La Salle and the discovery of the great West - North Central ...

;.] DEPARTURE. 17He was not ill suited to the purpose. He hadbeen a soldier in his youth, and had fought valiantlyas an officer of cavalry under Turenne. He was aman of great courage ; of a tall, commanding personand of uncommon bodily strength, which he hadnotably proved in the campaign of Courcelle againstthe Iroquois, three years before. 1 On going toQuebec to procure the necessary outfit,he was urgedby Courcelle to modify his plans so far as to act inconcert with La Salle in exploring the mystery of thegreat unknown river of the West. Dollier and hisbrother priests consented. One of them, Galin^e,was joined with him as a colleague, because he wasskilled in surveying, and could make a map of theirroute. Three canoes were procured, and seven hiredmen completed the party. It was determined thatLa Salle's expedition and that of the Seminaryshould be combined in one, — an arrangement illsuited to the character of the young explorer, whowas unfit for any enterprise of which he was not theundisputed chief.Midsummer was near, and there was no time tolose. Yet the moment was most unpropitious, for aSeneca chief had lately been murdered by threescoundrel soldiers of the fort of Montreal ; and, whilethey were undergoing their trial, it became known1He was the author of the very curious and valuable Ilistoirede Montreal, preserved in the Bibliotheque Mazarine, of which acopy is in my possession. The Historical Society of Montreal hagrecently resolved to print it.2