1 ^^ r J' - » Class JIL^-AT Book C4g. Copyright }J°_ COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. in (J^uest of tlje 0iiatiit. In Quest of the Quaint BY ELIZA B. CHASE, Author of "Over the Border," Etc. illustrations bg ^¥ ^imrtter FROM WATER COLOR AND PENCIL SKETCHES "With an eye to see Life's sunniest side, and with a heart to take Its chances all as Godsends." —J. G. Whittier. Pf)ilat>elpl)ta FERRIS & LEACH 29 North Seventh Street 1902 Cf8 THmigRARV OF CONGRESS, T\yo Copies Recbveo AUG. IS 1902 C0l>VIII0Hr ENTRY Cli-i-ci . It- 11^ 01- CLASS Ct- XXa Na 3 cj 5 "Z- 4- COPY B. Copyright, 1902, by Ferris & Leach. ^ ^> ITn memorig of melen Companion in accncs OcecribeJ). CONTENTS. Legend, Mysterious Light Legend, The Treacherous Song, " Les Yeux }!leus " "MAREE-AH" (niu.itratlons) 18 Dalhousie, N. B., and Restigouehe Friend 19 River .... 0pp. 22 Les Trois Amis Islets, off Bon Ami Point, N. B. . . 0pp. Mt. Tracadiegache, from Charlo Bar, N. B. . . . 0pp. Mt. TracadiegSehe, from Casca- pedia River, P. Q. . 0pp. HERON ISLAND Legend, Buried Treasure . . 46 Song, " Le Rosslgnol " ... 47 Legend, The Burning Ship . . 53 Legend, Glooscap and Mutchooseu 75 The Bore of Fundy Song, " Aurai-je Nanette? " Legend, " Le Feu des Roussi ' Legend, Cap Desespoir . The Gate of Fossil Cove, N. B. 0pp. The Conspirators . . 0pp. General Romanoze (Profile Rock) Opp. The Laughing Faun (Profile Rock) Opp. 78 A SILHOUETTE 94 Parrsboro Pier, Basin of Minas, . 105 Bay of P'undy . . Opp. 98 . 106 Cape Split, Cap D'Or, Cape Sharp, . 110 Bay of Fundy . . Opp. 99 DEMON AND PITY-US Legend, Katsepion .... 122 Legend, Le Genie de I'lle Pere6 . 128 Song, " Les Beaux Yeux " . . 138 A Cultivateur's Barn The Old Woman of York Clilf A Wayside Watering Trough Le Rocher Perce, P. Q. . Opp, Islands of Bic Harbor . Opp, A French-Canadian Farm House 120 121 123 130 131 136 'VEUVE CHAMPROMIS" Legend, Glooscap's Dogs Legend, The Titan's Bride Statistics of the Saguenay 147 St. Cecile du Bic . . Opp. 144 149 A French-Canadian Inn Opp. 145 157 Oven in a French-Canadian Vil- lage 145 A Habitau's Hay Cart . . .147 viii Contents. "LAZY BOOLMONG" Song, "Les Perles et les Etoiles" 186 Isle aux Coudres, Mont St. An- Song, "Cecilia" . . . .187 toine, Cap Corbeau . . .164 A Wayside Reminder . . . 170 Cross in "Le Champ des Morts" 182 Our Lady of the Clouds . . .183 Antique Lamp 184 ROCK FORT Song, "J'aiTrop Grand Peur des Spectators on the Terrace, Quebec 192 Loups" 216 A Coaler 201 Canadian Boat Song (Fr. and Eng. The Lions of Quebec . 0pp. 203 words) 217 Belfry of Ursuliues Chapel, Quebec 206 A Caleche 209 Sabots 210 " Souliers Sauvages " . . .211 IN KEEWAYDIN'S REALM Legend, Neuawbozhoo . . . 231 Lake Huron Fishing Boats . . 229 Legend, Manitoulin . . . 237 Legend, Nipissing .... 241 ^^Maree-/7A" M (fiftucst of t\)t aHuaint. ^' MAEEE-Ail." At 4 a.m., August — , 189 — , Mrs. Ellersley felt decidedly ruffled as she stood on a pier at the mouth of the Eestigouche River, surrounded by a group of young people, — ^her five nieces and a nephew of nine- teen, — ^whom she had rashly undertaken to chaperon in their summer vacation, in which the present long- talked-of excursion to Gaspe was to be the principal feature. These young people, when planning their holiday tour, had rejoiced at having secured this bul- wark of propriety, the least of whose virtues was that she was so unassertive that she could easily be over- ruled, and Mrs. Grundy thus be propitiated, while they virtually would have their own way. Blue, gray and irate were the countenances gazing out at the leaden-tinted water; the first hue caused by the chill- ing wind, the second by apprehension of the cheerless voyage in prospect, while the lack of amiability was owing to being summoned at " such an unearthly hour." Corporations have no souls, schedules are prepared with slight regard for the comfort of weak mortals; rising at an unreasonable hour and a hurried break- fast are not the best preparation for a voyage of six- teen to eighteen hours, and the promise of a better time-table for next year is poor consolation under such circumstances. 4 In Quest of the Quaint. Amy and Mildred, being poor sailors, and haunted by recollections of former water trips which turned out disastrously for them, — so far as any pleasure was concerned, — had with difficulty been persuaded to join in this one, and only on the assertion of a resi- dent of the region that the northwest wind prevails on the Baie des Chaleurs, and that, so long as it sits in that quarter, calm seas may be promised with cer- tainty. Poor, placid Aunt Jemima, as the girls wickedly called Mrs. EUersley, — whose Christian name was Rebecca, — had been dragged to the pier mildly pro- testing, and questioning Jim who, being great on statistics, was known among the party as the Figure Head. " What time do you call it ? " " This village is rather old-fashioned and conserv- ative, and still runs itseK by local time, while the trains and boats go by standard time, the difference between local and standard time being three-quarters of an hour. The clock at our hotel indicates an hour half-way between the two, and my watch, not having been changed since we left home, does not agree with either ; therefore, we shall have to split the difference and take our choice." The girls remarked that they did not care for time, but were bound to have a good time anyhow, and " spite the weather." Just at that moment the trim steamer " Admiral " made up to the pier, and, as Jim marched on board, watch in hand, Meg, looking over his shoulder, exclaimed, " Why, Jim, your watch has stopped!" JSTothing daunted, however, he replied: " Well, I've told you what time it ought to be, and this is the best watch to be found in the United States, to say nothing of Canada." Mrs. EUersley learned that she was to be installed in the most com- ^o% a d 7 ■d^^ !. O g H<;<; r. — o \r.^ Maree-ah. 5 modioiis stateroom, and the party, in more serene state of mind at being actually off, seated themselves on the forward deck. To the left, beyond the wide estuary of the river, a long point reaches out into the bay; it is mantled with vivid green, edged with red clay and rock where it dips into the crystal flood, making its peculiar Indian name appropriate, — Me- gouacha, " always red." Beyond this cape, blue in the distance, rise the two peaks, the Giant's Steps of Mount Tracadiegache. Ere long the village of Carleton, bright and cheery despite the gray day, appeared nestling at the foot of the grand mountain, which rises more than eighteen hundred feet above the sea, and is here revealed from base to summit. Meg, the enthusiastic, exclaimed, " Oh, don't those white houses with red roofs look de- lightfully foreign ? " Another remarked that it bore some resemblance to a Swiss hamlet, the proud moun- tain looming above; while another suggested that the broad piazzas and green blinds of other domiciles had a savor of the sunny South about them, reminding one of a planter's residence. Evidently the arrival of the steamer was an event of greatest importance, as the quaint country folk and people of all classes turned out en masse, and, as Jim remarked, " did the heavy standing round," dur- ing the deliberate unloading of a few pieces of freight, which the Figure Head enumerated: " Two barrels, one box, one basket, one kettle," — as these articles were set upon the wharf with a vast deal of ceremony and much tossing back and forth of French phrases from the pleasant voices of the " habitans."* * In the States the country folk object to the name " native " which summerers have bestowed upon them, as rather imply- ing contempt. In the South the " planter " thought himselt of much more importance than a mere farmer; so also with 6 In Quest of the Quaint. Sue remarked, " One would think that the fate of a nation hung on these proceedings, judging by the solemn expression of the faces of that crowd." The big round kettle was claimed by a fresh, bright-look- ing girl, who, instead of denominating it " chaudron," demanded, " Donnez-moi la hombe ! " and very like a huge bomb or cannon-ball did it look. The appella- tion which has been invented by the Canadian French to designate this article, was approved by the tour- ists, who were ready to accept anything odd or hu- morous in their trip, which the gay party were bound to make a fascinatingly foreign frolic. This diversion had for a while partly absorbed the attention of the two girls, Amy and Mildred; who, at the time of departure, were so dubious that the oth- ers mischievously dubbed them the Croaker and the Doubter. But the vessel and its furnishings began to take on a singnilarly lively, not to say rollicking, aspect; the most dignified articles, armchairs and beaufets, seemed inclined to engage in a waltz, only prevented by the screws cruelly chaining them to the floor. Glasses on the sideboards jingled musically, lamps swung acrobatically, and locomotion became difficult. Mrs. Ellersley quietly slipped away to her state- room, meekly remarking that she thought she would take a nap. Amy, apparently becoming inverte- brate, threw herself in a heap on a sofa, the picture of despair; while Mildred sat bolt up- right beside her, with an air of unnatural sol- the " ranchman " of the Territories, probably. Those who en- gage in agricultural pursuits to any extent in Canada seem to prefer to be called " cultivateurs " instead of " f ermiers " ; and they designate as " habitans " those who take their pro- duce to the Quebec markets. Many old historians, both Fi'ench and English, spell the name, as above, Avith one t. Maree-ah. 7 emnity and severity. Tke former looked white, the latter blue; they began to talk treason under the breath ; and thus signs of insubordination appeared in the company which had heretofore proved so har- monious; for, as the steamer steered across a wide arm of the bay, making for a distant cape, the full force of the sea was felt, and there was no doubt from what quarter the wind was blowing, " 'Twas just their luck," said those wretched tars, to have started out on this voyage of one hundred and eighty miles, when the wind had whisked around to the southeast, and was blowing with greater and greater vehemence, covering the bay with tossing whitecaps, which seemed to be marshaling and forming into angry surges, as the girls caught sight of them from the windows close at hand. The others, suspecting the state of affairs, advised removal to the central and steadier part of the boat; but persuasion was useless. Amy remarked : " The idea of a pleasure trip with no pleasure in it ! It's absurd ! I'd give anything to be on dry land ! " Mildred replied : " I cannot stand this all day; I shall be so worn out by the time we reach Gaspe that I cannot enjoy seeing the place." Amy, as if doubtfully throwing out a line, continued, " What's the use of making one's self wretched if one can escape from misery ? " Mildred seized it with avidity, jumped at the idea, and exclaimed, " Let's go ashore at the next station ! " although re- calling what they had been told about this shore, — that between Carleton and Gaspe there are only little French fishing villages, and the steamer does not touch at a wharf. ITevertheless, by that time de- spair sat upon the countenances of the two rebels, and desperation moved one to plunge headlong to the forward part of the boat to inquire the name of the next stopping-place. After the manner of these 8 In Quest of the Quaint. French Acadians, the steward emphasized the last syllable in replying, " Maree-afe / " his native polite- ness barely preventing him from looking with con- tempt on such poor sailors, who announced, " Nous debarquons a Maria ! " Mrs. Ellersley vainly protested against this re- solve, but was reminded that she would have her hands quite full enough with those yet remaining under her charge; and her remonstrances lost force from the fact that she found it impossible by this time to hold up her head, and was obliged to main- tain a recumbent posture. So she comforted herself by the thought that Mildred, being a circumspect young person, might be relied on to keep Amy in check, that the party would be re-united two days hence, and that it would be hardly likely that any- thing untoward should occur in the intervening time. To the poor wretches it seemed that hours of mis- ery must have passed, though it was in reality but a very short time, ere the stopping of the machinery and ringing of a bell, as well as the shout of a deck hand announced, " Maree-ah ! " Down a perpen- dicular ladder, — a sort of flying trapeze, — climbed the two recalcitrants, with several others of the pas- sengers; and, imagining themselves unwieldy bales, were ignominiously dropped into a clumsy tub of a two-masted fishing smack, which plunged and pitched in the seething water, bumping and scraping the hull of the steamer ere it pushed off.* Those who had thus gained their end and desire in leaving the big vessel, however, were not by any means exultant. If ever two people felt utterly abject and despicable so did those base renegades, who also had to add to their gloom the tolerably earnest conviction that they were * This boat is known ae a " cobble " in this region. Maree-ah. 9 going from the frying-pan into the fire. The boat lurched, rocked and danced in maddening manner; at each plunge a French Canadian girl grasped Mil- dred bj the arm, exclaiming, " Sainte Vierge ! Bon Dieu ! Dieu nous protege ! " no doubt calling on all the saints in the calendar under her breath, succumb- ing at last to mal-de-mer-, while Amy sat with clenched hands, set teeth and white face, sternly grasping her umbrella, too miserable to be frightened or to care much what happened next. The skipper shouted, " Point de danger," but Amy said, " You may be sure there is danger, or he wouldn't say that!" Among the passengers who were thus being con- veyed ashore was a French resident of the village of Maria, who showed kindly solicitude in making the ladies as comfortable as the awkward boat would ad- mit. Mildred's drooping spirits reviving somewhat on seeing that they were approaching terra firma, she ventured to question this gentleman, and learned that the picturesque settlement, stretching along shore and for a short distance inland, — ^twenty miles from their point of debarkation, — contains over five hundred families of French, Scotch and some Irish, generally well-to-do farmers; that the former no doubt suppose the name, like that of Montreal in its earliest history, was given in honor of " la Sainte Vierge," though in reality for the wife of a Governor- General of olden time. Mildred also learned that it would be quite possible for the ladies to find a com- fortable vehicle and competent charioteer to convey them back to Carleton, there to await the return of the " Admiral." After being pitched and flung over the water in this fashion for perhaps two miles, a clumsy, tossing rowboat was seen coming alongside, and to that the 10 In Quest of the Quaint. passengers were transferred, it being too rough, for the sail boat to approach nearer the shore. 'Not even from this boat could thej land, however, for there was too high a surf running on the beach; and the next incident of this singular journey was seeing a two-wheeled cart driven into the sea until the water covered the hubs of the wheels, and into this the voy- agers climbed from the broad, low row-boat. The lugubrious visages of the girls now relaxed, for as they were thus driven ashore they were able at last to see some fun in this peculiar expedition, and even to enjoy the strange sensation as the long " rollers " swept under the cart in which the passen- gers stood, supporting themselves by posts at the cor- ners. Amy remarked, " I have keard that passengers are landed at Rio Janeiro in this manner, but never expected to experience such pleasure myself." At last they were on the solid earth, and " How good, and firm, and steady it feels ! " said Mildred. " What shall we do next ? " she queried, the other re- plying promptly, " Remain for the rest of my natural life ! " but at that moment Mons. Bandure,* their fellow-passenger, appeared, accompanied by a young man whom he introduced : " Ladies, allow me to pre- sent to you Monsieur George Reinhart, who will be happy to drive you back to Carleton, and " — clapping him on the shoulder with an air of good fellowship — he added, " I leave you in good hands ; there is not a better fellow on the coast," and' then made his adieux. The newcomer was on the sunny side of thirty, and seemed full of energy and life. He suggested that the travelers should rest at his house while he was harnessing another horse for their drive to Carle- * Bandure, an American plant of the Gentian family. Maree-ah. 11 ton, and tliey were soon bowling gayly along the pretty beach road to a snug and neat domicile a mile or so beyond, where he informed them that he kept bachelor's hall. The canny Scotch housekeeper met them at the door, and, as she led them upstairs, said, " I am an old-f eshioned body mysel' ; I hae only bean here a short toime; but I wull do me best to mak ye comfortable, if ye'U rest a bit while the maister gets the double team ready." She was somewhat inclined to garrulity, and thus it leaked out that Mr. Eein- hart accommodated sportsmen, " now and again," when returning from the Cascapedia. The ship- wrecked mariners, as the girls jocosely styled them- selves, jumped at such a chance as this, and resolved that here they would stay. The host was not re- luctant, and then the storm-tossed waifs proceeded to make themselves at home, and were ready for any larks that might be found flitting about. Dinner was a dainty and tempting repast, the host himseK waiting upon his guests, and, in fact, prepar- ing some of the dishes, the housekeeper being a new hand who " had not quite learned the ropes yet," and he having gTeat skill in culinary arts from long expe- rience in the camp life of a sportsman. The two girls took a long walk down the shore, stopping now and then to air a little French in chat- ting with the children who came to the doors to see the strangers. Mildred stooped by an odd sliding gate, saying, " Baise moi ! " to a rosy curly-haired toddler, who was much amused at the idea of deliver- ing the salute through the bars. The mother said, " Vous etes de Quebec, n'est-ce pas ? " and was amazed at the reply, " N^on, nous sommes de Philadel- phie " ; exclaiming with astonishment, " Oh, oh, c'est ■au loin d'ici ! " as if the travelers had come from the Tery antipodes. The pretty cat was discussed and 12 In Quest of the Quaint. made to show off some funny tricks, and the woman spoke cordially of her neighbor, their host, whom she called " Monsieur Shorzhe," and declared to be " tres beau, un bel homme." " How his ears must burn ! " said Amy aside. Here the girls saw the first habitans' houses; at- tractively French and foreign-looking, almost invari- ably one story in height, picturesque and pleasing to the eye in the wide, curving sweep of roof, making broad eaves, which cast a becoming shade over the upper part of the domicile. In some cases the roof stretched out far enough to be supported by posts, forming a good piazza, or " galerie," as the people call it. " So different from the unmitigated angles of farm-houses in l^ew England," said one, scorn- fully, " where dwellings even in towns are modeled on the pattern of a packing-box, and topped with, the utterly incongruous Mansard roof." Huge fishing boats were moored in an inlet, or careened on the beach with their sails spread in carelessly graceful folds to dry, forming such bits as would delight an artist. As the strangers strolled along the road they were surprised to see approaching them gallant Mons. Bandure, who had landed when they did, and who said, " Ladies, Mrs. Macpherson would like to have you come up and see her garden." Once within the close and rather high fence which protected this demesne from too strong winds, they exclaimed with surprise and delight at the spectacle presented, — the marvelous wealth of color which, like a shattered rainbow, was spread before them. Rarest flowers were blooming in perfection; the air was laden with delicate perfumes; and, with the grand mountains circling the beautiful Bay, one might easily fancy himself transported to Mentone, Nice, or other famed Maree-dh. 13 resort of sunny Italy. Even a professional horticul- turist would doff his hat and acknowledge himself distanced by the lady of the manor, who was sole care-taker of this exquisite and tasteful parterre. Amy certainly must have told tales out of school when the travelers were invited into the pretty par- lor and she chanced to stand by the fine piano; although she mischievously insinuated that 'twas only magnetism and intuition which impelled the daugh- ter of the house to ask Mildred to sing Scotch bal- lads. At the first strain of " What's a' the steer Kimmer ? " the host and the braw laddie, his manly son, drew nearer the instrument, while his wife and daughter seemed to hang breathless on the tones of the singer. Mr. Macpherson dropped into broad Scotch as he addressed the singer, exclaiming, " Hech ! me bonnie lassie, hoo ye tak me bok to the hame o' me byehude. Lilt mair, me lassie wi' the goldie locks, it warrums the cockles o' me harrt to hear ye ; an' the eecho o' those ballats hae been rinnin in me head these mony lang years; there's naething loike them in ony land." Full and clear rang the sweet voice in " Bonnie Dundee " and " Charlie is my Darling"; longing and beseeching in " Will ye no come back again ? " tender and pathetic in " Here's a health to ane I loe dear," with its sorrowful re- frain, " Jessie, Jessie." The audience were meta- phorically at her feet, and time slipped by unnoted until the sunset light warned the travelers that Mr. Reinhart might fear his guests had lost their way in this new and strange land. Then who so gallant as Mr. Archie, who had slipped quietly away and ap- peared at the door with his light buckboard, " at your service, ladies." After the girls had seated them- selves and promised to call again on the drive to Carleton, the young man leaped up at the back of the 14 In Quest of the Quaint. vehicle, and, holding the reins above the ladies' heads, drove standing; and they were thus conveyed back to Mr. Reinhart's in true habitan fashion. Another home-like meal awaited them, excellently served on delicate quaint china. Amy held up her spoon, exclaiming, " Can I believe my eyes ? A crest ? Yes ; how interesting ! " The travelers amused themselves with speculations and surmisings about their jolly host, manufacturing offhand be- tween them a plot which would serve for a novel about this young man who, like him of the nursery rhyme, lived all by himself; and Mildred jumped at a conclusion in solution of the mystery, summing all up : " It is a case of ' crossed in hopeless,' I am con- vinced ! " In the long, lingering twilight of this northern shore, the girls sat upon the door-step under Balm-of- Gilead trees, the leather-like leaves flapping together with a sound as of pattering rain-drops; the Bay, which in the early morning — ^how long ago it seemed ! — ^was so angry and turbulent, was quieting rapidly, and appeared almost placid and radiant in the opal- escent tints of sunset. As Mildred endeavored to transfer to paper a semblance of some rainbow-hued salpegiossis from the Macpherson garden, softly hum- ming an air from " Lohengrin," Amy jumped up ex- citedly, almost upsetting the bouquet and box of colors, as she waved aloft the kitten (sent up by " Monsieur Shorzhe's " amiable voisine " pour amuser les Demoiselles "), and striking an exagger- atedly tragic attitude, cried, " Behold, he comes ! " Far away in the distance appeared a canoe gliding over the water, propelled by two men skillfully poling the pretty craft, which made not a sound as it ap- proached, with an air of mystery, and the romantic Amy exclaimed, " Isn't it just as if we had expected Maree-ah. 15 some one, and so sat here waiting? Wlio can it be? Aren't you curious, Milly ? " Naturally that young woman could not surmise who the traveler might be, and would not admit that she had any curiosity, though she watched the approach with eager interest. The boat contained one passenger, and, to the sur- prise of the girls, the graceful craft was propelled directly towards their abiding place, and beached in front of the house. A tall man, whose every movement indicated energy and buoyant spirits, stepped ashore, gave some directions to the boatmen, doffed his Glengarry cap to the ladies, displaying thick, curling black hair, and rich, dark complexion, bronzed by " roughing it " in the backwoods, and with a hearty, " Well, George, my good fellow, here I am again, and how are you ? " stepped into the neat cottage, filling the es- tablishment with the breeziness and jollity of over- brimming health and life. With the air of a Ches- terfield Mr. Reinhart presented the guests to each other; and Mr. Murray Kennedy explained that, be- ing called home by business, he had left a fishing- party fitted out by Mr. Reinhart in the wilds of the Cascapedia; for their host had guides, canoes, good teams, and supplied fishing-parties in summer and hunting-expeditions in winter. The jolly host put on a comically deprecating air at Mr. Kennedy's commendation of his skill in such sports, and said that epicures consider the salmon of this river superior to that of the Eestigouche, and Lord Lome preferred this river to that. Then he told of a native who, meeting that Governor-General in these forest wilds while fishing, did not recognize him in his rough attire, — ^probably picturing that functionary as a high and mighty potentate gorgeous in gold lace, — -and remarked that he would not dis- 16 In Quest of the Quaint. turb his pool, adding: " You keep to yous and we'll keep to wee&, and we won't have no trouble." " How refreshing it must have been to milord to meet such an untutored child of the wilderness," said Mildred. Continuing the conversation, Mr. Kennedy told them something of his experiences since he " came out " from Scotland, and, on Amy remarking that she would not have taken him for a native of that country, he laughingly said, as he ran his fingers through his dark curls, " Because I have not the typi- cal sandy locks ? Oh, I am what they call in my coun- try ' a black Scot ' " ; and in such spontaneous inter- change of thought the three travelers became quite en rapport. The gentleman who apeared so picturesquely on the scene was evidently an old stager, and knew all the ways of the house. As the night had grown cold, at his suggestion the party grouped themselves about the cavernous fireplace, where huge logs blazed. Monsieur Bandure also happened in, to listen to fish stories (authenticated, too !) ; and the ladies were in- fected with the contagion, longing to come next year to engage in such fascinating sport. The pocket case of flies was brought out for inspection, the ladies in- itiated into the mysteries of the different varieties with their bright feathers; the black and brown " Fairies," the " Silver Doctor," " White Admiral," " Kainbow," " Jock Scott," " Scarlet Ibis," and the " Black Dose," the latter effective in Oascapedia waters; and the gay fisherman presented some of those richest in color to the fair guests to stick in their hats as souvenirs. The girls were interested to learn that although there are more than one thousand styles of flies in the market, the oldest, manufactured in England more than a century ago, are still favor- ites, and, it seems, cannot be improved upon. The Maree-ah. 17 ^'Coachman," "Grizzly King," "Professor," " Brown Hackle " and " Black Gnat " flies are among these centenarious ones, and still hold the fisherman's affections. Though the cousins had not tried salmon fishing, in which sport many Canadian and English women have become experts, they heartily joined with the fisherman in deploring the destruction of the salmon through the dumping of sawdust into the rivers; and were interested to learn of the singular provision of nature for the fish when on its way to the spawning grounds. At that time they are provided with an extra amount of fat, which serves as a reserve for them to draw upon, as they abstain from other food; but it has been convincingly proved that the fine par- ticles of wood which they have swallowed lodge in the gullet and abdominal cavities, thus clogging them and instantly killing the fish. Remarking on the singular appropriateness of the caller's name, one of the cousins (who annually passed much time in 'New England) was reminded of the plant brought over by the Puritans, which clothes the moors around Salem, Massachusetts, with cloth of gold. This was known as " dyer's weed," — probably of the indigo family, — and is the plant whence the Plantagenets took their name (planta-genesta-tinc- tora), one wearing in his helmet a tuft of the yellow blossoms, which, he declared, " though the humblest weed, he would make the proudest emblem." It also runs riot among the hills of Pennsylvania mining regions ; and fashionable city florists brought it out at Easter, a few years since, as something new, rare and fine. Amy fancied that the lively disciple of the sedate Izaak gravitated always in Mildred's direction; that his remarks and narratives were addressed to her; 18 In Quest of the Quaint. that his eyes turned most frequently to that graceful figiire seated in precisely the right location for the leaping flames to bring out most effectively the warm gold, with the quips and quirls, as she called them, of her hair, and to glow in the depths of her full blue eyes. " Ah, cousin, cousin, what a picture you are, and the best of it is that you do not know it," said that close observer to herself; and a propos of noth- ing, suddenly turned to the host with a query about his uncommon name and the quaint silver, eliciting the nonchalant reply, " Oh, yes, there's my cousin Robert down at Lunenberg has all the old records, but I don't care about them," and Mildred remarked in undertone to her cousin, " Secure in his own in- tegrity he can afford to smile at the ' claims of long descent.' " Then Amy begged Mr. Reinhart to re- late some legends of the Bay, and he readily com- plied, telling of THE MYSTEEIOTJS LIGHT OF CAP NOIR. For many years on Cap !Noir, the western point of Maria, a strange light was seen, dancing and moving about in the most unaccountable manner. At one moment it would rise like a column of fire into the air, at another time it would fall like a meteor; then it would seem to leap over the point and drop into the sea, afterwards appearing again in the same spot on the hillside. The habitans tell this story about it. In the time of the war for the possession of Canada, a French vessel, pursued by an English war ship, steered its course into the Bay, at this point, for refuge. A boat was lowered from the side of the richly-laden merchantman, and in this thirteen men swiftly rowed to the shore. Their object was to hide a chest of gold which they brought with them. On reaching the point they drew lots to see which of the Maree-ah. 19 men should remain to guard the treasure. The one to whom the lot fell was forced to swear a solemn oath, by land and sea, by night and day, by the ruler of the nether world, that he would be faithful to the trust through life unless relieved of the charge by his returning comrades; and even after death would haimt the spot, should no one come to take his place. To secure the fulfillment of this vow, his wicked companions then and there put him to death, and buried him with the treasure. The ghostly light was supposed to be the spirit of the murdered man, and many persons who, tempted by the hope of recover- ing the treasure, ventured into the haunted spot, fled in terror, and told blood-curdling stories of the horri- ble phantoms and frightful sights which they had wit- nessed. The light is seen no longer; perhaps some adventurer bolder than the rest succeeded in discov- ering the gold and carrying it off, and thus gave rest to the unquiet spirit. Amy exclaimed, " What a deliciously spooky thing ! " and, like Oliver, begged for more. To grat- ify her Monsieur Bandure " took up the wondrous tale," and told the Indian legend of Cap Desespoir. THE TRBACHEKOUS FRIEND. In olden times there were two Indian villages of considerable importance in this region, one at Resti- gouche, the other at the Basin of Gaspe. The braves of these villages met once when following the chase, and afterwards smoked the calumet together. Then the Gaspesians gave an enchanting description of their country, and invited the Indians of Restigouche to come there and establish themselves, saying that it was a much better place to live. The following spring the chief of the Restigouche Indians set out with many canoes and came to Gaspe, where, after he 20 In Quest of the Quaint. had examined everything, he said to his people, " Comrades, we would do as well to live at home; let US return " ; and they set out on their homeward jour- ney. When they arrived at the Cape, since called Desespoir, they camped, and the chief said to his people, " Continue on your way to Restigouche ; I will soon follow ; you will not be much in advance of me; it is not fitting that a chief should return empty- handed." All embarked except one, who begged that he might remain with his chief, who, without distrust, granted permission ; and a wig-wam was built near his own for the one he believed to be his friend. The huts were on the summit of the promontory. About a week after the building of the cabins at Cap Desespoir, a horrible tempest burst upon the land. When night came, to add to the horror of the storm its profound blackness, in the midst of the bellowing of the tempest the savage believed that he heard cries, and ventured out, though the storm was ap- palling, and the sea breaking in fury on the promon- tory. He ran to inform his sachem, and the chief immediately rushed to the sumit of the cape to carry succor to the drowning, to save some life if that were possible. The debris of a vessel was scattered on all sides, the crew drowning while raising lamentable cries, asking in vain help of God and man. While the chief, stupefied and powerless, gazed on this scene of despair, his companion, gliding behind him, pushed him into the abyss, where his cries mingled with those of the sailors of the wrecked vessel. After having assured himself that his victim had truly per- ished, the traitor ran to the wigwam of his chief, and, feigning deepest sorrow, " The Sagamore has been carried away by the sea," cried he, " and his last words were, ' Take care of my wife.' " " Ah ! Maree-ah. 21 wretch ! " cried she, " it is thou who hast killed him, and after having taken away his life, thou wishest to have his wife ! " She rushed out, came to the shore, and in her despair, calling upon her husband, threw herself into the sea. ISTot long after the other Indians returned, search- ing for their chief. The traitor feigned sorrow, re- lated to them the story of the storm and shipwreck, telling them that their chief, wishing to save some one, had been carried away by a wave, and that his wife in frenzy had thrown herself into the same abyss. His comrades, however, did not half believe this story. Arrived at Restigouche they assembled the magicians, or medicine men, of their tribes, who, after deliberating, decided that the savage had killed his chief. Despite his protestations they bound the false one to the stake, and shot arrows at him until, after he had acknowledged his crime, death released him from the torture. During these recitals Amy had thrown herself on a hassock placed at Mildred's feet, and the cousins listened, dreamy-eyed and with flushed faces, to the weird tales. Some allusion was made to the Phan- tom Ship, but just at that point Mons. Bandure arose, and this naturally breaking up the circle, the three travelers wandered into one of the cozy parlors, where an antique instrument was discovered. It was revealed that Mr. Kennedy possessed a fine tenor voice, and duets were proposed. Among some yellow and worn music an old-fashioned and most senti- mental duet was found, which the two, in a spirit of mischief, warbled with extravagantly exaggerated emphasis, reducing Amy at first to utter limpness from convulsive merriment, and then electrifying her 22 In Quest of the Quaint. with tlie possibility of underlying earnestness on the part of one at least, A French song was demanded by that young woman as being appropriate to the region. There are no more enthusiastic admirers of azure orbs and golden locks than the French habitans, among whom blondes are extremely rare; so, as Mr. Kennedy com- plied, with an old chanson which he had learned from the guides and canoe men in his recent expedi- tion, what could have been more appropriate to the region, and the occasion, than " Les Yeux Bleus " ? LES YEUX BLEUS. * 4- 3= t^=r- 1^=^ #— ^— ^- ■M—^- 1. Aimes les yeux noirs si tu le veux, (H^-las, ex- 1. Eyes black as sloe might claim one' s love— Such love is 2. La jeune brune est le vain-queur Lan - ce sur 2. She would vanquish all, the gay brunette, Her eye-glance -^-^v r i=£ lit ^r^ is - tence mouran-te!) Moi, je ne ch^- ris que les bleus. death in life I tell thee — As for myself, all others above, nous un trait de flamme; La blonde elle a bien plus d'ardeur fills the heart with dole; Charming is she, but o'er all yet S= ^ =f=S -^— ^ -v^-v- A la vue douce et ch^ris - san - te. Tons les yeux noirs sont Eyes of pure azure have enchained me. Then let the black eyes P^ - nfetre jusqu' au fond de I'ame. Tous les yeux noirs sont Blon- dina's ardor strikes my soul. Then let the black eyes * Melody and words noted down by the writer as sung by a iFrench habitan's wife. Maree-ali. 23 de beaux yeux Moi Je ne ch^ris que les bleus Tous les yeux be for you, I will still cherish only the blue; Then let the ■#-r- ^^t #^^^ *=t=3 1 b*— V- noirs sont de beaux yeux Moi je ne ch^ris que les bleus. black eyes be for you, I will still cherish on - ly the blue. 3. Un bel ceil noir tout rempll d'eau, II ne dit pas ce qu'il faut dire, Un bel ceil bleu vaut cent foix niieux, Dans son regard on peut tout lire. 3. Alluringly, though through forced dew Speaks then the black eye ; sets one dreaming: But ah, the blue is far more true. And one can never doubt its meaning. Un bel ceil noir dit fiferement, " Je yeux aimer et 6tre aim6." Un bel ceil bleu parle plus tendre- ment, "Aimez-moi, je vous aime le m6me." 4. Arrogantly speaks the black eye, bold, " To love I deign, if you would love me." Ah, but the blue eyes my faith hold. My love returned, in them I see. Ce que me met au d§sespoir Vos yeux surpassent tous les autres, Pardonnez-moi si j'aime les noirs C'est que je n' avals pas vu les votres. 5. If black eyes I admired, forgive ; — My former folly I deplore — Since seeing yours I only live, The true blue only I adore. KEFEAIN TO FIFTH VEESE. Ne craignez rien j'ai vu vos yeux, Je n'aimerai plus que les bleus. Surpassing all, those radiant orbs ; Their lovely light my soul absorbs. Melting and passionate the mellow tones rang out; there was no burlesquing of effect in that. It seemed to Amy that genuine meaning was thrown into the chanson by the debonair singer, and could it be that his glance fell on Mildred's face with extreme inter- 24 In Quest of the Quaint. est, if not con amore? Mildred, serenely uncon- scious, then made a move implying that it was grow- ing late; Mr. Reinhart meeting them in the hall handed lighted candles to the girls, who ascended the stairs. Amy bade Good Mght; and as Mildred, standing on the first landing, looked over her shoul- der to do the same, Mr. Kennedy, gazing up at her, softly breathed Lionel's song: " Good-night, good-night, oh, fair one ! May thy dreams be calm and bright! Kind angels all watch o'er thee, Sleep, sweetly sleep, good-night ! " — as the ladies disappeared, and silence fell on Bach- elor's Hall. The next day being a fete, Monsieur Bandure called to offer his pew, inviting the strangers to at- tend service in the large white church, quite near. The walls of the building were ornamented with stucco, the woodwork of the chancel of oak and wal- nut combined, the pews unpainted pine; the light of the great windows was softened by curtains of wall- paper, resembling chintz. In the stalls within the chancel sat the choristers, — men on one side, boys on the other, — all in white gowns, and men in the organ loft sang in alternation with them. There were in- terludes on the organ, well played, but no solo sing- ing. In the early part of the mass a white table-cloth was hung over the chancel rail, and on it two large round loaves of bread were balanced, one above the other. Later these were removed, and then one of the choristers appeared, with a large melon-shaped basket, filled with inch-square pieces of bread; with this he passed up and down the aisles, and each mem- ber of the congregation took a piece. One of the acolytes entered the chancel, carrying bread in the Maree-ah. 25 same manner to the choristers, in a vase-shaped bas- ket of Indian workmanship.* The cure delivered a good discourse, exhorting the people to attend mass, and to bring their children as soon as they had reached " Fage de raison, sept ans." Changing into English he spoke of " Eenjens " and " Airish " being absent, or only present once or twice a year, saying, " It is a command of the church, a sin to break it; if a sin to eat pork on Friday, how much more a sin to be absent from church." Although Mr. Kennedy had remarked that he was returning to his business, Amy slyly hinted that his affairs could not be very pressing, as he showed but slight solicitude about getting away; whereas he could have done so, had dire necessity compelled, by driv- ing to Carleton, crossing to Dalhousie, and taking the Intercolonial Railway, without awaiting the return of the steamer. In the afternoon the kindly host in- vited his guests to drive, and they were " nothing loth." The wind, having veered around to its old quarter, was blowing freshly from the northwest, making the atmosphere so clear that vision extended to seemingly incredible distance. At one point they passed over a bit of corduroy road, which Reinhart said the natives called " portash," i.e., " portage," a carry round a fall; and at another place he spoke of the " sugaries," indicating the hills covered with ma- ples, adjoining the mountain chain. Each of these valuable tracts of woodland contains from many hun- dred to several thousand trees, which are tapped in April, when it is warm enough for the sap to thaw at midday. * This ancient form of service is seen at the present time in France, and has been represented in noted works of famous modern painters. 26 In Quest of the Quaint. The class in history, geography and statistics, as the lively trio dubbed themselves, also learned that one who works in a sugary is called a " sucrier," and that among French Acadians the youngest boy of a family is styled " le joculot," — a word not to be found in Academical French, but which might sig- nify tO' these people the joker, — ^this youthful scion also being known as " The Smeller of Sweetness " and " The Syrup-Eater." Then the tourists passed the tiny unpainted church of the Indian Reservation; an effective point in the pleasing picture of mountain, plain and sparkling Bay, although it looked as if it had just been taken from the box containing a child's toy village, and set down there. Mount Tracadie- gache, instead of exhibiting the two Giant's Steps, as at the mouth of the Restigouche, from this point of view appeared curiously broken and irregular, but- gained rather than lost in grandeur and beauty. The peculiar name caused comment and queries which residents and guide books seemed unable to answer. At the time of the banishment of the " Neu- trals " from ISTova Scotia, in 1755, some of the French Acadians located in other parts of the Prov- inces, three of their settlements being called Tra- cadie. It was most natural that they should desire to name their new homes in honor of the old, — Terre Acadie. In this case the significance, — Aca- dia's Stronghold, — ^is appropriate. When the sad and forlorn people drifted back after the dispersion, this grand guardian of the region dominated the scene as it does now. It typified to them a fort or refuge, a firm anchorage. Game from its fastnesses provided food; timber from its forests material for their dwellings; and to this day it is their beneficent friend, exerting benign influence on climate and crops. Maree-ah. 2T The party next approached the Cascapedia River and drove for several miles along its banks, through grand forests; and the girls tried to form some faint idea of the charms of wildwood life on salmon-fish- ing excursions, and at the hunting lodge, far in the wilds, of which the Scotchman had told them. This is the Grand Cascapedia, the Petit Cascapedia emp- tying into the Bay at l^ew Richmond, beyond Cap N^oir; and this river was ijamed by the Indians Kigi- capagiac; an appellation so evidently compounded of a sneezing cough that one of the company was confi- dent that the sponsor was afflicted with influenza. Another, affecting a shudder, remarked that many things improve with time, the modem musical title being decidedly preferable to the old tongue-tester. Later, a group on the front doorstep were enjoy- ing the gorgeous sunset tints, in which " celestial rosy red, love's proper hue," appropriately predominated (one young woman thought), and the voices of the two singers blended in song after song, while they watched the moon mounting from the mirror-like water, and soaring above Cap Marie, which lay black and weird in-its shining path. That same astute and far-sighted person also, feeling that the glamor of such surroundings must be irresistible, confident that a poeme d' amour was to be the outcome of all this, slyly watched certain persons with the air of one of long experience in such matters, and indulged in ro- mantic speculations, being herself, of course, invul- nerable. Mr, Kennedy had expected to take the steamer from this point in the morning, but on learn- ing that Mr. Reinhart would drive the ladies to Carle- ton, there to meet the boat, he heartily exclaimed, " Why, then, I'm with you ! " a decision which did not seem unpleasant news to the cousins. Bright and early, gay and fair, the quartette started off next 28 In Quest of the Quaint. morning, Mr. Kennedy seating himself by Mildred, after helping Amy to a position beside the driver. A good-bye call at the home of the Macphersons re- sulted in an impromptu concert, in which tenor and soprano blended in pleasing harmonies, and the gay fisherman distinguished himseK. The ladies were presented with superb bouquets by the fair gardener as souvenirs of their " shipwreck " ; Amy declaring that these should make the others of their party " green with envy," and, as they started on again, that young woman merrily improvised — "And this a poet calls Shalore, That is, he makes it rhyme with ' more ' ; But we are sure that none shall err Who wend their way to Bay Chaleur." " Get along there, what do I feed ye fur ? Earn your oats ! " ejaculated Mr. George (the Only and Original) to his horses; and they did get along at a remarkable pace over the good road, needing no urg- ing, their own spirit seeming sufficient spur. The pas- senger on the front seat, admiring their glossy coats, was told by their master that he regularly gave them a bath in the salt water in an inlet near his house; that they enjoyed it, and required less grooming; while the habitans' horses, not thus made acquainted with old jSTeptune, displayed " coats as woolly as New- foundland dogs," he said. Though he would not in reality ridicule his worthy and honest French neigh- bors, — ^f or he was on the best of terms with them, and they were always ready to crack jokes with him, — he convulsed the strangers by mimicking a queer old habitan driving a decrepit horse; as, stooping forward and rounding his shoulders, he slapped the reins and called in cracked voice, " AUons mon chou, avance mon coeur; vite, vite, Marche done!" Knowing how cabbies and wagoners in the States swear at their Maree-ah. 29 poor brutes, the girls were pleased to learn that little bad language is heard among the French Canadians, and one was reminded of a foreign student at college in the United States, who, remarking on the fact that less profanity is heard in America than abroad said, " In my country, for no reason, a man will make you a whole chain of swears." (This was probably his ren- dering of our expression, " A string of oaths.") Per- haps a tradition of the famous edict of Louis XIV., in 1666, has been handed down among the habitans. In that a series of punishments were ordered for pro- fanity, and after the seventh offence the tongue was to be cut out. Mr. Eeinhart amused the travelers by relating an incident of the earlier years of his life in the Province of Quebec, when he asked to drive a French girl to a point not very far distant. He answered: " All right ; get up " ; being obliged to hold his horse, so that he could not assist her into his vehicle. " And then I just let the horse go, — I was a roguish boy, — and you ought to have seen her, she was so fright- ened ; but she didn't know much English, and thought I knew no French, so she didn't know how to ask me to stop or go slower. At last she just grabbed me by the arm and said, ' Plentee get oop enoff ! ' making signs for me to stop and let her get out to walk the rest of the way." The young person on the front seat also learned that the mother and sister of their host did reside with him until the former died and the latter married and went to the States; but he, being fond of the place and the sort of Bohemian life, " preferred to remain in the P. Q.," his auditor atro- ciously retorting, " There's nothing p.q. liar in that." Approaching quite near Tracadiegache they discov- ered that the northern slope, or rather prolongation of the range, is a narrow-topped steep wall, with a 30 In Quest of the Quaint. curious succession of reddish seams scoring the sides. These are timber chutes, down which, at an angle of sixty degrees, wood cut from the plateau above is sent whizzing with tremendous force. Reinhart said, " Once an ox hauling logs above, fell down one of those gullies, and they never found anything of him, not even so much as a hoof." On the outskirts of Carleton village appeared the " maison d'education " ; a dignified title for the school house to assume, as announced by the sign over the door. Next they passed the convent, then the pretty church, the cemetery adjoining, notable for its black and white iron and wooden crosses, which had a foreign look; some distance beyond, the sum- mer residence of the Governor-General, the whole hamlet in its neatness and quaintness suggesting a ISTorwegian village. By this time the steamboat was visible rounding Cap ISToir in the distance, and as Mr. Reinhart's horses " must be put up for a bit of a rest before the return drive," he made his adieux; and while Amy detained him for a few moments more giving messages for the Macpherson family, with merry promises to return next year and try salmon fishing, Mr. Kennedy and Mildred strolled along to- wards the end of the pier. During the latter part of the drive he had become silent and distrait, though the lady had not thought of it until this moment, for in truth she also had lapsed into quietude, absorbed in contemplation of the lovely pictures of the 'long shore drive; and liv- ing over in thought the novel experiences of the past few days. Though surrounded by chattering habitans they seemed to be for the first time alone, and felt a singular sense of isolation, particularly when, on reaching the end of the wharf, Mr. Kennedy opened his umbrella to shield them from the glare of the Maree-ah. 31 sun, thereby shutting out from their eyes everything but the beautiful Bay, all scintillating sapphire. He was speaking of his enjoyment of the days at Maria, when he stopped suddenly and there was a momen- tary pause, as each felt a sense of strange embarrass- ment. Mildred rather hurriedly made some remark about the hospitable folk of their recent place of so- journ, their admiration for the kindly people of high and low degree who had seemed to join in good-na- tured rivalry in adding to the pleasures of the stran- gers within their Capes, and the refreshing sense of unconventionality in it all. He heartily responded, " Yes ; and you cannot imagine what a surprise it was to me to behold that vision on George's doorstep; 'tis a picture for memory to treasure," Leaning against one of the huge mooring spiles he continued impetuously: " You cannot realize how great was the fascination of womanly companionship after three weeks of rough camp life. Then your singing: — how your voice did soar, and seem to carry me along with it in irresistible magnetism ! " Look- ing out over the water, with far-reaching gaze, he ab- sently, softly sang, " Moi, je ne cheris que les bleus," and Mildred, who had listened as if spell-bound, seem- ing to come to herself, made a movement as if shrink- ing away, but the gentleman vehemently interrupted himself: — " There is something I must tell you. You may have thought, — ^my manner may have misled you; forgive me if it should be so. Do not turn away," he implored, and, obtusely stumbling on, con- tinued, " I must tell you that, although I have in our agreeable converse in these few days at yonder quaint village, given you an insight into much of my life, I have not alluded to one point," Miss Ainsworth had listened with curiously con- tradictory sensations warring in her brain; she 32 In Quest of the Quaint. seemed about to speak at this juncture, and had been absently unfastening her glove; he in tactless man fashion plunged at the climax, continuing, " I did not pay the whole truth. I am married, and on my way to meet my wife at Gampbellton." Mildred, possibly slightly paler than usual, had removed her glove and laughed musically as she exclaimed, " So that, then, is your confession ? Well, I will give you confidence for confidence, and please absolve me from inten- tional misleading, as I believe you incapable of the same " ; adding, with a smile and frank glance of those azure eyes, " Such informal acquaintance as that brought about during these recent days makes one feel almost like an old friend, and I can speak thus plainly. The truth is," — and here she turned outward a gem on the third finger of her left hand, — " I * hae gien my promise true ' ; next week Mr. Hart- well comes on for his vacation, and in the winter we shall be married. I hope " — ^but just then the whis- tle of the approaching vessel broke in mercilessly; he took her hand, and, with the air of a knight of old, raised it to his lips in such respectful manner that she could not withdraw it. As Amy came forward to be ready to step on the gang-plank with them, he was closing his umbrella, his countenance unperturbed; and the attention of all was directed to the faces of the passengers crowding to the side of the boat's deck, in eager quest for their friends, who must have been so dismayed at the non- appearance of the truants when the "Admiral " called on Maria. Amy exclaimed, " Oh, what fun it will be to relate our adventures to the others," thus diverting Mildred's maze of thought, and as Jim with the girls crowded around their cousins, even Aunt Jemima was quite infected by their excitement. The re-united party swarmed together, all talking at once, Mavee-ah. 33 the newcomers being struck dumb when Meg called out, " Well, how did you like Mr, Reinhart's estab- lishment ? " Sue put in her query, " Wasn't that a lovely garden ? " Martie added, " Will you go sal- mon fishing next year ? " and Mrs. EUersley anx- iously asked, " But who is Mr. Kennedy ? " That pleasing personage, who had stepped aside, was thus called to mind, and the voluble Amy pre- sented him to her Aunt, whose face grew unaccount- ably gTave and long, until, in the course of conversa- tion, the fact was casually mentioned that he was go- ing to meet his wife at Campbellton; a bit of infor- mation which caused Amy and her air-castle to col- lapse. The chaperon quite monopolized the atten- tion of the Scotchman, while the cousins explained to the two deserters how it was that they had been able to take the wind out of their sails by forestalling their story ; — that a woman from Maria, who came on board at that place, had been telling of the sensation which the two ladies made there, retailing all their doings to a friend whom she met on the steamboat, and thus the waifs found that their fame had gone abroad. Too soon the port was reached, and the party obliged to separate. Mr. Kennedy had a word for each, — hopes of meeting again and pleasant wishes, — until he came to Mildred, to whom he made his adieux with all due courtesy, although in silence. " They two, leal and true," could have in their hearts no disloyalty if a pleasant summer episode should be recalled, when to mental hearing floated the re frain — z^^z^ -O— — \| :^ ^^-P- -v-^ -taBh Heron Island. HEEOIT ISLAND. The morning train on the I. 0. R. W., in medita- tive and desultory manner, was meandering along, — not more than one hour behind time, as yet, — and at long intervals, seemingly aroused from abstraction, it moderated its lagging pace at a scattered hamlet in the wilderness. Only long stretches of wildest, drear- iest lands were visible, and from these desolate tracts the forests had been stripped, leaving scenes of such loneliness as made one feel melancholy to contem- plate. Swamps appeared now and then, and, scat- tered about, like sentinels amid the desolation, were gaunt and crooked trees, whitened by frost and black- ened by fire; a ghastly and ghostly company.* This railway, which might have been cut through more directly from Maine, made a detour of over six hun- dred miles in order that the line should be all upon Canadian soil, in case of trouble with the United States. The fact that this line is supported by the Canadian government, and never paid a dividend, caused no surprise to two of the passengers; while most of the others, apparently having fallen into the same mood as the train, — time being no object to either, — were whiling away the hours in sleep. * Although New Brunswick has vast tracts of arable land, lumbering and ship-building were the main interests, until com- paratively recently, when farming is becoming successful; creameries and cheese factories have been established, and these products are exported to England. 38 In Quest of the Quaint. Dr. Laurier, of Quebec, familiar with this long- drawn-out selvage of New Brunswick, appeared to be buried in his book; but when the train, with great clanking of chains, shrieking of wheels, and a jar that set the spinal marrow quivering, shuddered into si- lence, a sweet-toned voice caught his ear. His book was dropped as his eye was attracted by vast piles of lumber, evidently to be added to the freightage of the train. " It seems to me that a verse of the 64th Psalm would be applicable to this region : ' A man was fa- mous according as he had lifted up axes upon the thick trees ' " ; said the gentle feminine tones ; to which an- other voice replied : " Yes, and you naturally are re- minded of something serious, while I, giddy thing, was just thinking, as we passed those little hamlets, of a squib in Fliegende Blatter, where a resident of a most prosaic settlement questions a visitor: ' Well, how do you like our town ? ' to which the stranger re- plies, ' Very nice plac€. Just consider that there are twenty-two trains on which you can leave it, daily.' " " Two without the twenty here, I should think," said the first speaker, " even if the inhabitants could muster up energy enough to think of getting away." Dr. Laurier, aroused by these voices, and finding the agreeable personalities thereunto belonging in rather close proximity, began, from force of habit, to diagnose this case, as he studied the two women oc- cupying the opposite seat. " Black, glossy hair, olive complexion, brilliant black eyes; black costume; evidently a widow, and the elder but livelier of the two. The other, fresh bright complexion, brown hair, soft ditto eyes, sedate manner; an interesting pair; refined in appearance; — Americans, without doubt, on a summer tour," he soliloquized. Heron Island. 39 Just at this point the conductor strolled through the train, and sat down on the arm of Dr. Laurier's seat, saving, " Doctor, you was going to stop over at the new 'otel on the Bay, wasn't you ? " The gentle- man replied in the affirmative, whereupon he of the uniform and air of owning as well as running the train, continued: " Well, there's a gorgeous state of thing's there; regular shindy, don't ye know! It's busted up, clean gone to smash, servants cut in a body. Oh, there's bean a pretty mess there. You'll find yerseK rother in a box d'ye know ? Wot'll ye do about it — A ? " His discourse was curiously made up of Yankee slang and provincial pronunciation, inter- larded with the interjection " Eh ! " invariably pro- nounced like the first letter of the alphabet. " So ? You then speak of Chateau Carton ? " said Dr. Laurier, whose face had grown rather long at this information. Consternation was depicted also on the countenances of his fair neighbors, who looked at each other in dismay as they listened to the con- ductor's statements. That official noticed this, and suddenly addressed them: " Oh, you're billed for D'loosey too, and I was just a tellin' Dr. Lorry wot a high old time there is there, and now, me grashus, wot'll you do ? " enjoying the consternation of his auditors. Just then the train shook itself into action, moved on again, and the conductor sauntered off to the door of the car; while the travelers thus uncere- moniously introduced naturally dropped into conver- sation. Deciding that they would stop at Dalhousie, despite the unfavorable report from that pretty vil- lage, the gentleman, with the gallantry of his race, seemed quite as a matter of course to assume the atti- tude of cavalier and protector to the two ladies who had found themselves plunged into such a dilemma. In the course of conversation on various topics, his 40 In Quest of the Quaint. politely-hinted surprise at their choice of locality for a summering elicited from Mrs. Allston the answer: " It must have been owing to our stay at Marblehead Neck last summer, and our studies of the old town of noted fishermen, whose favorite ground — if one might so speak of water — ^is the Bay Chaleur. Their old skippers' yarns were full of alluring bits and scraps of legend, in which the phantom ship and other ghostly spectacles figure largely." " But yes," said Doctor Laurier, " and have not I read a poem by your Huit-i-eh, of la Bale des Chaleurs, and a cruel Oapitaine who ' sailed away from a sinking ship? '" "Oh, you mean Skipper Ireson," said Mrs. Allston, who had not at once recognized the Quaker poet in Trench; " I can tell you a bit about that historical in- cident, as it was told to me by one who was born in the quaint town. The facts of the case, my inform- ant said, were, that Ireson's cruise had been most un- fortunate, so they would not have a one-fourth ' fare,' and a succession of unusually severe storms had al- most disheartened them. The Skipper was utterly worn out from hard and long-continued watches when the vessel in distress was sighted, yet gave or- ders to his men to change their course and steer for the other schooner, hoping to be of assistance by day- break. The men took advantage of the shipmaster at the change of the watch, and disregarded his in- junctions. After the heavy sleep of exhaustion, when Ireson came on deck, at dawn, he was amazed to discover that they were still on the homeward track, and the disabled vessel out of sight. " Arriving at the old town, it was discovered that fishermen reaching there in advance had reported the base desertion. To exculpate themselves, Ireson's men — who were ' a bad lot ' — threw the blame upon Heron Island. 41 their master, and the people of the town, hot-headed and impulsive, wreaked summary vengeance. This their descendants bitterly regret, and would do any- thing in their power to wipe the stain from the mem- ory of the poor man who was so sorely wronged. My informant could remember seeing Ireson, not so very many years ago, prematurely aged, and bent as with a heavy burden, shrinking from his fellow-men as if branded with an ineffaceable stigma. His manner was gentle and quiet, his eyes always cast upon the ground, while his voice was low, with a melancholy cadence. In after years the truth of the story was revealed by the statements of Ireson's cabin boy, who had kept silence in fear of the vengeance of the skip- per's men. They at last had wandered off to other ports; but the crushed man never attempted to right himself, and no doubt his life was shortened by the effects of the terrible treatment which he had re- ceived." The gentle voice of Kate JSTewton took up the thread of the subject, saying: " No doubt our beloved poet, whose pen was ever fire-tipped in the cause of justice, had not heard this side of the story. He saw its dramatic aspect, and probably supposed that the hardy and hasty fisher-folk were only standing up fairly to right a wrong to their clan, in the punish- ment of the skipper. The people of Marblehead were always noted for their impulsiveness, and were just as ready to respond with almost extravagant acts of generosity when want or suffering appealed to them. It was fishermen from that quaint port who rowed the boat in which Washington crossed the Delaware in the Kevolutionary War, and the first company of volunteers recruited in the Rebellion were from that old City of the Sea." In the mellow light of sunset Chateau Carton, the 42 In Quest of the Quaint. great unfinished barrack, put on an air of state, and one might say even wore an aspect of comfort and repose; — such was the glamor of that softened light when the weary travelers set foot within the bare walls of that hostelry on the uppermost rim of l^ew Brunswick, nearly three himdred miles north of St. John, their immediate decision being that nothing short of desperation and starvation should drive them from so beautiful a spot, A dreamland picture was presented to the view, so utterly restful and soothing one would naturally re- call it ever after in the tender light and lengthened shadows of the later hours of day. Apparently but a stone's throw from shore lay the three rocky and tree-crested islets, — Les Trois Amis, — every stone and branch upon them reflected in the mirror-like water, on which their symmetrical masses seemed to rest like that wonder of one's childhood, the floating islands of the East. Far away to the right stretched the great curve of the Bay, bounded by the low shores of I^ew Brunswick; in the distance Heron Island appeared like a cape reaching out as if to grasp in fraternal greeting Megouacha Point, on the shore cf the Province of Quebec, at the mouth of the Res- tigouche River. Then that grand mountain-guarded river ! — to say that it met the expectations of the travelers is saying a great deal, for in imagination they had been drawing marvelous pictures of that famous salmon stream of Canada. Fortunately the unromantic guests of the hotel were engaged in discussing the evening repast, and therefore invisible to the eyes of the new arrivals, and only the quiet tones of Kate Newton could be heard without any sense of jarring upon the exquisite picture. " I shall christen it Le Pays d'Apres-Midi.. The Heron Island. 43 musically suggestive French names suit my fancy in this realm of romance." This poetically-inclined person was summarily dropped from her airy flights of fancy upon the hard facts of prose and stern realities when the ladies in- spected their room, which contained considerably less than absolute necessities; and Mrs. Allston, with a brave attempt at Mark Tapley-ish cheerfulness, enumerated on the fingers of one hand the pieces of furniture. Although even her bright face grew rather lugubrious on beholding the one blanket pro- vided for each bed, traveling shawls were merrily brought into use, and the fair dames bravely resolved to make the best of everything. Deliciously dreamy days slipped by, each more beautiful than its predecessor, and the sisters en- dured with fortitude the hardships inflicted by an amazingly curt bill of fare, and even of days in which one meal was skipped entirely, owing to a whim of the tyrant of the kitchen, who was a Tartar; but their equanimity could be explained by frequent foraging expeditions to the village on the part of the gallant Doctor Laurier, who enveloped them in an atmosphere of delicate attention. Fathers of fam- ilies, taking the hint from the Frenchman's success, also betook themselves to the village for articles of which there was sad dearth and dire need among their swarming urchins; the Quebec physician finally com- ing out in a blaze of glory after triumphantly secur- ing blankets from what he called the " magazines " of that pretty hamlet. Forays were made into un- occupied rooms, and articles of furniture appro- priated therefrom, and a spirit of Bohemianism per- vaded the establishment, the guests of which seemed determined to look upon the whole experience in the light of a huge joke. The railway company had 44 In Quest of the Quaint. taken the house in hand, but though they offered free transport to any who wished to leave, found the guests singularly obtuse and in appreciative of such advantages; so it seemed that even unpoetic souls were witched by the charming spot. At five o'clock one morning the sisters were sud- denly aroused by the sound of angry voices beneath their windows. They listened without compunction to the tempest, expecting nothing less than a collapse of the whole concern in consequence of this hurri- cane, in which Gallic and Hibernian epithets were recklessly hurled back and forth. On cautiously ap- proaching the windows, to their startled eyes ap- peared the Queen of the Culinary, with arms a-kimbo, flushed face, unkempt hair and ponderous body fairly quivering with wrath; while from the door, literally fired out like a bomb from a catapult, flew the peppery little manager of the hostelry, who, although combining in his person the hot blood of Gaul -and Spain, was unable to cope with this one Celt, who routed him ignominiously. " Git out o' this in lis^'n a shake o' a cow's tail, ye miserable shpalpeen ! An' is it you, ye owdashus shpoilt image av a man, ye idjut, that lukes ez black as me shtove-poipe, ye purnishus gossoon, that wud be afther darin' to koom in me kitchen an' tell me my bizniz ? An' its meself that f urgits more nor ye iver knew in al' yer borrun dez, ye voile pickcher uv a fule that ye ar ! " Dr. Laurier, gazing from his window, mentally ejaculated, " Tartar emetic ! " as he saw the small, dark man shoot into the office, leav- ing behind him a blue streak of " Carambas, Carahos, Sacres, Diabolos," and other polyglot oaths. ISTot a very auspicious opening of the morning this, and when the ladies at breakfast learned that even the staff of life (traveling on a free pass and per bar- Heron Island. 45 rel from Moncton) bad rebelled and grown sour tbat day, Mrs. Allston, determined to keep up a semblance at least of cbeerfulness, was ready for tbe occasion, and tbrew at her sister a Chinese proverb: " A good cook is the father of happy dreams, but nightmares sit on a poor table " ; to which bonnie Kate smilingly retorted with another : " The first cook was the father of civilization." Her sister continued: "No saint on an empty stomach," and Dr. Laurier capped this with : " Mieux la realite que I'incertitude," adding, " Mesdames, in my position of medical adviser, I sug- gest change of air and scene, and propose a day's trip to Megouacha Point as a refuge from this famine- threatened place. There you shall at least regale yourselves on milk, butter and eggs, with a possibility of honey to sweeten existence; and I have in Eossil Cove discovered a mariner, who has a boat the most fine possible." Such a prescription being irresistible, the physi- cian carried the day, and in brief space of time Skip- per Barstow, — " a grand old Triton," as Kate men- tally dubbed him, — assisted the ladies into his neat and saucy craft. The Bay, all steely blue, was cov- ered with flashing whitecaps; light clouds were hurrying across the sky, causing strange-shaped shad- ows to flit and chase each other over the hills, like belated spectres fleeing the light of day and hastening to some far-distant hiding-place. In royal sapphire the monarch Tracadiegache marshaled his forces, — the superb chain of mountains which follow the shore of the river and pursue their grand march into the interior, rolling in beautifully rounded outlines to the horizon; while even the tall chimney of the com- monplace saw-mill on the river brink gracefully waved its plume of smoke and became an interesting accent in the landscape. 46 In Quest of the Quaint. Kate Newton, with an eye to the poetic and pic- turesque, was quite charmed with the Captain, as she called John Barstow, whose fine open countenance, although somewhat florid from a long seafaring life, was crowned and softened by thick snowy hair. She felt sure it was " a face with a story to tell," and that he was no common tar, while the lively and roman- tically-inclined Mrs. Allston began to wonder if here would not prove to be a mine of legend. Thereupon that wily person, making up to the old salt in the most engaging manner, inquired if there were not legends connected with the Bay and its capes and islands. John the hale and hearty, chivalrous as a knight of old, was naturally flattered, and fell into the trap readily. I^oticing that his fair passengers' gaze was directed towards Heron Island he began: " I wonder that you've not been out there. Old Tom JSTaboab, the Indian in the village, would have taken you in his canoe, if you got on the right side of him or found him in good humor. Old Tom's not very aged, but deaf's a post, and the boys of the vil- lage would tell ye you'd be obliged to shout till the top o' your head is like to come off to make him ' comprestand,' as he says, what point you're steering for. Well, Tom says you must go to Heron Island at night, and alone, too; then after placing thirteen skulls in a circle, each with a burning candle in it, proceed to dig till you come to a big red hot box which is full of Spanish money. You mustn't speak, or touch it with anything but the hands; if you dis- obey such directions, Tom says, ' Old Eed Horn come up and catch you, and box go down, down, down to be lost ' ! " Kate remarked, " I've heard both of his voracity and veracity; his word is to be re-lied on because he lies and lies again. Probably it was not here that the expression ' Honest Injun ' originated." Heron Island. 47 The strangers saw why Megouacha wore such a vivid mantle of velvet, as it proved to be no ordinary turf, but waving grain, the whole farm being a model of skillful cultivation and management. During their call at the farmhouse, engaging Kate induced a youthful scion of the family to bring out a violin which he had made, — a very creditable piece of work, — and that beguiling young person eagerly ad- vised him to go on and attain perfection; remember- ing that almost anyone could manipulate a fiddle, but only one in thousands could play a violin. From this youthful musician she obtained a pleasing sou- venir of the visit, in an ancient French chanson, handed down from early settlers who had brought it from la belle France. LE ROSSIGNOL. M lE^ ts: -•— P- i£ :^— #- iEE?E3 1. En - fin dessous I'om - brage Un tendre rossig- 1 . At twilight, 'neath the shade so dark, There comes a nightin- m -Szi nol, Vient d' arreter son vole son vole. Tu peux entendre gale, A tender, tender nightingale. He rests his wing from m :^=t son ramagel Tu peux en - ten - dre son ramage, Mais wear-y fiight And sweetly warbles, ah, then hark! There i ft£ se i p p ^— ^ I I I I -P-(2^ ^z^it ne fais pas de bruit de bruit L'oiseau s'en fuit s'en fuit. as the stars illume the night, His song floats to the vale. 48 In Quest of the Quaint. LE EOSSIGNOL. Enfin dessous I'ombrage Un tendre rossignol Vieut d'arreter son vol. Tu peux entendre son ramage Tu peux entendre son ramage Mais ne fais pas de bruit de bruit L'oiseau s'enfuit s'enfuit. II est vif et volage Si tu vas I'effarouclier (Le tendre tendre rossignol) Heureux ecoutez son ramage Heureux ecoutez son ramage Mais ne fais pas de bruit de bruit L'oiseau s'enfuit s'enfuit. Enfin dans I'esclavage Qui toujours fait mourir Crois-tu, crois-tu, veut le retenir ? Mais Dieu le sauve de sa cage Mais Dieu le sauve de sa cage Ses pas ont fait du bruit du bruit Libre oiseau s'enfuit s'enfuit. THE NIGHTINGALE. At twilight, 'neath the shade so dark, There comes a nightingale, A tender, tender nightingale. He rests his wing from weary flight And sweetly warbles. Ah, then, hark ! There, as the stars illume the night. His song floats to the vale. A timid little songster, this, (Far-flying nightingale, O tender, tender nightingale !) For should he hear a step, a sound. Ah, then, that sweet song thou would miss And in the wood he'd not be found He'd have soared far down the vale. O thinkest thou a cage would hold This sweetest nightingale? O tender, tender nightingale ! Pray then, beware, be not so bold ! The good God wills he should be free, He'd die in slav'ry e'en like thee. He'd ne'er come to our vale. The gallant doctor, as host of the day, offered next a drive to River ISTouvelle (famous for fine trout), and the women, to carry out the idea of being in a foreign country, declared that no vehicle would suffice for this but the two-wheeled cart (" char- ette ") of the French Canadian habitan, professing that this completed their bliss, although they found that in such conveyance conversation had a tendency to become decidedly interjectional, not to say ex- plosive, and the elegant gentleman confessed after- wards his certainty that one mile more of such travel would have utterly disintegrated the party. But the Bay; dimpling, sparkling, dancing witch- ingly ! Who could withstand its allurements, or re- main on shore while there was even a possibility of skimming away, free as a sea-gull, in that white sloop which curtsied and waltzed at its anchorage, waving its saucy pennon as if beckoning the strangers to " sail away for a year and a day," if they would ? The disciple of Esculapius mentally consigned his Heron Island. 49 distant patients to — the care of other medicos — with- out a pang; seeming perfectly content that this kind of thing should continue indefinitely when the women declared that they must continue the day's pleasuring by water. The sloop sped away ecstatically, and Barstow had informed his passengers that he was heading for River Charlo, on the southern shore, when over the water came a merry shout, " Ship Ahoy ! " to which the hale tar answered, " Aye, aye; so there you are ? " But his actions did not seem to accord with his cheery tone, for, instead of slackening speed, he let out a reef in the mainsail, and his face wore an expression which Kate ISTewton found inscrutable. The trio of pleasure-seekers, turning in the direction whence the clear-toned hail came, discovered that they were fol- lowed by a skiff, which a young oarsman was pro- pelling with vigorous strokes. Barstow asked, " Do you think we can show him a clean pair of heels ? " and the tourists could not surmise whether he was annoyed or amused at the progress and prowess of the youth in their wake, who after all was certainly gain- ing on them. Whether this was in consequence of the oarsman's skill, or because Barstow was allowing the " Petrel " to be caught, the women could not tell; but shortly the small boat came alongside, and John in gruff tones called out, " Hold on there ! Don't you know that a stern chase is a long chase ? " to which a laugh was the merry rejoinder, when a young man, apparently twenty-three years of age, stepped on board, quickly attached the painter to a cleat, allowing the skiff to drop astern, touched his cap to the passengers, and held towards John a T>asket, saying, " You know who that's for," " C'est un gage d'amour, n'est-ce pas ? " said Dr. Xaurier under his breath to Kate, but the women 50 In Quest of the Quaint. seemed struck dumb as they studied the newcomer^ who had thus unceremoniously boarded their vessel. Beneath a cap of true Glengarry style there beamed a frank and sprightly Saxon countenance, surmounting an athletic figure clad in navy blue, — correct in color for a nautical personage, only the nether garments were not loose sailor trousers, but the snug knee-breeches, black ribbed hose and low shoes of a wheelman. " Mr. Donald Campbell," announced Barstow, in off-hand manner of introduction, accompanied by a sweep of the arm which took in the newcomer and the passengers, the youth properly acknowledging the presentation by a bow to the ladies, and a cordial grasp of the hand which Dr. Laurier extended. The basket, of which John did not offer to relieve him, was of Indian workmanship and remarkably graceful shape; the edges curling outward, the handle slender and light, though strong. It was filled with large and luscious wild raspberries, heaped on fern leaves, whose plumy fronds fringed the edge of the dainty receptacle, and set off by admirable contrast the rich color of the fruit, while long sprays of the Mitchella vine entwined the handle. " II est vrai artiste," whispered Mrs. Allston to Dr. Laurier, while John Barstow conversed with the youth, though not yet offering to take the dainty gift. " And Avhat port had you cleared for, that you were not only out of hailing distance but hull down on the horizon when I was wanting you to show off Megouacha to these strangers ? " said John. The other explained that it was a fete day, the farm hands gone to the church, and on this account he himself had been obliged to take a horse to be shod, thereby missing the pleasure of doing the honors to the tour- Heron Island. 61 ists, to whom lie made due apologies. Then coollj setting down the basket beside the indifferent seem- ing skipper, he loosened the rope, drew his skiff alongside, stepped into it, waving his cap in adieu, and was soon shooting over the water in the direc- tion of the verdant point in the distance. Even quiet Kate N^ewton assailed the seaman, " Captain, how could you resist him ? " her sister putting in a word to the same effect. Barstow laughed: " Oh, yes, that's the way with lovely woman, bless her! She can always tell the cut o' the jib at a glance, and not only what sort of a craft it is, but what dunnage, while we, poor mortal men, have to study over it all for no end of a time. Why, bless ye, I've known that chap, scooting off on his shingle yonder, since he talked Choctaw in his cradle. He's sound to the core, I believe you; no slatting or scrimping about his build, but A-number-one at Lloyds', and never fail. I just wanted to bother him a bit." When the women admired the berries he remarked, " There's leagues upon leagues of 'em over there, but I didn't give him that fact back again, for I know he's been tramping miles to get 'em if he's been to the smithy besides." " You are to take them to your wife, I suppose," suggested Mrs. AUston, whose womanly curiosity was aroused. " She has slept now this many a year in the church-yard at Dalhousie," answered the old salt, W'ith a sudden lengthening of countenance, as he gave one long look backward towards the pretty village; then he added, " If you want to know if this is a sloobrious climate you'll find a toomstun there (it's cracked across and has been mended) erected in 1812 to one who died in the one hundredth year of her age. There's the light-keeper, too, of Bon Ami 52 In Quest of the Quaint. Point yonder (there where the two stone faces stands guards and watches the river, ye know), he is eighty- six years of age, and has been sixty years or so at this place; he has a brother of eighty-fonr, besides, still hale 'and hearty, living at Carleton." Interesting statements these, of course, but the quiet little woman who always had an eye to the poetic side of life, aided and abetted her romantic sister by continuing the subject of the fruit, saying, " Then this is for your daughter ? " She was met with the response, " The one great grief of our lives, Jane's and mine, was that we had never a chick or a child to bless us." This was, to say the least, baffling; and the subject was dropped when Barstow carefully set the basket away in the cuddy. The lengthening shadows betokened waning day, and, imperceptibly to all but the watchful eye of the skipper, a change was coming over the scene. In the southwest, a veil of gray had been forming, gradually spreading its folds, blurring into neutral tint the for- merly vivid hues of sea and shore, as if iN'ature, in sudden impatience, dissatisfied with her effects in landscape-painting, would wipe out the picture. The voyagers lapsed into dreamy silence, each apparently wrapped in his own reflections, until the fair Mrs. Allston seemed to arouse from reverie, and, impelled by the thought that this would be just the most ap- propriate season for weird recital, edged round to the hale Jack Tar. Such were the effects of her blandishments that the round and rubicund John again fell into the snare so slyly laid, and was in- duced to reel off a yarn for the edification of the party. " And so, my lady," playfully said the gallant old fellow, " this is the reason you were warpin' your Heron Island. 53 trim craft around to my lee side, is it ? Well, then, here goes ! " As that low-ljing strip of land in the distance had seemed to interest his party from the first, and as their course was now directed towards Heron Island, Barstow appropriately related a story connected therewith, a tale in which many of the French habi- tans and fisher-folk of the Bay believe implicitly even to this day; a tale which, herein divested of his nau- tical language, gives the legend of THE BURNING SHIP OF HERON ISLAND. Gaspar Cortereal, of Portugal, was very success- ful in trading with the Indians of Gaspe, bartering with them, by means of trinkets and trifles, for rich furs which he sold in his own country at great profit. This would have been well enough if he had been satisfied with it, but, one night, offering them a feast in his cabin, he lured on board his ship a great num- ber of the young Indians. When day broke the un- suspecting savages found themselves captives in the ship, which was then far out at sea; and on their ar- rival in Portugal the unfortunates were sold as slaves. The next year the treacherous adventurer thought to try this trick again, but did not quite dare venture into Gaspe Bay. He anchored at Heron Island, and there pursued his traffic with the natives, who flocked in numbers to the trading, pretending friendliness, while in reality plotting vengeance for the kidnap- ping of their fellows. One night the savages burst upon the foreigners, and put all to death with the ex- ception of Cortereal, who was bound to a rock at low tide; there, after suffering the utmost torture which the savages could invent, death came to him by inches as the tide rose around him, and his wretched life ended with the submerging of the rock. 54: In Quest of the Quaint. Two years after, Cortereal's brotlier set out to searcli for his missing relative, and, sailing into the Bay, recognized the ship, still anchored at Heron Island; and was filled with exultation at the success of his enterprise, as he began to calculate the value of the cargo which he would carry away. But his joy was of short duration, for on reaching his broth- er's ship a troop of savages appeared, leaped to his vessel, and killed most of the crew, who were entirely unprepared for such an onslaught. Cortereal and some of his men succeeded in gaining the cabin which they barricaded, while arming themselves; the ship meanwhile, unknown to all, drifted out with the tide. Knowing there was no hope for them, the white men took a solemn oath that they would die together, and moreover would haunt the Bay for a thousand years afterwards ; then they scuttled the ship, set fire to the vessel, rushed from the cabin, taking their captors utterly by surprise, and a terrible battle en- sued. As the ship settled in the water and the fire burst through the deck the savages swarmed up the rigging until the ropes themselves were in a blaze, when, with a lurch and plunge, the ship sank beneath the waves. Only one Indian escaped to tell the tale; he, clinging to a piece of the wreck, drifted back with the tide. The Indians, frightened by the frequent ap- pearance of the blazing vessel, which rises and drifts about the Bay, especially on stormy nights, deserted the island and moved to the interior. An eerie and gruesome tale this, as the tourists agreed, even Dr. Laurier asserting that " it is suffi- cient to cause the skin crawl," which was supposed to be his version of the saying, " It makes the flesh creep." The romantic querist, assailing the sailor as Heron Island. 55 to his belief in the same, was met by the non-commit- tal reply: " Did you ever see a tar who wasn't super- stitious ? " though a twinkle lurking in his eye might indicate that he had his o^vn opinion on the subject. He added : "" I can give you the actual words of an old French resident of Grand River, over there on the P. Q. shore, who said to me, ' So clearly has the burning ship been seen that the rigging could be plainly distinguished, and even objects resembling men climbing the ropes. This is strange but true; old and young have witnessed it ; even this summer it was seen near the shore of Mar-ee-a/?/ by several per- sons who watched it for hours, and finally saw it dis- appear in the distance.' Yes," continued the sailor, " an old pilot told me that he had been near enough to hear the clash of arms and to see the crew, and others have told me it has been seen even under the sea, still blazing like fury. The water can't put it out, you see, for old Scratch keeps feeding the flames, and they say the light shows above the ice in winter." The lively lady solemnly asserted her desire to behold the ghostly spectacle; and the tar, with an air of well-assumed horror, gazed upon her with widened eyes, declaring, " They say it is a certain sign of death or disaster; " but she nevertheless recklessly repeated her earnest wish to witness the unlucky ap- parition. Kate ]!^ewton, mildly protesting, began, " Martha, don't be — ," but her sister interrupted with the ex- clamation, " Oh, do see that queer ship near Heron Island ! " and at once implored Barstow to sail closer that they might inspect the strange craft, and he willingly brought them almost under the bows of the huge vessel lying at anchor. Such a singularly Rip Van Winkle-ish spectacle it proved; where could it 56 In Quest of the Quaint. have been hidden for a century or so to come thus upon the vision like a tangible reminiscence of olden times? The hull, broad and low, was striped black and white like an antique war vessel; the curiously- carved stern slanted sharply inward; the bows were elaborately ornamented with scroll work, once gor- geous in gilding; the masts seemed prodigiously tall, as the strangers gazed from below, and a maze of cordage was outlined against the sky like mammoth spider webs. Kate quoted from Whittier: " The merchant ship lay idly there, in hard, clear lines on high, Tracing with rope and slender spar its network on the sky." The name " Aldegunde of Holmstrand " seemed appropriately quaint for the stranger to bear, and Barstow grew loquacious, volunteering the informa- tion that she was " probably an old merchantman now used for transporting timber, and no doubt on her way to Campbellton to load with deals." He added: " The oldest ships afloat are owned in ISTorway and engaged in the lumber trade; yes, if you'll believe it, there's a barque of London which was built in seventeen-sixty something, and is still traveling and trading. You ladies will be especially interested to know that she's American built, and no doubt you'll think she has a pretty name, ' True love,' " and John seemed to war^n to his subject, and continued, " Oh, they built ships in the right way in old times. ISTone o' your ' killdry ' lumber then; they made 'em to last. Now they build 'em by the mile, and chop 'em off in lengths to suit customers, as your newspaper ads. put it; why, the wood is so green that the coons haven't time to clear out before the timber goes into the vessels, and the seams begin to grin and yawn before the boat's off the stays, al- most; the coast is paved with the rotting bones of Heron Island. 5T such craft, for tliey go to pieces as easy as an ice- cream pyramid under a hot sun. Why, nowadays, such ship buikiers as those old fellows couldn't get custom, because they'd be too slow for these times, and couldn't build and launch a barkentine in a week; they'd have to go to makin' shoe-pegs, packing- boxes and step-ladders to get a living." Quite a tirade this for the jolly old chap, and the strangers could not tell how much of it was fun and how much earn- est, they meantime being engrossed in examining the huge mass looming above them. JsTothing escaped the bright eyes of Kate, who asked, " Is the ISTorwegian flag yellow ? " causing her companions to exclaim as their attention was thus called to the pennon, of such uncommon hue, flap- ping on one of the masts, which seemed to soar into the clouds. " Why, no," ejaculated John, " I had noticed that, and it means Hospital; there must be illness or trou- ble aboard; " whereupon Martha AUston, in excited whisper, exclaimed, " Can it mean yellow fever, or anything contagious ? " Dr. Laurier set her mind at rest on that point, avowing his intention of boarding the vessel, feeling that his profession entitled him at least to make in- quiries. Just at that moment the captain of the ship appeared, and entered into conference, recklessly shattering the Queen's English into bits in his expla- nation that his one passenger " de ay-gent off de loom- per kompny haf met veeth an axe-e-dent," and he had sent ashore to see if there was a physician at Dalhousie or Campbellton who would come to their assistance; that his man " haf joost retoorn, and zay dere is nefer eeder docktare or soorjin, und I am in zo mooch distrest ov mine, vile dat pore yoong shen- telman iss in sooch payen as never vas." 58 In Quest of the Quaint. By this time the energetic Frenchman had mounted the ship's side like a cat, and disappeared from view with Captain Kniidsen. Of course the sympathies of the women were at once enlisted on behalf of the young foreigner, and it seemed an age before the doctor and captain appeared again. Then they both descended into the sloop to consult with Barstow, and to lay before him the problem. The captain, in his astonishing English, said, " Dis yoong man, Mr. Eric Grjerding, you zee haf von shtorm night treep-ed on de deck, vere a shtoopit zay- lor dit shpill zom oy-al, vich coze de shentelman to fall ofer a coy-el off ro-ap, unt his leek vas proke. IsTow my fadther vas a doaktare, unt I haf vonce be- gun to stoodie mit him; but I likes alvays better de zee, zo I gif oop de medcin, alldoe I haff learn how to set de bo-an. Zo dere vas nodings to do but I moost f eex de pore yoong man's leek, vor ve vas den hoonderts miles off dees blace. Veil, bart off mine carco iss blaster, vich I gets at Blaster Cofe in de Basin Minas, Bay Fundy; unt zo I sudden dinks dat is vot mine fadther use to do, he mak like trough unt fill mit blaster to case de broken leek, so dat I do." Dr. Laurier explained to the ladies that the plas- ter is gypsum or terra alba, which is valuable as a fertilizer, adding aside to Kate, " Your confectioners and grocers divert it to base uses, adulterating sugar and flour," but she was too much interested in the captain's story to resent the mischievous thrust, or to take up the cudgels in defence of her countrymen. Then the physican, possibly somewhat vain of his more fluent tongue, came to the rescue of the I^orse- man's limping English, saying to Barstow, " The Capitaine has done well; I should be proud of him as an associate in my profession ; the patient has done Heron Island. 59 so well as possible under the circumstances; the pain which the young man suffers is from the knitting of the bone, and it could be subdued if the captain's medicine chest had greater variety of remedies. Mr. Yer I cannot speak the name ; it would give me lockjaw, — the patient, I mean, — must now have absolute quiet, as well as good country fare. I come now to ask you could we take him ashore in your boat ? " John unhesitatingly assented, as if this thing, which looked to the women like a herculean task, were an everyday occurrence. The hotel at Bon Ami Point was spoken of as a refuge for the invalid, but Dr. Laurier strenuously objected; whereupon then spake up John the generous, " Bring him to my house, and I'll guarantee that he'll have the best of care," overruling all objections, and turning aside, with a laugh or ironical word, the protestations of the party. The transfer was successfully and speedily made, though one might have supposed that it would have taxed the ingenuity of the whole ship's crew, and brought into requisition " Crow and lever and gaff and sling, Tongs and tackle and roller and ring" to hoist such a dead weight through the hatchway, and lower it into the sloop. There the women at once and naturally assumed the position of nurses, and assisted with their gentle cares; and Captain Kniidsen, vastly relieved in mind, assured the party that he should now proceed to Campbellton to load with lumber, and would come as soon as possible to Fossil Cove to see how the sufferer progressed. A subdued company it was returning in the " Petrel." The threatening aspect of the sky had vanished, the gray bank in the southwest had been 60 In Quest of the Quaint, dispelled, probably by a distant thunder-storm, and the sun was almost setting when the sloop neared John's little wharf, beyond which his neat cottage and pretty garden could be seen in the pleasant, soft light. ]^ot far from the small pier the passengers descried the figure of a woman seated on the beach, her attention absorbed in something which she was moving and turning in singular fashion in her hands. To the amazement of the women and the physician, the sailor arose, and, taking a stone from his pocket, seemed to aim directly at this woman, causing Kate to scream with affright; but the stone fell in the water, near the bending figure, with a splash which must have spattered her. She suddenly turned her head, her face beamed in glad recognition, and Kate exclaimed, " What a lovely creature ! Truly she makes a perfect picture." This enthusiastic young person's attention was next arrested by further extraordinary conduct on the part of John. He had lowered the sail, and the boat now rested in glassy water, which reflected the roseate sunset sky; and the sailor stood by the mast, attitudinizing, in the most amazing manner. If the party had not through the day become convinced of his good sound common-sense, this performance on his part would have been sufficient proof that he had " gone clean daft." He bent his head, resting it upon his hands, then waved one hand in the direction of the lighthouse; then he moved both hands alternate- ly in a manner suggesting a dog's feet paddling in water, after which he seemed to draw invisible buck- ets of imperceptible water from an imaginary well; then he leaned forward, touching the deck with the tips of his fingers, and next suddenly became erect, pointing with one finger to his forehead. The girl on the beach during all this had stood Heron Island. 61 motionless as a statue, in unconsciously bewitching pose. Her dark brown dress of heavy serge hung in full, graceful folds, unbroken by flounce or trim- ming; a wide-brimmed soft felt hat, dark red in color, had slipped back from her face, showing jet black hair and olive complexion, with warm color in the cheeks; and the eyes, — large, liquid and black as a sloe, — rested on Barstow with most intent gaze. With the right hand thrown up back of the ear, as if just catching the brim of her hat as it was about to slip off, and with the other hand slightly extended, she stood as if listening, though no sound could be heard but the lapping of the water against the piles and on the beach. Then, touching one finger to her lips, and gracefully bending her head, she turned and sped away, light and swift as a doe, in the direction of the lighthouse. The sailor turned with a satisfied smile to the women, whom he and the physician assisted in dis- embarking. The latter excused himself for not ac- companying them, as he must superintend and aid in the removal of the patient from the sloop to the sailor's cottage; suggesting, however, that if they would wait at the Arched Rock, the Gate of Fossil Cove, he would join them there, and escort them to supper at the hotel. Even one who was not especially interested could not fail to feel sufiicient desire to witness the transfer of the interesting sufferer. The women naturally did not withstand this opportunity, but stationed themselves under the great stone arch which the sea during unknown centuries had worn through the hard trap rock. Then came, hastening along the beach, four young habitans and two Indians; the former browned by ex- posure to sun and storm until they appeared as 62 In Quest of the Quaint. swarthy as those whom they called " sauvages." Fine specimens of vigorous young manhood were they all; supple of limb, tense of muscle, ready to spring to in- stant action with a sense of exultation in their power. In the boat Barstow and the doctor arranged the ropes and supports attached to the hammock, while the young men on the small jetty stood alert to do their part, ready to obey instantly directions from the leaders, and to lift the prostrate figure, which lay helpless and heavy as a leaden image in the bottom of the boat. A few short words of command from the sailor, with a quiet direction from the physician, and the long hammock, resembling a gigantic chrysalis, was deftly raised to the wharf, then slung by its ropes from the shoulders of the six athletes, who, with pace so measured and regular that there could be no jar, conveyed the sufferer to the cottage, and disappeared within the door. When Dr. Laurier joined the waiting women he exclaimed with enthusiasm, " Positivement, the Bars- tow is a cheen-use; never should I have supposed this possible of accomplishment, yet now have I left the young men so comfortable as possible in bed; and he will without doubt recover with speed. Certainly he could not fail to do so, for he has a physique which would otherwise be a libel on j^ature. He is a glori- ous young Viking; I call him Mon Prince, he so much resembles Prince Oscar of Sweden, whom once I had the honor to meet." One of the women meantime had her thoughts and attention riveted on a tiny silhouette of a boat, in which she was certain that the gay oarsman Camp- bell was speeding across to Fossil Cove; for she, ro- mantic person, felt confident that he must have spe- cial interest in, and for, the mysterious gypsy, — the Heron Island. 63 fair unknown with whom the skipper held such as- tounding communion. Fervently did Gaston Laurier bless that fortunate unfortunate who had been so comfortably deposited in the cottage of the retired ship-master; for in the stranger's mishap had he not found his own good for- tune ? — giving as it did valid excuse for him to remain longer in this delightsome spot, and in companionship which daily grew in charm, — and danger; although he wilfully shut his eyes to the latter fact. Frequent were his visits, devoted his attentions to the young foreigner, and what so natural as that the sisters should accompany him on these errands of mercy ? A distinct path was becoming worn in the field which the trio traversed in crossing Bon Ami Point (ap- propriate name !) to Fossil Cove; and Mr. Eric Gjerd- ing ought at the very least to have arisen and danced in evidence of speedy cure, as well as appreciation of such professional and feminine care. ISTo doubt he wished heartily enough to do so, though obliged to submit to imprisonment, and the doctor's jocosely- peremptory mandates, until E^ature, assisted by his remedies, had had time to repair damages. In the dainty neatness of John Barstow's cottage there were unmistakble evidences of a woman's pres- ence, which did not escape the bright eyes of Martha or the quiet notice of Kate; but the unknown dame or damsel remained strangely invisible, although at one of their calls with the doctor a piece of work was seen on the table in the cosy and tasteful parlor; at another a small glove had evidently been dropped on the floor by some one passing out hastily; and yet again a rocking-chair was discovered slowly oscillat- ing, as if the occupant thereof had just fled through the open door. Finally, one day the mysterious femininity was caught, seated in the deep embrasure 64 In Quest of the Quaint. of one of the casement windows which let in a flood of sunlight through the two-foot-thick stone wall. Though evidently embarrassed, she gracefully ac- knowledged the introduction when the grand old Triton proudly announced, " Ladies, my daughter,"^^ and they recognized the young gypsy of the beach. His daughter? Yet he had distinctly told them on the day of their memorable excursion in the " Pe- trel " that he had never had a child ! There was some mystery about this, and what more fascinating to the feminine mind? The women were instantly taken by storm by this meeting with the beautiful girl, and would have entered into conversation with her but that she slipped out of the door, taking with her a basket from the table, making an apologetic and deprecating obeisance; the sisters meantime an- swering a rather hasty remark (on nothing in par- ticular), which was made by Barstow. In all these weeks, which had been passing so charmingly to them, the sisters had become well ac- quainted with the seafaring man, and on the disap- pearance of the girl they instantly assailed him, the doctor meanwhile having left the room to attend his patient. " Who is she ? " said Kate. " You said you had no child," added Martha. " Tell us about her," continued Kate. " She is lovely as an artist's dream or poet's vision ! " John's rugged countenance fairly beamed at this, and, taking a hasty glance in all directions from the window, he seated himself beside the fair dames and began : " So I must spin ye another yarn ? Or, like the children, you want me to tell you a story. Shall it begin, ' Once upon a time,' or ' Many years ago ' ? Well, it shall be hotli. There was a tremenjus storm Heron Island. 65 in Bay Shaloor, the worst that ever was known bj the oldest inhabitant. Even in this sheltered cove the big rollers broke agin the Point, and the gate in the rock there was filled np to the top of its ruif by the sea. The lantern of the lighthouse at the mouth o' the river was smashed to flinders, houses in the vil- lage had their ruffs torn off like as if they was paste- board, and I knew there'd be wild work at sea, and many a good ship would lay her bones on this coast. 'Twas bitter weather, but just at the edge o' day, when the sea was going down a bit, I went out in my row-boat, which is built after the life-boat fashion — you can study her pretty lines on the beach below there — I knew 'twas at the risk of my life, but I was fifteen years younger then, and " ' Salt as the sea wind, tough and strong As an old cask from Labrador,' as one of your poets puts it. Yes, and I thought maybe I might help someone, though I couldn't make out how any craft could have lived in such a sea as had been running. To be sure there was a wreck; some ship had gone to pieces, all stove into kindlings, so there wasn't enough of it left to show what it had been; no name nor nothing, and even the bodies of the poor sailors or passengers must have been carried out to sea, for there was the most 'mazing tide, — there never was one like it before or since, leastways to the best of my reckoning, or as far as I can find out. But in an eddy between the islands I found the queerest craft that ever was seen since Moses was launched; it was as if the waves were playing battle- dore and shuttlecock, this strange thing being tossed about by 'em, and I caught it with my boat hook. There was a full dozen curious straw mats rolled tight and lashed together, with another mat lying 66 In Quest of the Quaint. atop; and in that, all wrapped in tarpaulins and blankets, was a child of six years of age. It was that blue and ghastly that I tho't it dead; but a little twitch of a finger made me think p'raps there was a spark o' life yet, and I just laid to my oars and put for the shore with might and main. I tell you I just made the ' Bunsby ' walk, and in less time than I'm telling ye I had that chick beside the fire. Well, I had to fight for it the whole livelong day, toastin' blankets and roastin' bricks to get a bit o' warmth into the tiny mite, and rubbin' its little body with hot spirits ; I never stopped for bite or sup myself till night came, and then that bit o' humanity opened its eyes and looked at me, like two stars peepin' out in a night o' murk. Then I tell ye I could just have sat down and cried, I was that happy ! " Well, it was only a short time till the little thing recovered, and Mrs. Campbell, yonder there at Megouacha, made the purtiest cloze fur it; and they all was in love with it, and it grew to be the sweet- est cherub you ever laid eyes on. But the shock, or exposure, or fright, or all together, made that blessed creeter what you call a mute. She hadn't lost her hearing entirely, and if she don't speak with her eyes and talk with every look of her bright face, then I'm mistaken. I've often thought she must be of Spanish blood, — ^I've been to Spain and Portegal and lots others of those queer countries in my day, — but I've never been able to find out anything about the ship, or about the child or her people. " Well, the village was wild about ' Barstow's Baby,' as they called her, and Mrs. Campbell begged right hard to keep her; but she'd walked right into me heart, and I couldn't let her go; I vowed I'd 'dopt her an' bless old ITep into the bargain for sending her to me, though," he added reverently, " God knows she Heron Island. 67 was Heaven-sent, and has brought me the greatest joy of my life ! Then young Campbell's father asked me could he christen her, and I said I had a name a'- ready, a name well known to sailors and suited to the way I got her, and that was ^Jetsam,'' and I said her glossy black hair suited it too. But he laughed, and said she'd be ashamed of such an outlandish one as that and so I gave in, after a fashion, when he (being Scotch, you know) chose lona, and I tho't that sounded rather pretty, an' I 'greed to it. But I put the other name in the middle, so she's lona Jetsam Barstow, and I often call her Jetty for short. Well, that saucy boy who was chasing us in the ' Petrel ' t'other day, was near her age, — only five years older ; and you just ought to have seen how those little trots took to each other, an' they've been just that dewoted ever since. Bless you, he taught her to read by scratchin' on the sand with a stick, and to write on birch bark with the ink of the squid he found on the beach after storms; so he was makin' play of her schoolin' all the time, and she learned so fast, 'twas 'mazin' indeed. What with her own nateral quick- ness, an' the Campbells and me helping, by speakin' slow an' keerful, she learned to tell what we were sayin', much of the time, by watchin' our lips. As to books, why she's a cormyrant, and has been eena- most through Mr. Campbell's library (an' I have too), she sitting on my knee and I reading over her shoulder. " Well, in some of my travels, before she came to me, I went once to a school at a place they call Leep- sick in Yourop where they teach mutes to talk (and His wonderful, I believe you) ; so by what I could re- member o' their ways o' showin' 'em, an' what I could make up out o' my thick noddle to p'int it out clear to her, — like sightin' a sail on the horizon, though 'twas 68 In Quest of the Quaint. that far away from the reeginal thing, in the forrin school, — I showed her how to watch my lips and tell what I was saying. Donald and I betwixt us learnt her warious things, and Mrs. Campbell showed her about sewin', and house ways o' doin' things. She's sharper 'n a steel trap, and quicker 'n lightning; but she's shy until people know about her, and so she's sheered off when she saw you steering this a-way; and I've laughed at her for runnin' the blockade, and keepin' out o' bounds. She'll s'prize ye, I dare swear, although I'm not profane, — she's cured me o' that " — with a chuckle which shook his round body like a quaking jelly. " She can tell me a long story in three waves of her hand, and the same to you with pencil and paper, her scribbler traveling along like a two-forty racer, or a pirate chasin' a merchantman in old times. Oh, I've learned lots of her, for I never had advantages, and all the schooling I ever got was ' by sheer grit and obstinacy,' as you Yankees say; 'twas almost by stealing the hours when I was ashore, an' stuffin' my kit with books when I was on a cruise ; and they weren't all on navigation, neither ! " Here certainly was material enough for the com- position of airy structures, and foundation sufficient for day dreams, all of which was utilized by the in- teresting and interested strangers from the States, who struck up a wonderful intimacy with the gypsy- like maiden. Great was their astonishment at the remarkable quickness of perception and the seemingly insatiable desire for learning which she evinced, revealing also a most amiable disposition combined with force of character. An heirloom in the Campbell family, which that dame of the old school had presented to her bewitch- ing young friend over the river, was an antique Heron Island. 69 " housewife " from which the supernumerary pen- dants had been removed, leaving the tablets and pen- cil depending from their quaint silver chains; and this dainty chatelaine always hung from the maiden's belt, and was brought into constant use in her com- munications with any one but Barstow. With him it never seemed necessary, such was the ready un- derstanding between the two. There was one amusing feature in their inter- course; that being his strenuous efforts to break him- self of a habit common among mariners, and uncon- sciously contracted by him when he was cabin boy, — the habit of using unnecessarily strong, not to say profane, language. His almost adoring love for the daughter of his adoption, combined with the desire that she should learn nothing but what was good, led him to try to conquer that habit, and in the course of the years he had almost overcome it, so that it was only on occasions of excitement that his own peculiar expressions (invented to take the place of the former oaths) could be heard. With all his ruggedness the man possessed a chivalric and noble spirit, the most exalted admiration for and ideal of woman, and a truly devout nature, with a voice like a fog-horn in denouncing wrong or injustice, and a heart and hand as soft and gentle as a woman's. As lona's acquaintance with the sisters ripened into intimacy she joined them in their rambles, wherein she and Martha naturally paired off, leaving Gaston and Kate to follow; an arrangement which it was evident was quite satisfactory to these two. Donald Campbell frequently happened along, in- variably joining the first-named pair; and in these walks and talks Martha studied that youth, and learned his aims and worthy ambitions, as his frank nature scorned disguise or concealment. It was not 70 In Quest of the Quaint. possible, either, for her to mistake the character of his interest in the lovely girl, though she wisely kept that knowledge to herself, and was apparently as in- nocent and unsuspecting as the object of the young man's devotion. The young IsTorwegian meanwhile had so far pro- gressed towards recovery as to be able to walk daily, with the aid of crutches, into the little parlor, and, lying on a couch by the open casement, to bask in the sunshine, while John discoursed sagely or discussed the news of the day, or the invalid whiled away the pleasant hours with books or papers. lona brought her work and sat by them, and frequently entered laden with fruit and flowers, or discussed with the young man curiosities from the cove, which resem- bled small strings of flat buttons that had been buried in clay and needed washing, — stems of the sea lily (encrinite), fossilized thousands of years ago, which formed part of Barstow's museum of strange things collected from all countries in his travels. Gaston Laurier had left weeks before for Que- bec, — though it was not until an imperative telegram summoned that he could tear himself away, — but many, frequent, and transparent, were his excuses for almost daily missives to his distant inamorata, or re- minders of his constant thought for her, Kate being seen often wearing flowers of such rare beauty that any one could tell they never grew in the village gar- dens. She was also the recipient of fine baskets of fruits and boxes of dainty confections with which to sweeten existence, and many times the gallant Frenchman " ran do^vn " to stay over a Sunday at the shore; to recuperate from his arduous labors, no doubt, by change of air and scene. Captain Kniidsen had also made several visits to, and held long conferences with, Mr. Gjerding, in Heron Island. 71 reference to the business of the lumber company which Eric represented, — a firm of wealthy ISTorwe- gians, of whom that young man's father was the one representing the largest amount of capital, — and Barstow had jocosely inquired if the " Aldegunde " were not pine-ing to be free. That great vessel, lying under the lee of Point a la Garde, near Campbellton, was devouring vast quantities of timber and deals, swallowing it at the two great square ports which stood open like yawning mouths in her bows, seem- ingly intent only on satisfying her apparently in- satiable appetite, and caring naught for the fact that her place of anchorage had been the site of a naval battle, and those peaceful scenes had echoed war's alarms in the last century, when Admiral Byron there distinguished himself. John's cares as nurse were very considerably lightened, the patient being able by this time to move about the house and help himself. The mariner and his daughter found him a fascinating guest. Eric seemed to have evolved a method of his own for com- municating with the charming mute, and she to pos- sess singular intuition in comprehending him. Un- doubtedly there was wonderful magnetism between the young Viking and the lovely maiden, and there evidently was a particularly mysterious understand- ing also. This did not escape the notice of the astute John, and it caused him to contemplate the two with very grave countenance, though why that should be it would be dilBBcult to divine, for, if " Love's young dream " was forming, certainly one might suppose those interesting young people would be just the onea to be so affected by each other, and that there could be no reasonable objection if such were the case. The young man from Megouacha came suddenly upon Gjerding and lona seated quite close together 72 In Quest of the Quaint. on the porch of the cottage; proximity which was natural in consideration of her infirmity, but both were engaged in such deeply absorbing converse that they were quite oblivious of his approach, — although he stood transfixed for a moment, — as well as of his abrupt departure when the youth plunged down the bank, threw himself into his boat, the " Jettie," and rowed away as if his life depended on his reaching the verdant point in the distance " in less than no time," as Barstow would have expressed it. Martha, to whom lona and Donald had become so attached, found herself in a trying position between them, those young people having become strangely silent and absent. Though they both affected her so- ciety, and her heart was going out to each, she knew there was trouble somewhere; yet she was perplexed and felt her powerlessness ; albeit her sympathy and tender interest were manifested in a hundred in- definable ways. One day the sisters sat on the shore towards sunset, — " Not interrupting with intrusive talk The grand majestic symphonies of ocean," — but both feeling a sense of sadness in the thought that they must soon leave these blissful scenes. A thunder shower had passed over, and the clouds were lifted just sufficiently above the horizon to permit the long, slanting rays to flood the landscape with a most singular unearthly-seeming light, intensifying the hues of all verdure; while a vivid and perfect rain- bow completely spanned the Bay, connecting the low shores of ISFew Brunswick with the mountain-guarded coast of the Province of Quebec. John Barstow came striding along the beach towards the cove, wear- ing a rather perturbed countenance. He met the sisters just as this celestial spectacle presented itself Heron Island. 73 to their view; and without uttering a word he rever- ently uncovered his head, and with them stood gaz- ing upward, all remaining in rapt silence till the ex- quisite colors had vanished. Again the next afternoon John met the ladies, who noticed his subdued manner. After a while he im- parted the information that the young l!^orwegian's business had been accomplished, through Captain Kniidsen, and the time set for the " Aldegunde's " departure ; so that in less than a week Eric would sail away in the great vessel. The friends who had been so pleasantly brought together from such opposite quarters were soon to separate, and even lively Mar- tha became subdued at the thought. Arousing her- self, that irresistible young woman questioned John as to the perturbation she had noticed in his expres- sion as he came towards them, and he replied with a bubbling chuckle, " Oh, one o' those gorjis city fellers sent me sailing orders that I must steer in his direc- tion, and I was curious to see what my lord High Tippy-bob wanted. Well, he came cruising down on me, one o' these sky-scrapers with top-gallants and all, ye know, and every stitch o' canvass swellin' like zif he couldn't even see a poor insignificant tub like mine. But I didn't scare worth a cent, and when he ordered me to take his party out sailing to-morrow I informed him plain as preacher's text that the ' Petrel ' wasn't fur hire, not fur the whole heft o' his purse and possessions, and that the only passen- gers she ever carried was men, and not parodies ! Oh, ho! I took the wind out o' his sails, and he looked zif I had turned a broadside on him and raked his craft fore and aft, and he keeled over quicker'n I'm telling ye. He thinks I'm a Dalhousian and a fraud, I've no doubt. By jolly, it was funny! — I beg your pardon, ladies, that slipped out before I 74 In Quest of the Quaint. could catch it; it's only from the teeth out. You know my Jettie has cured me of swearing." This seemed a propitious opportunity for the women to lay siege to the jolly mariner in reference to a project of Mrs. Newton's, the first suggestion of which caused his countenance to exhibit a series of expressions in rapid succession. First, blank amaze- ment, then exultant delight, finally almost abject des- pair that rubicund face depicted; as the three, en- gaged in earnest discourse, walked slowly away to a secluded spot on rising ground overlooking the river, and there the mysterious interview continued for an hour; Barstow finally leaving the sisters and continu- ing on his way to the village. With head bent and hands clasped behind his back he slowly paced out of sight, leaving the sisters seated in silence, lost in en- raptured contemplation of the sunset pageant. The nearer range of hills was clothed in dark velvety green, blending into the russet of rock and barren slope, thus breaking the transition to the rich brown red of the following undulations. Then rose rugged giants in royal crimson and Tyrian purple where the range parted slightly, showing glimpses of far distant summits of sapphire, seemingly the portal of some marvelous realm of enchantment; and as the wonder began to fade the gentle voice of one of the sisters repeated : '•' gates of glory, stay open yet longer, Trembling I gaze at the luminous door, Yearning to win but one word from the silence. Only one sign from the answerless shore ! " Barstow, returning from the village, was met by the children, who all knew the grand old salt, and, swarming about him, wished to know, now that dark- ness had fallen, why the shore was defined by a silver line of phosphorescent foam, each wave becoming an Heron Island. 75 undulating, shining bar as it turned to fall on the pebbles, while footsteps on the sand left luminous im- pressions. " Why, bless ye, don't ye know that light comes from the ghosts of drowned sailors, likewise as the fire-flies being the speerits o' the poor birdies that the hunters shoots ? " They, however, received this with derisive " Ohs," and, begging for a story, he, to gratify them, related a legend of the Indian god Glooscap, another bit doubtless picked up from old !N"aboab, the ancient of the village. The sisters drew near to listen to the tale, which the mariner elabo- rated at great length, with much picturesque lan- guage, and with many figures of speech and marvel- ous imitations of whistling gales, roaring tempests and crashing timbers, to which only his powerful lungs and sturdy body could do justice. He himself would have said that " the gist of this, biled down to a pint," was, that Glooscap was a bene- ficent creature, always doing mighty deeds for the good of his people, and Mutchoosen was his servitor, who wore stupendous Avings of eagle feathers. Gloos- cap feared that the wind would harm his people, and therefore boimd the wings of the Giant Eagle, as he was called; but alas, then his people were panting and almost dying for want of air. So the god untied one wing of Mutchoosen, and since then he fans the earth with only one pinion, there being therefore no more tornadoes in this region. The Micmacs are descend- ants of a branch of the Algonquins, who, living in the East, bore a name appropriately signifying " the break of day." They were of a higher type than any but the Hurons, and showed more culture (such as it was) and traces of civilization, the supposition with many scholars being that this was because of the in- tercourse of their ancestors with the l^orsemen, the earliest explorers of this country. From the ances- 76 In Quest of the Quaint, tors of the Micmacs, who bore the more euphonious title Souriquois, such legends have been handed down as caused old John, at least, to declare, that Glooscap and other giants and hobgoblins were, as he expressed it, " built on the model " of Norse mythology. The " Aldegunde " had remained in port longer than was absolutely neccessary for taking on her cargo, her master taking the opportunity to have calking done and repairs made before starting on the long return voyage; the antique vessel also appeared quite rejuvenated in a fresh coat of paint. Mean- while Captain Knlidsen had been sojourning in Dal- housie, and one day, on finding two of his men loafing in the village, he took it into his head to have them row him around to the Cove for another conference with Gjerding. While the interview between those two men was taking place the two sailors sauntered down to the beach. They were ill-favored specimens, with heavy, sullen faces, and seemed to be at odds with each other, to judge by their growling, muttered sentences. Their voices were evidently purposely lowered almost to a whisper, though each grew so angry now and then that their tones burst out in an explosive oath or sharp word; which, had any one been listening, would have caused wonder as to the cause of dispute or trouble. Evidently some carefully planned scheme was be- ing discussed, and when either raised his voice in ex- citement or profanity, both suddenly became silent, and gazed around with guilty air. As the sunset glow deepened, the sailors in their heated discussion happened to move and stand so that their figures and faces were brought out in sharpest relief against the radiant sky; and little did they dream that they were watched, despite their frequent and careful glances in all directions; for lona's figure, in the bro\vn dress Heron Island. 77 under the shadow of the Gate of Fossil Cove, became so nearly the color of the rock as to be practically in- visible. She had at first looked upon the intruders with indifference, but all at once became intensely in- terested in watching them, until, leaning forward with hands so tightly clasped that they seemed rigid, and fairly panting with suppressed excitement, she seemed to devour with her eyes those faces, so sharply silhouetted against the glowing sky. At last she shrank back aginst the cliff as if struck by a blow, and in great agitation unconsciously threw up one hand to support herself by clinging to the side of the arch. The movement loosened from a fissure a bit of stone which fell with a sound seemingly as loud as the report of a gun, and the two repulsive-looking villains instantly turned and espied her. Making a frantic rush, each grasped her by an arm with a grip like that of a wild animal and shook the slender, graceful figure so mercilessly that it swayed like a reed in a gale, while four murderous eyes glared upon her pale face. She made no sound or effort to free herself, but gazed blankly at the wicked faces with a countenance from which every vestige of in- telligence and expression seemed utterly wiped out; a face which Barstow himself would hardly have recogTiized, and a stranger would have pronounced imbecile. A most astounding piece of acting this, which her ready perception and quick wit prompted in such emergency, and of which she would not have believed herself capable. The taller man of the two exclaimed with an oath,, " She's heard it all ! " hissing the words between his teeth in suppressed tones, to which the other re- plied, with similar preface, " Don't you see she's an, idjut ? It's the old skipper's stoopid dumb darter,, blast her ! " dropping the arm he held with an air YS In Quest of the Quaint. of disgust, and yet of relief; the other doing likewise, just as a hail from the cottage, in Captain Kniidsen's well-known tones, caused both the rascals to turn hastily; and, after shaking their fists at the girl, they made their way rapidly back to their boat on the shore. In a few moments they were rowing the shipmaster around the point towards the village, and lona might almost have believed that the whole scene had been a horrible nightmare. She fell back on the sand, remaining motionless for perhaps a quarter hour, almost overcome by f aint- ness caused by reaction from the tense strain; but she soon aroused herself and walked slowly back to the cottage, where Barstow was not to be found, and Gjerding was dozing on his couch. She proceeded in the direction of the village, meeting John half-way beyond the lighthouse. Seeing at once her agitation, he drew her hand through his arm, and led her along, striving to quiet her by his tender, soothing man- ner, and displaying the utmost solicitude. lona, in- dicating that she wished to go down under the beacon, where one of the great stone faces loomed above the river brink, he carefully led her to that spot. The air had rather suddenly developed a nipping chill, as he would have expressed it, but here they would be shielded and alone in the moonlight, the guests of the great house having been driven to the shelter of the porches or within its walls. Then, by means of her own peculiar signs, she related the episode of the cove, the hardy seafarer translating her story in un- dertone, as if repeating words after her, displaying amazement which worked up to a great pitch of ex- citement. " You were in the cove when two sailors were dis- puting and quarreling. You watched them, wonder- ing what the fuss was about. When the sky got red 5y ''"" - ,_ . .i««*rt,-. '\.W ■^•-' ■ .^ . General Romanoze. Profile Rock at the niotdth of the Restigouche River, N. B. The Laughing Faun. Pi-ofile Rock, at the tnont/i of Resligouche River, N. B. Heron Island. 79 and all shining-like, it showed their faces; yes, all cut out clear agin it, so you could see what they said ? Oh, ho ! One said he tripped up Mr. Gjerding on the ship so the other could rob him of a ' big lot swag ' (that's money), and that they'd ' greed to divvy on it ' when they diskivered he wore a big money belt. (Burn 'em !)" The girl gently laid her hand on his arm in remonstrance, and continued her pantomine. "^ The other said he didn't mean to take the belt till they were coming into port, so they could sneak away arterards, but the first fellow had been so stupid and in such a hurry, and tried to rob him when they were out at sea, and so made all the mischief? You couldn't make out all they said because they used words you don't know? (Blasphemous scoundrels!) Bless you, my precious, may you never know such language as they used ! 'Twas worse nor my talk be- fore you reformed me, I'll go bail. What? The first man said he would get the yellow bob yet, and knew where to look; they will have it yet? (The rascallions, scurvy brutes, perfidjus scalawags !)" Growing more and more excited he seemed in danger of falling back into the habit of his early years; but when the girl raised a warning finger he excused him- seK hurriedly on the plea : " I'm only quoting Shake- speare; and plain EngHsh wouldn't suit such a case. Why, I'm jist biling over, and couldn't help letting off steam a bit. They have it all planned how to get it. Will rob my house — ^yes — and kill — someone — if they must ? " In his excitement he started up^ but sat down again on a great rock; thumping his knee with that iron fist he exclaimed, " Yile, grovel- ing wretches! Scorch 'em! Drowning is too good for 'em. Such knavery — rascality — deviltry — " Here a small finger was held against his lip for an instant, while two beautiful fawn-like eyes gazed into 80 In Quest of the Quaint. his reproachfully. " No," he burst out again, " though I'm saying all I can lay my tongue to, I'm not swearing ! I should burst if I didn't say some- thing. What ? What ? they, scurrilous poltroons, dared touch you with their impious beastly paws? — (the reptiles! oh, sizzle 'em!) — turned their foul- mouthed words on you ? (The caitiffs !) O me dear- ling, O my joy of life, my pure-souled angel! It cuts me to the core o' me heart to hear this, and to think that I wasn't there! Still more to tell? Quick, what was it ? " Then her few swift, graceful motions told how the villains had been summoned by the Captain's call just as they discovered her to be deaf, and, as they supposed, not only dumb, but idiotic. The hardy mariner dropped on the sand at her feet, doubled up with laughter in a state of almost hysterical collapse; and his words, disjointed as if forced out of his round body by sudden pressure, burst out explosive- ly: " So — ^you — played — the — ^foo — oo — ool ? Oh, oh, oh," — ending almost with a scream, — " and you sent 'em off with wasps in their ears! Oh, yes, yes; they'll find it is a bold flea that makes his breakfast on the lion's lip, and they haven't got beyond the reach o' this old sea-dog's claw yet. I know a game worth two of theirs, or my name's not Jack Barstow. They ought to be strung up at the yard arm ! " Starting up again he drew the girl toward him, throwing his right arm over her shoulder, and, hold- ing her left hand in his, they turned their faces towards his cottage, l^ow and then he nodded his head as in approval of some plan he was evolving, but made no other sign or motion until they reached the door of his domicile. Then, before stepping over the threshold, he stopped an instant, facing lona, Heron Island. 81 pointed with left forefinger to his broad chest, and with the right touched his lips. The next night there was to ])e an entertainment at the hotel; and the sisters, on the plea of their early departure, had so urgently begged Barstow'a household to attend, that there was no withstanding them, even the convalescent consenting to present himself as spectator. Young Campbell hovered around near lona; and it must be admitted that he was rather stiff and formal in manner to Mr. Gjerding, whose magnificent presence caused quite a flutter among the women guests of the hotel. Music, song and laughter floated out on the night air, greeting the ears of Bar- stow, returning from an errand to the village, and tempted him to stop and gaze in on the lively scene from the broad piazza; he having declared that his " sea toggery " was quite unsuitable to come in con- tact with silks and furbelows, notwithstanding that his suit of navy blue was invariably immaculately neat, and his fine, strong face and manly presence would have graced any assembly. After gazing in with a face which beamed love and all beatitudes on his fair daughter, whom his eyes followed about adoringly, a sudden thought seemed to strike him, and he hastily strode off to the lighthouse point, whence he made a rapid survey; then, returning to the piazza, he quietly signaled to Donald to bring Kate ITewton out- side, and the two, leaving lona in Mrs. AUston's care, slipped away without attracting attention. John explained to fair Kate that unexpected busi- ness would oblige him to be absent perhaps all night, so he would request that lona should remain over night at the hotel with the sisters. The lady unhesi- tatingly acquiesced in this plan, and was shown back to her seat by Donald, who, excusing himself, re- joined the mariner. That person, saying, " Be ready 82 In Quest of the Quaint. when I -whistle ! " strode away towards the cove. He returned speedily, however, and grasped the young man's elbow, exclaiming, " Don, the ' Petrel's ' gone! Stolen ! Yes, broil 'em ! I know all about it ; I ex- pected as much, though I didn't think they'd be so previous about it. They're mean, low-lived, hang-dog rascals, — ^not sailors; they disgrace the name of hon- est blue-jackets. Miscreants ! Gallows-birds ! Come, we'll get the Frenchys and the Injuns, and then we'll race 'em ! " Donald had been hurried along so that he was al- most breathless ; now he remarked, " We dare not take the light house sloop, but my father's friend Carlin came in in his yacht from Gaspe just after sunset; he's at the hotel, and his men off duty. My ' Jet- tie ' is moored at the head of the Laughing Faun ; and after we get the four fellows we'll row out to the ' Swiftsure ' and take her. I'll be responsible; you can sail any craft that floats, and shall be captain of this expedition, — and tell me the whole story of this matter as we go." With a young man's love of ad- venture, full of enthusiasm, ardent in the cause of friendship, eager that his staunch old comrade's boat should be restored, Donald was ready for anything. But when they were fairly started, and sailing away right gallantly, John, on revealing to his young friend the whole story, gazed at the bright, frank face with curiously intent eyes. Donald silently stepped aside, and stood for some time leaning against one of the masts, waging silent war with himself; his hands thrust deep into his pockets, teeth set, head bent, and eyes gazing so intently at the deck that Bar- stow informed himself they " looked like 'zif they'd bore holes in the plankin'." So it was still the handsome and popular I^orwe- gian who was at the root of all the trouble ? Heron Island. 83 Two sailors had broken his leg in trying to rob him. Thev had now made off with Gjerding's money-belt — and Barstow's boat besides. How heartily he wished the l^orwegian back safe in his own country and home, — surely that was wishing him well! — and wishing well to others, too; for all would be well if he were away, or — (this he added doubtfully, even in thus communing with his inner man) — all might have been well if he'd never come: but now ? It was the very irony of fate ! John, meanwhile, was narrowly watching his young friend, with sympathetic yet searching eyes; and his thoughts, if put into words, would have summed up: — " So you'd luff and bear away a bit ? Well, I un- derstand. ISTo doubt about it; tossed on a sea of mixed emotions. Weather getting dirty, heavy cross seas; aye, but he's weathered the storm ! I knew he'd breast it; too staunch a craft, that, to be swamped! Bless ye, my hearty ! " with a resounding slap on his knee as young Campbell, with a long sigh, aroused himself, and thenceforward entered apparently into the spirit of the nocturnal expedition with as much zest as the sturdy tar and the French and Indian athletes, who seemed to look upon the affair quite as a lark. Even l^ature seemed in league with the " Swift- sure " ; first one of her downy coverlets was unrolled and spread over the Bay, then misty curtains were dropped over the too brilliant moon. Thus the thieves were kept in ignorance of the fact that their flight had been discovered and that they were pur- sued. As the yacht rounded Heron Island, the sharp eye of Barstow caught sight of the white wing of the " Petrel " under Cortereal's Bock, just at the in- stant that the wind, which had been veering round, wafted aside the fleecy curtain, and permitted fair Luna to enlighten both parties of nocturnal visitants. 84 In Quest of the Quaint. Surprise, seizure, surrender, conviction, followed in natural order; the detention of the " Aldegunde" being a natural sequence, that the captain and Gjerd- ing might testify; and although this entailed still longer sojourn (and in such dangerous proximity) on the part of his rival, Donald's best nature had tri- umphed, and he bore the infliction with equanimity. Meantime the great secret had been divulged by Martha, — the matter so earnestly discussed between Barstow and the sisters, — and it had been decided that lona should accompany the ladies on their re- turn to Massachusetts, where she was to attend school for eighteen months, residing with Mrs. ISTewton. The day on which the ISTorwegian ship sailed away also saw the departure of the sisters with lona, Dr. Laurier, coming down from Quebec to escort them, having induced them to make a brief sojourn in that quaint city, and take the more direct route thence to the States. John kept up bravely to the last, declaring earnestly that it was his '' top-lofty-most desire," as he jocosely expressed it, for lona to have " such a polishing off"; but when the train was fairly out of sight the old hero turned speechless and with swim- ming eyes on Donald, wringing his hand with iron grip as in token that they must now be more than ever to each other. Then there came the letters; three and four a week, ^' and by the fathom length," John said; in which the absent one told of her studies, of the de- lights of wonderful realms of art and literature, the charms of congenial and inspiring association, too; but through all the true heart unswervingly turned to the dear foster-father, and longed for the time when they would meet again. If a letter of his had seemed " rather shading on the indigoes," as he said, she would enumerate the weeks already past as en- Heron Island. 85 couragement, and in mischievous mimicry of his phraseology quote his nautical language, " keep your luff and don't let her fall off " ; or remark that her letter was " as long as the maintop-bowline and jib down-haul bent onto each other " ; or, " There, now, you'll say, ^ Belay your jaw, coil it up and stow it away,' so I'll wind up my yarn and go to my studies." Fairly beaming with pride John and the " Bunsby " or " Petrel " conveyed the letters to Megouacha, that his friends, the Campbells, might enjoy them too; this becoming such a regular custom that they knew just when to look for their old friend. If Donald were always rather silent at such times, no one no- ticed it, all being absorbed in the sprightly narratives, and in John's delight, which metaphorically brimmed over and flooded the house. One week there was no letter, but in place of it a package by express, and a newspaper, in which an article was marked by zigzag and startling red pen- cil lines. This John handed to Donald, who read aloud, under the heading, " Art ISTotes " : " We take especial pleasure in calling attention to the work of a pupil of the school for the deaf atlSTorthampton. This is on exhibition at Schonfeld's gallery, and, it seems to us, evinces very promising talent and remarkable ability. The young woman has of her own accord adopted a line of study and work which particularly interests us, apart from its undoubted genius, as we have always advocated and strongly urged upon our artists and sculptors the representation of character- istics of our own country and people. These figurines are astonishingly full of spirit and character ; one rep- resents a hunter on snow-shoes, with game slung over his shoulder, as he strides through the forest; another a young fisherman just landing a salmon, — the figure alert with life, the pose admirable; and 86 In Quest of the Quaint. still another shows the physician of some backwoods settlement, evidently on an errand of life and death, looking out anxiously from a canoe which a sturdy woodsman seems to be propelling through rapids." Still more of this was there, the paragrapher wax- ing eloquent on the subject; and great was the sur- prise of the four as the young man rea.d on. But when the package was opened all were struck dumb for an instant, for there appeared John Barstow'a grand head in miniature ; every line and lineament of the spirited and speaking face in alto relievo, so true and strong that one would not have a shade of altera- tion made. No one was more amazed than the sub- ject himseK, whose eyes fairly dilated with astonish- ment. Bringing his hard palms together with a re- sounding clap, he fairly shouted, " Belaying pins and marline spikes! Blue blazes and gunpowder! If that witch hasn't been taking me off ! Dearest Heart ; O my Beauty, didn't I allers say you was a genius ? ISTow I see why you were so partikeler to have my best photo to take away with you." Gaston Laurier would claim his bonny Kate in May; lona would assist on that occasion as maid of honor; then the bride and groom, with Mrs. Allston and her fair protege, would travel northward to- gether; the two latter proceeding as fast as steam could carry them to the head of La Baie des Chaleurs. Then such bustle as there was in " The Bunk," as John called his cottage ! " I must swab the decks and holystone 'em, and get all ship-shape," said he, though all was even then immaculate. At last the great day swung round on time's cal- endar; Mrs. Campbell was engaged in decorating the rooms of the cottage with vines and flowers from her conservatory, — it being early yet for such variety of garden posies, — and the apartments wore quite a Heron Island. 87 festal air and were redolent with perfume, just at the time that a sweet-faced woman and fair young girl alighted from the train, and a voice which was not Mrs. AUston's greeted John. That grand specimen of Nature's noblemen, who had faced unnumbered dangers unflinchingly, appeared utterly dazed or stul- tified, until the same sweet tones enunciated, " My Father ! " when, with a great sweep of the powerful arms, he drew her to him and rained tears upon the lovely face. When released from that wide-armed, devouring embrace, lona beheld her playmate, Don- ald, standing close at hand, pale with agitation, and bending on her the most absorbing gaze. Turning at once, with perfectly artless manner, she extended both hands, saying, " My good friend, too ! " — ^to him the sweetest sounds that ever fell on mortal ear. Martha was quite content to be overlooked till the first greetings were over, but was not permitted to feel in the slightest degree neglected; and as the party were being bowled along in a comfortable carriage to Fossil Cove, the story was told of the marvelous suc- cess of a famous aurist in restoring lona's sense of hearing, after which her power of speech quickly de- veloped, lona " beamed like a May morning," John said, and certainly his own face was radiant, his eyes fairly scintillating as he listened to the happy girl's reminiscences and anecdotes of city life. " The strangest thing," said she, " was the manner in which people unconsciously took me into their confidence. When I sat at one end of a street railway car, and two people at the other end were whispering so their next neighbors could not hear what was said, I, read- ing their lips, knew what they were talking about. Positively it was startling, and made me feel so queer ; I used generally to gaze out of the window for fear I should catch myself in some mean intrusion. 88 In Quest of the Quaint. People talked about me, too/' she continued with a laugh, " when I was going to and from Dr. Nikkola's office, when he was treating my ears. There was stiffness of the jaw, so sometimes I wore a strap (cov- ered with velvet) around my head; and the women wondered if I had toothache or lockjaw, the men say- ing, ' There's one woman who can hold her tongue, but only because she has to ! ' It was rather embarras- sing, though they little dreamed that I was translating their whispers." The mariner made an emphatic ges- ture and looked very much as if he would have punched some one, if he had been there. Now they drew up at the door of the Bunk, where there was another affecting meeting between the par- ents Campbell and lona. As these greetings were being exchanged the grand old salt had an opportun- ity for a few words with his guest, as he helped her to alight. Looking with frank admiration on the sweet face, the true-hearted man said, " IsTature has done a great deal for you, my dear lady " (Mrs. AUston mentally decided that this was the most graceful compliment she had ever received), " and you have done more for me and mine than could be repaid in a lifetime. I am not even going to try to thank ye; for I know your big heart prompted all, and you know a'ready the joy you've been the means of giv- ing. There's One above will repay and bless you." In the joy of reunion and the excitement of the first days at home one little thing had been over- looked; but one day lona discovered a thick letter with foreign stamps and postmark which might have caused Her Majesty's officials to stammer, mentally, as they read the name, — Skjervoer, — a letter which had caused both John and Donald considerable dis- turbance of mind. Was the handsome young lover over the sea already throwing out a lure to draw Heron Island. 89 away again their dearest treasure, of which they had been so long deprived, and which was but just re- stored to them? Martha's face wore an expression of interest as lona broke the seal, but the men both looked extremely grave until she read aloud Eric's announcement of his marriage, and confessed that she had all the time been his confidante. Then John, without a word, stepped across the pretty parlor, and, unnoticed by all but the young man, touched Donald on the shoulder with unmistakably significant gesture, and strode out the door and down to the shore. Martha, with the ready perception of a woman, a minute before had vanished up the stair- way; and only the rhythmic plash of the surf and the soft rustle of young foliage could be heard, as " the old, old story was told again." Note. — " Barstow " is a memory sketch of Captain John Maginn, late pilot of New York, a rather remarkable man, and an original character. He was a friend of Ericsson's, and it was by his ingenious contrivance that the Monitor was floated when her launching threatened to be disastrous. He was sin- gularly reluctant to have any one else use his boat, and in the "blizzard" of 1888 the "Enchantress," fortunately with- out crew, was carried out to sea and lost. The writer pos- sesses a silver cup, presented to a mutual friend by the old salt, on which a peculiarly mystical figure is engraved, appar- ently guarding " No. 18 " to which she points. A Silhouette. A SILHOUETTE. My Deak Bob: Here's old Barnes do-^oi on me, and I on my luck ! Old B., b — less him, says nothing but a foreign tour will do me any good, threatens me with direst woes, gives me choice of paralysis, imbecility or insanity as result of the high-pressure rate at which I've been living. At last I've made a compromise, and agree to get out of the U. 8. 1 venture to say you'd weep and howl and tear your hair, in grief and anguish and despair, if you could inhabit my corporosity just at this present. Just when I have such import- ant orders, stretching far ahead, and the competition for designs for the great court-house of Z, two months hence ! However, on condition that I get to the quietest, most out-of-the-way places, that pre- cious B. permits some work on those same drawings, a certain number of hours per day. Equestrian and pedestrian exercise prescribed, and violin tolerated for recreation; so, after all, you may agree with me in saying, as old Hatch used to, no matter how sur- prising or startling any information he received, " I'm glad it's no worse." 'Tis easy for you to make such remark when you're having your heart's desire in a long course of European study and work. So here you find me in the southeast comer of New Brunswick engaged in — hunting ! Not a wild goose chase either, or a quixotic quest, though a quaint and queer one, at the beginning of my travels northward. One would naturally expect 94 In Quest of the Quaint. to find Moneton a quiet place, instead of the bustling town it is, and Jim calls the headquarters and work- shops of the Intercolonial, the monasteries. We de- cide that Owltown would be a more appropriate name for the place, as at night it seems most wide-awake and busy, connections with the most important trains to be made at 2 a.m. Therefore we might not have been surprised to learn that at night also the Bore would be visible ; but to learn just when, — there was the rub. As the town runs on both standard and local time, between which there is a difference of three-quarters of an hour, 'twas important to discover by which schedule the Bore might be expected; but of course no one knew, a surprising ignorance and in- difference prevailing regarding the subject. ~Ro one at the station or hotel could enlighten us, and Jim remarked, "In the States anything like that would be stock in trade to the whole town; it would be placarded everywhere, and, in fact, we would be bored to death." Accosting some urchins with the query, " When does the Bore come in ? " they look blank, " don't know," and as they follow in our wake one questions the other, " I say, what is the Bore anyway ? " evidently concluding that it is some strange animal in the circus, as they watched bill- posters sticking huge gaudy bills on the long fence across the way. Even directions for finding the " Petty-co-Jack " (Petitcodiac) Eiver, which the strange visitant frequents, were so complicated that the most dogged determination and perseverance were necessary to carry out our resolution.* Fi- nally one individual whom we questioned astounded us with the brilliancy of a sudden inspiration, which * Names are surprisingly changed hereabouts ; Magaguada- vic, for instance, is always Maggy Davitt. A Silhouette. 95 caused him to suggest that we should inquire at the post-office, and there, at last, we learned definitely the hour at which we must sally forth on our noctur- nal expedition. By that time it was raining, but after all our trou- ble we resolved, with the insistence inherited from our firm old Quaker ancestors, that nothing should deter us, and that we would haunt the wharves all night if necessary rather than be baffled or disap- pointed. Therefore, fortified with repellent gar- ments, we defiantly unfurled umbrellas and sternly took up the line of march to the distant wharf, where the first object Avhich presented itself to view was a small specimen of the genus homo, who, like a Jack- in-a-box, suddenly appeared from a schooner, which was firmly imbedded in the mud forty feet or more below. Jim remarked, " 'Tis evident why the direc- tions for finding the river were so muddled. I never saw such a tremendous quantity of wet clay before." The small boy informed us that they were waiting for the '" Bore," too, and were to go out with the tide, and the captain would be down about ten or eleven o'clock. The hours plodded slowly by; enthusiasm had cooled and died out, but clear grit and obstinacy, as the Yankees say, fortified us, and no one suggested or even thought of giving up the strange quest. We sat on piles of bark and played games, walked as near the dizzy verge of the towering wharf as we dared (with the thought before us of making clay moulds of ourselves in the event of a misstep), and the youth- ful tar entertained us with specimens of his profi- ciency in yarn spinning, evidently thinking us for- eigners fair game and remarkably gullible as we sol- emnly swallowed his preposterous statements. Fi- nally he slipped down the cordage and disappeared for awhile (to rest his conscience, which must have 96 In Quest of the Quaint. been stretched to the utmost), and at last, long before the witching hour, the aspect of affairs grew more en- couraging. From the south a breeze sprang up, the rain stopped, the moon shone out, and two men, the schooner's crew, appeared, sauntering leisurely along, and called to us, " Listen ! " What a profound, un- earthly-seeming hush pervaded all Nature! The very water, shining placidly beyond the wide expanse of soft clay, seemed waiting in expectancy, and, strug- gling to our ears from the far distance, came a faint suggestion of sound, a whisper in the ear of Mother Earth. A moment more and this sound was aug- mented ten-fold ; then, at the curve of the stream just below, a flash, a sparkle in the clear moonlight. An- other instant, and all across the wide river bed, in a mad rush of tremendous rapidity, came the wall of water, at least four feet in height, roaring on and on, a great white-crested wave, reflecting the clear moon- light. Beyond, piling over the first powerful surge, came a second one, foaming, sparkling, curling, as if in exultant effort to overleap its predecessor; and in a second the whole dark mass of seething, roaring water had rushed by us, and was tearing its way far up stream. The vessels, which a moment before were stranded and keeled over in abject helplessness, now became erect, buoyant and saucy; their crews appeared with the suddenness of bees from a hive, the air filled with sounds of rattling cordage, and orders were tossed back and forth in shouts to deck hands. The vast moving mass of water, covered with silvered wavelets dancing merrily, was in itself the greatest contrast to the preceding placidity, and all was life and bustle. We could believe after this that unwary men and animals are sometimes caught and over-pow- ered in this mighty onslaught; indeed, I am firmly A Silhouette. 97 persuaded that, in the spring tides, an army like Pharoali's might be overwhelmed with Biblical thor- oughness. Well, Bob, my boy, this will be a journalistic screed, and I pick up my ink-slinger again to add to the foregoing, by recounting later adventures. I joined a party of " American " friends, in an old- timey inn, severe in plainness, but unexceptionable in neatness; an old Loyalist house which has stood for over a century on the shore of Minas Basin, that peculiar arm of the Bay of Fundy. We liked to " make believe " that we had been set back a cen- tury, the surroundings were so simple, the people so old-fashioned. The mirrors in our rooms twisted our faces askew, so we are cured of vanity; and neckgear and chevelure were almost permanently awry; but our hostess' cookery was excellent, and the most con- firmed dyspeptic joined the Pi Eta Society, even when obliged to partake of those dainties by means of two-tined forks with buck-horn handles. Though one remarked that the Basin is well named, as its resorts are minus modem improvements, we sighed not for such things, but were content. One day, when inquiring the way, we were answered: " Keep this road till you come to a gate in the woods, which will lead you out on the King's Highway," which sounded so oldtime-y we decided to " make believe " we were living in the times of " La ]S[ouvelle France." The Gossip chatted with the postmaster, learning that he " had lived in the village fifty years, had been to Eastport, had no curiosity about any other place, and did not wish to travel." Blessed Contentment! Our two great pedestrians, known to our Company as the Tramps, were accosted one day by a rough coun- tryman, who, driving lazily in his clumsy vehicle, re- marked, " I like to see you slinging yourselves along 98 In Quest of the Quaint. like that ! " As a sample of the unsophisticated sim- plicity of the folk, an Annapolis physician told us of one queer codger who sent him two and a half her- rings and a lobster, as payment for visits amounting to $5.00. Directly before us, and apparently close at hand, though five miles distant, Blomidon loomed grandly over the water, wreaths of mist occasionally dressing his crest fantastically; far to the left Silver Crag, and still farther to the right Capes Sharp and Split, standing majestic and gorgeous in color. Our neigh- bor the pilot said, " There is what they call Kiddzes cave on the other side o' Cape Split, but it don't 'mount to much, and away down beyond Eylerhoe [Isle-au-Haut] is another spot where people dug into the shore, where they say he hurried a lot o' Spanish dubbloons." " Yes," said I, " always doubloons, and doubly loony those who ' threw good money after bad ' in such search," which attempt at pleasantry the old fellow did not appreciate, though he sagely re- plied, " There's been more money lost in such work than ever was hurried; sailors can't keep it long enough for that, it burns holes in their pockets." The Sage learned of the professor from the college across the Basin that remarkable fossil trees of the carboniferous period, resembling the petrified forest of the Colorado River, are to be seen in this region. One section is ten miles in length, and one tree tAventy-five feet high. They are exposed by the action of the tide, and visible at the South Joggin, and at Chignecto Channel. The English professor who started out tall and thin in the morning, came in at noon from Partridge Island looking corpulent. From numerous pockets in his blouse he disgorged a vast store of minerals, and was enlightened, to his amuse- ment, by explanation of the American slang phrase A Silhouette. 99 anent " a pocket full of rocks." Attending service in the queer old ham of a church with unpainted and time-stained pews and wood work, the pastor gave out the " thertv-nointh peraphraz," stated that the *' evening meeting goes in at six o'clock and lets out at seven and a quayrter " ; and, not having seen a new^spaper or even a letter since leaving the States, I began to wonder Avhere I was, anyhow. The men of the congregation were old salts apparently, but the women had wonderfully clear complexions, and all the faces were strong, honest, frank and pleasant to look upon. When the Sage, in a discussion at table, stated that there are 31,558,149 seconds in a year, we mourned his rashness in giving such information above a whisper; for time is no object to the people of Parrsboro apparently, and our landlord (whom we called Mr. Tardus) might thereby be encouraged to delay, linger and wait still more. And yet that re- freshing way of taking things easy was one of our objects in coming! Want of enterprise is evident through the region; houses have stood for six years unfinished, and in some cases the framework was beginning to fall. Sometimes the family live in the L, awaiting comple- tion of the house proper, and even there the vnndow frames have darJcs instead of " lights," the broken glas^s being replaced with bits of shingle. The tide rose higher and higher, until during the last week of July the long and massive log pier was completely submerged several times; the Sage and the Oracle having the satisfaction of convincing themselves by actual measurement that the rise was forty-five feet. Through most of the year it is between thirty and forty feet at this part of the Bay of Fundy. In Chig- necto Bay, another arm of Fundy, the rise is occa- sionally sixty feet, though generally between forty Ut' 100 In Quest of the Quaint. and fifty feet. That bay being long and narrow, the water crowds in. Storms came on again, and continued with persist- ence; our neighbor the pilot remarked that we " were in for a spell o' weather," and we became aware that we were under two rules; Queen Victoria's, whose reign is peaceful and mild, and Dame I^ature's, whose rain is aggressive, arbitrary and exasperating — a time to test the resources of the summerers — and so came into existence an original newspaper, but with its first and last issue the " Weakly Pa's Borer " dis- appeared from journalistic ranks, and editors of Pro- vincial papers breathed freely at the extinction of such a formidable rival. I am permitted to give but one extract from its columns; try it. Bob, at your Quill Club, as a " missing word " game and see if your Dabblers can fill the blanks with the names of colors. THE IRASCIBLE ARTIST. He took a dose of Raw S{i)enna, Then with a grim and Flake WJiite face He left the city of Vienna At very swift and steady pace. With voice resembling Indian Yellow He hailed a stout and lusty fellow With " Car-mine herr ! " and Indigo And rattled straight to the depot. Midst howling winds and pelting rain He crossed the Neutral Tint-ed main, Vowing he'd " ne'er go there again ! " Like war-horse sniffing at the fray He stormed ; the ropes were Charcoal Gray. He watched a sailor haul a bowlin' And saw the spars were Aureolin. A wave dashed over, quite a flood, And stained his coat like Dragon's Blood. He sat him down and tried to think ; The cabin rug, Italian Pink, A Silhouette. 101 His weary eyes quite seemed to hurt, — A better shade he thought Terre Verte. (On ships the best taste is not seen ; The couch he thought was Capucine.) In storms they penned him in his berth, The curtains tinted Cologne Earth. With temper vicious as an adder He went to bed, but up Rose Madder ; He said, " These Vert d'eau waves no more I'll cross, but ever stay on shore : No voyages henceforth I'll take Unless upon a placid Lake." From mal-de-mer's Paynes Gray his face was. From weakness also slow his pace was. The Lamp Black shadows o'er him threw. He growled, " Tho' not a Proosian Blue I'll be henceforth Ultramarine And ne'er in such fix will be seen." "With falt'ring step, all up and down He paced the deck ; 'twas Vandyke Brown ; And noticed that the gangway ladder Was tinted with a rich Brown Madder. The morning sky above his head All glowing shone with bright Red Lead ; A voice aloft cried out " Land Ho ! " And down he plunged to's room below. His wife lay wrapped in peaceful slumber — Her long eye-lashes were Burnt Umber — And he began to shake and poke her (Tho' never known to be a joker) And with a horrid Yelloio Ochre. Then danced a sort of wild cotillion, And bet his last quart o' Vermillion — " When I'm once on that wharfs Deep Chrome — You'll see if ever more I'll roam ! " At last the spell o' weather was broken, we were released from its thrall, and, ascending Partridge Island (250 feet) for a last view, took away in our minds grand memorabilia to call up in future times. To the right the fine Rainbow Cliff of East Bay, the bit of green at the summit of the many-hued rocky 102 In Quest of the Quaint. eminence, whitened witli daisies and edged mtli dark spruce trees; beyond, Cape Sharp, like a gigantic sleeping lion. In the distance Cap d'Or appeared in exquisite violet through the film of a passing shower which momentarily dropped its veil, while Cape Split, in neutral gray and indigo, lifted its sharp out- lines to the left, above the rushing, roaring current of Minas Channel, which " tears " by the base of Blomidon. Well, Bob, here's at ye agin, and now from an island in Bay Chaleur; and if, when our party at Basin Minas was forced to break up, my heart went with one fair maid, what is that to thee ? Thou knew- est it before, Fidus Achates; and also that in all my architectural work planning for a. certain sweet home of the future was my most enticing study. Well, they — my companions — were not bound to carry out a prescription — or live it, rather — and to obey Barnes's stern behest, therefore I traveled on here, solus. Bonaventure Island is three and a half miles long, three-quarters of a mile in width; its high, rolling surface dotted with cottages, its imposing cliffs — some five hundred feet in height — overlooking the bay. The conglomerate rock is, in some places along its shores, curiously eaten by the waves; while in others it has the appearance of having suddenly cooled when boiling, and overflowing, as the rock laps over in rounded layers. This coast was settled by descendants of the Aca- dians banished from " Nouvelle Ecosse." Some of those forlorn exiles were harbored, housed and com- forted by the French Quaker, Anthony Benezet, in the City of Brotherly Love; but how did any happen A Silhouette. 103 to stray into this region so far from their old home ? In the official report of the time the infamous In- tendant Bigot stated to the Minister, M. de Boishe- bert, that a sailing vessel carrying two hundred and fifty men, women and children from Port Royal be- came separated during a storm from other vessels (also filled with families of the banished " Neutrals ") and the frigate escorting them. He also reported that the Acadians revolted, and obliged the captain to take them to the river St. John. A venerable in- habitant of Bonaventure, whose grandfather, with his family, was in the ship spoken of by Bigot, gave to an old chronicler of La G-aspesie a different ver- sion, showing the simple, childlike faith of the people of that olden time. A few days after leaving Port Royal a violent tempest arose, and, as there were some old sailors among the prisoners who were more familiar with the navigation of these coasts than the English, the captain, despairing of saving the vessel with his feeble and incompetent crew, called the Acadians to his assistance ; and they, being anxious to save their families, did not wait to be urged. Amid the terrors of the storm the prisoners released their companions from captivity, sent the captain with his sailors into the hold, and took command of the vessel themselves. The liberated captives threw them- selves on their knees, reciting litanies to " La Sainte Vierge " ; then, with strengthened confidence, they attached a scapulary to the rudder, praying their Good Mother to guide the vessel while they attended to ropes and sails and the working of the ship. The whole of this vast peninsula of Gaspesia is a region of very great resources, as yet but little known. The coast is edged by a narrow border of cultivated land with scattered hamlets and villages, but the interior is a terra incognita, and a tremen- 104 In Quest of the Quaint. dous wilderness of impenetrable forest, abounding with game and containing great numbers of lakes and streams. The sea provides the best fertilizers for the farmers by easting weeds and fish on the shore. The temperature of Bay Chaleur in summer is the same as that of Berlin and Paris, and thirty to seventy 7ninutes higher than that of the principal towns of England, Scotland and Russia. The atmosphere is remarkably even and delicious in summer, and al- though in winter the mercury falls lower than in many well-known regions of Europe of the same latitude, the air is so dry that it is much more health- ful and agreeable than in those regions, or in many parts of the States, where dampness causes a pene- trating chill. At ]^ew Carlisle, one of the largest and prettiest settlements, the season, exempt from frost, exceeds four months and a half, and in the Province wheat and maize are raised when in the same latitude of Europe such grains would not come to maturity. The climate of the Bay coast is more even and mild than on the northern river shore, the winds being tempered by the ranges of mountains. So there. Bob, is enough of the statistical for you; and now imagine me established in a French farm- house on this fine island, with the remarkable Perce rock, the villages and grand mountains of the north shore always before me. The people seem guileless and content. My violin has won their hearts, and I pick up their quaint songs and melodies, and learn their legends, naturally numerous among seafaring people. Nowhere can such thorough enjoyment of the terpsichorean art be seen as among the French Canadians, and when I saw away for their benefit in the evenings they enter into the sport with the zest of children on a holiday. My host's bewitching daughter, Artemise, has two A Silhouette. 105 ardent swains in her train, and I amuse myself watch- ing the demure little damsel, and studying the little drama. Now it is the young Annand who seems to be gaining in the race; then it is Jules apparently. They are strong, sturdy young fishermen, between whom it would be difficult for any damsel to choose, it seems to me. Jules is more energetic, seemingly; Armand quiet, thoughtful. The maiden shows no preference, and for my part I cannot guess who may be the successful one. MeanAvhile Artemise sings for me antique chansons handed down from genera- tion to generation among these delightfully un- worldly folk. AURAI-JE NANETTE? '& ^^m I5EH 1. Par derri^r' chez mon per' Lui ya-t-un bois Jo - li; 1. Back of my father's house There is a pret- ty sight, 2. II chante pour ces belles Qui n' ont pas de ma - ri. 2. 'Tis far nnpromised fair His notes fall from a- hove; i ^ m -V- --^-^ — ^ Le ros - sig - nol y chante Et le jour et la nuit. A charming wood where nightingales Sing day and night. II ne chant' pas pour moi Car j' en ai-t-un Jo- li. For me is not his song so rare, I've my true love I \M^ —- ^— f^3-^» — r- --^r^=^- ^ 1-^^ W^^ ^ F — li —»— H =1— ^ ^ _ Au Can rai - je Nanette? Je crois que non. I have Nanette? I can - not guess; i i :J: Au - rai - je Nanette? Je crois que oui. Sometimes I think "no" and sometimes "yes." 106 In Quest of the Quaint. 3. n n'est point dans la danse, II est bien loin d'ici ; II est dans la HoUande : Les HoUandais I'ont pris. 4. Que donneriez-vous beUe Qui TamCn'rait ici? Je donnerais Versailles, Paris et Saint Denis. 5. Je donnerais Versailles, Paris et Saint Denis, Et la claire fontaine De mon jardin joU. 3. 'Tis not at fete or dance My true love would be found, But through the war's mischance he dwells On foreign ground. 4. What would be thy reply If I bring him back to thee ? I'd give to thee Versailles, Paris and Saint Denis. 5. I'd give to thee Versailles, Paris and St. Denis, Also the fount within my garden Flowing free. E. B. C. Note. — The oldest songs, those which have been least changed from the original— sung by and handed down from earliest settlers — are heard on the lower St. Lawrence and Bay Cha- leur.. Their iteration adapted them to the use of voyageurs, when keeping time with oars, on long journeys. This monotonous repetition made them popular with old-time do- mestics, as lullabies; the most rebellious child being thus irre- sistibly conquered. The words of this song are adapted to several different melodies in Canada, but with the refrain: " Gai, Ion la, gai le rosier ' Du joli mois du mai," and in other versions it is " ma tante " instead of " mon pgre," whose garden is frequented by nightingales. The words of " Cecilia " are also sung to a different air with the re- frain : "Mon, ton, ton, turlutaine." Then Pere Boucliarde in his oldtime-y French and quaint phraseology told of: — LE FEU DES EOUSSI. According to ancient superstition, if one does not partake of the Holy Communion at least once a year, he will at the seventh year of such wicked neglect be transformed into a hobgoblin or were-wolf. Well, let me tell you of the little Cyprien Roussi. The poor child, when very young, had the misfortune to lose both parents, and fell to the care of an aged un- cle. This old man left the boy to do as he pleased, A Silhouette. 107 allowing him absolute liberty, never concerning him- self abont the child otherwise than to scold him severely when he did not come home at meal times. Thus the boy grew almost to manhood as untamed and untrammeled as a wild animal of the forest; and gathered about him a merry troop of reckless youths, all daredevils like himself. What one did not think of another did in the way of mischief and rogiiery, and the lawless band were the terror of the country- side. Cyprien had not been even to the Easter com- munion for six years, and six months of the seventh and fatal year had passed; so the old wives and gos- sips of the village began to put their heads together and whisper mysteriously, prophesying a dreadful doom to the leader of the scapegraces. But one fine Sunday the parishioners were astounded, for this youth, who had not been seen anywhere for three weeks previous, appeared at the grand mass in the church, and the people could hardly believe their eyes when they beheld Cyprien piously kneeling at the chancel rail, receiving the sacrament at the hands of the beloved cure. The solution of the mystery was very simple, however, for the little boy of the bow and arrows was at the root of it all. The discreet, modest and devout little conto'iiriere, Marie, had convinced Cyprien of his evil ways; yes, and she undertook to keep him in the path of rectitude, and to take care of him for life, for two months afterwards they were married and moved to Paspebiac, where the former idle fellow, who had now become sober, active and punctual, was em- ployed by the house Robin, who know how to value such traits in their employees. All was blissful life now for these two, and so passed fifteen years over the contented family. But alas ! one day when Cyprien and his son of thirteen 108 In Quest of the Quaint. approached their humble dwelling, Marie, who always watched at the door for them at that hour, was not to be seen, and an ominous silence prevailed. This was explained all too soon, when the father and son reached the threshold, for then plaintive and distress- ing moans were heard, and behold the poor Marie lying on the floor in excruciating agony. Yes, she had overturned a great caldron of boiling water, and was now almost dying. Said she in feeble tones: " My husband, my life goes fast; promise me before I leave thee that thou wilt never take the liquor, and will teach our boy to become a good, true man." The weeping husband replied : " Be at ease, my Marie ; I shall always remember it; I will keep the promise." Then the good wife embraced her dear ones, and with a sweet smile of resignation breathed her life out with a gentle sigh. Now passed the days gloomy and joyless; Cyprien and his son wandered about aimless and desolate. One day, during a cold, bleak term at the last of May, they were fishing with Gendron, a friend of Cyprien's, who blew his fingers and flung his arms about to conquer the chill. Then he drew a bottle of rum from his pocket, saying, " Take a cup, man. Warm thyself!" But Cyprien answered, "No; thank you, friend, I do not drink; keep it yourself." But then the temptation assailed him; he was seized with a shiver; his hands were so benumbed that he had no feeling in them, and, dropping the handle of the rudder he reached for the bottle and took a long draught. Alas ! alas I he had lied to his dear dead wife, whose spirit watched over him. It is a dread- ful thing to break your word to one who has gone ! The next morning the people of the village discov- ered a barge thrown keel upwards on the shore, and the two men and boy were never seen again. Since A Silhouette. 109 that disaster a bluish flame is seen flickering and flitting over the Bav, generally half way between Caraqnet and Paspebiac. Sometimes it appears like a torch; then again it resembles a great conflagration, now retreating, now advancing, then rising and fall- ing. When one imagines that he has reached the very point where the light was stationed it disap- pears in an instant, then shows itself anew when he has moved on. The fishermen afiirm that these fires mark the place where Roussi perished. Thou, trav- eler or fisherman, when thou shalt see a luminous point oscillating at the further end of Baie des Chaleurs, kneel and say a De Profundis for the dead, for thou hast seen the fire of the Roussi ! A French writer of about a century ago says: — " Les pecheurs affirment que ces feux marquent I'endroit ou pent dans un gros temps une ber^e con- duite par quelques hardis marins, du nom de Roussi; cette lumiere, selon I'interpretation populaire, aver- tirait les passants de prier pour les pauvres noyes." The quiet, thoughtful Armand has confided in me, I having noticed his skill with tools, and I have tkus learned why a lamp burns until the dawn, almost, in a window which I can see just across from mine. One of the great fish-packing houses has offered a prize for the best model of a " bateau-de-pecheur," and he is to enter the competition. So he works in secret and at night, when the good Pere Boucharde believes that all are sleeping beneath, his roof. I have seen Armand's model, and so far, as I am a judge, I should say it is good. Meanwhile Artemise spins and weaves wonderful fabrics, which no doubt some day are to form her housekeeping outfit, when she decides between the two gallants. Imagine, if you will, the demure little maiden, as her deft fin- gers twist the thread, and the wheel whirs its accom- 110 In Quest of the Quaint. paniment, relating at my request a legend which she learned from her grandparents; a weird and sorrow- ful tale to which her pleasant voice and quaint French add the greatest charm. LEGEND OF CAP DESESPOIR. Sometimes to the lone fisherman quietly engaged in his peaceful avocation, near this point, there ap- pears a marvelous scene, and a strange vision reveals itseK to his wondering eyes. Though it is so calm that the waters appear like a mirror, all at once the sea becomes agitated, and the waves, growing larger and larger, roar and break against each other. Sud- denly a light vessel carrying all sail appears upon the tumultuous waters, and seems to wrestle with the boiling surges; then swiftly as the swallow flies it darts along, apparently scarce touching the surface. On the poop, in the forecastle, in the rigging, every- where appear human figures clothed in the military costume of ancient times. A man who wears the in- signia of a superior officer stands in the attitude of command, with one foot upon the bowsprit as if ready to leap ashore. With his right hand he directs the attention of the pilot to the sombre cape rising before them; with his left arm he supports a beautiful lady enveloped in a long white veil and draperies. The sky is black; the wind whistles in the cordage; the ship, flying like a dart, is dashed upon the rocks ; and amidst the roar of the sea, the crash of thunder, the distressing groans of the dying, is heard the agonized shriek of a woman! — then the vision vanishes. The silence of death falls on the water; ship, pilot, the whole dreadful equipage, the commanding figure of the officer, the graceful woman in the white garments, all have disappeared, and the quiet wavelets caress the feet of Cap Desespoir. A Silhouette. Ill Many names about the coasts of Bay and Gulf have become corrupted and changed; in this case the elision of one syllable changed hope to despair, the point in old charts being called Espoir. Matters have been culminating since I wrote last, and we have been making history, of which, behold, hereunto appended, the report. Armand has been away to Gaspe on business for the firm for whom he works, and who seem to have considerable confidence in him, yet the first night of his absence the light burned as usual in the room of the loft. From my window I could see that of the room, but the white strips which served as curtains of the casement win- dow were dropped. An indefinable suspicion led me to play the spy — I confess it; moreover, when a sharply-defined profile appeared on the smooth sur- face of the white window shade, what did Yours Truly do ? (Remember my boyish taste at school for sketching hasty likenesses !) I whipp€d out a piece of charcoal and took ojf that head; yes, and to my amazement, recognized it, too, without shadow of doubt. Evidently some mystery there, but I kept dark. For many nights in succession I watched the mys- terious workman; and if I could have had any doubt of his identity or evil intent, I was thoroughly con- vinced when, one windy night, a sudden gust blew open the loft window, and I beheld the miscreant copying Armand's model. He started guiltily, and quickly closed the casement, after a hasty glance all around to convince himself that he had not been seen. I, of course, was in the dark, and, moreover, the re- port had gone abroad that I had gone to Gaspe with Armand, though I decided at the last moment that I 112 In Quest of the Quaint. could not spare the time, as my drawings and plans must be sent to !New York by a certain date. At last came the day on which the models were to be inspected, and, decision given, the prizes to be distributed. Armand carried his tiny " chaloupe " himself, enveloped in neat wrappings, just as he had left it at the time of his Gaspe trip, and thus deposited it in M. le Cure's house. Then the village was en fete, and the brawny fisher lads and quaint country lasses engaged in various old-time games and dances, for which latter the services of your correspondent were in requisition, as orchestra. When the models were placed on exhibition behold two so nearly alike that only an expert or professional shipbuilder, it seemed to me, could decide between them; but — to Jules was awarded the prize ! Then Yours Truly stood forth boldly, and gave his testimony, calling upon M. le Cure (whose word is law to these people) to see that justice was done, and explaining how the model of Armand had been stolen. I had mentioned no names in my accusation of the mysterious work- man of the nights, but produced the profile which I had drawn (and since filled in with crayon, so it made an unmistakable silhouette), and, suspending it in full view of the audience, it was instantly recognized. The name of the guilty one was spoken by almost every one in the room in every possible gradation of intonation, to express astonishment, disgust and grief that one of their worthy community could be so base. You can easily guess how the matter ended, but you cannot surmise how retribution followed the yoimg rascal. The very next night his father's fine barn was burned; the new hay with which it had just been filled, and its thatched roof making ready fuel for the flames, also a glorious sight for all but the owner of the building. Then it came out and A Silhouette. 113 was proved that Mr. Fisherman Jules had stored therein contraband whiskey, which he had cleverly smuggled among the casks in his boat, and some of his associates who were in the secret, thinking to help themselves on the sly, dropped a match into the in- flammable stuff. P. S. — Armand and Artemise are betrothed; and I am going home, post haste, to tell a certain fayre damosel that I am to have the contract for the court- house of Z. (just received notice by telegram), and then shall be made tangible also a certain Chateau- en-Espagne which two young folk whom you know have long been engaged in constructing; so good-bye, old fellow ! Demon and Pity-us. DEMON AND PITY-US. The two friends, Joseph Sturgis, M.D., and John Cahill, artist — Sturgeon and Jonquil in their college days — ^were discussing their summer vacation, which, without shadow of doubt, they must pass together. Sturgis, barely convalescent from a fever in conse- quence of overwork in hospital during a winter of epidemic, seemed to find that conversation required great effort, and was languidly laconic. " How ? " said Sturgis. " Our own vehicle," replied. Cahill, in imitation of his friend's terseness. " Cart, wagon, van? " queried medico; whereupon Cahill loosened the check-rein, quoting: — " I think we'd make such a charming pair, For you're good looking, and I'm [a grimace and doubtful glance at mirror] fair? We'd travel life's round in gallant style. And you should drive every other mile, Or, if you'd rather, all the while," which, considering my dislike of driving, — (natural laziness), — and the fact of your having been in a drive all winter, is remarkably self-sacrificing on my part." Sturgis roused up enough for a longer sen- tence at this, remarking, " Better change charming to hansom/' whereupon Cahill leaped to his feet, ex- claiming, " By the ten-thousandth part of Celtic blood in my corporosity, you've hit it ! That's the kerridge I had in me moind. I thought of it the other day when I left my storm coat in one. When I 118 In Quest of the Quaint. went back the next day to inquire for it, I was told I must see the man in charge of the cabs, whom I found ' a tall man in a light coat,' deep in conversa- tion with one of his men. He did not notice my august approach, until I addressed him: — ' Are you the hansom agent ? ' Thereupon he turned, reveal- ing a remarkably ugly phiz, and the absurdity of my question struck us both at the same moment. He broke into a hearty laugh, however, and answered, ' That's what they call me here; I leave you to judge who's in the right of it.' I said to myself that I could not fail to like such a man, who, when ' JSTature in a glass, the merry elf, sits gravely making faces at her- self,' could make a jest of it ; whereas many another would have considered himself aggrieved, and grow unbearably touchy about it." Just here, as a chink offered in Cahill's rapid flow of language, his invalid friend put in: — " You mean the Owl. I know him; Tim O'Hara, who was night watchman at the hospital. He was devoted to me. Stipulate that he shall be our char- ioteer." Then as the invalid dropped back exhausted after so long a speech, Cahill launched out into an elaborate and detailed plan of travel; and it was ag-reed between the two that they should purchase vehicle and animal, to be sold again (if not used up !) at the end of the tour. The picturesque and roman- tic taste of the artist, combined with the natural gal- lantry of his race, caused him next to suggest that, like knights of old, when starting out on their ad- ventures, they should wear their lady's colors. Whereupon he, being bespoken (and parading that fact) would wear his Jennie's true blue; and Sturgis, — ^who could tell but that he would find in his travels " that incomparable she who somewhere surely waits for thee " ? Being, so far as appeared, as yet Demon and Pity-us. 119 unblest in that respect, Sturgis should disport on his coat lapel a tiny knot of white ribbon, which his lively friend proceeded then and there to affix; the physician submitting, though turning away with a sigh while a strangely bitter expression passed over his pale countenance. Tim, on being taken into the confidence of the two friends, acceded with inward delight, though out- ward calm, remarking: — " So the ordeal has gone into effect, and I thought I was out of a job, but time determinates all. You remarks that I'm attached to this here Pa. R. R. stashun and my business, but I ain't, nor to anything or anybody. I just happen to be here, but I'll git. I'm a lone un', an' no one be- longin' to me, nor me beholden to no one; I've been meanin' to tell 'em I meant tO' leave. So ye touches me in a tender spot and I 'gree to it." Thus it came about that the three men set out on their travels; the two friends delighted with the un- obstructed view which the absence of driver's seat af- forded; the Jehu perched in superb importance high up in the rear, whence through the tiny trap in the roof he occasionally dropped wise remarks, — " plum- mets of Proverbial Philosophy," as Cahill said. Sleepy hamlets and scattered settlements in out-of- the-way regions were aroused to prodigious excite- ment by the appearance of such singular equipage, and people turned out en masse to behold and ques- tion, while the dogs barked themselves hoarse. The fine steamer touching at " Isle St. Jean " (P. E. I.) took on board the trio and their equipage, to convey them literally to the land's end; i.e., the region known to the Montagnais Indians as Guihaks- peque, or " the end of the world " ; a name which in time has become changed and abbreviated to Gaspe. Demon and Pity-us. 121 The bold, majestic cliffs of Cape Gaspe rise seven hundred feet at the extremity of a long point guard- ing the entrance of the Bay, which is twenty miles long. Sturgis and his friend spent some time in studying up the history of the remote place, for, strange to say, Graspe once played an important part in the early days of the French settlement; and even Tim developed a taste for statistics and queer bits of yams picked up from the sailors and fishermen among whom he prowled. It was the English-speak- ing tars whose society he affected, being unable to converse with " Frenchys " then. Thus they learned that in 1851 or 1852 there stood in the sea near this point a columnar rock known as the Old Woman. A clump of trees on its crest caused it to resemble the antique cap worn by Canadian women in former cen- turies, and thus suggested the name of " La Veille." As long as this rock stood it formed the pretext among sailors for . , . tricks similar to those played on un- wary travelers when " crossing the line." Pretending that the Old Woman was a wicked creature, who must be pro- pitiated lest she do some harm to vessel or passengers, these mischievous tars de- manded pour hoire; the passenger who proved incredulous or close-fisted receiv- ing a ducking from a pail 01 water. ^he old woman of york cliff. 122 In Quest of the Quaint. THE I,EGEND OF KATSEnON. The Indian legend is, that a Jotim or giant here held a contest with an evil spirit, and as thej fought at night the combat seemed the more frightful. The giant knew that if he could reserve his strength and continue the battle until dawn he would then be se- cure, for these goblins cannot bear a ray of light. Therefore, pretending weakness, he thus lured on his opponent, who wasted his force. When the first ray of light appeared the giant was encouraged to feel that he might hold out, and as the gleam brightened and broadened he exerted himseK to the utmost, and by a tremendous effort threw his antagonist forward in such manner that the sun fell full upon him, and he was thereby immediately turned to stone. The strength of the goblin then passed into the body of the vanquisher, who became immensely more power- ful than before, and so he traveled to the Arctic Sea, to fight the friends of frost and cold, who have heads of ice and hearts of stone, and are under the protec- tion of the spirit of Aurora Borealis. This giant, be- ing assisted by the spirit of the Lightning, was so much more rapid in his movements that he conquered the goblins of the cold, who, ever since, have not been able to come to this region in such force as they did in former ages. Some writers suppose this statue rock to be the same as La Veille; some say it was thirty-five feet high, others one hundred feet; some place it at the end of Cape Gaspe, some at Cape Rosier, a few miles beyond. Undermined by the waves, it sank into the sea during a great storm, the same which caused the fall of the arch of Le Rocher Perce and left that pyramidal mass standing aloof. Katsepion is the name which the Indians gave to the Demon and Fity-us. 123 cohirrm, signifying " separated " or " that -which is apart." The Bay of Gaspe presents a scene in which quiet, restful beauty and gTandeur combine ; the upper part, securely land locked, is known as the Basin. Along the north shore of the mountains approach the water, their lower slopes ending in steep cliffs. These are the I^Totre Dame range, and the Shickshock (also known as Shickshaws and Chikchaks), which to- gether form the western prolongation of the AUe- ghenies, Cahill remarked of the fish houses in the deep coves, that they looked to him like inquisitive urchins standing on stilts and leaning on their folded arms, which rest atop a fence; these peculiar dwell- ings being one story in height where they face the roadway, but three or four in depth, in the rear, where they extend down into the coves, and show their foundations of piles. Patches of gTeen and culti- vated land are scat- tered on the hills near the villages, but thence into the interior in all di- rections except the east the primeval forest extends unbroken and dense. The Owl, seeing water conduits formed of a series of hollowed logs, propounded profound queries, in what he supposed was medical phraseology (which he had picked up at the Hospital), calling these the " e/ementary canal," which certainly seemed applicable to this primitive contrivance. A WAYSIDE WATERING TROUGH. 124 In Quest of the Quaint. While Stiirgis devoted himself to botanical studies in the forests, Cahill found ample material for the employment of his brush in depicting the beautiful scenes, as well as in representing the quaint charac- ters among sailors, fishermen and Indians, picking up meantime bits of history with which to regale his comrade. Tim wandered about Bay and beaches, en- larging his store of knowledge, but always presented himself for the daily drive. Jonquil learned that in 1534, July 24th, Jaques Cartier landed in Gaspe Bay and erected a cross thirty feet high. " Erected for the first time in 'New France the cross commanded on one side the majestic basin, on the other the beau- tiful port where, many times since, French and Eng- lish vessels have sought haven from the fury of tem- pests. France could offer nothing more majestic than the J^otre Dame mountains, more noble than the Bay of Gaspe." In 1627 a fleet of twenty French vessels, under De Eoquemont, richly laden with sup- plies for Champlain's colony at Quebec, put into Gaspe Bay for haven during a storm, but found them- selves less secure, perhaps, than they would have been outside, for they were captured by the English, under Captain Kirke, who had only three vessels, and who, after burning half the fleet, carried ten ships to Eng- land with the freightage of the whole twenty; and in 1Y60 the village was taken by Com. Byron, who burned a French frigate which was in the harbor. A sojourn at the fishing port of Perce being next on the plan of travel, it was by " the loveliest road in Canada," leading from Douglastown, and command- ing wonderful views of Swiss suggestion, that the peculiar equipage made its appearance in that quiet hamlet. " Voici le cirque ! " shouted one small tar to his companions who stood in open-mouthed won- der, saying: " Pourquoi ne bouleverser pas cet chariot Demon and Pity-us. 125 drole i " looking back up the road by which it came, evidently expecting other marvelous things and strange beasts to follow. The knight of the quill called the attention of the knight of the pill to Amer- ican patent medicines masquerading in high-sounding phraseology and foreign tongue, on posts and fences: " Sirop adoncissant de Mme. Winslow," " Calmant sirop de Mme. Winslow pour la dentition des en- fants," " Pastilles bronchiales de Brun/' etc. Le Rocher Perce ! ISTature seems to have used it as her palette for experimental and daring combinations of color, the strange wall-like barrier being eccen- trically striped and dashed with the tints of ores and clays. Brilliant shades of yellow, copper, blue and pinkish grays, reds and browns, blending marvelously on its surface, and contrasting with the hues of sea and shore, form a memorable picture. The rock is 660 feet in length and nearly 300 feet in height, its proportions apparently greater as it is seen against sea and sky. General Bouchette, surveyor general, said, in 1815, there w^ere three openings in the rock, the largest admitting a small vessel under sail; there is but one now, and beyond the island an irregular, somewhat pyramidal, mass, standing separate, was once connected with the greater rock, forming an other arch. During an earthquake or tremendous storm in June, 1846, the top of this arch fell into the sea, leaving a bit of jagged cliff standing aloof as it is now to be seen. This is known as the split. That ancient, voluminous and amusing chronicler, Cham- plain, says : " It is a fort of rock which is very high and steep, with a hole through which shallops and boats can pass at high tide. At low tide you can go from the mainland to this island, which is only some four or five hundred feet distant." Ferland says: " n existait bien un vague tradition qu'a certaines 126 In Quest of the Quaint. epoques, un jeune homme aux formes herculeennes, a Failure surhumaine avait paru sur le cap; mais ces reveries superstitieuses ne servaient qu'a donner un nouveau relief a sa liardie'sse des simples m.ortels qui avient ose braver le Genie du cap Perce, jusques dans son aire inaccessible." The summit of the rock * is now tke undisputed realm of myriads of sea fowl; gulls, gannets, cormorants, tern, which. " rise in clouds and fill the air with their sharp cries," as Ter- land says. The Owl, being naturally interested in birds, dropped from his high perch the remark that his mother used to repeat to him something about " birds in their little nests agree," but that these are constantly falling out, and the friends saw that the circling, wheeling, white cloud might readily give rise to ghostly legend. The prevailing industry of the place is evident in the odors pervading some parts of the settlement, and Cahill, quoting " flesh, flesh, how thou art fishified ! " expressed willingness to pass on. Among the Indians there is a tradition that the cliffs of Mt. Joli, Perce Kock and Bonaventure Island (two miles from the mainland) once formed a long point, and this is confirmed by the character of the conglomerate rock. Ferland, in 1836, said " every- thing would seem to indicate that in bygone ages the rock and Mt. Joli were united by similar arches," and Denys, almost 250 years ago expressed the same idea. Legend also states that He Perce was part of a gi- gantic causeway which the Jotuns were building to Miscou Island, to conquer the frightful monster which inhabited that spot. Champlain, prince of yarn-spinners, describes that horrible gorgon as be- ing tall as a ship mast, carrying a pouch in which hu- * Sailors formerly climbed the rock to obtain eggs of tbe birds; this is now forbidden. Demon and Pity-us. 127 man beings were deposited to be devoured at leis- ure; and filling the air with astounding noises; whis- tlings, growls, hissings ('' sifflements "). The Indians called this creature Gougou. The legends of this part of Gaspe are suggestive of ISTorse mythology. In Norway, Jotunheim, " the home of the giants," is a region of wild grandeur and legend. The grand Mt. St. Anne, also known as Mt. Joli and Table Koulante, — owing to a tract of table- land at the summit, — rises 1,230 feet above the sea, and broods over the peaceful village. When the jolly artist was informed by fishermen that it is visible seventy miles at sea. Jonquil (who happened to have a taste for mathematics, unusual in one of his craft) insisted that that would not be possible ; that it could only be seen from a mast head at the distance of forty-five miles, provided the tip of the mast were one hundred feet above the water. " Yes," said he, " my Figure Head, or head for figures, helps me to keep the wolf, — otherwise frame maker, — from my door ; and he is classed by some of my confreres in the same category as the horse jockey." Piscatorial and nautical studies and amusements naturally being in order in such a place, the friends passed much time on the water, the Owl displaying talent as an oarsman, — exercise in which the young physician was not yet permitted to indulge, — and the artist preferring to lie back at his ease and study color effects. It had been arranged that they should be off before daybreak on a fishing excursion, and Sturgis was awakened by hearing Cahill calling Tim his " Precious Yeast Cake," and assuring him that such well-hred person as they could rise without his assistance. Though the artist had been hurling comi- cal and original invectives at Tim, he elaborately and voluminously forgave him, — yes, even with enthusi- 128 In Quest of the Quaint. asm, — when they were fairly out on the shore; for thus it came about that they beheld L'lle Perce pre- senting itself in unearthly aspect, as the sombre mass loomed in the dim, uncertain light, with the arch of Aurora Borealis * reaching directly across to the mainland, and the brilliant morning star reflected in a long, wavering gleam on the black water. "It is the bridge of the phantom," exclaimed Cahill, and in the solemn hush of the morning twilight, — fit hour for weird recital, — he related the legend of LE GENIE DE L'iLE PERCE. Sometime during the seventeenth century a young French officer, distinguished for bravery and nobility of character, as well as of birth, was ordered to Can- ada. Not hesitating at the call of duty, his heart misgave hinj at the thought of separation from the lady of his love, a beautiful woman to whom he was soon to have been married. Years might pass ere they could see each other, and as the fair one pon- dered on the possibilities of his life in that far-away and wild country, her anguish was augmented by the thought that they might never meet again. Though she had been so delicately nurtured and shielded, she did not hesitate to face danger and hardship for his sake, but promised to accompany some friends sail- ing later for " La ITouvelle France," there to be united to him, for better, for worse, in Quebec. In those times there were fierce marauders on the seas, and before " L'Esperance," with the fair bride-elect among her passengers, had proceeded very far upon her voyage, she was captured by a Spanish pirate. * Indians call the Aurora Borealis Wah-wah-tao ; their be- lief is that it is the spirits of the departed dancing on the borders of the Land of Hereafter. Demon and Pity-us. 129 The crew and passengers were put to death with the exception of the French lady, whose rare loveliness fascinated the chief of the buccaneers. Enraged at the obduracy of his captive, the pirate locked her in the cabin; but she, taking her life in her own hands, leaped from the window into the sea. Infuriated at the escape of his victim, the pirate continued on his course, hoping to secure prizes among merchantmen bound to or from Quebec. The next night after the suicide of the unfortunate fiancee, the ship was round- ing Cap Canon, and approaching L'lle Perce, when, to the horror of all, a white and floating figure ap- peared upon the Rock. The wicked sailor and his men knew this in an instant as the wraith of the un- happy French woman. Crew and captain were panic stricken; a strange numbness crept over them, their limbs grew heavy and seemed almost powerless. The phantom still hovered over the rock waving its arms menacingly. The captain steered for Gaspe Bay; the vessel, sailing in a strangely labored manner, seemed to be settling in the water, while the lethargy -t- I ^-^ -^=j=F ■V— «i- 1^;^- ces et importance Se - ra jug^ que pari' amour, contest su- per- nal Can decide which shall reign over all. Demon and PUy-us. 139 LES BEAUX YEUX. * Les yeux noirs brillant, gtincelles, Les yeux bleus sont tendres et doux : Dans leurs disputes eternelles Pretendent regner seals sur nous. Chacuu voudrait la preference L'un parle pour, et I'autre contra ; Enfln ce proc6s et importance Sera juge que par I'amour. BEAUTIFUL EYES. Ah ! black eyes are brilliant and shining, But blue eyes are tender and dear ; For the dark eyes, man e'er would be pining. Yet the blue he would wish always near. Their dispute is unending, eternal ; In turn each would hold one in thrall, Love alone in this contest supernal Can decide which shall reign over all. Jamais proc6s et 1' audience N'avait cause tant et embarras Les noirs, les bleus, pour leur defences Avaient de nombreux avocats. Pour temoins les baisers de flamme, Pour defenseurs mille soupirs, Pour preuve les troubles de I'ame, Et pour apporter leurs dfisirs. Sure never among us poor mortals Was e'er such continued dispute, From the dawning of life to its portals Those eyes speak, yet ever are mute. One's glance thrills like ardor-flamed kisses, Another's calls forth thousand sighs ; The soul amidst rapturous blisses Is tossed, as on waves, by those eyes ! Les noirs sont sujets au caprice. On ne peut les voir sans danger ; Les bleus n'ont point tant d'artiflce, lis sont moins exposes S. changer. Dans les noirs j'ai mis mon delire, Dans les bleus ma tendre langeur ; L'fisprit dans les yeux noirs respire, Puis dans les bleus c'est la douceur. Dark eyes may be changeful, capri- cious, (In danger thou art, e'en to view !) The\>lue may be restful, delicious, One beholds them with joy ever new. One swoons in those shadows un- measured, In azure deeps, langorous, rests ; Brunette's glance is ardently trea- sured : Though flyingto Blondine's behest. L'amour terminent leur querelle Par un trait judicieux, Avec les yeux noirs on est belle. On est belle avec les yeux bleus. Les bleus marquent plus de tendresse, Les noirs plus de vivacite ; Les noirs annoncent la finesse, Les bleus annoncent la bonte. The one to decide this contention Is he before whom all must bow. 'Tis Love, and that Judge's invention Is this ; then his flat hear now ! Those paramount, if you'd discover — Tho' searching the wide world around — Are those wherein each ardent lover His own love returned sure has found ! '•'This, and "Les Yeux Bleus" are not among the oldest songs of the habi- tans and French-Canadians ; they might have been issued about fifty years ago, and probably could not be found now in print. (I have not tried to make literal translations of any of the songs. ) Veuve Champromis. VEUVE CHAMPEOMIS. In lachrymose mood was " Ste. Cecile du Bic"; and, as the gray mists blotted out the landscape, the mental mercury of a certain sportsman seemed to sink to zero, as he alighted from the train and be- held such discouraging prospect. Within the quaint and neat houses, however, cheer and comfort were to be found, and the traveler's spirits rose as he sur- veyed the interior of his abiding-place. The floors, painted bright yellow, were strewn with gayest home- made rugs ; the window shades, starched stiff as paper, were made ornate, according to the taste of the habi- tans, by semi-circular plaitings at the lower edge, like foolscap fans made by school children. The stove, a curious structure, was set into an opening in the partition between two rooms, thus presenting broadsides to adjoining apartments, — an ingenious arrangement for economizing heat, — and in summer screened by hangings of bright cretonne. A south- east gale was blowing, trying its best to twist to breaking the sturdy and prim poplars, — those ar- boreal grenadiers so appropriate to the foreign-seem- ing village, — and threatening to lift the wide-curving roofs as it whistled under their broad eaves. Towards evening the wind suddenly shifted to the northwest, the cloud curtain lifted sufficiently to re- veal a broad band of gold above the water, and to permit the sun's javelins to shoot out beneath; thus revealing to the stranger's view, as he stepped out on the '' galerie," every detail of the landscape. What 144 In Quest of the Quaint. a picture met his gaze ! Capes, islands, — one shaped precisely like a havstack peeping over a near roof, — and the mountains inland; the eye gloated on the scene. Opposite to Pecheur Melilotte's stood a rather more elegant domicile, whose broad eaves sretched widely enough to be supported on rustic pillars, form- ing a pleasant piazza or galerie. This instantly ab- sorbed the stranger's gaze, causing him to decide that the French village might prove to have great allure- ments after all; for upon this galerie there soon ap- peared a lithe and graceful figure, which, with its brilliant eyes, floating ringlets, warm coloring and tasteful, though extremely simple, attire, might have attracted attention anywhere. By means of wary questions Mr. Hugh Cresswell learned of Melilotte that his respected " voisine " was Veuve Champromis, and the demoiselle, the vision of the galerie, her niece Felicie. If the astute ob- server who is so likely to be on hand at such times had at this juncture put in an appearance, he would have become convinced of the diaphanous nature of the yoimg stranger's manoeuvres, whereby he endeav- ored to obtain the acquaintance of fair Felicie. Through letters from business houses in Montreal in- troducing him, Melilotte was inveigled into presenta- tion of Cresswell to Mme. la Veuve, and she, in time, seemed to permit, though she did not encourage, the beginning of acquaintance with the young girl, who also seemed singularly indifferent to the man's efforts to interest her. This served to put him upon his mettle, for he had " laid the flattering unction to his soul " that he was rather a fascinating person. He seemed to find it easier to win the good opinion of Veuve Champromis, — a fine, strong character, with quite the air of a dame of the old regime, — and o ^fie^^:;;s*msi'>^m<^'^' ■^j: ^,i*^^f^v^ A French-Canadian Inn. Veuve Champromis. 145 finally it seemed that the niece could no longer Avith- stand such assiduous efforts, for she became more gra- cious. As the young man was absent during the days, and the girl probably engaged in household af- fairs, it happened that their meetings had always been in the twilight, — a dangerous time, as many people know, — when, on the piazza, with the old woman en- gaged at her knitting close by, they engaged in con- verse on various topics, and Cresswell exerted him- self to the utmost to exercise his blandishments. Thus it came about that the youth waxed confi- dential, some persons seeming to have such tendency at those seductive hours " between light and dark." Felicie was made acquainted with the fact that he maintained a correspondence with an entrancing young lady then in Europe, the wily one even reading to her portions of the letters; this to show the bril- liant style of the epis- tles as proving the writer a superior per- son, and also his irre- sistibility. Of course the unsophisticated country girl could not see through such trans- parent diplomacy, and Hr. Hugh would gain an immense advantage in thus impressing her. Could it be ? Yes ! The fair Felicie turned away with a sigh now and then, and her color rose or faded as she lis- tened; all of which as- sured the interesting OVEN IN A FRENCH-CANADIAN VILLAGE. 146 In Quest of the Quaint. Cresswell of a new conquest, and induced him to essay the crowning test, — ^the production of a photograph of the absent one, and the assurance that it was the resemblance of this fair maid to that one, which had first made him resolve to know her. " 'Twas ever thus ! " What forlorn widower has not won the second mate by such assurance ? — she reminded him so much of his lost one, in whom he was perfectly wrapped up, as every one knew ; though an unprejudiced observer Avould declare they were as unlike as day and night. " So runs the world away," and therefore of course the fair unknown was seen in the picture possessed of smooth, lustrous locks, sleekly brushed away from her face, thin spirituelle countenance, and eyes of no particular character which looked out through " pince-nez " ; whereas the gypsyish French Canadian's graceful head was cov- ered with luxuriant ringlets, her face, though fine in feature, showed more rounded contour, and the large dark eyes were fairly scintillant. The man did ad- mit, in spite of these discrepancies, apparently invisi- ble to him, that there was one distinct dissimilarity; she had not that bewitching lisp, which made Fe- licie's French still more attractive than it might have been otherwise. The fair Canadienne seemed to be on the best of terms with the other young girls, her neighbors, though had they been more used to the ways of the world they might have been jealous of her charms, which won for her the all-absorbing attention of the fine-looking sportsman, as well as a large share of the less polished gallantry of the village youths, on their excursions and jours des fetes. The stranger was sur- prised at her more elegant language and pronuncia- tion, her general air of better education; but allusions Veuve Champromis. 147 made by the other girls to her school days in Quebec accounted for this. Finally the gallant stranger had positively assev- erated that his fair foreign correspondent had quite faded from his memory, and, if he had not yet asserted that the fascinating Felicie had completely supplanted her, it was only that he awaited suitable opportunity for such disclosure. He listened en- tranced to all that Felicie said, and found the legend- ary lore of the neighborhood a particularly interest- ing study, when she became raconteur; as, for in- stance, when they had climbed one of the hills in late A habitan's hay cart. afternoon, and were surveying the islands of the St. Lawrence. ^Noticing the similarity in shape of many of the isles and headlands, resembling animals crouch- ing, ready to spring, he learned that these are the dogs of Glooscap. When the Odin of the aborigines sailed away from the Basin of Minas in his stone canoe they sprang to meet him as he entered the har- bor en route to his own wild realm of the Saguenay, but with a wave of the hand the Indian god turned them to stone, thus to remain until all the world is at peace, and only then will they return to life and their proper shape again. 148 In Quest of the Quaint. Then Cresswell asked about L'Esprit du Bois, the mysterious visitant of the ravine beyond the village, reported by farm-hands and fishermen, and firmly be- lieved by them to be superhuman; but Felicie, it seemed, had not heard of this, but only expressed de- sire to behold the marvelous phantom of those som- bre shades, and related instead the story (partly his- toric, partly legendary), of L'lle du Massacre in the harbor; where in a cave two hundred Micmacs were entrapped by Iroquois, who built a great fire at the cavern's mouth, and shot down one by one their ene- mies as they were forced to emerge to escape suffo- cation. In the moaning of the tide, the sighing of the wind, do not their descendants to this day believe that the unquiet spirits protest at their treacherous tak- ing off ? Mr. Cresswell' s vacation was drawing to a close, and, his business requiring his return by a certain time, for a last holiday the Saguenay excursion was proposed. Veuve Champromis and her lovely charge agreed to meet the party of young residents of Bic, who duly betook themselves to Riviere-du-Loup, where, while awaiting the great steamboat, they vis- ited the fine cascade, of which Champlain speaks as " a very pleasant river, extending some twenty leagues into the interior, Avhich I called St. Suzanne." (The present name is derived from the seal, the loup- marin, which frequent these waters.) Steadily across the wide expanse of the grand high- way of Canada, — ^thirty miles wide at this point, — steered the great vessel, towards a break in the moun- tain chain, and, as the golden glory deepened into vivid scarlet, seemed to enter the very portals of sun- set. While halting at L'Anse a I'Eau the crescent hanging above the wild rocky heights shone out brightly, apparently reaching over to see its own sil- Veuve Champi'omis. 149 ver reflection in the black water; and the shadows of night gathered aronnd the daring intruders who thus entered the region of mystery and wonder, the Iron Gate of the North; where, in 1643, the first explorer, Jean Francois de la Roque, Lord of Roberval, entered never to return. Veuve Champromis remained constantly near her charge, but was not an obtrusive guardian, and as the vessel moved steadily and stately into the silence of the cold starlit night, the young Bicquois entreated Felicie to relate a legend of the strange and awful river, her pleasantly modulated tones, and the pretty foreign tongue, giving the weird tale a peculiar charm. THE titan's BEIDE. Thousands of years ago this region was more beau- tiful than a dream; the heights covered with magni- ficent trees, the slopes with verdure. Flowers bloomed in profusion in the glens, and the glad carol of myriads of birds filled the air with melody. Balmy airs laden with perfume floated languidly over the scene. Here lived the King of the Titans, who, dying childless, left his realm in turmoil because of a dispute between the leaders of two rival factions, each of whom considered himself the only proper aspirant to the throne. The laws of the giants provided that in such a case as this the kingdom should fall to the lot of one who could succeed in securing for a wife the handsomest woman among the dwellers on earth, though she must not be of the Titan race. The disputants, who had almost come to blows when the decree was pro- mulgated, suspended hostilities, and the rivals set out in opposite directions upon their quest, traveling to the uttermost parts of the world. Finally in the most 150 In Quest of the Quaint. distant realm they met, botii haVing been drawn thither by the report of a princess the renown of whose marvelous beauty had been spread all over the globe. JSTaturally this " daughter of the gods, divinely tall and most divinely fair," had troops of suitors already, among them being two who were specially favored by this exquisite being; and now a great council was called to decide what should be done, and all the mighty potentates of the land sat in solemn conclave for many days and nights. Though the Titans were so powerful, and could easily carry off the fair crea- ture, their laws would not permit of such proceeding, but the wondrous beauty must be allowed free choice. It was decided that the princess must first see the distant realm whence the strangers had come; there- fore, accompanied by the two suitors from among her people who had found most favor in her sight, she was to travel to the domains of the giants, and there, deciding between the merits of the four, choose one for her husband. Meanwhile dreadful events were taking place in the Saguenay region. There were at this period good and evil spirits dwelling about all rivers, streams and lakes. The good genii worked on behalf of the Titans by causing beneficent moisture to rise from the waters, making the land fertile, producing favoring winds, and assisting their masters in traversing the country by means of these waterways. The evil spirits endeavored to counteract this by causing con- trary winds, opposing currents in the streams, and seasons of drought over the land, so there was endless contention and strife. At last, in a terrific conflict in the Saguenay gorge, near Tadousac, the evil spirits became victorious, but «ould not exterminate the good spirits, for these lat- Veuve Champromis. 151 ter saved themselves by assuming the form of white whales. Only the leader of the wicked spirits can behold the white whales without being annihilated, consequently the evil genii became exterminated by the spectacle, and their king, being able to travel only by water, is held prisoner in this river, as he cannot pass the whale gaiard at its mouth. This battle of the contending giants was the cause of a war of the ele- ments; thunder crashed in astounding detonations, every peal repeated ten times from the towering crags, while bolts fell seething into the Stygian stream, or caused the forests to burst into flame, and the earth to heave in agony. In the midst of this direful tempest, more ap- palling than imagination could picture, the princess, in company with her two lovers and the two giants, had just reached a point not far from Cape Trinity, and endeavored to find shelter. After raging many days, however, the storm culminated in the destruc- tion of the giants and all their race ; also the princess and her lovers. The good spirits, compassionating the death of the beauteous being, caused the one whom she would have favored to be turned to stone and placed like a monstrous sentinel at the entrance of a cavern, within which, one thousand feet above the black wat^r, the princess sleeps until the world shall be destroyed. This monumental or statue-rock fell through the ice many years ago, and when into this stem region comes a mortal who has attained perfection, and so can annihilate the king of the evil spirits (still held prisoner by the white whales), then this dreary, bar- ren region will again blossom like the rose. Long ere this the young moon had disappeared be- hind vast walls of black rock, the stars shone out with 152 In Quest of the Quaint. peculiarly remote and cold light. Their young com- panions at this point withdrew into the cabin, and Veuve Champromis apparently dozed, with her head leaning against a window frame. The young man impetuously urged Felicie to take " just two or three turns on the deck," before she went, and then, no longer resisting the spell which had seemed to be more and more closely enchaining him, began to pour passionate protestation and appeal into the fair girl's ear. It was not inaptly timed, and seemed an auspicious moment for a declaration, — (Mr. Cresswell had an eye for effect, and had calculated on this), — but the demoiselle was non-committal, answering apparently half jestingly, half in earnest; endeavoring to check his impassioned utterances. At last she replied seri- ously, although seeming to yield to a peculiarly whimsical fancy, asseverating that she would consult " L'Esprit du Bois " on their return. Though baf- fled and puzzled, with his eloquent asseverations ab- ruptly checked, the man did not lose confidence, but rather sought to give the impression that he gained thereby, as he playfully reminded his fair companion that " the woman who deliberates is lost." At this juncture the elderly guardian roused herself and marshaled her fair charge to their room, Cresswell being left alone to think it all over, to study astron- omy, certain that his lucky star was among those scin- tillators, or to resign himself to the care of Morpheus. The steamer ploughed steadily on through the dark, still night, and sunrise found them anchored at the point known to the Indians as Hesknewaska (Ha-ha Bay), where a strange, wild scene greeted the view. The sky was covered with flying scud; just above the horizon a lurid and angry-looking band of yellow and red stretched back of the promontories Veuve Champromis. 153 guarding the opening of this curious elbow of the river, the colors reflected in tossing wavelets, and, nearer, merging into olive tints and greenish-gray, like molten metal. Onward the steamer went to the pretty town at the head of navigation (which seems out of place in this remote region), and thence retrac- ing her course, passed down the mighty gorge. From the now leaden sky, occasionally a sorrowful little shower drifted over the heights. Vast masses of rock looming up on either shore wore no warm color, but were all stern gray, — granite, hard as iron, look- ing particularly cold with its thin growth of stunted trees, — and the scene bore a hard, severe aspect, which, however, seemed fitting, and enhanced the sense of solitude and loneliness. Occasional pale, watery gleams broke through the clouds, but one could hardly imagine a brilliantly blue and sunny sky arching the prodigious chasm; it would seem incon- graous. Even those among the party who had seemed the most light-hearted became subdued and awed by the majestic grandeur and wonder of their surroundings, and a solemn hush fell on all. The sense of awe became almost oppressive as each one gazed on the towering and bare storm-scarred cliffs. Then the echoes, carrying to most distant ravines and gorges the sounds of the vessel, repeated, augmented and exaggerated the hissing of the steam, the puffing of the engines, the dashing of the paddle-wheels, un- til all the wild chasms and rocky fastnesses seemed filled with unimagined goblins protesting at such in- trusion. Steaming steadily onward, leaving the grandest heights far in the distance, it appeared most fitting that the showers should become more frequent and persistent, dropping successive curtains of gray, until the weird region thus faded from sight and en- veloped itself more securely in the mystery which for 154 In Quest of the Quaint. a short time the voyagers had ventured to penetrate. Later, on emerging into the greater river, behold sunshine and soft breeze, with a long swell from the gulf, imparting a slow, dreamy, soothing swing to the vessel. The passengers seemed relieved from a strange spell as they thus came back to the world again. Cresswell, with the impatient ardor of a lover, urged his suit, and Felicie playfully dared him to accompany her to consult " L'Esprit du Bois," de- claring that only then would she redeem her promise and give her answer. Through the pine woods weird and dark the wind sighed eerily; struggling moon- beams sifted through the branches: an appropriate spot it was for spectral manifestations. Felicie, en- veloped in a long black cloak, accompanied by her faithful shadow Champromis, indicated a point where Cresswell must station himself at one tree, and she would do likewise at a little distance, whence they could behold the apparition at a cleared space just beyond. Sombre and black stood the stately pines. Some, hung with moss, were bearded like Capuchins ; and beyond them again stood great silver birches in spectral array, the moonlight, slanting through dark branches, shimmering on their white trunks. Then, indeed, Cresswell started, and experienced a singular thrill as he became aware of a white figure moving towards the clearing, at which place it paused, clearly revealed in the moonlight. A mass of waving dark hair was held back from the face by a band of sparkling gems, sleeves of a clinging robe in Grecian style fell away from beautifully rounded graceful arms, and classic sandals covered dainty feet. The phantom waved its arms, reaching out as in earn- est entreaty; it knelt and drooped as in abject de- spair; it posed and gesticulated, posturing entranc- Veuve Champromis. 155 ingly. Cresswell beheld as if spellbound, hardly dar- ing to breathe deeply, so fearful was he of dispelling the vision. Finally, as if impelled by irresistible force, he rushed forward with outstretched arms, ex- claiming, in tones in which amazement, doubt, en- treaty, ecstasy, were strangely mingled, " Alethea ! '^ Then the vision spoke, in clear, cold tones, enuncia- ting: "Claire, Felicie; Alethea le Mesurier, whom you once knew as Althea Masury." The man could not find words with which to ques- tion the fair being, and she, seating herself on a fallen tree, as if fearful that her strength would be taxed by the recital, prefaced her explanation by dis- playing in her slender palm a tiny white pebble, of which she remarked, " I have classic authority for producing a lisp." " Her letters continuing to come from abroad ? " " Oh, that was easily managed; they were sent to a schoolmate traveling there, who posted them from various points. Before her departure she had be- come somewhat doubtful of the absolute sincerity of a very near and dear friend. She thought absence might prove a test, but incontrovertible evidence of his faithlessness had been sent to her there. She could not believe it, but resolved to prove to herself. During this time she had endured a slow and wasting fever, from which, however, she had arisen with re- newed powers. Though she had been compelled to have her hair entirely shorn, the new gTowth had come in ambrosial fashion, quite changing her ap- pearance, and a foreign oculist had effected a cure of weakness of the eyes, so pince-nez were discarded. Then, while abroad, she had decided to devote herself to histrionic study; and by the name unfamiliar to her auditor (except as he had read of her triumphs) she had attained a position which assured a comfortable 156 In Quest of the Quaint. living for the future. She had also been enriched bv a large legacy which had come to her while in France from an eccentric relative, formerly of French Guiana. This woman, living like an anchorite, yet had a fancy for rich baubles, and had put much of her property into a gorgeous necklace, which she had collected and added to at various times during Bo- hemian wanderings. This had proved not such a senseless proceeding after all, as, at a time of mutiny and pillage in the East, the old woman, in simplest attire, with nothing in her hands, had coolly walked away, unquestioned and unscathed, with the string of gems securely covered by and wound into the coil of grizzled hair at the back of her head ! " It had seemed that the picturesque narrator had spoken in intense though repressed excitement. This reminiscence apparently amused her as she related it, and her tone became less cold and measured; at this point, however, she continued. She had prom- ised her faithful friend, Veuve Champromis, — her so-called" aunt, in reality her governess and caretaker in girlhood, — that she would not acknowledge her betrothal to Mr. Hugh Cresswell until a certain time had elapsed. Madame had been her chaperon and companion during her foreign sojourn, and Felicie, anxious to try her histrionic powers, had become pos- sessed of the fancy to return incognito and test a cer- tain young man. She had heard that while repre- senting himseK as a gentleman of wealth and leisure he was in reality merely a commercial traveler, who had a way of ingratiating himself among the unsus- pecting people, now and then amusing himself " win- ning a country heart for pastime ere he went to town " ; and it even was whispered that he had a wife over at Cap a I'Aigle. Veuve Cliampromis. 157 Felicie arose, and the conscience-stricken man gazed speechlessly at a glittering ring which she dropped into his hand, as L'Esprit du Bois and the faithful attendant shadow vanished among the pines. STATISTICS OF THE SAGUENAY. In 1603 de Monts (Pierre du Guast) had obtained exclusive priAalege to trade from Terreneuve to fifty degrees north latitude, and equipped four vessels, one of which traded at Tadousac. The vessels were un- der the care of Champlain, who at Tadousac found numbers of savages who had come to sell skins. He minutely describes their canoes, which struck him Avith wonder. Charlevoix's map was creditable, and quite accurate for his time. Under the French gov- ernment the interior of Canada was better known than it was after the establishment of English rule. The region of the Saguenay and Lake St. John for- merly formed part of a great tract known as the " Domaine du Roi," and was conceded to the " Com- pagnie des Postes du Roi." An approximate though not exact estimate of its extent is made in saying that it stretched between forty-eight and fifty de- grees north latitude, and between sixty-five and sev- enty-four degrees west longitude; these limits con- tinued until 1840, " at which epoch it was handed 158 In Quest of the Quaint. over to the electoral circumspection of the Province of Quebec." After the cession of Canada to the English the Saguenay territory continued to be cultivated some- what. The farmers were interested to exclude stran- gers as much as possible. They wished to maintain their monopoly, to hinder competition, to keep to themselves the resources of the country, and there- fore jealously guarded their secret whenever the re- newal of the lease was agitated. It was on this ac- count that so little was known of this territory. Even the various divisions of the Montagnais Indian tribes who roamed through the wilds, wishing to keep to themselves their hunting grounds, discouraged inter- lopers from venturing thither by representing the re- gion as arid, mountainous, and of frightful aspect. The fate of the first exploring expedition, — ^Rober- val's, in -1543, — " remains one of the secrets of the time." In 1640, twenty-seven years after the found- ing of Quebec, the Jesuit De Quen established a mis- sion at Tadousac. In 1672 Pere Albanel traveled to Hudson's Bay via rivers Mistassini and Rupert, a journey which has been made but once since by a European, the naturalist Michaux. This celebrated Erench botanist left a legacy to the American Philo- sophical Society of Philadelphia. In 1733 JSTorman- din, a surveyor, traveled to the northwest of Lake St. John, and " made a faithful and detailed map, but one copy of which is kno^wn to exist, that being kept in the Department of Lands of the Crown." The Indian name of this river was Pitchitami- chetz, the present title being a corruption of another Indian name, Saggichecus, signifying " river of preci- pices." From Lake St. John two streams emerge, which, separated by the Isle d'Alma, meet three leagues below, and form this strange river, which for Veuve Champromis. 159 twelve leagues is " precipitated in cascades, falls and rapids of great turbulence," then " takes a uniform and regular course for seven miles above Chicoutimi, flowing thence to Tadousac, diverging always towards the east, a distance of forty leagues. The Indian name Shekutimish signified " far and deep." Erroneous ideas and statements as to the great depth of the river have been prevalent and generally accepted. " In Bouchette's ' Topographical Diction- ary of the Province,' he states that soundings have been made, showing the depth of the river to be three hundred and thirty fathoms, equal to nearly two thousand feet, an error which has been unfortunately too generally believed since the publication of that work," Soundings effected in 1830, by Captain Bay- field, of the English Royal Marine, correct exagger- ations which attribute to the Saguenay a depth of fifteen hundred to eighteen hundred feet, and more than two thousand feet in more than one place; but the mass of the public persist in the error which has become to-day a sort of tradition, and some continue, notwithstanding scientific demonstrations to the con- trary, to believe that the river is unfathomable. Bayfield's map shows that at the very mouth, where, according to common belief, bottom has not been found at three hundred and forty fathoms, the great- est depth does not exceed seventy-six fathoms, and that this increases successively to eighty-eight, one hundred and one hundred and eight fathoms in the space of three or four miles in ascending the river, until it attains its greatest depth, which is one hun- dred and forty-seven fathoms, between Passe Pierre and L'Anse St. Etienne, about five miles from Ta- dousac. Moreover, the depth of the Saguenay is extremely variable and changes suddenly; at one point measuring ten fathoms, and a short distance 160 In Quest of the Quaint. farther on marking eighty fathoms. The depth is most uniform between Cape Eternity and La De- scente des Femmes; more than once in this distance it reaches one hundred and forty-five fathoms, and is not less than one hundred fathoms. The former point is thirty-nine miles, the latter forty-seven miles from the mouth of the river. The " cataclysmic theory " is that the prolonged gorge of the Saguenay was formed by tremendous convulsions of nature, which almost drained Lake St. John, — supposed to have been ninety leagues in length in former ages, — but the general belief at present is that it was in consequence of a gradual wearing away of the rock by frost, moisture and at- mospheric effects, though earthquake shocks may have assisted in some places. The white whales (Beluga borealis) which frequent the Saguenay near its confluence with the St. Law- rence are creatures as strange as this resort.. They measure fourteen to twenty-two feet in length, each carcass yielding over one hundred gallons of oil, which brings a good price in the market. On the coasts of Siberia and Il^ova Zembla the white whale fishery is an important and valuable industry, the huge creatures being captured by means of enormous and extremely strong nets. Vessels from Tromsoe alone secured almost three thousand in one season; their value being $30,000. The whale fishery has almost died out in the United States, though it is not yet quite extinct. In twenty-five years the annual product decreased from one hundred thousand bar- rels of sperm oil to forty-two thousand; whale oil, from three hundred thousand to thirty-five thousand ; and bone from five million pounds to four hundred thousand pounds. (( Lazy Boolmong." "LAZY BOOLMONa." " Trembling, tumbling, crumbling, falling " ; such is the meaning of Les Eboulements. A place of earthquakes and landslides ! ISTo wonder it is not even indicated on general maps. Probably the sig- nificance of the title would be sufficient warning to pleasure seekers to avoid the charming ISTormanesque region. It was, in this case, however, an enticing title; an alluring cognomen, when pronounced as above, by English residents of Quebec. In this age of life at high pressure there are some who must get out of the hurry and bustle at times, or become liable to a woeful giving out of faculties. Yes, that was the spot to aim for; there one could be lazy with an easy conscience, and, entering into the simple pas- toral life of the unsophisticated peasants, accumulate avoirdupois and store up strength to withstand the wear of winter avocations. As the great vessel steamed past the charming Isle of Orleans, Cap Tourmente, whose fine slopes and cerulean hue had been familiar for so long at Quebec, appeared in bold relief, clearly defined from base to summit. The quaint chronicler, Charlevoix, re- marks, " He that gave this name suffered here by a gust of wind," but angry gales were subdued to balmy breezes at this time. The giants of the Laurentians, " oldest mountains of the world," — so say scientists, — stand guarding the grand highway, their heads cloud-capped, their feet laved by the flood. The sug- gestion of Norway is unmistakable, even to those who Lazy Boolmong. 165 have not visited that realm of Titans and Jotuns. After four hours of such delightsome navigation, Mt. Eboulements appeared, looming 2,457 feet above the river. Along the shore cottages are scattered, sug- gesting a straggling procession of penitents making pilgrimage to the far-away church of ISTotre Dame de Bonsecours on top of the mountain. As this moun- tain does not stand out from the range like those at Bay St. Paul the height is not so apparent, and may be at first sight disappointing. The singularly-shaped peaks, back of the village on the heights, resemble the rounded summits — called " ballons " — of that part of France whence these earliest settlers came. Two or three hundred feet above the river is a stretch of tolerably level farm-land, with picturesque houses, and barns built of logs, with thatched roofs to de- light an artist, while far above, apparently among the clouds, stands the village proper. The sides of the mountain are scored with deep ravines, through whose dark, dank clefts beautiful cascades rush down to the great river. The beautiful Reine des Neiges allures one to her mysterious seclusion, although there is no path, and a rough and tough scramble and slide must be essayed by the prospector. At the long wharf Monsieur awaited the summer- ing company with charette and quatre-roux, by means of which vehicles his guests were conveyed to an admirably located house commanding a superb view — Isle-aux-Coudres, Cap Corbeau jutting out be- yond, Mont St. Antoine and his fellows trending off to the southwest, " up river," gradually diminishing in size and fading in hue till their tints blended with those of the sky. Idyllic life, heavenly rest, absolute peace ensued; one could not bear the thought of return to the world's turmoil, and awoke each day with a renewed 166 In Quest of the Quaint. sense of delight that he could stay. When sailing and fishing lured away the masculine members of the company, Mesdames les Americaines climbed the great mountain by quite a miniature Alpine pass to visit the Seigniory, or strolled along shore. Charm- ing and simple manners pervaded the whole com- munity. Barefooted urchins, on meeting the stran- gers, instantly doffed hats — (yes, even when " play- ing horse " at recess), — and in pleasant-toned voices* gave pretty salutation: " Dieu vous salut, Mes- dames," recalling the less poetic but kindly " Gottes- griiss " of the German peasant. Loom and spinning-wheel were to be seen in all the houses, and Madame proudly displayed the fine ma- terials she had woven and dyed for her winter gowns, — Vetoffe du pays, or homespun; and a visit to the queer little building in which these materials are pressed and trimmed was next in order. Here stood in olden times " le moulin du Seigneur " ; the present holder and worker in that edifice displayed the pro- cesses of grinding and bolting with justifiable pride in his establishment, though it looks so primitive to " States people " now. Decidedly oldtime-y are the farming implements in general, the habitan being conservative and devoted to his ancient methods and tools, though some whose sons have " gone to the States," or who have themselves visited manufactur- ing towns near the border in New England, have ven- tured to try hay-tedders ! JSTot larger than a bucket was Madame's churn, which was used on a table, its * The mellow, low tones of these country folk strike one at once, in contrast to the voices of people in general in many parts of the States. The cEildren even at play do not sliriek or shout. Scientists have remarked that city life has a dele- terious effect on voices, causing them to become harsh, nasal, high-pitched. Lazy Boolmong. 167 support consisting of a horse or standard, composed of a bar between X ends. As it is quite possible that it was made of hass wood, the Scrivener assumed the office of Sponsor and christened it XX Pail. The highest praise that one could give the butter therein manufactured would be to say it would satisfy a Philadelphian, they being well known as connoisseurs of that article. Dainty and delectable were Madame's viands — crepes, croquignoUes, etc., the former large, thin pan- cakes rolled and laid in rows on a great platter; the latter a kind of cruller. And then the puddings, poultry, trout, " sardines " (otherwise smelt), fresh from the river ; the wild strawberries and raspberries, would delight an epicure. One member of the com- pany gravely quoted from the notorious Mrs. M. B. G. E. : " Grastronomic pleasure is a sensuous illusion, a phantasm of the mere mortal mind, which dimin- ishes as we go up the ladder of life," though a wicked twinkle in the eye implied that that person is willing to remain here a while longer and indulge in such pleasures ! To drive along the shore at low tide, passing around far outreaching spurs of the moun- tains, whose overhanging crags look as if they must topple and crush such daring intruders, is an expe- rience worth having, a sensation to be remembered. Thus St. Paul's Bay is reached, and voted pleasing as a little out-of-the-way bit of Switzerland, in minia- ture. 'Tis a thoroughly French settlement, the whole village and its surroundings foreign seeming. Pas- sengers from the great river boats are deposited on a tiny landing-stage, — a square foundation of huge piles supporting a little lighthouse, — whence sail- boats convey them to the village, two and one-half miles distant. There a row of buckboards with 168 In Quest of the Quaint. chaise-like bonnets over the seat, — quatre-roux, — stand waiting for passengers, and these peculiar vehi- cles, as seen from the little " cage," or wharf, are comically suggestive of penguins. At the Batture or dunes (also set down as Barachois on old maps), un- der the pines, was just the correct place," " pour le pique-nique " ; and then a return drive over the mountains made amply satisfying termination of the tour. ]Srautical phraseology seemed natural in such region, where the river is twenty-one miles wide and the people are amphibious; for instance, emharquer and deharquer are used when requesting one to get into or out of a vehicle. Madame, having been edu- cated in a convent, was reasonably correct in her lan- guage, but her maid would say, " Je vais vous en- macher cela, Madame," " Faut-il demancher le lit," " J'ai bouillante le the," etc. To the country folk midges are lou lohs, and the eerie cry which the Americans recognized as the loon — i^^^Hg was to them Jiihou. When one looked doubtfully at a bit of mackerel sky Madame said: " Ciel pommele fille fardei, ne sont pas longue duree." It is not ex- actly patois which these peasants speak, — the tongue of the " half-breed " might more properly be so des- ignated, — but they use archaic phraseology; their wording is similar to that of earliest settlers if not quite the same. One hears coop in place of tasse; fleur instead of farine; patate for pomme-de-terre. In some French colonies batatas means yam; and in others the sweet potato is called hatate. Old France knew nothing of the condition of life in " La Nou- velle France " ; savants of the olden time would have racked their brains over terms which they could not Lazy Boolmong. 169 put into classic French. Early settlers probably in- vented some phrases; and words adopted from the In- dians were also incorporated into their speech, and handed down through successive generations. There are highly cultivated French families in Quebec who are quite exclusive, and pride themselves on keeping their language pure; but to those who have been fre- quent visitors to France in the present time it would sound as if even they had stepped out of some ancient book, or record of ye olden time. (A Japanese gentleman of the highest class and most finished education " talks like a book " and sounds old-fashioned. Though his English is per- fectly correct, it sounds almost strange to us, as we are careless in our speech; falling into the habit of using set phrases, incorrect terms, and colloquialisms, such as we constantly hear.) Though the great steamers constantly ply between Quebec, this, and more distant ports, the mail is car- ried by mounted rider seventy miles. To watch for the " postilion " is a deliciously antiquated bit of ro- mance to spice each day. After the carrier had de- posited his budget, and the contents had been sorted, the postmaster liked to chat with the summer guests, and waxed garrulous, sometimes inquisitive. He asked what we paid for board, probably pondering what inducements he might offer to summer loiterers next season; but each one without collusion (except in hastily exchanged glances) advised him tO' ask Madame, their hostess, to whom he is related, as, in- deed, haK the village seems to be, most of them bear- ing the same name. It is, by-the-way, appropriate to a region where tremhlement-de-terre is an occasional if not frequent visitor, and where aspens (tremhlaie) abound. An old French novelist and chronicler of La Gaspesie said: " Les Tremblay sont bien, j'en suis 170 In Quest of the Quaint. charme; ce sont de brave gens," an opinion -with which the Americans heartily concurred. Mr. Post-Meridian, as the Scrivener called him, grew glib of tongue as he boasted of place and peo- ple. He had the audacity to inquire the ages of some of the " dames Americaines," being amazed that they were unmarried, saying there were few maidens in the whole tripartite village over sixteen who were un- married ; he himself being one of a family of twenty- one children. Surveying one " demoiselle " criti- A WAYSIDE REMINDER. cally, with head tipped sidewise, like an elderly owl, he hazarded the guess, " and M'lle is perhaps thirty " ? Though a big hat covered some gray hairs, M'lle acknowledged that such might be the case, and had the temerity to add, " J'en ai plus que 5a," which quite shocked him. He replied, quite commiser- atingly, and in English, " It ees dretfle "; then, fear- ful of having disturbed the lady by his frankness, dis- tressed at having seemed impolite, he endeavored to make amends, and to soothe her supposed-to-be lac- erated feelings. ISToticing the alpenstock (now util- ized as staff of sketching umbrella) which the afore- Lazy Boolmong. 171 said tourist sometimes used in climbing the ravine to her sojourning place he remarked, " Though jou are so holt " (with playfully deprecating gesture) " you are not so holt as to need a staff," with a triumphant chuckle at his brilliant pleasantry. In the early days of the colonies, a bounty was given to young men and girls under sixteen who mar- ried before they were twenty years old. Parents hav- ing more than ten children received a gratuity. This was revived in 1890 by Quebec, the provincial Par- liament giving one hundred acres to parents of twelve or more children. There were then two thousand families entitled to this. In lower Canada there are families of twenty-five and thirty children. Abbe Plinquet was the twenty-eighth child of a family of thirty-five; he died at the age of eighty-one. The Church encourages early marriages. After an unmistakable sensation at the edge of day Madame asked if her guests were not terrified at the " tremblement-de-terre," but was assured that it did not agitate them, constituting, as it did, one of the novelties which they had come to seek. The Incor- rigible remarked that in such a beautiful spot and such exhilarating atmosphere it was natural for Na- ture to indulge in ebullitions, but they had no fear of houleversement, although a sandy bluff not far away had been sliced down as if by mortal implements, and was imperceptibly sifting its fine gravel to the level land below. Madame " never could get used to it," though it was not so frequent, or by any means so heavy, as in the days of her grandparents. Geologists cite proofs of terrible convulsions along this coast, and an ancient chronicler tells of a man who " ran all night to escape a fissure in the earth which chased him," threatening every minute to en- gulf him. Evidently he had been imbibing fire-water. 172 In Quest of the Quaint. and some of it must have been spilled in the forests, as the Indians asseverated that the trees reeled as if intoxicated. This was in 1633, when those credulous early settlers and narrators, — who accepted unques- tioningly the preposterous tales of Indians anent the one-legged men of the far l^orth and various hob- goblins of their mythology, — told of astounding spec- tacles. A mountain was uprooted and cast upon Isle- aux-Coudres, making it half as large as before ; a ter- rible maelstrom was formed in the river, which tum- bled in angry surges " white as milk," and poor old Mother Earth was afflicted with ague fits from May to August. The whirlpool of La Gouffre, at St. Paul's Bay, it is said, has within comparatively few years so filled with sand as to have lost its terrors. Neverthe- less, " on the up trip," leaving Les Eboulements, the tourists encountered, — as they had been warned by Quebec-ers they might, — " a longish bit of bad water there," when, wind and tide being at variance, the vessel seemed to be trying to climb mountains. At the queer little landing stage at St. Paul's Bay, three separate attempts were made to approach the lighthouse. At the first touch a pile was scraped off, at the second a Frenchman jumped aboard, leaving his family tragically gesticulating, evidently suppos- ing themselves deserted on that frightful miniature island; but the third attempt resulted in the family being reunited as the vessel sheered off and carried them away rejoicing. One member of the party, being a descendant of an old Dutch family of ISTew York State, became inter- ested in studying out the seigneurial system, and com- paring it with that of the Patroons, finding consider- able similarity. Louis XIV., who was called "the father of New France," introduced into Canada the seig-neurial system, which was abolished in 1854. Le Lazy Boolmong. 173 Clerc, in an interesting old book on the " Establish- ment of the Faith/' says that until Louis XIV. came to the throne the settlers in Canada, including those belonging to the Church, those engaged in fur-trade and fisheries, and all other colonists, only numbered twenty-five hundred. Louis made a regular business of sending out settlers, mostly from the northwestern provinces of France. Many of the first settlers were soldiers, and officers were offered considerable pecu- niary inducement to take up their permanent abode in Canada. In 1665-'67 strong, sturdy peasant women were sent out as wives for the soldiers, and women of higher rank as spouses for the officers; and on the marriages being consummated the soldiers re- ceived presents of cattle, fowls, money; the officers grants of land, and often money also. The land thus given was almost invariably along river-courses or on the coast, — water-ways being the highways of the time, — and these long-drawn-out set- tlements or villages, as they became in time, took the name of the Seigneur. On the maps of the present time is seen Seigneurie de Beaupre, for instance. These villages were called Cotes, " a use of the word peculiar to Canada, where it still prevails," as Park- man says. The proprietor, or Seigneur, rented por- tions of the land to tenants, generally for trifling sums, so revenues were not large. These portions ex- tended in narrow strips from the shore inland, so the tenant had water privilege, land for culture in the middle, and forest in the rear. Tenants ground their grain at the moulin hanal, or Seigneur's mill, giving one-fourteenth part in payment for the use of the mill. The mills were built of stone, with loop-holes, in order that they might be used as forts in case of necessity. A peculiar old ceremony, faire foi et hommage, was 174 In Quest of the Quaint. required from vassals to Seigneurs at certain inter- vals, or when a Seigneury descended to the next heir. The vassal knelt with bared head before the lord of the manor, repeating certain forms of words, promis- ing to pay his dues at proper times, to be loyal to his lord, and asking his master to accept his pledge of faith. The Seigneur himself was obliged to repair to Quebec at stated times, there with much show of cere- mony to renew his pledges, and swear fealty to his king. A similar system was in vogue in ISTew York, the Patroon being equivalent to the French Seigneur. The Dutch landowner was indulgent and careless about collecting or requiring pay- ment of his rents, and when at last he demanded ac- knowledgment of his rights, the tenants had be- come independent, had imbibed Republican ideas, and resisted, in some cases disguising themselves as Indians and joining the savages in depreda- tions from a revengeful spirit towards their Pa- troon. The government intervened, the courts de- cided the matter, and in 1846 the feudal system was abolished; eight years before Canada took the same step. Though the system was broken up in 1854 a feeling of loyalty towards the former lord of the manor still lingers among the cultivateurs and habi- tans. In this season, when a neighboring farmer had met with the loss of a barn by fire, he was consoled by a message from the Seigmeury to the effect that " he was to come up," and " one could tell what that meant," as he complacently hugged himself at thought of the forthcoming present. One member of the summering company, being a native of France, was interested in studying the status of the farmer, and Belle Amie was surprised to learn that he has no interest in politics and pays no taxes, although he still tenders rent to the present repre- Lazy Boolmong. 175 sentative of the seigneiirial family, despite the fact that he owns his land himself. This is, however, vol- untary, and might be set down on the score of senti- ment, his father having been one of the original Gen- sitaires; and the sum is so trifling as not to deplete his revenues. After " the Conquest " the govern- ment undertook to enforce English laws, but finally the old French law was restored. The Independents asserted their opinion that instruction in English in the schools would have been wise at least, might have prevented race antagonism and prejudice in the pres- ent, and undoubtedly more liberal education would have been a great enlightenment and vast benefit to these worthy people, who seem so much " behind the times." When Belle Amie also saw Monsieur's boy helper with pipe in mouth almost constantly, and " wondered if the cure might be asked to warn his people against the pernicious habit," she was in- formed that the priest himself was a " fumeur." French Canadian country houses are cool in sum- mer, warm and comfortable in winter, being built of massive squared logs, covered outside and in with plaster. The windows, always ponderous casements, have double sashes for winter. In the cities these outer sashes usually have one pane hinged to give ven- tilation. Such little doors are known as tirettej guicliet, or vasistasj the latter name, however, cannot be found in French dictionaries.* In villages, where the houses form a crooked procession along one street, each domicile stands at an angle from the next so that each may face south; and the northern ends or sides * When Napoleon First invaded Germany, the sound of mar- tial tramp brought people to the windows, and one inquired of his neighbor, " Vas ist das ? " The French soldiers, in derision, thereupon adopted " vasistas " as a name for the wicket. 1T6 In Quest of the Quaint. have extra thickness of wall or sheathing of heavy planks, as better protection for the long winter. Be- yond the villages the farm lands are cut up into nar- row strips, frequently only a few yards in width, though perhaps almost a mile in length, reaching far hack towards the hills; so the fields have a curiously ribbon-like and patch-work effect. This is because the original demesne is divided on the marriage of the children, so that each can have a portion and settle down near the parents. In the lovely long twilights, host and hostess gra- ciously acceded to the pleadings of their romantic guests, and entertained them in charming manner; Madame with sweet old chansons, to which her fine contralto lent another charm, and Monsieur with a strange history of former sojourners. This latter came about through queries as to the manner in which the mountain away up beyond the village, — had they not seen it when returning from Bay St. Paul ? — obtained its name. Yes, they had seen also the fine old stone mansion on the heights. Well, there dwelt, long ago, the owner of the hlack house, and when he was dismantling it after it was left tenantless, there, behind an old fireplace, the journal was found, where it had slipped back of the wainscoting. " Oh, would Monsieur relate it ? " but he, shy of his English, and also of his French before (supposed-to-be) finished linguists, hesitated to attempt the task, though he consented if possible to obtain the manuscript for their perusal. Therefore, is it not " hereunto ap- pended " ? MONT BLAGOUSE. A journal! It has always seemed to me that I never could keep one, and that it has often proved unwise in those who have put down in black and Lazy Boolmong. 177 white their opinions, ideas, or even reflections. Though I shall not enter herein mj sentimental mus- ings, sacred aspirations or inmost thoughts, yet here, where there is no one with whom I can commune, and unutterable loneliness overcomes me at times, the fancy seizes me to jot down something of my history, as if I were relating to a friend from whom I had long been separated. Such a one there is, my guid- ing star through all the vicissitudes of life, yet that one may never see this " ower true tale." Orphaned at seventeen years of age, I had only the memory of my parents' inculcations as guide, being left to a guardian of crusty and peculiar tempera- ment, to whom was entrusted my inheritance, — whether this would be much or little I neither knew nor cared, — and to him also the supervision of my education. My tastes were simple, my desires few, and I was left much to myself. A taste for the study of botany, which I had pursued persistently during my school years, led me to essay pharmaceutical re- search during my college course, and finally my crabbed-seeming guardian evinced considerable grati- fication when I graduated as a physician, and passed several years abroad, where, in medical parlance, I " walked the hospitals." Being naturally reserved, given to abstraction, and preferring retired life if not actual seclusion, I saw but little of the world and its doings, though I could not withdraw entirely from society. It was in an exclusive circle that I met my fate; a woman of exquisite sensibilities and utmost refinement, yet whose generous, pure, loving soul was always reaching out to help the unfortunate, to cheer the sorrowing, to uplift despondent ones. When I had been called to attend a sufferer in a forlorn and benighted district of the city, there I found that lovely being had already appeared, a veritable angel 178 In Quest of the Quaint. of mercy. Ttis was before it became fashionable to enter into cbarity work, and only her own sweet spirit had been the impelling power, I could see, without shadow of doubt. From that time I was her devoted knight, her serf, her slave, if you will, — ^her shadow I might say; and many times protected her in her ten- der ministrations, though she was all unaware of this. I knew ere long that there was no hope for me. Before two years of our acquaintance had transpired I learned that she would become the bride of another, who had also figured in the Mission district. Even before my meeting with Angiola (as I mentally called her) I had been constantly brought in contact with this man; and it seemed to me he was posing, was never off his guard, and had always in view some ul- terior motive in his apparently kindly and self-sacri- ficing efforts to assist the denizens of that region of misery and squalor. I could not account for my re- pulsion, but, deciding that it was merely a case of Dr. Fell, endeavored to oust the matter from my thoughts, while always outwardly maintaining cour- teous demeanor to this individual. Years passed, and, though deeply engrossed in my profession, I had means of being posted as to An- giola's life, and of keeping watch, though from afar; For Her Sake my watchword. She possessed the power of bringing out the best and noblest in those with whom she was brought in contact, inspiring them to live on the highest plane. An old song of my mother's haunted me: — "Altho' even hope is denied, 'Tis sweeter for thee despairing than aught in the world be- side; " but I would not yield to vain repinings. Though she was lost to me, in one sense, my life I felt had been Lazy Boolmong. 179 blessed in having had her in it ! She had been, and should be, my life's beacon, I could not help feeling that the true character of her consort would be re- vealed some time; yet I honestly hoped that she might be spared such rude awakening from her dream of happiness, and that he too, for her sake, might be incited to live his best. I had resolved, at her mar- riage, to devote my best endeavors, my fortune, to her welfare, and to still stand guard, however distant, and although unknown to her. One year when I had gone to France for needed change, — although devoting the time of my sojourn to study there, — I learned from my old guardian that Angiola had returned to her former home, where she appeared in the sombre garb of widowhood. She had resumed her self-imposed duties at the mission, and ^^■as almost worshiped by the people there, where her presence seemed a benediction, her personality that of a veritable ministering spirit. I had become deeply interested in the study of victims of the opium habit, and resolved to devote the rest of my life to such sufferers; hoping to help them to fight this in- sidious foe, than which Satan 'mid his legions has none more fiendish. One man in particular interested me; friendless, homeless, penniless, in a strange land. I determined to bring him back to America with me, and to see what I might possibly accomplish in his case. Though supposing Angiola to be free, I could not yet present myself to her; I was solemnly bound to my forlorn charge. To this most peaceful, healthful spot we came, and, disregarding the attractions of the vil- lage proper, the farms, the rivage, obtained possession of a small unpainted house, almost like a tiny chalet, under a peak back of but even higher than the moun- tain on which the church is perched. Here wild 180 In Quest of the Quaint. mountain streams and pools and dense woods seemed to invite and promise success with rod and reel. The simple-hearted peasants seemed to think noth- ing strange about us or our proceedings, though mj charge was so weird and repulsive in appearance; but virtually adopted us into their community. They christened our abiding-place Mont Blagouse, which is not an Indian name, as one might surmise, but testi- fies their heroic effort to articulate " black house." Here I could watch my charge hourly, attending with utmost care to his diet, enforcing regular exercise and much outdoor life. We tramped, fished, hunted, rowed. Almost imperceptibly a remarkable alteration took place in his whole appearance. The leaden, expres- sionless eye began to show perception of, if not inter- est in, surroundings ; the flesh to assume a less corpse- like hue; the livid lips to take on a faint semblance of the tint of life ; and the man at last seemed coming to himself. These changes had been so gradual that I did not realize what was taking place ; it was with a great shock at last that a suggestion of his resem- blance to some one I had seen came to me, and, in time, deepened into conviction. Nothing can so utterly metamorphose a human be- ing as slavery to this damnable drug, which insidi- ously welds its fetters, and imperceptibly corrodes the moral nature as it undermines the vitals, killing body and soul at the same time. When at last the wretched victim had taken on a more human semblance, though but the wreck, the shadow, of his former self, he confessed to me all, metaphorically groveling in the dust at my feet. Yes, he had acquired the despicable habit long ago; at first, in curiosity, had tried the effect of small amounts of hasheesh, chloral, and finally the deadly Lazy Boolmong. 181 dnig. He had received superficial education; these experiments at first were meant to " sharpen his "wits," to make him appear brilliant in the society in which he aspired to shine; to assist him in the work as a reporter (for a third-rate paper) which he had undertaken to eke out his slender means. He had married for money; had dissipated his wife's fortune, excepting a small part which had been settled on her in such a manner that he could not touch it, and then had deserted her. How he had lived since he could not say, though he recalled life at noted gambling resorts abroad. (How thankful I was that he did not mention his wife's name; I could not have endured that !) Now, though one heavenly spark had been rekin- dled in him, and he wondered if it might be possible for him to retrieve his wretched past by undertaking a crusade against this indescribably awful dragon, he realized that physical and brain power had been too severely taxed to permit of such work. The appar- ent brightening of the candle was only premonitory of its last gleam. He could see how it had all come about; unwise parental care, without religious influ- ence, had permitted him to grow up willful, selfish, self-indulgent. He had " suffered the tortures of the deepest depths of Hades," and none more appalling than to realize how willfully and wickedly he had thrown away his life, and jeopardized his soul. He entreated me to go on with my work, instancing his own case as proof of what might be done before the miserable votaries of the modern non-mythological Morpheus were so far gone as he; " while they could yet be convinced of the terrible penance which would be exacted " ; and then, invoking blessings on " his brother of St. Andrew/' he grasped my hands, and closed the weary eyes which never opened again. 182 In Quest of the Quaint. By means of Angiola's acquaintance witli my for- mer guardian, who had care of her small patrimony (and who, by the way, had of late years quite over- come his crustiness), I had managed to put myself in communication with her, and we had corresponded for a long time. Old Crusty had informed her of the death of her recreant husband, but not of my knowl- edge of or connection with his case; and now I am preparing to pull up stakes and leave this beauteous spot, and return to my former home, my professional work, and — and — yes, the postilion has just gone by and brought me a missive — (who would have thought him a messenger of love ?) — ^giving me permission also to return For Her Sake. Frances Helena Shelby; the initials shall remain the same, but the last one shall stand for Southmoor ! Owing to the obstacle which Isle-aux-Coudres pre- sents, the river here forms two channels, the wider and deeper one being near the south shore, where ocean steamships pass up and down. At the turn of the tide la hruit de mer is distinct, when the stream seems to double on its course and flow backward. Such has been the erosion of this strong current, dur- ing the past thirty years, that the site of the first set- tlement is now half a mile from shore, while the river has " made land " at other church stood near the mill-stream, where still stand CROSS IN "LE CHAMP DES MORTS. original points. The outlet of the huge Lombardy poplars, planted by the first OUR LADY OF THE CLOUDS. 184 In Quest of the Quaint. settlers. It has been said that every kind of pop- lar excepting this could be grown from a twig; but at the outlet of Saratoga lake, in 1783, a young eques- trian, who was visiting his inamorata, stuck into the ground such a twig, which he had used as a riding-whip. It grew to immense size, and has only very recently succumbed to time and storms. The name which the present church, on the mountain, bears was given because of a tradition that at the time when an English regiment attempted to take the place, " Our Lady " sent a transcendently beautiful angel to guard the sacred building, and the white floating figure with outspread wings caused the invaders to flee incontinently! In that same tiny ecclesiastic edifice, in those ancient times, when it was difficult to obtain oil even for the church, la lumiere perpetuelle, be- fore the altar was provided by means of a suspended bottle (which had held the sacramental wine) in which fire-flies were imprisoned ; a bit of lace from the veil of the statuette of the Virgin being tied over the mouth, preventing the escape of " les mouches lui- santes." A propos des larapes: Scrivener triumphantly displayed an an- tique bought from an aged resi- dent of this locality, consisting of two ladle-like cups (hung one above another), in which whale-oil was burned; the lower one intended to catch the drippings, though either could be used separately to carry about the house. (When resting beneath the fine cliffs of Cap Lazy Boolmong. 185 Martin, after a long tramp, the strangers had watched the white whales — Beluga borealis of the Saguenay — disporting themselves only a good stone's throw from shore.) The iron cups of the ancient lamp were also used by hunters to melt lead for bullets, this one bearing evidence of such usage. In this season one part of such a lamp, broken and battered, was dug up in a suburb of Quebec, where it is supposed to have been buried since 1760. While warbling Moore's old song Scrivener was seen attaching to "the find "as label:— $ -fK MziMz :^5=p: fr— N- ^A-4 I 'The light of other days." Madame, singing while engaged in household af- fairs, quite startled the Scrivener one day as an old chanson fell from her lips; the very same air which that person had jotted down when Eva Melangon sang it at St. Mary's Bay in Nova Scotia years ago. Thus, while the Insatiable added to mems. and es- sayed a translation, Madame imparted the informa- tion that among the nautical French Acadians, and the French Canadians, there is considerable inter- course, and so the old melodies are not altogether lost. Madame was persuaded to teach " les demoiselles " quaint old chansons, not to be found in print, render- ing them in charming manner in her fine mellow voice, and thus the strangers secured invaluable souvenirs, every note of which should in after years recall a most satisfactory sojourn among these artless, gentle-spirited habitans. 186 In Quest of the Quaint. LES PERLES ET LES ETOILES. Andante. t3^ i 5t=J: 1^ W/Y ^ a J J^ J r ^ 1 « • • IX^ ) *> » ' m ' J *J r ren- con - tr^ Vous m' a- mu - f^ez bien monies Vons m'a- mu - sez 1' autre a pied Vous m'a- mu - sez toujours; Jamais je toujours; Jamais je toujours; Jamais je 44 m II: *Ke£ m'en i - rai chez nous; J'ai trop grand' peur des loups. FocTc Fori. 217 Deux a cheval et I'autre a pied ; (bis) Celui d'a pied ra'a demand^, Vous m'amusez, etc. Celui d'5 pied m'a demand^, (bis) Ou irons-nous ee soir coucher? Vous m'amusez, etc. Ou irons-nous ce soir coucher ? (bis) Chez nous, monsieur, si vous voulez. Vous m'amusez, etc. 8. Vous trouv'rez un bon souper (bis) Et de bons lits pour vous coucher. Vous m'amusez, etc. Chez nous, monsieur, si vous voulez ; (bis) Vous trouv'rez un bon souper. Vous m'amusez, etc. 9. Et de bons lits pour vous coucher (bis) Les cavaliers ont accepte. Vous m'amusez, etc. CANADIAN BOAT SONG. (Chant de Voyagcor Canadien.) English Words and Music by THOMAS MOORE. French Version by F. R. ANGERS. 1. Faintly, as tolls the evening chime, Our voices keep tune and our 1. La cloche tinte au vieux cloclier, Et I'avi-ron suit la 2. Whyshould we yet our sail unfurl? There is not a breath the blue 2. Pourquoi donner la voile au vent? P;^s un zephyr ne ride 3. Utawas' tidel this trembling moon Shall see us float over tliy 3. Fier Ot - ta- wa, les feux du soir Nous guideront eur ton Wr^ iv-r - { y — B — — » •- ^ ^ £ ±=jt — 1 — •- K oars keep time, Our voices keep tune and our oars keep time; voix du nocher, Et I'aviron suit la voix du nocher; wave to curl. There is not a breath the blue wave to curl. le cou - rant, Pas un %€ - phyr ne ride le courant. sur - ges soon, Shall see us float o - ver thy sur - ges soon. mi- rage noir. Nous guideront sur ton mi-ragenoirl ^ -^^— v^ :f=^ 218 In Quest of the Quaint. -^-^ i -al— bI- I^^ ?^ Soon as the woods on shore look dim, We 11 sing at Saint Ann's onr Sur le rivage il se fait tard Chantons chan tons 1' air But when the wind blows off the shore, O sweetly we' 11 rest our Qiiand du bord les vents souffler- ont Vous dor- mirez sur Saint of this green isle, hear our prayers — O grant us cool heav'ns and Pa - tronne de ces verts ilots, Sainte An-ne ai - de nous <^.- $^^ -\/ U V - :t=zz^ i N S ^-- •al— at- -N-ah- parting hymn. Row, brothers, row! the stream runs fast. The rapids are du depart: Nagez rameurs, car I'onde fuit, Le rapide est weary oar. Blow, breezes, blow I the stream runs fast, The rapids are I'a - viron. SoufHez, zephyrs, car I'onde fuit, Le rapide est fav'ring airs! Blow, breezes, blow! the stream runs fast. The rapids are sur les flots! Soufflez, zephyrs, car I'onde fuit, Le rapide est ^ .,a__^_ -ai-^- -* — • — •— #- iVr V—y— li- near and the daylight's past. The rapids are near and the daylight's past, proche, et le jour finit, Le rapide est proche, et le jour finit. ^m ^*— •- :t^=t=fc±C=r ^=fc:^; v'-U- Moore represents the song as " a long, incoherent story, of which I could understand but little, from the barbarous pronunciation of the Canadian," and the peculiar manner of repetition in singing, by which one only learns one more line of the story with each added verse (nine lines being required when three would have told it); so it seems that this was Rock Fort 219 the " Chanson dn Voyageiir " which he heard. If the boatmen not only sang the words belonging to the air, bnt also " A la Claire Fontaine " to the same melody, no wonder it seemed interminable. Colonel — afterwards Sir Garnet — Wolseley at- tained fame when he quelled the uprising in the Red Eiver region in 18Y0. The inhabitants were mainly French-Canadian half-breeds, descendants of voy- ageurs and coureurs-du-bois, " who had formerly been the only white explorers of that wild region." The soldiers under Wolseley were offered land in re- turn for their services, but did not accept. The rail- ways now reach those regions, and fortunes could have been made from these allotments if the men had only been far-sighted enough to realize it. When Wolseley was summoned to assist Gordon in the East he called for Indian voyageurs from Hochelaga, op- posite Montreal, for Nile boatmen. In Keewaydin's Realm. m KEEWAYDIN'S REALM. Bon, Ben and Beau, with the Scrivener, Dabbler, and Incorrigible, when sojourning in the lands of the Aborigines of the East, became much interested in those " men of Sunrise Land " ; and, learning that de- scendants of the Algonquins are to be seen in Otta- wa, Ojibway, Chippewa and other tribes, became fired with desire to study them. One of the sextet quoted: " O mighty Sowanna, Thy gateways unfold. From thy wigwam of sunset Lift curtains of gold ! " This was considered the decisive dictum as to the objective point of the travels of those Bons Amis. Maps, tables, statistics proved irresistible magnets, drawing them to one of the " unsalted seas " — known to early explorers as " Mer Douce " — and the north shore of Huron seemed to promise an alluring and ideal abiding place for the time when Sirius is reg- nant and old Sol so mercilessly pours out caloric. There, surely, would " Shawondasee, the South Wind," " blow cool across those moving miles," though his breath, inland, wilts and scorches. Prox- imity to the " Great Sea," as the Indians described Lake Superior to Sieur I^icollet, also indicated that " Keewaydin, the ISTorthwest Wind," would fre- quently refresh with his invigorating air. During two days of dreamy and poetic navigation the " ISTorseman" * cruised among myriad isles, and called at quaint ports, " away in back " from the * Not to be found in the Lake fleet. 224 In Quest of the Quaint. estuaries of wild and winding rivers; lumbering set- tlements, these, where the travelers became somewhat versed in the " lingo of the bush," and talked wisely of the transformations of the monarch of the forest. " When first felled," said Ben, — (self-constituted valet-de-place), — " it is sawed in sections, known as crooks, rots, spunks, shakes and knots." Gazing on towering stacks of lumber, Beau remarked that un- doubtedly " one could get hoard cheap in such local- ity," and, parading " bush talk," proposed that they should " plank down and settle," unaware that he was, in miner's phraseology, demanding payment of gambling dues! Scorning such attempts at jocular- ity, Ben continued imparting " important informa- tion," in this wise: " ' Deal ' means board three inches thick; plank is board two inches thick ; anything under two inches in thickness goes by the name of ' waney ' or board lum- ber. A ' square timber ' raft, to weather storms it may encounter crossing the lake, has to be strongly put together, — a slow and costly process. A frame, or ^ dram,' is made, on which about five hundred ' sticks of timber ' are piled; sometimes there are ten of these sections on a raft, and, fastened together by chains, a tug drags them ' down the lake.' " As the others seemed to endure this infliction with resignation, the informant continued: " A saw log is any log from twelve to sixteen feet long; any round log over eighteen feet is known as ' dimension timber ' ; the greater portion of saw logs are twelve or thirteen to sixteen feet in length, the most desirable being sixteen feet. Six inches above this is allowed, as the ends become bruised or ^ broomed up ' in running rapids.* Logs chained to- * French-Canadians and Indians repeat prayers before enter- ing rapids. In Keewaydin^s Realm. 225 gether form ' booms ' and hold floating saw logs se- curely within ; powerful tugs tow the mass, and a trip across the lake requires a week's cruise, often two, if weather is unfavorable. If the boom breaks, the tugs move round outside, keeping the logs within till the breach is mended, — quite suggestive of the man- ner in which cowboys treat cattle when they stam- pede." " To those tree fellers, — and that's not slang," continued Ben, " the Bush Ranger, or expert, is known as ' top sawyer ' ; he estimates the value of timber land, and the amount which can be cut from it. It requires years of experience and hard work to become an expert. Ten miles a day is a good day's work when estimating, but sometimes, if good snow shoeing, a longer distance can be traveled," Within the great mill a demon held sway; and as huge trunks vanished in his insatiable maw, he emitted a chromatically ascending sz-z-z and sc-re-e-e, a shriek of exultation, before which the travelers fled to the deck of their boat, there " a propos des bois," impromptu conundrums were perpetrated. Any one could guess that the Schoolmaster's tree is the birch, and that the lover parted from his inamorata could only be represented by pine. Evidently the old joker could claim the chestnut, and one of h'English h'an- cestry, h'oax. In spruce one sees the dandy; the fish- erman's preference would be the beech; the ash for the chandler; for the Arctic traveler, fir; for the pol- itician and the profane man, the Japanese gincko (which now appears in our streets); and they might have kept on till this day had not Bon called a halt, remarking to Ben that sufficient evidence had been received of the kind of stick he was, therefore his bark might cease; unless he desired his auditors to 226 In Quest of the Quaint. get hored in different manner from that which Beau had suggested. " Slowly o'er the shimmering landscape Fell the evening's dusk and coolness, And the long and level sunbeams Shot their spears into the forest. Breaking through its shields of shadow, Eushed into each secret ambush, Searched each thicket, dingle, hollow." The vessel directed its course toward the Lauren- tian-bordered north shore, whence a long point reached into the golden glory, its rocky heights trans- figured by distance and a veil of luminous haze, and a gorgeous panoply of cloud was repeated in water of oily smoothness. This suggested to the romantic travelers the arm of " Wabun, Father of the Winds of Heaven," beckoning " to the kingdom of the west wind." When the long-lingering twilight faded the vessel seemed to vanish from the mortal ken and to slide into " midnight deeps " ; then behold Aurora Bore- alis " flaring far away to northward " ; weird pageant which the Indians believed to be " warriors with their plumes and war clubs." Fitting herald of entrance into regions of mystery and legend, when, at the " wee sma' hour ayant the twal," throbbing engines were stilled at TCHI-BAO-NON-ING, " fine canoe channel," fittingly descriptive of the In- dian name, and the travelers regretted that it has not been retained, quite resenting the modern title, bor- rowed from the Emerald Isle, however appropriate that might seem from the fact that " the gintleman that pays the rint " was much in evidence, as porcine specimens of every size and variety of color peram- In Keewaydin' s Reabn. 227 liiilated highways and byways. Along one side of this admirable waterway stretches the simple old- time-y village, and, a stone's throw across, George Island forms the further boundary of ISTanabojo's Lane, and is inhabited by his people, who the French residents of the quaint little porch call " les sauv- ages." They are by no means wild, however, but mild of voice and manner; even the smallest children, serious to stolidity, though they, like their elders, may be studying the stranger's curiously from their solemn-looking but limpid and lustrous black eyes. Students of the many dialects of the Red Man's lan- guage in the Eastern Provinces give " chemaun " as their word for canoe; here the syllable " che " be- comes " tchi," and " mau " is changed to " bao " in the Lake region. In some dialects the sound of a laugh is represented by " E-e-e " for mouth, and the tick of a clock suggested in their word " Tik-ka-tah- kah " for that household convenience. Outside the village, where an arm of the bay curves caressingly round " Rocher Rouge," and smiling meadows stretch to tree-fringed water, the travelers were deposited (emitting sighs of satisfaction) and Monsieur Le Fer- mier, — most kindly host, — was ever ready to do their pleasure. Delectable the atmosphere, wondrous the mirrored pictures of mountain-bordered shore, fir- crested points and isles, and peace profound per- vaded the place, save that a distant murmur, — a lov- ing whisper in ]^ature's ear, — could be heard. This the Indians call " mudway-aushka," the " sound of waves on a shore," and that alone proclaimed proxim- ity to the miniature sea, which had smiled so gra- ciously upon the travelers that they could not believe that it can take on most of the phases of " the vasty deep." A marvelous artist is Keewaydin, and when a 228 In Quest of the Quaint. nor' wester sets in snperb is his coloring; surf tumbles on the rich red rock border of even sheltered coves, turns the sea to sapphire over " distant deeps/' and to liquid emerald on nearer shallows, while the moun- tains, though more than a mile distant, loom in crys- talline clearness. " Mahng," the loon, and " Kayoshk," the sea gull, fascinate with their evolutions; gallantly the former breasts the waves, sometimes touching his wings to the water, — as an oarsman " feathers ", — ^preparatory to a plunge, then emerging far away, emits his eerie call.* The wheeling, swooping gulls send forth their peculiar creaking cry, which becomes a bubbling chuckle when, in the wake of a boat, they dive for bits tossed to " the captain's chickens." Without ap- parent movement of the wide-stretched pinions, they slide down the wind, and, resting on wave-crests, here, there and yonder, resemble small ducks as, with wings closely folded, they bob and sway with saucy serenity, as if quite aware that they are disporting themselves under Government protection. The Dabbler approved of the staunch and sturdy fisher's craft, with their picturesque tanned sails, con- trasting as strongly with water and pine-clothed shore as the syenite rock which is scattered through this region, and seems to have been the boat builder's guide for tint. Two masts, twenty feet at least in height, support brown-red canvas, the main-sail huge in proportions; the other, exact though smaller copy, " might be called major and minor," Bon remarked. The name, skiff, seemed more fitting for a much smaller, frailer vessel, and the Yankee " double- * Quite a contrast to the white man's contemptuous phrase, " chicken-hearted," is the Indian's " mahn-go-tay-see," lion- hearted, brave. 230 In Quest of the Quaint. ender " applicable to tlie peculiar bateau, as row- boats and small sloops or cats have bow and stern alike, and the largest have rounded instead of square stern. The Marblehead sailor's adage, that one can judge a man " by the cut of his jib," came to mind when the summerers witnessed the marking out on the dock of one of those valuable aids to navigation^ and later, when the wide planks appeared in presum- ably ensanguined condition, 'twas naught but the staining of the sails which had produced this rather startling hue, and the shuddering spectator was re- lieved, if he had felt (again in Marblehead parlance) at all " crimmy." Hardy skippers and admirable guides convoyed the friends far out for deep water fishing, or, gliding noiselessly into " Portage Convert," or distant coves, lured smaller piscatorial specimens from their hiding places. Then, again, sure of sight and foot in even " blind trails," they led the way up the rugged Lau- rentians to wild tarns upon their crests, or away back in the forest to lonely lakes (entrancing to sportsmen) where in winter they become " shantymen " and en- gage in lumbering. Regis, lithe and bronzed, paddling his che- maun " where the rushes waved and whispered," told his passengers that from these " apukwa " the In- dians weave mats, as described in " Hiawatha," such as they had seen Monsieur Peau Rouge bringing to the landing with " meenagha " (blueberries) to bar- ter. Yes, and do not those same reeds whisper, " Le Roi Midas, a des oreilles d'anes ? " How his dark eyes danced when one told him of a youth, who, boasting of his ^^ears of foreign travel, said : " J'etais un ane a Londres; j'etais un ane a Madrid; j'etais un ane a Moscow," and was answered, " Oui, vous avez ete un ane partout ! " In Keewaydin' s Ileal ))i. 231 When making the seven-mile circuit of George Island in such fascinating manner, " Kat Portage " was pointed out; the depression at the top of the pass being explained as " the place where JSTenabojo took a bite out to make his road better," and on the south shore of this isle there is the Giant's Well and Stair- way, — Nenabojou's Cauldron, — where the strata of red rock are singularly turned up on edge, and in an inner seam the pool was formed where the Indian deity cooked the delicate and toothsome little fish, " Kokanangwi," which " hide under flat stones around the edge of outer islands to the southwest." This locality was the favorite haunt of NENAWBOZHOO. This Manitou or Guardian Spirit resembles the beneficent and genial giant of the Eastern Provinces, Glooscap. The name is also rendered ISTenabojo or ISTanibojou. (One of Longfellow's models for " Hia- watha " was " Manabozo.") He is still the protecting spirit of navigators and fishers, and through all this northland are hosts of brave ones, both red man and pale-face, for him to guide and guard. The Indian consider him the progenitor of his race, though some highly educated ones of the present time agree with modern savants in the belief that their ancestors were Egyptians, who during the course of centuries made their way across Behring Strait. Their picture-writ- ing, physiognomy, and some racial characteristics, are held up as proofs of this theory.* In their traditions Bible history is curiously mingled with ISTorse my- * The Jesfeup expedition has recently returned from North- western Siberia, bringing one hundred eases of specimens. The object of their investigations was to prove that the North American Indians are of Asiatic origin. 232 In Quest of the Quaint. thology and legend, the latter handed down and passed on from their brethren of the Eastern Prov- inces. Those brothers " from the land of light and morning " {vide Longfellow) heard from their an- cestors the weird tales of early explorers in " Amer- ique du ISTord." Nenawbozhoo called the inhabitants of the earth his " nephews," and taught them how to make uten- sils, boats, " sugar from trees," and other useful arts. His mother was a beautiful being, very devout, who engaged in long fasts, during which she saw visions, and declared that she conversed with the gods. They told her that her sons would be wonderful men, who would do great things for the human race. These sons were, seemingly, the embodiment of Good and Evil; the first-born, from his earliest days beneficent and desirous of helping his people, became a seer and mighty hunter; the other a monster who killed his mother, fled to the forest and was never seen again. " Gritchi-manito the mighty " had as his companion in the hunt, not a dog, but a great black wolf. When [N^enawbozhoo learned that the dread creature who was called his brother had caused the death of his mother, he set out to find and exterminate the mon- strosity, traveling over the earth and through forests and mountain fastnesses. He finally vanquished him, and the body of " Stone Heart " became masses of flint, which any one can see scattered throughout this region. Indians point out depressions in the rock, which might suggest huge foot-prints ; these they call the " Giant's Track," and a round hole, " about as large and deep as a common brass kettle," is " his ket- tle, that he dropped when chasing his brother." Along the moraine of Alpine glaciers such holes, — called moulins by the peasants, — are frequently seen ; Nature's pestle and mortar, as she has manuf ac- In Keewaydin's Realm. 233 tured them by the action of water, constantly whirl- ing and grinding a stone in a hollow of the rock. One of the friends was reminded of the Indians' " stone-soup/' the concoction of which he had wit- nessed when auditors doubted Ked Skin's ability in culinary art. First, on the shore, preferably a sand beach, a pit was dug, lined with stones, and a roaring fire built thereon, which, after burning a certain length of time, was " drawn." One of these hot stones dropped in one of the rock kettles set the water boiling, so soup was being prepared while the " squan- tum " progressed. Over the hot stones of the fire-pit vegetables and shell fish, between layers of wet sea- weed, were piled, the whole covered with a sail; and thus the cooking was done by steam, and the fine flavor retained by shell fish, while the corn and pota- toes, in their natural coverings, were " done to a turn." JiTenawbozhoo, having received warning that a tre- mendous storm was to come, set about building a vast raft with a huge wigwam upon it, in which he and his "nephews," and a great company of animals, were saved. The cause of the great flood was that the " God of the Deep " was jealous of Gitchi-manito's hunting dog, the great black wolf; he one day was successful in luring it to his confidence, when he killed it, and made a great feast, inviting all the mon- sters of the deep to come and partake. There was a certain place on the shore where the God of the Deep was accustomed to come with his hosts to sun them- selves and enjoy the pleasure of being on dry land. The Mighty Hunter knew this spot, so strung his bow and trimmed his arrow and prepared to watch, and by his supernatural power transformed himself into a black stump. Water tigers and serpents asked their master to accompany them ashore ; he was afraid that 234 In Quest of the Quaint. the Mighty One would be lurking about and ready to kill him because he had killed his black wolf, so he told them to go ashore and see that all was clear. They examined the stump (which they had not no- ticed before) ; the tigers climbed it and inserted their long sharp claws, and the serpents wound round it like tightly coiled cables. On learning that nothing could be found of uncanny nature, the sea mon- sters, with their master, came ashore, and the host soon were basking and dozing in the hot sand of the beach. Then the stump assumed proper shape, and, fixing one of his best arrows into his bow, the Great One shot the God of the Deep through the forehead, his vulnerable spot. Then all the water monsters " rushed out, chasing the slayer of their master," and the Indian deity " fled for his life, pursued by moun- tains of water " ; but, as he had been so far-sighted as to have his great boat prepared, he was thus saved from destruction, with his family and animals. After sailing for months, when this great navigator wished to learn if the waters were subsiding, he sent the beaver, but he died before reaching bottom and came floating to the surface, where his master revived him by blowing in his nostrils. Then he called the musk- rat, " his good diver," and " flattered and cajoled him," instructing him to " bring back earth from the bottom in his paw." The muskrat also expired before reaching the surface; but his master, as he drew him into the great wigwam boat, observed the earth in the creature's paw. This he made into a small parcel and fastened it to the neck of the raven, sending that bird out as his third messenger; " then the waters began to recede very fast, and soon the earth came back to its natural shape, as it had been before." In Keeivaydin's Realm. 235 Of the Indian reservation, on the adjacent great island, had Pere Casaque told, dwelling with affec- tionate interest on the virtues of his children, young and old, seeming himself to be imbued with the spirit of the early missionaries to the red man, of whom Parkman tells, and such a man, full of the spirit of brotherly love and kindliness, the early settlers here might have dubbed Brother Black Kobe, as they did the pioneer priests of that day. So to Wikwemikong, on the Grand Manitoulin, would the sextet hie them, and there found fine large ecclesiastical edifices, a neat, comfortable village, a contented community. Preparations for a pictur- esque out-door festival were in progress, and deft fingers, which turn out such interesting and original quill-embroideries, were fashioning, from paper, quite creditable representations of dainty blossoms from the nun's garden, with which arches and designs were to be ornamented. These were also to be held in place by means of the woodman's cord, made from soaked, beaten and twisted elm bark. Bright eyes and earnest faces in school room indicated that pupils would do credit to their instructors ; and one member of the Investigating Committee (as the sextet called themselves) related a reminiscence of an ancestor's Dominie-days. When he called upon a heedless hob- ble-de-hoy to " give the parts of speech " he was an- swered: " Ortho-graffy, Etty-mol-o-jee, Swine-tax and Paras-sody," and another (scintillant scion of Puritan stock), on being requested to read: " His head was silvered o'er with age. And long experience made him sage," rendered it: " His head was shiA^ered o'er with eggs, And long expungence made him sag ! " 236 In Quest of the Quaint. jSTeedless to sav that the proverbial caution, as well as the famed keen sight of the Children of the For- est, would prevent their making such exhibition as that ! This region might also have been a favorite resort of the Great Wind Blower, or Giant Eagle, who was checked and curbed on Bay Chaleur by Glooscap; and the game of battledoor and shuttlecock, which the Genii of the Great Lakes play, was noted by Mar- quette, in 1670. He remarked that: " They seem in- cessantly tossing ball at each other. No sooner has the wind ceased blowing from Lake Michigan than Lake Huron hurls back the gale it has received, and Lake Superior in its turn sends forth its blast from another quarter, and thus the game is played from one to the other; and as these lakes are of vast extent the winds cannot be otherwise than boisterous, espe- cially during the autumn." In the " Relations des Jesuits " Pere Marquette said that when he attempted to tell the Indians of the crucifixion they asked, " Where was that done — here in America ? " He answered, " No ; this dread- ful crime was committed in the old country." Then they queried: "By Indians or white people?" and when he replied: " By white people called Jews," they retorted: " We had no part in this great crime, killing your God. You white people must make res- titution ! " " Mudjekeewis," " Father of the Winds of Heaven," who is also known as " Kabeyun," " the West Wind," sent his most favoring breezes on this occasion, and when the tourists, on the return trip, gazed out and up the North Channel (mentally plan- ning further explorations thitherward, the skipper was persuaded to relate a In KeewaydirC s Realm. 237 LEGEND OF MANITOULIN. The Ottawas settled about the middle of the island, Avhere there is a large lake, and there was much game, large and small; the land, too, was fertile, and they lived in peace and comfort many centuries in this " Home of Good Spirits." Kabenaw, the largest man in the tribe, was their greatest warrior and prophet, and attained supernatural power. At the time when he was a young brave, undergoing fasts to prepare him for becoming a warrior, as was their custom (like the Crusaders), he was frequently visited by a giant deity, who again and again asked Kabenaw why he did not offer him one of his people as a sacrifice. Kabenaw refused, but being still entreated, finally promised that if the " Great One " would assist him he would give as a sacrifice his prisoners in war. This medicine man, or magician, when advised to set lines for fish, placed them with hooks in deep water, but when " moons after," instead of going to see what he had caught, he marched to the forest and there found many of his lines, " and each one with a bear at the end," so he returned laden with food for winter and all the tribe had a great feast. In the Winnebago tribe was a great man called Yellow Thunder, who they thought equal to Kabe- naw, so they made a great expedition to Manitoulin to witness a contest between these huge warriors. By his supernatural power he was aware of what was going on, and told his people to prepare for war. Yel- low Thunder landed and went directly to the village by the lake in the interior of the island, and Kabe- naw went to meet the invader. They captured and questioned him as to the number of the Ottawas, and if they were ready to fight, whether Kabenaw was in his tepee (lodge) or gone hunting, and were answered 238 In Quest of the Quaint. that the people were ready for battle, but the Great Warrior was not at home. Then the Winnebagos tied their informant, put him in a pit, covering the opening with logs, bark, stones and earth; but the captive, by his supernatural power, released himself, and when he came to the village told his people to be prepared for war. JSText day there was a great battle, but the Giant Magician remained in his lodge, while Yellow Thun- der, painted and hideous as a demon, strode about, calling on his rival to come out. The people told him it was their great man whom the Winnebago giant had buried, and Yellow Thunder was exultant, think- ing he had conquered the Ottawas ; but then in a few moments Kabenaw came out of the lodge, arrayed in black bear skins, and carrying a huge war club, — such an exordinarily magnificent figure that Yellow Thunder was overawed, though he did not dare to back out lest his people should call him " Shangoda- yah " — coward. He was soon slain, and the Winne- bagoes, acknowledging themselves conquered, begged to be allowed to depart in peace. After this Kabe- naw became tired of living, but, being supernatural, could not die unless by such means as he should de- cide. So he allowed his enemies to capture, bind and throw him in the lake, but he reappeared. Then he told them they must cut the flesh from his bones, each brave a piece, and these scattered through the land formed the red and white streaked rocks (the red representing his flesh, the white the muscle), while his skeleton formed the mountain chain, as these are all to be seen at the present day. Marquette called the Hurons " Etontontathrons," and N^icholas Perot spoke of the Manitoulin as the " Island of Outaouas " (Ottawas), " which extends the length of Lake Huron "; but that was certainly In Kcewaydin's Realm. 239 " stretching it " as extravagantly as did early navi- gators the limits of the Bay of Fiindy.* Perot was sent to a council of Indians in 1671, and describes, in quaintly interesting style, the ceremony of taking possession of the country about the Great Lakes, on behalf of Louis XIV., and declaring the people protegees and subjects of the King. In 1634 Jean Nicolet journeyed by the Ottawa River, Lake ]^ipissing and Georgian Bay, " towards the land of the Winnebagos " ; he was conveyed by seven friendly Indians in birch-bark canoes. He met the '' Nation of Beavers " — " ahmeek," or, " amik " beaver — called Amikouets, who lived originally on the Isles du Castor in Lake Michigan, afterwards on the Manitoulin. The French called them " Nez Perces," as they wore ornaments and feathers thrust through the cartilege between the nostrils. The " totem," or coat-of-arms, of the Ottawas was the moose ; of the Ttoquisor Noquets, the bear, — from " no-ka " bear, — and so each tribe had its particular symbol. The French called the Algonquin Ojibiwas (Ojibways) and Chippewas in this region, and at the Sault Ste. Marie, " Saulteurs," and the Sioux called them Raratwans, " people of the falls." The French also called the Indians of Fox River Les Renards and Musquakies. These were the Mascoutins of whom Champlain tells in 1615. From them l^icolet heard of the " great sea," Superior, and the Mississippi — " missi," great; " sepe," water. " The country west- ward from Quebec, and southward to and along the Ohio River, to the west boundary of what is now Min- nesota, and all the country drained into Lakes Su- perior and Huron, was called Michilimackinac f — the * Cape Sable, N. S., to Cape Cod, Mass. f Belonging to the turtle tribe of Indians is the supposition. 240 In Quest of the Quaint. land of the great turtle. The nine Iroquois tribes were divided into two divisions of four or five tribes each; some of these were called Atiniathan, and known as the Tortoise tribe. Their tradition was, that when the Master of Life made the earth, He placed it on a tortoise, and when there were earth- quakes they were caused by trembling of the tortoise. (There is an Oriental myth similar to this.) Some of the Huron bands had for totems, or tribe symbols, the tortoise, bear and plover; and with them, as with the Iroquois, the bear was brother to the tortoise ; yet they were not on fraternal terms, according to a son of Chief Black Hawk, who tells of their fighting to extermination at Mackinac Island. Most romantic and fascinating it is to travel, in small craft, inside the chain of isles to the East of Chemaunaning, to French River, and thence to Lake Nipissing; and if around the camp-fire, — to the ac- companiment of crackling birch and murmuring pines, — the guide relates legends, another interest is added to the attractions of that charming sheet of water. In his reminiscences of former visits he may tell of methods of trading with Indians in olden time ; that " the weight of the hand in the scale stood for one pound, of the foot two pounds " ; that " liquor was sold by measuring with a woman's thimble; and one beaver skin was exchanged for a double handful of salt " ; and " Lo, the poor Indian " was defrauded. He will tell of a friend at a Hudson's Bay post, lo- cated in that district, who keeps some old records, or bills, on which a drawing of a pig with a certain num- ber of strokes beside it signified so many barrels of pork; a picture of a powder horn and numerous scratches meant such number of pounds of shot, and so on. In Keetvay din's Realm. 241 LEGENDS OF NIPIS8ING, The Ottawas contmually moved to the northwest, because of their deadly enemies, the Iroquois. Thus they came to a beautiful lake, which they named Ke-tchi-ne-bissing, and there stopped and occupied the surrounding country, forming great villages, where they resided for ages. At last they became discontented, possibly imbued with desire to roam again, and concluded that the place was haunted by a presiding deity, who was not favorable to them. A woman went to the beach of Lake Ketchinebissing to wash clothes, taking her infant, which was tied to a board in Indian fashion, and placing it near the edge of the water that it might be amused by watching her while at work. She ran to the wigwam for some- thing, and on her return found the child gone. Fran- tically she flew to the village, screaming and crying that her child was stolen; and all the people turned out to search, but no trace of the missing child was found. A few days later two lovers sat on the high- est hillock back of the village, and " while talking very much love to each other " (as the Indian narra- tor amusingly expressed it) they heard an infant's cry, and, strangely enough, the sound appeared to come from the earth beneath their feet. Terribly frightened they ran to the village and told the people, who called their magicians or medicine men together to divine the mystery; and some of these " workers of strange incantations " went into a state of clairvoy- ance, " which was a common practice among Indians at that time." Then the chief magician went to the beach and plunged into the water, remaining invisi- ble for a long time. When he returned he reported that he had found an opening in the rock, — in deep water far out, — ^which led to a passage reaching 242 In Quest of the Quaint. toward the top of the hill where the amorous couple had been sitting when they heard the child's wail.* He thought the child had been conveyed through this by an evil monster. Another council was held, and magicians decided to dig down in the hill to reach this passage. The whole city turned out to dig, and finally came to the passage in the hill. From this two monsters rushed out, — one, " as large as a wolf, jet black, but with a flaming tail," escaped and plunged in the lake ; the other, " in the form of a great bear, was pounded to death " by the Aborigines. After this the people continued digging and found the iden- tical child, but it was dead, the first monster having killed it just before he came forth by inserting his " great claws in the top of the child's head as re- venge." Then the Indians made a great feast and roasted the great bear. A depression in the earth where this excavation was made and the monsters came out is said to be visible to this day. From the Indian chief, " L'Oiseau Noir " (Black Hawk), came the legend which Longfellow tells in " Hiawatha's Fishing." The story was that Kenaw- bozhoo learned of a gTcat fish, living in Mpissing, which was so huge and ferocious that it would swal- low men in their boats " like swallowing a little clam in the shell." He decided that it should be disposed of, so he went to the lake in his canoe, singing jeering songs to taunt and entice the monster. At last the great fish came out and gulped down the great Indian and his craft; but that was just what he wanted, and Avith his weapons he " caused such pain to the mon- * Hanging Lake in Colorado is fed by an immense spring which gushes from the rocks hundreds of feet above the water, and it is said that venturesome explorers dashing through this torrent have explored many caverns under the bed of the lake. In Keewaydin's Realm. 243 ster that it became crazy and started at full speed; but, being wild with pain, it could not steer or stop, and so ran on land and expired." Nenawbozhoo came out, like Jonah, went home and smoked his pipe, " satisfied that he had saved many people by disposing of the huge fish." The Indians supposed Lake Nipissing, — '' Region of Fine Lands and Great Fish," — to be the source of the Ottawa River. They probably passed out from the lake through a stream at the east shore, by which they traveled through Nasbonsing and Talon lakes to Mattawan River, which flows into the Ottawa. The source of the Ottawa is in small lakes, Lac des Quinze and Lake Myizowaja, north of Lake Temis- camingue, the latter now " opening up " as a sports- men's resort. The confreres tried to picture in mental vision these smiling scenes in hyperborean aspect, when : — " O'er all the dreary northland Mighty Peboan, the Winter, Breathing on the lakes and rivers Into stone had changed their waters; " and when " The plains were strewn with whiteness, One uninterrupted level. As if, stooping, the Creator With His hand had smoothed tliem over." After navigation closes, however {vide Regis), how quickly and gaily in their sleighs they can skim over to ports on the Great Isle, or visit friends fifty miles distant on the north shore. Then the hunt, on snow- shoes; fishing through the ice; weekly merry-mak- ings, with their favorite " gigue," which they dance with grace and agility. These and other pleasures and avocations are quite sufficient to dispel " indi- goes," if such cheerful people could ever be inclined 244 In Quest of the Quaint. to see shades of that hue in their mental landscape. And why, in local parlance, should such an interest- ing man be known by such remarkable cognomen as Pea-nut ? Even masculine curiosity must be aroused by such atrocity; and at last was evoked: — regis' S STORY. An' so you will dat I tell you how I coom by dat name ? — ^but yes, it is wot you call f onnee ; and it is gif me par un jeun Anglais, ven I haf been mit eem in de fores' for he mek measure de big tree; he Sir- veyor, wot you call. 'Ee is farceur, an 'ee mek zhoke mit me, — oh 'ee is drole ! Eh bien, my nem is Pen- neaut, an' zo you zee 'ow 'ee chenge dat. Mon Bisaieul, — dat is wot you call great-gran'-fadther, — was un gentil-homme de la belle France, an' 'ee kem 'ere de Nouvelle France wid de yoong mens of dat time ; dey vish to zee de new countree, an' dey haf de vish for de aventure. (My yoong Englisher, 'ee zay, "Yes, dat is wot we call un soldat de la fortune.") Ver' goot, 'ee lif 'ere manee year, an' 'ee is marry wid la belle sauvage, an 'ee is bickum de great man off de blace. An' 'ees zon, mon gran'pere, is alzo de gran' 'oontare, de trappeur, de coureur-du-bois, an' zo my f adther, 'ee haf mos' de zame kin' off life ; an' I vas learn all dose tings from 'eem. Vel, my fadther is vork vor de Oodson Bay Coompnee, an' one time dere is come un beeg man 'oo zay 'ee is coUec' vor de Fur Compnee, an' 'ee vish 'eem for bring ees skin and go wit 'eem to de Chief Factor (wot you call) at La Cloche. Zo dey haf mooch paquets off skeen, un dey drive on de cisse; but it vas late in de zeezon, an' de glace is veek, an' de 'orse broke throo de eisse, an' de men varra mooch scare. De oder man 'ee tooken off 'ees mitaine for better ole de rene, an' 'ees 'an's is freeze. Dey haf to let de 'orse an' de traineau go for In Keewaydin' s Realm. 245 zave demself s ; an' my gran'f adther 'ee drag de etran- gere back to safe blace, an' zese one paquet off de skeen bif or de res' disap'r een de vatere ; an' dey start for walk to de Oodson Bay post. My gran'fadther haf de paquet on 'ees back, an' after wile 'ee fell in 'ole, an' de oder man, — it was tres,fortement, difficile, wit 'ees zore 'ans, — catched 'ole of dees beeg rouleau, lak wot you call nap-sacque, an' 'ee try for pool 'eem out. De edge vas brekin' an' zinkin', but 'ee roll 'eemzeK back vrom de 'ole, an' zo dey got avay vrom dat dangerzom blace. Wen dey reech de Pos' 'ouse my gran'fadther roob de man's zore 'ans wit znow, an' den 'ee mek cataplasm off^ herbes medicinales, vich 'ee mek zoft wit de mallet. De nex' day 'ee tole de oder man dat 'ee mus' pool off de skeen, vich vas blis- tare, like as it vas burn; an' de man zay, " Yich off your martere vas it, dat vas flay alife f " but 'ee voomit, an' 'ee nevare skritch ! Den my gran'- pere 'ee put on salf (wot you call), dat is, onquent; an' aftere, 'ee wrap de 'ans in fresh mus'rat skeen, wit de raw zide nex' 'ees flesh, an' den 'ee mek de muff of oder fur, an' zo 'ee could go on 'ees journee. Bi- fore 'ee went 'ee tole my gran'fadther dat 'ee is not de trappeur, but 'ee is coom dere for fin' 'eem; an' 'ee zay dat 'ee is an' agen' off an' avocat een France. 'Ee zay dat my gran'fadther name ees Perenoptere, an' dat dere ees prop'ty vor 'eem een France. Every von haf suppos' dat de prop'ty vood nevare be claim, an' some man vich haf no right is possess it; but dis oder man 'af promis' dat 'ee vould try for fin' my gran'fadther. But dis vas an caucus' for 'eem get send to Amerique; an' 'ee vas resolf dat 'ee vood get dat prop'ty een 'ees 'ans; but 'ee 'ad foun' de man vor 'oom 'ee zearch vas a goot man, an' 'ee vas shame; an' den 'ee 'ad safe 'ees life. My gran'fadther zay yes, 'ee haf know dis, about de name an' de prop'ty, 246 In Quest of the Quaint. vor 'ees fadther "ad tole 'eem, an' vat 'ee mus' do for claim eet; ven some one off de famlee in France go for die; but 'ee haf not 'ad de means for hear, oi for go; an' anny'ow 'ee vas priiare for leev 'ere. 'Ee af zhow dis agen' 'ees crete heraldique, vor vy 'ee vas call L'Oiseau Noir. Dis ees de name off 'ees fam'ly, vor de Perenoptere ees de beeg bird off de Pyrenees; an' ven 'ees ancetre 'ees en de Crusad' 'ee 'af I'oiseau noir on 'ees bouclier, vot you call sliieF. My gran'fadther av' tole de agen' dat 'ee is alzo safe 'ees life, ven 'ee pool 'eem out de watare; zo dey are goot fren'. An' aftervorts dis man sen' to 'eem, all de time, efery mont', de monee from de estat een France. Den my gran'fadther 'ee af 'elp all dose peopl' vot af been goot to 'eem; all de time, wen day seek, or wen deir crops ees not goot, or wen anyding coom wot gif dem drouple; an' dey lofe 'eem lak 'ee vas Seigneur, exactement lak eet was een de Province in ole time." At the conclusion of this " ower true tale " Bon re- marked: " Though Mistress Hauton has been pitying us, and no doubt satirically quoting from Goldsmith, we know she is jealous ! We are ' remote ' because we prefer to be, — and that enhances our pleasure, — but the rest does not apply; for certainly, with such kindly folk to minister to us, we are not ' unfriend- ed ' ; with The Incorrigible as Court Jester, we can- not be ' melancholy,' and with the Prime Mover to prod us in our expeditions, neither can we be ' slow.' " When at last the day of departure came, — alas, that it could no longer be deferred ! — the friends seemed to be of one mind, as they warbled in unison their parting song : So we must leave this beauteous scene! (We hope but for a while.) To come again we surely mean, " Tho' 'twere ten thousand mile." Index. INDEX. PAGE. Aborigines 223 Odin of 147 Abraham, COte d' 200 Plains of 200 Acadians 200 Alba, Terra 58 Albanel, P6re 158 Algonquins . . 75, 213, 223, 239 Amikouets 239 Anne La Bonne, Ste 197 Mont Ste 127 Antoine, Mt. St 165 Apukwa (Reed) 230 Arched Rock 61 Atiniathan Indians 240 Aurora, Indian Belief of . . 226 Basin, Minas 58 Bay Chaleur 42, 102, 104 Fundy...58, 97, 99, 148, 239 Gaspe 123, 124 Ha-ha 152 St. Paul 167, 172, 176 Beaver Nation 239 BeUs 205 Beluga Borealis 160, 185 Benezet, Anthony 102, 200 Bie, Ste. Cecile du .... 143, 148 Blagouse, Mont 176 Blomidon 98, 102 Bois, Coureurs du 202 Bon Ami Point 51, 63 Bonaventure Island 102 Bonhomme Mountains .... 201 Bore, The 94 Break-neck Stairs 194 Bride, The Titan's 149-151 Calgche 209 Campbellton 71 Canoes, Gasp6 132 PAGE. Cap Canon 129 Corbeau 165 Desespoir 19, 110 D'Or 102 Martin 185 Noir 18 Rosier 122, 134 Tourmente 163 Cape Gaspe 121, 122 Sharp 98, 102 Split 98, 102 Carleton 5, 30 Carlisle, New 104 Cartier, Jacques 124, 213 Cascapedia River 27 Grand and Petit 15, 27 Indian Name of 27 Salmon 15 Cataclysmic Theory, Sag- uenay 160 Catalaughn 197 Chaleur Bay, Climate of 103, 104 Chaleurs, La Baie des..42, 102 Channel, Chignecto 9b Minas 102 Charlevoix 157 Charlo River 49 Chevalier de Levis 201 Chicoutimi 159 Chignecto Channel 98 Chippewa Indians 223 Church and Service, Maria 24 Church, Indian Reserva- tion 26 Churches in Quebec 205 Cliff, Rainbow 102 Climate, Chaleur Bay. 103, 104 Cloche, La 244 Corduroy Road 25 Cortereal's Rock 83 250 Index. PAGE. Cotelan 197 Coudres, Isle aux .... 165, 182 Convert Portage 230 Cove, Fossil 45, 61, 62, 70 Plaster 58 Crag, Silver 98 Custom House, Quebec . . 201 Dalhousie 25 De Monts (Pierre du Guast) 157, 200 D6sespoir, Cap (Legends) 19, 110 Domaine du Roi 157 Eagle, Giant 236 Eboulements, Earthquake at 171 Eboulements, Les 163-188 Eboulements, Mt 163 Edict of Louis XIV 29 Encrinite (Fossil) 70 Etontontathrons 238 Faun, Laughing (Profile) . 79 Fire in Quebec 203 Fisherman, Superstitions of 130, 131, 132, 199, 200 Fishery, White Whale ... 160 Fossil Cove 45, 61, 62, 70 Trees 98 Friend, Treacherous (Le- gend) 19 Fundy, Bay of. .58, 97, 99, 148, 239 Garde, Point S^ la 71 Gasp6 Bay 123, 124 Canoes 132 Cape 121, 122 Peninsula 121 General Romanoze (Pro- file) 78 G§nie de I'lle Perc6 (Le- gend) 128 Giant's Stairway 231 Track 232 PAGE. Giant's Well 231 Glooscap (Indian Giant) 75, 76, 147, 236 Gouflfre, La (Whirlpool).. 172 Gougou (Gorgon) 127 Gray Lady of the North.. 193 Great Lakes (Winds) 236 Guast, Pierre du 157, 200 Guichet (Wicket) 175 GuihakspSque (Gaspfe) ... 119 Gypsum 58 "Habitans" 5 Arrangement of Villages 175 Characteristics 207 Conservatism 166 Families 170, 171 Hay-cart 147 Houses 12, 175 Oven 145 Restrictions of Priests 205, 207 Ha-ha Bay 152 Heron Island. .. .42, 46, 53, 70 Legend of 53 Hesknewaska 152 High Tides 99, 100 Hochelaga 219 Indians, Council 239 French Colonists' Names for 239, 240 Questioning Marquette . 236 Reservations 26, 234 Supposition about Aurora Borealis 128 Supposition about Otta- wa River 243 Work 75, 148, 211, 219 Ireson, Skipper, True Story of 40, 41 Iroquois 240 Island, Bonaventure 102 George 227, 228 Heron 42, 46, 53, 70 Legend of 53 Manitoulin 235, 237 Index. 251 PAGE. Island (Continued) Miscou 126 Orleans 163 Partridge 98, 101 Isle-aux-Coudres 165, 182 Isle du Massacre 148 Islets, Les Trois Amis .... 42 Joggin, South 98 Joli, Mt 126, 127 Jotims (Giants).. 122, 126, 149, 150, 165 Kabenaw 237 Kabeyim (West Wind) . . 236 Katsepion 122 Kayoshk (Sea-gull) 228 Keewaydin (Northwest Wind) 223, 227 Ketchinebissing 241 Kigicapagiae River 27 Kirke, Captain 124 " La lumiere perpetuelle " 184 Lady, Gray, of the North 193 Lake Huron 223 Myizowaja 243 Nipissing 241 Quinze 243 Superior 223 Talon 243 Lakes, Great , 236 Lamp, Antique 184 L'Anse a I'Eau 148 Laughing Faun (Profile) . 79 Laurentian Mountains . 226, 230 Legend, Burning Ship .... 53 Genie de I'lle Perce, Le 128 Heron Island 53 Glooscap .75, 76, 147 Katsepion 122 Manitoulin 237, 238 Mysterious Light 18, 19 Nenawbozhoo . . .231, 232, 243 Nipissing 241-243 Titan's Bride 149, 151 Treacherous Fi-iend .... 19-21 " L'escalier de I'annee " . . 195 PAGK. Libraries, Quebec .... 194, 198 Lily, Sea (Fossil) 70 Louis XIV 29, 172 Loup, Riviere du 148 Lumbering 224, 225 Mahng (Loon) 228 Manitoulin Island 237, 238 Marblehead 199, 230 Markets 195, 196, 199 Martin, Abraham 200 Massacre, L'Isle du 148 Megouacha Point 5 Michilimackinac 239 Micmacs 75 Miscou Island 126 Moccasins 210 Moncton 94 Money Among Early Set- tlers 208 Mont Blagouse 176 Montmorency 212 Monts, De 157, 200 Moore's Boat Song 217 Moraine 232 Moulin 232 Mt. Eboulements 165 Ste. Anne (or Joli) .... 127 St. Antoine 165 Mountains, Bonhomme ... 201 Laurentian 226, 230 Notre Dame 124 Sliickshoek 123 Tsounonthouan 201 Mudjekeewis 236 Musquakies 239 Mysterious Light (Legend) 18, 19 Nanabojo's Cauldron .... 231 Lane ' 227 Road 231 Naval Battles 71, 124 Nenawbozhoo 231-234, 242 Neutrals 26 New Carlisle 104 Nicolet, Jean 239 Nipissing 241 252 Index. PAGF. Noquets 239 Normandin 158 jSTorth, Gray, Lady of the 193 Notre Dame de Bonse- eours 165, 184 Notre Dame Mountains . . 124 Nouvelle River 48 Odin of Aborigines 147 Ojibways 223, 239 Old Lamp 184 Old Woman 121 Orleans Island , . 163 Ottawa River 243 Ottawas 223, 237-239 Parrsboro 99 Partridge Island 98, 101 Patroons of New York . 174, 175 Peninsula, Gasp6 103 P6re Albanel 158 Perc6, L'Isle 124-130 Percys, Nez 239 Perrot, Nicholas) 238 Petitcodiac River 94 Pitchitamiehetz 158 Plains of Abraham 200 Plaster Cove 58 Point a la Garde 71 L6vis 201 Megouacha 5 Profanity Edict 29 Profile Rocks 78 Quebec 191-219 Bells 204, 205 Boat Song 214-218 Break-neck Stairs 194 Caleche 209 Catala^ughn 197 Cotelan 197 Cove-fields Stairway .... 195 Cove Road 195 Currency 211 Electric Lighting 212 Fire in Lower Town . . . 204 Fortifications 201, 202 Guns 201, 202 Habitans 199, 208 PAGE. Quebec (Continued) Legend of De LSvis .... 201 Libraries 194, 198 Lions 203 Markets 196, 199 Missionaries in Canada . 205 Sabots 210 Scandinavian Church . . . 195 Shipping 200 Soldiers 208, 209 St. Anne's 197 Rainbow Cliff 101 Red River Rebellion 219 River, Charlo 49 Grand 55 Nouvelle 48 Restigouche '6 St. Lawrence — 149, 154, 163, 167, 168, 169, 172 Rivi6re-du-Loup 148 Road, Corduroy 25 Roberval 149 Rock, Arched 61 Rocks, Profile 78, 82 Rocher, Perc6, Le .... 125, 126 Rouge 227 Roquis 239 Roulante, Table 127 Saguenay 148-160 Sails, Tanned 228 St. Lawrence River . . . 149, 154, 163, 167, 168, 169, 172 Salmon Fishing, Flies, etc. 16, 17 Saulteurs 239 Seigneurial System 172-175 Shickshock Moimtains . . . 123 Silver Crag 98 Songs, " Canadian Boat Song" 214-218 " Aurai-je Nanette ? " 105, 106 " C6cilia " 187, 188 "J'ai Trop Grand Peur des Loups" 216, 217 " La Claire Fontaine " . . 215 Index. 253 PAGE. Songs {Continued) " Le Rossignol " 47, 4S " Les Beaux Yeux " . 138, 139 " Les Paries et les Etoiles " 186, 187 " Les Yeux Bleus " . . .22, 23 Souriquois 76 Sugaries 25 Superior, Lake 223 Superstitions, Fishermen's 130, 131, 132, 199, 200 Tadousac 158 Tehibaononing 226 Terra Alba 58 Thirteen Theory 191 Thunder, Yellow 237, 238 PAGE. Timber 224, 225 Tortoise Tribe 240 Tracadiegache, Mt. . . 5, 26, 29, 45 Tsounonthouan Mountains 201 Vasistas 175 Veille, La 121 Wabun 226 Wikwemikong 235 Wind-Blower 236 Winds, Father of 226 Winnebagos 238 Wolseley, Lord 219 Work of Indians and Habi- tans 123 AUG 1 f: AUG I 5 1902 i302 20 1902 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 014 431936 9 %