16&C] DIPLOMATIC DUEL. 125 



as such, was lost on Dongan, Catholic as he w&s. 

 He regarded them as dangerous political enemies, 

 and did his best to expel them, and put English 

 priests in their place. Another of his plans was 

 to build a fort at Niagara, to exclude the French 

 from Lake Erie. Denonville entertained the same 

 purpose, in order to exclude the English ; and he 

 watched eagerly the moment to execute it. A 

 rumor of the scheme was brought to Dongan by 

 one of the French coureurs de bois, who often 

 deserted to Albany, where they were welcomed 

 and encouraged. The English governor was ex- 

 ceedingly wroth. He had written before in French 

 out of complaisance. He now dispensed with 

 ceremony, and wrote in his own peculiar English : 

 " I am informed that you intend to build a fort at 

 Ohniagero {Niagara) on this side of the lake, 

 within my Master's territory es without question. 

 I cannot beleev that a person that has your 

 reputation in the world would follow the steps of 

 Monsr. Labarr, and be ill advized by some inter- 

 ested persons in your Governt. to make disturbance 

 between our Masters subjects in those parts of the 

 world for a little pelttree {peltry). I hear one of 

 the Fathers {the Jesuit Jean de LamherviUe) is 

 gone to you, and th'other that stayed {Jacques de 

 Lamberville) I have sent for him here lest the In- 

 dians should insult over him, tho' it's a thousand 

 pittys that those that have made such progress in 

 the service of God should be disturbed, and that 

 by the fault of those that laid the foundation 

 of Christianity amongst these barbarous people ; 



