The day of my departure was fixed for the 24th of April, 1684; but at last, that those with whom I was obliged to confer daily by order of the Ministers of France never doubted in the least of my discontinuing to see them, I told them that I was obliged to make a little journey into the country for some family business, & I could be useful to them during that time by going to London, where I arrived the 10th of May.
At the moment of my arrival I had the honor of going to see the gentlemen, Ecuyer Young and the Chevalier Hayes, both of whom were interested in the Hudson's Bay Company, who gave me a good reception in showing me the joy that they felt at my return, & in giving me such assurances that I should receive on their part & on that of their company all manner of satisfaction. I then explained fully to them the nature of the service that I expected to render to His Majesty, to the Company, & to the Nation, in establishing the Beaver trade in Canada & making those to profit by it who were interested, to the extent of 15 or 20,000 Beaver skins that I hoped to find already in the hands of the French that I had left there, that would cost to them only the Interest that I had in the thing, & the just satisfaction that was owing to the French who had made the trade for them.
These gentlemen having received in an agreeable manner my proposition, & wishing to give me some marks of their satisfaction, did me the honour of presenting me to His Majesty & to His Royal Highness, to whom I made my submission, the offer of my very humble services, a sincere protestation that I would do my duty, that even to the peril of my life I would employ all my care & attention for the advantage of the affairs of the Company, & that I would seek all occasions of giving proof of my zeal & inviolable fidelity for the service of the King, of all which His Majesty & His Royal Highness appeared satisfied, & did me the favour of honouring me with some evidences of their satisfaction upon my return, & of giving me some marks of their protection.
After that I had several conferences in the assembled body, & in particular with the gentlemen interested in the Hudson's Bay Company, in which I made them acquainted in what manner it was necessary for them to proceed there for establishing to the best advantage the Beaver trade in the Northern country, the means of properly sustaining it, & of ruining in a short time the trade with foreigners, & to that end I would commence by becoming master of both the fort & the settlement of the French, as well as of all the furs that they had traded for since my departure, on the condition that my influence would serve to convert them, & that my nephew whom I had left commandant in that fort & the other French would be paid what would be to them their legitimate due. These gentlemen, satisfied with what I had said to them, believed with justice that they would be able to have entire confidence in me. As for that, having resolved to entrust me with their orders for going with their shipps, equipped & furnished with everything to found that establishment in putting into execution my projects, they gave the power of settling in my own mind & conscience the claims of my nephew & the other French, assuring me that they would be satisfied with the account that I would present to them. I accepted that commission with the greatest pleasure in the world, and I hurried with so much diligence the necessary things for my departure, that in less than eight days I was in a condition to embark myself. This was done even without any precaution on my part for my own interests, for I did not wish to make any composition with these gentlemen. I said to them that since they had confidence in me, I wished also on my part to make use of it generously with them and remit everything to the success of my voyage, and on my return, in the hope that I had that they would satisfy my honesty of purpose, and that after having given to them some marks of my sincerity in executing the things to perform which I had engaged myself for their service, they would render me all the justice that I had cause for hoping from gentlemen of honour and probity. The ships destined for Hudson's Bay and the execution of my design were ready to make sail, & myself being all prepared for embarking, I took leave of the gentlemen of the Company in giving them fresh assurances of the good success of my voyage if God did me the favour of preserving me from the dangers to which I went to expose myself; of which they appeared so well satisfied that the Chevalier Hayes dared not flatter himself of the advantage that I promissed to him, that they should get from 15 to 20,000 Beavers that I hoped to find in the hands of the French, said, in embracing me, that the company would be satisfied if I had only 5,000 of them there.
The event has justified that which I predicted, and these gentlemen have not been deceived in the hopes that I have given to them. I departed from the port of Gravesend the 17th of the same month of May, in the ship called "The Happy Return," in the company of 2 others that these gentlemen sent also to Port Nelson for the same reason. The winds having been favourable for us, we arrived in a few days upon the western side of Buttons Bay without anything happening to us worth mentioning, but the winds and the currents. We having been made to drift to the South of Port Nelson about 40 leagues, and the ice having separated the ship in which I was from the 2 others in Hudson's Straits, I began to doubt of succeeding in my enterprise by the apprehension that I had that the 2 ships having arrived sooner than ours the men who were inside would not hazard themselves to take any step which could at all do them any damage. Under this anxiety, knowing the necessity that there was that I should arrive the first, I resolved to embark myself in a shallop that we had brought to be employed in any service that might be necessary. I ordered the captain to equip it, and although but little more than 20 leagues from Port Nelson, I put myself on board with 7 men, and after 48 hours of fatigue, without having been able to take any rest because of the danger that there was to us, we found by the breadth of Hayes river, which having recognized, at last we touched land at a point north of the river, where we landed with an Englishman who spoke good french, whom I wished to make accompany me in order that he might be the witness of all that I did.
After having come to land I recognized by certain marks that my nephew, having heard the noise of the cannon of the English ships, had come to the place where we landed to know if his father or myself were arrived, and that he had himself returned after having recognized that they were English shipps. These same marks gave me also to know that he had left me further away from those that I had given him since I had established him for Governor in my absence. The which should inform me of his condition and the place where he was with his men; but I did not find it to the purpose of going as far as that place, that I had not learned truly the condition of the English who had arrived in the country since I had departed from it. I resolved then to embark myself afresh in the shallop to go and learn some news. I encouraged for that purpose the 7 men who were with me, who were so diligent that in spite of a contrary wind and tide we arrived in a very little time at the mouth of that great and frightful river of Port Nelson, where I had wished to see myself with such impatience that I had not dreamed a moment of the danger to which we had exposed ourselves. That pleasure was soon followed by another; for I saw at anchor in this same place 2 ships, of which one had the glorious flag of His Majesty hoisted upon his main mast, that I recognized to be the one that was commanded by Captain Outlaw when the one in which I was passed had been separated from the 2 others. At the same time I made the shallop approach & I perceived the new Governor with all his men under arms upon the deck, who demanded of us where our shallop came from, and who we were. Upon that I made myself known, & I went on board the ship, where I learned that the one which was alongside was an English frigate that had wintered in the Port of Nelson with the Governor, which port they had abandoned to retire themselves for fear of being insulted by the French & the savages; but that having been met with by Capt Outlaw going out of the bay, he had returned, having learned that I had thrown myself into the service of England, and that I came into the country to re-establish there everything to the advantage of the nation.
My first care after that was of making myself informed of what had passed between the English & the French since my departure & their arrival. By what the English told me I judged that it was proper to risque everything to try to join my nephew as soon as possible, & the men that I had left with him; in fine, of endeavouring to reach them by kindness, or to intercept them by cunning, before they received the shock upon what design I came, for that was of extreme consequence. Thus without waiting for the arrival of the ship in which I had come, I resolved to embark myself upon the same shallop, which was named "The Little Adventure;" which I did not, nevertheless, on the same day, because the Governor found it proper to delay the party until the following day, & of giving me other men in the place of those that I had brought, who sound themselves fatigued. I embarked myself on the morrow, early in the morning, with Captain Gazer; but the wind being found contrary, I had myself landed on the coast, with Captain Gazer & the Englishman who spoke French, & after having sent back the shallop with the other men, I resolved to go by land as far as the place where I should find the marks of my nephew, which should make me recognise the place where he was & his condition. We marched, all three, until the morrow morning; but being arrived at the place where I had told my nephew to leave me some marks, which having taken up, I learned that he & his men had left our old houses & that they had built themselves another of them upon an island above the rapids of the river Hayes. After that we continued our route until opposite to the houses which had been abandoned, where I hoped that we should discover something, or at least that we should make ourselves seen or heard by firing some reports of the gun & making of smoke; in which my attempt was not altogether vain, for after having rested some time in that place we perceived 10 canoes of savages, who descended the river. I believed at first that it would be probable they had there some French with them; that my nephew would be able to send to discover who were the people newly arrived, which obliged me to tell Captain Gazer that I should go down to the bank of the river to speak to them; that I prayed him to await me upon the heights without any apprehension, & that in a little while he would be able to render evidence of my fidelity for the service of the Company. I was at the same moment met by the savages, & from the bank of the river I made them the accustomed signal, to the end of obliging them to come towards me; but having perceived that they did not put themselves to the trouble of doing it, I spoke to them in their language, for to make myself known; which done, they approached the bank, & not recognising me, they demanded of me to see the marks that I had; which having shown them, they gave evidence, by their cries & postures of diversion, the pleasure that they had of my arrival. I learned then from them that my nephew & the other Frenchmen were above the rapids of the river, distant about 4 leagues from the place where I was, & that they had told them that my brother-in-law, des Groisille, should also come with me; which obliged me telling them that he was arrived, & that they would see him in a few days. Then I told them that we had always loved them as our brothers, & that I would give them some marks of my amity, for which they thanked me in begging me to not be angry for that which, by counsel, they had been trading with the English, nor of that when I found them going to meet their captain, who had gone across some woods, with 20 men, to the English ships, to procure some powder & guns, which they did; that their laying over for a month, in awaiting for me, had compelled them, but that since I had arrived they would not go on farther, & that their chief, whom they went to inform of my arrival, would speak more of it to me. As I had occasion for some one among them to inform my nephew that I was in the country, I asked of all of them if they loved the son of des Groisille, & if he had not some relation among them; upon which there was one of them who said to me, "He is my Son; I am ready to do that which thou wishest;" & at that moment, he having landed, I made him throw his Beaver skin on the ground, & after having called Captain Gazer, I spoke in these terms to this savage in the presence of all the others: "I have made peace with the English for love of you. They & I from henceforth shall be but one. Embrace this captain & myself in token of peace. He is thy new brother, & this one thy son. Go at once to him to carry this news, with the token of peace, & tell him to come to see me in this place here, whilst the savages of the Company go to attend me to the mouth of the river."
This savage did not fail to go & inform his son, my nephew, of my arrival, & of carrying to him the news of peace between the French & the English, during which we awaited with impatience his descent towards the place where we were; whom, nevertheless, did not arrive until the morrow, about 9 o'clock in the morning. I saw at first appear my nephew, in a canoe with 3 other Frenchmen, accompanied by another canoe of the savages that I had sent, & which came in advance to inform me of the arrival of my nephew. I promised to this savage & his comrade each one a watch-coat, & returned to them their Beaver skins, with the order of going to join those of their nation, & to wait for me at the mouth of the river. After that, Captain Gazer, the Englishman who spoke French, & myself waded into the water half-leg deep to land upon a little island where my nephew, with his men, would come on shore. He had arrived there before us, & he came to meet us, saluting me, greatly surprised at the union that I had made with the English. We then proceeded all together in his canoe as far as our old houses, where I had the English and French to enter, & whilst they entertained each other with the recital of their mutual hardships, I spoke privately to my nephew in these terms:—
"It is within your recollection, without doubt, of having heard your father relate how many pains & fatigues we have had in serving France during several years. You have also been informed by him that the recompense we had reason to hope for from her was a black ingratitude on the part of the Court as well as on the part of the company of Canada; & that they having reduced us to the necessity of seeking to serve elsewhere, the English received us with evidences of pleasure & of satisfaction. You know also the motives that have obliged your father & myself, after 13 years of service, to leave the English. The necessity of subsisting, the refusal that showed the bad intention of the Hudson's Bay Company to satisfy us, have given occasion to our separation, & to the establishment that we have made, & for which I left you in possession in parting for France. But you ignore, without doubt, that the Prince who reigns in England had disavowed the proceedings of the Company in regard to us, & that he had caused us to be recalled to his service, to receive the benefits of his Royal protection, & a complete satisfying of our own discontents. I have left your father in England, happier than we in this, that he is assured of his subsistance, and that he commences to taste some repose; whilst I come to inform you that we are now Englishmen, & that we have preferred the goodness & kindness of a clement & easy king, in following our inclinations, which are to serve people of heart & honour in preference to the offers that the King of France caused to be made to us by his ministers, to oblige us to work indirectly for his glory. I received an order, before leaving London, of taking care of you, & of obliging you to serve the English nation. You are young, & in a condition to work profitably for your fortune. If you are resolved to follow my sentiments I never will abandon you. You will receive the same treatment as myself. I will participate even at the expense of my interests for your satisfaction. I will have a care also of those who remain under my control in this place with you, & I shall leave nothing undone that will be able to contribute to your advancement. I love you; you are of my blood. I know that you have courage & resolution; decide for yourself promptly, & make me see by your response, that I wait for, that you are worthy of the goodness of the clement prince that I serve; but do not forget, above all things, the injuries that the French have inflicted upon one who has given his life to you, & that you are in my power."
When my nephew had heard all that I had to say to him, he protested to me that he had no other sentiments but mine, & that he would do all that I would wish of him, but that he begged me to have care of his mother; to which I answered that I had not forgotten that she was my sister, & that the confidence that he gave me evidence of had on that occasion imposed upon me a double engagement, which obliged me of having care of her & of him; with which, having been satisfied, he remitted to me the power of commandant that I had left to him, & having embraced him, I said to him that he should appear in the assembly of the English & French as satisfied as he should be, & leave the rest to my management. After which we re-entered into the house, & I commanded one of the Frenchmen to go out immediately & inform his comrades that all would go well if they should have an entire confidence in me & obey all my orders, which doing, they should want nothing. I ordered also this same Frenchman to inform the savages to come to me & work immediately with their comrades to bring back into the house newly built the Beaver skins buried in the wood; & to that end, to be able to work with more diligence, I told them I would double their rations. Then I told my nephew to cross the river with the Frenchman who served him as interpreter, & go by land to the north side at the rendezvous that I had given to the savages the preceding day, whilst I would make my way by water to the same meeting-place with Captain Gazer & 2 other men who remained with me; the which having embarked in my nephew's canoe, I descended the river as far as the mouth, where I found the savages, who awaited me with impatience, they having been joined the following day by 30 other canoes of savages that I had had warned to descend, by their captain who had come towards me. We were all together in the canoes of the savages & boarded some ships which were stranded upon Nelson's River.