbadie, depicting the wretched condition of the colony produced by
depreciated paper money. This document contains a practical refutation of
the credit system as eulogized by our present chamber of commerce in their
pamphlet entitled "Credit System." It shows the demoralizing effects
produced by the shadow being mistaken for the substance.
38th. 1764, 10th April--letter to Mr. d'Abaddie, respecting 3000
Indians collected in Mobile--the advantages of the colony, and the
progress in the manufacture of sugar.
39th. 1764--letter from Mr. d'Abaddie to the Duke of Choiseul
announcing the establishment at Lafourche Chetimaches, of about 200
Indians from Mobile--the Teansas.
40th. 1704--statistics of the colony-population including the
garrison, 180 men.
27 families--3 girls and 7 boys from 1 to 10 years.
80 houses covered with lataniers, laid out in straight streets.
190 acres land cleared for the building of the city.
9 oxen, of which 5 belong to the King.
14 cows.
4 bulls belonging to the King. This document is signed "Lasalle."
41st. 1702--letter from De Lasalle, announcing his arrival at
Pensacola and Mobile. This document is interesting.
42d. 1702, 11th Dec.--letter from De Lasalle to the minister, stating
that he has been compelled to dispatch a vessel to Vera Cruz to inform the
Viceroy of Mexico of the siege of St. Augustine by the English and
Indians, with 16 ships.
Pensacola appears to have been founded four years after the discovery
of Louisiana.
43d. 1729-36--history of the wars in Louisiana--Dartaguette was
killed in battle with the Indians.
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PORTFOLIO NO. II.
44th. 1769--remarks of Mr. Aubry on the rebellion in Louisiana.
45th. Memorial on the finances of Louisiana posterior to 1731.
46th. 1697, 14th Oct.--Quebec, letter touching information required
about the Spanish possessions in Mexico bordering the tributaries of the
Mississippi: this document is interesting; it speaks of Lasalle, and
presents some remarks on the mines.
47th. 26th July--Dartaguette in Louisiana speaks of the inundation by
the Mississippi; its waters having risen to the garrets of houses in New
Orleans.
48th. 22d February, 1759--survey of the domains of the King adjoining
Mrs. Pradel's plantation.
49th. 1748, 21st May--memorial of Mr. Gradesfils in Louisiana,
showing the great advantages of that colony.
50th. Project of colonization for Louisiana, demand of a large tract
of land on condition of its being cultivated in tobacco, cotton,
sugar-cane and indigo. This project, drawn up in Versailles, bears no
date.
51st. 1717--memorial of Mr. Hubert on Louisiana, attempting to show
that the colonization of that country, if energetically pursued, would
gradually lead to the conquest of the whole of North America.
52d. Memorial to show that Louisiana might become as important as
Mexico.
53d. 1719--memorial of Mr. Bienville announcing the fall of Pensacola
into his hands, and the events ensuing the same.
54th. 1738--insignificant letter respecting the Jesuits.
55th, 1754, 20th Sept.--letter from Mr. de Kerlerec to Dauberville,
on the necessity of military station at the Balize. This letter contains
an interesting account of the mouth of the river, and a proposal to
establish there a floating battery with heavy guns.
56th. Statement of occurrences in Biloxi.
57th. Project to restore confidence in Louisiana destroyed by
irredeemable paper money; proposal to make the King's paper legal tender;
form of an dict. This document must have been written some time about
1754.
58th. Memorial on Louisiana, representing the necessity of retaining
that colony, in order to prevent the English becoming masters of not only
the whole of North America, but also of Mexico. By this
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document it appears that Mr. St. Denis headed the 20 Canadians on the
exploring expedition from the Red River to the province of Leon in Mexico;
it appears to have been written about the year 1715.
59th. Memorial on the same subject at the same epoch.
60th. do. do.
61st. 1692, 14th Sept.--account of the attack by five 60 gun vessels
of the Fort Louis in Louisiana, under the command of Mr. de Bouillon,
Governor of Newfoundland.
62d. 1700--memorial for the colonization of the Mississippi.
63d. List of the officers under the command of Dartaguette, and in
Louisiana.
64th. 1749, 17th Dec.--memorial of Mr. Le Bailly Messager, on
Louisiana. This document is interesting; a central power is proposed to
be established on the Wabash--fertility of the soil, &c.
65th. 1750--memorial of the same, on the same subject.
66th. 1754, 6th March--memorial on Louisiana; by Mr. Colom, to
increase the commerce of Louisiana with the Islands and the metropolis;
the plan embraces the whole of the basin of the Mississippi, and is
interesting.
67th. No date--report of three commissioners touching an interview
with the Governor of Pensacola, de Galve, for the purpose of devising the
means to prevent the English taking possession of that post. Determination
on the part of the Governor of Pensacola to rely upon the Bull of Pope
Alexander the VI., conceding the line 180 to the Catholic Kings, the power
of the Pope to grant crowns repudiated by the commissions. This document
is curious, and appears to have been written in 1700.
68th. 1709--observations on the Bull of Pope Alexander; development
of the immense advantages to be derived by France from the possession of
Louisiana.
69th. 1701, 17th July--memorial on Louisiana; advice to the King as
to the measures to be adopted for its welfare.
70th. 1709, 27th April--memorial. on Louisiana; situation of the
colony.
71st. 1712, June--memorial of Mr. Tions de Gouville, on the
advantages of Louisiana, and the causes which have checked all progress in
that country.
72d. No date--memorial on fortifications required.
73d. 1738, 10th May--Hubert's memorial on Louisiana. This document
is very interesting for its statistical information.
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74th. 1714--memorial to show the necessity of inviting emigration to
Louisiana. This document is interesting, and contains extracts of letters
from Crozat.
75th. 1716--great and masterly development of the destinies of
Louisiana.
76th. 1714, 17th April--memorial on the wretched condition of the
colony.
77th. 1716--a memorial is to be found on Louisiana after Lasalle's
discovery, in the registers of the navy department, 8 f, 123 vo. (This is
a memorandum in this portfolio.)
78th. 1720--memorial on the fortifications of Pensacola, and of the
impossibility on account of the nature of the soil to establish good
foundations.
79th. 1723--letter and memorial of Mr. Hubert on the advantages of
Louisiana.
80th. 1753--prohibition by the Marquis Duquesne against the
exportation of grain from Canada; he styles himself Governor of "la
Nouvelle France, and of all the lands and countries of Louisiana."
81st. 1755--Quebec, Canada, proces verbal of a voyage to the river
Senaramixi.
82d. 1751, Tombeckbé, 18th June--letter announcing the capture of
five deserters; speeches of the Indians who brought them back, to obtain
their pardon.
83d. 1787--extract of a letter from Mr. de Villiers on the subject of
a tobacco contract with the King of Spain.
84th. Canada, 1753--ordinance of the Marquis Duquesne, fixing the
maximum of wheat to 3 livres per minot on plantations, and 3 livres 10
sols in town.
85th. 1716--memorial of Mr. Crozat on Louisiana, important
developments.
86th. 1751, 15th July--accusation of Mr. Michel against Mr.
Fleurian, procureur-general, and Captain Derneville.
87th. No date--memorial explanatory of patent letters proposed to the
King.
88th. 1769--grievances against Governor Ulloa and Aubry. The
document is not signed.
89th. 1745--interesting memorial on the administration of Louisiana.
By this document it appears that the Ursulines are bound to attend to the
hospital, and to educate 30 orphan girls.
90th. 1716--letters patent projected for Louisiana.
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91st. 1662--memorials respecting the doings of the West India
Company; forms of concessions.
92d. 1723--memorial on the rivers, lands and Indians of Missouri.
This document is interesting, and shows that there was a traffic then
carrying on between Missouri and Mexico.
93d. No date--memorial for a concession of lands from Manchac to New
Orleans.
94th. No date--memorial on the subject of Father Beaubois, superior
of the "Missionnaires Jesuites" in Louisiana. This document appears to
have been addressed to Governor Bienville.
95th. 1738--memorial of Governor Bienville, touching his intended
operations against the Chicacas.
96th. 1735--opinion of Mr. Bienville in case of war.
97th. 1785, 25th August--Mr. Bienville sends an account on Georgia;
of their system of colonization, &c. This document is interesting.
98th. 1735, 20th Sept.--Mr. de Bienville on the Chicachas.
99th. 1735, 14th April--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
100th. 1739, 25th March-- do. do.
l01st. No date--report on the necessity of separating the government
of Louisiana from that of Canada, to which under the West India Company it
was attached. This document was evidently written in 1731; recommends a
new organization.
102d. 1731, 25th March--Mr. Paria advises the minister of the defeat
of the Renards, by the Illinois and other Indians living on the borders of
Canada; he enters into some details respecting Indian warfare. Speaks of
one of the passes at the Balize having 17 feet water, which shortly before
had only 12; is of opinion that two vessels employed three months each
year, say April, May and June, would give 22 feet on the bar. Speaks of a
report by him on the Balize which I have not yet found. This document is
very interesting.
103d. 20th August--account of the Natchez war, by Mr. D'Iron, 1731.
104th. 1735--Mr. de Bienville on Louisiana in case of war; its
relation with the Indians.
105th. 1737, 20th Dec.--Mr. Bienville's report of two expeditions of
the Chactaws against the Chicachas.
106th. 1738, 13th August--Mr. Bienville's report of deserters brought
back by the Alibamous.
107th. 1738, 26th April--Mr. Bienville's report on the interior of
Illinois and Ohio, and of the Indians there.
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108th. 1738, 22d March--Mr. Bienville's report of an exploring voyage
to the river Jachoux (Yazoo), details on those countries; discovery of the
Chicachas road which led to the voyage.
109th. 1738, 29th May--Mr. Bienville's report of the voyage of
exploration on the Wabash; interesting account of the adjoining country.
110th. 1702, 20th June--memorial of Mr. d'Iberville on the
Mississippi, the Mobile, and surrounding countries; their inhabitants,
latitudes of many places taken by him; statistics of all the Indian
nations, including the Illinois and Ohio. He states the number of
families at 21,860; plan of action proposed. This document is ably drawn
up and full of interest; it bears the signature of Mr. d'Iberville.
111th. 1708, 25th Feb.--memorial of Mr. Dartaguette, giving an
account of the information received by him from Mr. Demny of the fort of
Louisiana; statistical report on Mobile.
112th. Letter from Bienville, with a full account of the doings in
Mobile and Louisiana; represents the country in a state of great poverty;
contains interesting information on the Indians and the English.
113th. 1731--letter from Mr. de St. Denis to Mr. Salmon, giving an
account of a battle with the Indians.
114th. 1763--evacuation of Louisiana. It is proposed to send to St.
Domingo the troops in Louisiana; this plan is approved.
115th. 13 Fructidor An 10, General Milford Tastanagy proposes to
answer the application made by the American minister for the purchase of
Louisiana; General Milford promises to prove to the first consul that a
cession would be fatal to France.
116th. 1747, Feb.--Governor Vandreuil states his preparations in case
of attack by the English; sends a plan of the mouth of the Mississippi
(not yet found); says that the bar at the Balize contains 11 or 12 feet,
mud and sandy bottom, and 15, 16 and 17 feet on the eastern pass, and a
shorter bar.
117th. 1712, 8th Sept.--memorial to prevent debauchery (libertinage)
in Louisiana.
118th. 1762, 13th Nov.--cession of Louisiana to Spain; ratification
by the King of Spain.
119th. Questions by General Victor to the First Consul regarding
Louisiana and his answers.
120th. 1753--Mr. de Kerlerec, suit of André Barri.
121st. 1701--memorial of Mr. d'Iberville on Pensacola.
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122d. 1703--project to take Charleston and to burn it.
123d. 1750, 1st Feb.--letter of Pierre Rigaut, Marquis de Vaudreuil,
informing the King of the necessity he had been under of issuing paper
money.
124th. Memorandum to show in what light the West India Company ought
to have been considered by the French Government.
125th. No date--memorial of the West India Company.
126th. 1685--memorial of the West India Company.
127th. 1753, 8th March--Mr. Kerlerec announcing his arrival in
Louisiana, he gives an account of his reception, and some statistical
details.
128th. 1770, 16th June--memorial of Mr. Robé; Ordonnateur of
Louisiana.
129th. 1715--instructions of the King to Messrs. Lamothe, Cadillac
and Duclos, Governor and Ordonnateur of Louisiana.
130th. 1752--three tables to carry on the official correspondence
between the colony and its metropolis by the means of ciphers, and the key
for the same.
NO. 520 St. Yago; NO. 530 lui; NO. 540 ab; NO. 550 Croix; No 460
beau; 400 Canada, &c.
131st. 1732, 9th May--proces verbal of Messrs. Perrier and Salmon
respecting the arrival of 146 Swiss soldiers.
132d. 1760, 2d June--result of the sitting at the government house
respecting certain works to be undertaken.
133d. 1707, 22d June--proposals of Mr. le Count de Ponchartrain for
the formation of a Company in Louisiana.
134th. 1733--Mr. de Bienville announces his arrival at the Cape
Francois; hopes to be in New Orleans 30 days after.
135th. 1732,12th May--letter from Mr. Salmon touching the condition
of Louisiana and Mobile.
136th. 1715--extract of a letter written at Caskasias, a village in
Illinois, sometimes called l'Immaculée conception de la Ste. Vierge, dated
9th Nov. 1712, by Father Gabriel Marest, a Jesuit residing since several
years in that country as a missionary. This letter was printed in 1715 in
the "Lettres édifiantes;" it is full of interest, and contains great
statistical information.
137th. 1761, 12th Dec.--letter of Mr. Thiton de Sileque in behalf of
Mr. de Kerlerec, stating his services for the King.
138th. No date--picture of the troubles in Louisiana, and of the
demoralization occasioned by paper money; plan to restore confidence;
means recommended; "to coerce forthwith the withdrawal of paper
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money and its payment in full." This document appears to have been written
in 1760.
No date--Mr. de Kerlerec asks the cordon rouge and sends his "feuille
de service."
139th. No date--remarks on the commerce of Louisiana and its cession
to Spain. This document must have been written in 1770.
140th. 1764, May--memorial of Mr. de Kerlerec on the advantages of a
commercial treaty with Spain, with a view of establishing an entrepot in
New Orleans.
141st. 1764, May--letter of Mr. de Kerlerec enclosing the above
memorial.
142d. No date--extracts of all the letters of Mr. de Kerlerec on the
demoralized condition of Louisiana. This document must have been written
in 1764.
143d. No date--memorial of the corps of engineers; the artillery and
cadets of Louisiana.
144th. No date--memorial on the population of Louisiana; Paris and
other large cities of the kingdom had been sending to Louisiana their
debauched women; fortunately for the colony, says the paper, the women
died as they arrived; recommends colonization on a more respectable plan.
145th. No date--memorial on Louisiana, from which it appears that the
Capucins established themselves there in 1722; that their establishment
obtained the royal sanction on the 15th July, 1725. That the first treaty
between the Jesuits and the West India Company was entered into in 1721;
and that they obtained the royal sanction to their establishment on the
20th February and 17th August, 1726; that their ecclesiastical functions
were subject to the control of the Superior of the Capucins.
PORTFOLIO NO. III.
146th. 1765-1767--correspondence of Aubry and Foucault with the
government touching the administration of the country.
147th. 1763--project of evacuation of Louisiana by the French on the
cession to Spain.
148th. No date--memorial on Louisiana. This document appears to have
been written towards the year 1730; it is remarkable for its extensive
views; it treats of the country of Mobile, of the Balize, of its passes,
of the country between the Balize and New Orleans, of the
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neighborhood of this city, of Pointe Coupée, of Natchez, or Arkansas, of
Illinois; it contains 40 pages, and concludes by offering a plan of
colonization for the whole. On the passes it states :--
"River St. Louis (Mississippi) throws itself into the sea by five
mouths, thus distinguished: eastern pass, south-cast pass, south pass,
south-west pass, and the Balize. In 1720 the south pass was the only one
used."
"It has been observed since these passes have been used that only one
or two can be navigated at the same time, and that even then they have
only 10 to 12 feet water on their bars, which vary each year according to
the violence of the winds," &c. &c.
"Besides these five passes, the river throws its waters through
smaller issues forced by it, and called Bayous. If three of the above
passes were closed, as also the bayous, all the waters would be forced
into the two passes situated in opposite directions, such as the pass of
the east and the south-west pass; the current being increased there would
be less deposits; besides the wind from the sea, which would stem the
current of one pass, by throwing a greater bulk of water in the other
would increase its current, whereby the bar thereof would clear itself of
mud deposits, &c. &c. These passes and bayous may be easily closed by
three or four rows of pilotis placed close to each other, and at a
distance of about 150 to 200 toises from the mouth of the Mississippi to
the pass. The interval would serve as a bed for the drift wood, which
being thus stopped would soon be covered with the deposits of the river.
I believe that such a work would soon afford a great protection against
the river."
At the time this memorial was written, the sugar-cane was producing
2500 pounds of sugar, besides the molasses.
A plan is presented for the employment of 325 white families, and
19,000 blacks, in the cultivation of the sugar cane and tobacco.
149th. 1710--memorial on the advantages to Louisiana of inviting the
Acadians established at Detroit to return to this colony.
150th. 1778--memorial of Mad. Dubreuil, praying for a pension from
the French Government, as daughter of Mr. Delachaise, director of the West
India Company, who was the first administrator of Louisiana, whose wisdom
and activity tended to consolidate the colony.
151st. No date--memorial of the citizen Bounevie to the citizen
Decres, minister of marine and the colonies, proposing to undertake an
exploring voyage from the western part of Louisiana to the Pacific Ocean.
152d. 1754--expose by Mr. Colon of the advantages to France of
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the possession of Louisiana. This paper is highly interesting and full of
statistical information; it treats fully of the agriculture of the
country.
153d. 1754--memorial of Mr. Colon on the commerce of Louisiana.
154th. 1754--project of association for Louisiana by Mr. Colon.
155th. No date--picture of the wretched condition of the colony
produced by the depreciated currency; plan to restore confidence. This
document must have been penned about the year 1765 or'6
156th. An 12, Frimaire 20--proces verbal of the "prise de possession"
of Louisiana by France. This document is signed Laussat, and is addressed
to the citizen Decrès, minister of marine and the colonies.
157th. 1766 to 1768--private letters of Mr. Foucault to the French
minister, NO. 1 to 70.
158th. Paris--29 Fructidor--An 9-memoranda on Louisiana by Mr. Joseph
Pontalba, of Louisiana. Its position as to the United States; its
population; the character of its inhabitants; its culture; its commerce;
its resources; the importance it might acquire and the means to obtain the
same. Speaks of a plan proposed by a rich inhabitant of Ohio (evidently
Gen. Wilkinson), to detach the whole of the western country from the east,
to form an independent government with Louisiana, &c. &c. This document,
dated "Croissy, near Chalons," is addressed to the minister Decrès.
159th. 1803, 20th Dec.--" the Moniteur," containing the Proclamation
of Wm. C. C. Claiborne, announcing the "prise de possession" of Louisiana.
This paper, NO. 378, gives a full account of all the events accompanying
this change: the new organization and the appointments made.
160th. l709--extract of a memorial by Mr. Mandeville, ensign of the
Vaubant Company in Louisiana.
161st. No date--memorial praying the King to commute the penalty
incurred by smugglers to transportation to Louisiana.
162d. No date--memorial on Louisiana after the treaty of peace of
1764.
163d. Correspondence of Messrs. de Kerlerec and Foucault on the
disordered state of the administration in Louisiana; complaints of the
quality of the goods from France for the King's stores; insubordination of
the officers.
164th. 1752, 30th Sept.--important observation on the commerce of
Louisiana, which Mr. Dubreuil takes the liberty of submitting to the King.
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165th. 1794--An 2--16 Floreal--Paris--letter from the American
citizen Mountflorence, to the "Comité de Salut Public," handing extracts
from a Boston paper, announcing that there was a revolution preparing in
Louisiana to shake off the Spanish yoke, and to follow the impulsion given
by North America.
166th. 1763, 10th June--Messrs. Bienville and Salmon, on the commerce
with Spain and the cultures of the colony.
167th. 1701--account by Mr. Lamothe de Cadillac respecting the
destruction of the Indians on the Huron and Erie.
168th. 1761, 10th Sept.--letter from Mr. de Kerlerec complaining of
the insubordination of certain officers, &c.
169th. 1716--memorial on Louisiana; means to take for protecting
Louisiana against the English and the Spaniards.
170th. No date--project of letters patent of the King, granting a
concession to the West India Company, for thirty years of the commerce of
Louisiana discovered by Mr. Delasalle. This document must have been
written in 1711 or 12; it grants great privileges to the company, and is
divided by articles.
171st. No date--articles rejected from the above project of letters
patent prayed for by Mr. Duche.
172d. 1708--memorial on the formation of a commercial company in
Louisiana.
173d. 1733--letter of Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon respecting a
Mr. Claude Jausset dit Laloire; the first born Louisianian.
174th. 1733--Messrs. Bienville and Salmon on the interdiction of the
Jesuits in New Orleans; they remonstrate against such interdiction, and
regret that virtuous men should be removed to make room for the dissolute.
175th. 1733, 6th March--letter from Mr. Perrier announcing the
transfer by him of the government of Louisiana.
176th. 1733, 28th July--letter of Messrs. Bienville and Salmon
advising the receipt of the classing of officers by the minister.
177th. 1733, 22d Sept.--letter from the same, relative to the
marriage of an officer, Mr. Buissonnière, with a Miss Trudeau, in defiance
of his superiors.
178th. 1733--letter from Messrs. Bienville and Salmon, relative to
the "Conseil Supérieur"
179th. 1733, 30th Sept.--memorial complaining of the irredeemable
paper money left by the West India Company, and of the loss sustained by
the widow of a Mr. Elias, director of the "concession of law."
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180th. 1734, April 3d--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon, their answer
to the proposal of a paper emission; are of opinion that the King's paper
would enjoy a better credit than that of the West India Company, but that
the inhabitants had lost so heavily by the emissions of that company, that
much time would be required before paper currency could again obtain
general circulation, and that to attain such an end it would be requisite
that the contemplated issues should carry with them undoubted guarantees.
181st. 1734, 28th April--Mr. de Bienville on the subject of a
petition against him.
182d. 1734, 26th April--letter of Mr. de Bienville and Salmon, On the
subject of difficulties regarding the rank of officers.
183d. No date--necessity for a larger force in Louisiana; proposal to
increase the number of soldiers in the same proportion as the English, in
time of peace as well as in time of war, observing that the increase of
the French navy was only a casus belli with the English.
184th. 1761, Madrid 8th and 10th Dec.--letter from the Marquis
d'Ossun to Mr. de Kerlerec, on the preparations to be made in case of
attack by the English.
185th. Without date--memorial on the disastrous effects of the
monopole granted to the West India Company.
186th. No date-pro formâ expenses to be incurred by the King in
taking back Louisiana.
187th. No date--memorial representing the increase of population of
the English in Canada, and the necessity from its neighborhood to
Louisiana, to take the necessary measures to prevent its loss.
188th. 1731, 23d June--retrocession by the West India Company of its
privileges to the King. The concession extended to Illinois. By this
document it appears that the letters patent were granted by
Edicts in August and September, 1717
" May, 1719
" July, 1720
" and June, 1725
189th. No date--proposal by the syndics and directors of the West
India Company.
190th. No date--project of ordinance to accept the retrocession by
the West India Company.
191st. Project of deliberation by the syndics and directors of the
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West India Company, for the retrocession of the privileges of the company.
192d. 1760, 7 Dec.--Mr. de Rochemore, attributing to the agio of
depreciated currency the wretched condition of Louisiana.
193d. 1788, 27th March--document whereby it would appear that Mr. de
Villars, Commissioner of Louisiana for the King, had addressed him to the
following effect under date of 27th March, 1788. "That General Wilkinson,
one of the largest proprietors in the new State of Kentucky, had come down
to Louisiana, giving to understand to the administrators of the colony,
that the adjoining United States had come to the determination of forcing
a passage through, the Mississippi, the navigation of which to remain
hereafter open to both countries, but that he had obtained of them to
suspend their movements until his return."
On the other hand, Messrs. Vincent and Marbois observe that people
are in great error if they think that Congress can entertain such ideas,
that the population of the western country can only increase at the
expense of the 13 Eastern States, these States possessing really only a
border Country of about 100 leagues on the ocean.
194th. 1772, 13th Feb.--claims of the "Fermiers Généraux" on the
merchants of Louisiana for arrears of duties.
195th. 1716--instructions of the King to Messrs. l'Espinoy and
Hubert, "commissaire ordonnateur," respecting Louisiana.
196th. 1723, Paris--letter of Mr. de Purry to the Duke of Bourbon, on
Louisiana. Mr. de Purry, from Neufchatel, Switzerland, had been
Director-general of the West India Company, in whose service he remained
for five years; he had come to France on the invitation of Law. This
letter is full of interest, and shows great ability; he presents a plan of
colonization which would have been admirable; places great stress upon the
culture of the silk worm, &c.
197th. No date--answer to the observations made on Mr. Purry's
letter.
PORTFOLIO NO. IV.
198th. 1769, 1st Sept.--Statement by Aubry of the rebellion in
Louisiana; copy of his correspondence with O'Reilly, whereby it is evident
that it was on his information that the following gentlemen were arrested,
to wit :--
Messrs. de la Frenière, Procureur-Général.
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Mr. Hardy, Assesseur an Conseil.
Mr. Mazan, a reformed captain, and Chevalier de St. Louis.
Mr. Marquis, reformed Commandant of the Swiss Company.
Mr. Noyan, reformed Captain of Cavalry.
Mr. Caresse, Captain of Militia.
Mr. Milhet, Captain of Militia.
Mr. Milhet, Lieutenant of Militia.
Mr. Poupet, Merchant.
Mr. Petit, Merchant.
Mr. Doncet, Lawyer.
Mr. Foucault, Ordonnateur.
Aubry hands to the French minister a copy of his letter to Governor
O'Reilly, under date 20th August, 1769, denouncing the above-named
persons, as also Mr. Villeré, who he states had joined the rebels on the
29th with 400 men from the Acadian coast, thereby increasing the force in
the city to 1000 men, under the direction of La Freniére. "Mille
projects," says Mr. Aubry, "se sont succédés les uns aux autres; on a eu
le dessein d'ériger le pays en Republique; on a présenté au conseil une
requête pour y établir une Banque, à l'imitation de celle d'Amsterdam et
de Venise; car ce sont les propres termes dont ils se sont servis."
199th. August 28th, 1769--proces verbal of the arrest of Foucault by
Messrs. Aubry and B. de Grand Maison; F. E. de Mazillière and John
Trudeau; seals affixed by the Notary Garic on all effects be-longing to
said Foucault; papers relative to the conspiracy delivered to Governor
O'Reilly.
200th. Proces verbal by the Notary Garic of the estate of Foucault.
201st. 27th August, 1769--proclamation of General O'Reilly,
announcing the promulgation of the Black Code or Edict of the King, for
the government and administration of justice, police and discipline, and
the commerce of black slaves in Louisiana. In the same proclamation,
Messrs. Fleurian and Ducros are presented as judges.
202d. 1769, 21st August--General O'Reilly announces a general pardon,
save the chiefs of the rebellion, who are to undergo their trial.
203d. 1769, 19th August--copy of a letter from General O'Reilly to
Governor Aubry, asking information on the rebellion; the names of the
chiefs, &c. &c.
204th. 1769, 23d August--letter from the same to the same, asking all
information and papers of whatsoever nature in his possession, in order
that the chiefs of the rebellion might he convicted.
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205th. 1769, 24th August--copy of the answer of Mr. Aubry to governor
O'Reilly, giving all the information required, together with he names of
the leaders. The Chevalier d'Arinsbourg, commandant of the Acadian coast
was among the number.
(N. B. Mr. d'Arinsbourg was saved through the intercession of Mr.
Forstall, under whose uncle General O'Reilly had served in the regiment of
Hibernia in Spain.)
206th. 1750--discovery in Louisiana of a flint mine (crystal); he
place made a secret.
207th. 1766, 7th Sept.--ordinance of Governor Aubry in the name of
Governor Ulloa, ordering all invoices of goods to be delivered, that the
value of such goods might be regulated; and making paper money legal
tender.
208th. 1766, 12th Sept.--protest of the merchants and inhabitants of
Louisiana against the above ordinance, signed as follows: B. Duplessis,
Moulin, Jean Mercier, Jr., Petit, J. Vienne, Blache, Toutant Beauregard,
Durel, Rose, J. Senilh, Duprest, Bienvenu, Goumigu, Revoil, Voix, L.
Ducrest, D. Brand, Guezille, Braquier, Papion, Braquier Jeune, J. Boudet,
Doraison, St. Anne, P. Caresse, Cavelier Frères, Hinard, P. Poupet,
Broussard, Revoise, Durand, Estebe, J. Lafitte, cadet, Jean Souvaistre, A.
Bodaille, Cantrelle, Astura, Brunet, Fournier and St. Pé, Dumas and
Gricunnard, Rodrigue, fils ainé, Louis Ransom, Testas, Moullineau, P.
Segond, P. Guignam, A. Boisdoré, L. Boisdoré, G. Guignam, Chateau, Sarpy,
Détouvit, Villefranche, Salomon, P. Simon, E. Hughes, Macmara, J. Arnoult,
J. Sarrou, Dubourg, Durand, Cadet, Ducarpe, B. Gaillardié, Raguet, J.
Nicolas, Jh. Millet, Delapize, Brion, Bertrémieux Ainè, Blandin Dulestre,
A. Reynard, Fortier, Blaignad, Bijon, L. Daubech, Langlois, M. Duralde,
Bourjeaux, M. Bonnemaison, Joly, F. Hery, Forstall, B. Lenfant, A.
Olivier. This protest, certified by Foucault, is couched in most
energetic language.
209th. 10th Sept. 1766-protest of the captains of vessels against
Aubry's ordinance.
210th. 28th August,1766--memorial of Foucault to Governor Ulloa.
211th. 20th Jan. 1768--letter of Governor Aubry, giving an account of
his government jointly with Governor Ulloa, who for want of troops cannot
take possession of the country.
212th 1768, 20th Jan.--letter of Mr. Aubry on the same subject.
213th. 1768, 4th Jan.--copy of a letter from Mr. Aubry to his
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Excellency General Hardiman, Governor of Pensacola, for his Britannic
Majesty, demanding 20 Spanish deserters.
214th. 1768, 14th Nov.--remarks of Mr. Aubry on the rebellion of
Louisiana.
215th. 1768, 14th Dec.--protest of Gov. Aubry against the ordinances
of the superior council.
216th. 1738--memorial respecting marriages between Indians and
whites.
217th. 1726--memorial on Louisiana, pointing out the manner of
placing the colony on solid foundations. This paper signed by Messrs.
Drouot and Valentin, contains valuable statistical information.
218th. 1724--memorial on the culture of tobacco.
219th. No date--memorial suggesting the establishment of a floating
battery at the Balize, signed "Bertrand."
220th. 1719, 10th July--details of a mining expedition in the
neighborhood of Kaskasias. This paper is signed "Perry."
221st. 1723--memorial on the means of upper Mississippi.
222d. 1763--correspondence between Colonel Robertson, commanding
Mobile for his Britannic Majesty, and Governor d'Abaddie. This part of
Louisiana was ceded to England by the treaty of Paris, of 10th February,
1763, the seventh article of which reads thus :-
ART. 7.--The river and the port of Mobile, and the left bank of the
Mississippi, New Orleans, and the islands on which it is situated
excepted, are ceded, &e.
223d. 20th Dec.--letter from Governor Aubry to his government
respecting the Louisiana rebellion; he states that he cannot express
himself freely, that he can trust no one, not even his own Secretary, lest
he should be treated in the same manner as Ulloa.
224th. 1768, 28th Dec.--remarks of Aubry on the Louisiana rebellion.
225th. 1768, 8th March--letter of Mr. Aubry on the rebellion,
enclosing copy of a letter by him addressed to Mr. Baccalary, Governor of
Havana.
226th. 1763, 20th Oct.--proces verbal of the transfer of Mobile by
the French government to the English government. This document is signed
"Derville, Farende, Robert Fannar."
227th, 1763, Oct. 20th.--proclamation of Robert Fannar, on his taking
possession of Mobile, and of all that part of Louisiana situated on the
left hand or eastern bank of the river Mississippi, from its source down
to the river d'Iberville, thence across Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain
to the sea.
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PORTFOLIO NO. V.
228th. 1721, 5th Sept.--by.laws of the West India Company, for the
government of Louisiana, approved by the King.
229th. 1721, 2d Sept.--rules by the same company to encourage the
culture of tobacco, rice, and the introduction and education of
silk-worms.
230th. No date--report on the Indians; extracts from Governor de
Vandreuille's correspondence, announcing a treaty of peace with the
Chactas, a nation counting 4000 warriors, and occupying an extent of
country exceeding 40 leagues. This document must have been written about
the close of 1739.
23lst. 1761, 6th March--extract of a letter from Mr. de Kerlerec to
the Marquis d'Ossun, complaining of the conduct of the government of
Campeachy towards French vessels that had entered that port in distress,
whilst on a voyage from New Orleans to Havana, for assistance on behalf of
the colony.
232d. 1761, Oct. 3d, St. Ildephonse--letter from the Marquis d'Ossun,
informing Mr. de Kerlerec of instructions given to the government of
Mexico, Havana, Pensacola, and of all other Spanish pos. sessions in
behalf of all French vessels; speaks of the projects of England to obtain
possession of Mexico, and of the necessity of retaining Louisiana as the
best means of defeating their plans.
233d. 1761, 10th Jan.--letter from Mr. de Kerlerec to the Marquis
d'Ossun complaining of the silence of his Court; proposes to use ciphers
for their correspondence.
234th. 1761, 31st Oct. Escurial--memorial from the French ambassador
respecting the impossibility to supply Louisiana with the assistance
needed, all French vessels being captured by the English; points out the
common interest of Spain and France in retaining Louisiana; suggests a
depot in Havana, Campeachy, and other neigh. boring ports, of provisions,
fire-arms, and munitions of war, to be within reach of New Orleans
whenever required. All such provisions and other articles required, to be
paid for by the French government.
235th. 1763, 9th July--decree by the "conseil supérieur de la
Louisiane," forbidding the introduction of slaves from St. Domingo,
poisoning being common in that island among the negroes.
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236th. 1752, 12th Sept.--letter from Mr. Michel "Ordonnateur" to the
minister, complaining of the want of proper officers for the "conseil
supérieur," and begging the government to supply the colony with two young
engineers and one surveyor.
237th. 1752, Feb.--letter from Mr. de Vaudreuil to the minister
advising the capture by a Spanish "Garde Cote," of the French vessel
"l'Etoile," and demanding her restitution.
238th. 1754, 4th July--letter from Mr. de Kerleree and d'Auberville,
announcing the arrival of families from Lorraine, sent by government;
speaks favorably of those families whom they advise having placed in the
parish "des Allemands."
239th. 1754, 9th July--Mr. d'Auberville to the minister with the
budget of the colony for 1754, and a list of all officers employed.
240th. 1754, 21st Sept.--Messrs. de Kerlerec and d'Auberville to the
minister, requesting the government to send two miners to work the mines
discovered in Illinois, lead and copper.
241st. 1652, 22d Sept.--Mr. Michel to the minister with full reports
on the condition of the country; gives interesting details on the culture
of cotton; the difficulties to separate the seed from the wool; of a gin
invented by Mr. Dubreuil; the culture of tobacco, rice, indigo and the
commerce of peltries; the advantages that might be obtained by irrigation
of the land, in dry seasons, and the renovation of the fields by
introducing the water of the Mississippi on old lands, &c. &c.
242d. 1753, 9th March--Mr. d'Auberville to the minister, showing the
necessity of rebuilding the government house; announcing the death of Mr.
Michel, and the situation of the treasury on that day.
243d. 1735, 31st August--Messrs. Bienville and Salmon, improvement in
the management of the militia hospital since placed under the care of the
Ursulines; complains of medicines furnished by government.
244th. 1731, 10th Jan.--letter from Mr. Dirou d'Artaguette to the
minister defending himself against charges brought by Governor Perrier;
interesting details of his wars with the Indians.
245th. 1728, 8th Dec.--Mr. Dirou to the minister, on the situation of
the country of Mobile.
246th. 1739--Chicachas war; details of the forces sent from France.
247th. 1736, 28th June--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon, interesting
details on the Chicachas campaign; the retreat of Mr. de Bienville with
544 men under his command.
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248th. 1751, 12th Jan.--Mr. de Vaudreuil to the minister, announcing
the termination of the war with the Chactas; begs for the cross of St.
Louis for Captain de Grandpré, as a reward for the services rendered by
him during the last campaign.
249th. 1729, 22d Sept.--Chicachas war; expedition from France. 500
men; detail on the projected campaign.
250th. 1731, 5th Dec.--Messrs. Perrier and Salmon, announcing the
recording in the minutes of the "conseil supérieur," of the letters patent
of the King respecting the retrocession by the West India Company of all
their privileges in Louisiana; interesting statistical statements and
other documents, showing the true condition of the colony at that epoch.
251st. 1736, 9th June--Mr. Dirou d'Artaguette, announcing the failure
of the expedition of Mr. de Bienville, at the bead of 1500 men including
his allies, against the Chicachas.
252d. 1731, 20th April--Mr. Dirou d'Artaguette, details on the Indian
war; calls for aid.
253d. 1762, Jan.--letter from the King of France to Mr. de Kerlerec,
in which he states "by the preliminaries of peace agreed upon at
Fontainbleau on the 3d Nov. last, having ceded part of the province of
Louisiana to the King of England, I have resolved upon ceding the other
part to my cousin, the King of Spain." Then follows an order for the
delivery to England and Spain of the whole of the province, in accordance
with the limits fixed upon in the said preliminaries.
254th. 1762--instructions of the King to Mr. d'Abbadie regarding the
delivery of Louisiana to England and Spain.
255th. 1731, 24th June--Dirou d'Artaguette, announcing new disorders
among the Natchez; the murder of two officers near the Arkansas;
destruction of the Tunicas by the Natchez; calls for assistance.
256th.--No date-instructions of the King to Mr. d'Abbadie, regarding
the artillery and munitions of war at Mobile. This letter must have been
written in 1762.
257th. 1721, 13th Sept.--instructions from the West India Company to
the directors and sub-directors in Louisiana, for their guidance in the
management of the affairs of the Company.
258th. 1719, 28th Oct.--report of Mr. Hubert on Pensacola; Dauphin
Island; Ship Island and l'Ozage; recommends Ship Island as the best harbor
for men-of-war.
259th. 1721,31st Sept.--instructions by the West India Company
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to the directors and sub-directors in Louisiana, signed in Paris by
"Demachault and Dedune."
260th. 1713, 15th July--interesting memorial by Mr. Duclos on
Louisiana, including the country of Mobile, addressed to Count
Pontchartrain.
261st. 1718, 21st June, Paris--memorial on Louisiana, signed "L. A.
de Bourbon, le Marechal d'Estrées," par le conseil "Lachapelle."
This memorial is full of interest. France had then in view the
possession of the whole of North America; to attain such an end Louisiana
was considered as the basis of the whole plan, and a colonization upon a
large plan was recommended. A naval depot was suggested on Ship Island; a
general plan of fortifications was proposed from Pensacola to the "Baie
St. Bernard." The English plan of colonization was strongly recommended,
to wit: 500 to 600 families at a time provided by government with all the
necessary utensils, cattle, &c. &c., and provisions for one year. The
whole to be returned by the parties when in a situation to do so; none but
good peasants to be sent; the plan comprehendng the Wabash, the Illinois,
the Yazoo, the Missouri and Natchitoches; the working of the mines of
Missoun proposed; the memorial is thus concluded: "A large commerce can
be carried on between Mexico and Missouri. Missouri has another branch
nearly as important; its source is said to be from the same mountain; it
is believed that this branch empties itself in the South Sea. The
Canadians invited in those parts would soon create establishments for a
commerce with Japan and China. Such would be the importance of such a
trade that the truth of these reports is worthy the attention of
government."
262d. No date-report from la Rochelle, announcing the departure of
the frigates "la Victoire et la Duchesse de Noailles," with 570 men for
Louisiana.
263d. 1718, 21st July--incomplete memoranda concerning Mr. de St.
Denis' journey through the Red River to Mexico.
264th. 1713--Mr. Crozat informs the government of the efforts of the
British to seduce the Indians on the upper Mississippi and in the Natchez
country; applies for two officers and 40 men for Illinois.
265th. 1716, 7th Sept.--incomplete memoranda on certain changes
proposed for Dauphin Island, and the Fort St. Louis of Mobile ;
instructions to be given to the military posts in Louisiana, and
particularly to that of Alibamons.
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266th. 1714, 27th Dec.--military establishments (posts) in Louisiana
ordered by the King in a letter under this date.
267th. 1716 21st July--memorandum on the morus tobacco, and a leaf
named Appalachine, considered a specific for the gout and for the stone,
and other diseases, by the Indians of Appalache. These memorandas are by
Mr. Lamothe, who strongly recommends the in introduction of silk worms.
268th. 1716--instructions to Mr. de la Mothe, respecting the works on
Dauphin Island, &c. &e.
269th. 1716, 21st Feb.--Mr. de la Mothe on the discovery of certain
mines.
270th. 1718, March lst--inventory of the public stores, &c. &c., in
the King's warehouses in Dauphin Island and in Mobile.
271st. 1721, 2d Sept.--appointment by the King of the Chevalier Le
Blond de la Tour, as Lieutenant-general of the province of Louisiana.
272d. Petition of the West India Company to the King, praying that by
letters patent of the 15th January, 1724, Mr. Delachaise having been made
a member of the supreme council, although deputed by the King with
extraordinary powers to investigate the affairs of the company in
Louisiana, by decree of his Majesty's council of 8th December, 1722, that
the said Delachaise be permitted to act as honorary counsellor in the
"Conseil de Régie Générale," and in that capacity to serve the company in
the furtherance of the welfare of the colony. This petition is signed by
the directors of the West India Company in Paris.
273d. 1723, 24th April--letter from Mr. de Bienville, dated 20th
June, 1722, announcing the order of the Viceroy of Mexico for (he cession
of Pensacola to Spain. This letter is accompanied by the order of the
King of France.
274th. 1724, 26th Oct.--prices fixed for merchandize tendered by the
inhabitants in payment of debts to the West India Company.
275th. 1721--documents relative to the beaver trade in Canada;
petition against the monopoly of that trade.
276th. 1725--sundry letters relative to the war with the "Renards."
277th. 1743--Mr. de Vaudreuil's account of the situation of the
colony respecting the Indians.
278th. 1726, 7th August--ordinance by Messrs. de Boisbriant,
Commander-General of the province of Louisiana, and Delachaise,
"Commissaire du Roi," and first Counsellor of his Majesty in the
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"Conseil Supérieur de la Régie;" measures to be adopted in consequence of
the rupture between England and Spain.
279th. 1765, 1st June--printed extracts from the minutes of the
"Conseil Supérieur" relative to the Abbot de l'Isle Dieu.
280th. 1755, Paris, 2d Sept.--printed treaties on the patent letters
to the Capuchins of Champagne, concerning the missions through Louisiana.
281st. 1726, 13th Sept.--articles of agreement between the Ursulines
and the West India Company, for the service of a military hospital in New
Orleans. These articles, to the number of 28, containing all the
conditions attached to certain grants; are signed by " l'Abbé Ragolet."
282d. No date-project for the retrocession of Louisiana by the West
India Company to the King.
283d. 1739, 25th Oct.--memorial of the Chevalier de Fabrau on
Louisiana, without interest.
284th. 1742--agreements consequent to the retrocessiou of Louisiana
by the West India Company on the 27th March, 1731.
285th. No date--memorial on the same subject.
286th. 1759, 6th March-- Mr. Rochimore, complaining of ,the
insubordination of officers.
PORTFOLIO NO. VI.
287th. 1731, Oct. 30th--Ursuline Convent founded in 1727; memorial of
Father d'Avangeon on the advantages of that institution; the object is
represented to have been the education of young girls, the nursing of the
sick as "hospitalières;" the service of the military hospital; prays for
aid in order to increase the number of sisters, originally 6 to 12, and
the confirmation in "franc alleu" of the lands granted in New Orleans, and
that they may be permitted to enjoy the privileges belonging to their
order in France.
288th. 1764, 15th Feb.--instructions to Mr. d'Abbadie respecting the
Jesuits, which instructions are stated to have been carried into effect,
the company having been dissolved and their estates having been sold
previous to the receipt of the letters patent of the King bearing date the
3d June, 1763.
289th. 1724, August--inspection by the Louisiana committee, of the
different military posts of that colony, to wit: New Orleans, the Balize,
Biloxi, Dauphin Island, Mobile, Alibamons, Natchez, Natchitoches,
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Yazoo, Arkansas, Illinois. The committee recommend the giving up of the
military posts of Biloxi, Dauphin Island, and Arkansas.
290th. 1741, 30th April--Mr. de Bienville, interesting account
relative to the Indians.
291st. 15th Sept.--report of Mr. Duvergé, concerning different
operations intrusted to him for the improvement of the colony; presents a
plan for an establishment at Ship Island, at Alibamons, and on the Wabash;
also, but on a smaller scale, at Biloxi and in Illinois; recommends the
clearing of the Manchac of trees impeding the navigation of that rivulet;
proposes a road from Biloxi to the Illinois by land; submits a plan for
the raising of silk worms; speaks of a military post on the St. Bernard,
&c. &c. This report embraces a complete organization for the government
of Louisiana, and is highly interesting, presenting large views on the
commerce and agriculture of the country, and was approved by the directors
of the West India Company in Paris, on the 15th September, 1720.
292d. 1727, 24th April--missions to be supplied by the Capuchins
throughout Louisiana.
293d. 1733, 15th Jan.--plan of the fort of Natchitoches, (signed)
Broutin.
294th. 1734, 25th July--plan of a large portion of the city of New
Orleans, (signed) Broutin, including Toulouse, St. Peter, St. Anne, and
Dumaine, Levée and Condé streets; on this plan are indicated the following
buildings to be undertaken during 1734, to wit: barracks, fronting the
river between St. Anne and Dumaine; government house, fronting the levee,
between St. Peter and Toulouse; the custom house, (Intendance,) also
fronting the levee between Dumaine and St. Anne.
295th. 1733--plan (signed) "Broutin," elevation of a building to be
placed on the top of a wine cellar in the custom built in 1732.
296th. 1733, 15th Jan.--(signed) "Broutin," plan of the powder
magazine; on this plan are seen the dresses of the inhabitants of that
epoch.
297th. 1733, 15th Jan.--plan (signed) "Broutin," of the wall
surrounding the powder magazine.
298th. 1733, 15th Jan.--plan (signed) "Broutin," side view of the
powder magazine built in 1732.
299th. 1734, 12th July--proces verbal of Messrs. de Bienville and
Salmon accompanying the above plans.
300th. 1734, 25th July--plan (signed) "Broutin," of barracks,
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&c; to be erected during 1734, between St. Anne and Dumaine streets.
301st. 1733, 15th May--Mr. de Bienville relative to the Indians;
interesting details respecting the Natchez, the Chicachas, &c.; original
letters from persons inhabiting among those nations and the Illinois; the
Alibamons, the Natchitoches, the Talapenches, the Chitimachas, the
Attakapas, and the Loupelousas.
302d. 1734, 27th July--Mr. de Bienville on the Chicachas, Natchez and
Chactas; interesting details; a few speeches by the Indian chiefs.
303d. 1734, 25th Jan.--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
304th. 1733, 26th July--the same on the same subject.
305th. 1716, 8th Oct.--memorial on the importance of colonizing
Louisiana; an armed colonization is recommended instead of soldiers, as
being less costly and more useful.
306th. 1733, 15th May--plan (signed) "Devin," of the Fort Condo at
Mobile.
307th. 1734--memorial on the necessity of colonization in Louis-
iana; void of interest.
308th. 1734, 6th April--Mr. Perrier on the movements of the Indians.
309th. 1734, 26th April--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians; ac- count
of a battle, &e.
310th. 1732, 14th May.--Mr. Perrier on the Indians; and of the
missionaries among them.
311th. 1731, 10th Dec.--Mr. Perrier on the war with the Natchez; the
situation of the colony, and the budget for 1732, &c. &c.
312th. 1772--petition from the commerce of Bordeuux, claiming a
continuation of franchise on goods from Louisiana on the following
grounds:
1st. Because although the cession of Louisiana to Spain by treaty
took place in 1762; it was only publicly known in France in 1765.
2d. Because the King of Spain only took possession of that colony in
March, 1766.
3d. Because the Revolution of 1768 and 1769 in that country, was the
cause of most of the agents of the Bordeaux merchants being either shot or
sent to the mines.
313th. 1747, Feb.--Mr. de Vaudreuil, murder of a cadet and of a
soldier by the Chatas; details on the Indians.
314th. 1747, Jan.--Mr de Vaudreuil, on the Indians and the doings of
the English.
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315th. 1736; 18th June--Mr. de Beauchamp calls for a corps of miners
and bombardiers to carry on the war with the Chicachas, whom he represents
as living like weazels, in cabins resembling ovens partly under ground,
and communicating with each other.
316th. 1626, 29th March--memorial of Mr. de merveilleux on the
erection of a fort at Pascagoula, recommended by Mr. Delachaise.
317th. 1759, 5th July--proces verbal of the confiscation of the
English schooner the "Three Brothers," commanded by Joseph Boull, aged 36
years, belonging to Rhode Island, (signed) Rochemore.
318th. 1750, 11th June-extract of a letter from Mr. Durand to the
Marquis of Puyzenet, dated London, speaking of the Quakers and of the
Moravians, in the highest terms; recommends them for the colonization of
Louisiana; and adds, "it appears that Admiral Anson was intrusted with a
project, which not having received, its execution cannot now be fully
ascertained. A plan found in the papers of King William the Third shows,
however, that that prince bad conceived the idea of taking possession of
the Isthmus of Darien, and by the means of the river running nearly
through from one sea to the other, to open communications between the
fleets in the Atlantic and South Seas, granting at the same time,
commissions to all privateers, for the purpose of annoying the French and
Spanish commerce, and of gradually keeping the latter power in the
dependence of England."
319th. 1722, 6th Nov.--Mr. de Bienville, handing a speech made by him
to the Indians.
320th. No date--coup d'oeil on Louisiana, by Mr. Roquevante, wherein
he endeavors to show the advantage of the fur trade on the Canadian plan.
321st. No date--project for the guidance of the military
"commandants" towards the Indians in Louisiana.
322d. 1740, 28th June--memorial of Mr. Duvergé relating to the
discovery of the road from New Orleans to the upper country, through the
Chicachas; the whole is very interesting and contains about 100 pages.
323d. 1731, 16th March--letter from Mr. Regis a Roullet on the Indian
war.
324th. 1733, 19th March--plan (signed) "Broutin," elevation of the
Ursulines Convent.
325th. 1733, 19th March--other view of the same building.
326th. 1733, 1st May--plan of a military hospital.
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327th. 1731, 21st Feb.--letter of Mr. Regis de Roullet on the Indian
War.
328th. 1723, 3d May--interesting documents, containing the speeches
of several of the leading Indian warriors, asking the pardon of a soldier
condemned to death.
329th. 1732, 9th July--plan of the parish church of New Orleans,
bricks between posts, (signed) "De Bat."
330th. 1726, 22d Jan.--discussions between the Jesuits and the West
India Company, void of interest.
331st. 1719--history of a journey in the interior of Louisiana, by
Bernard de la Harpe, containing a memorial for assistance.
332d. 1740--paper on the Indians.
333d. 1730--project of a private letter from the West India Company
to Mr. Perrier, respecting the English and Spaniards in Louisiana.
334th. 1740, 29th August--Mr. de Bienville on the Chicachas war.
335th. 1740, 31st Oct.--Mr. de Bienville on the same subject.
336th. 1733, 8th Sept.--Mr. de Bienville renders an account of the
situation in which he has found the colony respecting the Indians.
337th. 1733, 25th Jan.--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
338th. 1731, 25th March--relation by Mr. Perrier of the defeat of the
Natchez.
339th. 1717--memorial on Louisiana, of little interest.
340th. 1721, 4th Oct.--letter from Messrs. de Bienville, Le Blond,
Latour and Duverge respecting Mr. Laharpe's relation of his voyage to the
Bay of St. Bernard.
341st. 1720--letter from Mr. de la Harpe, accompanying the history of
his discoveries. This letter is dated Dauphin Island.
342d. 1759, Jan. 3d--memorial on the functions of Civil Engi- neer
and General Surveyor.
343d. 1766, July 9th--letter from Mr. Aubry explaining the reasons
which have induced Governor Ulloa to delay taking possession of Louisiana.
344th. 1767, 11th Jan.--letter from the Duke of Choiseul to Mr.
Aubry, approving the continuation of his government for the King, of
Spain; the latter paying all expenses.
345th. 1749, 2d Jan., Paris--copy of a letter from the Count de
Maurepas to Messrs. de Vaudreuil and Michel, on the culture of indigo.
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346th. 1730, 1st August--Mr. Perrier on the Indian war.
347th. 1726--discussions between the Jesuits and the West India
Company.
348th. 1768, 22d Jan.--Foucault to the minister, complaining of the
difficulty of his position, and referring to his joint communications with
Aubry.
349th. 1735, 15th April--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon, on commerce
and agriculture.
350th. 1744, 10th Feb.--paper on the Indians.
351st. 1743, August--Mr. de Vaudreuil report on Mobile.
352d. No date--memorial on Louisiana, disapproving the emission of
paper money by the administrators of the colony; demoralization which must
flow from such emissions.
353d. 1754, 6th Nov.--Mr. de Kerlerec on the Indians.
354th. 1748, 1st Oct.--Mr. de Vaudreuil on the same subject.
355th. 1743, Dec.--Loubrey, Commandant of Mobile, on the Indians.
356th. 1743, July--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
357th. 1714--memorial of Mr. Crozat for the raising of troops for
Louisiana.
358th. 1767, 25th Oct.--pamphlet containing extracts on the following
subjects
NO. 1. America civilized.
Nos. 2 to 7. Prophecy on America; the manufactures of North America
destined to destroy the supremacy of Great Britain.
PORTFOLIO NO. VII.
359th. 1768, 20th Jan.--letter from Mr. Aubry explaining the extreme
difficulty of his position, compelled as he was, being a French Governor,
to govern for the King of Spain; Governor Ulloa with only ninety soldiers
not deeming it prudent to receive possession of the colony.
360th. 1767, 29th Jan.--agreement between Aubry and Ulloa, by which
the former consents to defer the delivery of Louisiana to the latter, both
in the mean time governing the colony.
361st. 1767, 30th March--Mr. Aubry expressing his desire for the
arrival of Spanish troops in order to give up the government of Louisiana;
states his joint action with Ulloa ia all necessary measures; complains of
Ulloa's quick temper, &c. &c.
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362d. 1766, 20th April--instructions to Mr. Aubry for the cession of
Louisiana.
363d. 1765, 30th Sept.--Aubry announces some disturbances among the
Pakanas in the neighborhood of Illinois, and an expedition headed by Mr.
de Lavilleboeuvre, an officer well acquainted with the Indian language,
against a party of Indians who had made themselves masters of property and
cabins belonging to the English on the Iberville. The delivery of the
property by the Indians to Mr. de Lavilleboeuvre; speaks of the
difficulties arising from the occupation by three nations of the same
river.
364th. 1765, 16th Sept.--letter from Aubry to Governor Johnston of
Mobile; explaining his difficult position regarding the Indians; promises
his best efforts to maintain peace.
365th. 1765, 31st August--instructions of Mr. Aubry to Mr. de
Lavilleboeuvre as commandant of an expedition against the Alibamons, for
the purpose of demanding property seized by them on the Iberville, and
belonging to the English.
366th. 1764, 15th Jan.--Mr. Aubry, explaining tho difficulties
encountered by Mr. d'Abbadie on the part of the English at Tombeckbe and
Alibamons, &c. &c.
367th. 1764--copies of speeches of Messrs. d'Abbadie and Farmer to
the Indians.
368th. 1765--words of the Troquois, Loups, and Chonans from Fort
Duquesne (Pitt), by a Loup chief accompanied by two warriors carrying 25
scalps, (English.)
369th. 1769--answer of Mr. de Noyan.
370th. 1763, 3d Sept.--Black Code of France put in operation.
371st. 1776, Madrid, 8th July--instructions respecting the per-
mission granted for the exportation of timber, provisions, &c. &c., for
the relief of the French Islands.
372d. 1777, 26th April--letter from Messrs. d'Aunoy and Villars to
the French government, announcing the seizure by Governor Galvez of 11
English ships richly laden and moored opposite to some of the plantations,
and his defence to the planters under heavy penalties to carry on any
traffic with the English.
373d. 1777, 17th Oct.--answer of the minister-to Messrs. d'Aunoy and
Villars inviting them to continue their communications.
374th. 1786, Versailles, 10th Feb.--letter from Mr. de Vergusnes on
the subject of a French vessel seized in the Mississippi, and
correspondence with the Spanish government to the same effect.
375th. An 10th, Paris, 8th Thermidor--refutation by General
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Milford Tartamgy of an article in the Gazette de France, recommending the
cession of Louisiana to the United States. Louisiana being there
represented as a narrow strip of moving sands, marshes, and bogs, etc.
etc.
376th. No date--memorial on Lower Louisiana, from Iberville to the
sea. Void of interest.
377th. 1769, 23d May--Mr. Aubry on the rebellion and the
demoralization produced by paper money; states the interference of Mr.
Lafreniere to prevent further disturbances; hands the following documents.
378th. 1769, Feb.--extract from the registers of the "conseil
supérieur" containing transcript of a letter dated Port au Prince, 9th
February, 1769, and signed St. Leger, in the name of the "conseil
souverain" of that place, approving the rebels in driving out of the
country Governor Ulloa, and of another letter from the Doyen of the
council of Port au Prince couched in nearly the same words.
379th. An 10th, 27th Fructidor, Paris--letter from Mr. Laussat,
Colonial Prefect of Louisiana, submitting several questions to the
government.
380th. No date--sounding of the coast of Florida; the Tortugas; of
St. Rose Island; of Pensacola and of Mobile, by Mr. de Iberville, from
1698 to 1699; at the Balize in 1733 to 6 and 7; passe à la Loutre 15 ½
feet; soundings of Ship Island in 1798 by Mr. de Iberville, also of the
Chandleur Islands; bay of St. Bernard in 1720, &c. &c.
381st. Paris--questions upon which the attention of the government is
particularly called. They appear to have been propounded by Mr. Laussat;
the reimbursement to the planters of paper money issued by the Spanish
government, and amounting to $800,000, form part of these queries.
382d. No date--memorial advising the French republic to demand the
session of Louisiana.
383d. 1759, 28th March--memorial on Louisiana; project proposed for
the colonization of that province by Bertrand Duvernet, on condition of a
grant of 40 Leagues of land on both sides of the river from the city of
New Orleans up.
384th. 1751, August--observations on two circumstances considered as
favorable to the improvement of Louisiana; this document is not without
interest.
385th. 1765 to 1768, NO. 1 to 170--letters of Mr. Foucault to the
ministers, relative to the administration.
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386th. 1760, 22d Dec.--reports of Mr. Duverger, chief engineer, to
Mr. Andry on fortifications directed by him.
387th. 1761,8th Jan.--letter from Mr. Rochemore inclosing copy of the
instructions to Mr. Aubry, and reporting on the fortifications intrusted
to that officer.
388th. 1766, 1st August--memorial on Louisiana; mutility of that
colony for France.
389th. 1731, Jan.--Mr. de Perrier, movement of the Indians in
Louisiana since the capture of the Natchez Fort.
390th. 1759--trial and confiscation of the English schooner "Three
Brothers," to be continued.
391st. 1768, 16th Dec 9.--Mr. Aubry speaks of the disturbances in
Louisiana, and expresses his fears.
392d. No date--memorial touching the retrocession by the West India
Company, to the King of France. Uninteresting.
393d. 1760, 1st June--Rochimore, Conveying statements of presents
made to the Indians.
394th. 1768, 20th Jan.--Mr. Aubry respecting the cession to Spain;
incloses copy of correspondence between Governor Ulloa and him. Void of
interest.
395th. 1753--extracts of letters from Messrs. de Kerlerec and
Foucault to the government, uninteresting; matters of administration.
396th. 1753, 23d Nov.--project of alliance with the Canices submitted
to Mr. de Kerlerec.
397th. 1716--journal of the expedition against the Natchez. Very
interesting; the expedition was headed by Mr. de Bienville.
398th. 1712--different projects granting to Mr. Crozat the exclusive
commerce of Louisiana during 15 years.
399th. 1752, 30th Sept.--memorial of Mr. Dubreuil Villars relative to
the agriculture of Louisiana.
400th. 1772, 13th Seat.--letter from Mr. Fazende to ministers stating
the reasons which had prevented his accompanying the accounts rendered by
him.
401st. 1741, 17th March--memorial on tobacco.
402d. 1750--memorial on Louisiana, and project for the cultivation of
tobacco on a large scale.
403d. 1763, 23d Nov.--process verbal of the delivery of the military
post of Tombeckbé to Lieutenant Thomas Ford.
404th. 1764, 10th Jan.--Mr. d'Abbadie advises the delivery to the
English government of Mobile, &c.
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PORTFOLIO NO. VIII.
405th. No date--memorial containing the history of Louisiana since
its discovery by Lasalle in 1682. It appears that nothing was done until
after the peace of Berwick. Mr. d'Iberville at that epoch was intrusted
with a new expedition, and was accompanied by his brother, Mr. de
Bienville, who remained in that colony as Lieutenant-Governor until 1712,
when Mr. de la Mothe Cadillac took charge of the government, having been
appointed Governor in the room of Mr. Dumerry, who had died during his
passage from France. Mr. Crozat on the 14th September, 1712, obtained by
letters patent of the King, the exclusive privilege of the commerce of the
colony; this privilege Mr. Crozat gave up in 1717, and in August of the
same year, the same exclusive privilege was granted by letters patent to
the West India Company, that company having been established by an edict
of the King at the same time; this latter privilege was granted for 25
years, to wit: from the 1st January, 1718, to the first December, 1842,
and included the fur trade. The whole of this document, which appears to
have been written about the year 1730, is interesting.
406th. No date--memorial on the same subject showing the necessity of
a retrocession of the privileges of the West India Company to the King.
407th. 23d Nov. 1732--highly interesting letter from the
"missionnaire," Mr. R. P. Baudoin, on the Tchactas nation, dated from
their village of Tchicachee.
408th. No date--memorial on Louisiana; Indian war; miserable
condition of the colony.
409th. 1740, 28th June--memorial of Mr. Dubreuil on the subject of a
canal undertaken by him one league above New Orleans, and of the great
advantages that may be derived from the whole of the Barrataria district.
410th. No date--uninteresting memorial on Louisiana.
411th. No date-- do. do. do.
412th. 1757, 1st June--memorial on Louisiana, showing its advantages
to France.
413th. No date--notes on the preceding memoir.
414th. No date--memorial on the Indians of Louisiana; their number,
and the commerce that can be carried on with them.
415th. No date--memorial on the same subject, and very full.
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416th. No date--memorial containing a description of Louisiana, of
its ports, of its soil, of its rivers, of the Indian nations, and pointing
out the great advantages to be derived by colonization. This paper is
evidently of a very ancient date.
417th. No date--general idea touching the mode of creating a commerce
for Louisiana; the author refers to Mr. de Bienville, then in Paris.
418th. No date--memorial on Louisiana, to render that colony
flourishing; this paper appears to have been drawn up for the West India
Company; it is interesting.
419th. No date--memorial to induce France to retain Louisiana; speaks
of the several climates, and of the facilities with which it might be made
to supply France with silk, tobacco, &c. &c., and cotton.
420th. Memorial on the importance of Louisiana; void of interest.
421st. No date--letter from Mr. Baron, complaining of Governor
Perrier.
422d. No date--memorial on Louisiana; contains some interesting
details. This paper appears to have been written by Mr. de Kerlerec.
423d. 1749--project for the cultivation of tobacco in Louisiana, and
the trade in timber, by Mr. Faby.
424th. No date--memorial pointing out the necessity of fixing the
limits between Canada and Louisiana.
425th. 1748, 2d Nov.--Mr. Michel opposing the reunion of Canada and
Louisiana.
426th. 1746, 28th August--journal of the voyage of a Major Beauchamp
of Mobile, to the Tchactas nation, by order of Mr. de Vaudreuil, to demand
satisfaction for the murder of three Frenchmen.
427th. 1747, 28th March--observations of Mr. Augeas on the different
soils bordering on the Mississippi.
428th. 1746--memorial on the situation of the colony. This paper is
drawn up with a good deal of care.
429th. 1754--memorial from Messrs. Kerlerec and d'Auberville,
recommending a floating battery at the Balize.
430th. 1750--memorial on the situation of the inhabitants of
Louisiana, and of the advantages to be derived by an importation of
negroes to be employed in the cultivation of tobacco.
43lst.--1749--situation of Louisiana; a poor production.
432d. 1750, 12th Oct.--letter from Mr. Livaudais on the changes
produced in the passes by equinoxial gales; in the month of July
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this engineer states the passes to have been S. S. E., and N. N. W., and
at the time he was penning his report they were E. and W.
433d. 1731, 15th Nov.--Mr. de la Boulage on Louisiana.
434th. 1754, 13th Sept.--paper from Mr. Duvergé pointing out the
necessity of having landmarks at the Balize for vessels coming in; plan
proposed by him and approved by Mr. de Kerlerec.
435th. 1738, 15th August, Paris--Mr. Courtuzur to Count de Maurepas,
proposing the formation of a company in Louisiana.
436th. 1789--very able memorial on the culture of tobacco.
437th. 1741--paper relative to the advantages the public service
might derive from the timber on the Barrataria
438th. No date--memorial of what would be required by Louisiana; void
of interest
439th. 1764, 7th April--Mr. Aubry announcing the delivery to Great
Britain of the portion of Louisiana ceded, and mentioning the failure of
an expedition to Illinois by the English.
440th. 1761, 15th Dec.--letters in cipher of Mr. de Kerlerec
representing the miserable condition of the colony.
441st. 1762, 10th Feb.-- do. do.; giving an account of the
Indians.
442d. 1761, 8th June-- do. do. do.
443d. 1761, 8th March-- do. do. do.
444th. 1760, 21st Dec.-- do. do. do.
445th. 1762, 28th April--letter from Mr. de Kerlerec on the
difficulty of this position with the English Indians.
446th. 1763, 23d Oct.--letter from de Kerlerec on the formalities
required for the evacuation of Mobile.
447th. 1763, 2d May--Mr. de Kerlerec acknowledging receipt of the
King's ordinance announcing cessation of hostilities with the English;
speaks of the Indians who have sacrificed their all to the French, and who
will find themselves deprived of presents.
448th. 1762, 24th June--Mr. de Kerlerec, letter in ciphers
complaining of frauds by the persons supplying the King's stores.
449th. 1st March, 1765--Mr. Aubry, on the conduct of the Indians
towards the English; copy of a speech of the Chaouanan chief named Charlot
to Mr. d'Abbadie.
450th. 1765, 12th March--Mr. Aubry on the difficulty of his position,
it being impossible to satisfy at the same time the Indians, the English,
the Spaniards, and the French congregating in New Orleans.
451st. 1765, 6th May--copy of a letter from Mr. St. Ange, commandant
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of Illinois, regarding the bad disposition of the Indians towards the
English; incloses several Indian speeches.
452d. 1765, 16th May--Mr. Aubry, inclosing copy of Mr. St. Ange's
communication.
453d. 1765, 10th July--Mr. Aubry speaks of a cessation of hostilities
between the English and Indians at Illinois; inclosing several Indian
speeches.
454th. 1762, 26th July--Mr. de Kerlerec in ciphers, speaks of the
difficulty of his position with the Cherokee Indians.
455th. 1767, 27th Jan.--Mr. Aubry states that the British have taken
possession of Illinois; proces verbal of the delivery of that section of
Louisiana.
456th. 1713, 25th Oct.--memorial submitted to the Count de
Pontchartrain by Mr. Duclos on Louisiana; this paper contains a good deal
of statistical information, and a historical account of the beginning of
the colony; 100 pages.
PORTFOLIO NO. IX.
457th. 1759, 27th Jan.--memorial on Louisiana, proposing to favor the
emigration from Canada.
458th. 1741, 4th Oct.--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon, handing the
report of Mr. Duvergé on the Balize; of the changes at different epochs;
refers to several charts I have not been able to discover; this document
is interesting.
459th. 1725--memorial on the navigation of Illinois.
460th. 1728--extract of a letter from Mr. Perrier, regarding the
munitions of war supplied by him to the Spaniards of St. Augustine, and
the means by him taken to prevent the English interrupting cultivation.
461st. 1760, 17th Dec.--Mr. de Rochemore, on the sugar.cane,
cultivated by the Jesuits in 1744, in their gardens.
462d. 1724, 20th May--report on the mine "de Lamothe," distant 14
leagues from Kaskassia.
463d. 1780, 13th Feb.--letter from Mr. Fabre Daunoy to the French
government, announcing the expedition of Mr. de Galvez at the head of two
thousand men for Mobile, where lie is said to expect a reinforcement of
two thousand more front Havana, the whole of the force then to march
against Pensacola; advising the capture of the British possessions on the
Mississippi.
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464th. 1752--preliminary articles of peace between the French and the
Cherokees, prepared by Mr. de Kerlerec.
465th. No date--speech of Poudiak, an Indian chief, to Mr. de Noyau;
in the same paper are several other speeches.
466th. 1764, 15th Jan.--correspondence of Mr. d'Abbadie on the
cession of Mobile.
467th. 1760--complaints of Mr. Rochemore against Messrs. de Kerlerec
and de Macarty.
468th. 1760-- do. do.
469th. 1737, 21st Feb.--letter from Mr. de Cremont announcing his
arrival, and giving some details on the colony.
470th. 1763--correspondence of Mr. d'Abbadie on the difficult
position of Mobile towards the Indians.
471st. 1763, 13th Dec.--project of operations between Louisiana and
Canada; void of interest.
472d. 1764--four dispatches from Mr. d'Abbadie, on the difficulties
encountered in Mobile with the Indians; correspondence on this subject.
473d. 1764--correspondence of Mr. d'Abbadie on the same subject;
encloses copy of a letter from Mr. John Stuart of Illinois, complaining of
munitions of war being supplied the Indians.
474th. 1727, 15th Nov.--Mr. Perrier on the situation of the Colony.
475th. 1702--Memorial on Mobile and the Mississippi plan of
Colonization.
476th. 1749--Mr. de Vaudreuil renders an account of the situation of
the Colony.
477th. 1741, 25th Jan.--Mr. de Beauchamp on the Indian wars.
478th. 1742, 15th March--M. Duvergé handing his "feuille de service."
479th. 1742, 18th February and 28th March--Mr. de Bienville giving an
account of the situation of the Colony.
480th. 1742, 13th Feb.--Mr. Salmon announces the attack on a convoy
ascending the Illinois, by the Indians.
481st. No date--Mr. Perrier announces the defeat of the Natchez.
482d. 1731, 5th Dec.--Messrs. Perrier and Salmon, on Louisiana and
Illinois, details on the mines and agriculture.
483d. 1697--project of colonization on the Mississippi. This
document is highly interesting.
484th. 1759--Mr. Rochemore, relative to his administration.
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485th. 1742, 24th March--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon. Report on
the waxtree.
486th. 1765, 2d Aug.--Mr. Foucault regarding reproaches addressed to
Mr. d'Abbadie for having granted an exclusive privilege to five or six
merchants of trading with the Indians. States the reasons which had
induced Mr. d'Abbadie to introduce letters of Exchange on France; adds
that he had approved both measures which the miserable condition of the
Colony had rendered of an absolute necessity that a friendly intercourse
might be kept up with the Indians.
487th. 1731, 24th June--Mr. Diron Dartaguette giving an account of an
attack by the Natchez on barges ascending to the Arkansas and of the
destruction of the Tonicas on the 13th June by the Natchez.
488th. No date--memorial on Louisiana, showing that the first
establishment in Louisiana was at Mobile, where a fort was built; the next
at Biloxi, where are two copper mines; and then at New Orleans.
Barrataria is represented as a valuable section for its timber. The
author says that at Natchitoches near the village of Caddaquioux is to be
found a very rich silver mine, the produce of which had been tried by a
Portuguese, named Antoine, a miner from Mexico. He speaks of the
emigration to Louisiana of Canadian families in 1686; states that in 1699,
Mr. d'Iberville arrived with another colony of Canadians, which was
followed by other families headed by a Mr. Du Tessenet; the emigrants came
by land, first ascending the St. Laurent to the lake Erie, then ascending
a small river emptying itself in that lake, to the portage des miamis;
their effects being thence transported by the Indians to the river Miamis,
where pirogues, out of a single tree, and large enough to contain 30
persons, were built for the voyage down the Mississippi, first descending
the Oyo. The author further points out the high lands of Manchac as the
best place for a city, and New Orleans as a place of deposit; the whole of
the document is interesting.
489th. 1759, 13th Oct.--Mr. Rochemore, giving an account of the trial
of the English sloop Texel, from Jamaica with a rich cargo, and of her
condemnation; states that Mr. de Kerlerec had notwithstanding this trial
released the vessel.
490th. 1759, 13th Oct.--the same subject.
491st. 1685, August--Mr. de Beaujeu, on the expedition of Lasalle
which terminated his life; advises the minister to apply to Mr. Demanille,
a priest of the Seminary of St. Sulpice, for information he as well as
himself having formed part of Lasalle's expedition.
492d. No date--account of the defeat of Major Dartaguette, of
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his death and of that of 45 of his men; among whom there were 17 or 18
officers; the French detachment was composed of 130 men, 38 Iroquois, 38
Arkansas, 190 Illinois and Miami, in all 396 men. The expedition left
Illinois on the 20th February, 1736, reached the Chicachas country on the
24th March, and attacked them on the same day; they were abandoned by the
Illinois and Miami, which compelled Dartaguette to retreat, hence the
defeat and heavy loss sustained.
493d. 1736, 26th May--interesting account by Du Tertre of the attack
of the French to the number of 7 to 800 men of the fortified village of
the Chicachas, on a hill at about 250 leagues from New Orleans. The
French being defeated with a loss of 120 men; fortifications described;
surrounded by timber one cubic foot placed circularly with three rows of
loopholes; the Chicachas were bedded to the stomach in the earth, observed
the greatest silence, and suffered the French to approach within good
musket shot before firing; their first fire killed 50 men, the second 30,
1
494th. 1733, 19th March--plan of the Ursulines Convent, (signed)
"Broutin."
495th. 1734, 15th March--plan of Mobile, (signed) "Devin."
496th. 1702--objections to plan proposed by Mr. d'Iberville, to
invite the Illinois and Scioux to emigrate to the Mississippi.
497th. 1702--memorial on the Mississippi and Mobile; reasons Of Mr.
d'Iberville for giving the preference to Mobile; among others the
impossibility of forming a military establishment at the mouth of the
Mississippi; population of Mobile 139, to wit: 9 officers, 24 sailors, 2
couriers, 14 workmen, 64 Canadians, 26 soldiers.
498th. 1741, 5th May--interesting report of Mr. Duvergé civil
engineer.
499th. 1740, 5th May--Mr. Duvergé on his discovery of a road from New
Orleans to Illinois, through the Chicachas nation; complains of the
treatment of certain officers towards him.
500. 1738, 26th April--journal of Mr. Duvergé during his voyage to
recognize the Chicachas road; accompanied by a plan, which is not to be
found.
501st. 1736, 19th Sept.--Mr. Duvergé complaining of the conduct of
the government towards him.
502d. 1734, 4th May--Mr. Duvergé complaining of being without
commission as engineer.
503d. 1733, 9th August--Mr. Duvergé on the same subject; all his
letters possess more or less information.
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504th. 1736, 13th Sept.--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
505th. 1731, 30th Nov.--memorial of Mr. St. Denis, on the means to
protect the country against the insults of the Indians, &c.; void of
interest.
506th. 1731, 30th Nov.--Mr. St. Denis, bitter complaints of the
abandonment of the colony by the government.
507th. 1736, 29th May--Mr. de Bienville on the Indians.
508th. 1735, 16th Sept.--Messrs. de Bienville and Salmon on the
Indians.
509th. 1736--do. do. on the Chicachas.
510th. 1745, 1st April--Mr. de Laye, presenting a plan of campaign
against the Chicachas, and to destroy their fort.
511th. 1750--memoranda for the King, extracted from the
correspondence of Mr. de Vaudreuil on the Indians.
512th. 1759, 30th June--correspondence between Messrs. Rochemore and
de Kerlerec, on the necessity of emitting paper money to pay the officers
of the King.
513th. No date--miserable condition of the colony, plans proposed;
mere repetitions.
514th. 1726--agreement with Mr. Basin, a miner and a drawer;
memoranda of tools required to work the mines.
515th. 1729--memorial on the changes it would be advisable to make in
the administration of the West India Company; this document is
interesting, as it shows the whole organization of the company.
516th. 1722, 1st July--Mr. Chassin, of Illinois, interesting details
on the mines; speaks of siver coins and plates brought by the Indians
trading with Mexico.
517th. 1723, 21st Sept.--Mr. Furry to the Duke d'Orleans, praying
that he be permitted to have his memoir on Louisiana printed, and offering
to prove that there is no country in France or Europe equal to Louisiana,
and that none but ignorants and traitors can have a different opinion.
518th. 1725--memorial of Hubert on Louisiana, drawn up by order of
the Duke of Noailles.
519th. 1722, 9th Dec.--memorial of Drouet de Valdeterre on Louisiana,
presents a complete organization.
520th. 1720, 25th Dec.--interesting memorial on Louisiana, Bernard de
la Harpe.
521st. 1717, 5th July--propositions by the West India Company to the
navy council, and memorial to that effect.
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Three large and well bound minute books, to wit: Vol. I., 1712 to
1720, contents:
1st. Letters patent granted by the King to Mr. Crozat for the
exclusive commerce of Louisiana, dated "Fontainebleau, 14th September,
1712." Privileges of Mr. Crozat, returned to the King 23d August, 1717.
Letters patent in the form of an edict creating the West India Company in
August, 1717; exclusive privileges granted to that company for 25 years,
to begin 1st January, 1718, and to close in December, 1742.
Instructions by the company; its administrative acts; organization
prepared in Paris; appointments by the King of officers recommended by the
company.
This book of record was kept by the company.
Vol. II. 1721 to 1731, contents:
1st September, 1721, concession of lands to Mr. de Boisbriant.
16th May, 1722, ordinance in behalf of the Capuchins for an
establishment in Louisiana.
19th December, 1722, ordinance relative to the Capuchins.
December, 1722, Mr. Delachaise appointed by the King with
extraordinary powers, to investigate the whole of the West India Company's
affairs in Louisiana.
January, 1724, presentation by the King of Mr. Delachaise to fulfill
the functions of first counselor in the conseil supérieur of Louisiana.
January 11th, 1724, letters patent giving admission to Mr.
Dela-chaise in the conseil snpérieur of Louisiana.
February, 1724, Brevet permitting Mr. Delachaise to accept the
appointment of honorary counselor in the "conseil de la Régie of
Louisiana."
July 5th, 1725, Brevet permitting the establishment of the Capuchins
in Louisiana.
September 13th, 1726, treaty with the Ursulines.
September 18th, 1726, Brevet in favor of the Ursulines. Decree
regulating the concessions granted, and to be hereafter granted in
Louisiana, &c. &c.
Vol. III., contents:
Edicts; letters patent; declarations; decrees; ordinances and rules
concerning Louisiana.
From 24th September, 1712, to 27th August, 1746, edicts, letters
patent, declarations, ordinances and decrees of the council of state,
ordinances and rules of governors, and decrees and rules of the "conseil
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supérieur" concerning Louisiana, from 23d January, 1731, on which day the
West India Company surrendered its government to the King, to 27th August,
1746.
Declaration of the King of 17th July, 1743, regarding the judgments
to be rendered in land contestations, and on the subject of land
concessions to be granted in the colony.
In the "BIBLIOTHEQUE DU ROI," Paris, NO. 650. "Relation ou annale
véritable de ce qui s'est passé dans le Pays de la Louisiane, pendant 22
années, par Perricaul," (from 1700 to 1722,) small quarto, methodically
written and divided into chapters, 374 pages.
NO. 1074. "Journal du voyage de la Louisiane, fait par le Sr.
Bernard de la Harpe, et des découvertes qu'il a faites dans la partie de
l'ouest de cette colonie," (in the year from 1718 to 1722 inclusive.)
Large folio, 160 pages.
NO. 628. Sup. fi. (same volume as the above.) "Journal du voyage fait
par deux frégates du Roy, la Pradine commandée par Mr. d'Iberville, et le
Marin par Mr. le Chevalier de Surgères, qui partirent de Brest le 24 Oct.
1698." Large folio, 86 pages.
There are several other interesting letters and papers relating to
Louisiana, in the same volume, and at the same period; also a manuscript
map of the Mississippi river, dated 1700.
In this map the Red river is called, Sablonnière, the Arkansas,
Tonti, and the Missouri, Rivière des Osages. You will also receive by
this opportunity copies of two very interesting documents.
1st. 1st September, 1769, letter of Governor Aubry to his government,
giving a full account of the occurrences in New Orleans on the arrival of
Governor O'Reilly, of his participation in the arrest and condemnation of
Messrs. de la Frenière and others; of the means used to bring the
conspirators together at the government house, where they suddenly found
themselves surrounded by a body of grenadiers, at the close of a speech of
Governor O'Reilly, which is given at full length in said letter.
2d. Records of the trial and condemnation of Messrs. Nicolas
Lafrenière, Jean Baptiste Noyan, Balthazar Mazan, Pierre Marquis, Joseph
Villeré, Pierre Carrère, Pierre Hardi de Boisblanc, Joseph Petit, Jean
Milhet, Joseph Milhet, Pierre Poupet, Julien Jerome Doucet, Foucault et
Bienville, whereby it appears that Pierre Marquis was commander-in-chief:
that his project was to establish a Republic similar to that of
Switzerland, and a bank under the name of the "Mont de piété;" that this
bank was put in operation under the direction of Mr. Hardy de Boisblanc;
that a form of government
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had been prepared; that previous to his arrest, Marquis had thrown it into
the fire; that on the 20th Oct. 1769, the accused were found guilty of
high treason; that on the 24th Governor O'Reilly approved the sentence,
condemning Messrs. Nicolas Chauvin Lafrenière, Jean Baptiste Noyan, Pierre
Carrere, Pierre Marquis and Joseph Milhet, to be hung. And declaring
infamous the memory of Mr. Villeré, (killed in prison.) Also condemning
Mr. Joseph Petit to perpetual imprisonment in one of the strong castles of
his Catholic Majesty. Messrs. Balthazar Mazan and Julien Jerome Doucet, to
10 years' imprisonment; and Messrs. Pierre Hardy de Boisblanc, Jean
Milhet et Pierre Poupet to six years' imprisonment; ordering all the
papers, documents, &c., found in the possession of the conspirators to be
burned upon the public place by the public executioner, and confiscating
the whole of their property in favor of the crown. That on the 25th Oct.
the Licentiate Felix del Rey informed Governor O'Reilly officially that
the above sentence could not be carried into execution because a hangman
was not to be found in the country. That on the same day Governor
O'Reilly ordered the conspirators condemned to death to be shot. That on
the 26th October, 1769, at 3 o'clock P. M., Messrs. Nicolas Chauvin
Lafrenière, Pierre Marquis, Joseph Mllhet, Jean Baptiste Noyan, and Pierre
Carrere, with their arms well secured by ropes, were taken out of the
barracks of the Regiment of Lisbon, where they had been imprisoned, and
conducted under a strong escort of officers and grenadiers, to the place
designated for their execution, where a large number of troops had been
formed into a square, that their sentence was there read to them in the
French language, immediately after which they were shot. That on the same
day all the seditious papers found among the conspirators were burned on
the public square. That on the following day Messrs. Joseph Petit,
Balthazar Mazan, Julien Jerome Doucet, Pierre Hardy de Boisblanc, Jean
Milhet, et Pierre Poupet, were shipped to the Havana to be confined in the
Moro Castle.
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Volume 2 Chapter 4
[Page 89]
A TRANSLATION
OF AN
ORIGINAL LETTER
OF
HERNANDO DE SOTO
ON THE
CONQUEST OF FLORIDA.
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[Page 90]
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[Page 91]
A TRANSLATION OF AN ORIGINAL LETTER
OF
HERNANDO DE SOTO.
HERNANDO DE SOTO TO THE MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES
OF ST. JAGO DE CUBA.
MOST NOBLE SIRS:
Since my arrival in this country, I have written three letters by
different opportunities to Havana, and without being honored with a reply
to either, I embrace this occasion to address you another, believing it
will always be agreeable to you to hear from me. I sailed from Havana
with my fleet on Sunday, May 18th,* although I had written you I would not
weigh anchor before the 25th. I set sail sooner than I had intended, in
order to profit by a favorable wind. We had no sooner, however, entered
the Gulf than we were becalmed, which prevented us from reaching this
coast before Whitsunday the 25th. We missed our port by five or six
leagues through the carelessness of the pilots, which obliged me to embark
on board of one of the brigantines to go in search of it, which detained
me three days more. But another cause of this delay was my ignorance of
the channel, which led me into a bay some twelve leagues or more inland,
from which I found it difficult to extricate myself. This loss of time,
therefore, obliged me to send Vasco Parcallo de Figueroa, my
lieutenant.general, with the brigantines to take possession of a village
at the foot of the bay, and I ordered him to land all the troops and
horses there, where I afterwards joined him, with some difficulty, on
Trinity Sunday. The Indians became frightened, and deserted the
Garcilaso de la Vega, the Inca, says the 25th of May, 1539.
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country, so that in a distance of thirty leagues or more we did not meet
with a human being.
As soon as I landed I was informed that a Christian was in the power
of a cacique of the country. I accordingly dispatched Baltasar de
Gallegos with forty horsemen and as many foot soldiers, to bring him into
camp. After marching a day's journey he overtook the Christian in company
with eight or ten Indians, who were coming to me. I was much pleased with
this good fortune, for this man knew the language of the country, although
he had almost forgotten his own. His name is Juan Ortiz, a gentleman of
Seville. I afterwards went in person to the cacique of this province, and
learned from him that his intentions were entirely pacific. I then
dispatched Baltasar de Gallegos with eighty lancers and one hundred foot
soldiers, to reconnoitre the country. He found it cultivated with fields
of Indian corn, beans, pumpkins, and other vegetables, sufficient for the
supply of a large army. Having arrived at a cacique's called
Hurripacuxi,* who is the chief of several provinces, I negotiated with him
a treaty of peace, which he broke very soon after. I had him immediately
arrested, with seventeen others, among whom were several old men, who were
influential with the Indians, and acquainted with the interior of the
country. They told me that after three days' journey I would come to a
country well peopled and cultivated, and to a large city called Aquerra;
and after two more days' we should reach another city called Ocale, where
it would be pleasant for us to spend the winter.
They related to me so many improbable things about its magnificence,
that I dare not repeat them all to you. They said we should find here all
kinds of poultry, and deer Guayhacos enclosed in parks. Besides persons
who carried on a brisk trade with them in gold and pearls, which were
found in their province in great quantities. I trust in God it may be so,
for I have threatened to punish them if they attempt to deceive me. The
Christian has so far rendered me very important services. Indeed I do not
know what would have become of us if we had not been so fortunate as to
have met with him. I constantly return thanks to God for his watchful
care over us. There are still at sea eighty foot soldiers in the
brigantines. My general has taken forty horsemen with him, for the purpose
of assisting Juan d'Anasco, who has surprised a large body of Indians.
When he returns I shall go into winter quarters at Ocale, where I
The Urribacuxi of Vega.
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Page 93
hope to find all that my army should stand in need of. I hope that God
will prosper this expedition for his service, and that I may ever be found
useful to my country. In spite of the arduous duties I have to perform, I
can never forget my country, and the many obligations I am under to my
friends. I am indeed sorry it is not in my power to greet them in person.
I beg of you to continue to govern the country well, for which I shall
never cease to thank you. As it regards the fort which was commenced
before my departure, I wish you to have it finished, as the time may come
when it will be useful for the defence of the city. I now pray God to
keep your lordships from all harm, and prosper your undertakings. I
subscribe myself in this city and port of Saint Esprit, in the province of
Florida, this ninth day of July, 1539,
Your lordships' obedient servant,
HERNANDO DE SOTO.
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Volume 2 Chapter 5
[Page 95]
A TRANSLATION
OF A
RECENTLY DISCOVERED MANUSCRIPT JOURNAL
OF THE
EXPEDITION OF HERNANDO DE SOTO
INTO
FLORIDA.
BY LUIS HERNANDEZ DE BIEDMA.
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[Page 97]
A NARRATIVE OF THE EXPEDITION
OF
HERNANDO DE SOTO.
BY
LUIS HERNANDEZ DE BIEDMA,
(Facteur de sa Majesté.)
PRESENTED TO THE KING AND COUNCIL OF THE INDIES, 1544.*
HAVING arrived at the Port of Baya Honda,+ we landed six hundred and
twenty men, and two hundred and twenty-three horses. As soon as we had
done so, we were informed by one of the Indians we had captured, that a
Christian++ was living a few leagues off, who had served in the expedition
of Pamfile de Narvaez. The cacique of this province on hearing we had
landed, asked the Christian if he wished to return to us. He answered him
in the affirmative, and immediately sent him, with nine Indians, to our
camp. His body was naked, and in his hand he had a bow and arrows. As
soon as we perceived them coming we took them for spies, and marched out
to meet them, but they fled in every direction. The horsemen dashed after
them and wounded one of the Indians, and would have killed the Christian
if he had not invoked "the Virgin Mary;" and made signs that he was a
Christian, for he had almost forgotten to speak our language. He was
immediately conducted to the governor. He
* This narrative was presented, says Munoz, to the King and
Council of the Indies in 1544, by Luis Hernandez de Biedma, who
accompanied the expedition in the capacity of "Facteur de sa Majesté," and
has been but very recently discovered in Spain.
+ The Espiritu Santo of Vega, and now called Tampa Bay.
++ Juan Ortiz, a gentleman of Seville.
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Page 98
stated that he had been twelve years among the Indians, and spoke their
language perfectly; but that he was unacquainted with the country, and was
unable to tell us anything about it, except that there was no gold in it.
We now set out from the Port of Baya Honda, to penetrate the interior
of the country, with all the troops except twenty-six horsemen and sixty
foot soldiers, which we left behind to defend the fort, until they should
receive orders from the governor to join him. We marched in a westerly
direction, and then north-east. We heard of a cacique who received
tribute from all the nations. His name was Hurripacuxi,* and lived about
twelve leagues from the coast. We continued to march across swamps and
rivers for fifteen or twenty leagues, and reached a village about which we
had been told strange stories. Among others, they pretended that when the
inhabitants shouted aloud, the birds flying in the air would fall dead to
the ground. We arrived at a small village called Eto-cale.+ Here we found
some Indian corn, beans, and little dogs, which was not a meal for our
hungry army. We remained here seven or eight days, during which time we
made an attempt to entrap some Indians, to serve us as guides to the
province of Apalache. We then set out in the direction of New Spain,
marching ten or twelve leagues from the coast. After five or six days'
journey, we passed some hamlets, and arrived at a village called
Aquacalecuen, when we found the Indians had fled to the woods.
We remained here five or six days to procure guides, and took with us
ten or twelve women, one of whom informed us that she was the daughter of
a cacique, who afterwards joined us. After six or seven days' journey, we
met a hundred and fifty Indians armed with bows and arrows, who were
watching an opportunity to rescue the cacique we had brought with us. We
killed a few and captured others; among the latter were some who were
acquainted with the interior of the country. We then passed a river, and
crossed a country called Veachile, where we found a great many deserted
villages. We came to a village called Aquile,++ on the frontier of the
province of Apalache, and separated from Veachile by a river,§ over which
we threw a bridge of rafts tied together. We crossed it with difficulty,
for the Indians had posted themselves on the opposite bank, and fought
with great
* The Urriba cuxi of Vega.
+ Near the Suwanee.
++ Supposed to he a village of that name now south of the Allachua
prairie.
§ Supposed to be the Suwanee River.
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Page 99
bravery. We marched to the village of Ivi-ta-chuco,* but as soon as the
Indians saw us, they set fire to their village and fled. The province of
Apalache contains many villages, but we found provisions very scarce
there. From Apalache we marched to the province of Yustaga. The governor
now thought it time to hear from those he had left behind at Baya Honda,
as it was not his intention to advance so far into the country as to
render it impossible to have any communication with them.
We had now traveled one hundred and ten leagues. The governor went
in search of the sea, which was nine leagues distant. We had now come to
that part of the coast where Pamfile de Narvaez had built his vessels. We
recognized the spot on which he had built his smithy, and saw a great
quantity of horses' bones scattered about.+ The Indians told us the
Christians had built their vessels here. As soon as Juan d'Anasco had
marked the trees on the shore, the governor ordered him to go to Baya
Honda, and send forward the troops he had left there, and to return
himself by sea with the brigantines to Apalache. As soon as the
brigantines had arrived, the governor sent them again to sea, under the
command of the Chevalier Francisco Maldonado de Salamanca, to find a port
to the East. He coasted along shore until he reached a bay++ which had a
good harbor. On the bank of a river was an Indian village, some of whom
came to trade with him. He spent two months in making this exploration.
As soon as he returned, the governor ordered him to take the brigantines,
on board of which was Donna Isabella de Bobadilla, to Havana, and on his
arrival there, to set sail again with them to the river Saint Esprit,
where he agreed to meet him in six months, if he should not hear from him
sooner.§
As soon as the brigantines had set sail for Cuba, we began our march
to the north, and journeyed five days through a desert until we came to a
large and rapid river, which we crossed over in boats.
This province is called Acapachiqui.** We observed some
* The Vitachuco of Vega.
+ Supposed to be the site of the present town of St. Marks, where
Pamfile de Narvaez embarked the miserable remnant of his troops, on the
22d September, 1525, to return to Spain.
++ Supposed to be Pensacola Bay, the Achusi of Vega.
§ In the following year (1542) Maldonado returned to the Port of Achusi
(Pensacola), to communicate with De Soto, but not finding him there he
returned to Havana.
** The Capachiqui of Yoga.
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Page 100
villages, but as the country was covered with very extensive swamps, we
could not explore them. The Indian huts in this province were differently
constructed from those we had previously seen. They were dug in the
ground, and resembled caverns, while those we had passed were above
ground, and covered with branches of palm trees and straw. We continued
our march until we came to two rivers, which we crossed by making rafts of
pine trees, and entered a province called Otoa,* where we found a much
larger village than we had yet seen. We captured some Indians, to serve us
as guides and interpreters. We took five or six days to cross this
country to a province called Chisi.+ From Chisi we went to a province
called Attapaha. Here we found a river which flowed towards the south,
like those we had already passed, and emptied into the sea where Vasquez
de Ayllon had landed. This province is well peopled. The governor
questioned the Indians about the province of Cafitachiqui.++ They told
him it was impossible to get there, as there were no roads, nor provisions
of any kind which he could obtain, and that he must die of hunger if he
attempted it.
Nevertheless, we continued our march until we came to some caciques
(Ocute and Cofoque), who gave us some provisions, and told us that if we
would declare war against the Queen of Cafitachiqui,§ they would furnish
us with all that we needed on the road, and warned us that they had no
communication with her, as they were at war with her. Seeing that we were
resolved on going there, they furnished us with eight hundred Indians to
carry our provisions and baggage, and guides who took us in an easterly
direction, but after three days we found them deceiving us, nor did we
know which road to take to this province. The governor sent men in
different directions to find a road, and gave them each ten days to go and
come, with orders to report any villages which they might see. Those who
went in the direction of south, and south-east, returned four days after,
and reported they had found a little hamlet, and some provisions. They
brought with them some Indians, who understood our guides, which was very
fortunate for us, as we had but few interpreters. We immediately marched
for this hamlet, to wait there until the messengers who had gone in the
other direction could join us. Here we found fifty fanegas of Indian
* The Aute of Vega.
+ The Chisca of Vega.
++ Supposed to be about the head waters of the Savannah River.
§ The Copachiqui of Vega.
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corn, some wheat, and a great many mulberry trees, and other wild fruit.
As soon as the other messengers came we set out for the village of
Cofitachiqui, which was twelve days' journey from this hamlet, situated on
the banks of a river, which we took for the Saint Helene.*
When we arrived, the queen sent us one of her nieces, in a litter
carried by Indians. She sent the governor a present of a necklace of
beads, canoes to cross the river with, and gave us half the village to
lodge in. The governor opened a large temple built in the woods, in which
was buried the chiefs of the country, and took from it a quantity of
pearls, amounting to six or seven arrobes, which were spoiled by being
buried in the ground. We dug up two Spanish axes, a chaplet of wild olive
seed, and some small beads, resembling those we had brought from Spain for
the purpose of trading with the Indians. We conjectured they had obtained
these things by trading with the companions of Vasquez de Ayllon. The
Indians told us the sea was only about thirty leagues distant. They also
informed us that Vasquez de Ayllon had not penetrated far into the
country, but had mostly followed the sea shore, until his death. That a
large number of his soldiers died of hunger, and out of six hundred who
had landed in this country with him, only fifty-seven had escaped.
We remained ten or twelve days in the queen's village, and then set
out to explore the country. We marched in a northerly direction eight or
ten days, through a mountainous country, where there was but little food,
until we reached a province called Xuala,+ which was thinly inhabited.++
We then ascended to the source of the great river, which we supposed was
the Saint Espirit. At the village of Guasuli, they gave us a great many
dogs, and some corn to eat, which served us until we reached a village
called Chisca,§ where we found an abundance of provisions. It is built on
an island in the Saint Esprit river, and near its source.** The Indians
live here in walled villages, and make a great deal of oil from nuts. We
remained here twenty-six or seven days, to rest our horses, which had
become very
* Supposed to be in the Cherokee country, and probably the Hiwassee or
Tennessee River.
+ The most northern point of De Soto's travels, and probably in the
latitude of 35 N.
++ Supposed to be the mountainous country of the Cherokees.
§ Supposed to be in the country of the Chicachas.
** Supposed to be the Flint or Apalachicola River.
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thin. We continued our march along this river,* until we arrived in the
province of Costehe, where the villages were likewise built on the islands
of the river. The province of Coca is one of the best countries we have
seen in Florida. The cacique came to meet us, borne in a litter, and
accompanied by a numerous train. But the next morning his followers
deserted him. We kept the cacique a prisoner until he agreed to furnish
us with Indians to carry our baggage. In this country we found prunes
resembling those of Spain, and vines which produced excellent grapes.
Leaving this province we marched west and south-west, for five or six
days. We passed a great number of villages, and at the end of that time
we entered the province called Italisi. The inhabitants fled in every
direction; but the cacique came soon after, and presented us with
twenty-six or seven women, and some deer skins. We then proceeded south,
and passing through some villages, we arrived in the province of
Tascalusa,+ whose cacique was of such a height that we took him for a
giant. On arriving at his village we gave him a tournament, and offered
him other amusements, of which he took no notice. We requested him to give
us some Indians to carry our baggage, which he refused with a sneer. The
governor then took him a prisoner, which greatly enraged him; and was the
cause of his treachery to us afterwards. He told us that he could not
give us anything here, but we must go to his village, called Mavila, where
he would furnish him with all the provisions we stood in need of. We came
to a large river which empties into the bay called Chuse.++ The Indians
informed us that Narvaez's vessels had touched here for water, and left a
Christian called Teodoro, who was still among the Indians. They showed us
a poignard which had belonged to him. We took two days to construct a raft
to cross the river. In the meantime the Indians killed one of the
governor's guard. The governor punished the cacique for it, and threatened
to burn him alive if he did not deliver up the murderers. He then
promised to deliver them up at Mavila. This cacique had a number of
servants with him. He had one to brush off the flies, and another to
carry a sunshade.
We arrived at Mavila§ at nine o'clock in the morning. It was a
* Probably the Coosa River.
+ This province probably gave name to the River Tuscaloosa in
Alabama.
++ Pensacola Bay, the Achusi of Vega.
§ This town, the Mauvila of Vega, is supposed to have stood on the
north side of the Alabama, about the junction of that river with the
Tombecbe, about
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village built on a plain, and surrounded by strong walls. On the outside
the Indians had pulled down their huts; so as not to embarrass them. Some
of the chiefs met us and told us we could encamp on the plain, but the
governor preferred going with them into the town. We saw only three or
four hnndred Indians, who entertained us with dancing and feasting, but
there was hid in the town five or six thousand men, to surprise us. After
the dancing was over the cacique retired into one of his huts. The
governor requested him to come out, which he refused to do. The captain
of the governor's guard went in after him, and found it filled with
warriors, armed with bows and arrows. He reported to the governor what he
had seen, and told him that he suspected they were going to commit some
treason. The governor then sent for another cacique, who also refused to
come. The Indians now began to shoot their arrows from the loopholes in
their houses, while others discharged them from the outside. We were not
upon our guard, as we had supposed them friends, and consequently we
suffered severely. We retreated to the outside of the village. Our
baggage remained where it had been thrown down, and as soon as the Indians
discovered we had fled, they shut the gates of the village, and commenced
to pillage our baggage.
The governor ordered sixty or eighty horsemen to arrange them-selves
into four platoons, and attack the village in four different places. He
directed the first who should enter the village to set fire to the houses,
while the rest of the soldiers were ordered not to let any escape. We
fought from morning till night, without a single Indian asking for
quarters. When night came, only three Indians were found left guarding
the twenty women who had danced before us. Two of these were killed, and
the other, ascending a tree, took the string from his bow and hung himself
from one of the limbs. We lost twenty men killed, and had two hundred and
fifty wounded.* During the night we dressed the wounded with the fat of
the slain Indians, because our medicine was burnt with the baggage. We
remained here twenty-seven or eight days, until the wounded could recover.
We then departed, taking with us the women, whom we distributed among the
wounded to nurse them.
The Indians had told us we were more than forty leagues from the
one hundred miles from Pensacola. There is little doubt that it gave the
name to the present river and bay of Mobile.
* Garcilaso de la Yega states the loss of the Spaniards to be
eighty-two, and the Indians above eleven thousand.
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sea. We desired the governor to approach it, so that we might get some
news from the brigantines, but he dared not do it, as it was now already
in the middle of November, and he wished to find a country where there
were provisions, and could go into winter quarters. We marched north ten
or twelve days, suffering intensely from the cold, until at length we
reached a fertile province, where we went into winter quarters. The cold
here is greater than in Spain. This province is called Chicaca.* The
Indians defended the rivers we had to cross, but afterwards they fled to
the woods. In seven or eight days after, the cacique sent envoys to the
governor. They were well received by him, and he sent word to the cacique
to present himself. The cacique came in a litter, and brought with him
rabbits, and whatever he could procure in the country, to give us to eat.
At night we surprised some Indians who pretended they had come into our
camp to see how we slept. Suspecting their motives we increased our
guards. As these Indians knew how we had placed our guards, three hundred
entered the village and set fire to it. They killed fifty-seven horses,
three hundred hogs, and thirteen or fourteen of our men, and afterwards
fled.
We remained here the next day, in a very bad condition. We had a few
horses left, but we had no saddles, lances, or shields, for all had been
burnt. In five days after, the Indians renewed the attack. They marched to
battle in great order, and attacked us on three sides. We went out to meet
them, and put them to flight. We sojourred here two months, during which
time we made saddles, lances, and shields, after which we marched to the
north-west, until we reached the province of Alibamo.+ Here the Indians
had built a strong palisade, and had three hundred men to defend it, with
orders to die rather than to let us pass through. As soon as we perceived
the warriors behind the palisade, we thought they had provisions, or
something valuable behind it. We were in great want of provisions, and
knew that we had to cross a great desert before we could find any. We,
therefore, arranged ourselves into two divisions, and attacked the enemy.
We carried the palisade, but we lost seven or eight men, and had
twenty-five wounded. We found enough provisions behind the palisade to
last us our journey of ten or twelve days through the desert. The wounded
and sick gave us a great deal of trouble, and on the last day we very
unexpectedly entered a village called Quiz Quiz.++
* Supposed to be the country of the Chicasaws.
+ This province gave its name to the Alabama River.
++ The Chisca of Garcilaso de la Vega.
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The people here were poor and miserable, and were working their corn
fields when we entered it. The village was built on the banks of the
Saint Esprit. It was tributary, like many others, to the sovereign of
Pacaha.
We left the village to encamp on the banks of the river. Here we
found the Indians had gathered to dispute our passage. They had with them
a great number of canoes. We remained here twenty- eight or nine days,
and built four large pirogues, capable of containing seventy or eighty men
each, and five or six horses. In the meantime, every day at three o'clock
in the afternoon, the Indians got into two hundred and fifty canoes,
dressed with flags, and approached our side of the river to shoot their
arrows at us, but as soon as we had finished our pirogues they made a
precipitate retreat. The river* here was about a league wide, and from
nineteen to twenty fathoms deep. We ascended this river to the province
of Pacaha, but before we arrived there we came to another province, whose
sovereign was named Yeasqui. He came to us and professed a great deal of
friendship, but he was at war with the nation we had just left. He was
well received by the governor, and that night we encamped on a plain in
sight of his village, where we remained two days. The caciques of this
country make a custom of raising, near their dwellings, very high hills,
on which they sometimes build their huts. On one of these we planted the
Cross, and went with much devotion on our knees to kiss the foot of it.
On the same evening we returned to our camp, and on the following morning
we set out for Pacaha. We journeyed two days, and reached a village in
the midst of a plain surrounded by walls, and a ditch filled with water,
which had been made by the Indians. We approached it cautiously, and when
we got near it, we saw the inhabitants going off. We entered it without
any trouble, and took a few Indians. While we remained here the cacique
whom we left behind us joined us, with a numerous troop of Indians, and
offered to assist us. The governor received him graciously, and presented
him with all the treasures we had found in the village, after which he
went away quietly.
We remained at this village twenty-six or seven days, anxious to
learn if we could take the northern route, and cross to the South Sea. We
then marched north-east, where we were told we would find large towns. We
traveled eight days through swamps, after which we met a troop of Indians,
who lived under movable tents. They informed
* The Mississippi River.
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us that there were other tribes like themselves, who pitched their tents
wherever they found deer, and carried their tents and provisions with them
on their backs from place to place. We next came to the province of
Calusi. The natives attend but little to the cultivation of land, and
live principally on fish and game. Seeing there was no way of reaching
the South Sea, we returned towards the north, and afterwards in a south-
west direction, to a province called Quigata,* where we found the largest
village we had yet seen in all our travels. It was situated on one of the
branches of a great river. We remained here six or eight days to procure
guides and interpreters, with the intention of finding the sea. The
Indians informed us there was a province eleven days off, where they
killed buffaloes, and where we could find guides to conduct us to the sea.
We set out for this province, which they called Coligua.+ There was
no road leading to it, and every day brought us to a swamp, where we
feasted on fish. We then crossed vast plains and high mountains, when
suddenly we came to the town of Coligua, where we found an abundance of
provisions, and a quantity of dry hides. We inquired here for other
villages, and they directed us to go west and south-west, and we should
find them. We accordingly followed their direction, and came to some
scattered villages bearing the name of Tatel Coya. Here we found a large
river,++ emptying into the Rio Grande. We were told that if we were to
ascend this river we should find a large province called Cayas.§ We
repaired thither, and found it a mountainous country, and composed of
populous villages. We then set out for the province of Tula** winter
quarters. But before reaching it, we had to cross very high mountains.
We came to an Indian village, where they defended themselves so bravely
that we lost seven or eight men, and as many horses. The following morning
the governor took guides, and ordered the troops to be in readiness to
march to the next province, which the Indians called Quipana, situated at
the foot of very high mountains. From thence we turned towards the east,
and crossing these mountains we descended into an inhabited plain,
favorable to our designs, and where there was a large
* Supposed to be near Little Rock, Arkansas.
+ The Coligoa of Vega, supposed to have been situated towards the
sources of the St. Francis, or the hills of the White River.
++ Probably the St. Francis.
§ Supposed to have been the country of the Quapaws.
** Supposed to have been the country between the Washita and the Little
Missouri.
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village built on the banks of a river,* which emptied into the great river
we had passed. This province was called Vicanque. Here we went into
winter quarters, and suffered so much from the cold and snow that we
thought we should all have perished.
The Christian+ whom we took, and who had served us as an interpreter,
died in this place. In the beginning of March we descended this river,
passing through populous provinces, until we came at last to a country the
Indians called Anicoyanque. A cacique called Guachoyanque came to see us.
He lived on the banks of the Great River. The governor set out immediately
with the Cacique for the village of Guachoyanque.++ His village was
fortified and well surrounded by walls. At this place the governor had
determined to build some brigantines to send to Cuba, to let them know
that he was still alive. He sent his captain to find out the direction of
the sea. He returned back in a few days, saying that the vast swamps
which the Great River had formed, prevented him from doing so. At length
the governor, finding his situation becoming every day more embarrassing,
and his affairs going wrong, fell sick and died.§ He appointed Luis de
Moscoso his successor. Not finding any way of reaching the sea by the
Great River, Luis de Moscoso determined on going by land to Mexico. When
we set out, we traveled twenty-seven days in a westerly direction to the
province of Chaviti, where the Indians made salt.** From thence we went
in three days to the province of Aquacay.
The Indians told us here that the country beyond was a wilderness and
uninhabited. That to find villages we must go towards the south-east. We
then came to a province called Nissione, then to
* Supposed to be the Arkansas.
+ Juan Ortiz.
++ Supposed to be situated a short distance from the Mississippi, the
Guachoya of Vega.
§ Thus died at the age of forty-two, Hernando de Soto, one of the
bravest of the many leaders who figured in the first discoveries of the
Western world. No one was better qualified to rule the hardy spirits
under him. He was stern in command; agreeable in his common intercourse,
gentle and courteous in his manners; patient and persevering under all
difficulties. His body was enclosed in the trunk of a green oak, and
conveyed to the middle of the Mississippi, where it was sunk in nineteen
fathoms water. Thus the first discoverer of the Mississippi River made
his grave in the bosom of its waters. ** Supposed to be the salines of
the Washita River.
Nassonis.
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Naudacho,* and Lacame. We made inquiries here about the province of
Xuacatino. The cacique of Naudacho gave us a guide to conduct us through
the country. He led us accordingly into a wilderness, and when we got
there he told us that his master had ordered him to take us to a country
where we should die with hunger. We now took another guide, who conducted
us to the province of Hais, where we saw buffaloes, but the Indians
prevented us from killing them. We came to Xuacatin, and passed some
small villages, without finding any provisions. We then returned towards
the south, determined to die or reach New Spain. We continued to march in
this direction eight or nine days more, hoping to provide ourselves with
provisions for the journey.+ We arrived at last at some miserable huts,
where the Indians lived by hunting and fishing, and finding that our corn
must soon give out, we resolved to return to the village where Governor
Soto had died, to build some vessels to return to our country. But when we
arrived there we did not find the facilities we had expected, and were
obliged to seek another place, to go into winter quarters, and build our
vessels.
God permitted us to find two villages to suit our purposes,++ upon
the Great River.§ These villages were fortified. We remained here six
months to build seven brigantines. We launched them on the river, and it
was a miracle they did not leak. They sailed well, although they were
calked with the thin bark of mulberry trees. When we embarked the troops
we intended if we could find a village on the seashore to stop there,
until we could send two brigantines with dispatches to the Viceroy of New
Spain, to send us vessels to return it to Spain. On the second day out, as
we were descending the river, some forty or fifty canoes came towards us,
in one of which were eighty warriors. They shot arrows at us, and
captured some of the small canoes we had taken with us, in which were
twelve of our best soldiers. The current of the river was so rapid that
we could not go to their assistance. Encouraged by this victory, the
Indians continued to harass us until
* Nagodoches.
+ The march of Moscoso west of the Mississippi was evidently on the
hunting-grounds of the far west, and got upon the prairies, where in many
parts they were little better than deserts.
++ Aminoya and----, supposed to have been situated in the neighborhood
of the present town of Helena, a few miles above the mouth of the Arkansas
River.
§ Moscoso and his followers committed themselves to the Mississippi on
the second of July, 1543.
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we reached the sea, which took us nineteen days. They soon discovered
that we had neither arquebuses nor cross-bows to reach them. The only arms
we had were some swords and shields, consequently they had nothing to fear
from us. We entered the sea through one of the mouths of the river,* and
for three days and nights we could not see land, but after that we came in
sight of it, and took in some water to drink. At length we perceived
towards the west some small islands, which we followed, keeping close to
the shore, to find something to eat, until we entered the River Panuco,
where we were kindly received by the inhabitants.
Signed LUIS FERNANDEZ DE BIEDMA,
(Facteur de sa Majesté.)
* The Mississippi. The Indian name of this river, says de la Vega, on
the authority of Juan Coles, one of De Soto's followers, was Chucagua. In
one place they called it Tamalisen, in another Tapata, and where it enters
the sea, River. The Spaniards called it "La Pallisade," "Rio Escondido,"
or the lost river.
+ The Spaniards went to sea on the 18th July, and arrived in the river
Panuco on the 10th September, 1543. The inhabitants of Panuco, says
Garcilaso de la Vega, were all touched with pity at beholding this forlorn
remnant of the gallant armament of the renowned Hernando de Soto. They
were blackened, haggard, shriveled, and half naked, being clad only with
the skins of deer, buffaloes, bears, and other animals, looking more like
wild beasts than human beings.
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Volume 2 Chapter 6
[Page 111]
A NARRATIVE
OF THE
EXPIDITION OF HERNANDO DE SOTO
INTO
FLORIDA.
BY A GENTLEMAN OF ELVAS.
PUBLISHED AT EVORA 1557.
TRANSLATED FROM THE PORTUGUESE
BY
RICHARD HACKLUYT.
LONDON, 1609.
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[Page 112]
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[Page 113]
A NARRATIVE
OF THE
EXPEDITION OF HERNANDO DE SOTO
INTO
FLORIDA.
CAPTAIN SOTO was the son of a squire of Xerez of Badajoz. He went
into the Spanish Indies, when Peter Arias of Avila was Governor of the
West Indies. And there he was without anything else of his own, save his
sword and target: and for his good qualities and valor, Peter Arias made
him captain of a troop of horsemen, and by his commandment he went with
Fernando Pizarro to the conquest of Peru: where (as many persons of
credit reported, which were there present) as well at the taking of
Atabalipa, Lord of Peru, as at the assault of the city of Cusco, and in
all other places where they found resistance, wheresoever he was present,
he passed all other captains and principal persons. For which cause,
besides his part of the treasure of Atabalipa, he had a good share;
whereby in time he gathered a hundred and four score thousand ducats
together, with that which fell to his part; which he brought into Spain;
whereof the Emperor borrowed a certain part, which he repaid again with
60,000 rials of plate in the rent of the silks of Granada, and all the
rest was delivered him in the contractation house of Seville. He took
servants to wit, a steward, a gentleman usher, pages, a gentleman of the
horse, a chamberlain, lackeys, and all other officers that the house of a
noble may require. From Seville he went to the court, and in the
court, there accompanied him John Danusco of Seville, and Lewis Moscoso
D'Alvarado, Nuño de Touar, and John Rodriquez Lobillo.
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Page 114
Except John Danusco, all the rest came with him from Peru: and every one
of them brought fourteen or fifteen thousand ducats: all of them went well
and costly appareled. And although Soto of his own nature was not
liberal, yet because that was the first time that he was to show himself
in the court, he spent frankly, and went accompanied with those which I
have named, and with his servants, and many others which resorted unto
him. He married with Donna Isabella de Bobadilla, daughter of Peter Arias
of Avila, Earl of Punno en Rostro. The Emperor made him the Governor of
the Isle of Cuba, and Adelantado or President of Florida; with a title of
Marquis of certain part of the lands that he should conquer.
When Don Ferdinando had obtained the government, there came a
gentleman from the Indies to the court, named Cabeça de Vaca, which had
been with the Governor Pamphilo de Narvaez which died in Florida, who
reported that Narvaez was cast away at sea with all the company that went
with him. And how he with four more escaped and arrived in Nueva España.
Also he brought a relation in writing, of that which he had seen in
Florida; which said in some places: In such a place I have seen this; and
the rest which here I saw, I leave to confer of between his Majesty and
myself. Generally he reported the misery of the country, and the troubles
which he passed: and he told some of his kinsfolk, which were desirous to
go into the Indies, and urged him very much to tell them whether he had
seen any rich country in Florida, that he might not tell them, because he
and another, whose name was Orantes, (who remained in Nueva España with
purpose to return into Florida: for which intent he came into Spain to beg
the government thereof of the Emperor) had sworn not to discover some of
those things which they had seen, because no man should prevent them in
begging the same. And he informed them that it was the richest country of
the world. Don Ferdinando de Soto was very desirous to have him with him,
and made him a favorable offer: and after they were agreed, because Soto
gave him not a sum of money which he demanded to buy a ship, they broke
off again. Baltasar de Gallegos, and Christopher de Spindola, the kinsmen
of Cabeça de Vaca, told him, that for that which he had imparted to them,
they were resolved to pass with Soto into Florida, and therefore they
prayed him to advise them what they were best to do. Cabeça de Vaca told
them, that the cause why he went not with Soto, was because he hoped to
beg another government, and that he was loth to go under the command of
another: and that he came to beg the conquest
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Page 115
of Florida: but seeing Don Ferdinando de Soto had gotten it already, for
his oath's sake he might tell them nothing of that which they would know:
but he counseled them to sell their goods and go with him, and that in so
doing they should do well. As soon as he had opportunity, he spake with
the Emperor, and related unto him whatsoever he had passed and seen, and
come to understand. Of this relation, made by word of mouth to the
Emperor, the Marquis of Astorga had notice, and forthwith determined to
send with Don Ferdinando de Soto his brother Don Antonio Osorio: and with
him two kinsmen of his prepared themselves, to wit, Francis Osorio, and
Garcia Osorio. Don Antonio dispossessed himself of 60,000 rials of rent
which he held by the church; and Francis Osorio of a town of vassals,
which he had in the country de Campos. And they made their rendezvous
with the Adelantado in Seville. The like did Nuñez de Touar, and Lewis de
Moscoso, and John Rodriguez Lobillo, each of whom had brought from Peru
fourteen or fifteen thousand ducats. Lewis de Moscoso carried with him
two brethren; there went also Don Carlos, which had married the governor's
niece, and took her with him. From Badajoz there went Peter Calderan, and
three kinsmen of the Adelantado, to wit, Arias Tinoco, Alfonso Romo, and
Diego Tinoco. And as Lewis de Moscoso passed through Elvas* Andrew de
Vasconcelos spake with him, and requested him to speak to Don Ferdinando
de Soto concerning him, and delivered him certain warrants which he had
received from the Marquis of Villa Real, wherein he gave him the
captainship of Ceuta in Bararie, that he might show them unto him. And
the Adelantado saw them; and was informed who he was, and wrote unto him,
that he would favor him in all things, and by all means, and would give
him a charge of men in Florida. And from Elvas went Andrew de
Vasconcelos, and Fernan Pegado, Antonio Martinez Sequrado, Men Roiz
Pereira, John Cordero, Stephen Pegado, Benedict Fernandez, and Alvaro
Fernandez. And out of Salamanca, and Jean, and Valencia, and Albuquerque,
and from other parts of Spain, many people of noble birth, assembled at
Seville, insomuch that in Saint Lucar many men of good account, which had
sold their goods, remained behind for want of shipping, whereas for other
known and rich countries, they are wont to want men: and this fell out by
occasion of that which Cabeça de Vaca+ told the Emperor, and informed such
persons as he had conference
* Elvas is a city in Portugal.
+ Cabeça de Vaca was the Governor of the River of Plate.
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withal touching the state of that Country. Soto made him great offers,
and being agreed to go with him (as I have said before) because he would
not give him money to pay for a ship, which he had bought, they brake off,
and he went for governor to the river of Plate. His kinsmen, Christopher
de Spindola and Baltasar de Gallegos, went with Soto. Baltasar de
Gallegos sold houses and vineyards, and rent corn, and ninety ranks of
olive trees in the Xarafe of Seville. He had the office of Alcalde Mayor,
and took his wife with him. And there went also many other persons of
account with the President, and had the offices following by great
friendship, because they were offices desired of many, to wit, Antonie de
Biedma was factor, John Danusco was auditor, and John Gayton, nephew to
the Cardinal of Ciguenza, had the office of treasurer.
The Portuguese departed from Elvas the 15th of January, and came to
Seville the 19th of the same month, and went to the lodging of the
Governor, and entered into a court, over the which were certain galleries
where he was, who came down and received them at the stairs, whereby they
went up into the galleries. When he was come up, he commanded chairs to
be given them to sit on. And Andrew de Vasconcelos told him who he and
the other Portuguese were, and how they all were come to accompany him,
and serve him in his voyage. He gave him thanks, and made show of great
contentment for his coming and offer. And the table being already laid,
he invited them to dinner. And being at dinner, he commanded his steward
to seek a lodging for them near unto his own, where they might be lodged.
The Adelantado departed from Seville to Saint Lucar with all the people
which were to go with him. And he commanded a muster to be made, at the
which the Portuguese showed themselves armed in very bright armor, and the
Castellans very gallant with silk upon silk, with many pinkings and cuts.
The Governor, because these braveries in such an action did not like him,
commanded that they should muster another day, and every one should come
forth with his armor; at the which the Portuguese came as at the first
armed with very good armor. The Governor placed them in order near unto
the standard, which the ensign bearer carried. The Castellans, for the
most part, did wear very bad and rusty shirts of mail, and all of them
head- pieces and steel caps, and very bad lances. Some of them sought to
come among the Portuguese. So those passed and were counted and enrolled
which Soto liked and accepted of, and did accompany him into Florida;
which were in all six hundred men. He had already bought seven ships, and
had all necessary provision
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aboard them. He appointed captains, and delivered to every one his ship,
and gave them in a roll what people every one should carry with them.
In the year of our Lord 1538, in the month of April, the Adelantado
delivered his ships to the captains which were to go in them; and took for
himself a new ship, and good of sail, and gave another to Andrew de
Vasconcelos, in which the Portuguese went; he went over the bar of St.
Lucar on Sunday, being St. Lazarous on Sunday, in the morning of the month
and year aforesaid, with great joy, commanding his trumpets to be sounded,
and many shots of the ordnance to be discharged. He sailed four days with
a prosperous wind, and suddenly it calmed; the calms continued eight days
with swelling seas, in such wise that we made no way. The fifteenth day
after his departure from St. Lucar, he came to Gomera, one of the
Canaries, on Easter day in the morning. The Earl of that island was
appareled all in white, cloak, jerkin, hose, shoes and cap, so that he
seemed a Lord of the Gipsies. He received the Governor with much joy; he
was well lodged, and all the rest had their lodgings gratis, and got great
store of victuals for their money, as bread, wine, and flesh; and they
took what was needful for their ships, and the Sunday following, eight
days after their arrival, they departed from the Isle of Gomera. The Earl
gave to Donna Isabella, the Adelantado's wife, a bastard daughter that he
had, to be her waiting-maid. They arrived at the Antilles, in the Isle of
Cuba, at the port of the city of St. Jago, upon Whit-Sunday. As soon as
they came thither, a gentleman of the city sent to the sea-side a very
fair roan horse, and well furnished, for the Governor, and a mule for
Donna Isabella, and all the horsemen and footmen that were in the town
came to receive him at the seaside. The Governor was well lodged,
visited, and served of all the inhabitants of the city, and all his
company had their lodgings freely: those which desired to go into the
country, were divided by four and four, and six and six, in the farms or
granges, according to the ability of the owners of the farms, and were
furnished by them with all things necessary.
The city of St. Jago hath fourscore houses, which are great and well
contrived. The most part have their walls made of boards, and are covered
with thatch; it hath some houses built with lime and stones, and covered
with tiles. It hath great orchards and many trees in them, differing from
those of Spain: there be fig trees which bear figs as big as one's fist,
yellow within, and of small taste; and other trees which bear a fruit
which they call Ananes, in making and bigness like to a small pineapple:
it is a fruit very sweet in taste: the shell being taken
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away, the kernel is like a piece of fresh cheese. In the granges abroad
in the country there are other great pineapples, which grow on low trees,
and are like the Aloe tree: they are of a very good smell and exceeding
good taste. Other trees do bear a fruit which they call Mameis, of the
bigness of peaches. This the islanders do hold for the best fruit of the
country. There is another fruit which they call Guayabas, like filberts,
as big as figs. There are other trees as high as a javelin, having one
only stock without any bough, and the leaves as long as a casting dart;
and the fruit is of the bigness and fashion of a cucumber; one bunch
beareth twenty or thirty, and as they ripen the tree bendeth downward with
them: they are called in this country Plantanos, and are of a good taste,
and ripen after they be gathered; but those are the better which ripen
upon the tree itself; they bear fruit but once, and the tree being cut
down, there spring up others out of the but, which bear fruit the next
year. There is another fruit, whereby many people are sustained, and
chiefly the slaves, which are called Batatas. These grow now in the Isle
of Terçera, belonging to the kingdom of Protugal, and they grow within the
earth, and are like a fruit called Iname; they have almost the taste of a
chestnut. The bread of this country is also made of roots which are like
the Batatas.* And the stock whereon those roots do grow is like an elder
tree: they make their ground in little hillocks, and in each of them they
thrust four or five stakes; and they gather the roots a year and a half
after they set them. If any one, thinking it is a batata or potato root,
chance to eat of it never so little, he is in great danger of death: which
was seen by experience in a soldier, which as soon as he had eaten a very
little of one of those roots, he died quickly. They pare these roots and
Stamp them, and squeeze them in a thing like a press: the juice that
cometh from them is of an evil smell. The bread is of little taste and
less substance. Of the fruits of Spain, there are figs and oranges, and
they bear fruit all the year, because the soil is very rank and fruitful.
In this country are many good horses, and there is green grass all the
year. There be many wild oxen and hogs, whereby the people of the island
are well furnished with flesh. Without the towns abroad in the Country are
many fruits. And it happeneth sometimes that a Christian goeth out of the
way and is lost fifteen or twenty days, because of the many paths in the
thick groves that cross to and fro made by the oxen; and being thus lost
they sustain themselves with fruits and palmîtos--for there be many
* The Cassavi root.
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great groves of palm trees through all the island--they yield no other
fruit that is of any profit. The Isle of Cuba is three hundred leagues
long from the east to the west, and is in some places thirty, in others
forty leagues from north to south. It hath six towns of Christians, to
wit, St. Jago, Baracôa, Bayamo, Puerto de Principes, S. Espirito, Havana.
Every one hath between thirty and forty households, except St. Jago and
Havana, which have about sixty or eighty houses. They have churches in
each of them, and a chaplain which confesseth them and saith mass. In St.
Jago is a monastery of Franciscan friars; it hath but few friars, and is
well provided of alms, because the country is rich. The Church of St.
Jago hath honest revenue, and there is a curate and prebends, and many
priests, as the church of that city, which is the chief of all the island.
There is in this country much gold and few slaves to get it; for many have
made away themselves, because of the Christians' evil usage of them in the
mines. A steward of Casquez Porcallo, which was an inhabitor in that
island, understanding that his slaves would make away themselves, stayed
for them with a cudgel in his hand at the place where they were to meet,
and told them that they could neither do nor think anything that he did
not know before, and that he came thither to kill himself, with them, to
the end, that if he had used them badly in this world, he might use them
worse in the world to come: and this was a means that they changed their
purpose, and turned home again to do that which he commanded them.
The Governor sent from St. Jago his nephew Don Carlos, with the ships
in company of Donna Isabella to tarry for him at Havana, which is a haven
in the west part toward the head of the island, one hundred and eighty
leagues from the city of St. Jago. The Governor, and those which stayed
with him, bought horses and proceeded on their journey. The first town
they came unto was Bayamo: they were lodged four and four, and six and
six, as they went in company, and where they lodged, they took nothing for
their diet, for nothing cost them aught save the maize or corn for their
horses, because the Governor went to visit them from town to town, and
seized them in the tribute and service of the Indians. Bayamo is
twenty-five leagues from the city of St. Jago. Near unto the town passeth
a great river which is called Tanto; it is greater than Guadiana, and in
it be very great crocodiles, which sometimes hurt the Indians, or the
cattle which passeth the river. In all the country are neither wolf, fox,
bear, lion, nor tiger. There are wild dogs which go from the houses into
the woods and feed upon swine. There be certain
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snakes as big as a man's thigh or bigger; they are very slow, they do no
kind of hurt. From Bayamo to Puerto de los Principes are fifty leagues.
In all the island from town to town, the way is made by stubbing up the
underwood; and if it be left but one year undone, the wood groweth so much
that the way cannot be seen, and the paths of the oxen are so many, that
none can travel without an Indian of the country for a guide: for all the
rest is very high and thick woods. From Puerto de los Principes the
Governor went to the house of Vasquez Porcallo by sea in a boat (for it
was near the sea) to know there some news of Donna Isabella, which at that
instant (as afterwards was known) was in great distress, insomuch that the
ships lost one another, and two of them fell on the coast of Florida, and
all of them endured great want of water and victuals. When the storm was
over, they met together without knowing where they were: in the end they
descried the Cape of St. Anton, a country not inhabited of the island of
Cuba; there they watered, and at the end of forty days, which were passed
since their departure from the city of St. Jago, they arrived at Havana.
The Governor was presently informed thereof, and went to Donna Isabella.
And those which went by land, which were one hundred and fifty horsemen,
being divided into two parts, because they would not oppress the
inhabitants, traveled by St. Espirito, which is sixty leagues from Puerto
de los Principes. The food which they carried with them was Caçabe bread,
which is that whereof I made mention before: and it is of such a quality
that if it be wet it breaketh presently, whereby it happened to some to
eat flesh without bread for many days. They carried dogs with them, and a
man of the country, which did hunt; and by the way, or where they were to
lodge that night, they killed as many hogs as they needed. In this
journey they were well provided of beef and pork, and they were greatly
troubled with musquitoes, especially in a lake, which is called the mere
of Pia, which they had much ado to pass from noon till night. The water
might be some half league over, and to be swam about a crossbow shot; the
rest came to the waist, and they waded up to the knees in the mire, and in
the bottom were cockle shells, which cut their feet very sore, in such
sort that there was neither boot nor shoe sole that was whole at half way.
Their clothes and saddles were passed in baskets of palm trees. Passing
this lake, stripped out of their clothes, there came many mosquitoes, upon
whose biting there arose a wheal that smarted very much; they struck them
with their hands, and with the blow which they gave they killed so many
that the blood did run down the arms and bodies of the men. That
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night they rested very little for them, and other nights also in the like
places and times. They came to Santo Espirito , which is a town of thirty
houses; there passeth by it a little river; it is very pleasant and
fruitful, having great store of oranges and citrons, and fruits of the
Country. One-half of the company were lodged here, and the rest passed
forward twenty-five leagues to another town called la Trinidad, of fifteen
or twenty househo]ds. Here is an hospital for the poor, and there is none
other in all the island. And they say that this town was the greatest in
all the country, and that before the Christians came into this land, as a
ship passed along the coast there came in it a very sick man, which
desired the captain to set him on shore, and the captain did so, and the
ship went her way. The sick man remained set on shore in that country,
which until then had not been haunted by Christians; whereupon the Indians
found him, carried him home, and looked unto him till he was whole; and
the lord of that town married him unto a daughter of his, and had war with
all the inhabitants round about, and by the industry and valor of the
Christian, he subdued and brought under his command all the people of that
island. A great while after, the Governor Diego Velasques went to conquer
it, and from thence discovered New Spain. And this Christian which was
with the Indians did pacify them, and brought them to the obedience and
subjection of the governor. From this town de la Trinidad unto Havana are
eighty leagues, without any habitation, which they traveled. They came to
Havana in the end of March, where they found the Governor, and the rest of
the people which came with him from Spain. The Governor sent from Havana
John Dannusco with a caravele and two brigantines with fifty men to
discover the haven of Florida, and from thence he brought two Indians
which he took upon the coast, wherewith (as well because they might be
necessary for guides and for interpreters, as because they said by signs
that there was much gold in Florida) the Governor and all the company
received much contentment, and longed for the hour of their departure,
thinking in himself that this was the richest country that unto that day
had been discovered.
Before our departure the Governor deprived Nuño de Touar of the
office of Captain-general, and gave it to Porcallo de Figueroa, an
inhabitant of Cuba, which was a mean that the ship was well furnished with
victuals; for he gave a great many loads of Casabe bread and many hogs.
The Governor took away this office from Nuño de Touar, because he had
fallen in love with the daughter of the
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Earl of Gomera, Donna Isabella's waiting- maid, who, though his office
were taken from him (to return again to the Governor's favor), though she
were with child by him, yet took her to his wife, and went with Soto into
Florida. The Governor left Donna Isabella in Havana, and with her
remained the wife of Don Carlos, and the wives of Baltasar de Gallegos,
and of Nuño de Touar. And he left for his lieutenant a gentleman of
Havana, called John de Poias, for the government of the island.
On Sunday the 18th of May, in the year of our Lord 1539, the
Adelantado or president departed from Havana in Cuba with his fleet, which
were nine vessels, five great ships, two caravels, and two brigantines.
They sailed seven days with a prosperous wind. The 25th day of May, the
day de Pasca de Spirito Santo* (which we call Whitson Sunday), they saw
the land of Florida, and because of the shoals, they came to an anchor a
league from the shore. On Friday the 30th of May they landed in Florida,
two leagues from a town of an Indian lord called Ucita. They set on land
two hundred and thirteen horses, which they brought with them to unburden
the ships, that they might draw the less water. He landed all his men,
and only the seamen remained in the ships, which in eight days, going up
with the tide every day a little, brought them up unto the town. As soon
as the people were come on shore, he pitched his camp on the sea-side,
hard upon the bay which went up unto the town. And presently the
Captain-general, Vasquez Porcallo, with other seven horsemen foraged the
country half a league round about, and found six Indians, which resisted
him with their arrows, which are the weapons which they used to fight
withal. The horsemen killed two of them, and the other four escaped;
because the country is cumbersome with woods and hogs, where the horses
stuck fast, and fell with their riders, because they were weak with
traveling upon the sea. The same night following, the Governor with an
hundred men in the brigantines lighted upon a town, which he found without
people, because that as soon as the Christians had sight of land, they
were descried, and saw along the coast many smokes, which the Indians had
made to give advice the one to the other. The next day Luys de Moscoso,
master of the camp, set the men in order, the horsemen in three squadrons,
the vanguard, the battalion, and the rereward; and so they marched that
day and the day following, compassing great creeks which came out of the
bay. They came to the town of Ucita,
* Tampa Bay, on the west side of Florida.
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where the Governor was on Sunday the first of June, being Trinity Sunday.
The town was of seven or eight houses. The lord's house stood near the
shore upon a very high mount, made by hand for strength. At another end
of the town stood the church, and on the top of it stood a fowl made of
wood with gilded eyes. Here were found some pearls of small value,
spoiled with the fire, which the Indians do pierce and string them like
beads, and wear them about their necks and handwrists, and they esteem
them very much. The houses were made of timber, and covered with palm
leaves. The Governor lodged himself in the lord's houses, and with him
Vasquez Porcallo, and Luys de Moscoso; and in others that were in the
midst of the town, was the chief Alcalde or justice, Baltasar de Gallegos
lodged; and in the same houses was set in a place by itself all the
provision that came in the ships; the other houses and the church were
broken down, and every three or four soldiers made a little cabin wherein
they lodged. The Country round about was very fenny, and encumbered with
great and high trees. The Governor commanded to fell the woods a crossbow
shot round about the town, that the horses might run, and the Christians
might have the advantage of the Indians, if by chance they should set upon
them by night. In the ways and places convenient they had their sentinels
of footmen by two and two in every stand, which did watch by turns, and
the horsemen did visit them, and were ready to assist them if there were
any alarm. The Governor made four captains of the horsemen and two of the
footmen. The captains of the horsemen were one of them Andrew de
Masconcelos, and another Pedro Calderan de Badajoz; and the other two were
his kinsmen, to wit, Arias Timoco, and Alfonso Romo, born likewise in
Badajoz. The captains of the footmen, the one was Francisco Maldonado of
Salamanca, and the other Juan Rodriquez Lobillo. While we were in this
town of Ucita, the two Indians which John Danusco had taken on that coast,
and the Governor carried along with him for guides and interpreters,
through carelessness of two men which had the charge of them escaped away
one night; for which the Governor and all the rest were very sorry, for
they had already made some roads, and no Indians could be taken, because
the country was full of marsh grounds, and in some places full of very
high and thick woods.
From the town of Ucita the Governor sent the Alcalde mayor, Baltasao
de Gallegos, with forty horsemen and eighty footmen into the country to
see if they could take any Indians; and the Captain John Rodriquez Lobillo
another way with fifty footmen: the most of
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them were swordsmen and targeters, and the rest were shot and crossbowmen.
They passed through a country full of hogs, where horses could not travel.
Half a league from the camp they lighted upon certain cabins of Indians
near a river. The people that were in them leaped into the river, yet they
took four Indian women. And twenty Indians charged us and so distressed
us, that we were forced to retire to our camp, being, as they are,
exceeding ready with their weapons. It is a people so warlike and so
nimble, that they care not a whit for any footmen. For if their enemies
charge them they run away, and if they turn their backs they are presently
upon them. And the thing that they most flee is the shot of an arrow.
They never stand still, but are always running and traversing from one
place to another, by reason whereof neither crossbow nor arquebuss can aim
at them; and before one crossbowman can make one shot an Indian will
discharge three or four arrows, and he seldom misseth what he shooteth at.
An arrow where it findeth no armor, pierceth as deeply as a crossbow.
Their bows are very long, and their arrows are made of certain canes like
reeds, very heavy, and so strong that a sharp cane passeth through a
target. Some they arm in the point with a sharp bone of a fish like a
chisel, and in others they fasten certain stones like points of diamonds.
For the most part when they light upon an armor they break in the place
where they are bound together. Those of cane do split and pierce a coat
of mail, and are more hurtful than the other. John Rodriquez Lobillo
returned to the camp with six men wounded, whereof one died; and brought
the four Indian women which Baltasar Gallegos had taken in the cabins or
cottages. Two leagues from the town, coming into the plain field, he
espied ten or eleven Indians, among whom was a Christian, which was naked
and scorched with the sun, and had his arms razed after the manner of the
Indians, and differed nothing at all from them. And as soon as the
horsemen saw them they ran toward them. The Indians fled, and some of them
hid themselves in a wood, and they overtook two or three of them which
were wounded; and the Christian seeing a horseman run upon him with his
lance, began to cry out, "Sirs, I am a Christian, slay me not, nor these
Indians, for they have saved my life." And straight-way he called them and
put them out of fear, and they came forth of the wood unto them. The
horsemen took both the Christian and the Indians up behind them, and
toward night came into the camp with much joy; which thing being known by
the Governor, and them that remained in the camp, they were received with
the like.
This Christian's name was John Ortiz, and he was born in Seville,
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of worshipful parentage. He was twelve years in the hands of the Indians.
He came into this country with Pamphilo de Narvaez, and returned in the
ships to the Island of Cuba, where the wife of the Governor Pamphilo de
Narvaez was, and by his commandment with twenty or thirty others in a
brigantine returned back again to Florida, and coming to the port in the
sight of the town, on the shore they saw a cane sticking in the ground,
and riven at the top, and a letter in it; and they believed that the
governor had left it there to give advertisement of himself when he
resolved to go up into the land, and they demanded it of four or five
Indians which walked along the sea-shore, and they bade them by signs to
come on shore for it, which against the will of the rest John Ortiz and
another did. And as soon as they were on land, from the houses of the
town issued a great number of Indians, which compassed them about and took
them in a place where they could not flee; and the other, which sought to
defend himself, they presently killed upon the place, and took John Ortiz
alive, and carried him to Ucita their lord. And those of the brigantine
sought not to land, but put themselves to sea, and returned to the Island
of Cuba. Ucita commanded to bind John Ortiz hand and foot upon four
stakes aloft upon a raft, and to make a fire under him, that there he
might be burned. But a daughter of his desired him that he would not put
him to death, alleging that one only Christian could do him neither hurt
nor good, telling him that it was more for his honor to keep him as a
captive. And Ucita granted her request, and commanded him to be cured of
his wounds; and as soon as he was whole he gave him the charge of the
keeping of the temple, because that by night the wolves did carry away the
dead corpses out of the same--who commended himself to God and took upon
him the charge of his temple. One night the wolves got from him the
corpse of a little child, the son of a principal Indian, and going after
them he threw a dart at one of the wolves, and struck that carried away
the corpse, who, feeling himself wounded left it, and fell down dead near
the place; and he not woting what he had done, because it was night, went
back again to the temple; the morning being come and finding not the body
of the child, he was very sad. As soon as Ucita knew thereof he resolved
to put him to death, and sent by the track which he said the wolves went,
and found the body of the child, and the wolf dead a little beyond,
whereat Ucita was much contented with the Christian, and with the watch
which he kept in the temple, and from thenceforward esteemed him much.
Three years after he fell into his hands there came another lord called
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Mocoça, who dwelleth two days' journey from the port, and burnt his town.
Ucita fled to another town that he had in another sea-port. Thus John
Ortiz lost his office and favor that he had with him. These people being
worshipers of the devil, are wont to offer up unto him the lives and blood
of their Indians, or of any other people they can come by; and they report
that when he will have them do that sacrifice unto him, he speaketh with
them, and telleth them that he is athirst, and willeth them to sacrifice
unto him. John Ortiz had notice by the damsel that had delivered him from
the fire, how her father was determined to sacrifice him the day
following, who willed him to flee to Mocoço, for she knew that he would
use him well; for she heard say that he had asked for him and said he
would be glad to see him, and because he knew not the way she went with
him half a league out of the town by night and set him in the way, and
returned because she would not be discovered. John Ortiz traveled all
that night, and by the morning came to a river which is the territory of
Mocoço, and there he saw two Indians fishing; and because they were in war
with the people of Ucita, and their languages were different, and he knew
not the language of Mocoço, he was afraid, because he could not tell them
who he was, nor how he came thither, nor was able to answer anything for
himself, that they would kill him, taking him for one of the Indians of
Ucita, and before they espied him he came to the place where they had laid
their weapons; and as soon as they saw him they fled toward the town, and
although he willed them to stay, because he meant to do them no hurt, yet
they understood him not, and ran away as fast as ever they could. And as
soon as they came to the town with great outcries, many Indians came forth
against him, and began to compass him to shoot at him. John Ortiz seeing
himself in so great danger, shielded himself with certain trees, and began
to shriek out and cry very loud, and to tell them that he was a Christian,
and that he was fled from Ucita, and was come to see and serve Mocoço his
lord. It pleased God that at that very instant there came thither an
Indian that could speak the language and understood him, and pacified the
rest, who told them what he said. Then ran from thence three or four
Indians to bear the news to their lord, who came forth a quarter of a
league from the town to receive him, and was very glad of him. He caused
him presently to swear according to the custom of the Christians, that he
would not run away from him to any other lord, and promised him to entreat
him very well; and that if at any time there came any Christians into that
country, he would freely let him go, and give him leave to go to
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them; and likewise took his oath to perform the same according to the
Indian custom. About three years after certain Indians, which were
fishing at sea two leagues from the town, brought news to Mocoço that they
had seen ships, and he called John Ortiz and gave him leave to go his way,
who taking his leave of him, with all the haste he could came to the sea,
and finding no ships he thought it to be some deceit, and that the cacique
had done the same to learn his mind. So he dwelt with Mocoço nine years,
with small hope of seeing any Christians. As soon as our Governor arrived
in Florida, it was known to Mocoço, and straightway he signified to John
Ortiz that Christians were lodged in the town of Ucita; and he thought he
had jested with him as he had done before, and told him that by this time
he had forgotten the Christians, and thought of nothing else but to serve
him. But he assured him that it was so, and gave him license to go unto
them, saying unto him that if he would not do it, and if the Christians
should go their way, he should not blame him, for he had fulfilled that
which he had promised him. The joy of John Ortiz was so great, that he
could not believe that it was true; notwithstanding he gave him thanks,
and took his leave of him, and Mocoço gave him ten or eleven principal
Indians to bear him company; and as they went to the port where the
Governor was, they met with Baltasar de Gallegos, as I have declared
before. As soon as he was come to the camp, the Governor commanded to
give him a suit of apparel, and very good armor, and a fair horse; and
inquired of him whether he had notice of any country where there was any
gold or silver. He answered, No, because he never went ten leagues
compass from the place where he dwelt; but that thirty leagues from
thence* dwelt an Indian lord, which was called Paracossi, to whom Mocoço
and Ucita, with all the rest of that coast paid tribute, and that he
peradventure might have notice of some good country, and that his land was
better than that of the sea-coast, and more fruitful and plentiful of
maize. Whereof the Governor received great contentment, and said that he
desired no more than to find victuals, that he might go into the main
land, for the land of Florida was so large, that in one place or other
there could not choose but be some rich country. The Cacique Mocoço came
to the port to visit the Governor, and made this speech following.
"Right high and mighty lord, I being lesser in mine own conceit for
to obey you, than any of those which you have under your command,
* From Spirito Santo or Tampa Bay.
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and greater in desire to do you greater services, do appear before your
lordship with so much confidence of receiving favor, as if in effect this
my good will were manifested unto you in works; not for the small service
I did unto you touching the Christian which I had in my power, in giving
him freely his liberty (for I was bound to do it to preserve mine honor,
and that which I had promised him), but because it is the part of great
men to use great magnificences. And I am persuaded that as in bodily
perfections, and commanding of good people, you do exceed all men in the
world, so likewise you do in the parts of the mind, in which you may boast
of the bounty of nature. The favor which I hope for of your lordship is,
that you would hold me for yours, and bethink yourself to command me
anything wherein I may do you service."
The Governor answered him, "That although in freeing and sending him
the Christian, he had preserved his honor and promise, yet he thanked him,
and held it in such esteem as it had no comparison; and that he would
always hold him as his brother, and would favor all things to the utmost
of his power." Then he commanded a shirt to be given him, and other
things, wherewith the cacique being very well contented, took his leave of
him, and departed to his own town.
From the Port de Spirito Santo where the Governor lay, he sent the
Alcalde Mayor Baltasar de Gallegos with fifty horsemen, and thirty or
forty footmen to the province of Paracossi, to view the disposition of the
country, and inform himself of the land farther inward, and to send him
word of such things as he found. Likewise he sent his ships back to the
Island of Cuba, that they might return within a certain time with
victuals. Basque Porcallo de Figueroa, which went with the Governor as
Captain-general, (whose principal intent was to send slaves from Florida
to the Island of Cuba, where he had his goods and mines,) having made some
inroads, and seeing no Indians were to be got, because of the great hogs
and woods that were in the country, considering the disposition of the
same, determined to return to Cuba. And though there was some difference
between and the Governor, whereupon they neither dealt nor conversed
together with good countenance, yet notwithstanding with loving words he
asked him leave and departed from him. Baltasar de Gallegos came to the
Paracossi. There came to him thirty Indians from the cacique, which was
absent from his town, and one of them made this speech:
"Paracossi, the lord of this province, whose vassals we are, sendeth
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us unto your worship, to know what it is that you seek in this his
country, and wherein he may do you service."
Baltasar de Gallegos said unto him that he thanked them very much for
their offer, willing them to warn their lord to come to his town, and that
there they would talk and confirm their peace and friendship, which he
much desired. The Indians went their way and returned next day, and said
that their lord was ill at ease, and therefore could not come; but that
they came on his behalf to see what he demanded. He asked them if they
knew or had notice of any rich country where there was gold or silver.
They told him they did, and that towards the west there was a province
which was called Cale; and that others that inhabited other countries had
war with the people of that country, where the most part of the year was
summer, and that there was much gold; and that when those their enemies
came to make war with them of Cale, these inhabitants of Cale did wear
hats of gold, in manner of head-pieces. Baltasar de Gallegos seeing that
the cacique came not, thinking all that they said was feigned, with intent
that in the meantime they might set themselves in safety, fearing that if
he did let them go, they would return no more, commanded the thirty
Indians to be chained, and sent word to the Governor by eight horsemen
what had passed; whereof the Governor with all that were with him at the
Port de Spirito Santo received great comfort, supposing that that which
the Indians reported might be true. He left Captain Calderan at the port,
with thirty horsemen and seventy footmen, with provision for two years,
and himself with all the rest marched into the main land, and came to the
Paracossi, at whose town Baltasar de Gallegos was; and from thence with
all his men took the way to Cale. He passed by a little town called
Acela, and came to another called Tocaste; and from thence he went before
with thirty horsemen and fifty footmen towards Cale. And passing by a
town whence the people were fled, they saw Indians a little distance from
thence in a lake, to whom the interpreter spoke. They came unto them and
gave them an Indian for a guide; and he came to a river with a great
current, and upon a tree which was in the midst of it, was made a bridge,
whereon the men passed; the horses swam over by a hawser, that they were
pulled by from the other side; for one, which they drove in at the first
without it, was drowned. From thence the Governor sent two horsemen to his
people that were behind, to make haste after him; because the way grew
long, and their victuals short. He came to Cale, and found the town
without people. He took three Indians which were spies, and tarried
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there for his people that came after, which were sore vexed with hunger
and evil ways, because the country was very barren of maize, low, and full
of water, bogs, and thick woods; and the victuals which they brought with
them from the Port de Spirito Santo, were spent. Wheresoever any town was
found, there were some beets, and he that came first gathered them, and
sodden with water and salt, did eat them without any other thing; and such
as could not get them, gathered the stalks of maize and eat them, which
because they were young had no maize in them. When they came to the river
which the Governor had passed, they found palmitos upon low palm trees
like those of Andalusia. There they met with the two horsemen which the
Governor sent unto them, and they brought news that in Cale there was
plenty of maize, at which news they all rejoiced. As soon as they came to
Cale, the Governor commanded them to gather all the maize that was ripe in
the field, which was sufficient for three months. At the gathering of it
the Indians killed three Christians, and one of them which were taken told
the Governor, that within seven days' journey there was a very great
province, and plentiful of maize, which was called Apalache. And
presently he departed from Cale with fifty horsemen, and sixty footmen.
He left the master of the camp, Luys de Moscoso, with all the rest of the
people there, with charge that he would not depart thence until he had
word from him. And because hitherto none had gotten any slaves, the bread
that every one was to eat he was fain himself to beat in a mortar made in
a piece of timber, with a pestle, and some of them did sift the flour
through their shirts of mail. They baked their bread upon certain
tileshares which they set over the fire, in such sort as heretofore I have
said they used to do in Cuba. It is so troublesome to grind their maize,
that there were many that would rather not eat it than grind it; and did
eat the maize parched and sodden.
The second day of August, 1539, the Governor departed from Cale; he
lodged in a little town called Ytara, and the next day in another called
Potano, and the third day at Utinama, and came to another town which they
named the town of Evil peace; because an Indian came in peace, saying,
that he was the cacique, and that he with his people would serve the
Governor, and that if he would set free twenty-eight persons, men and
women, which his men had taken the night before, he would command
provision to be brought him, and would give him a guide to instruct him in
his way. The Governor commanded them to be set at liberty, and to keep
him in safeguard. The next day in the morning there came many Indians, and
set
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themselves round about the town near to a wood. The Indian wished them to
carry him near them, and that he would speak unto them, and assure them,
and that they would do whatsoever he commanded them. And when he saw
himself near unto them he broke from them, and ran away so swiftly from
the Christians that there was none that could overtake him, and all of
them fled into the woods. The Governor commanded to loose a greyhound,
which was already fleshed on them, which passing by many other Indians,
caught the counterfeit cacique which had escaped from the Christians, and
held him till they came to take him. From thence the Governor lodged at a
town called Cholupaha, and because it had store of maize in it, they named
it Villa farta. Beyond the same there was a river, on which he made a
bridge of timber, and traveled two days through a desert. The 17th of
August he came to Caliquen, where he was informed of the province of
Apalache. They told him that Pamphilo de Narvaez had been there, and that
there he took shipping, because he could find no way to go forward. That
there was none other town at all; but that on both sides was all water.
The whole company were very sad for this news, and counseled the Governor
to go back to the Port de Spirito Santo, and to abandon the country of
Florida, lest he should perish as Narvaez had done; declaring that if he
went forward, he could not return back when he would, and that the Indians
would gather up that small quantity of maize which was left. Whereunto
the Governor answered that he would not go back, till he had seen with his
eyes that which they reported; saying that he could not believe it, and
that we should be put out of doubt before it were long. And he sent to
Luys de Moscoso to come presently from Cale, and that he tarried for him
there. Luys de Moscoso and many others thought that from Apalache they
should return back; and in Cale they buried their iron tools, and divers
other things. They came to Caliquen with great trouble; because the
country which the Governor had passed by, was spoiled and destitute of
maize. After all the people were come together, he commanded a bridge to
be made over a river that passed near the town. He departed from Caliquen
the 10th of September, and carried the cacique with him. After he had
traveled three days, there came Indians peaceably to visit their lord, and
every day met us on the way playing upon flutes; which is a token that
they use, that men may know that they come in peace. They said that in
our way before there was a cacique whose name was Uzachil, a kinsman of
the cacique of Caliquen their lord, waiting for him with many presents,
and they
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desired the Governor that he would loose the cacique. But he would not,
fearing that they would rise, and would not give him any guides, and sent
them away from day to day with good words He traveled five days; he passed
by some small towns; he came to a town called Napetuca, the 15th day of
September. Thither came fourteen or fifteen Indians, and besought the
Governor to let loose the cacique of Caliquen, their lord. He answered
them that he held him not in prison, but that he would have him to
accompany him to Uzachil. The Governor had notice by John Ortiz, that an
Indian told him how they determined to gather themselves together, and
come upon him, and give him battle, and take away the cacique from him.
The day that it was agreed upon, the Governor commanded his men to be in
readiness, and that the horsemen should be ready armed and on horse-back
every one in his lodging, because the Indians might not see them, and so
more confidently come to the town. There came four hundred Indians in
sight of the camp with their bows and arrows, and placed themselves in a
wood, and sent two Indians to bid the Governor to deliver them the
cacique. The Governor with six footmen leading the cacique by the hand,
and talking with him, to secure the Indians, went toward the place where
they were. And seeing a fit time, commanded to sound a trumpet; and
presently those that were in the town in the houses, both horse and foot,
set upon the Indians, which were so suddenly assaulted, that the greatest
care they had was which way they should flee. They killed two horses; one
was the Governor's, and he was presently horsed again upon another. There
were thirty or forty Indians slain. The rest fled to two very great
lakes, that were somewhat distant the one from the other. There they were
swimming, and the Christians round about them. The calivermen and
crossbowmen shot at them from the bank; but the distance being great, and
shooting afar off, they did them no hurt. The Governor commanded that the
same night they should compass one of the lakes, because they were so
great, that there were not men enough to compass them both; being beset,
as soon as night shut in, the Indians, with determination to run away,
came swimming very softly to the bank; and to hide themselves they put a
water lily leaf on their heads. The horsemen, as soon as they perceived
it to stir, ran into the water to the horses' breasts, and the Indians
fled again into the lake. So this night passed without any rest on both
sides. John Ortiz persuaded them that seeing they could not escape, they
should yield themselves to the Governor; which they did, enforced
thereunto by the coldness of the water; and one by one, he first whom the
cold did
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first overcome, cried to John Ortiz, desiring that they would not kill
him, for he came to put himself into the hands of the Governor. By the
morning watch they made an end of yielding themselves; only twelve
principal men, being more honorable and valorous than the rest, resolved
rather to die than to come into his hands. And the Indians of Paracossi,
which were now loosed out of chains, went swimming to them, and pulled
them out by the hair of their heads, and they were all put in chains, and
the next day were divided among the Christians for their service. Being
thus in captivity, they determined to rebel; and gave in charge to an
Indian which was interpreter, and held to be valiant, that as soon as the
Governor did come to speak with him, he should cast his hands about his
neck, and choke him: who, when he saw opportunity, laid hands on the
Governor, and before he cast his hands about his neck, he gave him such a
blow on the nostrils, that he made them gush out with blood, and presently
all the rest did rise. He that could get any weapons at hand, or the
handle wherewith he did grind the maize, sought to kill his master, or the
first he met before him; and he that could get a lance or sword at hand,
bestirred himself in such sort with it, as though he had used it all his
lifetime. One Indian in the market-place enclosed between fifteen or
twenty footmen, made a way like a bull, with a sword in his hand, till
certain halbardiers of the Governor came, which killed him. Another got
up with a lance to a loft made of canes, which they build to keep their
maize in, which they call a barbacoa, and there he made such a noise as
though ten men had been there defending the door; they slew him with a
partizan. The Indians were in all about two hundred men. They were all
subdued. And some of the youngest the Governor gave to them which had good
chains, and were careful to look to them that they got not away. All the
rest he commanded to be put to death, being tied to a stake in the midst
of the market-place; and the Indians of the Paracossi did shoot them to
death.
The Governor departed from Napetuca the 23d of September; he lodged
by a river, where two Indians brought him a buck from the cacique of
Uzachil. The next day he passed by a great town called Hapaluya, and
lodged at Uzachil, and found no people in it, because they durst not tarry
for the notice the Indians had of the slaughter of Napetuca. He found in
that town great store of maize, French beans, and pompions, which is their
food, and that wherewith the Christians there sustained themselves. The
maize is like coarse millet, and the pompions are better and more savory
than those of
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Spain. From thence the Governor sent two captains each a sundry way to
seek the Indians. They took an hundred men and women; of which as well
there as in other place where they made any inroads, the captain chose one
or two for the Governor, and divided the rest to himself, and those that
went with him. They led these Indians in chains with iron collars about
their necks; and they served to carry their stuff, and to grind their
maize, and for other services that such captives could do. Sometimes it
happened that going for wood or maize with them, they killed the Christian
that led them, and ran away with the chain; others filed their chains by
night with a piece of stone, wherewith they cut them, and use it instead
of iron. Those that were perceived paid for themselves, and for the rest,
because they should not dare to do the like another time. The women and
young boys, when they were once an hundred leagues from their country, and
had forgotten things, they let go loose, and so they served; and in a very
short space they understood the language of the Christians. From Uzachil
the Governor departed toward Apalache, and in two days' journey he came to
a town called Axille, and from thence forward the Indians were careless,
because they had as yet no notice of the Christians. The next day in the
morning, the first of October, he departed from thence, and commanded a
bridge to be made over a river which he was to pass. The depth of the
river where the bridge was made, was a stone's cast, and forward a
cross-bow shot the water came to the waist; and the wood whereby the
Indians came to see if they could defend the passage, and disturb those
which made the bridge, was very high and thick. The crossbowmen so
bestirred themselves that they made them give back; and certain planks
were cast into the river, whereon the men passed, which made good the
passage. The Governor passed upon Wednesday, which was St. Francis' day,
and lodged at a town which was called Vitachuco, subject to Apalache: he
found it burning, for the Indians had set it on fire. From thence forward
the country was much inhabited, and had great store of maize. He passed
by many granges like hamlets. On Sunday, the 25th of October, he came to
a town which is called Uzela, and upon Tuesday to Anaica Apalache, where
the lord of all that country and province was resident; in which town the
camp master, whose office is to quarter out, and lodge men, did lodge all
the company round about within a league, and half a league of it. There
were other towns, where was great store of maize, pompions, French beans,
and plums of the country, which are better than those of Spain, and they
grow in the fields without planting.
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The victuals that were thought necessary to pass the winter, were gathered
from these towns to Anaica Apalache. The Governor was informed that the
sea was ten leagues from thence. He presently sent a captain thither with
horsemen and footmen. And six leagues on the way he found a town which
was named Ochete, and so came to the sea; and found a great tree felled,
and cut into pieces, with stakes set up like mangers, and saw the skulls
of horses. He returned with this news. And that was held for certain,
which was reported of Pamphilo de Narvaez, that there he had built the
barks wherewith he went out of the land of Florida, and was cast away at
sea. Presently the Governor sent John Danusco with thirty horse-men to
the Port de Spirito Santo where Calderan was, with order that they should
abandon the port, and all of them come to Apalache. He departed on
Saturday the 17th of Novemher. In Uzachil and other towns that stood in
the way he found great store of people already careless. He would take
none of the Indians, for not hindering himself, because it behooved him to
give them no leisure to gather themselves together. He passed through the
towns by night, and rested without the towns three or four hours. In ten
days he came to the Port de Spirito Santo. He carried with him twenty
Indian women, which he took in Ytara, and Potano, near unto Cale, and sent
them to Donna Isabella in the two caravels, which he sent from the Port de
Spirito Santo to Cuba. And he carried all the footmen in the brigantines,
and coasting along the shore came to Apalache. And Calderan, with the
horsemen, and some crossbowmen on foot, went by land; and in some places
the Indians set upon him, and wounded some of his men. As soon as he came
to Apalache, presently the Governor sent sawed planks and spikes to the
seaside, wherewith was made a piraqua or bark, wherein were embarked
thirty men well armed, which went out of the bay to the sea, looking for
the brigantines. Sometimes they fought with the Indians, which passed
along the harbor in their canoes. Upon Saturday, the 29th of November,
there came an Indian through the watch undiscovered, and sat the town on
fire, and with the great wind that blew two parts of it were consumed in a
short time. On Sunday the 28th of December, came John Danusco with the
brigantines. The Governor sent Francisco Maldonado, a captain of footmen,
with fifty men to discover the coast westward, and to seek some port,
because he had determined to go by land, and discover that part. That day
there went out eight horsemen by commandment of the Governor into the
field, two leagues about the town, to seek Indians; for they were
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now so emboldened, that within two crossbow shot of the camp, they came
and slew men. They found two men and a woman gathering French beans; the
men, though they might have fled, yet because they would not leave the
woman, which was one of their wives, they resolved to die fighting; and
before they were slain, they wounded three horses, whereof one died within
a few days after. Calderan going with his men by the sea-coast, from a
wood that was near the place, the Indians set upon him, and made him
forsake his way, and many of them that went with him forsook some
necessary victuals, which they carried with them. Three or four days
after the limited time given by the Governor to Maldonado for his going
and coming, being already determined and resolved, if within eight days he
did not come, to tarry no longer for him, he came, and brought an Indian
from a province which was called Ochus, sixty leagues westward from
Apalache; where he had found a port of good depth, and defence against
weather. And because the Governor hoped to find a good country forward,
be was very well contented. And he sent Maldonado for victuals to Havana,
with order that hem should tarry for him at the port of Ochus, which he
had discovered, for he would go seek it by land; and if he should chance
to stay, and not come thither that summer, that then he should return to
Havana, and should come again the next summer after, and tarry for him at
that port; for he said he would do none other thing but go to seek Ochus
Francisco Maldonado departed, and in his place for captain of the footmen
remained John de Guzman. Of those Indians which were taken in Napetuca,
the Treasurer John Gayton had a young man, which said that he was not of
that country, but of another far off toward the sun rising, and that it
was long since he had traveled to see countries; and that his country was
called Yupaha, and that a woman did govern it; and that the town where she
was resident was of a wonderful bigness, and that many lords round about
were tributaries to her; and some gave her clothes, and others gold in
abundance; and he told how it was taken out of the mines, and was molten
and refined, as if he had seen it done, or the devil had taught it him.
So that all those which knew anything concerning the same, said that it
was impossible to give so good a relation, without having seen it; and all
of them, as if they had seen it, by the signs that he gave, believed all
that he said to be true.
On Wednesday, the third of March, of the year 1540, the Governor
departed from Anaica Apalache to seek Yupaha. He commanded his men to go
provided with maize for sixty leagues of desert.
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The horsemen carried their maize on their horses, and the foot men at
their sides; because the Indians that were for service, with their
miserable life that they led that winter, being naked and in chains, died
for the most part. Within four days' journey they came to a great river;
and they made a piragua or ferry boat, and because of the great current,
they made a cable with chains, which they fastened on both sides of the
river; and the ferry boat went along by it, and the horses swam over,
being drawn with capstans. Having passed the river in a day and a half,
they came to a town called Capachiqui. Upon Friday the 11th of March, they
found Indians in arms. The next day five Christians went to seek mortars,
which the Indians have to beat their maize, and they went to certain
houses on the back side of the camp environed with a wood. And within the
wood were many Indians which came to spy us; of the which came other five
and set upon us. One of the Christians came running away, giving an alarm
unto the camp. Those which were most ready answered the alarm. They
found one Christian dead, and three sore wounded. The Indians fled unto a
lake adjoining near a very thick wood, where the horses could not enter.
The Governor departed from Capachiqui and passed through a desert. On
Wednesday, the twenty-first of the month, he came to a town called Toalli;
and from thence forward there was a difference in the houses. For those
which were behind us were thatched with straw, and those of Toalli were
covered with reeds, in manner of tiles. These houses are very cleanly.
Some of them had walls daubed with clay, which showed like a mud-wall. In
all the cold country the Indians have every one a house for the winter
daubed with clay within and without, and the door is very little; they
shut it by night, and make fire within; so that they are in it as warm as
in a stove, and so it continueth all night that they need not clothes; and
besides these they have others for summer; and their kitchens near them,
where they make fire and bake their bread; and they have barbacoas wherein
they keep their maize; which is a house set up in the air upon four
stakes, boarded about like a chamber, and the floor of it is of cane
hurdles. The difference which lords or principal men's houses have from
the rest, besides they be greater, is, that they have great galleries in
their fronts, and under them seats made of canes in manner of benches; and
round about them they have many lofts, wherein they lay up that which the
Indians do give them for tribute, which is maize, deers' skins, and
mantles of the country, which are like blankets; they make them of the
inner rind of the barks of trees, and some of a kind of grass like unto
nettles, which being
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beaten, is like unto flax. The women cover themselves with these mantles;
they put one about them from the waist downward, and another over their
shoulder, with their right arm out, like unto the Egyptians. The men wear
but one mantle upon their shoulders after the same manner; and have their
secrets hid with a deer's skin, made like a linen breech, which was wont
to be used in Spain. The skins are well curried, and they give them what
color they list, so perfect, that if it be red, it seemeth a very fine
cloth in grain, and the black is most fine, and of the same leather they
make shoes; and they dye their mantles in the same colors. The Governor
departed from Toalli the 24th of March; he came on Thursday at evening to
a small river, where a bridge was made whereon the people passed, and
Benit Fernandez, a Portuguese, fell off from it, and was drowned. As soon
as the Governor had passed the river, a little distance thence he found a
town called Achese. The Indians had no notice of the Christians: they
leaped into a river: some men and women were taken, among which was one
that understood the youth which guided the Governor to Yupaha; whereby
that which he had reported was more confirmed. For they had passed through
countries of divers languages, and some which he understood not. The
Governor sent by one of the Indians that were taken to call the cacique,
which was on the other side of the river. He came, and made this speech
following:
"Right high, right mighty, and excellent lord, those things which
seldom happen do cause admiration. What then may the sight of your
lordship and your people do to me and mine, whom we never saw? especially
being mounted on such fierce beasts as your horses are, entering with such
violence and fury into my country, without my knowledge of your coming. It
was a thing so strange, and caused such fear and terror in our minds, that
it was not in our power to stay and receive your lordship with the
solemnity due to so high and renowned a prince as your lordship is. And
trusting in your greatness and singular virtues, I do not only hope to be
freed from blame, but also to receive favors; and the first which I demand
of your lordship is, that you will use me, my Country, and subjects as
your own; and the second, that you will tell me who you are, and whence
you come, and whither you go, and what you seek, that I the better may
serve you therein."
The Governor answered him, that he thanked him as much for his offer
and good-will as if he had received it, and as if he had offered him a
great treasure; and told him that he was the son of the Sun, and came from
those parts where he dwelt, and traveled through that
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country, and sought the greatest lord and richest province that was in it.
The cacique told him that farther forward dwelt a great lord, and that his
dominion was called Ocute. He gave him a guide and an interpreter for
that province. The Governor commanded his Indians to be set free, and
traveled through his country up a river very well inhabited. He departed
from his town the first of April; and left a very high cross of wood set
up in the midst of the market-place; and because the time gave no more
leisure, he declared to him only that that cross was a memory of the same
whereon Christ, which was God and man, and created the heavens and the
earth, suffered for our salvation; therefore he exhorted them that they
should reverence it, and they made show as though they would do so. The
fourth of April the Governor passed by a town called Altamaca, and the
tenth of the month he came to Ocute. The cacique sent him two thousand
Indians with a present, to wit, many conies and partridges, bread of
maize, two hens, and many dogs; which among the Christians were esteemed
as if they had been fat wethers, because of the great want of flesh meat
and salt, and hereof in many places, and many times was great need; and
they were so scarce, that if a man fell sick, there was nothing to cherish
him withal; and with a sickness, that in another place easily might have
been remedied, he consumed away till nothing but skin and bones were left;
and they died of pure weakness, some of them saying, "If I had a slice of
meat or a few corns of salt, I should not die. The Indians want no flesh
meat; for they kill with their arrows many deer, hens, conies, and other
wild fowl, for they are very cunning at it, which skill the Christians had
not; and though they had it, they had no leisure to use it; for the most
of the time they spent in travel, and durst not presume to straggle aside.
And because they were thus scanted of flesh, when six hundred men that
went with Soto came to any town, and found thirty or forty dogs, he that
could get one and kill it thought himself no small man; and he that killed
it and gave not his captain one quarter, if he knew it he frowned on him,
and made him feel it in the watches, or in any other matter of labor that
was offered, wherein he might do him a displeasure. On Monday, the twelfth
of April, 1540, the Governor departed from Ocute. The cacique gave him
two hundred Tamenes, to wit, Indians to carry burdens; he passed through a
town, the lord whereof was named Cofaqui, and came to a province of an
Indian lord called Patofa, who because he was in peace with the lord of
Ocute, and with the other bordering lords, had many days before notice of
the Governor, and desired to see him. He came to visit him, and made this
speech following.
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"Mighty lord, now with good reason I will crave of fortune to requite
this my so great prosperity with some small adversity; and I will count
myself very rich, seeing that I have obtained that which in this world I
most desired, which is to see and be able to do your lordship some
service. And although the tongue be the image of that which is in the
heart, and that the contentment which I feel in my heart I cannot
dissemble, yet is it not sufficient wholly to manifest the same. Where
did this your country, which I do govern, deserve to be visited of so
sovereign and so excellent a prince, whom all the rest of the world ought
to obey and serve? And those which inhabit it being so base, what shall
be the issue of such happiness, if their memory do not represent unto them
some adversity that may betide them, according to the order of fortune?
If from this day forward we may be capable of this benefit, that your
lordship will bold us for your own, we cannot fail to be favored and
maintained in true justice and reason, and to have the name of men. For
such as are void of reason and justice, may be compared to brute beasts.
For mine own part, from my very heart with reverence due to such a prince,
I offer myself unto your lordship, and beseech you, that in reward of this
my true good will, you will vouchsafe to make use of mine own person, my
Country, and subjects."
The Governor answered him, that his offers and good-will declared by
the effect, did highly please him, whereof he would always be mindful to
honor and favor him as his brother. This country, from the first
peaceable cacique, unto the province of Patofa, which were fifty leagues,
is a fat country, beautiful, and very fruitful, and very well watered, and
full of good rivers. And from thence to the Port de Spirit Santo, where
we first arrived in the land of Florida (which may be three hundred and
fifty leagues, little more or less), is a barren land, and the most of it
groves of wild pine trees, low and full of lakes, and in some places very
high and thick groves, whither the Indians that were in arms fled, so that
no man could find them, neither could any horses enter into them, which
was an inconvenience to the Christians, in regard of the victuals which
they found conveyed away; and of the troubles which they had in seeking of
Indians to be their guides.
In the town of Patofa the youth which the Governor carried with him
for an interpreter and a guide, began to foam at the mouth, and tumble on
the ground, as one possessed with the devil: they said a gospel over him,
and the fit left him. And he said, that four days' journey from thence
toward the sun rising, was the province that he
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spoke of. The Indians of Patofa said, that toward that part they knew no
habitation; but that toward the north- west, they knew a province which
was called Coça, a very plentiful country, which had very great towns in
it. The cacique told the Governor that if he would go thither, he would
give him guides and Indians for burdens; and if he would go whither the
youth spake of, that he would likewise give him those that he needed; and
so with loving words and offers of courtesy, they took their leaves the
one of the other. He gave him seven hundred Indians to bear burdens. He
took maize for four days' journey. He traveled six days by a path which
grew narrow more and more, till it was lost altogether. He went where the
youth did lead him, and passed two rivers, which were waded: each of them
was two crossbow shots over; the water came to the stirrups, and had so
great a current, that it was needful for the horseman to stand one before
another, that the footmen might pass above them, leaning unto them. He
came to another river of a great current and largeness, which was passed
with more trouble, because the horses did swim at the coming out, about a
lance's length. Having passed this river, the Governor came to a grove of
pine trees, and threatened the youth, and made as though he would have
cast him to the dogs, because he had told him a lie, saying, it was but
four days' journey, and they had traveled nine, and every day seven or
eight leagues, and the men by this time were grown weary and weak, and the
horses lean through the great scanting of the maize. The youth said that
he knew not where he was. It saved him that he was not cast to the dogs,
that there was never another whom John Ortiz did understand. The
Governor, with them two, and with some horsemen and footmen, leaving the
camp in a grove of pine trees, traveled that day five or six leagues to
seek a way, and returned at night very comfortless, and without finding
any sign of way or town. The next day there were sundry opinions
delivered, whether they should go back, or what they should do; and
because backward the country whereby they had passed was greatly spoiled,
and destitute of maize, and that which they brought with them was spent,
and the men were very weak, and the horses likewise, they doubted much
whether they might come to any place where they might help themselves.
And besides this, they were of opinion, that going in that sort out of
order, that any Indians would presume to set upon them, so that with
hunger or with war, they could not escape. The Governor determined to send
horsemen from thence every way to seek habitation; and the next day he
sent four captains, every one a sundry way with eight horsemen. At night
they came again, leading
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their horses, or driving them with a stick before; for they were weary,
that they could not lead them, neither found they any way or sign of
habitation. The next day the Governor sent other four with as many
horsemen that could swim, to pass the swamps and rivers which they should
find, and they had choice horses, the best that were in the camp. The
captains were Baltasar de Gallegos, which went up the river; and John
Danusco down the river; Alfonso Roma and John Rodriquez Lobillo went into
the inward parts of the land. The Governor brought with him into Florida
thirteen sows, and had by this time three hundred swine. He commanded
every man should have half a pound of hog's flesh every day, and this he
did three or four days after the maize was all spent. With this small
quantity of flesh, and some sodden herbs, with much trouble the people
were sustained. The Governor dismissed the Indians of Patofa, because he
had no food to give them; who desiring to aceompany and serve the
Christians in their neeessity, making show that it grieved them very much
to return until they had left them in a peopled country, returned to their
own home. John Danusco came on Sunday late in the evening, and brought
news that he had found a little town twelve or thirteen leagues from
thence: he brought a woman and a boy that he took there. With his coming
and with those news, the Governor and all the rest were so glad that they
seemed at that instant to have returned from death to life. Upon Monday,
the twenty-sixth of April, the Governor departed to go to the town, which
was called Aymay; and the Christians named it the town of Relief. He left
where the camp had lain at the foot of a pine free, a letter buried, and
letters carved in the bark of the pine, the contents whereof was this:
Dig here at the foot of this pine, and you shall find a letter. And this
he did, because when the captains came, which were sent to seek some
habitation, they might see the letter, and know what was become of the
Governor, and which way he was gone. There was no other way to the town,
but the marks that John Danusco left made upon the trees. The Governor,
with some of them that had the best horses, came to it on the Monday; and
all the rest inforcing themselves the best way they could, some of them
lodged within two leagues of the town, some within three and four, every
one as he was able to go, and his strength served him. There was found in
the town a store-house full of the flour of parched maize; and some maize,
which was distributed by allowance. Here were four Indians taken, and
none of them would confess any other thing, but that they knew of none
other habitation. The Governor commanded one of them to be burned; and
presently
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another confessed that two days' journey from thence, there was a province
that was called Cutifachiqui. Upon Wednesday came the captains Baltasar
de Gallegos, Alfonso Romo, and John Rodriquez Lobillo, for they had found
the letter, and followed the way which the Governor had taken toward the
town. Two men of John Rodriquez's company were lost, because their horses
tired; the Governor checked him very sore for leaving them behind, and
sent to seek them; and as soon as they came he departed toward
Cutifachiqui. In the way three Indians were taken, which said that the
lady of that country had notice already of the Christians, and stayed for
them in a town of hers. The Governor sent by one of them to offer her his
friendship, and to advertise her how he was coming thither. The Governor
came unto the town, and presently there came four canoes to him; in one of
them came a sister of the lady, and approaching to the Governor she said
these words:
"Excellent lord, my sister sendeth unto you by me to kiss your
lordship's hands, and to signify unto you that the cause why she came not
in person, is, that she thinketh to do you greater service staying behind,
as she doth, giving order that with all speed all her canoes be ready,
that your lordship may pass the river, and take your rest, which shall
presently be performed."
The Governor gave her thanks, and she returned to the other side of
the river. Within a little while the lady (Cutifachiqui) came out of the
town in a chair, whereon certain of the principal Indians brought her to
the river. She entered into a barge which had the stern tilted over, and
on the floor her mat ready laid with two cushions upon it one upon
another, where she sat her down; and with her came her principal Indians
in other barges, which did wait upon her. She went to the place where the
Governor was, and at her coming she made this speech following:
"Excellent lord, I wish this coming of your lordship into these your
countries to be most happy; although my power be not answer-able to my
will, and my services be not according to my desire, nor such as so high a
prince as your lordship deserveth; yet since the good-will is rather to be
accepted than all the treasures of the world, that without it are offered
with most nnfailable and manifest affection, I offer you my person, lands,
and subjects, and this small service."
And therewithal she presented unto him great store of clothes of the
country, which she brought in other canoes, to wit, mantles and skins; and
took from her own neck a great cordon of pearls, and cast it about the
neck of the Governor, entertaining him with very gracious
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speeches of love and courtesy, and commanded canoes to be brought thither,
wherein the Governor and his people passed the river. As soon as he was
lodged in the town, she (Cutifachiqui) sent him another present of many
hens. This country was very pleasant, fat, and hath goodly meadows by the
rivers. Their woods are thin, and full of walnut trees and mulberry
trees. They said the sea was two days' journey from thence. Within a
league and half a league about this town were great towns dispeopled, and
overgrown with grass; which showed that they had been long without
inhabitants. The Indians said that two years before there was a plague in
that country, and that they removed to other towns. There was in their
storehouses great quantity of clothes, mantles of yarn made of the barks
of trees, and others made of feathers, white, green, red, and yellow, very
fine after their use, and profitable for winter. There were also many
deer's skins, with many compartments traced in them, and some of them made
into hose, stockings, and shoes. And the lady perceiving that the
Christians esteemed the pearls, advised the Governor to send to search
certain graves that were in that town, and that he should find many; and
that if he would send to the dispeopled towns he might load all his
horses. They sought the graves of that town, and there found fourteen
rows of pearls (three hundred and ninety-two pounds), and little babies
and birds made of them. The people were brown, well made, and well
proportioned, and more civil than any others that were seen in all the
country of Florida, and all of them went shod and clothed. The youth told
the Governor that he began now to enter into the land which he spoke of;
and some credit was given hint that it was so, because he understood the
language of the Indians; and he requested that he might be christened, for
he said he desired to become a Christian. He was christened, and named
Peter; and the Governor commanded him to be loosed from a chain, in which
until that time he had gone. This country, as the Indians reported, had
been much inhabited, and had the fame of a good country. And as it
seemeth, the youth, which was the Governor's guide, had heard of it, and
that which he knew by hearsay, he affirmed that he had seen, and augmented
at his pleasure. In this town was found a dagger, and beads that belonged
to Christians. The Indians reported that Christians had been in the haven
(St. Helena), which was two days' journey from this town, many years ago.
He that came thither was the Governor, the Licentiate Lucas Vasquez de
Ayllon, which went to conquer this country, and at his coming to the port
he died (1525);
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and there was a division, quarrels and slaughters between some principal
men which went with him, for the principal government. And without
knowing anything of the country, they returned home to Hispaniola. All
the company thought it good to inhabit that country, because it was in a
temperate climate (32 30'). And that if it were inhabited, all the ships
of New Spain, of Peru, Santa Martha, and Terra Firma, in their return for
Spain might well touch there, because it was in their way, and because it
was a good country, and sited fit to raise commodity. The Governor, since
his intent was to seek another treasure, like that of Atabalipa, Lord of
Peru, was not contented with a good country, nor with pearls, though many
of them were worth their weight in gold. And if the country had been
divided among the Christians, those which the Indians had fished for
afterwards would have been of more value; for those which they had,
because they burned them in the fire, did lessen their color. The
Governor answered them that urged him to inhabit, that in all the country
there were not victuals to sustain his men one month; and that it was
needful to resort to the Port of Ocus, where Maldonado was to stay for
them: and that if no richer country were found, they might return again
to that whensoever they would; and in the meantime the Indians would sow
their fields, and it would be better furnished with maize. He inquired of
the Indians whether they had notice of any great lord farther into the
land. They told him that twelve days' journey from thence* there was a
province called Chiaha, subject to the Lord of Coça. Presently the
Governor determined to seek that land. And being a stern man, and of few
words, though he was glad to sift and know the opinion of all men, yet
after he had delivered his own, he would not be contraried, and always did
what liked himself, and so all men did condescend unto his will. And
though it seemed an error to leave that country (for others might have
been sought round about, where the people might have been sustained until
the harvest had been ready there, and the maize gathered), yet there was
none that would say anything against him, after they knew his resolution.
The Governor departed from Cutifachiqui the third day of May. And
because the Indians had revolted, and the will of the lady was perceived,
that if she could, she would depart without giving any guides or men for
burden, for the wrongs which the Christians had done to the Indians (for
there never want some among many of a
* Twelve days from St. Helena, and Coste seven days' journey from
Chiaha.
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base sort, that for a little gain do put themselves and others in danger
of undoing), the Governor commanded her to be kept in safeguard, and
carried with him, not with so good usage as she deserved for the good-will
she showed, and good entertainment that she had made him. And he verified
that old proverb which saith: "For well-doing I receive evil." And so he
carried her on foot with his bondwomen to look unto her. In all the towns
where the Governor passed, the lady commanded the Indians to come and
carry the burdens from one town to another. We passed through her country
an hundred leagues, in which, as we saw, she was much obeyed, for the
Indians did all that she commanded them with great efficacy and diligence.
Peter, the youth that was our guide, said that she was not the lady
herself, but a niece of hers, which came to that town to execute certain
principal men by commandment of the lady, which had withheld her tribute;
which words were not believed, because of the lies which they had found in
him before; but they bare with all things because of the need which they
had of him to declare what the Indians said. In seven days' space the
Governor came to a province called Chalaque, the poorest country of maize
that was seen in Florida. The Indians feed upon roots and herbs, which
they seek in the fields, and upon wild beasts, which they kill with their
bows and arrows, and are a very gentle people. All of them go naked, and
arc very lean. There was a Lord (Cutifachiqui), which for a great
present, brought the Governor two deer skins; and there were in that
country many wild hens. In one town they made him a present of seven
hundred hens, and so in other towns they sent him those which they had or
could get. From this province to another, which is called Xualla, he
spent five days. Here he found very little maize, and for this cause,
though the people were wearied, and the horses very weak, he staid no more
but two days. From Ocute to Cutifachiqui, may be some hundred and thirty
leagues, whereof eighty are wilderness. From Cutifachiqui to Xualla two
hundred and fifty, and it is a hilly country. The Governor departed from
Xualla towards Guaxule passed very rough and high hills. In that journey,
the lady of Cutifachiqui (whom the Governor carried with him, as is
aforesaid, with purpose to carry her to Guaxule, because her territory
reached thither), going on a day with the bondwomen which led her, went
out of the way, and entered into a wood, saying she went to ease herself,
and so she deceived them, and hid herself in the wood; and though they
sought her they could not find her. She carried away with her a little
chest made of
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canes in manner of a coffer, which they call petaca, full of unbored
pearls. Some which could judge of them, said that they were of great
value. An Indian woman that waltzed on her did carry them. The Governor,
not to discontent her altogether, left them with her, making account that
in Guaxule he would ask them of her, when he gave her leave to return;
which coffer she carried away and went to Xualla with three slaves which
fled from the camp, and one horseman which remained behind, who, falling
sick of an ague, went out of the way and was lost. This man, whose name
was Alimamos, dealt with the slaves to change their evil purpose, and
return with him to the Christians, which two of them did; and Alimamos and
they overtook the Governor fifty leagues from thence in a province called
Chiaha; and reported how the lady remained in Xualla with a slave of
Andrew de Vasconcellos, which would not come back with them; and that of a
certainty they lived as man and wife together, and meant to go both to
Cutifachiqui. Within five days the Governor came to Guaxule. The Indians
there gave him a present of three hundred dogs, because they saw the
Christians esteem them, and sought them to feed on them; for among them
they are not eaten In Guaxule, and all that way, was very little maize.
The Governor sent from thence an Indian with a message to the cacique of
Chiaha, to desire him to gather some maize thither, that he might rest a
few days in Chiaha. The Governor departed from Guaxule, and in two days'
journey came to a town called Canasagua. There met him on the way twenty
Indians, every one loaded with a basketful of mulberries; for there be
many, and those very good, from Cutifachiqui, and so forward in other
provinces, and also nuts and plums. And the trees grow in the fields
without planting or dressing them, and as big and as rank as though they
grew in gardens digged and watered. From the time that the Governor
departed from Canasagua, he journeyed five days through a desert; and two
leagues before he came to Chiaha, there met him fifteen Indians loaded
with maize, which the cacique had sent; and they told him on his behalf,
that he walted his coming with twenty barns full of it; and further, that
himself, his country, and subjects, and all things else were at his
service. On the fifth day of June, the Governor entered into Chiaha. The
cacique voided his own houses, in which he lodged, and received him with
much joy, saying these words following
"Mighty and excellent lord, I hold myself for so happy a man, in that
it hath pleased your lordship to use me; that nothing could have
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happened unto me of more contentment, nor that I would have esteemed so
much. From Guaxule your lordship sent unto me, that I should prepare
maize for you in this town for two months. Here I have for you twenty
barns full of the choicest that in all the country could be found. If
your lordship be not entertained by me in such sort as is fit for so high
a prince, respect my tender age, which excuseth me from blame, and receive
my good-will, which with much loyalty, truth and sincerity, I will always
show in anything which shall concern your lordship's service."
The Governor answered him that he thanked him very much for his
service and offer, and that he would always account him as his brother.
There was in this town much butter in gourds melted like oil--they said it
was the fat of bears. There was found, also, great store of oil of
walnuts, which was clear as butter, and of a good taste, and a pet full of
honey of bees, which neither before nor afterward was seen in all the
country. The town was an island between two arms of a river, and was
seated nigh one of them. The river divideth itself into those two
branches, two crossbow shots above the town, and meeteth again a league
beneath the same. The plain between both the branches is sometimes one
crossbow shot, sometimes two crossbow shots over. The branches are very
broad, and both of them may be waded over. There were along them very
good meadows, and many fields sown with maize. And because the Indians
staid in their town, the Governor only lodged in the houses of the
cacique, and his people in the fields; where there was ever a tree every
one took one for himself. Thus the camp lay separated one from another,
and out of order. The Governor winked at it, because the Indians were in
peace, and because it was very hot, and the people should have suffered
great extremity if it had not been so. The horses came thither so weak,
that for feebleness they were not able to carry their masters; because
that from Cutifachiqui, they always traveled with very little provender,
and were hunger- starved and tired ever since they came from the desert of
Ocute. And because the most of them were not in case to use in battle,
though need should require, they sent them to feed in the night a quarter
of a league from the camp. The Christians were there in great danger,
because that if at this time the Indians had set upon them, they had been
in evil case to have defended themselves. The Governor rested there
thirty days, in which time, because the country was very fruitful, the
horses grew fat. At the time of his departure, by the importunity of
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some, which would have more than was reason, he demanded of the cacique
thirty women to make slaves of. He answered that he would confer with his
chief men. And before he returned an answer, one night all of them with
their wives and children forsook the town, and fled away. The next day,
the Governor proposing to go to seek them, the cacique came unto him, and
at his coming used these words unto the Governor:--
"Mighty lord, with shame and fear of your lordship, because my
subjects against my will have done amiss in absenting themselves, I went
my way without your license; and knowing the error which I have committed,
like a loyal subject, I come to yield myself into your power, to dispose
of me at your own pleasure. For my subjects do not obey me, nor do
anything but what an uncle of mine commandeth, which governeth this
country for me, until I be of a perfect age. If your lordship will pursue
them, and execute on them that, which for their disobedience they deserve,
I will be your guide, since at this present my fortune will not suffer me
to perform any more."
Presently, the Governor with thirty horsemen, and as many footmen,
went to seek the Indians, and passing by some towns of the principal
Indians which had absented themselves, he cut and destroyed great fields
of maize; and went up the river, where the Indians were in an island,
where the horsemen could not come at them. There he sent them word by an
Indian to return to their town and fear nothing, and that they should give
his men to carry burdens, as all those behind had done; for he would have
no Indian women, seeing they were so loth to part with them. The Indians
accepted his request, and came to the Governor to excuse themselves; and
so all of them returned to their town. A cacique of a province called
Coste, came to this town to visit the Governor. After he had offered
himself, and passed with him some words of tendering his service and
courtesy, the Governor asking him whether he had notice of any rich
country? he said yea: to wit, that toward the north there was a province
named Chisca:* and that there was a melting of copper, and of another
metal of the same color, save that it was finer, and of a far more perfect
color, and far better to the sight; and that they used it not so much,
because it was softer. And the self same thing was told the Governor in
Cutifachiqui, where we saw some little hatchets of copper, which were said
to have a mixture of gold. But in that part
* Chisca is directly north from Cutifachiqui, which is within two
days of St. Helena.
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the country was not well peopled, and they said there were mountains,
which the horses could not pass: and for that cause, the Governor would
not go from Cutifachiqui directly thither: and he made account, that
traveling through a peopled country, when his men and horses should be in
better plight, and he were better certified of the truth of the thing, he
would return toward it, by mountains, and a better inhabited country,
whereby he might have better passage. He sent two Christians from Chiaha
with certain Indians which knew the country of Chisca, and the language
thereof, to view it, and to make report of that which they should find;
where he told them that he would tarry for them.
When the Governor was determined to depart from Chiaha to Coste, he
sent for the cacique to come before him, and with gentle words took his
leave of him, and gave him certain things, wherewith he rested much
contented. In seven days he came to Coste. The second of July he
commanded his camp to be pitched two crossbow shots from the town: and
with eight men of his guard he went where he found the cacique, which to
his thinking received him with great love. As he was talking with him,
there went from the camp certain footmen to the town to seek some maize,
and not contented with its they ran-sacked and searched the houses, and
took what they found. With this despite, the Indians began to rise and to
take their arms: and some of them, with cudgels in their hands, ran upon
five or six Christians, which had done them wrong, and beat them at their
pleasure. The Governor seeing them all in an uproar, and himself among
them with so few Christians, to escape their hands used a stratagem, far
against his own disposition, being, as he was, very frank and open: and
though it grieved him very much that any Indian should be so bold, as with
reason, or without reason to despise the Christians, he took up a cudgel,
and took their parts against his own men; which was a means to quiet them.
And presently he sent word by a man very secretly to the camp, that some
armed men should come toward the place where he was; and he took the
cacique by the hand, using very mild words unto him, and with some
principal Indians that did accompany him, he drew them out of the town
into a plain way, and unto the sight of the camp, whither by little and
little with good discretion the Christians began to come and to gather
about them. Thus the Governor led the cacique and his chief men until he
entered with them into the camp: and near unto his tent he commanded them
to be put in safe custody; and told them that they should not depart
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without giving him a guide and Indians for burdens, and till certain sick
Christians were come, which he had commanded to come down the river in
canoes from Chiaha; and those also which he had sent to the province of
Chisca: (for they were not returned; and he feared that the Indians had
slain the one, and the other.) Within three days after, those which were
sent to Chisca returned, and made report that the Indians had carried them
through a country so poor of maize, and so rough, and over so high
mountains, that it was impossible for the army to travel that way; and
that seeing the way grew very long, and that they lingered much, they
consulted to return from a little poor town, where they saw nothing that
was of any profit, and brought an ox hide, which the Indians gave them, as
thin as a calf's skin, and the hair like a soft wool, between the coarse
and fine wool of sheep. The cacique gave a guide, and men for burdens,
and departed with the Governor's leave. The Governor departed from Coste
the ninth of July, and lodged at a town called Tali. The cacique came
forth to receive him on the way, and made this speech:--
"Excellent lord and prince, worthy to be served and obeyed of all the
princes in the world; howsoever for the most part by the outward
physiognomy the inward virtue may be judged, and that who you are, and of
what strength, was known unto me before now: I will not infer hereupon how
mean I am in your presence, to hope that my poor services will be grateful
and acceptable: since whereas strength faileth, the will doth not cease to
be praised and accepted. And for this cause I presume to request your
lordship, that you will be pleased only to respect the same, and consider
wherein you will command my service in this your country."
The Governor answered him, that his good-will and offer was as
acceptable unto him as if he had offered him all the treasures of the
world, and that he would always entreat, favor, and esteem him as if he
were his own brother. The cacique commanded provision necessary for two
days, while the Governor was there, to be brought thither: and at the
time of his departure, he gave him four women and two men, which he had
need of to bear burdens. The Governor traveled six days through many
towns subject to the cacique of Coça: and as he entered into his country
many Indians came unto him every day from the cacique, and met him on the
way with messages, one going, and another coming. He came to Coça upon
Friday, the 26th of July. The cacique came forth to receive him two
crossbow shots from the town in a chair, which his principal men carried
on their shoulders,
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sitting upon a cushion, and covered with a garment of marterns, of the
fashion and bigness of a woman's huke: he had on his head a diadem of
feathers, and round about him many Indians playing upon flutes, and
singing. As soon as he came unto the Governor, he did his obeyance, and
uttered these words following:--
"Excellent and mighty lord, above all them of the earth, although I
come but now to receive you, yet I have received you many days ago in my
heart, to wit, from the day wherein I had first notice of your lordship:
with so great desire to serve you, with so great pleasure and contentment,
that this which I make show of, is nothing in regard of that which is in
my heart, neither can it have any kind of comparison. This you may hold
for certain, that to obtain the dominion of the whole world, would not
have rejoiced me so much as your sight, neither would I have held it for
so great a felicity. Do not look for me to offer you that which is your
own, to wit, my person, my lands, and subjects; only I will busy myself in
commanding my men with all diligence and due reverence to welcome you from
hence to the town with playing and singing, where your lordship shall be
lodged and attended upon by myself and them; and all that I possess your
lordship shall use as it were your own. For your lordship shall do me a
very great favor in so doing."
The Governor gave him thanks, and with great joy they both went
conferring together till they came to the town; and he commanded his
Indians to void their houses, wherein the Governor and his men were
lodged. There was in the barns and in the fields great store of maize and
French beans. The country was greatly inhabited with many great towns,
and many sown fields, which reached from the one to the other. It was
pleasant, fat, full of good meadows upon rivers. There were in the fields
many plum trees, as well of such as grow in Spain as of the country; and
wild tall vines, that run up the trees; and besides these there were other
low vines with big and sweet grapes; but for want of digging and dressing,
they had great kernels in them. The Governor used to set a guard over the
caciques, because they should not absent themselves, and carried them with
him till he came out of their countries; because that carrying them along
with him, he looked to find people in the towns, and they gave him guides,
and men to carry burdens; and before he went out of their countries, he
gave them license to return to their houses, and to their porters
likewise, as soon as he came to any other lordship where they gave him
others. The men of Coça seeing their lord detained, took it in evil
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part, and revolted, and hid themselves in the woods, as well those of the
town of the cacique, as those of the other towns of his principal
subjects. The Governor sent out four captains, every one his way, to seek
them. They took many men and women, which were put into chains. They
seeing the hurt which they received, and how little they gained in
absenting themselves, came again, promising to do whatsoever they were
commanded. Of those which were taken prisoners, some principal men were
set at liberty, whom the cacique demanded; and every one that had any,
carried the rest in chains like slaves, without letting them go to their
country. Neither did any return, but some few, whose fortune helped them
with the good diligence which they used to file off their chains by night,
or such as in their traveling could slip aside out of the way, seeing any
negligence in them that kept them; some escaped away with the chains, and
with the burdens and clothes which they carried.
The Governor rested in Coça twenty-five days. He departed from
thence the twentieth of August, to seek a province called Tascaluca; he
carried with him the cacique of Coça. He passed that day by a great town
called Tallimuchase; the people were fled; he lodged half a league
further, near a brook. The next day he came to a town called Ytaua,
subject to Coça. He stayed[cr] there six days, because of a river that
passed by it, which at that time was very high; and as soon as the river
suffered him to pass, he set forward, and lodged at a town named
Ullibahali. There came to him on the way, of the caciques in behalf of
that province, ten or twelve principal Indians to offer him their service;
all of them had their plumes of feathers, and bows and arrows. The
Governor coming to the town with twelve horsemen, and some footmen of his
guard, leaving his people a crossbow shot from the town, entered into it;
he found all the Indians with their weapons, and as far as he could guess,
they seemed to have some evil meaning. It was known afterwards that they
were determined to take the cacique of Coça from the Governor, if he had
requested it. The Governor commanded all his people to enter the town,
which was walled about, and near unto it passed a small river. The wall,
as well of that as of others, which afterwards we saw, was of great posts
thrust deep into the ground, and very rough; and many long rails, as big
as one's arm, laid across between them, and the wall was about the height
of a lance, and it was daubed within and without with clay, and had
loopholes. On the other side of the river was a town, where at that
present the cacique was. The Governor sent to call him,
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and he came presently. After he had passed with the Governor some words
of offering his services, he gave him such men for his carriages as he
needed, and thirty women for slaves. In that place was a Christian lost,
called Mançano, born in Salamanca, of noble parentage, which went astray
to seek for grapes, whereof there is great store, and those very good. The
day that the Governor departed from thence, he lodged at a town, subject
to the lord of Ullibahali; and the next day he came to another town called
Toasi. The Indians gave the Governor thirty women, and such men for his
carriages as he needed. He traveled ordinarily five or six leagues a day,
when he traveled through peopled countries; and going through deserts, he
marched as fast as he could, to eschew the want of maize. From Toasi,
passing through some towns subject to a cacique, which was lord of a
province called Tallise, he traveled five days. He came to Tallise the
18th of September. The town was great, and situated near unto a main
river. On the other side of the river were other towns, and many fields
sown with maize. On both sides it was a very plentiful country, and had
store of maize; they had voided the town. The Governor commanded to call
the cacique; who came, and between them passed some words of love and
offer of his services, and he presented unto him forty Indians. There
came to the Governor in this town, a principal Indian in the behalf of the
cacique of Tascaluca, and made this speech following :-
"Mighty, virtuous, and esteemed lord, the great cacique of Tascaluca,
my lord, sendeth by me to kiss your lordship's hands, and to let you
understand that he hath notice how you justly ravish with your perfeetions
and power, all men on the earth; and that every one by whom your lordship
passeth, doth serve and obey you, which he acknowledgeth to be due unto
you, and desireth, as his life, to see and to serve your lordship. For
which cause by me he offereth himself, his lands and subjects, that when
your lordship pleaseth to go through his country, you may be received with
all peace and love, served and obeyed; and that in recompense of the
desire he hath to see you, you will do him the favor to let him know when
you will come; for how much the sooner, so much the greater favor he shall
receive."
The Governor received and dispatched him graciously, giving him
beads, which among them were not much esteemed, and some other things to
carry to his lord. And he gave license to the Cacique of Coça to return
home to his own country. The Cacique of Tallise gave him such men for
burdens as he needed. And after he had
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rested there twenty days, he departed thence towards Tascaluca. That day
when he went from Tallise, he lodged at a great town called Casiste. And
the next day passed by another, and came to a small town of Tascaluca; and
the next day he camped in a wood, two leagues from the town where the
cacique resided, and was at that time. And he sent the master of the
camp, Luys de Moscoso, with fifteen horsemen, to let him know he was
coming. The cacique was in his lodgings under a canopy; and without
doors, right against his lodgings, in a high place, they spread a mat for
him, and two cushions one upon another, where he sat him down, and his
Indians placed themselves round about him, somewhat distant from him, so
that they made a place, and a void room where he sat; and his chiefest men
were nearest to him, and one with a shadow of deer skin, which kept the
sun from him, being round and of the bigness of a target, quartered with
black and white, having a rundle in the midst; afar off it seemed to be of
taffeta, because the colors were very perfect. It was set on a small
staff stretched wide out. This was the device which he carried in his
wars. He was a man of a very tall stature, of great limbs, and spare, and
well proportioned, and was much feared of his neighbors and subjects. He
was lord of many territories and much people. In his countenance he was
very grave. After the master of the camp had spoken with him, he and
those that went with him coursed their horses, prancing them to and fro,
and now and then towards the place where the cacique was, who, with much
gravity and dissimulation now and then lifted up his eyes, and beheld
them, as it were, with disdain. At the Governor's coming, he made no
offer at all to rise. The Governor took him by the hand, and both of them
sat down together on a seat which was under the cloth of state. The
cacique said these words unto him:-
"Mighty lord, I bid your lordship right heartily welcome. I receive
as much pleasure and contentment with your sight, as if you were my
brother, whom I dearly loved; upon this point it is not needful to use
many reasons; since it is no discretion to speak that in many words, which
in few may be uttered. How much the greater the will is, so much more
giveth it name to the works, and the works give testimony of the truth.
Now touching my will, by it you shall know how certain and manifest it is,
and how pure inclination I have to serve you. Concerning the favor which
you did me, in the things which you sent me, I make as much account of
them as is reason to esteem them, and chiefly because they were yours.
Now see what service you will command me."
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The Governor satisfied him with sweet words and with great brevity.
When he departed from thence he determined to carry him along with him for
some cause, and at two days' journey he came to a town called Piache, by
which there passed a great river. The Governor demanded canoes of the
Indians; they said they had them not, but that they would make rafts of
canes and dry timber, on which he naight well enough. And they made them
with all diligence and speed, and they governed them; and because the
water went very slow, the Governor and his people passed very well.
From the Port de Spirito to Apalache, which is about an hundred
leagues, the Governor went from east to west; and from Apalache to
Cutifachiqui, which are four hundred and thirty leagues from the
south-west to the northeast; and from Cutifachiqui to Xualla, which are
about two hundred and fifty leagues from the south to the north; and from
Xualla to Tascaluca, which are two hundred and fifty leagues more, an
hundred and ninety of them he traveled from east to west, to wit, to the
province of Coça, and the other sixty from Coça to Tascaluca from the
north to the south.
Having passed the river of Piache, a Christian went from his company
from thence to seek a woman slave that was run away from him, and the
Indians either took him captive, or slew him. The Governor urged the
cacique that he should give account of him, and threatened him that if he
were not found he would never let him loose. The cacique sent an Indian
from thence to Mavilla, whither they were traveling, which was a town of a
principal Indian and his subject, saying that he sent him to advise them
to make ready victuals, and men for carriages. But (as afterwards
appeared) he sent him to assemble all the men of war thither that he had
in his country. The Governor traveled three days, and the third day he
passed all day through a peopled country, and he came to Mavilla upon
Monday the 18th of October, 1540. He went before the camp with fifteen
horsemen and thirty footmen. And from the town came a Christian, whom he
had sent to the principal man, three or four days before, because he
should not absent himself, and also to learn in what sort the Indians
were; who told him that he thought they were in an evil purpose; for while
he was there, there came many people into the town, and many weapons, and
that they made great haste to fortify the walls. Luys de Moscoso told the
Governor that it would be good to lodge in the field, seeing the Indians
were of such disposition; and he answered, that he would lodge in the
town, for he was weary of
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lodging in the field. When he came near unto the town, the cacique came
forth to receive him with many Indians playing upon flutes and singing.
And after he had offered himself, he presented him with three mantles of
marterns. The Governor, with both the caciques, and seven or eight men of
his guard, and three or four horsemen, which alighted to accompany him,
entered into the town, and sat him down under a cloth of state. The
cacique of Tascaluca requested him that he would let him remain in that
town, and trouble him no more with traveling. And seeing he would not
give him leave, in his talk he changed his purpose, and dissemblingly
feigned that he would speak with some principal Indians, and rose up from
the place where he sat with the Governor, and entered into a house, where
many Indians were with their bows and arrows. The Governor when he saw he
returned not, called him, and he answered that he would not come out from
thence, neither would he go any farther than that town, and that if he
would go his way in peace, he should presently depart, and should not seek
to carry him perforce out of his country and territory.
The Governor seeing the determination and furious answer of the
cacique, went about to pacify him with fair words; to which he gave no
answer, but rather with much pride and disdain, withdrew himself where the
Governor might not see him nor speak with him. As a principal Indian
passed that way, the Governor called him, to send him word that he might
remain at his pleasure in his country, and that it would please him to
give him a guide, and men for carriages, to see if he could pacify him
with mild words. The Indians answered with great pride, that he would not
hearken unto him. Bal-tasar de Gallegos, which stood by, took hold of a
gown of marterns which he had on, and he cast it over his head, and left
it in his hands: and because all of them immediately began to stir,
Baltasar de Gallegos gave him such a wound with his cutlass, that he
opened him down the back, and presently all the Indians with a great cry
came out of the houses shooting their arrows. The Governor considering
that if he tarried there, he could not escape, and if he commanded his men
to come in, which were without the town, the Indians within the houses
might kill their horses, and do much hurt, ran out of the town, and before
he came out, he fell twice or thrice, and those that were with him did
help him up again; and he and those that were with him were sore wounded;
and in a moment there were five Christians slain in the town. The
Governor came
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running out of the town, crying out that every man should stand farther
off; because from the wall they did them much hurt. The Indians seeing
that the Christians retired, and some of them, or the most part, more than
an ordinary pace, shot with great boldness at them, and struck down such
as they could overtake. The Indians which the Christians did lead with
them in chains, had laid down their burdens near unto the walls; and as
soon as the Governor and his men were retired, the men of Mavilla laid
them on the Indians'backs again, and took them into the town, and loosed
them presently from their chains, and gave them bows and arrows to fight
withal. Thus they possessed themselves of all the clothes and pearls, and
all that the Christians had, which their slaves carried. And because the
Indians had been always peaceable until we came to this place, some of our
men had their weapons in their fardels, and remained unarmed. And from
others that had entered the town with the Governor they had taken swords
and halberds, and fought with them. When the Governor was gotten into the
field, he called for a horse, and with some that accompanied him, he
returned and slew two or three Indians. All the rest retired themselves to
the town, and shot with their bows from the wall. And those which
presumed of their nimbleness, sallied forth to fight a stone's cast from
the wall. And when the Christians charged them, they retired themselves
at their leisure into the ton. At the time that the broil began, there
were in the town a friar and a priest, and a servant of the Governor, with
a woman slave; and they had no time to come out of the town, and they took
a house, and so remained in the ton. The Indians being become masters of
the place, they shut the door with a field gate; and among them was one
sword which the Governor's servant had, and with it he set himself behind
the door, thrusting at the Indians which sought to come into them; and the
friar and the priest stood on the other side, each of them with a bar in
their hands to beat him down that first came in. The Indians seeing they
could not get in by the door, began to uncover the house top. By this
time all the horsemen and footmen which were behind, were come to Mavilla.
Here there were sundry opinions, whether they should charge the Indians to
enter the town, or whether they should leave it, because it was hard to
enter; and in the end it was resolved to set upon them.
As soon as the battle and the rereward were come to Mavilla, the
Governor commanded all those that were best armed to alight, and made four
squadrons of footmen. The Indians, seeing how he was
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setting his men in order, concluded with the cacique, that he should go
his way, saying unto him, as after it was known by certain women that were
taken there, that he was but one man, and could fight but for one man, and
that they had there among them many principal Indians, very valiant and
expert in feats of arms, that any one of them was able to order the people
there; and forasmuch as matters of war were subject to casualty, and it
was uncertain which part should overcome, they wished him to save himself,
to the end, that if it fell out that they should end their days there, as
they determined rather than to be overcome, there might remain one to
govern the country. For all this he would not have gone away; but they
urged him so much, that with fifteen or twenty Indians of his own, he went
out of the ton, and carried away a scarlet cloak, and other things of the
Christians' goods, as much as he was able to carry, and seemed best unto
him. The Governor was informed how there went men out of the town, and he
commanded the horsemen to beset it, and sent in every squadron of footmen
one soldier with a firebrand to set fire on the houses, that the Indians
might have no defence; all his men being set in order, he commanded an
arquebuss to be shot off. The sign being given, the four squadrons, every
one by itself with great fury, gave the onset, and with great hurt on both
sides they entered the town. The friar and the priest, and those that
were with them in the house were saved, which cost the lives of two men of
account, and valiant, which came thither to succor them. The Indians
fought with such courage, that many times they drove our men out of the
town. The fight lasted so long, that for weariness and great thirst many
of the Christians went to a pool that was near the wall, to drink, which
was all stained with the blood of the dead, and then came again to fight.
The Governor seeing this, entered among the footmen into the town on
horseback, with certain that accompanied them, and was a mean that the
Christians came to set fire on the houses, and broke and overcame the
Indians, who running out of the town from the footmen, the horse-men
without drove in at the gates again, where being without all hope of life,
they fought valiantly, and after the Christians came among them to handy
blows, seeing themselves in great distress, without any succor, many of
them fled into the burning houses, where one upon another they were
smothered and burnt in the fire. The whole number of the Indians that
died in this town, were two thousand and five hundred, little more or
less. Of the Christians there died eighteen; of which one was Don Carls,
brother-in-law to the Governor,
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and a nephew of his, and one John de Gamez, and Men Rodriquez, Portuguese,
and John Vasquez de Villanova de Barca Rota, all men of honor, and of much
valor; the rest were footmen. Besides those that were slain, there were a
hundred and fifty wounded, with seven hundred wounds of their arrows: and
it pleased God that of very dangerous wounds they were quickly healed.
Moreover there were twelve horses slain, and seventy hurt. All the
clothes which the Christians carried with them to clothe themselves
withal, and the ornaments to say mass, and the pearls, were all burnt
there; and the Christians did set them on fire themselves; because they
held for a greater inconvenience, the hurt which the Indians might do them
from those houses, where they had gathered all those goods together, than
the loss of them. Here the Governor understood that Francisco Maldonado
waited for him at the Port of Ochuse, and that it wow six days' journey
from thence (Mavilla), and he dealt with John Ortiz to keep it secret,
because he had not accomplished that which he determined to do; and
because the pearls were burnt there, which he meant to have sent to Cuba
for a show, that the people hearing the news, might be desirous to come to
that country. He feared also, that if they should have news of him without
seeing from Florida neither gold nor silver, nor anything of value, it
would get such a name, that no man would seek to go thither, when he
should have need of people. And so he determined to send no news of
himself until he had found some rich country.
From the time that the Governor entered into Florida, until his
departure from Mavilla, there died a hundred and two Christians, some of
sickness, and others which the Indians slew. He stayed in Mavilla,
because of the wounded men, eight and twenty days; all which time he lay
in the field. It was a well inhabited and a fat country, there were some
great and walled towns, and many horses scattered all about the fields, to
wit, a crossbow shot or two, the one from the other. Upon Sunday, the
eighteenth of November (1540), when the hurt men were known to be healed,
the Governor departed from Mavilla. Every one furnished himself with
maize for two days, and they traveled five days through a desert: they
came to a province called Pafallaya, unto a town named Taliepatava: and
from thence they went to another, called Cabusto: near unto it ran a great
river. The Indians on the other side cried out, threatening the Christians
to kill them, if they sought to pass it. The Governor commanded his men
to make a barge within the town, because the Indians should not
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perceive it: it was finished in four days, and being ended, he commanded
it to be carried one night upon sleds half a league up the river. In the
morning there entered into it thirteen men well armed. The Indians
perceived what was attempted, and those which were nearest, came to defend
the passage. They resisted what they could, till the Christians came near
them; and seeing that the barge came to the shore, they fled away into the
groves of canes. The Christians mounted on horseback, and went up the
river to make good the passage, whereby the Governor and his company
passed the river. There were along the river some towns well stored with
maize and French beans. From thence to Chicaça the Governor traveled five
days through a desert. He came to a river, where on the other side were
Indians to defend the passage. He made another barge in two days; and
when it was finished, the Governor sent an Indian to request the cacique
to accept of his friendship, and peaceably to expect his coming: whom the
Indians that were on the other side the river slew before his face, and
presently making a great shout went their way. Having passed the river,
the next day, being the 17th of December, the Governor came to Chicaça, a
small town of twenty houses. And after they were come to Chicaça, they
were much troubled with cold, because it was now winter and it snowed,
while most of them were lodged in the field, before they had time to make
themselves houses. This country was very well peopled, and the houses
scattered like those of Mavilla, fat and plentiful of maize, and the most
part of it was fielding: they gathered as much as sufficed to pass the
winter. Some Indians were taken, among which was one whom the cacique
esteemed greatly. The Governor sent an Indian to signify to the cacique
that he desired to see him and to have his friendship. The cacique came
unto him, to offer him his person, country and subjects, and told him that
he would cause two other caciques to come to him in peace; who within a
few days after came with him and with their Indians. The one was called
Alimamu, the other Nicalasa. They gave a present unto the Governor of a
hundred and fifty coneys, and of the country garments, to wit, of mantles
and skins. The Cacique of Chicaça came to visit him many times; and
sometimes the Governor sent to call him, and sent him a horse to go and
come. He complained unto him that a subject of his was risen against him
and deprived him of his tribute, requesting his aid against him, for he
meant to seek him iu his country, and to punish him according to his
desert. Which was nothing else but a feigned plot. For they determined,
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as soon as the Governor was gone with him, and the camp was divided into
two parts, the one part of them to set upon the Governor and the other
upon them that remained in Chicaça. He went to the town where he used to
keep his residence, and brought with him two hundred Indians with their
bows and arrows. The Governor took thirty horsemen and eighty footmen,
and they went to Saquechuma (for so was the province called of that chief
man, which he said had rebelled). They found a walled town, without any
men: and those which went with the cacique set fire on the houses, to
dissemble their treason. But by reason of the great care and heedfulness,
that was as well in the Governor's people which he carried with him, as of
those which remained in Chicaça, they dare not assault them at that time.
The Governor invited the cacique, and certain principal Indians, and gave
them hog's flesh to eat. And though they did not commonly use it, yet
they were so greedy of it, that every night there came Indians to certain
houses a crossbow shot from the camp, where the hogs lay, and killed, and
carried away as many as they could. And three Indians were taken in the
manner. Two of them the Governor commanded to be shot to death with
arrows; and to cut off the hands of the other; and he sent him so handled
to the cacique. Who made as though it grieved him; yet they had offended
the Governor, and that he was glad that he had executed that punishment on
them. He lay in a plain country, half a league from the place where the
Christians lodged. Four horsemen went a straggling thither, to wit,
Francisco Osorio, and a servant of the Marquis of Astorga, called Reynoso,
and two servants of the Governor, the one his page, called Ribera, and the
other Fuentes, his chamberlain: and these had taken from the Indians some
skins, and some mantles, wherewith they were offended, and forsook their
houses. The Governor knew of it, and commanded them to be apprehended; and
condemned to death Francisco Osorio, and the chamberlain as principals,
and all of them to loss of goods. The friars and priests and other
principal persons were earnest with him to pardon Francisco Osorio his
life, and to moderate his sentence, which he would not grant for any of
them. While he was ready to command them to be drawn to the market-place
to cut off their heads, there came certain Indians from the cacique to
complain of them. John Ortiz, at the request of Baltasar de Gallegos and
other persons, changed their words, and told the Governor, that the
cacique said, he had notice how his lordship held those Christians in
prison for his sake, and that they
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were in no fault, neither had they done him any wrong, and that if he
would do him any favor, he should set them free. And he told the Indians,
that the Governor said he had them in prison, and that he would punish
them in such sort, that they should be an example to others. Hereupon the
Governor commanded the prisoners to be loosed. As soon as March was come,
he determined to depart from Chicaça, and demanded of the cacique two
hundred men for carriages. He sent him answer that he would speak with his
principal men. Upon Tuesday, the eighth of March, 1541, the Governor went
to thc town where he was, to ask him for the men: he told him he would
send them the next day. As soon as the Governor was come to Chicaça, he
told Luys de Moscoso, the camp-master, that he misliked the Indians, and
that he should keep a strong watch that night, which he remembered but a
little. The Indians came at the second watch in four squadrons, every one
by itself, and as soon as they were descried, they sounded a drum, and
gave the assault with a great cry, and with so great celerity, that
presently they entered with the scouts, that were somewhat distant from
the camp. And when they were perceived of them which were in the town,
half the houses were on fire, which they had kindled. That night three
horsemen chanced to be scouts; two of them were of base calling, and the
worst men in all the camp, and the other, which was a nephew of the
Governor, which until then was held for a tall man, showed himself there
as great a coward as any of them: for all of them ran away. And the
Indians without any resistance came and set the town on fire; and tarried
without behind the doors for the Christians, which ran out of thc houses,
not having any leisure to arm themselves; and as they ran hither and
thither amazed with the noise, and blinded with the smoke and flame of the
fire, they knew not which way they went, neither could they light upon
their weapons, nor saddle their horses, neither saw they the Indians that
shot at them. Many of the horses were burned in the stables, and those
which could break their halters got loose. The disorder and fight was
such that every man fled which way he could, without leaving any to resist
the Indians. But God (which chastiseth his according to his pleasure, and
in the greatest necessities and dangers sustaineth them with his hand) so
blinded the Indians, that they saw not what they had done, and though it
that the horses which ran loose, were men on horseback, that gathered
themselves together to set upon them. The Governor only rode on
horseback, and with him a soldier called Tapia, and set upon the
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Indians, and striking the first he met with his lance, the saddle fell
with him, which with haste was evil girded, and so he fell from his horse.
And all the people that were on foot were fled to a wood out of the town,
and there assembled themselves together. And because it was night, and
that the Indians thought the horses were men on horseback which came to
set upon them, as I said before, they fled; and one only remained dead,
and that was he whom the Governor slew with his lance. The town lay all
burnt to ashes. There was a woman burned, who, after she and her husband
were both gone out of their house, went in again for certain pearls which
they had forgotten, and when she would have come out, the fire was so
great at the door that she could not, neither could her husband succor
her. Other three Christians came out of their lodgings so cruelly burned,
that one of them died within three days, and the other two were carried
many days each of them upon a couch between staves, which the Indians
carried on their shoulders, for otherwise they could not travel. There
died in this hurlyburly eleven Christians, and fifty horses; and there
remained a hundred hogs, and four hundred were burned. If any perchance
had saved any clothes from the fire of Mavilla, here they were burned, and
many were clad in skins, for they had no leisure to take their coats.
They endured much cold in this place, and the chiefest remedy were great
fires. They spent all night in turnings without sleep: for if they warmed
one side, they freezed on the other. Some invented the weaving of certain
mats of dry ivy, and did wear one beneath, and another above: many laughed
at this device, whom afterward necessity enforced to do the like. The
Christians were so spoiled, and in such want of saddies and weapons which
were burned, that if the Indians had come the second night, they had
overcome them with little labor. They removed thence to the town where
the cacique was wont to lie, because it was in a champaign country.
Within eight days after, there were many lances and saddles made. There
were ash-trees in those parts, whereof they made as good lances as in
Biscay.
Upon Wednesday, the 15th of March, 1541, after the Governor had
lodged eight days in a plain, half a league from the place which he had
wintered in, after he had set up a forge, and tempered the swords which in
Chicaça were burned, and made many targets, saddles, and lances; on
Tuesday night, at the morning watch, many Indians came to assault the camp
in three squadrons, every one by themselves. Those which watched gave the
alarm. The Governor
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with great speed set his men in order in other three squadrons, and
leaving some to defend the camp, went out to encounter them. The Indians
were overcome and put to flight. The ground was champaign and fit for the
Christians to take the advantage of them; and it was now break of day.
But there happened a disorder, whereby there were not past thirty or forty
Indians slain: and this it was: that a friar cried out in the camp without
any just occasion, "To the camp, to the camp." Whereupon the Governor and
all the rest repaired thither, and the Indians had time to save
themselves. There were some taken, by whom the Governor informed himself
of the country through which he was to pass. The 25th of April, he
departed from Chicaça, and lodged at a small town called Alimamu. They
had very little maize, and they were to pass a desert of seven days'
journey. The next day, the Governor sent three captains, every one his
way, with horsemen and footmen to seek provisions to pass the desert. And
John Dannusco the Auditor went with fifteen horsemen and forty footmen
that way that the Governor was to go, and found a strong fort made, where
the Indians stayed for him, and many of them walked on the top of it with
their weapons, having their bodies, thighs, and arms ochred and dyed with
black, white, yellow and red, striped like unto panes, so that they showed
as though they went in hose and doublets: and some of them had plumes, and
others had horns on their heads, and their faces black, and their eyes
done round about with steaks of red, to seem more fierce. As soon as they
saw that the Christians approached, with a great cry sounding two drums
with great fury they sallied forth to receive them. John Dannusco and
those that were with him thought good to avoid them, and to acquaint the
Governor therewith. They retired to a plain place, a crossbow-shot from
the fort, in sight of it: the footmen, the crossbow-men, and targeters
placed themselves before the horsemen, that they might not hurt the
horses. The Indians sallied out by seven and seven, and eight and eight,
to shoot their arrows, and retired again: and in sight of the Christians
they made a fire, and took an Indian, some by the feet, and some by the
head, and made as though they went to cast him into the fire, and gave him
first many knocks on the head: signifying that they meant so to handle the
Christians. John Dannusco sent three horsemen to advertise the Governor
hereof. He came presently: for his intent was to drive them from thence,
saying, that if he did it not, they would be emboldened to charge him
another time, when they might do him more harm. He made the horsemen to
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alight, and set his men in four squadrons. The sign being given, they set
upon the Indians, which made resistance till the Christians came near the
fort, and as soon as they saw they could not defend themselves, by a place
where a brook passed near the fort, they ran away, and from the other side
they shot some arrows; and because at that instant we knew no ford for the
horses to pass, they had time enough to get out of our danger. Three
Indians were slain there, and many Christians were hurt, whereof within
few days, there died fifteen by the way. All men thought the Governor to
be in fault, because he sent not to see the disposition of the place on
the other side of the river, and to know the passage before he set upon
them. For with the hope they had to save themselves by flight that way,
when they saw none other means, they fought till they were broken, and it
was an encouragement to defend themselves until then, and to offend the
Christians without any danger to themselves.
Three days after they had sought some maize, whereof they found but
little store, in regard of that which was needful, and that for this
cause, as well for their sakes that were wounded, it was needful for them
to rest, as for the great jonrney they were to march to come where store
of maize was: yet the Governor was enforced to depart presently toward
Quizquiz. He traveled seven days through a desert of many marshes and
thick woods: but it might all be traveled on horseback, except some lakes
which they swam over. He came to a town of the province of Quizquiz
without being descried, and took all the people in it before they came out
of their houses. The mother of the cacique was taken there: and he sent
unto him by an Indian, that he should come to see him, and that he would
give him his mother, and all the people which he had taken there. The
cacique sent him answer again, that his lordship should loose and send
them to him, and that he would come to visit and serve him. The Governor,
because his people for want of maize were somewhat weak and weary, and the
horses also were lean, determined to accomplish his request, to see if he
could have peace with him, and so commanded to set free his mother and all
the rest, and with loving words dismissed them and sent them to him. The
next day, when the Governor expected the cacique, there came many Indians
with their bows and arrows with a purpose to set upon the Christians. The
Governor had commanded all the horsemen to be armed, and on horseback, and
in readiness. When the Indians saw that they were ready, they stayed a
crossbow-shot from the place where the Governor was, near a brook. And
after
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half an hour that they had stood there still, there came to the camp six
principal Indians, and said, "they came to see what people they were, and
that long ago, they had been informed by their forefathers that a white
people should subdue them; and that therefore they would return to their
cacique, and bid him conic presently to obey and serve the Governor:" and
after they had presented him with six or seven skins and mantles which
they brought, they took their leave of him, and returned with the others,
which waited for them by the brook side. The cacique never came again nor
sent other message. And because in the town where the Governor lodged,
there was small store of maize, he removed to another half a league from
Rio Grande,* where they fonnd plenty of maize. And he went to see the
river, and found, that near unto it was great store of timber to make
barges, and good situation of ground to encamp in. Presently he removed
himself thither. They made houses, and pitched their camp in a plain
field a crossbow-shot from the river. And thither was gathered all the
maize of the towns which they had lately passed. They began presently to
cut and hew down timber, and to saw planks for, barges. The Indians came
presently down the river: they leaped on shore, and declared to the
Governor, "that they were subjects of a great lord, whose name was Aquixo,
who was lord of many towns, and governed many people on the other side of
the river, and came to tell him on his behalf, that the next day he with
all his men would come to see what it would please him to command him.
The next day, with speed, the cacique came with two hundred canoes full of
Indians with their bows and arrows, painted, and with great plumes of
white feathers, and many other colors, with shields in their hands,
wherewith they defended the rowers on both sides, and the men of war stood
from the head to the stern, with their bows and arrows in their hands.
The canoe wherein the cacique was, had a tilt over the stern, and he sat
under the tilt; and so were other canoes of the principal Indians. And
from under the tilt where the chief man sat, he governed and commanded the
other people. All joined together, and came within a stone's cast of the
shore. From thence the cacique said to the Governor, which walked along
the river's side with others that waited on him, that he was come thither
to visit, to honor, and to obey him; because he knew he was the greatest
and mightiest lord on the earth: therefore he would see what he would
command him to do. The Governor yielded him thanks, and requested him to
* Rio Grande, or Rio de Espiritu Santo.
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come on shore, that they might the better communicate together. And
without any answer to that point, he sent him three canoes, wherein was
great store of fish and loaves, made of the substance of prunes like unto
bricks. After he had received all, he thanked him, and prayed him again
to come on shore. And because the cacique's purpose was, to see if with
dissimulation he might do some hurt, when they saw that the Governor and
his men were in readiness, they began to go from the shore: and with a
great cry, the crossbow-men which were ready, shot at them, and slew five
or six of them. They retired with great order: none did leave his oar,
though the next to him were slain, and shielding themselves, they went
farther off. Afterward they came many times and landed: and when any of
us came toward them, they fled into their canoes, which were very pleasant
to behold: for they were very great and well made, and had their tilts,
plumes, paueses, and flags, and with the multitude of people that were in
them, they seemed to be a fair army of galleys. In thirty days' space,
while the Governor remained there, they made four barges: in three of
which he commanded twelve horsemen to enter, in each of them four. In a
morning, three hours before day, men which he trusted would land in
despite of the Indians, and make sure the passage, or die, and some
footmen, being crossbow-men, went with them, and rowers to set them on the
other side. And in the other barge he commanded John de Guzman to pass
with the foot-men, which was made captain instead of Francisco Maldonado.
And because the stream was swift, they went a quarter of a league up the
river along the bank, and crossing over, fell down with the stream, and
landed right over against the camp. Two stones' cast before they came to
land, the horsemen went out of the barges on horseback to a sandy plot
very hard and clear ground, where all of them landed without any
resistance. As soon as those that passed first were on land on the other
side, the barges returned to the place where the Governor was: and within
two hours after sun rising, all the people were over. The river was
almost half a league broad. If a man stood still on the other side, it
could not be discerned whether he was a man or no. The river was of great
depth, and of a strong current: the water was always muddy: there came
down the river continually many trees and timber, which the force of the
water and stream brought down. There was great store of fish in it of
sundry sorts, and the most of it differing from the fresh water fish of
Spain, as hereafter shall be showed.
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Having passed Rio Grande, the Governor traveled a league and a half,
and came to a great town of Aquixo, which was dispeopled before he came
thither. They espied thirty Indians coming over a plain, which the
cacique sent to discover the Christians' determination; and as soon as
they had sight of them, they took themselves to flight. The horsemen
pursued them, and slew ten, and took fifteen. And because the town,
whither the Governor went, was near unto the river, he sent a captain,
with as many men as he thought sufficient, to carry the barges up the
river. And because in his traveling by land many times he went far from
the river to compass the creeks that came from it, the Indians took
occasion to set upon them of the barges, and put them in great danger,
because that by reason of the great current, they durst not leave the
shore, and from the bank they shot at them. As soon as the Governor was
come to the town, he presently sent crossbow-men down the river, which
came to rescue them; and upon the coming of the barges to the town, he
commanded them to be broken, and to save the iron for others, when it
should be needful. He lay there one night, and the day following he set
forward to seek a province, called Pacaha, which he was informed to be
near unto Chisca, where the Indians told him there was gold. He passed
through great towns of Aquixo, which were all abandoned for fear of the
Christians. He understood by certain Indians that were taken that three
days' journey from thence dwelt a great cacique, whose name was Casqui.
He came to a small river, where a bridge was made, by which they passed;
that day till sunset, they went all in water, which in some places came to
the waist, and in some to the knees. When they saw themselves on dry
land, they were very glad, because they feared they should wander up and
down as forlorn men all night in the water. At noon they came to the
first town of Casqui: they found the Indians careless, because they had no
knowledge of them. There were many men and women taken, and store of
goods, as mantles and skins, as well in the first town, as in another,
which stood in a field half a league from thence in sight of it; whither
the horsemen ran. This country is higher, drier, and more champaign, than
any part bordering near the river that until then they had seen. There
were in the fields many walnut trees, bearing soft-shelled walnuts in the
fashion like bullets, and in the houses they found many of them, which the
Indians had laid up in store. The trees differed in nothing else from
those of Spain, nor from those which we had seen before, but only that
they have a smaller leaf. There were many mulberry trees and plum trees,
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which bare red plums like those of Spain, and others gray, somewhat
differing, but far better. And all the trees are all the year so
fruitful, as if they were planted in orchards; and the woods were very
thin. The Governor traveled two days through the country of Casqui,
before he came to the town where the cacique was; and the most of the way
was alway by champaign ground, which was full of great towns, so that from
one town, you might see two or three. He sent an Indian to certify the
cacique that he was coming to the place where he was, with intent to
procure his friendship, and to hold hint as his brother. Whereunto he
answered, that he should be welcome, and that he would receive him with
special good-will, and accomplish all that his lordship would command him.
He sent him a present upon the way; to wit, skins, mantles, and fish: and
after these compliments, the Governor found all the towns, as he passed,
inhabited with people, which peaceably attended his coming, and offered
him skins, mantles, and fish. The cacique, accompanied with many Indians,
came out of the town, and stayed half a league on the way to receive the
Governor, and when he came to him, he spake these words following:--
"Right high, right mighty, and renowned lord, your lordship is most
heartily welcome. As soon as I had notice of your lordship, of your
power, and your perfections, although you came into my country killing and
taking captives the inhabitants thereof and my subjects, yet I determined
to conform my will unto yours, and as your own to interpret in good part
all that your lordship did: believing that it was convenient it should be
so for some just respect, to prevent some future matter revealed unto your
lordship, and concealed from me. For well may a mischief be permitted to
avoid a greater, and that good may come thereof: which I believe will so
fall out. For it is no reason to presume of so excellent a prince, that
the nobleness of his heart, and the effect of his will would permit him to
suffer any unjust thing. My ability is so small to serve you as your
lordship deserveth, that if you respect not mine abundant good-will, which
humbly offereth all kind of service, I deserve but little in your
presence. But if it be reason that this be esteemed, receive the same,
myself, my country, and subjects for yours, and dispose of me and them at
your pleasure. For if I were lord of all the world, with the same
good-will should your lordship by me be received, served and obeyed."
The Governor answered him to the purpose, and satisfied him in few
words. Within a while after both of them used words of great offers and
courtesy the one to the other, and the cacique requested
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him to lodge in his houses. The Governor, to preserve the peace the
better, excused himself, saying that he would lodge in the fields. And
because it was very hot, they camped near certain trees a quarter of a
league from the town. The cacique went to his town, and came again with
many Indians singing. As soon as they came to the Governor, all of them
prostrated themselves upon the ground. Among these came two Indians that
were blind. The cacique made a speech: to avoid tediousness, I will only
tell in a few words the substance of the matter. He said, that seeing the
Governor was the son of the Sun, and a great lord, he besought him to do
him the. favor to give sight to those two blind men. The blind men rose
up presently, and very earnestly requested the same of the Governor. He
answered, that in the high heavens was he that had power to give them
health, and whatsoever they could ask of him; whose servant he was: and
that this Lord made the heavens and the earth, and man after his own
likeness, and that he suffered upon the cross to save mankind, and rose
again the third day, and that he died as he was man, and as touching his
divinity, he was, and is immortal; and that he amended into heaven, where
he standeth with his arms open to receive all such as turn unto him: and
straightway he commanded him to make a very high cross of wood, which was
set up in the highest place of the town; declaring unto him, that the
Christians worshiped the same in resemblance and memory of that whereon
Christ suffered. The Governor and his men kneeled down before it, and the
Indians did the like. The Governor willed him, that from thenceforth he
would worship the same, and should ask whatsoever they stood in need of,
of that Lord that he told him was in heaven. Then he asked him how far it
was from thence to Pacaha. He said, one day's journey, and that at the
end of his country, there was a lake like a brook which falleth into Rio
Grande, and that he would send men before to make a bridge whereby he
might pass. The same day that the Governor departed thence, he lodged at
a town belonging to Casqui; and the next day he passed in sight of other
towns, and came to the lake, which was half a crossbow shot over, of a
great depth and current. At the time of his coming, the Indians had made
an end of the bridge, which was made of timber, laid one tree after
another : and on one side it had a course of stakes higher than the
bridge, for them that passed to take hold on. The Cacique of Casqui came
to the Governor, add brought his people with him. The Governor sent word
by an Indian to the Cacique of Pacaha, that though he were enemy to the
Cacique of
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Casqui, and though he were there, yet he would do him no disgrace nor
hurt, if he would attend him peaceably, and embrace his friendship; but
rather would intreat him as a brother. The Indian, which the Governor
sent, came again, and said that the cacique made no account of that which
he told him, but fled with all his men out at the other side of the town.
Presently the Governor entered, and ran before with the horsemen, that way
by which the Indians fled; and at another town, distant a quarter of a
league from thence, they took many Indians; and as soon as the horsemen
had taken them, they delivered them to the Indians of Casqui, whom,
because they were their enemies, with much circumspection and rejoicing,
they brought to the town where the Christians were: and the greatest
grief they had was this, that they could not get leave to kill them.
There were found in the town many mantles, and deer skins, lion skins, and
bear skins, and many cat skins. Many came so far poorly appareled, and
there they clothed themselves: of the mantles, they made them coats and
cassocks, and some made gowns, and lined them with cat skins; and likewise
their cassocks. Of the deer skins, some made them also jerkins, shirts,
hose and shoes: and of the bear skins, they made them very good cloaks:
for no water could pierce them. There were targets of raw ox hides found
there; with which hides they armed their horses.
Upon Wednesday, the 19th of June, 1541, the Governor entered into
Pacaha. He lodged in the town, where the cacique used to regide, which
was very great, walled, and beset with towers, and many loopholes were in
the towers and wall. And in the town was great store of old maize, and
great quantity of new in the fields. Within a league and half a league
were great towns all walled. Where the Governor was lodged was a great
lake, that came near unto the wall; and it entered into a ditch, that went
round about the town, wanting but a little to environ it around. From the
lake to the great river was made a wear by which the fish came into it;
which the cacique kept for his recreation and sport. With nets that were
found in the town, they took as much as they would; and took they never
so much, there was no want perceived. There was also great store of fish
in many other lakes that were thereabout, but it was soft, and not so good
as that which came from the river, and the most of it was different from
the fresh-water fish of Spain. There was a fish which they called bagres;
the third part of it was head, and it had on both sides the gills, and
along the sides great pricks like very sharp awls. Those of the kind that
were in the lakes were as big as pikes; and in
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the river there were some of an hundred, and of an hundred and fifty
pounds weight, and many of them were taken with the hook. There was
another fish like barbilles, and another like breams, headed like a
delicate fish, called in Spain besugo, between red and gray. This was
there of most esteem. There was another fish called peel fish; it had a
snout of a cubit long, and at the end of the upper lip it was made like a
peel. There was another fish called a western shad; and all of them had
scales, except the bagres, and the peel fish. There was another fish which
sometimes the Indians brought us, of the bigness of a hog; they called it
the pereo fish; it had rows of teeth beneath and above. The Cacique of
Casqui sent many times great presents of fish, mantles, and skins. He
told the Governor that he would deliver the Cacique of Pacaha into his
hands. He went to Casqui, and sent many canoes up the river, and came
himself by land with many of his people. The Governor, with forty
horsemen and sixty footmen, took him along with him up the river. And his
Indians which were in the canoes, discovered where the Cacique of Pacaha
was, in a little island, situated between two arms of the river. And five
Christians entered into a canoe, wherein Don Antonio Osorio went before,
to see what people the cacique had with him. There were in the isle five
or six thousand souls. And as soon as they saw them, supposing that the
Indians which were in the other canoes were also Christians, the cacique,
and certain which were in three canoes, which they had there with them,
fled in great haste to the other side of the river. The rest, with great
fear and danger, leapt into the river, where many people were drowned,
especially women and little children. Presently the Governor, who was on
land, not knowing what had happened to Don Antonio and those that went
with him, commanded the Christians with all speed to enter with the
Indians of Casqui in the canoes, which were quickly with Don Antonio in
the little island, where they took many men and women, and much goods.
Great store of goods, which the Indians had laid upon hurdles of canes and
rafts of timber to carry over to the other side, drove down the river,
wherewith the Indians of Casqui filled their canoes; and for fear lest the
Christians would take it from them, the cacique went home with them down
the river, without taking his leave of the Governor; whereupon the
Governor was highly offended with him, and presently returning to Pacaha,
he overran the country of Casqui the space of two leagues, where he took
twenty or thirty of his men. And because his horses were weary, and he
wanted
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time that day to go any farther, he returned to Pacaha, with determination
within three or four days after to invade Casqui. And presently he let
loose one of the Indians of Pacaha, and sent word by him to the cacique,
that if he would have his friendship, he should repair unto him, and that
both of them would make war upon Casqui. And presently came many Indians
that belonged to Pacaha, and brought an Indian instead of the cacique,
which was discovered by the cacique's brother, which was taken prisoner.
The Governor wished the Indians that their master himself should come; for
he knew very well that that was not he, and told them that they could do
nothing which he knew not before they thought it. The next day the
cacique came, accompanied with many Indians, and with a present of much
fish, skins and mantles. He made a speech that all were glad to hear, and
concluded saying, that though his lordship, without his giving occasion of
offence had done him hurt in his country and subjects, yet he would not
therefore refuse to be his, and that he would always be at his command.
The Governor commanded his brother to be loosed, and other principal
Indians that were taken prisoners. That day came an Indian from the
Cacique of Casqui and said that his lord would come the next day to excuse
himself of the error which he had committed, in going away without license
of the Governor. The Governor willed the messenger to signify unto him,
that if he came not in his own person, he would seek him himself, and give
him such punishment as he deserved. The next day with all speed came the
Cacique of Casqui, and brought a present to the Governor of many mantles,
skins, and fish, and gave him a daughter of his, saying that he greatly
desired to match his blood with the blood of so great a lord as he was,
and therefore he brought him his daughter, and desired him to take her to
his wife. He made a long and discreet oration, giving him great
commendations, and concluded, saying, that he should pardon his going away
without license, for that cross's sake which he had left with him;
protesting that he went away for shame of that which his men had done
without his consent. The Governor answered him that he had chosen a good
patron; and that if he had not come to excuse himself, he had determined
to seek him, to burn his towns, to kill him and his people, and to destroy
his country. To which he replied, saying:
"My lord, I and mine are yours, and my country likewise is yours;
therefore if you had done so, you should have destroyed
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your own country, and have killed your own people; whatsoever shall come
unto me from your hand, I will receive as from my lord, as well punishment
as reward; and know you, that the favor which you did me in leaving me the
cross, I do acknowledge the same to be a very great one, and greater than
I have ever deserved. For you shall understand, that with great droughts
the fields of maize of my country were withered; and as soon as I and my
people kneeled before the cross, and prayed for rain, presently our
necessities were relieved."
The Governor made him and the Cacique of Pacaha friends; and set them
with him at his table to dine with him; and the caciques fell at variance
about the seats, which of them should sit on his right hand. The Governor
pacified them; telling them that among the Christians all was cue to sit
on the one side, or on the other, willing them so to behave themselves,
seeing they were with him, that nobody might hear them, and that every one
should sit in the place that first he lighted on. From thence he sent
thirty horsemen and fifty footmen to the province of Caluça, to see if
from thence he might travel to Chisca, where the Indians said there was a
work of gold and copper. They traveled seven days' journey, through a
desert, and returned very weary, eating green plums, and stalks of maize,
which they found in a poor town of six or seven houses. From
thenceforward towards the north, the Indians said that the country was
very ill inhabited, because it was very cold; and that there was such
store of oxen, that they could keep no corn for them; and that the Indians
lived upon their flesh. The Governor, seeing that toward that part the
country was so poor of maize that in it they could not be sustained,
demanded of the Indians which way it was most inhabited; and they said,
they had notice of a great province, and a very plentiful country, which
was called quigaute, and that it was toward the south.
The Governor rested in Pacaha forty days; in all which time the two
caciques served him with great store of fish, mantles, and skins, and
strove who should do him greatest service. At the time of his departure
the Cacique of Pacaha gave him two of his sisters, saying that in sign of
love that he might remember him, he should take them for his wives: the
one's name was Macanoche, and the other's Mochila: they were well
proportioned, tall of body, and well fleshed. Macanoche was of a good
countenance, and in her shape and physiognomy looked like a lady; the
other was strongly made. The Cacique of Casqui commanded the bridge to be
repaired, and the Governor
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returned through his country, and lodged in the field near his town,
whither he came with great store of fish, and two women, which he
exchanged with two Christians for two shirts. He gave us a guide and men
for carriages. The Governor lodged at a town of his, and the next day at
another near a river, whither he caused canoes to be brought for him to
pass over, and with his leave returned. The Governor took his journey
toward Quigaute. The fourth day of August he came to the town, where the
cacique used to keep his residence: on the way he sent him a present of
many mantles and skins, and not daring to stay for him in the town, he
absented himself. The town was the greatest that was seen in Florida.
The Governor and his people lodged in the one-half of it; and within few
days, seeing the Indians became liars, he commanded the other half to be
burned, because it should not be a shelter for them, if they came to
assault him by night, nor a hinderance to his horsemen for the resisting
of them. There came an Indian very well accompanied with many Indians,
saying that he was the cacique. He delivered him over to the men of his
guard to look unto him. There went and came many Indians, and brought
mantles and skins. The counterfeit cacique, seeing so little opportunity
to execute his evil thought, as he went one day abroad talking with the
Governor, he showed him such a pair of heels, that there was no Christian
that could overtake him, and he leaped into the river, which was a
crossbow shot from the town: and as soon as he was on the other side, many
Indians that were thereabout making a great cry began to shoot. The
Governor passed presently over to them with horsemen and foot-men, but
they durst not tarry for him. Going forward on his way, he came to a town
where the people were fled, and a little further to a lake, where the
horses could not pass, and on the other side were many women. The footmen
passed, and took many of them, and much spoil. The Governor came to the
camp, and that night was a spy of the Indians taken by them of the watch.
The Governor asked him, whether he would bring him where the cacique was?
he said he would. And he went presently to seek him, with twenty horsemen
and fifty footmen; and after he had sought him a day and a half, he found
him in a strong wood: and a soldier, not knowing him, gave him a wound on
the head; and he cried out, that he should not kill him, saying that he
was the cacique; so he was taken, and a hundred and forty of his men with
him. The Governor came again to Quigaute, and willed him to cause his men
to come to serve the
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Christians; and staying some days for their coming, and seeing they came
not, he sent two captains, every one his way on both sides of the river
with horsemen and footmen. They took many men and women. Now seeing the
hurt which they sustained for their rebellion, they came to see what the
Governor would command them, and passed to and fro many times, and brought
presents of cloth and fish. The cacique and his two wives were in the
lodging of the Governor loose, and the halberdiers of his guard did keep
them. The Governor asked them which way the country was most inhabited?
They said, that toward the south down the river, were great towns and
caciques, which commanded great countries, and much people. And that
toward the north-west, there was a province near to certain mountains,
that was called Coligoa. The Governor and all the rest thought good to go
first to Coligoa: saying, that peradventure the mountains would make some
difference of soil, and that beyond them there might be some gold or
silver. As for Quigaute, Casqui, and Pacaha, they were plain countries,
fat grounds, and full of good meadows on the rivers, where the Indians
sowed large fields of maize. From Tascaluca to Rio Grande, or the Great
River, is about three hundred leagues: it is a very low country, and hath
many lakes. From Pacaha to Quigaute may be an hundred leagues. The
Governor left the Cacique of Quigaute in his own town. And an Indian,
which was his guide, led him through great woods without any way, seven
days' journey through a desert, where, at every lodging, they lodged in
lakes and pools in very shoal water; there was such store of fish, that
they killed them with cudgels; and the Indians which they carried in
chains, with the mud troubled the waters, and the fish being therewith, as
it were, astonished, came to the top of the water, and they took as much
as they listed. The Indians of Coligoa had no knowledge of the
Christians, and when they came so near the town that the Indians saw them,
they fled up a river which passed near the town, and some leaped into it;
but the Christians went on both sides of the river, and took them. There
were many men and women taken, and the cacique with them. And by his
commandment within three days came many Indians with a present of mantles
and deers' skins, and two ox hides: and they reported, that five or six
leagues from thence toward the north, there were many of these oxen, and
that because the country was cold, it was evil inhabited; that the best
country which they knew, the most plentiful, and most inhabited, was a
province called Cayas, lying toward the south. From
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Quigaute to Coligoa may be forty leagues. This town of Coligoa stood at
the foot of a hill, on the bank of a mean river, of the bigness of Cayas,
the river that passeth by Estremadura. It was a fat soil and so plentiful
of maize, that they cast out the old, to bring in the new. There was also
great plenty of French beans and pompions. The French beans were greater,
and better than those of Spain, and likewise the pompions, and being
roasted, they have almost the taste of chestnuts. The Cacique of Coligoa
gave a guide to Cayas, and stayed behind in his own town. We traveled
five days, and came to the province of Palisema. The house of the cacique
was found covered with deers' skins, of divers colors and works drawn in
them, and with the same in manner of carpets was the ground of the house
covered. The cacique left it so, that the Governor might lodge in it, in
token that he sought peace and his friendship. But he durst not tarry his
coming. The Governor, seeing he had absented himself, sent a captain with
horsemen and footmen to seek him. He found much people, but by reason of
the roughness of the country, he took none save a few women and children.
The town was little and scattering, and had very little maize. For which
cause the Governor speedily departed from thence. He came to another town
called Tatalicoya; he carried with him the cacique thereof, which guided
him to Cayas. From Tatalicoya are four days' journey to Cayas. When he
came to Cayas, and saw the town scattered, he thought they had told him a
lie, and that it was not the province of Cayas, because they had informed
him that it was well inhabited. He threatened the cacique, charging him
to tell him where he was: and he and other Indians which were taken near
about that place, affirmed that this was the town of Cayas, and the best
that was in that country, and that though the houses were distant the one
from the other, yet the ground that was inhabited was great, and that
there was great store of people, and many fields of maize. This town was
called Tanico; he pitched his camp in the best part of it, near unto a
river. The same day that the Governor came thither, he went a league
farther with certain horsemen, and without finding any people, he found
many skins in a pathway, which the cacique had left there, that they might
be found, in token of peace. For so is the custom in that country.
The Governor rested a month in the province of Cayas. In which time
the horses fattened and thrived more, than in other places in a longer
time, with the great plenty of maize and the leaves thereof
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which I think was the best that has been seen, and they drank of a lake of
very hot water, and somewhat brackish, and they drank so much, that it
swelled in their bellies when they brought them from the watering. Until
that time the Christians wanted salt, and there they made good store,
which they carried along with them. The Indians do carry it to other
places to exchange it for skins and man tIes. They make it along the
river, which when it ebbeth, leaveth it upon the upper part of the sand.
And because they cannot make it, without utuch sand mingled with it, they
throw it into certain baskets which they have for that purpose, broad at
the mouth and narrow at the bottom, and set it in the air upon a bar, and
throw water into it, and set a small vessel under it, wherein it falleth:
Being strained and set to boil upon the fire, when the water is sodden
away, the salt remaineth in the bottom of the pan. On both sides of the
river the country was full of sown fields, and there was store of maize.
The Indians durst not come over where we were; and when some of them
showed themselves, the soldiers that saw them called unto them; then the
Indians passed the river, and came with them where the Governor was. lie
asked them for the cacique. They said that he remained quiet, but that he
durst not show himself. The Governor presently sent him word, that he
should come unto him, and bring him a guide and an interpreter for his
journey, if he made account of his friendship: and if he did not so, he
would come himself to seek him, and that it would be the worse for him.
He waited three days, and seeing he came not, lie went to seek him, and
brought him prisoner with 150 of his men. He asked him, whether he had
notice of any great cacique, and which way the country was best inhabited.
He answered, that the best country thereabout was a province toward the
south, a day ~~nd a half's journey, which was called TuIla; and that he
could give him a guide, but no interpreter, because the speech of that
country was different from his, and because he and his ancestors had
always wars with the lords of that province; therefore they had no
commerce, nor understood one another's language. Immediately the Governor
with certain horsemen, and fifty foottnen, departed towards Tulla, to see
if the country were such, as he might pass through it with all his
company: and as soon as he arrived there, and was espied of the Indians,
the country gathered together, and as soon as fifteen and twenty Indians
could assemble themselves, they set upon the Christians: and seeing that
they did handle them shrewdly, and that the horsemen overtook them when
they fled, they got up into the tops of their houses,
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and sought to defend themselves with their arrows: and being beaten down
from one, they got up upon another. And while our men pursued some,
others set upon them another way. Thus the skirmish lasted so long, that
the horses were tired, and they could not make them run. The Indians
killed there one horse, and some were hurt. There were fifteen Indians
slain there, and forty women and boys were taken prisoners. For
whatsoever Indian did shoot at them, if they could come by him, they put
him to the sword. The Governor determined to return toward Cayas, before
the Indians had time to gather a head; and presently that evening, going
part of the night to leave Tulla, he lodged by the way, and the next day
came to Cayas: and within three days after he departed thence towards
Tulla with all his company. He carried the cacique along with him, and
among all his men, there was not one found that could understand the
speech of Tulla. He stayed three days by the way, and the day that he
came thither, he found the town abandoned: for the Indians durst not
tarry his coming. But as soon as they knew that the Governor was in
Tulla, the first night about the morning watch, they came in two squadrons
two several ways, with their bows and arrows, and long staves like pikes.
As soon as they were descried, both horse and foot sallied out upon them,
where many of the Indians were slain: and some Christians and horses were
hurt. Some of the Indians were taken prisoners, whereof the Governor sent
six to the cacique, with their right hands and noses cut off: and sent
him word, that if he came not to him to excuse and submit himself, that he
would come to seek him, and that he would do the like to him, and as many
of his as he could find, as he had done to those which he had sent him:
and gave him three days' respite for to come. And this he gave them to
understand by signs, as well as he could, for there was no interpreter.
At the three days' end, there came an Indian laden with ox hides. He came
weeping with great sobs, and coming to the Governor cast himself down at
his feet. He took him up, and he made a speech, but there was none that
understood him. The Governor by signs commanded him to return to the
cacique, and to will him to send him an interpreter, which could
understand the men of Cayas. The next day came three Indians laden with
ox hides: and within three days after came 20 Indians, and among them one
that understood them of Cayas; who, after a long oration of excuses of the
cacique, and praises of the Governor, concluded with this, that he and the
other were come thither on the cacique's behalf, to see what his lordship
would
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command him to do, for he was ready at his commandment. The Governor and
all his company were very glad. For in nowise could they travel without
an interpreter. The Governor commanded him to be kept safe, and bade him
tell the men that came with him, that they should return to the cacique,
and signify unto him, that he pardoned him for that which was past, and
thanked him much for his presents and interpreter, which he had sent him,
and that he would be glad to see him, and that he should come the next day
to talk with him. After three days, the cacique came, and eighty Indians
with him; and himself and his men came weeping into the camp, in token of
obedience and repentance for the error passed, after the manner of that
country. He brought a present of many ox hides: which, because the country
was cold, were very profitable, and served for coverlets, because they
were very soft, and wooled like sheep. Not far from thence toward the
north were many oxen. The Christians saw them not, nor came into the
country where they were, because those parts were evil inhabited, and had
small store of maize where they were bred. The Cacique of Tulla made an
oration to the Governor, wherein he excused himself, and offered him his
country, subjects, and person. As well this cacique as the others, and
all those which came to the Governor on their behalf, delivered their
message or speech in so good order, that no orator could utter the same
more eloquently.
The Governor informed himself of all the country round about; and
understood, that toward the west was a scattered dwelling, and that toward
the southeast were great towns, especially in a province called Autiamque,
ten days' journey from Tulla; which might be about eighty leagues; and
that it was a plentiful country of maize. And because wtater came on, and
that they could not travel two or three months in the year for cold,
waters, and snow: and fearing, that if they should stay so long in the
scattered dwelling, they could not be sustained; and also because the
Indians said, that near to Autiamque was a great water, and according to
their relation, the Governor thought it was some arm of the sea: and
because he now desired to send news of himself to Cuba, that some supply
of men and horses might be sent unto him (for it was about three years
since Donna Isabella, which was in Havana, or any other person in
Christendom had heard of him, and by this time he had lost 250 men, and
150 horses), he determined to winter in Autiamque, and the next spring to
go to the sea coast and make two brigantines, and send one of them to
Cuba, and the other to Nueva Espanna, that that which went in safety,
might give news
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of him: hoping with the goods which he had in Cuba, to furnish himself
again, and to attempt the discovery and conquest toward the west: for he
had not yet come where Cabeça de Vaca had been. Thus having sent away the
two caciques of Cayas and Tulla, he took his journey toward Autiamque: he
traveled five days over rough mountains, and came to a town called
Quipana, where no Indians could be taken for the roughness of the country:
and the town being between hills, there was an ambush laid, wherewith they
took two Indians; which told them, that Autiamque was six days' journey
from thence, and that there was another province toward the south, eight
days' journey off, plentiful of maize, and very well peopled, which was
called Guahate. But because Autiamque was nearer, and the most of the
Indians agreed of it, the Governor made his journey that way. In three
days he came to a town called Annoixi. He sent a captain before with
thirty horsemen and fifty footmen, and took the Indians careless; he took
many men and women prisoners. Within two days after the Governor came to
another town called Catamaya, and lodged in the fields of the town. Two
Indians came with a false message from the cacique to know his
determination. He bade them tell their lord, that he should come and
speak with him. The Indians returned and came no more, nor any other
message from the cacique. The next day the Christians went to the town,
which was without people: they took as much maize as they needed. That
day they lodged in a wood, and the next day they came to Autiamque. They
found much maize laid up in store, and French beans, and walnuts, and
prunes, great store of all sorts. They took some Indians which were
gathering together the stuff which their wives had hidden. This was a
champaign country, and well inhabited. The Governor lodged in the best
part of the town, and commanded presently to make a fence of timber round
about the camp distant from the houses, that the Indians might not hurt
them without by fire. And measuring the ground by paces, he appointed
every one his part to do according to the number of Indians which he had:
presently the timber was brought by them; and in three days there was an
inclosure made of very high and thick posts thrust into the ground, and
many rails laid across. Hard by this town passed a river, that came out
of the province of Cayas; and above and beneath it was very well peopled.
Thither came Indians on the cacique's behalf with a present of mantles and
skins; and an halting cacique, subject to the lord of Autiamque, lord of
a town called Tietiquaquo, came many times to visit the Governor, and to
bring him
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presents of such as he had. The Cacique of Autiamque sent to know of the
Governor, how long time he meant to stay in his country? And
understanding that he meant to stay about three days, he never sent any
more Indians, nor any other message, but conspired with the lame cacique
to rebel. Divers inroads were made, wherein there were many men and women
taken, and the lame cacique among the rest. The Governor respecting the
services which he had received of him, reprehended and admonished him, and
set him at liberty, and gave him two Indians to carry him in a chair upon
their shoulders. The Cacique of Autiamque desiring to thrust the Governor
out of his country, set spies over him. And an Indian coming one night to
the gate of the inclosure, a soldier that watched espied him, and stepping
behind the gate, as he came in, he gave him such a thrust, that he fell
down; and so he carried him to the Governor: and as he asked him
wherefore he came, not being able to speak, he fell down dead. The night
following the Governor commanded a soldier to give the alarm, and to say
that he had seen Indians, to see how ready they would be to answer the
alarm. And he did so sometimes as well there, as in other places, when he
thought that his men were careless, and reprehended such as were slack.
And as well for this cause, as in regard of doing their duty, when the
alarm was given, every one sought to be the first that should answer.
They staid in Autiamque three months, with great plenty of maize, French
beans, walnuts, prunes, and conies: which until that time they knew not
how to catch. And in Autiamque the Indians taught them how to take them;
which was, with great springs, which lifted up their feet from the ground:
and the snare was made with a strong string, whereunto was fastened a knot
of a cane, which ran close about the neck of the cony, because they should
not gnaw the string. They took many in the fields of maize, especially
when it froze or snowed. The Christains stayed there one whole month so
inclosed with snow, that they went not out of the town: and when they
wanted firewood, the Governor with his horsemen going and coming many
times to the wood, which was two crossbow shots from the town, made a
pathway, whereby the footmen went for wood. In this mean space, some
Indians which went loose, killed many conies with their wives, and with
arrows. These conies were of two sorts, some were like those of Spain,
and the other of the same color and fashion, and as big as great hares,
longer, and having greater loins.
Upon Monday the 6th of March, 1542, the Governor departed from
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Autiamque to seek Nilco, which the Indians said was near the great river,
with determination to come to the sea, and procure some succor of men and
horses; for he had now but three hundred men of war, and forty horses, and
some of them lame, which did nothing but help to make up the number; and
for want of iron they had gone above a year unshod; and because they were
used to it in the plain country, it did them no great harm. John Ortiz
died in Autiamque, which grieved the Governor very much; because that
without an interpreter he feared to enter far into the land, where he
might be lost. From thenceforward a youth that was taken in Cutifachiqui
did serve for interpreter, which had by that time learned somewhat of the
Christians' language. The death of John Ortiz was so great a mischief for
the diseovering inward, or going out of the land, that to learn of the
Indians, that which in four words he declared, they needed a whole day
with the youth; and most commonly he understood quite contrary that which
was asked him; whereby it often happened that the way that they went one
day, and sometimes two or three days, they turned back, and went astray
through the wood here and there. The Governor spent ten days in traveling
from Autiamque to a province called Ayays; and came to a town that stood
near the river that passeth by Cayas and Autiamque. There he commanded a
barge to be made, wherewith he passed the river. When he had passed the
river there fell out such weather, that four days he could not travel for
snow. As soon as it gave over snowing, he went three days' journey
through a wilderness, and a country so low, and so full of lakes and evil
ways, that he traveled a whole day in water, sometimes knee deep,
sometimes to the stirrup, and sometimes they swam. He came to a town
called Tutelpinco, abandoned, and without maize. There passed by it a
lake, that entered into the river, which carried a great stream and force
of water. Five Christians passing over it in a periagua, which the
Governor had sent with a captain, the periagua overset. Some took hold on
it, some on the trees that were in the lake. One Francis Sebastian, an
honest man of Villa Nova de Barca Rota, was drowned there. The Governor
went a whole day along the lake, seeking passage, and could find none, nor
any way that did pass to the other side. Coming again at night to the
town he found two peaceable Indians, which showed him the passage, and
which way he was to go. There they made of canes and of the timber of
houses thathed with cane, rafts, wherewith they passed the lake. They
traveled three days, and came to a town of the territory of Nilco,
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called Tianto. There they took thirty Indians, and among them two
principal men of this town. The Governor sent a captain, with horsemen
and footmen, before to Nilco, because the Indians might have no time to
carry away the provision. They passed through three or four great towns;
and in the town where the cacique was resident, which was two leagues from
the place where the Governor remained, they found many Indians with their
bows and arrows, in manner as though they would have stayed to fight,
which did compass the town; and as soon as they saw the Christians come
near them, without misdoubting them, they set the cacique's house on fire,
and fled over a lake that passed near the town, through which the horses
could not pass. The next day being Wednesday, the 29th of March, the
Governor came to Nilco; he lodged with all his men in the cacique's town,
which stood in a plain field, which was inhabited for the space of a
quarter of a league: and within a league and half a league were other
very great towns, wherein was great store of maize, of French beans, of
walnuts, and prunes. This was the best inhabited country that was seen in
Florida, and had most store of maize, except Coça and Apalache. There
came to the camp an Indian accompanied with others, and in the cacique's
name gave the Governor a mantle of martens' skins, and a cordon of pearls.
The Governor gave him a few small margarites, which are certain beads much
esteemed in Peru, and other things, wherewith he was very well contented.
He promised to return within two days, but never came again: but on the
contrary the Indians came by night in canoes, and carried away all the
maize they could, and made them cabins on the other side of the river in
the thickest of the wood, because they might flee if we should go to seek
them. The Governor, seeing he came not at the time appointed, commanded
an ambush to be laid about certain store- houses near the lake, whither
the Indians came for maize: where they took two Indians, who told the
Governor, that he which came to visit him, was not the cacique, but was
sent by him under pretence to spy whether the Christians were careless,
and whether they determined to settle in that country or to go forward.
Presently the Governor sent a captain with footmen and horsemen over the
river; and in their passage they were descried of the Indians, and
therefore he could take but ten or twelve men and women, with whom he
returned to the camp. This river, which passed by Nilco, was that which
passed by Cayas and Autiamque, and fell into Rio Grande, or the Great
River, which passed by Pachahas and Aquixo near unto the province of
Guachoya: and the lord thereof came up the river in canoes to make war
with
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him of Nilco. On his behalf there came an Indian to the Governor and said
unto him, that he was his servant, and prayed him so to hold him, and that
within two days he would come to kiss his lordship's hands: and at the
time appointed he came with some of his principal Indians, which
accompanied him, and with words of great offers and courtesy he gave the
Governor a present of many mantles and deers' skins. The Governor gave
him some other things in recompense, and honored him much. He asked him
what towns there were don the river? He answered that he knew none other
but his own: and on the other side of the river the province of a cacique
called Quigalta. So he took his leave of the Governor and went to his own
town. Within a few days the Governor determined to go to Guachoya, to
learn there whether the sea were near, or whether there were any
habitation near, where he might relieve his company, while the brigantines
were making, which he meant to send to the land of the Christians. As he
passed the river of Nilco, there came in canoes Indians of Guachoya up the
stream, and when they saw him, supposing that he came to seek them to do
them some hurt, they returned down the river, and informed the cacique
thereof: who with all his people, spoiling the town of all that they
could carry away, passed that night over to the other side of the Rio
Grande, or the Great River. The Governor sent a captain with fifty men in
six canoes down the river, and went himself by land with the rest: he
came to Guachoya upon Sunday, the 17th of April: he lodged in the town of
the cacique, which was enclosed about, and seated a crossbow shot distant
from the river. Here the river is called Tamaliseu, and in Nilco Tapatu,
and in Coça Mico, and in the port or mouth Ri.
As soon as the Governor came to Guachoya, he sent John Danusco with
as many men as could go in the canoes up the river. For when they came
down from Nilco, they saw on the other side of the river new cabins made.
John Danusco went and brought the canoes laden with maize, French beans,
prunes, and many loaves made of the substance of prunes. That day came an
Indian to the Governor front the Cacique of Guahoya, and said that his
lord would come the next day. They next day they saw many canoes come up
the river, and on the other side of the Great River they assembled
together in the space of an hour: they consulted whether they should come
or not; and at length concluded to come, and crossed the river. In them
came the Cacique of Guachoya, and brought with him many Indians, with
great store of fish, dogs, deers' skins, and mantles: and as soon as
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they landed, they went to the lodging of the Governor, and presented him
their gifts, and the cacique uttered these words:--
"Mighty and excellent lord, I beseech your lordship to pardon me the
error which I committed in absenting myself, and not tarrying in this town
to have received and served your lordship; since, to obtain this
opportunity of time, was, and is as much as a great victory to me. But I
feared that which I needed not to have feared, and so did that which was
not reason to do. But as haste maketh waste, and I removed without
deliberation; so, as soon as I thought on it, I determined not to follow
the opinion of the foolish, which is to continue in their error; but to
imitate the wise and discreet, in changing my counsel, and so I came to
see what your lordship will command me to do, that I may serve you in all
things that are in my power."
The Governor received him with much joy, and gave him thanks for his
present and offer. He asked him, whether he had any notice of the sea.
He answered no, nor of any towns down the river on that side; save that
two leagues from thence was one town of a principal Indian, a subject of
his; and on the other side of the river, three days' journey from thence
down the river, was the province of Quigalta, which was the greatest lord
that was in that country! The Governor thought that the cacique lied unto
him, to rid him out of his own towns, and sent John Danusco with eight
horsemen down the river, to see what habitation there was, and to inform
himself, if there were any notice of the sea. He traveled eight days, and
at his return he said, that in all that time he was not able to go above
fourteen or fifteen leagues, because of the great creeks that came out of
the river, and groves of canes, and thick woods that were along the banks
of the river, and that he had found no habitation. The Governor fell into
great dumps to see how hard it was to get to the sea; and worse, because
his men and horses every day diminished, being without succor to sustain
themselves in the country: and with that thought he fell sick. But before
he took his bed he sent an Indian to the Cacique of Quigalta to tell him,
that he was the child of the sun, and that all the way that he came all
men obeyed and served him, that he requested him to accept of his
friendship, and come unto him; for he would be very glad to see him; and
in sign of love and obedience to bring something with him of that which in
his country was most esteemed. The cacique answered by the same Indian:
"That whereas he said he was the child of the sun, if be would dry up
the river he would believe him: and touching the rest, that he
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was wont to visit none; but rather that all those of whom he had notice
did visit him, served, obeyed, and paid him tributes willingly or
perforce: therefore, if he desired to see him, it were best he should come
thither: that if he came in peace, he would receive him with special good
will; and if in war, in like manner he would attend him in the town where
he was, and that for him or any other he would not shrink one foot back.
By that time the Indian returned with this answer, the Governor had
betaken himself to bed, being evil handled with fevers, and was much
aggrieved that he was not in case to pass presently the river and to seek
him, to see if he could abate that pride of his, considering the river
went now very strongly in those parts; for it was near half a league
broad, and sixteen fathoms deep, and very furious, and ran with a great
current; and on both sides there were many Indians, and his power was not
now so great, but that he had need to help himself rather by slights than
by force. The Indians of Guachoya came every day with fish in such
numbers, that the town was full of them. The cacique said, that on a
certain night he of Quigalta would come to give battle to the Governor.
Which the Governor imagined that he had devised, to drive him out of his
country, and commanded him to be put in hold: and that night and all the
rest, there was good watch kept. He asked him wherefore Quigalta came
not? He said that he came, but that he saw him prepared, and therefore
durst not give the attempt: and he was earnest with him to send his
captains over the river, and that he would aid him with many men to set
upon Quigalta. The Governor told him that as soon as he was recovered,
himself would seek him out. And seeing how many Indians came daily to the
town, and what store of people was in that country, fearing they should
all conspire together and plot some treason against him; and because the
town had some open gaps which were not made an end of inclosing, besides
the gates which they went in and out by: because the Indians should not
think he feared them, he let them all alone unrepaired; and commanded the
horse-men to be appointed to them, and to the gates: and all night the
horsemen went the round; and two and two of every squadron rode about,
and visited the scouts that were without the town in their standings by
the passages, and the crossbowmen that kept the canoes in the river. And
because the Indians should stand in fear of them, he determined to send a
captain to Nilco, for those of Guachoya had told him that it was
inhabited; that by using them cruelly, neither
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the one nor the other should presume to assail him; and he sent Nuñez de
Touar with fifteen horsemen, and John de Guzman captain of the footmen,
with his company in canoes up the river. The Cacique of Guachoya sent for
many canoes and many warlike Indians to go with the Christians: and the
captain of the Christians, called Nuñez de Touar went by land with his
horsemen, and two leagues before he came to Nico he stayed for John de
Guzman, and in that place they passed the river by night: the horsemen
came first, and in the morning by break of day in sight of the town they
lighted upon a spy; which as soon as he perceived the Christians, crying
out amain fled to the town to give warning. Nuñez de Touar and his
company made such speed, that before the Indians of the town could fully
come out, they were upon them: it was champaign ground that was
inhabited, which was about a quarter of a league. There were about five
or six thousand people in the town: and, as many people came out of the
houses, and fled from one house to another, and many Indians came flocking
together from all parts, there was never a horseman that was not alone
among many. The captain had commanded that they should not spare the life
of any male. Their disorder was so great, that there was no Indian that
shot an arrow at any Christian. The shrieks of women and children were so
great, that they made the ears deaf of those that followed them. There
were slain a hundred Indians, little more or less: and many were wounded
with great wounds, whom they suffered to eseape to strike a terror in the
rest that were not there. There were some so cruel and butcherlike, that
they killed old and young, and all that they met, though they made no
resistance: and those which presumed of themselves for their valor, and
were taken for such, broke through the Indians, bearing don many with
their stirrups and breasts of their horses; and some they wounded with
their lances, and so let them go: and when they saw any youth or woman
they took them, and delivered them to the foot-men. These men's sins by
God's permission, lighted on their own heads: who, because they would
seem valiant, became cruel; showing themselves extreme cowards in the
sight of all men when as most need of valor was required, and afterwards
they came to a shameful death. Of the Indians of Nilco were taken
prisoners, fourscore women and children, and much spoil. The Indians of
Guachoya kept back before they came at the town, and stayed without,
beholding the success of the Christians with the men of Nilco. And when
they saw them put to flight, and the horsemen busy in killing of them,
they
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hastened to the houses to rob, and filled their canoes with the spoil of
the goods; and returned to Guachoya before the Christians; and wondering
much at the sharp dealing which they had seen them use toward the Indians
of Nilco, they told their cacique all that had passed with great
astonishment.
The Governor felt in himself that the hour approached wherein he was to
leave this present life, and called for the king's officers, captains, and
principal persons, to whom he made a speech, saying:--
"That now he was to go to give an account before the presence of God of
all his life past: and since it pleased him to take him in such a time,
and that the time was come that he knew his death, that he his most
unworthy servant did yield him many thanks therefore; and desired all that
were present and absent (whom he confessed himself to be much beholding
unto for their singular virtues, love and loyalty, which himself had well
tried in the travels which they had suffered, which always in his mind he
did hope to satisfy and reward, when it should please God to give him
rest, with more prosperity of his estate), that they would pray to God for
him, that for his mercy he would forgive him his sins, and receive his
soul into eternal glory: and that they would quit and free him of the
charge which he had over them, and ought unto them all, and that they
would pardon him for some wrongs which they might have received of him.
And to avoid some division, which upon his death might fall out upon the
choice of his successor, he requested them to elect a principal person,
and able to govern, of whom all should like well; and when he was
elected, they should swear before him to obey him: and that he would
thank them very much in so doing; because the grief that he had, would
somewhat be assuaged, and the pain that he felt, because he left them in
so great confusion, to wit, in leaving them in a strange country, where
they knew not where they were. Baltasar de Gallegos answered in the name
of all the rest. And first of all comforting him, he set before his eyes
how short the life of this world was, and with how many troubles and
miseries it is accompanied, and how God showed him a singular favor which
soonest left it: telling him many other things fit for such a time. And
for the last point, that since it pleased God to take him to himself,
although his death did justly grieve them much, yet as well he, as all the
rest, ought of necessity to conform themselves to the will of God. And
touching the Governor which he commanded they should elect, he besought
him, that it would please his lordship to name him which
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he thought fit, and him they would obey. And presently he named Luys de
Moscoso de Alvarado, his captain-general. And presently he was sworn by
all that were present, and elected for governor. The next day, being the
21st of May, 1542, departed out of this life, the valorous, virtuous, and
valiant Captain, Don Fernando de Soto, Governor of Cuba, and Adelantado of
Florida: whom fortune advanced, as it useth to do others, that he might
have the higher fall. He departed in such a place, and at such a time, as
in his sickness he had but little comfort: and the danger wherein all his
people were of perishing in that country, which appeared before their
eyes, was cause sufficient why every one of them had need of comfort, and
why they did not visit nor accompany him as they ought to have done. Luys
de Moscoso determined to conceal his death from the Indians, because
Ferdinando de Soto had made them believe that the Christians were
immortal; and also because they took him to be hardy, wise, and valiant:
and if they should know that he was dead, they would be bold to set upon
the Christians, though they lived peaceably by them. In regard of their
disposition, and because they were nothing constant, and believed all that
was told them, the Adelantado made them believe, that he knew some things
that passed in secret among themselves, without their knowledge, how, or
in what manner he came by them: and that the figure which appeared in a
glass, which he showed them, did tell him whatsoever they practiced and
went about: and therefore neither in word nor deed durst they attempt
anything that might be prejudicial unto him.
As soon as he was dead, Luys de Moscoso commanded to put him secretly
in the house, where he remained three days; and removing him from thence,
commanded him to be buried in the night at one of the gates of the town
within the wall. And as the Indians had seen him sick, and missed him, so
did they suspect what might be. And passing by the place where he was
buried, seeing the earth moved, they looked and spake one to another.
Luys de Moscoso understanding of it, commanded him to be taken up by
night, and to cast a great deal of sand into the mantles, wherein he was
wound up, wherein he was carried in a canoe, and thrown into the midst of
the river. The Cacique of Guachoya inquired for him, demanding what was
become of his brother and lord, the Governor: Luys de Moscoso told him
that he was gone to heaven, as many other times he did: and because he
was to stay there certain days he had left him in his place. The cacique
thought with himself that he was dead; and commanded two young
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and well-proportioned Indians to be brought thither; and said, that the
use of that country was, when any lord died, to kill Indians to wait upon
him, and serve him by the way, and for that purpose by his commandment
were those come thither: and prayed Luys de Moscoso to command them to be
beheaded, that they might attend and serve his lord and brother. Luys de
Moscoso told him, that the Governor was not dead, but gone to heaven, and
that of his own Christian soldiers, he had taken such as he needed to
serve him, and prayed him to command those Indians to be loosed, and not
to use any such had custom from thenceforth: straightway he commanded
them to be loosed, and to get them home to their houses. And one of them
would not go; saying, that he would not serve him, that without desert
had judged him to death, but that he would serve him as long as he lived,
which had saved his life.
Luys de Moscoso caused all the goods of the Governor to be sold at an
outcry: to wit, two men slaves and two women slaves, and three horses,
and seven hundred hogs. For every slave or horse, they gave two or three
thousand ducats: which were to be paid at the first melting of gold or
silver, or at the division of their portion of inheritance. And they
entered into bonds, though in the country there was not wherewith, to pay
it within a year after, and put in sureties for the same. Such as in
Spain had no goods to bind, gave two hundred ducats for a hog, giving
assurance after the same manner. Those which had any goods in Spain,
bought with more fear, and bought the less. From that time forward, most
of the company had swine, and brought them up, and fed upon them; and
observed Fridays and Saturdays, and the evenings of feasts, which before
they did not. For some times in two or three months they did eat no
flesh, and whensoever they could come by it, they did eat it.
Some were glad of the death of Don Ferdinando de Soto, holding for
certain that Luys de Moscoso (which was given to his case), would rather
desire to be among the Christians at rest, than to continue the labors of
the war in subduing and discovering of countries; whereof they were
already weary, seeing the small profit that ensued thereof. The Governor
commanded the captains and principal persons to meet to consult and
determine what they should do. And being informed what peopled habitation
was round about, he understood that to the west, the country was most
inhabited, and that down the river beyond Quigalta was uninhabited, and
had little store of food. He desired them all, that every one would give
his opinion in writing,
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and set his hand to it: that they might resolve by general consent,
whether they should go down the river, or enter into the main land. All
were of opinion, that it was best to go by land toward the west, because
Nueva España was that way; holding the voyage by sea more dangerous, and
of greater hazard, because they could make no ship of any strength to
abide a storm, neither had they master, nor pilot, compass, nor chart,
neither knew they how far the sea was off, nor had any notice of it; nor
whether the river did make any great turning into the land, or had any
great fall from the rocks, where all of them might be cast away. And some
which had seen the seachart, did find, that from the place where they were
by the sea-coast to Nueva España, might be four hundred leagues, little
more or less; and said, that though they went somewhat about by land in
seeking a peopled country, if some great wilderness which they could not
pass did hinder them, by spending that summer in travel, finding provision
to pass the winter in some peopled country, that the next summer after
they might come to some Christian land, and that it might fortune in their
travel by land to find some rich country, where they might do themselves
good. The Governor, although he desired to get out of Florida in shorter
time, seeing the inconveniences they lald before him, in traveling by sea,
determined to follow that which seemed good to them all. On Monday, the
fifth day of June, he departed from Guachoya. The cacique gave him a
guide to Chaguate, and stayed at home in his own town. They passed
through a province called Catalte: and having passed a wilderness of six
days' journey, the twentieth day of the month he came to Chaguate. The
cacique of this province had visited the Governor Don Ferdinando de Soto
at Autiamque, whither he brought him presents of skins, and mantles, and
salt. And a day before Luys de Moscoso came to his town, we lost a
Christian that was sick; which he suspected that the Indians had slain.
He sent the cacique word, that he should command his people to seek him
up, and send him unto him, and that he would hold him, as he did, for his
friend; and if he dld not, that neither he, nor his, should escape his
hands, and that he would set his country on fire. Presently the cacique
came unto him, and brought a great present of mantles and skins, and the
Christian that was lost, and made this speech following:
"Right excellent lord, I would not deserve that conceit which you had
of me, for all the treasure of the world. What enforced me to go to visit
and serve the excellent Lord Governor your father in Autiamque, which you
should have remembered, where I offered my
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self with all loyalty, faith and love, during my life to serve and obey
him? What then could be the cause, I having received favors of him, and
neither you nor he having done me any wrong, that should move me to do the
thing which I ought not? Believe this of me, that neither wrong, nor any
worldly interest, was able to make me to have done it, nor shall be able
to blind me. But as in this life it is a natural course, that after one
pleasure many sorrows do follow: so by your indignation, fortune would
moderate the joy, which my heart conceiveth with your presence; and that
I should err, where I thought surest to have hit the mark; in harboring
this Christian which was lost, and using in such manner, as he may tell
himself, thinking that herein I did you service, with purpose to deliver
him unto you in Chaguate, and to serve you to the uttermost of my power.
If I deserve punishment for this, I will receive it at your hands, as from
my lord, as if it were a favor. For the love which I did bear to the
excellent Governor, and which I bear to you hath no limit. And like as
you give me chastisement, so will you also show me favor. And that which
now I crave of you is this, to declare your will unto me, and those things
wherein I may be able to do you the most and best service."
The Governor answered him, that because he did not find him in that
town, he was incensed against him, thinking he had absented himself, as
others had done: but seeing he now knew his loyalty and love, he would
always hold him as a brother, and favor him in all his affairs. The
cacique went with him to the town where he resided, which was a day's
journey from thence. They passed through a small town, where there was a
lake, where the Indians made salt: and the Christians made some one day
while they rested there, of a brackish water, which sprang near the town
in ponds like fountains. The Governor stayed in Chaguate six days. There
he was informed of the habitation towards the west. They told him, that
three days' journey from thence was a province called Aguacay. The day
that he departed from Chaguate, a Christian, called Francisco de Guzman,
the base son of a gentleman of Seville, stayed behind, and went to the
Indians, with an Indian woman which he kept as his concubine, for fear he
should be punished for gaming debts that he did owe. The Governor had
traveled two days before he missed him; he sent the cacique word to seek
him up, and to send him to Aguacay, whither he traveled: which he did not
perform. From the Cacique of Aguacay, before they came into the country,
there met him on the way fifteen Indians with a present of skins, fish,
and roasted venison. The Governor
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came to this town on Wednesday, the fourth of July. He found the town
without people, and lodged in it: he stayed there about a day; during
which, he made some roads, and took many men and women. There they had
knowledge of the South Sea. Here there was great store of salt made of
sand, which they gather in a vein of ground like pebble stones. And it
was made as they made salt in Cayas.
The same day that the Governor departed from Aguacay, he lodged in a
small town subject to the lord of that province. The camp was pitched
hard by a lake of salt water; and that evening they made some salt there.
The day following he lodged between two mountains in a thin grove of wood.
The next day he came to a small town called Pato. The fourth day after
his departure from Aguacay he came to the first habitation of a province
called Amaye. There an Indian was taken, which said that from thence to
Naguatex was a day and a half's journey; which they traveled, finding all
the way inhabited places. Having passed the peopled country of Amaye, on
Saturday, the twentieth of July, they pitched their camp at noon between
Amaye and Naguatex along the corner of a grove of very fair trees. In the
same place certain Indians were discovered, that came to view them. The
horsemen went out to them, and killed six, and took two, whom the Governor
asked, wherefore they came? They said, to know what people he had, and
what order they kept; and that the Cacique of Naguatex, their lord, had
sent them, and that he, with other caciques which came to aid him,
determined that day to bid him battle. While they were occupied in these
questions and answers, there came many Indians by two ways in two
squadrons: and when they saw they were descried, giving a great cry they
assaulted the Christians each squadron by itself; but seeing what
resistance the Christians made them, they turned their backs and betook
themselves to flight, in which many of them lost their lives; and most of
the horsemen following them in chase, careless of the camp, other two
squadrons of Indians, which lay in ambush, set upon the Christians that
were in the camp, which also they resisted, who also had their reward as
the first. After the flight of the Indians, and that the Christians were
retired, they heard a great noise a crossbow shot from tide place where
they were. The Governor sent twelve horsemen to see what it was. They
found six Christians, four footmen and two horsemen, among many Indians;
the horsemen defending the footmen with great labor. These being of them
that chased the first two squadrons, had lost themselves, and coming to
recover the camp fell among those with whom they were fighting: and so
they, and those
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that came to succor them, slew many of the Indians, and brought one alive
to the camp: whom the Governor examined, who they were that came to bid
him battle. He told him, that they were the Cacique of Naguatex, and of
Amaye, and another of a province called Hacanac, a lord of great countries
and many subjects; and that the Cacique of Naguatex came for captain and
chief of them all. The Governor commanded his right arm and nose to be
cut off, and sent him to the Cacique of Naguatex, charging him to tell
him, that the next day he would be in his country to destroy him; and if
he would withstand his entrance, he should stay for him. That night he
lodged there; and the next day he came to the habitation of Naguatex,
which was very scattering: he inquired where the cacique's chief town
was? They told him that it was on the other side of a river, that passed
thereby: he traveled thitherward, and came unto it: and on the other
side he saw many Indians, that tarried for him, making show as though they
would defend the passage. And because he knew not whether it could be
waded, nor where the passage was, and that some Christians and horses were
hurt, that they might have time to recover, he determined to rest certain
days in the town where he was. So he pitched his camp a quarter of a
league from the river, because the weather was very hot, near unto the
town, in a thin grove of very fair and high trees near a brook's side:
and in that place were certain Indians taken; whom he examined, whether
the river were wadeable or no? They said yea, at some times, and in some
places. Within ten days after he sent two captains with fifteen horsemen
a piece upward and down the river with Indians to show them where they
should go over, to see what habitation was on the other side. And the
Indians withstood them both, defending the passage of the river as far as
they were able, but they passed in despite of them: and on the other side
of the river they saw great habitation, and great store of victuals; and
with these news returned to the camp.
The Governor sent an Indian from Naguatex where he lay, to command
the cacique to come to serve and obey him, and that he would I forgive him
all that was past; that if he came not, that he would seek him, and give
him such punishment as he had deserved for that which he had done against
him. Within two days the Indian returned, and said that the cacique would
come the next day; which, the same day when he came, sent many Indians
before him, among whom there were some principal men: he sent them to see
what countenance they found in the Governor, to resolve with himself
whether he should go or not. The Indians let him understand, that he was
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coming, and went away presently: and the cacique came within two hours
accompanied with many of his men: they came all in a rank one before
another on both sides, leaving a lane in the midst where he came. They
came where the Governor was, all of them weeping after the manner of
Tulla, which was not far from thence toward the east. The cacique made his
due obedience, and the speech following:
"Right high and mighty lord, whom all the world ought to serve and
obey, I was bold to appear before your lordship, having committed so
heinous and abominable an act, as only for me to have imagined, deserved
to be punished; trusting in your greatness, that although I deserve to
obtain no pardon, yet for your own sake only you will use clemency toward
me, considering how small I am in comparison of your lordship; and not to
think upon my weaknesses, which, to my grief and for my greater good, I
have known. And I believe that you and yours are immortal; and that your
lordship is lord of the land of nature, seeing that you subdue all things,
and they obey you, even the very hearts of men. For when I beheld the
slaughter and destruction of my men in the battle, which, through mine
ignorance, and the counsel of a brother of mine, which died in the same, I
gave your lordship, presently I repented me in my heart of the error,
which I had committed; and desired to serve and obey you: and to this
end I come, that your lordship may chastise and command me as your own."
The Governor answered him, that he forgave him all which was past,
that from thenceforth he should do his duty, and that he would hold him
for his friend, and that he would favor him in all things. Within four
days he departed thence, and coming to the river he could not pass,
because it was grown very big; which seemed to him a thing of admiration,
being at that time that it was, and since it had not rained a month
before. The Indians said, that it increased many times after that manner
without raining in all the country. It was supposed, that it might be the
tide that came into it. It was learned that the flood came alway from
above, and that the Indians of all that country had no knowledge of the
sea. The Governor returned unto the place where he had lodged before:
and understanding within eight days after that the river was passable, he
departed. He passed over and found the town without people: he lodged in
the field, and sent the cacique word to come unto him, and to bring him a
guide to go forward. And some days being past, seeing the cacique came
not, nor sent anybody, he sent two captains sundry ways to burn
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the towns, and to take such Indians as they could find. They burnt:
great store of victuals, and took many Indians. The cacique seeing the
hurt that he received in his country, sent six principal Indians with
three men for guides, which knew the language of the country through which
the Governor was to pass. He departed presently from Naguatex, and within
three days' journey came to a town of four or five houses, which belonged
to the cacique of that province, which is called Nissoone: it was evil
inhabited, and had little maize. Two days' journey forward the guides
which guided the Governor, if they were to go westward, guided him to the
east; and sometimes went up and down through very great woods out of the
way. The Governor commanded them to be hanged upon a tree: and a woman
that they took in Nissoone guided him, and went back again to seek the
way. In two days he came to another miserable town called Lacane: an
Indian was taken in that place, that said, that the country of Nondacao
was a country of great habitation, and the houses scattering the one from
the other, as they used to be in mountains, and had great store of maize.
The cacique came with his men weeping, like them of Naguatex: for this is
their use in token of obedience: he made him a present of much fish, and
offered to do what he would command him. He took his leave, and gave him
a guide to the province of Soacatino. The Governor departed from Nondacao
towards Soacatino, and in five days' journey came to a province called
Aays. The Indians which inhabited it had no notice of the Christians:
but as soon as they saw that they entered into their country, they
assembled them-selves: and as they came together fifty or a hundred, they
came forth to fight. While some fought, others came and charged our men
another way, and while they followed some, others followed them. The
fight lasted the greatest part of the day, till they came to their town.
Some horses and men were wounded, but not to any hurt of their traveling:
for there was no wound that was dangerous. There was a great spoil made
of the Indians. That day that the Governor departed from thence, the
Indian that guided him said that in Nondacao he had heard say, that the
Indians of Soacatino had seen other Christians, whereof they all were very
glad: thinking it might be true, and that they might have entered into
those parts by Nueva España; and that if it were so, it was in their own
hand to go out of Florida, if they found nothing of profit: for they
feared they should lose themselves in some wilderness. This Indian led
him two days out of the way. The Governor commanded to torture him.
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He said, that the Cacique of Nondacao, his lord, had commanded him to
guide them so because they were his enemies, and that he was to do as his
lord commanded him. The Governor commanded him to be cast to the dogs:
and another guided him to Soacatino, whither he came the day following.
It was a very poor country: there was great want of maize in that place.
He asked the Indians whether they knew of any other Christians. They said
that a little from thence toward the south they heard they were. He
traveled twenty days through a country evil inhabited, where they suffered
great scarcity and trouble; for that little maize which the Indians had,
they had hidden and buried in the woods, where the Christians, after they
were well wearied with their travel, at the end of their journey went to
seek by digginwhat theg y should eat. At last, coming to a province that
was called Guasco, they found maize, wherewith they loaded their horses
and the Indians that they had. From thence they went to another town
called Naquiscoça. The Indians said they had no notice of any other
Christians. The Governor commanded to torment them. They said, that they
came first to another lordship which was called Naçacahoz, and from thence
returned again to the west from whence they came. The Governor came in
two days to Naçacahoz. Some women were taken there: among whom there was
one which said that she had seen Christians and had been taken by them,
and had run away. The Governor sent a captain with fifteen horsemen to
the place where the woman said she had seen them, to see if there was any
sign of horses, or any token of their being there. After they had gone
three or four leagues, the woman that guided them said that all that she
had told them was untrue. And so they held all the rest that the Indians
had said of seeing Christians in the land of Florida. And, because the
country that way was poor of maize, and toward the west there was no
notice of any habitation, they returned to Guasco. The Indians told them
there, that ten days' journey from thence toward the west, was a river
called Daycao, whither they went sometimes a hunting and killing of deer:
and that they had seen people on the other side, but knew not what
habitation was there. There the Christians took such maize as they found
and could carry, and going ten days' journey through a wilderness, they
came to the river which the Indians had told them of. Ten horsemen, which
the Governor had sent before, passed over the same and went in a way that
led to the river, and lighted upon a company of Indians that dwelt in very
little cabins: who as soon as they saw them took themselves to flight,
leaving that which they had; all which was nothing but misery and
poverty.
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The country was so poor, that among them all there was not found half a
peck of maize. The horsemen took two Indians, and returned with them to
the river, where the Governor stayed for them. He sought to learn of them
what habitation was toward the west. There was none in the camp that
could understand their language. The Governor assembled the captains and
principal persons to determine with their advice what they should do. And
the most part said that they thought it best to return back to Rio Grande,
or the Great River of Guachoya; because that in Nilco and thereabout was
store of maize; Saying, that they would make pinnaces that winter, and
the next summer pass down the river to the seaward in them, and coming to
the sea they would go along the coast to Nueva España. For though it
seemed a doubtful thing and difficult, by that which they had already
alleged, yet it was the last remedy they had. For by land they could not
go for want of an interpreter. And they held, that the country beyond the
River of Daycao, where they were, was that which Cabeca de Vaca mentioned
in his relation that he passed of the Indians which lived like the
Alarbes, having no settled place, and fed upon Tunas and roots of the
fields, and wild beasts that they killed. Which if it were so, if they
should enter into it and find no victuals to pass the winter, they could
not choose but perish, for they were entered already into the beginning of
October: and if they stayed any longer they were not able to return for
rain and snows, nor to sustain themselves in so poor a country. The
Governor (that desired long to see himself in a place where he might sleep
his full sleep, rather than to conquer and govern a country where so many
troubles presented themselves) presently returned back that same way that
he came.
When that which was determined was published in the camp, there were
many that were greatly grieved at it: for they held the sea voyage as
doubtful, for the evil means they had, and of as great danger as the
traveling by land: and they hoped to find some rich country before they
came to the land of the Christians, by that which Cabeca de Vaca had told
the Emperor: and that was this: That after he had found clothes made of
cotton wool, he saw gold and silver, and stones of great value. And they
had not yet come where he had been. For until that place he always
traveled by the sea-coast: and they traveled far within the land; and
that going towards the west, of necessity they should come where he had
been. For he said that in a certain place he traveled many days, and
entered into the land to ward the north. And in Guasco they had already
found some Turkey
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stones, and mantles of cotton wool: which the Indians signified by signs
that they had from the west: and that holding that course they should
draw near to the land of the Christians. But though they were much
discontented with it, and it grieved many to go backward, which would
rather have adventured their lives and have died in the land of Florida,
than to have gone poor out of it; yet were they not a sufficient part to
hinder that which was determined, because the principal men agreed with
the Governor. And afterward there was one that said, he would put out one
of his own eyes, to put out another of Luys de Moscoso; because it would
grieve him much to see him prosper: because as well himself as others of
his friends had crossed that which he durst not have done, seeing that
within two days he should leave the government. From Daycao, where now
they were, to Rio Grande, or the Great River, was one hundred and fifty
leagues: which unto that place they had gone westward. And by the way as
they returned back they had much ado to find maize to eat: for where they
had passed the country was destroyed; and some little maize that was left
the Indians had hidden. The towns which in Naguatex they had burned
(whereof it repented them) were repaired again, and the houses full of
maize. This country is well inhabited and plentiful. In that place are
vessels made of clay, which differ very little from those of Estremoz, or
Montemor. In Chaguate the Indians by commandment of the cacique came
peaceably, and said, that the Christian which remained there would not
come. The Governor wrote unto him, and sent him ink and paper that he
might answer. The substance of the words of the letter was to declare
unto him his determination, which was to go out of the land of Florida,
and to put him in remembrance that he was a Christian, that he would not
remain in the subjection of infidels, that he pardoned him the fault which
he had done in going away to the Indians, that he should come unto him:
and if they did stay him, that he would advertise him thereof by writing.
The Indian went with the letter, and came again without any more answer,
than, on the back side, his name and seal, that they might know he was
alive. The Governor sent twelve horsemen to seek him: but he, which had
his spies, so hid himself, that they could not find him. For want of
maize the Governor could not stay any longer to seek him. He departed
from Chaguate, and passed the river by Aays; going down by it he found a
town called Chilano, which as yet they had not seen. They came to Nilco,
and found so little maize, as could not suffice till they made their
ships; because the Christians, being in Guachoya in the seed time, the
Indians for
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fear of them durst not come to sow the grounds of Nilco: and they knew
not thereabout any other country where any maize was: and that was the
most fruitful soil that was thereaway, and where they had most hope to
find it. Every one was confounded, and the most part thought it bad
counsel to come back from the river of Daycao, and not to have followed
their fortune, going that way that went over land. For by sea it seemed
impossible to save themselves, unless God would work a miracle for them:
for there was neither pilot, nor sea- chart, neither did they know where
the river entered into the sea, neither had they notice of it, neither had
they anything wherewith to make sai]s, nor any store of enequem, which is
a grass whereof they make oakum, which grew there; and that which they
found they saved to caulk the pinnaces withal; neither had they anything
to pitch them withal; neither could they make ships of such substance, but
that any storm would put them in great danger: and they feared much it
would fall out with them, as it did with Pamphilo de Narvaez, which was
cast away upon that coast. And above all other it troubled them most,
that they could find no maize: for without it they could not be
sustained, nor could do anything that they had need of. All of them were
put to great confusion. Their chief remedy was to commit themselves to
God, and to beseech him that he would direct them the way that they might
save their lives. And it pleased him of his goodness, that the Indians of
Nilco came peaceably, and told them, that two days' journey from thence,
near unto the Great River, were two towns, whereof the Christians had no
notice, and that the province was called Minoya, and was a fruitful soil:
that, whether at this present there was any maize or no, they knew not,
because they had war with them: but that they would be very glad with the
favor of the Christians to go and spoil them. The Governor sent a captain
thither with horsemen and footmen, and the Indians of Nilco with him. He
came to Minoya, and found two great towns seated in a plain and open soil,
half a league distant, one in sight of another, and in them he took many
Indians, and found great store of maize. Presently he lodged in one of
them, and sent word to the Governor what he had found: wherewith they
were all exceeding glad. They departed from Nilco in the beginning of
December; and all that way, and before from Chilano, they endured much
trouble: for they passed through many waters, and many times it rained,
with a northern wind, and was exceeding cold, so that they were in the
open field with water over and underneath them: and when at the end of
their day's journey, they found dry ground to rest upon, they gave great
thanks to
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God. With this trouble almost all the Indians that served them died. And
after they were in Minoya, many Christians also died: and the most part
were sick of great and dangerous diseases, which had a spice of the
lethargy. At this place died Andrew de Vasconcelos, and two Portuguese of
Elvas, which were very near him: which were brethren, and by their
surname called Sotis. The Christians lodged in one of the towns which
they liked best, which was fenced about, and distant a quarter of a league
from the Great River. The maize that was in the other town was brought
thither; and in all it was esteemed to be six thousand hanegs or bushels.
And there was the best timber to make ships that they had seen in all the
land of Florida; wherefore all of them gave God great thanks for so
singular a favor, and hoped that that which they desired would take
effect, which was, that they might safely be conducted into the land of
the Christians.
As soon as they came to Minoya, the Governor commanded them to gather
all the chains together, which every one had to lead Indians in; and to
gather all the iron which they had for their provision, and all the rest
that was in the camp: and to set up a forge to make nails, and commanded
them to cut down timber for the briguntines. And a Portuguese of Ceuta,
who having been a prisoner in Fez, had learned to saw timber with a long
saw, which for such purposes they had carried with them, did teach others,
which helped him to saw timber. And a Genevese, whom it pleased God to
preserve (for without him they had never come out of the country, for
there was never another that could make ships but he), with four or five
other Biscayan carpenters, which hewed his planks and other timbers, made
the brigantines: and two calkers, the one of Geneva, the other of
Sardinia, did calk them with the tow of an herb like hemp, whereof before
I have made mention, which there is named enequen. And because there was
not enough of it, they calked them with the flax of the country, and with
the mantles, which they raveled for that purpose. A cooper which they had
among them fell sick, and was at the point of death: and there was none
other that had any skill in that trade: it pleased God to send him his
health. And albeit he was very weak, and could not labor, yet fifteen
days before they departed, he made for every brigantine two half
hogsheads, which the mariners call quarterets, because four of them hold a
pipe of water. The Indians which dwelt two days' journey above the river
in a province called Taguanate, and likewise those of Nilco and
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Guacoya, and others their neighbors seeing the brigantines in making,
thinking, because their places of refuge are in the water, that they were
to go to seek them, and because the Governor demanded mantles of them, as
necessary for sails, came many times, and brought many mantles, and great
store of fish. And for certain it seemed that God wad willing to favor
them in so great necessity, moving the minds of the Indians to bring them:
for to go to take them, they were never able. For in the town where they
were, as soon as winter came, they were so enclosed and compassed with
water, that they could go no farther by land, than a league, and a league
and a half. And if they would go farther, they could carry no horses, and
without them they were not able to fight with the Indians, because they
were many: and so many for so many on foot they had the advantage of them
by water and by land, because they were more apt and lighter, and by
reason of the disposition of the country, which was according to their
desire for the use of their war. They brought also some cords, and those
which wanted for cables were made of the barks of mulberry trees. They
made stirrups of wood, and made anchors of their stirrups. In the month
of March, when it had rained a month before, the river grew so big that it
came to Nilco, which was nine leagues of: and on the other side, the
Indians said, that it reached other nine leagues into the land. In the
town where the Christians were, which was somewhat high ground, where they
could best go, the water reached to the stirrups. They made certain rafts
of timber, and laid many boughs upon them, whereon they set their horses,
and in the houses they did the like. But Seeing that nothing prevailed,
they went up to the lofts: and if they went out of the houses, it was in
canoes, or on horseback in those places where the ground was highest. So
they were two months, and could do nothing, during which time the river
decreased not. The Indians ceased not to come unto the brigantines as
they were wont, and came in canoes. At that time the Governor feared they
would set upon him. He commanded his men to take an Indian secretly of
those that came to the town, and to stay him till the rest were gone: and
they took one. The Governor commanded him to be put to torture, to make
him confess whether the Indians did practice any treason or no. He
confessed that the caciques of Nilco, Guachoya, and Taguanate, and others,
which in all were about twenty caciques, with a great number of people,
determined to come upon him; and that three days before, they would send
a great present of fish to cover their great treason and malice, and on
the very day they would send some Indians before
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with another present. And these, with those which were our slaves, which
were of their conspiracy also, should set the houses on fire, and first of
all possess themselves of the lances which stood at the doors of the
houses; and the caciques, with all their men, should be near the town in
ambush in the wood, and when they saw the fire kindled, should come, and
make an end of the conquest. The Governor commanded the Indian to be kept
in a chain, and the selfsame day that he spoke of, there came thirty
Indians with fish. He commanded their right hands to be cut off, and sent
them so back to the Cacique of Guachoya, whose men they were. He sent him
word that he and the rest should come when they would, for he desired
nothing more, and that he should know, that they thought not anything
which he knew not before they thought of it. Hereupon they all were put
in a very great fear: and the caciques of Nilco and Taguanate came to
excuse themselves: and a few days after came he of Guachoya, and a
principal Indian, and his subject, said, he knew by certain information,
that the caciques of Nilco and Taguanate were agreed to come and make war
upon the Christians. As soon as the Indians came from Nilco, the Governor
examined them, and they confessed it was true. He delivered them
presently to the piincipal men of Guachoya, which drew them out of the
town and killed them. Another day came some from Taguanate, and confessed
it likewise. The Governor commanded their right hands and noses to be cut
off, and sent them to the cacique, wherewith they of Guachoya remained
very well contented: and they came oftentimes with presents of mantles and
fish, and hogs, which bred in the country of some swine that were lost by
the way the last year. As soon as the waters were slaked, they persuaded
the Governor to send to Taguanate. They came and brought canoes, wherein
the footmen were conveyed down the river, and a captain with horsemen went
by land; and the Indians of Guachoya, which guided him till they came to
Taguanate, assaulted the town, and took many men and women, and mantles,
which with those that they had already were sufficient to supply their
want. The brigantines being finished in the month of June, the Indians
having told us that the river increased but once a year, when the snows
did melt, in the time wherein I mentioned it had already increased, being
now in summer, and having not rained a long time, it pleased God that the
flood came up to the town to seek the brigantines, from whence they
carried them by water to the river. Which, if they had gone by land, had
been in danger of breaking and splitting their keels, and to be all
undone; because that for want of
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iron, the spikes were short, and the planks and timber were very weak.
The Indians of Minoya, during the time that they were there came to serve
them (being driven thereunto by necessity) that of the maize which they
had taken from them, they would bestow some crumbs upon them, and because
the country was fertile, and the people used to feed of maize, and the
Christians had gotten all from them that they had, and the people were
many, they were not able to sustain themselves. Those which came to the
town were so weak and feeble, that they had no flesh left on their bones:
and many came and died near the town for pure hunger and weakness. The
Governor commanded upon grievous punishments to give them no maize. Yet,
when they saw that the hogs wanted it not, and that they had yielded
themselves to serve them, and considering their misery and wretchedness,
having pity of them, they gave them part of the maize which they had. And
when the time of their embarkment came, there was not sufficient to serve
their own turns. That which there was, they put into the brigantines, and
into great canoes tied two and two together. They shipped twenty-two of
the best horses that were in the camp, the rest they made dried flesh of;
and dressed the hogs which they had in like manner. They departed from
Minoya the second day of July, 1543.
The day before they departed from Minoya, they determined to dismiss
all the men and women of the country, which they had detained as slaves to
serve them, save some hundred, little more or less, which the Governor
embarked, and others whom it pleased him to permit. And because there
were many men of quality, whom he could not deny that which be granted to
others, he used a policy, saying, that they might serve them as long as
they were in the river, but when they came to the sea, they must send them
away for want of water, because they had but few vessels. He told his
friends in secret, that they should carry theirs to Nueva España: and all
those whom he bare no good- will unto (which were the greater number)
ignorant of that which was hidden from them, which afterward time
discovered, thinking it inhumanity for so little time of service, in
reward of the great service that they had done them, to carry them with
them, to leave them slaves to other men out of their own countries, left
five hundred men and women; among whom were many boys and girls, which
spake and understood the Spanish tongue. The most of them did nothing but
weep; which moved great compassion; seeing that all of them with
good-will would have become
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Christians, and were left in state of perdition. There went from Minoya
three hundred and twenty-two Spaniards in seven brigantines, well made,
save that the planks were thin, because the nails were short, and were not
pitched, nor had any decks to keep the water from coming in. Instead of
decks they laid planks, whereon the mariners might run to trim their
sails, and the people might refresh themselves above and below. The
Governor made his captains, and gave to every one his brigantine, and took
their oath and their word, that they would obey him, until they came to
the land of the Christians. The Governor took one of the brigantines for
himself, which he best liked. The same day that they departed from
Minoya, they passed by Guachoya, where the Indians tarried for them in
canoes by the river. And on the shore, they had made a great arbor with
boughs. They desired him to come on shore; but he excused himself, and
so went along. The Indians in their canoes accompanied him; and coming
where an arm of the river declined on the right hand, they said that the
Province of Quigalta was near unto that place, and importuned the Governor
to set upon him, and that they would aid him. And because they had said
that he dwelt three days' journey down the river, the Governor supposed
that they had plotted some treason against him, and there left them; and
went down with the greatest force of the water. The current was very
strong, and with the help of oars, they went very swiftly. The first day
they landed in a wood on the left hand of the river, and at night they
withdrew themselves to the brigantines. The next day they came to a town
where they went on shore, and the people that was in it durst not tarry.
A woman that they took there being examined, said, that the town belonged
to a cacique named Huasene, subject to Quigalta, and that Quigalta tarried
for them below in the river with many men. Certain horsemen went thither,
and found some houses, wherein was much maize. Immediately more of them
went thither and tarried there one day, and which they did beat out, and
took as much maize as they needed. While they were there, many Indians
came from the nether part of the river, and on the other side right
against them somewhat carelessly set themselves in order to fight. The
Governor sent in two canoes the crossbowmen that he had, and as many more
as could go in them. They ran away, and seeing the Spaniards could not
overtake them, they returned back, and took courage; and coming nearer,
making an outcry, they threatened them: and as soon as they departed
thence, they went after them, some in canoes, and some
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by land along the river; and getting before, coming to a town that stood
by the river's side, they joined altogether, making a show that they would
tarry there. Every brigantine towed a canoe fastened to their sterns for
their particular service. Presently there entered men into every one of
them, which made the Indians to fly, and burned the town. The same day
they presently landed in a great field, where the Indians durst not tarry.
The next day there were gathered together an hundred canoes, among which
were some that carried sixty and seventy men, and the principal men's
canoes had their tilts, and plumes of white and red feathers for their
ensigns: and they came within two crossbow shots of the brigantines, and
sent three Indians in a small canoe with a feigned message to view the
manner of the brigantines, and what weapons they had. And coming to the
side of the Governor's brigantine, one of the Indians entered, and said:
"That the Cacique of Quigalta, his lord, sent him his commendations,
and did let him understand, that all that the Indians of Guachoya had told
him concerning himself, was false, and that they had incensed him, because
they were his enemies; that he was his servant, and should find him so."
The Governor answered him, that he believed all that he said was
true, and willed him to tell him that he esteemed his friendship very
much. With this answer they returned to the place where the rest in their
canoes were waiting for them, and from thence all of them fell down, and
came near the Spaniards, shouting aloud, and threatening of them. The
Governor sent John de Guzman, which had been a captain of footmen in
Florida, with fifteen armed men in canoes to make them give way. As soon
as the Indians saw them come towards them, they divided themselves into
two parts, and stood still till the Spaniards came nigh them, and when
they were came near them, they joined together on both sides, taking John
de Guzman in the middle, and them that came first with him, and with great
fury boarded them: and as their canoes were bigger, and many of them
leaped into the water to stay them, and to lay hold on the canoes of the
Spaniards, and overwhelm them; so presently they overwhelmed them. The
Christians fell into the water, and with the weight of their armor sunk
down to the bottom; and some few, that by swimming or holding by the
canoe could have saved themselves, with oars and staves which they had,
they struck them on the head and make them sink. When they of the
brigantines saw the overthrow, though they went about to succor them, yet
through the current of
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the river they could not go back. Four Spaniards fled to the brigantine
that was nearest to the canoes; and only these escaped of those that came
among the Indians. There were eleven that died there among whom John de
Guzman was one, and a son of Don Carlos, called John de Vargas: the rest
also were persons of account and men of great courage. Those that escaped
by swimming said that they saw the Indians enter the canoe of John de
Guzman at the stern of one of their canoes, and whether they carried him
away dead or alive they could not certainly tell.
The Indians, seeing that they had got the victory, took such courage,
that they assaulted them in the brigantines, which they durst not do
before. They came first to that brigantine wherein Calderon went for
captain, and was in the rearward: and at the first volley of arrows they
wounded twenty-five men. There were only four armed men in this
brigantine; these did stand at the brigantine's side to defend it. Those
that were unarmed, seeing how they hurt them, left their oars and went
under the deck: whereupon the brigantine began to cross, and to go where
the current of the stream carried it. One of the armed men seeing this,
without the commandment of the captain, made a footman to take an oar and
steer the brigantine, he standing before him and defending him with his
target. The Indians came no nearer than a bowshot, from whence they
offended and were not offended, receiving no hurt: for in every
brigantine was but one crossbow, and those which we had were very much out
of order. So that the Christians did nothing else but stand for a butt to
receive their arrows. Having left this brigantine they went to another,
and fought with it half an hour; and so from one to another they fought
with them all. The Christians had mats to lay under them, which were
double, and so close and strong, that no arrow went through them. And as
soon as the Indians gave them leisure, they fenced the brigantines with
them. And the Indians seeing that they could not shoot level, shot their
arrows at random up in the air, which fell into the brigantines, and hurt
some of the men: and not therewith contented, they sought to get to them
which were in the canoes with the horses. Those of the brigantines
environed them to defend them, and took them among them. Thus seeing
themselves much vexed by them, and so wearied that they could no longer
endure it, they determined to travel all the night following, thinking to
get beyond the country of Quigalta, and that they would leave them: but
when they thought least of it, supposing that they had now left them, they
heard
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very near them so great outcries, that they made them deaf, and so they
followed us all that night, and the next day till noon, by which time we
were come into the country of others, whom they desired to use us after
the same manner; and so they did. The men of Quigalta returned home;
and the other in fifty canoes fought with us a whole day and a night; and
they entered one of the brigantines, that came in the rearward, by the
canoe which she had at her stern, and took away a woman which they found
in it, and afterwards hurt some of the men in the brigantines. Those
which came with the horses in the canoes, being wearied with rowing night
and day, lingered behind; and presently the Indians came upon them, and
they of the brigantines tarried for them. The Governor resolved to go on
shore and kill the horses, because of the slow way which they made because
of them. As soon as they saw a place convenient for it, they went thither
and killed the horses, and brought the flesh of thcm to dry it on board.
Four or five of them remained on shore alive; the Indians went unto them,
after the Spaniards were embarked. The horses were not acquainted with
them, and began to neigh, and run up and down in such sort, that the
Indians, for fear of them, leaped into the water; and getting into their
canoes went after the brigantines, shooting cruelly at them. They
followed us that evening and the night following till the next day at ten
of the clock, and then returned up the river. Presently from a small town
that stood upon the river came seven canoes, and followed us a little way
down the river, shooting at us: but seeing they were so few that they
could do us but little harm, they returned to their town. From thence
forward, until they came to the sea, they had no encounter. They sailed
down the river seventeen days: which may be two hundred and fifty
leagues' journey, little more or less: and near unto the sea, the river
is divided into two arms; each of them is a league and a half broad.
Half a league before they came to the sea, they came to anchor to
rest themselves there about a day; for they were very weary with rowing,
and out of heart. For by the space of many days they had eaten nothing
but parched and sodden maize; which they had by allowance every day an
headpiece full by strike for every three men. While they rode there at
anchor seven canoes of Indians came to set upon those which they brought
with them. The Governor commanded armed men to go aboard them, and to
drive them farther off. They came also against them by land through a
thick wood, and
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a moorish ground, and had staves with very sharp forked heads made of the
bones of fishes, and fought very valiantly with us, which went out to
encounter them. And the other that came in canoes with their arrows staid
for them that came against them, and at their coming both those that were
on land, and those in the canoes wounded some of us: and seeing us come
near them, they turned their backs, and like swift horses among footmen
got away from us; making some returns, and reuniting themselves together,
going not past a bow shot off: for in so retiring they shot, without
receiving any hurt of the Christians. For though they had some bows, yet
they could not use them; and brake their arms with rowing to overtake
them. And the Indians easily in their compass went with their canoes,
staying and wheeling about as it had been in a skirmish, perceiving that
those that came against them could not offend them. And the more they
strove to come near them, the more hurt they received. As soon as they
had driven them farther off, they returned to the briguntines. They
stayed two days there: and departed from thence unto the place where the
arm of the river entereth into the sea. They sounded in the river near
unto the sea, and found forty farthoms water. They staid there. And the
Governor commanded all and singular persons to speak their minds touching
their voyage, whether it were best to cross over to Nueva España,
committing themselves to the high sea, or whether they should keep along
the coast. There were sundry opinions touching this matter: wherein John
Danusco, which presumed much, and took much upon him in the knowledge of
navigation, and matters of the sea, although he had but little experience,
moved the Governor with his talk: and his opinion was seconded by some
others. And they affirmed, that it was much better to pass by the high
sea, and cross the gulf, which was three of four parts the lesser travel,
because in going along the coast, they went a great way about, by reason
of the compass which the land did make. John Danusco said, that he had
seen the sea-card, and that from the place, where they were, the coast ran
east and west unto Rio de las Palmas, and from Rio de las Palmas to Nueva
España from north to south: and therefore in sailing always in sight of
land would be a great compassing about and spending of much time; and
that they would be in great danger to be overtaken with winter before they
should get to the land of the Chrtstians: and that in ten or twelve days'
space, having good weather, they might be there in crossing over. The
most part were against this opinion, and said that it was more safe to go
along the coast, though they staid the longer: because their ships were
very
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weak and without decks, so that a very little storm was enough to cast
them away: and if they should be hindered with calms, or contrary
weather, through the small store of vessels which they had to carry water
in, they should likewise fall into great danger: and that although the
ships were such as they might venture in them, yet having neither pilot
nor sea-card to guide themselves, it was no good counsel to cross the
gulf. This opinion was confirmed by the greatest part: and they agreed
to go along the coast. At the time wherein they sought to depart from
thence, the cable of the anchor of the Governors brigantine brake, and the
anchor remained in the river. And albeit they were near the shore, yet it
was so deep, that the divers diving many times could never find it; which
caused great sadness in the Governor, and in all those that went with him
in his brigantine: but with a grindstone which they had, and certain
bridles which remained to some of the gentlemen, and men of worship which
had horses, they made a weight which served instead of an anchor. The
18th of July (1543) they went forth to sea with fair and prosperous
weather for their voyage. And seeing that they were gone two or three
leagues from the shore, the captains of the other brigantines overtook
them, and asked the Governor, wherefore he did put off from the shore? and
that if he would leave the coast, he should say so; and he should not do
it without the consent of all: and that if he did otherwise, they would
not follow him, but that every one would do what seemed best unto himself.
The Governor answered, that he would do nothing without their counsel, but
that he did bear off from the land to sail the better and safer by night;
and that the next day when time served, he would return to the sight of
land again. They sailed with a reasonable good wind that day and the
night following, and the next day till evening song, always in fresh
water; whereat they wondered much: for they were very far from land.
But the force of the current of the river is so great, and the coast there
is so shallow and gentle, that the fresh water enters far into the sea.
That evening on their right hand they saw certain creeks, whither they
went, and rested there that night: where John Danusco with his reasons won
them at last, that all consented and agreed to commit themselves to the
main sea, alleging, as he had done before, that it was a great advantage,
and that their voyage would be much shorter. They sailed two days, and
when they would have come to sight of land they could not, for the wind
blew from the shore. On the fourth day, seeing their fresh water began to
fail, fearing necessity and danger, they all complained of John Danusco,
and of the Governor
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that followed his counsel: and every one of the captains said, that they
would no more go from the shore, though the Governor went whither he
would. It pleased God that the wind changed, though but a little: and at
the end of four days after they had put to sea, being already destitute of
water, by force of rowing they got within sight of land, and with great
trouble recovered it, in an open road. That evening the wind came to the
south, which on that coast is a cross wind, and drove the brigantines
against the shore, because it blew verv hard, and the anchors were so
weak, that they yielded and began to bend. The Governor commanded all men
to leap into the water, and going betweeen them and the shore, and
thrusting the brigantines into the sea as soon as the wave was past, they
saved them till the wind ceased.
In the bay where they rode, after the tempest was passed, they went
on shore, and with mattocks,which they had, they digged certain pits,
which grew full of fresh water, where they filled all the casks thcy had.
The next day they departed thence, and sailed two days, and entered into a
creek like unto a pool, fenced from the south wind, which then did blow,
and was against them; and there they stayed four days, not being able to
get out; and when the sea was calm they rowed out. They sailed that day,
and towards evening the wind grew so strong that it drove them on the
shore, and they were sorry that they had put forth from the former harbor;
for as soon as night approached, a storm began to rise in the sea, and the
wind still waxed more violent with a tempest. The brigantines lost one
another. Two of them, which bare more into the sea, entered into an arm
of the sea, which pierced into the land two leagues be yond the place
where the others were that night. The five which stayed behind, being
always a league and half a league the one from the other, met together,
without any knowledge the one of the other, in a wild road, where the wind
and the waves drove them on shore; for their anchors did straighten and
came home, and they could not use their oars, putting seven or eight men
to every one, which rowed to seaward; and all the rest leaped into the
water, and when the wave was passed that drave the brigantine on shore,
they thrust it again into the sea with all the diligence and might that
they had. Others, while another wave was incoming, with bowls laved out
the water that came in overboard. While they were in this tempest, in
great fear of being cast away in that place, from midnight forward they
endured an intolerable torment of an infinite swarm of mosquitoes which
fell upon them, which as soon as they had stung the flesh, it so
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infected it, as though they had been venomous. In the morning the sea was
assuaged and the wind slacked, but not the mosquitoes; for the sails,
which were white, seemed black with them in the morning. Those which
rowed, unless others kept them away, were not able to row. Having passed
the fear and danger of the storm, beholding the deformities of their
faces, and the blows which they gave themselves to drive them away, one of
them laughed at another. They met all together in the creek where the two
brigantines were which outwent their fellows. There was found a scum
which they call copee, which the sea casteth up, and it is like pitch,
wherewith in some places, where pitch is wanting, they pitch their ships;
there they pitched their brigantines. They rested two days, and then
eftsoons proceeded on their voyage. They sailed two days more, and landed
in a bay or arm of the sea, where they stayed two days. The same day that
they went from thence six men went up in a canoe toward the head of it,
and could not see the end of it. They put out from thence with a south
wind, which was against them; but because it was little, and for the great
desire they had to shorten their voyage, they put out to sea by the force
of oars, and for all that made very little way, with great labor, in two
days, and went under the lee of a small island into an arm of the sea,
which compassed it about. While they were there, there fell out such
weather, that they gave God many thanks that they found out such an
harbor. There was great store of fish in that place, which they took with
nets, which they had, and hooks. Here a man cast an hook and a line into
the sea, and tied the end of it to his arm, and a fish caught it, and drew
him into the water unto the neck; and it pleased God that he remembered
himself of a knife that he had, and cut the line with it. There they abode
fourteen days; and at the end of them it pleased God to send them fair
weather, for which, with great devotion, they appointed a procession, and
went in procession along the strand, be seeching God to bring them to a
land where they might serve him in better sort.
In all the coast wheresoever they digged they found fresh water;
there they filled their vessels, and the procession being ended, embarked
themselves, and going always in sight of the shore they sailed six days.
John Danusco said that it would do well to bear out to seaward; for he
had seen the sea- card, and remembered that from Rio de las Palmas
forward, the coast did run from north to south, and thitherto they had run
from east to west, and in his opinion, by his reckoning, Rio de las Palmas
could not be far off from where they
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were. That same night they put to sea, and in the morning they saw palm
leaves floating, and the coast which ran north and south. From midday
forward they saw great mountains, which until then they had not seen; for
from this place to Puerto de Spiritu Santo, where they first landed in
Florida, was a very plain and low country; and therefore it cannot be
descried, unless a man comes very near it. By that which they saw, they
thought they had overshot Rio de las Palmas that night, which is sixty
leagues from the river Panuco, which is in Nueva España. They assembled
all together, and some said it was not good to sail by night, lest they
should overshoot the river of Panuco; and others said, it was not well to
lose time while it was favorable, and that it could not be so near that
they should pass it that night; and they agreed to take away half the
sails, and so sail all night. Two of the brigantines, which sailed that
night with all their sails, by break of day had overshot the river of
Panuco without seeing it. Of the five that came behind, the first that
came unto it was that wherein Calderan was captain. A quarter of a league
before they came at it, and before they did see it, they saw the water
muddy, and knew it to be fresh water; and coming right against the river,
they saw where it entered into the sea, that the water broke upon a shoal.
And because there was no man there that knew it, they were in doubt
whether they should go in, or go along; and they resolved to go in; and
before they came into the current, they went close to the shore, and
entered into the port. And as soon as they were come in, they saw Indian
men and women apparcled like Spaniards, whom they asked in what country
they were? They answered in Spanish, that it was the river of Panuco,
and that the town of the Christians was fifteen leagues up within the
land. The joy that all of them received upon this news cannot
sufficiently be expressed; for it seemed unto them that at that instant
they were born again. And many went on shore and kissed the ground, and
kneeling on their knees, with lifting up their hands and eyes to Heaven,
they all ceased not to give God thanks. Those which came after, as soon
as they saw Calderan come to an anchor with his brigantine in the river,
presently went thither, and came into the haven. The other two
brigantines which had overshot the place, put to sea to return back to
seek the rest, and could not do it, bccause the wind was contrary and the
sea grown; they were afraid of being cast away, and recovering the shore
they cast anchor. While they rode there a storm arose, and seeing that
they could not abide there, much less
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endure at sea, they resolved to run on shore; and as the brigantines were
but small, so did they draw but little water; and where they were it was a
sandy coast. By which occasion the force of their sails drove them on
shore, without any hurt of them that were in them. As those that were in
the port of Panuco at this time were in great joy; so these felt a double
grief in their hearts, for they knew not what was become of their fellows,
nor in what country they were, and feared it was a country of Indian
enemies. They landed two leagues below the port; and when they saw
themselves out of the danger of the sea, every one took of that which he
had, as much as he could carry on his back, and they traveled up into the
country, and found Indians, which told them where their fellows were, and
gave them good entertainment; wherewith their sadness was turned into joy,
and they thanked God most humbly for their deliverance out of so many
dangers.
From the time that they put out of Rio Grande to the sea, at their
departure from Florida, until they arrived in the river of Panuco, was
fifty-two days. They came into the river of Panuco the tenth of
September, 1543. They went up the river with their brigantines. They
traveled four days; and because the wind was but little, and many times
it served them not because of the many turnings which the river maketh,
and the great current drawing them up by towing, and that in many places;
for this cause they made very little way and with grcat labor; and seeing
the execution of their desire to be deferred, which was to come among
Christians, and to see the celebration of divine service, which so long
time they had not seen, they left the brigantines with the mariners, and
went by land to Panuco. All of them were apparcled in deers' skins tanned
and dyed black, to wit, coats, hose, and shoes. When they came to Panuco,
presently they went to the church to pray and give God thanks that so
miraculously had saved them. The townsmen which before were advertised by
the Indians, and knew of their arrival, carried some of them to their
houses, and entertained them whom they knew and had acquaintance of, or
because they were their countrymen. The Alcalde Mayor took the Governor
home to his house: and commanded all the rest, as soon as they came, to be
lodged six and six and ten and ten, according to the ability of every
townsman. And all of them were provided for by their hosts of many hens,
and bread of maize, and fruits of the country, which are such as be in the
Isle of Cuba, whereof before I have spoken. The town of Panuco may
contain about seventy families; the most of their houses are of lime and
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stone, and some made of timber, and all of them are thatched. It is a
poor country, and there is neither gold nor silver in it. The inhabitants
live there in great abundance of victuals and servants. The richest have
not above five hundred crowns rent a year, and that is in cotton cloths,
hens, and maize, which the Indians their servants do give them for
tribute. There arrived there of those that came out of Florida, three
hundred and eleven Christians. Presently the Alcalde Mayor sent one of
the townsmen in post to advertise the Viceroy, Don Antonio de Mendoça,
which was resident in Mexico, that of the people that went with Don
Ferdinando de Soto to discover and conquer Florida three hundred and
eleven men were arrived there, that seeing that they were employed in his
majesty's service he would take some order to provide for them. Whereat
the Viceroy, and all the inhabitants of Mexico wondered; for they thought
they were miscarried because they had traveled so far within the main land
of Florida, and bad no news of them for so long a time: and it seemed a
wonderful thing unto them, how they could save themselves so long among
infidels, without any fort, wherein they might fortify themselves, and
without any other succor at all. Presently the Viceroy sent a warrant
wherein he commanded, that whithersoever they sent they should give them
victuals, and as many Indians for their carriages as they needed: and
where they would not furnish them, they might take those things that were
necessary perforce without incurring any danger of law. This warrant was
so readily obeyed that by the way before they came to the towns they came
to receive them with hens and victuals.
From Panuco to the great city of Temistitan, Mexico, is sixty
leagues; and other sixty from Panuco to the port Port de Vera Cruz, where
they take shipping for Spain, and those that come from Spain do land to go
for Nueva España. These three towns stand in a triangle: to wit, Vera
Cruz to the south, Panuco to the north, and Mexico to the west sixty
leagues asunder. The country is so inhabited with Indians that from town
to town those which are farthest are but a league and half a league
asunder. Some of them that came from Florida stayed a month in Panuco to
rest themselves, others fifteen days, and every one as long as he listed:
for there was none that showed a sour countenance to his guests, but
rather gave them anything that they had, and seemed to be grieved when
they took their leave. Which was to be believed; for the victuals which
the Indians do pay them for tribute, are more than they can spend: and in
that town is no Commerce; and there dwelt but few Spaniards there, and
they were
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glad of their company. The Alcalde Mayor divided all the Emperor's
clothes which he had (which there they pay him for his tribute) among
those that would come to receive them. Those which had shirts of mail
left were glad men; for they had a horse for one shirt of mail. Some
horsed themselves; and such as could not (which were the greatest part)
took their journey on foot: in which they were well received of the
Indians that were in the towns, and better served than they could have
been in their own houses, though they had been well to live. For if they
asked one hen of an Indian, they brought them four: and if they asked any
of the country fruit though it were a league off, they ran presently for
it. And if any Christian found himself evil at ease, they carried him in
a chair from one town to another. In whatsoever town they came, the
cacique, by an Indian which carried a rod of justice in his hand, whom
they call Tapile, that is to say a sergeant, commanded them to provide
victuals for them, and Indians to bear burdens of such things as they had,
and such as were needful to carry them that were sick. The Viceroy sent a
Portuguese twenty leagues from Mexico with great store of sugar, raisins
of the sun, conserves, and other things fit for sick folks, for such as
had need of them: and had given order to clothe them all at the Emperor's
charge. And their approach being known by the citizens of Mexico, they
went out of the town to receive them: and with great courtesy, requesting
them in favor to come to their houses, every one carried such as he met
home with him, and clothed them every one the best they could: so that he
that had the meanest apparel, it cost about thirty ducats. As many as
were willing to come to the Viceroy's house he commanded to be appareled,
and such as were persons of quality sate at his table: and there was a
table in his house for as in any of the meaner sort as would come to it:
and he was presently informed who every one was, to show him the courtesy
that he deserved. Some of the conquerors did set both gentlemen and
clowns at their own table, and many times made the servant sit cheek by
cheek by his master: and chiefiy the officers and men of base condition
did so: for those which had better education did inquire who every one
was, and made difference of persons: but all did what they could with a
good will: and every one told them whom they had in their houses, that
they should not trouble themselves, nor think themselves the worse, to
take that which they gave them: for they had been in the like case, and
had been relieved of others, and that this was the custom of that country.
God reward them all: and God grant that those which it pleased him to
deliver out of Florida, and
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to bring again into Christendom, may serve him: and into those that died
in that country, and unto all that believe in Him and confess his holy
faith, God for his mercy's sake grant the kingdom of heaven. Amen.
From the Port de Spiritu Santo, where they landed when they entered
into Florida, to the Province of Ocute, which may be 400 leagues, little
more or less, is a very plain country, and has many lakes and thick woods,
and in some places they are of wild pine-trees; and is a weak soil. There
is in it neither mountain nor hill. The country of Ocute is more fat and
fruitful; it has thinner woods, and very goodly meadows upon the rivers.
From Ocute to Cutifachiqui may be 130 leagues: 80 leagues thereof are
desert, and have many groves of wild pine trees. Through the wilderness
great rivers do pass. From Cutifachiqui to Xuala, may be 250 leagues: it
is all an hilly country. Cutifachiqui and Xuala stand both in plain
ground, high, and have goodly meadows on the rivers. From thence forward
to Chiaha, Coça, and Tascaluça, is plain ground, dry and fat, and very
plentiful of maize. From Xuala to Tascaluça may be 250 leagues. From
Tascaluça to Rio Grande, or the Great River, may be 300 leagues: the
country is low, and full of lakes. From Rio Grande forward, the country
is higher and more champaign, and best peopled of all the land of Florida.
And along this river from Aquixo to Pacaha, and Coligoa, are 150 leagues:
the country is plain, and the woods thin, and in some places champaign,
very fruitful and pleasant. From Coligoa to Autiamque are 250 leagues of
hilly country. From Autiamque to Aguacay, may be 230 leagues of plain
ground. From Aguacay to the river of Daycao 120 leagues, all hilly
counfry.
From the Port de Spiritu Santo unto Apalache, they traveled from
east to west, and northwest. From Cutifachiqui to Xuala from south to
north. From Xuala to Coça from east to west. From Coça to Tascaluca, and
to Rio Grande, as far as the provinces of Quizquiz and Aquixo, from east
to west. From Aquixo to Pacaha to the north. From Pacaha to Tulla from
east to west: from Tulla to Autiamque from north to south, to the
province of Guachoya and Daycao. The bread which they ate in all the land
of Florida is of maize, which is like coarse millet. And this maize is
common in all the islands, and from the Antilles forward. There are also
in Florida great store of walnuts, plums, mulberries, and grapes. They
sow and gather their maize every one their several crop. The fruits are
common to all, for they grow abroad in the open fields in great abundance,
without
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out any need of planting or dressing. Where there be mountains, there be
chestnuts; they are somewhat smaller than the chestnuts of Spain. From
Rio Grande westward, the walnuts differ from those that grow more
eastward; for they are soft, and like unto acorns; and those which grow
from Rio Grande to Puerto del Spiritu Santo for the most part are hard;
and the trees and walnuts in show like those of Spain. There is a fruit
through all the country which groweth on a plant like Ligoacan, which the
Indians do plant. The fruit is like unto Peares Riall; it has a very
good smell, and an excellent taste. There groweth another plant in the
open field, which beareth a fruit like unto strawberries, close to the
ground, which has a very good taste. The plums are of two kinds, red and
gray, of the making and bigness of nuts, and have three or four stones in
them. These are better than all the plums of Spain, and they make far
better prunes of them. In the grapes there is only want of dressing; for
though they be big, they have a great kernel. All other fruits are very
perfect, and less hurtful than those of Spain.
There are in Florida many bears and lions, wolves, deer, dogs, cats,
martens, and conies. There be manywild hens as big as turkeys, partridges
small, like those of Africa, cranes, ducks, pigeons, thrushes, and
sparrows. There are certain black birds bigger than sparrows, and lesser
than stares. There are goshawks, falcons, gerfalcons, and all fowls of
prey that are in Spain.
The Indians are well proportioned. Those of the plain countries are
taller of body, and better shaped, than those of the mountains. Those of
the inland have greater store of maize, and commodities of the country,
than those that dwell upon the sea-coast. The country along the sea-coast
is barren and poor, and the pcople more warlike. The coast runneth from
Puerto del Spiritu Santo to Apalache, east and west; and from Apalache to
Rio de las Palmas from east to west; from Rio de las Palmas unto Nueva
España from north to south. It is a gentle coast, but it hath many
shoals, and great shelves of sand.
Deo gratias.
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Volume 2 Chapter 8
[Page 221]
A
DESCRlPTlON
OF THE
ENGLISH PROVINCE OF CAROLINA,
BY THE SPANIARDS CALLED FLORIDA,
AND BY THE FRENCH
LA LOUISIANE.
AS ALSO OF THE GREAT AND FAMOUS RIVER
MESCHACEBE OR MISSISSIPPI,
THE FIVE
VAST NAVIGABLE LAKES OF FRESH WATER,
AND THE PARTS ADJACENT.
TOGETHER WITH
AN ACCOUNT OF THE COMMODITIES OF THE GROWTH AND PRODUCTION
OF THE SAID PROVINCE.
BY DANIEL COXE
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[Page 222]
[Blank Page]
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[Page 223]
A DESCRIPTION
OF THE
ENGLISH PROVINCE OF CAROLANA,
BY THE SPANIARDS CALLED FLORIDA,
AND BY THE FRENCH
LA LOUISIANE.*
____________
CAROLANA and Carolina are two distinct though bordering provinces,
the east of Carolana joining to the west of Carolina. The former was
granted by patent unto Sir Robert Heath, in the beginning of the reign of
King Charles I., which said Sir Robert was then Attorney-General, and by
him conveyed unto the Earl of Arundel, from whom it came by mean
conveyances unto the present proprietary.
This province of Carolana is extended north and south from the river
St. Mattheo, lying according to the patent in thirty-one degrees (though
by later and more accurate observations, it is found to lie exactly in
thirty degrees and ten minutes) unto the river Passo Magno, which is in
thirty-six degrees of northern latitude; and in longitude from the
Western or Atlantic Ocean unto New Mexico, now in possession of the
Spaniards, which is in a direct line above one thousand miles, and where
not inhabited by them, unto the South Sea. It comprehends within its
bounds, the greatest part of the province of Carolina, whose proprietors
derive their claim and pretensions thereto,
* This account of Louisiana has been very carefully drawn up from
Memoirs and Journals kept by various persons sent into the Valley of the
Mississippi, by D. Coxe. The expedition fitted out by him, consisting of
two ships, commanded by Capt. Barr, were the first to sail up the
Mississippi. (1598.)
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by charters from King Charles II. about thirty years after the
abovcmentioned grant to Sir Robert Heath.
The great River Meschacebe runs through the midst of this country,
having a course almost directly north and south from its first fountains,
in about fifty degress of north latitude, to its disemboguing into the
middle of the Gulf of Mexico. The rivers that make this, which the
Spaniards called Rio Grande del Norte, proceed about one-half from the
west, the other from the east, so that the whole country may be almost
entirely visited by navigable rivers, without any falls or cataracts,
which are usual in most of the northern rivers of America, and in all
rivers of long course, even in Carolina (though to this country
contiguous), and thence northward to the grcat river of St. Lawrence or
Canada, and other rivers northward innumerable. The excellent and
convenient situation of this country for inland trade and navigation, and
for trade with the Spaniards in New Mexico, the whole Gulf of Mexico, and
the South Sea (which I shall hereafter demonstrate), will be greatly for
the advantage, and not in the least to the prejudice of our home
plantation trade, as will appear more evident by the description of this
great River Meschacebe, and those rivers that enter into it, together with
the vast navigable lakes of fresh water adjoining thereunto.
We will for good reasons begin our description of it from its
entrance into the sea, ascending up unto its source; and from very good
journals both by sea and land, give an account of the chief rivers that
run into it from the east and west, as we find them in our ascent,
together with their course, length and bigness, the nature of the
countries, and the names of the nations through which they pass.
The River Meschacebe is so called by the inhabitants of the north;
cebe being the name for a river, even as far as Hudson's Bay; and mescha,
great, which is the Great River; and by the French, who learned it from
them, corruptly, Mississippi; which name of Meschacebe it doth retain
among the savages during half its course. Afterwards some call it
Chucagua, others Sassagoula, and Malabanchia, as it fares with the
Danubius, which four hundred miles before it enters the Euxine Sea, is
styled the Iser; and the like happens to all the rivers of long course in
America, as Oronogue, the river of the Amazons, and Rio de la Plata. This
river enters the Gulf of Mexico one hundred and forty leagues from the
north-west part of the peninsula of Florida, keeping along the coast in
thirty degrees north latitude, and one hundred and twenty leagues from the
most westerly part of
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the said gulf, in about twenty-nine degrees the same latitude; and thence
the coast extends S. and by W. to the river Panuco, which is under the
tropic of Cancer in twenty-three and a half degrees, the utmost part
inhabited by the Spaniards towards the and N. E. on the Gulf of Mexico.
The province of Carolana, from the conjunction with the peninsula of
Florida, for two hundred and fifty leagues, is situated about the
thirtieth degree of north latitude, and seldom varies ten leagues north or
south from the same; excepting the entrance of the river Meschacebe,
which I am now about to describe from the mouth unto its first fountains.
The river Meschacebe empties itself into the Gulf of Mexico by seven
channels, like the river Nile, of which Herodotus, the father of history,
and who lived long in Egypt, affirms in his time three were always
navigable, and the others only so during the inundations of the said
river, which were made by art and labor, though our modern navigators
allow only two; but our river hath seven navigable at all times; the
three great ones by ships, the four smaller, two on each side (as appears
by the chart), by boats and sloops, especially during the time of the
waters rising, or the freshes, as they call them, which are always
constant, and return in the spring, and sometimes happen in the summer
upon the great rains, which is not frequent.
The three great branches always navigable by shipping are situated
about six miles distant from each other, and unite all at one place with
the main river, about twelve miles from their mouths.
There is not above fourteen feet on the bar at low-water in
neeptides, excepting when the freshes come down in the spring or upon
great rains; but when you are over the bar, which is not in many places
above a ship's length broad, you enter immediately into deep water the
least five fathom, which increases to ten fathom before you come to the
main river. After that it deepens gradually to above thirty, and you have
nowhere less than twenty fathoms for one hundred miles, and little less
for one hundred leagues, and afterwards from ten to seventeen for one
hundred leagues more: then from six to ten two hundred leagues further;
thence to the great cataract or fall, which is sixteen hundred miles from
its entrance into the sea, from three fathoms to six. Its breadth is
generally during its great depth scarce a mile, but as it lessens in depth
it increases in breadth, and is in most places of its course two miles
broad, and where it makes islands (as it does very frequently), from the
middle of its course two or three leagues. The banks in most places are
no more than five or
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six feet above the river, and ships may almost in all places lie by the
side of the shore, there being generally from three to six fathoms, and
deepens gradually as you approach the middle of the river, which has
mostly a pretty strong current; but there are divers promontories, under
which you may anchor, where there is good shelter from winds and curious
eddy-tides.
When you are ascended the river four or five leagues, it is bordered
on each side with high trees of divers sorts, from half a mile to two
miles deep into the country; very little underwoods; no trouble in
traveling, besides what proceeds from the vines ramping upon the ground.
Divers others surround and mount up the trees, almost unto their tops,
which are seldom less than one hundred feet from their roots, and often
thirty or forty feet more. When you come out of the agreeable shade, you
see a most beautiful level country, only about six or eight miles
distance; there are collins or gentle ascents, for the most part round or
oval, crowned with stately trees, which looks more like a work of
laborious consummate art than of mere nature; and this on both sides the
river, so far as the acutest sight can reach; in which meadows the wild
bulls and kine, besides other beasts, graze, and in the heat of the day
retire into these woods for shelter, where they chew the cud.
There is no considerable river empties itself into the Meschacebe
from the mouths until you come about twelve miles above the Bayogola and
Mougolaches, two nations who dwell together on the west side thereof, two
hundred miles from the sea; then on the east side there falls out of the
Meschacebe a branch which after a course of one hundred and sixty miles
empties itself into the N. E. end of the great Bay of Spirito Santo. It
is not above forty or fifty yards broad and two or three fathoms deep at
its beginning, but soon enlarges in breadth and depth by the accession of
divers rivers and rivulets, and is a most lovely river, making pleasant
lakes, and passing, during its whole course, through a country exactly
like that we have formerly described. It is navigable by the greatest
boats, sloops, and small ships of English building; and by large ones if
built after the Dutch manner with flat bottoms.
On the north side of one of the above-mentioned lakes, called by the
French Lake Pontchartrain, they have erected a small fort, and
storehouses, whither after unloading their large vessels at Isle aux
Vaisseaux, or Ship's Island, they bring their goods in sloops or shallops,
and from thence disperse them by their traders amongst their own
settlements and the several nations of Indians inhabiting on and about
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the Meschacebe, and the rivers which enter it, both from the east and
west.
About fifty miles above the place where this river is dismissed from
the Meschacebe, on the other side, viz., the west, enters the river of the
Houmas (Red River), so named from a considerable nation who inhabit upon
it in the country, six or eight miles from its mouth. This is a mighty
river, deep and broad, and comes from the mountains of New Mexico; its
course is mostly N. W., and is navigable by large vessels above three
hundred miles, and thence by large boats and sloops, almost unto its
fountains. By this river, you may have communication with above forty
nations who live upon it or its branches; and also with the Spaniards of
New Mexico, from whom its furthest heads are not above an easy day's
journey. Upon this river and most of its branches are great herds of wild
kine, which bear a fine wool, and abundance of horse, both wild and tame,
of the Spanish breed, on which the Indians ride with almost as much skill
as the Europeans, though their bridles, saddles and stirrups are somewhat
different from ours, yet not the less commodious.
Twelve leagues higher upon the river Meschacebe is the river of the
Naches (Washita), which ten or twelve leagues above its mouth divides
itself into two branches, and forms an island (Sicily) about thirty miles
in circumference, very pleasant and fertile. Thc south branch is
inhabited by the Corroas, the north by the Naches, both considerable
nations, abounding in all necessaries for human life. Some leagues above
thc division is a pretty large lake (Tensas), where there is a great
fishery for pearl, large and good, taken out of a shellfish of a middle
nature between an oyster and a muscle.
About twelve or fourteen leagues higher on the same, that is, the
west side, the Meschacebe makes a little gulf (Petit Gtilf) about twenty
miles long and three or four broad, upon which inhabit in many towns the
populous and civilized nation of the Tahensa (Taensas), who also abound in
pearls, and enjoy an excellent country; are very hospitable to strangers,
and though, as most Indian nations, at war with their neighbors, yet
together with the three last mentioned, and those to be hereafter named,
joyfully receive and kindly entertain all with whom they have not actual
hostilities.
Fourteen or flfteen leagues higher on the east side of the Mcschacebe
is the nation and river of Yasoue (Yazoo), which comes two or three
hundred miles out of the country, on which dwell the nations in order
mentioned after, the Yassouees, the Tounicas, Kourouas, Tihiou, Samboukia,
and Epitoupa.
Ten or twelve leagues higher on the west side is the river
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Natchitock (Arkansas), which has a course of many hundred miles; and after
it is ascended about one hundred, there are many springs, pits, and lakes,
which afford most excellent common salt in great plenty, wherewith they
trade with neighboring nations for other commodities they want, and may be
of great service to the European inhabitants of this country, to preserve
flesh and fish for their own use, and exportation to natives, Spaniards,
and our islands, to the great profit of them who have not stock to engage
in greater and more beneficial undertakings. Upon this river inhabit not
only the Natchitocks, Naguateeres, Natsohocks, but higher several other
nations. Sixteen leagues further upon the west side, enter the Meschacebe
two rivers, which unite about ten leagues above, and make an island called
by the name of the Torimans, by whom it is inhabited.
The southerly of these two rivers is that of the Ousoutiwy, upon
which dwell first the Arkansas, a great nation, higher upon the same river
the Kansae, Mintou, Erabacha and others.
The river to the north is named Niska, upon which live part of the
nation of the Ozages; their great body inhabiting a large river which
bears their name, and empties itself into the Yellow River, as will be
hereafter mentioned: and upon this river near the mouth is the nation
Tonginga, who with the Torimas are part of the Arkansas.
Ten leagues bigher is a small river named Cappa, and upon it a people
of the same name, and another called Ouesperies, who fled, to avoid the
persecution of the Irocois, from a river which still bears their name, to
be mentioned hereafter.
Ten miles higher on the same side of the Meschacebe, is a little
river named Matchicebe upon which dwell the nations Mitchigamia and
Epiminguia; over against whom is the great nation of the Chicazas
(Chickasaws), whose country extends above forty leagues to the river of
the Cheraquees (Tennessee), which we shall describe when we come to
discourse of the great river Hohio.
Ten leagues higher, on the east side, is the river and nation of
Chongue, with some others to the cast of them.
Fifteen leagues higher, on the west side, is the river and nation of
Sypouria.
Thirty leagues higher on the east side is the opening of a river that
proceeds out of a lake twenty miles long, which is about ten miles from
the Meschacebe. Into this lake empty themselves four large rivers. The
most northerly, which comes from the north-east, is called Ouabachicou or
Ouabache, upon which dwelt the nations
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Chachakingua, Pepepicokia, Pianguichia. The next south of this is the
vast river Hohio (Ohio), which comes from the back of New York, Maryland,
and Virginia, and is navigable 600 miles. Hohio in the Indian language
signifies the fair river; and certainly it runs from its heads through
the most beautiful fertile countries in the universe, and is formed by the
confluence of ten or twelve rivers, and innumerable rivulets. A town
settled upon this lake, or the entrance of the river Hohio thereinto,
would have communication with a most lovely fruitful country 600 miles
square. Formerly, divers nations dwelt on this river, as the Chawanoes
(Shawanees), a mighty and very populous people, who had above fifty towns,
and many other nations, who were totally destroyed or driven out of their
country by the Irocois, this river being their usual road when they make
war upon the nations who lie to the south or to the west.
South of the Hohio is another river, which about thirty leagues above
the lake is divided into two branches; the northerly is called Ouespere,
the southerly the Black River; there are very few people upon either, they
having been destroyed or driven away by the aforementioned Irocois. The
heads of this river proceed from the west side of the vast ridge of
mountains, which run on the baek of Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland; on
whose opposite or east side are the sources of the great river Potomack,
which by a mouth of some leagues broad, disgorges itself into the middle
of the Bay of Chesepeack, and separates tbe two last mentioned provinces
from each other. The mountains afford a short passage or communication
between those two rivers, which the Indians are well acquainted with, and
by which, in conjunction with the French of the Meschacebe, they may in
time insult and harass those colonies.
The most southerly of the above said four rivers, which enter into
the lake, is a river some call Kasqui, so named from a nation inhabiting a
little above its mouth; others call it the Cusates, or the river of the
Cheraquees (Tennessee), a mighty nation, among whom it hath its chief
fountains; it comes from the south-east, and its heads are among the
mountains, which separate this country from Carolina, and is the great
road of the traders from thence to the Meschacebe, and intermediate
places. Above 200 miles up this river to the southeast is the great and
powerful nation of the Chicazas, good friends to the English, whose
dominions extend thence to the Meschacebe. Before you come at them is a
small fall or cataract, the only one I have yet heard of in any of the
rivers that enter the Meschacebe, either
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from the east or from the west. Thirty or forty leagues above the
Chicazas, this river forms four delicate islands, which have each a nation
inhabiting them, viz., Tahogale, Kakigue, Cochali, and Tali. Sixty
leagues above the island and nation of the Tali inhabits the
aforementioned nation of the Cheraques (Cherokees), who have at least
sixty towns, some of which are not above sixty miles from Carolina. They
have great friendship with the English of that province, who from thence
carry on a free trade with and are always very kindly entertained by them.
Fifteen leagues above the Hohio, or the river coming out of the lake
aforementioned, to the west, is the river Honabanou, upon which dwells a
nation of the same name, and another called Amicoa; and ten leagues above
that is the great island of the Tamaroas, and over against it, on the east
side, a nation which goes by its name, and another by that of Cahokia, who
dwell on the banks of the rivcr Chepusso.
Fifteen leagues above which to the west is the Great Yellow
(Missouri*) River, so named because it is yellowish, and so muddy that
though the Meschacebe is very clear where they meet, and so many great
rivers of crystaline water below mix with the Meschacebe, yet it discolors
them all even unto the sea. When you are up this river sixty or seventy
miles, you meet with two branches. The lesser, though large, proceeds
from the south, and most of the rivers that compose it fall from the
mountains, which separate this country from New Mexico; notwithstanding
which, there is a very easy communication between them. This is called
the river of the Ozages, from a numerous people, who have sixteen or
eighteen towns seated thereupon, especially near its mixing with the
Yellow River. The other, which is the main branch, comes from the
north-west, most of whose branches descend likewise from the mountains of
New Mexico, and divers' other large provinces which are to the north of
New Mexico, wholly posesessed by Indians, who are said to be very
numerous, and well policed. They are all at war with the Spaniards, from
whom they have defended their countries above 150 years, and have rather
recovered than lost ground. They are likewise at war, as generally the
Indians are, amongst themselves. The most northerly branches of this
river are interwoven with other branches, which have a contrary course,
proceeding to the west, and empty themselves into a vast lake, whose
waters by means of another great river (Columbia) disembogues into
* The first explorer of this river and the St. Peter's was
La Hontan.
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the South Sea. The Indians affirm they see great ships sailing in that
lake, twenty times bigger than their canoes. The Yellow is called the
river of the Massorites, from a great nation inhabiting in many towns near
its junction with the river of the Ozages. There are many other nations
upon the same, little inferior to them in extent of territories or number
of towns, as the Panimahas, Pancassas, Panas, Panelogas, Matotantes, few
of them having less than twenty towns, scarce any of which count less than
200 cabins.
Forty miles above the Yellow River, on the east side, is the river
Chicagou, or the river of the Alinouecks, corruptly by the French called
Illinois, which nation lived upon and about this river, having above sixty
towns, and formerly consisted of 20,000 fighting men, but are now almost
totally destroyed by the Irocois, or driven beyond the Meschacebe
westward. This is a large pleasant river; and about 250 miles above its
entrance into the Meschacebe, it is divided into two branches; the lesser
comes from north and by east, and its head is within four or five miles of
the great lake of the Alinouecks (Michigan) on its west side; the other
comes almost directly from the east, and proceeds from a morass within two
miles of the river Miamiha, which empties itself into the same lake. On
the south-east side, there is an easy communication between these two
rivers, by a land carriage of two leagues, about fifty miles to the
south-east of the forementioned lake. The course of this river from its
head exceeds 400 miles, navigable above half way by ships, and most of the
rest by sloops and large boats or barges. Many small rivers run into it,
and it forms two or three lakes; but one mightily extolled, called
Pimiteouiii (Peoria), which is twenty miles long and three miles broad;
it affords great quantities of good fish, and the country round about it
abounds with game, both fowls and beasts. Besides the Illinoueck are the
nations Peronaria (Peoria), the great nation Cascasquia and Caracantanon;
and on the northern branch inhabit part of the nation of the Mascontens.
On the south-east bank of this river, Monsieur de la Sale erected a
fort in the year 1680, which he named Creve-coeur, from the grief which
seized him on the loss of one of his chief trading barks richly laden, and
the mutiny and villainous intrigues of some of his company, who first
attempted to poison and afterwards desert hiin. This fort stands about
half way between the bay of Mexico and Canada, and was formerly the usual
route of the French in going to or returning from either of those places;
but since, they have discovered a nearer and easier passage by the
Ouabache and Ohio, the sources of both
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which rivers are at a shall distance from the Lake Erie, or some rivers
which empty into it.
Forty leagues higher on the west side is a fair river, which our
people were at the mouth of, but could not learn its name. I suppose it's
the same the French call Moingona. Some make it to proceed from the
Mitchayowa or long river, as may be discerned in the annexed map; but as
all our journals are silent in that matter, so shall I, till some more
perfect discoveries thereof afford us further light and certainty therein.
When you are ascended about forty leagues more, then on the east side
falls into the Meschacebe the river Misconsing. This is much of the same
nature with that of the Alinouecks, whether you consider its breadth,
depth and course, as also the pleasantness, and fertility of the country
adjacent unto all its branches. After you have rowed or sailed up it
sixty miles, joins with it the river of the Kikapouz, which is also
navigable, and comes a great way from the north-east. Eighty miles
further, almost directly east, there is a ready communication, by a
carriage of two leagues, with the river of Misaouaqui, which bath a quite
contrary course, running to the northeast, and empties itself, after a
passage of 150 miles from the land carriage, into the great bay of the
Pouteouotamis, or the Puans, which joins, on the north-west, with the
great lake of the Alinouecks. This river and bay I shall have occasion to
mention when I come to describe the vast lakes or seas of fresh water
which are to the east of the Meschacebe.
Forty leagues higher, on the same side, is the fair large river
Mitchaoywa, which is the same the Baron le Hontan calls the long river,
and gives a very particular description thereof, having navigated it
almost to its heads. It has a course of above five hundred miles, and the
southern rivers, of which it is composed, are near the northern heads of
the river of the Messourites, both taking their original from the
mountains which divide this country from that which leads to the South
Sea. Several rivers proceed from the other side of the mountains, which
are easily passed in less than one day, and fall into the same lake above
mentioned, which discharges itself by a great river into the aforesaid
sea. As you ascend this river from the Meschacebe, you meet with the
nations Eokoros, Essanape, Gnasitaries, who have each many towns, and very
populous. And the said Baron acquaints us, from very good information,
that beyond these hills are two or three mighty nations, under potent
kings, abundantly more civilized, numerous, and warlike than their
neighbors;
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differing greatly in customs, buildings, and government from all the other
natives of this northern continent; that they are clothed, and build
houses and ships like Europeans, having many of great bigness, in length
120 or 130 feet, and carry from 200 to 300 men, which navigate the great
lake, and it is thought the adjacent parts of the ocean. And Herrera,
Gomora, and some other Spanish historiographers assert that the Spaniards
saw upon that coast such ships, which they apprehended came from Japan or
China.
A little higher up is the river Chabadeda, above which the Meschacebe
makes a fine lake, twenty miles long and eight or ten broad.
Nine or ten miles above that lake, on the east side, is a large fair
river, called the river of Tortoises, after you have entered a little way,
which leads far into the country to the north-east, and is navigable by
the greatest boats forty miles. About the same distance further up, the
Meschacebe is precipitated from the rocks about fifty feet, but is so far
navigable by considerable ships, as also beyond, excepting another fall,
eighty or ninety miles higher, by large vessels, unto its sources, which
are in the country of the Sieux, not at a very great distance from
Hudson's Bay. There are many other smaller rivers which fall into the
Meschacebe, on both sides of it, but being of little note, and the
description of them of small consequence, I have passed over them in
silence.
I now proceed to describe that part of this province which is to the
east of the Meschacebe; the rivers which pass throngh it having no
communication therewith. From the Peninsula of Florida, where this
country begins, to the south-east, there are only two large rivers: the
first, that of Palache, the true Indian name, by the Spaniards called the
river of Spirito Santo, or of Apalache, adding an A, after the Arabian
manner, from which a great part of their language is derived; as in the
provinces of Nilco, Minoia, they pronounce Anilco, Aminoia, and so in
divers others. This river enters the Gulf of Mexico about 100 miles from
the Cod of the Bay of Palache, at the north-west end of the Peninsula of
Florida, in thirty degrees of north latitude, and some few minutes. It is
somewhat bard to find, by reason of the isles and lagunes before it; and
though a stately river, and comes far out of the country, hath not above
two fathoms and a half or three fathoms water at most on the bar, as the
people sent on discovery found; but that being passed, it is very deep and
large; and the tide flows higher than into any river upon all the coast,
some affirm fifty miles, which is no wonder, the country being a perfect
level, and the river having a double current; one from the south, all
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along the peninsula, from twenty-five degrees to thirty. The other from
the west. Near it, on both sides towards the sea- coast, dwell divers
nations, Palachees, Chattoes, Sulluggoes, Tommakees, &c.; who are
generally called by one name of Apalatchy Indians. This river proceeds
chiefly from rivers which have their origin on the south or south-west
side of the great ridge of hills that divides this country from Carolina,
and is supposed to have a course of about 400 miles. Upon or near the
middle of it live the great nations of the Cusshetaes, Tallibousies and
Adgebaches.
To the west of this is the famous Coza (a branch of the Mobile), or,
as ours call it, the Coussa River, and the French Mobile, the biggest,
next unto Meschacebe and Hohio, of any in this or the neighboring
provinces. Its first heads are likewise from the aforesaid Palachean
Mountains--the most northerly being at Guaxula town and province, near the
foot of the mountain. Many rivulets uniting, after a course of eighty
miles, form a river bigger than the Thames at Kingston, making several
delicous isles, some three or four miles long, and half a mile broad; the
country is wonderfully pleasant and fertile. The first considerable town
or province is Chicha, famous for its pearl fishing, there being
thereabouts, in the river and little lakes it makes, a sort of shell-fish,
the ancients named pinna, between a muscle and oyster; concerning which I
have diseoursed in the account of the produces or commodities of this
country. From thence the river grows larger and deeper, by accession of
others from the mountains, and from the West, until it enters the province
of Coza, or Coussa, which is reckoned one of the most pleasant and
fruitful parts of this country, and very populous. Through this,
Ferdinando Soto passed, and resided therein a considerable time; and all
the Spanish writers of this famous expedition extol them above any other
nation for extent of territory, the pleasantness, healthfulness,
fruitfulness thereof, and the good disposition of the inhabitants. The
faithful and judicious Portuguese unknown author of that expedition, in a
few words thus describes this province:--
"It consists of hills and valleys between. Their granaries were full
of Indian corn, and other edibles; so populous that their towns and
fields, sowed with corn, touched each other; the country is very
agreeable, by reason of many rivulets, which make lovely meadows. There
grow, naturally in the fields, prunes, better than we can in Spain produce
by culture, even in our gardens. Vines mount, in almost all places near
the rivers, to the tops of the trees. There are
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divers other sorts of vines which are low, and some run upon the ground,
and by cultivating might be wonderfully improved, though very good and
pleasant as they are in their natural state."
Below these, on the same river, are the Ullibalies, or as some, the
Olibahalies, and according to the French the Allibamons. And below them
the Tallises, who dwell upon a fair river which enters that of Coza from
the cast, thence to the once great province of Tasculuza (Tuscltloosa),
almost destroyed by Ferdinando Soto; but the chief city Mauvilla, which
the English call Maubela, and the French Mobile, is yet in being, though
far short of its former grandeur. About one hundred miles from hence, it
enters the Gulf of Mexico, being first increased, as by many small rivers
and rivulets, so by the fair river of the Chattas, which is made by a
collection of several other little streams and rivers, and which at length
form a fine river, that would seem considerable, if it were not obscured
by the great river in which it is lost. This mighty nation of the Chattas
(Choctaws), consisting of near three thousand fighting men, live chiefly
about the middle of the river, and is not far from the Chicazas, whom I
mentioned to inhabit thirty or forty towns, in the description of the
Casqui or Cusntes river, and speak the same language. And to the east,
between them and the Cozas, are the Becaes or Abecaes, who have thirteen
towns, and dwell upon divers smail rivers, which run into the Coussa. It
is a very pleasant country, like that of the Coza, full of hills and
valleys; their ground is generally more marly, or fatter than many other
provinces, which are mostly of a lighter mould. And a little more to the
south-west, between the Becaes and Chattas, dwell in divers towns, being
five hundred fighting men, the Ewemales, upon a fair river of their name,
which coming from the east, mixes with the Coussa. This mighty river
enters the Gulf of Mexico, about fifteen leagues to the west of the great
Bay of Nassau or Spirito Santo, or from the N. E. cape of Mirtle Isle,
which is the South Land, between which and the continent to the north is
the entrance of that vast inlet. The river runs into a kind of a lagune
or bay, which is barred four miles from the mouth of the river, supposed
to be occasioned, as the Meschacebe, in long process of time, by the silt
or sediment of the water, this being almost as muddy, coming, for the most
part, through a rich clay or marl; so that at the bar, when it is low
water (and it flows little there excepting the south wind drive in a great
sea), there is not above fourteen or fifteen feet; but the mouth being
some miles broad, and our people not having leisure to
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examine nicely, perhaps there may be found deeper places upon other parts
of the bar; but so soon as you are over it, there is a most noble harbor,
very large, from four to six fathoms deep. Near the mouth of this river
the French have lately made a new settlement, called Fort Louis, which is
the usual residence of the Chief Governor of Louisiana, who is
nevertheless subordinate to him of Canada. Th this fort are some
companies of soldiers, and from thence detachments are sent to secure the
several stations they have amongst the Indians in the inland parts.
As the Ullibalys or Allibamons, Chicazas, and Chattas (Choctaws), are
the most populous and potent nations upon and between this river and the
Meschacebe, the English for several years resided peaceably amongst,
carried on a considerable trade with, and were as friends kindly
entertained by them, till about the year 1715, by the intrigues and
practices of the French, they were either murdered, or obliged to retire
and make room for those new intruders, who have since unjustly possessed
and fortified the very same stations, in order to keep the natives in awe
and subjection, and to cut off the communication of the English traders
with the Indians thereabouts, and as far as and beyond the Meschacebe;
whereby they have secured to themselves an extensive and profitable trade
of above 500 miles, which the subjects of Great Britain were a few years
ago the sole masters of.
Besides the French settlement above mentioned on the continent, they
have another small town and fort in the isle Dauphine, formerly called
Slaughter Island, from a great number of men's bones found there on its
first discovery, the remains, as is said, of a bloody battle fought
between two nations of Indians. This island lies about nine leagues south
of Fort Louis, and fourteen leagues west of Pensacola. It is inhabited and
fortified only on account of its harbor, it being the first place the
French shipping usually touch at in their voyage from France. The
distance between this river and that of Palache or Spirito Santo to the
east is about 190 miles. The coast between them is very.deep and bold,
contrary to all former maps; for those sent upon discovery sounded several
times every day, and found it so, as by the journals will appear.
Between those two great rivers are divers harbors; the chief, and
indeed the best, upon all the coast of the Gulf of Mexico is Pensicola, a
large harbor, and very safe from all winds; has four fathoms at the
entrance, and deepens gradually to seven or eight. To the east of the
harbor enters a fine river, which comes about 100 miles out of the
country, and is made of two rivers, which unite some miles above.
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This harbor or bay lies ninety lcagues west from the upper part of the
peninsula of Florida. On the larboard or west side of the harbor stands a
poor town, containing about forty Palmetto houses, with a small stockadoed
fort of twelve or fourteen guns, but of little moment; because all their
soldiers, and the majority of the inhabitants, are forc'adoes, or forced
people, having been malefactors in some parts of Mexico, thereforc are
confined in that place for a number of years, according to the nature of
their crimes. In short, they are not unlike our felons, whfch are
transported from the jails in England to the plantations. The French, in
the year 1719, took this fort with small loss from the Spaniard, who, in a
few months, retook it again. The first of these made themselves masters
thereof a second time, but whether they have deserted it, or keep it still
in their possession, I know not.
If the French secure this port and harbor, which is not above
fourteen leagues cast of their chief settlement at Mobile, they may with
ease, at all seasons, infest, with large men of war and privateers, the
navigation of the English and Spaniards in the Bay of Mexico, by lying in
wait for and intercepting their fleets and private ships, trading to and
from Panuco, Vera Cruz, Campeche, Porto Bello, Jamaica, and the Havana.
Thirty leagues to the east is Apalatchy-Cola, which is also a good
harbor, and west of Apalatchy River thirty leagues.
The Bay of Nassau or Spirito Santo is made by four islands, which run
almost due south, a little inclining to the west. The most northerly,
between which and the main is the entrance of the bay, being eight leagues
long, our people called Mirtle Island, from the great quantity of that
tree or shrub which grows there, where digging they found excellent good
water very plentifully. This island in some places is very narrow.
Whether it be the same the French call Isle aux Vaisseaux, or Ship's
Island, I can't tell; but its situation, distance from isle Dauphine, or
Slaughter Island, and its commodiousness for sheltering ships from the
wind, creates a probability of its being so. The bay is fifteen miles
broad, from Mirtle Island to a row of islands which run parallel with the
main, and another bay or lagune between them, within which they did not
go. These islands stretch southward fifty or sixty miles, as far as one
of the smaller mouths of the Meschacebe; and doubtless there must be very
good harbors, being defended from the sea and winds by a double row of
islands, and having probably good depths. Our people visited only the
most northerly, which they named Rose Island, a most fragrant smell coming
from it three leagues off, which exceeded all perfumes; it is about
sixteen
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miles long, and two leagues or more from the northern or western main.
Between this and Mirtle Island, the depths of water were four, five, six,
five, four fathoms. Rose Island is a brave island, and full of wood.
They found it somewhat difficult to go down the bay between the islands,
meeting with some shoals, where they had not much above two fathoms water.
They turned round Mirtle Island into the main sea, and coasted the east
side, which is very bold. Over against Mirtle Island to the north, about
five leagues distance, on the main land, is a high point of woods, where
is the entrance of Little Meschacebe, or the East Branch, which I
mentioned in my description of the great river. And about fifteen leagues
to the north-east of this branch of the Meschacebe is the Bay of Bilocohy
(Biloxi), which is, within, a fair harbor, with a small river falling into
or near it, called Passagoula, bordering on which and the aforesaid bay is
a fine country, but on the bar there is not above seven or eight feet
water. It was on the continent, lying, I think, on the easterly part of
this bay, that Monsieur d'Iberville, in the beginning of the year 1700,
built a small sconce, and left therein about forty men, well provided with
necessaries. He afterwards returned twice to France for further
reinforcements, but on his third voyage back to Bilocohi (Biloxi) he died.
The French being about that time hotly enguged in a war with the English
and their confederates in Europe, this and another small settlement they
had thereabouts were deserted, for want of timely and necessary supplies.
Our ship passed on the east side of Mirtle Island, which is
twenty-four miles long, and three other islands, there being openings
between, a mile or two over. The fourth and last island is the broadest
and highest, and a good mark to find the Meschacebe. These islands lie
altogether in a direct line south and by west, east and by north, at least
fifty miles, and have all along, two leagues off, from five to nine fathom
water. When you come to the Fourth Isle you must be cautious, the
sounding being uncertain; for some points of sand stretch out into the sea
three leagues, and varies the depths from nine fathoms to four, then
eight, nine, all at once. Between this island and the main is a passage
two leagues broad, which leads into the great bay from which they came.
The length of the bay from north to south is one entire degree. They went
divers leagues up it, and found deep water; but afterwards it shoaling,
they came down south, and doubled the cape, where the most easterly of the
three great branches of the Meschacebe entered the sea, which, with the
two others to the west, I described before, when I gave an account of the
mouths of that river.
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Although the latitude and longitude of the mouth of the Meschacebe
were perfectly known, yet it is almost impossible, in the common way of
sailing, to come at them; for if you go never so little to the south, you
will be driven by a very strong current to the south-west, two miles an
hour, till you come to the bottom or west end of the Gulf of Mexico; to
prevent which you must make the main of Florida in about thirty degrees of
latitude. The land is so very low you can scarcely see it, at four
leagues distance, where there is forty-five and fifty fathom, but ten
leagues off, there is no ground at one hundred fathom. Pensacola is the
most convenient place to fall in withal; and to be sure of that, your best
way is to make the Tortuga Islands, which are seven, and but few leagues
distance to the north-west from the Cape of Florida, and the little
islands which lie before it, called Los Martyres. The Tortuga Islands lie
between the latitude of twenty-four degrees and from thirty- five to fifty
minutes. They are not in a round, as commonly represented by the charts,
but bear almost north and south. If you come there in the month of April,
May, or the beginning of June, you will find great numbers of turtle,
which are then in good plight, extraordinary good food, both fresh and
salted, and a wholesome change of diet for seamen; afterwards they will
not well take salt, decaying and running into a jelly or water, and before
July is expired quite leave the islands until the next year. The course
from the Tortuga Islands to Pensacola is N. 44 W. distance one hundred and
fifty-eight leagues, the shore bold, bearing east and west. Nine leagues
from the land you will have thirty-three fathoms water, but if you make
the river of the Cozas or Coussas, which is one hundred and sixty-seven
leagues, and a very remarkable place, being a spacious large opening,
having a sin all sandy isle in the middle, you will find the land stretch
east and west, and within about eighteen leagues you will fall in with
Mirtle Island, which, with the Main, makes the entrance into the great Bay
of Spirito Santo; in which isle, as I said before, is very good fresh
water. This with five or six other low isles, run a range fourteen
leagues, and S. W. from them, about five leagues, are high woods: stand
over for the south part of these woods, until you come to four fathoms,
there cast your anchor, and send your boat to a low point along the shore
to the southward. In five foot water you will find a small branch of the
river; row up it; the current will carry you to the bar, where you may
take your marks for the entrance into it. Perhaps sometimes the waters
may be so low that you cannot pass this channel. In case this should
happen
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(which I suppose it seldom or never does), then run by the soundings of
the shore, in five or six feet water, and keep that depth till you come to
the pitch of the East Cape, where you will find the easterly branch in
fourteen or fifteen feet water: then row up, take your marks, return, and
place two buoys, and you may carry your ship into the river very safely,
as you may perceive by the draught. The same or like caution must be used
for entering into either of the other mouths, to keep near the shore, and
by anchoring stop the tide of ebb. There is a bay, which our men in the
ship called Salt-Water Bay; they who went to the head of it, Fresh-Water
Bay; a seeming contradiction, but thus easily reconciled. This bay lies
between the east and middle great branch of the river: the great branches
bring down so considerable a quantity of water, at the ebb, with a strong
current, that then the fresh water enters the sea two or three leagues,
and between them the sea enters this bay, not mixing with the waters of
the rivers, which are ten miles distant; so that ships who anchor at the
lower end of the bay find the water salt. But there is a creek, at the N.
W. end of the bay, which comes out of the middle branch, and a little
before it enters the bay is divided. This creek bath from eight feet at
the shallowest to nine, ten and eleven feet water, by which they entered,
out of Salt-Water Bay, into the river.
Having made a faithful narrative, from good journals and itineraries
by sea and land, of the great river Meschacebe, the rivers increasing it,
the countries adjacent, and inhabitants thereof, as also of the countries,
people, rivers and harbors towards the cast belonging unto this province,
which do not communicate with it, I shall give a brief relation of what I
have learncd concerning the sea and coast thereof beyond the Meschacebe,
to the west, the rivers belonging to this province, their heads and
courses, which enter not thee Meschacebe.
When you are passed the third or westerly branch of the Meschacebe,
there presents itself a fair bay going to the north, into which empty
themselves two of the smaller branches of the great river, as may be
discerned in the chart. This bay is between twenty and thirty miles deep,
and very bold to the east, having from the entrance unto the bottom, from
twenty-five to six fathom; but is not in those depths above seven or
eight miles broad, a sand running from the main thirty miles south into
the sea, upon which there is not above three fathoms, which yet our ship
passed, going and returning. At the north-east end of the bay, the great
river runs parallel with it for some miles, from a mile to a mile and a
half distance from it, and two fair, large deep creeks enter it, almost in
the middle, out of the westerly great
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branch of the river. Having passed this shoal to the main, the land runs
almost due east and west, having a bold coast, for a hundred miles until
you come to a great shoal, where there is not above two or three fathoms
water, with several breakers. Our people sailed on the south side of this
great shoal, always out of the sight of land, therefore knew not the
breadth. They kept near the latitude of 29 degrees, the depth generally
as follows, seven, eight, nine, eight, seven, six fathoms. At length they
came to the bottom of the bay or gulf, from whence they returned unto the
westerly branch of the Meschacebe.
From the river Meschacebe unto the bottom of the bay, are innumerable
fine small rivers, vcry pleasant. Great store of buffaloes or wild kine
frequent them to the very sea-side, as also deer of divers sorts, wild
turkeys, and many other large water and sea-fowl; the coast abounds with
good fish; but I cannot learn there are above four very large rivers, and
of long course.
The first and greatest is that of the Quonoatinnos, or of the Coenis,
a great and populous nation, who dwell in forty or fifty villages upon the
middle of this river, and others which run into it. They are about five
days' journey distant from the habitations of the Spaniards, and near 200
miles from the sea, into which the river empties itself, about eighty
leagues to the west of the Meschacebe; it is broad, deep, and navigable
almost to its heads, which chiefly proceed from the ridge of hills that
separate this province from New Mexico. And its north-west branches
approach near the south-west branches of the river of the Houmas. There
dwell upon it, more towards its mouth, divers others nations, whose names
are unknown, excepting the Tarahas, Tycappans, Paloguessens and Palonnas.
All these nations have good horses.
About thirty leagues further-to the south of the west is the river of
the Kirononas, who with divers other nations dwelt thereupon. It is
little less than that of the Konoatinnos, and as that hath its sources in
the mountains of New Mexico, the course of this is likewise from the
north-west, until it enters the sea.
Between this and the aforesaid river of Quonoatinnos or Coenis lies
the Bay of St. Bernard, called by Monsieur de la Salle the Bay of St.
Louis, and a river that falls into it he named the River of Vaches. The
the year 1685 he built there a fort (after he had purposely, as it is
said, overshot the mouth of the river Meschacebe), having formed a design
from thence to visit the mines of St. Barbe in New Biscay, which were not
much above 300 miles distant. But
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one of his vessels returning to France, and the other three being lost
with great part of his stores, ammunition and provisions, withal failing
in his attempt to engage the Indians in his party and interest, who,
instead of friends, proved his mortal enemies, continually skulking about
his infant settlement and destroying many of his people, he was obliged to
desist from that enterprise. He afterwards with twenty chosen men went by
land in search of the river Meschacebe, in which attempt he lost his life,
being barbarously murdered by some of his own followers. This fort was
soon after taken and destroyed by the Spaniards and Indians, all the
French remaining therein being either killed or made prisoners.
About the same distance further S. W. is the river of the
Biscaterongs, which is of the same magnitude with the former, hath the
same course from the north-west to the sea, and its heads from the same
mountains.
The last river of note is a river of much the same bigness with the
two preceding, and enters the Bay of Mexico at the north-west end, between
the degrees of 27 and 28; it is named Abotas.
It may not be amiss to mention another river, which, although it may
not be within the bounds of this colony, may be of great use, when it is
well established, by reason of the conveniency of traffic with the
Spaniards, it being near the aforesaid famous mines of New Biscay, a large
province lying between Mexico and New Mexico. This stately river hath its
fountains in the most northerly parts of New Mexico, in the latitude of 38
degrees, and being gradually increased by the conflux of many small
waters, becomes large and navigable, till it approaches the 30th degree;
then it turns to the S. E. and enters a parcel of high mountains; from
whence it is no fnrther navigable; it is called by the Spaniards Rio
Bravo. They differ in their accounts hereof; some affirming it is here
swallowed up in a hideous gulf, aad passes three days' journey under the
earth, like their great river Guadiana in Spain, of which their famous
ambassador Gundamore said, when asked whether his master could show such a
bridge as that over the Thames at London, that he had a bridge upon which
many hundred thousand sheep daily fed. Others write that the river doth
not dive underground, but passes among rocks full of straight passages,
with many cataracts; that after it has broke its way through, it glides
very placidly cross a level country for a hundred and fifty miles, being
both large and deep, and at length empties itself into a broad and long
lagune, which is navigable, with two or three passges into it, between the
islands that form it, and whose
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entrances are at least between three and four fathom deep. I have a
journal of Capt. Parker, who in the year 1688 was there with two ships:
one very large, in search of a Spanish wreck, but will not trouble my
reader with the relation of what there happened to them. All accounts
agree this country is well watered, that it abounds with vast quantities
of wild kine, the Spaniards call Cibolas, and is fruitful, pleasant and
populous.
I think it not inexpedient to give an account of the great seas or
lakes of fresh water which are to the north of this country, on the east
side of the Meschacebe, which though not in the bounds of this province,
may prove very beneficial, both to the inhabitants of this and our
colonies of New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, who are not
very remote from some of them, and may have an easy access thereunto, and
consequently by navigation with those that are more remote, they having
all communications with each other, as may be presently discerned by the
map.
The seas or lakes are five. First, the superior lake before
mentioned, it being of all most northerly, and is called by most of the
savages the Lake of the Nadouessons (Superior), the greatest and most
valiant nation of the north, divided into several tribes, who go by divers
names. This lake is esteemed at least 150 leagues in length, sixty
leagues in breadth, and 500 in circumference. The south side, which we
reckon its length, is all along situated in very near forty-eight degrees
of latitude from the east end to the west. The north side where it is
broadest, is in about fifty-one degrees. It is all over navigable, hath
some isles; but one especially called Minong, above sixty miles in
compass, wherein, both Indians and French affirm, is a great mine of very
pure copper, which from the ore affords, without any preparation besides
melting, above three- fifths fine metal. It is very remarkable of this
sea, that on all the south side upon the shore, it is not above four or
five fathoms deep, and gradually increasing as you pass over to the north,
until you cannot find bottom with 150 fathoms of line. It is most
wonderfully stored with admirable fish, and the land about it with deer
and elk, or moose, especially the north side. With this latter and some
islands, the French drive a considerable trade among the natives, for
skins and furs; and of late years have intercepted a great part of the
more remote Indians, who used formerly to traffick with the English in
Hudson's Bay, at Port Nelson and New Severn. This lake or sea is made up
of innumerable small rivers and rivulets, and three large rivers, all on
the north side of the lake, entering at the N. E. end thereof, whose
names are Lemipissaki
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Michipiketon and Nemipigon, which last proceeds out of a lake of the same
name, full of islands; at the upper end whereof enters a river, which
comes from the north, and bath its origin from divers small lakes and
marshes. The lake of Nemipigon is above 200 miles in compass. The Baron
le Hontan is certainly mistaken about the original of this river, and
makes it vastly bigger than it is; he accounts it the head of the great
river of Canada or St. Lawrence, and to come out of the lake of the
Assenipouvals; but I have been informed by a person who lived two years in
those parts, and had often been upon these two lakes, that the lake of the
Assinepoualaos (for that is the true name), which is considerable to the
N. W., and, as the Indians often assured, was the biggest lake in all this
northern continent, had no communication with that of Nemipigon. The N.
W. of this Lake Superior or of the Nadeuessons, is not above thirty
leagues in a straight line from the Lake of Nemipigon; but the
communication by land is difficult, by reason the earth abounds with bogs
and marshes.
The great or superior lake empties itself into that of Karegnondi or
the deep lake, it being in most parts more profound than the three we
shall hereafter mention. Formerly it was called the lake Hounondate, from
a great nation who inhabited on its cast side, named from their bristly
hair on their head, Hourons, since totally destroyed or dispersed into
very remote parts by the Irocois.
This lake is much of the figure of an equilateral triangle, whose
basis is to the north. It abounds with divers sorts of excellent fish,
great and small, especially a large fish named Assihendo, of the bigness
of Newfoundland cod. This fish is the manna of most of the nations which
inhabit about the lake, being half their subsistence. And Europeans of
all nations, who have eaten thereof, agree that there is not in seas or
rivers a better tasted, more wholesome fish, and the numbers are such as
of codon the Bank of New Foundland, and never to be lessened. Besides
these, there is abundance of good sturgeons, salmon or salmon trout,
weighing from twenty to fifty pounds, large carps, and many other kinds of
fish, small and great, not inferior to any in Europe. The inhabitants
almost round this lake are mostly destroyed by the Irocois (Iroquois),
except a small remnant of two or three nations, who have, with the help of
the French, erected a strong fort near another built by that nation for a
refuge to their allies and traders, when the Irocois happen to invade this
or the adjacent parts. This lake hath many islands, especially on the
north side, where the greatest fishery is for the Assihendo, but
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none at Maintoualin, which is twenty leagues long and ten broad, lying
directly over against the continent, from which it is only six or seven
leagues distant.
The north side of the country bordering upon this lake, is not so
pleasant in most places as the south, east, and west; but to make amends,
it abounds with all sorts of skins and furs, and hath these great
conveniences, that by the river of the Nepiserini, there is a
communication with all the French of Canada, and many nations bordering
thereupon; for ascending this river, you enter into a large lake of the
same name, which is made by divers small, and one large river coming far
from the north-west. Near this lake passes the great river of the
Outouacks (Ottocs), once a great nation, but now almost extirpated by the
aforesaid Irocois, which, after a course of one hundred leagues, brings
you to the Island and city of Montreal, the next for bigness and strength
to Quebec, the capital of Canada, and there joins with the great river of
St. Lawrence; from the juncture of these two rivers to Quebec is sixty
leagues. Both sides of the river are inhabited all the way in plantations
very little remote from each other; besides two or three small towns and
fortifications. Such another communication there is, though much more
easy, of which I shall discourse at large when I come to describe the
lovely peninsula of Erie.
Towards the lower end of the south-west continent is the large and
fair bay of Sakinam, which is about fifty miles deep and eighteen wide,
and in the middle of the opening are two isles, very advantageously
situated for sheltering boats or other vessels that happen to be surprised
with a storm, there being no other harbor within divers leagues. Into the
bottom of this bay empties itself, after a course of sixty leagues, a very
still, quiet stream, excepting three small falls, passed easily and
without the least danger. On this river, and the branches thereof, is one
of the greatest beaver-huntings in America. Twenty leagues from this bay
to the south-east, this lake, which is above four hundred leagues in
circumference, empties itself into the Lake Erie, by a channel which I
shall describe, when I have given an account of the lake of the
Illinouecks, which is to the west of Karegnondi, and communicates
therewith, towards the N. W. end, by a strait, nine or ten miles long and
three or four broad. The breadth of it on the north coast is forty
leagues, but it increases gradually in breadth till you come to the bottom
of the bay. The north side is in the latitude of forty-six and thirty
minutes; the south in almost forty-three degrees. Forty leagues from the
entrance due west, it
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makes the great bay Of the Poutouatamis, a nation who inhabit a large
country upon and to the south of this bay, which is eight leagues broad,
and thirty leagues deep, south and by west, the entrance being full of
islands. And into the bottom comes the fair River Miscouaqui, after a
course of two hundred miles. This river is remarkable upon diverse
accounts: first, when you are ascended it fifty leagues, there is a
carriage of a little above a league and a half; afterwards you meet with
the lovely River Mesconsing, which carries you down into the Meschacebe,
as I before declared. Next upon this river, especially near the carriage,
is a country famous for beaver-hunting like that of Sakinam. You must
know that most parts of North America have beavers; you shall scarce meet
with a lake where there are not some of their dams and huts. But these
two places I have mentioned, and others I shall speak of hereafter, are
countries forty or fifty miles long, abounding with small rivers and
rivulets, wherewith they make their dams or causeways; and consequently
small lakes, seated opportunely for wood to build, and produces
plentifully such plants and young trees, upon which they mostly subsist.
This is chiefly possessed by the industrious and valiant nation of the
Outogamis. Thirdly, this river and others entering thereinto abound in
that corn called malomin, which grows in the water and marshy wet places,
as rice in the Indies, Turkey, and Carolina, &c. But much more like our
oats, only longer, bigger and better, than either that, or Indian corn,
and is the chief food of many nations hereabouts and elsewhere. The
nations who dwell on this river are Outogamis, Malominis, Nikic,
Oualeanicou, Sacky, and the Poutouatamis before mentioned.
On the east side of this lake, about twenty leagues from the strait
by which it enters Karegnondi, is a bay called Bear Bay, and a river of
the same name, because of great numbers of those animals who haunt those
parts. This river comes out of a ridge of hills near a hundred leagues
long, beginning almost at the north end of this peninsula, out of which
flow abundance of small rivers; those whose course is to the east empty
themselves into the lake Karegnondi (Huron), those to the west into that
of the Alinouecks. The top of this ridge of hills is flat, from whence
there is a delicious prospect into both lakes, and level as a tarasse
walk. There is a great beaver-hunting, like those I formerly mentioned,
upon Bear River, which hath a course of forty or fifty leagues. On the
west side of the lake, before you come to the bottom, is a harbor capable
of small ships; and there enters into it a small river, which at two
leagues
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distance approaches the River Chicagou, the north branch of the river of
the Allinouecks, which is from the main branch of the said river fifty
miles. Near the bottom of the bay, on the east side, is the fair river of
the Miamihas (so called because upon it lives part of a nation bearing the
same name), which in its passage comes within two leagues of the great
easterly branch of the river of the Allinouecks, and its springs are very
near the heads of some rivers which enter the Ouabachi. Monsieur de la
Salle on his first arrival in this river, which was about the year 1679,
finding it admirably well situated for trade, and the country surrounding
it extremely pleasant and fertile, artfully gained the perniission of the
natives to build a fort therein, under the specious pretence of protecting
them from the insults of the English and Irocois, whom he represented as
cruel and treacherous enemies, continually plotting the destruction of
them and all the Indians round about. In this fort was formerly a great
magazine and storehouse for all sorts of European goods, and hither the
traders and savages continually resorted to purchase them. It commanded
the entrance into the lake, and kept all the neighboring Indians in awe
and subjection. Nations to the west of this lake, besides the before
mentioned, are part of the Outogamis, Mascoutens and Kikpouz; then the
Ainoves, the Cascaschia, and a little to the south-west of the bottom of
this lake, and more to the north, the Anthontans, and part of the
Mascoutens, near the river Misconsing (Wisconsin). The countries
surrounding this lake, especially towards the south, are very charming to
the eye, the meadows, fruit trees and forests, together with the fowls,
wild beasts, &c., affording most things necessary for the support and
comfort of life, besides Indian corn, with which the natives abound; and
European fruits, grains, and all other useful vegetables, by reason of the
goodness of the soil, and mildness of the climate, would certainly thrive
there, as well as in their native countries. But, above all, the south
parts of the countries bordering on this lake seem naturally disposed to
produce admirable vines, which being duly cultivated, excellent wines
might be made of the fruits thereof, they growing naturally in vast
numbers of divers sorts, some ramping up to the tops of the highest trees;
others running upon the ground. The grapes are some very small, others
wonderfully large, big as damsons, and many of a middle size, of divers
colors and tastes. They are all good to eat, only some, which otherwise
promise very well, have great stones or kernels and tough skins, which
certainly would be remedied by due culture. But of the worst, doubtless,
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good brandy might be made, were there artists and convenient vessels for
pressing, fermenting and distilling.
There ramble about in great herds, especially about the bottom of
this lake, infinite quantities of wild kine, some hundreds usually
together, which is a great part of the subsistence of the savages, who
live upon them while the season of hunting lasts; for at those times they
leave their towns quite empty. They have a way of preserving their flesh
without salt six or eight months, which both looks and eats so fresh,
strangers apprehend the cattle had not been killed one week. Besides,
they use the hair, or rather wool, cut off their hides, for garments and
beds, and spin it into yarn, of which they make great bags, wherein they
put the flesh they kill, after they have cured it, to bring it home to
their houses; for their huntings are from the latter end of autumn, when
the cattle are fat, to the beginning of the spring; and of the hides
dressed they make shoes à la savage.
But it's time we should return to the Lake Karegnondi (Huron), which
emptics itself into the Lake Erie, by a channel thirty leagues long, and
where narrowest a league broad; in the middle whereof is a small lake,
called by the Indians Otseka, ten leagues long, and seven or eight over,
being of an oval figure. In this lake and channel are divers small
islands, exceedingly pleasant and fruitful, in which, and all the country,
on both sides of them, are great quantities of beasts and fowl, as deer of
several kinds, wild turkeys, pheasants, and a large excellent fowl, which
they call dindo's. The Lake Erie is about a hundred leagues long, and
almost equally forty broad. Eight leagues from its mouth are eight or ten
islands, most of them small; one in the middle is five or six miles in
circumference, and all very agreeable. Near the mouth on the west side is
a large harbor for ships, defended from most winds, made like our downs by
a great bank of sand; though winds seldom infest this lake, in respect of
the others, where sometimes they rage as in the main ocean, so that it may
be deservedly called the Pacific Lake. And if we may give credit to the
relation of the English who have long frequented it, and unanimously agree
herein, there is not a more pleasant lake or country surrounding it in the
universe. It is not indeed so deep as the others, yet is in all places
navigable by the greatest ships, there being seldom less than ten or
twelve fathom water. The land round about it is perfectly level,
abounding with trees, both for timber and fruit; so happily placed that
one would be apt to apprehend it to be a work of great art, and contrived
to declare the grandeur and magnificence of some mighty emperor, and not
of nature. Abundance of small
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petty rivers discharge themselves thereinto, amongst which are four very
considerable and remarkable. One about ten leagues from the entrance of
the canal, in the bottom of the west end of the lake, that hath a course
of sixty leagues, and its head very near the river of the Miamihas, which
runs into the S. E. side of the Lake of the Illinouecks, by means whereof
there is a short and easy communication therewith, which by water is above
six hundred miles.
Fifty miles further to the south, at the same west end of this lake,
is another river much of the same bigness and length; and about and
between these two rivers, evcry year in the season, are multitudes of the
wild kine called Cibolas.
At the S. E. end of the lake there is a third river, which has its
rise very near the great Susquehanna river, which waters part of
Pennsylvania, and afterwards empties itself into the north end of the Bay
of Chesapeake in Maryland. And twenty leagues south- westerly is another
fair river which comes near fifty leagues out of the country; from whose
head, which issues from a lake, is but a short cut to the River Ohio, from
whence to a branch of the aforesaid Susquehanna River is about one league.
By these two last-mentioned rivers, the English may have a ready and
easy communication with this and consequently with all the other lakes.
If the French should ever settle thereon, which for above twenty years
they have endeavored, but have been, in great measure, wonderfully
frustrated by the Irocois, our subjects or allies, they might greatly
molest, by themselves and their Indians, the colonies of New York,
Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia; which, I hope, by the wisdom and
care of his majesty and ministry, will be speedily prevented.
At the north-east end of this lake is another canal forty miles long,
and in most places a league broad, called by the natives Niagara, having a
delicate, level, beautiful, fertile country on each side of it; but being
passed about two-thirds of the way, it is straitened by mighty rocks, and
precipitates itself several hundred fcct, being the greatest cataract that
hath ever yet come to our knowledge, in the whole world. This lying
within five or six days' journey of Albany and Schenecteda (two remarkable
towns and fortifications of New York), and adjacent unto our confederates
or subjects the Five Nations, (by the French called Irocois), especially
the Sonnontovans (by some named Senecas), the most populous of the five, I
have received an account from divers persons, who have with great
attention and curiosity
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viewed it, suiting very well with the description Hennepin gives thereof,
who had been there several times. The noise of such a multitude of waters
falling from so great a height is so extraordinary, that although the
country is very pleasant, level, and fruitful below the fall, yet the
Sonnontovans were not able to bear it, but were forced to remove, and
settle two leagues lower. I have had it from very credible people that,
when the wind sets due south, they have heard it distinctly above thirty
miles. The river, as may be easily imagined, below this cataract, is very
rapid for the space of three or four miles; then for six or eight is more
placid and navigable, until it enters the Lake Ontario, which is eighty
leagues long, and in the middle twenty-five or thirty broad, being of an
oval figure. The name of this lake in the Irocois language, that nation
bordering upon it to the south, siguifies the pleasant or beautiful lake,
as it may be deservedly styled; the country round it being very
champaign, fertile, and every two or three miles watered with fine
rivulets. It has on the south side three fair rivers; that next the fall
coming out of the country of the Sonnontovans, the middle one from the
Onontages, and its origin from a lake within a league of their capital
town, Onontague, made up with many little rivers and rivulets, being forty
miles in circumference, abounding with fish of divers sorts with some salt
springs entering into it. After the river hath passed a mile from the
lake, it receives another coming from the west, out of the province of the
Onioiens or Oiongouens, who are neighbors of the Sonnontovans, in whose
country the head of this river springs. About ten miles lower it is
increased by a fair deep river, which comes from the east, out of the
country of the Oneiouks (Oneidas), one of the five nations, situated
between the Onontages (Onondagas) and the Mohachs (Mohawks), who dwell in
three towns on a fair river, which runs, after a course of one hundred
miles, into Hudson's River near Albany. The river of the Onontagues
enters the Lake Ontario fifty miles from the little lake whence it derives
its origin.
Twenty leagues to the east is another river, somewhat less, but
navigable by sloops and large boats a considerable way into the country.
About the same distance, likewise to the east, the lake forms a great
river, which the French call the river of the Irocois, but the natives
Kanadari, which for the space of sixty miles is very broad, full of fine
islands, and runs quietly; then is interrupted in its course by divers
falls successively, some very deep and long, for above a hundred miles,
until it meets with the great river of the Outouacks
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at the end of the island and city of Montreal, and together with that
makes the river of Canada or St. Lawrence, so named by the French because
discovered on the day dedicated to his memorial.
The north part of the Lake Ontario was formerly possessed by two
tribes of the Irocois, who were, in time of perfect peace, without the
least provocation, but only to get their country dcstroyed, enslaved, or
sent to France, and put into the galleys; of which you may read at large
in the journals of the Baron la Hontan, an impartial and judicious author,
who saw and relates that tragedy with much indignation.
The nation of the Irocois, as they are called by the French, for what
reason I could never learn, who inhabit the south part of the country, are
styled by the English the Five Nations, being so many distinct in name and
habitations from each other; but leagued by a most strict confederacy,
like the Cantons of Switzerland, which they frequently in a very solemn
manner renew, especially since the French grew powerful in their
neighborhood. They have always been an excellent and useful barrier
between us and them, being ready, on all occasions, upon the most slender
invitations and the least assistnnce, to molest and invade them, unto whom
they are the most irreconcilable enemies, and I think upon good grounds;
although the French say the hardest things imaginable against them; but I
believe unto any impartial judges, they will appear more blameable
themselves. The original of this enmity proceeded from the French, who
about one hundred years since settled at the place, now their capital,
called Quebeck. The Irocois knowing of the little French habitation
(where were not above forty men), came according to their usual manner,
being about 200 of their prime youth, under an esteemed captain, to war
against the Algonquins, then a very populous nation; and to show their
contempt of them, made a fort on the south side of the river, before they
who dwelt OR the north side could gather into a body, their habitations or
villages being somewhat remote from each other. But having drawn their
forces together in great numbers, they attacked the Irocois, who always
valiantly repulsed them, with great losses to their enemies and little
unto themselves. Whereupon the Algonquins had recourse unto the French,
desiring they would assist them with their thunder and lightning-darting
engines. They readily complied, and did such execution with their guns
(which being altogether new and very surprising, or rather astonishing),
that the Irocois were discomfited, not above two or three escaping to give
an account thereof to their own countrymen, who by tradition have
propagated
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the story to posterity; which may, in some measure, excuse the
irreconcilable enmity this nation hath conceived against the French,
between whom there have been formerly almost constant wars, accompanied
with various events--the French with their allies endeavoring to extirpate
them, who have hitherto bravely defended themselves; the English for
their furs supplying them with ammunition, and during time of war with the
French powerfully assisting them. They have been a very usefull barrier,
and without their help New York, and probably other neighboring provinces,
had long since been possessed by the French, having been bery slenderly
aided from England.
The French in all their writings concerning Canada make many tragical
relations of and exclamations against the barbarous cruelties of this
nation excercised upon them, and the Indians their allies; but seldom
tell us that the very same things are practiced by themselves and their
Indians against the Irocois, and often during time of peace. For when the
Irocois or Five Nations, as we call them, were abandoned by order of King
Charles II. towards the latter end of his reign of King James, and
obnoxious unto the resentments of the French (the English being strictly
forbidden any ways to assist them), they were under a necessity of making
a very disadvantageous peace, which how perfidiously it was brokin bay be
seen at large in that faithful and judicious history of the Baron la
Hontan. And had it not been for the revolution in England, the Irocois
had been totally destroyed or subjected unto the French, which, as I
hinted before in the preface, would have been of dreadful consequence to
divers of our Englich colonies on the continent. 'Tis true, the Irocois
(Iroquois) have extirpated or subjected several nations of Indians round
about them, but it hath been either because they were in confederacy with
their enemies, destroyed their country, murdered their people, hindered
them in their beaver-hunting (without which they could not subsist), or
furnished their enemies with furs, which occasioned the increasing the
numbers of the French from France, and consequently threateded them with
utter ruin, when Canada shall be more populated from Europe; so that
certainly the measures they take for their ouwn preservation and security
are more innocent and excusable then those have been by the French, forty
years last past, exercised in Europe, whose wars have, according to a
modest calculation, occasioned the death of above two millions of their
own country people, and other Europeans, and most unjustly invaded or
grievokusly oppressed their neighbors; desire of increasing their wealth,
enlarging their territories, or advancing the glory of their
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great monarch being the chief causes, though some other slender and easily
confuted pretences have sometimes been alleged.
But to return unto the Irocois, whom we call subjects of the crown of
England, they only style themselves brethren, friends, allies, being a
people highly tenacious of their liberty, and very impatient of the least
encroachments thereon. These five cantons or nations have sold, given,
and, in a very formal public manner, made over and conveyed to the English
divers large countries conquered from the Indians, upon the south side of
the great lakes, as far as the Meschacebe, and the noble, beautiful,
fertile peninsula situated between the three middle lakes, that of Hurons
to the west, Ontario to the east, and Erie to the south; a country almost
as large as England, without Wales, admirably seated for traffick,
pleasant, healthful and fertile as any part of North America; and the
territory to the south is of the same nature, and confines with the
borders of our province of Carolana, which extends to all the north side
of the Gulf of Mexico.
It will be one great convenieney of this country, if ever it comes to
be settled, that there is an easy communication therewith and the South
Sea, which lies between America and China, and that two ways-by the north
branch of the great Yellow River, by the natives called the River of the
Massorites (Missouri), which hath a course of 500 miles, navigable to its
heads or springs, and which proceeds from a ridge of hills somewhat north
of New Mexico, passable by horse, foot, or wagon in less than half a day.
On the other side are rivers which run into a great lake, that empties
itself by another great navigable river into the South Sea.* The same may
be said of the river Meschaouay, up which our people have been, but not so
far as the Baron le Houtan, who passed on it above 300 miles almost due
west, and declares it comes from the same ridge of hills above mentioned;
and that divers rivers from the other side soon make a large river, which
enters into a vast lake, on which inhabit two or three great nations, much
more populous and civilized than other Indians; and out of that lake a
great river disembogues into the South Sea, which is doubtless the same
with that before mentioned, the heads of the two rivers being little
distant from each other.
About twelve or fourteen years since, I had imparted unto me a
journal from a gentleman admirably well skilled in geography, who
*The Lewis and Yellow Stone Rivers head together within tome miles of
each otber, a fact however not proven for more than a century after this
account was written.
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had made divers voyages from England to all our English plantations in
America, and visited most parts of the Gulf of Mexico, where he became
acquainted we Captain Coxton, a famous privateer, who was towards the
latter end of he reign of King Charles II. entertained in his majesty's
service. But whether he was disobliged, or that his genius prompted him
to follow his old trade, having with his co-partners fitted up a ship of
twenty-six guns, he sailed to the South Sea, with a design to take the
ship which comes annually from the Manillias, or Philippine Islands, in
the East Indies, to Acapulco, the chief port of Mexico; which ship, as he
had been well informed, usually made that part of the continent that lies
between Japan and America, at a famous port in forty-two degrees. But
when he came to the head of the Islands or Peninsula of California (it
being too soon by some months for the putting in execution his intended
design), romaging the coast, he discovered a great river in about forty-
four degrees north latitude, which entered a great lake, near the mouth
whereof he found a very convenient island, where he staid two or three
months to refit himself, happening to have a man on board who understood
the language of the country. The natives finding he was engaged in an
expedition against the Spaniards, treated him very kindly, supplied him
very cheerfully with whatsoever he wanted, and he contracted great
friendship with them. He calls them the nation of Thoya. The Spaniards,
as I find in divers of their expeditions, call at Thoyago, sometimes
Tejago. They are often at war with the Spaniards, who have been always
repulsed by them. They bring thirty or forty thousand men in one body
into the field. These and two other nations neighboring, and not much
inferior unto them, are accounted the most sensible and civilized Indians
in America.
When the season came fit for their expedition, they sailed west and
by south, and happened to stop upon some occasion at an island called
Earinda or Carinda; there were five in all near each other, like the
Canary Islands, but lay rounder, and were one with another about fifty or
sixty miles in compass. The inhabitants were not shy of them, but
supplied them with provisions, and brought them gold to barter for such
commodities of ours as they liked, and in three or four days they
purchased eighty-six pounds weight of that metal. The natives told them
they were sorry they had no more, they taking care to provide only against
a certain time of the year, for persons who came from the sun-setting at a
particular season, and bartered divers commodities with them for gold.
These traders or merchants must certainly be inhabitants of Japan, which I
gather from a large relation
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in the history of that island, published by the Dutch, and translated into
our tongue, and makes the sixth volume of Ogleby's Collections. They
therein declare that they sent from Batavia two ships (as they pretended),
to discover a passage from the north-east part of Japan, round Tartary to
Europe; though it is very probable they had other views. These ships
were separated a little east of Japan by a storm; the Castrilome
proceeded, and found the strait entering into the Gulf of Tartary or
Jesso, and searched the coast on the west side to forty-nine degrees; the
other ship, the Blefkins, having suffered much by the storm, put into the
port of Namboe, near the N. E. end of Japan, not doubting they should be
kindly received, being in league, and having a free trade with that
empire; but while they were refitting, they were unexpectedly surprised
by the Japanese, sent to court, and very strictly examined, whither they
had not been at, or went not to discover the Gold Islands (as they called
them), to the east, of which traffick the emperor is so jealous that it is
capital for any to go thither except by his permission, or to declare to
others the distance and situation thereof; and had not the Dutch given
uncontrollable evidence that they had not been, nor were they going
thither, but only upon the forementioned discovery, they had been all
executed.
There are upon the coast between America and Japan divers very large
and safe harbors, and a very good climate, the coast stretching
south-west, mostly from forty to degrees of north latitude. These seas
abound with fish, and the land with fowl and venison. The inhabitants are
sociable and hospitable. I have a draught and journals of all the coast
from America, with those of divers harbors, until you are within about one
hundred leagues of the Strait of Uries, which the Dutch discovered about
sixty or seventy years since, and which is the entrance of the sea or gulf
of Tartary, lying one hundred and twenty leagues north-east from Namboe,
the most northerly haven and promontory of Japan. This strait, or rather
these straits (there being two made by a long island), are the inlets into
a great sea or bay, into which disembogues a vast river, on the west side
of it, between forty-nine and fifty degrees of north latitude, navigable
many hundred miles by the biggest ships, and is made by the conflux of
divers great rivers, some of which come from the south-west, as Chingola,
Hilum, 0la, Sungoro, and their fountains, near the great wall of China,
and run through the dominions of the Eastern Tartars, who are now masters
of China. Other rivers from the north-west,
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proceed from the territories of the Czar of Muscovy, who hath built divers
large and well fortified cities on the main river of Yamour, and several
of its branches, as Negovim, Nepehou, Albazin, Argun, Nertzinskoy, &c.
This river of Yamour or Amura hath a course from its furthest
fountains above twelve hundred miles, without any interruption by
cataracts, so frequent in all the other great rivers in Muscovy, as the
Oby, Jenisseg or Jenisca, &c. By this river you may trade with the
inhabitants of Jedso for furs, who have great store, and those very rich.
They inhabit all the coast on both sides of the mouth of the river, and a
considerable way up it. You may likewise traffick with the Muscovites for
the same commodities, who sell them there for a fourth part of what they
yield in Muscow or Archangel; these parts being above four thousand miles
almost due east from Muscow, their capital city, a most prodigious,
tedious and difficult journey, as appears by divers large and accurate
journals, which have been many years published in print. And by means of
the rivers which come from the south- west, you may correspond with the
Eastern Tartars, Chinese, and the great rich kingdom of Tanguth, all now
unifed under one and the same emperor, being very civilized nations, and
kind to strangers. To say nothing of the great and rich peninsula of
Corea, which is contiguous to one or two branches of this river, was once
a province of China, both the same manners and language, and is now
tributary to the present emperor. This river and its branches are in a
good climate never varying above two or three degrees from a due easterly
course. Three or more ships may be sent every year, who may part at the
straits of the Tartarian gulf or sea; one for Yedzo and the river;
another for Japan; and a third for North China to the great city Tunxo,
the port of Pekin, the capital of that kingdom, from which it is not above
one day's journey by land or water. And there is not a better commodity,
or of which more profit may he made, than of the furs, which are so easily
procured, and so soon brought into that imperial city, where, in the court
and amongst the grandees, there is a prodigious consumption of them, and
most extravagant prices given for them, especially those of the better
sort, though even the meanest come to an extraordinary good market.
Thus, after a thorough search and discovery both by sea and land,
have I given the reader a topographical description of a country, the
timely possession and due improvement whereof by the English may be more
beneficial to them than all the other colonies they are at
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present possessed of; besides that they will thereby secure forever all
the rest of our plantations upon the continent of America, which if this
country be by them neglected, and suffered to remain in the hands of any
ambitious, politic and powerful prince or potentate, may be distressed,
conquered, or utterly exterminated.
In a new colony, the first care is to provide food for their
subsistence. The Great Duke of Rohan, famous for wisdom and valor, who
hath written so many celebrated treatises, especially relating to military
affairs and politics, advances it as a maxim, that he who will be a great
warrior must, in the first place, make provision for the belly; and, in
the late war with the French, our seasonable and plentiful supplies of the
soldiers hath not a little contributed to our wonderful successes, and
both strengthened and animated our troops to perform snch acts of valor as
will be celebrated in future ages. The Spaniards tell a pretty, nnd I
think instructive story; that upon the discovery of the immense riches
contained in the mountain Potosi, in Peru, two Spaniards resorted thither.
The one bought slaves, hired servants, overseers, and found a rich vein of
silver ore. The other (land being then common in the neighborhood) fed
sheep. The mine master wanting wool for the clothing of his servants
(that place being much colder than others in the same latitude), and food
for his overseers (who could not be satisfied, being Spaniards, with the
poor fare of the Indians and negroes), bought flesh and wool of the
shepherd; and, after some few years, the shepherd grew rich and the
master-miner poor. If the Spaniards had further improved this notion, the
English, Dutch, and French had not exchanged so many of their manufactures
for gold and silver; so that they are the richest and poorest nation in
the southern part of Europe.
And even our own nation hath not totally escaped this misfortune;
for how many have I known that carried competent estates to North America,
neglecting tillage and breeding cattle; in a few years their servants have
been their equals, and sometimes superiors: such is the force of prudence
and industry. But as for our country of Carolana, if persons who carry
over effects and servants be not sottishly foolish, or supinely negligent,
they cannot fail of improving their own fortunes, and, without injury to
themselves, contribute to make others easy and comparatively happy.
I will not say that masters and superintendents of any sort or kind
need take nothing with them, but that they will find all things necessary
and convenient to their hands. Doubtless common sense will teach them,
they ought to have at least half a year's provisions of
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things necessary, until they are acquainted with the natives, and have
established a friendship and correspondence with them. But abundance of
trouble and expense will be saved in planting this country, which could
not be well avoided in those the English have hitherto settled on the
continent or in their islands. For bread in this country, we have a great
advantage at first coming. They may have Indian corn of the inhabitants,
who have almost everywhere two, and in some places three, crops in a year;
and I have been very credibly informed that, when the new comes in, they
cast away a great part of the old to make room in their little granaries.
Besides, all along the coast, and two or three hundred miles up the
country from the sea, they have the root Mandihoca-whereof Cassavi bread
and flour is made- whereupon almost all America between the tropics doth
subsist (excepting what is brought them at great expense from Europe, or
our northern plantations), and which many esteem as good a nourishment as
our manchet, and six times cheaper.
Besides, this country naturally affords another sort of excellent
corn, which is the most like oats of any European grain, but longer and
larger; and I have been assured by many very credible persons, who often,
out of curiosity, had divers ways prepared it, that it far exceeds our
best oatmeal. This is not sown and cultivated by the Indians, but grows
spontaneously in marshy places, in and by the sides of rivers, like reeds
or rushes. The Indians, when it is ripe, take handfulls, and shake them
into their canoes; what escapes them falling into the water, without any
further trouble, produces the nest year's crop. Rice may be there raised
in as great plenty as in Carolina. For fruits, they have not divers
growing in Europe, which were once strangers to us, and by art and
industry in some measure naturalized; but they have others little if at
all inferior; such as most excellent limes or wild lemons, and prunes,
growing in the open fields, without culture, which they eat plentifully,
immediately from the trees, and keep dry for winter provision. Many who
have tasted both, unanimously affirm, they never did meet with either sort
in Europe comparable thereunto: and those dried will not prove a
contemptible commodity, when we contract friendship with the natives, who
being directed by us how to gather and order them, would supply us with
great quantities, not only for own subsistence and delight, but even for
exportation. Besides, the tunas a most delicious fruit, especially in hot
weather, and also not only agreeable to the palate, but salubrious, and as
our Europeans call it, when in maturity, their cordial julep.
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I now come to that tree, I mean the vine, which a great part of the
world almost idolizes. I know there have been great disputes amongst the
learned (and positively determined by Mahomet and the Mahometans all over
the world), whether it had not been better for mankind it had never
existed, considering how much that noble juice hath been abused, and how
often it has been the cause of numberless calamities. For my own
particular, I must own it is my opinion, that, next to bread, which is the
staff of life, it is one of the greatest, merely material comforts we in
these northern climates enjoy; and having been long thereunto accustomed,
when transplanted into a more southern country, we shall banker after it.
And if we cannot have good of our own produce, we shall certainly have
recourse to foreigners, and purchase it at any rate, and thereby
impoverish our infant colony. But thanks to Almighty God, who hath not
only so long, so wonderfully favored the English nation in their own
island, but takes care even of them, who some account their outcasts,
though they have the true English courage, love to their country, and
contribute, perhaps as much to its wealth and welfare by their industry,
as any equal number of their rank and quality they have left behind. But
to put a period to this digression, vines of divers sorts and kinds, grow
naturally in this country. We have already discovered and distinguished
five or six sorts very different from each other; but in such great
plenty, that in a thousand places, either upon the continent or in the
islands, especially in or near the great river, they make your journeys
shorter by entangling your legs, it being natural for them to run upon the
ground, unless they meet with trees, up which they creep, loaded with
clusters of grape, of some sorts, commonly half a yard, sometimes two foot
long. It is true some of these grapes, for want of culture, though large
as damsons, have great stones and a tough skin; yet they might be easily
meliorated by European skill; though as they are, especially two or three
sorts of the smaller kind, are as grateful to the palate as most we have
in England; but the very worst duly managed, produces brandy hardly
inferior to any in Europe; so that had we vessels to distil, and skillful
operators, we might soon abate the price of that liquor in England, and
our plantations, and keep a sufficient reserve for ourselves.
And further, when we have once obtained the skill of meliorating the
grapes, we shall also produce not only as good wine, but also as good
raisins, as in most countries of Europe; the climate being admirably
adapted thereunto; and thereby not only supply ourselves and
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neighboring colonies, but somewhat abate the expense of our mother, good
Old England, from whom we proceed, and upon whom we and (I hope and
believe) all our other colonies, will not only acknowledge their sole
dependence, but ever desire, with the uttermost of their power, to
manifest, upon all occasions, their love and gratitude.
But corn and drink are not sufficient for Englishmen, who are used to
feed upon good beef, mutton, bacon, veal, and pork; therefore for the
encouragement of such as shall hereafter inhabit this province, they will
find good beef, and consequently veal, there being a sort of kine natural
to this country, which, though they differ a little in shape from ours
(having a bunch upon their shoulders, which is delicious food) yet
otherways are not in the least inferior to our bulls and cows, and they
may make them oxen when they please; and by dry fodder stall oxen like
those in England; but as they are without art and care, they almost equal
our grass cattle. There are also sheep of the Spanish breed in good
numbers, whose flesh is as good as ours, and their wool better; as also
hogs very plentiful, on the sea- coast especially, and some within land,
though not so numerous, acorns, chestnuts, and other masts abounding in
this country, render them more grateful food (as all who have fed upon
them affirm) than ours in England; and fit for exportation for the
islands.
Next to food we are to consider a very material circumstance, and
that is, cattle for draught, and horses for riding, which are carried into
the plantations, whether on the continent, or in the islands. These are
already prepared into your hands, with no great trouble and expense. For
horses, they are commonly used among the Indians on the west side of the
Great River for riding and burdens, as amongst us, though they have not
improved them for draughts, being totally ignorant of coaches, wains,
carts, or ploughs, unto all which they may soon by care and skill be
adapted. And the price of a good horse will not amount unto above five
shillings of our European commodities at first cost, as I am well assured
by traders, who have been offered a very good one for a very ordinary
hatchet. And as for oxen for plough and cart when their young males are
castrated, they will be as tame and as serviceable as our oxen; though
amongst the Tartars, from whom these kine originally came, the great bulls
of almost twice the strength and bigness of ours, are by them so far tamed
that they employ them to draw their houses or huts put upon carts many
hundred miles, as they have occasion to remove their habitations, which is
only for convenient pasture, marching in the winter to the outh, in the
summer to the north. This sort of cattle are not only
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useful for food and labor, but also for their hair, or rather wool, which
is very long, very thick, and very fine; and I think, as do many others
who understand the use of it, for hats, clothing, and divers other
necessaries, with some small suitable addition or mixtures, is preferable
to common wool. Their skins may be partly imported to England, and partly
employed in our own colony for harness, boots, shoes, and many other uses.
Besides, we are near New Mexico, all which country generally employ
for carriage mighty great and strong mules, produced by Assinegos, or male
asses, many of which there are of abundantly greater bigness, strength and
mettle than in Europe, which, with the mares of that country would produce
an excellent breed, if it be thought advantageous to raise them.
There are several tracts of land in this country that would suit very
well with camels,* many of which are employed by the Spaniards, especially
in Peru and Terra Firma, or the south part of the Gulf of Mexico. They
have them mostly from the Canary Islands, and some from Africa. They
stand well in America, are very usefull, and a very little trouble and
charge will subsist them.
The wild animals of this country, besides the elk or buffalo above
mentioned, are panthers, bears, wolves, and wild cats, none of which are
hurtful to mankind; deer of divers sorts, beaver, otter, fox, raccoons
squirrels, martens, and conies between ours and hares in great abundance;
as likewise a rat with a bag under its throat, wherein it conveys its
young when forced to fly. All these are useful for their furs or skins,
and some for food; but I think it not material nor consistent with my
designed brevity to enter into a particular description of them: No more
than of the following bird or wild fowl found all over the country, sea
shore and rivers, such as eagles, goshawks, falcons, gerfalcons, and most
other birds of prey that are in Europe; great companies of turkeys,
bustards, pheasants, partridges, pigeons, thrushes, blackbirds, snipes,
cranes, swans, geese, ducks, teal, pelicans, parrots, and many other sorts
of curious birds differing from ours.
For clothing, though we may reasonably suppose that by our
correspondence with our native country we may be supplied therewith, as
also with beds, carpets, coverlets, &c., yet it would not be amiss, if in
the infancy of this colony, the poorer sort were encouraged to
*A caravan of these animals has been lately imported (1850) to
establish a communication (across the deserts) between the city of St.
Louis and St. Francisco, California.
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manufacture the wool of sheep and kine, as also cotton, to supply their
urgent necessities. Hats may be made of the long soft hair of the kine
mixed, if need be, with a little of the hair or wool of beaver, both which
are in great plenty, and easily procured, and nothing wanting but a few
artists to manufacture them as in England.
I have received information from divers persons who unanimously
affirm, that some of the most civilized nations in this country,
especially of the better sort, are clothed with a substance like good
coarse serviceable linen, very white. Upon inquiry, they found it was
made with the inward bark of trees, which grow plentifully there, and is
as becoming as most of the ordinary linen of Europe; and by the relation
of the natives no less durable. Of the same and other barks they make
thread, cords and ropes, of divers lengths and magnitudes, which might be
greatly improved by our English planters.
Olives would certainly grow here as well as in New Spain, where they
thrive, especially in those parts contiguous to our country, and are not
inferior, either for eating or making oil, to those of Spain and Portugal;
as also almonds, several affirining, particularly, I remember, the famous
Acosta writes concerning the productions of the West Indies, where he long
resided, that they far exceed those of Spain or any other part of Europe.
But, for political reasons, both they and vines are forbidden to be used
for the production of oil or wine.
Currants also would probably prosper in this country, the climate
being much of the same nature and latitude with the islands of Zante and
Cephalonia, from whence we now do generally bring them; and the famous
city of Corinth, from which they derive their name, and from whence they
were transplanted to the fore-mentioned islands; the Latin name being
Uvae Corinthiacae, or grapes of Corinth, which we corruptly call currants,
instead of Corinths. These three commodities were thought so needful that
King Charles II., with the advice of his council, gave great
encouragement, in his patent for Carolina, to the proprietors, planters,
or any others who should produce and import them to England; as also
capers and some other commodities there mentioned.
Cotton grows wild in the pod and in great plenty; may be managed and
improved as in our islands, arid turn to as great account; and in time
perhaps manufactured either in the country or in Great Britain, which will
render it a commodity still more valuable.*
* The author here displays a wonderful sagacity as to the importance of
this couniry for the cultivation of a plant which now makes Europe our
debtor, and is the great regulator of our exchanges.
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Pearls are to be found in great abundance in this country; the
Indians put some value upon them, but not so much as on the colored beads
we bring them. On the whole coast of this province, for two hundred
leagues, there are many vast beds of oysters which breed pearls, as has
been found in divers places. But, which is very remarkable, far from the
sea, in fresh water rivers and lakes, there is a sort of a shell fish,
between a muscle and a pearl oyster, wherein are found abundance of
pearls, and in any of an unusual magnitude. The Indians, when they take
the oysters, broil them over the fire till they are fit to eat, keeping
the large pearls they find in them, which, by the heat, are tarnished and
lose their native lustre; but, when we have taught them the right method,
doubtless it would be a very profitable trade. There are two places we
already know within land, in each of which there is a great pearl fishery.
One about one hundred and twenty leagues up the River Meschacebe, on the
west side, in a lake made by the river of the Naches, about forty miles
from its mouth, where they are found in great plenty and many very large.
The other on the River Chiaha, which runs into the Coza or Cussaw River
(as our English calls it), and which comes from the north-east, and, after
a course of some hundred miles, disembogues into the Gulf of Mexico, about
one hundred miles to the east of the Maschacebe.
The judicious and faithful writer of the famous expedition of
Ferdinando Soto, who was therein from the beginning unto the end,
acquaints us that, when they came to Cutifachia, the chief of that
country, finding they valued pearl, offered to load all their horses
therewith, which were at least two hundred. And, to confirm them in the
belief of what they advanced, carried them unto two of their chief
temples, where they found vast quantities, but took only fourteen bushels
for a show to the Havana, and other of the Spanish dominions, to encourage
the peopling of this colony, not being willing to encumber their horses
with more, their welfare and success depending much upon their
horsemen-the Indians being abundantly more afraid of them than the foot,
whose guns being useless after a short time, for want of powder, they only
made use of cross-bows. And Garcilasso, who was not with Soto, but writ
only upon memoirs he received from divers who were present, gives a more
full account of the prodigious quantity of pearls in that country,
affirming the Spaniards calculated them to amount unto a thousand bushels.
And afterwards, when the Spaniards at Chiaha were gathering oysters for
their food, they found many large pearls, and one particularly that was
prized at four
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hundred ducats, not having lost the least of its lustre, being taken out
of a raw oyster. And that one Terron, a Spaniard, had above six pounds
weight of pearl, very large, and mostly of a beautiful lustre, and were
valued at six thousand ducats.
It need not seem incredible that pearl should be taken in fresh water
lakes and rivers, there being many relations of unquestionable reputation,
which declare, very good and large pearls are found in divers parts of
China, and the countries to the west and south-west of their great wall
(with which quotations I will not enlarge this discourse), as will appear
by reading the China Atlas of Martinius, Marcus Paulus Venetus, and other
credible writers on lakes and fresh water rivers.
Cochineal is a commodity of great value, very necessary as the world
goes, and costs this nation annually great sums of money, which may be all
saved, there being in this province sufficient to furnish both us and our
neighbors, who are no less fond of it than ourselves. There have been
great inquiries, and many disputes, about the original of this commodity,
which is the famous ingredient for dyeing in grain, the purple and scarlet
colors, generally esteemed by opulent and civilized nations.
This noble ingredient for dyeing, is produced by a tree or shrub
called the Tunal or Tuna, of which there are divers sorts; some bearing an
excellent fruit, very pleasant and wholesome. It is made of certain
insects breeding in the fruit of this plant, when it is well husbanded,
and are thereunto fastened, covered with a dainty fine web, which doth
compass them about, and when come to maturity they eat through it, fall
off the tree, and being carefully gathered, dried, and curiously put up,
are sent to Spain, and thence distributed to most civilized parts of
Europe and Asia. Acosta tells us, that in the fleet wherein he returned
from Mexico, that province only, shipped 5677 arobes, each whereof is 25l.
weight, and valued at 283,750 pieces of eight. The cochineal is of two
sorts, one growing wild, which they call silvester. This, though it gives
a good price, is far short of that which is duly cultivated in gardens and
fields, much after the manner the English do tobacco in their plantations.
This province, both on the east and west side of the Meschacebe, from the
Gulf of Mexico some hundred miles up the country, abounds with all sorts
of Tunals, or Tunas (as some style them), usually found in the province of
Mexico, which borders upon it, and is only divided by an imaginary line,
from the degrees of thirty to thirty-six. When this country is
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settled, and we set upon this manufacture, the Indians may be very helpful
unto us, it being easy labor, and wherein we need only employ their women
and young people, if their men, who are generally very lazy, decline it.
The plant of which indigo is made, is very frequent in most of the
southern parts of this country, and may possibly produce better than that
made in our Islands of Jamaica, &c., this province being in the same
latitude with Agra and Byana, territories in the great Mogul's country,
whose indigo is accounted the best of its kind in the world, and is double
the price of ours. It is easily made, and the Indians may be assisting to
us herein, if we think fit to undertake it. Besides, if we believe that
judicious natural historian Hernando, there is in Mexico, and consequently
here (being much the same climate) a plant or little shrub, which produces
an indigo abundantly more noble, and the color more lively, than that
which is the common indigo. This the Spaniards call azul, as being like
ultramarine.*
Ambergris or gray amber, is often found upon this coast, from the
Cape of Florida to Mexico, which is of great value. The best (for there
are divers sorts) is of equal worth to its weight in gold. This is agreed
upon by the learned, to be a bitumen or naphtha, which comes from certain
springs or fountains, that empty themselves into the sea, and is
coagulated by the salt water, as succinum, commonly called amber, from
another sort of bitumen or naphtha, and in storms cast upon the coast.
The same ambergris is also found upon the east side of the Cape or
Peninsula of Florida, the Bahama Islands, in the East Indies, and Brazil,
and sometimes great lumps, even upon the coast of Cornwall and Ireland.
And among others, I have read of a piece weighing eighty pounds, cast upon
the coast of Cornwall, in the reign of King Charles I., which was bigger,
till diminished by the countryman who found it, by greasing his
cart-wheels, and boots, but discovered accidentally by an intelligent
gentleman, who riding by one of his carts, and perceiving a very grateful
smell, inquired of the man whence it proceeded; he told him he had found
a nasty grease on the shore, which he hoped would have saved him the
expense of kitchen stuff and tar for carts, harness, and boots, but it was
of so poisonous a smell, that they were not able to endure it. The
gentleman desiring to see the remainder, found it what he expected,
purchased
*The cultivation of indigo was commenced in Louisiana in 1726. As a
crop it was uncertain, but it was not abandoned untii 1794, when it was
succeeded by the more general cultivation of sugar, cotton, and tobacco.
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it at a very easy rate, presented it unto the queen, and was requited in
places or employments far beyond the value of it.
There is found in great quantities upon the same coast, on the shore
to the east and west of the Meschacebe, especially after high south winds,
a sort of stone pitch, by the Spaniards called copec, which they likewise
find in the South Sea, upon the coast of Peru. They mix it with grease to
make it more liquid, and use it as pitch for their vessels, and affirm it
to be better in hot countries, not being apt to melt with the heat of the
sun or weather. And at Trinidad, a large island over against the great
river of Oronoque, there is a mountain of the said substance, of which Sir
Walter Raleigh gives an account in his expedition, so fatal unto him, of
the discovery of the said river; and several navigators since have done
the same. Acosta, the famous author of the natural history of the West
Indies, affirms it to be generated of an oil, which empties itself, he
knows not how, into several parts of the ocean, in so great quantities,
that the sailors, when at a loss, know where they are by its floating on
the sea, or the smell thereof, which, he says, they scented at a
considerable distance. The English sent to discover the River Meschacebe,
affirm the same, and that they found it in two places, which I have well
marked. Moreover, that the sea was covered with an oil or slime, as they
style it, which had a very strong smell for many leagues together. I
suppose they had much the same conceptions with the countryman before
mentioned, and therefore their curiosity did not prompt them to take it up
and examine its qualities; though probably it might be of the same nature
and use with that of divers wells in the province of Adierbigian in
Persia, near the Caspian Sea, whence they fetch it many hundred miles on
camels, being used to burn it in lamps instead of oil, it emitting a most
grateful and wholesome odor. I might add spermaceti whales, out of which
that substance is extracted, are sometimes killed by the natives, and
sometimes by storms, as it were, shipwrecked on the shore; but either of
these seldom happening, there can be no great dependence or expectation
from them.
Salt is of great use, especially unto Europeans, without which they
cannot well subsist, being accustomed thereunto from their infancy, and
without which food has no relish. Besides, it is supposed that it
prevents putrefaction and innumerable diseases; and in foreign couutries
where it hath been wanting they have greatly suffered. It is moreover
necessary to preserve fish and flesh, which without it cannot be long kept
sweet. In this country it may be easily and abundantly
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procured.* We know divers places, on both sides of the river, where there
are many springs and lakes, producing plentifully excellent salt; and
also one mine of rock-salt, almost clear as crystal, and probably there
may be many more of the same. By these, we may not only supply ourselves
with what is necessary for our ordinary daily food, during the winter or
other seasons, but also furnish our (I may call then neighbor) plantations
in the islands (we not being very remote from them) with fish, flesh, and
salt; when by reason of war, or other sinister accidents, they cannot
receive due and expected recruits from England or elsewhere.
Silk is a commodity of great use in England for many manufactures, it
being imported to us from France, Italy, Sicily, Turkey, and the East
Indies: and there is no foreign commodity which exhausts more of our
treasure. I am not so vain as to promise this country can furnish Great
Britain with so much silk as is therein manufactured, which would amount
to above half a million or a million sterling annually; but if this
province is ever settled (it abounding in most parts with forests of
mulberry trees, both white and red), and we keep a good correspondence
with the natives, which is both our duty and interest, certainly a
considerable quantity of silk may be here produced.+ It hath been already
experimented, in South Carolina, by Sir Nathaniel Johnston and others,
which would have returned to great account, but that they wanted hands,
laborers being not to be hired but at a vast charge. Yet if the natives
or negroes were employed, who delight in such easy light labors, we could
have that done for less than one shilling, which costs them more than six.
Now I appeal to all good Englishmen, if we can raise only a tenth part of
the silk expended in Great Britain, &e., and perhaps half an age hence the
fifth, whether it would not be very beneficial to our native country, and
a little check upon others, with whom we deal in that commodity, by
letting them know, if they are unreasonable and exorbitant in their
demands, that we may in a short time supply ourselves, in a great measure,
from our own plantations? I am not ignorant there are several sorts of
silks, proper for divers distinct uses, as of China, Bengal, and other
parts of the East Indies, Persia, Turkey, Naples, and Sicily; for what
manufactures ours is most proper, I
* On the head waters of the Arkansas and Red Rivers.
+ There is no climate in the world more favorable for the cultivation
of silk than Louisiana. And the time is fast approaching when it will be
one of the staples of the country.
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know not; but it hath given a good price, and experience may teach us to
raise for more uses than one. I would advise my countrymen when they set
up this manufacture to imitate the Chinese, who sow the mulberry seeds as
we do pot-herbs, and to mow those of one year's growth for the young
silkworms, the leaves being short and tender, fit food for them when fresh
hatched; and the second for them when in their infancy, as I may
deservedly style it. When grown strong, they may be supplied with leaves
from the trees; which method secures them from the diseases, whereunto
they are obnoxious, when fed from the beginning with great rank leaves,
saves much trouble, and lessens the number of hands to attend them, which
is the greatest expense.
Hemp and flax are not only materials for divers manufactures in
England, but exceedingly useful, and indeed almost necessary in a new
colony, to supply them with coarse linens of divers kinds, whereof, if we
made much and finer, it would be no injury to our mother England, who hath
most from foreign parts; as also cordage, thread, twine for nets, and
other uses. The plants which produce hemp and flax are very common in
this country, and abundantly sufficient to supply not only the necessities
thereof, but likewise of the whole British nation. Besides, we have a
grass, as they call it, silk grass, which makes very pretty stuffs, such
as come from the East Indies, which they call Herba stuffs, whereof a
garment was made for Queen Elizabeth, whose ingredient came from Sir
Walter Raleigh's colony, by him called Virginia, now North Carolina, a
part of this province, which, to encourage colonies and plantations, she
was pleased to wear for divers weeks.
This country affords excellent timber for building ships, as oak,
fir, cedar, spruce, and divers other sorts; and, as I said before, flax
and hemp for cordage and sails, as likewise iron for nails and anchors.
But without tar, pitch, and rosin, a ship can never be well equipped;
wherefore there are divers places in this country* near the sea and great
rivers, which were otherwise useless, being the most sandy barren parts of
the country, wherein that tree grows which produces all those materials
for naval architecture; the same tree likewise produces turpentine, which
is no contemptible commodity. This tree being pierced, and a vessel
conveniently fastened unto or placed under the aperture, the turpentine
distils plentifully into it. If cut, and a hole made under the tree in
the sand (for in that soil it generally
* Lower Louisiana is celebrated for iis forests of live oak and pine
trees.
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grows), the turpentine, by the influence of the air and sun, without any
further trouble, becomes good rosin. Pitch and tar are made by cutting
the dry trees into scantlings, and taking the knots of old trees fallen,
and the rest of the wood rotted, burning, as you here make charcoal,
covering with turf, and leaving orifices for as much air as will keep the
fire from extinguishing. The moisture, partly aqueous, partly bituminous,
runs by a gentle descent into a pit; what swims is tar, which, inflamed
to a certain degree and extinguished, is pitch.
I suppose it will not seem a grievance for us to build ships in this
country to bring home our native commodities, when it is allowed in other
plantations, and supposed to save us a vast expense of boards, masts,
yards, &c., which were formerly brought us from Norway and Sweden, where
it is well known that three parts in four are payed for in ready money,
and not a fourth in our own native commodities or manufactures. Besides
the pitch, tar, rosin, and turpentine, the prodnce of the trees before
mentioned, the ashes which remain, with a very small accession, and little
trouble, will make potash, no contemptible commodity, and which costs
England every year to foreign parts (as I have been informed by competent
judges) above fifty thousand pounds. But I will not insist further here
on, or manifest what great quantities hereof may easily be made, and how
much stronger than most of that we import from Russia, Livonia, Courland,
Prussia, Sweden, Norway, and other countries, we having so many other
valuable commodities to employ our time and labor about.
The mention of potash, so much used by soap-boilers and dyers, brings
to mind several materials for dyeing. This country affords logwood,
otherwise called Campeachy wood, and many other dyeing woods, fustic, &c.,
which, divers who tried them, affirm are not inferior to those growing on
the opposite side of the gulf, in the Spanish dominions, whence we have
hitherto received them, with much charge, hazard, and trouble. There are
besides the woods in this country, divers shrubs and plants, whose roots,
even as used by the Indians, dye the finest and most durable colors,
black, yellow, blue, and especially red; which if planted and cultivated,
as mather wood and saffron amongst us, might probably be beneficial unto
the undertakers.
Some persons are very inquisitive whether this country produces gems.
I pretend not to the knowledge of diamonds, rubies and balasses,
sapphires, emeralds or chrysolites; all that have come to my knowledge
are amethysts, of which there are very fine and large, and to the west,
turkoises, thought to be as large and good as any in the
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known world; and possibly upon inquiry and diligent search, others may be
found.
We have an account of lapis lazuli, which is an indication, as my
masters generally affirm, that gold is not far off. I never did see or
hear of any lapis lazuli extraordinarily good, but had visible streaks or
veins of pure gold. But though it is not ordinarily reckoned amongst
precious stones, yet, if good in its kind, it is sold for its weight in
gold, to make that glorious azure called ultramarine, without which no
marvelous and durable painting can be made. And Monsieur Turnefort, in
his voyage to the Levant, observes that besides that lazuli is found in
gold mines, there seems to be in this stone some threads of gold as it
were still uncorrupted.
I had almost forgotten to communicate two commodities, one for the
health, the other for the defence of our bodies. The former is a shrub
called Cassine, much used and celebrated by the natives, the leaves where
of dried will keep very long, of which several people have had many years'
experience. The Indians drink plentifully thereof (as we do tea in
Europe, and the Chinese, from whom it is exported), more especially when
they undertake long and dangerous expeditions against their enemies,
affirming it takes away hunger, thirst, weariness, and that tormenting
passion, fear, for twenty-four hours. And none amongst them are allowed
to drink it but those who have well deserved by their military
achievements, or otherwise obtained the favor of their petty roytelets.
The latter is saltpetre, which may probably be here procured cheap
and plentifully, there being at certain seasons of the year most
prodigious flights of pigeons, I have been assured by some who have seen
them, above a league long, and half as broad. These come, many flocks
successively, much the same course, roost upon trees in such number that
they often break the boughs and leave prodigious heaps of dung behind
them; from which, with good management and very little expense, great
quantities of the best saltpetre may be extracted.
Having given an account of the most valuable animals and vegetables
this country produces, for food and other uses, as well as materials for
trade and manufacture, some who have heard or read of the immense riches
in gold and silver that are annually exported from Peru, Mexico, and other
territories of the Spaniards in America to Spain, and of the incredible
quantities of gold that have been imported from Brazil into Portugal for
above thirty years past (the
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benefit of which all the world knows we have shared in), will be ready to
inquire whether the like mines exist in this country? Whereunto it may be
answered, were there no such mines, yet where there is so good, rich,
fertile land, so pure and healthful an air and climate, such an abundance
of all things for food and raiment, valuable materials for domestic and
foreign trade, these advantages alone, if industriously improved, and
prudently managed, will in the event bring in gold and silver, by the
balance of trade, as in the case of England and Holland; who, without
mines of gold or silver, are perhaps the richest nations, for the quantity
of land they possess, and number of inhabitants, in the whole commercial
world. And it is well known, that we, and some other industrious
Europeans receive, in exchange for our commodities, the greatest part of
the wealth which comes in bullion from the West Indies, either to Spain or
Portugal. But not to discourage any whose genius inclines them to the
discovery and working of mines, I will add, who knows but we may have here
as rich as any in the known world? Who both searched? as Tacitus said of
Germany in the height of the Roman empire. I mean the reign of the great
Trajan, sixteen hundred years since. Yet afterwards there were found
gold, silver, lead, tin, copper, quicksilver, spelter, antimony, vitriol,
the best in the world, blue, green, and white; besides many other mineral
productions, which are now wrought to the great advantage of divers
sovereign princes and their subjects.
But to make a more particular reply to such suggestions, they may be
assured that copper is in abundance, and so fine that it is found in
plates, bits, and pieces very pure without melting, of which considerable
quantities have been gathered on the surface of the earth. And they who
have tried some of the ore, affirm by common methods it gives above forty
percent. The famous Alonzo Barba, who bath given an admirable account of
the mines* the Spaniards have discovered in America, and the ways of
working them, assures us that besides the mines abounding in that metal
near the surface of the earth, they found, digging deeper, that they
proved the richest silver mines they have hitherto discovered. And all
agree, the gold extracted out of copper is finer, of a higher tincture, or
more carats, than that extracted from silver or any other metal, and that
without the tedious process of burning several times before melting,
employed constantly,
* Silver, copper, and lead mines abound in Texas, Louisiana., and
Missouri; gold and quicksilver in California.
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in order to the extracting copper, by Swedes and other European nations.
Lead is there in great quantities. What has already been discovered
is more than sufficient for common use, and the ore affords sixty per
cent.
I need not perhaps mention coal, the country so much abounding in
wood. But because in some cases that may be more useful and proper than
wood, I will add that in many places there are known to be mines of pit
coal, like that we have from Scotland, Wales, and some of our inland
countries in England.
Iron ore is in abundance of places near the surface of the earth;
and some parts produce iron little inferior to steel in goodness, and
useful in many cases wherein steel is commonly employed, as divers attest
who have made trials thereof.
This country affords another profitable commodity or mineral, which
is quicksilver. We have knowledge of two mines, one on the west, the
other on the east of the Great River, and doubtless many more might be
found if inquired after. The natives make no other use thereof than to
paint their faces and bodies therewith in time of war, and great
festivals. This we call quicksilver is the mother of quicksilver, or the
mineral out of which it is extracted, and is a rock of a scarlet or purple
color; which being broke and distilled into earthen pots, the necks
whereof are put into others almost full of water, the latter for the
greater part of each of them in the ground, then are placed in rows,
almost contiguous, covered with spray wood, which burning drives the
quicksilver by descent out of the mineral into the water. Three or four
men will tend some thousands of these pots. The great trouble is in
digging; all the expense not amounting unto a tenth part of the value of
the produce.
And it is generally observed by all who write well on mines, metals,
and minerals, that though silver be often found where there is no cinnabar
of quicksilver in its neighborhood, yet cinnabar is rarely found but
silver mines are near. This cinnabar or vermilion, though a good
commodity in itself in Europe and among the savages, for some picked
chosen pieces, is chiefly valuable for the quicksilver it produces,
especially if we ever obtain a free trade with the Spaniards, and will be
beyond all exception for our and their mutual benefit; for most of the
silver ore in America, mixed with quicksilver, produces almost double the
quantity of metal it would do only by melting; so that the Spaniards have
annually six or eight thousand quintals or hundred
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weight, brought unto them from the bottom of the Adriatic Gulf out of the
territories of the Emperor, and the Venetians, viz: from Istria, Styria,
Carinthia, Carniola, Friuli, and Dalmatia. We can sell it them, and
deliver it for half what that costs which comes from Europe, they being
within six or eight days' sail of the place where it is produced. And for
Mexico we can deliver it for the mines in New Biscay, &e., in the River of
Palms or Rio Bravo, otherwise called the River of Escondido: as also by
the River of the Houmas (Red River), which enters the Meschacebe, one
hundred leagues from its mouth, on the west side, after a course of above
five hundred miles It is a very large deep river, navigable at least three
hundred miles by ships; afterwards unto its heads by barques and flat
bottomed boats, having no falls. It proceeds from that narrow ridge of
low mountains which divides this country and the Province of Mexico. The
hills may be passed not only by men and horses but also by wagons, in less
than half a day. On the other side are small navigable rivers, which
after a short course of thirty or forty miles, empty themselves into the
abovesaid Rio Bravo, which comes from the most northerly part of New
Mexico, in thirty-eight degrees of latitude, and enters the sea at the N.
W. end of the Gulf of Mexico, in twenty-seven degrees of latitude.
There is also another easy passage, to the northern part of New
Mexico, by the Yellow River, which about sixty miles above its mouth, is
divided into two great branches; or rather those two branches form that
great river, which is no less than the Meschacebe, where they are united.
The north branch proceeds from the north-west, and is called the River of
the Massorites (Missouri), from a great nation who live thereon. The
other, which comes from the west and by south, is named the River of the
Ozages, a populous nation of that name inhabiting on its banks; and their
heads proceed from the aforesaid hills, which part the Province of New
Mexico from Carolana, and are easily passable; as are those forementioned
of the River of the Houmas, which may be plainly discerned by the map or
chart hereunto annexed.
But all this is insignificant to our Plutonists, whom nothing will
satisfy besides gold and silver; I will therefore here declare all I
know, or have received from credible persons, and will not add a title.*
I am well informed of a place, from whence the Indians have
* The early French explorers sent to Louisiana were among the first to
write on the mineral regions of this province and Lake Superior.
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brought a metal (not well indeed refined), and that divers times, which,
purified, produced two parts silver. And I have an account from another,
who was with the Indians, and had from them inform masses of such like
silver, and very fine pale copper, though above two hundred miles from the
country where the forementioned was found. I have by me letters from New
Jersey, written many years since by a person very well skilled in the
refining of metals, signifying, that divers years successively, a fellow
who was there of little esteem, took a fancy to ramble with the Indians
beyond the hills which separate that colony and New York from this
cenutry; he always brought home with him a bag, as heavy as he could well
carry, of dust, or rather small particles of divers sorts of metals, very
ponderous. When melted, it appeared a mixture of metals, unto which they
could assign no certain denomination; but perceived by many trials that
it contained load, copper, and when refined, above a third part silver and
gold; for though the gold was the least in quantity, yet it was
considerable in value; which is easy discovered by any tolerable artist
of a refiner, who knows how to separate gold and silver, and what
proportion the mass contains of each. There were great pains taken to
bring this fellow to discover where he had this, I may call, treasure, it
serving him to drink and sot till he went on another expedition; but
neither promises nor importunities would prevail. Some made him drunk,
yet he still kept his secret. All they could ever fish out of him was,
that about three hundred leagues south-west of Jersey, at a certain season
of the year, there fell great torrents of water from some mountains--I
suppose from rains--which being passed over, the Indians washed the sand
or earth some distance below the falls, and in the bottom remained this
medley of metals. Which brings to mind what happened lately in Brazil.
Several Portuguese being guilty of heinous crimes, or afraid of the
resentment of powerful enemies, retreated frorn their habitations to the
mountains of St. Paul, as they called them, lying in between twenty and
thirty degrees of south latitude, above two hundred miles from their
nearest plantations, and yearly increasing, at length formed a government
amongst themselves. Some inquisitive person perceiving, in divers places,
somewhat glister, after the canals of the torrents produced by great
rains, at a certain time of the year, were dry, upon trial found it (the
sand and filth being washed away) very fine gold. They having, upon
consultation, amassed a good quantity thereof, made their peace with the
King of Portugal, and are a peculiar jurisdiction, paying
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the King his quint or fifth, which is reserved in all grants of the Crown
of Spain and Portugal; and are constantly supplied by the merchants for
ready money with whatsoever commodities they want. And I am informed by
divers credible persons, who have long lived in Portugal, that from this
otherwise contemptible useless country, is brought by every Brazil fleet
above twelve hundred and fifty thousand pounds sterling, only in gold.
Who knows but what happened to them, may one time or other, in like
manner, happen to the future inhabitants of this country, not yet
cultivated, fully discovered or ransacked by Europeans?
There are in divers parts of this province, orpiment, and sandaracha
in great quantity; and all the writers on metals and minerals affirm,
they not only contain gold, but where they are found they are generally
the covering of mines of gold or silver.
But suppose all that preceded is conjecture, imposture, or visionary,
what I now suggest deserves great attention, and when the country is
settled, may invite the best heads and longest purses to combine, at
least, to make a fair trial of what the Spaniards attempted upon naked
conjectures.
The mines of New Biscay,* Gallicia and New Mexico, out of which such
vast quantities of silver is yearly sent to Spain, besides what is
detained for their domestic utensils, wherein they are very magnificent,
lie contiguous to this country--to say nothing of gold, whereof they have
considerable quantities, though not proportionable in bulk or value to the
silver. But there is a ridge of hills which run almost due north and
south between their country and ours, not thirty miles broad, and in
divers places, for many miles, abounding with silver mines, more than they
can work, for want of native Spaniards, and Negroes. And, which is very
remarkable, they unanimously affirm, the further north, the richer the
mines of silver are. Which brings to mind what Polybius, Livy, Pliny, and
many other of the Greek and Roman historians, and writers of natural
history unanimously report; that the rich mines in Spain, upon which the
Cathaginians so much depended, and which greatly enriched them, were in
the Asturias and Pyrenean mountains, the most northerly part of Spain, and
in a much greater northern latitude than the furthest mines of New Mexico,
near their capital city Santa Fee, situate in about thirty-six degrees.
Not but that there are more and richer mines more
* The silver mines of St. Barbé, in the Guadaloupe mountains, are said
by travelers to be among the richest in the world.
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northerly than Santa Fee, but they are hindered from working them by three
or four populous and well policed nations, who have beat the Spaniards in
many rencounters, not to say battles; and for a hundred years they have
not been able, by their own confession, to gain from them one inch of
ground.
Pliny in particular affirms, that every year twenty thousand pounds
of gold were brought from their mines in Spain: and that one mine called
Bebello, from the first discoverer, yielded to Hannibal every day three
hundred pounds weight of silver, besides a very rich copious mine of
minium, cinnabaris, or vermilion, the mother of quicksilver, out of which
only it is extracted. He adds, that the Romans continued to work these
mines unto his time, which was about three hundred years; but they were
not then so profitable, by reason of subterraneal waters, which gave them
much trouble, they having then digged fifteen hundred paces into the
mountain. But what is very remarkable and to our present purpose, these
mines were not in the most southerly or middle parts of Spain, but as
above to the northward. Now I desire any intelligent person, skillful in
mineral affairs, to assign a probable reason why we, who are on that side
of the ridge of hills obverted to the rising sun, which was always (how
justly I know not) reckoned to abound in metals and minerals, more than
those exposed to the setting sun, may not hope for and expect as many and
as rich mines, as any the Spaniards are masters of, on the other or west
side of these mountains? Especially since several of the Spanish
historians and naturalists observe, that the mines on the eastern side of
the mountain of Potosi in Peru, are much more numerous and rich than those
on the western.
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Volume 2 Chapter 9
[Page 277]
AN ACCOUNT OF THE DISCOVERY
OF
SOME NEW COUNTRIES AND NATIONS
IN
N0RTH AMERICA,
IN 1673,
BY PERE MARQUETTE AND SIEUR JOLIET.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH.
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.
[Page 278]
[Blank Page]
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[Page 279]
AN ACCOUNT OF THE DISCOVERY
OF
SOME NEW COUNTRIES AND NATIONS
IN
NORTH AMERICA,
IN 1673,
BY PERE MARQUETTE* AND SIEUR JOLIET.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH.
I EMBARKED with M. Joliet, who had been chosen to conduct this
enterprise, on the 13th May, 1673, with five other Frenchmen, in two
* Father Joseph Marquette, an illustrious French Missionary, of noble
birth was born in Picardy, France. Previous to his discovery of the
Mississippi he had resided in Canada, where he acquired a knowledge of the
languages of the principal Indian tribes who lived in the regions about
the lakes.
These Indians had given him from time to time accounts of a Great
River of the West, which they called Meschacebe or the Great river,
Namese-sipou, or the River of the Fishes. While others called it Chuca-
gua, Sassa-goula, and Mala-banchi. It has been subsequently called by the
Spaniards La Palissade, Rio Escondido; and by tbe French Colbert, and
sometimes St. Louis. It soon became a matter of curious speculation what
course this river pursued, and at what place it disembogued itself into
the sea. In order, therefore, to establish this point, as well as to
close his career with some brilliant discovery before be returned to
France, M. Talon planned an expedition to explore it to its mouth. For
this purpose be selected M. Joliet, a merchant of Quebec, to conduct the
enterprise; a man of intelligence, of great experienoe in Indian affairs,
and who possessed a bold and energetic spirit. He also associated with
him Father Marquette, who had been long and favorably known to the Indians
by his missionary labors. They accordingly set out on a voyage of
discovery on the 13th May, 1673. On
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Page 280 .
bark canoes.* We laid in some Indian corn and smoked beef for our voyage.
We first took care, however, to draw from the Indians all the information
we could, concerning the countries through which we designed to travel,
and drew up a map, on which we marked down the rivers, nations, and points
of the compass to guide us in our journey. The first nation we came to
was called the Folles-Avoines,+ or the nation of wild oats. I entered
their river to visit them, as I had preached among them some years before.
The wild oats, from which they derive their name, grows spontaneously in
their country. They grow in marshy ground, and are not unlike our
European oats. The grain is not thicker than ours, but it is twice as
long, and therefore it yields much more meal. It makes its appearance in
June and does
his return Father Marquette wrote an account of his voyage, which he sent
to France, where it was published in 1651. In every point of view this
narrative is one of the most authentic and interesting which can
illustrate the early history of Louisiana. It is related of the Sieur
Joliet that he also kept a journal of this expedition, which was
afterwards lost by the upsetting of his canoe in the river St. Lawrence,
as he was returning to Montreal. The French Government some years
afterwards rewarded the Sieur Joliet for this service, by a grant of the
island of Anticosti, in the St. Lawrence.
Nothing is known of Marquette exoept what is related of him by
Charlevoix. After returning from this expedition, he took up his
residence and pursued the vocation of a missionary among the Miamies, in
the neighborhood of Chicago. While passing by water along the eastern
shore of Lake Michigan, towards Michilimackinac, be entered a small river
on the 15th May, 1675. Having landed he constructed an altar performed
mass, and then retired a short distance into the wood, requesting the two
men who had charge of his canoe to leave him alone for half an hour. When
the time had elapsed the men went to seek for him, and found him dead.
They were greatly surprised at this event, but they remembered that when
he was entering the river he expressed a presentiment that his life would
end here. To this day the river retains the name of Marquette. His
remains were removed, the year after his death, to the Catholic cemetery
at Michilimackinac.
* Marquette and Joliet's point of departure to discover the
Mississippi River was the French post at Michilimackinac, from whence they
proceeded to Fox River, which falls into Green (Potawotamie) Bay. Fifteen
years afterwards, the celebrated traveler, La Hontan, set out from the
same post to explore the Missouri and St. Peters Rivers.
+ Folles-Avoines was the name given by the French to the
"Menomonies," who lived to the north of the Bay of Puans or Green Bay.
They were bounded on the north by the Chippeways; on the south by the
Winnebagoes; on the west by the Sauks and Sioux Dahcota; and east by the
Miamies and Illinois Indianas.
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not ripen until September. In this month the Indians go to shake the
grain off the ears in their canoes, which easily falls if it be ripe, and
which afterwards serves them for food. They dry it over a fire, then pack
it away in a kind of sack made of the skins of animals, and having made a
hole in the ground they put the sacks therein, and tread upon it until the
chaff is separated from the grain, and then winnow it. Afterwards they
pound it in a mortar to reduce it into meal; they then boil it in water,
and season it with grease, which makes it very palatable.
I acquainted them with my design of discovering other nations, to
preach to them the mysteries of our holy religion, at which they were much
surprised, and said all they could to dissuade me from it. They told me I
would meet with Indians who spare no strangers, and whom they kill without
any provocation or mercy; that the war they have one with the other would
expose me to be taken by their warriors, as they are constantly on the
look-out to surprise their enemies. That the Great River was exceedingly
dangerous, and full of frightful monsters who devoured men and canoes
together, and that the heat was so great that it would positively cause
our death. I thanked them for their kind advice, but told them I would
not follow it, as the salvation of a great many souls was concerned in our
undertaking, for whom I should be glad to lose my life. I added that I
defied their monsters, and their information would oblige us to keep more
upon our guard to avoid a surprise. And having prayed with them, and
given them some instructions, we set out for the Bay of Puan (Green Bay),
where our missionaries had been successful in converting them. The name
they give to this bay is preferable in the Indian language to ours; for,
according to the word they make use of, it signifies Salt Bay. It is the
name they give to the sea. This obliged us to inquire whether there were
any salt springs in their country, as among the Iroquois, but they could
not tell us of any.
This bay (Green Bay) is about thirty leagues long, and eight broad in
the greatest breadth; for it grows narrower and forms a cone at the
extremity. It has tides that flow and ebb as regular as the sea. We left
this bay to go into a river (Fox River) that discharges itself therein,
and found its mouth very broad and deep. It flows very gently, but after
we had advanced some leagues into it we found it difficult to navigate, on
account of the rocks and the currents; we fortunately overcame all these
difficulties. It abounds in bustards, ducks, and other birds, which are
attracted there by the wild oats, of which
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they are very fond. We next came to a village of the Maskoutens,* or
nation of fire. Here I had the curiosity to taste some mineral water
which came from a spring on the banks of the river, and to examine a plant
which the Indians had told Father Allouez was a specific for the bite of
snakes. The root of this plant is very hot, and tastes like gunpowder;
they chew it, and apply it to the part of the body that has been stung.
This cures the wound. The snakes have such an antipathy to this plant,
that they run away from a man who has his body rubbed with it. It has
several stalks about a foot in length; the leaves are somewhat long; the
flower is white, and the whole looks like our gilliflower. I put one into
our canoe to examine it at my leisure.
The French have never before passed beyond the Bay of Puans (Green
Bay). This Bourg consists of three several nations, viz., Miamies,+
Maskoutens, and Kickapoos. The first are more docile than the others,
better formed, and more liberal. They wear long hair over their ears,
which gives them a good appearance. They are esteemed good warriors, and
so cunning that they never return from their warlike excursions without
booty. They are quick to learn anything. Father Allouez++ told me that
they were so desirous to be instructed that they would never give him any
rest at night. The
* The word Maskoutens means a "prairie." Their country lies on the
south side of Fox River.
+ The Miamies and the Illinois have been considered tbe same people,
from the great affinity between their languages. The Illinois consisted
of five tribes vix., Cahokias, Kakaskias, Tamaroas, Peorias, and
Metchegamias.
++ Father Claude Allouez, a distinguished French missionary, came to
Canada in 1665. In 1667 he oommenced his missionary labors among the
Chippeways, and formed a treaty of commerce and mutual defence with the
Chippeways, Potawatomies, Sacs, and Foxes, against the Iroquois. In 1669
he learned from the remote tribes of the West the existence of the Great
River, Mississippi, and returned to Quebec to urge the establishment of
permanent missions among them, as well as to send out a party to explore
the Great River. As yet no Frenchman had advanced beyond Fox River of
Green Bay. All beyond was a region of romance, unknown, or mystified by
Indian tradition. The unwearied Jesuits of the Catholic church were
always in advance of civilization. The history of their labors is
connected with the origin of every celebrated town in the annals of French
America; not a river was entered, not a cape was turned, but a Jesuit led
the way. The rites and ceremonies of the Catholic church were extended to
the remote West. The Franciscan, as a mendicant order being excluded from
the newly-discovered world, the office of oonverting the natives of New
France was entrusted to the Jesuits. They plunged into the affairs of
men, to maintain the interests of the church.
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Maskoutens and Kickapoos are more robust, and resemble our peasants more
than the former. As the bark of the birch tree is scarce in this country,
they are obliged to make their wigwams with rushes, which serve as well
for covering them as for walls. It must be owned that they are
convenient, for they take them down and carry them wherever they please,
without any trouble.
When I arrived there I was very glad to see a great cross, set up in
the middle of the village, adorned with several white skins, red girdles,
bows and arrows, which the converted Indians had offered to the great
Manitou, to return him their thanks for the care he had taken of them
during the winter, and granting them a prosperous hunting. Manitou is the
name they give in general to all spirits whom they think to be above the
nature of man. I took pleasure in looking at this bourg. It is
beautifully situated on an eminence, from whence we look over an extensive
prairie, interspersed with groves of trees. The soil is very fertile, and
produces large crops of corn. The Indians also gather large quantities of
grapes and plums. As soon as we had arrived we assembled the chiefs
together, and informed them that we had been sent by our governor to
discover new countries, and teach them the knowledge of their Creator, who
being absolute master of all his creatures will have all nations to know
him, and that therefore to comply with his will we did not value our
lives, and were willing to subject ourselves to every kind of danger,
adding that we wished them to furnish us with two guides, and enforced our
request with some presents, which were kindly accepted by them, in return
for which they gave us mats, with which we made our beds during the
voyage. They also furnished us with two guides to accompany us for some
days.
The next day, being the 10th of June, the two guides (Miamies)
embarked with us in sight of all the village, who were astonished at our
attempting so dangerous an expedition. We were informed that at three
leagues from the Maskoutens, we should find a river which runs into the
Mississippi, and that we were to go to the west-southwest to find it, but
there were so many marshes and lakes, that if it had not been for our
guides we could not have found it. The river upon which we rowed and had
to carry our canoes from one to the other, looked more like a cornfield
than a river, insomuch that we could hardly find its channel. As our
guides had been frequently at this portage, they knew the way, and helped
us to carry our canoes overland into the other river, distant about two
miles and a half; from whence they returned home, leaving us in an
unknown country,
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having nothing to rely upon but Divine Providence. We now left the waters
which extend to Quebec, about five or six hundred leagues, to take those
which would lead us hereafter into strange lands.
Before embarking we all offered up prayers to the Holy Virgin, which
we continued to do every morning, placing ourselves and the events of the
journey under her protection, and after having encouraged each other, we
got into our canoes. The river upon which we embarked is called Mesconsin
(Wisconsin); the river is very wide, but the sand bars make it very
difficult to navigate, which is increased by numerous islands covered with
grape vines. The country through which it flows is beautiful; the groves
are so dispersed in the prairies that it makes a noble prospect; and the
fruit of the trees shows a fertile soil. These groves are full of walnut,
oak, and other trees unknown to us in Europe. We saw neither game nor
fish, but roebuck and buffaloes in great numbers. After having navigated
thirty leagues we discovered some iron mines, and one of our company who
had seen such mines before, said these were very rich in ore. They are
covered with about three feet of soil, and situate near a chain of rocks,
whose base is covered with fine timber. After having rowed ten leagues
further, making forty leagues from the place where we had embarked, we
came into the Mississippi on the 17th June (1673).
The mouth of the Mesconsin (Wisconsin) is in about 42½ N. lat.
Behold us, then, upon this celebrated river, whose singularities I have
attentively studied. The Mississippi takes its rise in several lakes in
the North. Its channel is very narrow at the mouth of the Mesconsin, and
runs south until it is affected by very high hills. Its current is slow,
because of its depth. In sounding we found nineteen fathoms of water. A
little farther on it widens nearly three-quarters of a league, and the
width continues to be more equal. We slowly followed its course to the
south and south-east to the 42 N. lat. Here we perceived the country
change its appearance. There were scarcely any more woods or mountains.
The islands are covered with fine trees, but we could not see any more
roebucks, buffaloes, bustards, and swans. We met from time to time
monstrous fish, which struck so violently against our canoes, that at
first we took them to be large trees, which threatened to upset us. We
saw also a hideous monster; his head was like that of a tiger, his nose
was sharp, and somewhat resembled a wildcat; his beard was long; his
ears stood upright; the color of his head was gray; and his neck black.
He looked upon us for some time, but as we came near him our oars
frightened him away.
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When we threw our nets into the water we caught an abundance of sturgeons,
and another kind of fish like our trout, except that the eyes and nose are
much smaller, and they have near the nose a bone like a woman's busk,
three inches broad and a foot and a half long, the end of which is flat
and broad, and when it leaps out of the water the weight of it throws it
on its back.
Having descended the river as far as 41 28', we found that turkeys
took the place of game, and the Pisikious that of other animals. We call
the Pisikious wild buffaloes, because they very much resemble our domestic
oxen; they are not so long, but twice as large. We shot one of them, and
it was as much as thirteen men could do to drag him from the place where
he fell. They have an enormous head, their forehead is broad and flat,
and their horns, between which there is at least a foot and a half
distance, are all black and much longer than our European oxen. They have
a hump on the back, and their head, breast, and a part of the shoulders
are covered with long hair. They have in the middle of their, forehead an
ugly tuft of long hair, which, falling down over their eyes, blinds them
in a manner, and makes them look hideous. The rest of the body is covered
with curled hair, or rather wool like our sheep, but much thicker and
stronger. They shed their hair in summer, and their skin is as soft as
velvet, leaving nothing but a short down. The Indians use their skins for
cloaks, which they paint with figures of several colors. Their flesh and
fat is excellent, and the best dish of the Indians, who kill a great many
of them. They are very fierce and dangerous, and if they can hook a man
with their horns, they toss him up and then tread upon him. The Indians
hide themselves when they shoot at them, otherwise they would be in great
danger of losing their lives. They follow them at great distances till,
by loss of blood, they are unable to hurt or defend themselves. They
graze upon the banks of rivers, and I have seen four hundred in a herd
together.
We continued to descend the river, not knowing where we were going,
and having made an hundred leagues without seeing anything but wild beasts
and birds, and being on our guard we landed at night to make our fire and
prepare our repast, and then left the shore to anchor in the river, while
one of us watched by turns to prevent a surprise. We went south and
south-west until we found ourselves in about the latitude of 40 and some
minutes, having rowed more than sixty leagues since we entered the river.
On the 25th June we went ashore, and found some traces of men upon the
sand, and a path which led into a
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large prairie. We judged it led to an Indian village, and concluded to
examine it. We therefore left our canoes in charge of our men, while M.
Joliet and I went to explore it; a bold undertaking for two men in a
savage country. We followed this little path in silence about two
leagues, when we discovered a village on the banks of a river, and two
others on a hill about half a league from the first. We now commended
ourselves to God, and having implored his help, we came so near to the
Indians that we could hear them talk. We now thought it time to make
ourselves known to them by screaming aloud. At the sound of our voices,
the Indians left their huts, and probably taking us for Frenchmen, one of
is having a black robe on, and seeing but two of us, and being warned of
our arrival, they sent four old men to speak to us, two of whom brought
pipes, ornamented with different colored feathers. They marched slowly,
without saying a word, but presenting their pipes to the sun, as if they
wished it to smoke them.
They were a long time coming from their village, but as soon as they
came near, they halted to take a view of us, and seeing the ceremonies
they performed, and especially seeing them covered with cloth, we judged
that they were our allies. I then spoke to them, and they said that they
were Illinois, and as a sign of friendship they presented us their pipes
to smoke. They invited us to their village, where all the people had
impatiently waited for us. These pipes are called by the Indians
calumets, and as this word is so common among them, I shall make use of it
in future, when I want to speak of pipes. At the door of the cabin in
which we were to be received, we found an old man in a very remarkable
posture, which is the usual ceremony in receiving strangers. He was
standing up, all naked, with his hands lifted up to Heaven, as if he
wished to screen himself from the rays of the sun, which nevertheless
passed through his fingers to his face. When we came near to him, he
said, "What a fair day, Frenchmen, this is to come to visit us! All our
people have waited for thee, and thou shalt enter our cabin in peace." He
then took us into his, where there were a crowd of people who devoured us
with their eyes, but who kept a profound silence. We only occasionally
heard these words in a low voice, "These are our brothers who have come to
see us."
As soon as we sat down, they presented us, according to custom, their
calumet, which one must accept, or he would be looked upon as an enemy,
and it is sufficient to place it only to your mouth, and pretend to smoke.
While the old men smoked in our cabin to entertain us, the great chief of
the Illinois sent us word to come to his village,
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where he wished to hold a council with us. We went accordingly to him,
and were followed by all the people of this village, for they had never
seen any Frenchmen before. They never appeared tired of gazing at us.
They went backwards and forwards to look at us, without making any noise,
and this they esteemed as a mark of respect. Having arrived at the
borough of the chief, we espied him at the door of his cabin, between two
old men, who were likewise naked, and standing, holding the calumet
towards the sun. He made us a short speech, to congratulate us on our
arrival in his country, and presented us with his calumet, which we had to
smoke before we could enter into his cabin. This ceremony being over, he
conducted us and desired us to sit down upon a mat, and the old men of the
nation being present, I thought fit to acquaint them with the subject of
our voyage, and therefore I told them, 1st, that we designed to visit all
nations that were on the river, down to the sea. 2d. That God, who had
created them, took pity on them, and had sent me to bring them to a
knowledge of Him, and to repent. 3d. That the great captain of the French
had commanded me to tell them that he had conquered the Iroquois, and
wished to live in peace with them. 4th. And lastly, that we desired them
to tell us all about the sea and the nations we were to pass through
before we arrived there.
After we sat down, the chief placed a slave near us, and made us a
present of the mysterious calumet, which he thought more valuable to us
than the slave. He showed to us by this present his respect for our great
captain, and he begged us to remain among them, because of the dangers to
which we were exposed in our voyage. I told him that we did not fear
death, and that I would esteem it a happiness to lose my life in the
service of God, at which he seemed to be much surprised. The council
being over, we were invited to a feast, which consisted of four dishes.
The first was a dish of sagamite, that is some Indian meal boiled in
water, and seasoned with grease; the master of ceremonies holding a
spoonful of it, which he put thrice into my mouth, and then did the like
to M. Joliet. The second dish consisted of three fish, where of he took a
piece, and having taken out the bones, and blown upon it to cool it, he
put it into my mouth. The third dish was a large dog, which they had
killed on purpose, but understanding that we did not eat this animal they
sent it away. The fourth was a piece of buffalo meat, of which they put
the fattest pieces into our mouths.
As soon as we had feasted, we were taken to a village of three
hundred cabins, attended by an officer, who kept the people from crowding
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upon us. They presented us with belts, garters, and other articles made
of the hair of bears and buffaloes. We slept in the chief's hut, and, on
the following morning, we took leave of him, promising to return to his
village in four moons. He escorted us to our canoes with nearly six
hundred persons, who saw us embark, evincing in every way the pleasure our
visit gave them. It will not be improper for me to relate here, what I
observed of the customs and manners of this people, which are very
different from any I have ever before visited. The word llinois in their
language signifies men; as if they looked upon all other Indians as
beasts. And truly it must be confessed that they are more humane than any
others I have ever seen. The short time I remained with them did not
permit me to inform myself of their customs and manners as much as I
desired. They are divided into several villages, some of which I have not
seen. They live so remote from other nations, that their language is
entirely different. They called themselves "Perouarca." Their language
is a dialect of the Algonquin. They are very mild in their dispositions.
They keep several wives, of whom they are very jealous, and watch them
closely. If they behave unchastely, they cut off their ears or nose, of
which I saw several who carried those marks of their infidelity.
The Illinois are well formed and very nimble. They are skillful with
their bows and rifles, with which they are supplied by the Indians who
trade with our Frenchmen. This makes them formidable to their enemies,
who have no firearms. They make excursions to the west to capture slaves,
which they barter with other nations for the commodities they want. Those
nations are entirely ignorant of iron tools; their knives, axes, and
other instruments, are made of flint and other sharp stones. When the
Illinois go upon a war expedition, the whole village is notified by an
outcry at the door of their huts the morning and evening before they set
out. Their chiefs are distinguished from the soldiers, by red scarfs made
of the hair of buffaloes, curiously wrought, which are taken only a few
days' journey from their village. They live by hunting, and on Indian
corn, of which they always have a plenty. They sow beans and melons,
which are excellent, especially those whose seed is red. They dry them,
and keep them till the winter and spring.
Their cabins are large; they are covered and carpeted with rushes.
Their dishes are of wood, but their spoons are made with the bones of the
buffalo, which they cut so as to make them very convenient to eat their
sagamite with. They have physicians among them to whom, in
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cases of sickness, they are very liberal. Their clothing consists of the
skins of wild animals, which serve to clothe their women, who dress very
modestly, while the men go most of the year almost naked. Some of the
Illinois and Nadonessians wear women's apparel, and when they put it on in
their youth, they never leave it off. There must certainly be some
mystery* in this. They never marry, but work in the cabins with the
women, which the other men think it beneath them to do. They assist in
all the juggleries and the solemn dance in honor of the calumet, but they
are not permitted either to dance or sing. They are called to their
councils, and nothing is determined without their advice; for because of
their extraordinary manner of living, they are looked upon as manitous or
persons of consequence.
It now only remains for me to speak of the calumet, the most
mysterious thing in the world. The sceptres of our kings are not so much
respected; for the Indians have such a deference for it, that one may call
it "The God of Peace and War, and the arbiter of life and death." One
with this calumet may venture amongst his enemies, and on the hottest
battles they lay down their arms before this sacred pipe. The Illinois
presented me with one of them, which was very useful to us in our voyage.
Their Calumet of Peace is different from the Calumet of War; they make
use of the former to seal their alliances and treaties, to travel with
safety, and receive strangers; and the other is to proclaim war. It is
made of a red stone, and smooth as marble. The head is like our common
tobacco pipe, but larger, and fixed to a hollow reed, to hold it for
smoking. They ornament it with the head and neck of different birds, to
which they add large feathers of different colors, and call it The Calumet
of the Sun, to whom they present it when they want fair weather, or rain,
believing that this planet cannot have less respect for it than they
themselves, and therefore they will obtain their wishes. They do not dare
to wash themselves in the rivers in the beginning of summer, or eat new
fruit, before they have danced the calumet.
This dance of the calumet is a solemn ceremony among the Indians,
which they only perform on important occasions, such as to confirm an
alliance, or make peace with their neighbors. They also use it to
entertain any nation that comes to visit them; and in this case we may
consider it as their grand entertainment. They perform it in winter time
in their cabins, and in the open field in summer. They
* See Hennepin's account of this custom in his "Voyage en un pays
plus grand gue L'Europe entre la mer glaciale and le nouveau Mexique."
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choose for that purpose a place under the trees, to shelter themselves
against the heat of the sun, and lay in the middle of it a large mat, to
place the god of the chief of the company upon, who gives the
entertainment. For every one has his peculiar god, whom they call
manitoa. It is sometimes a stone, a bird, a serpent, or anything else
that they dream of in their sleep. They believe that this manitoa will
prosper their sports, of fishing, hunting, and other enterprises. To the
right of their manitoa they place the calumet, their great deity, making
round about it a kind of trophy with their arms, namely, their clubs,
axes, bows, quivers, and arrows.* Things being thus arranged, and the
hour for dancing having arrived, the men and women who are to sing take
the most honorable seats under the trees or arbors. Every one, then, who
comes in afterwards sits down, in a ring, as they arrive, having first
saluted the manitoa, by puffing tobacco smoke upon it, which signifies as
much as making it an offering of incense.
Then the Indians, one after the other, take the calumet, and, holding
it with both hands, dances with it, following the cadence of the songs, by
making different attitudes, turning from side to side, and showing it to
the whole assembly. This being over, he who is to begin the dance appears
in the middle of the assembly, and having taken the calumet, presents it
to the Sun, as if he would invite him to smoke. Then he places it in an
infinite number of positions, sometimes laying it near the ground, then
stretehing its wings, as if he wanted it to fly, and afterwards presents
it to the spectators, who smoke it, one after another, dancing all the
time, as in the first scene of a ballet. The second scene is a combat,
accompanied with vocal and instrumental music, for they have a large drum
which agrees pretty well with their voices. The person who dances with
the calumet gives a signal to one of their warriors, who takes a bow and
arrows from the mat, already mentioned, and fights the other, who defends
himself with the calumet alone, both of them dancing all the while. This
spectacle is very amusing, especially when it is done in time, for the one
attacks, and the other defends; the one thrusts, and the other parries;
the one runs, and the other pursues; which is all done so well, with
measured steps, and at the regular sound of voices and drums, that it
would easily pass for a French ballet.
The fight being over, the third scene consists of a speech made by
him who holds the calumet, relating the battles he has been in, the
* These weapons are still used in war by the Indians west of the
Mississippi.
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victories he has won, and the scalps he has taken; and to reward him, the
chief presents him with a buffalo robe, and, having received it, he then
goes and presents the calumet to another, and this one to a third, and so
on until they all make speeches, when the head chief presents it to the
nation that has been invited to the feast as a mark of their friendship,
and a continuation of their alliance. There is a song they sing, to which
they give a certain turn of expression which is extremely agreeable, and
which begins thus:--
"Ninahani, Ninahani, Ninahani,
Nane ango."
We took leave of our guides about the end of June, and embarked in
presence of all the village, who admired our birch canoes, as they had
never before seen anything like them. We descended the river, looking for
another called Pekitanoni (the Missouri), which runs from the north-west
into the Mississippi, of which I will speak more hereafter.
As we followed the banks, I observed on the rocks a medicinal plant
which had a remarkable shape. Its root is like small turnips linked
together by small fibres which had the taste of carrots. From the root
springs a leaf as wide as the hand, about an inch thick, with spots in the
middle, from whence shoot other leaves, each of them bearing five or six
yellow flowers of a bell shape. We found a quantity of mulberries as
large as those of France, and a small fruit which we took at first for
olives, but it had the taste of an orange, and another as large as a hen's
egg. We broke it in half, and found the inside was divided into two
divisions, in each of which were eight or ten seeds shaped like an almond,
and very good to eat when ripe; the tree nevertheless gives out a bad
odor, and the leaves are shaped like that of the walnut tree. We saw also
in the prairies a fruit like our filberts.
As we were descending the river we saw high rocks with hideous
monsters painted on them, and upon which the bravest Indians dare not
look. They are as large as a calf, with head and horns like a goat; their
eyes red; beard like a tiger's; and a face like a man's. Their tails are
so long that they pass over their heads and between their fore legs, under
their belly, and ending like a fish's tail. They are painted red, green,
and black. They are so well drawn that I cannot believe they were drawn
by the Indians. And for what purpose they were made seems to me a great
mystery. As we fell down the river, and while we were discoursing upon
these monsters, we
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heard a great rushing and bubbling of waters, and small islands of
floating trees coming from the mouth of the Pekitanoni (the Missouri),
with such rapidity that we could not trust ourselves to go near it. The
water of this river is so muddy that we could not drink it. It so
discolors the Mississippi as to make the navigation of it dangerous. This
river comes from the north-west, and empties into the Mississippi, and on
its banks are situated a number of Indian villages. We judged by the
compass, that the Mississippi discharged itself into the Gulf of Mexico.
It would, however, have been more agreeable if it had discharged itself
into the South Sea or Gulf of California.
The Indians told us that by ascending the Peketanoni, about six days'
journey from its mouth, we would find a beautiful prairie twenty or thirty
which is not difficult to navigate. This river runs towards the
South-west for ten or fifteen leagues, after which it enters a small lake,
which is the source of another deep river, running to the West, where it
empties into the sea. I do not doubt that this is the Vermilion sea, and
hope I shall have, one time or other, the oppurtunity of undertaking its
discovery, and instructing the poor Indian who has been so long groping
his way in heathen darkness. But leaving this digression, and now having
escaped the dangers of being swamped by the current and floating timber of
this rapid river, I return to the subject or our voyage. After having
gone about tewnty leagues to the South, and alittle less to the
South-east, we met another river called Ouabouskigou (the Ohio), which
runs into the Mississippi in the latitude of 36 N. But before we arrived
there, we passed through a most formidable passage to the Indians, who
believe that a manitoa or demon resides there, to devour travelers, and
which the Indians told us to make us abandon our voyage.
This demon is only a bluff of rocks, twenty feet high, against which
the river runs wiht great violence, and being thrown back by the rocks and
island near it, the water makes a great noise and flows with great
rapidity through a narrow channel, which is certainly dangerous to canoes.
The Ouabouskigou (the Ohio) comes from the East. The Chouanous (the
Shawanese) live on its banks, and are so numerous that I have been
informed there are thirty-eight villages of that nation situated on this
river: they are a very harmless people. The Iroquois are constantly
making war upon them, without any provocation, because they have no
firearms, and carrying them into captivity. At a little distance above
the mouth of this river, our men discoverd some
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banks of iron ore, of which they brought several specimens into our canoe.
There is also here a kind of fat earth, of three different colors, purple,
red, and yellow, which turns the water of the river into a deep-blood
color. We also discovered a red sand which is very heavy. I put some of
it upon my oar, which dyed it red. We had seen no reeds, or canes, but
they now began to make their appearance, and grew so thick that cattle
could not make their way through them. They are of an agreeable green
color, and grow very high. Their tops are crowned with long and sharp
leaves.
Up to the present time we had not seen any mosquitoes, but they now
began to be very troublesome. The Indians who live in this part of the
country, in order to protect themselves from the mosquitoes, are obliged
to build their huts differently from other Indians. They drive into the
ground long poles, very near one another, which support a large hurdle,
upon which they lie, instead of a floor, and under which they make a fire.
The smoke passes through it, and drives away the mosquitoes. The roof of
the hurdle is covered with skins and bark, which protects them from rain,
and the insupportable heat of their summers. For the same reason we were
also obliged to make an awning over our canoes with our sails. As we were
gliding along with the force of the current we perceived Indians on land
armed with guns, waiting for us to come ashore. Our men prepared
themselves to fight, and it was resolved to let them fire first. As we
came near, I spoke to them in the language of the Hurons, and showed them
my calumet of peace; but they would not answer me, which we took for a
declaration of war.
We resolved, however, to pass them, and as we came nearer, they
desired us, in a friendly manner, to come ashore. We therefore
disembarked, and went to their village. They entertained us with buffalo
and bear's meat, and white plums, which were excellent. We observed they
had guns, knives, axes, shovels, glass beads, and bottles in which they
put their powder. They wear their hair long as the Iroguois, and their
women are dressed as the Hurons. They told us that they were only within
ten days' journey of the sea; that they bought their goods from the
Europeans, who live towards the east, that they had images and chaplets,
and played upon musical instruments. That they were clothed as I was, and
were very kind to them. However, I did not see anything about them that
could persuade me that they had received any instructions about our holy
religion. I endeavoured to give them a general idea of it, and presented
them
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with some medals to remind them of it. The account the Indians gave us of
the sea was very encouraging, and therefore we applied our oars with great
vigor, in hopes of seeing it very soon. The banks of the river began to
be covered with high trees, which hindered us from observing the country
as we had done all along. The elm, cotton, and cypress trees are
beautiful on account of their size and height. We judged, from the
bellowing of the buffaloes, that some prairies were near. We saw quails,
and shot a parrot which had half of his head red, the neck yellow, and the
rest of the body green. We soon descended to latitude 33 north, and
found ourselves at a village on the river side called Mitchigamea.*
The Indians made a great noise, and appeared in arms, dividing
themselves into three parties, one of which stood on the shore, while the
others went into their canoes to intercept our retreat, and prevent our
escape. They were armed with bows and arrows, clubs, axes, and bucklers,
and commenced attacking us. Notwithstanding these preparations we invoked
our patroness, the Holy Virgin, and rowed directly for the shore. As we
came near, two young men threw themselves into the water to board my
canoe, which they would have done had not the rapidity of the current
prevented them; so they returned to the shore and threw their clubs at
us, which passed over our heads. It was in vain I showed them the
calumet, and made signs to them that we had not come to fight; they
continued to surround us, and were about to pierce us on all sides with
their arrows, when God suddenly touched their hearts, and the old men who
stood upon the bank stopped the ardor of their young men, and made signs
of peace, and came down to the shore, and throwing their bows and arrows
into our canoes, made signs for us to come ashore, which we did, not,
however, without some suspicions on our part.
I spoke to them in six different languages, but they did not
understand any one of them. At last they brought to us an old man who
spoke the Illinois, whom we told that we wished to go as far as the sea,
and then made them some presents. They understood what I meant, but I am
not sure they understood what I said to them of God, and things concerning
their salvation. It was, however, seed thrown on ground which would in
time become fruitful. They told us that at the next great village, called
Arkansea, eight or ten leagues farther down the river, we could learn all
about the sea. They feasted us
* An Indian village on the Mississippi, and supposed to be the site
of the present town of Helena.
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Page 295
with sagamite and fish, and we passed the night with them, not, however,
without some uneasiness. We embarked early next morning with our
interpreters and ten Indians, who went before us in a canoe. Having
arrived about half a league from Arkansea, we saw two canoes coming
towards us. The captain of one was standing up holding the calumet in his
hand, with which he made signs, according to the custom of the country.
He afterwards joined us, inviting us to smoke, and singing pleasantly. He
then gave us some sagamite and Indian bread to eat, and going before made
signs for us to follow him, which we did, but at some distance. They had
in the meantime prepared a kind of scaffold to receive us, adorned with
fine mats, upon which we sat down with the old men and warriors. We
fortunately found among them a young man who spoke Illinois much better
than the interpreter whom we brought with us from Mitchigamea.* We made
them some small presents, which they received with great civility, and
seemed to admire what I told them about God, the creation of the world,
and the mysteries of our holy faith, telling us, by the interpreter, that
they wished us to remain with them for the purpose of instructing them.
We then asked them what they knew of the sea, and they said we were
within ten days' journey of it, but we might perform it in five. That
they were unacquainted with the nations below, because their enemies had
prevented them from visiting them. That the hatchet, knives and beads had
been sold to them by the nations of the East, and were in part brought by
the Illinois, who live four days' journey to the West. That the Indians
whom we had met with guns were their enemies, who hindered them from
trading with the Europeans, and if we persisted in going any farther, we
would expose ourselves to other nations who were their enemies. During
this conversation they continued all day to feast us with sagamite, dog
meat, and roasted corn out of large wooden dishes. These Indians are very
courteous, and give freely of what they have, but their provisions are but
indifferent, because they are afraid to go a hunting on account of their
enemies. They make three crops of Indian corn a year. They roast and
boil it in large earthen pots very curiously made. They have also large
baked earth on plates, which they use for different purposes. The men go
naked and wear their hair short. They pierce their noses and ears, and
wear rings of glass beads in them.
* This name is still applied to a lake a little to the north of the
river St. Francis.
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The women cover themselves with skins, and divide their hair into two
tresses, which they wear behind their back without any ornament. Their
feasts are without any ceremony, they serve their meats in large dishes,
and every one eats as much as he pleases. Their language is extremely
difficult, and although I tried, I never could pronounce a word of it.
Their cabins are made with the bark of trees, and are generally very wide
and long. They lie at both ends on mats raised on a platform two feet
higher than the floor. They keep their corn in panniers made of rushes.
They have no beavers, and all their commodities are buffalo hides. It
never snows in this country, and they have no other winter than continued
heavy rains, which makes the difference between their summer and winter.
They have no other fruit but watermelons, though their soil might produce
any other, if they knew how to cultivate it. In the evening the chiefs
held a secret council, wherein some proposed to kill us; but the great
chief opposed this base design, and sent for us to dance the calumet,
which he presented us with to seal our common friendship. M. Joliet and I
held a council, to deliberate upon what we should do-whether to proceed
further, or return to Canada, content with the discoveries we had made.
Having satisfied ourselves that the Gulf of Mexico was in latitude
31 40', and that we could reach it in three or four days' journey from
the Akansea (Arkansas River), and that the Mississippi discharged itself
into it, and not to the eastward of the Cape of Florida, nor into the
California Sea, we resolved to return home. We considered that the
advantage of our travels would be altogether lost to our nation if we fell
into the hands of the Spaniards, from whom we could expect no other
treatment than death or slavery; besides, we saw that we were not
prepared to resist the Indians, the allies of the Europeans, who
continually infested the lower part of this river; we therefore came to
the conclusion to return, and make a report to those who had sent us. So
that having rested another day, we left the village of the Akansea, on the
seventeenth of July, 1673, having followed the Mississippi from the
latitude of 42 to 34, and preached the Gospel to the utmost of my power,
to the nations we visited. We then ascended the Mississippi with great
difficulty against the current, and left it in the latitude of 38 north,
to enter another river (Illinois), which took us to the lake of the
Illinois (Michigan), which is a much shorter way than through the River
Mesconsin (Wisconsin), by which we entered the Mississippi.
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Page 297
I never saw a more beautiful country than we found on this river.
The prairies are covered with buffaloes, stags, goats, and the rivers and
lakes with swans, ducks, geese, parrots, and beavers. The river upon
which we sailed was wide, deep and placid for sixty-five leagues, and
navigable most all the year round. There is a portage of only half a
league into the lake of the Illinois (Michigan). We found on the banks of
this river, a village called Kuilka, consisting of seventy-four cabins.
They received us very kindly, and we promised to return to instruct them.
The chief, with most of the youth of this village, accompanied us to the
lake, from whence we returned to the Bay of Puans (Green Bay), about the
end of September.* If my perilous journey had been attended with no other
advantage than the salvation of one soul, I would think my perils
sufficiently rewarded. I preached the Gospel to the Illinois of Perouacca
for three days together. My instructions made such an impression upon
this poor people, that as soon as we were about to depart they brought to
me a dying child to baptize, which I did, about half an hour before he
died, and which, by a special providence, God was pleased to save.
* The following table of distances offer the best means of forming
some idea of the whole distance passed over by Marquette and Joliet in
this tour.
MILES
From Green Bay (Puans) up Fox River to the portage, 175
From the portage down the Wisconsin to the Mississippi, 175
From the mouth of the Wisconsin to the mouth of the Arkansas, 1087
From the Arkansas to the Illinois River, 547
From the mouth of the Illinois to Chicago, 305
From Chicago to Green Bay by the lake shore, 260
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[note: pp. 298-301 are formatted tables that are best viewed as scanned images of the original pages. These images were scanned at 150 percent of their original size for readability.]
