[DRUMMOND| THE CANADIAN SNOWSHOE S17 
Canada. In the beginning of the winter the Indians started from the 
Hudson River in the State of New York and travelled on snowshoes 
around the head of Lake Ontario to St. Ignace, a distance of about 
500 miles. St. Ignace was surprised, burnt and destroyed and the 
inhabitants tortured and massacred. St. Joseph and other mission 
towns suffered the same fate. At Ville Marie (not the place mentioned 
above) which was fortified the Iroquois were defeated and forced 
to retreat. , 
To stop the incursions of the Iroquois, the French Governor 
De Courcelles on January 9th, 1666 set out from Quebec for the 
Indian stronghold with 500 men on snowshoes, each man carrying 
his blankets, accoutrements and food. They travelled up the St. 
Lawrence and Richelieu Rivers and over Lakes Champlain and 
George. Conquered more by the elements than by the Indians 
they were forced to retreat without success, after having travelled 
over 1,000 miles and lost many men through cold and exposure. 
In the early spring of 1686 Troyes and St. Helene with a 
company of men on snowshoes travelled 600 miles to Hudson’s Bay 
and captured the posts there. 
In 1690 Frontenac organized three expeditions against the 
Iroquois which were undertaken in the winter upon snowshoes so 
that the Indians might be surprised. One started from Montreal 
under the command of St. Helene and burned and destroyed Schenec- 
tady in the State of New York. On its return it was pursued by the 
Indians almost to the gates of Montreal and in the last fight near the 
latter place a number of men were lost. A second party started from 
Three Rivers under Hertel and destroyed Salmon Falls, New Hamp- 
shire. The third expedition started from Quebec under Portneuf 
and the Fort at Casco Bay near Portland, Maine, was destroyed. 
In 1697 D'Iberville with a command on snowshoes ravished the 
British settlements. 
The treaty of Ryswick in 1697 ended this war but it broke out 
again in 1702, and practically ended with the conquest of Canada 
in 1759. During this time numerous expeditions on snowshoes were 
undertaken by both sides. 
The snowshoe then has played an important part in the early 
Military History of Canada. 
In an exploring way the snowshoe has been used on all the 
winter expeditions in British North America. 
The fur-trading companies were the pioneers of our country and 
in their rivalry and search after fur-trade routes their representatives 
gradually pushed their way across the Continent. The annals of 
their adventurous travels make most interesting and instructive 
