Pathfinders of the West. Agnes C. Laut
Battery, New York, in Radisson's Time
Fort Amsterdam, from an ancient engraving executed in Holland
One of the Earliest Maps of the Great Lakes
Jogues, the Jesuit Missionary, who was tortured by the Mohawks
A Cree Brave, with the Wampum String
An Old-time Buffalo Hunt on the Plains among the Sioux
Father Marquette, from an old painting discovered in Montreal
Voyageurs running the Rapids of the Ottawa River
Montreal in 1760
Château St. Louis, Quebec, 1669
A Parley on the Plains
Martello Tower of Refuge in Time of Indian Wars--Three Rivers
Skin for Skin, Coat of Arms and Motto, Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company Coins, made of Lead melted from Tea-chests at York Factory
Hudson Bay Dog Trains laden with Furs arriving at Lower Fort Garry, Red River
Indians and Hunters spurring to the Fight
Fights at the Foothills of the Rockies, between Crows and Snakes
Each Man landed with Pack on his Back and trotted away over Portages
A Cree Indian of the Minnesota Borderlands
A Group of Cree Indians
The Soldiers marched out from Mount Royal for the Western Sea
Traders' Boats running the Rapids of the Athabasca River
The Ragged Sky-line of the Mountains
Hungry Hall, 1870
A Monarch of the Plains
Fur Traders towed down the Saskatchewan in the Summer of 1900
Tepees dotted the Valley
An Eskimo Belle
Samuel Hearne
Eskimo using Double-bladed Paddle
Eskimo Family, taken by Light of Midnight Sun
Fort Garry, Winnipeg, a Century Ago
Plan of Fort Prince of Wales, from Robson's drawing, 1733–1747
Fort Prince of Wales
Beaver Coin of the Hudson's Bay Company
Alexander Mackenzie
Eskimo trading his Pipe, carved from Walrus Tusk, for the Value of Three Beaver Skins
Quill and Beadwork on Buckskin
Fort William, Headquarters Northwest Company, Lake Superior
Running a Rapid on Mackenzie River
Slave Lake Indians
Good Hope, Mackenzie River, Hudson's Bay Company Fort
The Mouth of the Mackenzie by the Light of the Midnight Sun
Captain Meriwether Lewis
Captain William Clark
Tracking up Stream
Typical Mountain Trapper
The Discovery of the Great Falls
Fighting a Grizzly
Packer carrying Goods across Portage
Spying on Enemy's Fort
Indian Camp at Foothills of Rockies
On Guard
Indians of the Up-country or Pays d'en Haut
PART I
PIERRE ESPRIT RADISSON
ADVENTURES OF THE FIRST WHITE MAN TO EXPLORE THE WEST, THE NORTHWEST, AND THE NORTH
[Illustration: Map of the Great Fur Company.]
Pathfinders of the West
CHAPTER I
1651–1653
RADISSON'S FIRST VOYAGE
The Boy Radisson is captured by the Iroquois and carried to the Mohawk Valley—In League with Another Captive, he slays their Guards and escapes—He is overtaken in Sight of Home—Tortured and adopted in the Tribe, he visits Orange, where the Dutch offer to ransom him—His Escape
Early one morning in the spring of 1652 three young men left the little stockaded fort of Three Rivers, on the north bank of the St. Lawrence, for a day's hunting in the marshes of Lake St. Peter. On one side were the forested hills, purple with the mists of rising vapor and still streaked with white patches of snow where the dense woods shut out the sunlight. On the other lay the silver expanse of the St. Lawrence, more like a lake than a river, with mile on mile southwestward of rush-grown