La Salle Peru Township High School - Ell Ess Pe Yearbook (La Salle, IL)

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I l glllllllllllllllllllllillllllllllllllllj E E SS PE -OQIIIlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllb 5 LA SALLE-CRUSADER OF, RANGE E SSOCIATED with the history of the discovery and exploration of E the Illinois valley, are the names of several rench explorers, in E whom were welded a hardy adventurous spirit, nd a deep religious E purpose. Of these, both in historical importa ce and in greatness E of character, one figure is pre-eminent-that f Robert Cavalier, 'O' the Sieur de LaSalle. It is but fitting that th fifteenth edition of U the Ell Ess Pe should be devoted to an expli ation of his deeds, especially as they relate to that part of the val y in which we live. In the expression of this theme, certain of th division pages are used as illustrations in the life of the explo r. The Freshman class page represents LaSalle as a child in ouen, reading the e. The Sophomore books of travel which inspired his first yoya page portrays the discovery of Started Ro k. On the Junior reater things. The page, LaSalle is building a fort, as Juniors are building for Senior page represents LaSalle leaving the Rock, after the co The Junior College page presents LaSalle at Fort Frontenac, tion for his second voyage. In the Organization section, LaS his experiences before the camp fire. The Jokes division pa pletion of his work. tudying in prepara- lle is shown relating e suggests the wily temperament of his Indian guides. Much has been written of the character of the explor r,-his indomitable perseverance, his unswerving adherence to purpose. The stoiiy of his explorations in the great West reflects these qualities. It was in the spmmer of 1669 that LaSalle launched his canoe on the Illinois River. He was ut twenty-six years of age, physically strong, and mentally iron-willed. He had all the dauntlessness of youth. From his native Rouen he had journeyed westward,--over the ocean, down the St. Lawrence, and through the lakes. It was on thisl first journey toward the great river that he beheld the picturesque rock oppositexthe Indian village of La Vantum. overtook him. True, he obtained the financial aid of his and energetic companionship of Tonty, the soldier of the Iro mg, and the faithful Hand, yet his plans seemed too far-reaching to succeed. At Niagara, Ontario, LaSalle built the ill fated Griffin, the first ship to navigate the upper lakes. At Michilhmackinac it was loaded with furs, which were to be sold to satisfy his creditors, and was dis atched to Canada At the mouth of the St Lawrenc River, LaSalle and p . . Tonty eagerly awaited its return. The days passed. Finall, , hope for the Griffin being abandoned, the party pushed westward down the Illinois. Some distance below the Rock, they built Fort Creve-Coeur. LaSalle set out for Canada, leaving In the three years that followed this voyage, misfortune and discouragement - 1 I1 Tonty in charge of a garrison. Parkman tells us that it was ot until the journey, when he camped below the Rock, that he realized its possibilities as 'a fortress. In 1681, he returned to the valley, but he found Tonty gone and Fort Creve- Coeur in ruins. Nevertheless, he built Fort St. Louis pon the impregnable summit of the Rock. It was LaSalle's most important achi vement. The Indian wigwams of La Vantum clustered about it, beneath the p. tection of its block 0 - house and its cannon. It was the western outpost of Fr nch civilization, in it LaSalle saw the nucleus of a wilderness empire, to extend from the St. Lawrence to the Gulf. Arriving at the Gulf in the autumn of 1686, the explorer spent many days waiting for the coming of ships from France Finally the stock of provisions became so low that the disheartened explorer was forced to turn northward. The where in the wilderness LaSalle was murdered had he live , his story might have been changed In his masculine figure, cast in iron, America sees the heroic pioneer who guided her to the possession of her richest he Stage. A IERNE K. Cooks. Fizz E privations became so severe that his men began to lose faithdin the venture. 'Some- E 9 : H . . . . E L 7 7 ElilllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllD DIIIIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll'

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F 5 P ELL ESS PE QE? E

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1 .- .- nn - qu .- - -n .- 1 1 1 1 -. -. - - To Katharine Reinhard In recognition Qf her constant dfz'otio1-z and of her unceasing ejorts in fostfring the activities of our srlzool, we, the Class of ,2j' respecdully dzdifate this volume of the El! Ess Pe ESS PE I Il E E .. .- '-'-1 .. 2 -E E E ... 2 i 1 E Sm . E S X ' . gg ,9 '1Illllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llllllllllllllllIIIIIIIIHIIIIlllllllllri