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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. y errata id to nt fie pelure, igon d T\ 1 2 3 Ib ■ A /^3 G. FOLDS, Printer, 1, St. Andrew.st. CONTENTS. Preface ^^^»vwy^'r#»»^y*w*»<^ »^^*^#»*><>»^»^»»»*^^» »^i»^<»»/<»>^^#»^»^ »»^»» Page 7 LETTER I. P>ora Thomas William Magrath, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas RadclifT, Ireland. Cost of Voyj^e — Contract with the Captain — Necessary Provisions and Tools — Warning to Bachelors — Pas- LETTER II. From the same to the same— —Journey of Inspection ~. Preparations — Bush Road — Camp — Supper— Bed — Log-House — Oven — Baking — Expense in the Bush — Farm Partly Cleared — Comparative Circum- stances—Editorial Observation3,,»i.^,>»,>»»w>,>^>^>>*,»».>w>.,,^ -M First Settlement in Adelaide — Rapid Settlements — Settlement at Whitby — Expected Produce — Cost of LETTER III. From Mrs. Wm. Radcliff, to the Rev Thos, Radcliff, Dublin. Voyage — Error as to Provisions — Ice- bergS'-Fishing — Fishing Tackle — Gale of Wind — Storm— Dangers of the Gulf— Water of the St. Laurence — Horses— Vehicles — Arrival at Quebec LETTER IV. From Thomas Wm. Magrath, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Farm- House— Barn — Gentlemen Carpenters — Agricultu- ral Proceedings— Chesse — Mr. Gait — Profit not 49 60 &2 1 1:. . i, i u CONTENTS. LETTER V, From Mrs. William Radcliff, Upper Canada, to the Rev, Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Charges to Mon- treal — Dr. Phillips — Bulky Travellers — Light Har- ness — Distinct Currents — Fire Flies — Bird»— King Fisher — Bateaux — Prcscot — Passage to New York — F4 til lu rial \j uo\5 r V cii 1 u n 8^ ^^^^i^^^yw^i^^^^ytf »-»^»»»»»^»#»*»»<^»»»»»y#»»^»#»» 94 111 LETTER VL From Thomas William Magrath, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Gardens— \ Peaches — Industry Fashionable — Irish Row — No Ar- rest viii ivicoii" r^roc" oo^»#»^gi»y»»^^^^<^My.^M^^i^»^My^y^^s*^^N»^^i»»»>»sw»»^»s»#^^»»<» I i»* LETTER VII. From William Radcliff, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Purchase — Lon- don District — Bank Stock — Advantage to Farmers- Niagara — Regrets 1*23 LETTER VIII. From Mrs. William Radcliff, Upper Canada, to the ' Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Canadian Polite- ness—Indian Chief — Residence at a Farmer's — Canadian Expressions-— Journey through the Woods — Dangerous Passes — Remedy — At Home at Last, 134 LETTER IX. From Thomas Radcliff, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Cost of Log w. House — Rich Soil of Adelaide — Prices of Meat and Milch Cows — Manner of Clearing Land — Im- positions of Choppers — Various Modes of Chop- ping — Preparation of Ashes — Encouragement for ^ Emigrants 15C) LETTER X. From Bridget Lacy, to Mary Thompson, Ireland ■ Sea Sickness — Free and Easy — Storm Described- Sparring — Matrimonial Speculations 167 S CONTENTS. to the Mon- t Har- -King fork — 94 111 anada, (lens — \ NoAr- •S0¥^^<^*^^^ to tlie — Lon- mers— ll:) 1-2.3 to the Polite- er's — IWoods Last, 134 Ito the Log Meat l_Im- it for 150 jed— 167 LETTER XI. From William Radcliff, Esq. Upper Canada, to Arthur RadclifT, Esq, Dublin Township Quickly Set- tled — Hints to Sportsmen — Cost of Clearing — Use- ful Suggestions — Retrospections — Clerical Pros- pects 178 LETTER XII. From Thomas Radcliff, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin State of Religion. 1 00 ^ LETTER XIIL From Thomas William Magrath, Esq. Upper Canada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin Indian Reformation — Indian Chiefs— Costume — Excursion with Indians — Indian Liberality — Canoe in Dis- tress — Fatal Catastrophe — Friendly Hint 207 LETTER XIV. From Bridget Lacy, Upper Canada, to Mary Thomp- son, Ireland Change of Situation — Wages- Sauce — Dishonesty — Honesty — Maple Sugar — Ca- nadian Barm — A Tried Receipt — Irishwoman — Whrtefeet — Two Strings to your Bow 2*22 LETTER XV. From Thomas William Magrath, Esq. Upper '^anada, to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin- Deer Shooting 238 LETTER XVI. From the Same to the Same Deer Shooting 251 LETTER XVIL From the Same to the Same Bear Shooting — Hunting the Racoon 264 f ' . 1 vs. ]} I 6 CONTENTS. LETTER XVIII. From the Same to the Samc-i^- Partridge Shooting — Woodcock Shooting — Duck Shooting 275 LETTER XIX. From the Same to the Same. T:*out Fishing — Sal- mon Fishing — Night Fishing-. Indian Method — Mullet— Lake Fish 286 LETTER XX. From Thos. Radcliif, Esq. to his Agent in Dublin* Mannerof Remittance 301 Concluding Remarks 305 Report on the State of the Indians on the River Credit 309 APPENDIX. Profit on Clearing — Queries Answered — Extracts — Ecclesiastical Department — Recapitulation of certain expenses~-Tables of Various Charges 315 looting 275 t 5— Sal- jthod — 28() in.— 301 305 ■r Credit 309 ictracts — )f certain 315 PREFACE. This Book is published without any intention of biasing the public mind upon the question of Emigration. Whether a measure of this important nature, to the extent that now prevails, may be attended with advantage or in- jury to Ireland, is left to the depths of Political Economy, and to the womb of time. It is a question, which in her present state of excitement and distraction, could hardly be expected to receive impartial B t 8 PREFACE. discussion, to be decided on patriotic principles, or acted upon otherwise than from private interest, and personal con- siderations. The most elaborate opposition would be inadequate to repel the impetus; the most favourable encouragement could scarcely increase it, — Emigration has commenced upon a great scale, and will continue. Publi- cations in its favor, or against it, will not avail. — Truth and facts will be sought for, as the only guides. — Let the pru- dent and credible settler signify that he prospers, and state, with accuracy, the means of his success ; he will be followed by those who, from various causes, feel that they are unsuccessful, and there- fore anxious to place themselves, as soon as possible in a state of independence. H 1 patriotic wise than onal con- on would etiis; the jnt coukl • 1 upon a J. Publi- st it, will be sought the pru- f that he racy, the followed |uses, feel nd there- 5, as soon idence. pnp:FACE. 9 An enterj)rize of such ** pith and mo- ment" nnist, in most cases, he under- taken through much tribulati(m. Deep and heartfelt will be the sigh of regret — bitter the tear of affection, at leaving home, and relations and friends, perhaps for ever ! ! — But should that home have become irksome, unprofitable, and insecure — and should many near and dear friends be induced to swell the groupe that emigrate, or mean to follow in their steps — the gloom would disap- pear — the change of country be forgot- ten, or reconciled by the active occupa- tions of the new settlement, and the anticipation of its eventual prosperity. As this applies to settlers of a higher grade, well connected and well educated, it may be asked — Is there not, to persons thus circumstanced, something repulsive t f i » .t 10 PREFACE. \ I I i in the idea of encountering the wild forest, and the society, if any, of per- sons whose customs, habits, manners, and education, so widely differ from all that thei/ were taught to admire and approve ? — The answer is — the wilder the forest the more exempt from such society, unless persons of that de- scription become fellow settlers — which unpleasant alternative is now obviated by a late and judicious arrangement of the government to accommodate special groups of emigrants with their friends and followers, by sales of land in the same township ; thus putting it within their power to exclude strangers, with whom it might not be agreeable to asso- ciate. The settlers having formed their own party, it is reasonable to suppose, they PREFACE. 11 he wild of per- lanners, from all lire and J wilder om such bat de- — ^which obviated ment of f^ special friends in the within s, with to asso- jir own |e, they I will be pleased with their own society, and as years roll on, will have established an extensive and united colony of at- tached and intimate individuals. Whoever reflects upon what is termed society or good neighbourhood in the country parts of Ireland, must be dis- posed to acknowledge its fluctuation, drawbacks, and defects ; and even by fair comparison, to allow some degree of attraction to that, which under the late regulation, may now be formed in Upper Canada. . j With a considerable party of settlers, such as has been here alluded to, the Editor is closely connected. Thirteen members of his family, chil- dren, grand-children, and their attend- ants, departed for Canada in the Spring of 1832. An affliction only to be aleviated, L • i^ i''' r ' i • i! 12 PREFACE. I i at the time, by a conviction of then* having acted with deliberation, and re- solved with judgment, and latterly , by the interesting accounts received of their successful settlement. Other corres- ponding friends, had previously emi- grated to the same American province. The communications of all are given in the following pages — and coming, as they do, from actual settlers, and under real signatureSy it is hoped, that they may not be uiii*cceptable to the public. It has been suggested by rational men, who are anxiously seeking for informa- tion on this subject, that unadorned facts from existing settlers, ara much called for, and will be highly prized. These can be faithfully given from the foregoing sources, especially through the gentleman who has kindly permitted PREFACE. 13 his name to be inserted in the title page ; Mr. Thos. Wm. Magrath, with whom the Editor had been in previous corres- pondence on this subject ; a gentleman, whose settlement and occupations in Canada have placed much within his power, for critical observation and re- mark ; and whose letters upon field sports, it is hoped will be interesting to a numerous class of readers. Most pub- lications upon Canada have been dressea in the garb of fiction, with ability, with humour, and with interest ; — ^the fol- lowing, deficient in that attraction, must owe its recommendation to statements supplied from the information of those who have experienced what they repre- sent, and who have written without exaggeration. I i; • ; ' i '. ! ! I I / I !: I ! iu AUTHENTIC LETTERS, &C. &C. &C. LETTER I. From Thomas William Magrath, Esq, Upper Canada^ to the Rev. Thomas Radcliff, Ireland, Erindale, Toronto, Nov. 1831. My Dear Sir, I am glad to hear that your sons are com- ing to this country. I am sure they will be excellent settlers, and hope they will make this their head quarters until they fix on their future place of residence. My Fathers former let- ters will no doubt have informed yoii of the Governor's kindness in appointing me B 5 16 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. an agent for superintending the settlement of emigrants ; which circumstance having afforded me so many facilities of observation ; I am induced the more readily to accede to your request that I should impart all the imforma- tion I possess, on the, now, engrossing sub- ject of emigration. I shall therefore at once proceed to furnish you with a statement of the expenses of bringing out and maintain- ing, for twelve months, either a family or a single person, of the upper class of settlers. The cost attendant on the transport, from Liverpool to York by Quebec, and the sub- sequent location of my fathers family, (from which you may form a correct judgment of other cases differing in point of number) were as follow:— .^ ..:^ ^^^^ a,,. In May, 1827, our family consisting of my father, * mother, sister, cousin, three bro- thers, myself and a female servant, nine in number, took our passage in the brig * The Rev. James Magrath late Rector of Shankill, in the Diocese of Ferns, Ireland. . :] COST OF VOYAGE, &C. 17 tlement of ig afforded on ; I am de to your imforma- ►ssing sub- re at once atement of maintain- amily or a [)f settlers, port, from id the sub- ily, (from dgment of >er) were ng of my three bro- ant, nine the brig Shankill, in 4 i Donegal of Whitehaven, in which we had the accommodation of the entire state cabin, containing six births, and two state rooms, with the services of a steward, for £50 The cost of provisions calculated for 80 days . . . . 20 6 Expenses in lodgings at Montreal (with our own provisions brought on shore) . . . . 2 Travelling charges of my father and mother, sister and cousin to Prescot, 130 miles by steam- boat and stages. . . . 10 Expense of conveying my brothers and myself with luggage weigh- ' ing 20 cwt., at 4^. per cwt., and our expenditure in taverns, &c., >' during nine days, while on our passage up the St. Lawrence in Durham boats from Montreal to ^* Prescot. . . . . 10 ..i \ \r- Carried forward £92 t 1 ; 1 1 1 8 1 9 I it 1 i / r ' ^k 1 ! i i 1 1 |l 1 1 i 1 1 . ! 1 f . i \ f t f t 1 • i. 18 AUTHENTIC LETTERS, 13 8 Carried forward £92 One days charges at Prescot where our entire family met 2 From Prescot to York (230 miles) ; by steam-boat in first cabin * . 20 Expenses at York in lodgings for ten days or a fortnight . Conveyance of luggage and family to settlement ; suppose Total cost from Liverpool to settle- ment in Upper Canada with every comfort and respectable accomodation . . . £135 Or 15/. for each individual I have estimated the luggage at 20 cwts. ours was 7 tons, 3 cwts. ! ! ! The largest quantity ever landed by a single family on the Wharf at York, and for transporting it . ,. --,,-.'/! .-.,.^-,> . * This last charge might have been diminished three- fourths, if we had gone in a Schooner, but this passage is un- certain, sometimes occupying, if winds be contrary, three or four weeks. ! ! 1 * i J i m. 92 •2 ,1 ' 20 13 8 ■135 20 cwts. 'he largest family on jporting it fished three- jtassage is un- iiry, three or % CONTRACT WITH THE CAPTAIN. Id from Montreal it cost my father 28/. 12^. ; but in my calculation and estimate, I have allowed the more usual and economical quan- tity of one ton. ; With respect to our sea store, one third only was consumed, as we made the voyage to Quebec in twenty-seven days. The sur- plus quantity, however, was of essential service to us, afterwards, in our lodgings at York, and some of it we brought forward to Erindale. ; - r , \ -: *. i;' • ^ My father had made a written contract with the Captain at Liverpool, by which the latter was bound to land us at Montreal, and also, to allow us the privilege of remaining on board there, while arranging for our passage to York ; and this prudent arrangement obvi- ated the incurring any serious expenses until our arrival at the last mentioned place. The Captains frequently land their passen- gers at Quebec^ although they have been paid for their passage to Montreal, I am informed, however, that an act exists, by which they t' ■ i \. A I . ■I! I ■' I, < 20 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 1 I ( i may be fined £20, if convicted before a Magistrate, of compelling passengers to land any where but at the place agreed on. The contract ought to be entered into in writing, to prevent misunderstanding. My father compelled our captain to defray the charges of our passage to Montreal from Quebec, as he did not proceed with his vessel farther than that port. You may think with captain Dalgetty on the subject of provant, and wish to know what sea stock we brought with us : Two hundred weight of corned beef, packed in a pickling tub, well hooped, and with a bar of iron across the lid with a hinge and staple to it, as every thing you bring, must be securely locked, or the more hungry emigrants on board, will share with you. • y.nci\rj On putting to sea, the captain emptying this vessel of the brine, filled it with searwater, it was then lashed to the foot of the main mast on deck, for the convenience of getting at it daily. .; \ > ■ - ' NECESSARY PROVISIONS. •21 One hundred weight of biscuit, Do. do. flour, do. do. oatmeal. The last, excellent for burgoo * which will remain on the stomach during sea sickness, better than anything else. If we had taken out a great deal more, it would have proved an advantageous spec, as the Canadian oat-meal is scarce, and of inferior quality. We had ten shillings worth of bread ; fresh beef and mutton ; half a dozen of hams ; half a dozen of tongues; live fowls; two dozen of wine ; two gallons of rum, potatoes, and some other vegetables. But to resume the calculation of expenses, it will require for a family, such as we have under consideration, at least £100 for pro- visions in the hush during the first year, besides the subjoined outlay, for the purchase of land, building of house and offices and providing furniture, implements and seed. (^ ■'\ * Hibernice, Stirabout. A i i ■' I I !' I US AUTHENTIC LETTERS. T WO hundred acres of land, at 10s.£ 100 ♦O Log house, 30 feet by 20 feet . 35 Barn, ox house, stable and cow house, all under one roof, 50 Clearing ten acres at £3 10s. ^35 Bedsteads, chairs, presses, &c.f . 12 13 Bushels of seed wheat ... 350 2 Cows 60 Horse 13 A pair of oxen 10 Waggon 15 Yoke and chains for oxen .... 2 2 Axes . . . 1 3 Iron wedges 10 2 Harrows with teeth 10 2 Spades 05 2 Pitch forks ........ 2 0. 2S4f 2' - * Only one-fifth of this is required from government in hand; the remainder is paid by instalments of ^15 6s. 8d. ^ ann. for six years. f The more portable aitieles of indispensable furniture are tupposed to be taken from England* < oo *0 15 ' s .5 2 3 5 6 3 ^ 5 1; 2 y 1 ) 10 i ) 5 2 _ —^ :«' ; ^. ^ ent in hand; (d. ^ ann. ] <* irniture are 1 NECESSAllY TOOLS. 2.*3 V^. 2 . ^ 2 Two-inch screw augers, with a^^l q 15 other sizes down to half inch . . J Pickaxe 3 Tack, smoothing uM^ trying planes 6 Hammer and hat diet 3 Brace and set iff hits 10 1 Handsaw ..• 070 * 1 Brush hook 5 A set of chisels, four sizes . . ^^^ 6 The above tools should be purcnas^l at Liverpool, where they are considerably cheaper than here ; or in Dublin, if the emi- grant sails from thence, at the house of the Messrs. Perry, Pill-lane, who are of the So- ciety of Friends; and for whose moderate charges, and highly honourable conduct on se- veral occasions, to ignorant customers, I can vouch. This establishment contains such a variety of articles, that the emigrant should read this list over in their shop, and he will find it save him both time and trouble. ' * For cutting down the lighter brush wood. I. ti I I > ,1 24 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. By the above calculation, which as well as 1 have been able to note it, is critically correct, A gentleman with a family, may fix himself on his new estate, in any part of Upper Canada for £421 175. viz. Total cost from Liverpool, to Settlement £135 Purchase of land 100 Building house and offices ... 85 Clearing 10 acres 35 Articles of furniture 12 Seed wheat 35 2 Cows: 6 1 Horse 13 Oxen and waggon, yoke and chains 27 Tools 5 12 £421 17 And supposing him to have altogether, a capital of £1000, he may lodge the remain- der at York, in bank stock, at 12 percent; and if he takes out this capital in gold, (which he ought to do) he will be allowed from 3 to 4 shillings according to the rate of exchange at the time, on every sovereign. I -1 I 4 I .1 WARNING TO BACHELORS. 25 as well as lly correct, X. himself er Canada 35 00 85 35 12 3 5 6 13 27 5 12 !1 17 gether, a 5 remain- per cent ; i, (which •om 3 to exchange I Leaving the married folks and their children on their farm, I shall proceed to give my bachelor friends (having a sympathetic feeling with those unfortunate fellows) all the infor- mation in my power. But I must first admit that I do not recom- mend single gentlemen to come here, where, (I speak of the retirements in the bush) the only comforts they can expect, are cigars, sour cider, the eternal annoyance of an ugly old* housekeeper (one of the greatest plagues on earth,) and the glorious irregularity of a bachelor's house. Seriously, I would suggest long and earnest hesitation before they decide on fixing them- * selves here, as agriculturists ; and I would more strongly advise them (having a shrewd guess at the comforts and advantages of such connexion) to marry before they come out, if they can meet with cheerful, accomodating, and economizing lasses with a little of the needful; indeed whether possessing this last qualification or not, such girls would be in I tliemselves a treasure here. I'. : . I,( 5 . t >i.;: 26 AUTHENTIC LETTERS, If a smart and pretty widow, under thirty five, with a snug jointure or disposable for- tune, with three or four ready made sons and daughters (the riches of the Canadian colon- ist) be inclined to migrate hither, I pledge myself to provide a mate for her, either in the person of my cousin Charles Alley, who mea- sures six feet without his shoes; or of my second brother, who exceeds him in height by 3 inches. This hint may not be amiss in its results to us^ though confidentially conveyed to you. I will suppose a young man to have the usual clothes, &c. of a gentleman; in addition to these, let him bring : A moleskin jacket, price ... fl 10 One doz striped cotton shirts . . 2 One doz. of thick, country knit, worsted stockings 10 4 very warm night caps ... 040 4 Guernsey shirts 12 4 pair flannel drawers .... 14 4 Blankets 1 10 Carried forward £7 10 iii ARTICLES FOR INDIVIDUALS. 27 . n nder thirty osable for- le sons and dian colon- 1 pledge ther in the who mea- 'my second y 3 inches. J results to to you. o have the in addition £1 10 2 10 4 12 14 1 10 \1 10 fi Carried fo rward £7 10 Sailor's jacket, waistcot and trow- 9x^1 k9 • • • • • # 2 pair of very strong shoes, high enough to protect the ankle, 4 Pillow cases ...... 1 curled hair mattrass . . 6 Towels Canteen, with all necessary cook- ing apparatus One of Butler's medicine chests with his medicine directory . 1 Fur cap and gloves . . . 4 pair of thick Russia duck trowsers .... 1 pocket compass Total £20 17 with the implements and tools men- tioned (p. 22, 23) amounting to 5 12 Total 26 9 Boots and shoes are bad and dear in Canada, and tailors* work is higher than in London ; 2 10 1 4 6 1 4 5 3 10 2 15 1 10 3 ]i l! ■ i I:. i! \\. u - ,4':l 28 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I li ' '' - ;' I I I ! I ( i but the less money that an emigrant expends on any article which he mai/ not want for seve- ral months, the better for his purse and other comforts here. No single man should think of supplying his own provisions for the voyage ; he cannot inspect the dressing of them ; should he club with a family of strangers providing theirs, he will find, when about to land, a much greater diminution of his stock than he had anticipated, and experience in the end that he has been humbugged. What is called, and considered a cheap passage, should be avoided by those who are not greatly straight- ened in means, as it usually proves the dearest in the end. It is bad management to make one's self miserable for the sake of a few pounds, during perhaps a long and boisterous voyage ; shut up, it may be, during six or eight weeks, with all the inconveniencies of breakfasting, dining, sleeping, and getting sick in the same wretched apartment of a crazy merchant vessel. Our passage was short and favourable, else PASSAGE TO NEW YORK. 29 lit expends it for seve- e and other f supplying ; he cannot iild he club ling theirs, id, a much ;k than he in the end lat is called, should be tly straight- the dearest nt to make 3 of a few I boisterous Lring six or biiencies of md getting \t of a crazy irable, else we should have been heartily sorry for having chosen the Quebec course, which is longer than that to New York, and always more te- '\ dious ; the vessels being of an inferior class, and slower in their rate of sailing. Add to this the danger of the Newfoundland Banks, the navigation of the mouth at the St. Law- rence, and the number of leagues to be tra- versed between Quebec and York, occupying nine or ten days, while the other line of in- land navigation from New York to the same point by the delightful Hudson, and the canal to Oswego, occupies but four or five days, with the advantage of seeing the most interest- ing parts of the States. In short the election, when practicable, is decidedly in favour of the J passage to Neio York from Liverpool, where - merchant ships, (or packets of the first class,) with every accommodation that the most luxu- l rious person could desire, are always to be met I with. The passage in the best merchantmen I can be engaged for twenty guineas, with every delicacy of the table, and spirits of all '■ kinds, ad libitum. X \''l\ 1^1 » 1 r.-'.iii I 1! » > |: 1 ^' I \ \ M ;30 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. t ,1 I ! h -' i In the noble packets, called Liners, the total charge, including wines of the best descrip- tion, is thirty-five guineas. If the emigrant have money to spare, he can pass a few days agreeably at New York if not, he has the power of immediately re- moving his kit to the first steamer that starts for Albany, a distance of 150 miles, to which place he will be conveyed for nine shillings. His passage thence to Oswego, on the lake Ontario, by Canal boat, all expenses included, will be 3/. \0s, ; and from Oswego to York \L 155.; making a total cost, from New York to York, the grand point of his desti- nation, in either case, of 5/. 45. In my next I shall give you a comparative view of the cost of settling in the Bush, and on a farm partially cleared. I remain, very dear Sir, Your's faithfully, T. W. Magrath. '9 rs, the total ist descrip- 31 :o spare, he New York ediately re- r that starts ?s, to which ne shillings, on the lake ;es included, go to York from New if his desti- omparative Bush, and VIagrath. LETTER II. From Thomas William Magrath, Esq, Upper Canada, to the Rev. Jliomas Radcliffi Ireland. Erindale, Toronto, December, 1831^ I My dear Sir, I I mentioned in my last the necessary ex- ?■ Ipenditure in settling a family of nine, and also Ihat, for an individual. I The next consideration appears to me to he, whether it would be most advisable for the Immigrant boldly to encounter the difficulties and |)rivations of the Bush,* or at once to establish * The wild forest, previous to being cleared of any trees. ( I ♦•i ;M i 32 AUTHENTIC LETTERS, ^ I ) , himself on a farm partially cleared, and ready for the immediate reception of his family ? This must, in a great measure, depend on the extent of capital, as well as on the num- ber, age, and internal resources of the family. It should, however, be a chief object of in- quiry, and I will furnish you with information on this important point, by specifying the ex- penditure and respective circumstances of each method of location, so as to give a fair com- parative view of both cases, and the course the settler should pursue in either. In order to this comparison, the farms may be considered equal in extent, and at equal distance from the town of York. Number of acres 200 ; distance from York 30 miles. I shall begin with the uncleared lands, and will suppose the settler landed on the w^harf of York, the capital of this province, whose first visit is to the office of the Commis- sioner of Crown Lands, to inquire what lots are to be disposed of. .1 1::':!^ ii '. ?adv •I V d on [lum- mily. of in- »ation le ex- »f each 7 coin- course IS may equal York lands, ion the )vince, )ininis- lat lots i I JOURNEY OF INSPECTION. 33 n Being there informed that he can purchase certain lots of wild land in an unsettled part of the country, at from five to ten shilling an acre, he next proceeds to inspect their situation and quality. And with this view he travels in a public conveyance as far as is practicable, sa^ 15 miles, and hires a waggon to carry him from thence to the settlement nearest the land he wishes to inspect, say 5 miles, and there procures an intelligent person acquainted with the township, lots, &c. to act as his guide, with whom he sets forward for the land on foot ; and finding, that instead of performing the remaining ten miles, and of reaching it, as he may have expected, in a few hours walk, he will, perhaps for the first time in his life, be obliged to dispense with the luxury of a good bed, and dispose himself to rest as he best may, upon one composed of the boughs of the hemlock* in the small shantyf of a new settler. * A tree of the fir kind. f The first and most contracted habitation a settler forms. ( ■!. I 34 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. On getting up next morning, not perfect- ly refreshed ; after drinking his tea without the agreeable accompaniment of cream, or even milk, he proceeds with his guide, who, instructed by the index posts of the surveyor of the township, at length exclaims " this is the lot;" — when, the weary emigrant, seat- ing himself upon a log, and looking round him, ponders upon the impracticability of bringing his family so far into the Bush, and to a lot perhaps badly supplied with water, and covered with pines, (an invariable indi- cation of inferior land,) he decides upon further inspection, and at length fixes on a lot, under more favourable circumstances, upon which to found his futu a habitation and his home. He retraces his steps with altered feelings ; his thoughts occupied by pleasing anticipations of the future improvement of his Estate^ and is received at the shanty he had left, with all that hospitality which characterises the new '4' 1 PnEPATTATIONS — BUSII-R' ). 35 ices, and settlor, who will share his last lo T u ith ' is expected neighbour. The emigrant returns to York, concludes the purchase of his land, and hires, or pur- chases horses and waggon to convey his family and baggage to the farm of another comforta- ble settler in his vicinity, with whom he has bargained for their accommodation, at a mo- derate rate, and for a supply of excellent pro- visions for as many weeks as he shall be em- ployed in the formation of his own residence. With this interesting object at heart, he hires as many men as circumstances will per- mit ; a yoke of oxen and a sleigh, which is the only vehicle that should be brought into the woods until a road be regularly formed. The master and his men start before the oxen, to prepare what is termed a Bush-road, which is done by felling and drawing aside all trees under five inches diameter, from the line of march, and by cutting a pass through any fallen timber of larger dimensions ; thus leav- ing the great trees standing, round which, the li i' ^* I « 36 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. others being cleared away, the oxen and sleigh can ply without difficulty. About an hour before nightfall preparation is made for sleeping, and, what is termed, a camp is formed for this pui pose, in a summary way, by placing a ridge pole of ten feet upon two forked sticks six feet in length, and stuck firmly in the ground. Against this ridge pole are laid, at one side, a set of poles, ob- liquely ; leaving the other side which forms the front, entirely open, not only to admit the heat of a large fire, which is lighted up before it, but the smoke, also, to banish the musque- tos. A thick coat of hemlock boughs, or of bark stripped quickly from the standing trees, and covering the poles, keeps off the rain or dew. By this time the oxen have arrived with the be4-cloaths, provisions, &c. and then comes on the interesting scene of cooking. The frying-pan (" contrived a double debt to pay") not only suppHes successions of sa- voury pork, but also of bread or paste cakes, not less enticing from the oily drippings of the meat with which they are fried. After I CAMP — SUPPER — BED. 07 leigb ion is camp way, n two stuck ridge s, ob- form* flit the before usque- , or of ; trees, or dew. sd with 1 then )oking. B debt of sa- cakes, ppings After a hard day's work in the Bush, this is no un- welcome supper. Your epicures sometimes briii^ biscuits. Tlie oxen are tied to a tree, having hay, or maple branches as their provender ; and each of tue party having composed himself, with his feet to the blazing fire, sinks into repose, upon the floor of this temporary shelter, strewn thickly with the small boughs or tops of the hemlock tree. Breakfast being over by dawn of day, the party move on as before for five miles far- ther, and having, at length arrived at the selected settlement, a substantial camp or wigmam is erected, to accommodate all who are to be engaged in the building of the house. The oxen are sent backy to return on a certain day to draw the logs together, and the " Lord of this silent domain," commences active operations; not so very silent, however, as the axe resounds through the wood, and the expert choppers, have speedily made a sufficient clearance, furnishing, at the same / I •:n- Uii 38 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. li I I time, the necessary timber for the building. A wise settler will take care not to leave any trees standing close to the site of his intended mansion ; a friend of mine Lieut. who neglected this precaution, having just com- pleted his roof, was sitting under it, with the utmost complacency, when a tremendous crash, from a falling tree of great dimensions, laid the entire edifice level with the ground ; he himself, by a ndraculous escape, was taken out uninjured. ^ ' To return to our new settler. Having de- termined on the plan, and proper scantlings, he has the logs cut, accordingly, to the right lengths, and drawn together where the forma- tion of the house is to take place. ..^ ,, ^- . The walls are contrived in the same man- ner as a schoolboy makes a crib, except that they must be upright ; but, like that, they have corresponding notches, cut out of the ends of the respective logs that their adjoining sur- faces may close, with as little space as possible between them, and that the coins or angles may be thus strongly braced. LOG HOUSE. 39 lan- that Ihave is of sur- Isible igles m The elevation must depend on the room required within ; where upper apartments are intended, it must rise accordingly, and, pro- portionably higher in a lo^ house, which is generally finished with a shed, or pent-house, roof. In the formation of this roof, however simple, much accuracy is to be observed. Black ash and bass wood are considered best adapted to this purpose — the stems should be about fourteen inches in diameter, straight, clean, and easily split. Having cut them into lengths, corresponding with the pitch of the roof, they are then to be cleft assunder and hollowed out by the axe like rude troughs. ' These are ranged in sufficient number from front to rere, in the line of the roof with the hollow side uppermost; and over them are ranged alternately, an equal number, with the round side uppermost ; so that the adjoining edges of each two of the upper logs meet in the hollow of that beneath them, whilst the c5 .1 40 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ; , f^. \%^ i !■':: PU[ '■', \ \n \ !■■'. I hifii ':. \' :iyi adjoining edges of each two of the lower logs, are covered by the hollow of that which is above them; thus forming a compact roof perfectly water tight, as the hollows of the under logs effectually carry off all rain that may fall through the joints of the upper sur- face ; and the roof continues staunch as long^ as the timbers remain undecayed. - -- > This being completed— means must be taken to admit both the family and the light. The openings for the doors and win- dows (which are generally procured, ready made, from the nearest settlement) are then formed in the walls by a cross cut saw or an axe. . , «._. ^- , The chimney is then built with mud, if stones be scarce. The stubbing afterwards takes place, which means, the filling up the vacancies between the logs with slips of wood, mud and moss ; the floor is then formed of cleft planks pinned to logs sunk in the ground, and smoothed or rather levelled with an adze, the interior partitions &c. may begot forward by \i is roof the that sur- bng t be the win- eady then ,w or if irds the rood, of md, Ize, iby H if ! ^a 1 I* '1 ■> f' . ■^<'. b t: hi OVEK — BAKING. 41 degrees ; but, the oven, which is an essential, must be completed before the arrival of the family. ....... Stones or brick must be procured for this, at any inconvenience, for security against fire ; but mud will serve as mortar; it is always built outside the house, and stands alone. It is heated with pine, or very dry hard wood split into small pieces, and burnt in the oven to ashes, which being swept out, the bread is baked as in the common brick ovens at home, where dried furze are used to heat them. Thus at the expiration of three or four weeks the preparations are completed. Having now brought our settler into his own log house, with all the privation of former comforts that must of course attend his enter- prize ; I shall close this settlement in the Bush, with an estimate of the expense he must be supposed to have incurred, from the day he set off from York, to that of his first family dinner under his own roof. "^i I' i 'I 42 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. Items of expenditure in taking possession of a farm of 200 acres in the Bush ; distant from York 30 miles — open road for 20 miles. ■J I '■ /'«•;■' ,1 1 Coach hire 15 miles, (public "'- ' • road) ... f , 5 Waggon hire to farm house, '•' nearest to the lot, 5 miles ' > half a days hire . . . ' Vv. ' Guide from thence to the in- spection of lots, 3 days - ■ - "' Coach and waggon hire re- ~ turning ... Removing family to farm house Transport of luggage and pro- visions to farm house Lodging for family of six at farm house during twenty* 12 6 1 1 ■ '■ V' 15 ' "^i.i . 17 6 3 4 10 ■^t .. t,^. days ...-^^2 Carried forward £12 ^: I EXPENSE IN THE BUSH. 4^ * . 1( Carried forward £12 • •• Provisions for do. do. Hire of five men at half a dol- lar each, per day, for building log house &c. and making a road — twenty days #•• Provisions for do. do. - ... Hire of Oxen — two days Iron work, frames, doors and window shutters Clearing and fencing ten acres at 3/. 5^. per acre Taking family from farm house to log house Purchase of 200 acres at 10*. per ..• •*• ••. 5 12 10 6 5 10 8 32 10 1 5 i i . » 100 Total expenditure £178 We are now to give a comparative view, of the trouble and expense of settling on a farm of similar extent partially cleared — say ten 1 1 ^.-jiri A4 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 1 P E- acres, (being the same number as in the former ease, ) with house and ofRces prepared. In this case as in the other we must sup- pose our emigrant arrived at York, where, upon inquiry, he finds that many farms of the foregoing description, are advertised for sale, in different parts of the country, and he de- termines upon viewing some of those within his reach, as speedily as possible. That, of which we are to suppose him to become the purchaser, being, of the same extent and dis* tance from York, with the farm in the Bush, is to be approached with expedition and faci- lity by means of good roads and public con- veyances. Having fomid ten, of the two hundred acres cleared and in good heart to yield the necessary crops — with the house and offices ready built — ^he returns at once to close his purchase and convey his family to their new home. A few years previous occupation has produced a dairy, wash-house, fowl-house, garden, and many convenient appendages, i FARM PARTLY CLEARED. 45 which promote the good humour of the lady of the house, as to her domestic arrangements, whilst the gentleman cultivates his ten acres, (with judgment it is to be hoped) so as to produce nearly enough of the necessary articles of vegetation for the consumption of the house and farm-yard ; thus enjoying in his first year, and of his own production, many necessaries and comforts, that could not be grown, till the second in the Bush— and being enabled to purchase others at a mo- derate rate in an established settlement, which in a new one must be procured at an advanced price, r V ' -^' The attention bestowed on the cleared ground, is not t > prohibit his industrious efforts to clear more, or to make such improvements as his capital may enable him to do ; but that does not come within the limit of our present object in either case ; which is, to compare the cir- cumstances and expenditure in both. Here then is the estimate of the latter, to be com- compared with that in the former case. :| 46 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. i " I ill ■J-. C Items of expenditure in taking possession of a Farm of 200 acres^ icith ten acres cleared, 30 miles from York, in a Township already settled. Coach hire, 30 miles, to view the farm and back ... £ 15 Removing family by coach to the farm ... ... 1 15 Transport of luggage by waggon ... ... 4 10 Purchase of 200, at 20s. V 200 Total expenditure £207 Purchase and expenditure in \ taking possession of the above farm ... ... £207 Do. do. of farm in the Bush 178 Difference ... £ 29 0* * There is here no valuation of stock, implements, &c. &c. which is given in the former letter, and applies equally to both the foregoing cases. •:1: li h COMPARATIVE CIRCUMSTANCES. 47 1 Tliis would tem])t many to determine in favour of the cleared farm, which appears to he the most economical. The comparison, however, is also to extend to circumstances as well as to cost. Those of the Bush which are favourable, are these — ' ''-'•' ^ Cheaper land — a choice of district — a clear title — and the power of forming a neighbour- hood of select friends. Those of the cleared land which are favour- able, are these : ' :,..'.. The immediate accommodation of house and offices. ^ ^ . ' The prepared state of the cleared portion for the reception of different crops. The presumed facility of intercourse with mill and market, with readier access to the physician, and place of worship. The unfavourable circumstances of the Bush are these — Difficulty of access — the various privations to be encountered in the solitude of the wil- r-] Mil 48 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. i! Ill J 3 derness — the possible want of society — the absolute want of roads — the great difficulty, of intercourse with mill, market, physician or clergyman. The unfavourable circumstances of the cleared land are these : — A dangerous title — liability to the debts of a predecessor — an undesirable neighbourhood, fully settled, to the exclusion of relatives and friends. The settler has now an opportunity of de- ciding for himself. ^ As I shall state nothing but what is strictly fact, as far as my judgment enables me, I re- quest you to make use of what I write in any way that you think proper, for your sons ,or any other emigrants. My name also is perfectly at your service in any manner you may please to use it. -■'■■ " ' ' * I remain, my dear Sir, Yours, faithfully, Thos. Wm. Magrath. t '^i. ^ FIRST SETTLEMENT IN ADELAIDE. 49 Of the foregoing kind permission repeated in subsequent letters, and latterly confirmed by Mr. Magrath in person, the Editor will thankfully avail himself. His sons, for whose sake the inquiry was first made, in- fluenced by the information contained in the preceding letters, and in others which will appear in the sequel, and captivated by the prosperous settlement of the writer's fa- mily,* emigrated in May last, 1832, and are already established with their families, upon property of their own purchasing, and in houses of their own building, if not, in all the comfort to which they had been ac- customed, yet in the enjoyment of productive industry, with the prospect of unceasing in- dependence. With the comparative view of both descriptions of settlement before their eyes, as furnished by an experienced friend, and with the opportunity of personal inquiry, on their arrival in the country, they resolved * Vide Letter, 4. 'S. M PI' P ■r i, :: 1 1 11' !ii A\\ II 50 EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. on, what would appear, the least agreeable al- ternative, and preferred a remote, uncleared, and uninhabited forest, in which, their wives were the two j^r^^ European females, that ever set their feet ; and their houses, (with that of their physician and friend,) the ^r5# that were erected in the new township of Adelaide, in the London district. - They purchased late in July, 800 acres, as a first venture — commenced their operations in August — and in October, their families arrived to occupy their rustic habitations. — In a letter of the 16th of December, they mention that the township is settling so fast, they fear there may not be lots re- maining for relatives and friends, whom they expect, and who are anxious to fix themselves, this year, in their vicinity. They have al- ready a neighbourhood of nearly twenty families, married, and unmarried, amiable and respectable people, many of them, their own intimates, and all embarking with zeal, in the improvements of the township, to which an 11 r'll SI RAPID SETTLEMENTS. 51 excellent clergyman has been appointed, and in which a newly built school-house is used as a temporary place of worship, till the en- suing summer, when a permanent and com- modioii^ < h:irch is to be erected. If it be inquired why they went into such distant retirement — one hundred and thirty miles from the capital of the province ? The answer is — that they did so on good advice from a friend, whose kindness they will ever grate- fully remember, and whose representation of the land is fully borne out already, by their own experience of its peculiar richness. Thus availing themselves of the favourable circumstances of the Bush, already mentioned — they resolved to submit to the unfavourable, the chief of which are bad roads and bad potatoes — the latter admits of remedy, and the former it may be expected will gradually improve. However, as this party, which is a con- siderable one, had their own views and ob- jects in settling themselves as they have done. r 'A P 52 EDITORIAL OBSEIl'^ATIONS. it is strongly recommended to others, who are on the eve of emigrating, to give both descriptions of settlement, an unbiassed consideration — to weigh the respective cir- cumstances with caution, and to determine with deliberation — for though it is obviously of great importance, to derive immediately from the Government, or the Canada company, as the case may be, rather than from indivi- duals, who may have mortgages and other liens affecting their lots, which settlers, may be unable to discover till too late ; and though it must be borne in mind, that the sheriff has the power of selling the land for any debts the previous possessor may have contracted, with the same facility as he could dispose of goods and chattels, yet those contingencies may be obviated by a prudent caution ; and for the advantages of a cleared farm, there are many advocates and none more convincing than a settler of last year, Mr. James T. Sommerville, of Mayfield, township of Whitby, Upper Canada. m n ) : ■.r^i - fj j\ t( hi SETTLEMENT AT WHITBY. 53 icing Is T. itby, 4 .ft? I His excellent and rational remarks have ap- peared in the March number of that most use- ful publication, " Blackwood's Quarterly Journal of Agriculture" — and with respect to the farm he has chosen, the following is his own account : " In regard to my own situation and pros- pects, I am truly happy to say they are cheering ; and it is allowed on all hands that the purchase I have made is a good one. It is of one hundred acres of good land, fifty cleared, with an excellent new barn upon it, built this season, which cost seventy Pounds, with a frame house, and offices. The soil is a deep rich loam, and adapted to every kind of crop. Its local situation is also excellent, being within one mile of the main road between York and Kingston ; where coaches pass daily, and about three miles from Windsor bay, where there is plenty of shipping to all parts. • A fine stream of water runs through part of it, on which is erected a saw mill, and ::'l^ / 54 EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. I'i t J 'fj. t o presents one of the finest situations for a grist mill, which is much wanted in this part of the country. . . ^ ^ The price I paid for my land was, two hundred and fifty-six pounds, but after deduct- ing the improvements on it, the land itself cost only 22s. 6d. per acre, a small price when it is considered that uncleared land in its neigh- bourhood, is selling at from two pounds, to two pounds ten shillings per acre ; my pros- pects of a crop r.ext season, are not of the most flattering description, owing entirely to the extreme indolence of the person, from whom I purchased it. I shall have five acres of wheat in good condition, and other crops in proportion. I intend to keep ten milch cows next summer, which will pay well, as dairy produce sells very high ; by next fall of the year, if I live so long, I shall have fifty acres ready for wheat, which calculating the produce per acre so low as from twenty five to thirty bushels, will bring me, from three hundred and fifty to four hundred bolls of EXPECTED PRODUCE. 55 ^i wheat, of four bushels each, which at five shillings per bushel, will be four hundred pounds — this along with the produce of the cows, and of the other crops, will bring me a sum nearly equal to pay all expenses, and the whole of the money I paid for the land. I do not mean to say that I shall have fifty acres of wheat annually, but I do mean to say, that by prudent management, and persevering- industry, I shall be fully enabled to realize between three and four hundred pounds a year, for the payment of expenses, and the adequate maintenance of myself and family. This circumstance coupled with the fact, that I have no rent to pay, and almost no taxes, certainly presents, in a worldly point of view, a cheering and animating prospect. This, I believe, is no exaggerated statement ; but as I have no opportunity of realizing it in my own experience, I only offer it as my own opinion. Being on the spot, however, and I - D lL. i i 1 X O q r4 56 EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. judging from the state of the markets, and other circumstances, I not only offer it simply as my own opinion, but as my decided con- viction. If the above statement be at all correct, and I believe I am rather below the mark than above it, then it must appear perfectly plain to every unprejudiced mind, that, in so far at least, as worldly circumstances are concerned, the ends of emigration are completely fulfilled." Mr. Somerville in another part of his com- munication, states : — " I have purchased fifty acres more land, adjoining the hundred acres I purchased for- merly. I paid a rather high price for it, three pounds ten shillings per acre. It how- ever makes my farm a complete one ; and which is not surpassed for quality of soil, and local situation by any farm in the township of Whitby. There are about thirty acres of cleared land, upon the fifty; so that upon the whole farm there are seventy acres cleared. i !:,i i iill!: !ii!i' m COST OF CLEARING FARM. ;>/ rit'ty of them with stumps, and twenty, free of stumps, I have let about thirty acres of wood land to be chopped, logged, burnt, fenced, and ready for receiving the seed by the first of September next, * at three pounds per acre. If the land is sown down with g^ass seed, immediately after the first crop of wheat, and remains so, it will require ten or twelve years to rot out the stumps ; but if it is continued under the operation of the plough, the stumps will come out in six or eight years, and in some situations a good deal sooner." This is all much in favour of the cleared land ; but as Mr. Somerville declines giving advice^ but merely a candid opinion, so will the Editor abstain from engaging his readers on one side or the other, and like the gentle- man he has quoted, will "leave those who (■ |V ■, #,i! * The date of these remarks is November 14, 1832- KniTOR. iLU.. 1 58 EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. read, to judge and determine for themselves." They will find in other passages of Mr. Somer- viile's remarks, instances adduced by him, of countrymen of his (now neighbours at Whitby, ) settlers from Scotland, who on wi- cleared farms have been very prosperous. He speaks of a Mr. A , of twelve years standing, who came out without original capi- tal ; purchased two hundred acres ; began to clear it with great spirit ; lost his whole pro- perty by fire ; began again with unabated per- severance ; and is now possessed of three hundred acres of the best land, and is worth nearly three thousand pounds; also of Mr. T , from Lanarkshire, but three years at Whitby, who brought out five hundred pounds, and is now worth twelve hundred ; with many others, lately arrived, and all likely to pros- per on their farms. This testimony of a prudent Caledonian is quoted to assist the decision of the sottler, as to the comparative question in Mr. Ma- grath's second letter. ! ! ::'i!i .IIP' EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. 59 :i| Others from that gentleman, which followed in succession, are for the present postponed, to some received from members of the Edi- tors family after their departure. if ,1:1 i» '-«' '>■ -'„'. / ' > I ': w- : 1 i ;.-^. taiii i. 1 60 LETTER III. ,jl|!| ■J. From Mrs Wm, Radcliff, to the Jfer. Thoinaf RadcUff, Dublin. Atlantic Ocean, on board the Duncan Gibb, June 14, 1832. F3 P ♦ i|' •11 !;*'■ •ii'iii My dearest Mr. R. Until this day I have been unable to hold a pen. It was unfortunate that the chief cabin of this ship had been previously en- gaged, and that we could find no other vessel sailing at the time that suited us. From the miserable accommodation to which we have been obliged to submit, our sufferings have . ill r; VOYAGE. 61 been great; and mine, as I had reason to expect, beyond the rest. Yet, thanks be to God, I am now well enough to write to you, with a tolerably steady hand ; holding down my paper on the binnacle, while a freshening breeze wafts us along. You will sympathize with us at what we have undergone, and will read with interest, if not with amusement, my desultory journal to which I pledged myself before we parted. In the cabin (if it can be so called,) to which we are doomed, are thirty-one souls, enduring, in general, the crowd, and heat, and various difficulties, with tolerable patience and good humour. Some of the passengers are respectable and well informed, whose so- ciety, under other circumstances, would have been very agreeable ; but alas ! after the first day of our sailing, all satisfaction was at an end. As we still traced the dim outline of the coast from which we were gradually receding. I'i K i 62 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. V. r!': r/\ How many associations crowded on my mind. The tender recollections of early youth, the ties and friendships of maturer years, rose on the memory with fonder and more vivid impressions as the distance increased that bore me from the scene of their enjoyment. Yet the prospect of happiness, and independence, in the country of our adoption, qualiRed every sentiment of regret, and reconciled me to the painful alternative we had chosen. The following day a strong gale sprung up, and from that to the present, nearly four weeks, we suffered (with short intervals of relief) the most torturing sickness, that squally weather and a rough sea ever inflicted. Wonderful to be told, my little Mary, was ill but a few hours, when she fell into a profound sleep, and has never been a moment indisposed, from that hour to this. , i^; But here my dear Mr. R. for the be- iijefit of all future emigrants with sufficient means, whom you may have an opportunity of warning, I must particularly remark the ERllOR AS TO PROVISIONS. 63 4 i'l error of those who bring out, as we did, their own provisions — we thought it prudent to do so — but are now convinced that we were wrong ; by so doing you are excluded from the attention of the Captain or his steward, the only persons capable of affording any. .. i. ^'.• Your own servants are a burden to you, your stores useless, while you are sick ; and before you are well, either spoiled or stolen — we have been nearly a month at sea; and during that time have been able to enjoy but one comfortable dinner, which was on the first day of our embarkation. -;;•.; This is to be remedied by a little sacrifice of economy, to comfort, in paying to the Captain a bulk sum for accommodation, at- tendance and provisions — which furnished by him will perhaps not amount to so much, as the useless quantity usually brought out. — We lost one of our boats a few evenings since—and as the name, Duncan Gibb, is on her stern, we are in a great panic lest she should be picked up by some vessel, that supposing d5 i 64 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ■s. \: i: I i: irllin^ 'I I, : I. our ship to have been lost, might report it, and alarm the friends of the numerous passengers. When the weather is fine we remain on deck to a late hour ; and for the last three nights have been gratified by the luminous appearance of the sea. Every wave and ripple, to an unlimited extent, presents the appearance of liquid fire, which, in flashes of momentary succession, gives to the entire surface, an exquisite brilliancy and beauty. On the 17 th June we had indication of nearing the banks (as the sailors term it,) by a heavy mist. On the 21st, we suffered a degree of cold equal to that of a sharp November day in our own climate, apparently the forerunner of frost and snow. , On the 22nd at dawn, a magnificient Iceberg appeared in the distance — to my eye, fully as large as the hill of Howth. At a later hour another appeared to be drifting to- wards us, and though very remote, resembled a cathedral with a spire of exquisite white- ■■'i ■fS'; iiui! «: f ■I 1' I ■^ IC£B£RGS. 65 ness — two more of those floating masses, but of lesser dimensions, remained in view till three o'clock that day. I cannot omit to mention here, as it was at this time I suffered most from it, the disgusting water, to which we were obliged to resort, in our extreme thirst — there is no disguising its abominable taste by any mixture whatsoever, it baffles all the efforts of wine, spirits, raspberry, vinegar, tea, or coffee, to render it at all palatable. We should have brought with us a filtering machine, and this may be a useful hint to others. It is in this way only that we, who have had bitter experience of sufferings that might be remedied, can keep others out of the scrape by practical suggestions, and here through you, my dear Sir, I would encourage all emigrants who can possibly afford it, to be profuse in their store of bottled ale and porter, as the only wholesome and agree- able beverage to rely on — temperate advice you will say from a delicate lady ! !— r^but the I- w ! :••) 1" •i'l h .kMui^i ^■% 66 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. fl X I ■;■ h H more delicate the ladies, who may have occasion to avail themselves of it, the more applicable the recommendation. There is no degree of feverish thirst on shore to be compared to the parching thirst of sea sickness. In tea, almond milk is the best substitute for cream. It has, to be sure, a peculiar flavour resembling that of herbs ; but in a months residence on board, you get rid of many particularities. Our numerous bottles of prepared milk, are now good for nothing though palatable at first. June 25 — The cold weather continues, we have reached the much wished for banks of Newfoundland. The shallowest water we have had is 30 fathoms. v .^ j ^ • }^ The fishing is now going forward — some of the boats are within a few miles of us. ; ^ , This morning early, a whale made its ap- pearance and spouted water, I am told, as high, as our tallest mast. • ^ • -^ - . .v.^ The Captain has just succeeded in catching an immense cod-fish — our people are putting out their lines. ■r'^ I, ■ FISHING. 67 2 o'clock — we have had the amusement of seeing nine large fish taken — four of them by your own sons and our servant, whose success was transcendant. The iish he hooked weighed 40 tbs. and measured in length four feet. The others were about 10 lbs. each. We dressed two of them which gave 18 people, great and small, a plentiful dinner. Whether it proceeded from the relish of returning appetite, or from the intrinsic excellence of the fish, I cannot determine, (perhaps from both) but I can safely say, that I never tasted any thing so delicious. On this bank I am told the fish are considered small, but of the best quality and flavour. -' > ' We all wished we could send you a specimen of them. ' ' i ^ June 27 — The weather continues bitterly cold, but we are singularly free from fog. When on the outer, or false bank, we had three or four days of heavy fog and wetting mist, and one day of incessant rain — here we are clear and cold, but are still liable to return- 1 m i > : si I . IIH- 68 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. t X t4 ii; li' •'I ' ■■ ti Hi I: ing darkness and humidity, till we get into the gulph of St. Laurence. Our fishing goes on with great success, amongst the captures of this day is an im- mense HoUybut, 70 lbs. weight; we are to have it for dinner. I was much amused by learning that it brought with it, (most considerately^) its otcn sauce. In preparing to dress it, the cook found large crabs pouched in the interior, of a light scarlet, the body smaller than that of our crab, shaped more like a frog, or toad, and with very long legs. We paid our ad- dresses to the fish, which was not bad, but declined the sauce. Nine more cod-fish taken by our party ! Welshed, (observe how I identify myself with the sport,) in fifty fathom water, which is considered the best; and William desires me to mention to you, for the information of those friends who mean to follow us, that the line should be sixty fathoms long, to allow for the drifting of the vessel ; so tell 1 ; i' FISHING TACKLE. 69 this to all whom it may concern ; for in Dublin, it was considered that a forty fathom line would be sufficient, and it is not. Each of your son's lines was of that length, and they have been obliged to join them, by which means they have had better fishing than any otliers on board except the captain. For- tunately, their lines and hooks were of a strength that was laughed at, leaving home, but it proved to be right ; the true description of line is called log-line. They are very anxious you should know this, for the sake of any young fishermen coming out ; and thus ends their communication. June 30th. — From the brightest weather, we have suddenly been enveloped in tre- mendous fog — horns blowing to warn any approaching vessel of our vicinity — so heavy has been this wetting mist, that the large drops from the cordage, fall like heavy rain upon the deck, and have sent me, much against my will, for an entire day to bed. Previous to this we had good weatlier and t» 1 J" < 1 ■• u 7a AUTHENTIC LETTERS. f . v. rA H ;! I'l M?!:: smooth water, which tempted many to the usual exercise of a dance, the mate being a capital fiddler. I was, of course, a spectator ; and it was not a little ludicrous to see so curious a mixture of religions prancing to- gether upon deck — Church of England, Me- thodists, Walkerites, and Quakers ! ! July, 2. — We are now clear of the banks, thank God ; but the wind is unfavorable. The fog has also dispersed, having left traces of its unwholesomeness upon us and many other passengers, by a heavy and feverish illness, which has called forth the attention of our excellent doctors, public and private. We expect to see land to-day — but it is Newfoundland; which I don't care for. ^» July 4th. — We have had dreadful wea- ther — a day of tossing, and a night of heavy wind and rain — the lurching of the vessel, such, as to baffle all calculation with me as to my being at the lee, or weather side of the ship. (You see I am picking up the terms.) In one of her tremendous plunges, all GALE OF WIND. 71 articles not lashed down, appearing to assert th(jir freedom, commenced a ludicrous and motley dance on the cabin floor, in imita* tion, as it were, of the incongruous mix- ture of dancers upon deck some days be- fore. I could not help laughing at the comic scene. » A mind easily amused, and abstracted from gloomy thoughts, is a great enjoyment, and lightens many inflictions, by the counterpoise of gratitude for blessings which are always sure to preponderate. The sudden alternations of a sea voyage bear me out in this. Within a few hours, this most unpleasant motion of the vessel ceased — the heavy fog cleare d — a brisk and favourable breeze sprung up, and brought us forward rapidly for the entire day. We were in the higest spirits — at night the wind fell — the ship had little mo- tion — and we enjoyed the most delicious and uninterrupted repose. Fortunate ! it con- tinued so long, to recruit us for the coming change. Who would not join in the pious . f :■ 4 • » ! 1, '' If »!/ 4 !':i,. ill:!; hs'l'-'i iiij 72 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. aspiration of the Hermit of Engaddi, from the pen of the great and lamented author of all that was pure, and interesting, and in- structive in romance. At retiring to rest — " Blessed be His name who hath appointed the quiet night to follow the busy day, and the cidm sleep to refresh the weary limbs, and to compose the troubled spirit." And again at morning — " Blessed be His name, who having granted us a tranquil night of refreshing sleep, has given us another day to implore his pardon for our sins, through the merits of a Merciful Redeemer." Refreshed by the only perfect night's rest 1 had had duriiig the voyage, I dressed, as soon as I awoke, to go upon deck, when I was suddenly surprised at the increased rocking of the ship ; and, within a short half-hour, we had experienced a transition, from calm repose, and an unrufflecJ sea, to what even the sailors admitted to be a furious storm ; the sea dread- STORM. 73 ■fl est 1 mas enly the had ose, ors ful, beyond any thing I had ever seen, or could have imagined — the wind roaring with a vio- lence that prevented any voice from being heard, when suddenly, a tremendous crash, as if the main-mast had come down, with the accompanying sound of ropes breaking, and sails flapping, burst upon our ears. In sad alarm, we sat in a state not to be conceived, for a considerable time, when we were at length assured that we were safe, and every thing nearly put to rights. I was truly thankful to the Almighty for my escape. There is one curious fact which 1 cannot pass over. I was told that nothing could equal the joy of the children during the storm; and my little Mary, after I came down, continued to laugh immoderately. The gale lasted 12 hours, and then began gradually to subside before night. The sun set gloriously, the moon rose high and clear, the night was serene ; aa Aurora Borealis diffused its brilliancy, and the sea became i I ^^■ *|! m I' .: ,< tm It' 1 :i!' \U\'<- 74 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. like glass; — no wind whatever; — and, as Pat Mee observed, " that same against usJ* How appropriate are those magnificent words of Webb's, you used to admire so much. You recollect the vivid representation of the storm, when " the foaming surges roar and lash the mast ;" and who that ever heard it, can forget what follows : — " When, in an instant, He who rules the waves " Earth, Air, and Fire — Jehovah, God of gods, " In gracious accents speaks his sovereign will, " And bids the waters and the winds be still. " Hushed are the winds— the waters cease to roar, '* Safe are the seas, and silent, as the shore. " Now, say what joy elates the sailors's breast, " With prosperous gales, so unexpected, bless'd ! " What ease, what transport in each face is seen, " The Heav'ns look bright, the air and sea serene ; " For every plaintf we hear a joyful strain " To Him, whose power unbounded rules the main." I little thought, my dear Mr. R. that I should ever, in reality, have to take a part in the scene these lines so forcibly represent. But it has fallen to me, within a space of little more than four and twenty hours, to witness the DANOERS OF THE GULF. 75 raging storm, the sudden calm, and to bless for his mercy, and his goodness, that Power un- bounded, who rules the waves and wind. We are now passing the numerous islands in the Gulf, before we enter the river ; of course considerable anxiety prevails, as, with adverse winds, much danger would ensue. We, of course, keep a respectful distance. Our Captain's father lost a fine ship there, a few years back, when nearly the entire crew perished. His son is, of course, particu- cularly cautious, and, thank God, (Sunday the 8th,) we have passed in safety. The northern lights are now frequently seen, and the air is milder, though still cold. The nights are lovely, and the sky quite beautiful. We are now within 360 miles of Quebec, with a fair wind ; — God grant it may continue. \ July 11. Well, my dear Mr. R. here we are, at Goose Island, but 24 miles from Quebec, performing quarantine ; and I am most thank- 1 1 Iil^i 76 AUTHENTIC LETTEllS. ful tliat our perilous and disajj^reeablo voyage is over, which it may now be saiti to be. Wo are doomed by the l)oard of health to but tliree - ^> '■"•i.-- .-.! •; mm ,, i-i •. To reduce the expense in harvest time, we use cradle scythes to cut all the grain, although they do not make quite as clean work as the sickles. '.> ' h A good cradler will take down from two to three acres of wheat in a day. Gleaning is ' :' . 1 1 ' ■ J ■■'•■W i - ?i ; I'l r ■ '-* IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) & / ^ LL 1.25 119 u 1. ^ 6" V "^ A3 Photographic Sciences Corporation 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. US80 (716) 872-4S03 90 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I i not worth the attention of even a child ; the scattered grains go to the sustenance of the wild pigeons of which the flocks are sometimes miles in length. ' By the way, I must ask you to account for a curious circumstance which results from mowing wheat on a swamp, or wherever wet lodges. The purest seed wheat that can be procured in such soil, becomes a kind of grain called ehesse. Some dry land of ours produces fine wheat; but where there is a tendency to swamp, the ehesse grows, and in one spot, with us there was last year half an acre of it with very little wheat among it. Some farmers maintain that it does not proceed from wheat, but from a dormant seed ; others, of whom my father is one, are of opinion that the wheat degene- rates from the constant moisture and becomes what we term ehesse, and, what tends to confirm this very natural hypothesis is that ehesse did not grow in any part of the field where wheat is not sown, and the adjoining CHESSE — GIRDLING. 91 patches which were purposely left unsown, produced only rank grass and weeds. This chesse looks exactly like wheat, vvhils*^ jrrowing, but when beginning to shoot or spindle — the head opens I will send you a specimen of it cut in harvest time. It is an advantageous circumstiince for the clearing of this country, that the settler finds it his advantage to bring in, fresh land every year. Some emigrants, who are without capital or assistance, exhaust their first clear- ance ; and others prepare their land by * (/irdling the trees, which though it kills them, and allows vegetation under and around them, is an injudicious mode, as they frequently fall either on the fences or on the crops, or, what is worse, on the cattle, and occasion annual and often very inconvenient labour to remove them. * This is done by cutting through the bark in rings, hy which the communication of the sap being interrupted — th<' trunk perishes. — Editor. 92 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 3 We had a very spirited manager for the Canada company in this neighbourhood — Mr. Gait — whose various publications bear strong evidence of his literary powers, and whose foresight and perseverance, acting upon a great scale, would eventually have produced a won- derful improvement, in advancing the most important interests of this country. The London merchants, however, compos- ing the Canada company, did not approve of the expenditure of too much of their cash on general improvements, without an immediate return, and recalled him, placing in his room the Hon. William Allen and Messrs. Thomas Mercer Jones, and Dunlop, better known by the name of Tiger Dunlop — the last, though not least, of whom, is Warden of the woods and forests — all excellent and honourable men, who will conscientiously do their duty, and may, perhaps, eventually reap the advantage of Mr. Gait's wisdom and exertions. An individual emigrant must expend capital and toil before he can have an overplus for PROFIT NOT IMMEDIATE. 93 market, why then should immediate profit be expected by the company from a number of colonists, within a shorter period. I believe you will not be sorry that I close my letter here. My next shall treat of various unconnected matters that may be interesting and useful to settlers. Your's, my dear Sir, Faithfully, T. W. Mag RATH. i i> **i! li 94 LETTER V. 3 '4 1 a From Mrs, fVm. Radciff, Uppei' Canada, to thr Rev. Thomas Radcliff^ Dublin. York, July -iTth, 1832. My dear Mr. R. 1 have not been able to continue my diary since I closed my letter at Quebec. — I was fortunate in being able to send it by a gentle- man sailing for Ireland the following day. On the 17th of July, we embarked in the St. Lawrence steam boat for Montreal ; Captain Armstrong commanding — a Canadian gentle- man, exceedingly polite and accommodating. The transition was almost miraculous from the intense cold we suffered at Goose Island, to regular West Indian heat, on board the St. Lawrence. t I CHARGES TO MONTREAL. 95 J'lie charj^e for the passage to Montreal, 184 miles, (performed from 24 to 30 hours,) every thin^^ found except drinkables : — For each grown person ... £ 1 Forcliildren 10 P'or servants 18 9 Deck Passengers, Grown persons 7 H Cliildren from 7 to 12 years . . 3 9 Ditto under 7 years .... 026 We were two nights on board ; the attend- ance was admirable, and the fare excellent. The men servants, French Canadians. The ladies' maid, a remarkably nice person, was from the north of Ireland ; she recollected your son Stephen and his family there, and paid us, in consequence, the greatest attention. The passengers, it might be said, dined four times a day : for they had fish, meat, and sweet-meats, at every meal. The tea and coffee peculiarly good — the latter better made than any we have yet had. I I. ! ! 1)6 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 'A -4 •J lii< The French always excelled in the art, and the French Canadians inherit it. We arrived at Montreal at a very early hour in the morning. From my fatigue, and William's having been very ill in the night, we were obliged to make use of the only carriage in waiting to bring us to the hotel. This was termed a calash ; and resembles an old gig, with a cushion for the driver, in the place usually occupied by the knee boot. It would have been luxury to us, but for the miserable road we had to traverse. How surprising, that, where comfort, con- venience, and accommodation are carefully attended to in the chief towns, a suitable ap- proach, the most obvious feature of civiliza- tion, should be altogether neglected. So dreadful is that from the wharf to the hotel in Montreal, that I really thought I should go distracted before we arrived ; but I thank God we did arrive, without having broken down or been upset ; I was, however, fsadly shaken, and poor William very ill — MEDICAL SETTLER — DR. PHILLII'S. 97 whether from the water of the St. Lawrence, the fogs of Newfoundland, or the general change of climate, I cannot say ; his imme- diate recovery is anticipated by Dr. Philips, who is now our regular family physician — the kindest of the kind, quite like a brother to our gentlemen, and determined to settle wherever they do. This will be of great ad- vantage to us, and to the neighbourhood around us, as his professional skill is equal to his goodness of heart. The proprietor of the hotel at Montreal, is an Italian, my sister recollected him at Lord Lorton*s, as butler. His wife is an Irish woman, whom Dr. Phillips had known. From both we received more tL. common civility. We are fortunate in meeting so many that know who we are, and are the more disposed to show us attention. It is very agreeable, in a foreign land, to meet even with those whom we have known merely as acquaintances ; what, then, would 98 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 'X A '4 he the delight at again seeing those ch'ar, dear friends we have left so far away ? there is a pleasure in the anticipation, however im- probable, that I can never abandon, nor con- sent to part with the cheering hope that it will yet bo realized. At this excellent hotel we were entertained for a dollar a day, each ; beds and every thing included, except wine — an article, generally speaking, of very inferior quality, in steam boats and at hotels. We remained but one day at Montreal, and proceeded, at five o'clock in the morning, for La Chine, (9 miles,) by the public coaches; our party filled two. They are of the most extraordinary con- struction — not unlike the lord mayor's state carriage, except that in lieu of its profusion of glass, are substituted curtains which are occasionally looped up to admit the air. The new coaches are very showy, and by no means ugly in their appearance. There are three rows of seats in each; the centre IlLl.KV I HAVELLLIIS — I.KiHI ilAllNKSS. 91) seat moves on a pivot so as to clear the door- way, and allow of free ingress and egress, for those who occupy the other two; for this a broad strap of leather, well stuffed, is con- trived to hook on, so that the mid-passengers may haNe something to lean against. Each seat holds four moderate persons, but, tkree Kadcliffs. I, in my ignorance, suffered myself to be placed on the back seat, which in the course of the nine mile stage fatigued me most dread- fully; profiting by experience, I have latterly chosen that in the fronts which is remarkabh easy, with an agreeable swinging motion. We were drawn by six noble horses, that ex- cited our admiration. You, my dear Mr. R. taught me to observe something about horses, in the many pleasant drives we have had together. If our harness here be sufficient, your^s is profuse ; for of the six horses, except the pair next the carriage, (and th 'y were without pads,) the remaining four had but collars and traces, and yet there « \ it 100 authentic: i.etters. A w ^ was really no deficiency. The coachman drove tlie six in hand and turned into lanes but little wider than the carriage, with wonderful dex- terity. The horses are j)articularly well trained, and answer to their names. At the end of the stage it was agreed by all, that they had never seen so good horses, or coachman- ship, before. The country was most beautiful all the way; not a single point of view that did not aflPord rich and varied scenery to the admirer of the picturesque. At La Chine we deserted our land convey- ance, and with the apetite of morning tra- vellers enjoyed a good breakfast on board the steam boat under way for the cascades — a dis- tance of twenty-three miles — there we took coach again for a village called Coteau de lac, (sixteen miles,) and there embarked in another steamer, which brought us (36 miles,) to the town of Cornwall. How you would be delighted, dear Mr. R. with the exquisite beauty of that scenery. DISTINCT CLRIIENTS — FIIIE FLIES. 101 I'his branch of the St. Lawrence, I believe, is called the lake St. Francis. The Ottawa comes in there, but their waters don't unite. 1 was called on deck to observe this wonder ; you never saw any thing more perfect than the line of distinction, marked by the colour of the respective currents; that of the Ottawa being of a deep brown, and the St. Lawrence a decided green. I have read that some great rivers of South America rush into the sea, for many leagues without losing their freshness by any admixture with the ocean, and it may be that the same principle of currents in a minor degree, may account for this apparent phenomenon. All the rivers and lakes abound in islands of every size and shape — some wooded and wild — others cleared and inhabited. So brilliant is the effect of the fire flies at night that the country is for miles like a scene of enchantment, still more imposing from the fires of the Indian settlements, on islands perfectly illuminated. ^1 #!' I 1 0-2 AUTHENTIC LETTEHS. The hotel at Cornwall is a wretched place ; bad attendance, worse rooms, ill furnished ; — vile beds, and no rest ; — not a very good pre- paration for a long day's journey by land to Preston, (50 miles,) commenced, ho ever, before five o'clock, with great delight at quit- ting our uncomfortable station ; and, as our gentlemen would say, we set off at the rate of a hunt. Our carriages were drawn by four horses each, and very briskly, notwithstanding the heaviness of the roads. A thick and sud- den mist, however, obliged us to slacken our pace. The road here was merely a green field, stripped of its grassy surface, cut up by various ruts and mud-holes, and crossed by swamps and hollow channels, impassable, ex- cept by me^ns of loose planks and timbers, which hopped and bounded under the wheels, without the security of rail or battlement, mak- ing the least nervous of the party glad to close their eyes and curtains, against the dan- ger. BIRDS — KINGFISHER. 103 Except on occasions of risk and alarm, we kept both open to the most lovely scenery that can be conceived ; and were charmed with the native richness of the flowers, and the bril- liant plumage of the feathered tribe. Here the Kingfisher frequents the banks, along which we were conveyed, its plumage diiFerent from those of our clime, of more vivid co- lours, and with tufted crest. I forget what faithful lover was converted into this attractive bird ; but if possessed of any personal vanity, the metamorphosis must have been highly gratifying. We passed many pretty houses and com- fortable settlements. This upper province is much more like dear home, than the lower; which, being chiefly inhabited by French, (who have imitated their own country in their buildings, &c.,) presents to the English eye a foreign and characteristic aspect. Notwithstanding all our delays and difficul- ties, we completed our fifty miles, if not with expedition, fortunately wkhout accident, and ■. 4 104 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. P reached Prescott at a very late hour on the 21st of July. — . . c , At all the poorest taverns along the line of road, they set out a plentiful dinner, not of the best quality of meat, excepting veal, which is very good ; the cooking but middling. Pies and puddings abound, and uniformly a de- sert succeeds, of raisins, almonds, biscuits and wild fruits. The red currants are large, but sour ; the strawberries and cherries scarcely eata- ble. The raspberries are better, and served up in milk, with sugar. . ., . To the exhorbitant consumption of sweet- meats and fruit by the Canadians, is attri- buted the early failure of their teeth, particu- larly with the fair sex, who, from this sad de- ficiency, appear like old women at the age of thirty. ;:i:^r> l,vr'" ..>xv.- >..• -^ ; '.irJ.- ii\ Our luggage, which was very heavy in- deed, was forwarded from Montreal, by Bat- eaux, which are open boats. They are towed up the rivers part of the way by steam- boats ; partly pulled on by horses, and some- 105 BATEAUX-^PRESCOT. lorward by a favouring wind. " " ^'together a most tedious methoA f --;....e,east.pe„si.r.:: the charge """'''-'"y-^^^^ in ^r r?"* *"'^" ^« ''^ « 1 e a^a ; ^'''' ^"^ "*^'»P* ''- ^'-n «* » flag-way i„ the streets. The im Provement is »ost striking ;_but w A V fmetoavailourselvesofl fl ^'^"" proceeding . .l ^ ^"*^' t''"" i" proceeding to the steam-boat for York th corning after our arrival. .» ' '^^ lera^'aiul*™'' '™™ *^ '*--' "^ ehole- d. Ours was a Canadian, a very ele- ^* y»»ng man, of Irish extraction J rents from ti. . ^'■'^•'cnon, his pa- n^om the north ot Ireland . k- .• . it , I ■•1 ! .,■! 1 I tit 106 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. A We arrived at York on Monday, the 23d July ; were well accommodated at the British coffee-house; good cookery, very middling ale, and vile table beer. They are obliged to use such a quantity of hops, to prevent it from souring, that it is extremely disagree- able. The following day, we were fortunate enough to procure the only private lodging in York ! — furnished, and comfortable, for one pound a week. , . . Our hostess, Mrs. Hall, an English lady, and widow of a Captain Hall, is exeedingly kind and attentive. Our friends and Dr. Phillips, have board and lodging, with an officer, a very respectable man. Our gentlemen, as a matter of course, waited upon the Government Secretary, and you may conceive their surprise, when they were presented to Colonel Rowan ; who, without their having heard of his appointment, now fills that official situation. In conse- quence of this recognition, and with every i-ASSAGE TO NEW York. j„- -pre^sion of W„d„ess o„ the Colonel's part ey were introduced by hi. to the Gov C •S- John Colborne, .ithc.t the necess T; produe., the letters of reeo..e„daJ^^^^^ had brought from home. ^ By both gentlemen they were treated with the most polite and friendly attenttn -ettWutpointedouttoth^rr :r ^Peet.o„, of the richest quality of land ■ I o this they go forward without delav t„ wove, and to purchase. ''''^^ '^ Mrs. Rowan has been most kind, i„ visit- mg my sister and me. They left T ; , ^^; --night before we saileVr^r ivirs. Kowan considerofl *k voyage a party of pleasure elegantly \ver^ X ' ^" ^^-^^^^ and S y weie they entertained. She as e. me that the accommodation on bo:! luxurious :Lr ""*"'' "'"'"'^^'''^'^- vate '"? ^^"S^-'-o^'n. eating-room, pri- "'' *'»'""«. good dinners, variety of wines ' .1 ill r •^ :i1 M 108 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. male and female attendants, musical instru- ments, books, &c. ' -• Charge for each passenger, ... £35 Charge for servants, each, ... 17 10 li ^ r .r I I ' Warn any friends that mean to follow us, to come by New York. It may appear more ex- pensive ; but I believe, in the end, when the cost, and great waste of private provisions, is taken into consideration, the difference of ex- penditure will be but trifling, that of comfort and health excessive. * '^-^'^ w .^^-v vn/v. William has not been well enough to go on the journey of inspection, and indeed is unwil- ling to leave me, till I am better able to travel. His brother is gone, and till he returns, we can say nothing as to our future destination. But we are told that land is high, in great de- mand, and increasing in value every month. The numbers of respectable people coming out would astonish you; and the wildest situ- ation we may fix on, will, in all probability, • » FEMALE APOTHECARY. 109 be fully settled within the year. Indeed, from our own large party, and the friends we expect will follow us, we shall be sure of hav- ing an agreeable society, -t-^. , , -^ , ... ^ .-, Physicians are very much wanting here, and apothecaries still more. Ignorant per- sons act in that capacity, who scarcely know the names of the drugs they sell. At Niagara that most necessary branch is solely conducted by a female, who compounds medicines and puddings, with equal confidence, but not with equal skill. r-^ ,^- j y Any young man who should come out, in that capacity, with even a moderate knowledge of his business, would make a fortune. Nurse- tenders are in great demand. They might make their own terms. ,;,;<' ^j A gentleman, going immediately to New York, will be the bearer of this. — I must close it forthwith. A few last words : — . I am collecting garden seeds for you, and am promised those of some very curious flowers. irH' 110 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. A There is but little music in Canada ; but wherever it occurs, it is highly prized. I have as yet scarcely seen any thing of York. We get excellent TeneriflPe at 5s. Od. pr gal. The best ... ... 7 6 do. Fine lump sugar ... 7h do. Brown sugar ... 4 do. all Canada currency, which is 15 per cent, as I am told, in our favour. Clothing and fur- niture are dear. . i .; ; No letter has reached us yet from home. Do write My dear Mr. R. * # * * ' Believe me your * Attached Daughter, R. Radcliff. Tell of us, to all our kind friends, and assure them of our cordial remembrance. ^, \ -.j;- ■ /-" H/M ,i i i]i •' » KDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. Ill In corroboration of the foregoing account of the Liners, which sail from Liverpool to New York, the Editor has been favoured with tlie journal of a party who made that passago, and are now settled in the neighbourhood of his family. He has extracted from it as follows: — " Sailed with Captain Holdrege, one of the most temperate I have ever met — a cool, steady man, well acquainted with his profes- sional duties. Every thing admirable in the packet. Eatables (what a sensualist is man !) of the most excellent description — fowls of all kinds — prime beef and mutton — capital hams, and puddings of all sorts and sizes. Dried fruits, &c. &c. — port and sherry every day ad libitum^ and on Sundays and Thurs- days, claret and champagne. For each passenger ... £35" An arrangement has been made for the present season, that other packets, equal to those in size and accommodation, will take 1 , F 5 112 EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. M A U U passengers, at £25 each, finding wine them- selves. The chief inducements to a voyage from Dublin by Quebec, (in other respects to be , deprecated) are, a saving of trouble and ex- pense in re-shipping at Liverpool, the higher rate of the superior vessels, and the im- pression of being liable to a heavy duty in the States ; whereas, all baggage will pass free at Quebec. It is, however, the fact, that on all duties for baggage, charged at New York, there will be a drawback, on passing the the Frontier into Canada — and the superior advantages, in point of expedition and secu- rity, comfort and accommodation, should in- duce all, who are in tolerable circumstances, to prefer the latter passage. *•' h h- 1.1 113 LETTER VI. .)"• 1; ■ 120 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. iJK viivo — I': rifle, which he seized ; being closely pressed, he took refuge in a shanty, where two of the ruffians attacked him in front, while a third endeavoured to pounce upon him through the roof, with the benevolent design of battering out his brains (a la Tipperary,) with a stave. The fellow struck and broke the rifle, but, from the blow, it went ofl^, and shot the assail- ant through the head. The landlord then took to his light pair of heels, and escaped from the other two. An inquest was held, and a verdict of "justifiable homicide" of course returned. A solitary instance of outrage need not alarm or deter a settler; let a man determine to exert himself, and, with even moderate capital, and health, he must prosper ; if he be devoid of energy and become embarrassed, he will be ruined here, as he would elsewhere ; and his creditors have a very sunmiary way of reco- vering their demands upon him, as his land (though in perpetuity) can be sold, as if it were chattel property. But the vexatious \ '■ t NO ARREST ON MESNE PROCESS. 121 and useless severities of the English laws, as they relate to debtor and creditor are miti- gated in this colony by local statutes ; no one here can be arrested for debt on mesne process. If it be justly apprehended that a debtor pur- poses to leave the country, a writ (on affida- vit,) of ne exeat regno can be taken out, to which he must give bail, but no farther step is taken until judgment be given. Nor is the bail obliged to produce the debtor, if he can prove he is within the pro- vince, and in those cases in which arrest is legal, there are limits, of about sixteen acres, to the prisons, (generally including places of divine worship, ) in which a debtor has power to reside ; the sheriff being obliged to take sufficient security for his remaining within their precincts. Should he escape, the sheriff transfers the security to the creditor. Neither wearing apparel, beds, nor bedding can be taken in execution. ' ii i^M \ ■«« 1-22 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. D A whimsical occurrence (for the truth of which, however, I do not absolutely vouch, ) is said to have taken place shortly before our arrival here: a writ against a debtor fairly liable to the law of arrest, was put into the hands of one of our sheriffs — a fat and un- wieldy person, to whom the debtor was pointed out, and finding himself hard pressed by the sheriff (who was well mounted,) made off for a morass, into which he dashed, laughing heartily at his pursuer. Now the puzzle to the sheriff was, how to make a proper return on the writ — he could not return, ' non est inventus* for he had found his prey; he could not return ^coepi' as he had not succeeded in the capture. So after much deliberation, he made out the return, " non est comeatibus in swampo** • \'.'. Your's, my dear Sir, faithfully. i T. W. Magrath. 123 t, LETTER VII. P^om William Mmrn Radcliff, Esq. Upper Cn« ^ the Hen Tk^ J '-'pper Canada, to '"• ^'^«^ R«^m Esq. - » York, August, 1832. % dear Father, ^* was an old rulp \r. • • •>' *k w ,„„, ;;-^„^- < i 'iiii <• 124 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 3 ■A _ health, till within these last three days, to give my attention to any thing but en- deavouring at recovery. This through the skill of my kind friend, physician, and fel- low-traveller, Dr. Phillips, has been happily effected; and I now feel something like myself once more. I apprehend that the feverish attacks to which strangers are liable, on their first arri- val, has been increased by the state of the air, which has brought cholera into this quarter in a most destructive form. My ail- ment tended that way, and alarmed me very much. It has raged dreadfully all round our lodgings. Persons in perfect health, with whom I have dined, have been carried to their graves next morning; and, amongst others, my poor little niece, greatly regretted by us all, and sadly deplored by her father and mo- ther; who, to preserve the other children, got away from this as fast as possible ; but ive could not stir. We are all, however, nearly in perfect health, thank God ; and next. PURCHASE — LONDON DISTRICT. 125 week it is our intention to proceed to the land, to get up my house before the winter sets in. The choice of my lots I left to my brother, not being able to go myself. He has suc- ceeded to admiration, for himself, for me, and for some friends in the same township. I have, for the present, bought four hundred acres for two hundred pounds, land of supe- rior quality, in the Huron track, London district, township Adelaide, named after the Queen, within twenty miles of Lake Huron, and thirty of Lake Erie. As to people of moderate capital, (say from live to eight hundred pounds, ) purchasing de- sirable land any where but in the absolute forest, is out of the question. So that, having been informed by a kind friend, of the prime qua- lity of that we have purchased, and, my bro- ther and his companions, who went to view it, having approved of it very much, our lots are all chosen there ; and, as far as I 126 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I M O can learn, we have every reason to be satis- fied. Improved farms have risen to a price that no common capital can compass.* Even in our remote district, it is thought that land will be of three-fold value in two or three years. Therefore, if A r, or any of our friends, decide upon coming out, and wish to be near us, they should write at once, tliat we may secure the lots in time ; for die town- ships are filled up, almost as fast ?w they are surveyed. Our divisions adjoin that which is laid out for the town. When that v^omes to be built, (and it is said it will be completed in three years,) the value of our property will obvi- ously be enhanced. Our fellow-travellers, Phillips and Groom, have settled themselves beside us. * On this subject, it may be perceived, opinions vary. The settler must decide for himself. Editor. BANK STOCK. .27 The former, as resident physician, ha« got the grant of a town lot to build on. How lucky to have such a man in the midst of us. All the spare cash I had, I have vested in bank stock, in the bank of Upper Canada. It is a decided fact that this stock pays regu- larly twelve per cent, and is as safe as in the Bank of England. Government are the holders, as I am in- formed, of one-third of the entire, and I am well assured that capital may be vested witli perfect safety in this fund. No individual is permitted to invest more than one thousand pounds, that many may partake of the advantage. The influx of emigrants to our province of Upper Canada has been such, that in the last year the population is said to have increased one-fourth ; and in this season, fully as much is expected. This affects the resources of the country in various ways, particularly as to the facility of disposing of farming produce ; i 1 G • i ill E- I2B AUTHENTIC LETTERS. and also, as to the banking interests, of which I have been speaking^. As I am informed, and indeed read in the public prints, that so numerous have been the arrivals of settlers, with considerable capital, that within a year three hundred thousand sovereigns have been deposited in the bank of Upper Canada. My deposit was in gold, and I received four shillings exchange on each sovereign. Bank stock has this year paid sixteen per cent, never less than twelve ; the legal inte- rest is but eight ; but on the last dividend there was a bonus of eight more, in conse- quence of the country rising into such rapid prosperity. So that I request you to get our friend and kinsman to call in any money that I can command, and to send it me forthwith. Double interest in Ireland may be a very bad thing ; but, being well secured, is quite the reverse here.* , - ... ..r .^i,,v * 100 Sovereigns at 46. per, exchange, are equal to ^120. This vested in Bank Stock, at 12 per cent, yields interest, £H 8s. per British ^eiOO. Ebitor. of which informed, 3, that so settlers, in a year ave been lada. received reign. cteen per gal inte- dividend in conse- ich rapid > get our ney that >rthwith. rery bad uite the . '^f+V tc £120. |s interest, Editor. ADVANTAGE TO FARMERS. 129 I can tell you nothing of the country, as I have been shut up for a month in this un- healthy town ; where, however, the markets, bein^ nearly on a par with ours, speak well for farming profits, though consumers (as ire are now,) may feel the inconvenience. Beef, mutton, and pork, Butter Bread, dearer than at home. 5rf. per lb. 11 do. In fact, every thing is dear, as the pro- vince cannot supply itself, and is obliged to import from the States. The farmers here have no difficulty in find- ing a market for their corn. For all that we can grow, these ten years to come, we shall have a ready sale at our door. * The number of emigrants going up each year, will take away all that can be spared at a full price. All the old people say, that the country rises more now in one year, than it did before ii 130 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ! i M X '* I o ■A in fifty. Upon the whole, then, I cannot see any risk the prudent and industrious farmer can be subject to, who pays no rent, has plenty to subsist him, with a ready mar- ket, and good price for the overplus, v? t i Amongst some agreeable acquaintances I have made, is Dr. Gwynn, come to settle at York, in the medical department. He was introduced to me by a letter from our worthy friend and relative, S G . We have become very intimate ; he is an excellent fel- low, and accompanied me on a trip to Niagara, from whence we returned yesterday. > > You will expect some account of that wonder of wonders ; — you are doomed to be disappointed ; — not so much, however, as if I attempted to describe it. You know mi/ ta- lent don't lie that way. I can enjoy the sub- lime, but I cannot talk of it. Better observe a solemn silence. It appears to me, to be that which the magic scene itself would dictate ; and I am strongly disposed to vindicate Mrs. Bogle Corbet, in having chosen the retire- NIAGARA. l;3l ■'i 'i ment of her bed-cliamber, to view this tre- mendous rush of waters, uninterrupted even by the scientific remarks of her husband, whose good taste would have done ample jus- tice to the astounding subject, r As to my companion and myself, we re- solved neither to speak or write about it, far- ther than to recommend it to all, whom it may concern, to come and view for them- selves, that, of which no adequate idea can possibly be formed, from the ablest desrip- tion. ' : f Before I left home, I read many accounts of those surprising falls, which miserable at- tempts, compared with the great reality, afford no pleasurable recollection. Martin Doyle's was short, and had some spirit in it ; and in your own Encyclopaedia, there was an accurate statement of heights and distances, of rocks, and foam, and spray, and all seem- ingly very well done. . ^ . But no pen can delineate, that which 1 again repeat, must be seen, to be conceived. i I ! ir'' 132 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. III! 11 ■^' o ■A W = t 'I I understand that upon the very spot we traversed at the Falls, a handsome city is about to arise, which some think from the precedence and perfection of the town at Chippewa, will be a dangerous speculation.. I hope this will not be the case, as we learn that J. R 's near connection is a chief sharer and proprietor. - ^ i " There appears to be every necessary at- traction, and I sincerely hope for our cousin's sake it may succeed. He means, as we hear, to reside there, and will, from his habits, na- turally prefer the mixed society of a lively town, to the sound of the axe in the forest, in which we shall find our enjoyment. We have, so far, suffered great hardships on our voyage — also from bad health — and look forward to much trouble and inconve- nience in forming a settlement on our land, but should be delighted and con- tent, if we had all our people with us. When separated, even for the short time that we have been, a horrible feeling obtrudes on the i }pot we city is c from town at ulation.. ^e learn a chief sary at- 30usin's 7e hear, its, na- i lively rest, in REGRETS. 133 : -j mind, at having left, perhaps, for ever, (with whatsoever motives of prudence or of wisdom,) our nearest and dearest relations ; and this feel- ing alone (the sole drawback on the objects we have in view,) makes us, often, almost lament the step that we have taken. With kindest love to those very friends, whose absence we so much feel. Believe me, my dear Father, Always, your affectionate Son, ■ ■- • ' ' W. R. rdships — and M -■ .: i :;onve- 1 1 our 1 . • » - . • ', ■: /:. ';.' con- 1 ; f t • ' » « .: » .. ....../.-=L When 1 . - .• r' ■ ,, ■ • -^ .k^J at we 1 • . I . I - - : )n the 1 • « ■ I : r : ■ ■ r ♦, • •I ••iii:a w r^ • * t • . yl ii " ll 134 ili LETTER VIIL From Mrs, William JRadcliff^, Upper Canada^ to the Rev. Thomas Hadcliff", Dublin. -A Adelaide, November, 1832. My dear Mr. R. I promised to let you know our progress from York to this, our final settlement.. The moment I was able to travel we com- menced our route, by steam-boat, to a very pretty place called Hamilton. The wharf is at least a mile and a-half from the town. In the hope of some conveyance arriving, we -A- li • il. CANADIAN POLITENESS. 135 » I #.l sat down on the trunk of a tree, and very shortly a waggon appeared, which, on its nearer approach, we perceived to be that of a gentleman who drove a splendid pair of horses. On our requesting him to send us one from the hotel, when he returned, he made a point of taking us into his, which was very easy, and w^ell constructed, and with the greatest politeness he set us down at the hotel, where we were comfortably accom- modated at a moderate charge. The next morning we proceeded by the coach to Brant- ford. At this village, we hoped to have found the rest of our party, it having been arranged that women and children, the heavy baggage, should remain there whilst the gentlemen went forward to get up their houses for our reception ; but our poor friends, who had suf- fered so much from cholera, were on their arrival at Brantford, immediately banished, by the circumstance of an unfortunate gen- tleman being carried into the hotel, who died in a few hours of that melancholy ailment. g5 \[f\ 136 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. V. .i',,;.;r| ■■A We, of course, did not remain behind, but late as it was, procured a waggon to bring us forward ten miles to Burford. This was but a com- mon rough machine, very unlike the smooth, and comfortable one, with which our polite Canadian had supplied us in the morning. The drive was most beautiful; but I could not enjoy it, from the extreme uneasiness of the carriage. We met many Indians of the Mohawk tribe — all on horseback; and we passed a remarkably neat school-house. It was near to this that John Brant, an Indian Chief, lived, and, universally lamented, lately died ! / - Were he in existence, we should experience great attention from him, through the name of our kinsman, who, when a boy in this coun- try, was the cherished play-fellow of John Brant, and when grown up, had an opportu- nity of being serviceable to the Chief in London, which enhanced his friendship and attachment. ' 1: INDIAN CHIEF. 1:37 Throughout this district he is spoken of by all ranks, and colonies, in the highest terms of veneration and respect. We were comfortably entertained at Burford, and though much fatigued, set forward next morning by break of day for the next tavern, Putham I think, a distance of fortymiles, in the very waggon which had brought our friends there sometime before. This was driven by the owner, Mr. Lyster, a very conversable and well informed person, for his rank in life; but all here consider themselves gentlemen and ladies — and this man, who, I must admit, was not troublesome or forward in his con- versation, breakfasted and dined at table with us, without compunction or apology. The farther we proceeded up the country, the more we were gratified by the scenery. The birds too, are very beautiful ; the blue jay and woodpecker, especially — the wild flowers were in greater variety here, than at any other stage of th^ journey — the whole coun- try abounds in sunflowers of gigantic size — i.' 1 1 I' 138 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. if -} ■■A i • t L ' *9m^ 1 i 1 li there are wild grapes also, which don't ripen till they get frost — and Partridges without num- ber — when you whistle, they stop to listen, and are shot. This came under my own eye. I was much amused at seeing William shaking hands most heartily on the road with a man from whom he was buying a pair of oxen. On inquiry, he proved to be a parish- ioner of yours, my dear Mr. R. many years ago, at Lisnadill. He asked about you most af- fectionately, and was delighted to see one of the name. » . ji; We proceeded next day to Delaware, twenty miles, in the same conveyance, wliich was tolerably easy, having the seats slung from the sides, in lieu of springs, and covered with Buffalo skins, (which are called blankets,) very handsome, soft, and comfortable. >. f ■ r '--i . 1 1 The horses were excellent, and we were tempted to purchase the entire equipage, for 160 doUars. u /j vj v ^ -r - vi ^^ At Delaware we came up v/ith our party ; found them all in good health, and enjoyed, RESIDENCE AT A FAIIMEUS. I3i> with them, an agreeabU^ day. They went forward to Colonel Mount's, at Caradoc, the government agent for the western district, a most kind and attentive gentleman. We took up our abode at a farmer's, near Delaware, while our house was building ; and passed six weeks there, very well accommodated, and abundantly supplied, on the most reasonable terms. For the whole family, (six in num- ber, great and small,) we paid six dollars a week, and had a private sitting-room — never dining with the family of the house, which was thought very strange, nor suffering our ser- vants to dimi with us, which was considered still more extraordinary. This was a log-house, the first I had been in — very comfortably fitted up, and in some respects thought pre- ferable to a frame-house, as being warmer in Winter, and cooler in Summer, from the greater thickness of the walls. The objec- tionable point is, that as the timber seasons, the logs settle, but not equably, by which the doors and windows are set awry. !(r 140 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. Iff' ! v. il I III i ■A Nevertheless, I am quite content with ours, which is of black ash, a timber not so liable to shrink as maple and bass wood, of which they are generally constructed. The farmers sons generally supplied the dinner tables — their own, with black squir- rels — ours, with chickens, both shot by them- selves. These, with bacon, venison, &c. con- stituted a plentiful larder. Most of the ne- cessaries of life can be had for the trouble of providing them, and many of the luxuries at the cheapest rate. I preserved some wild plumbs with maple sugar, which was better than that we bought. We had water melons in great profusion; and, when one year settled, we can have what we please ; it is indeed the country of abundance. For the lower classes, in every respect, it presents a most inviting scene of plenty and independence ; whilst those, who have been educated otherwise, cannot but feel the want of refinement, which generally prevails, and which, it will require ages to CANADIAN EXPRESSIONS. 141 correct ; the palliative is to be sought in the manners and enjoyment of one's own domestic circle, nor need they much compassion, who like us, have been fortunate enough to settle with so many agreeable friends around us. Whilst in the Farm-house, it was my amusement to study the manners of the peo- ple, which confirm the foregoing remarks. They call every one lazy that does not en- gage in some manual work — and their dialect and mode of expression are quite amusing — on asking one of the girls, whether the In- dians were cross when they indulge in any excess. " WelV^ said she, (for they com- mence every sentence with this word.) — " They are pretty uglyP The mistress of the house, bringing in breakfast, says, " well, I guess the tea looks black — but my husband thought it dreadful goodJ^ ... ... , I asked her how we were to feed our cows in winter to make them give milk ? ^ ) 142 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ii!' tit! y. C ■^ ^ H I ii ' I |l ' Well. — Slop your cowsy* — and " liowam 1 to get them to come home from the wood ?" *^ Well salt your cotos and they4l come home." " Is your dairy much under ground ?" — " Well, considerable." .- * . This dialogue affords a specimen of the comfortable and affluent in this class — who received us as lodgers, at the urgent request of Col. Moimt ; not wishing to be put to any inconvenience, and at the same time not will- itiy to decline the remuneration, i , • ..i < i .., On asking one of the daughters whether "they ever saw a clergyman or preacher ?" she answered' "well, preachers, once in a while; and then they sing so, really I am sometimes in roars of laughter at them." — There can be no stronger test of the deplor- able want of clerical appointments, and Spiri- tual advice, in this new country, where my little baby, now nearly three months old, re- mains yet unbaptized — but all this I under- stand is to be speedily remedied. Every town- i;i!' "■ JOURNEY THROUGH THE WOODS. 14;3 ship is to have its own clerfi^yman, and ours^ one immediately. I have now only to recount the miseries of my days journey from the farm-house to Adelaide — where our mansion not being perfectly ready, Dr. Phillips proposed that we should occupy his, which was sooner built. How any unfortunate female carrying an infant in her arms, could have passed the tremendous road we were reduced to on this occasion, is almost miraculous. In my long journey from the coast, I had suffered many hardships in travelling, and many barbarous roads that I thought could not be exceeded in badness and danger ; but all was smooth and agreeable, when compared with this last day. It did not happen so with our friends who went six weeks before us — but in that long interval the rain fell, and the floods had risen — and the road which thet/ had travelled without much difficulty, being for us perfectly impassable, the woods were our only resource. Through these we had to cut our flt 144 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. l,:l,.:i" ! way — and to travel in a waggon drawn by one horse, the second being too spirited, for the intricacy of the dangerous passes. i We fortunately met upon the way one of Col. Mount's overseers, who sent a man with an axe to assist us, William who had one of his own, went forward to clear the way, and our northern servant, Sandy, led the waggon. * : ":. i ;■} ; All this we could have borne, but for the innumerable creeks, or streams which crossed our way, and were it not for a party of men sent to our relief — we could never have compassed such repeated obstruc- tions. They made themselves useful, indeed indispensably so, by cutting down trees, for temporary bridges, which we were to pass over in the best manner we were able— conceive, my dear Mr. R. my walking over deep creeks, upon two long and small trees thrown across, which however, with good as- sistance, I effected ; but how the horses and waggon were made to manage it, I am unable :.ii!i, DANGEROUS PASSES. 145 to describe; certainly the horses here are wonderful animals — highly trained, and if you let them go ahead, they will bring you lip V,e!^hts that would amaze you — at one place, I shut my eyes and gave my self up as lost ; this was a deep creek with very high banks on either side — our descent was so rapid as nearly to throw us forward on the horse, whilst the sudden rise at the opposite side, was as likely to shoot us out behind the waggon; on opening my eyes, I perceived Wm. and his man in extreme terror lest we should fall back; but by encouraging the poor horse, he brought us up in safety. At another place we were obliged to cross one of those dangerous bridges on foot, and to walk a great distance, mounting over trunks of immense trees which lay across, whilst the waggon was sent through the wood, with twenty men to clear the way — after this, so great was my fatigue I passed over fallen trees of great size without leaving the waggon ; and had I preferred doing so, the i\ iffi if X I 146 AUTHENTIC LEi'TERS. want of time would iiave prevented me. The day was closing fast, half an hours delay would have doomed us to the forest for the night — fortunately we escaped this disagreeable al- ternative, and upon reaching the line of road, fancied all our difficulties over — alas! it was but £aiicy. The road was flooded, and full of mud-holes ; the horse up to his haunches in water, and wretched Sandy, walk- ing through it all. So dark had it become, I passed my own house without being able to see it, and, a little further on, was hospitably received in that of Dr. Phillips. =. I can never be sufficiently thankful to a kind Providence, for protecting us through so many difficulties, and bringing us to the ter- mination of our long and weary journey, with- out accident or suffering, except from exces- sive fatigue. ,i ,,v K ii^ iT r'AUi ? iu. .. Having given you a detail, which may ap- pear sufEcient to deter all female emigrants from so distant a settlement, it is but fair •f r ,V" ..I i| REMEDY. !. 147 that I should explain how others may avoid the inconveniences which we experienced. This is to be done by emigrating at an early season, and by not wasting time when they land. They will then find the roads in passa- ble order; and may have some provisions growing, and their houses comfortable, be- fore the summer is past. We were too late all through, and feel the inconvenience of it. The Log-house we now inhabit, till our own is ready, was the first completed in the township; — if that can be called complete^ which, on our arrival, consisted of but one room on the ground floor, and one in the upper story. The owner, in politeness to us, went up stairs^ — that is, up the ladder^ to sleep! ! — leav- ing us a room 24 feet by 16, the full dimensions of the house, with our cooking stove, and its various appendages, at one end, and his own Franklin stove at the other. A partition was soon formed for my convenience, and very snug we felt ourselves ; though, in the unfi- ) ! :i 148 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. p I? X " 'I: ;■;«? nished state of the edifice, we could see the light through many apertures. ./ ; - .• • M 8th. The succeeding work is that of fencing, easily performed, and at the whim, taste, or discretion of the proprietor. If the trees be felled in line, split timbers, of suitable scant- ling, pinned from tree to tree will make a good and economical enclosure — another method is, to put rough rails across each other angularly, closed at top by a running pole secured at certain intervals to posts or forked sticks driven firmly in the ground, but PREPARATION OF ASHES. 163 \ I there are various modes to select from — for any paling about the house, I shall adopt that which you invented. 9th. — The concluding process of clearing, now remains to be noticed, viz. the collecting the ashes. — It must be done before rain comes ; one shower would make them useless. They are to be safely deposited in a log-shed in the field, made perfectly water-tight. There they will remain safe till the winter, when your sleigh can transport them to the next ashert/, or store, where they produce from four to six pence per bushel, paid in goods ; that is to say, if the price be four- pence, fifteen bushels of ashes will be pur- chased by one of wheat, at 5s. But the mis- fortune is, that the bushel by which the wheat is sold, is the Winchester ; and that by which the ashes are bought is double the size. This seems to require regulation, as the pot-ash manufacturers have an exorbitant profit, and think it well worth their while to follow and 164 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. V- ; 11 -J I ■ ! \ I'" Of': attend on new settlements, for the advantage of this particular traffic. An acre of hard wood, which is the quali- ty of almost all our timber, will yield, as I am told, (but cannot speak from experience, ) about sixty bushels of saleable ashes. This would pay more than the cost of chopping ; but fortunately for me, my land is not as hea- vily timbered, as in other districts, and may fall short of that produce. - ^ I think I have given you a minute detail upon the subject of clearing, on which you desired me, at parting, to be particular. You have the results of my short experience, and that of older settlers, whom I have con- sulted. 5 , f If . r. 5 r • I Desire Maclin to «end me out some goose- berry seed, with the other things I mentioned before I left home. Tell him I see no open- ing here for gardeners or nursery men ; but that an^ indi^strious man can do well, though he should not have a shilling at landing. ENCOURAGEMENT FOR EMIGRANTS. 165 ;rantage e quali- d, as I rience, ) . This )pping ; as hea- ind may » be detail lich y(Hi rticular. erience, ve con- goose- itioned open- ; but LOUgb If he has sons able to labour, he gets im- mediate employment, for them and for him- self, in the Government works, at 2s. 4d. per day, with rations; — also, 100 acres of land, with a house, at 10s. per acre, and he is allowed six years to pay the purchase mo- ney. It costs a good deal for a family to come out, but the Emigrant Society in Canada will forward any who apply to them and find their own provisions, free of expense to York; and from thence the Government will send them on in schooners, supplying them with rations ; and when they arrive near the lots to be distributed, they will have their goods conveyed in waggons, free of expense, also. This is peculiarly advantageous to the poorer emigrants; and even the rich can have their luggage carried free, from York, by an order from the Government. We hope to have a good garden next season. The Canadians call potatoes, vegetables, pickles, and preserves, by the indiscriminate appellation ofsace, and think themselves badly ••'..»■■'• '■it: . ■•-. .*■; l: ' i M ill 1 1 i : ■A :- I H 166 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. off if they have not sace in all its varieties, at every meal. In fact, there are no people who live so luxuriously as the yeomen of Upper Canada. In travelling, they pay as much for their dinners and suppers as gentlemen do ; and this prevails even among the labouring classes. We called at Erindale on our route, and met every attention from your friend, Mr. M. who is an excellent man, and whom I hope to know better hereafter. But the miserable state of our children's health, and our own spirits, made it impossible for us to enjoy his society, and that of his fine family, as we otherwise would. I was, however, greatly impressed and encouraged by the forwardness of his settlement, and hope to return to it. I have filled my sheet so full, that I fear you will be indignant at the cross bar. Believe me, my dear father, * # * * &c. &c.i^ ■ •^J-Vf' r ( >.: l Thomas Radcliff. 167 LETTER X. From Bridget Lacy, to Mary Thompson, Ireland, York, Upper Canada, August 1832. Dear fellow Servant, and fellow school-fellow, For we were edicated together, and prin- ticed out together — and my blessing on the Committee of fifteen, and my blessing on them that taught us to read and write, and spell, that you may know all about me, and I about you, though there are rivers, and seas, and woods, and lakes between us — and my . I 168 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. : f ■s. blessing on the mistress that taught us to work, and wash, and make ourselves useful, so that while health stands by us, we may earn honest bread in any country. And sure enough, dear Mary, you shall hear all the good and bad that happens me, and I hope to have the same from you. And now that I am on land, it is only good natured that I should give you some account of my doings since I set out. If I had you with me, I would have been easier in my mind ; but still my mistress was very good, and I got on bearably, barring the shocking sickness, such as no one in the cholic, or the breeding way, or the billions fever, or after hippo, or after sqills, ever felt before or since. If you were only to have seen how smooth we floated down the River, and out of the , Bay, and away to Wicklow, where I was born, at the back of the murrough, near Tinnakilly, you would have said, away you go — eating, and drinking, and laughj^ng, and clacking iff SEA SICKNESS. 169 jokes ; but my jewel, before the second day was over, we were all knocked of a heap ; and then if you were to hear all around you as I did, groaning, and rachiiig, and willy wombling, and calling for water, and nobody to bring them a sup, and wishing themselves at the bottom of the sea ; in troth, Mary, you would have pitied a dog in the same taking. The hold was full of people, mighty snug and decent, with money in their pockets, going out to make their fortunes ; and most of them Protestants, that found home growing too hot for them ; and that they had better save their four bones, and their little earnings before it was too late, and sure enough, I believe they're right. There are mighty good people among them, and mighty pretty girls, that when they arn't sick, sing psalms in the evening, very beautiful; and there's one Jenny Ferguson, from the north, that I am very thick with, and she has a voice like an angel. In troth there are none of them bad, and its mighty sweet upon the sea. '•'i 170 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ■f. Well my dear, when the singing is over, they're all very merry ; and there are some gay lads, and great fun, and a little courting, but all in a civil way ; and I sometimes make one ; and between you and I, Mary, but don't say a word at all at all, I think there's a ser- vant-boy of a Mr. Jackson's, one Benson, that's throwing a sheep's eye at me — but nothing certain^ barring a sly pinch here and there, and other tinder tokens that may end in smoak after all. They say a girl will soon get a husband in this country. Some will, and some will not. I'd be sorry to be trusting to them. The boy I have told you of, may be settled near us, and if he is as sweet upon me then, as he is now, he may put some of their noses out of joint. To say the honest truth, I would not like to be beholden to them ; though they say they're civil enough in Canada, not all as one as the States, where they have the im- pudence of Old Nick, in making free with their betters. - , ^j^,?-; ;;i i i FREE AND EASY. 171 You would not believe, dear Mary, the forwardness of them Yankees. Sure, I heard a gentleman, after coming from Philadelfy, in the Untied States, telling my mistress of there going some journey there in a cart, and the horses tiring and stopping to sleep at a farmers, and when he had got into bed, and was falling asleep, was roused by one over him, saying, " I guess I tumble in here," when the greasy carter that drove him, stretched his ugly carcass along-side him, and began to snore in three minutes. Now think of that Mary. If it was my case, not a pin in my pincushion but he should have the full binifit of, the impudent mohawk. That's liberty and quality as they call it — a nice bed-fellow indeed — instead of his own pretty wife, who was put to sleep with the young woman of the house, to make room for this scurvy Gee-ho-dobbin. The only accidence we had on the voyage was an old woman that died, and a child born in the hold, and a little girl choaked with a M •S Hi, I: Ml 172 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ■f X Ilii V -^ potatoe, and two doctors on board—but no blame to them — they weren't called till all was over — and the Captain, long life to him, put the old woman decent in a coffin, saying that the sherks should have a mouth- ful of sawdust before they got at her old bones. Oh ! but I had like to forget the chief sport. Sure we had a boxing match, Mary, which I must tell you of, by and by. But what banged all was the storm. That was what was near settling us for life. Oh ! Mary, Mary, it was tremenduous — but I can only tell you the beginning of it. Now, Mary dear, how will I desribe it to you ? Do you remember when we were litte girls in the school — and the carpenters working in the yard, and a great long board, and we and the other girls playing weighdy bucketdy, and we going up in the air and down again to the ground. Well then, there's the way it began, but in troth my dear, it was only a 1' STORM DESCRIBED. 1:^3 . V beginning — for before you could thread a needle, up went my heels as straight as a ladder, and then down again, that though I was lying on the broad of my back, I thought I was standing on my two feet in the bottom of the sea. Then came on the whillaloo from above, tiiid the cracking of masts and ropes, and dear knows what — and off I dropped in a swoon I suppose, for I never saw or heard any thing more till all the danger was over. 1 just remember calling out oh, my jewel, take the child — and when first I opened my eyes, what should I see, but my little darling, Miss Mary, tied in her own mahogany cnair, and that same tied to the bed, and the little dear laughing heartily ; and no wonder, Mary, for you*d have laughed yourself, as I did, and couldn't help it, when, with a toss of the ship, we saw every thing, big and little, mugs, jugs, and porringers, &c. all hunting each other about the floor. .; I Hi ■•' . ■* <' % '-. iiif • ! V. ' • ( 174 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. But I promised to tell you about the box- ing. Well, my dear, the next day was quite calm, and we all got up on the deck. I went forward to talk to my friend Jenny Ferguson, and there were five or six fellows beside us, tripping and boxing with big gloves ; and we heard one of them saying to another, " arrali, Brien, what if you were to challenge the big- man there above on the quarter-deck, (mean- ing my master, ) they say he*s fond of the fancy." " Oh bother, (says he,) he's too heavy for me. )> '^ Never a pound, (says the other,) — and he's flabby and wake, — they say he was sick all the way." " Sick or no sick, FU have nothing to do wid him," says he. '* You won't then ? — O ! Brien, is that talk for you, that's the Borry of all Westmeath ? — there's the back of my hand to you, and Fni ashamed of you for evermore." SPARRING. 175 e box- i quite L went guson, iide us, and we •' arrali, the big (mean- of the eavy for •,) — and as sick 'g to do lat talk jath ?— ind I'm " Well then, if I must, I must," (says he,) so be going, and asking him will he take a turn. Up they go, and I following them close ; and says the same man to my master, " plase your honour, we hear you're fond of the sport, and there's a boy here has got the gloves. — Would your honor be so free and asy as to put them on wid him ?" " I don't care if I do, (says my master,) but I am not very well, and I feel weak; but a little sparring will do nobody any harm." Upon this they took off them, and put on the gloves. Oh, Mary dear, isn't my master a fine man ? — Sure you saw him the day we sailed. Well, my dear, there he stood like a rock, parlying, as they call it, while the other was sti iking with all his might; — but never a touch was himself able to give my master, at all at all, — and the upshot was, he was beat to his heart's content. But to give him his due. he shook hands I * \\ ■>■ . i odf w -. 176 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. \ i I « I' -J il'^! with the master, and said, " he begged his honour's pardon for giving him the trouble of bating him, which he well desarved, for coming foment so fine a man entirely ; and that the only satisfaction he had was, that it was the first time he was ever bate in all his life. The master gave him half a crown and a glass of whiskey, and they were mighty good friends ever after. Well, well, well, — I believe this letter will never end; so that FU say nothing about the journey from Quebec to York, only that it was mighty pretty ; and beautiful steam-boats, and rumbling coaches, and bad inns, and fine rivers, and plenty of trees ; and here we are at York, and here we have been for a month, living as bad as in a cholera hospital, for the whole town was nothing else; and every day, every day, we never thought we would get over the next night safe. But we could not run away, for my mistress was brought to bed of a little girl, as fine a little crature as ever you see. But we are all well now; and when my mas- 1'' MATRIMONIAL SPECULATIONS. 177 ter comes back from the waterfall of Niggeraga, (the say they were all Niggers here once,) we are to set out for the estate he has bought in the Huron Tract; and whatever comes across me there, Mary, you shall know the particulars of it, as it may be a temptation for you to come out yourself next year, with your own black eyes, to throw yourself in the way of the same good fortune. They say no girl, barring she is old and ugly, will stand two months. My Mistress says an officer will take this free, with her own. So dear Mary no more, (and Vm sure no more would be agreeable, ) at present, from your loving schoolfellow. And friend, Bridget Lacy. # My next shall be from our own i^hce, and you shall hear all the ways of it. I' I llu . I ;f|f ., ■f. 178 I ) LETTER XI. From William Radcliff, Esq, Upper Canada, to Arthur Radcliff, Esq. Dublin, Adelaide, December, 1832. —1 i I ■ ■i ! 1' - .v ■ ■ *" : ■ ( 1: \ 'H My dear Arthur, I have at last got time to write to you. — Here we are, stuck in the woods, but so dif- ferently circumstanced from others who set- led before us, that I am told we are very well off; and so we are, every thing consi- dered. The Government have cut rut our roads, a task which former settlers had to per- form for themselves. They also sell us provi- sions, so that we are in no danger of starv- ing. Nor are we alone in the forest ; — never TOWNSHIP QUICKLY SETTLED. 179 was there a township so quickly filled up, with respectable people. We shall shortly have a thicker neighbourhood than any, I know of, in the country parts of Ireland. A vast number of those who came out this year, have congregated in this township, a proof that the land is good. It is considered the best in upper Canada, and the settlement, it is thought, will be one of the most flourish- ing. There are still crown, and clergy reserves, which will be sold next year to gentlemen settlers, but after that, the lots here will be closed to every one, except by private purchase— ^my house when finished, will be comfortable, and not despicable in appearance — being forty-six feet in front with an eve projecting eighteen inches. You will be impatient to hear of the shoot- ing ; an interesting topic to a good sportsman like you. The time has been, when I should have considered it paramount to any other ; but, would you believe? — I have not even had time to think about it — no one, however. •' i . ^ I : s. If '<>lt '• t .1: ' 180 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. goes into the woods, or any where on business^ without his fowling-piece ; and game, of one sort or another, is generally brought home. My occupation has almost entirely precluded this, as, being my own architect, I cannot leave the building for an hour — my entire success in the shooting way can, therefore, be reported in a few words — in riding through one of my lots, a partridge got up, I dis- mounted, when another rose, which I shot flying — a great feat here, where they never attempt any thing beyond a sitting shot. This is the only game^ I have yet brought home — a finer bird never came to table — in- finitely larger than our grouse, of the same form, but remarkably white in the flesh, and with the plumage of the common partridge. They are called pheasants, and are most nu- merous; I have no doubt that there are a hundred coveys within two miles of this house, but, alas, I have no dog — what would I not give now to have old Grouse ? ■: '-if \ \ ■ HINTS TO SPORTSMEN. 181 Let no one persuade you against bringing out your dogs ; they would be invaluable. I liave not been able to see, or hear of a good one in this country. A flock of about thirty turkeys came round the house last week ; my man fired at them, and like sportsmen, that you and I have met, boasted that he had knocked as much feathers out of one of them, as would make a good pillow^ but the larder fared nothing the better. They are very numerous, but very wary — and run faster than an Indian. If you were with me, we could shoot more game in a day than a good horse could carry home. When I can spare time to go out, I can without failure, bring back one, two, or three deer, any day I please. They are in hundreds in the lands all round, and nothing can be more certain, than the Calderwood rifle, which I brought from home. It has obtained a great character here, from my having tried it at a mark, against an Indian Chief, whom I beat unmercifully ; poor /'il V: \ i J / I ' . " % .<•! -A 182 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ! i {iff. v. ' t \' ^ Calderwood took great pains with it, and in my mind, his workmanship cannot be ex- ceeded. We were under a great mistake, in suppos- ing that the woods afforded tlie best sport — quite the reverse ; in them you have nothing but bears, wolves, deer, turkeys, partridges ; whilst the cleared land abounds with birds too numerous to mention ; but those for the table, which follow the settlers, are woodcock, snipe, partridge, quail, very large, and the meadow lark, a beautiful bird as large as quail ; plover, also of several kinds. Then come those of ornamental plumage, the various species of woodpecker, all beautiful; with blue birds, yellow birds, red birds, and humming-birds. My discussion upon shooting must termi- nate, till I can send you the result of my own experience. At present I could better treat of the clearing of land, in which I am deeply engaged — but as my brother, whose letter to my father I have read, (and which you will of course see,) has gone minutely into that sub- 'f COST OF CLEARING. \m ject, and as we go hand in hand in those matters, I will not trouble you with repeti- tions, which ought to be avoided where so many of the same family are writing; all that I shall say upon it, is, that I have already cleared five acres, and that by February, thirty are to be completed for me, and an equal num- ber for my brother, at £\ &s. per acre, for brushing, piling ready to burn, chopping, and cutting into lengths. The drawing to- gether, and burning, to be executed by our- selves. The workmen demanded much more, and had not we been a full party with a little steadiness, and some money stirring among us, they would have beaten us out, whereas we are now victorious, and the defeated party, perfectly contented, in the expectation of touching a little hard cash, of which, they have very little, and are passionately fond. I could never have imagined that the axe could be used with such dexterity; I really think that two Canadians, would clear all Gerardstown in a fortnight ; they would i5 ■-:3k ■1 IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // ^ >4 // y^fk 7% A^> 1.0 1.1 11.25 ■so "^" niH ■u 1^ 12.2 Ui ttt Mtai. Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. I4SS0 (716)S72-4S03 184 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. It: ■s. \\ ^ take but two blows to every tree in the plantations. Desire all friends who come out, to bring delft, but not glass — as the latter is as cheap here, as the former is extravagant in price — also, hardware of the necessary kinds, and spades and shovels, which are ill constructed in this country — but, above all a hay-knife — here they cut their hay with an axe, and, I may say, do almost every thing with that wwi- t;er«aZ implement. . , , > * .^ ,: ..^. I have bought a waggon, and pair of horses — one of them a choice saddle horse, fully equal to my weight, which however is much decreased. He cost me a hundred dollars, and such a one would bring a hundred pounds with you. They are very good here, and very cheap. . f .> : . ^ ,* ..: i., . ^ * Now, my dear A. as to advising you whe- ther to come out or not, as I promised to do, I can safely say, from all that I have seen and heard, that if you can contrive to reach my house, with five hundred pounds in your i A V- t USEFUL SUGGESTIONS. 185 ' ( pocket, you may, with your present experience, insure yourself a certain and gentlemanlike independence. Think what an advantage you would have over me, who have spent a little fortune in bringing out a family, and in the delays and heavy cost of their voyage, journey, lodgings, residence in towns, and charges at taverns and elsewhere, till nearly the present date, when we are at length settled, but not unex- pensively till next year, when the produce of the farm will begin to tell ; whereas you who are a single man, can apply all your time, and energy and money to settling yourself pru- dently and comfortably, and make us happy by remaining with us till you do so. I only fear that if you do not come soon, you will not be able to find land near us, so fast are the lots disposed of — you need have no scruple about adding to our establishment, if you can live on venison and many other good things that cost but little. My cellar also defies you. I have a very snug one, moderately stocked ' '* i \ l. 1 • 1 I it 186 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. with choice Teneriffe at 7s. the gallon, Brandy at 105. Rum at 4s, 6c?. and Whiskey, (very good) at 1*. 8c?. — No locks or bolts here, which is rather new to me. The Canadians never steal, but are sharp enough, and will take advantage when they can. • . I have now told you many of the favorable circumstances of the country, which are de- cidedly very great; still, however, an Irish day of recollection, sinking the spirits down, down ! will occur ; and sometimes, notwith- standing the outrages and the murders, the politics, and the poverty of that unhappy country, I would give all I am worth to be walking beside you, shooting the Enfield bottoms, as in those happy days we have spent together ; again, these feeling-s vanish, when I look at my rich land, unencumbered by rent or taxes, and ask myself, if I tvere back again, how could I command such certain independence. . If I had my friends all here, I should be the happiest man breathing. r , RETROSPECTIONS. 187 1 inspect my choppers, and am much inte- rested. They say here, that once we see the crops growing, we shall never think of home again, but this is a bold assertion. > ,. i.» I do not feel at home here yet — my former life, my sea voyage, and travelling some seven liundred miles through a new country, appear more like a dream than reality ; my very ex- istence in these drowsy woods, appears doubt- ful, till I rouze myself by thinking on my College friends, my hunting days, the animat- ing hounds, the green open fields, and the scarlet coats. ^ ' r * . -'j Thus have I been active, and depressed — bustling, and gloomy by turns, but now that I am fairly settled in my own house, my »t (^i i< 'li 4 ^ •yA'^i As there is some difference of opinion as to the temporalities to be attached to those appointments, I am delicate in giving, as a certainty, what I have heard, though it has been apparently from the best authority, but all will be finally arranged shortly. What I have been told, is, that they are in the gift of the Governor, (with the approbation of the bishop of course, ) and that the clergyman is to have 150/. a year, a house and 400 acres of land, 200 as glebe, and 200 in per« petuity. Another statement mentions house — 100/. a year — ^200 acres of glebe — 50 of which are to be cleared for the incumbent at the cost of government — but none in perpetui- ty. — I wish to mention both, that our friend may only calculate upon the least ad- CLERICAL PROSPECTS. 189 clerical r comes are very ine field inion as to those ng, as a ;h it has •ity, but What I the gift ation of jrgyman ind 400 in per- vantageous ; by which means, when he comes, he may happen to be agreeably surprized, but cannot be disappointed. Make him bring out ))roper testimonials from his Bishop, &c. &c. What I have still to say may be comprized in a nut-shell; come by New York, don't loiter on the road to waste your money ; bring out rape-seed, hay-seeds, garden-seeds, espe- cially those of culinary, and aromatic herbs, and sail in April, if you can. , * ' - Yours, my dear Arthur, ^ « # # # # ,.'S / >::l i -', ■ i.il / Faithfully, W. R. . » »- •-*■ .^ • .'.4 —100/. . • i ..... ,-.■ t.. --■- . - -7 ^'"■'" ' ' V''* ' ' lich are lie cost •>,./ ;*-\. :.; ..,...;-•* ^. ■ '■'■ •-•'^ i.v-^i^'il.^ -'. jrpetui- at our ast ad- ... T •• ■ I 190 LETTER XII. i'l h fti From Thomas RadcUff] Esq, Upper Canada, t0 the Rev, Thomas RadcUff\ Dublin. Adelaide, January, 183«3. fl m' My dear Father, A sketch of the state of religion in Upper Canada, may not be unacceptable to you. Episcopalian, as I am, it grieves me to ob- serve, that our number of Church of England Ministers is lamentably insufficient ; and that unless prompt and energetic arrangements be made, to meet the wants and desires of our ra- STATE OF RELIGION. 191 pidly increasing colonists, there will be, with the absence of sound religious principle, a proportional accession of sects, or total in- difference to, and ignorance of, any religion. Many districts are in a deplorable state in this respect ; and, what is the worst feature, some of the Settlers themselves seem careless about it. : »" « » »' - • ^ • ..f • There are young families which have ne- ver been baptised; and, I am credibly in- formed, that there are fathers and mothers, J lay, grandfathers and grandmothers, who have never been received by baptism into the Church of Christ. When prayer-books, catechismn, and tracts have been offered to them, even wii: at price, for the mere trouble of calling at a clergy- man's house to receive them, that trouble has not been taken ; the Canadians do not like to lose time, even for such an important object as that of spiritual instruction; and, *as to wishing for clerical attendance on the sick and dying, there are many professing Episco- < :^^ 192 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. » II palians, who would not spare a messenger to request their pastor's services. There are, however, some gratifying in- stances of the delight with which even from a very considerable distance^ whole fami- lies come to meet the Church of England cler- gyman, who will, in his periodical visit, have perhaps 20 or thirty communicants, and will baptise ten or twelve children, besides read- ing the churching service for their mothers. In a Mission or Parish^ where I stopped some time on my journey, there is to be found in a certain small portion of it, the following variety and classification of religionists and free-thinkers. Out of 360 souls, Episcopalions ••« ••• ••• 130 Presbyterians - .-m #•• ... 102 Methodists, Baptists, Menonists and Roman Catholics ••• ... ' 73 Without any form of religion ... 65 ,- ~i , 360 SI ATE OF RELIGION. 193 Of Roman Catholics there are compara- tively very few in our province. The number of Methodist Missionaries is very considerable. Wherever a settlement is formed, there they are to be found. Many of them are ex- cellent men, and all of them are really or ap- parently zealous; and from all I can hear they have done infinitely more among the Indians in promoting a knowledge of Christianity, than our clergymen have been able, or anxious to effect. I know that there exists, at this moment, a demand, (in mercantile phraseo- logy,) for thirty, or forty Church of England clergymen. If care be taken to select able, zealous and active men, the happiest results will follow ; but if a swarm of Drones be sent among us, attracted merely by the temporal advantages of a settlement, without higher motives and anxieties, the degradation of our religion and the general contempt of inefficient ministers, must be anticipated. • w 194 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. h V,' That a considerable change is likely to take place in this respect, I have every reason to expect from the zealous attention of our ex- cellent governor, Sir John Colborne, to all the best interests of the province ; and especi- ally as the selection of clergymen, and their appointment to the rectories of the new town- ships, will be, as lam informed, at his disposal; and, being a man of great correctness, he will strictly scrutinize the testimonials of those who may offer themselves, and who will, no doubt, be required to produce strong recom- mendations from their respective Bishops. But I much fear that the government of the parent country has let the time pass by, when good might have been effected through the instrumentality of our clergy. The Metho- dist dissenters have obtained an ascendancy over our infant population. Their habits of domiciliary visitation, their acquaintance with the tastes and peculiarities of the Canadians, their readiness to take long and fatiguing rides, in the discharge of their self-imposed STATE OF RELIGION. 195 labours, render them formidable rivals to our more easy going clergy. I repeat, that it is of the utmost importance to send us men of character and high religious attainments, deeply convinced of the respon- sibility attached to their calling, and deter- mined that every other pursuit, and care, shall be secondary to the great purpose, for which they are designed, and to which they should be principally devoted. I mean not to say that there are not here spiritual, and earnest ministers of our own church, but unquestionably, on a fair compa- rison with the sectarian preachers, on the single point of zeal and ministerial industry, they do not occupy the first place, however they may have the * vantage ground* in other particulars. , How delightful would it be, in this great and improving country, rising so rapidly into a state of civilization, which is extending every hour, through the medium of British emigration, to have this numerous body fully , i Mis S- 196 AUTHETIC LETTERS. It 1^ '" < supplied with pastors of their own church ? — and how cheering would it be to have their respective settlements anxiously superintended by a zealous well educated, and well informed body of clergy? i» " In a political point of view, also, it would be important, as here the Episcopalians, are, one and all} attached to the British Constitu- tion. In the democratic principle, (wherever it appears,) in the instigation to discontent, and in disaffection to the laws, may always be traced the absence of Church of England principles. In this fine province, where a single grievance does not really exist, where there are neither rents, tithes nor taxes to pay, nothing seems wanting but a resident and regular clergy, to go frequently in person among the people (who are inclined to quiet- ness and good order,) to encourage them in their moral duties, and to inform them in the spiritual doctrines of their religion. Thousands in many parts of Canada have ne- ver seen the face of a Protestant clergyman (of STATE OF RELIGION. 197 the Established Church), and many thousands liave been lost to our Church from the want of regular pastors and the consequent influ- ence of itinerant teachers of innumerable creeds. The forms of sectarian worship are very simple ; they generally commence with a prayer, (the congregation sometimes kneel- ing) then a hymn, the people standing ; and a very long sermon concludes the service. The dissenters here, as elsewhere, find great fault with the frequent change of posture at our service. A Methodist lady lately told a friend of mine, between jest and earnest, that a fugle-man would be necessary in our churches. The opinion here, is, that our liturgy is too long, and consequently fatigu- ing to the attention ; — that the Lord's prayer is repeated too often, and that some other prayers might be, at least occasionally, omitted. - ?/ . In the marriage ceremony there are, (as they complain,) parts that are objectionable. :••*» !«• 198 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ! ■■ . ? ,1. for instance the length of the preamble, and the indelicacy of part of it. Some persons, I understand, have been disposed to go away unmarried, from the man's revising to say, '* with my body I thee worship" — One, con- tending that worship was due to God alone, was induced to comply with the Rubrick, only by the positive refusal of the clergyman to proceed with the ceremony, unless the form were acquiesced in. ' A woman from the States, in the true spi- rit of independence, left a church in this pro- vince, unmarried, from her refusal to say " obey." She had previously determined never to give the solemn promise required, and preferred living with her intended spouse, unshackled by the yoke of matrimony. She now has three children, and lives hap- pily with her mate. - .... - You remember the old song — - - " A maid there was who did declare, " Thai if she ever married were ; " No pow'r on earth should make her say, " Amongst the rites, the word Obey .- STATE OF RELIGION. 199 " When this she at the church confest, " And when she saw the angry priest " Shut up his book to go away, " She curtseying cried, Obey — Obey ! ! " The first verse critically applies in the present instance ; but, it is to be regretted, that the dame in question did not permit the second one to be equally in point. In this region of Sectarianism, it would perhaps be prudent to make some concessions as to mere points of Form^ which, when they do not involve any vital principles of our reli- gion, might be abandoned without injury to our liturgy. The Bishops in the States, have authorised many alterations in it; and have shortened the ceremony of Baptism, in which the Creed is not repeated — a simple assent to it only, being required. For my own part, on the old-fashioned principle I dread innovation, lest it should encourage too sweeping a re- form. Being a true Church of England man, I have been led into these remarks from what I had an opportunity of learning upon my K ■m \ . hi l\ 4 W n 15 1^ 200 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. journey hither, and from having been, since our arrival, without any clergyman, which engaged my brother and myself (though lay- men) in the duties of the Sabbath, and we have had a congregation of the chief part of the infant settlement in our own log-houses. But this will be no longer necessary, as a church is about to be built in Adelaide, and a Mr. Cronin, as I understand, a correct, ta- lented, and zealous clergyman, is appointed to the situation. Those clerical appoint- ments are now called Rectories^ and will be- come most desirable settlements for zealoas and unambitious clergymen. I believe it is not yet precisely ascertained to what extent, the fund, arising from the sale of the clergy reserves, can be made available, as to the number of Rectories to be formed, or the particular emolument of each ; but it is the intention to equalize them as much as possible. It is said that one half of the land which the clergyman is to have, is as glebe for his life, and the other half in STATE OF RELIGION. 201 perpetuity ; of this, I am uninformed, nor do I believe that the arrangements are as yet permanently made, or they would have more publicity; but I believe it is so far deter- mined, that a clergyman appointed to a new township, is to enjoy the following benefits at the least : — Glebe, 200 acres, 50 of which are to be cleared at the expense of govern- ment ; Glebe-house^ at first a Log-house^ to be be replaced, in a year, by a Frame-house of suitable dimensions. Cash income, £100 a year. This is all that has come to my knowledge ; but other advantages may be added. It is said, for in- stance, that surplice fees will be received, which, in a populous township, might add considerably to the clerical income, and would be a fair and fit remuneration for pastoral attention. In our case, at Adelaide, a church is to be erected as soon as convenient, probably within a year, and in the mean time, a school-house is to be formed in the log-way, to be used for '« f! 'f r I ri I ill! 202 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. Divine Service till the church is prepared. The Archdeacons in the towns of Canada, I suppose from the absence of higher Dignitaries, affect the episcopal appearance as much as possible, observing the costume of the stand- ing collars, short cassocks, and rosettes in the shovel hats. They have, alas ! but one supe- rior, the amiable and truly religious Bishop of Quebec, whose extensive duties are observed, with as much zeal and accuracy, as any 07ie person can accomplish in a diocese of two immense Provinces, which it is altogether impracticable for the most anxious and de- voted Prelate to visit within the year, much less to regulate and superintend. We hear that in Ireland you are striking off ten Bishops; I wish you could send some of them to us — we have much occasion for them. The humbler clergymen of oiu* church, when riding through their parishes, in travelling dress, resemble the Irish Metho- dist Preacher. They carry a valise, con- taining gown, surplice, books, communion STATE OF RELIGION. 203 I'lements, chalice and cup, with a great coat and umbrella strapped over it. Indeed you never see an equestrian tra- veller leaving home for a couple of days, without a valise before or behind him, for no one here is grand enough to have a servant riding after him ; and, as to travelling in a waggon, it is often utterly impossible, from the condition of the roads, which render wheel conveyances insupportable. The quantity of mud which a waggon has to encounter is inconceivable ; the useless trouble of washing it never takes place. — The usual mode of clearing the wheels of the adhesive mud, being to strike them, when i <# f< 212 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I John Brant was returned as member for his county, to the last parliament, and made some excellent speeches in the house, but on a petition lost his seat, by some trifling in- formality in the Election. * As amongst the " untutored" Indians, are to be found, all the worst traits of uncivilized life ; so are there to be met, especially among the chiefs, noble specimens of dignified and ra- tional character ; and those that I have men- tioned are not singular in this respect. But whoever desires the true and charac- teristic picture of the Indian, must read the inimitable portraitures of Cooper, in his un- rivalled novels. The accuracy of their deli- neation I had the means of putting to the On a hunting excursion through the woods for some weeks, with two Indians, who car- * Since the date of this letter, this respectable chief has paid the debt of nature, much and deservedly la- mented — V. Letter 8. Editor. EXCURSION WITH INDIANS. t213 I .<■ riecl my baggage, and a few others who joined me ; happening to have " The last of the Mohicans** in my pack, I read extracts to my party at night, around the fire, and the asto- nishment they expressed at a white man being able to describe their native scenes and characters so precisely, was a greater compliment to the talented author than any I can pay him; for the Indian seldom foregoes his self-possession, or evinces feelings of pleasure or pain by words or gesture. On this occa- sion they were highly pleased, and expressed themselves so. One night, when encamped on the shore of Lake Huron, our literary party was interrupted by the sound of many paddles, and we soon discovered that some new arrival had taken place. On going out, I perceived eleven canoes discharging their crews opposite our encampment. In less than twenty minutes there were fires blazing in all directions, and the cooking going on as if they had been there as many weeks. Shortly after, two chiefs came forward, shook hands .ti. #■' 214 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ^ I i. i \ i 1 ♦ '•< with me in the free and friendly manner an Indian generally does, and, at my request, supped with me. They had come to that part of the lake to take white fish, which is the best fish; and, there, most abundant. Next morning I had a noble dish sent me as a present, by the Chief, Wagna; and on his signifying that they would take to the fishing ground at noon, I purchased one of their bark canoes and paddles, for five dollars, and joined the Fleet Will you believe it ? I never passed a more agreeable time in my life, than when sur- rounded by this party, at times 150 in number; nearly one hundred miles from any settle- ment, and I myself the only white man (not ver^ white either) in the entire camp. My tent was pitched on a green bank, about twenty yards from the wigwams, with its door to the lake, into which I plunged every morning from my bed, and either joined my companions during the day, in hauling the net ; or, taking my rifle to a deer pass, never INDIAN LIBERALITY. 215 failed of sport, as some obliging Indians were always ready to surround a portion of the Bush, and drive the game in the direction where I stood. This was generally at the entrance of the valley ; and with two or three good marksmen below me, we seldom re- turned lightly laden. I always beat the In- dians at a running shot, at which they are not expert ; but whatever might be our indi- vidual success, all we shot went into the general stock; and whether I went out or not, my table, or rather my mat, was regu- larly furnished, with fish, duck, or venison, in profusion. With what pleasure I look for- ward to another such excursion ! At night the shore was brilliant with the fishing lights in the canoes ; and I had to walk but twenty paces into mine, to enjoy as fine sport as the most enthusiastic fisherman could desire. After a residence of six weeks with my Red Brothers, I prepared to return homeward, and felt much regret at parting from them, so marked was their kindness to me, and so J1 t^l6 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 4' 1^' goodnatured their attention. When 1 fixed the day, every one had something to give ; and had I accepted half what they presented, two canoes would have been insufficient to carry away the provisions. I embarked at five in the morning; when three miles distant from shore, the sudden swell of the lake, and black appearance of the sky foreboding storm, I directed the men at the paddles to turn back, and before we had got within a mile of shore, the waves (as is often the case in those lakes) running mountain high, we made every possible exertion, but very little way. The wind was right ahead, the canoe small, and freighted with six persons — but she rode it like a duck; we at length reached the land, nearly exhausted, and I was welcomed back with as much cordiality as if my absence had been for weeks instead of hours. Had we not returned we must have been inevitably lost ; in a short time, however, I was safely lodged again in my old quarters. CANOE IN DISTRESS. 2)7 About dusk a canoe, with two Squaws on board, was observed struggling to make the shore. On inquiry, I found they belonged to our camp, had been about a mile along the coast, for some fish which had been left be- hind, and were blown out as they were rounding a head land close to us. We could observe them throwing out the fish, and the group on shore had hopes of their arriving in safety; none, however, attempted to go to their assistance, knowing that, in such a gale, both canoes would be endangered, as, by a sudden collision they would be upset or staved to pieces ; they, nevertheless, looked on with deep anxiety, when, as the little vessel rose on the summit of a wave, the foremost paddle snapt close to the hand of the Squaw that plied it, and disappeared. She lay down in the canoe, and her comrade could do no more than prevent it from turning. In a moment a canoe was launched, by two men, one of them the husband of her, who still worked that .1 ii ' . i- \ :* 11 218 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. which was in distress; they were making some progress to her relief, when it became so dark that we lost sight of both. The shouts of the two men to discover where the canoe lay were feebly answered by the unhappy women, and then all was still. I had a fire lighted on the beach, as a bea- con to direct them, in the excessive darkness of the night. — The group around it formed the finest subject for a painter, that can be imagined. — There we stood, about eighty in number, gazing at the flame, blown by the wind in all directions, the light thrown strong- ly, but fitfully, on the features and figures of the Indians, but not a word was spoken — at length the grating sound of paddles reached our ears; the light of the immense fire flashed on the approaching canoe, and the persons it contained — the two enterprizing men, accompanied by one female ! — Poor Segenauck, — the wife of an attached husband, who hoped and tried to save her, — was no more ! 11 FATAL CATASTROPHE. 219 They landed — not a question was asked — all retired to their wigwams in solemn silence. In a few minutes I was alone. The manly and dignified manner in which this melancholy occurrence was received — the solemn, but silent, tribute of regret paid by all to the memory of one of their tribe, thus suddenly called away, gave me a still more favourable impression of my Indian compa- nions, and sent me to bed, with the storm in my ears, and its fatal result occupying my waking and sleeping thoughts till morning. — I learned, then, from Segenauck*s husband, that as soon as the canoes came near each other, the Squaw at the head, taking hold of the gunwale of that in which he was, cautiously stept in, forgetting, in the hurry and danger of the moment, to keep hold of that she had left, which, losing the weight in front, rose at once out of the water, was blown round and upset, without a possibility, on his part, of saving his unfortunate helpmate. ■ .i' •2-20 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I ) ,'' The storm ceased in the night; the morning was very fine. I left the camp at break of (lay, and was soon ont of sight of my kind and hospitable companions. I quitted them with a degree of regret, in which, I have since found, I was not singular. In Moore's Life of Lord Edward Fitzgerald, we find that unfortunate nobleman expressing himself to the same effect ; and I have heard many say, that those who were long in the habit of Indian society, were generally fascinated by it — as the excur- sion which I have described to you, has left on my mind a similar impression ; should I not, in the course of a year or two, be able to prevail on some fair friend to share with me the world's cares and pleasures, I shall resume the blanket coat, the mocassin, the rifle, the snow shoe, and only visit the haunts of the deceitful white man, when my red bro- ther gets tired of me. It is but fair, however, to state this clearly and candidly^ as some considerate and tender-hearted fair one wishing le morning t break of r kind and em witli a nee found, fe of Lord (ifortunate the same that those n society, he excur- i, has left should I 5 be able iare with > I shall ssin, the le haunts red bro- liowever, as some J wishing I'RIENDLY HINT. 22 to prevent it, might yet, by a flattering communication of her good opinion, induce me to break througli my present resolution, of Ji^'ing and dying an old bachelor ! ! Believe me, my dear Sir, Your's, &c. &c. T. W. Magrath. -{a i-i! ■■I 222 LETTER XIV. From Bridget Lacy, Upper Canada^ to Mary Thompson^ Ireland, Addalad, Dec. 1832. My clear Mary, We are at our journey's end at last. I hope you got my letter from York town; I have a great deal to say, and but little time to say it in, as Mr. G. is going back to York, and will carry this, and send it free too, from that, if he can. It's I that would be long sorry to put you to charges for my foolish prate ; — and send CHANGE OF SITUATION. 223 your's Mary, to the old master, and Til get it by some one commin^ out. For to go for to tell you all we had to bear since I wrote last, would take a choir, and in troth Tve no great time on hand, for sure enough, dear Mary, I have changed my siti- ation since I came here. Now, I know what you'll say — aye do I — as well as if I was at the inside of you : — " Oh ho ! I knew what the tinder whisper and the loving pinches aboord the ship would come to — and I wish you joy, Mrs, Bridget Benson'* Troth then, my dear, your'e out in your guess — for it*s no such thing, but who knows? Would you believe it, he^s living within four miles of me at Bear's Creek, and comes over to church of a Sunday, and to see me, and to eat a bit before he goes; and now Mary the butter is coming out of the stirrabout, being that my change of sitiation is nothing more or less than my change from childeren's maid to cook^ and a happy change too, Mary, for instead of that poor streeleen thing I was, leaving home. 224 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I! m ■' . f ! I ik I am now growing plump and fat, and well to look at — and so Benson tells me, and that I look better and better every time he comes over ; and Mary, dear, there's a wide differ betune the nursery and the kitchen — and isn't it a great thing to be able to give a friend, and such a friend, a savoury toothful, when he's so oblidgeing as to go for to come so far to see you, and he a fine young lad that hasn't a nick in his horns yit, as the saying is, what- ever he may live to have, and has the whole township to chose from. And Mary, dear, we're no ways stingy of our vickels in this country, and it's he that likes the Venzon. Why, my dear, they're as plenty with us as goats on the Wicklow mountains ; and Mary, you'd like it greatly, and so do I : and sure enough it does'nt go into an ill skin. But what made this changification ? you will ask. Why this way- — the mistress thought the other life was too asy for me : and so it was; and as I dre&sed a dish or two that \jlazed the master, she said, she'd put me WAGES — SAUCE. 225 , and well 3, and that e he comes wide differ — and isn't friend, and when he's ae so far to that hasn't igis, what- j the whole lary, dear, ^els in this le Venzon. with us as and Mary, : and sure 1. tion? you ss thought and so it • two that d put me into the kitchen where I might show my talons. We've got a very good girl in my place — a little Yankeeish as they say — but we must give and make allowances, I'd like her very well for a fellow servant, only she's allways bother- in me for sa-ce. Now what do you think she means by that? — Why every thing in the world, but meat — not that she'd be con- tent without that too, but she must have sace besides. Now when you come for to know what this sace is, it would make you wonder. Sace is every thing you could name — po- tatees, vegables, butter, pickles and sweet- meats — they're all called sace — only mustard, pepper and vinegar is not. And Mary my Jewell, the people here must have sace at all their meals. Now Mary dear, we were well fed at the school, but we never heard of such doings as these ; I like a good bit as well as another, and why not? but this is too bad entirely; they are cheap enough though, indeed mostly for • ! I 1 1 I ? 41 i I \i ^ 1 !■ 1 226 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. J'lr nothing, or who could stand it ? This girl we^ve got (and a smart girl too,) has five pound a year, and sure that's not much after all the great talk about high wages. Where the farmers get their penny out of them in hard work, they should pay for it, but isn't it better be with a mistress that's asy and good humored and good, and won't work one to the stumps ? but without any mather of doubt the servants are great plagues ; they think of nothing but bettering themselves, and they that come out hardly puts their foot on the land when they get's roaving thoughts in their sculls, as if the air of this country gave them a rambeling way with them. There was a friend of my masters brought out an old servant who had earnt £20 and had it in a purse ; her master at first refused to bring her, guessing she'd leave him. Well, she bound herself for a year, and to lose the £20 put in his hands, if she left him ; why then my dear, she was'nt a month here when she made herself scarce, leaving her money DISHONESTY — HONESTY. 227 r This girl ive pound ter all the /here the !in in hard it isn't it r and good one to the f of doubt ey think of 5, and they foot on the houghts in lis country ;;heni. ers brought :t £20 and List refused im. Well, to lose the him; why here when her money behind — and no more about it or her, ever since. Then there was our Sandy, was sent to the post and never came back, and who should come in his place but a Yankee, mighty fond of his gut, and always grumbling about sace — a hard working fellow for all that, and had £20 a year. Well my dear, he was sent for change of a hundred dollar note, and that same made him take to his scrapers. The master was all in a quandary when he did*nt come back, and he went off to his brother, and got his man Pat Mee, to run off and try if he could overtake the blicguard, and Pat Mee, nabbed him sure enough late the next day about sixty miles off, without the manes of a horse itself, and got amost all the money in his pocket and gave him, as he says, the father of a bating, and brought all home safe. ' • , . Pat, surely is an honest boy and so he ought, for he's well treated and has five and twenty pounds a year, it won't be long be- fore he'll be buying a lot of land. Benson .■ h- » <>. I'l! 228 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. f ! ♦ ! has never had the sperit to come to the point with me yet — so there's no harm in having two strings tO one's bow my dear Mary, Pat and I to be sure are not of one way of think- ing, but he might come round. As we w^e coming, on the journey, near a town where we were to come up with his master, who should we meet but Pat, without my knowing him, in a mighty quare cap and jacket, and a face as brown with the sun as a copper skillet: " why then don't you know your old friends Biddy Lacy," says Pat, "when you meet them in a strange place, but I suppose you took me for an Ingine and I'm like one sure enough, with this burning sun on my face, but yees had better be going on, and you'll find friends before you — and I shot a pair of ducks this morning, that you'll have for your sup- per" and so there was, and glad enough we were all for to meet, for my two fellow prentices are with his mistress. ^ t; While my master was building this house we lived above a month at a £^mers, and a MAPLE SUGAR. 229 quare place it was, but I larned a great deal while I staid, and the woman of the house was no bad warrant to tell me how to do a thing. But what flogged all that I had ever seen, was making sugar out of a tree, Mary — not a word of lie do I tell you ; you take a big gimlet and make a hole in the tree, (the maypole I think they call it,) and out comes the shuggar, like sweet water thick like, and you boil it, and you but where's the use of my telling you any thing about it, as you have no sugar trees at home. I remember when you and I thought a shuggar stick, a mighty good sort of a thing, never thinking I'd lay my eyes upon a sm- gar tree, I'm told there are such things as butter trees too, but seeing's believing, and they shan't take me in that way, but there's one tree I'm sure of, and that's a plumb tree, wild in the woods, for I pull'd with my own hands more than I could eat and carry away, and we boiled them with the maypole sugar, 230 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ■M i 1 ^ and a fine parcel of jam we had, all for no- thing but our trouble, which was only a plea- sure, not to say any thing of having it to the fore. . , When I was pulling them, it come into my head, that if there was shuggar trees, and tea trees, and butter trees, and bread trees, which I read of at school, the wood would be a very nate place for a tea party, and the plumbs, and the rawsberries, and currents, and straw- berries would be good sace, — ^was*nt this a funny conseat ? But I'd want something after all, and that would be i/ou Mary along-side of me, and a pair of handsome lads to make us merry — and sure enough the woods aren't without that same, only that their pelts are all red, with roasting themselves I suppose at them big fires in the woods at night. Some of them without any manner of doubtifica- tiori, tre very fine Ingines, but that's our share of them, for they say they won't mix, and may be all for the better, for I'd rather CANADIAN BARM. 231 die an old maid than be called a squawl, and have a * porpus tied on my back, rolled up like a salmon in a hay-rope, on the Wexford Coach ; and more than that, to be made do all the druggery by land and water, in the shanty and kinnoo, gutting all the fish, and dressing all the birds and beasts, for never a hand's turn will them fine haroes do, but hunt, and shoot, and fish, and eat plenty, and drink hearty, like any gentlemen. Fond as I am of cooking, Mary, this would be beyand the beyands, (as the saying is) — but while Pm on the subject, I must tell you how much Pm coming on ; and would you believe it ? A bake all the bread, for there's no bakers or huxters here to send in the fresh loaves every morning ; but we must have all within our- selves. But my dear, the bread's the greatest part of all ; for it's made with barm, that's made with salt ! — ^and it's very good, and I'll send you the resate that the mistress wrote .:| ^fi .* I*: * Probably meant for papoose-.— -Editor. l5 ii- 232 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I I 1 M 1 ■ ■' \ t. ! i ■ % t. 1 1 h t 1 out with her own hands^ and it may be of use to you in the country when barm id scarce— and here it is : — ' »; . ^ ill' • !'A . CANADIAN BARM. ii 1 V '^ • '< Take a pint and half of boiling water, one quart of cold water ; put this into a tin vessel; then put a teaspoon full of salt in, and mix it well, then take one pint out, and throw it away ; then get your flour ; stir the water and salt well with a spoon, while you are putting the flour in, which is done as if you were making stirabout ; make it as thick as beer barm; mind you are to blend the flour well; set this in another vessel, with very hot water in it, and constantly renew the hot water under the barm, and very often stir it up from the bottom of the pan, so as not to let the flour settle ; if it is rightly done, it will begin immediately to ferment ; remember to cover it up closely, and let it stand near a fire ; A TRIED RECEIPT. 233 as soon as you perceive it rising, let it stand quite quietly ; this process takes from four to five hours ; you will then take eight quarts of flour; put in your salt, and butter your pans. When the yeast is risen up pretty high, then commence making your bread; first loosen the yeast from the edges of the vessel it is in, and get some one to pour it into the middle of the flour, while you mix it up ; then add either warm milk or warm water, whichever is most convenient, and work up the dough as usual ; when this is done, put it into your pans, and set it in a very warm place to rise.> which it will considerably; but it often takes a long time ; it must be covered over with a cloth ; it rises to twice the size of the piece of dough you first put in, and then it is fit to bake." \ -j. .;,t ? '■ Well, my dear, did you ever hear the likes of that ? But you may reckon on it as sure. We use nothing else here ; and I was taught it by the farmer's wife where we lived, and .'■I :'!i .-: ni ilf:! i' • :234 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. the mistress put it down word for word as you have it. And then, there's the bumkin pie, which they give to the workmen; but that's aisy made enough. The master doesn't like it ; but it does very well on a Sunday, in the kitchen. You takes and slices it like apples, and gives it plenty of the maypole, and a pinch or two of cloves, and a glass of whiskey, which is like ditch-water here, and it's mighty good eating. • ■ J/ • *. • 'J ^ -. * J .li.:.: * * « ^ i * - • ■ \^- M-i-'iS .> .^' Indeed the farmer's wife was very civil, and told me many a thing. But I cant give in as yet, to eating sqirrells ; for they're for all the world, all as one as rats. - -.-.-'.; ;j; : One day, there came two women to the farmers to buy cabbage, for my dear, they'd sell any thing here, they're so fond of the lucre of gain ; but says one of the woitien to my mistress, that was standing in the firhandy, ** Why then ma'am," says she, " I'm sure you're the lady my daughter was telling me about, that she said, she was sure was an Ir I RISHWOMAN — WHITEFEET. 235 Irish lady." « Why do you think Tm Irish?" says my mistress. " Well then, Til tell you that — because you're fat, and you're fair, and you're comely, and you're handsome." And true for her, for she's all that, and good into the bargain. re * . ,. ,;;. f -, ' Well, Mary, that was the day but one be- fore we came away ; and it's well that ever we got to this place, with them roads, and the floods, and the cricks, and the axes going, and the wagging knocked about, and the horses tired, and the dark night coming on us, and the mistress almost destroyed, and the children as bad. But God be praised, here we are all, safe and sound. ^ You have plenty of Whitefeet with you, Mary ; but here they were a scarce article 'till we came. My master's brother's wife's were the first female whitefeet that ever stepped upon the township of Addalad. Then came on my two fellow 'prentices, and then my mistress, and then myself, that's as white as '\^ n 236 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ri iJ 4. the best of them, as Benson the rogue told me yesterday. ' "' " ^ — , ^ * But now, lo and behold you, there's hun- dreds and hundreds all about us, and houses growing out of the woods every day. But after all, its an awfull thing to be living in' the woods. Oh ! them terrible wolves, if you were to hear them. I never got a wink of sleep the first fortennight. I'd be shockingly in dread, they'd spoil our tea party. Such yowling, aud growling, and yelling, and pellmelling, as no Christian ever heard. They say it's hunting the deer they are. Set 'em up with venzon the bastes ! Well isn't it surprizing with all I have to do, I could find the time to write so long a letter, by fits and starts — ^but do the same to me, and I tell you again and again, come out if you can, and be sure to come to Add- alad, (isn't it a comical name? may be there's something in it,) and by the time you come, I'll know who's who, and what's what, and will direct you for the best. TWO STRINGS TO YOUR BOW. '237 You know I told you, I had two strings to my bow. May be one of them might make a noose for you. Good night dear Mary. * Early to bed, and early to rise.* Your affectionate School-fellow, Bridget Lacy.* 'I, ■ » ■■ *f«»,'> U'-if * The name of this correspondent is the only fictitious one introduced. The foots, however, are correct.— Editor. '-*** 01 '* ■. r.'fi A . » •■ J- J, '^.^ f. - i. . I. Uj"^^ "*"f;t^W 1^''>: '■ ,i ;u n # 238 » _ ! i' ■■« • . »;A, .i ». .' ; I ■: -J/ ' ' J- ' ■ « i *i r • ,« «.! i.t. '; r.'iJ. . — < i • • ■ » .•il' -!^^ _ \ H •.. / f- /,. T • ! LETTER XV. i ^ > rf i < ..1 •> . :^ . DEER SHOOTING. Froin Thos, W. McigrcUh, Esq. Upper Canada^ to the Rev* Thomas JRadcliffi Dublin. If ,i ,.j;^ EVw:.iale, January, 1832. My dear Sir, ^ You expressed a wish to learn something original, and in detail upon the field sports of Canada — and I will endeavour to gratify you. . ':t r'. "^ ' Many new settlers have been surprized at not frequently seeing, deer, bears, wolves, &c. in this country ; as if those animals were to walk out of the woods, and shew themselves, m DEER SHOOTING. 239 I I t .,.1 'Kldctf ' •<• 1832. ;hing [ports ratify led at I, &c. :e to lives, as their keepers would present them in a me- nagerie, for public exhibition, not considering that they are of retired habits, not given to ob- trude, nor much pleased at having their seclud- ed haurit;^ iL^v^aded. Therefore, except to the persevering sportsman, they seldom give de- monstration of the numbers that really occupy our extensive forests. It is also an erroneous opinion with many, that no fat venison can be procured here ; but though our family resided in a venison country, in Ireland, abounding with parks, I can aver, that I have re- peatedly shot fatter deer here than I ever saw there. What has given rise to this opinion, is, that when the bucks are in their prime, in August and September, the farm works are too important to be sacrificed to amusement. I have known the most de- voted sportsmen, when once settled on their own property/, and feeling the necessity of giving personal attention to its improvement, to have abandoned the fowling-piece alto- gether, during the busy season, but, to have Hi 240 AUTHENTIC LETTER? I !■ . gladly resumed it in the Winter, (the Cana- dian's Jubilee, ) while the ground is covered with snow, and sealed up by frost, to the prevention of all farming operations. This then, becomes the selected season for deer shooting, when the bucks are out of condi- tion, which accounts for the foregoing remark. The Does^ however, though an inferior quality of venison, are at this time in high order, and very acceptable at the settler's table— nor is it necessary to be too fastidious, as to either sex- -as the servants and labour- ers on the settlement, though they like plen- tiful meals, are not epicures, and will not object to a haunch of venison, although des- titute of an aldermanic cut of fat. -- ?- ^ My brothers and I are now become expert. •- .«;.t^ .rr <* If we have luck, ' .. - ?>. ":j .i;i. " We'll bring a buck, ^ *, ,.; " Upon our lusty shoulders home." Old Glee. In winter we make it a point to provide abundantly for the larder. ;• 1 DEER SHOOTING. 241 ! Cana- covered to the . This For deer F condi- remark. inferior in high settler's istidious, labour- ie plen- will not igh des- '■-H - .' expert. id Glee. provide However, as you desire this sporting in- formation for young settlers, I shall com- menoe with our first day's work, and go forward in regular details . - i a . , . The Winter after our arrival here, my bro- ther and I made our first essay, about sixteen miles back in the woods behind our house. However young at this particular sport, we were not inexperienced in the use of the rifle. -- ^- • • ' ' ■ •^'•■, V. -'-':>. . Mine was of the true Yankee cut — three feet, six inches in length — ^as heavy as a musket — the bore, calculated for balls seventy to the pound ; and his, a short Spanish rifle — two feet, ten inches long — carrying half-ounce bails, thirty-two to the pound. 'ki^ - :- We took a wide range for the entire day, and never got a shot. We saw indeed, abun- dant tracks, and many singles,* as the deer darted off through the wood, but had no opportunity of presenting our rifles with any ■adiMrttai * The tails of the Deer.— Editor. . ' (■ Hi i r 242 AUTHENTIC LETTERS; ' t i ■1- 5, t' prospect of effect. In despondency we re- turned to the farmer's house where we were to sleep, disgusted with our sport, or rather with jour failure. When the family were as- sembled in the evening, and talked over our disappointment, the farmer, a thorough-bred Yankee, said, " Well — I guess you know no- thing about this here deer shooting. I cal- culate I will go out with you to-morrow, and see how you get on." We thanked him, and having received from him, some preliminary instructions, and a good breakfast before day light next morning, turned out with our host, in the hope of a more successful day. He was even of greater value to us as a model, than as a monitor; for as soon as we got upon the track of a deer, we could at once perceive by our companion's manner of proceeding, the true cause of our own failure the preceed- ing day. He was all quietness. We had been all bustle. He walked silently and steadily along, taking special care not to break, or it. DEER SHOOTING. 243 even touch the point of a branch, lest the sound should disturb the game. We had been slashing and smashing every thing before us, which could not fail to rouse at a distance, far out of view, or at least out of shot, a timid animal, most susceptible of alarm. --^ Upon holding a council of war, at the sug- gestion of our practised hunter, we agreed that my brother and I should separate, on dis- tinct tracks, and our Mentor in an under-tone, said to us — " You may have pretty consider- able sport, I guess, if it be not your own fault — be silent and steady — I calculate you will have to keep down your hands — well, step gently through the snow — if you see a deer running past, shout out, and I guess he'll stop — I wish you sport." Upon which he wheeled about, and returned to his farm- yard. '•' '" ■ •^- ■-'■:'■ ' '■■> --• ,;l' -i ^i'^'.'i w-'rf' >J^^'j- ^-.r We observed his directions, and when some time on the track which I had followed, I found by it, that at a particular place, the .1 U! I U ;i, 244 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. 4, deer had stopped, and turned, and sprung ofi* again, compassing a tremendous distance at each bound, leaving me but little hope of coming up with him, though, by the indication of the snow, as I went forward I could ob- serve that he had frequently stopped, and turned, but, alas ! had again continued his progressive course. ' h- The snow being eighteen inches deep, and the walking very laborious, I sat down quite exhausted, to recover my fatigue and to consi- der how I was to get back. Resting quietly, with my rifle across my knees, I heard some branches snap ; and the next minute, a noble buck came dashing along, within shot. Springing up (as I had been instructed by the farmer,) I gave a shout. That moment he stopped, snorted and looked at me — I fired; but, to my great disappointment, he bounded on, leaving me to conjecture how I could have missed so fair a standing shot, and with- in twenty paces ! . , DEER SHOOTING. 245 )rung off stance at hope of ndication jould ob- ped, and nued his ieep, and ►wn quite to consi- ; quietly, ard some a noble in shot, ueted by- moment I fired; bounded I could .nd with- Having loaded again, I went up to the place where he had stood, and found a large gush of blood upon the snow. I felt as if I had not walked a mile. In a little time I caught a glimpse of the poor fellow within fifty yards — the trees however, were too close. He moved slowly on, with drooping head and lagging step, and, stopping for a short space, lay down apparently in pain. Then taking deliberate aim at the head, I fired. The branching antlers, by a quivering movement, indicated a short and final struggle to rise — on coming up, I found him stretched on his side, and for the first time, enjoyed the savage, but instinctive, delight of seeing an American deer lying at my feet, brought down by my own hand — what was next to be done ? I had left my knife behind me, and could not perform the necessary operations in breaking up the deer, as it is termed, and must of course be burdened with the entire weight of tfie interior — but how was I to drag HI i it} il •" 1:11 246 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. along the first fruits of my deer hunting career. i ; ; * ...u. By a clumsy and fumbling application of my ramrod to his nose, I succeeded in mak- ing a perforation sufficient to admit the end of my handkerchief — securing it there, I moved him with difficulty along the snow: not having any means of tying his fore feet to his nose, (which is usually done,) they caught in every log and branch I passed, by which I was both retarded and fatigued. "^ ^ Stopping to rest, I found that in the con- fusion of my joy, my rifle had been forgotten where I fired tlie last shot — and it should have remained there till next day, but for the ap- prehension of its being covered by the snow of the night. > . ^t r ,:, •. ,: p. ' ^ I returned for it ; yoked myself again to my cumbrous but honorable burden, and was proceeding gallantly, when the head of the buck happening to catch on a stump; at a sudden pull the handkerchief giving way, down I went head foremost, rifle and all, into t<*i DEER SHOOTING. 247 the snow. My sporting ardor would notwith- standing have made light of this, and of the weight I dragged along, had I not discovered to my utter consternation, that I was in a wrong track, and had completely lost my way. Still moving on, however, my ear was gratified by a distant shout to which, on my part, I most joyfully responded. ^ v- This gave me new life to tug along the trophy of my successful sport— another shout ! still nearer and more distinct — returned by me of course — " a louder yet and yet a louder strain," — one other shout — and all was still. The parties mutually attracted by the ap- proaching signals, had met, and shaken hands — and there appeared my brother Char- les, yoked to another deer ! ! On asking him in what direction the far- mer's house lay ? I was mortified to find that he knew as little of the matter as myself. ; He had a knife, however, which enabled me to lighten the buck to which I was har- nessed, and to brace his feet and head iu a M ^J:h m tl!< 248 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. more convenient manner for the draft. We then agreed to keep i^traight forward in the hope of crossing on some Concession line,* which might direct us in our course; but the sun had disappeared; the twilight was re- ceding fast, and a faint gleam of moonlight through the trees afforded us but precarious assistance ; at one place, however, where they were not so close, a stronger light broke in, and Charles, in great joy, called out that he had come upon a track; but judge what my disappointment must have been, and let me have the sympathy of all brother sports- men, who may learn that the buck, which had travelled behind me for so many hours, was again lying within a few yards of the very spot on which he had first fallen. ; ' ^ By this time, in sporting phraseology^ I was completely done up, and obliged to aban- don my game from downright inability to puU .14 n.ci yf'- J i * Concession lines are those on which posts are fixed to number the lots of the townships. ..':f? •: DEER SHOOTING. ^49 it after me another yard. — My brother still stuck to his — but saddled me with the weight of his rifle. Becoming, shortly, as exhausted as myself, his deer was also left behind ; and struggling on a little farther, so weak were we from fatigue, that we were deliberating upon ridding ourselves of the incumbrance even of our rifles, when a sudden shot was fired beside us — a horn sounded — almost in our ears, which we acknowledged by a double discharge — and to our great joy discovered that we were close to our good quarters of the night before ; whilst, to our utter amaze- ment we were informed that we had been all the time, so near the house, that the people repeatedly heard our voices and were surprised at our staying out so late. Our guide of the morning received us hos- pitably, guessing " we had missed our way, and calculating^ that it would be better if he liad not left us, as he saw we did no good after all;" our point of honor, as sportsmen, being called in question, we averred that ' I •250 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. eacli had brought down his deer ; two of the spunky boys turned out, and soon returned with both deer to confirm our veracity and triumph. In the morning it was great amusement to review our circuitous tracks, (which, as they said, " had bet down the whole place pretty considerably,'') and to perceive that we had gone round and round in rings, within the limits of twenty acres, that were never passed during the space of the last five hours ! ! which terminated the hunting of our second day. I remain, my dear Sir, Tout's faithfully. 1»V^ ■ .Oif Thos. Wm. Magrath. •^n:^Ti:: 251 '."y;^ ;;.,•. r<: ". ,'<: ' •■v; . :r,x ..J ijw//.i j''*^jj., f li-, •;. ^i* •• A, a. .> Ai^, L.^ i 'L »/«-(.> LETTER XVI. '^•^. '/M. j» -J .,ru-' « ! .!» 1 .'.j^^i Qt *• ■• .,'f-jr ' 'r;-- JProm 7^05. Wm. Magrathy Esq, Uppei' Canada^ . to the Rev, Thomas Radcliffi Dublin. Erindalei January, 1882. -< jv; '.cr f > ! ' My dear Sir, In my last, you were presented with the Johnny-raw results of our two first day's sport; but as practice makes perfect, I have not only been amply repaid for my first failure by future successes, but having tried all the various methods of the country for the grati- fication of this exciting amusement, I am en- -i 1- h 252 AUTHENTIC LETTERS abled to detail the different modes of deer hunting, with their appropriate circumstances. As I commenced with snow shooting, I will here add some useful directions to be observed by sportsmen, in this particular branch, and also the usual dress and apparatus to be adopted. The dress should consist of a blanket coat, made to button up to the collar ; a cap of the same material ; a warm pair of light coloured cloth trowsers, three or four pair of stockings under the moccasins, or a piece of blanket rolled round the foot as a protection from stumps — thus, with a leathern belt to carry your hunting knife, and with a rifle of the following description, you are accoutred for the hunting ground. / ; - . . . r It should be two feet ten inches in the bar- rel, about ten pounds weight, and of a bore, suited to balls, forty to the pound; a descrip- tion of rifle shot, experience has taught me to prefer to any other. This however is a -'.> ilOl DEER SHOOTING. •258 vl of deer [Stances. r, I will )bserved ich, and 3 to be ket coat, ip of the coloured stockings f blanket ion from to carry le of the utred for the bar- ^f a bore, descrip- lught me lever is a point upon which you will seldom find two sportsmen agree, as your fellows of light metalgenerally prefer a bauble. I have invented a powder flask, to con- tain caps, balls and powder, to save the neces- sity of fumbling with cold fingers in different pockets, for the several articles — and will send you one as a model by the first opportu- nity, for the benefit of my brother sportsmen, ^ho may come out to this country. ■- If on arriving at the scene of action, you find the wood abounding with fresh tracks, stand steady for a time, and observe if any of the deer are in motion. If you spy one that does not see t/ou, contrive to be con- cealed by the trees, whilst you approach him — should your step be heard, stand still, and never stir till he begins to move : when within shot, fix your eye on a space through which he must pass ; your finger, rifle, and eye, all ready. If you require it, take a rest against a tree, but be sure to cover the ^pot, and as he passes, aim for the shoulder, I i I ' I * f' 254 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. and fire. Should you miss the deer, don't stand gaping like a fool, but load again at once, as he may be simple enough to give you a second shot, and you may have the luck to lilt. Should he go off with his sinffie DOWN, he is wounded. Keep as close as you can, and if he do not fall from the effects of the first shot, you can make sure of him by a se ; your hunting knife miist ttien be employed in the necessary operations — and lastly in opening the muscle of the nose and sinews of the fore legs, so as to admit a gad of the blue beech to pass through, and con- nect them all together — then taking the rifle on your left shoulder, and the gad over your right, you may pull away to the next house — but should you object to this laborious work, and yet wish to secure the venison, till an opportunity offer of sending for it ; the head must be first got rid of, and the skin, to preserve it entire, be stripped from the fore^ and left attached to the AzW-quarters, when, the carcass being cut across, ydu must DEER SHOOTING. 255 , don't rain at ive you iie luck i single J as you fFects of him by then be ns — and Lose and lit a gad and con- the rifle rer your house — IS work, I, till an it ; the fhe skin, om the [uarters, ou must look out for a tree of small diameter that will bend with your weight upon climbing up — ras soon as it begins to spring, let go your feet, holding on with your hands only, and you will thus bring the top to the ground. The half deer fastened to this (as the tree springs back,) is put out of the reach of wolves and bears, as the former cannot, and the latter will not, climb a tree of such pliable dimensions. A stem calculated to raise but half a deer, could not fail to give way under an entire bear, besides, that to admit of being climbed, the tree should be of suffi- cient circumference to fill his embrace, and Bruin is too shrewd a fellow to take the risk of a failure, and a fall. The remaining half must be treated in a similar manner on a separate tree. , When you cross a river or ravine, never expose your person suddenly, and instead of walking along its edge, make a circuit through the wood, coming out with caution about three hundred yards below your point of entrance; M 5 1 i 1 .1 256 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I ; and observe to examine the brow of the oppo- site hill, as the deer, in winter^ always lye in a situation that commands a wide compass. If two sportsmen are in company-— one, should show himself at a distance to attract the at- tention of the deer, whilst the other, making a circuit, may come round unnoticed, and have a fair and decisive shotw This has hap- pened to me in many instances, p ..... -.* Should the snow be very deep, snow-shoes become necessary. [ have had occasion for them, however, but one winter out of six — at first they are very unpleasant, experience only will teach to use them^ without incon- vemnce. .7^ I.' .1 y W-\f^-X '-'t*^-- The second variety of the sport is termed deer stalking. i-i^ .sa r.>. O-V. uii'ti e'^K'we**' This takes place in summer — ^at whii^h time the deer are so much scattered over tl^e face of the country, it becomes very difficult to find them. '>i^,»T[r •v\^h.f_? i:':uin\it'^:\h}\-.' Tliis is best to be (effected at the salt licks, or springs, whither they report to drink. DEER SHOOTING. 257 ' The sportsman should walk quietly along, in the direction of one of these — stopping occasionally to listen, and reconnoitre. By observing this precaution, and strict silence, I have frequently known the deer to walk up within ten yards of me.^ i -t' ^ ' ^^ fv* In this mode of hunting, the arms should remain perfectly at rest ; the body erect and steady — all motion limited to the legs and feet^ — no sawing of the air- — no coughing — no brandishing the handkerchief — no. sound- ing of the nasal trumpet — no flourishing the rifle from one side to the other, and above all, no talking — else the deer will be off. They have eyes, and ears, and a quick sensation of alarm. They dart away at a distance, and you will never get a shot. 'A third method is teimeA night shooting, ' The proper season for this sport is during the months of July and August. The time from midnight to day-break. . - . - - In this case the salt spring is again the [ il 25d AUTHENTIC LETTERS. scene of action. Besides your rifle ready loaded, you bring thither, as appurtenances, a lantern with a concealed light, a bundle of pitch pine split into small stripes, and ?l flask of brandy ; on your arrival seat yourself to leeward of the spring, that the deer, which are quick scented, may not perceive you on their approach. Let not a gleam of light escape, and remain quiet, ' till you hear a deer leap into the little marsh, which always surrounds the spring, then, waiting a few moments, slowly produce the light, and taking the rifle in your right hand, and the faggot in the left, apply your light, and ignite it gra- dually, as a sudden flash would put the deer to flight. As the faggot of pine wood, formed like a Bavarian broom, spreads an increasing light, you begin to perceive the game, the eyes first; which, from the reflection of the blaze, appear like balls of fire; you then take deliberate aim, and if ym are not tkbuvtfflery you will bring down your deer. r-^H ■:.i>- DEER SHOOTING. 259 ready tices, a ndle of Vijlask rself to which; you on f light hear a L always r a few d taking J faggot it gra- le deer formed greasing 10) the of the len take V Still move not farther than to re-load. They generally come in pairs ; if not so nOw, drag out the fellow you have shot, resume your former situation, and you may probably bring home a second deer ; avoid the does ; the bucks are now very fat and in high season. '' The fourth method is that oi Driving the Deer. l-T-i iiili-i).'^ a vi'j^ i:i.;)i:itri'|':^, • , ;> I' ' > This is in my estimation, an unsportsman- like method, and is effected in the vicinity of lakes, by driving the deer with dogs, who pursue the animal through the woods, till he' is obliged to t^e refuge in the water. There^ • a canoe is in waiting ; and as the hunted deer comes bounding along, and boldly dashes into the lake, the aquatic hunters follow slowly, till he has made some way, and then press on, the chace. Thus pursued, the deer makes for the next headland, at a rate of swimming^ ' which seems to baffle his pursuers; but they ^ contrive to intercept his landing, and he turns - ^ain to the expanse of water. : , ci' ' -'i^^: > ( 260 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I i h»'o"' "Jij^ :< ' ; vjv . A-i- In December, 1830, having arrived at the hunting ground, early in the morningy we found the tracks of deer : so numerous on the snow, as to resemble those of a flock of sheep. ■•:, ,*,'■:'■ -..'-.:[ ■■•J i %-aiiU'! rx, in:.;. ^" t.^ Getting forward, in great heart, we. came to a ravine, where we spied at least twenty deer, gamboling about a spring. Each singled out his deer and fired. Without waiting to see whether they fell, we made off to a pass where I knew the herd would come out, and having reloaded, we met ^em precisely at ,i' ' ' 1 iU' ^11! Iti ; 262 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. Iffi |!; ' the expected place, bounding and clearing every obstruction. ^ '■^^•a* i'ti>i^^^ At-jtuttt-ni Our alarm was, that they would run over vs ; but they stopped short, and we pitched off two of them. Having bled, and collected together those that we had shot, we parted company, taking different directions in pur- suit of the scattered deer, and fixing on a place of rendezvous for the night, we met there at eight o'clock, and on comparing notes, we found that my brother had ten balls at setting out ; he had expended all, and missed but one shot. I had ten in the morning, but two on my return, and had missed two shots. Next morning we hauled all home, and never stopped till we ranged along the farmer's yard, thirteen fine deer, (two of them twice hit,) which were duly transferred to the frozen larder, at Erindale, for Winter provant Many weeks of similar amusement might be enumerated, since I became acquainted with the manner of getting in on the game. The DEER SHOOTINQ. *263 learing in over pitched ollected J parted in pur- ig on a we met ig notes, [ balls at d missed ing, but vo shots, id never farmer's m twice Le frozen t it might ted with le. The fl ^; ■».2-,« I remain, my dear Sir, young sportsman, however, must not expect the success which I have described, on his first arrival in the woods. * :: r.-.iik^,i va; tv»,iv h^« Faithfully your*8, , , "" "^ *"^"' '^ Thos. Wm. Magrath. P. S. My next shall treat of Bear Shooting. • , ■ r ( ; f ; ' j i i r I :»li> . "' 264 -• • » 'v'j<'l ) , t !-i » V" •» L. li -Ko" .« J » •• , '*> ' V .» . . . i A LETTER XVII. ll 1 1 ] t i 1.1- i 1 ! f 1 From Tlios. Wm, Magrath, Esq, Upper Canada j to the Rev. Thomas Badcltffi Dublin, Erindale, January, 1832. My dear Sir, I follow up, at your desire, the particulars of thejield or rather ^res^ sports — and having closed my last long letter, with the subject of deer hunting, I will commence this with an- other description of amusement. BEAR SHOOTING. , , The bear, though apparently an unwieldy animal, gets over the ground, faster than one could suppose. BEAR SHOOTING. t265 I have had a pet one for years, (reared from a cub) that follows me about, and has often kept up with my horse, when at a round canter. ...».>. jxjd^'k i . It This huge black bear, standing five feet high when upright, is of the ^air sex. The name to which she answers, " Mocaunse." * Her qualities, mildness and docility. • ' She runs about the house like a dog, and 'i» invited to the drawing-room, when any visitor arrives, who wishes to make her ac- quaintance-^when my avocations led me to the woods in distant parts of the province, Mocaunse was the companion of my journey, and the nightly guardian of my tent— not a sound or stir could be made, without a warniiig from her cautionary whine, or growl. It was amusing to observe with what gravity she took her seat each morning at the op- posite side of the. mat, upon which my break- '* Mo caunse is, in the Mississagua language, Young 266 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. fast was arranged, and the patience with which she waited for her share of the repast. In this cardinal virtue she failed but in one instance. One morning on the shore of Lake-Huron, my party having stopped to prepare breakfast; whilst my servant was getting ready mine, I plunged into the lake to indulge in a bracing swim, and on return- ing with ** encrease of appetite," found Miss Mocaunse, lying down perfectly at her ease, having devoured every morsel of my break- fast- -biscuit, bread, sugar, &c. all eaten up, and the tea equipage^ &c. &c., in the most glo- rious confusion ! ! Conceiving it necessary to impress strongly on her recollection, my dis- approbation of such unladylike conduct, and to guard against the recurrence of a similar disaster, I tied her to a post and bestowed on her hairy sides so sound a drubbing, that bene- fitting by this practical lecture upon patience, Macaunse has invariably waited breakfast for me ever since. ' - ; Bears are not as numerous as they were on BEAR SHOOTING. 267 e with repast, in one Lore of ped to nt was :he lake return- id Miss er ease, f break- aten up, lost glo- ssary to my dis- ct, and similar wed on ,t bene- tience, eakfast '^ere on our first coming to Canada — nor are they as troublesome, or as dangerous, as is supposed. They have been sometimes known to carry off a small pig ; but as to their attacking the human species, without being grievously pro- voked, (though it mai/ have occurred,) no in- stance of it has come within my knowledge or experience. They seem rather to avoid a con- flict with man, but if assailed and injured by him, there can be no doubt, that his danger would be in proportion to their strength and power, which are very great. - The manner of shooting bears is much the same, as in the case of deer, with the excep- tion of using a heavier ball ; and, that should you wound one badly without killing him, the sooner you get up a tree, too slight for him to climb, the better for your own security. The Winter skin of the bear generally sells for six or seven dollars, and is very useful in sleighs, and as bedding. , -^ .: ;; ; ;, . The meat of d^ young bear is not unlike pork, but infinitely better. I have frequently eaten 268 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I > it, and like it In New York it is considered a great delicacy, light, wholesome, and easily digested. ^ * ' The interior fat, entitled Bear's Grease, is valuable for the hair, more in demand, than in real existence, in the shops. » ; ^ ' I sent over some to ladies of my acquaint- ance, who perceiving that it was neither bleached nor scented, preferred, as I am told, the medicated hogslard of the perfumers. . One fellow that I shot, produced me as much pomatum as would cover the tonsured heads of an entire monastery, with a pile of hair as thick as a wig. I shall never, the longest day I live, forget the hour I killed him. It was one of my earliest essays in this branch of sporting. ... .. - . ^ A few weeks after we arrived at Toronto, my brother and I, in walking through the woods with our rifles, observed several pieces of bark falling to the ground from an old pine of great dimensions, and on looking up, perceived an enormous bear, endeavouring BEAR SHOOTING. 269 nsidered id easily rrease^ is nd, than acquaint- neither \ am told, mers. . ed me as ! tonsured I a pile of ever, the r I killed lessays in rr^ Toronto, mgh the ral pieces an old )king up, javouring to lodge himself in the hollow of the tree ; after some consideration, it was agreed that / should be the assailant, my brother reserv- ing his fire, lest mine should prove ineffectual. With this counter security against the frater- nal embrace of a savage animal, dangerous when attacked, and furious when wounded, I took the most deliberate aim, and fired ; at the moment came rolling to the ground '^ with hideous yell," the shaggy monster, writhing in agony. We looked from him to each other — our resolve was rapid, as mutual — we ran for our lives; whichever occasionally took the lead, fancied the footsteps of the other, those of the pursuing bear; to our ear, he seemed to close upon us. The rustling of the underwood en creasing our alarm, doubled our speed ; and it is difficult to say when we should have stopped, had we not found ourselves up to the knees in a deepening swamp. From hence we cast an anxious look behind, and •270 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I' f 1- not espying Bruin, plucked up our courage, and with my rifle re-loaded, and both cocked, began to retrace our steps, with due and exemplary caution ; about midway a black squirrel darted across, our imaginations were so deeply occupied with terror of the bear, our rifles were in a second at our shoulders, and I will not say, whether a little more would not have given us a second race. We proceeded, however, gallantly towards the place where my first shot had taken effect, and making our observations, at respectful dis- tance^ we remarked the bear at the foot of the same old pine ; when, my brother, say- ing that he looked suspicious^ fired with a certain aim ; he need not have been so parti- cular, as poor Bruin never winced, and had never moved from the moment that his terri- fying, but expiring, roar had put us to igno- minious flight. Many a weary tug it cost us, to bring him to our house : where the candid confession of HUNTING THE RACOON. 271 courage, 1 cocked, due and r a black ions were the bear, shoulders, ittle more •ace. ^ly towards iken effect, ^ectful dis- the foot of ther, say- ed with a n so parti- Id, and had ,t his terri- [us to igno- bring him mfession of our exploits excited no inconsiderable fun and merriment "' -,. .. 4 ■' - ., ; Hunting the Racoon, This is a kind of sport which does not admit of much variety. In the moonlight nights the Racoons collect in numbers in the cultivated field?, to regale upon the Indian corn, and are there to be attacked with caution, as, they retire at the slightest noise, which makes it parti- cularly necessary to keep all quiet, about the house and farm yard, for an hour or two after nightfall ; at which time, having a dog well trained for the purpose, you sally forth. The dog may be " half lurcher and half cur," or of any description that has a tolerable nose and an audible voice. The moment he comes upon the scent, he gives tongue, and the Racoons immediately fly to the adjoining trees. He runs the first, to the tree in which he has taken shelter, and remains barking at its root. You come up, N 1 i . I , 1 iif 272 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. and from the indication of the dog, as well as from the assistance of the moon, you have no difficulty in finding your game, or in kill- ing it. When you have shot the first, lay the dog on, again ; the same result may be expected ; and so in continuation, till, by the cessation of the barking, you are apprized that no other Racoons remain^ Occasionally, however, a more animated scene takes place, by day light, when one of those animals may happen to exhibit himself in a tree beside the house. This is the only hunting of wild animals, in which the fair sex partake ; but on this occasion the entire family turn out: men, women, children, domestics, dogs, &c. If there be a gun in question the sport is soon over; if not, the tree must be cut down. Pending the operation, all eyes are fixed m Cooney, sitting aloft with perfect composure, and looking down with ineffable contempt upon the gaping enemy ; and with some jus- HUNTING THE RACOON. 273 r, as well you have or in kill- ly the dog expected ; 3 cessation ;d that no a animated irhen one of ibit himself Id animals, ut on this out : men, ,, &c. he sport is cut down. e fixed m omposure, contempt some jus- tice ! — for how could he imagine, that, with the purpose of destroying a peaceable and harmless animal like himself, a domestic host should be arrayed against him. He gives no credit to it, 'till the creaking tree yielding to the axe, begins to give way, when running rapidly down the stem, and bolting up that of an adjoining tree, he makes a second effort at security. In the confusion upon his first descent, he frequently escapes ; all striking at him together, intercept each other's imple- ments of war. Cunning and nimble as a fox, he avoids them all ; but should he cling to the falling tree, he comes to the ground, bruised, and stunned, an easy victim to the beetle, potstick, fleshfork, or poker of the amazonian cook maid, who carries him off in triumph to the kitchen, encouraged, by her success, to hope for a few more to line her Sunday cloak with their comfortable skins. Believe me, dear Sir, Your's faithfully, T. W. Magrath. 274 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. P. S. I rather think I shall be the bearer of this letter myself as far as London ; if so I shall continue the subject from thence and may happen to see you before summer, i .' J the bearer idon ; if so thence and imer. . 275 ). f: .'if. ^^nr,f' ft -^ rynh'^ fi" - f r: ' m 276 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. Partridge Shooting. The partridge is here, a much finer and larger bird than with you, but does not aiFord half the sport. The coveys, when raised, generally perch in trees and sit there, as tamely as barn-door fowl. The best dog to use in this case is of the genuine King Charles breed — who, when he finds, will quest, and tree the birds, whose whole attention being fixed on him, as he barks at the bottom of the trees, you may come within half distance if you wish, and pick them off one by one, without disturbing the rest; unless, that by firing at the upper birds first their tumbling through the branches, will disconcert the others and make them take wing — even in this case, the lively cocker will follow and tree them again ; and unless in the vicinity of a settle- ment, where they are frequently disturbed, you may shoot three or four brace from the covey without any difl&culty. The dog must be trained, not to mind the fallen birds, but PARTRIDGE SHOOTING. 277 finer and not afford xlly perch barn-door case is of vho, when •ds, whose as he barks jme within em off one mless, that r tumbling the others this case, tree them a settle- disturbed, from the dog must irds, but to pursue those on wing, and thus, from tree to tree, you may by degrees, bag the entire covey, without compunction, as, in this country no one ever thinks of leaving any for breed. Your poaching sportsmen whose main object is a supply for the table, and whose epicurean tact appreciates the delicious flavor of the bird, think this delightful sport ; but I cannot agree with them — there is something inglorious in a sitting shot, that a true pro- fessor cannot brook. Quails, also, upon a much larger scale than your's, are becoming abundant, as the clear- ing advances. JV- M Vr ^r. ; ^ ,^ The shooting of Woodcock and Snipe* It appears extraordinary to a sportsman, coming from the old country, who has been accustomed to shoot woodcocks, in the depth of winter, to find on his arrival here, that the summer months are those, when that sport is enjoyed in high perfection — not at the moment reflecting, that they, being birds IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 ^^ 1^ 1.1 I '^ H^ IL25 i 1.4 m 1.6 r. Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 -9.^ 278 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. of passage, will be led by instinct to desert the northern latitudes, (before they become bound in impenetrable frost, ) for milder climes whose unfrozen springs are better suited to their manner of subsistencei- \ "Ji**^ .l^n^ia /Ireland is, in many places, remarkable ifbr excellent cock shooting, which I have mySelf experienced in the most favorable situations, not, however, to be compared with this country, where the numbers are truly won- tlerfuL ,^^. f **> .j^vj*. ^!>' n* Were I to mention what I have seen in this respect, or heard from others, it might bring my graver statements into disrepute. — As a specimen of the sport, I will merely give a fact or two of, not unusual, success, bearing, however, no proportion to the quan- tity of game. I have known Mr. Charles Heward, of York, to have shot, in one day, •thirty brace, at Chippewa, close to the Falls of Niagara — and I, myself, who am far from being a first rate shot, have frequently brought home from twelve to fourteen brace, my COCK SHOOTING. *279 bo desert become er climes suited to kable for ^e mydelf ituations, mth this ruly won- e seen in it might irepute. — |ll merely success, he quan- . Charles one day, the Falls far from |y brought ice, my brothers performing their parts with equal success — after dinner, now and then, an amica- ble disputation will arise as to the number of shots hit, and missed; which is generally decided by reference to the remaining con- tents of the powder horns, all having been equally filled in the morning. This frequently reminds me of a story I had heard beforo I left Ireland, of a large party of sportsmen who turned out one day from a most hospita- ble mansion, into the best cover that country afforded, and returned to dinner, after a sj)len- did day's shooting. ^ .*i#*. i^ -^^ .j.*. ««- - >» • A convivial evening natiurally embraced the subject of their morning prowess — and each exulting in the sport, and elate with his own particular success, enumerated the shots which he had hit and missed. A gentleman present, who was no sportsman, and, ot course entitled to express surprise, took out his pencil, to note, as it were, the wonders ot the day, and having exhibited the account, which was stated to him as correct, lie N 5 280 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. f lb I i I I -' rang the bell, and inquired the number of woodcocks brought home that day ; this being sent up, bore testimony to the accuracy of the sportsmen's recollection^ and upon the whole, their skill and fortune appeared to have been equally good, and, that but one shot had been missed out of every Jive — upon which the same gentleman remarked that there must be some mistake; as he, who had accompa- nied them to the cover, and had never left it till they did, not carrying a gun, had amused himself, with a knife and stick, tallying every shot that was fired during the day. This fatal tally being produced, and its notches com- pared with the number of woodcocks, the account assumed a different form, which evinced, that instead of one shot missed in Jive, there was but one shot hit in six. • - This admirable lecture upon vain glory, was productive, I am told, of great merriment. The gentleman who instituted the humorous scrutiny, having assured them that he meant not to make any invidious or individual appli- DUCK SHOOTING. 281 umber of his being accuracy upon the 3eared to t one shot pon which bere must accompa- ver left it id amused ing every This fatal ihes com- oeks, the , which missed in *. *■ ilory^ was lerriment. Ihumorous he meant ual appli- cation of his sporting arithmetic^ but to leave them to settle the balance among themselves. The woodcock here is smaller than those 1 was in the habit of seeing at home. When flushed they rise with a kind of whistle. In settlements near a river they are most nu- merous ; but never appear until some clear- ing has been made. I have never met a woodcock in the wild Bush, in all my ex- cursions, i — - ... - • The snipe are pretty much the same as with you, differing a little in plumage ; and being less wild, are more easily shot. There is a variety called the great snipe, not very common. The former kind is to be met with every where, and are in such numbers that a tolerable shot may bring home from twenty to thirty brace in a day. * , . DUCK SHOOTING. Of the varieties of the duck species I must postpone the description till a future oppor- tunity, as my present letter is drawing to a close. I 282 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. I The fVood Duck is so termed from lighting in the trees; and is, of course very easily shot. The warfare against this sort, must be considered a slaughter, rather than a sport. Should our friend John Wall bring out with him the Roaring Magy as he calls his great (luck gun, what lanes would he not cut in the countless flocks that seem to court dcetruction ? The common duck shooting, affords excel- lent sport. They particularly abound in a marsh near York, where the amusement is enjoyed in manner following, ijiv .ih»¥ uii/- You get into a canoe or skiff, with a person expert at the use of the paddle, and then proceed quietly along, avoiding the dry sedge and rushes as much as possible; the sound caused by their brushing against the sides ot the canoe, disturbs the ducks from their feed, and sets them on the watch ; in which case it is very difficult to get a shot. The true me- thod is to proceed with two canoes, that while one remains quiet, the other, making a wide circuit, may come round the flock, and make L» .' DUCK SHOOTING. 2a3 them fly over the party, in that which is station- ary ; this method can seldom fail of success. Great steadiness, however, must be ob- served on board, in default of which, many accidents take place. I have known a whole party lose their gims, by the awkwardness of one who, unaccustomed to " the skimmer of the seas,** lost his balance, and upset her ; treating himself and his companions to a hazardous swim, and wet jackets. *r '"*? • • '^i ■'^' '^ In lake shooting, a friend of mine, in let- ting down the hammer of his gun, discharged its contents through the bottom of the canoe at a considerable distance from shore, when the only mode of safety waa to hurry off his coat, place it over the orifice, and sit down upon it firmly; at every swerve of the canoe, a plash of water would break in, making his situation as uncomfortable as dangerous, till at length he reached tlie shore, immersed above the hips. ^ ? v. J H.i'T^TMo'i ,%&'^?«a For river shooting, the Nottawesaga, which runs into lake Huron, is the best duck M I I 284 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. II * 1 1 •' I w river I have ever met. Twenty pair a day, has been with me a common day's sport. They abound here from the remoteness of the situation, and from their being seldom disturbed. Here are to be found, in great numbers, the large black duck, the Canard Francois, '•"- -"" '♦-- — •♦ . -V *■ ,^ /' .) *.liv V. ■; -i ^. j.'r. .h' , ,-V. • ' . , .... \ i> 286 '-^^ ^ • ♦ »l ' ••• •■•♦) -jO i i ii'uov; 'j«l« j/i-r »«» * •' Ui « » >^i> 'J . ..4t tv ; . ■ 1 1 » > • •■* <. ( LETTER XIX. •I 1 . i I.' >r > ' i' • • 1. •' 1 '11 i " . • • i . 1 1 From Thomas W, Magrath, Esq, to the Bev. Thomas Radcliff, Dublin* 1 1 -' London, April, 1832. My dear Sir, I was obliged to close my last letter abruptly, or should have missed a favorable opportunity of sending it free. It terminates all I have at present to com- municate as to the sports of the wood ; and I shall now touch briefly upon those of the water. Whoever is fond of fishing, should bring with him his tackle duly prepared; a stiff trout TROUT FISHING. 287 rod, and all the usual requisites for angling. The flies made use of here, are precisely the same as those which are most approved with you. ^ 'j. 'yjr^ , -V ^>.J. ..,. ', , ; , The Canadian trout is neither squeamish or particular, and will not disdainfully reject ani/ that you may throw in his way, but on the contrary will rise briskly at some that j/our epicures of the stream would hold in utter contempt, u^ r' '>.^i\y jifirn i^o*,* '• . I have frequently caught from nine to ten dozen in a few hours, where an artificial fly had never appeared before. In fishing for trout, the bass frequently takes off the fly. The salmon fly is best suited to them— rwhich is here but seldom used, as the salmon are so well fed at the bottom of the rivers, they are, in but few instances, known to take the fly ; and the most usual method of killing them is, with the ^ear. If this take place ih the day time, a bright sun is preferred, and a tree having been felled, so as to fall across the river, the sportsman taking his stand on 288 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. this, rests quiet, and strikes the fish as they pass up — any violent movement will alarm the Salmon, and drive them suddenly back or make them shoot forward with great ra- pidity. By observing stillness and composure, I have known a good spearman to kill from forty to fifty Salmon in a few hours. The method, however, which is usually preferred is night-fishing^ which is eftected thus: Two sportsmen take their stations in a light skiff, one at the bow, with spear in hand, the other at the stern. The spear is three pronged, the handle twelve feet in length, of the best white ash ; the thickness, that which is well known^ but better handled^ in every fair in Ireland, under the title of a shilelagh. ' ^ In the Bow, also is secured a pole of stronger dimensions about four feet in length, to the top of which is appended by means of a socket, an Iron Jack, or grate, moveable on pivots, so as to balance, and right itself, when the boat moves roughly through the rapids, and to prevent the fire or light wood, SALMON TlfnillfG, 28fl which it is to contain, from being thrown out. This Jack or grate is circuUr, about one foot in depth, and fourteen inches in diameter. It is supplied from time to time with pitch pine, cut into lengths of eight inches, about inch and half in thickness — ^a large heap of these is piled in the centre of the skiiF, from which magazine, the light-Jack is replenished, so as to keep up a bright and continued flame, v/hich blazing upwards from two to three feet, exhibits clearly to your view the fish even to the depth of ten feet, or fairly across the river where it happens to run shallow. The spear-man takes his stand behind the Jack. If in deep water, he at the stern, plies the paddle, if in shallow, a light spear; by means of which he prevents the skiff from bolting too suddenly down the rapids, and often strikes a fish the bow-man may have missed. Thus appointed, you go as quietly as pos- sible down the stream, and on seeing a fish, you must not be in too great a hurry to strike, unless in a shallow and rapid part of the ! I' i ■ 290 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. ' '' river. If, in deep water, the blazing Jack throws down its light upon a Salmon, let your eye not swerve from the object, nor your spear deviate from its poise, till you strike ; and when you do, observe that ^^'^u throw yourself back to preserve your balance ; or an upset, and a cool dip will be the penalty of your incaution. . i i* .'l i • • ^f' ^i In aiming at the fish, strike nearer to you than he appears, and nearer still, in proportion to the depth of the water. ; j v../ u>ij . In this respect, the young sportsman will meet frequent disappointment, as nothing but experience will enable him to calculate the power of refraction, so as to reconcile the real, and apparent distance. ' ' ^ ' >i^- ? ' : You should always aim at the shoulder, and if you strike successfully, bring in the fish with as much expediti "■• It is still a matter of doubt with some, whether the salmon of Lake Ontario visit the ocean every year, or not. My opinion is, that according to the natural history of that fish, they must do so. It is only in the waters that communicate with the sea they are to be found. No salmon was ever seen in any river or lake above the Falls of Niagara; indeed it would be, as the Yankee expresses it, ^^ pretty considerable of a jump for him,'^ Mullet (a very bad fish,) are to be taken in vast numbers, I have speared them till I could hold the spear no longer. When they come up the river to spawn, they are taken in hundreds by the net. They are still worse at that season, but by some are thought worth being salted and packed in barrels for fu- ture consumption. The fish of the lakes are salmon, salmon rh M M 300 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. trout, herring, pickrel, cat fish, pike, white fish and maskanonge ; the two latter are of superior quality. These may be treated of in future; but though I have confined myself in this respect to the fish of the river, I think I have fur- nished you with a pretty good dish for one letter, which, in compassion to you and myself, I will now conclude. ■ ' ■1' ( J ^ • •. \ ■ /\ '■-•*■■ f.-*i '•1' I remain, my dear Sir, Your's, &c. &c. T. W. Magrath. A '-■ ' I i I •I ■''J ')!♦.♦ '■ r ^ i\ ' .', ' tt t . . . i « «' , .-_ ,^.i *>* 1 J ■ i I . r *• * «^y »' • V' ,< •' .301 ke, white ter are of 1 . 1. ture ; but lis respect have fiir- fA for one nd myself, ?;i». &c. VIagrath. :>'•>«• ♦ i' i -f^ P •:<* %f .t'i "i.' •j $r:. . ;. • V''^ *F LETTER XX. Extract of a letter from TTios, Radcliff, Esq. to his Agent in Dublin, ♦ : »»• I • ,4. At i*. / Adelaide, Caradoc, London District, Upper Canada, Feb. 1833. Dear Sir, In August last I wrote to you, from Toronto, directing the manner in which you should forward my remittances ; this is February, and as I have not heard in reply, I begin to entertain some apprehension that you never received my letter, although I sent it by New York, and post paid it so far. The U 302 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. object of this is to trouble you with some com- missions, as every thing of British manufac- ture, is here nearly double the price it is in the mother country. Considering all things, we are now very comfortably settled, and should have little to complain of, if the state of the roads would permit me to haul my luggage up from the lake ; but the mildness of the winter prevents this, as there has not yet been sufficient frost and snow to admit of sleighing. What renders this settlement peculiarly agreeable is the circumstance of its being mostly peopled by British; many of them, families of respectability, living within a few minutes walk of me. We are making rapid advances as to numbers and improvement; when the resources of the country are more fully developed, (judging from what has been done in so short a time,) there is every reason to look forward to the future with the happiest anticipations from the industry and enterprise of the emigrants. Last July, this township some com- 1 manufac- rice it is in now very ive little to oads would ip from the 3r prevents ficient frost peculiarly its being ■f of them, ithin a few iking rapid »rovement ; y are more it has been ery reason e happiest enterprise township MANNER OF REMITTANCE. 303 was a wilderness without habitation ; there are now upwards of two thousand inhabitants, and houses within every half mile along the road. A village has commenced already ; there are seven houses, two of them shops ; an hotel, and post-office are in progress — the parsonage was begun last week, and the church will be finished in Spring. A family which had been attached to some choir in England, has arrived here, with capital voices and good instruments, so that even your practised ear would acknowledge the merit of the perform- ance, in that branch of our service. It would astonish you to see the facility with which they knock down immense trees in this country. I have already thirty acres cleared. Whenever you have a sufficient sum of money, lodge it to my credit in the house of Messrs. Thos. Wilson and Co. of Warnford Court, Throgmorton-street, London, Agents for the bank of Upper Canada; as money lodged with them, on the bank account, will o5 I ' 304 AUTHENTIC LETTERS. be paid by the bank of York, with benefit of exchange. Bank stock is now upwards of twelve per cent* *#**** .<t :,i. .■li^r. ,' ■•„■* \fi\' • »,'•* '-( ■ 'iiW E* ">: .V» Ii benefit of twelve per " >Ai:..:;i 305 ^ V V.-. t* j • / ,,:uit ai^i.wii."^ * # * T. R. CONCLUDING REMARKS. it information ■J'-.^'* If^*; ' -■■* * ,^'- ^>-.i The Editor has taken a great liberty in publishing the foregoing correspondence with undisguised signatures. He feels that he need plead no other excuse to the writers, than his wish to furnish the information conveyed in their letters, in a manner the most satisfactory and authentic. * ,h„* "i?"""""""'*"^ ** correspondent ,„ state .hat those letters were written, without the most distant idea on their part, that they were to meet the public eve_a„ ~e diary h. been ,.ept. with that view. ^ anZ";: son of the same family, which has not yet arrived; but fL which, E,t«cts may hereafter be given. Mr! Magra.h Field Sports, on an extended scale. 'I . i ;J06 CONCLUDING REMARKS. Though they may not abound with the statistics of the new Country, they cannot be wholly devoid of matter interesting to all who turn their thoughts to Upper Canada, especially to those related to, or acquainted with the parties, whose judgment and discre- tion they can appreciate, and whose track tliey may safely follow in forming similar settlements. Information communicated by various cor- respondents, though desultory, may not it is hoped, be the less attractive ; care has been taken to exclude repetitions, and the order of the subject matter, has been preferred to the consecutive arrangement of dates. . -- .. It may be right here to refer to one or two points, upon which erroneous opinions seem to have been formed. The first is, as to the supposed high price of labour which has often alarmed, if not deterred the purchasing Emi- grants ; whilst the lower classes, who look to excessive wages, have been as frequently disappointed — a chief cause of this error is, DECEPTION AS TO WAGES. 307 that few make a true distinction between the nominal price of labour in the States, and in Canada; the Dollar in the former, being Eight shillings, in the latter but Jive, So that a calculation on the value of labour in either case, particularly in the first, must mis- lead ; as, even in Canada the five shilling Dollar is but about four shillings and six pence british* The hard-working labourer, however, is sure of a f^ir remuneration, but luork he must, or he will not be employed; on this extra work turns also the equalization of wages, be- tween the old and the new country. The daily wages at the government works, being 2s. 4d. with rations — (v. letter 9.) — must be a guide to the price of labour generally, though it may vary with change of circumstances. - >• At Toronto, near York, day wages are two shillings and six pence cash^ three shillings store, i. e. by an order for provisions — and these rates are very general. The rations, or diet, however good, are there very unexpensive, and when it is taken into consideration, that a 308 CONCLUDING REMARKS. greater number of hours are occupied in the days labour than with us, and a stoppage made for any portion of the time, during whicli that is suspended, either from idleness, or from necessity; and when the skill of the workman, which enables him to perform his task in a shorter time, is also considered, it will be found that the disparity between Canadian, and British value of labour is very small indeed ; and so with Servants' wages — suppose a general farm Servant at £25 per annum : this cannot be thought dear, when he is fed so cheaply, and clothes himself. This state- ment may tend to remove error, as to these points. Tt . The Editor is also anxious to advert to the Indian settlement mentioned in letter 13. The document referred to in page 207 is as follows : - ^ * t -■ . ; ;K' n A\\i' m:^v?T}7 INDIAN IMPROVEMENT. 311 five boys attend school — Mr. John Jones is Master, with a salary from the Methodist Missionary Society ; at first he had but £30 per annum : this year, it has been increased to £50. He receives no remuneration from his pupils or from any other quarter. About thirty six girls are in the female school, Miss Sillick, Mistress, without any fixed salary as yet; the children in both schools are in- structed in reading, writing, and arithmetic ; and in the Bible, and Church Catechism. The girls are taught sewing and knitting; they wish much to get spinning wheels ; the school Mistress told me that his Excellency the Governor, has ordered them a supply of Bibles and Testaments. The pulpit and desk are open to any Clergyman of the esta- blished Church who may choose to address them. Mr. Peter Jones, (who with his brother, are half-bred Indians, and speak the Indian language fluently,) Is good enough to interpret for me, as almost all the women, and about one fourth of the men, cannot speak 312 CONCLUDING REMARKS. English. I visit the village about twice a month, when my health permits. I ;. f State of Farm in 1831 :— In tillage . . 206 acres Oxen in common 7 yoke Oxen in private . 6 do. Cows . Horses • • • • • • 20 18 Ploughs • • • 4 Carts . • • 2 Sleighs r • • 8 bt/ the jLndians : all Trades, State of Farm in 1828— In tillage ... 35 acres Oxen in common 2 yoke Oxen private . . 7 do. Cows . . . . 12 Horses ... 6 Ploughs ... 4 Sleighs ... 4 Waggon ... 1 Houses lately built ■ '•> ' _ ' " ' - A Work-house for A Saw-mill, A Store for Merchants on the River. N. B. They manufacture Gloves, Mo- cassins, and Baskets — best Gloves of Deer skin, 7s. 6d. a pair. '^ < * Mr. Peter Jones, has published seven chapters of St. Mathew in the Chippewa tongue — Mr. John Jones, is translating the Gospel of St. John. The moral and religious improvement of the Indians may chiefly be LAUDABLE 2 AL. 313 'n 1831 : — • 206 acres ion 7 yoke e . 6 do. • 20 • 18 . 4 . 2 • 8 attributed to those ttvo men. It woiil(^ be highly injurious to the converts, in .ny opinion, were any attempts made by the clergy of the Episcopal Church, to shake their confidence in the Messrs. Jones, who have a decided advantage in being able to preach to them in their native language. 1831 — Established by the Society of Methodists, Resident Missionary, Rev. Geo. Ryerson, School Master, Mr. Edwy Ryerson, School Mistress, Miss Eliza Rolph. September, 1831. James Magrath." The Editor trusts, that the foregoing will be considered an interesting document, as to the facility and good effects of civilization, when undertaken with zeal, and continued with perseverance. He will not obtrude farther, than by extracting some information from excellent authorities in the form of a brief appendix. I] :n4 CONCLUDING REMARKS. which may be useful as to the cost of labour, culture and stock, and as tending to prove the general excellence of Upper Canada, and the particular advantages of the District in which his friends are settled. "^ V y;- -..■■.-. '-»^*- '. i\ X ' T • » , < -ST I ; • • •■ t' ■'} J I, ■;» . .'■*''• '«■ f 1? , -.'1. -'L 'ii « r , f : i-*-v ; ' ' M " t " ' 315 APPENDIX. LABOUR. Wages, per day, 2s. 6d. with diet. Working hours: from light to dark, in Winter; fron. SIX o'clock to dusk, in Summer. Cost of preparing one acre of uncleared land for wheat. » Clearing by task work, 13 dollars - - . ^3 .5 o Particular cost of each branch of the clearing process. Chopping, 6 dollars, . . cCl 10 Of Fencing, 3 ditto, . . 15 '^"""'"i. 4 ditto, -.100 ^3 5 .i.-jijt.*-'^ I t This varie., according to the kind of timber, from 5 to 7 dollars. 316 APPENDIX. 1' 't I Cost of producing f and delivering produce of one acre of wheat. Clearing ------ Seed, 1^ bushel, at 5s. - - - Harrowing before and after sowing Cradling Binding and Stooking - _ - Drawing home - _ _ _ Threshing and winnowing _ - - Provisions to labourers - _ - Delivery _ _ - - _ £3 5 7 5 6 3 3 15 10 2 G 3 Add the purchase of one acre £5 16 10 9 Total cost j^6 6 ^8 15 6 6 9 PROCEEDS. Thirty-five bushels wheat, at 5s. per Deduct cost as above - - - - 9 Net profit on first year ♦ £2 8 3 Communicated by T. W. Magrath, Esq. Township of Toronto. * The reeult of actual Experiment. APPENDIX. duce of ^ one acre £S 5 7 C 5 6 3 3 3 15 10 2 £5 16 9 10 317 £6 6 9 £S 15 6 6 9 ^2 8 3 I' Township of QUERIES ANSWERED BY T. W. MAGRATH, ESQ. Q Best season for chopping ? A. July and August—The stumps decay the sooner. Q. What tin^e occupied in clearing one acre, by a given number of hands, stating the number ? A. One man should chop an acre of even land in six days and w.h the assistance of a yoke of oxen and another ma *or one day, should burn and clear it in six more. Q. Season for wheat sowing ? A. November or April. Q. Quantum of seed ? ' A. From 1 to 1^ bushel. Q. Quantum of produce ? A. From 25 * to 35 bushels. Q. Are horses and oxen to be procured for hire, and at '' hat rate per day, including driver ? 7s l^'r'Jn"^ '"'"' '" ''• ^''^^y^ ^«--^^nd waggon, s. 6d. to 10s. according to the season of the year; Tueh dearer m Harvest than Winter. Q. Prices of stock? A. Work horses, each, from . £12 IQ to ^15 Trained Oxen, for the pair Untrained ditto, ditto, from ^5 to ] Cows (springers) each, from ^4 to Cows (dry) ditto ^3 to ^^^^P' - 5s. 10s. and Hogs, per cwt. according to size 12s. 6d. to Q. Manures in use? A. Farm-ifard Manure, for potatoes. G«mum wh,V.K '' apposed to be fo^ed by vitriolic springs !~„ I '? * This, in moderate soil— In th^ «• i. , I Bushels.-Vide p. 153. '^"•~^" ^^^ ''»<'* lands, from 25, to 50 10 7 5 4 12 15 6 :318 APPENDIX. I it Q. Quantum per acre ? A. If on light sandy soil, at the rate of three bushels by the acre. Q. Price per bushel ? A. It is sold in powder at 12s. 6d. per bushel. Q. The ground being cleared of stumps, what are the sea- sons, for sowing, culture, and rotation of the various crops ? A. In most respects the seasons are nearly the same as in England ; the culture ought to be so, and is improving ; the rotations are ad libitum, according to soil and market ; wheat is considered the money making crop j maize, the most valuable for the farm purposes. Q. The system to be pursued after the first year's crop ? A. He that wishes to improve his land for the permanent advantage of himself and children, or to preserve it in a profitable state for his own occupation or for sale, will not pursue the system of his cropping the same land year after year from the' time of clearing ; but will rather underta -.e to clear a new portion every year, sowing grasses in the fo;- mer one, which has borne one crop of wheat — not to be reverted to till the stumps are perfectly decayed. Timothy grass, is that in general use. The British and Irish varieties are much wanted. White clover is indigenous in Canada, therefore should be sown largely. Q. How often are work horses shod in the year ? A. About three times, with occasional removes. Q. Are oxen shod — and how often ? A. They are — one set of shoes is in general sufficient for the year. Smith's work is very expensive, and very inconvenient to get done, which is the cause of many working their horses without shoes. hree bushels by ishel. what are the sea- le various crops ? y the same as in improving; the d market; wheat naize, the most rst year's crop ? or the permanent preserve it in a for sale, will not le land year after I rather underta '.e rrasses in the fo;- leat — not to be layed. Timothy ,nd Irish varieties nous in Canada, e year ? smoves. ral sufficient for I inconvenient to ling their horses APPENDIX. 319 All the foregoing prices are in Hallifax currency which makes a difference of 15 per cent. CANADA, (upper.) (( Lies between the parallels of 41° 47' and 49^ of N. latitude, and extends westward, from 74^ 30' W. Longi- tude, of Greenwich. It is bounded on the S. by the United States, on the N. by the Hudson's Bay territory, and the Grand or Ottawa river ; on the E. by the province of Lower Canada ; and on the W. its limits are not easy to ascertain. They may perhaps, fairly be considered to be formed, by the head waters of the rivers and streams that fall into Lake Superior, at or about the height of land on the Grand Portage, in longitude 117o W. The vast section of country appertaining to the British dominions to the W. and N. W. of this point, is generally known by the denomination of the Western Country or the North West Indian Territories. It is divided into eleven districts, twenty six jounties, and six ridings, comprising together, 273 townships, besides various large tracts of reserved land, and Indian Territory. Bouchette, p. 63 and 65." From Catermole, on the advantages of Emigration to the . Canada' s f May f 1831, Page 2. — '* For the purpose of Agriculture the Upper Province is decidedly preferable — the climate being much milder." Page 7. — " A further reason for advising all who think of the Canadas, to go direct to the Upper Province is, that Lower Canada is too hot in Summer, and cold in winter. I V .S I 'A 320 APrENDIX. to suit the general habits and constitution of the English Emigrants." Page 9. — " The western part of Upper Canada is de- cidedly the finest portion of British America that I have seen, particularly along the side of Dundas-street, for 30 or 40 miles on both sides of the road — all this extensive tract of country will produce Wheat Crops, I think better in quality, and more abundant than the opposite shores of Ohio, and Michigan ; and is not behind Pensylvania in pro- ductiveness, although a much older state — the land i:i Canada lying rather higher from the lake." h '4 4 Extracts from Statistical sketches of Upper Canada, ' ' bi/ a Backwoodsman. Page 77. — " Having got through the small portion of second-rate land, we now come to the garden of Canada — the London and Western districts. This country occupies fully one-third of the whole province, and there is not on the continent of America so large a tract of unexception- able land. The soil seems to have been laid down by the water ; for it is based on limestone rock — then comes a stratum of clay — and generally, between that and the mould, there is a layer of gravel, of greater or less thinkness. The soil on the surface is of a loamy description — sometimes sandy and sometimes clayey, but in every case highly productive." page 78. — " The timber is such, as in this country in- dicates the best land j and it is necessary that you should, in the choice of land, be aware of what kind of timbered land is the best. A mixture of maple, bass wood (a kind of lime,) elm, and cherry, indicates the very best soils ; —(v. letter 9.) — an intermixture of beech is no objection ; >f the English Canada is dc- rica that I have street, for 30 or extensive tract think better in Dosite shores of isylvaniain pro- 2 — the land ia •per Canada, imall portion of len of Canada — country occupies nd there is not of unexception- id down by the — then comes a and the mould, hinkness. The ion — sometimes lery case highly this country in- Ithat you should, lind of timbered 3S wood (a kind lery best soils ; IS no objection ; APPENDIX. 321 and black walnut is found on first rate soils. But if beech be the only wood, or the prevalent one, you may be sure that the soil is light. Pine grows on Sandy soil, as often does Oak, and always chestnut. " See Rapson, Pannell, Heming. Pages 78 and 79. — " The growth and appearance of the timber, as well as the species will enable you to judge ol' the nature of the soil. In the best soils, the timber is large, tall, and with a broad-spread bushy top, the bark, clean, and without moss. If in addition to this you find weeds, par- ticularly a large species of nettle, taller than yourself, and that the trees rise out of the ground at once, like a broom- stick, without at all displaying those roots which Gray calls ' wild fantastic,' and which poets and painters admire, but Canadian farmers abominate — you will find you have got a rich deep inexhaustible soil — where, if you sow wheat the first year, unless you eat it down with your stock in spring, you will have a crop of straw, but, if you adopt the above-recommended precaution, you may count on a return of from thirty to forty bushels per acre." — (v. letter 9.) The great majority of the lands of this division are of this description, *' The markets of Canada for farm produce are, and must be, better than those of the United States ; for, Canadian corn is admitted into both British and West Indian ports, on much more advantageous terms than foreign grain, and the taxes on articles required for the consumpt of the Inhabitants, are not one-twelfth so great in Canada, as in the United States. Thus, all British goods pay at Quebec, only 2^ per cent, ad vahrenif whilst at any American port, they pay from 33J to 60 per cent. V 11 I I I >' 322 APPENDIX. Page 1 15. — Although the necessaries of life are cheap in America, and equally cheap in Canada, the luxuries of life are higher, by several hundred per cent, in the one country, than the other. Thus, wine in the United States is so highly taxed, that in a tavern at New York, you pay more for a bottle of Madeira than in one at London, viz. five dollars — and fifteen shillings for port.*' Comparative view of the Duties, payable on articles of European Manufacture, consumed in the United States, and in the British North American Colonies. — {Adjusted to the new Tariff of 1833.) ' »' BRITISH AMERICA. AdVa. Woollen Goods (per cent) 2i Cotton Goods 2* Silk Goods 22 Linen Goods 2* Leather Goods 2| Earthenware and China.... 2} Hardware 2i Iron and Steel Manufactures 2| Iron in bars or sheets, Ca-7 n. bles. Anchors, &c j ^ Salt free UNITED STATES. AdVa. 10 to 75 (per cent) 25 to 125 5 to 40 25 30 to 100 20 to 30 25 to 30 . . ^ , , 10 to 125 .. : ■ 100 to 200 C5d. per bushel, besides a State (. excise of G^. I was much impressed with a favorable opinion of the the great Huron tract, from i\ke fact that many steady Dutch settlers, in the possession of old productive farms near York, were, at the period of my visit, disposing of their property and removing to Goderich ; a change which the calculating Dutchman would not have rashly adopted without pretty reasonable prospects of bettering himself to a considerable amount. The township of Goderich . contains about 400 I I ifc are cheap he luxuries of it, in the one United States iTork, you pay ; London, viz. APPENDIX. 323 on articles of United Statesy s. — {Adjusted STATES. AdVa. cent) ,, * ' ''. besides a Scate )inion of the I steady Dutch IS near York, sir property te calculating lithout pretty [considerable is about 400 inhabitants already ; and several Dutch families from the neighbourhood of York, have sold, or are endeavouring to sell their cultivated and valuable farms, and have purchased lands from the company in the Huron tract. About 600O acres have been sold them in the neighbourhood of Gode- rich within the last six months. — Practical Notes by Adam Ferguson, Advocate. HURON. A large tract of country in the London district, bounded on the W. by Lake Huron, purchased of the crown by the Canada Company. If you have no particular motives to induce you to settle in one part of the province, more than another, I would recommend to you the Canada Company's Huron Tract, and for the following reasons : — 1st. The land, as I shall have occasion to show, is equal to any in the province, and superior to much the greater part of it. ^ ' "' 2d. The very great extent of land (nearly eleven hundred thousand acres) gives the settler an extensive power of selec- tion, which he does not possess in any other part of the province j and when a community, however numerous, comes out, they are enabled to settle together, without any other party interfering with them. * ddr It possesses numerous streams capable of driving any given quantity of machinery, whether for mills, manu- factories, or farming purposes, and it has water-conveyance to carry away produce. * Vide Preface. 324 APPENDIX. fi 4M 4. Being from 120 to 400 feet above the level of Lake Huron, it ii healthy, and the prevalent winds, the north- west, west, and south-west, blowing over the lake, which, from its depth, never freezes, temper the rigour of the winter frosts and summer heat ; and the snow, which has always hitherto fallen in sufficient quantity to afford good winter roads, prevents the frosts from getting into the ground, so. that the moment it melts the spring com- mences, and the cattle have pasture in the woods fully three weeks sooner than in the same parallel of latitude on the shores of Lake Ontario — a great advantage to the farmer under any, circumstances, but an invaluable privilege to a new settler, whose chief difficulty is to procure feeding for his stock during winter. The Company has made good roads through the tract ; and this regulation, by making every farm be opened towards the road, not only keeps them so, from letting in the sun and air upon them, but secures the residence of of eight families on every mile of the road, by whose statute labour it can be kept in the very best repair. • -i , ,r. It has been objected by some, that this tract of country is out of the world; but no place can be considered in that light, to which a steam boat can come ; and on this conti- nent, if you find a tract of good land, and open it for sale, the world vrill very soon come to yoiu Sixteen years ago the town of Rochester, (in the United States,) consisted of a tavern and a blacksmith's shop — it is now a town contain- ing upwards of 16,000 inhabitants, 4- ^ v^f}..<^v^^^'*' » The first time the Huron tract was ever trod by the foot of a white man, was in the summer of 1827 ; next summer a road was commenced, and that winter, and in the ensuing spring of 1829, a few individuals made a lodgment : now APPENDIX. '32b evel of Lake S the north- lake, which, igour of the snow, which ity to aflford getting into spring com- h fully three itude on the o the farmer privilege to a e feeding for ^h the tract ; i be opened )m letting in residence of vhose statute - 'i* f-"' of country ered in that this conti- it for sale, m years ago consisted of wn contain- by the foot ;xt summer he ensuing nent : now it contains upwards of 600* inhabitants, with taverns, shops, stores, grist and saw mills, and every kind of convenience that a new settler can require ; and if the tide of emigration continues to set in as strongly as it has done, in ten years from this date, it may be as thickly settled as any part of America — for Goderich has water powers quite equal to Rochester, and the surrounding country possesses much superior soil. — Backwoodsman' p. 23, ^c. Extract from the Montreal Gazette, Nov, dOth, 1832. The new township of Adelaide in the London District, containing 80,000 acres, which five months ago, was a com- plete desert, without house, or inhabitant, now possesses a population of 1,600, with leading roads, and numerous buildings, which, though rude, will afford a comfortable shelter to their inmates, until time permits better ones to be erected. In the districts of Gore, and Niagara, and every part of the country lying west of them, back to Goderich and Fort Erie, extensive purchases of land have been made by emigrants of property, and many new stores opened, among which, we are informed, is a wholesale one at Simcoe, by Mr. Fuller, on an extensive scale ; and there are still many emigrants in quest of land, and situations for busi- ness, who have not yet located themselves. It is evident, that the emigration of last season, has done more for the western parts of this province, than the ten preceding years : the emigrants being of a more wealthy class, in general, than any that preceded them ; and the number greater than in any former season. - - • ^ - < * - * In February, 1833, the Township of Adelaide alone, (an uninha. bited forest in July, 1832,) contained 2000 inhabitants— vide Letter 20. Editor. I I 1 i ^^i 1 ijf It- ' 1 1» 326 APPENDIX. But the Huron, a tract which extends over 1,100,0(K) acres in the London district, besides the strong recommen- dation which it receives from the i)roj)ertie8 it possesses in common with other tracts, holds ibrtii to the farmer of small capital, the additional inducement of cheap land ; and even in that remote quarter, settlers who make choice of situa- tions on the great lake of that name, are not cut off from the benefits of navigation, as it communicates with the At- lantic, through Lakes Erie and Ontario. — Eviuis' EmiyranVs Directory i />. 71. The whole tract is alluvial in its formation, and the sur- face is a deep and rich vegetable mould, sometimes inter- mixed with a rich sandy loam, highly fertile in its properties — extensive quarries of lime stone are to be found in various parts of this province ; freestone is occasionally found on the shores of the lakes."— -/Jem. p. 145. ECCLESIASTICAL DEPARTMENT. CLERGY OF THE ESTABLISHED CHURCH OF ENGLAND, 1832. The Honorable and Right Reverend Charles James Stewart, D. D. Lord Bishop of Quebec. The Venerable George O'Kill Stuart, L. L. D. Archdeacon of Kingston. The Honorable and Venerable John Straehan, D. D. Arch- deacon of York. Domestic ChaplairifScc. — Reverend Robert D. Cartwright, A. M. Visiting Missionary to the Diocese, — Rev. G. Archbold. APPENDIX. 3:>7 ;er 1,100,000 g recommcn- it possesses in rmer of small nd ; and even oice of situa- 1; cut off from with the At- a' EmujranVs and the sur- letimes inter- its properties nd in various illy found on EASTERN DISTRICT. i-.V NT. • RCH OF imes Stewart, Vrchdeacon ol D. D, Arch- wright, A. M. hbold. t Rev F Mver8« Matilda, ^c. | j^^^.' ^ Robertson, Asaisiant Minister, Williamsburg h and J Rev. J. G. Weagant. Osnabruckj \ Rev. F. Mack, Assistant Minister. Cornwall, ^c. | ~ J. L. Alexander, Curate. BATHURST DISTRICT. Perth, ^c— Rev. M. Harris, A. M. . Beckwith, ^c. — Rev. R, Harte, A. B. Richmond, ^c. — Rev. R. Short. - March, ^c. — (Vacant.) ., , , . ,^ '♦! f .\i V,. -. ii. • JOHNSTOWN DISTRICT. Rev. J, Wenham, Chaplain to the Lord Bishop, JBrockville, ^ (absent.) Rev. ■■ Gunning, (in temporary charge.) Prescot, 8fc, — Rev. R. Blakey. m ■. » Yonge, 8fc» — Rev. R, Elms. Oxford and Marlborough, §•<;.— Rev. H, Patton. MIDLAND DISTRICT. j^. . 5 Rev. G. O. Stuart, L. L. D. Aingston, j j^^^ ,j,^ Handcock, A. M. Assistant Minister. Bath, Emestown, §*c, — Rev, J. Stoughton. Adolphustown, ^c — Rev. J. Deacon. HaUoweU, ^c. — Rev. William Macaulay. ^ / . ^ ,j..C'^ Belleville, ^c Rev. T. Campbell. - dL^' ' ^ '^^'^'^ ' Carrying Place, (Township of Murray) §-c. — Rev. J. Grier. NEWCASTLE DISTRICT* '.^i\.V .• .<• - Cobourg, Sfc- — Rev. A. N. Bethune. Port Hope, ^c— Rev. G, Coglan, A. B, } * I * .3-28 APPENDIX. Ciivan, ^c, — Rev. J. Tliomaon. Pt'h-rhorovfjh, ^c, — Rev, S. Armour, HOME DISTRICT- York, ^c — Hon, and Rev. J, Strnehan, D. D, Archdeacon of York. Toronto, ^c, — Rev. J. Magrath. Murhham and Vauyhamy — Rev. P. Mayerhoffer. GORE DISTRICT. Ancuster, Barton, ( ^^^' •'• Miller, M, A, and ^ Hamilton, and Dundas, \ Rev. R. Lecming. Missionnries to the Six-Nation ( Rev, R. Lugger, and Indians on the Grand River, i Rev, A. Nelles. NIAGARA DISTRICT. ... I. Niagara, — Rev, T, Creen, * Chippewa, Stamford, and Queenstown, — Rev, W, Leeming, Grimsby, ^c, — Rev. R. Grout. St' Catherines, ^c. — Rev. J. Clarke, A. M. Waterloo, Fort Erie, ^c. — Rev. J. Anderson. LONDON DISTRICT. St. Thomas, ^c. — Rev. M, Burnham, A. B. Woodhouse, 8fc. — Rev. F. Evans. London, ^c. — Rev. E. J, Boswell. .; i WESTERN DISTRICT. Amherstburgh, §*c. — Rev, R. Rolph. _, ,,. , . Sandwich, — Rev. William Johnston, Chatham, §*c,^Rev. T. Morley. ^ . 7.. APPENDIX, '.i'29 Archdeacon of and sr, and Leeming, CHAPLAINS TO THE KOIKES, A7«v.v/o/i,— Rev, R. W. Tunney. Ko///,_Rov. J. Hudson, M. A. COHPOUATION FOR SUPERINTENDINO AND MaNVGING THE CLERGY RESERVES. The Lord Bi«hop. The Established Clergy. The Inspector General, The Surveyor General, ^f't;t^//v/,_The Honorable George H. Markland. Af,en(s,^The resident Clergy in the several districts, Meetinys of the Board,^The first Tuesday in the month, uf February, May, August, and November, JV,B,-,A General Meeting is held in February. ^ .:. CLERGY IN COMMUNION WITH THE ESTABUSHED CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. yVilliamstown,^The Rev. J. M'Kenzie. Zochiel,— The Rev, J, M'Laurin. -- Cornivally^The Rev. Mr. Urquhart, • ' A/«;'^m/oM;«,-_The Rev, A. M'Connell, ■ • PerM,— The Rev. Thomas Wilson, Bf/town,^The Rev. Mr, Crookshank. JKw^rs^oMJw,— -The Rev. X Machar. ^,A^4^^w\^; ^wca5/«-,— The Rev. Mr. Sheed, i— . : Ntagara,^The Rev, H. M*Gill, — V ^ Zow(/on,— The Rev. A. Ross. Amhcrtsburffh,~^The Rev, Mr. Gale. 330 APPENDIX, * r i f - ROMAN CATHOLIC CLERGY IN UPPER CANADA. , » «■' Glengarryt— Right Reverend Alexander M*I)onell, Bishop of Kingston. Very Rev. W. P, McDonald, I ■... ^ , Very Rev. W. J, O'Grady, \ ^*^«''* ^^^«^«'' Rev. John M'Donell, > ^ , . Rev. James Campion, 3 . ' Rev, Dempsey, Secretary^ St. Andrews and Cornwall, — Rev. William Fraser, Rector. Prescot and BrockviUe, — Rev, Timothy O'^Meara, By town, — Rev, Angus McDonald, Perth, — Rev. John M'Donell, ^. , C Very Rev. W, P, McDonald, ''' ' Kingston, | ^J^ ^^ ^alor, H ■'- HaUowell and Marmora, — Rev, Michael Brennan, Peterborottgh, — Rev, James Crowley, For*,— Very Rev. W. J. O'Grady, Toronto and Adjala, — Rev, Edward Gordon, Niagara, Guelph and Thmdds, — Rev, John Cullen, Amherstburgh, 8fc. — Rev, J. Fluett, Sandwich and Rochester, -^Re\. Joseph Crevier, * The late appointments by the Government to the Rec- tories of the new Townships, have not yet been communi- cated officially. — Editor, ; ,, , •^',>:bw ./s « UPPER CANADA. er M*DonelI, Bishop J Vicars General. > Chaplains* cretary., ' ^ liam Fraser, Rector. T 0*Meara, ?'-i -? 7 -J . -U •<: 1 Brennan, • ■f •> ir rdon, ohn CuUen, ... • • • Crevier, rnment to the Rec- yet been communi- APPENDIX. 33] As the various expenditures for different purposes, (though minutely stated,) are, from the nature of the publication scattered through the correspondence— some of the chief shall be recapitulated here, in a more condensed form— Editoa. £ s. d. Total cost from Liverpool to a settlement in Upper Canada, with comfortable accommo- dation for nine persons, being at the rate of .£15 per each individual. - . - 135 Total cost including the above, and also, pur- chase of 200 acres, clearing 10. Building Frame-house and Offices — some Furniture, Seed, Implements, Tools and some stock. - 421 17 Total Expenditure of settling in the Bush 178 Total Expenditure of settling on a Farm with 10 acres cleared and House &c. built. - 207 The Editor takes the liberty of inserting the following tables from that inimitable compendium by Martin Doyle, upon Emigration— 1832. Upon comparing them with the information he has himself obtained, and with other late publications— they appear to him to be correctly stated. ■ ' I i '. iin*'^" I -> 332 APPENDIX. How to arrive at Upper Canada, by New York, and at what cost, - Steerage. Cabin. From Bristol to New York, - ^85 10 £25 — Liverpool ditto, -- 500 3000 — Dublin, ditto, - - 4 10 — Cork, ditto, - - 4 10 20 From Limerick, to New York- ^4 10 — Sligo, ditto, - - — Londonderry, ditto, - - ,»,.••... — - Belfast, ditto, — Greenock, dittto, - - 5 10 — New York to Albany, - - 6 9 — Albany to Buffalo Point, by :.? , Canal Boat, - . . 2 — Buffalo Point to any part of the Canadian side, provisions included 18 l-Jr. 25 '. ■iv-.*C f* /^-.- t i :. The Rates by Quebec. .■1 ■! l,'f-.'5» ktin Steerage. Cabin. From Bristol to Quebec. — Liverpool, to ditto, - — . Dublin, to ditto, _ Cork, to ditto, ^4 10 ^15 4 15 1 10 2 10 —. New Ross and Waterford, to do. 2 — Limerick, to ditto. - - £2 to 2 10 — Sligo, to ditto, - - 2 10 Londonderry, to ditto, - 1 10 — Belfast, to ditto - 1 10 — Greenock, to ditto, - - 3 10 12 12 10 10 12 12 12 10 10 15 ^ -^^ -%^» ftnd at 'e^-age. Cabin. 10 ^25 30 10 - 10 20 10 25 6 9 18 '.■V, j*f «l/i,- J i 1 :?&cm ^i^iyiLh rage. ( Cabin. ^15 Id 12 12 10 10 12 12 12 10 10 ) 15 APPENDIX. 333 Provisions for each adult from any of the English ports may be estimated for the poorest person, at £4. From Scotch ports, ^3 10s. From Irish ports, £1 10s. From Quebec to York. To Montreal, Steam-boat — Prescot— Durham do. — York £0 7 6 6 3 , 10 WAGES— BOARD NOT FOUND. Stone Masons earn from 6s. 3d. to 7s. 6d. a day. Bricklayers, 7s. 6d. to 8s. 9d. a day, or 12s. 6d. to 15$ per thousand bricks laid. ..'-i'l < .-^ / ( >' Brickmakers, 5s. to 7s. 6d. per day. Plaisterers, 7s. 6d. a day, or 9d. to lOd. per square yard of work. Carpenters and Joiners, 6s. 3d. a day. Cabinet-makers, 7s. 6d. a day. Sawyers, 7s. 6d. a day, or 7s. 6d. per 100 feet of pine. And 8s. 9d. ,*^ oak. Painters and Glaziers, 5s. a day. Coopers, 6s. 3d, to 7s« 6d. Shipwrights, 7s, 6d, to 10s. Blacksmiths 5s, WheelAvrights, 5s. Waggon-makers, 5s. Saddlers, 5s. Curriers 5s, Tailor, £1 for making a coat, 5s, trowsers, and 58, waistcoat. I ■ I i 334 APPENDIX. Shoemakers, 22s, 6d, for making apair of top-boots— Ids, 9d, for a pair of Hessian Boots— >and 12s, 6d, for Wellington boots, ■ . Labourers and Farm Servants, ds. 9d, a day. In harvest time 6s. 3d, Reaping an acre of Wheat, 12s. Qdt Cradling ,,^ „^ 6s, 3d. Mowing ««» Hay, 5s, Ploughing an acre of Land, «««^ 6s. 3d, Harrowing ,««, «^ 2s. 6d." The foregoing rates furnish an Epitome of the necessary cost attendant upon Emigration, both for the affluent, and poorer settler.— Editor. ■| ft :l 'i ir of top-boots— 138, 9d, 12s. 6d. for Wellington d, a day, d. I me of the necessary for the affluent, and