of settlers but of fur-traders. Still Champlain, by his indomitable
will, gave to France a footing in America which she was to retain for a
century and a quarter after his death. His courage amid the difficulties
that surrounded him, his fidelity to his church and country, his ability
to understand the Indian character, his pure unselfishness, are among
the remarkable qualities of a man who stands foremost among the pioneers
of European civilization in America.

From the day of Champlain's death until the arrival of the Marquis de
Tracy, in 1665, Canada was often in a most dangerous and pitiable
position. That period of thirty years was, however, also distinguished
by the foundation of those great religious communities which have always
exercised such an important influence upon the conditions of life
throughout French Canada. In 1652 Montreal was founded under the name of
Ville-Marie by Paul Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, and a number of
other religious enthusiasts. In 1659, the Abbé de Montigny, better known
to Canadians as Monseigneur de Laval, the first Roman Catholic bishop,
arrived in the colony and assumed charge of ecclesiastical affairs under
the titular name of Bishop of Petraea. Probably no single man has ever
exercised such powerful and lasting influence on Canadian institutions
as that famous divine. Possessed of great tenacity of purpose, most
ascetic in his habits, regardless of all worldly considerations, always
working for the welfare and extension of his church, Bishop Laval was
eminently fitted to give it that predominance in civil as well as
religious affairs which it so long possessed in Canada.

While the Church of Rome was perfecting its organization throughout
Canada, the Iroquois were constantly making raids upon the unprotected
settlements, especially in the vicinity of Montreal. The Hurons in the
Georgian Bay district were eventually driven from their comfortable