314 LAHONTAN, 



of the Governor of New York, dissuaded tliem from listening to 

 Penonville. The name of this emissary iS; here given as Aria. (It 

 was doubtless the interpreter, Arnont Cornellsson Yiele, who, as 

 other authorities state, was known among the Iroquois as Arie). 

 The Sauteurs and Ottawas now propose to move westward and: 

 intercept the sixty Iroquois and rescue the prisoners. On the 

 24th, accordingly, Lahontan's party begin to retrace their course 

 along the south shore. On the 28th, while resting on an island, 

 they descry canoes at a distance. The Sauteurs contrive to 

 pass over to the main land and conceal themselves in the woods, 

 the Ottawas and soldiers remaining where they were. The boats 

 near the island, but on observing a band of men on the shore 

 they sheer off to the mainland, where they are assaulted by the 

 Sauteurs. Of twenty Iroquois three are killed, five are wounded. 

 The rest are captured, and the prisoners, twenty-four in number, 

 including seven women, are liberated. Four Sauteurs however 

 lose their lives. It is learned that the remainder of the Iroquois 

 band, having with them thixty-four prisoners, male and female, 

 are on their way eastward by land. It was resolved to inter- 

 cept these also. On the 4th of August this was accomplished, but 

 the precipitancy of the Ottawas who fired too soon, enabled the Iro- 

 quois to escape, with the exception of ten or twelve who were killed. 

 The prisoners were all rescued. On the 1 3th the whole party are in 

 the Detroit river, where they rest, among the islands, for eight days, 

 and feast on venison, wild turkeys, and wild fruit, "which was fully 

 ripe." On the 24th they are all again at Fort St. Joseph. Here 

 Lahontan finds a party of fifty Miami Indians commanded by one 

 Michitonka, who had just returned from a hostile excursion in the 

 Iroquois country in the neighbourhood of Fort Niagara. Michitonka 

 reported that the scurvy had carried o& all the men left at that post 

 with the exception of twelve. M. de Troyes, the commandant of the 

 Fort, had died, and M. de Bergeres had removed with the twelve 

 survivors to Fort Frontenac, where a like mortality had prevailed. 

 The Governor of Canada, Denonville, was negotiating a peace with 

 the Iroquois, and Michitonka had been desired to I'eturn to his 

 country with his band, and to undertake no more hostile expeditions 

 for the present against the Iroquois. Under the circumstances, 

 Lahontan, after due consideration, resolved to abandon Fort St. 

 Joseph and retii'e to Michilimackinac. On the 27th they set fire to 



