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DENONVILLE’s EXPEDITION TO THE GENESEE COUNTRY AND NIAGARA.

This Rumor of y r coming to Cataracto has prevented my sending a gentleman to Quebec to con-gratulate your arryval in y® Governm 1 soe am constrained to make use of y e Father for y® safeconveyance of this to your hands

M. DE DENONVILLE TO GOV. DONGAN.

[Par. Doc. III.]

Ville marie, June 20. 1686.

I received, Sir, the letter which you did me the honour to write me on the 22 nli May last,You will sufficiently learn, in the end, how devoid of all foundation are the advices which you havehad of my pretended designs and that all that has been told you by the deserters from the Colonyought to be much suspected by you.

You are, Sir, too well acquainted with the service and the manner that things must be conducted,to take any umbrage at the supplies which I send to Cataracouy for the subsistence of the soldierswhich I have there.

You know the savages sufficiently to be well assured that it would be very imprudent on my partto leave that place without having enough of supplies and munitions there for one year’s time. Youare not ignorant that it is impossible to get up there at all seasons; if I were to have them conveyedfor a large force, I should have used other means.

The natural treachery of a people without faith and without religion, require us to be so far dis-trustful of them that you ought not to blame me for using precaution against their restlessness andcaprice.

I had the honor to inform you by my letter of the 6‘h June last that the orders I have from myMaster manifest merely the zeal which His Majesty entertains for the progress of Religion and forthe support and maintenance of the Missionaries . I expect from your piety that you will not beopposed to that, knowing well how much you love religion. Do you think, Sir, that they will reapmuch fruit whilst the savages are allowed no peace in the villages in which our Missionaries areestablished 1

When I came here, I thought Peace was assured between the Iroquois and us and our Savage allies.You see, Sir, what has been the conduct of the Iroquois in this rencounter. Can you say, Sir, that Iam wrong in distrusting them ?

They are alarmed at the war which they fancy I shall wage against them; their conscience onlycould have impressed them with this idea, since I have not done the least thing to make them believethat I want any thing else from them than to see peace well established throughout all the country.What have I done to cause them the least uneasiness ? And what do they want I

In respect to the pretensions which you say you have to the lands of this country, certainly youare not well informed of all the entries into possession (prises de possessions') which have been madein the name of the King my Master, and of the establishments which we have of long standing onthe lands and on the lakes; and as I have no doubt but our Masters will easily agree among them-selves, seeing the union and good understanding that obtain between them, I willingly consent withyou that_their Majesties regulate the limits among themselves wishing nothing more than to live withyou in good understanding; but to that end, Sir, it would be very apropos that a gentleman so

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