g. She was working herself insensibly up a steep craggy
Rock, to get at the Swallows Nests which are there in great Numbers.
We pelted her so long with Stones, till at length she fell into the
River. Her Tongue, which was in form of a Lance, was of an
extraordinary Length, and her Hiss might be heard a great way."

At last the two Frenchmen joined a band of hunters and among them found
our friend Accau. {308} The hunt was very successful. But Hennepin's
attention was drawn in another direction by a strange story of five
"Spirits," that is to say, Europeans, who were in the neighborhood. A
few days later he met them at a little distance below the Falls of St.
Anthony.

The leader of the party was one of the most notable men among the early
pioneers. His name was Daniel Greysolon Du Lhut, or Du Luth. He was
leagued with Count Frontenac and some others in the fur-trade and was
equally noted for his success in that line of business, for his
coolness and skill in managing Indians and rough _coureurs de bois_,
and for his achievements as an explorer. He had come to the head of
Lake Superior, where a city perpetuates his name, and thence had
crossed to one of the tributaries of the Mississippi, when he heard of
the three Frenchmen and came to meet them. The encounter was a joyful
one on both sides, especially for the prisoners, whose release Du Lhut
secured by gifts to the Sioux.

[Illustration: Falls of St. Anthony]

The eight Frenchmen now accompanied the Sioux back to Mille Lacs and
were treated with great honor. Then they started east and, in due
time, reached the Jesuit missions at Green {309} Bay. And here we take
leave of Father Hennepin.[4]

[1] Hennepin's language in the passages which have been quoted is given
as it appears in an old English translation.

[2] Jonathan Carver, who journeyed up the river in 1766, was the
earliest traveler who made mention of ancient monuments in this region.
He says that a few miles below Lake Pepin his attention was attracted
by an elevation which had the appearance of an intrenchment. He had
served in the recent war between Great Britain and France and had an
eye to such matters. He says, "Notwithstanding it was now covered with
grass, I could plainly discern that it had once been a breast-work of
about four feet in height, extending the best part of a mile and
sufficiently capacious to cover five thousand men." It was
semi-circular in form, and its wings rest