[Americana]. LA SALLE (René Robert Cavelier de); TONTI (Henr - Lot 251

[Americana]. LA SALLE (René Robert Cavelier de); TONTI (Henri de). Dernières découvertes dans l'Amérique Septentrionale de M. De La Salle, mises au jour par M. Le Chevalier Tonti A Paris, chez Jean Guignard, 1697. In-12, [2] f., 333 p., [11] f. (table, bookseller's catalogue), contemporary havana calf, 5-rib spine, garnet-toned title-piece, ornate caissons, gilt roulette at the edges, edges chastened, restorations (small snags at head and tail of spine and on head-cap, small marginal stains on pp.141-208). Copy with ff. Q1 and Q2 cancelled and replaced. Very rare second printing of the first edition of the account of French explorer René-Robert Cavelier de la Salle's (1643-1687) last voyage to America. La Salle, who had taken possession of Louisiana on behalf of France, had obtained permission from Louis XIV to return and establish a colony there. Leaving France in July 1684, the expedition was to meet the Chevalier de Tonti (1649-1704) at the mouth of the Mississippi, the latter having remained in charge of the Illinois colony. But the navigation of the time was imprecise, so La Salle sailed past the mouth of the Mississippi and made landfall at S. Esprit on the Texas coast. After building a fort there, La Salle spent almost two years exploring the surrounding area in vain, in search of the river. He resolved to return to New France for help, but was murdered by one of the expedition's members. Provenance: 2 bookplates monogrammed J.P. and J.M. (Sabin 96172; Bibliotheca Americana 1473).