A GLIMPSE OP CANADA, 
 
 lit 
 
 METER AUE2BACH, 
 
 Of New York. 
 
 
 V 
 
TO GO, OE NOT TO GO, THAT IS THE aUESTION. 
 
 (Shakespeare, slightly altered). 
 
 The time for wonders is past. We ou<;bt not to be 
 surprised, therefore, if a young member of a staid family 
 meets with a resolute resistance and a mountain of un- 
 answerable objections, when he tries to upset time honored 
 old notions by some novel and startling proposition. It 
 would, indeed, be something like a wonder, if it were not 
 so. The orthodox rule of the family circle reads: — 
 always do as your grandfather and the old folks in general 
 have done, and stand from under if any one tries to 
 inveigle you into new methods and new ways of doing 
 things. Certainly the laws of nature are supreme in the 
 family circle, as well as in every other part of creation : 
 and as the spirit of youth is far separated from the wis- 
 dom of old age, we cannot expect that in even the best 
 regulated household, folks twenty years of age will feel 
 and think like grandmothers and old aunts. 
 
 It was a case like this, which almost raised a storm of 
 indignation, surprise and fright within the lines of the 
 circle of which 1 liappen, since the first day of my appear- 
 ance in this treacherous world, to be a tolerably worthy 
 member. At least they often told me so while I went to 
 school, and they didn't fail to tell me so on many an 
 occasion since I left .-ichool. But, alas! Tiie day came 
 when I almost lost the whole prestige I had theretofore 
 been enjoying. 
 
 I gave way to a rather bold, revolutionary inclination, 
 and thereby shook the entire household to its foundation. 
 
1 will tell in the following story all about it, as a warn- 
 ing to all young men against trespassing upon well settled 
 rules and habits, and perhaps as an example of how easily 
 a persevering mind can in the end attain the object it is 
 striving for. 
 
 It vvas on a fine evening in August, that, to the no 
 small surprise and consternation of the folks at home, 1 
 made the announcement that I intended to participate in 
 a trip to Canada and the White Mountains, to be made 
 by a small party of excursionists. I was at once over- 
 whelmed with an avalanche of questions, as to who was 
 the originator of the idea; how many were expected to 
 go; whether 1 was personally acquainted with any per- 
 son in the party; when the excursion was to start, &c. 
 
 After having satisfactorily answered the foregoing que- 
 ries, grandmother Harriet, after settling herself firmly in 
 her chair, commenced the attack, by saying that she, for 
 one, did not at all approve of the idea of starting on a ten 
 days trip, without knowing the co-excursionists, or even 
 the projector of the tour; — that she was sure that the 
 v;hole plan was a barefaced swindle, as I would find to 
 my cost, as soon as I had paid my money. 
 
 Grandfatlier, as in duty bound, (it being here under- 
 stood that he is a great '• ladies man,") ably second el the 
 lemarks of his better half, supplementing his argument 
 by saying that when lie was a 3'outig man of my age, no 
 one would have risked going from New York to Phila- 
 delphia, much less on such a tour, with an unknown 
 number of strangers. 
 
 Father thought that the idea was a very good, but 
 not altogether new one, as such pleasure tours had been 
 greatly in vogue in Germany for some years past, and 
 had proved entirely successful. 
 
 He thought, too, that it would be highly beneficial for 
 me to see Quebec and Montreal, differing, a.s they did, so 
 greatly from our American cilies, in appearance and in- 
 habitants. • 
 
Mother was of the opinion tliat I would have more 
 real, unalloyed pleasure, if I adhered to my plan of spend- 
 ing the vacation quietly among the Catskiil Mountains, 
 instead of traveling about from place to place, which 
 must prove very tiresome and mayhap dangerous. 
 
 The boys and sister Alice were all of one mind, that 
 I ought not hesitate to take advantage of tlie splendid 
 opportunity now ofi'ered, which would probably not so 
 soon arise again, whereas I could go to the Catskills at 
 any time. Uncle Julius, quiet as usual, said nothing, 
 only interrupting the discussion for a moment, in order 
 to a.=;k what class of liotels we intended to patronize, and 
 whether Mr. Leve had made ample arrangements for the 
 acc-ommodation of so large a party. Each one having had 
 his oi her say, the matter was cut short by grandfather 
 saying, that, as I seemed determined to go, he would no 
 longer oppose my desire, but would wish me " God speed." 
 
 This opinion was finally coincided in by all, grand- 
 mother bi.'ing the last to succumb ; — and so it came about 
 that I went on the excursion. 
 
 CU AFTER I. 
 
 The departuro. — The sail up the Sound. — Arrival in Boston. — 
 Ascent of Bunker Hill monument. — A liistorical tree. — Mount 
 Auburn Cemetery. — A short Ocean voyage. — Portland, Me. — 
 A fine residence. 
 
 Leaving New York on Sunday, August 26th, 1877, on 
 the beautiful Fall River steamer Bristol^ we had a charm- 
 ing sail up the East Kiver past Blackwell's Island, Hell 
 Gate and Ward's Island, and thence through the pleasant 
 Long Island Sound to Newport, R. I. Before proceeding 
 to supper the members of the party were introduced to 
 one another; the party, besides Mr. Leve and myself, 
 then consisted of Mr, and Mrs. Riley and Mr. and Mrs, 
 
Hiiyderof Pliila<lel{»liia; Mr. ami Mrs. Gaftney and Mr. 
 Donnelly of New York City. 
 
 The supper was everything that could be desired, but 
 the company inclined to be fonnal. At about 10 P. M. 
 liaving enjoyed the promenade concert on the boat, the 
 entire party letired to their respective staterooms, I occu- 
 pying one in common with Mr. Leve. At about 2 A. M. 
 I was awakened by the rolling of the vessel and found 
 that we were just passing Point Judith. At 8 A. M. we 
 touched at Newport and stopped there about one hour 
 when I, together with many other passengers aro.«e, but 
 could see absolutely nothmg, on account of the fog which 
 quite suddenly enveloped the boat. It took the steamer 
 about two hours to reach Fall River, during which time 
 the steam fog whistle kept up a continuous screeching. 
 At Fall River we took the Old Colony R. R, and at pre- 
 cisely 7 A. M. reached the '' Hub of the Universe," Boston. 
 Elere hotel carriages awaited ns and we were driven to the 
 United States Hotel where the entire party enjoyed a first 
 class New England breakfa.s<^. Then a car ride of about 
 forty minutes brought us to Bunker Hill monument, 
 which was ascende(l by myself al( e, as several of the 
 party had been up before ami as the others did not feci 
 patriotic enough to venture the ascent. It proved quite 
 a task before I got to the bottom agoin; the number of 
 steps was 294 by actual count, and I venture to say that 
 very few persons would reach Heaven if it were only to 
 be reached by climbing up such steps. The labor was 
 richly repaid, however, by the magnificent view of Boston 
 and its environs obtained from the top; — the descent 
 proved, if anything, worse than the ascent, as a person is 
 very liable to make a misstep, on account of the shortness 
 of the steps. Afier I had safely completed tlie descent 
 and rejoined the party, we took the cars for Cambridge. 
 On the way we passed the Navy Yard and Harvard Col- 
 lege with its many outbuildings and dormitories and its 
 Campus. Next came a very old looking tree in the centre 
 
of the road, patched witli zinc or t.i» and bearing an in- 
 «cri|»tion, saying that it was tlie tree under winch Gen. 
 Wiisliington had first assumed cotiimand of the American 
 army. About twenty minutes ride further on and we 
 reached our goal, Mount Auburn C y. Over the 
 
 massive archway the following nr », iiew, butalwpvs 
 
 true text is inscribed : — " Man i. . of dust and to .i it 
 be sliall return." 
 
 We strolled through the grounds, which are artistically 
 laid out in flower beds and which in this tegjird vie with 
 anything seen in Horticultural Ihdl in Philadelphia dur- 
 ing the Centennial Exhibition. We only think of going, 
 as the bells in some neighboring church chime out the 
 twelve strokes reminding us that it is noon; we are all 
 sorry to leave, as we had been there only about an hour 
 and had not seen half the grounds. The Cemetery is 
 very large aud its tombstones, monuments and vaults are 
 very imposmg. We returned to the hotel by cars and on 
 the way passed through Washington and Tremont streets, 
 and had a fine side view of Boston Commons and of many 
 noble edifices. After partaking of dinner the ladies retired, 
 and ihe gentlemen separated and in parties of two and 
 three took shoit walks in the neighborhood of the hotel. 
 Mr. Leve, who had been absent looking after the excur- 
 sionists who were to meet us in Boston, now returned and 
 told us to make ready to start; at about 5.30 P. M. the 
 hotel coach drove up, we entered and were driven rapidly 
 to the wharf, where we embarked pn the steamer "Forest 
 Oity," for Portland, Me. 
 
 The peculiarities of the steamer of course were soon 
 the subjects of discussion, and we contrasted it with the 
 beautiful Bristol on which we had spent the preceding 
 night. It was small for an Ocean steamer, had narrow 
 cabins and a very perceptible smell of tar and pitch about 
 it, and the passengers were crowded off the forward deck, 
 in order to make room for six carriages ; — we also carried 
 quite a number of watermelons as freight. Punctually 
 
at seven o'eltwk we .st ii ted, in llic midst of a drizzlint^ 
 shower which juHt tlien coinnu'iiced, but which was not 
 heavy enongli to make us retire from the deck. When 
 •we were about half way down the harbor, the welcome 
 Hound of the supper bell was heard and we betook oursol ven 
 to the dining saloon, and w(Me there introduced to the 
 new-comers, who were:— Mr. and Mrs. Hastings and Mr. 
 and Mrs. Morgan, of Warren, Mass.; Mrs. .Marsh, Mr.-*. 
 Oliver and Mrs. l?isliop, of Lynn, Mass. 
 
 Once out of the harbor and fairly at sea, we split up 
 into small group.s and promenaded the deck, the rain 
 having entirely ceased. 
 
 We passed Lynn and Salem at about three miles 
 distance from shore, and then headed further out, .'^o as 
 to pa.ss the shoals of Cape Ann at a respectable distiince. 
 The ve.^sel now began to pitch and labor, although the 
 sea seemed very placid; — as it was about ten o'clock, and 
 as my stomach seemed to want a retired place ju-f at that 
 time, where it could say a word in private to old father 
 Neptune, I hurriedly bade the party good night and retir- 
 ed to my cabin. Here, after a few minutes battle with 
 my stomach for the mastery, in which I must confess that 
 I came out second best, I fell a.sleep, and did not awaken 
 until next morning, when I found the boat fast at the 
 Portland wharf. The company was soon gathered togeihtr 
 and we entered stages, which, after a ride of about ten 
 minutes, set us down at the Falmouth Hotel. Here we 
 partook of a substantial breakfast; and had time after- 
 wards, before the ladies were ready to accompany us on 
 a walk, to indite a short letter to the friends we had left 
 at home. 
 
 A short walk brought us to what is known as the West 
 Promenade, which is a very nice avenue on the limits of 
 the city, from which we were enabled to see the Saco 
 river and the suburbs of Portland. After resting in the 
 shade for a short time, we continued our stroll and passed 
 through the grounds of a Vjry rich land-owner named 
 
9 
 
 Jolin B. Brown. The grounds were besiuti fully laid out 
 in winding paths and flower beds, and the hot housen 
 contained twenty-five different varieties of grapes, some of 
 which were ripe and looked very lu.«cious and tempting. 
 From here we walked to the hotel, where the entire party 
 soon assembled. 
 
 Then we took the Portland & Ogdensburgh R. R. to 
 the White Mountains, passing through some very pictur- 
 esque valleys and forests, the latter of which were notice- 
 able chiefly for tlieir many fir and spruce trees, which 
 scented the air for many miles with tlieir peculiar per- 
 fume. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Arrival at North Conway.— Through Crawford Notch.— A bit of 
 history. — White Mountain Scenery. — Beeclier's Cttsciidc. — A 
 novel railway, — Trip »ip Mount Wa.shiiigton. — Vice President 
 Wheeler. — The Signal Service station. — A dog story. 
 
 At North Conway, which we reached at .'^.oO o'clock 
 P. M., and which is about one and ahulf hours' ride 
 from the Crawford House, we changed cai>', getting into 
 what are known as observation cars. 
 
 These cars are open on all sides, havitig no windows, 
 and are furnished with revolving cane chairs thus afford- 
 ing the passengers an unobstructed view on all sides. 
 The engine which was hitched on here was also heavier 
 and more powerful than tho.se commonly used, it having 
 to climb quite a steep incline before arriving at its desti- 
 nation ; — it at once strikes the beholder as sometliina: 
 extraordinary, as it haa six powerful drivi-ig wheels. 
 Continuing our journey up the mountiiins, we succes- 
 sively passed Mounts Kearsarge, Elephantis and Willard 
 .nnd obtained a distant view of Mt. Washington; — ^[t. 
 Elephantis is so named, because it presents a mcst perfect 
 picture of that animal in repose. We also passed the 
 
10 
 
 Devil's Cave, situated on Mt. Crawford, wliich we were 
 assured has an opening of fifty feet in width, but which 
 aperture, from the railroad level, looked no larger than 
 an ordinary plate. The radroad track is also a curiosity, 
 for it runs at the base of one mountain, which towers 
 thousands of feet above, while you can look down into 
 the valley just as far again; — this part of the mountain 
 is called " Crawford Notch." 
 
 Hero, ' Iso, thousands of feet below, it was barely pos- 
 sible for us to discern a two story and attic frame build- 
 ing, known as the •' Willey House," of which the foUovv- 
 ing interesting story is related: — 
 
 " In the year 1829 the house was inhabited by a family 
 
 "named Willey, who gained a livelihood by farming. 
 
 " One night they had retired to bed early, as was their 
 
 " wont, not dreaming of danger, when 'hey were startled 
 
 " by a loud, rumbling noise, whose significance they only 
 
 " too wl, I knew ; — it portended that terrible phenomenon, 
 
 "a 1 dslide. 
 
 , " They rushed out of tlieir dwelling, intending to get 
 
 ! " out of harm's way, and had gone only a short distance, 
 
 j '"when the moving mass of earth and stones overwhelmed 
 
 " them and they all miserably perished. The house, queer 
 "to say, vi'as not harmtid in the least." The path of the 
 slide was plainly marked on the side of the mountain. We 
 arrived at our hotel, the Crawford Uouse, at abouto o'clock 
 that afternoon ; it is prettily situated in a small valley, 
 from which there are otdy two outlets, and is hemmed 
 in on all sides by mountains ; the hotel was well patron- 
 ized, every room being engaged. Here, as indeed every- 
 where on our whole journey, we found quite a number 
 of New Yorkers. We had a very dne supper, one course 
 of which consisted of fried mountain trout, — small but 
 delicious. 
 
 Here we had an opportunity of seeing the full moon, 
 
 - _ _ slowly but surely, rise above the mountain top. After 
 
 a good night's rest, the party arose early, and a visit was 
 
11 
 
 made to '• lu'echer's Cascade," a pretty lid'ie waterfall, 
 found about onetliousaiid feet from the hotel. Here, when 
 in the mountains, the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, Brook- 
 lyn's famous pastor, is wont to pass his time, speculating 
 probably about " Man's Inhumanity to Mat),"' or, whiling 
 away his leisure hours by reading "Somebody Else's 
 Darling." 
 
 Then we again took seats in the cars, and after a half 
 hour's ride, we reached the Fabyan House, where ac- 
 cording to programme, wc were to dine. Although the 
 sun was shining brightly, the tops of the mountains were 
 shrouded in mist and fog, which sometimes lifted for a 
 moment. 
 
 Some one of the party proposed a trip to the top of 
 Mount Washington, and after consulting Mr. Leve whe- 
 ther we would thereby miss our connection, and being by 
 him informed that our proposed excursion would not in 
 tlie least interfere with his programme, furtlier than that 
 we would have to dine on the mountain top, instead of 
 at the Fabyan House, we, with the exception of two of 
 our party, made ready to go. A ten minutes ride in the 
 steam cars, and we found ourselves at the base of Mt. 
 Washington, where we changed cars. There were two 
 locomotives in waiting, each attached to one p is.seuger 
 coach. The locomotive was a queer looking machine and 
 seemed ready to fall to pieces; — it was attached behind our 
 car, and really pushed us up the mountain. The track, 
 also, was something unusual, having besides the two 
 outer rails a sort of cog-rail in the centre, in which a 
 small wheel in the locomotive worked, and which acted as 
 a very effective brake. This is made necessary by the 
 steep incline, and prevents the train from slipping down. 
 
 We started, and soon k-lt the valley far below us; — 
 about one-third of the way up v\e stopped for water, and 
 tlie gentlemen of the party took advantage of the oppor- 
 tunity to alight. We soon discovered tiiat we were in 
 the midst of a wild raspberry patch, which luckily, were 
 
12 
 
 just ripe and ready for picking. We continued gathering 
 them until the engineer blew the whistle as a signal for 
 starting. Some one now passed around, and asked for 
 our respective names, which appeared in print an hour 
 later, in a paper published on the summit, having the 
 pretentious title "Among the clouds." Scanning the 
 names on liis list, we found that Mr. Wheeler, Vice-Pres- 
 ident of the Unites States was in our car, and we soon 
 engaged him in conversatiun. lie was accompanied by 
 his sister, and another lady, and turned out to be a very 
 plain and unassuming gentleman, chatting uncoi strained ly 
 with our whole party. At Mr. Leve's suggestion I handed 
 liitn it programme of our trip, which seemed to inter- 
 est him greatly, as he asked many questions regarding it. 
 When about half way up tlie mountain, we obtained a 
 splendid view of the surrounding country, which was 
 soon sliut out, however, by the dense fog into which we 
 plunged, and which continued to the top. 
 
 Vegetation also grew scarcer, and gradually every shrub 
 disappeared, leaving nothing but mosses and the bare 
 rocks;— it also became quite cold, compelling the gentle- 
 men to closely button their overcoats, while the ladies 
 were glad enough to envelop themselves in their shawls 
 and capes. At last, after passing up " Jacob's Ladder," 
 which is the steepest partof tlie mountain, and on whieli 
 u rude pile of immense boulders alone marks the spot 
 where a young lady, named Lizzie Bourne, miserably 
 perished, by making a fatal misstep, the summit was 
 readied, 6400 feet above the level of the valley. We 
 enteied the Summit Hotel, a two story frame house, 
 which was anchored to the ground by two immense cables 
 and found a bright, open wood fire crackling cheerfully, 
 whose benefits we were not slow to enjoy. A visit lo 
 the United States Signal Observatory, situated about 
 thirty yards distant from the hotel, was next in order, 
 but, as the wind was blowing at the rate of forty miles 
 an hour, we — particularly the ladies, — had some difficulty 
 
18 
 
 in reaching it. It was a wooden house, one and a-half 
 stories in height, very solidly built, and having double 
 windows. In the okservation room, we found a very 
 pleasant officer in charge, who requested > to sign our 
 names in a book kept for that purpose, which when full 
 is pent to the Smithsonian Institute at Washington. 
 
 This duty perfornietl, the officer is ready and willing 
 to answer the many questions which various parties ask 
 him. 
 
 He showed us the inst ument by which the force of 
 the wind is measured, and informed us that at certain 
 times, when the wind blows ft the rate of eighty miles 
 an hour, or over, it is impossible to go out of doors; — 
 that at such a time it takes the full strength of two men 
 to hold the instrument out of the window for five minutes, 
 the time required to take an observation. 
 
 Although it was only the 29th of August, 1877, yet 
 he said that he had already laid in provisions enough to 
 last until June, 1878. Two men and a cat are the oidy 
 living things which remain on the mountain during the 
 winter, and once every month or so, one of them, (I mean 
 the men, not the cat) ventures down the mountain on 
 8now shoes, in order to bring up the mail, and it may 
 readily be imagined how lonely the other one feels during 
 his absence. In order to illustrate how completely they 
 were cut off from the outside world, he told us the fol- 
 lowing touching story : " Some years ago a friend of mine 
 *• presented a fine, healthy, New Foundland puppy 
 " to me, which was then six or seven weeks old. I took 
 '' it up to the signal station, where in the course of a few 
 " yt'ars it grew iip to be a mignificent and very strong 
 ** do<r. When I had owned it three vears or so, I, one 
 
 CD •/ ^ ' 
 
 ''day, had occasion to go down into the valley and took 
 " the dog along. It had probably never before seen a dog, 
 " as none ever came tQ the top of the mountain, and as 
 " this was the first time I had taken it into the valley. 
 " Very soon a large bull dog came along, and hardly bad 
 
14 
 
 " my dog seen it, when it fainted, and I am sorry to sny, 
 " never recovered from the shock." 
 
 Bidding the sergeant ailieu, we all started for the liotcl 
 in order to he in time for dinner, which consisted of a 
 great many hot dislics and therefore proved very accept- 
 able. Every one then bonght a copy of the paper " Among 
 the Clouds,'' which just then appeared in print, and they 
 looked happy as scon as they found their respective 
 names in i)rint. No view at all could be obtained from 
 the summit, which fact was deeply regretted by the whole 
 party. 
 
 The trip up the mountain had occupied 1? hours, 
 while it took us H hours to go down; — no steam was 
 used on the down trip, the train traveling by its own 
 momentum, its speed being regulated by the brakes before 
 described. This railroad, and the one on Mount Rigi in 
 the Alps, are the only two of the kind in the world, and 
 it is rt'ally surprising that man's ingenuity should so suc- 
 cessfully have accomplished such a great undertaking. 
 
 We returned to the Fabyan House at about two o'clock, 
 in good spirits and very W(.'ll pleased, regretting only that 
 the sun had not been powerful enough to dissolve the 
 fog and mist which encircled the top of the mountain, as 
 then we could have had a very extended view of the sur- 
 rounding countrv, as far as the Frunconiu mountains 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 St. Jolinsbury, Vt.— Its Public Library.— .\ lively parfy.— At. 
 Newport, Vt. — An excursion on Lake Memphremagog. — The 
 serenade and dance. — A new acces.sion to the party. — A ride on 
 a locomotive. — Ilichmond Junction. — A dusty journey. 
 
 At about 3 P. M., after having enjoyed a very fine prome- 
 nade concert at the hotel, we once again took the cars, our 
 aim this time being Newport, Vermont. Vfe passed 
 through some very fertile and beautiful valleys; — the 
 
15 
 
 mountains gradually became less liifrli and rugged, and 
 the country began to have a more inhabited appearance; — 
 at intervals of Irom ten to twenty miles we would pass 
 small liamlets and villages, every house therein being 
 built of wood. This is a great lumber region, wood being 
 worth about two dollars per cord and being the oidy 
 article used for fuel; — along tlie whole roadbed great 
 piles of wood were stacked, at which the train occasion- 
 ally halted in order to replenish its stock. At 7 P. M. we 
 reached St. Johnsbury, Yt, wbere we stopped over for 
 supper, and a first class one it proved to be. Then, as 
 we had about one hour's time \ye.iore the train would start, 
 we concluded to take a short walk. St. Johnsbury is a 
 well built, clean little town, and is the place where Gov- 
 ernor Fairbanks of Vermont has his famous scale works. 
 
 The hotel proprietor kindly sent a request to Governor 
 Fairbaidvs to open the public library and ait gallery for 
 us, we having come there on an evening when the same 
 was usually kept closed; — the keys soon arrived, and 
 the place was lit up by the janitor. 
 
 There was a goodly array of standard books on the 
 {shelves; the art ga'lery consisted of several hundi-ed 
 valuable oil paintings, and the building presented quite 
 u creditable appearance ; — we were afterwards informed 
 that Air. Fairbanks had presented the building, library 
 and art gallery to the town, on condition that everybody 
 should have fiee access thereto. AVe went soon thereafter 
 to the railroad stati(m, where we played many merry 
 praidvs on each other before the train arrived, to the no 
 small amusement of quite a number of persons who hap- 
 ])ened to be waiting there, and who really formed a ring 
 around our party and laughe<l heartily at our jokes; — 
 it was something unusual for them, and I doubt not but 
 they took us for a traveling theatrical troupe, or escaped 
 lunatics. 
 
 At about 9 P. M. we reached Newport, where many of 
 us found letters awaiting us, after reading which we re- 
 
16 
 
 tired, in order be up bright and early next morning. 
 
 We lodged in the Memphremagog House, which is 
 pleasantly situated on the very shores of the beautiful 
 lake of tlie same name. Next morning we were up with 
 the lark and in time to see the sun rise. After a very 
 substantial breakfast, part of which consisted of lake 
 trout, which is a very toothsome fish as we discovered, 
 we took a short walk through the principal street, and 
 and then climbed a hill situated just back of the place, 
 from which we had a very tine view of the lake, and tlie 
 town and its environs. 
 
 At about half past ten o'clock we, — together with a 
 lunch basket of no small proportions, — got aboard the 
 steam yacht Oracle, which had been specially chartered 
 for our party by our ever attentive manager, as soon as 
 he had beanl that The Lady of the Lake, the regular 
 excursion steamer, had been engaged for the da}' by a 
 pic nic party from Portland. 
 
 Before starting, an elderly lady and gentleman asked 
 and obtained permission to accompany us, and so well 
 were they pleased with our party and program, that, be- 
 fore :ne day was over, they expressed the intention of 
 joi'.iing the excursion party, which purpose they carried 
 out next day; — they were later on introduced to us as 
 Mr. and Mrs. Gridley, of Hartford, Ct. 
 
 After we had steamed about five miles, the captain 
 blew the whistle and informed us with great gravity, that 
 we were crossing the imaginary boundary line between 
 Canada and the United States, the lake lying partly in 
 Canada and partly in thq United States. There is an 
 island in this lake, upon which a frame house has been 
 built, one third of which house is situated on American 
 territory, the balance on British soil, and we were in all 
 seriousness informed by the captain that a restless man 
 who bad gone to sleep on the American side, had during 
 the night rolled over into Canada; — this, 1 believe, is the 
 only known instance of the happening of such anevent. 
 
17 
 
 We soon neared Mt Elephantis, which was a more or 
 less perfect picture of that animal, and reached Owl's 
 Head Mountain at about 1 p. M. ; we speedily found a 
 grassy spot, where we enjoyed our luncheon m true 
 picnic style. In the short space of ten minutes we also 
 disposed of a six pound lake trout, which was cooked for 
 us at the hotel at the foot of the mountain. The moun- 
 tain is 2,750 feet in height, witii very perpendicular, 
 thickly wooded sides, and although some one proposed 
 trying to ascend it, no one ventured the risky and labor- 
 ious feat Alter over an hour's rest we continued our 
 journey up the lake, which is a very fine sheet of water, 
 of great depth, and is thickly populated by lake trout 
 On its contines are many noble residences, notably tiiat 
 of Sir Hugh Allan, the proprietor of the Allan line of 
 European Steamers, who is reputeil to be the wealth- 
 iest man in Canada. We passed by Skinner's Cave, 
 formerly the haunt of a band of smugglers, the opening 
 of which cave presented a very dark and uninviting ap- 
 pearance; — we also saw Balance Rock, which is an im- 
 mense boulder, angular at one end, on which it rests as 
 on a pivot On the way back, amidst great cheering, we 
 were a overtaken and passed by The Lady of the Lake^ 
 which had a great complement of passengers aboard. In 
 the evening, the guests of the hotel were treated by the 
 visiting Portland Band, to a concert given in front of the 
 hotel by torchlight, after which we adjourned to the 
 parlor, where dancing was indulged in until a late hour, 
 thus ending one of the most enjoyable days of the trip. 
 
 Next morning we were compelled to arise quite early, 
 in order to be in readiness to get the Quebec train in 
 time, it leaving the depot at half past seven o'clock a. m. 
 
 After having proceeded a short distance, seven of the 
 members of our party, embracing four ladies and my- 
 self, gladly accepted an invitation extended by the (civil) 
 engineer of the train, to ride on the locomotive, as the 
 track from there on would for several miles run directly 
 
I 
 
 IS 
 
 ?■.■■-.-. ■■ ' . 
 
 along side of Lake MempVl-emagog, tliun affording us a 
 better view of seeing it. The ride on the locomotive 
 proved quite a novelty ; — the train seemed to fly over the 
 track ; indeed, it appeared to us that we were going twice 
 as fast as usual, hut the engineer assured us tliat we were 
 proceeding at the usual, regulation speed. The scenery 
 was indeed very beautiful and romantic, the sun shining 
 brightly on the water, thus showing tlie lake in all its 
 grandeur. After leaving the lake, we debouched into the 
 valley of tlie Massawippi, who.se pastoral scenery pre- 
 sented a strongly marked contrast to the country we had 
 just passed. 
 
 Soon we caught a glimpse of water through the trees, 
 the train rounded a sudden curve on the road and for six 
 miles we had the pleasure of riding on the confines of 
 Lnke Massawippi, whijh was, if possible, a more beauti- 
 ful sheet of water than Lake Memphremagng. 
 
 From here on we passed through a very nice tract of 
 country, until we reached Lennoxville, where we were to 
 make connection with the Grand Trunk Ilailway, which 
 was to carry us to Quebec. Heartily thanking the en- 
 gineer and fireman for the civilities sliown us, we present- 
 ed them with half a dozen Havana cigars apiece, and 
 left their train, after receiving a kind invitation to again 
 ride with them in case we should meet them on the way 
 back. The engineer was a young man about twenty- 
 five years of age, irom Vermont, who told us that he had 
 just been exonerated by a coroner's jury, he having some 
 weeks before accidentally run over and killed an old man. 
 (who was proved on the inquest to, have been quite deaf,) 
 while backing his train into the round-hou.se at Lennox- 
 ville, the man, of course, not hearing nor heeding the 
 warning whistles of the locomotive. The Grand Trunk 
 train was late, no unusual thing for it, as we were reliably 
 informed. It eventually arrived, and we continued our 
 journey, reaching Richmond Junction, a small village 
 and railroad centre, at noon. 
 
19 
 
 Here we got off and partook of a railroad dinner ul tlio 
 <lepot hotel. (By the term "a railroad dinner" must \w 
 understood a dinner ready on the arrival of a train, and 
 wliiclj is usually eaten with dispatch, on the well known 
 principle that time, tide and a railroad train wait for no 
 man — to finish his dinner). As we were informed that 
 we had an hour to wait, the party scattered in various 
 directions, I going with Mr. and Mrs. Gaffney to the vil- 
 lage chuioh, which we entered, it being like all Catholic 
 churches always open. 
 
 It was a very poor, tumble down looking structure, 
 with a capacity for seating about one hundred persons, 
 and contained nothing but rude, wooden benchei and 
 some oil paintings. 
 
 The people in that section must be very poor indeed, 
 as we found tliat thechurclies in the other parts of Canada 
 which we visited, were nicely built and profusely deco- 
 rated. 
 
 Passing on, we came to a hill, descending which we 
 found ourselves in anotlier village, smaller and meaner 
 looking tiian the first Here we determined to have some 
 amusement, and, calling several boys, — all bare headed, 
 bare-footed, sturdy looking lads, — we started them on a 
 race up the hill, promising the winners of the race money 
 prizes, which they earned and gladly took. By the time 
 we reached the brow of the hill, there was quite a gather- 
 ing of boys, and we were forced in all fairness to inau- 
 gurate a race for them, which, to both our and their 
 surprise, resulted in a victory for one whom they did not 
 seem to fear as an antagonist, and who had only consented 
 to participate in the race at the urgent solicitation of his 
 sister, who had naively told me " I think Charley can 
 run." One of the boys in this race rejected an American 
 nickel five cent piece, saying that he could not pass it in 
 Canada. 
 
 We re^iched the depot only to find the whole party 
 already seated in a train, which backed out before we- 
 
20 
 
 could get aboard, leaving us under the impression that 
 we had been lift behind. It speedily returned on another 
 track, we jumped on, and were soon whizzing on towards 
 Quebec. We passed a great many small atreams, on 
 nearly all of which lumber mills were situated. The ride 
 from Richmond Junction to Point Levi, was terrible ; — 
 the dust was raised in perfect clouds, enveloping the 
 train, and making us look like a party of coal miners on 
 our arrival at the latter place at about 4 P. M. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 I'oint Levi.— Quclwc— A short stroll.— On board the etctimer 
 Union.— Down the St. Lawrence lliver.— Places of interest. — 
 Ha Ha Buy. — A morning ride and its consequences. — Down 
 the Sagucnay River.— Cape Eternity.— Tadousac. — An old 
 Church. — A .salmon-breeding establishment. — A royal salute. — 
 Riviere du Loup. — Murray Bay. 
 
 At Point Levi, which, by the way, is to Quebec what 
 Brooklyn is to I^evv York, we took our way to a ferry- 
 boat, and were soon being carried across the St. Lawrence 
 river. • ■■; 
 
 On the trip across we passed several English frigates, 
 and a ram "♦ anclior; — saw the Plains of Abraham, and 
 a black tablet, with gilt letters, half way up the face of 
 rock fronting the river, showing the place where brave 
 Gen. Montgomery fell, in his desperate attack on the city. 
 Landing at the pier, at the foot of *' Break-neck Stairs," 
 (and they seem to have been rightly named), we took seats 
 in a hotel-bus, which was then driven up the winding 
 and steep streets ; — we soon reached " Ilotel St Louis," 
 where we gladly alighted. The St. Louis Hotel has the 
 reputation of being the best in Quebec, and is situated 
 directly opposite a one and a-half story brick cottage, 
 which stands a little further back than the other houses 
 in the street, and which is the house where Montgomery 
 
)1 
 
 had his headquarters. After changing our attire, and 
 aubinitting our dnst-begrimed countenances to the action 
 of soap and clean water, with highly beneficial results, 
 we took a short ramble through the neighboring streets 
 and tiie Governor's Garden, which latter is an open park, 
 aboMt two blocks square, directly facing the river; it is not 
 nicely laid out, and contains nothing of special interest, 
 save an unpretentious monument to the memory of gen- 
 erals Wolfe and Montcalm;— the monument consists of a 
 plain column of some brown stone, with the names of 
 Wolfe and Montcalm hewn therein, while on the reverse 
 appears an appropriate latin inscription. On our return 
 to tlie hotel supper was served by English waiters;— all 
 the other attaches of the hotel, including the call boys, 
 were Englishmen, with quite an unmi3taka1)le British 
 accent. All the dishes were nicely cooked, but we sadly 
 missed the fresh fruits, which are found in such profu- 
 sion in all our first class hotels. Musk melons, — known 
 also as cantelopes, — and blue berries, (a large variety of 
 the huckleberry,) were the only fruits and berries which 
 we could obtain. 
 
 Mr. Leve here bade us adieu, promising to meet us 
 again on our airival p.t Montreal. He also introduced 
 us to his agent, Mr. Beck, who was to conduct us until 
 Mr. Leve's i-eturn ; Mr. Beck was accompanied by his 
 wife, and a little girl named Effie, about seven years of 
 age- 
 After a good night's rest, we next morning assembled 
 in the parlor, and were then driven down to the pier, 
 ■where we went aboard the steamer Union^ which was 
 there made fast Punctually at half past seven they 
 cast tlie lines loose that bound the steamer to the dock, 
 and we commenced what turned out to be one of the 
 most charming water tours, which any of our party had 
 ever participated in. The steamer was a double-decker, 
 with very large and roomy saloons and cabins, which 
 were handsomely fitted up. Each cabin had an upper 
 
22 
 
 and a lower berth, wliicli were provided with heavy wooTei J 
 coverletg, which are a necessity in that clitnate; — two 
 cork life preservers were also prominently hung up in 
 every cabin. 
 
 The stviamer, af indeed all steamers and ferry lx»jits in 
 Canada, burned wood and noft coal, and emitted a dense 
 black smoke, which in the night, however looked very 
 pretty, as it was then seen to be interspersed with 
 myriads of brilliant sparks. By this time we were pro- 
 ceeding swiftly down the St. Lawrence river, which \n 
 about one and a-half miles wi<le at Quebec; it soon 
 widens, however, and the steamer passes the " Isle of 
 Orleans," which is about twenty miles in length and alto- 
 gether a very beautiful spot Arriving at the eastern 
 end of the island, we found that the St. Lawrence had 
 attained a width of about six miles; that the mountains, 
 which are very steep and rugged, came to the very water's 
 edge; and that we were keeping very near the north 
 shore. After running in this way until noon, the steamer 
 made its first landing, at Murray Bay. This is a very fash- 
 ionable watering place, visitors coming here annually 
 in great numbers; during the summer months several 
 indian tribes make it their headquarters, doing a very 
 brisk trade in selling indian work and curiosities. 
 
 Quite a number of pas.sengers here left the vessel, and, 
 after taking on board an immense quantity of wood, the 
 steamer again proceeded on its journey, passing the Pil- 
 grim Islands and reaching Riviere du Loup at about four 
 o'clock. 
 
 This is a very nice little settlement, ])rettily situated 
 at the foot of a mountain; from here to Cacouna, the 
 most fashionable and best patronized watering resort in 
 all Canada, is a distance of only seven miles. After a 
 stop of two hours, during which several members of our 
 party mude a flying visit to the indian village here 
 situuted, we again got under way and beaded direct for 
 Tadousac. Night soon came upon us, and supper was 
 
servcil. coiKsidtiii!^ in part of fried sahnorj trout, which fishes 
 lire cauglit i'l this region in itninen.se numbers. This 
 ineul, as well as all subsequent ones on boanl, was a 
 creil'.t to the younj,' french cook, who presided over the 
 culinary department, and it presented a very decided con- 
 trast to the English style of cooking, at Quebec and Mon- 
 treal. The captain, pilot, cook, steward and sailors were 
 all Frenchmen, and I considered myself exo'cedingly 
 lucky in being able to secure the services of a bright, 
 little, Irish waiter boy named Willie; indeed I feur I 
 should otherwise have fared very badly, as my knowledge 
 of the French language, I must confess, is very circum* 
 scribed. I was not the only one in this position, how- 
 ever; one of the Philadelphians, (charity compels me to 
 vvithliuld his liame,) who did not know how to speak one 
 word of French, and who, trutii to say, was blessed with 
 a keen and hearty appetite, had a French waiter assigned 
 to him. He, of course, failed to acquaint him with his 
 wants and desires, and therefore grew quite jealous of the 
 many little att-ntions shown me by my waiter, and finally 
 accused me ol having used unfair means in capturing my 
 waiter; whereas, all that I had done was to fee the waiter, 
 which certainly was not unfair, as he could as easilv have 
 out'yjV/, as he outate me; — however, 1 magnanimously 
 loaned the boy to him at several critical times. 
 
 Tadousac, where the Governor General of Canada and 
 other prominent citizens, have their summer residences, 
 is situated at the confluence of the St. Lawrence and 
 Saguenay rivers, and was reached at eight o'clock that 
 evening. 
 
 Several members of our party, myself included, went 
 «shore, but after a short walk we were glad enough to 
 return to the boat, as the pathway to the hotel, which 
 latter we had started out to see, was composed of wooden 
 planks, which could not well be seen on such a dark and 
 cloudy night, and as the effects of a misstep might have 
 had very serious consequences to persons not acquainted 
 
24 
 
 with the road. At about 11 p. m., those on boar^ the 
 boat who had not retired to either Morpheus' or some- 
 body else's arnns, were treated to a very fine exliibition 
 of Aurora Bm-ealis, more famih'arly known as Northern 
 Lights. Next morning on awakening, we seemed sud- 
 denly to have been transported to fairy-land. The steamer 
 was found to be in Ila Ha Bay, a beautiful sheet of water, 
 land-locked on every side but one, and surrounded by 
 some very tall hills. Several teamsters drove their horees 
 down to the water's edge to drink, and informed us that 
 the water was sweet but had a slightly brackish taste. In 
 the near distance could be seen ;he lumbering village of 
 Saint Alphonse. Going ashore, Mr. Gaffney, his wife 
 and I entered one of the inevitable caleches or one horse 
 wagons, which are in general use all over Canada, while 
 Mr. Snyder and wife and Mr. liiley took possession of 
 the only remaining one ; — after agreeing upon a price 
 with the drivers, we started at a brisk trot for the vil- 
 lage. It was a glorious Sunday morning; — the blue sky 
 was unflecked by white, and tlie air was cool and brac- 
 ing; — just the morning, in fact, to thoroughly enjoy a 
 fast drive. And fast we went; — for before we were 
 really aware of it, we found that the oth»'r carria<ie was 
 close behind us the occupants thereof being evidently 
 desirous of trying the go-ahead qualities of our respective 
 horses. 
 
 We not being at all averse, the result was a race. The 
 race did not turn out as enjoyable as we had anticipated ; 
 it was not the fault of tlie drivers or horses, for they both 
 did their very best The thing which spoiled the fun, 
 was, first : — the hilly naiure of the country, and second : — 
 the mud through which the horses had to go ; for it was 
 no macadamized road on which we w^ere driving. The 
 mud was thrown back, in great, black masses, mercilessly 
 bespattering us; — where there was no mud, the wagons 
 jolted so over the rough road, that it made us wish we 
 had some softer substance than a hard pine board, utterly 
 
devoid of cushion or covering, in such close proximity to 
 a certain sensitive portion of our anatomy. » 
 
 However, as all things must have an end, so did this 
 race, as our horse unluckily ran slap up against the village 
 church. Here we stopped to repair damages, and to re- 
 turn some of dirt, — which had lodged in our eye, faces 
 and clotlies, — to its native heath. We then drove to the 
 salmon fall.s, situated three miles furtlier inland, and had 
 the pleasure of meeting the two Warren couples on the 
 way. 
 
 Most of the houses along the road were wooden dwel- 
 lings with thatched roofs, and all looked very clean. In 
 front of many of the houses we often .saw something 
 closely resembling a beehive in shape, but much larger; 
 on asking our driver he told us they were the ovens 
 wherein the people cooked their food; — they were, in 
 fact, veritable mud ovens, formed of clay or baked earth. 
 We also passed a tobacco field in bloom, one of the plants 
 being crowned with an immense red flower. We also 
 pas.sed many cows, which were lean, poor looking crea- 
 tures, that seemed to climb the rocky hills with as much 
 easD as our goats would. 
 
 At last we reached the falls, where we alighted and 
 found a river about lOJ feet wide, which was dammed at 
 this place, the dam being about twelve feet in height. 
 (This is no great height for a djim, as I have heard very 
 respectable peoj)le damn a good deal higher than that.) 
 However, not a salmon was to be seen, watch as we would, 
 ajjd we were ut last forced to return, consoled by the in- 
 formation imparted by our drivers, that the salmon did 
 actually leap up the dam, but that this wis not the season 
 for their indulging in such gymnastical feats. This in- 
 formation could of course, not have been given us before 
 we had ridden an hour to get there. 
 
 We reached the steamer in time for breakflist, having 
 thoroughly enjoyed our drive, which bad occupied just 
 two houis. , ^^,_,, .^,^ ^^ ^^„,^ ^_^ ^__ ^,^^^ ,^^^,^ ,.,^^„ ^^ 
 
26 
 
 '■ Tlie time soon arriveil for tlie steamer to start ; Uk' 
 lines were cast off, and, amid the hurrahing of the vil- 
 lagei-s, \ ho had assembled on the bulkhead to see us off, 
 we began our return voyage. 
 
 As we had passed up the Snguenay river at night, 
 when asleep, we of course had not seen any of the scenery 
 along its banks, of which we had heard such wounderful 
 tales; consequently we were now all on the qui v/'ve, as- 
 sembled on the forward deck and ready to be astonished. 
 The hills along the river-bank gradually grew higher and 
 more precipitous, until they were really mountains; tho 
 river itself also became perceptibly wider. — The clima?: 
 was reached however, when we came to Trinity I>ay; — 
 the river here was about three miles wide, but was flanked 
 by such high mountains, that it seemed barely one mile 
 in width. — The steamer's prow was here turned in-shorc, 
 and we soon found ourselves under Cape Eternity, u 
 mountain 1900 feet high, perpendicular in its entire 
 length and overhanging the water, so that to us it seemed 
 as though it might topple over at any moment and crush 
 our boat. — Some wag had painted a life-like, full-length 
 caricature of the Fenian G.^neral O'Neill at its base, thus 
 creating a happy effect by combining the sublime with the 
 ridiculous. — The water at the foot of the mountain is 
 8600 feet in depth, making the actual height of this moun- 
 tain S.'jOO feet — After sounding several sharp whistles, 
 the echo of which kept reverberating back to us for 
 minutes afterwards, we resumed the trip, soon passing 
 Profile mountain, which as we approached nearer and 
 nearer, presented every moment a more distinct, clear 
 cut and perfect outline of a man's head of immense pro- 
 portions. The whole trip down this river was very im- 
 pressive, the scenery being so very. wild and the Water so 
 very deep.' . • ■ :. . - •-.;:■•. . . •<■ . -/^ 
 
 Tadousac was again reached at about 1 p. M., and here; 
 in company with the ship's captain, the whole party went 
 ashore. After a walk of about ten minutes we arrived 
 
21 
 
 at Tadousac Hotel ; from its porch we had a splendid 
 view of the bay and of tlie Sagueiiay and St. Lawrence 
 rivers, which here commingle their waters. 
 
 We then went to the churcli, a simple, wooden struc- 
 ture, unpainted and looking very old, with loom for 
 about 200 persons. We were assured that this was the 
 oldest church in Canada, and I actually believe that it 
 was; — several members of our party cut off small pieces 
 of wood from the door posts, to take home as relics. 
 
 From here we walked to the salmon breeding establish- 
 ment, which is unique in its way ; — there is a pon<l, some 
 200 feet square, situated thirty feet or so below the level 
 of the road, in which we could see tlie fish, which were 
 from i^ to 2^ feet in length, disporting in the clear water, 
 and occasionally leaping out of it twice their length. At 
 the entrance bordering on the river, a strong rope net work 
 was fastened, reaching about twelve feet above the water, 
 thus allowing a continual flow of fresh water from the 
 river. We were told that at high tide the salmon some- 
 times leap over this net and escape; — this seemed to us 
 not at all incredible, as we saw what great leaping powers 
 these fish had. In a room in the establishment were im- 
 mense troughs, separated from each other by fine wii'e net- 
 ting; in these throughs were young salmon in various 
 stages of development; — a constant flow of pure water 
 passed through the tanks. At tiiree o'clock we continued 
 our voyage, being saluted by a small brass fitild-piece as we 
 passed the Tadous.ic hotel, which compliment we returned 
 by running in-shore, dipping our flag, waving our hand- 
 kerchiefs and hurrahing. Sone one in the party here re- 
 marked that he was always ready to go in to get a salute, 
 at which there was a general langli. ;. .r 
 
 Shortly after 5 P. M. we touched at Riviere du Loup, 
 where some took a carriage for Cacouna; while others 
 went to the indian village; still others, myself included, 
 fishing off the dock. I had fisherman's luck, not being 
 able to land a single fish, while the others were more or 
 
28 
 
 less successful ; — this ill luck must be ascribed partly to 
 lack of skill, partly to lack of point, for, in this latter 
 particular, my solitary hook was wofully deficient; — con- 
 sequently the fishes couldn't see it. 
 
 At ten o'clock that evening we arrived at Murray Bay. 
 The captain, after attending to some necessary duties, 
 accompanied us ashore to the indian settlement; — here he 
 unceremoniously entered the first iiandy hut, aroused the 
 inmates and asked them to show us the goods which 
 they had for sale. The hut was constructed of logs, not 
 closely put together, leaving large unfilled space through 
 which the wind would have had free entrance, had the 
 inner side not been lined with bark. 
 
 The hut was divided into two compartments by a calico 
 curtain, behind which we could hear the occupants, who 
 had been roused from their sleep by the captain, arrang- 
 ing their toilets. 
 
 Tliey soon appered; — he, a common looking indian, 
 but whiter than the traditional red men usually are ; — she, 
 a good-looking, smiling indian squaw, with her hair hang- 
 ing down her back en ymturel ; — in the back-ground we 
 could discover the eyes of some inquisitive child, watch- 
 ing us from behind the curtain. 
 
 They offered us bead-work, baskets and straw and 
 wooden-hats for ladies' wear ; these latter cost only two 
 dollars apiece, and weighed about a pound and a-half. 
 
 Returning on board the boat, we soon retired, and 
 in the morning on arising, found that were about twenty 
 miles from Quebec and jusi passing abreast of the Isle of 
 Orleans. Quebec was reached at about half past seven 
 A. M., and we were at once driven to the St. Louis Hotel, 
 where breakfast was served. -■ ^ = • "", ■ • 
 
 
 ■I'.- >... 
 
 -.-•*■• . ,.* -.i. , ,^>s. 
 
20 
 " CHAPTER V. '' 
 
 iiTieljCC. — An interesting drive through the City. — Off for Montreal, 
 — A long race. — The French and English Cathedrals. — Mount- 
 ain Park. — The Grey Nun convent. — Return to Newport. — A 
 little business matter. — The Journey to Boston. — The party 
 breaking up. — Back to New York.— Farewell. 
 
 As a light, drizzling rain now set in, it was agreed that 
 we would dispense with the visit to Montmorency Falls, 
 which we had intended to make had the weather been fair. 
 Carriages were called into requisition, and we drove first 
 through St. Peter's Gate, — the only gate now extant in 
 Quebec,— to the fortress. At the entrance we were stopped 
 by a sentinel, who desired to know our business ; — he then 
 turned us over to the guard, one member of which was 
 detailed to accompany every four person. We were shown 
 the grand -battery, the great guns, the officers' quarters, the 
 parade and play grounds; — the latter consisted of a level 
 piece of rocky ground, at one side of which was erected a 
 brick wall thirty feet high and forty feet wide; — here the 
 .soldiers, when not on duty, are accustomed to play a game 
 of ball, familiarly known to every boy by the designa- 
 tion " hou.<e ball." 
 
 From the battlements we enjoyed a magnificent view 
 down the St. Lawrence river, and of Point Levi, directly 
 opposite. From here we were diiven to the Governor's 
 Garden ; thence to the Wolfe-Montcalm monument, which 
 is erected on the only elevated spot on the plains of 
 Abraham ; — the Champs de Mars was next seen and then 
 came the ride through the city proper. The buildings 
 were chiefly two-story stone structures, built in a very 
 unpretentious style, but evidently meant to last; — we saw 
 many houses which had been erected in the scven'eenth 
 century, and which were still as solid and well-built as if 
 they liad been put up butyi^-f^erday ; some others were in 
 a tumble down condition, u. I no effoi-ts seemed to have 
 been taken by anyone to repair the damage.^?. This state 
 
so 
 
 of art'airs seemed to be very prevalent there, as even (he 
 
 outer walls of the fort had partially fallen down, and no 
 
 attempt was being made by the government to repair the 
 
 bread). 
 
 The streets are narrow, winding, short and steep, and 
 
 a stranger is apt, on starting to see a certain place, to 
 find himself at the point of departure after a five minutes 
 ■walk. The last place where we stopped was the French 
 Cathedral, the oldest church in Canada, as we were told. 
 It was a very nice building, built of some greyisli kind 
 of stone, and had a large number of fine oil-paintings 
 decorating its interior; there was nothing very imposing 
 about it, however, most of the larger churches in New 
 York City excelling it in architectural beauty and in 
 their inner arrangement. From here we drove back to 
 the hotel, the ride having occupied about two and ahalf 
 hours. At noon the rain stopped as suddenly as it had 
 commenced, and the party sallied forth on a sliopping 
 expedition, each one bent on buying the most curious 
 curiosity, wherewith to astonish the friends at home; a 
 good many useful articles were also purchased, such as 
 seal-skin caps, sacques, muffs and purses, moccasin slip- 
 pers and clothes. 
 
 At 5 o'clock P. M., we embarked on the steamer Jlon- 
 trcal, bound for the city of like name ; — a brass band was 
 at the pier to see us off, which played some lively French 
 airs ; as we receded from the dock the music grew fainte r 
 and more indistinct, and was finally entirely lost in tie 
 distance, but we could see that the musicians were still 
 doing their best at their instruments. 
 
 When once fully started, we soon lef tthe city far be- 
 hind, as we had the tide in our favor, which at this point 
 runs at the rate of twenty miles an hour. 
 
 An '• Allan line" ocean steamer kept abreast of the 
 steamer until late that night, affording us a good chance 
 to observe the relative speed of a side wheel steamer 
 
burning wood, and a steamsliip driven by a screw and 
 burning coal. 
 
 ' We found tliat Iney were pretty evenly matched, as 
 the steamship did not gain on our steamer more than 
 two hundred yards in a contest lasting several houis. 
 
 Next morning we awoke in time to find that we were 
 just about to reach Montreal ; the houses along the shore, 
 which were at first far apart, gradually grew in numbera, 
 until at last we could see the buiit up blocks and the 
 church spires; — right aliead of us, spanning the river, 
 was the world renowned Victoria Bridge. 
 
 AVe landed at one of the beautiful, solid, stone docks 
 which project into the river in every direction, and were 
 rapidly driven to the Ottawa Hotel on St. James street, 
 Svherc we partook of a fine English breakfast. Carriagea 
 were then ordered and drove up soon after; — there were 
 five large barouches, accommodating four persons each 
 insi le, with room for another per.-^on next to the driver. 
 We first drove down St. James street, with its many mas- 
 sive business houses lining the way; — past the old and 
 the new post-offices, the court house and several immense 
 bank buildings, which latter looked more like palaces 
 than anything else ; then past the Place d'Anns to the 
 French Cathedral. • ' ' • ' • 
 
 Here we made a halt and the entire party entered ; — the 
 building which is capable of holding at least ten thousand 
 persons, was beautifully but gaudily frescoed and painted, 
 and altogether presented a very striking appearance. 
 There were a great number of pillars, painted so as to 
 closely resemble veined marble of different colors; — 
 many well executed and very valuable oil paintings 
 graced the walls, aud there were at least eight altars of 
 various sizes, but all very costly structures in the build- 
 ding. We all came to the conclusion that it was impos-. 
 sible that any-thing could exceed the cathedral in beauty, 
 but before the day was out we had to confess that human- 
 ity in general, and we in particular, were liable to make 
 
mistake. We next <lro"e past the monuraent erected t(> 
 the memory of tliat great naval hero, Lord Nelson ; — then 
 aroujid the Bonsecours Market, a two story stone struc- 
 ture, occupying just one whole block and situated on the 
 street fronting the river. An immense traffic is carried 
 on here, and the streotsj were made nearly impassable bv 
 the many vehicles stopping there. Just around the coi*- 
 ner, and we came to what our driver informed us was the 
 oldest church in Canada. (We thought we had seen the 
 oldest Canadian Church at Tadousac, and then again in 
 Quebec, but must have l>een mistaken.) We did not 
 stop here, as the street was crowded with vehicles of all 
 descriptions, but drove on, past the Champs de Mars and 
 the Hotel de Louvre, to the English <^athedral. This 
 building does not by its outward appearance impress the 
 beholder as favorably as the PVench Cathedral, but once 
 inside, and it is seen to be infinitely superior to the latter. 
 It was not quite as large, nor as rich in fresco-painting 
 or colors, but was much prettier notwithstanding. All 
 over the ceiling, but noticeal)ly at the top of the upright 
 pillars supporting the dome, were statues of exquisite lines, 
 representing various epochs and incidents in biblical 
 history: — the main altar was made of marble and pre- 
 sented a very rich and massive appearance;— there were 
 not quite as many side-altars as in the other cathedral, 
 nor were there any oil paintings, but this want was more 
 than connterbalancod by innumerable statues and b<i8- 
 reliefs. We were loin to leave this building, but as time 
 pressed we again entered our carrisiges and were driven 
 to the outskirts of the city, where the new city park, — 
 called Mountain park, was in process of completion ; — it 
 is in reality a mountain drive. By a circuitous patii we 
 reached tlie summit, 680 feet above the level of the city, 
 and enjoyed a magnificent birds-eye view of Montreal. 
 The first thing to strike the eye were the Lachine Rapids, 
 which could easily be discerned by thenaked eye, although 
 Beveral miles away. We also saw Victoria bridge, over 
 
88 
 
 tMTo miles long, completely spanning tlie St Ljiwrence 
 river; — then came the many olmrclies of the city and 
 the convents and reservoir, while in the distance could 
 be seen the Adirondack intl Fianconia mountain ranges. 
 Descending by another drive, we reached the bottom in 
 about half an hour, and were ready to coincide witii the 
 prophetic remark of our driver, that when the Mountain 
 Park is once fully laid out and finished, it will l)e the 
 fasliionable drive of the city. The carriages were now 
 taken through Montreal's most aristocra'ic streets, which 
 were lined with really eleoiant mansions, the most costly 
 of which, queer to say, are all the residences of rich slioe- 
 makers. Sherbrooke street is the Fifth Avenue of Mon- 
 treal, and is macadamized like the hovlevard drives in 
 New York City. AVe next stopped at the ''Convent of 
 the Grey Nuns," and were conducted through the entire 
 building, by two of the sisters. 
 
 As it was just 12 o'clock, we were first taken to the 
 chapel, and had hardly take' lie seats assigned us, when 
 about 100 nuns filed in, two by two, who kneeling in the 
 centre aisle, counted their beads and recited the noon- 
 day prayers. When this highly interesting ceremony 
 was over. We were led to the school-room, nursery, kit<;hen 
 and sleeping department, which were all kept scrupu- 
 lously neat and clean. 
 
 The inmates of the convent evidently believe in the 
 saying that "cleaidiness is akin to godliness." 
 
 We then proceeded to the workshops, where many a 
 trifle was bought by our party. Leaving this buihling, 
 we were rapidly driven past the Victona Monument to 
 the hotel, and found that the ride had occupied just four 
 hours. Mr. Leve here rejoined us, while we were seated 
 at the dinner table, and his appearance was gladly wel- 
 comed by the party. A short walk was then taken 
 through the neifjhboring streets, for the purpose of pur- 
 chasing various articles which the ladies fancied. 
 
 W^e then entered the hotel carriage, and were set down 
 
84 
 
 ut the railroad station, yihere further progrops was barred 
 by a strong gate, guarded by ('ustom House officials, 
 who were busy examining the many trunks, valises and 
 other packages belonging to the would-be passengers, for 
 contraband articles. As it wanted only five minutes of 
 the schedule starting time of the train, Mr. Leve made 
 an arrangement with the officers to examine our baggage 
 on the train, while on the way to Newport, and we there- 
 upon all entered one of the fine palace cars attached to 
 the train. This had been engaged forusby our attentive 
 guide, who had notice<l that the party would otherwise 
 have had to occupy seats in several cars, thus scattering 
 the company. About ten minutes after starting, the 
 train perceptibly slackened speed, and those who were 
 riding on the platforms were warned by the conductor of 
 the train to get into the cars ; — the porter carefully fast- 
 ened all the windows and shut the doors, and in another 
 minute we Ibund ourselves on the Victoria Bri<lge, cross- 
 ing the St. Lawrence River. This is an iron bridge, sev- 
 eral miles in length, and is covered, both on the top and 
 sides, by a wall of iron. Every 100 yards or so, there 
 is a large opening in the top of this iron cover, designed 
 for the admission of light and air, for both of which pur- 
 poses, however, these openings are totally inadequate 
 Tlie air in the curs grew hotter and hotter, and we per- 
 ceived that the object of the considerate porter in closing 
 the doors and windows, was to prevent us from being 
 roasted alive ; — it was quite a relief to us when we 
 emerged from this furnace, and could throw open the 
 windows and breathe the fresh air of heaven. Notwith- 
 standing all this, it must be conceded that it is an im- 
 mensely long bridge, and quite an engineering feat in 
 its way. 
 
 After passing through a very fertile tract of country, 
 and enjoying the farce of having our baggage searched 
 for dutiable goods, we, at about 8 o'clock, reached New 
 Port. 
 
85 
 
 Aflcr pnrtakinji^ of a htiuntiful supper, and while the 
 kdiea, by pervious arrangement, engaged Mr. Leve in 
 the parlor, tlie gentlemen adjourned to the reading room 
 for the purpose of preparing resolutions, expres>ing tlie 
 gratitude of our party towards our amiable guide, Mr. 
 Leve. Dr. Hustings was unanimously elected chairman, 
 wliile the secretaryship was conferred upon me, and the 
 following resolutions, obtaining the approbation of the 
 entire company, were finally agreed upon, signeil, and by 
 the cliairman presented to Mr. Leve, who, in a short 
 s|)eecli, thankfully accepted the same. 
 
 The resolutions were as follows : — 
 
 Mkmphremagoo House, 
 
 Newport, Vt., Sept. 5, 1877. 
 
 At a meeting of the members of Leve's Grand Ameri- 
 can E.xcursion Party, the following resolutions were 
 passed : 
 
 Whereas, the undersigned, members of a party re- 
 turning from a visit to the White Moiintain.s, Lake 
 Memphremagog, Quebec, Montreal, St Lawrence and 
 Saguenay rivers, wish in some suitable manner to express 
 to our leader, Mr. Gustave Love, our thanks for the many 
 personal attentions and kindnesses which we have re" 
 ceived from him during the past ten days, and to fitly 
 show our entire sjiiisfaction with the trip through which 
 he has so ably conducted us; and. 
 
 Whereas, we think that to travel for ten days over 
 crowded thorougli fares, and rest at first-class hotels with- 
 out once missing a connection or a night's repose, and 
 this, too, without a thought or care upon our own part? 
 is a novel feature in American pleasure travel, of the 
 most pleasing character ; 
 
 Resolved, that we. the undersigned, would hereby re- 
 commend Mr. Gustave Leve to the travelling public in 
 geneml as a pleasant conductor of excursions, well 
 
86 
 
 planned and nU^y carried ont, and we clu'crfullj and 
 voluntarily make tliis expression of our feelings towan] 
 liim. 
 
 J. W. TTASTFNrt!*, Warren, Masfl. 
 
 Maky L. IlASTiNo-a, Waircn, Mass. 
 
 E. C. Morgan, Warren, Mass. 
 
 Mrs, E. C. Morgan, Warren, MasH. 
 
 .Iames II. Gaffney, New York. 
 
 Dehorah L. (jaffnkv. New York. 
 
 Thomas Donnklly, New York. 
 
 Mkykr AuKRBACir, New York. 
 
 EB»i:R Gridley, Hartford, Conn. 
 
 MiservaGridlky, Hartford, Conn. 
 
 A. R. Snydkr, Philadelpliia. 
 
 Mrs. A. R. Snyder, Pliiladclphia. 
 
 L. J. Rir.EY, Pliil:id«'li>iii I. 
 
 Mix h. J. Riley, Philadelphia. 
 
 Mrs. M. II. Marsh, Lynn, Mass. 
 
 M. L. Oliver, Lynn, Mass. 
 
 Mrs. II. M. Bishop. Lynn, Mass. 
 
 Ne.xt morning we were up bright and early, and agreed 
 U) slightly change the programme l>y making the return 
 trip bv way of Nashua, Concord, Lowell and Boston, and 
 thence by Sound steamer to New York, so as to arrive 
 there in the morning, instead of at eleven o'clock at night 
 As this was to be the last day together of the participants 
 in the tour, we exchanged cards and addresses, and made 
 mutual promises to correspond with one another, many 
 of which promises, I am sorry to say, were alterwards 
 broken. 
 
 We pas:*ed down the beautiful Passumpsic river valley, 
 with its many little villages dotting the base of the 
 Franconia mountain ridge, and at about eleven o'clock 
 readied Wells' River .Junction, where Mr. and Mrs. Grid- 
 ley, after affectionately bidding good-bye to all, parted 
 from ihe company. Tliis leave taking rudely aroused us 
 
87 
 
 to the realization of the stern fact that the party was in 
 pi*()ce-<.s of disintegration, and cast a gloom over us, wliich 
 conld not soon bo dispelled, try as we would. 
 
 Wo employed the half hour's stoppage at noon in en- 
 joying a substantial meal at the Pemigewasset House, 
 that excellent hotel located in Plymouth. 
 
 Then we again took the train, and in rapid succession 
 passed Crystal lake and Lake Winnipesaukee, as also 
 Lowell, Nashua, Concord, and many other manufactur- 
 ing cities of more or less note, and reached Boston at five 
 o'clock in the aftenuxjn* Here Mr. Hastings and wife, 
 Mr. Morgan and wife and the Mrs. Marsh, Oliver and 
 Bishop took their leave, and we, getting into an omnibus, 
 were hurriedly driven to the Old Colony Railroad depot 
 80 as to catch the train connecting with the Sound 
 steamer at Fall River. 
 
 The train made only two short stoppages on the entire 
 trip, and made the entire run of ,09 miles, the distance 
 from Bos'on to Fall River, in one hour and a half. The 
 steamer / 'rovidence, sister ship to the Bruilot,vf as here 
 found with steam up, ready to start; as soon as we came 
 al)oard the lines were cast off, and we were soon rapidly 
 .Hteaming down Narraganset Bay. 
 
 At Newport, R. L, a stop was made of about an hour's 
 duration, after which we continued the voyage to New 
 York. 
 
 Early next morning the remnant of the party assembled 
 (»ti the upper deck of the steamer, from which we enjoyed 
 the beautiful scenery of the Long Island Sound. At 
 seven o'clock we passed Hell Gate, and entered the East 
 River, down the whole lenght of which we passed, and 
 then rounding the Battery, the steamer made for her dock 
 at the foot of Murray street. Here we said adieu and 
 "God speed" to tae PhiLidelpbians, and, mingling with 
 the throng hurrying ashore, we were soon wending our 
 ways to our respective homes, having enjoyed a most de- 
 
38 
 
 lightful Summer tour, ]astiiij( ju?t eleven days, with 
 out an accident having happened, or the enjoyment of a 
 single hour having been marred by illness. 
 
 That we may all live to realize the desire ex{)ressed by 
 the entire party, to meet again next year, is the fervent 
 wish of the author. 
 
 riNi!?. 
 
 < . I 
 
vl