The La Salle Expedition to Texas : The Journal of Henri Joutel, 1684–1687 / edited and with an introduction by William C. Foster ; translated by Johanna S. Warren.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Joutel, Henri, 1640?-1735.

Contributor:

Foster, William C., 1928-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Joutel, Henri, 1640?-1735--Diaries.

Joutel, Henri.

La Salle, Robert Cavelier, Sieur de, 1643-1687.

La Salle, Robert Cavelier.

Indians of North America--Texas--History--17th century.

Indians of North America.

Gulf Region (Tex.)--Discovery and exploration.

Gulf Region (Tex.).

Texas--Discovery and exploration.

Texas.

Texas--History--To 1846.

Mississippi River Valley--Discovery and exploration.

Mississippi River Valley.

Genre:

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (362 p.)

Place of Publication:

Austin, [Texas] : Texas State Historical Association, 1998.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

"Those of us who knew how to swim crossed to the other bank. But a number of our company did not know how to swim, and I was among that number. One of the Indians gave me a sign to go get a nearly dry log . . . then, fastening a strap on each end, he made us understand that we should hold on to the log with one arm and try to swim with the other arm and our feet . . . While trying to swim . . . I accidentally hit the Father in the stomach. At that moment he thought he was lost and, I assure you, he invoked the patron saint of his order, St. Francis, with all his heart. I could not keep from laughing although I could see I was in peril of drowning. But the Indians on the other side saw all this and came to our help . . . "Still there were others to get across. . . . We made the Indians understand that they must go help them, but because they had become disgusted by the last trip, they did not want to return again. This distressed us greatly."--From Henri Joute's journal, March 23, 1687, shortly after La Salle was murdered. The La Salle Expedition in Texas presents the definitive English translation of Henri Joutel's classic account of Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle's 1684-1687 expedition to establish a fort and colony near the mouth of the Mississippi River. Written from detailed notes taken during this historic journey, Joutel's journal is the most comprehensive and authoritative account available of this dramatic story of adventure and misadventure in Texas. Joutel, who served as post commander for La Salle, describes in accurate and colorful detail the daily experiences and precise route La Salle's party followed in 1687 from the Texas coast to the Mississippi River. By carefully comparing Joutel's compass directions and detailed descriptions to maps and geographic locations, Foster has established where La Salle was murdered by his men, and has corrected many erroneous geographic interpretations made by French and American scholars during the past century. Joutel's account is a captivating narrative set in a Texas coastal wilderness. Foster follows Joutel, La Salle, and their fellow adventurers as they encounter Indians and their unique cultures; enormous drifting herds of bison; and unknown flora and fauna, including lethal flowering cactus fruit and rattlesnakes. The cast of characters includes priests and soldiers, deserters and murderers, Indian leaders, and a handful of French women who worked side-by-side with the men. It is a remarkable first hand tale of dramatic adventure as these diverse individuals meet and interact on the grand landscape of Texas. Joutel's journal, newly translated by Johanna S. Warren, is edited and annotated with an extensive introduction by William C. Foster. The account is accompanied by numerous detailed maps and the first published English translation of the testimony of Pierre Meunier, one of the most knowledgeable and creditable survivors of La Salle's expedition.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: Introduction 3

The Journal of Henri outel

I La Salle Sails to North America 49

II Across the Gulf 59

III La Salle Lands on the Texas Coast 69

IV Beaujeu Returns to France 81

V The First Settlement 97

VI Life at the French Settlement III

VII La Salle's First Journey to the Cenis I33

VIII La Salle's Final Journey 153

IX March to the Brazos 177

X Assassination of La Salle I9i

XI The French Among the Cenis 203

XII The Assassins' Plans 217

XIII Hiems Accompanies a Cenis War Party 225

XIV The Assoni and Cadodaquis 233

XV Journey to the Arkansas 251

XVI On the Mississippi 267

Appendices

Appendix A: The I690 Interrogation of Captain Gregorio de Salinas

Varona and Pierre Meunier in Mexico City regarding La Salle's

1684-1687 Expedition to Texas 283

Appendix B: Indian Tribes or Bands Named in Henri Joutel's Journal

Account of Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle's 684-I687

Expedition to Texas 290

Appendix C: Henri Joutel's 1687 Itinerary from Fort Saint Louis on the

Central Texas Coast to the Middle Mississippi River 309.

Notes:

Translation of the version of Henri Joutel's journal found in v. 3 of Pierre Margry's compilation, Decouvertes et etablissements des Français dans l'ouest et dans le sud de l'Amerique septentrionale, 1614-1754.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

0-87611-286-6

OCLC:

905552406