A comparison of the words just quoted with the text of
De Monts' commission will serve to illustrate the strength
of Champlain's geographical instinct. The commission
begins with a somewhat stereotyped reference to the
conversion of the heathen, after which it descants upon
commerce, colonies, and mines. The supplementary commission
to De Monts from Montmorency as Lord High Admiral adds
a further consideration, namely, that if Acadia is not
occupied by the French it will be seized upon by some
other nation. Not a word of the route to the East occurs
in either commission, and De Monts is limited in the
powers granted to a region extending along the American
seaboard from the fortieth parallel to the forty-sixth,
with as much of the interior 'as he is able to explore
and colonize.'

This shows that, while the objects of the expedition were
commercial and political, Champlain's imagination was
kindled by the prospect of finding the long-sought passage
to China. To his mind a French colony in America is a
stepping-stone, a base of operations for the great quest.
De Monts himself doubtless sought honour, adventure, and
profit--the profit which might arise from possessing
Acadia and controlling the fur trade in 'the river of
Canada.' Champlain remains the geographer, and his chief
contribution to the Acadian enterprise will be found in
that part of his Voyages which describes his study of
the coast-line southward from Cape Breton to Malabar.