1889-90.] THE HURONS. 93 



he reached the present Lake Simcoe. Crossing Lake Simcoe, he by rivers 

 and lakes and frequent portages reached Cataraqui, at the head of the St. 

 Lawrence River. He and his allies concealed their canoes on the east side 

 of the river, and on the 10th July, reached the Iroquois fortress and 

 stronghold. He and his Huron Indians made an attack on the Iroquois 

 fort. The attack did not prove successful — the Iroquois were found too 

 redoubtable warriors. They conducted 'the defence of the fortress with 

 great skill, Champlain was wounded in this engagement, and was obliged 

 to give up the contest. He and his war party retreated to the woods to the 

 north of Kingston, where they remained some time in ambush fearing an 

 attack from the victorious Mohawks, and finally returned to the home of 

 the Hurons in Simcoe. 



The Hurons, though not able to cope with the Iroquois in successful war, 

 were the most susceptible to christianizing influences and to habits of 

 civilization of all the Indian tribes. To the French is due the credit of 

 introducing Christianity among the Hurons. Jesuit missionaries were 

 sent into their country at a very early period. It was not, however, till 

 after the treaty of St. Germain- en-lay e, that any organized system of 

 missionary effort was adopted. 



Previous to 1629, when David Kertk, a French Huguenot, captured 

 Quebec for the British, there had been some attempts made to bring the 

 savages under Christian influence, but such attempts were not fruitful in 

 results. It may be remarked here as an uncommon event on the page of 

 history that the French stronghold of Quebec should have been attacked 

 and conquered by a French admiral — but so it was. At this time the 

 French Catholics and the French Protestants or Huguenots were at war. 

 It became convenient for the English to declare war against France. 

 French oflBcers were put in command of British ships to attack Quebec in 

 the outlying Province of Canada, hence the singular spectacle was pre- 

 sented of a French ofiicer (Kertk) becoming the master of tlie chief town 

 of New France, which he held for three years, when it was restored to 

 France by the treaty of St. Germain-en-laye in 1632. Shortly after this 

 treaty the Jesuits went about their work of establishing missions in Indian 

 territory in earnest. They built chapels and mission houses throughout the 

 Huron lands. As the stations increased new chapels were built in the 

 Huron missions. In 1639, the mission house of St. Mary's was erected in 

 the heart of Huron Country. The missionaries extended their labours to 

 the neutral nations on the shores of Lake Erie, and to the Sault Ste. Marie, 

 at the head of Lake Huron. The conversion of the Indian to Christianity 

 was not an easy matter to accomplish. The missionaries in 1640 were only 

 enabled to claim one Christian out of the 16,000 Huron Abenaquis. The 



