a stroke of beauty; it is for this reason they take care to make the visage of their children flat with tablets of wood, which they apply to their foreheads, and gird very hard with bands: all these nations to the sea shore give themselves this figure. Every thing is very plentiful with them; corn, fruits, grapes, olives, tame hens, Indian hens, bustards, &c. M. de la Salle having received such good refreshment there, and having made 'em by way of acknowledgment, a present of some knives and hatchets, he returned to his own people. At last, after nine days expectation, Preudhomme, who had lost himself in the woods, where he had lived upon nothing but wild fowl, found us again; M. de la Salle entrusted him with the care of finishing the fort, which he called after his name, and gave him the command of it; after which he took his course upon the same river towards the end of the month of February.

We were three days without disembarking; the fourth after having made fifty leagues, we came to a village of the Cappa: we had scarce set foot on land, but we heard a drum beat; forthwith fancying we saw the enemy at our heels, we threw our selves into our canoos, and went over to the other side; and so we immediately made a redoubt to secure ourselves from any surprize.

The savages came to view us in a canoo; we sent some of our men to 'em, to present them with the Calumet; they accepted it freely, and at the same time offered themselves to conduct us to their habitations, and promised us all manner of assistance. M. de la Salle was very ready to go thither; in the mean time one of the two savages went before, to give notice of our arrival to those of his own nation. Their prince, accompanied with some of the chief of 'em, came forward to receive us. As soon as he saw M. de la Salle, he

saluted him in a very grave and respectful manner; offer'd him any thing that depended upon him or his nation, and taking him by the hand, led him towards his cottage. M. de la Salle walking along with him, testified to him how sensible he was of his civilities, and let him understand his design and intentions, which tended to nothing else but the glory of the true God, and to make known to him the power of the French king. Being arrived at the village, we saw a very great multitude of people, in the midst of whom were some archers drawn up in a line. The prince making a little halt, declared to all the assembly, that we were sent by the king of France, to discover North America, and to receive its people under his protection. Then there follow'd a general acclamation, by which the people seem'd to testifie their joy: As soon as the prince had assur'd M. de la Salle of the perfect submission of all his people to the orders of the king, he conducted him into his cottage, and gave him, and those of his company, all the good treatment possible. Besides this he made him very considerable presents, namely, abundance of Indian corn, and other necessary provisions, with which M. de la Salle was very well satisfied, as well as with all his other civilities. This nation was scarce any thing of savage; they give judgment according to their laws and customs; every one there enjoys his own goods in particular.

Eight leagues from hence are the Akancéas, whose land is above sixty leagues over: They are divided into several villages, almost at equal distances. The Cappa gave us two guides to carry us to the first, which they call Togengan; it stands upon the bank of a river, and there we were very well received. Two leagues from this town, we fell down in a canoo to that of Torimant; and six leagues from this last, to another called Ozo

toni. We were equally well received in every place; and as our arrival had already made a noise in all the country, we found a very numerous assembly of people in this place, which caused M. de la Salle to set up the arms of the king, with a shot of our artillery. The noise and fire of our arms impress'd such a respect upon all the multitude, and threw 'em into such a consternation, that the prince, on the part of his nation, swore to us an inviolable alliance. This climate and that of the Cappa is the same; it is about the 34th degree of latitude. The country throughout does generally abound in grain, fruits, and wild fowl of all sorts. The temperature of the air is wonderful, there is never any snow to be seen, and but very little ice: Their cottages are built of cedar, all matted within: They have no determin'd worship; they adore all sorts of animals, or rather they worship but one divinity, which discovers its self in a certain animal, such as it shall please their jongleur, or priest, to pitch upon; so that it will be sometimes an ox, sometimes a dog, or some other. When this visible god is dead, there is an universal mourning; but which is presently changed into a great joy, by the choice they make of a new mortal deity, which is always taken from amongst the brutes.

About sixty leagues below this nation, are the Taencas, a people that give place to none in America, either for force or beauty of climate. The Akancéas gave us guides to conduct us thither, and going on board a canoo, we still follow'd the course of the great river. After our first days voyage, we began to see some crocodiles along the brink; they are in a very great number upon these banks, and of a prodigious bigness, some being twenty or thirty foot long. To see so monstrous an animal, who would believe that it comes into the world but like a chicken, being hatch'd of an egg! only it is ob

served, that it grows as long as it lives. We took notice that they fled when we pursu'd 'em, and that when we fled they pursu'd us; we dispersed them with our fusees, and killed some of 'em. The day following, being arriv'd over against the first village of the Taencas, M. de la Salle sent me to the prince, to give him notice of his arrival, and gave me two guides of the Akancéas, and twoAbenaguis to be my interpreters.

As this village stands on the other side of a lake, which is eight leagues in circumference, and half a league over, we were forced to take a canoo to cross it, which we perform'd in two hours. As soon as we landed, I was surpriz'd to see the grandure of the village, and the order of the cottages; they are plac'd in divers rows, and in a streight line, round about a large space, being all made of earth, and covered over with mats of cane: We presently took notice of two fairer than the rest, one was the prince's palace, the other the temple; each of them was about forty foot square, the walls ten foot high, and two foot thick; the roof, in the form of a cupilo, was cover'd with a mat of divers colours: Before the prince's palace stood a dozen men armed with half-pikes. As soon as we came up, an old man addressed himself to me, and taking me by the hand, led me into a great square hall, the floor and sides of which were covered with a very fine mat; at the further end of the hall, over against the entrance, was a very handsome bed, with curtains of a fine stuff, made and woven of the bark of mulberry-trees. We saw the prince of this people upon this bed, as upon his throne, in the middle of four handsome women, and encompassed with above sixty old men, armed with bows and arrows; they were all cloath'd with very fine white garments; that of the prince was adorned with certain tufts of wool of different colours; the rest

were all plain. The prince had upon his head a diadem of woven rushes, very curiously wrought, and enriched with large pearls, and rais'd with a plume of various feathers; all that were about him were bare-headed: the women were dress'd in cloaths of the same stuff; they had upon their heads little rush hats, adorned with several feathers, and had all necklaces of pearl, and fine ear-pendants of the same; they had bracelets of woven hair, and several other jewels which set off their attire: they were not quite black, but brown, their visages something flat, their eyes black, sparkling, and pretty large; their shape fine and free; and they all appear'd to me of a smiling and very pleasant air.

Being surpriz'd, or rather charm'd, with the beauties of this savage court, I address'd my speech to the venerable prince, and spoke to him in the name of M. de la Salle. That having the honour to be sent by the king of France, the most potent of all the kings upon earth, to make a discovery of all the nations of America, and to invite them to live under the government of so great a prince; we came to offer them our friendship and protection; to which the upper countries had all freely submitted: that if we did pretend to settle ourselves in the country, it was not so much to bring them under a rigorous yoke, as to maintain for them, by the power of our arms, what was already in their possession; and to impart to them our rarest arts and our wealth: not so much to spoil them of their treasures, as to teach them a more advantageous way of using them. Not to usurp their territories, but put them in a way to cultivate and improve them, and to instruct them in our commerce. In short, not to become their lords and masters, but to establish a brotherly friendship with them.