ugal, Spain and Italy vied with those of France and
Britain in the quest of treasure beyond the sea. They scanned our
shores with curious eyes and pushed their way into every bay and
harbor. And thus, slowly but surely, the land that had lain hidden in
the mists of antiquity began to disclose its outlines as the keen
searchlight of discovery was turned upon it from a dozen different
sources.

While the first recorded exploration of the southern shores of New
Brunswick is that of de Monts and Champlain in 1604, there can be
little doubt that European fishers and traders had entered the Bay of
Fundy before the close of the 16th century and had made the
acquaintance of the savages, possibly they had ventured up the St.
John river. The Indians seem to have greeted the new-comers in a very
friendly fashion and were eager to barter their furs for knives and
trinkets. The "pale-faces" and their white winged barks were viewed at
first with wonder not unmixed with awe, but the keen-eyed savages
quickly learned the value of the white man's wares; and readily
exchanged the products of their own forests and streams for such
articles as they needed. Trade with the savages had assumed
considerable proportions even before the days of Champlain.

But while it is probable that the coasts of Acadia were visited by
Europeans some years before Champlain entered the Bay of Fundy, it is
certain that the history of events previous to the coming of that
intrepid navigator is a blank. The Indians gradually become familiar
with the vanguard of civilization as represented by the rude fishermen
and traders, that is all we know.

The honor of the first attempt at colonization in Acadia belongs to
the Sieur de Monts, a Huguenot noblemen who had rendered essential
service to the French king. This nobleman, with the assistance of a
company of merchants of Rouen and Rochelle, collected a band of 120
emigrants, including artisans of all trades, laborers and soldiers,
and in the month of April, 1604, set sail for the new world. Henry IV
of France gave to the Sieur de Monts jurisdiction over Acadia, or New
France, a region so vast that the sites of the modern cities of
Montreal and Philadelphia lay within its borders. The Acadia of de
Monts would today include the maritime provinces, the greater part of
Quebec and half of New England.

The colonists embarked in two small vessels, the one of 120, the other
of 150 tons burden; a month later they reache