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This is the proper place to take notice of the go* 

 vernment of thefe Indians, as well as of their cuftoms 

 and religion : but I can as yet difcover nothing but 

 a chaos and confufion, which it isimpofllble for me 

 to unravel. You would certainly blame me mould. 

 I, like certain travellers, fill up my journal with 

 every thing I had heard, without giving myfelf any 

 trouble to afcertain the truth, and mould retail to 

 you all the extravagant ftories, charged to the ac- 

 count of our Indians, or which have probably been 

 drawn from their traditions. Thefe traditions are 

 moreover fo very uncertain, and almoft always con- 

 tradict themfelves fo grofly, that it is almoft imporTible 

 to pick out any thing certain or coherent. In fact, 

 how mould a people fuch as they have been found 

 really to be, how mould fuch perfons tranfmit a 

 faithful account of what has palled amongft them 

 fo many ages, fince without any means of eafing or 

 affifting their memory ? And can it be conceived 

 that men who think fo little of the future, mould 

 have fo much concern about the pad, as to preferve 

 faithful regifters of it ? Thus, after all the re- 

 searches that could polfibly be made, we are yet in 

 the dark and to feek, as to the fituation of Canada, 

 when we firft difcovered it towards the middle of the 

 fixteenth century. 



The fole point of their hiftory which has come 

 down clothed with any degree of probability, is 

 the origin of the war, which Monf. Champlain 

 found kindled between the Iroquois on one fide, 

 and the Hurons and Algonquins on the other, and 

 in which he engaged much too far for our real inte- 

 refts. I have ever been unable to difcover the epo- 

 cha of it, but I do not believe it of very old Hand- 

 ing. I will not put an end to this letter with this 

 account : but I warn you before hand, that I don't 



pretend 



