We had no motive to regret that resolution; for we experienced that this solitary tract not only afforded us enchanting views of lovely scenery; it was also the abode of noble-hearted mortals. Immediately after our arrival a very amiable gentleman, introducing himself as Mr. W.A. French, a wealthy lumber merchant of this place, visited us on board; giving us a cordial welcome. Not satisfied with a kind reception, he and his pretty wife presented us with all sorts of provisions, indigenous to this locality; thus evincing the abundant supply of delicacies at their disposal, notwithstanding their residing in such solitude.
The time passed with marvelous rapidity in the pleasant company of our new friends. When the gloom of the growing twilight reminded us of the fading day, we could hardly realize this fact. We wished to stay there another day; but when the following morning rose fair and beautiful in the clear heavens, the wind had changed to the southeast, which was disadvantageous for our mooring place; and it might have been dangerous for us to remain in that harbor, should the breeze become violent.
Leaving False Presqu'ile, we pursued our voyage under the most favorable auspices.
After a course of several hours, we reached Cheboygan, a town situated on the northern shore of the Michigan Peninsula, thirteen miles from the Straits of Mackinaw. Lumber trade is carried on especially in this place, which contains about 7,500 inhabitants.
Resuming our trip the next forenoon, a short course brought us to the terminus of our voyage on Lake Huron; when reaching the Straits of Mackinaw, whose blue green waves divide the State of Michigan.
Extending nearly nine miles in circumference, and rising at its highest point over 300 feet above the waves, we beheld the famous Mackinaw Island, which has filled an important place in the history of exploration. Here was the meeting place of the daring French voyageurs and aventuriers, before the pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. Many wild and thrilling incidents in the lives of Marquette, Hennepin, and La Salle occurred on this island; and over at Point St. Ignace, in plain view, Marquette was escorted to his burial place by a hundred canoes of plumed and painted Ottawa and Huron warriors in 1677.
Just across, on the most northern point of the Lower Peninsula, stood old
Fort Mackinaw, the scene of the terrible massacre of the whites by the
Indians under Pontiac in 1763.
On this island were fought two battles in the war of 1812. It was here that Schoolcraft wrote his celebrated History of the North American Indians, and the Legend of Hiawatha, which Longfellow, visiting him here, afterward expanded into a poem.
The island's varied scenery, and its history and traditions, have been portrayed in vivid word pictures by Marion Harland in a book, bearing the title "With the Best Intentions," by which she has recently added to her wide fame.
Having crossed the strait at its narrowest part four miles in width, we caught sight of the beautiful waters of Lake Michigan, the only one in the group of the North American great lakes which extends entirely within the territory of the United States, having a maximum breadth of eighty four miles, and a depth varying from 700 to 1,000 feet. Its length amounts to 345 miles from the northwestern corner of Indiana and the northern part of Illinois to the Straits of Mackinaw.