NO. II.

Account of the Expedition of De Nonville as related by the Baron La Hontan in his "Travels in America." Translated from the French edition published a La Haye, in 1715.

"On the third day of July, 1687, we embarked from Fort Frontinac, to coast along the southern shore, under favor of the calms which prevail in that month, and at the same time the Sieur de la Forêt left for Niagara by the north side of the Lake, to wait there for a considerable reinforcement.

By extraordinary good fortune we both arrived on the same day, and nearly the same hour, at the river of the Tsonnontouans, by reason of which our Savage allies, who draw predictions from the merest trifles, foretold with their usual superstition, that so punctual a meeting infallibly indicated the total destruction of the Iroquois. How they deceived themselves the sequel will show.

"The same evening on which we landed, we commenced drawing our canoes and batteaux upon land, and protected them by a strong guard. We afterwards set about constructing a Fort of stakes, in which four hundred men were stationed, under the command of the Sieur Dorvilliers, to guard the boats and baggage.

"The next day a young Canadian, named La Fontaine Marion, was unjustly put to death. The following is his history. This poor unfortunate became acquainted with the country and savages of Canada by the numerous voyages he made over the continent, and after having rendered his King good service, asked permission of several of the Governors General to conti..ue his travels in further prosecution of his petty traffic, but he could never obtain it. He then determined to go to New England, as war did not then exist between the two Crowns. He was very well received, on account of his enterprise and acquaintance with nearly all the Indian languages. It was proposed that he should pilot through the lakes, those two companies of English which have since been captured. He agreed to do so, and was unfortunately taken with the rest.

"The injustice of which they were guilty, appears to me inexcusable, for we were at peace with the English, besides which they claim that the lakes of Canada belong to them.

"On the following day we set out for the great village of the Tsonnontouans, without any other provisions than the ten biscuit which each man was compelled to carry for himself. We had but seven leagues to march, through immense forests of lofty trees and over a very level country. The Coureurs de bois formed the vanguard, with a part of the savages, the remainder of which brought up the rear-the regulars and militia being in the centre.

"The first day, our scouts marched in advance without making any discoveries. The distance which we accomplished was four leagues. On the second day the same scouts took the lead, and advanced even to the fields of the village, without perceiving any one, although they passed within pistol shot of five hundred Tsonnontouans lying on their bellies, who suffered them to pass and repass without interruption.

"On receiving their report we marched in great haste and little order, believing that as the Iroquois had fled, we could at least capture their women, children and old men. But when we arrived at the foot of the hill on which they lay in ambush, distant about a quarter of a league from the village, they began to utter their ordinary cries, followed with a discharge of musketry.

If you had seen, sir, the disorder into which our militia and regulars were thrown, among the dense woods, you would agree with me, that it would require many thousand Europeans to make head against these barbarians.

"Our battalions were immediately separated into platoons, which ran without order, pell mell, to the right and left, without knowing whither they went. Instead of firing upon the Iroquois, we fired upon each other. It was in vain to call help, soldiers of such a battalion,' for we could scarcely see thirty paces.

In short, we were so disordered, that the enemy were about to fall upon us, club in hand, when our savages having rallied, repulsed and pursued them so closely, even to their villages, that they killed more than eighty, the heads of which they brought away, not counting the wounded who escaped.

"We lost on this occasion ten savages and a hundred Frenchmen; we had twenty or twenty-two wounded, among whom was the good Father Angelran, the Jesuit, who was shot in those parts of which Origen wished to deprive himself, that he might instruct the fair sex with less scandal.

"When the savages brought the heads to M. De Nonville, they inquired why he halted instead of advancing. He replied that he could not leave his wounded, and to afford his surgeons time to care for them, he had thought proper to encamp. They proposed making litters to carry them to the village, which was near at hand. The general being unwilling to follow this advice, endeavored to make them listen to reason, but in place of hearing him, they reassembled, and having held a council among themselves, although there were more than ten different nations, they resolved to go alone in pursuit of the fugitives, of whom they expected to capture at least the women, children, and old men.

"When they were ready to march, M. De Nonville exhorted them not to leave him or depart from his camp, but rest for one day, and that the next day he would go and burn the villages of the enemy, and lay waste their fields, in consequence of which they would perish by famine. This offended them so much that the greater part returned to their country, saying that the French had come for an excursion rather than to carry on war, since they would not profit by the finest opportunity in the world; that their ardor was like a sudden flash, extinguished as soon as kindled; that it seemed useless to have brought so many warriors from all parts to burn bark cabins, which could be rebuilt in four days; that the Tsonnontouans would care but little if their Indian corn was destroyed, since the other Iroquois nations had sufficient to afford them a part; that finally, after having joined the Governors of Canada to no purpose, they would never trust them in future, notwithstanding any promises they might make.'

"Some say that M. De Nonville should have gone farther, others think it was impossible for him to do better. I will not venture to decide between them. Those at the helm are often the most embarrassed. However, we marched the next day to the great village, carrying our wounded on litters, but found nothing but ashes, the Iroquois having taken the precaution to burn it themselves. We were occupied five or six days in cutting down Indian corn in the fields with our swords. From thence we passed to the two small villages of The-ga-ron-hies and Da-non-ca-ri-ta-oui, distant two or three leagues from the former, where we performed the same exploits, and then returned to the borders of the lake. We found in all these villages, horses, cattle, poultry, and a multitude of swine. The country which we saw is the most beautiful, level and charming in the world. The woods we traversed abounded in oak, walnut and wild chesnut trees."

NO. III.

DERIVATION OF "NIAGARA."

It appears that the orthography of this word was established as early as the time of De Nonville's expedition-it having been written by him as now spelt. Its derivation, having recently been a topic of discussion in various quarters, is of sufficient interest to merit investigation.

Lakes Erie and Ontario, and the Strait by which they are connected, are laid down, but not named, on the map annexed to Champlain's voyages, published in 1613. A fall of water is indicated on the Strait, near Lake Ontario, and is there called" Chute d'eau," or waterfall. This is the earliest notice on record of the Falls of Niagara.

Father L'Allemant, in his relation of Brebeuf's visit in 1640, to the Neutral Nation, which was then in possession of both borders of the Niagara, calls the river, "Onguiaahra," and states that one of the villages of that nation was

known by the same name. It is not probable that Brebeuf visited the cataract, as no mention is made of it in the narrative.

It is in this word, " Onguiaahra," that we undoubtedly have the germ of Niagara, and it is interesting to notice the changes and modifications which it has undergone.

It next appears as " Ongiara," on Sanson's Map of Canada, published in 1657, seventeen years after Brebeuf's visit, and is there applied to the Falls.

On Ducreux's latin map, attached to his Historia Canadensis, published in 1660, the Falls are called " Ongiara Cataractes," or the Cataract of Niagara. In 1687, we find De Nonville using the present orthography, and since that time, all French writers have uniformly written the word Niagara." The English, on the other hand, were not uniform in spelling it, until about the middle of the last century.

The following are some of the changes which occur among different English writers:

1687, Oneagerah-London Documents, Albany, vol. iii. p. 177.

Oniagara- do. do.

do.

1747, Iagara-Colden's Five Nations, Appendix, p. 15.

do.

1757, Ochniagara-Smith's History of New York, vol. 1. p. 220. 1769, Ogniogorah-Knox's Historical Journal, vol. 2. p. 139. Onguiaahra and Ongiara, are evidently identical, and present the same elements as Niagara. They are undoubtedly compounds of words expressive of some meaning, as is usual with aboriginal terms, but which meaning is now lost. The "o" which occurs in both the French and English orthography, is probably a neuter prefix, similar to what is used by the Senecas and Mohawks.

One writer contends that Niagara is derived from Nyah'-gaah', or as he writes it "Ne-ah'-gah," said to be the name of a Seneca village which formerly existed on the Niagara River below Lewiston, and now applied by the Senecas to Lake Ontario.

This derivation, however, cannot be correct, for Onguiaahra, and its counterpart Ongiara, were in use as names of the River and Falls, long before the Seneca village in question was in existence. The Neutral Nation, from whose language the words were taken, lived on both borders of the Niagara until they were exterminated by the Senecas in 1643.

It is far more probable that Nyah'-gaah', is a reappearance of Ongiara in the Seneca dialect, and this view is strengthened by the fact, that the former, unlike most Iroquois names, is without meaning, and as the aborigines do not confer arbitrary names, it is an evidence that it has been borrowed or derived from a foreign language.

The conclusion then, is, that the French derived Niagara from Ongiara, and the Senecas, when they took possession of the territories of the Neutral Nation, adopted the name Ongiara, as near as the idiom of their language would allow, and hence their name Nyah'-gaah'.

IV.

CORRESPONDENCE

BETWEEN

LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR CADWALLADER COLDEN,

AND

WILLIAM SMITH, JUN. THE HISTORIAN,

RESPECTING

CERTAIN ALLEGED ERRORS AND MISSTATEMENTS,

CONTAINED IN THE

HISTORY OF NEW YORK,

WITH SUNDRY OTHER PAPERS RELATING TO THAT CONTROVERSY.

[MSS. New York Historical Society: Colden Papers, Vol: IV. ]