tend the kingdom of his God and of his king?

Champlain has been justly called _The Father of New France_, and this is
certainly a glorious title. The name of Champlain is indissolubly
associated with this country, and will live long after his
contemporaries are forgotten, for many of them now only live through
him.

America contains a number of towns which have carefully preserved the
names of their founders, whose memories are consecrated by monuments
which will recall to future generations their noble work. But where is
the town or state that can point to a founder whose work equalled that
of Champlain? He had to spend thirty of the best years of his life in
his endeavours to found a settlement on the shores of the St. Lawrence.
Twenty times he crossed the Atlantic in the interests of the colony, and
in the meantime he had constantly to combat the influence of the
merchants who vigorously opposed the settlement of the French in Canada.

If we study the history of the mercantile companies from the years 1608
to 1627, we find on the one hand, a body of men absorbed by one idea,
that of growing rich, and on the other hand, a man, anxious, it is true,
to look after the material interests of the merchants and of the people,
but hand in hand with this the desire to extend the dominion of his
sovereign. Here was a vast country, capable of producing great wealth,
and struggling for its possession was a body of avaricious men, while
valiantly guarding its infancy, we find a single champion, the heroic
Champlain. Champlain watched over the new settlement with the tender
solicitude of a parent carefully protecting his offspring from danger,
and ready to sacrifice his life to save it from disaster. In small
vessels of sixty or eighty tons, Champlain had repeatedly exposed his
life to danger in crossing the ocean. His health had also been exposed
during the days and nights spent in the open forests, or when passing
on the dangerous rivers in his efforts to explore new territory. He was
also constantly at the mercy of the Indians, whose treachery was
proverbial. Under all these dangers and through all these conditions,
Champlain's conduct was exemplary. He was charitable as a missionary
towards these poor children of the woods. When threatened with hunger or
malady, he relieved their wants and took care of the young children,
some of whom he adopted. Others again he placed in French families,
hoping that sooner or later they wou