Missouri, a bone of contention

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Chap.— MTCopy right No.^

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

Chapter I. Discovery And Exploration Of The Mississippi

Although the French were the first to explore the Mississippi, to map out its course, and to establish permanent settlements upon its banks, they were not its discoverers ; neither were they the first to float upon its waters. That honor, if the term can be applied to what was but a lucky incident in a mad search after gold, belongs to the Spaniards, and is usually ascribed to Hernando de Soto, though upon what are believed to be insufficient grounds. Without stopping, however, to discuss the point, it is sufficient to say that almost a century and a half before the French explorers launched their frail canoes upon the stream, he stood upon its banks ; and whilst it is not possible to make out, with any degree of accuracy, the itinerary of his journey, there is but little hazard in asserting that the spot from which he first gazed upon its turbid waters must have been at or near the place where the city of Memphis now stands.

Whether in the course of his wanderings he reached the confines of what is now known as the State of Missouri is a question that cannot be definitively settled.

The course and length of the journey which he is said to have made, after crossing the river, in order to reach the country of the Capahas, or, as they are now called, the Quapaws, would seem to indicate that he did ; the mounds and embankments, too, to say nothing of the other evidences of prehistoric life that are found in such profusion in the southeastern portion of the State, answer, with singular fidelity, to the descriptions which are given of the houses and villages of these people, as well as of their implements and ornaments ; and if to this be added the fact that, a hundred and fifty years later, they were living in the same region, though not, perhaps, in the identical localities, it will be seen that a strong presumptive case can be made out in favor of the truth of the theory. However, be this as it may, it is not a point upon which we care to insist, for even if the fact be admitted, it was not followed by any practical results. Like Cortes, Pizarro, and the rest of the Spanish conquerors, De Soto and his followers were primarily, not colonists, but 'adventurers in search of gold, and being disappointed in their object, they had no thought but to quit a country which had ceased to be attractive. Accordingly in 1543, after two years more of wearisome marching and useless fighting, the survivors of the expedition, reduced in numbers, and with their leader dead, found their way back to the banks of the river, and down it they sailed in hastily constructed brigantines, glad enough to escape from a region in which, instead of wealth and ease, they had met with nothing but privation and hardship, sickness and death.

With the failure of this expedition, efforts to explore the Mississippi valley were, for the time being, brought to a close ; and it was not until after the lapse of a hundred and thirty years that the work was again taken up and carried to a successful conclusion. In the mean time, the Atlantic coast, from Florida to Canada, had been dotted with colonies. Of these, some were comparatively shortlived, as, for instance, the settlements of the Dutch and Swedes in New York and New Jersey respectively ; others, like the establishments of the Spaniards in Florida, appear to have been always in a moribund condition, and owed what little success they had to the rivalry of their neighbors, rather than to any strength of their own : so that by the close of the seventeenth century, the whole of the vast domain that lies east of the Mississippi and south of Hudson's Bay, except, perhaps, the peninsula of Florida, was in the hands of the English and French.

These nations, enemies and rivals here, as they had been for generations on the other side of the water, were among the earliest to engage in the work of colonization. At first, their efforts met with but little success, and it was not until after repeated failures that they succeeded, in the first decade of the seventeenth century, in effecting permanent settlements at Jamestown and Quebec. Other points were gradually occupied, and as both nations claimed the whole of this region, and did not hesitate, when opportunity offered, to treat their rivals as interlopers, it soon brought on that long and bloody struggle which, beginning with Argall's destruction of the French settlement on the island of Mount Desert in 1613, was only ended, a hundred and fifty years later, by the victory of Wolfe upon the Plains of Abraham.

In watching the course of this struggle, or rather in noting the progress of these colonies, for the struggle itself interests us but little, we cannot but be struck with the contrast that exists between the rapid advance of the French into the interior of the continent and the slow and steady growth of the English in the same direction. As early as 1639, only about thirty years after Quebec was founded, Nicolet was upon the Wisconsin and within three days' travel of the Mississippi, or as it was then thought, the ocean ; and in 1671, before the Massachusetts colonists had closed in the death struggle with King Philip, and whilst the spot where now stands the city of Philadelphia was still a part of the virgin forest, the Jesuits had completed the circuit of Lake Superior, and were anxiously waiting for the word which, two years later, sent Joliet and Marquette on their voyage down the Mississippi. Various reasons are brought forward by way of accounting for the unequal rate at which the colonies of these two nations moved westward, and, so far as the French are concerned, there can be no doubt that their progress in this direction was due in great part to religious enthusiasm and the necessities of the fur-trade. Unquestionably there were other causes, as, for instance, the facility of intercommunication and the hostility of the Iroquois, which contributed either to hasten or retard the movement; but after all, in its last analysis, it was to the activity of the fur-trader and the zeal of the missionary that the French were indebted for their early acquaintance with all this region.

To appreciate the full extent of the influence which these two classes exerted in bringing about this result, it is necessary to bear in mind that they had controlled the destinies of the colony from its very foundation ; and that, no matter how widely they may have differed at times in their ends and aims, they were always alike in so far as they both depended, for their continued prosperity, upon the extension of French influence among the native tribes. To them, every step in this direction meant an increase in the number of those who looked to Quebec for a market, or who trusted to it for religious instruction, and hence the energy with which they pushed their way into the interior, sought out new alliances, and established posts and missions wherever there was a promise of a commercial or a spiritual harvest.

Urged on by considerations of this character, the Recollet fathers visited the eastern shores of Lake Huron, and established themselves among the people of that name as early as 1615 ; and, by the middle of the century, the Jesuits, who had succeeded to the control of the religious affairs of the colony, had in operation among this same people one of the most flourishing missions that has ever existed among our North American Indians. Unfortunately, however, for the success of the undertaking, the Iroquois war broke out afresh about this time, and those grim warriors, having obtained a supply of firearms from the English and Dutch traders, soon made a desert of all the region that lies between the Ottawa and the lakes. In their insane fury they spared neither missionary nor medicine man, neither Christian convert nor pagan devotee.

Of those who escaped the general ruin, a part fled to the regions west of the Straits of Michilimackinac, and sought refuge along the southern shores of Lake Superior. Hither, in due time, came the traders and the no less venturesome missionaries, and in this distant region they resumed the work which had met with such a bloody interruption. With characteristic energy they established posts and founded missions among the Huron refugees and their neighbors, and began at once that series of explorations which, in the course of the next fifteen years, not only made the French familiar with the geography of the upper lakes, but brought them to the head waters of streams which, flowing towards the southwest, emptied into a river that led they knew not whither, " perhaps into the Sea of Virginia, the Gulf of Mexico, or possibly into the Vermillion Sea " and the Pacific Ocean.

Henceforward the discovery of this river and of the great valley through which it flows was a foregone conclusion. In fact, its existence seems already to have been generally known both to the traders and the missionaries, for there is scarcely a record of the period in which the references to it are not more or less frequent. In 1658 two traders, Radisson and Groseilliers, wintered on the shores of Lake Superior, and brought back stories of the Sioux and of the great river upon which they dwelt. A few years later Father Allouez confirmed their account, and in 1669-70, in the course of his missionary labors, he visited the Mascoutens, who were then living on the Wisconsin, " within six days' sail of the Mississippi." La Salle, too, was not idle ; for it was about this time that, taking advantage of a lull in- the Iroquois war, he started out in search of the mysterious stream ; and, though the evidence is not sufficient to prove that he reached it during the course of this expedition, yet there seems to be no doubt that he discovered the Ohio, and perhaps also the Illinois. Last, but not least, Marquette, in the " Relation of 1670," reports what the Illinois had told him of this river ; and, in his far distant station, near the western extremity of

Lake Superior, he was planning a visit to the " nations that inhabit it, in order to open the passage to so many of our fathers, who have long awaited this happiness." Indeed, a mission among the Illinois is said to have been decided on, and he was already studying that language when the station at St. Esprit was broken up by the Sioux, and the unfortunate Hurons were obliged to resume their wanderings. Following his flock as they retraced their steps towards the east, he came with them to the Straits of Michilimackinac, where, tempted by the abundance of fish and the facilities of trade, they halted and fortified themselves. Here he built a log chapel and founded the mission of St. Ignatius, and here he passed the next two years of his life in the faithful discharge of the round of duties that fell to his lot, though his thoughts seem to have been ever turned towards the Mississippi. Even when writing hopefully of his work among the Hurons, as he did in 1672, he avows his willingness " to give it up and go to seek new nations towards the south sea ... to teach them of our Great God," whenever it should be thought advisable for him to do so.

Fortunately he had not long to wait, for, in the autumn of this year, Frontenac became governor ; and as he was a man of ideas as well as of action, he quickly saw the importance of the scheme which he had inherited from Talon for the occupation of the interior of the continent, and he determined to carry out the plan which had already been partially formed for the discovery and exploration of the Mississippi. Joliet, who had been educated for a Jesuit, but who was now a fur-trader, and a man of experience, and " had already been near the great river," was chosen for the work, and with him was associated Marquette, the saintlymissionary at Point St. Ignatius, or, as it is now called, Mackinaw.

Starting on his journey without any unnecessary delay, Joliet reached the mission at Mackinaw, and on the 8th of December, the festival of the Immaculate Conception, gave Marquette the news that he had been assigned to the expedition, — a coincidence which the good father does not fail to notice. During the next few months, the explorers busied themselves in collecting what information they could as to their route, for they were determined that the enterprise " should not be foolhardy," even if it were hazardous. From the accounts given by the Indians " who had frequented these parts," they were able to trace a map of all the new country, marking down the rivers on which they were to sail, the names of the nations and places through which they were to pass, the course of the great river, and what direction they were to take when they reached it. Everything seems to have been done coolly and systematically, and, so far as it was possible to see into the future, nothing was left to chance. With the return of spring, the final preparations were made for the journey, "the duration of which," we are told, " they could not foresee." This did not take them long, for their outfit was simple, consisting merely of two birch canoes and a supply of Indian corn and dried meat. They also engaged five men to accompany them ; and then, having put their voyage under the protection of the Blessed Virgin, they set out on the 17th of May, 1673, " firmly resolved to do all and suffer all for so glorious an enterprise."

Skirting along the shores of Lake Michigan and

Green Bay, they entered Fox River, and followed it up to the water-shed which divides the lakes from the Mississippi. This they crossed, and, launching their canoes upon the Wisconsin, they paddled down stream " for a distance of seventy leagues," when, on the 17th of June, they found themselves upon the broad bosom of the Mississippi.

Descending with the current, they cautiously felt their way along, anchoring at night at some distance from the shores. In a few simple sentences the good father describes the country through which they passed, and the different kinds of animals which they met. Especially was he struck with the size of the fish, and the appearance of the buffaloes. At length, on the 25th, they discovered on the west bank of the river footprints and a beaten path which led into a beautiful prairie. Rightly conjecturing that it was the pathway to an Indian village, they followed it for some two leagues, when they came to a cluster of three villages, which, to their great relief, were inhabited by bands of the Illinois, the very tribe which Marquette had long been anxious to visit. Here they were received with true Indian hospitality. A feast of four courses was duly prepared, during which the several dishes were fed to them as if they were children. They were also treated to the u calumet " dance, and, what was more to the point, one of these mysterious pipes was given to them as a safeguard, for with it " you can march fearlessly among enemies, who, even in the heat of battle, lay down their arms when it is shown."

Resuming their journey, they coasted along the Piasa bluffs, on which were painted two frightful monsters as large as calves, " with horns on the head like a deer, a fearful look, red eyes, bearded like a tiger, the face somewhat like a man's, the body covered with scales, and the tail so long that it twice makes the turn of the body, passing over the head and down between the legs, and ending at last in a fish's tail." These figures were so " high up on the rock that it must have been difficult to get at them in order to paint them," and yet the work is said to have been so well done that " good painters in France would find it hard to do as well." Green, red, and black were the colors used, and altogether it seems to have been a very creditable piece of savage workmanship. Having passed this fearful spot, " on which the boldest Indian dare not gaze long, and whilst still talking about it/' they came to the mouth of the Missouri. From the description of the scene, it must have been during the spring freshet, and any one who has ever looked upon the junction of these two mighty streams at such a time will not fail to appreciate the dangers to which our explorers were now exposed. Luckily, however, they escaped, and holding on their course for a few days longer they reached the mouth of the Ohio, or Ouaboukigou, on which the Shawnees are said to have had thirty-eight villages.

Soon after leaving this point, and whilst floating lazily along, scorched by the sun and a prey to the mosquitoes, they were startled by seeing on the east bank of the river a band of Indians, who were armed with guns, wore cloth clothes, and had hoes, hatchets, beads, and other things which had evidently been obtained from the whites. Marquette now displayed the calumet, which was at once recognized, and he and his party were invited to land and to partake of a feast, at which they were served with "wild beef, bear's oil, and white plums." The next morning they again set out, and after a monotonous journey of some days they came to a village of the Mitchigamea, which was situated eight or ten leagues above the mouth of the Arkansas. Here, for the first time, they met with what promised to be a hostile reception. The war-whoop was sounded, the young warriors crowded to the attack, and one of them threw his war club, which fortunately missed its aim. It was a critical moment, but just at this time some of the old men appeared upon the scene, and, recognizing the peace-pipe which Marquette held aloft, they checked the ardor of the young warriors and put an end to the threatened conflict. The Frenchmen were now invited to land, and after a friendly conference and the usual feast, they passed the night in the cabins of their entertainers, but " not without some uneasiness." Embarking again the next day, they reached the village of the Arkansas (" Akamsea"), which was situated opposite the mouth of the river of that name, in what is now the State of Mississippi. As their coming had been announced, they were received with every mark of honor. A feast was given them which seems to have lasted all day, and at night the chief danced the calumet as a mark of perfect assurance, and then, to remove all fears, he presented one of these pipes to Marquette.

From these Indians they learned that they were ten days' journey from the sea, and that the lower portion of the river was so infested by hostile tribes, armed with guns, that any farther progress in that direction would be attended with great danger. Under these circumstances, the explorers held a council and decided to return. They had gone far enough to satisfy themselves that the Mississippi emptied into the Gulf of Mexico, and they were fearful if they went farther of being captured by the Indians or Spaniards, and thus losing the fruits of their labors. Accordingly on the 17th of July they set out on their homeward voyage. When they reached the mouth of the Illinois they determined to return by that route instead of by the way by which they came. This, we are told, shortened their journey, and brought them without trouble to the lake of the Illinois, or, as it is now called, Michigan. Coasting along its western shores, they reached the mission at the head of Green Bay on the last of September, having been gone just four months and traveled over twenty-five hundred miles.

Leaving Marquette here, to rest and recuperate, Joliet pushed on to Quebec. When near Montreal, and almost in sight of his destination, his canoe was upset, and all his papers were lost. It was a serious accident, but fortunately not irreparable, for Marquette, too, had kept a journal of the voyage ; and though Joliet made a short report from memory, yet it is to the narrative of the worthy Jesuit that we are chiefly indebted for what we know of this expedition. In the map which accompanies his " Relation," he has rudely sketched the river system of the valley as far as it was known ; and in his speculations as to the length and course of the Missouri, and his familiarity with the names and locations of some of the tribes that dwelt upon its banks, as well as of those that lived upon the Ohio, he gives a very favorable idea of the extent and character of the knowledge which, even at this early day, the French had acquired of the geography of all this region.

Important as were the results of this expedition, there was yet much to be done before the full benefits of the discovery could be reaped. The upper and lower portions of the river were yet to be explored, and when this was done and the course of the great river was known through its entire length, measures would still have to be taken for the occupation of the country through which it flowed. This was a vast undertaking, but it was of a character that was suited to the spirit of that age, and La Salle, who " had obtained the grant of Fort Frontenac, the monopoly of the lake trade, and a patent of nobility," now set out to accomplish it. He was a friend if not a partner of the governor, and he had rich relatives in France who were willing to assist him, so that he was able to command political influence and money, or its equivalent, credit. Besides these essential requisites he was endowed with certain attributes of mind and body, and was possessed of a measure of experience that fitted him for the work. He had already, as has been said, discovered the Ohio, and probably the Illinois too ; and if he did not reach the Mississippi, he certainly knew of its existence, and he may possibly have identified it with the great river of De Soto. At all events, he seems to have had very clear ideas as to where it emptied and of its commercial possibilities, for he had obtained a monopoly of the fur-trade of the valley, and contemplated the erection of forts and the establishment of colonies at such points as would give him the control of this trade in fact as well as in name, and thus enable him to establish his fortunes upon a sure foundation.

In pursuance of this plan, he led an expedition to the Illinois, in the winter of 1679-80, and built a fort on that stream, just below Peoria lake, to which he gave the name of Creoe-cmur. From this point as a base, he dispatched Father Hennepin to explore the lower Illinois and the upper Mississippi, whilst he himself returned to Fort Frontenac, now Kingston, in order to look after his affairs, which had fallen into confusion.

After some delay, growing out of his unwillingness to undertake the expedition, Hennepin finally set out on the 29th of February, 1680. On the 11th of April, when near the mouth of the Wisconsin, he was captured by a party of Sioux, who adopted him into the tribe. In their company he visited the Falls of St. Anthony, which he named ; and with them he remained until the autumn of that year, when he was rescued by Du Lhut. During the next year, and without having seen La Salle, or made any report to him, the tricky friar sailed for Eurojje. Soon afterwards he published a narrative of his journey, in which he gave a description of the river above the mouth of the Wisconsin, and an account of the manners and customs of the Sioux. This is the only publication he ever made that is entitled to any credence, and even in this, some of the statements are to be taken with many grains of allowance. In the edition issued some years later, he involves himself in such a net-work of falsehoods and contradictions as to cast discredit upon the work which he really performed.

In the mean time La Salle, having restored his affairs to something like order, returned to the Illinois, only to find that, during the absence of Tonti, his fort had been plundered and destroyed by his own men. This necessitated another trip to Fort Frontenac, which must have been made in 1681, for in December of that year he was, once again, at the head of Lake Michigan, accompanied by Tonti, Father Membre, and some others, who had been faithful to him during his adverse fortunes, and who were now to share with him in the glory of his discovery. Including these faithful friends and followers, the party which he had made up for the descent of the Mississippi consisted of twenty-three Frenchmen and thirty-one Indians, of whom ten were women and three children.

Loading their canoes upon sledges, they dragged them across the portage and down the frozen Illinois to the foot of Peoria lake, where they found open water. Here they embarked, and after a somewhat uneventful voyage they reached the Mississippi on the 6th of February, 1682, and the Gulf on the 9th of the following April. Having found a suitable spot La Salle erected a cross, raised the arms of France, and, in a proces verbal, which was duly witnessed, he took possession of all the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries, and he named it Louisiana, in honor of his sovereign, Louis XIV., by the grace of God King of France and Navarre.

The work of exploration was now complete, but the more difficult task of occupation still remained, and to this La Salle now devoted all his energies. Returning to the Illinois he dispatched Father Membre to Europe, with the news of his discovery, whilst he himself built a fort on Starved Rock, — a bluff near where the town of Ottawa now stands, — which he intended to serve as a centre of trade and a place of refuge against the inroads of the Iroquois. Around this point he speedily gathered a large colony, consisting of a score of Frenchmen, to whom he made grants of lands, and of some thousands of Indians, belonging to different tribes, who were drawn thither by the prospects of trade, and by the promise of protection which the fort afforded.

Leaving Tonti in command of this motley crowd, La Salle, in the autumn of 1683, sailed for France, where his presence was sadly needed. His friend and partner, Frontenac, was no longer governor, and La Barre, who was now at the head of affairs, had identified himself with his enemies, and did not hesitate at any measures that were necessary to effect his ruin. Fort Frontenac was seized on the ground that he had not complied with the conditions upon which it had been granted to him ; his men were prevented from obtaining supplies ; the Iroquois were told that they might rob and kill him with impunity ; and an officer was sent out to take possession of the fort which he had built on the Illinois. Such was the condition of affairs when he left for Europe, and it must be confessed that the outlook was anything but encouraging. He was in debt, and as all his property had been seized, and much of it wasted, there seemed to be no way by which he could extricate himself. La Salle, however, was not a person to be daunted by difficulties. Proceeding to Paris, he laid his case before the colonial minister, and, fortunately for himself, he found in that officer a warm advocate. Frontenac, too, was again in favor, and by the aid of these two powerful friends he soon succeeded in reestablishing his affairs upon a firm basis. Not only were his forts restored, but La Barre was ordered to make reparation for the injury which had been done him, and means were furnished him for establishing a post and colony near the mouth of the Mississippi.

In a memorial which he prepared at this time for the use of the king, he gave a brief statement of what he had already accomplished ; set forth his views and plans at some length ; and drew such a flattering picture of the military possibilities of the proposed colony in the event of a war with Spain, that the king granted him all the supplies that were asked for. Soldiers, of whom Father Le Clerc did not have a very high opinion, were recruited for the expedition, as were "three or four mechanics in each trade," who were subsequently found to know nothing at all about their several occupations. Some eight or ten families of good people volunteered to go, as did a number of girls, who were " allured by the prospect of certain marriage." A full complement of priests, too, was added, among whom were La Salle's brother — the Sulpitian, Cavelier — and the Recollet Friars Membre, Douay, and Le Clerc. At length, all things being ready, the expedition sailed from Rochelle on the 24th of July, 1684, and, after a series of misfortunes which seem to have attended them from the beginning of the voyage, they reached the Gulf of Mexico, and sighted land on the 28th of December. By accident, or owing to ignorance, or possibly, as Joutel suggests, to treachery, they passed the mouths of the Mississippi, and coasted along in an aimless sort of way until about the middle of February, 1685 ; the colonists were finally landed on the shores of Matagorda Bay, which La Salle had wrongly supposed to be one of the outlets of the great river. Here he built a fort ; and, having satisfied himself that he was too far westward, he started out to find the Mississippi, for lie knew well that until it was found, and the colony was safely transferred to its banks, all his expenditure of time, labor, and money had been in vain. The effort, however, was not attended with success, and equally futile was a second attempt made in the following year (1686).