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YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

FOUEST SCENES
AND
INCIDENTS,
V IN
THE WILDS OF NORTH AMERICA;
BEING
A DIARY OF
A WINTER'S ROUTE
FROM HALIFAX TO THE CANADAS,
AND DURING FOim MONTHS* RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS ON THE
BORDERS OF
LAKES HURON AND SIMCOE.
BY GEORGE HEAD, ESQ.

LONDON i
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.

Ml/cCCXXIX.

G. WOODFALL, ANQEl COURT, SKINNER STREET, I/OHDON.

ADVERTISEMENT TO THE READER.
That the journal, the substance of which is
contained in the following pages, was never
originally intended to meet the public eye, is
literally and strictly true. — This fact, in jus
tice to myself, I offer without further com
ment. And the few years that had intervened
since the period to which it immediately re
lates, had very nearly the effect of suppressing
it altogether. But, dwelling with pleasure
on the recollections of a country becoming
now more interesting every day, and animated
by leisure to revise those details written on
the spot, which brought the sylvan panorama
back to my memory, I found, upon reflection,
that there really was much in North America
to be described wholly distinct from time or
period; perfectly unalterable by change of
a2

IV ADVERTISEMENT.
scene and lapse of years. And I was further
induced to imagine that, trifling as my own
personal adventures might be, as far as they
related to myself, still, that the sort of life it
was my lot to lead was so unusual, and had
in itself so much of the novel and the curious,
as not to be wholly uninteresting to the plain
reader and the lover of nature. Thus influ
enced, I have dwelt upon the details of the
forest life ; while, on the other hand, I have
glanced over the account of the beaten roads
in a brief and cursory manner ; not wishing to
describe what was already sufficiently known,
what has been, and will be again, no doubt,
delineated by abler hands. Still the form of
a diary, which I had adopted, required that
all parts in my journey from Halifax to Lake
Huron (a distance of more than 1200 miles)
should be duly noticed ; nor could any, as an
integral part, with reference to the whole, have
been, at all events with propriety, omitted.
* If, in this trifling production, I have ever
been induced to venture upon matter not
strictly conformable with its title, it has been

ADVERTISEMENT. V
owing to the intimate connection of such mat
ter with my subject, and the irresistible incli
nation I felt at the moment. It is now sub
mitted to the world without any pretension.
The anecdotes have been chiefly gleaned in
solitude, and under some disadvantages quite
unnecessary to relate. But the selection has
been such as will, I trust, present to the rea
der at least a simple and faithful compilation
of " Forest Scenes and Incidents in the Wilds
of North America."

GEORGE HEAD.

Carsualton, Subret,
ggth May, 1839.

CONTENTS.
PAGE
Advertisement  iii
A few days' residence at Halifax  1
Journey from Halifax to Presque Isle  19
Journey from Presque Isle to Riviere de Cape ... 108
Journey from Riviere de Cape to York, Upper
Canada  146
Residence in the Woods  178
Summer Journey from Lake Simcoe to Quebec,
by the Falls of Niagara and the Rapids of the
St. Lawrence  320
Concluding Remarks on Emigration  351

FOREST SCENES

INCIDENTS,

ETC.

A FEVl^ DAYS' RESIDENCE AT HALIFAX.
It was in the latter end of the month of No
vember, when I disembarked, after a rough
passage from Falmouth, at Halifax, the capi
tal of Nova Scotia, and the passage of the
river St. Lawrence being already closed for
the winter, it became my duty to undertake a
journey over land to the Canadas ; I therefore
made my arrangements to set out as soon as
snow should fall in sufficient quantity to put
the roads in good order for travelling in a
sleigh. As my stay was not hkely to exceed
a few days, I went to a sort of hotel and
B

2 A FEW DAYS RESIDENCE
boarding-house, the only description of inn in
the place.
The weather, on my arrival, was fine, clear,
and generally sunshiny, but accompanied with
extremely sharp frost, which, had already
frozen the ponds in the neighbourhood to a
thickness of several inches. Although now
on the other side of the Atlantic, I found my
self as it were in an English town, among
Enghsh people, and every thing else much
more English in appearance than one would
expect to meet with so far distant. But the
groups of native Indians were alone sufficient
to remind me that I was breathing the air of
another hemisphere. These people attracted
my earnest attention, for my imagination had
painted in high colours the interesting spec
tacle of man in a state of rugged nature, wild
as his native woods, and combining with hu
man intelligence the physical strength of the
brute creation. It was not, therefore, with
out considerable disappointment, that I saw
a few squalid miserable-looking beings, strag
gling in idle listlessness about the streets, and

AT HALIFAX. 3
inferior in point of appearance to the wandering
race of gipsies in England. One man, with his
squaw and a little boy, were by far more tidy
and clean than any of the rest. It was on a
market-day, and the parents were both sitting
down on the ground with things to sell. The
man had the skin of an otter and some par
tridges, and the woman baskets neatly manu
factured of birch bark. The little boy was
using a bow and blunt arrow very dexterously,
by shooting at a halfpenny set up on the top
of a stick, which he hit at a distance of twenty
yards several times successively. The dress
of the man consisted of a close bodied coat of
coarse blue cloth, made to lap over in front
so as to serve at the same time the purpose
of waistcoat and breeches, and from his girdle
hung a squirrel skin pouch, in which he car
ried his tobacco, &c. Instead of shoes, he
wore mocassins, made of soft leather, to fit
like a stocking, and on his legs pieces of blue
cloth, reaching from the knee to the ancle,
sewed on tight with an overlap outside the
seam, and evidently intended to remain on
B 2

* A FEW DAYS RESIDENCE
till they fell off of themselves. His hair, never
touched by shears or comb, was as coarse as
the mane of a cart-horse, perfectly black,
straight, and extremely thick. On such a
head, however, he had contrived to stick a
coarse felt hat, and, by way of being particu
larly smart, he had tied round it a piece of
scarlet ferret, and part of a dirty shirt made
its appearaince about his throat. The squaw
wore the same sort of mocassins and leggings
as her husband, and a short blue cloth petti
coat, reaching from the hip to the middle of
the leg. Her gown, or rather jacket, hardly
reached the petticoat, was carelessly fastened
in front, and was made of one of those flaring
bed curtain patterns of cotton, full of large
red and yellow flowers, birds, pitch-forks, hay
stacks, and cottage scenery. Over her shoulders
was thrown a filthy blanket, confined by a
skewer instead of a brooch ; a bad substitute,
for the blanket seemed ready to tumble ofK
Her long black hair was smoothed straight
backwards, and tied, in a club nearly as thick
as a man's arm, with a leathern thong. The

AT HALIFAX. 5
toilet of both the Indian and his squaw had
been completed with abundance of grease of
the most rancid description, with which their
faces were shining. These two people were
in their holiday dress, while others, with
scarcely any covering, were to be seen grovel
ling on the ground, or reeling in a state of in
toxication about the streets.
But in Halifax a fair specimen of the North
American Indian is not to be met with. Far
removed from his natural hunting country,
and attracted by the civilized population with
in narrow peninsular limits, he has sunk into idle
debauched habits ; and the deleterious effect of
cheap rum has destroyed in a very great mea
sure his energies. Notwithstanding these disad
vantages, the strength of his constitution is
really prodigious. Indians are to be seen at all
times in the winter, even under a temperature
below zero of Fahrenheit, lying about the
streets asleep and drunk, in the open air, with
head, hands, feet, and bosom bare ; and such
is their hardihood, that they are almost proof
against being frost bitten. The slow increase of

6 A FEW DAYS RESIDENCE
their population, proceeding as it naturally does,
without any sort of restraint, is a sufficient tes
timony of the numbers who perish in the season
ing. Many are the infants, no doubt, who, like
blossoms from a tree, fall under the rigours
of a few hours' frost ; while those who arrive
at maturity become fortified by a moral prin
ciple which teaches them to consider the en
durance of cold and hunger as the extreme of
virtue and heroism. The life and habits of
the Indian no doubt counteract the increase
of his species, for the cHmate has indisputably
a prolific tendency, and there are proofs which
might be m-entioned, sufficient to establish
that fact beyond all contradiction. They are
a cowardly race of people, and submit them
selves readily to Englishmen, who surpass
them in bodily strength as to running, wrest
ling, and other gymnastic exercises. When
they quarrel and fight among themselves, they
pull hair and scratch, having no notion of
making use of their fists.
Besides their strength of constitution and
capability of bearing hunger and fatigue, they

AT HALIFAX. 7
possess one faculty altogether wonderful — ^that
of being able to travel point blank across the
forest to any given point, let it be an hundred
miles off, or farther still ; guided solely by an in
tuition almost supernatural, or by an acuteness
of observation such as the human sense would
hardly be expected to attain. That a people liv
ing continually in the woods should direct their
incessant attention to the motions of the hea
venly bodies, and profit largely by experience,
is no matter of wonder ; but we have still to
learn how it is that by night, or enveloped in
fogs by day, they are able to proceed without
the help of sun, star, or compass. It is by the
texture of the bark of the trees, rendered
coarser on the side opposed to tlie prevailing
winds, that they determine their bearings, al
though the differences they thus reason upon
are so delicate as to be quite imperceptible to
an European eye. We know that the acute
ness of the senses increases with the intensity
of their action, and of this there is no want
of instances; those of the shepherd, who
learns to distinguish the inexpressive counte-

8 A FEW DAYS' RESIDENCE
nances df never so many sheep one from an
other, the touch of the blind, &c. ; but there is
certainly none which bias been brought to a
perfection so nearly alUed to animal instinct as
the one in question ; and the intellectual powers
of the Indians having been wholly unexercised
in any other way, the result is, that such is
their confidence in themselves, that they are
at all times ready to travel alone vpithout the
slightest apprehension, and lie dovra to rest in
the woods wherever they may happen to be
benighted. The climate of Halifax does not admit of a
ready comparison with that of England, and
their summer, which lasts about four months,
is not so much hotter as their winter is colder.
They have no season like an English spring,
nor does their autumn resemble ours *.
T had remained very few days at my hotel,
* In order to give a better idea, the folloiving Syl
labus may be useful, to which I should premise that
the weather and temperature in the neighbourhood of
Lake Huron, which will be described in the ensuing
journal, is not far diflferent from that at Halifax, though

AT HALIFAX. 9
when the weather became overcast, with indi
cations of an approaching fall of snow, which,
the range of the thermometer in Quebec is considerably
higher in summer and lower in winter.
Syllabus op the Climate of Halifax,
Nova Scotia.
. To begin with the months of July and August.
These are the hottest of all, the sun being usually
powerful and oppressive. The uniform heat is greater
than ours, although a single day in England is now and
then nearly as hot as any of theirs.
In September, the evenings become cold, with frosts,
increasing in severity to the end of the month.
In October, the temperature falls perhaps to 25° of
Fahrenheit, with rough gales from the uorth-west,
sweeping the frozen continent, and answering to our
easterly winds. The weather however is variable, some
days stiU being very warm.
In November, a succession of bright sunshiny days
generally prevails, and that month is to the Npva Scotian
the best in all the year. The fresh frosty air and bright
sun have acquired that season the appellation of the
Indian summer. The variation of temperature towards
the end of the month is very great ; sometimes as much
as 40° in the twenty-four hours. Some days are close
and foggy; others clear and intensely cold. ,
In December, the snow before the middle of the

10 A FEW days' RESIDENCE
soon be^nning to descend in soft broad flakes,
continued for many hours, till it lay on the
month begins to lie on the ground, the average tempe
rature being about 20".
January may be called the coldest month ; the aver
age temperature being from 10° to 14°. It drops some
times 10° or 15° below zero, and remains so for three or
four days together.
February usually commences with extreme cold, the
temperature seldom ranging above 12°. Snow-storms
are violent and frequent. The sun, however, before
the end of the month, shews gradually his increasing
power, and icicles are seen hanging from the roofs of
houses in sheltered situations.
In March, clouds of hail and sleet sweep along the
streets with a force hard to be withstood by man or
beast. Cold must be endured in all its variety. On
one day the ground presents to the eye a surface of deep
fresh snow, to wade through which nothing but sheer
necessity would drive a man abroad. Before night
perhaps a fog sets in, with a rapid thaw. Heavy rain
succeeds, and torrents of water and melted snow rush
down the steep streets towards the sea. The compact
mass or cake of ice with which the whole surface of the
ground in the town is covered now begins to make its
appearance, and walking becomes even more disagree
able and dangerous than ever. This mass of ice is full
two feet thick, and it cracks into fissures, which form.

AT HALIFAX. 11
ground to a very considerable depth. The
next morning it had drifted so as to render
as it were, the beds of little rivers, which discharge the
melted snow into the sea.
In April the weather is severe and variable. Large
quantities of snow fall during the month, but the heat
of the sun in the middle of the day is too great to al
low it to lie long on the ground. Hardly two days are
alike. Sometimes the snow is deep and fresh, at others
soft and sloppy ; and again covered with a crackling
coat of ice. Then the north-west wind rages, and calls
forth the powers of the young and active to make way
against its force.
In the month of May, the weather has but little im
proved. The snow falls heavily at intervals, and,
melted by the increased power of the sun, mixes with
mud till the streets are like a bog, and would be consi
dered in any other part of the world impassable. The
variations of temperature are excessive. Keen frosty
winds and a warm sun acting together try the weaker
constitutions. Nevertheless, rheumatic people do not
complain. Those subject to pulmonary attacks suffer
considerably. In the month of June the sun begins to be really
powerful, and in the early part is now and then as hot
as at any time of the year. Yet, the summer has not
arrived, and the trees are only beginning to shew the
first tinge of green. Floating islands of ice, which in-

12 A FEW days' residence
many parts of the town impassable till a way
had been cleared; and the shopkeepers and
their boys, in fur caps and red nightcaps, with
canvas sleeves over their arms and broad sho
vels in their hands, were to' be seen every
where hard at work throvdng aside the snow
accumulated before their dwellings. It had
covered the doors and lower windows of some
of the houses, so that the people were obliged
fest the coast at this season of the year, influence the
climate most considerably. Till these gradually recede,
and, becoming porous, sink to the water's edge, the
weather is never settled and warm. For in the hottest
day, whenever the wind happens to blow from the sea,
it drives before it a dense chilling fog, like a movii^
pillar, over the town. There, while it rests, the change
of atmosphere is violent in the extreme. The very
eyes feel wet and cold ! And the sea-breeze, which in
England invites the invalid to the coast to inhale its
freshness, drives the Nova Scotian within the walls
of his house. This evil however is of short continu
ance, for the ice-islands, on whose gelid surfaces these
damp fogs have been engendered, melt by degrees, and,
dispersing themselves over the ocean, cease for the re
mainder of the year to interfere with the sun's do
minion.

AT HALIFAX. 13
to burrow their way like moles into daylight ;
and one wondered now, at the very beginning
of a winter, how the quantities of snow likely
to fall during the season could ever be disposed
of. The day was particularly fine after the
storm; everybody seemed busy and animated,
and servants were running backwards and for
wards with bells, straps, buckles, and harness
of all sorts, to prepare for sleigh driving.
At an early hour the first heavy sleighs,
laden with wood, coal, and other articles of
merchandize, were to be seen laboriously ad
vancing through the deep fresh snow, which
becoming by degrees trodden towards the
middle of the day, the fresh painted, lighter
vehicles were allured from their summer's rest.
Then damsels with pretty chins wrapped in
fur bade a short adieu to mammas (not here
required by custom as chaperones) to take a
seat beside their anxious beaux ; till smiling
faces, tingling bells, and trotting horses were
encountered in every corner of the town.
Now came the time to look about one : hardly
a third part of the space in the street was pass-

14 A FEW DAYS RESIDENCE
able ; and as the sleighs came dasliing by, one
thought oneself lucky, at the expense of a
jump up to the hips in a snowbank, to escape
being knocked over once in every five minutes.
Some of the drivers were good, others bad,
but all drove fast, so that, notvpithstanding
people were obliged by law to have a certain
number of bells about their sleigh, the eyes of
Argus were insufficient to protect a foot-pass
enger, who, after all possible pains to get out
of the way of the carriages, gained nothing
more by way of thanks than snowballs kicked
in his face off the heels of the horse. I ob
served one young man, evidently an inexpe
rienced driver, who was in the act of passing
a corner, while he and his fair partner were
flying forwards in the original direction long
after the horse had completed his turn ; and
such was the centrifugal motion of the sleigh,
that an old woman was knocked dovra, and
the horse completely overcome and brought
to the ground by its violence.
Casualties seemed to be perpetually occur
ring to grave personages, and some of them

AT HALIFAX. 15
sufficiently ridiculous. I saw an old gentle
man carefully poking his way across a steep
street with creepers (spikes made to buckle
under the sole) on his feet and a pointed walk
ing-stick in his hand, when his heels were in
a moment knocked from under him by an ur
chin in a box placed on iron runners, who shot
down like a flash of lightning from the top of
the hill to the bottom. I picked him up as,
covered with snow, he was puffing with rage
and growling vengeance against the author of
his misfortune. But the old gentleman was
not likely to be gratified; for the boy had
passed like a meteor, and the moment of col
lision, together with the point of contact, were
the only data by which the sufferer could de
termine whence he had come and whither he
was gone.
It was quite astonishing to see how the
young people preserved their equilibrium over
parts of the streets covered with ice. The
town consists of long parallel streets, with
others remarkably steep crossing therh at right
angles. These latter, in some places where

16 A FEW DAYS RESIDENCE
the snow had drifted away, were covered with
a coat of hard ice, over which the young wo
men especially were venturously running and
sliding, in groups of three or four at a time,
all holding by each other's arms, down such
declivities as apparently to put their necks in
serious danger.
Waggon loads of frozen pigs were exposed
for sale, quite hard and stiff, and in a fit state
to keep till the spring. They had an un
usually uncouth appearance; for their mouths
were generally open, and the last services
seemed never to have been properly paid to
the defunct. Their limbs were not arranged
with decent regularity, and they appeared to
have given up the ghost in the act of squalling
and at full gallop. Some were placed stand
ing at the doors in the streets, like rocking-
horses before a toyshop, upon their four legs,
just as if they had been alive. This mode of
keeping a pig for a winter without giving him
a grain of any thing to eat, or being subject
to his noisy, iUmannerly conduct, — nay, to be
enabled to eat him piecemeal without even the

AT HALIFAX. 17
trouble of cutting his throat, is indisputably
one advantage of a cold climate. But frozen
meat, on the other hand, disappoints the epi
cure, being always tasteless and bad.
Notwithstanding the day was extremely
cold, an auctioneer had established himself at
the corner of a street out of doors, and was
haranguing a crowd of eaiger-looking buyers
who had assembled about him. Altogether,
the appearance of the town after the snow
had set in, was, from the novelty of the sur
rounding objects, particularly lively and inter
esting to an European.
But while winter brings with it festivities
to the inhabitants of Halifax, the sufferings of
sea-faring people form a sad reverse. It is
indeed an appalling sight to see, in hard wea
ther, a vessel beating up the harbour of Halifax
in the teeth of a north-wester. Perhaps from
the West Indies! *** On she glides slowly
and gloomily through the black waves, her
bows and quarters so heavily encrusted with
ice, as to be quite disfigured, and weighed
down by her head in the water. The sailors.

18 A FEW days' RESIDENCE AT HALIFAX.
with frost-bitten hands and feet, hanging upon
the glassy ropes and rigging, and contending
manfully against an unrelenting snow-drift.
A few days only have elapsed since the same
men, now exposed to the dangers of an iron-
bound coast, and a temperature, perhaps, of
forty degrees below the freezing point, were
broiling under a tropical sun: a change, it
would be thought, utterly beyond the power of
human nature to vvdthstand.

19

JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
TO PRESQUE ISLE.
On the 7th of December a heavy fall of snow
which had lasted the two or three preceding
days, induced me to make immediate prepa
ration for my journey. I was happy to leave
my hotel, kept by a worthy old lady whom I
seldom saw. She had prescribed herself a
course of the warmer liquors, and had nearly
abdicated her authority in favour of the ser
vants of the house, a set of noisy screaming
black women. I separated a few necessary
articles of equipment from my baggage, the
remainder of which I made arrangements to
send to Quebec by the first spring vessels.
I hired a sleigh to take me and my servant as
far as Annapolis, a distance of 132 miles, for
which I was to pay twenty pounds, or eighty
dollars, including the expenses of the return
of the horse and driver to Halifax.
December 8th. At nine o'clock in the
c 2

20 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
morning my vehicle came to the door. The
snow lay more than a foot on the ground;
besides which, it was still falling heavily. The
wind, also, was full in our faces. I had pro
vided myself, according to the custom of the
place, with snow-boots made of Brussels car
peting, which buttoned over my boots, reach
ing above my ancles, with soles of rough felt.
I was further fortified by a good great-coat
and a fur cap with large flaps to cover the
ears. The driver had no sooner got into his
small seat in front, and urged his horse into a
sort of shuffling walk, than it was quite evi
dent that the animal was at the full extent of
his pace, considering the heavy draft ; and we
accordingly travelled at an extremely slow
rate, being full three hours and a half in per
forming the first fifteen miles.
The soil in the neighbourhood of Halifax is
poor and rocky; and the black granite rocks
and scrubby trees, which shewed their tops
through the snow, looked desolate in the ex
treme. Land, notwithstanding, in the neigh
bourhood, sells high ; for people^ so soon as

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 21
they scrape together a little money by farming,
flock to the seaports, and reverse the usual or
der of life by finishing with commerce, instead
of retirement. Passing through SackviUe, (a
small cluster of wooden houses,) we left the ex
tremity of the basin, or arm of the sea, parallel
to which the road had hitherto led, and com
pleted a heavy tedious drive of fifteen miles
at Mitchell's inn.
The inns in the country are known only by
the names of the landlords, to the great dis
couragement of the profession of sign-paint
ers. The people were not at all uncivil; they
allowed me to shake the snow off my clothes
in the passage, and proceed unmolested as far
as the fire in the parlour ; but nobody seemed
at all inclined to stir, till, in answer to my re
peated entreaties, " Mother," said the great
girl of the house, in a fretful tone, — " Mother,
don't you hear how the man is calling for
something to eat?" and then the mother did
begin to move herself, and presently a heavy
pile of toast and butter was placed before me,
together with tea and beef-steaks. The inn

22 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
looked like a neat English farm-house. The
room was skirted with deal wainscoting, and
the ftuniture was made of the woods of the
country. Some articles of birch-wood bore
an excellent polish, and those of bird's-eye
maple very nearly resembled satin-wood; but
the sudden and severe changes of climate had
warped them 'all grievously. A few articles
of mahogany also had shared a similar fate.
And this evil is universal all over the country,
in the best houses as well as the worst. No
matter how thick the walls,^ the tables and
chairs always suffer by the weather.
The sides of the room and mantlepiece,
were ornamented with trumpery prints of the
four quarters of the world in allegory, and
plaster of Paris casts of George the Third,
Queen Charlotte, and a green parrot with a
cherry in his mouth. Every thing looked
English, and though a Yankee twang rang
in the noses of the country people, giving a
marked and provincial accent, yet it was hard
to believe one had travelled upwards of two
thousand miles to detect so slight a difference

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 23
as existed between the people of each side
of the Atlantic.
Two country fellows came into the inn
while I was eating, and placed themselves at
a small table in a corner of the same room.
They called for rum, which was given them
in a vinegar cruet. Glasses were brought,
and then, each passing the back of his hand
across a mighty useful set of teeth, bobbed
and nobbed the other; and, repeating the
ceremony, their little bottle was empty.
Cramming their large paws into their breeches
pockets, the girl of the house was called to a
committee of finance, and, at their request,
replenished the cruet. This second dose made
them sneeze a little, but it was despatched in
as short time as the first. The water now
stood in both their eyes. They had paid for
the rum ; hardly a word had been expended
in conversation, and about five minutes of
time had elapsed, when they were out of the
house, and again on their way.
The Nova Scotian peasant, as to his general
appearance, cast of countenance, and accent.

24 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
so mvtch resembles the inhabitant of the United
States of America, that a stranger would not
perceive the difference* They have the same
tall, bony, athletic figure; the keen, pene
trating, inquisitive eye. " They guess and
they calculate ", and adopt very many of the
same provincial phrases and expressions. They
are a fine healthy, hardy race of men, in point
of stature certainly exceeding Englishmen.
But the transparent glovv of youth is of shorter
duration. Innumerable minute wrinkles (es
pecially about the eyes) appear at a very early
period ; perhaps more owing to the increased
exercise of those particular muscles, which
are brought into a state of contortion by the
sensation of cold ; or the dazzling effect of the
sun shining on snow for so many months in
the year, than from any effect produced upon
the constitution. It is, however, very well
known, that the teeth decay particularly, soon,
and this, most probably, is owing to the cold.
They do not suffer by rheumatism, or any
other disease of that sort. As to clothes, they
take no more precautions than we do. Flan-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 25
nel is even more rarely worn. The man, for
instance, who drove my sleigh, sat on his cold
perch in front, with no other defence from the
weather than an ordinary great coat, such as
soldiers wear ; without boots upon his legs, or
gaiters ; merely shoes and worsted stockings.
While, the horse was baiting, I took an op
portunity of paying a visit to him in the
stable; where he was standing in his harness,
with the door open behind him, and a rack-
ful of miserably bad hay before him. The
building was ill contrived for the purpose of
keeping out the wind, had the door been
shut ; and altogether it was a most comfort
less abode for a poor horse. Whjle I was
there, the driver came in from the house, and,
without rubbing him down, led him out into
the yard, and commenced putting to. We
went fifteen miles to Rolls's inn, where the
horse was baited again ; and then proceeded
twelve miles more to Burdon's inn, where we
put up for the night. It was late when I ar
rived, and as I was dreadfully cold (for it had
snowed the whole of the day) nothing could

26 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
equal the hospitable appearance of the fire,
which was burning in the room. Enormous
logs were piled on each other upon the
hearth, with a profusion one is quite unaccus
tomed to in England. Beef steaks were again
produced, with tea. I had a clean, comfort^
able bed, and the next morning was ready to
start at an early hour.
December 9th. — I proceeded seven miles
to Standridge's inn, where I breakfasted. The
road was hilly. The day had cleared up,
but it had become extremely cold. On both
sides of the road, during the whole of the
¦way from Hahfax, one could not help remark
ing the. small proportion the cleared land
bears to that uncultivated. The trees which,
in the neighbourhood of Halifax, are scrubby
and stunted, now began to assume a different
character, being of much larger growth.
Thirteen miles to Graham's inn, Horton town
ship, over a hilly road. Horton was the
largest village I had yet seen, small as it was
compared to an English one. Having baited,
I proceeded fourteen miles to Sharp's inn,

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 27
Cornwallis township, over a road tolerably
level. Here I put up for the night.
The infancy of the country, as regards cul
tivation, is most striking; the plough had
barely nibbled the edges of the forest, con
fining itself to the borders of lakes and rivers.
And it has been truly enough remarked, that
by the proportion which the seams of a coat
bear to the cloth ; that which exists between
the cleared and wooded surface of the land
may be exemphfied. Industry seemed to pre
vail every where, without any apparent vestige
of pauperism. The landlords of the inns
were usually occupiers of land; and home
made cheeses and cider, both of an excellent
quality, were generally produced at table.
December 10th. — Ten miles to Crane's
inn, Aylesford township, over a level road.
Fifteen miles to Parker's, Wilmot township,
over a level road. On this stage I passed
the country seat of the Bishop of Nova Sco
tia ; a building of very humble elevation, and
not exceeding, in point of appearance, a very

28 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
moderate description of English farm-hotlse.
Eight miles and a half to Lennard's, Wilmot
township, over a level road. And here I put
up for the night. The weather had changed
considerably. For more thian a couple" of
hours, before arriving at the inn, the snow
had become slushy and s6ft,*in consequence of
a very rapid thaw. I had barely got under
cover, when rain began to fall heavily, and
continued till late at night.
The bearing of the people at the inns to
wards a stranger, is somewhat difficult at first
ta understand. They are most of them, as I
have observed, occupiers of land as well as intf-
keepers; so, not resting a sole reliance on their
inns, they seem to imagine that by admitting a
traveller, they confer a favour on him instead
of themselves ; at all events, they treat him as
their equal. In England, it must be confessed,
that civility, however gratifying it may be, is
paid for at a good price. Here, though one
does not get it, it is not charged for in the
bill, and nobody thinks of giving a farthing

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 29
to the servants, who, in fact, are most fre
quently the children of the people of the
house. December 11th. — This morning, on getting
into my sleigh, I found the driver beating his
hands on his sides, with a short lighted pipe
in his mouth. The wind had changed again,
and the air was keen and sharp. The frost
had set in for some hours, and the roads were
improved to a very great degree. Instead of
crawling on at the heavy tiresome rate we
had hitherto done, a crack of the whip set
the horse off at a runriing trot, which he kept
up nearly the whole of the _ stage, equal to
nine miles an hour, as we went over a level
road to Spur's, Annapohs township. The
road, for the most part, passed throiigh a low
level, calculated for feeding cattle, from the
abundance of meadow and marsh on both
sides. Passed the Annapolis river, which is
here about the breadth of the Thames at
Staines. We passed it by a bad wooden
bridge. Proceeding along its bank, we ar
rived at the town of Annapolis. The road

30 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
was, in many places, exceedingly bad and
rough; for large pieces of rock protruded
themselves above the soil ; and against these,
the runners of the sleigh occasionally came m
contact with considerable violence, the snow
not being of sufficient depth to protect them.
The roads, hardened for so great a part of
the year as they are by frost, are less attended
to during the short period of summer. Be
sides, the soil is rocky, so that a natural road
exists sometimes for many yards together.
Throughout the greatest part of the province,
deficiency of the material cannot be pleaded
in excuse for the bad state of the roads, ht
good hard granite is in great plenty. Plaster
of Paris is found in large quantities in the
neighbourhood of Annapolis.
Annapohs, which is one of the largest towns
in the province of Nova Scotia, would hardly
merit the name of a tovra in England, but
rather of a good sized village ; but it may be
observed, that while the natural features of
the country are on a larger scale, the different
grades of society exist on a smaller. Captains'

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 31
and colonels of militia are to be met with
carrying on the trade of publicans, and that
not unfrequently ; and the members of the
house of assembly, (the colonial parliament,)
instead of rolling into their metropolis on easy-
springs, make their entree without stile or
pretension, jolting in country built buggies*,
or, perhaps, bumping side by side on the
backs of ambling long-tailed cart horses.
My sleigh was now discharged, having ar
rived at Annapohs, and I went to Mrs. Craw
ley's inn, where I was comfortably lodged. I
found it by no means an easy matter to procure
a vehicle for my journey to Digby, a distance of
twenty miles, from which place I was to em
bark to cross the bay of Fundy to the town of
St. John's. I found myself driven to the ne-
* These country gigs possess, nevertheless, nearly
the advantage of springs, owing to the body being
slung upon pliant poles, spliced on in continuation of
the shafts ; and the construction is at the same time so
extremely simple, that no damage can in probability
happen to them, which may not be readily replaced by
means of an axe and a few yards of cord.

32 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
cessity of making a bargain, an operation not
to be effected at Annapolis, without a good
many words ; and as every body to whom I
applied myself, knew that, as a matter of
course, I must go forward, they all hung back,
and "tried confusions" accordingly. Some
objected to the heavy draft, owing to the. soft
state of the snow, others had work for their
horses on their farms, and so on. At last I
came to terms with a man, who said that he
would have to send in for his horses, which
were several miles from the town ; and agreed
to give him four pounds to take me the
twenty miles to Digby. I had no sooner,
however, concluded the bargain, than the
cattle were forth coining, never having been
out of his stable, and he was as eager to he
off as he had appeared before indifferent to the
undertaking. Several other proprietors then
came and offered me their sleighs at a more
reasonable rate ; however, it was too late.
I accepted an invitation to dine with an
old gentleman, a Mr.  . He was more
than eighty years old, had served under Gene-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 33
ral Wolfe, and made it a rule to invite to his
house all gentlemen in the public service
who might happen to pass through the town.
He was so perfectly deaf, that it was utterly
impossible to converse with him, except
by means of a few thirsty interpreters, who
drank his port wine, and made themselves
otherwise serviceable on social occasions.
The old gentleman commenced after dinner
to give toasts, after which he called upon his
guests in turn for others. Then we were
asked to give ladies, and after that, sentiments.
And all in such quick succession, that, finding
it impossible to do justice to the part I was
called on to play, I made as speedy a retreat
as I could, and sought the quiet of my inn.
December 12th. — The weather was ex
tremely unsettled, and a thaw had come on
in the night, so that when I started, the snow
was sloppy, and the roads in consequence
very heavy. The sleigh was drawn by two
horses working abreast. The way was also
hilly ; and without an extra horse, it would
have been impossible to proceed. In-
D

34 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
deed the thaW had been so rapid, that the
ground in many places was almost bare, and
I occasionally felt the runners of the sleigh
grinding on the bare earth for several yards
together, when it required the utmost power
of the horses to advance. As it was, they
were knocked up before we had gone eighteen
miles. On leaving Annapolis in the morning,
we had proceeded nine miles to Ditman's,
where I breakfasted. This was a small house,
on the banks of Moose river, which is a stream
emptying itself into the Annapolis river. We
then proceeded nine miles to Harris's (making
eighteen miles), where we put up for the night.
We had gone seven miles out of our way, in
order to avoid a horse ford over Bear river. ¦
December 13th. — The frost had set in he-
fore the mornmg, and when the sleigh came
to the door, the air was extremely sharp aiil
cold. We had a rough hilly drive to the
town of Digby, and a chilling fog added a
blacker hue to the large forest trees on each
side of our narrow route. I was therefore
the more gratified by the sudden appearaaWB

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 35
of a splendid sun, setting forth to the greatest
advantage a rich sea-view, ornamented by a
display of magnificent rock and woodland
scenery. The bay of Digby is an outlet of
the bay of Fundy, which latter is remarkable
for its dangerous navigation, caused by the
strong currents and extraordinary swell of its
tide, which has been frequently known to rise
to a height of sixty feet. Close to the town ap
pears a fine sandy beach, and a regular suc
cession of bluff rocks extend themselves from
the head of the bay on both sides towards the
sea; and on these, shoals of cormorants, as
well as other descriptions of the larger wild
fowl, are seen sitting during the day. The
bay is circular, and the rocky circumference
converging towards the sea, two large corre
sponding masses of rock overhang each other,
forming natural barriers, which leave a narrow
passage between, so that vessels enter at once
into smooth water. As the road on its ap
proach to the town vras circuitous, I had the
more leisure to admire the pleasing change of
scenery. So few people had occasion to travel
d2

36 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
on the road I had passed, that solitude and
desolation added to the rigors of winter, and
the brilliant wood-fires at the inns were the
sole comfort and solaee of my journey. The
long continued exposure to severe cold day
after day was a great trial to my patience^
though the effects were by no means other
wise injurious. On arriving at the town, I
found the only inn fuU, and was therefore
under the necessity of returning three miles
on the road I had already travelled, and I put
up at a neat little inn, recomimended at least
by its name, which was " Pleasant Valley.''
The person who. kept the house was a widow,
from vy^hom I experienced extreme kindness
and attention. Her daughters were well-be
haved and exceedingly pretty, and the house
was managed altogether with such quiet regU'
larity, that I blessed my stars for the good
fortune which had estabUshed me in such
quarters during the uncertain period of my
sojourn in the neighbourhood of Digby.
For the next point in my journey was the
town of St. John's, in New Brunswick^ to-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 37
wards which I was to cross the bay of Fundy
in a small packet which was plying backwards
and forwards, and at as regular intervals as
the difficult navigation would admit. The
distance across is thirty-six miles; but owing
to the violent currents, swell of the tide, &c.
the passage is never attempted unless with a
fair wind and moderate weather. The packet,
when I arrived, was not in the harbour, not
having returned from its last trip to St. John's;
I therefore made arrangements to be informed
so soon as she might arrive ; and, secure on
this point, I made myself quite easy, under all
circumstances, at the prospect of being wea
ther-bound under the roof of my kind hostess
and her fair daughters. I had the pleasure
of seeing what industry and good management
could effect in the country; and a house more
tidy and scrupulously clean I never entered in
any part of the world I ever visited. I went
to a large piece of water in the neigbourhood,
where I amused myself by skating for a tew
hours before dinner, which was served in a
room warmed by an excellent coal fire, and

38 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
ftirnished with every sort of English comfort.
My landlady was provided with preserved
fruits of every description afforded by the soil,
and these are sufficiently numerous. Thete
are currants and raspberries, gooseberries,
cranberries, strawberries, apples, pears, and
quinces ; and of these she was so liberal, that
I could riot satisfy her kind intentions. She
pressed me to eat more of them; " for", said
she, stirring my fire at the same time, " you
will be both cold and hungry before you ar
rive at Quebec." I thanked her heartily for
her good-will.
I was led involuntarily to think favourably
of a country, in a state of Georgie simplicity;
where a man can build a house in a week;
where, by the help of his gun and fishing im
plements, there is no chance of his starving;
where, for five shUhngs an acre, good land
may be purchased, capable of growing wheat,
buckwheat, barley, oats, maize, rye, turnips,
potatoes, &c. I had seen the faeiHty with
which the countrymen wielded the axe, and
had been surpiised by the simple. mode of

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 39
bringing the land first into cultivation. It
seemed to me almost incredible, that corn
could be grown in a forest of stumps for seve
ral succeeding years, merely on the strength
of the land, without amendment, except the
ashes of the burnt trees ; that by merely
scratching the surface with a light plough, it
could be prepared for the next crop ; and that
agricultural operations could be carried on
with success for a period of ten or twelve
years, till the roots of the trees rotted out of
the ground of themselves. What if the life
of the husbandman be a laborious one ? If a
man be obliged to work hard for his bread,
so long as he has youth and strength, and
breathes the air of a bracing climate, why
should he not ?
The neighbourhood of Digby appeared to
me particularly eligible; for the town was a
thriving little sea-port : boats of a large size
were built in her docks, and the sea abounded
with several good sorts of fish. A small spe
cies of herring afforded the inhabitants almost
a staple commodity. They are extremely

40 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
delicate, and are salted in great quantities
every year. They have gained the nick-name
of Digby chickens, and are e^orted to dif
ferent parts of the province in barrels.
December 14th and 15th. — The packet not
having arrived in the harbour from St. John's,
I chiefly amused myself by skating during
the day. I also unpacked my gun, and took
a walk towards the forest; but the snow lay
too deep on the ground for vralking without
snow-shoes, with which articles I was not as
yet provided ; neither had 1 any dog.
December 16th. — I received intelligence
that the packet had arrived in the harbour ;
but upon inquiry learnt that there was no
chance of her sailing, unless the wind should
happen to change.
December 17th to 21st. — The wind still
contrary, and the frost steady and sharp.
Both these days I made an attempt to shoot
wild-fowl, but without much success. As I
was follovmig a large cormorant I had winged,
over a salt-water creek which the tide had
left dry, I sank into a bog of blue mud, con^

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 41
siderably above my knees. In five minutes
the mud was frozen as hard as a stone upon
my clothes, so that I had much difficulty in
walking. Fortunately I was not wetted to
the skin, or I might have suffered from the
accident. As it was, I was obliged to be
thawed when I got home, before I could take
off some of my things. As soon as I had
dressed I went to the house of a man about a
mile distant, to see a dog which had been se
verely wounded by a species of lynx or wild
ca*, which the natives call the loup-cervier, or,
as they pronounce it, the lousiffee. The dog
was of the Labrador breed, extremely power
ful, and of enormous stature. Notwithstand
ing his shaggy coat and his ferocity, he very
nearly lost his life in the conflict, by the teeth
and talons of the creature, although the latter
was so inferior in point of size ; so much so
as not to exceed perhaps ten pounds weight ;
and it made its escape, after a struggle of
three or four minutes, just as the dog's master
had arrived to his assistance. The above de
scription of beast is very scarce.

42 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
Wolves and bears are in sufficient numbers
through all parts of the forests. As to the for
mer, they are shy and cowardly ; for there are
enough of deer and other smaller animals to ap
pease their hunger and moderate their ferocity.
.When they are met vrith, it is generally singly,
or in parcels of two or three together, trotting
sluggishly along. But while the wolves lead
an independent roaming life, the bears keep
nearer to the cultivated land, and in conse
quence are not on the most. neighbourly terms
with the farmers. Whenever one is heard of
in the neighbourhood, a posse comitatus sally
forth with guns and dogs to destroy him.
They wage a continual war with the poultry
and pigs ; and a large bear has been known
to enter a farm-yard, seize a heavy fat hog in
spite of his remonstrances, and carry his noisy
prisoner in his forepaws out of his stye, clam
bering over rail-fences, and effectually making
his escape, notwithstanding the clatter and
bustle of men in pursuit of him. Now and
then a countryman, armed with a club or a
pitchfbrk, has ventured to bring one to single

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 43
combat in the woods ; but then he should be,
as they call it, " pretty considerable smart,"
or the bear will whip his weapon with a jerk
out of his grasp and come immediately into
close quarters, in which case Bruin is pretty
sure to floor his opponent. However, they
generally run away from a man, and are
only at all formidable when they happen to
have young to defend.
December 22d. — I was aroused before
daylight by the intelligence of the wind having
changed ; it was some time, notwithstanding,
before the packet heaved anchor, and it was
nearly noon before we set sail with a fine
breeze out of the bay. The wind was fair,
but we were opposed by a violent head cur
rent, which caused a short chopping sea. The
day was foggy, so that we could but just dis
tinguish Partridge Island as we passed it,
which is about a couple of miles from St.
John's : a fort and lighthouse are built upon
it. In about six hours from the time of leav
ing Digby, our little sloop (one of thirty-six
tons) cast anchor in the harbour of St. John's.

44 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
On landing, the difference of climate between
the latter place and Digby was very percept
ible. In the first place, fuU half a foot more
snow lay on the ground, and the inhabitants
themselves estimate a fortnight's difference in
the seasons. The town is a good deal smaller
than Halifax ; and the extreme width of the
streets, and the irregular form of the houses,
give it a very unfinished appearance. As
there was no choice of inns, I went to an
hotel of the same description with that in
Halifax, and kept by an old widow, who re
ceived me with looks as cold as the chmate
she lived in, — not interesting herself in the
least about me, or caring at all whence I had
come or whither I was going. It seemed to
be with her, as with many others of her de
scription in the country, (if one were to judge
by their looks on arriving at their houses,)
entirely a matter of caprice whether one was
to be admitted or not. She gave me the
worst bed-room she had, and dreadfully cold
it was. Different people, at the stated hours of eat-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 45
ing, were in the habit of assembling them
selves from various parts of the town. Ones
or two chewed tobacco ; all spit on the car
pet ; and there was one big man who, I was
told, was a lieut.-colonel of the  militia.
He had a way of eating which I shall never
forget. Closing his teeth upon his knife, he
drew it through his mouth, so as to threaten
its enlargement up to his ear ; it was pretty
wide as it was, and as he filled it as full as
it would hold, a sympathetic jerk of his
goggle eyes marked always, by their involun
tary vibration, the precise moment when each
large morsel passed down his throat. After
tea, a great basin of hot water was brought
to the hostess, in which she washed the tea
cups and saucers ; and then, having deposited
her china in a cupboard, she left me and the
rest of the gentlemen by ourselves for the
evening. The frost set in at night with
great severity, and I found the house mi
serably cold.
December 23d to 25th.' — Sorely against
my will I sojourned these three days at Mrs.

46 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
 's. Neither entertained nor instructed
by my companions, I was most anxious to get
away at the expense of cold, solitude, or any
other inconvenience. Fortunately, most of
the party attended only at their meals, and,
having daily business to occupy them in their
shops, (or stores, as they call them,) they
came in with the first dish and disappeared as
soon as the cloth was removed, being obliged,
in fact, to eat against time. Indeed, they
used admirable despatch, and by blowing into
their soup, and picking bones with their fiiah
gers, they contrived to make dinner a very
short business, at the same time devouring
full as much as they paid for.
The next point in my journey was the town
of Fredericton, situated on the river St.
John's, and at a distance of eighty-one miles.
The usual winter route was all the way upon
the ice of the river, but the season was hardly
as yet sufficiently advanced to depend upon
its strength ; for however severe the frost may
be, the effect of springs and currents is so
great, that in large dieets of water there are

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 47
many particular places most deceitfully un
sound, long after the surface generally has
attained a very considerable thickness. Nor
can any period or degree of intensity of frost
suffice to render the traveUing upon the rivers
perfectly free from accidents, owing to the
insecurity of the ice ; for the confined air is
continually subject to burst its way from un
derneath, leaving chasms, which, becoming
immediately lightly skinned over with a new
coat of ice, deceive the traveller by their ap
pearance, and give no warning whatever till
the surface breaks in under the horse's feet :
and these air-holes, as they are called, are
met with at times, no matter what the thick
ness of the ice may be. The weather was
particularly severe, and seemed to indicate the
established setting in of the winter, and I
agreed with a man for the hire of a two-horse
sleigh from St. John's to Fredericton, and to
set out the next morning. I was to pay seven
pounds on my arrival at the latter place.
December 26th. — It was with much satiiS-
faction that I heard a favourable report of the

48 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
state of the river, although it was added, that
the passage was frequently exceedingly diffi
cult, owing to the roughness of the ice and
the circuitous routes which in many places
were indispensably resorted to. I had pur
chased a buffalo apron, or two skins of the
animal sewed together and lined with baize, —
an article of the greatest use and comfort : it
was to be my friend by day and by night.
Of a substance warm as sheepskin and of very
large dimensions, my knees and feet were to
be defended from the weather during the
many hours I must necessarily be exposed to
it in open carriages ; and it was to supply the
insufficiency of covering in the beds and places
I should have to lie down in to rest at night.
My sleigh came to the door early in the morn
ing ; and when I left St. John's the thermo
meter stood at 12° of Fahrenheit. The driver
occupied a small seat in front, and was a
rough-looking fellow both in dress and coun
tenance. He wore a huge cap made of the
skin of a fox, and the brush was sewed across
the top of it fore and aft, like the cone of a

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 49
helmet. A black stump of a tobacco-pipe
was in his mouth. He had a close-bodied
coat on his back, made of a blanket, with a
sash of red worsted round his waist. Crack
ing his short whip, he urged the horses
through the streets at their best speed,
which it soon became necessary to slacken ;
for the first stage was remarkably rough and
hilly. We proceeded very slowly till we ar
rived at an inn, called Poverty-hall, where
we baited.
We had now arrived on the banks of a small
river which empties itself into the river St.
John's. As soon as the horses were ready to
start, I got into the sleigh tolerably refreshed,
and the broad scorched face and replenished
pipe of the driver were sufficient, had I any
fears on his account, to entirely dissipate
them. The perspiration of the horses had
frozen upon them, but they looked healthy
notwithstanding. We now prepared for a
drive on the river ; and at first making our
way slowly over fragments of broken ice and
congelated heaps of snow, we came at last to
E

50 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
a sudden dip, and then were carried away
forwards with a launch upon the bed of the
river. The wind had cleared away the snow,
and the ice was nearly bare. The driver rat
tled his horses on at -a brisk gallop, till they
by degrees settled down into their fastest trot.
The sound of the runners upon the ice and of
the horses' feet, together with the perfect
indifference with which the driver treated
repeated loud cracks, which were distinctly
audible, was to me altogether new. Still the
motion was agreeable, and the labour of the
horses so light, that there was very much to
be pleased with; so, finding that he whose
business it was to judge of the soundness of
the ice was satisfied, I very soon left off think
ing about it.
We proceeded this stage of eleven miles to
Gidney's all the way on the river, which is in
most places about three quarters of a mile
broad. Thence ten miles more to Wurdon's:
five miles of this road, through the forest, were
particularly rough and bad. We then began
to descend, and reached the ice again at

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 51
Lyon's Creek, which is an arm of Belleisle
Bay. We passed along the creek, and the
wide expanding shores of the bay appeared in
front of us : it is about twelve miles long and
three broad, and, owing to the sweeping gusts
of wind which had incessantly passed over its
surface, it presented to the eye an uniform
sheet of clear ice ; and here we were roused
to life and animation by a brisk and long-
continued gallop, both the horses laying their
ears back and biting at each other all the
time. After the dull, heavy drag of the first
part of the stage through the wood, the
change of pace and of scene altogether was
in a great degree enlivening; the quick jingle
of the bells and the excitement of the horses
added a deeper hue to the purple cheeks of
the driver, who sat on his seat singing, while,
with his whip under his arm, he was striking
fire for a fresh pipe ; — and thus we spun
along till we came to Wurdon's. And now
we had arrived upon the St. John's river,
whose course I was to follow for nearly 300
mUes.
E 2

52 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
A dreary and a rugged desolation had hi'
therto marked the features of the path I had
travelled, — a heavy uninteresting sameness
everywhere pervaded the landscape ; but now
the scene was varied by bays and creeks, and
hour after hour the wide difference in chmate
and general appearance between North Ame
rica and England became more and more
strikmg. JCertainly, there are no two coun
tries more thoroughly different. An inter
minable extent of forest land, covered with
snow during a long and rigorous winter, pre
sents in itself a gloomy view of inanimate life;
a melancholy stillness, totally unUke the cul
tivated face of nature under a more genial
climate. It is true, that the slow but increaS'
ing process of agriculture may work important
change ; the axe may level the forest with
the earth, and the cheering beams of the sun,
admitted to its hidden recesses, may dissipate
the masses of snow which now feed the pier
cing winds of winter : but the greater the
extent of land laid bare, the greater contrast
must necessarily shew itself; as rivers, lakes,

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 53
rapids, and waterfalls everywhere becoming
developed, demonstrate an increased scale of
grandeur truly worthy of admiration.
We travelled eight miles farther to Geld
ing's, the track being the whole of the way
on the river. The cold was very intense, and
a covering of six inches of snow lay on the ice.
The average breadth of the river, subject here
to considerable, swells andtorrents^ was about
half a mile ; but it became often much wider,
and a degree of wildness and irregularity
added interest to the appearance of the coun
try as I proceeded on my journey.
December 27th.^ — The weather this morn
ing continued extremely cold ; but we start
ed early, and proceeded along the ice on the
bed of the river fourteen miles to Dale's.
We saved three miles by leaving the river on
our right and pursuing our course overland.
The tide is here remarkably rapid, and there
are a number of lakes in the neighbourhood :
of these, the Grand Lake is thirty miles long
and nine broad, and is distant about three
miles.

54 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
Having baited, we proceeded nearly four
miles up the river, when the ice exhibited an
appearance not very encouraging. Large
serpentine tracks of water were to be seen in
many parts, and heaps of broken ice, forced
up by the strength of the current, lay ranged
on each side in considerable profusion. From
some country people whom we met we were
told, that the passage was not safe; but that
the road on the opposite bank was already
sufficiently broken to render it tolerably good.
The driver, therefore, bore away for the
shore, which we were some time in reaching,
being obliged to go out of our way frequently
to avoid the weak and unsafe places. At last,
when within about a couple of hundred yards
from the land, there seemed a clear sheet of
ice, over which the driver urged his horses at
a brisk trot; when all at once the ice suddenly
gave way, and down went the horses head
foremost into a hole. We were going so
fast, that I was flung out a long way clear of
the water ; and as soon as I could get up, I
ran back to render my assistance. One of

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 55
the horses had already scrambled out, but
the other was lying on his side in the water,
with his head stretched out over the for
ward end of the hole, and supporting him
self by his cheek and all the strength of his
neck on the ice. The hole was nearly round,
and the diameter rather more than the length
of the horse ; but as the ice about it was full a
foot and a half thick, the sleigh had jammed
at the other end, and his hind quarters were
supported by the breeching. The poor crea
ture lay without struggling, although the
day was bitter cold, and he had sunk so low,
that his head only was above the surface of
the water. In this dilemma the driver, hav
ing freed the other horse from his harness,
slipped a noose of rope round the drowning
animal's neck, upon which we pulled till he
seemed nearly strangled : and this operation
is called in the country, very properly,
" choking." Whether it was that he floated
by means of the air thus forcibly retained in
his lungs, as the driver asserted, or whether
our united efforts caused him to rise, I cannot

56 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
say; but so he did: and we nad not continued
to tug long, before out he slipped on his side,
and, after a few kicks and struggles, stood
frightened and shivering once more on his feet
on the ice. We got to the shore after all
with some difficulty ; for the ice was broken
away for so great a distance from the edge of
the river where we attempted to land, that it
was with very great labour that the horses
could drag the vehicle over the hard snow and
shingle which obstructed their progress. Al
though the poor horse had been nearly a quarter
of an hour in the water, and the other also was
perfectly wet from the accident, both soon re
covered themselves, and before we had gone a
couple of miles were quite as well as ever.
The above may be cited as an instance of
the hardihood of the North American horse;
of which less care is taken, notwithstanding
the severity of the chmate, than in England.
The cold, severe as it is, seems to agree with
them very well, and they are continually kept
standing out of doors, without mercy, after
being violently heated. The fact is, that the

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 57
cold keeps down all tendency to inflammatory
attacks, and a striking instance of this occurs
with regard to flesh wounds. They are fre
quently receiving injuries between hair and
hoof from the calk or spike of the frosted shoe,
so severe as would be reckoned a serious acci
dent in England ; however, they are worked
invariably without bad consequences, and few
of the farmers' horses are to be met with
whose hoofs do not shew a succession of scars>
which remain tiU pared away in process of
time, at the bottom, by the blacksmith. Many
of the horses of the country have good blood,
being the progeny of stock formerly imported
by the Duke of Kent ; and others of good
substance and action are now and then brought
from the United States. The hay is bad
everywhere, — like Irish hay, dried without
being allowed to heat, and then thrown into
a barn or stacked under an open shed. Not
withstanding all these disadvantages, to which
it may be added, that the stables generally are
miserably protected from the weather, horses
now and then arrive from England, very soon

68 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
become perfectly reconciled to all their diffi
culties, and thrive as well as the rest.
We travelled very slowly, slipping and jolt
ing for about six miles parallel to the river.
We were obliged to cross over two very bad
wooden bridges, formed of loose logs laid
close together, which the horses' feet at every
step threatened to displace. These streams
formed a communication between the river
and lake Macquancup, which lake is about
five miles long and three broad. The distance
of this stage from Dale's to TiUey's is nine
miles. Major's Island, situated opposite the
latter house, is about three miles long and one
broad, and the property of a man who, with
three of his tenants, hves upon it. A few hun
dred acres only are cleared.
Having baited at Tilley's, we proceeded
ten miles more to Pelley's, the road all the
way being on the bank of the river. It be
came, however, better and better as we ap
proached the town of Fredericton, and we met
many more people on the road than usual.
Although it was quite dark when we arrived

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 59
at Pelley's, the driver was inclined to proceed
ten miles more to Fredericton, the road to
which place lay all the way on the bank of
the river. We did not come upon the ice till
we had arrived nearly opposite the town, —
not from the apprehension of its being unsafe,
but from the quantity of snow which lay upon
it, (it was more than a foot deep,) and would
have added so much to the labour of the
horses. No snow had fallen, as we were in
formed, during the period we had been on
our way from St. John's, notwithstanding it
lay so much deeper on the ground here than
at the latter place. I had suffered dreadfully
from the cold during this day's journey ; and
as the people at the inn were in bed and the
fires low when we arrived, nothing remained
but to ask permission to go to bed too. A
sleepy black woman ushered me into a com
fortless apartment, where the bedclothes and
my own buffalo skin together were quite in
sufficient to restore warmth. Every five
minutes I lamented my want of covering,
while a powerful inclination to sleep urged

60 JOURNEY FROM HAI^IFAX
me to patience in the forlorn hope of rest.
The thermometer was about 10° of Fahrenheit
December 28th. — Daylight no sooner ap
peared than I eagerly sought relief; and
dressing myself as quickly as my benumbed
fingers would allow, I went down stsurs to
the apartment below, where the fire was just
beginning to blaze. I had suffered not only
from cold during the mght, but from hunger;
but now aU my miseries were dissipated with
the smoke which went up the chimney, and a
sohd meat breakfast put me completely to
rights. Afterwards I took a rapid walk, and
on returning to the inn found a card lying on
my table from the managers of a subscription
assembly, which was to be held the same
evening in the town. As a few days' halt
for the purposes of equipment for my journey
was indispensable, I did not hesitate to ac
cept the invitation, and took measures to hire
a sleigh to take me to the assembly-room,
about a mile from the inn.
Soon after I had dined at an early hour, I
got into the sleigh, and in a very few minutes

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 61
was conveyed at a rapid pace to the assembly-
room, which I found remarkably well lighted,
and garnished with ladies, both old and young,
with the usual proportion of card-players, &c.
Most of the gentlemen wore boots with heavy
iron heels, the noise of which, as they paraded
the room in threes and fours between the
dances, produced a prodigious effect, and
created a wonderfully mihtary appearance.
As to the young ladies, they were, as in most
parts of the world under similar circumstances,
all in their best looks and extremely engaging;
but the time of aU others when they made the
most impression was at a late hour in the
evening, at the general rush into the cloak
and bonnet rooms.
Hitherto matters had been conducted with
out any very striking difference from similar
festivities at home ; but now the jingling of
the bells of the sleighs outside the door, and
the preparations of the ladies within, began
to savour of novelty. All wore snow boots,
or hst coverings for their feet and ancles,
which were buttoned, or laced, or tied, some-

62 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
thing after the manner of a half-boot; and
heaps of these were distributed, by the person
who had them in charge, to their fair owners;
who all at once, within a very small space,
began to put them on. All these snow boots
required fastening, and to fasten them it was
indispensable to stoop : some had chaus, but
most had not ; so that the variety of attitudes
in which the female figure was on that occa
sion displayed, I shall not readily forget, — much
less the dilemma in which I found myself
when, standing in the midst, and surrounded
by so many fine forms, I was unable to stir
an inch to the right or left, backwards or for
wards, without the imminent risk of disturb
ing their equilibrium. But they equipped
themselves with great rapidity ; and laden
with shawls, plaids, and calashes, sleigh after
sleigh received its burden, and away they
went with bells jingling and the white smoke
from the horses' nostrils shining in the lamps
of the remaining carriages.
December 29th. — I employed myself this
day ui procuring several necessary articles fw

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 63
my ensuing journey. I had now eighty-three
miles to Presque Isle, which was the ultimate
point passable by any sort of carriage ; the
usual route from thence to the St. Lawrence
being along the bed of the river St. John'si,
which is so wide and exposed to the force of
the wind, that the depth of the snow is by far
too great to pass in any other way than on
foot by the help of snow shoes. The traffic,
too, is very inconsiderable, as the fatigue of
such a mode of travelling deters people from
attempting it; and the communication is kept
open by a hue of small log-houses, occupied
by settlers, to whom grants of land have been
ceded for the especial purpose. There is a
very small military station at Presque Isle :
and across the desolate track above mentionedj
extending for upwards of 150 miles, the post
is conveyed by native Canadians, who are
from time to time accompanied by those per
sons whom urgent business may, though rarely,
induce to undertake the journey.
It was for this route that it was now ne
cessary to equip; for after leaving Fredericton

64 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
there was no town nor village at which the
required articles could be procured : namely,
a couple of tobogins, a tobogin bag, a canteen,
havresac, some pairs of mocassins, two pah's
of snow shoes for myself and servant, together
with other trifling things. A tobogin is a
small sleigh, drawn by men, of very simple
construction, and capable of conveying from
100 to 140 pounds of clothes or other bag
gage. It is made of quarter-inch plank,
about a foot and a half broad and eight feet
long ; the forward end is bent upwards, so as
the more readily to pass over any obstructing
body. A set of small holes are bored on each
side ; and the tobogin bag when fidl is then
laced tightly on the machine by means of a
cord. The whole thus forms a compact mass,
so secure that it may be tumbled and tossed,
dragged among stumps of trees, and rolled
over and over in the snow, and afl;er all be not
a whit the worse at the journey's end. Dogs
also are frequently used to draw them.
As to the mocassins, the common ones,
generally worn by the country people, are

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 65
made of ox hide ; and those of a better de
scription, of the skin of the deer. The hide
of the moose deer furnishes the very best, but
they are scarce ; as the animal, equal in size
to the Russian elk, is of a race nearly extinct;
a few only are killed every year in the spring,
when there is a glassy surface or crust over
the snow hard enough to bear the hunters on
their snow shoes, while it breaks in under, the
heavy creature, which is thus easily tracked
by his foot-marks. The mocassins intended
for traveUing are of a much larger size than
the common ones; for, besides other cover
ings, the foot is wrapped in a piece of blanket
cut for the purpose, about fourteen inches
long and eight wide, and then thrust into the
mocassin, which is secured firmly by long
thongs of soft leather passing round the ancles.
As the upper part of the mocassin is com
posed of loose flaps, by this method the foot
has an excellent protection, and is kept warm
and fit for the day's journey, either with or
without snow shoes.
A moderate sized snow shoe, being a light
F

66 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
wooden frame of an oval shape, is about forty
inches long, and eighteen in extreme breadth,
and its weight is about two pounds. The whole
surface within is formed of a net-work of thong,
like that of a racket, but rather stouter. A
small square aperture, about the size of a man's
hand, is left in the net-work, into which the
toes sink at every step, by which means the foot
is prevented from shpping back, and a purchase
is given to step from, while the snow shoe,
forming an artificial platform, remains still on
the ground. The foot is in no way confined to
the machine, except by the toes, by which it
is lifted, or rather dragged along at each step.
Although less previous practice than one
would at first imagine is necessary to walk on
snow shoes, stiU a novice commences a journey
under very considerable disadvantage. In
deed, so certain is the effect produced by the
exercise upon persons not trained to it, that
the Canadians have a name for the complaint
it brings on. They call it the " mal a ror
qiwtte", which is a violent inflammation and
swelling of the instep and ancles, attended

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 67
with severe pain and lameness. A journey on
snow shoes cannot, at all events, be undertaken
under greater disadvantages than by a per
son newly arrived in a strange country and
climate, fresh from a sea voyage. Much is
said by the natives of the superiority of such
a mode of travelling over any other ; but, in
spite of all their wonderful stories, a very
little practice will put an end to the pleasing
anticipation of a journey on snow shoes (un
less a very short one) by way of amusement ;
and I never saw any body who, after a rea
sonable trial, was not most heartily glad to
kick them off his feet, and at the same time
to make up his mind to walk during the remain
ing days of his life without their assistance.
There was a large Canada stove in the
kitchen of the inn, or hotel, where I had
taken up my abode, which was, during the
day, a favourite resort for the country people
and other customers of the house ; and a talk
ative noisy set was constantly kept up by the
comers in and goers out. Among the most
regular in attendance was an old Indian, who,
f2

68 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
leaving his squaw to take care of the wig
wam, which was in the neighbourhood, made
this kitchen his morning lounge — ^his club as it
were, where he heard the news, saw how the
world was going on, and drank as much rum
as the different visitors were inclined to give
him. To this man I introduced myself, and,
as he spoke English, and understood it very
tolerably, I made an appointment with him
the next morning. He agreed to come to me
at the inn, where I was to treat him with
plenty of rum, so as to make him feel quite
comfortable, and then we were to take a walk
together, he on his snow shoes, and I on mine,
as far as the wigwams, a few miles out of the
town, where I was to have the honour of
being presented to his squaw and family.
Novelties, therefore, after much cold, stupid
travelling, appeared at last to be on the point
of arriving.
December 30th. — The old Indian was true
to his appointment, and before nine o'clock
I had scarcely finished my breakfast, when he
walked into my room, saying, " May be mas-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 69
ter has got a Httle rum." Thinking that
whiskey probably would do as well I filled a
large wine glass which was upon the side
board, and he drank it without coughing or
sneezing. Eternal friendship beamed from
his small deep-set black eyes. The fire was
beginning rapidly to extract the odours of his
toilette, and he drew himself closer and closer
towards me, while he commenced a narration
relating particularly to his own address and .
bravery during the late American war. The
glass of spirits had not been evidently the first
which he had swallowed that morning, for his
story was frequently delayed by the slaver
which flowed from his mouth, and the indo
lent paralysis of his tongue. A buck-shot
which he had received from the enemy, and
which remained in his thigh, was the leading
topic of his conversation, and as his language
became more and more indistinct, his gesticu
lations were proportionably violent as he de
scribed his manner of crouching, advancing,
and firing upon the foe. I endeavoured to
quiet him, and remind him of the purpose of

70 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
his visit, by shewing him my snow shoes and
patting him on the shoulder with heavy
thumps, in order to bring him to his recollec
tion. But his subject interested him so
warmly, that he would not listen to reason.
He raved about his scars and his cuts, and
*• Look ye ", said he, " Indian man shew mas
ter the buck-shot." At the same time drawing
aside the flap of his dose bodied coat of coarse
blue cloth, he exhibited a thigh so tough and
stringy, as might, one would have thought,
have been quite shot proof; notwithstanding
there lay the object of his boasting, quite visi
ble under the skin. The exhibition was the
more simple, inasmuch as he wore no breeches.
At last I got rid of him, when, very fortu
nately for me, he encountered the landlady,
to whom, in the presence of the little world
of the inn, he insisted upon shewii^, a-^qpo*
to nothing, the buck-shot. This so enraged
her, that with a posse comitatus of her mmds,
black and white, they, by the help of brooms
and mops, turned liim forthwith out of doors
into the street. And now, by the help of

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 71
some men who were outside, we at last in
duced him to make a virtue of necessity. So,
finding that the doors of the house were shut
against him, that he could get no more rum
from any body on the spot, and having ob
tained a promise from me of a liberal quan
tity so soon as ever he should have acquitted
himself of his undertaking, he began with
great gravity and silence to tie on his snow
shoes, and, lighting a short black stump of a
tobacco pipe, which he took out of his pouch,
he commenced walking away with long strides,
without looking behind him, and leaving me
to follow as well as I could. My snow shoes
had been on some time, while I waited with
impatience the drunken dilatory loitering of
this savage : but now the pace he was going,
obliged me to exert myself to the utmost to
keep up to him. Puffing and smoking, he
walked on, and his gaunt sinewy frame was con
tinually gaining ground on me, when the point
of my snow shoe catching in the snow, tripped
me up. As I found it in vain to rise imme
diately, from the manner in vvhich my feet

73 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
were hampered, I was obliged to call out to
my guide. He returned to my assistance,
but, with very great difficulty, I had contrived
to get upon my legs before he came up. And
this accident occurred three or four times in
the first mile, after which I began to acquire
the little practice necessaiy to keep upon my
feet. Still I found the labour so much greater
than I had imagined, that I was almost in
clined to wish I had remained at Halifax till
the spring, to have proceeded then by the St.
Lawrence to Quebec. But now it was too
late ; here I was, and on I must go, caide qui
coute. We had left the road at the outskirts
of the town, and had proceeded in a straight
line for nearly three nules, when some smoke,
which appeared rising at a little distance,
marked the situation of the wigwams we had
come to see. There were twenty or thirty
of them ; and I soon found myself arrived at
the dtdce domum of my old guide.
A wigwam is Uke a bundle of hop-poles,
as they are piled in England during the sum
mer ; that is, it is shaped like a cone, and a

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 73
little larger than an ordinary tent. It is
formed of long poles, the ends of which are
placed on the ground in the circumference of
a circle, the points being brought together
and confined at the top. It is thatched from
the bottom to within a couple of feet of the
top, with the boughs of the spruce fir, and
large strips of birch bark; so that, in order for
the smoke to escape, an aperture is left at the
top, through which no snow enters, from the
current of air passing upwards. Rain is not
calculated upon in the winter. The wigwam
within side, rude as it is fashioned, is exceed
ingly warm, and not particularly incommoded
with smoke ; for, from its figure, the greater
quantity of air being at the bottom, and be
coming heated by the fire, a current is created
of sufficient force to oppose the smaller quan
tity towards the top. The fire is made in the
middle, and the whole family sleep with their
feet towards it.
The old Indian had been rather out of hu
mour and sulky; for he had not forgiven the
treatment he had received from the landlady

74 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
of the inn; but now arrived at his own fire
side, his heart began to warm again, and I
saw, by his gestures, that he was relating to
his squaw his own troubles and our adven
tures during our walk from the inn. The
squaw seemed to be many years younger of
the two, and she was sitting on the ground
busily at work, ornamenting a pair of mocas
sins with coloured porcupine quills. Her mo
ther, a very old woman, was swinging a child
bound up, hke an Egyptian mummy, in swad
dling clothes, strapped down fast and tight on
a board, and suspended on a peg from the
upper part of the wigwam. Whenever the
child cried, a touch on the board vrith her
hand set it swinging, so as to answer fidly the
purposes of a cradle. A boy of about ten
years old was making a wooden spoon out of
a piece of maple, which h^ hollowed for his
purpose vrith a large, broad, square pointed
knife. There were also a httle dog and a cat,
both of a lean and starved appearance. As
to furniture, there was none, except a rusty
gun, a rum bottle, and a tin saucepan. The

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 75
family sat upon logs of wood, and slept in
their clothes, such as they were. Although
the day was exceedingly cold, the inside of this
hut was warmer than the room of any house.
My guide took me into some of the other
wigwams, where we found very few men at
home. The women were invariably employed
very busily, some working at their needle,
others making brooms, small baskets of birch
bark, and other trifles of the same sort. I
was, however, very soon satisfied with what I
saw, and prepared to return to my inn, being
happy to leave the dirty wigwams, glad of
the opportunity of walking more leisurely
home, and not at all sorry to get rid of a
drunken companion.
There is nothing, perhaps, which proves the
resources of the country more than the dis
sipated and improvident habits of the native
Indian. With no other dependence than a ten
shilling Birmingham gun, a little coarse gun
powder, and some Bristol shot ; his fishing im
plements, and a coarse home-made bow and
arrows ; he reUes upon chance each day for his

76 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
food. If successful, he gorges ; sometimes he
fasts ; to-morrow never enters into his head ;
and whenever, and as often as he possibly can,
he gets thoroughly drunk. In spite of all this,
the forests and rivers supply him continually
with food, and in sufficient profusion ; and a
rooted antipathy to every sort of labour, toge
ther with his wandering habits, have hitherto
set at defiance all efforts to reclaim his race.
If, therefore, the idle and improvident find
the means to provide themselves against the
wants of nature, surely the hard-working and
industrious have even a better prospect of suc
cess. I walked back to my inn, but not without
difficulty. I found my way by the foot-marb
which remained on the snow, but I felt disap
pointed at the result of my first day's practice
on snow shoes.
December 31st. — Having now every thing
ready, I had to make the best of my way to
Presque Isle, so as to arrive there about the
time of the postmen, on their way to Quebec.
J preferred accompanying these men to hiring

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 77
an Indian as a guide, and had at first deter-?
mined to wait at Fredericton till they arrived
in the town from St. John's. Growing im
patient however, I determined to start the
next morning, and at all events to leave Fre
dericton, and get to Presque Isle as quick as
I could. I accordingly engaged a two horse
sleigh from a French inhabitant, who agreed
to take me the eighty-three miles, and return
with his horse and sleigh at his own expense
to Fredericton for eight guineas.
January 1st. — It was nearly noon when the
man made his appearance with his sleigh, a
tardiness which but ill accorded with the state
of the roads.. With the river on our right,
we proceeded along its bank through snow so
deep and untrodden, that with the greatest
labour and difficulty we advanced, hterally
speaking, at a ploughing pace. We reached
the house of the owner of the sleigh, where
we baited. We then proceeded on our jour
ney, and crawled on six miles more, and put
up for the night at Upper French Village. It
was near seven o'clock when we arrived, and

78 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
we had been nearly all the time since noon
going sixteen mUes.
The house we were now in for the night
was very particularly dirty and comfortless.
There were two beds m the room, one for the
host, his wife, and four children, (the youngest
of which was not more than a few weeks old,)
and the other was appropriated to me. The
driver and my servant lay on the boards before
the stove, which was a Canada one, and too
powerful for the size of the room. The heat all
night was quite suffocating, though the wea
ther certainly was not warmer than 20° of
Fahrenheit. The bed I slept in had green stuff
curtains, full of dust ; and the sheets were of
some soft spongy material which, if clean, at
least felt otherwise, and for the first time smce
I had been in the country, I was tormented
with fleas. It was impossible to get a wink
of sleep ; for, besides my own grievances^ there
were other causes of disturbance. The child
cried incessantly in spite of all the woman
could do to pacify it. It had, I believe, no
thing at all the matter with it, but seemed,

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 79
from sheer frowardness, to imagine that the
little world of our miserable apartment was
made for itself. Sometimes the good wife sat
up in her bed with the little animal hugged
up between her chin and her elbows, hushing
and rocking herself and it ; then she patted
its back, and still it cried. Then ten times (I
dare say) in the course of the night, out of
bed got the poor husband, and stood for seve
ral minutes at the stove, with a pair of lean
bare legs, and an extremely short shirt, stir
ring something in a saucepan with the broken
stump of an iron spoon. A picture of obedi
ence and misery ! Then he got into bed again.
Then came a long consultation, and almost
a quarrel, about what was best to be done.
Then the grand specific was administered,
but all without effect. At last the other
children awoke, and the youngest of these
began to cry too : and the mother said it was
the big one's fault, and beat her. So off she
went, and we had a loud concert, till, what
with the noise of the children, and the heat,
and the dirt, and the fleas, I felt ready to rush

80 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
out of doors and roll myself in the snow.
But every thing must have an end, and so at
last the children became all tired out, and by
degrees grew quiet ; and in the morning I
found I had been asleep, and got out of bed
determined to be off as soon as I possibly
could. January 2d. — It was before sun-rise when
the sleigh came to the door, and I got into it,
happy to exchange the fusty exhalations of
this room, for the piercing cold of a Canadian
winter's morning. We proceeded ten miles
to Ingram's, by a road equally bad with the
one we had travelled the day before. The
snow was just as deep, and the way not more
broken ; therefore our pace was still a slow
walk, occasionally delayed by drifts, through
which the cattle could only make their way
by courage and floundering on with all their
might. Sometimes they stopped short, and
with distended nostrUs, and eyes expressive of
fear, they seemed inclined to give it up alto
gether. But they were both high-spirited
animals, and we were indebted to them for

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 81
overcoming difficulties, which a person less
experienced than the driver would have hesi
tated to set their faces to.
Occasionally, during this stage, we encoun
tered some httle ravines, or precipitous gul
lies, which crossed the road, and which formed
small creeks or outlets of the river. There
were several of these which it was necessary
to pass, and at the bottom of each was a rude
wooden bridge without side-rails, and scarcely
broad enough to permit three horses to pass
abreast ; notwithstanding which, we went over
with our pair always at full gallop : much to my
annoyance at first, till I found that the cattle
possessed quite as much sense as their driver,
and sufficiently understood what they were
about. The rarines were so steep, that in
order to ascend one side, it was absolutely
necessary to rush down the other to gain an
impetus ; and the distance from the top to the
bottom was about 150 yards. The bridges
were composed of pine logs laid loosely toge
ther, which made a rattUng and a clatter as
the horses' feet came upon them. The French-
G

82 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
man drove with long cord reins, without any
contrivance to prevent them falhng down the
horses' sides, and the rest of the tackhng was
of an equally simple fashion. The cattle were
indeed but barely attached to the vehicle ; a
matter of httle importance during the former
part of the journey, but now deserving a little
more consideration : for the horses, so sure
as they arrived at the verge of each rarine,
seemed to take all sort of charge upon them
selves, while the driver, jielding to circum
stances, sat still upon his seat. Up went their
heads and tails, and, hke a pair of hippogrifs,
down they went with a dash tUl they reached
the bridge, when, closing together, laying
back their ears, and cringing in their backs,
they rattled over the logs at full gallop, and
up the opposite bank, tiU the weight of the
vehicle brought them to a walk. Now came
the turn of the driver ; and as he was per
fect in all the words which frighten horses, he
used them with such emphasis, jumping out of
the sleigh at the same time with considerable
activity, while the animals dragged it through

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 83
the deep snow, that he contrived to keep them
to their collar till they had completed the
ascent. Some address was required to prevent being
thrown out of the vehicle by the violence of
the motion. It was absolutely necessary to
retain fast hold of the side; and then the
thumps and jerks were such as cannot be
readily imagined. Nothing, in fact, can be
worse than the motion of a sleigh on a rough
road. There is a grinding sensation which
threatens the breaking up of the whole ma
chine. It feels as if parting in the middle and
going asunder. The jolts inflicted by lumps
of hard snow and other obstacles, may be com
pared to the blows of a short chopping sea
upon a boat making head-way against wind
and tide. The bones rattle by the concus
sion, as one helplessly submits to discipline as
rigid as an unfortunate infant, when violently
shaken by a passionate and drunken nurse.
Our sleigh was dragged heavily along, while
the horses frequently came to a stand still.
The whole of the distance of this stage, the
g2

84 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
forest abounded with shumac and hemlock
trees; the former well known as an orna
mental shrub in England, and the latter a
stately species of fir growing to a large size,
with a remarkably small leaf, and the wood
particularly adapted to purposes which require
it to remain under water. The greater part
of the way from Fredericton, the ice would
very probably have been sufficiently firm to
have borne our sleigh, but we were advancing
into inhospitable regions, where the traffic
becoming less and less, the road had been but
little beaten, and the bed of the river had not
been used at alL Houses were now so scarce
that the country seemed altogether deserted ;
not a bird was to be seen, except now and
then a sohtary wood-pecker : the only species
left to its winter habitation. Had a fall of
snow increased our difficulties, recourse must
have been had to our snow shoes. The horses
were in a continual foam from dead pulls, and
floundering out of holes formed under the
snow by the roots of trees which had rotted
out of their sockets. The cold was intense.

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 85
and the icicles on their noses and under their
belKes jingled like beads or bugles. We were
obliged to walk during the greater part of the
way. Having, however, arrived at Ingram's, we
baited, and with as httle delay as possible pro
ceeded onwards on our journey. With equal toil
and difficulty the horses completed eleven miles
more to Maclachlan's, the whole of which dis
tance I was obliged to walk by the side of the
sleigh. We baited again, and the driver,
anxious to proceed notwithstanding the fatigue
of the horses, brought them out once more.
They very soon became quite knocked up, it
was perfectly dark, and the cold intense. Al
though we had only travelled four miles from
the last house, we had been for many hours
during the day exposed to the weather, and
after all, having started before sun-rise, had
only completed twenty-five miles. However,
by good fortune, a light appeared at a httle
distance from the road, which we found pro
ceeded from a log-house, where the driver pro
posed to remain for the night. With all the

86 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
feelings of cold and dreariness that surrounded
us, and leaving the man to settle and arrange
all matters of etiquette with the owner of the
house, I followed and submitted myself to his
arrangements. But I need not have put my
self to much uneasiness, for in that part of the
country matters of this sort are soon settled.
I was rather surprised to see the driver enter
the house quite as if it were his own. He
hardly said " how do ye do" to the master and
mistress, who were quietly drinking their tea;
but, throwing a large log which he had
dragged in with him upon the fire, and taking
a key which was hanging upon a nail in the
wall without asking for it, he disappeared for
the purpose of putting up his horses.
I felt that I was in a private house, and
said some civil speech expressing myself ob
liged by being permitted to remain under the
roof for the night. But I was quite at cross
purposes ; and I might just as well have re^
served my apologies for future occasions. At
present I had quite enough to do to answer
the questions which were put to me about

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 87
myself and the " old country." I found I
was a welcome guest, and as the fire blazed
up prosperously, I looked at the boards in
front of it as at my place of repose for the
night ; for the people had not a bed to give
me. As countries become more civiUzed, the
social feehng is proportionably restrained;
and hospitahty and barbarism are, it is said,
generally met with together. Still humanity
is admirable, which, flowing from the heart,
offers shelter to the stranger, who elsewhere
might seek it in vain. The circumstances of
the country induce a necessity for the exertion
of hospitality ; for in a climate so severe, and
where houses of pubhc entertainment are not
everywhere to be met with, common consent
establishes a reciprocity of accommodation,
where to remain out of doors all night would
be the cost of life. In fact, a man cannot be
said to be master of his own house so as to
exclude the visitors whom chance may throw
in upon him. Sleeping without any other
fastening than a latch to his door, a dozen

88 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
strangers may enter one after another, who,
dropping dovra to rest before the fire, take up
their quarters for the night without the cere
mony of asking leave of any body. The
poorest person is not the least welcome, nor,
in the exercise of hospitality, is any regard
paid to condition and appearance. The people
have enough to answer their own wants, and,
as they are secluded from the world in a man
ner, are remunerated by the news they occa
sionally receive from the passing traveller; in
deed it is a question, which of the two is the
best off, the penniless guest or the host himself;
who cannot, in his own house, walk across his
bed-room after nine o'clock at night, without
the risk of disturbing some great fellow stretch
ed out and snoring before his fire, and who,
if he happen to be trodden upon, will swear
as loudly as if the whole house belonged to
him. My landlord and his wife were both ex
tremely civil, good people. They had cows,
pigs, and poultry, and all the requisites of a
small farm; and finding by degrees, in the

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 89
course of the evening, that my stock of provi
sions was expended, they thawed and set be
fore me a frozen goose, which I thought
excellent. They listened to me with great
apparent satisfaction while I related to them
the different httle incidents of my journey,
such as I thought would amuse them ; and
having in return for their goose filled them as
full of news as I could, I prepared to stretch
myself on the boards before the fire. With
my feet towards it, I wrapped myself up in
my buffalo skin, and, laying my head upon a
log of maple, I listened to the crackling of
the large pieces of wood freshly heaped upon
it, till I fell sound asleep. I did not awake
till the morning ; and how my landlord and
his wife got to bed, although they slept in the
same room, I really cannot tell. In the morn
ing I had seated myself on my wooden pillow
before the happy pair had arisen ; but the
ceremonies of the toilet were quickly per
formed by all parties, and a warm breakfast
completed the preparations for the ensuing
day's journey.

90 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
January 3d. — It was scarcely daylight
when we were quite ready to proceed ; for
the snow lay so deep on the ground, and the
difficulty of getting forward was consequently
so great as to make our progress quite uncer
tain. Sitting in the sleigh was now out of the
question ; the horses had quite enough to do
to draw it when empty. Proceeding at a rate
of not more than three nules an hour, the
driver led the horses ten miles to PhiUips's,
which house is situated on the banks of the
river. Having baited, we got on fourteen
miles more, walking all the way, and arrived
at a house, where, as it was now quite dark,
we put up for the night. I got here a very
comfortable clean bed. We performed the
last three miles of the stage on the ice of the
river, which was tolerably clear of snow.
About a couple of hours before sunset, a con
siderable change took place in the weather,
which, during the whole time since I had left
Fredericton, had been intensely cold. It be
came suddenly mild, and before nine o'clock
a rapid thaw set in, attended with rain and

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 91
sleet; the rain, however, lasted for a very
short time, and was succeeded by a thick fall
of snow. This event seemed entirely to mar
our further progress ; for labour greater than
the poor animals had already encountered did
not appear practicable. Should the worst
come to the worst, I was now only eighteen
miles from Presque Isle, and expected every
hour to fall in with the postmen. I felt ra
ther anxious on this head, as I did not much
like to trust to an Indian as a guide.
January 4th. — At daylight this morning
the snow was still falling in great abundance,
so that, what with the state of the weather
and of the horses, our doom seemed fixed for
this day at least ; we therefore voted expe
dient what was unavoidable, and granted the
poor animals a boon which it was not in our
power to withhold from them, — that of a day's
rest. Bad as the travelling was, it was better
than remaining in our present quarters ; for
neither quiet nor comfort being within my
reach, I found myself more satisfied with
fatigue. The driver had estabhshed himself

92 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
by the side of the fire, where, by the aid of
his pipe and a bottle of rum, which he had
not forgotten to bring with him, he at first
began to hsten to the conversation of the other
persons in the room, and by degrees to become
a talker himself, tiU he made himself perfectly
happy and comfortable ; nor did he seem to
care at all which way the world went. There
were four or five men in the small room we
were in, some belonging to the house, and
others weather-bound like ourselves ; and these
fellows had all got the best places at the fire,
drinking and smoking. As their voices be
came elevated, unfortunately the imagination
flagged, and they became a noisy set, from
whom there was neither entertainment nor in
formation to be derived.
And so I had nothing to do, but listening
with anxiety to the howhng of the wind, which
was blowing clouds of snow against the win
dows, to reflect what a forlorn place I was in.
I determined to run all risks, by leaving it at
dayhght the next morning. I walked back
wards and forwards, and fidgeted, — all to no

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 93
purpose. Every time I opened the door of
the house to look out to windward, I was
greeted by the execrations of the whole crew
within, — perhaps not without reason, for the
wind, while it made balloons of the women's
petticoats, filled the room with a whirlpool of
snow, and as it took one's whole strength
to close the door against it, it seemed every
time that the weather was growing still worse
and worse. But at last, about the middle of
the day, things began to mend : it suddenly
became brighter, the snow ceased to fall, and
the change grew more and more evident,
till the sun himself gladdened the scene with
his presence; and, flying before him, the heavy
full-charged snow clouds in rapid succession
rolled away to leeward. As the sky grew
clearer and clearer, all our countenances light
ened up also ; and I had not been long en
gaged in reading the congratulatory looks of
the driver, who was now in a humour to be
pleased with any thing and every thing, when
the door opened, and two men on foot, of a
tempest-driven appearance, with their clothes

94 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
and caps covered with snow, having each a
pair of snow shoes slung at his back and a
large white leathern bag across his shoulder,
entered the room. Waiting for a moment on
the threshold, they shook the loose snow off
their feet by striking the hinder part of the
calf of each leg with the great toe of the op
posite foot very rapidly, — a Canadian fashion,
as common as making use of a mat in Eng
land, and which becomes so much a habit, that
the Indians never enter a room, even in sum
mer, without going through the motion.
These men were received with erident marks
of cordiahty by every one in the house, and I
discovered, to my great satisfaction, that they
were the identical persons I expected to meet
with, — the postmen in charge of the mail-bags
from Quebec, whom, on their return thither,
I had made up my mind to engage as guides.
They were both native French Canadians, one
having, to all appearance, a little — or not a httle
— Indian blood ui his veins, being, as is very
common in the country, crossed with the savage.
I lost no time in commencing a negociation,

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 95
which I completed by agreeing to give them fif
teen pounds as guides from Presque Isle across
all that tract of country necessary to be traversed
in snow shoes ; that is to say, along the course
of the river St. John's by the Madawaska
settlement and lake Tamasquatha to the shores
of the St. Lawrence ; and they were to draw
my baggage on my two tobogins. As they
had no means of dehvering over the mail bags
of which they were in charge, they proposed
the house of a Mr. Turner, at Presque Isle,
(which place was, as I have already observed,
eighteen miles distant,) as the point of ren
dezvous. It was uncertain when they would
be able to arrive there, for it depended upon
their getting rid of the mail-bags. I had a
reasonable expectation of not being detained
long from the known powers of these men as
pedestrians. At all events, they had no
sooner completed the arrangement than they
prepared to quit the house, and, after baring
lighted their pipes and taken a dram apiece,
they bid us all farewell, and proceeded on
their journey in high spirits, keeping up a

96 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
long light trot tiU out of sight. These mat
ters being now well off my mmd, and the
weather appearing once more settled, the
house, its inhabitants, and the prospects of
my journey assumed " couleur de rose."
January 5th. — When we started, at day
light in the morning, we found the country
enveloped in a thick fog, — so dense, that we
were unable to distinguish any object at more
than twenty yards distance ; at the same trnie
it was so intensely cold, that our clothes were,
in the space of an hour, frozen stiff with ice.
I set out walking : though the state of the
roads was better than could be expected, con
sidering the quantity of snow which had fallen,
and which lay hghtly on the surface; still,
however, the traveUing was bad enough, so
much so, that the horses fell several times
during the stage, notwithstanding the ex
tremely slow pace at which they proceeded.
All these roads, or rather tracks, have been
originally made by the simple operation of
chopping down the trees with the axe, gene
rally in the winter season, so that stumps are

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 97
left standing in the ground, and a consider
able number of years elapse before they rot
and leave a hole. Sometimes the horses, in
going along, blundered over some of these
stumps barely covered with snow, so that
the bottom of the sleigh would have been
staved in had we been in it. Now and then
their fore feet sank in altogether, and the poor
animals would pitch forwards upon their noses ;
they were so frosted and bespangled with hoar
and ice, that it would have been difficult to
say, ten yards off, what description of creatures
they were. How their driver got them back,
I do not know.
I had left off my shoes on learing Frede
ricton, and had adopted mocassins instead.
Though I had felt great advantage from the
change in walking through the deep snow,
this day I experienced an inconvenience which
I had not anticipated ; for the hard stumps
of the trees were in some places so treacher
ously covered with snow, that I repeatedly
struck my toes against them so hard as to put
me to considerable pain; at this the driver
H

98 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
was much amused ; for, said he, " Monsieur,
we call dat in dis country, de dram." He
contrived, by habit, to avoid such accidents.
'Within a few miles of Presque Isle, we came
to some places where bullocks had been em
ployed to break the road, and their tracks
were visible where they had been driven back
wards and forwards for that purpose.
It was quite dark when we came to the end
of the day's journey, and I had had nothing
to eat since daylight; so that I was rather ex
hausted when I arrived at an old crazy house,
the residence of Mr. Turner. I begged for
something to eat, and a few slices of fat pork
fried up with chopped potatoes were set be
fore me. I thought, at the time, that no
thing I had ever eaten tasted so well; and the
repast being very soon concluded, I begMi to
look a little about me, and at the people in
the apartment I was in. I was particularly
amused with the appearance of Mr. Turner.
My host Was, I beheve, an American, — a t^,
withered, thin man, about sixty years of age,
with extremely small l^s and thighs, narrow

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 99
shoulders, long back, and as straight as a
ramrod. Innumerable short narrow wrinkles,
which crossed each other in every direction,
covered his face, which was all the same co
lour — as brown as a nut ; and he had a very
small mouth, which was drawn in and pursed
up at the comers. His eyes were very little,
black, keen, and deep set in his head. He
hardly ever spoke ; and I do not think, that
while I was in his house I ever saw him smile.
He was dressed in an old rusty black coat and
trowsers, both perfectly threadbare, and glazed
about the collar, cuffii, and knees with grease ;
and he sat always in one posture and in one
place, — bolt upright on a hard wooden chair.
He seemed to me the picture of a man who,
from want of interest in the world, had fallen
into a state of apathy ; — and yet that would
seem impossible, considering that Mr. Turner
was the chief diplomatist in these parts, — the
representative of the commissariat depart
ment, charged with the duties of supplying
the garrison at Presque Isle, — a man of high
importance; in his station, invested with loca;!
H 2

100 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
authority, and in direct communication and
correspondence with the higher powers at
Quebec. Notwithstanding all this, the ener
gies of Mr. Turner's body and mind were
suffered to he at rest ; for the garrison con
sisted of a corporal and four privates, making
in aU five men, to supply whom with rations
was nearly his whole and sole occupation;
and so he had gradually sobered dovm into
the quiet tranquil sort of person I found him.
A daughter, a fine, handsome, bouncing girl
under twenty, with sparkling black eyes and
an animated countenance, seemed to bear tes
timony to days gone by, when affairs were
somewhat more hvely ; but the contrast now
was sufficiently striking ; for without regard
ing her, any body, or any thing, he kept his
place and attitude, sitting always close to the
stove. There was a small square hole in the centre
of the door, (as there generally is in all Ca
nada stoves,) made to open and shut with a
slider as occasion requires : this he kept open
for a purpose of his own ; for by long prac-

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 101
tice he had acquired a knack of spitting
through this httle hole with such unerring
certainty, by a particular sort of jerk through
his front teeth, that he absolutely never missed
his mark. This accomplishment was the
more useful to him, as he was in the habit of
profusely chewing tobacco, — all the care he
seemed to have ! — and he opened the door of
the stove now and then, to see how the fire
was going on.
I had been indebted to Miss Turner for my
supper, and she had made arrangements to
prepare an apartment for me in the house, to
which when I retired I found I had made an
exchange very much for the worse. The
house was ill-built, and my room so miser
ably cold, that to sleep in it seemed a for
lorn undertaking. Several panes of glass
were cracked, and others were entirely out
of the windows, while the ceihng and walls
were also out of repair. They had no bed to
offer me, and a hay paillasse was the substi
tute. This I drew as near to the chimney as
I could, as soon as Miss Turner had consigned

102 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
me to my meditations. Wrapping myself in my
buffalo skin, I attempted to go to. sleep ; but
that was qu%e impossible, and I never remem
ber to have suffered so severely from the cold,
while I was in the country, as on that night.
I had no thermometer ; but the temperature,
I am sure, was some degrees below zero. On
getting up in the night to mend the fire with
the tongs, the iron froze to my fingers, so as
to feel quite sticky, — an effect of cold I have
subsequently experienced on several occasions.
I passed a very miserable night, sometimes
walking about the room and beating my sides
with my arms, and then trying in vain to
sleep by the fire.
January 6th.-^It was no sooner daylight,
than I left my room in search of the apart
ment vvhere I had passed the evening, which
was, owing to the power of the Canada stove,
quite of another temperature. Mr. Turner
and his daughter made their appearance, and
breakfast was prepared. This refreshment,
though great, was not sufficient to remove
the degree of cold with which I was suffering.

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 103
so I prepared myself for a walk on my snow
shoes. I had heard no more of my guides
since I had concluded my bargain,^ with them;
therefore was obliged to await with patience
their arrival : nothing else would have induced
me to remain so long at Presque Isle.
Mr. Turner had resumed his place on the
wooden chair, and the morning was clear and
frosty when I set out. My snow shoes were
now more useful .than ever, for their weight
increased the labour of walking, and so re
stored what I had so much need of — warmth.
As soon as I had tied them on, such was the
dreary, desolate state of every thing around
me, that I never felt more undetermined what
course to pursue. The river St. John's, with
a Covering of four feet of snow on the ice,
pursued its course through a rarine at a little
distance from the house. The forest, on both
sides of its banks, reached the water's edge;
and a small square patch of cleared land was
all that pointed out to the eye the dominion
of Mr. Turner. I descended the bank and
crossed the river, entering a little way into

104 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
the forest. All was silence and solitude ; ani
mals and birds seemed to have deserted the
country, — except the squirrel and the wood
pecker, and these at times I could hear a long
way off. The squirrel followed me as I went
along, chattering and jumping from tree to
tree among the branches ; — a man of pleasure,
eager in the pursuit of the novel and the cu
rious ! — while the woodpecker, like a steady
man of business, hammered and rapped away,
less easily allured from his daily occupation.
I rested and listened. There was no wind ;
even these small sounds pervaded large regions
of space ; and, at intervals, the creaking of
the old trees, and the heavy lumping fall of
the clotted snow through the branches, ren
dered the contrast with animated nature still
more dismal. I left the wood, and proceeded
along the bed of the river, which was of
considerable breadth ; and here I walked for
upwards of an hour, without seeing a track
or footmark of any sort. Had I not known
that I was within a short distance of a human
dwelhng, nothing that I then saw could have

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 105
led me to conclude that such had been the-
case. When I returned to the house, I found that
the guides, whom I had engaged on the 4th,
had arrived soon after my departure, baring
travelled a great part of the night ; and they.
Miss Turner, and my host, were about to sit
down to a mess of fried pork and potatoes,
then hissing and sputtering on the top of the
stove. I was well prepared to join in the re
past, and we all sat down together. — The
society now seemed to be receiring a tone ;
and though Mr. Turner still persevered in not
saying a word, his daughter's features had
received a polish from her office of cooking,
and her eyes had increased in brilliancy to no
small degree of intensity. The guides were
boisterous vulgar fellows, who joined loudly
in the conversation, intruding upon every body
with elbows and shoulders. I frequently
withdrew my chair to make way for them ;
but found hints were thrown away upon men
so nearly related to the aborigines of the
country. They, in fact, knew no better,

106 JOURNEY FROM HALIFAX
spoke bad French, were full of Gasconade,
and, while they thus asserted a miserable in
dependence, it was really curious to consider,
that these fellows were not only my servants,
but my slaves, — rather, my beasts of burden
and draft, for they were the next morning to
harness themselves and draw my baggage over
the snow. With this reflection, I left them
to enjoy their prerogative of independence,
and became a hstener as well as Mr. Turner,
whose apathy nothing could disturb, and he
still shewed no other, symptoms of animation
than to spit into the fire through the little
square hole, and now and then to rout about
in his pocket to find his tobacco box.
The day flagged heavily, and night at
last came, when, profiting by past experience,
I lay down on the boards before the Canada
stove, having taken early possession of what
I fancied to be the warmest position for the
night. The rest very soon followed my ex
ample ; Mr. Turner and his daughter retired
to their several apartments ; and at eight
o'clock all the house was quiet.

TO PRESQUE ISLE. 107
January 7th. — A delay on the part of one
of the Canadians prevented our setting for
ward this day on our journey ; and I never
remember to have been so anxious to get
out of any house I ever was in in my life, as
this. To be impatient was of no avail. The
half-bred Canadian had disappeared on a risit
to his dam Sycorax, or on some other expedi
tion in the neighbourhood, no matter to me
whither : we could not go without him,
and that settled the question. Late in the
evening, however, he returned, with a small
bag of provisions he had been to fetch. He
lifted up the latch, and, at the first glimpse
of his ugly face, feeling all the joys of hbera-
tion, and heartily tired of being where I was,
in the joy of my heart I exclaimed to myself,-
" Sic me servavit Apollo ! "

108

JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
TO RIVIERE DE CAPE.
Early in the morning a large mess of fried
pork and potatoes was sputtering on the
stove, and the party speedily assembled to
partake it. I was happy to find the diet
agreed with me, seeing little chance of getting
any thing else for some time to come. The
tug of war had now arrived, and the guides
set about busily to prepare for our march.
They cut leathern thongs with their knives,
tied knots with their teeth, over-hauled the
snow shoes, mocassins, and tobogins, and very
soon put every thing in perfect order. It re
quired but little time to load the tobogins.
All the small articles were put into the tobo
gin bags, the larger things were wrapped up
in the blankets and buffalo skin, and then
altogether they were laced round with cord,
so compact and tight, and fastened to the
tobogin, that no accident could possibly dis-

JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE. 109
turb them. When the tobogins were ready,
the men took a broad strap of leather, of
which they made a sort of collar, passing over
the breast and shoulders, to which a rope
being fixed, each man was ready in harness,
and able to draw his load with his arms per
fectly at liberty. Our snow shoes were now
all on, and at nine o'clock in the morning we
.marched away in single fUe, following the
leader. We wended our way dovra the rarine to
wards the river St. John's, which we imme
diately crossed; and the ice, which I had
walked upon the day before, fortunately with
impunity, not being considered safe, we were
obhged to pursue our course through the
wood, in a Hne parallel with this river, where
stumps of trees and fallen logs presented im
pediments which added to the difficulty of
travelling at this the very beginning of our
journey. And thus we proceeded about four
miles before we were enabled to go upon the
river. Besides myself and servant, three other
travellers had joined our " caravan ", from Mr.

110 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
Turner's. Our party, therefore, consisted (rf
seven persons, all of whom, with the excep
tion of the guides, were perfectly unaccus
tomed to walking on snow shoes. I had ima
gined that I was matched in a fair handicap
with men who were each to puU a laden to
bogin after him, and therefore it never en
tered into my imagination that these fellows
would beat me in pace with such odds against
them; but here I found my mistake, and
saw plainly that the advantage of practice
was far more than equivalent to the weight of
draft of a little machine, which slipped hghtly
and easily over the level surface of the snow,
and which but very slightly impedes the
progress of persons accustomed to draw it.
On these fellows walked, without looking at
all to the rear, and we aU followed in a string,
the more extended the farther we went.
Added to the weight of the snow shoes themr
selves, they became clogged with ice; for
there was much water between the surface of
the river and the snow, which froze immedi
ately, and produced a most heavy, incura-

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. Ill
brance. From the time we started (nine
o'clock in the morning) we continued to walk
incessantly till half-past four, the guides occa
sionally halting in order to collect the party
together, and allow time to break the ice
which, adhered to the snow shoes, by beating it
off with short sticks with which we had all pro-
rided ourselves for the purpose. Our rate was
less than two mUes an hour, although we la
boured hard to proceed, so clogged and im
peded were we by the weight of the snow
shoes. We went on without meeting a single per
son over a tract presenting no change to the
eye ; we had one uniform white expanse of
snow before us, and we were bounded on each
side by the heavy black wall of forest trees.
However, at last, at half-past four, the grate
ful appearance of a small patch of cleared land
was hailed with infinite gratification, and, one
after another, we all entered the small log-
house which was to be our place of rest for
the night. It was of the most simple con
trivance; we were altogether in one room;

112 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
a fire composed of enormous logs blazed on
the hearth, and a cord went across the ceiling,
or more properly the roof, (for ceiling there
was none,) above the fire. On this cord the
mocassins and stockings of all the party, which
were quite wet from the springs we had occa
sionally passed over, were suspended, and no
one seemed to usurp more authority in the
establishment than another. The host and
his family took matters very quietly. Their
ftirniture was such as could not be very readily
destroyed, corresponding with the walls of the
house, which consisted of entire pine logs,
having the interstices filled up with mud and
moss. Being arrived and under shelter, the
state of rest from fatigue was most particu
larly grateful. As to comfort, I had the
means of making myself dry and warm, so I
was not at all the worse for my day's work,
and could appreciate the homely fare which
was preparing for me, consisting of salted
pork and sliced potatoes.
We had travelled only ten miles, according
to the computed distance from Mr. Turner's

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 113
at Presque Isle, but the measurements had
been taken from point to point, at a time when
the ice was perfectly sound, and were neces
sarily very much exceeded in a journey thus
undertaken at the very beginning of the sea
son, when it was impossible to pursue the
nearest and most direct course ; so that the
ground traversed, was a great deal more than
the measured distance, and, in fact, admitted
of no comparison with it. I had felt little in
convenience from the wet during the morning,
as it had hardly penetrated the coverings of
my feet and legs; but a very few minutes after
arriving in the house, the warmth of the fire
caused the glass slippers to thaw, and I be
came thoroughly soaked. Although the dwell
ing of a Canadian peasant may not deserve
much praise, too much cannot be Said of his
fire. An enormous log, so big as to require
the strength of two or three men with levers
to bring it in, is laid at the back of the hearth,
and this the Canadians call the " buche " : a
large one lasts full forty-eight hours, and ours
this night was a brilhant specimen. So that
I

114 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
my lodging was at least good, and I slept
soundly on the boards, wrapped up in my
buffalo skin.
January 9th. — It was no sooner day-hght
than the room was replenished with tobacco
smoke, which formed, the preceding evening,
a cloud so dense as to render it difficult to
distinguish a face across the apartment. I
jumped up and found the guides anxious to
proceed, so I got my breakfast as soon as I
could, and that was with httle delay enough,
for a shoe of pork toasted at the end of a fork
was all I had any chance of procuring : nor
had I any tea. On starting, we found that
more snow had fallen in the night, which,
although it lay soft and light, caused the
walking to be, if any thing, worse than before.
We passed over many places where water
under the snow froze immediately from the
intense cold, and encrusted our snow shoes
with an additional heavy weight of ice. Par
ticularly under the heel a large lump was con
tinually forming a material impediment, caus
ing one or other of the party to halt every

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE, 115
ten minutes, in order to get rid of it. At
every effort the foot felt as if chained to the
ground, such was the tug required to bring
along the laden snow shoe ; and as the shores
of the river were now gradually widening,
the feeling of disappointment was added to
our labour by the deceptive idea of distance
created. The eye was unceasingly directed
towards some bluff point, which, after an
hour's hard fagging, seemed not much nearer
than before ; such was the effect of the dark
colour of the trees, contrasted with the
whiteness of the snow. A powerful wind
opposed our progress, and one seemed sepa
rated by interminable space from headland
after headland, and gasping, as it were, under
a sort of spell-bound influence, such as a dis
turbed dream brings to the imagination.
We had nearly completed fourteen miles
to a small log-house, where we were to pass
the night, when my servant fell up to his
naddle into an air hole, which the fresh snow
had covered over so deceptively, that had
there been a hundred more such in our path,
i2

116 JOURNEY PROM PRESQUE ISLE
we had no means whatever of avoiding them.
Fortunately the hole was but small, so that
he supported himself by his arms till we
pulled him out, with no other injury than a
wetting, of which alone the consequences
would have been serious from the intense cold,
had we not immediately afterwards arrived at
the house. After this occurrence, affairs
seemed to take a new turn : I had com
pounded for a long and a hard walk over the
ice, but had not thought much about tumbling
into holes ; and as to measures of precaution,
reason went to conrince me that it was to no
purpose to think about them, and quite as well
to leave the matter to chance ; hoping for a
ducking rather than a drowning, should it ever
be my own lot to break in. We passed the even
ing much the same as that of the day before,
for the guides smoked tobacco, together with
some other people, settlers in the ricinity,
who had temporarily added to our numbers.
One of these entered into conversation with
me, and requested me to take charge of a
letter to his friends, for his relations lived (he

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 117
told me) in the town of Ayr, in Scotland ;
and whether it was that his letter had mis
carried, or from other causes, he could not
say, but he had heard no tidings of them for
a very long time. I readily undertook to take
care of his letter, which the poor man imme
diately set about to prepare ; but the way he
commenced operations was too ludicrous to
allow me to look on without being amused at
the difficulties he had to contend with. He
had seated himself on the ground in a corner
of the room ; his desk was a plate supported
on his knees ; his paper was as bad as well
could be ; his ink newly thawed and quite
pale ; his pen, pulled out of a wild goose's
tail, was oUy ; his own hand was as hard as
the bark of a tree, and his broad black thumb
had been smashed by the blow of a hammer
or an axe, and had no sort of bend in it. Yet,
with such odds against him, he produced a
folded epistle, of which I took charge and
subsequently delivered to its address.
The difficulties attending the interchange
of letters, between settlers in the colonies arid

118 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
their friends at home, are well worthy the at
tention of those desirous to promote emigra
tion. The greater the facility of correspond
ence, the more the stimulus to indiridual ad
venture receives strength. Epistolary inter
course being kept up, the objections to foreign
residence more resemble prejudices : withheld
or delayed, they become solid, undeniable ob
jections, and then it is that an emigrant may
be considered really an exile.
January*. 10th. — When we started this
morning the light was just beginning to dawn,
and we had a heavy day's work before us,
before we could arrive at any habitation;
however, there was no remedy, but to push
on with the rest. The guides to-day seemed
particularly considerate, and, as if to give us
every assistance, instead of driving recklessly
on a-head, as they had been used to do, leav
ing us to follow as well as we could, and
grumbling whenever they halted to collect the
party, they now slackened their pace with
great apparent good humour, and we all went
on close together. However, we had not

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 119
travelled more than half an hour, before they
proposed that we should all walk first by turns.
And their object by this arrangement clearly
was, in case any of us should break in through
the ice, to give us, with themselves, a fair
chance of a preference. This was reasonable
enough, and although they had undertaken
to be our guides, we could make no objection
so far to become theirs ; and so it was settled
that we were to exchange places every half
hour. The labour was a good deal increased
by being the first to break the way, and one
thought of nothing else but being reheved from
the task. The snow shoe makes a large track,
so that the second man has a surface to walk
upon which has been pressed down by the
first, who, of course, has by far the hardest
work of all.
And so we fagged on, careless of conse
quences ; for the depth of the snow upon the
bed of the river made it quite impossible to
pick our way. Our guides prescribed the
course from point to point, according, to their
notion of the safety of the ice, and the line

120 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
being once determined on, we had only to ad
vance straight forward and trust altogether to
good luck. Long circuitous p!iths became
thus indispensable, and the danger of breaking
in after all certainly was not trifling. In the
mean time we were progressing heavily and
slowly, hardly saying a word to each other,
except when, at the expiration of each half
hour, it became necessary to exchange places
with the leading man. And this was not all,
for the clouds which had been all the morn
ing unusually dark and lowering, seemed to
bear strong indications of an approaching
snow storm. At this juncture one of the
party, a strong, and apparently athletic young
man, began to complain of lameness in his
knee, which had swollen and had become very
painful. Still, however, we went on, and it
grew darker and darker, till a heavy fall of
snow, driven by a powerful wind, came sweep
ing along the desert track directly in our
teeth ; so that, what vrith general fatigue, and
the unaccustomed position of the body in the
snow shoes, I hardly could bear up and stand

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 121
against it. The dreary howhng of the temp
est over the wide waste of snow rendered the
scene even still more desolate ; and with the
unmitigated prospect before us of cold and
hunger, our party plodded on in sullen silence,
each, in his own mind, well aware that it was
utterly impracticable to reach that night the
place of our destination.
But, in spite of every obstacle, the strength
of the two Canadians was astonishing ; with
bodies bent forward, and leaning on their
collar, on they marched, drawing the tobo
gins after them, with a firm, indefatigable step ;
and we had all walked a little more than seven
hours, when the snow storm had increased to
such a pitch of violence, that it seemed impos
sible for' any human creature to withstand it :
it bid defiance even to their most extraor
dinary exertions. The wind now blew a hur
ricane. We were unable to see each other at
a greater distance than ten yards, and the
drift gave an appearance to the surface of
snow we were passing over, like that of an
agitated sea. Wheeled round every now and

122 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
then by the wind, we were enveloped in clouds
so dense, that a strong sense of suffocation
was absolutely produced. We all halted : the
Canadians admitted that farther progress was
impossible; but the friendly shelter of the forest
was at hand, and the pines waved their dark
branches in token of an asylum. — We turned
our shoulders to the blast, and comfortless and
weather beaten sought our refuge. The scene,
though changed, was still not without interest ;
the frequent crashes of falling trees, and the
cracking of their vast limbs as they rocked and
writhed in the tempest, created awful and im
pressive sounds; but it was no time to be
idle : warmth and shelter were objects con
nected with life itself, and the Canadians im
mediately commenced the rigorous apphca-
tion of their resources. By means of their
small light axes, a good sized maple tree was
in a very few minutes levelled vrith the earth,
and in the mean time we cleared of snow a
square spot of ground, with large pieces of bark
ripped from the fallen trees. The fibrous bark
of the white cedar, preriously rubbed to pow-

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 123
der between the hands, was ignited, and blow
ing upon this, a flame was produced. This
being fed, first by the silky peehngs of the
birch bark, and then by the bark itself, the
oily and bituminous matter burst forth into
full action, and a splendid fire raised its flames
and smoke amidst a pile of huge logs, to which
one and all of us were constantly and eagerly
contributing. Having raised a covering of spruce boughs
above our heads, to serve as a partial defence
from the snow, which was still falling in great
abundance, we sat down, turning our feet to
the fire, making the most of what was, under
circumstances, a source of real consolation*
We enjoyed absolute rest ! One side of our
square was bounded by a huge tree, which lay
stretched across it. Against this our fire was
made ; and on the opposite side towards which
I had turned my back, another very large one
was growing, and into this latter, being old
and decayed, I had by degrees worked my
way, and it formed an admirable shelter. The
snow was banked up on all sides nearly five

124 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
feet high, like a white wall ; and it resolutely
maintained its position, not an atom yielding
to the fierce crackling fire which blazed up
close against it.
The Canadians were soon busily employed
cooking broth in a saucepan, for they had
provided themselves much better with pro
visions than I had. I had relied upon being
able to put up with the fare I might meet
with, not taking into consideration the want
of traffic, and distance from the cirihzed
parts of the province ; owing to which, the
scanty provision of the inhabitants could not
allow them to minister to the wants of others,
although they might be provided with a suffi
ciency for themselves. And I now saw the
guides puUing fresh meat out of the soup with
their fingers, and sharing it Uberally with my
servant, whom they had admitted into their
mess. The poor fellows seeing that I had
nothing but a piece of salted pork, which I
had toasted at the fire on a stick, offered me
a share of their supper, but this I felt myself
bound to decline. My servant had fewer

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 125
scruples, and consequently fared better. In
return for their intentions I gave them a good
allowance of whiskey, which added to their
comfort and increased their mirth. One by
one they lighted their tobacco pipes, and con
tinued to smoke ; till, dropping off by degrees,
the whole party at last lay stretched out snor
ing before me.
Large flakes of snow continued to fall,
and heavy clots dropped occasionally upon the
ground. Our enormous fire had the effect of
making me so comfortably warm, that I had
deferred the use of my buffalo skin till I lay
down to sleep, and were it not for the volumes
of smoke with which I was at times disturbed,
and the pieces of fire which burnt holes in
my clothes wherever they happened to fall,
my lodging would have been, under circum
stances, truly agreeable. I sat for some time,
with a blanket thrown over my shoulders, in
silent contemplation of a scene alike remark
able to me for its novelty and its dreariness.
The flames rose brilliantly, the sleeping
figures of the men were covered vvith snow, the

126 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
wind whistled wildly through the trees, whose
m^estic forms overshadowed us on every side,
and our fire, while it shed the light of day on
the immediately surrounding objects, diffused
a deeper gloom over the farther recesses of
the forest. And thus I remained without
any incUnation to sleep, till it was near mid
night. A solemn impression, not to be called
melancholy, weighed heavily upon me. The
satisfaction with which I regarded the fatigue
which had gone by, was hardly sufficient to
inspire confidence as to what was to come ;
and this reflection it vvas, perhaps, that gave
a colour to my thoughts at once serious and
pleasing. Distant scenes were brought to my
recollection, and I mused on past gone times,
till my eyes became involuntarily attracted by
the filmy, wandering, leaves of fire, which,
ascending lightly over the tops of the trees,
for a moment rivalled in brightness the ab
sent stars, and then— vanished for ever ! * * *
I became overpowered with sleep, and, wrap
ping my buffalo skin around me, sank down
to enjoy for several hours sound and uninter'

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 127
rupted repose. I slept heartily till day-light,
when I awoke feeling excessively cold, and
found the whole party sitting up. The snow
had ceased to fall, the sky had brightened,
and intense frost had set in. The guides
were busy in preparation, and anxious to move
on. January 11th. — Having breakfasted pre
cisely as I had supped the night before, I was
soon, together with the rest, under weigh. On
beginning to move I found my limbs stiff
with cold, and my ancles especially felt very
unpleasantly. The day broke with a clear
sun, and the uneven ridges of drift which lay
in our path diversified our walk with a pro
portion of hill and dale. Nothing could equal
the sparkling whiteness of the snow, disposed
as it was (as the sun mounted in the sky) in
every form and figure. As I passed over its
surface, supported by my snow shoes, in some
places where it lay from ten to twenty feet
deep, there was a vivid novelty in the scene
which aroused the exhausted spirits, while the
cheering influence of the sun gave a new tone

128 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
and elasticity to the wearied limbs. We had
walked for six hours, when we arrived at
Salmon river, a distance of twenty-two miles
from the house at which we had last slept.
My limbs felt uneasy and I was restless. Our
host was a veteran soldier, whose allotment of
land was, as he told us, 105 acres. Towards
the evening the weather changed to a thaw,
with a sleet nearly amounting to rain, but,
before nine o'clock, the wind chopped round
again to the nw., and the frost set in again
as severely as before.
January 12th. — Early in the morning we
proceeded along the bed of the river to the
Grand Falls ; the ice all the way being ex
tremely dangerous, not only from the effect
of adjacent springs, but from the rapidity of
the current, which in this part is very great.
One of our guides this day met with a serious
ducking : the ice broke in under him, and he
fell into the water. The day was intensely cold,
not only with a severe frost, but a keen pier
cing wind ; and we werie a considerable dis
tance from any house. We were immediately

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 129
summoned to make the best of our way
to the bank of the river, where we all as
sisted to kindle a fire ; but, in spite of our
best activity, the man's feet were a little
frost-bitten before he had the benefit of it.
At a moderate distance from it, his compa
nion rubbed them with snow till the circula
tion returned ; and, in a little more than half
an hour, he was able to proceed without fur
ther injury. We pursued our way with the
utmost caution, the state of the ice being
more and more precarious, until we arrived
at a track, which, leaving the river, proceeded
up a steep acclivity, where we found ourselves,
after a walk of four hours, at the house of a
Serjeant stationed at the Grand Falls, where,
as at Presque Isle, there was a small military
establishment kept up for the sake of the
communication. As it was about noon when
I arrived, I immediately got my dinner, and
was treated to the old fare of salted pork and
sHced potatoes, — a repast which had, at least,
the advantage of occupying little time ; and as
I was anxious to see the Grand Falls, situated
K

130 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
about a mile and a half from the house, I put
on my snow shoes, and, accompanied by the
Serjeant, proceeded on the way towards them.
On arriving at them I was amply remune
rated for my trouble, by the magnificence of
the spectacle ; not that the fall was on such a
scale of grandeur as of itself to excite wonder,
for it is not larger, perhaps, than the fall of
Foyers, in the neighbourhood of Inverness, in
Scotland; but the garb of winter gave a
character to its features unusually brilhant and
pleasing ; for the vaporous mist which arose
from it, as from all cascades of any degree of
magnitude, was so increased by the intense
cold, — the condensation was so extremely ra
pid, — that it is difficult to describe the effect
it produced. Volumes of cloud rushed up
wards, propelled from the abyss with most
extraordinary force, so as nearly to resemble
the escape of steam from the valve of an en
gine. The cascade was bounded on each side
by craggy rocks disposed in huge disjointed
fragments, and the tops of them were covered
with snow, which had been affected by the

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 131
action of the spray in a singular manner, and
had received, by the constant impression of
its finer particles, an appearance exactly re-
sembhng that of sculptured marble. The
dead whiteness of the snow had been changed
to a yellowish tinge, and it seemed like fleeces
of wool hanging over the rocks as drapery,
and arranged in the softest and most elegant
foldings. The more distant the more soft
they became, and aU were fringed at the base
with icicles ; some of these, especially those
the nearest to the cataract, were of an enor
mous size. The boughs of the trees also in
the vicinity were laden with small ones, like
beads of crystal; and altogether they reflected
the prismatic rays of the sun with magnificent
splendour. The scene was charming; for thfe day,
though piercingly cold, was particularly bright,
and a clear dark-blue sky enlivened the whole
to a great degree. One gazed with' delight
as upon fairy grottoes and the works of magic.
Without snow shoes it would havC been im
possible to approach ; and, as it was, I do
K 2

182 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
not know whether I stood upon snow sup
ported upon the rocks, or clinging together
by adhesion between the clefts. But this con
sideration presented itself to me only after I
had been fully contented and gratified with
the spectacle, and found myself standing in
an advanced position, where I was hailed by
the Serjeant. I was very glad to get back,
retracing my steps with great caution, and I
fancied several times, that the snow felt much
softer than it ought to be. I returned to the
Serjeant's house, where I lay down on the
boards before the fire as soon as I arrived^ in
order to get as much rest as I could ; for I
was uneasy at the thoughts of the mal cL ror
quette, which I feared, from the aching sensa
tion about my ancles and insteps, I should not
be able to escape. '
January 13th. — We left the seijeant's house
very early in the morning, which broke clear
and cold. We walked a little more than two
mUes, and then came upon the river, along
which we pursued our track. Not a particle
of a cloud was to be seen, and that morning's

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 133
walk exhibited a loveliness of nature peculiar
to the Canadian chmate, and sufficient to dis
sipate every sensation of pain and weariness ;
a rare combination of frost and sunshine, such
as, without being seen and felt, can hardly be
imagined. The wind was hushed to perfect
stillness, and, as we walked along, our hair,
our seven days' beards, and the edges of our
caps, our eyebrows and even our eyelashes,
were as white as a powdering of snow could
make them. In the meantime, the warmth
of the sun gave a sensation of peculiar purity
to the air.
We continued all the way on the river, till
we had completed fifteen mUes from the Ser
jeant's house where we had slept, and had
arrived at the Grande Riviere. We were
now at the Madawaska settlement, composed
altogether of French Canadians; a narrow
strip of a village, where we sought the house
of an aubergiste, Rouen Croix, where I was
gratified and surprised to find I was to be
treated to a bed. Being perfectly lame, I
was delighted to hear, that I had done with

134 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
the snow shoes, at least for a day or two, and
that for twenty-one miles the snow was suffi
ciently beaten to bear a horse and sleigh,
which were to be had in the vUlage. I of
course lost no time in engaging one ; and,
considering the state of extreme necessity I
was under, it is worthy of remark, that I
found no inclination in the owner to cheat me.
I agreed to pay fifteen shillings for the
twenty-one mUes, — a sum by no means exorbi
tant in the state of the road. I was much re
freshed by a good mess of soup, with the meat
in it, besides other ingredients I did not stop
to inquire about : with all (sundry pieces of
packthread excepted) I was perfectly weU
satisfied, for I was weU persuaded of the pos-
sibUity of faring much worse.
January 14th. — When the driver made his
appearance with the sleigh, I found it to be
of a different construction from any I had hi
therto seen, and better calculated to pass over
deep snow. It was, indeed, nothing more
than a wooden box, baring the runners or
shders so low, that the vehicle was dragged

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 135
along as much on its own bottom as upon
them. The snow was so deep, that it was
quite as much as the horse could do to get on,
stumbling and floundering at every step, while
the driver, with my servant, walked by the
side of the sleigh, driving with long reins.
The whole apparatus was so bad, that I would
ten times rather have walked ; but I had
hopes of recovering from my lameness by rest,
and would have submitted to any inconve
nience for the sake of being able to start
sound once more. Certainly I was in a help
less condition, and the roads within the limits
of this small settlement were so partially
broken, that the sleigh was overturned five or
six times in the course of the morning, when
I lay stiU and suffered myself to be righted
together with the vehicle each time, as the
shortest way, lame as I was, of helping my
self. After all, it was a tedious slow drive,
and I should have been overturned much of-
tener if the driver's strength had not been
frequently apphed on one side of the sleigh
to prevent it.

136 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
' The twenty-one miles were at last accom
plished, and we arrived at the house of an
aubergiste, where the only spare room was
already full of people ; so that we were obliged
to apply elsewhere, and were finally received
into the house of an inhabitant, David Dufour,
where two travellers had already established
themselves. The room was exceedingly small,
but there was no other, and this was to con
tain these two persons, ourselves, and the
host and his family. The latter consisted of
a wife and six children, all of whom were
dreadfully afflicted with the hooping cough.
As I was prorided with some good mutton
broth, I had not much to complain of tiU
night ; but then the crying and coughing of
the poor chUdren was very bad indeed. The
noise, however, did not deprive me of sleep ;
and I awoke in the morning refreshed and
even eager to undertake the day's journey.
January 15th. — A party of persons had col
lected for the purpose of proceeding with our
guides towards Quebec ; and so we all started
together. It was with very great satisfac-

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 137
tion, that I now saw my snow shoes tied fast
on the outside of the baggage on the tobogin,
having suffered so much by their weight ; how
ever, I very soon found, that the relief had
come a little too late, for I was completely lame,
and could not move a step without consider
able pain. I contrived, notwithstanding, to
keep up tolerably well with the party to the
end of the day's journey, which was twenty-
four miles. About a mile from the house
where I slept we took our leave of the St.
John's river, upon which we had travelled for
so many miles, and, turning to our right, pur
sued our course along the Madawaska river,
which empties itself here into the former.
The picture of our caravan was now totatly
changed. A dozen persons of various descrip
tions had joined our party, some at the end
and some at the beginning of their respective
journeys. They pelted each other with snow
balls, and sang and whistled, smoking and
hallooing. A few were hobbling and hmping,
being quite sick of walking, and fit for no sort
of fun whatever. The guides had procured

138 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
dogs to draw the tobogins, and several of
these great creatures, from the coasts of La
brador and Newfoundland, were loose and
followed in our train. The noise of the party
frightened a Caraboo deer from his lair, and
urged him, unfortunately for himself, to cross
over the ice of the river just in front of us.
Immediately there was a general hullabaloo,
and men and dogs all at once gave chase. I
quite forgot I was lame, and made a tolerable
run too, and to my surprise found that the
dogs had come up with their game, which
had entangled himself by the horns in the
branches of a faUen tree. There they pinned
him, tiU one of the Canadians despatched him
vrith his axe ; and we had one of his haunches
the same night cut into steaks for supper,
which, although tough, were weU-flavoured.
Although we had proceeded the whole of
the morning without snow shoes, it was, never
theless, extremely bad walking. The traffic
in the neighbourhood of the settlement had
caused a beaten track to be made ; but the
snow lay very deep on the ice, so that of ne-

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 139
cessity men in snow shoes had been the first
to pass along it, until, pressed by their feet,
it had by degrees assumed a surface capable
of bearing people without them. Still it was
so soft, that the foot very frequently sank in
deep enough to occasion a tumble. Every
man walked on as fast as he could, without
taking any account of his neighbour ; so that
the fatigue of keeping up with the party was
not a little increased by running to make up
the lost way. But any thing was better than
having snow shoes tied to one's feet! Having
now walked twenty-four mUes, we put up for
the night in the house of a veteran soldier,
who had received his allotment of land on the
line of communication.
January 16th. — Our party had dispersed
themselves during the night in other houses
in the neighbourhood ; but at an early hour
they had all collected themselves in readiness
to proceed. We had a journey of twenty-one
miles this day before us, and I was now so
very lame as to make it a serious undertaking.
We had, besides, two days more to travel on

140 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
foot, before we could by possibihty meet with
any sort of vehicle. The consideration of a
speedy end of the journey was a great induce
ment to proceed, and I determined to go on
as long as I could. Our first six mUes was
along the ice of the Madawaska river; when,
the ice being considered unsafe, the track fre
quently turned off into the forest along the
bank. Having passed the head of the river,
we came to Lake Tamasquatha, which is
about fifteen miles long and from three to six
broad. Our track lay over this lake, and we
immediately went upon the ice and found the
travelling much worse than on the river ; for
the wind blew violently against us, and it was
as much as ever I could do to keep within any
reasonable distance of the guides. We aU
foUowed one after another, while the foremost
men almost vanished from the sight, and ap
peared like little black dots on the wide waste
of snow ahead. Some, however, were behind
me as tired as I was, though I never took
the pains to enquire about them. At last
we arrived at the house of Mr. Long, situ-

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 141
ated at the extremity of Lake Tamasquatha,
and on the banks of that portage * which ex
tends from thence to the high road to Quebec
without any interruption of water communi
cation. I had no sooner arrived than I threw my
self down on the boards under a full impres
sion, that I should be quite unable to proceed
the next day. We found a new set of tra
vellers, who had established themselves in the
house ; and these being reinforced by our
numbers, a confusion of tongues prevailed in
our room which set at defiance all description.
We had thirty-six persons in it, besides six or
eight large dogs belonging to the tobogins.
We were obliged to he on the ground hke so
many pigs. My next neighbour was a major
in the army, whom I never saw before and
have never met since ; he seemed more fa
tigued than I was, and did nothing but groan
all night. The dogs disturbed us ; for they
* Portage is a French Canadian word, signifying
the land over which it becomes necessary to carry the
loads from one river or lake to another. '

142 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
ran about and trod upon us; they growled;
and twice before the morning there was a
battle royal among them, with the whole room
up in arms to part them by throttling and
biting the ends of their taUs. What with the
noise, and the shouting, and swearing in bad
French, we were in a perfect uproar. For
this Kvvofiaxia, the natural remedy, of course,
would have been to turn the dogs out ; but
the masters would not allow it, as they were
of too much use by far on a journey. The
gabble of tongues, the smell of tobacco smoke,
and the disturbance altogether, was reaUy
dreadful ; and there was, besides, a truckle
bed in the room, on which two women re
posed, — the mistress of the house and her
^ster. These females were not sUent ; and,
rio matter who slept, some were sure to be
awake and talking. I quite lost all my pa
tience ; sometimes I struck at the dogs as
they galloped over me, and I shook one feUow
by the collar till he roared, who in the scuffle
had trodden on my lame ancles without re
morse. The only satisfaction I had was to

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 143
think, that the pain I was in would alone,
without the noise, have been sufficient to keep
me from sleeping.
January 17th. — ^At an early hour this
morning we commenced our journey over the
portage, and, after travelling the whole day,
I arrived, in a state of extreme pain and fa
tigue, at the place where we were to pass the
night. We crossed several ravines, and had
to cUmb steep acclirities. Both my feet were
now swollen to a great size, attended with in
flammation so acute as to resemble exactly de
termined gout. The Canadians told me I had
certainly got the mal a raquette ; whatever
it might have been, I lay awake all night in
the miserable log house where we had put up,
thinking how unlucky I was to have arrived
within nine miles of the end of my journey on
foot, without being able to accomplish the
little that remained.
January 18th. — Nine miles were now be
fore me, and if I could complete that distance
the journey was done. The usual preparations^
for departure had no sooner commenced, than

144 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE
I felt it quite impossible to remain where I
was, although I could scarcely stand upon
my feet ; but as my servant was still strong
and able, I rehed on his assistance and set
forward. I never was put to so severe a trial
in aU my life. The exertion of walking, and
the twists I met with in the holes made in the
hard snow by the feet of former travellers,
were absolute torture ; so that now and then
I was obliged to he down for a few seconds
in the snow to recover myself. The cold was
so mtense, that almost as soon as I was down
I was obhged to get up again, and a piece
of liread in my coat pocket was frozen nearly
as hard as wood. My servant staid by me
whenever I lay down on the snow, and
helped me to rise, and to him I am indebted
for performing the short distance of that day's
journey. I was eight hours on the way ; but
at last reached the rillage of Ririere de Loup,
where I entered a small public house in the
true spirit of thankfulness at having accom
plished an undertaking of which I had several
times despaired. But I remained there a very

TO RIVIERE DE CAPE. 145
short time : I found that I was only six mUes
from Riviere de Cape, where there was a
good inn, and that it was possible to procure
a conveyance to take me there.
Beset as I was with a set of dirty compa
nions, I ordered a sleigh to be got ready im
mediately, into which I made a last effort to
crawl, ready to endure any thing in the world
so that I could but free myself of my present
coterie. On arriring at Riviere de Cape, I was
gratified by the kindest attention from my
hostess, who placed before me the first com
fortable meal I had seen for a long time. She
provided me with a good arm-chair, and many
other seasonable indulgencies ; and it is re
markable, that all pain left me that very even
ing. Never was a change more complete
brought about within a few short hours. To
think of both past and future created agree-'
able sensations, and the truth of " Forsan et
Juec olim meminisse juvahit" rushed forcibly
to my mind. The apartment and furniture
appeared elegant, my landlady lovely as Hebe,

146 JOURNEY FROM PRESQUE ISLE.
my journey on foot was — thank Heaven! —
completed, and the refreshing sUence of my
room added to the many comforts with which
I was now surrounded.

14^

JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
TO YORK, UPPER CANADA.
I WAS now on the high road to Quebec,
where the river St. Lawrence breaks upon the
view in splendid magnificence. A chain of
mountains bounds the opposite side, and a long
narrow island, called VIsle de Lievre, is situ
ated mid-channel. The river is here twenty-
one miles across, and appeared to be frozen
over some miles from the shore. It is at this
part quite straight, and the eye commands a
reach of very considerable length. A post
cariole (or small sleigh drawn by one horse)
was to take me on my road to Quebec. I
had made a good breakfast, had been kindly
treated, had slept well, was reheved from the
ragamuffins whose society I had participated
so much too long, when I and my servant got
into the vehicle. The road was well beaten
and good ; the horse started off at a sort of
l2

148 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
shambling run, — a pace they all learn from
high calks and the continual habit of moring
through snow ; the beUs jingled merrily ; the
sun shone bright with an intense frost; and I
was not only so much recovered as to be per
fectly free from pain, but the scene altogether
produced a buoyancy of spirits, the total re
verse of the heavy-heartedness with which I
had only the day before, like an over-driven
ox, performed my journey. Although the
weather was by far too severe to make travel
ling in an open carriage at all agreeable, the
contrast made up for every thing. If it was
cold, I was well wrapped up ; my lameness
was getting better every hour, and I was sure
at least of being well housed.
The boy who drove me was a curiosity, — a
httle wizened ape, hardly twelve years old ;
but he smoked, and swore, and cracked his
whip vrith aU the grimace of a French pos
tilion. A huge' fur cap almost extinguished
his small face ; and he wore a close-bodied
coat, with a red worsted sash round his waist.
He had not proceeded far, when he stopped

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 149
at a house ; and when I enquired what de
tained him, " C'est mon pipe. Monsieur I"
Nor would he stir without " mon pipe"; and
I was kept waiting several minutes while the
people of the house were lighting it. At last he
got it, and, giring a few hard whiffs, he crack
ed his whip, caUed the horse all the names
he could think of, while he chattered away
and grumbled in bad French, feeling his con
sequence hurt by the manner I had treated
him. Changing sleighs at convenient dis
tances, I posted this day sixty inUes to Lislet.
The charge was fivepence a mUe : iiothing
was demanded for. the driver, (which, I sup
pose, gave him the air of independence he
assumed,) nor was there any other expense
on the road. I found the delays in changing
horses considerable.
The manner of driving is singular enough ;
for, instead of.perpetuaUy flipping the horse
with the whip, as in England, they reserve it
for greater occasions, — settling the balance
of an account of errors by an unmerciful
flogging, which lasts some seconds, and serves

150 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
till the driver's patience is again exhausted.
The horses are generally high couraged ; but
aU seem crippled, owing to the manner in
which they are shod, and the rough ground
they have at times to travel upon.
Changing at short stages, I had travelled
the whole of an intensely cold day, the sky
having been quite clear and free from clouds.
As evening came on, the glowing tints which
suffused the bleak landscape were particularly
beautiful,— such as a winter sunset in Canada
can alone produce. The glaring sun became
magnified as he touched the horizon. A deep
fiery red was reflected from bright titi spires,
and blazed from the glass windows of the
scattered white houses in the distance. The
snow sparkled with purple and varying pris
matic colours ; whUe large fragments of ice,
scattered here and there, completed a picture
of winter in all its intensity. I arrived at
Lislet half frozen, baring travelled some time
after dark.
January 20th. — I posted this day fifty-one
miles to Point Levi. A fall of snow in the

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 151
night had made the roads very heavy, so that,
although I started early in the morning, it
was past ten at night when I arrived at the
auberge, — an uncomfortable passage house,
situated close to the banks of the river St.
Lawrence, and opposite to the town of Que
bec. The whole of the 111 miles I had tra-
veUed on this and the preceding day, was
through a flat country, nearly paraUel with
the river. I had heard accounts by no means
prepossessing of the mode of crossing over to
Quebec, and of the state of the ice ; but I
was tired, and it was too late to make en
quiries ; so, as soon as I had procured a httle
refreshment, I went to bed, where, after I
lay down, I could very plainly hear the roar
ing and splashing of the water.
January 21st. — In the morning, on looking
out of my window, which commanded an
immediate view of the Great St. Lawrence,
there a mile and a half, wide, I saw it
frozen on each bank at least three or four
hundred yards from the shore, and the channel
fflled with pieces of ice driveii, forward and

152 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
backward by the eddies of an impetuous tide ;
these were rising one above another, twisting
round and round, sinking, labouring, and
hearing, by the action of a current running
at the rate of seven knots an hour. Some
times there was a space of clear water, wherein
enormous flakes, of a superficies of three or
four thousand square yards, would gHde by ;
huge lumps, as big as a stage coach and aU
its passengers, would roll over and over, and
tumble in various directions, now and then
sinking altogether, and afterwards rising se
veral yards a-head ; large masses would meet,
and drive against each other with a tremen
dous crash, pihng flake upon flake, and pre
senting a most awftil spectacle, — the more in
teresting, as it was my business to cross over
that very day : and how that was to be done,
I could not possibly, at the moment I have
attempted to describe, determine. However,
on holding a consultation with my host, I
found, that the passage was certainly difficult,
but, nevertheless, quite practicable; that it
would probably be attended with considerable

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 153
delay, but that there was very little danger.
Thus much was satisfactory, and I further
understood, that slack water (it was now
about half-tide) would be the time to attempt
to get over. There was more ice in the ri
ver than had been for the two years last past,
owing to a continuation of weather more than
ordinarily severe, so that it was expected
every day to set; and, whenever that took
place, sleighs of all sorts would be able to
drive across. Above aU, I was recommended
to lose no time in engaging a log canoe, un
less I chose to wait for the chance of the ice
setting. Haring no sort of wish to remain where I
was, I found out a man who agreed to take
me and my servant across for thirty shUlings,
after a hard bargain, in which he exaggerated
the danger, and multiplied difficulties to suit
his purpose. I met him by appointment on
the bank of the river, about one o'clock, where
he had his canoe in readiness to receive me,
being attended by five Canadian boatmen, his
comrades. The canoe was nothing more than

154 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
fourteen or fifteen feet of an entire tree round
ed at both ends alike, and hollowed by the
adze. A piece of rope, six or eight feet long,
was fixed at the head, and a simUar piece at
the stern. Each of the men carried an axe
stuck in his sash, and a paddle in his hand ;
and thus equipped, they dragged the canoe
from the shore along upon the ice, chopping
away the last six or eight feet (where it be
came unsound) with their axes, till the head
of the vessel was brought close above the
water. The tide was now nearly at the ebb, and
its rapidity, of course, much abated ; stUl the
ice was continuaUy in a state of violent mo
tion, and presented a very formidable appear
ance. I now got into the canoe with my ser
vant, and, according to the direction of the
boatmen, who were chattering, arguing, and
swearing on the subject of their plan of pro
ceeding, we both sat down at the bottom of
the canoe, in midships. And here we waited
in readiness for a launch. ' A large flake
floated by, leaving a clear channel of perhaps

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 155
one hundred yards across, and this was the
signal to begin. I had nothing to do but to
sit stiU. " Tenez firme" they all cried at
once, and without farther warning they pushed
the canoe off the ice plump into the water
with a splash. The fall was about two feet,
and she was no sooner in than every one of
the fellows, with uncommon activity, were on
board and each in his place, paddling with
eager haste, in order to avoid a large piece of
ice which was bearing down hard upon us,
and to gain a frozen surface right a-head.
Succeeding in the attempt, they with equal
adroitness jumped upon it, and seizing the
rope which was fixed at the head of the canoe,
drew her by main force out of the water, and,
three at one side and three at the other, they
pushed her along, running about a hundred
and fifty yards across, tUl a second launch into
clear water called again for the paddles. We
were less fortunate in this than in the one
preceding, for we were splashed all over, and
the water almost immediately froze hard on

156 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
our clothes. But we had not time to shake
ourselves, for a large quantity of loose ice,
which appeared just to have risen up from the
bottom of the river, was bearing down upon
us in a very formidable manner. The men
paddled, and strained, and abused each other,
but all would not do, and we were in a very
few seconds hemmed in and jammed on both
sides by a soft pulpy mass, together with
which we were helplessly carried away by the
current sidewise from the point we were en
deavouring to reach. I could not help ad
miring the determination and address of the
men at this moment; for they jumped out,
above their knees in water, sometimes up to
their hips, whUe they used their utmost
strength, to drag the canoe forward by the
rope. Although the surface gave way conti
nuaUy under their feet, letting them down
upon the large slabs of ice which were floating
underneath, they managed, by pulhng and
hauling, and with their axes occasionaUy cut
ting and breaking away the obstructing blocks

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 157
which stood in their way, to get free of aU
impediments, and gain once more a channel
of clear water.
While this was going forward, it was ex
tremely annoying to be perfectly helpless in the
midst of so much bustle and energy, and when
the feUows shouted " hranle%! sacre Dieu,
hranle%!" they meant that we should rock the
canoe from side to side as we sat, to prevent
her freezing on to the ice ; which disaster was
only to be avoided by keeping her in continual
motion. If this had taken place, the conse
quences might have been serious, as the day
was intensely cold, and we must have floated
away with no very great chance of assistance.
However, by the skUl of the men we avoided
it, and the thirty shUUngs were certainly fairly
earned, for they were three or four minutes
at this speU in the water, sometimes up to
their knees, and now and then nearly up to
their middle. It seems almost incredible that
men should be able to work at aU upon ice so
unsound as not to afford a surface capable of
supporting the weight of the body; but on

158 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
their part there seemed to be no sort of ap^
prehension of absolute danger, owing to the
vast thickness of the floating substance, a
comparatively small part of which was, as
they knew, that which appeared above the
water. And there was invariably a lower
stratum upon which they were received and
supported as often as they sank in.
Such was the manner of making the pas
sage across the river St. Lawrence, at the
season of the year and under such circum
stances as it happened to me to undertake it;
and I have only to add, that the time occu
pied in going across was somewhat more than
an hour, and that the varieties already cited
followed each other in rapid succession, tUl
the moment of our disembarkation at the op
posite shore. At one time we were in clear
water ; the next moment fitruggling through
congelated heaps of melted snow; then ra
pidly driven along over sheets of ice, and
pushed over obstructing blocks which opposed
our progress in ridges seven or eight feet
high. The Canadians were, however, inde-

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 159
fatigable. Every obstacle, so soon as encoun
tered, was surmounted in a moment. Hard
ice was hevra down with the hatchets. They
were active as ants. All was energy, spring,
and bustle. They were in the canoe and out
of the canoe, paddhng and cutting, pushing
vrith the boat-hook, and hauling on the rope,
all with instantaneous impulse, and appliance
of strength in different ways and with the
most effective success.
But notwithstanding aU, it was with un
mixed satisfaction that I found myself at last
safely landed in the town of Quebec. Al
though I had nearly recovered from my lame
ness, the cold had made me very stiff, so that,
in spite of the sun, the keen air had such an
effect upon my limbs, that on getting out of
the canoe I was scarcely able to move. The
water with which I had been splashed had in-
crusted me in a coat of ice; and I was as
much like an armadillo as a human being,
when I crawled heavily up the steep, narrow,
dirty street which leads from the lower to
the upper town, bending my steps towards

160 JOURNEY PROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
Sturch's hotel, where I was shewn into the
public room, well warmed by a Canada stove,
and full of different sorts of people.
January 22d to 31st. The weather was
aU this time exceedingly severe, seldom above
zero of Fahrenheit, and now and then several
degrees below it. I was one day much
amused by the effects of the cold upon the
faces of the people in the streets when the
wind blew exceedingly hard, and there was
what the Canadians caU a "podre" *, which is
a sprinkhng of the finer particles of the snow
from the tops of the houses ; in clouds, which
add a Uvely pang to the keenness of the frost.
Indeed the effect is truly ludicrous. The mo
ment a man happens to meet it, he stares
aghast; the water bursts from his eyes; in
one instant he shews his teeth (if he has any)
to aU the world ; and his features become dis
torted and agonized. Nothing so miserable
is to be seen, except the unfortunate dogs har-
* The Canadians have a way of their own of pro
nouncing French : thus, la hache they call la hawche,
and so on.

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 161
nessed in small sleighs, and made to draw
barrels of water (which, owing to the cold,
smokes as if it were boihng) through the town.
The ice set in the St. Lawrence, and the
" Pont" was formed on the 31st; an event
which had not taken place for two years be
fore. In a very few hours it was compactly
wedged together, and covered with horses and
sleighs in great numbers, and of the heariest
description. This may seem extraordinary,
but it is a well-known fact, and very easily ac
counted for. For the masses of floating ice
have previously attamed a very great thick
ness, and are continuing to grow bigger
every hour, as they are carried about in
the stream by the current, the rapidity of
which alone prevents their adhering long be
fore. Sticking together at first by twos and
threes, they jostle more and more every tide,
tiU at last a general jam for a moment takes
place ; and a moment only does the business.
The intense frost effects adhesion, and the
water below splashing up between the in
terstices of the joints effectually fixes and rivets
M

162 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
the whole. What from the thickness of the
ice itself, and its being supported by the wa
ter, no weight can well be too great to put
upon it. As soon as the ice has stopped, the
river presents to the eye a wUd and noble
spectacle. The moment is naturaUy one of
conflict and convulsion ; and the throes and
struggles of the impinging bodies are truly
tremendous. Small islands of ice, pressed on
every side till they give way, break in the mid
dle, and, cracking into fragments, these become
hurled one upon another in aU sorts of gro
tesque forms ; so that " when the hurley-bur-
ley 's done", the whole surface of the river be
comes covered, as it were, with little hiUs,
houses, and vUlages. Objects that resemble
aU these are raised, as by the contrivance of
magic, in the space of a few minutes. Some
are of such considerable magnitude, that
through the whole winter a circuitous track is
taken to avoid them. And thus, although
the inhabitants may immediately avaU them
selves of a passage, it is nevertheless necessary
to break a road. Like any other desert tracks

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 163
a way must be cleared of impediments ; how
ever, as blocks of ice are easily cut through,
much time is not required to put every thing
to rights, and then crowds of persons flock to
each side, eager to avail themselves of the first
opportunity of crossing over.
The state of the river immediately before
the setting of the ice is of course growing
worse and worse every day, until the commu
nication, as regards traffic, may be said to be
impeded altogether. The forming of the pont,
therefore, is haUed by the inhabitants of both
sides with a joyous welcome : by the country
people, owing to the prospect of bringing their
produce readily to market; and by those of
the town, from the hopes of a reduction in the
prices of the articles, the natural consequence
of the event.
The next point of my destination was the
bay of Penetangushene, an outlet of Lake Hu
ron, where it was the object of Government
to estabhsh a naval and military post. And
as the place to which I was going was far re
moved in the woods, I made some prepara-
M 2

164 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
tions in the way of equipment. To this end,
I purchased a good buffalo apron, in addition
to the one I had before, and some articles of
warm clothing. I also prorided myself with
powder and shot, haring brought with me a
good double-barrelled gun of Joseph Man-
ton's, which had been dragged over the snow
with the rest of my things on the tobogins.
Thus accoutred, I felt quite ready to leave
" the flaunting town", its spht logs and hot
stoves, to explore the ruder regions of the
north-west. February 1st. I posted to Riviere St. Ja-
quetiere, where I slept. The whole journey
was extremely unpleasant, owing to the fre
quency of the cahots, or trenches in the snow
which lay across the road. The driver never
pulled up his horses, but seemed to me to
rattle over them with unnecessary rapidity,
and at the imminent risk of breaking the
sleigh. February 2d. Posted to Trois Ririeres.
February 3d. Posted to a small place
within nine mUes.of Berthier.

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 165
February 4th. Posted to Montreal. As
I intended to remain two or three days in the
neighbourhood, I ordered a sleigh to take me
the next morning to St. John's, a small town
situated on the River Richelieu, between Lake
Champlain and the River St. Lawrence, and
distant twenty-seven miles from Montreal.
February 5th to 7th. Early in the morn
ing of the 5th, I crossed the St. Lawrence in
a sleigh, over a track as weU beaten as any
part of the streets ; the large slabs of ice
which had been removed, as well as heaps of
snow, forming a wall on each side for a great
part of the way. Turning to the right, the
road continued along the bank for about three
miles through the neat village of Prairee;
thence leaving the river, through a flat coun
try, with inns at short intervals during the
whole distance. Having then reached the river
Richelieu, I arrived at St. John's, where I
was hospitably received by Sir Thomas B  ,
under whose roof I remained until the morn
ing of the 8th.
February 8th. Having returned to Mont-

166 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DECAPE
real, I made arrangements to leave it the next
day, and hired a sleigh with two horses to take
me to Kingston. The appearance of the town
was superior to that of Quebec ; the equip
ages, especially, seemed much better appointed.
Indeed, a well-buUt sleigh is a remarkably
handsome vehicle. In shape hke the Britska,
of a dark colour relieved by scarlet, and co
vered with a profusion of rich black bear-skins,
it has a striking effect in contrast vrith the
pure white snow. The cold was this day
more than commonly severe, and for the first
time I perceived an effect of the low tempe
rature, by no means unusual. My clothes, on
taking them off, braces, waistcoat, &c. were so
charged with electric fluid, that they crackled
and snapped, producing sparks of fire in abun
dance. Even the comb which I passed through
my hair created a similar effect.
February 9th. The driver of the sleigh
made his appearance much later than he had
promised, but was accompanied by the owner,
who, by way of apology, told me that I had
" the best span of horses in Montreal" for

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 167
my journey. A " span of horses " means a pair
driven abreast, and is one of the many Ame
rican expressions current in this part of the
country. Indeed there is so little bar to the
communication along this part of the frontier,
that a great simUarity consequently exists in
accent, manners, and general appearance be
tween the inhabitants on both sides. The
road led occasionally along the bank, and now
and then on the bed of the river; which, ow
ing to the very rapid current, was at parts
open in the middle, the channel being full of
small islands and rocks. Although the air
was piercingly cold, the sun shone forth with
great brilliancy, shewing signs of his increasing
power by the icicles which, in many warm and
sheltered situations, already fringed the eaves
of the houses. As I started late, I proceeded
no farther than Point Clair, where I put up
for the night. The landlord, a civil, bustling
man, replenished the fire, and was extremely
active. He said he " abhorred a bad fire",
and added, " I guess you'U like a glass of
shng after your cold drive." I discovered that

168 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
*' sling" meant gin and water; so a glass of
sling I took, and then went to bed.
February 10th. I travelled this day to
Point Boudet, along the banks of the St. Law
rence, which here presents an interesting ap
pearance — that of a mighty stream tearing its
way through a channel which bears the strong
est marks of some grand convulsion of nature.
The foaming rapids, the heavy roaring of the
waters, the huge slabs of ice ripped from the
summits of the rocks, whose black desolate
looking points formed a striking contrast with
the overpowering whiteness of the snow ; — all
these were objects which irresistibly rivetted
the attention. One beheld, as it were, with
all the accompaniments of nature's sublimity,
a contest of the two elements, wherein every
inch of ground was furiously disputed. I af
terwards passed these rapids on my journey
back to Quebec, as I shall have occasion to
describe. The inn at Point Boudet, where I
put up for the night, was situated close on the
bank of the river, and extremely tidy and com
fortable.

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 169
February 11th. I proceeded this day to
CornwaU, the weather being piercingly cold,
with a bright sun. The same man, the ser
vant of the owner of the sleigh, and a Scotch
man, had driven me all the way from Mont
real, and had hardly spoken a word the whole
journey. But there was a bottle of " whaskey "
which he kept under the seat, just within his
reach, to which he now and then had recourse ;
and to-day, as the weather was cold, and the
sun shone bright, he took a sup from time to
time as he felt inclined ; rather often, at every
three or four miles perhaps, — tiU he began to
fidget in his seat, and look round to me, as if
he had at last got something to say. There
fore I asked him, d-propos to nothing, whe
ther he thought he would be able to wear the
kUt in Canada ? . " Na", said he, " the flies
wad nap a body." I thought it was rather
odd he should be thinking of flies at a time
when the frost was biting so particularly sharp;
but still he insisted upon it, that the flies, of
the two, were the worst; and he suited the
action to the word with such energy, that I

170 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
could not doubt his veracity. I tried to en
gage him further in conversation, but that was
impossible; for he was a Highlander, who
spoke very little English when he left his own
country, and he had been deprived of the
small portion he then understood, by a resi
dence of three years in Montreal, where his
fellow-servants aU spoke French. This had
quite petrified his genius, and had spoiled him
as a linguist altogether.
February 12th. It was remarkably cold
when we started in the morning, and Dou-
gall, whether owing to the effect of the whis
key the day before, or the melancholy appear
ance of the empty bottle, had relapsed into his
former taciturnity. We travelled twenty-six
nules along the bank of the river, and put up
at an inn close to the water.
February 13tli. I travelled twenty-two
miles to Prescott, which is opposite to the
American village of Ogdensburg. The river
liere was about half a mile wide, and frozen
quite across. Some people at the inn were con
versing on the subject of a lot of cattle which

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 171
had been stolen, and they seemed to think it
almost certain that they had been driven over
the ice to the American side.
February 14th. I travelled this day forty-
two mUes to Guananaqui, the road chiefly
being out of sight of the river. The weather
was fine and clear, but so cold that the bay
horses might have been mistaken for iron-
grey, so powdered over were they with frost.
February 15th. I had now twenty-four
mUes to proceed to Kingston, where I arrived
early in the day. I went to Thibodo's hotel ;
a large, cold, rambhng house, the landlord of
which was extremely attentive and ciril.
February 16th. As I had proposed to re
main a day or two at Kingston, I walked out
on the ice to see the ship St. Lawrence, which
was frozen in on all sides, quite hard and fast.
Two seventy-fours, a frigate, and some gun
boats, were buUding in the dock-yard; and
the above-named ship, (a three-decker, mount
ing 108 guns,) two brigs, and a sloop, were
in a state of complete equipment. At King
ston, the magnificence of the River St. Law-

172 JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
rence is particularly striking ; for there, at a
distance of several hundred mUes from the sea,
its expanding shores are seen tracing the
limits of Lake Ontario. This magnificent
fresh-water sea was frozen round the edges to
an extent nearly as far as the eye could reach;
the waters in the distance appearing like a
black line in the horizon. The ship lay close
to the town, with which a constant communi
cation prevaUed ; as the officers and men were
liring on board just as if she had been at sea.
Sleighs of all descriptions were driving round
her ; country vehicles, with things to sell, and
others ; and two ladies, who had driven them
selves in a light sleigh drawn by a pony, were
holding a conversation under her bows with a
gentleman in a cap, which conversation, from
its earnestness, might have imparted warmth
enough to thaw the icicles which were hanging
from the cabin windows. Numbers of people
were on foot, and the snow was so trodden aU
round the ship, that it was reaUy difficult to
believe that a depth of water sufficient to float
a three-decker was rolling under one's feet.

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 173
I found, on returning to my inn, that a ball
was to be held in the house in the evening,
and that my room had been determined on as
one of the card-rooms. The assembly was
held in a large corridor, or wide passage, with
doors opening into little rooms on each side ;
of which latter, mine was one. The company,
which was numerous, began to assemble very
early, and soon commenced dancing with high
glee. PuUing, romping, turning round and
round, &c. was the order of the day, and the
noise of tongues and feet " pretty considerable
loud." What with the good spirits of the
young ladies, and the good humour of the old
ones, it was past three o'clock in the morning
before the house was clear of its guests, when
(as the beds had been all taken down for the
occasion) I betook myself to a mattress which
was spread for me on the floor.
February 17th. My landlord gave me for
dinner some steaks of a moose-deer which had
been killed in the neighbourhood ; the meat
was of a fine, vrild flavour, although extremely
coarse and tough.

174 JOURNEY PROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
February 18th to 22d. I left Kingston for
York in a two-horse sleigh, which I had hired
to take me thither. I was five days on the
road, leaving ten miles for the last day's jour
ney. The owner of the sleigh drove it, and
was an honest-looking, healthy feUow, who
wore a good coat, and had the appearance of
a substantial yeoman. He told me that he
had hved eighteen years on his present farm of
two hundred acres, for which he had origin
ally given three hundred doUars. The road
during the journey was heavy, from a recent
fall of snow ; but the prospect was enlivened
from time to time by views of Lake Ontario,
along the shore of which we were traveUing.
There were several smaU lakes on the way.
Among them. Rice Lake ; so called from the
wUd rice which grows about it, and which is
of a good quality enough, although smaU and
of a brownish colour.
I met a couple of Indians dragging along
a porcupine, which they had shot, by a long
strip of bark, which served as a rope. The
woods abounded with a large description of

TO YORK, UPPER CANADA. 175
woodpecker, the size of a smaU fowl, with
black bodies and scarlet heads, and called by
the natives cocks of the wood. When within
ten miles of York, the cloud of condensed va
pour proceeding from the Falls of Niagara,
then perhaps forty miles distant, was distinctly
risible. The day was quite clear, without any
other cloud in the sky. On arriving at York,
I was disappointed at the first sight of the ca
pital of Upper Canada, which, although co
vering a large space of ground, was extremely
stragghng and irregular ; and the inn was
not by any means prepossessing. I was
shewn into a cold and dirty room, without any
appearance of comfort, or even the cheering
abundance of fire-wood I had been used lately
everywhere to meet with. They gave me a
dry, black, and tasteless beef-steak for break
fast, which I finished as soon as I could, in my
eagerness to get out of a disagreeable apart
ment, and make myself warm by exercise.
It being the season of the year when " the
presents," as they are termed, are given to the
Indians, these people were walking about the

176 JOURNEY PROM RIVIERE DE CAPE
streets in crowds, all in their hohday apparel,
and animated by the anticipation of what they
were to receive — blankets, blue cloth, guns,
powder and shot, &c. I could not help re
marking the great difference between the In
dians here and those in the provinces of Nova
Scotia and New Brunswick. They were al
together a finer race of men, in countenance,
carriage, and general appearance, more robust
and athletic, and their faces broader and flatter,
and of a deep copper colour. Streaks of red
paint ornamented their cheeks; and what
seemed the most fashionable bijou of their
toilette, was a silver ring in the nose, with a
bead of the same metal appending to it.
There was a look of health about the women,
which made many of them appear beautiful in
spite of their flat noses. They had good
teeth, and eyes of briUiant black, which re
ceived additional lustre from parallel streaks
of red paint down their cheeks, which seemed,
from their breadth, as if they had been laid on
by the fore-finger. According to this method
of rouging, art might fairly be said to enter

JOURNEY FROM RIVIERE DE CAPE. 177
into an honest competition with nature; for
intermediate stripes of clear skin were always
left as a fair sample of the original.
I remained in York till the 25th ; during
which time my stay was rendered agreeable
by the friendly hospitahty of Mr. C  , a
gentleman of high respectabihty in the town.
I understood, that the station of Penetan
gushene, whither I was going, was still an
establishment quite new, and that some of
the public officers were already there, and
were hutted on the spot ; but that no buUd-
ings of any sort had yet been erected ; more
over, there was no house at all anywhere
within thirty miles of the place. I was rallied
on the nature of my future hfe and occupa
tions, which, indeed, seemed likely to be suf
ficiently rural. I hardly knew sometimes
what to think of it ; but I bought a sack of
potatoes and some rice, and prepared to start
on the 25th, with Mr. C  , who, having
a wish to see the new establishment, proposed
to accompany me.

N

178

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
On the 25th of February I left York, with
Mr. C-  , in a two-horse sleigh, on our
way to Lake Huron. The snow was soft and
the draft heavy ; however, the horses were
good, and we travelled thirty miles to the
riUage of Newmarket, (which hes about amUe
out of the road on the right hand,) and ar
rived a httle after dark. We were hospitably
entertained by Mr. Peter Robinson, who pro
rided us with a good supper -and comfortable
beds,. Our host, as weU as being a contractor
with Government, was an agent of the North
west Company, and held, moreover, sundry
prorincial appointments. Added to this, he
kept a shop in the house where we now were,
which was plentifuUy stocked with aU manner
of commodities, particidarly such as were
suited to the wants and taste of the Indians :
it was, in fact, the great mart to which aU
those in this part of the country resorted, to

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 179
furnish themselves with the different articles
of which they stood in need,— flour, cheese,
blue cloth, cottons, hardware, &c. ; besides
guns, powder and shot, for the men, and all
sorts of mUhnery and ornament for the squaws,
such as flaring gown patterns, beads, and
rings for their noses.
February 26th. — We started very early
this morning ; for, as it was our intention to
cross Lake Simcoe, we had every reason to
expect the ice would be in a bad state, and
the draft particularly heavy ; for during the
last few days the sun had been extremely
powerful for the time of year, so that the
snow became always quite slushy after the
middle of the day. When we set out, the
morning was clear, and the frost had been
hard in the night ; so that the snow was crisp
and slippery, and we had what might be called
an agreeable drive along a very good road to
Holland river, (which empties itself into Lake
Simcoe,) a distance of eleven miles. There
was a sort of public house established at the
spot where we had arrived, and which was
N 2

180 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
caUed the Landing, being the point from
whence the river was considered narigable in
the summer. Here we baited the horses,
giving them no more time than was absolutely
necessary, owing to the unfavourable reports
on the state of the ice in the lake, from which
we were now about nine miles distant. Hol^
land river afforded to me a novel appearance :
instead of the rocks and bluff headlands of
the St. Lawrence, this little stream presented
more peacefiil and tranquU objects to the eye,
and seemed to offer an assurance of calm and
sequestered retreat. The channel was frozen
quite across ; narrow, with a profusion of
reeds on each side ; the whole breadth being,
perhaps, three or four hundred yards. The
sun shone bright, and the dry rattling flags,
which the breeze set in motion, brought a
more genial season to the recoUection. Our
sleigh was soon brought out, and, being
launched down the sedgy bank, the horses
were put to ; and, having bid adieu to the
last house we were likely to see for a distance
of thirty-six miles, we pursued our course

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 181
along the frozen surface of a stream where
Fauns and Satyrs might have held their sum
mer revels. But the lively green of spring
soon faded in the imagination, opposed to the
reahties of winter. The snow lay deep on
the ice, and, being melted by the sun, the
draft was so exceedingly heavy, that the horses
could proceed only at a foot's pace, and the
sleigh sank so deep, that the water frequently
reached the bottom of the carriage.
We had overtaken a party of Enghsh ship
wrights at the public house we had just left,
who were on the way to join the new station
at Penetangushene Bay, whither we were go
ing ; (they had been previously employed in
building small boats for the navigation of the
lake.) These men finding we were going
thither also, followed in our train, and, as
we travelled slow, they were enabled to keep
up with us on foot. Pursuing the course of
the river for about nine miles, the channel by
rapid degrees became broader, till a wide
sheet of snow appeared a-head, and we found
ourselves upon the verge of Lake Simcoe.

182 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
Inclining to the left, we skirted it, cutting off
its lower extremity, and making directly for
Kempenfeldt Bay. We then bore about three
or four miles up the bay, and put up at a log-
house, which had been newly erected on the
north bank, and stood almost close to the wa
ter's edge. This log-house had been buUt for
the purpose of the communication to Penetan
gushene. It was very late when we arrived, and
we had travelled thirty-six miles from Holland
River, in all forty-seven miles that day. The
driver was provided with food and clothing for
the horses, which were scarcely defended from
the weather by the miserable hut which was
allotted to them as a stable. They were, I
believe, the first pair of horses ever there.
They were littered down with the boughs of
the spruce-fir and a quantity of moss coUected
close to the spot. As for ourselves, our fare
was equally simple. We made a roaring fire,
and roasted some potatoes, which we eat with
cold meat, with which we had taken care to
provide ourselves ; and this repast occupying
but httle time, the whole party, shipwrights

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 183
and all, each measured his length on the floor
before the fire. I now began to think I had
had enough of all this, and I did earnestly
long to be once more in some place, no matter
where, that I could call my home. However,
I fell asleep, and continued so some hours,
when I awoke, owing to the cold, and found
that one of my neighbours (haring felt, I take
it for granted, cold too) had deprived me of
my buffalo skin, which was tightly wrapped
round him, while the fellow was snoring as
happily as if it belonged to him. The harder
I tugged, the harder he held on and snored ;
and, as he was a thick-set, strong fellow, I
had the more difficulty to recover my property.
However, I jumped up, and, invoking the
spirit of Archimedes, I placed my foot on his
ribs to such advantage, that by one violent,
determined pull, I thoroughly uncased and
roUed him out on the floor.
February 27th. — We had already advanced
thirty-six miles from the house on the banks
of HoUand River, which was the nearest hu
man habitation worthy of bearing the name

184 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
between the spot where we were and the town
of York ; and the road we were now about
to travel had been newly cut through the fo
rest, so that it was as bad as it could well be.
To assist the communication, however, a hut
at the distance of twenty miles had been
erected, where we intended to pass the night.
The way was not better than we had antici
pated, — ^if any thing, worse ; so that we owed
much to the assistance of the shipwrights, who
were able auxUiaries : a dozen stout, good-
humoured fellows, who helped us out of all
our difficulties, and went on whistling and
singing as if they were going to a fair. When
we reached the hut, we found it nothing more
than a few boughs raised up ; of an oblong
form, and having one of the long sides quite
open to the weather. Fortunately there was
but little wind, nor was the night very cold ;
so we made a large fire, and lay down in our
clothes before it, as we had done the night
before. February 28th. — The road was stiU miser
ably bad, but with the assistance of the ship-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 185
Wrights we were enabled to reach Yeo Rivet",
a distance of ten miles. We were frequently
obliged to take the horses out of the sleigh for
two or three hundred yards together, while
the men drew it over trees which had fallen
across the road, roots of others which had not
been removed, and other such impediments.
When we reached the ice of Yeo River, we
got on a great deal better, although, as at
Holland River, the melted, slushy snow lay
very deep. The banks were sedgy, and I
observed frequent hillocks or mounds of snow
thrown up, the habitation of the musquash, a
species of large water-rat, having a long fur,
Avhich serves to make a good coarse felt for
hats. We pursued our course till we came
upon Gloucester Bay, and from thence we
reached that of Penetangushene. We ad
vanced up this bay about three miles, keeping
the shore close on our left hand, till a small
piece of cleared land, and the signs of human
habitations, held forth to us the signal that
the hour of rest was at last come.
Here, then, I was arrived ! My residence

186 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
was in this very spot to be established, I could
not tell for how long. As it was growing late,
no time was to be lost : a column of smoke
was to be seen ascending on the other side of
the brow which overhung the beach, and to
that I of course made my way. It was at
three o'clock in the afternoon when I got out
of the sleigh. The distance we had traveUed
in the day was, ten mUes through the forest,
and I think fifteen over the ice, — in aU,
twenty-five mUes. On stepping out of the
sleigh I was immediately wet through, owing
to sinking half way up my legs in melted
snow. The driver wishing to get back again
the same evening to Yeo River, urged me to
have my things taken out of the carriage, and
was anxious to hurry me to make up my mind
where I would have them deposited. All
places were then ahke ; so, desiring my ser
vant to strew some spruce boughs on the
snow a few yards within the forest, my bag
gage was placed upon them, and I left him
to watch every thing, while I set forth to
wards the place where I had seen the smoke.

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 187
On entering the wood, I ascended a steep
acclivity, which I had no sooner surmounted
than I found myself amongst a parcel of small
huts, made up of a few poles thatched over
with spruce boughs, scattered here and there ;
and from two or three of these it was that
the smoke issued. There was not such a
thing as a log-house to be seen ; but I ob
served, that one of the huts was rather better
finished than the rest, and a farther distinc
tion was allotted to it by a flag, which was
placed upon the roof. It was evident, that
none of them could have been long erected,
the snow was so excessively deep, and the
foot-marks so few ; however, I made my way
immediately towards the one with a flag,
where I found Captain C  , of the navy ;
and I had no sooner entered and introduced
myself, than I received a very cordial wel
come. Captain C  immediately afforded
me the assistance of a couple of men to build
me a hut ; and, as it was necessary that it
should be ready for me to sleep in the same
night, I went back to the place where I had

188 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
left my servant with the baggage. I told
him where I would have the hut buUt ; and,
learing him to superintend the works and re
move the things, I returned to Captain C  ,
where I was regaled with a fine piece of boUed
beef, which I was hungry enough to think
excellent, though from its toughness it would
hardly remain upon the fork. Captain P 
and Lieutenant E  , the other officers ap
pointed to the estabhshment, had assembled
at the Commodore's hut, and with them I
remained till nearly seven o'clock, when I left
the party to attend to my own affairs.
I had directed my hut to be erected on the
summit of the brow which rose close from the
bay; and when I returned to the spot I found
my servant busily arranging my different arti
cles of property in an edifice which, if not
equal in splendour to the renowned palace of
Aladdin, had been, at least, completed nearly
in as httle time. By the help of a few poles
and cedar boughs, I had now, such as it was,
a house of my own. There were at least two
sides with a back part, and the front was open;

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 189
but a briUiant fire was blazing before it, big
enough for the kitchen of the London Tavern,
and in itself a world of comfort. The plan
of the hut was not of my own contriving ; it
was such as local experience had determined
upon, and of the following description : the
front, where the fire was burning, was six
feet high and eight feet broad ; but the roof
dipped towards the extreme end, which was
only four feet high ; and the length was ex
actly ten feet. The snow had been well
cleared away from the bottom, and, being
banked up, it helped to support the poles
which formed the framework. A bundle of
spruce boughs laid across the extreme end,
with a sack of potatoes for my pUlow, formed
my bed ; and if I bad no door opposite, all
the cold that got in necessarily passed through
the fire and smoke. My baggage, — that is,
a very small vahse, a gun case, and some
other little packages, — was easily disposed of
within these narrow hmits, and every thing
was perfectly ready for my repose soon after
it was dark. My servant I had got attached

190 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
to the shipwrights' mess, — a noisy set of fel
lows, crammed altogether within a very small
compass, and among them there were some
singers, the sound of whose voices I used fre
quently to hear at night as I sat by myself.
March 1st. — Early this morning I provided
myself with one of the workmen's axes, and
began, by way of practice, to cut down trees;
and there were many ways of turning this ex
ercise to account. Of all things, I was the
most anxious to keep the smoke out of my
hut, and contrived various methods for the
purpose, but unfortunately aU without effect ;
so not succeeding in my first object, I set
about making a bedstead. To this end I got
four short, upright, forked pieces, upon which
I placed poles across, tying them with strips
of the bark of the bass tree, which I also wove
in longwise and across, so as to make a toler
able substitute for a ticking, on which I might
he before the fire high and dry ; on this I
placed a mattress of spruce boughs, and alto
gether, vrith my buffalo skin for a covering,
I rested comfortably. — The bass tree has a

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 191
remarkably tough, stringy bark, which rips
easily from the trunk, and is so strong and
flexible, that it serves all common purposes of
rope. The wood, at the same time, is almost
as soft as a cabbage-stalk, and very white.
My time was so much occupied, that I was
hardly sensible of the progress of the day,
and I went on chopping and working till late
in the afternoon. In the evening a gang of
Canadian axe-men arrived from York to place
themselves at my disposal ; and this event, in
the infant state of the establishment, was a
great relief to me. Log-buildings were the
first desiderata, to get ourselves under cover
and to provide for the reception of stores,
utensUs, &c., such as in the uncertainty of
events might at any future period arrive.
These men hutted themselves before night,
and some provisions, which had been brought
with the party, were well thatched with cedar
boughs for temporary security. My own
comestibles were scanty; I generally relied
upon being able to fare where others could>
and had not provided myself nearly as well as

192 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
I might. My baggage, with the exception
of the very small proportion brought with me,
was at Halifax, to be forwarded by the first
ships in the spring to Quebec ; and as to see
ing a particle of that, I might rest quite con
tented I should not before the middle of June
at the soonest. With most articles of dress I
could just now very well dispense ; but I felt
fortunate in having with me my double-bar
relled gun, (which had been dragged over the
snow on the tobogins,) and was quite ready
for the birds of the country, so soon as ever
they might make their appearance. None
of the feathered tribe were yet to be seen, ex
cept some woodpeckers, and a few packs of
snow birds, or " sna fools," as one of the ship
wrights, who was a Scotchman, used to call
them. March 2nd. — Early in the morning opera
tions for building log-houses were commenced.
I decided at once on a spot for my own resid
ence, — on the top of the brow, close above
the bay ; and all the trees which stood in my
way I intended one by one to chop down, and

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 193
SO go on improving in beauty the front of my
dwelling till the spring should embeUish the
ground with flowers and verdure. The logs
for my house were soon ready, and the work
began : the dimensions were twenty-one feet
by eighteen.
As I was at work close to the water's edge,
I found a large iron pot with three short legs.
As it lay there without an owner, I felt the
value of the services it was capable of perform
ing, so desired my servant to remove it to
my hut ; and his ingenuity, by its assistance,
prorided me the same evening with a very
good loaf of bread. He had placed the iron
pot on hot embers, having laid a large piece
of tin, taken off one of the packages, over the
mouth as a lid, and upon this he had strewed
more embers. The loaf was supported in the
middle of the vessel, between the two fires,
upon cross sticks, and in this way a tolerably
good oven was constructed.
The Canadians were now all busily em
ployed in a work— that of erecting log-houses o

194 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
—the simplicity and rapidity of which afforded
an edifying lesson ; and the facihty altogether
of rearing a house from the ground to its
summit appeared to be truly astonishing. To
the Canadian labourer, accustomed to the use
of the axe from his childhood, the feUing of
a tree is the act of a few minutes. He can
drop it whichever way he pleases, divesting
it of its limbs and adapting it for its place in
the wall of the buUding with equal dexterity.
Standing upon the faUen tree, and with his
foot placed in such a position as would appear
liable to be spht to the instep at every blow,
he strikes directly under it boldly and care
lessly, thus making a large notch (which
enters, perhaps, half the thickness of the
tree) quite perpendicular. When the trees
are aU notched, nothing remains but to lay
them in their places one upon another, or
^' the raising," as it is called. This done, the
house is finished, and the tenant walks in, —
happy if he has a door with a latch ready,
and a window-frame with half a dozen panes

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 195
of glass in it. Nothing then remains, but to
plaster and calk with mud and moss pro re
natd. By occasionally overlooking the men at
work, and by working as hard as I could my
self, I found the day pass quite agreeably,
and was fatigued enough always before night.
One of the huts in our knot was that of an
officer, who commanded a detachment of Ca
nadian fencibles ; another, that of Captain
P  , of the royal engineers ; besides the
Commodore's, with the red flag. But each
of us had separate objects to employ his time ;
so that for a few days we saw very little in
deed of each other. Captain C  , espe
cially, was generaUy absent all day, employed
in surveying the shores and taking the sound
ings of the bay.
March 3rd. — The weather, fortunately,
was exceedingly fine, and the soft deep snow
diminished sensibly under the influence of a
brilhant sun. At the same time it was quite
impossible to keep the feet dry, and I was
wet through the whole of every day. This,
o2

136 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
however, did me no manner of harm ; nor
did I ever hear of any one of our party being
otherwise than in perfect health, which was
the more fortunate as we had no doctor
among us. I have no doubt that the warmth
kept up by the additional covering worn un
der the, mocassins, which I have somewhere
before described, was the means of counter
acting the iU effects of the wet ; and I believe
that so long as the feet can be kept warm, no
harm will ever ensue from damp : it is the
cold which does the miscliief. The most de
licate subject is not afraid of a warm bath;
he never complains of having been wet
through, though he may have been half an
hour in water up to the ears !
I worked all day with my axe, and had al
ready let in a fine view of the bay, which was
about a couple of hundred yards below me.
My labour was repaid by every tree that feU ;
I improved in the use of the axe, and the
whole aspect of things seemed more cheerful.
Still I had no bed other than the spruce
boughs which I strewed on my newly made

RESIDENCE IN TllE WOODS. 197
bedstead ; so that there was good room for
improvement, and a great deal to be done
towards completing my little establishment.
March 4th. — The weather this day was
much mUder than usual, and the sun con
tinued to shine all day.
March 5th. — A rapid thaw took place this
day, attended with shght showers of rain. I
was gratified by the appearance of a couple
of crossbiUs, whose arrival I greeted as the
harbingers of spring. The little creatures
had probably flown a great way, being so
tame from fatigue as to allow me to approach
within three or four yards of them. The
temperature was now really warm, and the
weather seemed to be thoroughly breaking.
Large ponds of clear water began to cover
all parts of the bay, and the snow was so wet
and slushy as to make walking intolerably
bad ; at the same time it was so deep that it
was difficult to make any progress without
snow shoes. A pair hung up in my hut, but
I had a horror of them ; and as I had no im
mediate object to induce me to visit distant

198 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS;
spots, I had waited tiU a change in the sur
face of the ground should render locomotion
more practicable. Now there was a prospect
of this. A hard frost would lay a crust upon
the snow, when I might walk as far as I
pleased : and this reflection was not a httle
agreeable. In the mean time my log-house
was finished, and at a very little distance from
my hut ; but, as the weather was warm, I
grew so fastidious as to determine not to move
into it before it was well covered with shingles,
¦ — a sort of covering for the sides and roof, of
the same kind, but more effectual than wea
ther boarding. But, as there were no trees
quite fit for making these in the immediate
neighbourhood, I gave directions to one of the
men to go through the woods the next morn
ing in order to find some that would answer the
purpose, — In the evening, much to my grati
fication, a sharp frost set in.
March 6th. — In the morning the aspect of
the country was altogether and totally chang
ed. The snow was covered with a glassy
coating of ice, and the whole of the bay was

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 199
nearly frozen over. The pools of clear water
the day before had been so large and nume
rous, that an uninterrupted communication
from one to the other presented itself to the
eye ; and, as there had been no wind in the
night, the ice upon them was clear and good.
Instead of my mocassins, I put on a pair of
shoes, to which I had been for a long time
unused, and going down to the bay, sat down
upon a large stone to put on my skates. It
was a lovely morning ; the sun shone quite
bright, while the frost was remarkably keen ;
and in a very few minutes I was carried ra
pidly along towards the opposite shore. The
glow of exercise, the lively rattle of the skates,
and the sensation produced by the fresh air,
combined to embellish the novelty of the scene
before me, as I ranged with unhmited freedom
the clear ice which extended all across the bay.
Every object around me was unexplored, while
I had the means of being conveyed, as it were
on wings, from one to the other. I had been
confined for many weeks, either sitting still
half frozen in a carriage the whole of the day.

20O RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
or, since my arrival in the forest, completely
weather bound. For a long period I had
never been thoroughly warm, only barely able
to subdue cold, and had seldom during the
whole day felt a dry stocking on my foot.
My blood was now in full circulation, and the
interest I felt in every thing around me was
so great, that the sun had nearly reached the
tops of the trees before I thought of returning
to my dw"eUing. I had looked almost into
every corner of the bay, which was about
seven miles long and from two to three across,
and was at last quite tired when I discovered
an object which attracted my attention.
There was, at a distance on the ice, what
appeared to be a mound of earth thrown up,
•; — an appearance, under present circumstances,
not to be readily accounted for ; so I made
towards it that I might see what it was. As
I approached within a few hundred yards, I
thought I perceived it move a httle, and,
halting for a moment, I saw that that was
really the case. It was of a hght-brown co
lour ; but the figure was so indistinct, that

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 20l
whUe I watched it attentively I could not de
cide what it could possibly be. A bear would
haA'e been blacker, and I knew of no living
creature of those regions answering its descrip
tion. But, whatever it might be, there it
was, and it was therefore necessary to be a
little cautious, as I had no arms, in approach
ing it. I stood for some seconds thinking
what I should do, and had almost determined
to go home for my gun, when I saw the hide
which caused all my speculation thrown sud
denly aside to make way for the head and
shoulders of an Indian, who protruded his
rough matted locks into daylight from under
it. This solved the problem in a moment,
and I saw that the man had been employed
in fishing, and had so completely enveloped
himself in a large buffalo skin that no part of
his body, head, feet, or hands, were to be
discovered. He sat over a square hole cut in
the ice, with a short spear ready to transfix
any fish which might be attracted by his bait.
The hole was about a foot square, and the
bait was an artificial fish of white wood, vrith

202 RESIDENCE Ui THE WOODS.
leaden eyes and tin fins, and about eight or
nine inches long. The ice where he had cut
it was about three feet thick.
Being within a few yards of him, I com
menced a parley by signs, for he did not ap
pear to understand a word of English ; but
he seemed to wish me anywhere else, and to
be much annoyed at haring been interrupted
in his occupation. As my object was to pa
cify him, I gave him a small ball of twine I
had in my pocket, and with this he was highly
gratified ; much more so, however, by my
skates, which he riewed with marks of great
astonishment. He looked narrowly at the
straps which bound them to my feet; but
when I made him acquainted with their use,
there were no bounds to his delight : at the
same time he kept his own interest in riew;
for he tried to persuade me to give him a piece
of a red shirt of flannel which I wore, to make
a bait with. This I refused, by shaking my
head and saying " No, no ! " rather loudly ;
but he kept on entreating, taking hold of a
corner of the coUar with his finger and thumb.

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 203
I persisted in refusing, and kept him off. But
he was not so easily answered, and offered
me his knife, giving me to understand I might
cut it from what part of the garment I pleased.
So, shaking him by the hand and patting his
shaggy locks, I skated away, leaving him to
pursue his occupation for the rest of the
evening. On my return home I found that some
cedar trees, fit for the purpose of making
shingles, had been fixed upon in a part of
the forest near the water's edge ; that they had
been felled, cut into lengths, and removed by
means of small hand sleighs purposely pre
pared for them, and that the operation of split
ting had already been commenced. These
shingles are pieces of wood (as I may have
already observed) resembling tUes, with which
the roofs and sides of the better sort of houses
are covered. As to houses, it may be gene
rally remarked, that in these wild parts of the
country, talking of a house, one composed
simply of logs is understood, and if the idea
of a more civUized dwelling is intended to be

204 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
expressed, a frame house is the term made
use of, which means one made with beams and
rafters in the regular way. But to return to
the shingles. They are by far better than
weather boarding, in which, if a single nail
by accident becomes displaced or loose, the
evil extends itself more or less the whole
length of the board, while the shingle, being
less, fits close, and besides is not so hable to
warp. March 7th. — The frost continued, and the
cold increased to a very low temperature, the
effect of which, upon the extended sheet of
ice which covered the bay, was somewhat re
markable. It cracked and spht from one end
to the other with a noise which might have
been mistaken for distant artillery ; but this,
when it is taken into consideration that the
sheet of ice was of fifteen or sixteen square
mUes area, and three feet thick, may be easily
imagined, Nor was this all; I was occa
sionally surprised by sounds produced by the
wind, indescribably awful and grand. Whe
ther the vast sheet of ice was made to vibrate

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 205
and bellow like the copper which generates
the thunder of the stage, or whether the air
rushing through its cracks and fissures pro
duced the noise, I will not pretend to say;
still less to describe the various intonations
which in every direction struck upon the ear.
A dreary undulating sound wandered from
point to point, perplexing the mind to imagine
whence it came, or whither it went, whether
aerial or subterraneous ; sometimes like low
moaning, and then swelling into a deep toned
note, as produced by some ^olian instrument :
it being, in real fact, and without metaphor,
the voice of winds imprisoned on the bosom of
the deep. This night I listened for the first
time to what was then perfectly new to me,
although I experienced its repetition on many,
subsequent occasions, whenever the tempera
ture fell very suddenly. The weather being
so excessively severe, I had added an extra
covering of spruce boughs to my hut, by
means of which, and the profusion of logs
which I heaped upon my fire, I was better
defended from its effects. Nevertheless, I

206 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
was obliged to rise before dayhght, and heap
on eight or ten more, which lay ready for the
occasion, each of them as big as I could con
veniently lift.
March 8th. — The air continued intensely
cold, so that, in spite of the sun, the most
riolent exercise was necessary to preserve
warmth. In the mean time my log house, a
palace compared to the hut I was in, was to
be ready before night, and the whole of the
day I feUed trees, cut them into logs, haul
ing them in, and piling them up in my new
parlour ; and the next morning I was to take
possession. I lay down to rest on my spruce
boughs at night, satisfied with my day's work,
and pleased with my intended change of
dwelling. March 9th.— I rose in the morning exhi
larated by my projected movement, and the
weather at the same time seemed to smile
upon my operations; for the wind haring
changed to another quarter, the warmth of
the sun so meUowed the air, that it was pos
sible to stand still and look at surrounding

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 207
objects without feehng inconvenience from the
cold. I got every thing ready, and my pack
ages were soon tied together and distributed
in separate burdens on the snow at the out
side of my hut. My servant, with two or
three of the Canadians, had arrived to carry
them off, when an Indian, who carried a pair
of snow shoes in his hand, as if he had just
concluded a long journey, unexpectedly made
his appearance. After some fidgeting, he
produced an official letter, (from under his
shirt,) which he had brought from York. The
cover had been just strong enough for the
service it had to perform, being worn through
and through at every corner. I opened my
letter and read my instructions to leave the
establishment at Penetangushene, where I
was, and return by the road I had come to
Kempenfeldt Bay, and there await further
orders. " Ibi omnis effusus labor." Not a
green leaf then should I probably ever see on
the banks of Lake Huron. My new dwell
ing and my avenues were to be abandoned.
The wood I had piled with my own hands I

208 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
should never stay to burn, and aU that re
mained was to make preparations for my im
mediate departure. The Indian had also
brought letters for Captain C  and Cap-
tMn P  , conveying simUar instructions.
The whole establishment was to be broken
up, and all parties were to return nearer to
wards Quebec. On communicating together,
we all agreed to start at the same time the
next morning. The Canadians employed
themselves in making more hand sleighs for
the conveyance of the baggage of the party
over the ice, and as far as the state of the
snow, on the road tlirough the forest, might
permit. March 10th. — The morning broke with a
dry sparkling fi-ost, and an hour after sun
rise, the whole party was ready. The hand
sleighs were laden, each to be drawn by one
man, by means of a double trace crossing over
the breast. We bid adieu to the huts and
the log houses, and Captain C  , Lieut.
E  , and myself, together with the Cana
dians and shipwrights, aU walked away over

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 209
the ice, the same way we had come towards
the mouth of the bay. After walking some
distance, I was enabled to skate for a few
mUes, and regretted I had not made the ex
periment sooner, for the ice then became so
rough that it was impossible. The hand
sleighs passed hghtly over the hard surface,
and the men who drew them were in the most
jovial spirits. They whistled, sang, and ran
races with each other along the ice, over
setting some of the sleighs, and breaking
others, till a few mUes' walk brought them to
a more moderate tone of merriment. Such
is the natural love of change, that we are
made happy by it without knowing why or
wherefore ! But these men were doomed
to receive before long a moral lesson, and la
ment the waste of strength, which they would
have been wiser to reserve for the end of their
walk. From the sleighs broken in these
frolics, the loads had been transferred to
others, and the delay occasioned by the acci
dent was in each case made up by a hard run
to catch the party, who went, not like a troop
p

210 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
of dragoons, according to the powers of the
slowest horse, but on the contrary, every body
entering into a quiet sort of determination
within himself to walk away from his neigh
bour if he could. And thus, without giring
or taking compliments, every body made the
best of his way. And this was all very well,
so long as the sohd rough ice afforded a firm
and not a slippery footing. However we
came at last to the edge of the forest, where
the road was altogether different. The sur
face of the snow was so exceedingly uneven,
owing to the soft weather which had pre
vaUed for some days before, that it was im
possible to puU the hand sleighs along.
During the gambols of the Enghsh ship
wrights, the Canadians had kept together,
going all the while a steady pace ; and now,
for the first time, they and all the party halted.
Libertd, a Canadian, a man in whose face the
extremes of health and ugUness were com
bined, was the first at this juncture to prepare
opposition to the dilemma. Liberty was
evidently, in blood, half a savage ; either by

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 211
the father's or moffe^'s side^ fee was the son
of an Indian. His constitution was strong
as that of a bear. Heedless of cold, a known
and tried pedestrian, feis short, thick figure
ibeitokened inc.aloulable strength, and his swar
thy features shewed a tinge too dark a^d
fixed to be discomposed by common causes.
He had suffered grjeyously from the smaU-
pox, and he had only one eye, the other hav
ing been goyged * out about two years beifore
by the thumb of a friend in a drunken squab
ble. This man was in a moment on his knees
unpacking the things in the sleighs and tying
several of the bundles together, till he made
a load as large as himself. This, with the
assistance of the othesr mej^, he placed on Ms
shoulders, steadying ,it at the same time by #
broad leathern belt wfeich bore on his fore
head. Le?«iing his head backwards while 4he
* The American pr-aotice of f gouging" mayjiottbe
;g,^^^apjiy known J it js ,p^t;icul£^rly simple, ai)^ very
particularly crp,^ : a m^n .twists his antagcjniist's h^ir
firmly round his fingers, and having dpne so, t;ajies the
first opportunity afforded in the conflict, of poking out
his eye with his thumb.
P 2

212 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
knot was fixing, as soon as aU was ready,
vrith the strength of a two year old bull, he
darted it forward with a plunging effort, re
ceiving thus nearly the whole of the weight
upon his broad, thick neck ; and then, at a
strong shuffiing trot, he had soon advanced
many paces away from the party on his route
through the forest. A very smaU portion of
time was sufficient for the foregoing operation,
and the rest of the Canadians, following the
example of Liberte, were not less expedi
tious. The English shipwrights, too, did the same
with their baggage; but, being less accus
tomed to this mode of carr)ing burdens, they
took necessarUy some more time to make their
arrangements. They made their handker
chiefs serve for the forehead strap, and con
trived to diride the articles among them
selves, so as to leave none behind ; but not
withstanding, things were quite changed since
the commencement of the journey. They
grumbled and swore whenever one by accident
ran against the other, making him trip or dis-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 213
composing his load. They were no longer
the same boisterous crew, but whenever by
accident their cords grew loose and required
tightening, and they asked for assistance, it
was in a ciril, modulated tone that they ad
dressed each other. They strained hard to
keep up with the Canadians, and, being all
strong athletic feUows, were not left far be
hind,' although they laboured grievously to
maintain their place in the line of march. At
last it became absolutely necessary to keep the
men together, for which purpose one of the
Canadians was sent a-head to desire those in
advance to moderate their pace ; for, unused
as the English shipwrights were to a descrip
tion of labour commonly adopted by the native
Canadians in the country, it was soon erident
that little progress would be made that day.
And it was with great difficulty that, with the
frequent delays to adjust the loads, and the very
slow pace at best traveUed, we were able alto
gether to reach the uninhabited hut where I
had slept on my journey up, ten mUes from
Yeo river. Our party took possession of this,
while the Canadians and shipwrights repaired

214 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
to another, which the former had made on
their way to Penetangushene, and which was
close by ours. It was impossible to sleep a
great part of the night, owing to the noise
they made. The men it appeared were ca
rousing, and their loud peals of laughter were
only interrupted by the songs which they, one
after another, were caUed upon to sing. En
glish and Canadians were unusuaUy harmoni
ous and friendly, and so we aUowed them to
follow their own devices, hoping that by and
by a glance at their bundles might bring them
to reason.
March 11th. We had twenty mUes to go
this day to Kempenfeldt Bay, and the travel
ling was not particularly bad. We were aU
ready at an early hour, although the ship
wrights were far from Uvely. They argued
about their loads, and the manner of securing
them; for some of them were indeed very
heavUy ladeui This was not all; for very
few were quite sober. Those who were so
ber, were iU. One looked half asleepj an
other's eyes seemed starting out of his head ;
and all, it might fairly be said, were setting

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 215
off under most unfavourable auspices. Nature
seemed to be sinking within them, and they
stopped to rest every quarter of an hour.
Big drops of perspiration stood on the fore
heads of those who lagged behind, while the
foremost, heedless of every thing but them
selves, left them to plod on alone. Thus,
durmg the first two hours of the march,
short as the journey was before us, it was by
no means erident how long its accomplishment
would take, owing to the large bundles, and the
former evening's joUification. But by degrees
the iron frames of these men overcame all
their aUments; they ralhed, and cheered up,
till some of them joined in chorus with the
Canadians, who sang as they travelled, so as
to make the forest ring with the sound of their
voices. We arrived at Kempenfeldt Bay in very
good time. Captain C-  , Lieut. E  — ,
and myself, took possession of the log-house
where I had slept on the night of the 26th of
February, and the men were disposed of in
another building of the same description,
which had been erected close by for the pur
pose of depositing stores belonging to the

216 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
navy. Lieut. E. was kind enough to lend
me a hammock, of the use of which I avaUed
myself with the more readiness as I had been
sleeping every night in my clothes for a long
time. The advantage, however, was pur
chased at some cost, for I had a severe fall, by
which I not only cut my head, but demolished
a good watch. The latter was at the time
the most serious eril of the two.
March 12th to 14th. The w^eather during
these three days was clear and cold ; and as
the bay was covered with good ice, I was en
abled to skate over a considerable extent. AU
parties were waiting their instructions, and I
felt in that state of uncertainty, as to be for
the time rather indifferent to every thing.
Letters were however received, which decided
the fate of my companions. They were or
dered to York, whUe a private communication
gave me reason to expect that I should have
to remain a considerable time where I was.
March 15th. At an early hour this morn
ing. Captain C  , Lieut. E  , and the
whole party of shipwrights, were ready for
their journey to York, leaving me in the sole

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 217
possession of the log-house I was in. I ac
companied the party to the beach and a little
way over the ice, when, wishing them a good
journey, I returned back alone to my solitary
demesnes. The fire had been neglected in
the bustle of departure, and had got low ;
remnants of packages and rubbish lay strewed
about ; my Canadians were at work at some
distance in the woods ; and there was nothing
to disturb the loneliness and silence of the place.
The building consisted of a single room of
sixteen feet by twelve. The sides were rude
logs laid one upon another, and calked in so
insufficient a manner, that the light was risible
in more places than I was able to count. The
door, of thin deal, was too UI fitted to fill
its frame, and the light which entered the
apartment was through a smaU window of
four panes of green inferior glass. — A gloomy
feehng invariably envelopes the mind, upon
finding one's self suddenly deserted, as it were,
and alone. Without stopping to think why,
the very act of saying "good bye", and turn
ing south while a friend or acquaintance walks
away to the north, is always sufficient to pro-

218 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
duce this in a shght degree, and at the in
stant I felt inclined to despond. But a re
medy, the best of all others, immediately
suggested itself, and I seized my axe, to re
ceive, by a couple of hours' hard work in the
woods, the benefit of my prescription.
Returning to my house through the snow,
I found my servant had put every thing in
order. The fire was replenished, and my
simple repast was nearly ready. What was
to be done ? I had no books ; and if I had,
my house was too cold to sit stiU in. Read
ing, therefore, was out of the question. I
fashioned a couple of forked boughs with my
axe, to be fastened with a cord in a warm
place over the fire, to support my gun, which
I had taken out of its case, and put together;
and, confiding in the private communication
I had received, I resolved to fancy myself at
least settled for some time to come in my pre
sent abode. The house of the Canadians was
about 150 yards from mine ; and with tliese
men, my servant, whose services I seldom
lieeded, resided. When I wanted his assist
ance, I opened my door, and shouted ; and if

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 219
the wind happened to set the right way, my
summons was heard. If not, I was obliged
to wade through the slushy snow, to fetch
him. Rising soon after daylight, I imme
diately breakfasted ; dined at noon, and supped
at sunset. To prepare these meals cost little
trouble ; my toilette less ; and the wood for
my fire I chopped and piled myself; keeping
the latter always alive both day and night.
I began to make a bedstead, such as I had at
Penetangushene, and spread moss and spruce
boughs before the fire to dry, intending to
make a bed whereon I could lie undressed, so
soon as the bedstead was finished ; for I had,
besides my buffalo skin, four small blankets,
as many sheets, and a strong rug. These ar
rangements took up nearly the whole of the
day, and served to banish the apathy which,
in the morning, had made me unwiUing to at
tach myself to any sort of occupation.
March 16th. Before noon I had perfectly
finished my bedstead, and heaped upon it as
much spruce boughs and moss as necessary,
confining the whole by a long cord made of
Strips of bark tied together, which I wound

220 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
round and round tUl the whole was not only
tight and compact, but soft withal to lie upon.
This done, I laid my buffalo skin on the top,
then my sheets and blankets — and aU was
ready. A large bundle of spruce boughs,
confined with strips of bark, made also a good
piUow. Haring thus provided for my rest, I
took my gun off the hooks over the fire, and
salhed forth into the forest, in hopes of finding
any thing to shoot, no matter what, that would
come in my way. The .snow had been frozen
hard, but the top, thawed by the sun of the
morning, was so soft, that sometimes I sank
in up to my knees. The walking was exces
sively heavy and difficult, and the solitary ap
pearance of the woods moderated my expect
ation of success. (I wore mocassins during
my walk now, as at all other times, except
when I was obliged to wear shoes for the
purpose of skating.) The tracks of squirrels
were abundant, and there were also some
woodpeckers which I saw, speckled with white
and scarlet ; and I perceived on the snow the
track of a larger bird, which, as it was quite
fresh, I followed for a good way. It turned

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 221
backwards and forwards and round and round,
twisting about the trees in such a manner as
to make it difficult to foUow the track ; and I
was on the point of giring up the pursuit,
when I heard the sound as of a pheasant
rising into a tree close by me. Turning
round, I saw the partridge I had been pur
suing, sitting on a bough, and shot him. An
unsportsmanhke act, certainly! but to be jus
tified by the stupid disposition of the bird,
which nothing can persuade to fly. Besides,
a pound of any sort of fresh meat was then to
me a prize not by any means to be neglected.
This was a beginning in the way of partridge
shooting. With game in the woods, there
was an end of solitude ; and so, blowing at
the feathers of the bird, and minutely examin
ing his plumage, I put him into my pocket,
with the intention of having him, ere long,
twirling at the end of a string before my fire.
There are two sorts of these birds in this part
of the country. The birch partridge, such as
the one I had just killed, and the spruce. The
former is the larger of the two, and the size

222 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
of an English grouse. The bones are very
slight, and the flesh white, and so extremely
deUcate as to render it impossible to carry it
suspended by the head, as the body literally
tears off by its own weight and the motion.
The spruce partridge is a little smaUer than
the birch ; the flesh much firmer .and darker
jcdoured, and bearing a strong flavour of the
-spruce fir. Both sorts perch on trees, and
are fringed to the feet with feathers.
I pursued my walk, in the course of which
I shot also a squirrel and a woodpecker, fol
lowing the course of a ravine, at the bosttom
^f which the snow lay in some places unusuaUy
^eep; in others, more exposed to the sun, a
jstreara might be detected gurgling throiigh
its deep, hollow channel, while the crackhng
surface, and the icicles which crowned .the
points of protruding rocks, bore eridence of
the severe alternations of temperature. On
the summit of the banks, in the warmest and
most sheltered spots, the ground was already
^uite bare, and the green points of the early
succulent plants were preparing to burst forth

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 22S
into their first leaves. The buds, too, on
some of the trees, were distinctly visible.
Thus, whUe the snow was distributed aU over
the woods in unequal proportion, so as to con
fine one's progress within small limits, the in-
icreasing power of the sun continued to dimi
nish every day more and more the mass,
giving additional strength to the consolatory
hopes of approaching spring.
March 17th. This was a very tempestuous
day. An unusuaUy high wind hurried along
clouds of small drifting snow, which pene
trated the sides and roof of my house from
top to bottom. Not a dry place was to be
found in it ; and upon my table, which stood
close to the fire, I could write my name with
my finger in the covering of snow which, like
powder, lay upon it. The temperature, too,
was exceedingly low. Finding it impossible
to stay in the house, I took my axe and went
to the most sheltered spot that I could find
in the forest, where I worked, without stop
ping, tiU I made myself warm, when I re
turned home to dinner. The partridge had

224 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
served me for supper the evening before, and
now the squirrel and woodpecker were put
before me in a pudding. The squirrel, being
weU peppered, tasted like a rabbit, and, I be
lieve, was perfectly good. Something told
me, however, that it was not right to eat the
little animal, nor could I overcome my scru
ples. As to the woodpecker, I had no such
compunction, nor was it necessary that I
should. His flesh was his protection, being
as black as that of an owl— absolute carrion !
besides being lean and stringy. For that,
however, I consoled myself. I . was only a
loser by the weight he carried on his bones,
and that Avas so httle, it did not much signify.
March 18th. This day I walked out again
with my gun. I saw a flock of twenty or
thirty birds about the size of fieldfares, or a
Uttle bigger, and somewhat resembling them
in ffight and action. They kept together on
the tops of one tree after another, and on my
pursuing them were very shy, and persisted
in keeping out of distance. At the same time
they were extremely noisy, and some of them

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 225
were always chattering, while others whistled.
I got near enough to see that their plumage
was chiefly blue, and at last shot a straggler,
as he flew over my head. I found he was a
blue jay, a bird resembling the Enghsh jay in
shape, and having also a simUar black mark on
the jaws.
New sounds and new colours now tended
to enliven the solitary scene around me as
each feathered stranger thus established his
summer residence in the neighbourhood of my
dwelling, ornamenting the forest with his bril
hant plumage. It was beautiful to see the
birds welcoming the budding leaf by their
happy return from their long winter's banish
ment, while the eye followed their flitting
track through the air, and the ear listened to
notes lovely in themselves, and till then un
heard. March 19th. This day I went out shoot
ing, but, owing to the violence of the wind,
was actually obliged to return home.: Indeed
it was a service of danger to vvalk, for the
dead branches were tumbling about my ears
Q

226 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
from the tops of the trees so frequently, that
I had great difficulty to avoid them. The
gale produced serious effects on every side.
Some large decayed hmbs fell, newly broken,
to the ground, while others, long since se
vered and suspended among the boughs of
their neighbours, now loosened their hold.
The crash of trees faUing around was so fre
quent as to be to me really astonishing. In
deed, in calmer days I had often reflected on
the subject. Even in the finest weather,
hardly a quarter of an hour ever passes in a
North American forest, when, if one hstens, a
tree is not heard to faU to the ground; so
often, as, apparently, UI to accord with the
extended duration of vegetative life. But the
discrepancy is reconciled by drawing an ana
logy with human existence. Sometimes the
sweeping hurricane, like a rirulent disorder of
our race, levels the tenants of the forest pre
maturely with the earth;— but Time ever
stalks abroad, closing days and centuries.
And if, in the dense assemblage of the woods,
where such unnumbered multitudes exist, these

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 227
instances of universal mortality should be at
aU times occurring, the summons, with refer
ence to the numbers within hearing, is no
more to be wondered at, than that the village
bell should daily toU, unregarded, the knell of
more short-lived man. * * * Having returned
home to my house, such as it was, I had
scarcely arrived when a snow storm set in,
which lasted the whole of the day. I had but
little occasion for a candle in the evening : if
I had, it would not have been possible to
keep one burning. My blazing, companion
able fire afforded light for all my present pur
poses, and I heaped on it a pile of maple
logs sufficient to set the tempest at defiance ;
for winter seemed to have recommenced in
all its rigours.
March 20th. Very early this morning I
was awakened by a scratching at my door ;
and on hstening attentively, I distinctly heard
the feet of some animal which eridently had
an intention of making its way into the house.
It put its nose to the bottom of the door,
snuffling and whining from eagerness, after
the manner, as I thought, of a dog. Con-
q2

228 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
ceiving it might possibly be either a bear or a
wolf, without stopping to put on my clothesi
I seized my gun, which was ready loaded over
the fire, and keeping my eyes upon the door,
which was of such very thin deal, and so im
perfectly fastened by a wooden latch, that I
could place no confidence whatever in its
strength, I remained stiU a moment or two,
not making up my mind exactly what to do.
My window was fixed, and the glass so bad,
that light would barely pass through it. As
to distinguishing any object on the other side,
that was quite impossible. There was many a
hole in the house of which I might have availed
myself, but it was scarcely daybreak, and
therefore too dark to discern any thing without.
So I threw a smaU log or two upon the fLre to
blaze up, thinking it best to remain where I
was, even in case the creature should happen
to break into the house, when I should be sure
to have a fair shot at it. Scarcely a ' minute
had now elapsed from the very beginning,
when I concluded, from the sound, the perse
verance, and total absence of fear of the ani
mal, that it must be a dog, and nothing else ;

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 229
SO I opened the door very little and with ex
treme caution, and discovered, to my surprise
and satisfaction, that I was right ; for a dog
it was ; and in an instant, a brown, rough
water-spaniel bounced into my room, overjoyed
at haring reached a human habitation. To
account at once for the circumstance: — My
house was but little removed out of the line
of march of the North-west traders ; to one of
which persons (as I afterwards discovered) the
dog had belonged ; and having lost his master,
had wandered through the forest, till he came
by chance to my dwelhng.
I greeted him with a most cordial welcome,
happy to have a companion! an honest friend!
whether from the clouds or elsewhere, no mat
ter : so wishing his former master, whoever he
might be, all sorts of worldly prosperity, my
only hope was, that he might never shew his
face in my neighbourhood ; and I put a string
round the neck of the dog. The poor fellow
was, on his part, just as happy to see me as a
dog could well be. He frisked and jumped,
wagging his tail, and licking my hands, while

230 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
his eloquent eyes, as plainly as letters engraved
on brass, besought me to make trial of the
merits of one so ready, on his part, to execute
a bond of faithful allegiance. I shewed him
my gun, holding it down low to his nose; upon
which he held his head back, while a glance of
recognition ratified the treaty. Calling imme
diately for my servant, I got my breakfast ; i^ot
forgetting my new guest. I had nothing for
myself but bread and salt pork, which I shared
with him. He ate voraciously, having been,
apparently, a long time without food. I tried
all the names of dogs, in order to see to which
he answered best; and at last fancied that he
attended most to that of Rover. So Rover,
at all events, I determined to caU him.
To sportsmen, at least, it may be readUy
imagined that no time was expended in use
less preparation, before we saUied forth
together, without farther ceremony, in quest
of game, into the forest. The snow in the
woods was crisp from the night's frost; the
sun was just rising in a clear sky. I, that
yesterday had no resource but to track a poor

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 231
unfortunate bird by its footsteps, had now my
gun on my shoulder, my dog before me, and
the best of a fine day unexpended. The
haunts of a description of game, of which I
was totally ignorant, were evidently famihar
to my dog; and as he quartered his ground
from right to left, I felt the most eager inter
est and curiosity in the pursuit. I had walked
about half an hour, when he suddenly quested ;
and on going up to him, I found him at the
edge of a swamp, among a clump of white
cedar trees, on one of which he had evidently
treed some description of bird ; for he was
looking stedfastly up into the tree, and bark
ing with the utmost eagerness. I looked
attentively, but nothing whatever could I dis
cover. I walked round the tree, and round
again, then observed the dog, whose eyes were
evidently directly fixed upon the object itself,
and stUl was disappointed by perceiving no
thing. In the mean time, the dog, working
himself up to a pitch of impatience and violence,
tore with his paws the trunk of the tree, and
bit the rotten sticks and bark, jumping and

232 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
springing up at intervals towards the game ;
and five minutes had at least elapsed in this
manner, when all at once I saw the eye of the
bird. There he sat, or rather stood, just
where Rover pointed, in an attitude so per
fectly still and fixed, with an outstretched
neck and a body drawn out to so unnatural
a length, that twenty times must I have over
looked him, mistaking him for a dead branch,
which he most closely resembled. He was
about twenty feet from the ground, on a bough,
and sat eight or ten feet from the body of the
tree. So, retreating to a Uttle distance, I shot
him. This done, I pursued my way, and in the
course of the morning killed four more par
tridges, which I came upon much in the same
way as I did upon the first. My larder was now
handsomely stocked with game. The snow
became as usual very soft in the middle of
the day, so that I never was otherwise than
quite wet through about the feet and legs.
To have a house of my own, however, and
the advantage of an exceUent fire, by far
more than compensated for other inconve-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 233
niences, and I felt a growing interest in every
thing about me.
March 21st. — During the whole of this day
the weather was particularly mild, but the
hard night frosts continued to preserve the
vast quantities of snow, with which the ground
and the ice in the bay was covered. I went
out again with my dog for a few hours in the
morning, and brought in some more par
tridges. At one of these my gun flashed
three times mthout his attempting to move,
after which I drew the charge, loaded again,
and killed him. The dog all the time was
barking and baying him with great persever
ance. There is no limit to the stupidity of
these creatures, and it is by no means un
usual on finding a whole covey on a tree in
the autumn, to begin by shooting the bird
which happens to sit lowest, and then to drop
the one above him, and so on till all are
kiUed ; and this has very often been done.
March 22d. — The Canadians had been for
the last few days employed in making a land
ing place or wharf for boats of pine logs, and

234 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
they had been put to some inconvenience from
the want of a ffle to set a large cross cut saw;
so I had dispatched Liberte across the lake,
to Newmarket, in order to purchase half a
dozen at Mr. Peter Robinson's shop. It was
a long way to send for a few files, (forty-
seven miles thither, and forty-seven back, in
such weather,) particularly as the snow on
the bay was so very deep and slushy that
nobody but such a being as Liberte. would
have gone across, the danger of breaking
into holes at this season of the year being
very great. However, this day, back he came,
having made the journey in a very short
time, though I do not recoUect the precise
number of hours he was on his way. Liberte
gave me the files, and at the same time pro
duced a large piece of the flesh of a bear
which some Indians, whom he had met on the
way, had given to him. It was a great lump
of black looking meat, very much like horse
flesh, without the least particle of fat about
it ; however, as I knew it was usually eaten
in the country, notwithstanding the appear-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 235
ance, I felt not the least objection to make
an experiment upon it, and I had it for dinner
the same day. But there was something so
very disagreeable in the taste, so extremely
fusty, as if it had been kept in a close cup
board, or a hot pocket, that with all my in
clination to dine on fresh meat, I could not
eat an ounce of it. Nor could my servant
touch it. But Rover had no scruples of any
sort, and ate the whole.
March 23d to April 2d. — The weather
was very mUd during the whole of this period,
although the frosts at night were regular and
severe. There seemed to be really no end to
the snow, which was however, on the whole,
decreasing. I contrived with my gun and
my axe to employ my time, and to set ennui
and blue devils at defiance. I commenced
preparations for the coming of the wild fowl,
of which I heard exaggerated histories from
the Canadians ; and in the sequestered spots
at the edge of the bay, I cleared away trees
to let in a sufficient view of the water, and,
with the branches, I made ambuscades in those

236 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
places most hkely for their resort. And this
was an object in which I was so much in
terested, that it took much time and labour
to carry it into execution. But I worked
hard and regularly in order to have my ope
rations finished before the breaking up of
the ice in the bay, which event I expected
to take place in about ten days, and then, as
I heard, the wild fowl would come pouring in
in great numbers. I had already seen a great
many flights of both ducks and geese, but all
so remarkably high in the air, as to make it
evident they were bending their course to some
point very remote.
AprU 3d. — The day was dark and cloudy.
Alternate showers of snow and sleet pene
trated the sides of my house, which was nearly
as fuU of holes as a sieve. A little rain
fell towards the evening, and the general un
settled appearance of the weather held out
reasonable expectations of a speedy break up
of the frost.
April 4th.^ — Shortly after daylight, in the
morning, I heard a chattering of birds close

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 237
to ray house, as loud and incessant' as if a
thousand parrots had pCrched upon the neigh^
bouring trees. I hurried on my clothes, and
taking my gun in my hand, was out of doori
in the space of two or three minutes. The
day Was. unusually soft and mild, and there
was a fog so dense that I could only see a
few yards before me. It was quite' spring
weather, and the snow was thawing as fast as
it possibly could. I soon perceived that a
flock of wood pigeons had settled themselves
all round about me, though I was surprised
at the note so httle resembhng that of any
sort of pigeon I had ever heard. Indeed I
can think of no better comparison than the
one already chosen. As I approached to
wards the busy gabbhng which directed my
course, the first that struck my eye had perch?
ed on the branches of a dead old tree, Vvhicll
was literally laden with them. They stuck
all over it as thick as they could possibly sit.- I
had no sooner caught sight of them than the^
immediately rose, and this movement was the
signal for legions of others, which I could hot

238 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
see, to do the same. It was unlucky that the
fog was so thick, or the sight must have been
grand ; there seemed to have been enough to
have carried me away with them, house and
aU. I shot at them as they rose, but I was
rather too late, and only kUled four. How
ever, I had no sooner loaded my gun, when I
found that some of the stragglers were flying
about in circles, and setthng themselves in the
different trees. I therefore continued the pur
suit, and before breakfast I had bagged in all
twenty-two birds. This description of wood
pigeon which risits the country in such pro
digious flocks, is about the size of the Eng
hsh dove-house pigeon; the bill is however
longer, and the form of the body more taper
ing and slender. On the wing, their shape
and ffight exactly resemble that of a hawk ;
like him, they twist and turn among the
branches of the trees with astonishing strength
and rapidity. The taU also, hke that of a
hawk, is long ; and their colour is blue. To
wards the middle of the day, the sun broke
out through the fog, and it became hot. The

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 239
ice in the bay, covered over with watery
slushy snow, now began to put on an appear
ance of breaking up totally. It had melted
away entirely round the edges, and in some
places, twenty yards or more of clear water
intervened between it and the shore.
April 5th. — A sudden cbange in the wea
ther took place, and it became much colder,
with frost. This day I received a communi
cation from York, by which I understood that
I might for some time consider myself settled
where I was, and of this I was by no means
sorry, — many a worse situation might have
been devised for me. Some of my Canadians
were to be dismissed, and the man who brought
my letter had orders to remain and to place
himself at my disposal. This man had been
accompanied over the ice, which was now un
sound and extremely dangerous, by a respect
able Scotchman, a Mr. F  , who brought
with him his wife and a young child. Mr.
F'  had been persuaded to proceed thus
far on a speculation, founded on the hopes of
a military estabhshment being to be formed

240 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
on the banks of Lake Huron, where he had
intended to commence business as a pub-
hcan, but he had no sooner arrived than he
discovered, that whether owing to having hst-
ened to bad adrice, or otherwise, he had
already, " in taking the Red Cow, made a
devil of a bull." He appeared a sober, indus
trious man^ and I really pitied his forlorn pros^
pects ; for he had been induced to leavie a
more eligible spot, and had now gone too far
to recede. He commenced feUing trees for
his log house instanter, in the mean time tak
ing up his abode in the house with the Cana
dians. Those who were to depart had al
ready gone off in high spirits, at a tiriie when,
certainly, although the frost had temporarily
improved the state of the ice, a heavy gale
of windi had it chanced to set in, must have
broken up every atom of it, and have drowned
the whole party.
April 6th. — A tempestuous day witli show
ers of sleet, towards the evening rather^arrri-
er, but still windy. Mr. F  , in despite, of
the weather, persevered at his labour. He

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 241
was a strong, able feUow, and the precision
with which the long slashing cuts of his axe
followed each other in the same identical line,
was extraordinary to look at.
April 7th. — A cold and rainy day.
April 8tli.— The weather again warm and
foggy. April 9th and 10th.— ^Cold windy weather.
April 11th.— Large cracks now began to
appear in the ice, traversing across and the
whole length of the bay. By its extreme
thickness it nevertheless held together most
obstinately. Nearly the whole surface was
covered with water. It was now perfectly
impassable. I killed a bird about the size of
a jackdaw, and very hke one, except that he
was only grey close round the eyes. I also
shot a woodpecker, about as large as a dove,
with a black mark on the jaws and a bright
scarlet spot on the pole. Large patches of
ground, quite clear of snow, now appeared in
the woods in those places the most exposed
to the sun.

242 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
, I discovered a quantity of wild leeks just
shooting up out of the earth, of which I ga
thered a good many. I was unfortunate in
this, my first essay on vegetable diet, for they
heated me to such a degree, that I was for
some time afraid they had possessed some de
leterious quality ; but the intolerably high
flavour of the plant quieted my apprehen
sions. I was in a burning fever, at the same
time quite sure that I had eaten nothing but
leeks. Though they abounded all over the
woods, for a long time afterwards I was too
well satisfied with my first dose ever to try
another. I shot some partridges, also a striped
squirrel, a harmless little creature, somewhat
less than the English squirrel.
April 12th.'^ — The length of the days being
considerably increased, the forest assumed
every hour a more vernal appearance. StiU
none but the earliest trees, and those only in
the warmest situations, were in forward bud.
As yet, unrelentless winter had not loosened
the ice, which bound up the waters in the

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 243
bay, and every night destroyed the hopes that
each morning had created of an event now
most wofuUy protracted.
I had walked this morning, with my gun
on my shoulder, some distance from my house,
considerably farther than I had ever ventured
before, having come upon a spot so clear from
snow, as to induce me to extend my ramble,
as the day was fine> without thinking of
my return. Trusting only to my footsteps,
and neglecting all other means of precaution,
it was not till I began to attempt to return
home, that I perceived I was bewildered and
unable to find my way back. I grew very
eager, and ran backwards and forwards in the
hopes of being able to retrace the path by which
I had arrived at the spot where I was, but to
no purpose : at last I came quite to a stand
stUl, and very soon became completely puzzled.
Very uncomfortable reflections immediately
suggested theniselves, not at all calculated to
assist the dilemma, and they were not much
relieved when, having climbed to the top of a
high tree, I could see nothing but the waving
R 2

244 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
summits of trees in all directions. I began
to think of my own foUy, and the change in
my life and prospects thus effected within the
space of a few short minutes. I might, by
good fortune, find my way back, but should I
take a wrong course, the long odds were cer
tainly against me. Not to make a bad matter
worse, I thought it as well to sit still and
think a little, being moreover as near the
summit of the tree as I could venture, without
the immediate chance of breaking my neck.
Having observed the highest spot of ground,
and taking the best observation I could of the
direction of this point, I descended and made
towards it, notching the branches as I went
on with my knife. Then making choice of
the highest of the trees, I climbed to the top,
where I received payment in fiiU and com
pound interest for my trouble, by catching a
glimpse of the ice in the bay. I very joyfiiUy
made towards it, marking the trees in my way
as before, and having arrived at the shore,
found I was not more than three mUes from
my house, to which I bent my steps as straight

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 245
as possible ; so much so as to toil pretty hard
in clambering over the trunks of the huge
trees which impeded my progress, and floun
dering through the deep snow.
My exertions brought to my mind reflec
tions relating to the scanty way I had pro
vided myself with clothes, for I had not cal
culated upon the extra wear and tear to
which my manner of life subjected my ward
robe. What with working with my axe,
moving and piling heavy logs, and such sort
of occupations, I had been for some days past
very much out at elbows ; and when I got
home, after this morning's adventure, the state
of my dress was a matter of. serious consider
ation. In climbing the trees, I had really
left parts of my things sticking on the
branches, from the eagerness with which , I
went up and down, and now that I came to
take a cool survey of myself, I found that I
was hteraUy in rags, and that too without a
taUor to help me. I had, however, needles
and thread in abundance, which nothing but
sheer necessity could induce me to use ; but
the time was come, and I employed myself

246 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
upwards of two hours in the evening, by the
hght of the fire, in cutting out patches, and
sewing them on as weU as I could.
April 13th. — I shot one of the large sort of
woodpeckers, caUed by the Canadians " cocks
of the wood ', in size rather larger than a
carrier pigeon, with a bright scarlet crest.
The Indians apply the scarlet feathers of this
bird to many articles of ornament. This day
I was very near losing my servant, who had
been amusing himself, during my absence
from home in the morning, by standing upon
the large slabs of ice, which, having broken
off from the main body, were floating at the
edge of the bay. And he ferried himself
about, as on a raft, with a long pole ; but the
piece he was upon split in the middle, and he
had a hard struggle for his life, being per
fectly imable to swim, and away from all
manner of assistance. He was severely bruised,
and drank more water than was of serrice to
him, so that he was very ill the rest of the
day. April 14th. — I had it in contemplation
some days past, to make my way through the

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 247
forest to the head of the Notawasorga river,
on objects connected with the duty on which
I was engaged; and as the weather seemed
to-day to favour the expedition, I appUed to
the Canadian, Liberte, to accompany me
thither as a guide. I have already described
the land communication from Kempenfeldt
Bay, through the forest, to Lake Huron.
Another road had, however, been cut, by
which the land journey was considerably
shortened, but it was in a rude state, being
merely a track where the trees had been par
tially felled by the axe, and the stumps even
of these very imperfectly removed. This
road led from the end of Kempenfeldt Bay,
straight to the Notawasorga river, making a
portage of eight miles. Thence stores of aU
descriptions were in the season to be trans
ported in batteaux, or flat bottomed boats,
down the river (a narrow sedgy stream) to
Lake Huron, and put on board the govern
ment schooners appointed for their convey
ance across the lake to the upper port of Mi-
chihmackinac. Thus the hne of transport
aU the way from York was, from thence by

348 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
land to HoUand River, communicating with
Lake Simcoe. From Holland River, by water,
to the head of Kempenfeldt Bay, an outlet of
Lake Simcoe. By land, across the portage
of eight mUes, to the Notawasorga River, and
thence by water to Lake Huron. The log
house in which I was living, was about three
miles from the head of the bay, to which point
no road had yet been cut, and I started with
Liberte, first keeping along the shore of the
bay tiU we reached the track, and then pur
suing it to the head of the Notawasorga
River. Liberte possessed, in common with the In
dians, the faculty of crossing the woods to
any point he wished, and proposed to make a
straight line in this instance, instead of keep
ing along shore ; but I had but recently ex
perienced the sensation of being lost, and I
had no wish to run any unnecessary risk.
The distance we had to go and return was
only twenty-two miles, and the Canadian,
whatever his confidence in himself might have
been, had neither ideas nor words to make
me at first feel sure enough of his skUl to

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 249
trust him. When he talked of the rough sides
of the trees as the appearance by which he
determined his bearing, I could not but re
mark, that to my view the rough sides of the
trees seemed to point half round the compass,
and to this objection, urge it how I would, he
could say nothing explanatory or convincing.
However, during our walk along the track,
he related to me so many journeys he had
undertaken by himself in this way, that my
curiosity predominated, and I determined to
allow him, on our return, to strike at once
homewards through the forest. Although he
had not the means of communicating his fa
culty of finding his road, so as to make him
self at all intelligible, he spoke very reason
ably on the subject of another talent, known
to be possessed in a great degree by the na
tive Indians ; that of tracking a man or any
animal over all sorts of ground and among
dry leaves. And this he was able to account
for (to my mind) very satisfactorily as fol
lows. The forests in North America are ge
nerally without brambles or underwood, the
soU being httle more than rotten wood, a com-

250 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
post which takes the impression of a foot hke
dough. It is different in England, for there
the little fibrous roots, creeping through the
soil, interlace each other, and form as it were
a springy frame- work rising up under the
foot of a man, or even of a horse, without
learing any impression. The trunks of trees
also, which lie about in such profusion, and
are chiefly covered thickly with moss, most
materiaUy assist the pursuit, for no animal
can proceed without passing over them, and
learing vestiges of its progress by rubbing
off the moss.
We walked a good pace till we reached the
point of our destination, and having remained
there a short time, so as to satisfy myself as
to the objects I had in view, we commenced
our return ; and learing the track, plunged
at once into the recesses of the forest, and
were immediately out of sight of the road
altogether. Liberte was now in his proper
element, and though I followed him as fast as
I could, I was often obhged to call out to
desire him to moderate his pace. The ground
was very unequally covered with snow. In

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 251
most places it was quite bare, in some we
were obliged to wade above our knees, and
in particular parts where it had drifted, we
were driven out of our hne in order to go
round. The huge trees which, after flourish
ing for ages, had been blown down in their
decline by the high winds, crossed our path
with such frequency, that the operation of
climbing was repeated as often as during a
walk through a country enclosed by stone
walls in England. But a large tree is not so
easily passed as a wall, the passage over it
being generaUy only practicable where the
trunk is of large dimensions. And a traveller
has no choice, for the roots and branches ex
tend too far on each side to make it worth
whUe to go round, even when they do not
come in contact with those of other fiiUen
trees ; and several of these frequently lie ex
tended in the same direction. Liberte, from
long practice, vaulted over them with great
ease and alacrity, and I, with more difficulty,
followed him as well and as fast as I could.
But it was impossible to avoid stopping every

252 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
now and then to observe the stupendous bulk
of some of the trees, the great age of which
had rendered them most truly objects of ad
miration. The magnificent outline of some
of these, and the tranqml gloom of the forest
altogether, was indescribably impressive and
grand. In these wUd haunts, neglected, though
subserrient to the purposes of man, nature
seemed to have held for ages her undisturbed
reign. Where I stood, perhaps the foot of a
civihzed being had never before trodden. I
contemplated a vegetative world, following in
regions of unlimited space, the laws of creation
to maturity, and then sinking in every stage
of natural decay, till all mingled again with
its parent earth. Here, a tree lay prostrate
on the ground perfect in its form and covered
with thick moss. Attempt but to pass it and
the feet sink deep in rotten wood, while the
strength of an infant's arm might scatter its
vast yielding bulk in dust over the land.
There what was a giant pine, now a low
green moimd, sunken by gentle degrees to the

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 253
very level of the earth, recalled to the mind
the time, when after a few more short years,
all remaining traces of its existence should be
obliterated, tiU like those which in preceding
ages had passed away, it should become con
founded together and mixed with the soU.
The varying duration of animal life, the re
turn of seasons, the orbits of the planets, even
the eccentric course of comets become defined,
and familiarized with our ideas of time, by
the inquiring spirit and science of man ; but
the tree still rears its head towards the hea
vens in defiance of his research, while tradi
tion and conjecture alone mark the span of its
existence. Generations after generations of
the human race have fallen one after another
into the grave, and yet in this enlightened age
where is the man who can count the years of
the gnarled oak ? Can he mark the day when
it burst its acorn with much more certainty
than he could define the period when each
stream and river first bubbled from the ca
verns of the earth ? How grand is the de
sign of nature presented to the riew in these

254 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
profound forests of North America ! A con
tinent abounding in images, not only calcu
lated to magnify the ideas of time and space,
but to exalt in the imagination the Creative
power, whose wise ordinances thus hold in
preparation so vast a field for the unborn mU-
hons destined at some future (perhaps not dis
tant) day to inhabit a country, commensurate
in its gigantic features with the ever expand
ing powers of modern improvement.
The Canadian continued his hne with de
termined precision, and without adopting any
risible means of precaution, till we arrived at.
spots in the neighbourhood of my log-house,
which I had risited before and were known
to me. We were about an hour's walk from
home when we came to a wigwam, where an
old Indian and his squaw were roasting part
of the flesh of a porcupine before the embers
of a fire. The meat was transfixed by a
straight stick, and thrust down within a Uttle
of one of its ends, which rested on the ground,
whUe the squaw sat away from the fire and
turned it round by the other. I was anxious

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 255
to try a morsel, which was readily given to
me, but it tasted so much of smoKe, that I
could perceive no other taste in it ; besides,
it looked very bad indeed. I observed the
way the Indian had made his fire. He had
rested the ends of three or four logs, of about
six feet long, upon two very short ones, placed
across and parallel to each other, and then set
fire to the long ones in the middle. So soon
as they were burnt through, he continued to
keep the lighted ends together till the whole
were consumed, replacing them with fresh
ones. The old Indian was extremely perse
vering in his demands for something to drink,
and I had nothing to give him but a doUar,
which he looked at with much discontent. I
had no less coin, and it was more than would
have been necessary, under other circum-*
stances, to have contented him ; but to these
people, the present hour is every thing; and
one single glass of liquor, to be then and there
received, would have purchased the post-obit
of a much larger quantity.
April 15th. — ^^This morning the weather

256 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
appeared to have changed altogether. The
ground was covered with snow which lay
about four inches deep. The sun, however,
came out with considerable force, and it was
melted and had thoroughly disappeared be
fore one o'clock. The ice in the bay stiU held
together, although nearly covered with water.
I shot a bird, called by the natives a robin,
being the size of a blackbird, and in colour
like the redwing, with a yellow bill.
April 16th. — The weather cloudy but warm.
On going out this morning I met with several
small green snakes, which were perfectly
harmless. There is not, I believe, any sort of
noxious reptUe in this part of the country.
The snakes rapidly increased to such numbers,
that in a very few days it was perfectly impos
sible to pursue a morning's walk without
treading on one or more of them. Where
the sun shone warm, they were sometimes
to be met with as numerous as earth worms in
England, after a shower of rain.
April 17th.— A strong wind having set in
in the night, blowing directly out of the bay.

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 257
I perceived in the morning all the ice broken
in pieces, and floating towards the lake. It
was moving slowly away, and a considerable
extent of water was already uncovered. This
was a joyful sight, for of all things a sheet of
water conveys the most lively impressions to the
mind, and confined as I was from the impas*
sable state of the ice to the shores on one side
of the bay, the barrier was no sooner removed
than I felt a sensation of liberation, which
seemed to be participated by the turbulent
waves themselves, as, just risen from their
bondage, they raUied as it were and held
council together, bubbling and fretting in
their eagerness to press on the rear of their
retiring enemy. The wind chased the chilly
field before it, which, split into mammocks,
was every minute retiring farther from the
sight, till about three o'clock in the afternoon,
when the lively change was altogether perfect,
and Kempenfeldt Bay, so long the type of
dreary winter, became a lovely basin of pure
water. And, as if to add to the gratifying oc
currence, the ice had no sooner disappeared, s

258 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
than the wind lulled, and the sun beamed forth
to embellish the natural beauties of a spot in
themselves very much above the common
order. As the evening advanced, it was beau
tiful to see the enormous pines with which the
banks were fringed, reflected in the water,
whUe the winding shore presented a pleasing
variety of sandy beach and bluff, rocky head
land. Nor were the animal creation insensible
to the moment : the large fish leaped incessantly
high out of the water, and it was scarcely
dark before a flock of wild fowl flew round
and round in circles, lowering themselves by
degrees, till each, one after another, dashed
heavily into the favourite element. A sports
man can readily comprehend how animating
it was to listen to the wild sounds which now
broke upon the ear, as the feathered troop held
their gabbling conversation together, and div
ing and splashing by turns, they commenced
every now and then a short flight for the sake of
a fresh launch upon the water. Every thing
now was new ; Nature had thrown off her
homely winter's garb, and was beginning to

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 259
unveil her beauties. My enjoyments were
from that day increased, and fish and fowl
were added to my resources.
It seemed wonderful to think there should
be so few among our poorer classes with
energy enough to break the chains of poverty,
and risit a land where pauperism is yet un
known; where youth and strength supply
the catalogue of human wants, and where in
dustry must meet its sure reward. The exu
berant abundance of wood for fuel renders
the fire-side of the peasant, during the long
evenings of winter, a solace equal to that of
many a wealthier citizen of the world, and as
his children, with united strength, drag in
each log to the hearth, he rejoices in the
clearance of the encumbered earth, when
those of the cirihzed world pay dearly for the
enjoyment of warmth. An emulative feehng
stimulates the natural industry of his consti
tution. The rattling clank of a neighbour's
axe, the crashing fall of a heavy tree, seem to
demand responsive exertion on his part, and
give rise to an energy, which, even if the tink-
hng frosty air at his fingers' ends fails to re-
s2

260 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
mind him that he has work on hand, quickly
rouses within him the spirit of active labour.
The work of his young children is of a value
to him, far exceeding the expense of their
maintenance, and he lives in the enjoyment of
the consciousness of being able to leave them
an inheritance of peace, if not of affluence.
With facihties of water carriage, fish in abund
ance, and fuel, by the help of his gun, he
may complete the necessaries of hfe, and
while the partridge and wild pigeon supply
him with variety in food, he has also in store
both recreation and amusement. It was long
after dark when I returned to my house from
the banks of the bay, and the night had far
advanced before the various sounds of the
different descriptions of wild fowl had ceased,
as they settled themselves in their new do
main. April 18th. — I had made preparation for
the wild fowl, by forming ambuscades in se
veral places on the borders of the bay ; and
to one of these I made my way this morning
an hour before daylight. The vrild fowl kept
themselves in the middle of the bay, but I

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 261
shot a large sort of kingfisher, slate-coloured,
with a black crest, and as large as a pigeon.
In going home, I saw the head of a small
animal, which I thought was a pole-cat, pro
truded from a hole in an old tree. I took a
stick from the ground and killed it, when, to
my mortification, I found it was a flying squir
rel with four young ones.
The snow might now be said to be en
tirely dissipated in the woods, excepting in the
ravines and places where the drift was extra-
ordinarUy deep.
I was aroused in the night by the yelping
of a wolf out of doors, close by my house. As
I listened, I heard the sound again farther off,
and so on till he went quite away. He
had no doubt received intelhgence of the
breaking up of the ice, and had come to meet
with his prey on the shores of the bay. My
dog was in the room, but took no notice of the
noise, which he must have heard.
April 19th. I was up again before day
hght, and with better success. I kUled nine
wild fowl of different sorts before breakfast.

262 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
not one of which could I eat, the flesh being
so black and fishy.
I saw a canoe paddled by a couple of Indians
advancing slowly along shore, and I haUed
them, but they were at first unwilling to attend
to me, although I succeeded at last in bringing
them to a parley ; and found they had two or
three large fish in the bottom of their canoe.
I made signs that if they would come a little
way with me I would give them something to
drink, and that I wanted to buy the fish. One
of them, a very old man, appeared to assent to
my proposal, and, taking the fish by the gUls,
accompanied me to my house. In my way
thither I called at the Canadian's house for Li
berte, who spoke the Indian language as weU
as his own. I was very soon owner of a large
sahnon; and after proper time had elapsed, (for
a bargain takes time all over the world,) and
not before the eyes of the Indian began to roU
in his head from the hquor I had given him
to drink, he agreed to terms for some other
articles I proposed to purchase. And I bought
of him the canoe, which he had left with his

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 263
friend at the water's edge, and a fish-spear.
For the fish-spear, the fish, and the canoe, I
paid him nine dollars, which was quite as much
as the things were worth. When we returned
to the canoe, the friend seemed to have no ob
jection to the bargain; but as I saw that the
happy state of the old man was all he enried,
I gave him drink enough to make him equally
stupid ; and then, tying up the old man's nine
dollars tight in the bosom of his coat, left both
to complete their adventures in each other's
company, and I never saw them any more.
I was now ready to go out the first calm
evening and spear fish with Liberte, who told
me he understood the art perfectly well. The
present day, however, would not answer the
purpose; for the slightest possible ripple on
the water makes it impossible to see the fish
under the surface. Liberte undertook to col
lect the bark of the birch tree in sufficient
quantity for our expedition, whenever the wea
ther should turn out perfectly favourable, and
examined the canoe, to see that nothing was
wanting. April 20th. I breakfasted very early on

264 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
the remainder of my fish, which had been cut
into large pieces and broiled on the embers.
It was a large sort of salmon-trout, but nei
ther firm nor high-flavoured. Under circum
stances, it was most thankfully received for
better. I went out in quest of wUd fowl, and
shot several ; among them a species of black
duck. The wUd fowl, generally, were much
more fishy than in England, with the excep
tion of this latter species. I saw a troop of
saw-bill divers, which had taken possession of
a small inlet close to the shore, where their
pyebald colour and pert crests looked most
inriting. Some craggy land overhung their
position, which I gained unperceived, when
they were all below me in a lump ; twelve, or
upwards, within thirty yards, and in deep wa
ter. On my firing, they disappeared like
witchcraft. Not one was hit ; and they were
so long under water, that I could hardly re
cognize the flock when they re-appeared at a
great distance. In my hurry to load again,. I
found I had lost my powder-horn ; to me then
a very serious misfortune. I had no means
of replacing it, otherwise than by the wretched

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 265
substitute of a small bag, which I made of
squirrel skins, and a measure cut out of a
piece of wood.
April 21st. The evening turned out re
markably fine, and the water was as smooth as a
looking-glass. Every thing was ready for my
fish-spearing expedition, the preparations for
which were extremely simple. The fish-spear
consisted of a straight handle about fifteen feet
long, to which a couple of barbed iron spikes,
of sufficient size to pierce a moderate-sized
salmon, were affixed. The birch-bark, for the
purpose of light, was prepared in pieces three
or four double, each the size of a large quarto
book ; and one at a time of these was stuck
in a cleft pole five or six feet long, placed at
the head of the canoe, overhanging the water
in such a manner that the blazing bark might
shine upon it. It was no sooner dark than I
went to th'e water's edge, where Liberte and
another Canadian were ready with the canoe;
As he held the vessel to the shore I steadied
myself by his shoulder, stepped in cautiously,
and took my seat in the middle. The canoe

266 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
was a very egg-shell, and as cranky as a wash
ing-tub, more fitted to carry ghosts than men,
while Liberte was as ugly as Charon himself.
A boy of twelve years old could have carried
it, notwithstanding it was to hold three of us.
We had an establishniient of tinder and matches,
and some pieces of fat pork cut into slips as a
substitute for candles.
As soon as we embarked, the men paddled
away along shore towards the head of the bay;
and as soon as we came near some small
streams which set into the bay, we stopped,
and the men, having struck a light, kindled the
birch-bark in the cleft pole. Crackling hke
soft fat, the unctuous matter produced a clear
flame, wliich Ughted up the watery depth be
neath us to the brightness of day. The soft
ashes which feU occasionally from the fire
caused a ripple, which for a moment confused
the objects underneath, but otherwise at a
depth of ten feet every thing was clear and
resplendent. The slightest form was dis
tinctly visible, — every pebble, even the beetle
that crawled on the ground. We passed

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 267
some perch lying close to the bottom, and
soon afterwards a rapid quiver of the water
announced the presence of some larger fish.
Liberte flow became animated, and pointing
his spear in the proper direction, made signal
to the man in the stern to give way. He
struck once, twice, without success ; but the
third time brought a large fish up on his
spear. It was a sucking carp ; a worthless
fish, full of bones, and very watery. How
ever we pursued the remainder, and killed
two more. We advanced nearer the head of
the bay, and at the same time saw two other
hghts proceeding from the canoes of Indians
who had visited the neighbourhood, and were
pursuing the same occupation with ourselves.
AU of a sudden Liberte again sounded an
alarm, and off we were again in pursuit of a
fish, which I could not for a long time see : a
fine salmon-trout, but of a nature infinitely
wilder than the carp. We chased him hke light
ning, turning and doubling in his wake, tUl I
was obliged to hold both sides of the canoe to
keep myself from being thrown out into the

268 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
water. However I caught sight of the fish
every now and then, when he was for a mo
ment still; then he made a dart, and aU
again was obscure. We were some minutes
after him, having lost him, and come upon
him again, but finally he eluded our pursuit,
and made his way into deep water, till the
glimmer of his silver sides was lost in the
lurid yellow gleam that, becoming by rapid
degrees more and more opake, confined to
its very narrow limits our subaqueous pro
spect. I changed places with Liberte, with
some risk of being upset, and I took the
spear, kneeling down in the head of the ca
noe. (We had regularly replenished our
lights, which burnt out every five minutes or
thereabouts.) We went back to where we
left the carp, and found them again. I struck
at them several times, but without success. I
found it not only difficult to hit them, from
the refraction of the water, but impossible,
even had I judged the distance correctly, to
drive the spear, by its long bending handle,
straight forward, I saw some perch close to

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 269
the bottom, and I speared one of them. We
were in about ten feet water, and I found it
was necessary to aim a foot at least below the
object. I had the less difficulty, as they were
not in motion. I also saw at the bottom a
hideous looking fish, yeUow with black spots,
the body like that of a snake, with a large
head, about a foot and a half long, and some
what in form resembling the small fish found
under stones in running streams in England,
and called the miller's thumb. I speared him,
and found him so strong, that I verily expected
he would have broken the handle of the spear.
He was what the Canadians caU a cat-fish.
In his writhing he had a knack of twisting his
supple body like an eel round the spear, and
with a force that, considering his size, was
quite surprising. He was, of course, not eat
able. We remained out upwards of a couple of
hours, when, having expended all our lights,
we returned home. Besides the salmon, carp,
and perch I have mentioned, there were other
sorts of fish in the bay. Among the rest, one

270 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
or two sorts of bass, a fish thick in shape Uke
the bream, and a small fresh water herring,
such as I have seen taken out of Lough
Neagh, in the north of Ireland, and where
they are called pullen. A small craw-fish was
not unfrequent. All the fish however, it must
be confessed, were of very inferior quality.
AprU 22d. The weather was now very
good, but the trees bore stUl their winter ap
pearance. It was past the middle of the day,
when I was sitting on a bank above the wa
ter's edge, close to the place where I had
missed my powder-horn two days before, when
I espied it lying at the bottom of the water,
and on the verge of a cleft rock. The water
was quite smooth, and, in the part where it
lay, nearly six feet deep : it appeared to be
resting so precariously above the cleft, that
the shghtest touch might put it out of sight.
So, as there was nothing else to be done, I
took off all my clothes, and taking the water
a few yards away from the place, swam round
so as to have it between me and the shore ;
then diving, I managed to get hold of a piece

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 271
of projecting rock with one hand, while I se
cured my prize with the other. The water I
was surprised to find by no means cold, con
sidering it had been so short a time released
from its covering of ice. It was, in fact,
warmer than it would have been at the same
season in England.
April 23d. My neighbour, Mr. F  ,
whose arrival I mentioned on the 5th, had in
a very few days, by the help of his axe, settled
himself in a very comfortable log-house, a very
few hundred yards distant from mine ; and he
came to me this morning to request me to
lend him my canoe to cross the lake to the
landing at HoUand River, on his way to York.
I could not spare my canoe, it was so import
ant an article of my establishment ; nor did
I like to refuse the poor man; so I determined
to go myself and to take him with me. I had
several reasons for going to York. Among
the rest, my clothes were so torn in pieces that
it was almost a matter of necessity to procure
a refit ; and Liberte, together with Mr. F.,
who was an able hand at a paddle, could.

272 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
both together, man the canoe. Mr. F. had
intended, I believe, to take his wife with
him ; but the present plan did not admit of
it, for the canoe would hold no more than
three persons. The lady, however, was not
pleased at remaining at home, and threw ob
stacles in the way, which the husband over
ruled, and the voyage was determined on for
the next day.
April 24th. At about two o'clock in the
afternoon we all got into the canoe — Mr. F.,
Liberte, and myself. And the two former, at
the head and stern, with each a paddle, puUed
hard and steadily, so that, keeping in shore
all the way, we were soon clear out of the bay.
But we had no sooner got completely out of
the lee of the land, than we found the wind,
which was against us, much stronger than
we had expected; so much so, that it would
have been unsafe to attempt to stretch across
the lake. We therefore kept in shore for
about a dozen mUes, and then bawling the
canoe on the land, we made a fire, before
which we broUed some fish, and then lay down

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 273
before it for the night, which was fortunately,
though windy, perfectly dry.
April 25th. At day-light we launched the
canoe, and, stretching across the lake, landed
at a house situated on the opposite bank,
where I got a very tolerable breakfast ; and
embarking again, we had not been more than
an hour on our way before the wind began
again to blow so fresh that we could not pro
ceed ; and although we were a very little way
from the mouth of Holland River, found it
impossible to reach it, the waves being so
rough. Therefore, in order to wait . tiU the
weather should be more calm, we hauled the
canoe again on shore ; and there we remained
on a bare, unsheltered point of land, with the
wind blowing a full gale, till six in the even
ing, when, finding there was no chance of fa
vorable weather, we crept a little way along
shore, and prepared again for a bivouac. We
were very near the mouth of HoUand River,
but there was a small bay to cross, too rough
for our cranky little vessel.
AprU 26th. We were in the canoe again
T

274 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
at daylight, and in good time in the morning
reached the landing where I had embarked on
the 26th of February. This was my first
voyage in a birch canoe. The weather was
certainly against us, but we had been nearly
two days going less than forty mUes, and had
slept two nights out of doors into the bargain.
I had taken my gun with me, and as the wea
ther was very good and the river quite smooth,
I shot a few birds on the way. One, a sort
of reed-sparrow, the size of a thrush, and of a
rich, dead-black plumage; the shoulders of the
wings a brilhant scarlet, tempered off with
yeUow. Its chirp is particularly musical ; it
clings by its feet to the reeds, and has a bob
bing motion of its head and tail when on the
wing ; the biU quite black, very thick at the
upper part, and sharp as a needle at the point.
I also shot a dwarf bittern, in all respects like
the common Enghsh bittern, as to shape, co
lour, pea-green legs, &c., except as to size,
which was very diminutive. As soon as I got
out of the canoe I walked eleven miles to
Newmarket, where I went to the house of

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 275
Mr. Peter Robinson, who was kind enoug'h
to endeavour to procure me a conveyance to
York. AprU 27th. — ^Although I was in the town
of Newmarket, I found it was by no means
an easy matter to procure a horse, or indeed
any other sort of conveyance. I, therefore,
determined to start on foot the pext morning,
April 28th to May 3rd. — Haring walked
thirty miles to York, I went to the hoi*se of
Mr. C  , where I fared sumptuously during
my stay. With regard to myself, nothing
had transpired, nor could I get any inform
ation relative to the period I was likely to re
main in the woods ; so, having cased myself
in buckram, by the assistance of an honest
tailor, I soon became, as far as dress coul4
make me, a better man than I was before. I
desired Liberte to meet me the next day at
Newmarket, and hired a horse to be ready at
an early hour.
May 4th.^Mr. C  accompanied me on
horseback to Newmarket, where we both put
up at Mr. Peter Robinson's house. Mr. C —
T 2

276 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
also undertook to supply me with a good
staunch batteau, then lying in HoUand River,
to take me to Kempenfeldt Bay, and keep
there for my- use so long as I should remain.
May 5th.- — Liberte and I walked together
from Newmarket so the landing at HoUand
River, where I inspected the batteau. It
was a sound boat, but very heavy; and as I
had not seen Mr. F  , since I left him at
this very spot, he haring remained at York,
there was nobody but Liberte and I to paddle
her. I had never had a paddle in my hand,
but knowing how to handle an oar, and being
anxious to get on, resolved not to delay. Be
sides, the wind appeared tolerably favourable,
and we had a small saU. So, fastening my
canoe (which I left here during my journey
to York) astern, we both embarked. The
wind helped us a good deal ; but our course
was not straight, so that we had a good deal
of hard puUing, which made me very tired,
not being used to it. However, before sun
set, we arrived at the same house on the banks
of the Lake, where I had breakfasted on the

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 277
morning of the 25th AprU. I was shewn into
a room with a good fire, which, as the evening
had set in rather cold, was by no means
disagreeable ; and prepared to take my supper.
However, before this meal was produced,
which, by the way, consisted of nothing more
than rashers of bacon and fried egg?, the ar
rival of an Indian and his canoe was an
nounced ; and in a few minutes after, Mrs.
F  , the lady whose husband had left her
at Kempenfeldt Bay, entered the room. De
termined not to remain at home by herself,
she had, it appeared, resolved to follow her
husband to York, and had arrived thus far
under the care of an old Indian, who had
brought her across the Lake in his canoe.
She no sooner came into the room, than it
was evident, by the way she pulled out her
pins and placed her feet upon the fender, that
she felt herself perfectly at home where sha
was. I very soon perceived that American
customs were likely to prevail, and that un
less chance should throw in a third person to
interrupt the tete-a-tete, we were doomed to

278 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
pass the evening in each other's company.
This not only proved to be the case, but our
landlady positively disposed of us in separate
beds in opposite comers of the same room,
where we remained tUl the morning. I had
iiothing to do with the usages of other coun
tries, but really could not help thinking the
proceeding altogether rather strange.
I was awakened early in the morning by
the busy sounds of a farm-house. The mis
tress was up, and the maid, and the chUdren,
and each had something or other to do. One
spht logs for the fire, another scrubbed the
hoards, while the landlady regulated the mo
tions of her troops by scolding and encou
raging by turns. She herself had undertaken
to whip out the fowls, which had taken pos
session of the kitchen, and wei'e making their
exit vrith all possible reluctance; cackling,
flapping their wings, overturning pewter
plates, and finally, after raising all the dust
they could, bolting out of the window.
May 6th. — The Canadian Liberte, and I,
pursued our voyage early in the mornii^, and

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 279
with the assistance of our sail crossed the
lake. We then had a great deal of hard
pulhng. However, soon after midday we
hauled the batteau on shore, made a fire, and
broUed a large fish I had purchased of the
Indian in the morning, after which, being re
freshed, we re-embarked, and arrived at my log
house, at Kempenfeldt Bay, late in the even
ing- May 7th and 8th. — Wishing to explore
the woods on the other side of the bay, at
sunrise I got into the batteau, taking my gun
with me, and havmg prorided myself with
prorisions for the day, when I had crossed
over, sent it back, appointing it to caU to take
me home at sunset. I rambled about all day,
visiting one beautiful and picturesque spot
after another, following particularly the course
of a small stream unusually romantic. Some
times the stillness of the scene was interrupted
by a cascade : a httle farther the sound of
the rivulet which produced it would die upon
the ear, as its banks widened into those of a
placid lake. Coming suddenly upon wUd

280 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
fowl every now and then, I was the more al
lured to proceed onwards, and I shot several
of different sorts, as well as a few partridges
and pigeons.
I was at a considerable distance from the
bay and had arrived at a sequestered spot,
where a basin of resplendent water, almost
circular, was sheltered all round by magnifi
cent pines ; when my dog suddenly barked,
and turning round, I saw an Indian carrying
a canoe on his back, approaching the place
where I was. He was accompanied by his
squaw, and she led by the hand a fine ani
mated little savage, a boy about six years old.
A half starved dog, as wUd as a fox, accom
panied the party. This animal no sooner saw
me, than he ran cringing and yelping to the
rear, with his tail between his legs, nor could
he be prevaUed upon, for many minutes, to
advance a step nearer. The Indian had
brought his canoe to this little lake for the
purpose of fishing, and I very readily made
him understand that I was anxious to witness
his operations. In a few seconds the crazy

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 281
toppling bark was in the water, the squaw
holding it by the head whUe the man got in
with his fish spear, and then stepping in care
fully herself, she sat down in the stern with
her paddle. The man stood upright, an atti
tude requiring an extreme nicety of balance,
considering the cranky nature of these birch
canoes. They are really the most tickhsh of
all possible vessels. Empty, they are alto
gether above the water, and do not draw lite-
raUy more than a couple of inches. When
laden, it is not an unusual accident for a man
to be thrown overboard out of the vessel,
which slips from under him without upsetting,
or taking in a drop of water. However, the
squaw paddled gently and steadUy round the
margin of the basin, while the man occasion
ally struck at fish with his spear. In a few
minutes he had taken four or five, for he
hardly missed a blow. The direction in which
he pointed his spear, and the animated ges
tures accompanying the action, were signals
readily understood by the squaw, and she re
gulated the course of the canoe and its rate

282 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
accordingly. And this was done with the
utmost silence. The chUd was left on the
bank whUe his father was pursuing the fish,
and I took him by the hand endeavouring to
engage his attention, but he would take not
the least notice of me, foUowing the canoe
with his little eager eyes, as if he already
longed in his heart for the pririleges of man
hood. Every time his father hit a fish, the
little feUow could hardly contain himself with
joy. The fish were now brought on shore, and
a fire was kindled. The poor lean cur had
ventured within a few yards (urged by starv
ation) for the sake of the entrails of the fish,
which, on being thrown to him, he devoured
with a voracity really melancholy to see, for
he must have been without food a long time.
The fish was cut into junks, and these they broil
ed on the embers, and the dog eat the bones
as weU as the heads and taUs. All was then
divided into shares, one for the Indian, an
other for the squaw, and the third for the
chUd, whom they called " Cawhee", and each

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 283
iriess was put into a smaU vessel made of birch
bark, out of which they fed themselves with
their fingers.
The great utUity of the bark of the birch
tree is very remarkable. Not only are the
canoes in which the Indians trust themselves
on lakes sufficiently boisterous, some miles
from the shore, made of it, but also aU sorts
of small cups and dishes. Besides, it burns
like pitch ; splits into threads which serve for
twine ; and the filmy part, near the outside,
may be written upon in pencU, making no
bad substitute for paper. The famUy had no
sooner concluded their repast, than the man
took the canoe on his back, and the squaw,
having made a bundle of the things, followed,
leading the little boy, and they were very
soon out of sight and hearing.
I made ray way again towards the bay, and
as I came upon the banks, a white headed
eagle was soaring high in the air. As he
floated magnificently above me, I could fancy
I distinguished the unrelentless ferocity of
countenance that marked his race. Display^
ing his expanding wings, he now and then

284 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
shook his quUls with a noise like the flutter of
a silken flag in a gale of wind, and he stretched
his neck towards the earth as if in defiance of
its inhabitants. I fired at him, but the shot
glanced from his shield of feathers, and in
a few seconds dropped harmlessly into the
water. Returning to the spot where I had ap
pointed to meet the batteau, I found it al
ready there, and, puUing across, it was almost
dark when I got home.
May 9th to 18th. — The weather, during
these days, was cold and windy, with frosts
generally during the night. Vegetation
seemed backward, nor was any tinge of green
as yet visible on the trees. Working in the
forest with my axe on some days, and on
others traversing the woods in quest of game,
time passed over my head rapidly.
I feU in with an Indian who had three
young beavers alive. The little things were
the size of pointer puppies of five weeks old,
and were just beginning to eat. I felt much
inclination to buy them, but the care they re
quired was more than I had it in my power

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 285
to bestow ; I therefore, although with regretj
left them to their fate, which was, no doubt, to
be speedUy eaten by the Indian and his fa-
mUy. May 19th. — About three o'clock in the
afternoon it began to snow heavily, and the
ground was covered the rest of the day. My
Canadians asserted that they had never re
membered snow so late in the season.
May 20th. — This morning the ground was
stiU quite covered with snow, but towards the
middle of the day the sun made his appear
ance and speedily melted it. I was awakened
in the middle of the night by the noise of a
parcel of wolves, which were yelping close to
my house. I was well acquainted with the
sound, haring once kept a tame wolf for some
time, so I hstened and found that whatever
their object was they were remaining in my
neighbourhood. I accordingly dressed my
self, and taking my gun from the hooks over
the fire, I loaded one barrel with ball, and
calling my dog with me, I stole as quietly as
I could out of the house. The moon shone

286 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
bright, and I could have distinguished an ob
ject a long way off; however, when I came
towards the place where I had heard them,
(not above an hundred yards distance,) I could
see nothing at aU. I had some trouble to
keep in my dog, for he was anxious to foUow
them ; however, I kept him stiU, and remained
so myself, and in a few minutes I heard them
again, yelping just as they did before, about
the same distance from me, quite in another
direction. Thither I immediately posted, and
was again disappointed; and they repeated
the same manoeuvre several times afterwards,
till it was quite erident that I had no chance
whatever of getting a shot at them. They
no doubt saw me, and instinctively kept out
of shot ; so, before I returned to my bed, I
gave them a haUoo, upon which my dog
dashed forward towards them with the most
eager alacrity. I was afraid of mischief, and
called him back, but Rover was gone, and I
called and whistled in vain. He was absent
more than five minutes, and came back pant
ing like a badly broken pointer from coursing

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 287
a hare. I had always beUeved that dogs had
an instinctive dread of the wUder animals, but
the above is an instance to the contrary. This
dog, a water spaniel, not above the common
size, wovdd have hardly been able to throttle
a fox ; but he certainly had no fear, whatever
respect he might have paid to a wolf in close
quarters; his experience at least told him
that his enemy would run, for he pursued at
a reckless rate, probably sure of never over
taking his game.
May 21st. — Flies, for the last few days past,
had been making their appearance in increas
ing numbers ; they were already exceedingly
troublesome, so much so that the Canadians
had begun to wear gauze veUs, with which
they were all provided during their hours of
work. This was a precaution which had
never been suggested to me, and, even if it had,
probably nothing short of woeftil experience
would have convinced me of the necessity of
using such things. However, matters looked
reaUy serious when I found that the tough
skins of my labourers were an insufficient de-

288 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
fence ; and I called to mind what the high-
lander had told me in the winter, ( " that the
flies wad nap a body ",) with a regret that I
had listened without drawing a moral from
the tale. This day, in addition to those be
fore arrived, a smaU black fly came in clouds,
so as to give me neither peace nor rest. The
summer, which I had with such eagerness
anticipated, was not, I found, about to dis
pense pleasure without alloy, and the attacks
of these winged vermin were a grievous evU.
The sun shone clear and hot, and they pitched
upon my face in thousands. They got into
my eyes and down my throat, and my temples
were covered vrith speckles. They were so
voracious that they suffered themselves to be
killed where they were, rather than take the
trouble to fly away. With my hands I swept
them off by hundreds, and legions returned to
the charge so as to torment me almost out
of my hfe. All the morning it was impossible
to attempt to shoot, and to drive them away
was the whole occupation of the day. They
were the size of a large flea. Their sting

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 289
fortunately was not venomous. As the day
declined they were less numerous, and two
hours before sunset they wholly disappeared.
Upon no occasion was I more disheartened
than by the grievance I had thus endured.
It seemed to threaten so much those little
comforts which not only relieved sohtude> but
even had hitherto rendered my manner of
life agreeable.
My enemies had no sooner retired, than I
took up my gun rather despondingly, hoping
to obtain at least a few moments' tranquUlity ;
and, going to the margin of the bay, I per
ceived a large flock of wUd fowl on the water
swimming along close in shore, and I sat
down, with my dog by my side, to await their
approach. But &¦ little villain of a squirrel,
on the bough of a tree close to me, seemed to
have determined that even now I should not
rest in quiet, for he sputtered and chattered
with so much vehemence that he attracted
the attention of my dog, whom I could
scarcely controul. MeanwhUe the birds were
coming nearer and nearer, chasing the water
u

290 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
insects on their way, stretching forward their
necks, splashing, flapping their wings, rubbing
their backs with their poUs, quacking, flutter
ing half up out of the water, and then, with
a comfortable wriggle of the taU, sitting
quietly down again. With my thumb on the
cock of my gun, I was preparing for a double
shot ; but the " vagrant inattention " of my
dog was truly mortifying ; he kept his eyes
fixed upon the squirrel, now so noisy as to be
quite intolerable. With my hand I made a
motion to threaten him, but the little beast
actuaUy set up his back and defied me, be
coming even more passionate and noisy than
before : tiU, all of a sudden, as if absolutely
on purpose to alarm the game, down he let
himself drop, plump at once within a couple
of yards of Rover's nose. This was too much
for any four-footed animal to bear, so he gave
a bounce and sprang at the impertinent squir
rel, who, in one second, was safe out of his
reach, cocking his taU and shewing his teeth
on the identical bough where he had sat be
fore. Away flew all the wild fowl, and my

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 291
sport was completely marred. I could not
help excusing the dog's error, but my gun
went involuntarily to my shoulder to shoot
the squirrel. At the same moment I felt I
was about to commit an act of sheer revenge,
on a little courageous animal which deserved a
better fate. As if aware of my hesitation,
he nodded his head with rage, and he stamped
his fore paws on the tree ; while in his chir
ruping there was an intonation of sound
which seemed addressed to an enemy for
whom he had an utter contempt. " What
business ", I could fancy he said, " had I there,
trespassing on his domain and frightening his
wife and httle family, for whom he was ready
to lay down his life? Could I not find, with
in these wide woods, one other spot without
the pale of his small hmited estate ? There
he would sit in spite of me and mine, and
make my ears ring with the sound of his war
whoop, tiU the spring of life should cease to
bubble in his httle heart." * * * And thus he
succeeded in driring me away from the spot,
and I left him singing the song of triumph,
u2

292 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
and ever after, as far as I was concerned, in
full and complete possession.
May 2 2d. — I was in my house rather later
than usual this morning, for I was busy in pre
paring a sort of mask of linen for my face,
in order to resist, if possible, the attacks of
the flies. For some time I had been think
ing of this, but I had not any gauze or mus
lin that would do for a veil, and I had hardly
yet imagined a suitable substitute. Now I
could no longer delay. My clothes were full
of holes, and the flies had read me a lesson,
in which their acute reasoning and pointed
arguments had prevailed against farther pro
crastination. As I was just beginning my
work, my attention was attracted to the latch
of my door, which was lifted up, and at the
same moment two very pretty young Indian
squaws appeared, by their smUing looks, to
be asking admittance to my dwelling.
Even in these uncivilized regions there was
nevertheless a spirit of flirtation in their man
ner, which has existed no doubt throughout
all ages, even from the day when, upwards of

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 293'
two thousand years ago, Galatea threw a hard
apple at the head of the Roman poet. The
minds of both were evidently made up to pay
me a visit, though it appeared they were un
determined which of the two ought to walk
in before the other ; and so the one pushed
her friend by the shoulders. Thus, she that
was first could not help being pushed, and
being pushed, could not help being first. Not
much time was expended on the threshold,
for their scruples, whatever they might have
been, were speedily adjusted, and on tip toes,
with a cautious step, they commenced an in
quisitive survey of every thing I had, of which
my double barrelled gun seemed most to at
tract their attention. Bound to do the ho
nours of my house, I was equally ciril to both,
and my cirilities had of late been but httle in
demand. In the wilds where I had lived, civil
speeches, compliments, &c. had been frozen.
up, as it were, like the music in Baron Mun
chausen's French horn, and now I had occa
sion for all at once. I continued to hold an-

294 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
intelligible conversation, although neither of
the damsels could speak a word of English,
and I was equaUy ignorant of their language.
Their quickness of apprehension however was
such, that I was readily understood. One of
them took the needle and sewed the strings
to the mask I had been making, which very
much amused them both. And they recom
mended me to rub my face with grease, by
way of a certain defence against aU sorts of
flies. Disagreeable as it may seem, I resolved,
in case of the failure of my present plan, to
foUow their adrice.
After a sufficiently long morning risit, my
guests seemed at last anxious to depart, and
I accompanied them to the edge of the bay,
where they had left their canoe. They were,
it seemed, without other company, and, step
ping lightly into their httle vessel, they
paddled away round a point of land between
the spot on which I was standing and the head
of the bay. They waved their hands as long
as they were in sight. I knew nothing of

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 295
their history, and I regretted that I might
never see them again. Such, indeed, was the

case

In point of clothes and appearance they
were superior to any I had seen of their race,
and in face and figure seemed to me reaUy
beautiful. They had silver ornaments in their
ears, a necklace each of blue beads, and quan
tities of scarlet serge disposed about their
dress instead of riband.
May 23rd. — rDuring the last two days the
trees had changed considerably, owing to the
warm weather ; and now, for the first time,
they might fairly be said to be green. Seve
ral boat-loads of stores arrived from York,
across lake Simcoe, for the post of Michili-
raackinac, and were landed at the head of
the bay.
May 24th.— For reasons connected with
my duty, I resolved to change my residence
to the head of the bay, and therefore set
the Canadians at work there to make me a
log-house. I spent a great part of the day
on the spot, not only in determining the situ-

296 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
ation, but in waiting to see the first logs laid
on the ground.
May 25th. — As I was out shooting I saw a
loon swimming towards a point of land where
I could easily conceal myself, so I repaired
thither for that purpose. A loon is a very
large description of diver, but so cautious
and wary, and at the same time so quick in
turning himself under the water, that, though
I had shot at several, I had never been able to
kill one. He is Covered with small spots like
those of the starhng, and is the size of a large
goose. He has a wild, anxious gait as he
is swimming, constantly turning his head
from side to side as if to be upon his guard
against an enemy ; and his cry is as wUd as
his looks, for it exactly resembles the whoop
ing of an owl. I had arrived at the place,
and the bird was approaching. Now and then,
as he came on, he stretched his long neck for
several seconds under the water, looking for
small fish; and when, he had nothing better
to do, he turned his head round, in order to
tickle his taU with his bUl. I felt myself sure

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 297
of him ; and, choosing the latter attitude as
the one in which he was the most exposed, I
let fly when he was within thirty yards of me.
My gun went quick as lightning ; but the
loon was still quicker, and, scrambling over
out of sight, came up again in a few seconds
perfectly unhurt, and whooping as if to mock
my attempt upon his life. I never again
shot at one of these birds. The Indians
shoot them frequently; which is very sur
prising, considering that their guns are of
coarse Birmingham manufacture, and their
powder very indifferent. They kUl, never
theless, extremely long shots, putting in a
large quantity of powder and very little shot ;
and they have a way of enticing the loons by
a call and a red rag at the end of a stick,
which they practise with great success.
May 26th. — My new log-house was not
finished, but I resolved to move my quarters,
as the day was fine, at once ; and so, haring
put all my things into the batteau, 1 was go
ing to walk along shore through the wood;
when I saw an Indian passing by in his canoe.

298 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
and hailed him. He was making his way to
wards the head of the bay whither I was go
ing, and I asked him to take me on board,—
not so much for convenience as from curiosity.
He puUed in shore immediately, and was
amused at my request, seeming particularly
entertained at the clumsy manner in which I
got in. His family consisted of the squaw, a
httle girl of about ten years old, another of
six, and a third of four ; and as I was just
going to sit down in the bottom of the canoe,
the squaw gave me a hard pull by the coat,
and, remoring a dirty blanket, uncovered the
features of a little infant bound, after their
fashion, very securely upon a board : and this
made the fourth child of the party. The
squaw was going to remove it to where she
sat in the stern, but I gave her to understand
that I would nurse it as we went along ; and
I took hold of the wooden frame and laid it
on my knees.
It was admirable to see how weU the httle
thing was secured from harm, and how quiet
and contented it seemed in its state of impri-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 299
sonment. Protected from the weather by
clothes in numerous folds, a circular piece of
wood formed a guard for its head, and alto
gether it was the same as taking hold of a
fiddle, so tight was it bound upon its wooden
frame. With its arms and legs in a state of
confinement, the little being could only move
its wandering eyes, which, together with its
tiny trembhng Ups, told the tale of its tender
age. I could not help considering the mode
of treating the infant savage, of which I had
an example now before me, more worthy than
I should have imagined of being placed in
comparison with that adopted among civilized
people ; and certainly, whatever may be said
against it, it possesses some advantages over
our mode of nursing. During the first few
weeks of infancy, when the very bones have
not acquired their proper consistence, and the
unclosed skull hangs a dead weight upon the
body, the Indians bind, as it were, the tender
plant to a stake, to be protected in its growth
from that violence of motion, those twists and
strains, which with us confessedly lead to some

300 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
of our most dreadful disorders. Here was a
child happy as it could be, and as warm, with
out a pin in its whole dress to torment it, ca
pable of enjoying exercise, and of being moved
from place to place over land and water, with
out the slightest stress upon its pliant limbs.
The canoe, paddled by the squaw sitting in
the stern, glided quietly along within a few feet
of the shore ; and the Indian stood up all the
time in the head looking out for fish. The
sun shone bright upon the water, nevertheless
I could not discern one, although he struck
at some several times on the way. He kiUed
three bass, turning round the spear each time
to the squaw in order that she might extricate
the fish. The least unsteadiness on his part
might have precipitated the whole party, chU
dren and aU, into the water ; but he kept his
balance with such extraordinary certainty, that
I very soon lost all apprehension of the possi
bility of such an accident, and we arrived at
the head of the bay, where we all got out.
The Indian and his famUy were on their
route to Lake-Huron, and they had now eight

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 301
miles to travel to the Notawasorga River, all
which distance it was necessary to carry the
canoe. He immediately commenced prepara
tions to take it on his back, and for this pur
pose he fixed a broad strip of birch bark to
the centre thwart, making the ends fast to
each opposite gunwale. The thwart then
rested on his shoulders, and, having placed a
piece of bark doubled under it to prevent its
gaUing, he contrived to lay the greater part
of the weight of the canoe on his forehead by
means of the strip of bark, which at the same
time kept all steady. The canoe once poised,
was nearly horizontal, and on he marched, car
ing little for the weight. Before he set off,
however, the squaw stuck his gun and the fish
spear under the thwarts, and then made up
her own bundle. She carried this, much in
the same way, by means of a forehead strap ;
and on the top of it the little Jea-fimrrjs
rode upon its board, having been first safely
tied by the little girl with strips of bark, so
that it could not possibly fall off. The three

302 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
children brought up the rear, and the whole
party soon disappeared.
May 27th. — I went out in the evening
to spear fish with one of the Canadians.
He speared eight fish of different sorts, one
of them a remarkably fine salmon trout. I
found my canoe grew very leaky for want of
the proper sort of turpentine for paying the
seams. It was of so deUcate a make that it
required not only the greatest care on my part,
but more than I could give it from want
of experience and knowing how to handle it
properly. I saw it was approaching towards
its end, and in a little time would be good for
nothing, and, as the batteau was too unwieldy
for my purpose, it was time to think of sup
plying its place; and therefore I resolved
to set about making, with the assistance of
the Canadians, a log-canoe.
May 28th. — I went out into the woods to
look for a tree suitable to the object I had in
riew, and very soon pitched upon one. It
was a fine white pine, and its girth, between

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 303
three and four feet from the ground, was ele
ven feet three inches. I began immediately
to cut it down with my axe, and was some
time about it, working very sharply, and was
a good deal tormented all the while by mos
quitoes, for the tree grew in a low, swampy
place, where there were a great many. I
kiUed a few occasionaUy upon my face and
wrists, though I was too eagerly employed to
care much about them. At last the tree feU
to the ground, and I left the spot, when I
soon found that I had reason to repent my
risit to the mosquitoes ; for their bite was so
acrid and poisonous, that before the middle of
the night I was in a state of actual misery,
and felt a degree of inflammatory itching so
intense that, bemoaning my hard fate, I was
forced to exert my utmost resolution to enable
me to endure it. My eyes were closed, and
my wrists were knotted and swollen to double
their natural size.
May 29th. — I got up in the morning a
hideous figure, as far as the only piece of
looking-glass I had (a circular bit of about a

304 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
couple of inches' diameter, fixed in the lid of a
httle box,) could inform me. My eyes were
both black, and my cheeks puffed out ; but
the pain and heat were gone. These mosqui
toes are attached to particular situations in
the woods : they like wet, swampy places,
and remain there tUl some unlucky person
visits them ; otherwise they do not go out of
their way " en masse " to infest people. This
little bit of natural history I have ever since
remembered. May 30th. — I had happened to break one
of the iron spikes of my fish spear. This day
I met an Indian in the woods, who spoke
English tolerably well ; so I asked him if he
had one that he could sell me. He said, "No;
but may be me make one very good : " and
so we went together to my house to get the
old one, and at the same time he took hold
of my double-barreUed gun, and began to
examine that. It had met with a trifling ac
cident, — a small piece of wood haring been
split off between the lock and the barrel ; and
the moment he saw it he, said, " Master, In-

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 305
dian man mend that too." As I intended to
stand by him all the time to prevent his doing
mischief, I told him he should. He accord
ingly set to work with great ingenuity. He
forged the iron of the spear in my fire, beating
it with a hammer against a large stone ; and
he made a very neat splice to mend the gun-
stock, which he cemented with a sort of glue
he carried in his pouch, and made by boihng
the bones of fish.
I tried to get him to explain how it was
that he found his way in the woods ; but, like
the rest of these peoplie, let the questions be
stated to them how they may, their ideas are
so limited, that they cannot be brought to
reason upon the most trifling operation of the
mind. He told me of a beaver dam, as it is
called, in the neighbourhood : a work erected
by the animals for the purpose of rearing their
young, and where they live in considerable
numbers. It was about four mUes off, on a
small river which crossed the road I had tra
veUed towards Lake Huron; so that I under
stood, by the direction he gave me, exactly
x

306 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
where to go. I was very curious to see the
work of these wonderful creatures, and would
have taken the Indian immediately vrith me
as a guide, but he could not stay. In the
evening I went by myself, and, when I came
to the river, I foUowed the banks tiU I had
nearly, as I thought, arrived at the spot.
There appeared what I fancied the remains of
an old wooden bridge, made of the trunks of
smaU trees, and broken in the middle. The
stream was moderately rapid, and immediately
below the bridge there was a turn in the river,
so that it formed a stUl pool of rather large
dimensions. I pursued the course of the river
for some distance farther, but finding no signs
of the beaver habitation I had come to see, I
returned home. Upon talking to the Cana
dians, I found that the bridge which I had
taken for the work of man was UteraUy that
of the beavers ; that the place had been de
serted by them for some years, therefore the
remt^s only of their works were to be seen.
The structure was wonderful : the work was
carried on under the water as weU as above it ;

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 307
and the trees were of such a size, arid laid
with such ingenuity one upon another to op
pose the current, that one would have thought
that nothing short of human skill and science
could have contrived it.
May 31st. — I went to see the Canadians at
work. They were employed in making a
sort of wharf, with pine logs, to facilitate the
landing of the boats. There was an old man
among them, an Enghsh Canadian, whom they
called Mr. WeUer; a very steady character,
but so very grave and free from every thing
at all like fun, that he was a continual source
of merriment to the rest, while, on his part,
nothing at all disturbed his tranquillity. The
men had all on their veUs, and the flies were
buzzing in vast quantities about them, while
Mr. Weller alone was without any sort of
covering on his face. Accordingly, I told
him to trim the pine that lay in the swamp
where I had been so miserably stung, and
calling him away, accompanied him to the
spot. The mosquitoes were in a moment
at their post, and I could hardly preserve my
x2

308 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
grarity, as I began, by flattering his skUl, to
propose to him to fashion the tree mto the
form of a canoe. He readily acceded to the
undertaking, and I left him hard at work. In
about a couple of hours I returned to see how
he was going on. As the day was exces
sively hot, the situation had one advantage ;
that of being cool. Long before I arrived, I
heard the blows of Mr. WeUer's axe faUing
steadily one after another, and as I approached
him, there he was, without coat, waistcoat, or
hat ! His shirt collar was open, and he was
slashing away just as if there was no such
thing as a mosquitoe in North America, al
though they were swarming about his head
like bees, and absolutely standing on his hair.
" You are a little troubled here with mos
quitoes, Mr. WeUer," said I. So he drew
himself up to answer, and after spitting out
the little bits of wood that had flovm off the
point of his axe into his mouth, — " Yes," said
he, " they are pretty considerable thick, but
they don 't hort me much vrith their bills, if
they didn't keep on whizzhng so about a

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 309
body's head :" and then he looked at his large
fore-finger, and seemed to be thinking. He
told me " he had been married thirty-five
years, that his wife was much respected, and
did a great deal of business." " What busi
ness?" said I. "What business?" said he,
" why she rides." Still I was in ignorance,
tUl I found, that for an old woman to ride,
meant the same as to say, that she practised
the profession of a midwife. And so I left
Mr. WeUer, who worked the remainder
of the day without making the least com-'
plaint. June 1st.' — One of the men brought in an
animal, which he had killed in the woods,
and which he called a wood chuck, or
ground hog, about the size of a Chinese pig
half grown, and resembhng a Guinea pig in
shape and species. They burrow in the
ground, are particularly fat, and so slow of
foot as to be easily overtaken. They are said
to be good eating. I shot a bird a little
smaller than a thrush, with a red breast and
head, and back of a bright blue. The wea-

310 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
ther was now moderately cool, and similar in
its variety to that in England at the same time
of year.
Mr. Weller had finished the canoe before
sunset, and I had her brought down to the
water and launched. But she was so lop
sided as to be quite unserriceable in her pre
sent state. To remedy this was found to be
no easy matter. Large chips were cut off
with the broad axe, which produced various
changes of her position on the water ; but the
changes were aU wrong, and do what we
would, we could not lay her quite horizontal.
Besides, the wood wasgreen and heavy, and she
sunk by far too low. FinaUy, we naUed a
smaU slab of cedar on her side to produce an
equilibrium ; but, after all, she looked so ex
tremely awkward, and the case was so hope
less a one, that I was not only obliged to
abandon her altogether, but was at consider
able additional trouble to fiU her with large
stones and sink her, for she looked so ugly
that I could not bear to see her. So I was
again obliged to have recourse to my birch

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 311
canoe, the seams of which one of the men
contrived to pay tolerably weU with turpen
tine, and she became again fit for service.
The wUd fowl had now nearly all departed,
and spearing fish was almost my only amuse
ment. The partridges too were gone. In
fact, the birds had all begun to breed. In
stead of my gun, therefore, I generaUy car
ried my axe m my hand, by means of which
I made myself tired enough to feel comfort
able during the very short time I sat stiU.
One or other of the men was frequently
bringing in fish caught in various ways,
by angling, trolling, &c. I had plenty for
breakfast and dinner. With reference to
past times, therefore, a comparison natu
raUy suggested itself in favour of the pre
sent hour. I found the solitude of my life
every day less irksome ; and an additional
source of interest rose up more and more in
the objects around me. In cutting down
trees I had learnt to make them fall which
way I pleased, and I was continually engaged
by thus increasing the natural beauties of my

312 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
situation, and remoring the obstacles which
blocked up my favourite paths. I extended
ray walks, by marking the trees in a particu
lar way, as I went, so that I could wander far
from my home and in perfect confidence of
not losing my way.
June 2d. — The weather to-day was clear
and warm. I walked a long way from
home, and had pursued a straight hne, over
ground altogether new to me. I came at
last to a rarine, where an unusual extent
of open space presented itsdf, covered at
the same time with lovely verdure. The
charred trunks of the trees bore testi
mony of the cause, and it was erident that
the part of the forest I was in had been de
stroyed a few years before by fire. Thus,
the large trees had been consumed, and the
ashes had given birth to a rich growth of
shrubs, now wearing the cheerful green of
spring, and enUvened by a profusion of vrild
flowers, creeping out of the earth, and disr
posing themselves in the delicate arrange
ment of nature everywhere around them. la

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 313
this sweet shrubbery, there was the birch and
maple, (the token of an improved soU,) whUe
wild currant and gooseberry bushes, in rich
abundance, tufted the banks of a httle stream
of clear water. I naturally stopped to look
around me, and sat dovra quite delighted at so
charming a spot.
Beautiful birds were drinking, and splashing
themselves in the water, and gaudy butterflies,
of a very large size, were fanning Ae air with
their yeUow and black wings. At this mo
ment, a little blazing meteor shot like a glow
ing coal of fire across the glen ; and I saw,
for the first time, with admiration and asto-
nishm^it, what in a moment I recognized to
be the greatest of Nature's beauties of the
feathered race, that resplendent living gem>
the humming bird I Buzzing hke an humble
bee, which it exactly resembled in its ffight
and sound; hke it, it sprang through the air,
by a series of instantaneous impulses, tracing
angle after angle, with the velocity of light
ning; till poised above its favourite flower, all
motion seemed lost in its very intensity ; and

314 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
the humming sound alone certified to the ear
the rapid ribration of wing by which it sup
ported its little airy form. I was never more
excited to wonder than by this httle creature,
so unexpected was its appearance, and so much
more did it resemble a splendid shining insect
than a bird.
The place I was in seemed fairy land com
plete, and it was matter of regret, that JIvpos
71 /laXepa yvddos, the voracious jaw qfjire,
had not more often, as in the present instance,
effected such changes of scenery in the neigh
bourhood of my dwelhng ; for it is remark
able, considering every Indian and traveller
usuaUy hghts his fire against the trunk of
some prostrate tree, and leaves it burning, that
conflagration should not be more general and
frequent. As it is, however, few summers
pass away vrithout instances of such accidental
combustion, (one, indeed of late years, most
serious and fatal in its consequences,) when
volumes of smoke, proceeding from a spot dis
tant and unknown, envelope in thick fog the
inhabitants of the settled parts of the country.

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 315
who pursue their daUy avocations without en
quiring from whence the winds have wafted
the gloomy curtain, although the air is ob
scured and darkened as if by a natural mist.
June 3rd. — This evening, as the weather
was particularly fine, I went out in my birch
canoe to spear fish, and narrowly escaped a
serious accident. I had taken one of the Ca
nadians with me as well as my servant, and
was kneeling down in the bow of the canoe,
where I had a large heap of pieces of birch
bark spht into the proper shape, from which
I occasionaUy replenished the hght in the cleft
pole which overhung the water. We went
on paddling round the margin of the bay, till
I had taken two or three fish. But, some
how or other, just as we happened to be
making across from one point to another, and
were in deep water, a little bit of the fire fell
unluckUy among the magazine of combusti
bles, and the whole in a moment was in a
blaze, together with my check linen shirt, for
I had on neither coat nor waistcoat. I soon
extinguished the fire which was destroying my

316 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
shirt, but not before my hair and eyebrows
were a good deal singed ; and working on, by
very great exertion I put out the fire altoge
ther. But my hand and right arm were bhs-
tered, and I was very near giring up the point,
and jumping out of the canoe to swim ashore.
The whole business occupied but a very few
seconds from the time that the fire was blazing
twice as high as my head as I knelt, tUl we
were left ghmmering in the dark like an ex
pended Catherine wheel on the water. The
fishing was quite put a stop to for the evening,
and as it was too late to procure fresh lights
instead of those which had been consumed or
spoUt, nothing was left but to paddle home.
June 4th. — I saw two very pretty Indian
damsels busUy employed, broUing fish over a
fire they had made on the margin of the bay.
Each of them carried a gun, and their canoe
was fastened to a large stone. A fish spear
was lying in the canoe, also a large salmon
trout, which apparently had been just taken.
They were gaUy dressed, and their cheeks
marked with stripes of red paint as if they

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 317
were prepared for some festivity. I proposed
to buy the fish, but they were so unaccount
ably shy that I could not prevail upon them
to listen to a word I had to say ; nor by sign
or hierogljrphic could I make the least im
pression. They ran into the forest, leaving
the fish to broil by itself. So I went away,
and left them to their repast. Afterwards I
discovered that they were hving under the
protection of one of the gentlemen of the
North-west Company, and that, notwithstand
ing the extreme propriety of conduct for which
I had given them credit, they were in fact no
better than they should be.
After this, I was in the interior of the forest,
and I chanced to sit down. My dog was
with me, but had wandered away, for I had
not my gun with me, and took therefore little
pains to restrain him. I heard the sticks
crack close behind me and thought it was he,
but a moment afterwards saw a large long-
legged wolf which had passed within a few
feet of me. With his head and taU low, he
was going a lurching, stealthy trot. When I
saw him he had got about ten yards from me

318 RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS.
but he did not look behind him or quicken
his pace, but leaped easily over a fallen tree,
and was immediately out of sight. Had I
my gun vrith me, instead of my axe, I could
have readily shot hini.
June 5th to 15th. — The weather, during
the whole of this period, was very like that of
England; variable, but equally temperate in
the extremes. The voracity of the flies, how
ever, was beyond all controul. They were a
very plague. Different sorts were ushered
into existence, and in a few days replaced by
others; bands of unconquerable guerriUas,
which harassed and tormented me without
mercy. There was a day fly, and a night
fly ; for the mosquitoe shouldered his arms as
soon as the others went to their rest, making
up in his weapon, his deficiency in numbers.
So bad, indeed, are the mosquitoes, that I have
no doubt whatever, that were a man to be ex
posed to them for the space of an hour with
out his clothes, they would absolutely sting
him to death.
Boat loads of government stores were now
arriving, as weU as those of the North-west

RESIDENCE IN THE WOODS. 319
Company, on the way to Lake Huron, and
the margin of the bay began to be a scene of
active bustle. The house of the Canadians
(a member of whose mess my servant had been
long since enrolled) was crowded with casual
lodgers, and it was with difficulty that I could
now keep my own house to myself. I had
been in the habit of doing as much as I could
for myself; and as I lived almost wholly on fish,
I very often cut it into junks and broUed it
with my own hands. StiU my servant had
quite enough to do, for he washed my clothes,
baked ray bread, cut birch bark in the woods
for hghts, went out fishing, and led a life,
not sohtary like mine, but joyous in the
extreme. Too much so, though his habi
tual sobriety as yet resisted the deleterious
spirits, called whiskey in the country, which
the new, comers dispensed among the Cana
dian labourers. Long after I had retired to
rest at night, I heard the bursts of carousal
and joUity, with a regret to think of the total
change of affairs, and that my days of tran
quillity had too soon passed away.

320

SUMMER JOURNEY FROM LAKE SIMCOE
TO QUEBEC,
BY THE FALLS OF NIAGARA AND THE RAPIDS
OF THE ST. LAWRENCE.
June 16. — This morning I received letters
from York announcing my hberation, and
conveyinig to me instructions to proceed thither
on my way to Quebec. The inteUigence
gave me great pleasure, and I immediately-
commenced active preparations for my depar
ture. Little, indeed, I had to prepare, and
that little was most wiUingly Undertaken. Mr.
F  had returned some time since, with his
wife, from York, and, hearing of my intended
movement, came to me to volunteer to take a
paddle in the batteau, to which I acceded.
The wife again remonstrated, however we
left her behind; and this arrangement Mr.
F  was, I found, upon any reasonable ex
cuse, always ready to agree to.
The man who was the bearer of my letters.

SUMMER JOURNEY, BTO^ 821
had been sent to take charge of some storea
which had been forwarded to Kempenfeldt
Bay, and he had brought with him his wife
and a httle infant chUd. They had slept out
of doors the night preceding, and the woman
and baby had both suffered severely from the
flies. The poor child's head was miserably
swollen, and the good looks of the mothex
were entirely destroyed by red knobs all over
her face. No wonder the poor ereature'Was in
a peevish humour, for besides these sufferings^
and the loss of beauty, the most severe of aU
was disappointment; as she had been quite
deceived in the accounts of the place to which
her husband had brought her. As I was to be
off in two hours, I gave up my house with a
good grace to her immediately, but in retura
she, abused every thing in it, so that I was
happy to keep out of her way ; and more
happy stiU, when, with Mr. F  , and one of
the Canadians, just before I was stepping into
the batteau, I saw, for the last time, her poor
husband at the extremity, of his. wits to find
^gument to satisfy her remwistrances, and
Y

322 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
whip away the ffies with a httle green bough
at the same time.
It was about four o'clock when we went on
board ; the evening was delightfuUy fine, and
the little wind that blew was directly in our
favour. We hoisted our small saU, which be
came gently distended before I lost sight of
a few honest faces who came to the water's
edge to witness my departure. " Bon voy
age" was more than once repeated, I am
sure, with sincerity, and more than once I
was recalled from my musing by the rude
twitch, with which something or other on
which I had heedlessly seated myself, was
jerked from under me.
Moments of sudden excitement are in
variably succeeded by those of seriousness
approaching to melancholy, as if the mind
had convicted itself of error in haring yield
ed to the delusion of happiness; and now
in the eager anticipation of change, aided
by the exertion of a few hours' active pre
paration, the showers of the rainbow had
been forgotten, whUe the colours alone had

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 323
presented themselves to the senses. NeW
scenes of hfe were before me, and I was at
that moment commencing a journey, which
would probably finish, and that before any
distant period, in England. I was learing a
spot, where, however I might have accom
modated my habits to circumstances, if I had
suffered no real grievances, I had unquestion
ably enjoyed but few sohd comforts. Variety
was before me ; transition from place to place,
from object to object ; I was again to mix in
that general intercourse with the world, with
out which the choicest gifts of Providence are
vapid ; and stiU, in spite of all this, it was
not without feelings of real regret, amount-.
ing to a depression of spirits, that the weU
known trees and points of land on each side
of the bay, one after another, receded from
my view, and gradually, in succession, became.
lost in the distance. Such is the natural at
tachment to any spot, however rude, which
can be called home ! AU the difficulties and
inconveniences of my hfe were in a moment
forgotten, as my. heart whispered adieu tor
y 2

324 SUMMER JOimNEY FROM
each particular object, as to a friend or ac
quaintance with whose image the association
of happy hours was intimately blended. Let
those learn (and many there are who might
profit by the lesson) who, haring within their
possession home and its enjoyments, know not
Bow to appreciate the blessing; how possible it
is to fly to the forest without finding solitude,
and that a lonely uncultivated spot is in itself
capable of creating an interest sufficient to dis
pose the inind to true happiness and content.
We were soon at the mouth of the bay,
and making a good passage across Lake Sira^
eoe. The sun had set, and as we skirted the
shore the fire flies were sparkling in glittering
swarms among the boughs of the trees which
overhung the water's edge. Hitherto I had
not seen any of these insects in the country,-
and t thought them larger and raore briUiant
than any I had raet with in other chmates.
The wind, which had been all along very
gentle, now became quite luUed. The men
aecordmgly took to the paddles, and, keeping
in shore, puUed on at a steady rate ; and so

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 825
we proceeded smoothly during the silent hours
that passed away, while the whooping of the
night birds, and the croaking of deep mouthed
frogs, bore sole testimony to the existence of
animated nature.
June 17th. — As the pale light of morning
gleamed upon the lake, large water hawks,
the colour of herons, were to be seen upon
their chosen station, and from the craggy
stump of a decayed tree, watching for their
prey with eyes intently fixed upon the water.
And kingfishers, the size of pigeons, slate-
coloured with black heads, would plump like
stones in pursuit of the smaU fish that ap
peared upon the surface. As the day broke
we approached the mouth of HoUand river,
disturbing various sorts of wild fowl as we
passed along the banks, tUl the ruddy light of
the sun shed a glowing hue upon the sur
rounding objects.
. It was a fine summer's morning, and I was
regretting that my gun was packed up, al
though we had very few miles to proceed to
the landing, when a fine mallard, which had

326 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
risen out of the reeds, made its flight suddenly
over our batteau. Terrified at the unexpected
encounter, he turned suddenly, and at the
same instant the report of a gun sounded close
by us. Nothing of life remained as he feU
hurled, by the impulse of his flight, with in
creased velocity upon the water ! There was
something so unlocked for in the fate of the
bird, that it was really a subject for reflection;
when a canoe, with two young smart squaws
in it, darted past us, and one of these imme
diately picked it up.
They wore men's hats, of shining coarse felt,
and jackets and petticoats, of glossy blue
cloth, ornamented with red serge. And I im=-
mediately recognized my two friends, whom
I had seen a few days before broUing the fish
in the woods at Kempenfeldt Bay. Their
protector, the North-west gentleman, was I
do not know where, while the damsels were
pursuing this roaming life, more memorable
perhaps on account of its economy than its
morahty. Here was an estabhshment wherein
the means of conveyance, as well .as the poul-

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 327
terer and fishmonger were provided, in the
shape of a canoe, a Birmingham gun, and a
fish spear. A littie brick-dust served the pur
pose of rouge, and sturdy blue cloth super
seded the more flimsy articles of railUnery.
The men who had been paddhng all night
were jaded and tired, and the squaw who had
kiUed the maUard, having loaded her guni
took her seat opposite to her companion ; and
they pulled their canoe along at an astonish*
ing rate, twisting and turning with great velo
city and skill. They were particularly diverted
at the appearance of our batteau, which was
a heavy unwieldy vessel, and, being in high
spirits and full of mischief, they amused them
selves by quizzing the men ; first passing us
like a shot, then dropping astern and going
round us, till, seeing some object which at
tracted their attention, they left us in eager
pursuit towards the lake, and we saw them no
more. Having breakfasted at a house on the banks
of the river, I would have hired a horse, or
any sort of conveyance, to enable me to pro-

328 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
ceed; but that was altogether out of the
question r so, leaving my servant with the
Canadian who was to carry my baggage, I
set out on foot, on my way to York. I was
not averse to walking alone, and I went silently
off, while Mr. F — r- and the host were driv
ing a hard bargain for a pig. The day be^
came intolerably hot, and at the end of twenty-
five miles I came to a house wMch looked so
comfortable that I resolved to remain there
for the night ; and after the rough hfe I had
been leading, every thing looked particularly
neat and tidy^ On the way I had picked up
a land tortoise, as it was walking slowly across
the road, not far from the river. Soon after
I had arrived, my servant and the Canadian
came in with my baggage, Mr. F  not
having brought his negotiation to a conclu'-
sion.
, June 18th.-— I walked (twenty-two mUes)
the remainder of the way to York, along a
wide earthy road, fenced off on each side by
the American raU fence, and where traffic and
•a good, even substratjim of stone were alto-

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 320
gether wanting to bring it towards perfect
tion. Although summer had now re-esta-
bhshed her reign, a heavy sameness prevaUed
over the face of the country, and in the short
space between the road and the forest, the
naked stumps of trees standing in the ground,
gave a desolate appearance to the fields on
either side.
I saw a number of yellow birds, such as I
had not met with in the woods. The common
Enghsh martin is to be seen here, forming its
nest in the hollow trees, of the minute fibres of
roots strongly cemented together, so as to
make a compact vessel as tight as a China cup.
June 19th to 27th. — Previously to proceed
ing to Quebec, I had proposed to myself to
visit the Falls of Niagara, and having heard
of a vessel about to sail for Fort George, I
engaged a passage on board her, but her de
parture was postponed from day to day, dur
ing which time my stay was made agreeable
by the kindness and hospitality of Mr. C  ,
at whose house I resided in the interval.
June 28th. — The distance from York, the

33ft SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
capital of Upper Canada, to Fort George, at
the mouth of the Niagara river, is thirty raUes.
At six in the evening I went on board the
Jane, a schooner of fifty tons, and we imme
diately set saU. There was so little wind that
we were all night on Lake Ontario, and the
births in the vessel were so bad, that, as the
night was mUd and fine, I preferred lying on
the deck in my clothes, to occupying the best
of them.
June 29th. — At nine o'clock in the morn
ing we arrived at Fort George, when Mr.
B  was not only kind enough to inrite
me to his house during my stay, but lent me
a horse to ride to the Falls of Niagara, now
sixteen mUes distant. No time was expended
in delay, and so soon as I had breakfasted,
my foot was in the stirrup. I was scarcely
out of the town, when I was surprised and
pleased at the totally different appearance of
the country, to that of any part of North
America I had yet visited. That the road
to the Falls of Niagara should be one of con
siderable, traffic, and better, in consequence.

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 331
than the other roads in the country, is not to
be wondered at : I could fancy myself trans
ported to a cultivated country in Europe, and
on the high road towards some opulent city.
As I rode parallel to the Niagara river, which
roUed its course on the left hand below me,
through a rich rarine, whose elevated banks
were covered with ornamental trees and
shrubs, I called to mind the banks of the Ga
ronne in the south of France, to which the
country bore a striking resemblance. The rich
diversity of fohage which prevaUed on every
side, was a kindly relief to the eye, so long
overwhelmed by the prevalence of the dismal
black pine, and it now dwelt with grateful
delight on the abundant variety of nature, dis
posing in tasteful succession the wUd peach>
cherry, sassafras, hiccory, aspen, sycamore, &c.
The roar of Niagara already was distinctly
audible, and I saw the cloud of vapour, which,
hanging over its verge, like a white pUlar in
the heavens, pointed towards the chief won
der of the earth!
I rode on tiU I came to the inn where I

332 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
was to leave my horse, and taking a guide
with me, proceeded on foot. We descended
towards the river, crossing some fields cover
ed with high dry grass, with a rich bottom
of clover and thyme. My guide cautioned
me to beware of rattlesnakes, which he said
were numerous just where we were. None,
however, did I see or hear.
On our way towards the Table Rock, we
were less than a mile from the FaUs, when a
sight burst upon the view which I was not
prepared to expect — that mighty, rolhng mass
of water, which above the cascade, rushes on
wards, furiously foaming with a velocity tre
mendously increased to its verge; for the
Niagara River, hurried through its lacerated
channel, spreads itself over an inchned plane
of considerable declivity and magnificent ex
panse. For the space of a mUe before it
reaches the Falls, islands and shoals obstruct
its course, and black rocks protrude their
rugged summits in defiance of the surge:
monuments to man of an event which the
brief span of his memory has faUed to re-

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 338
cord. That jarring shock, when tiie river
jielding its rived banks to the torrent's force,
first bounded from the verge of the preci
pice ! When, with impulse instantaneous, the
stupendous cataract, generated in the convul
sion of confficting torrents, first thundered
into being !
With the strongest anticipation of a spec
tacle, the very grandest of Nature's efforts, I
was, on my arrival, utterly unprepared for the'
splendour of the reality. I had reached the
Table Rock, and the volume of tumbling waters;
their deafening sound, unceasing descent, the
reverberation of the mass below, driring to
the very skies its steaming vapour, — all com
bined to produce unusual sensations of wonder
and awe. Chaos seemed before me ! My ears
were confounded ; my sight was dazzled by
whirling eddies, and the everduring liquid
arch, preserving from generation to generation
its palpable figure> formed of particles, my
riads upon myriads of which, for the very
minutest portion of a second must have re
mained suspended each in its place, to per-

334 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
form its ordained function in the scale of
creation. Thus eternity obtruded itself on the ima
gination, wonderfuUy, infinitely dirisible !
Below, and within a very few yards of
the abyss, a heavy stUlness pervaded the whole
surface of the river for a wide extent, as if
paralysis had succeeded the riolence of the
shock ; but the mUky whiteness of the water
bore testimony to the laboured hearings of
the current underneath, hurrying along in an
overpowering stream towards Lake Ontario.
At a distance of five mUes from the FaUs, the
celebrated whirlpool, attracting the largest
floating bodies within its vortex, holds its un
ceasing struggle with the stream, which be^
comes afterwards gradually more and more
placid. At Queen's Town, which is four miles'
farther, it is stiU extremely rapid ; but after
a short distance, and before it empties itself
into the lake, it has assumed a quiescent ani
a tranquU course ; nor does any turbid ap-.
pearance remain, to convey the shghtest ideai
of proximity to the cataract of Niagara. •:

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 335
June 30th. — As it was now my object to
proceed to Quebec, by the rapids of the St.
Lawrence, I engaged a passage in an Ame
rican schooner, of fifty tons, which was
proceeding in ballast to Sodus, (a port 120
mUes distant on the American side of the
lake,) there to take in cargo, and sail forth
with to Kingston.
July 1st. — I got on board at six o'clock in
the evening, and we immediately weighed
anchor. The births and accommodation
were uncommonly good. The weather was
mild and temperate, and we had a gentle fa
vourable breeze.
July 2d.— -At five o'clock in the afternoon
we made the port of Sodus, after an extreme
ly pleasant passage. Sodus is a neat country
vUlage, situated at the head of a beautiful
bay, which forms an excellent harbour for
shipping in all weathers. The shores of the
lake are hereabouts remarkably bluff, and as
the eye glances from the craggy summits of
the chffs to the wide expanse of waters which
Wash their base, there is no feature in the

336 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
whole prospect which serves to distinguish a
difference between this noble fresh water lake
and the ocean itself. The short, light green
wave reminded me of the Bristol Channel and
other inland seas. Having landed, I went
to the Troopville Inn, kept by Captain Wick-
ham, of the United States Militia, and
here I was to remain tiU the vessel should
be laden. An unexpected delay, however,
seemed likely to take place, for on the 4th
of July, the next day but one, was to be
celebrated the festival of American Independ
ence, on which occasion a country ball was
to be held at Captain Wickham's house, when,
as a matter of course, business stood stiU.
July 3d. — The vessel had now nearly half
her cargo on board; and I prevailed upon
the master to lend me his boat, in which*
attended by a couple of stout Yankee sea
men, I passed the evening in rowing about
in the bay of Sodus. A finer piece of water
can hardly be im^ned. The most delicate
slirubs fringed its banks to the water^s edg^j
and the winding shore brdcen by cree^ and

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 337
inlets, furnished store of incessant variety.
We were at one time strugghng over shoals
and through reeds, then breaking forth again
into a wide expanse of clear water, where
turtles were to be seen in great numbers, float
ing on the surface. These creatures were
extremely wild, always disappearing long be
fore we approached them. Their egg-shells
were lying about the sand on the shore in
great quantities.
July 4th. — Captam W  and all his
family were in the greatest possible bustle the
whole of the morning, in making preparations
for their company. In the mean time I walked
out for a few hours over a country, under a
degree of cultivation such as I had not seen for
a long time, and where the fields, hedges, and
stUes made me almost fancy I was in England.
On my return, the people of the house, without
intending to be unciril, were extremely rude ;
nor could I prevail upon them to prepare any
thing for ray dinner. I got a piece of a cold
meat pudding, out of which, those who had
gone before me had made so judicious a selec-

338 SUMMER JOURNEY PROM
tion, that very little remained but bones and
pieces of fat. However, there was soon some
thing else to think about, for the people began
to arrive, consisting of young farmers, dressed
in coats of glossy blue cloth, with broad white
buttons, and rosy damsels, in white calendered
gowns, somewhat rumpled by haring been
packed too close in their carts or whiskeys
during the journey. Some came in these
carriages, and others on foot, tiU a large
room below was quite full, and they aU began
to dance.
The fiddler sat on a chair placed upon a large
table, playing country dances, and roaring out
the figure. There was not an old person in
the room to direct the flock, which was noisy
and riotous beyond measure.
About three o'clock 1 went down to the
water's edge, where there were a great many
small vessels made fast to the wharf; and, as
they impeded the landing of people from
small boats, those parties which were making
their way to the baU by water, clambered up
and walked on shore over a plank, which was

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 339
laid down for the purpose. As I was looking
at the people landing in this way one after
another, a tidy little woman, not more than
thirty years of age, and very smart, was pass
ing the plank, when her foot slipped, and
she fell into the water between the vessel and
the wharf, and I had a great deal of trouble
to puU her out, for she was out of her depth,
and I made several snatches at her without
effect. With the first good hold, however, I
succeeded, but not before her breath was
almost gone ; and I supported her on my
knee, to allow the water to run out of her
mouth. At this moment, her little daughter,
(half as old as herself, so much for early mar
riages,) who had just heard of the accident,
came flying across the vessels, and seizing her
mother by the shoulders, '' Mother, mother,"
said she, " how came you to faU in 1" The
poor woman's speech had not returned, and
the more she gasped for breath, the more the
little girl persevered in shaking her, repeating
her question with a froward animation and
eagerness, expressive of the truest affection
z8

340 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
and anxiety. In a few minutes, the woman
was quite well, and lamenting her wet
clothes. About twelve o'clock at night, some of the
company at the baU began to move off,
each damsel chaperoned by her partner.
Some, perhaps because they were more fa
tigued, or having farther to go, lay down in
pairs on the floor at the end of the room, to
rest themselves tiU morning. Before one
o'clock, not less than a dozen of the dancers
were in this manner recumbent,— and it was
all considered proper. " What Mrs. Grundy
would say " to it is another matter.
July 5th to 6th. — It was unfortunate that
the gentlemen whose business it was to load
the schooner, had been among the principal
beaux at the ball the night before, and it was
more Unlucky, that they required an entire
day to recover from their fatigue. The
schooner lay at the wharf the whole of the
morning of the 5th, quite deserted, without
even a boy in a red night-cap to answer inter
rogatories. The festival of Independence

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 341
comes only once a-year, and the people of all
sorts seem to make the most of it. How
ever, early on the morning of the 6th, barrels
were seen trundling merrily towards the
water's edge ; and before three in the after
noon, we saUed with a favourable breeze out
of the harbour. Before sunset we were quite
out of sight of land, and to all appearance as
much at sea as if we had been in the middle
of the Atlantic. The master of the vessel, as
the night came on, determined to lay-to until
the morning. Had we made the islands
called the False Ducks before dark, we should
have stood on for Kingston Harbour.
July 7th. — At daylight we proceeded on
our voyage, and anchored, at nine o'clock in
the morning, at Kingston. I heard that Co
lonel P  was just about to leave Kingston,
in a batteau, for Montreal, and it was pro
posed to me to accompany him ; an arrange
ment which suited me in every w^ay. So,
having breakfasted on shore, we were all in
the batteau and ready to depart before eleven
o'clock. Our batteau was a large flat-bot-

342

SUMMER JOURNEY FROM

tomed boat, pointed at both ends alike, and
manned entirely by French Canadians. The
wind was favourable, and we had a large sail
to assist us; so that we very soon had an op
portunity of hearing a genuine Canadian
boat-song. In it there was a vast deal more
noise than music, nor of all others that I heard
these men sing during the voyage, did the
melodies bear the slightest resemblance to any
I had heard before. The refrein of one of
these songs I happen to recollect, and it is as
follows :

%

i=

i^-znp:

-©r

Somjnes nous .au mi - lieu du bois,

i

S:

w

-H-

-^-

-•-^

Sommes nous au

ri - vage

This they roared out without mercy, in fiiU
chorus, and one at a time sang the song itself,
which treated of the hardihood of the Voy-
ageurs, the troubles and difficulties they en-

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 343
counter, not forgetting their skill and bravery
in surmounting them. We had a pleasant voy
age down this noble river, where the " Thou
sand islands " present a prospect of land and
water, as if a recent deluge had inundated the
country. We went about thirty miles, when
we put up for the night at an inn adjoining
the shore.
July 8th. — We proceeded down the river
as far as Prescott,
July 9th. — The rapidity of the stream had
now so considerably increased, that we might
well have expected to encounter the Rapids,
towards which we were quickly advancing.
At last the roar of the Rapide Plat was dis
tinctly heard ; a heavy sullen sound like that
of the sea; and the surface of the water,
though ghding onwards with extreme velocity,
was level and smooth in the current, but at
the same time fuU of little eddies and whirl
pools. And so we glanced along tiU we
pitched down at once into the Rapid. "A''
terre," " A large," was now the cry, as the
steersman gave his directions to the men to

344 SUMMER JOURNEY PROM
keep the head of the batteau on or off the
land ; and every man tugged hard, and work
ed with great animation tiU we were through
the rough water and again in tranquiUity.
We afterwards passed the Longue Saut,
through a channel so full of rocks and shoals
that no vessel but a flat-bottomed boat could
possibly have lived in it. Sometimes we
seemed on the point of being dashed against
the land, tiU, snatched away by some unseen
eddy into another direction, we were twisted
down a watery precipice, and carried across
a bubbUng field of waves and breakers, till
once more in open space the lessening roar of
waters died upon the ear, and the beauties of
the surrounding scenery again burst upon the
sight. As our batteau was shooting along at a
most rapid rate, we came suddenly upon a
point of land where three deer had stepped
down to the water's edge to drink. The timid
Creatures stood quite still and looked at us as
we passed within a very few yards of them,— of
so little importance, amid the noise and crash

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 345
of water, was a boat with near a dozen men
in it !
Although none of the considerable Ra
pids can be passed without a severe struggle
for a boat, (unless one of large size,) there
is no real danger, and accidents are seldom
heard of It is an undertaking which most
men would encounter once for the sake of
curiosity, but very few would repeat for plea
sure. The scale of things is infinitely large, and
the expanse of water so great, that cascades,
whirlpools, and bubbling gulfs, are changing
places with each other in the uncontrollable
variety of an obstructed torrent. Although
the main stream remains always the same, the
effect produced by the back currents and ed
dies is so different, that boat after boat sub
mits as it were to the caprice of fate, and,
like feathers in the air, no two together can
ever possibly follow the same identical course.
— We proceeded this day as far as CornwaU,
where we put up for the night.
July 10th. — We had passed Lake St.

346 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
Francis, the Coteau du Lac, and the Cedar
Rapids, and we were carried along not only
by the rapidity of the stream, but by the as
sistance of our saU. The wind had been
against us, but had now become favourable ;
at the same time the clouds seemed to threaten
us with a thunder storm. As we had not
many miles to proceed to the town of Cedres,
the men puUed hard, and we made all the
way possible ; at the same time the sky grew
blacker, tiU it almost touched the water, and
the wind too increased very considerably. The
tempest was hanging on our rear as we flew
before it, and we arrived at Cedres just in
time to run into the inn before the first big
drops, which were to be plainly seen falhng a
few hundred yards behind us, had overtaken
our batteau. It was a severe storm, and
lasted a good whUe. In the meantime we
dined, and in about a couple of hours, the
weather having quite cleared up, although
the evening was advancing, we re-embarked,
intending to pass the night at La Chine. The

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 347
men took some time to arrange themselves in
their places ; but in a little whilfe all seemed
right, and we were drifting with great velocity
towards the verge of the Cascades' Rapid ;
and, when it was too late to stop, we found
that half the men were quite drunk, and the
steersman the worst of all the party ; so we
were obliged to snatch the oars from these
men and do as well as we could for ourselves ;
and I never saw a more cowardly set of ras
cals than the boatmen. They absolutely cried
tUl they roared, and were as helpless as a
parcel of children. In the mean time we had
got into the middle of the torrent, which was
sufficiently ill-treating us; but, by pulling
hard and holding water, we kept the boat's
head right so as to get through the Rapid at
the expense of a good wetting. But we had
wandered altogether out of our course, and
had fairly lost our way upon the river, which
became extremely wide, and divided by the
intervening land into several channels : and
thus we puUed on at a venture tiU it grew

348 SUMMER JOURNEY FROM
quite dark. We were then on the opposite
bank of the river, and gave up all hopes of
crossing over back again to La Chine. At
last we came to the mouth of the Chateaugay
River, which we entered, and found out a
miserable house, where we passed the night
in our clothes, among swarms of mosquitoes,
dirt, and all sorts of untidiness.
July 11th. — We were glad enough to leave
this place, and had crossed the St. Lawrence
and landed at La Chine before six o'clock in
the morning. Here I got a comfortable
breakfast, and, finding I was within nine miles
of Montreal, I hired a calash to take me thi
ther. It was a high, clumsy-looking buggy,
with head, apron, &c., and buUt apparently
with little regard to weight. The wheels
were excessively high, and there was a small
seat in front for the driver, who rested his
legs on the shafts across the horse's rump. A
stout grey cob took us along at a very good
pace, and I arrived at Montreal in time to
take my place in the steam-boat, which was

LAKE SIMCOE TO QUEBEC. 349
to move at two o'clock the next morning for
Quebec, — the passengers to be all on board
at eight o'clock. I dined at a table d'hote,
and went on board.
July 12th to 13th. — We arrived so late at
night at Quebec, that none of the passengers
went on shore on the 12th; but on the morn
ing of the 13th I landed under a very dif
ferent temperature than prevailed on the day
when I had last crossed the river among the
ice, in the log-canoe. On that day, in the
winter, the thermometer stood at least twelve
or fifteen degrees below zero of Fahrenheit ;
it was now at ninety-five in the shade.
Having got a passage for England on board
a transport ship of 200 tons, (the crew con
sisting of six men and a boy,) we weighed
anchor on the 29th, and, after tacking about
for twenty-four hours in a fog off the mouth
of the .river, (among a parcel of other ships,
all of us ringing bells and beating drums,)
and weathering a stiff gale on the Banks of
Newfoundland, we made a good passage, and
reached soundings on the 27th August. At

350 SUMMER JOURNEY TO QUEBEC.
daybreak on the 28th we made the island of
Guernsey, which the master had mistaken for
the Lizard. Laying to for the night off Port
land light-house, we set sail the next morning,
the 29th, and I landed safely at Portsmouth
about noon.

351

CONCLUDING REMARKS ON
EMIGRATION.
To have lived in North America without
forming a favourable estimate of the advan
tages possessed by the poor of that country
over those of our own, is quite impossible ; nor
can it be wondered at, that the condition of
the labouring classes should be better in a land
where the inhabitants bear so different a pro
portion to the cultivated soil. At the present
day, whUe Nature points out to the dense
population of Europe an expanse where her
surplus numbers might spread themselves
abroad to any degree of extent, the art of
man seems to second her efforts, by divesting
locomotion of its difficulties ; so that an ab
stract question urges itself more and more
every day on the mind, on contemplating the
face of the universal globe, why the human
race should continue to be distributed with
such extreme inequality upon its surface.

352 CONCLUDING REMARKS
Without presuming to determine on the
general expediency of a system of emigration,
it may not be amiss to urge one or two brief
remarks, founded on local observation, on
some of the objections which at first sight
appear to be arrayed against it : and first, as
regards the severity of climate. This does,
in fact, make age, state of family, constitu
tion, &c., very important considerations to
persons intending to undertake the life of a
settler ; although, as applied to practical rea
soning, it has been in all probability extremely
over-rated and exaggerated. To a traveller,
the difference of temperature, under all the
disadvantages to which he is subjected on his
route, such as the being obhged to inhabit
houses hastily raised, huts, &c., and being
constantly, from his unsettled habits, iU pro*
tected in every way from the weather ; these
circumstances, I say, form no fair criterion as
to the effect of the temperature on the con
stitution ; and it is quite as Unreasonable to
institute a comparison between him and the
settler, as to compare the hfe Of a soldier in

ON EMIGRATION. 353
the field with that of a citizen in a populpus
town. Every chmate is unhealthy where men are
insufficiently protected from the weather ; on
the contrary, the being well housed and pro
vided with fuel is more than an equivalent for
extreme severity of cold. To some of the
hardiest animals Nature assigns the warmest
habitations. As to the human race, in appre
ciating the value of warmth, we need not gc»
farther than take the peasantry of England
and Ireland. Why are the poor of the latter
country confessedly more robust, although
more UI fed, than the former? Doubtless
because the walls of the mud cabin are imper
vious to the weather, whUe its inmates are
prorided with sufficient fuel. The cottage of
the Enghsh pauper is usually a stragghng,
Ul-contrived building ; his fuel is scanty, and
the consequence is, that rheumatism reigns
the endemic disease of the country. Taking,
therefore, into consideration the quantity of
timber for firewood at the disposal of the set
tler in the North American colonies, it wUl
A A

354 CONCLUDING REMARKS
appear, on critical examination, that the cli
mate is a healthy one, and that no experience,
founded on well-conducted experiment, has
hitherto proved to the contrary.
But if, on the one hand, too rigid objections
have been urged against the climate, there is
another point towards which perhaps too httle
attention has been directed ; namely, the very
opposite interests existing between the emi
grant and the colonial land-owner ; and this,
notwithstanding that it is of great importance
as to any general system of emigration," if
such were ever to be either activiely pronMted
or indirectly encouraged. "^ It certainly does
appear, as a general principle, unquestionable,
that the emigrant should not be in any way
subjected to men who have objects of their
own in locating the country at variance vritii
his interest. In a country where land exists
to such an unlimited extent, its value must,
of course, almost entirely depend upon its
cultivated or uncultivated -statey also upon its
proximity to thealready settled parts of the
country ; so that an emigrant cannot possibly

ON EMIGRATION. 355
enrich himself by clearing his own land, with
out at the same time adding a value to his
neighbour's property, and that in a proportion
of which here we can form little idea. Upon
this principle it is that motives of personal in
terest have, to say the least of them, an indi
rect influence upon the locating of emigrants
in the country. Men are encouraged to leave
their own homes, unfitted by age and consti
tution to endure the change of habits and cli
mate ; and, for want of sound disinterested
advice when they arrive in the country, meet
with difficulty after difficulty, tiU they be
come embarrassed and in debt, and finally
fall rictims to misery and misdirected specu
lation. To a healthy, but severe chmate, none but
the young should venture, — children, and men
and women under five-and-twenty. In after
age, the change of cliraate is in itself a trial
to the health ; and as Nature decrees in vege
tative life, so man himself must be transplanted
early, or the experiment will not thrive. Ne
vertheless, supposing the case of an infirm
A A 2

356 CONCLUDING REMARKS
person making the adventure, it is not impos-
sihle but that he may advance the interests of
the colonial land-owner, in whatever degree
he may mar his own : the former may find a
way to turn his labour to advantage, for sure
enough it is, that so long as one man can
be found to sow, another wiU appear in due
course to reap.
Within the enormous stretch of the British
North American colonies, spots ehgible in aU
respects for the purposes of the emigrant may
be said everywhere to abound. He requires
a good agricultoral position, not too far re
moved from the cultivated lands. The grCwtii
of the pine points out the poor land, whUe that
of the birch, maple, and the harder woods, is a
sufficient indication of the richer soU. But
his first object, Burely> is to reach the place
of his ftiture domicUe, at as little expense as
possible both of time and money. Yet, if
the colonial land-owner yields to motives of
self-interest, he trill naturally be led to detei*-
mine upon a position for the emigrant, be if
ever so r^bte, so long ad it is best calculated

ON EMIGRATION. 357
to advance his own interest or that of the par
ticular part of the country he happens to live
in ; and to this cause, which does, in fact,
prevaU in some degree all over the country,
the Fur companies contribute their share also,
many persons, in different ways interested in
their operations, haring an additional object
in locating settlers in distant points along the
present thread of settlement, for the protec
tion of their voyageurs and the encourage
ment of their trade.
While men emigrate in dribblets, unsup
ported by disinterested adrice, and without
the means of establishing themselves independ
ently at once on their arrival, there are many
ways by which any speculative land-jobber
may enrich himself at their expense. Let a
case be supposed, for instance, whei-e a man
has ten thousand acres to locate, and he di-
rides the whole "block" into a hutidred lots,
of a hundred acres each, but of which he dis
poses of eighty lots, reserving td himself twenty
lots, or two thousand acres. Now, he takes
care that these two thousand acres shall be so

358 CONCLUDING REMARKS
intermingled and entangled with the rest as
to present little desirable patches, which every
tenant, as he rises in the world, would be de
sirous to purchase, and they are accordingly
doled out as they are required at an exorbitant
rate ; and thus a heavy profit is exacted out
of the hard labour of the emigrant, not only
to the great detriment of the individual, but
the discouragement of emigration in general.
Such partial instances tend directly to bring
any thuig like system into disrepute, which
never can have its full force tiU means are de
vised to secure to the settlers themselves that
increase in, the value of land which arises out
of the act of location, and in the present state
of things very generally finds its way into the
pockets of the colonial land-owners.
Against this description of persons collect
ively these trifling and general remarks are by
no means intended to convey to the public an
unfavourable opinion, being a set of men, I
verUy believe, as honourable in their deahngs
as others in any part of the known world ;
but we are not to expect too much of human

ON EMIGRATION. 359
nature. " Ships are but boards, pilots men ; "
and people wiU not neglect their own interests,
forget their lands, their roads, and their
bridges, called upon so often as they must be
to become judges in their own cause, and de
termine whether the settler shall mend the
land, or whether the land shaU mend the set
tler. Were a system of emigration once to
be set on foot, which could coiifine and secure
to the parties concerned "the enormous increase
in value of the land in the surrounding neigh
bourhood of the locations, it might very pro
bably ere long go alone and help itself; and
I am not sure but that^ upon the principle of
extending our parochial establishments to
North America, as far as Regards the young
and able depettdantupon public bounty, some
thing hke a modification of our poor-laws, ap
plicable both to England and Ireland, might
be contrived. In the mean time, whatever
future policy on the subject may direct, there
must be always prejudices to be encountered
peculiar to ourselves as islanders; for, instead
of inuring ourselves by degrees to visit distant

360 CONCLUDING REMARKS
points as our continental neighbours, the " eras
ingens iterabimus aequor," appears, as it were,
a constant placard, which, no matter whether
the traps and spring-guns be real or imaginary,
equally serves to protract the commencement
of enterprise and limit the extent of many an
indiridual's peregrination.
But voluntary emigration must be worthy
of some consideration, if it were only as a
means of disposing of any. surplus population
wluch the temporary pressure of circumstances
may at any time create : it may be weU to
regard it as the' safety-valve by which relief is
to be obtained in extreme cases, and at the
present moment particularly, as regards the
existing state of Ireland, and before the ope
ration of the disfranchisement biU can have
assumed a salutary and healing form. My
own abstract opinion can be worth but httle ;
nevertheless, haring had an opportunify VCTy
lately of risiting almost every county in Ire
land, the result of my reflection was, upon
obserring the state of the poor, that there
were no people in the world better calculated

ON EMIGRATION. 361
for a life in the North American forests than
the Irish peasantry ; none who could have less
cause to regret the change, — a change, from
the too narrow limits of a scanty, insufficient
farm, for the unbounded range of space ; none
whose buoyancy of spirits, hardihood, love of
enterprise, and frugality more eminently qua
lified them for the undertaking.
Besides, the disposition of the people has
indisputably evinced of late years a tendency
to emigrate, even enough to have already ac
quired sufficient force to be regarded as a se
rious pohtical evil. Irish labourers have been
:n the habit of flocking every summer to our
shores, in search of work and better wages
than they can earn in their own country. To
look a little deeper into the consequences of
this fact, is it at all unreas^able to come at
once to an ultimate conclusion, and say that
the spirit of enterprise once stimulated will
continue to advance, till men, becoraing by
degrees habituated to leave their horaes and
reap the advantages of employing their labour
in distant parts, find objections to foreign re-
B B

362 CONCLUDING REMARKS.
sidence gradually diminish every year, and in
the end come to consider the Atlantic no
greater an obstacle than the Irish Channel
was in the beginning ? Thus, if the emigra
tion of the Irish to England be not a prepa
ratory step to advancing upon the more distant
range of the North American colonies, it is at
least consolatory to reflect, that inasmuch as
the necessary prorision for such an annual
expense, trifling as it may be, must be met
by correspondent habits of economy, such
habits being seldom retrogressive, it follows
that such tendency to emigrate does in the
mean time mainly contribute to increase the
stock of industry and moral virtue in a coun
try sadly in want of such an exciting cause.

THE END.

G. Woodfall, Printer, Angel Court, Skinner Street, London.

3006 S

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