b$AND V I THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES GIFT OF Ruth Christensen 7 ^~' SIR H. W. HOYLES, Chief Justice. NEWFOUNDLAND: AS IT WAS, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. BY THE KEY. PHILIP TOGQUE, A.M., AUTHOR OF "WANDEBING THOUGHTS," "A PEEP AT UNCLE SAM'S, FABM," "THE MIGHTY DEEP," ETC., ETC. 1 A wauderer now * * Still I love to think Upon my native home, aiid call to mind Each haunt of careless youth." SOUTHBY. TORONTO : JOHN B. MAGUEN. 1878. PRISTKD AND BOUND BY HUNTER, ROSE & CO. TORONTO. r IS 2 T6 HIS EXCELLENCY pght itottflutafcte J5ir Jtttera tejrle, tot of VISCOUNT AND BARON CLANDEBOYE OF CLANDEBOYE, IN THE COUNTY DOWN, IN THE PEERAGE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, BARON DUF- FERIN AND CLANDEBOYE OF BALLYLEIDY AND KILLELEAGH, IN THE COUNTY DOWN, IN THE PEERAGE OF IRELAND, AND A BARONET, KNIGHT OF OUR MOST ILLUSTRIOUS ORDER OF ST. PATRICK ; KNIGHT GRAND CROSS OF OUR MOST DISTINGUISHED ORDER OF ST. MICHAEL AND ST. GEORGE, AND KNIGHT COMMANDER OF OUR MOST HONOUR- ABLE ORDER OF THE BATH, GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF CANADA, AND VICE-ADMIRAL OF THE SAME. WHOSE NAME IS SO MUCH RESPECTED IN TRANSATLANTIC BRITAIN, is, WITH HIS EXCELLENCY'S PERMISSION, MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED, BY. HIS VERY FAITHFUL AND OBEDIENT SERVANT, PHILIP TOCQUE. 785623 PREFACE. EWFOUNDLAND, the oldest colony of the British Empire, situate about 1,650 miles from Ireland, and about 930 miles from New York, appears to be less known to the British and American people than Australia, New Zealand, or the remotest parts of the globe. The design of the author, in the publication of this work, is to show the British and American reader that Newfoundland is something more than a mere fishing station, as well as to make Newfoundlanders themselves better acquainted with their own country. The best sources of information have been consulted, and made use of without limitation. The grand object of all sound history should be to place the simple truth before the reader. " I have made this book out of my- self, out of my life. I have derived it from observation, from my relations of friendship, and of neighbourhood ; have picked it up from the roads ; above all, I have found it in the recollections of my youth. To know the history and life of the people of Newfoundland, I had but to interrogate my memory." P. TOCQUE. Toronto, December, 1877. CONTENTS. CHAPTER. PAGE. I. FIRST SETTLEMENT AND GENERAL HISTORY, FROM 3497 TO THE APPOINTMENT OF THE FIRST CIVIL GOVERNOR IN 1728 1 II. GENERAL HISTORY, FROM THE APPOINTMENT OF THE FIRST CIVIL GOVERNOR IN 1728 TO 1877 10 III. DISTRICT OF ST. JOHN'S 63 IV. DISTRICT OF CONCEPTION BAY Ill V. DISTRICT OF TRINITY BAY 131 VI. DISTRICT OF BONAVISTA BAY 143 VII. DISTRICT OF FOGO AND TWILLINGATE 164 VIII. DISTRICT OF FERRYLAND 163 IX. DISTRICT OF PLACENTIA AND ST. MARY'S 170 X. DISTRICT OF BURIN 177 XI. HISTORY OF FORTUNE BAY, ST. PETER'S, ETC 182 XII. ST. GEORGE'S BAY, BAY OF ISLANDS, ETC 234 XIH. LABBADOR 258 XIV. THE FISHERIES 287 XV. GOVERNMENT, RE VENUE, TRADE AND SHIPPING . . . 333 XVI. POPULATION, RELIGION AND EDUCATION 365 XVII. AGRICULTURAL RESOURCBS AND MANUFACTURES ... 421 XVIII. NATURAL HISTORY CLIMATE METEOROLOGY GE- OLOGT MINERALOGY ZOOLOGY BOTAKY 445 XIX. THE RED INDIAN, OR BOEOTHICKS 503 ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE; SIR H. W. HOYLES, CHIEF JUSTICE OF NEWFOUNDLAND (Frontispiece. ) GOVERNMENT HOUSE, ST. JOHN'S 105 ST. JOHN'S FROM SIGNAL HILL 150 CUSTOM HOUSE, ST. JOHN'S 172 COLONIAL BUILDING OR PARLIAMENT HOUSE, ST. JOHN'S 213 NEWFOUNDLAND : AS IT WAS, AKD AS IT IS IN 187T. CHAPTER I. FIRST SETTLEMENT AND GENERAL HISTORY. FROM 1497 TO THE APPOINT- MENT OP THE FIRST CIVIL GOVERNOR IN 1728. f()ME writers have affirmed that Newfoundland was discovered by the Scandinavians in the year 1001, while others assert that this alledged discovery by the Northmen is not worthy of credence : " The error ap- pears to have been the work of some designing interpo- lator of the old Icelandic MS. Chronicles." We, therefore, pass over the mists of romance and fable for the facts of history. The discovery of the West Indies by Columbus in 1492 ; and of Newfoundland by the Cabots, in 1497, is detailed in almost every book written on America. Without then attempting to go over the same ground, we shall proceed at once to state, that John Cabot (or Cabota, his Italian name), a Venetian, and his son, Sebastian, under a com- mission granted by Henry VII, of England, sailed from Bristol with a fleet of five small vessels, and discovered Newfoundland en the 24th of June, 1497, near Cape Bona- vista, and to which they gave the name of Terra Primum Vista, the land first seen (happy sight or view), because this was the place that first met their eyes in looking from the sea. Cabot called Newfoundland as well as the 2 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, American continent Baccalaos, that being the name by which the Indians called the cod-fish. The writer found several ancient histories of Newfoundland in the library of Harvard University, United States ; by Hackluyt, Whitbourne and others ; but as extracts from these old writers have been given by various modern historians of Newfoundland, it is unnecessary to repeat them here. It is not the writer's intention to give a minute detail of every event connected with the earlier settlement of New- foundland, but rather to bring before the notice of the reader the most interesting and important circumstances. The best modern histories of Newfoundland have been given by Macgregor, Martin, and Sir Richard Bonny castle, Anspach, Reeves, Murray, Buckingham, Lyel, Jukes, Cartwright, Chappelle. Carson and Morris have also written on Newfoundland, and more recently the Rev. C. Pedley and McRea. A correct account of the country has been given in the " Edinburgh Cabinet Library." There has also been a very interesting " Catechism of the His- tory of Newfoundland," written by Mr. St John. But the best sketch of Newfoundland I have ever* seen is by Bayard Taylor, the great American traveller. Newfound- land lies between the latitudes of 46 40', and 51 37' north and between the longitudes 52 25' and 59 15' west, and approaches to a triangular form. It is separated from Cape Breton by the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and from La- brador by the Straits of Belle Isle. It therefore affords a northern and southern entrance to the Gulf of St. Law- rence. The surface of the island comprises an area of 36,000 square miles, which is nearly as large as England ; 7,000 square miles larger than Scotland, and 4,000 square miles larger than Ireland. It is 350 miles long, and 200 broad, or 2,800,000 acres, and has a line of coast, includ- ing the indentations of the numerous bays, of about 2,000 miles. Newfoundland is nearer to Europe than any of the islands, or anypart of America. The distance between S* John's and the harbour of Valencia, in Ireland, being AND AS IT IS IN 1877. only 1656 miles, and from Liverpool, England, about 2,000 miles. In the year 1500, Emmanuel of Portugal commissioned Gasper de Cortereal to discover Baccalaos, which Cabot had three years previously coasted. He accordingly visited the island, gave to Conception Bay the name that it bears, and coasted along the American continent, all of which was then called Baccalaos. It is said that Gasper de Cortereal and his brother Michael perished in a second attempt to visit Baccalaos. In 1502, the Portuguese established the first regular fishery on the shores of New- foundland, who were subsequently followed by the Bis- cayans and French. In 1517, the Portuguese, French and Spaniards employed forty sail of vessels in the cod-fishery. In 1534, Jacques Cartier, the celebrated French naviga- tor, visited Newfoundland with two small vessels ; he touched at Cape Bonavista, and then sailed along the coast and entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence. After ex- ploring the Gulf, he returned to France. The next year he discovered Canada, and sailed up the St. Lawrence. The English began to be aware of the importance of Newfoundland in the twenty-eighth year of Henry VIII.'s reign. So early as 1536, Robert Hore and others sailed from England to colonize Newfoundland and Cape Bre- ton. There were 120 persons. They, however, failed in their design, and returned to England after great priva- tion and suffering. In 1540, Francis the First of France appointed Roberval, Viceroy of all the newly-discovered lands. He accordingly sailed with five ships, having Jacques Cartier as chief commander. An attempt at this time was made to colonize Cape Breton, Saguenay, Terre Neuve, or Newfoundland, and Labrador, but without suc- cess. Newfoundland was not yet discovered to be an island. Roberval subsequently sailed with a greater number of ships, but his fate has never been known. In 1540, the English first began to prosecute the Newfound- land fisheries, from the ports of Bristol, Biddeford and NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Barnstaple. In 1576, Frobisher is said to have been forced by the ice upon the Newfoundland coast, when some of the Indians came on board his ship. He sent them ashore in a boat with five sailors, but neither the boat nor men were ever seen again. Frobisher seized one of the Indians and took him to England, where he soon after- wards died. In 1578, England had 50 ships engaged in the fishery ; France and Spain, 150 sail; whilst the Portuguese had 50. In 1583, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Hum- phrey Gilbert and Sir Walter Raleigh engaged in an ex- pedition to Newfoundland, having five vessels under their command ; but the " Raleigh," commanded by Sir "Walter, after being some time at sea, was obliged to put back to England, in consequence of an infectious disease breaking out among the crew. Sir Humphrey was created viceroy, admiral, and sole judge for six years. Sir Hum- phrey, with the remaining four ships under his command, arrived at St. John's on the 5th August, 1583, which he took possession of, with all the land within the circum- ference of 600 miles, in the name of his sovereign, Queen Elizabeth. In August, during the same year, he des- patched one of his vessels, the "Swallow," to England with some of his followers who wished to return home, after which Sir Humphrey sailed from St. John's on a voyage of discovery to the westward. During a heavy gale of wind and a thick fog they fell in upon land, probably Sable Island, when the "Delight" went on shore, and out of 116 persons only 14 were saved. A few days after this occurrence, the other two vessels bore away for England. During the passage a heavy storm arose, in which the "Squirrel " (commanded by Sir Humphrey) sunk, together with her crew. The " Golden Hind," the only .remaining vessel of the fleet, arrived -in England thirteen days after. These vessels were all small, the largest being 120 tons, two of 50 tons each, and the smallest (the one in which AND AS IT IS IN 1877. Sir Humphrey was lost) being only 10 tons, and insuffi- cient to weather a heavy gale. Sir Humphrey Gilbert was brother-in-law of Sir Walter Raleigh. Just before the " Squirrel " sank, Sir Humphrey was seen reading on deck. After the fate of his brother-in-law, Sir Walter Raleigh directed his attention to the American continent, and eventually established a colony in Virginia. In 1610, John Guy, a Bristol merchant, under the patronage and assistance of the great Sir Francis Bacon, Lord Northampton, and Sir Francis Sanfield, to whom, with forty others, letters patent were granted by James I., giving them all that part of Newfoundland lying be- tween Cape Bonavista and Cape St. Mary's, with the rights of mines and metals, and all the seas and islands within ten miles of the coast ; the fisheries, however, were to be open to all British subjects. Guy, with his followers, sailed from Bristol in 1610, in three ships, and after a short passage, arrived in Concep- tion Bay, where he established a colony and opened a promising intercourse with the Indians. After remaining two years, Guy and the remainder of the colony returned to England. Captain Richard Whitbourne, of Exmouth, in the County of Devon, published a history of Newfound- land so early as 1622, which was dedicated to James I. Whitbourne was employed in a ship of his own against the Spanish Armada, in 1588. He visited Newfoundland as early as 1578, and in his second voyage to Newfound- land, in 1583, met with Sir Humphrey Gilbert at St. John's, and in his third voyage, in 1585, he saw Sir Ber- nard Drake, who had been sent to St. John's from England with a fleet by Queen Elizabeth, to assert her sovereignty. Drake seized several Portuguese vessels, with their cargoes on board, which he carried to England. In 1615, the Court of Admiralty commissioned Whit- bourne to impanel juries, and to rectify various abuses and disorders amongst the fishermen. Agreeably to his NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT^WAS, commission, Whitbourne arrived in Newfoundland, and opened the first regular court ever held in the island. One hundred and seventy masters of English vessels are said to have submitted their complaints to his jurisdiction. In 1618, Whitbourne was appointed Governor of a small colony which had been sent out by Doctor Vaughan, a Welsh gentleman, in 1616, who it appears had purchased part of Northampton's patent, granted in connection with Guy by James I. Whitbourne finally returned to England in 1622. In 1623, James I., gave his principal Secretary of State, Sir George Calvert, all the South-east part of the island lying between the Bays of Placentia and Trinity, which he erected into a province, under the name of Avalon, this being the ancient name of Glastonbury, where Christi- anity was first preached in the British Isles. Sir George a short time after was created Lord Baltimore. He estab- lished a colony at Ferryland, where he resided several years, but subsequently removed to England and obtained a grant of land in the State of Maryland, where he founded the City of Baltimore, which still bears his name. For a more detailed account of Lord Baltimore, the reader is referred to the District of Ferryland, in another part of this volume. In 1626, the French established a colony in Placentia, which led to constant disputes between them and the English settlers. The permission of the French colony was considered a matter of favour on the part of the Eng- lish Government, to which the French fishermen paid a yearly tribute of five per cent, on the value of the fish taken. This payment was relinquished by Charles II., in 1675. In 1628 a colony was sent to Newfoundland by Lord Falkland, then Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, and in 1630, Sir David Kirk, with a few followers arrived in New- foundland. About this time 350 families were settled in the various harbours along the coast, and the fisheries were rapidly progressing. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 7 In 1633, Charles I., through the Star Chamber, promul- gated certain laws for the better government of New- foundland. Some of these laws were, that all persons who committed murder, or theft above forty shillings, were to be taken to England for trial ; that no buildings erected for prosecuting the fishery should be destroyed at the end of the voyage ; that no tavern, or houses of enter- tainment, should be set up, and that according to the old and corrupt system, the master of the first fishing vessel arriving at any port should be Admiral of the same during the season. These Admirals were empowered to settle all disputes among the fishermen, and to enforce due atten- tion to certain Acts of Parliament. The power of these men was very great, which they abused by a partial and corrupt administration of the laws. The shipowners and merchants in England engaged in the Newfoundland fisheries, opposed the appointment of any civil permanent Magistrate or of any Governor of the Island. In the Commission granted from 1634 down to 1660, a clause was inserted to the effect, that no master or owner of any ships should send any settlers to Newfoundland. In 1654 there were fifteen different settlements in the island, and about 400 families. About 1670 Sir Josiah Child, one of the principal merchants in England, connected with the Newfoundland trade, induced the Government to prevent settlement by destroying the entire colony. Sir John Berry was deput- ed to burn the houses and drive out the settlers ; he, how- ever, strongly remonstrated against this cruel edict and very reluctantly obeyed his orders. Although John Dow- ning, a resident, procured an order from the King in 1676 annulling the order for destroying the houses, &c. ; yet at the same time no vessel was permitted to take emi- grants to Newfoundland, and all persons were forbidden to settle. In consequence of the interference of Sir John Berry and others no further severe measures were resorted to. It is said the Board of Trade recommended that one 8 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, thousand persons might be permitted to remain in the island to construct boats, stages for drying the fish, &c. In 1096 all the English settlements in the island were destroyed by a French fleet, excepting Carbonear and Bona vista, which defended themselves. France and Eng- land now struggled for the supremacy of Newfoundland till the Peace of Ryswick in Holland, in 1698, which re- stored to each power all their possessions, as at the com- mencement of the war. In the meantime, the French strengthened their positions, and encouraged in every possible way an extension of their settlements. While, on the contrary, England as much as ever discouraged per- manent settlement. The French were therefore better prepared to defend themselves than the English. During the rejgn of Queen Ann, in 1702, a British squadron arrived in Newfoundland under the command of Sir John Leake, who took possession of the greater part of the island, and captured no less than twenty -nine sail of the French, and returned to England with his prizes before the end of October. Admiral Gray don was sent with a fresh fleet in 1703, but returned to England with- out entering into any engagement. In 1705 the French attempted to become sole masters of the island, their garrison at Placentia having been reinforced by an accession of 500 troops from' Canada. They made a formidable attack upon the fortified harbour of St. John's in which they were unsuccessful, they, how- ever, spread their devastation as far northward as Bona- vista. In 1706 they were again expelled by the English from their recent conquests and many of their men-of-war and fishing vessels were either captured or destroyed. In 1708, a French fleet, under the command of St. Ovide, visited and destroyed St. John's, and also every British fishing station, excepting Carbonear, which again defended itself. England and France were so impressed with the vast AND AS IT IS IN 1877. importance of the fisheries of Newfoundland, as well as being an extensive nursery for seamen, and occupying a commanding geographical position with respect to the Canadas, that for the eight following years, owing to the wars of Europe, in which England was engaged, New- foundland presented a constant scene of warfare and de- predation, being sometimes in possession of the English and sometimes in possession of the French, until the peace of Utrecht. The celebrated Treaty of Utrecht was concluded in the Netherlands on the 4th of April, 1713. By this treaty Newfoundland and the adjacent islands were declared to belong in exclusive sovereignty to Great Britain ; liberty, however, was given to the French to catch and dry fish only on that part of the coast lying to the north of Cape Bonavista, and stretching along the western shore as far as Point Biche ; they were not to make any fortifications or erections, except such as were necessary for the fishery nor were they to remain in the island longer than the time necessary for curing their fish. Owing to the continual wars with the French, England was not able strictly to enforce her laws against her own subjects with regard to settlement. The population of Newfoundland had therefore increased very considerably during the wars with France. In 1721, France employed 400 ships in the Newfound- land fisheries. The island was at this time under the nominal administration of the Governor of Nova Scotia. In 1728 it was established a separate colony of Great Britain. 10 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, CHAPTER II. OBNERAL HISTORT, PROM THE APPOINTMENT OF THE FIRST CIVIL GOVERNOR IN 1728 TO 1877. ifmfijm r MfHROUGH the representations of Lord Vere Beau- wth clerk, who was then the naval commander on the American station, in 1728, Captain Henry Osborne, of Her Majesty's Ship " Squirrel," was appointed the first civil governor of Newfoundland. He has been repre- sented as a man of distinguished ability. After his re- tirement from the Government of Newfoundland, he received the thanks of the House of Commons, and a pen- sion of 1200 per annum during his life. Captain Osborne appointed a sheriff, and likewise au- thorised the captains of the ships of war, then on the station, to hold surrogate courts for the decision of civil causes. These judges were afterwards denominated float- ing surrogates. Captain Osborne's instructions, however, stated that he was not to interfere with, and do nothing contrary to the statute of 10 and 11 William III., which conferred such arbitrary power on the fishing admirals. The deputy -governorship of Placentia ever since it was taken from the French, had been a separate command under the government of Nova Scotia, but on the ap- pointment of Governor Osborne, it was placed under his jurisdiction. Captain Osborne divided the inhabited parts of the island into convenient districts, levied a rate of half a quintal of fish on all boats and boats-rooms, for the build- ing of prisons, stocks, &c. ; he also appointed justices of the peace. The most important settlements of the island at this time were Placentia, St. John's, Carbonear, Bay of AND AS'IT IS IN 1877. Bulls, St. Mary's, Trepassy, Ferryland, Bay de Verd, Old Perlican, Trinity Bay, and Bonavista. The beneficial measures sought to be carried out by Governor Osborne for the better government of New- foundland were frustrated by the obstinate conduct of the fishing admirals, backed by false representations of the merchants in England. In 1731, Captain Clinton, of the Royal Navy, was ap- pointed Governor of Newfoundland, who made a report of the state of the island, in which he condemned the proceedings of the fishing admirals. Who the Governors of Newfoundland were from 1731 to 1737 does not clearly appear. In 1737, Captain Vanbrugh was Governor. Owing to the great expense and difficulty of taking persons to Eng- land for trial, it was now proposed to establish a Court of Oyer and Terminer, for the trial of persons guilty of capital crimes in the island. It is said, however, that the commission was clogged with such restrictions as ren- dered it useless, until some years afterwards. In 1740, the Right Hon. Lord George Graham was ap- pointed Governor, who was succeeded in the following year (1741) by the Hon. John Byng, whose squadron made numerous captures of Spanish vessels, Spain being then at war with England. In order to avoid the expense and risk of sending prizes to England for adjudication, a Vice-Admiralty Court was established at St. John's, the first judge of which was William Keen, a merchant, who was appointed naval officer, to collect the returns of the fishery, &c. The next Governor was Sir Charles Hardy, captain of H.M.S. "Jersey," who assumed the Government in 1744. In 1749, Captain (afterwards Lord) Rodney, of H.M.S. " Rainbow," was Governor. In 1750, Captain Francis William Drake was appointed Governor. During his ad- ministration, felons were first brought to trial in the island 12 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, instead of being sent to England. The Court, however, could only sit during the summer months, when the Governor was present. In 1753, Captain Bonfoy appears as Governor. It was in this year Lord Baltimore revived his claim to the pro- vince of Avalon ; but, in consequence of his having neg- lected to hold possession so long a time, his claim was not allowed. In 1755, Captain Dorril was appointed Governor, who was succeeded in 1757 by Governor Edwards. In 1760, Captain Webb assumed the government. Dur- ing this year an attempt was made by a Mr. Scott and others to open an intercourse with the aborigines, or Red Indians ; but both he and his companions were treacher- ously murdered. In 1761, Lord Graves was Governor. So inconsider- able was the naval force on the station in this year that, in order to protect the homeward-bound vessels, a brig was equipped, with guns, at the merchants' expense, and the command was given to Lieut. John Neal. In conse- quence of the island being left in this unprotected state, it was visited in the following year by a French squadron, which arrived at Bay Bulls on the 24th June, and hav- ing landed their troops proceeded overland to St. John's, where they took the garrison, of only sixty-three soldiers, together with the officers and crew of H.M.S. "Grammont," then lying in port. They inflicted every kind of injury on the fishery and trade, and took Carbonear which had hitherto resisted all aggression and the village of Trinity. At the time this occurrence took place Governor Graves was in the "Antelope" engaged as a convoy to a large fleet of merchantmen; a sloop, however, was despatched to meet the Governor, who fell in with him on the Grand Bank and communicated an account of the devastations of the French fleet. The Governor, after adopting measures to secure his convoy, sent the sloop to Ferry land with a party of marines to fortify the (Isle aux Bois) Isle of AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 13 Boys, and from thence to proceed to Halifax with des- patches to Admiral Lord Colville and Sir Jeffrey Amherst, the commanders of the land and sea forces, whilst Gover- nor Graves, in the " Antelope," repaired to Placentia. He found the forts of Placentia in ruins. Forts Fred- erick and Castle Hill, however, were immediately repaired. Immediately Lord Colville was made acquainted with the state of affairs at Newfoundland, he set sail for St. John's. In the mean time Sir Jeffrey Amherst directed his brother, Colonel Amherst, to collect troops from Louis- burgh, which he accordingly did, and joined the Admiral off St. John's on the llth September, 1762, with eight hundred Highlanders and some provincial infantry. The French squadron, under Monsieur de Ternay, the Admiral, was lying within the harbour of St. John's at anchor, and a much superior force to the English. Previous to the arrival of Lord Colville from Halifax, Robert Carter, Esq., of Ferryland, and Mr. Brooks, of Bay Bulls, had consulted together, and at their own expense collected a number of bank-fishing or western boats, which they cut down, and metamorphosed into very tolerable row- galleys. This proceeding met the highest approbation of Lord Colville, who immediately availed himself of the advantages afforded by these boats for coasting along the surf -beaten shores. He manned them with natives, and embarked in each as many of the military as they could convey, with provisions, ammunition, &c., and appointed Mr. Carter commodore, and Mr. Brooks captain of the little squadron, and under cover of the evening shades despatched them to Torbay, where they arrived the en- suing morning. In the mean time a feint was made of landing the body of the troops from Lord Colville's squad- ron at Quidi Vidi, when a sharp contest ensued. The English fought up the precipice with desperation ; but the numbers of the French, and their superior advantage in situation, prevented the English dislodging them from their position, on Signal Hill. Nevertheless, the scheme 14 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, was complete ; the western-boat military, under command of Colonel Amherst, effected a march through the forest and swamps from Torbay, without having been observed, until they reached the rising and nlore clear ground, about one mile from the French position. A rapid stream flowed between the armies, and several skirmishes were fought during the- frequent attempts made by the English to cross this stream, which was more than usually over-flown. In one of these conflicts Major McKenzie was severely 'wounded. The English now advanced upon Signal Hill, the strong position of the French, and in a short time drove the French from their guns. The French, however, still occupied some strong forts in the centre of the town, from which they were driven on the 17th of September, 1762, and surrendered themselves prisoners of war. The French fleet under the command of Admiral de Ternay, took no part in the engagement ; having escaped under concealment of a canopy of a thickly spreading fog put to sea, and the English fleet being driven off to sea in a heavy gale of wind, were unable to pursue them. About twenty men belonging to the English, besides Captain McDonald and Lieutenant Schuyler, of the Royal Dragoons, were killed, and Captain Baillie severely wounded. The French troops are said to have been some of the finest men be- longing to their army. In those days Robert Carter, Esq., supported a garrison on a small island called the (Isle aux Bois) Isle of Boys, situated near the entrance of the harbour of Ferry land, and Charles Garland, Esq., a detachment of military on an island, at the entrance of Carbonear. The services of these individuals were highly appreciated by the Government. Their descendants are numerous, and are among the most respectable inhabitants of Newfoundland. In 1763, on the 10th of February, the treaty of Paris was signed, by which France yielded to Great Britain all pretentions to Nova Scotia, Canada, Cape Breton, and all the North American Colonies, in return for which Great AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 15 Britain, confirmed the 13th article of the Treaty of Utrecht, which allowed the French to take and cure fish on the Northern and Western coasts of Newfoundland. The French were also permitted to fish in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, within three leagues of the shore, and fifteen from those of the Island of Cape Breton, whilst the small islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon at Newfoundland were ceded in perpetuity to them, on condition of not erecting any forts or fortifications thereon. About this time the coasts of Labrador, from the River St. John (opposite the Island of Anticosti) to the entrance of Hudson's Straits, was annexed to the Government of Newfoundland. The population at this period was up- wards of 13,000, only about one-half of whom were constant residents. The number of vessels employed by the English at this period was about 400 sail, which car- ried great quantities of fish to Ireland. The quantity of cod fish taken was 386,274 quintals ; 694 tierces of salmon; and 1,598 tons of cod-liver oil, besides furs to the amount of 2,000. In 1764, Captain, afterwards Sir Hugh, Palliser, was appointed to administer the Government of Newfoundland. Captain Palliser is said to have been one of the most en- lightened and active of the Naval Governors of New- foundland. The rules and regulations which he made, relative to the fishery, were afterwards passed into law. During 1764, the Commissioners of Customs appointed a collector and comptroller at Newfoundland, in the place of a naval officer who used to receive the duties from the fishing admirals. Newfoundland was now regarded as something more than a mere fishing station. In 1765, the navigation laws were extended to her, and she was declared one of His Majesty's " Plantations " or Colonies. These important changes were strongly resisted by the merchants at home, and the adventurers in the fisheries. During Captain 16 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Palliser's administration Labrador was again annexed to Canada. Sir Richard Bonnycastle says : " His government was conducted with moderation and hu- manity, and although he had to deal with a very intractable race, yet, by patiently investigating the abuses which were as rife as ever, he succeeded in effecting much relief for the poor fishermen, and in carrying through afterwards, by his advice, the Act of George III, statute 15, cap. 31, 1775, commonly called ' Sir Hugh Palliser's Act,' which, while it assisted the British merchant in his ship-fishery, enforced the payment of wages to the fisherman, and provided a heavy penalty, hitherto wanting, to oblige the masters of vessels to secure the return of the seamen to England. This was as ill received as it was kindly meant ; and, in Chief Justice Eeeve's day, the mer- chants complained that such was its rigour towards them that it was with the greatest difficulty they could carry on the fishery. It, however, secured the right of British European subjects to the exclusive privileges of drying fish in Newfound- land, and gave several bounties encouraging the fishery ; it controlled the frequently atrocious conduct of the masters of vessels towards their seamen in the payment of wages in articles of supply instead of money ; and gave the fishing sailors a lien or prior claim on the fish and oil for their due payment, empowering the Court of Session and Vice- Admiralty with competent jurisdiction." Sir Hugh Palliser was a warm friend of the celebrated navigator Captain Cook, under whom he made a survey of the coasts of Newfoundland. The following inter- esting account of Captain Cook is given by Sir Richard Bonnycastle : " Cook, the immortal navigator, first entered the navy as a volunteer, in the " Eagle " of 60 guns, to which Captain Palliser was soon afterwards appointed, in October, 1755. By his in- terest, and that of Cook's friends, as well as his own merits, he obtained a master's warrant, on the 10th May, 1759, or only four years after entering the navy as a common sailor. Palliser was his steady friend, and Cook joining the fleetfor Quebec in AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 17 the " Mercury," was employed in reconnoitering by Admiral Saunders, at the Captain's recommendation, as well as in making a chart of the St. Lawrence, which to this day is the best, al- though it is said that Cook had never before used a peneil, and knew nothing of drawing. On the 2'^nd September, 1759, he was appointed by Lord Colville, as before mentioned, master of the " Northumberland," his flag-ship ; and being at Halifax during the winter, he applied himself to read Euclid and to the study of astronomy, and all the other branches of science useful to a seaman. He went with the Admiral, in September, 1762, in the expedition to recapture Newfoundland from the French, and having shewn great activity and diligence in sur- veying Placentia harbour and fortifications, Captain Graves, then Governor of Newfoundland, was struck with his sagacity, formed a friendship for him, and employed him wherever the expedition went, in noticing the coast and navigation of the seas there. In 1762, Cook went to England, but returned with his patron, Captain Graves, who, as Governor, obtained with difficulty, an order for the establishment of a naval survey of Newfoundland, and got Cook appointed to carry it on. He surveyed St. Pierre and Miquelon, previous to the surrender of those islands to the French. Cook again returned home, and in 1764 Sir Hugh Palliser, his steady friend, having been made Governor, he went out with him to continue the survey, having received a commission as marine surveyor of Newfoundland and Labrador, on the 18th of April, 1764, with the " Grenville" schooner to attend him. In this arduous service he continued until the winter of 1767. His surveys are the only existing ones, and he, moreover, explored the interior in many direc- tions, and laid down several large lakes. He also observed an eclipse of the sun at one of the Burgeo islands, near Cape Kay, in latitude 47 36' 19" north, on the 5th August, 1766. His observation was sent to the Koyal Society, and published in a short paper in the 57th volume of the Philosophical Transac- tions ; and the same eclipse having been observed at Oxford, the longitude of that part was well settled, and Cook first ob- tained the character of being an able mathematician. Some of his survey marks still exist on that part of the coast. His sub- sequent career is well known, bnt the above account abridged from Kippis' Life of Captain Cook, cannot fail to be interesting B 18 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to every Newfoundlander ; and it is to be hoped that some means will be taken to preserve the survey marks on the south- west side of the island, or at least the most prominent of them ; for independently of Cook's general fame, he has been the great- est friend to Newfoundland that it ever had his accurate chart of it, and its seas, having made its importance very clear." In 1769, Governor Palliser was succeeded by Captain the Hon. John Byron, so well known by his voyages in the southern hemisphere under Lord Anson. Governor Byron was the first to issue a proclamation for the pro- tection of the native savages the red Indians among whom a war of extermination was carried on by the furriers and others. In 1772, Commodore Molineaux, who was afterwards created Lord Shuldham, was appointed Governor of New- foundland. On his assumption of the government he enforced the payment of customs duties, according to a scale sent to him from England. The collection of cus- toms at St. John's was always subordinate to the collec- tors of the Port of Boston, and as resistance to taxation by the mother country first commenced at Boston, so St. John's loudly protested against the introduction of duties on the fishery, which had always been free, hence the cause of Governor Molineaux enforcing the payment of duties. In 1774, on the 5th September, the first congress of America passed a decree suspending all importations from Great Britain, and discontinuing exports to her possessions, unless their complaints were redressed. In 1775, the second congress carried this decree into effect. Newfound- land was at this time wholly dependent on the American colonies, now the United States, for provisions which amounted annually to upwards of 300,000 sterling, or $1,500,000. " To meet the first decree of Congress, the British Parlia- ment passed an Act, 15 George III., chap. 10, by which the revolted colonies were excluded from the Newfoundland fisher- ies, and a supplementary one declaratory of non-intercourse." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. An alarming apprehension of want now prevailed, ves- sels were immediately despatched to Ireland for provi- sions. Yet great privation and want was experienced throughout the island, and to add to the distress, American privateers appeared on the coast, and so well acquainted were they with the various harbours and coves that not unfrequently they would run in and take vessels while lying at the merchants' wharves. In the year 1775 one of the heaviest storms ever known in Newfoundland took place. The sea suddenly rose twenty feet above its usual height, causing the destruction of hundreds of fishing boats and numbers of large vessels, in which three hundred persons perished. The destruction of property on the land was immense. Commodore Robert Duff was Governor during this year, who was succeeded in 1776 by Rear- Admiral Montague, who was the first Admiral who had been appointed Governor. During this year, by order of the King, a proclamation was issued for the better protection of the red Indians. In 1777, by order of the Government of France, all the French men-of war as well as merchantmen left the island. In 1778, a treaty, for the mutual protection of each other was entered into between France and the United States. During the year Governor Montague captured St. Pierre and Miquelon, and sent nearly 2,000 French, which he found residing there, to France. In 1779, Rear- Admiral Edwards assumed the Govern- ment of Newfoundland, and captured a number of French and American privateers. He was succeeded in the gov- ernment in 1782, by Vice- Admiral John Campbell, who had as his secretary, Mr. Aaron Graham, whose abilities, it is said, were of essential service to the country. Mr. Graham was afterwards a police magistrate of London. During this year the English had the entire control of the fisheries and of the island. In 1783, the treaty of peace permitted the citizens of 20 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the United States to fish on the former footing, and per- mitted them also to cure and dry fish in the unsettled harbours of Nova Scotia, the Magdalen Islands and La- brador. It was agreed that France should renounce her right of fishing on that line of coast lying between Cape Bonavista and Cape St. John ; as had been allowed by the treaty of Utrecht ; but from Cape St. John, situated on the eastern side of the island, she was, after proceeding north, to extend her privilege down the western shores as far as Cape Ray, instead of Point Riche. In 1784, the first Roman Catholic Bishop, Dr. O'Donnell, arrived in Newfoundland. The Right Reverend J. T. Mullock, D.D., Roman Catholic Bishop of St. John's, says : " On the 24th of October of that year, a proclamation was published pursuant to the instructions of His Majesty, George III. to the Governor, Justices of the Peace, and Magistrates of the Island, whereby liberty of conscience was allowed to all persons in Newfoundland, and the free exercise of such modes of religious worship as are not prohibited by law, pro- vided people be contented with a quiet and peaceable enjoy- ment of, the same, without giving offence or scandal to Govern- ment thus Catholicity was permitted and the days of open persecution were happily at an end. It may be interesting, especially to Catholics, to know the state of the Church here before that time Protestantism being the established religion, ministers were stationed in the principal settlements, but the few priests in the island had no fixed abodes they usually came out disguised in the fishing vessels, seldom staid long, and had no regular missions, as the surveillance of the local gov- ernment was too strict. In the same year of toleration, 1784, Dr. O'Donnell, the founder and father of the Church of New- foundland, landed in the island. Born in 1737, in Tipperary, he spent a large portion of his life in the Irish Franciscan Con- vent of Prague, in Bohemia ; afterwards, as superior of the Franciscans, in Waterford, and subsequently Provincial of that order in Ireland. He was the first regularly authorized mis- sioner in Newfoundland after it became a purely British settle- ment, and no man ever had British interests more at heart he AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 21 mainly saved the Island to the British crown when a mutiny broke out among the troops under the command of Colonel Skerrtett. By his influence among the Irish population, he pre- vented the disaffection from spreading, and saved the colony. If such a service had been performed in these days, by one of the Dominant Church, his reward would be a peerage and a pension ; to Dr. O'Donnell, the British government granted not a peerage, but the munificent pension of 75 or 50 (I am not sure which) per annum, for his life ; however, they acted consistently. Catholic loyalty is an affair of conscience, and consequently he only gave to Csesar what was due to Caesar. As long, however, as rewards are given by the nation to those who do their duty, especially when that duty becomes, through extraordinary circumstances, a great public benefit, so long will the stinginess of the Government of that day to Dr. O'Donnell be condemned by all right thinking men. Dr. O'Donnell was at first only Prefect Apostolic, that is, a priest exercising Epis- copal jurisdiction, and generally having, like the Prefect Apos- tolic of St. Peter's, the right of giving confirmation, which as we see by the practice of the Greek Catholic Church is not essentially an Episcopal Sacrament, if I may call it so. The importance of the population now required direct Episcopal superintendence. The sovereign pontiff, to whom is committed the care of all the churches, saw that Newfoundland was des- tined to become the home of a fixed population and the resi- dence of a floating one. Accordingly, in 1796, on the 5th day of January, the great pontiff, Pius VI., the Confessor as well as Doctor of the Faith, appointed Dr O'Donnell, Vicar Apos- tolic of Newfoundland, and Bishop of Thyatira, inpartibus, and he was consecrated in Quebec, on the 21st September of the same year." In 1786, Rear- Admiral Elliot was appointed governor. In this officer's administration, very important and beneficial changes were made in the Court of Vice- Admiralty. The Act of 26 Geo. III., cap. 26, was also passed, continuing the bounties on the fisheries for ten years. Admiral Mark Milbank succeeded to the government in 1789, who estab- lished a court of common pleas, which was followed by a 22 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, court of criminal and civil jurisdiction, and of which John Reeves, Esq., was appointed chief justice, who was a man of extensive legal knowledge and great acquirements he rectified numerous abuses of the surrogate courts. In 1793, Mr. Reeves published the " History of the Govern- ment of Newfoundland," which revealed a mass of infamy and corruption. During this period Governor King administered the government, who was succeeded in 1794 by Sir James Wallace. In 1797, Yice- Admiral Waldegrave was appointed governor, afterwards Lord Radstock, who exerted himself in the cause of religion and the just administration of the laws. In 1796, the French, commanded by Admiral Richery, with nine sail of the line, and some other small vessels of war, burnt the town and shipping of Bay Bulls. The following local occurrences are given by a gentleman in St. John's, who took part in the proceedings of the periods referred to, and as the particulars narrated are not published in any history of Newfoundland, we lay them before the reader. 1793. "The commencement of the revolutionary war with France gave rise to important changes in the Government departments in all the colonies. The first movement in North America was the taking of the Islands of St. Pierre and Mique- lon from the French, by a brigade from Halifax. The left wing of the Nova Scotia Fencibles, a corps then forming chiefly from refugee soldiers, who had settled in Nova Scotia after the first American War, were ordered here to relieve the detachment of the 4th or King's Own Regiment, who were ordered to join their head quarters at St. Peter's. In the course of the summer, arrangements were made for forming three or four volunteer companies, including one of Artillery. Three companies were officered by the principal gentlemen of St. John's, and soon filled up by respectable tradesmen and fishermen of the town. " During the first American War, it had been thought expe- dient to erect redoubts on the roads from the adjacent out-ports, viz. : Torbay Road, at Cox's Marsh, two redoubts mounting AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 23 two 18 pounders carronades each, with a guard-house for a sta- tionary gunner ; and on the same road at Pipestock-hill, about a mile from Torbay, three guns were mounted ; and at the vil- lage of Torbay, a battery of four long 6 pounders with a guard- house and a sergeant's weekly command. Two or three guns were mounted on the rising ground north-east end of Twenty- mile Pond, on the Portugal Cove road. There were also a guard-house and battery at Hayes's Farm, on the Petty-har- bour Road. 1794. "Estimates had been prepared and approved of for repairing and improving the existing defences, and plans had also been submitted to the Board of Ordnance for fortifying Signal Hill, which having met the approbation of the Honour- able Board, preparations were entered into for that object pro- portionate to the magnitude of the undertaking. " Early this summer. Colonel Skinner, Commanding Royal Engineer, received a letter of service directing him to raise a Regiment of Fencible Infantry, to be called the Koyal New- foundland Fencibles, of which he was appointed Colonel ; and having the appointment of his officers, selections were made here and at the out-ports, of such gentlemen as were likely, from their loyalty, responsibility and influence, soon to raise the quotas of men required for their respective commissions. " The recruiting service commenced with great spirit about the latter end of September, at the close of the fishery, and in two months more than half the number were enlisted. An Adjutant, late a non-commissioned officer of the Royal Artil- lery, a Quartermaster, and Sergeant-major, arrived from Eng- land. 1795. " It has been stated that the Nova Scotia Regiment was chiefly formed of old refugee soldiers from the American Army, many of whom were well disciplined non-commissioned officers, and were of great service in drilling and forming the young recruits of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment ; and it was astonishing how soon the latter became fit for duty ; when this service was performed the Nova Scotia Regiment were ordered to return to Halifax. " In the mean time some buildings were erected at Signal Hill, and the first block-house commenced. " There being no carriage road to Signal Hill, all the guns 24 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, required for the Hill were taken by men of the garrison, and parbuckled up the face of the rock, at Crow's Nest, and thence to the respective batteries ; a most laborious and dangerous service. " Preparations for the more effectual defence of the Narrows were also going on, in the formation of three furnaces for heating shot, viz. : at Fort Frederick, Chain Rock, and Fort William. " A large naval force from different stations met here that summer, consisting of the " Monarch," 74, the Governor's ship ; the " Eamilies," 74 ; the " Adamant," and another 50 ; four fri- gates, and three sloops of war, all in the harbour at the same time. 1796-. " The levy of the Royal Newfoundland Eegiment had been completed the preceding fall ; and it was found that the barracks at Forts Townsend and William were insufficient to contain so many men ; it was therefore ordered that the garri- son should go under canvas for a few months while the old barracks were being repaired and cleansed, and some of the new barracks at Signal Hill finished, and also for the greater facility of practising the officers and men of that young regiment in the indispensable tactics and operations of the field. A camp was accordingly formed on the general parade ground, with a small park of artillery, of which the troops took possession about the middle of June. The improved defences of the Narrows being finished, some experiments were tried with heated shot before His Excellency Admiral Sir James Wallace, the Governor, which gave general satisfaction. A large platform of wood was built on South Point called the Duke of York's Battery, on which were mounted eight 24-pounder guns, three or four 18-pounder carronades, and two 10-inch mortars. The Block- house was so forward as to admit six guns to be mounted on the second floor. The regiment by this time the latter part of August was approaching fast to systematic regularity and dis- cipline, and of approved internal economy. " Such being the state of the garrison and fortifications, together with the efficiency of the volunteer companies, a fine set of men, particularly the company of volunteer artillery, selected from among the flower of the inhabitants of St. John's as well as the undoubted loyalty of the inhabitants a wish seemed AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 25 to be inspired, that something might happen to test the fidelity of the whole. If such was the case, it was not long before that wish was realized, for early in the morning of the first day of September, the signal was made for an enemy's fleet to the southward, which proved to be that of the French Admiral Kichery, consisting of seven sail of the line, two frigates, and some other small vessels of war. The signal of alarm and de- fiance was instantly made at Signal Hill and all the forts. There was only the Governor's ship and one frigate in port. " His Excellency Admiral Sir James Wallace, a governor of warlike celebrity, immediately proclaimed martial law, and ordered all the men in the town fit for service merchants with their domestic and wharf establishments, captains of vessels with their crews, planters, with their fishermen and shoremen to muster in front of the camp, where they were enrolled and told off to the forts and batteries, and were not to be dismissed until the governor's pleasure was known. The enemy stood off and on, near Cape Spear, all that day ; and during the night the road was opened from Maggotty Cove Bridge through the inclosures leading to Signal Hill, by direction of the governor, in order to expedite the transport of ammunition, stores and provisions to Signal Hill, as well as the camp equipage, which had been struck in the evening ; and by daylight on the morn- ing of the second, the tents were all pitched on the summit of the hill, from Duke of York's Battery to Cuckold's Head, and also on the south side hill, over Fort Amherst. This warlike demonstration, with the display of three or four thousand men on the hill, must have had a very intimidating effect on Mon- sieur, when viewed from sea. This day passed off, under some- thing like a passive hesitation on the part of the enemy ; a great deal of telegraphing and boat communication took place with the flag-ship, and towards evening the fleet stood a little further off to sea. Reconnoitering parties were out along shore, north and south, day and night, in anticipation of a landing being effected. " A great many seamen were employed that day in raising the chain across the narrows ; the great capstan at the south side being asststed by three schooners placed at equal distances from Chain Rock, and by grappling the chain with their an- chors, and heaving altogether, they raised it to the surface of 26 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the water ; these vessels were also charged with combustibles, and were intended to be used as fire-ships on the enemy coming in contact with the chain. The flag-ship and the frigate were also placed at enfilading distance in the harbour to give them a warm reception on entering the Narrows. " On the first appearance of the enemy, the shot furnaces were kindled ; it was found difficult, however, to preserve the pro- per degree of heat, and to prevent fusion, which happened to some of the shot. On the third the enemy formed a line and stood in for the Narrows, when it was expected their intention was to attempt a landing. They stood on till the van ship was near the extreme range of the guns at Fort Aniherst, when she and all of them put about and stood off to sea. They remained in sight for several days, and at last bore away to the south- ward, and arrived at Bay Bulls, where they landed ; and to consummate their dastardly conduct, they drove the poor de- fenceless inhabitants to the woods " ' Burnt their stores and houses, Took their fish and oil, The hard-earned produce Of their yearly toil.' " Thus terminated the great excitement occasioned by the appearance of so formidable a French armament. " The detachments at the respective posts were continued till it was ascertained that the French fleet had entirely left the coast. " During the alarm, there was only one old man or a small boy allowed on each merchant's wharf, vessel or fishing room ; all the rest were stationed at the forts and batteries. "A large proportion of civilians were stationed at Signal Hill, where they performed a vast deal of labour the volun- teer companies with their officers setting the emulative example in dragging guns, mortars and carriages, provisions and stores of all kinds, through the recently opened and very rugged road to the hill. " The order for embodying the inhabitants being now re- versed, they returned to their respective avocations, under the publicly-marked approbation of the governor, for their regu- larity, devoted loyalty, and attention to military discipline, under the privations to which they were subjected during the emergency." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 27 In 1795, the quantity of cod fish taken was, 600,000 quintals, 4,900 seals, besides a great quantity of salmon, &c. the whole amounting to about one million and a half pounds sterling, or six million dollars. During the administration of Admiral Waldgerave, Richard Routh, Esq., presided as Judge of the Supreme Court. Governor Pole held the reins of government in 1800, and was succeeded, in 1802, by Admiral Lord Gambier, who encouraged the education of the people, and pro- moted the general interests of the country. In this year the treaty of Amiens was signed, by which the French were reinstated in their possession of St. Pierre and Miquelon, and in their concurrent rights of the fishery. During the rule of Admiral Gambier, a red Indian female was taken and brought to St. John's. In 1804, Admiral Sir Erasmus Gower was appointed governor, in whose administration Sunday-schools were established, and the Benevolent Irish Society formed for the relief of the poor. Admiral Hollo way assumed the government in 1807. In his time a Volunteer Militia was formed, and the first post office established, but no packet or regular mail communication. The Court of Judica- ture, which had hitherto been merely the subject of experiment, was made perpetual by an Act of Parliament in 1809. The coast of Labrador, which for some time previously had been separated from the government of Newfoundland, was re-annexed, to it ; and an ineffectual attempt was also made, under the direction of Lieutenant Spratt, R.N., to open an intercourse with the Indians. In 1807, the first newspaper was printed in New- foundland. In 1810, Vice- Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth assumed the government, who visited various parts of the island, and issued a proclamation for the protection of the red Indians. He also sent a small armed schooner, under the command of Lieutenant Buchan, R.N., to the 28 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Bay of Exploits, to open a friendly intercourse with the Indians, which, however, terminated very disastrously. Two marines had been left at an Indian encampment as a guard, while Lieutenant Buchan proceeded in search for another encampment. On his return, however, he found his two marines decapitated, and that the whole of the savages had decamped. In 1811, an Act authorizing the holding of Surrogate Courts on the Labrador was passed by the British Parliament ; several important changes were made in the letting of ship's rooms, and the streets of St John's were greatly improved. A reward was also offered of one hundred pounds to any person who should bring about a friendly understanding with the red Indians. In 1812, war was declared by the United States of America against Great Britain, on the 17th of June, which produced much excitement and alarm in Newfoundland. During the summer the small-pox prevailed in St. John's. 'The North American fleet shortly after arrived at St. John's, consisting of three sail of the line, twenty-one frigates, and 37 sloops, brigs, and schooners of war. In 1813, Vice- Admiral Sir Richard Goodwin Keates was .appointed governor. Owing to the wars, the fisheries were left at this period almost exclusively in the hands of the British, who had few competitors in the markets abroad ; this, together with the circulation of money arising from the naval and military establishments, as well as from the prizes brought into St. John's, from time to time, produced an unexampled degree of prosperity. In 1814, one million two hundred thousand quintals of codfish were exported, valued at the enormous price of 2 per quintal ; twenty thousand quintals of core-fish in bar- rels ; six thousand tons of cod or train oil, at 32 per ton; one hundred and fifty-six thousand seal skins, at five shillings each ; four thousand six hundred and sixty-six tons of seal oil, at 36 per ton ; besides salmon, mackerel, furs and berries, to the amount of 10,000 ; the whole amounting to no less a sum than two million, eight AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 29 dred and twenty-eight thousand, nine hundred and seven- ty-six pounds, or eleven million, one hundred and forty- four thousand dollars. Provisions at this time were at an enormous price. Biscuit sold at 6 or $30 per cwt. ; flour at 8 or $40 per barrel; pork at <12 or $60 per barrel ; butter at 3 shillings or 75 cents per Ib. ; salt 2 or $10 per hogshead, and shop goods in proportion. At this period the wages of fishermen were, for a com- mon hand 70 or $350 for the season, commencing the beginning of June and ending about the last of October ; and for a prime hand or " splitter" 140 or $700. In the same year, on the 17th June, the Treaty of Paris was concluded, when a general depression and fall in the value of the produce of the fisheries immediately took place throughout the Island, attended with a num- ber of mercantile failures. In 1817, Vice-Admiral Pickmore assumed the govern- ment. During his administration, two destructive fires occurred in St. John's and destroyed property to a great amount (for further account of which, see district of St. John.) The winter of 1818 is said to have been the coldest ever experienced in Newfoundland, in the midst of which Governor Pickmore died. He was the first governor who had ever remained on the island during the winter season. His remains were placed for some time in a vault of the church, and subsequently carried to England in His Majesty's ship " Fly." The temporary management of affairs was assumed by Captain Bowker, of H. M. S. " Sir Francis Drake." In 1818, Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Ham- ilton was appointed governor, who was the first governor who permanently resided in the island. During this period the fisheries were very successful, and a purer administration of justice prevailed ; at this time Francis Forbes, Esq., afterwards Sir Francis, an English barris- ter, was Chief Justice, who was put into office on the 4th of August, 1816, which he filled for six years. His talents 30 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, as a judge are said to have been of a superior order. Mr. Morris says : " No sooner did he take his place upon the bench of the Supreme Court, than the old despotic system, as if by magic, vanished before him. When it was attempted to make the rules, orders and proclamations have the force of laws ; when tomes of them were heaped on the table of the court, to the utter discomfiture of the advocates of the monopolists, he said he viewed them in no other light than as bundles of waste paper, which could not have the slightest authority with the court. For the first time the people of Newfoundland discov- ered the whole system, under which they had so long been governed, to be a despotic usurpation of power, equally opposed to law as to their inherent rights and privileges of British sub- jects. From this time, it may be said, the English code suc- ceeded the mercantile code the reign of the monopolist was no more." In 1819, an Indian female was captured by an armed party in the month of March, and taken to St. John's, where she was kindly treated by Lady Hamilton and others. She was afterwards sent back with presents to her tribe, but she died before she reached them. At this time the laws were administered in the out-posts of the island, by resident and floating surrogate courts, from which parties could appeal to the supreme court in St. John's, if the suit exceeded 40. The magistrates also held courts of session, which had jurisdiction in cases not exceeding forty shillings, and in cases of assault. Sir Richard Bonnycastle, and | Mr. McGregor observes, there has been no instance of a. British colony so inade- quately provided for, in the administration of its internal affairs, as Newfoundland. Always regarded as a mere fishing station, the energies of its 'population were also thus always checked, and the interest, the obvious and actually necessary interest, of the merchant adventurers in the fishery was, to keep as much as possible in their own hands, and, as in the case of India, governed by a AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 31 mercantile body, to exclude competition from without or within. In 1822, Mr. Forbes resigned the Chief Justiceship of Newfoundland, and was succeeded in the office by Richard Alexander Tucker, Esquire, afterwards Registrar of Upper Canada, where he died in 1873. In 1824, in consequence of the partial and corrupt ad- ministration of justice in the surrogate courts having been represented to the Home Government, an Act was passed by the Imperial Parliament " for the better Ad- ministration of Justice in Newfoundland," when most im- portant and beneficial changes took place. In 1825, Captain (afterwards Admiral) Sir Thomas Cochrane assumed the civil government of the island. In 1826, on the 2nd of January, a Royal Charter; granted by the king, under authority of an Act of Parlia- ment, was promulgated : The Surrogate Courts were now abolished, and the charter provided that the Supreme Court should be held by a Chief Judge and two assistant Judges ; that the island should be divided into three cir- cuitsnorthern, central, and southern ; that at each of these three separate circuit courts, one or other of the three judges should preside ; that the Supreme Court should admit a sufficient number of qualified attorneys and soli- citors to practise in the several courts, and to grant letters of administration and probates of wills. The salary of the Chief Justice was to be twelve hundred pounds ster- ling per annum, and that of the two assistant judges, seven hundred each. It also provided that the Governor should annually appoint a high sheriff, who was to enter into recognizances of 5,000, with two securities of 2,000 each, for the due performance of his duties ; and that in causes exceeding 500 sterling, appeals might be made from the Supreme Court to the King in Council. The first two assistant judges appointed to act in con- junction with Chief Justice Tucker were John William Molloy, Esq., and Augustus Wallet des Barres, Esq. Mr. 32 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Molloy in a short time was removed from office, and suc- ceeded by Edward Brabazon Brenton, Esq., at whose decease in 1845, George Lilley, Esq., was appointed to fill the office, and on the death of Mr. Lilley in 1847, James Simms, Esq., the late attorney-general, was appointed, when Edward M. Archibald, Esq., was appointed attorney- general, now British consul in New York City. Mr. Des Barres held the office of judge from the granting of the charter to 1858, when, under the responsible system of government, the Parliament of Newfoundland pensioned off Messrs. Des Barres and Simms, and appointed Bryan Robinson, Esq., a member of the Irish bar, and long a leading practitioner at the bar of the island, and Philip F. Lilley, Esq., late attorney-general of Newfoundland, in their place as assistant judges of the Supreme Court. Mr. Lilley was the first member of the Newfoundland bar elevated to the bench. The population at this time (1826) is said to have been about 55,000. In 1827, a " Boesthic Society" was formed in St. John's, having for its object the civilization of the red Indians. W. E. Cormack, Esq., the president of the so- ciety, travelled through the interior of the country, but without meeting with a single Indian. (See " Red In- dians," in another part of this volume.) Sir Thomas Cochrane was the first naval officer, hold- ing the appointment of governor, detached from the com- mand of the squadron on the station. He was assisted by an executive council, composed of the judges, the com- mandant of the garrison, and the collector of the customs. Sir Thomas was very fond of show, his aides-de-camp were called colonels of militia, although no militia existed in the island. Governor Cochrane, however, was an intelligent and enterprising man, and promoted the interests of the country by encouraging agriculture, opening roads, and the erection of public buildings. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 33 In 1827, Sir Thomas Cochrane visited England, and during his absence the temporary administration of the Government devolved on Chief Justice Tucker. During this year, James Crowdy, Esq., was appointed Secretary of the colony. Arthur H. Brooking, Esq., was Collector of H.M. Customs. In 1828, the building of Government House com- menced, and a road opened from St. John's to Portugal Cove. In 1829, the true position of the Virgin Rocks was ascertained by one of His Majesty's ships. These dan- gerous shoals are situate on the western edge of the Grand Bank, 18 leagues S.E. by E. from Cape Race, in lat. 46 26' 15" north ; long. 50 56' 35" west. In 1830, several benevolent societies were formed, called "Fishermen's and Shoremen's Associations," and " Mechanics' Societies." In 1831, Governor Cochrane again went to England. During this year, numerous petitions were presented to His Majesty's Government for constituting a permanent colony by the establishment of a local legislature. These petitions, however, were strongly opposed by the mer- chants in England connected with the Newfoundland trade. In 1832, a -Representative Assembly was granted by His Majesty William IV., and, at the same time, Governor Cochrane obtained a new commission, by which he was invested with enlarged authority. It empowered him to convoke a Colonial Parliament, to create a Legislative and Executive Council, composed of seven persons, any of whom he could suspend from acting if he found just cause for so doing. He was authorized to divide the island into nine districts, townships, or counties ; to negative any bill which the Assembly should pass contrary to his will, and to adjourn, prorogue, or dissolve the same. The House of Assembly consisted of fifteen members, the qualification for which was : All persons of the full 34 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, age of twenty-one years, being of sound understanding, natural-born subjects, or lawfully naturalized never having been convicted of any infamous crime, and having, for two years next immediately preceding the day of elec- tion, occupied, as owner or tenant, a dwelling-house with- in the island. The electors were the whole male popula- tion of twenty-one years of age, occupying a dwelling- house, either as owner or tenant for one year only. In 1833, on New Year's Day, the first session of the Colonial Parliament was opened by Sir Thomas Cochrane, when some beneficial laws were enacted, shortly after which Chief-Justice Tucker resigned, in consequence of a misunderstanding between the House of Assembly and the Legislative Council, of which Mr. Tucker wae. presi- dent. On the subject of taxation, Mr. Tucker contended that the trade and state of the country in general was not able to sustain a revenue. The Kevenue Bill, how- ever, passed in the House of Assembly, but, in accord- ance with the President's views, was rejected in the Council. The General Assembly was adjourned, and the matter was referred to the Secretary of State, who over- ruled the objection of the Council. Mr. Tucker was suc- ceeded in the office of Chief Justice by Henry John Boulton, Esq., late Attorney-General of Upper Canada. During this year, Newman W. Hoyles^ Esq., was ap- pointed Treasurer of the colony, at whose decease, in 1837, Patrick Morris, Esq., succeeded to the office, and on the death of Mr. Morris, in 1849, Robert Carter, Esq., R.N., was appointed, who continued to hold office until the introduction of Responsible Government, when he was superseded by the then Receiver-General, the Hon. Thos. Glen. In 1834, Captain, afterwards Admiral, Henry Prescott, arrived on the 1st of November, and assumed the Govern- ment. Sir Thomas Cochrane and family departed for England on the 6th of the same month. The Treasury at this period was completely empty, and one of the first AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 35 measures of the new governor was to issue Treasury notes to the amount of 5,600, in accordance with the provi- sions of an Act passed in the previous Session of the Legis- lature. The imports of Newfoundland this year amounted to 618,757 = $3,093,785, and the exports to 826,659 = $4,- 133,295, leaving a balance in favour of the colony of 207,- 902, or $1,039,510. During this year, 828 British and 20 American and Spanish ships arrived, besides which about 700 schooners were employed in the fisheries, of which 358 were engaged in the seal fishery. The number of vessels employed at the Bank fishery this year, was estimated at about 20, where formerly no less than 700 vessels were engaged. The population now had amounted to about 70,000. There were at this time seven newspapers pub- lished in the island five in St. John's, and two in Con- ception Bay. In 1834, the Criminal Calendar exhibited a great amount of crime, four persons were convicted of murder, and exe- cuted. In 1835, in the sixth Session of the Local Legislature, an Act was passed imposing an import duty of two and a- half per cent, on certain goods, wares, and merchandize, which the following year left a surplus fund in the Trea- sury. During this year the freedom of the press was attempted to be put down by personal violence. Mr. Winton, editor of the Public Ledger, (the leading newspaper published in St. John's) denounced the Roman Catholic Clergy (whom he conceived to have unjustly and unnecessarily inter- ferred in the election of members to the House of Assem- bly), was waylaid by several persons masked, and in the open day, on the road between Carbonear and Harbour Grace, was torn from his horse, beaten in a most brutal manner, and left bleeding on the road side with both ears cut off. The perpetrators of this crime have never been discovered, although a reward of 1,500 or $6,000 was offered for their detection and conviction. 36 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, In 1836 an Act was passed limiting the future duration of the House of Assembly to four years. About this period appears to have been the greatest political trouble in Newfoundland. The poor people had not a vestige of liberty, and were the merest tools and slaves of party. The merchants on the one hand threatened them with the refusal of supplies necessary for the support of their families, if they refused to vote for their (the merchants') candidate for the House of Assembly. On the other hand the Roman Catholic clergy held over their heads the thun- der of excommunication, if they refused to vote for the candidate of the clergy ; hence political strife prevailed to an alarming extent between Protestants and Catholics the population of the island being about half and half of the two denominations. The Protestants were called the Conservatives, and the Catholics the Liberals. Each party had their choice men, and the people voted blindly. Not one man in a hundred had any thing to do directly or indirectly in selecting the candidate whom he had assisted in electing. About this time Chief Justice Boulton made a speech, at a public dinner, which gave great offence to the Roman Catholics. He afterwards altered the scale of jury fees, and the mode of striking juries, also the old acknowledged claim of the fisherman's lien for the payment of his wages upon the proceeds of the voyage ; for these and similar acts he was strongly denounced by the Roman Catholic press. Mr. Boulton, very injudiciously, descended from the bench and pleaded his own cause before two judges of the Court of which he was Chief Judge, against libels upon his own public conduct. Petitions from the Roman Catholics were forwarded to the Home Government, praying for his removal ; and he was charged by the House of Assembly before Her Majes- ty's Privy Council with being a political partizan and a perverter of the administration of justice. Dr. Lushington was employed as counsel by the House of Assembly, and AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 37 Mr. Burge by Chief Justice Boulton. The Privy Council exonerated Mr. Boulton from all charges of corruption in the exercise of his judicial functions, but recommended his removal from office, which was confirmed by the Queen on the 5th July, 1838. The Rev. Dr. Dixon, late President of the Methodist Conference in England, during his visit to Canada in 1848 says: " On board the steamer we met Chief Justice Robinson and Mr. Boulton, late Chief Justice of Newfoundland, now a resi- dent in Toronto, and one of the members of the House of Assembly. These gentlemen belonged to different grades in politics, Mr. Robinson being at the head of the Conservatives and the leading member of the late Government ; whilst Mr. Boulton belongs to the Liberals, and supports the present party in power. They were going on circuit, the one as a judge and the other as counsel We found them very agreeable men. Mr. Boulton, whom I met again on board the " America " on my return to this country, complained much of the treatment he had met with in connection with his office of Chief Justice of Newfoundland." About two years previous to his death, Mr. Boulton also complained to the writer of the bad treatment he received from the Home Government, and particularly by Admiral Prescott, the then Governor. In 1838, John Gervase Hutchinson Bourne, Esq., Fel- low of Magdalen College, Oxford, arrived in Newfound- land as the successor to Mr. Boulton in the Chief Justice- ship of the island. In about two years the Legislature voted 35,000 or $175,000 for making roads and bridges, and agriculture began to be pursued much more extensively. Schools were also established in various parts of the island. A writer in the English Metropolitan Magazine, for 1839, thus describes the state of Newfoundland at this period : "I am now come to an important epoch in the history of Newfoundland, and one fruitful of troubles. The Chief Justice 38 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, had by this time hecome the idol of one party, and the abhor- red of the other. By the wealthier merchants and gentry he was adored, and looked upon as their only stay ; while by the Catholic, or liberal party, he was considered a tyrant and op- pressor. He unfortunately promoted these opposite opinions by attending public meetings, and making party speeches ; and, instead of contenting himself with firmly and temperately resisting aggression, he seemed to court occasions of conten- tion. He made abrupt alterations wherever he had the power to do so, and while his law was probably correct, his conduct in other respects was by no means worthy of admiration. Be- tween the Governor and him there was understood to be no similarity of sentiment, although there was no open quarrel. " Writs for a new election were immediately issued, and the legislature was appointed to meet in January. The Catholic portion of the population was openly excited, and indeed com- pelled by the priesthood, to vote for candidates of their nomi- nation, and the Conservative party were very generally de- feated. Serious riots took place in Harbour Grace, and similar excesses were prevented in St. John's, only by the presence of the military. " Respecting these riots, some magistrates having made re- presentations, the Governor laid them before the Council. These representations occasioned the production to the board of a returned writ ; and the Chief Justice perceiving it to be unsealed, immediately pronound it to be invalid. The attorney- general, the only other legal member, coinciding with him in that opinion, the matter was referred to the Secretary of State, and the meeting of the legislature was further prorogued. The Secretary of State admitted the objection, and directed a new election ; a measure greatly to be regretted, as, on the question being subsequently submitted for the opinion of the law officers of the crown, the original elections were declared to be perfectly legal. " So novel a circumstance as that of a double election was allowed to pass neither unnoticed nor uncensured by the Liberals. They affected to represent it as a trick for their over- throw, although nothing could be more palpable than the im- possibility of the executive's influencing the returns, had it even been disposed to make the attempt. The Conservatives AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 39 now abandoned the field altogether. Consequently no dis- turbance occurred in any district, and the session was opened on the 3rd of July. " The composition of the House of Assembly was much in- ferior to that of the former ; the new members being in gene- ral of a low, and some of them of the very lowest, grade of society. Previously existing passions had been lately still fur- ther inflamed by a variety of prosecutions connected with the original election proceedings, and principally consequent upon presentments by the grand jury. The sentences upon those convicted of riot or assault were by the Home Government deemed severe, and, upon petition, in a great degree remitted. " The first act of the House was to displace the officers ap- pointed to it by the Crown, and their proceedings, generally, throughout the session, were of a corresponding character, being violent and personal, having for their object the gratification of the friends and the injury of the opponents of the dominant party. There was throughout a contest between the Council and the House of Assembly, maintained on both sides with much heat ; and at length the prorogation took place, without any appropriation of money for the services of the year, the Bill passed by the Assembly having been rejected by the Council. A delegation of three members of the House of Assembly pro- ceeded to England for the purpose of making a statement of supposed grievances, and of instituting charges against the Chief Justice. These last were submitted to a committee of the Privy Council, which exonerated Mr. Boulton as regarded his judicial decisions, but recommended his removal from the colony. " On the 20th of June, 1838, commenced the yearly session, and the result of the appeal by the Council and Assembly re- spectively to Her Majesty on the rejection of the Appropriation Bill of the last year having been previously transmitted to the Governor, the offer of her royal mediation was communicated to both Houses. The Queen recommended the adoption of that Bill by the Council, but suggested to the Assembly certain rules of conduct for its future guidance in similar cases. With infinite difficulty the Bill was carried in Council by the official members present, and the casting vote of one other ; the re- maining three members opposing it to the utmost, and ulti- 40 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, mately protesting against it. Thus ceased an embarrassment which had been sensibly felt by the public ; but a new subject of discord quickly arose. An altercation took place in the streets of St. John's between Mr. Kent, a member of the House of Assembly, and Dr. Kielley, a medical practitioner. Upon complaint made by Mr. Kent, Mr. Kielley was taken into custody by the Serjeant-at-Arms, and brought to the bar of the House on the following day, the 27th of August. Being called upon for explanation, he used, in the heat of passion, very opprobrious language towards Mr. Kent. Upon this he was re- manded till the sixth, when he was required to apologise, and upon his refusal to do so, was committed to jail by the Speaker's warrant to the Sheriff. The next day he was, by a writ of habeas corpus, brought before a Judge of the Supreme Court, by whose order he was released, and upon this being stated to the House by the Sheriff, when directed to produce his prisoner at the bar, on the llth, both the Judge and the Sheriff were immediately arrested by the Speaker's warrant, the former with indecent violence. Upon this being officially made known to the Governor, he signified his intention of proroguing the Assembly, and on Monday, the 13th, it was prorogued accordingly for seven days. By this measure the prisoners were at once liberated and the members were allowed time to cool. When the legis- lature was re-assembled, business proceeded, though not, of course, harmoniously ; and on the 25th of October the session was closed, provision having having been made for the yearly routine of government. In the previous month Mr. Bourne, Mr. Boulton's successor in the office of Chief Justice, had arrived, but, by a wise provision, he has not, nor will any judge in future have, a seat in the Council. A session of the Supreme Court was held in the following December, when Mr. Kielley brought an action against the Speaker, other members, and officers of the House, for false imprisonment; but privilege being pleaded in demurrer, the Chief Justice and Judge Desbarres decided in favour of the plea, while the remaining judge, Mr. Lilly, retained his former opinion. An appeal to Her Majesty in Council was entered, and a colonial barrister proceeded to London to take the necessary steps for its prose- cution. "An elaborate opinion of Her Majesty's Attorney and Solicitor AND AS IT IS IN 1877. Generals was forwarded officially to the Governor. This opinion denies the power of committal assumed by the House, and con- sequently tends to allay the apprehension which could not but be entertained by the most dispassionate and impartial mind, of the evils likely to arise from an arbitrary power of imprison- ment being possessed by such a body." In 1840, a regular sailing packet between St. John's and Halifax, once a fortnight, had commenced under the orders of the Postmaster-General, and a regular post-office established at St. John's, of which William Solomon, Esq., was appointed postmaster. On the 5th of November, H.M. steamer "Spitfire" arrived at St. John's, bringing from Halifax a detachment of men for the Royal Newfoundland Companies. After remain- ing a few days, she sailed for England. This was the first steamer which ever appeared in a port of Newfound- land. In 1841, on the 26th of April, Governor Prescott dis- solved the Local Parliament, and in consequence of riotous proceedings at the election of a member in Conception Bay (in the room of one who had died) in which several persons were shot, and a house burnt, the Constitution was suspended. Captain Prescott was the last of a long line of naval governors who ruled Newfoundland, and for the first time a military governor of high rank, in the person of Major, afterwards Lieutenant-General, Sir John Harvey arrived on the 16th September, 1841 ; previous to the arrival of whom Lieutenant-Colonel Sail administered the Govern- ment. Sir John held a high military post in Canada dur- ing the last war, and had been governor of each of the Colonies of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. He was Governor of the Province of Nova Scotia, which he ruled with consummate tact and ability, and died there while governor in 1853. Sir John was a man of generous and noble disposition, and very fine literary taste. Under his rule a new era dawned upon Newfound- 42 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, land, political animosities were hushed to rest, roads were opened, education encouraged, and the agricultural re- sources of the country developed. James M. Spearman was at this time Collector of H.M. Customs. In 1842, an Act was passed by the Imperial Parliament for amending the constitution of the Government of New- foundland ; the principal features in which this measure differed from the previous system of government, were the abolition of the Legislative Council as a distinct branch, and its amalgamation with the Assembly into one House. There was also an Executive Council distinct from the Legislative (composed, however, of nearly the same per- sons), for advising the Governor. The qualification of per- sons elected to serve as members in the Assembly was a net annual income of 100, or the possession of property, clear of all incumbrances, to the amount or value of 500. The qualification of voters was the possession of a dwelling house for one year. All the elections were simultaneous, being completed in a given time on the same day through- out the island. This Act, however, expired at the end of four years. It was probably designed to heal the party feuds of the island, so rampant at the time of its enact- ment. During this year, on the 13th January, the first Agricultural Society was formed under the auspices of Governor Harvey, who delivered an interesting speech on the occasion, a copy of which was sent to Lord Stanley, then Secretary of State for the Colonies. In 1843, on the 17th January, Sir John Harvey opened the first ses- sion of the General Assembly under the new form of Constitution, in a speech remarkable for its length, liter- ary composition, and general information. During the session, a very useful and popular Education Act passed, introduced by the late Mr. Barnes, a member of the Assembly. In 1844, through the exertions of Sir John Harvey, a steamer was employed to carry the mail. She was AND AS IT IS IN 1877. called the "North America," and commanded by Cap- tain Richard Meagher. Her first voyage from Halifax to St. John's was accomplished in sixty hours. She ar- rived on the morning of the 22nd of April. During this year Chief Justice Bourne was dismissed from office, and succeeded by Thomas Norton, Esq., late one of the Assis- tant Judges of Demerara. Mr. Norton was a member of the Irish bar, and the first Roman Catholic Judge who presided in a Court in Newfoundland. He was a good lawyer, very humorous, and endowed with talents of no common order. He gave more universal satisfaction dur- ing the short time he remained on the island, than any judge who had ever preceded him. Mr. Bourne was con- sidered a profound lawyer, but possessed a very violent temper. After his return to England, he published two volumes of poems, entitled " England Won," and the "Exile of Idria," a short time after which, his decease took place. About this time the Land Act passed, by which the possessor of Crown Land is secured in his title without having had a previous grant ; and about 40,000 voted for constructing roads and bridges. In 1845, Prince Henry, son of the King of Holland, arrived at St. John's, in the "Rhine" frigate, from Iceland. " Shortly after the vessel had come to anchor, His Excel- lency, Major-General Sir John Harvey, attended by his Staff, embarked at the Queen's Wharf, where a Guard of Honour had been drawn up to receive His Excellency, and proceeded on board the frigate to pay his respects to His Royal Highness, and to welcome him to Newfoundland. His Excellency was received on board under a royal salute of twenty-one guns, which was responded to from the battery at Fort William ; and, after remaining some time with the Prince, and inviting him to Government House, His Excellency left the frigate, and re- turned under another salute. "His Royal Highness, dressed in naval uniform, as commander of the "Rhine," and attended by his officers, landed at a little after one o'clock, at the Queen's Wharf, where His Excellency 44 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the Governor, with his suite, and the usual escort of the heads of departments, received him with a Guard of Honour, and proceeded to Government House, where a Levee was held. " On the following Monday, His Royal Highness landed in state at the Queen's Wharf, where he was received by His Ex- cellency and suite, and thence proceeded to Government House. From the wharf to Government House gate, the route which His Royal Highness took was lined with trees temporarily planted, and at the centre and top of Cochrane Street, were erected two superb Triumphal Arches, devised and decorated. " In addition to a very large number of the inhabitants, com- prising those of every class and creed, the Mechanics' Society, together with the Benevolent Irish Society, and the captains and crews of the numerous Spanish vessels then in port, carry- ing their respective flags, swelled the procession which fol- lowed the Royal Visitor and His Excellency to Government House, when some time was occupied in receiving or delivering addresses. " In the evening a display of fireworks took place. Almost simultaneously with the visit of the Prince, H. M. S. ' Hyacinth,' arrived from Halifax, also, the steamer ' Unicorn,' together with an armed French schooner from St. Pierre, in addition to which there were about 50 sail of Spanish merchantmen in the harbour, besides all the English vessels. Among the passen- gers brought by the ' Unicorn,' were the Right Rev. and Hon. Lord Bishop of Nova Scotia and the two Misses Inglis, Major Tryon, 43rd Regt., Major of Brigade in Nova Scotia, and Lady, (daughter of Sir John Harvey) and family ; Lieut. W. F. Dickson, 62nd Regt., son of and Aid-de-camp to Sir Jeremiah Dickson : Col. Creighton ; Hon'bles. S. Cunard, M. Tobin, and E. Kenny. " His Royal Highness accompanied Sir John Harvey, in the steamer "Unicorn," on an excursion to Harbour Grace, Car- bonear, and other parts of Conception Bay."* On the 9th of June, 1846, a calamitous fire desolated a greater part of the Town of St. John's, by which upwards of 2,000 houses were destroyed, and property to the amount * Newspapers of the day. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 45 of 800,000 or $4,000,000 consumed, (see District of St. John's). On the 24th of August, Sir John Harvey em- barked for Halifax, to assume the Government of Nova Scotia, and Lieutenant-Colonel Law was appointed Admi- nistrator of the Government. In the winter of 1847, the sixth and last session of the Amalgamated Legislature was dissolved by Lieutenant-Colonel Law. On the 22nd of April, 1847, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant, arrived and assumed the govern- ment. The country at this time passed through a terrible ordeal, for in addition to the fire having destroyed St. John's, the potato crop failed, and a hurricane swept the coast on the 18th of September of the same year, by which hundreds of lives were lost, and property on land and sea, destroyed to the amount of upwards of $2,000,000, besides which the fishery failed in many places. Sir Gaspard, then, on the assumption of power, had great difficulties to con- tend with ; he found the colony plunged in debt to the amount of 80,000 or $400,000, with an impoverished population. The Governor immediately applied his ener- gies to meet this complication of disasters; he imported large quantities of provisions which he caused to be dis- tributed in various parts of the island, for the relief of the destitute. He also encouraged the cultivation of the soil by procuring seeds which were gratuitously given to the poor, and had the grounds of Government House beauti- fully laid out with grain, &c., which were soon decked with verdure, and clothed with fruit. During this year an Act passed the Imperial Parliament restoring to Newfoundland her Constitution of 1833, re- taining, however, the qualification of members, under the amalgamated system. On the 14th of December, 1848, the first session of the Legislature (after a return to the old form of Constitution), was opened by Governor Le Marchant, and prorogued on the 23rd of April, 1849, after passing twenty-two Acts, during a lengthened session of 130 days. 46 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, In 1847, Mr. Norton resigned the Chief Justiceship of Newfoundland, and was succeeded in the office by Francis Brady, Esq., who was also a Roman Catholic, and a member of the Irish Bar. The writer took passage in the steamer " Unicorn" with Mr. Brady, at Halifax, in 1847, for St. John's. We found him a highly-intelligent and very unassuming gentleman. Mr. Brady had just arrived from England by the steamer on his way to assume the Chief Justiceship. He had the reputation of being a sound lawyer, and is universally esteemed. In 1848, a Colonial Building, Custom House, Market House, and Court House commenced building. In 1849, important alterations were made in the Cus- toms Department, by the Home Government, by placing the patronage of the Department under the control of the Local Government. The Imperial Government, however, retained three officers, of which George J. Hayward, Esq., is the head, as Comptroller of Customs and Naviga- tion Laws. Mr. Spearman, the former Collector, retired to England, on a pension allowed him by the Home Government, and John Kent, Esq., Speaker of the House of Assembly, was appointed Collector of H. M. Customs for Newfoundland. During this year the fisheries were prosperous, and con- siderable quantities of wheat were raised in various parts of the island ; altogether the general aspect of the country was hopeful and cheering. In 1850, a small steamer was employed as a packet in Conception Bay, and the new Colonial Building was oc- cupied for the first time by the Legislature. In July, 1851, Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant took his departure for England, when the Hon. James Crowdy, Secretary of the Colony, was appointed Administrator of the Govern- ment during his absence. In January, 1852, Governor Le Marchant returned and resumed the government. Dur- ing the following summer, Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 47 resigned the Government of Newfoundland, and assumed the Government of Nova Scotia, when the Hon. James Crowdywas again appointed Administrator of the Govern- ment. On the 24th December, 1852, Ker Bailie Hamil- ton, Esq., arrived from England, and assumed the govern- ment. In 1854, the principle of Responsible Government was conceded, in a despatch from the Duke of Newcastle, the then Secretary of State for the Colonies, to the Governor. During this year cholera for the first time appeared in Newfoundland, when 800 persons died at St. John's. In 1855, Governor Hamilton was succeeded in the govern- ment by Charles Henry Darling, Esq., under whose Ad- ministration the principles of Responsible Government were fully carried out. In 1856, the old office holders were pensioned off. In 1857, the Hon. James Crowdy, who held the office of Colonial Secretary for a period of 29 years, retired on his pension to England, and was suc- ceeded in his office by the Hon. John Kent, late Collector in H. M. Customs. At the same time, Hon. Philip F. Little was appointed Attorney-General ; Hon. George H. Emerson, Solicitor-General ; Hon. Thomas Glen, Receiver- General ; Hon. Edmund Hanrahan, Surveyor-General ; Hon. James Tobin, Financial-Secretary ; and John V. Nugent, Esq., High Sheriff. In these appointments we notice the omission of the name of Robert J. Parsons, Esq., a gentleman who has been a member of the Legislature from the time of the second House of Assembly of Newfoundland; who had borne the burden and heat of the day; who always adhered to the party once in power ; nay, had been suffered to gain the ascendancy of that party. He is still a member of the House of Assembly, but without office or emolument. During this year the fisheries were bountiful, and steam communication opened between the different districts and the capital ; a telegraph line was erected from St. John's to the western part of the island, and a line of Canadian 48 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and United States steamers made St. John's a port of call on their way to and from Europe In 1857, the colony was thrown into great excitement by the announce- ment that the English and French Governments had entered into a convention by which it appeared that im- portant privileges in the Newfoundland fisheries were to be ceded to the French. The Legislature appointed Messrs. Kent and Carter as delegates to visit Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Canada, to interest these colonies against the measure. Delegates were also appointed to visit London, and protest against the measure. These hostile demonstrations of the colony stopped the negotiations between the two Cabinets in making any alterations in the treaties about the New- foundland fisheries. In 1859 the following notice appeared in the Newfound- land Royal Gazette : " His Excellency the Governor has been pleased, by and with the advice and concurrence of the Executive Council, to ap- point, pursuant to the Despatch of the Secretary of State, dated 14th January last, the Hon. John Kent, Colonial Secretary, to be Colonial Commissioner, subject to Her Majesty's approval, upon the Joint Commission to be appointed by the two nations of France and England, to enquire into the local operations of the treaties conferring on French subjects rights of fishery upon the coasts of this island, &c." The principle involved in the dispute is embodied in a note of Lord Palmerston in 1838, to Count Sebastiani, the French Ambassador. The London Times says upon this subject : " It is just about one hundred years ago that the first Mr. Pitt, in declaiming upon the national interests of Britain, af- firmed that one point was of such moment as not to be surren- dered, though the enemy were masters of the Tower of London. We shall be thought, perhaps, to be robbing the idea of its grandeur when we proceed to explain that the point so charac- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 49 terised was simply the Newfoundland Fishery, but the inhabi- tants of that colony would not themselves be willing to make much abatement from the estimate which the great Minister has put on record. In their eyes the Newfoundland Fishery is everything, and everything it certainly is to Newfoundland. "The subject, however, to which these words refer has recently been invested with immediate international importance. The people of Newfoundland really believe that the French are dip- ping too largely into their waters, whereas the French declare that they are not left in the enjoyment of the rights secured to them by treaty. Matters have reached, indeed, such a point, that the commander of the French naval force in these quarters has given formal notice to our authorities that on and after the 5th of May, the French fishermen would ,be effectually pro- tected in their privileges, and the rights secured to France be rigorously enforced by the imperial cruisers. A counter noti- fication has, of course, been made in the interest of Great Britain and her colony ; but we are happy to state that the two Governments have promptly come to accord respecting a certain proceeding which may possibly terminate a long-pend- ing controversy, and which will certainly obviate the chances of present embroilment. A commission, consisting of two French and two British representatives, is to investigate the question this summer by researches and inquiries on the spot, and in the meantime, Count Walewski has suggested to Lord Cowley, that the commanders on the station should receive in- s,tructions to impart all proper forbearance into their proceed- ings. These arrangements, which were accomplished without any difficulty, and with every expression of amity and concili- ation on the part of the French Government, will, at any rate, place the affair in good train, but whether it will be found to admit of a conclusive or satisfactory solution is a question of greater doubt. " One of the chief points at issue between the two countries consists in the claim of the French to certain local rights, which they invest with an exclusive character. Their title to partici- pate in the Newfoundland Fisheries, recognised by the treaty of Utrecht in 1713, and confirmed by the treaty of Versailles 70 years later, was again established, after the interruptions of the revolutionary wars, by the settlement of 1814. According to D 50 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, these treaties, they are undoubtedly entitled not only to take fish, but to resort for the purpose of curing and drying these fish to a certain part of the Newfoundland shore during a certain season. It is further stipulated, that ' in order that the fisher- men of the two nations may not give a cause for daily quarrels, his Britannic Majesty will take the most positive measures for preventing his subjects from interrupting, in any manner, by their competition, the fishery of the French during the tempo- rary exercise of it which was granted to them.' " These terms the French interpret as conveying a right ot fishery within certain limits, not only free from all disturbance, but from all participation, on the part of the British, whereas our own Government has always steadily declined to acknowledge that any such exclusive rights as regarded the actual fishery, were designed to be granted. It is admitted on our side, that in practice the French have always been left sole occupiers during the fishing season of their own parts of the shore, and for the simple reason that two sets of fishermen could not carry on their business of curing and drying at one and the same spot. The French are entitled to that temporary lodgment on the coast, without which their fishery could not be conducted, and this lodgment, for plain considerations of convenience, they are allowed to keep themselves ; but, when the argument is ex- tended to the waters of the fishery, it fails altogether. There the French can fish without interruption, although the British may be tishing too, and the treaty, therefore, is not infringed when our fishermen ply their ordinary trade at that spot, pro- vided always that they do not cause interruption to the vessels of the French. Such is the view of the case taken by our authorities, and maintained by the present Ministry. " It was not, therefore, without some justification that Count Walewski expressed his doubts to Lord Cowley about the pro- bable success of the proceedings suggested. The difference between the two Governments has arisen on a point of inter- pretation, and a point of that character can hardly be settled by local inquiries. It will be readily understood, moreover, from the remarks we have offered above, that the colony of New- foundland would be loth to see one jot or tittle of its rights abated on a subject of such vital importance to it, and its natu- ral prerogatives in this respect have been recognised by the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 51 Government at home. A despatch of Mr. Labouchere, dated the 26th of March, 1857, to the effect that 'the consent of the community of Newfoundland was regarded by her Majesty's Government as the essential preliminary to any modification of their territorial or maritime rights,' is quoted in the Colonial Legislature as the Magna Charta of the dependency, and already, indeed, on one occasion, has a convention been nulli- fied by the refusal of the colony to accept its provisions. In the present case an attempt has been made to obviate any ulterior difficulties by placing a direct representative of Newfoundland on the commission itself, and it was with the view, indeed, of leaving a place for this nominee that the proposal of two com- missioners on each side, instead of one, was originally enter- tained by Lord Derby's Government. Possibly this expedient, which has been approved by the Colonial Legislature, may be attended with success ; but the tone of opinion in Newfound- land seems so decidedly and so naturally pronounced that we cannot anticipate with much confidence any of that compromis- ing spirit by which definite agreements are usually preceded. However, the resolutions adopted are as good as the occasion admits, and, while they speak distinctly for the admirable senti- ments and friendly intentions of the French Government, they certainly reflect great credit on Sir E. Lytton's administration of the department he has lately resigned. The controversy may be hard to settle, but the settlement seems likely to be approached with judicious arrangements and feelings of mutual good," In 1857 Governor Darling having been appointed to the governorship of Jamaica, the Hon. Lawrence O'Brien (the first Roman Catholic ever appointed to the office), President of the Council, was appointed Administrator of the Government until the arrival of the new Governor. On the 8th day of June, 1857, Sir Alexander Bannerman, who had previously been Governor of Prince Edward Island and the Bahamas, assumed the Government of Newfoundland. In 1858 the Hon. Jude DesBarres and the Hon. Judge Sirnms were pensioned off, and the Hon. Philip F. Little, and Bryan Robinson, Esq., were appointed 52 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, in their places as Assistant Judges of the Supreme Court, when the Hon. George J. Hogsett became the new Attor- ney-General. In 1859 the fisheries were prosperous, trade brisk, and the revenue increased. In 1860, in consequence of disagreement between Mr. Kent, the Premier, and Sir Alexander Bannerman, the Governor, the Executive Coun- cil was dismissed, when Hugh H. Hoyles, Esq., one of the principal lawyers of the country, and leader of the Oppo- sition in the House of Assembly, was called upon to form a new government. Shortly after which, an appeal was made to the country by a general election. The contest was a sharp one, but resulted in the return of a majority in favour of the new government of which Mr. Hoyles was the leader and the new Attorney-General. The elec- tions in St. John's, at Harbour Grace, Carbonear, and Harbour Main were attended with a great deal of rioting and religious animosities. Injuries were inflicted on per- sons and property, and one man shot. On the 13th of May, the Governor opened the new House of Assembly. A crowd of 2,000 persons gathered around the Colonial Building, menacing and threatening to stop the proceed- ings. On the retirement of the Governor from the House of Assembly he was saluted with groans, and stones thrown at his carriage. During the day several houses were attacked and broken. In the evening a company of soldiers commanded by Colonel Grant, was called out to preserve the peace. Three persons were killed by the military and several wounded. Several houses were burnt in the suburbs of the town.* " Amongst the property thus set fire to was that of one of the Judges, the College of the Church of England (happily discovered and put out at its commencement), and the country house of Mr. Hoyles, the Attorney-General and head of the new Gov- ernment (a pretty retreat totally destroyed). It is notice- able that these outrages were brought to a close after tlie Rev. C. Pedley. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 53 arrival 0/200 men from Halifax to strengthen the mili- tary force in St. John's." When these events took place the writer was living in Nova Scotia, and was there called upon to explain the astounding events which was then being enacted in New- foundland. He then stated that the Irish Roman Catho- lics in Newfoundland were as kind and as hospitable a people as were to be found in the world, except during times of excitement when elections and rum put the devil in them. The Rev. John Wesley says, that " if a man love you on account of your politics, he loves you less than his dinner ; and if he hate you on the same account, he hates you worse than the devil." Very few feel that they have the slightest political responsibility. " They come out to the elections, perhaps, because their party -leaders desire them to come out, or because their party feelings urge them to come out, or because they de- light in the excitement of an election, or possibly because they are paid for coming out. Probably not one in twenty feels that he has any personal responsibility in the gov- ernment of the country. All feel, of course, that they have a personal interest in it, but this interest is not asso- ciated with a sense of high personal duty. In times of political excitement they may be excited, but their inter- est is mainly in behalf of a party. They may work very enthusiastically, indeed, for ' our side,' without giving a single thought to our country. This, to a certain extent, however, is the result of ignorance." For myself I have no faith in parties. I have no faith in politics in the com- mon acceptation of the word, but I have great faith in great principles ; but in party organizations as the means to carry them out, I see always the germs of contention and strife, which as they expand and increase, over- shadow the great and true idea upon which the party in its infancy is based. The Right Rev. J. T. Mullock, Roman Catholic Bishop, says : 54 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, "Allow me to say a few words of my experience of the people. I found them, in all parts of the Island, hospitable, generous, and obliging. Catholics and Protestants live to- gether in the greatest harmony, and it is only in print we find anything, except on extraordinary occasions, like disunion among them. I have always, in the most Protestant districts, experienced kindness and consideration, I speak not only of the agents of mercantile houses, who are remarkable for their hospitality and attention to all visitors, or of magistrates, like Mr. Gaden, of Harbor Briton, or Mr. Peyton, of Twillingate, whose guest I was, but the fishermen were always ready to join Catholics in manning a boat when I required it, and I am happy to say that the Catholics have acted likewise to their clergy- men. It is a pleasing reflection that though we are not imma- culate, and rum excites to evil, still out of a population of over 130,000, we have rarely more than eight or ten prisoners in gaol, and grievous crimes are happily most rare, capital offences scarcely heard of." The first Atlantic telegraph cable was landed at Bay of Bull's Arm, Trinity Bay, on the 6th of August, 1858. On the following week the Niagara and the Gorgon entered the harbour of St. John's, amid the thundering of cannon and the ringing of bells. In the evening the city was illuminated; addresses were presented to Capt. Hudson and Mr. Cyrus Field ; a public ball was given, and a regatta on Quedi-Vidi Lake in honour of the visitors. This great enterprise, however, at that time proved a failure. In I860, on Monday, July the 23rd, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales arrived at St. John's on his way to Canada and the other Provinces. His Royal Highness was accompanied by His Grace the Duke of Newcastle and the Earl of St. Germain. They remained at St. John's three days. His Royal Highness was treated with every demonstration of respect ; and nothing was left undone to honour the distinguished visitors by the citizens of St. John's. They presented the Prince with a Newfoundland dog, to whom he gave the name of Cabot, in honour of AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 55 the great Italian navigator who discovered Newfoundland. The Hon. Francis Brady, Chief Justice, was knighted in honour of the visit of His Royal Highness. In 1861, the first Baptist minister, a Mr. Turner, ar- rived from England, and sought to establish himself in St. John's, but owing to the want of adequate support, failed to organize a congregation, and, after a short time, returned to England. In 1864, Sir Alexander Bannerman took his departure from the Government of Newfoundland, when the Hon. Lawrence O'Brien was sworn in as Administrator of of the Government. In September, of the same year, Anthony Musgrove, Esq., arrived in St. John's, and as- sumed the Government. During this year, Messrs. Carter and Shea were appointed delegates to represent New- foundland, in the Congress at Quebec, to adopt a scheme for the Confederation of the British North Ameri- can Provinces. The Montreal Witness has given the fol- lowing valuable information on the subject : " No branch of industry has grown up in the Provinces to greater dimensions in the course of a comparatively short period of time than the Maritime interest. When British North America is elevated into a Confederation, it will be en- titled to the proud position of the third Maritime State in the world. Great Britianand the United States, will alone exceed it in maritime influence. In 1863, no less than 628 vessels were built in British America, of which the aggregate tonnage was 230,312. The industry represented by these figures shows an export value of nearly nine million dollars. On the 31st December. 1863, the figures were as follows : Vessels. Tons. Canada 2,311 287,187 Novia Scotia 3,539 309,554 New Brunswick ...., 891 211,680 Prince Edward Island 360 34,222 Newfoundland 1,429 89,693 8,530 932,336 56 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " Great Britain and the United States largely exceed this number, but France, the next greatest commercial State with thirty-five millions of population, an immense foreign trade, and an extensive sea coast owns only 60,000 tons of ship- ping more than British America. In 1860, the aggregate commercial navy of France was 996,124. " Another important statement is the return of shipping en- tering and leaving the ports of British America : Inwards. Outwards. Total Tons. Canada 1,061,307 1,091,895 2,133,204 Nova Scotia 712,959 719,915 1,452,854 New Brunswick 659,258 727,727 1,386,985 P. E. Island 69,080 81,200 150,288 Newfoundland 156,578 148,610 302,188 2,659,182 2,769,347 5,415,519 " And for Inland Navigation, Canada 3,530,701 3,368,432 6,907,133 6,189,883 6,137,779 12,322,652 " The United States at the same period only exceeded us by 4,000,000 tons, and our excess over France in one year was 4,000,000 tons. " It will also be interesting in connection with this subject, to see what will be the strength of the United Provinces in sea- faring men. " By the census of 1860, it appears that the number of those engaged in maritime pursuits were as follows : Canada 5,958 Nova Scotia 19,637 New Brunswick 2,765 P.E. Island 2,318 Newfoundland 38,578 Total 69,256 " Here we see that five years ago the Provinces unitedly had AND AS IT IS IN 1877. > no less than 70,000 able-bodied men engaged at sea, either in manning their commercial shipping or their fishing vessels. In case of war this force would be the most valuable element of strength British America would possess. Facts like these must have great weight when placed before the world. They give an idea of the importance of British North America that other statistics could hardly afford. It must be remembered that the maritime interest is not stationary but progressive. It must increase with the progress of the Provinces in population, and the other elements of wealth. A half century hence it is not hoping too much British America will stand side by side with the mother country the foremost maritime State in the world." The following is from a letter of Mr. Brydges, Manag- ing Director of the Grand Trunk Railway, to the Canadian Boards of Trade, on the trade of the Lower Provinces in 1866 : " The total importations of flour into the four Provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New- foundland, according to the last returns which have been pub- lished by the respective Governments of these Provinces are as- follows, viz. : In New Brunswick 256,096 bbls. Nova Scotia ... 355,358 ) " " " ... .. 26,943 j ; < Prince Edward Island 32,601 " Newfoundland 202,718 " " Making a total of 873,716 " " This is more than the average importations of flour into the United States from Canada during the existence of the Reci- procity Treaty. " It follows, therefore, if proper means of communication are provided, and energy displayed by the merchants of Canada, that the Lower Provinces alone will offer a market for the great bulk of the surplus flour that Canada has to export. 58 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " The duties now -imposed by the United States upon the importation of breadstuff's from Canada, and the great cost of all their manufacturing operations, render it certain that the comparatively lighter taxed country of Canada will be able to produce what the Lower Provinces require at much less prices than can possibly be the case with the United States. " Of the importations of flour into New Brunswick, not far short of 200,000 bbls. are taken at the port of St. John alone, and from that place a very large portion of the Province is supplied, especially that part of it tributary to the River St. John, which is the most populous and best settled portion of the country. " Between 20,000 and 30,000 bbls. of flour find their way to the Gulf ports as far down as Shediac, and the remainder of the importations into New Brunswick go to St. Andrews and St. Stephens, to be carried along the line of railway running towards Woodstock, for the use of the lumbering districts. " Nearly the whole of the flour, therefore, imported into New Brunswick will, until the Intercolonial Railway is completed, of necessity find its way into the Province by the Bay of Fundy. As I have already stated, I have completed arrangements with steamers running between Portland and St. John, by which flour from all parts of Canada can be sent on through-bills-of-lading to St. John ; the shipper at any station on the line of the Grand Trunk Railway having no necessity to look after the transfer at Portland, that being done, as well as the Customs business, by the officers of the Company. St. Andrews and St. Stephens will also be supplied from Portland by sailing vessels, which can always be obtained without difficulty, and through-bill s-of- lading will be given to those places also. " Of the importations of flour into New Brunswick, the great bulk has for some years back been from the United States ; although, even before the abrogation of the Reciprocity Treaty, the quantity sent from Canada has been annually increasing. Thus I find in the the year 1863 St. John received from Canada by way of Portland 9,000 barrels ; in 1864, 15,000 barrels ; whilst during the last twelve months the quantity was increased to 47,000 barrels. " If this has been the case before the abrogation of the Reci- procity Treaty, it follows, as a matter about which there can AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 59 be little dispute, that the circumstances which now exist will make it certain that nearly the whole supply will in future be drawn from Canada. " In regard to Nova Scotia, the importations by the last re- turns which have been published in that Province, namely, for the year ending 30th September, 1865, show the following re- sult : From Canada 58,233 bbls. New Brunswick 10,482 RE. Island 372 Newfoundland 658 United States 312,371 GreatBritain 118 Other places 67 " Of the importations from Canada the largest amounts have been to Halifax and Pictou, the quantities having been respec- tively To Halifax 27,018 bbls. Pictou 25,479 " "From New Brunswick, the importations into Nova Scotia have been principally along the shore of the Bay of Fundy. From the United States, the importations have been to a very large extent, into the Port of Halifax they having amounted to 172 ; 192 bbls. "The next largest place of importation is Yarmouth, into which place the importations were 19,714 barrels. " The next largest are Cornwallis and Windsor, they each having imported 9,000 bbls. " All other ports have received quantities varying from 100 bbls. to 3,000 bbls. each. " There are now 65 places (including Halifax) in Nova Scotia, which have received importations of flour from the United States. Many of these, of course, are small harbours where fishing operations are carried on, and each derive their supply of from one hundred to two or three thousand barrels from sailing vessels which carry fish from these places to New York or Boston, and bring back, after selling their loads, the flour they want for their home consumption. 60 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " In Prince Edward Island the importations according to the last published returns have been From Canada 1,849 bbls. Nova Scotia 2,353 " New Brunswick 373 " United States 27,227 " Total 31,802 "These figures are taken from the returns for the year 1864. I was informed in Prince Edward Island that the amount last year was larger, and that during the present year the quantity imported will not be less than from 50,000 to 60,000 barrels. "In Newfoundland, of the total importations of 202,718 barrels, there were from Canada 25,835 ; from Nova Scotia, 3,482 ; and from the United States, 172,145, The bulk of the importations into Newfoundland are taken into St. John's, although some portions find their way to the different fishing points along the coast in the same way as is the case in Nova Scotia. " These figures will give a very accurate idea of the general course of the flour trade, and will show the merchants of Canada the places with which it will be necessary to make arrangements for supplying this traffic in future from Canada. To facilitate these arrangements, I have, as already explained, effected arrangements in regard to steamer communication between Portland and St. John. At the latter place I have appointed an agent, who will attend to all business arising at that place and in New Brunswick generally, and to whom all property will be consigned. The steamers I have mentioned will be placed also upon the line between Portland and Halifax, as early as possible in the month of September. An agent has been appointed at Halifax, who will attend to the business in Nova Scotia generally, and also to the trade which no doubt can be cultivated from that city with Newfoundland. " There is, of course, in addition to the question of flour, much trade hitherto carried on by the Lower Provinces to a very large extent with the United States, which, by proper arrangements, can be diverted in the direction of Canada, to the advantage of both buyers and sellers. Thus, as regards New Brunswick, the AND AS IT' IS IN 1877. importations of butter and cheese amounted, by the last public returns, to 500,128 Ibs., of the value of $105,725. Of this, 309,846 Ibs. were purchased in the United States. Of meats and hams, cured and salted, New Brunswick imported 2,059,131 Ibs., of a total value of $157,183, of which 1,999,845 Ibs. were imported from the United States. Of boots and shoes of various kinds, New Brunswick imported to a total value of $80,475, of which $66,489 came from the United States. Of leather of various kinds she imported to the value of $47,183, of which the United States supplied $42,650. Of lard, New Brunswick imported 93,165 Ibs., of which 78,603 Ibs. were sent from the United States. Of tobacco she imported 505,521 Ibs , of which 469,873 were sent from the United States. Of refined sugar the United States supplied New Brunswick with 150,995 Ibs. ; of unrefined sugar, 430,815 Ibs. The greatest portion, of course, of the unrefined sugar was either supplied direct from the West Indies, or from the same place through Nova Scotia. Of the article of tea, New Brunswick imported 1,058,082 Ibs., of which 455,978 Ibs. were sent from the United States, nearly the whole of the remainder being imported from Great Britain. " The several articles of which I have given particulars, are mentioned only as samples of the general trade of New Bruns- wick. There can be no reason whatever why, with proper energy on the part of our merchants, New Brunswick should not find it to be to her interest to make her purchases in the markets of Canada rather than those of the United States. The rate of taxation in the latter country, and the great cost of everything, have so largely increased the price of all articles of commerce, that it is a question that cannot admit of doubt, that Canada, that is comparatively so lightly taxed, and will, it is to be hoped, improve in this respect hereafter, ought to be able to supply the Lower Provinces upon much more advantageous terms than can be done, under existing circumstances, by the United States. " It may be interesting to give some similar facts in regard to the trade of Nova Scotia. It seems from its returns that the total importations of beef, pork, and beans (cured and salted) amount to about 13,000 barrels per annum, of a total value of $212,700; of this, 10,695 barrels were imported from the United States, and only 77 from Canada. Of tea, the 2 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, total importations into Nova Scotia were 1,546,075 Ibs., of a value of $515,790, of which the United States supplied 175,- 105 Ibs. Great Britain, of course, supplied the great bulk of the remainder. Of tobacco in the leaf, the total importations into Nova Scotia were 507,989 Ibs., of which the United States supplied 58,856 Ibs. Of manufactured tobacco, the importa- tions were 317,029 Ibs., of which the United States supplied 244,532 Ibs. The importations of raw and refined sugar from the United States into Nova Scotia appear to be but a very small proportion of the whole. " The exports of fish from Nova Scotia and Newfoundland are, of course, very large, and there can be no reason why, if proper arrangements were made for the curing and packing of the fish there, instead of allowing it to be mainly done as at present in the United States, there could not be a very large trade direct to Canada and through Canada into the Western -States from Halifax. " The exportations of raw sugar from Nova Scotia are very considerable, amounting in the aggregate to nearly ten millions of Ibs., of which upwards of a quarter appears to be sent from Halifax to Canada. This of itself will provide considerable back freight to the line of steamers which will be put on be- tween Portland and Halifax. " In regard to Newfoundland, in addition to flour, they im- ported in the year 1864, the last return which I have been able to obtain, 26,157 barrels of pork, of which 23,472 were sent from the United States, and 1,293 from Canada. They im- ported of beef 2,417 barrels, of which 1,999 were from the United States. Of butter, the importations were 16,536 cwt., of which Nova Scotia supplied 4,192 cwt., Canada 2,466 cwt., and the United States 7,454 cwt. Of leather-ware, the total importations were to the value of 61,936. Of tea, 461,830 Ibs., and of tobacco, 291,750 Ibs. " For the reasons already given, the trade of which I have en- deavoured, as regards the Provinces, to give a few examples, can by proper arrangements be carried on to a very large ex- tent indeed with Canada before Confederation takes place. Of course, as soon as that desirable event has actually been com- pleted, there can be no doubt of the large increase ot trade which will immediately follow." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 63 CHAPTER III. DISTRICT OF ST. JOHN'S. . JOHN'S, the capital of Newfoundland, lies in 47 33' 33" north latitude, and 52 45' 10" west longitude from Greenwich, and 10 52' east of Halifax. -Magnetic variation in 1828, 28 47' westerly. The first authentic record of St. John's is given in a letter to King Henry VIII., by John Rut, in 1527, who was at that time employed on a fishing voyage. This is recorded by Hackluyt, one of the earliest writers on Newfoundland. The capital is situate on the most eastern part of the coast, in the Bay of St. John, which, however, is but a slight indentation of the coast. On approaching St. John's from the sea, the shores present an air of grandeur and sublimity. The coast for miles consists of old red sandstone and conglomerate, from four to six hundred feet in height, presenting an almost perpendicular wall, which resists the unbroken surges of the Atlantic Ocean that incessantly thunder at its base. In the summer season this wall of nature's masonry is adorned with touches of the beautiful the interstices and crevices of the sublime cliffs are dotted with grass, wild flowers, plants, and shrubs of various kinds, the green foliage of which trailing along the red surface of the rocks, gives it a picturesque and romantic appearance. I have seen no part of America that can compare with the grandeur of the Newfoundland coast. The Palisades or high lands on the River Hudson, in New York, may probably bear some resemblance. The Saguenay river, in Canada, strongly reminded me of the coast about St. John's. 64 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, St. John's is one of the finest harbours in Newfound- land, where a vessel might in a few minutes shoot from the stormy Atlantic into a secure haven, and ride at anchor completely land-locked, in from four to ten fa- thoms of water, on a mud bottom. The entrance to St. John's is very narrow, which is therefore called the " Narrows." The channel from point to point, that is, from Signal Hill on the north side to Fort Amherst on the south side, is 220 fathoms across ; but it widens just within the points, then again gets narrower on approach- ing Chain Rock, from which to Pancake Rock the dis- tance is only 95 fathoms across, after which it expands into a beautiful sheet of water, one and a quarter miles long, and about half a mile wide. In war times a chain used to be thrown across from Chain to Pancake Rocks. On each side of the Narrows are lofty cliffs, five hundred and six hundred feet in altitude, studded with forts and batteries, while a short distance to the right is seen Cuckold's Head and Sugar Loaf, towering in solitary grandeur above all the surrounding coast. Bishop Mul- lock says : " St. John's is placed almost in the centre of the peninsula of Avalon, on the nearest point to Europe, with a port the most secure perhaps in the world, fortified by nature, and only re- quiring a very moderate outlay, and a few thousand brave sol- diers, to make it, I may say, impregnable the G-ibraltar or Sebastapol of the North Atlantic. A fleet of war steamers sta- tioned in St. John's, sheltered by the guns of Signal Hill and Southside batteries, would give the command of the North Atlantic to West Britain, and with Bermuda, paralyze the com- merce of the entire seaboard of the neighbouring continent. I consider St. John's and Bermuda as the two great bastions of North America." At Fort Ambrose, on the south side, the harbour light- house is situated, which is also a signal station. There is another signal station at the north side on Signal Hill. As soon, therefore, as a ship hoves in sight at Cape Spear AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 65 (which is eight miles distant, and is also a signal station, with a splendid lighthotise), she is telegraphed to the principal station on Signal Hill, and as soon as she ap- proached the south entrance of the Narrows, an artillery- man on duty, with trumpet in hand, used to walk to the edge of the rocky precipice, and hail " From whence came you." Vessels acquainted with the trade usually chalked on the quarter the number of days on the pas- sage, also their name, if they carried no distinguishing flag. The city of St. John's (since 1839 St. John's has been called a city, owing to a Protestant bishop being at that time appointed it is not incorporated) stands prin- cipally on the north side of the harbour, on hills of slight acclivity, on the western one of which, in 1762, the French took a determined stand against the English batteries. The south side of the harbour is formed by a lofty and unbroken range of hills which plunges into the water at an angle of about 70, which is lined with wharves, ware- houses, oil manufactories, and some dwelling-houses. St. John's was twice destroyed by the French. Some relics of their dominion are still to be seen. It is said the stone buildings at Fort William were erected for their commander, and some chairs, with the fleur-de-lis, which belonged to the commandant, are also yet in existence. It will be seen by the following letter, addressed to Mr. Hutchins, whose descendants are now some of the principal inhabitants of St. Johns, that down to 1790 no tavern or house of entertainment was allowed to be set up, neither was the soil to be cultivated : " Letter from the Governor, M. K. Milbanke, to George Hutchins, Esq., dated Government House, St. John's, Newfoundland, 15th October, 1790. " SIR, I have considered your request respecting the altera- tion which you wish to make in your storehouse near the waterside, and as it appears that the alteration will not be in any ways injurious to the fishery, you have hereby permission 66 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to make it. As to Alexander Long's house, which has been built contrary to His Majesty's express commands, made known to the inhabitants of this place by my proclamation of the 13th of last October, it must and shall come down. The pretence now set up of its being intended for a craft-house serves rather to aggravate than extenuate the offence, for by the confession of your tenant to the magistrate who forbade him to go on with the work after it was begun, as well as to me when I viewed the house on Saturday last, no such use was to be made of it : as he said it was intended only as a covering to his potato cellar, though there is a complete chimney, if not two in it, and lodging for at least six or eight dieters. I shall embrace this opportunity of warning you against making an improper use of any other part of (what you are pleased to call) your ground, for you may rest assured that every house or other building erected upon it hereafter, without the permission in writing of the Governor for the time being except such building and erection as shall be actually on purpose for the curing, salting, drying and husbanding of fish, which the fishermen from any part of His Majesty's European dominions, qualified agreeable to the Act of the 10th and llth of William the Third, and the 15th of George the Third, have a right to erect without asking per- mission must unavoidably be taken down and removed, in obedience to His Majesty's said commands. And it may not be amiss at the same time to inform you, I am also directed not to allow any possession as private property to be taken of, or any right of property whatever to be acknowledged in any land whatever which is not actually employed in the fishery, in terms of the aforementioned Act, whether possessed by pretended grants from former Governors or from any other no matter what unwarrantable pretences therefore it behoves you, with all possible despatch, to employ the whole of the ground which you can lay claim to in the fishery, lest others should profit by your neglect, and make that use of it which the Legislature of Great Britain intended should be made of all the land in this country, and without which no one has a right to claim it as his own. The sheriff will have directions about the removal of the house above mentioned, which you will no doubt assist him in executing. " I am, &c. 41 To George Hutchins, Esq." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 67 Up to 1811, St. John's consisted of one long, narrow, dirty street, with irregular blocks of low wooden build- ings, interspersed with fish flakes. In the above year, however, important alterations were made by Admiral Duckworth, who was then Governor, under authority of an Act of Parliament, the " ships' rooms " were divided into building and water lots, and measures were adopted for the general improvement of the town. From this period the place began to rise into importance, for until the year above named no building could be erected in any part of Newfoundland without the permission of the Gov^ ernor, in order to prevent settlement. On the 12th of February, 1816, a most destructive fire desolated a great part of the town of St. John's. The property destroyed is said to have amounted to more than 100,000 sterling, or $500,000. When the intelligence of this calamitous event reached the " City of the Pilgrims," Boston, the Capital of the " Old Bay State," a deep and powerful sympathy was excited among her citizens for the destitution of 1,500 human beings left homeless and penniless amid the frost and storms of a Newfoundland winter ! Burying in oblivion the recollection that the year previous the two countries were hostile to each other, and regardless of the disputed right of fishing on the Banks, which right America wished to claim but Britain was unwilling to concede, the noble and disin- terested citizens only remembered the claims of their suffering fellow-creatures upon their hospitality. A vessel was immediately loaded with provisions, which were sent to be distributed gratuitously among the distressed in- habitants of St. John's, where she arrived and delivered her valuable cargo. To brave the storms of a winter pas- sage to Newfoundland, at that period, was considered a most daring and hazardous enterprise. In the following year, 1817, on the night of the 7th of November, another immense fire broke out at St. John's and in nine hours destroyed thirteen mercantile establish- 68 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ments (well stocked with provisions) and one hundred and forty dwelling-houses. The estimated value of the property thus destroyed was 500,000, or $2,000,000. This distressing calamity was succeeded by another, on the 21st of the same month, when fifty-six more houses, besides stores and wharves were consumed. -During the winter, great distress prevailed in consequence of these fires ; and, owing to the failure of the crops in various parts of Europe, the usual quantities of supplies had not been imported in the fall, and the merchants, seeing the great improbability of receiving any immediate returns for their goods, circumscribed the accustomed credit system. Numbers of the inhabitants, rendered desperate by want, began to break open the stores. Volunteer com- panies were immediately embodied and armed to prevent further depredations, and committees of relief were formed to issue small quantities of food at stated periods. St. John's has since been visited by several smaller fires. In 1839, a block of houses on the north side of Water Street, comprising fifteen tenements, were con- sumed ; and, in 1840, the Exchange and other buildings were destroyed. The next great fire with which St. John's was visited was on the 9th of June, 1846, but, like the Phosnix, it always rises better, brighter, and more triumphant from its ashes. The great fire of the 9th of June took place when all the mercantile establishments were well stocked with every article of merchandize, and seal vats full of oil. " On the morning of Tuesday," says the Morning Courier newspaper (published a few days after the fire}, "the sun rose on St. John's a busy mart ; its population arose from the slumbers of the previous night, and applied themselves to the occupations of the day,with the hope that it would be done as the days that had gone before ; and ere that sun had set, at least three-fourths of the town, including the whole of the business part of it, were in ashes. " About seven o'clock in the evening the work of destruction AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 69 may be said to have been completed, so that in ten hours and a half our town was almost entirely destroyed, and the moon rose in cloudless splendour, throwing her mild light on a home- less population, who stood viewing, with intense anguish the smoking ruins of their habitations. Besides the two men that were killed, we have heard of another aged man who had con- trived to save his bed and some valuables, and while struggling along to a place of safety with a load too heavy for his strength, fell down and expired. "It is but justice to His Excellency, theGovernor, to state, that he remained in the vicinity of the fire till a late hour. We also observed Lieut.-Colonel Law, Major Robe, and all the other officers of the Garrison actively engaged during the whole day. The troops were turned out for the protection of pro- perty on the first alarm, and guards were posted for the night, wherever thought necessary. " A cold night succeeded a day eventful to the inhabitants of St. John's, and far the greater portion of them spent it under the canopy of heaven. The open ground in front of Govern- ment House down towards Gower Street, was occupied by numerous family groups sitting beside the portions of their furniture saved from the flames. It was a sad sight to see shivering mothers endeavouring to shelter their little babes, and to hush them to sleep ; while the cries of the older ones for food had in many cases to be answered by ' wait 'till day- light, and we shall try to get some for you.' " A great number of mercantile establishments were de- stroyed, besides those we have named ; were we to attempt a complete list, we should have to name every firm except the solitary one of Messrs. Newman and Co., which is the only one now in St. John's that has either a store or an office, except the stores on the south side of the harbour. " We never saw a fire spread with such awful rapidity ; the flames seemed actually to leap from roof to roof; and the noise of the burning mass could be compared to nothing that we ever heard, except the roaring of the cataract of Niagara. The crash of falling materials was heard above the deep sound of the advancing flames, as roof after roof fell in at short intervals." By this awful contlagation, upwards of 2,000 houses 70 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, v were consumed, and property to the amount of 800,000, or $4,000,000, destroyed. The day after the fire, the principal inhabitants of the town attended a meeting at Government House, at which a committee was appointed for the relief of the distressed. A military patrol was appointed to protect the property in the town, and Sir John Harvey, the Governor, issued a Proclamation placing an embargo on all shipping about to leave the port ; and Mr. Hele, R.N., master of Her Majesty's Ship Vindictive, who was at the time in the colony, offered his services to search all vessels leaving the port, to prevent the removal of any unnecessary quantity of provisions. Lieutenant Chambers's, R.N.C., yacht was moored as a guard-ship in the Narrows, and all the available military tents were pitched at the rear of the Roman Catholic Cathedral, to afford shelter to the house- less. Two vessels were despatched to New York and Halifax for provisions. On the intelligence of the fire at St. John's reaching Halifax, a public meeting of the citizens was convened, and a committee appointed to receive donations for the sufferers. A quantity of provisions were shipped imme- diately by the mail steamer " Unicorn," Captain Meagher, for St. John's, which was the first supply received after the fire. The British Government gave a munificent donation of 30,000, or $150,000, to which was added, under the sanction of the Queen's letter, addressed to the Arch- bishops of Canterbury and York, to make collections in the Churches of England, the further sum of 31,516, or $157,580 ; making a total of 61,516, or $307,580 ; in ad- dition to which the sum of $106,236 was received from various parts of Great Britain, Ireland, the British Colo- nies and United States, equal to 26,557 16s. 4d. currency, or $106,236. From QUEBEC, per Industry : 33 barrels flour ; 100 barrels oatmeal ; 93 barrels peas ; 67 barrels Indian meal ; 25 boxes AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 71 window glass; 50 pieces deals; 500 boards ; 1 keg tobacco; 3 cases ; 3 boxes ; 1 trunk ; 1 bale and 2 barrels clothing and merchandise. Per Orion: 7 barrels oatmeal ; 2 boxes window glass ; 1 keg nails ; 8 M shingles, and 2 pair shoes. From MONTREAL, per St. Croix : 549 barrels flour ; 318 barrels pork ; 32 bags bread : 42 kegs butter ; 200 pieces deals ; 500 boards ; 14 kegs nails ; 7 cases and 6 bales clothing and merchandise. Per Thistle: 495 barrels flour; 187 barrels pork; 21 bags bread ; 158 bags peas ; 250 boxes window glass ; 200 pieces deals ; 500 boards ; 1 case ; 3 parcels ; and 1 bale clothing and merchandise, From NEW YORK, per St. Margaret : 731 barrels flour ; 100 barrels pork ; 100 kegs butter. From HALIFAX, per Star: 1,055 barrels flour. Per Uni- corn : 360 barrels flour ; 100 barrels pork, and 1 box clothing. Per Dove : 12 barrels flour ; 2 barrels pork ; 1 case ; 3 par- cels clothing ; 1 bale tinware ; 1 nest pails. From KENTVILLE, per Unicorn : 1 box clothing, and 1 keg cheese. From EXETER, per Sir Robert Peel : 7 bales clothing, &c., &c. From STEWIACKE (Colchester), per Unicorn : 1 bale clothing. TOTAL 3,223 barrels flour; 700 barrels pork; 53 bags bread ; 142 kegs butter ; 100 barrels oatmeal ; 93 barrels and 158 bags peas ; 67 barrels Indian meal ; 275 boxes window glass ; 450 pieces deals ; 1,500 boards; 14 kegs nails ; 1 keg tobacco ; 11 cases ; 5 boxes; 3 parcels; 1 trunk; 16 bales, and 2 barrels clothing and merchandise ; 8 M shingles ; 2 pair shoes. Out of the money collected under the sanction of the Queen's letter, 15,000 or $75,000, with the consent of the Secretaiy of State for the Colonies, were appropriated towards the erection of a Protestant Cathedral, in the room of the Church which had been destroyed by the fire. The following are among the instances in which it is said the money subscribed for the fire sufferers was di- verted from the proper object for which it was intended. 72 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Building of a Custom House ,3,500 Alterations and Repairs of Government House 4,803 Marine Promenade 955 Tanks 142 Cemetery 450 Indian Meal 11,895 Provisions sent to Outports 1,177 Promotion of Agriculture, purchase of seeds, Bounty to Mills, &c 2,600 25,522 or $102,088 These appropriations caused great dissatisfaction. Pub- lic meetings were held, and memorials sent to the Home Government on the subject. It must be confessed, how- ever, that the Governor was constantly appealed to in aid of cases of distress, most of which were consequent on the fire, which caused, we presume, the large expenditure in provisions. Some of the persons employed by the " Relief Commit- tee" were paid handsome sums, who were then in receipt of a competent salary, and who had suffered nothing by fire. The Legislature voted $10,000 for the erection of a convent, and $2,000 for a school-house attached ; which were destroyed by the fire, and which ought to have been taken from the Jire-funds instead of from the reve- nue of the colony, which was then insufficient to meet the expenditure by many thousand pounds. St. John's, unlike the towns of the neighbouring colo- nies, is not divided into squares, or laid out into streets intersecting each other at right angles. It has three principal streets (Water, Duckworth, and Gower), running parallel with each other, and with the harbour, about two miles. There are several cross streets, the principal ones are Cochrane Street, fronting Government House ; Queen street, and Prescott street. Since the fire, the streets have AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 73 been widened and otherwise improved, and stately stone and brick dwelling-houses, shops, and a long range of large and commodious warehouses have taken the place of the low wooden buildings, which before, for the most part, occupied Water street. Many of these buildings will compare with the cities of the neighbouring colonies. The Public Buildings of St. John are, the Colonial Building. From the granting of a Representative Con- stitution, in 1832, the Legislature met in the Court House, a wooden building, which was always felt to be too small and inconvenient for such a purpose. No effort, however, was made for the erection of a Legislative Building, until the destruction of the Court House by the fire in 1846. Since then a fine building has been erected, with a staff of officers, and of which Captain W. J. Coen is Governor. The erection of the present Parliament Building was commenced in 1847, and opened for the sitting of the Legislature in 1850. It is a rectangular form, and built of white limestone, finely wrought, imported from Cork, Ireland. The cost of the building was about 20,000 or $100,000. The aspect of the building is almost due south, looking towards the harbour, and it extends 110 feet north, by 88 from east to west. The front entrance is approached from the Military Road, the ground being thence gradu- ally brought to a considerable elevation, through a portico supported by six massive columns of the Ionic Order, surmounted by an elegantly-executed pediment, repre- senting the Royal Arms ; the pillars are nearly 30 feet high. The height of the floor of the portico from the ground is about 12 feet, and to the top of the pedi- ment, about 55 feet. The entire of the building, externally, is of cut stone, with moulded architraves to windows and doors, arid en- tablature 6orresponding all round. The Legislative Halls, for the sitting of the General Assembly and the Legisla- NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, tive Council, are each 30 by 50 feet. The building also affords accommodation for House-keeper's family, Trea- surer's office, Surveyor-General's office, &c. The foundation stone of this edifice was laid by His Excellency 'Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant. Underneath the stone are placed some wheat, the produce of the Island, and a tin canister, containing some newspapers, British coins, and the following inscription engrossed on parchment : " The foundation stone of this building was laid on the 24th day of May, in the tenth year of the reign of Her Most Gra- cious Majesty, Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Anno Domini 1847, by His Excel- lency Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant, Knight, K. F. and K. C. S., Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the Island of Newfoundland and its dependencies. " This edifice was raised by virtue of an Act of the Colonial Legislature of Newfoundland, 6th William IV., Cap. 14, under the direction of a Board, consisting of nine Commissioners, viz. : The Hon. James Crowdy, Colonial Secretary, Patrick Morris, Colonial Treasurer, William Thomas, Merchant, William B. Eow, Queen's Counsel, Lawrence O'Brien, Merchant, Thomas Bennett, Merchant, Robert Job, Merchant, J Peter McBride, Esq., and Thomas Glen, Esq. HEADS OF CIVIL AND MILITARY DEPARTMENTS. The Hon. Thomas Norton, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Hon. Augustus W. Des Barres, | . , , T j TO- ' V Assistant J udges. James bimms, J " " Edward M. Archibald, Her Majesty's Attorney- General. Members of Her Majesty's Council. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 75 The Hon. James M. Spearman, Collector of Her Majesty's Customs. The Hon. Joseph Noad, Surveyor-General. Peter W. Carter, Esq., Chief Magistrate. Benjamin G. Garrett, Esq., Sheriff of Newfoundland. Christopher Ayre, Esq., Marshall of the Vice Admiralty Court. Lieut.-Col. Robert Law, K.H., Commander of the Forces. Lieut. -Col. Eobe, Commanding Royal Engineers. Lieut.. Brettingham, Commanding Eoyal Artillery. Thomas Weir, Esq., Assistant Commissary-General. George Winter, Esq., Ordnance Storekeeper. Mr. James Purcell, Architect and Contractor. Mr. Patrick Kough, Superintending Inspector." The Government House. This buildingwas commenced in 1825, and finished in 1828. It is built of cut stone, some of which was obtained from the South-side Hills, and the remainder imported. The west wing of the building was formerly occupied by the Colonial Secretary's and Clerk's offices. It is much larger than either of the Gov- ernment Houses of Nova Scotia or New Brunswick. It is destitute of exterior architectural ornament, but possesses superior interior accommodation. This building is said to have cost 50,000, or $200,000. The grounds around Government House were planted some years ago with trees, but owing to the exposed situation they did not thrive well. On the arrival of the Governor, Sir John Gaspard le Marchant, the grounds were laid out into grass plots, shrubberies, flower gardens, potato-fields, and wheat plots, and otherwise embellished and beautified. In front of the building is a circular or crescent walk, called the " Mall," which is a public promenade, where, during the rule of Sir John Harvey, the military band used to assem- ble twice a week to play for the gratification of the public ; but, unlike the people of Halifax, few of the citizens of St. John's assembled to listen to the martial strains of music. 76 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The Custom House. This building was finished in 1848, the former one having been destroyed by the fire in 1846. It is built of brick, with stone cornices and architraves of windows and doors and colonade. It is 51 feet long, 36 broad, and 29 feet high, and cost about $24,000. In front of the building is the Queen's Wharf and warehouses. In the foundation stone is deposited a tin case, containing a few of the current British coins and the following in- scription : " The foundation-stone of this building was laid on the 3rd day of May, in the tenth year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, and in the year of Our Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and Forty-seven, by His Excellency Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant, Knight, and Knight Commander of the Order of St. Ferdinand and Charles III. of Spain, Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the Island of Newfoundland and its dependencies, in presence of The Hon. James Morton Spearman, Collector of Her Majesty's Customs. The Hon. James Crowdy, Colonial Secretary. The Hon. Patrick Morris, Colonial Treasurer. The Hon. Joseph Noad, Surveyor-General. The Hon. Edward Mortimer Archibald, Her Majesty's Attor- ney-General. Lieut-Colonel Robert Law, K.H., commanding Her Majesty's Troops. Lieut. -Colonel Alexander W. Kobe, commanding Eoyal En- gineers. Lieut-Colonel Henry R. Wright, commanding Roy al Artillery . Thomas C. Weir, Esq., Assistant-Commissary-General. William Jenkins, Lieutenant Royal Newfoundland Com- panies, and Acting Fort Major. William Parker, ) ^ j T> -u Patrick Reed, } Contractors and Builders. John Macpherson, Clerk of the Work." The Hospital, which is a spacious wooden building, is situated at Riverhead. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 77 The Factory, a large wooden building, the upper part of which is used as a public hall, and the ground floor is occupied by persons who are employed making wearing apparel, nets, etc. The Merchant's Exchange, which is occupied chiefly as a reading-room, is built of stone, and has one spacious and elegant room, besides several smaller ones occupied as offices by various persons. The Bank of British North America (now called the Commercial Bank), is built of brick and stone, embellished with a superb front which is quite an ornament to the city, and of which Robert Brown, Esq., is manager. The Post-oifice is a fine stone building, near which is the telegraph office. The Orphan Asylum School is a large wooden edifice, belonging to the Benevolent Irish Society, in which a large number of children are educated. The Union Bank is located on Water Street, of which John W. Smith, Esq., is manager. The Market House. This building is situated on Water Street about the centre of the city and built in 1849. It is a large and handsome building, built chiefly of stone obtained on the site of the building, with facing of Nova Scotia cut freestone, in which is placed the town clock. The lower story of the building is occupied as the Market House, and the second story which fronts on Duckworth street, is occupied as the Court House, in which the Supreme and Circuit Courts sit. Here also is located the Registrar's and other offices. The Church of England School Society for Newfound- land and the colonies, is a large brick building capable of accommodating several hundred children. The Colonial School at Maggotty Cove is a neat wooden structure. There is also the College and School of the Church of England. The Roman Catholic College, and the Methodist and Presbyterian School Houses. The Protestant Cathedral is a large and magnificent building, 120 feet long, 56 feet broad, with tower and spire NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, 130 feet high. It is partly built of stone obtained in the island, and partly of cut stone imported from England, Ireland and France. It is estimated to have cost $200,- 000. It was opened for worship by the Right Rev. Dr. Field, the Lord Bishop of the diocese, in 1850. " The naive of this church is all that has yet been erected and finished, but it is in strict conformity with the original de- sign of the entire building, and of the pointed gothic or eccles- iastical style of architecture. The finish externally and inter- nally is characteristic, elaborate and beautiful ; the carvings upon the oaken pulpit, the desks and seats are splendidly executed, as is also the sculpture of the heads upon the various arches. The communion table is formed of a deep slab of white marble upon a frame of oak ; the roof is of hardwood timber stained, and appears like oak ; a hot air apparatus, sufficient to temper the atmosphere within the church in the coldest weather, is arranged beneath the flagged floor ; a small but powerful organ has been set up, and the appearance generally of the interior is rendered most solemn and impressive by the mellowed and subdued light admitted through the lofty pointed windows. It is, so far, a magnificent building, and when the transcepts, tower and chan- cel shall have been completed, it will rank amongst the finest buildings in British America." Collections are now being taken up by Bishop Kelley for the finishing of the building. The Roman Catholic Cathedral a great proportion of the stone for this building was obtained in Conception Bay, from Kelly's Island. The whole exterior of the build- ing is faced with .cut lime stone and Irish granite. The cathedral is in the form of the Latin cross, with two towers 138 feet high. Its extreme length is 237 feet, the length of transcepts, 180 feet; breadth of naive, 60 feet, and of transcepts 60 feet ; with an ambulatory twelve feet in breadth, connected with the main body of the church by a screen of square massive pillars and semi-circular arches. The height of the walls to the naive course is 60 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 79 feet. It was opened for worship in January, 1850, by the Right Rev. Dr. Fleming, Sr., Bishop, assisted by Bishop Mullock, Archbishop Hughes, of New York, and Bishop McKinnon from Arichat, Nova Scotia. St. Thomas, Church of England, is a wooden building with a spire ; this is where the military used to attend, and usually the Governor and family. The Rev. Thomas M. Wood is curate of this church and rural dean of Avalon< St. Andrew's, Church of Scotland, is a neat wooden building with a spire 110 feet high, erected in 1847. The Wesleyan Methodist Church is a spacious brick edifice, with stone facings, erected in 1857, and another at River's Head. The Congregational Church is a neat stone building, erected in 1853. There is a fine stone Church of England (St. Marys), on the south side of St. John's harbour ; and a Roman Catho- lic stone church near the River Head. The Presbyterian (Free) Church, was erected in 1850. It is built of wood, and is said to be a very neat and elegant structure. For a view, and more detailed account of the churches, the reader is referred to "Wandering Thoughts," published by the author in 1846. The convent is a stone edifice near the cathedral. The Presentation Convent, a large and beautiful wooden structure was des- troyed by fire in 1846. A splendid Presentation Convent has been erected near the cathedral, with which it is con- nected by a passage leading to the chancel. A school house is attached to the convent. The whole erecfed of cut stone ; cost 7,000 or $28,000. The foundation stone of this building was laid in 1850 by Dr. Mullock, the Bishop. With the foundation stone was laid, deposited in a block of granite, a vase containing several medals, currents coins, the seal of the late Bishop Dr. Fleming, the names of the clergy of the colony, of the Bishops of Ireland, of His Holiness the Pope, periodical journals of the day published in Newfoundland, some wheat, the growth of the Island in 80 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, 1848, together with a scroll bearing the following inscrip- tion: " The Foundation Stone of this Convent of the Nuns of the Presentation Order (first established in the city of St. John's in MDCCCXXIII. by the Right Rev. M. A. FLEMING, O.S.F., Bishop of Newfoundland) was laid by the Right Rev. JOHN THOMAS MULLOCK, O.S.F., Bishop of Newfoundland, on the XXIII. day of August, MDCCCL. in the V. year of the Pon- tificate of His Holiness Pius IX., in the XIV. year of the reign of Her Most Gracious Majesty Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland ; Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant being Governor of Newfoundland. " Directing Superintendent 1 PATRICK KOUGH. "BuiUer 1 JAMES PURCELL. Fort Townsend consists of a square of wooden build- ings, the centre of the square is used as a parade. Fort William consists of another square of stone buildings. Long ranges of stone barracks line Signal Hill. All the military has now been withdrawn from Newfoundland. In 1845, the erection of a Native Hall was commenced, for the purposes of a classical school, lecture room, library, and reading-room. The site of the building was given by the Government. The foundation-stone was laid by Sir John Harvey, who was then Governor. The following is a copy of the inscription on the foundation stone : " On the twenty-fourth day of May, Anno Domini 1845, being the anniversary of the birthday of Her Most Gracious Majesty, Queen Victoria, this stone was laid by his excellency Major-General Sir John Harvey, Knight Commander of the most honourable Military Order of the Bath, and of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order ; Governor and Commander-in- Chief in and over the Island of Newfoundland and its Depen- dencies, as the foundation stone of the Native Hall. " For the erection of which the site has been freely granted by his Excellency the Governor, then kindly consenting to AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 81 officiate, unto Richard Barnes, Edward Kielley, Robert Carter, George Hoyles Dunscomb, Hannibal Murch, Ambrose Shea, and Philip Duggan, in trust for the use of the Newfoundland Native Society, instituted in this town on the 12th day of June, in the year of our Lord 1840, Edward Kielley, Esq., being its first, Robert Garter, Esq., lieut. Royal Navy, and M.G.A., its second, and Richard Barnes, Esq., M.G.A., its third and present president. " The object and aim of the Association, in the use to which the contemplated structure shall be appropriated, being the advancement of science by the creation of a thirst for know- ledge. " The present Building Committee being Richard Barnes, Chairman ; Hannibal Murch, Secretary ; George Hoyles Duns- comb, Thomas Graham Morrey, James Johnston Rogerson, John Barren, Philip Duggan, Wm. Freeman, James Gleeson, Henry Thomas, Ambrose Shea, James S. Clift, and Archibald Hamilton McCalman. " May the building be speedily completed amidst the rejoic- ings of the Society. " God Save the Queen, and prosper our native land." The building was to be of wood, and was partly erected when it was destroyed by a violent and terrific gale of wind in the fall of 1846, since which, for want of suffi- cient funds, no effort has been made to rebuild it. I hope a substantial stone edifice will soon be erected, appro- priated to the purposes of a public hall, library, and lyceum. At the river head a building was occupied temporarily as a lunatic asylum, which accomodated about thirty persons. The institution is presided over by Doctor Stabb, a highly respectable and intelligent physician.* In the insane asylums of the United States, reading, writing, arithmetic, drawing and music are taught. The State Lunatic Hospital of Massachusetts is located at * Since writing the above, a large and substantial stone edifice has been erected for a lunatic asylum at the river head. 82 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Worcester, which is one of the finest buildings in the country, and has 400 patients residing in it. I have often visited this building, and have been surprised at the arrangement and order which prevails. Dr. S. B. Wood- ward in his report says : " In my experience of six years as physician of a prison, and thirteen as superintendent of this hospital, I have seen many individuals who were broken off abruptly from all stimulating drinks, yet I do not think a single case of delirium tremens has occurred. " Alcohol is not the only narcotic which affects the brain and nervous system. Tobacco is a powerful narcotic agent, and its use is very deleterious to the nervous system, producing tremors, vertigo, faintness, palpitation of the heart, and other serious diseases. That tobacco certainly produces insanity, I am unable positively to observe ; but that it produces a pre- disposition to it, I am fully confident. Its influence upon the brain and nervous system generally, is hardly less obvious than that of alcohol, and if used excessively, is equally injurious. " The very general use of tobacco among young men at the present day, is alarming, and shows the ignorance and devotion of the devotees of this dangerous practice to one of the most virulent poisons of the vegetable world. The testimony of medical men of the most respectable character, could be quoted to any extent, to sustain these views of the deleterious influ- ence of this dangerous narcotic." The following are some of the charitable and other in- stitutions in St. John's. The Benevolent Irish Society, established in 1806, is the wealthiest and oldest society on the island. The Dorcas Society, Mechanics' Society, British Society, St. George's Society, St. Andrew's Society, Provident and Loan and Investment Society, Coopers' Society, Volun- teer Fire Company (Phoenix), Agricultural Society, Bible and Tract Societies, Volunteer Companies, Law Society, Chamber of Commerce, Library and Reading-room, Ma- sonic Order, St. John's Total Abstinence Society, and AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 83 various Orders of the Sons of Temperance. A Catholic Total Abstinence Society. A Mechanics' Institute, estab- lished in 1849. A Young Men's Christian Association, Church of England Society for Widows and Orphans. The Native Society was established in June, 1840, and was organized in consequence of the systematic and almost entire exclusion of natives from offices under the Govern- ment. Strangers from the Old Country were appointed to offices of emolument, and the Natives were reduced to the necessity of continuing in their own country as a se- condary and subordinate class, or becoming expatriated and seeking some better field for the exercise of their in- dustry and talents. The Natives of Newfoundland have never asked for anything exclusive in their favour. They only wished to be placed on a perfect equality with all others, and their own energy and talent, would work out the rest. The "Rev. J. Brewster, an Englishman, and Weslyan Methodist minister, says: " The natives of St. John's, Brigus, Harbour Grace, Carbo- near, and other wealthy and populous places, are a well-edu- cated and intelligent people. Among them may be found men who could fill with honour the higher stations of political power and trust ; and women who would adorn and bless the family circle of the most refined establishment. We could re- fer to instances in which the offices of the Colonial Govern- ment have been better filled than by the gentlemen sent out from Downing Street. I know not whether our Colonial Sec- retaries have a large staff of dependents to provide with sala- ries, but the fact is, they have sent out young men from Eng- land to fill important stations, who were not worthy to carry the shoes of some of the natives, and were inferior to them either in point of morals, general intelligence, and a natural promptitude and punctuality in business. Taking the natives generally, I have perceived, from personal observation, that they are superior in manners and speech to the peasantry of many of the country villages of England. 84 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, There is not that provincialism in their speech as among the peasantry of the Peak of Derbyshire and the moors of the East Riding of Yorkshire. While travelling in those parts I have frequently felt my want of an interpreter. During a visit to one of these romantic villages where every prospect of moun- tain and flood gave enchantment to the scene, I spent some time in visiting the different families. A farmer accompanied me as guide. Stopping before a garden gate, on which a boy was idly swinging, my guide asked him in his dialect " JBeeal, ist morrow 'it loose ? ' " Yah," was the answer. Had rudest of Newfoundland's ocean sons accompained me, he would have asked in plain English, " Bill, is your mother in the house ? " and the answer would have been, " Yes, sir." The natives of Newfoundland were not only debarred from a participation in the offices of the Government, but they were also excluded from the pulpits of the vari- ous denominations. Mr. Brewster's remarks are equally as applicable to some of the Methodist preachers sent to Newfoundland, as to persons sent to fill offices in the Government. It is well known that many natives were immeasureably superior to the preachers who were sent from England, in point of general intelligence. It is a well known fact, also, that most of the Methodist preachers sent from England to Newfoundland, were raw young men without experience or education. They were sent " to fill important stations who were not worthy to carry the shoes of some of the natives." Some of the preachers were accustomed to write to England an account of their privations and sufferings, and these accounts were pub- lished in the Report of the Wesleyan Missionary Society in London; when most of them well knew they were enjoying more comforts and luxuries than they ever dreamed of in their paternal homes. See the debate which took place in the Wesleyan Methodist Conference in Eng- land, 1860, as reported in the Watchman, August 9th, of that year. I believe it was not until 1862 that the Methodists had AND AS IT IS IN 1877. a native preacher among them ; and I do riot remember to have heard of a single native Roman Catholic priest until 1858, the Rev. Father Brown, of Bonavista. In 1859, when the first Bishop of the Church of England, Dr. Spencer, was appointed to Newfoundland, he saw the importance of employing a native ministry. He at once established a Theological Institution, in which several natives were trained for the ministry, and of which the Rev. Charles Blackman, A.M., was the first Principal. Bishop Field, his successor, has pursued the same course. There are now a number of natives employed as clergy- men of the Church of England, and others going through a preparatory course of study for ordination. There are natives of Newfoundland clergymen of the Church of England in England, the various British colonies, and the United States of America. The Rev. Dr. M'Cawley, a native of Newfoundland, was many years President of King's College, Windsor, and Archdeacon of Nova Scotia. Another, the Rev. Joseph H. Clinch, A.M., is a poet, and one of the most talented clergymen of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the City of Boston, U.S. A number of others might be named, indeed, many who have left the Island have in other places distinguished themselves in law, medicine, and the army and navy. Sir Henry Pynn, of Mosquitto, Conception Bay, entered the army, and died on his estate in Ireland.* The present Chief Justice of Newfoundland, Sir Hugh Wm. Hoyles, the Attorney-General ; the Hon. F. C. B. Carter, the Premier ; also the Solicitor-General, the Hon. Judge Hay- ward, are all members of the Newfoundland bar, and natives of the country. The first commander of New- foundland, the Hon. Ambrose Shea, formerly Speaker of the House of Assembly, the Hon. John Bemister, formerly Secretary of the Colony, the Hon. E. W. Shea, the present * Since the organization of the Natives' Society, natives have been appointed to various important offices ; and recently some of them have been raised to the highest offices in the gift of the Government to bestow. 86 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Secretary ; the Hon. J. J. Rogerson, present Receiver- General ; Matthew Ryan, Esq., District Judge, Winnipeg, Manitoba, are all natives of Newfoundland. The following are the Joint Stock Companies of St. John's : St. John's Water Company, Gaslight Company, Savings Bank, Union and Commercial Banks, Association of Underwriters, and Farmers' Mill Company ; besides which there are agents for the folio wing insurance Societies: Britannia Life Assurance Office, the Colonial Life As- surance Company, National Loan Fund Life Assurance Society, London ; Protection Insurance Company, New Jersey ; Alliance British and Foreign Life and Fire Assur- ance Company, Liverpool ; Hartford Life and Fire Insur- ance Company, etc. ; Telegraph Company, Steam Packet Company, Benefit Building and Investment Society. The merchants occupy the most important position in the social character of St. John's, most of whom are per- manent residents. Many of them have villas in the neighbourhood of the city. The merchants of St. John's are renowned for their hospitality, and liberality towards all philanthropic and benevolent objects. The mercantile class is the only 'one who accumulate wealth in large amounts, hence, like the " Colonocracy" of Boston, the " Fishocracy" of St. John's exert a great influence over all the other classes of the community. Society in St. John's is composed of four classes First. The principal merchants, high officials of Gov- ernment, and some of the lawyers and medical men. Second. The small merchants, large shopkeepers, some of the lawyers and doctors, and secondary officials. Third. Grocers, master mechanics, and schooner hold- ers ; and the Fourth Class is the fishermen. The first and second classes rarely, if ever, hold any social intercourse with the others. There is no colony belonging to the Britisy Empire where influence and name tend so much to form caste in society, and where AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 87 it is more regarded than in St. John's. This distinction of caste has a very pernicious influence. It prevents the amalgamation of fellow citizens, and destroys mutual confidence. Here I shall let my friend, E. Fiy, speak : " We live in a business age. To obtain the character of a thorough man of business, is to obtain a passport to the admin- istration and confidence of mankind. There is no volume studied with more intense and laborious devotion than the ledger no pursuit so fascinating and absorbing as that of making money. We are not about to enter any protest against business men and business habits. The age needs them ; and their energies, wisely directed, contribute largely to the public good ; but the age also demands that they should really be business men, and not business machines. He who gives up all the faculties and powers, all the time and all the energy with which God has endowed him to the pursuit of wealth, to his counting-house or his counter, may be an excellent business machine as a thing of figures, weights and measures he may be first rate but the higher attributes of his manhood are gone ; for the highest privilege is to be the steward of God, not the slave of self. For the government of the great human family, Divine Wisdom has framed laws as beautiful as they are simple and practical. He has written them by the finger of inspiration He enforces them by the teachings of expe- rience He implants in every heart the power to understand and fulfil them. ' Love is the fulfilling of the Law,' but the law of what 1 of gold, of power, of self ? Nay, but the love of God, and the broad comprehensive love of universal humanity. Why do we see so much want and misery in the world, but because men of power and of business, whose love should be universal, narrow down their senses and their sympathies to the service of one object, and that object is self. They regard their neighbours, not as men and women to be served, but to be used. Their solicitude is not how much happiness they can confer, but how much they can extract not how much good they can do to others, but how much they can compel others to do for them. This is the working of a heartless system of trade machinery, but should never be the policy of a Christian man of business." 88 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The mercantile clerks of St. John's are a highly re- spectable and intelligent class of young men, and as some of them will be the future merchants of the country, they are of course a very important class of persons. Few of them exhibit the " swell manners and flash appearance of the roue," which are too frequently found amongst this class of persons. The merchants very generally close their shops at an early hour during three months in the summer and three in the winter, so as to afford their clerks an opportunity for mental and moral culture. The clerks are always employed by the year, and generally board in the house of the merchant. The family of the merchant, however, rarely take meals with the clerks, and if the merchant or his agent be present, it is eaten in silence. " There is a strange want of confidence exhibited in the in- tercourse between merchants and their clerks. Too frequently their conversation resembles what may be termed cross-examin- ation. Confidence begets confidence. No man has so much talent and power as to be above learning many important points of intelligence, respecting both men and business, from his young men. Each of the parties moves in a different circle; and the clerk, from the nature of his young companions, has equal means of obtaining valuable information his master enjoys. " What would be said of a military commander, and what would be his success and fate, did he not avail himself of all the talent and diversity of character in his subordinate officers 1 A mechanic is careful to attend to the suggestions of his work- men ; a shipmaster should have the most perfect confidence in his mates and crew ; and should a merchant lose all the advan- tages to be obtained from an active exercise of all the talents and means of information his clerks possess ? " Another evil attendant upon this intercourse, is the want of interest manifested by employers respecting their young men during the time they are away from their places of business. In a very large majority of cases, employers do not trouble themselves about this matter ; and yet who does not see that upon this point depends, in a great degree, the value of the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 89 services rendered while the clerk is on duty. I ask clerks, How many of you receive any indications that your services are appreciated 1 How many of you have ever been invited to meet your employers at a house of worship, even in cases where you are professedly Christian ? I ask again, How many of you are requested, even once a year, to visit your employers at their dwellings for one evening of social intercourse ?" The following is the population of the City of St. John's at different periods : In 1820 10,000 " 1836 15,000 " 1845 20,941 " 1869 28,840 " 1874 ... 30,575 According to the returns of 1845, the population of the Electoral District of St. John's was Episcopalians 4,226 Roman Chatholics 18,986 Wesleyan Methodists 1,075 Presbyterians 529 Congregationalists 365 Protestants of other Denominations 15 Total 25,196 There were Protestant Episcopal Churches. . ., 9 Wesleyan Methodist Chapels 4 Presbyterian 1 Congregationalist 1 Roman Catholic Chapels 5 There were also 4,110 dwelling-houses, and 52 schools, and 3,620 scholars. There were 8,099 acres of land under cultivation, yielding an annual average of 48,543 bushels of potatoes ; 3,436 bushels of oates and other grain ; and 4,313 tons of hay and fodder (since this period quantities 90 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, of wheat and barley have been raised in the district.) There were also in the above year, 771 horses, and 1,307 head of cattle. The manufactures of St. John's consists of boots and shoes, tin-ware, cabinet- ware and upholstery, carpentry, lime, seal-oil, cod-liver oil, &c. Recently salt has been manufactured from sea water, and spinning and weaving wool and flax have commenced, producing the fabrics called " home-spun." There are two grist mills at work, and a distillery. There is also a nail manufactory, saw mill, and an iron foundry, where every description of castings is made. This establishment is owned by the Hon. C. F. Bennett, one of the oldest and most enterpris- ing merchants in the island. The City of St. John's is lighted with coal gas, and is well supplied with water, which is conveyed from Signal Hill, three miles distant. The streets are well provided with fire plugs, which are also used to water the streets. Nearly the whole trade of the island,, centres in St. John's. There is probably more business done in St. John's, for the extent of population, than in any other town in the world. The two districts of St. John's, East and West, return six members to the House of Assembly. According to the census returns of 1857 and 1874, for the two electoral districts of St. John's, the population was 30,434, and 30,574 The different denominations were represented as follows : 1857. 1874. Church of Rome 21,890 19,946 " England 5,655 6,517 " Scotland 290 310 Wesleyan Methodists 1,850 2,926 Free Kirk 425 414 Congregationalists 317 460 Other Denominations 7 1 There were nine Churches of England, nine Churches of Rome, three Churches of Methodists, one Church of AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 91 Scotland, one Free Church of Scotland, and one Congre- gationalist. There were 4,553 inhabited houses, and 70 schools, with 4,303 scholars. The following is a comparative view of the number of vessels employed in the seal fishery, from St. John's, from the year 1830 to 1859 : Years. Vessels. Tons. Men. Years. Vessels. Tons. Men. 1830 92 6198 1958 1842 74 6035 2054 1831 118 8046 2578 1843 106 9625 3175 1832 153 11462 3294 1844 121 11088 3777 1833 106 8665 2964 1845 126 11863 3895 1834 125 11020 2910 1846 141 13165 4470 1835 120 11167 2912 1847 95 9353 2215 1836' 126 11425 2855 1848 103 10046 3541 1837 121 10648 2940 1849 58 5847 2170 1838 110 9300 2826 1853 101 11204 3967 1839 76 6447 2029 1858 81 10100 3886 1840 75 6190 2058 1859 99 12342 4542 1841 72 5965 2078 In 1872, twenty steamers sailed from St. John's and Harbour Grace, for the seal fishery. Some of them were 800 tons burden, carrying 280 men each. There were also a number of sailing vessels sent out. The following is the number of foreign vessels which entered the port of St. John's in 1850 : Spanish, American, Danish, Portuguese, German, Vessels. 69 16 1 1 2 Tons. 8,496 2,894 91 177 292 Men. 668 136 5 10 16 Total, 89 11,950 835 92 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Exports from St. John's in foreign bottoms, in 1850 : Qtls. Codfish. Tuns Oil. Seal Skins. Spanish, 152,665 378 German, 114 Danish, 85 6,430 Portuguese, 1,750 U.S. America, 16,582 Besides the above, about 600 vessels belonging to St. John's, were employed in the foreign trade. The following will enable the reader to form an esti- mate of the number of seals annually manufactured at St. John's. Number of seals received in St. John's in 1839: Landed from 76 St. John's vessels 91,749 Landed from 98 out-port vessels 150,576 Total 242,325 The following is the number of seals received by the various mercantile establishments up to the 30th of April, 1845. There were, however, many thousand more received after that date. Robinson, Brooking & Co 4,365 John P. Mullowney 3.500 Walter Dillon 1^800 Parker & Gleeson ... 700 James Douglas & Co 3,300 Lawrence O'Brien 14,000 James Tobin & Co 26,500 Hunters & Co 7,150 Job, Brothers & Co 6,431 W. & H. Thomas & Co 11,000 Baine, Johnston & Co 8,000 Richard Howley 7,800 McBride&Kerr 15,497 Bowring Brothers 9,800 John&J.Kent 3,000 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 93 RO'Dwyer&Co 7,000 E. & N. Stabb 1,996 JohnNichols 1,000 John H. Warren 5,100 C. F. Bennett & Co 9,572 J.& W.Stewart 18,235 Rennie, Stuart & Co 13,523 RAlsop&Co 7,800 Stabb, Row & Holmwood 4,900 Hounsell, Schenk & Hounsell 5,978 Newman & Co 5,557 Mudge&Co 4,250 Making a total of. 207,754 Which produced 2,596 tuns of oil imperial, at the usual calcu- lation of 80 seals to a tun valued at 30 per tun, amounts to 77,880, or $311,520. In 187G, Messrs. Job Brothers' steamer "Neptune," commanded by the Hon. E. White, returned from the seal fisheries with 8,000 young harps the first trip, and 18,000 old seals on the second trip. The total value of both trips estimated at $132,000. The staple articles of the produce of St. John's ex- ported are fish and oil. Some few years ago, four or five cargoes of ice were exported, but I believe none have since been sent away. I do not know why the exportation of ice is not more attended to. The ice trade of Boston and other parts of the United States is very considerable. The freight on ice exported from the United States in 1849 amounted to $95,027. The following is the number of vessels employed in the ice-trade of Boston in 1848 : To various ports of the United States 41 ships, 33 barques, 39 brigs, 128 schooners, making in all, 241 ves- sels coastwise. 94 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, To foreign ports 22 ships, 19 barques, 13 schooners, in all 85 vessels. The total value of the 60,425 tons of ice shipped from Boston in 1848 amounted to $386,700. The quantity of ice shipped from Boston in nine months in 1851 was 86,752 tons. It is calculated that about 66,000 tons of ice are consumed in the City of New York, valued at $2.50 per ton of 2,000 Ibs., will give $164,500 as the value of the ice consumed in the city. The ice sells in foreign ports at from three to six cents per pound. The ice crop of New York in 1851 was 180,000 tons of course it is a great deal more now. There are eleven newspapers published in St. John's, four weekly, four tri-weekly, two semi-weekly, and one published on the arrival of every mail packet. There is also a small paper devoted to temperance, and an agri- cultural journal a quarterly publication. In order to complete the improvements which ate going on in St. John's, the town should be incorporated. The great objection to this, by the Protestants, is, that all the patronage would be thrown into the hands of the Roman Catholics, who compose two-thirds of the popu- lation. There are two police magistrates in St. John's, called district judges, with a clerk of the peace. There are about a dozen medical men living in St. John's, some of whom have a very lucrative income. Newfoundland was formerly distinguished from the other North American Colonies by its frequent exemp- tion from cholera, but in 1854 St. John's suffered fear- fully from that disease. It attacked chiefly, says Bishop Field, " Those quarters of the town which are occupied by the poor, dwelling in houses closely packed together, or in over-crowded rooms wholly unventilated, and unprovided with appurtenances as essential to decency as to healthiness, and having no proper drainage or sewerage. There it was sadly true, in the course AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 95 of this visitation that ' there was not a house where there was not one dead.' It has been estimated that 700 or 800 persons died, of whom 80 were Members of the Church of England. " The Clergy had frequently, in addition to their own more proper duties, to minister with their own hands to the sick and dying. There was such a panic among the people, that many who only fancied themselves ill, summoned us to th^m. The Bishop, who was at St. John's throughout this distressing time, not only aided us by his counsel and advice, but directed us by his example, and encouraged us by his earnest and fearless devotedness. I have myself seen him pouring nourishing ' drinks ' into the mouth of the poor agonised patient, in a room or hovel, where filth and offensive odours proclaimed the very hot-bed of pestilence. Even when friends or neighbours declined the office, his Lordship has assisted in bearing the sick to the vehicle in which they were to be carried to the hospital ; and in any way in which he hoped he might be useful to the souls or bodies of his suffering flock, he was forward to prove himself their ' servant for Jesus' sake.' " The parish also had the benefit of the services of the Rev. J. F. Phelps, Yice-Principal of the College, and of the Rev. A. E. C. Bayley, Missionary in charge of the out-harbours, and especially of a pious and devoted English lady, who has for the last year and a half given herself to the work of GOD here. She not only toiled beyond a woman's strength, but with more than even a woman's kindness and sympathy in ministering to the afflicted. The nourishment which she had prepared at her house, she carried and gave to them herself, and shrank from no office of piety or charity, even closing the eyes of the dead, and other- wise preparing them for their coffins. " A distressing fact connected with this visitation was the seeming indifference to the highest and most momentous con- cerns produced by the rapid and entire prostration of mind as well as body, which occurred in almost every case. I remember very few instances in which the dying expressed any anxiety about their souls. " Many of the inhabitants (including Churchmen, Dissenters, and Roman Catholics) afterwards expressed their sense of the valuable services of the Clergy, by contributing to present Arch- 96 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, deacon Bridge and the Rev. T. M. Wood with appropriate and acceptable gifts." * The merchants have two steam tug-boats for towing vessels in the Narrows. Instances have been known of vessels after having arrived at the mouth of the Narrows in the winter season, being obliged to bear up for Europe. The pilots of St. John's are a noble and fear-nought race -of men, who are constantly exposed to the " peltings of the pitiless storm." The pilot-boats are small open boats, built sharp at both ends, like whale-boats ; they are fur- nished with a crew of good rowers, and, when the breeze is favourable, sails are spread. This class of boats, how- ever, ought to be superseded by larger and decked boats. Many persons wonder how the pilot-boats of St. John's live in weather in which they are frequently found. The Newfoundland Mails are conveyed to and from Halifax by a Royal Mail Steam-packet, and one of the Cunard line, once a fortnight, except in the months of January, February, and March, once a month. The steamer leaves Halifax for St. John's, immediately after the arrival of the homeward bound Mail, (from Boston), and after remaining there seventy-two hours from the time of arrival, proceeds back to Halifax with the return Mails, calling at Sydney, Cape Breton. On the average the passage is performed in about three and a half days. The following calculation of the distances between New York and Bristol, and New York and Liverpool, and also between Boston and Liverpool, via Halifax and St. John's, were given some years ago in the Liverpool Standard : FROM BOSTON TO HALIFAX. MILES. From Boston Wharf to Cape Ann 36 " Cape Ann to Cape Sable (course N. 78 E. 222 " Cape Sable to Sambro Light (N. 55 E... Ill " Sambro to Halifax 18 387 * Keport S. P. G. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 97 PROM HALIFAX TO LIVERPOOL. MILES. From Halifax Wharf to Sambro 18 " Sambro to Cape Clear (N. 79 E) 2,207 " Cape Clear to Tuskar 135 " Tuskar to Holyhead 99 " Holyhead to Liverpool 74 2,533 Total from Boston to Liverpool, via Halifax. 2,911 FROM NEW YORK TO BRISTOL. From New York to Cape Clear (N. 79 30' E)... 2,754 " Cape Clear to Lundy Island (S. 85 E).... 182 " Lundy Island to Anchorage, King's-road. 74 3,010 FROM NEW YORK TO LIVERPOOL. From New York to Cape Clear 2,754 " Cape Clear to Liverpool, as above 299 3,053 FROM HALIFAX TO LIVERPOOL, VIA ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND. From Halifax to Cape Race (N. 75 E.) 513 " Cape Race to St. John's .... 55 St. John's to St. David's Head (N. 82 E.) 1,860 " St. David's Head to Liverpool 200 Total from Halifax to Liverpool, via St. John's. 2,628 St. John's to Sydney, C.B 354 Sydney to Halifax 235 Taking, therefore, the direct course in each case, as by the calculations given, we have the following results : The voyage from New York to Liverpool is 43 miles longer than from New York to Bristol. From New York to Liver- pool is longer than from Halifax to the same port by 529 miles. From New York to King's-road, near Bristol, where the Great Western anchors, is 99 miles further than from Boston, via Halifax to Liverpool ; and that the voyage from Liverpool to Halifax, via St. John's, is only 104 miles longer than the direct passage. G 98 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, There is a Postmaster-General in St. John's, with a Chief Clerk, and five assistants. Post Offices are established at the following places : Harbor Grace, Carbonear, Brigens, Trinity, Bonavista, Greenspond, Fogo, Twillingate, Bay Bulls, Ferryland, Trepassey, Placentia, Burin, Harbor Briton, Burgeo. WAY OFFICES. Port-de-Grove, Bay Roberts, King's Cove, New Perlican, Old Perlican, St. Mary's, Grand Bank, Corelin, Isle of Va- len, Little Platentia, Salmonier, Garnish, and Harbor Maine. POSTAL ROUTES. Summer Between St. John's and Portugal Cove, every day, except Sunday and Friday, by Waggon. Between Portugal Cove, Brigus, Harbor Grace, and Carbonear, by Steamer, tri- weekly. Overland, by Waggon, for Carbonear, via Topsail Kel- ligrews, Holyrood, Harbor Main, Brigus, Port-de-Grave, Bay Roberts, Spaniard's Bay and Harbor Grace, Four Hours after the arrival of Halifax Steamer. Winter Overland, Mondays and Thursdays, between St. John's and Carbonear, calling at all the intermediate places. Between Carbonear and New Perlican (calling at Heart's Content) weekly, by Messenger. Between Carbonear and Bay-de-Verds, weekly, by Mes- senger, calling at intermediate places. Between New Perlican and Bay-de-Verds and Grates, calling at Old Perlican, weekly, by Messenger. Between New Perlican and Trinity, weekly, by Boat. Between Trinity and Bonavista, weekly, by Messenger. Between Trinity and King's Cove, weekly, by Messen- ger. Between Bonavista and Greenspond, fortnightly, during glimmer months, touching at King's Cove or Tickle Cove. Between St. John's, Fogo, and Twillingate, leaving St. John's every second Wednesday after the arrival of the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 99 Mail Packet from Halifax, or on such other days as the Postmaster-General may appoint. * Between St. John's and Ferryland, weekly, by Wag- gon, during summer months, and fortnightly in winter. * Between Ferryland and Trepassy, by Messenger. * Between St. John's and Placentia, by Waggon, at 4 o'clock, a.m., on the Tuesday after the arrival of Halifax steamer. * Between Placentia and St. John's, by Waggon, hi one hour after the arrival of Packet Boat from Burin. * Between Salmonier and St. Mary's, by Messenger. * Between Great and Little Placentia, by Messenger. * Between Little Placentia, La Manche, Sound Island, Harbor Buffett, Bed Island, Merasheen and Bourgeo, by Boat. * Between Great Placentia and Burin, by Boat, touch- ing at Paradise and Oderin. * Between Burin and Garnish, by Messenger. * Between Garnish, Grand Bank, and Fortune, by Mes- senger. * Between Garnish and Harbour Briton, calling at English Harbor, by Boat. * Between Harbour Briton, Burgeo and La Poile, by Boat. Routes marked thus (*) are fortnightly during summer, and monthly during whiter months. Mr. Morris says : " On the great Holyhead line, the coach stops to deliver the mails at the smallest villages or post towns ; on the rail-roads, rapid as their course is, the same system is adopted. The con- sideration that is given to a village is denied to Newfoundland, Her Majesty's Mail passes her shores, and she is not considered of sufficient importance to stop for a few hours to deliver them. The trade to Newfoundland is not so large, the demand for British manufactures is not so great as that to the American continent, yet it is not insignificant ; there is between three hundred and fifty thousand and half a million's worth of British manufactures annually consumed, and the amount rapidly in- 100 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, creases. There is nearly a million of exports, the returns chiefly centre in England. Some two thousand British ships, manned with many thousands of British seamen, are employed. To say nothing of the growing importance of the country itself, surely such a Colony claims a due share of consideration." It has never yet received it. In 1838, when establishing direct steam communication between England and America was contemplated. Admiral Prescott strongly recommended the harbour of St. John's as a convenient post to touch at in the passage out and home. He forwarded a memorial from the Chamber of Commerce of St. John's on the same subject, to show the facility with which the passage to Newfoundland was made, even by sailing vessels, in the depth of winter. His Excellency, Governor Prescott, in a despatch, under date of the 2nd February, 1839, said : " With reference to my despatches of the 1 2th and 19th January, I have the honour to inform your Lordships, that a merchant brig arrived here from Cork, on the 39th ult., after a passage of only thirteen days, and had no difficulty in enter- ing this port, and sailing up to her owner's wharf." Admiral Prescott's recommendation of St. John's as a post of call was submitted by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, to the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, who did not deem it expedient to attend to his recom- mendation. His Excellency Sir John Harvey, in his speech to the Legislature, at the opening of the Session in 1846, points out the advantages of making Newfoundland an interme- diate post of call, and fully confirms the opinion given, under the high professional character of Admiral Prescott. " The impressions which have been produced on the minds of several distinguished individuals by whom this Island has been visited during the last summer, as to the decided superiority which this port of St. John's possesses over every other, as an intermediate point in steam navigation between England and America, whether the terminus be the British Colonies or the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 101 United States, are : 1st From its geographical position. 2nd From the depth of water and perfect security of its noble har- bour, accessible at all seasons, and at all hours of day or night, owing to the absence of tides or bars. 3rd From the safety of navigation along the whole of the southern coast of New- foundland, from Cape Spear, on which a splendid light has long existed, to Cape Race, which or in its neighbourhood it is hoped will ere long exhibit one of equal power. 4th From the numerous harbours of refuge which present themselves along that coast. " These are among the circumstances which have attracted the attention of the intelligent individuals to whom I have re- ferred, and I now allude to the subject in order to point to it the attention of the mercantile interests of this Colony, at a mo- ment when such great efforts are being made to extend railroad communications to the western extremity of Ireland, with the object of shortening and facilitating steam communication be- tween Great Britain and her transatlantic possessions. " The General Assembly petitioned Her Majesty and both Houses of Parliament on the same subject." The railroad extending from the State of Maine, through the Provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, will greatly f aciliate travel between Europe and America. Also the Intercolonial Railroad. The distance from St. John's, Newfoundland, to the nearest part of Ireland is about 1,650 miles, and instances are on record of sailing vessels having anchored in Ireland 7 and 8 days from St. John's. A powerful steamer would accomplish the distance in about 5 days. By making St. John's an intermediate port of call for the mail steamers, the distance between the old and new world would be wonderfully reduced. " This can only be achieved by shortening the sea voyage, and dispensing with the vast weight of coal and other superfluous' load now carried. Vessels designed for crossing the ocean with speed, should be relieved of all load not requisite for steadiness and good carriage. Ordinary merchandise will always go more cheaply in sailing vessels. Valuable goods could be transferred to boats of still greater speed, from the ocean terminus running if necessary to the various Atlantic cities. In this way the safest NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and swiftest passage would be secured. In a few years, instead of a semi- weekly, a daily arrival of steamships may be expected.'' A railroad is now being surveyed across the Western part of Newfoundland to St. Gaspard's Bay ; thence to Shippegan in New Brunswick, connecting with the Inter- colonial Railroad. Steamships from Europe now make St. John's an intermediate port of call. Messrs. Lord, Major and Munner's steamers from Montreal run to St. John's, calling at Sydney and Pictou. The following is an interesting incident in the life of Fulton, the father of steam navigation, taken from an American paper : " Some twenty years since, more or less for I cannot fix the date with more certainty I formed a travelling acquaintance, upon a steamboat on the Hudson Kiver, with a gentleman, who, on that occasion, related to me some incidents of the first voy- age of Fulton, to Albany, in his steamboat, the Claremont, which I have never met with elsewhere. " I chanced, my friend, to be at Albany, on business, when Fulton arrived there in his unheard of craft, which everybody felt so much interest in seeing. Being ready to leave, and hear- ing that this craft was to return to New York, I repaired on board and inquired for Mr. Fulton. I was referred to the cabin, and there I found a plain gentlemanly man, wholly alone, and engaged in writing. ' Mr. Fulton, I presume." ' Yes, sir." ' Do you return to New York with this boat 1 " ' We shall try to get back, sir." ' Can I have a passage down ? " ' You can take your chance with us, sir." ' I inquired the amount to be paid, and after a moment's hesitation, a sum, I think six dollars, was named. The amount, in coin I laid in his open hand, and with his eyes fixed upon it he remained so long motionless that I supposed there might be a miscount, and said to him, is that right, sir ? This roused him as from a kind of reverie, and as he looked up to me the big tear was brimming in his eye, and his voice faltered as he said, ' excuse me, sir ; but mevnory was busy as I contemplated AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 103 this, the first pecuniary reward I have ever received for all my exertions in adapting steam to navigation. I would gladly commemorate the occasion over a bottle of wine with you, but really I am too poor, even for that just now ; yet I trust we may meet again, when this will not be so.' " The voyage to New York proved successful, as all know, and terminated without accident. " Some four years after this, when the Claremont had been greatly improved, and her name changed to the North River, and when two other boats, namely, the Car of Neptune and the Paragon, had been built ; making Mr. Fulton's fleet, of three boats plying between New York and Albany, I took passage on one of these for the latter city. The cabin, in that day, was below ; and as I walk its length too and fro, I saw I was very closely observed by one I supposed a stranger. Soon, however, I recalled the features of Mr. Fulton, but, without disclosing this, I continued my walk and awaited the result. At length, in passing his seat, our eyes met, he sprang to his feet, and eagerly seizing my hand, exclaimed, ' I knew it must be you, for your features have never escaped me ; and although I am still far from rich, yet I may venture that bottle now.' It was ordered, and during its discussion, Mr. Fulton ran rapidly but vividly over his experience of the world's coldness and sneers, and of the hopes, fears, disappointments, and difficulties that were scattered through his whole career of discovery, up to the very point of his final crowning triumph, at which he so fully felt he had at last arrived. 'And, in reviewing all these,' said he, ' I have again and again recalled the occasion and incident of our first interview, at Albany ; and never have I done so without renewing in my mind, the vivid emotion it really caused. That seemed, and still does seem to me, the turning point in my destiny the dividing line between light and dark- ness, in my career on earth for it was the first actual recogni- tion of my usefulness to my fellow-man. " Such, then, were the events coupled with the very dawn of steam navigation a dawn so recent as to be still recollected by many and such, as Fulton there related them, were the early appreciations by the world of a discovery which has invaded all waters, causing a revolution in navigation which has almost literally brought the very ends of the earth in contact." 104 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The following, from the Montreal Transcript, is a history in brief of the losses of ocean steamers since the experiment was satisfactorily tried of crossing the Atlantic in steam-propelled ves- sels. Our contemporary is, however, incorrect in one particular. The Royal William and not the Sirius was the first steamer which successfully performed the ocean voyage from Pictou to Cowes, Isle of Wight, in 1833. The only vessel of the Cunard line lost was the Cohimbia, at the entrance of the Bay of Fundy. " The first steamship that crossed the Atlantic was the Sirius, in 1838.* The regular line of European steamships was started by Mr. Cunard in 1840, and since that time there have been lost on the Atlantic twelve steam vessels, making an average in nineteen years of about one in every eighteen months. The disasters may be summed up as follows : 1. President. 2. Columbia. 3. Humboldt. 4. City of Glasgow. 5. City of Philadelphia. 6. Franklin. 7. Arctic. 8. Pacific. 9. Lyonnais. 10. Tempest. 11. Austria. Indian. Hungarian. Never heard of. All hands saved. a Never heard of. All hands saved. 12. 13. A few only saved. Never heard of. A few only saved. Never heard of. Burned, great loss of life. Twenty-two lives lost. All lost. Burying hundreds within a few feet of shore. Hewn down by a passing iceberg. Riven in mid-ocean. Foundered in twenty min- utes, after striking an iceberg. These, with numerous minor cases, the details of which will never be known, go to swell the list of lost steamers." 14. Atlantic. 15. Northfleet. 16. Ville-du-Havre. 17. Arbitrator. * For an account of the first steamer which crossed the Atlantic, see " A Peep at Uncle Sam's Farm," by the Author. Page 207. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 105 106 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, A magnetic telegraph has been erected from St. John's to Conception Bay and the western part of the island. As yet no effort has been made to establish a " Sailor's Home," or to erect a Mariners' Church, in St. John's. In this respect it stands alone amid all the North American colonies, although possessing a larger number of seafaring persons than any of them. The writer communicated with the British and Foreign Sailors' Society, in Lon- don, in. 1846, but from various causes the project was then abandoned. The first President of the British and Foreign Sailors' Society, Admiral Lord Gambier, was a well-known and philanthropic Governor of Newfound- land in 1802. It is calculated that there are three mil- lions of persons throughout the world occupied on the great deep, and of this number 300,000 are at least British seamen. Of these, it is said, not 20,000 have any practical or experimental knowledge of the great truths of Chris- tianity, so that not fewer than 280,000 of the most deserv- ing portion of our fellow creatures are in moral darkness and ignorance. The poor sailor is more deserving of hon- our than the most renowned warrior that ever crimsoned his sword in the blood of his fellow man. The people of Newfoundland, above all other countries, are deeply in- debted to the adventurous and daring intrepidity of the sons of the ocean ! To use the language of the eloquent author of " Bri- tannia," a Prize Essay, dedicated to William IV. : From the shores of eternity they cast back on us looks of upbraiding and reproach, because we never stretched out a friendly hand to save them from destruction ; and because, while every other class was enjoying the benefits of our Christian soli- citude, we entirely neglected them. From eternity they implore us instantly to warn their brethren and children, lest they also come to the place of torment." The following is an extract of a letter addressed to me by the British and Foreign Sailors' Society, in 1847 : AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 107 " It has been computed, that for every SIXTEEN sailors who die of all diseases, ELEVEN die by drowning, or in wrecks : that the number of British ships which are lost, is about ONE to TWENTY-FIVE : that nearly TWO THOUSAND of our mariners per- ish every year in the mighty deep, chiefly by shipwreck, by which PROPERTY to the value of nearly THREE MILLIONS sterling is annually lost to the empire ; while hundreds of widows, and thousands of orphans, are thrown upon public charity ; and that the more freqxient cause of these shipwrecks is intemperance ! These thrilling facts must speak with deep and solemn empha- sis to every one possessed of the feelings of our common human- ity ; but especially to such as have a due sense of the worth of the soul, and the momentous doctrines of salvation by Christ. Oh ! if there were any bowels and mercies in those who call themselves disciples of the Lord Jesus, let them by all that is precious in redeeming blood by all that is touching in Divine Love by all that is real in the discoveries of the gospel by all that enters into the worth of a deathless soul by all that stands connected with immortality and eternity, attempt, without de- lay, the present and eternal salvation of our deserving SEAMEN !" The advocacy of Temperance first commenced in St. John's in 1835. A society was then formed, but eventu- ally failed for want of being conducted on the total absti- nence principle. In 1838, a total abstinence society was formed, which, for a long time consisted of only nine members. In 1849 more public efforts were made, when the Society began to increase. In 1841 the Society num- bered 250 members. The Society held several public meetings and festivals in aid of the cause, and put in cir- culation temperance journals and tracts. All these efforts were the means at length of inducing others to embark in the cause. In 1843 this Society was denominated " The Abstinence Union Society," connected with which was then the Presbyterian and Methodist Ministers. 1 In 1841, the Right Rev. Dr. Fleming, late Roman Ca- tholic Bishop, commenced the advocac} r of total absti- nence. He imported several thousand medals, on one side of which the trade, fisheries, and agriculture of New- 108 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, foundland were represented, and on the reverse side was the pledge, with the name of the president. The bishop appointed one of his clergymen, the Rev. Kyran Walsh, to administer the pledge, and in the course of a few weeks several thousands enrolled their names and received the pledge. From this time the temperance cause made rapid strides, through the zealous advocacy of Mr. Walsh. Sub- sequently, the Rev. John Forestal was appointed presi- dent of the Society, who was indefatigable in his exer- tions to extend the cause. Mr. Walsh has now resumed his old post again as president of the Society. In 1842, the Rev. Thomas F. H. Bridge, M.A., rector of St. John's, parish church, began to administer a temperance card amongst the Protestant part of the community, when hundreds signed the pledge. After this the Catholic and Protestant clergymen in the outports commenced the ad- vocacy of total abstinence. In 1844, the number of teetotalers had increased to 22,000 for the whole island, of which number there were 20,000 Catholics. During the Governorship of Sir John Harvey, he delivered several temperance speeches, and aided the cause by his presence on several occasions. After this period the temperance cause retrograded, until 1848, when Mr. Kellogg, an American temperance lec- turer, visited St. John's, and delivered a course of lec- tures, which gave a fresh impetus to the cause. A new society was then formed, under the title of " St. John's Total Abstinence Society," when several influential per- sons, who had hitherto stood aloof, joined the Society. Since this period public meetings have been regularly held, and converts obtained to the cause. Several Orders of the Sons of Temperance have been formed. The following is the quantity of liquors imported in the undermentioned years, including ale and porter, wines and spirits, of all kinds : In 1838, 277,808 gallons ; in 1847, 94,2G8 gallons ; in 1856, 256,361 gallons. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 109 The sceneiy around St. John's is as fine as I have ever seen in any country. The land is beautifully cultivated, and dotted with cottages and groups of trees. The trees are, however, destitute of that magnificent foliage that the trees of the neighbouring continent present. Neither oak, elm, maple, beach, cedar, walnut, butternut, or ches- nut adorns the Newfoundland landscape ; the principal trees being spruce, fir, birch, and pine. There are some well cultivated farms in the neighbourhood of St. John's. In the winter season the environs of St. John's is crowded with persons drawing wood from the interior with horses and dogs, on low sleigh-like vehicles, called slides and catamarans. The greater part of the wood is used for fuel. The principal part of the inhabitants, however, burn coal, which is imported from Sydney, C.B., and Great Britain. The air-tight or close stoves which are so common in the United States and the continental pro- vinces, and which are so very convenient, but which are also very destructive to the health, are not much used in Newfoundland. During this season also, trains of sleigh- ing parties are seen flying about in all directions, while the brass harness glistening in the sunshine, and the tink- ling of the little bells on the horses' necks, present a scene of gaiety and animation. The sleigh of Newfoundland is not a vehicle of busi- ness, sleighing being pursued mostly for recreation and pleasure, and principally confined to St. John's, Harbour Grace, Carbonear, and Brigus. The principal places in the district of St. John's, east and west, besides the City of St. John's, is Torbay, which has three cod liver oil manufactories, and a population of 1,200 ; Petty Harbour, where are three cod liver oil man- ufactories, and a population of 747 ; and Portugal Cove, with a population of 651 at the latter place there are three churches, one Church of England, one Wesleyan Methodist, and one Roman Catholic. There are also three hotels, also two schoolhouses, and a public wharf for pas- HO NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, sengers, &c., to land off the packets which touch here every day from various parts of Conception Bay. The passengers either walk or ride in a coach over a beautiful road nine miles and a half to St. John's. The craggy rocks and wild towering cliffs, crowned with stunted fir trees, surrounding Portugal Cove, gives it an exceedingly romantic appearance. Waterford Bridge and Tindi Vidi in the neighbourhood of St. John's, are places of great resort for pleasure parties, also Topsail, some miles distant. Quidi Vidi Lake is frequented in the summer for bath- ing and regattas, and in the winter season for skating. A considerable quantity of ice is taken from the lake and deposited in an ice-house by the side of the lake, which belongs to a company who supply the city during the summer months. The whole country surrounding this lake is finely cultivated. About three miles from St. John's is " Virginia Cot- tage," once the rural retreal of Sir Thomas Cochrane, the governor. The lands are beautifully embellished with trees, and laid out in gravel walks. There is also a small lake along which winds a walk. This lovely spot was adorned from the private purse of Sir Thomas Cochrane, and after his departure from the island, was sold to the present proprietor, George H. Emerson, Esq., once a member of the House of Assembly, and solicitor-general of the island. Besides the above places in the two districts of St. John's, there is Logy Bay, population 180 ; Flat Rock, 236; Outer Cove, 237; Pouch Cove, 736; and Broad Cove, 301. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. Ill CHAPTER IV. DISTRICT OF CONCEPTION BAT. 1501, Gasper de Cortereal, the Portuguese navi- gator, visited Conception Bay,, and gave to it the name which it bears, after the miraculous conception of the Virgin Mary. He also gave the present names of many of the coves and headlands. A colony was attempted to be established at Musquito Cove, Conception Bay, so early as the reign of James I. By letters patent, dated 27th April, 1610, a company of English gentlemen (among whom were the celebrated Sir Francis Bacon, Lord Northampton, and Sir Francis Tan- field) were granted all that part of the island lying be- tween Cape Bonavista and Cape St. Mary. These gen- tlemen sent a company of emigrants, under the direction of John Guy, to plant a colony in the newly-granted territory. Guy was a Bristol merchant, and set sail from that city in 1610, with three ships and thirty-nine per- sons, as governor of the colony. He arrived at Mosquito Cove after a short passage, where he erected a dwelling- house, storehouse, &c., and planted a small fort of three cannon. He remained here two years, and opened a very promising intercourse with the native Indians, and in his letters to England, describes the climate as not so cold as that of England, and that the brooks had not been frozen during the depth of winter. William Colston, however, who was left in charge of the colony after Guy's return to England, did not speak so well of it. Six of the emi- grants were seized with scurvy and died. In the summer of 1612, Guy returned to the colony, and by judiciously treating the sick they soon regained their health. It is said vegetables were at this period raised, among which were turnips, which were given to 112 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the sick. Guy made a journey along the coast, where he met with a number of Red Indians, shortly after which the colony was abandoned. Conception Bay is the most thickly settled and best cultivated part of Newfoundland. Few bays surpass it in beauty and grandeur of scenery. Harbour Grace is the capital of Conception Bay, and the next Town to St. John's. It is called the " Brighton of Newfoundland," on account of its beauty. The harbour is seven miles long, at the entrance are some islands, en- tirely composed of fine roofing slate, on one of those islands a splendid Light-house is erected, there is also a harbour light. According to the census of 1857, the population of Harbour Grace was 5,095. There are four churches, one Episcopalian, one Roman Catholic, one Wesleyan Metho- dist, and one Presbyterian. There is also a stone Court House and Gaol, which was erected in 1830, with stone obtained from Kelley's Island. The first Court House in Conception Bay was erected about the year 1808, a few years previous to which, Judge Reeves, the first Chief Justice of Newfoundland, visited Harbour Grace and examined into a most disgraceful state of things, as res- pected the administration of justice there. The Courts were then conducted by floating and resident surrogates, generally naval officers. The following is an account of the public meeting held, with the amount of money raised for the erection of the Court House and Gaol in 1807 : " At a meeting of the magistrates and merchants in the Dis trict of Harbour Grace, in Conception Bay, in order for raising a subscription, &c., for the purpose of building a Court-house and Jail in Harbour Grace, it was fully resolved that the sum of twenty shillings be levied on every thousand quintals of fish catched and shipped off in Conception Bay ; and each merchant holds himself responsible for the amount of the collections as annexed to his name, which sums the said merchants are to be reimbursed by leving the sum of two shillings on every hundred quintals on each person or planter of whom they receive the said AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 113 quantity of fish, which the magistrates hereby give the authority to do. " And it is further resolved, that every servant employed in the fishery is to pay one shilling for every ten pounds wages, the same as the last season ; and that all publicans, shop-keepers, coopers, and persons not carrying on the fishery, shall pay res- pectively as follows : Every shop-keeper, the sum of one guinea and-a-half ; every cooper carrying on his trade on his own ac- count, the sum of one guinea ; every publican not carrying on the fishery, the sum of one guinea ; and such other persons that are employed in the fishery, the sum of half a guinea. And it is also further resolved, that all chartered vessels that shall load in Conception Bay, and not belonging to the merchants as their own property, that each vessel so chartered shall pay the sum of ten shillings and sixpence for one season only. " (Approved of) " CHAS. GARLAND, J. P., " WM. LILLY, J. P., " Ls. AMAD, ANSPACH, J. P., " OLIVER ST. JOHN, Secretary. "Harbour Gra*e, 22nd June, 1807." (Enrolled.') For Geo. & Js. Kemp & Co., Henry C. Watts 45 for 45,000 For Wm. Dawson, A lex. Campbell 25 for 25,000 For Alexr. Boucher &Co., John Smith 16 for 16,000 Gosse, Chancey& Ledgard... 16 10 for 16,500 Wm. H. Mullowney 5 10 for 5,500 Richd. Cornish & Co 3 for 3,000 Thomas Dunn 2 for 2,000 Richard Palmer 1 10 for 1,500 John Church will & Co 1 13 for 1,300 Kearney & St. John 3 10 for 3,500 For Wm. Newman & Son, J. Furneaux 7 7,000 Carried forward 126 13 114 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Brought forward 126 13 3 Jno. Travers ...'... , , l Danl. Connors 1 , 10 Frs Pike for Elizth. Pike .... 1 14 1 o 3,000 1,000 1,000 500 1,400 1,000 134 7 Harbour Grace has two principal streets running through it, called Water and Harvey Streets. There are some brick and stone buildings on Water Street. The Church of England of Harbour Grace is the first stone church ever built in Newfoundland. The following is an extract from the scroll read on the occasion of the laying of the foundation stone, by John Stark, Esq.. Chair- man of the Building Committee, and Chief Clerk and Re- gistrar of the Northern Circuit Court, which was depo- sited in a bottle beneath the foundation stone. " Here stood St. Paul's Church, which was burnt to the ground by the great fire at Harbour- Grace, on the 18th August, 1832 erected on the site of the first church built in the year 1794 ; and the corner stone of this New Stone Church is now laid by His Excellency Henry Prescott, Esq., Companion of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath, Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the Island of Newfoundland and its dependencies, and Vice- Admiral of the same, on Tues- day the twenty-eighth day of July, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty -five, and in the sixth year of the Reign of his present Majesty William the Fourth of Great Britain and Ireland King." The land on which the Church was erected, together with the Burial Ground and Parsonage lands, was the gift of the late Charles Garland, Esq., J.P., of Harbour Grace, and grandfather of Wm. C. St. John, Esq., late Editor of the " Conception Bay Herald." In 1849, the Methodist Chapel was destroyed by fire. A larger and finer wooden building has since been erected. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. The Roman Catholics have also erected a large stone church, which is now a cathedral, Harbour Grace being now the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishopric. On the 18th of August, 1882, Harbour Grace wasvisited by a destructive fire, by which ninety-six buildings and the Episcopal Church, were destroyed. In 1844 it was visited by another fire, when twenty-five houses were burnt, and property to the amount of $30,000 was con- sumed; and in 1858, nearly the whole town was destroyed. In 1833, several awful murders took place here, the perpe- trators of which were discovered and executed. The Circuit Court sits twice a year at Harbour Grace, presided over by one of the three Judges of the Supreme Court. Quarter Sessions of the Magistrates' Court is also holden, and one of the Police Magistrates is in daily attend- ance at the Police Office. There are two resident Police Magistrates, a Clerk of the Peace, a Sheriff, and a Clerk of the Supreme Court. There are three medical men. Here are located two of the most enterprising, as well as the largest mercantile establishments in Newfoundland, owned by Ridley & Sons,* and Punton & Munn, now John Munn & Co. Both houses take a deep interest in all political and social improvements, and contribute much to the ^/osperity and welfare of the town. These houses are largely embarked in the seal and cod fisheries, and issue an extensive supply on credit to persons engaged in the Labrador cod-fishery. There is great rivalry between the two houses. But then the influence of commerce is peaceful. The mercenary gospel of the ledger denounces the god of war, and charges to his account a vast waste of blood and treasure, to the debit of profit and loss. Commerce is favourable to the full development of the resources of every land, and calls to its aid all the light and knowledge which art and science can render. Wherever merchants divested of caste, have given a tone The house of Ridley & Co now defunct. 116 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to society, civilization and refinement have had a dwelling- place ; the standard of learning has been higher than in communities where agriculture and the mechanic arts have been solely cultivated ; and religion now follows where commercial enterprise leads the way. There are several other smaller merchants at Harbour Grace, besides the two large houses above mentioned. Since the establish- ment of the Local Legislature, Harbour Grace has always returned one of her townsmen to the House of Assembly. The first member was Peter Brown, Esq. ; since that, Thos. Ridley, James L. Prender, John Munn, and others. Harbour Grace has been the birth-place of the press in Conception Bay. Formerly the " Mercury," the " Herald," and the " Conception Bay Man," were published here. The name of the paper at present published in Harbour Grace, is the " Standard," Mr. Archibald Munn being editor and proprietor. There is an excellent Grammar School at Harbour Grace, well furnished with books, maps, and philosophical apparatus, in which a large number of children is educated. This school is presided over by Professor Roddick, a highly intelligent Scotchman, for- merly teacher of the classics in the High and Lower School of the Mechanics' Institute, Liverpool, England. There is also a very excellent School belonging to the Episcopal Church. The Roman Catholics have also a very large School, and there is a female school supported by the Government ; besides these public schools there are some private ones. There is also a small Custom-House. Since the election riots in 1840, a small company of the military had been stationed at Harbour Grace, and when it was in contemplation to remove them to St. John's, so anxious were the people to retain them, that they peti- tioned the Home Government for them to remain. Har- bour Grace has a Commercial Society and Public Reading Room. There are also the Benevolent Irish Society; Dorcas Society; Temperance Society; Marine Insurance Society; and a Volunteer Company. There is a post office and a AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 117 telegraph office. The town next in importance to Harbour Grace is Carbonear, which ranked a little higher in popu- lation in 1845, and until within the last few years, always stood higher as a place of commerce. The census of 1857 gives Carbonear a population of 4,808. The manufacture of oil clothing here amounts to over $3,000, When the French fleet attacked and destroyed St. John's in 1696, the British settlers at Carbonear success- fully resisted Iberville, the French commander. Again, in 1706, when St. Ovide, the commander of the French fleet, destroyed every other British settlement in the island, Carbonear defended itself and repelled the agres- sor. In 1762, however, in common with all other parts of the island, this hitherto impregnable fortress was taken by the French. In 1762, Charles Garland, Esq., of Har- bour Grace, supported a detachment of men, whom he garrisoned on Carbonear Island, at the mouth of the harbour. Mr. Garland paid, fed, and supported these men, when provisions were scarce and dear. He also raised a number of sailors for the temporary use of the navy. The writer has often seen some of the cannon and the remains of the fortifications erected on Carbonear Island. In 1775, in a dreadful storm which devastated the whole coast of Newfoundland, Carbonear and Harbour Grace suffered severely in loss of fishing craft and men. It is said upwards of a hundred boats, with their crews, were lost in one cove. During the above year, Harbour Grace and Carbonear were constantly annoyed by Ame- rican privateers, but were kept at a distance by the commanding batteries on the cliffs. Owing to the general depression of trade on the close of the war, and great privation consequent on the destruction of St. John's by the great fires in the winter of 1816, and other causes, some of the inhabitants of Carbonear and Harbour Grace were in a destitute condition. Numbers, rendered des- titute by want, began to break open the merchants' stores. 118 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Volunteer companies were immediately embodied and armed, to prevent further depredations, and committees of relief were formed to issue small quantities of food at stated periods. This winter is universally designated by the old inhabitants of Carbonear as the '' Winter of the Rals." In 1856, a destructive conflagration destroyed a great part of the town of Carbonear. Carbonear was once a town of great commercial im- portance. The merchants at one period used to send to St. John's to purchase fish and oil to load their vessels. It is said that two of the Carbonear merchants, George and James Kemp, retired to England with a fortune of 30,000 or $150.000 each. These persons at one time owned the greatest proportion of the landed property in the town of Poole, county of Dorset, England. John Gosse, Esq., of the well-known firm of Gosse, Pack and Fryer, it is said also accumulated a fortune at Carbonear, and retired to Poole, and many others. The principal mercantile establishments of Carbonear at the present time are those of John Rorke who has been many years a member of the Legislature, J. and S. Maddock, Benjamin Gould, and others. Robert Pack, Esq., the principal of the house of Pack, Gosse and Fryer, had lived at Carbonear the greater part of his life, and had largely contributed to its prosperity. He was one of the members sent by the unanimous votes of the people to the first Legislature of Newfoundland, and was subsequently twice returned ; he declined, how- ever, at the last election to take his seat. By his devo- tion to agriculture he set an example worthy of imitation. About twenty-five years ago, Mr. Pack commenced the cultivation of a large tract of land in the neighbourhood of the town of Carbonear, which he soon brought into a well-cultivated farm. He subsequently built a splendid cottage on it, surrounded by gardens, walks, and trees. He made it his permanent residence up to the time of his death a few years ago. He was identified with the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. general interests of the country from a boy, and for fifty years was a principal in one of the oldest and largest mercantile establishments in Newfoundland. He spent a fortune in developing the agricultural capabilities of the soil. Carbonear has three places of worship. One Church of England, a new and elegant building, erected mainly through the exertions of the Rev. Wm. Hoyles ; one new Methodist Church, which is the largest belonging to that body in the island ; and one Roman Catholic. It has a court-house, a police magistrate and constables, a clerk of the peace, and a custom-house officer. Out of the four members for the district of Conception Bay, Carbonear has always sent one. There are several private and public schools. The Government School is conducted by Professor 'Donovan, formerly a tutor in Trinity College, Dublin. He is a good-natured, intelli- gent Irishman. There is a well-conducted Methodist school, also an excellent school belonging to the Church of England, and another under the direction of the Roman Catholics. There is a post-office and telegraph office. A newspaper called " The Star," was established at Car- bonear in 1830, which was succeeded some years after by " The Sentinel," both, however, are now defunct. Through the efforts of the late Thomas Chancey, Esq., then a leading merchant, a commercial society was formed in 1834, this also has become defunct. For many years Carbonear was blessed with a valuabk circulating library, established mainly by the late John Elson, Esq., a gentlemen of extensive literary acquire- ments, and one of the principals in the respectable and long-established house of Slade, Elson & Co. P. H. Gosse, Esq., M.R.S., was in this establishment several years, afterwards one of the English naturalists, and au- thor of several valuable works. S. W. Sprague, afterwards a Wesleyan Methodist minis- ter, P. Tocque, afterwards a Church of England clergy- 120 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, man, and about a dozen merchants, received their train- ing in this establishment. Owing to Mr. Elson's seques- tered habits, his worth as a man of general literature was known to but few in the community in which he lived. Had his lot been cast among other influences than those by which he was surrounded, he would have shone most conspicuously as a public man. The library, after many years of usefulness, was finally broken up, and no effort has since been made to establish another. There is, however, a valuable and extensive Methodist Sunday-school library, and a large number of standard works are yearly added to it, by means of an annual public collection. There is also an excellent Church of England library. These libraries, however, reach very few of other denominations. It is to be re- gretted that in a community so large as Carbonear a pub- lic circulating library is not re-established. Books have been termed " the monuments of vanished minds," and a circulating library pronounced " an ever- green tree of knowledge, which blossoms all the year." Dr. Channing, one of the greatest American writers, says : " It is chiefly through books that we enjoy intercourse with superior minds, and these invaluable means of communication are in the reach of all. In the best books great men talk to us, give us their most precious thoughts, and pour their souls into ours. God be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead, and make us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages. Books are the true levellers. They give to all, who will faithfully use them, the society, the spiritual pre- sence, of the best and greatest of our race. No matter how poor I am. No matter, though the prosperous of my own time will not enter my obscure dwelling. If the sacred writers will enter and take up their abode under my roof, if Milton will cross my threshold to sing to me of Paradise, and Shakspeare to open to me the worlds of imagination and the workings of the human heart, and Franklin to enrich me with his practical wisdom, I shall not pine for intellectual companionship ; and I may become a cultivated man, though excluded from what is called the best society in the place where I live." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 121 There is a benevolent Irish Society at Carbonear, also a Methodist Total Abstinence Society, a Bible Society, and two medical men. The next important town is Brigus, which contains a population of about 1,779, from which an important seal and cod fishery is carried on. Formerly Charles Cozens, Esq., the late stipendiary magistrate, carried on a very extensive mercantile establishment. He also cultivated a large farm. The Messrs. Munden, Nor- man, Percey, Wheelan, Bartlett, and Roberts reside here, who are some of the richest planters in Newfoundland. Brigus is well cultivated, and, for the extent of popula- tion, has a number of good residences. There is no large mercantile establishment at present at Brigus. The last belonged to Robert Brown, Esq., who has removed to St. John's. Nearly the whole trade of Brigus has been re- moved to St. John's and Harbour Grace. There are three churches, one Episcopal, one Methodist, and one Roman Catholic. There is a Court-house, a stipendiary magis- trate, and a clerk of the peace. Quarter Sessions of the Peace are holden here ; John C. Nuttall, Esq., is collector of customs. There is a post-office and a telegraph office. There is one large public school, belonging to the Episco- palians, and also one Roman Catholic school. Not far from Brigus, at places called Turk's Head and English Head, Copper mines are being worked, they have produced three tons of good ore. The next important town is Port-de-Grave, which is situate on a very long, narrow, bleak promontory. It and the neighbouring coves contain a population of 1,973. There are three places of worship, one Episcopalian, one Methodist, and one Roman Catholic. There are two Public Schools, which belong to the Episcopalians and the Methodists. There are here several merchants who carry on the seal and cod fisheries to a considerable extent. The next place of importance is Bay Roberts. There was formerly a large mercantile establishment, a branch of the firm of Pack, Gosse, and Fryer, conducted by a very intelligent English gentleman, 122 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, William Green, Esq., son-in-law of Mr. Pack. James Cormack, Esq., a smart and well-informed Irishman, also carried on a very respectable trade, and Mr. McLellan did a considerable business. (These firms are now defunct.) The Episcopalians, Methodists and Roman Catholics each have a church here. There are two Public Schools, be- longing to the Episcopalians and Roman Catholics. The Hon. C. F. Bennett, of St. John's, commenced the working of a very extensive slate-quarry here some years ago. Bay Roberts has a population of 2,300. There is a Methodist Church and a School here, and a number of respectable planters.* Formerly large mer- cantile establishments were conducted here, but the build- ings are now almost in ruins. The view of land and water, on the top of the hill between Brigus and Cupids, is as fine a landscape as can well be imagined. The next place of importance is Spaniard's Bay. Here William Donnolly, Esq., for many years carried on a large and profitable business, previous to his removal to Harbour Grace. Spainards' Bay has one Episcopal, and one Roman Catholic Church, and two schools belonging to the respec- tive denominations. At the head of Conception Bay are Holyrood and Har- bour Main, containing a population of about 800 each. At Chapel Cove, an abundance of Limestone is found. The lands are extensively cultivated, and large quantities of vegetables are raised. There is a Roman Catholic Church in each place with schools. The original inhabitants of these places were from England and Jersey, and their descendants informed me that they had been brought up in the Church of England, but owing to their not being visited by any Protestant Minister they were induced to join the Roman Catholic Church. Mr. Ezekiel, an English Jew, informed me that he had joined the Roman Catholic Church for the same * Owners of fishing establishments are called planters. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 1 23 reason. He is now dead, and, I believe, has left a numer- ous family. These places are now principally inhabited by persons from the " Emerald Isle " and natives. On the north shore of Conception Bay the principal places are Broad Cove, Black Head, Adam's Cove, Western Bay, Ochre Pit Cove, Northern Bay Island Cove, Bay-de-Verds, and Grates' Cove at Island Cove. Some years ago a mer- cantile business was carried on by Richard Rankin, Esq., an intelligent Englishman, who afterwards became the resident Stipendiary Magistrate at Bay-de-Verds. Thirty- three seal nets are employed catching seals. One Packet Boat plies from each of the harbours of Harbour Grace, Car- bonear and Brigus, to Portugal Cove, for the conveyance of mails and passengers en route to St. John's. A small steam-boat has taken the place of the sailing packets. The cod-fishery in Conception Bay commences about the beginning of June, and ends about the last of Septem- ber, after which the potatoes are usually dug and put in the cellar for the winter. From this period the great mass of the fishermen are idle five months, owing to the want of manufactures or employment other than the fishery. Single men usually become " winter dieters " (that is, they pay for their board until March), or they engage them- selves as winter servants, when they are employed hauling wood for fuel from the woods ; for which, in most cases, they only receive their board for wages. On the first of March all is bustle and animation, preparing for the seal fishery. Persons are seen coming in from all parts of the country, some by land, with their bats, sealing-gun, and bundles of clothing over their shoulders ; others come in skiffs, loaded with clothes, boxes, bags, guns, and gaffs. From the 1st to about the 10th of March, the streets of Harbour Grace, Carbonear, Bay Roberts, and Brigus, are crowded with groups of hardy seal-hunters. Some are employed bending sails and fixing the rigging of the vessel; some making oars and preparing the sealing-punts or 124 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, skiffs ; others collecting stones for ballast, filling the water casks and cleaving wood ; while others are employed putting on board the provisions necessary for the voyage. The shouting, whistling, and clatter of tongues, presents almost a scene of Babel. In severe winters the harbours are frozen, when a channel through the ice has to be cut for the egress of vessels. Many men and vessels are lost in the prosecution of this voyage. Sometimes vessels are crushed between large masses of ice called " rollers," at other times they get in contact with islands of ice. The seal-fishery is a constant scene of bloodshed and slaughter. Here you behold a heap of seals which have only received a slight dart from the gaff, writhing, and crimsoning the ice with their blood, rolling from side to side in dying agony. There you see another lot, while the last spark of life is not yet extinguished, being stripped of their skins and fat, their startlings and heavings making the unprac- tised hand shrink with horror to touch them. In the prosecution of the seal fishery the Sabbath is violated to a great extent. In pursuing this branch of commercial enterprise, some have been suddenly raised from compar- ative poverty to wealth and affluence. On the other hand, persons of means have embarked in the voyage, and have been as suddenly reduced to poverty. Several steamers are now sent to the seal fisheries from Harbour Grace. Fortune at best is but a fickle goddess, but she will always have devotees worshipping at her altars. For a more detailed account of the seal fisheries, see "Fisheries." A Magnetic Telegraph has been established from Concep- tion Bay to St. John's. In 1836, the population of Conception Bay was 23,215. The agricultural produce then was 746,869 bushels of potatoes ; 4,184 bushels of oats and other grain ; 940 tons hay ; acres of land in cultivation, 2,873. Of live stock there were 638 horses; 1,034 neat cattle; 1,632 hogs; and 1,187 sheep. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 125 According to the census of 1857, the population of Con- ception Bay was, 10,613 Church of England. In 1874, 13,738 13,345 Roman Catholics. " 15,340 9,345 Wesleyan Methodists. " 11,795 5 Kirk of Scotland. " 1 75 Free Kirk. " 187 13 Congregationalists. 9 33,396 Total. Total 41,070 There were, Churches of England 13 Roman Catholic 13 Wesleyan , 16 Free Kirk of Scotland 1 Total 43 There were also 80 schools, with 4,563 scholars ; and 5,493 dwelling houses. There were 12,043 acres of land under cultivation. Ship-building has been principally carried on at Car- bonear and Harbour Grace. Within the last few years, several large, substantial, and beautiful model vessels have been built at Harbour Grace by the enterprising mercantile houses of the Messrs. Ridley and Munn ; and at Carbonear by Messrs. Rorke, and others. In the mouth of the bay, about 50 miles from Carbonear, is the island of Baccahew (called Baccaloas) by Cabot when he discovered Newfoundland. This was the name Cabot gave to all the land he discovered, which signified cod-fish in the Indian tongue. The small Island of Bac- cahew has long been celebrated for it birds and eggs. This island is much frequented in the spring and summer for the purpose of procuring the eggs of the sea birds which breed there. Their eggs are obtained by letting 126 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, persons down from the top of the cliffs by ropes. The daring adventurers soon lose sight of their companions, as they pass down the perpendicular walls and overhanging parts of the cliffs, when they reach the terraces, which are often more than two feet wide, they cast off the rope, and having procured a load of eggs, they signify to their com- panions on the top their desire to be drawn up by pulling the rope. This occupation is attended with great danger and sometimes men have been killed. A light house was erected not long ago at the north end of the Island. The following table will show the relative importance of the trade of Carbonear and Harbour Grace at the periods referred to : AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 127 o o O O uapj suox S13SS8A U3W I CO suox suox suox U8K suox 8I88S3A co ss O5 O5i Oi-H b^ O5 OOOO suox b- CO rH (M 50 10 rH ^1 CO (M rH CO < CO -* COCO J b-rHCi l(Mb-(MOrH W JO O 53 rH S ^ 1O rH CO n to some extent. Newman & Co. employed two vessels ;nd eight whale-boats. They have the necessary appar- tus for manufacturing the whale oil. The number of /hales annually captured was between forty and fifty. ^he quantity of jwhale oil manufactured by this firm in 830 and 1834, was about 200 tuns. In 1857, the quan- ity was not more than 50 tuns. The harpoon gun is pnerally used. The species of whales taken are the lump Back and Sulphur Bottom. The latter yield from to 12 tuns of oil, but are seldom taken ; the former are lore abundant, and yield from two to five tuns. The New Bedford Mercury says : " We had an opportunity on Saturday to witness some inter- ring experiments performed under the direction of Mr. C. A. eineken, an intelligent merchant of Bremen, Germany, now t a visit in this city, illustrating 'the effect of electricity to tilitatethe capture of the whale. The subject was first brought 1 the notice of Mr. Heineken by the discourses of Dr. Somers- irg, Professor of Natural History, and Mr. Euckstan, in Bre- ien, as presenting important advantages over the mode itherto employed in the whale fishery. The most prominent jatures of the new mode proposed, may be briefly enumerated 3 follows : The electricity is conveyed to the body of the whale from an ;lectro-galvanic battery, contained in the boat, by means of a metallic wire attached to the harpoon, and so arranged as to reconduct the electric current from the whale through the sea to the machine. The machine itself is simple and compact in construction, enclosed in a strong chest weighing about 350 pounds, and occupying a space in the boat of about three and a half feet long by two feet in width and the same in height. It is capable of throwing into the body of the whale eight tremendous strokes of electricity in a second, or 950 strokes in a minute paralyzing, in an instant, the muscles of the whale, and depriving it of all power of motion, if not actually of life. 184 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " That every whale at the moment of being struck with the harpoon is rendered powerless, as by a stroke of lightning, and therefore his subsequent escape or loss, except by sinking, is wholly impracticable ; and the process of lancing and securing him is entirely unattended with danger. The arduous labour involved in a long chase in the capture of the whale is super- seded, and consequently the inconvenience and danger of the boats losing sight of or becoming separated from the ship, is avoided. One or two boats only would be required to be low- ered at a time, and therefore a less number both of officers and seamen than heretofore employed, would be ample for the pur- pose of the voyage. "Mr. Heineken, although not at first inclined to place much reliance upon the proposed advantages to be derived from this discovery, has subsequently become in a great measure a con- vert to the theory, and at the urgent solicitation of practical whalemen in his employ from the port of Bremen, has recently placed the apparatus on board of two whaleships in which he is interested as owner, from that port. He is desirous of sub mitting the subject of the discovery to the consideration o practical whalemen and others in this city, with a view of pro curing further tests of its efficiency." It appears from evidence given by Henry Butler, before a committee of the House of Assembly, in 1840, that the whale fishery was carried on by the Americans to a greal extent in Hermitage Bay, Bay of Despair, and Fortune Bay, during the years 1796, 1797, 1798, and 1799 ; that during the three first years, twelve vessels were employed by them, manned by fifteen men each ; that all of the vessels returned nearly loaded ; that they carried on the whale fishery in this part of the country until about the year 1807, when it was discontinued, owing to some dis- pute arising between Great Britain and the United States; that three years after this a schooner was fitted out by the Americans, which arrived at Burin, but on account of a man-of-war being stationed there, the schooner pro- ceeded to St. Mary's Bay, where she remained until the month of August, and had nearly completed her load AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 185 when she was taken by a British sloop-of -war, and ordered to St. John's ; but the crew being too strong for the prize- master, the schooner shaped her course for America, and arrived in safety at Cape Cod. With this ended the Am- erican whale fishery on the western shores of Newfound- land. Mr. Butler stated that a whale fishery commenced in Hermitage Bay, under the firm of Peter Lemessuirer & Co., which continued for four years only, when the part- nership dissolved; that the natives of Hermitage Bay, having some idea of the fishery, began a whale fishery on a very small scale ; that a person of the name of McDon- ald had made a large property by it ; that the house of Newman & Co. being aware of these proceedings, pur- chased the premises that had been Peter Lemessuirer & Co.'s, and began the whale fishery on a large scale. The manner in which these mercantile establishments were conducted, throws one back upon the olden times when Newfoundland was entirely under the dictum of the Mer- cantocracy or "Codfish Aristocracy." These establish- ments had their cook rooms, cooper's shop, sail loft, car- penter's shop, blacksmith's forge, &c. All the persons em- ployed were sent from England and Jersey, and engaged for one, two, and three years. They were found in diet and sleeping apartments, and at the expiration of their term of servitude were sent home if they desired it. In traversing Fortune Bay the mind will revert to Ireland, " The mother of tears." Newfoundland has been chroni- cled on the historic pages of the country as the " Ireland of America." First, on account of its being an island and about the same size; secondly, the adaptation of the soil to the growth of the potato ; thirdly, the absence of venemous reptiles of every kind ; and lastly, on account of its popu- lation, half of which are essentially Irish. If, however, Fortune Bay is not much like Ireland owing to the few Irish settled along its shores, yet it is more like Ireland than any other part of the island, on account of its rich 186 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, absentees, for all the merchants of this bay are absentees living in England and Jersey, and their business here carried on through agents. These establishments, however, give importance to the bay, and are of considerable ad- vantage to the population in affording them facilities for obtaining a livelihood. The late agent of Newman & Co., Andrew Ellis, Esq., is a highly intelligent Englishman, now residing near London, Ontario. The agents of the mercantile establishments have been brought up in them from their boyhood, and have consequently imbibed those narrow and contracted views which have always been inculcated by the merchants of Newfoundland in days of yore. A compact was entered into between the houses of Newman & Co. and Nicoll, that they would not sell any article of merchandise to the dealers of their respective establishments, that is, Messrs. Nicoll would not sell an article to one who is accustomed to deal with Newman & Co., and vice versa, so neither would these establishments sell goods to persons who were accustomed to purchase in St. John's, or any other place. By this system of des- potism, they managed to monopolize nearly the whole trade of the south-west coast. These establishments in 1848 prayed for license to the Government for the sale of spirituous liquors. The miserable supplying system gives great power and influence to the merchants of Newfound- land it makes him a despot and the poor fisherman a vassal. One man, a supplying merchant, who knows little, it may be, about anything excepting pounds, shillings and pence, will direct the actions of thousands in many in- stances, not one of his dealers will dare to exercise his own judgment upon matters that deeply concern his own welfare. There is not, and cannot be, a more baneful, soul-enslaving, despotic influence exerted in any country than the system of supplying on credit which pervades this country. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 187 I have seen men waiting, watching, and scrutinizing the motions and features of their supplying merchants or his agent, that they might find him in a good humour, then hat in hand present themselves to ask for a barrel of flour, a few pounds of butter, or a few gallons of mo- lasses. Even the former slaves and serfs of Russia were more to be envied than some of the poor down-trodden fishermen of Newfoundland, who are thus compelled to humble themselves before their fellow-man. The former are better clothed, better fed, and have less to do than he who, it may be, has a family more or less numerous to provide for, and who, after toiling and sweating and en- during the hardest bitings of wind and weather, finds that all his voyage will not pay his account and lay in his winter's stock of provisions. The ocean is, in a great measure, the home of the Newfoundland fisherman. The Rev. Mr. Brewster, Wesleyan, says : " It is the fishermen, the hardy, storm-beaten fishermen, who have cause, if cause there really be, to complain. His life is daily exposed, above the ordinary and common exposure, to danger and death. He draws his means of subsistence from the very gulph of death. His wife and children, in eating the bread he has earned, feel something as David felt when his three mighty men cut through the host of the Philistines and drew him water from the well of Bethlehem. He said, ' My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing : Shall I drink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy ? for with jeopardy of their lives they brought it.' 1 Chron., 11 : 19. The fish- erman prepares his gear, and early in the morning he leaves his family and home, and commits himself to the God of provi- dence as he hoists the sails. The morning he and his compan- ions bid us farewell, is fair and beautiful. They expect to leave us for a few days at least, and we bid them God speed, and stand idling a minute or two on the beach to see them sail away, remarking, ' What a fine time away they have ! ' The day passes, the night comes, and with it signs of gathering storms. A swift passing cloud and howling blast come like heralds of an approaching foe. The howling wind increases in strength, 188 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and the night is darker. But the fisherman's wife is not yet alarmed. A dreadful blast now strikes the cabin and every timber shakes. ' Children,' she remarks, ' father will have to lie to to-night, he will not be able to fish,' and this with great calmness. But hark ! A deep hollow noise is heard. "Tis not thunder ; nor ' the sound of abundance of rain,' as ' The rattling showers rise on the blast.' What noise is that ? 'Tis the first growl of old ocean who is at length roused from his slumbering calm. Those hollow blasts which swept singly and swiftly along at first were messengers from the vast body of ' waters above the firmament ; ' and that distant roar, booming in a thousand caves, spoke of the oper- ation of a law by which the two mighty bodies sympathize and move in unison. How speedily a clap of thunder followed ! As if each wing of the two invincible hosts fired royal salutes on their meeting. Hark, again ! Oh, another booming sound from the sea ! Now look at the fisherman's wife. Fear takes hold upon her. Perhaps at that moment a little one has been awoke from his sleep by the thunder, and he calls out ' Father.' She goes and takes him up, ' Thy father is gone child, and if God be not very merciful this night thou wilt see him no more.' She kneels ; her children are around her on their knees. Now the fierce elements rage. She hastens with her child to a neigh bour's house. Other alarmed and terrified mothers are there, equally anxious for the fate of them they love. All night the storm rages, and if for a moment the watcher is overcome with anxiety and fatigue as to sleep a moment, in her visions she sees her loved sons and husband struggling in the storm, or on a broken spar, or hears the last call to Grod for help. Morning comes, the day passes, yet the storm rages as if it would ' Confound and swallow navigation up.' But they come not. At length a solitary boat is seen plough- ing its way round the breakers, another follows, and soon they drop their anchor secure once more. She hastens down with others to enquire the likelihood of the fate of those they have left behind. Encouragement is held out ; and she returns. The night again passes, and morning comes, and the calm after the storm. Yet they come not. ' Perhaps he has sheltered in AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 189 some harbour.' Hope buoys her up j the week passes, and yet they come not, and then the overwhelming conviction strikes her to the ground ' THEY ARE LOST ! ' Who supports the widow ] Who provides for the fatherless babes ? He who has said ' Leave thy fatherless children, and I will preserve them alive ; and let thy widows trust in Me.' Our colonial government is most humane in its character, and its efforts to relieve the destitute are most prompt and ample. Such a faint picture as the above, leads you to the chief cause of Newfound- land's misfortunes. 'Tis not its climate, the healthiest in the world ; 'tis not the barrenness of its soil, for the ' treasures of the deep ' greatly compensate. It is the risk and exposure of its ocean sons to daily danger and premature death. Perhaps the words of England's greatest bard would be too strong an application to the above : -each new morn ' New widows howl, new orphans cry ; new sorrows ' Strike heaven in the face.' because when we consider this daily exposure the wonder is we have not more shipwrecks and loss of crews. Our bays and harbours are commodious and safe. But it is astonishing with what a fearless and reckless spirit our fishermen launch out in- to the deep. They often remind me of the sailor who in course of conversation was asked by a gentleman, ' Where did your father die ? ' 'At sea.' ' And where did your grand- father die ? ' ' At sea.' ' Then are you not afraid of going to sea ? ' ' No,' said Jack. ' Pray where did your father die ? ' ' In bed,' said the gentleman. ' And where did your grandfather die ? ' 'In bed.' ' Then are you not afraid of going to bed ? ' asked Jack. Such is the force of habit, and when, as in many instances, it is founded on faith in God, it enables the hardy fisherman to sing ' If a storm should come and awake the deep, What matter? I still can ride and sleep.' " The following is an extract of a letter which I addressed to the Hon. James Crowdy, the then Colonial Secretary, in 1848 : Dated Fortune Bay. " The state of things which exists here, is subversive of that 190 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, independence of mind which every man ought to possess. In order to see the influence of the agents of the mercantile estab- lishments, you must become a resident. Each is regarded as the sovereign in his own territory, and when you take into ac- count the manner in which these establishments are conducted, and the extreme ignorance of the mass of the people by which they are surrounded, the power of these men seems to be almost unbounded, added to which, is the power which the government has thrown into their hands." The Rev. A. Gifford, clergyman of the Church of Eng- land, writes from Portugal Cove, in 1861 : "It must be remembered that the great bulk of the population has arisen by very slow degrees under the auspices of a small knot of merchants, living in the capital, who have increased in number and wealth at their own centre, by successfully nego- tiating the common product of the people's labour in their country's only staple ; while the toiling fishermen themselves, scattered along the wild shores of their rock-bound coast, reap but a mean subsistence, without the prospect of having their lot sensibly affected by the prosperity of their employers. Though at the present day of this colony's long and tedious his- tory, a few larger groupings of fishermen have resulted in com- munities of something like numerical importance, yet the original character of the colony as a fishing station, with St. John's as its head-quarters, is unchanged by those marks of advancement and civilization which are obvious in the progress of other coun- tries. With the multiplication of fishermen, and the extension of the line of coast occupied by them, and even the increase of little settlements, there has been no introduction of that powerful element in human society, so beneficial in many of its workings the admixture of class. If we have an aristocracy in the merchants, they are local, and their influence rarely reaches even the nearest of the dwellings of their poor operatives ; while the want of any variety of resource in the country calls no middle class into existence ; and the prevailing poverty of the fishermen seems to forbid the hope of seeing more than one in a hundred rise from their ranks to supply the want. Trades- men there are but few out of the capital, and of shopkeepers, in AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 191 the English sense of the word, still fewer ; the population get- ting not only 'provisions' in food, but most of the necessary manufactiired articles, from the stores of the merchants against their account la fish. Shopkeepers, as a respectable class, are only now gaining ground in St. John's ; while almost the only attempt elsewhere takes the form of a petty barter trade, car- ried on between the more successful fisherman and his poorer neighbours, in which the illicit sale of ardent spirits forms the strong characteristic. Farmers and gardeners are at still greater premium perhaps I should not exaggerate if I were to say not more than five-and-twenty families in a circuit of ten miles round St John's, and not more than fifty or sixty in the whole island, being supported solely by agriculture. Add to these features of Newfoundland society a few more of the peculiarities of the trade of catching and curing fish, and of the winter life of the fisherman, and a type of British colonists, at once solitary in its kind, and alone in its isolation from the surrounding pro- gress, is the result. " Of such are the people of the settlements of this Mission, numbering over eight hundred Church members, not so many Roman Catholics, and a few Wesleyans." The number of vessels which annually used to enter at the custom house at Harbour Briton was between 30 and 40, besides which there were a number of small coasting craft. The imports in 1847 amounted to about 28,000, or $140,000. The quantity of cod-fish yearly exported was about 70,000 quintals, and 140 tuns cod oil and whale oil, 800 cwt. salmon, besides furs, berries, &c., to a consi- derable amount. Fortune Bay paid to the colonial rev- enue at the same time 2,500 or $12,500. The seal fishery had never been prosecuted from For- tune Bay until 1846, when one vessel returned with 1,000 seals. In 1848 Messrs. Newman & Co. sent two vessels, and P. Nicoll one vessel, to the seal fishery in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which were successful. Cod-fish, turbot, hallibut, brett, &c., are to be caught here in almost every month throughout the year. Many boys from six to ten years old are employed in the fishery during the spring 192 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and summer months, some of whom catch from 20 to 50 quintals of cod-fish. A few women also fish during the summer months, and not unfrequently catch from 20 to 30 quintals of fish. The hardships the men endure fishing during the winter months are very great. Many of them have the appearance of old men at thirty years of age. In Hermitage Bay, the fishermen have a novel way of securing the fish when it falls from the hook in drawing it into the boat. A dog is kept on board who is the daily companion of the fishermen, and is so well trained, that he immediately jumps into the water and secures the fish. The winter fishery for the most part is prosecuted in punts or skiffs frequently you might see one man rowing cross-handed in a punt (and if the breeze is favourable his little sail assists him), until he is reduced by distance to a mere speck ; he is now several miles from land, when he lets go his grapnel, or more commonly his kellick, and commences fishing in from 80 to 120 fathoms of water, regardless of the keen frost and furious snow storm, while the spray from the motion of the boat falling on him is instantly converted into ice ; he still works his lines until the day is far spent and it is time for him to " haul up." All the fishermen I have conversed with informed me that they never suffer any cold except when there is no fish to be caught, but when there is any fish going they are as warm and comfortable as they wish, even in the frostiest weather. The quantity of fish caught per man for a year is from 80 to 180, and sometimes 200 quintals. Fortune Bay abounds in herring of a fine quality, and which can be taken at all seasons, but are more abundant in the winter season. About 100,000 barrels are annually taken. Harbour Briton is the residence of several public functionaries. There is a stipendiary magistrate, who is also the custom-house officer ; a doctor, who is a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, London ; a clergyman, and clerk of the peace. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 193 The making of roads has given an impetus to agricul- tural pursuits hitherto unknown in this part of the island, and in some localities already has the spade garnished the face of the country and given it a new and inviting appearance. One great drawback, however, on the roads of this district, is the want of ferries, owing to the har- bours and arms of the sea flowing such a distance into the country ; in some places it would be impracticable to travel round them, and in other places the walk round would be from twenty to fifty miles, but to cross in a ferry would be only from two to four miles. If, there- fore, the Legislature would give a grant for the establish- ment of five or six ferry boats, it would render the roads of the district what they are intended to be a public benefit. Owing to its great distance from the capital, the inhabitants of this district are deprived of the advantages arising from the establishment of steam communication with the mo- ther country frequently letters remain at the post-office in St. John's six months, and sometimes a year has elapsed before they are received here. If a grant was given by the Government for the establishment of a packet boat between Harbour Briton and St. Pierre, which is between thirty and forty miles distant, a regular mail communication would at once be opened between this bay and St. John's, via Halifax, and of course every other part of the world. The resident French population is not more than 4,000, yet they have a regular packet running between St. Pierre and Halifax, for carrying the mails, &c. A necessary appendage, however, to a mail communication between St. Pierre and Harbour Briton, would be a local post-office ; the letters and passengers, probably, would pay the expense of the packet, &c. I hope soon to hear of local post-offices being established in every district in the island this would be a great desi- deratum. In respect of postal communication, Newfound- land stands alone amid all the colonies of the British 194 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Empire in having but one post-office throughout the country.* At the head of Fortune Bay, during the winter season, herds of deer are seen, numbering many thousands sometimes two or three are killed at one shot. A party of ten or twelve persons kill from one hundred and twenty to one hundred and fifty deer during the winter. I have seen the deer offered for sale at Harbour Briton at from one to two cents per pound. Oats are cultivated in many parts of Fortune Bay, and those who have sowed small quantities of wheat have found it to ripen well. John Chrutt, at Belloram, when I was there, kept a number of cattle, made a considerable quan- tity of butter, and during the year 1846, manufactured nearly 300 cheese, weighing from four to ten'pounds each; I have seen tobacco which grew in the garden of Newman & Co., at Harton Breton, which was very good. At Frenchman's Cave, Stephen Chuett had a number of cat- tle and a small farm. At this place I saw what I observed in no other part of Newfoundland sea beaches extend- ing about a mile into the woods ; these beaches have the appearance of three or four waves chasing each other to- wards the shore, and establishes the fact that Newfound- land is gradually rising out of the sea; a remark fre- quently made by my friend St. John. The following is an extract of a letter which I addressed to the Secretary of the Agricultural Society during the time of my visit to Fortune Bay in 1848, but which had reference to St. George's Bay, Bay of Islands, and the whole west coast, as well as Fortune Bay : " On the western part of the country the deer congregate in almost incredible numbers, and as they are identical with the reindeer of Lapland, it is very probable that they could be naturalized, and might become of considerable importance, to * Since writing the above, local post-offices have been established through- out the country, and small steamers employed for mails and passengers. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 195 the country. I have thought something might be done by the Agricultural Society by offering a reward for the domestication of two or three of those animals as an experiment. Fortune Bay is not so exposed to the cold north-east winds as St. John's and the northern parts of the Island, and its waters are perhaps less ruffled by the ^storm than any other Bay of the country, owing to the Islands of St. Pierre, Miquelon, Langley, and sev- eral minor ones, stretching across its mouth, forming a great breakwater which resists the swelling surges of the Atlantic waves. I look upon the western coast as destined to become the granary of Newfoundland, not only on account of its fish- ing resources being greater than in any other part of the Island, but also on account of its mineral wealth and agricultural cap- abilities. Several old Englishmen residing here informed me that grain ripens equally as well as it does in England. Coup- ling this circumstance with the fact that the spring opens four or five weeks earlier here than it does in St. John's, and that the south-west coast is not exposed to the chilling effects of the northern ice which tends so much to retard the progress of spring on the eastern and northern coasts, I think there is very little doubt that the western part of the Island will yet become a most extensive grain-growing district. Owing to the existence of old red sandstone, conglomerate, and gritstone in the neighbourhood of St. John's, the soil is very barren, and were it not for a belt of slate rocks in the rear of the town ex- tending from Quidi Vidi to Waterford Bridge, the soil would be very sterile indeed. That which is so essential to fertility viz., lime the soil is entirely deficient of, while it contains a large proportion of iron. From this naturally barren soil, we know that some individuals raise a considerable quantity of wheat. If wheat can be raised from the barren soil of St. John's, with what greater facility could it be raised in the more fertile land of the west. When I have such facts as these be- fore me, I am surprised when 'I hear it said, ' Newfoundland can never become an agricultural country.' Everybody knows that in the arctic regions, the summer is shorter and more vari- able than in Newfoundland ; yet in these polar latitudes, where the thermometer often stands in winter thirty or forty degrees below zero, and the mercury freezes, the land yields ample re- turns of wheat, barley, oats, potatoes, &c. Of course all soil is 196 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, formed by the decomposing or gradual wearing away of the neighbouring rocks, and as Mr. Juke's geological report don't embrace Fortune Bay, perhaps a passing notice of its geological structure may serve to show what kind of soil we might expect to find here." On approaching Harbour Briton, which is situate on the north-west side of Fortune Bay, towering cliffs of sienite, some hundreds of feet in altitude, appear in all their wild sublimity, against which the ocean billows roll, wrapping their base in sheets of spray and foam. This primitive rock forms one of the heads at the entrance of the harbour, then comes coarse granite, against this mass of unstratified rock is seen resting limestone extending about a quarter of a mile, flanked by beautiful white granite, blocks of some of which are seen lying at the foot of the cliff as exactly suited for building as if dressed by the tools of masonry. The limestope is covered with a blooming vegetation, whereas the sienite presents a naked and withered appearance. Wherever limestone, soft sand- stone, marl, shale, and gritstone are found, we have the richest soil in Newfoundland ; and if a similar system of cultivation was pursued, and the same amount of capital employed as in Great Britain and Ireland, the land on the western part of Newfoundland would probably be as equally productive as in those countries. For we must remember, that while the various countries of Europe, year after year, were being upturned by the plough, and en- riched with manure, until fifteen hundred years had rolled away, Newfoundland slept in its primeval state, untrodden by the foot of man, save the savage, and unknown to the civilized world. At Lagona Harbour, on the Island of Lagona, situate at the entrance of Harbour Briton, is a very extensive and beautiful slate quarry. Mr. Gordon 'had a small farm at Harbour Briton, on which he raised hay, oats, potatoes, and other vegetables. Dr. Clinton had also a small farm, and was quite a prac- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. tical farmer. In 1849 Newman & Co. commenced the cultivation of a large tract of land at the head of Har- bour Briton arm. Hay, potatoes, and wheat were planted, but I have not been informed of the produce. Near Newman & Co.'s brick store, in the middle of the road, a stamp of the foot produces the finest echo I ever heard. Of course the weather and the time of day have a great influence on an echo, dull weather deadens the sound, and sunshine renders the air thin ; the finest echo is produced on a dewy night. Echo has been personified by the poets and turned into many a fictitious tale. The most popu- lous place in Fortune Bay is Grand Bank, situated on the south side of the bay, although not in the electoral dis- trict of Fortune Bay, it being annexed to the district of Burin. It affords no security for shipping, the entrance being barred ; small vessels, however, drawing from six to eight feet of water, can pass over the bar at high tides. To the westward of Grand Bank is Ship Cove, where there is good anchorage for shipping in eight or ten fathoms water, sheltered from the south, west, and north-westerly winds. Men-o'-war and other large craft always anchor there. Grand Banks derives its name from the circumstance of its having the appearance of a beautiful green bank. It has been inhabited about 180 years. Mr. Jonathan Hickman, the oldest inhabitant, died in 1848, at the ad- vanced age of 100 years. He piloted the celebrated Cap- tain Cooke along this part of the coast during the time he surveyed the coast of Newfoundland 100 years ago. For- merly Wm. Evans, Esq., the late stipendiary magistrate, carried on mercantile business to a considerable extent here ; but owing to the want of a harbour for shipping, he was obliged to send his vessels to load at St. Jacques, on the opposite side of the bay. A mercantile establish- ment is still carried on here by Edward Evans & Co., sons of Mr. Evans, one of whom is in the commission of the 198 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, peace, and the other a member of the House of Assembly. Agriculture is more extensively pursued at Grand Bank than in any other part of Fortune Bay. Some individuals keep from 20 to 30 head of cattle. About 10 cwt. of but- ter is manufactured annually here. There is a stipen- diary magistrate, a constable, a lock-up house ; a doctor also resides here, and a Wesleyan missionary. There is only one place of worship, which is Wesleyan. There is one school under the direction of the Wesleyans, and a small annual grant is given by the Government in aid of its support. According to the returns made to the Government in 1844, the population of Grand Bank was 392 ; acres of land in possession, 123 ; barrels of potatoes raised, 1,308 ; tons of hay, 102 ; neat cattle, 127, all bred in the island ; sheep, 53 ; pigs, 54 ; horses, 1. Number of schooners, 4 ; fishing boats from 4 to 15 quintals, 22; from 15 to 30 quintals, 18 ; 30 quintals and upwards, 21. Fortune is about four miles distant from Grand Bank, and is a place of considerable importance. At a meeting of the Newfoundland Methodist Mission- ary Society, held at the Rev. S. Bushby's house at Car- bonear, the 15th of January, 1816, John Gosse, Esq., id the chair, it was resolved "That this Meeting having heard that there were about 5,000 inhabitants in Fortune Bay, nearly all Protestants, who are now, and ever have been, without a minister or preacher of any denomination, it is the wish of this meeting that a mis sionary should be sent there early in ensuing spring." The first Wesleyan minister appointed to the place was the Rev. Dr. Richard Knight, in the year 1816, after- wards chairman of the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick Districts for twenty-four years, and county delegate of the Methodist Conference for Eastern British America. The next person who succeeded Mr. Knight was the Rev. John Haigh. The following isan extract of a letter from AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 199 Mr. Haigh to the Missionary Committee in London, dated Green Bank, July 19th, 1819 : " There is one thing in this country which militates much against the work of God generally, but it extends more parti- cularly to this part of it ; that is, the fishery. "With us it com- mences much sooner, and continues much later than in the northern parts of the country, and consequently the people are much longer from home. We have what is termed the spring fishery, which commences in the latter part of March, or the beginning of April, in which they are away for the space of seven or eight weeks before they go to sea to the northward ; and we have the fall fishery, which is for about the same space of time, and does not close till near Christmas, so that we have the fisherman at home but for the space of three or four months in the year ; besides their occasional visits with fish, and to take a fresh stock of provisions and salt ; x so that if any impressions are made upon their minds during the winter recess, unless they are deeply implanted, they wear away ; for having no means of grace, and perhaps exposed to much bad company, their con- victions are liable to die away, and they relapse into their former state of carelessness. But the piincipal cause arises from the removal of many to England ; there are several, who I believe, have received good to their souls, who, when they have exper- ienced it have removed to England, where they could enjoy greater privileges ; three removed from this place last fall, so that if our usefulness does not as fully appear now, we hope that it will be found in the last day, that the labours of your Missionaries have not been unsuccessful. " There are two or three places across the Bay which I occa- sionally visit, three or four times a year, and remain two or three weeks, where the merchants' looms are established ; Har- bour Briton, Jersey Harbour, and Little Bay ; but my labours being only occasional, they are regulated according to the then existing circumstances ; so that I can give you no regular plan ; and while here, we have an opportunity sometimes of preach- ing to many persons who come from more distant parts, either for provision or for the purpose of settling their accounts ; so that many, who would not otherwise have an opportunity, hear the gospel preached. I have it in contemplation to pay a visit 200 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to Hermitage Bay, a place where I suppose no gospel minister ever yet visited." From the year 1816, Grand Bank has been regularly supplied with aWesleyan Minister, who frequently visited the various destitute parts of Fortune Bay and Hermitage Bay. I shall, therefore, make a few extracts from letters written by them to the Wesleyan Missionary Society in London, which will show the moral condition of the part of the island at the time referred to. In 1827, the Rev. Mr. Noall says : " On my return to Gaultois, I found Captain Michell, (as he calls himself), the Chief of the gang of Indians from White- Bear-Bay. On seeing me he instantly dropped on one knee, putting his right hand to his head. He was a very tall man, and looked the savage if provoked. He addressed me in most vociferating language, and gave me to understand that he con- sidered himself a Catholic. He said, ' I see minister, London,' (it appears he had been in England,) ' St. John's, Halifax ; you ministers and priest all one ; all same God Almighty.' Kef er- ring to a circumstance that happened last Saturday night, he said, ' They dance two times, Saturday night, Sunday morn- ing, that's bad ; Sunday night, God burn their stage : ' a cir- cumstance by which property to the amount of 100Z. was de- stroyed. In the evening I met Soolian again, and told him that Christ is now in heaven, and that, if he prayed to Him, He would make him a good heart and take him there, and then said, ' You tell them ; ' pointing to some young men standing by. He began talking to them in his own language, pressing his breast, and then pointing to the sky, as I had done, while one of the young Indians, in such an emphatic way as I shall never forget, expressed his mingled emotions of astonishment and pleasure. I am informed by those who know their habits well, that the Indians belonging to Bay Despair (of whom there are eighteen families, and about a hundred persons) are still under the bondage of the vilest habits ; very indolent and false in their dealings ; and there is too much reason to fear that they murder a great many of the Aborigines, or Eed Indians, who inhabit the interior. After all, I think them an interesting AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 201 race of men, and who, if they could be properly instructed, might emerge from that darkness in which they are now en- veloped. At present they are only the dupes of those priests by whom they have been baptized, but never instructed. Al- though they are bound together by some social order, and have a sort of cantonmentjOr rather rendezvous in Bay-Despair,yet they enjoy very few of the comforts of civilized life. They spend the summer chiefly in the woods, procuring fur ; and, in the winter, from want of economy, have sometimes to endure the severity of hunger. It is impossible to calculate on the advan- tages that might follow, could their conversion be effected. It would at once open a religious intercourse between much greater numbers at White-Bear-Bay ; and is perhaps the only posssible way of gaining access to the Aborigines of this island, of whom, notwithstanding what has been said to the contrary, it appears great numbers still exist. " There are some other places in this Bay (Hermitage Bay) which the inhabitants wish me to visit. Indeed, I received the most pressing invitations to remain among them much longer ; but as I have now been so long from the people of my charge, and am expecting to make another little voyage to Lamilin, in Placentia Bay, soon after my return, I cannot possibly stay longer. There are about 100 persons in this Bay, altogether destitute of Christian ordinances." Extract of a letter from the Rev. Adam Nightingale in 1829: " Aug. 23rd (Sunday). To-day L preached two sermons at Lamalin, with considerable liberty. The people heard the word with deep attention. In the evening we had a profitable sea son in another house, where some were assembled. When I was at this place last spring, the people engaged to build a place in which they might worship God, and one person of respect- ability told me that he would give ten pounds every year while he lived towards supporting a missionary, should one be sent. " Sept. 28th. This day, Sir Thomas Cochrane, the governor of the island, came on shore at Grand Bank, accompanied with several gentlemen. After his Excellency had walked about the place, and asked several questions, he returned to his yacht, 202 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, leaving only on shore the Eev. Mr. B., of Trinity. This gen- tleman preached in our chapel in the evening ; and said after- wards, that a clergyman would be sent shortly into the neigh- bourhood. "Oct. llth (Sunday). I preached twice at Grand Bank, and met the society. In the evening I preached at Fortune, and met the society there, afterwards. " Nov. 4th. This morning, about three o'clock, I left Grand Bank in a boat for Jersey Harbour, where I arrived in safety, and preached in the evening to a tolerable congregation. The next day I went to Harbour Briton, and preached in the even- ing to a large congregation. " 6th. My hearers this day were about seventy in number, and seemed remarkably attentive and serious. Surely my labour was not in vain. " 7th. This morning I left Harbour Briton, with several men, for Gaultois, in Hermitage Bay, where I safely arrived, and was very kindly received by Mr. Creed. I preached in the evening in a store, on the constraining love of Christ, our great Master. My congregation, which consisted of fifty men, heard with marked attention the word of God, with the excep- tion of a poor drunken Englishman, who is the father of fifteen children, and whose age is about sixty. Several Romanists were present; and one sailor was convinced of sin on the occasion. "8th. This day I preached there times to good congrega- tions. The people seemed to hear for eternity. that the seed sown here may bring forth, some thirty, some sixty, and some an hundred fold ! The next day I went in a boat to Round Harbour, according to request, where I preached to about thirty persons, some of whom, I believe, never heard a sermon before. The people were exceedingly glad of the op- portunity, even those who had come several miles, to hear the word of life. I baptized one child. After this we spent seve- ral hours in a very profitable way, some of the company seemed determined to seek the salvation of their souls. The Lord be praised for his goodness to poor sinners ! " 10th. This morning I was rowed to Pickheart Harbour where there are five families living. After preaching to about twenty persons, who gave great attention to the word, I bap- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 203 tized four children. This is the first time that this place was ever visited by a Christian Missionary. I then returned in a boat to Gaultois, and from thence to Forbes' Cove, where I preached from ' God be merciful to me a sinner.' The number assembled on the occasion was about sixty ; some of whom, I trust, will not soon forget this opportunity. I visited a sick man, who, I was told, is the only person in the place that could read. The number of persons who live here is about one hun- dred. The moon shone very bright when we returned to Gaul- tois, but 0, how unlike the state of the people in this bay ! Lord, enlighten and save them, that they may shine ! " llth. This morning I was taken across the bay to Her- mitage Cove, where there are about a hundred and forty souls. "13th. To-day I preached at Great Habour, in Conainer Bay, and baptized two children. I then left in a boat for the east side of the Bay, and before night, through [the good hand of God, though the walking was bad, we reached Harbour Briton in safety. But with respect to Hermitage Bay, permit me to observe that many of the people were truly thankful for the privilege of hearing the Gospel in my visit to them. Their entreaties to stay longer, or come again, were affecting. Their cries for a missionary to teach them and their children the way of life, are strong. Some of the most respectable told me, that they would do everything in their power to support one. ' The harvest is great, but the labourers are few.' " In 1836, the Rev. John Addy says : " On the 22nd July, I left Grand Bank in a small boat, in order to visit several small harbours towards the east. We called at Little Barasway, and there found some adults who were living in a most ignorant and wretched state. I spoke to them on the necessity of personal religion, distributed several tracts, and prayed with them. We then proceeded to Grand Beach, where are two families, with whom 1 read the scriptures and prayed, and then sailed to Frenchman's Cove. I preached there in the evening to about twenty persons, from I. Pet. iii. 12. They were very attentive, and I trust profited by what they heard. " On the 24th, I walked to Garnish, where I preached in the evening, and baptized two children. 204 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, "|25th. I preached three times to attentive congregations. There are about forty adults at Garnish, and they and their children are in an ignorant and destitute condition, whole fami- lies not being able to read ; yet they feel their condition, and complained in the most affecting manner of their want of spi- ritual instruction, and of some person to teach their children. At neither of the two last harbours had they been visited by a Minister for three years. When I left them, they entreated me, with tears, to come again. " 28th. I left home for Harbour Briton, and was received with great courtesy by Mr. Ellis. " On the 30th, I preached at Grole in a house full of people ; after which I read the funeral service over the remains of a young man, and while at the grave side I addressed the per- sons present, on the importance of preparing for death and judgment, and distributed tracts amongst them. I preached again in the evening. "31st. I preached this morning at eight o'clock to a crowded congregation, as many persons had come from various harbours to hear the word. I felt that God was with us. The congre- gation was much affected ; and after service, many expressed their sorrow at their destitution of religious ordinances. On my departure they earnestly entreated me to come again. On our way to Galtois, we called at a small harbour, whei-e we found the people very ignorant. In one house, I found them all sitting in indifference, as though the hours of the sacred Sabbath had been a burden. On inquiry, I found that none of the inmates of one house at which I called could read ; and in another house that I entered, I asked the mother if she could read, and she answered, ' No.' I then asked her if she knew she was a sinner ; to which she replied in the negative. I inter- rogated her as to her responsibility to God ; to which she an- swered, she had never been instructed in those things. I then endeavoured to point out to her, in as simple a manner as I pos- sibly could, the way of salvation. May the Lord enlighten her mind ! " August 2nd. I proceeded westward of the bay ; and re- mained that evening at Long Island Harbour. There are eighteen adults here, who can all read, and they spend their Sabbaths in reading, prayer, and singing psalms. I preached AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 205 and conversed on religious subjects until midnight. They re- quested me to preach in the morning, which I did, and they received the word with gladness. " 4th. This forenoon I arrived at Pasture, and preached to about forty persons, and afterwards baptized three children. On my departure, tears ran down the cheeks of the people, while they expressed their sorrow that they were not permitted more frequently to hear the word. We sailed to Round Harbour, and on our way, told a man who was fishing that we were going to hold divine service ; he put up a signal to his companions, who ceased fishing, and came to hear the word of life. After preach- ing, I baptized a child, and proceeded to Galtois, and preached twice. I preached in another harbour on Monday. In Hermi- tage Bay, there are upwards of six hundred inhabitants arrived at years of maturity in the most deplorable ignorance. They seldom hear the Gospel preached. I found in some harbours in this Bay that the inhabitants had not heard a sermon for nearly a year, and in others, not since the venerable Archdeacon Wix visited it, and others not at all, that they could remember. Here are hundreds perishing for lack of knowledge. They nei- ther fold nor feeder have ; may God provide for them ! " In addressing the Wesleyan 'Methodist Auxiliary Mis- sionary Society for Newfoundland, in 1840, the late Rev. William Marshall says : " During the past year, fifty-two harbours and coves have been visited ; in many of them the people are deeply sunk in ignorance, superstition and depravity. The Sabbath is awfully profaned drunkenness abounds in several places, and many of the settlers on this part of the coast were never before visited by any minister in the memory of the oldest inhabitant. Along the whole western shore, comprising an extent of many miles, there is a lamentable destitution of religious instruction not even a school of any description, except one at Hermitage Cove established by your missionary during the past year. There are harbours where there is not a single individual that can read at all, and where a copy of the sacred Scriptures cannot be found and these are Protestants, chiefly the descendants of English parents. The people generally manifest a great desire 206 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to be favoured with religious instruction ; they welcome the Missionary of the Cross among them, and count it an honour to receive him into their houses ; and though we cannot boast of having seen sinners converted to Christ, there is abundant reason to thank God and take courage. Much prejudice has been removed, and if breathless attention and tear-washed cheeks under the Word, be any evidence of the work of the Spirit on the mind, with these we have been favoured, and in one or two instances the agonizing inquiry has been heard ' Sirs, what must I do to be saved ? ' It is truly affecting to listen to the requests of the people for missionaries ; their gen- eral inquiry on our leaving them is, Oh, when shall we see another minister ? They are crying from every place like the men of Macedonia Come over and help us. " Two visiting missionaries might be very usefully employed on this shore ; one for Hermitage Bay, where he could visit regularly thirty harbours, containing a population of 1 700 souls ; the second for Burgeo and Westward. From Burgeo he could visit regularly from eighteen to twenty one places, containing a population of near 1,000 souls ; he might also during the sum- mer visit Bay St. George and Bay of Islands, where there is a loud call for missionaries, and in every one of the places they would be gladly received." Respecting the school at Hermitage Cove, Mr. Marshall also writes : " The school was commenced in January last ; there are 33 children who attend every Sabbath, and also on the week-days when the missionary is in the harbour. The improvement they make in learning is very satisfactory ; many of them who did not know a letter in the alphabet when the school was opened, are now able to read portions of the Holy Scripture, and have committed to memory the First Conference Catechisms, also several of our Hymns. We have reason to expect that this school will prove an extensive blessing to the rising generation in the neighbourhood. There is one person who assists in the school, and reads the Liturgy of the Church of England, with a sermon on the Sabbath, in the absence of the missionary/' During the year Mr. Marshall baptized 156 children AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 207 and travelled near 2,000 miles. The Rev. Messrs. Peach and Ingham succeeded Mr. Marshall at Hermitage Bay, but owing to the scattered population and the want of funds, the Methodist Mission at this part of the country was discontinued until 1857, when the Rev. Mr. Comben was sent. The Church of England at Harbour Grace was built in 1841. It is a neat wooden structure, 45 feet by 25, and will seat 250 people. It is the Cathedral Church of Fortune Bay, and is quite an ornament to the village in which it is situated. It was opened for divine worship in 1845, since which it has only been occasionally visited by a clergyman, until 1847. In the church is a beautiful marble font, presented by Thomas Newman, Esq., son of the late Robert Newman, Bart. The Right Rev. Edward Field, D.D., Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Newfoundland, has made four visitations to the district of Fortune Bay. The first clergyman of the Church of England appointed to reside here was in 1837, who remained but a short time; in 1841 another clergyman was appointed, who also remained but a few months. In June, 1847, the Rev. Mr. Appleby was appointed here, who was succeeded in the Autumn of the same year by the Rev. J. G. Moun- tain, M.A., who was the Rural Dean of the district ; and at that time the following clergymen were under his superintendence : At Harbour Briton, Rev. S. Aldington ; Belloram, Rev. John Marshall ; the Burgeos, Rev. J. Cun- ningham ; La Poele, Rev. T. Appleby ; St. George's Bay, Rev. W. Meek. There were two schools in the district under the " Church of England School Society ; " besides which there were four colonial schools. In addressing the " Church of England School Society," and referring to this district, the Superintendent, Archdeacon Bridge says : " There are several settlements in Hermitage Bay, as Gaul- tois, Hermitage Cove, Furbey's Cove, with entirely church populations, but wholly destitute of schools. And further to 208 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the westward, along a line of coast 100 miles or more in ex- tent, and with a totally church population of about 2,000 souls, there is but one school maintained by the colony. I accompanied the Bishop last year in his visitation of these parts of the island, and I saw his Lordship entreated, with tears, to send among them good and pious men to teach them and their children. In submitting to you the above statement, I must observe, that it is not to be regarded as a fall and detailed account of the wants of Newfoundland ; but for the reason I have given, I could, without the slightest colouring to dress up a case, draw a much sadder picture. Let me hope, however, that even this rough and hurried sketch may fix some Christian eyes upon it, and open some Christian hearts and hands to relieve its dark and gloomy shades with the light of a sound education in the blessed truths of the Gospel, ac- cording to the principles of the Church of England. Accord- ing to the census of 1845, the number of Episcopalians, ex- tending from Garnish to Boone Bay, was 2,545, and from Boone Bay to Cape Ray, was 2,085, making a total of 4,640 for the district of Fortune Bay." In 1854 a handsome brick church was erected in Her mitage Bay, at the cost of T. A. Hunt, Esq., of the firm of Newman & Co. The Rev. W. K. White, who suc- ceeded the Rev. Mr. Mountain, in 1855, at Harbour Bri- ton, says : " My cook-room school has begun famously ; I pray God it may go on well. A few of my old scholars are here this winter and they seem determined to have more order and discipline than I was able to effect last winter. I have seventeen in all. I took a Bible and wrote these words in it, ' For the use of the Cook- Room,' &c., desiring that it might always be at hand for family prayer and thus far it has been brought me at the con- clusion of my lessons, and I have read a chapter and had family prayer. " My Sunday evening class improves ; I had sixteen in the nursery last night." Again, in 1856, Mr. White says : " I found in some settlements, people living together un- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 209 married, children not baptized, and the dead buried anywhere and anyhow. The constant excuse is, ' We see no minister, and therefore get some one who can read to baptize, and bury, and marry.' This is a deplorable state of things ; but I do not know how one clergyman could remedy it. If a regular system of visiting were established, there is no doubt the people would gladly avail themselves of the Missionary's services; but I scarcely expect that they would as gladly pay all expenses. Neither do I believe that a married missionary, with a family, without private means, could visit them properly without debt and difficulty. As far as my visits are concerned, I cannot com- plain of the behaviour of the people. They seemed glad to see me, and readily attended the services." In 1858, the Rev. E. Colley, who was stationed at Her- mitage Cove, writes ; " My evenings are spent in instructing fifteen young men in reading, writing, arithmetic and singing. At Grole, we had full service on Friday ; morning prayer, litany and holy com- munion, and I baptized two children. This is some proof that the people in this Bay value the services of the church. In the height of the fishery, at the call of their minister, they leave their lines, and nets and boats, and come to the House of Prayer. And in like manner, I have counted nearly every fine Sunday this summer, eight or nine skiff loads of persons coming into Harbour for the purpose of attending Morning Service at St. Saviour's, Hermitage Cove ; although the church is far from fit to receive them on account of the repairs which are going on. At present the congregation sit upon planks laid on fish-barrels." * * * " One of the families in this place, Cape la Hune, had re- cently a heavy affliction in the loss of their eldest son, a young man about twenty years old, from falling through the ice. The father and two sons were returning to their winter house in the bay, and had brought their punt to the edge of the ice. Having crosssed it the evening before, they concluded it was safe, but after taking a few steps forward the old man fell in, and the deceased endeavouring to save his father, fell in also ; and both would have been drowned but for the younger 210 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, boy, who, luckily had not left the punt, and by means of a rope got his father out. In the meantime the elder had sunk to rise no more. I endeavoured, both in my conversation and in my discourse in the service, to lead them to the only true and solid source of comfort and support under their bereavement, and urged them to profit by the warning they had just received, lest death should come upon them unawares, as it did upon this young fellow, and find them unprepared." The following is a copy of a letter which. I addressed to a friend now in England, during my visit to Fortune Bay, in 1857: " The lone majesty of nature here predominates ; yet in the midst of this solitude there is a sublimity, for you can scarcely conceive of any thing more grand than the long range of lofty and precipitous cliffs immediately in front of where I live, whose tops are at this moment covered with snow, and where nought is heard to disturb the solitude save now and then the notes of the ptarmigan, while sometimes the timid hare might be seen bounding along the rugged steep ; all else is shrouded in primeval silence. But while I admire this sublimity of solitude, I feel pained when I think of the moral gloom which prevails the living death hundreds living without life, without light, and passing to the eternal world without the renewing and sanctifying influences of God's Spirit. The stillness of the Sab- bath morning is frequently broken by the sound of the hatchet and the hammer, and many heads of families pursue their ordi- nary avocations on the Sabbath, as on any other day of the week, because, as they say, they have no time to do it on the week days. ' Hail Sabbath ! Thee I hail^ the poor man's day, The pale mechanic now has time to breathe The morning air pure from the City's smoke, While wandering slowly up the river side, He meditates of Him whose power he marks In each green tree, that proudly spreads the bough. As in the tiny dew, bent flowers that bloom, Around the roots ; and while he thus surveys With elevated joy each rural charm ; He hopes (yet fears presumption in the hope) To reach those realms where Sabbath never ends. ' AND AS IT IS IN 1877. The population of this place and Jersey Harbour (which is a branch of Harbour Breton) is about 500. A neat little church has been erected here through the exertions of the merchants and the magistrate ; it belongs to the Episcopalians ; they are expecting a minister, but no person has yet been appointed. When I first came here there was an ordained school-master, belonging to the 'Newfoundland School Society,' living at a place called Belloi-am, distant from this about thirty miles : he has since gone to England on account of ill health and no successor has yet been appointed to supply his place. There is also another ordained school-master, belonging to the same society, residing at Grole, in Hermitage Bay, about thirty miles distant from this place. The population of the electoral district of Fortune Bay is about 5,000 ; this does not include Grand Bank and Fortune ; which are on the opposite side of the Bay, and where a Wes- ley an Mission has been established for many years. When I arrived here last May, seeing the spiritual destitution of the place, I immediately commenced holding religious service on the Sabbath and sometimes during the week evenings, in a private dwelling ; the congregation has been small, averaging from two to twenty, besides the family of the house, who are ten in number. There is a great scarcity of the word of God here; I have, however, gratuitously supplied many families with this inestimable treasure. The Bible, then, is travelling in ' its solitary grandeur' in the ' far west' of Newfoundland, dissi- pating the clouds of darkness, and pouring a flood of light on its moral atmosphere. The Bible is the great moral light-house of the world, pouring refulgent corruscations on the surrounding gloom, the 'heaven-lent geography of the skies to man/ I am circulating tracts in every direction, and many of these silent messengers of mercy are finding their way into gloomy solitudes, whose fastnesses never echoed with the sound of the gospel trumpet. Oh ! think of those who are living where there are no means of grace, where all is a moral wilderness. There are many harbours along the shores of this bay, where only from one to three families reside, who are entirely ignorant of spirit- ual things ; most of them are the children of English emigrants ; many of them remember hearing their parents speak of the parish church of the land of their fathers, with little more knowledge of a place of worship than this ; and, when asked to what religion do you belong ? they reply the ' English reli- 21 2 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, gion,' meaning the Protestant. I am exerting myself for the benefit of sailors. On Monday evening, for the first time within the memory of man, was the Bethel flag seen at the main royal 1 mast of the St. George, fluttering in the breeze amid the hills of the western shores of Newfoundland, the well known signal for divine worship among sailors. Since I have received the flag, I have held two Bethel meetings, and sent two loan libraries to sea, each containing about 30 bound volumes, besides a number of tracts and magazines. Since my arrival here in May last, I have held 124 religious services afloat and on shore ; distributed 763 tracts (50 of which were French) ; 466 religious books ; 25 bibles ; and 42 testaments. I think great good might be done amongst the maritime population of this country, and that efforts might be made to establish a sailors' cause in St. John's. The moral claims of seamen are beginning to enlist the sympathies and efforts of all classes of the community in England. Of course you saw the account of Prince Albert's laying the foundation stone of the ' Sailors' Home ' last summer, at Liverpool. And not long since Her Majesty transmitted a noble sum to aid the ' British and Foreign Sailors' Society ' on behalf of the young Prince of Wales. The President of the British and Foreign Sailors' Society, the Eight Honourable Lord Mountsandford, died in October last. It is rather re- markable that the first president of this society, Admiral Lord Gambier, was Governor of this island in the years 1802-3." In 1848 the Right Rev. Dr. Mullock, Roman Catholic Bis- hop, visited Fortune Bay and the west coast, where he held several confirmations, and baptized a number of persons. The Roman Catholics had no place of worship in the District of Fortune Bay at that time they talk, how- ever, of erecting a chapel at Harbour Breton. A Catholic clergyman from Burin annually visited the District of Fortune Bay. According to the census of 1845, there were in Fortune Bay 4,640 Episcopalians. 392 Roman Catholics. 68 Wesleyans. 5,100 Total population. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 213 214 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Seventy Micmac and Mountaineer Indians reside in Bay Despair, they subsist by hunting during the winter ; they also spear eels and salmon, make hooks, &c. There are 4 Churches of England, 10 schools and 726 dwelling- houses. According to the census in 1857, the population of Fortune Bay was as follows : In 1857. In 1874. 2,787 Church of England . . . . 4,391 . 647 Church of Rome 1,387 30 Wesleyan 9 29 Other Denominations 3,493 Total. 5,787 Total. Burgeo and La Pole which belonged to the district In 1845. In 1874. 3,172 Church of England 4,216 189 Church of Rome 125 282 Wesleyans 731 2 Kirk of Scotland 15 3,545 Total. 5,087 Total. In the district of Fortune Bay there were 518 dwelling houses, 10 schools and 259 pupils, 3 Churches of England. 317 acres of land were cultivated, producing 254 tons of hay, 6,628 bushels of potatoes, and 75 bushels of turnips. Of live stock there were 344 neat cattle, 157 milch cows, 5 horses, 610 sheep, and 133 swine and goats. The quan- tity, of butter manufactured was 1,570 pounds. The num- ber of vessels engaged in the fisheries, 14 ; boats carrying from 4 to 30 quintals of green fish and upwards, 726 ; nets and seines, 1,542. Quantity of cured : 58,454 quintals cod-fish, 91 tierces of salmon, 58,958 barrels of herring. Oil manufactured, 29,220 gallons. The returns of Burgeo and La Poele were 555 dwell- ing-houses, 5 schools and 197 pupils, 4 Churches of Eng- land and 1 Wesleyan. 161 acres of land were cultivated, pro- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 215 during annually 53 tons of hay, 4,590 bushels of potatoes, and 125 bushels of turnips. Of live stock there were 46 neat cattle, 31 milch cows, 2 horses, 74 sheep, and 6 swine and goats. The number of vessels engaged in the fisheries, 15 ; boats carrying from 4 to 30 quintals and upwards of green fish, 607 ; nets and seines, 1,717. Quin- tals of fish cured 67,833 of cod fish, 614 tierces of sal- mon, 31,077 barrels of herring. Gallons of oil manufac- tured, 33,866. The Islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon are situate at the entrance of Fortune Bay, seven miles from the main land. These islands were ceded to France by the treaty of Utrecht, and are the only possessions of the French in America. By the terms of the treaty they are not al- lowed to make any fortifications, nor to have more than fifty soldiers at a time. St. Peter is a mass of unstratified rock of a reddish colour, mostly covered with a few shrubby fir and alder trees. A lighthouse was erected by the French Govern- ment in 1845. It is built on Galantry Head, near Cape Noir. It is a substantial edifice, built of brick, and cost 80,327 francs. The light is a fixed one, and burns at an elevation of about 210 feet above the level of the sea. It may be seen (in passing by the S.) from W.N.W. to N.N.E. at the distance of 25 miles in clear weather. In passing by the N., it is shut in by high land from N.N.E. to W.N.W. A small light is also situated on the Gun point within the Roads, at the entrance of St. Pierre's Harbour. St. Pierre is a place of considerable trade. According to the official returns made to the French Government in 1847, the population of St. Pierre was Resident 1500 Floating 520 Total 2,030 The population of St. Peter's when the bankers are there is 10,000. The number of vessels fitted out for the 216 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Grand Banks and other banks is between 300 and 400, averaging from 50 to 300 tons. The quantity of cod-fish taken is estimated at 400,000 quintals. But this does not include the Northern French fishery on the north coast of Newfoundland. Two Roman Catholic Churches (one of which is on Dog Island), two priests, four monks, nine nuns, and two schools. The population of Miquelon was 625. There was also one Roman Catholic Church, one priest, and two schools. Last year a very elegant hospital was erected at St. Pierre ; it is built of brick, and is the only good building on the island, save the lighthouse. It is 150 feet long and 60 feet broad. It has sixteen spacious rooms in it, besides a number of smaller ones. It will accommodate upwards of 100 sick persons. The Govern- ment House is a very plain old-fashioned wooden build- ing, with a small garden surrounding it. All the houses that compose the town are built of wood, and, for the most part, small and ill-constructed. The streets are very narrow, short and dirty. Altogether the place has the appearance of a large fishing establishment. A Gov- ernor resides here, Commissary or Minister of Marine, harbour master, two doctors, and several other public functionaries ; there are also about thirty gensdarmes. A small armed brig, called the guard ship, is stationed at the entrance of the harbour. There are also three small armed schooners which occasionally visit the west coast. A sloop of war and also a schooner frequently call here. A sailing vessel is employed in carrying the mail once a fortnight between St. Pierre and Halifax. The quantity of fish exported to Guadeloupe and Mar- tinique, two of the French West India Islands, in the under-mentioned years, was as follows : Quintals. In 1840 56,954 1841 71,785 1842 50,549 1843 72,873 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 217 (For a 'more detailed account of French Fisheries, see " Fisheries.") At Miquelon and Langley there are a number of farms, where all kinds of vegetables are raised. There are a great number of cattle and sheep kept, from whence the market at St. Peter's is supplied. There was once a pas- sage for ships between Miquelon and Langley, which are now connected by low flat sands, for the most part cov- ered with coarse grass, and which is the scene of a great number of shipwrecks, principally timber vessels from the St. Lawrence to England. The whole coast is frequently strewn with timber for a distance of three miles. When I was at Sydney, C.B., in September, 1858, two French war steamers were plying from St. Peter's, carry- ing coals there, and making a depot of it for their men- of-war. St. Peter's is to the western part of the island what St. John's is to the northern part, viz., the great outlet or market for every production of the island. During the time of my visit to St. Peter's, I saw vessels there from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton, the United States, and various parts of Europe. It is a most thriving place, and rapidly increasing in trade and population. The inhabitants of Fortune Bay and the south-west coast have for years been supplying St. Peter's with herring, caplin, and squids (used for bait in catching cod-fish), amounting in value annually to about $65,000, besides firewood, &c. The land of these islands is mostly composed of variegated slate rocks and reddish sandstone, seinite and goit stones. St. Pierre is about five miles long, and Miquelon and Langley about twenty miles long. An English man-of-war is annually employed on the Newfoundland coast for the protection of the fisheries. Captain Bennett, of Her Majesty's Ship Rainboiu, in addressing Captain Prescott (the then Governor), in 1836 and 1837, says : " I have reason to believe there never has been a year in 218 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, which the bait has been so well preserved, or the French so completely kept over upon their coast ; for no instance has come to my knowledge of a single French boat having succeeded in taking bait on the South coast of Newfoundland, except in one, as a reward for having saved the lives of five of the Rainbow's officers. I had given permission to a person belonging to St. Pierre's, named Leon Coste, to take as much caplin as would serve himself for two trips to the Great Bank, but in my ab- sence, Frenchman-like, he filled his vessel and sold them to great advantage at St. Pierre's ; but in his second attempt to do so he was captured by one of the Rainbow's boats. Latterly some of the boats from St. Pierre's have endeavoured to encroach beyond the limits ; one was taken after a hard chase, and she is now in possession of my officer at Lamelin, and used as a tender. " I have had a variety of correspondence and some interviews with the Governor of St. Pierre's, and I really believe that he means well ; but from the very great number of bankers which now yearly come out from Europe to the fishery, I believe this year they exceed three hundred, it is impossible for them to be supplied with bait from the French islands, and of course during the caplin season, very large prices are held out to our fisher- men to bring them over, and I believe they have not succeeded in carrying much this year, yet they very candidly say that next year they intend to enter into that trade, and if they escape with one cargo out of three their profit will be handsome, and as the run across is so short it is next to impossible to prevent them, except by the employment of a coast guard. I am sorry to say that many respectable persons about Fortune Bay, who were extremely active in getting up the petition which I be- lieve to have caused the passing of the late Local Act, were themselves deeply engaged in the caplin trade to St. Pierre's, and therefore some part of that Act is as unexpected by, as un- palatable to, them. " I have now to call the attention of your Excellency to the smuggling trade with St. Pierre's, which is carried on by the inhabitants of nearly the whole of the south coast, where they are out of reach of the officers of the Customs, and I am satis- fied that it is of very great magnitude. When I arrived at St. Pierre's in April, there were eleven boats from different parts of Newfoundland there, which had brought over wood, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 219 game, and other things, and in exchange they returned with tea, sugar, brandy, different articles of clothing, &c., &c. In- deed, they did not attempt to disguise the fact. As I before remarked, the distance across is so very short, that it is next to impossible to capture them, an hour's run taking them above the Lamelin shelves. " Another mode in which the colonial revenue suffers is by vessels coming from Halifax, Quebec, and other places, and going into different unfrequented small harbours, exchange their cargoes of spirits, flour, bread, clothing, &c., for fish. I have heard that this has been done on the west coast by American vessels, who have got rid of entire cargoes ; and when I was at St. George's harbour, a person from Halifax was residing there, retailing the cargoes which he had brought there, and which of course had paid no colonial duties. " At Ingarachoix there are resident some five or six hundred French, from whom the colony derives no benefit. Tf they are permitted to act so far contrary to the treaties as to reside there entirely, they ought certainly to be amenable to the taxes laid upon the inhabitants of Newfoundland. This is the place most frequented by the French, and I regret that bad weather pre- vented me from going in there, because I believe that they not only cut and export wood for constructing vessels, as well as for fuel, but that they actually build vessels of considerable size there. " I have already (last year) pointed out to your Excellency the manner in which the revenue is defrauded by articles of every description being smuggled into the outports, not only from the French Islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, but also from Halifax, Quebec, and even from America. This is in a great measure the consequence of there being no collectors of the revenue, or even persons authorized to demand or to receive the colonial or custom-house dues. " Vessels are constantly coming over from the above-named places exchanging brandy, rum, sugar, tobacco, tea, molasses, clothing, furniture, &c., for fish ; of course they confine their voyages to places where they know they are not likely to be disturbed by ships of war or agents from the custom-house, and your Excellency can have no idea to what an extent this traffic is carried on, to the prejudice of the English merchant, and the serious loss to the colonial revenue. 220 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " With respect to the smuggling from St. Pierre, I regret to say that this year it has been quadrupled ; the ruinous system of supplying caplin to the French fishermen at St. Pierre is pro- ductive of serious diminution to the Newfoundland revenue, and undoubted loss to the British merchant, and operates in every possible manner to favour the French fishery, and to de- press that of the English ; in point of fact, nothing could be conceived more likely to aid the French fishermen in their com- petition with our own people. " Last year the French bankers, in consequence of our vigi- lance in preventing them from hauling caplin upon our coasts, were constrained to lay for weeks at St, Pierre before they could procure their necessary quantity of bait ; this year they have had nothing to do but to purchase bait from the English boats in exchange for tea, tobacco, brandy, &c., and when com- pleted with water, to proceed to the Bank in prosecution of their voyage ; in short, nothing could be devised more likely to for- ward their views. I cannot understand the policy of permitting this traffic, as it appears to me a sort of commercial suicide, put- ting into the hands of our opponents the means of successfully competing with our fishery, already by far too much depressed." In 1838, Captain Polkinghorn, of H.M.S. Crocodile, says : " While laying at anchor at St. Pierre's, I was informed by an English fisherman belonging to Fortune, that a French fish- ing boat was then hauling caplin in Danzick Cove, near Fortune ; on learning this I thought it most advisable to visit Fortune Bay before I proceeded westward to the neighbourhood of the Bourgeo Islands, and sailed accordingly on the 19th, to ascer- tain the correctness of the complaint made to me. On passing Danzick Cove, within two miles, I could not perceive any boat or boats employed as reported ; in the evening of the 19th I anchored at Grand Bank Bay, and at daylight the following morning sent an officer to Fortune to obtain information, while I placed myself in communication with the most intelligent persons I could find at Grand Bank, a considerable village, and similar in situation and population to Fortune. The two vil- lages are about four miles distant from each other, and can mus- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 221 ter from 200 to 250 fishermen, a number fully equal to their own protection from the encroachments of the French fishermen. At these villages I heard not a complaint of any act of aggres- sion on the part of their neighbours at St. Pierre's, on the con- trary I found there was too good an understanding between them all the fishermen at these villages acknowledged without reserve that they caught caplin, and sold it to the French ; and this I have since discovered to be a general practice along the whole coast opposite to St. Pierre's, from Grand Bank to Burin Island. It appears that the French, at the commencement of the caplin season, give a good price for this bait, but at a later period the value is much less, and our fishermen get goods for it, and more frequently spirits. The bad effects of this traffic will, I think, soon be apparent our fishery will be injured from scarcity of bait, and our industrious fishermen demoralized under the baneful influence of French spirits." In consequence of the extensive supply of bait to the French, the Local Government passed an Act imposing a duty of 75 cents the cwt, upon pickled fish exported from the colony. The passing of this Act tended to increase the smuggling, for immediately the French were made acquainted with the duty on herring, the price was ad- vanced to 45 francs per barrel, and sometimes eight or ten hogsheads of salt were given into the bargain. The passing of the " Pickled Fish Act " amounted to a probibition to vessels from the neighbouring colonies, which, previous 1 to its passing, used to visit Fortune Bay and other parts of the coast and purchase about 20,000 barrels of herring in bulk, giving in exchange flour, pork, beef, butter, coal, lumber, &c., &c. This was severely felt by the poorer class of the inhabitants. The Act, however, only continued in operation three years. In 1846 and 1847, the Local Government employed a small armed schooner to collect duty under the provisions of the above mentioned Act, as well as to prevent smuggling generally. Mr. Oke, the Commander, in his Report in 1846, says: 222 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " The first demand for the caplin this season at St. Pierre was on the 1st July, and then but two francs per barrel could be obtained. But for our presence, and the use made of the cruiser's boats, 1,500 or 1,600 barrels would on that day have found their way to St. Peter's from Lowrey's Cove (near Point May), we having at that place fell in with seventeen boats (be- longing to Grand Bank and Fortune), the crews of which were engaged in hauling caplin ; ten had not commenced loading ; two, which had on board 150 barrels, and had not entered at the Custom House, we detained. From this period until the caplin had disappeared, this traffic was, I believe, abandoned." The following is the expenditure for the support of the Revenue vessel during the operation of the Local Act, 8 Vic., cap. 5. 1846. s. d. July 20. To the Collector of Her Majesty's Customs, to defray the expenses of the hired Schooner, Caledonia 582 17 8 1847. Aug. 25. To Thomas and Henry Knight, for hire of Schooner Caledonia.... 508 Aug. 25. To Robert Oke, Commander of Ditto.. . ... 52 3 10 1,143 1 6 Or.... $4,572 00 Amount of Revenue Collected. s. d Year ending January 5th, 1847 326 11 4 1848 60 5 5 386 16 9 Or $1,547 00 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 223 Simultaneously with the employment of a Revenue vessel, a Custom House Officer was appointed to Gaultois in Hermitage Bay, where Newman & Co. had a mercan- tile establishment. Gaultois is about fourteen miles distant from Harbour Breton, and contains a population of 320. The following is an extract from the Report of Captain Lock, of Her Majesty's Ship Alarm, employed for the protection of the Fisheries in 1848, addressed to Earl Dundonald : " My Lord, I sailed from Halifax in H.M. sloop under my command on the 14th June, and anchored in the harbour of St. Pierre's the 1 afternoon of the 17th. I found the outer roads and the inner harbour filled with shipping. There were one hun- dred and thirty-three French vessels, averaging from one hun- dred to three hundred and fifty and four hundred tons one hundred of these were bankers, chiefly brigs, lately returned with cargoes. They had taken in their salt, and were waiting for bait (caplin), which they told me would strike into the bays of St. Pierre's and Miquelon in a day or two. This prophecy (whether likely to prove true or not) was merely mentioned to deceive me, as it is well known the supply afforded round their own islands is insufficient to meet the great demand. The next morning I observed boats discharging caplin into the bankers, which I ascertained had been brought over from our own shores during the night in English boats; The bait is sold in the har- bour of St. Pierre's either by barter for piece goods, provisions, or for money. " In every way this transaction is illegal. First, by vessels trading to foreign ports without a custom-house clearance, in violation of Act 3 and 4 Wm. 4, chap. 59. Secondly, by sail- ing without registers ; and thirdly, by defrauding the colony of a branch of its revenue. " Their only excuse is, that if they were not in self-defence to sell their caplin, the French would take it as they formerly used to do, in defiance of all remonstrances and opposition. For it is, they say, impossible to guard every particular point where the caplin may strike along so extensive a coast, so as to pre- vent the robbery, or in most cases even to see, the French fish- 224 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ermen, in consequence of the frequent and dense fogs. This traffic has now become so systemised and general, and so pro- ductive to all parties engaged in it along the coast, that it will be a matter of great difficulty to put it down. "I waited on the commandant, Monsieur Delecluse (Capitaine de Corvette), and after mentioning the object of my visit, I strongly urged him to aid me in the support of the existing treaty. " He said he would, and always had endeavoured to do so, in conjunction with my predecessors, but it was an uphill task, owing to the proximity of the island to the main, and the fre- quent fogs which often enveloped all surrounding objects, some- times for many days together. " As a means of checking this great evil, I would propose establishing one or two magistrates at central positions, say Fortune, Lamaline, and Burin, and supplying four swift row boats attached to a colonial tender, during the fishing season, and swearing in their coxswains as special constables. " Some of the local authorities entertain an idea that they cannot exercise jurisdiction over men embarked in boats, but in this I ventured to assure them they are mistaken, and that when boats are fishing in creeks, harbours, or along the coasts, within three miles' distance of the land, the same law extends to the persons of the individuals in them, as to a settler on the shore, and that they would be fully borne out in exercising any legitimate authority they may possess, for an infringement of a local or imperial law by parties so situated. " The fishing season commenced in the beginning of June, and will close the first week of October. They do not consider it will be a favourable one however, fishermen are as hard to satisfy as farmers their catch will probably average one million quintals. " The government bounty is eleven francs per quintal, a sum equal to the value of the article itself. Owing to the embar- rassed state of the French finances at home, and the failure of all their commercial establishments in the West Indies, there is comparatively no sale for the bank fish this year. No accurate calculation can be formed of the value of the whole quantity of fish caught by the French, as many vessels carry their cargoes to France green. The fish are dried and salted there, and ex- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 225 ported thence to the West Indies, and some to the Mediter- ranean. " I am assured that three hundred and sixty vessels, from one hundred to three hundred tons burthen, are engaged in the bank fishery, employing from sixteen to seventeen thousand seamen (exclusive of the coast fishermen). All these vessels return to France every winter. Their crews spend the money they make there ; buy the filments they require there, sell their cargoes for the use of their countrymen at cheaper rates than the Newfound- landers can to the Colonists, and are knit together in a body by the regularity and system of their duties, and man their country's navy if required. " The French annual Great Bank Fishery averages a catch of a million, two hundred thousand quintals ; and nearly the en- tire quantity is sent to the West Indies. Guadeloupe and Mar- tinique consume two- thirds, and the remainder is exported to other islands. " The islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon are admirably adapted for the purposes to which they are applied ; no expense to Government they offer the best possible centre for all com- mercial operations, a depot for their stores, secure harbours for their shipping, and at the same time, owing to their proximity to the shores of Newfoundland, their inhabitants are equally well supplied with bait, and fish; as the British settlers them- selves in their vicinity. " The French authorities, however, do not deny that the sole object of their Government in supporting these fisheries at so great a cost, is to form seamen for their navy. Monsieur Filleau, the intelligent Commissary at St. Pierre's, candidly told me this, and added that no private companies could of themselves support this commerce, unless the market price of the article rose to double its present amount. " Monsieur Delecluse, the Governor, had also the honesty to affirm that the supply of caplin by the English from their Bays and Coast alone enabled the Bankers to prosecute their fishings, and he believed that to this traffic with his islands our poor settlers were alone enabled to support their existence. "It is obvious that by witholding from the French the supply of bait from our own shores, their success upon the Grand Bank would sensibly diminish, and the advantages the fish merchants O 226 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, at present derive from their bounty, granted by their Govern- ment, over other competitors, could not increase the trade beyond the limits controlled by the comparatively very scanty supply of caplin afforded by their own coasts and islands. " If, on the other hand, it is the large payment of bounty by the Government that alone upholds the fisheries, and which has advanced them to their nourishing condition, the present is surely the period for our merchants to exert themselves to re- gain their lost ascendancy, while the French are paralysed by the failure of the French West India markets, and general loss of credit, consequent upon the emancipation of the blacks by the Revolution of February. "It is wonderful to observe the inhabitants of a nation, cer- tainly not addicted to maritime pursuits, surpass a seafaring people in the prosecution of an avocation natural to them, and in which it is necessary to display more science and perseve- rance to be successful than in any other branch of a sailor's trade. " In consequence of this anomaly, I cannot but believe there must be some flagrant want, either of industry or skill, on the part of the people of Newfoundland, admitting even that the existence of the French Banker is entirely dependent upon the bounty money. " However this may be answered, the fact is very apparent that the French had established and systemised a large fleet of vessels, which now no unaided individual enterprise can success- fully compete with. " The capital advanced by the French Government (at the commencement of the competition with the English Bank Fishermen) at once lowered the market price of fish to almost the cost attendant upon the sailing of the English vessel, which the Fretich bounty alone was, and is still, equal to defray. " A French vessel of three hundred tons has a crew of at least forty men (worse fed and paid than Englishmen), and is found with from seven to nine heavy anchors, and upwards of eight hundred fathoms of hemp cables. She would also have from four to five large boats, capable of standing heavy weather, and numerous nets and fishing tackle made in France, at one-third the expense our Colonists can procure theirs. " Th boats above-mentioned are capable of laying out from five to six thousand fathoms of line, to which hooks and weights AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 227 are attached at certain distances and secured by anchors. These are termed Bultows, and are generally shot on each bow and quarter. They are enabled, with the number of hands belonging to each vessel, to lift those lines and take the fish off frequently, both during day and night ; while the smaller English vessels, manned by a weaker crew (consequent upon the greater expense), and only possessing common anchors and cables, are under the necessity of using the ordinary trawl line. Not only are the fish attracted away from the latter by the miles of bait spread over the bottom by their rivals, but when heavy weather occurs they are obliged to weigh, while the French remain securely at anchor, with two hundred fathoms of cable on end, and ready to resume their employment immediately the weather will permit them. " While we yield to the French the advantages of independ- ent ports and unmolested fisheries, we are on the other hand hampered by circumstances unfelt by them. For example, their fishermen arrive from the parent state, ours belong to a thinly- peopled and dependent colony ; they have their drying-grounds close to the fisheries, as we have, on the shores of this very co- lony, deriving every advantage from it,' and untrammelled by any expenses or local taxes, to which our people have to contri- bute in addition to the aforesaid disadvantages. " The distance from France is of no moment ; instead of adding to, it is the means of diminishing, the expense attendant on the conveyance of fish to Europe, for a great portion of the season's catch not sent to the West Indies is carried away by the large fleet of steamers upon their return home for the win- ter ; while our fish merchants have to collect the produce of the season from numerous stations, distributed over a great range of coast, and then again to tranship it into larger vessels to cross the Atlantic. " It may also be said that our people are working for exis- tence ; the French are sent forth by capitalists, and supported by large bounties paid from their Government. Hence (as I have endeavoured to show), the great reason of their success over our colonists in their expensive mode of fishing on the banks. " It is not surprising, then, that they have been thrown back upon the coast of the Island, and have abandoned their vessels for 228 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, small boats, only adapted to fish close to the shore, and in the creeks and harbours. " Fortunately, the cod the staple wealth of these seas seems inexhaustible, so that a large revenue is still made, but the nursery for seamen has ceased to exist, while our rivals number 16,000 well-trained men belonging to the Bankers, ex- clusive of 12,000 others attached to their fishing stations on the coasts granted to them by Treaty." The Hon. C. F. Bennett, in his examination before a Committee of Her Majesty's Council, in 1849, says : " I received a letter yesterday stating that French fish had been offered to be sent and delivered in Valencia at six shil- lings per quintal, which offer had caused the refusal by the dealers to purchase a cargo of English fish then there, and the English vessel was forwarded to Leghorn. The usual freight of fish from this to Valencia is 2s. 3d. to 2s. 6d. sterling, per quintal." In 1849, that part of the Pickled Fish Act imposing duty on fish exported to the British Colonies was repealed, but the duty on fish exported to the French continued as before. The repeal of the Navigation Laws and Free Trade policy of Great Britain, I presume, now enable the French to purchase bait themselves at any of the ports of New- foundland, by paying the duty. The inhabitants, from Cape La Hune to Cape Ray (about 2,000), did not vote in 1849, and consequently they were not represented in the Legislature of New- foundland, although they paid their proportion of taxa- tion. There is a Custom House officer, who is also an honorary Magistrate and a Justice of the Peace. Burgeo, La Poele and Port-aux-Basques are the three principal settlements, from Hermitage Bay to Cape Ray, where there is a telegraph station. The coasts about these places are mostly composed of granite, mica, slate and gneiss, all primary or igneous rocks, and very barren. Captain Polkingham, of H.M.S. Crocodile, visited this part AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 229 of the coast in 1838, and, in addressing Captain Prescott, the then Governor, he says : " On the 21st I sailed for the neighbourhood of Bourgeo Islands, but on arriving off them, on the 23rd, I found the Pilot ignorant of the anchorage, and from the report of the natives of their small, narrow harbour, I deemed it advisable to proceed to La Poele Bay, a central situation between the Bourgeo's and Cape Eay ; I anchored in La Po6le Great Har- bour on the 24th, and found there Mr. Reid, a Collector of Customs, also a Mr. Antoine, a merchant from Jersey, carrying on a large fishing establishment, from both these gentlemen I obtained .the best information ; it appears that neither the Bourgeo Islands or their neighbourhood have been molested by the French fishermen during the last two years ; and our fishermen at Bourgeo and near it are now become so numerous, that they would not suffer any encroachments similar to those complained of in former years ; I therefore came to the con- clusion that an officer and boat's crew were quite unnecessary on this part of the coast. At La Poele I learnt that many French fishing boats did, in April and May last, touch at Port- aux-Basques, in the neighbourhood of Cape Ray, and to the great annoyance and injury of the inhabitants, haul herring with very large nets, and in one or two instances, forcibly took up the nets of our fishermen, and appropriated their contents to their own use ; on this subject I addressed a letter (No. 2) to the Governor of St. Pierre's respecting the suggestion of Commander Hope, of H.M.S. Racer, that His Excellency would cause all his fishing boats out of St. Pierre's to be numbered on their sails ; at La Po6le the cod fishery is general, and said to be most successful in summer and winter, some salmon are caught, but not in considerable numbers." In 1849, Captain Loch, in his report on the Fisheries, says : "BuRGEo ISLANDS. JUNE 24. " The fishing is carried on throughout the year. It was good during the past winter, but indifferent in the spring. On the whole they have had a fair catch 6,000 quintals since Octo- NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ber. The fish are not so plentiful as they were five years ago. There are about 700 inhabitants residing on these islands they are increasing in numbers fourteen years since there were only two families. " The French do not interfere with their fishing, or appear on their coasts. The caplin had not been at all plentiful, but were beginning to strike into the harbours in great numbers, and would, they expected, remain on the coast for several weeks. " They trade principally with Spain and Portugal, sending their largest fish to Cadiz, and generally commanding the early markets of both those countries, in consequence of their ability to prosecute their employment throughout the year. " These enquiries were principally answered by Mr. Stephens, Agent to Messrs. Newman, Hunt & Co. There was, besides this establishment, a Jersey room, belonging to Mr. Nicolle, who has another fishing station thirty leagues east, and one at La Poele. During my visit theie were two vessels in the port. One of them was receiving cargo for the Levant, and the other col- lecting fish from the different stations along the coast, " Most of the fishermen belonging to the settlement were hired by one or other of the above-mentioned houses, and they received 4s. 6d. for every hundred fish delivered ; but unfortu- nately they are dependent upon their employers for the supply, not only of their boats, nets, clothes, and other articles, but also for their food, so that by what 1 could ascertain I fear that a very pernicious system of usury is prosecuted. If this should continue the merchants may be enriched, but the settlers will certainly never improve in civilization or prosperity. " The inhabitants, with but few exceptions, are all Protestants. There are two churches, but, at the time of my visit, no clergy- man, the Rev. Mr. Blackmore having been removed to a better living, and Mr. Cunningham, his successor, not having arrived. The magisti'ate was a Mr. Cox, at present in England. There is also a Sehool-house, to which the fishermen contribute a small annual sum for the education of their children. " The appearance of the settlement itself is, without excep- tipn (considering the reputed value of the fisheries), the most disreputable and wretched I have hitherto seen. True, the ground is a bog, with granite boulders and rocks rising from its centre, upon which the huts and cabins can alone be planted. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 231 but yet no attempt seems to be made to drain the tilth and bog water away from their doors, or even to make pathways by which to pass from house to house without having to wade through black mire. The only causeway in the settlement is one formed of deal boards from the Church to Mr. Stephens' residence, nev- ertheless, to my surprise, I must own that the people seem happy in their state of filth, and I heard no complaint of disturbance, or of any crime having been recently committed." The following is from an account of the visitation of the Right Rev. Edward Field, D.D., Lord Bishop of New- foundland, in 1849 : " On Sunday, July 8, the fog cleared, but on the vessel draw- ing near the land the wind entirely failed, and it was necessary to drop the anchor near a large rock, which afterwards proved to be the Colombe of Rotie, within seven or eight miles of La Poele. Had the position been known before, the Church Ship might easily have reached La Poele on the Sunday morning, and the Bishop and his companions might have given and received much comfort by joining the Rev. Mr. Appleby and his congregation in the Church which his Lordship consecrated last summer in that settlement. A boat, which was acciden- tally lying in the Bay of Rotie, came off in answer to a gun fired from the Church Ship, and shewed among the rocks the way to a safe harbour. The Church Services were celebrated that day on board, and the friends who directed the ship into the Bay of Rotie gladly accepted the invitation to attend in the evening. There are no settled inhabitants in that Bay. " On Monday, July 9, the Church Ship was safely moored at her old resting place (which she visited twice last year) in La Poele Bay. The Bishop was welcomed by the Rev. Mr. Ap- pleby, by the much-respected agent of Messrs. Nicolle & Co., and the other inhabitants, with their accustomed kindness. " Tuesday, July 10. The Bishop celebrated the Holy Com- munion and preached. It was his Lordship's intention to have proceeded from La Poele direct to Port-aux-Basques ; but hear- ing that the two Cemeteries at the Burgeos would be ready for Consecration, he was induced to retrace his steps. " On Sunday, the 15th of July, the Graveyards were duly coa- 232 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, secrated, that at Lower Burgeo in the morning, before the Prayers in the Church ; and, in the afternoon, after the ser- vice, that on the Sandbank at Upper Burgeo. The Holy Sac- rament was administered at each Church. The enlarged Church at Lower Burgeo was well filled ; and the Schools both on the Sunday and working days are numerously attended. " Monday, July 16th. The Church Ship left Burgeo with a fair wind. It was the Bishop's intention to call off La Poele in order to carry the Rev. Mr. Appleby to Port-aux-Basques, at the southern extremity of his mission ; but before reaching La Poele the weather became thick, with a strong breeze, and it was necessary to stand off. La Poele was passed in the night ; the next day, with some difficulty (the wind still blow- ing strong), the Church Ship was piloted through Grandy's Passage into Burnt Island's Bay. Here the Church Ship was detained three days, but every day services were performed on shore to the great gratification of the inhabitants, who had never before enjoyed the privilege of their Bishop's presence. At Burnt Islands the settlers (chiefly from Dorsetshire), are numerous and thriving, and their chief want and chief desire appear to be the means of instruction and religious ordinances. "On Friday, July 20, the Bishop was enabled to return to Rose Blanche, where he was met by the Rev. Mr. Appleby. On Saturday his Lordship visited on foot the neighbouring set- tlement of Harbour le Cou. " Saturday, July 22. The services of the Church were cele- brated at Rose Blanche in a store : the Bishop preached at each service. On the following day a piece of ground was marked out and measured for a graveyard ; and in the evening, after Prayers in the store, the Bishop again addressed the people. The great need of a resident teacher was felt and expressed here, as in the Burnt Islands ; and the Bishop was reminded of a promise given four years ago to endeavour to supply that need. It is feared that the prospect of the Bishop's being en- abled to gratify their wishes and his own in this matter is still very remote. " On Tuesday, July 24th, the Church Ship sailed to Port-aux- Basques, and Wednesday (St. Matthew's day) the Bishop, at the request of such of the inhabitants as were at home, cele- brated the service in the building lately erected and furnished AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 233 at Channel for divine worship ; but which, in consequence of the absence of the principal settlers and planters, could not be conveyed to the Bishop for the purpose of Consecration. The building erected and furnished by the inhabitants of the place, is substantial and commodious, and fitted up in good style ac- cording to the prevailing fashion in that part of the country. It is greatly regretted that this populous settlement still de- pends upon the Missionary at La Pole (30 miles off), for the Church's ordinances and means of grace ; and there is no other Minister of Keligion within a much greater distance. The population from La Poele to Channel cannot be less (the latter place included) than seven hundred souls." 234 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, CHAPTER XII. ST. GEORGE'S BAY, BAY OF ISLANDS, ETC. fHE French profess the right by Treaty, of catching and drying fish from Cape Ray on the west through the Straits of Belle Isle as far as Cape St. John northward, though they are not allowed to make any fortifications, or any permanent erections, nor are they permitted to remain longer than the time necessary to cure their fish. This line of coast is as follows : From Cape St. John to Cape Quirpon .... 100 miles. " Cape Quirpon to Cape Norman 15 " Cape Norman to Sandy Bay 40 " Sandy Bay to Point Riche 45 " Point Riche to Cape Anguille 180 " Cape Anguille to Cape Ray 18 398 miles. The whole line of shore in exclusive use of Great Bri- tain, is 535 geographical miles.* The number of inhabi- tants on the west coast is about 2,300, principally Acadians, descendants of the French, from Nova Scotia and the Is- land of Cape Breton, interspersed with English, Irish, Scotch and Canadians. The coast is fast settling. Hither- to the Government of Newfoundland has exercised no control over the inhabitants of this part of the country, and of course they have not been represented in the Legislature. In 1849, the Government appointed a gen- tleman in the two-fold capacity of Stipendiary Magistrate and Collector of Customs to reside at St. George's Bay, but after a short residence there he removed. lleturns, 1857. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 235 The principal places on the West-Coast are Cod-Bay, St. Caspar's Bay, River Humber, Bonne Bay, and Port- au-Port, St. George's Bay and the Bay of Islands, are geologically interesting. All who have ever visited this part of the country, describe its scenery as exceedingly interesting and beautiful. It has all the elements of future greatness. Here is a coal field thirty miles long and ten broad, situated only eight miles from the sea, and twenty miles from St. George's Harbour, supposed to be a continuation of the coal mines of Cape Breton. There is also marble of almost every variety and colour, some masses of which are five hundred feet in height. There are also soft sandstones, flagstones, gypsum, &c. Had this part of the country been settled first, instead of the east- ern portion, it would now have a population of some hun- dreds of thousands. In this portion of the country there are all the elements to set in motion agriculture, manu- factories, steam, vessels, railroads, and architecture. The amount of salt annually imported into Newfound- land is about 900,000 bushels, which is mostly consumed by the fisheries. It was never manufactured in New- foundland until 1850, when Mr. John H. Warren com- menced to manufacture it on a small scale, at St. John's, from sea water, but discontinued it. There are several salt springs at St. George's Bay, the brine of which, if manufactured, would probably afford sufficient salt for the convenience of the country. The geological forma- tions where these springs exist are identical with those of England, Spain, and the United States. The quantity of coals imported into Newfoundland in 1875 was 27,634 tons, principally from Cape Breton. The produce of the Pictou coal mines in 1855 was 820 tons, valued at 47,699 or $190,796. And of the Sydney mines, 26,877 chaldrons, valued at 20,274 or $82,000. From Nova Scotia, 50,785 chaldrons were exported to the United States from Cape Breton, 10,125 were sent to Nova Scotia, 6,617 to other British colonies, and 10,942 236 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to the United States. The importance of the coal fields of St. George's Bay is very apparent, when we consider its proximity to Canada East, where no coal is found, and wood fuel is rapidly disappearing. Firewood is also rapidly becoming very scarce along the sea board of the eastern shores of Newfoundland, where there is a popu- of 160,000. The following are the observations of C. J. Brydges, Esq., Managing Director of the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada, in 1866 : " Whilst I was in Nova Scotia I visited Pictou and the coal districts in its vicinity. The present railway system of Nova Scotia consists of the railway system from Halifax to Truro, with a branch to Windsor, at the head of Minas Bay. The Nova Scotia Government are now constructing, as a Govern- ment work, an extension of the railway from Truro to Pictou, which will be completed in about a year from this time. This railway runs through the coal district. There are two principal coal mining companies now at work one, the General Mining Association, has been in operation for a considerable time, and has at present three mines in actual operation, and o*he more which they are opening out. The shafts of these mines vary from 200 to 600 feet in depth. The seam of coal which is be- ing worked is 40 feet in thickness, of which about 36 feet is solid coal. In these three mines there are at present employed between 800 and 900 men and boys the average pay of the col- liers during the last year having been about 9s. 44d. currency a day ; ordinary labourers getting from 4s. to a dollar. The mines are being worked very extensively with steam-engines and all proper appliances. The General Mining Association have a rail- way about seven miles in length, which has been in operation for upwards of twenty years. The gauge of this railway is four feet eight and a half inches, and they have upon it six engines and five hundred and seventy trucks. These trucks are loaded with the coal at the mouth of the pits, and are taken to a point on the river where ships of the largest size can come alongside the wharf. The quantity of coal which has been shipped by the Mining Association for some years past has amounted to about 200,000 tons annually. The price of the steam coal at the AND.AS IT IS IN 1877. 237 point of shipment is about $2.50 per ton, and of small coal about $1.50 per ton. " Freight from Pictou to Boston would range from $2.50 to $3 a ton, the same rates, or thereabouts, being charged to Montreal. This company owns four square miles of coal land, and they have also, in the vicinity, land containing very large quantities of iron ore, as well as lime. " The other mining company, which has lately be started, is called the Acadian Mining Company. They have one seam six feet thick now opened, out of which they are getting coal, and they have just opened another seam which they will begin im- mediately to work, and which has a thickness of 20 feet. They own a very large property in the neighbourhood of New Glas- gow. They are about to make three miles of railway, to con- nect their shafts with the railway now being constructed from Truro to Pictou. The quantity of coal appears to be inex- haustible, and there seems to be no reason why this coal, which is of excellent quality for steam purposes, should not be deli- vered in Montreal for five dollars a ton. I was so satisfied with the excellent quality of this coal, from the reports I heard of it, that I ordered several cargoes to be sent to Montreal for the use of the Grand Trunk Company, so as to have it tho- roughly tested for our purposes. There can be no doubt that the coal which exists in Nova Scotia, in the neighbourhood of Pictou, and also at Cape Breton, where large mining operations are going on, will prove, when proper means of communication are supplied, to be of great importance in the future history of the Confederacy." Professor Sedgwick, of the University of Cambridge, recommended J. B. Jukes, a graduate of that university, a member of the Geological Society of England, and after- wards a professor of Geology in Trinity College, Dublin, and author of several works, as a competent person to make a geological survey of Newfoundland. Mr. Jukes was accordingly employed by the Local Government for two years, 1838 and 1839. He was but poorly provided however for making the survey, he had no geological probe, and few instruments for boring, &c. Mr. Jukes merely 238 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, made a partial survey of the sea coast, and went nowhere into the interior, except a line from Bay of Exploits to St. George's Bay. His Geological Report, however, laid be- fore the Legislature, is exceedingly interesting, and gives more information respecting the geological structure of the Island than was ever known before. Respecting the coal formation of St. George's Bay, Mr. Jukes says : " This interesting and important group of rocks resembles in its higher portions the coal formation of Europe, and consists of alternations of shale and clunch, with various beds of gritstone and here and there a bed of coal. Interstratified with those rocks, however, there occur in Newfoundland beds of red marl ; and as we descend to the lower parts of the formation, there come in alternations of red and variegated marls with gypsum, dark blue clays with selenite, dark brown conglomerate beds, and soft red and white sandstones. This inferior portion of the Newfoundland coal formation so greatly resembles the new red standstone of England (which in that country lies over the coal formation), that it was not till I got the clearest evidence of the contrary that I could divest myself of the prepossession of its being superior to the coal in this country also. That nothing might be wanting to complete the resemblance, a brine spring is known to rise in one spot on the south side of St. George's Bay, through the beds of red marl and sandstone. It is certain, however, that in Newfoundland the beds containing are above these red marls and sandstones, with gypsum and salt springs, the whole composing but one formation, which it is impossible to subdivide by any but the most arbitrary line of separation. The total thickness of this formation must be very considerable. I by no means have any reason to suppose that I have as yet seen its highest beds, while the thickness of those which I have seen must amount altogether to at least one or two thousand feet. " The Humber Limestone. This group of rocks lies below the Port au Port shales and gritstones, and in the Bay of Is- lands it is the one next inferior; as however their junction was not exposed, I cannot say whether the one graduates into the other, or whether other beds may not be interposed between AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 239 the two in other localities. The highest part of the Hum- ber Limestone which was visible, was a thin bedded mass, about 30 feet thick, of a hard, slaty limestone of a dark grey colour, with brown concretions that, on a surface which had been some- time exposed, stood out in relief. Below this are some thin beds of hard subscrystalline limestone, the colours of which are white or flesh-coloured with white veins. These would take a good polish, and would make very ornamental marbles, and from the thinness of the beds are especially adapted for marble slabs. This series of beds has a thickness of about 200 feet. Below these are a few feet of similar beds of black marble, which rest on some grey compact limestone, with bands or thin beds and irregular nodules of white chert ; and these latter beds pass down in a large mass of similar limestone, without chert, and in very thick beds. This mass of rock forms hills four or five hundred feet high, in nearly horizontal beds. Its upper part continues to be regularly bedded, but in its lower portion all distinction into beds is lost, and the limestone becomes perfect- ly white and saccharine. This great mass of white marble is frequently crossed by grey veins, so that I cannot say that I saw any block pure enough for the statuary. There is little doubt, however, that in so large a quantity, some portions might be discovered fit for statuary marble, and for all other purposes to which marble is applied, the -store is inexhaustible. " The hills about the head of St. George's Bay, though rarely exceeding one thousand feet in height, are of a mountainous character, rugged and precipitous ; and this continues to be the nature of rather a wide band of country, that runs from the east of St. George's Bay across the Humber River, at the head of the Bay of Islands, and thence for a considerable distance still farther north. About St. George's Bay this ridge of hills forms the water-shed of the country ; the brooks on one side run- ning down into the Bay those on the other emptying themselves into the Grand Pond, a large lake in the interior. This lake commences at about fifteen miles in a straight line N.E. from the extreme point of St. George's Bay. In the first seven miles the lake spreads out to a width of about two miles, and runs about E. S. E. ; at this point, however, it bends round, divides into two branches, each from half a mile to a mile wide, which enclose an island about twenty-one miles long and five across in 240 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, the broadest part. In this part of its course the direction of the lake is E. N. E. The remainder of the lake, which is about twenty-five miles long and four or five across, gradually tends round to the N. E. and N. E. by N. The whole length of the lake is about fifty-four miles. At its S. W. extremity it is en- closed by lofty hills with precipitous banks, and is of great depth, no bottom having been found with three fishing lines, or about ninety fathoms. Its depth is further proved by the fact, of the truth of which my Indian guide assured me, that its S. W. half is never frozen over in the hardest winters. Towards its N. E. end it gradually becomes shallow, and the hills slope down into a flat country which extends, as far as the eye can reach, to- wards the N. and N. E. The lake receives on all sides many brooks, and at its N. E. extremity a very considerable river, fifty yards wide and several feet deep, comes in, which is called the Main Brook. Three miles W. of the mouth of this river, an equally considerable one runs out of the pond ; this latter is full of rapids for five or six miles, when it is joined by another river of about the same size, which flows from the North- West. These united rivers run towards the S. W. and in about six miles enter Deer Pond, a lake about 15 miles long and 3 or 4 across, running in a direction about N. E. and S. W. The S. W. end of this lake is again encircled by the hills, through which the united waters force their way by a narrow and pre- cipitous valley, forming the River Humber, and running out into the Bay of Islands. The part of the river between Deer Pond and the sea is about twelve miles long, from about 50 to 100 yards across, and several feet deep ; its navigation is, however, impeded by two rapids, one about three miles from its mouth and three quarters of a mile long, and another, shorter but steeper and more dangerous, about half a mile below Deer Pond. The river which, above Deer Pond, comes in from the north and joins that running out of the Grand Pond, is likewise encum- bered with rapids, our progress up each branch being stopped half a mile from their junction by rapids utterly impracticable with our boat. I afterwards interrogated the Indians respect- ing the course of the river in those parts into which I was not able to penetrate myself, and they informed that the north branch, which I shall call the Humber, rises in the country near Cow Head, passes down to the east through several lakes, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 241 two of which are 8 or 10 miles long, and gradually bends round to the S. or S. W., to the spot I have before described. The main brook which runs into the N. E. end of the Grand Pond, is navigable for a canoe for a distance of some miles above the place where I turned back. It is there found to run out of a lake 8 miles long ; on the other side of the lake the river is again met with, and passing up it three more lakes are crossed, each above six miles long. The extremity of the last of these is about 18 miles from Hall's Bay, a branch of the Bay of Notre Dame j and crossing half a mile of land another brook is met with, down which a canoe can proceed to the waters of that Bay. It thus appears that the country drained by the Humber is upwards of one hundred miles from N. to S., and fifty or sixty from E. to W., by far the most extensive system of drainage in the Island ; it approaches the sea on three points, namely, Cow Head, Hall's Bay, and St. George's Bay, and the united waters force their way out at a point nearly equidistant from each, having either formed for themselves or taken advantage of the narrow pass between Deer Pond and the South branch of the Bay of Islands, called Humber Sound. The Indians likewise in- formed me that if they proceeded from the east side of the Grand Pond, opposite the east end of the Island, a day's journey to the east brought them to the South end of Red Indian Pond, a lake between forty and fifty miles in length, and from that point another day's march to the South-east brought them to the middle of another large pond of about the same size. Each of these ponds empties itself by a brook into the Bay of Exploits. They each run about in a parallel direction with the Grand Pone, or about N. E. and S. W., and the S. W. end of the third large pond is within a long day's walk of White Bear Bay. It thus appears that there are two easy methods of crossing the the country from north to south with a canoe. The first by proceeding from St. George's Bay, through the Grand Pond to Hall's Bay ; the second from White Bear Bay, through the third pond to the Bay of Exploits. " In the cliffs near Codroy Island is much red and green marl, with bands of white flagstone. The white flagstone and the greenish mail contain many veins of white fibrous gypsum, and interstratified with these and the red marls are some thick beds of white and grey gypsum, of a singular character. These P 242 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, gypsum beds are not hard, compact sulphate of lime, but are composed of white flakes of that substance, regularly laminated, and interspersed with small flakes and specks, or sometimes thin partings of a black substance, apparently bituminous shale. The whole mass is soft and powdery, thick bedded, and in con- siderable abundance, and it might be carried away in boats with great facility. " I was informed by some Indians of Great Codroy River that they had seen a bed of coal two feet thick, and of a con- siderable extent, some distance up the country. Their account of the distance, however, varied from ten to thirty miles ; and I could not induce any of them to guide me to the spot. I pro- ceeded up the river about twelve miles from the sea, and some distance beyond the part navigable for a boat, without seeing anything but beds of brown sandstone and conglomerate, inter- stratified with red marls and sandstones, gradually becoming more horizontal and dipping towards the S.E. I believe, how- ever, that a bed of coal had been seen by an Indian on the bank of a brook running into Codroy River, about thirty miles from its mouth, but that the person who saw it was not in the neigh- bourhood at the time of my visit. About the middle of the south side of St. George's Bay, in the vicinity of Crabb's River, the lower part of the coal forma- tion, consisting of alternations of red marl and sandstone, strikes along the coast, the beds dipping to the N.W. at an angle some- times of 45 degrees. About three miles from the coast, how- ever, an anticlinal line occurs, preserving the same strike as the beds, or about N.E. and S. W., and causing those to the south of it to dip to the S.E. Thus the rocks which form the country along the coast, to the width of three miles, with a N.W. dip, again occur to the same or a greater width, according to the angle of their inclination, with a dip to the S.E. before we can expect to find any higher beds than those in the sea cliffs ; so that at least six miles of country formed of the lower beds must be crossed directly from the coast, before we arrive at the higher beds in which the coal is situated. " In ascending the brook next above Crabb's River I found on the sea coast beds of soft red sandstone and red marl, and, half a mile up the brook, red and whitish sandstones, inter- stratified with beds of marl, chiefly red, but also occasionally AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 243 whitish, green, or blue ; beyond that were beds of marl, contain- ing massive grey gypsum, similar to that at Codroy, and a bed of blue clay, containing crystals of selenite. Similar rocks, with now and then a bed of brown or yellow sand- stone, occurred throughout the first two or three miles, all dipping N.W. at various angles of inclination. Beyond this point the dip was invariably S. or S.E., and for two or three miles further the character of the rocks was precisely similar to those I had already passed. As, however, the banks of the brook were occasionally low, the section observed was of course not perfectly continuous, and beds which were hidden on one side of the anticlinal line, formed cliffs, and were thus ex- hibited on the other side. Thus, as I continued to ascend the brook, I came on a cliff of red marl, fifty feet thick, with some thin grey soft micaceous sandstone, beyond which were some beds of grey hardish rock, with nodules of sub-crystalline lime- stone, the banks of the river being likewise covered with a crust, a foot thick, of tufa. Some distance above this the red sandstones become more scarce, the colour being generally brown or yellowish ; grey clunch, too, with bituminous laminae, was frequent. " In one bank of brown sandstone, a nest of coal with a sand- stone nucleus was seen. The shape was irregular and was about two feet long. It most probably was a vegetable remain squeezed out of all semblance of its former shape. Over this mass of sandstone there was again a good thickness of grey clunch, and brown or yellow sandstone and conglomerate interstratified with red and brown marl, all dipping gently to the S.E. Over these were some thin beds of red sandstone with red marl, and a little beyond some hard light brown or greyish yellow sandstone with small quartz pebbles. This rock formed ledges stretching across the river, producing a fall of two or- three feet. " About one hundred and fifty yards above this, on the west bank of the brook, was some grey clunch and shale, on which rested abed of hard grey sandstone, eight feet thick, covered by two or three feet of clunch and ironstone balls, and two feet of soft brown sandstone, with ferruginous stains, on which reposed a bed of coal three feet thick. The dip of these rocks was very slight towards the south, in which direction the bank became low, as it was also on the opposite side of the river, which pre- 244 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, vented my tracing the* coal further ; neither was the bank above the coal high enough to bring in any of the beds over it and thus give its total thickness, since it is evident the portion here seen may be only the lower part of a bed instead of the whole. The quality of the portion thus exposed was good, being a bright caking coal. The distance from the sea shore is about eight miles ; the only harbour, however, is that of St. George, which is about twenty miles from this spot. A few very rude and im- perfect vegetable impressions were all I could see in any of these rocks. Many of the gritstones in this section might turn out good freestones. In the next brook to the east of the one I as- cended, was formerly a salt spring, which, however, I was assured, had lately become quite dry ; but several of the little rills which I tasted in the neighbourhood were brackish. As regards the extent of country occupied by this bed of coal, or others which may lie above it, the data on which to found any calculation are but few. If, however, the upper rocks follow the course of the lower, without the intervention of faults and irregularities, the tract so occupied would probably be an oval, forming the centre of the country, bounded by the sea coast on the north and the ridge of primary hills on the south. From the top of the highland at Crabb's River, this ridge bounded the horizon at the distance apparently of about twenty miles. Allowing half of this width to be occupied by the lower beds, the tract yielding coal would probably be twenty or thirty miles long by ten miles wide. Gypsum again appears once or twice in the cliff between Crabb's River and St. George's Harbour. The northside of St. George's Bay, between Cape St. George and Indian Head, is occupied entirely by beds of the magnesian limestone mentioned before, all dipping at a slight angle to the N.N.W., and thus passing under the great mass of shales and gritstones which forms the country about Port au Port. " As regards the external character of the district now under consideration, I have already spoken of its physical geography, and have only to add a few words on its agricultural capabili- ties. The coal formation, on account of its alternate beds of marl and sandstone, and its low and undulating surface, is everywhere admirably adapted for cultivation. On the south side of St. George's Bay, along the sea cliffs, on the banks of the rivers, or wherever the surface is drained and cleared of AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 245 trees, it is covered with beautiful grass ; and the few straggling settlers scattered along that shore exist almost entirely on the produce of their live stock. The aspect of their houses put me in mind of the cottages of small farmers in some parts of Eng- land. There is every reason to believe that the same fertility would be characteristic of the country round the N. E. of the Grand Pond. The whole of the district, even the primary hills, is covered with wood of a far finer description than the gener- ality of that on the east side of the island. Groves of tine birch and juniper are scattered among the fir, and pines are met with here and there in the interior of the country. On the bank of a brook between St. George's Bay and the Grand Pond, my Indian guide pointed out several fine ash trees. The Bay of Islands, has, I believe, long been celebrated in Newfoundland tor its timber ; and I can safely assert, that the Banks of the Humber, as far as I ascended it, did not deteriorate in that respect every portion of the country being densely covered with fine wood." Alexander Murray, Esq., in his Report of the Geological Survey of Newfoundland, in 1866 and 1867, says : " The coal formation is probably the most recent group of rocks exhibited in Newfoundland (excepting always the super- ficial deposits of very modern date, which are largely made up of the ruins), and there may have been a time in the earth's history when it spread over the greater part of the land which now forms the Island ; but a vast denudation has swept away much of the original accumulation, and left the remainder in detached patches, filling up the hollows and valleys among the harder and more endurable rocks of older date, on which it was unconformably deposited. One of the most important of these detached troughs or basins of coal measures is in Bay St. George, where the formation occupies nearly all the lower and more level tract of country between the mountains aud the shores of the Bay ; and another lies in a somewhat elongated fcasin from be- tween the more northern ends of the Grand and Deer Ponds, and White Bay ; the eastern outcrop runuing through Sandy Pond, while the western side probably comes out in the valley of the Humber River, near the eastern flank of the long range 246 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, of mountains. There is reason also to suspect the presence of a smaller trough of the same rocks, between Port-a-Port and Bear Head towards the Bay of Islands, the greater part of which, however, is probably in the. sea ; and from local information I received from the Indians, as well as some residents at the Bay St. George, I think it not improbable that another trough of the formation may occur in the region of the Bay of Islands." Captain Loch in his report to the Vice Admiral, the Right Honourable the Earl of Dundonald, in 1849, speak- ing of St. George's Bay, says : " There are two hundred resident planters in this Bay, who receive assistance in hands during the fishing season from Cape Breton and its adjacent shores. Their fishing usually com- mences a month or six weeks earlier than that on the coast of Labrador. This year they began the 27th April. They fish herring, salmon, trout, and eel, besides the cod. Up to the present date (17th August) the catch has been 10,000 bar- rels of herring, 200 barrels of salmon, and but a small quan- tity of cod. They employ about 200 boats and 800 hands, and send their fish to the Halifax and Quebec markets during the summer and fall. The fishings end about the 1st of October, with the exception of the eels, which are caught in great quan- tities and afford subsistence during the winter. They have bait without intermission during the entire fishing, and use caplin, herring, squid, and clams. The climate is usually dry and mild, and if their society was under proper control, St. George's Bay would offer many inducements to the industrious settler. The harbour is occasionally blocked up by ice, but for no length of time, and is always open by the middle of April. The inhabitants consist of English, a few Irish, and a number of lawless adventurers the very outcasts of society from Cape Breton and Canada ; and it is very distressing to perceive a community, comprising nearly 1000 inhabitants, settled in an English colony under no law or restraint, and having no one to control them, if we except what may be exercised through the influence shown by the single clergymen of the Established Church, who is the only person of authority in the settlement. I am told the reason why magistrates are not appointed, is in AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 247 obedience to direct orders from the home government it being believed against the spirit of the treaty with France. Under these circumstances I would recommend, either that a vessel-of- war should be appointed to remain stationary in the harbour, or that the society should be forcibly broken up and removed, for violent and lawless characters are rapidly increasing, and neither the lives nor property of any substantial or well-dis- posed settler are safe. Four cases of violent assault were brought to my notice as having recently been committed upon parties some of whom were injured for life, and others nearly murdered ; and I was sorry to understand the culprits had suc- ceeded in escaping into the woods upon the appearance of her Majesty's ship. " The cultivation of grain has been commenced with con- siderable success. Wheat, barley, and oats ripen well ; and turnips grow particularly fine. Potatoes and garden stuffs are cultivated also to a considerable extent. A large quantity of fur is collected, but the trappers suffer great losses by the fre- quent robbery of both traps and their contents." From Cape St. John north to Cape Ray on the west, the distance is 398 geographical mijes. On this line of coast, the French possess the right by treaty, of catching and drying fish, but are not allowed to make any perma- nent erections, nor to remain longer than the time neces- sary to cure their fish. Of course, all the residents are British subjects. According to the returns in 1857, the population was as follows, on the west coast principally : 1,647 Church of England. 1,586 Church of Rome. 85 Wesleyans. 16 Free Church of Scotland. 3,334 Total. There were 54 dwelling-houses, 1 Church of England, and 1 Roman Catholic. 1,508 acres of land cultivated, yielding annually 1,204 tons hay ; 40 bushels of wheat and barley, 33 bushels of oats, 21,112 bushels of potatoes 248 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and 1,175 bushels of turnips. Of live stock, there were 873 neat cattle, 493 milch cows, 25 horses, 1,167 sheep, and 316 swine and goats. Butter, 5242 Ibs., cheese, 112 Ibs., 453 yards of coarse cloth manufactured, 25 vessels engaged in the fisheries, 845 boats, carrying from 4 to 30 quintals ; nets and seines, 2,354 ; codfish cured, 25,592 quintals ; 437 tierces of salmon, 17,908 barrels of herring, 13,669 seals, 1,391 seal nets, 16,896 gallons of oil. Regarding the moral condition of the inhabitants of St. George's Bay, the reader will be able to gather some information from the following extract of a letter from the Rev. Mr. Meek, Church of England Missionary, writ- ten in 1846 : " I came to the place five years since, as confessedly one of the most obscure, most neglected, and most unpromising places in the island ; and, though I have received in it many blessings, and though both myself and family are, and have been, in the enjoyment of constant health, and though I have seen at times cause for hope that I might be permitted with acceptance and success, though less than the least of those who have been en- trusted with the commission, to ' preach the Gospel to every creature,' to fulfil this blessed trust in this remote and unculti- vated spot, yet I find that I undertook no light or unanxious engagement ; and I confess that the last year and a half has been to me a season of painful trial, as standing alone in the midst of surrounding evil, which, not by power, nor by might, but by God's spirit alone, can be met or overcome ; and I have been ready, like another Jonah, to flee from proclaiming what is very unwelcome truth. " Owing to the peculiar circumstances of the place, which, by ireaty with the French, has engaged to have no settlement in it, there neither is, nor can be, any law or authority exercised ; consequently it is now become the rendezvous of such as have no fear of God, and are glad to escape from the control of man. You have, perhaps, heard of the wreck which occurred here last fall, and some of the painful circumstances connected with it : the parties concerned have, however, thus far escaped, and are here ; and I should feel little trouble on their account, were it AND AS IT IS IN 1877. not that, in connexion with others of like mind, they are lead- ing the too-easily-led people into such constant habits of drunk- enness, revelling, fighting, &c., that it must be manifest to you how painful is that duty which constrains me to declare in such a place, that they who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God ; yet this is my situation ; and often with the sound of the midnight revel in our ears do we lie sleepless, and mentally saying, ' Woe is me that I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar ! ' " I am happy to say that, after a good deal of trouble, the church is at length nearly completed. It is one of the neatest outharbour churches in the island, and is in general, especially in the winter, well attended ; and, though I have much to try and discourage, I have still much pleasure in declaring, even to the worst, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sin- ners. " The school continues much as usual ; it cannot be large till the settlement enlarges. About 40 children are usually pre- sent in the summer, and 50 in the winter. Of course there is considerable improvement in the ability to read and write, where no means were ever afforded for enabling any to do so ; but I regret that the constant bad examples around, and the want of parental control, are far from being productive of good on the young." In 1848, Mr. Meek again writes : '* We passed, in many respects, a trying winter : our neigh- bours were as poor as ourselves. There were no stores or ships to go to ; the poor Acadians were living entirely upon eels, ob- tained through the ice, without bread or flour, or anything else, and there were many things to depress and discourage ; but to school and to church we, without interruption, went, and, I trust, have been thus far enabled to continue the unvarying tes- timony, that ' Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men, save that of Jesus Christ alone, whereby they must be saved.' Yet here, alas, too, we have much to discourage an insensibility, an apa- thy, an almost opposition in many. Of one, indeed, the chief fiddler hitherto at the dances, we have pleasing hope that there 250 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, is some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel. He has long been a regular and serious worshipper in our congregation, but now he has, and that in spite of urgent solicitation and offers of some value, renounced for ever his former employment, and, as far as he knows it, determined to pursue the narrow way ; but, in general, it is uphill work. " You would be greatly surprised at the peculiar circumstan- ces of this strange place : they are unlike every other even in Newfoundland. There is a great deal of abject poverty, mixed up with a fondness for dress and appearance, that is very pain- ful. White veils and parasols adorn females who are seen at the herring pickling ; indeed, there is scarcely an idea of any distinction in society, and it is almost impossible to impress the folly and absurdity of such contradiction to all that is becoming on them. Yet these ladies are found at the balls, to which they are so much attached, mixed up with Indians, Acadians, French, little children, and an indiscriminate collection of all sorts and conditions. Oh, how we are often pained and tried ! but never so much, I think, as on last New Year's Day, when, after I had preached the most solemn and pointed sermon I could write (and I would send you the M.S. but for the expense of postage), the congregation went out of church to a dance, which continued till twelve at night, when, being Saturday, it was discontinued. Surely I slept not that night, and went to church next day with a heavy heart, and a cry, ' Woe is me, that I am constrained to dwell with Mesech !' " We are greatly indebted to Miss Haydon, of Guilford, for a box of clothing, partly for the poor, and partly to relieve the wants of my own family, in consequence of last summer's catas- trophe. It serves to reassure and help us on in our solitary course, that friends so far off remember and sympathise with us ; and we hope that, upheld by their prayers, we shall be enabled to hold on our way, and witness a good confession, and that still we shall continue in church and school to teach and preach Jesus Christ. " It will be a long time before we can hear from you again, or from anybody : remember how much we need your prayers when we sit down alone in this solitude, surrounded by so many who know not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The cold we can bear, the snow we can wade through, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 251 but the dreadful apathy and insensibility around freezes up the soul. Alas, how different is the missionary's life to what the youthful listener in a London public meeting imagines ! and no- where, I think, is it more tried than in Newfoundland. But I must commend myself, Mrs. M., our five children and our charge, once more to your prayers and sympathies. I have been more than nineteen years at work here and am forty-seven years of age ; I feel that the night Cometh, that I have a trust to fulfil, and an account to give, but He that has helped me hitherto will help me all my journey through." The Rev. Mr. Meek removed from St. George's Bay to Prince Edward Island, and was succeeded in the Mission by the Rev. Thomas Boland. "In March, 1856, he went to visit a parishioner a short dis- tance from Sandy Point, the place of his residence ; and, not returning when expected, search was made for him, and he was found dead within a mile of his own house. It is presumed, that having incautiously gone alone, he had lost his way in a drift ; and, yielding to cold and fatigue, had sunk into that fatal sleep in which the vital powers are soon extinct. "The Rev. Thomas Boland had, before his ordination, been for several years a Scripture Reader in the Parish of White- chapel, and was highly commended to the Society by several clergymen to whom he had been favourably known in that part of the town. The Rev. W. W. Champneys, in particular, tes- tified to ' his genuine piety, decided ability, and the soundness of his views.' He went to Newfoundland in 1849. The obitu- ary notice characterises him as a person of much learning, abil- ity, and zeal ; and adds, tha this ministry appeared to be much blessed in the remote settlements first of Channel, and after- wards of St. George's Bay, to which he was sent as the Society's Missionary by the present Bishop of Newfoundland, by whom he was ordained both deacon and priest." The Rev. H. Lind succeeded Mr. Boland in the Mission of St. George's Bay. The following incident is related by Mr. Lind : " An Indian mountaineer had been hunting, and had killed a deer, the skin of which he had wrapped about his person, when 252 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, a bear met him, and, no doubt, tempted by the smell of blood, knocked him down, and would have torn him to pieces, when his daughter, seeing the danger of her father, crept quietly to him, and, at the risk of her own life, took his hunting-knife from his belt, and plunged it into the body of the infuriated beast, which fell dead at her feet, and thus liberated her parent."* In 1849, Bishop Field made an episcopal visit to this part of the Coast. The following is an extract from an account of the Bishop's visit : " Leaving Port-aux-Basques the same evening, the Church Ship was anchored in Codroy Roads early on Thursday morn- ing, July 26th. Here two services were held in the house of a respectable planter ; and in the evening service (at 6 o'clock) several children were admitted into the Church. These people had seen no Clergymen among them since the Bishop's visit four years ago. Between the services the Bishop, with two of his Clergy, went over to the great Codroy River, (six miles) and there baptized three children. The Bishop then returned to hold the promised service at Codroy, but the Clergy pro- ceeded six miles further to the Little River. Fifteen years ago Archdeacon Wix visited these settlements, and baptized there ; but no Clergyman has been seen, no service of our Church per- formed there since. The worldly circumstances of the inhabi- tants are in direct contrast to their spiritual and religious con- dition, for they enjoy the produce of the land as well as of the sea in abundance. They have numerous flocks of fine cattle, and grow various kinds of corn with a little labour, and a large return. " The wind being fair it was thought prudent to proceed the same night to Sandy Point (Mr. Meek's mission), at the head of St. George's Bay. At the time of the Bishop's visit to this mission last year, Mr. Meek had unfortunately just sailed for St. John's. On this occasion he was prepared for and anxiously expecting his Lordship. " The Church Ship remained in this Harbour three days, and on Sunday the Bishop celebrated the Holy Communion in the morning, and gave Confirmation in the afternoon service. * Vide Report S. P. G. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 253 Four long years had elapsed since either of those Holy Servi- ces had been celebrated in this settlement, and years of pecu- liar trial to the Missionary and his flock. During the Bishop's stay, the Wellesley, Flag Ship, with the Admiral, Earl Dundon- ald, on board, arrived, and remained two days in the harbour. " On Tuesday, July 31st, the Church Ship sailed for the Bay of Islands, which was reached and entered in safety early the following day. Here is the place, and here the people whose condition, as reported by Archdeacon Wix fifteen years ago, excited so much commiseration. It may readily be supposed that as no Minister of Religion, and no teacher of any name or persuasion, had visited them in the long interval, their moral state can only have become more wretched and degraded. The people are settled in most picturesque and fertile spots on either side of the Humber Sound, which for beauty of scenery, size and variety of timber, and richness of soil, is perhaps the most favoured locality in Newfoundland. The condition of the in- habitants in moral and social circumstances stands in strong and unhappy contrast ; and they do not generally appear to know even how to turn to account their natural advantages. Several families were found in a state of deplorable destitution. Others, more prosperous or more careful, were not less ignorant and unmindful of any concerns or interests beyond the provi- sion for this life. The Church Ship remained the rest of the week, four days, in the Bay ; and every day was fully occupied in visiting the people from house to house, baptizing and ad- mitting into the Church the children under fifteen years of age, and giving to young and old such exhortation and advice as seemed best suited to their unhappy state. " It was a melancholy thing to leave them to their former darkness and destitution, but there was too much reason to ex- pect that others would be found in a similar condition, along the shore. "The Church Ship left the Bay of Islands at midnight, on Saturday, August 4th, and at 9 o'clock the next morning called off a settlement at Trout Kiver, were, without coming to an- chor, the Bishop and his Clergy celebrated Divine Service on shore. Morning Service was celebrated on board after the Bishop's return. By four o'clock the Church Ship was an- chored in Rocky Harbour, at the mouth of Bonne Bay, and, af- 254 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ter holding Evening Service on board, the Bishop and Clergy went on shore, and baptized and received into the Church a large number of interesting children : and thus four full Ser- vices were celebrated on that Sunday, two on board, and two on shore. No Clergyman of our Church had ever before visi- ted these settlements : but in each of them the patriarch, or head of the settlement, was an Englishman, and could read, and had brought and used both his Bible and Prayer-book, and the difference, in their favour, between them and their neigh- bours at the Bay of Islands, was very perceptible. " Monday, August 6. The Church Ship reached Cow Cove, another settlement never before visited by a clergyman, and too much resembling in moral misery and degradation the Bay of Islands. On the Tuesday such religious services were performed as were required, and could properly be allowed under the cir- cumstances of the people. The settlements of Cow Harbour, Bonne Bay, Trout Cove, and Bay of Islands, would together afford abundant occupation for a diligent and devoted Mis- sionary. They number at least three hundred souls. " "Wednesday morning, August 8. The shores of Labrador came in sight, and the same evening the Bay of Forteau again saw and received the Church Ship, according to promise given last year. " Thursday, August 9th. The Bishop with his whole party visited L'Anse Amour and L'Anse a Loup, and on the follow- ing day consecrated a grave-yard in the first named settlement. Here the Rev. Mr. Gifford was introduced to his mission, and was most kindly welcomed by Mr. Davies, and provided imme- diately with a comfortable lodging. It was the Bishop's wish, however, that he should visit some other chief settlements in his mission in the Church Ship, to have the benefit of a proper introduction. "Saturday, August 11. The Church Ship sailed to Blanc Sablon, where the Messrs. De Quetetville, of Jersey, have a large establishment. Here a small river divides the dependen- cies of Newfoundland on this coast from Canada, and, of course, limits the Bishop's Diocese. It was said to be the first limit or end of his Diocese his lordship ever saw. In a store kindly fur- nished by the agent (who seemed desirous to promote in every way the objects of the Bishop's visit), divine service was cele- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 255 brated twice on Sunday, August 12. The Holy Communion was administered. The Bishop preached in the morning, and Mr. Gifford in the afternoon. The congregation was large on each occasion, and consisted almost entirely of the men con- nected with the establishment, and employed on the room." Recapitulation of the Population of the Districts, 1849 : No. 1. District of St. John's 25,196 " 2. " Conception Bay 28,026 " 3. " " Trinity Bay 8,801 " 4. " " Bonavista Bay 7,227 " 5. " " Fogo 6,744 6. " " Ferryland 4,581 " 7. " " Placentia and St. Marys' 6,471 " 8. " "Burin 4,357 " 9. " Fortune Bay 5,100 Cape Hay, St. George's Bay, Bay of Islands, &c 2,200 Total of Population 98,703 Population of the Districts in 1857 : No. 1. Saint John's East 17,352 ) Q , T , , 2. " West 13,124 f bt ' J " 3. Harbour Maine 5,3861 " 4. Port-de-Grave 6,486 | Concep- " 5. Harbour Grace 10,067 tion 6. Carbonear 5,233 | Bay. 7. Bay-de-Verds 6,221 J 8. Trinity Bay 10,736 9. Bonavista 8,850 10. Twillingate and Foga 9,717 11. Ferryland 5,228 12. Placentia and St. Mary's 8,334 13. Burin t 5,529 256 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, No. 14. Fortune Bay 3,493 " 15. Bureoand La Poele Total 119,394 French Shore 3,545 Labrador 1,650 Grand Total 124,499 The following was the number engaged in the various professions, in Newfoundland, in 1857 : Clergymen or Ministers 77 Doctors and Lawyers 71 Farmers 1,552 Mechanics ?:1,970 Merchants and Traders 689 Persons catching and curing fish 38,578 Able-bodied Seamen and Fishermen 20,311 Persons engaged lumbering 334 School Teachers 310 In 1874 the population of the Electoral Districts : St. Johns, East 17,811 St. Johns, West 12,763 f Southern Division 7,174 'Jt^ j Port-de-Grave 7,918 Spq <{ Harbour Grace 13,055 o | Carbonear 5,488 l^Bay De Verds 7,434 Trinity 15,667 Bonavhta 13,008 Twillingate and Fago 13,643 Ferryland 6,419 Placentia and St. Mary's 9,974 Burin 7,678 Fortune Bay-. 5,788 Burgeo and La Poele 5,098 Total.. ..148,919 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 257 French Shore 8,651 Labrador 2,416 Twillingate and Togo undertaken 1,450 Grand Total 161,436 The census taken in 1869, show the following returns: Population, 146,596, consisting of, Catholics, 61,040; Church of England, 55,184; Congregationalists, 388; Wesleyans, 28,900 ; Presbyterians, 974 ; other denomina- tions, 10. The number of churches was 235. No less than 136,378 of the population are returned as born in the Colony. Of the children. 16,249 are reported as at- tending school, and 18,813 as non-attendants, but this would include many of very tender years. The census also shows 37,259 to be engaged in the fisheries, 20,617 as seamen, and 1,784 as farmers, while 99 are clergy- men, 24 are lawyers, 591 merchants, and 2,019 mechan- ics. The land under culture amounted to 41,715 acres ; the growth of turnips to 17,100 bushels ; of potatoes, to 308,357 bushels ; of other roots, to 9,847 bushels ; of hay, to 20,458 tons ; and of butter, to 162,508 Ibs. The vessels numbered 986, with a tonnage of 47,413 tons ; boats, 14,- 755; nets and seines, 26,523: seal nets, 4,761; persons engaged in the fisheries, 37,259 ; and seamen, 20,647. The horses numbered 3,764 ; horned cattle, 13,721 ; sheep, 23,- 044 ; goats, 6,417; and swine, 19,081. The product of the fisheries was given in the census of 1869 as follows : Cod, 1,087,781 quintals ; salmon (cured), 33,149 tierces ; her- rings 97,035 barrels ; other fish (cured), 10,365 barrels ; fish oil, 840,304 gallons ; and seals, 333,056. The manu- factures, on the other hand, amounted only to $72,675 in value. 258 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, CHAPTER XIII. FTER the Treaty of Paris, in 1763, Labrador was annexed to the Government of Newfoundland, in- cluding " all the coast of Labrador, from the en- trance of Hudson's Straits to the River St. John's, opposite the west end of the Island of Anticosti, including that island, with any other small islands on the said coast of Labrador; also the Island of Madeleine, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and of all forts and garrisons erected or es- tablished, or that shall be erected or established, in the said island, or on the coast of Labrador, within the limits aforesaid." Shortly after which, Captain Hugh Palliser was appointed Governor of Newfoundland, who was a man of great energy and enterprise. He encouraged the fishery on the Labrador coast, which was then in the hands of a few monopolists, who had obtained grants ille - gaily from the Government of Canada. Captain Palliser annulled the exclusive claim of these parties, and ejected them, which led to the separation of Labrador again from the Government of Newfoundland, and its annexation to the Province of Quebec by the Act of George III., Statute 14, cap. 3, in 1774. In 1817, Labrador was re-annexed to the Government of Newfoundland with Anticosti, but since then Anticosti has been re-annexed to the Government of Canada. In 1811, an Act of Parliament was passed, authorising the holding of Surrogate Courts at Labrador. Subsequently, a Circuit Court was established there, but was abolished in 1833. Since then a judge visits there annually, and revenue officers during the summer season. (For statistics of the fishery see "Fisheries.") Captain Loch, in 1849, gives the following very interesting account of Labrador : AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 259 "BELLE ISLE KORTH. " The fisheries round this island are very valuable, and I grieve to say are principally gathered by the French. During the afternoon, night, and next morning, I was off this island, I only saw two vessels, and those were English Jacks ; but nevertheless, I ascertained that the French had been fishing round its shores the entire season, and had only departed on the visit of the man-of-war being reported by their look-outs. I do not see how these fisheries can effectually be protected while the French possess the facilities of numerous and con- venient ports in its vicinity, with only the opposing influence of two Jersey establishments in Chateau Bay to contend against them. The most effectual protection would be the constant presence of a .small cruiser during the entire season, to act in conjunction with the small government schooner the French themselves employ for this service. If it were practicable to form establishments on the island itself, this exp use, perhaps, might be saved, but owing to the total absence of safe beach or boat harbours, this would be almost impossible. "These fisheries are capable of yielding 40,000 quintals in the season, and I am told the French take upon the average 30,000. " I could not visit the establishments at Chateau, owing to the bay being blocked up by icebergs 83 were counted between Belle Isle and the coast of Labrador." " RED BAY " Is a beautiful little harbour, perfectly sheltered from every wind, and is capable of admitting ships of the largest class. It is formed by Saddle Island laying off the entrance of a round basin with a narrow neck ; there is good anchorage behind the island, which forms what may be called the outer harbour, the hills of the main are nearly 500 feet in height, somewhat higher than those directly to the north-east and south-west of the port. " The hills are close to the shore, formed of reddish granite and covered with moss, some stunted spruce, birch, and juniper bushes. 260 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " Three small rivulets enter the basin, but water cannot easily be procured for ships, owing to sandbars extending across their mouths. " The port is not very easy to make, as the features and in- dentation of this portion of the coast are very similar, one of the best marks is a small flat island a little to the eastward of Saddle Island, named " Oil " Island in the book of sailing di- rections, and White Island by the fishermen. " There are thirteen rooms at this station, all belonging to separate planters, small proprietors, employing altogether 50 fishermen (exclusive of the shore-men), the principal person among them is a Mr. William Penny, of Conception Bay. He comes to this port in his schooner every spring, and arrived this year on the 17th of June, with 95 people on board forty men, the rest women and children. During the season there are about 100 inhabitants 40 reside for the purpose of seal- fishing during the winter. They commenced cod-fishing this year 5th June. They use both seines and lines, and have 25 boats of difiercnt sizes, employing two to three hands each, and capable of containing from five to ten quintals. They send their fish to St. John's, Carbonear, and Halifax. They dispatch it twice in the season if the fishing is moderately good. Iheir catch to the present date (30th July), has been 3,500 quintals, which is the greatest amount of fish they have taken so early for the last three years. They expect to average before the close 100 quintals a man. They would not be contented with less than 70. (The French consider 50 quintals per man a paying season.) The fishing generally ends about the 5th Sep- tember, when the ice begins again to form, and the bait strikes off into deep water. The bait they use is caplin, herring and lance in rotation. Although the latter may be procured throughout the season, they use the caplin when it can be had. which is frequently from June until the end of August. They can place no reliance upon the strike of the herring. They con- sider the climate during the summer and autumn months dryer and of more equal temperature than upon the north-east coast of Newfoundland. " They say that they are much disturbed by the French and Americans. The former coming over from the other side in squadrons of batteaux, sweeping all their best fishing grounds AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 261 while the latter enter their harbours in schooners of about 60 tons, catching their fish, and drying them close to their own stages, which they boldly assert they have a right to do by treaty. " I examined several of the planters separately, and all agreed that there are about 600 Frenchmen employed in fishing vessels of different sizes, between Forteau and Red Bays alone. There is no agriculture, if we except a few cabbages and turnips planted round the door of their huts, which they use with their common diet of fish and salt pork. The fisherman are paid principally in bills of exchange given by the merchants, and re- ceive from 18 to 25 currency a year. Those employed for the summer season only, generally receive half their catch. " The planters of the harbour expressed so much dissatisfac- tion at the encroachment of the French, who, they assert, are encouraged in their depredations by some of the principal Eng- lish inhabitants residing in the bays to the westward, that I have thought it advisable to give the evidence of the three prin- cipal parties I have examined at length : " What are your names ? " ROBERT ASH, of Carbonear, and FRANCIS WATTS. We have been fishing eleven years out of this harbour. Watts has resided on the coast of Labrador for the last two years, and would continue to do so if not so much interfered with by the French. " BENJAMIN COOMES came straight from England. Has been residing between Black and Red Bays, and on the coast of La- brador, for twenty-five years, cod-fishing and sealing on his own account. They all asserted that their fishing is very much injured by the encroachment of the French fishing on the coast to the westward in Black Bay and Forteau Bay, &c., which prevented the fish from passing down the coast, but more particularly are they injured by the French sweeping all the caplin off the ground, which otherwise would remain a month longer if they were not so disturbed and cleared by them. To give an idea how much we suffer by these encroachments, and how much the French benefit by them, there are parties em- ployed purposely to catch and cure caplin to supply the Great Bank fishing vessels. " Q. Who are the principal people in Black Bay "? " A. One family, Mr. Odell's. 262 " Q. Do they agree to the French going there 1 " A. Yes, they encourage them, and lend and build stages for their accommodation, and receive the livers of the fish in payment, " Q. What may this be worth to them 1 " A. A quintal of fish produces a gallon of oil, which sells for 2s. per gallon. " Q. Have you ever remonstrated with the English residents at the bays to the westward, and stated how prejudicial their encouragement of the French was to your interests 1 " A. Yes, and they are well acquainted that the French fishing must injure ours. " Q. What do you suppose is the reason why the French are enabled to surpass our fishermen in cheap fishing on our own coast 1 "A. Their fit-out is in the first place much cheaper not one-fourth the prime cost of ours. Secondly, they receive a large bounty from government. Thirdly, the wages are not one- half those we pay our fishermen. " Q. How many Frenchmen do you suppose are fishing be- tween Red Bay and Forteau ? "A. From 1,000 to 1,500 men. " Q. In how many boats or vessels 1 " A. About 200, large and small. " Q. Do you think the Government of Newfoundland could make any arrangement that would effectually prevent the en- croachment of the French on the coast of Labrador ? " A. Yes, a cruiser stationed in the straits from the 1st July to the last of August ; or resident magistrates, say at Black Bay or Forteau, and perhaps Chateau. " Q. Would the planters on the coast of Labrador think it worth their while to pay 300 a year in support of the salaries of magistrates to dear the coast of the French 1 " A. We think we pay taxes enough, and we imagine that the Government of Newfoundland ought to defray such a charge for the benefit of its subjects and its own commerce. " Q. Are you aware if there are individuals residing be- tween Red Bay and Forteau Bay who have made sums of money by their encouragement of French fishing 1 "A. Yes, Samuel Toms, formerly residing at Great St. Mo- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 263 deste. Last year he went to Quebec, having cleared 1,000 in the last few years by the sale of oil from the cod livers. " Q. Do the residents of Labrador receive any assistance from the Government of Newfoundland during the winter ? " A. No, none. Last year, for the eight months, which is the usual length of the winter, we were hard put to it in conse- quence of the French having deprived us of our means of living by plundering our coasts. Many of the poorer inhabitants were alone supported by the charitable assistance of those in better circumstances. " Q. You say that certain parties have had to give up trade in vessels in consequence of the French encroachments state who these were ? "A. Francis and Claudius Witts, William Udel, and Mr. Pike. These parties hud to give up their vessels, finding that the catch of fish was so much reduced from what used to be be- fore the French came in such numbers, that none of the parties could procure even half cargoes by the close of the season. " Q. How do you know that the French fishing interferes with yours ? " A. Because on the Monday our catch is double what it is any other day of the week, owing to the French not fishing on the Sunday, thereby permitting the fish to pass up the coast. "CARROLL COVE. " This is a small fishing station, five miles west of Red Bay* where there are only two rooms belonging to a Mr. Lardragan. He employs thirty men, six of these reside there during the winter to trap seals. They catch them in frame nets, which are laid down the 20th November, and taken up the last of Decem- ber ; then again put down the 1st of June, and taken up the middle of July. 300 seals a year is the average catch. " They send their cod to a Jersey house in Blanc Sablon. " There are three seal fisheries between Chateau Bay and Car- roll Cove, fished by men from Red Bay, who abandon them in summer for the cod fishery. Their average catch is 350 seals. " BLACK BAY, OR PINWARE, Is a wild open roadstead, but a good fishing station, and cap- lin are always to be found in great abundance during the sea- 264 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, son inside the bar formed by the river at its head, and which the French are said entirely to appropriate, by dropping nets across the channels, and placing watch-boats to guard them. This intelligence caused me to despatch an officer in the barge from Eed Bay, who might be enabled to take any intruders by surprise and give me accurate information. He counted twen- ty fishing boats at anchor under Ledge Island, and boarded sixteen vessels at anchor inside Little St. Modeste belonging to Nova Scotia, one American, and three French from St. Pierre's. " These latter had been fishing on the Labrador shores, and according to my directions he took away their registers. " At ' Shipbroad,' on the western side of Black Bay, he boarded the French brig ' Novelle St. Pierre,' of St. Malo, wind-bound from ' Quirpon,' bound to ' Port-au-Choix,' laden with salt and a small quantity of fish, which apparently had not been taken on this coast. He also boarded two French boats fishing for vessels at ' Port-au-Choix,' which he ordered away. He observed twelve or thirteen French boats off Cape Diable to windward of him but these he could not reach as it blew too strong." FORTEAU BAY Is almost an open roadstead to the south and south-east, but safe even with winds from those quarters, owing to its depth and the protection it receives from the opposite coast of New- foundland. " It is surrounded by table lands of sand stone covered with the usual moss, the dwarf spruce, birch bush and some moun- tain ash. A salmon river of some size enters the sea at the head of the bay. Seals, salmon, cod, and remarkably fine her- rings are very plentiful. The fishings are carried on with con- siderable profit by five establishments, four connected with Jer- sey, Poole and St. John's, are in the bay, and the fifth is planted upon the eastern point, belongs to a Mr. Grange, a wealthy colonist from Anchor Point, Newfoundland. Upwards of four hundred people are employed by these various planters, but their catch this year has not been (in proportion) so good as that of their rivals of Red Bay. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 265 " The resident agents and partners are Messrs. Ellis, em- ployed by Mr. Bird of Poole, and Leroux, a Jersey merchant, and agent for Mr. De Quetteville the most extensive planter on the coast of Labrador. He has besides this, other establishments (one of Blanc Sablon) and supplies most of the winter rooms and resident fishermen with goods, clothes, and stores much to his own profit. Messrs. Young and Janeaut, and George Du Heaume and David Janners are the remainder. " There are nine fishing stations between Ked Bay and For- teau namely, Carroll Cove East St. Modeste Black Bay West St. Modeste Captain Island Lance Dialla River head of Lance a Loup and Lance Amour. Except at Lance & Loup where a Mr. Crockwell, of Torquay, has a room, all these stations are fished by colonial fishermen, who send their produce to St. John's by vessels from that port, and to the Jersey houses in Forteau Bay and Blanc Sablon. " These small stations employ about two hundred and twenty men, and average a catch of twenty-five thousand quintals throughout the year. " Cabbages and Turnips are grown at every station for the summer consumption of the inhabitants. " Those who reside upon the coast during the winter shoot deer, partridges, ducks, geese, curlew and other wild fowl, amply sufficient for their support. They have, nevertheless, stores of pork, flour, tea and molasses supplied by traders from Quebec, Halifax and St. John's. "Much of my time was occupied during the ship's stay at For- teau in settling innumerable disputes between the rival firms and fishermen, and in trying an action brought by Philip Lan- dragan, of Caroll Cove against Messrs. George du Heaume and Daniel Janvers for having taken a schooner belonging to the former, under pretence of purchasing her, and having used her for nine months ; and in consequence of the collector of cus- toms of St. John's declaring the register to be incorrect re- turning her to the plaintiff who accepted a bill of thirty pounds as an equivalent for her use, and for having boarded her after delivering her over and taking out gear belonging to the vessel. " A case of a much graver description was brought before me by a man named Charles Dicker, a planter, resident on 266 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Grant Point, three miles west of Blanc Sablon, and a settler of fcwenty-four years, who, upon hearing a man-of-war was at Forteau, walked across the country to lay a charge against a stronger party for having torn up his seal and salmon nets, as he asserted they prevented his own catch being so great as it otherwise would be. The poor man was thus deprived of his season's profit, and probably his winter's subsistence. I was enabled fortunately, to succeed in restoring his rights to him. " BLANC SABLON Is seven miles west of the Western Point of Forteau Bay. It is open to the eastward, nevertheless the westerly winds are those most feared, as they throw in heavy cross swells between Wood and Greenly Islands, and vessels are not unfrequently driven on shore by them. " It is the principal fishing station on the Labrador coast. There are four Jersey establishments two belonging to Messrs. Philip de Quetteville (under the charge of ThomasLeroux),and the other to Philip Bray and Leroux there are upwards of three hundred inhabitants during the season, and only four families reside there during the winter. They all arrived this year in June, and commenced fishing on the 18th, and found both cod and caplin very abundant they had never seen fish so early before and greatly regretted not having arrived sooner. Besides the cod, they fish seal and herring, the latter they use for bait when caplin is scarce. They commonly find the caplin on the coast by the middle of June, and it generally remains till the end of July. "DeQuetteville's establishments both at Forteau and this Bay, cure and export caplin. They also extract oil from the herring as well as from the cod liver. Twelve Jersey vessels and eighty boats were in use, employing altogether three hundred hands. Bray trades to twelve different ports in the Mediter- ranean and occasionally to their own island, Jersey. " The fish is sent away as fast as they can load the vessels ; the first sailed this year, 7th July, and another will sail to-day (9th August), and four in September. There were sixteen vessels at anchor in Blanc Sablon harbour, namely one barque, three brigantines, and twelve schooners. They were all waiting for cargoes. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 267 " Notwithstanding the abundance of fish at the commence- ment, they consider they have only had a fair catch 15,000 quintals owing to their late arrival, and the fish leaving early ; they consider from 15 to 16,000 quintals a good season. Last year their fishing did not terminate until the end of August. This year it closed 25th of July. " The fogs lay longer against this portion of the coast than further to the eastward, owing to its being at the entrance of the straits, and more exposed to the southerly winds which drive them out of the estuary of the St. Lawrence. Blanc Sablon is sometimes enveloped for a week at a time, while a few miles beyond the sky is clear and dry. This is much against the planter's interests. Americans occasionally spread their nets, and fish early in the season, on their way through the straits towards Cape Charles ; but they do not disturb the settlers. There were about ten this year they used to appear in greater numbers. Four French brigs had been fishing off Green Island for three weeks or a month they left the day before yesterday, when they heard we were on the coast. They fish along the Labrador coast throughout the season, and only retire upon the appearance of the man-of-war. All the small planters complain grievously of this intrusion ; while the more wealthy encourage it, for (as I have already stated), the liver oil they receive for stage room. The Americans carry the fish away green. " The people are supported, as at the other stations, by sup- plies from Jersey, Halifax and Quebec, and all the large estab- lishments pay the men 2 sterling a month, instead of giving them half the catch. " There are no resident fishermen in this particular harbour, but a few along the coast to the westward at Grand Point, Bra- dore, and Esquimaux Harbours, but no regular rooms are main- tained. " The river running into this port separates the dependency of Newfoundland from Lower Canada. The harbour is always completely blocked up by ice from November until June, oc- casionally to the end of the latter month. At this station all the fishermen are Protestants, and from Jersey. " The fishery is much what it has been for the last fifteen years ; but people are commencing to pass up the coast, and 268 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, they anticipate a gradual supply of permanent settlers from the south of Newfoundland and Canada. " When on the point of sailing, the son of Mr. Grange, of Anchor Point, Newfoundland, came on board to complain that the French had stopped his father fishing a salmon river that has been in his family for upwards of a century ; that after much opposition on his father's part, he had to yield to the French one-half, and afterwards two-thirds of the produce of the river. This year they had taken it from him altogether. " As I could find no definite instructions relative to the as- sumed right of the French over the river, as well as the sea fishings, and as this question bears so gravely upon the interests of so many settlers, and dignity of Her Majesty's colony ; and feeling that any inquiry on my part, after ascertaining the state- ment to be true, without forcibly expelling the French from property which has been in possession of English colonists for so long a period, would be ineffectual, I advised Mr. Grange to draw up a memorial for the consideration of the Colonial Gov- ernment, and promised to lay the facts of the case before His Excellency the Governor. " The inhabitants of any particular bay or station along the coast of Labrador have not the right or power, in my opinion, to permit the French to lay out their nets along the coasts or in their harbours, for by so doing the rights of other fishings are naturally interfered with, by stopping the passage of the fish along the coast, and after fair warning, I think they should be subject to the same punishment for ' aiding and abetting,' as the intruders are themselves. " In my opinion it would be most advisable, nay, absolutely necessary for the prosperity of the British subjects that magis- trates should be appointed from St. John's, to administer justice and control the society resident at the various fishing stations in the Straits of Belle Isle during the season. " This extensive coast, commencing from the estuary of the St. Lawrence, and stretching far north to the regions of per- petual snow, is one of the most barren and desolate in the world ; and it seems that nature has removed the means of sup- porting human life from its surface to the waters which surround it, the abundant production of which offer the inducements, and reward the industry and perseverance of thousands of adven- turers who resort to it from both Europe and America. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 269 " The portion forming the northern boundary of the Straits of Belle Isle is not so well marked or grand in feature as where it recedes from the Island of Newfoundland, either to the north or south. From the sea the country has a green and alluvial appearance, and it is not until close to it that this is lost, and nothing is seen but bare granite rocks, partially covered with moss and stunted shrubs ; juniper, birch, and poplar trees grow in valleys where the soil is of sandy clay, the temperature much higher, and the fog less frequent than upon the coast. Here deer, bears, wolves, foxes, martens, otters, beavers, and a great variety of wild fowl take up their abode until driven to the coast by the snow-drifts of approaching winter. The ice does not usually leave the bay free for vessels to enter before June, and it begins to form again in the shallow bays and pools in the beginning of September." About a hundred years ago, the Moravian missionaries extended their mission from Greenland to the Labrador Coast, where they now have several flourishing settle- ments. The principal one is called Nain. A very inter- esting volume has been published, giving an account of the Moravian Missions at Greenland and Labrador. In 1824, the Rev. Thomas Hickson, one of the Wesleyan Missionaries at Newfoundland, was appointed to ascertain the state of the Esquimaux on the Labrador Coast, in order to establish a mission among them. The following is an extract from Hickson's Journal : " Visited the only resident family in the place, an English- man, who has been united with an Esquimaux, by whom he had three children. She died about three years ago. I spoke to him on the all important concerns of his soul. We bowed our knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the poor man expressed his warmest thanks ; having been so long with the natives, he possessed much information respecting them. He said, he believed they had but very confused notions of a Supreme Being, if they had any ; they had some notion of the existence of the devil, whom they suppose to be the author of all pain ; and that in cases of dangerous illness, believing him to be the cause of it, and also supposing him to be present, the 2*70 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, oldest person in the place hangs all the pot- crooks, or old hoops, or any such articles about him, and taking a poker, he turns over all the skins in the wigwam, intending to drive him away. I am also informed that they frequently strive to appease him by sitting in profound silence, insomuch that a child is not allowed to go quick across the floor. When this is ineffectual, they have recourse to sacrifice, which is generally that of killing their best dog. I have only heard of one instance of their having recourse to human sacrifice. About three years ago, an Indian man, supposing himself to be in dying circumstances, but believing that the devil would spare his life could he only accomplish the death of another, fixed upon a neighbour's wife who was pregnant, and he imposed the bloody task on his own wife; she showed some reluctance, but he enforced his com- mands by seizing a hatchet and threatening to take away her life. She then prevailed upon another female to assist her, by whose help she hung up the poor unfortunate woman. But this did not prevent the death of her deluded partner, and she her- self has been almost frantic ever since. " When an Esquimaux departs this life, his remains are carried away immediately, wrapped up in skins, and laid upon the surface of the ground, and a large pile of stones is raised over it ; with the corpse they bury the canoe, darts, kettles, &c., supposing that the deceased will have need of them. "The Esquimaux are generally low in stature, their complexion of a dusky yellow, with broad foreheads, high cheek bones, small eyes, wide mouth, teeth white and regular. The chin, the cheek bones from the nose to the temples, and the fore- heads, of the elder females were many of them tattooed. " This is performed by pricking through the skin with a small sharp instrument and rubbing some dark substance into the wounds. This, it appears, is a custom only in use among those of riper years, as none of them in early life bear the marks. Their cassock, or upper garment for the summer, is made of swan-skin, which they procure from the merchants for seal- skins, &c. They are curiously wrought, and trimmed with different colours of thread and cloth. The females have a larger hood, in which they carry their children, &c. In the front, that part of it which serves as a very small apron is trimmed with pewter, cast in a small mould for that purpose. AND AS IT ISIN 1877. 271 Behind, they have long hair reaching to the ground. They also, as well as the men, wear small clothes, made of the same materials as their upper garment. They make their own boots of seal skin, after they have taken off the hair and dressed it. In the winter, their dress is principally of seal- skin, which they make in a manner which shows them to be possessed of con- siderable ingenuity. " The morning and evening examinations of the candidates for baptism were seasons of much consolation ; and the im- provement they make far exceeds my most sanguine expecta- tions. I married six couples, and theTdeep seriousness of the poor Indians on these occasions would have reflected honour on long experienced Christians. " 24th. I had a good congregation in the morning when I expounded a portion of God's word, and questioned the candi- dates for baptism. A few other families came from distant parts of the Bay ; among them were three Englishmen, who had families by Esquimaux women, and who desired to be mar- ried. They afterwards got so much intoxicated that I fear their shameful conduct will prove very injurious to the natives, as they are in danger of supposing all to be Christians who come from Christian countries. " 25th This has been a day much to be remembered. At the morning prayer we were much crowded ; deep seriousness rested on every countenance, and I believe all were in a state for receiving good, excepting a few drunken Englishmen. Our house was far too small for our forenoon congregation. I first preached to as many as were able to understand me, and among these were English, Irish, Canadians, and Labradorians, who heard with attention. I had then to remove the Europeans to make room for the poor Esquimaux, to whom I preached through the interpreter. Their cheeks were soon bedewed with tears, and I was much interrupted by their expressions of ap- proval. Some having come with expectations of being baptized, I explained to them the nature and obligations of that ordin- ance. On examination I found that two of them, father and son, had each of them two concubines. It was not difficult to convince them of the evil of their doings ; and though it was generally supposed that the senior adulterer would have parted with his life rather than give up either of his concubines, the 272 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Lord applied what was spoken to his conscience, which caused him to tremble exceedingly, and he expressed a willingness to act in any way that I should direct. This person was taken by Captain Palliser to England, about forty-five years ago, with his mother, who had a gown presented to her by the Queen. This gown, richly trimmed with gold, and very fresh, was worn by one of the women. The man bears the name of the above- mentioned Captain who took him. I had much comfort and enlargement in preaching to the same mixed crowd in the after- noon. After much deliberation, I admitted a few of the adults to baptism, whose minds I judged to be in a prepared state, with their children. It was truly pleasing to witness not only the adults, but the elder children, conducting themselves with so much propriety. Many of the Indians joined us again about 9 o'clock p.m., at our family altar, with some Europeans. May the good resulting from the Sabbath's labours be seen after many days ! " 26th. Preached to an attentive congregation in one of the wigwams. The gratitude of the natives was very great, and expressed in the most feeling manner. When I questioned them whether they continued the use of family prayer, they an- swered in the affirmative. The Lord teach them to pray the effectual prayer ! " 28th. A few of them assisted me to ascertain the probable number of the inhabitants of the Bay, which is as follows : Eeal Esquimaux adults . . . . . .100 Real Esquimaux children . . . ~ . : . . 60 Half Esquimaux . .... . . .60 European settlers . . ... . . . .90 Canadian settlers . . . . . . .16 Total number, exclusive of any other part of the coast. 326 " The connection between the English and Moravian Church has been remarkable from the beginning of the Reformation. Huss was the founder of the latter, and Wickliffe of the former. It was from Wickliffe's writings that Huss derived his know- ledge of the true faith, and Wickliffe's protest against the sen- tence of burning pronounced upon the Hussites by the Arch- bishop of Prague first excited persecution against himself. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 273 Hence, it is not strange that a strong sympathy should be felt and manifested by these Christian bodies towards each other, and it is delightful to observe the noble liberality which the prosperous Church of England has shown to her afflicted yet faithful sister at various periods of their history. This is one of many aspects in which our mother church has proved her- self to be the protectress of the ' Protestant religion,' and en- titled herself to the love and gratitude of the Protestant world. " This subject has been briefly alluded to on a former occasion, but it is believed that the facts are worthy of being more fully set forth. " A volume is still extant which contains ' the Acts of the British Parliament touching the Moravian Brethren, A.D. 1749.' The occasion of these 'Acts' was a petition of Depu- ties from the United Brethren, for the Sanction and Encourage- ment of Parliament to their Settling in His Majesty's Colonies in America, especially in Georgia. Before leave was given them, the character and claims of the Brethren and their church un- derwent a severe investigation. Among other grounds of con- fidence which the deputies alleged, was, that the said church had been already countenanced by the King and State of Eng- land. To support this assertion, the deputies produced twelve vouchers, among which was a document containing an Account of the Distressed State of the Ancient Church of the Fraternal Unity, addressed to the Church of England, given in the Syno- dal Convention of Lyssa in Great Poland, Feb. 10, 1683 which account was recommended by Archbishop Sancroft, and Bishop Compton, of London, to ' the consideration of all pious and compassionate Christians." " In this address it was set forth (among other things), ' that the Bohemian Church had been free from her infancy, for al- most seven hundred years, from the encroachments of the Romish See ; but that crushed at last by its prevailing power, it was sinking apace with death and ruin ; when being ready to expire, she brought forth a Benoni, a progeny which, growing up in the several parts of Bohemia, animated and acted by one spirit, obtained the name of Fraternal Unity.' " * That this church, the heiress of the truly ancient faith, watered and enriched by the blood of Huss, and Jerome of Prague, taking deep root in Bohemia, spread its boughs as far as 274 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Poland, renouncing the growing errors of Popery, and pre-- served the succession of Episcopal orders. " That King Frederick of Bohemia being routed and dispos- sessed of his realm, this church shared the same fate. " ' That this church in Poland continued for many years pros- perous, under several privileges granted and confirmed of diverse kings and princes, but nothing able to contend with the more potent strength of the Roman Catholics, she was bereft of her former protection, languishing ever since under the rage and fury of those who violate all faith. " ' That it was through the bounty of the English Church they were formerly saved from a fatal ruin, but that after so great suffering they have scarce recovered their spirits.' The depu- ties also produced an account of the sufferings of the Episcopal Reformed Churches, and an address to the Church of England, by the encouragement of George the First, and the solicitation of Archbishop Walker and Bishop Kobinson, of London, A.D;. 1715-6. " So that on four different occasions, viz., at the dates of those two documents, 1683 and 1715, at the -'former' periodl here referred to 1736, and again on occasion of this very appli- cation, 1749, substantial aid was given to the Moravian Bre- thren by the Anglican Church, together with the highest testimony to the validity of their claims, and again at the date; of this very application, A.D. 1749. : 'T1 cir petition, on this last occasion, was presented and strongly supported by General Oglethorpe. It was under con- sideration from Febiv.aiy to May; in March it passed the House of Commons unanimously, and in the House of Lords, after a speech by the Earl of Halifax, and one by the Bishop of Worcester, in which he declared the approbation of the whole Episcopal Church, the Bill passed nem. con. The Venerable Bishop Sherlock, of London, at first objected, but after full consideration withdrew his opposition, and ever after became a a firm friend of the Brethren. " Again great calamities were experienced in their Continen- tal settlements during the campaigns of 1803 and 1812-13, at which times large sums were remitted from England for their relief. Another fact is worthy of notice in this connection. Archbishop Potter, the well-known writer on Church policy, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 275 was waited on by a committee appointed by the Board of Con- trol for the Colony, to desire his opinion concerning the Moravian Brethren, to know whether anything in their doings were so far repugnant to those of the Church of England as to make it improper to employ some of the brethren in instruct- ing the negroes in Christianity. On this occasion the Arch- bishop was pleased to declare : " ' That he had been long acquainted, by books, with the church of the Moravian Brethren, and they were Apostolical and Episcopal, not containing any doctrines repugnant to the Thirty-nine Articles, and that he was confirmed in this opinion by the conferences he had lately had with Count Zinzendorf.' " The Archbishop addressed to Count Zinzendorf, on the occasion of his election to the office of Bishop in the Moravian Church, a congratulatory Latin epistle, of which the following is a translation : " ' John, by Divine Providence, Archbishop of Canterbury, to the Right Rev. Count Nicholas Lewis, Bishop of the Mora- vian Church, sendeth greeting : " ' Most sincerely and cordially do I congratulate you upon your having been lately raised to the sacred and justly celebrated episcopal chair of the Moravian Church (by whatever clouds it may be now obscured) by the grace of Divine Providence and the plaudits of the heavenly host ; for the opinion we have conceived of you does not suffer us to doubt it. It is the bur- den of my ardent prayer, that this honour conferred, and which your merit so justly entitles you to, may prove no less benefi- cial to the church, than at all times acceptable to you and yours. For insufficient as I am, I should be entirely unworthy of the high station in which Divine Providence has placed me, were I not to show myself ever ready to use every exertion in my power for the assistance of the universal church of God ; and especially to love and embrace your church, united with us in the closest bond of love, and which has hitherto, as we have been informed, invariably maintained both a pure faith and primitive discipline, neither intimidated by dangers, nor seduced by the manifold temptations of Satan. I request, in return, the support of your prayers, and that you will salute, in my name, your brother Bishop, as well as the whole Christian flock over which Christ has made you an overseer. Farewell. " ' Given at Westminster, July 10, 1737.' " 276 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, In 1825, another of the Wesleyan Missionaries at New- foundland, the Rev. Richard Knight* visited Labrador. The following is an extract from his letter, addressed to the Wesleyan Missionary Society in London : " We sailed from Brigus on the 6th of July, in the schooner Surprise, belonging to C. Cousins, Esq., who himself formed one of our company, which I hailed as a most favourable circum- stance, llth. By noon we arrived abreast of Cape Charles, the south extremity of the coast of Labrador. We had designed to anchor in Battle Harbour for the night, in order to get some instructions respecting the coast, as all on board were strangers to it, and the numerous islands make the navigation very dan- gerous ; but we could not effect our purpose. The wind came ahead and blew so violently, that we were obliged to bear away for Cape Charles Harbour. To this place, the Indians some years ago resorted much ; at present, however, there is but one female there. I hoped to be able to gather the few Protestants in this harbour for Divine service, but found it im- practicable. 12th. Visited Battle Harbour. This place has derived its name from a battle which was once fought here, between some Europeans and the natives. Tradition reports that the Indians were at that time numerous on these parts of Labrador. We could only stay here a few hours. During this time we distributed some tracts, these were much wanted, and I trust by the blessing of God, will be of use to those who have received them. 17th. By noon we arrived at the Seal Islands. Here we did not intend to tarry, our object being to proceed to Batteau Harbour, where many of the inhabitants of New- foundland prosecute the fishery, and at which place we had contemplated holding divine service. I was much pleased to find them resting on the Sabbath-day, as most of them are my stated hearers when in Newfoundland. I went on shore, and in the evening preached to about fifty persons, who heard me with much attention, and with few exceptions manifested by their presence, that they were glad to embrace an opportunity of hearing the word of God, on the desolate shores of Labra- dor. After the public service I baptized a child of European * Afterwards Co-Delegate of the Eastern British American Conference. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 277 parents. Batteau is a fine harbour well adapted for fishing, and abounding with excellent sea-fowl. The land is barren, and though an island, it abounds with hares, wild geese, foxes and deer. On Monday morning, I visited Black Tickle. To this place I was under the necessity of going for my boat, which had been taken thither by Mr. Nathaniel Munden, of Brigus, our own schooner being too small to take it on her deck. At this place I fell in with the first Indian family I had seen, con- sisting of the Indian, his wife and a fine boy, they were about to leave the harbour when I first saw them ; but anxious to hold an interview I ran and called to them. The Indian could speak a little English. The wife and child either knew nothing of this language, or would hold no conversation in it, for I could get no reply to several questions I put to them. The Indian had been informed who I was, and was very glad to see me. Before my return to Batteau, I visited a place called Domino. Here is a mercantile establishment, but no settlers. I found Mr. Smith, the agent of this establishment, exceedingly kind. The Indian above-mentioned is well known to this gen- tleman. He supplied him the last fishing season with every- thing necessary for the fishery, and in the fall, at the time for adjusting the accounts, it was found that the Indian had a balance in his favour. Mr. Smith showed me his account, and I am happy in being able to say that no advantage had been taken of the Indian's ignorance of the transactions of trade. He was charged fair prices for all he had taken, and credited in current price for all he had remitted. Such merchants would be a blessing to the poor Indians of Lab- rador. The case of this Indian may be viewed as a fair specimen of what the Esquimaux (to say the least), are capa- ble of being brought to. Here is a family purely Indian, who by dint of their own industry, support themselves without the savage desultory mode of living which characterises their tribe in general. " 24th. Left Batteau Harbour, and had a safe and speedy passage to Sandwich Bay. We arrived at half-past three o'clock at a place called Handy-Harbour. One of the people residing here came on board, and I proposed preaching to them in the evening. About forty were present, partly English and partly American, all of whom manifested much attention. In Handy- 278 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Harbour are no Indians, nor any settlers ; it is merely visited by some fishermen from Newfoundland and America. I was pleased to find that the former were so far regarding the Sab- bath as to rest from labour. On returning from this place we saw the Aurora Borealis, and entered into the beauty of the description by^homson : ' Silent from the north A blaze of meteors shoots : ensweeping first The lower skies, they all at once converge High to the crown of Heaven, and all at once Relapsing quick, as quickly re-ascend, And mix and thwart, extinguish and renew All ether coursing in a maze of light.' " Without seeing those lights under similar circumstances, no one can properly appreciate the descriptive excellence of these lines. " 29th. We put out for Esquimaux-Bay, but the wind soon came a-head, and we were obliged to put into Partridge-Har- bour. Here are no Indians or settlers, but several families visit this place from Brigus. All was hurry : the people being engaged in what is called the heart of the fishery ; I could not therefore publicly perform divine service. I visited and prayed, however, with some of the families. They were very desirous for me to stay with them the ensuing Sabbath, which I should gladly have done had not my passage been already so long, and the necessity of my being in Esquimaux-Bay so urgent. " 30th. Put out from Partridge-Harbour. Soon after the wind came against us ; but the weather promising to continue fine, and the tide not running very strong against us, we deter- mined on staying out all night. " 31st. This morning we had the entrance of Esquimaux- Bay in full view ; but it took up the greatest part of the day to get as far as Tub-Island, at the entrance of the bay. We arrived here about three o'clock p.m., and soon after I was visited by Mr. Craze, from whom Mr. Hickson received much kindness during his visit to this bay last summer. I found him equally kind to me. He appears to take much interest in the projected mission, and will, I am fully persuaded, render all the aid he can to the Missionary who may be appointed. I re- quested the favour of holding service in his house, a proposal AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 279 to which he most readily acceded. About six o'clock I repaired thither, with Mr. Cousins, and as many of the crew as could be exempted from duty. We had a congregation soon collected, amounting to about seventy, half of whom were Indians. On seeing the latter crowd into the house, their strange attire, brown complexion, and method of huddling themselves to- gether in one corner of the room, as if conscious that they could not presume on mixing with Europeans and, more especially on reflecting upon their moral destitution, feelings were excited within me which altogether elude description. Their attention was at once fixed on me, while I addressed the congregation from, 'God so loved the world,' &c. But though I felt much comfort in speaking to those of my audience who could under- stand me ; yet when I reflected, that, to one-half of my hearers I was as a barbarian, and they as barbarians unto me, my mind was pained. I could give them no instruction from the want of some one to interpret. I found that the Indians had been anxiously expecting me ; yet that some of them had left the harbour under the impression that I should not come. Some were present who were not in the bay last summer ; these had lately arrived from the north, having heard that a missionary was coming to reside in Esquimaux-Bay Two of them could read the Esquimaux language, and could sing some of the Mo- ravian hymns. I gave them to understand that I would visit them next morning. " Aug. 1st. According to promise, I went with Mr. Cousins to the Indians, who had erected their wigwams on the opposite side of the harbour. They were in anxious expectation of my coming. I entered the first wigwam I came to, which I had no sooner done, than the Indians flocked in. The place was excessively warm, and the effiuvia of the seal skins was very offensive. I made a sign to them to lift the coverings of their wigwams at the bottom for the circulation of the air ; they saw at once what I wished, and readily complied. I had an Indian with me who knew a little English, and, for the want of a better, I employed him as my interpreter. Having been informed the preceding evening that some of this group of In- dians were good singers, I requested that they should sing a hymn. They replied that they could not sing in my tongue. I told them I did not expect that. The few who could read then 280 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, took their books, handed one to me, and made a sign for me to come and sit down among them. This I did, and they then burst forth with one sweet accord in praising God. This con- stituted an event in my life which I shall never forget. I have heard singing scientifically performed, but this exceeded all. Such melody I never before heard ; from the most aged to the child of four or five years old all moved in the sweetest unison. I have often heard tunes, the harmonies of which were delight- ful here, was one solemn tune which quite overcame me ; the air was most affectingly plaintive. They sung ten verses, and I am compelled to say, that I thought it the best singing I had ever heard of this I am sure, it was to me the most affecting. " In this opinion I am not singular, for Crantz, in his his- tory of Greenland, says, he was so pleased with some of the Esquimaux singers in that country, that he thought they ex- celled some of the congregations in the civilized parts of the world. He describes, with the greatest accuracy, in that ac- count, the manner of the singing he heard. Like the Green- landers, the voices of the men are low, and rather hoarse ; the women's soft and clear ; and they sing so regularly and har- moniously, that at a distance the whole seemed as if it were but one voice. I felt desirous of ascertaining how they had thus learned to praise God ; and found, on enquiry, that two of the females had been at the Moravian settlement ; these had learned to read the Esquimaux language, and had books given them by their teachers. These females had married two Indians further to the southward, and had taught their hus- bands and children some of the hymns, and the tunes to which they are set. Brown, in his ' Propagation of Christianity among the Heathen,' observes, relative to the Labrador Mis- sion established by the Moravians, that the missionaries com- plained, ' A number of the baptized, particularly from Hope- dale, were seduced to the south, where they purchased fire-arms, associated with the Heathen, and plunged themselves, not only into spiritual, but into temporal ruin.' This, to the minds of those holy men of God, must have been exceedingly grievous ; but the circumstance I have mentioned would, in a great measure afford them consolation were it known to them. The Indians alluded to above were not baptized by them ; yet the books they gave are used, the hymns they taught are sung, and AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 281 the excellent music to which these hymns are set vibrates its melodious sounds in those wild wastes of Labrador to which their pious labours have not extended. " T conversed with the Indians as well as I could through my imperfect interpreter, and, as I knew that, though they could not fully understand me, God would hear prayer on their behalf, we bent our knees, and supplicated the throne of mercy. In short, on parting, I feel no hesitancy in saying, 1 could reflect on the past hour as one of the most happy and in- teresting of my life. But this group of Indians must not be taken as a sample of what they are in general in Esquimaux- Bay. These are an exempt company, and are indebted to the Moravians for what they know above the rest. I went on the evening of the same day to Cuff Harbour, where I found Indians and half Indians, eighteen in number, but could say nothing to them for want of an interpreter. One of them, an old female was sick. I was told that she knew a little English, but could not prevail on her to converse. From her husband I learned she was born near the Moravian establishment at Hopedale, and was the first scholar that went to the school in that place. I received very kind attention from Mr. Langley, from New- foundland, who has a summer establishment here. "3rd. We arrived this evening at Cullingham's Tickle, the place of Mr. H.'s residence last summer. But, quite contrary to my expectations, and much to my regret, the Indians had left the place. About twenty had gone for the North Point, a place ten leagues distant, and the remainder had gone up the Bay. Having expected my arrival, they had waited for nearly a fortnight, and had left the place, thinking my coming hopeless. I should have been just in time for them had not our passage been about four times the usual period. 4th. Went up the Bay in search of the Indians, and fell in with about thirty, and obtained information of the residence of twenty besides these. I requested their attendance as soon as they could conveniently come. I conversed with those I saw, though very imperfectly ; my interpreter having a very defective knowledge of the English language." Subsequently the Rev. George Ellidge visited Labrador, and remained a summer and winter. A Wesleyan Mis- 282 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, sion was, however, not established, and no minister of that dene mination visited it again until the summer of 1858, when the Rev. J. S. Peach spent a few months there, and, in 1859, the Rev. Charles Cornben was there for a few months. In 1849, a minister of the Church of England in Newfoundland, the Rev. Mr. Gifford, was stationed at Labrador. The following is an account of the Bishop's visit during the same year : " Monday, Aug. 13th. The Church Skip sailed to Red Bay, which is the limit of Mr. Gifford's mission to the north, as Blanc Sablon is to the south. These places are thirty-three miles apart, and as many miles, or more, of the opposite New- foundland coast will be included in this mission. The settled inhabitants number about 400 souls. The Church Ship was detained in Red Bay by fogs and contrary winds four days, during which services were regularly performed on shore, and the children baptized and received into the church. It was the first visit of a clergyman of our church to the settlement. Here Mr. Clifford was left to begin his ministry single-handed, but 'not alone,' on Friday the 17th of August, when the Church Ship sailed from Battle Harbour. " Saturday, Aug. 18th. On approaching Battle Harbour, the wind failed and the Church Ship was towed in by five fish- ing boats, in gallant style. 19th. Divine Service was twice celebrated in the same store as last year, which, as before, was on both occasions quite full. On the following day, after Prayers in the store, the Bishop explained to the inhabitants in what manner he expected, through the liberality of the merchants (Messrs. Hunt & Co., and Messrs. Slade), and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, with their own contributions, to establish both a clergyman and schoolmaster in this Harbour ; the former to have his head-quarters here, and to visit from thence the whole shore from Henley Harbour to Seal Islands, ninety miles ; the schoolmaster and schoolmistress to be per- manently resident, and to receive boarders from the neighbour- ing settlements. The inhabitants cheerfully engaged for their part 75 a year ; and the same sum is expected from the other settlements on this line of coast. The chief difficulty in estab- lishing the Mission arises from the necessary buildings, and particularly of a suitable residence. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 283 " During the summer and autumn months of 1857 the Bishop accomplished another of his long and perilous voyages of visita- tion along the coasts of Newfoundland, and up to the Missions in the Labrador. In one place St. Anthony, where the Hawk was detained by fog and contrary winds many services were performed on board, and the people were visited in their houses. There was a great demand for Bibles and other religious books, and some of the largest and most expensive were bought and cheerfully paid for. A lay -reader was also appointed for the people living at too great a distance to come within the Mis- sionary's ordinary circuit. " At Battle Harbour the Church was consecrated, and a con- siderable number of candidates Ipresented for Confirmation ; among them five Esquimaux Indians, the first, it is supposed, of that race ever confirmed by a Bishop on the coast of Labrador. " Several persons were baptized and received into the Church; some of them from Quirpon on the northern coast of Newfound- land ; and an earnest hope was expressed that the Bishop would be able to visit that settlement and others in their vicinity, on what is called the French shore. No clergyman of our Church had ever been among them. " Tuesday, Aug. 21. The Bishop had not intended to extend his voyage beyond Battle Harbour, having many settlements to visit and services to perform along the eastern coast of New- foundland ; but hearing that his presence was much desired at St. Francis' Harbour, it was determined this morning, the wind being fair, to proceed. The same evening, during Divine Ser- vice, his Lordship baptized the child of the respected agent (Mr. Saunders), and three Esquimaux children. On the following morning, his Lordship baptized and received into the Church a family of Esquimaux Indians (four adults and three children), and celebrated the Lord's Supper. The graveyard, which was consecrated last year, had been enclosed with a neat and sub- stantial fence ; and a strong desire being now expressed to erect a Church in the. settlement, the Bishop selected and set apart a convenient site. After these services the Church Ship began her homeward course, leaving St. Francis' Harbour about four o'clock on Wednesday, August 22. " Thursday, Aug. 23, and Friday (St. Bartholomew's day), were spent in Henley Harbour, and on each Divine Service 284 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, was performed on board the Church Ship for the benefit of the inhabitants, who attended in considerable numbers, particularly on the Holy-day and several children were received into the Church. There are not more than four or five resident families in this and the neighbouring Harbour of Chateau Bay, but many families visit the place every summer to fish, and traders from Nova Scotia and the United States. The fishery appears to be prosecuted with success. " Saturday, August 25. An attempt was made to cross the Straits, in order to pass the Sunday at Quirpon on the Newfound- land shore, but the wind failed, and the Church Ship returned to Chateau Bay. "On Sunday, August 26, Divine Service was celebrated publicly on board the Church Ship twice, and in the morning the congregrtion, with the ship's company, numbered sixty-three persons, who were all conveniently accommodated in the cabin. Most of the strangers were from Carbonear. The Bishop preached on each occasion ; in the evening his Lordship visited a sick person on shore. " The Rev. A. Gifford, having been called by the death of his father, and his own failing health, to leave his lonely Mission late in the autumn of 1856, spent three months in Newfound- land, supplying the vacancy caused by the lamented death of the Rev. J. G. Mountain. " With regard to his own Mission, he states that, by the ex- piration of the lease of lands purchased by the Mission, and held hitherto by a Dissenter, there is a prospect of the establishment of a school, to be supported in part by the contributions of the people. He speaks in grateful terms of the liberality of his little flock, which, in spite of his absence in the winter, has ex- ceeded its former measure. Mr. Gifford has good hope of see- ing the Church (the foundations of which have been long laid) at Red Bay, ' finished this season.' At this, and another Sta- tion, there are indications of an increased ' attachment to the soil,' and a prospect of a settled population. The Bishop, dur- ing a fortnight's visit to these distant shores, confirmed fiifteen young persons, and consecrated the Church at Forteau by the title of St. Peter. " The Mission of the Rev. A. Gifford includes twenty-one harbours on Labrador, and nine on Newfoundland. The dis- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 285 tance travelled in visiting them in succession is seventy-seven miles of water and eighty-seven of land. Tha population varies from 450 in winter to 832 in summer, more than half being members of the Church of England. From October to May Mr. Griffbrd's ministrations are necessarily confined to Labrador; but as soon as the sea is open he sails to the opposite coast of Newfoundland, and visits the Stations in order, celebrating Divine Service, and if possible gathering a congregation in each house in which he lodges. His attempts to establish a school in the Mission have not met with permanent success. The Mission contributes ,51 annually to the Diocesan Church So- ciety." The Rev. Mr. Gifford states, that during the winter of 1857-8, he travelled twice to the settlements of Forteau, and thrice to those in the West, the five journeys com- prising a distance of 235 miles, performed over snow and ice, with the aid of dogs and a sleigh (comitique). Many visits were paid to less remote places. The congregation at Forteau improved in numbers and steadiness of atten- dance. The Chapel at Red Bay was not then begun. Some communicants have been added to Mr. Gifford's list, but he is still unable to acquire the influence which he desires for the good of agents and men in some of the Jersey fishing establishments. The following extract from his journal will give a fair notion of his labours : "December 31st. Weather being fine (glass 10), we set out at 10 a.m., on my proposed journey to the west. The dogs running well, in scarce ten minutes we reached the oppo- site side of the Bay. I visited and read prayers for the sick child, and think him much worse bodily than upon my last visit. We walked up the steep acclivity of the western hill, en- couraging the good dogs by kind words, to draw up the comi- tique : for the renewal of their better speed at the top, gave them and ourselves a few moments' breathing time, and then proceeded with comfort and speed another stage of about ten miles. In crossing the plateau between Forteau and Beau St. Clair, we pass over a series of fine ' ponds,' (our most magnifi- cent sheets of fresh water are always thus humbly described), 286 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, and tracts of underwood, which but for the snow and ice of winter would be utterly impassable. The weather was somewhat too severe to be quite agreeable, yet upon reaching L'Anse au Cotard, at about one, and remembering the shortness of the last day of the year, we took some slight refreshment, ap- pointed a part of the coming Sunday, if God will, to be spent here, and proceeded again, calling at Blanc Sablon, and reach- ing Grand Point at 5 p.m. At this point I suppose we had travelled about eighteen miles, and I was very glad to see the poor dogs (eight in number) untackled and led to supper that is to their only daily meal. At this place I found C. D. quite well and very glad to see me. Poor fellow ! in August last, I attended him, as I thought, on his death-bed. He seems deeply thankful for his restoration to health, and is, I hope, drawn nearer God by sense of his mercies. The other family, close neighbours, I was grieved to find were holding a social meeting, of such a character as to prevent my having public worship as I had hoped and intended. I spent the evening with C. D., and concluded it, as I always do wherever I lodge, with family worship, comprising the reading and explanation of scripture and prayer." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. CHAPTEE XIV. THE FISHERIES. 'EWFOUNDLAND (says Mr. Morris) was a depen- dency of England, her only colony a century before Massachusetts, New York or Virginia, emerged from barbarism. When the 'untutored Indian,' uncontrolled by civilized man, roamed through these now busy marts, redun- dant with wealth, population, and all the advantages of civilization, Newfoundland was resorted to by thousands of British, Spaniards, French and Portuguese ; and millions were drawn from her mines the fisheries far more valuable than those of Mexico and Peru." McGregor, in his British America, says : " Newfoundland, although occupying no distinguished place in the history of the New World, has, notwithstanding, at least for two centuries and a half after its discovery by Cabot, in 1497, been of more mighty importance to Great Britain than any other colony ; and it is doubtful if the British Empire could have risen to its great and superior rank among the na- tions of the earth, if any other power had held the possession of Newfoundland ; its fishery having, ever since its commence- ment, furnished our navy with a great proportion of its hardy and brave sailors." And the first Mr. Pitt, in declaiming upon the national interests of Great Britain, affirmed that one point was of such moment, as not to be surrendered, though the enemy was master of the Tower of London ; the Newfoundland fisheries. The Europeans first began the fishery on the Newfoundland coast, in 1502. The Portuguese were the first ; and subsequently the Biscayans, and the French. In 1578, the Portuguese had 50 vessels engaged in the fishery ; the English also 50 ; and the French and Span- 288 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ish 150. So important had this fishery become, that in the year 1634, France consented to pay a tribute of jive per cent, to the British Government, rather than relin- quish the privilege of fishing on the coast ; which con- tinued until the reign of Charles II., a period of forty- one years. In 1763, France removed all her pretensions to Nova Scotia, for the privilege of fishing on the northern parts of Newfoundland ; from this time the French fish- ery rapidly increased. In 1721, France employed 400 ships in the Newfoundland fishery. The Grand Bank, or deep sea fishery at one time, fgave employment to 400 British ships, manned by 7,000 men ; and during the last war, 700 ships were employed on the Banks. This important fishery is now wholly in the hand of the French and Americans, not a single British ship is now. employed in the fisheries on the Banks of Newfoundland. Mr. Morris, late Colonial Treasurer of Newfoundland, says: " Why do not British ships resort to the Banks as for- merly ? The reason is at hand because under the pre- sent unequal and unnatural competition, nothing but the most certain ruin would be entailed on the British, if they ventured into the Bank and deep-sea fisheries. The price of fish reduced far below its intrinsic value, in all the markets of the world, common to these three nations, by the competition of the French and Americans, would not pay one-half the outfit. A British merchant fitting out a ship of 250 or 300 tons for the Bank fishery in the same manner in which the French fit out their vessels, would, at the present price of fish, calculate upon a certain loss of $4,000 to $6,000. This cause operates as the most effectual prohibition. The French have adopted a new mode of fishing on the Banks, their vessels anchor, which was not allowed in former times, they have also adopted what is called the Bultow system, and which is clearly explained in a me- morial presented by Messrs. Mudge & Co., to the late Gov- ernor of Newfoundland, Sir John Harvey. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 289 " That the Bultow system is carried on in the following man- ner : The vessel is provided with two or three large boats, of a size fit to carry out, at considerable distances, large supplies of rope and line, with moorings and anchors sufficient to ride at anchor on the open Bank in rough weather. These boats carry out from five to six thousand fathoms of rope to which are fas- tened leads, with baited hooks at certain distances from each other. These are carried out from the vessels in different di- rections and let down and secured with suitable moorings, to prevent their being carried away by the strong currents that usually prevail on the Bank. They are then laid out at stated distances from each other, with several thousand hooks well baited, and frequently occupy several miles of ground. On the next day they are taken up and overhauled the fish taken off, and, if the berth is approved, the hooks fresh baited and let down again, and thus successively during the voyage. But should the berth in which they have anchored not prove a good one, they heave up and sail about to make another, in doing which, if they chance to see an English vessel catching fish freely with hook and line, they anchor near her and lay out their Bultows, which, spreading so large a quantity of bait, the fish are soon drawn thereby from the few caplin presented by the English vessel, and the latter is therefore obliged to heave up and sail away from the good fishing ground, to find a berth elsewhere : so that not only does the English vessel lose the good fishing in which she was engaged, but the most valuable part of the season is often lost in wandering about to find a new berth clear of the French ships ; for they are so numerous, and each covers with its Bultows so large a space, that it would be difficult to keep clear of them, and any place near them it is, for the reasons above stated, useless to attempt occcupying ; so that in effect the French have monopolized to themselves all the best fishing ground. " Your Memorialists' vessel fell in with one of these Bultows, which had gone adrift, measuring 1,500 fathoms. " To show the working of the French system of bounties in their Newfoundland Fisheries, and to prove the hopelessness of competition on the part of the British merchant and fisherman, it is only necessary to exhibit a statement of the outfit and re- turns of a French ship of three hundred tons on the Grand Bank S 290 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, of Newfoundland, procured by a gentleman who recently ar- rived from St. Pierre and Miquelon, and the results of the last season's voyage of 1846. " Vessels of 150 tons from France are obliged to bring out 30 men and boys, one boy under 15 years of age to every ten men. "Vessels over 150 tons are obliged to bring out 50 men and boys. " The bounty on every man and boy is 50 francs, and on fish 10 francs. " Boys receive as wages 50 francs for the season. Men re- ceive a portion of the voyage and from 50 to 100 francs each. The voyage is divided by three, two-thirds to the owners, and one-third to the crew. The master, in addition to his wages, which vary from 70 to 100 francs per month, receives two men's share of fish ; for example, one ship in 1846 landed 132,000 fish ; equal to 5,280 quintals, with a crew of 18 men. 5,280 = l,760-:-20=88 Quintals each man. 3 Owner's share, two-thirds of voyage 3,520 Quintals. Boys' share 264 do. 3,784 18 men's shares, 88 quintals each 1,320 Master's share, equal to 2 men's 176 1,496 Quintals 5,280 " RETURN OF THE VOYAGE TO THE OWNER. Francs. 3,784 Quintals fish at 10 francs 37,840 Bounty on ditto at 1 francs 37,840 Bounty on men and boys, 50 francs each 900 Oil 1 gallon to every 4 quintals fish, at 2 francs per gal 2,140 78,720 Equal to Stg. 3,280 or $16,400 "According to the statement, the French merchant obtains in the form of bounty, 10 francs, say 8s. 4d. sterling, which, with AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 291 the bcmnties for the men and boys, and the drawbacks on the necessaries for the supply of the voyage, raises it to at least 10s. stg. per quintal. If he obtains 10s. for the fish at market it will realize 20s. per quintal. Let the case of the British merchant, who fits out a ship for the Grand Bank, be placed in juxta-posi- tion ; he has to sell his fish in the markets of the world, open alike to both, the price is regulated for him by the sale of the bounty fish of the French. He receives 10s., while the French merchant realizes 20s. Such disparity puts an end to all com- petition, the Biitish merchant, as a matter of necessity, has to surrender the Fishery altogether into the hands of his protected rivals. In the year 1838, the writer had the honour of an inter- view with Sir George Grey, at the Colonial Office. In bring- ing this subject under his consideration, he supposed an example of two cloth manufacturers, having warehouses for the sale of their wares at Cheapside, one had a bounty of 5s. per yard for every yard of cloth he manufactured, the other no bounty ; the competition could not be maintained without a ruinous sacrifice on the part of the latter. This is not an inapt simile to show the ruinous competition which the British in the Newfoundland Fisheries have to maintain with their foreign and more favoured rivals." The following Return of the French bounties was ob- tained by the British Ambassador at Paris, in 1848 : " For each man fitted out for the fishery on the coast of Newfoundland, at St. Pierre, Miqueloii, or the Grand Bank (dried fish) - - 50 francs. For the fishery in the seas surrounding the Island (without drying)- - 50 do. On the Grand Bank (without drying) - - 30 do. On the Dogger's Bank - -15 do. Bounties on exportation per 100 killoggrammes (220 Ibs. avoirdupois.) Dry Codfish, of French catch, exported direct from the coast of Newfoundland, St. Peter's, or Mique- lon, or warehoused in France and exported to the French Colonies - - 22 do. Diy Codfish exported from French Ports, not having been warehoused for exportation, to the French Colonies - - - 16 do. 292 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Dry Codfish carried direct from the localities of the Fishery to Ports of France, and exported to Foreign Ports in the Antilles, or of America on the Atlantic Coast where there is a French Consul, or into Spain or Portugal, or into Foreign Ports on the Mediterranean, or into Algeria - - 18 francs. Dry Codfish carried direct from the localities of the Fishery to the Ports of France, and imported into the Ports of Italy -12 do. Dry Codfish imported into Spain overland - 10 do. Cod-liver oil imported into France, the produce of the Fishery 20 do. "TOTAL BOUNTIES PAID IN 1844, '45, '46. Bounties on expor- Bounties on tation of fish to all importation Bounties to men. destinations. of cod-liver. Total. 1844 517,370f. 3,559,468f. 2,422f. 4,079,260f. 1845. 533,615 4,221,405 10,526 4,765,645 1856. 558,110 3,903,910 19,511 4,481,532 (4,489,531 francs=: 180,941 16s. 3d.) 1 ' And the following immunities : " Drawback of all duties on salt used in the curing of the fish, except 50 centimes (4|d. stg.) per 100 kilog. on foreign salt im- ported for the coast of Newfoundland, St. Pierre and Miquelon fishery. " Drawback of all duties on all the outfit for the fishery, in- cluding vessels employed and all utensils." In May, 1830, the Chamber of Commerce of St. John's sent Mr. Sweetland to the French shore on the northern coast of Newfoundland, who laid before the Chamber a report of his proceedings, from which the following is taken : " The number of ships employed this season by the French in this fishery were 266 in all, viz. From Granville, 116; St. Malo, 110; Paimpol and Bennick, 30; Havre, 4; Nantes, 6. Total 266, from 100 to 350 tons burden, having 51 men and boys each, amounting in the whole to 13,566, one tenth portion. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 293 of whom were boys. This number surpassed considerably the Governor's estimate, a very good one, which was assigned to me by the French gentleman from whom I received the in- formation. Each establishment had two. some four, cod seines from sixteen to thirty fathoms deep, and 200 fathoms long. Their caplin seines were from twenty-one feet to fifty in depth ; two were held by each establishment. The cost of a cod seine crew amounted, for the season, to 6,000 livres, and the catch thereof to 1,200 quintals. The allowance for each man for the season, commencing at the first day of May and ending on ar- rival in France, on or about the first day of November, 35 Ibs. pork, 35 Ibs. butter, 3J cwt. bread, 40 Ibs. peas, 6 gallons of brandy, | tierce cider - in all equal to about &. sterling ; boat- masters, or principal men, are paid about ,10 as wages, an ordinary fisherman 7, and boys 3 less, a sum equal to 2 10s. allowed on each man as a bounty by their government. In 1829, their catch of fish amounted to 350,000 quintals 45 quintals for each person employed an average catch and good voyage. " At this period their bounties were extremely liberal, there- fore, supposing the merchants were allowed on each man employed 60 livres, or 50s. each on 13,566 men, 33,915. " That they caught in the sea- \ son, for their catch was par- > 450,000 quintals. tial. ) " Of which was consumed in ) France and no bounty granted > 150,000 do. on it. I 300,000 quintals for bounty. " Viz., Shipped to Martinique ~\ at 20 livres, or 16s. 8d. ster- V 120,000 quintals. 100,000 ling. " Ditto to Italy and Spain, at 5 ) , 8n nnn , q7 nnn livres, 4s. 2d, sterling. / 180 ' 00 37 > OC 300,000 quintals. 171,415 " 171,415 sterling paid in bounty, besides materials granted the fisherman in addition. In fact, the fishery is for the pur- 294 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, pose of training seamen for their navy, and consequently is a national undertaking rather than the pursuit of private indi- viduals." The following account of the French fisheries is given by Commander Fortin to the Canadian Government in 1862 : " France looks upon the Newfoundland fisheries as the true school for the French marine, and it is here that she forms the nursery of hardy sailors whom she requires to man her fleets ; and of so great importance does she consider them to be, that she every year employs for their protection three steam war vessels and two armed schooners. " Numerous laws, regulations and decrees of the command- ant of St. Pierre regulate the French fisheries at Newfoundland; but I do not consider it necessary to dilate here upon any of them except those which relate to the cod fishery carried on on the coast of that island, and the possession of the land necessary for the working of this branch of industry. " The vessels which are -fitted out in France for the New foundland fishery are divided into three classes : " 1st class. Vessels over 158 tons and under 400 tons. " 2nd " - " " 100 " " 158 " " 3rd " " under 100 " " The proprietors of the vessels of these various classes draw lots every five years for the right of occupying the various fish- ing settlements on the coast ; the best numbers select the best fishing posts, and so on to the least advantageous. "This system of distributing the fishing posts has been found to be the most satisfactory to the fishermen, although it is not unattended with inconvenience ; for instance, it prevents rich outfitters from making large well-fitted establishments, be- cause, at the end of five years, they would run the chance of seeing them pass into other hands ; for no fisherman is allowed to remove anything from his establishment when the drawing of lots takes place. " The last drawing took place this spring, and there were one AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 295 hundred and eleven vessels in the first class, and nearly as many in each of the other two. " Vessels of the first class should have a crew of at least sixty-five men and boys ; of the second, forty-five ; and of the third, thirty ; which give a total of ten or twelve thousand fish- ermen employed in the French fisheries on the coast of New- foundland, from Cape St. John on the east to St. George's Bay on the west. " The principal regulations which relate to the cod fishing are those which forbid the use of deep sea or trolling lines in the taking of that fish, and only allow the use of cod fish nets afloat; all fishermen are strictly forbidden to draw or land a cod fish net, or even a caplin net on the shore, without doubt, iu order that those fish may not be disturbed while engaged near the shore in the reproduction of their species. " The French do not make much use of the line in the cod fishery on the north coast of Newfoundland. They use chiefly very large nets which are nearly all 150 fathoms long and 30 fathoms wide. Nearly forty men are required to handle them successfully ; they are very costly. But on the other hand vast quantities of fish are taken with these immense nets ; 50, 100, and even as many as 200 quintals of cod, or 5,000, 10,000 and 20,000 fish. " But it is a necessary condition that the fish should run in shoals and be plentiful on the fishing grounds ; unless this is the case, the net fishing yields but little, and the outfitter's loss is then enormous. " The cod this year was not plentiful on the coast of Quirpon, and the fishermen of that place, including Messrs. Robinot and Durand, had in consequence suffered a proportionate loss, as they have but little cod to export, and will accordingly receive but a small sum as premium. " There are at Quirpon seven fishing establishments belonging, for the most part, to St. Malo and St. Servan ; these employ eighteen ships of from two to five hundred tons. We saw one of the-jQ, a jine ship of 500 tons, sail with a cargo of dried cod fish for the Bourbon Islands and the Mauritius, which are in great part supplied with fish by the French. "The French fishermen are compelled to bring from France almost everything which they require in carrying on their busi- 296 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ness ; lumber, boards, planks, pieces of elm and oak to repair their boats and vessels, flour, pork, butter, &c., &c., the island of Newfoundland not producing any of these articles. " And of these they consume every year a very large quantity, and the cost of such articles in France is generally much greater than in Canada ; and it certainly would be greatly to the ad- vantage of the French fishermen to come and buy of us the greater part of the supplies which they require. " But it may be asked : if there is any profit to be made, how is it that the French shippers have not before now taken advan- tage of the low prices in our market, and why, on the other hand, have not the Canadian traders entered into commercial relations with the French fishermen, and despatched to them cargoes of flour, provisions and wood, suitable to supply their requirements 1 " To this I reply that it results from two principal causes. In France little is known of the varied resources of Canada, and here, until late years, the nature, extent, importance and requirements of the French fisheries at Newfoundland have been ignored. " For more detailed information on this subject, my report of 1858 on St. Pierre and Miquelon may be consulted. '' I do not pretend, and I do not wish to be understood, to say that very important commercial relations could be established between the Canadian traders and the French shippers and fish- ermen of Newfoundland ; but what I consider quite possible, and what I am desirous of seeing realized for the mutual benefit of shippers and traders, both Canadian and French, in New- foundland, is that Canada, and principally Quebec and Gaspe, should supply the latter with the wood and the provisions which are indispensable to them, and should in return receive French products, especially French cordage, which is of superior quality, and of which the consumption on our ships would be very great. " This trade would give employment to ten of our schooners to begin with, and at a later period that number would in- crease." The French annually employ about 560 vessels in the Newfoundland fishery, of from 100 to 500 tons burthen, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 297 manned by upwards of 20,000 fishermen. About half of this number prosecute the Bank fishery from the French Islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, on the south-west coast ; the other half at the French shore on the northern coast. The quantity of fish taken by them is estimated at over 1,000,000 quintals annually. The amount of boun- ties paid in 1828 is said to have been $625,000 ; in 1832, $300,000 ; and in 1846, $905,000. (For an account of the fisheries of St. Peters', see Fortune Bay). The British Fisheries of Newfoundland, in some places, commence in May, and at other places, not until the mid- dle of June. About the beginning of June the vessels sail for the Labrador Fishery. The manner of catching and curing the fish has been so often described, and is now so well known, that it is unnecessary for me to repeat it here. The price of fish is regulated by the demand of the foreign markets. Large merchantable cod fish is from... 16s. to 1 Os Small " " " . . 14s. to 16s Madeira " " "... 12s. to 14s West India" " " ... 10s. to 14s Inferior " " ... 8s. to 12s 100 quintals of cod fish will yield about two hogsheads of oil. 208 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The following is the produce of the British fisheries of Newfoundland at different periods, all of which were exported : Year. Dried Fish. Quintals. Oils. Tuns. Seal Skins. No. Salmon. Tierces. Herring. Barrels. 1763 386274 4,900 694 1785. 591,276 3,700 1,000 1814 1 200000 8225 156,000 1830. 1852. 948,468 972 921 12,371 300,681 534,378 4,439 4,048 1,083 42,715 1831. 755,667 559,342 3,606 1,799 1832. 1833. 619,177 882,536 10,010 442,003 384,699 2,924 3,256 1,814 3,039 1834. 1836. 1838. 1840. 1842. 1845. 1849. 1860. 1862. 763,187 890,354 724,515 915,795 1,007,980 1,000,333 1,175,167 1,138,544 1,980,082 9,030 9,485 8,591 12,724 8,976 8,260 8,916 9,892 16,637 360,155 384,321 375,361 631,385 344,683 352,202 306,072 444,301 266,624 3,369 1,847 4,408 3,396 4,715 3,540 5,911 4,917 3,822 1,823 1,534 15,276 20,806 13,839 20,903 11,471 9,907 13,872 The following Table will show the state of the British fisheries at different periods, given by the Committee of Privy Council for Trade, dated Whitehall, 19th March, 1793 : sl?!, o " 5 "*H O bo o AVERAGE OF YEARS. g a rf rS^^ 2 gg Vi ^ (*) ft f+ A S ^ rt t f*l 00 i^ 2 tl S3 lj| ^ d ** Sfg a pq g- 2 * to 1699, 1700, 1701 . 192 7991 4,026 1,314 1714, 1715, 1716 161 9 198 2 119 982 1749, 1750, 1751 288 33 512 4,108 3,149 1,370 1764-5-6-7-8-9, 1770-1-2-3-4 . . 516 40,691 5,435 6,441 2,163 1784-5-6-7-8-9, 1790-1-2 480 48 950 4 432 4 617 2 258 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 299 -0 'eS * a 3 i ' OJ d * Q f1 * a/ OS'S * c8 c3 "^ Q c3 "8 i| C a> H J3 g AVERAGE OF YEARS. ,5 | 3 O O t-t o fi ^ f' S |"- "a.% fS 5 y* o 1 So dl|| O" O 1 H EH .*>. 1699, 1700, 1701 . 216,320 154 370 1049 3,506 1714, 1715, 1716 . 97,730 102,363 891 3,501 1749, 1750, 1751 432,318 422,116 1,308 2,532 5,855 1764-5-6-7-8-9, 1770-1-2-3-4 . . 1784-5-6-7-8-9, 1790-1-2 626,276 637,955 524,296 622,108 5,146 2,974 2,882 2,364 12,340 15,253 The number of vessels employed in the Fisheries is about 800, from 80 to 180 tons burthen, besides coast- wise. There are 1,300 more vessels employed in the Foreign Trade, principally in carrying fish and oil to market. The number of boats employed in the fishery is 11,693, capable of carrying from 4 to 100 quintals of green fish. The number of persons employed in the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery, is about 50,000. The Labrador Fishery is principally carried on from the Ports of St. John's. Harbour Grace, Carbonear, and Bri- gus. (For a more detailed account, see Labrador). The following account of the Labrador Fishery is given by Mr. McGregor : " During the fishing season, from 280 to 300 schooners pro- ceed from Newfoundland to the different fishing stations on the coast of Labrador, where about 20,000 British subjects are employed for the season. About one-third of the schooners make two voyages, loaded with dry fish, back to Newfound- land during the summer ; and several merchant vessels proceed from Labrador with their cargoes direct to Europe, leaving, generally, full cargoes for the fishing vessels to carry to New- foundland. A considerable part of the fish of the second voy- age is in a green or pickled state, and dried afterwards at Newfoundland. Eight or nine schooners from Quebec frequent the coast, having on board about 80 seamen and 100 fishermen. Some of the fish caught by them is sent to Europe, and the 300 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, rest carried to Quebec ; besides which, they carry annually about 6,000 worth of furs, oil and salmon to Canada. From Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, but chiefly from the former, 100 to 120 vessels resort to Labrador: the burden of these vessels may amount to 6,000 or 7,000 tons, carrying about 1,200 seamen and fishermen. They generally carry the prin- cipal part of their cargoes home in a green state. " One-third of the resident inhabitants are English, Irish, or Jersey servants, left in charge of the property in the fishing rooms, and who also employ themselves, in the spring and fall, catching seals in nets. The other two-thirds live constantly at Labrador, as furriers and seal-catchers, on their own account, but chiefly in the former capacity, during winter, and all are engaged in the fisheries during the summer. Half of these people are Jerseymen and Canadians, most of whom have fam- ilies. " From 16,000 to 18,000 seals are taken at Labrador in the beginning of winter and in spring. They are very large ; and the Canadians, and other winter residents, are said to feast and fatten on their flesh. About 4,000 of these seals'are killed by the Esquimaux. The whole number caught produce about 350 tons of oil value about 8,000. There are six or seven English houses, and four or five Jersey houses, established at Labrador, unconnected with Newfoundland, who export their fish and oil direct to Europe. The quantity exported in 1831 to the Mediterranean was about 54,000 quintals cod fish at lOc 27,000 1,050 tierces salmon, at 60c 3,150 To England, 200 tons cod oil 5,200 " 220 seal oil 4,880 furs 3,150 43,380 By Newfoundland Houses 27,500 quintals cod fish at lOc 13,750 280 tierces salmon at 60c 840 57,970 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 301 Total direct export from Labrador, 32,120 quintals cod fish, lOc. best quality 16,060 3 12,000 quintals cod fish at 8c . 124,800 1,800 cod oil at 20c 36,000 Salmon, &c 3,220 Fish, &c., sent to Canada, about 12,000 Fish carried to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick should be in value at least 52,000 Estimated value of the produce of Labrador, ex- clusive of what the Moravians send to London302,050 " These statements are made at the most depressed prices, and not at the average prices, which would increase the gross value to 342,400." It is estimated, that the Americans employ about 500 vessels, of from 50 to 180 tons burthen, manned by 5,000 men, on the Newfoundland and Labrador coast, and the quantity of fish taken by them is 400,000 quintals of cod fish. The total quantity of cod fish, taken on the Newfound- land coast annually, may be fairly estimated as follows : Quintals. Vessels. British Fisheries ............ 1,000,000 1,700 40,000 French Fisheries ............ 1,000,000 560 20,000 American Fisheries ......... 400,000 500 5,000 Total quintals 2,400,000 2,760 65,000 The Whale Fishery on the Newfoundland coast is not important. From 1795 to 1807 Massachussets employed twelve vessels on the south-west coast. But when the war commenced with Great Britain, the American whale fishery on the Newfoundland coast was discon- tinued.* * See " Wandering Thoughts," by P. Tocque, page 69. 302 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, In 1840, an Act was passed by the Local Government, offering X200 bounty to each of the first three vessels landing not less than ten tons of whale oil, or fifteen tons of whale fat or blubber, between the first day of May and the tenth day of November. Encouraged by the bounty afforded by the passing of this Act, two vessels were sent from St. John's to the western shore, of about 120 tons each, and manned by nineteen men. One of these vessels was sent by Messrs. C. F. Bennett & Co., the other by Messrs. Job Brothers & Co. The result of each year's fishery was as follows : MESSRS. BENNETTS' WHALER. Whales. Produce of Oil. 1841 20 241 tuns. 1842 8 14 ' 1843 5 8| " 1844 6 13 " MESSRS. JOBS' WHALER. Whales. Produce of Oil. 1841 5 13 tuns. 1841 None 5 black-fish. Messrs. Newman & Co., at Fortune Bay, during the above years, also pursued the whale fishery. They take annually between 40 and 50 whales. The greatest quan- tity of whale oil ever manufactured by them in one year was about 150 tuns (in Fortune Bay). In 1866, Messrs. Bidly, of Harbour Grace sent a vessel to Greenland whale fisheries, she returned in September with about 50 tuns of oil. The seal fishery of Newfoundland has assumed a degree of importance far surpassing the most sanguine expectations of those who first embarked in the enter- prise, and is now become one of the greatest sources of wealth to the country. The interest of every individual is interwoven with it, " from the bustling and enterpris- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 303 ing individual, that, with spy-glass in hand, paces his wharf, sweeping ever and anon the distant horizon for the first view of his returning argosy, to the emaciated little broom-girl that creeps along the street, hawking her humble commodity from door to door." The retuin of a ' Seal Hunter" reminds one of Sou- they's beautiful poems, " Madoc," and " Roderice, the last of the Goths." "The Return to Wales" is thus de- scribed : " Fair blew the wind, the vessel drives along, Her streamers fluttering at their length, her sails At full ; she drives along, and round her prow Scatters the ocean spray. What feelings then Fill'd every bosom, when the mariners, After the peril of that wary way, Beheld their own dear country ! Here stands one Stretching his sight towards the distant shore ; And as to well-known forms his busy joy Shapes the dim outline, eagerly he points The fancied headland, and the cape and bay, 'Till his eyes ache o'er straining. This man shakes His comrade's hand, and bids him welcome home, And blesses God, and then he weeps aloud : Here stands another, who, in secret prayer, Calls on the Virgin and his patron Saint, Renewing his old vows, and gifts and alms, And pilgrimage, so he may find all well. * * * ' Fair smiled the evening, and the favouring gale Sung in the shrouds, and swift the ready bark liush'd roaring through the waves." In the commencement, the seal fishery was prosecuted in large boats, which sailed about the middle of April ; and as its importance began to be developed, schooners of from 20 to 40 tons were employed in it. These sailed on the 17th of March. The vessels employed in this fishery are from 50 to 160 tons, manned by from 25 to 40 men each, according to the size. They sail from the 1st to the 10th of March. The length of time spent on the voyage is from three to eight weeks, sometimes, however, a " trip" is taken in a fortnight, of 5,000 seals, amounting in value to nearly 3,000. The owner supplies the vessel with provisions and every other necessary. One half the pro- 304 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, duct of the voyage is equally divided among the crew, the other half goes to the owner of the vessel. The crew have to pay from ten to thirty shillings each for their " berths." A hired master receives from four pence to six pence per seal, and sometimes five pounds per month be- sides. A man's share is allowed to the master, which, however, goes to the owner of the vessel. What is called the seal is the skin with the fat or blubber attached, the carcase being thrown away. Some years back these pelts were sold for so much apiece, varying in price according to the size and quality ; but in consequence of the prac- tice of leaving behind a portion of the fat, it became necessary to purchase them by weight. The price of the young seals is usually twenty-two shillings, and the old twenty shillings per hundred weight ; the price, however, is regulated by the value of oil in the British market. The sailing-vessels have now been mostly superseded by steamers. The following account of the seal fishery is very truthfully and beautifully given by Mr. Nugent, formerly Member of the House of Assembly, and late High Sheriff of Newfoundland. " The Seal Fishery of Newfoundland is confessedly one of the greatest sources of wealth of which this country can boast, and in its prosecution are combined a spirit of commercial enterprise, a daring hardihood and intrepidity without parallel. " Towards the close of i^he month of February, and in the beginning of March, the seal usually whelps, and in the northern seas they gather around the ice fields and deposit their youngjupon the ice in myriads. In order, therefore, to arrive at the haunts of the seal at a time when the cubs are some three weeks old, for then are these animals easiest caught, and their fat is, at the same time, purer and in greater quantity than when they are more grown the sealing vessels leave our southern ports about the first of March, and proceed to the northward to seek those ice- bergs and floating fields of ice, which by all other mariners are looked upon with terror and dismay, and, once coming up to the seals, they plunge into the midst of the ice. " The intrepid seal-hunters now pour forth upon the expanse AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 305 of ocean, and rush upon their prey far away from their vessel, bounding from mass to mass along the glassy surface of the frozen deep. Here you see one leap across a chasm where yawns the blue wave to engulph him. There, another, amid the mist, mistakes a mass of slob or soft snow for an ice-pan and is buried in the ocean, whence, sometimes, he is rescued from his peril by the timely aid of his associates, if they be near, at others, he sinks to rise no more. Anon comes the thick freezing snow- drift, that shuts out all ken of neighbouring objects, and the distant ship is lost. The bewildered sealers gather together, they try one course, then another, but in vain, no vessel appears : the guns fired from the vessel are unheard, the lights unseen : night comes on and with it hunger, and the blasting wind, and the smothering snow overwhelm the stoutest, and many, very many, yielding to fatigue and mental misery, sink into despond- ency, and the widow's wail and the orphans' cry, are the only record of the dreary of the dreadful death of the sealer. " We speak not of the peculiar tempestuous season in which they are engaged the Vernal Equinox. We speak not of the vessel crushed between the icebergs, consigning all to a tremen- dous fate, or of the thousand other disasters to which even these iron-bound ships are liable, but may say, in a word, that scarce a season passes that we have not to deplore the loss of ves- sels, of crews, or of individuals, leaving many a bereft mother, a widowed wife and orphaned child, to heave a heart-rending sigh o'er the memory of the sealing voyage. " But, even when death, in its most fearful form, puts not a sndden period to the sufferings of the sealer, the toils, and hardships, and perils of this voyage are indescribable ; while he has nought to sustain him, nought to buoy him up, but the fond hope of being able, by the produce of his industry, to real- ize a temporary provision for an affectionate wife and children. " Never, indeed, was there an adventure in the prosecution of which are combined more of commercial enterprise on the one hand, and of nerve, of strength, of vigour, perseverance and intrepidity manly and dauntless daring on the other. The merchants adventurously contribute the outfit consisting of the vessel with all her materials fully equipped and victualled. The fisherman contributes his toil, his dangers, his life all the hopes, the fortunes, the fate of his family. Thus is th-j Seal T 306 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Fishery a lottery, where all is risk and uncertainty, but still, the risk, we must confess, is not equally, or even proportionally distributed. "We shall take for instance one vessel of about 120 tons. In her success is involved the success of one merchant he may gain 1,000 or more, if the voyage prosper. In her success is involved the success of some thirty fishermen they may gain each from 20 to 30 if the voyage succeed. The merchant to run the chance of gaining 1,000 has risked a capital of per- haps 2,000. The sealer to gain from 20 to 30 has devoted an incredible amount of toil and suffering he has risked all his life. If the voyage fail, the merchant has still his ship, &c., he has suffered an actual loss of the provisions consumed on the occasion. If the voyage be unsuccessful the poor man returns with the loss of his labour, pennyless. If the vessel founder, or be dashed to pieces in the ice, the insurance officer relieves this one merchant by compensating him for his actual loss. If the vessel founder, thirty valuable lives are lost thirty widows, and perhaps one hundred orphans shriek their curses upon a fishery that brought upon them miseries that cannot be com- pensated the grave of all their hopes the dawn of every misfortune. " Thus, then, is the risk to all great to the poor man im- mense. The property of the merchant is perilled, the life of the fisherman, infinitely more valuable] than any amount of property ; and in this, principally, consists the disparity of the hazard at both sides. Let us, now, enquire after what manner each party is compensated for his respective risk. " Upon the return of the sealing vessel, one half of the pro- ceeds of the industry of the men is handed over to the merchant, in remuneration for the capital he had advanced in the first in- stance. The other half is divided amongst the men, whose toil and daring procured it ; but then, the merchant's half is given perfectly clear and unencumbered of all charges, of every de- duction the poor man's half is clipped and curtailed he is, first, obliged to pay hospital dues ; and, further, beside giving the merchant a full and undiminished half of the entire voyage, he is still further taxed by the merchant, to whom he is obliged to pay a sum of money, not only for the very materials used in its prosecution, but actually, a further sum for the privilege AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 307 of being allowed to hazard his life to ensure a fortune for the merchant, and both of these latter charges combined are here both technically denominated ' BERTH MONEY.' " The question of the amount of berth Money has agitated the sealing population for many years, and still, was its ten- dency rather to increase than diminish ; but, at length, the sealers determined to procure a reduction of the charge, and, in order to effect this, they, on Monday last, held a meeting on the Barrens, and passed a number of resolutions pledging themselves to ' the adoption of every constitutional means ' to 'defend their rights' to refrain from entering upon the voyage until the merchants should consent to reduce the Berth Money from 3 10s. per man, to 2 for common or ordinary hands, called bat's men, 1 for after gunners, and bow gun- ners free ; and to this they added a resolution pledging them- selves ' not to use any coercive means ' for the operation of their object. " From that day forward the whole body, probably, amount- ing to from 1,000 to 2,000 men, as fine fellows as could be seen in any country, marched through the streets cheered by a fiddle and drum, and with colours flying, and so far was there not the slightest infraction of the law, and the exemplary so- briety that distinguished them, gave hope to all who felt an interest in them, that the peace and order of the community would not be disturbed." The meeting of the sealers referred to in the preceding article by Mr. Nugent, took place in St. John's on the 18th March, 1842. The berth money that year had been raised by the merchants and owners of vessels to three pounds, and three pounds ten shillings currency for " batmen," and one pound for bow or chief gunner, who had hitherto gone free. Some of the parties committed a trifling breach of the peace and were imprisoned for a short time ; the berth money, however, was lowered, to two pounds for batmen, one pound ten shillings for after gunner, and the bow gunner free as before. The batman is the person who kills the seal with a long handled gaff similar to a boat hook. The number of vessels 308 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, usually employed in the Seal Fishery is about 350, from 60 to 180 tons, manned by 10,000 men. The number of seals taken per annum is 500,000, amounting in value to 1,500,000 dollars. The following tables will show the number of vessels employed in the Seal Fishery throughout Newfoundland from 1834 to 1849, and in 1853. In 1866, there was a great falling off in the outfit for the Seal Fishery. The Messrs. Grieve, and Bearings, of St. John's, and Messrs. Ridley & Sons, of Harbour Grace, sent a steamer each, which returned well filled. In 1834. Ships. St. John's 125 Conception Bay 218 Trinity Bay 19 Green's Pond, &c 12 Tons. 11,020 17,785 1,539 972 Total. 374 In 1844. Ships. St. John's 121 Harbour Grace 48 Carbonear 52 Brigus & Cubits 43 Port-de-Grave 10 Bay Roberts 11 Spaniard's Bay, &c 9 Trinity 11 Hant's Harbour, &c Cotalina Green's Pond, Salvage, &c Twillingate, Fogo Tilting Harbour, &c 5 19 19 Tons. 11,088 4,857 4,567 4,002 860 944 851 918 448 1,447 1,408, 539 Men. 2,910 4,894 418 264 31,316 8,486 Men. 3,775 1,377 1,469 1,385 279 302 253 334 165 514 503 171 Total 358 31,924 10,527 AND. AS IT IS IN 1877. 309 J& oo rHCO !iN r- 1 rH i 1 00 t~ CO CO ** >O O - O CO 5O o a> lOb-OOrH?OCOrHOrHCOO CO*I-T r-Tr-T S -W rH * * 10 00 CO o> 00 ^PQO 310 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, In the year 1871, there were 201 sailing vessels and 13 steamers, manned by 9,791 men. The following is the number of seals landed at the sev- eral ports of the island in the spring of 1839 : St. John's, by 98 out-port vessels 150,576 by 76 St. John's vessels 91,749 242,325 Harbour Grace , 46,857 Carbonear 41,019 Trinity 33,000 Green's Pond 11,500 Brigus 9,200 Spaniard's Bay 6,200 King's Cove, &c 5,580 Catalina 5,560 Bay Roberts 5,200 Port-de-Grave 4,200 Fogo, &c., 2,000 Making a total of 412,641 NUMBER OF SEALS MANUFACTURED AT THE SEVERAL PORTS OF THE ISLAND, UP TO 31ST MAY, 1845. Harbour Grace 24,110 Carbonear 11,685 Trinity 13,450 Greenspond 4,840 Bay Roberts 3,200 Brigus '.. 1,450 Twillingate 800 Fogo 600 St. John's, estimated at about 260,000 Making a total for the entire Island of... 320,000 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 311 The number of seals taken at different periods was as follows : Years. Seals. Years. Seals. 177* 4,900 1842 344,683 1814 156,000 1843 651,370 1815 141,370 1844 685,530 1820 221,334 1847 436,831 1825 221,510 1848 521,604 1830 300,681 1852 534,378 1831 559,342 1857 429,476 1832 .. 442,003 1861 375,282 1833 384,699 1862 268,624 1835 557,480 1876 500,000 1840 631,385 The value of the British Newfoundland Fisheries in 1848 has been estimated as follows : 946,169 quintals, dry Cod-fish (exported). 522,000 4,010 tierces, Salmon 12,100 14,475 barrels, Herrings.. 8,500 508,446 Seal Skins 50,800 6,200 tuns, Seal Oil , 170,000 3,990 tuns, Cod Oil 105,000 Bait annually sold to the French 20,000 Fish, fresh, of all kinds used in the Island 55,000 Fish, salt " " " 35,000 Oil " " 8,500 Total 1,056,900 Or $4,227,600 Value of property engaged in the fisheries in 1848 : 341 vessels engaged in the Seal fishery 204,600 80 vessels engaged in coasting and the cod fishery 16,000 972 boats from 30 qtls, and \ upwards, 1,025 boats from ( Cod 15 qtls. to 30 qtls., 8,092 f fishery. 151,335 boats from 4 qtls. to 15 qtls. ) 312 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Stages, fish -houses and flakes 25,000 4568 nets of all descriptions 13,700 879 Cod seines 22,000 Vats for manufacturing Seals 50,000 Fishing implements, and casks for rendering liver intooil 30,000 482,635 Or $1,930,540 The following are the returns of the Newfoundland Fisheries in 1857 : 1,355,649 quintals, Cod-fish; 2,940 tierces, Salmon; 157,362 barrels, Herring ; 227 barrels, other fish ; 1,623,885 gallons, oil ; 428,343 Seals ; 20,564 nets and seines : 4,851 Seal nets. The Census of 1869 gives the following returns : 1,087,781 quintals Cod-fish ; tierces of Salmon, 33,149; barrels of Herrings, 97,035 ; other fish cured, 10,365 bar- rels ; Cod-oil, 840,304 gallons ; Seals, 333,053. The herring and cod fisheries of Prince Edward Island are not considerable ; owing to the fertility of the soil the fisheries are not much pursued. The Americans, however, take a great quantity of fish along the shores of the Is- land. The total quantity of fish exported from the Colony of Prince Edward Island in 1846 was as follows : 3,425 quintals of Cod-fish, and 987 barrels of pickled fish. The following is the quantity of fish exported from Nova Scotia during the undermentioned years : Dry Cod-fish. Barrels of Tuns of Years. Quintals. Pickled fish; Fish Oil. Total value. 1836 262,245 47,517 490 186,908 1837 427,150 64,803 181,961 1838 434,309 94,855 1840 327,501 ...... 66,417 277,810 Of the above quantity, about 51,000 quintals dry cod- fish ; 10,794 barrels of pickled fish, and 270 casks of oil were received from Cape Breton. The following is the quantity of fish exported from the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 313 Port of Halifax in 1850 : Dried Cod-fish, 191,802 quin- tals ; 96,650 bbls. of Mackerel ; 43,599 bbls. of Herring ; 4,227 bbls. of Alewives or Gasperaux ; 340 tierces and 6,412 bbls. Salmon ; 3,493 casks=36,028 gallons, oil ; 328 boxes, Preserved Fish ; 3,234 boxes, Herring, and 73 bbls. Cod-fish. A great quantity of dry Cod-fish, Herring and Salmon is received at Halifax from Newfoundland and re-exported. In 1872 as follows : 3,885 bbls. Salmon 119,539 cwt. Seal-fish 100,191 cans. " 6,177 bbls. Shad 408,988 Ibs. fresh 350 " Smelt 540 fish " smoked 46 " Tongues and 228,152 bbls. Mackerel Sounds. 201,600 " Herring 905,500 cans Lobsters 10,200 boxes " smoked 75,000 fish Haddock 10,055 bbls. Alewives 1,594 bbls. Cod roes 806 bbls. Eels 370,000 fish Dogfish 144 " Trout' 300 cwt. Finnan Haddy 2,548 " Halibut 351,000 galls. Oil. 447,168 cwt. Codfish Value of fish used fresh, $146,700.00. Total value of fish caught, $5,101,030.90. Number of nets and seines used, 53,112. Number of men employed in the fisheries, 20,313. ;-}/ The following is the number of ships employed exclu- sively in the Gulf Fishery : Year. Ships. In 1578 15 " 1615 150 " 1622 170 " 1626 ....: 150 " 1670 102 In 1670 the number of men employed was 1980; and the value of the fish, oil, &c., taken is stated to be 386,400. In 1731, the quantity of fish taken was 200,000 quintals. The following Table will show the quantity of fish taken in succeeding years. 314 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS. oj -* QO r-l Ci CO a ^iO^O^ "^^ ^^ a O co'ocTco' GO* co" CO CO CO CO CO EH . to .& l OCSiO O O 02 O2 1 1 rH rH O 1O 1 - - rH O -a, .9 ^3 ^ -s fl 73 J^ O bccoco*, B ^ -*J J O "iosoS .2 otr-^"-^ 1 1 FH 300 co O f rH 1O ^* COOSO 1 rHIO rH t~ o T-HrH ai I 1OO5O OS CO T44 H COCOr^ 3 B B t-r t-oo rHrH g-s II gig AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 315 The produce of the fisheries in the District of Gaspe*, and the Magdalen Islands in 1836, consisted of Cod, 100,542 quintals ; Cod oil, 37,162 gallons ; Whale oil, 25,120 gal- lons, besides salmon and other fish, the whole amounting in value to 86,624, or $336,496. Captain Fair of H.M.S. Champion, in 1839, says, when speaking of the Magdalen Islands, " We found the herring fishing had commenced, and was in active operation in the several parts of the Bay (chiefly in the little harbours of Amherst and House Harbour) by about 146 sail of American fishing schooners, of from sixty to eighty tons, and each carrying seven or eight men. Among them were not more than seven vessels belonging to the British possessions, and they chiefly from Arichat. The quantity of herrings was very great, exceeding that of any former years, and the expert- ness and perseverance of the American fishermen were far beyond that of the Arichat mem It is computed that the American fishing schooners average nearly 700 barrels each, and the barrel is valued at one pound sterling, making, for the 146 sail then in the Bay, a presumed product of 100,000 barrels, value 100,000 sterling ; the tonnage employed about 10,000 ; and the number of men about 1,000. " Between the last end of Prince Edward Island, to within seven leagues of the Bay of Chaleur, we passed through a fleet of from 600 to 700 sail of American fishing schooners, all cod fishing ; it had not been a fortunate season for them and great numbers had gone towards the Straits of Belle Isle for better success. " The house of Janvrin & Co., at Gaspe, exported in the year 1836 from 15,000 to 20,000 quintals of Cod-fish, chiefly for the Brazils and South America. Other minor establishments export largely also perhaps from Gaspe and its neighbourhood the whole export may be about 40,000 quintals." The following is the total quantity of fish exported from the Magdalen Islands in 1848 : Value in pounds sterling. 34,448 quintals, dry Cod-fish 20,956 1,513 barrels, pickled Cod-fish 920 316 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Value in pounds sterling. 13,765 barrels, pickled Herrings 5,511 41 " smoked do \ 6,009 boxes ' do } 2,255 barrels Mackerel 2,431 16 boxes, smoked Mackerel 5 According to the returns made to the Canadian Go- vernment in 1861, the following was the product of the fisheries at the Magdalen Islands : 9,134 quintals Cod-fish, @ $3 $27,412 6,150 barrels Herring, @ $3 18,450 1,271 " Mackerel, @ $7 8,897 21,672 gallons Seal oil, @ 65 cts 14,087 4,990 " Codfish oil, @ 45 cts. ... 4,270 Value of Seal skins 2,834 Total value 75,950 In the District of Gaspe", Cod-fishing is divided into the summer and fall fishing. The former begins in May, and last till the 15th of August. The fall fish is either dry, salted or pickled in barrels, the greater part of which is sent to the Quebec Market. The following is the product and value of the fisher- ies in the District of Gaspe", and the north and south Shores of the Lower St. Lawrence in the year 1861 : Cod-fish, summer fishing, 150,000 quintals..$450,000 fall fishing, 15,000 quintals 45,000 Herring, spring fishing, 48,000 barrels 72,000 Herring, fall fishing, 5,000 barrels 15,000 Mackerel, 1,400 barrels 11,200 Salmon, 2,51 9 barrels 30,000 Coal Oil, 90,000 gallons @ 45 cts 40,500 Seal Oil, 62,513 do @ 65 cts 37,508 701,208 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 317 Whale Oil, 36,600 gallons 200 barrels trout, @ $12 200 " halibut, @$6 200 ' Cod sounds and tongues, @ Value of Seal skins. . 27,680 2,400 1,200 1,000 7,200 Total value of the fisheries $740,688 According to the Official Report made by Pierre For- tin, Esq., Magistrate, in command of the expedition for the protection of the Canadian Fisheries in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the following is the product of the fisher- ies in 1862 : M A m . QUANTITY OF FISH TAKEN. ]g O Number oi ing Boat PQ M O 1 Number of ennen. Cod-fish. Quintals. Mackerel. Barrels. Salmon. Barrels. Trout. Barrels. Gallons of Oil. Haddock Quintals Halibut Quintals Herring Barrels. 2535 $ 75959 5044 169463 1066 509 6721 1065J 97832 Number of Seals taken in nets on the North Shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence in 1862 : Number of Seals taken in during the fall of 1861 696 Number of Seals taken in duing the spring of 1862 1,293 Number of Seals taken in during the summer of 1862.. 213 Total in nets 2,202 Number of Seals taken in Magdalen Islands' schooners 9,194 318 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Number of Seals taken in Schooners from North Shore of the St. Lawrence 13,195 Shot with guns, by white men and Indians... 2,000 Total 26,591 producing 208,439 gallons of oil, valued at $120,463. Number of schooners employed 33, manned by 300 men. When the writer arrrived at Paspebiac in the Bay of Chaleurs, District of Gaspe", in 1864, he found over a dozen barques, brigs and schooners, most of them taking in fish for the foreign markets. Here is situate two of the largest fish establishments in Canada. The business is conducted in the same man- ner as the large out-harbour establishments in Newfound- land in the olden times. Here is the well known firm of Charles Robin & Co., of St. Helier's, Island of Jersey, which was established in 1768. They have branch es- tablishments at Perce", Caraquette and other places. They export from 40,000 to 45,000 quintals of dried codfish, to the various markets of Spain, Portugal, Brazils, West Indies and Mediterranean Ports, besides 30,000 gallons of oil, herring, salmon, etc. ' The Messrs. Le Boutillier Bro- thers have also branch establishments at Bonaventure Island and Labrador, and export altogether about 25,000 or 30,000 quintals dried codfish, besides herrings, salmon and furs. Here is also the firm of Daniel Bisson, and several minor establishments. Besides the Canadian ocean fishery, a very extensive fishery, in salmon trout, white fish, pickerel, pike, bass etc., is caried on in the Canadian great fresh water lakes and rivers. The Canadian codfish is small compared with Newfoundland and neither so firm nor so fat, and the reason of the Gasp6 fish commanding a higher price in the foreign market, is because it is taken and cured in smaller quantities, and less salted than the Newfound- land fish. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 319 The river fisheries carried on off the coast of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and of the Lower St. Lawrence, at the island of Anticosti, at the Magdalen Islands, and on the Gaspe" coast, form an extent of over 900 miles of sea coast, inhabited by a population of over 35,000 English, Scotch, Irish, Jerseymen, and French Canadians; the last named predominate. The coast is frequented each year between the opening and closing of navigation by more than 1,500 fishing schooners from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and the United States, manned by at least, 20,000 sailors, Iwho go there for the purpose of carrying on the cod, herring and mackerel fisheries.* The amount of fishing bounties paid by the Canadian Government in 1863, was 9,769 dollars. The fishery expenditure from the 1st July, 1864, to 30th June, 1865, was in Lower Canada 17,500 dollars, in- cluding a sum of 6,938 dollars paid for fishery bounties for the year 1864 ; and in Upper Canada, 1,053 dollars. The collections made in Lower Canada (from fishery licenses), during the same period amounted to 4,854 dollars; and in Upper Canada, 816 dollars. According to returns for 1872, the Fisheries for the Province of Quebec were as follows: 163,810 cwt. Cod, summer fishing @ $5 00 $491,430 Ofl 53,963 " 'autumn fishing ....@ 3 00 161,889 00 16 bbls. Ling @ 500 8000 7,638 " Mackerel @ 10 00 76,380 00 27,353 " Herring @ 3 00 82,059 00 2,335 boxes " smoked. @ 025 55875 1,649 bbls. Sardines @ 5 00 8,245 00 320 Halibut @ 5 00 1,600 00 47 Tunny @ 500 23500 3,728 Salmon @ 16 00 60,648 00 65 Trout @ 10 60 65000 311 Sturgeon @ 500 1,55500 137,148 fish Eels at $10 per 100 13,715 80 Official Report. 320 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, 289 bbls. Cod, tongues and sounds @ $7 00 $2,023 00 604 " " roes @ 6.00 3,62400 26,425 galls. Seal oil @ 080 14,82000 18,000 Whale oil @ 80 14,400 00 2,122 " Porpoise oil @ 50 1,061 00 160,055 " Cod oil @ 50 80,027 50 106 bbls. Haddock @ 500 53000 4,356 doz. Bar and White Fish @ 2 00 8,712 00 1,072 bbls. Mixed Fish @ 400 4,28800 26,359 fish Shad @ 010 2,63590 14,372 bbls. Fish used as manure @ 025 3,59300 116 fish Porpoises @ 40 00 4,600 00 9,042 Seals @ 6 00 54,252 00 $1,003,611 95 Districts of Quebec, Three Rivers, Montreal, and St. Francis no returns estimated at 100,000 00 Total $1,193,611 95 Vessels used : 83 vessels, 2,602 fishing boats, 1,664 flat boats. Men employed : 359 sailors, 5,466 fishermen, 2,568 shore- men ; total, 8,393. Province of Ontario, 1872. 13,3 17 bbls. Whitefish, 7,477 " Trout, 5,875| " Herrings, 1791 " Sciscos, 110 bbls. Maskinonge r 205 " Pike and Bass, 521 " Pickerel, 785| " Coarse Fish. Total Fish caught, 28,560^ barrels. Value Fresh Fish $88,721 " Pickled Fish 96,353 Total value $185,074 " Boats, nets, and material employed. .$127,398 Number of men employed, 1.959. M. H. Perley, Esq., Her Majesty's British Commissioner for the Fisheries at St. John, New Brunswick, very politely sent me a copy of his Report on the Fisheries of New Brunswick, from which I make the following ex- tracts : AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 321 " Just within Shippagan Gully, on Shippagan Island, in a well sheltered and very convenient position, is the fishing ' room ' of Messrs. Wm. Fruing & Co., of Jersey, of which Cap- tain George Alexandre, of Jersey, was/ound in charge. At this place there were sixty boats engaged in fishing, averaging two men and a boy to each boat. It was stated, that each of these boats would probably take 100 quintals of fish during the sea- son, but that the boats belonging to the firm, manned by Jer- seymen, would take more. On the 21st August there were at this ' room ' 2,500 quintals of dry fish, exceedingly well cured. On the day it was visited there were 600 quintals of cod spread out to dry ; they were exceedingly white and hard, of the finest quality, and were about to be shipped to Naples, for which market the very best fish are required. They are ship- ped in bulk, and the manner in which they are stowed in the holds of the vessels is very neat and compact. It requires great skill and care to stow them without breaking, and in such a manner as to prevent their receiving damage on so long a voyage ; but long practice and experience have conquered these difficulties, and cargoes are rarely injured by bad stowage. " The ling cured at this establishment are sent to Cork for the Irish market ; and the haddock to the Brazils. The first quality cod cured here in 1848, instead of being sent to Naples were shipped to the Mauritius ; it was not stated what success had attended this adventure. " Nearly all the fishermen at this establishment were French settlers, who had small farms, or patches of land, somewhere in the vicinity, which they cultivated. It was the opinion of Captain Alexandre, that the fishermen could not live unless they possessed land, and obtained something from the soil ; if they did not, they nearly starved. Those who are too poor to own boats hire them of the firm for the season, that is, until the 15th of August, when the summer fishing ends. If the boats are used for the autumn or ' fall ' fishing, there is, of course, another hiring. " The fishing usually continues until the 15th October, and it was expected that the whole catch of the season of 1849 would amount to 3,500 quintals if the weather proved favour- able, probably 4,000 quintals. " The boats come in here directly to the ' stage head/ upon U 322 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, which the fish are thrown ; they are at once split and cleaned by the fishermen, on tables provided for the purpose ; and 300 Ibs. of fish fresh from the knife, are weighed off as sufficient to make a quintal of dry fish, with the allowance of one-tenth for the curer. If the fish are split and salted in the boats, and lay one night, then 252 Ibs. are weighed as a quintal. The fisher- men are allowed for a quintal of cod thus weighed, ten shil- lings, and for ling and haddock, five shillings, the amount payable in goods at the store of the firm, on Point Amacque, where a large quantity of foreign goods is kept of every variety. Here were found Jersey hose and stockings Irish butter Cuba molasses Naples biscuit, of half a pound each Brazi- lian sugar Sicilian lemons Neapolitan brandy -American tobacco with English, Dutch, and German goods, but no- thing of Colonial produce or manufacture, except Canadian pork and flour. " Some of the residents at Shippagan, who are in more inde- pendent circumstances, prosecute the fisheries in connection with their farming, curing the fish themselves, and disposing of them at the close of the season to the Jersey merchants, or to others, as they see fit. " The number of boats and men engaged in the Sea fisheries, and the quantities of dried fish caught and cured in 184$, in the district north of the Miramichi, may be thus summed up : LOCALITY. Number of Boats. Number of Men. Number of Boys. Estimated Catch, in quintals Portage Island 33 19 10 60 40 200 30 40 80 57 30 120 80 400 60 80 20 900 500 200 6,000 3,000 10,000 2,250 1,200 Tabusintac Gully Tracady 60 Point Miscou Caraouette 150 Grande Ance Petit Rocher 23 Totals 432 903 250 24,050 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 323 " All the men engaged in this fishery are also part farmers ; they cultivate some portion of land wherever they reside Ou the coast. Of the quantity of dried fish above stated, it is es- timated that 15,000 quintals were cod, and the rest haddock and ling. " The ling is a fish known in the Bay of Fundy by the name of ' Hake.' In the Gulf this fish is taken of very large size, especially by fishing during the night. In appearance it corresponds precisely with the drawing in Mr. Yarrell's ad- mirable work on British Fishes, (vol. 2, page 289,) and its description is the same as there given of the forked hake ; or phycis furcatus of Cuvier. Owing to the length, breadth and thickness of the ling when split, they are, at the best ' rooms,' dried on large flakes, raised about eight feet from the ground, which have a greater circulation of air underneath. The cod of larger size are also dried on these flakes. " Of the quantity of fall herring taken on this coast, it is quite impossible to give any estimate which may be relied up- on as accurate. The principal fishing ground is at Caraquette, and the whole quantity taken there in 1849, would probably amount to two thousand barrels, or perhaps exceed that quan- tity. The catch at other localities along the coast, would per- haps, amount to one thousand barrels more. " The quantity of mackerel caught and cured, is so small as scarcely to be taken into account, in giving an estimate of these fisheries. It was said that mackerel had at times been imported from Arichat for the use of the inhabitants on this coast, near which thousands of barrels, of the same fish, are annually caught by fishing vessels from Maine and Massachusetts." EWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, "- Return of the quantities of the various products of the fish- eries, exported from the district of Gaspe, during the year ending 5th January, 1850. DESCRIPTION. Weight or Measure From the Port of New Carlisle. From the Port of Gaspe. Total from the District in 1849. Total in 1848. Dry Cod quintals 28,230 52,109 80339 89,931 Pickled Cod barrels . 4,920 4,920 3,977 Do quintals 24 817 841 1,074 Tongues and Sounds barrels . 15 6 21 62 Salmon do 290 290 275 Mackerel do 126 126 160 Herrings do 219 219 277 Halibut do 50 50 Cod Oil gallons . 573 50,220 50,793 31,038 Whale Oil do 21,720 21,720 6,960 Seal Oil do 120 120 600 " The value of all imports at the port of Gasp6 in 1849, was 32,286 currency ; the value of exports the same year, was 51,880 currency. At New Carlisle, the value of imports from abroad, in 1849, was 12,511 sterling; the value of exports was 37,250. The imports and exports to and from Quebec are not stated in the return from New Carlisle. The exports include birch and pine. " COMMERCIAL VALUE OF THE GULF FISHERIES IN 1849. " The following Tables, compiled by (the writer from the Custom House Returns, exhibit the trifling value of the pro- duce of the sea and river fisheries, exported from the gulf ports of New Brunswick, in 1849. The quantity of each article, at each port, is here exhibited ; and it will be observed, that the whole quantity of pickled fish exported, was 3,380 barrels only, and that 2,110 barrels were imported. It will be seen that mackerel were imported, at Miramichi, from another Colony ; and at Richibucto, near which fish are so abundant, 575 barrels of pickled fish were imported from abroad and 110 barrels only, were exported. The whole value of fish exported during the past year is 15,117 sterling, against which there AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 325 is the value of the fish imported, amounting to 2,269, leaving a balance of 12,848 sterling only, in favour of the exports of the gulf fisheries of New Brunswick. "It must not be forgotten that the season of 1849 was one of unexampled abundance in the sea fisheries ; and the follow- ing tables therefore furnish a severe, but, it may be hoped, a most useful commentary upon the provincial fisheries within the Gulf of St. Lawrence : " Exports of the produce of the fisheries from the several ports of New Brunswick, within the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, dur- ing the year 1849 : PORTS. Dried Fish. Pickled Fish. Smoked and Preserved Fish. Fish Oil. Oysters. Miramichi Quintals. Barrels. 2,306 Boxes. 531 Gallons. 455 Bushels. 130 344 720 42 Caraquette . . . 16056 578 7572 2,304 Kichibucto 110 240 . Totals 16,906 3,380 531 8,027 2,544 Imports of the produce of the fisheries at the several ports of New Brunswick, within the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, during the year 1849 : - Smoked PORTS. Dried Fish. Pickled Fish. and Preserved Fish Oil Oysters. Fish. Quintals. Barrels. Boxes. Gallons. Bushels. Herrings V Miramichi 382 1,130 ( Mackerel f 35 ) Dalhousie ... 1,153 370 21 772 Bathurst Jtichibucto 138 575 260 Totals 1,673 2,110 21 1,032 326 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " Keturn of the estimated value, in pounds sterling, of all arti- cles, the produce of the fisheries, exported from the several ports of New Brunswick, within the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, during the year 1849, distinguishing the countries to which the same were exported : PORTS. Great Britain. British Colonies. United States. Foreign States. Total Sterling North America West Indies Else- where Miramichi .... 132 2,820 1,822 4,774 638 440 8,991 274 Dalhousie Bathurst 27 611 440 3,291 274 Caraquette .... Richibucto 1,148 1,190 3,362 Shediac Total Exports.. Total value of Fish imported at the same Ports in 1849. 1,307 7,436 2,269 1,190 1,822 3,362 15,117 2,269 The following are the returns for New Brunswick in 1872 : 1,608,496 Ibs. Salmon, fresh 24,227 " Mackerel 4,515 bbls. 150,871 " Herrings 25,170 " Alewives 6,495 cwt. Codfish, dry 1,566 bbls. " pickled 6,566 bbls. Shad 20,190 cwt. Hake 3,813 " Haddock 13,600 " Halibut 1 ,050 cwt. Pollock 143,731 Ibs. Bass 28,070 " Trout 485,100 " Smelt 30,000 " Eels 60,050 bbls. Mixed Fish 224,500 cans Lobsters 39,450 bush. Oysters 66,556 galls. Oil 900 Ibs. Pumice AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 327 " Comparative statement of the total quantities of articles the produce of the fisheries, exported and imported at the seve- ral ports of New Brunswick, within the Gulf of Saint Law- rence, during the year 1849 : 1849. Dried Fish. Pickled Pish. Smoked and Preserved Fish. Fish Oil Oysters. Exports Quintals. 16,906 Barrels. 3,380 Boxes. 521 Gallons. 8,027 Bushels. 2,544 Imports 1 673 2110 21 1032 The whale fishery of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is very trifling, onlyabout 40,000 gallons of oil obtained annually. FISHERIES OF THE UNITED STATES. The number of persons employed in the New England States before the revolution was about 4,000, which was prosecuted in small craft. The quantity caught was about 350,000 quintals, of the value of X200,000, " The Americans follow two or more modes of fitting-out for the fisheries. The first is accomplished by six or seven farmers or their sons building a schooner during the winter, which they man themselves (as all the Americans on the sea-coast are more or less seamen as well as farmers), and after fitting the vessel with necessary stores, they proceed to the banks, Gulf of St. Lawrence, or Labrador, and loading their vessels with fish, make a voyage between spring and harvest. The proceeds they divide, after paying any balance they may owe for outfit. They remain at home to assist in gathering their crops, and proceed again for another cargo, which is salted down and not after- wards dried this is termed mud-fish, and kept for home con- sumption. The other plan is, when a merchant, or any other owning a vessel, lets her to ten or fifteen men on shares. He finds the vessel and nets. The men pay for all the provisions, 328 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, hooks and lines, and for the salt necessary to cure their propor- tion of the fish. One of the number is acknowledged master, but he has to catch fish as well as the others, and receives only about twenty shillings per month for navigating the vessel ; the crew have five-eighths of the fish caught, and the owners three eighths of the whole." The total quantity of the produce of the fisheries of the State of Massachusetts in 1837 (the largest fisheries in the United States) was as follows ; FISHEKIES OF MASSACHUSETTS IN 1837. . T5 <+; . o^ "5! .2 aS S (3 . Vessels. '! &I oi SH 1 cS O M M a 1 0> 3 rt ll CC r-H WA a 111 211 ftM CS "T3 H s ' W2 i ^ 1,290 76,089 510,554 234,059 837,141 11,146 $ 3,208,559 $ 2,683,176 Besides the above, there were large quantities of whale oil and other fish oil, and whalebone amounting in value to about a half million dollars. The following is the number of barrels, halves and quarters of barrels of mackerel and other pickled fish in- spected in the State of Massachusetts in the year 1850. Barrels. Mackerel 242,572 Salmon 2,422 Alewives Shad Herring Sword-fish Tongues and Sounds . Salmon- trout Halibut fins Menhaden . . 1,629 705 900 144 777 14 156 137 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 329 Barrels. Cod 465 Blue Fish 153 Haddock. 29 Total 250,103 21,000 barrels of the above were re-inspected, princi- pally mackerel from Nova Scotia. For a more detailed account of the fisheries of Massa- chusetts and the United States, see " A Peep at Uncle Sam's Workshop, Fisheries, &c.," by the Author. The annual quantity of cod-fish exported from the United States is about 200,000 quintals, which is princi- pally sent to Cuba, Hayti, West Indies, and Madeira. In 1851, 502 ships, 24 brigs, and 27 schooners of the aggre- gate tonnage, 171,971, were employed in the whale fishery of the United States. An important fishery is carried on in the interior lakes of America, principally on Lake Huron, Lake Superior, Mackinac and Detroit River. The kind of fish caught is sturgeon, salmon-trout, Maskinonge, pickerel, mullet, white-fish, bass, pike, perch, &c. Some of these fish weigh from one to 120 Ibs. The quan- tity of fish taken on these lakes in 1840 was 35,000 bar- rels, amounting in value to 256,040 dollars. Mr. McGregor, in his " Progress of America," says : " The British whale fishery, formerly so very extensive, has, from causes which have developed their effects during the last ten years, declined rapidly ; and there is every probability that both the northern and southern British whale fishery will be discontinued from the ports of the United Kingdom. The substitution of vegetable and lard oils, and stearine from lard, the great outlay of capital in the southern whale fishery, the long period which must expire before any return can be realized for the expenditure, constitute the chief causes of the decline of the whale fishery from British ports. The Dutch whale fishery disappeared in the early part of the present century ; the French whale fishery is only maintained by bounties taken 330 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, from the national taxes, and we can scarcely hope that it can ever be revived so as to constitute a profitable pursuit from any port in Europe. The bounties paid in support of the British whale fishery, according to McPherson, from 1750 to 1788 amounted to 1,577,935 sterling ; and Mr. McCulloch esti- mates that more than 1,000,000 has been paid after that period, so that more than 2,500,000 sterling have been paid by the nation for bounties to the whale fishery." The number of ships engaged in the northern and southern whale fisheries during the years 1843, 1844 and 1845 were as follows : NORTHERN FISHERY. SOUTHERN FISHERY. Years. No. Ships. Years. No. Ships. 1843 24 1843 50 1844 32 1844 47 1845 .... 34 1845 44 Twenty-one ships are engaged in the southern fisheries from the Australian colonies. Six ships from St. John, New Brunswick, and one ship from Halifax, Nova Scotia. The next important fisheries to those of America are those of Norway in Europe. " The fisheries of Norway supply an important branch of ex- portation, and for these pursuits, their extensive seas and deep, commodious bays afford unlimited opportunities. In the neigh- bourhood of the Lofoden Isles more than 20,000 men find employment during the months of February and March in taking herrings and cod. At that season the fish set in from the ocean and settle on the West Fiord banks, which run from three to ten miles out into the wa.ter, at a depth of from sixty to eighty fathoms. Such swarms collect for depositing their spawn, attracted by the shelter, or perhaps some special circum- stances in the temperature, that it is said a deep sea-lead is frequently interrupted in its descent to the bottom through these shoals (or fiskebierg, mountains of fish, as they are called) which are found in layers, one over the other, several yards in thickness. From North Cape to Bergen, all the fishermen who have the means assemble at the different stations in January, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. Every twenty or thirty of these companies have a yacht or large tender to bring out their provisions, nets and lines, and to carry their produce to the market. Their operations are regu- lated by statutes contained in several ancient codes, and, more lately by that of the 4th of August, 1827. These laws prescribe the order and limits to be observed in fixing the stations, the time for placing and removing the nets, and also for preparing, salting and drying the fish. Nets, and long lines of 120 hooks at five feet distance are used, but there is a difference of opinion which of the two outfits is the more advantageous. The period when the season ends is appointed by law on the 1 2th of June, when Lofoden and its busy shores become deserted and deso- late. The fish are prepared in two ways. They are cured as round or stock-fish until April, after which they are split, salted and carried to the coasts above Trondheim, or other places. There are large flat rocky mountains, with a southern aspect, upon which they are spread and exposed to the sun to dry. This preparation is called klip fish, and in fine seasons is com- pleted in three or four weeks. The livers are used for oil, one barrel of which may be the produce of from 200 to 500 fish ac- cording to their fatness. The number taken is immense. In a medium year (1827) there were 2,916 boats employed in 83 different stations, accompanied by 124 yachts, with 15,324 men. The produce was 16,456,620 fish, which would be about 8,800 tons dried there were also 21,530 barrels of cod-oil, and 6,000 of cod-roe. Sir A. Brooks reckoned the quantity taken in a year at 700,000, worth about 1 20,000, but other writers value them at 250,000 or even 300,000. An English lobster company was established some years ago on the west coast, and twice or thrice a week their packets sailed from Christiansand to London. In 1830 the number of these animals exported was 1,196,904; of roes, 21,682 barrels; of dried fish, 425,789 quin- tals; and of salted fish, 300,218 barrels. The herring fishery is also an important and thriving branch of industry. In 1819, the exports were 240,000 tons. But in 1835, which was more productive than the five or six preceding years, they amounted to 536,000, an increase the more remarkable considering that the population and the internal consumption had both been augmented during that period."* * " Edinburgh Cabinet Library." 332 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Considerable fisheries are carried on at British Colum- bia, Puget's Sound, Alaska, and adjacent places. Hudson Bay, at some future day, bids fair to rival the Newfound- land fisheries. For several years past, American vessels have resorted there for cod fishing. Salmon, herring, caplin, and other varieties of fish abound there. At Two Rivers the Hudson Bay Company carried on porpoise fishing for several years, where 7,749 porpoises were taken, giving an aggregate of 193,689 gallons, or 768J tons of oil, worth in England upwards of 27,000 sterling.* A new market has recently been found for herring in Sweden, several cargoes having been shipped there from Gloucester, Massachusetts, U.S., and found remunerative. * Walter Dickson, in the Toronto Globe, July 7th, 1876. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 333 CHAPTER XV. GOVERNMENT, REVENUE, TRADE AND SHIPPING. tHE first military Governor appointed to Newfound- land was Major (afterwards Lieutenant-General) Sir John Harvey, in 1841 ; he was also the first Governor who had a private secretary. Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant assumed the Government in 1847, and also brought with him a private secretary. The Governor of Newfoundland is not Lieutenant-Govern or, like the Gover- nors of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. The only authority to which he is subordinate is the Queen aud her Ministers. The following amount of salaries was at that time paid out of the revenue of the Colony: Private Secretary of the Governor $1,000 Clerk of the Council 1,000 Two Clerks in Secretary's Office 2,000 Office-Keeper 300 Messenger 300 Treasurer of the Colony 2,500 Surveyor-General 2,500 Clerk of the Supreme and Central Circuit Court 1,750 Clerk of the Northern Circuit Court 1,000 Southern " 1,000 District Surgeon 750 Hospital " 750 Physician of Lunatic Asylum 1,250 Collector of Customs 2,500 Attorney -General, in lieu of fees 1,250 Solicitor-General " " 1,000 Sheriff of the Central District 3,250 Northern " 1,250 Southern ' 1,000 334 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The following salaries were paid out of the Colonial Revenue under Acts 2nd and 3rd William IV., cap. 78, called the reserved salaries. Governor 3,000 or $15,000 Chief-Justice 1,200 " 6,000 First Assistant- Judge..., ... 700 " 3,500 Second " 700 " 3,500 Attorney-General 450 " 3,250 Colonial Secretary 500 " 2,500 6,550 $32,750 The post-master was paid $1,000 by the Imperial De- partment, which also paid the following officers of Cus- toms who were still retained : Comptroller of Customs 'and Navigation Laws .' $1,500 First Clerk and Searcher 1,250 Second " " 1,000 The Customs Department was not placed under the control of the Local Government until 1849, previous to which the Imperial salaries amounted to 3,703 7s. 7d., or$78,516. The Colonial salaries amounted tol,86416s.5d., or $9,323. The Imperial Government pays the Bishop of the Church of England an annual salary of 500, or $2,500 per annum, and the Roman Catholic Bishop, 300, or $1,500 per annum. The amount of pensions annually paid by the Colony then was 159, or $795, which was paid to six persons. The " Royal Newfoundland Com- panies," which was a stationary regiment, was under the command of a colonel with the usual staff of officers. The Company of Royal Artillery were relieved every seven years from England. The Royal Engineers were under the command of a captain and subordinate officers. There was a civil department, with clerks. The ordnance store- keeper and the barrack-master had their deputies and AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 335 clerks.* The naval establishment has for a long time been removed from Newfoundland to Halifax arid Ber- muda. One or two men-of-war are usually on the station for the protection of the fisheries. There is no militia in Newfoundland, but there are two volunteer companies. The war establishment in Newfoundland costs Great Britain over $200,000 annually. The Chief -Justice was also Judge of the Vice-Admiralty Court, which made his salary considerably more. The fees of the Attorney-Gene- ral were very small, and the Legislature thought proper to allow him $1,250 per annum in lieu of these fees, mak- ing his salary $3,500 per annum. The fees of the Solicitor- General were about $200 per annum, in lieu of which the House of Assembly voted him a salary of $1,000, besides which he received $500 a year as Master-in-Chancery, the duties of which were merely to take a few messages from the Council to the Assembly, accompanied with two or three bows. The salary of the Surveyor-General was raised from $1,500 to $2,500, besides the allowances. The office of Private Secretary to the Governor was attempted to be abolished when -the term of the then Governor expired, but it is still retained. In addition to his salary of $2,500, the Secretary of the Colony in 1854 received as Clerk of the Council $1,000, and a further sum of about $500 for receiving the amount of sales of Crown Lands, &c., making his salary altogether upwards of $4,000 per annum. The Treasurer of the Colony, in addition to his salary of $2,500 received $500 more as Cashier of the Savings' Bank. It had long been the practice to exact for every commission issued from the Secretary's office from one to five guineas. The writer paid one guinea for the first commission he received. For the second he was asked five guineas but refused to eubmit to so unjust a tax, the commission was, however, given. The Collector of Customs received, in addition to his salary, $1,000 as * All the military have been withdrawn from the Colony. 336 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Speaker of the House of Assembly. Previous to the year 1847 the salary of the Sheriff of the Northern District, averaged from 200 to 350 dollars per annum, whilst the salary of the Sheriff of the Central District was nearly $4,500 per annum the disproportion. The salary of the Sheriff of the Central District, for a population of 25,000, now receives $3,250, while the Sheriff for the Northern District, for a population of 50,700, receives $1,250, and the Sheriff of the Southern District, for a population of about 16,000, receives $1,000. There should be a sheriff for every district. I know of no colony or country in America without a sheriff for every county or district except Newfoundland. The salary of the Clerk of the Southern County Court some years ago was $500 ; it was afterwards raised to $1,000 per annum. The duty of the office was to attend the judge on circuit once a year, which occupied nearly two months. The remaining ten months of the year the clerk remained in a remote and almost inaccessible part the district ; until within the last two years (owing to the want of roads). The colony annually paid $5,750 per annum for the hire of two vessels to take the Court on circuit, in addition to which a saloon was fitted up and a well-supplied table of the edible and potable. The sitting of the Court in some places was a mere mockery, and in other places it did not sit at all, although it would have been previously announced to do so by the Governor's proclamation. This state of things strongly reminds one of the good old days of the Fishery Admirals and Float- ing Surrogates. In 1847, the acting Judge refused to take a prisoner from Harbour Breton to Burin Gaol, be- cause it would lessen the dignity of the Court by making the ship a prison, in consequence of which the following expedient was adopted to get rid of the prisoner : A fish- ing boat was bound to Hermitage Bay, on board of which he was put, the master of the boat receiving strict injunc- tions to conceal from the prisoner the place of destina- AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 337 tion, but, as soon as they arrived at Hermitage Bay, to tell the prisoner to make off as fast as possible. There ought to be District Judges, as there are in Canada. One of the clerks in the Secretary's office, in addition to his salary of $1,000, received $1,000 more as Clerk of the Legislative Council, and an additional sum as Marshall of the Court of Vice- Admiralty. The other clerk of the Secretary's office received a further addition to his salary as clerk of the Building Committee, &c. Of all the fore- going offices, there are but four filled by natives of the colony, one of whom was appointed Treasurer of the Colony in 1849. It was exceedingly trying to the minds of respectable, intelligent natives to see men from afar filling offices un- der the Government of their own country, and receiving large salaries, which they would be glad to fill as effi- ciently for half the amounts the incumbents were re- ceiving. The following is an extract from the editorial of one of the Conception Bay Heralds (1853) : " None but vagabonds are encouraged in Newfoundland. The selfish, unscrupulous pretender is just the sort of plant that thrives best in our soil The man who, in addition to an incorrigible stupidity, can bring his conscience to acquiese in anything touching his own gain, or that of his own patron, is what we want here. Are there any such in the adjacent Pro- vinces? Let them come hither, and we will ensure them success. Nay, have not many of them come hither already and reaped their harvest 1 Let the public answer." Since that time, and consequently since the introduc- tion of Responsible Government, some of the highest offices in the Government are filled I >y Newfoundlanders (a number of stipendiary magistrates, Custom-house offi- cers, and numerous others), so that now Newfoundlanders have no cause to complain that they are left in the cold shades. 338 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, On the introduction of Responsible Government, in 1855, the salary of the Governor of Newfoundland was reduced from $15,000 to $10,000 per annum (it is now $12,500). There was also a reduction made in the sala- ries of all the other Departments. The following are the salaries of the other North- American colonies : Canada $50,000 per annum Nova Scotia 12,000 " New Brunswick 12,000 " Prince Edward Island 8,000 " British Columbia and Vancou- ver's Island 8,000 " Manitoba 8,000 " North West 6,500 " Quebec 12,000 " Ontario 12,000 " The salaries of the officials of the Government of New- foundland were paid in sterling morney or nearly five dollars in the pound. Before the introduction of the Responsible Government of Newfoundland, the Council consisted of nine mem- bers, who were appointed by the Crown, who were both Executive and Legislative ; all the members of which be- longed to St. Johns. Of these, live were merchants, one a barrister, and the remainder officials of the Govern- ment. Five were Episcopalians, one Roman Catholic, two Congregationalist, and one Presbj'terian. Six were Englishmen, one Irishman, one Scotchman, and one Nova Scotiari. The House of Assembly sat quadrennially. It was composed of fifteen members : Three for the district of St. John's. Four One One One One Conception Bay. Trinity Bay. Bonavista Bay. Fogo. Ferryland. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 339 Two for the district of Placentia and St. Mary's. One " Burin. One " " Fortune Bay, Having the following occupations : Merchants, 4 ; trades, 3 ; lawyers, 3 ; editors, 2 ; doctors, 1 ; lieutenant, R.N., 1 ; surveyor of roads, 1. Eight were Roman Catho- lics, five were Episcopalians, and two Congregationalists. Six were natives, three Irish, three English, one native of Prince Edward Island, one of the Island of Jersey, and one Nova Scotian. The following were some of the annual expenses of the Legislature at that time : LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. Pay of members at $210 ....$1,580 00 ' Clerk 1,00000 " Usherof the Black Rod 50000 " Master in Chancery 50000 " Door keeper and M essenger 350 00 $3,930 00 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY. Pay of Speaker $1,000 00 " 6 out post members at $315 each 1,890 00 " 8 St John's members at $210 each 1,680 00 Sergeant-at-Arms 500 00 Chairman of Supply 250 00 Clerk 1,000 00 Assistant Clerk 500 00 Solicitor 750 00 Two Doorkeepers and Messenger 700 00 Librarian 250 00 Reporting and Publishing 1 ,200 00 Printing 3,500 00 Council 3,930 00 Total $17,150 00 340 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The following is the length of Session of the General Assembly : Year. From To Days in Session. REMARKS. 1833 1 Jany. 1 . . July 12 .. July 9.... Aug. 1 .. | 240 | Includes an adjournment of 38 days, from May 30th to July 1834 1 Jany. 29 . . Aug. 26 . . June 12 . . Sept. 20 . . j- 161 9th. 1835 Jany. 8 . . May 12 .. 115 1836 Jany. 7 ... May 6.... m 1837 Jany. 3 . . Nov. 18 . . 139 1838 1 June 20 . . Aug. 20 . . Aug. 13 . . Oct. 25 . . } 122 1839 May 17 .. Oct. 12 . . 149 1840 Jany. 3 . . April 29 . . 118 1841 Janv. 2 . . April 26 . . 116 1842 Nil* 1843 Jany. 17.. May 22 .. 126 1844 Jany. 10.. April 29 . . 111 1845 Jany. 15. . April 23 . . 99 1846 Do. ) Special j 1846) 1847J Jany. 15... June 16 . . Dec. 1 .. April 28 . . Aug. 4 . . Jany. 14 . . 104 50 | 44 Met in consequence of the city of St. John's having been de- stroyed by fire. 9 Acts passed. 1848 I 1849) Dec. 14.. April 23 . . 150 22 Acts passed. 1850 Jany. 28.. April 30 . . 93 L9 Acts passed. Owing to the irresponsible system of government, the Governor of Newfoundland, on his arrival, is always sur- rounded by the same men who composed the little coterrie, or "family compact," who held office, time immemorial, as an hereditary right, which had been regularly trans- mitted from father to son. Of course the policy of the Governor was in a great degree influenced by the irre- sponsible persons that composed his Council, who were adepts in state craft and diplomacy. The reader will per- ceive that the Legislature of Newfoundland is based on professed Liberal principles, but which in reality is a little castle of despotism, which had already been scattered by the lightning of public opinion, and only wanted the AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 341 thunder of a free press, to make it totter, fall, and become a ruin. What is called "Responsible Government," had been conceded by the Home Government to the neighbouring British Colonies. This system of Government is composed of two district Councils, an Elective and Legislative, and all heads of Departments are appointed from the majority of the political party of the Representatives of the people, from whom also the Executive Council is selected. Every Government ought to be the mere exercise and reflection of the public mind, [and the public will. The people should be the father, the government the child. During the last Session of the amalgamated Legislature in 1847, Mr. Kent, a leading member of the House, intro- duced a series of resolutions, embodying the principles of Responsible Government, which passed the Legislature by a majority of one vote. Subsequently a petition was sent to the Home Government, praying that the same privi- leges of Responsibility as had been given to the neigh- bouring colonies, may be conceded to Newfoundland. But Earl Grey, the then Secretary of State, thought it inexpe- dient for the present, so far as Newfoundland was con- cerned, to test the truth of the political axiom, that " Free- dom is the only certain cure for the evils of Freedom." In order to carry out the system of Responsible Govern- ment in Newfoundland, an increase of Representation was absolutely necessary. In the first Legislature in 1834, Mr. Kough introduced a Bill to increase the Representation to 25 members, which, however, did not pass. In 1844, the late Mr. Barnes, one of the most talented natives of the country, brought in a Bill, which contemplated a division of the Districts, as well as an increase of Representatives. This Bill met with a most determined opposition from the Roman Catholic members of the House, because it divided the Roman Catholic districts, and very justly apportioned members according to population, instead of extent of territory. In all countries Representatives are 342 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, given according to population, not extent of territory, and the reader will see the justice of Mr. Barnes's division of the Districts, by observing that Placentia and St. Mary's for a population of 6,471, returned two members, while the District of Trinity, with a population of 8,801, returned only one member. It is said Mr. Barnes had a majority to carry his Bill through the House, but consented to withdraw it on the promise of Sir John Harvey, the Governor, that the Bill should form the basis of the new Constitution of New- foundland, which would take place at the termination of the amalgamated Legislature. The promise, however, was not fulfilled. A Bill was brought before the House of Assembly in 1852, for the increase of Representatives to 25 members, leaving the divisions and districts as at pre- sent. After some time, an Act passed, making the number of members of the Assembly 30, and the Legislative Council 12, with an Executive Council of 7. The follow- ing are now the divisions of the districts : District of St. John's East 3 members. " West 3 Harbour Grace 2 Carbonear 1 " Harbour Maine... . 2 Port-de-Grave 1 p L , O Bay-de-Verds 1 Trinity 3 Bonavista 3 Twillingate and Foga 2 Ferryland 2 Placentia and St. Mary's.... 3 Burin 2 Fortune Bay 1 BurgeoandLaPoele 1 The terms of Whig and Tory, are scarcely applicable to Newfoundland. The struggle has always been between AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 343 the Roman Catholics and Protestants. The former voting for the Roman Catholic candidate, and the latter, with but few exceptions, voting for the Protestant candidate. The Protestants are called Conservatives, and the Roman Ca- tholics, Liberals. The introduction of Responsible Govern- ment met with great opposition. The old oligarchy were very tenacious of life, hence their cries of " innovation "- old paths well enough departed glory and "Ichabod." But these hostile demonstrations to the march of enlight- ened public opinion, were but the spasmodic death-throes that precede expiring life. Responsible Government is nothing more or less than the principles of the British Constitution, referring; to which, the celebrated statesman, Fox, said: " The greatest innovation that could be introduced into the Constitution of England was to come to a vote that there should be no innovation in it. The greatest beauty of the Constitution was that in its very principle it admitted of perpetual improve- ment, which time and circumstances rendei-ed necessary. It was a constitution the chief excellence of which was that of admit- ting a perpetual reform." The Protestants were opposed to Responsible Govern- ment, on the ground that Roman Catholics would monopo- lize all the offices of trust and emolument. But this was impossible, if the Protestant voters did their duty, there being a majority of 10,000 Protestant votes in the dis- tricts. It was not until the arrival of Governor Darling, in 1855, that the system of Responsible Government was fully inaugurated, when the Hon. John Kent became the Premier, and Philip F. Lyttle, Esq., Attorney-General. Although Newfoundland is not at present a portion of the Dominion of Canada, yet we hope, at no very distant day, to see this, the only unconf ederate British possession in North America, united to Canada. Her amalgamation would develop her great resources, especially her minerals and fisheries. Lines of steamers for the conveyance of 344 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, goods and passengers would run from. Quebec to St. John's, calling at the intermediate ports of St. George's Bay, Bay of Islands, &c. New life would be diffused into the various fisheries, and agriculture and manufacture would receive a fresh impetus. The principal objection to con- federation is the erroneous notion to make no change, to keep things fixed just as they are. Dr. Arnold says : " There is nothing so revolutionary, because there is nothing so unnatural, and so convulsive to society, as the strain to keep things fixed, when all the world is, by the very law of its crea- tion, in eternal progress. And the cause of all the evils in the world may be traced to that natural, but most deadly, error of human indolence and corruption-that our business is to preserve, not improve. It is the ruin of all alike, individuals, schools, and nations." The following are the Governors of Newfoundland from the earliest period : 1728 Osborne 1786-88 Elliott 1731 Clinton 1789-91 Milbanke 1737 Vanbrugh 1792-93 Kirig 1740 Lord Graham 1794-96 Sir J. Wallace 1744 Sir Charles Hardy 1797-99 Hon. W. Walde- 1749 Rodney grave 1750-52 Drake 1800-1 Sir C. M. Pole 1753-54 Bonfoy 1802-3 Gambier 1755-56 Dorrill 1804-6 Sir E. Gower 1757-59 Edwards 1807-9 Holloway 1760 Webb 1810-12 Sir J. Duckworth 1761-63 Graves 1813-15 Sir R. G. Keats 1764-68 Palliser 1816-17 Pickmore 1769-71 Hon. J. Byron 1818-25 Sir C. Hamilton 1772-74 Shuidham 1825-34 Sir T. Cochrane 1775 Duff 1834-41 Prescott 1776-78 Montagu 1841-46 Sir John Harvey 1779-84 Edwards 1847-52 Sir J. G. LeMar- 1782-85 Campbell chant AND. AS IT IS IN 1877. 345 1853-55 Sir Buillie Hamil- 1864-66 Anthony Musgrove ton 1867-75 Col. Sir Stephen J. 1855-57 Darling Hill, C.B. 1857-64 Sir Alexander Ban- 1876 Sir John Glover, nerman In Newfoundland there is no direct taxation, the reve- nue is principally derived , from duties on imported goods. The following is the Newfoundland Tariff, 1870 : " According to Revenue Act passed 1875 : Horses, Mares, &c., each , . . " .' $ 2 30 Pigs and Calves . . . .'.'.".. 023 Oxen and Cows, the $100 . . .''.' 500 Ale, Porter, Cider and Perry, the gallon . 10 Apples, the barrel 30 Bacon, Hams, Tongues, Smoked Beef and Sausa- ges, the cwt 2 00 Beef and Pigs' Heads, salted and cured, the brl. of 200 Ibs. ...... 60 Biscuit or Bread, the cwt. .... 07 Butter, the cwt. . . '* . . . . 1 12 Cheese, the cwt. . , . . 1 50 Chocolate and Cocoa, the Ib . . 004 Cigars, 5 per cent, ad valorem and the M . 2 64 Coffee, the Ib. 06 Coal, imported or brought into the port of St. John's, the ton ... . 25 Confectionery, the cwt . . . . . 3 50 Feathers and Feather beds, the Ib . . 05 Fish salted, dried and pickled, the cwt . 1 32 Flour, the barrel . . . ... . 20 Fruit, dried, the Ib . . . . . 04 " Other descriptions, (except Apples) the $100 . . . . . : "".~ . 5 00 Lumber, the M . .... . 1 00 Molasses, the gallon .'.... 06 Oatmeal, the barrel . ... . 20 Indian Meal and Pease, the barrel . . 15 Pork, the barrel of 200 Ibs ... . . 1 00 346 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Salt, the ton . . . . . $ 20 Shingles, the M 40 Shocks and Staves, (manufactured and dressed) the $100 20 00 Spirits, viz. : Brandy or other Spirits, not herein defined or enumerated, and not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon . 1 60 All other Spirits, of greater strength than forty- three over proof, shall be deemed to be undefined Spirits, and subject to duty accordingly . . . . Rum, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon , 1 00 Gin, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon . . . 1 20 Whiskey, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon .... 1 50 Cordials, Shrub and other Spirits, being sweet- ened or mixed, so that the degree of strength cannot be ascertained as aforesaid, the gallon 80 Sugar Loaf and refined, the cwt . 3 50 Unrefined, the cwt Bastard, the cwt Tea Souchong, Congou and Bohea, the Ib " All other sorts, the Ib . Tobacco Manufactured, the Ib Leaf, the Ib ... Stems, the cwt . . Timber, the ton ..... Vinegar, the gallon .... Wines, viz.: Champagne, the gallon Port and Madeira, the gallon . . 2 00 2 50 05 12 12 07 50 30 10 2 00 1 50 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 347 Sherry and Mazanilla, 1 2 \ per cent, ad valorem, and the gallon . . . . $ 90 Spanish Red, Denia, Sicilian, Figuera, Red Lis- bon, Common, Cape and Malaga, the gallon 70 Claret, the gallon 40 Hock, Burgundy and Light Rhenish Wine, the gallon 50 All other wines, 12 per cent, ad valorem, and the gallon 80 Ready-made clothes, viz.: Coats, jackets, trow- sers, waistcoats and southwesters, the $100 20 00 Stockings, shirts and drawers, (made by hand and not woven) the $100 . 2000 Mantles, dresses, cloaks, sacks, the $100 . 20 00 Candles, the $100 20 00 Manufactures of wood, (except cabinet wares, musical instruments, and agricultural im- plements) the $100 . . .-;..; '. 2000 Empty casks of all kinds, not containing mer- chandise including fish boxes and returned casks, the $100 .... 20 00 Packages in which dry goods are imported, $100 13 00 Fresh meat and poultry, the $100 ... 500 Anchors and chain cables, copper and composi- tion metal for ships, viz. : Bar bolt, and sheathing ; nails ; iron, viz. : Bar, bolt, sheathing and sheet ; wrought nails ; cord- age and hemp cables ; oakum ; canvass ; corks and corkwood ; pitch, tar, resin, raw turpentine ; fishing tackle, masts and spars ; sheet tin and solder; machinery and parts of machinery, imported for the use of foun- dries, factories, mills, or other purposes; staves, undressed ; oats, rice, indian corn, bran, barley, medicines, the $100 . . 8 00 Goods, wares and merchandize, not otherwise enumerated, described or charged with duty in this Act, and not otherwise exempt, the $100 13 00 348 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, " LOCAL DISTILLATION. Brandy, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon ..... 1 20 Gin, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon ..... 1 00 Whiskey, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon ..... 1 00 Rum, not exceeding the strength of proof by Sykes's Hydrometer, and so in proportion for any greater strength than the strength of proof, the gallon . . . . 75 "TABLE OF EXEMPTIONS. Printing Presses, Printing Paper (Royal and Demy), Printing Types, and all other Printing Materials. Printed Books and Pamphlets, Maps and Charts. Coin and Bullion, Hemp, Flax, Tow. Fresh Fish, Bait. Wheat, Eggs. Plants, Trees, Shrubs. Unmanufactured Wool and Raw Cotton. Specimens illustrative of Natural History. Works of Art, viz. : Engravings, Paintings, and Statuary, not intended for sale. Articles imported for religious purposes and not intended for sale. Manure of all kinds. Agricultural Implements and Machinery imported by Agricul- tural Societies for the promotion of Agriculture. Arms, cloth and provisions for Her Majesty's land and sea forces. Passengers' baggage, household furniture, and working tools and implements, used and in the use of persons arriving in the island. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 349 Refuse rice, seeds for agricultural purposes. Vegetables of all sorts. Hides and pieces of hides, not tanned, curried or dressed. Coals (when not imported or brought into the Port of St. John's). Articles of every description imported for the use of the Gov- ernor. Donations of clothing specially imported for distribution gra- tuitously by any charitable society. Cotton Yarn. Pig Iron, Coke. Bark for Tanning Leather. Sulphuric Acid, when used for the manufacture of manure. Twines, to be used in manufacturing nets in this colony. Dye Stuffs. Junk, Old Iron, old copper, and composition-metal. Articles for the official use of Foreign Consuls. Steam engines, boilers, propellers, water wheels and saws, when used in the original construction of steam boats built in this island, mills or factories, also crushing mills for mining purposes. Philosophical instruments and apparatus, including globes, when imported and for the use of colleges and schools, scientific and literary societies. Materials for sheathing the bottoms of vessels, such as zinc, copper, and composition-metal, together with nails, paper or felt, which may be used under the same. Live sheep, sand, woollen yarn, and corn for the manufacture of brooms. "It shall not be lawful for any importer of dried fish to ware- house the same in any of the ports of this colony or its depen- dencies, without the payment of the duty hereinbefore imposed ; and the provisions of any Act of this colony with regard to the warehousing of goods on the first entry thereof, or to the allow- ance of drawbacks upon exportation, shall not in either case apply to or be construed to apply to such fish. Provided, that the section shall not apply to such fish of British catch and cure, unless otherwise declared by proclamation of the Gover- nor, published in the Royal Gazette. "All yachts sailing under warrant of the Lords of the Admi- 350 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ralty, or belonging to the Royal Yacht Club, shall be exempted, on view of the said warrant, from payment of all local duties whatsoever." The Reciprocity Treaty between the United States and the British Colonies expired in 1865, and has not yet been renewed. The revenue in 1853 amounted to $400,000. Revenue and expenditure in 1856 : REVENUE. Customs revenue 91,023 17 Lightdues 5,03415 6 Rents of Crown lands, &c 814 7 3 License fund fines and forfeitures .... 930 5 Fees from public officers 543 13 10 North American clergy estimates 300 Consolidated Stock 17,941 5 4 Patents 15 Postal revenue 565 2 Telegraph (labourers) 56 6 8 Duties on spirits distilled in the colony 305 19 8 Unappropriated penitentiary funds 150 6 6 Premium on Consolidated Stock 465 19 6 Miscellaneous . 688 2 Total 118,831 15 8 Or $574,158 00 EXPENDITURE. Civil Department 7,45613 4 Customs establishment 5,458 9 1 Judicial Department salaries and con- tingencies 5,84710 9 Police and magistracy 5,721 Ecclesiastical establishment 300 Legislative department 5,720 5 9 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 351 Pensions and gratuities 1,257 5 4 Printing and stationery 1,122 18 2 Gaol expenses 1,178 3 1 Coroners 142 8 6 Repairs of court-house and gaols 298 911 Relief of the poor, including sick paupers, lunatics, &c. 15,725 8 Postages and incidentals 41 3 11 Roads and bridges 7,567 910 Light-houses 3,473 15 10 Fuelandlight 6501810 Education 8,22710 Interest on loans 8,43712 9 Public institutions 300 St. John's Rebuilding Act 1,192 Oil Election expenses and registration 11 13 4 Crown Lands Act, including Government house 1,399 9 6 Loanspaidoff 9,59112 Ferries and packets 286 2 6 Shipwrecked crews 107 14 11 Steam communication 300 Public buildings 1,57616 1 Breakwater and public wharves 86 14 PostalAct 2,11917 9 Construction of pumps, &c 279 5 2 Electric Telegraph Company 2,000 Quarantine Act, &c 20 610 Protections of fisheries, &c 451 2 6 St. John's Hospital 2,51313 Insurance on public buildings 18.5 15 4 Penitentiary Commissioners 1,305 14 2 Night watch... 102 4 5 Jury Act 45 7 4 Miscellaneous , 3,343 10 11 Total 105,845 16 Or $529,225 352 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Statement shewing the total amount of the Revenue and Expenditure of the Colony of Newfoundland, from all sources, for the year ended 31st December, 1875 : REVENUE. Customs, less drawbacks and bounty on ships built in the colony $784,553 79 Crown lands 3,160 70 Postal revenue 12,75000 License fund 5,532 87 Fees from public offices 4,373 15 Lighthouse dues 28,216 73 $838,587 24 Loans received under Acts of the Legislature and included in the present debt of the colony for public works, hospital, school- houses, &c 110,000 00 $948,587 24 EXPENDITURE. Amount of expenditure, as per Financial Sec- retary's statement 861,646 92 Interest on debenture debt $61,436 36 Ditto on floating debt 2,065 10 63,501 46 Customs expenditure 46,235 53 $971,383 91 The staple articles of commerce in Newfoundland are fish and oil. The following is the value of imports and exports in 1862 : Imports $5,035,410 Exports 5,858,815 Quintals of dried cod-fish exported in!862 1,080,069 Tuns of oil " gl6,637 Seal-skins " " ""* 268,624 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 353 (From the Commercial Journal, September 19.) "TABLE OF EXPORTS; From AUGUST 1st to SEPTEMBER 16th. 1875, 1876. CODFISH, qtls. Portugal ... 4,392 2,100 Spain 7,220 11,566 Italy 9,870 10,146 British West Indies 2,149 4,162 Brazils 20,542 22,457 Scotland 3 Otherparts 2,134 1,987 SEAL OIL, tuns To United Kingdom 804 700 Otherparts 339 114 COD OIL, tuns To United Kingdom 9 30 Otherparts 1 SEAL SKINS To United Kingdom 53,096 870 SALMON, trcs 840 277 MACKEREL and HERRINGS, brls. 590 400 MOLASSES, pun 542 798 SUGAR, cwt 505 3,400 SALT, tons ..., 100 301 TABLE OF IMPORTS. From JANUARY 1st to SEPTEMBER 10th. 1875. 1876. Bread, cwt 17,416 13,726 Flour, brl 112,784 177,310 Corn-meal, brl 3,210 1,841 Pork, brl 19,224 18,370 Beef, brl 1,149 2,703 Butter, cwt 9,464 12,370 Rum, puns 963 565 Molasses, puns 11,633 7,554 W 354 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Sugar,cwt 11,918 8,912 Coffee, cwt 540 703 Tobacco, Ibs 213,254 334,198 Tea, Ibs 481,945 429,568 Soap, boxes 9,636 8,539 Candles 1,144 816 Salt, ton 21,146 ,.. 25,920 Coals, ton 27,777 17,589 Pitchandtar 2,168 2.549 Potatoes, brls 7,846 7,655 Oats 27,668 22,971 Kerosene oil, brls 3,125 2,973 Oxenandcows 1,853 2,811 Sheep 2,413 2,170 The exports of Newfoundland, just before the close of the last war, were as follows : 1,200,000 quintals of dry Codfish, at 2 per quintal 2,400,000 20,000 quintals, pickled Cod-fish, at 12s. per quintal 12,000 6,000 tons of Cod-oil, at 32 per ton 192,000 156,000 Seal-skins, at 5s. per skin 39,000 4,666 tuns of Seal-oil, at 36 per tun 167,976 2,000 tierces of Salmon, at X5 per tierce 10,000 1,685 barrels of Mackerel, at 1 10s. per barrel 2,527 4,000 casks of Caplin, sounds and tongues 2,000 2,100 barrels of Herrings, at 1 5s. per barrel 2,625 Beavers' and other furs 600 Pine timber and planks 800 400 puncheons of berries 2,000 Total amount 2,831,528 Or $14,155,640 The value of the imports from the United States in 1849 amounted to 229,279. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 355 Number of vessels that entered inwards and cleared out- wards of the Island of Newfoundland during the year 1856. INWARDS. OUTWARDS OUUJNIKlJiiO. No. Tons. Men. No. Tons. Men. United Kingdom British Possessions . . France 191 626 23 33,302 59,494 491 1,822 3,909 65 114 614 5 17,316 68,512 85 1,033 4,216 13 Spain 93 11,508 805 71 8,320 617 Portugal 112 14,824 916 93 12,211 784 Italy 11 1,816 95 36 4,424 295 Germany 32 6,094 316 Denmark 2 411 19 1 i20 7 United States 174 23,782 1,181 76 9,330 508 Spanish West Indies . . Brazils 48 14 6,462 3,120 405 167 30 98 4,479 20,447 253 1,134 Austria 1 338 16 St. Domingo 2 550 19 Total 1327 161,640 9,716 1140 145,849 8,879 Ships entered in 1860 1,421 Ships cleared " 1,296 The amount of coin in circulation in Newfoundland is said to be usually over 200,000 sterling, or $1,000,000. Silver coin from almost every country is in circulation ; the principal part of the silver, however, is Spanish coin. s. d. 4 currency. 2 7 One pound sterling is equal to 1 A shilling Sixpence The rule is : to convert sterling into currency, add one- sixth, and to convert currency into sterling, subtract one- seventh. Dollars and cents have never been substituted as the currency. The following will show the state of the Savings' Bank, which is under the direction of the Local Government; 356 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Assets and Liabilities, 31st Dec., 1856. Assets $617,496 Liabilities 545,425 Surplus of Assets $71,071 There was a Branch Bank of British North America established in St. John's for about seventeen years. The first draft of this Bank was drawn on London, December 14th, 1836. It was closed in 1853, and the building occu- pied as a Bank was purchased by the Commercial Bank- ing Company of Newfoundland. There is now, besides the Savings' Bank, the Commercial Bank and the Union Bank. These, with a branch of the Savings' Bank estab- lished at Harbour Grace, in Conception Bay, are the only banking establishments in Newfoundland. The following is the number of vessels entered and cleared in the various harbours of Newfoundland, engaged in the Foreign Trade, during the year 1833, exclusive of those entered and cleared at Labrador : St. John's, entered and cleared vessels - 455 Harbor Grace, &c. 105 Burin 45 Trinity Bay 37 Fortune Bay 34 Twilingate and Fogo, &c. 30 Ferryland 25 Placentia - 10 St. Lawrence 9 Bay of Bulls 3 Of these vessels 753 298 To Great Britain. 193 Foreign Europe, and Brazils. 182 British America. 72 West Indies. 8 United States, 753 AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 357 Number of registered vessels that entered and cleared at the various ports of the island, distinguishing the coun- tries from or for which they entered or cleared, in each year during the six years ending 1844, and for the year 1847 : COUNTRIES. 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1847 1847 United Kingdom 186 603 252 75 65 1482 238 665 263 56 140 1515 225 649 268 71 102 1571 209 790 282 61 118 1521 230 795 294 70 135 1546 3070 203 873 301 62 125 1583 Arrival. 238 463 268 Depart. 115 702 300 British Colonies Foreign Europe Foreign \Vest Indies United States 186 64 Totals 2663 2877 2886 2981 3147 1155 1181 Number, tonnage and crews 'of vessels entered and cleared at each port of the colony of Newfoundland, in the year 1858 : rTn"r\r r n? TITC! ] ENTERED ( CLEARED No. Tons. Men. No. Tons. Men. St. John's 925 134,933 7,770 849 126,862 7,356 Twillingate 3 352 22 6 699 43 Fogo ." 18 2,348 113 18 2,256 112 Greenspond 11 1,227 72 12 1,321 81 Trinity .' 22 2,539 161 21 2,518 156 Carbonear 20 2,566 135 23 2,911 166 Harbour Grace 155 22,826 1,378 138 21,172 1,256 Brigus 9 963 55 9 1,022 60 Little Placentia 4 173 15 2 111 9 Oderia 8 428 35 9 737 45 Lamaline 7 328 28 3 213 13 Burin 42 3,277 227 40 3,146 207 Harbour Breton 41 4,556 300 37 4,874 306 St. Lawrence . 6 295 26 Gaultois 24 1,640 120 10 1,284 92 LaPoele 89 6,936 537 79 5,779 458 Channel 56 2,713 246 11 704 52 Totals 1440 188,100 11,230 1266 175,609 10,412 358 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, Number and tonnage of Spanish vessels that loaded with fish since 1834 : j 1 g| 1 "o3 no go j "S-m 1 I K d || 3 o> o 6 "2 ^ 3 0^ o 8 !* r EH s O" !* > ^ C>* 1834 10 1,489 105 2,5881 1841 24 2,841 262 55,141 1835 11 1,505 140 3,1103 1842 28 3,344 313 67,306 1836 13 1,792 147 3,5944 1843 42 5,049 472 96,994 1837 19 2,618 220 5,1062 1844 46 5,470 494 106,358 1838 18 2,196 200 4,2705 1845 82 9,740 849 180,682 1839 25' 3,459 294 6,1395 1846 28 3,146 279 55,969 1840 19 1,987 236 4,2697 1847 44 5,082 431 96,673 SHIPS BUILT IN THE COLONY. 1840: 1841. 1842. 1843. 1844. 1845. 1846. 1847. 1848. 1857. No.. 31 33 32 24 25 32 31 17 19 68 Tons 1659 1783 1553 1192 1281 1607 1723 854 794 3377 SHIPS OWNED AND REGISTERED IN THE COLONY. On 31st Dec., 1848 954 On 31st Dec., 1857 1115 On 31st Dec., 1844 844 On 31st Dec., 1845 907 On 31st Dec., 1847 .... ...950 There are twenty-six light-houses on the coast of New- foundland, besides the light-houses on the French island of St. Pierre. The following is a description of the lights : " St. John's. Two red lights are exhibited, intended as lead- ing marks for vessels entering the narrows. " Fort Amherst. This is a stationary light, on the southern head of the entrance of St. John's harbour, first established in 1813. AND AS IT IS IN*1877. 359 " Cape Spear. This is a powerful revolving light, burning at an elevation of 275 feet above the level of the sea, and showing a brilliant flash at intervals of one minute. In clear weather it may be seen from sea, in any direction, at the distance of thirty-five miles. " Harbour Grace. This is a powerful fixed light, situate on Harbour Grace Island, in Conception Bay, extending easterly or seaward, in a direction by compass from north to south-west. " Bonavista. This light revolves every two minutes, showing a red and white flash alternately ; and it is elevated 1 50 feet above the level of the sea. " St. Peter's. A light house has been erected by the French Government on Galantry Head, near Cape Noir. The light is a fixed one. It burns at an elevation of about 210 feet above the level of the sea. It may be seen (in passing from N. N. W. to N. N. E.) at the distance of eighteen or twenty miles, in clear weather. In passing by the north it is shut in by high land from N. N. E. to W. N. W. " Ferryland Head Light. First exhibited on the 1st October, 1871. From sunset to sunrise, a steady white light of the 3rd order, burning on a brick tower 200 feet above the level of the sea, visible in favourable weather sixteen nautical miles. It is situated in lat. 47 00' 58" N, and long. 52 51' 07" W. The tower is of red brick ; the keeper's dwelling, detached from the tower, is painted white and the roof red. " Cape Pine. This light-house was erected by the British Government. The building is of iron. It is situated 246 feet above the sea, and the light is 74 feet from the ground, making it in all 320 feet above the level of the sea. The contractor was A. Gordon, Esq., Civil Engineer, Greenock. The building and light are similar to that erected by the same gentleman on the south-eastern end of the Bermuda Islands, and which is said to be one of the finest in the world. The following are the light dues : One shilling per ton on all vessels entering any port or harbour of the colony, except coasting and sealing vessels ; but not to be levied more than once in any one year. Six pence per ton on registered vessels of forty tons and up- wards. Under forty tons, fifteen shillings per annum, or three dollars. No greater sum than 25 sterling is to be levied in any one year for light dues on any one steamer or vessel enter- 360 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, ing any port in the colony ; and no steamer plying between Europe and North America, and entering any port of the colony, as a port of call, to be liable to pay any light dues, or other port charges, except pilotage. " Harlour Grace Beacon Light. This is a harbour light, placed on the Point of Beach, at the entrance to Harbour Grace. " Green Island Light, at the entrance of Catalina Harbour, Trinity Bay. Situate in lat 48 30' 16" N., Ion. 53 2' 4" W. This is a fixed white light, burns at an elevation of 92 feet above high water, and in favourable weather will be seen E. N. E. seaward, to S. W., 15 nautical miles. Vessels bound north- ward, by keeping this light open with the north head of Cata- lina, until Bonavista light opens with Cape St. Jean, will give the Flower Rocks an ample berth ; or, when coming from the northward and bound for Catalina, by giving the N. Head a moderate berth, you will clear the Brandies Rocks by steering for Green Island Light. It was first exhibited in 1857. "Cape Race exhibits a revolving white light. From sunset to sunrise the light is visible to seaward, from N. E. bv E. round by the S. E. and S. to W. The light is elevated 180"feet above the mean water level of the sea, and may be seen in clear wea- ther 19 nautical miles from a ship's deck. The tower is striped red and white, vertically. It stands close to the old beacon, which has been cut down. The lighthouse is in lat. 46 39' 30" N., Ion. 53 4' 30" W., and was first exhibited in 1856. " Cape Race Steam fog Alarm. A powerful steam whistle has been placed on Cape Race, about 520 feet south of the lighthouse, which is sounded during thick or foggy weather, or snow storms, for ten seconds, with intervals of silence of fifty seconds in each minute. The whistle will probably be heard in calm weather, 20 miles ; with the wind, 30 miles ; and in stormy weather, against the wind, from seven to ten miles. " Doddinghead, Great Burin Island, Light. This light was put in requisition on the 3rd August, 1858, and is exhibited every night from sunset to sunrise. It is revolving cato-dioptric of the second order, producing a brilliant white light every minute, burning at an elevation of 430 feet above the level of the sea, and in favourable weather can be seen 20 miles. Situ- ated in 47 0' 26" north lat., 55 8' 43" west Ion. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 361 " 1872 Puffin Island, Greenspond. The light-house on this island is built of granite, with the tower and keeper's dwelling attached. The illuminating apparatus is dioptric of the 4th order, and a fixed red light is exhibited from sunset to sunrise. It is 85 feet above the level of the sea, and in clear weather should be seen a distance of 1 2 miles. The light is visible from N. by E. through S. to W. by N. by compass, and is situated in 49 3' 37" N. lat., and 58 32' 27" W. Ion. " No. 1, 1873 Belloram Fortune Say. A fixed white light is exhibited nightly at this place from sunset to sunrise, at an elevation of 35 feet above the level of the sea, and in clear weather should be visible seven miles. The building is a wooden tower, painted white, and is situated in lat. 47 29' N., and 55 27' 15" W. Ion. The apparatus is dioptric of the 8th order, with a single argand burner, and illuminates an arc of the ho- rizon of 270. In entering the harbour the light must be kept on the port hand. "No. 2, 1873 Rose Blanche Point. This light-house is built of granite, up on the eastern head. The tower and keeper's dwelling are attached. The illuminating apparatus is dioptric of the 4th order, and a fixed white light is exhibited from sunset to sunrise, at an elevation of 95 feet above the level of the sea, and should be seen in clear weather 13 miles. Shag Island, Black Rock, bears west from the light, and distant about one mile ; Rose Blanche shoals, W. S. W., half a mile ; and Petite Black Rock, E. by S., 3 miles. "No. 3, 1873 Fort Point, Trinity. A. fixed light is exhibited nightly, from sunset to sunrise, upon a wooden tower, painted white, and at a height of 75 feet above the level of the sea, and should be visible in clear weather for 11 miles. The erection is situated in 48" 21' 55" N. lat., and 53" 20' 51" W. Ion. The apparatus is dioptric of the 8th order, with a single argand burner, and illuminates an arc of the horizon of 320. In enter- ing the harbour the light must be kept on the port hand. " Offer Wadham Island Light. Was first exhibited on the 4th October, 1858, and is lighted every night from sunset to sun- rise. The light is a steady, fixed lens-light, burning on a cir- cular brick tower, 100 feet above the level of the sea, and can be seen in a favourable state of the atmosphere 15 nautical 362 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, miles. Situated in latitude 49 36' 0" North longitude 53 45' 6" West. " Baccalieu Island Light. This light is exhibited every night from the going away of daylight in the evening to the return of daylight in the morning. The light-house situated on the northern end of the island latitude 48 8 V 51" North ; longi- tude 52 47' 50" West the tower is of brick, the keeper's dwelling (a square building detached from the tower) is painted white, with the roof red. " The light is cato-dioptric, first-olass holophotal revolving white light, showing a flash every twenty seconds. It is elevated 443 feet above high water, and can be seen in clear weather 30 nautical miles, and a lesser distance according to the state of the atmosphere. When the southern end of the island bears N.N.E., the light will not be visible when nearer the island than 8 miles. It was first exhibited in 1858. " Cape St. Marys Light Was put into requisition on the 20th September, 1860; it is a revolving cato-dioptric light of the first order, producing alternately every minute a brilliant red and a white light, burning at an elevation of 300 feet above the level of the sea, and will be seen in a favourable state of the atmosphere 26, nautical miles from the vessel's deck ; situated in 46 40' 30" N. lat., 54 11' 34" W. long. The tower is of brick, and on each side of which stands the dwelling of the keeper and assistant, the sides of which are painted white, roofs red. " Brunei Island Light, Mercer's Head, Fortune Bay. First ex- hibited 27th June, 1865. It is a powerful flashing white light, and attains its greatest brillianc)* every ten seconds. It burns at an elevation of 408 feet above the level of the sea, and in clear weather may be seen at a distance of 35 miles, and be visible in every direction from North, round East and South, to W.N.W. Mercer's Head is a bold headland, and situated in long. 55 59' 30" W., and lat. 47 16' N. " No. 1, 1874. Cann Island, Seldom- come-by. A fixed white light is exhibited nightly at this place, from sunset to sunrise, at an elevation of 85 feet above the level of the sea, and should be visible 12 miles. The tower and dwelling are of wood and attached, and are situated in latitude 49 35' 05" N., and longi- tude 54 10' 33" W. The apparatus is dioptric, of the 8th order, AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 363 with a single argand burner, and illuminates an arc of the horizon of 327. " No. 2, 1874. Boar Island, Burgeo. A fixed red light is ex- hibited nightly at this place, from sunset to sunrise, at an ele- vation of 240 feet above the sea, and should be visible seven- teen miles. The tower and dwelling are of wood, and attached, and are situated in latitude 47 36' 12" K, and longitude 57 35' 13" W. The apparatus is dioptric of the sixth order, with a single argand burner, and illuminates the whole of the hori- zon of 270. " No. 1, 1875. Channel Head, Port-aux-Basques. A wooden light tower has been erected on this head, and on and after this date & fixed red light will be exhibited thereon, at an elevation of ninety feet above the level of the sea. Lat 47 33' 47" K, and long. 50 07' 10" West. In clear weather the light should be visible twelve miles. The illuminating apparatus is dioptric, of the eighth order, with a single argand burner. The whole horizon is illuminated. " Rocky Point, Harbour Breton, Fortune Bay situated in lati- tude 47 27' 30" N., longitude 55 47' 45" W. A square wooden tower carrying an octagon and lantern, in which a white light will be exhibited nightly, with a red light to mark the Harbour Rock. " Garnish, Fortune Bay. A beacon tower of wood, carrying an octagon and lantern, in which a red light is exhibited nightly. Latitude 47 14" N-, longitude 55 24' W (approximate). " Beacon, Ireland Eye, entrance of La Poele Bay. A square building of wood, painted white, with three black bands, has been erected on this island. It is seventy-five feet high, and is supported on four chains. " Alight-house has been erected by the Government of Canada on the western side of Cape Ray, on the south-west coast of the Island of Newfoundland. Latitude 47 37' N., longitude 59 18' W. A powerful flash white light is exhibited, making a complete revolution in two and a quarter minutes, and flashing every ten seconds : at a long distance, however, it has the ap- pearance of a steady light. The light can probably be seen at a distance of twenty miles in clear weather. " The tower is a wooden building, hexagonal in shape, forty- one feet high, and painted white. The keeper's dwelling, also 364 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, of wood, stands at a little distance from the tower, and is also painted white. " The illuminating apparatus is catoptric, and consists of twelve lamps and reflectors. " A fog whistle is in operation at Cape Ray. It will be blown in thick and foggy weather, and during snow storms, for ten seconds in each minute, leaving an interval of fifty seconds be- tween each blast. It can be heard from three to fifteen miles. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 365 CHAPTER XVI. POPULATION, RELIGION, AND EDUCATION. HE following was the population of Newfoundland at different periods : Year. 1763 ................. 13,112 \ w . , 1784 ................. 15253 Wmter PP ulatlon - 1806..... ........ ..... 26,500 1823 ..................... 52,157 1828 ..................... 58,088 In 1836, the population was as follows : District of St. John's ,. ............................... 18,920 Conception Bay .............................. 23,215 Trinity Bay ................................ 6,803 Bona vista Bay ........................... 5,183 Fogo ......................................... 4,886 Ferryland ................................. 5,1H Placentia and St. Mary's ............... 4,701 Burin ................................... 3,140 Fortune Bay ...... . ........................ 3,129 Total ................... 75,094 RELIGION. The population of the Island consisted of nearly equal numbers of Roman Catholics and Protes- tants there being, of the former, 37,718, and of the lat- ter, 37,376 of whom 26,740 were Episcopalians, and 10,636 Wesleyans. 366 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, According to the Returns of 1845, the population was : District of St. John's 25,196 Conception Bay 28,026 Trinity Bay 8,801 BonavistaBay 7,227 Fogo 6,744 Ferryland 4,581 Placentia and St. Mary's 6,471 Burin 4,357 Fortune Bay 5,100 Extreme West 2,200 Total 98,703 RELIGION. Church of Rome 46,983 Church of England 34,294 Wesleyan Metholists 14,239 Presbyterians 578 Congregationalists 394 Remainder unknown. The Roman Catholics are Irish and descendants of Irish, the Episcopalians, Methodists, and Congrega- tionalists are English and the descendants of English and Jersey ; the Presbyterians are principally Scotch and their descendants. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 367 S8SJOH : - i- t- i- - ?i '^CDC^COCOOO (N 00.f ^c-COrHI>.rHQOCO :i plant (Ledum Latifolium). This plant is used by some 2' the poor of Newfoundland as tea; it is also very often used medicinally for diseases of the lungs, and with good effect. Sheep laurel (KilmiaAngus- tifolia) and Swamp laurel (Kalmia Glauca), called in Newfoundland, Gould Withy. This plant when boiled with tobacco, and sprinkled over the parts effected, is an infallible remedy to cure dogs of the mange. The Black AND AS IT IS IN 1877. -501 Crowberry (J&mpetrwm Nigrum) occupies all the head- lands on the coast, and is the principal food of some birds. The White Pine (Pinus Strobus) called by way of eminence the pine, principally occupy the northern and western parts of Newfoundland. Pine is the largest forest timber of the country ; the usual -size to which it attains is from 18 to 34 inches in diameter, at Bay de Easte, in Fortune Bay, however, pines have been found four feet in diameter. Great quantities of pine are sawed into boards, which are said to be much superior to the lumber imported from the neighbouring continent. The Red Spruce (Pinus Rubra) is indigenous, but is seldom met with ; White Spruce (Pinus Alba) and Black Spruce (Pinus Nigra) and the Fur (Pinus Balsamea). The largest spruce and fir of Newfoundland are small when compared with the stately trees of the American Continent. In Newfoundland they generally attain to from six to twenty inches in diameter, and from thirty to fifty feet long. The spruce is generally used for building boats, oars, fences, spars of various kinds, planks, hand- barrows, wheel-barrows, building fishing-rooms and wharves. It is also used for firing, and from its branches that wholesome beverage, spruce-beer, is made. The fir is mostly used for the frame- work of dwelling-houses and stores, clapboards, oil hogsheads, salmon and herring bar- rels, casks for screwed fish, shingles and fire-wood. The turpentine bladders of this tree are used in cases of fresh cuts and other wounds. It also forms an excellent var- nish for water-colour drawings. The Black Larch (Pinus Pendula) and the Red Larch (Pinus Microscarpa), Hack- matack. Tamerac or Juniper. This is one of the most beautiful of the forest trees, and may be called the oak of Newfoundland, being the hardest and most durable of all the forest timber. It has superseded the use of the birch in the construction of ships. It is also used for cart-wheels and for other valuable purposes, and when dry it makes the best fuel of all the forest trees. 502 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, The Pitcher Plant, or Indian Cup, called in Newfound- land the Indian Pipe (Saracenia Purpurea) said to cure the small- pox, is found on all the marshes. The Ground Juniper (Juniperus Communis) is a trail- ing berry -bearing shrub. The Order, Vaccineaceae, includes the large and small Cranberries (Oxy coccus Macrocarpus) and (0. Palustris). The Whortle Berries (V actinium Resinorum), black Whortle Berry (V. Corymbosum) and Tall Whortle Berry ( V. Uliginosu'tn). The Blue Berries (V. Pennsylvanicum), called in Newfoundland " hurts." The Partridge Berry (Gaultheria Procumb&ns) are most abundant. There are an immense number of plants in Newfoundland which bear edible berries. The Order, Caprifoliaceae, contains the Dog-woods (Cornus Canadensis), which is very plentiful in New- foundland. Scarlet Stoneberries (Cornus) are plentifully scattered beneath the shade of the fir-trees, where they love to vegetate. Trailing evergreens and berries are found in almost endless variety in Newfoundland. The garden vegetables in Newfoundland, as well as the ani- mals bred in the country, are said by all whether native or otherwise, to be the best flavoured in the world. I have seen no potatoes, either in the British Provinces or the United States, to be compared for mealiness or flavour to the Newfoundland potato. Potatoes in England, raised from the Newfoundland seed, obtained the prize twice at the Horticultural Show. For a more detailed account of the natural history of Newfoundland, see " Wandering Thoughts, or Solitary Hours," published by the Author in 1846. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. -503 CHAPTER XIX. THE BED INDIANS, OR BCEOTHICKS. HEN Cabot discovered Newfoundland in 1497, he held intercourse with the Red Indians, who were dressed in skins and painted with red ochre, and who, no doubt, beheld his approach to the shore with as much astonishment as did the inhabitants of San Salvador, one of the Bahama Islands, when Co- lombus discovered the West Indies, in 1492, who sup- posed the ship in which he crossed the ocean to have moved upon the water with wings, and to have made a noise resembling thunder. He was regarded as an inhabi- tant of the sun, who had descended to visit them. In like manner, when Captain Cook visited the South-Sea Is- landers, upwards of half a century ago, they were struck with terror and astonishment when they saw the ships, flying with their white wings over the ocean, regarding them as either birds or fishes, according as their sails were spread or lowered. This celebrated man, who had been such a friend to Newfoundland, at length fell a vic- tim to the uncivilized inhabitants of the southern hemis- phere. He was massacred at Owhyhee, on the 14th of February, 1779. Cabot took three of the Indians with him to England, and other adventurers who succeeded him also took some of the natives to England. In the year 1843, at Bird Island Cove, on the northern coast of Newfoundland, I had the following conversation with old Mr. Wiltshire : " How long have you been living in this place ? " " About twenty-five years ; previous to which I resided seve- ral years in Green Bay, and once during that period barely escaped being transported." " Under what circumstances ? " 504 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, "In the year 1810 I was living to the northward. Five of us were returning one evening from fishing, when, on rowing round a point, we came close upon a canoe of Red Indians ; there were four men and one woman in the canoe. Had we been disposed to have shot them we could have done so, as we had a loaded gun in the boat. The Indians, however, became alarmed, and pulled with all speed to the shore, where they immediately jumped out and ran into the woods, leaving the canoe on the beach. We were within ten yards of them when they landed. We took the canoe into our possession and car- ried it home. In the fall of the year, when we went to St. John's with the first boat-load of dry fish, thinking a canoe would be a curiosity, we took it away with us in order to present it to the Governor ; but immediately it became known that we had a canoe of the Red Indians, we were taken and lodged in prison for ten days, on a supposition that we had shot the Indians to whom the canoe belonged. We protested our innocence, and stated the whole affair to the authorities ; at last the canoe was examined ; no shot-holes were found in any part of itj and there being no evidence against us, we were set at liberty." " Did you ever see any of the encampments of the Red Indians ? " " Yes, frequently ; I have seen twelve wigwams in the neigh- bourhood of Cat Harbour. A planter living there built a new boat, for which he had made a fine new suit of sails. One night the Indians came and carried away every sail. The planter and his men immediately it was discovered, set out in pursuit of the Indians. After travelling nearly a day, they espied them on a distant hill, shaking their cassocks at them in defiance, which were made out of the boat's sails, and daubed with red ochre. Seeing further pursuit was fruitless they returned home. The next day, however, the planter raised a party of twenty- five of us. We proceeded overland to a place where we knew there was an encampment ; when we arrived we found twelve wigwams, but all deserted. Previous to our leaving, two men were despatched in a skiff, in order to take us back by water. On approaching near the place of the Indians, they saw a fine goose swimming about a considerable distance from the shore. They immediately rowed towards it, when the goose began to AND AS IT IS IN 1877. swim towards the shore ; but on rowing faster to overtake it, one of the men happened to see something dark moving up and down behind a sand bank. Suspecting all was not right, they immediately pulled from the shore, when they saw two Indians rise up from concealment, who at once discharged their arrows at them, but they were at too great a distance to receive any injury. After the sails had been taken, the Indians, expecting a visit, placed these two of their party to keep watch. The goose was fastened to a string in order to decoy the men in the boat near the shore, so as to afford the Indians an opportunity of throwing their arrows at them. The two Indians on watch communicated intelligence of the arrival of the boat to the en- campment ; hence the cause of the forsaken wigwams when we arrived. " " How large were the wigwams ? " " They were built round and about thirty or forty feet in circumferance. The frame consists of small poles, being fastened together at the top and covered with birch rind, leaving a small opening for the escape of the smoke. Traces of their encamp- ments are still to be seen along the Cat Harbour shore, consist- ing of large holes, &c., being left in the sand." " Did you ever hear of any of the Indians having been taken ] " "Yes; during the time the circumstance occurred which I have stated, Lieutenant Buchan, in H. M. Schooner ' Pike,' was commissioned by the Governor, Sir John Thomas Duck- worth, to discover and if possible bring about a friendly inter- course with the Indians. He succeeded in discovering an en- campment, and prevailed on two of the Indians to go on board his vessels, leaving two marines with the Indians as hostages, while he proceeded in search of another party. But as Lieuten- ant Buchan did not return at the time appointed by him, the Indians, suspecting cruelty about being practised upon them, murdered the marines and fled. When Lieutenant Buchan returned to the spot, and not finding his men, the two Indians he had taken with him immediately decamped, and were never heard of afterwards. Several years after this, two or three Indians, who had been driven to the coast by hunger, were taken and carried to St. John's. I recollect seeing two Red Indians when I was a boy, at Catalina ; their names were William June and Thomas August (so named from the months 506 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, in which they were taken). They were both taken very young, and one of them went master on a boat for many years out of Catalina." " Do you think any of the Red Indians now exist in the country ? " "I am of opinion that owing to the relentless exterminating hand of the English furriers and the Micmac Indians, that what few were left unslaughtered made their escape across the Straits of Belle Isle to Labrador." " Do you know anything of the Micmac Indians ? " " Yes. I have lived several winters in Clode Sound, at the head of Bonavista Bay, where several families of them constantly resided. They obtained a subsistence by selling furs. They lived in wigwams, constructed very similar to those of the Red Indians. During my residence in the Bay, several Micmacs had gone to Canada, by way of Labrador, and returned again. The last family belonging to this tribe, residing in Bonavista Bay, was lost in 1841. An old man, his wife and son were coming down the Bay in their canoe, they had some rum on board, of which they drank freely, when the father and the son fell to fighting ; the son was thrown overboard by the father and drowned. He then gave directions to his wife how to manage the canoe, and plunging into the sea, swam a considerable dis- tance and then sank. The woman immediately took the canoe to the nearest cove, where she was supported by the inhabitants until she died." There are a few families of the Micmac tribe at the Bay of Notre Dame, north ; and about 60 persons belonging to the tribe residing at Bay Despair, and various parts of Fortune Bay, on the south-west coast. The Red Indians of Newfoundland never knew the use of the gun, nor were they blessed with the services and companionship of the dog. " Untamed, untaught, in arms and arts unskilled ; Their patrimonial soil, they rudely tilled, Chased the free rovers of the savage wood, Ensnared the wild bird, swept the scaly flood ; Or when the halcyon, sported in the breeze; In light canoes they skimmed the rippling seas, The passing moment, all their bliss or care ; Such as the sires had been the children were." AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 507 Sir Richard Bonneycastle says :- " As soon as the Red Indian began to appropriate his inva- der's goods, so soon did his invader use the strong arm against him ; and for two hundred and fifty years he has been con- sidered as the fair game of the hunter, the furrier, and the rude northern settlers, until his being is now a mystery, or of the things that were. " They inhabited, from the first settlement of Newfoundland, chiefly the north, north-eastern, and north-western parts of the island, in the neighbourhood of Fogo and Twilingate Islands, and about White Bay and the interior, making latterly sudden incursions to the fishing stations, and sparing no whites they could surprise. Chappell says, they were so dextrous that he was told by an old fisherman in St. George's Bay, that he, with a party, had once got near enough to some of them to hear their voices ; but upon rushing towards them they found ' the natives gone, their fire extinguished, the embers scattered in the woods, and dry leaves strewed over the ashes,' and such was the state of fear in which they existed, that the very sight of a pointed musket, or fire-arm, was sufficient to appal them. " In 1760, an attempt was made by Scott, a master of a ship, to open a communication with them. He went from St. John's to the Bay of Exploits, where he built a small fort. Here he had an interview with them, but, advancing unarmed, he was murdered, with five of his men, and the rest fled to their vessel, carrying off one of their comrades, whose body was covered with arrows, from which he died. " At length the Government offered rewards for the capture of a Red Indian, or Boeothic, as they called themselves ; and, in 1804, a female, who was paddling in her canoe towards a small island for birds' eggs, was taken by a fisherman, of the name of Cull, and brought to St. John's, where she was kindly treated by the Admiral, afterwards Lord Gambier, and sent back with presents to her tribe. She admired the epaulettes of the officers more than anything that was shewn her, and would never part with her own fur dress, although clothed hand- somely. "Dr. Chapell, in his work, published in 1812, having ob- served that it was said that this woman had been made away with on account of the value of the presents, which amounted 508 NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, to an hundred pounds, Mr. Cormack told Mr. M'Gregor, in 1827, that if Cull could catch the author of that book within the reach of his long duck -gun, he would be as dead as any of the Red Indians that Cull had often shot. " What became of the poor creature, who was at the tender mercy of such a man, has never been ascertained, but Mr. M'Gregor thinks she never reached her tribe, and Mr. Cormack is of the same opinion. " She was stained, both body and hair, of a red colour, as it was supposed, from the juice of the alder, and was not very uneasy in her new situation, when in the presence of her own sex only, but would not permit any man to approach her, ex- cept her enslaver, to whom (which speaks volumes for him) she was ever gentle and affectionate. " In 1809, another attempt was made under the immediate auspices of the Governor-Admiral Holloway, when Lieutenant Spratt, of the Royal Navy, was sent to Exploits Bay with a painting, representing officers of the navy shaking hands with an Indian chief, and a party of seamen laying parcels at his feet ; Indians presenting furs, and a white and red woman looking at their respective children, with a sailor courting an Indian girl. But none of the tribe were found. Sir Thomas Dutchworth, published in 1810 a new 'Proclamation for the protection of the Red Indians.' And soon afterwards Lieutenant Buchan, of the Royal Navy, was sent to the River of Exploits, with orders to winter there, and to open a communication with them. In 1811, a reward of one hundred pounds was offered to any one who should bring about a friendly understanding with the Red Indians. In 1819, another female was taken by a party of fur- riers, who met two men and a woman on the ice in Red Indian Lake. The woman was secured, but her husband and the other savage resisting, they were both shot. Her husband was a fine- looking Indian, six feet high. They took the woman to St. John's, having first named her Mary March, from the month in which she was taken. She lived all the rest of the year at St. John's, and was sent back to River Exploits in the ensuing winter, under the care of Captain Buchan, with presents to her tribe ; but she had contracted sickness, and died on board. Her body was wrapped in linen, placed in a coffin, and left on the margin of a pond or lake, where it was likely to be found, as it AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 309 was, by her people, who conveyed it to their place for the dead, where it was found several years afterwards, by Mr. Cormack, lying beside that of her busband. Nothing was seen or heard of this people again until the winter of 1823, when a party of them was seen on the ice in New Bay, an inlet of the Great Bay of Notre Dame, by some furriers. On the first meeting, these amiable whites shot a man and woman, who were approaching them apparently for food. The man was first killed, and the woman, in despair, remained a calm victim. Mr. Cormack was told these facts by the very barbarian who shot her. " Three other women afterwards gave themselves up and were brought to the capital. They were all in a starving con- dition ; and what became of the other two does not clearly appear. Shanandithit, the one brought to St. John's, was very kindly treated there, and lived six years, dying in the hospital, in 1829, of a pulmonary disease, to which, it appears from her communications her tribe was subject. I have seen a miniature of this female. Without being handsome, it shows a pleasing countenance, not unlike, in its expression, to those of the Canadian tribes round, with prominent cheek-bones, somewhat sunken eyes and small nose. She lived in Mr. Cormack's house until he left the colony, and then in that of the Attorney. General, Mr. Simms, by whom she was most kindly attended to. But it appears consumption was the fatal disease of her nation, which had carried off Mary March, and thus the hope of making her the means of redeeming the cruelties which had been practised upon her people was lost."* Once the red man sported along the shores of New- foundland in perfect security, their hunting grounds un- intruded upon, and their peace unbroken by their cruel persecutor, the furrier ; but as soon as Europeans began to settle in the country, the French and English furriers, perceiving the skin dresses of the Indians, and the rich, fur which served them as bedding at night, conceived the diabolical purpose of shooting them for the valuable furs which they always carried with them, and thus commenced a cold-blooded war against these unhappy * See a miniature of her in "'Wandering Thoughts," page 373, by P. Tocque. NEWFOUNDLAND, AS IT WAS, people, who were thought as little of, by these so-called civilized men, as a seal or a bird. The poor Indians were hunted like wolves by those merciless and unfeeling barbarians, the white men, till at last, of all this noble race, at one time a powerful tribe, scarce a trace is left behind. No canoe is now seen gliding noiselessly over the lakes, no war song breaks upon the ear. If we go to the River Exploits, no sound of the Indian is heard, breaking the silence of these gloomy solitudes. If we visit that beautiful sheet of water, Red Indian Lake (their last retreat), no smoke is seen curling from their wigwams, no footstep is traced, all is barrenness and naked desolation. Where then are the red men ? They are gone ; they have passed away for ever, and are now in the far-off land of the Great Spirit. The philanthro- pist cannot contemplate the destruction of the aborigines of Newfoundland, without dropping a tear for their melancholy and sad destiny. The Government endea- voured to bring about a reconciliation with them, but it was then too late. The red man lost all confidence, and his heart was steeled against the cruel treachery of the white man. It is astonishing that such a length of time should have rolled on, and so little effort have been made for the accomplishment of one of the sublimest objects in which man can be engaged, the civilization of his fellow-man. Had the Government, in the beginning, sent a devoted Christian missionary to this degraded race, to charm them with the music of a Saviour's dying love, he whuld have been the true pioneer in the march of civilization ; the hearts of these savages would have been tamed, their ferocity restrained, their passions subdued, and the bow and arrow exchanged for the " olive branch of peace." The preaching of the Gospel must precede the civilization of degraded men. It is a fact which cannot be denied, that to whatever portion of heathen lands the Gospel has been communicated, it has conveyed to the savage bosom a thrill of pleasure before unknown. AND AS IT IS IN 1877. 5 The Boeothicks had some idea of religion, though dark, and mixed up with errors and superstition. They believed that they were created by the Great Spirit out of arrows, and that after death they went to a distant country to renew the society of their friends. Thus they believed in those great doctrines of the Christian revelation, the existence of a God, and the immortality of the soul. Reason never could have discovered the doctrine of the soul's immortality to them, because there is nothing in nature, unaided by revelation, from which the doctrine could be deduced. The ancient Greeks and Romans, with all their learning, eloquence and refinement, could not discover the soul's immortality. What they assert in regard to it one time, they doubted it another. Athens, the seat of Grecian learning and philosophy, worshipped thirty thousand deities. Sunk in ignorance as they were, we cannot suppose that the red men were sufficiently acquainted with the operations of nature in the vegetable kingdom, or the principles of philosophy by which the laws of rest and motion are governed, as to draw any analogy between them and the resurrection of the human body. Therefore the knowledge of a future state must have been communicated to them by a divine intuition. The dealings of Jehovah are frequently dark and mysterious. " The ways of God are in the whirlwind, and His paths are in the great deep ; clouds and darkness are round about His throne." In 1827 a Bceothick society was formed in St. John's, having for its object the civilization of the native savages, and an expedition was undertaken by W. E. Cormack, Esq., president of the society. See " Wandering Thoughts, or Solitary Hours," by the Author. THE END. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. form L9-100m-9,'52(A3105)444 F Tocque - 1122 Newfoundland UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY A 000 898 299 3