The Country Around Is Of
Excellent Soil And Well Cultivated.
This place is called Stadacona, and
is the abode of Donnacona and of the two men we took in our first
voyage, Domagaia and Taignoagny.
Before coming up to it there are four
other towns, named Ayraste, Starnatay, Tailla on a hill, and Scitadin.
And near Stadacona to the north is the harbour of St Croix, in which we
wintered from the 15th September 1535 to the 16th May 1536, during all
which time our ships remained dry. Beyond Stadacona, going up the river,
is the habitation of the people called Teguenondahi, on a high mountain,
and the valley or champain country of Hochelay, all of which for a great
extent on both sides of the river is as fine a plain as ever was seen.
There are mountains to be seen at a distance from the great river,
whence several rivers descend to join the Hochelay. All the country is
over-grown with many different kinds of trees and many vines, except
around the towns, where the inhabitants have grubbed up the trees to
admit of cultivating the ground, and for the purpose of building their
houses. This country abounds in stags, deer, bears, rabbits, hares,
martins, foxes, otters, beavers, weasels, badgers, and rats of vast
size, besides many other kinds of wild beasts, in the skins of which the
inhabitants clothe themselves, having no other materials. It abounds
also in a variety of birds, as cranes, swans, bustards, geese both white
and grey, ducks, thrushes, black-birds, turtles, wild-pigeons, linnets,
finches, redbreasts, stares, nightingales, and many others. No part of
the world was ever seen producing greater numbers and varieties of fish,
both these belonging to the sea and to fresh water, according to their
seasons. Among these many whales, porpoises, sea-horses, and a kind
named Adhothuis which we had never seen or heard of before. These are as
large as porpoises, as white as snow, having bodies and heads resembling
grey-hounds, and are accustomed to reside between the fresh and salt
water about the mouth of the Saguenay river.
[Footnote 53: Modern navigators prefer the north side, all the way from
the Seven Islands to the Isle of Orleans, where they take the southern
channel to Point Levi, at which place they enter the bason of
Quebec. - E.]
[Footnote 54: The distance does not exceed 135 marine leagues. - E.]
[Footnote 55: The Isle of Orleans, the only one which can be here
alluded to, is only 6 1/2 marine leagues in length; Cartier seems to use
the small French league of about 12 furlongs, and even not to have been
very accurate in its application. - E.]
After our return from Hochelega or the Isle of Montreal, we dwelt and
trafficked in great cordiality with the natives near our ships, except
that we sometimes had strife with certain ill-disposed people, much to
the displeasure of the rest. From Donnacona and others, we learnt that
the river of Saguenay is capable of being navigated by small boats for a
distance of eight or nine days journey; but that the most convenient and
best way to the country of Saguenay is to ascend the great river in the
first place to Hochelega, and thence by another river which comes from
Saguenay, to which it is a navigation of a month[56]. The natives
likewise gave us to understand that the people in that country of
Saguenay were very honest, were clothed in a similar manner to us
Frenchmen, had many populous towns, and had great store of gold and red
copper.
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