CHAPTER 3: The First Soldiers of New France A Time Of Change A
New Prize: Fur By the beginning of the seventeenth century, the
nations of northwestern Europe had accepted the obvious: it was
unrealistic to continue hoping that they, like Spain, would
discover countries with mountains of gold and rivers of
diamonds. Nevertheless, considerable profit could be made from
the exploitation of more conventional natural resources. First
among these was fur. Aware of the new interest in it, the
Iroquois set out resolutely to control the fur trade, thereby
coming into conflict with tribes allied with the French. At the
same time, various conflicts arose among the European nations
disputing territory in North America. It was in this difficult
climate that small colonies began to emerge in New France in the
seventeenth century.