and keep it open, while I would myself go to the bank of the river, carrying a musket in my hand and wearing my soldier's casque. I left orders on setting out, that if I was killed, they were to shut the gates and continue to defend the fort sturdily. I set out with the heaven-sent thought that the enemy, who were looking on, would imagine that it was a ruse on my part to induce them to approach the fort, in order that our people might make a sortie upon them.
This was precisely what happened, and thus was I enabled to save poor Pierre Fontaine, with his wife and children. When all were landed, I made them march before me as far as the fort, within sight of the enemy. By putting a bold face upon it, I made the Iroquois think there was more danger for them than for us.
They did not know that the whole garrison, and only inhabitants of the fort of Verchères, were my two brothers aged 12 years, our servant, two soldiers, an old man of eighty, and some women and children.
Strengthened by the new recruits from Pierre Fontaine's canoe, I gave orders to continue firing at the enemy. Meantime the sun went down, and a fierce north-easter accompanied by snow and hail ushered in a night of awful severity. The enemy kept us closely invested, and instead of being deterred by the dreadful weather, led me to judge by their movements that they purposed assaulting the fort under cover of the darkness.
I gathered all my troops—six persons—together, and spoke to them thus: "God has saved us to-day from the hands of our enemies, but we must be careful not to be caught in their snares to-night. For my part, I want to show you that I am not afraid. I undertake the fort for my share, with an old man of eighty, and a soldier who has never fired a gun. And you, Pierre Fontaine, with La Bonté and Galhet (our two soldiers), will go to the redoubt, with the women and children, as it is the strongest place. If I am taken, never surrender, even though I should be burnt and cut to pieces before your eyes. You have nothing to fear in the redoubt, if you only make some show of fighting."
Thereupon I posted my two young brothers on two of the bastions, the youth of 80 on a third bastion, and myself took charge of the fourth. Each one acted his part to the life. Despite the whistling of the north-east wind, which is a fearful wind in Canada at this season, and in spite of the snow and hail, the cry of "All's well" was heard at close intervals, echoing and re-echoing from the fort to the redoubt and from the redoubt to the fort.
One would have fancied, to hear us, that the fort was crowded with warriors. And in truth the Iroquois, with all their astuteness and skill in warfare, were completely deceived, as they afterwards avowed to M. de Callières. They told him they had held a council with a view to assaulting the fort during the night, but that the increasing vigilance of the guard had prevented them from accomplishing their design, especially in view of their losses of the previous day (under the fire maintained by myself and my two brothers)....
On the eighth day (for we were eight days in continual alarms, under the eyes of our enemies and exposed to their fury and savage attacks), on the eighth day, I say, M. de la Monnerie, a lieutenant detached from the force under M. de Callières, reached the fort during the night with forty men.... So soon as I saw the officer in command I saluted him, saying:
"Sir, you are welcome, I surrender my arms to you."
"Mademoiselle," he answered, with a courtly air, "they are in good hands."
"Better than you think," I replied.
He inspected the fort and found it in a most satisfactory condition, with a sentry on each bastion. I said to him:
"Sir, kindly relieve my sentries, so that they may take a little rest, for we have not left our posts for the last eight days."
9. THE FRENCH CANADIANS (1737).
Source.—A Memoir transmitted to the French Ministry, probably by Gilles Hocquart, intendant of New France: quoted in Documents relating to the Seigniorial Tenure in Canada, edited by W. B. Munro. Toronto, 1908.
La colonie de la Nouvelle-France peut comprendre environ 40,000 personnes de tout âge et de tout sexe, sur lesquelles il se trouve dix mille hommes en estat de porter les armes. Les Canadiens sont naturellement grands, bien faits, d'un tempérament vigoureux. Comme les arts n'y sont point gênés par des maîtrises, et que dans les commencements de l'établissement de la colonie les ouvriers étoient rares, la nécessité les a rendus industrieux de génération en génération. Les habitans des campagnes manient tous adroitement la hache. Ils font eux-mêmes la pluspart des outils et ustensiles de labourage, bâtissent leurs maisons, leurs granges. Plusieurs sont tisserans, font de grosses toiles et des étoffes qu'ils appellent droguet, dont ils se servent pour se vêtir eux et leur famille.
Ils aiment les distinctions et les caresses, se piquant de bravoure, sont extrêmement sensibles aux mépris et aux moindres punitions: ils sont intéressés, vindicatifs, sont sujets à l'ivrognerie, font un grand usage de l'eau-de-vie, [et] passent pour n'être pas véridiques.
Ce portrait convient au grand nombre particulièrement aux gens de la campagne. Ceux des villes sont moins vicieux. Tous sont attachés à la religion. On voit peu de scélérats. Ils sont volages, ont trop bonne opinion d'euxmêmes, ce qui les empêche de réussir comme ils pourroient le faire dans les arts, l'agriculture et le commerce. Joignons à cela l'oisiveté à laquelle la longueur et la rigueur de l'hiver donne occasion. Ils aiment la chasse, la navigation, les voyages et n'ont point l'air grossier et rustique de nos paysans de France. Ils sont communément assez souples lorsqu'on les pique d'honneur et qu'on les gouverne avec justice, mais ils sont naturellement indociles. Il est nécessaire de fortifier de plus en plus l'exacte subordination qui doit estre dans tous les ordres, particulièrement dans les gens de la campagne. Cette partie du service a esté de tout temps la plus importante et la plus difficile à remplir. Un des moyens pour y parvenir est de choisir pour officiers dans les costes les habitans les plus sages et les plus capables de commander, et d'apporter de la part du gouvernement toute l'attention convenable pour les maintenir dans leur autorité. On ose dire que le manque de fermeté dans les gouvernemens passés a beaucoup nui à la subordination. Depuis plusieurs années les crimes ont esté punis, les désordres ont été reprimés par des châtiments proportionés. La police par rapport aux chemins publics, aux cabarets, etc., a esté mieux observée et en général les habitants ont esté plus contenus qu'ils ne l'estoient autrefois. Il y a quelques familles nobles en Canada, mais elles sont si nombreuses qu'il y a beaucoup de gentilshommes.
10. THE SUPPOSED WHITE MEN OF THE PRAIRIES (1738).
Source.—The Journal of the French explorer, the Sieur de La Vérendrye, describing an expedition to the Missouri in 1738-9. Printed in the Report on Canadian Archives, 1889.
On the 20th, the whole village set out on the march to go the seventeen leagues where the meeting-place for the Mandans had been chosen; every day they entertained us with the tale that the whites we were going to see were Frenchmen like ourselves, who said they were our descendants. All they told us gave us good hope of making a discovery which would deserve attention. Mr. de la Marque and I made plans along the road from what they were telling us, believing that to be true, from which we had to deduct much. I observed to Mr. de la Marque the good order in which the Assiniboines march to prevent surprise, marching always on the prairies, the hill-sides and valleys from the first mountain, which did not make them fatigued by mounting and descending often in their march during the day. There are magnificent plains of three or four leagues. The march of the Assiniboines, especially when they are numerous, is in three columns, having skirmishers in front, with a good rear guard; the old and lame march in the middle, forming the central column. I kept all the French together as much as possible. If the skirmishers discover herds of cattle on the road, as often happens, they raise a cry which is soon returned by the rear guard, and all the most active men in the columns join the vanguard to hem in the cattle, of which they secure