CHAP. XI. equal acrimony and talents; a richer and more. 1749. extensive field of controversy, was preparing in the south and west. Statement of the discovery of the by the French. As early as the year 1660, the French in Canada were informed by the Indians, that to Mississippi the west of that colony there was a great river, flowing neither to the north nor to the east. It was very naturally concluded, that it must empty itself either in the gulf of Mexico, or the south sea; and the care of ascertaining the fact was committed, in 1673, to Joliet, an inhabitant of Quebec, and to the jesuit Marquette. These men set out from lake Michigan, and proceeded up the river of the Foxes almost to its source, from whence they travelled westward to the Ouisconsing, which they pursued to its confluence with the Mississippi. They sailed down this river to about the 33d degree of north latitude, and from thence returned by land through the country of the Illinois, to Canada. The mouth of the Mississippi was afterwards discovered by la Salle, a bold and enterprising Norman, who, immediately after his return to Quebec, set out for France in the hope of inducing the court of Versailles to patronise a scheme for proceeding by sea to the mouth of that river and settling a colony on its banks. He succeeded in his application to the French cabinet, and sailed for the gulf of Mexico, with four small vessels, and a few colonists; 1 but steering too far westward, he arrived in the CHAP. XI. bay of St. Bernard, about one hundred leagues 1749. from the mouth of the river he intended to have entered. In consequence of a quarrel between him and Beaujieu, who commanded the fleet, the men were landed at this place. La Salle was soon afterwards assassinated, and the colonists murdered or dispersed by the Spaniards and the Indians. Several other attempts were made by the French to settle the country; but, by some unaccountable fatality, instead of seating themselves on the fertile borders of the Mississippi, they continually landed about the barren sands of Biloxi, and the bay of Mobile. It was not until about the year 1722, that the miserable remnant of those who had been carried thither at various times, were transplanted to New Orleans; nor, until about the year 1731, that the colony began to flourish. It had received the name of Louisiana, and soon extended itself by detached settlements, up the Mississippi and its waters, towards the great lakes. As it progressed towards the north, the vast and Scheme for interesting plan was formed, of connecting it Louisiana with Canada by a chain of forts. The fine climate and fertile country of upper Louisiana; its capacity to produce and maintain an immense population, rendered it an object which promised complete gratification to the views of France; while the extent given to connecting with Canada. CHAP. XI. it by that nation, excited the most serious 1749. alarm among the colonies of Britain. The English had originally taken possession of the sea coast, but the charters granted by the crown to the first adventurers, extended from the Atlantic to the southern ocean. Their settlements had regularly progressed westward, and it had been supposed that, their titles to the country in that direction could only be controverted by the Indians. The settlements of the French, stretching from north to south, necessarily interfered with those of the English, extending from east to west. Their plan, if executed, would completely have environed the English. Canada and Louisiana united would, as has been very aptly said, have formed a bow, of which the English colonies would have constituted the string. While Great Britain claimed an indefinite extent to the west, in consequence of her possession of the sea coast, and as appertaining thereto, France insisted on confining her to the eastern side of the Apalachian or Alleghany mountains, and claimed the whole country, whose waters run into the Mississippi, in virtue of her right, as the first discoverer of that river. The delightful region between the summit of those mountains and the Mississippi, was the object for which these two powerful nations contended; and it soon became apparent that the sword alone could decide the contest. The white population of the English colo- CHAP. XI. nies was supposed to amount to upwards of one 1749. million of souls, while that of the French was not computed to exceed fifty-two thousand.* This disparity of numbers did not intimidate the governor of New France, under which title were included both Canada and Louisiana; nor deter him from proceeding in the execution of * The following estimate is taken from the history of the Halifax and Lunenberg in Nova Scotia.......5,000 Massachussetts Bay........ Massachussetts Bay.............................220,000 Rhode Island and Providence..................35,000 The white inhabitants of the French colonies were thus esti CHAP. XI. a plan, he had embraced with ardour. Advan1749. tages were possessed by the French, which, he persuaded himself would counterbalance the superior numbers of the English. Relative strength and the French colonies. The whole power of France in America was advantages of united under one governor, who could give it and English such direction as his judgment should dictate. The genius of the people and of the government was military, and they could very readily be called out, when their service in the field should be required. Great reliance, too, was placed on the Indians. These savages with the exception of the Five Nations were generally attached to them; they were well trained to war, and the efficiency of their aid had been already experienced. To these advantages, was added a perfect knowledge of the country, which was to become the theatre of action. The British colonies, on the other hand, were divided into distinct governments, unaccustomed, except those of New England, to act in concert; were jealous of the powers of the crown; and were spread over a very large extent of territory, the soil of which in all the middle colonies, was cultivated by men, whose peace had been, of late years, seldom disturbed, and who were consequently almost entirely unused to arms. The governors of Canada, who were generally military men, had, for several preceding years, judiciously selected and fortified such |