The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. 2: Acadia, 1612-1614
History
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. 2: Acadia, 1612-1614
Canada -- History -- To 1763 (New France); Indians of North America -- Canada; Jesuits -- Missions; Jesuits -- North America
In our reissue of the _Relatio Rerum Gestarum_ (1613-14), we follow
the original text and its pagination, as given on pp. 562-605 of the
_Annuæ Litteræ Societatis Jesu_, for 1612, printed at Lyons in 1618,
which we found at the Riggs Memorial Library, Georgetown University,
Washington, D. C. This forms the text of O'Callaghan's Reprint, which
is arbitrarily designated in the Lenox Catalogue as "no. 6." See
references in Sabin, no. 69245; Winsor, p. 300; Lenox, p. 19; and Brown
Catalogue, no, 170, and p. 166. Sales are noted in Barlow (no. 1272),
Murphy (no. 2960), and O'Callaghan (no. 1250), sale catalogues.
_Title-page._ We closely imitate that of the O'Callaghan Reprint.
_Collation of Reprint._ Title, 1 p.; reverse of title, with
inscription: "Editio viginti quinque exemplaria. O'C," 1 p.; Tabula
Rerum, pp. iii., iv.; text, pp. 1-66; colophon (p. 67): "Albaniae
Excvdebat Joel Munsellius | Mense Martis Anno | CIↃ IↃCCC LXXI," 1 p.
NOTES TO VOL. II
(_Figures in parentheses, following number of note, refer to pages of
English text._)
1 (p. 7).--Carayon prints _neuf_, but this is either a slip of the
pen upon the part of Father Biard, or a misprint. The Fathers arrived
at Port Royal, May 22, 1611, so that this portion of the letter was
written just eight (_huit_) months after.
2 (p. 27).--Kennebec River. Sometimes written, also, Rimbegui,
Kinibequi, Kinibeki, and Quinebequy. Maurault says that the Abenakis
called this river Kanibesek, meaning "river that leads to the
lake."--_Histoire des Abenakis_ (Quebec, 1866), pp. iv., 5, and 89,
_note_ 2.
3 (p. 27).--Penobscot River. It was sometimes written, also, Pemptegoet
and Potugoët.
4 (p. 27).--In their first voyage (1604), De Monts and Poutrincourt
visited and named the river St. John; and at the mouth of the Rivière
des Etechemins (so named by Champlain; by the Indians called Scoodick
or Schoodic), they found an island which they called St. Croix, a name
in later days given to the river itself. It lies in the middle of the
river, opposite to the dividing line between Calais and Robbinston,
Me. Here De Monts, Champlain, and their 77 fellows spent a miserable
winter, while Poutrincourt returned to France for colonists and
supplies to plant his proposed settlement at Port Royal. Thirty-five of
the St. Croix party had died of scurvy before relieved in June, 1605,
by Pontgravé, De Monts' lieutenant. In August, after a fruitless voyage
along the New England coast, De Monts took his party to Port Royal, and
there began a settlement before Pontgravé's arrival. Biard's letter,
indicates that winter fur-trading posts were maintained both at St.
Croix and on the St. John, for several years thereafter.--See Parkman's
_Pioneers_, pp. 291-293.
Champlain's chart of the island may be found in his _Voyages_ (Prince
Soc.), vol. ii., p. 32. Lescarbot, in _Nouv. France_ (Paris, 1612), p.
469, says of the soil: "It is very good, and delightfully prolific."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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