Cadillac  was  a  Gascon  by  birth  and  descent.  The  fact  that  his  father
was  possessed  of  considerable  estate  in  the  province  is  evidence  that
they  were  not  parvenues.  The  people  of  Gascony,  like  those  of  Brit-
anny,  possess  marked  characteristics  which  distinguish  them  from
other  Frenchmen.  Gascons  are  not  pure  French.  In  the  northern
part  of  the  Iberian  Peninsula,  which  occupies  both  slopes  of  the  Pyre-

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nees,  live  the  remains  of  a  very  ancient  people  who  were  called  Vas-
cones  in  ancient  times.  They  were  mountaineers,  herdsmen  and
shepherds,  and  although  they  were  assailed  by  Cathaginians,  Romans,
Saracens,  Goths,  French  and  Spaniards,  they  have  preserved  their  race
identity  to  the  present  day,  together  with  the  most  remarkable  lan-
guage in  Europe,  and  customs  which  differ  from  those  of  all  neighbor-
ing people.  They  are  commonly  known  as  Basques,  but  those  who
lived  on  the  northern  slope  of  the  Pyrenees  absorbed  a  portion  of  the
great  Gothic  invasion,  and  the  Vascones  became  known  as  Gascons
within  the  border  of  France.  They  are  to  France  what  the  Highland-
ers are  to  Scotland — bold,  impetuous  and  untamable  by  oppression,  but
good  citizens  and  splendid  soldiers  when  allowed  their  own  ways.
Their  physical  characteristics  are  a  medium  build,  somewhat  spare  but
extremely  robust  and  possessed  of  great  activity.  They  are  the  dark-
est skinned  people  of  France,  and  have  large  gray  eyes  and  black  hair.
