Part 16

“‘The Mississippi is turbid, in many parts to muddiness; the St. Lawrence unusually limpid. One river is composed of almost an unbroken chain of lakes; the other, in all its vast expanse, has no lakes that strictly deserve the name. Annually the Mississippi overleaps its bed, and overwhelms the adjacent shores to a great extent; an accidental rise of three feet, in the course of fifty years, is considered an extraordinary swell of the waters of St. Lawrence; this circumstance has occurred the present season for the first time within the lapse of forty years past. The Mississippi, flowing from north to south, passes through innumerable climes; whilst its rival, winding from its source, in a south-east direction, to near north latitude 41°, turns gradually north-east, and again flows into its original climate of ice and snow. The Mississippi, before its final discharge into the Gulf of Mexico, divides into a number of branches, having their separate egress; the St. Lawrence imperceptibly expands to a wide bay, which finally opens into the gulf of the same name. The banks of the Mississippi present a level, scarce rising above the superior surface of that stream; those of St. Lawrence, by a gentle acclivity, exhibit the opposing sides of an elegant basin. Much of the surface watered by the Mississippi is a region of grass, where few shrubs or trees rise to break the monotony of the face of the earth; the shores that bound the St. Lawrence, when in a state of nature, are covered with an almost continuous and impervious forest. And, lastly, though rather an accidental than a natural distinction, the Mississippi rolls its mighty volume, swelled by more than a thousand rivers, through one empire; and is, as I once before observed, the largest stream on this globe, whose entire course lies within one sovereignty. The St. Lawrence is, for more than 1,300 miles, a national limit, and, as such, marked with the sanguinary points which distinguish the bounds of rival power.’

“We arrived here on the 10th, as you would learn from my last letter. On the 11th, I was awakened by the matin-bells of the different catholic churches; and while my steam-boat companions went to see the _Lions_, I set out to deliver my letters of introduction, and soon found that the mornings of the ensuing week would be entirely occupied by commercial engagements, and the evenings with dinner-parties; for the merchants are very hospitable. On the 12th, I was left alone, all the party at the Mansion-house, with whom I was intimate, having proceeded to Quebec. On their return, in a few days, I was a little more at leisure, and accompanied them to the nunneries. The ‘Grey Sisters’ admitted us; but the ‘Black Sisters’ expressed their regret, in the politest French, that their devotional engagements would prevent them from seeing us till the following Thursday.

“On the 17th, there was a grand levée held here, (in a spacious room in our inn,) as Lord and Lady Dalhousie, with their suite, were paying a short visit to Montreal. I attended, and was duly presented. The Governor and Countess gave great satisfaction; but I hear many apprehensions expressed, that his lordship will not incur the responsibility which the Duke of Richmond is said never to have hesitated to assume, in acting first and sending for instructions afterwards. It was about this time last year that the Duke left this house, a few days before his melancholy death up the country. I was told, that on the day he had fixed for his return he was brought into the house a corpse; and on the subsequent day, which had been appointed for his levée, a large concourse of the gentlemen of Montreal attended his coffin to the vessel which carried him away. His loss is deeply regretted. Sir Peregrine Maitland, his son-in-law, the Governor of Upper Canada, and Lady Maitland, are much respected; and, I understand, are doing much for the promotion of religion in the newly settled districts in their neighbourhood.

“The bishop of Canada preached at the church I attended on Sunday; and, as I was returning home, a veteran soldier of General Wolfe’s army was pointed out, in his scarlet uniform.

“I have had a few rides into the country in the neighbourhood, which is very beautiful. I have also met most of the principal merchants at dinner during my stay. On these occasions I am always gratified by the allusions I continually hear to home. ‘At home, we do so and so;’ ‘Mr. ——’s carriage is just arrived from home;’ ‘Here are some biscuits from home; fresh from Threadneedle-street, where I always get them.’

“In the streets, however, there were many peculiarities to remind us that we were not at home. More than three-fourths of the inhabitants are said to be catholics; and the bells of the cathedral are never at rest. The priests, who are the seigniors of the island, are very rich; but they are said to be charitable, moral, and by no means luxurious. Our young friends would be amused by the numerous dog-carts, the dogs in gig or tandem harness, in every part of the town, and by the _calèches_ of the last century, which would serve as a foil for a north of England shandan. A considerable number of Indians are usually walking the streets with moccasins for sale; and I saw several on the river-side, a mile distant, in wigwams, of which their birch canoe formed a principal part. The town is most agreeably situated, and there is an air of industry and animation in the inhabitants; and yet, occasionally, the narrow streets and iron window-shutters excite a sensation of gloominess, of which I cannot readily divest myself till I return to our cheerful inn, where the arrival and departure of steam-boats occasion a constant succession of guests. Our party at table, which dwindled to six, rose, two days since, suddenly to sixty, all fugitives, as those who are not on business seldom allot above two days to this part of their tour. As the friends with whom I am most intimate have been detained since their return from Quebec, by the want of a steam-boat, I have been very well off, having access to their three drawing-rooms, with an agreeable female party in each. Our host, although a Londoner, and adopting London hours, accommodates himself by pursuing the American plan of compelling us to eat at a common table; but the style of the house is admirable, and we can obtain private sitting-rooms. One of those occupied by our party is that which Lord Selkirk usually occupied while here, and often recalls him to my recollection. All I hear, and I have conversed with many of both parties on the subject, has only served to confirm my previous impressions with respect to the treatment which he received; in some instances, too, in quarters where it was least excusable, and at the hands of those from whom every British subject was entitled to demand impartiality. In an hour we are going on board the Swiftsure steam-boat for Quebec, and I am glad to find that several of my acquaintances will be of the party.”

“Steam-boat, on the St. Lawrence, August 28th, 1820.

“I began this letter at Montreal, on board the Swiftsure steam-boat. This is probably the finest steam-boat which has been built, and I was proud to see her under the British flag; the Americans readily conceded her superior claims. The style of living and attendance is more like that of a good hotel, at the west end of London, than any thing I have seen on this side of the Atlantic, notwithstanding the handsome style of some of the American hotels, and the comfort of some of the boarding-houses. There is an ice-house on board, and the owner supplies her table with grapes and peaches from his own garden.

“I often feel a strange sensation, when gliding down the American rivers, in these floating palaces; and have sometimes turned away almost ashamed, when bearing down in all this ostentatious luxury on the poor half-naked Indians, in their birch canoes, struggling to reach the shores on which their fathers roamed fearless and independent.

“We left Montreal about noon on the 22d, and for sixty miles averaged thirteen miles an hour. The banks of the river, which is from one and a half to three miles broad, though too flat to be romantic, till you approach within thirty miles of Quebec, are interesting, from the white cottages, which seem to form one continued village, and the neat churches, of which two or three are often in sight at once; the spires are usually covered with tin, and have a very dazzling appearance.

“The cottages have originally been placed at equal distances from each other, the farms having been laid off, with a front of a given length to the river; but the Canadian custom of dividing the farm between the children of the deceased (more congenial with their indolence than striking deeper into the woods) has broken uniformity by repeated and often inconvenient subdivisions. A mass of deep woods usually bounds the farms, at the distance of a few acres from the river.

“The navigation on Lake St. Peter is so difficult, that we were obliged to lie at anchor all night. On the 23d, we passed the Three Rivers, a handsome town, on the three mouths of a respectable river; and at five o’clock in the evening arrived at Quebec, 180 miles from Montreal. As we approached the town we passed close under the plains of Abraham, and the precipitous rocks which our gallant hero scaled; and after straining our eyes to reach the fortifications, which seem to frown destruction to any hostile force which might have the temerity to approach, we were pleased, on looking round us, to find ourselves in the middle of British shipping. I cannot tell you with what satisfaction I renewed my acquaintance with old Cumberland brigs, which in England I should not condescend to notice. As soon as we landed, an English friend and I procured a calèche, and drove off to the Falls of Montmorency, nine miles distant, which we reached just at sunset. Our beautiful summer evening closed in upon us before we had seen the Falls from the most favourable situation. The full moon, however, soon rose, and threw her light upon the broken torrent, which precipitates itself from a height of 220 feet, while the dark shadows of the rocks and trees, which overhang the waters below, contributed greatly to heighten the grandeur of the scene. Our conductor was an interesting little peasant girl, nine years of age, whose pretty French was most agreeable. The ride home was delightful, the full moon ‘walking in brightness,’ and throwing her horizontal rays across the river as she rose. The fortresses of Quebec were constantly in sight, and did, indeed, seem impregnable by human force. It would be difficult even to imagine a more commanding site, and I could not help admiring the skill with which the French had chosen their northern post, which they evidently intended to connect with New Orleans, by a series of intermediate forts, which might confine the British within a narrow strip on the Atlantic. Reflections on their system of policy were the more interesting to me, from having so lately visited the southern extremity of their trans-Atlantic dominions, and having in the interval passed through so many of the immense forests which lie between them. We stopped at Malhrot’s, the best inn in Quebec; but an unwillingness to intrude on the present occupiers of my bed decided me to prefer a chair, in which I sat till after three o’clock, looking on the beautiful moonlight prospect before me. At five o’clock we set out in a calèche on our way to Loretto, an Indian village of the Hurons, nine miles from Quebec. They have a neat catholic church, and speak French; but, from what I could gather from the chief, they have no land, and support themselves by fishing and hunting. In that case they are not so well off as my friends the Choctaws and Cherokees, or the Caughnawagas, whom we saw nine miles from Montreal, who have a handsome catholic church, and cultivate the land.

“In the course of our ride we were often reminded of home by the rich little meadows and thickly settled country on every side. The distant mountains were very fine. We reached our inn at nine o’clock, having accomplished, after six o’clock the preceding night, what usually occupies two days. After breakfast I devoted myself to business; and, declining an invitation from Judge —— to accompany him to the ‘military mess’ to dinner, I set off to the Falls of the Chaudière, seven miles distant, intending to drink tea on our return with a gentleman who lives on the way. It was so dark, however, when we reached his house, five or six miles from Quebec, and had begun to rain so heavily, that we thankfully accepted his offer of a bed. The Falls of the Chaudière were highly interesting, even after Niagara. In the deep seclusion of a thick wood, the river, nearly 250 yards wide, precipitates itself a hundred feet into a rocky channel, which appears to have been rent asunder by some dreadful convulsion of nature, by which the rock has been broken into huge masses, that combine with the surrounding objects to impart an air of most magnificent wildness to this extraordinary scene. On our return we had several fine views of Quebec down the river.

“The next day we went into town early, and I was again engaged in business till afternoon, when I walked round the fortifications with my old military friend and his wife. At five o’clock I went to dine at Judge ——’s, where I met several gentlemen, and where I staid till it was nearly time to embark in the steam-boat, which was to set sail at midnight for Montreal.

“I think you will be amused by the following extract from the journal of one of my fellow-travellers, who left me at Montreal to visit Quebec, and on his return found on board the steam-boat one of the Indian chiefs, belonging to the village of Loretto, to which I have alluded.

“‘We have on board one of the Indian chiefs who walked in the procession at Loretto, and his daughter, a genteel young woman. He speaks the English language. He said he knew General Washington, and had dined with him twice; and that the general had made him a present of a very good horse. ‘I told General Washington,’ said he, ‘that your horse; he tell me to call one of his aids, and he say, Col. Trumbull, write order for Vincent, (that my name,) for that horse; so I keep him. He very good horse.’ The story of the horse was thus explained. Vincent commanded a body of Indians at the capture of Burgoyne, and was made a prisoner with that general. The horse had been taken by him from the Americans; and hence he called him not his own, but Washington’s. This information I obtained from others on board. Taking me aside, he said, ‘I saw you Loretto.’ _C._ ‘I was there, and saw you walking at the head of the procession.’ _V._ ‘Yes, I walk.’ _C._ ‘What was that the priest carried?’ _V._ ‘What religion you?’ _C._ ‘I am a protestant.’ _V._ ‘Then you very good man; priest carry image Virgin Mary. This is all nonsense. He tell us poor Indians we must believe, or be condemned, that Virgin Mary was taken up into heaven—soul and body; you believe that?’ _C._ ‘I do not understand it: what is your opinion?’ _V._ ‘I do not believe; I do not read that in Scripture. Priest tell us poor ignorant Indians that we must worship her, and saints, and images. I do not find that in Scripture neither; but I read, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou worship. Thou shalt make no graven image, nor worship them: that my belief. I think it wicked to worship images; but God is merciful. Priest tell us ignorant Indians we must have mass; fetch out purgatory our fathers, dead hundred years ago; and we pay sometimes one, sometimes two dollars each mass. Brother, you believe there is a purgatory?’ _C._ ‘I have no knowledge of such a place. What is your opinion?’ _V._ ‘I don’t believe; and tell you my opinion. I believe if our heart be not purge in this life, it never will purge.’ On my assenting to his doctrine, he asked, ‘Where do you think is hell?’ I told him I did not know. Then added he, ‘I’ll tell you where I think it is: it is in the sun.’ I felt some surprise at all this; and, asking him where he had been educated, he replied at Hampshire. He then asked me to drink a glass of grog; and on my declining, he bid me good bye, and walked to the forecastle to sip it by himself. On observing a young Indian on board very attentive to the chief’s daughter, I told Vincent I supposed this man was courting her; on which he replied with much warmth, ‘No; him Mohawk.’

“I do not know why he regarded a connexion with the Mohawks as degrading, for they were members of the celebrated confederation of the Six Nations—the Iroquois Confederation. The other members were the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, the Senecas, and the Tuscaroras.”

It is our wish to assemble pictures of Canada by as many different classes of observers, and during as many different seasons, as is possible. Here are some winter sketches, which are not unentertaining.

“Nothing could be more Siberian than the aspect of the Canadian frontier; a narrow road, choked with snow, led them through a wood, in which patches were occasionally cleared on either side to admit the construction of a few log-huts, round which a brood of ragged children, a starved pig, and a few half-broken rustic implements, formed an accompaniment more suited to an Irish landscape, than to the thriving scenes we had just quitted. The Canadian peasant is still the same unsophisticated animal whom we may suppose to have been imported by Jacques Carrier. The sharp unchangeable lineaments of the French countenance, set off with a blue or red night-cap, over which is drawn the hood of a grey capote, fashioned like a monk’s cowl, a red worsted girdle, hair tied in a greasy leather queue, brown moccasins of undressed hide, and a short pipe in his mouth, give undeniable testimony of the presence of Jean Baptiste. His horse seems to have been equally solicitous to shame neither his progenitors nor his owner, by any mixture with a foreign race, but exhibits the same relationship to the horses, as his rider to the subjects of Louis XIII. Now, too, the frequent cross by the road side, thick-studded with all the implements of crucifixional torture, begins to indicate a catholic country: distorted virgins and ghastly saints decorate each inn room, while the light spires of the parish church, covered with plates of tin, glitter across the snowy plain.

“At La Prairie we crossed the ice to Montreal, whose isolated mountain forms a conspicuous object at the distance of some leagues. From thence to Quebec, the road follows the course of the St. Lawrence, whose banks present a succession of villages, many of them delightfully situated; but all form and feature were absorbed in the snowy deluge, which now deepened every league; add to which, the sleigh-track, by frequently running on the bed of the river, placed us below prospect of every kind. We found the inns neat, and the people attentive; French politesse began to be contrasted with American bluntness. It is curious to observe that this characteristic of the Americans, which so frequently offends the polished feelings of English travellers, is exactly what was formerly objected by the French to ourselves. The ‘rudesse’ of the English character was long a standing jest with our refined neighbours; but we have now, it seems, so far shaken off this odious remnant of uncourtly habits, as to regard it with true French horror in our trans-Atlantic cousins.

“It was Sunday when we arrived at St. Anne’s; mass was just finished, and above a hundred sleighs were rapidly dispersing themselves up the neighbouring heights, and across the bed of the river, to the adjacent villages. The common country sleigh is a clumsy box-shaped machine, raised at both ends, perhaps not greatly unlike the old heroic car. It holds two persons, with the driver, who stands before them. One horse is commonly sufficient, but two are used in posting, when the leader is attached by cords, tandem-wise, and left to use his own discretion, without the restraint of rein, or impulse of whip. Should, however, the latter stimulus become indispensable, the driver jumps from the sleigh, runs forward, applies his pack-thread lash, and regains his seat without any hazard from extraordinary increase of impetus. The runners of these sleighs are formed of two slips of wood, so low that the shafts collect the snow into a succession of wavy hillocks, properly christened ‘cahots,’ for they almost dislocate your limbs five thousand times in a day’s journey. An attempt was once made to correct this evil, by prohibiting all _low runners_, as they are called, from coming within a certain distance of Quebec; meaning thereby to force the country people into the use of high runners in the American fashion. Jean Baptiste, however, sturdily and effectually resisted this heretical innovation, by halting with his produce without the limits, and thus compelling the townspeople to come to him to make their purchases.

“The markets, both of Montreal and Quebec, exhibit several hundred market sleighs daily. They differ from the pleasure or travelling sleigh, in having no sides; that is, they consist merely of a plank bottom, with a kind of railing. Hay and wood seem the staple commodities at this season, both of which are immoderately dear, especially at Quebec; even through the States, the common charge for one horse’s hay for a night was a dollar. Provisions are brought to market frozen, in which state they are preserved during the winter; cod-fish is brought from Boston, a land-carriage of 500 miles, and then sells at a reasonable rate, the American commonly speculating on a cargo of smuggled goods back, to make up his profit; a kind of trade extremely brisk betwixt the frontier and Montreal.