. Quebec. 127 



French on the fouth-fea expedition afked 

 the people there, concerning the time when, 

 and by whom thofe pillars were erected ? 

 what their traditions and fentiments con- 

 cerning them were ? who had wrote the 

 characters ? what was meant by them ? 

 what kind of letters they were ? in what 

 language they were written ? and other 

 circumftances ; yet they could never get 

 the leail explication, the Indians being as 

 ignorant of all thofe things, as the French 

 themfelves. All they could fay was, that 

 thefe ftones had been in thofe places, fince 

 times immemorial. The places where the 

 pillars flood were near nine hundred French 

 miles weft ward of Montreal. The chief 

 intention of this journey, viz. to come to 

 the fouth-fea, and to examine its diftance 

 from Canada, was never attained on this 

 occafion. For the people fent out for that 

 purpofe, were induced to take part in a 

 war between fome of the mod diftant /;/- 



dian 



(which the Tukaghiri prepare from poifonous and inebriat- 

 ing mufhrooms, bought of the Rujfians) and many other 

 things, fhow them plainly to be of the fame origin. The 

 EJkimaux feem to be the fame nation with the inhabitants 

 of Greenland, the Samoyedes, and Lapp on fans. South- Ame- 

 rica, and efpecially Peru, is probably peopled from the 

 great unknown fouth continent, which is very near America, 

 civilized, and full of inhabitants of various colours : who 

 therefore might very eafily be caft on the American conti- 

 nent, in boats, or proas. F, 



