The inhabitants spoke the language of the great Huron nation, and were
more advanced in civilization than any of their neighbors: unlike other
tribes, they cultivated the ground and remained stationary. The French
were well received by the people of Hochelaga; they made presents, the
Indians gave fetes; their fire-arms, trumpets, and other warlike
equipments filled the minds of their simple hosts with wonder and
admiration, and their beards and clothing excited a curiosity which the
difficulties of an unknown language prevented from being satisfied. So
great was the veneration for the white men, that the chief of the town,
and many of the maimed, sick, and infirm, came to Jacques Cartier,
entreating him, by expressive signs, to cure their ills. The pious
Frenchman disclaimed any supernatural power, but he read aloud part of
the Gospel of St. John, made the sign of the cross over the sufferers,
and presented them with chaplets and other holy symbols; he then prayed
earnestly that the poor savages might be freed from the night of
ignorance and infidelity. The Indians regarded these acts and words with
deep gratitude and respectful admiration.

Three miles from Hochelaga, there was a lofty hill, well tilled and very
fertile;[86] thither Jacques Cartier bent his way, after having examined
the town. From the summit he saw the river and the country for thirty
leagues around, a scene of singular beauty. To this hill he gave the
name of Mont Royal; since extended to the large and fertile island on
which it stands, and to the city below. Time has now swept away every
trace of Hochelaga; on its site the modern capital of Canada has arisen;
fifty thousand people of European race, and stately buildings of carved
stone, replace the simple Indians and the huts of the ancient town.

Jacques Cartier, having made his observations, returned to the boats,
attended by a great concourse; when any of his men appeared fatigued
with their journey, the kind Indians carried them on their shoulders.
This short stay of the French seemed to sadden and displease these
hospitable people, and on the departure of the boats they followed their
course for some distance along the banks of the river. On the 4th of
October Jacques Cartier reached the shallows, where the pinnace had been
left; he resumed his course the following day, and arrived at St. Croix
on the 11th of the same month.

The men who had remained at St. Croix had busied themselves during