landed again in France, or have been lost in the storms
which have proved to be so dreadful.' The autumn of 1669
had been a stormy season. Fearful hurricanes swept over
Quebec. The lower town was flooded to an incredible
height, many buildings were destroyed, and the havoc
amounted to 100,000 livres. All this was painfully
disquieting. To quote Mother Marie again: 'If M. Talon
has been wrecked, it will be an irretrievable loss to
the colony, for, the king having given him a free hand,
he could undertake great things without minding the
outlay.' In the meantime M. Patoulet, Talon's secretary,
who had left France on another ship and had reached Quebec
safely, wrote to Colbert: 'If he is dead, His Majesty
will have lost a good subject, yourself, Monseigneur, a
faithful servant, Canada an affectionate father, and
myself a good master.'

Fortunately, as we have already seen, Talon was not lost.
At the very time when these letters were written he was
on his way back to France, where he spent the winter hard
at work with Colbert--preparing for the dispatch of
settlers and soldiers in the spring. The minister displayed
the same zeal as the year before. He appropriated ample
funds, gave urgent orders, and seemed to make the Canadian
reinforcements his personal affair. Talon sailed from La
Rochelle about the middle of May 1670. He was accompanied
by Perrot again, and also by six Recollets, four fathers
and two brothers. After three months at sea he was nearly
shipwrecked once more, this time near Tadoussac, almost
at the end of his journey. On August 18, after an absence