he peltry obtained from the savages
with one John Alden, an Englishman, by whom it was carried to Boston.
This John Alden was, by the way, the eldest son of the famous John
Alden of the "Mayflower," the Plymouth magistrate, by his wife
Priscilla, the Puritan maiden immortalized by Longfellow. He made many
trading voyages to the Bay of Fundy and on several occasions narrowly
escaped capture by the French.

That there was some ground for the charges preferred against Villebon
seems likely from the fact that most of the missionaries censured him
and confirmed the reports of the inhabitants concerning the misconduct
of his brothers. The chaplain at Fort Nachouac, however, spoke
favorably of Villebon, although he was silent with regard to Portneuf.
In his letters to the authorities in France, Villebon vigorously
replies to his accusers and brings counter charges; he is seemingly
very indignant with the d'Amour brothers of whom we shall hear more in
another chapter.

In consequence of the charges preferred against him Portneuf was
superseded by Villieu, an officer of reputation whom Count Frontenac
sent to Acadia in October, 1693, to lead the savages against the
English. This new lieutenant spent the winter at the Nashwaak fort and
as soon as the ice was out of the river went in a canoe to Medoctec,
where he assembled the chiefs who promised to assist him. He then
proceeded to Penobscot resolved to put an end, if possible, to the
parleys that the savages had been holding with the English and to
incite them to renew the war. After a week's negotiation, in which he
was aided by the powerful influence of the missionaries Bigot and
Thury, he returned to Fort Nachouac with a delegation of the Indians
to receive the presents which the King of France had sent to them, and
at the same time to secure the assistance of some of Governor
Villebon's soldiers. The governor, however, piqued by the dismissal of
Portneuf, contented himself with entertaining the delegates. He
declined to furnish provisions or supplies, and kept his soldiers from
joining the expedition. Father Simon, the Recollet missionary on the
St. John, also displayed little sympathy with Villieu and kept many of
the Indians from joining him. However, with the help of the Penobscot
and Kennebec tribes a band of 250 warriors was at last collected and
Villieu placed himself at their head arrayed in the war paint and
feathers of an Indian chief. It was decided to strike a bl