HISTORY OF THE NEW YORK IROQUOIS 225 



was abandoned, and a new village grew up, ever since called 

 Caughnawaga by the Indians and English. The French knew 

 it as St Francois Xavier du Sault. One of the converts at La 

 Prairie was an Oneida chief, called Ogeratarihen or Garon- 

 hiague', who had witnessed Brebeuf's death. There were many 

 Oneidas in the newer mission, which had several chiefs, dividing 

 the civil and religious affairs. 



In 1677 a party of 80 Mohawks robbed some Mahicans in New 

 England, and others routed some of Uncas's men. They were 

 ordered not to send parties against eastern Indians, but did 

 not comply. 



Dekanissora, the great Onondaga orator, began to be promi- 

 nent in 1678, at that time taking his grandfather's name of 

 Niregouentaron, though hardly known by this. He w^as speaker 

 at Montreal in 1682 and spoke last at Albany in 1724. His 

 appearance and abilities have been often eulogized. Golden 

 said of him : 



He was grown old when I saw him, and heard him speak ; he 

 had a great Fluency in speaking, and a graceful Elocution, that 

 would have pleased in any part of the World. His Person was 

 tall and well made, and his Features, to my thinking, resembled 

 much the Busts of Cicero. 



Though long faithful to the English, for some reason Governor 

 Burnet thought him in the French interest later in life. He 

 ceased to be speaker and died in Canada. 



In 1678 the adventurous La Salle occupied Niagara, and 

 launched the Griffon in the spring of 1679 ^^r the navigation of 

 Lake Erie. It was soon wrecked. 



Beside complaints about the Senecas in Maryland, the New 

 Englanders complained of the Mohawks in 1678, and hoped 

 Andros might persuade them to send back their Indian captives. 

 About the southern troubles, '' ye oneides deemed ye first nation 

 of sineques," were at first insolent, but at last they and the Onon- 

 dagas promised to send no more parties. 



The Mohawks were quiet in 1680, but the Onondagas and 

 Senecas continued to send bands against the Illinois in spite 

 of French remonstrances. They had burned one of their towns 



