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Maps, plates, charts, etc.. may be filmed at different reduction retios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right end top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre fiimte A des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque ie document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seui cliche, ii est fiimA d partir de i'angle supArieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant ie nombre d'images n6cesssire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 6 6 h J ) I •ifii-v |-Ki;xcii ^^■'1' i;.V(;usH I'll; t'lS Ki;i.AT|\(; To a.\||:k It \, THE 5 "137. 7/ f3s3> (2. I GOLOIl^L JETOll^ OF LOUl^ XV AND OTHER PIECES RELATING TO THE FRENCH COLONIAL POSSESSIONS IN AMERICA, \s AND TO THEIR CONQUEST BY ENGLAND. HY GEORGE M. PARSONS. KEI'RINTED KKOM THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF NUMKSMATICS. !•' I • • « • • < • • • • • . • . , • ••••••• .*■. ,> .1" • ••••••• ••'. COLUMimS, OHIO. I'KINTEU FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION. 1884. L ^ BIBLIOTHECSyE # J •sM^J^fififeS^ A « • • • • t • •' • • •• • .< • ■ • .> • • • • • • • • • * • T 11 E COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. N the latter part of the reign of Louis XV, a series of pieces relating to the French colonies in America were issued by the Mint of France, — not coins nor medals, — but known as Jetons. They have been referred to in the American Journal of Ahimismatics, but deserve a more extended notice. Their devices and legends, although somewhat boastful, are poetic in conception, and refined in expression ; interesting in them- selves, they are doubly so when considered in connection with the history of the French colonies in America, which will be briefly noticed before any description of them is given. The first French settlement on the northern coast of America was made in 1604, at the Island of St. Croix, on the river now bearing the same name, under the provisions of a patent granted to De Monts for the colonization of New France, which, by its terms, extended from the fortieth to the forty-sixth degree of north latitude. There had been for many years visits to, and explorations of, the continent, as well as landings and attempts at settlement; but the first settlement which continued any length of time was at the island, then named St. Croix, now known as De Monts' Lsland. Subsequently, a mission of the Roman Catholic Church was established at Mt. Desert, in Penobscot Bay, which was broken up by Capt. Argall in 16 13. In 1608, Quebec was founded by Chami)lain, at a places which he had visited on a previous exploration of the St. Lawrence. The next year he discovered the lake far to the south, which has ever since borne his name. From and after 16 15, missionaries of the Roman Church came over from I'Vance on the solicitation of Cham- plain, and to the zeal and self-sacrificing devotion of this body of men and 69805 i' i 4 T//JI COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. their successors, France was in a great measure indebted for the preser/a- tion and extension of its American colonies. The first movement westward was through the region north of Lake Ontario, the hostihty of the Indians of the Five Nations rendering progress by any other route impossible. An early visit of the priests to the Indians on Lake Huron, and the establishment of a mission among them, paved the way for advance in this direction, and thus the French gained access to Niagara and the upper lakes, and, eventually, a starting point for their expedition down the Mississippi River. The force of this expedition consisted of Marquette and Joliet, — the priest and the soldier, — and five other F"renchmen. On the loth of June, 1673, they left the Fox River, which has its oudet in Green Bay, carried their canoes across the narrow portage which separates it from the Wisconsin, and started on their voyage, uncertain whether it would end on the Pacific coast or on i^^e Atlantic. Reaching the Mississippi, they went boldly on their way, making friends of the savages who inhabited the country through which they passed, and continued until they reached a point at which they became satisfied that the river ran neither to the Pacific nor to the Atlantic in the neighborhood of Florida, but to the Gulf of Mexico. From this point they returned, and leaving the river some distance below the mouth of the Wisconsin, proceeded eastward until they reached the Illinois, which they ascended, and were conducted by friendly Indians to Lake Michigan. In 1682, another party, under the leadership of La Salle, descended the Mississippi River by the way of the Illinois, and reached the Gulf of Mexico, whence the party returned to Quebec. Visiting France, La Salle induced the government to fit out a vessel that should proceed directly to the Gulf, and establish a colony in the regions to which he had given the name of Louisiana. He sailed beyond the outlet he sought, and was shipwrecked on the coast of the present State of Texas. There he built a fort from the materials of the wrecked vessel, and called the post St. Louis. The colony failed to maintain itself La Salle was murdered by some of his companions, who themselves perished. In 1698, an expedition on a large scale was sent out by the government, under the command of D'Iberville, who not only reached the great river, but in small boats ascended as far as the mouth of the Red River. He built a fort at Biloxi, on the bay of that name, and there he established his colony and the capital of Louisiana. The settlements in this region never prospered, in spite of a lavish expenditure of money by the government and by the trading companies to whom a monopoly of traffic was given. The emigrants sought for gold and silver, which were not to be found, and failed to reap the rich harvests that might have been gathered under a genial climate from a fertile i i I 77//: COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. 5 soil. The last attempt at colonization on a large scale was made in 171 7, under the auspices of Law. This enterprise failed from lack of funds, when his bankruptcy occurred in 1720. Enough, however, was done to establish the $ '^ • well recognized claim of France to Louisiana, which embraced the valley of ^ - the Mississippi, from the Rio del Norte on the west, to a line on the east which extended from a point midway between the Bay of Biloxi and Pensa- cola, northward to the headwaters of the sources of the Ohio. In the north there was continual activity and continual advance by the French. Positions of importance ha^! been won and lost and won again. The French had a happy faculty of ingratiating themselves with the Indians, and of converting them from enemies into zealous allies. Friendly relations were established with the Five Nations, which, although they were not durable, had enabled the French to traverse Lake Ontario and open another communica- tion with their posts in the west. The advance of the French was a menace to the English colonies on die coast, and resistance on the part of the latter kept the country in a state of warfare that had no intermission. The scheme of establishing a powerful empire in New France — the most magnificent that any government had ever devised — seemed to be in rapid progress towards realization. This scheme was not limited to the possession of the country which lay west of the great range of the mountains. The capture of New York was en.rly considered a necessity and the approaches of the French were dangerously near to the coveted point. Two expeditions against Quebec, of land and naval forces combined, met with signal failure. The first was set on foot in 1690. Its main object was the capture of Quebec, to be undertaken by a force sent by sea from Boston; another, partly composed of troops from New York and Connecticut, set out by land to make a diversion by an attack on Montreal. Dissensions sprung up between the commanders of the New York and Connecticut troops, and the party never even came within sight of the St. Lawrence. The force from Boston reached Quebec and demanded its surrender, but the French commander was prepared for resistance, and refused to comply with the summons. As no news had been received of the force that was to come from the south, and as any attack without its co-operation would be in vain, the fleet sailed away with its two thousand men, without having struck a blow. A medal was issued in France in celebration of this happy deliverance. On the obverse there is shown the bust of Louis XIV, with his customary grand air, and surrounded by the inscription LUDovrcus magnus rex christi- ANissiMi's. On the reverse (Fig. 13), France is represented as seated in a proud attitude on the summit of a small hill, her arm resting on her shield, which is ])lazoncd with the three lilies of her device ; under her feet is the shield of her adversary, and behind her hangs drooping a flag which shows ^ I 'f :f V\ THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. the arms of England. At the foot of the hill reclines a river god who looks up in admiration. On the side of the hill is the beaver, which figures so con- spicuously in several of the jetons hereafter described. The inscriptions FRANCiA IN NOVA ORHE vicTRix, " France victorious in the new world," and KEDECA LiHERATA, " Quebcc delivered," show what importance was attached to the event. When we consider, howeve.-, the circumstances of the case, it would seem that a more appropriate inscription would be, Britannia in nova ORBE iNFELix, " Britannia unsuccessful in the New World." Nova Scotia was taken in 1710, and remained in the possession of the English. The loss of this territory was the only loss sustained by the French. Louisbourg, a strongly fortified town on Cape Breton, had been captured in 1745, but it was afterwards restored to the French and remained in their hands until the decisive war broke out. The movement was always forward. On the beginning of the last half of the eighteenth century the French had erected and maintained fort,, at Crown Point the southern end of Lake Champlain, at Frontenac on the northern shore of Lake Ontario at the point of its discharge into the St. Lawrence, on the Niagara at Lewiston, at Detroit, at Presque Isle the peninsula which lies outside the present City of Erie ; and had built Fort Duquesne, at the junction of the Alleghany and Monongahela rivers, the present site of Pittsburgh. At a later date Ticonde- roga fort was built twelve miles south of Crown Point, on the small stream by which the waters of Lake George are conducted to Lake Champlain. There were settlements on the Wabash at Vincennes in the present State of Indiana, and at numerous points on the Mississippi. Thus were safely established several routes of communication, not only with the trading posts on the upper lakes, but with the regions on the gulf. The Einglish, on the other hand, had in 1722, converted a trading station at Oswego into a well fortified military post, which was subsequently supported by Fort George, four miles to the south, on Oswego River; when the condition of affairs approached the critical point, they built Fort William Henry at the southern end of Lake George, and Fort Edward not far distant, on the northern bank of the Hudson. There was not, at any time, peace between the English and the French on the northern frontiers, but there were no active operations against the latter at other points, until the attempt to break their line of communication in the west. This was made by an effort to extend the Virginia settlements to the Ohio, and to establish trading posts under the conduct of a company known as " The London Ohio Company," which had received a large grant of territory. The French resisted this encroachment, drove off the traders, and by working upon the jealousy of their Indian allies, rendered a return impossible. THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. 7 ^n 1753 Washington was sent by the Governor of Virginia on a tour of obser- vation to the Ohio. He bore a letter to the commander of a fort which had been erected on a small stream flowing into the Ohio, requiring that officer to vacate the territory belonging to the British government. This request was not heeded. In 1754 he was again sent out with a small force for the purpose of erecting forts at several points, which, from observations made the previous year, were deemed important to be occupied. He found a superior force in possession of Fort Duquesne, and after a severe engagement was forced to retire. In the following year another attempt to capture the fort was made by a large detachment of regulars from the standing army of Eng- land, aided by Provincial troops, under the command of General Braddock; but he was defeated, and his failure is one of the memorable events of colonial history. Early in 1756 England found herself obliged to take up in earnest the cause of her colonies, and declared war against France. The plan of a campaign which was immediately adopted, was frustrated by the energy of Montcalm, then in command in Canada. He assembled a large force of regulars and Indian allies, and made a vigorous attack by regular siege on the two forts at Oswego, which the English had erected several years before. They were captured in August, and although they were not occupied by the French, but were razed to the ground, their loss so disconcerted the British that all offensive operations for the year were abandoned. The cap- ture of Oswego was commemorated on a medal, now rare, on which was the inscription, surrounding the bust of the king, ludovicus xv orbis imperator. Below was the date of mintage, 1758. For reverse of this medal see Fig. 12. The campaign of 1 757 was also disastrous to the English. One expedition against Louisbourg returned without having made an attack ; while the French, by the capture of Fort William Henry, and by an excursion against some rich settlements on the Mohawk, excited alarm for the safety of Albany. In 1758 Louisbourg and Fort Duquesne were taken by the British, but they were repulsed in an attack upon Ticonderoga, and suffered a loss only equaled by that sustained in the defeat of Braddock. In 1759 F'ort Niagara was captured, Quebec was assaulted and taken, and in 1760 the conquest of Canada was completed by the surrender of Montreal. From that time nothing of the Empire of New France remaint^l except the portion of Louisiana which lay west of the centre of the Mississippi River, from its source to the River Iberville, and thence eastward to the Gulf, leaving to the French a small tract on the left bank of the river. This was the line established by the treaty of 1762. The history of the long contest, which extended through a century and a half, is full of interest, but its principal points which have been noticed will be sufficient to enable us to understand and appreciate the fitness and the /a 8 THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. force of the Jetons of Louis XV. Only eight of those relating to the French colonies in America have come under the notice of the writer. The first was issued in 1 751, and one was issued each succeeding year thereafter. The obverse of one is shown in the plate of illustrations (Fig. i); the obverse of the others has the same general character, the draped bust of the king to the right, with his title of the Most Christian King, in Latin, abbreviated. It will be seen on examination of the reverses that the devices and legends are of two classes. One relates to commerce and the pursuits of peaceful life. The jetons of 1752 (Fig. 3), 1754 (Fig. 5), and 1755 (Fig. 6), are of this class. That of 1752 bears the image of Mercury gracefully moving through the air, while above him is the legend, utrique facit commercia mundo. " He establishes commerce with both worlds." The fishermen of Breton, in France, were the first and for a long time the most numerous visitors to the fishing banks of Newfoundland. In addition to this source of trade the French opened a traffic in furs with the Indians of the Northwest as soon as they were established on the St. Lawrence. While communications were confined to a long and tedious land transit, this traffic was enjoyed only to a limited extent. After the unmolested navigation of the river and of Lake Ontario had been secured by treaties with the Indians of the Five Nations, and by the establishment of military stations, the distant posts of Mackinaw and Green Bay were brought near to Montreal and Quebec, and as the trade in furs was substantially a monopoly in the hands of the French, it became very profitable to them. This feature of the relation between France and her colonies in America naturally suggested the jeton of 1752. The jetons of 1754 and 1755 evidently refer to one subject. That of 1754 represents a field of corn by the side of a river, on the farther bank of which three beavers are at work, and the legend is, non [Nkeriora metafxis. " Not inferior to metals." The device of the jeton of 1755 is a galley, and from its masthead a beaver pelt is suspended. The legend is, non vilius aureo. " Not less valuable than the golden." The opinion had for a long time prevailed in France that gold and silver, and even pearls, were to be found in America, and the lime and the energies of the early emigrants to Louisiana had been wasted in a vain search for those treasures. That delusion had been dispelled, and the nation was soon con- vinced that wealth was to be gathered only by labor emplo>eil in securing the natural products of the country. This is beautifully expressed in the jeton of 1754, on which the beaver and the Indian corn are declared to be not inferior to metals. The idea is repeated in the jeton of the following year, which declares in a forcible manner that the Argonauts who sailed from France would find no Colchis in America whence to bring the golden (leece. .fc.f THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. l^ f .if but there was to be found, as a reward of their enterprise, the pelt of the beaver, which hanom the mouth of the St. Lawrence to the regions of the Gulf of Mexico, indi- cated, — the one by the Indian with his bow and arrows, the other by the alligator. — the lily, the emblem of France, was represented either by fortified cities and military posts, or was carved on the trunks of the trees of the forest, or on monuments erected in conspicuous places as an assertion of sovereignty. The value of this assertion of a claim to the possession of territory is shown by the fact that after the expedition under D'Iberville had sailed in 1698, William III of England sent a vessel to the Mississippi with the purpose of establishing a settlement. The vessel ascended the river some distance, where it was met by Bienville, the brother of D'Iberville in his barge. On his representation that the territory belonged to F>ance, the captain of the vessel retired. The point at which this event occurred is still known as English Turn. On the jeton of 1753 (Fig. 4), are two globes, one of which displays the outlines of the western, the other those of the eastern hemisphere. Above, the sun diffuses its rays in splendor over both globes, and the legend is, satis UN'us UTRigui:, "One is sufficient for each:" The sun of France suffices for both worlds. This declaration would by Itself reveal the far-reaching ambition of FVance, which would soon, if not interrupted in its career, extend its possessions even to the Atlantic coast. The boastful assumption of this avowal is only equaled by that of Spain in its claim to sovereignty over the South American continent, which was asserted on a crown of Charles II. On this coin there were represented two globes, between which rose a crowned sceptre, and above was the inscription, UNUS non sufficit, " One is not enough." The device of the jeton of 1756* (Fig. 7) shows two beehives with a swarm of bees passing from one to the other, with the legend above, sedem NON ANiMUM MUTANT, "They change the seat, not the mind." This legend is a beautiful adaptation of a sentiment expressed by Horace in his epistle to * The writer unfortunately does not ])osscss the jeton which is in all probability the only one in this country. of 1756. He takes pleasure in acknowledging the kind- The writer is also indebted to Mr. Applcton for the use ness of Mr. William S. Appleton, who loaned, tor the of the Dnti h medal of lyfo, so that both faces might be purpose of illustration, the specimen in his collection, represented on the plate of illustrations. 10 THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. Builatius. (Epist. I. xi : 27.) The latter, oppressed by care, sought relief by traveling from rity to city. Horace told him that his cure was not to be effected in this manner, since " Coelum non animum mutant qui trans mare cuvrurt," — I' They change the climate, not the character, who cross the seas." There is more in the device and legend of this jeton than appears at the first glance. The explanation of the uninterrupted -'dvance of the French, even to the third year of die war, is to be found in the harmony of feeling and unity of action which marked all their operations. The reverse was the case with the colonies ot England before the war; while, for several years after the war began, jealousies and lack of harmony betv een the army of En^Tland and the provincial forces impeded military operations. The English settlements were made by separate colonies composed of emigrants of different characte-s and with different purposes, and it was difficult to secure a hearty co-operation in the execution of any plan for resisting the encroachments of their enemy. The harmony prevailing among the French arose from unwavering loyalty to the" government of France. Neither soldier, priest, nor civilian, ever swerved from allegiance to the crown ; Frenchmen on leaving home, French- men they remained to the end. There was no thought of independent action, no purpose of revolt. Whenever an expedition was made, even to the regions most remote from the centre of the colonial government on the St. Lawrence, it was the sovereignty of France that was asserted, and her glory that was proclaimed. The English cdonists always dreamed of independence, the French never. That the French gove'-ament understood and reciprocated this feeling, is fully shown by the issue of the jetons under r:c .osideration. It had already,' in 1670, exhibited its concern for the American colonists by issuing, expressly for circulation among them, silver coins of two denominations, which differed from the ordinary coinage in this, that the arms of France on the reverse were surrounded by the inscription, uloriam regni na dicent, " They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom." (Figs. 10, 1 1 .) The significant jeton of 1 756 declares that three quarters of a century later no change of feelintr had followed a change of place. It is taken for granted that the inscription on the coins of 1670 has reference to the political character of the relations existing between the French colonies in America and the parent country. It is from the CXLV Psalm of David, the loth and i ith verses of which are as follows :— 10. "All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord! and Thy saints shall bless Thee. I : I ' THE COLONIAL JETCNS OF LOUIS XV. II II. "They shall ^ipeak of the glory ox^ Thy kingdom, and talk of Thy power." It was suggested by the late Professor Anthon, to whose research we are indebted for an interesting history of this beautiful coin, and for our knowledge of the source of its legend, that it was the ecclesiastical character of French colonization which led to the quotation ; the suggestion doubtless arose from the nature of the context. It is, however, always permitted to employ a sentence that is disassociated from its context by quotation, in a manner entirely different from its original use. This occurs in the applica- tion of the inscription on the jeton of 1756, where it is obvious that the purpose of the jeton was not the same which Horace sought to accom- plish by his advice to his friend. It is important to notice in this connec- tion the fact that there is not on any known jeton or medal the slightest allusion to the signal services rendered by the members of the priesthood in the establishment, extension, and protection of the French colonies. It seems, therefore, reasonable to conclude, that the inscription on these coins was employed to declare that from the colonists, without distinction of classes, was to proceed the song of praise. The English government never issued any coins of importance in the interest of its American colonies, and v/hen, in 1652, Massachusetts put into circulation its famous pine tree coins, they bore no reference whatever to England. The jeton of 1757 (Fig. 8) represents Neptune and a warrior embarked upon a shell, which floats gracefully over the water. The legend is, parat ULTIMA TERRA TRiUMi'MOS, " The remotest region prepares triumphs." The design and execution of the device is bold and spirited. The warrior with shield (which is W? ined with the lilies of France) and spear advanced, presses on as if eager for the conflict, while Neptune with his trident makes smooth the passage. The remaining jeton (Fig. 9) shows the broad sea, and from the further shore, on which strnds a city, a flight of eagles has taken wing and is approaching a rocky coast seen in the foieground to the left. The legend is, EADEM ruANS AEi^uoRA VIRTUS, "The same bravery beyond the seas." The eagles advance in graceful and easy movement, and the piece, although not possessing the strong features of the others, is not less beautiful than they. These two jetons are the first which refer directly to military operations. Hoth are of the same character, and tell of victories g"Jned and of courage unabated. The)' undoubtedly refer to the success which had hitherto fallen to die arms of the French, and to the re-inforcements which were sent forward in preparation for further contests. No more expressive symbol of 12 THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. military re-inforcements could be adopted than that of the last jeton, where the eagles are seen still rising from the distant shore from which the advance had been made. Enough has been said of the events of 1756 and 1757 to render unnecessary any more particular explanation of these two pieces. The last jeton may seem out of place in view of the fact that in 1758 the Island of Cape Breton and Louisbourg fell into the hands of the British forces ; but the surrender did not take place until the last week in August, in all probability long after the jeton was issued. It is not probable that the French government ever issued more than these eight jetons relating to its American colonies. The one issued in 1751, in its representation of the sturdy growth of the lily on a foreign soil, seems properly to introduce the series, which as properly is ended in 1758. These jetons are valuable in the evidence which ,they afford that the French government was in fact in earnest in its efforts to establish a New France on the North American continent. After the war was ended a number of medals were struck by the English in commemoration of their victories, several of which are especially interesting in connection with the jetons of 1751, 1753, and 1757. One issued on account of the capture of Louisbourg, the dies of which were cut by Pingo, shows on the obverse the bombardment of that city, and on the reverse (Fig. 14), a point of rock projecting boldly over the sea. On the top lies a naked female, representing France, crushed by a big globe, inscribed Canada and America ; on one side of it stands a sailor waving his cap ; on the other an English grenadier, and behind him the British flag ; above. Fame flies through the air blowing her trumpet and carrying a wreath of laurel. Between the soldier and the sailor is the inscription, pakiter in liELi.A, " Equally (i)rave or successful) in war." The female seems to be making efforts to push off the weight which fastens her to the rock. Her head is raised, her left arm supports her position, her right hand rests upon the edge of the precipice, wJiile from its relaxed grasp a lily falls below. It is difficult to understantl why a medal so carefully designed and executed should represent the defeat of l-'rance by the figure of a female lying under an immense globe. A possible explanation is found by reference to the jeton of 1753: the globe on tlie medal which shows on its surface the out- lines of the western hemisphere is one of the two for which the one sun of France sufficed. It must be confessed that the satire of this portion of the medal, while severe, is awkward antl coarse. Another medal (Fig. 15) has for its oI)verse the laurel-crowned bust of George II, and on its reverse, for the central design, the figure of Britannia seated in a chariot drawn by a lion ; on one side walks Liberty, on the other Justice, above is the inscription, idEDis invictum, "An invincible league" — THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. 13 rlish and the path of the triumphal procession is strewn with lilies. In every respect this is a beautiful medal. The movement of the procession towards the spectator is shown with great skill, while the satire of the design, so effective in its severity, is conveyed with a delicacy that is beyond criticism. A third medal celebrates the victory of the English over the French in a naval fight off Belle Isle. The obverse displays Britannia with shield and trident, riding the waves triumphantly seated on a sea-horse, while Victory with a laurel wreath is flying above her ; the legend is Britain trivmphed HAWKE COMMANDED. The reversc, which is shown in the plate (Fig. 16), bears an emblematic group of figures, and in the exergue the words France relin- quishes THE sea. This marine disaster, it will be seen, is represented by a foot soldier stepping to the land from the ocean, typified by a sea monster, who, as the tempest vainly tries to resist the advancing galley of England. The propriety of representing the naval force of France by a foot soldier may well be doubted unless it was intended as a satirical reply to the jeton of 1757, issued only two years before the naval engagement. On the medal the soldier of the jeton is pushing forward, not in eagerness for the strife as when crossing the sea with propitious Neptune for his companion, but in ignominious flight. His sword is used to secure his footing on the land, while his shield is held behind him to protect his person from the avenging thunderbolts of Britannia, who is close in pursuit, regardless of Night, who flies to restrain her. The war, whose victories are celebrated in these medals, was not confined to England and France. All the principal powers of Europe were in the field, and the contest was carried on in every quarter of the globe. Wherever a weak point was found by either side, a heavy blow was struck. The medal relating to Oswego, which has been spoken of, commemorated also the cap- ture by the P>ench of Wesel, an important post in the Prussian provinces on the Rhine, of Port Mahon. the capital of Minorca, and of St. David's, a strong position ])elonging to the English on the coast of Coromandel, on the western side of the Bay ol Benr^al. The capture of these positions and of Oswego, in various parts of the world, was considered sufficient authority for bestowing on the King of I'Vance the title of " ordis imperator." It will be observed that there is also on the last of the Flnglish medals, which are shown on the plate of illustrations (Fig. 15), a list of places, as well in luiropc and Africa as in America, where the arms of P'rance had fallen before those of luigland. — Goree, Senegal, St. Malo, Cherbourg, Louisbourg, I''rontenac, and Hutjucsne, and in each instance there is added the name of the successful commander. It can hardly be doubted that this enumeration of victories was made in re|)ly to the boastfiil character of the Oswego medal, — H THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. a reply which is the more forcible from the fact that th' list of French victories is eclipsed by the larger list of those achieved by the English. There is another medal, the sting of which is found in an inverted lily, in the centre of a shield on either side of which are the lion and the unicorn of England, and above is the inscription, perfidia eversa, " Perfidy overthrown." This medal also mentions other important captures from the French and the Spaniards. Still another medal is devoted especially to the celebration of the conquest of Guadeloupe, one of the most valued possessions of the French in the West Indies. Although the cause of the war was removed by the conquest of Canada in 1760, hostilities on the continent continued until 1762, on account of the difficulty of settling the conflicting interests of the various allies of the two principal parties to the conflict. A treaty was negotiated in 1 761, but, not being satisfactory, was not ratified. There was, however, a general desire for peace. The English, although successful, felt the heavy drain upon their treasury for expenses and for subsidies to their allies. France, and Spain who had joined France from Bourbon sympathy — had both suffered in the loss of colonies and commerce. The Dutch had taken a neutral position on the breaking out of the war, and their territory enjoyed immunity from invasion ; but it was charged by England that they had transjjorted from Sweden to their own ports, arms and munition of war, which soon found their way to the French, and had given the protection of their flag to commerce between France and her colonies in the West Indies. The English conse- quently seized and condemned the merchant vessels of the Dutch whenever they were met on any sea. Under this condition of affairs there was but little difficulty in negotiating a second treaty, which was concluded and signed on the 23d of November, 1762. This brief summary will be sufficient for the explanation of a beautiful medal struck by the Dutch in 1762, which is shown on the plate of illustra- tions, and a notice of it will close this article. This may be considered exclusively a peace medal. On the obverse (Fig. 17) is seen a column, against the base of which the shields of England and Prance — no longer clashing — quietly rest. On the shaft are fastened the arms of Austria, while an Indian — among European medalists the invariable type of America — holds up a cherub in the act of crowning the column with a small image bearing a branch of the olive tree. The legend, evropae almam NE tardet pacem, " Let nothing delay the sweet peace of Europe," being an invocation for peace, would indicate either that the medal was struck before the execution of the treaty, or that a fear existed that peace might not follow, J- I e ■w 8 I s tl a s b a d THE COLONIAL JETONS OF LOUIS XV. 15 In either case, it well expresses the feeling which prevailed with all parties engaged in or afifected by the war. The reverse (Fig. 18) shows Mercury, who bears in one hand the caduceus and an olive branch, and with the other gently strokes the mane of the lion of the Batavi, — the emblem of the Dutch, — which rests in placable mood among boxes and barrels, and other signs of prosperous trade, and upholds a staff, on which is a Liberty cap, and the clustered arrows of the United Provinces, while in the background ships are filling their sails for distant ports. The legend, dvret vsqve ad aeternvm, " May it endure forever," is a prayer well in harmony with the peaceful scene: — a vain prayer, since but a short time elapsed before another war broke out, the result of which was the establishment of the independence of the American colonies, — a result which possibly excited among the English a regret that there had not been at an early date an amicable adjustment of division lines between the French and English colonies in America. ••. .... . ^ . . • - «••