Iberville’s Gulf Journals ed. and trans. by Richebourg Gaillard McWilliams (review)

REVIEWS 253 Professor SallyWeaverofWaterloo's DepartmentofAnthropology traces the tangledstoryof thedevelopment of theWhitePaperclearly, sympathetically, and objectively.She makesexcellentuse of interviewsand confidential memoranda fromthebureaucracy to piecethestorytogether. Althoughher sympathies arewiththegroupshecalls 'theactivists,' sheisfairtothe'oldguard' elementin IndianAffairs,pointingoutthattheoldtimers wererightfar more oftenthanthewhizkids.The organization andstyleofMaking Canadian Indian Policy are exemplaryon thewhole,althoughthe occasional slipin usage('lay' for 'lie,'97;'envisioned' for 'envisaged,' 12 8; and'hopefully'for 'it washoped,' 122)disfigures the narrative. A moreserious criticism concerns thesubtitleof the work.The onlyreferencein the bookto 'hiddenagenda'comesin her assertion that'Indiansremainedconvinced thattheWhite Paperwasa hidden agendawithingovernment'(188),evenafter the Liberalswithdrewit. ProfessorWeaverapparentlydoesnot believethat a policyof terminatingspecial Indianstatus wasa'hiddenagenda' of thepolicy-makers fromthebeginning of the process in 1968.Selection of the terminationapproachwashaphazard, almost accidental, theproductof policy vacuum in IndianAffairsandpolitical calculations byTrudeau's operatives. If, ontheotherhand,shemeans thatthe WhitePaperpolicyremaineda 'hiddenagenda'after 197o,sheoffersnosupportof thatview.Sincethereisnoevidence of a 'hiddenagenda'throughout thepolicy-forming process orsince retraction of thepolicy, isit notmisleading to usethe term in the title?Finally,please, wouldsomeone inform Professor Weaverthat'IODE' doesnotstandfor'IndependentOrderof theDaughters of theEmpire' j.R. MILLE RUniversity ofSaskatchewan Iberville• Gulf Journals. Editedandtranslated byRICHEBOURG GAILLARD MCWILLIAMS . Montgomery, University ofAlabamaPress, 1981.Pp.x, 195.$15.75. Thesejournalsgivea vividaccount of oneof the moreimportantepisodes in thehistory ofNorthAmerica- theestablishment ofthefirstFrench settlements on theGulf of MexicoandthelowerMississippi. Ibervillewassenton hisfirst voyage totheareabytheminister ofmarinetolocate themouthoftheriver,to establish a base, andtoincitecovertly theIndian nations todestroy anyposts theEnglishof Carolinamighthaveestablished. The subsequent voyages were intendedto establish a colonyin the area and to form an alliancewith the Indiannations topreventtheEnglish colonies expanding intotheMississippi valley. The journalsmakeveryplainwhatlife waslike for Ibervilleand hismen. Broughtvividlybeforethemind's eyearetheproblems of navigation bydead reckoningin uncharted,treacherouswaters;logistics, where all supplies hadtobebroughtfromFrance or SaintDomingue; thedifficultyinfindinga 254 THE CANADIAN HISTORICAL REVIEW navigablechannelat the mouthof the Mississippi; relationswith the Indian nations,andtheSpanish atPensacola; andtheoverridingproblemof healthin the mosquito-riddencoastalswamps. On 3 January •7o2 Iberville casually noted(•6o)'anabscess in mysidehaskeptmein bedsincemydeparturefrom St. Domingue;it requireda six-inch-long incisionthroughmy belly,which caused me agreatdealof pain.' Fortunately, thejournalswerenotwrittenbyIberville,whose schooling had beenmeagre,but weredictated byhim from hislogsto a scribe whohada giftedpen,asdoes thetranslator. Theyareadelighttoread.A spot check with PierreMargry's transcription oftheoriginal journalsindicates thatthetranslationisafaithfulrendition .The meticulous notes areatthefootofthepageand are an annotation of the text rather than mere reference notes. The editor has madeexcellent useoftheDictionary ofCanadian Biography toidentifythepersons mentionedin thejournals.He comparedthe originalmanuscript journalsto thetranscriptions byPierreMargry,indicating thelatter'sfrequent,andoccasionally glaring,errors.In onlyonenotedid thisreviewerfindthattheeditor had goneastray. On page•65, note22, he states that the Frenchreferredto cheapor inferiorfurs,suchasdeerskins andbuffalohides,asmenuespelleteries. In fact,menues pelleteries werethe morevaluablesmallfurs otherthanbeaver, suchasmartin,otter,squirrel,andmink.Two otherserious deficiencies must bementioned;a lackof adequate maps,thecontemporary onesincludedare greatlyreducedandmerelydecorative. Second, theintroduction byTennantS. McWilliams isan appallingtravesty of factualerrorsandmisconceived opinions . Despitethatlastglaringflawthebookhasconsiderable value,notleastfor studentswho will, in readingit, find themselves relivingthe past,viewing historythroughtheeyes of onewhomadeit. w.j.v.ccLv. sUniversity ofToronto Russia inPacific Waters, 1715-1825: aSurvey ofthe Origins ofRussia• NavalPresence in theNorthandSouth Pacific. G•.¾• B•,RR•,TT. Vancouver, Universityof British ColumbiaPress, •98•. Pp.xv,3oo,illus.$24-95. Althoughthe subtitleof thisbookincludesthe word 'survey,' it shouldbe emphasized thatthescholarship reflects agreatdealoforiginal research coveringa widetime-frame.Futhermore, theresearch isincreased in valuebythe joiningofsources fromwithintheSoviet Uniontothose oneassociates withthe generalpatterns of maritimehistory outside thatcountry. The authorofthisformidable compilation ofevidence does notalways make comprehension easyfor hisreaders.This ispartlybecause the singlemap is inadequate, partlyduetotheinevitable complications involved ingeographical description, andpartlytothefactthatthesocial, political, maritime, andstrategicaspects of ahundredyears' time-span makeextremely severe demands on ...