The Project Gutenberg EBook of French Pathfinders in North America, by
William Henry Johnson

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Title: French Pathfinders in North America

Author: William Henry Johnson

Release Date: May 20, 2007 [EBook #21543]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FRENCH PATHFINDERS ***

Produced by Al Haines

[Frontispiece: Jacques Cartier]

French Pathfinders

in

North America

By

William Henry Johnson

Author of "The World's Discoverers," "Pioneer Spaniards in North
America," etc.

_With Seven Full-Page Plates_

Boston

Little, Brown, and Company

1912

Copyright, 1905,

BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.

All rights reserved

{v}

FOREWORD

The compiler of the following sketches does not make any claim to
originality. He has dealt with material that has been used often and
again. Still there has seemed to him to be a place for a book which
should outline the story of the great French explorers in such simple,
direct fashion as might attract young readers. Trying to meet this
need, he has sought to add to the usefulness of the volume by
introductory chapters, simple in language, but drawn from the best
authorities and carefully considered, giving a view of Indian society;
also, by inserting numerous notes on Indian tribal connections,
customs, and the like subjects.

By selecting a portion of Radisson's journal for publication he does
not by any means range himself on the side of the scholarly and gifted
writer who has come forward as the champion of that picturesque
scoundrel, and seriously proposes {vi} him as the real hero of the
Northwest, to whom, we are told, is due the honor which we have
mistakenly lavished on such commonplace persons as Champlain, Joliet,
Marquette, and La Salle.

While the present writer is not qualified to express a critical opinion
as to the merits of the controversy about Radisson, a careful reading
of his journal has given him an impression that the greatest part is so
vague, so wanting in verifiable details, as to be worthless for
historical purposes. One portion, however, seems unquestionably
va