them; and a mass of floating timber, trunks and branches
of trees, was swept from the mouth of the Pekitanoni with such a degree
of violence, as to render the passage dangerous. So great was the
agitation, that the water was thereby made very muddy, and it did not
again become clear.[132-20] The Pekitanoni is described as a large river
flowing into the Mississippi from the northwest, with several villages
on its banks.

At this place Father Marquette decided, that, unless the Mississippi
altered its previous course, it must empty its waters into the Gulf of
Mexico; and he conjectured from the accounts of the natives, that, by
following the stream of the Pekitanoni, a river would be discovered,
which flowed into the Gulf of California.[132-21]

About twenty leagues south of the Pekitanoni, and a little more to the
southeast, they discovered the mouth of another river, called
_Ouabouskigou_ (Ohio), in the latitude of thirty-six degrees; a short
distance above which, they came to a place formidable to the savages,
who, believing it the residence of a demon, had warned Father Marquette
of its dangers. It proved nothing more than a ledge of rocks, thirty
feet high, against which the waves, being contracted by an island, ran
with violence, and, being thrown back with a loud noise, flowed rapidly
on through a narrow and unsafe channel.

The Ouabouskigou came from the eastward, where the country was thickly
inhabited by the tribe of _Chuouanons_, a harmless and peaceful people,
much annoyed by the Iroquois, who were said to capture them as slaves,
and kill and torture them cruelly.

A little above the entrance of this river were steep banks, in which the
boatmen discovered iron ore, several veins of which were visible, about
a foot in thickness, portions of it adhering to the flint-stones; and
also a species of rich earth, of three different colors, namely, purple,
violet and red, and a very heavy red sand, some of which, being laid on
an oar, left a stain during fifteen days. They here first saw tall
reeds, or canes, growing on the shores, and began to find the
_maringouins_ (mosquitoes) very troublesome; the attacks of which, with
the heat of the weather, obliged the voyagers to construct an awning of
the sails of their canoes.

Shortly afterwards they saw savages armed with muskets, waiting their
approach on the bank of the river. While the boatmen prepared for a
defence, Father Marquette presented his calumet and addre