[465] MS. Letter—St. Ange to D’Abbadie, Sept. 9.
[466] D’Abbadie’s correspondence with St. Ange goes far to exonerate him; and there is a letter addressed to him from General Gage, in which the latter thanks him very cordially for the efforts he had made in behalf of Major Loftus, aiding him to procure boats and guides, and make other preparations for ascending the river.
The correspondence alluded to forms part of a collection of papers preserved in the archives of the Department of the Marine and Colonies at Paris. These papers include the reports of various councils with the Indian tribes of the Illinois, and the whole official correspondence of the French officers in that region during the years 1763-5. They form the principal authorities for this part of the narrative, and throw great light on the character of the Indian war, from its commencement to its close.
[467] London Mag. XXXIII. 380. MS. Detail de ce qui s’est passé à La Louisiane à l’occasion de la prise de possession des Illinois.
[468] MS. Correspondence of Pittman with M. D’Abbadie, among the Paris Documents.
[469] MS. Letter—Campbell to Gage, Feb. 24, 1766.
[470] By the correspondence between the French officers of Upper and Lower Louisiana, it appears that Pontiac’s messengers, in several instances, had arrived in the vicinity of New Orleans, whither they had come, partly to beg for aid from the French, and partly to urge the Indians of the adjacent country to bar the mouth of the Mississippi against the English.
[471] Pittman, European Settlements on the Mississippi, 10. The author of this book is the officer mentioned in the text as having made an unsuccessful attempt to reach the Illinois.
[472] At all friendly meetings with Indians, it was customary for the latter, when the other party had sustained any signal loss, to commence by a formal speech of condolence, offering, at the same time, a black belt of wampum, in token of mourning. This practice may be particularly observed in the records of early councils with the Iroquois.
[473] MS. Report of Conference with the Shawanoe and Miami delegates from Pontiac, held at New Orleans, March, 1765. Paris Documents.