A Half-Century of Conflict, vol 2 | Page 9

Père Rébald au Père de Beaubois, sans date.
Bienville et Salmon au Ministre, 30 Avril_, 1741, in Margry, VI.
455-468.]
The bold exploit of the brothers Mallet attracted great attention at New
Orleans, and Bienville resolved to renew it, find if possible a nearer and
better way to Santa Fé, determine the nature and extent of these
mysterious western regions, and satisfy a lingering doubt whether they
were not contiguous to China and Tartary. [Footnote: _Instructions
données par Jean-Baptiste de Bienville à Fabry de la Bruyère, 1 Juin,
1741_. Bienville was behind his time in geographical knowledge. As
early as 1724 Bénard de la Harpe knew that in ascending the Missouri
or the Arkansas one was moving towards the "Western Sea,"--that is,
the Pacific,--and might, perhaps, find some river flowing into it. See
_Routes qu'on peut tenir pour se rendre à la Mer de l'Ouest,_ in Journal
historique, 387.] A naval officer, Fabry de la Bruyère, was sent on this
errand, with the brothers Mallet and a few soldiers and Canadians. He
ascended the Canadian Fork of the Arkansas, named by him the St.
André, became entangled in the shallows and quicksands of that
difficult river, fell into disputes with his men, and after protracted
efforts, returned unsuccessful. [Footnote: _Extrait des Lettres du Sieur
Fabry._]
While French enterprise was unveiling the remote Southwest, two

indomitable Canadians were pushing still more noteworthy
explorations into more northern regions of the continent.

CHAPTER XVI.
1716-1761.
SEARCH FOR THE PACIFIC.
THE WESTERN SEA.--SCHEMES FOR REACHING
IT.--JOURNEY OF CHARLEVOIX.--THE SIOUX
MISSION.--VARENNES DE LA VÉRENDRYE.--HIS
ENTERPRISE.--HIS DISASTERS.--VISITS THE MANDANS.--HIS
SONS.--THEIR SEARCH FOR THE WESTERN SEA.--THEIR
ADVENTURES.--THE SNAKE INDIANS.--A GREAT
WAR-PARTY.--THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS.--A PANIC.--RETURN
OF THE BROTHERS.--THEIR WRONGS AND THEIR FATE.
In the disastrous last years of Louis XIV, the court gave little thought to
the New World; but under the regency of the Duke of Orléans interest
in American affairs revived. Plans for reaching the Mer de l'Ouest, or
Pacific Ocean, were laid before the Regent in 1716. It was urged that
the best hope was in sending an expedition across the continent, seeing
that every attempt to find a westward passage by Hudson Bay had
failed. As starting-points and bases of supply for the expedition, it was
proposed to establish three posts, one on the north shore of Lake
Superior, at the mouth of the river Kaministiguia, another at Lac des
Cristineaux, now called Lake of the Woods, and the third at Lake
Winnipeg,--the last being what in American phrase is called the
"jumping-off place," or the point where the expedition was to leave
behind the last trace of civilization. These posts were to cost the Crown
nothing; since by a device common in such cases, those who built and
maintained them were to be paid by a monopoly of the fur-trade in the
adjacent countries. It was admitted, however, that the subsequent
exploration must be at the charge of the government, and would require
fifty good men, at 300 francs a year each, besides equipment and

supplies. All things considered, it was reckoned that an overland way to
the Pacific might be found for about 50,000 francs, or 10,000 dollars.
[Footnote: _Mémoire fait et arresté par le Conseil de Marine, 3 Fév.
1717; Mémoire du Roy, 26 Juin, 1717._]
The Regent approved the scheme so far as to order the preliminary step
to be taken by establishing the three posts, and in this same year,
Lieutenant La Noue, of the colony troops, began the work by building a
stockade at the mouth of the Kaministiguia. Little more was done in
furtherance of the exploration till three years later, when the celebrated
Jesuit, Charlevoix, was ordered by the Duke of Orléans to repair to
America and gain all possible information concerning the Western Sea
and the way to it. [Footnote: _Charlevoix au Comte de Morville, 1
Avril_, 1723.]
In the next year he went to the Upper Lakes, and questioned
missionaries, officers, _voyageurs,_ and Indians. The results were not
satisfactory. The missionaries and the officers had nothing to tell; the
voyagers and Indians knew no more than they, but invented confused
and contradictory falsehoods to hide their ignorance. Charlevoix made
note of everything, and reported to the Comte de Toulouse that the
Pacific probably formed the western boundary of the country of the
Sioux, and that some Indians told him that they had been to its shores
and found white men there different from the French.
Believing that these stories were not without foundation, Charlevoix
reported two plans as likely to lead to the coveted discovery. One was
to ascend the Missouri, "the source of which is certainly not far from
the sea, as all the Indians I have met have unanimously assured me;"
and the other was to establish a mission among the Sioux, from