Evening star., 1909-06-30
NOW OF GREAT VALUE
Published Books of ChampIain
Are Highly Priced.
WAS A CAREFUL OBSERVER
His Journals Unequaled in the Lit
erature of His Time.
POSSESSED OF ADVANTAGES
Master Of Navigation and Cartogra-
WAS A CAREFUL OBSERVER
POSSESSED OF ADVANTAGES
Master Of Navigation and Cartogra-
ply, Clear Writer and Devoid
Of Superstitions Of the Day.
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald
ALBANY, N. Y, June ., 1909.
Champlain's narratives OF his voyages
and explorations are among the most
complete. intelligent and valuable ever
made by any explorer. His journals are
| unparalleled among the literature OF his
time for richness of incident. and the i'm
portance of the information they contain.
and they cover almost the entire period
of the career of the most prominent and
ruling spirit in French exploration and
colonization in America from 1908 to
1883. He enjoyed many advantages which
did not come within the experience of
other explorers of his time. He was
highly educated, he was a master Of the
science of navigation and cartography. he
possessed the art of drawing and sketch
ing, he wrote the French language with
clearness and ease and was devoid of the
superstitions and fantastic ideas which
appear in the narratives of other ex-
plorers. Several years experience as
quartermaster in the French army gave
him valuable lessons In business, and two
years in the West Indies, visiting not
only all the cities of the islands, but also
the City of Mexico and the ports upon
the Spanish main, gave him thorough
knowledge of Spanish methods Of con-
quest and colonization.
Champlain formed the habit of keeping
journal of his experience and observa
tion upon his first voyage to the West
Indies in 1899 and continued 1t through
life. HIS first volume was published in
1905 and consists of eighty printed pages.
giving an account of his voyage across
the Atlantic. description of the st. Law
renee river and its tributaries. the seen
cry, the botany, the animals and birds
%~th op{n sNf
that great river were swarming. and
graphic account of the character and hab-
its Of the aborigines.t
Rare and Valuable Book.
This little book is extremely rare. The
only copies known are in the Bibliotheque
of Paris, in Harvard College Library. in
the Carter Brown Library at Providence
and in the Lenox Library in New York
Copies of the original edition have sold
as high as $500.
There is translation In "Purchas
Pilgrimes," part four.
In 1913 Champlain published a second
volume, illustrated with twenty-five local
maps and drawings, en1bracin the events
1908 to that date. 1t contains a descrip
ton Of the coast line from the Bay of
Fundy to Martha's Vineyard, and deals
with the natural history, the character of
the natives. In the last respect it is es-
pecially valuable because at that time
their mode of life had not been affected by
contact with Europeans. A large map of
the coast, which is undoubtedly the first
ever made of New England, was based
upon his own peESonal surveys. and 1t is
the first attempt to lay down the latitude
and longitude of the different harbors
| and bays along the coast. It is entitled
For the Voyages of Sieur de Champlain
Xaintongeos, Captain Ordinary of the
King of the Marines There are copies
| in the libraries of Harvard College. Cor
nell University, New York Historical So
ciety, assachusetts Historical Society,
New York State Library, Albany; Carter
| Brown Library of Providence and Lenox
Library in New York city.
Founding of Quebec
In 1919 Champlain published third
work, which describes his explorations of
the previous six years OF the Ottowa river.
lakes Huron and Ontario, his experiences
| among the savages and the founding of
the colony of Quebec. It is much larger
and more in detail than either of his
suits of his familiarity with the Indian
languages and his ability to obtain in
formation from the natives. There are
copies in the Library of Congress at
Washington, the Lenox Library at New
York city and in the Massachusetts His
torical Society. A reprint of the book in
1927 is quite common.
Champlain's last work, in two volumes,
is the most important Of all, because, in
the first part, he gives an abridgment
of his three previous publications, omit