Chicago and the Old Northwest, 1673-1835 / A study of the evolution of the northwestern frontier, together with a history of Fort Dearborn

by Milo Milton Quaife

The river was the Des Moines, the largest western tributary of the Mississippi above the Missouri; and the point where the village stood was sixty leagues from its mouth, in the vicinity, probably, of the modern capital of Iowa. Nontagarouche, the Iroquois war chief, proposed to De Noyelles that the whole party should swim across. This the latter declared to be impossible, on account of the cold. He further pointed out that they had only sixty men at hand, the others having scattered in search of the village, the tracks of whose occupants they had been following; and that, even if it were possible, the enemy would kill them as fast as they landed. He proposed, therefore, to reassemble the party and, as they were still undiscovered, to go higher up the river and construct rafts on which to cross over. They would then be in a position to attack the enemy with arms in their hands, and with some prospect of success. Nontagarouche replied that De Noyelles "was no man." At this the brave Frenchman's anger blazed forth. "Dog," he cried, "if thou art so brave, swim over and let us see what Thou wilt do."

The chief did not immediately avail himself of this invitation, but his insubordination destroyed the last hope of a successful issue of the campaign. The details of the action that followed are not entirely clear, though its main features may be followed with assurance. The Iroquois, with some of the French, left the commander, who proceeded along the river about a league. Meanwhile others of the army, probably some of those who had spread out in search of the hostile village, had crossed the river on a jam of driftwood and logs, and joined battle with the enemy. The advance party, consisting of seven Frenchmen and twenty-three Indians, thus found itself confronted by two hundred and fifty Sacs and Foxes. Onorakinguiah, an Iroquois chief from the Sault St. Louis, cried out: "My French and Indian brothers, we are dead men, but we must sell our lives very dearly and not let ourselves be captured." They fought so fiercely that the foe was at first driven back. On perceiving the small number of their opponents, however, they pressed forward with the design of surrounding them, seeing which the French and Iroquois in turn retreated, fighting as best they might. One of them ran to report the situation to De Noyelles, who had crossed the river and returned to the village which he found had been deserted. On receiving the report of the plight of the advance guard he sent forward all of the men who were with him, with word that he would Join them with the main body as soon as it should arrive. A half-hour later he moved forward with such as had joined him in the meantime, and the combat was continued for several hours.

Toward nightfall the Foxes attempted to scalp the wounded on the other side. This led De Noyelles to order his force to fall back in search of a suitable spot to fortify. A detachment of fifty men was made to continue the fighting and cover the work of the remainder while constructing the fort. Meanwhile the contingent of Kickapoos observed the contest from a near-by eminence, debating, as De Noyelles feared, whether they should join forces with the enemy.

The next day through the instrumentality of the disaffected Iroquois a council was held with the Sacs. They informed De Noyelles that but for the fact that the French had attacked them, and for the small number of Frenchmen, they would have surrendered; but that as the French were inferior in number to the Iroquois they feared the latter, when they were at a distance from the Foxes, would "put them in the Kettle." According to his own story, De Noyelles adopted in reply the tone of a conqueror. The Sacs were told they might come forth in perfect safety, and were promised protection from the Iroquois. In truth, De Noyelles had so little control over his allies that he could not protect his own soldiers from being beaten by them before his face. This fear removed, however, the Sacs discovered other obstacles. The weather was too cold for their women and children to travel; if the Sacs really had any desire to join the French the project was effectually prevented by the Foxes. They informed their allies that in case they deserted to the French they would immediately "eat" their women and children.

For four days longer the French faced their foe. During this time they were sorely beset by hunger, their menu consisting of twelve dogs and a horse; this supply being exhausted, they were reduced to eating their moccasins. The Iroquois now proposed to abandon them, and De Noyelles was forced to give up the enterprise. He covered his failure as well as possible by sending a "collar"[153] to the Sacs offering to grant them their lives on condition that they desert the Foxes and return to their old homes at Green Bay. This the Sacs promised to do. The French then retired and made their way to Fort Chartres.[154]

[153] A belt to accompany a formal communication of a public character.

[154] For the narrative of this expedition I have drawn chiefly upon the report of De Noyelles, printed in Wisconsin Historical Collections, XVII, 221-30. It differs from the report of Hocquart, the intendant, in some respects, but aside from the fact that De Noyelles was the leader of the expedition while Hocquart remained in Canada, the latter had an interest in misrepresenting the facts, in order to minimize as much as possible the failure which had occurred.

The expedition had extended over seven months of time during which the party had traversed hundreds of miles of wilderness in the dead of winter, exposed to the inclemency of the elements, and much of the time in immediate peril of starvation. At the end, confronted by two hundred and fifty Sacs and Foxes, and with disaffection rife among his Indian allies, De Noyelles had been compelled to give up and retreat. The only immediate result was the infliction of a slight loss upon the enemy in the battle, and the promise of the Sacs to abandon the Foxes and return to Green Bay. Both the governor and the intendant joined in approval of the conduct of De Noyelles, the intendant expressing his surprise that Frenchmen should be able to endure the hardships which his party had surmounted.[155] The governor declared that the savages admitted the courage of the French to be equal to every obstacle, and that they would seek the enemy "at the end of the world."[156]

[155] Wisconsin Historical Collections, XVII, 232.

[156] Ibid., 219.