Lexington union. (Lexington, Miss.) 1838-18??, 1839-12-14

i~''o'y ioHiaHec OVef-Wc idto OF tnlS veneer
able man. According TO this writer, Fa-
ther Joseph Marquette was native Of
LaoD, IN. ,Picardy, and of distinguished
larnlly: About two years after. his dis
|coyery Of The Mississippi, while engaged
IN his missionary labours among the sava-
yes, ne was journeyihg from Chicago to
Michiilimaclinac, and on the Sth of May,
1919, entered the mouth ola small river
emptying into Lake Michigan upon lis
eastern side, which now bears his name.
Here he landed, erected an altar, and
lsaid mass. Aherthis ceremony he retired
4 short distance, and requested the two
lvoyageurs who conducted hrs canoe to
leave him alone for hall an hour, while in
private he returned thanks. The period
having.expi-e they went 10 seek him,and
found hin dead inthe attitude ofdeyoton:
lthe Circumstances then required 10 them,
3ihat, on entering The river, he had dropped
an animation that lie should there end his
days. The distance was TOO great TO
Michlllimackinac 10 convey there his re-.
mains, and te.yoyagenrs accordingly bu-
fried them near the bank Of the stream,
swAich they called by his name. From
that time the river, as if frcmreyerence for
The mlSslonary's relies,shas continued 10
fIetile, and -his grave is vet pointed out 10
The traveller. Thus did The venerable
Msrquettr, an advanced ge,alone with
his Sod. yield up his blameless lileto Ifs
lgyer, While engaged in his holy GRAND of
Epeace 10 The sayge, and amid the magnifi-
Ecent soliin6es u the land This discovery.
Subsequent tosthese explorations, colo
MES ffom Lower Canada rapidly settled
1.-The recent villages of Kaskaslsia, Cahoka,
land Peoria. But their designs seem not
to.haye been those ofthe spectators Of our
own day. Theirsole anticipation was to
Ilamass. opulence by mining III d country
Then supposed incidentally rich in the
precious metals, from lis. resemblance to
the silver region or-Souih America; and
we Ind exclusive grantsof exiensivetracts
bearing this date to Cruzat, Renant, and
other individuals. .Iopursult ofthis gold
en- chimera, many expeditions were fitted
out atvasteS expenses. In 1860, Nj de Seur,
an enterPrisingtraveler, with ninety men,
descended the mississippi to a spot six
hundred miles above.lhe Illinois, and
erected fort upon the present site of Fort
Armstrong for the purpose Of exploring
mine of tfrre rcgte, said oshaye been dis
covered insthat beautfld region. 1t need
hardly be said that OIL these adyenlurers
we're disappointed; but the buoyant hiIar-
itysof the race did notforsake them, and
as boatmen, hunters coariers du bois, In
dian traders, and small farmers, they gain.
cd comfortable subsistence, and merrily
did they enjoy it. Mostof theirIives we're
Passed upon the broad prairIes, and in
every section Of this vast VAL (
ley ih their birch pirogues wherever
stream presented to them lis Bosom; and
yet with the violin, the grape juice, and
short pipe, they seemed The blithest NOR
tals on the face~ Of the earth. II was by
men such as these that The village Of. Kas-
kaskia, in Old French chronicles STYLED
Nofre dame de Cdscdsquias, originating
n the name and residence Of an Indian
tribe, first was settled; and.in a few years
i mas become an extensive depot for the
trade IN iurs. Il was probably by the
same Indian tribe which originally posses
sedsihe site Of Kaskaskia that party of
he unfortunate expedition of Ferdinand
le Soto, by whom Fbrida was partially
conquered, was almost destroyed about The
year 1889 Indeed, there wassa Tradition
stiH extant uponStiic arrival of the French.