Читать книгу History of Jacksonville, Florida and Vicinity, 1513 to 1924 - T. Frederick Davis - Страница 5

March 27, 1513, was Easter Sunday, Pascua Florida in the language of the Spaniard. Along the stretch that we now call the Florida east coast north of Canaveral the weather was stormy and the sea was running high. Off shore three caravels lingered with sails reefed down, for land had been sighted that day and the adventurers aboard, wishing to investigate, hove to for the weather to calm. They loitered northerly along the coast a week; then they headed in, and in the night, April 2, came to anchor near the beach.

Here the commander with his principal officers formally landed, probably at sunrise of April 3rd. Throwing the royal banner of Spain to the breeze they declared allegiance to the crown and proclaimed possession of the country, which they supposed was an island, in the name of Ferdinand, their king. Following the custom of that day to commemorate important events with the names of feast days or patron Saints, in this case, because the discovery was made on Easter Sun.. day, they named the new land Florida.

This scene on the beach was the landing of Juan Ponce de Leon and the opening of the positive history of the white man in North America. Fortunately, Ponce de Leon recorded the location of his landing and as it is the only record the observation 30 degrees and 8 minutes latitude must forever designate the locality where he first landed on the soil of Florida. Laid down on the map today, the location is about 11 miles south of the pier at Pablo Beach and within 25 miles of Jacksonville straight away.

It would appear that the existence of flowers here had nothing to do with naming the country. The native flora of the coastal beach section is there today, and one would wonder what Ponce de Leon, coming from verdant Porto Rico, could have seen to cause the enthusiasm attributed to him by history writers. The embellishment of the record to the effect that "the land was fresh in the bloom of Spring and the fields were covered with flowers" is pretty and pleasing, but it does not conform to the circumstances as we know them now in the early part of April even in the mildest season.

There is no record that Ponce de Leon explored the country away from the coast. He found nothing here to lead him to suspect the existence of gold and precious metals in the country; and incidentally, no spring the waters of which possessed the qualities of restoring health and vigor, that tradition said existed somewhere in this part of the world. He did not tarry long. Boarding his vessels on the 8th of April, he soon turned back, struggling against the currents of the gulf stream in his progress southward.

From the top of the sand dunes in that locality the eye rests upon what appear to be refreshing woodlands. They are the oases hiding from view that stretch of marsh behind the dunes known as "The Guana," beginning seven miles below Pablo Beach and extending south toward the mouth of the North River at St. Augustine. Those who have been in ''The Guana" duck hunting and waded the mud flats and network of marsh creeks there know from experience why Ponce de Leon remained on the beach near his vessels and did not attempt to penetrate the interior at this point.

Indians of That Day

The natives of the Florida peninsula in Columbian times comprised a number of tribes, each governed by a different chief. They did not live in constant peace and harmony with one another and sometimes were engaged in bitter tribal wars. This part of Florida was occupied by the Timuqua or Timucua tribe, whose domain reached from the St. Marys River to the headwaters of the St. Johns, but principally along the lower St. Johns.

The costumes of the Timuquas were scanty, being scarcely more than a loin-cloth of buckskin for the men and for the women a fringe of Spanish moss tied around the waist. Both men and women painted their bodies in fantastic fashion; both wore heavy stone ornaments suspended from the lobes of their ears which they pierced for the purpose. The men wore their hair drawn to a peak at the top of their heads and tied like a topknot. The women wore no head decoration and left their hair flowing, except in cases of the death of a relative or friend they "bobbed" their hair as a token of distress. A chief or headman decorated himself with the tail of a raccoon or a fox drooping from the peak at the top of his head; deer-hoof rattles dangled from his loin-cloth, while suspended from his neck on a buckskin string a large shell disc six inches or more in diameter was sometimes worn.

These Indians were tall of stature, muscular and very strong. They were an agricultural people, raising crops of maize and vegetables and tilling their fields with implements of wood and shell. Tobacco was known to them and they used it as an emetic in cases of sickness. Among their ceremonials was the "Busk Ceremony," sometimes referred to as the "Green Corn Dance," which lasted several days with a distinct ritual for each day. It was a harvest festival and celebration, but included ceremonials of penitence for crime within the tribe, as well as supplication for protection against injury from without. Their war ceremonies and celebrations of victory were on the order of those of the early Creek Indians and doubtless originated in a common source.

These were the people in possession of this part of Florida when Ponce de Leon arrived. They were not the Seminoles of a later day.

It may safely be assumed that the visit of Ponce de Leon left a lasting impression on the minds of the natives and that long afterward when they were in sight of the ocean they would look out to sea for the strange objects that brought the pale-face to their shore. A generation was born, grew up, and passed into middle age, yet these had not returned. Reports had now and then sifted through from the lower coasts that the white man had been down there, or from the direction of the setting sun that he had passed that way; they had heard of pale-faced people held captive by neighboring tribes, and had knowledge of one even among themselves several days' journey away; but it was not until the approach of the 50th annual harvest after Ponce de Leon's time that runners announced the return of the white man's vessels to this coast of Florida.

The French Arrive

Gaspard de Coligny, Admiral of France and champion of the cause of the Huguenots, visualized the new land across the sea as a place where his unhappy countrymen might live according to their own ideals and at the same time build up a new dominion by colonization, thereby extending the possessions of France. It was a dream of colonization upon the republican principle of freedom of thought; but in it also was another idea - that of conquest. Coligny had already attempted to plant such a colony in South America, in the harbor of Rio Janeiro, but it had perished. However, he did not despair, and early in 1562 he dispatched another expedition of two vessels from Havre de Grace to seek a place of settlement for the colony that was to follow. The command of these vessels was given to Jean Ribault, a native of Dieppe and a Huguenot.

Ribault's name was spelled in different ways by the historians of the 16th and 17th centuries. French – Ribauldus (rare), Ribauld, Ribault, Ribaut. Spanish – Ribao. English – Ribault.

Second in command of this expedition was Rene Goulaine de Laudonniere, likewise a Huguenot. Ribault steered a new course across the Atlantic north of the West Indies and came in sight of the Florida coast near the present site of St. Augustine on the last day of April. The weather being favorable he sailed northward and just before sunset came to the mouth of a large river (the St. Johns), but did not enter it. He anchored outside the bar.

At dawn the next day, which was May 1, 1562, Ribault and several officers and soldiers crossed the bar in their shallops (large rowboats with a number of oarsmen) for the purpose of exploring the river. They soon saw natives coming down to the bank of the river in a friendly manner, even pointing out to them the best place to land. Ribault and his party went ashore. An Indian approached and Ribault gave him a looking-glass. He ran with it to his chief, who took off his girdle and sent it to Ribault as a token of friendship. The two parties now approached each other. The natives greeted the white men with dignity and without indication of fear. After the greeting, the Frenchmen retired a short distance, prostrated themselves, and gave thanks to God for their safe arrival.

This was the first Protestant prayer said within the limits of the United States; it cannot be positively stated that it was the first in North America, since there might have been Protestants with Roberval in Canada twenty years before. It was certainly not the first in the new world, for Coligny planted a Huguenot colony in the harbor of Rio de Janeiro in 1555, seven years before, and in 1557 sent out 4 Protestant ministers to preach there. The South American colony existed until 1560. The natives watched the ceremony of the Frenchmen in perfect silence. When it was over, Ribault pointed his finger upward to indicate to them that the white man worshipped a Supreme Being. The chief, supposing that he meant the sun, pointed two fingers upward signifying worship of both sun and moon by them.

Captain Ribault was much pleased with the manners and appearance of these natives. He says of them, "They be of goodly stature, mighty, fair, and as well shapen and proportioned of body as any people in the world; very gentle, courteous, and of good nature. The forepart of their body be painted with pretty devised works, of azure, red, and black, so well and so properly as the best painter of Europe could not amend it. The women have their bodies painted, too, and wear a certain herb like unto moss, whereof the cedar and all other trees be almost covered. The men for pleasure do trim themselves therewith, after sundry fashions."

It has been said that the Spanish or gray moss is not native here, but the foregoing description is strong evidence that it is.

These ceremonies took place on the north side of the river, where Ribault spent the forenoon. Distributing presents among the natives and receiving in exchange fresh fish, which the Indians skillfully caught in reed nets, the Frenchmen crossed over to the south side. The natives of the south side met Ribault in a friendly manner and offered fruit; but they seemed more suspicious than those of the north side, as they did not bring their women with them and had with them their bows and arrows. A few presents satisfied them, however, and the Frenchmen were allowed to go about unmolested.

Ribault was greatly impressed with the natural growth on this side of the river. Trees, shrubs, plants and vines all excited his interest and wonder. His relation mentions grapes "of surpassing goodness" and vines that grew to the top of the tallest oaks; palms, cedar, cypress and bay trees.

The Frenchmen spent the afternoon wandering over the high land near the mouth of the river. Toward sundown they again entered their shallops and returned to the ships outside the bar.

Ribault Proclaims Possession

The next day (May 2nd) the small boats were manned and Ribault, his officers and gentlemen again entered the river and brought with them a "pillar or column of hard stone with the King's arms engraven thereon, to plant and set the same at the entry of the port, in some place, where it might be easily seen" (from boats entering the river). Coming to land on the south side, they selected a suitable spot on a little hill; here with appropriate ceremonies the monument was erected, and possession was taken of the country in the name of the king of France.

Shore-line and channel conditions at the mouth of the river have changed greatly since that day. The oldest maps show a projection on the south side of the mouth of the river like a protruding underlip. These primitive dunes were eventually washed away. A part of the lip evidently was where the sand field is making up on the left as you approach the south jetty on the beach, and according to many lines of reasoning this is where the monument was set up. Le Moyne's drawing indicates a sand dune location.

The monument was erected before any Indians appeared; but soon they came, viewed the stone for a time in silence, and then retired without touching it or speaking a word. Ribault named the river the Riviere de Mai, or River May, because his tour of exploration was made on the first day of May. This is the only name that he bestowed at the River May.

The day passed very much as the preceding one, except that the Frenchmen became greatly excited when they noticed that some of the natives were wearing ornaments of gold and silver. Ribault concluded from their signs that the country abounded in gold and that the rivers and harbors contained pearls of great magnitude.

'It afterward developed that these ornaments came from the treasure ships of Spain that were wrecked on the lower Florida coast on their voyage home from Mexico. By trade and war the gold and other metals became scattered among the Indian tribes elsewhere, furnishing a lure that never failed to lead the white adventurer on.

Ribault spent the day on the south side and returned to the ships toward sundown. The next day (May 3rd) he proceeded northward and after investigating the rivers and harbors along the way, finally reached the coast of what is now South Carolina, where it was decided to leave a post called Charlesfort, composed of 26 men. Ribault and Laudonniere then set sail for France.

It is almost unbelievable that Ribault could have supposed this handful of men left in the wilderness at the mercy of the Indians had a chance to survive.

Ribault arrived at Dieppe late in July and found civil war raging in France. The anti-Huguenot party was in control of the government and amidst the distraction that overwhelmed the nation a delay of nearly two years was experienced in getting another expedition together.

Meantime the garrison at Charlesfort abandoned the post and embarked in a frail craft for home. Fortunately they were picked up by an English vessel, but not before they had been reduced to the horrible extremity of human sacrifice for subsistence.

Laudonniere's Expedition

The Elizabeth of Honfleur, 120 tons; the Petit Breton, 100 tons, and the Falcon, 60 tons, with officers, soldiers, mariners, artisans, and titled gentlemen adventurers aboard, under the command of Rene Goulaine de Laudonniere, left France in April, 1564, on a voyage across the Atlantic to Florida. These vessels came upon the coast in the vicinity of the present St. Augustine June 22nd and entered the River May three days later. Laudonniere was entertained by the same chief that he met on the former voyage with Ribault. The stone column was still standing and appeared to be an object of great reverence to the Indians. Seeing the French approaching, as a token of friendship, they wrapped flowering vines (apparently the sea morning-glory) and wreaths of bay leaves around the pillar, while at its base were placed baskets of fruit and grain, together with a bow and quiver of arrows, symbolizing welcome and peace. When the greetings were over, Laudonniere made a short excursion up the river at least as far as St. Johns Bluff in order to observe the country. Then he returned to the ships waiting outside and coasted as far north as Amelia Island. He was in that vicinity two or three days and held a consultation with his officers as to the best place to make a settlement. They decided to return to the River May and plant the settlement in a "pleasant vale" on the south side of the river at the base of the "mountain" (St. Johns Bluff) that they had already examined, situated 2 ½ French leagues (approximately six miles) above the mouth.

Laudonniere does not mention the men left at Charlesfort two years before, and his seeming neglect of them is not accounted for in history.

Fort Caroline

At the break of day on June 30, 1564, Laudonniere commanded the trumpet to be sounded. When all were assembled, he says, "We sang a psalm of Thanksgiving unto God, beseeching Him that it would please Him of His Grace to continue His accustomed Goodness towards us. The prayer ended, every man began to take courage." After measuring off a piece of ground in the form of a triangle, all became engaged in some duty – some cleared land, some cut fagots, others brought earth, "for there was not a man that had not either a shovel, or cutting hook, or hatchet, as for the building of the fort, which we did hasten with such cheerfulness that within a few days the effect of our diligence was apparent." Paracoussy (chief) Saturioua, on whose land the fort was built, came with his two sons and a great number of men to help.

Fort Caroline was built in the form of a triangle, its base along the river front and its apex drawing toward the south. The westerly side was enclosed by a trench and raised by trusses made in the form of a battlement nine feet high. The portcullis was on this side. The southeastern side was a kind of bastion; while the northern, or river side, was enclosed with a palisado of planks of timber. The houses were built inside the fort. The oven was placed outside some distance away "because the houses be of palm leaves, which will soon be burnt after the fire catches hold of them." Laudonniere named the fort "Caroline, in honor of our prince, King Charles," who at that time was only a boy. At this crude work took place some of the most tragic incidents of American history.

When first known to the white man St. Johns Bluff sloped down westerly into a little plain that occupied the cove between the present point of the bluff and Fulton. This plain was called by the French the "Vale of Laudonniere," and there, at the water's edge, Fort Caroline was built in order to get water for the moat. The plain has been washed away by the river, mainly since the jetties were built, and ships now pass over the precise site of Fort Caroline.

In about a month Laudonniere sent the Elizabeth of Honfleur back to France with dispatches for Coligny, retaining the smaller barks for use on the river.

The story of the French at Fort Caroline is one filled with pathos and tragedy. In the beginning all went well; they enjoyed amicable relations with the Indians and from them drew largely for their subsistence, themselves neglecting to make provision for the emergencies that were bound to come to those in such a situation. As time went on misfortunes began to multiply as a result of this inactivity, and, naturally, discontent then entered the ranks of the little band. Serious mutinies followed. On one occasion the conspirators seized a vessel belonging to the port and set out upon a freebooting expedition against the Spaniards in the West Indies. Some of the mutineers finally found their way back to the River May, where Laudonniere had four of the ringleaders executed. The others were captured by the Spaniards and taken to Havana.

After a while the Indians refused to share further of their stores, partly because their own stock was low and partly from the fact that nothing was given in exchange, the French by this time having exhausted the supply of exchangeable articles. Being reduced to the verge of famine, Laudonniere was induced, let it be said against his will, to seize the great Indian Olata Utina (head chief) and hold him as ransom for supplies. This scheme resulted disastrously for the French, since a number of them were killed in capturing the chief, while the enmity of the natives was raised to the highest pitch. Thoroughly disheartened, they at last decided to build a suitable vessel and return to France.

English Sea-Rover Visits Fort Caroline

Demolishing several houses and tearing away a part of the fort for timber, work was started on the vessel designed to take the colonists home. The construction progressed under many difficulties, as several of the most experienced carpenters had been killed by the Indians. Amidst these preparations, Sir John Hawkins, returning from a slave-selling expedition along the Spanish Main, unexpectedly appeared at the mouth of the River May, August 4, 1565, having been guided along the coast by a Frenchman, who was with Ribault on the first voyage to Florida. They were seeking the colony at Charlesfort, but when they reached the River May they saw two pinnaces and learned of the circumstances and condition of Fort Caroline two English leagues up the river. Hawkins paid a visit to the fort and supplied the French with meat and other provisions. He sold Laudonniere one of his vessels, taking some of the ordnance of Fort Caroline in payment therefor. Laudonniere says, "Moreover, for as much as he saw my soldiers go barefoot, he offered me fifty pairs of shoes, which I accepted and agreed of a price with him, for which until this present I am indebted to him; for particularly he bestowed upon myself a great jar of oil, a jar of vinegar, a barrel of olives, a great quantity of rice and a barrel of white biscuit. Besides he gave divers presents to the principal officers of my company, according to their qualities; so that I may say, that we received as many courtesies of the General as it was possible to receive of any man." After the departure of Hawkins, the French hurried their preparations for leaving Florida. By the 15th of August (1565) everything was in readiness, and they waited only a fair wind to hoist the sails. In this state of anxious suspense they were detained till the 28th, when the wind and tide became favorable and they were on the point of departing; but just at that moment the sails of several vessels were discovered at sea approaching the coast. Ribault had arrived!

Ribault's Second Voyage

The settlement on the River May had not been forgotten by Coligny. At the first opportunity, during a lull in the civil war in France, he secured a royal commission for Captain Ribault to command an expedition to America. The full quota of soldiers and volunteers was quickly brought together. Some of the men embarked with their 'vives and children. The total number of emigrants was about six hundred.

The fleet of seven vessels sailed from Dieppe in May, 1565. Experiencing adverse weather it put into several ports and was delayed in reaching the River May until August 28th, the day that Laudonniere was preparing to leave. Three of the vessels entered the river and proceeded to the fort, but the four largest could not cross the bar and remained at anchor outside. All of the colonists had landed and the disembarking of supplies had been in progress several days, when at night five Spanish ships came up from the south and anchored near the four French ships at the mouth of the river. The Spaniards claimed to be friendly, but the French trusting nothing, made ready for sailing. Their suspicions were soon verified and they cut their cables and sailed for the open sea, with the Spanish ships in pursuit.. The chase continued until after sunrise, but the French outsailed their pursuers, who turned back and were in turn followed by a French ship. Observing that the Spaniards were landing soldiers and provisions (at St. Augustine), the French vessel hastened to the River May to notify Ribault, who was at Fort Caroline while all of this was going on.

When the facts were related, Ribault immediately held a council of war. He favored attacking the Spaniards by sea immediately, but Laudonniere opposed the plan on the ground that it was the season of sudden storms and he thought it would be wiser to repair the fort and await an attack by the Spaniards. Most of the officers agreed with Laudonniere.. Ribault, however, held to his decision and ordered the ships prepared for battle. The largest ship, the Trinity, flagship of the fleet, having outsailed the rest had not yet returned to the river and the attack was to be made without her. All of the fighting men that had just arrived together with the able-bodied of Laudonniere's force were ordered aboard. On September 10th, the fleet sailed from the River May on the mission of a sudden attack upon the Spaniards. Laudonniere remained at Fort Caroline.

Ribault's fleet soon arrived off St. Augustine, having been joined by the Trinity in the meantime. While the decks were being cleared for action the wind died down into a complete calm – it was the calm before a hurricane. When the wind came again it grew rapidly into a gale from the northeast and Ribault's ships were driven southward and scattered down the coast.

Spaniards Plan Attack

Rumors of a French settlement in Florida reached Spain through the court of France. These rumors were verified by a report from Havana in an account of the mutineers from Fort Caroline that were captured, who in order to save themselves divulged the secrets of the French fort on the River May.

Spain claimed Florida by right of discovery and exploration and she seems to have had a good title to it through Ponce de Leon, Narvaez, De Soto and other voyagers. This settlement on the River May incensed the Spanish king as a foreign settlement within his dominions and he determined to get rid of it. France and Spain at that time were not at war.. Religion furnished a good pretext and a safety-valve for the Spanish king to act and still keep official peace with France.

A royal decree was granted Pedro Menendez to fit out mostly at his own initial expense, an expedition designed to destroy the French colony or drive the Frenchmen from the shores of Florida. Such an expedition could not have been placed in better hands for its success, as Menendez had shown before that he was fully capable of performing the acts with which he was charged – the brutality that the spirit of the age in which he lived characterized as the highest order of heroism and religious duty.

It was a peculiar coincidence that Menendez arrived in sight of the Florida coast on the same day that Ribault's fleet dropped anchor at the mouth of the River May, and the same day, too, that Laudonniere was hoisting sail to leave the shores of Florida. Menendez sailed along the coast and anchored off what is now St. Augustine. Here he learned from the Indians of the situation of the French; but to satisfy himself he went with five of his ships up the coast to reconnoiter. These were the ships that chased the French out to sea. He had set about fortifying the place, which he called St. Augustine, and was so engaged when Ribault's fleet appeared off the harbor. He saw the French ships driven southward and speculated as to their return. He called his officers in council and laid before them a plan to attack the French fort by land before the French vessels should return. His officers, as in the case of Ribault, opposed the plan; but Menendez was determined, and on the 16th of September he marched with a force of. 500 men to attack Fort Caroline. Indians did not take part in this further than acting as guides. The tempest had not ceased; rain fell in torrents, and it was only after the severest hardships that the Spaniards reacted the vicinity of Fort Caroline after sunset of the 19^th. Coming to a pine grove, they camped at a low wet place one-quarter of a league from the fort; here Menendez assembled his captains in council. Drenched and hungry with their powder wet and useless the Spaniards debated the advisability of making an attack on the French fort. Menendez was practically alone in an unswerving desire to attack the fort, his captains opposing it and suggesting the return to St. Augustine and the abandonment of the expedition. The council lasted until the early morning hours, and the will of Menendez prevailed.

The place where the Spaniards camped that night and the fate of Florida was sealed is easily recognized today. The road skirts it just before the climb to St. Johns Bluff commences. It is a natural depression surrounded by hills, about three-fourths of a mile (approximately one-fourth of a league) southeast of the site of Fort Caroline – the only situation of that kind anywhere in the locality.

Before dawn, September 20th, the Spaniards began to move closer to the fort: They had marched only a few hundred yards when amidst the rain and tempest, and the tangled underbrush, the columns became separated and Menendez called a halt. He interrogated a Frenchman (one of Laudonniere's mutineers) whom he had brought with him. The Frenchman told him that "right over there, down below, three arquebus shots away, was the fort, one side of which was washed by the waters of the river." Nothing could. be clearer than this description recorded by Meras, which confirms all of the other eye-witness descriptions that the fort was at the water's edge.

Fort Caroline Captured

At dawn the Spaniards were on the high ground overlooking Fort Caroline. The break of day revealed no activity of any sort; Fort Caroline was sleeping, 240 people, less than thirty of whom knew the use of arms. Women and children, the sick and the weak, artisans and servants·- these were the people that remained with Laudonniere when Ribault's fleet departed.

The damage done the fort in anticipation of its abandonment had not been fully repaired. The Spaniards rushed down the slope into the fort and committed an indiscriminate slaughter. Some of the French were slain in their beds; others half awake and bewildered met the same fate upon reaching the courtyard. Women as they knelt in supplication and prayer, and little children were put to death. In the confusion a few Frenchmen escaped and among these was Laudonniere.

The deed was finished in less than an hour and not a Spaniard had been killed and only one slightly wounded. Menendez, it seems, was not at the fort when the carnage commenced, having remained on top of the hill; but hearing the commotion at the fort he ran down to it and observing that his soldiers gave no quarter he ordered them in a loud voice to kill or wound no woman or boy under 15 years of age, by which order 70 persons were saved.

About a month after the capture of Fort Caroline, Menendez reported to the King that he still held these captives and that it caused him deep sorrow to see them among his people.. Their ultimate fate is unknown. Laudonniere, Le Moyne (an artist), and Challeaux, with 23 others, after suffering untold hardships in the marshes as they tried to reach the mouth of the river, were finally rescued by two small vessels belonging to the French, the Pearl and the Grayhound. In these they hastily set sail for France. The Pearl arrived in France, but the Grayhound with Laudonniere aboard reached port at a place in Wales. Thence Laudonniere went to France and reported fully regarding the destruction of Fort Caroline, but the news was received with indifference at the French court.

"Not as Frenchmen, But as Lutherans."

The familiar statement that Menendez hanged a number of Frenchmen and placarded them with a sign signifying that he hanged them not as Frenchmen, but as Lutherans, is omitted here as history. So far as known no eye-witness recorded the incident of the placard. The account first appeared in print in 1566 and apparently originated in France as propaganda to arouse the feelings of Protestants in connection with an effort to raise funds for the support of the widows and orphans of Huguenots murdered by Menendez in Florida. That some of the Huguenots were hanged is true, for Menendez mentions the fact in his report to the king, and along with them two Englishmen that Hawkins had left at Fort Caroline to assist Laudonniere; but he does not mention the placard nor does Meras who recorded the details of the affair with a candor that would certainly have included this incident had it occurred.

Fate of Ribault

Ribault's fleet was buffeted by the tempest and then wrecked along the coast above Canaveral. Practically all of the Frenchmen reached the shore in safety, where they seem to have gotten together in three separate parties. The two farthest north attempted to reach Fort Caroline by marching overland; but that farthest down the coast decided to fortify and await developments.

Three days after the capture of Fort Caroline, Menendez, leaving a garrison of 300 men there, returned to St. Augustine with the balance of his force. Soon after his arrival the Indians came in with reports of the wrecks below. He knew that they were the French and he set out to finish the job begun at Fort Caroline. A party of the French had marched to Matanzas Inlet, where their progress was stopped. Menendez appeared on the opposite side. A parley ensued and the French surrendered, understanding that their lives would be spared.

On the pretext that he had but few soldiers with him and these might easily be overpowered, Menendez required the French to cross the shallow body of water in a small boat in parties of ten. As each came over it was marched back into the palmetto scrub out of sight. There, September 29, 1565, the shipwrecked and defenseless Frenchmen were tied together in pairs with their hands behind their backs and fiendishly put to death with axe, halberd or sword. After it was over Menendez returned to St. Augustine.

On October 12th, Menendez was at the same spot on the same mission, as reports had reached him through the Indians that another party of Frenchmen was there. Ribault was with this party. Precisely the same procedure as in the former instance was carried out. Ribault was among the last to come over; he was struck in the back with a dagger and fell to the ground, where two or three blows ended his life. Meras, brother-in-law of Menendez, was an eye-witness and he recorded the details of this horrible butchery; there is evidence that he, personally, delivered the dagger thrust into the back of Ribault.

Menendez in time reached the last party down the coast. Upon his approach some of these Frenchmen fled to the Indians and their ultimate fate is not clear. Of those that surrendered, a few were taken to St. Augustine as slaves.

Huguenot Ring

The following letter from Mrs. W. H. Adams, of Atlantic Beach, Fla., gives the circumstances of the recovery of an extremely valuable relic connected with Fort Caroline, found in an Indian mound near Pablo Beach a few years ago by Elbridge Gerry Adams:

Atlantic Beach, Fla., December 12, 1924.

Mr. T. Frederick Davis,

Jacksonville, Fla.

My dear Mr. Davis:

In reply to your note regarding the old ring in my possession, the circumstances connected with finding the ring were these:

My son, Gerry, found the ring while digging in an Indian mound near Pablo Beach about 1911. He, in company with several other boys, was digging for pottery and such things.. They had been digging in a large mound, when Gerry found a small mound nearby and began digging into one side of it. It was here that he found the old gold ring. I kept the ring, but did not pay much attention to it until the Ribault monument was unveiled by the D. A. R. near Mayport last spring, when I recognized the similarity of the markings on the monument shield to those on the ring. I would be glad to show you the ring should you care to see it.

Very sincerely,

Juliette Holt Adams.

The ring is a band of about 10-kt. gold of uniform thickness throughout. Measured by the modern jewelers' scale the size is 6 ½ , which is the size for a medium finger; the weight is 1 dwt. The emblems are apparently hand-carved. The single fleurs-de-lis are simply cut into the band, while the figures in the medallions stand out upon a battered sunken field within the oval. The accompanying illustration shows the emblems on the ring, which appear uniformly all the way around the band. There is no inscription inside the band.

The certain authenticity of this find makes it at once a most interesting subject, and being a ring the imagination naturally drifts into all kinds of romance about it. There is of course no record of how the Indian gained possession of the ring. It may have been given to him as a present. Maybe it was taken from the finger of a Frenchman slain at Fort Caroline, or from that of one of Ribault's men as he lay upon the blood-soaked sands of Matanzas. But that it originally belonged to a Huguenot of Fort Caroline there is scarcely a doubt, for the fleur-de-lis, emblem of France when the Huguenots came to Florida indelibly connects it with the time when the Lily of France was banished from Florida by the Lion of Spain in their struggle for supremacy. [Editor's Note: The Huguenot flag bore three golden fleurs-de-!is, frequently referred to as the Lillies of France. The Spanish flag of the period was quartered, showing in gold the Castle of Castille and in red the Lion of Leon].

San Mateo Fort and River

The capture of Fort Caroline having been achieved at the time of the festival of Saint Matthew, Menendez renamed the fort San Mateo and the river Rio de San Mateo. The contingency, fire, that Laudonniere had so carefully guarded against happened to the Spaniards eight days after they had captured the fort. Through the carelessness of a soldier all of the houses and the wooden part of the fort were burned. The fort was rebuilt on the same site. Menendez afterward built two small forts or observation posts on opposite sides of the river below the great fort, as San Mateo was called.

There is evidence that Menendez soon attempted to force the removal of Chief Saturioua to the north side of the river on account of which it is not surprising that he incurred the enmity of the neighboring Indian tribes. About this time a missionary, Don Martinez, and three attendants were murdered by the Indians when they landed on Fort George Island.

Menendez led a detachment of 70 men against this chief, but without success. The soldiers could not now venture far beyond the protection of the forts without being harassed by the Indians and within a year fifty or more, including a number of officers, were killed.

The same spirit of mutiny that took hold of the French arose among the Spanish garrisons. On one occasion all but twenty of those in the forts on the San Mateo determined to leave and were aboard a vessel ready to sail when Menendez arrived from St. Augustine. He induced thirty of them to remain, put them on a boat and ordered them to St. Augus. tine; but on the way they were attacked by the Indians and most of them killed. The mutineers sailed and were wrecked on the lower Florida coast where they fell into the hands of the Indians of that section.

At the end of 18 months conditions in Florida were growing from bad to worse; supplies and recruits were slow in coming from the West Indies and the dissension of the colonists was growing. Menendez therefore decided to go to Spain and make a personal report in the interest of the Florida colony. He sailed in the spring of 1567, and remained in Spain a year. During his absence there occurred at the mouth of the River San Mateo (St. Johns) the most spectacular incident of them all.

Retribution of Dominic de Gourgues

The court of France, anti-Huguenot in sentiment, ignored the popular clamor for retribution for the outrages perpetrated against Frenchmen in Florida. Observing that the slaughter of his countrymen would likely go unavenged and believing that the honor of France demanded a retributive measure, Dominic de Gourgues, a soldier of fortune, took upon himself the responsibility of a private enterprise against the Spaniards in Florida.

Selling his own estate and borrowing from his friends, De Gourgues managed to finance the building of three vessels especially equipped for the enterprise. His fighting force comprised about 100 soldiers armed with harquebuses and 80 mariners with cross-bows and pikes; there were also a number of persons unskilled in arms, but seeking adventure.

De Gourgues left France August 22, 1567, sailed to Africa, thence to the West Indies, and reached the River May (St. Johns) at Eastertide, 1568. In passing by the mouth of the river he received the salute of the Spanish posts and returned it to keep his identity secret. He came to anchor in the St. Marys River, called the Somme by the French. The Indians soon gathered and an alliance was quickly made with them for an attack upon the Spanish forts. Several days were required to perfect the plans. A youth, Pierre Debre, who had escaped from Fort Caroline and was afterward found and kindly treated by the Indians, was brought in and his services as interpreter were invaluable. On the Saturday morning following Easter, De Gourgues with his whole force, except 20 left to guard the vessels in the St. Marys River, and a great number of Indians were concentrated in the woods behind the fort on the north side of the river.

Circumstances point almost without the slightest doubt to Pilot Town as the location of this fort.

The attack was made in the forenoon. Captain Cazenove with a company was ordered to set fire to the gate, while the main forces attacked from the rear. A guard happened to mount a platform just at this moment, noticed the French and sounded the alarm. He fired a culverin twice and was loading it for a third shot when he was killed by an Indian. By this time the French and the Indians were inside the fort. Not a Spaniard escaped; of the 60 in the fort, 45 were killed, and 15 captured and reserved for another fate.

The garrison in the fort across the river, seeing the commotion, opened a cannonade, which the French replied to by turning the guns of the captured fort to bear upon the other. Haste was necessary to intercept the garrison on the south side of the river before it should reach the great fort San Mateo (at St. Johns Bluff). Captain De Gourgues with 80 soldiers entered a boat that had come around into the river by prearranged plan and crossed over to the south side below the second fort. The Indians swam across in great numbers, holding their bows and arrows above their heads with one hand and swimming with the other. The garrison fled, but not in time to escape, for when they got to the woods they found themselves cut off and partly surrounded. All were slain except 15 reserved as before.

The second fort was on the point where the river turns at Mayport. The Spaniards evidently held back for a time before leaving the fort, which gave De Gourgues time to cross the river and station himself in the woods around the property known as "Wonderwood."

The French removed the articles of value from this fort and sent them across the river. Then they crossed over themselves, with their captives and their Indian allies. De Gourgues wished to obtain more accurate information about the great fort before attacking it. He learned from one of the prisoners that it contained about 250 men, well-armed and supplied, and this information was substantiated by a spy sent from the great fort, who had been captured by the Indians and brought in. De Gourgues decided to make the attack at once, although it could not be made as a surprise, for the Spaniards had already gotten wind of the attacks on the small forts. In the night he sent the Indians to conceal themselves in the woods behind the great fort and await the signal for attack. Early the next morning he crossed the river with all of his force, except a few left to guard the prisoners, and finally attained the eminence (St. Johns Bluff) overlooking the fort – the same position from which Menendez on that fatal morning two and a half years before observed Fort Caroline.

De Gourgues saw a reconnoitering party of 60 Spaniards leave the fort and march toward his position, whereupon he sent Captain Cazenove around to come up in their rear and cut off their retreat. This maneuver was carried out unobserved by the Spaniards, who continued toward De Gourgues' position on the hill. When they were close, De Gourgues advanced with his whole force. The Spaniards broke and fled, but Cazenove had cut off their retreat and all were slain without quarter.

The balance of the garrison in the fort got a glimpse of what was taking place in the woods on the slope of St. Johns Bluff and in their consternation the number of the French was greatly magnified. Becoming demoralized they sought escape through the woods behind the fort; here they ran into the Indians, who attacked them with the greatest fury. The French soon joined the Indians in the work of extermination. Only a few Spaniards escaped; most of them were slain on the spot, but some were captured and held for a specific purpose.

De Gourgues marched his prisoners to a suitable spot, where he lectured them, reciting the details of the slaughter of his countrymen by Menendez. Then they were hanged from nearby trees. On a tablet of firwood he wrote with a searing iron, "I do not this as unto Spaniards nor Mariners, but as unto Thieves, Traitors, and Murderers," and placed the placard beneath the victims as a message to the Spaniards that he knew would come from St. Augustine after his departure.

Menendez was in Spain at this time. Had he been in Florida it is possible that he might have been on a visit to San Mateo and fallen into the hands of the Frenchman, in which event the history of that Spaniard's life without a doubt would have closed right there. The Indians would have found a great deal of pleasure in it too, for, as Bancroft says, they unquestionably enjoyed seeing their enemies butcher each other.

The necessity of destroying the fort was now explained to the Indians and they set about the work with such zeal that San Mateo was razed in one day. The French removed the cannon and small arms to two boats that lay off the fort, but the ammunition was lost as the result of an accident. An Indian while boiling his fish set fire to a train of powder laid by the Spaniards, by which the ammunition house was blown up; from this other houses caught fire on their thatched roofs and were quickly destroyed.

With the demolition of the other forts and the hanging of the prisoners held at the first fort, De Gourgues considered his object accomplished. He sent the ordnance taken from the forts around by boat and set out with his diminutive army over the route by which he came. He found his vessels on the St. Marys in order and on May 3rd hoisted sail and headed for home, where he arrived at Rochelle on the 6th of June, 1568.

News of the disaster in Florida reached Spain while De Gourgues was still at Rochelle receiving the congratulations of his admirers and friends. A Spanish squadron was sent to capture him there, but he moved to another port before its arrival. A price was put upon his head. The Spanish king made representations to the French court and De Gourgues was forced to seek safety in concealment; he remained in retirement ten or twelve years, idolized by a large portion of the French people.

The account of this expedition to Florida given in Champlain's "Voyages" closes in these terms:

A generous enterprise, undertaken by a gentleman, and executed at his own cost, for honor's sake alone, without any other expectation; and one which resulted in obtaining for him a glory far more valuable than all the treasures of the world.

Dominic de Gourgues was easily the most spectacular figure in Florida's early history.

De Gourgues' life was filled with wild adventure staged in the remote parts of the world as known in his time. He was in the armies of different princes for many years. He was in command of a company that was cut to pieces near Sienna and was there captured by the Spaniards. They put him in a galley as a galley slave, and while serving in this capacity he was captured by the Turks and so used by them on the Mediterranean. The galley in which he was serving was eventually restored to the French and De Gourgues returned to France. He then made a voyage to Africa, Brazil, and the South Seas, from which it is said he returned with considerable wealth. Upon his return from this voyage he learned of the massacre of the Huguenots in Florida. There had been published in France a tract entitled "Supplication of the Widows and Children of those Massacred in Florida", calculated to rouse feeling to a high pitch. As a patriot De Gourgues felt the honor of his country was at stake, and as a man his fiery nature burned for an opportunity for revenge for the ignoble treatment of himself by the Spaniards. These united motives urged him to the chivalrous undertaking against the Spaniards in Florida – un-Christian it may have been, but intensely dramatic. Religion, however, played no part in it, for De Gourgues himself was a Catholic. He emerged from the retirement following the Florida enterprise to accept appointment as commander of the high seas fleet; on his way to assume command he contracted a sickness from which he never recovered. He died in 1582.

The history of a city includes the record of the locality before the city was founded and these stirring scenes at the mouth of the St. Johns River therefore are properly included as the first chapter of Jacksonville's history.

Why Are We Sleeping?

From Maine to California in the schools of every city and hamlet of the nation where American history is taught, children recite in a word or two the events that occurred in the vicinity of St. Johns Bluff recorded in this chapter. They know that perhaps the destiny of a continent was settled somewhere in Florida, but they do not know that it was anywhere near Jacksonville, nor that here the first white women and children landed in the territory now the United States in the first really substantial attempt at permanent colonization, and that here according to a record inference the first white child was born – the first Protestant white child born in North America. They do not know that the first battle in North America between white races was fought at Fort Caroline. But they do know all about Jamestown and Plymouth rock and a good deal about the missions of California. Thousands of people visit those places every year for no other reason in the world than for their historic interest. The Daughters of the American Revolution, on May 1, 1924, unveiled near Mayport an enlarged copy of the marker placed by Ribault at the mouth of the river in 1562, and which was undoubtedly destroyed by the Spaniards upon the capture of Fort Caroline in 1565. This is the only effort that has been made to commemorate any of the events of history along the St. Johns River between Jacksonville and the sea.