Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-04-24

to Michilimackinac telling Renee of
 his discovery of La Sale and of their
 plans.
 With the coming of the March rains
 La Sale and his little band arrived.
 The meeting of the two comrades long
 separated was full of gladness. La
 Sale had entirely recovered his
 strength and was filled with his old
 time enthusiasm. The whole party
 now made their way with the supplies,
 tools, ammunition, etc, that Tonti
 had brought with him from Quebec,
 down the river to the spot where the
 Illini town had formerly stood. La
 Salle decided that he would try to gather up the remnants of the dis
 persed nation, and found a new town l protected by the citadel he had long
 contemplated erecting on the tall rock. 1 He found on theiY arrival that num-
 Der of the Illini had struggled back to , their old home, and he was welcomed
 by them as friend and deliverer. , They entered heartily into his plans,
 placing themselves willingly under his {! leadership and protection, and sent i emissaries out to recall the scattered
 tribes. They joined in with right
 goodwill to assist the French in the
 building of the fort that was to be a
 future protection against the incur
 sions of their enemies. This cliff stood by the rivers edge vikn noct1o f0Uar On <hroa ciHnc it arose steep and sheer. It's height was about 125 feet, while the top was about an acre in extent. In front it over
 hung the river; toward the west for est lay at its feet; eastward wide gorge protected 1t from approach in that direction. It was accessible only from behind, and that with difficulty by narrow, steep passage hidden at the base amidst waste of oak and walnut trees. The forest that crowned 1t was quickly cut down and its tim bers used in erecting palisade that ran around it's edge. On the space thus cleared were erected chapel, storehouses, powder magazine, and various buildings to be used as dwellings by those who would flee to 1t for protection in time of war.
 During this work the bands of the defeated Illini came struggling in, un- til their number amounted to six thou- sand. Their lodges were built about the foot of the cliff. From the vicinity of Fort Miami came band of twenty five exiled savages from the eastern tribes, chiefly Abenakis and Mohegans. to join their slender force to that of the colony of La Sale. Soon the news spread, and from the distant banks of the Ohio came body of Shawanoes to incorporate themselves with this new confederation, while the Miamis from the banks of the Theakiki, real- izing the importance of joining with the others against their common ene- my the Iroquois, offered themselves to swell the numbers. La Salle gladly accepted these numerous additions, and soon the country for mile around the rock was dotted with the lodges of the allies. The total number at length amounted to over twenty thou. sand souls, of whom fully four thou. sand were4warriQrs. .,;n,a ..n,,n,. '. :
 Finally the fort was finished and the flag that Renee had given to La Sale fioated from the summit. The name of Fort St Louis was given to the forti- fication, and thus after many defeats it seemed as though some lasting pro- gross had been made toward winning the great west for the French king.
 Tonti had recounted faithfully all the adventures of his journey to La Salle and had received warm praise for all that had been accomplished. He described his meeting with Renee at Quebec, the reason assigned by Frontenac for her leaving France, his endeavors for her safety, which he knew was precious in the eyes of his friend, and all the course of their wan derings. La Salle was surprised at learning of her close proximity, but to Tonti's amazement expressed no in- tention of either going for her himself,' or of sending to Michilimackinac to bring her to him. In fact, although he saw faint flicker of the former High, in his eye when he drst mentioned her, yet he seemed to show far greater con- cern over learning the condition of affairs at Quebec than he did to hear the details of their voyage Tonti att tributed this seeming indifference to an attempt upon the part of his com rade to conceal his real feelings. as was his wont whenever anything touched him deeply.
 La Salle realized that in order to maintain the advantage already gained and keep in hand the various tribes beneath his control, two things must be accomplished: one. that of making the fort impregnable so that the trust of the savages that he could protect them from the Iroquois would not be lost: the other, that of supply ing them with French goods in ex- change for their furs. To meet the first conditions more men. ammuni- tion, guns and cannon must be brought from Quebec. To meet the second a trip to that city must be made in per. son to make the best arrangements possible with his creditors and to pro- vide for the importation of the various goods the Indians demanded. Thus it was that the christening of the fort had hardly been accomplished before the ever-reefless snirif of fbo man