the unfortunate la salle had died with his ardent and long-cherished dream unfulfilled. but after more than thirty years, another man had begun to realize that dream. jean baptiste le moyne, sieur de bienville had sailed with french ships up the beloved river; his colonists were fast peopling the beautiful wilderness, and already the infant city of new orleans lay strong and thriving on the bank of the mississippi.

the commandant of louisiana, though busied with his growing colony, kept yet a watchful eye upon the grasping spaniards, who claimed the country eastward nearly to the mississippi. but france claimed westward as far as the bay of san bernard, by virtue of la salle’s discovery. bienville determined to make good the claim of france. in august, 1721, he fitted out a small vessel, the subtile, told off a detachment of tried soldiers, and placed bernard de la harpe, an experienced captain, in command. the expedition set out at once to recover la salle’s old fort. belleisle, on account of his knowledge of the country and the indian language, was sent along as guide.

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the surprise and the rage of the indians when they saw the hated flag waving again above the fort may be imagined. they threw themselves with such fury against the newcomers that la harpe, seeing his small garrison in danger of massacre, withdrew quietly, and returned in october to new orleans.

fort st. louis was left at last to a solitude never again to be broken. vines grew over the crumbling walls and sprawled across the floors where human feet had passed; lizards basked in crevices of the blockhouse; and wild creatures from the wood took up their abode in the chapel. day by day and year by year decay and change went on, until there came a time when nothing remained to tell of the place where the first settlers of texas lived, suffered, rejoiced, and perished.