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them, he was insensibly carried back to Fort Lewis. About the middle of March, La Salle returned in a very miserable condition with his brother M. Cavalier, an ecclesiastic, who had attended him, and five or six persons. The rest of his attendants, among whom was his youngest nephew, a youth about fifteen years of age, whose name was likewise Cavalier, was detached in search of his frigate, on board of which were his linen, baggage and most valuable effects.

To keep up the spirts of his people, he pretended to be wonderfully pleased with the discoveries he had made, and seemed even to forgive Duhaut for returning to the fort without his leave. Next morning, young Cavalier and the rest of his companions returned, but brought no accounts of the frigate, to the great mortification of La Salle, who had proposed first to send it to the French American islands for supplies, and then to have coasted all the gulf of Mexico in prosecuting his discoveries.

About the beginning of May, a few days after La Salle himself had set out in quest of the frigate, an account arrived of its being wrecked on the opposite side of the bay. The crew, who had reached the shore, set about building a raft; but it was so badly executed, that all those who ventured on it were drowned. The survivors made

another with better success, on which they put all they could save out of the wreck, and they happily passed on it into the river on the opposite side of the bay, where it was useless, because it could not carry them up to the fort; nor durst they travel by land for fear of the savages. At last, meeting with an old canoe, they refitted it as well as they could, and it brought them to Fort Lewis.

La Salle had then been two months gone, and it is not at all to be wondered at, if the settlement he left behind him was full of discontent and murmurings at what they suffered from his unaccountable conduct. Many of them, who could not remain shut up in the walls of the fort, were murdered by the savages, as they were hunting. The more sedentary, being the most valuable part of the settlement, were carried off by diseases. Many of them ventured even to throw themselves upon the barbarians, who gave them liberty to live in the Indian manner, while those who remained entered into a conspiracy, at the head of which was Duhaut, whose younger brother was with La Salle. Joutel, the commandant of the fort, gaining a knowledge of these cabals, acted with so much prudence and resolution, that he kept the conspirators in awe till the return of La Salle, which was about the month of August. During this last ramble, he had visited the country of the Cenis,

with whom he had made an alliance, and they furnished him with five horses laden with provisions; but he had learned nothing of the main object of his search, and of twenty men he carried out with him, he brought eight back. Among the missing was Duhaut's brother; but La Salle pretended that he had given him and several others, leave to return to the fort. These new losses augmented the discontent of the settlers, whom La Salle's presence, however, overawed; and as the Clamcoets had begun to renew their incursions, he communicated to Joutel a design he had formed of transferring his settlement to the country of the Illinois, with which he was well acquainted. In the mean time he declared he would undertake a third journey to visit that people.

As he was preparing to set out, he was attacked by a fever, which confined him until the end of December, when, recovering, he renewed his preparations for his journey, and, having given Joutel leave to attend him, he nominated another in his room to command the fort, the works of which had of late been much strengthened, and it was stored with a sufficiency of provisions for all who were to be left in it, who did not exceed twenty persons, seven of whom were women. About the beginning of January, 1687, he set out, attended by sixteen men, including his brother Cavalier, and his two

nephews, Father Anastase, Joutel, and Duhaut. For the convenience of travelling, La Salle ordered the five horses, which he had brought from the Cenis, to be loaded with provisions. This third ramble seems to have been dictated by necessity; for, in fact, he could remain no longer among the Clamcoets, and he missed the end he had proposed, which he pretended to be the discovery of the Mississippi, but which, in fact was to render himself master of the Spanish mine of St. Barbe, a more romantic enterprise than the other. elled a little way, he met some savages, knew so well how to humor, that they parted in an amicable manner. He then crossed many rivers; but they increased so fast, and were sometimes so swollen by rains, that he resolved to build a large canoe for crossing them, to be carried over land upon poles, and this proved of singular use.

Having trav

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The countries through which he passed were extremely pleasant, and some of them populous. Three great villages, particularly, are named, Taraba, Tyakappon, and Palonna. The course by which he travelled was northeast, and at last he arrived at the country of the Palaquessens, who, he was told, were in alliance with the Spaniards. Among his attendants was one Hiens, whose true name was James, an English soldier, one Larcheveque, and a surgeon called Liotot. As it was impossible for

the travellers to carry with them a sufficiency of provisions to maintain them through the whole journey, they had recourse to hunting, the country through which they travelled being full of excellent game, and they divided themselves into small parties for that purpose. Moranget, La Salle's valet, and one Nika, an Indian, but a most admirable hunter, formed one of those parties, and, as it is reported, fell in with Duhaut, Hiens, and Liotot. A quarrel ensued, in which Moranget is said to have abused Duhaut, whose younger brother was suspected to have been put to death by La Salle's own hand. It is probable that the tyranny and insolence of La Salle determined those men to despatch him, but that they did not think themselves safe without first murdering Moranget, the valet and the hunter, a scheme which they accordingly executed, when they were asleep, in a most inhuman manner, Larcheveque and the pilot Tessier being their accomplices. Despair, rage, and misery prompted them to cross a river which lay between them and La Salle, to murder him likewise; but they were detained two days by the swelling of the waters. By this time La Salle became excessively uneasy, because Moranget and his two servants had not returned, and he resolved to go in quest of them, taking with him Father Anastase and an Indian, and recommending the care of his

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