On the 24th of April, 1615, Champlain left Honfleur with four missionaries (Jesuits) on board his vessel, and arrived without accident at Tadoussac on the 25th May. He proceeded immediately to the Sault St. Louis, when his first care was to arrange a treaty with the friendly Indians to assist them in their wars, on condition of their facilitating his enterprises of discovery, and with the view of advancing the progress of Christianity among them. By helping them to slay their enemies, he hoped to induce them to worship his God!
The Indians were to furnish two thousand five hundred warriors; and Champlain was to take as many men as he could, and besides, to give his allies some instruction in discipline, etc., which they received with great satisfaction, but, as by and by will be seen, by which they profited little.
Having arranged this matter, Champlain returned to the settlement to provide for the good conduct of all affairs during his proposed absence, and, on the 9th of June, started with an interpreter and another European, "myself third," he says, and ten savages, and by the Rivière des Prairies pursued his route to the Algenquin country; from thence he continued by land to the lake of the Nipiserini (Lake Nipissing) in 45¼° of latitude, where he arrived on the 26th of the same month, and remained two days; from thence he descended a river (Rivière des François) to the great Lake Attigouantan (Lake Huron), where he met some three hundred natives, with whom he "contracted friendship," making the chief a present of a hatchet, "with which he was as contented and joyful as if I had given him some rich present." The next day he continued his route along the shores of the lake to a village called Cahiagué, where the "army" was to rendezvous, having overtaken on the way thirteen or fourteen Frenchmen who had started before him from the Rivière des Prairies. He arrived at Cahiagué on the 17th of August, and was received with great gratitude and rejoicing by the Indians, who informed him that another and very warlike nation, the Entouhoronins(?), would join them with five hundred fighting men against the common enemy,—the Iroquois. The greater part of the "army" being assembled, they started together from the village on the 1st of September, and pursued their route, hunting as they went. On the 9th of October their scouts took eleven prisoners, "four women, one girl, three boys, and three men;" whereupon one of the chiefs began tormenting a female prisoner by cutting off one of her fingers; at which Champlain indignantly interfered, and blamed the chief, "Captain Yroquet," severely, representing that it was unworthy of a warrior, as he called himself, to behave cruelly to women, "who have no defence but their tears, and who, on account of their 'imbècilité et foiblesse' should be humanely treated," and that if such cruelties were continued, he could neither assist nor favour them in the war; so seeing that Champlain was seriously displeased, "Captain Yroquet" promised in future to spare the women, and only torment the men! On the following day, about three o'clock, they arrived before the enemy's fort, and commenced skirmishing, driving him into his entrenchments; after which the "allies" withdrew out of the enemy's sight, which seems to have angered Champlain extremely, moving him "to use and say rude and angry words to incite them to do their duty," not according to their councils, but in conformity with his notions. He proposed to construct a "cavallier," a sort of high platform, to overlook the enemy's palisades, in which five or six arquebusiers being placed would soon dislodge the foe; also "mantelets," or large shields, to protect them from arrows or stones. This being done, they attacked the fort, his arquebusiers doing great execution; but his allies seconded him so badly, making all kinds of blunders, that, after three hours combat, two of their chiefs and about fifteen of their men being wounded, and Champlain himself hurt in the leg and knee by arrows, they withdrew, in spite of all his remonstrances, and to his great indignation and disgust, saying, that when the five hundred promised men should arrive, they would attack the enemy again. The skirmishing continued till the 9th, in which the enemy seems to have had the best of it, as Champlain and his men were always obliged to bring off their friends, the enemy retreating at sight of them, dreading their firearms, "urging, by firm persuasion, that we ought not to mix in their quarrels," which was perfectly true. Seeing that the five hundred promised warriors did not arrive, the allies resolved on retreat, carrying off Champlain in a sort of basket on a man's back, "so tied and hampered," says he, "that I lost patience, and as soon as I had strength to support myself, I got out of that prison, or rather, of that Gehenna!" On their way back, they hunted a great deal, the savages being better, according to his notions, at that sport than at fighting. Champlain's explorings were very nearly being here ended, as one day having followed a curious bird too eagerly, he lost himself in the woods, and wandered about for three days and nights, subsisting on such game as he met with; at last he resolved to follow the course of some river or brook on the chance of its leading him to the river on whose banks the Indians were to encamp. Fortunately, he succeeded, and joined them in safety, but almost exhausted. They then all started on their return to the village (Cahiagué), where they arrived on the 23rd.
After recruiting his strength, Champlain resolved on visiting, during the winter, the tribes and country which the summer and the war had prevented his exploring. He accordingly started on the 17th of January (1616) for that purpose, but when he had arrived at the "Pisirinii" nation (Nipissing), he heard that a violent quarrel had broken out between his friends, the Algenquins, and their allies, which determined him to retrace his steps immediately, and endeavour to arrange the matter in dispute. He got back to the village on the 15th of February, and managed with great difficulty, by dint of persuasion, to patch up a sort of hollow truce, the Algenquins retiring to their own village, "saying they would no more winter there."
During the four or five months that he remained in the Indian territory, Champlain diligently examined the country, and studied the manners, customs, mode of life, ceremonies, and form of the assemblies of the natives, all of which he describes in his usual forcible and plain style. He left Cahiagué on the 20th May, and accompanied by many of the Indians arrived, after forty days journey, at Sault St. Louis, where he found Du Pont Gravé, who had just arrived from France with two ships, and who had despaired of again seeing him, having been told by some natives that he was dead. From thence he proceeded to the main settlement at Quebec. After three days sojourn there he went on to Tadoussac, and from thence embarked with Du Pont Gravé on the 3rd of August. On the 10th September, 1616, he arrived at Honfleur, "where," he says, "we rendered thanks and praises to God for having preserved us from the many perils and hazards to which we had been exposed, and for having brought us back in safety to our country; to Him, then, be glory and honour for ever! So be it."
In 1617 Champlain again visited his colony, where he found all in a prosperous condition; he therefore returned to France in the fall of the year, his presence in Paris being apparently more required than in Quebec, from the cabals, intrigues, and suits in which the company was continually engaged. The difficulties were materially increased by the pretensions of the States of Brittany to liberty of trade with New France, and which had been ratified by the Royal Council; but Champlain bestired himself so actively, and pressed the associates to action so strongly, that the permission was withdrawn, and the Bretons prohibited from the traffic without the consent of the company.
In the year 1618 Champlain continued to urge the associates to greater activity and exertion, advising them to send out more men and materials than by their articles they were strictly bound to do, as the troubles which existed in France prevented the king from detaching any men for that service. The colony would otherwise languish, and the advantages they had already gained would be lost. The company objected, the unsettled and changeable state of affairs in France, and that which had happened to Mons. de Monts might well happen to them also; but Champlain shewed them that matters were much changed, and the cases widely different, that Mons. de Monts was but a private gentleman, who had not influence enough to oppose hostility in the council of his majesty; but now the company had a prince of the blood as chief and protector, who was viceroy of the country to boot, and who could defend them against all and every one, always under the king's good pleasure. By dint of perseverance and solicitation he prevailed on the associates to assemble, and come to an agreement as to the number of persons and the necessary supplies which should be sent out. And a curious and interesting list it is, compared with the requirements of modern Quebec.
"List of persons to be sent to, and supported at, the settlement of Quebec for the year 1619:—
"There shall be eighty persons, including the chief, three Recollets Fathers, clerks, officers, workmen, and labourers.
"Every two persons shall have a mattress, a paillasse, two blankets, three pair of new sheets, two coats each, six shirts, four pair of shoes, and one capote.