M. DE DENONVILLE TO GOV. DONGAN. [Par. Doc. III.] Ville marie, June 20. 1686. I received, Sir, the letter which you did me the honour to write me on the 22nd May last, You will sufficiently learn, in the end, how devoid of all foundation are the advices which you have had of my pretended designs and that all that has been told you by the deserters from the Colony ought to be much suspected by you. You are, Sir, too well acquainted with the service and the manner that things must be conducted, to take any umbrage at the supplies which I send to Cataracouy for the subsistence of the soldiers which I have there. You know the savages sufficiently to be well assured that it would be very imprudent on my part to leave that place without having enough of supplies and munitions there for one year's time. You are not ignorant that it is impossible to get up there at all seasons; if I were to have them conveyed for a large force, I should have used other means. The natural treachery of a people without faith and without religion, require us to be so far distrustful of them that you ought not to blame me for using precaution against their restlessness and caprice. I had the honor to inform you by my letter of the 6th June last that the orders I have from my Master manifest merely the zeal which His Majesty entertains for the progress of Religion and for the support and maintenance of the Missionaries. I expect from your piety that you will not be opposed to that, knowing well how much you love Religion. Do you think, Sir, that they will reap much fruit whilst the savages are allowed no peace in the villages in which our Missionaries are established ? When I came here, I thought Peace was assured between the Iroquois and us and our Savage allies. You see, Sir, what has been the conduct of the Iroquois in this rencounter. say, Sir, that I am wrong in distrusting them? Can you They are alarmed at the war which they fancy I shall wage against them; their conscience only could have impressed them with this idea, since I have not done the least thing to make them believe that I want any thing else from them than to see peace well established throughout all the country. What have I done to cause them the least uneasiness? And what do they want? In respect to the pretensions which you say you have to the lands of this country, certainly you are not well informed of all the entries into possession (prises de possessions) which have been made in the name of the King my Master, and of the establish ments which we have of long standing on the lands and on the lakes; and as I have no doubt but our Masters will easily agree among themselves, seeing the union and good understanding that obtain between them, I willingly consent with you that their Majesties regulate the limits among themselves wishing nothing more than to live with you in good understanding; but to that end, Sir, it would be very apropos that a gentleman so worthy as you should not grant protection to all the rogues, vaga bonds and thieves who desert and seek refuge with you, and who, to acquire some merit with you believe they cannot do better than to tell you many impertinencies of us, which will have no end so long as you will listen to them. The letter which the Rev. Father de Lamberville has been so kind as to be the bearer of from me on the 6th June last ought to suffice, Sir, to put you perfectly in possession of my intentions. It would be unnecessary that I should make any other reply to your last of the 22d of May, were it not that I was very glad hereby to prove to you again that I shall always fcel a great pleasure in seizing every opportunity to shew that I am Sir, Your very humble & very obedient Servant. COL. DONGAN TO M. DE DENONVILLE. [Lond. Doc. V.; Par. Doc. III.] New York, 27th July. 1686. Sir-I had the honour to receave two letters from you one dated the 6th and the other the 20th of June last and in them I have found very much satisfaction by the hopes of a good correspondence with a person of so great merit worth and repute spread abroad in the army in which I served. Believe it it is much joy to have soe good a neighbour of soe excellent qualifications and temper and of a humour altogether differing from Monsieur de la Barre your predecessor who was so furious and hasty very much addicted to great words as if I had bin to have bin frighted by them. The Indians peradventure might justly offend him for they as you well remarke are not people of the greatest credit and reputation, but certainly I did not amiss in offering sincerely to compose the difference and I went expressly to Albany to do it and yet no suitable returns were made by him for it. I doubt not but your Masters inclinations are very strongly bent to propagate the Christian Religion and I do assure you that my master had no less a share in so pious intentions; for my part I shall take all imaginable care that the Fathers who preach the Holy Gospell to those Indians over whom I have power bee not in the least ill treated and upon that very accompt have sent for one of each nation to come to me and then those beastly crimes you reproove shall be checked severely and all my endeavours used to suppress their filthy drunkennesse disorders, debauches, warring and quarrels and whatsoever doth obstruct the growth and enlargement of the Christian faith amongst those people I have heard that before ever the King your Master pretended to Cannida, the Indians so farr as the South Sea were under the English Dominion and always traded with Albany Maryland and Virginia, but that according to your desire with very good reason is wholly referred to our Masters, and I heartely pray that neither you nor myselfe give occasion of any of the least misunder standing between them but that a prosperous correspondence stricht amity and union may perpettually bee continued between those monarchs, The stricktest care shall be taken concerning runawayes from you and those who are here if you please to send for them shall bee all conveyed to you-but if there bee any soldiers who have deserted, I desire you to give me the assurance that they shall not loose their lives, And now, Sir. I begg your pardon for giveing you the trouble of my particular affairs which is thus when my Prince called me out of the French service twenty five thousand livres were due to me as was stated and certifyed to Mons' De Lenoy by the Intendant of Nancy—my stay was so short that I had no time to kisse the King's hands and petition for itt a very great misfortune after so long service, for in the circumstances I was then in I served him faithfully to the uttermost of my power. After I quitted France I went to Tangier and haveing left that place sometime after came hither so that I never had time to represent my case to His Majesty which I request you to espouse for me that so by your means I may obtaine either all or at least some part of that which is due to me— The King I know had bin bountifull to all and I am confident hath too much generosity to see me suffer; however it happens I shall as heartily pray for his good health and happy success in all his undertakings as any one breathing and be ever ready to make all just acknowledgements to yourselfe for so great an obligation and favour; wishing heartily for a favorable occasion to demonstrate how profound an esteem I have for your person and merritts and give undenyable proofs that I am sincerely and with all respects Sir Your most humble and affectionate servant THOS DONGAN M. DE DENONVILLE TO GOV. DONGAN. [Paris Doc. III.] 29 Sept. 1686. I received by the Rev. Father de Lamberville, the elder, missionary among the Iroqucis of the village of the Onontagués the letter which you took the trouble to write to me on the 27th July. I repeat, Sir, what I already had the honour to state to you that it will not be my fault that we shall not live in very good intelligence. I am willing to believe, Sir, that you will contribute thereunto on your side, and that you will put an end to all those causes that may exist for dissatisfaction at what is doing under your government by your traders and others whom you pro tect. I do not believe, Sir, that the King your master approves of all the trouble you have taken in arming and soliciting by presents all the Iroquois Nation to wage war on us this year, neither the exhortations you have made them to plunder our Frenchmen who trade to places which up to the present time we have acquired long before New York was what it is. You have proposed, Sir, to submit every thing to the decision of our Masters, yet your emissary to the Onnontagués, told all the nations in your name to pillage and to make war on us. This is so notorious a matter that it cannot be doubted, and it will be maintained before your emissary; whether he acted by your order, or at the suggestion of your merchants at Orange, it has been said and done. You are not ignorant of the expedition of your merchants against Michilimaquina. I ask you, Sir, what do you wish that I should think of all this, and if this behaviour accord with the letter which you did me the honour to write on the 27th July filled with courtesies and friendly expressions as well regarding Religion as the good understanding and friendship existing between our Masters which ought be imitated in this country in token of our respect and obedience to them. You had the civility to tell me that you would give me up all |