AN HISTORICAL ADDRESS. di 
colony, weighed anchor November 25th, 1684, and proceed- 
ed on their voyage toward the mouth of the Mississippi. 
After safely rounding the western cape of Cuba, they made 
land to the north, but by some misunderstanding missed 
the mouth of the Mississippi, and following westward in 
search of it, along the gulf coast, reached Metagorda Bay, 
Texas. Here, on attempting a landing, La Salle’s store ship 
was wrecked and went to pieces; discouraged by this loss, 
one of the other two remaining vessels abandoned the ex- 
pedition, thus leaving La Salle with but one, short of sup- 
plies, to prosecute his enterprise. Subsequently, by mis- 
management of the pilot, this last ship was also wrecked on 
the Texan coast, and La Salle was left, with a remnant of 
his disheartened party, to make his way by land to the Illi- 
nois country. In thisjjourney La Salle was killed by a mu- 
tineer of his party, on the 17th of March, 1687, and event- 
ually only a few forlorn individuals of the original expedition 
reached the banks of the Mississippi. Thus closes the 
eventful history of La Salle, the explorer of the Mississippi 
valley. 
The disastrous result of this well devised and energetic 
enterprise for the settlement of the Mississippi valley might 
have been supposed to dampen the ardor of French civili- 
zation; but it proved far otherwise. Every new country 
seems to require a certain amount of pioneer blood to fer- 
tilize its soil, and thus prepare it for the vigorous growth 
of the seeds of a higher civilization. The knowledge thus 
acquired of this magnificent country, with its broad avenues 
of trade, its prolific soil, and varied climate, could not fail 
to excite new enterprises, and from this time forward suc- 
ceeding the death of La Salle in 1687, up to the close of the 
seventeenth century, permanent French settlements were 
established in the Illinois country, of which the present 
towns of Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Peoria are the true lin- 
eal descendents. On the 2d of March, 1699, D’Iberville, the 
