Chapter 7

Scene among the Thousand Isles.

Rapids, on the approach to the Village of Cedars.

“Soon after I had finished my letter on board the steam-boat, we stopped near the mouth of the Genessee river, to give us the opportunity of seeing Rochester and its vicinity. Stages had been previously sent for, in which we proceeded to Rochester, nine miles distant. On our way we stopped to see the lower falls of the Genessee river, and Carthage bridge. This wooden bridge is now in ruins. When perfect, it must have been extremely beautiful. It was a single arch, whose span was about 350 feet wide, and its extreme height above the surface of the river 196 feet. It gave way from the slightness of its materials, immediately after two children had crossed it. A short distance above it are the falls of the Genessee, which appeared to me to bear a strong resemblance to those of the Clyde. At Rochester we found a handsome mill, and every symptom of a thriving town. Instead of ‘cash store’ being painted over the shops, as in most towns of the United States, to tell the customers that the shopkeepers sell only for cash, while they may almost be induced to sell even a thimble on credit; ‘here cashgivenfor wheat,’ ‘cashgivenfor, &c. &c.’ was the usual motto. We learnt also, that the town was blessed by the absence of a bank, while in the smallest American town I had been accustomed to find banks the first objects which presented themselves—the Farmer’s Bank, the Merchant’s Bank, the Planter’s Bank, the Mechanic’s Bank, the Franklin Bank, the Patriotic Bank, &c. &c. with their various combinations, had met my eye more or less in every village. We embarked again about two o’clock, and in the morning by day-light found ourselves at Sacket’s Harbour, of which we heard so much during the war. It is a noble natural harbour, and the place where the American ships employed on the lakes were built so rapidly. Many of them are now rotting under wooden covers. There is one half finished,saidto be longer than our largest ship of the line, covered with a wooden shade, which itself, our conductor told us, cost 7,000l.This immense vessel, so far inland, on the banks of a lake, was a singular sight, and excited some incongruous ideas.Prescott, from Ogdensburg Harbour.“We sailed again soon after breakfast, and in the morning (9th) found ourselves at Ogdensburgh, about 260 miles from Niagara, which we had left on the 6th. The preceding afternoon we had entered the St. Lawrence, and I had been much delighted with our sail through that expanse of it which is called the Lake of the Thousand Islands. In reality, there are more than 2,000, of every size and form, and a lovely afternoon exhibited them in all their beauty. As we glided past them, on the smooth surface of the St. Lawrence, I thought I had never beheld a scene which so nearly realized my ideas of enchantment. The banks of the river as we proceeded were rather less wild and interesting than I had expected.“At Ogdensburgh, which is said to belong principally to Mr. Parish, who is endeavouring to settle a tract of land in the vicinity, we breakfasted at a large stone tavern, which he has built, and then prepared in high spirits to descend the Rapids. For this purpose we hired a long boat, which would accommodate the whole party, and which, with 25 people on board and their baggage, and 25 barrels of flour for ballast, was said to draw only eight inches of water. We set sail about ten o’clock, and in four hours and a few minutes had been carried 48 miles down the stream, in the course of which we had passed the first three rapids, one of which was half a mile, another two, and another about nine miles long. We always discerned them at a great distance, the dashing of the white foam resembling the tossing of the ocean; and as we approached them our velocity gradually increased, till we were carried by the stream at the rate of 14 or 15 miles an hour. When we got into the middle of the surges, our velocity, though still great, was checked by the eddies and by waves which frequently struck the bottom of the boat with great force; and from the appearance of the troubled waters, it seemed difficult for a boat to live. The confidence of the boatmen, however, checked our apprehensions, and our ladies behaved extremely well. The most alarming appearance was that of pointed rocks, which, from the transparency of the water, seemed to rise almost to the surface, and to threaten inevitable destruction. As I stood on the bow, I saw combinations of rocks, towards which we were hurried with impetuosity, and which it seemed impossible our boat could pass without striking. In some of the Rapids there were channels, called lost channels, from the accidents which had happened in them, and into which our boatmen had to guard against our being carried. The river varies from three-fourths of a mile to two miles in width; and although there are no mountains near, (the green mountains of Vermont were often in sight at a distance,) the white pine and cedar gave a picturesque appearance to its banks, and a resemblance to the river views in Norway or Sweden. One of the most singular sensations we experienced, was that of sailing many miles perceptiblydown hill. Soon after passing the third rapid, the St. Lawrence expanded into a wide lake—the Lake of St. Francis. There we lost our wind and stream, and were obliged to have recourse to our oars. The evening was now closing in, and a violent thunder-storm brought on a premature darkness; but the ladies enlivened us by singing the Canadian Boat-Song, ‘Row, brothers, row, &c.’ which transported me to ——, where I have so often heard it.

Prescott, from Ogdensburg Harbour.

“We sailed again soon after breakfast, and in the morning (9th) found ourselves at Ogdensburgh, about 260 miles from Niagara, which we had left on the 6th. The preceding afternoon we had entered the St. Lawrence, and I had been much delighted with our sail through that expanse of it which is called the Lake of the Thousand Islands. In reality, there are more than 2,000, of every size and form, and a lovely afternoon exhibited them in all their beauty. As we glided past them, on the smooth surface of the St. Lawrence, I thought I had never beheld a scene which so nearly realized my ideas of enchantment. The banks of the river as we proceeded were rather less wild and interesting than I had expected.

“At Ogdensburgh, which is said to belong principally to Mr. Parish, who is endeavouring to settle a tract of land in the vicinity, we breakfasted at a large stone tavern, which he has built, and then prepared in high spirits to descend the Rapids. For this purpose we hired a long boat, which would accommodate the whole party, and which, with 25 people on board and their baggage, and 25 barrels of flour for ballast, was said to draw only eight inches of water. We set sail about ten o’clock, and in four hours and a few minutes had been carried 48 miles down the stream, in the course of which we had passed the first three rapids, one of which was half a mile, another two, and another about nine miles long. We always discerned them at a great distance, the dashing of the white foam resembling the tossing of the ocean; and as we approached them our velocity gradually increased, till we were carried by the stream at the rate of 14 or 15 miles an hour. When we got into the middle of the surges, our velocity, though still great, was checked by the eddies and by waves which frequently struck the bottom of the boat with great force; and from the appearance of the troubled waters, it seemed difficult for a boat to live. The confidence of the boatmen, however, checked our apprehensions, and our ladies behaved extremely well. The most alarming appearance was that of pointed rocks, which, from the transparency of the water, seemed to rise almost to the surface, and to threaten inevitable destruction. As I stood on the bow, I saw combinations of rocks, towards which we were hurried with impetuosity, and which it seemed impossible our boat could pass without striking. In some of the Rapids there were channels, called lost channels, from the accidents which had happened in them, and into which our boatmen had to guard against our being carried. The river varies from three-fourths of a mile to two miles in width; and although there are no mountains near, (the green mountains of Vermont were often in sight at a distance,) the white pine and cedar gave a picturesque appearance to its banks, and a resemblance to the river views in Norway or Sweden. One of the most singular sensations we experienced, was that of sailing many miles perceptiblydown hill. Soon after passing the third rapid, the St. Lawrence expanded into a wide lake—the Lake of St. Francis. There we lost our wind and stream, and were obliged to have recourse to our oars. The evening was now closing in, and a violent thunder-storm brought on a premature darkness; but the ladies enlivened us by singing the Canadian Boat-Song, ‘Row, brothers, row, &c.’ which transported me to ——, where I have so often heard it.

Village of Cedars, River St. Lawrence.

Nelson’s Pillar,Montreal.

“About ten o’clock, we made towards a light which we saw on the shore, and landed a committee of inquiry, who reported so unfavourably of the miserable cabin from which it issued, that we determined to proceed, tired as the ladies were. Our scouts informed us, that they had found in the cabin four or five Canadians, dancing to a sleeping fiddler, whose music ceased as soon as they awoke him. A mile or two further, we found a better house, where we called the family up, and, with the help of our well-bred and efficient ladies, some gunpowder tea they had with them, some milk that was obtained from a cow that was awakened for the purpose, and the services of my servant, we sat down, a party of twenty, to a tolerably comfortable meal. When the ladies were about to retire, they found there was no door to their chamber, but they supplied the deficiency with a sheet. The gentlemen lay on blankets, in a sort of barrack room; but I found the fleas so annoying, that I got up and sat at the door of the house. I should have enjoyed the clear night after the storm, and the placid lake, if I had been less tired and sleepy; but wearied as I was, I was very glad to see the day break. Our gunpowder tea made its appearance again at five o’clock; after which we embarked, passing the remaining rapids, (the Cedars, the Split Rock, and the Cascades, as they are called,) and the mouth of the Ottawa River; and, being becalmed in the fine lake, St. Louis, we arrived at night at La Chine, about 150 miles from Ogdensburgh, which we had left the preceding morning. As we approached La Chine, the houses and villages on the banks of the river and lake assumed a much more comfortable appearance; but of the Canadians in my next letter.“Some of our party staid all night at La Chine, but several of my friends and myself proceeded to Montreal in a wretched vehicle, for which I was obliged to apologize to my American companions, by reminding them that it was only a colonial, and that there were parts of our colonial system which none of us attempted to defend. We met some miserablecalèches, of which I was ashamed even as colonials; and I was compelled to repress the rising smiles of the party, by suggesting to their recollection, that, after all, we were still in America and not in England. After riding nine miles, almost in the dark, we entered the faubourg of Montreal, and jolted along a narrow street a mile long, which my companions, accustomed to the spacious streets in America, supposed to be an alley, though it is the principal street. At the end of it we stopped at the Mansion-house, a very fine inn; and here I was not ashamed to welcome my companions to the dominions of his Britannic Majesty.“The Mansion-house is situated on the banks of the St. Lawrence, which its handsome apartments overlook, and which is here almost two and a half miles broad. The windows of our room open upon a fine terrace, from which there is a charming and extensive view of the distant country. In the evening this is a very favourite promenade with the inmates of the house.“I am delighted to sit down once more under the British flag, which is waving over us, for Lord Dalhousie, the governor, is staying in the house; and I am gratified by the sight of our own red coats, who have mounted guard.”

“Some of our party staid all night at La Chine, but several of my friends and myself proceeded to Montreal in a wretched vehicle, for which I was obliged to apologize to my American companions, by reminding them that it was only a colonial, and that there were parts of our colonial system which none of us attempted to defend. We met some miserablecalèches, of which I was ashamed even as colonials; and I was compelled to repress the rising smiles of the party, by suggesting to their recollection, that, after all, we were still in America and not in England. After riding nine miles, almost in the dark, we entered the faubourg of Montreal, and jolted along a narrow street a mile long, which my companions, accustomed to the spacious streets in America, supposed to be an alley, though it is the principal street. At the end of it we stopped at the Mansion-house, a very fine inn; and here I was not ashamed to welcome my companions to the dominions of his Britannic Majesty.

“The Mansion-house is situated on the banks of the St. Lawrence, which its handsome apartments overlook, and which is here almost two and a half miles broad. The windows of our room open upon a fine terrace, from which there is a charming and extensive view of the distant country. In the evening this is a very favourite promenade with the inmates of the house.

“I am delighted to sit down once more under the British flag, which is waving over us, for Lord Dalhousie, the governor, is staying in the house; and I am gratified by the sight of our own red coats, who have mounted guard.”

“Montreal, 23d August, 1822.“I have just received your letter of the 19th ult. The uncommon cold of the last winter, and the unusual heat of the present summer, appear, in some degree, to have extended to you. Individually, I am not sorry to have the opportunity of experiencing, in the course of the year I have passed in America, a range of temperature beyond even the ordinary limits of the country. The great and sudden changes, however, continue to strike me more than even extremes of cold and heat, so much beyond those we experience in England. After a week of the hottest weather they have had here this summer, (the other morning the thermometer was currently reported, and I believe correctly, to be 98° of Fahrenheit in the shade,) thin clothes of every description have disappeared; and last night, when I sat down to write to you, I found it too cold to proceed. The oppressive heat of the summer here, and in the United States, is alleviated, in some degree, by the liberal use of ice. We see it in every form, and use it with the utmost profusion. The butter regularly comes to table with a fine thick transparent piece of ice upon it; large pieces are generally floating in the water jugs at dinner, or in your chambers; and it is often handed round on plates, in small pieces, to be used at dinner. The plan of preserving ice in this country, and the United States, is much more simple than with us, and, I have no doubt, more judicious, as, notwithstanding the superior heat of the climate, it is so much more cheap and plentiful. Almost every farmer has his ice-house.“I have already given you some account of our sail down the Rapids. It was extremely pleasant; and although we were becalmed for many hours, we descended on the St. Lawrence in less than two days, a distance which the boatmen seldom reascend in less than nine or ten, even with the occasional assistance of locks at the side of the river. I am surprised we hear so little of this noble river. It is computed, I do not know with what accuracy, to discharge one-half more water than the Mississippi. Its depth between Ogdensburgh and La Chine (130 miles) seldom varies more than three feet in the course of a year; while the Mississippi was falling one foot each day when I ascended it. The St. Lawrence is much clearer than the Mississippi, and its current much more rapid; so rapid, indeed, that the Lake Erie steam-boat, which has been in operation for three years, has not been able to ascend from Black Rock to Lake Erie more than twice without twelve oxen. The banks of the St. Lawrence do not present the rich and beautiful cultivation which adorns the banks of the Mississippi in Louisiana; but if they do not exhibit extensive and highly-dressed plantations of sugar and cotton, or the magnificent forest trees peculiar to the south and west, the prospect is never blackened by a range of miserable slave-cabins, or gangs of negroes working like cattle in the field. I cannot describe to you the pleasure I derived from contrasting the various scenes through which I am passing with each other, they have so many peculiar features, and all so highly interesting.“It is remarkable, that, rising from the same table-land, and so intimately connected by intersecting branches, which occasionally flow into each other during periods of inundation, the Mississippi and the St. Lawrence present the most striking contrast in their general features. Many of these are mentioned in the observations I will copy for you from Darby; but others, not much less interesting, might be added.

“Montreal, 23d August, 1822.

“I have just received your letter of the 19th ult. The uncommon cold of the last winter, and the unusual heat of the present summer, appear, in some degree, to have extended to you. Individually, I am not sorry to have the opportunity of experiencing, in the course of the year I have passed in America, a range of temperature beyond even the ordinary limits of the country. The great and sudden changes, however, continue to strike me more than even extremes of cold and heat, so much beyond those we experience in England. After a week of the hottest weather they have had here this summer, (the other morning the thermometer was currently reported, and I believe correctly, to be 98° of Fahrenheit in the shade,) thin clothes of every description have disappeared; and last night, when I sat down to write to you, I found it too cold to proceed. The oppressive heat of the summer here, and in the United States, is alleviated, in some degree, by the liberal use of ice. We see it in every form, and use it with the utmost profusion. The butter regularly comes to table with a fine thick transparent piece of ice upon it; large pieces are generally floating in the water jugs at dinner, or in your chambers; and it is often handed round on plates, in small pieces, to be used at dinner. The plan of preserving ice in this country, and the United States, is much more simple than with us, and, I have no doubt, more judicious, as, notwithstanding the superior heat of the climate, it is so much more cheap and plentiful. Almost every farmer has his ice-house.

“I have already given you some account of our sail down the Rapids. It was extremely pleasant; and although we were becalmed for many hours, we descended on the St. Lawrence in less than two days, a distance which the boatmen seldom reascend in less than nine or ten, even with the occasional assistance of locks at the side of the river. I am surprised we hear so little of this noble river. It is computed, I do not know with what accuracy, to discharge one-half more water than the Mississippi. Its depth between Ogdensburgh and La Chine (130 miles) seldom varies more than three feet in the course of a year; while the Mississippi was falling one foot each day when I ascended it. The St. Lawrence is much clearer than the Mississippi, and its current much more rapid; so rapid, indeed, that the Lake Erie steam-boat, which has been in operation for three years, has not been able to ascend from Black Rock to Lake Erie more than twice without twelve oxen. The banks of the St. Lawrence do not present the rich and beautiful cultivation which adorns the banks of the Mississippi in Louisiana; but if they do not exhibit extensive and highly-dressed plantations of sugar and cotton, or the magnificent forest trees peculiar to the south and west, the prospect is never blackened by a range of miserable slave-cabins, or gangs of negroes working like cattle in the field. I cannot describe to you the pleasure I derived from contrasting the various scenes through which I am passing with each other, they have so many peculiar features, and all so highly interesting.

“It is remarkable, that, rising from the same table-land, and so intimately connected by intersecting branches, which occasionally flow into each other during periods of inundation, the Mississippi and the St. Lawrence present the most striking contrast in their general features. Many of these are mentioned in the observations I will copy for you from Darby; but others, not much less interesting, might be added.

Montreal, from the St. Lawrence.

The St. Lawrence at Montreal.

“‘The Mississippi is turbid, in many parts to muddiness; the St. Lawrence unusually limpid. One river is composed of almost an unbroken chain of lakes; the other, in all its vast expanse, has no lakes that strictly deserve the name. Annually the Mississippi overleaps its bed, and overwhelms the adjacent shores to a great extent; an accidental rise of three feet, in the course of fifty years, is considered an extraordinary swell of the waters of St. Lawrence; this circumstance has occurred the present season for the first time within the lapse of forty years past. The Mississippi, flowing from north to south, passes through innumerable climes; whilst its rival, winding from its source, in a south-east direction, to near north latitude 41°, turns gradually north-east, and again flows into its original climate of ice and snow. The Mississippi, before its final discharge into the Gulf of Mexico, divides into a number of branches, having their separate egress; the St. Lawrence imperceptibly expands to a wide bay, which finally opens into the gulf of the same name. The banks of the Mississippi present a level, scarce rising above the superior surface of that stream; those of St. Lawrence, by a gentle acclivity, exhibit the opposing sides of an elegant basin. Much of the surface watered by the Mississippi is a region of grass, where few shrubs or trees rise to break the monotony of the face of the earth; the shores that bound the St. Lawrence, when in a state of nature, are covered with an almost continuous and impervious forest. And, lastly, though rather an accidental than a natural distinction, the Mississippi rolls its mighty volume, swelled by more than a thousand rivers, through one empire; and is, as I once before observed, the largest stream on this globe, whose entire course lies within one sovereignty. The St. Lawrence is, for more than 1,300 miles, a national limit, and, as such, marked with the sanguinary points which distinguish the bounds of rival power.’“We arrived here on the 10th, as you would learn from my last letter. On the 11th, I was awakened by the matin-bells of the different catholic churches; and while my steam-boat companions went to see theLions, I set out to deliver my letters of introduction, and soon found that the mornings of the ensuing week would be entirely occupied by commercial engagements, and the evenings with dinner-parties; for the merchants are very hospitable. On the 12th, I was left alone, all the party at the Mansion-house, with whom I was intimate, having proceeded to Quebec. On their return, in a few days, I was a little more at leisure, and accompanied them to the nunneries. The ‘Grey Sisters’ admitted us; but the ‘Black Sisters’ expressed their regret, in the politest French, that their devotional engagements would prevent them from seeing us till the following Thursday.“On the 17th, there was a grand levée held here, (in a spacious room in our inn,) as Lord and Lady Dalhousie, with their suite, were paying a short visit to Montreal. I attended, and was duly presented. The Governor and Countess gave great satisfaction; but I hear many apprehensions expressed, that his lordship will not incur the responsibility which the Duke of Richmond is said never to have hesitated to assume, in acting first and sending for instructions afterwards. It was about this time last year that the Duke left this house, a few days before his melancholy death up the country. I was told, that on the day he had fixed for his return he was brought into the house a corpse; and on the subsequent day, which had been appointed for his levée, a large concourse of the gentlemen of Montreal attended his coffin to the vessel which carried him away. His loss is deeply regretted. Sir Peregrine Maitland, his son-in-law, the Governor of Upper Canada, and Lady Maitland, are much respected; and, I understand, are doing much for the promotion of religion in the newly settled districts in their neighbourhood.“The bishop of Canada preached at the church I attended on Sunday; and, as I was returning home, a veteran soldier of General Wolfe’s army was pointed out, in his scarlet uniform.“I have had a few rides into the country in the neighbourhood, which is very beautiful. I have also met most of the principal merchants at dinner during my stay. On these occasions I am always gratified by the allusions I continually hear to home. ‘At home, we do so and so;’ ‘Mr. ——’s carriage is just arrived from home;’ ‘Here are some biscuits from home; fresh from Threadneedle-street, where I always get them.’“In the streets, however, there were many peculiarities to remind us that we were not at home. More than three-fourths of the inhabitants are said to be catholics; and the bells of the cathedral are never at rest. The priests, who are the seigniors of the island, are very rich; but they are said to be charitable, moral, and by no means luxurious. Our young friends would be amused by the numerous dog-carts, the dogs in gig or tandem harness, in every part of the town, and by thecalèchesof the last century, which would serve as a foil for a north of England shandan. A considerable number of Indians are usually walking the streets with moccasins for sale; and I saw several on the river-side, a mile distant, in wigwams, of which their birch canoe formed a principal part. The town is most agreeably situated, and there is an air of industry and animation in the inhabitants; and yet, occasionally, the narrow streets and iron window-shutters excite a sensation of gloominess, of which I cannot readily divest myself till I return to our cheerful inn, where the arrival and departure of steam-boats occasion a constant succession of guests. Our party at table, which dwindled to six, rose, two days since, suddenly to sixty, all fugitives, as those who are not on business seldom allot above two days to this part of their tour. As the friends with whom I am most intimate have been detained since their return from Quebec, by the want of a steam-boat, I have been very well off, having access to their three drawing-rooms, with an agreeable female party in each. Our host, although a Londoner, and adopting London hours, accommodates himself by pursuing the American plan of compelling us to eat at a common table; but the style of the house is admirable, and we can obtain private sitting-rooms. One of those occupied by our party is that which Lord Selkirk usually occupied while here, and often recalls him to my recollection. All I hear, and I have conversed with many of both parties on the subject, has only served to confirm my previous impressions with respect to the treatment which he received; in some instances, too, in quarters where it was least excusable, and at the hands of those from whom every British subject was entitled to demand impartiality. In an hour we are going on board the Swiftsure steam-boat for Quebec, and I am glad to find that several of my acquaintances will be of the party.”

“We arrived here on the 10th, as you would learn from my last letter. On the 11th, I was awakened by the matin-bells of the different catholic churches; and while my steam-boat companions went to see theLions, I set out to deliver my letters of introduction, and soon found that the mornings of the ensuing week would be entirely occupied by commercial engagements, and the evenings with dinner-parties; for the merchants are very hospitable. On the 12th, I was left alone, all the party at the Mansion-house, with whom I was intimate, having proceeded to Quebec. On their return, in a few days, I was a little more at leisure, and accompanied them to the nunneries. The ‘Grey Sisters’ admitted us; but the ‘Black Sisters’ expressed their regret, in the politest French, that their devotional engagements would prevent them from seeing us till the following Thursday.

“On the 17th, there was a grand levée held here, (in a spacious room in our inn,) as Lord and Lady Dalhousie, with their suite, were paying a short visit to Montreal. I attended, and was duly presented. The Governor and Countess gave great satisfaction; but I hear many apprehensions expressed, that his lordship will not incur the responsibility which the Duke of Richmond is said never to have hesitated to assume, in acting first and sending for instructions afterwards. It was about this time last year that the Duke left this house, a few days before his melancholy death up the country. I was told, that on the day he had fixed for his return he was brought into the house a corpse; and on the subsequent day, which had been appointed for his levée, a large concourse of the gentlemen of Montreal attended his coffin to the vessel which carried him away. His loss is deeply regretted. Sir Peregrine Maitland, his son-in-law, the Governor of Upper Canada, and Lady Maitland, are much respected; and, I understand, are doing much for the promotion of religion in the newly settled districts in their neighbourhood.

“The bishop of Canada preached at the church I attended on Sunday; and, as I was returning home, a veteran soldier of General Wolfe’s army was pointed out, in his scarlet uniform.

“I have had a few rides into the country in the neighbourhood, which is very beautiful. I have also met most of the principal merchants at dinner during my stay. On these occasions I am always gratified by the allusions I continually hear to home. ‘At home, we do so and so;’ ‘Mr. ——’s carriage is just arrived from home;’ ‘Here are some biscuits from home; fresh from Threadneedle-street, where I always get them.’

“In the streets, however, there were many peculiarities to remind us that we were not at home. More than three-fourths of the inhabitants are said to be catholics; and the bells of the cathedral are never at rest. The priests, who are the seigniors of the island, are very rich; but they are said to be charitable, moral, and by no means luxurious. Our young friends would be amused by the numerous dog-carts, the dogs in gig or tandem harness, in every part of the town, and by thecalèchesof the last century, which would serve as a foil for a north of England shandan. A considerable number of Indians are usually walking the streets with moccasins for sale; and I saw several on the river-side, a mile distant, in wigwams, of which their birch canoe formed a principal part. The town is most agreeably situated, and there is an air of industry and animation in the inhabitants; and yet, occasionally, the narrow streets and iron window-shutters excite a sensation of gloominess, of which I cannot readily divest myself till I return to our cheerful inn, where the arrival and departure of steam-boats occasion a constant succession of guests. Our party at table, which dwindled to six, rose, two days since, suddenly to sixty, all fugitives, as those who are not on business seldom allot above two days to this part of their tour. As the friends with whom I am most intimate have been detained since their return from Quebec, by the want of a steam-boat, I have been very well off, having access to their three drawing-rooms, with an agreeable female party in each. Our host, although a Londoner, and adopting London hours, accommodates himself by pursuing the American plan of compelling us to eat at a common table; but the style of the house is admirable, and we can obtain private sitting-rooms. One of those occupied by our party is that which Lord Selkirk usually occupied while here, and often recalls him to my recollection. All I hear, and I have conversed with many of both parties on the subject, has only served to confirm my previous impressions with respect to the treatment which he received; in some instances, too, in quarters where it was least excusable, and at the hands of those from whom every British subject was entitled to demand impartiality. In an hour we are going on board the Swiftsure steam-boat for Quebec, and I am glad to find that several of my acquaintances will be of the party.”

Raft in a Squall on Lake St. Peter.

The Three Rivers, River St. Lawrence.

“Steam-boat, on the St. Lawrence, August 28th, 1820.“I began this letter at Montreal, on board the Swiftsure steam-boat. This is probably the finest steam-boat which has been built, and I was proud to see her under the British flag; the Americans readily conceded her superior claims. The style of living and attendance is more like that of a good hotel, at the west end of London, than any thing I have seen on this side of the Atlantic, notwithstanding the handsome style of some of the American hotels, and the comfort of some of the boarding-houses. There is an ice-house on board, and the owner supplies her table with grapes and peaches from his own garden.“I often feel a strange sensation, when gliding down the American rivers, in these floating palaces; and have sometimes turned away almost ashamed, when bearing down in all this ostentatious luxury on the poor half-naked Indians, in their birch canoes, struggling to reach the shores on which their fathers roamed fearless and independent.“We left Montreal about noon on the 22d, and for sixty miles averaged thirteen miles an hour. The banks of the river, which is from one and a half to three miles broad, though too flat to be romantic, till you approach within thirty miles of Quebec, are interesting, from the white cottages, which seem to form one continued village, and the neat churches, of which two or three are often in sight at once; the spires are usually covered with tin, and have a very dazzling appearance.“The cottages have originally been placed at equal distances from each other, the farms having been laid off, with a front of a given length to the river; but the Canadian custom of dividing the farm between the children of the deceased (more congenial with their indolence than striking deeper into the woods) has broken uniformity by repeated and often inconvenient subdivisions. A mass of deep woods usually bounds the farms, at the distance of a few acres from the river.“The navigation on Lake St. Peter is so difficult, that we were obliged to lie at anchor all night. On the 23d, we passed the Three Rivers, a handsome town, on the three mouths of a respectable river; and at five o’clock in the evening arrived at Quebec, 180 miles from Montreal. As we approached the town we passed close under the plains of Abraham, and the precipitous rocks which our gallant hero scaled; and after straining our eyes to reach the fortifications, which seem to frown destruction to any hostile force which might have the temerity to approach, we were pleased, on looking round us, to find ourselves in the middle of British shipping. I cannot tell you with what satisfaction I renewed my acquaintance with old Cumberland brigs, which in England I should not condescend to notice. As soon as we landed, an English friend and I procured a calèche, and drove off to the Falls of Montmorency, nine miles distant, which we reached just at sunset. Our beautiful summer evening closed in upon us before we had seen the Falls from the most favourable situation. The full moon, however, soon rose, and threw her light upon the broken torrent, which precipitates itself from a height of 220 feet, while the dark shadows of the rocks and trees, which overhang the waters below, contributed greatly to heighten the grandeur of the scene. Our conductor was an interesting little peasant girl, nine years of age, whose pretty French was most agreeable. The ride home was delightful, the full moon ‘walking in brightness,’ and throwing her horizontal rays across the river as she rose. The fortresses of Quebec were constantly in sight, and did, indeed, seem impregnable by human force. It would be difficult even to imagine a more commanding site, and I could not help admiring the skill with which the French had chosen their northern post, which they evidently intended to connect with New Orleans, by a series of intermediate forts, which might confine the British within a narrow strip on the Atlantic. Reflections on their system of policy were the more interesting to me, from having so lately visited the southern extremity of their trans-Atlantic dominions, and having in the interval passed through so many of the immense forests which lie between them. We stopped at Malhrot’s, the best inn in Quebec; but an unwillingness to intrude on the present occupiers of my bed decided me to prefer a chair, in which I sat till after three o’clock, looking on the beautiful moonlight prospect before me. At five o’clock we set out in a calèche on our way to Loretto, an Indian village of the Hurons, nine miles from Quebec. They have a neat catholic church, and speak French; but, from what I could gather from the chief, they have no land, and support themselves by fishing and hunting. In that case they are not so well off as my friends the Choctaws and Cherokees, or the Caughnawagas, whom we saw nine miles from Montreal, who have a handsome catholic church, and cultivate the land.“In the course of our ride we were often reminded of home by the rich little meadows and thickly settled country on every side. The distant mountains were very fine. We reached our inn at nine o’clock, having accomplished, after six o’clock the preceding night, what usually occupies two days. After breakfast I devoted myself to business; and, declining an invitation from Judge —— to accompany him to the ‘military mess’ to dinner, I set off to the Falls of the Chaudière, seven miles distant, intending to drink tea on our return with a gentleman who lives on the way. It was so dark, however, when we reached his house, five or six miles from Quebec, and had begun to rain so heavily, that we thankfully accepted his offer of a bed. The Falls of the Chaudière were highly interesting, even after Niagara. In the deep seclusion of a thick wood, the river, nearly 250 yards wide, precipitates itself a hundred feet into a rocky channel, which appears to have been rent asunder by some dreadful convulsion of nature, by which the rock has been broken into huge masses, that combine with the surrounding objects to impart an air of most magnificent wildness to this extraordinary scene. On our return we had several fine views of Quebec down the river.

“Steam-boat, on the St. Lawrence, August 28th, 1820.

“I began this letter at Montreal, on board the Swiftsure steam-boat. This is probably the finest steam-boat which has been built, and I was proud to see her under the British flag; the Americans readily conceded her superior claims. The style of living and attendance is more like that of a good hotel, at the west end of London, than any thing I have seen on this side of the Atlantic, notwithstanding the handsome style of some of the American hotels, and the comfort of some of the boarding-houses. There is an ice-house on board, and the owner supplies her table with grapes and peaches from his own garden.

“I often feel a strange sensation, when gliding down the American rivers, in these floating palaces; and have sometimes turned away almost ashamed, when bearing down in all this ostentatious luxury on the poor half-naked Indians, in their birch canoes, struggling to reach the shores on which their fathers roamed fearless and independent.

“We left Montreal about noon on the 22d, and for sixty miles averaged thirteen miles an hour. The banks of the river, which is from one and a half to three miles broad, though too flat to be romantic, till you approach within thirty miles of Quebec, are interesting, from the white cottages, which seem to form one continued village, and the neat churches, of which two or three are often in sight at once; the spires are usually covered with tin, and have a very dazzling appearance.

“The cottages have originally been placed at equal distances from each other, the farms having been laid off, with a front of a given length to the river; but the Canadian custom of dividing the farm between the children of the deceased (more congenial with their indolence than striking deeper into the woods) has broken uniformity by repeated and often inconvenient subdivisions. A mass of deep woods usually bounds the farms, at the distance of a few acres from the river.

“The navigation on Lake St. Peter is so difficult, that we were obliged to lie at anchor all night. On the 23d, we passed the Three Rivers, a handsome town, on the three mouths of a respectable river; and at five o’clock in the evening arrived at Quebec, 180 miles from Montreal. As we approached the town we passed close under the plains of Abraham, and the precipitous rocks which our gallant hero scaled; and after straining our eyes to reach the fortifications, which seem to frown destruction to any hostile force which might have the temerity to approach, we were pleased, on looking round us, to find ourselves in the middle of British shipping. I cannot tell you with what satisfaction I renewed my acquaintance with old Cumberland brigs, which in England I should not condescend to notice. As soon as we landed, an English friend and I procured a calèche, and drove off to the Falls of Montmorency, nine miles distant, which we reached just at sunset. Our beautiful summer evening closed in upon us before we had seen the Falls from the most favourable situation. The full moon, however, soon rose, and threw her light upon the broken torrent, which precipitates itself from a height of 220 feet, while the dark shadows of the rocks and trees, which overhang the waters below, contributed greatly to heighten the grandeur of the scene. Our conductor was an interesting little peasant girl, nine years of age, whose pretty French was most agreeable. The ride home was delightful, the full moon ‘walking in brightness,’ and throwing her horizontal rays across the river as she rose. The fortresses of Quebec were constantly in sight, and did, indeed, seem impregnable by human force. It would be difficult even to imagine a more commanding site, and I could not help admiring the skill with which the French had chosen their northern post, which they evidently intended to connect with New Orleans, by a series of intermediate forts, which might confine the British within a narrow strip on the Atlantic. Reflections on their system of policy were the more interesting to me, from having so lately visited the southern extremity of their trans-Atlantic dominions, and having in the interval passed through so many of the immense forests which lie between them. We stopped at Malhrot’s, the best inn in Quebec; but an unwillingness to intrude on the present occupiers of my bed decided me to prefer a chair, in which I sat till after three o’clock, looking on the beautiful moonlight prospect before me. At five o’clock we set out in a calèche on our way to Loretto, an Indian village of the Hurons, nine miles from Quebec. They have a neat catholic church, and speak French; but, from what I could gather from the chief, they have no land, and support themselves by fishing and hunting. In that case they are not so well off as my friends the Choctaws and Cherokees, or the Caughnawagas, whom we saw nine miles from Montreal, who have a handsome catholic church, and cultivate the land.

“In the course of our ride we were often reminded of home by the rich little meadows and thickly settled country on every side. The distant mountains were very fine. We reached our inn at nine o’clock, having accomplished, after six o’clock the preceding night, what usually occupies two days. After breakfast I devoted myself to business; and, declining an invitation from Judge —— to accompany him to the ‘military mess’ to dinner, I set off to the Falls of the Chaudière, seven miles distant, intending to drink tea on our return with a gentleman who lives on the way. It was so dark, however, when we reached his house, five or six miles from Quebec, and had begun to rain so heavily, that we thankfully accepted his offer of a bed. The Falls of the Chaudière were highly interesting, even after Niagara. In the deep seclusion of a thick wood, the river, nearly 250 yards wide, precipitates itself a hundred feet into a rocky channel, which appears to have been rent asunder by some dreadful convulsion of nature, by which the rock has been broken into huge masses, that combine with the surrounding objects to impart an air of most magnificent wildness to this extraordinary scene. On our return we had several fine views of Quebec down the river.

Bridge near Quebec.

The Chaudière Bridge,near Quebec.

“The next day we went into town early, and I was again engaged in business till afternoon, when I walked round the fortifications with my old military friend and his wife. At five o’clock I went to dine at Judge ——’s, where I met several gentlemen, and where I staid till it was nearly time to embark in the steam-boat, which was to set sail at midnight for Montreal.“I think you will be amused by the following extract from the journal of one of my fellow-travellers, who left me at Montreal to visit Quebec, and on his return found on board the steam-boat one of the Indian chiefs, belonging to the village of Loretto, to which I have alluded.“‘We have on board one of the Indian chiefs who walked in the procession at Loretto, and his daughter, a genteel young woman. He speaks the English language. He said he knew General Washington, and had dined with him twice; and that the general had made him a present of a very good horse. ‘I told General Washington,’ said he, ‘that your horse; he tell me to call one of his aids, and he say, Col. Trumbull, write order for Vincent, (that my name,) for that horse; so I keep him. He very good horse.’ The story of the horse was thus explained. Vincent commanded a body of Indians at the capture of Burgoyne, and was made a prisoner with that general. The horse had been taken by him from the Americans; and hence he called him not his own, but Washington’s. This information I obtained from others on board. Taking me aside, he said, ‘I saw you Loretto.’C.‘I was there, and saw you walking at the head of the procession.’V.‘Yes, I walk.’C.‘What was that the priest carried?’V.‘What religion you?’C.‘I am a protestant.’V.‘Then you very good man; priest carry image Virgin Mary. This is all nonsense. He tell us poor Indians we must believe, or be condemned, that Virgin Mary was taken up into heaven—soul and body; you believe that?’C.‘I do not understand it: what is your opinion?’V.‘I do not believe; I do not read that in Scripture. Priest tell us poor ignorant Indians that we must worship her, and saints, and images. I do not find that in Scripture neither; but I read, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou worship. Thou shalt make no graven image, nor worship them: that my belief. I think it wicked to worship images; but God is merciful. Priest tell us ignorant Indians we must have mass; fetch out purgatory our fathers, dead hundred years ago; and we pay sometimes one, sometimes two dollars each mass. Brother, you believe there is a purgatory?’C.‘I have no knowledge of such a place. What is your opinion?’V.‘I don’t believe; and tell you my opinion. I believe if our heart be not purge in this life, it never will purge.’ On my assenting to his doctrine, he asked, ‘Where do you think is hell?’ I told him I did not know. Then added he, ‘I’ll tell you where I think it is: it is in the sun.’ I felt some surprise at all this; and, asking him where he had been educated, he replied at Hampshire. He then asked me to drink a glass of grog; and on my declining, he bid me good bye, and walked to the forecastle to sip it by himself. On observing a young Indian on board very attentive to the chief’s daughter, I told Vincent I supposed this man was courting her; on which he replied with much warmth, ‘No; him Mohawk.’“I do not know why he regarded a connexion with the Mohawks as degrading, for they were members of the celebrated confederation of the Six Nations—the Iroquois Confederation. The other members were the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, the Senecas, and the Tuscaroras.”

“I think you will be amused by the following extract from the journal of one of my fellow-travellers, who left me at Montreal to visit Quebec, and on his return found on board the steam-boat one of the Indian chiefs, belonging to the village of Loretto, to which I have alluded.

“‘We have on board one of the Indian chiefs who walked in the procession at Loretto, and his daughter, a genteel young woman. He speaks the English language. He said he knew General Washington, and had dined with him twice; and that the general had made him a present of a very good horse. ‘I told General Washington,’ said he, ‘that your horse; he tell me to call one of his aids, and he say, Col. Trumbull, write order for Vincent, (that my name,) for that horse; so I keep him. He very good horse.’ The story of the horse was thus explained. Vincent commanded a body of Indians at the capture of Burgoyne, and was made a prisoner with that general. The horse had been taken by him from the Americans; and hence he called him not his own, but Washington’s. This information I obtained from others on board. Taking me aside, he said, ‘I saw you Loretto.’C.‘I was there, and saw you walking at the head of the procession.’V.‘Yes, I walk.’C.‘What was that the priest carried?’V.‘What religion you?’C.‘I am a protestant.’V.‘Then you very good man; priest carry image Virgin Mary. This is all nonsense. He tell us poor Indians we must believe, or be condemned, that Virgin Mary was taken up into heaven—soul and body; you believe that?’C.‘I do not understand it: what is your opinion?’V.‘I do not believe; I do not read that in Scripture. Priest tell us poor ignorant Indians that we must worship her, and saints, and images. I do not find that in Scripture neither; but I read, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou worship. Thou shalt make no graven image, nor worship them: that my belief. I think it wicked to worship images; but God is merciful. Priest tell us ignorant Indians we must have mass; fetch out purgatory our fathers, dead hundred years ago; and we pay sometimes one, sometimes two dollars each mass. Brother, you believe there is a purgatory?’C.‘I have no knowledge of such a place. What is your opinion?’V.‘I don’t believe; and tell you my opinion. I believe if our heart be not purge in this life, it never will purge.’ On my assenting to his doctrine, he asked, ‘Where do you think is hell?’ I told him I did not know. Then added he, ‘I’ll tell you where I think it is: it is in the sun.’ I felt some surprise at all this; and, asking him where he had been educated, he replied at Hampshire. He then asked me to drink a glass of grog; and on my declining, he bid me good bye, and walked to the forecastle to sip it by himself. On observing a young Indian on board very attentive to the chief’s daughter, I told Vincent I supposed this man was courting her; on which he replied with much warmth, ‘No; him Mohawk.’

“I do not know why he regarded a connexion with the Mohawks as degrading, for they were members of the celebrated confederation of the Six Nations—the Iroquois Confederation. The other members were the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, the Senecas, and the Tuscaroras.”

The Chaudière Falls,near Quebec.

It is our wish to assemble pictures of Canada by as many different classes of observers, and during as many different seasons, as is possible. Here are some winter sketches, which are not unentertaining.

“Nothing could be more Siberian than the aspect of the Canadian frontier; a narrow road, choked with snow, led them through a wood, in which patches were occasionally cleared on either side to admit the construction of a few log-huts, round which a brood of ragged children, a starved pig, and a few half-broken rustic implements, formed an accompaniment more suited to an Irish landscape, than to the thriving scenes we had just quitted. The Canadian peasant is still the same unsophisticated animal whom we may suppose to have been imported by Jacques Carrier. The sharp unchangeable lineaments of the French countenance, set off with a blue or red night-cap, over which is drawn the hood of a grey capote, fashioned like a monk’s cowl, a red worsted girdle, hair tied in a greasy leather queue, brown moccasins of undressed hide, and a short pipe in his mouth, give undeniable testimony of the presence of Jean Baptiste. His horse seems to have been equally solicitous to shame neither his progenitors nor his owner, by any mixture with a foreign race, but exhibits the same relationship to the horses, as his rider to the subjects of Louis XIII. Now, too, the frequent cross by the road side, thick-studded with all the implements of crucifixional torture, begins to indicate a catholic country: distorted virgins and ghastly saints decorate each inn room, while the light spires of the parish church, covered with plates of tin, glitter across the snowy plain.

Raft on the St. Lawrence, Cape Sante.

“At La Prairie we crossed the ice to Montreal, whose isolated mountain forms a conspicuous object at the distance of some leagues. From thence to Quebec, the road follows the course of the St. Lawrence, whose banks present a succession of villages, many of them delightfully situated; but all form and feature were absorbed in the snowy deluge, which now deepened every league; add to which, the sleigh-track, by frequently running on the bed of the river, placed us below prospect of every kind. We found the inns neat, and the people attentive; French politesse began to be contrasted with American bluntness. It is curious to observe that this characteristic of the Americans, which so frequently offends the polished feelings of English travellers, is exactly what was formerly objected by the French to ourselves. The ‘rudesse’ of the English character was long a standing jest with our refined neighbours; but we have now, it seems, so far shaken off this odious remnant of uncourtly habits, as to regard it with true French horror in our trans-Atlantic cousins.“It was Sunday when we arrived at St. Anne’s; mass was just finished, and above a hundred sleighs were rapidly dispersing themselves up the neighbouring heights, and across the bed of the river, to the adjacent villages. The common country sleigh is a clumsy box-shaped machine, raised at both ends, perhaps not greatly unlike the old heroic car. It holds two persons, with the driver, who stands before them. One horse is commonly sufficient, but two are used in posting, when the leader is attached by cords, tandem-wise, and left to use his own discretion, without the restraint of rein, or impulse of whip. Should, however, the latter stimulus become indispensable, the driver jumps from the sleigh, runs forward, applies his pack-thread lash, and regains his seat without any hazard from extraordinary increase of impetus. The runners of these sleighs are formed of two slips of wood, so low that the shafts collect the snow into a succession of wavy hillocks, properly christened ‘cahots,’ for they almost dislocate your limbs five thousand times in a day’s journey. An attempt was once made to correct this evil, by prohibiting alllow runners, as they are called, from coming within a certain distance of Quebec; meaning thereby to force the country people into the use of high runners in the American fashion. Jean Baptiste, however, sturdily and effectually resisted this heretical innovation, by halting with his produce without the limits, and thus compelling the townspeople to come to him to make their purchases.“The markets, both of Montreal and Quebec, exhibit several hundred market sleighs daily. They differ from the pleasure or travelling sleigh, in having no sides; that is, they consist merely of a plank bottom, with a kind of railing. Hay and wood seem the staple commodities at this season, both of which are immoderately dear, especially at Quebec; even through the States, the common charge for one horse’s hay for a night was a dollar. Provisions are brought to market frozen, in which state they are preserved during the winter; cod-fish is brought from Boston, a land-carriage of 500 miles, and then sells at a reasonable rate, the American commonly speculating on a cargo of smuggled goods back, to make up his profit; a kind of trade extremely brisk betwixt the frontier and Montreal.“As we approached Quebec, snow lay to the depth of six feet; from the heights of Abraham, the eye rested upon what seemed an immense lake of milk; all smaller irregularities of ground, fences, boundaries, and copse woods, had disappeared; the tops of villages, and scattered farm-houses, with here and there dark lines of pine-wood, and occasionally the mast of some ice-locked schooner, marking the bed of the Charles river, were the only objects peering about it. A range of mountains, sweeping round from west to north, until it meets the St. Lawrence, bounds the horizon; no herald of spring had yet approached this dreary outpost of civilization; we had observed a few blue thrushes in the neighbourhood of Albany, but none had yet reached Canada; two only of the feathered tribe brave the winter of this inclement region—the cosmopolite crow, and the snow-bird, a small white bird, reported to feed upon snow, because it is not very clear what else it can find.“It would be acting unfairly to Quebec, to describe it as I found it on my arrival, choked with ice and snow, which one day flooded the streets with a profusion of dirty kennels, and the next cased them with a sheet of glass. Cloth or carpet boots, galoshes, with spikes to their heels, iron pointed walking sticks, are the defensive weapons perpetually in employ on these occasions. The direction of the streets too, which are most of them built up a precipice, greatly facilitates any inclination one may entertain for tumbling or neck-breaking.“The Falls of Montmorency are formed by a little river of that name, near its junction with the St. Lawrence, about five miles north of Quebec. They have a peculiar interest in winter, from the immense cone of ice formed at their foot, which was unimpaired when I visited them, in the second week of April. After winding up a short but steep ascent, the road crosses a wooden bridge, beneath which the Montmorency rushes betwixt its dark grey rocks, and precipitates itself in a broken torrent down a wooded glen on the right. It is not until you have wound round the edge of this glen, which is done by quitting the road at the bridge-foot, that you obtain a view of the Falls; nor was their effect lessened by this approach. A partial thaw, succeeded by a frost, had spread a silvery brightness over the waste of snow. Every twig and branch of the surrounding pine-trees, every waving shrub and briar, was encased in crystal, and glittering to the sun-beams like the diamond forest of some northern elf-land. You are now on the edge of a precipice, to which the Fall itself, a perpendicular of 220 feet, seems diminutive; it is not until you descend, and approach its foot, that the whole majesty of the scene becomes apparent. The breadth of the torrent is about fifty feet; the waters, from their prodigious descent, seem snowy-white with foam, and enveloped in a light drapery of gauzy mist. The cone appears about a hundred feet in height, mathematically regular in shape, with its base extending nearly all across the stream; its sides are not so steep, but that ladies have ascended to the top of it; the interior is hollow. I regret to add that a mill is constructing on this river, which will, by diverting the stream, destroy this imperial sport of nature; or, at least, reduce it to the degradation of submitting to be played off at the miller’s discretion, like a Versailles fountain.

“It was Sunday when we arrived at St. Anne’s; mass was just finished, and above a hundred sleighs were rapidly dispersing themselves up the neighbouring heights, and across the bed of the river, to the adjacent villages. The common country sleigh is a clumsy box-shaped machine, raised at both ends, perhaps not greatly unlike the old heroic car. It holds two persons, with the driver, who stands before them. One horse is commonly sufficient, but two are used in posting, when the leader is attached by cords, tandem-wise, and left to use his own discretion, without the restraint of rein, or impulse of whip. Should, however, the latter stimulus become indispensable, the driver jumps from the sleigh, runs forward, applies his pack-thread lash, and regains his seat without any hazard from extraordinary increase of impetus. The runners of these sleighs are formed of two slips of wood, so low that the shafts collect the snow into a succession of wavy hillocks, properly christened ‘cahots,’ for they almost dislocate your limbs five thousand times in a day’s journey. An attempt was once made to correct this evil, by prohibiting alllow runners, as they are called, from coming within a certain distance of Quebec; meaning thereby to force the country people into the use of high runners in the American fashion. Jean Baptiste, however, sturdily and effectually resisted this heretical innovation, by halting with his produce without the limits, and thus compelling the townspeople to come to him to make their purchases.

“The markets, both of Montreal and Quebec, exhibit several hundred market sleighs daily. They differ from the pleasure or travelling sleigh, in having no sides; that is, they consist merely of a plank bottom, with a kind of railing. Hay and wood seem the staple commodities at this season, both of which are immoderately dear, especially at Quebec; even through the States, the common charge for one horse’s hay for a night was a dollar. Provisions are brought to market frozen, in which state they are preserved during the winter; cod-fish is brought from Boston, a land-carriage of 500 miles, and then sells at a reasonable rate, the American commonly speculating on a cargo of smuggled goods back, to make up his profit; a kind of trade extremely brisk betwixt the frontier and Montreal.

“As we approached Quebec, snow lay to the depth of six feet; from the heights of Abraham, the eye rested upon what seemed an immense lake of milk; all smaller irregularities of ground, fences, boundaries, and copse woods, had disappeared; the tops of villages, and scattered farm-houses, with here and there dark lines of pine-wood, and occasionally the mast of some ice-locked schooner, marking the bed of the Charles river, were the only objects peering about it. A range of mountains, sweeping round from west to north, until it meets the St. Lawrence, bounds the horizon; no herald of spring had yet approached this dreary outpost of civilization; we had observed a few blue thrushes in the neighbourhood of Albany, but none had yet reached Canada; two only of the feathered tribe brave the winter of this inclement region—the cosmopolite crow, and the snow-bird, a small white bird, reported to feed upon snow, because it is not very clear what else it can find.

“It would be acting unfairly to Quebec, to describe it as I found it on my arrival, choked with ice and snow, which one day flooded the streets with a profusion of dirty kennels, and the next cased them with a sheet of glass. Cloth or carpet boots, galoshes, with spikes to their heels, iron pointed walking sticks, are the defensive weapons perpetually in employ on these occasions. The direction of the streets too, which are most of them built up a precipice, greatly facilitates any inclination one may entertain for tumbling or neck-breaking.

“The Falls of Montmorency are formed by a little river of that name, near its junction with the St. Lawrence, about five miles north of Quebec. They have a peculiar interest in winter, from the immense cone of ice formed at their foot, which was unimpaired when I visited them, in the second week of April. After winding up a short but steep ascent, the road crosses a wooden bridge, beneath which the Montmorency rushes betwixt its dark grey rocks, and precipitates itself in a broken torrent down a wooded glen on the right. It is not until you have wound round the edge of this glen, which is done by quitting the road at the bridge-foot, that you obtain a view of the Falls; nor was their effect lessened by this approach. A partial thaw, succeeded by a frost, had spread a silvery brightness over the waste of snow. Every twig and branch of the surrounding pine-trees, every waving shrub and briar, was encased in crystal, and glittering to the sun-beams like the diamond forest of some northern elf-land. You are now on the edge of a precipice, to which the Fall itself, a perpendicular of 220 feet, seems diminutive; it is not until you descend, and approach its foot, that the whole majesty of the scene becomes apparent. The breadth of the torrent is about fifty feet; the waters, from their prodigious descent, seem snowy-white with foam, and enveloped in a light drapery of gauzy mist. The cone appears about a hundred feet in height, mathematically regular in shape, with its base extending nearly all across the stream; its sides are not so steep, but that ladies have ascended to the top of it; the interior is hollow. I regret to add that a mill is constructing on this river, which will, by diverting the stream, destroy this imperial sport of nature; or, at least, reduce it to the degradation of submitting to be played off at the miller’s discretion, like a Versailles fountain.

Scene from the Summit of the Fall of Montmorency.

Montmorency Bridge.

“Towards the end of April, the townspeople begin, according to a law of the province, to break up the ice and snow from before their doors; and by the first week in May the streets are tolerably clear. The intermediate state, as may be supposed, is a perfect chaos, through which the stumbling pedestrian, like the arch-fiend of old—‘Pursues his way,And swims, or sinks, or wades, or creeps.’Meanwhile, the landscape begins to exchange its snowy mantle for a russet brown. A few wild-fowl and woodcocks, with some small birds, cautiously make their appearance; the sheltered bottoms of the pine-woods throw out the earliest flowers; the St. Lawrence and Charles rivers become gradually disburthened of ice, and enlivened by the gliding sail; still, however, the foot of spring seems lingering; the mists, exhaled by the warmth of the sun, frequently encounter the keen north-west, and are again precipitated in heavy snow showers; snow still blocks up the roads, and fills the dells and ditches, sheltered from the influence of the sun, thus preserving the gloomy aspect of winter through the month of May.“The town, or rather city, of Quebec, is built on the northern extremity of a narrow strip of high land, which follows the course of the St. Lawrence, for several miles, to its confluence with the Charles. The basis of this height is a dark slate rock, of which most of the buildings in the town are constructed. Cape Diamond terminates the promontory, with a bold precipice towards the St. Lawrence, to which it is nearly perpendicular, at the height of 320 feet. It derives its name from the crystals of quartz found in it, which are so abundant, that, after a shower, the ground glitters with them. The lower town is built round the foot of these heights, without the fortifications, which, with the upper town, occupy their crest in bleak preeminence: the former, snug and dirty, is the abode of thriving commerce, and of most of the lower classes employed about the navy; the latter, cold and lofty, is the seat of government, and principal residence of the military; and claims, in consequence, that kind of superiority which some heads have been said to assert over the inglorious belly. To speak the truth, neither has much to boast on the score either of beauty or convenience.“Among the principal buildings, the government-house, or Castle of St. Louis, may take precedence, being a thin blue building, which seems quivering, like a theatrical side-scene, on the verge of the precipice, towards the St. Lawrence; its front resembles that of a respectable gentleman’s house in England; the interior contains comfortable family apartments. For occasions of public festivity there is another building, on the opposite side of the court-yard, much resembling a decayed gaol. The furniture is inherited and paid for by each successive governor. The grand entrance to the chateau is flanked on one side by this grim mouldering pile, and on the other by the stables, with their appropriate dunghills. There is a small garden on the bank of the river, commanding, as does the chateau itself, an interesting view of the opposite shores of the St. Lawrence. These rise boldly precipitous, clothed with pine and cedar groves, and studded with white villages and detached farms; beyond which the eye reposes on successive chains of wooded mountains, fading blue in the distant horizon; meanwhile, the river below is spreading broadly towards the north, until it meets and divides round the Isle of Orleans.“In front of the chateau is an open space of ground, with great capabilities of being converted into a handsome square; but at this season, a formidable barrier of bog-land is all that it presents to the bewildered pedestrian, who endeavours vainly to steer for the castle gate. On one side of it stands the protestant cathedral church, an unfinished building, much more than large enough for the congregation usually assembled in it. In style and arrangement it resembles a London parochial church, and has nothing about it reproachable with earthly beauty. There is a good organ, but mute for want of an organist; and as there is no choir, the heavy flatness of the service amply secures the English church from all danger of being crowded with the overflowings of its neighbour, the catholic cathedral, in which are still displayed, with no inconsiderable degree of splendour, the enticing ceremonies of the Roman worship. I was present at the service on Easter Sunday; a train of not less than fifty stoled priests and choristers surrounded the tapered altar; the bishop officiated inplenis pontificalibus, nor lacked the mitre, ‘precious and aurophrygiate;’ while the pealing organ, incense rolling from silver censers, and kneeling crowds thronging the triple aisles, presented a spectacle on which few are rigid enough, either in belief or unbelief, to look with absolute indifference. A lofty pile of gingerbread cakes, ornamented with tinsel, was carried to the bishop to receive his blessing, and a sprinkling of holy water, after which they were distributed among the people, who received them with most devout eagerness. These cakes I understood to be the pious offering of some devotee, more rich than wise, who certainly adopted a somewhat ludicrous expedient—‘To bribe the rage of ill-requited heaven,’with gingerbread.

‘Pursues his way,And swims, or sinks, or wades, or creeps.’

‘Pursues his way,

And swims, or sinks, or wades, or creeps.’

Meanwhile, the landscape begins to exchange its snowy mantle for a russet brown. A few wild-fowl and woodcocks, with some small birds, cautiously make their appearance; the sheltered bottoms of the pine-woods throw out the earliest flowers; the St. Lawrence and Charles rivers become gradually disburthened of ice, and enlivened by the gliding sail; still, however, the foot of spring seems lingering; the mists, exhaled by the warmth of the sun, frequently encounter the keen north-west, and are again precipitated in heavy snow showers; snow still blocks up the roads, and fills the dells and ditches, sheltered from the influence of the sun, thus preserving the gloomy aspect of winter through the month of May.

“The town, or rather city, of Quebec, is built on the northern extremity of a narrow strip of high land, which follows the course of the St. Lawrence, for several miles, to its confluence with the Charles. The basis of this height is a dark slate rock, of which most of the buildings in the town are constructed. Cape Diamond terminates the promontory, with a bold precipice towards the St. Lawrence, to which it is nearly perpendicular, at the height of 320 feet. It derives its name from the crystals of quartz found in it, which are so abundant, that, after a shower, the ground glitters with them. The lower town is built round the foot of these heights, without the fortifications, which, with the upper town, occupy their crest in bleak preeminence: the former, snug and dirty, is the abode of thriving commerce, and of most of the lower classes employed about the navy; the latter, cold and lofty, is the seat of government, and principal residence of the military; and claims, in consequence, that kind of superiority which some heads have been said to assert over the inglorious belly. To speak the truth, neither has much to boast on the score either of beauty or convenience.

“Among the principal buildings, the government-house, or Castle of St. Louis, may take precedence, being a thin blue building, which seems quivering, like a theatrical side-scene, on the verge of the precipice, towards the St. Lawrence; its front resembles that of a respectable gentleman’s house in England; the interior contains comfortable family apartments. For occasions of public festivity there is another building, on the opposite side of the court-yard, much resembling a decayed gaol. The furniture is inherited and paid for by each successive governor. The grand entrance to the chateau is flanked on one side by this grim mouldering pile, and on the other by the stables, with their appropriate dunghills. There is a small garden on the bank of the river, commanding, as does the chateau itself, an interesting view of the opposite shores of the St. Lawrence. These rise boldly precipitous, clothed with pine and cedar groves, and studded with white villages and detached farms; beyond which the eye reposes on successive chains of wooded mountains, fading blue in the distant horizon; meanwhile, the river below is spreading broadly towards the north, until it meets and divides round the Isle of Orleans.

“In front of the chateau is an open space of ground, with great capabilities of being converted into a handsome square; but at this season, a formidable barrier of bog-land is all that it presents to the bewildered pedestrian, who endeavours vainly to steer for the castle gate. On one side of it stands the protestant cathedral church, an unfinished building, much more than large enough for the congregation usually assembled in it. In style and arrangement it resembles a London parochial church, and has nothing about it reproachable with earthly beauty. There is a good organ, but mute for want of an organist; and as there is no choir, the heavy flatness of the service amply secures the English church from all danger of being crowded with the overflowings of its neighbour, the catholic cathedral, in which are still displayed, with no inconsiderable degree of splendour, the enticing ceremonies of the Roman worship. I was present at the service on Easter Sunday; a train of not less than fifty stoled priests and choristers surrounded the tapered altar; the bishop officiated inplenis pontificalibus, nor lacked the mitre, ‘precious and aurophrygiate;’ while the pealing organ, incense rolling from silver censers, and kneeling crowds thronging the triple aisles, presented a spectacle on which few are rigid enough, either in belief or unbelief, to look with absolute indifference. A lofty pile of gingerbread cakes, ornamented with tinsel, was carried to the bishop to receive his blessing, and a sprinkling of holy water, after which they were distributed among the people, who received them with most devout eagerness. These cakes I understood to be the pious offering of some devotee, more rich than wise, who certainly adopted a somewhat ludicrous expedient—

‘To bribe the rage of ill-requited heaven,’

with gingerbread.

Prescott Gate, Quebec.

View from the Citadel,Quebec.

“In catholic countries there are few public buildings, either for use or ornament, but are in some way connected with religion, and most frequently with charity. There are several charitable catholic institutions in Quebec: the principal of these is the Hôtel-Dieu, founded in 1637 by the Duchess d’Aiguillon, (sister to Cardinal Richelieu,) for the poor sick. The establishment consists of a superior and thirty-six nuns. The General Hospital is a similar institution, consisting of a superior and forty-three nuns, founded by St. Vallier, bishop of Quebec, in 1693, for “Poor Sick Mendicants.” It stands about a mile from the town, in a pleasant meadow, watered by the Charles. The style of building is simple, and well suited to the purposes of the establishment, consisting only of “such plain roofs as piety could raise.” The present superior is a lady of Irish extraction, her age apparently bordering on thirty. In this conventual seclusion, (devoted to what might well seem to the mind of a delicate female the most disgusting duties of humanity) she exhibits that easy elegance, and softened cheerfulness of manner, so often affected and rarely attained by the many votaries who dress their looks and carriage in “the glass of fashion.” She conducted us, with the greatest politeness, through every part of the building, which, as well as the “Hôtel Dieu,” in point of order, neatness, and arrangement, seems singularly adapted to the comfort and recovery of the unfortunate beings to whose reception they are consecrated. Their funds I understood to be small, and managed with strict economy. They receive a small sum annually from government, in addition to the revenue arising from their domain lands. There is no distinction in the admission of catholic or protestant; the hand of charity has spread a couch for each in his infirmities. Both houses have a small pharmacopœia in charge of a sister instructed in medicine. The several duties of tending the sick by night, cooking, &c. are distributed by rotation. Employment is thus equally secured to all, and the first evil of cankering thought effectually prevented. Good humour and contented cheerfulness seem to be no strangers to these “veiled votaresses;” seem! nay, perhaps are; for, without ascribing any miraculous effect to the devotion of a cloister, it is no unreasonable supposition, that in an establishment of this kind, the duties and occupations of which prevent seclusion “from stagnating into apathy, or thought from fretting itself into peevishness,” a greater degree of tranquillity, (and this is happiness,) may possibly be obtained, than commonly falls to the lot of those who drudge through the ordinary callings, or weary themselves with the common enjoyments of society. Grave men have doubted whether the purposes of these institutions might not be better answered by our common hospital establishments; and have even indulged themselves in a sneer at the idea of young men being attended in sickness by nuns! On the question, generally, it may be observed, that few (who have any knowledge of the system of common hospitals) can be at a loss to appreciate the difference betwixt the tender solicitude with which charity smooths, for conscience’ sake, the bed of suffering, and the heartless grudging attendance which hospital nurses usually inflict upon their victims. If the action of the mind produce a sensible effect on the frame, particularly in sickness, this is no immaterial circumstance in a medical point of view. Even when the hour of human aid is past, it is, perhaps, still something that the last earthly object should be a face of sympathy, and the last duties of humanity be paid with a semblance of affection. For those who dedicate themselves to this ministry, some apology may be urged to such as admit motives as, at least, an extenuating circumstance in the consideration of error. The moral critics, perhaps, who are foremost to condemn their practice as superstitious, revolt less from the superstition, than from the self-sacrifice it requires. Let the lash of satire fall mercilessly on mere bigots, wherever they are found: but against the spirit, which, abjuring the pleasures, devotes itself to the most painful duties of life, what argument can be directed which may not be left for its refutation to the prayers and blessings of the poor? The most objectionable part of the institution seems to be the committing of insane persons, of both sexes, to the charge of females: the answer is, that there is no other asylum for them; the blame therefore attaches to the police of the country; for it is evident, that women are very inadequate to the charge of such patients as require coercive treatment, particularly men.”

The Ursuline Convent, founded by Madame de la Peltrie, in 1639, for the education of female children, stands within the city. It has, both in its interior decoration, and the dress of its inhabitants, a greater appearance of wealth than the “General Hospital,” and “Hôtel Dieu.” Among the ornaments of the chapel, we were particularly directed to the skull and bones of a missionary, who had been murdered by the savages for attempting their conversion; it is perhaps doubtful, considering the general indifference of the Indians on matters of religious controversy, whether this was the real and sole offence by which he won the crown of martyrdom. These nuns have generally about 200 little girls under their care; but I was sorry to observe their education bought with their health—not one of them but had a pallid, sickly appearance, arising probably from much confinement, during a long winter, in an atmosphere highly heated with stoves, joined to the salt unwholesome diet, generally used by the Canadians.

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