It was along this latter river--the Illinois--as we know, that La Salle
and his men, in midwinter of 1682, dragged on the ice their canoes,
baggage, and disabled companions from the Chicago River, all the way to
the site of Fort Crevecoeur, where they found open water, and thence in
their canoes made their way past the mouth of the Sangamon (which first
appears on the maps of the new world in 1683, just after La Salle's
journey, as the River Emicouen) and on into the Mississippi. We recall
their "adventurous progress" and the unveiling to their eyes more and more
of the vast new world, where the warm and drowsy air and hazy sunlight
succeeded the frosty breath of the north. We see them floating down the
winding water path. We see the red children of the sun--the Indian sun-
worshippers--clothed in white cloaks, receiving the white heralds of
Europe; we hear the weather-beaten voyageurs chant on the shores of the
gulf solemn, exulting songs learned in church and cloister of France; we
hear the faint voice of their leader crying his claim to all the great
valley from the mouth of the river to its source beyond the country of the
Nadouesioux--the voice not of a human throat alone but of a vision in the
wilderness.
Pages:
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402