COLL. DONGAN TO M. DE DENONVILLE.

[Lond. Doc. V.]

11th June 1687.

Sir-The enclosed' came to my hands last night from England with orders to have it proclaimed which has accordingly bin done, what is there agreed upon I will observe to the least title and I doubt not but your Excell: will do the same and I hope bee so kinde as not desire or seck any correspondence with our Indians of this side of the Great Lake if they doe amisse to any of your Govermt and you make it known to me you shall have all justice done and if any of your people disturbe us I will have the same recourse to you for satisfaction as for those further Nations, I suppose that to trade with them is free and common to us all until the meets and bounds bee adjusted though truly the scituation of those partes bespeakes the King of England to have a greater right to them than the French king, they lying to the southward of us just on the back of other partes of our King's dominions and a very great way from you. I am informed by some of our Indians that your Excell: was pleased to desire them to meet you at Cadaraque; I could hardly beleive it till I had a letter from Father Lamberville, wherein he informs me that 'tis true, I am also informed of your Fathers' endeavours dayly to carry away our Indians to Canada as you have already done a great many, you must pardon me if I tell you that that is not the right way to keepe fair correspondence-I have also been informed that you are told I have given to Indians orders to rob the French wherever they could meet them, that is as false as tis true that God is in heaven, what I have done was by your own desire which was that I should suffer none of Canada to come to Albany without they had your passe in complyance wherewith I ordered, both, the Indians and people of Albany that if they found any French or English on this side of the great Lake without either Your passe or mine, they should seize them and bring them to

1 Treaty of Neutrality.

Albany: I am now sorry that I did it since its not agreeable to you and has as I am informed hindered the comeing of a great many Beauers to this place-I shall therefore recall the orders. I am daily expecting Religious men from England which I intend to put amongst those five nations. I desire you would order Mons de Lamberuille that soe long as he stayes amongst those people he would meddle only with the affairs belonging to his function and that those of our Indians that are turned Catholiques and live in Canada may content themselves with their being alone without endevouring to debauch others after them, if they do and I can catch any of them I shall handle them very severely. Sr setting aside the trust my master has reposed in me I should be as ready and willing to serve Mons' de Nonuille as any friend he has, I could wish with all my heart the wildernesse betwixt us were not soe great but that there were conveniences whereby we might see one another often, for I have as much respect for all the people of quality of your nation especially such as have serued in the armies as any man in the world can have: as for newes, the ships lately come from England say all things are at peace both there and in France and that both our Masters are in very good health and that the Emperour and the King of Poland are very vigorous against the Turques-

I am Sir

our most humble servant

(Signed) THO. DONGAN

Sr I send you some Oranges hearing they are a rarity in your partes, and would send more, but the bearer wants conueniency of Carriage

FROM A PAPER SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN BY M. DE CALLIERES. DATED QUEBEC, 16 JULY, 1687.

[Paris Doc. III.]

I yesterday received a letter from M. de Denonville from Cataracouy of the 3rd of this month, informing me that he sends me

fifty Iroquois taken near that place, to forward them to France in the King's Ships, conformably to his orders. I'll take advantage of the delay of the Fourgon, in which I shall have them embarked, and as the crew is too few to convey so many prisoners, very difficult to be guarded, I reinforce them by some passengers and sailors from a merchantman, the Catharine, which was wrecked last autumn near Tadoussac, and could not be got off.

M. DE DENONVILLE TO THE MINISTER.

ATTACK ON THE SENECAS; ERECTION OF FORT NIAGARA.

[Paris Doc. III.]

Ville Marie, 25 August, 1687.

The first thing with which I occupied myself on my arrival [at Irondequoit Bay] was to select a post easy to be fortified for securing our batteaux to the number of 200 and as many canoes. We cut 2000 palisades which we finished planting in the forenoon of the 12th of July.

I had brought with me Sieur d'Orvilliers as the fittest to receive the whole of Canada into his hands; for the loss of this post would be the assured loss of the whole country which obliged me to leave 440 men there.

On the 12th I departed at three o'clock in the evening with all our French and Indian allies and Christians having caused them to take 15 days provisions. We only made three leagues that day across the woods which are very open.

On the 13th about four o'clock in the afternoon, having pass ed through two dangerous defiles, we arrived at the third where we were very vigorously attacked by 800 Senecas, 200 of whom fired, wishing to attack our rear whilst the remainder of their force would attack our front, but the resistance they met produced such a great consternation that they soon resolved to fly. All our troops were so overpowered by the extreme heat and the long journey we had made that we were obliged to bivouac on the field until the morrow. We witnessed the painful

sight of the usual cruelties of the savages who cut the dead into quarters, as in slaughter houses, in order to put them into the pot; the greater number were opened while still warm that their blood might be drank. Our rascally Otaous distinguished themselves particularly by these barbarities and by their poltroonery, for they withdrew from the combat; the Hurons of Michilimaquina did very well, but our Christian Indians surpassed all and performed deeds of valour, especially our Iroquois of whom we durst not make sure having to fight against their relatives. The Illinois performed their duty well. We had five or six men killed on the spot, French and Indians, and about twenty wounded, among the first of whom was the Rev: Fath: Angleran, superintendent of the Otaous missions, by a very severe gunshot. It is a great misfortune to us that this wound will prevent him going back again, for he is a man of capacity, of great influence who has conducted every thing at Michilimaquina well, and to whom the country owes vast obligations. For had it not been for him the Iroquois had been long since established at Michilimaquina.

We learned from some prisoners who had escaped from the Senecas that this action cost them 45 men killed on the field, 25 of whom we had seen at the shambles; the others were seen buried by this deserter, and over 60 very severely wounded.

On the next day, 14th July, we marched to one of the large villages where we encamped. We found it burned and a fort quite nigh, abandoned; it was very advantageously situated on a hill.

I deemed it our best policy to employ ourselves laying waste the Indian corn which was in vast abundance in the fields, rather than follow a flying enemy to a distance and excite our troops to catch only some straggling fugitives.

We learned from deserters that the Senecas had gone to the English where they will not be allowed to want for any thing necessary to make war on us. Since that time I have had no news of the enemy.

We remained at the four Seneca villages until the 24th; the two larger distant 4 leagues, and the others two. All that time was spent in destroying the corn which was in such great abun dance that the loss, including old corn which was in cache which

we burnt and that which was standing, was computed according to the estimate afterwards made, at 400 thousand minots of Indian corn.' These four villages must exceed 14 to 15 thousand souls. There was a vast quantity of hogs which were killed; a great many both of our Indians and French were attacked with a general rheum which put every one out of humor.

'Tis an unfortunate trade, my lord, to command savages who, after the first broken head ask only to return home carrying with them the scalp which they lift off like a leather cap. You cannot conceive the trouble I had to detain them until the corn was cut.

During the whole time we were in the Senecas country we did not see a single enemy, which caused me divers alarms lest they had been at our batteaux, but terror and consternation deterred them too much from effecting their first threats.

Returning to our batteaux I should have greatly wished to have been able to visit other villages, but the sickness, the extreme fatigue among all and the uneasiness of the savages who began to disband, determined me to proceed to Niagara to erect a fort there in their presence, and point out to them a sure asylum to encourage them to come this winter to war in small bodies.

I selected the angle of the Lake on the Seneca side of the river; it is the most beautiful, the most pleasing and the most advantageous site that is on the whole of this Lake, the Map and plan of which you will have if Sieur de Ville Marie will take the trouble, for I tormented him considerably for it; I sent him expressly to Quebec that he may have nothing else to do.

This post being in a state of defence I left a hundred men there under the command of Sieur de Troyes who made the Northern expedition last year. He is a worthy fellow who richly deserves some share in the honour of your good graces and protection. He can be very useful to you in many things; he is prudent and intelligent, very willing, and has well served on land.

This post has caused much joy to all our farther Indians, who having no place of retreat, scarcely dared to approach the enemy. They have made me great promises-especially our Illinois-to harass them this winter by a number of small parties.

1 A minot is equal to three bushels.