EXCHANGE 
 

 mbe prose Writers 
 
 
 
 lot Canaba 
 
 Hi 
 
 S. E. DAWSON 
 
THE 
 
 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA 
 
 AN ADDRESS 
 
 DELIVEEED BEFORE THE TEACHERS OF THE 
 CITY AND DISTRICT OF MONTREAL 
 
 
 BY S. E. DAWSON, LiT.D. (LAVAL) F.R.S.C. 
 
 AUTHOR OF A STUDY OF "THE PRINCESS." THE CABOT VOYAGES, &c., &c. 
 
 MONTREAL 
 E. M. RENOUF, ST. CATHERINE STREET 
 
 1901 
 
WITNESS PRINTING HOUSE 
 MONTREAL 
 
PREFATORY JSTOTE. 
 
 The following address was prepared for the American Library Association 
 and delivered on June 11, 1900, at Montreal, where the meeting for that year 
 was held. It was afterwards read, with a few additions, on December 7, 
 1900, in a winter course of lectures to the teachers of the City and District of 
 Montreal. 
 
 The fact that it was written originally for the librarians of America will 
 account for the line of thought running through the address ; because, outside 
 of a few great institutions, few Canadian books are found in the libraries of the 
 United States. It was intended to be an indication of the directions in which 
 they were to look in order to follow up a neglected department of literature. 
 In the time allotted it could not possibly be more than that. 
 
 OTTAWA, January, 1901. 
 
 S512I1 
 
THE PKOSE WEITEKS OF CANADA. 
 
 It is not possible in the compass of one lecture to give an 
 adequate account of the prose writers of Canada. In the 
 first place there is the difficulty of dealing with a bi-lingual 
 literature, and then there is the difficulty of separating that 
 which deserves mention from the current mass of printed 
 communication. When one is called upon in this age of 
 newspapers and magazines to decide as to what is and what 
 is not prose literature the difficulty is enhanced by the fact 
 that some of our best prose writers have never published a 
 single detached volume. 
 
 In a general review such as this, it will be profitable to 
 inquire into the circumstances under which Canadian litera- 
 ture originated and by which it was directed into its actual 
 channels, when we will at once perceive that, with reference 
 to the history of the other nations of America, Canada is 
 both young and old. Jamestown, the first English settlement 
 on this continent, was founded in 1607. It has been desolate 
 for two hundred years, but Quebec founded in 1608, only 
 one year later is still flourishing. Besides being brave 
 soldiers and skilful seamen, both Samuel de Champlain 
 and Captain John Smith were authors and led the way in 
 English and French prose writing in America ; but there 
 was a break in the. continuity of development in the North, 
 while, in the South, the colony of Massachusetts became the 
 
4 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 centre of an intellectual life which, though it flowed in a 
 narrow channel, was intense and uninterrupted. 
 
 Canadian literature and Canadian history open with the 
 works of Samuel de Champlain. Champlain was an author 
 hi the fullest sense of the word ; for he even illustrated his 
 own works and drew excellent maps which he published with 
 them. His works include not only his voyages in Acadia 
 and Canada, but his previous voyage to the West Indies and 
 his description of Mexico. He wrote also short treatises on 
 navigation and map-making which are still useful to explain 
 early cartography. The edition of his works published at 
 Quebec in 1870, under the auspices of Laval University, is 
 a monument of the scholarship of the Abbe Laverdiere, its 
 editor, and of the generosity of its publisher. A librarian 
 need no longer spend money upon original editions, for this 
 is the most complete of all, and it is besides, the most credit- 
 able specimen of the printer's art ever published in Canada. 
 
 From the time of Champlain down to the conquest in 1759 
 learned and cultivated men, ecclesiastics for the most part, 
 wrote in and about Canada ; but their books were published 
 in Europe. Marc Lescarbot, a companion of Champlain in 
 Acadia, wrote, in French, a history of New France and 
 enticed " Les Muses de la Nouvelle France " to sing beside 
 the rushing tides of the Bay of Fundy. Then came the long 
 series of Jesuit Relations, the books of Father Le Clercq, the 
 Latin history of Du Creux, the learned work of Father 
 Lafiteau, the letters of Marie Guyart, the Huron Dictionary 
 and the History of Father Sagard, the Travels of Henne- 
 pin, the general treatise of Bacqueville de La Potherie, and 
 the "works of Father Charlevoix, still the great resource of 
 writers on Canadian subjects. There were many others. 
 There was De Tonti never since Jonathan was there friend- 
 ship so devoted as his was to La Salle. There was Denys 
 the capable and enterprising governor of Cape Breton ; and 
 Boucher the plain colonist from the frontier post of Three 
 Rivers (then beset with savage Iroquois) who stood up before 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 the Great King and pleaded the cause of the despairing 
 colony and then, lest we become too serious, we have that 
 frivolous young officer, the Baron de Lahontan, who paid off 
 the pious priests of Montreal for tearing leaves out of his 
 naughty pagan books by telling slanderous stories of all the 
 good people of Canada. 
 
 But this literature, while considerable in extent, was not 
 indigenous to the soil ; although in quality it was, perhaps, 
 superior to that of the English colonies. There were educa- 
 tional institutions and teaching orders and cultivated people ; 
 but education did not reach the mass. A printing press was 
 set up at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the year 1639, but 
 one hundred and twenty years later, when Canada passed 
 under British rule, there was not one printing press in the 
 whole of New France. Even the card money was hand- 
 written and the Ordonnances a sort of government deben- 
 tures passing current as money were printed in France. 
 There was in New France a polite and cultivated society ; 
 but the literature which existed was a reflex of the culture of 
 Old France of the France of the Bourbon Kings. This 
 jealousy of the press in Canada is very remarkable, because 
 there was at least one printing press in Mexico in 1539, and 
 in Peru in 1586. 
 
 Upon a people thus socially organized the English conquest 
 fell with great force, for, at the peace in 1763, when New 
 France was definitively ceded, a large number of the educated 
 laymen emigrated to France and left the people without their 
 natural leaders. 
 
 I am aware that this has been recently disputed ; but I am 
 loath to believe that Bibaud, Garneau, and above all the 
 conscientious and judicious Abbe Ferland can be in error. 
 The truth lies probably between the two extremes, and it 
 will be safer to say that those who had any concern with the 
 French government or army, or who had any claims upon or 
 connection with the French Court emigrated. Now when we 
 consider that the government was despotic and that there was 
 
O PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 no semblance of free institutions to afford an outlet for inde- 
 pendent energy or ambition, we will recognise the effect of 
 such an emigration. It is to the honour of the clergy that 
 they did not abandon their charge. Bowing to circumstances 
 beyond their control, they severed their connection with their 
 Motherland ; and, if French literature in Canada now 
 breathes with a life all its own, it is due to the Church which 
 sustained it in its time of sore discouragement. Literature 
 could not flourish under such conditions ; moreover, French 
 and English Canadians both had yet to undergo many trials 
 and many political and military experiences. These they 
 shared in common ; for in those days intermarriages were 
 frequent and the two races understood each other better than 
 they do now. Was it because the age of newspapers had not 
 come ? 
 
 The English who first came to Canada did not come in 
 pursuit of literature ; and, besides, the air was charged with 
 electricity ; for the treaty of peace had scarcely been ratified 
 when the stamp act was passed. In the ensuing struggle, 
 after some hesitation, the new subjects of England sided with 
 her ; for, in the much maligned Quebec Act, she had dealt 
 justly, and even kindly, with them and they rallied to her 
 support. The war swept to the walls of Quebec, and yet the 
 Commissioners of the Continental Congress could not sweep 
 the province into the continental union. Even the astute 
 Franklin, in whose hands Oswald and Hartley and Lord 
 Shelburne were as wax and who was able to outwit even a 
 statesman like Vergennes, was foiled at Montreal by the 
 polite but inflexible resolution of the French Canadian clergy 
 and gentry. 
 
 The tide of invasion receded and peace came at last but 
 not repose ; for with peace came the sorrowful procession 
 of proscribed refugees who laid the foundations of English 
 Canada. United Empire Loyalists they were called, and 
 United Empire Loyalists are their descendants to the present 
 day. Well is it for us they were educated men ; for the 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 7 
 
 institutions their fathers had helped to found had to be left 
 behind ; and they set their faces to the unbroken wilderness 
 where the forest came down to the water's edge where the 
 only roads were Indian trails, or paths made by wild animals 
 through the thickets. The time for literature had not come ; 
 for there were farms to be cleared and roads and bridges and 
 churches and school-houses to be built. All these lay behind 
 them in the homes from which they had been driven. 
 Clearly then, if we want original Canadian works for our 
 libraries, we must pass over these years. 
 
 But not yet was this people to find repose, for our grand- 
 parents had scant time to organize themselves into civil 
 communities when war broke out again and once more they 
 took up arms for the principles they held dear. The struggle 
 was exhausting, for they had to fight almost alone. The 
 Mother-country could give very little assistance, because she 
 was engaged in a life and death conflict with a world in arms. 
 In that " splendid isolation," which has more than once been 
 the destiny of England, the little, half -French, half -English, 
 dependency stood firm ; but her frontiers were again swept 
 by invasion. The destruction of war and subsequent 
 recovery from its effects postponed again the era of litera- 
 ture ; for our land was all border land and felt the scourge 
 of war in its whole extent. At last came peace and the 
 Canadian people could settle down to the normal develop- 
 ment of their own institutions but long, long years had been 
 lost and it was not until 1825 or 1830 that any interest in the 
 pursuit of literature began to be felt. 
 
 And now that I have endeavoured to make plain the 
 circumstances which retarded the development of Canadian 
 literature, I will pass on to a short and necessarily imperfect 
 survey of the books of which it is composed, and yeu will find, 
 as might have been supposed, that our prose literature has 
 naturally followed up those directions which had special 
 reference to practical life. 
 
 No one, I think, but Eich, had been devoting himself to 
 
8 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 the bibliography of American books when Faribault pub- 
 lished in 1837, at Quebec, in French, his " Catalogue of 
 works on the history of America with special reference to 
 those relating to Canada, Acadia and Louisiana." He had 
 served in the war ; but when the " Literary and Historical 
 Society " was founded he became one of its most active 
 members. He was president and then perpetual secretary, 
 and in his time were published those reprints of scarce works 
 which are now so rare. He had been chief adviser in collect- 
 ing the Americana in the parliamentary library which was 
 burned in 1849, and he was then sent to Europe to make 
 purchases to replace the loss. Faribault's catalogue contains 
 valuable notes, both original and extracted. It is now very 
 scarce a copy in the Menzies sale brought $8.00. Morgan's 
 " Bibliotheca Canadensis " is the next in order. It is a 
 work of great industry and covers the whole period from the 
 conquest down to the time of its appearance in 1867. The 
 same writer's " Canadian Men and Women of the Time," 
 published in 1898, practically continues the first work ; for, 
 although it contains notices of a vast number of people who 
 are not in the remotest way connected with letters, yet all the 
 litterateurs are there all I said somewhat inadvertently, for 
 there are a few important names omitted. 
 
 In 1886 the late Dr. Kingsford published a book called 
 " Canadian Archaeology," dealing with early printed Cana- 
 dian books, and he supplemented it, in 1892, by another 
 the " Early Bibliography of Ontario " for the first had 
 been written too hurriedly to be accurate. Sir John Bourinot 
 also has done excellent work in this field in his " Intellectual 
 Development of the Canadian people," Toronto, 1881, and 
 in a monograph for the Royal Society of Canada, (e Canada's 
 Intellectual Strength and Weakness," 1893. A work of 
 great importance on Canadian Bibliography is by Phileas 
 Gagnon " Essai de Bibliographie Canadienne " a hand- 
 some octavo of 722 pages published by the author at Quebec 
 in 1895. It contains valuable notes and facsimile reprints 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 9 
 
 of rare title pages. Besides these there is an exhaustive anno- 
 tated Bibliography, by Macfarlane, of books printed in 
 New Brunswick, St. John, 1895 ; Lareau's "Histoire de la 
 Litterature Canadienne," Montreal, 1874, and Haight's 
 " Catalogue of Canadian Books/ 7 Toronto, 1896. I can 
 mention only these few there are besides innumerable 
 monographs in French and English, separate and in maga- 
 zines, for the subject is a favourite one with Canadians. The 
 catalogues of the parliamentary library at Ottawa and of the 
 public library at Toronto are also very useful to collectors 
 and students. 
 
 The English kings entertained no jealousy of the printing 
 press. William Caxton had a good position at the court of 
 Margaret Plantagenet, Duchess of Burgundy, and her 
 brother, King Edward IV., received him into high favour. 
 In 1503 two of his apprentices were made King's Printers, 
 and since that time there has always existed by patent a royal 
 printer (Kegius Impressor) through whom alone the orders 
 and proclamations of the government were issued. 
 
 The office of King's printer became thereafter an import- 
 ant factor in English administration and it was introduced 
 into all the colonies. No sooner, therefore, was Canada 
 definitely ceded in 1763 than a printing office became a 
 government necessity at Quebec, and in 1767, Brown and 
 Gilmore published, by authority, a folio volume of Ordin- 
 ances. William Brown continued to print for the Crown ; 
 but the first imprint which appears to indicate the existence 
 of a formal Royal patent direct from the Crown, is that of 
 William Yondenvelden in 1797. John Bennett was King's 
 printer in Upper Canada in 1801. Christopher Sower was 
 King's printer in New Brunswick in 1785, and John Bushell 
 was King's printer in Nova Scotia as early as 1752. In 1756 
 we find his name affixed to a proclamation offering 25 for 
 every Micmac scalp. Settlers on the outskirts of Halifax 
 had been losing scalps ; for the Micmacs made their collec- 
 tion a labour of love and the Abbe le Loutre, who controlled 
 
10 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 the Micmacs, could buy eighteen British scalps for only 1,800 
 livres. Naturally they had to bid higher at Halifax. All 
 this did not invite to literary pursuits ; but the volumes of 
 statutes and official documents were well printed and, if 
 literature did not nourish, it was not for want of a printing 
 office. These volumes were books but not literature and 
 cannot be noticed here. 
 
 It will be of interest to say a few words about the first 
 books the Canadian incunabula so precious to bibliophiles. 
 The first book printed at Quebec was " Le Catechisme du 
 diocese de Sens,," Brown and Gilmore, 1764 one year after 
 the cession. Only one copy is now known. Then followed 
 in 1767, an Abridgement of Christian Doctrine, in Moiit- 
 agnais, by Father Labrosse. Then Cugnet's " Traite de la loi 
 des Fiefs " and other branches of the old French law (for 
 it was in four parts) William Brown, 1775. Cugnet was a 
 very able civil lawyer. He became clerk to the Council and 
 assisted the English Government by advising them upon the 
 old laws of Canada. 
 
 The first book printed at Montreal was " Le Reglement de 
 la Confrerie de 1'adoration perpetuelle du Saint Sacrement " 
 Mesplet and Berger, 1776. Then we have " Le Juge a 
 Paix " a translation of a portion of Burn's " Justice of the 
 Peace/' by J. F. Perrault, a volume of 560 pages Svo, 
 printed by Mesplets in 1789. Religion and law are the two 
 organizing factors of society, and this practical people were 
 chiefly concerned with conduct in this world, not forgetting 
 regard to the next in which everybody fully believed. 
 Later on, in 1810, we find the imprint of Nathan Mower on 
 a reprint of Bishop Porteous' " Evidences." In 1812 appeared 
 Blyth's " Narrative of the death of Louis XVI.," and in 
 1816, a volume of Roman Catholic prayers in Iroquois. 
 These are not all the books printed in those years, but the 
 titles indicate the tendencies of the people. 
 
 We have in Huston's " Repertoire National " (the first 
 edition of which is very scarce, but which was reprinted in 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 11 
 
 four volumes at Montreal in 1893) a collection of extracts 
 in fact a cyclopedia of native French Canadian literature, 
 from the earliest times down to 1848. One piece alone (a 
 poem) bears date prior to the English period. It is dated 
 1734. From 1778 to 1802 there are only twelve articles. 
 It was not until 1832 that the French national spirit became 
 thoroughly awake and from that year the extracts became 
 increasingly numerous. The first books in general literature 
 began to appear in 1830 and 1831, and in 1832, the Legisla- 
 tive Assembly passed the first Copyright Act. That year 
 would then be a convenient date from which to reckon the 
 revival of literature in Canada. Do not suppose that the 
 Canadian people were uncultivated in those days. Although 
 they were too busy to become writers they were great 
 readers and there were more book-stores, in proportion to the 
 population, than now. 
 
 The first book in general literature published in Upper 
 Canada was a novel, " St. Ursula's Convent, or the Nun of 
 Canada," printed at Kingston in 1824. There was also a 
 press at Niagara (on the Lake) which did some reprinting ; 
 for we find that, in 1831, Southey's " Life of Nelson " and 
 Gait's " Life of Byron " were printed there. The same press 
 issued, in 1832, an original work by David Thompson, a 
 " History of the War of 1812," and in 1836 was printed at 
 Toronto a book of 152 pages in octavo, " The Discovery of 
 America by Christopher Columbus, and the Origin of the 
 North American Indians." This book was reprinted in the 
 United States. 
 
 I cannot pretend in a paper like this to give more than a 
 general indication of the extent of publication in those days. 
 There were books and pamphlets I shall not have space to 
 mention ; but there were very few books published in Lower 
 Canada before 1833, and in Upper Canada before 1841. 
 During all that period, however, there were many prose 
 writers ; for the newspaper press was very active and, in the 
 limes before telegraphs when news came by letter, the news- 
 
12 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 papers contained more original matter, compared with, 
 advertisements, than they do now. Newspapers did not 
 contain so many contradictory statements, for there was more 
 time to secure accuracy. They were diligently read and 
 editorials were more valued than now. Dare I say they were 
 more carefully written ? 
 
 The political circumstances of Canada are so exceptional 
 that almost every problem which can arise in the domain of 
 politics has been, at some time or other, encountered by our 
 statesmen. Questions of race, of language, of religion, of 
 education questions of local government, of provincial 
 autonomy, of federative union of the relative obligations 
 between an imperial central power and self governing 
 colonies, have all been, of necessity, threshed out in the 
 Dominion of Canada. Their underlying principles have not 
 only been laid bare, but legislation has built firm social and 
 political structures upon them. For this reason there has 
 always been a great deal of political pamphleteering in 
 Canada and of solid thinking also which, in later days, and in 
 larger communities, would have been expanded into books. 
 I have a great respect for a pamphlet upon a serious subject ; 
 because I feel sure the author did not write it for money, but 
 because he had something to say. Pamphlets come hot from 
 the brain of a man who cannot help writing. Great revolu- 
 tions have been wrought by pamphlets falling, like burning 
 coals, upon inflammable materials. Many of the pamphlets 
 relate to the union of the colonies. Many of them look for- 
 ward to the organization of the Empire, but, able though 
 many of them were the times were not ripe. The people of 
 England were then, as they still are, in political thought far 
 behind the colonists. 
 
 For the reasons cited above the number of our prose 
 writers who have devoted their labours to constitutional and 
 parliamentary history and law is large. Two, however, stand 
 out before the others and have won high reputations through- 
 out Britain and her Colonies. Dr. Alpheus Todd and Sir 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 13 
 
 John Bourinot are known wherever parliamentary institu- 
 tions are studied. Dr. Todd's chief work " Parliamentary 
 Government in England " is one of the great standard 
 authorities. It has passed through two editions, and a con- 
 densed edition has been published by a leading English 
 writer. It has also been translated into German and Italian. 
 He wrote also a work, indispensable to the self governing 
 colonies of the Empire, " Parliamentary Government in the 
 British Colonies/ 7 in which is set forth in clear detail and 
 with abounding references the mode of adaptation of the 
 British parliamentary system to all the diverse colonies of 
 the Empire. 
 
 The name of Sir John Bourinot, the Clerk of the House of 
 Commons, must frequently be mentioned in any account of 
 Canadian literature. His literary work is large in extent 
 and is valued throughout all English speaking communities. 
 His " Parliamentary Procedure " is the accepted authority of 
 our Parliament. His " Constitutional History of Canada " 
 is the best manual on the subject. His two series of 
 " Lectures on Federal Government in Canada " and " Local 
 Government in Canada " have been published in the Johns- 
 Hopkins " University Studies," and his " Comparative Study 
 of the Political Systems of Canada and the United States," 
 read before Harvard University and the Johns-Hopkins 
 School of Political Science, has been published in the 
 " Annals of the American Academy of Political Science." 
 On these and kindred subjects he has contributed largely not 
 only to the periodicals of his native country, but to reviews 
 in England and in the United States. 
 
 Although I have specially mentioned these two writers 
 there are many others who have done important work in this 
 field ; as, for instance, Prof. Ashley, now of Harvard, whose 
 " Lectures on the earlier constitutional history of Canada " 
 are highly esteemed, and William H. Clement, whose volume 
 on " Canadian Constitutional Law " is the text book at 
 Toronto University. The field was very wide and from the 
 
14 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 first the problems to be solved after the cession were complex 
 and difficult. A people, alien in race, religion, and language, 
 and immensely superior in numbers, were to be governed, not 
 as serfs, but as freemen and equals. It was a civilization and 
 a system of law equal to their own with which the English had 
 to reckon ; and with a religion which penetrated to the very 
 foundation of society as deeply as did their own national 
 churches. The subject is profoundly interesting and there is 
 a mass of literature relating to it. A few English immigrants 
 who came in from the southern colonies immediately after 
 the conquest thought to govern the country without reference 
 to the institutions of the conquered people and the early 
 English governors, General Murray and Lord Dorchester, 
 were to the French Canadians a wall of defence. The period 
 may be studied in the works of Baron Maseres, a man of 
 great ability who was Attorney General of the Province and 
 afterward Baron of the Exchequer Court in England. He 
 was of Huguenot stock and had strong anti-Roman prejudices 
 though personally very amiable. He could not see why the 
 French should not prefer the English civil and ecclesiastical 
 laws and wrote a number of books to persuade them to do so. 
 He utterly failed to comprehend the French Canadians, 
 though he was French in race and spoke and wrote French 
 like a native. Later on came the discussions which led to the 
 division of the province and the separation of Upper from 
 Lower Canada. Then followed the agitations of Papineau 
 in the Lower, and of Gourlay and Mackenzie in the Upper 
 Province, with an abundant crop of pamphlets leading up to 
 the re-union. 
 
 But while these were sometimes merely party pamphlets 
 of no real value, there was also much writing by such men 
 as the Howes, Sewells, Stuarts, Robinsons, Haliburtons and 
 others of refugee stock. These men were exponents of views 
 concerning the destiny of the English race and the import- 
 ance of an organization of the Empire which had been held 
 by Shirley, Hutchinson, Dickinson, and even by Franklin 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 15 
 
 1 1 in i self iii 1754 and down to a short time previous to the 
 Revolution. The Loyalists had been, and these men were, 
 a? jealous of constitutional freedom as the leaders of the 
 popular party. Their successors in our days, Col. Denison, 
 Dr. Parkin, O. W. Howland and the Imperial Federation 
 League, as well as our youth who have so recently fought in 
 South Africa are the heirs and representatives of the men 
 who dreamed that great dream which Thomas Pownall 
 (governor of the colonies of South Carolina, New York and 
 Massachusetts from 1753 to 1768) printed in capital letters 
 in his "Administration of the Colonies," namely, that " Great 
 Britain might no more be considered as the kingdom of this 
 isle only, with many appendages of provinces, colonies, settle- 
 ments and other extraneous parts, but as a great marine 
 dominion consisting of our possessions in the Atlantic and in 
 America united into a one Empire in a one centre, where the 
 seat of government is.' 7 The dream was shut up for many 
 days and even many years ; for the times of the " little 
 Englanders " were to come. ; but it may be that, in the latter 
 days, if not a pax Britannica a pax Anglicana may reach 
 round the world a peace of justice, of freedom, of equality 
 before the law and who can tell where the centre of the 
 English speaking world may then be ? 
 
 The history of Canada and of its separate provinces has 
 been the favourite theme of our writers of prose. The his- 
 tories written during the French regime were published in 
 France ; but, soon after the cession, a new movement 
 towards the study of Canadian history commenced. Heriot 
 Deputy Postmaster General of Canada wrote, in 1804, 
 a " History of Canada," of which only one volume appeared,, 
 but it was published in London and had no original merit. 
 The first really Canadian history was published by Xeilson 
 at Quebec in 1815. It is in two octavo volumes and is very 
 fairly printed. The author, William Smith, was clerk to the 
 Legislative Assembly and, besides Charlevoix (of whose 
 labours he made free use) he had the records of government 
 
16 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 at his service. Nevertheless the work is not of much his- 
 torical value. It is very scarce and a good copy will bring 
 about $40. Kobert Christie a Nova Scotian by birth is 
 the next in order of date, and his literary work extends over 
 a long life. He wrote a volume on the "Administrations of 
 Craig and Prevost," which was published in 1818, and the 
 same year a " Eeview of the political state of Canada under 
 Sir Gordon Drummond and Sir John Sherbrooke." He wrote 
 also a "History of Lower Canada from 1791 to 1841" 
 defective in literary form, but valuable as a mine of docu- 
 ments and extracts. 
 
 Michel Bibaud's volume of " Epitres, Chansons, Satires 
 et fipigrammes," published in 1830, marked the commence- 
 ment of modern French Canadian literature. He wrote also 
 a " History of Canada " in two volumes, published in 1837 
 and 1844, now very scarce and little referred to. Garneau 
 is the first French Canadian historian worthy of the name, 
 both for literary style and for original research. His history 
 is a work of great merit and, in many respects, has not been 
 surpassed. Garneau's " History " was written in French and 
 the four octavo volumes of which it consists appeared 
 between 1845 and 1852, a period of storm and stress in 
 Canadian politics ; hence it is animated by strong prejudice 
 against his English compatriots. There have been several 
 editions in French and there is an English translation by Bell 
 with corrective anti-Gallic footnotes ; after the manner of 
 some of the orthodox annotated editions of Gibbon's History. 
 
 Very different is the " Histoire du Canada " of the Abbe 
 Ferland, published from 1861 to 1865, at Quebec. It con- 
 sists of a course of lectures which, as a professor of history, 
 the author delivered at Laval University. The work, 
 unfortunately extends only as far as the cession in 1763. It 
 is the result of great labour and research and is written with 
 impartiality. The same period is covered in English by a 
 carefully written summary by Dr. H. H. Miles. This was 
 published in 1881, and is a very convenient manual of the 
 history of the French domination. 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 17 
 
 Benjamin Suite's " Histoire des Canadiens-Francais," pub- 
 lished in 1882-1884 in eight quarto parts, is a very valuable 
 history and, if it had been published in a more convenient 
 form, would be known as widely as it deserves to be. The 
 author's minute acquaintance with the inner life of the 
 French Canadian people makes his work necessary for refer- 
 ence. Mr. Suite is one of our most prolific writers on histori- 
 cal subjects. His style is happy and his information accurate. 
 
 Dr. William Kingslford's " History/' in 10 volumes octavo, 
 is the most important historical work which has hitherto 
 t>een produced in Canada, and it extends from the discovery 
 of the country down to the union of Upper and Lower 
 Canada in 1841. He wrote with great independence of 
 judgment, and he is the first of our writers to make extensive 
 use of the precious collection of original papers collected by 
 Dr. Brymner, the Dominion Archivist. His industry was 
 indefatigable. His work is enduring, but his reward was 
 inadequate, and the last years of his life were spent in labour 
 which is, now only after he is dead commencing to be 
 appreciated. 
 
 A notice of the prose writers of Canada is incomplete 
 without mention of the Rev. Dr. Withrow, who has published 
 a work on the Catacombs of Rome, which passed through 
 several editions and met with favour among the reviewers 
 of the United Kingdom. He has written on the " Romance 
 of Missions," and on the " Early History of the Methodist 
 Church," and a list of his works would be too long to give 
 here. A " History of Canada " by him, published in 1880, 
 is highly esteemed. Mr. Charles G. D. Roberts, better 
 known for his poetry, wrote a small popular History of 
 Canada for the Appletons ; but the most convenient manual 
 of the History of Canada is that written by Sir John 
 Bourinot for the " Story of the Nations " series and published 
 in London and New York. An essential volume of reference 
 for the student is Houston's volume of " Documents illus- 
 trative of the Canadian constitution, with Notes and Appen- 
 
18 PROSE TTRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 dixes." It contains the foundation documents of the English 
 period. 
 
 The war of 1812-14 is the subject of a number of narra- 
 tives ; but no connected work of special merit or research 
 has appeared. One of the first volumes printed in Upper 
 Canada was David Thompson's " History," published at 
 Niagara in 1832. It is now very rare. There is also a book 
 on that war by Major Richardson, published at Brockville 
 in 1842, and now scarce, and one by Auchinleck, published 
 in Toronto in 1855. Colonel Coffin commenced to write, 
 but his work did not reach a second volume. McMullan's 
 " History of Canada, 77 the first edition of which was printed 
 at Brockville in 1855, contained the best Canadian history 
 of the war until Dr. Krngsford's large work appeared. There 
 are, however, innumerable pamphlets and articles treating of 
 episodes of this war published by local historical societies or 
 in magazines. 
 
 I come now to more specialized histories and what shall 
 I say ? for the roll is long and the time is fleeting. There 
 are George Stewart's " Life and Times of Front enac " in 
 "Winsor's great work Gerald Hart 7 s " Fall of !New France " 
 the Abbe Verreati's collection of " Memoirs on the Inva- 
 sion of 1775 " the Abbe Casgrain's works on " Montcalm 
 and Levis. 77 There is the great work of the Abbe Faillon on 
 the foundation of Montreal, published by the Gentlemen of 
 the Seminary, and there are also a series of histories, bringing 
 down to the present day the narratives of the general histories, 
 such as Bedard 7 s " Histoire de Cinquante Ans, 1791-1841," 
 Turcotte's " Canada sous L 7 Union 1841-1867, 77 and David's 
 " L'Union des Deux Canadas. 77 In Ontario there are a large 
 number of corresponding works, such as Dent's " Last Forty 
 Years, 77 and his " Story of the Upper Canada Rebellion. 77 
 Such books are rich material for the future historian when 
 the calm comes after the heat of political struggle has been 
 dissipated. 
 
 Then there are the histories of the separate provinces. 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 19 
 
 Commencing, where so much commences, with the province 
 by the sea, there is Haliburton's " History of Nova Scotia/' 
 in two volumes octavo, published as early as 1829. It is a 
 history based 011 original research and a work of literature 
 in every sense. Murdoch's " History " in three volumes 
 octavo, is arranged more as annals, and is an important work 
 as a quarry for succeeding writers. Dr. Akins has published 
 valuable extracts from the archives of the province, and Sir 
 John Bourinot's " Builders of Nova Scotia" (written last year 
 for the Eoyal Society of Canada, but also published separ- 
 ately) will give the reader, not only in the letter press but by 
 the numerous illustrations, a vivid picture of the early days 
 of the colony. Cape Breton, now a part of Nova Scotia an 
 island interesting from its connection with the discovery of 
 the continent and the eventful episode of Louisbourg has 
 its histories. Robert Brown wrote a scholarly history of the 
 island and Sir John Bourinot's monograph in the Transac- 
 tions of the Royal Society has left nothing to be desired. 
 
 The first New Brunswick historian was the Rev. Robt. 
 Cooney, who wrote a history of that province, printed at 
 Halifax in 1832. There is also a volume by Alex. Munro ; 
 but the " History of Acadia "by James Hannay is the most 
 important work of this class emanating from New Brunswick. 
 
 And then there is the North-west with its wild and 
 romantic annals and its literature of exploration, adventure 
 and daring courage. For this you must consult Masson's 
 " Bourgeois de la Compagnie du Nordouest," Joseph Tasse's 
 " Les Canadians de 1'Ouest," Beckles Willson's " History of 
 the Hudson's Bay Company," and Dr. Bryce's recent work on 
 the same subject. Manitoba has a group of writers. Professor 
 Bryce's work on Manitoba and his " Short History of the 
 Canadian people " were published in England and are much 
 esteemed. Alexander Begg's " History of the North-west " 
 in three volumes is an important work published in Toronto 
 in 1894. Another writer of the same name has published a 
 " History of British Columbia " a well written and useful 
 
20 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 work. These works (although there are many others I might 
 name) cover the whole area of the continent west of Ontario 
 to the green slopes of the western ocean and the ice-bound 
 margin of the sluggish polar sea. 
 
 A leading American author in one of his early books, 
 writing at Niagara and standing on his own side of the river, 
 says with compassionate sententiousness, " I look across the 
 cataract to a country without a history." He was looking 
 into the emptiness of his own mind ; for, at that very time, 
 his countryman, Parkman, had commenced the brilliant 
 series of histories of this country which have won for him 
 an enduring name. History ! What country of the new 
 world can unroll a record so varied and so vivid with notable 
 deeds ? From this very town went the men who opened out 
 the continent to its inmost heart ; before the English had 
 crossed the Alleghany mountains. The streets of the old city 
 have been thronged with painted warriors of the far unknown 
 west, with boisterous voyageurs, with the white coated 
 soldiers of the French king, and with the scarlet uniforms 
 of the troops of the English crown. For Montreal, from the 
 earliest times, has been the vortex of the conflicting currents 
 of our national life. Few vestiges remain of the old town. 
 The hand of the Philistine has been heavy. It is not so very 
 long since I used to wander with Francis Parkman about the 
 older streets ; but landmark after landmark is gone or has 
 suffered the last indignity of restoration. I remember taking 
 Dean Stanley into the older part of the Seminary with a half 
 apology for its being little more than 200 years old ; w T hile 
 his own abbey reached back for nearly a thousand. " I have 
 learned," he replied, " to look upon two hundred years in 
 America as equivalent to one thousand in Europe." " They 
 both reach back to the origins of things." He had just come 
 from Chicago, and they had shown him thousands of hogs 
 marching to their -doom ; but the gentle scholar would not 
 stay to hear an exposition of the amazing economies in the 
 disposal of those hogs, rendered possible by the advance of 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 21 
 
 science, but started for the east by the next train. It is the 
 mind which apprehends ; for many have eyes and see not ; 
 but to men like Francis Parkman, Oliver Wendell Holmes 
 and Dean Stanley every vestige of the quaint old town 
 brought back memories of a picturesque and adventurous life 
 which had thronged the narrow streets. Narrow yes, they 
 were narrow, but just as passable after a snow storm and just 
 as clean. 
 
 But I have lost my way in the old town with companions 
 of former years. They talked so well that I forgot I only 
 wanted to explain to my American friend across Niagara that 
 this land has a history and we have matters of surpassing 
 interest to relate. There is the story of the Acadian exile. 
 Longfellow told it without ever visiting the locality or know- 
 ing much of the matter. If you wish to have the responsi- 
 bility for the action brought home to the doors of the New 
 England Colonies, read Richard's "Acadia," and the series 
 of monographs by the Abbe Casgrain ; but if, on the other 
 hand, you wish to know of the provocations the English 
 suffered you will learn them from Dr. Akins and Lieut. - 
 Governor Archibald. The controversy is keen and, from the 
 conflicting writers, the true motive (if you are clever) may 
 be gathered. 
 
 Many of the local histories are full of interest. Histories 
 of Annapolis, Yarmouth, Pictou and Queen's Counties in 
 Nova Scotia ; of St. John, New Brunswick ; of Huntingdon 
 and the Eastern Townships in Quebec ; of Peterborough, 
 Dundas, Welland, and Wentworth in Ontario. Interesting 
 also is the mass of historical and legendary lore collected in 
 numerous volumes by Sir J. M. Lemoine . about Quebec and 
 the Lower St. Lawrence. Hawkins's " Picture of Quebec," 
 and Bosworth's " Hochelaga Depicta or Picture of Montreal " 
 are scholarly works now become very scarce, and Dr. Scad- 
 ding, the learned annalist of Toronto, has written much upon 
 that city and its surroundings. John Ross Robertson's 
 " Landmarks of Toronto," and Graeme Mercer Adam's 
 
22 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 Centennial Volume " Toronto ^ew and Old " are contin- 
 uous pictures of the growing life of the Queen City of the 
 Canadian west. Even in the wilderness of Muskoka, to the 
 north of Toronto, is a history written in blood ; for there 
 the forest has grown over the sites of the Huron towns and 
 obliterated the traces of a war, ruthless and horrible ; but 
 redeemed by the martyrdom of the saintly missionaries 
 expiring under tortures with words of blessing and exhorta- 
 tion on their lips. 
 
 All these things have exercised the pens of the prose 
 writers of Canada ; but how can I attempt to enumerate the 
 books in which they are recorded ? Time is passing and you 
 will soon be weary of my theme, so I must hurry on and turn 
 a deaf ear to those voices of the past. 
 
 Much good prose writing exists in Canada under the 
 kindred heading of Biography. The political history of the 
 last sixty years may be found in such works as Lindsay's 
 " Life of William Lyon Mackenzie/ 7 in Mackenzie's " Life 
 of George Brown," in Pope's " Life of Sir John A. 
 Macdonald," in Sir Francis Hincks's "Autobiography," and 
 in Buckingham and Ross's " Life of Alexander Mackenzie." 
 The stir of the political arena runs through these, but there 
 are others, such as Read's " Lives of the Judges," his " Life 
 and Times of General Simcoe " and of " Sir Isaac Brock," 
 which are freer from politics. There is also much matter of 
 historical interest interwoven in such biographies as Bethune's 
 " Life of Bishop Strachan," Hodgins's " Life of the Rev. Dr. 
 Ryerson," Patterson's " Life of the Rev. Dr. McGregor." 
 
 Xo I repeat it our writers had not to cross the ocean 
 for their inspiration. They had subjects for song and story 
 full of heart-break and tears which they have not yet 
 exhausted, and which some United States writers, notably 
 Lorenzo Sabine of Maine, and Prof. Tyler of Cornell, have 
 treated with generous sympathy. What could be more tragic 
 than the exile of the United Empire Loyalists ? There had 
 been nothing like it for many centuries ; there was nothing 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 23 
 
 like it in Alsace, or as a sequel to the late civil war in the 
 United States. Whoever were rebels, these were not ; for 
 they sided with the established existing government. There 
 are not many books devoted specially to this subject, but 
 there is a wilderness of detached monographs and the 
 " Transactions " of the literary societies are full of interesting 
 reading matter concerning it. CannifFs " History of the 
 settlements round the Bay of Quinte " relates the fortunes 
 of the earliest group of refugees in Ontario. The principal 
 work is, however, Dr. Egerton Ryerson's " Loyalists of 
 America and their Times,' 7 published at Toronto in 1880. 
 Dr. Ryerson was a strong writer but deficient in literary skill, 
 and his work is rather materials for history than a finished 
 historical treatise. 
 
 Much valuable prose writing will be found in the " Trans- 
 actions " of the learned Societies of Canada ; such as the 
 Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, the oldest of all, 
 founded in 1824 ; the Historical Societies of Montreal, of 
 ICova Scotia, of Manitoba ; of the Canadian Institute of 
 Toronto and of the smaller societies. 
 
 Then there is the " Canadian Magazine," established in 
 Toronto in 1893 an illustrated magazine of the latest type. 
 The larger universities have periodicals of their own and, in 
 French, among others, is the " Revue Canadienne," pub- 
 lished in Montreal since 1864, and containing the best 
 writings of French Canadian litterateurs. The University of 
 Toronto prints an "Annual Review " of all literature relating 
 specially to Canada and extending its survey to works treating 
 of the discovery of the Western World. It is made up of 
 contributions by specialists upon the subjects of the books 
 reviewed, and being edited by the librarian and professor of 
 history in the University, is an exceedingly interesting series. 
 Last, but not least, is the Royal Society of Canada, whose 
 "Annual Transactions, " now in their seventeenth year, con- 
 tain monographs by leading writers of Canada upon the 
 history, literature, and natural history of the country. Of 
 the invaluable services of Dr. Brymner, the Dominion 
 
24 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 Archivist, I need not speak. Every librarian in America 
 knows the value of his "Annual Reports " and the research 
 and accuracy of his copious annotations. 
 
 It would naturally follow, from what I have told you of 
 the practical character of the Canadian people, that the litera- 
 ture of law is very extensive. This I cannot even touch upon, 
 but would only remark that the variety which distinguishes 
 the Dominion in other matters extends even to this branch 
 of knowledge. While the English law prevails in Ontario 
 and westwards and in the provinces by the sea the Roman 
 Civil Law rules the province of Quebec. 
 
 Law books, however, are, of necessity, limited in scope to 
 our own country, but the military instincts of the people, 
 arising perhaps from the constant alarm in which they have 
 grown up, have given us a writer on military history whose 
 reputation extends over Europe. Colonel Denison, of 
 Toronto, wrote in 1868, a work on " Modern Cavalry "; and, 
 in 1877, he published a " History of Cavalry " which won 
 the first prize in a competition instituted by the Emperor 
 of Russia for the best work on that subject. It has been 
 translated into Russian, German, and Hungarian, and is being 
 translated into Japanese. Colonel Denison was the first to 
 recognize that in the school of the American civil war new 
 principles of cavalry service had arisen which were destined 
 to sweep away all the maxims of the European schools. It 
 would have been well if the British Staff College had studied 
 this work even though it was written by a colonel of 
 colonial militia, for the principles he laid down are those 
 by which Roberts and Kitchener recently mobilised the army 
 in South Africa. 
 
 Among the first books published in Montreal was the 
 " Travels " of Gabriel Franchere a native of this city, who 
 was one of the founders of Astoria on the Columbia. The 
 volume in its original French form is now exceedingly scarce, 
 but it was translated and printed in New York in 1853. This 
 leads to the remark that the exploration and discovery of the 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 25 
 
 north and west of this continent has been mainly done by 
 Canadians and Hudson's Bay voyageurs ; although the books 
 have generally been printed out of Canada. Sir Alexander 
 Mackenzie was the first to reach the Pacific and Arctic oceans 
 across the continent by land. His work has been printed in 
 different editions. He was a partner in the North-west Com- 
 pany of Montreal. Henry, whose adventures were published 
 in New York in 1809, was a merchant of this city, and 
 Harmon, whose Travels were published at Andover in 1820, 
 was also a member of the North-west Company. The travels 
 of Ross Cox, Maclean, Ogden, Long and other officers of the 
 great fur companies belong to our literature, though pub- 
 lished in England. It was Dease and Simpson, and Rae and 
 Hearne who traced out most of the Arctic coast of America. 
 The work of these men is still being carried on by Tyrrell, 
 McConnell, Low, Bell, and George Dawson, the writings of 
 these last and of many more whom I cannot stop to name, 
 whether published elsewhere or embodied in reports or contri- 
 buted to foreign periodicals and learned societies, are yet 
 the works of Canadian prose writers. 
 
 Canadian writers have also done good work in the archae- 
 ology and languages of the Indian tribes. I have already 
 said that among the incunabula of Canada are catechisms in 
 Montagnais and Iroquois. Among the chief workers in this 
 field was Dr. Silas Rand. He wrote upon the " History, 
 Manners and Language of the Micmac Tribe," and translated 
 the Gospels and Epistles into Micmac. His Dictionary, 
 English and Micmac, was published at the cost of the govern- 
 ment ; and the other half, Micmac into English, is in manu- 
 script at Ottawa. A vote has been passed for money to print 
 it. He wrote also a book on the " Legends of the Micmacs " 
 which was published in New York and London in 1894. 
 Canon O'Meara published the Common Prayer Book, the 
 New Testament, the Pentateuch and a Hymn Book in 
 Ojibway. Bishop Baraga is the author of an Ojibway dic- 
 tionary and Father Lacombe of one of the Cree language. 
 
26 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 Father Petitot, for more than twenty years a missionary in 
 the farthest north, has written much upon the Chippewayan. 
 tribes and the Esquimaux people. His works are published 
 for the most part in France, and are better known there than 
 here. 
 
 The Abbe Cuoq has published a dictionary of Iroquois 
 and grammars of both Iroquois and Algonquin, besides his 
 " Etudes Philologiques " on both these languages. The 
 Abbe Maurault wrote a " History of the Abenakis," the Eev. 
 Peter Jones (an Ojibway by birth) wrote a history of his 
 people, and a Wyandot, Peter Dooyentate Clarke, wrote a 
 small volume on the " Origin and Traditional History of the 
 Wyandots." 
 
 We cannot count the late Horatio Hale as a Canadian 
 writer, although he lived in Canada for the latter years of his 
 life and contributed to the " Transactions of the Royal 
 Society," but we have in the Rev. Dr. Maclean a writer who 
 has both the literary training and the actual experience to 
 make anything from his hand upon Indian life valuable. His 
 work " Canadian Savage Folk the Native Tribes of 
 Canada/' published in 1896 at Toronto, is one of much 
 interest. He is besides a frequent contributor to periodical 
 literature on ethnological subjects. 
 
 Sir Daniel Wilson, late Principal of the University of 
 Toronto, although some of his works were written before he 
 came to Canada, must be enrolled among Canadian prose 
 writers, for he was a frequent contributor to the " Canadian 
 Journal/ 7 and to the Royal Society on his favourite subjects 
 Archaeology and Ethnology. Some very important works, 
 notably his " Prehistoric Man or Researches into the origin 
 of Civilization in the Old and New World/ 7 were written in 
 Canada. Sir William Dawson also wrote much on kindred 
 subjects, and in his book " Fossil Man/' he employed the 
 results of a long study of the Indians of Canada to illustrate 
 the character and condition of the pre-historic men of 
 Europe. His son, Dr. George M. Dawson, has not only 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 27 
 
 written papers of value upon the races and languages of the 
 Pacific Coast, but he has assisted in the publication of many 
 excellent monographs by missionaries resident among the 
 western tribes. I must not close without mention of the Rev. 
 Prof. Campbell. His large work on the Hittites is well 
 known. His contributions on Phoenician, Egyptian, Mexican 
 and Indian ethnology and philology will be found in many 
 Canadian transactions and periodicals. 
 
 I ought not to speak of Canadian literature without 
 mention of Dr. Goldwin Smith. He is not a product of our 
 society. He does not think as we do ; but neither does he 
 think as anybody else does. He is sui generis a product of 
 the severest Oxford University culture mitigated by a quarter 
 of a century's residence in Canada. It is not from Canadian 
 springs that he draws the pure, pellucid English that reflects 
 his thought like the still water of a forest lake. It is not 
 from us that he derives that condensation of style terse 
 without obscurity revealing great stretches of historic land- 
 scape in a few vivid phrases. These are not our gifts but 
 lie could never have written his incomparable " History of 
 the United States " had it not been for the constant attrition 
 of twenty-five years of Canadian society. ~No unmitigated 
 Oxford professor could have, or rather would have, under- 
 stood the subject ; and so we may claim some little share in 
 that almost faultless history ; which, if any man read, it will 
 make him well and truly informed upon a subject above all 
 others overlaid with falsehood and bombast. For edification 
 and reproof has Dr. Smith been sent to us by a happy 
 fortune, and though we hit back at times we must be grateful 
 to a man who, in addition to the benefit we have derived from 
 his literary labours, has out of his own private resources 
 stimulated Canadian letters by the establishment or support 
 of such publications as the " Nation," the " Week," the 
 " Canadian Monthly," and the " Bystander." 
 
 You will scarcely be surprised if I say that the soil of 
 Canada has not proved productive of writers upon Meta- 
 
28 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 physics and Logic. I can remember only two. Prof. J. Clark 
 Murray of McGill, and Prof. Watson of Queen's University. 
 Their works have been published in England and in the 
 United States, and their contributions to leading reviews, in 
 those countries as well as to Canadian periodicals of the 
 higher class, have been frequent. Dr. Murray has written 
 an " Exposition of Sir "William Hamilton's Philosophy/' pub- 
 lished in Boston, and a Handbook of Psychology, published 
 in London, and he has translated from the German " The 
 Autobiography of Solomon Maimon " a pessimistic philos- 
 opher who preceded Schopenhauer by more than one hundred 
 years. Prof. Watson has written " Kant and his English 
 critics," Glasgow, 1881 ; an " Exposition of Schelling," 
 Chicago, 1882 ; and the " Philosophy of Kant," Glasgow 
 and New York, 1892. Why commercial cities like Chicago, 
 St. Louis and Glasgow, should be centres of philosophical 
 speculation and Montreal and Toronto are impervious to 
 metaphysics is a question worth consideration. 
 
 While no very remarkable work in mathematics and 
 physics has yet been done among us, in the natural sciences 
 Canadian writers are known and esteemed all over the world. 
 Every standard book on geology, in America or in Europe, 
 will be found to contain frequent references to Canadian 
 writers and illustrations reproduced tfrom their drawings. 
 McGill University and the Geological Survey were the two 
 centres of this strong eddy towards the study of natural 
 history and the dominant personalities of the principal of one, 
 Sir William Dawson, and the first director of the other, Sir 
 William Logan, were the chief moving springs. Sir William 
 Logan was not a writer of books, beyond his reports, although 
 he was a contributor to learned transactions and reviews ; but 
 Sir William Dawson, during all his lifetime, was a most 
 industrious writer of books, monographs and occasional 
 articles. His writings cover the whole area of geology, 
 botany and zoology and, beyond these, the relations between 
 natural science and religion were constantly the subject of 
 
PROSE. WRITERS OF CANADA. 29 
 
 his ready pen. I cannot begin to give you the names, even, 
 of his works ; but I have counted 107 important contribu- 
 tions to transactions of learned societies and reviews, and 
 twenty separate volumes of note. These are but a portion of 
 the total mass of his writings, and his accurate and extensive 
 knowledge and easy style made his works popular throughout 
 the English speaking world. The results of his laborious 
 and self-sacrificing life are around you. Wherever you turn 
 you will see them and his influence for all that is wise 
 and good and noble will endure in Canada for generations 
 to come. 
 
 Other workers in this field are not to be forgotten. The 
 pioneer, Abraham Gesner of Nova Scotia published a volume 
 on the geology of that province as early as 1836. Professor 
 Henry Youle Hind published, in 1860, the scientific results 
 of the expedition of 1857 sent to find a practicable immigrant 
 route from Canada to Fort Garry, now Winnipeg, on the Red 
 River. Three years later he published two volumes of 
 *'' Explorations in Labrador.' 7 He has been a very frequent 
 contributor to the " Canadian Journal," and to other scien- 
 tific reviews here and in Europe. Nor should Elkanah 
 Billings be forgotten, whose labours in Palaeontology are met 
 with in every text book ; nor G. F. Matthew of St. John, nor 
 Prof. Bailey of Fredericton. The officers of the Geological 
 Survey are among our leading prose writers the present 
 Director, Dr. George M. Dawson, is known throughout 
 Europe and America as the writer of important works on the 
 geography, geology and natural history of the Dominion and 
 he, as well as Dr. Robt. Bell, Dr. Whiteaves, Prof. Macoun 
 and others, have enriched Canadian literature by numerous 
 contributions to scientific publications. 
 
 The set towards the study of the natural sciences was not 
 so dominant in the other cities of Canada, but Prof. Chapman 
 and Dr. Coleman of Toronto are among our writers on chem- 
 istry and geology, and Dr. James Douglas now of Kew York 
 is a writer of authority on all questions of metallurgy and 
 
30 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 mining. We must count among our writers, though now 
 connected with Harvard University, Dr. Montagu Chamber- 
 lain, a New Brunswicker who has written extensively on the 
 ornithology of Canada and on the Abenaqui and Malicete 
 Indians of his native province, and Ernest Seton Thompson, 
 born in Toronto, but now residing in 'New York, who has 
 written for the Government of Manitoba upon the ornith- 
 ology and mammalia of that province. Sir James Lemoine 
 and C. E. Dionne have published studies of the ornithology 
 of Quebec and the late A. N". Montpetit's work, " Les 
 Poissons d'Eau Douce," is an illustrated octavo volume of 
 the ichthyology of the same province. 
 
 Any notice of the prose writers of Canada would be very 
 imperfect without mention of Dr. Sterry Hunt who was not 
 only a chemist, geologist and mineralogist of wide reputation, 
 but a graceful and accurate master of English style. His 
 contributions to these sciences extend over the transactions 
 of learned societies in Europe and America and many of them 
 were translated into French, German and Italian. He was 
 born in Connecticut, and the last few years of his life were 
 spent in ~New York, but all the strength of his manhood was 
 spent in Canada and devoted to Canadian subjects. His 
 chief works are " Mineral Physiology and Physiography," 
 " Mineralogy according to a Natural System," " A new Basis 
 for Chemistry," and a volume of " Chemical and Geological 
 Essays." His life work is stamped with rare originality and 
 has left its impress on the sciences he followed. 
 
 Almost while I write a Canadian, well known for his con- 
 tributions to scientific periodicals and as the leader in the 
 movement for the appraisal of literature, has stepped into the 
 front rank of popular expositors of science. The handsome 
 volume " Flame Electricity and the Camera," by George lies, 
 is not merely a vivid exposition it is an original explanation 
 of the rationale of the rapid progress of science during the 
 last years of the century and of the causes of the accelerating 
 speed of its advance. 
 

 PROSE- WRITERS OF CANADA. 31 
 
 I had hoped to say a few words about some of those strong 
 prose writers who in the greater newspapers, wield more 
 influence over the Canadian mind than most of the writers 
 of books ; but time will not permit. Not all our news- 
 papers have succumbed to the scrappiness of newsiness. 
 Thoughtful and finished editorials in dignified style may yet 
 be found, in number sufficient to send a note of sweeter 
 reason through the din of political strife. It is in Canada 
 as elsewhere ; the sands are strewn with the wreck of 
 ventures of purely " literary papers free from the ties of 
 party or sect." Such were the " Week " and the " Nation," 
 and many others ; but, although it is abundantly clear that 
 literature alone cannot support a newspaper, the greater 
 newspapers have departments, sacred from intrusion, where 
 reviews are faithfully given and questions of pure literature 
 discussed. . 
 
 And here let me pause to regret the loss of the excellent 
 literature which lies dead in our dead magazines. From 1824 
 literature has never been without a witness in our land. 
 Some magazine, French or English, has stood as a living 
 witness that we are not made to live by bread alone ; and 
 afterwards fallen as a dead witness that bread also is neces- 
 sary in order to live. This is a subject by itself and would 
 require a separate paper to elucidate it fully. 
 
 Finally we reach the region of Belles Lettres, sometimes 
 called " pure literature," and here we encounter a strong 
 contrast between the English and French sides of our com- 
 munity. There are many volumes of Causeries, Melanges, 
 Revues, Essais, in French. Buies, Routhier, Marchand, 
 Chauveau, and all the French writers of note are represented 
 in this class. Such writing in English has seldom been pub- 
 lished in the form of books. I remember a book called 
 u Trifles from my Portfolio," by Dr. Walter Henry, a retired 
 army surgeon, published at Quebec by Neilson in 1839. The 
 doctor had been stationed at St. Helena while Napoleon 
 Bonaparte was confined there and he had some interesting 
 
32 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 things to say about that. There were other army experiences 
 but his experiences in salmon fishing took up a good share of 
 the two volumes. Writing of this class will, however, be 
 found abundantly in the contributions to the Saturday edi- 
 tions of the leading newspapers of the large cities. Much of 
 it is exceedingly good and while we read with pleasure the 
 weekly contributions of Martin Griffin, John Reade, Bernard 
 McEvoy or George Murray, we feel regret that so much 
 learning and cleverness should be in so ephemeral a form. I 
 am glad however to recall in this connection Dr. Alexander's 
 " Introduction to the Poetry of Robert Browning." For 
 critical insight and appreciation the volume is worthy of 
 remark. 
 
 One name must always be remembered when we take 
 account of Canadian letters and that is the creator of the 
 inimitable Yankee peddler Sam Slick. Judge Haliburton 
 unconsciously created a type, to be as well known as Sam 
 Weller, and while he was intent only upon quizzing his fellow 
 Nova Scotians in the columns of a Halifax newspaper, he 
 woke up to find himself a favourite among the literary people 
 of London. 
 
 But literature, in the opinion of the majority of the present 
 day, consists mainly of fiction. More than three-fourths of 
 the books taken out from the public libraries are novels, and 
 the world in its old age is going back to the story tellers. Nor 
 are we able to endure the long novels which held our parents 
 in rapt attention. The stories must be shorter and the more 
 pictures the better. This last phase of literature is cultivated 
 by all our younger writers and, while the task is too extensive 
 for anything but most imperfect performance, a few words 
 on this branch of my subject are necessary. One remark only 
 I venture to make in the way of criticism, that, while in 
 science we have produced some few men who stand in the 
 very front of their respective subjects, we cannot boast yet 
 of a novelist who has taken rank with the great masters of 
 the craft and none, perhaps, who have attained to the very 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 33 
 
 fore-tfront of the second class ; but then it is only a few 
 years since we made a beginning. 
 
 We cannot commence our review of Canadian fiction with 
 the " History of Emily Montague/' published in 1769. 
 Even if it was written at Quebec the authoress was an 
 English-woman not a permanent resident ; nor even with 
 " St. Ursula's Convent " for, although that story was pub- 
 lished at Kingston in 1824, no one seems to know who wrote 
 it nor does there appear to be a copy now in existence.* We 
 must commence with Major Richardson's " Ecarte," pub- 
 lished in New York in 1829. In 1833 he published 
 " Wacousta," a tale of Pontiac's war. It is really a good 
 novel and contains an excellent picture of the siege of 
 Detroit. The same author published at Montreal " The 
 Canadian Brothers/' in 1840, and afterwards four or five 
 other novels in New York. In 1833 two members of the 
 Strickland family, Mrs. Moodie and Mrs. Traill, came to 
 Canada and settled near Peterborough. They kept up their 
 literary activity during their lives. Mrs. Moodie wrote many 
 books, and, from 1852 to 1860, she produced a number of fair 
 novels. At the same time Mrs. Leprohon was writing stories. 
 Her first novel appeared in the " Literary Garland," in 1848, 
 and she followed it with a number of others. 
 
 The Hon. P. J. O. Chauveau, in 1852, led the way in 
 French novel writing with " Charles Guerin," and was followed 
 in 1863, in " Les Anciens Canadiens," by Philippe Aubert 
 De Gaspe, which has recently been translated and published 
 in New York. It is thought to be the best French Canadian 
 novel, although it was its author's first book, and was written 
 when he was past seventy. Then followed Bourassa, Mar- 
 ine tie, Beaugrand, Gerin-Lajoie and others, but no important 
 work was produced. 
 
 * Kingsford (Early Bibliography, p. 30) observes that " it is stated " that 
 Miss Julia Beckwith, of Fredericton, wrote this book. The same statement 
 has been repeated as a certainty in a recent issue of the "Montreal Star." 
 No evidence of this has however been adduced. Dr. Kingsford never saw a 
 copy of the book, and I have never met anyone who has seen it. Our know- 
 ledge of it is derived from a contemporary review. 
 
34 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 I do not recall anything in English of note until 1877, 
 when William Kirby published " Le Chien d'Or." This was 
 long thought to be the best Canadian novel. It has met with 
 much favour outside of Canada. The story, as given in the 
 legend, is intrinsically of very exceptional interest, and it is 
 told with considerable literary skill. 
 
 Since then writers of stories have become numerous in 
 Canada. It will be impossible to mention more than a few. 
 Miss Machar, of Kingston, has written some capital novels 
 of Canadian life. Mr. James Macdonald Oxley is fully equal 
 to the best writers of books^of adventure for boys. Since 
 1877 he has produced a surprising number of books ; pub- 
 lished usually out of Canada though all upon Canadian life 
 and history. 
 
 Gilbert Parker is the chief name among Canadian writers 
 of fiction and has won high position in the mother land. 
 Although he now resides in England, his subjects are Cana- 
 dian and his books abound with local colour and incident. 
 He stands now among the leading novelists of the day. 
 
 During the last few years William McLennan has made 
 a reputation far beyond the limits of Canada, not only by his 
 dialect stories, but by his charming book, " Spanish John/ 7 a 
 novel without a woman and yet full of interest. This book 
 is remarkable for its singularly pure English style. " The 
 Span o' Life/' which he wrote in collaboration with Miss 
 Mcllwraith (a Hamilton lady well known as a contributor 
 of bright essays and stories in British and American maga- 
 zines) is a novel of the same period as the " Chien d'Or." It 
 is written with the same charm of style as Mr. McLennan's 
 other books. The plot is original and there is a very love- 
 able heroine in it. The setting is historically true and the 
 local colour is faithful. 
 
 Miss Lily Dougall, not long ago, surprised the English 
 public by a strong novel in an original vein, " Beggars All/' 
 published by Longman. The subject was not Canadian, but 
 her later books deal with more familiar scenes. Nor should 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 35 
 
 we omit to count Miss Blanche Macdonald and Mrs. Harrison 
 in the number of our novelists. We must not forget to make 
 mention also of William Lighthall, whose two novels " The 
 Young Seigneur " and " The False Kepentigny " have met 
 with much acceptance. Within the last few weeks Miss 
 Agnes Laut, of Ottawa, has published " The Lords of the 
 -North/ 7 a novel upon the struggle between the two great tfur 
 companies which entitles her to an assured place among 
 Canadian writers of fiction. 
 
 Mrs. Coates, now of Calcutta, formerly Sara Jeannette 
 Duncan, of one of our Canadian cities, has written books, not 
 only bright and interesting, but with a vein of most charming 
 humour. One was a volume of travels around the world, 
 another " The American Girl in London/' an exceedingly 
 clever story which appeared first in the " Illustrated London 
 News," and the third "A Voyage of Consolation." She has 
 written other books, but these are her best. 
 
 Robert Barr is a Canadian, now well established in England 
 as a popular writer, whose first success was in Canadian story 
 writing. He has recently chosen other themes, and two 
 of his later books " Tekla " and " The Strong Arm " are his- 
 torical novels of the Holy Roman Empire at the period of 
 Kodolph of Hapsburg. His writings are sparkling and clever, 
 but he has much to learn before he begins to understand any- 
 thing of that complex institution, the Holy Roman Empire. 
 
 It is a far cry to Rodolph of Hapsburg and the Rev. 
 Charles W. Gordon, of Winnipeg (better known as Ralph 
 Connor) has had the insight to find, among devoted mission- 
 aries on the outskirts of civilization, heroes who are fighting 
 among the foothills of the Rocky Mountains as real a battle 
 for civil order and righteousness as Rodolph ever fought. In 
 " Black Rock " and the " Sky Pilot " are vivid pictures of 
 life on the western plains and mountains. In that grand and 
 solemn world which he describes with loving power his heroes 
 labour and struggle and endure true Galahads fighting the 
 ceaseless battle of good against the evil and recklessness and 
 
36 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 profanity of border life. Stories these are and good stories 
 but they are more, they are tonics for enfeebled faith, full 
 of literary vigour and instinct with highest truth. 
 
 The latest development of modern literature is the short 
 story, and E. W. Thompson, now on the staff of the " Youth's 
 Companion " is a master in that art. There are many others, 
 well known in the popular American magazines, among them 
 Duncan Campbell Scott, better known as a poet ; W. A. 
 Fraser, and Dr. Frechette (whose French poetry was crowned 
 by the Academy of France) who has achieved the success of 
 writing a book of capital short stories in English and so of 
 wanning laurels in two languages. 
 
 Ernest Seton Thompson occupies a place by himself in his 
 books "Wild Animals I have Known/ 7 "The Sand-hill 
 Stag/ 7 and " The Biography of a Grizzly/' The sympathetic 
 naturalist tells these stories from the animal's own point of 
 view a method which imparts much freshness into the 
 narration. Mr. Thompson's skill as an artist adds charm to 
 his books, and his wife, accomplished not only in the art of 
 getting up pretty books but also in the unconventional art of 
 taking care of herself on the western prairies, has con- 
 tributed another volume, " A Woman Tenderfoot," to our 
 open air literature. Mr. W. A. Fraser has gone further in 
 this direction and his " Mooswa and others of the Boun- 
 daries," makes the wild animals talk as they do in Kipling's 
 " Jungle Book." His hero is a moose whose moral character 
 has developed beyond that of the usual run of the Christians 
 who hunt and trap in the spruce forests of the upper Atha- 
 basca. Our natural history is leading us back to Aesop and 
 the dawn of literature, but our wild animals have not the 
 keen wit and didactic brevity of the Greek creatures. They 
 tend towards diffuseness and to the north-west superfluity of 
 expletives. 
 
 Canadian history and scenery are beginning to make their 
 appearance in novels by outside writers who, having no real 
 knowledge of either, seek it in the pages of Francis Parkman 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 37 
 
 with indifferent success. We may read with amused wonder 
 (in a very successful American novel) of Daulac's wife a 
 Laval-M ontmorenci starting from Montreal in the year 
 1G60 for Carillon on the Ottawa, with one Indian girl 
 attendant, making a raft at Ste. Anne's with knives and 
 floating up the current to the north shore. We may follow her 
 there to the seven chapels on the mountain where she and her 
 attendant sleep and find food convenient for them in the 
 bread and roasted birds which a pious devotee is accustomed 
 to place upon the altar. It is only eighteen years since 
 Maisonneuve landed, but Daulac has on Isle St. Bernard, 
 at the mouth of the Chateauguay, a strong baronial castle 
 built of stone with lancet windows, and we follow him also 
 with wonder as he steps into his canoe at midnight and goes 
 down to Montreal by the Lachine rapids, evidently his usual 
 route to town ; but this was his last trip down for he was 
 preparing for his fight at the Long Sault. In like manner 
 Dr. Conan Doyle in the " Refugees," with much ingenuity 
 rescues some Huguenots at Quebec from imprisonment (for 
 their faith. A fanatical Franciscan friar tracks them up the 
 St. Lawrence and Richelieu rivers until they find refuge 
 from persecution in the English colonies. This is hard to 
 bear ; for New France is the only region where there has 
 never been persecution for the sake of religion. The only 
 law relating to Huguenots was that they could not winter in 
 the country without permission, or assemble for public 
 worship. From such absurdities as these we must look to our 
 native writers to protect us. It is enough for Edwin and 
 Angelina to harrow our feelings with their woes without 
 harrowing our geography and history also. 
 
 Apart from the choice of subject matter the prospect for 
 a distinctive Canadian school of literature is not bright ; and, 
 in truth, any provincial narrowness of style or language is 
 not desirable. Our writers can reflect lustre on their 
 country only when they venture into the broad world of our 
 language and conquer recognition in the great realm of 
 
38 PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. 
 
 Anglo-Saxon letters. The great centres of our race, where 
 are to be won the great prizes of life, must always attract 
 the brightest and most ambitious spirits. One of our own 
 people a successful author now in London, writes in the 
 " Canadian Magazine " to reproach us for under-estimating 
 ourselves. It is a good fault, even if uncommon among 
 English speakers. Our youth are unlearning it ; but they 
 will not grow great by self-assertion, only by performance. 
 I have tried to set forth in detail the reasons of our retarded 
 commencement our growth of late years has been rapid. 
 We have to guard against materialism and to watch lest 
 literature be oppressed by the pursuit of practical science. 
 We see the workers toiling and we hear the din, but the world 
 is saved by the dreamers who keep the intellect of mankind 
 sane and sweet by communion with the ideal. Canada must 
 not regret her children if they achieve fame in other lands. 
 John Bonner and William G. Sewell left Quebec long ago 
 for the "Herald," and "Harper" and the "New York 
 Times." Lanigan wrote " The Akhound of Swat " one 
 night waiting for telegrams in the " World " office. Nova 
 Scotia lost John Foster Kirk, who completed Prescott's great 
 task, and Simon Newcomb, of the United States Navy 
 Department, Astronomer and Mathematician. From New 
 Brunswick went Professor De Mille the brilliant author of 
 the " Dodge Club," George Teall the archivist and leading- 
 writer of South Africa, and May Agnes Fleming, a story 
 writer who for many years earned with her pen in New York 
 an income as large as that of a cabinet minister at Ottawa. 
 From Kingston went Grant Allen and Prof. George Romanes 
 the latter a star of intellect in the regions of the higher 
 science where it touches the realm of metaphysics. His 
 premature death. was lamented as a loss to Cambridge Uni- 
 versity. I could tell of many others if there were time but 
 I must close. 
 
 We read that, in remote ages, the followers of Pythagoras, 
 and, in mediaeval times, the adepts of the Rosy Cross had 
 
PROSE WRITERS OF CANADA. ^D 
 
 the power of separating at will their souls from their bodies ; 
 and then their spirits would travel away with the speed of 
 thought and hover in the semblance of stars over far-off lands. 
 But always a long trail of faint phosphorescent light con- 
 nected the shining spirit with the quiet body in which its 
 light was born. 
 
 So it is with us we follow with interest the fortunes of 
 our countrymen we rejoice in their advancement, and star 
 after star may leave us, but still we feel that their success is 
 ours and some faint lustre of their brilliance quickens with 
 pride the heart of their motherland. 
 
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