I am obliged to render an account to Your Reverence of the condition of the Mission of saint Esprit among the Outaouaks, according to the order that I have received from You - and again, recently, from Father Dablon - since my arrival here, after a Voyage of a month amid snow and ice, which blocked our passage, and amid almost constant dangers of death.

Having been assigned by Divine Providence to continue the Mission of saint Esprit, - which Father Allouez had begun, [41] and where he had baptized the principal men of the Nation of the Kiskakonk, - I arrived here on the thirteenth of September, and went to visit the Savages in the Clearings, who are divided among five Villages.

[Page 183]

Their [Illinois] request [to have one of our Fathers go and join them in the Autumn] was granted, and if it please God to send some Father to us, he will take my place, while I shall go to start the Mission among the Ilinois, in pursuance of the Father Superior's orders.

The Ilinois are distant from la pointe thirty days' journey by land, by a very difficult route, and live by themselves, Southwestward from the point of saint Esprit. One passes the Nation of the Ketchigamins, who live in the interior, constitute more than twenty large cabins, and seek acquaintance with the French, hoping to obtain hatchets, knives, and other iron implements from them. They fear them to such a degree that they withdrew from the fire two Ilinois, who, after being bound to the stakes, stated [54] that the Frenchman had said that he wished peace to prevail over all the earth. One goes on then to the Miamiouek, and, after crossing great prairies, reaches the Ilinois, who are mainly gathered

[Page 185]

in two Villages, containing more than eight or nine thousand souls. These people are fairly well inclined toward Christianity; since Father Allouez spoke to them, at la Pointe, about worshiping the one God, they have begun to abandon their false divinity. They worship the Sun and Thunder. Those whom I have seen seem to be of a tolerably good disposition: they do not go about at night, as do the other Savages; a man boldly kills his wife if he learns that she has not been faithful; they are more moderate in their Sacrifices; and they promise me to embrace Christianity, and observe all that I shall say in the Country. With this purpose in view, the Outaouaks gave me a young man who had lately come from the Ilinois, and he furnished me the rudiments of the language, during the leisure allowed me by the Savages of la Pointe [55] in the course of the Winter. One can scarcely understand it, although it is somewhat like the Algonquin; still I hope, by the Grace of God, to understand and be understood, if God in his goodness lead me to that Country.

One must not hope that he can avoid Crosses in any of our Missions; and the best means to live there contentedly is not to fear them, and to expect from God's goodness, while enjoying the small ones, to have much heavier ones. After the fashion of the Savages, the Ilinois wish for us in order that we may share their miseries with them, and suffer every imaginable hardship of barbarism. They are lost sheep, that must be sought for among the thickets and woods, since for the most part they cry so loudly that one hastens to rescue them from the jaws of the Wolf, - so urgent have been their petitions to me during the Winter. That is why they went into

[Page 187]

the Country this Spring, to notify the elders to come and get me in the Autumn.

[56] The Ilinois journey always by land; they raise Indian corn, which they have in great abundance, have squashes as large as those of France, and have a great many roots and fruits. There is fine hunting there of Wild Cattle, Bears, Stags, Turkeys, Ducks, Bustards, Pigeons, and Cranes. The people quit their Village some time in the year, to go all together to the places where the animals are killed, and better to resist the enemy who come to attack them. They believe that, if I go to them, I shall establish peace everywhere, that they will always live in one place, and that it will be only the young men who will go hunting.

When the Ilinois come to la Pointe, they cross a great river which is nearly a league in width, flows from North to South, and to such a distance that the Ilinois, who do not know what a Canoe is, have not yet heard any mention of its mouth. They simply know that there are some very large Nations lower down than themselves, some of whom, [57] toward the East-Southeast of their Country, raise two crops of Indian corn in a year. A Nation that they call Chaouanou came to see them last Summer; and this young man who has been given me, and is teaching me the language, saw them. They are laden with glass Beads, which shows that they have communication with Europeans. They had come overland a journey of nearly thirty days, before reaching the Country. It is hard to believe that that great River discharges its waters in Virginia, and we think rather that it has its mouth in California. If the Savages who promise to make me a Canoe do not break their

[Page 189]

word to me, we shall explore this River as far as we can, with a Frenchman and this young man who was given me, who knows some of those languages and has a facility for learning the others. We shall visit the Nations dwelling there, in order to open the passage to such of our Fathers as have been awaiting this good fortune for so long a time. This discovery [58] will give us full knowledge either of the South Sea or of the Western Sea.

Six or seven days' journey below the Ilinois, there is another great River, on which live some very powerful Nations, who use wooden Canoes; of them we can write nothing else until next year - if God grant us the grace to conduct us thither.

The Ilinois are warriors and take a great many Slaves, whom they trade with the Outaouaks for Muskets, Powder, Kettles, Hatchets and Knives. They were formerly at war with the Nadouessi, but made peace with them some years ago, which I confirmed, in order to facilitate their coming to la Pointe, - where I am going to await them, that I may accompany them into their Country.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTES TO VOL. (Figures in parentheses, following the number of note, refer to pages of English text.)

[v] (p. 171). - Keinouché (given by Cuoq as kinonje), the Algonkin name for the fish known as "pike;" applied to a clan of Ottawas having that fish as its totem. From this is derived the name of Kenosha, a city in S. E. Wisconsin.