ay, conducted him westward only as far as the
tribes allied to them, the Mascoutins of the Missouri or Nebraska.
Hence, Radisson going west-north-west to the Sioux--as he says he
did--must have skirted much farther west than Wisconsin and Minnesota.
(4) His descriptions of the Indians who knew tribes in trade with the
Spaniards must refer to the Indians south of the Big Bend of the
Missouri. (5) His description of the climate refers to the same
region. (6) The _Jesuit Relations_ confirm beyond all doubt that he
was among the main body of the great Sioux Confederacy. (7) Both his
and the Jesuit reference is to the treeless prairie, which does not
apply to the wooded lake regions of eastern Minnesota or northern
Wisconsin.

To me, it is simply astounding--and that is putting it mildly--that any
one pretending to have read _Radisson's Journal_ can accuse him of
"claiming" to have "descended to the salt sea" (Gulf of Mexico).
Radisson makes no such claim; and to accuse him of such is like
building a straw enemy for the sake of knocking him down, or stirring
up muddy waters to make them look deep. The exact words of Radisson's
narrative are: "We went into ye great river that divides itself in 2,
where the hurrons with some Ottauake . . . had retired. . . . This
nation have warrs against those of the Forked River . . . so called
because it has 1 branches the one towards the west, the other towards
the South, wch. we believe runns towards Mexico, by the tokens they
gave us . . . they told us the prisoners they take tells them that they
have warrs against a nation . . . that have great beards and such
knives as we have" . . . etc., etc., etc. . . . "which made us believe
they were Europeans." This statement is _no_ claim that Radisson went
to Mexico, but only that he met tribes who knew tribes trading with
Spaniards of Mexico. And yet, on the careless reading of this
statement, one historian brands Radisson as a liar for "having claimed
he went to Mexico." The thing would be comical in its impudence if it
were not that many such misrepresentations of what Radisson wrote have
dimmed the glory of his real achievements.

CHAPTER IV

1661-1664

RADISSON'S FOURTH VOYAGE

The Success of the Explorers arouses Envy--It becomes known that they
have heard of the Famous Sea of the North--When they ask Permission to
resume their Explorations, the French Governor refuses except on
Condition of receiving Half the Profits