^, Av^ ^\3 IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I |J0 ■^" ■^ l&i 122 lu ... Mh Ul 12.0 1.8 I |||l.25 11 1.4 1 Jj6 • m M 6" ► V] ^ Ta ^>. fliotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRieT WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) «72-4503 '4^ ) ^ o /' /5 ^*-»c/j »*ji>/ ; / ^'f'^l ^-^&^*^ ^^?W^ ■f^f: v^/^^. SI, / «fcw»3 ^Oj^ •""l -c^^ ^ ^'r4C :/ M i-^fi '-- -N- *'*o*y(JiJ*. '^°ra\ f^'J/''' ^. »**' .' '«fAe 'X '^h '^'^'xmtjua / »e^ O •-^pi^; M /" '''««ti "'v "'•"USA *8^ ^'^'^^ 9eui J *'tfi> .- t J / ■■ : • Jui JiTl xf n* .T ll-'f T l Entered, according ta the Act of the Provin* cdal Parliament^ 1^ ^ibe year One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, hy G. T. Gary, Vi A4 'Ofl ■ ii J. i;* * -^^M ' ' •t ' tT i ^»'"' L Iiii7' TABLE OF CONTENTS. J li _ • Steamers for Gasp^, Shodiac and Piotoii . 9 ' Railway from Shediac to St. Jobn^ K. B. 10 Tho steamer Lady Head where buiUj ^o 12 Stage from Pictou to Truro. ...;.. " Railway from Truro to Halifax and Bay of Fundy..,^., ,. , " Scenes and places passed on the St. Law- . vence ..,..«••'. 14 Gasp^.. 15 The Fishing trade, lead, copper and coal oil. 16 A royal party from Mingan 17 Features of the Gasp^ coast 18 View of Cape Chat, Gulf of St. Lawrence . 19 View of Ferc^ Rock (Vignette) Bale des Chaleurs, Paspebiac and Dal- housie.... 21 Chatham and Shediac 22 Charlottetown, Prince Edward's Island ... 24 Pictou and the coal mines • • 28 Stage Coaches for Truro in the interior. . 31 , Truro and the railway to Halifax ....... 36 Lakes and the junction from Bay of Fundy 39 Halifax.. 40 London Times account of Hirer Saguenay 44 ^1 "I 'fl f I! I • « < via View "of Capes Trinity and Eternity 44 Legendary Lore of the St. Lawrence 54 Bird Rocks « . 55 Mingan 59 Anticosti 61 Plateau Island , 62 Percy Rock 63 Cap d'Espoir..., 66 Bed Island Reef.. 6T Islet au Massacre (Bic,) . , 73 Baie des Rochers Y5 Cape au Diable 76 Goose and Crane Islands 78 Country-seats around Quebec i . 85 Spencer Wood. 89 Historical reminiscences 91 Where^ when and how to go Fishing ...... 98 Lakes and rivers near Quebec 99 Cacouna and Lake St. Cimon 101 The Saguenay, Tadousac to Grand Bay . . " Salmon fishing .Vi; ^ 102 Godbout, Marguerite— Seven Islands .... 103 The Mingan and Natashquan 104 Anticosti, Gasp^ and Bay Chaleurs . . . , ; .^ 105 Sea-trout, Cape Sable to Labrador. . . . ... 106 ; Jhe Isle of Orleans..,. , ,.j»),.,^,. lU •;'f*'> J hN 9^ 'iT;' * } PLEASURK TRIP TO THE GULF OF ST. LAWRENCE. i. The Bathing Places^^Fine Scenery^^Cape Chat -^Prince Alfred aboard — The Pierced Rock — Fishing Bays — Coast tovms — Charlottetovm-^ The Prince returns to his Ship — Pictou — Down in the Coal Mines-^Stage Coach over Mount Tom to TrurO'-^Railway jaunt to Halifax — The Return. - (Steamship " Lady Head," I Off Anticosti, 17th July, 1861. Mr. Editor, — For a delightful and invigorat- ing trip let me commend to your readers the eastward tour by the Lady Head or the Ara- bian, both vessels sailing from Quebec on the alternate Tuesdays for the lower ports, touch- ing first at Gasp^ and lastly at Shediac, and the former going to Pictou, and reaching the latter point on Saturday, after due allowance for ordinary detentions on the way, and re- turning to the city on the following Saturday in time to deliver mails on board of the out- ward going steamship for England. i>A 10 f Those persons who do not care to retunit by the same route, or whose business or plea- sure fix their destination elsewhere, can take, the *< European and North American Railway" cars at Shediac for St. John, New Brunswick- trains running both ways twice a day and get- ting through in five or six hours, the length of the road being 108 miles. This line comes down to the end of the wharf, for the conve- ' nience of the shipping which furnish its chief traflic. Passengers have therefore but one step to make and they are on as excellent a line as is to be met with on the continent. At Pictou again a regular, comfortable and speedy communication is kept up by mail coa- ches to Truro, distant 40 miles, and thence to Halifax by the " Nova Scotia Railroad," which connects Halifax with the northern coast by the main line to Truro, distant 61 miles, and with the Bay of Fundy by the Windsor Branch leading to Windsor, distant 45 miles. The time occupied in the overland transit from Pictou to Halifax is less than twelve hours, of which one hour is spent at Truro, an exceed- , ingly pretty location, where the change from -,; stage to rail, or vice versa, takes place, and a •'.gObd meal may be had. The fare between the "extreme points, four dollars, is certainly rea- sonable. " 11 r'> Bidding adieu to Quebec on Tuesday at font p.m., (after having taken the precaution to call at Mr. Buteau's office, near the wharf at the foot of St. James street, and secure our berths several days in advance,) we were agreeably surprised to find among the passengers a large proportion of townspeople, including a sprink- ling of fair ladies destined for the bathing resorts below Riviere du Loup. Ther^ were three or four priests going to the country mis- sions, and two nuns on their way to Charlotte- town. The presence of agreeable friends adds to the enjoyment and benefit of a trip of this duration, whether the voyage be made for health or for pleasure, or business alone. As soon as the last bell had sounded and friendly escorts had got off the steamer, we found those ladies and gentlemen remaining aboard were numerous enough to occupy almost every available berth in both cabins. It is but right to say the first movement of the vessel entirely dispelled our prejudice against the screw, the engines driving her steadily through the water at the rate of twelve to thirteen miles an hour. In a short while the . prepossessing face of the engineer, Mr^ Ba*- , hour, who with Captain Davison the pfgESdift Master of the stetftner, superintended her cott- A 2 ...■■ '•' li < I 12 sttuction in the celebrated yktd of Napier at Glasgow, induced Us to descend to the engine room. Like the rest of the ship, everything around and about the furnaces and boilers is constructed of iron, and iron galleries and stairs enable the visitor to inspect the works with perfect safety at all hours of night or day, during the progress of the vessel. The engines are different from those of our other river or lake steamers, being on the oscillating prin- ciple, so called from the cylindiBrs rocking to and fro, so as to accommodate themselves to the motion of the crahk by which the shaft or axis of the screw is made to revolve. This peculiarity is discernible even looking from the main deck) but the high finish of the whole machinery, which has never needed repair since it was first made^ entitles it to a closer inspection, and gii^e« full confidence in the safety of the vessel. A friend of ours, experienced in such matters, proilounces the Lady Head decidedly stronger in construction and a superior sea-going steamer to either of her larger companions, the " Qtieen Victoria" or the " Napoleon." Captain Davison brought her acrosff the Atlantic, in seven days and six hours from land to land, and his qualification for her command may be Inferred when we 13 fittite that he has spent his days on the water for the last five and twenty years. He is, fur- ther, a native of Pictoii. We had a full complement of steerage pas- sengers on the forward deck, between thirty and forty. Several were «hip-carpenters, sent down with materials to Gasp^ Basin, to aid in putting in order a ship there that had suffered damage. Others were Norwegians, to be fol- lowed next trip by more, arrived out in the same vessel from Europe, but too numerous to to be taken all at once, more especially as " the sailor prince" was to join our passengers at Gasp6, on his way to Prince Edward's Is- land, — a slight deviation from the usual course before making the last port, Pictou. The next of the notable forward passengers was a vener- able warrior in the person of a color-sergeant of the Boyal Canaxlian Rifles, destined with his family to land at Charlottetown, where the rumor runs that the barracks hitherto vacant are about to be occupied by two companies of troops. f'orgetting till under weigh, that several of our party, as Canadian citizens, were stock- ^ holders in the ship, we soon had the pleasure , of cracking a bottle of claret to the success of t the trip, and to our noble selves in particular, • A3 14 I I; I note this to indicate that due provision is made for the comfort.of ** the inner man," and a want expressed is at once supplied. '+ The oft described scenery in the vicinity of Quebec may be safely omitted here, consider- ing the extent of the map we have yet to pass over. M.ontmorenci was glanced at, the city r« soon lost to view, the channel south of Oi leans passed by, the islands below it to. " the Pil- lars ," the revolving light on that rock ; and finally the double light oflf St. Paul's Bay, closed the first day's observations. The second day, we passed Bic, and Rimouski, then Father Point, Metis and Matane. About sunset Pointe des Monts, the last head land vis- ible on the north, was seen fading away in the distance amid beautiful white rolling clouds, which feathered the northern horizon. The lofty cliffs of the south coast line are here- abouts the chief object of attention. Several beautiful sketches might be made, as bay after bay is disclosed to view, though the speed of the ateamer changes the outlines of the picture as fa«^as,they can be drawn. With but few exceptioms the phills are everywhere clad in greeii from base to summit, and thouijh pre- senting no striding feature, the diversity of their positions and elevations at many points i v^- n 18 id especiiilly near the mouths of the vaiions little rivers, is remarkable. At one place, off the Gasp6 coast, a range of lofty hills or motin- tains runs in line with the shore^ a second range considerably higher and more distant than that outside, while away inland, rises a still loftier range overtopping both the others. On a rather rugged portion of the face of the highest and furthest of this triple row, a nari'ow cataract of foaming water resembling a monu- ment of snow, capping the intervening fir topped hills, puzzled us to decide its real character. Again and again it was hid as we moved, till at the last glance with a good glass, it was decided to be a perpendicular thick vein of quartz, of which numerous horizontal thin veins were observed on each «ido. The effect of this extraoijdinary natural phenomenon was very beautiful amid the surrounding scenery, though it would require very clear weather as on this occasion to attract special attention. The first landing place, Gasp6, or raider the entry thereto was reached on Thursday the llth, at 3 a. m. The firing .of the' steamer's l^un and the bustle and noise of preparing to land roused most of the passengers, many of whom weio anxious to see the Basin. ! si i 4 -f ■. x* M i ■ .' r;. 1! The extent of the fishing trade in this neighhorhood alone may be imagined when we state that Messrs. Robin & Co., of Gaspd Bay Chaleur, have 1*7 schooners and 154 ilshing-boats afloat^ and employ 3,500 men in their fishing operations. Another firm^ Messrs, Bouthillier Bros.,, have 12 vcsselSy and 16l> boats, and employ 2^500 men. Within the last three months, something^ over 500 vessels have visited Gaspe Basin ^ while 44,6^6 acres of land have been sold in that district, since the establishment of the Free Port. Over 400 Norwegian emigranta have arrived in the couirse of the season^ direct from Norway,, and have settled in diiferent localities throughout the county. Another vessel is expected to arrive this autumn with two hundred settlerSv Several niew and ex- tensive wharves are in course of construction at the Basin,, while a number of others have been projected. Houses and stores are being^ erected everywhere, thus giving the most satisDactory and convincing evidences of pro- gress and prosperity. The lead mine, in the county, has become the property of a number of Norwegians, one of whom was formerly em- ployed in the silver-mines of Konsberg. Their researches have been extremely successful j 17 quite a uumber of rich veins of lead ore have been discovered ; and there is every indication of a valuable deposit of the metal. Traces of copper are numerous and seem to indicate that it may be found in considerable quantities. The oil wells are the scene of active operations, and works of considerable magnitude are now progressing with a view to facilitate the work- ing of this great natural wealth. Prince Alfred's ship, the provincial steamer " Queen Victoria," hove in sight before & o'clock, proving that the example of his his royal mother's noted punctuality to time in observing engagements, has not been lost on her children. The " Queen Victoria" steamed steadily along the bay, giving us time to land and receive passengers and freight, before she got fairly in. She then came alongside of us, and the Prince and his governor, Major Cowell, with the Governor General, Col. Byng, &c., were seen on deck. We learned that the fishing excm'sion of the distinguished party to the Mingan had been highly successful, and that the sailor prince caught both the first and last of the piscatory ** kings" taken during the sojourn. They en- camped in the woods with but two attendants, and went to the boats early every morning for t -ii V' I 18 five or 8ix days, takinpj trout, salmon trout a?id salmon, in fair quantities. The Governor caught thirteen in all ; and, that being the largest number taken by any one of the party, the Prince persevered till his take approached within two of the number, and on the day of departure, he squared the account by captur- ing the other two. The party suffered much from fly bitefi,but the weather throughout their stay was, with a few hours' exception, magni- ficent. On leaving the Mingan river and Islands, the Queen Victoria steamed directlv south, rounding Anticosti, and at West Point, en passanty the party dropped lines witht pork bait to attract the attention of the cod fish that abound in this region. A quarter of an hour or thereabouts was thus spent in vain, and, darkness coming on, the steamer was ordered to proceed. His Royal Highness looked the picture of health as he came aboard the Lady Head ; on shaking hands with the Governor to bid him farewell, tears were ob- served to come into the boy's eyes, showing his kindly disposition. .;,{ En route from Gasp<5 to the Baie de Chaleurs, ^the coast presents numerous interesting fea- tures, the first and most prominent of which 19 ■l ■■<"■• is tlic hoadluntl west of Gasp^ Bay, which ter- inimitcs in a perpendicular cliff overhanging a lofty column of rock, styled " The Old Wo- man." Its outlines are more distinguishahlo on coming out of the bay than on entering it. Proceeding eastward and keeping close to the shore, the steamer passes a long low line of shore, faced with red sandstone, indented in various ways by the sea. And outside of the channel, we moved by a beautiful little island j' formed entirely of the same material, and worn by the water into the shape of urns or sar- cophagi ; in some parts the superincumbent masses being upheld by but a narrow neck that must soon yield to the friction of the angry waves. The variously marked shores thus give a slight indication ofthe remarkable formation next about to be witnessed. Two sketches accompany this letter. The first was taken off Cape Chat, which we thought of sufficiently striking a character to put on paper; it also serves as a kind of half-way mark between the familiar resort, River du Loup, and the next stopping place Grasp^, and is, be- sides, right opposite Pointe des Monts, the last north land seen, where the river widens inio^^ the Gulf. The second represents the Pcrcd, Rock, wliich is a curiosity of itself worth paak- •■ I 20 '1? it ■I i ing the trip dowu from Quebec to see. Perc^ is so named from the pierced rock in front of it. Just before the stjamer's gun fires to warn the inhabitants of our approach, the traveller's attention is attracted to the numer- ous caves in the sandy cliff lining the shore, and soon after there stands right across the vessel's path a massive, upright, square looking rock, some five hundred feet in length and probably hiilf as high, with a natural open archway leading clear through its outer extremity and showing the water's surface for half-a-mile on the other side I This is called Perce rock, and it was formerly pierced in a second place, but the upper part of the arch gave way, and fell with a tremendous noise, about seven or eight years since, leaving a great gap by which the outer extremity of the island was severed from the rest, and now stands shield- ing its parent from the force of the breakers. Bonaventure Island, about five miles in length, is a large and well settled island, fac- ing the village of Perc6. The channel between it and the main land is apparently not much over a couple of miles in width. The steamer, after rounding the Perc6 rock, kept inside of Bohaventure Island and followed the line of shore southward to the next landing fa w n on 1<3 fir m ii 1 ^ ;; til ft' I 1 ill ,?!»' ^ place. After leaving Perc^ the land lies low^ and no mountains skirt the river till the Bay de Chaleurs is fairly entered* Paspebiac is reached in a short time after leaving Perce, and, judging by the prospect afforded from the steamer's deck, it is undoubt- edly a most agreeable spot to choose for a summer stay. The land rises from the Bay, and the habitations form a continuous line for several miles, all equally distant from the shore and all commanding a cheerful view of the doings along the bay and its margin. Its harbour is formed by a long spit running out into the Bay, and making a natural break- water. Three or four vessels were at anchor* here—one of them an American. J,. The weather was fin^and we saw both shores as we steered westward up the Bay, towards Dalhousie, at the mouth of the Restigouche River, where a considerable lumber trade is carried on. About a dozen ships were anchor- ed here, taking in timber for the European markets, and we met three going out and two. coming in, one of them a Norwegian ship waterlogged. i^^h^iU u* in-:* i^^ml trs6.d\n^ Just as the Prince was approaching Dalhou- sie, a heavy fall of rain set in, and as darkness was coming on, the Captain made 1*. 22 1^^-, H; !!i I I a very brief stay. We landed a number of passengers and a large proportion of our freight, principally flour, at this place. On Hearing Dalhousie in fine weather, two interesting objects ar« presented to view, - which we did not descry on the first visit, ow- ing to thick and rainy weather ; one is a tall and remarkable column of rock on the east side of the river, called " the Old Woman," standing on the beach about high water mark ; it had a comradej " the. Old Man," which has gone from the scene ; the other is an obelisk erected on the plateau above, marking the resting place of a naval commander. *>'i'^ •-*^^ Chatham, on the Miramichi River, is the next stopping place. Here an honest old Briton, Mr. Bowser, has a nicely si- '•tuated and neatly kept hotel After looking round this town. Prince Alfred was escorted fto the nearest ship yard, where a comely looking vessel of 800 tons burthen had just been launched and named in his honor, " The ' Sailor Prince^ * :%t. ^'-\'^ ^-ff ■trvr hni\ ,R:i)tA%&m -■ At Chatham we procured a beautiful large salmon, fresh out of the water for a dollar, and this being the head quarters of the smoking business, several of the passengers rushed to Mr. Ke nt's, the agent of the company, and laid 9^ -M. in .1 store of luscious looking smoked salmon at half of the Quebec prices. ^ . " We reached Shediac on Saturday at 10 a.m., and taking a local pilot on board, — which it appears the law here insists on, — we were soon at the wharf. The sight of the railway cars alongside of the steamer gave token of a higher civilization and greater trade than we had seen at any of the other calling places. The cars leave here twice a day for St. John, 106 miles due south west^ Shediac is the only point at which the Quebec and Halifax Railway will touch this coast, after which it will take an inland curve leading west, and then north- wards, towards Trois Pistoles, on the St. Law- rence. A well constructed branch of the great inter-provincial railroad is running here, and the actual existence of so important a link for military purposes Should be an additional inducement to the home government to carry out the long talked of Railway, and secure to *« Quebec ia winter communication with the sea board through British territory. The present aspect of American affairs makes this subject of paramount importance. ^ "^^-^ -^ ^' -*^ * ' There was a special train sent round from the town (which is two miles further up the river) with a deputation of the authorities, in- 14 \i ting Prince Alfred to take a run round and see the mills, &c., and guaranteeing his return to the steamer within half an hour. The in- vitation was declined owing to the anxiety of His Royal Highness to reach Charlottetown before dark. The cars on this line, the " Euro- pean and North American Railway" as it is called, are exceedingly neat, substantial and well finished, without as well as within ; the locomotive too had a new and solid look about it — the motto on its front struck us as appropriate^ — *^ Spem reduxitJ'^ The intended debarcation of Prince Alfred at Charlottetown gave the passengers on this occasion an enviable opportunity of seeing Prince Edward's Island, in all its glory, of mid summer. The sun shone in an almost cloud- less sky, and the water was smooth as the Lake of Geneva, while we steamed along the Straits of Northumberland from Shediac. Being out of the line of European vessels bound up the St. Lawrence, the appearance of a sail or two in the ofi&ng after dinner brought all the marine glasses on board into requisition, and the an- nouncement that H. M^ Ship <' St, George" was in sight, appeared to give its '* middy" no little gratification. „ , . , „, ,._ Charlottetown was reached just ere «tin 'set^ iDhe entrance tu this seat of governmeU has quite a charming entourage ; and ere the moorings are made fast, the miniature basin be hind is seen to be completely land-locked. The ^vater between the land forms various creeks and channels for lesser craft, and affords, we arc told many chances of admirable sport in proper season. ^■^'^■'--- '-^ ^'''^'* :,,.i^-^-v^-- .'^^v-.-, ..^:f-f.^ We were astonished at the number of beauti- ful drives that arc to be had : all the public toads are at least sixty feet wide, they intersect the island in all directions, and are shaded with spruce, fir and maple, and at times thorn hedges, or I'ose biishes, the latter now in full bloom. The roads are easily maintained^ and from the nature of the soil they are never had, we were assured, except during heavy rains, when the return of sunshine dries them Up rapidly. The land on every side affords evidence of good culture and of fertility ; and the wheat, oats, potatoes and hay were in fully as good condition as in Lower Canada. Numer- ous settlers however, of former days, retired officers and others of considerable moans, have from extravagant ways and liltle practical knowledge of farming, returned to the mother '.ountry and sold or lea.sed their grounds. The '■ 1 2'ti •n.t i !> Ih>f i !• ■ t whitu " marguerite^' or daisy, abounds here, as ii does near Quebec, gratifying the eye by it» look, and the sweet air issuing from the woods Was also agreeable. We remarked a settlement of negro families bordering onthe grounds of government house. The French language is but little spoken here, save among the Acadian scttlergf and their isolation from theiv compatriots is lead- ing to the adoption of all manner of absurd ana ungrammatical expressions, such for in^ stance as using the word chcvaux invariably whether to signify the singular or plural, and substituting the English word plough for charue ; and many like arbitrary and amusing fashions. The pronunciation of the names of several of the most respectable families, in Charlottetown, we thought equally curious — Beblois so spelt, is anglified into Dehloyce^ and Desbris^es into Des-breezes ! Prince Edward's Island is well settled, and possesses a good soil, fit for all general pur- poses. The climate is commonly healthy and temperate, and not subject to such frequent and heavy fogs as Newfoundland and • uc ad- jacent coast of Breton and New Brunswick generally arc, nor yet to the sudden changes of weather experienced elsewhere. The win- ter sets in here about the middle of December, 27 and coiitinut* s until April, during which period it is colder than in England ; usually a steady frost, with frequent snow falls, but not so severe as to prevent the exertions of the in- habitants in all their various out-door employ- ments. Last winter, the first snow came only at Christmas. The first appearance of the island, is like that of a forest emerging from the sea j the red clift's, which are not very high, then ap- pear 5 the lands are covered with lofty tvees, and the sand hills on the northern side of the island are covered with verdure. Vegetation is so exceedingly quick, that in July peas are gathered which were sown in the preceding month. The country is generally level, the highest ridges not exceeding 400 to 500 feet, but generally much lower, especially near the coast, and abounds with springs of fine water, and groves of trees, which produce great quan- tities of excellent timber. The continuous row of habitations along the south side reminded us of the Isle of Orleans nearer home. The population of the entire island numbers 80,000,— 'having increased over ten per cent during the last six years. A fine view of Charlottetown is obtained from the dome of the Province Build- ing, a stately edifice built of free stone, brought s f t ! 1^ ih Mni ^rom the neighboring coast. The City Hall, which also includes in its small compass the police station, post office, and engine house, is situated near the former. Admiral Bayfield's and Commander Orlebar's residences, were al- so pointed out to us. Fresh water is rather a scarce commodity in Charlotte town, and, drainage being yet unknown, the few wells in the place (of which the city has however pro- vided several in the streets) often become un- fit for use. Leaving Prince Edward's Island at early dawn, on waking we found ourselves at 6 o'clock, sighting Pictou Island, and entered the harbor of Pictou about seven o'clock on Sunday morning. Pictou harbour is in every respect the finest on the southern shores of the gulf, capable of containi]\g ships of any burthen ; here arc coal mines, valuable quarries of building stone, and a finely-settled country in its neighourhood. Pictou has been declared a free warehousing port, and its trade is yovy considerable in lumber, coal, as well as fish. The trade of this port appears to be rapidly increasing, and the town of New Glasgow, in the neighbour- hood of the coal mineF<, promises to be of con- siderable importance. Coasters from all parts of the gulf resort to Pictou, and its exports 29 bave amjouuted to jC100,000 iu one season. The town stands on tlie nortli side of the harbour, two miles within the ligh thouse ; the houses are crowded together along the shores of a small bay, but they are hidden from vessels entering the harbour by Battery Point, which shelters them from easterly winds. Most of the dweU lings are of stone, and the population up^ wards of 2000. Opposite the town the harbour expands into three arms, at the heads of which are the east, west, and middle rivers. The Albion coal mines and New Glasgow are up the east river ; the other two branches are only used by boats, • • • .v. .• The inhabitants of Pictou seem to observe the Sabbath very strictly, and all the churches, which by the way are numerous for the place, attracted last Sunday a fair attendance. The largest congregation is, we believe that of the Kirk, (where a gaelic service is held after the morning sermon,) and the smallest that of the Catholic chapel. The Anglican church is the best situated, being on the high ground at the east end of the town, and has ^ full congrega-i tion. f^.:m'.i'': -Uli Hotel accommodation at Pictou is not defi-. cient. Those who put up at Mrs. Taylor's will not fail to commend the neatnofis ^\\d hom«i I 30 .^1 m look of her house to all their arqiiainiances Recking the information. The Maine law, liowever, exists horo in all its rigours. The greatest attraction during a visit to Pictou, is the coal mines ; the journey to them is made by steamboat and the trip including the descent, occupies from half a day to a day. Visitors may descend by the shaft if they wish it, but most persons go down by the inclined road. Every atton-ion is readily paid to visitors by the agent, Mr, Scott, who lives in the company's house above the mines, a spacious and well furnished build- ing. On being handed over to the tender mercies of the inhabitants of the lower regions, a guide with dark face and dingy attire leads the way, with a bull's eye lamp fastened to his cap. You descend a long and winding dirty road till you arrive at three hundred feet below the surface level. The mines are worked every day and sometimes by additional gangs at night. The miners live above ground, and go to and return from their work by the shaft ; a large number of horses are left constantly in the mines to draw the mas- ses of coal from place to place as occasion requires. A cessation in these mines took place some years back owing to tb^ occurrenco 31 4of an explosion, when the mine hurned so long nnd so furiously that the river had to he let in to prevent the entire destruction of the supply. At one point the miners close a door hehind the visitors und look for a fee of money, mak- ing them what is vulgarly styled *' pay their footing." Twelve ships were loading coals at New Glasgow at the time of our visit. The Lady Head burns about 75 tons of coal jier trip, and takes as much on board at Pictou, for the return voyage to Quebec. This com- modity, it may be imagined, forms therefore no small item in her expenses ; at five dollars fi ton making nearly two hundred pounds every fortnight. Determined to e&ed oiir original purpose of visiting the capital of Nova Scotia^ and learn- ing the nature of tlie route and the means of reaching Halifax from this point, we called with our Boston friend on Mr. Irving, the agent of Mr. Hyde's line of mail stages and secured seats on top of the coach for next morning at eight. At " sharp eight " o'clock on Monday morning, the " coach and four," — one of those institutions we read about, but whose day is fast declining, — came thundering up to our hotel door. A comfortable breakfast Jiaying been first leisurely disposed of, to puife s 4 i;;->i L\i 3^ S*' U. f ttfl in good humour for the day'b undviU\kUi»r;. — quickly we were mounted nloft^ raid the. agent, politely instructed the drivci to *' posfe us up" in regard to the route, oi in other words to give us all the intbrmation he could, as we travelled along. Tip went the reins, and crack wcn.t the long t\vinir/g whip as we drove down the main street to tiie other calling places and finally to the post olTico. We soon found ourselves outside the town and sped up hill and down dale, across hridgcs, and through the tree branches overhanging, the roadways, changing aur direction accord- ing to the features of the country- The continued undulation of the land till we reached the mountains, and the return of the same feature on the other side gives an enchanting diversity to the drive. After pas-^ sing by stone quarries,, creeks and islets fring- ing the Pictou Bay, we follow the hank of a, rippling river till its course no longer suits us. Then the road brings us up gentle ascents one. after another, amid thriving farms, through fields of waving hay and others dotted with sheep and cattle that are seeking the shade aa. midday approaches. The greater part of the road is through open *nd well settled country, every house look-* J,1 log tile; pictiiic ol" comfort and happiiieas, tbo field teeming" with rich uud tliriving crops, and sliiido trees being liberally and wisely spared to adorn the landseape. , At one moment the coach is making a gentle descent into a recently cleared valley, at tho next it rises over a point commanding a beau- tiful view of a village and meadows draped with elms and other trees and shrub- bery in abundance. Then it bounds over a bridge leading to fresh rise and rapid turn in the road. At the rate we are going an overturn seems imminent, witli the additional prospect of a roll down a hill of some thirty feet into the fields beneath 1 The alarm is as soon dia^ polled by tlie driver's care and the obedience of the well trained horses who keep in the exact part of the road he wills, while main- taining their regular speed almost without in-^ termission -^ . ., , ,, , ^.^ ^ ^-j. The first change of horses takes place at West Kiver, where, at a quarter past ten, after two hours driving from Pictou, w^e pull up under a lofty gateway alongside the road, and the removal of our four tired horses and their replacing by six fresh ones, is made, all under cover, in a few minutes. Here w(^ (ound Mr. Hvde's \\-ic.i\ waiting our avii\'?^I| 34 ft: % i.^' * ready to put the coach in fresh trim for the middle stage, which, from tho great ascent is considered the most trying part of the route. We waited some twenty minutes at West River for the eastern mails from Antigonish and other places heyond. Just after starting from this point, a lot of pretty blue jays showed themselves, — we have not seen this handsome bird nearer to Quebec than the St. Franci^ district. The second stopping place of the coach, reached soon after mid-day, is Salmon River, which we left with four in hand, as at the outset of our journey. Close by the road aide near this point Is seen the shaft leading to a coal mine ; a large pile of its product is ex- posed to view, but the locality is too isolated to make the working of the mine profitable. Near the summit of Mount Tom we met the down coach with sixteen passengers, Mr. Hyde, the enterprising proprietor, on the box, a fine handsome fellow he is and of course, as you know, a Quebecer. iHe has had this line of stages since the paying times when the British mails were all conveyed overland from Halifax, and the Cunard steamship '' Unicorn," ran between Quebec and Pictou. The grandest view on the road is that ob- toined from the summit of M^'^'Viit Tom, look- ■t r 35 ing eastward, with Tiuro in the distance. Tlie prospect embraces a raagnificently clad valley, with every hue of verdure from the snow white daisy fields to the dark pine of the forest ; and, as we viewed it, the endless suc- cession of light rolling clouds — -which seem to form continually to seaward for the refresh- ment of the inland country — -dotted the earth^s surface with alternate shade and sunshine, adding wonderfully to the contrast of the picture as seen from our elevated position. The recent rains had at this part interfered somewhat with the level of the roads, which seemed remarkably well kept everywhere j In descending, we found the residents along the road, turned out in strong parties with horses and carts, picks and shovels, going most earnestly to work, some gathering gravel and stone to fill the new made gullies, and others ploughing up the sides of the road so as to deepen the ditches and thus prevent the recurrence of such damage. Their harmony and goodwill in the matter, we thought, might well be copied in other places. The road widens as the town of Truro is approached, and the neat white residences with their well kept gardens, give a most pleasing impression to tho visitor, that is not 3G I t... !■ m:i m n ^1 xejuoved by rurther acqiiaintauce with iha place, for, passing over the bridge we turn down an avenne shaded by lofty elms, and soon after gain the heart of the settlement where the same remarkable, cleanly and cheerful air prevails on all sides. >. Every house has open ground around it, and in most instances a lawn or flower garden well laid out in front, and even the colleges, and the nornjal and model schools partook of this agreeable feature. The town is well laid out with broad streets and open squares. It has several elegaat private residences in the gothio style, and others planned with much taste. Our stopping place is the Prince of Wales Hotel, where the coach pulls up. A score or 60 of ladies and gentlemen were here sojourn ing on our arrival, and the welcome sound of a piano issued from the windows as we alighted, — the lirst music we had Jheard for a thousand miles and njore, ^ .; Kf >Jt rr ^ . After three quarters of an hour for lunch and repose at Truro, the traveller is conveyed, by the same coach without extra charge, from the hotel to the depot of the Nova Scotian Railway Company, on the east side of tho town. Here w^e found a large and spacious fttivtion, with waiting rooms, tplrgraph office. !'V. - i' kc, JPreparations wei'e going ou for considoi'' able traffic. Ali*eady a number of pasaengera were seated in the first and second class cars. A soft whistle from the conductor was the signal for our departure. The line is very even and the cars run with but little unplea- santness of motion, though the grade seems to descend very much at one point. The freight taken in at the various stopping places was, the produce of farms, live stock, and, from the mills, boards. The Anglican Bishop of Hali- fax was among the passengers, and his lordship had just remarked that we were likely to make good time to-day, as they were taking no bricks for freight, ^\hen lo ! the conductor's whistle brought us to a stand at a siding where two platform cars of bricks were hitched on from a factory, and not long after another from a similar establishment farther down the line. This indicates that the business of these short sections of the great international raiil- way is yet in its infancy. This line is a good step iit the right direc- tion. It is a substantially built, well equip- ped and carefully managed railroad, under the control of the Provincial Government, and when the scheme for the great highway between the Provinces is carried oul, will no 4;'' PI 3b li^ I. doubt form part of the Quebec and Halifax road being as it is on the approved line between those cities. . , . , ,,. ^ A few of the names hereabouts such as " Stcwiacke" and '' Shubcnacadie," are signi- liccnt as reminding one of the first occupants oi the landj though some of the daughters of Nova Scotia accompanying us showed that other people had stepped in since the days of Wacousta ; and if the charming girl we saw be taken as a sample of her country women, their features, form and complexion would do credit to any clime. Bazaars and soirees seemed the order of the day along the line, and prepara- tions were making alongside of tt church at one place for a grand fdte champetre, in aid of the building fundj as we learned. All the houses and places of worship are constructed of wood and invariably painted white* < Half way between Truro and Halifax, is a chain of lakes, which afford a remarkable prospect from the car windows on both sides of the line for a considevable distance, the water sweeping alongside the track to light and left at many places, where the ducks and other wild fowl might have been pelted with stones as we passed, for they did not heed us in the least. Beyond this there is no striking BO featiu'c on the road, the line followmg a bar- ren and rocky district, and affording no idefe of tlie resources of the interior, even at the stopping placcSj for no prospect was any where to be had that we could see. Twelve miles at this side of Halifax^ a junc- tion is formed with the branch of the railway tunning to the head of the Bay of Fiindy having for its western terminus Windsor, forty iniles from the capital j where steamers con- nect for St. John, New Brunswick. Had things taken their usual courise we Bhould have had an entire day to look at Hali- fax, but,— ^though we did not regret the devia- tion — the delay caused by the Lady Head's going with the Prince Alfred to Prince Edward's Island, shortened our stay in Halifax to on^ night and that a dark and rainy one. Our allusion to the place must therefore be brief as was our visit. ' ■ . . The capital of Nova Scotia is reached by rail on the south western side^ the railway making the circuit of the bay or inner harbor, before arriving at the back of the city where the ter^ minjis stands. No view therefore df Halifax is presented by the land approach, itod a very different idea of this important plat?e isj we are told, formed by those arriving there in the Cu- nard or other steamers from seaward. The -in ■■,1 i ■f It u w m t'it.'i"" lilili ^liecta are U'sarly as narrow as tho.se of Quobe-:, ftnd ill many respects there is a siinilarity be- tween the two places, both being shipping resorts and military posts, and likewise situat- ed on eminences. The drive up to the city from the depot, leads to a long dingy suburban street with the dockyard covering most part of the j^round on tl\e left, and taverns and antiquated sliops, stores and dwellings on the right. On the highest ground here are the niilitctry bar- racks an extensive pile of buildings, counted the fine!*t on the continent or almost unsur- passed in England. They are four stories high and were ei'ected at a cost we believe of $250,000 by Messrs. Blaiklock and Peters of Quebec. Mr. Peters has now an important conti'act fof erecting a new edifice for the Union Bank of Nova Scotia. The only re.-^poctable houses in the business streets are tliose on the site of a recent fire, which arc built of free stone and worthy of any city. The hotels are not numer- ous, the " Waverly" is the senior. '^ Stewarts' is another of respectability, but the '^ Halifax Hotel'" is intended to swaliov/ up all the others , land it is indeed " prodigious," its dining 'Saloon is as large as our Music Hall. We saw the residence of '' Sam Slick/' a gloomy but respectable mansion. Tho (^'ourt House and '^a I n'U''>y 41 two Cathedrals are handsome structures. Tha City Hall and an hospital on the high ground are also public buildings of importance. These and the citadel seemed to me to comprise all that could be seen. Vessels of war belong- ing to the English and French fleets were in the harbor, and an old hulk or hospital ship formed out of a prize of former days, stood pro- minent in the offing. The entry to the Cunard wharf was about as respectable as our Cham- plain street. We arrived at half-past eight at night, and had to leave at six next morning, so that our observations here end. To obtain them we chartered an omnibus (!) in the even- ing, and ordered another in the morning at daybreak ; for they appeared the only public conveyances and are cheaply had. , A fortnightly Steamboat communication is kept up between Halifax and Boston by the way of Yarmouth. • v - Leaving Halifax on Tuesday morning at six, we got to Pictou at five p.m., where the " Lady Head" lies off, waiting for the mail ; and, embarking at once, we reached Quebec in four days, calling at Shediac, Chatham, Perc6 and Gasp6 en route. ' t ^tf v We omitted^ in speaking of the sketch of Cape 42 ii IN m ip.: ■| ( Chat, to say that it was there the 1st Kegi- ment of Royals was wrecked in the autumn of 1843, I think, on their way to England. Not the least pleasing feature of the journey either up or down the St. Lawrence, is the im- provements that have heen made in the navi- gation during the past ten years. Substantial- ly built piers, carefully placed beacons, and the most modern kind of light houses, meet the eye at every point where such things are required, — proving not only tho solicitude of this, and past Administrations, as to securing the safety of navigation of our inland waters, but also the wealth of the Province itself, from the character of the works that have been so liberally undertaken and carried out. The establishment of a regular line of steam communication between Canada and the Lower Provinces, is the first link in the chain of con- nection between them. The intercourse, daily becoming greater, may of itself, apart from political necessity, require an uninterrupted* highiray of traffic such as a Railroad to Hali- fax would afford ; and who can say, in view of the disruption of the American States, that it may not become, ere long, a matter of impera- tive urgency still further to cement the bonds .•ifi V >k 'Ai 43 between the British American OolonieS} and thus unite them if possible more closely to the Parent State, whose power would be un- equalled on tliis continent were such a Con- federacy to be something more than the mere scheme of the reflective politician. TOURIST. 44 :'.> n«i)Jt }L'? k: 'tlAih: il'MlHfS ^ *i lA it VISIT OF THE PRINCE OF WALES TO THE SAGUENAY. [From Wood's Prince of Wftles in Canada].! li I'd j'- The day was about as wretched and unfa- vourable as could possibly have chanced for any other trip. For a voyage up the Sague- nay, however, every one thought it the most appropriate weather that could have happened, and the wonder was that as this was the case the day was not fine. The wind was high and rushing in fierce sharp squalls which drove the rain like small shot in your face. Gloomy black clouds rested on the mountains, and seemed to double their height, pouring over the ragged cliffs in a stream of mist, till, lift- ing suddenly with the hoarse gusts of wind, they allowed short glimpses into what may almost be called the terrors of the Saguenay scenery. It is on such a day, above all others, that the savage wildness and gloom of this extraordinary river is seen to the greatest advantage. Sunlight and clear skies are out of place over its black waters. Anything which recalls the life and smile of nature is not in unison with the huge naked cliffs, raw, cold, and silent as tombs. An Italian spring could effect no change in its deadly rugged aspect, nor does winter add an iota to its mournful desolation. It is a river which one should see if only to know what dreadful > H CO H H W H to H ^ P 4:^ f: 'IM 11 > H CO M H H ►^ P 4:^ 45 aspects Nature cau assume in her wild moods. Once seen, however, few will care to visit it again, for it is with a sense of relief that the tourist emerges from its sullen gloom, and looks back upon it as a kind of vault. — Nature's sarcophagus, where life or sound seems never to have entered. Compared to it the Dead Sea is blooming^ and the wildest ravines look cosy and smiling. It is wild without the least variety, and grand appar- ently in spite of itself, while so utter is the solitude, so dreary and monotonous the frown of its great black walls of rock, that the tourist is sure to get impatient with its sullen dead reserve till he feels almost an antipathy to its very name. Some six miles above is the little town, or, as in England we should call it, vil- lage of Tadousac. It is more than 300 years since Jacques Cartier, the discoverer of Cana- da, the bold adventurer, who through his mis- interpretation of the Indian word " welcome," gave the present name to the country, landed here. It was almost his first real resting- place, and the first mention which we have of the Saguenay is one which now well befits its savage aspect, for Cartier sent a boat and crew to explore its rocky chasm which were never more heard of. From that day to this the river has had a name which, allowing for the difference of times and creeds, only the Styx can equal. At the mouth of the Saguenay the water varies in depth from ten to sixteen fathoms, but once between the walls of the river and the depth from end to end is never c 3 ri:i i: 1 1 H' Hi v 1 46 less than 100 fathoms, generally 150. On either side, at a distance of about a mile apart, tho cliffs rise up thin, white, and straight, v;:rying in perpendicular height from 1,200 to 1,600 feet, and this is the character of the riyer Saguenay from its mouth to its source. On the right bank the cliffs are poorly mantled here and there with stunted pines, but on the left there is scarcely a sign of life or verdure, and the limestone rocks stick up white and bleached in the gloomy air like the bones of an old world. At two places, St. Marguerite and between Capes Trinity and Eternity, where smaller tributaries pour their contributions into the deep, black stream, a breach occurs in the wall of rocks, as if some giant hand had torn them forcibly back, and left them strewn and baffled of their power in uncouth lumps over the valleys beyond. But these are the only openings, the only means of escape, if they may be so called, from the silent gloom of this dead river. The Saguenay seems to want painting, wants blowing up, or draining ; any- thing, in short, to alter its morose, eternal, quiet awe. Talk of Lethe or the Styx, they must have been purling brooks compared with this savage river, and a picnic on the banks of either would be preferable to one on the Saguenay I On the occasion of the Prince's first visit, on the 14th, the .list and rain hid half its gloom, but more than enough was seen to send the party back to the " Hero" at about five o'clock wet and dull. There was rather a 47 ii^ state dinner o'l board the flagship that evening, and the Prinv , .aving to be up early the next morning, retired at twelve. Before six a.m. he was again on board the Governor's steamer, and away up the 8aguenay to fish. Before he left, Captain Hope, of the '' Flying Fish," had received orders to get up steam and take all the officers of the squadron on an excursion up the river. Of course, everybody wished to go, and, as the day^was bright and glorious, every- body that could come came. The <♦ Flying Fish" thus had the honour of being the first man-of-war that ever passed up th^ ISaguenay, and if the whole navy of England is sent, I am sure a merrier party will never enter its waters than steamed up on that occasion. Even the Saguenay could not depress their spirits, and if that was not a proof of the zest with which all entered into the day's enjoyment it would be hard to say what was. From St. Marguerite the smart little sloop steamed on to where the wild scenery of the river culminates at a little inlet on the right bank between Capes Trinity and Eternity. Than these two dreadful head- lands nothing can be imagined more grxind or more impressive. For one brief moment the rugged character of the river is partly soften- ed, and, looking back into the deep valley between the capes, the land has an aspect of life and wild luxuriance which, though not rich, at least seems so in comparison with the previous awful barrenness. Cape Trinity on the side towards the landward opening is pretty thickly clothed with fir and birch c 4. 48 Ml w mingled together in a colour contrast which is beautiful enough, especially when the rocks show out among them, with their little cas- cades and waterfalls like strips of silver shin- ing in the sun. But Cape Eternity well becomes its name, and is the very reverse of all this. It se2ms to frown in gloomy indig- nation on its brother cape for the weakness it betrays in allowing anything like life or ver- dure to shield its wild, uncouth deformity ot strength. Cape Eternity certainly shows no sign of relaxing in this respect from its deep savage grandeur. It is one tremendous cliff of limestone, more than 1500 feet high, and inclining forward nearly 200 feet, brow-beat- ing all beneath it, and seeming as if at any moment it would fall and overwhelm the deep black stream which flows down so cold, so deep and motionless below. High up on its rough gray brows a few stunted pines show like bristles their scathed white arms, giving an awful weird aspect to the mass, blanched here and there by the tempests of ages,, stained And discoloured by little waterfalls, in blotchy and decaying spots, but all speaking mutely of a long-gone time when tiie Saguenay was old, silent and gloomy, before England was known^ or tho name of Christianity understood. Unlike Niagara, and all other of God's great works in nature, one does not wish for silence or solitude here. Companionship becomes doubly necessary in an awful solitude like this^ ind, though you involuntarily talk in subdued :one», still talk you must, if only to relieve 4') your miL\d of the feeling of loiielinesi and deBolatlon which seems to weigh on all who venture up this stern grim watery chasm. > The " Flying Fish" passed under this cape slowly with her yards almost touching the rock, though with more than 1000 feet of water under her. Even the Middies and youngsters from the squadron were awed by the scene into a temporary quietness. The solemn and almost forbidding silence at last became too much. The party said they had not come out to be overawed, chilled, and subdued by rocks, however tremendous, so it was carried nern. con. that, dead and stony as they were, they must at least have echoes, and the time was come to wake them. In a minute after, and Captain Hope having good-naturedly given his consent, one of the largest 68-pounders was cast loose and trained aft to face the cliff. From under its overhanging mass the " Flying Fish" was moved with care lest any loose crag should be sufficiently disturbed by the concus- sion to come down bodily upon her decks. A safe distance thus gained, the gun was fired. None who were in the '* Flying Fish" that day will ever forget its sound. For the space of a half a minute or so after the discharge there was a dead silence, and then, as if the report and concussion were hurled back upon the decks, the echoes came down crash on crash. It seemed as if the rocks and crags had all sprung into life under the tremendous din, and as if each was firing 68-pounders full upon us, in sharp crushing volleys, till at last 50 I ( ':ti they grew hoarser and hoarser in their anger, and retreated, bellowing slowly, carrying the tale of invaded solitude from hill to hill, till all the distant mountains seemed to roar and groan at the intrusion. It was the lirst time these hideous cliffs had ever been made to speak, and when they did break silence they did it to some purpose. A few miles further on, the " Flying Fish" ; passed under Statue Point, where, at about 1000 feet above the water a huge rough Gothic arch gives entrance to a cave in which, as yet, ' the foot of man has neve^* trodden. Before the entrance to this black aperture a gigantic rock, like the statute of some dead Titan, once r feitood. A few years ago, during the winter, it gave way, and the monstrous figure came crash- ing down through the ice of the Saguenay, and left bare to view the entrance to the cavern it had guarded perhaps for ages. Beyond this, again, was the Tableau Rock, a sheet of dark-coloured limestone, some 600 feet high by 300 wide, as straight and almost as smooth as a mirror. . . - . ^v - /fv^ :^rc • After passing this the interest in the scenery declined, so the " Flying Fish" turned about and made the best of her way down the river at full speedy Passing St. Marguerite the Prince was still busy with his fishing, and a royal salute was fired, the echoes of which, I believe, are still wandering in search ©f rest to this very hour. His Royal Highness returned to the " Hero" at about nine o'clock. His sport, owing to the 51 fineness of the day, had not been very great, as a few fimall trout were all the whole party had to boast of. Mr. Price hooked a large sal- mon, and gave it to the Prince to land, but his attempt was not successful. The Prince had not had sufficient practice in salmon fishing to enable him to accomplish that most difficult of all feats to a beginner — ^that of landing a very large fish with a very small line. It was not for the want of advice, however ; there was plenty of that. Every one called out what to do, and, as a matter of course, every one suggested a different mode from every body felse, so that His Highness was bewildered, and the salmon proved the truth of the old proverb, that "in a multitude of counsellors there is safety," and, breaking the line, got clear away. Fishing, however, was not the only sport enjoyed. A party of Indians waited at St. Marguerite wJth their canoes ; and in these the Prince, with the Duke of Newcastle, Major- General Bruce, and other members of the suite, embarked, and ventured down the rapids which pour from that beautiful tributary into the main stream. I had always been of opin- ion that sitting in a Turkish caique was the most uncomfortable means of conveyance ever resorted to on water ; but sitting in a canoe I found was a trifle more difficult still. Nobody but an Indian ever liked a canoe, or felt at ease in it. Its bark is so thin, that the very ripple of the water may almost be felt through it as through a blanket, while in appearance 1 WJ in tm'j 52 thd •fferTesceuce of a bottle of Allsopp would be more than enough to overset it. In reality, however, they are safe enough as long as one keeps perfectly still ; and in order to enable them to do this, the seats on which the travel- ler sits are slung so that the body moves with every motion of the frail little skiff. In one of these canoes the Prince (who seemed to know as little of fear as any man that ever lived) came down the rather angry and boiling rapids of St. Marguerite. They were not, of course, equal to those of the St. Lawrence ; but even down these I believe His Royal Highness would have ventured, had he only had a good Oxford crew on whom he could depend to back him. ^" It wai^ long past daylight ere this pleasant quiet party on the Saguenay gave up their amusement and, re-entering the precincts of the gloomy river, ran quickly down its black channel to the St. Lawrence. As he came alongside the " Hero," the ship burnt blue lights, and in an instant, as if in rivalry of their pale bright fires, the aurora borealis sprang up into the sky, playing such fantastic tricks of light and vivid colour asf shamed all terrestrial illuminations into noth- ing. The squadron anchored for the night off the mouth of the Saguenay, and at 6 a.m., on the l7th, got under weigh for Quebec. There was rather a fresh breeze and strong tide down the St. Lawrence, so that quick progress was not possible, and at seven o'clock in the even- ing the vessels anchored at Isle d'Orleans, m u twenty miles below Quebec, the first, tb« oldest, and the strongest of all the cities of Canada. i -u"^: 'ft •''i TJ' ,/,i ,/l .Jil .. i>|:>^-4^ u J^*y^'^ ii ^5'T (it ■'■,■.'! i ^"!rr hr\i^. Imii 1;» >'-!;^':;yv: .^f^f^ihoqrfiraa H-i^p «»iil a-H-^^i«- fi^.V4,fi.Tf 3jii;>":4'>A i^'f^ Dit^J "iO fi-itO / : IP I' Ml 54 Ir'f f,''. : *■■ mi}* ' THE LEGENDARY LORE OF THE ST. LAWRENCE, ;.._.: - ,, BY -V' J. M. LbMOINE. Methinks the spirits of the brave, Who on thy banks have found a grave, Still linger loath to fly ; *^ ^ And on the moanings of the gale, Strange shapes ride forth all cold and pale, Unseen by heedless eye. Oft in mine ears hath darkly rung, Their solemn requiem softly sung, Mysterious, deep and chill ; And dying oft, come back again J In sweet, unearthly, ghostly strain, The mournful night winds o'er the hill. K. K, K. The shores and islands of our mighty river, in addition to the interest they awaken as important sources of commercial and agri ' cultural wealth, are invested with no ordinary attraction for the naturalist, the antiquarian, the historian and even the tourist in quest of pleasure or of health. Bird Rocks. One of the first objects which meets the eye at the entrance of the gulf, is the " Bird Isles, 55 two rock«, elevated above tJio water, upwards of one hundred feet : their flattened summits, whose circumference exceed not, each, three hundred paces, exhibit a vesplendent white- ness, produced by the quantity of ordure, with which they are covered, from immense flocks of birds, which in summer, take possession of the apertures in their perpendicular clififs, where they form their nests and produce their young. When alarmed, they hover above the rocks, and overshadow their tops by their numbers. The abundance of their eggs affords to the inhabitants of the neighbouring coast^ a material supply of food." So wrote Heriot in 1807. They had, however, been carefully noted and described by the Jesuits, as far back as 1632. Father Paul Lejeune calls these rocks, Les Colombiers, (dove cotes,) from the myriads of water fowl which resort to them in the summer months : at the period when he wrote, " birds were so plentiful there, that a boat could be loaded with their eggs in a few hours, and persons ascend- ing the rocks, were liable to be prostrated to the ground, by the clapping of the wings of these feathered denizens." n Dr. Hy. Bryant, of Boston, who visited these rocks ont^e 21st June, 1860, for ornithologi- cal purposes, thus describes them : — " They are two in number, called the Great Bird or Gannet Kock, and the Little or North Bird ; they are about three quarters of a mile apart, the water between them very shoal, showing that, at no very distant epoch they formed a JsiMst ''il^ ''■;:iif'';,fi-'Hq' U' S-'^iriW r^* »- I -I f I 4 I 5G Kingle island. They are composed entiiely of a soft, reddish-brown saudstoue, the strata of which are very regular and nearly horizon- tal, dipping very slightly to tlie S. W. The North Bird is much the smallest, and though the base is more accessible, the summit can- not, I believe, be reached, at least, I was unable to do so ; it is the most irregular in its outline, presenting many enormous detached fragments, and is divided in one place into two separate islands at high water ; the north- erly one several times higher than broad, so as to present the appearance of a huge rocky pillar. Gannet Rock is a quarter of a mile in its longest diameter from S. W. to N. E. The highest point of the rook is at the northerly end, where, according to the chart it is 140 feet high, and from which it gradually slopes to the southerly end, where it is from 80 to 100. " The sides are nearly vertical, the summit in many places overhanging. There are two beaches at its base, on the southerly and west- erly sides, the most westerly one comparative- ly smooth and composed of rounded stones. The easterly one, on the contrary, is very^ rough and covered by irregular blocks, many of large size and still angular, showing that they have but recently fallen from the cliffs above. This beach is very difficult to land on, but the other presents no great diffioulty in ordinary weather ; the top of the rock cannot however, be reached from either of them. The only spot from which at present the ascent \} 57 can be made, is the rocky point bet^vee'n tho two beaches ; this has probably, from the yielding nature of the rock, altered materially since Audubon's visit ; at present, it vrould be impossible to haul a boat up from want of space. The landing is very ditlicult at all times, as it is necessary to jump from a boat, thrown about by the surf, on to the inclined surface of the ledge, rendered slippery by the fuci which cover it, and bounded towards the rock by a nearly vertical face. The landing once effected, the first part of the ascent is comparatively easy, being over large frag- ments and broad ledges, but the upper part ig both difficult and dangerous, as in some places the face of the rock is vertical for eight or ten feet and the projecting ledges very narrow, and the rock itself so soft that it cannot be trusted to, and in addition rendered slippery by the constant trickling from above and the excrements of the birds that cover it in every direction, ''Since Audubon's time the fishery, which was carried on extensiv^y in the neighbor- hood of Bryon Island, has failed, or at least is less productive than on the North shore, and I am inclined to think that at present tho birds are but little disturbed, and that conse- quently their number particularly of the Guillemots, has much increased. There was no 9,ppearance of any recent visit on the top of the rock, and though after making the ascent it was obvious that others had preceded us, still the traces were so f^iint that it was several D 58 hours before we Buccceded in finding the land- ing-place. The birds breeding there, at the time of oiir visit, were Gannots, Puffins, three species of Guillemots, Razor-billed Auks, and Kitti wakes. These birds are all mentioned by Audubon, with the exception of Briinnich's Guillemot confounded by him with the com- mon species. No other breeding-place on our shore is so remarkable at once for the number and variety of the specios occupying it. " Of the seven species mentioned, I am not aware that three, namely, the Kittiwake and the Bridled and Briinnich's Guillemot, are known to breed at any other place south of the Straits of Belle Isle ; of the remaining four, two, the Foolish Guillemot and Razor-billed Auk, are found at many other places and in large numbers ; the Puffin in much greater abundance on the North shore, particularly at the Perroquet Islands, near Mingan and Bras D'Or ; the Gannet at only two other points in the Gulf, at Perce Rock near Gasp^, which is perhaps even more remarkable than Gannet Rock, but is at present inaccessible ; and at Gannet Rock near Mingan, which will soon bo deserted by those bii^s in consequence of the depredations of the fisherman." Egg Island is memorable on account of the shipwreck and total destruction of the (Eng- lish) Armada which, under Admiral Walker, in 1711, attempted the invasion of Canada. The Perroquet Islands, Mingan. *' The Perroquet Rocks at the entrance of the 69 8 ir jr the Straits of Belle IhIc have recently acquir- ed an unenviable notoriety, on account of the wreck of the Steamer Clyde on the 8tli Sep- tember, 1857, and of that of the North Briton, one of the Edmondston Allan line on the 1 November 1861 ; they form part of the group known us the Mingan Islands, extend- ing down the Channel North of Anticosti from opposite Long Point to the Watscheeshoo Harbor. They are about 454 miles distant from Quebec — 18 miles NNW from Anticosti —six miles from the mainland at Long Point, and some nine miles west from the harbor of Mingan, also on the mainland. The distance between them and the sandy spit which hero extends across the Mingan channel is very shore ; and the vicinity of the islands, in a storm from the south-east, is a perfect caul- dron of heavy seas and baffling races. These dangerous rocks, although standing up like a cluster of huge flower-pots from the water, are almost totally hidden in darker weather from the vessels driven towards them from the sea, as they are over-shadowed by the highlands on shore and the larger islands near. The melancholy interest which attaches to them as the scene of so many wrecks, throws into shade that pertaining to their natural features. They consist of horizontal layers of limestone piled one on top of the other, larger at the summit than below, and continually fretted away all around tl eir base by the action of tides and waves, and stand there like desolate watchers for some storm-driven craft. The D 2 m I' ' ft s k ' W ■•? • |1 ll'li' 60 myriads of puffins, or sea-parrots (prettv littl« web-footed birds about the size of pigeons, and marked with variegated colors, hard to kill and tough to eat) that burrow up among the angelica roots — the only vegetation there — scarcely redeem the desolate aspect of the place. ' *- iUT:.:Li^-lf. -;:lJ r'.J> : " The disaster of the Glasgow steamer was said to have arisen from the want of a light- house on the south-west point of Anticosti. That want has since been supplied, and another cause must be sought to account for the North Briton's mishap. *' Further along, about six miles down the coast, which can be easily travelled on the clear sandy beach, is the Hudson's Bay Com- pany's Post, at the mouth of the famous sal- mon river Mingan. It consists of two dwel- ling houses of moderate size, outhouse, and storehouses of capacious dimensions. The Company's agent now residing there is Mr. J. Anderson, a Chief Factor from the Mackenzie River district, and the leader of one of the exploring parties who went in search of Sir John Franklin. His devotion and zeal, and the importance of his labors, are spoken of in high terms by Mr. John Richardson. He penetrated to Montreal Island, and verified and confirmed the first practical tidings of the fate of that devoted band which the late Sir John Franklin led through perils and trials harder to bear than the brunt of battle." (/s « ». ";"-"" Anticosti — The Gtianicus. *^*''-i>*i In mid channel, lies an island renown- €(1 in the annals of marine disaster and tragical shipwrecks, Anticosti, — that barrier thrown directly in the path of ships, with its rocky, inaccessible shores ; Anticosti, for many a long year the Island home of the Pirate of the St. Lawrence, Gamache, the bold, and cruel wrecker — ""' '♦ A man of loneliness and mystery." ' •' , One of those fiendish spirits, whom Byron and Fennimore Cooper delighted to delineate. Curious fossils and petrifactions strew the beach, and met with minute attention from Sir William Logan, the Provincial Geologist of Canada, who explored the place in 1843. Recently a party of American savants have visited the spot, to scrutinize closely the rocks of this ill-favored coast. ' ''* .p^am-n. One of the most painfully memorable ship- wrecks which took place at the east end of Anticosti, was that of the Brig Granicus^ stranded there in a snow storm during the fall of 1828. Amongst the living witnesses of the Granicus tragedy, can be mentioned Capt. Jesse Armstrong, Harbor Master at Quebec, who having sailed from that port on the 24th Oct., 1828, for the West Indies, was in com- pany with the Granicus and a dozen other ves- sels, at Pointe des Monts a few days before the accident which befel those vessels ; the greatest number were cast ashore, some never heard of afterwards. The passengers and crew ot the GranicuSf safely arrived on land, to meet ft more hideous and lingering fate, p 3 K .(,'■'■ 62 AH perished during the ensuing winter: and when the Government schooner called at the Island in the spring following to stock the light house with provisions, &c., the decayed remains of these unfortunate men were discovered in a rude hut. They had literally starved to death : in a pot over a fire place, was found human flesh, re- vealing the awful fact, that in their last ex- tremity they had resorted to this horrihle mode of prolonging life. Amongst the pas- sengers, there was a Montreal lady and her two children. • ■ ^ - - Ship Head. ' .'1 Several neighboring objects are well worthy of note. Close to the redoubted reefs of Cap Hosier, formerly stood " Ship Head " or " The Old Woman," as mariners called it — a fantastic boulder surrounded by deep water and looming out in calm weather so as to resemble at times a large ship under sail — a veritable phantom ship ; hundreds have been deceived by the optical illusion. This well known land mark has however disappeared and toppled over from its base into deep water ; yet a strange configuration of rock still exists near the shore to which the name of " The Old Man" IS given. ?>■ *muri ;jl; ,kI> Plateau Island. / » ft I't^' ! <• A few miles from Ship head, is Plateau Island, which appears to have been, in the time of the French, a resting place for the morse and seal, but merely retains at present 'I. 63 of all its primitive occupants, clouds of sea surf clucks, gulls and other water fowl. The Genius of Perce' Rock. In the distance one discerns the fanciful rock called Perce Rock, § so often described. At present it is chiefly remarkable as being the breeding place of the gannet, the gull and the cormorant : the white plumage of the gull contrasts agreably with the verdure which clothes its summit, inaccessible to man . A romantic story is told by the fishermen residing at Perc6, about a phantom having been seen during a storm on the Perc6 Rock. It is known as " Le Genie de Pile Perc^," the date of its existence runs beyond the me- mory of man. It seems difficult to imagine that any living thing, save the snowy gannet, the black cormorant or the silvery gull, should €ver have sought a, footing on this lofty rock. A German novelist might have considered it a fitting throne for the storm-king, wherefrom rejoicing, he might look defiance at the northern blast. It is likely that the foundation for this legend is about as substantial as, but no more so than, the one which attaches to a point near La Magd^leine, and known to the Canadian navigateurs as " Le BraillaM de la Magdeleine." It refers, I believe, to some awful shipwreck, which took place, before the Si, § A detailed account of this Rock will ba found in V Ornithologic du Canada^ by the same f^riter, T)4 !* i 64 <^t:> 1.^; . f Lawrence was lit and buoyed. A father and' mother, amongst crowds of others, here found a watery grave. Their infant son, by some lairaculoiis interposition of his guardian ang(3l, (as a pions old resident informed me,.) v/as safely washed ashore. Whether in this case the guardian angel assumed the form of a Newfoundland dog, or the more ortho- dox appca/ance of a v/inged clierub, tradi- tion has lulled to say ; tlte darling boy was safely landed on the pebbly beach, anil soon made it vocal with his grief and moans for the loss of his best friends. His infant wailings, blended v/ith tlie swelling storm, struck tho car of some belated fisherman whose boat v.^as passing the entrance of the river. Hence tho name '' Lo Braillard de la Magdeleine ;"" the noise is still heard in stormy weather, and may be very naturally explained, either by the action of the surf rolling into hollow caverns along the Gaspe coast, and which has astonished all observers, or by shelving rocks over which the waves moan like an unquiet spirit. It would be doing an injustice to my venerable and pious cicerone, were I to conceal the fact that she admitted, albeit hesitatingly, that the moanings of the '^ Braillard' might be caused by the action ot high winds on two large pines w^hich overhang a neighboring cape, and whose trunks grate ominously on one another. Alas I alas! for the marvellous! Gentle reader, you have your choice of these explanations. When our Canadian Mon- 05 teil, L'Abb^ Ferland,* shall have com- pleted his patient and laborious researches about the primitive times of Canada, pne will be able to dete mine the exact amount of truth and tiction which form the component elements of the legends of the St. Lawrence.* *Thc SoirSes Canadiennes for October, 1861, contain the following passage : — x *' Wc are, says Tabbe Forland, opposite the River Magdeleine, famous in the chronicles of the country, for ghost stories connected with it. Where is the Canadian sailor, familiar with this coast, who has not heard of the plaintive Bounds and d<2leful cries uttered by the Brail- lard de la Magdeleine ? Where w^ould you iind a native seaman who would consent to Bpend a few days, by himself in this locality, wherein a troubled spirit seeks to make known the torments it endures ? Is it the soul of a shipwrecked mariner asking for christian burial for its bones, or imploring the prayers of the church for its repose ? Is it the voice of the murderer condemned to expiate his crime on the very spot which witnessed its commis- sion ? . . For it is well known that Gasp^ w^reckers have not always contented them- selves with robbery and pillage, but have sometimes sought ccmcealment and impunity by making away with victims, — convinced, that the tomb is silent and reveals not its secrets. Or else, is this the celebrated Devil's Land mentioned by the cosmographev 'n 1^ < M i) '^'#' * M , .. M V 6G Cape D'Espoih. Cape D'Espoir, where English vessels met with an awful fate, would also fur- nish a most harrowing tale, wherein truth would appear still more strange than fiction. It is said that fragments of the ves- sels were driven by the surf on rocks, several feet over the level of the sea : so violent was the storm. The spirits of the departed are said to be still seen by the mariners at dusk, flitting about the shores ; likely, some of those Ignes fatui, which in former days led to the inhabitants of the Island of Orleans receiving Thevet, where according to him, Roberval (in 1542) abandoned his niece la Demoyselle Mar- guerite with her lover and with her old Nor- man Duenna. The ancient chronicler places this land somewhere, in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence, and relates that after the death of her two companions the Lady Marguerite, had to contend with devils, who under the disguise of white bears, tried to frighten her with their claws and their growls. On this legendary topic, Thevet might have found a match in one of our sailors, who certainly knew naught of the Lady Marguerite, but was particularly well posted in all matters referring to the Braillard de la Magdeleine. He felt ill at ease in this neighborhood and whistled for wind, were it even contrary : anything to him seem- ed preferable to remaining in the vicinity of the Braillard. (Log of the schooner Sarah, dur- ing her trip from Quebec to Gasp^in 1836.) 67 from the farmers of the south shore of the St. Lawrence, the Unenviable name of " Sorciers de rile d'Orleans," which they retain to this day, says Professor La Rue, of the Laval University. Who can tell however, whether sorcerers •were not as abundant in those days, as they were in the time of Robert Burton, according to whom, they were " common enough in every village and have commonly St. Catherine's wheel printed in the roof of their mouth, or in some other part about them" a most useful trade mark, as another writer observes whereby to distinguish the real from the coun- terfeit article. It is to be hoped the enterpris- ing founder of Bowenville, has excluded from his flourishing settlement at the West end of the Island, all such characters. Red Island Reef — Capt. Brulotte. The tourist is requested to cast a glance, as he passes, on that treacherous ledge, called Red Island Reef, so dreaded by inward bound vessels. One of the first who suffered from it was Emery De Caen, who in 1629 on his way to Quebec, then in posession of the English, got his vessel aground on it, in attempting to weather Pointe aux Alouettes. Amongst many memorable disasters, a singular ship- wreck occurred there in September, 1846, that of the brigantine Gasp^ Packet, owned and commanded by Capt. Brulotte, of Pointe Levi. The reader is aware of the origin of this name : it was called after Henri DeLevis, Due de Vontadour, a lineal descendant, by the it 68 by, uf the Israelite Jacob. A family picture, as one of our historians quaintly tells us, com- memorated his patriarchal descent in a manner, no doubt, very gratifying to the family pride.* This old sea dog had for forty years, scanned every creek and shore of the St. Lawrence, from Gaspe to Quebec : he went iTndor the familiar name of the Doyen des Caboteurs. Good seaman-ship, honesty, careful and temperate habits, had secured him a large share of public patronage in the way of passengers and freight, ere those magnificent steamships, the Napoleon III and Lady Head had engrossed this lucrative line of busi- ness. Many were the good qualities of the Captafn of the Gasp4 Packet : he had but one fault, a perverse habit of swearing at his crew, on any trivial occasion ; to this might be added another peculiarity which had called forth from his men many unkind remarks. A total abstainer, in theory and practice, Capt. Bru- lotte had, at an early period of his career 1 * " The Levi family pretended having sprung from the patriarch Jacob, by his son Levi. On this point it is related that in a Chapel be- longing to the family a painting was exposed representing the Holy Virgin and a member of the Levi family with his hat in his hand. Two inscriptions explained the scene. " Couv- rez vous, mon cousin," said the Virgin. " C'est mon plaisir, ma cousine," replies the descendant of Levi. (Cours d'Histoire du Canada, par I'Abb^ Ferland, Vol. 1, p. 1, 214. (39 inaugurated with his usual earnestness of pur- pose, the principles of total abstinence amongst his crew. In heavy fall weather, when the rigging was stiff with ice, it was a common occurrence to see the worthy Captain stationed amidships, with a kettle of hot tea, minister- ing to the wants of his sailors after coming down the rigging or taking in sail, a poor sub- stitute for tfamaica rum, as shivering Jack would slyly observe ; and still Dr. Kane's polar experience shows that in extreme cold, warm tea or coffee has decidedly the advantage, over ardent spirits as a heat generating agent. Captaine Brulotte, peace to his ash a 1 was the most careful of commanders. Right well, can the writer, then a passenger in the Gasp^ Pac- ket recall to memory, his honest^veather beat- en features when he paced the deck of his bri- gantine in 1843, with his marine glass under his arm, and sporting his venerable pea-jacket, a warm friend during many a nortb-easter, blending in his person the principles of Neal Dow and the good nature of Captain Cuttle. '-"';, Wrrck OF THE Gaspe' Packet. '.^ ! The Gaspe Packet had left Perc^, with a full cargo ; a brisk easterly wind, gradually freshening into a gale, made the old brigantine fly over the billows like a sea bird. The wind was increasing fast, and as it was the 20th September, the autumnal equinox could not be far off. The mate, on passing Perce Rock had noted the sea fowl clustering in crowds and uttering their loud and discordant clamour on the lofty ledge, as the brigantine 70 1 scudded by : a sure presage of an impending storm as he had observed to the captain. Onward came the good ship, until the roaring of the tempest in the rigging, made it neces-* sary to shorten sail ; the main sail and the fore topsail were double reefed accordingly, and every thing was going on smoothly ; the night was dark, it was true, but the wind being fair it was merely necessary to head the ship for Quebec, and forty-eight hours more would see the Gasp^ Packet, in its snug harbor. Early next morning the unmistakeable tokens of the.coming storm were observed. A drizzly rain drenched every one to the skin ; drifting clouds and the piercing cry of the petrel bade the old mariner to prepare : it was the equinoctial gale, which came howling over the great deep. Presently the sharp voice of the commander was heard, ordering a sailor to go on the bow- sprit and clue down some of the tackle which had got loose ; after some fruitless efforts, he informed the master, he could not perform his task on acccount of the violence of the wind : the captain, with an oath, ordered him to come and take the helm, and sprang forward to secure the tackle. While so engaged and whilst bending over the bowsprit, he was struck by a huge wave which submerged the bow of the Brigantine and the next min- ute he was seen on the crest of a billow, ut- tering loud cries for help. The Gasp^ Packet was immediately hove to ; an attempt made to lower a boat, but it was swamped and broke a- drift. Carried onward by the relentless storm 71 Oil went the old Brigaiitinc leaving lier tr uety commander to his awful fate. After a few struggles, he pank to his long rest ; des- pair seems to have taken i)ossession of the minds of all on board. Old Brulotte had ever been the soul and leading spirit of the Gasp6 Packet ; as ill luck would have it, he had shipped a new crew of very i^^competent hands. The shades of evening were closing in ; the weather, hazy and wet, but the wind was still fair ; alas ! for a stout heart and careful eye to pilot the forlorn bark, on her homeweu'd course I The mate was so awe-struck by tiie suddenness of the catastrophe, that he very nigh lost his reason : he retired helplessly to the cabin, to pray ; a sailor was placed at the wheel and onward sped the brave vessel. Old Brulotte seems to have had a crew, however well grounded in temperance principles, very superstious and totally devoid of that self re- liance and nautical knowledge for which Ca- nadian Cahoteurs are so conspicuous. Terror is contagious, and as soon as darkness descend- ed on the troubled waters, down came the steersman and at his heels the cook^ vowing that a black object, (probabl}^ a petrel or cormorant) wliich they were certain was the captain's ghost, had passed over the brig. One sailor alone seems to have been free from these vain fears, but not being familiar with the coast, he found he ^^as quite bewildered by the rain and darkness and allow- ed the Gasp6 Packet to take her own course, merely keeping her head straight. A few hours 7^^ I* had thus passed, during whiuh Bome heAvy seas struck the vessel, drencliiug and aweopint^ her deck anva3 discovered the ensuing morning. Life Hoemed extinct but some kind-heart- ed Ctinadlans, after a great deal of exer- tion, restored tlio suliercr to conscious- nerfh; : lie was delirious tor several days anry, and«of its bein^ « celebrated salmon €^sVi«^^>j* endeared^.to.* th© disciplds,,,pf Isaaf oWaltoniJjy many a*giori0«8s-<''tiibbi(f,'*8 tS- 4 S^ ii -i 78 fM m I; Goose and Crane Island. But to return to the Lower St. Lawrence, several miles higher up than Eiviere Quelle, the tourist discovers the verdant beaches of Goose Island, a spot most graphically sketch- ed by the Jesuits in 1663, as being then the inviolate sanctum* and breeding ground of millions of ducks and teal " whose loud voices made the whole island resound, in the summer season, but v/ho kept a profound silence during the spring and summer of 1663, owing to the frightful and continuous earthquakes, which caused the soil to roll and quake to such a degree that Church steeples would bend and kiss the earth and then rise up again ! I " * This last feat from its novelty, must have been particularly attractive to witness, from a baloon for instance, or from the deck of a ship, from any where in fact except from old mother Earth. ^ - < <: Goose Island is united to Crane Island by a belt of swampy ground, four miles long : this marsh is covered by tlie tide in the spring and fall only. M. de Llontmagny, then Go- .vernor of the colony, obtained from the Com- pany of New France, the grant of Crane Island* and of the two Islands (Petite and Grosse lie p,ux Oies) which bear the same name, as a. shooting ground. The Iroquois, ln« 1655, *^ade a , descent *on Goose Island, •nd* murdered ;*'M. Moyen and* his wife ; his Children,; were carried ol]&.g^ ^ nrisoners* Q- 79 An efftcicnt Game Law would in a few years restore it to what it was formerly : ♦ * It is really curious to note the care taken both under French and English rule, to pro- tect the game, in these preserves. No less than two Ordinances were passed, one in 1^31, and the other in 1769, to assure to the Sei- gneurs of Crane Island the exclusive privi- lege and right of shooting, granted them by their original title deed. Gilles Hocquart. Bur les plaintes qui nous ont ete portees par le Sieur de Touville aide Major des Troupes, Seigneur des Isles aux Oyes, aux Grues, au* Canot, Ste. Marguerite et la Grosse Isle, que plusieurs particulicrs tant de cette ville, que des d : isle et des cotes voisines s'ingerent de chasser dans les d : isle, quoique qu'il n'y ait que le Seigneur qui ait le privilege d lui accorde par ses litres., a quoi il nous aurait rcquis de pourvoir, nous faisons tres expres^ses defenses a toutes personncs de chasser ^XP'^' I'otendue des d : isles et Seigneurie^s sous quelque pretexte que cc soit, sans la iieruiLssion du Sieur de Touville et a peine de 10 livres d'amende contre les contievenants, et de confiscation de leurs amies et canots au proiitdu dit Seigneur : et sera la presente Crdonnance lue, publiee et affichee en la maniere accoutumee. Man- dons, &c. . * , Fait a Quebec, le 20 Mars, 1731. (Signe) , HOQUART. ^^n (Archives de la Province— ^Registre des Or* Vdonnances, Folio 70 Recto. , =■£ 4 o> 80 I m ■>y ■US' the best shooting ground in the country, for snipe^ woodcock^ ducks^ teal, and all the other "beach birds of which Governor Boucher, the illustrious ancestor of the Boucher family, wrote in 1663 from his capital (Three .Rivers) such glowing accounts to his friends at the court of Louis XIV. Some years back, a mag- nificent swan was shot on these swamps and present jd to the Governor General, by D. McPherson, Esq., the proprietor of these Is- lands. Not only are Goose and Crane Islands a land of promise for the sportsman and the naturalist, they also have their wild le~ •gends of love and jealousy. I shall merely mention one instance. More than a century back a French officer left old for New France, as it was then By His Excelicrtcy, Guy Carleton, Captain (ai-eneral and Governor in Chief of the Provinco of Quebec, Brigadier General of His Majesty's armies, &c., &c., &c. Taking into consideration the representa* tions which have been made to us by the Sieur De Longueil, Seigneur of Crane and Gooie Islands, Canoe and Ste. Marguerite Islands^ and also Grosse Isle, that by his title, he has the exclusif^ right to shoot on theses said* Is- lands — tliat notwithstanding several pcrsonflf' both from the city and neighbouring parishes and even the inhabitants of these Islands, at- tempt to shoot there without leave, flestroyin^ the bay oa the*bpaches — and catahing the 'yottn|^diig>k*fhat th«y find 4h#re^j thereby ®de«t © ® w 81 e ® called. This gentleman obtained the grant of a Fief or Seigniory, comprining a group of islands called the Ste. Marguerite Islands, to which he subsequently added the two Goose Islands and Crane Island ori- ginally granted to M. de Montmagny in 1G4G : The extent of such a domain supposes rank and im[)orttince in the Seigneur, who «> minishing their numbers considerably for tlie next hunting season, and also removing each year a quantity of thatching grass, also using as lire wood the timber on those islands, wo hereby expressly forbid that an}^ person either from Quebec, or from the neighboriug seig- neuries, and likewise — th^t any ot the in- iniiabitants of these Islands, under whatever pretence, do shoot on these Islands or any portion tJiereof witlioutthe ejpr(,'ss permission of the Sieur de Longueil, under pain of legal punishment We also forbid them to remove the young ducks, to carry away the thatching grass, to s unna ® I The tourist descending th© St. Lawrence is «iiruek»by the nfimber of beautiful villas, which 'ever and anon, nestling under groves of ever- ••green, oak and maple, line the river heights tfrom Cap Roiige, the western extremity of the ,4)roraontory, (on the eastern end of which .Dhamplain located in 1608^ the impregnablo .••?«ttpUfti i>f Ct^^^^i"') to Cape Diamond itself. ^ji.. Let any tourist on a brigli# July day, drive /,rpund Cap Rouge, passing out by St. John's gjGate, following the St. Foy road, and returning «,l;)y the Cap Rouge and Grande All^e, (St. Louis %,road,) and let him then sa,y,whether Quebec lias /*»ot a right to be proud gf her rural scenery. ® !,;• These country seats, without possessing the ^.fxtcnt.of English nob|enum'<^ estates, are 411 *.}»^a|l^1n^tance8 ^superior to them^iivj)o^mt^f' ® ® ® ^ ^ ^^.^°' IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) 1.0 I.I ■ 2.2 £ 1^ 1 20 liil III 1.25 II ..4 1 ,.6 < 6" ► V] 73 ^>. V f 'W 7 Hiotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14SS0 (716) 872-4503 ^^^ '^ > 86 W ' Bcetiery : they comprise generally about one hundred acres, although some have as many as two hundred acres attached to them. In former days a grand military road skirted the river heights, on which they are located j several actual remains of entrenchments and masonry testify to past strife and to the presence, in days of yore, of the White and the Ked man, the former armed with the cross, and bent on an errand of peace and good fellow- ship, the latter tracking relentlessly his fellow man through forest wilds. It is said one of the first missionaries of Canada met with a most cruel death, at the hands of the Indians he was christianising, and that the scalping scene took place on the very spot were the Honora- ble Mr. Justice Caron's residence now stands. The first place which attracts notice is Cap Rouge Cottage, built on the lofty promontory called Cap Eouge : between it and the St. Law- rence stands its picturesque little tower or pavilion, hanging like an eagle's eyre between the crags. Huge pines, venerable oaks, and shady winding avenues^ diversify the land- scape : at the foot of the hill on one side, to the south east, runs the noble St. Lawrence ; on the other side, to the south west, a serpentine stream, known as Cap Rouge River, which empties itself into the St. Lawrence. Some old residents of Quebec still retain pleasant memories of the archery parties held in former days, by the originator of the place on the sloping lawn of Cap Rouge Cottage — and many prefer the view obtained from its pavi- &t lion even to the far famed scenery of Spencer Wood or of Woodlleld. It would be impossible to recall in these nar- row limits the many charming summer re- treats, which succcsfjful merchants and the wealthy of Quebec, have selected .all along the river bank. Kilmarnock, St. Alban's, Kilgraston, are old and valued homes. From Claremont, the villa of the Honorable Mr. Justice Caron, a splen- did view of the river and opposite shore can be obtained. The house is a massive building, at present entirely hidden from view by a dense plantation, which sei)arates it from the high- way ; it was erected by the learned Judge some tv/elve years back. Ch)se by, is Abrincka, a commodious country scat with every modern improvement, which has been for several years the residence of Michael Stevenson, Esq. Bcauvoir, the family residence of Henry Le- mesurier, Esq., has also many admirers. In the vicinity is Cataraqui, the pic- turesque residence of Henry Burstall, Esq., a charming spot, wherein, far from city noises, city smoke and city dust, a private gentleman of the port wine and fox-hunting school might luxuriate in retirement, during the summer months. When Spencer W^ood was destroyed by fire, Sir Edmund Head sought the grateful shades of Cataraqui ; the untimely and deeply lamented loss of his eldest son had made seclusion desirable ; still for the requirements of Vice-Royalty, it must rank immeasurably behind Spencer Wood, the favorite resort of the ^S" !*'■ N 88 i Earl of Elgin and also of Bir Edmund Hcudj in his happy days. , : . . The eye next lights ou Benmore, Colo- nel Rhodes'^ cosy and comfortable cottage^ the beau-ideal of a f!:ontIt'man-farnicr's manor. Opposite is Bardiield, the Lord Bishop Moun- tain's country seat,agieeably located on a green slope. In noting down the many pretty spots which dot the shores of the St, Lawrence, one cannot omit Mount Hermon Cemetery : these grounds were laid out in 1849 by Major Doug- las, of the United States Engineers, the^ de- signer of Greenwood Cemetery, near New York. Quebec feels a legitimate pride in this sylvan abode, dedicated by grateful friends, to the departed ; no sound can there interrupt the repose of the slumberers, save the murmur of winds in the dense forest over head, or the w^arblings of the winged choristers wafted to this peaceful abode by the genial breath of spring. Unquestionably the most ornate and richly laid out estate round Quebec, is Woodlield, for- merly the elegant mansion of the Honble. \Vm. Sheppard, and for many years since the permanent residence of the Gibb family. Lovers of sweet flowers, fairv scenerv, and trim hedges, can easily beguile several hours in ex- ploring the broad acres of Woodtield, eijual in extent to Spencer Wood itself. SPENCER WOOD. THR VICE-REGAL RESIDENCE AT QUEBEC. Among the many lovely si to* which dot i S9 the banks of tho broad St. Lawrence, ono ubove all otliers, lias for years back been an unceasing object of admiration to strangers, and a ) legitimate boast to all Quebec, one might say, to all Canada. A glorious old manor, comprising at one time u couple of hundrvd acres, with its luxuriant and primitive growth of forest trees, its unrival- led river scenery, its spacious, sloping, verdant lawn, fit for a ducal residence, its fairy garden plots, its curious artificial devices of tropical . plants, clustering und/jr glass, amongst the green foliage of the orange, the fig, and the pine apple trees, bent down with golden fruit, it luscious sparkling grapes, its crystal foun- tains, whose sweet murmur blended with the rustling and sighing of the stately pines auci secular oaks, under the influence of strong winds : its serpentine shady avenues : such was at one time Spencer Wood, for twenty-five years the elegant home of Henry Atkinson, Esq., {Heu ! quantum mutata /) and after- wards of the Earl of Elgin, whose exqui- site entertainments many can yet recall to memory. Spencer Wood is enclosed between two small streams, the ruisscau St. Denis and the ruisseau Belle Borne, its natural boundaries : these streams have considerably diminished since the time when they were used, 200 years ago, to propel two mills, then situate in the neighborhood and mentioned in old titles. It was formerly called Powel Place, after Gene- ral Powel ; it was subsequently named Spen- cer Wood, when the Spencer Percival family p ^! 90 \^ II' la owned it, and Lad boon, alter tlie conquest of the country, the residence of the Governors.* . These extensive grounds are beautifully di- versified by hills and clumps of old oak and niaple, and although from the important re- serve of mostly the whole of the road or mar- ketable front, when the rest was sold to Gov- ernment in 1849, it can have but little value for small building lots, still for the specific objects to which nature seems to have intended it, it stands unequalled in Canada. It lies beautifully exposed to the morning sun, with a southerly aspect, in- which direcfion it is bounded by perpendicular dill's, ai whose feet the noble river sweoj)s in majestic grandeur. There would be a great deal to say about the scenery of this spot : two of the most striking Objects arc two promontories or points of land, one to the east, the other to the southwest of the property. A pavilion stands on the south- west point : from it a most glorious panorama presents itself. It would however be hard to tell whether the view obtained from this point is not surpassed in magnificence by that which can be witnessed from the easterly point. ^ Spencer Wood is situate in the parish of * " Contiguous to this property is the beau- tiful estate of the Hon. Mr. Perceval, called tSponcor Vfood, formerly Liiown as Powel Place, and which used to be the country resi- dence of the Governor General." — Bouchette's ^ograi>hy of Cana % 1 I i - I,: ■' i 92 exhibiting in succession, the coast of Beauprd (Beauport, L'Angc Gardien, &c.) the green slopes of the Island of Orleans, Cape Diamond crowned with its citadel and having at its feet a forest of masts, Abraham's Plains, the Coves and their humming, busy noises, St. Michael coves forming a graceful curve from Wolfe's cove to Pointe a Puisseaux. Within this area thrilling events once took place, and round these diverse objects, historical souvenirs cluster, recalling some of the most important occurrences in North America : the contest of two powerful nations for the sovereignty of thfc New World ; an important episode of the revolution which gavcy birth to the adjoining Republic. Such were some of the events of which these localities were the theatre. Each square inch of land in fact, was measured by the footsteps of some of the most remarkable men in the history of America : Jacques Cartier, Champlain, Fron- tenac, Laval, Phipps, d'Iberville, Wolfe, Mont- calm, Ai-nold, Montgomery, have each of them at sometime or other trod over some part of this expanse. " Close by, in St. Michael's Cove, Mr. De Mai- sonneuve and Mademoiselle Mance passed their first Canadian winter, with the colonists intended to found Montreal. Turn your eyes towards the west, and although the panorama is less extensive, still it awakens some glorious memories. At Cap Rouge, Jacques Cartier established his quarters, close to the river edge, the second winter he spent in Canada 93 and was succeeded in that spot by Hubcrval, ai the head of his ephemeral colony. Near the entrance of the Chaudiere River, stood the tents of the Abnoquiois, the Etchemins and the Soiiriquois Indians, when they came from the shores of New England to smoke the calumet of peace with their brethren, the French : the River Chaudiere in those days was the highway which connected their country with Canada. Closer to Pointe a Puisseaux, is Sillery cove, where the Jesuit Fathers were want to assem- ble and establish the Algonquin and Monta- gnais Indians, who were desirous of becoming christians. It was from that spot that the neophytes used to carry the faith to the depths of the forests : it was here that those early apostles of Christianity congregated before starting with the joyous message, for the country of the Hurons, for the shores of tho Mississippi or for the frozen regions of Hudson's Bay. From thence went Father P. Druiletes the bearer of the words of peace, on behalf of the christians of Sillery, to the Abnoqivois, of Kennebeki and to the puritans of Bost Near this same mission of Sillery, Father L^jgeois was massacred by the Iroquois, whilst Father Poncet was carried away a captive by these barbarous tribes. *' Monsieur de Sillery devoted large suits to erect the necessary edifices for the mission, such as a chapelle, a missionary residence, an hospital, a fort, houses for the new converts, together witli the habitations for the French. The D'Auteuil family had their country- seat I ^1 9i .(■.: ,/:i 1 :•■■) on tho lull, back of PoiiiteaPuiscaux ; and tho venerable Madame de Moncean, the mother-in law of the Attorney General Riiette D'Auteiiil, was in the habit of residing there from time to time in a house she had constructed near the " Chapelle." It would be indeed a pleasant and easy task to recall all the remarkable events which occurred in this neighborhood. One thing is certain : the cool retreats studding the shores of the St. Lawrence were equally sought for by tho wealthy in those days as they have been since by all those who wish to breathe pure air and enjoy the scenery. In March, 1860, a large portion of the Vice- regal residence was destroyed by lire :* Al- though the most expensive still standing, such as the stables, kitchens, graperies, and a portion is out-houses, wing. large occupied by the Provincial Aide- de-Camp, still the part destroyed has not yet been restored, although the amount received for insurance thereon, would suffice to rebuild, if not a permanent residence, at any rate a de- lightful summer retreat, for the future Vice- roy of the Confederate British Provinces For who will believe, until he sees it, that ♦Sinlbe thesolines were written the Telegraph has brought us the news of the destruc- tion by fire of the Governor General's residence in Toronto, — so that at the present moment the Eastern and Western Capital are equally badly off for gubernatorial residences. 95 ill the prcsuiit (liHturbcd state of North Anicri-' ca, when England is Ktrengthcninglier hold on this colony, in view of the grave complica- tions which are arising, when in fact the din of arms and l)ooming of cunnon is heard in the distance; who will believe tliat deserting the only fortress, she possesses, she will locate the seat of her power, the public archives the Oreat Seal of the Province, in a remote spot, in- accessible to her fleets and within reach of that grasping giant, whose " manifest destiny" ac- <.'ording to Secretary Scward,it is to ovcrnin tha whole of the continent, resting with one arm on the Atlantic and with the other on the Pacilic. If imperial interference alone has stayed the works, in the new Cajntal ; if the intercolonial railroad, now a necessity for the maintenance of British dominion on this side of the Atlantic is soon to be the cementing link between the future confederated British Provin- ces, who ever can bring himself to believe that the forest city is to be the political centre of the new combination ? Without wishing to question the wisdom of the Imperial award formerly arrived at on this point, a decision given in times of profound peace and on a very ■clifferent state of things from the picsent, one may naturally infer that the agitation ivhich reigns around us will cause the English Gov- ernment to reflect, and devise on the scat of Oovernmentand on every other political ques tion, a p'^>licy suited to the times. We are"^ still, it is true, at peace with our neighbors, hut there is a smell of gunpowder in tho F 4 !.■ ? .!i 9G -■"I rery air wo breathe. Should tho Gibraltar of Canada be again put to the test, may she be found foro-warned and prepared in the hour of trial. This may seem a digression from tho subject, but it is not so, for should the brave old city hallowed by so many his- torical and glorious souvenirs, continue to be the Seat of Government and stronghold of British power in the con>ing Confederation, oiie may naturally indulge the hope that to the lovely spot, which has just been described, to S^pencer Wood, vice-regal honors will be re- stored with all their splendour. Next comes Spencer Grange, the smaller half of SpeiKJcr Wood, now owned by J. M. LoMoinc, Esq., advocate. Without possessing the grandeur of scenery, the extensive river views of Spencer Wood, it must always as a woodlanrd scene rank very high. Its spa- cious graperies, fruit gardens and la^vns, convey to the English eye an idea of quiet English comfort. On an eminence, opi>osite Spencer Wood, stands Thornhill ; it was formerly and still is the property of the Honble Frs, Hjiincks, ex Premier of Canada, and now Gover- nor of British Guiana. Adjacent to it is Wolfe's P'ield, the family hall' of Wm. Price, Esq., the 'king of the Saguenay" as he i& styled on account of the numerous milling es- tablishments he owns in that district. Next to Wolfe's Field is Marchmont, on which the wealthy proprietor John Gilmour, Esq., ex- hibits to all Canada, what a model farm should .', really be. Conservatories, parks, pleasurd 97 grounds, in fact all the appliauces of modern luxury H 10 therein, tMii]il)ined witli husbandry carried to its hlgliebt HtMg^e of perfection. Several other country wrats ouj^lit to he n )ted for the information oftlie touribt, such as B dlu- vue, a cliarming old Kcat owned hy John (iihh, Es(|., a wortliy rival of the (»\vner of Marchmont in agricultural pursuits. JJelmont, formerly the seat of Sir Henry Caldwell, and since aciiuired for a Roman Catholic Cemet.ay, which is most appropriately and tastefully laid out. Glenalla, a picturescpie cottage on the Bcauport heights, with extensive and beautifully laid out grounds. The proprietor has collected in this spot, every kind of luxury and curiosity, jyrocured in his travels to Palestine, li^gypt, &c. Mummies 3000 years old, decorate iiis museum . iJr. Doug- las also rejoices in a harvest of wheat, the seed of which came out of a mummy's head 3000 years old and more. -. •• • . n i^ y , H I ' i 1 >.*! I . >W ; , J. ; !:..■■•> t . .; Brjl .S 98 '>!j^' /»;; r'i.v i'J .' t:.it-, ALL ABOUT FLSIIINU. 'V *■ . Are you a fisliorman ? Having anticipated an affirmative reply, we will yiippose you want to know WHERE, wiiEx, and how to go a iishing. Quebec is the best starting place for an ex- pedition to any waters northeast of Megantic countv, and cast of the district of Montreal. Thence you may get with ease and despatch to the inland rivers and lakes, and to the tidal waters of the St. Lawrence and its sparkling tributaries. It is especially the starting point for parties in quest of salmon or sea-trout. Mont- real would be the right place from which to journey for angling, either among the Eastern Townships, the St. Lawrence islands, into Lake Champlain and Lake George, and tlie Ottawa country, or through the lake-studded region which will be se(!n upon the map lying- north and northwest from the island city. Tiie wdiere to go, depends somewluit upon time and taste. Presuming the former to be not absolutely cramped, and the latter to be decidedly for game fishes, you should ignore the thought of smaller fry and tackle at once foe-fish worthy of the angler's steel. Without affecting to despise as plebian sport the piu'suit of all other fishes beside the aristocratic family of salmonidai v/e must 9!) frankly consent to leave the enquirer to chance sources of information ancnt the sturdy has« (green, black and striped sea or bar-fish), the greedy pike and skulking masqueallonge, the mottled pickerel and yellow perch, tlie shin)'^- sided shad, the prickled sun-fish, — and all the other suburban subjects in the aquatic commu- nities of fishdom. Sufiice it to say, that in many of our rivers and inmost of our inland lakes, nearly every variety of these fishes ma)^ be captured by means of live or artificial baits. Provided with a strong line, sound reel, stiifish trolling rod, and a stout gaff, with li\'« min- nows or gutta-percha imitations, or with bur- nished spoons, the troller may start out in certain hope of being able to fulfil a parting promise to his friends of presenting them with products of his lucky craft. All are gamey subjects, and give capital sport. When caught too, they repay capture by their firm and sweet-flavored flesh. Except, however, in the smaller lakes and interior waters where the}'' abound, the range of these difiercnt species is 80 extensive, and their haunts are so numerous and scattered, it would occupy too much space to enumerate and describe the most suitable places. There are many good fishing grounds for the lake trout and brook trout (salmo ferox and salmo fontinalis) in the immediate vicinity of Quebec, such as Lake St. Joseph, famous also for black bass, Lake of Seven Islands and the neighbouring Frog Lake, Perth Lake, Dog Lake, and Red Trout Lake (all within a few r ;: I 100 P;t WK i ti^'f: .,ii i.r:i If hiiles of Lake St. Joseph) ; also Clear Lako and its neighbors, Mackenzie's Lake, Lake Jaune, L ke Sagamitty, Burns' Lake, Lake Bonnet, Lake St. Charles and Lake Beauport. Then there are the Montmorency, the Jacques Cartier, the St. Ann, the St. Charles, the Etohemin, and the Chaudicre Elvers, all near at hand ; and they yield fair trout- ing. Lakes Phillipe and St. Joachim, be- low the St. Ann's River, are well stocked. And the lakes around Murray Bay (a popular watering-place) are full of trout. While in that hump-backed region, too, the Murray River will suggest a trial after some of the fresh run salmon that now frequent its fast regenerating waters. — And on the South shore j'^ou ma,y fairly revel in fresh pastures of trouty luxuriance by taking the rail cars to Somerset station, and driving a few miles into the interior and whipping such quiet places as Lake Joseph, Lake William, Trout Lake, British Lake, and the connecting streams up towards Black Lake. Lake Etchemin is more fished than the others, and is not so certain to give sport to the fly-fisher. If your liincy leads you in the opposite direction, take the cars towards River du Loup, and en passant visit the rivers and lakes which abound along that interesting coast. Else go on to Cacouna, where you'll find a host of the swelterers from town airing themselves within sniffing dis- tance of salt air. The pleasant company thereof happy fathers, rejuvenating mothers, rosy and health-hearted daughters, and demurely atten* dant Bons, may arrest for awhile your paatimci 101 u in another line. But should you be proof against angle-eyes (gallants spell it angel) and syren charms, somebody will be sure 'ere twelve hours shall have glided away to craze yon with stories of the spotted trout that swarm at Lake St. Cimon, some thirty miles further east. The drive itself is a delightful one, the fishing plenty, the flies active, and the beds execrable. Take our advice and carry camp fixings, cooking utensils, and prog. Besmear your face with as much pork fat as you can spare, and keep the remainder to fry the fish withal. Should your aspirations be after better fish, fewer flias, cleaner bods and cooler nights, go across to the Saguenay and angle for sea- trout. Anybody there can tell you when, where and how to fish. There is a hotel in course of building at the time of this present writing, and from the " Tadousac House" you may emerge at most convenient times either to fish in the Saguc»:iay river or in the main St. Lawrence. Should the landing of twenty vigorous sea trout not seem in your eyes so great an achievement on the slaughter of two hundred lake trout, such taste can be likewise accommodated to your heart's content. Just in rear of Tadousac, and at the Bergeronnes, and on the opposite side of the Saguenay among the Canard Lakes, and at the Little Saguenay, St. John, Grand Bay and Chicoutimi, Keno- gami and other lakes, the trout are only too plenty, very large and glad to bo caught. Verily, you may at any of these places, catch 102 a boat load of thom. But take our word for it, you'll como back again with remorseful longings and impatient relish to the incom- parably finer, healthier, more scientific sport of luring tidal t routs. We say nothing about the salmon fishing of the Saguenay tributaries, because most all of the streams are now under lease, and to excite the desire of visitants is only to invite disappointment. The open rivers and the domain par excellence of salmon and white trout, find appropriate mention in another place. Unlike European and Southern climates, the climate of Canada admits of no fl^^-fishing in the early spring or in winter months. The fishing season lasts from about the 1st of June to the end of September. It is seldom that the waters are warm enough and sufficiently low and settled after the snow-cold freshets to afford sport in May. The salmon time closes by law with the month of August. It must be considered at its height from the 10th of June to the end of July. Grilse run from ten to twenty days in August. The nearest salmon fisheries now open to the public commence at the river Bersimis, eighty miles below Tadousac ; with the single exception of the Moisie, this stream breeds the largest salmon found along the coast. The scenery along the banks for something like forty miles is varied and inviting. The principal of its tributaries in which salmon fishing may be had, is about thirty miles from the mouth, on the left bank. Ascend this branch to the falls and there kv,* 103 occur pools jL.i near succession within half u Jcaguc of Lhe falh From thirty five to forty miles further down the 8t. Lawrence is the Mistassinni Kiver. It is not a largo stream, and does not hold very heavy salmon ; Ivat they are tolerably fine fish, and tlie casts are clean and numerous. Then just below it is the Becscie, of much the same description as the preceding. This stream is sometimes called the Sheldrake. Either is correct. Next in order and distant about fifteen miles is the famous Godbout. It is let, and the privilege of fishing its sparkling waters belongs to tlie lessees. The Trinity is sixteen miles further down ; uncertain as a Salmon river, it always gives excellent trout fishing. The same may be said of its name- sake ten miles to the eastward. And also of the Calumet, a league still further down. The Pentecost and Little Marguerite, bear about the same character. The larger Marguerite, about two thirds of the way between Calumet and Seven Islands Bay is better ; Moisie Kiver ^ is next, twelve miles, but being leased 'tis * useless to describe it. Trout rivei is seven miles below. The fishing in it is not very early ; but throughout the months of July and August, the visitor will find middling sport. ' Until you reach the Mingan none of the in- tervening rivers on this section of t4ie coast can be relied upon. The St. John is large and crowded with fish, but is a sulky stream. From Trout River to Mingan is about ninety 104 If. U' m^ -.% four miles. Both in the Mingan audits hranch the Manitoii, salmon are always plenty, and rise well to the flv. The Romaine Kiver is nine miles further down. 'Tis a dangerous place to fish ; but the wtrcngtli and size and playfulnofcis of its salmon, almost tempt to defiance of its dangers. There is a promising sream named Great Watscheeshoo fifty three miles below. In order to fish it to best advantage you shonld camp about two miles up, arid fish the pools between camp and the head of an island that divides the channel just above the first rapid. Until you get to the Natashquhan, forty four miles further, none of the other rivers are of sufficient consequence to repay a visit. The}*" are small, and liable to be easily ruined by netting. The Natashquhan is a splendid stream, full of fish ranging from G to 40 pounds. You must camp at the second falls, and need not leave that spot to better your chances, for there you may hook and kill salmon ui^que ad nauseam. Although few •persons would be disposed to go any further in search of sport, there remain the Kegashka, Musquarro, Washeccootai, Olomanosheebo, Etamamu, Mecattina and Esquimaux rivers, within distances varying from twenty to one hundred miles below the Natashquhan. These all are streams of considerable size, and would doubtless prove worthy of trial. The chances of finding salmon in the rivers of the Island of Anticofiti are favorable. Trout cer< ■ h i [■(•■ ' I/, bamboo, whalebone, or tortoise shell tip, or of greenheart wood, will make a pleasant and serviceable rod. One of the latter can be had for $6. Mount a click reel, with 100 or more yards of waterproofed line, rather lighter than generally is used, of plaited silk and hair. Stock your book with single gut casting lines, and a couple of double ones ; and flies mostly of sober materials. Samples of choice patterns are always in the hands of Forrest, of Kelso, Bernard, of London, Shields, of New York, and Shay, of Quebec, any of whom will dress you a variety of from 6 to 12 dozen. A telescope handle, covered with strong leather, will do duty as a gaff and seine handle. Provide yourself with a skiff, or (if accustomed to such skittish craft) with a birch bark canoe ; with sculls, poles shod with iron sockets, and a graplin and rope for mooring above known or likely casts where the, trees or rocks on shore, or the width of the stream, obstruct a clean cast. The conical shaped tent we have already sug- gested as being the handiest and most stow- awayable. Sack, tent, pegs and all can be made to weigh less than 24 pounds, and cost some $20. For bedding you require but four blankets: a waterproof one in which the mattras can be wrapped up and strapped round so as to be readily carried, and three others, one of which should be sewed up like a bag^ so that you can crawl into it. An india rubber pillow is indispensable. Unless camping permanent- ly, a bed made of sapin branches will answer ; iU 109 ' but for a lengthy sojourn, a light beau^et or camp bedstead is desirable. Flannel shirts and drawers and thick socks, gloves with wristlets, woollen garments, Wellington boots or beefskin '^ shinnys," are as necessary as they will be found comfortable. As stores, you need pilot-bread, flour, pork, lard, tongues, potatoes, beans and split-peas, hams, bacon, eggs (pack- ed in salt), coarse and fine salt, corned beef, oatmeal and indian-meal mixed, and lard. Hardwood tinnets with lids and iron-hooped, will be found neatest for packing these things, as they can be afterwards used for pickling fish. Preserved meats and vegetables, soups, kc, to fancy. Pickles, chili vinegar, mustard, pepper (black and red), wax candles, soap (yellow and castile), rice, sauce, essence of coffee, ground coffee, chocolate, mixed tea, sugar, preserved milk, matches, baking pow- der, oil, axes, knives, pots, frying pans, tea kettle, tin tea and coffee pots, plates, spoons, knives and forks, cups, dishes, candlesticks, lantern, axes, hammer, nails, &c., &c. Beer, sherry, and whiskey for the men, and a little brandy for medicine, should satisfy your thirst after artificial beverages. The most portable and durable vehicles for carrying such sundries in are champagne-baskets covered with can- vass, and strapped all round, so as to admit of being readily swung upon the shoulders and carried. These are necessaries, luxuries, etceteras, enumerated, not precisely in the order they arc to be bought and used, but purposely so M no ■(*:■-. confused that you may, in separating them, fix the Tarious articles in mind and fill gaps by additions of your own. There is a book edited by Sir James Alex- ander, under the title of " Salmon Fishing in Canada," which without entering into the minutiae of outfit, Ac, contains many practical and useful hints, and is altogether the most readable and reliable work on the subject ever yet published. We refer the reader to it, conscious of its general interest and reliability. It may be expected that we should say something about the probable cost of fishing excursions to different parts of Canada ; but as tastes differ often quite as much as means and circumstances, it would be almost impossible to give a tariff of expenses. Certainly, there is nothing very formidable in the most ex> travagant estimate of needful outlay ; and yet the advice of some experienced person, to whom the inquirer shall reflate his ways and means, his expectations, &c., will enable him to gauge the cost of what he undertakes, to ac- commodate as well his views of sport as the length of his purse and the duration of his holiday. - ^■*^'^ *- V4« '-^i 0« '^'iJ •w i THE ISLK OF ORLEANS. m:. On viewing tho Harbour of Qtiebec from Durham Terrace, the south west end of this fertile and beautiful Island is seen dividing the waters of the Saint Lawrence, and forming one of the most attractive objects in the land- scape. The Island is twenty miles long by an average breath of five miles, divided into 'the five parishes of Saint Pierre, Stc. Fnmillc, St. Laurent, St. Jean and St. Fran9ois, and contains a population of nearly 6000 souU. Owing to its great fertility it was one of the first places cleared and settled by the French on their arrival in Canada. So abundant were the wild grapes that Cartier originally named it the " Isle of Bacchus" but afterwards changed it to the " Isle of Orleans," in honor of the Royal Family of France. The tour de VIsle or drive around the Island is one of the most charming and delightful trips that can possibly be conceived, tho scenery being most attractive and varying at every bend of the road. On the South side is the main-channel of the St. Lawrence studded with ships and steamers, and having as a back-ground tho pretty villages of Beaumont, Berthier and Montmagny. On the north side is the lesser channel of the river beyond which is seen Cap-Tourment rising to a height of »9 fPA+. fKo vniftoroq nfste. Anne'g, Chateau 109! the villages 112 I % Kicher and L'Ange-Gardien, the noble chain of Laurentian Mountains and though last not least the magnificent Falls of Montmoremy rushing into the St. Lawrence over a precipice 250 feet in height. Turn which way you will the eye is met by a succession of lovely views which exceed in beauty and grandeur a;iy- thiug to be found on this Continent *, nor does the stranger's interest cease here for the place is full of Historical Recollections which we have not space to allude to here but which have been embraced in a most interesting pamphlet published by N. H. Bowen, Esq., a Member of the Literary and Historical Society of this City, in 1860. An excellent ferry-boat, the Canadien has just been placed on this route, and seems to give general satisfaction. Her hours are as follows ; leaves the Island for town at 8 a.m., and 3 J p.m. The tourist by leaving the Cham- plain Market wharf at 11^ a.m., can drive that same afternoon as far as St. Jean or St. Fran9ois on the south side of the Island, completing the journey next day in time to catch the 3| p.m. boat for town : this is the most comfortable way of performing the jour- ney, but it can be done all in one day. The steamer makes an early extra trip on market days, and a late trip on Saturday evenings, so that by leaving town at 6 a.m. on a Saturday one would drive round the Island, (about 42 miles in all), stopping at St. Frangois or Ste. Famille to dine, and reaching the ferry in l-ime for evening boat at 6 p.m. Good calechet i^ ♦ M.I 113 can be procured on application to Louifli Trudel near the ferry landing, and Messrs. Roy k Lizotto who keep the Ferry Inn, are always ready to furnish travellers with a clean and comfortable repast : but a large party had better bring their vehicles from town, and in case of passing the night at one of the lower Parishes will remember that eggs, cream and butter are all the provisions they can hope to obtain in their country quarters, and that everything else must be brought with them. An excellent rifle-range has been recently established on the Island where the troops in garrison are instructed in firing and judging distances : the men seem to like camping there immensely during the warm summer months and the camp forms of itself an object of much interest. Several pretty country seats have been erected of late years near its south west head, and we think the Island bids fair to become in a few years the most fashionable as it has long been the most beautiful and healthy summer resi- dence in the vicinity of Quebec. Take our advice and make the tour de VltU : you will never forget, never regret it. June, 1862. ■*yf ♦* l- * t*l i * < ■ Jr. .^ ... ^'^ Fl l-i-i.-rt'i ^i ^^»k^1o.>^ ,.».•>;*; ^^(^W Us t^? Ji3:{iMiU t.'t.tw ■»,,", 1:^'K:^:4a..uel1*•i ! -iari^ l5^'r>.f» ■^'i^'i'-i.^i^V!;' . ^i v^/ - i^ .tVi-i*4#!i- iiJ> j^ S)d ^■'*S ' !£<'''! :?i+t?i •.?;+^ j^t >>^i'f:V»'. y ■Jiai . ft \^ ':, I (5« ■;> ta\.il \ Mi i^^mm^'c>t'iA^\ ^wfl:EA.T03Sr, MERCHANT TAILORS, Opposite Russell's Hotel, Palace Street,Quebec. *m.^*m^^s^m'8 hotel, 21 St. Ann Street. Quebec, situated in the most healthy and central locality, near the Engish Cathedral. MBS. DEXTEK'S HOTEL, Foot of Fabrique & St. John Streets, r,> > ,w ,Mvv Upper Town, Quebec. '*^''^--ft This long established and favorite house is^ in the heart of the business portion of the city.^ ADAM WATTERS, Head of Palace St., Upper Town, Quebec, (Two doors from RusselPs Hotel. niHE LARGEST GROCERY STORE in the X City, where every article in the line may be had of the best quality and at the lowest prices. Pic Nics and Travelling parties can obtain every delipacy and comfort on demand. % l#> 11« EUROPEAN AND NORTH AMERICAN urm RAILWAY. 3 .ci> jr-^j. SUMMER ARRANGEMENT. !t ■■;* rl!.i i# S 1 SHEDIAC AND ST. JOHN TO BOSTON. ir.-*< -f- On and after 12th May, ^^^^^-^ Trains between St- John and Shediao will leave as follows : . St. John, ,r...:v r, . jr Shediac. i-ovT^O ■'-^ 8 A.M. --^■•'^' 8 A.M. .S.- ; 5.30 P.M. l^-^> -^Irl The first two Trains from St. John run through ; the third to Sussex only, except oa Tuesdays, when the 2 o'clock Train will run to Sussex, and the 5.30 Train run through, to connect with the steamers from Boston, and the STEAMERS " ARABIAN" and '» LADY HEAD" at Shediac. The MORNING TRAIN from St. John and the Afternoon Train from Shediac are EXPRESS-TRAINS for Passen- gers and Mails. All the other Trains will carry Passengers and Freight, j^^^^ j^ The Morning Train from Sussex to St. John leaves at 6.45 A. M. R. JARDINE, . .,....,. ...T^ Chairman. Railway Commissioners' OfiSce St. John. I8t May, 1862. n f-..»P ^. *, h ^M'l- >i y-B •', Kl :?-^.^ i1 >m 117 THE COURT OF DIRECTORS OP THE NEW BRUNSWICK AND NOVA SCOTIA ,■ LAND COMPANY. 1 HAVE resolved, until further notice, to SELL LANDS situated on Lines of Road within the Tract belonging to the Com- pany, in Lots of 100 to 300 Acres each, suited to the convenience of purchasers, at FIVE SHILLINGS CURRENCY per acre, dividing the Purchase Money into instalments SPREAD OVER SIX YEARS, as follows, viz :— ... Deposit on signing agreement to purchase, ,1^. one shilling per acre. Second year, no instalment required. * Third year. Is. per acre. ' Fourth year Is. do. Fifth year Is. do. Sixth year Is. do. without addition of interest, if instalments be regularly paid. Several Farms having Houses, Barns, and Out Buildings erected thereon, also for sale, on very reasonable terms, varying from £Q0 to £300 according to the quality of the Soil, the value and condition cf the Buildings, Ac. &c. Reference — J. V. Thurgar, Esq., the Com- pany's AGENT IN SAINT JOHN. J. BECKWITH, Chief Commissioner New Brunswick and Nova Scotia Land > fen '-. Office, Fredericton, y ^ : j^ ... ,JV-< 'Si ll ll 118 t ' 1^11 \cic^ iir i I'' 'i' 1 h 1 i 1 1 i r "•^. *1H ill '. ' 1- ' r ;'S l.I Ml QUEBEC. ■ f ;•♦,» -4 4 1 11/T ESSES. W. BUSSELL & SON, in addition •*•'■*• to their well known Establishment in Palace Street, have leased the ST. LOUIS, (formerly Clarendon) HOTEL, in St. Louis STRBBT, which having been thoroughly repair- ed, painted, and put in complete order, is now open for the reception of guests and boarders. The Accommodation offbrko in both Houses combined, with the confidence which the Proprietors flatter themselves they have gained during their long experience in the business, render it unneccessary to say mora than that thst intend to esbp both Hotels, in every respect First Class, And worthy of a continuance of the extensiva and hig;hly 'appreciated patronage they hava hitherto enjoyed. \ ^!:T '■ TH'J^ -; l--*'*-^ . ji^ . jt i. i "If 120 i PASSAGE from ST. JOHN to PORT- LAND, and to HALIFAX via WIND- SOR, NOVA SCOTIA. rpHE superior sea going STEAMER " RE- 1 LIEF " WILL LEAVE Reed's Point Wharf, St. John, WEDNESDAY, 28th inst., at EIGHT o'clock A. M., FOR EASTPORT and PORTLAND, CONNECTING WITH RAIL- ROAD for BOSTON and MONTREAL. First Cabin Passage to Eastport. - - $1,00 « " Portland, - - 3,00 Second " Portland, - - 2,50 Eirst Class Passage to Boston via Railroad from Portland, 5,00 Will also make ONE TRIP PER WEEK TO WINDSOR, NOVA SCOTIA, leaving St. John every Monday Evening. First Cabin Passege to Windsor, - - - $2,50 Second " toWindsor,2, - - - 2,00 First Cabin Passage to Halifax, via Rail way to Windsor, - - - 3.50 For Freight and Passage apply to L. C. L. Perkins, North Wharf. EDEN HATHEWAY. t i 121 .50 L. MONTREAL OCEAN STEAMSHIP COMPANY. Carrying the Canadian Sf United States Mails. THIS COMPANY'S LINE is composed of the following First Class Steamships : — NORWEGIAN, 2500 tons Capt. McMaster. HIBERNIAN, 2500 tons " Grange. BOHEMIAN, 2200 tons " Ballantine. NOVA SCOTIAN, 2200 tons.. " Borland. ANGLO SAXON, 1800 tous. . . " Graham. NORTH AMERICAN, 1800 tons " Burgess.' JURA, 2300 tons " Alton. (NEWSHIP) Sailing ftom LIVERPOOL via LONDON- DERRY every THURSDAY, throughout the year, for and from QUEBEC during summer months, and from PORTLAND in Winter every SATURDAY. Rates of Passage from Quebec or Portland : Cabin. | Steeragb. To Glasgow. . .$66 a 80 | To Glasgow. $30.00 To London- | To London- derry $66 a 80 I derry. *... $30.00 To Liverpool. .$66 a 80 | To Liverpool.$30.00 . Return Tickets at Reduced Rates. ' ' An experienced Surgeon on each vessel. For further particulars apply to li miV ;,; ALLAN, BROS. & CO., LivBRP00i.|iBC| EDMONSTONE, ALLAN k CO., Montreal, f ALLANS, RAE & CO. Agents Quebec. 122 fit:! If . h ': fi «# *Jf i ii MONTREAL in OCEAN STEAMSHIP COMPANY DIRECT STEAM COMMUNICATION -_;..,) WITH GLASGOW. ' •. - .^^ : 8 S ST. ANDREW, 1500 tons. . .Capt. Dutton. 5 S ST. GEORGE, 1600 tons. . . . " Wylie. S 8 DAMASCUS, 1600 tons " Brown. The above vessels will sail at regular in- tervals for and from Quebec during season of navigation. , Cabin Passage to ftlasgow .... $60,k i ] j ,v^ Intermediate ^^y do ....$40.|;Ui::-r Steerage do ....$25* o^. ,i ^ Return Tickets granted at reduced rates, "^i Further particulars apply to i • '"* JAS. & A. ALLAN, Glasgow. ( EDMONSTONE ALLAN& CO. Montreal. ALLANS, RAE ^ CO., Agents, Quebec. « ■ ♦. fi O OTTAWA HOTEL, Sault-au-Matelot Itrbit. (Second Street from the Steamboat Wharves,) QUEBEC. The House having been enlarged, repatfcrd, painted throughout, and newly furnished, will be found equal to any in the City. DONALD NOOKAN, Proprietor. May 22, 1862.