Att last we take our journey to see the issue of a prosperous adventure in such a dangerous enterprise. We resolved not to be the first that should complaine. The ffrench weare together in order, the wildmen also, saving my brother & I that weare accustomed to such like voyages, have foreseene what happened afterwards. Before our setting forth we made some guifts, & by that means we weare sure of their good will, so that he & I went into the boats of the wild men. We weare nine and twenty french in number and 6 wildmen. We embarked our traine in the night, because our number should not be knowne to some spyes that might bee in some ambush to know our departure; ffor the Iroquoits are allwayes abroad. We weare 2 nights to gett to mont royall, where 8 Octanac stayed for us & 2 ffrench. If not for that company, we had passed the river of the meddowes, which makes an isle of Mont royall and joines itselfe to the lake of St Louis, 3 leagues further then the hight of that name.
We stayed no longer there then as the french gott themselves ready. We tooke leave without noise of Gun. We cannot avoid the ambush of that eagle, which is like the owle that sees better in the night then in the day. We weare not sooner come to the first river, but our wildmen sees 5 sorts of people of divers countrys laden with marchandise and gunns, which served them for a shew then for defence if by chance they should be sett on. So that the glorie begins to shew itsselfe, no order being observed among them. The one sings, the other before goes in that posture without bad encounter. We advanced 3 dayes. There was no need of such a silence among us. Our men composed onely of seaven score men, we had done well if we had kept together, not to goe before in the river, nor stay behind some 2 or 3 leagues. Some 3 or 4 boats now & then to land to kill a wild beast, & so putt themselves into a danger of their lives, & if there weare any precipice the rest should be impotent to helpe. We warned them to looke to themselves. They laughed att us, saying we weare women; that the Iroquoits durst not sett on them. That pride had such power that they thought themselves masters of the earth; but they will see themselves soone mistaken. How that great God that takes great care of the most wild creatures, and will that every man confesses his faults, & gives them grace to come to obedience for the preservation of their lives, sends them a remarquable power & ordnance, which should give terrour and retinue to those poore misled people from the way of assurance.
As we wandered in the afforesaid maner all a sunder, there comes a man alone out of the wood with a hattchett in his hand, with his brayer, & a cover over his shoulders, making signes aloud that we should come to him. The greatest part of that flock shewed a palish face for feare att the sight of this man, knowing him an ennemy. They approached not without feare & apprehension of some plot. By this you may see the boldnesse of those buzards, that think themselves hectors when they see but their shadowes, & tremble when they see a Iroquoit. That wild man seeing us neerer, setts him downe on the ground & throwes his hattchett away & raises againe all naked, to shew that he hath no armes, desires them to approach neerer for he is their friend, & would lose his life to save theirs. Hee shewed in deed a right captayne for saveing of men that runned to their ruine by their indiscretion & want of conduct; and what he did was out of meere piety, seeing well that they wanted wit, to goe so like a company of bucks, every one to his fancy, where his litle experience leads him, nor thinking that danger wherin they weare, shewing by their march they weare no men, for not fearing. As for him, he was ready to die to render them service & prisoner into their hands freely. "For," saith he, "I might have escaped your sight, but that I would have saved you. I feare," sayth he, "not death"; so with that comes downe into the watter to his midle. There comes many boats about him, takes him into one of the boats, tying a coard fast about his body. There is he fastned. He begins to sing his fatal song that they call a nouroyall. That horrid tone being finished, makes a long, a very long speech, saying, "Brethren, the day the sunne is favourable to mee, appointed mee to tell you that yee are witlesse before I die, neither can they escape their ennemys, that are spred up and downe everywhere, that watches all moments their coming to destroy them. Take great courage, brethren, sleepe not; the ennemy is att hand. They wait for you; they are soe neare that they see you, and heare you, & are sure that you are their prey. Therefore I was willing to die to give you notice. For my part that what I have ben I am a man & commander in the warrs, and tooke severall prisoners; yet I would put meselfe in death's hands to save your lives. Believe me; keepe you altogether; spend not your powder in vaine, thinking to frighten your enemys by the noise of your guns. See if the stoanes of your arrowes be not bent or loose; bend your bowes; open your ears; keepe your hattchetts sharpe to cutt trees to make you a fort; doe not spend soe much greas to greas yourselves, but keep it for your bellies. Stay not too long in the way. It's robbery to die with conduct."
That poore wretch spake the truth & gave good instructions, but the greatest part did not understand what he said, saving the hurrons that weare with him, and I, that tould them as much as I could perceive. Every one laughs, saying he himself is afraid & tells us that story. We call him a dogg, a woman, and a henne. We will make you know that we weare men, & for his paines we should burne him when we come to our country. Here you shall see the brutishnesse of those people that think themselves valliant to the last point. No comparison is to be made with them for vallour, but quite contrary. They passe away the rest of that day with great exclamations of joy, but it will not last long.
That night wee layd in our boats and made not the ketle boyle, because we had meat ready dressed. Every boat is tyed up in the rushes, whether out of feare for what the prisoner told them, or that the prisoner should escape, I know not. They went to sleepe without any watch. The ffrench began to wish & moane for that place from whence they came from. What will it be if wee heare yeatt cryes & sorrows after all? Past the breake of day every one takes his oare to row; the formost oares have great advantage. We heard the torrent rumble, but could not come to the land that day, although not farr from us. Some twelve boats gott afore us. These weare saluted with guns & outcrys. In the meane while one boat runs one way, one another; some men lands and runs away. We are all put to it; non knowes where he is, they are put to such a confusion. All those beasts gathers together againe frighted. Seeing no way to escape, gott themselves all in a heape like unto ducks that sees the eagle come to them.
That first feare being over a litle, they resolved to land & to make a fort with all speed, which was done in lesse then two houres. The most stupidest drowsy are the nimblest for the hattchett & cutting of trees. The fort being finished, every one maketh himselfe in a readiness to sustaine the assult if any had tempted. The prisoner was brought, who soone was despatched, burned & roasted & eaten. The Iroquoits had so served them, as many as they have taken. We mist 20 of our company, but some came safe to us, & lost 13 that weare killed & taken in that defeat. The Iroquoite finding himselfe weake would not venture, & was obliged to leave us least he should be discovered & served as the other. Neverthelesse they shewed good countenances, went & builded a fort as we have done, where they fortified themselves & feed on human flesh which they gott in the warres. They weare afraid as much as we, but far from that; ffor the night being come, every one imbarks himselfe, to the sound of a low trumpet, by the help of the darknesse. We went to the other side, leaving our marchandises for our ransome to the ennemy that used us so unkindly. We made some cariages that night with a world of paines. We mist 4 of our boats, so that we must alter our equipages. The wildmen complained much that the ffrench could not swime, for that they might be together. The ffrench seeing that they weare not able to undergo such a voyage, they consult together & for conclusion resolved to give an end to such labours & dangers; moreover, found themselves incapable to follow the wildmen who went with all the speed possible night & day for the feare that they weare in. The ffathers, seeing our weaknesse, desired the wildmen that they might have one or two to direct them, which by no means was granted, but bid us doe as the rest. We kept still our resolution, & knowing more tricks then they, would not goe back, which should be but disdainful & prejudiciall. We told them so plainly that we would finish that voyage or die by the way. Besides that the wildmen did not complaine of us att all, but incouraged us. After a long arguing, every one had the liberty to goe backwards or forwards, if any had courage to venter himselfe with us. Seeing the great difficulties, all with one consent went back againe, and we went on.
The wildmen weare not sorry for their departure, because of their ignorance in the affaire of such navigation. It's a great alteration to see one and 30 reduced to 2. We encouraged one another, both willing to live & die with one another; & that [is] the least we could doe, being brothers. Before we [went] to the lake of the hurrons we had crosses enough, but no encounter. We travelled onely in the night in these dangerous places, which could not be done without many vexations & labours. The vanity was somewhat cooler for the example we have seene the day before. The hungar was that tormented us most; for him we could not goe seeke for some wild beasts. Our chiefest food was onely some few fishes which the wildmen caught by a line, may be two dozens a whole day, no bigger then my hand.
Being come to the place of repose, some did goe along the water side on the rocks & there exposed ourselves to the rigour of the weather. Upon these rocks we find some shells, blackish without and the inner part whitish by reason of the heat of the sun & of the humidity. They are in a maner glued to the rock; so we must gett another stone to gett them off by scraping them hard. When we thought to have enough [we] went back again to the Cottages, where the rest weare getting the litle fishes ready with trips, [Footnote: Trips,—meaning "tripe des boiled resolves itself into a black glue, roche, a species of lichen, which being nauseous but not without nourishment." Discovery of the Great West, by Parkman.] gutts and all. The kittle was full with the scraping of the rocks, which soone after it boyled became like starch, black and clammie & easily to be swallowed. I think if any bird had lighted upon the excrements of the said stuff, they had stuckt to it as if it weare glue. In the fields we have gathered severall fruits, as goosberyes, blackberrys, that in an houre we gathered above a bushell of such sorte, although not as yett full ripe. We boyled it, and then every one had his share. Heere was daintinesse slighted. The belly did not permitt us to gett on neither shoos nor stockins, that the better we might goe over the rocks, which did [make] our feet smart [so] that we came backe. Our feet & thighs & leggs weare scraped with thorns, in a heape of blood. The good God looked uppon those infidels by sending them now & then a beare into the river, or if we perceived any in an Isle forced them to swime, that by that means we might the sooner kill them. But the most parts there abouts is so sterill that there is nothing to be seene but rocks & sand, & on the high wayes but deale trees that grow most miraculously, for that earth is not to be seene than can nourish the root, & most of them trees are very bigg & high. We tooke a litle refreshment in a place called the lake of Castors, which is some 30 leagues from the first great lake. Some of those wildmen hid a rest [Footnote: "Hid a rest," or cache.] as they went down to the ffrench; but the lake was so full of fishes we tooke so much that served us a long while.
We came to a place where weare abundance of Otters, in so much that I believe all gathered to hinder our passage. We killed some with our arrows, not daring to shoote because we discovered there abouts some tracks, judging to be our ennemy by the impression of their feet in the sand. All knowes there one another by their march, for each hath his proper steps, some upon their toes, some on their heele, which is natural to them, for when they are infants the mother wrapeth them to their mode. Heer I speake not of the horrid streams we passed, nor of the falls of the water, which weare of an incredible height. In some parts most faire & delicious, where people formerly lived onely by what they could gett by the bow & arrows. We weare come above 300 leagues allwayes against the streame, & made 60 carriages, besides drawing, besides the swift streams we overcame by the oares & poles to come to that litle lake of Castors which may be 30 or 40 leagues in compasse. The upper end of it is full of Islands, where there is not time lost to wander about, finding wherewithall to make the kettle boyle with venison, great bears, castors & fishes, which are plenty in that place. The river that we goe to the great lake is somewhat favorable. We goe downe with ease & runing of the watter, which empties itsselfe in that lake in which we are now coming in. This river hath but 8 high & violent streams, which is some 30 leagues in length. The place where we weare is a bay all full of rocks, small isles, & most between wind and water which an infinite [number] of fishes, which are seene in the water so cleare as christiall. That is the reason of so many otters, that lives onely uppon fish. Each of us begins to looke to his bundle & merchandizes and prepare himselfe for the bad weather that uses to be on that great extent of water. The wildmen finds what they hid among the rocks 3 months before they came up to the french. Heere we are stiring about in our boats as nimble as bees and divided ourselves into 2 companys. Seaven boats went towards west norwest and the rest to the South.
After we mourned enough for the death of our deare countrymen that weare slained coming up, we take leave of each other with promise of amitie & good correspondence one with another, as for the continuance of peace, as for the assistance of strength, if the enemy should make an assault. That they should not goe to the french without giving notice one to another & soe goe together. We that weare for the South went on severall dayes merily, & saw by the way the place where the ffathers Jesuits had heretofore lived; a delicious place, albeit we could but see it afarre off. The coast of this lake is most delightfull to the minde. The lands smooth, and woods of all sorts. In many places there are many large open fields where in, I believe, wildmen formerly lived before the destruction of the many nations which did inhabit, and tooke more place then 600 leagues about; for I can well say that from the river of Canada to the great lake of the hurrons, which is neere 200 leagues in length & 60 in breadth, as I guesse, for I have [been] round about it, plenty of fish. There are banks of sand 5 or 6 leagues from the waterside, where such an infinite deale of fish that scarcely we are able to draw out our nett. There are fishes as bigg as children of 2 years old. There is sturgeon enough & other sorte that is not knowne to us. The South part is without isles, onely in some bayes where there are some. It is delightfull to goe along the side of the watter in summer where you may pluck the ducks.