France, and governor of Champagne and Provence, was born in August,
1571, and died 1640. In 1615, he was the proxy of Louis XIII., in the
marriage of the latter to the Spanish infanta, Anne of Austria.
27 (p. 157).--Sieur de Praslin was captain of the royal bodyguards, and
lieutenant of Champagne.
28 (p. 157).--The Parliament of Paris originated in a division of
the king's court, made necessary by the increase of its functions,
consequent upon the progress of the royal power in France. Judicial
affairs were allotted to the decision of Parliament; its organization
was defined in 1302, by Philip the Fair, who ordained that it
should assemble at Paris twice a year, for two months, exercising
jurisdiction over the whole kingdom. Charles V. (1364-80) made
the Parliament permanent. Its jurisdiction was much restricted,
successively by Charles VII., Louis XI., and Francis I.; eight other
provincial Parliaments had been formed, by the early part of the 16th
century, which reduced that of Paris to little more than a municipal
jurisdiction, and all had been thoroughly subjected to royal authority.
The Parliament of Paris refused, from 1554 to 1662, to admit the
Jesuits into the kingdom, and, later, opposed Henry IV.; but it was
compelled to submit by Mazarin, and, later, by Louis XIV. and Louis XV.
In 1762, however, it decreed the abolition of the order of Jesuits,
and Louis XV. was obliged to confirm this action; though he exiled
the Parliament, eight years later. Within four years, it was recalled
by Louis XVI.; but supporting, in 1789, the privileged orders against
the people, it lost all popularity, and in the following year was
suppressed by the Constituent Assembly. It had been mainly composed of
lawyers ever since Louis XII. forbade any to enter the Parliament, or
to sit as judges, who were not "literate and graduate."
29 (p. 157).--The author of the _Lettre Missive_ (vol. i. of this
series). He is again mentioned by Lescarbot, in this _Relation_.
30 (p. 157).--The original church of Ste. Genevieve (dedicated to
the patron saint of Paris) was built by Clovis, about 510. Near the
beginning of the 13th century, it was replaced by another building,
erected by King Philippe Augustus; this having, in time, become almost
a ruin, gave way to the present handsome edifice, which was begun
in 1758, and built under the auspices of Louis XV. See Hunnewell's
_Historic Monuments of France_ (Boston, 1884), pp. 195, 196.
31 (p. 159).--_Short robe._ A term used, at that time, to designate the
military profession.
32 (p. 165).--Wheat (blé) is here used generically, but meaning maize;
or, more probably, as a shortened form of _blé d'Inde_, the term
applied by Champlain and other French explorers to the corn cultivated
by the aborigines.
33 (p. 165).--The subject of agriculture among the Indians is
exhaustively treated in Carr's "Mounds of the Mississippi Valley,"
in _Smithsonian Report_ (Washington, 1891), pp. 507-533. His general
conclusion is that corn was "cultivated in greater or less quantities
by all the tribes living east of the Mississippi and south of the great
lakes and the St. Lawrence,"--indeed, far more extensively than is
generally supposed; and that "the Indian looked upon it as a staple
article of food, both winter and summer; that he cultivated it in large
fields, and understood and appreciated the benefits arising from the
use of fertilizers." Beans, squashes, and pumpkins were also staple
crops. In regard to the labor of women, Carr says: "The Iroquois or Six
Nations are the only people among whom, so far as I know, it cannot
be shown that the warriors did take some part either in clearing the
ground or in cultivating the crop; and we find that even among them the
work was not left exclusively to the women, but that it was shared by
the children and the old men, as well as the slaves, of whom they seem
to have had a goodly number. *** This statement ['that the field-work
was _not_ left entirely to the women'], as to the actual condition of a
large majority of the tribes living east of the Mississippi and south
of the St. Lawrence, is believed to be true; yet it is not denied that
there were many instances in which this labor was, practically, left to
the women, owing to the fact that the men were away from home, hunting
or fighting. This fact was, unfortunately, of frequent recurrence; but,
as it was the result of an accidental and not of a permanent condition
of affairs, it would hardly be fair to ascribe it to the existence
of any custom, or to any belief in the derogatory character of the
work."--Cf. Rochemonteix (_Jésuites_, vol. i., p. 97, _note_).
34 (p. 167).--A word derived, according to Littré, from the Basque
_orenac_, meaning "deer;" elsewhere written _orignac_, _orignas_, and
_orignat_; by modern writers, _orignal_. The "Canadian elk" (_orignac_
being used interchangeably with _élan_, the elk of Northern Europe), or
moose (the latter an Indian name), is _Alces Americanus_, the largest
of the _Cervus_ family. The males are said to attain a weight of 1,100
or 1,200 pounds, and a height of five feet at the shoulder. See also
_Champlain's Voyages_ (Prince Soc.), vol. i., p. 265.
35 (p. 169).--Slafter thinks that these roots were probably those of
Jerusalem artichoke, _Helianthus tuberosus_. This plant, indigenous
in the Northern regions of America, had been carried to Europe by
the Italians, who named it _girasole_ (their word for the sunflower,
another species of _Helianthus_), afterwards corrupted to _Jerusalem_.
Champlain saw these plants cultivated by the Indians--in 1605, near
Cape Cod; and again at Gloucester, in 1606.--See _Champlain's Voyages_
(Prince Soc.), vol. ii., pp. 82, 112. The savages also cultivated
ground-nuts, of several varieties; among them, _Arachis hypogæa_ and
_Apios tuberosa_.--See Carr's "Food of Certain American Indians," in
_Proceedings of American Antiquarian Society_, vol. x., part i., pp.
168, 169.
Lescarbot says the roots mentioned in the text were called _canadas_;
Ferland thinks they were those of _Apios tuberosa_ (_Cours d'Histoire_,
vol. i., p. 84).
36 (p. 171).--The smelt, _Salmo eperlanus_, is found in both salt and
fresh water; it is four to eight inches in length.
37 (p. 171).--A small, narrow inlet (_Ance_, on Bellin's map, 1764), at
the head of which is a portage to St. Mary's Bay.
38 (p. 171).--Haliburton, in his _Nova Scotia_ (Halifax, 1829), p.
15, _note_, says it is the stream now known as the Allen River; but
Lescarbot, in our text, and in his chart of Port Royal, identifies
it with the larger river now called Annapolis. He says it was "named
l'Equille, because the first fish taken therein was an équille."
Its length is about 70 miles, 30 of which are navigable. Littré
defines _équille_ as "the name, on the coasts between Caen and Havre,
of the fish called _lançon_ at Granville and St. Malo, a kind of
malacopterygian fish, living on sandy shores, and hiding in the sand at
low tide."
39 (p. 173).--The legitimate children of the king himself, as
distinguished from those of other branches of the royal family, the
latter being only "princes and princesses of the blood."
40 (p. 175).--Du Chesne (or Duquesne), and Du Jardin; see _Relation_
of 1616, _post_. Ferland says (_Cours d'Histoire_, vol. i., p. 80,
_note_): "In the _History of Dieppe_, vol. ii., mention is made of
Abraham Du Quesne, a Calvinist, who commanded a Dieppe vessel engaged
in the American and Senegal trade. He was father of the celebrated
admiral of the same name, born at Dieppe in 1610." Shea adds
(_Charlevoix_, vol. i., p. 262, _note_), that he "was an ancestor of
the Governor of Canada, whose name was once borne by Pittsburgh."
41 (p. 175).--These orders, except the Minimes, were Franciscan. The
Capuchins (so named from the sharply-pointed _capuce_, or hood, of
their robe) were organized in 1528, as a new division of the _Fratres
Minores_ of St. Francis of Assisi; and were received into France in
1573, at the request of Charles IX., and at the recommendation of
Cardinal Lorraine. In 1632, they, were asked by Richelieu to take
charge of the religious affairs of Canada; but, they declined this
proposal, ostensibly through unwillingness to displace the Jesuits,
and later went to Acadia. For an account of their work in Maine, see
_Historical Magazine_, vol. viii., p. 301.
The Cordeliers, named from the knotted cord worn at the waist, have two
branches,--the conventuals, who are allowed to possess real estate; and
the observants, who may not own any property.
The Récollets, strictest of all the Franciscan orders, were thus
termed because, devoting themselves to religious meditation (Fr.
_récollection_), they asked from Pope Clement VII., in 1531, permission
to retire into special convents, that they might more literally observe
their founder's rule. For an account of their missionary work in
Canada, see Editor's Introduction, vol. i. of this series. They carried
on extensive missionary labors in Spanish America, where, in 1621,
they had 500 convents, distributed in 22 provinces.--Ferland's _Cours
d'Histoire_, vol. i., p. 169.
The Minimes were founded in 1453, by St. Francis de Paula, of Calabria.
Their rule is especially austere, involving total abstinence from wine,
flesh, and fish, and even from eggs, milk, or butter. Their founder
named them _Minimos Fratres_, as a special indication of humility. He
also instituted an order of Minimes for women, in 1493.
42 (p. 177).--Samuel de Champlain was born probably between 1567 and
1570 (the exact date is unknown); his parents lived at Brouage, a
fortified town in Saintonge, where was a large manufacture of salt and
the finest harbor on the French coast. Champlain became a navigator
early in life, and was also a quartermaster in the royal army in
Brittany, from 1592 to 1598.
His first voyage to America was in the service of the King of Spain; he
spent the time from January, 1599, to March, 1601, in the West Indies
and Mexico, and on the northern coast of South America. His valuable
MS. report of this voyage, illustrated by his own sketches, was first
printed in 1859 (but in an English translation), by the Hakluyt
Society, at London; in it he suggests a ship canal across the isthmus
of Panama. In 1603, he sailed, with Pontgravé to Canada, exploring
the St. Lawrence as far as the Falls of St. Louis; and again, with De
Monts, early in 1604, when they founded the St. Croix colony. Champlain
remained in Canada three years, carefully exploring the Atlantic coast
from Canso to Wood's Holl, and returned to France in October, 1607.
The next summer, he explored the valley of the St. Lawrence, with the
Saguenay and other tributaries, and founded the settlement of Quebec.
October 15, 1612, he was formally appointed commandant in New France.
Quebec was captured by the English, July 20, 1629; but was restored
to the French by the treaty of St. Germain-en-Laye, March 29, 1632.
Champlain, being again appointed governor of New France, returned to
Quebec in May, 1633, where he died December 25, 1635.
43 (p. 177).--This chart was drawn by Lescarbot, and engraved by Jan
Swelinck; it appears in his _Nouv. France_ (Tross ed., Paris, 1866),
facing page 208. It has been reproduced for the present series.
44 (p. 179).--_Gougou_, a frightful monster, in the superstitious
belief of the savages, who supposed it to dwell on an island near
the Bay of Chaleurs; to have the form of a woman, though of horrible
aspect, and so tall that the masts of a ship would not reach to the
monster's girdle; and to carry off and devour men. Champlain gives
a full account of this belief, and regards _Gougou_ as a demon who
tormented the natives; see Laverdière's _Champlain_, pp. 125-126.
Lescarbot, in his _Nouv. France_, pp. 397-403, gives the same
description, and tries to prove, in a long discussion, that _Gougou_ is
a sort of personification of a tormenting conscience.
45 (p. 179).--_Charter party._ A document which states the terms of
rent for the whole or part of a ship. The term is derived from an
old usage; instead of making a duplicate of the contract, it was cut
in two, each of the parties retaining one of the halves.--Littré's
_Dictionnaire de la langue française_ (Paris, 1878).
46 (p. 185).--This young priest had sailed with De Monts, desiring to
see the New World. On the shores of St. Mary's Bay, he became lost in
the woods; De Monts searched for him, but in vain, and left the bay.
A fortnight later, an expedition sent to St. Mary's Bay, to search
for silver and iron ore, accidentally encountered poor Aubry, almost
dead with fatigue and hunger, and brought him back to Port Royal.
This rescue was especially gratifying to De Monts, as the priest's
disappearance had caused a Protestant, who had quarreled with him about
religious questions, to be accused of murdering Aubry.--_Champlain's
Voyages_ (Prince Soc.), vol. ii., pp. 20, 21.
47 (p. 189). See vol. i., _note_ 4.
48 (p. 199).--One of the numerous names given to the St. Lawrence
by early explorers and writers; it thus appears on the map of Jean
Allefonsce, given in his _Cosmographie_ (Paris, ed., 1575), fol.
183^{A}; and is so named by Champlain, in his _Voyages_. The origin
of the name Canada is variously explained; but there are two leading
theories: (1) That the word signifies, in Iroquois, "town," or
"village." See Laverdière's _Champlain_, p. 89, _note_ 4; Faillon's
_Col. Fr._ vol. i., p. 14; _Hist. Mag._ vol. i., pp. 153, 217, 349;
and _Mag. Amer. Hist._, vol. x., pp. 161, 162. (2) That it comes from
another and similar Iroquois word, meaning "lake," being applied to
the country as a region abounding in lakes. See _Hist. Mag._, vol. i.,
pp. 188, 315; cf. Winsor's _N. and C. Hist._ vol. iv., p. 67, _note_
1.--Cf. Ferland's _Cours d'Histoire_, vol. i., p. 25. The name was
applied in the earlier maps (e.g., Zaltieri, 1566; Ortelius, 1570;
Judæis, 1593) to a district lying along the St Lawrence, between the
Saguenay and Isle aux Coudres, or thereabouts. Later, it was given to
all, or nearly all, of the valley of the St. Lawrence. See also vol.
i., _note_ 6.
49 (p. 201).--This date is evidently obtained from the "Discorso d'un
gran Capitano di Mare Francese," found in Ramusio's _Raccolta_ (Venice,
1556), vol. iii., p. 423. The "Discorso" is supposed to have been
written in 1539; the name of the author was unknown to Ramusio himself,
but is said by Estancelin, in _Recherches * * * des navigateurs
Normands_ (Paris, 1832), to be Jean Parmentier, of Dieppe. See Winsor's
_N. and C. Hist._, vol. iv., pp. 16, 63: cf. also Harrisse's _Discovery
of North America_ (London, 1892), p. 180. _note_ 2, and D'Avezac's
Introduction to Cartier's _Brief Recit_ (Tross reprint, 1865), fol.
vii.; both say that the "Discorso" was written by Pierre Crignon, an
astronomer and pilot, and a companion of Parmentier in his voyages.
50 (p. 205).--Another name for the St. Lawrence River. The apparent
etymology of this name would suggest that it was given on account of
the powerful current of the river, and its discharge into the Gulf
of St. Lawrence. See Trumbull's "Composition of Indian Geographical
Names," in _Conn. Histor. Soc. Colls._, vol. ii., p. 30. Laverdière
erroneously considers _Sacqué_ as another form of Sagné, or Saguenay.
51 (p. 205).--One of the principal tributaries of the St. Lawrence,
entering the latter 120 miles N. E. of Quebec. It is 100 miles in
length, and remarkable for its wild and picturesque scenery; along the
lower half of its course the banks vary in height from 500 to 1,500
feet, often overhanging the swift current below. Its ordinary depth
varies from 100 to 1,000 feet, and even reaches over 3,000 feet near
its month. It is the outlet of Lake St. John, and was for the French
the chief avenue of approach to the Indian tribes around that lake,
and even (by portages) to those of Hudson Bay region. This river was,
throughout the French régime, the center of both trading and missionary
activities for all Northeastern Canada. Tadoussac, at its month, from
earliest times a favorite rendezvous of the Montagnais and other
Eastern tribes, became under the French an important fur-trade center
and Jesuit mission; and is, to-day, a notable watering-place.
The name is also spelled Sagnay, Sagné, Saghuny, etc. Thévet, in his
_Grande Insulaire_ (a MS. preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale of
Paris, and written before 1571: see Harrisse's _notes sur la Nouvelle
France_, p. 278), declares that the savages then called this river
_Thadoyseau_; while Lalemant (in _Relation_ of 1646) says that they
called Tadoussac _Sadilege_. Probably these names were indifferently
applied, in that early time, alike to river and village. Laverdière
derives Saguenay from the Montagnais _saki-nip_, "the rushing water."
See his _Champlain_, pp. 68, 69; also Trumbull, in _Conn. Hist.
Colls._, vol. ii., p. 31.
52 (p. 205).--Now the St Maurice; named _Trois Rivières_, because
two islands at its mouth divide it into three channels. On Creuxius'
map (1660), it appears as Metaberoutin River, or Three Rivers; on
Duval's (1679), the Rivière de Foix. This last appellation seems to be
another form of Riuiere du Fouez, given to this river by Cartier. See
_Champlain's Voyages_ (Prince Soc.), vol. i., p. 257. At its mouth is
the town of Three Rivers, founded by Champlain in 1634.
53 (p. 205).--The Ottawa River--Champlain's Riuière des Algommequins;
see his "Explanation of the Map of New France," in _Voyages_ (Prince
Soc.), vol. i., p. 302. Also named, in early days, Rivière des
Prairies; so in _Relation_ of 1640, _post_, and on Creuxius' map
(1660): Faillon (_Col. Fr._, i., p. 82, _note_ * *) says it was
thus named from its discoverer, a young sailor from St. Malo; he is
mentioned by Champlain as "a very courageous man," in _Voyages_ (Paris,
1632), p. 159.
54 (p. 205).--The Chicchack (or Shickshock) Mountains; called Notre-Dame
by Champlain and other early writers. A range of highlands in the
Gaspé peninsula, the easternmost part of the Appalachian system,
forming the watershed between streams flowing into the St. Lawrence and
Bay of Chaleurs. They lie about twelve miles from the St. Lawrence,
extending a distance of some 65 miles, between the Ste. Anne des
Monts and the Matane rivers; they range in height from 3,000 to 4,000
feet.--See Rochemonteix's _Jésuites_, vol. i., p. 91; also Laverdière's
_Champlain_, p. 1090.
55 (p. 205).--See Laverdière's _Champlain_, p. 179.
56 (p. 205).--_Canadis_, the Indians of the vicinity of Quebec.
Lescarbot says (_Nouv. France_, p. 238) that "the tribes of Gachepé and
Chaleur bay call themselves Canadocoa, that is, Canadaquois," Sagard
(_Canada_, p. 152) mentions a village of Canadians near Tadoussac.
57 (p. 205).--_Algomeguis_ (also spelled Algoumequins, Algonmequins,
and Algumquins); the Algonquins or Algonkins. Some authors consider
this name generic for the Armouchiquois, the Montagnais, the "Petite
Nation," the Nation of the Isle, and the Nipissiriniens.--See Martin's
edition of Bressani's _Relation Abrégée_ (Montreal, 1852), p. 319.
Champlain limits this appellation to the tribes that dwell upon the
Ottawa.
58 (p. 205).--_Ochasteguis_, according to Laverdière (_Champlain_, pp.
317, 346) called by Champlain _Ochastaiguins_ or _Ochatequins_, from
the name of one of their chiefs; a name applied to the Hurons. This
last appellation was but a nickname of the tribe, which was properly
called Wendot or Wyandot. They inhabited the region east of Lake Huron,
to Lake Simcoe.
59 (p. 205).--The site of Quebec was first visited by Cartier in 1535,
and was then occupied by an Indian village, named Stadacona. The
foundation of the present city was laid by Champlain, July 3, 1608;
for his chart of Quebec and vicinity (with valuable notes thereon, by
the editor), and an engraved illustration of the buildings erected by
him, see Laverdière's _Champlain_, pp. 296, 303. Quebec is also written
Quebeck, Quebecq (Champlain), and Kebec, Kébec, or Kebek (_Relations_);
the word, in various Algonkin dialects, signifies "the narrowing of the
water," referring to the contraction of the St. Lawrence, opposite Cape
Diamond, to a space of only 1,314 yards; while below, at the confluence
of the St. Charles, it spreads into a basin over 2,500 yards in width.
See Ferland's _Cours d'Histoire_, vol. i., p. 90; and Parkman's
_Pioneers_, p. 329.
The first known mention of this name, to designate the locality of the
present city, is in Champlain's _Voyages_, _ut supra_, p. 89.
60 (p. 205).--See vol. i., _note_ 2.
61 (p. 207).--See _notes_ 32, 33, _ante_. _Brazilian bean_; the common
bean, _Phaseolus vulgaris_, indigenous to America. Called "Brazilian
bean," because it resembled a bean then known in France by that
name.--_Champlain's Voyages_ (Prince Soc.), vol. ii., p. 64, _note_.
62 (p. 207).--_Breton._ This name (spelled also Bretton, Briton,
_Brittayne_, etc.), was given, at an early date, to the most eastern
point of Cape Breton Island, "first seen by some French sailors, who
named it either after Bretagne, or from Cape Breton, a town in the
election of Landes, in Gascony."--Bourinot (_Canad. Mo._, vol. vii., p.
292). Cf. Margry's _Navigations Françaises_ (Paris, 1867), p. 113. It
appears on Verrazano's map (1529). See also Laverdière's _Champlain_,
p. 155; and on same page is a quotation from Thévet's _Gr. Insul._
(1556) which mentions "the cape or promontory of Lorraine, so named
by us; others have given it the name of _Cape of the Bretons_," etc.
The island itself was known, during the 16th century, as Isle du Cap
Breton, or Isle des Bretons; Champlain, in _Voyages_ (Prince Soc.),
vol. i., p. 280, calls it St. Lawrence; the French named it Isle
Royale, upon its cession to them by the treaty of Utrecht (1713); its
old name, Cape Breton Island, was resumed in 1758, after the capture of
Louisbourg by the English. On Gastaldo's map (1548), the name Breton is
applied both to this island and to Nova Scotia. See Dionne's note on
Cape Breton (_Nouv. France_, pp. 283-286).
On _La Hève_, see vol. i., _note_ 42. Champlain's chart of the harbor
of La Heve is given in Laverdière's _Champlain_, p. 156.
_Mouton_, probably at Port Mouton; so named, according to Lescarbot,
because a drowned sheep came ashore there.--_Nouv. France_, p. 449.
_Sable_, the most southern point of Nova Scotia, on Cape Sable Island.
Champlain says: "The next day we went to Cape Sable, also very
dangerous, on account of certain rocks and reefs extending almost a
league into the sea."--_Voyages_ (Prince Soc.), vol. ii., p. 13.
_St. Louis_, thus named by De Monts; but now known as Brant Point; two
leagues from Plymouth Harbor, in Massachusetts.
_Blanc_, so named by Champlain, from its white sands; three years
earlier, named Cape Cod, by Gosnold, from the multitude of codfish in
its vicinity. It is shown on Juan de la Cosa's map (1500); but without
name; on Ribero's (1529), as C. de arenas; on Vallard's (1543), as C.
de Croix.
63 (p. 207). On _Campseau_, see vol. i., _note_ 40.
_Sesambre_, "an island thus named by some Mallouins, distant 15 leagues
from La Héve," says Champlain. Laverdière thus explains the name: "In
remembrance of a small island of that name which lies in front of St.
Malo. Sésambre became S. Sambre; and the English sailors, who are not
greatly devoted to the saints, have called it simply Sambro" (its
present name). A cape and harbor near the island bear the same name.
Sesambre appears on De Laet's map (1633), as Sesambre; on Bellin's
(1744), as Sincembre; but in his _Petit Atlas Maritime_ (1764), also on
Chabert's map (1746), as St. Cendre. In Champlain's _Voyages_ (Prince
Soc.), vol. ii.; p. 151. _note_ 263, the island at St. Malo is called
Cézembre.
_Beaubassin_, the present Chignecto Bay; the northern arm at the head
of the Bay of Fundy. Blaeu's map (1620), and De Laet's (1633), show it
as B. des Gennes; Bellin's (1744), as Chignitou or Beaubassin.