the place of written characters-as in former Egypt, Greece, &c.

Soon after Canada was invaded by the French, the Iroquois, with whom they had many combats of various success, etched the following characters on a plane-tree plank, after the decision of an engagement, and sent it in the nature of a dispatch to their different and distant tribes.

1. The arms of France and a hatchet erect above them. The hatchet being the symbol of war, shewed that the French had taken it from the ground and declared vengeance against them. Round this figure were eighteen characters, each representing the number of ten, which implied that the French were one hundred and eighty strong.

2. In a line underneath are designated, a bird in the act of springing from the top of a mountain, which was well depicted. The mountain denoted Mon

treal, and the bird that it was the place from which the Indians took their departure.

3. On the same line are seen a deer with a moon expressed on his back, shewing that they started on the first quarter of the moon in the month of July-called by them the Deer's month.

4. Under this is a canoe and twentyone dots, which imply that they travelled by water one and twenty days.

5. On another line is a man's foot and seven dots, shewing that they marched by land seven days.

6. These are succeeded by a hand and three cabins, to note that they had arrived within three day's journey of the village of the Isonontouans, which is expressed on the same line by a cabin with a tree at each end, which is the people of that tribe, and the sun is represented at the east end of the cabin,

to mark the direction on which they arrived at the village.

7. On another line the arms of the same people are exhibited together, with twelve marks of the figure of ten, and a man extended in the act of sleeping, which proves that the village contained one hundred and twenty warriors who were taken by surprise, as appears from the man in a recumbent posture, and deprived by sleep of his vigilance and senses.

8. Then follows a tomahawk and eleven heads, to testify that eleven were killed-and on the same line are five

men standing on a ten, indicating that prisoners.

figure representing

fifty were taken

9. In the space of a bow are nine heads -meaning that nine of the aggressors of the vanquished party were put to death, and on the same line are twelve

marks, to shew that that number were wounded.

10. On a seperate space are two flights of arrows opposed to each other in the air-which express that both parties fought with vigour, and met with powerful resistance.

· 11. The dispatch closes with a flight of arrows all in one direction-to make known that the enemy were at length put to flight, or beat in disorder and confusion.

12. Recapitulation. One hundred and eighty Iroquois left Montreal the first quarter of the moon in the month of July, and navigated one and twenty days after which they travelled ten days, and surprised one hundred and twenty Isonontouans; eleven of whom lost their lives in battle, fifty were taken prisoners, nine were put to death cipals, twelve were wounded,

as prin

and

the combat was fought with courage on both sides.

From the length of my communications from this celebrated place, and the extent, of what will probably be called, my idle speculations, you will understand that I got familiarized to the horrors of the vault, to which I have to add that I took up my abode in it. The fact is, I thought but right to unload and overhawl my boat before I reached the Mississippi, and where could I be better accommodated, during that process, than in the cave, where I had abundant space for my baggage, and ample amusement for leisure hours? The apprehensions which first seized me soon wore off, though I cannot say my first night's lodging in the rock was altogether sound and free from restraint: we held an alternate watch every two hours, and kept up large fires to preserve ourselves from reptiles and beasts. Nor can I say that

my