DE SOTO'S DISCOVERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER After the painting by W. H. Powell in the Capitol at Washington

For two years they fought their way into the country.

Instead of silver and gold they found only swamps, forests, and Indian villages.

At last they reached the Mississippi River.

For another year they wandered on the western side of the river. Here, worn out by illness and hardship, De Soto died.

He was buried secretly at night, in the waters of the river he had discovered.

While De Soto was in the Mississippi Valley, Coronado, another Spaniard, started north from Mexico.

He, too, went in search of wealth, but, like De Soto, failed to find it. Instead he found only Indian villages made of sun-dried clay.

He did not give up his search, however, until he reached what is now Kansas.

In 1542 he returned to Mexico broken in health and

spirit.

None of De Soto's or Coronado's followers cared to settle in the lands they had explored.

It was about twenty years later that the Spanish king sent Menendez to America to found settlements.

Menendez landed in Florida in 1565.

He drove out the French who had built a fort there, and established a settlement called St. Augustine, the oldest town in the United States.

The Spanish Claims

As a result of the Spanish discoveries and explorations, Spain laid claim to a large part of North America.

Her claim took in almost the entire territory now known as the United States.

The only real possession of the Spanish, however, in the land now within the United States was a small settlement at St. Augustine, Florida, which they founded in 1565.

Questions and Topics for Discussion

What country in the beginning seemed to have the best claim to America? Why?

What section of the United States did De Soto explore?

What river did he discover?

Tell about Coronado's explorations.

What settlement did Menendez make?

Describe briefly the Spanish claims.

LESSON V

FRENCH EXPLORATIONS

The French did not try to obtain possession of the New World until 1523, although French fishermen had reached Newfoundland long before.

In 1523 the French king sent out an expedition under Verrazzano.

Verrazzano explored the coast of North America, from North Carolina to Newfoundland. He discovered New York Bay and Narragansett Bay.

Cartier was the next Frenchman to explore the New World. He discovered the St. Lawrence River.

Sailing up this river, he reached an Indian village which he named Montreal.

In 1608 Champlain, the great French explorer, founded Quebec. This was the first permanent French colony in America.

Later he discovered the beautiful lake which was named after him.

Many years later Joliet, an explorer, and Father Marquette, a Jesuit priest, started from Canada to explore the Mississippi.

They floated down the river to the place De Soto had explored a hundred years before. They feared to go further south on account of the unfriendly Indians, so they returned to their starting place.

Some years afterwards, La Salle completed the journey they had begun.

He floated down the Mississippi River to its mouth, building forts as he went.

He took possession of the great river and the country around it in the name of France. To the entire region he gave the name of Louisiana, in honor of the French

king.

The explorations of the French were made mostly through the efforts of fur traders and Jesuit missionaries. The fur traders carried on a profitable business. They hunted in the deep forests and learned to know the Indians and their habits well.

The purpose of the missionaries was to convert the Indians to the Christian religion.

They lived lives of great self-sacrifice and suffered many hardships.

Often the Indians treated them cruelly. But they were not discouraged. Instead they pressed further into the wilderness, helping and teaching the savage tribes.

As a result of the work of the missionaries, the French gained great influence with the Indians.

This friendship lasted, and the Indians became the allies of the French in their wars with the English.

The French Claims

The French claims extended from New York to north of the St. Lawrence River.