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1 2 3

4 5 6

KOAD NtAR NkW \V| STMINSI KR, llklTiSH CoLLMHlA. DotlGI.AS Flk A\Ii (IkiaNTIC Cl OAR.

{Ftvm a Sketch fy the Maiquis of Lome.)

mmummmsm^^^^ti

fjj*u-*f v- r-njt.inhiiTy^d-i 1^ ftWIirli'jiBitrfrrirrt t iivi ' ' i 1/ "i Ti..-ihi

Canadian Pictures

Drawn with |p»eii an& ipencd.

THE MAROUIS OF LORNH, K.T.

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTKATIONS

From Objects and Photographs in the Possession of and Sketches by

The Marquis of Lorne, Sydney Hall, Etc.

Engraved uy Edward VVhvmper.

LONDON :
THK RELIGIOrS TRACT SOCIETY,

56, Paternoster Row, and 65, St. Paul's Churchyard.

i:i5204

/^^■^'V^-i,

LONUu.-: :
K. Cuv, Sons, and Taylor, I'kintkhs,

llKtAD STKtKT MILL.

Tin: KucKY Mountains krom oi r Cami' ox I'.i.iiow Kivi.k.

{From II SietiA ly the Mnrguis of Lome.)

CONTENTS.

Rciail near New NVL'stniinsltr, Hrilisli Cohimbia. Pmiglas Fir ancKiiijantic Cttlar . FrontUpiece.
Tlu' K.jcky Mcmntains, from our Camp on Klbow Riv?r page v

CHAPTER I.

THE DOMINION OP" CANADA.

Tnii Sktti.kmint of Canada- Tin- Form of CovERNMi-.N-r— Tin-. Confederation of 1867— The French
AND Enc.i.isu Communities— liiK Law of Political Division on the American Continent— The
Fektile liii.T OK Canada— Tim; Maritime 1'kovinces— Their Settlement anii Government-Quebec
—Ontario -Manitoiia and tiii. Wist /".?" '"'^

Shad Fisliinj;

New W'cslniinslcr, lirilisli Columbia
Canadian Rolling Slock

Illustrations :
page 2 Indian Hiintiny; Kquipmcnt

Horse in Snow-Shoes

The Great Bliiri, Thompson River

past- 9
II

• «7

Contents.

CHAPTER II.

RELATIONS BETWEEN CANADA AND ENGLAND.

Genkral Ignorance of Canada in Enciland— Strength ok Canadian Sentiments— The Takikf Question -

IMI'ORTANCE OF KEEPING UI> ERIENDI.V RELATIONS WITH THE COLONIES— TlIK HlCH COMMISSIONER FOR

CANAr>A— Feeling in Favour of the Connection wii ii the IIritish Kmi'Ike (lages 1928

C.inadian Farm Snuvvcd-up
Cariboo Horns .

Illuilrntioiit :

pagt 20 Canailian Snow I'loiigh

ai Snow-Slioe Club in Indian File

CHAPTER HI.

THE CLIMATE OF CANADA.

Comparison between the English amj Canadian Climates-Canadian Winter— Fuel-Clim\tf of
British Columbia— Emigration-Its Facilities and Advantages fages 29-38

Illustrations :

Children Tobogganing pa^e^o Vineyard in Canada . . *a,.^ ,.

^°e Sledge 3, ,^„ ,„,,;,„ (.^„,|, „„ ^,,^ ,,,^i^^ . ' . 36

On the Homalhco Kivcr, British Columbia ■)„„, 3-

CHAPTER IV.

THE MARITIME PROVINCES.

The Bay of Findv— Annapolis- Louisbikg— Shipbuilding in Nova Scoiia-Nkw Brunswu k— The
Cascapldia— rRiNCK Edwakd's Island— The Fishekies— Newfoundland /"a'" 39-62

Canadian Forest I'alli in Winter

Cape Blomidon

Halifax

The " Grafton '' with TcmiKuary Kuddcr
The Moose ....

llhutnitions :

P"S'¥> -^ View on the Hay of Fundy . . . .

41 Cascapedia Cottage

43 A S.-ilnion River, New B'....3wick ,

46 Canadi.in Flowers

47 Going to Church in Canada during a Flood

The " .Sardinian " in the Ice off Newfoundland .

fiigc 6 1

■ 54

• sy

Contents.

VII

CHAPTER V.

ONTARIO.

OSTARIO-NlAOARA-OTTAWA-KlNOSTON-TlIK TircUSANI. Isl.ANI.S-ToRONTO-Ml.SS Rvk's IIoME-RELIOtON
IN THE I'RDVINCE- Till-. Fair at ToRONro-O.NTARIA.N AliRICHl.TIIRK-Kool) A

Siiii<>TiN(! -I'liK Heaver— Wkstern ( )ntakh)

Fri'it Supplv— Duck

The Tlunisand Islands
I'ai'lianient lliiilclin);s, Ditawa

Ningnrii

l.iimhcr riles, Oiiawa
I.umlicrers at Work
Kidcau Falls . . , ,
Sir Joliii A. Macdonald
Running the I.achine Rapids

Illustralipns :

The Wapiti

/fliv64 Indian I'ilnt on the St. Lawrence .

65 Miss Rye's Home as it was ...

. f>7 Miss Rye's Home as it is .

70 (iirls as Taken ofl" the Streets

. 7^ After Eleven Years in the Home .

74 Cedar Il.iy, near Ottawa

• 75 A Heaver Village gj

76 (lardiner Canal

fagt 96

M"*- 77

7«

• 79

. 80

CHAPTER VI.

QUEBEC.

Q.^KHKC KROM TM,.. II.ar.H.S ,..• A HK AH AM-M„M MuKEN,;, FaUS -CAP. URE OK (JUEHEC IN I759-EAR.V
H..M..H.S.S- ,„.: lKon,.,„S I.MMANS-T.tE FRENC, CANAX.ANS -T„K l.AKE St. Jo„N I.,.STR,C T-ioR.CU, -
T.-KK A,„.„r ...KK Sr. J..„^ -THE SA.;n.:XAV-T,.E Gut.K ok St. I,AWRE.NCE-T..E I-ORCt-.-tNE-MoNTRKAE
-IHE M,(.M.>, lMVEKSIIV_|„, W.NIKK CAKM VAI.-ICK HARVESTINT.-I.ACRO.SSE-THE VICTORIA

Hkiix'.e

Ice Cutting on the St. Lawrence

<Juebee

Moiilmorenci Falls ....
A Street in Quebec ....

Cliamplain attacking an IriKjuois Fort .

/(7j,vf 97-126

Illiistralhiis
page 98
09

102
106
110

'I'he (^)iiel)ec and Lake Si. John Country . fage 113

Montreal . . |,q

Montreal in Winter. An Ice Jam . . . laa

Indian Lacrosse I'l.iyer ijj

Victoria Hridge

124

CHAPTER VII.

FROM LAKE HURON TO WINNIPEG.

The Water-way kr(,m Montreal to Lake S. :i.erior--Ai.,-.oma am. .Manitoumn - WiNMi-Er—TiiF Manitoba
Universitv-^The Reo-Rivek SETT..ERS- a Dav's Jo,-rm:v in the Nokth West-Mr. T.acock FinvARi.'s
Report on the Nortii-West The Canadian Lacific Raii.wav pages 127-150

Montinorenci Falls in Winter
Winnipeg in 1875
.Selllers' Huts

Michipicotcn, Lake Superior .
Winnipeg as ii was

Jllustitttions :
firge 128 Red River Cart . .

129 Winnipeg in 1882

• 132 A Farm in the North- West

iJi An Indian Lodge in the North-West

• '35 A View on the Peace River .

A'iV 136

141

. 14a

147

. ISO

VIII

Contents.

CHAl'TKR VIII.

THE INDIANS OF THE NORTHWEST.
TiiK Nortu-Wkst M.ii'MH) I'oiii r.-riiK rKoiiiniii.iN ok iiik [.igium TRAKtic-IIoRSK Stkai.inc— Kvii.s

OF WlllSKV DrINKINc; SlllINd llll.l's \'|(1()RV <iVKR (ilNKRAr. CUSIKR -TlIK SlOlIX- Till; Hl.ACKKhl.r

—Till-: I'uw-wow I.N iSHi iNKrw Klcicjuinck-- I'm-; Sun Da.noi;- SijUAW DocroRS—CANAiirAN I'ui.iiv
Willi Till. Indians -lM>nN CRu;i,Tit.H -Indian Customs — Iiik Ciirishan Indian /.li'ii 15117^

Illuslradtiiis :
liLickfect Imliaiis Cro 'unR .1 Kivcr . . /-igt IJl Ulackfont Cinssing. Indian I'owwuw with Governor-

An Indian "f llio North-West 153 (icniTal pnicceilinij in the I'hiin . /''iv l6j

I'ljly CustonKMs 157 (Jroiip nt the I'owwow 163

A View on the KIbow Kiver 159 An Imlian Siniaw with I'apoosc .... 168

Indian lluiial on the Plains .... /i/i,v 170

C.uihoo Horns 172

CHAPTER IX.
THE NEW TERRITORIES.

Tin; Sti-;rn-\vhkki. Sti-amik -Trinck Ai.iiirt— Cari.iton— Tort ICdmonton- Tm-; I'i.At:K Kivkr— .\thaiiasca
- I'liK Hki.i, I''arm — Tiir. Sv>ti;m oi-' Land .Vt'i'RorRiATioN in tiik Noriii-\Vi-.mT -Comtarativk I'ro-

DICTION ur TIIK NdK I ll-\Vl SI AND olilKR I'AR IN -Al.llKRTA -IllMI- \I.(> 1 1 1 KliS -I-"lKST VllW UV TllK
koCKY MmiNTAINS /,!,« I7J-I9-2

Jlliislialioin :

Indi.an Ureases, Weapon-;, and < Mnanunls . /i;,y 174 HulValo Iluiilinj; /'a'<' iSl

A North Siiskatchewan Slennur . • '75 Slalhint; .\nteIo|.es . . . 188

l-'cirt I'.dninnton . 179 Cliief Mminlain 19I

CHAPTER X.

BRITISH COLUMBIA.

.•\ckoss THE RccKiLS— The Goi.t) Colktry— The Chinfse in Uritisii Coli'Muia- Kami ktk— Tin. CahaiiE
Mountains— Salmon KisiitRits— British Coi.umhian Indians— Vancouvik's Im and- Nanaimo— Victoria
— lisfji'iMAULT-WAPni— Seal Hunting Concludini; Summary /at;is 193-222

Ii/us/ratii'its :

View from Esciuiinault /<i£( 19S

The Cariboo Waggon Road I97

Vale. The Kra^ei River 199

Indian Salmon Cache 202

Seal Driving

Carvings by liritish Cohinibian Indians . /age 203

Indian Uridgc 204

Indian Graves 2o6

Wapiti Horns 209

APPENDIX

Meet of the Snow-Shoe Club .

INDEX .

pages 21 ii-222

IlliislralloHs :
fageiiC) Nature's Monument, Canadian Tacific Coast . fa^e 222

P'Jg<: 223

/i>iv i6i

. . i6j

168

188
191

. J04

206

. 209

l^;'*^-??^?^ " "'-nvw*""

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■#^

THE DOMINION OF CANADA.

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THE

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OMiNioN OF cana:

aJrEDUCTICN of the map prepared & ISSUED UNDER THE 0IRE|
OF THE MINISTER OF RAILVfAYS & CANALS (l88Z)

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THE

DOMINION OF CA

A REDUCTICN OF THE MAP PREPARED & ISSUED UNDt
OF THE MINISTER OF RAILWAYS fc CANAL

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Ni:w \Vi;stminsti;r, Hkiiish Columbia.

/•>,'/« a/hotograJ.h in llu fossnsion of the Man/„h o/I.onu:)

CHAPTER I.
The Dominion of Canada.

-Man,to..a an,, ■vnv. ^^,^^^;''"^ "^"^""^'^'-''-'"'^■R •'"-TiLEMENr and Govkrnment-Quebec-Ontar.o

-T-HE name "Dominion " vyas first used in the New World to designate Queen
diincuthtr r^"^; <^alled after her. Virginia; and the Americans now
Ne ' n ''';An'""u ?/' ^'•'^^'"'■^ '^>'^^"'"g ^he British possessions. "The

New Dommion. When the French began to desert their colonists from Br ttany!
who hacl founded the early settlements in Canada. Voltaire, the great sneere'
at all thmgs human and d.vme, with an ignorance which, to give him justice he
rarely showed said that the French territory in Canada was^ot worth fighdng

h^d \IT ^^^,S^°^'"S: accounts of the journeys of Cartier and of Champlain.

ltd of whTch he '" r ^"''^ '^' S^"^"' ^"-^"^^"^^ -'^ ^^-^-^- ^hat the
and of which he spoke so disparagingly was destined to maintain a population

hof. h' r -'r,""". ^""'^^' '^^-^"'^ have directed his satire ^agans"
devoted r T\^^^'^y f ^>- ^--"- -hich these first discoverers and^these
devoted soldiers knew to be of such value that they were willing to give their
lives, If only France might become possessed of it. The French were earliest

1! 2

Canadian Picturk.s.

in the field, and for many years a bitter warfare raged between them and the
Engh'sh, who had landed in New England. Each nation dreamed of the
conquest of the whole continent, and King Louis's officers, dominant on the St.
Lawrence, and with a settlement at the mouth of the Mississippi, thought that by
military posts along the Northern Lakes, and down the valley of the Missouri, they
could ring the English round, and ultimately expel them. But the genius of their
people was not for colonization. At the time of the conclusion of the war in
1760 they had but 60,000 souls in Canada, and that number became as nothing
compared with the English population to the south of them. The Indians were,
it is true, usually on the side of the French, but beyond embittering the war
by the introduction of savage practices, they could do little. Had not other
ambitions led the French court to neglect the interests of their army in Canada,
our conquest of " New France " would have been long postponed. There were
some good French regiments, and some strong places, but these were miserably
provided with material of war. Louisburg, where great fortifications had been
erected, soon fell, and Quebec followed.

It is only near the Newfoundland coast that France has now any soil
on which she may hoist her flag, and this consists of two little islands, called
Miquelon and St. Pierre. The descendants of the leaders and of their followers
who planted the golden lilies of the white banner of the Bourbons on the
shores of the Gulf of the St. Lawrence are now the contented, free and
loyal citizens of the British Empire. Numerous and prosperous, they enjoy
the ancient rights guaranteed to them by treaty, in the exercise of their own
laws, the stability of their own institutions, and the use of their own language.
So numerous have they become, that many a county in New England, where
of old the Puritans held sway. Is now peopled by them, and they find no rival
along the shores of the St. Lawrence as far as Montreal. They are filling up
the country to the north ; and as they are content to live on soils which are not
sufficiently rich to attract other settlers, they are certain to maintain their
customs, their religion, and their tongue in these regions, which form the summer
gateways of the Dominion. Elsewhere the traveller will hear English.

And what is the form of the government under which these races have
mingled, and constituted a new nation ? First, let us look back a little way. It
win be sufficient to remember that although the American colonies united
together under the pressure of the necessity of offering combined resistance to
the old and ill-advised dictation of the mother country, the colonies in Canada
only began their existence at the time of the American Revolution. " Go to
Halifax! "cried the Revolutionists in derision to the men who as Tories were
known to remain faithful to the British Crown. And they w-ent to Halifax, and
to other places, then mere wildernesses. They went north to the River St. John,
in New Brunswick. They went across Lake Ontario, and landed at " muddy
little York," now the great city of Toronto. They went, In poverty and wretched-
ness, away into the forest, and to them came others, until eighty years had

111

The CoNKEDEUATroN OK 1867. -

passed away, and then their descendants were seen to have thriving cities

towns, and villages, and to have so cleared away the woods that men were

th.ck upon the land IJut all were still in separate communities. Upper and

Lower Canada, as the regions along the upper and the lower course of the

St. Lawrence were called, were joined under one governor, but with separate

legislatures ; and by the sea Nova Scotia and New Brunswick had each its

own ruler ; wh. e Prmce Edward Island and Newfoundland were tracts barren

of life and little known. Difficulties between the French and English popu-

ation culm.nated in an insurrection in 1857 and 1838, and led to the vL't

of Lord Durham, appointed by the British Government to inquire into the

c^^ses of the troubles. Although Lord Durham's conduct, duHng his short

term of service was not approved by his employers, the report he drew up led

o the grant of responsible government to the colonies. As each of these

increased in the number of the inhabitants, the desire amona them for a

complete system of railway communication, and for a union which'' mghT render

to ct U': ItSir'^f f^'^Tr ^'^'^''"^ ^^^^^^" them, ana enable them
to carry out public works designed for the benefit of all. arose and bore fruit.

The confederation entered into in 1867 by alh except Newfoundland gave

^po^:: 'TCZT '" TT' ""''' ^hose Matters w'hich were of Ifonal
m ortance. fhe defence of the country, the revenue arising from customs
and excise, the regulation of the post, of navigation, of patents and of Tl
things affecting any two of the several Provinces of the Union were ^o be
placed in charge of the federal power. A Senate, composed of men nominated
by the Government, and a House of Commons elected on the basisTf the
La^h pro: nTe t^:! lu "^' ^°^^"^' ^^'^ ^ ^^^'^'^^ ^ ^" vitalquestions
i^„- 1 . "-diic 01 property, and on education; and n each a local

wSwUhThe ""'"'""'=''■ /''-S-ernors.huherto appointed by'he Crow,
Canadian MMs.r"'Tr ""= Governor-General, to be appointed by .Ire

sSesmen ' "°* °' *' '^"''"'' Government and of Canadian

find an^herp", ""' ""r" " "'"'^'^'^^^^f"' one. It would be difficult now to
unci anywhere a man of any mark who would vote for its repeal Each venr

but e™h so vtT ,L" ^T/ °''^"'; *' *'■'='= »«""« "''"'■ '^'^^ ^ different,
and va Ly-of Iwd, tS ''' "^ "«'"" "' <"""'■ *<= ^=Sion of mountai:;

are respectivel J iLT , P'-°"n<:es, the central territories, and British Columbia

be ofS' :X« ::• i "Th'r; '=""■ '° *= °*=^' ^"^ «='• '^ fe" »

the American forts? n„ ■ " '' '=d<^'-.-">o- differs in many respects from

i" CanadHvowlcS /ov^Ifir" '° '"'"''"^' '"'^^' °'' "^ ""^^ "^ -"=«

Canadian Picturks.

The jealousy and friction once existing between the French and English
speaking sections of the community are fast passing away. This has been one of
the results of the union. When Upper and Lower Canada stood alone, the one
representing the I"'nglish and the other the I'Veuch race, the differences between
the two races became accentuated when political questions, characteristic of the
imperfect constitutional development of those days, occurred. The French
element in the maritime provinces has alw.iys been respected by the majority
consisting of other races, but it has never been dominant, as was and is the case
in Lower Canada. There is no reason why this element should not in its own
province remain dominant. The only race which increases as fast as the French
is the Irish. With these, who are their co-religionists, there is no very cordial

Canadian Koi.i.im; Stock.

sympathy; but it is to be hoped that, just as the soldiers of Wolfe's Highland
Regiment, when settled in the country, mixed with the Habitans until they
became alike except in name, so will the Irish blend in harmony with
their French-speaking neighbours. The Celt and the descendant of the Breton
have this in common, namely, the power of living contentedly on comparatively
poor land. Where an Englishman or a German will pass on, seeking a more
gracious soil, they will settle, found comfortable villages, and, under the guidance
of their priest, and the shadow of the church, happily cultivate their oats, buck-
wheat, and potatoes, bringing up large families, who will yet further extend the
area of cultivation to the northward.

.it

CiKowrri OF tiik NATioNAt, Idica in Canada, 7

The projrress of the national Idea, which has been the result of the imion
advocated ch.et y f„r reasons of in,nie<hate convenience and utility, has been
most ren,arkable. Althot.Kd. a defeatc.l or disappointed clicjue may some-
.mes even now be heard m this or the other province to threaten "an appeal
o VVashmgton. because tliey have not succeeded in having their own way in
local poht.cs. such language has less meaning than that of a petulant child, who
declares when angry that he will drown himself, and that his nurse shall not pre-
vent h.m. No party and no individual aspiring to gain the confidence of the public
dares to advocate any pohcy but that of the strengthening of Canada's resources,
unity, and nationality under the flag of the }■ mpire. This result is the more re-
markable because the geographical position of the Dominion would not by a casual
observer be supposed favourable to the successful application of a moral Hue-

I'o^defcn'l T"' "'""r"' r^"""^''"'^ ^''"' ^'^•^^^ '^"^ ^^^^'""^ populations together
o defend the.r combined interests. They have never stood shoulder to shoulder

Ittrc . '^^''''"' ""^'^'- '^"hewarof i8,3,whenthe United Stae

sent forces at various points to invade their territory, certainly proved that they
possessed a unanimity of feeling little suspected by the invaders. But at tha^
om thTJ ^ '''^ very ignorant of Lower Canada, and as much separated

rom the seashore people as fron. England. Yet they were all inspired by the
sentiment that bid them abide by the flag of the old country. The HHt sh

colonists It was as the British Government made its presence less and less
felt and wisely determined to trust government to the local legislatures, ha
each colony sought m mutual alliance to prove itself worthy of the help o he
mother country, by demonstrating a native power of co-operation. VVith he
increase o poj3uIation this becan,e every day more easy.^ '. Aid you Ives
and we will aid you." was the language of England. " We will work to " he '
onf^ding in you to work with us." has been the answer of Canada The

s: dian' iZht *'' "^ '■■' "°^ ^'° "^^"^^ •■" '^^'■■^^•"^^ '" ^'- '"--^ oi :

^-^anauian populations.

It seems to be a law of political division on the American continent thit
separation and d fference define themselves along lines running Hm e s o
we t. 1 hus. in the far south. Me.vico rests on both seas, and has only a northern
and outhern frontier. So it was with the Southern States, for " D xS
Lme e.xtended far beyond the Mississippi, and there were as earnest seceders

U^^^^^ %''''''' '"^^""" may be artificial, is in essence no mere
and sou ro? 2 I L ' '" r^T' '" ^""''*^^^' ^'^^ ^'^■^'•^"^^ i" »he people north
Enth^^^^ . " '■""'• '"'^'^^"•^'^ ^^''^'^^'^ '« 'l-'fi"- ; and alona the New

en f and if hi '^'""^ " !!" P'^^^^'^' '''''' ^^'^'^ ^^^ -"- ^'-^' there^is a dh^e"
g eat;;!;," ofth? '^"^ ''"^'7''^ ^^ ^'"^^ P^-^-^' '^ -" ^- - because the

numbers to Zvluh "T aT"''""" ^'^^'^ "'" ^^^'^^ '^^'^' '"A-^^e and
umoers to How southward. Along Canada's whole southern line, except in the

Canadian Pictukkh.

\f V

north of Lake Superior, and in the central prairie rejjfion, and on the mountainous
frontier Une of its Pacific province, the people are now thick upon the land.
They touch each other through all that long fringe of country. It is because
their territory looks like a fringe ujion the map that it is supposed to be
difficult for its inhabitants to coalesce into one [)olitical entity. Hut the terri-
tories of the Dominion are not in reality the mere borders of the Arctic regions
which they appear to be on the map. The size of the coimtry is so vast, that a
map, in giving the great width, cannot give the depth, though the depth of the
habitable land is in reality very great. There is probably not a point along that
seemingly weak chain where there is not a fairly good back country ; and this
remark applies even to the regions supposed to be so sterile to the north of Lake
Superior. The surveys made of that part show that the snowfall on what is
called the Arctic slope is less than on the lake shore. It was, indeed, first pro-
posed that the great Trans-continental Railway, now so near completion, should
be carried over the country to the back of the ranges of rocky hills which rise
so steeply from the north shore. They who have crossed thence to Hudson's
Bay have reported a fairly good soil to exist throughout these tracts.

A consideration of the depth of the habitable area as you travel north from
the whole frontier of the old provinces will show that everywhere there are regions
greater than those which were posses.sed by many of the famous nations of antiquity,
and greater than those now under the rule of several of the European peoples.
Beginning with the most eastern section, there is already a very large series of
settlements one hundred miles to the north of the city of Quebec, on the banks
of a great lake which feeds the Saguenay. Reports from the far-away James's
Bay declare that there also root crops and oats will thrive. But leaving this
portion, as unlikely to receive any considerable influx of settlers, we may judge
from the actual experience of the Canadians who have penetrated up the rivers
flowing into the Ottawa ; and at their sources again we find a continuation ot
the conditions of soil and climate found at Lake St. John, so that there will
probably be a continuous chain of forest-cleared farms from the Gatineau county
to the Saguenay. Again, on the higher waters of the Ottawa, and thence
away towards Georgian Bay, an excellent forest-growth, denoting cultivable
soil, is met with. In Keewaydin, that is, the part lying between Nipigon and
the Lake of the Woods, we alone find a surface of rock so sterile that, sa' -n a
few places, we can never expect or desire settlements to be attempted on it. It
will ever remain a good place from which to obtain timber, and where v;\!u;jblc
minerals may be worked, but of arable land it has hardly any. Immediately
after this unpromising belt we emerge from the woods on to the prairie, which
continues without interruption for 800 miles. The further we go westward the
greater does the depth of good land in distance from south to north become.
The line of equal mean temp -ra.ui ,•, showing an average of sixty degrees, stretches
away to the northwest u> ';! o,'. approaching the mountains we hear that wheat
flourishes at points removed ^00 miles from the American border. There is

Nova Scotia. q

enouvrh land in this prairie world of Canada to su,)pl> ,nor., wheat than is now
Krown m all the United States. Thus w see that the L)on,inion is likely to he
no mere fnnK^«;ot settlements. Imt that almost thruUKhout its vast lenjrth of
3.COO miles there is nxMii for numbers of men to own and cultivate a country
which IS favourable to our race, stroHi^r in its natural features for defence and
capable of j,rivin;r «, its sons that love of home which is tl... birth uul life of
l.atnotism. There is no fear that the country is too poor or too small to support
a nation. I believe that its people will never show themselves lackinij '" '^P'rit

Indian IIiiniinc; Kqi'ii'mknt.

U-ivm llu- L\.ll,;li,n, 0/ !/„■ Mar,,,,!, o'' /..;»,■.)

Let US see what the statistics tell us as to the material resources in area, and

sho Ttim tl T '^"'" "''^'^ "' them-remembering always within how

short a time the results enumerated have been accomplished.

it w^ould be best tor the interests of the smaller maritime provinces, were
they to be under one government legislating for •' Acadia "-such was the
old name o the greater portion of these territories. As yet the wav o
accomplish this has not been found. Taking Nova Scotia first it wHI be een

Canadian Pictures.

S! 5;

by the m ip to consist cf the great triangular island of C;ipe Breon, and a
long-shaped piece of '.he mainland connected with New I3n"^P" • • the

north by a narrow isthrnvs about eleven miles in width. 1 v

22,000 square miles of surface, almost the whole of which was in o.> ^ •: \, joa
covered. Gold mining has been carried on with varying success along the
Atlantic coast, and near Yarmouth this enterprise has paid fairly well. A
range of picturesque hills runs through the mainland portion of the provmce,
and has on each side of it a band of very good land The harbours are
excellent, and only occasionally obstructed by <"ogs. The approach to the
ports from the Atlantic is by no means difnciilt. If fog prevents a clear
view, vessels have only co keep clear of Sable Island — a heap of sand in the
ocean which occupies as regards Halifax much the position of Heligoland oft
the Elbe. Soundings will tell the mariner where his vessel is, and if the
weather be " dirty " there is plenty of sea-room to the ^outh, and the captain may
stand away from shore until the gale abates. The inland fresh waters are
computed to cover 3,000 square miles, so that there is much variety in the
scenery, where the trees stand reflected in the calm lakes, the home of number-
less trout, and the streams pour down in white rapids from the moose-haunted
forests of the liills to the pleasant bays along the shore. In Cape Breton Island
there are many Scottish settlers on the shores of the fifty-mile-long Bras D'or
Lake. But where are there not " many Scots " throughout our Colonial empire !
In the county of Antigonish there are at least 3,000 of the name of Mac Donald.
The chief county town lies pleasantly situated in a well-cultivated valley and
near the strait dividing Cape Breton from the mainland. A great stone-built
church, with the words " House of God " written in golden Gaelic letters on
it, is filled each Sunday by a numerous Roman Catholic congregation.

The Church of Rome has considerably over 100,000 adherents in the
province, and the Anglicans have over one half that number. The Presby-
terians are as numerous as the Roman Catholics ; and other Protestant bodies
claim the remainder of the population, which, counting all heads in Nova Scotia,
amounts to about 400,000. There are no Jews.

Cabot was the first visitor from Europe, in 1497 ; and De Mont and the
Jesuits settled in 1604 at Port Royal and other places, but were expelled by the
English colonists who came from Virginia. It is well known how James the
First desired to found a Scots colony here, like his Scots colony in the north
of Ireland, but the people he sent were discouraged at finding the coasts already
occupied. Charles the First tried to induce his subjects to send settlers to
the country by the grant of the title of Baronet of Nova Scotia and an allot-
ment of land, and Cromwell took formal possession for a time ; but a cessiori to
F' ranee was made by the Treaty of Breda, and Nova Scotia remained under the
P>ench crown until 17 13 Although there has been a considerable movement
of its people to the Canadian western country and to the United States, the
population steadily increases, .-ind the coal mines are worked bv an cver-crowinsr

Nova Scot/a.

e<;on, and a

"•' "-■> the

, •: \. joa •
s along- the
Y well. A
le province,
arbours are
•ach to the
nts a clear
sand in the
:ligoland oft

and if the
captain may

waters are
riety in the

of number-
ose-haunted
'eton Island
I Bras D'or
iiial empire !
Viae Donald.
[ valley and
: stone-built
c letters on
I.
ents in the

he Presby-
jtant bodies
Jova Scotia,

ant and the
elled by the
' James the
n the north
asts already
I settlers to
id an allot-
a cessiori to
d under the
t movement
States, the
I'er-QfrowinLi-

number of mmers. who find remunerative employment at all times of the year

I here are immense deposits of gypsum at several places. The plaster of Paris

made from these supplies all Canada with this article. The gypsum quarries look

hke the marble quarnes oi Carrara, so pure and white is diemateHal which in

broken cl.ft-s nses at some points along the coast to a height of fifty feet In

1880 the miports amounted to a value of over seven millions of dollars the

exports to seven and a half millions. There are 497 miles of railway. One

Ime runs along the whole of the south side of the Bay of Fundy, with the

exception of a small break in the bay at Dfgby, and to the east reaches the

btraits of Canso The Intercolonial has 138 miles of rail in Nova Scotia and

a railway takes the coal of Sydney in Cape Breton to Louisburg, and the line

wiiJ be continued so as to connect with the mainland at the Straits of Can^^o

Horse in Snow Shoes.

Cove™lr:r?;™;ToTclr'r''' *-\°ffi-'-« ^^he Don,i„,-o„
persuaded ,oahoI,sh,herclves"',f"7; "'7'>-\(who have been nearly
chamber only,; and an a«emhK f ,1 '"'^^''''^ ''=S"^''><"'-'= '<> ™„sist of one
jears, forn, ,hV ,ovtnme tL!.' "^'">-"=W'" ™""'ers, elected every four
error, and one of v™d„ irahv I " ' ^'T""i '"P'""" '"""• ^ ™»" "'

edncation is provid.-d for hvl , T '^ .""''""' '^'^°'"'- ''''"= secondary

.""del school, and l„,ost 'e,erv 1 " ""^"T- '^'""'^ '' " "<'™«l ^"^ -
traminj;. ' "''>' ''cnom.natmn has its college for nniversity

C 2

' !

Canadian Pictures.

In New Brunswick a similar government machinery is provided, there
being nine members in the executive council, eighteen in the legislative
council, who are appointed for life, and forty-one in the popular branch of the
legislature. In both provinces the common schools are free to all, and are
supported by the provincial revenue, the rates being laid on all property. The
people number about 300.000— a small population, considering the great size of
New Brunswick, for there are 27,322 square miles within its borders. It has
the Intercolonial line of railway traversing its eastern section from south to
north. Another line connects it with the St. John Valley, and to the west it is
in communication with New England. Montreal will soon be only 430 miles
distant from St. John by rail, and Quebec will be only 388 miles from this
sea-port, shortening the distance, as compared with the Intercolonial, by 200
miles. Ships, sawn lumber, cotton and woollen goods, leather, cheap furniture,
paper and iron manufactures of all descriptions, are the staple productions ; and of
raw material there is, as with the sister province, abundance of fish, timber, coal,
iron, and gypsum. The extent of the coal-fields cannot be compared with those
of Nova Scotia, but it has some veins wliich have proved most valuable, notably
the beautiful " albertite." a very hard, glossy, and perfectly clean mineral, of
which the supply has, alas, greatly decreased. As the treasure of other species
of coal is so near and practically inexhaustible, New Brunswickers need not
deplore the exhaustion of one kind, although unique and precious. The imports
in general amounted in 1880 to 84.093.135, and exports to $5,863,955.

The French were here again the first white men to land with the intention
of founding a colony. The date of landing was 1639. When Quebec fell,
the country was made over to us. Miramichi, upon the eastern side, was
setded by Scots in 1764.

The third province into which the ancient Acadia has been carved is Prince
Edward s Island, with an area of 2, 134 square miles, formerly covered with wood,
although the keen gales of the Atlantic make themselves everywhere felt. Here
again we find the free-school system in force, and the relative numbers of the
various religious bodies nearly that of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, the
Roman Catholics heading ^he list. With the lieutenant-governor are associated
five members of an executive council and twenty-two deputies in the
legislative assembly. There is telegraphic communication by submarine cable.
Cabot discovered the island, but the French claimed the discovery as due
to Verazino ; and one of their naval ofiicers received it as a grant in 1663.
Taken by the English in 1755, it was given back by the Treaty of Aix-la-
Chapelle, and finally ceded to Britain in 1758. Ten years later it "received
a government," although it is said at that time to have had only 150 families
on its soil.

To pass in our statistical review to the larger provinces, Quebec has 193,355
square miles, of which perhaps one half are habitable, and most of the remainder
is valuable for minerals, tiinhcr, or fisheries. The threat laurentian rantre of

ife

range

Quebec.

vided, there
legislative
ranch of the
all, and are
party. The
jreat size of
irs. It has
im south to
le west it is
ly 430 miles
;s from this
nial, by 200
ap furniture,
ions ; and of
timber, coal,
1 with those
ible, notably
mineral, of
ther species
rs need not
rhe imports

5- _

IP intention
Quebec fell,
n side, was

ed is Prince
I with wood,

felt. Here
bers of the
inswick, the
s associated
ies in the
arine cable,
ery as due
It in 1663.
of Aix-la-
: " received

50 families

''^''s 193,355
i remainder
m range of

hills runs through it from east to west, reaching in Mount Logan, to the north of
the Bay of Chaleurs, the greatest elevation in a conical mass— over 4,000 feet in
height. Earthquakes of a mild type have not been infrequent. At Murray
Bay, a place on the north shore of the St. Lawrence, I was shown a house which
had been twice much shaken and partially destroyed by earthquake shocks, one
havmg occurred on the i8th of August, while the second shock came on the
same date, exactly ten years later. A marble chimney-piece broken across
showed the strain to which the walls had been put. It is curious to note how
the sea has retired from these regions in comparatively recent times The
shells and marine fauna now inhabiting the gulf are found in the clays which
me the banks and the bottoms of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers
When the rivers are low in the " fall," or autumn, any one walking by the side
ot the stream may pick up numerous nodules and rounded or elongated pieces of
hardened clay. If these be carefully broken asunder, in their interior will be
found the perfectly preserved form of the capelin, a fish now aboundino- in
the sea-water 500 miles away. I have even found the feathers of sea-bTrds
lookmg as though they had been but lately shed ; and the telina, a little
shell-fish, together with several other species, and even the bones of the seal
have again seen the day when the hammer laid open these curious mummy
cases of the creatures which inhabited the ocean when it swept over all the
surface now covered by land or river or great inland lake.

Amongst the fossils we must take care not to reckon the legislative
councils of one province. Quebec has a well-preserved set of very perfect
specimens of the genus Senator in her 27 councillors. The executive council

'Soo iXf T'-f JT''^'"', ''''"^^^^' '5- There are at present about
1.800 miles of rail : the Intercolonial, coming over the hills of New Brunswick
descends on the south side of the St. Lawrence, and follows the stream hi
connection with the ine crossing to the north shore at Montreal, by the Victoria
Bridge. Of the railway to Lake St. John, to the north of Quebec City mo e
wi 1 be said hereafter. The other chief lines run to the south, connecting with
he American system. A branch of the Intercolonial will form a channel for th.

h ghway to a good and picturesque country, extending all the way to Gasi/e

the Atlantic voyagers as the first part of the mainland shore seen after roundin<r
he southern capes of Newfoundland. There are a million and a quarter or^eopfe
n this great province. The Church of Rome has considerably over a mZn

V y":::";oVX"'"'^°'''^' tl. population being French Canadians whH
very many of the minority are Irish. Geographically the province extends

H:;V;f;;;r '' ': "",'T r ^-^--^--^ Oolemme'nt, to tL Ottal
L^'i Lr S T ' T ' ''u'" '^'y'"^' '^''' ^^•'^''^'"' ^"d '« bordered by the

Cabot s name ,s mentioned as the first discoverer. Settlements were made in

Canadian Pictures.

1'^

li*

1 541 by Jacques Cartier. These became British by conquest in 1759, and the
government was constituted in its present shape in 1867. In 1880 the imports
were forty-three and a half millions of dollars in value, and the exports forty-one
and a half millions, the chief articles of export being pot and pearl ashes,
flour, wheat, oats, barley, butter, cheese, copper, wool, and wood. The cattle
have been lately much improved in quality. Some of the stock, both in the
case of horses and cattle, show their descent from animals brought over from
the north of France.

The superior court, famous for the ability of its lawyers, sits at Montreal
and Quebec. Education is under the direction of a minister called the superin-
tendent of education. He has a deputy and a council of twenty-one members
to assist him, appointed by the lieutenant-governor in council. Fourteen of
these are Roman Catholics and seven Protestants. All the people are assessed
for the purpose of providing primary schools. In the municipalities where there
are different denominations, the school commissioners of the majority govern.
The schools of the minority are called dissentient schools, and their trustees have
the same powers as the commissioners of the schools of the majority. The
Protestants and Roman Catholics have separate boards of commissioners in
Montreal and Quebec cities.

The municipal franchise is possessed by all who have $50 of real property,
or are occupiers of land of the annual value of ^$20. The voter must also have
paid all taxes, and be inscribed on the municipal roll. The country is divided
into townships ten miles square, as in Ontario. Each must have 300 souls at
least before it can be made a township. This division succeeded the French
feudal system on all Crown lands. Each county sends one member to
the Dominion House of Commons, and one to the Quebec Parliament., The
principle adopted for the franchise throughout is that all men but the absolutely
idle or poor may vote. Hitherto the provincial franchise has served also as the
basis of the right to vote for the Federal Parliament, although it is probable that
a general franchise for the National House will be adopted.

The system of self-government is admirable. The township, or united town-
ship where one or two are designated a municipality, has its own local council or
board, whose sittings are public. All disputed questions are decided by the
majority present. The secretary-treasurer of the body has to give guarantees of
good behaviour, and has to see to the valuation rolls. Two auditors are appointed.
The county council is composed of the heads of the local boards, and these men
when so assembled have the name of county councillors. The chief of the
county council is elected by the body so constituted, and is styled prefect. The
meetings are held every quarter, in March, June, September, and December. The
inspectors of roads, bridges, Szc, and of agriculture are under these authorities,
as are the local police. The members of all councils are paid a salary fixed by them-
selves. The county council settles the location of the county capital, the places
where courts of circuit are held, levies costs of rpgistratinp, places sign-posts in

Ontario.

Ihe traffi/ n '.t'" ? '°''^' ""^''" '^' '°"^''°^' ""^ "^'^^^^^ regulations for

he raffic. The local boards can make roads, such being " municipal roads." or
local highways, and may by resolution define how the cess for such works ma; be
applied. 1 hey divide their district as they choose, but there is always an appeal
to the county council It will thus be seen that the local authority is more sub
divided than in Britain, the local municipalities often exercising power over a
district not more than ten miles square, having the power of organisation and
government with an appeal to the representatives of the wider a, Jof the county
Lach authority has the right of ta.xation for its purposes. ^ "

1 he assembly ot the entire province has absolute power over all property and
may make laws amending all local government. The regulations 'in eg'd to
he sale of hquor. w iich are administered by the local authorities, emana^ of
cour.se from the provincial parliament. The sale of all spirituous Iquor in less
quanifes than three gallons or twelve bottles may be prohibited by the loca
boards. Children are not permitted to frequent the public-houses. There T.n
exception to the prohibitory law for sale for medical purposes The La
board may limit the number of licences where there is no veto L sale. In ^1^^
ownsh.ps the majority do not allow taverns. In another place the DomTnion
laws with regard to this subject are noted. ^^ommion

nas. ^rnlf"^ """' '''"'" "^^ '''" government and resources of each province we
pass to the greatest in population, namely, Ontario where ap-a-'n the fown^V

heTdT:rhis' ^" '''-' '-' ^ -bdivision^'of goverm:e^Tarrs;"a:d^•rrh '!;
head and his assistant is elected by electors, whose franchise may be that o^
.^400 income, of freeholders, householders or tenants in a mun cipali y or t the

R^ltc^rrv^'ft ^'^-^^'"^ °'.'"' '^^"^ ^'^'^^^ Sives to each d.: q^/aKhcii n
Real property of §ioo in townships, $200 in incorporated villages S,oo in towns
and HOC >n cities gives the right to vote. '« Reeve," and ''^ie^oity reev^ a"^^
the titles given to the township chief elected officers; the.e met as a count!

h^'voinrir'^^'^^^^'^''-^''^^^^'^"-" ^-•-^•'^ibe.;otedthaTt:i lecto

wl ich p"v" t H "' ""'""' '"^ '^'' '' " "°^ '^' ^^"^'^^'^^ '^^'^ ^he rate
^a ned^bv h "'''"""^ ''P'"'"'" ^" ^'^^'"^^ '^ ^V Fallot, and the secrecy

.gained by the system is not far from complete. The steps and varie^v /f

axes and T) ^ '''^'''''"'' ''"' '°^"''^'P "'' " ""'""■ ^^^^^^ '^-''' P^^LZl

eo^rlen ■ ''' '"'"'°"' ^^P^-'^P'^ ''^'' ^'^'^ ^his very perfect municipal

fux.r*"!" ^'^'^ ^°"^^^'^ ^he opinion that a local senate is an extravaZn

eitrhtv ei IV ; ?^ ^' ^''^y ^'^ ^°"^^"^ ^^'^h an assembly composed of

™tas'r^;rf " elected every four years, while the lieutenant

\\^tU I ^''^^^"^'ve council, five in number, to assist him.

very difficiSeed ZT"' U "-"bers it may here be noticed that it would be
y .mcult indeed to get a house together, were the members not indemnified

! \r

Canadian Pictukks.

If I'M

for serving. They have to leave their work, and travel in many cases
hundreds of miles ; and men whom the country would desire as its best
representatives could not attend, in the absence of payment, which is not so
much remuneration for service as partial compensation for loss or interruption of
their usual avocation. All schools are quite free, a minister of education being
appointed by the provincial government to look after them. Each township is
divided into school sections, with a board of trustees. The government
inspectors never have charge of more than 1 20, or of less than 50 schools, and
their pay comes partly from the province and partly from the local council.
The Roman Catholics may, if they desire it, have separate schools, and are, in
such cases where there may be a sufficient number of children for whom separate
instruction is required, exempt from the general school rate, and have a separate
government grant. There are excellent higher schools, the Upper Canada
College at Toronto being especially noteworthy where nearly all are excellent.
The system is to accord teachers their certificates through the agency of a
central board at the provincial capital, where first-class certificates are granted.
Each of the counties has its local board of examiners for the distribution of
the second- and third-class certificates. There are no less than seventeen
Protestant universities and colleges, and three Roman Catholic. Here the
Protestants are greatly in the majority, there being about 480,000 Methodists,
370,000 Presbyterians, 340,000 Anglicans, and about 290,000 Roman Catholics,
the remainder consisting of other creeds. The small number of Jews in Canada
is remarkable, and is attributed to the large influence of Scots !

Exports in i88o amounted to over ^28,030,000. Imports in the same year
to about the same sum.

As with all the provinces, there is a supreme court, whose decisions are
subject to the Dominion supreme court, which sits at Ottawa. The superficial
area is vast, but reckoning only that of the portions which are certainly habitable,
40,000 square miles out of 108,000 may be considered good. The railway system,
already constituting a most intricate network of lines, is being constantly extended.
There are now about 4,000 miles of track laid. The great arterial line of the
(irand Trunk goes from Montreal by Kingston to Sarnia, where it crosses into
the States. The Canadian Pacific, running from Montreal, crosses at the city of
Ottawa from the province of Quebec into Ontario, and runs up the Ottawa River
to Lake Nipissing, and thence has a branch to Sault St. Marie, and extends
its main line along Lake Superior. Between these highways are many others,
so that there is little of the country left which is not within reach of railway
communication.

Of Manitoba we must speak more generally and further on in this book. Its
growth is so rapid that there is little use in specifying its condition to-day, for
to-morrow the change will have been so great that the statistics would be already
stale. It has an area of about 100,000 square miles. The next two divisions,
which have been named Assiniboia and Saskatchewan, have 90,000 square miles

many cases

as its best

;h is not so

terruption of

cation being

1 township is

government

schools, and

ocal council.

3, and are, in

lom separate

'e a separate

)per Canada

ire excellent.

agency of a

are granted.

stribution of

n seventeen

Here the

Methodists,

an Catholics,

vs in Canada

le same year

The Govkrnmknt of the Dominion. 17

each, and nearly all is fair land. Alberta has 100,000 square miles, and Athabasca
120,000, while Hritish Columbia has 200,000; but a great deal of this is good
only for wood or minerals, whereas the names previously mentioned stand for

or .■ .'\. ■ i ' ■

The Great Ulukf, Thomi'sun Kivkr.

(Fnm a photogra/ih in the possession of the
Marquis of Lome.)

territories of great natural fertility of soil.

Their surfaces too are not interrupted by

great lakes westward of Winnipeg and

Manitoba, and are almost everywhere

available for habitation.

It remains to us to close this chapter, which is necessarily a tedious one

by a general statement of the total Dominion resources and government The

governor-general IS nominated by the British Government, bu? is paid whollv by

tl)e Ca. xd.an. I he cabinet usually consists of thirteen members-a numbe; too

t|!

Canadian Pictures.

great, but at present convenient because each important section of the people
desires to be represented among the ministers of the crown. The Senate,
nominated for hfe, consists of eighty members, and the House of Commons of
212. The legal duration of a Parliament is five years. As in Great Britain, all
measures must, to become law, receive the assent of the head of the state and of
both branches of the legislature ; the constitutional system of ministerial re-
sponsibility is carried out to the full. Although in theory the governor-general
is commander-in-chief, and has the power of pardon in criminal cases, the power
so given to him should always be exercised by the advice of a responsible
minister.

The militia, which constitutes the whole military force of the country, with the
exception of about 800 men, who are called the " embodied militia " and are really
" regulars," has not been sufficiently attended to by the State. It is designed that
at the stations where there are " embodied " artillery batteries — now three in
number — the officers of the militia artillery shall be trained. The same plan is to
be carried out for the infantry at three infantry schools of instruction. No ade-
quate provision has yet been made for cavalry instruction. There is no kind of
naval armed force on shore or afloat, and there are no engineers and no torpedo
corps. It is to be hoped that the training of officers and non-commissioned
officers will be steadily enforced, and no commissions be accorded to untried men.

RELATIONS BETWEEN CANADA
AND ENGLAND.

1) 2

S I

(Jarihuo Horns.
(/•■«)«; the Colllilioii of llie ,M,in/uh of r.oriir )

CHAPTER II.

Relations hetwken Canada and England.

Gkneral Ignorance of Canada in Enoland— Strkngtii ok Canadian Skntiments— Tiik Tariff Question-
Importance OK KEEPING VV FklENI.I.Y RELATIONS WITH THE CoLoNlES-TllE IllCill COMMISSIONER FOR

Canada -Feemnc. in Favour of the Connecth)N with the Hritish Empire.

THE seventeen years which have passed since the confederation of 1867
have witnessed continued pohtical and material progress. Persevering
and steadfast, and accustomed to self-government, the people show no
restlessness, such as is seen in some small European and South American
countries, where a new ministry comes in almost with each change of the moon.
There has only been one change in the Dominion, and that brought a Liberal
ministry into power for five years. The connection with the Empire is most
jealously maintained. It may be as well to say a word on the relations between
Canada and the mother country as they present themselves in the year 1884.

Although Canada is now only eight days from our shores, and Australia
can be reached in the time which a sailing vessel formerly took to reach America,
yet there is still a vast amount of misconception of the position and prospects
of our dependencies. It is, perhaps, a misfortune that men often begin to
acquire a useful knowledge about the colonies when it is too late for them to
make use of it for their own good. The information as regards the prospects
of life in these great territories should be given in the schools and universities.
To many a boy an accurate knowledge of how money can best be made, and
the early years of manhood most profitably spent in Australia, New Zealand,
and the Dominion of Canada, would be of far more use than much of the

• f

Canaihan I'lcnuis.

obsolete erudition still retailed to liim in our Hnj,'lish puljlic schools. The
voyages of Cook, of Champlain and Vancouver are as interesting as are those
of Ulysses, and the suhsecfuent history of the lands they discovered the most
edifying for an luiglish buy. If true information were readily obtained, and
colonial life were brought as familiarly to the minils of Hnglishmen as their own
home life, it is difficult to believe that there would remain so many here who
have no occupation but the proverbial privilege of grumbling at their own fate,
and at all around them. In Canada, if it were nut for the constant bright sun-
shine, and for certain improvements in the art of government, both central and
local, the Scotch and English emigrants might imagine that they had never left
the Old World, so good are the schools, so orderly are the people, so easy the
communication from one district to another. To many a poor English labourer,
who will find that good wages can be got for a gocxl day's work, and to many a
poor English gentleman, who finds that he can obtain sport at small e.xpense
among the fowl, the fish, and the deer, it would seem as though they had been
set down in a better English world, and might imagine that some benevolent
spirit had suddenly granted to them all their heart's most hopeful dreams.
They will find that the people around them, and their own children as they
grow up, remai-i English still in all essentials. They have become or are
becoming part of a people who are sturdy, independent, who know their own
ideas and necessities, and insist on acting upon these.

Much as the Canadians continue to love the old land for its associations,
they have no idea but that their own opinion as to what is best for themselves
in their new land is better than any one else's opinion upon the same subject.
They insist on making as much as they can of their own country in their own
way, abandoning preconceived ideas or the ideas of their old friends who may
wish to convince them that the soil of a new world is not favourable for
knowledge of what is good for its people. They are, in short, as self-willed
as children of John Bull may naturally be expected to prove. They may be
wrong or they may be right, but, whether wrong or right, it is important that
John Bull should remember that they mean to judge for themselves, and he and
they must shape their transactions with each other accordingly. There is one
matter, and that a very important one, on which it is by no means likely that he
and they will soon agree. He is convinced that it is for his interest to buy in the
cheapest market ; and the cheapest market for him is in all ways the world at
large. They, on the other hand, think that, although they desire a cheap
maket, the cheapest market may, in the long run, be found to be that where
they may purchase partly from their own countrymen and partly from the world
at large. They are apt to imagine that this will, as they call it, build up their
new State, make it strong to resist enemies, cause it to have a pride in itself, and
to be represented in all industrial branches of national being. They may be
quite willing to pay for the luxury of this pride. The mode of life which it leads
them to follow may not actually be the cheapest, but it is certainly not the most

Canadian Iukas.

worthless. 1 he sentiment which hids thtMU ^'ivc their kinsman in the OKI I. and the
best possible treatment remains : he is the customc-r, oi.tsid..- of their own brother-
hood and proup of politically-associated coloni.-s, with whom tlu:y like best to deal
rhe feelmj,^ that leads to the adoption of protective tariffs is one which it
IS difhc.It for a Londoner to understand, perhaps, but it finds its closest parallel

Canadian Snow I'l.oi.i

Ml th.Move the London householder has for a separate iiouse. Vol. ma

ell a housewife m that great Ba])ylon that it would be much cheaper for her

to live m a great house with other people-to have a flat, or some rooms in

a llat, and to be supplied witii others from a common kitcheu-but she would

'-■itf^-iVr

n :ii«il

I f l!i

Canadian Pictures.

not hear of such a proposition. Perhaps the cause which has made London
cover so much ground is the fact that each housewife insists on having her own
separate property and house complete— the kitchen and parlour and sleeping-
rooms being apart from all neighbours. Out of England, England's children
maintain these prejudices. They often wish to live in a country which shall be,
as far as possible, what the Scotch call self-contained — that is, as independent
in resources as they can well make it. In Canada this feeling varies in degree.
The Conservatives say they want a revenue tariff, and put a duty on outside-
made goods of about half the amount placed by Americans on foreign imports —
namely, about 30 per cent. If the Liberals came into power to-morrow, they
would probably lower the tariff ; but it still would be a high tariff in the eyes
of the English manufacturers. Thus both parties in the State are more or less
compelled by public feeling, which does not at present allow direct taxation,
to pur a comparatively high duty on all imported things which may be or are
manufactured in the Dominion.

We may have protection carried out in English-speaking communities
of all sizes, from Australia to the Canadian Dominion, where, although the
effect is to make certain goods dearer, the system is maintained ; and, whatever
our opinion may be on the question involved in the science of political economy,
we must take men as we find them, and we must not refuse to sympathise with
our fellow-citizens who dwell in greater lands than Britain because their ways
are not as our ways, and are adverse to the theories we may hold as essential
to their welfare. These islands have thirty-five millions of people, Canada has
now about five millions, Australia will soon have four millions. Britain has,
for the small area she possesses, great resources in coal and other wealth ; but
it m.ay be well for her to remember how little of the earth's surface she possesses
in comparison with her children. The area of Canada and of the Australian
States is so vast, the fertility of their soil is so remarkable, the healthfulness of
their climate is so well proved, and the rapid increase of their white population
is so certain, that within the lifetime of our children their numbers will
equal our own. In another century they must be gready superior to us in
men and material of wealth. How foolish, therefore, will our successors in
England deem us to have been, if we do not meet to the fullest degree
possible the wishes of these growing States! They have a filial affection
for their Fatherland. They will retain a brother's feeling for us, if we are
friendly to them in the critical time of their coming manhood. Days may arrive
when we shall implore their assistance, and when the alliance of those Powers,
grown into maturity and strength, and under very possible circumstances the
strong arbiters of our own destinies, shall be ours through the wisdom we may
show to-day, or may be lost to us, and become the property of our enemies, by
the coldness of our conduct at this hour. If we do not reciprocate
friendliness to-day, because they do not give us exactly what we wish, we
indeed show ourselves to be penny wise and pound foolish.

their
may

The Importanck of Canada's Friendshi

The first essential condition which may prevent coldness and want of
sympathy is _ thoroughly to understand their position, and to look on our
children s action, not only from our own, but from their, standpoint. All thin^^s
ni this world, unfortunately, narrow down in the end to the question of gain
and the question of strength. We should be only too glad if sentiment-a
much-derided thing, but yet a power of marvellous force in politics-had
sufficient mfluence to cause our friends to be content to gain less from us than
from foreigners ; we should be content if they give to us the best treatment
they can afford to give to any outside of their own countrymen. If they from
neighbourhood or other exceptional causes, give the foreigner an apparent
advantage over us in dealing with themselves, it is still vastly for our policy
and to our interest to remain their closest and their best allies. The firsf step
to keep them firm in their alliance is to work with them for the purpose of
pushing their commerce. As long as they choose to entrust (partlyf at all
events) to our diplomatic and consular service the interests which are principally
heirs, we should instruct our consuls, and agents appointed to positions abroad,
to treat any one who resides in a colony as though he were resident in Britain,
and he should feel that his interests are the interests furthered by the Govern-
ment of these islands. A colonist should find, wherever he is, that the most
potent agent at work for him is the agency of the Fatherland. He should
never be allowed to say that his claims were looked upon with lukewarmness
because he was born m Montreal instead of in London. His interests are our
interests, and so long as his Government works in alliance with the Imperial
authorities-and this will be to the end of time if we manage matters well-his
claims to attention to distinction, and to access to foreign marts, should be
pushed equally with those of our own citizens. No matter that his Govern-
ment niay wish to conduct such negotiation after methods which are not ours
-that his Government may wish to erect a Customs Wall here and demolish
one there, where you think there never should have been a wall at ail-that is
the affair of his Government ; and if you wish to maintain your old colonists-
alliance you must back up their views of what is best for themselves. To
ei^deavour to interfere with the policy of fiscal affairs of such countries as
Australia and Canada, to declare that they must shape their measures so as to
give this to one sister colony, or that to the Fatherland, is to pursue a line
which must result as disastrously as did the line followed by "lord Nor^
He and his King used all their means to preserve the integrity of the EnW
on the old plan of dictation from the central hive. Thty Iho woukl e
serve the integrity of their fiscal theories, and prove by other means than
persuasion that free trade is good for all. as well as for England, delirinlto
die ate political economy, are the Lord Norths of our dav. Persista ? n
such dictation can only lead to one result, namely th^ breakin^of nn

■ V

111

Canadian Pictures.

The appointment of a High Commissioner, on the part of Canada, to
reside in London, was by far the most important event which has occurred in
the colonial history of the last few years. It was the first step taken by a
colony, and cordially accepted by the Imperial authorities, which will lead to
that ultimate council of envoys by which (perhaps early in the next century) the
Imperial policy will be directly guided. It was a step which promoted unity,

Snow-Shoe Club in Inbian File.

although it seemed to some minds to define separation. When negotiations
for trade with foreign Powers were made by England in former days, it was
not her custom to consult her colonies. She made her own arrangements
for her own good, and it was supposed that her good meant the good of the
colonies. They had no hand or part in bargaining for trade. Of late it has
been especially asked of Canada if she desires to be excepted or included in

The High Commissioner,

any commercial treaty She is consulted whether she wishe7any social tr^aVv
to be made m her behalf through the agencv of her own Hurl, r ^ ^

and the members of the Britislf Diplonfal^^od/a rrad^'^Th^^nTr^IJ
boon to the colony, for she is spared the expense of maintaining any consds o
any complete diplomatic representation abroad. By emplovinp- one mnn in I ^
she can obtain with certainty the assistince of thJ^] .^ ? , London.

and Governmen, ,„ securing what he desires ; he becomes the selo" d se f of the

for diCetro z- r„„de;.ire''::„,tfl"ar"u""^ '°"r", '•"-t p™^'^'°"^

of this island ^h»^ ,h, r„. ."f ^""'^ "='S- " 's manifestly to the advantage
withhe eplsentaites I?'h '"'"'°"",''°"''' "^ '''"""'"^ '"'"^^'dy

British n^renf nnrl . r ,. ^^"'^ °^ ^^'d by the colony at the door of the

in hfn!^ r '^''"^^8^^'"''^h^P^^^"t land would be engendered

in the new country ; whereas whpn th^ r^i^ • 1 c • " ^ "'^ cu^cnuerea

appointed by the Bitish Government to do the ? " ' "=■" "'"'"^'''^ ^""^
own Amhns«nH„r ,1,. A- " . ™""^"' <" oo the work m conjunctbn w th its

show that he had a fiir clvfn? f , "'^"'''P''"^ '<> his Government will

sioned to complete tha hTZl Tf'""g. ""= '>"8-" "-^ »- commis-
representing the m'pfrfal PoJer > , '\'"f Tl""'" by the Ambassador
negotiationLrhecroe solZ'astedM t "' '"" ""P-^ '° ""='"" "'^

" r - ^oTr '° ^''-"'? -°" '-vr is-t: l;?: ■■"'--^ °^

better ilu^'rated ,Z"''dr T '", '"T""' P""""-"' •'''"--''- —•• ^-n
Dominion of Canada h ^ ?,'"'; ^"^ ^'''"' °' '•"""'"vative rule in the

be much he vt th „ tl Xve I ""= f ""'" '«"""' ""P°«^ ""' ""-

object of the Canad ,n ' l'^ .'"'f '"";'' ^'"=<= -S?*. and it has been the avowed

a classifies on onm; ^ '^""t '" '^?"" ""■■ '°'"""^"^'= ""'> "«= Dominion by

would at once haXe" "per tn, h":,;; ^ 'T '«"'"^' ^"«''* ^oods
most cases prove ibsnl,, J,, f? .'" "'•■"' *<=>' '■"■= "<>". ="d would in

desire that T; „ t "ht^:'Ln,^''':7„, ?' T'^ /"''''" "'"^'- '^""^ "' '^
J naie lett tins country should still be citizens of our Empire,

". HBE^HHP*'***^**)'**^^

Canadian Pictures.

and continue hand-in-hand with us, and which prompts us to make sacrifices in
order to do this, is not one of empty sentiment alone, but is based on material
interest. If we only persuade Englishmen that this is so — say during the next
twenty-five years— we may be sure that the essential unity of the Empire will
be maintained, for in another generation it will be madness to question the
utility of close alliance with the strong peoples who will then be rulers of the
South, as in the case of Australia, or of the North, as in the case of Canada.
How great a guarantee for the peace of the world will the expansion of the
trade of each portion of our confederated Empire be ! for war, which shakes the
trade of each part, would not be hastily entered into by any ; while, if it must
come, how much stronger will that Empire be which, even if it cannot bring the
forces of each of its members into the field, shall yet at least be able to count
upon the friendship of all, and the probable active aid of one or more !

I have often been asked as to whether the feeling in Canada in regard to
its connection with the Empire remains as strong as before. I believe it to be
even stronger than it was formerly ; and the best test that this is the case is
seen in the fact that no public man or public body have ever ventured to
formulate in recent years with any success a contrary policy. I have often been
asked, too, if I believed that the feeling of the United States with regard to
the incorporation of Canada is not as strong as before ; and in reply
to this I would say that it is an undoubted fact that the United States
would gladly welcome Canada into their empire ; but the Canadians show, as
yet, no sign that they desire this consummation, and, except under very great
provocation, it would not be pressed by the public men of the United States.
Their idea is that the pear when ripe will drop into their lap ; but, meantime,
the pear is ripening with a tendency to sow vigorous seeds under its own old
branches, and to live on in a more vigorous and extended life as a separate
nationality, holding the alliance with England as its best guarantee for
the same.

i to count

THE CLIMATE OF CANADA.

H;i

iJoG Sledge.

(From the Collection of the Marquis 0/ Lome.)

CHAPTER III.
The Climate of Canada.

Comparison between the Ent.i rsir Av.r> /^..

-here Z2lt''l\.l1^^^ " "'"'l '" "*= "'"'" "' ""= ''"'"''^ P»" "< Canada,

en^l^h^roT'to .r„,ro'f L".""'"'" °'*^ "f"^""' ~^''° ^>'"^ ^'^

h .ic 10 tell mc ot then experiences in their new homes. With

3-'

Canadian Pictures,

)|i !

iiiil

settlers from the Eastern Provinces were mingled others who hailed from
England. Ireland, and Scotland. I had received satisfactory accounts of the
year's excellent crops from all, and then put questions to them as to the advan-
tage or disadvantage of the climate as compared with that of other places.
Several had borne evidence of the healthfulness and purity of the air, and to
their preference to it as compared to that of any region they had known, when
up pushed a sturdy Irishman, who said : " I want you to tell this to my people
at home, I come from the County Armagh, and I was thatching my house last
year in the cold weather, and I felt it far less than I did the last time I thatched
my house in Armagh."

When agents of railway companies, and men interested in the South, try
to persuade settlers to go down to the South, and settle in some parts which are
notorious for their cyclones, snakes, and centipedes, or for ague and fever, it is
well to remember how healthy the conditions of life in the North are, and to
what a great age men usually live.

Where, as in the case of some English and many of the French, a number of
generations have lived on Canadian soil, we see the race more vigorous, if pos-
sible, than in the days of the first settlers. Cold the weather certainly is durino-
five or six months of the year, but the cold, except upon the sea-coasts, is dry.
The saying of the old Scotchwoman is literally true. She wrote home to her
people to say, " It was fine to see the bairns play in the snow without getting
their feet wet." It is only near the sea that the bairns can make snowballs,
until the spring thaws come to help them. Throughout the winter the snow
is dry and powdery. The Canadian seasons are very certain. It is sure to be
steadily cold in winter and steadily warm in summer, and throughout the
twelve months a bright sun gives cheerfulness to the scene.

There is a severe, but extremely healthy winter of less than six
months, and a summer with sunshine so ardent and so certain that almost any
fruit and crops are raised. Where old Voltaire said there was nothing but a
few acres of snow, you may see each summer along the verdant and populous
shores of the St. Lawrence in the little gardens of the yeomen proprietors fine
plants of the broad-leaved tobacco, and the Indian corn raising its yellow crown
above its sword-shaped leaves, while the sweet water-melon is abundant, and
grapes will ripen in the open air. In Ontario, near Niagara, peach orchards
cover the country, and wine is made from the vineyards. Strawberries,
raspberries, currants, and many small berries are native to the land. Some
of these grow on bushes. There is one in the west called the " high bush
cranberry," whose red clusters of fruit cling near the stalks of the shrub, which
has pretty silver-tinted green leaves. An excellent jelly is made from the fruit,
and we found the ladies of the garrison of an American fort in Montana great
proficients in making preserves from it. The size of the wild black-currant is
extraordinary. In the Ou'Appelle valley I have seen them as fine as in any
^ '■'••' ' At the school established for the half-blood French-

English kitchen-garden

y m

TiiK Fn:i. Sun'tv.

Canadians at th; t place, the fathers hud plantecTTi^months^ 1^7^^^;,,
some of these plants taken from the woods, and it would have been difficu to

but al hough the foxglove .s missing, there is the beautiful "golden rod " and
throughout the woods there are masses of calmia and other flowers the lictrin
espeaally makmg gay many a vista of the woodland. '

j^ry . . ruiiy j^'^'^^tri^^^s: n:i:^

i^ a v' t e. ion" f " n"'^ '^^"'^, ^'"^^''^ ^^'^"^' O"^-'^' -^ Q-^^--
• IbJndZ ^1 / """"["f "^ "^'" ^^^'■8^^'y ^'^'-"-^d of fo'-e^t, but having an

se' led o/ZvLftle"°t '^^ '"' "'''" ^^^^'^ '' ^^^^>' ^^^^ ^^'^^^ maf has
settled or may settle, hnormous stores of coal are being actively worked in

prrnfint;: : 'T ^^ "'"^- ""T ''' ''''' ^"^^ hourly increasi-^l^ldll 1
presen immense. You may see in the mines near Pictou galleries twentv feet

as t'': nZr f '''' '^^°" ^"""'' ^^°^^^^ •■" ^^- -'^ - "e

when th '•'' •' '°"'^'''"^^' ^^^^--^ "^^^'- ^--"^ -^y J-k of fuel. At first'

supply of fuel w^as thought to be more serious in those regions, for the timber

miciceTsthh? " ^-r'"T^'""'P^^^= and although there is a 7a
semicircle of such heavy woods to the north, the farther end of the arc comino-

h rough which the new railways had begun their progress. The lands nre of
"ooc r °''-'n r" "^^ ^''''■^'■>^ formation-that is of* a late age-and no very

been dSco" . ' "''"'^^"^- '^'^^^ "^^^ ^^^^ ^^ ''^'^^ ^ound, and these 1 ave
been discovered in greater quantity of late ; but the lignite, although very useful
fcH- household purposes, and giving fair heat when it is of good qualkj canno

4 knmrth T^^h T '' '^'''^''''' ^" ^"^' ^^"^-^ f"^'- I^'-^her westw^ard it
rin o^r h" ct. r::LTthr^" ^^^^^^^'^^^^ formation, gave p^ce to beds
In crossing- the nV k t '''^ "^^""^ ^"'-''^"1 cretaceous measures appeared.

thro Xhill er 1 T " f .^ f?"" ^'"^"^ ^'^^ •"°""^-"^' -"^ ^"^ ^heir way
I^^s he h ,, ;tffs"' '^-'^--f-al have been observed, and in some

AndnowL. ^^'fj^-'^ ^^^" to be streaked with dark bands of colour
And now it is proved that throughout a great area there are abundant indication^

Canakian I'k iruKs.

t.r llir prcsciuc of iM.al ; and, still better, tlu! coal which has lu^cn sc(mi croppin^r
out in various localities has l»een tried ami fomul to he excellent for all purposes.
The new province, recently christened Alberta, will be the " black country" of
the central continent. Anthracite; exists in thick seams. The railway entwines
alniady use nothini,^ but the coal of the district. l'"roni north to south for a
distance of fonr hundred niilis, ami alont; a tract at least two hundred miles in
wiilth, experts believe that coal in any (pianlity exists beneath the loni^^ undulatini,'
swell of the prairie. Hven if we had not found tliis exhaustless supply, the

;?rT^#^-.,

settler in the north-west would not have had lonj;
to wait, for tin; railway would have brought him
the coal o\' British (Columbia.

Away beyond the mountains and down the Pacific
C«ust we come upon a country whose climatic conditions
are totally tlifferi'nt, namely, a land called British Columbia- an immense
land of mountain, forest, ami Hood, the Alpine ranches soaring in some of
their peaks to the heioht of Mont Blanc— a land in the main .so deeply and
wonderfully forested that you may, on its sea coast, cut timber thirty and forty
inches sipiare of a uniform size for one hundred feet- a country where the
rivers rush impetuously throujj^h tremendous gorges to run in shorter navii^able
reaches into harbours which art; defended by a gigantic natural break-
water formed by the long n)cky island of X'ancouver. Here, on this island,
we have a climate like that oi' the south of England. Th(; shrubs which

CoMMUNMATION HKTWKKN CaNAI.A AVt. EncU.ANI.. 35

arc familiar to all in tl,<. ^.u-dcns ai.oui Lo.ulon. an.l many nunc which w.>uM
'- t,.o dd.cat,- to jrrow tlu-re, thrive in this favoured island. A ^n-eat deal of i
M-.nta.nous and practically unknown. To the north of it lie other great l.p
<>( .slands and more mountainous coast, and the climate is attain mild but th^
.•a.nndl ,s heavy. In the mainland interior of this Canadian SwLerland y. av
stranue var.at.ons of c in.atic condition within narrow areas ; you may have- a farm
.n a iK.aut.fuI r.ch valley, surrounded hy uugniHcent woods, a'nd hve'n.ile.s'^ff yo
"ay go ami pay a v.s.t to your friend who has another farm, ami find that his
P ace as such dryness that not only will it not support the heavy tind.er g^wth
v.th wh.cli you are fan„har on your own homestead, hut yo.u- fric:nd has even to
l.rmg w.uers to u-rigate his garden, which, with this provision, will produce even
more richly than your own. > i y.^ ^y^u

A word before passing to the general features of the comitry as to
e m g-afon. h.vcellent steamers ply between Liverpool and Halifax in winter,
and between Liverpool and Quebec and Montreal in summer. The winte.'

Ivrf!!, it' I T "'^'^V" ^^",:'^'>-«-^'^^ ^"'"'"-'- P^i^^^age is usually perfbr.ned
from land to and m s.x days. No one doubts that very many in our large towns
can bene ,t themselves by nioving. Very n)any in 'the country can do so also
although for my part, and speaking more in the interests of England than of
Lanada. I would rathe.- see departures from the towns than from the country for
there are but few country districts whose population is too dense. In any case
what we desire is that the advantages of Canada should be known, so as to
mducc men to weigh them as compared with the United States. I. from personal
knowledge, believe that Canada can more than hold her own in the comparison
ill Climate she has in her various provinces vast areas as agreeable to men of
our northern races as any the United .Stat<=s can offer. Her .^oils are as rich her
goveinment is more tree, and the opportunities presented, not only for makimr a
comfortable living, but for the attainment of comparative wealth, are as good
oudden fortunes are. it is true, not so often made, but, on the other hand, there
„'l 7 T- r^'^^'^y- ^ '^^-'■^' '■'^ '-1" equality of fortune, taking the people as a
vvhole, which can hardly be matched elsewhere. Opportunities for the killing
oi game are usually better than in the United States.

All emigrants should go out in the spring. Now, taking first the
<nciucements ottered to emigrants who desire to procure manual labour. The
cost ot a passage is only ^3, and it costs ^3 more to reach Winnipeg. Any one
Knowing the trade of a blacksmith, a mason, a bricklayer, or willing'to work as a
nired man on a farm, has the best chance of employment. Young men who wish
to lead a town life had best stay at home. The town life as compared with country
uegiveslewer opportunities, for the cities are. relatively to the population, small.
ine rural population is about 4.500,000 against about 500,000 represented by the
ovN ns. 1 would therefore, on all accounts, advise young men to look to country life,
t tliey go and have no experience of agriculture they should hire themselves out
or a > ear. 1 he position of such a man is by no means unpleasant. He shares

' •!«

ill !

^'1

.^6

Canadian Picturks

the life of the farmer, and is treated as one of tlie family. I'or farmers there is
the powerful attraction of homesteads of all si?es. l' have known very many
men who have succeeded well, and who have bej^nin with nothinji,', or next to
nothin,L,r. Hut I should counsel all who contemplate emitfration, and the takin«r
up of farm life, to have, if sinj^de men, from /50 to / 100, exclusive of the cost of
the journey, and if married from £150 or ^250 to /500. There are good
vacant places to be had almost anywhere. In the north-west you can get 160
acres of excellent land for /2. The land regulations under which these grants
are made are to the full as favourable as those of the United States, and in some
respects are to be preft;rred. For the north-west people of good physical ability
only should be sent. If a couple go, man and wife should both be able to work

An Indian Camp on the Plains.

(Frj/ii a photograph in tht poisl$sioH of the Marquis of Lome )

and have ^60 to ^75, exclusive
of cost of journey, at the least,
if they have no knowledge of
farming. If they have children,
they should be provided with

£12 more per head. If the children, are able to work, ^6 extra per head

might suffice.

Fine ladies and fine gentlemen will find themselves altogether out of the
race. At the same tune, there is abundant scope for gentlemen's sons having
modest fortunes, say from /200 to ^500 a year, for these men will have
opportunities of making their living and of procuring sport which they cannot
realise at home. It is most remarkable that of such men and of such women as
those I have mentioned, one almost always hears that they have liked their new
life. Por one letter containing the complaints of a grumbler I have seen six
dozen speaking of the fullest contentment ; indeed, so curiously rare has any
complaint been that I have taken some pains to investigate a few cases of alleged
failure ; and I am sorry to say that in the case of several of these I have come

Emkjkation.

upon indubitable cvitk;nc(; to show that th(;y wero trunip^x! up by intL-rcstcd
IKirtics. and were not fiom tuk at all. Hut let this Ix; clearly understood that
what Canada ofA^rs is not an I-l Dorado, such as that wliich inspired the dreams
of the Spanish followers of Cortez and IMzarro, who went to the South American
shores expectin.tr tribes of docile Indians to meet them brin-ing- heaps of ^M
and silver utensils and curious works of art, and whose dreams were in many

ive come

On the lIuMATIlCcl KlVKK, liRlTlSH CoI.lMIIIA.

(Itvm a /'lioh'gtvph in lh( pMsess!,m of tlu M.uyiih ,>/ l.mic)

cases wonderfully near the truth. It is not such an E' T)on>lo that Canada
otters. I ler offer is this : a comfortable home on his o oil to any man who
has a .t,rood pair of hands and a decent knowledge how to use them ; if he have
something ot his own to start with, so much the better will it be for him.

I'or women there is plenty of space and places; but the women who Mill
succeed must be women who will work. They who wish to go out as teach.-rs

:1.

3«

Canadian Pictures.

governesses. &c., had best stay at home. The Ladies' Committee of the
VVomen s Emigration Society of Montreal told me lately that they could at once
place i.ooo girls of goo-^ character, if sent out to them, and that the demand for
hem was so great that they would be sorry to see them go past Montreal on
to Ontario. But the ladies at Toronto are equally solicitous to procure good
servant girls, who are excellently well treated in Canadian families. Even
his excellent treatment is not sufficient to prevent them from marryin^., strange
to say and the demand for wives fully keeps pace with the demand of house-
wives for servants. Indeed, the number of girls who keep to the first resolution
they may have formed to get as far as Winnipeg is small indeed, for if they loiter
by the way they take up situations in the cities along the road to the west I
have often tried to keep a household together when obliged to take them on
distant journeys; but it is surprising to see how the female members of it are
now scattered in happy homesteads stretching between New York and Victoria
British Columbia, a distance of 4,000 miles. In short, this imported European
article is so popular that no government has dared to fix any tariff rate upon
it, but the local authorities have been obliged to help in getting it by sivinp-
" assisted passages " to women as well as men.

If girls are sent, they should always be under some person's auidance or
have some lady to whom they may apply. Societies and clergymen can easilv
correspond with Women's Emigration Societies at Montreal and elsewhere and
only send the number required. The clergy may be relied on to report wisely
and kindly as to the chances for working'women, and the Canadian report can
be acted on by the clergy at home, who can raise funds to help deservina women
Ihe cost of reaching settlements where there are no railways is unfortunatelv
great, but if ^8 can be given to take women on from Winnipeg to places like
Frince Albert they are certain to be welcome there.

i,,^

tee of the
mid at once
demand for
lontreal on
ocure good
es. Even
ng-, strange
1 of house-
: resolution
they loiter
le west. I
:e them on
s of it are
d Victoria,
European
rate upon
by giving

lidance, or
can easily
/here, and
lort wisely
report can
g women,
artunately
ilaces like

THE MARITIME PROVINCES.

i^M

%^H

Cai'E Hlomiuo.n.

CHAPTER IV.

The Maritime Provinces.

The IJay ok Fundy— Annapolis— Louisburg— Shipbuilding in Nova Scotia— New Bkunswick— The
Cascapedia— Prince Edward's Island— The Fisheries— Newfoundland.

A WELL-KNOWN book, entitled Sam Slick, tells the story of a shrewd
and enterprising clockmaker who goes about Nova Scotia selling his
wares and turning a penny to his own advantage, but not always to that of his
customers in the old province by the sea. In comparison with the push and
go-aheadism of New England, he finds the provincial people but slow-coaches,
and declares they are always talking of doing a thing, and never doing it.
Since his day the character of the country and of the country people has con-
siderably altered, and the railway locomotive may be seen ringing its bell and
steaming through woodland villages and over fertile meadows and past rough
forests, where even Sam Slick himself would not have thought it would be
worth while to push a track.

Before touching upon the newer regions of Canada, it is needful to refer to
the country first seen after making a voyage to Canada ; and to show how,
without going far from England, and while keeping within the reach of the daily
post, of the telegraph line, and of the bi-weekly or tri-weckly communication

Canadian Pictures.

% i

with England, and at a distance of only ten days' journey from London, fair lands
with fair opportunities for settlement can be found. Let us, then, take one or two
scenes in each of the old provinces which are so easily reached. As John
Bull, when he becomes a tourist, is always fond of getting up to the top of
a hill to look around him, let me take you to the top of a steep isolated cliff at
the end of a long ridge of volcanic rock which is covered with pine woods, and
which overlooks a gulf of the sea on one side, and a fair, wide, and green valley,
twenty miles in width, upon the other. If you wait until the tide ebbs, you will
see that it leaves a vast stretch of red sand, for the tide goes back very far. It
will come back again over tho>e sands with a rush which sends the water up
as fast as a horse can gallop, until it surges against a lon'>- line of earth entrench-
ments like the Dutch dykes, which prevents its further advance. If you look
carefully upon the country mapped out beneath your feet, you may see certain
other ridges which look like old earth walls. They are some distance inland
now, and but just visible amongst villages, orchards, and country studded with
white comfortable-looking wooden farmhouses having verandahs and gardens
around, and you would be right in supposing that these old walls are ancient
dykes. Formerly the mighty tide of the Bay of Fundy, now restrained by the
outer walls, swept up to them. The inland dykes were made in old days— days
which have been rendered familiar to many by th^ genius of Longfellow, who
wrote the story of a time when the happiness of the old French Ackdian
dwellers in this valley had come to an end, and the war which had racred
between England and France had touched them too, and had compelled th^em
to leave to others the well-loved Grand Pr(^, or Great Meadow, which they
had tilled in security for some generations.

" In the Acadian land, on the shores of the Basin of Minas,
Distant, secluded, still, the little village of Grand-Prd
Lay in the fruitful valley. Vast meadows stretched to the eastward.
Giving the village its name, and pasture to flocks without number.
Dykes that the hands of the farmers had raised with labour incessant.
Shut out the turbulent tides ; but at stated seasons the flood-gates
Opened, and welcomed the sea to wander at will o'er the meadows.
West and south were fields of flax, and orchards and cornfields
Spreading afar and unfenced o'er the plain ; and away to the northward
Blomidon rose, and the forests old, and aloft in the mountains
Sea fogs pitched their tents, and mists from the mighty Atlantic
Looked on the happy valley, but ne'er from their station descended."

Longfellow's Evangeline.

This valley is only two or three hours distant by rail from Halifax, one of
the winter ports of the Dominion of Canada, a port to which steam vessels from
the Mersey sail every week. Its white farmhouses and its orchards are types of
many others to be found in various portions of the province of Nova Scotia
which is a province singularly rich in varied geological formations, and havincr,'

Halifax.

with a httle gold, what ,s far more valuable than any gold-field, great fields of
coal If wages were only as low in Nova Scotia as they are in England and
Scotland, one of her ports-the port of Pictou-would soon rival Glasgow or Belfast
ZhTn '' \^T "■°" shipbuilding port. Near it are mines almost as vast as
those of Lanarkshire. Close to the water are these great veins of coal of twenty
or thirty feet m th.ckness, and the galleries of the mine are so spacious that full-
grown horses are used, while the miner swings his pick, not crouched or cramped

in a bending attitude, but standing at his

full height. Close to the sea also, and close

to the coal-mines, are hills full of excellent

iron ore. Around almost every town in

Nova Scotia farms may be had where the

head of the family may be sure to have

excellent schooling for his children, a church

service exactly like his own at home to attend, and a ready market for any

produce he may raise.

The rich red soil is as deep and good at the head of the Bay of Fundy
where a comparatively narrow strip of land separates its waters from those of
Northumberiand Straits, as the Sound is called which separates the mainland and
I nnce Edward's Island. Very many of the apples which come to the English market,
and are sold as American apples, come from Canada. How delicious is this fruit, in
the hot autumn days, and the appearance of the great orchards, when spring spreads

G 2

Canadian Picturks.

1)1

ill

; I

a cloud of blossom over the luxuriant ^rass chequered with pleasant shade ! The
inland countries are rich in apple crops also, but there is no better tract thap the
Vale of Annapolis, stretchinjr from Windsor south-eastward behind the sheltering
hills which hide it from the northern winds. The little town called after Queen
Anne, which gives its name to the valley, and is situated at its end at the head
of a beautiful land-locked bay, has interesting associations with the past. It at
one time had the dignity of being the capital town of Nova Scotia, and our
governors used to reside there, troops occupied a carefully built fort, now in ruin,
and the British squadrons rode on the bay. It is now shorn of its glory. It
seemed to me to possess some wonderfully well-preserved old ladies, as well as
many pretty young ones. Among the things told me by one of the former, were
recollections of the days when she used to dance with the Duke of Kent, and
when she remembered seeing a negro slave-woman bound to one of the trees
near the court-house to receive a whipping ! The school where a promising lad
used to receive his lessons and an occasional birching was pointed out, for the
boy became Sir Fenwick Williams, the brave defender of Kars in Asia Minor
against the forces of the Russian General Mouravieff, in the war of 1854. But
Annapolis can tell, although not through the mouth of her living citizens, of
other warriors.

Above the present town, on the slope of the hills to the south, are the

remains of an old earthwork. It is all that remains of a French fort, and

from the grass-covered rampart was dug not long ago, one of the most beautifully

shaped and wrought arrow-heads ever carved by man. It was cut from a

perfectly pure piece of transparent quartz, and was finished like a gem. Point

and sh.u-i) barbs and short shaft were all as perfect as on the day when it

left the old Indian artist's hand, and was fixed to the feathered wood to be shot

from a bow against the earliest white settlers. It must have missed the armour

of the soldier against whom it was aimed, and have pierced only the turf, and

there remained hidden until brought to light by the English fanner. Against

whom was it thrown ? Probably against the palisades ^and ramparts erected

by De Poitrincourt, Seigneur under the lilies of France of the Valley of Port

Royal about the year 16 10. Delighted with the fair harbour and pleasant

neighbourhood, a military colony was here established; but the natives for

several years were unable to brook the presence of the strangers, and skirmishes

were freciueiu. As with the Spaniards in the south, the first care of the

Catholic adventurers was to beat the Indians, and then to persuade them to

adopt the true faith. To the ceremony of the surrender of the Indians

succeeded the ceremony of their admission within the pale of the Church.

The savages remained on the side of the Frencli in the wars afterwards fought

with the British, who in the time of Queen Anne conquered Port Royal and

changed its name in honour of their Queen. This is the story which is repeated

with varying incidents through all the long-drawn coasts of old Acadia. We

see first the forest village of the Red Indians, with its stockades and patches

LOUISBUKG.

ot maize around it ; then the landing from the ships under the white flag sown
with golden hlie., of armoured arquebussiers and spearmen ; the skirmishing
and the successful French settlement, to be followed by the coming of other
ships, with the red cross floating over the high-built sterns, and then the final
conflict, and the victory of the British arms.

Leaving the richer parts of Nova Scotia's territory, let us look at a
spot on the eastern shore of its great island. Cape Breton. This is Louisburg
of old a fortress called after the French king, and defended by some of the best
regiments of France. The shores are low and rocky, and the growth of wood
in the neighbourhood does not show much fertility of soil. A few fishermen's
houses at the head of a semicircular bay, guarded by low ridges of rock which
just peep above the sea, alone show that men now care to live there. But
there is a regularly shaped embankment at one place to the left as our vessel
casts anchor, and on landing we find ourselves in the centre of a space yet
hemmed in by the remains of a great rampart and ditch. Ruins of strong case-
mates, shattered vaulted buildings, and the traces of the foundations of
many structures are before us. These are all that remain of the key of New
France. Some of our party went by rail to examine the fine coal-mines near
Sydney, some miles away, and others took to digging for relics of old fights.
A plentiful harvest of these was soon secured, and a curious collection it was!
ihere was a copper coin of Louis XIII. and soldiers' buttons and buckles.
There was a portion of an exploded hand-grenade, the remnant of an old
sword, the brass-work of which around the hilt was unimpaired, although green
with age ; there was even the breech piece of a small cannon, and the barrel
of a musket. Had these lain buried ever since the day that saw the arrival of
General Wolfe and the fleet bringing him to conquer in the enterprise which
assured to him the command in the weightier operations undertaken subse-
quently against Quebec ? We tried to realise amid the present loneliness and
peaceful desolation the animated scene of the attack. We fancied the ramparts
around us again square and trim with their masonry and earthworks. We watched
the cannoneers and infantry massed in rear of the fortifications and alert behind
the parapets and traverses. Again the British fleet, with high sterns and
crowded sail, and accompanied by an armada of small craft, came gallantly into
the bay. Then from the cloud of smoke vomited from the French lines and
the towering sides of the ships flew the hail of rushing round-shot. But the
water between the shore and the fleet is now alive with boats, and the patter of
musketry is succeeded by a roar and rattle of guns which drown all other sounds.
No one can hear his comrade's voice. The rain of fire has sunk several boats,
and the surf on the beach will surely prevent a landing. But, no ! a slight
figure stands up in the leading barge and waves his cocked hat. His com-
panions in crowds leap into the white foam and, landing, form under the little
cover afibrded by the first ridge of soil above the sands. More and more suc-
ceed in effecting a lodgment. The French have lost their opportunity, and on

Canadian Pictukes.

the blood-stained beach the Enghsh are firmly established. The fall of the town
is only a question of days ; and the surrender of Louisburg gives over all but
the St. Lawrence to the Anglo-Saxon rule. It was not long before the place
was found inferior to Halifax, where a harbour which is never closed by ice has
since become a flourishing town.

A fine old frigate, the Grafton, lost her rudder in a storm off Louisburg in 1 758,
and we see in the engraving how she was fitted with a temporary steering gear.
Disabled as she was, she safely reached the English coast by the aid of this last
contrivance, it was in such ships that Wolfe's army was conveyed to America,
the larger vessels being furnished on their poops with great lanterns, to show the
fleet their position.

The "Grafton" with Tkmpukaky Rluuek.

{From an ohl f>rint in the /osstwsion of the Mattjm's of Lonw.)

Ni:

The present capital of Nova Scotia has been retained as a station for
imperial troops. A regiment of the line, with some artillery and engineers,
are there at present, and the forts commanding the entrance from the sea are
mounted with heavy guns, well protected. From the presence of the fleet in
summer, and the residence of many ofificers, the society in the city is very
pleasant, and nowhere are the winter sports of toboganning and skating
carried on with greater zest. Other sports are followed with a suc-
cess obtained with difficulty elsewhere, for within a day's walk of railways
there is good chance of getting a shot at moose. This immense deer, ugly
in form, but furnished with fine broad palmated horns, often five feet six inches
in their lateral spread, was rapidly becoming extinct in the province, but a law

Shipbuilding in Nova Scotia. a-j

prescribing a close time has led to their increase. Of the^n^alitieT^
members established the first settlements, there are communities around Lunen-
burg largely German m their composition ; and on the north shore, between
Weymouth and Yarmouth, a colony of Acadians keep very much of their early
manners and customs. The Highlanders, who are numerous in many places'
and especially near the Straits of Canso and in the Island of Cape Breton, retain
the Gaehc language m great purity. Sometimes an Acadian is to be found with
a German w.fe, both using a queer English dialect, as might be expected, and
one case is mentioned in which a man speaking only Italian was married to a
woman who spoke only Gaelic !

Among natural curiosities the
locality known as The Joggins is
the best worth visiting, as showing
in great perfection sections of the
coal-measures, where great trees
have been perfectly preserved, and
may be examined along with the
beautiful ferns and other plants
which flourished in the hot marshes
of the days when as yet the North-
ern Continent had a climate warmer
than that of Central America.

Land is not dear in Nova
Scotia, and a good farm may be had
for /200 or /300, while tenancies
can be had cheaply, the occupier
having only to pay from two to
five dollars per acre for the land.

The industry of shipbuilding
still occupies many skilful hands ;
but it is likely to employ fewer

as iron ships come mol-e and more into use. There is yet a vast number
of vessels sent out, so that the Dominion stands fourth among nations
in the possession of tonnage. Every few miles along the coast may be seen
vesses m all stages of progress, and of all sizes, from the small yawl to
the clipper of fifteen and sixteen hundred tons. The wi.vrfs at St John
Wew Liverpool, Lunenburg, and Yarmouth are crowded with home-made
cratt, smart, and stoutly built. You may even see large boats building in the
back gardens of men whose ancestors came from Devon or other English
seataring counties, and whose workmanship will now stand the test of the
rudest gale.

Let me now take the reader across the gulf into whose rushing tides we
looked from the heights of Blomidon to its northern shore, and on inland, past

The Moose.

Canadian Pictures.

the ridges which shelter it from the sea, to a great valley, called the Vale of
Sussex, in the province of New Brunswick. Beautiful trees are scatter-J in
groups, such as those you see in an English park, over meadows and cornfields
bright and golden under the unfailing August sun. Here too you have beauti-
fully situated lands for sale, because the young man who owned them has taken
a fancy for wilder life and still larger returns on the North-Western prairie ; and
yet you wonder he couLl leave a place so enticing by its beauty, and so certain
to give the comforts and requisites of domestic family life and of a civilised
community; and as you go on down this valley to the south, and arrive at another
great harbour which is never sealed in winter, and which is surrounded by the
buildings of the flourishing and enterprising town of St. John, you marvel yet
more at the restlessness of mankind, so conspicuously shown by your own race,
which seems never to be content unless it is browsing like a horse against the
wind, and \i\\ go on moving westward until it knocks its head agairst the Rocky
Mountains ; and even then is not content, but wanders farther westward yet, until
it comes to the distant Pacific shore, and there, finding often thai it cannot go
farther westward without becoming sea-sick, returns by the nearest train again
eastward. But there are fortunately many left who have not been invaded by
the restless spirit, and who prefer their ease in older settlements, and are content
with being the heirs of the labour of generations who have gone before them.
Of such, perhaps, the reader may be one, whom I would ask to accompany me
for a moment up the river which flows up the harbour of St. John, as far as
the town of Frederickton. This is a delightful little city, ornamented with
magnificent willow-trees in its principal streets, and having a beautiful, broad,
and clear-watered river running past its comfortable and cleanly houses. The
settlers round about have e.xcellent lands and are mostly of British descent ; but
farther up stream you may see a most flourishing community of Danes, who,
finding all they want he^re, have, like sensible people, recently settled down, and
have written to many of their friends and kinsfolk to come out to them and do
as they have done.

Frederickton is ninety miles from the sea. Above the capital steamers
may navigate the stream for about sevenCy miles further. The great cataract
of the Grand Falls, where the river plunges down in " clouds of snow-white
foam " a distance of eighty feet, is well worth seeing, but the distance is some-
what great, as one has to travel 225 miles from the river's mouth to see its floods
take their headlong leap among the upper forests. By canoe it is possible to
cross from "^^he parent sources of the St. John River to those of the streams
which flow into the Bay of Chaleur, at the other extremity of New Brunswick,
with a comparatively short portage. The pleasure of such an expedition in fine
spring or autumn weather is very great. When the waters become too strong
for the canoe to be " poled up," or dangerous in their descent, the voyager lands
and makes a " portage," that is, the canoe is hauled out, and, placed on an Indian's
back, is borne at a trot through the shaded parts of the wood to the next piece

The Forests of New Brunswick.

of water where .t can agam be safely launched. The camp fire at night throws
out mto rehef the straight stents of the fir trees, and the showers ^of spark
which start Irom the red logs whenever fresh fuel is added, rise to fade away
overhead among the thick branches, through which the stars look down on the
mystenous gloom of the forest, which hems in the little circle of life and lieht
around the camp fire. The silence of these woods is remarkable. In sharp fros
you hear the trees rrack, as though pistol shots had been fired, but at all other

TfTerdure." ""'^ '"'^'"' ^'""'"'''^ '''' '"'' ''"'"^ '^'"^ '" '^'' g*-^^" ''^'^^
The feeling of such solitude is oppressive, and one is glad to sleep near the
mus.c of runn.ng water. In travelling far. it is well to take plenty of food, for
there is none to be obtamed from any botanical studies of moss, roots, or grass
Berries may be found, but they will not sustain life. Professor Logan, in making
such a journey was nearly starved to death, and had it not been for the good luck
of shootmg a fisher or otter, might have left his bones in the woods. Where
there ,s good soil the hard-wood trees, such as maple, elm, ash, and birch, abound,
and marvellously beautiful is the autumn colouring of many of them. The maole
especially flaunts her boughs in the most vivid green," crimson, gold, and scarlet.
So intense are the colours that if attempted to be rendered by painting, the
picture ooks unnatural. Sometimes the trees seem literally on fire ; but often
you will see one part of the foliage of a tree still wearing its summer tint, while
the leaves borne by other branches are blazing with saffron and vermilion. The
oaks are not so often met with, but when they occur they wear a claret-coloured
autumn dress, while the birch and poplar and elm prefer a light yellow. The
effect of this colouring is wonderfi.l. especially when repeated in the still waters
of a lake, and seen from your canoe, as your men, noiselessly dipping their
paddles, keep you gliding over a surface which is dyed in all the hues of these

was more or less known to

gorgeous groves. All the New Brunswick coast ... u.u.. u. ,ess Known to
Uiamplain, who gives a description, accompanied with maps, cf many of the
harbours. He was particularly impressed with the advantages of St. John, and
of he islands which he a ong the shore of the Bay of Fundy. One of these, now
called Campobello, is a charming retreat from the heat of the interior. There is
an excellent hotel, and there are pleasant roads along its shores, which are well
sheltered by woods. Situated near the mainland railways, it is easily reached,
and IS becoming a very favourite place for the enjoyment of bathing and summer
amusements. With the exception of Dalhousie and Carlton, on the Bay of
Lhaleur, it is one of the most accessible and pleasantly-situated places for a
seaside sojourn.

Some of the readers of this book who are interested in geology, and who
may have read Hugh Miller's works on the old red sandstone of Scodind, shodd
visit, near Campbeltown, the quarries where splendid specimens of fish have
been taken from the Devonian measures in that neighbourhood. These fish
belong to the great family which were provided with armour, somewhat in the

Canadian I'icturks.

nianniT of the nioilern sturgeon, and in these New Urunswick beds each plate
and joint of their curious structure has been perfectly preserved.

New Brunswick's fair lands are by no means confined to the St. John's
and Sussex valleys, but belt the whole province along its seaward face wherever
the forest has been cleared, or the rivers, tilled with salmon and sea-trout, run

A ViF.w ON Till-; Hay <i|' Kr.Niiv.

into the narrow seas facing the fertile island of Prince Edward, or northward
into the bay whose summer warmth made the first French discoverers call it the
Heated Gulf. It is often supposed that the winter of these maritime provinces
makes it impossible for the farmer to do much during the cold season— that during

Nkw Bkunswick,

ch plate

:. John's
'hi'ievcr
out, run

thward
1 it the
ivinces
during

thnt tinu; he is si

liut in by the frost and tht

deal

snow

JUt Wll

snow. A gr
i the more certain it is that the

K„ If ...,♦•! • A I .. ■"' ""■■ "'" '^*' '^^■P' warm and well manured

by .t unt 1 m Apnl or May it suddenly disappears, and the wondrously nu ck
growth of verdure an.l of flowers takes its place! There is by no mer no ^
to be done m the wmter time. The animals have to be Iook,.l after and Td ht
wood has to be cut and hauled in sledges over the snow ; there iT plentV to

Zforr; I' ir'Tn '^^'" '^ ^ '''''%'-^'' "^ ^^^" ^- friendly \:isits tf g^

ur . or for the healthy amusements of that time of the year, the farmer who

has <lunng the summer to work from the early niorning until the evening is bv

no means sorry for the variety afforded by a little leisure ^' ^

v.sit of b,g, pale-faced strangers in ages long past. The story tells that these
ame and drove away the sons of the forest, and built for themselves houses of
one on the shore ; that they drank from horn cup.s. shouting as they drank "nd
..ally that by the results of an eartlK|uake. which changed The course of th'e S
uhn nver they were overwhelmed by its flood and perished. This may be a
trad.t.on of the first landing on the American continent of the ScandinavL!
warriors, of whom we have traces in some rock carvings in New England, and
whose voyages arc mentioned in the northern sagas

There is a terrible memory of a catastrophe of our own days among the
people on the banks of the Miramichi. Before the trees were so much cleared
away as they now are, the villagers had often seen fires in the woods, but little
thought of the d-saster which a dry season and the summer winds wer; to bring
upon them. One n.ght a cry arose that a great conflagration was coming down
upon them. The whole sky was red with the glare from the rushing flames
vvlHch caught the fir branchc^s and leaped on with incredible rapidity'towards
the 1. tie town by the nver. F .ercer and hotter grew the blast, and men. women
and c uldren. crowdmg from the houses, knew they could not save their proper y.'
and thought only of preservmg their lives. As the blaze encroached yet more
upon them, they waded mto the river, the waters of which had in their upper
course become so warm that the fish died in numbers. But even the stream
proved no refuge for the despairing people, for the dense volumes of pungent
smoke descended on them, and lay along the water, and suffocated hundreds.
A more awful v.s.tat.on can hardly be conceived ; but it was repeated a few years

Tes'b fx^enf"' *"'"''"'' "'"'" ^"""'^ ""^^''^'''^^ in clearings severll

The Atlantic shore is flat, but inland there are tracts of most picturesque
country, where the clear streams run among hills clothed in charming natural
vanety. with birch, poplar, fir. pine, and maple. One of the best salmon rivers
jn the wor d ,s that named the Restigouche, which forms for part of its course the
boundary hnc between this province and that of Quebec. In one pool three
canoes can sometmies be seen in June. July, and August, fishing with success

H 2

Canaihan Pictures.

for the immensti salmon which come up from the Hay of Chaleurs. The average
fish are from twenty to thirty pounds in weight, but forty to forty-five pound fish
are not uncommon. The Cascapedia, on the upper shore of the Bay of Chaleurs,
is perhaps the best salmon stream in the uorkl. It runs through a sylvan

Cascapedia CdiTAci:.

{From a Sketch by tlw May<inis <>/ Lorne.)

paradise, and it is not wonderful that for the season of 1.SS4 the fishing belong-
ing to the Government has alone been let for i,2CX)/. The house shown in the
engraving is one I put up at a spot ten miles from the sea, and close to the head-
quarters of President Arthur, who in past seasons used to come every year to
this river.

A Nkw Brunswick Salmon Stream.

The only drawback to the pleasure of Canadian sport in summer consists
in the number of flies. There is a minute sand-fly which appears to enjoy its
sport in feeding on man and other animals for an hour or two each sunrise and
sunset, and makes the skin of the afflicted feel as though it were burning.
There is the black fly, which has the sense to go to sleep at night, but which is
very lively during the day. It is somewhat smaller than the common English
house-fly, and enjoys its repast by taking a tiny bite of a wedge shape out of
the flesh, and draws blood. Then there is the sleepless and scientific mosquito,
with its odious pinging flight, and quiet settling on the part chosen by it for the
insertion of its sucking proboscis and the pushing home of this implement of
torture. Lastly, there is a formidable apparition, called the moose-fly, which one
of our friends declared seemed to him so big that when one came into the
canoe at one end he felt he must get out at the other, as there could not be
room for both. The moose-fly too has great power of satisfying his appetite ; but
in the case of all these pests, habit does a great deal to reconcile the fisherman to
his lot, and with veils and tar-ointment he may defy the insect persecution. But it
is worth while to experience some inconvenience, if accompanied by such enjoyment
as that which can be gained by living for a time in summer among these beautiful
wildernesses. What greater pleasure can man have than to recline in his
canoe while his sturdy Indians propel the light little craft up the stream ?

The clear current allows every stone under its gliding surface to be
distinctly seen. Often it is too strong to allow any but the slowest progress to
be made against it, but by taking advantage of the side eddies, and then deftly
fronting the impetuous rush over gravel bank or rock ledge, the traveller is
brought past the difficulty, and another quiet reach opens before him. And
now he has time to look around him and to watch a couple of eagles, which have
been soaring in circles high in the blue heaven, descend to perch on the withered
top of a tall fir. Soon one swoops down to the shallows and darts at something
in the water. There is a splash, a violent flapping of wings, and a desperate
struggle, which ends in the great white-headed bird dragging to land a fine
salmon. As the canoe swings along under the bank the grey kingfishers forsake
the hanging thuya boughs on which they have kept their watch, and wiih a
chattering cry pass over to the other side. You can hear the big owls lamenting
from the thickets, and from the same quarter comes the loud drumming sound
from the grouse as he stands flapping his wings, making music with them for his
mate as she sits on her nest. The heron, with his great eye of crimson, and
handsome plumes of white and black, is a more constant fisher than any
furnished with rod, reel and artificial flies, and his leaden wings carry him with
slow flapping away in front of you. There are mosquito hawks wheeling with
pointed wings in sharp twists and curves, ai/d our wishes go with them that
they may caich plenty of the common enemy. But there are many smaller
birds of much beauty, the lovely vireos, warblers and fly-catchers, and the
crimson finch and his smaller cousin, the indigo bird, decked out in Prussian

li I
liji

1 1-

Canadian Pictures.

blue, and, if the eye be looking for them, the ruby- throated humming-bird may
be detected perched on some branch end and seen against the sky.

On one of the few bare spots on the hill-side where grass and copse are visible
there are some dark specks moving, and these are bears, who are impertinent
and hungry enough occasionally to come down to the camp kitchen. They are
often caught in an ingenious trap. Within an inclosure to which there is but
one entrance, a bait of honey is fixed to a piece of wood, which, when pulled
brings down on the head or
neck of the bear a heavy cross-
bar weighted by thick logs, thus
either killing or capturing him.
But there is another kind of
" large game " more easily
secured, namely, the cariboo
or reindeer. These may be

A Salmon Kivkr, New liRi'Nswicn

seen singly or in pairs during the hot weather drinking at the river-side,
their palmated horns curving prettily forward, and their coat, dark-brown at this
season, showing against the background of ferns and mosses on the bank. They
have indeed here a sylvan paradise ; and if there are disagreeable insects, are
there not also others of rare beauty ? The yellow butterfly, with black markings,
known in England as the " swallow-tail," may be seen in great numbers, groups of
from ten to one hundred being often clustered together on some rnck where they

Canadian Flowers.

have found food. The Camberwell beauty and other kinds are common. Nor
are flowers wanting in the rich grasses under the whitewood and mountain ashes.

.'here
the
spring may be seen
the lovely trillium,
with its triple-leaved
blossom spangling with
white stars the moist
and shady ground. Later in the
year great yellow marigolds rise at
the water's edge, and further up among
the tangled jungle of the steep bank
the white and crimson lady's
■^ \ ^ slipper may be seen, with

A| ^^J anemones and the ivory-like

(,\j flowerets of the Indian tea or

partridge berry. Alas ! most of the
Canadian flowers are scentless, and,
beautiful as they are, they cannot com-
pare with the wealth of England's spring
in violet, primrose, foxglove, and hyacinth.
It is now time to take a look at the is-
land, famous for its horses and its oats,
which lies at the other side of the narrow
sea called the Straits of Northumberland,
an island named after the Queen's father,
Edward, Duke of Kent^ A summer
voyage thither is a pleasant experience ;
but an expedition across that same strip
^ ^^ , , of sea in the winter time can hardly be

recommended as an amusement. The tides are strong, and the northern current
bnng. the ice down m thick masses. The ice blocks float along, often piling up

Canadian 1 i.owkrs.

}

Si!

11:':'
1 k

If';'

Canadian Pictures.

against each other, jamming and crunching in white hummocks which remind one
of pictures in the Arctic voyages of Franklin, Parry, and McClure. A fine steamer,
sheathed with iron, was built some years ago, and this vessel makes the passage
tediously, but generally with success, so that it is no longer necessary to trust to
the disagreeable and uncertain mode of transit used in former days, when an open
boat was hauled over an ice raft to be launched in the next clear lead of water,
and then again tugged out, to be again launched, until the perilous passage had
been accomplished. There are now over 110,000 people on the island, and no
pleasanter place can be desired for a summer stay. It is considered certain that
improved means of communication will be devised for this winter passage ;
and as at one point there are only nine miles of water to be traversed, it will
be surprising if this is not secured, for the ice never forms a bridge across, but
is swept backwards and forwards by the strong tides.

In summer the fresh breezes from the ocean insure coolness, and the long
stretches of white sands give excellent places for bathing. A railway runs the
whole length of the land, which is excellently cultivated, and many a hard-worked
professional man forgets his toil and renews his energy among the swelling fields
and picturesque coves near Summerside, or on the breeze-swept dunes of Rustico.
In the bays and little river estuaries, the inhabitants have found a mine of
wealth in the so-called mussel mud. This is a deposit varying from five to
twenty feet in depth, formed by decayed oyster, clam and mussel shells. Rich
in the remains of these shell-fish, this mud has proved a most admirable manure,
and it is regularly dug out and carted on to the fields, whose crops and pasture
show how well the care bestowed on them has paid the farmer. Charlotte Town,
the capital of the little province, has fine wide streets, as yet insufficiently
planted with trees, and a pleasant neighbourhood. There is a good deal of
trade with the United States and Newfoundland, as well as with the opposite
side of the Straits. The fisheries are well served by all our maritime popula-
tion, who take naturally to the salt water. The chief catch is of mackerel and
cod. The amount of these annually taken is enormous. Perhaps the best,
fitted vessels for this fishery are the schooners which come from Gloucester in
Massachusetts ; and it is to be desired that our people would imitate more the
co-operation which makes the use of such fine boats profitable. The cod are
dried and pressed and sent to South America and to the southern lands of
Europe, where the consumption of them among the Roman Catholic population
is very large.

The mackerel is somewhat uncertain in its habits, frequenting certain parts
of the sea in countless shoals i • many years, and then often disappearing for a
time, to re-appear again as betore. In this it resembles the herring, which
swarmed on some banks off Sweden, making towns which sent out its people
for them prosperous. Suddenly, the herring vanished, and the towns decayed.
Lately these towns have again seen trade revived, for the herring have again
come, and are as numerouF. as before. So with the mackerel. At present the

Newfoundland.

Massachusetts banks enjoy their presence, but they will return to their old
quarters, and it is on this account much to be desired that regulations be made
which shall preserve them for the benefit of the fishermen both of Canada and
the United States, and that an international agreement be arrived at, which
shall under specified conditions throw open the fisheries to seamen of both
nations.

The lobster is in great demand, and the capture of these again requires
regulation, for in some localities their breeding season varies from What it is in
other places. The factories where this crustacean is prepared for the market
dot the coasts. They are caught in creels placed in comparatively shallow
water, and are brought to the houses, where large vats await them. In these
they are boiled, their meat e.Ktracted, and packed in hermetically sealed tin
cases. The carapace is too often thrown away, for it makes capital manure, and
the gravel or sand of the sea-shore is reddened in many spots by the cast-away
armour.

Off Prince Edward's Island there are capital beds of an oyster smaller
than that procured further south, but of excellent quality. A commission
composed of scientific men is wanted to go round -among the fishermen and
others interested in the canning and fishing, to inquire as to the best means of
preserving these valuable supplies of food.

But there is another island to the north which we must not leave without
notice, although, strictly speaking, it does not come within our range in speaking
of the Dominion. This is the great island of Newfoundland, having a surface as
great as that of England. She has not yet joined the Canadian union, showing
the influence in this exerted by the " dividing seas ; " and although her progress has
been great, she naturally suffers from the want of stronger backing than her own,
to carry out the public works necessary for the development of her remarkable
territory. People think of this country as a bare littoral, swept by glacial seas,
and inhabited only by a tew fishermen. Nothing can be further from the truth
—to be sure, she does smell of fish ; and a very good thing this is for her. But
in the years to come she will have great mining communities, for copper, iron,
lead, silver, and coal are all stored in good quantity beneath her .soil. She has
large areas of fine land, beautifully varied by her woods and streams. Gypsum
IS found on her western side, where the scenery is of peculiar interest. Long arms
of the sea indent the coast, which is graced by the covering of pine and fir.
Elsewhere on the American continent the Atlantic .seaboard is tame and fiat, but
in Newfoundland the shores are bold and rocky, like those on the north of the
St. Lawrence, and no man need complain of the tameness of the aspect.

The colony has long burst the bonds which would have tied her down to be a
mere producer of stock fish and .seal oil. Yet, stran^re to say, this was the fate
which was deliberately sought to be imposed upon her by her early governors.
They would not allow the erection of houses without written pernr'ssion, and
this prohibition was maintained up to 1811.

Canadian Pictures.

In the year 1790 Governor Milbankc wrote to Mr. G. Hutchins: " I have
considered your request respectin^r the alteration which you wish to make to
your store-house near the water-side, and as it appears that the alteration will
not he in any way injurious to the fishery, you have hereby permission to make
it. As to Alexander Laig's house, which has been built contrary to His
Majesty's express commands, made known to the inhabitants of this place by
my proclamation of the 13th of last month, it must and shall come down. I
shall embrace this opportunity of warning you against making an improper use
of any other part of (what you are pleased to call) your ground, for you may
rest assured that every house or other building erected upon it hereafter, with-
out the permission in writing of the governor for the time being, except such
building and erection as shall be actually and on purpose for the curing, drying,
salting, and husbanding of fish, must unavoidalily be taken down and removed,
in obedience to His Majesty's said commands. And it may not be amiss at
the same time to inform you, I am also directed not to allow any possession as
private property to be taken of, or any right of property whatever to be ac-
knowledged in any land whatever, which is not actually employed in the fishery."
The next governor, named VV^aldegrave, writes in 1797 lo the sheriff, "Your
having suffered Thomas Nevan to put up. what you are pleased to call a few
sheds is clearly an infraction of my orders ; you will therefore direct him to
remove them immediately ; which if not complied with, I desire that you will
yourself see the order executed. You will take good care that Jeremiah
Manoty and John Fitzgerald do not erect chimneys to their sheds, or even light
fires in them of any kind."

And even now the same almost incredible state of affairs exists along what
is known as the " French Shore." This " French Shore " is nearly the whole of
the coast-line facing the St. Lawrence Gulf, namely, the western shore. By
the treaties with France, the French have the concurrent right to use the shore
for the purpose of drying and curing their fish. Neither they nor the Newfound-
landers are allowed there to erect dwelling-houses, except as necessa/y for the
fish-curing operations. No settler may have his farm on that forbidden territory,
for it " would interfere with the fisheries." It is needless to go into the many
disputes which have arisen from this intolerable arrangement. Naturally, the
French have striven to get all they can, and have interpreted the words of the
treaty to mean that they possess rights of exclusion of the natives, which could
never have been intended. The evil is a great one, and most detrimental to the
progress of the colony. The best plan w ould be to buy the French rights, or, if
this cannot be arranged, certain definite spots should be given to them absolutely,
as we left Pondicherry to them in India, and as the islands off the Newfoundland
coast of Micquelon and St. Pierre were left to them. Such stations would serve
their purpose in encouraging the fishermen of St. Malo to cross the seas in
pursuit of their industry, and would free tlv remainder of the country from a
condition of affairs through which it cannot be profitably used by .u\y one.

St. John's, Newfoundland.

Where else in the world can it be found that it is considered necessary to keep
a shore a desert in order that fisheries may not be interfered with ?

1 he capital, St. John's, has an excellent harbour, the entrance to which is
in a jrap in bold masses of rock, which rise abruptly from the sea. About 30,000
people mhabit the place. In exchaii.t^e for their dried fish they get from
Portugal the best port wine ; and it is really only in Newfoundland or from

(ioiNG 10 Church in Canada uukinu a Flood.

Newfoundland that the Englishman drinks the purest wine of this kind, unless
he takes especial pains to procure it direct. Brazil and the Roman Catholic
states of Europe all take large quantities of the island's fish ; but its exports
ought to be far larger, considering the excellence of much of its land, its
undoubtetl riches in metals, and the shortness of the sea passage to Europe. !t

I 2

Canadian Pictures.

was from Ireland to Cape Trinity that the first Atlantic cable was laid ; and it is
across Newfoundland that the cheapest and quickest route must always be
obtained. Whitticr finely expressed the hopes of the nations when the electric
wire was first made to bind to.<,fether the two worlds.

nil

"() lonely Hay of 'Irinity,
Ye bosky sliorcs untrod,
Lean hrcathless to the white-lipped sea.
Anil hear the voice of (Jod!

From world to world His couriers lly,
'rhought-winj^ed and shod with fire;

Tile angel of His stormy sky
Rides down the sunken wire.

What saith the herald of the Lord ?

'The world's long strife is done;
Close wedded by tiiat mystic cord,

The continents are tine.

And one in iieart, as one in blood,

Shall all the peoples be ;
The hands of human brotherhood

Are clasped benealii the sea.

Through Orient seas, o'er Afric's plain,

And Asian mountains borne.
The vigour of the northern brain

Shall nerve the world outworn.

From clime to clime, from shore to shore,

Shall thrill the magic thread;
The new Prometheus steals once more

The fire that wakes the dead.

Throb on, strong pulse of thunder ! beat
From answering beach to beach ;

Fuse nations in thy kindly heat,
And melt the chains of e.ich !

Wild terror of the sky above,

Glide tamed and dumb below !
liear gently, (Kean's carrier dove,
Thy errands to and fro.

Weave on, swift shuttle of the Lord,

Beneath the deep so far.
The bridal robe of Earth's accord.

The funeral shroud of war I

For lo ! the fall of Ocean's wall.
Space mocked, and Time outrun ;

And round the world the thought of each
Is as the thought of one !

The poles unite, the zones agree.
The tongues of striving cease ;

As on the Sea of (lalilee

The Christ is whispering. Peace ! "

Labrador.

" A glad prophecy " indeed ; but how for off yet is its fulfilment !

The wild and barren coasts of Lalirador are under the island's government.
There may be some minerals here also, but up to the present it has not paid
to work any veins found on that sterile coast. There is a beautiful spar called
" Labradorite," found in boulders, possessing a gleam as of shot silk, and shining
like a flash of blue light when exposed to the sun. 'i'his is the only marketable
mineral exported ; but in fur and fish getting there is plenty to do. At the Fur
Company's and fishing stations dogs are always kept for winter transport, a team
being driven with four in a line, tandem fashion, and not, as with the Ksciuimaux,
abreast. .Strange tales are told of the cleverness of the.se dog.s. It is even

The "Sakuiman" in the Re off XtuEui'NULANi^.

averred that they catch fish for themselves in the shallows during all the summer
season, and are not fed, except in the winter. One gentleman gravely assured
us that his dogs went out morning and evening for their fish breakfast and
supper, and that he had seen that their manner of catching the fish was to dabble
a paw gently on the surface of the water. The fish, innocent as they are in
those latitudes, then come to see what is disturbing the surface, and are imme-
diately seized in the clever dog's jaws. One dog, having a small white patch on
a black paw, was noted as being especially successful in attracting the fish by this
pied paw moving near the surface of the pool !

Canadian Pictures.

Little as Newfoundland is known to the tourist, it is well worth his while to
stop to explore its hills, valleys, and great open " barrens," the home of the
cariboo deer, which luxuriates on the pastures round its lakes and morasses, and
on the peculiar white mosses which make some parts look as though a white
hoar-frost had lain on the ground, despite the hot sun of summer. Although so
few people visit the country, the first si^^ht of an coast is hailed with joy by
hundreds of thousands, for it assures then\ nfter their six-days' sea passage from
Liverpool that they are about to enter through the Straits of Bellihle into t. .
sheltered gulf; that the pains and perils of the open sea are past ; and that after
two days' more steaming through calm waters, they will arrive at Quc-bec or
Montreal.

It is before they reach sight of land that the passengers on the steamships
are refreshed and entertained by the beautiful and curious sight of icebergs and
ice-floes floating southward to the warmer latitudes, to be scattered and dispersed
off the American coast. The great glaciers of Greenland, ever pushing downwards
from the interior towards the shore, descend in long cliffs into the sea, and, as
the thaws exert their influence, bits of the ice-cliff become detached, and fall
with a roar into the water, floating off to commence that summer voyage which
causes occasional anxiety to the officers of the watch on shipboard. It is,
however, only when there is a thick fog, or when the vessel is running quickly
during a dark night, that there is any risk of collision with the bergs. The
Arizona, on her passage from New York to Liverpool, lately ran full tilt at night
against an ice-mountain, receiving a terrible shock, but luckily making no
impression on her antagonist. Sometimes these bergs are shaped into
overhanging peaks, which, with such a stroke, might topple down on the deck.
But with the Arizona this was fortunately not the case, and so admirably did the
vessel's water-tight compartments serve their purpose, that, although the bow
was much damaged, the ship had not the slightest difficulty in putting into
St. John's for temporary repairs, and in subsequently continuing on her course
to England,

r 'I

I. : '

ONTARIO.

11 a;

'',.,j

ifc

o
X
H

I'ARI.IAMENT nuILDINGS, OTTAWA.

s
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CHAPTER V.
Ontario.

Ontario— Niagara— Ottawa— Ki.\nsTo\— The Tiiousanp Islands— Toronto— Miss Ryk's Home — Religion
IN THE Province— I'HE Fair at Toronto— Ontarian Agriculture— Food and Fruit Supply— Duck
Shooting— The Beaver — Western Ontario.

LE)T US now look at a view in the great Province of Ontario, 900 miles to
, the west, a province which is by far the wealthiest and the most poijiilous
of any province in the Confederation. It has two millions of people, chiefly
descended from Entrlish and Scottish stock. VVe will, if yoi please, place
ourselves on a heiji^ht not far from the famous whirlpool in the Nia'^ara
Rapids where poor Captain Webb recently met the death which it may be
almost said he courted, for no livinjr being has ever come from those rapids
alive. The roaring river flows along in a deep and wide chasm upon our rifht,
and we are standing on a ridge which dips down to lower land along the river
side in steep cliffs fringed with cedar and other wood. A tall monument in
the shape of a gigantic column crowned with a statue is behind us. This was
erected in memory of General Hrock, who gallantly led a force of Canadian
militia and regulars against the steep heights on which were standing the
Americans, who had crossed and got possession. It was necessary to dislodf^e
them, and, like most British attacks of former days, it was delivered full in front.
The General fell at the head of his troops before the ascent had been begun, but
they, infuriat(Hl at his loss, swarmed up and gained the battle of Quecnstown
Heights. From where we are, and still better from the top of the column, to

Canadian Pictures.

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which a staircase gives access, a wonderful view is obtained over the surrounding
country. Looking up the river, we can see over wide stretches of orchard and
woodland a vapour-like steam rising. This is the smoke-spray ascending from
the great falls. Looking down the river, we see it flowing a few miles farther on
into a wide stretch of water, whose horizon, blue and distant, looks as though it
belonged to the ocean itself. This is the Lake of Ontario, which, great as it is,
is among the smallest in that group of vast inland seas called the Great Lakes
of America. Right and left along its shores the country has evidently been
cleared of its forests, now only remaining in picturesque groups, and is smiling
with cornfields, apple and peach orchards, and pasture. Far away, thirty miles
off, we may just discern the smoke as of a city, and the dim gleam as of many
houses. This is Toronto, one of the most prosperous of the young cities of the
continent. It has 100,00c people, is becoming the centre of a rapidly extending
network of railways, and has an importance already great, and which must
become far greater in the future.

And what is the condition of the people occupying this great territory,
which, although it was reclaimed only eighty years ago from the primeval woods,
is already as strong in population as some of the small European States, and is
sending out its multitudes annually to people the Far West, while the places
they have left are being filled by the settlers from the Old Worid ? It is a
people essentially British in character, having an intense pride in the successes
which have hitherto crowned their efforts and blessed their province, and
possessing a very perfect system of self-government, providing admirably for
the training of its youth. There is not a school throughout its broad expanse
which is not placed under the supervision of a master specially trained in the
art of teaching at two great central institutions, called Normal Schools, at
Toronto and Ottawa. Each district is assessed in a school tax, always cheer-
fully paid, and insuring for all the children the benefits of a free education.
The Central Government has nothing to do with education in Canada. This
is a matter which is entirely left to the Provincial Pariiaments, and regulated by
them as they think best. With this universal assessment the rights of the Roman
Catholic minority are carefully guarded. If at any place the Roman Catholics
can show that they have a sufficient number of children to form the classes of
a school they receive an adequate amount for the support of their separate
educational establishment. No children are compelled to attend, but practically
all do so, because men wish to obtain the benefit of the assessment they are
compelled to pay. The universities of this land, although too numerous, are
good, and the University of Toronto bids fair in time to become sufficiently
wealthy to attract the best professors, and to be fully equal to the demands made
upon it by the rapidly-increasing numbers of students, many of whom live
in denominational colleges aroand, and receive the benefit of its examinations.

Niagara has been so often described that we will only advert here to the
plan now proposed to form an international park on both sides of the river near

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Niagara.

the cataract. On the American side many ugly buildings have been erected, and
some of these cannot be hidden by any scheme of tree planting. The great
hotels are so placed that no one can look from the Canadian shore at that part
of the falls which comes over the ledge of rock on the American side of Gc^t
Island without seeing them. But many other structures could be hidden by a
fringe of trees being allowed to possess the cliff edges. The island which
separates the waters is clothed with fine timber, and has only to be left alone.
If a strip on each side of the river were taken by the Canadian and United
States Governments respectively, all buildings not necessary for the accommo-
dation of visitors could be removed, and the dollars now exacted from all and
sundry who may wish to see the falls from various points of view would no longer
be levied. No one can visit this wonderful bit of scenery without desiring that
some such arrangement may be made. It is provoking enough now that, when
you wish to watch undisturbed the resistless blue sea which comes foaming over
the limestone edges, to precipitate itself in a long curving ridge into the gulf full
of thunder and of spray, the enjoyment of the sight should be interrupted by the
reminder from touts that an oilskin suit awaits you, if you will pay a dollar to
descend to the Cave of the Winds. If a man desires ,to get a conception of what
the contemporaries of Noah must have felt when the open flood-gates of heaven
sent the deluge over the land, let him place himself as near as he can to the
spot where the waters strike with a ceaseless reverberating roar the rocks at the
foot of the great Canadian Fall. He will then see the mass of the river apparently
toppling upon him from the skies, and will have borne in on him an impression
of the sublime strength of Nature's forces as successfully as if he had been
witness of an earthquake. The summer time is the best for seeing the falls,
for in the winter, wonderful as is the display of arcades of icicle and grottos of
glittering ice stalactite, the falls are too much hidden by the load of ice which
clings to every place where spray can reach, and leaves open only the parts
where the rush of waters is too heavy to allow the encroaching frost to have much
effect. Great huni mocks heap themselves along the base of the cataract, and a
complete bridge oi hillocky ice forms below the great cauldron. It is said that
the river froze to such an extent during one winter that the " ice jams "
consequent on the spring thaws took up for a while the whole river channel
above, and that so little water came down that a daring man ran out on to the
limestone ledge a third of the way over to Goat Island and got back in safety
before the river resumed its full width. So many "tall stories" are told at
Niagara that one must accept all with caution.

Let the Federal capital claim our notice here, as the official centre of this
province, although a town conr ected with it on the opposite side of the Ottawa
river is in Quebec. Now distant only two and a half hours by rail from
Montreal, Ottawa is easily reached, and during the session of the Federal
Parliament, from January to April or May, is crowded with legislators and others
from all parts of the Dominion. It was of old a mere station where the Hudson's

|;!:«

Hay voyageurs halted on their annual
trips to the forts of the north, when they
went to take supplies, and to bring
back furs collected during the winter.
Excellent timber was, and is still, ob-
tained from the country above it, and
its first importance was derived from
the lumber trade. It was called Bye
Town, after a General Kye, but was
a small place of no special attraction.
The iealousy between its bigger sisters
Montreal, Quebec, and Toronto,
when, in 1867, each of these
f\, cities desired to be named
the capital of the

Ottawa.

newly-formed Dominion, induced the British Govenr.at, to whom the
Canadians referred the question, to name Bye Town or Ottawa as the best aid
"lost central situation for the assemblina of the Federal Parliament. The city is
placed on the banks of a broad stream, which narrows at one spot above the town
and pours over a steep ledge of rock, to expand immediately afrerwards, to flo-v on
in a channel navigable except at one place where there are rapids, until it empties
itsel , about eighty miles away, into the St. Lawrence. Forty miles to the south,
the last named mighty river is the boundary between Canada and the State of
New York. To the north-west, the Ottawa stretches on far mto the wilds,
having Its head-waters on the height of land which divides the basin of the
St. Lawrence from that of Hudson's Bay.

The Houses of Parliament are of good design, their outline of towers and
high-pitched roofs being particularly effective at a little distance, for they are
built on a clift jutting out into the stream. They contain a fine library
the chambers of the Senate, and the House of Commons, and the offices for
the use of the ministers, and the staffs of the various departments of the
government.

^ These buildings will remain and be increased in number as long as the
Canadian Parliament meets in the city ; but will the other buildings which we
see by the Cho-idiere Falls, a few hundred yards away, long remain ? These
structures are the saw-mills, which ,. jrk all night and all day during the spring,
the summer and the autumn months, cutting the logs which are floated down to
them into planks, for shipment to Montreal. These planks are stacked in
thousands of square piles, many acres of ground being covered with them. It
looks as though there were enough of them to roof in the whole world. But the
wood of which they are cut has come from far, and each year sees a le-ser
number of " sticks " of considerable size. There is enough to last for our
generation, but the serviceable trees within reach of the upper water-courses
must diminish, as year by year the army of the lumberers work through the
winter in felling them, and in dragging them to places where they can be floated
off by the spring freshets.

The Federal legislators have nothing to say in the matter. The
conservancy of the forests is, with all legislation affecting property, the affair of the
local authority of each province ; but it would be well if some plan like that followed
in India and in parts of Germany could be imitated in Canada, and the tracts be
regularly cropped, and the laws which do exist against the felling of small trees
were more strictly enforced. Meanwhile Ottawa is one of the greatest centres in
the Nordi American contine n for the distribution of lumber. It is a picturesque
sight to see the men guii-ii^ the trees as they come down the swift currents, to
their doom of mutilation umkr the merciless saws of the mill.

We will go a few miles up the Gatineau, a stream which joins the Ottawa
opposite to the residence of the Governor-general. There are fine foaming
rapids alternating with deep pools under the bluffs clothed with the fresh green of

Canadian Picturf.s.

the youii :- birch, the rose colour of th(; budding maple, and the scattered blossoms
of the wild cherry. The ice has departed only three or four weeks ago, and
the stream is beginning to swell high with the water from the snows which are
melting in the north. Booms stretch out from the banks, and on these are men
with long nailed boots, and holding in their hands steel-pointed poles with a hook

(. \i

Lumberers at Wokk.

lilll i

at the end. They watch the stream as it carries to their feet logs of all sizes,
some with their bark entirely gone, from their rude contact with the rocks, some
still sheothed in their rough covering, and all marked with a hieroglyphic which
tells the practised eye to what mill they are destined. Accordingly they are
either shoved further into the current to be caught at other booms placed further

Kingston.

down, or they are tackled and drawn into the water lead which carries them to a
side dock where are piled close agamst each other masses of logs, so packed that
more men have to be detailed to detach single pieces and push them to the
inclined planes, which, running under the water, are furnished with iron-toothed
cradles. • These take up the floating trunks of pine and fir, and in another
minute they are sundered at once by a dozen vertical saws into fair four- or two-
inch planks.

Besides the stacks oi' wood on the side of the Ottawa may be observed
confusedly-heaped quantifies of a green-blue stone, evidently placed to await
shipment. It may naturally be expected by the stranger that this country of
hard old Silurian rock, with its covering of thin soil and grey clay, might produce
the minerals which are found so frequently in Canada, namely a little gold, much
iron, and veins of silver or lead ; but these heaps of pale-green stuff have proved
as remunerative a produce of these old rocks as any. They are the broken
remnants of great crystals of phosphate of lime, which are found projecting
inwards at right angles to the line of the vein in which they have been formed,
and are well worth excavating, for they make an admirable fertiliser for the land.
So much valued is this mineral manure, that it is exported in large quantities to
the British Isles and to other countries.

We might be tempted to follow the Ottawa northwards, in order to enjoy
for a time the hilly scenery through which the Canadian Pacific Railway is taken,
until we leave the valley, and crossing slightly higher ground covered with the
ever-green mantle of fir, reach the big Nipissing Lake, with its tufted islands and
wild north shore ; but more ancient paths demand our presence, and we will enter
a canal which, in a series of locks, descends near the Government buildings.
This is the Rideau Canal, constructed by the Royal Engineers in days when it
was considered important to have an interior line of watei communication
between Ottawa and Lake Ontario. It traverses a series of lakes, and emerges
at Kingston, a place worth visiting on account of its memories of Frontenac, of
the war of i8 12-13, and for the Military Coll'ego founded in 1875. This is one
of the pl^asantest of Canada's towns, enjoyin^^ a pi-ood winter and cool summer
temperat re, from its neighbourhood to the lake and river. Its old importance,
both as a military post and as a political centrfi (for it was once a capital) has
now passed away ; but the country around is so agreeable, and the society of the
place is so varied, although limited, that it will always be a favourite residence.
The Queen's College — a Presbyterian University — has a large staff of Professors.
There are many clergy, both Protestant and Roman Catholic. A Bishop of this
communion resides here. The Grand Trunk Railway passes through it, and the
steamers from Toronto and from Montreal call at the port. Picturesque martello
towers rise from the water, and are posted along the environs of the town
to where Fort Henry, on the hill to the southward, dominates the landscape.
The streets of the limestone-built city are well planted. Ship- and boat-
building, with the several manufactories, and the stir at the wharves caused by

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Canadian Picturks.

the trans-shipment of ^rain, keep a good deal of Hfe in the locality, deserted as it is
by troops and politicians. The traces of the old French fort built by Frontenac
are yet visible. It was a stone-built fortification, and, like so many other
military pc .3, was alternately in the possession of French and English, with the
Indian allies of each party, until, in 1758, it was destroyed by the force under
Colonel liradstrcet. A building now used as a hospital was the meeting-place

of the Houses of Parliament
when legislation was alternately
conducted for the benefit of the
United Provinces of Upper and
Lower Canada, at Quebec, Mont-
real, and Kingston, it had for
many years the distinction of
returning the present Prime
Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, to the House of Commons, At the Military
College, which is supported by the Dominion Government, young gentlemen
receive for four years an excellent military education, which provides them
with knowledge alike useful to them if they wish to become soldiers or civil
engineers. Some commissions are granted to them annually by the home
authorities, which enable them to follow a career in the imperial army.

The TirousANn Islands.

From Kingston the so-called "thousand islands" maybe seen by taking the
steamer down the river to Montreal. It would he a pity to sec the islands
only, and not the whole river course between these points, for the rapids are well
worth seeing, and the sensations experienced in rushing down their foaming
waves are more novel than are those felt when traversing the archipelago formed
by the St. Lawrence. The width of the stream near Kingston is about seven

Sir John A. Macdonald.

{From n fhotogrnph in the possession 0/ tlie Mnrquis oj Lcrnc)

miles, and the whole area for many miles down is a labyrinthine maze of water,
the rocky wood-clad group of islets separating the deep, strong-running channels.
Each island is much like its neighbour, differing only in size and shape. Each is
lovely in the summer season, when countless pleasure-boats and yachts dot the
surface of the waters, and merry parties, escaped from the heat, turmoil, and
restlessness of New York, find breathing-space and leisure to enjoy the quiet

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Canadian Pictures.

beauty of each little paradise set in the silver currents. I prefer the archipelago
of the Georgian liay of Lake Huron, for the same beauty of wood and rock
fastness may be seen there, but the forms of the islands are often bolder. But,
for those who love to see nature while they enjoy civilised comfort in sumptuous
hotels and lodging-houses, there is no region more attractive than the " thousand
islands." Below these the steamers run several rapids, the Cedars being the
most exciting, until Lachine is reached; an Indian pilot is then taken on board,
and some marvellous steering has to be accomplished before the big vessel has
safely passed the ledges over which the cataracts roar in angry floods, and is safe
beneath the arches of the Victoria Bridge. At one point the rocks are passed so
near that it seems as though they could be touched with a boat-hook. No
accidents have occurred in recent years, but one wonders at the temerity of the
man who first proposed to take a vessel loaded with passengers down this broad

RuNNiNU TiiK Lachi.m-; KAI'IDS.

stair of waterfalls. VVhoe^ er he was, it was not he, but his successors, who
reaped the reward in many passengers' fares, and if he be still alive he may
console himself with the thought that his case is that of most inventors, and
especially of the ingenious projectors of new things in America. The first
combination too often consists of men who are ruined by laying foundations on
which others successfully build.

Both here and at Toronto the sport of ice-boat sailing is enjoyed in the
winter. A cutter's rig is put up on a horizontally-placed triangle of wood
furnished with metal runners. The speed attained when there is a good breeze
is very great, and the amusement, though a cold one, is very popular. The slopes
around Fort Frederick, an old citadel commanding Kingston Harbour and town,
are capital for tobogganing, or snow-sliding. The toboggan is formed of thin

Skating and Ice-«oat Sailing.

phmks of wood, curved up in front, and made to allow two or five persons one
behind the other on the cushions placed on the slender boards ; the man placed
last steers by his hands or by one foot trailed in rear of the Hying snow-sled.
No runners are used with the toboggan. A yet faster but more dangerous
instrument for sport is furnished by the bob-sleigh, which is like a cushioned
ladder placed on runners fore and aft. A number of persons can be thus
accommodated, but the speed attained makes steering a difficult task, and
accidents are not infrecjuent.

The ice so quickly gets thickly covered with snow that it is only occasionally
that an extended space of good ice can be had, and the variety of figure-skating
to be seen in Canad;: owing to the re-
stricted area availablt: in covered rinks.
Perhaps the most graceful skating in the
world is to be seen in London at the Regent's
Park Club, for there the strictest rules are
practised with regard to attitude. In the
Dominion the heels are not kept so carefully
together, wide curves are not so much prac-
tised, and a bent knee is not considered a
defect. But the number of men and women
who are perfectly at home on the steels is of
course far greater, the intricacies of the
figures far more astounding, and there are
always many in the company present who
can take part in complicated combined move-
ments. There is no prettier sight to be met
than a great night fete during the carnival
time in the town.s. Six or seven hundred
figures, clad in various costumes, can then
be seen at one time upon the ice, and country
dances, valses, and the pretty evolutions
known as the May-pole dance, are performed
with perfect accuracy and certainty.

While speaking of athletic exercises, we must remember that one of
Toronto's sons, Mr. Hanlan, has especially distinguished himself as the fastest
oarsman in the world, for he has defeated in their own countries the acknow-
ledged champions of the United States, of Great Britain, and of Australia. If
Toronto had nought else to show to the stranger, it would well repay him to go
there, if he could catch a sight of that supple swing, that lithe, strong, and
regular movement which sends Hanlan's outrigger speeding over the blue waters
of the bay. The harbour is excellent, and large sums are now being spent to
secure the sandy spit called " the Island " from the effect of storms, which have
made breaches in its long curved line, and threatened the security of the road-

iNDiAN Pilot on the St. Lawrenxk.

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WERSTER.N.Y. 14580

(716) 873-4503

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Canadian Pictures.

stead. There may be seen on summer afternoons the fairy fleet of the members
of the yacht club, whose house is charmingly placed on the island. Desperate
are the struggles for victory between the cutters and schooners of Toronto and
of Hamilton, and a regatta covers the bay with the flotillas of the friends of the
rival cities.

But there are other points of interest, as may be well imagined, about this
flourishing city. It was only incorporated in 1834, and had then about 15,000
inhabitants. It has now over 100,000, and is rapidly increasing. There are many
fine buildings and broad handsome streets, well paved, kept, and lighted. As in
most of the Ontarian towns, brick is chiefly used, but there are stately fabrics of
stone, as in the case of the numerous churches and colleges, and the fine mass of
the Law Courts. New Parliament buildings are being erected, and these great
public edifices well indicate the activity of the religious communities, and the

Miss Rye's Home as it was.

pride the men of this province feel in their limited, but sufficient system of
" Home-rule government." The park, although small, is very prettily wooded,
and contains a monument to the memory of the brave students of the univer-
sity who perished in resisting the iniquitous Fenian raid in 1866. A double
avenue leads to the park from King Street, the greatest and longest of the
goodly highways of the " Queen City." Trinity, Knox, and Upper Colleges, as
well as the normal schools, should all be examined, to gain an insight into the
excellent system of education. There are other institutions near Toronto which
deserve notice, and which do not receive it from the guide-books. Among these
is Miss Rye's home for girls, thirty miles away by .steamer across the lake.
The neat young lady, the untidy children, and the substantial house with its
bread verandah, sh.jwn in the engraving, have all a special interest for English

Miss Rye's Home.

readers, for they represent Miss Rye's girls' home, the result of the education
she causes to be given, and the raw material which she takes in hand, and
changes to such good effect. Miss Rye and Miss MacPherson have both
shown how thoroughly successful such a system as theirs may be, when carefully
worked. Personal care is essential, but how many ladies there are, both in
Canada and England, who could well afford time to follow their example!
Provided that the children are brought to Canada when young, and that proper
establishments under good supervision be provided for them, too many cannot

be sent. I have on several occasions visited the Home shown in the wood-cut
and nothing can exceed the cleanliness and healthiness of the house and its
situation. The girls looked as though thjy thoroughly appreciated the good
done them, in the happy life they were leading. It promised to make them
useful members of society, and from the accounts received of the pupils who
had been already placed with families in town and country, the promise had
the security of the experience of the past, to induce the belief that the careful

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Canadian Pictures.

Girls as Taken Off the Streets.

individual attention and love be-
stowed would not be thrown away.
The official inspection had proved
that the Government authorities
were well satisfied with the institu-
tion. The place where the house
is situated is about a mile from the
neat village, which is built near to
the outflow of the river into the
lake. Peach and apple orchards,
groups of pine, hickory, walnut and
oak, are scattered over the charming
neighbourhood. The visitor cannot
help regretting that there are not
many more such " Homes " to which
the uncared-for children in our
great towns might be sent, with the
prospect of becoming the wives of
independent yeomen, instead of
being allowed to grow up among

the many dangers of the confined alleys of the crowded districts of our

smoky cities.

Among the subjects of general interest

there is none more engrossing to our good

people at home than the efforts of the

Churches to cover the ground occupied by

the advancing settlements, so that the con-
solations and guidance of religion may ac-
company the pioneers of civilisation. The

first Christian missionaries to the aborigines

of Canada were the members of tht ociety

of Jesus, and other religious orders who

accompanied the early French colonists, and

many of whom were most earnest and self-
denying men. Owing to their labours a

large proportion of the remaining aborigines

of the country prefers the Roman Catholic

faith, though there are also many communities

of Protestant Indians, and active missionary

work is being carried on among the remaining

heathen tribes. One of the most remarkable

and successful Protestant missions is that of Mr. Duncan's at Metlakatla, in

British Columbia. The French colonisation gave to the Roman Catholic

After Eleven Years in the Home,

Religious Work in Canada.

our

Church the priority of occupation. It is true, however, that there were
Huguenot colonists, as well as Roman Catholic; but this element was before
long eliminated by the action of the French Government and of the clergy
and leading men of the colony, so that only a few traces of it survive here
and there.

But although Roman Catholics were first in the field, hard upon them have
followed the clergy and ministers of the Protestant denominations. The Presby-
terians have been especially active, and the Church of England and others have
manfully entered into the work. Although in the long-settled portions it may be
expected that the contributions of local Churchmen shall suffice, yet there are
not funds enough to send ministers to the scattered abodes of men in the back-
woods and in the new clearings on the fringes of the provinces. Much work of
the highest importance is done by the missionary agencies of the various
Churches, and such societies as the British American Book and Tract Society,
whose agents scatter copies of the Bible and New Testament, tracts, and
religious books, over the widely separated villages of the Maritime provinces ;
and this agency is largely and liberally aided by The Religious Tract Society of
London, who do not confine their aid to any one channel, but also help to the
full extent of their power all sections of the Protestant Churches in their efforts
to bring all British North America under the power of the Gospel of Christ.
In the lumber-men's camp, among the great gangs of labourers on the railroads,
in the isolated colonist's log-hut, the visits of the representatives of the Church
are eagerly looked for and warmly welcomed. It is therefore a duty on the part
of Christian people in Great Britain to assist in giving their countrymen in
Canada that needed aid without which rural work cannot be carried on by the
Church in the Dominion.

The labours of many of the bishops and missionaries is indeed very great.
They are obliged to be perpetually on the move in order to attend to pastoral
duties in outlying places. Long and weary journeys have to be undertaken, and
it is not possible to visit all the numerous stations during the best time of year
for travelling. Often winter storms must be faced, and wrapped in what warm
clothing he may have, the minister of the Gospel must keep his appointment, in
spite of all difficulties of weather and distance. A friend of mine, a bishop in
Ontario, travelling alone in a gig, and driving his horse, found himself one
evening, when the cold had become intense, so benumbed that he could not hold
the reins. He got out and ran, but when again seated the numbness returned,
and he finally lost consciousness, his last recollection being that he had no feeling
of pain from the cold, but of great weariness. The horse pursued his way, his
unconscious master retaining his seat in the half-covered vehicle. The animal
stopped, after what must have been the lapse of two or three hours, at a small
wooden house, and the settler, coming out, found the bishop frozen and
apparently dead. He was brought in and revived with great difficulty, the
frozen limbs being rubbed with snow and the coldest water. My friend

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Canadian Pictures.

described his return to life as the most agonising experience. The pain was
intolerable. His face, eyes, and limbs were racked with torture, and he never
quite recovered the effects of that night drive.

There are still immense tracts in this province, as well as in many other
provinces, where similar sufferings might be endured unless precautions are taken.
But, to have proper precautions, it is necessary that the number of workers should
be largely increased and more abundant funds supplied, for the means of
travelling, as well as for the alleviation of the many wants constantly brought to
their notice among the poorest of their widely-distributed flocks. Each man
gladly contributes what he can to the comfort of his visitor, but all he can do is
to provide him food and lodging, and he can often give nothing for his support
except when under his own roof. Money must be got elsewhere, that there may
be a man to pay the visit which is so welcome.

None of the Churches are rich, although the Roman Catholics in certain
parts of the countr)' have good endowments. The Anglican Church now
shares with its brethren the provision made in early days for the sustenance
of the clergy ; but the amount is small when looked at with the expanding
needs of half a continent, and the constant calls for men and the erection of
buildings. Everywhere it is the clergy who are seen taking the lead ; and
although primary education is usually given to mix^d classes of children of
all denominations, the colleges and academies are often under the ministers of
religion, while there are large numbers of divinity students under instruction.

The devotion shown by the mass of the men who have entered into the min-
istry is very admirable, and they are led by good officers. The present Bishop of
Algoma gave up all that a worldly man most values in place, pay, and society
to take up the work in his wild diocese along the north of Lake Superior and the
Georgian Bay of Huron. In Canada, as in Africa and the South Seas, the Gospel
of Christ has won victories over ignorance and sin. The preaching of redemption
through the death of Christ on the Cross has touched and cleansed savage hearts,
and the Indian manifests, no less than the white man, the power of the Spirit of
God. The Ojibbeway Indians were the most numerous people along these
shores. Heathen savages as most of them are still, the labours of the
mission have met with very fair success, and on Mamtonlin Island there is
a flourishing community of native Christians. A touching story was told
to us of a squaw, the wife of one of the chiefs. She had wandered
too near the edge of the shore-ice at a time when thaws had loosened it.
The block on which she stood parted from the rest, and a wind carried it
out into the open water. She was found dead from the cold, but her last
care had been for her baby, and it was found to have perished also, but had
been covered by the mother with everything she had which might give it
warmth ; and when she had herself lain down in the icy blast to die, she had
arranged her body so that even in death it might be a shelter for her infant
against the storm.

The " Fair " at Toron-^o.

In respect of scientific and practical value, the meteorological office at
Toronto may be accounted a worthy neighbour of the university, near whose
buildmgs it stands. To the meteorologists come every three hours telegraphic
messages from all parts of the North American continent. These record the
temperature and barometric pressure at each place at the moment of sending the
despatch. The officer marks on the copy of the continental map used for the
day a line showing where these pressures and temperatures are alike. When
the next despatches arrive, fresh lines are drawn, indicating the movements
of the atmospheric wave, and in this manner it is possible to foretell for the next
twenty-four hours with great certainty the course of storms, and the weather to
be expected at any given point. This admirable system has already saved
thousands of lives. From the tower of the university an excellent view may be had
of the lake, whose shipping is guarded by the signals drawn from the science thus
admirably employed. We see that the land rises to low elevations two or three
miles back from the town, which spreads along the shore. The country is devoid
of any marked feature, presenting a slope towards the water so gentle that it
seems a flat expanse. Buildings are rapidly extending in all directions. There
are men now living who remember the place when it was " muddy little York "
—a mere shore-clearing with a good deal of marsh and some fever along the
sedge-covered bank ; and very justly proud the Toronto men are of these
recollections, for the Queen City, as they love to call it, is steadily growing in
importance. They can boast of a large and cultivated society, counting among
Its members names of eminence in letters, art, and science. Its factories employ
thousands of skilful workmen. Nowhere is the abundance of wood turned to
better account. The cheap furniture manufactured here is excellent, while taste
and wealth find ornamental inlaid " marqueterie " and first-rate joiners' work in
the more expensive kinds of " household effects."

The so-called " fair " or exhibition of the products of the city and surrounding
country, held every year in September, forms a good gauge of this centre of a
population of over 2,000,000. Very interesting is it to see the objects most
demanded by the people set out in order, either beneath spacious roofs or outside
on the neatly-kept lawns. School benches, school desks and school books, take
up much place, showing how dear to the whole community are the means of in-
struction and the comfort of the children while attending the excellent educational
establishments. Good pianos and organs send their music forth, and the com-
petition among these, although satisfactory in a trade aspect of their rivalry, is
not quite so satisfactory when looked at from a musical standpoint. Houses
built of soap show that cleanliness, which we all know is next to godliness, is
not neglected. Parquet floors of beautiful woods remind us of the wealth at
once of the forests and of the citizens. Well-bound works prove that the public
and lending libraries have not effaced the laudable custom of keeping a private
treasure-store of knowledge. The white semi-translucent cakes and bars and
columns of stearine, that is, of the refined wax of petroleum, demonstrate, along

M 2

(;!anai)1an Picturks.

with the long phials of the clear oil, that we need not go to the States for the
best illuminating agents.

It is not many years since oil was struck in Western Ontario. Some of the
borings are now very productive. A rock filled with oil, as a sponge is filled
with water, is reached by boring-machines at a certain depth, and up wells the
seemingly exhaustless supply of petroleum. It is believed that it is derived from
the remains of creatures which lived in past ages in countless numbers, and
dying, have their substance preserved in this form. Lucky creatures, to be able
to confer such benefits millions of years after their demise ! How many of the
human myriads around us will be giving light of any kind millions of years
hence ? In the meantime they can be happy enough in Canada without
speculating on the chance of illuminating the beings of far-off ages. It is
evident that their thoughts are at present much occupied with the proper housing
and care of flocks and herds.

Professor Tanner speaks thus of Ontarian agriculture to an English
audience : —

" The practice of agriculture has here received great care and attention,
and there is just cause for satisfaction at the success which has been attained.
The special influence of soil and climate have under skilful management secured
results which are in some respects in advance of those obtainable in England.
I must not, however, be supposed to convey to you the idea that agriculture is
here free from difficulties, for such is not the fact. Agricultural products differ
so widely in character, and in their requirements for successful growth, that those
conditions which are favourable for some crops are proportionately unfavourable
for others. We must not expect in any district to secure advantages which are
wisely distributed, and we shall see, within the limits of the Dominion of Canada,
that the special agricultural excellences of different sections of the country act
and re-act upon each other, with marked advantage to the general prosperity of
that great colony.

" There are impediments at present existing which prevent Ontario from
taking high rank as a wheat-producing district. Under specially favourable
conditions the produce rises to thirty-five bushels per acre, as in the case of the
farm belonging to the Guelph Agricultural College, although it is situated 900
feet above the Lake Ontario. In very favourable seasons, and under the
stimulating influence of artificial manure, crops of forty-five bushels per acre
are secured, but the average crop may be fairly taken as ranging about
twenty bushels per acre. As good cultivation advances, this average will no
doubt be raised ; but variations in climate make themselves felt here, as
well as with ourselves. Any decrease in the fall of snow, leaving the autumn
wheat unprotected, any imprudent clearing away cf woodland shelter, and any
severe winter winds, exercise a very , punishing influence upon the wheat
crop. In this way the plant is decreased, and the thin condition of the crop
in the spring prevents a full average crop being secured at harvest. Up to

AaKicuLTUHk IN Ontario. 85

the present time the use of the spring wheat has not satisfactorily overcome
the difficulty, but there is much to encourage renewed efforts in this direction.
In any case, I do not think that the older provinces of Canada are likely to
become large producers of wheat for export purposes, although, as more farm-
yard manure is added to the land, and greater care is taken in a judicious
breeding of the seed-wheat used, the produce will be largely increased. The

Cedar Bay, near Ottawa.

character and quality of the

produced differs in a marked

that grown in the north-west,

a fine flour, distinguished by an abundance of starch, which makes

useful for blending with stronger wheat.

"The growth of barley does not appear to be accompanied

difficulties. An average of forty bushels per acre appears to be

many farms, but thirty bushels would be a safe general average.

wheat here
degree from
for it yields
it especially

with similar
secured on
The barley

Canadian Picturks.

crop, being also more reliable and less subject to injury than wheat, is being more
largely cultivated. The culture of the oat crop is in some districts carried out
very successfully. It is said that as much as ninety bushels per acre have been
grown, but thirty-five bushels may be taken as a fair average. Here again a
prudent selection of seed effects a marked difference in the yield of the crop.
By the judicious growth of seed corn, the produce of these provinces might be
greatly increased, and I think it may be safely said that English farmers would
inaterially improve the yield of each of these varieties of grain. The plain fact
is that the numberless variations of climate and soil which cause so much diffi-
culty with us, compel our farmers to think and reflect upon these impediments,
and they have consequently gained important experience in doing so ; and this
practical experience becomes especially valuable in a country like Canada.
There is too often a want of finish observable about their agricultural operations,
and it is perfectly natural it should be so. Where land is abundant, and yields
good crops under a rough-and-ready system of farming, the higher care which
is absolutely necessary in agricultural districts which have been long under the
plough is not so urgently required. Higher skill and more perfect systems of
culture are, however, very valuable, even when nature is most abundant in her
provisions. This is clearly shown upon the farm of the Agricultural College at
Guelph, where the wheat, oats, and barley range from 40 to 50 per cent, above
the average of the surrounding district. As the pupils of this institution become
settled upon farms in Ontario and the adjoining provinces, so we find improved
results being secured.

" The cultivation of Indian corn is carried out largely and successfully ; but
here again the measure of success is greatly determined by the seed being
properly acclimatised by being grown in the district one year before being used
for seed. By thus keeping up comparatively fresh supplies of seed-corn, the
crop is secured in its highest perfection. Indian corn is not only largely grown
for the production of corn, but it is also very extensively used for fodder pur-
poses. As the practice of preserving this fodder in silos becomes more largely
carried out, still greater advantages will arise from the cultivation of this crop,
and it will become a cheaper source of food than is now obtained by the growth
of root crops. The cultivation which the root crops receive is fairly satisfactory,
and whenever they are well managed the general produce of these farms is con-
siderably increased. It seems to indicate a better general system of manage-
ment, which indirectly leads up to more satisfactory results, quite as much as
the direct advantages arising from the production of the root crops as food
supplies.

" A very large portion of the older settled provinces is well adapted for
the successful production of meat and dairy produce. There is a steadily
increasing number of thorough-bred cattle and sheep, and the influence of well-
bred stock is becoming more generally acknowledged and acted upon. Those
who are raising beef and mutton Tor export purposes, soon find that attention to

Dairy Produck and Fruit Culture.

this detail of management is absolutely essential for success. It must, how-
ever, be acknowledged that there is still room for a more general adoption of
better-bred stock, even where the advantages are now admitted. It i' one of
the usual consequences arising from easy success that we become indifferent to
the attainment of the full measure of prosperity we might command. Without
wishing to speak with any undue partiality for the farmers of Great Britain, I
am still bound to acknowledge my conviction that they would make decidedly
larger profits upon Canadian soil than are now made in that country, even by
the more successful amongst the cultivators of that land. There is just that
want of careful finish about the general conduct of the work which leaves a
margin for greater profits being secured.

"In the cultivation of fruit, Canada takes a leading position for the high
quality of its produce. Unfortunately, however, this is one for which she gets
far less credit than she deserves. Nearly all the Canadian fruit reaches us
under the general description of American fruit, and consequently the United
States popularly receives the credit for the fruit sent from both countries. This
may appear to be a matter of small importance, but it is far otherwise. Fruit
which is so grown that it has attained a rich and luscious condition, with a
powerful natural aroma, indicates two very important conditions of growth, a
good soil and a good climate, coupled with skilful management. Upwards of
;^90,ooo worth of fruit was exported from Canada in 1882. In the Ust Journal
of the Royal Agricultural Society of England (xxxviii.), Mr. Whitehead gives a
very able article upon fruit farming, from which the following quotation will be
interesting: 'Very fine apples are grown in Ontario, better, it is alleged by
Canadians, than those that are grown in the United States. . . . Canadian
apples have undoubtedly a great reputation in the English markets. Not only
do the Canadians exercise the greatest skill in the cultivation of apples, but they
understand the art of storing them.' "

But to return to our exhibition. A quantity of wire of various patterns
curiously barbed is shown to the passer-by. This is to fence in the pastures.
Outside we can see plenty of fine stock. High-priced cattle are being shown,
many of them but lately imported from England. There are many splendid
horses, used for the trotting-track, for general purposes, as beasts of draught,
or for riding and carriages. The display of machinery for the farm is of
amazing completeness, and showing implements for the saving of that labour
which, fortunately for the labourer, commands so good a price. We have but
little time to admire the great show of carriages, of poultry, and of honey.
Other fairs are being held in every considerable town throughout the country.
The epidemic of fairs is a wholesome one, and let us hope that the value and
variety of objects, already so great, will annually increase.

One kind of exhibition common to all towns should never be neglected by
the visitor, and this is the food market. Here also he will get much insight into
the habits of the country folk, and the kinds of fish and fowl to be found in the

?ii:

111

Canadian Pictukes.

land. He will note that the j^rain is chiefly wheat, and very good wheat is still
raised in Ontario. I say still, for it has become so much the fashion to speak
of the wonderful crops of the newer country, that there is some danger lest
justice be not done to the more settled parts. It is true that the soil does not
yield what it once yielded, when the woods were first cleared, but this is only
because people were wastefully neglecting to use manures. Many a farmer has
continually cropped his furrows without giving anything back to them ; but better
customs have now been introduced, for a gradual impoverishment was neces-
sarily visible under the old system, or rather want of system. But it is an
ill-wind that blows nobody good, and harum-scarum agriculture, and consequent
loans borrowed from trust companies, have sent many a good man on his march
to the west, thus leaving a vacant place for the British settler, who finds the land
still in good heart, and facilities in school and church neighbourhood which
make the old homestead a place to be eagerly purchased. Another grain much
used is rye, and the whisky usually drunk is made of this. It is not so strong as
that familiar to the Scot and Irishman, and sometimes the refuse of the still is
given to cattle, which thrive well upon it. Buckwheat is also largely grown, and
much of what is emphatically called "corn," namely, the maize. This is seen of a
golden and of a white colour, and rarely of a black tint. Of roots we have any
number, of gigantic proportions ; if it be the autumn season, baskets full of
many varieties of wild cranberries and blueberries, or, as they are called,
" huckleberries," of delicious flavour.

Fruits abound, grapes and sweet water-melons being of good quality ; and
most interesting of all, to the sportsman, is the supply of game, fish, and birds.
There are salmon, but they probably come from streams more distant than the
city of Quebec. There are trout, and some of these are very fine, from the
lakes to the north ; and there is another species of the order of Salmonidce, which
has white flesh, and scales rather of a grey colour than of a silvery tinge. This
is the famous white-fish, common to all the great inland fresh waters, and one of
the best fish in the world for the table. Mightiest of its kind is the sturgeon,
and there are many of these. Oddly enough, the taste for its roe, called caviare
in Europe, has never developed itself here, and although, from a London, Paris,
or St. Petersburg experience, a person would suppose that it would be eagerly
sought and prepared, nothing is done to bring it into the market. Black bass,
a capital game fish, must not be overlooked. There they are fresh from the
swirling currents of the great river, in which at certain seasons they rise fast to
the fly. Specimens may be seen of the ouaniche, or so-called land-locked salmon.
Theory says that these are salmon which have been unable to get back to the
sea, and have acclimatised themselves to their altered conditions, and have become
peaceable but voracious citizens of the fresh water. Be that as it may, they are
a very acceptable addition to an inland dinner, for they are five to eight pounds
in weight, and of excellent flavour.

Of wild fowl there is a great variety. The most striking to the stranger's

Wild Fowl in Ontario.

imagination is the wild turkey- now becoming every day more rare— a fine bird,
with its beautiful bronze plumajje. A somewhat distant excursion has to be
undertaken to procure them, but they are still numerous in pdrts of the country,
and were as common as is the wood-jrrousc or its darker and smaller cousin the
"spruce partridge." There are woodcocks in long strings; but the bird is
smaller and redder than that known in England. They and snipe are common,
and they are to be met with until you get far west. There, strangely enough, their
flight seemed stopped by the mountains, and it is declared that no woodcock
live on the Pacific coast. I once met a man who said he had seen one in
Oregon, but his story was frowned upon by his friends, and he confessed he had
not shot the bird. Yet the " Pacific slope" would appear to be the best part of
the whole continent for these worm-feeders, for there the ground fringing the
sea is hardly ever frozen, and their long bills could be thrust into an abiding
paradise of mud. Such fastidiousness in locality is inexplicable. The ducks
have no such peculiarities. The members of their family are among the widest
rangers known to ornithology. Many are common to liurope, Asia, and
America. Indeed, like most of th(r birds which breed in the sub-Arctic regions,
they find land over which they can journey southwards over the greater part
of the northern hemisphitre. If even Laiiland buntings and the snow-finch, with
their small power of flight, can make themselves at home on both continents, why
not the stronger-winged ducks ? Still, there are some which are not known in
England. The little teal, with the blue on their wing-coverts, is one of these.
The red-head and his congener, the canvas-back, although seen in the London
poulterers' shops, are not native, nor is the dusky or black duck. The canvas-
back is supposed to be the best ; but where there is abundance of wild celery
and wild rice, on which the birds may feed, there is no great difference. The
celery grows so well if transplanted, and spreads so rapidly, that we may expect
to have the English park-fed ducks have the flavour hitherto considered the
peculiarity of the Canadian and American rivers and lakes. Loveliest of all is
the summer or wood duck, with his iridescent head with hanging plumes, his
white markings like a harness of snow, and his maroon-tinged breast.

Some of the best duck-shooting to be had in the world may be enjoyed
along the northern shores of the great lakes, and the marshes which in places
are formed along the low coasts of Ontario and Erie are among the favourite
feeding-grounds of the ducks when they halt for a few days' rest on their
autumn migration to the south. There is one long promontory, twenty miles in
length, which juts out into Lake Erie, and is called Long Point. This ground
has been taken by a club, who have a charter from the Ontario Government,
enabling them to preserve the game. The head-quarters of the club are situated
several miles from the further end of the curious narrow ridge of land and
marsh which forms the territory which is the property of the members. It is
reached by steamer from Port Dover, and the voyager sees as he starts nothing
but the blue horizon of the lake before Iiim. By and by dots are seen on the

Canadian Pictures.

surface of the water, and on nearing them they are seen to be trees standinir on
the Jiighesc ground of Long Point. Far as Jie eye can see on either hand aie
great beds of high reeds ; among these stands a httle village, consisting of the
sportsmen's huts, placed, like the houses of the old lake-dwellers, on platforms
supported on piles driven into the shallow water. The platforms are connected
by wooden causeways. Each morning the members breakfast in a common
room, and draw lots for the stations each shall occupy during the day. Then,
getting into their punts, each sportsman proceeds with his punter and his wooden
decoy birds to his allotted place. The pole man shoves the light boat across the
rustling beds of wild rice, and after half an hour'3 labour, during which time the
duchs rise on each side from the thick mass of sedge around, an open place is
reached. The decoys are then carefully scattered within easy gunshot, some
sedges are pulled and stuck upright round the gunwales of the boat, which thus,
completely concealed, looks like a natural tuft of sedge in the bare space of
water. The birds now rise quickly, for other guns are at work, and teal .'n flights
and the other ducks singly or in small parties are constantly flying over head,
seeking where they may again settle in safety, and seeing the decoys they swoop
down, and it is not uncommon for one gun to bag over 100 birds during the day.

Although Long Point is reserved, there are plenty of other places where
similar sport may be enjoyed.

Before we quit the subject of the natural history 6f Ontario, a word should
be said about the animal which has been adopted as a national crest for Canada,
namely, the beaver. On the Canadian union jack he is seen at work, ?nd fitly
wreathed with a circle of maple leaves. For any one curious to s^e the labours
of the beaver, a journey to the backwoods is necessary ; but on thousands of
streams their operations are yet visible, although the trapper has greatly dimin-
ished the numbers of the Castor Americantts. There is only one other larger
rodent animal now living, and that is the capybara of South America. The
average weight of a beaver is about thirty pounds. The length of the body is
usually forty inches, and the tail has a length of nine inches, with a circumference
of eight. The fur is long, with a thick under-down, which is exposed by the
plucking out of the longer hairs when the skin is sold for trade purposes. It is
easy i.o see where the beast has been at work, for if a back-water or small
stream be traced up its course it will be found barbed across at certain intervals
by embankments made of mud, branches, or large slicks and scattered stones.
The water stands at different levels in these chains of artificially- broadened
reaches. The dam js usually so constructed that a lower space ii^; left in the
centre, so that the water may run through without injuring the dyke on either
side. The stems of the branches are laid as a rule up stre?m, and they are .so
interlaced and filled in with mud that it is occasionally possible to drive a waggon
over the h.ird-pressed earthwork of an old dam. In reaches containing islands I
have seen the island cut clean thj-ough by a water-ditch, so that the animals
and their young could swim from, the pool on one side of the island to that on

Id
O

V 2

A Beaver Village.

the other. It is remarkable that although a regular system of embankments
may be seen, showing that work must have been continued on them so as to
keep them in repair and add to them for very many years, one family alone is
usually seen in possession of an extensive lacustrine domain. Their habitation is
probably placed in some large pond near the centre or upper portion of the series
of works. A beehive-shaped mound is seen rising above the water and covered
with sticks. The entrances to it are often three feet below the water level, and
the reason of the care taken to repair the dams is to be found in the necessity
of preventing the surface of the pond becoming so low as to leave bare the
entrances in summer droughts, or to close them with ice in winter. There are
usually two sub-aqueous entrances six to ten feet in length. An inclined plane
leads up to the chamber, which is often six or seven feet in length, and of a
round or oval shap'J.

The floor of this little hall is made hard, and is raised a few inches above
the pools level. The height from floor to roof is at most eighteen inches. The
passages leading outwards are but just wide enough to allow one animal at
a time to pass, and the course of one of the corridors is made straight, so as to
allow of the provision of green sticks being brought^ into store in the central
chamber. These sticks, after having been peeled of bark, are used for roofing
or on the dams. It is said that the roof is sufficiently porous to allow of some
ventilation, and that the snow on the top of " the lodge " is melted by the heated
breath of the animals rising through the roof, the summit of which is not, like
the sides, thickly plastered. Sometimes the beavers burrow in overhanging
banks, and the arrangements are then much the same. As with the English
badger, grass is carried into the abode for bedding. There is no sleeping through
the winter months as with bears, so that the beaver must lay in sufficient nourish-
ment for the whole of the season when snow is deep on the ground. He
seems to thrive upon the wood as well as the bark, and it is not only to keep
his teeth in proper order that he undertakes to cut down and carve round with
wedge-shaped incisions sticks and standing trees. These last he sometimes
fells in order to help him in his dam-making. Often he makes heaps of brush
in the water, fixing the ends in the mud, as though to make a store outside
of his house in the water. Sometimes the use of the canals they dig is not
apparent. These are cut from a lake and run up into the land as far as the flat
ground extends, sometimes for hundreds of feet. It has been supposed that
this is to give them a frontage along the hard-wood groves, so that when
beavers cut trees and bush they may transport the parts they can carry by
water. Stones they are said to carry with their paws if small, and roll or
push the larger ones with shoulders or tail. We must trust to the Indians for
observation of the animal, for it is extremely difficult to watch them. Another
way in which the earth and stuff is reported to be taken is to load the tail, as
a workman would a hod for his mate. I confess that I shall not believe this
until i see it done. They have several young at a birth, and the little ones

ii,-;

I) '

ill

Canadian 1*ictuui:s.

tako, after ;i few weeks, to feeclinnr on bark, and the parents are reported never
to allow tluMii to remain in the old lodore for more than two summers after birth,
so that it is rare to fnul as many as ten in one house. The natives will tell
you that lazy members of the family who will not work are driven forth into
exile, and thest; outcasts are called " bank beavers," because they leail a solitary
life, ami live in holes on the river sitle. They are probably individuals of
an independent turn of mind, who desire to have time for relleetion and travel
before they choose a wife and undertake all the cares of housekeepiujr and the
consecjuent resi)onsibilities. The Canadian, like the beaver, loves to pair, and to
pair when younjj;. He too travels much and lumbers often. Each of them
works hard and happily in the healthy winters of his native land. Hoth of
them are I'ond of turniuir the water "privileges" which so co[)iously abound
throughout tlu-ir vast territories to the utmost use. We see therefore that the
beaver is appropriately found sharing the honours of the national blazt)n.

Near Port Dover is the ])rospering town of St. Thomas, dignified with
the title of "city." a n mv; givtni to all towns in Ontario which have a
population over 10,000. The country in its neighbourhood is like that of a
great part of the; peninsula between lu-ie and Huron. Very fertile, and
originally covereil with a fme growth of maple and other hard-wood trees,
it has now been carved out into excellent farms, occupied by people mainly
Scots and English in descent. The whole of this part of the country furnishes
a type of the best parts of Ontario's magnificent province; easy railway
communication ; enterprise and energy circulating through village, town and
city ; healthy rural and thickly settled townshi[)s, sending their ^bronzed and
manly farmers to the markets which give them their fu-st markets; a measured
and widely distributed condition of conifort, visible in the number of wheeled
private vehicles, of horses, cattle, pigs, sheei) and poultry -at all points the
school-house, the church, and tlu- evitlences of the care for law and order.
Who with heart, muscle, and brains, would not esteem his lot a hajipy one
if cast among such a people and in such a country ? London, called after its
great namesake, is not far off They who sigh for the original will find a lovely
river called the Thames, a Hyde Park, a St. Paul's Church, and, if low spirits
supervene on seeing that these are not quite so dingy as at home, they may
cun? their spleen by a conscientious course of white sulphur baths, which
London, (i. H. (C.reat Britain) has not! Here are a great number of factories,
turning out refined petroleum, iron manufiotures, agricultural machines, mills,
breweries, leather fabrics, aiul carriagx^s. with many more n;siilts, the products
of the industry ofa!)out 20,000 people.

Ingersoll, Gueli)h, Woodstock, Stratford, Whitby, Walkerti)wn, although
smaller, are busy centres, having populations of from ten to five thousaiul. In or
around each is plenty of room for emigrants from tlu? Old World. Cheese-
making is an art on which some of these places much pride themselves, and
with justice ; for although the American and Canadian cheese has not yet seriously

4
s<

West i: UN Ontario.

incnaced the sale of Cheshire chees. , ihe hoaie ranner must look to his laurels
if he does not wish to be distanced in his own market. Guelph has an
admirable Airricultural Collej^e, where instruction in the theory and practice of
farmmg is g.vcn to a number of students. Collincrvvood, Owen .Sound, and
Harne are towns m the north-west of the province, on or near the Georgian
Hay. Ncwmark(;t should be mentioneil with them, if only because people make
money there instead of losing it. as they do at its Cambridgeshire namesake
Around these places the country is generally more broken into low hill and
fruitful dale, and near Harrie the pine or fir takes the place of the hard-wood
treses of the south. Lake Simcoe, on the banks of which the last-mentioned
city stands, is a fine sheet of watcM", now well provided with steamers To
enumerate all the Ontario towns must be a task left to the guide-books, of

(iARUINKK CaNAI..

which there is an unfailing and excellent local supply. \\'e have hardly space
to do them justice, but Bi-lleville. Cobourg. and Hamilton, must not be passed
over, for the two first are most charming places on the north of Ontario's lake,
and the last, which is m^ar Niagara, is a very important place, having about
40,000 people, who an; determined to make their cit\- rivrd Toronto, h is the
seat of a Roman Catholic and of an Anglican bishopric. There is a considerable
German element here; but where tlie children of the Fatherland are most
numerous is at lierlin, where it is usually found that all the municipal officers
are Germans. It is much to be desired, seeing how satisfied their countrymen
are with their ,. . ;hat more Germans should go to Canada instead of to the
States.

No one travelling through Ontario, and observing the manner in which its

Canadian Pictures.

wide surface is now so thickly studded with people, can fail to marvel at the
work wrought in so short a space of time. The whole settlement of the country
only began with the flight of the American Tories, or, as they were called,
" United Empire Loyalists," at the time of the war of the Revolution. Born in
hardship and suffering, the life of the province has exhibited an ever-increasing
energy and success.

Uiu

The Wapiti.

It the
untry
ailed,
)rn in
asing

QUEBEC.

I If

Id
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H

i',

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7)

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Quebec.

CHAPTER VI.

<^Ui:i!KC.

(,)UKHl.;c FkuM Tins lIl:i(;lir.S OK AhKAIIAM-Mo.NTMUkliNCI Kai.^ ,■,,

J!..i.,DlNos-T„E IROQUOIS lND,ANS-T..F !< RrNr r P.li, ^ P '''^' '''■- "" ^"^'"'■'' '''' '7S9-EARI.Y

-Tl.E MCG.I... UMVERSITV-T.IE WiNTLK cIrv, ., 7 .r LaWRENCE-THE PORCUP.NE-MoNTREAL

LIE \\i.MEKCAR.MVA..-lcEllARVESTiNG-LAcRossE-THE Victoria Bridge.

ID EFORE quitting the old provinces let us take a look from another height

U on a scene celebrated m story and in song. We look down this thne

from no elevation guarded and crowned with verdure and forest, but from a giat

cl.ff crcled With ramparts, which defend a citadel fashioned indeed accordTn^

wrought m heavy masonry, but yet even now, and against modern arms a

Steamers are there from many a European port, and a large fleet of sailing
merchantmen crowd the wharves and coves along the shor?, where they arf
loadn.g w,th t.mbcr. On a point of land formed by the wedglshaped S and

O 2

lOO

Canadian I'ictukks.

'<"'

alonjjf its flanks, is crowded a considerable town, the houses built chiefly of stone,
and the roofs covered with plates dipped in tin, which makes them shine like
silver in the sun. There are here many churches and reJij^ious buildinj^'s, from
which at mornin^r and evening the sound of many bells rises. To the right the
eye looks over leagues of country until it rests upon some low and distant hills,
which we are told are near the American frontier. Helow the city, across the
great river, we see the northern shore upon the left, shining green and gold.
It is dotted with many white houses, and beyond is a background of mountains
whose azure colouring is often broken with tints of green, when the sun brings
out in stronger relief some shining forest-covered slope, for all these mountains
are covered with wood even to the very summits. A white patch in the cliff-
line of the shore shows where a hill-torrent leaps in foam over a height greater
than that of the l'"alls of Niagara, to the sea-like river beneath. The scene we
are looking at is that which met the eyes of Wolfe, before he fell in the moment
of victory on the famous I'lains of Abraham, and this fortress city is Ouebec.

Hut girt as it is with rampart and embrasure, with bastion and ancient
cannon, modern Quebec gives more attention to arts than to arms. Hut the
"arts "are those of learning, and not of painting or of sculpture. In the tall
pile surmounted by the lantern towers which dominate all but the citadel, we
see the university called after the Archbishop Laval.; There is here a large
.school of medicine ; anil theology, law, mathematics, and the classics have each
their followers. The students' dress, usually so sombre, is agreeably relieved
when they attend the classes by long coloured ribbons, denoting the faculty to
wliich each man belongs. There is a good library and museum, and ample
lodging for the students. The building is joined to several more, the cathedral,
the archbishop's palace, antl the seminary or high school being all connected, so
that one can traverse some miles of corridor without emerging into the open air.
One end of the great terrace is not a hundred yards from the archbishop's
abode, the other ending only under the walls of the citadel. No city has
a more charming promenade, or one where a purer air and a more striking view
may be enjoyed.

As you descend into the streets and listen to the talk of the people, you will
hear sometimes an Irish accent, but as a rule the language spoken will be the
tongue of Old I'Vance. It is not the speech of the Paris of to-day, but it is
the speech heard among the fishermen who visit our English coasts from the
neighbouring shores of Normandy and Hrittany. Their race, represented at
the time of our conquest of Ouebec by a bare si.xly thousand, counts now
over a million and a quarter. Their increase is so rapid that they have
invaded like a Hood the old l*iu-itan districts of New England, in many of which
the Puritan Church and congregation have wholly vanished, to give place to the
richer ritual favoured by the Romish i-eligion. The number of children in the
villages around is indeed astonishing. It is said that as it is the custom of the
country to give the twenty-si.vth part of everything to the Church, the twenty-

ScKNERY IN Tirr. Kasif.rn Townships.

lOI

sixth chilli of the family is oftt:n the portion of the parish priest! It is a
thoroujrhly loyal and contented community— loyal to a system which rtispects
the old treatic;s that in the day of the conquest of the province of (Juebec
assured to the I-rcnch race their laws, their institutions, and their laiij,niage.
'Ihey demand little, and are not so restless as the people of our stock, who keup
perpetually pressin^r westward, in hopes of gre.Uer ^'ain. It would indeed be
a sad thm^r if all the people were to rush away to the west, and leave the
beautiful shores of the St. Lawrence depopulated. To be sure, the land will not
novv produce much wheat, and the crops chielly raised are buckwheat, potatoes,
and oats ; but all kinds of fruit belongin^r to a northern climate are grown. The
l-rench Canadian is a wise man to be content to remain in his home, in the
country where the institutions he loves are carefully preserved, where the
church in which he worships is ministered to by a prii-sthood sinj,niiarly earnest
and pure, and where he will not be disturbed by the competition of many
Americans, English, or Scotch. It is well for us that, instead of being a desert,
the littoral of the St. Lawrence is garrisoned for us by a poi)ulation so orderly,
contented, hardy, and enduring. Among them also we find the toleration in'
religious matters (as shown in the education of the young) which prevails
amongst their fellow countrymen in Ontario. Here the Roiiian Catholics have
a large majority, and even a more extended toleration prevails, for all Protestant
denominations may have the school assessment devoted to their use, if thev have
to provide for a certain number of children. There are districts in this province
where there are still a large number who speak English, as, for instance, the
portion of the country near the frontier of Vermont, known by the name of the
" Eastern Townshii)s." The scenery there is singularly attractive, and its
lascinations, together with the good quality of the soil, have been sufficient to
prevent the exodus to the west which has been so remarkable elsewhere.

But for the visitor on pleasure bent there is no better residence than
Quebec itself. Its neighbourhood has everything which makes a landscape
beautiful ; great rivers and lakes, fine forests, waterfalls, valleys full of cultivated
farms, lofty hills, and happy villages in turn delight the eye. For ten or twelve
days in succession it is on each day possible to make an excursion in a different
direction, and it is difficult to determine which road is the most beautiful.
I here are fair roads traversing the country on both sides of the river and along
its banks. Steam ferry-boats make the transit of carriages and horses vixsy
The clean little inns, neatly kept by the thrifty Canadian housewives, invite the
traveller to luncheon, where he may enjoy the trout he has caught in the lake
during the morning, or feast in a grove of maple on syrup of that tree, eaten
as a relish to the wholesome buckwheat bread, or he may prefer the well-made
pancakes of his hostess, and the dish of freshly-plucked wild strawberries.

In the winter there is peculiar tobogganing to be enjoyed at Montmorenci.
The spray from the falls gradually freezes as the cold increases, until in January
there is a huge cone of ice. seventy or eightv feet high. Steps are rut in the ice

I02

CANAfJfAN I'll TURKS.

if there be not enou«:h snow to make the ascent easy. Little sledges (itted with
two nietal-clad runners, and long enouKdi to allow the greater part of the body to
he on them, are prejjared. A companion used to the exercise shows the way
and lymg down like a seal, shoots instantly out of sight over the dome

of the Ice-cone, and
almost instantly after-
wards is seen gliding
rapidly with the im-
petus of his fall away
over the frozen flat
below. It is difficult
tor a beginner not to
feel a little nervous
at first, but once the
venture has been
made, there are few
who do not wish to
repeat it again and
again. Although many
are found to enjoy
this favourite pastime,
Ouebecers are heard
with a sigh of regret
to recall the days
when the presence of
a garrison of liritish
regulars supplied

numbers of young
men who could devote
their days to such
amusements, and very
gay were the parties
whose members flew
down the white slopes
uiitii evening came,
and time was founJ
lur a Jance and supper
at a country audcroc
,.,,.,, , , before the homeward

s eigh drive had to be undertaken over the moonlit fields of the shore-ice of
the frozen Sr. Lawrence.

In the daN>. v. h. ,i the cannon of Wolfe were [)lanted on the river cliff opposite
to the city, > -iJ l.is batteries sought to enfilade the French defences l)y fire from

MONTMORLNCI KaI.LS.

I'HI: CaI'IIIUI; (ih QuilHllC.

'03

the further side of the I'alls of Montinorenci, the houses were gathered within
the old town h'nes, which still exist, and have recently had their walls and
embrasures re-faced with masonry, not for purposes of d(rft.-nce, hut to preserve
a striking feature which is not elsewhere to be found on this ;,ide of the " Big
Water." A few citizens only dwelt outside of these ; but one of them was a
very important personage. The Royal Intendant had a palace for his own use
on the flat banks of the bay into which the St. Charles flows. He was a civil
officer sent out by the Government of Versailles, nominally to work with, but
too often to check, the military governor. If the two were friends, affairs were
well conducted, and the colony throve ; but if the two officers disagreed, and the
intendant was a rogue, his opportunities to enrich himself and beggar the
community were used with disastrous (;ffect. Tradition declares that Higot was
the worst of these offenders, and that he consjiired with the people of influence
in the corrupt French court of the day. An indifference in regard to the proper
supply of equipment for the use of the garrisons was the result. Montcalm's heart
was broken by the treatment accorded to him, for the soldiers were allowed to
remain in want of /ua/i'nW o( war. It was wonderful that he maile the fight
he offered against the English general.

Let us go back to that year of 1759, and imagine the scene. The white
flag with the golden lilies floats over the citadel above the town, and on the
highlands at the back, as well as over the intrenchments in the valley to the
north, and along seven miles of the northern shore. At all other points the
red, white and blue of the Union Jack is seen. On the wide waters of the
great river, a numerous fleet of transports and men of war fly that ensign only.
Of I'Vench vessels there are none. Hut the puffs of smoke from the long lines
of the English are steadily answered by the concentrated cannon of the fortress
and the isolated guns on the Heauport earthworks. Once already have the
invaders tried that point, and a heavy loss and a retreat to the ships was the
result of an eagerness which led one brigade to attack before the other detailed
for the duty could properly support it. Hut that day of a hot July showed that
the Canadian peasant with his " fusil " could take very good aim, and the fight-
ing has been bitter but resultless since then, for only small numbers have met.
So savage, however, is the temper of the men on each side, that the horrible
custom of scalping the deid or wounded has been borrowed from the Indians.
It is necessary to issue a general order on this subject in the Hritish camp, and
the fiat goes forth that the troops are not to take the scalps of their
white opponents ! By August and the beginning of September, the buildings
exposed to the eighteen and twenty-four pounder round shot and the shells from
the ships are grievously battered, whole streets being mere crumbling ruins. The
.season is late, and November will not give a pleasant berth either to land or
naval forces. It is resolved by the Hritish to make another effort. Their
young general, although said to have been so boastful after a dinner at home,
that the prime minister, who was one of the guests, was heard to mutter in

104

CaNADIAA PlCTURi..S.

"ngland!" has
"^^mething to boast of

SV.

dismay, " To what hands have I committed the honour of
already proved to his soldiers that he can give th'

and determines to make his attack on the hei^ .,, river abov- the

town. But this is hopeless, if Monicalm gets i . ...c mtention. The

only chance is to get up on to the plateau while it is manned ori'y by a few
guards ; the main body ot the gallant French army must be kept where they are.
Therefore, nii-iiy ships are told off to make a strong I'eir.t in the Bay of the
St. Charles, as though i^ were again -^he intention of the assailants to renew their
tactics of the summer. Meanwhile, all is prepared for a silent move under
cover of the darkness, as soon as the tide turns, and the voyage can be under-
taken on the flood to the chosen point above. Il is a dark and moonless night
the ships in dead silence feel the waters change their course, for the tide
conquers the current, and they glide past the deeper shade in the blackness,
which is all that can be seen of the crpe and its sleeping cannon. In that slow
and solemn procession of vessels, carrying 5,000 men, not a sound is heard.
Wolfe stands on the deck with some of his officers around him, and, moved by
a prescience of his fate, talks in low tones, and yet, with the enthusiasm which
made him great, speaks of Gray's wonderful poem composed in a country
churchyard. One of his staff can repeat the lines, and as he recites
the words —

" The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power.

And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave,

Await alike th' inevitable hour,

Tile J>tj//is of ;^lory lead but to the graved

Wolfe exclaims, " I had rather have written those lines than take yonder
heights !" A little later he himself descends the ship's side, and with a chosen
party leads the flotilla to the shore. In the bows of his boat he has a young
officer who can speak French well, and as the sentry at the foot of the steep
bank challenges, a reply is given that they come from Montreal. A second
after, a spring is made to the shore, a/id the sentry is down. Then comes the
grating of the boats on the beach, the hurried rush on land, the scramble up the
bluff, a few shots, and a short resistance, speedily overcome at the guard-house
on the top, and the enterprise has succeeded. Before Montcalm can hurry up
his surprised troops from the St. Charles valley and the St. Foy gate of the
town, the red line is seen in the early morning, formed, and ready for battle.
Montcalm, always impetuous, decides, against the advice of his commanders, for
immediate onslaught; and most steadily and bravely the French regulars
advance, the white flag waving over their blue uniforms, while on their rioht
the hardy habitans and the burghers of Quebec are aligned so as to outflank
an advance of the British. But orders are passed down the red ranks to load
with two balls in each musket, and not to open fire until the hostile line has
come near. Then a close and murderous file-firing begins, which annihilates
the front ranks ; yet, for a time which seems an age, the French stand, and the

Remarkable Eakly Buildings,

105

loss on both sides is dreadful ; but in a little more there is a wavering, the volleys
on the invaders' side are repeated, and but feebly returned. 'Vhe British
advance ; but their young leader is lying mortally wounded : they press on, and
from this moment there is no doubt of the result. The general is surrounded
by friends, but he is dying. " They run ! they run ! " shouts some one in his ear.
" Who run ? " he faintly asks. " The French, sir/' is the answer. As the
English general's spirit leaves the field of victory, his brave enemy, the
Marquis de Montcalm, receives a painful wound, but rides on into the town
hardly showing how grave is his hurt. The British have been too severely
handled to follow swiftly. The Canadians and French retire into the city. The
gates are closed, the ramparts manned : it is two days before Montcalm dies,
and some more pass before the city surrenders.

Thus was this eventful fight fought and won. But it is little known that
in the following year we were nearly losing the prize so hardly won, for the
Marquis of Levis, coming down from Montreal, was met outside the gates
of Quebec by General Murray, and a battle ensued, which resulted in our
defeat, and in the French ne£-rly entering the town along with our beaten
troops. But Murray had no idea of capitulating, and the possession, of which
so much is row said, and which forms the second greatest in our Empire, passed
from the flag of France to that of Britain. The discussions now held as to
the fertility of various territories of that vast country, and the testimony coming
from so many widely scattered portions of it. will show what wondrous results
can flow from small beginnings. The whole of the contending armies on that
fateful field did not amount to more than about 10,000 men, a lesser number
than you see nowadays drawn up on a volunteer field day near any con-
siderable town in Britain. From such beginnings— from a French colony
60,000 strong, backed by five regular regiments, and from the conquest
of these by a force of under 6,000— has sprung into existence the great
Dominion of Canada.

Several of the remarkable large stone buildings in the city date from the
days of the early history of the French colony. Such are the Hotel DIeu and
the convent of the Ursullnes. The first military adventurers, fired with the
desire to discover new lands, and to place these under the dominion of the
French crown, sought also the conversion of the heathen. Wherever they
founded colonies, the religious communities came in their wake, sending forward
devoted missionaries, and founding houses for sisters, where the sick might be
tended and the children instructed. Of singular interest is the establishment
under the Ursullnes, where most of the young ladies of Quebec receive their
education. The skull of the Marquis Montcalm is reverently kept within these
walls, and In the chapel Is a monument to him. The buildings have high roofs
pierced with little gabled windows, and the long corridors and panelled halls and
rooms of the Interior look on to courts where the children play during their
daily rest Irom study. As in the case of most of the convents, the chapel which

i ^!

ill r. i

;it

1 06

Canadian Pictures.

is open to the public is divided by a gilded lattice screen from the part of the
church occupied by the sisters, who are buried under the flagstones on which
they have knelt at prayer during their life. Of even greater interest, on account
of the memorials it contains of olden days, is the " House of God " which over-
looks the town rampart, where the cliff line allows it to have a full view of the
river as it widens to girdle the Island of Orleans. In the Hotel Dieu, the marks
of British cannon balls may yet be seen in the rafters in the passages. A fine
bust of one of the first martyrs slain by the Indians, named Brebeuf, in silver,

and autographs of Vincent de Paul
and Francis de Sales, and of other
great men who sent forward on their
successful campaigns the soldiers of
the Cross, are preserved. The names
of each of the sisters who have lived
here since the time of the foundress,
the Duchess D'Aiguillon (whose coat
of arms and portrait are conspicuously
displayed), are written on tablets kept
since the first of her followers died.
Devoted to the cause of God, and
intent on sending out missions, she
and other women of her day appear
to us now as among the brightest
and best of the children of France of
the time of Louis XIII.

It is difiicult at this day to realise
the dangers to which the first colonies
here and in New England were ex-
posed by the incursions of the savage
Indians. Here it was the Iroquois
whose threats of massacre kept the
garrison at Quebec in alarm, and who
became so bold that a large party
of Hurons was actually attacked by
them on the Isle of Orleans ; and
the invaders passed the French town
with the bleeding scalps of their victims displayed from the canoes as they
paddled again up-stream. A state of siege was not uncommon. It was rumoured
that the savages meant to destroy the town and carry away the sisters, who, for
safety, were ordered to be lodged in the fortress of the Jesuit quarters in the
square near the cathedral. The mother, superior wrote, " We are between life
and death. No one can be assured of safety from the fury of the barbarians.
All this, I assure you, gives me no fear. I feel my heart disposed to bear and to

•""J-.Vj-'Lf.

A Street in Quebec.

The Iroquois Indians. jq^

suffer all that it may seem best to the good Lord to send to me. He knows
what I am able to endure, and I have faith that He will not permit anything to
happen which shall not be for the best." Tales were told, amid the distress of
the colonists, of the power of religion. " Two French soldiers had been sur-
prised in the woods by a party of Iroquois near the hamlet of Three Rivers
and carried off to captivity in their country. One of the soldiers had. indefend-
mg himseif, received a bullet which had remained deeply embedded in his body
An Iroquois warrior, in the hope of taking him alive to the tribe, so that he
might there undergo the refinements of cruelty which were inflicted on the
prisoners, probed the wound, and making an incision, extracted the bullet with a
dexterity unsuspected in a savage. He then bound up the wound, applying
wild herbs to It, and tended him so well, that before the end of the journey was
reached the wound had closed, and was in a state which promised a complete
cure. On the approach of the party to the Indian quarters, one of the band
was sent ahead to give notice of their arrival. All the Indians poured forth
and ranged themselves in two lines at the entrance of the place. The two
unhappy prisoners were, according to custom, divested of their clothing and
made to run the gauntlet of these two lines amid a bail of blows. They were
then left on the ground covered with blood and almost dead. At nightfall they
saw furtively passing a human being, in whom they recognised a Huron Chris
tian, who had been for two years with the French. He came to them and
exhorted them m words of admirable faith to endure their pains with patience
and to recommend themselves to the care of the God who had so marvellously
protected himself. He then added that the time of their suffering was nearly
past, and that they would soon receive their recompense. ' For ' said he as he
departed, 'your fate has been decided; to-morrow at dawn you -vill be burnt
ahve. Be of good courage until the end, and remember me when you are in
heaven. The exhortations of this convert gave consolation to the two victims
and made them look at their fate with resignation, for death seemed infinitely
preferable than to live in such torment. They passed the rest of the night in
prayer, and in mutually encouraging each other to suffer martyrdom for the love
of Christ. At length came the dawn. The sun rose and the morning wore on
without any unusual movement taking place in the village. The prisoners
marvelled at the cause of the delay. An envoy from the district of Monlaau^
had arrived during the night, He had assembled the chiefs, and had with'all
his eloquence endeavoured to persuade them to deliver the two soldiers to his
tribe, to he used as a help in procuring a treaty with the French. Both prisoners
were brought before the council, and heard with astonishment that instead of
being tied to the stake to be roasted, they were to receive their liberty But
they had hardly escaped from their first danger before another renewed their fears
The authority of the chiefs was seldom accepted without question among the
tribes. An Iroquois warrior, furious at hearing that the prisoners were to
escape, went in pursuit of ihem, tomahawk in hand ; and they would certainly

r 3

III! 1 1

108

Canadian Pictuues.

have perished had not a friendly Huron given them shelter and hiding in his
hut. When this new peril was passed, they were conducted out of the village,
and pursued their way to Montague. The first days of the march were
uneventful. The two Frenchmen, in spite of the fatigues of the journey, their
weakness, and the wounds with which they were covered, thanked God that the
end of their captivity was near, when one morning, on awakening, they found
to their consternation that their guide had deserted them. The savage who
had served them as guide had thought that his companions might assassinate
him when alone in the forest. Haunted by this idea, he had taken advantage
of the shadows of night, and had fled. Not knowing in what direction to pro-
ceed, the two soldiers became lost, and walked on at random, a prey to terrible
anxiety, to privation, and to cold, for the time of the year was November. After
wandering long they found themselves near a carnp, which they saw was full of
Meionts, a tribe fiercely hostile to the French. Trembling lest they should be
discovered, they entered a hut which seemed to them abandoned by its owner.
They were about to hide in it when they found that it was tenanted by a squaw,
who, at first surprised by their hurried entrance, recognised them, when she
looked at them, as fugitives, and received them with kindness. VViih great
astonishment they heard her address them in good French. She told them to
fear nothing, and that she would take them under her protection. This Indian
woman was named Margaret, and had been a Christian captive taken from the
poor Hurons, who were at the time scattered among their enemies. She had
formerly received instruction from the Ursuline sisters at Quebec ; often in her
girlish days she had entered into the H6tel Dieu, and had been witness of the
motherly care accorded to the patients in the hospital. Profoundly moved by
the sight of this exercise of Christian charity, she had resolved to imitate the
sisters, and so to earn grace in the eyes of God. She hid the Frenchmen from
all curious eyes in a corner of the hut, and carefully nursed them. She warmed
their frozen limbs by lighting a fire, gave them nourishing food, and applied to
their wounds the medicinal plants of which she well knew the virtue. While
so engaged she would constantly speak to them of what she had seen in
Quebec, and of the nursing practised by the religious women. The memory of
such an example was, she would repeat, her chief incentive to persevere in the
Christian faith. But their presence in the village was suspected at last, and
their retreat was discovered, fiut, wonderful as it seemed to them, they were
well treated by the tribe, who had never been friendly to a white man before,
and were conducted to the borders of Montague. There they came under the
authority of a great chief, whose policy it was to be friendly to the French ; and
he gave over to the governor, De Mesy, who was then at Montreal, the men who
had so often given themselves up as lost."

Very full accounts of the Iroquois are given by the old voyagers. We can
imagine from their recitals their whole mode of life, as well as that of northern
savages to the south and east. Some led a life giving them food only as they were

The Iroquois Indians in 1608.

109

successful in hunting and fishing, but others had settled habitations. In 1608
Champlain describes them in the neighbourhood of Quebec as catching fish from
September to October and making a winter store by drying the fish. In January
or February they hunted the beaver, the moose, and other wild animals. He
represents them as reduced sometimes to great straits by hunger, and obliged to
eat their dogs, and even the skins which they used as clothing. They were
reputed to be great liars, and very revengeful. The Christians were much
shocked at hearing that they had no special form of prayer, but that each one
prayed according to his own liking. Priests or medicine men among them were
reported to have direct communication with the Devil, and no enterprise was
undertaken without consulting the Author of all Evil. All dreams were
considered to be revelations and realities. Half clothed in summer, they possessed
excellent furs for winter wear, among which the skin of the seal is specially
mentioned. They believed in the immortality of the soul, and carefully buried
with the dead all the arms and other articles which belonged to him, a custom
followed, as we shall see later, by other tribes now living. A feast was held two
or three times a year around the grave of a departed chief, and his friends
danced and sang in his honour.

But there were villages inhabited by others who must have been well able to
support themselves. They are uniformly described as of good stature. The head
was shaved around the temples and high on the forehead, leaving the hair on the
crown to fall in a long tuft, garnished with feathers, very much as many of the
nomad tribes have shaved until quite recently. Like the present wild Indians,
these also had the face painted with red and black. They planted the maize.
They sowed in May and reaped in September. They burnt the trees of the
forest, just as a modern settler does, in order to procure ground for planting, and
sowed the seed among the charred stumps. They sliowed forethought also in
sowing more than was required for one season, lest a bad year might come and
no crop be gathered. The village itself consisted of wooden huts, surrounded by
a strong palisade, behind which in case of trouble they retired, and discharged
clouds of arrows on the assailants. Their arms were clubs, bows and arrows,
and lances, and I have nowhere seen that the sling was in use with them,
although it was a favourite weapon of the South Americans, for the Spaniards
were much harassed by the fire of stones slung by the Aztecs during the wars
of Cortez. The good Brittany soldiers thought the savages' dance was very
much like one they had at home, called the Trioly de Bretagne. Their mode
of fighting was of course no match for that of the Europeans, who, armed with
arquebuse and in armour, were able to defeat greatly superior numbers. An
amusing old drawing shows Champlain hard at work knocking over a whole
hostile army, assisted by friendly natives. It will b^ seen that, like some good
people in Europe to-day, the artist imagined palms to be one of the chief trees
of the newly discovered wilds of Canada, and these ornaments of the tropics are
plentifully scattered in the engraving among the Canadian woods.

1 lO

Canadian Picturks.

■iir

M. Suites admirable History of the Fraicli Canadians gives the best
account of the first discoveries of the sixteentli century, and of the progress
ot the colonies from early in the seventecMith century to the days of the
cession of Canada to the Hritish. Champlain .lied in 1635. and the oldest
buildings m Quebec were built about the time of his death. Durin.r the lapse
ot more than a century the government was, in its nature, a military ''one The
punishments dealt out to malefactors and traitors showed all the rigour of old
iTcnch usage. Heating with rods to the effusion of blood, riding ihe wooden
horse with heavy weights attached to the criminal's feet, breaking on the wheel

ClIAMl'l.AI.N ATTACKING AN luOQUOIS KoRT.

A. Iroquois Fort ; 1!, The enemy ; C. Caiu.e. of enemy, capable of lioUling ten, fifteen, or eirhteen men ; D E Two
.lead cnefsand one «,,u,.d.>l. l,y Cl,nm|,lain's a„|uel,„so ; K. Sieur de ( ham dain ; G T^H. luVbus^Vrs of
Chamidaiu. force; H. Muutayna.s, OclKVsta.yiun. and Al^'uume.iuins; I. Caiioei of our allies ''"'"'^''"''''" °'

dismemberment, and torture, "ordinary and extraordinary," were penalties
enacted for various crimes. In 1684 there were already six churches in the
Upper Town, althougii the number of inhabitants cannot have been great.
In i;2o there were only ;,ooo in the city. '"The gentlemen hunted much,"
and many of them had immense possessions nominally under their ownership.
As seigneurs they had all the rights of feudal proprietors. To encourage them*
to build mills, they had the power of making all their vassals take the grain
to the seignorial mill to be ground, a custom which existed up to a late period
also in Scotland, and was there called "thirlage." There were many other

Tim: 1''kknc;h Kur.K in Canada.

itr

r j^hts. s.m.lar to those of J- n.ola.ui and of Scotland in olden days, notably that
o demandm- rorra; or so many days' sraluitous lahonr. These lasted long
alter the Conquest, and were only chanjjcd in our own time.

I he century of 1-rench domination saw brave and successful attempts made
to further discovery. La Veranderye penetrated further than Lake Winnin.nr
and the o t.cers on the St. Lawrence knew that they had fomul a vast country
which m.ght become a stron.t; support of l-' ranee. Hut, unlike their fellow Catholic
adventurers, the Spaniards of South America, they had no LTolden booty to
send home to excite the wonder of the cot.rt. obtain sidisidies for their
enterpr.se. or tempt others to follow them. Corte/ was able to send home
the curious work in gold and silver of the Mexican artists in the precious
metals^ 1 i.arro could tell of temples whose interiors were one blaze of irold
of an Lmperor of Peru. who. before bein.ir cruelly put to death, had actually
p.ud a ransom to h.s treacherous captors, of over three nu-llion pounds sterlinfr
m articles of sohd ..^old and silver. There was no such inducement offered
to the Trench nobles to equip expeditions. The interest in Canada lauLmished
Lven Louisiana had but sli,^rht attraction ; and so, althouirh Ouebec Three
R.vers. Montreal, and a few other stations became prosperous, and a 'certain
number of troops were sent from I'Mvopv. as soon as it was seen that English
nvals meant to take possession of the land, the support of the mother-
country was only given .grudgingly, and in a half-hearted manner. All honour
then to those gallant men who in the midst of so much discouragement
performed their duty devotedly, and with their whole heart and soul Old
1- ranee now remembers with honour and regret the names of Montcalm. Levis
Vaudreuil, La GalissoniC:re, Veranderye, and Le Moyne.

Most rcmiarkable was the manner in which the conquest was accepted by
the vanquished. 1 heir rights and privileges were guaranteed to them, and
no interference was attempted with their laws and customs. Th« criminil
prcjcedure alone became Lnglish. A frank acceptance of the adverse decree
of fortune proved the loyal nature of the men who had come under our flag
Nor had they ever reason to regret the change. It is curious to contrast the
fate of the Trench ,n old Trance and that of their cousins in Canada. Torn
^^^W^T", '' '" ^'"^' '"^ vain-glory and to ambitious passions, they of the
Old World have never seen a generation pass without some violent storm of
war or some dynastic and national catastrophe. They have founded no suc-

tl etwr "''f' '" ""' '"''■'"'''• ^^" ^'^^ '''^''' h«-nd, the descendants of

the Br ttany adventurers possess a power and a population ever augmenting and
extending its induence ,n peace and in liberty. They have all they can desire
ami so conscious have they been of their advantages, that the grandsons o(

1 tslces f7?V''T''"';'? ^'■''■^' '"^" '^^"^ '''''^^^ ^he bravest and the
most successful defenders of the government which assured them their freedom

he repulse of an American column at Chateaugay during the early part of

this century was effected under the leadership of^one of a' remarkable family

I 12

Canadian Pictures.

of the old noblesse, namely, Colonel dc Salabcrry ; and not long ago a fine
statue by Hebert of Montreal was erected to him near the old fort of
Chambly, amid the acclamations of an assembly which included representatives
of all the people of the province.

A charming piece of country lies around this place. The Richelieu river
winds along in quiet bends, bordered with clumps of fine elms. Many of the
dwellings date from the old days, and their high roofs, widely-projecting eaves,
picturesque proportions, and solid stone walls, recall the villages of France.
The old windmill-towers are often of especially massive construction. 'Ihe
houses of the present time are naturally more often built of wood, as the
cheaper material, but in their case the architecture is the same. Note how
much more graceful than the English houses are these, with the long slant and
outward curve of the roof, protecting the windows and red-painted doors from
the weather. How diverse are the lines and harmonious the colouring of the
groups of them clustered round that church, complete in apse and transept
and long nave, the high spire with its open belfry gleaming in the light
by reason of the metal armour with which it is covered. Churches of
the time of the first settling of the land were erected at every seven
miles. The erection of a church and school is still the first care of the
priests as soon as a few families have collected, It is remarkable how
the overflow of the population has not gravitated only into the New
England States, but also northward. Up the tributaries of the Ottawa, the
Riviere Rouge, the Lievre, and others, colonisation roads are being constructed,
and a good soil with heavy wood has tempted many a stout habitan. But by
far the most successful instance of fresh colonisation is to be met with in the
district about loo miles to the north of Quebec, alon"- the southern side of the
Lake of St. John. This is a big sheet of water. On the north the country is
higher, but stretching along the other side, from the point at which the waters
are discharged into the Saguenay river, there is a vast amount of flat land,
capable of keeping 150,000 to 200,000 souls, as it is estimated. Probably
there are 20,000 there already, although these have found their way up the
water-channels, there being no other road. A railway is now projected, and
is already partly built. In 185 1 the first tree was cut where now stands a
thriving village.

" The case of the first settler at St. Jerome may be taken as a sample of what
nearly all had to undergo. Charles Cauchon left Chateau Richer, near Quebec,
in 1862, with £2 in his pocket, accompanied by his wife and a family of five
little children. By the time he reached Lake Kenogami his little stock of
money was exhausted, and he had to give a week of his labour to pay the
passage of his family in canoes — ^then the only means of communication— to
the southern end of Lake St. John, where he established himself and founded
the flourishing parish of St. Jerome. It is unnecessary to rehearse all the
hardships and privations endured by Cauchon ; he reaps his reward from the

Lake St. John Country,

rich soil he has cultivated, and he now owns a good house, large barn, and an
excellent farm, well fenced and drained. This year, although only one-fourtli
of his farm is under cultivation, he has raised 250 bushels of wheat, 200 bushels
of oats, 150 bushels of pease and buckwheat, 240 bushels of potatoes, and other
vegetables in abundance. His barn is full to repletion, and he speaks in the
highest terms of the productive nature of the soil, which yields twenty-five
bushels of wheat to the bushel sown, and twenty-five bushels of pease, or
thirty-five of oats, per arpent."

This is just the
country the thrifty
Canadian likes ; and the
gentleman who reports
on M. Cauchon's farm
continues : —

" The lands on the
River Peribonca, on the
north side of the lake,
have heretofore been
considered unfit for
settlement. A govern-
ment surveyor has just
completed a thorough
survey of them, and I
am told reports that
fully ten parishes, if not
more, can be established
there, on the best of
land. From the Peri-
bonca to the Grande
Decharge the soil is
also said to be good ; in
fnct, the north side of the
lake is said by some to be
superior to that already

settled on. The country is so flat that it is generally impossible to judge of
its extent, but at one point, a hill overlooking the village of St. Prime, an
excellent view can be had. P>om this point, looking west and north for
probably 100 miles, or as far as the eye can reach, not a hill is to be seen,
nothing but one vast wooded plain— watered by noble rivers, the Ashuap-
mouchouan and the Mistassini, each of them from half a mile to a mile in
width— of the richest soil, only the fringe of which has been touched by the
new settlements of St. Prime, St. Felicien, and Normandin. One cannot but
bp struck hy the vastness of this grand territory; and everything goes to

THE

QUEBEC & LAKE

CTJOHN I

COUNTRY

10 50 r, ao ^0

™.»»

I-

' II

Canadian Pictures.

confirm the estimate made of its extent by Mr. Tache, tiie Assistant-Com-
missioner of Crown Lands, whose reports indicate that it contains three
million acres of arable land — an area greater than all the occupied lands of the
maritime provinces. Truly the district is a province in itself.

" The climate of the Lake St. John region is said to be that of Montreal ;
there is no doubt of its being superior to that of Quebec. The snow-fall is
certainly less ; protected from easterly snow-storms by the great range of the
Laurentides, which intervene between the lake and the Gulf of St. Lawrence,
the quantity of snow is said to be moderate. In fact, farmers complain that
they do not get good sleigh roads till late in the winter. On the 25th of
September this year, I remarked that the leaves of the trees were very little
tinted, and potato stems were still green. Wheat and all grains ripen and
produce luxuriously. I was assured by a number of farmers that wheat can
be sown up to the 15th June, and some years even as late as the 20th June,
with the certainty of its ripening in the fall.

" The soil is almost universally composed of a rich grey clay, and in the
few places where this is not exposed, and where the surface appears sandy or
of yellow loam, the clay is not more than three or four inches below. The
land seems to be inexhaustible. At Pointe-aux-Trembles I was shown a field
of wheat which had been producing that grain for the last fifteen years
without the application of any manure, and the grain I saw this year was
as fine as any to be found in this district. Truly one is struck with
wonder at the richness of the soil, for I believe there is none richer in
Canada.

" Lake St. John is a magnificent sheet of water abounding in fish, such as
the ounaniche (land-locked salmon), pike, dore, and other smaller kinds, for
which there will be a ready sale in Quebec, when the railway reaches the
shores of the lake.

" Only on a very fine day can the other side of the lake be seen ; at all
other times it conveys the impression of an inland sea. On a calm day its
bosom ' i like a mirror ; but let a stiff north breeze blow for a couple of days,
and white caps will be seen everywhere, and breakers roll on its shores
which would do credit to the Atlantic. Following up the west shore of the
lake, the scenery is very fine. A distant blue point, hardly visible at first,
gradually resolves itself into a long coast-line, dotted with farms, villages,
and churches, reminding one of the St. Lawrence below Montreal. The
eye never tires of the beautiful landscape — on one side fields of wheat,
rising gradually from the border of the lake, on the other the broad expanse
of the lake.

" Potatoes, carrots, and other vegetables yield abundantly and of
immense size.

" Wheat is of course the great test of the soil and climate of any agricultural
country. Let us then compare its production at Lake St. John with the best

Communication with Lake St. John.

>«5

portions of the province, viz., the Eastern Townships, and we find that the census
shows in 1881 : —

Itushels per i,cxxj
uf popiihitioii.

4,800
1,800
2,400
1,600

County.

Population.

IliishcU, Wheat.

Chicoutiini . .

. . 32,400

'04.589

Compton

. . 19,581

34.181

Stanstead . .

• • J5.556

n^i^i

Huntington .

• 15,495

24.378

" The rapid increase of dairy products is very striking. Already there are
in the county of Chicoutitni no less than four cheese factories, and one for the
manufacture of butter. The district bids fair to outstrip any other part of the
province in this important product.

" Farming is carried on on a scale which would not a little surprise our
farmers in the district of Quebec. One farmer in the neighbourhood of Cliicoutimi
has about 400 acres under cultivation, and raised this year some 4,000 bushels
of grain alone — his enormous barns evidence the confidence he has in the
productiveness of his land. A business is carried on in raising live-stock, and
the Saguenay steamers bring a full complement of excellent cattle to the
Quebec market.

" The great, in fact, almost the only drawback, is the want of means of
communication. The cost of cartage from Chicoutimi, the head of navigation,
to Lake St. John is enormous. To St. Felicien, a distance of about 100 miles
(and not the most distant point, for there are settlers twenty miles further in,
and will be a hundred miles still further), it costs from §1 to $150 per 100 lbs.
for cartage. This is a terrible tax, especially on heavy and bulky goods, and
on all produce ; for example, coarse salt, which is worth from 50c. to 6oc. per
bag in Quebec, sells at Hebertville for §i-6o to ?2, at St. Jerome for $325, and
at St. Prime and St. Felicien for $3-50 per bag, and has even sold as high as
$6. Iron and molasses are similarly afiected. Potatoes, when they can be sold
at all, go for 20c. per bushel, and the best butter can be bought there for 15c.
a pound, payable in store pay, on the encouraging basis of prices given above.
In fact, if the soil were not extremely rich, it would not be possible for the
people to live without better means of communication.

" The railway from Quebec will of course change all this, and it is eagerly
looked for by the people. Its advent will give an impetus to the settlement of
this great country, which will exceed anything east of Manitoba."

Yet, in spite of the disadvantage arising from the lack of roads, the problem
of successful settlement here has been solved, and this part of Canada will no
longer consist only of the St. Lawrence valley and its southern adjuncts, but
will have a second line and an interior defence and resource.

So the years pass, and northward and westward the living stream rolls
into new regions, each race finding the place assigned and taking its appointed

y 2

116

CaN.\I>1AN I'll riKKH.

share of tlu' |).>ssL'ssi()ii n.sorvrjl for it from all lime in the ih'stinyof Providence.
The Sai,Micnay, which h,is hitherto formeil the only approach to this fair hack-
coiintry, is a must curious chasm in tlu; land. It is far deeper than the
St. L.iwrence, and llows in its lower course; throuj^h sterile rouiuled hill masses,
often .iliruplly l»roken into precipices i.ioo feet in hei^dit ami descenilin)i[ into
loo fathoujs of water. It has been saiil that this gateway throu|;h the walls of
the L.im-enti.in r.in^^c is lifeh>ss. Mut if the traveller looks not only at tin;
s,iva;;e rocks around, but .it the dark blue tiilt;s. lu; will see their surface often
brok«;n by a while m.iss which appears, and as sudtlenly vanishes. Tlu; white
porpoise is the person guilty of intrusion on this sophisticateil dream of death.
'I"here is aboundinj; lifi; in reality Ih;Iow and al)ove. If this sinijular creature
alone were there, its presence woidd be sufficient to redtcm the landscape; from
this charge aj^ainst it. A most useful animal is tiiis snowy wh.ile. It i> found
only in the ^nilf and in the .S,ij;iu;nay. In tin; shallow bays of the southern
_i,nilf it is c.iuijht anil the oil used for the cnj^ines and ),frease-bo.\es of the trains.
The method ^A' its c.iptiire is ingenious. A row of bushes is planted in the
mud .uross one of tlu- b.iys. At llood-tiile this is invisible, and the while porpoises
swim past it aiul disport themselves nt;ar the shore, tumblinj^^ throuj^h the tiile,
and risinj,' momentarily to " blow." Hut the sea ebbs, and llie row of branches
show their wavin^f twists above tlu" surface, moved by the movement of the
water. The porpoises bej^in to think it lime to retire. lUit just in the path
which their instinct tells them is the w.iy back to the depths there is a pu/./.liiij;
fence of noddinj; trees. What can it mean .-• They j^o near it, and the nearer
they jjo the more they dislike the look of it. So th(;y circle round, ami,
hesitatinj;-, they are lost. There is soon not enoui^h water for them, and when
they are helpless, out come the fishermen and slauj^hter them.

Hut the whole detail of Nature on the Satjuenay is lovely. Of the immense
family of woodpeckers which haunt the Canadian woixls, there are several to be
foiiiul here, and the number of small birtis is threat. Anil for the botanist what
cm be more interestiui;- than the >; ie.it variety of all kinds of northern mosses and
shrubs which clinij to the rocks, and till each ledije ami plateau with venlure .■*
The ileer much apppreciate one species of moss. This branchinj,»-, stiff and
coral-like white kind is the favourite food of the reindeer or cariboo. Wherever
it is to be found this .mim.il is most plentiful. S|)eakin_L|f of tlu; reindeer, is it not
a curious thini;. that, althoui;h it is so universally used amonsji; the natives of
Northern Asia, from Lapland f.ir on towards Hehring's Straits, yet as soon as
those str.iits arc passeil, no native has been known to use them for domestic
purposes.^ .And yet there is so <;ieat a simil.irity between tlu; tribes o( the
.\si.ilio and .American sub-.Arctic zone, that it seems cert.iin the straits formed no
barrier to migration. Must the inference be drawn that that migration took
place before the deer was domesticated, and that the Asiatic use of it was
borrowed by the Laps and others from the practice of which they had knowledt^c,
o\ the employment of the horse and ox by mm livini^ to the south .■'

I'lastwiinl from the Sa^'ucnay, the j^'ulf is well worth a study. As a rule the
northern side is uncultivated and wiki, am! the south is well settled. I'or a yachting
voya^'e no pleasanlcr cruise can bcohtaintil than her*-. Oftlu- settled parts we n<:ed
not now speak so particularly. I'he character of these is the same. The lanils
are often diviiled so much amou),' the f.imilies that each individual has only a very
narrow strip. Potatoes and buckwheat with oats are the chief crops. Of the
imsettled and less invitinj; parts on the north the chief features may soon be
menlioui'd. A ilcnst! ijrowth of under sized forest clothes nu)st of it. Throu^^h
this small lir thicket the rivers run, lull of sea-trout and salmon. An Indian tribe
called the Montaj;nais come here in summer. It is a race which annually
moves from these to the Hudson's Hay shores, and the same people are found
near the Athabasca, in the f.ir north-west. They are a hardy, huntinj,' race,
happy cnoui^h, unless the small-[)().\ j^'cts amonj^ them. Wlun this happens, as in
the case of all savajj^es, the disease t.ikes a specially virulent form, and th(!y die
helplessly. They make little birch canoes ; and one of our party purchased
oue of these for a si;al hunt. Pailillinj^f alon^ and lookinj,' after seals, which are
common, and of which wv. obtained several, it was curious to see how the
terracetl ledj^es with which the shore; coast descemls into the river bottom were
strewn with j^ij^rantic bouUlers of rock. These were probably brou<;ht by the
winter ice. They are of hujje dimensions, often as big as a small house, and at
half tide are only partly submerj^ed. l-'urther out into the stream, the canoe
voyager looks ilown through the clear water and sees the next ledge below him
equally strewn with these enormous blocks, often patched in fantastic forms with
seaweed, looking as though some bear-skin or black robe were thrown over
them. Hefore the d ;ys when lighthouses were planted, as they now are on every
projecting promonto'-y, this was a terrible coast for ships. A whole squadron of
I'^nglish men-of-war and transports lie buried at one place, and even now .ships'
bells and other relics of the disaster are fished up. The e.xcellent arrangement^5
of the Dominion (iovernment have now made the channel as well lighted as are
the streets of any great town.

Pleasant enough places iu summer are these lighthouses. Then there
is plenty to do in trimming the lamps, in keeping watch upon and reporting
the vessels as they steam or sail in or out from the great estuary. The fleet of
fishing schooners from New England, intent upon the mackerel catch, the square-
rigged ships coming and going with timber, the great Transatlantic liners all
glide by, or dot the sea-like expanse with their sails. There is shooting to
be had in the woods also, and one keeper whom we visited had a little
menagerie of tamed porcupines. He had amused himself by hunting these
with dogs. The porcupines take to the trees, and become an easy prey,
provided the man be armed with good gloves. But woe to him, and more
especially to his dogs, should the attack be carelessly made. Although the
Canadian porcupine's quills are not so thickly set over his body, and are not
so strong and handsome as in the case of his southern cousin, yet he has

:ju

if 1

'ii !:

111

i! i'

ii8

Canadian Pictures.

plenty of them, more especially on the lower part of the back, and he knows
well how to use them. Erecting them into a palisade, he can detach them
while he gives his body a jerk towards the enemy, so that the legend has arisen
that he can throw them. The jerk has this effect, and directly the nose and
mouth of the pursuing dog are thus met by a backward jerk of the animal's
rump, the pursuit is effectually stopped, for the dog's head is full of quills, which
give great pain, entering easily into the flesh, and then being very difficult
of extraction, because they are barbed with minute back-set hairs. A gush
of blood follows the extraction of each. When in captivity the porcupine
becomes very tame, eating greedily apples or any vegetable given to him. Our
friend the lighthouse-keeper was very proud of his porcupines, and insisted on
our taking a pair of them away as presents. But his sports in winter he com-
plained of as being much curtailed, and his loneliness often most hard to bear.
Yet he shot partridges among the fir thickets, starting them out of the powdery
dry snow in which they burrow ; and then seal-hunting was often exciting, but
very cold work. Out at the edge of the shore ice was his hunting-ground for
the seals, and in one winter he had managed to secure fifty, which was worth
the trouble, for they brought as a rule a pound a-piece in the Quebec market.

It is noteworthy that with the efficient but cheaply conducted lighthouse
system here, there are only two keepers to each station. It was formerly
the system also in England to have a couple of men only ; but where men
had disappeared, suspicion attached sometimes to tlie survivor, and it was
thought best to have three in each tower. The only case among the light-
keepers I have heard of as suspicious of murder in Canada occurred where
there were three men. A father and son and the father's assistant lived
together. It was winter time, and the station was one on the south shore, near
settlements. All three were out seal shooting, and the assistant arrived home
alone. His story was that the other two, although it was known that they
were better clad than himself, had become benumbed with cold, that he had
tried to assist them, but that they had lain down, and been swept off the ice-raft
on a broken piece. They were never heard of again. The survivor applied
for the appointment held by the father. Suspicion was strong against him, and
he was dismissed the service ; but there was no evidence, and the real cause of
the disappearance of his two companions remained a mystery.

We will now ascend this wide and illuminated channel, and pass Quebec
and go onward through Lake St. Peter, and on until we reach the end of the
navigation for ships of over 1,400 tons, at Montreal. Here is a goodly city. If
the approach to it be made by night, a long line of electric lights marks the
quays. But we would rather come up the stream in day-time, when the rapid
river gleams bright and blue, and the Royal Mount behind the city shows itself
fair and green in its bravery of maple and elm. A pretty island lies moored in
mid-stream, and beyond, the Victoria Tubular Bridge, looking like a mere thin
rope, tightly stretched from the tops of short posts, spans the great distance to

the further bank, seen low and far across the water. Crowds of shipping lie
along the heavily-built stone wharves. Steamers nearly 6,000 tons in burden are
there, and fleets of three-masted sailing ships; but from year to year the
steamers increase in number, and it is evident that the sailing vessels are doomed
in public favour. The most prominent buildings on shore are the two tall square
towers of the Catholic Cathedral, and a great market and customs building — a
minor Somerset House. In almost all the buildings the grey limestone used gives
an air of massive strength and a solidity and stateliness very different from the
temporary appearance of the structures of many American towns. There is
plenty of bustle and activity visible in the streets, and animation prevails in all
the thoroughfares near the water-side. Away from that quarter, where all the

Montreal.

business seems to be transacted, the avenues of trees planted before the houses
denote that greater space can be given, and mure attention paid, to purposes of
adornment and pleasure. Many churches, handsome hotels, and well-built
detached sesidences denote the district inhabited by the more wealthy of the
citizens. Scattered among these are vast structures which are devoted by the
Roman Catholic Church to the use of nuns, who are formed into communities
having important duties assigned to then in the education of children and the
care of the sick. Mdlle. Lajeunesse, known to all the musical world as Madame
Albani, was trained in the largest of these, the immense building known as
the Villa Maria, placed on the site of Lord Elgin's old house of " Monklands."
The memory of a stormy political scene is associated with Lord Elgin's

120

Canadian Pictukks.

residence at Montreal. When the Parliament met there, a Bill had been passed
through the legislature, settling the claims of those who had lost property
during the troubles of the rebellion of 1837-38. It was considered by the
party whose strength lay In Ontario, that too much was done for those who had
recently been insurgents, and they declared that the Governor-General should
not assent to the Bill. Lord Elgin, resolutely abiding by the rule of constitu-
tional government, announced his intention of acting on the advice of his
ministers, and thus rendering the measure an Act of Parliament. He set out
from Monklands with his staff, and was mobbed before entering the House, and
again on leaving, so insolently, that his brother, Frederick Bruce, had his head
cut by one of the stones thrown at the carriage. It was a happy accident that
the Governor-General himself escaped unhurt. As soon as he was gone, the
mob stormed the House of Assembly, and burnt it to the ground. As a loyal
demonstration the tumult was a failure, but it was successful in banishing the
seat of government from the commercial capital.

A seat of learning, well worth visiting, is McGill University, whose
honoured principal. Dr. Dawson, is well known to the men of science of
Eui ope and America. By the generosity of Mr. Redpath, an excellent building
has recently been added as a museum, in which may be studied all that is most
remarkable in the geology of Canada, as well as a collection of the implements,
weapons, and carved pipes of the aborigines. If the visitor wishes to see
what IS supposed to be the oldest created thing preserved for us in the rocks
he may here satisfy his curiosity, and decide for himself whether the coral-like
structure to be distinctly traced in the interesting specimens in the cases is a
mere accident of mineral form, or shows one of the family of marine insects
which has built up a great part of the land we live on. McGill is a /ery
popular university, with an ever-increasing roll of students in all the faculties,
and fortunately also, with an ever-increasing roll of endowments. Besides the
illustrious name of Dawson, those of Logan and Carpenter are connected with it.
Formerly the National Museum of Geology was placed at Montreal, but it has
now been removed to Ottawa, where additions to the collection have been recently
made from Alberta, some great saurians' bones being especially remarkable.

Manufactories flourish at Montreal, but these are necessarily like manufac-
tories elsewhere ; and if the traveller wishes to be amused by a sight very unique
on the American continent, he should attend a fox hunt, and see the Hunt Club.
The members indulge in no idle mockery after a drag, but are successful in per-
suadmg the farmers around to let the chase be one after wild foxes. During
many seasons there are as many foxes killed as there are hunting days. At the
club house are excellent stables and kennels, where horses and hounds enjoy
the sensation of being brushed with rotatory brushes, as though they were New
York or London dandies at a barber's shop. The animals appreciate the luxury,
the hounds especially, scratching at the doors to be let out to get to the brushing
place when the hour comes round.

Winter in Montreal.

121

The winter carnival at Montreal gives enjoyment to thousands of strangers

who come to see the sports. If they choose to have the unwonted s nsaTon of

steaming in a railway train over the ice, they may take passage n he cars

unning across the frozen St. Lawrence to Longeuil. If^hey^desire to see

fairyland on earth, they should be present at a masquerade ball in he great

btr^^ Tr V" "''^' l^' ^^''' ^'^^" '" ^"^ --"^ the palace bui t of^ ce
blocks. If they wish themselves to share in exercise for which much prac ce
IS not necessary, they should join one of the merry parties of the Snow shoe
Club, and clad in coloured blanket coat, blue "Tuque" cap. and mocis sins
tramp away into the country over the bright and poldery sn'ow. con^g home
with their blood tingling from the healthy exhilaration of the keen and tlindess
air. There is no need to fear insufficient accommodation either he eo a
Toronto, for the hotels of both cities are excellent

Almost every town in Canada, and the States, too, at one time or another
has suffered from fire. Montreal, although .so solidly built, has been no excepTon
The quantity of wooden buildings in most of the cities sufficiently accoJt f^r
these conflagrations, and to this cause must be added the heating of the houses
during winter with stoves and long hot-air pipes, making the. temperature very
high and drying up everything in the dwelling. The water supply is too often
insufficient, and the flames have their way. rushing before the wind, flying fron"
roo to roof with the whirling shingles and burning M^S, roaring fvith a
continuous thunder whose monotone is only broken by the louder crash of
falling roofs. Such a conflagration is a grand spectacle, and a melancholy one
I remember one instance where the people had piled their goods in the onlv
comparatively open space available before a church. Articles of all kinds were
heaped on the steps of the great central door, as though near the sanctuary a
refuge might be found ; the alarm bells were pealing from the church towers
and It was not unti! everything around had fallen that the people fled and the
priests rang a last tocsin from the spires only a kw minutes before the whole
fabric descended in ruin.

During the winter, when the river is so well covered with strono- ice that a
railway is laid upon it. and passengers and goods are taken across to the opposite
bank at Longeuil, the operation of the ice harvesting may be watched \s the
summer is warm enough at Montreal, and as its heat through the whole of New
York State and the country to the south is most trying, a vast amount of ice is
required for the markets. A mild winter brings dismay to those who are
accustomed to get a "good ice-cup " from the fine waters of the Hudson But
a sure supply of thick, well-frozen ice may always be obtained from Canada
The harder the winter, and the greater the cold, the better is the quality
of the ice. Men with .saws and ice-cutters may be seen carving square
blocks from the white floor on which they stand and placing them on sledges
for conveyance to the store-houses. In January the Montrealers erect a
wondrous structure of towers, battlements and glistening walls, inclosino-

J 22 Canadian Pictures.

s"^ kxu7 of'^i^cTb^cks. Water poured over the f^^-' ;f ;f:;;jj^,^;;^;
up to the height of a hundred feet, cements uito one sohd mass the translucent
stones o? crystal. The effect of such a buildh^g when lit from wuhm is very

strikins? and beautitul. . . i i>. • •

Handsome as is the city of Montreal, the most populous m the DomuHon
it cannot boast of more than 150.000-a small number compared wi h those of
the great Australian centres of commerce. Yet m Australia there is not half
the total population there is in Canada. Is not this m favour of the northern
colony, showing as it does how large a proportion of her people live on her land,

111

MiiNrMAi IN NMNTtR An let Jam

rather than in her streets ? Montreal has more of the dignity of years than any
white man's settlement, for of old it was Hochelaga, an Indian town, circled
with palisades. Its people grew corn, and made pottery of ^^^ ^^jf J^';^'/"!^
fashioned pipes skilfully enough ; but their art and the.r works, hke ^lose of all d.e
Red races of the far north, were neither beautiful nor enduring. In the Montreal
of to-day art holds her own. There is a good picture galL.y and art school
and several of the citizens have fine houses adorned altogether by Montreal
artisans and artists. We shall probably see towns as wealthy arise in Canada,
for the country is fast gaining in wealth.

Lacrossp:.

133

Tlie game of lacrosse is frequently played at Quebec and Montreal, and
should be witnessed if possible by any traveller desiring to see a peculiar national
pastime.^ It is a game requiring great speed of foot and quickness of eye and
hand. The Cauchnawaga Indians, living above the Lachine Rapids, are adepts at
the sport, but are usually beaten by a well-selected team from the Montreal
clubs. The game, like all those which are the prettiest to see, is played with a
ball. This is made of porous india-rubber, and is rather smaller than a cricket
ball. The players are ranged against
each other in couples throughout the
length of the field, so that wherever
the ball alights there may be two con-
testants for its possession. It must be sent
through two goal posts. No player is
allowed to touch it e.xcept with the lacrosse
stick. This is a strong curved piece of ash
or other tough wood, in shape like a hockey

stick. From the end of the curve at the top a
netting is stretched down towards the handle, so,

that the ball may be caught in it. By giving the

stick a peculiar swing the ball may be sent sling-
fashion from this netting in the curve, and can be

thrown for 150 yards. The attitude of the players

would be fit subjects for sculpture, for both in slinging,

and in running with the ball on the lacrosse, and

in avoiding the pursuit of the opponent, there is

no posture of agility, strength, and fleetness

unrepresented. No game is more exciting

to the spectators, for there is no pause or

stay in the contest. At one moment the

struggle is in front of one goal, and the

next instant the ball has been caught and

hurled away to the ether extremity of the

field, and a fresh set of combatants are

called into action. The teams now consist

of twelve men on each side, but in old days

the Indians played it in numbers, and " o-ood

at game, good at war," was a saying with

them much as it is with our fox-hunters, who call their sport a mimic war.

Football IS our nearest approach to lacrosse, and knocks as hard are given in the
one as m the other game, but the injuries at lacrosse are more likely to be in
the head, as ,n followmg a man who has the ball, strokes are delivered at his
stick which often fall on hands, arms, shoulders, and head. Catlin says that in
his day tnese games afforded the squaws the only opportunity they had of paying

Indian Lacrosse Pi.aykk.

( /•'/■<;/« t'aHm's '■ Aor/h Aiiinhnn IniUaiis.")

124

Canadian Pictures.

1,'ii
Uf

!' i

off their husbands for any injury they had received from them, for it was the
women's privilege on these occasions to be allowed to Hog their husbands into
the ball-Pght, and that lazy or timid men could be seen flogged into the contest
by their down-trodilen women, who laid on the "birch " with a will. No such
incentive is necessary with our Canadian brothers, who are as fond of manly
sports as are the English at home. There is no finer game than lacrosse, now

VICTUKIA HRIDGE.

the national game of Canada, and there are, the

world over, no finer young fellows to engage in such contests than our Canadian

players. • 'v . 1

One of the chief objects of interest at Montreal is the Victoria 1 ubular
Bridge, a wonderful structure, into which the Prince of Wales drove the last
rivet^in 1861, this ceremony being the signal for the opening of the great viaduct
to traffic. The winter cold and summer heat makes the iron-work contract and
expand, and skilful provision is made for this in the building. When the train
passes its cavernous entrance, and speeds on through the dark and sounding

Religious Bodies in the Dominion.

12 =

avenue, glimpses are caught through side openings of the mightv river hurling
Its currents through the abutments of the piers below.

The Roman Catholic Church is dominant in the Province of Quebec where
It possesses much property held from the days of the anciai rc'qimc of France
and contmued under British rule by the acquiescence of the majority as
represented m the local legislature. In other parts of the Dominion it is in
%"!i"°y"y' ^"* everywhere has the independence accorded in Canada to all sects
of Christians. The number of its adherents, according to the last census, was
1,792,982.

The Wesleyans and other Methodists rank next in number. The Wesleyan
Methodists have a General Conference and six provincial conferences, and the
Episcopal Methodists and Primitive Methodists are also considerable bodies.
Ihe Wesleyans number 582,963, the Episcopal Methodists 103,272, the Primitive
Methodists 25,680, and other bodies 3,830, or 715,745 in all. '

Next in numerical importance are the Presbyterians, the greater part of
whom belong to the Canada Presbyterian Church, which has a General Assembly
and five synods. Pew congregations are connected with the Established Church
of Scotland a still smaller represents the Reformed . Presbyterian Ciiurch, and
there are a few Presbyterians not conn(;cted with any of these. The adherents
of the Canada Presbyterian Church number 629.280, those of the Church of
bcotland 32,834, the Reformed 12,945. and the others 1,106, or 676,165 in all

Next in order of relative number is the Church of England, which, in
Canada, constitutes an independent body, having its own episcopate and synods
distinct from those of the mother country. It has nine dioceses, and adherents
to the number of 574,818.

The Baptists number 275,290 ; the Lutheran Church, which is principally
composed of German colonists and their descendants, 46.350, the Concrrejra-
tionalists amount to 26,900. *■'

The whole Protestant population of British North America may thus be
reckoned at 2,436.334. and if to this we add 70,000 belonging to various
denomination not previously mentioned, and a proportion of the 89,000 who are
entered in the census as not having stated their religious belief and of whom it
IS probable the greater part were Protestants, it might not be unfair to rate the
whole Protestant population as somewhat over two millions and a half.

All of the larger Protestant bodies have theological schools, many of them
well equipped and attended by large numbers of students, and all have home
and foreign missionary organisations, many of which are very active and useful
Owing to the special circumstances of Canada, and to the rapid increase of new
settlements, large demands are made on the congregations of the older districts
for missionary work within the Dominion, and for this reason less proportionally
has been done for foreign missions than in some older countries, but there are
nevertheless missionaries sustained by the Canadian Churches in most of the
leading mission fields.

'I I

126

Canadian Pictures.

Much importance is also attached in Canada to the operations of rehgious
societies. The British and Foreign Bible Society has numerous auxiliaries and
branches throughout the Dominion. The Religious Tract Society and Sunday
School Union have also done useful work, and in recent years the operations of
Young Men's Christian Associations have assumed large dimensions, while
Young Women's Associations exist in the more important cities and towns.

As in the United States, Sunday schools are universal, and are conducted
with great spirit and success. Throughout the Dominion, except in a very few
newly-settled districts, Christian worship is maintained in every village and
settlement, and even in the smallest and newest settlements the Sunday school
affords means of religious instruction, and supplements the visits of travelling
missionaries or of the ministers of adjoining centres of population.

" On the whole," writes a friend, " there are few countries where the truths
of the Gospel of Christ are more generally diffused or more accessible, and it
has not been found that the absence of an established Church has tended in any
way to diminish the Christian privileges of the people. On the contrary, there
is an active competition between the different bodies for the possession of new
localities, and a strong spirit of emulation with reference to the financial and
spiritual prosperity of the several churches. There is also a healthy spirit of
mutual helpfulness, or at least of forbearance and toleration between the different
denominations, and where controversies and differences have occurred this has
more usually been among the different schools of thought in the same denomina-
tion than between different denominations.

" There is as yet but little in Canada of open opposition to Christianity or
advocacy of infidelity, and such influences when they exist are most usually
represented by lecturers introduced from without. The churches are well
attended, and desecration of the Sabbath has not assumed very large proportions
even in the cities. It is to be hoped that this state of things may be permanent,
and that the motto of Canada may be, ' Blessed is that naiion whose God is
the Lord.'"

To my friend's remarks I may add that, while the Churches are not
"established" in the English sense by the State, both Protestants and Catholics
have been allowed to retain large endowments.

■ 1

gious
5 and
mday
ns of
while

ucted
y few
2 and
ichool
elling

truths
md it
n any
there
f new
l1 and
irit of
iferent
is has
»mina-

FROM LAKE HURON TO WINNIPEG,

ity or

isually
; well
)rtions
anent,
jod is

-e not
tholics

Ill

n !

'I I'

y,
o

WiNNH'ic; IN 1S75.

CHAPTER VII.

1'"K()M LaKI: Hl'KoN TO Wi.NMl'lXi.

TllK Watkr.wav fkom Montrkai. t,i I.akk SiiTRiuR-AinoMA AM) Mamtoi'i.in- Wi.sMi'i;i:-TiiK Mamtoiu
University- r»K Rkp-Rivir Sktti.krs-A Day's Jocrnky in tiik ^•oRTH■\VI:s^•-^tR. I'kacock I'Dwarh's
Kei'ort on the Nortii-\Vi;st Tin, Canaiiian rAni'ic Kaiiavav.

A LARGE revenue for the exiVencies of public works in Canada is neces-
sary. Where you have a region of such tremendous extent, and an
enterprising people pushing settlement here, there, and everywhere into the
wilderness, and making that .same wilderness into flourishing districts, you will
have demands for roads, telegraphs, and post-offices. We have scarcely space to
show how these demands have been met in Ontario. Ihat province is now so
well filled with people in the districts lying between Erie and Huron that the
communities are self-supporting. Harrie, Collingwood, Newmarket, Brantford,
London, Sarnia, St. Thomas, and Hamilton are names of well-known flourishing
centres whose sons are forming fresh counties in the backwoods with every decadet
But there are always heavy charges, which must be met throughout the whole
country by the National Treasury. Some of these, and forming the principal
items of expense, are great charges for the lighting of coasts, deepening and

making of li;irbours, increase !n the capacity of water channels, the construction
of canals, and the guiding by dams and dykes tile currents of the different
streams.

Nothing gives a better idea of this than the ordinary holiday tourist's
journey, undertaken by so many wlio wish to see part of the States and of
Canada, and who ascend the St. Lawrence and go as fur as Cliicago. As
they approach the shores from the sea, light after light beckons them on
up the wonderful avenue of water, until the great river looks like some wide
street in a well-lighted town, and the ship arrives at Quebec ; but she does
not stay her course, but proceeds onward through the street of light-houses, pass-
ing Lake St. Francis, whose whole central channel has been artificially deepened,
until she arrives at the head of uninterrupted navigation at Montreal. But here
again, if she be a ship under one thousand four hundred tons, her journey need
not be terminated. Rapid waters flash over the rocky ledges in the stream
above, and the continuation of these rapids, which are often almost cascades,
bars her direct progress ; but at each and all of these she finds magnificent
canals constructed, with fourteen feet of water over the sills of all the locks,
and she can proceed until the majestic waters of Lake Ontario allow her again
for 150 miles to proceed upon her course. Then, when the steam of the l*'alls
of Niagara rises above the plains which seem to shut out further advance, she
slips quietly into the Welland Canal, which carries her over thirty miles, until
she passes out again upon the shallowest of the great lakes. Lake Erie,
Onwards for another 140 miles, and then through similar works she reaches
Lake Huron. Through a wonderful archipelago of islands, scattered on the
water on its northern shore, she wends her way, until the old French post,
called the Rapids of St. Mary, is seen upon the low and wooded shores. Here
for the first time in her long inland voyage she has to leave Canadian territory,
for the canal which takes her onwards is built on American ground. A grand
work it is. And now at last she will have arrived at the ultimate stage of her
wanderings, for before her stretch the 400 miles of the deeps of Lake Superior,
600 feet above the level of the sea. It is from thence that vessels take in an
ever-increasing amount of grain from the exhaustless granaries of the interior,
to the markets of Europe. One of the toughest jobs which the Canadian
Pacific Railway has to encounter is to be found in the rock-bound and precipitous
coast on the north of this vast lake. In a year or two the traveller bound
for the West will go by the Canadian Pacific Railway along the upper courses of
the Ottawa River, and, crossing over the wooded ridges, will traverse the
deeply-forested country above Lake Nipissing. He will see nothing of Huron,
for the line is some considerable distance from the Georgian Bay, and he will
only see Lake Superior when nearly one half the distance of its north shore has
been traversed. When he arrives on its shore line he will not again quit it until
he gets to Port Arthur, whence he will strike inland through Keewaytin to reach
Rat Portage and Winnipeg. If he prefer to see some of the northern country.

Al.COMA.

'3'

and yet not to miss th<; v()).ij,'o on .Sii|)<Mior, he will In; able to take tlu; branch
line which, from a point wt:st of Nipissintr, will taki: him to Sault Ste. Marie.

We have [)asse(l qm'ckly, in a sentence or two, over a vast amount of j^'round ;
and we will look a little more in detail at the, as y.-t, scarcely inhabited region
called^ Algoma. Ontario claims it all as within her province. As we have
seen, it is probable that a strong second line of population will exist in Quebec
around Lake St. John and in the valleys of the northern tributaries of the
Ottawa, so it is very satisfactory to hear from good judges of land, that a good
back country extends all along the Upper Ottawa, around Lake Nipissing, and
along I'Vench River— the stream which carries the Nipissing waters into the
Georgian Bay. Protected by the continuation of the Laurentian Range, a great
barrier of old rocks give it some shelter from the north. When one considers
how, ()n the poor soils of New Lngland, remarkable States distinguished for ti.e
physical and mental capacity of the people have arisen, can we doubt that they
who will settle here also will succeed in founding communities able to make
their voice heard in the councils of their nation > It is computed that there are
si.x millions of acres between the Ottawa and the Georgian Bay and south of
Nipissing which may be profitably used. Everywhere, however, the clearing of
the woods must precede cultivation. Men from the Swiss cantons are actively
promoting emigration from their country, and enthusiastically declare that their
wines may be grown here also. There are parts where hard-wood takes the
place of firs ; and although these inner recesses of Canada's old provinces are
only now being opened up, there is no reason to doubt that they will, before
another half-century has passed, be reckoned as containing many counties ecpi.U
in importance to the most favoured in the " Peninsula," which was itself fifty
years ago in the present condition of Kastern Algoma. The early settler's hut.
the shant) of the railway navvy or lumber-man, the trapp^-r Intent on fox,
marten, and beaver, will, before very many years are passed, have given way to
th.e galleried farm-house and the well- cleared fields of the Ontarian farmer.

It is perhaps pleasanter for the emigrant and tourist that the route is not an
all rail one. For twelve dollars the settler may now be conveyed from Quebec
to Winnipeg, and he will find it more agreeable in the warm May weather,
that he has some change during the journey, and that a well-equipped steamer
awaits him at Gravenhurst or Collingwood or Owen Sound, and that he is
thus allowed to inhale the breezes which play over the lakes in summer instead
of being obliged to submit withoi.r a break to the monotony of railway travel.
After threading the very picturesque maze of islands of the bay, he will probably
find that the vessel stops long enough at some point of Manitoulin Isl.uid
to allow him a run on shore. He will probably see fishing-boats at the quay
full of splendid white fish, for i- jrs are sent hence to the southern markets.

The Indians catch these in i,.. strong currents as the fish head up-stream.
Keeping the canoe end on to the rapid, the men watch their chance, anci
with speed and remarkable certainty plunge a big "landing-net" beneath

'• 'i

nil ^^

i i
i s

132

Canadian Picti'res.

Settlkr's Hut.

the canoe over the head
of the fish, and with a
rapid twist the net's
mouth is closed, and the
prize hauled on board,
Manitoulin, called after
Manito, the universal
I ndian name for the Great
Spirit, is one of a group.
The largest has some good
land, and is 100 miles long,
very irregular in shape,
with an estimated area of
1 ,600 square miles. With
a mild winter and cool
summer, its advantages
had already in 1881 at-
tracted 9,000 whites, and
there are large Indian reserves, on which between 2,000 and 3,000 natives —
Ojibbeways — live. Their chiefs keep up much of the old state, and here, for the
first time on the journey westward, does the traveller see pure-blooded Indians.
They have given up their
heathen practices, and if
there be curiosity to see
feasts whose chief delicacy is
the broth made of a white
dog kept for sacrifice, such
customs must be looked for
further on, among their
brothers in Keewaytin. But
here fine men may be seen,
with the true bold type of
features of the Redskin, and
the friendly smoke of tobacco
is still offered to the stranger
from pipes whose stems an;
curiously wreathed and
twisted.

The missionaries have
indeed been singularly suc-
cessful in Manitoulin— a forecast of their success along the whole of the north of
the lakes as soon as the sinews of Christian warfare be provided by the subscrip-
tions of frifMids at home. Among the Anglicans, the Hishop of Algoma, who

Sktti.kr's IIl'l'.

LaKIC Sui'ERIOK.

lives at Sault Ste. Marie. Ontario, has charge of this district, and there are many
Methodist and Presbyterian ministers who may be helped by forwarding money to
their respective head-quarters at Toronto. Garden River and Bruce Mines are
places where halts are usually made by the vessels, and you will always hear from
the hopeful settlers that there is a good prospect of the enlargement of their little
colony, that the farms are doing well ; but as yet the content grows from little,
for lumbering to procure wood for the towns on the American shore, and the
raising of cattle and cereals for their own use, is all that is attempted. About

rth of

MlCllll'ICOTl-X, LaKK SuiiiRloK.
(/•>IVH .1 Sketcli by the Mari/iiis of Lorii,- )

Algoma Mills and Sault Ste. Marie there will
probably be considerable towns, as they are on the
straightest road from east to west. The general
characteristics of the scenery along this route, are
the loveliness of the wooded islands, the shores
low and rough and wooded, and northward the
lower ridges of the hills, which stretch unbrokenly
from Nepigon to Quebec. The Americans have
a military post at "the Sault," and after passing this place, Michipicoten
Island, of which the accompanying engraving gives an idea, is the first land
seen on Superior. But if it can be managed, the captain of the steamer should
be prevailed upon to make a slight change in the course, in order that the fine
cliffs of Nepigon Straits may be seen. There the columnar basalts, which are
very remarkable further on, are first observed. The rivers falling into the
bay are full of excellent trout, and no better fishing can be had. From a point
not far from this is the shortest road to James's Bay, at the head of Hudson's

« ^ ii

"ti

134

Canadian Pictures.

Bay. This will, however, not be the way by which that outlet for grain will be
reached by rail. The mountain barriers are too formidable. From Winnipeg
Lake by the Nelson River there is no such obstruction, the country being very
flat, and it may be confidently expected that a line will put the prairie country
into communication with the gulf. The basaU and trap hills which form so
grand a gateway to Nepigon rise to still greater heights, and are seen in more
striking forms where they are broken into islands guarding Port Arthur.
Whoever has seen the Treshnish group of the Hebrides and the headlands
of Mull, can form some idea of the appearance of Thunder Cape and its sister
island. The Canadian trap formations are grander in scale, but they can
show no such perfect gem of basaltic structure as Staffa.

The copper mines around Lake Superior are the richest in the world, and
have every kind of that ore. The best is that in which the copper is not in great
masses of pure metal, for when found in this state it is most difficult to work,
and the expense of labour greatly diminishes the value. At Michipicoten
Island, and other places on the north shore, the percentage of ore is very large,
but the stuff is procured in easily wrought rock. The races who in old days
inhabited this country knew of the mines and worked in their rude fashion at
them. Ancient shafts exist, and in these rude stone hammers, marked round
the centre with a groove for the reception of the thong which attached them to
a handle, are found. But the metal when procured was beaten only into rude
plates, or used for roughly shaped vessels.

It seems that silver was not thought worth getting. It does not shine in
gold-like masses as does the copper when cut, or seen in the many-coloured
beauty of green, purple, bronze, or yellow in the surfaces exposed to the action
of the atmosphere. Yet silver, as shown in such ore as that procured from spots
near the Kaministiquia River, is sufficiently striking in appearance. Often it
exists in branch-like threads or strings of pure metal which, ductile and firm,
cling like hemp strands to the portion of rock which has been broken off.
Close to Port Arthur is a tiny islet called Silver Island. Before it was known
as rich in silver some men bathing from its scanty ledges picked up a small piece
of ore. The discovery became known, and a few gentlemen at Montreal formed
a company to explore the place. It became necessary to have some crib-work
put up to continue operations. Four of the gentlemen demurred to the expense,
and thought the cost would not pay. One only remonstrated against this view,
and against the proposal to get rid of the whole concern by a sale. He was
over-ruled, and some Americans bought the property. In less than twelve
months not only was the additional space gained by the crib-work on which to
plant engines, houses, &c., paid for, but rich lodes had been struck and a small
fortune had already been made. The further they dug, the richer was the
silver. It came up in moss-like branches running through a white stone; it was
found in blocks of grey ore, and in thick sheets of solid silver, so that it was
often worth from 12,000 to 20,000 dollars per ton. Bitterly did the Montrealcrs

Scenes on the Lakes.

135

bewail their own want of confidence ; but it was too late. Silver Island had
become the most noted mine of the lakes, but it was no longer theirs !

Beautiful was the old canoe route through Keewaytin to the Lake of the
Woods. It was that taken by Sir Garnet Wolseley's expedition. The
Kaministiquia River is famous for some fine falls, and each of the myriad lakes
o Keewaytin is an enchanted spot. Almost all of them are ornamented with
islets, on whose breasts the wood, untouched by the fires which have too often
deso ated the forest on the lake sides, remains in its first loveliness. From lake
to lake the canoe is carried, and as it is again launched on another piece of clear
water, time is given to watch the innumerable host of lilies encamped on the

\Vl.NNlI'li(; AS IT WAS.

Still surface of the inlets, the blaze of generous sunlight on the broad fringes of
white pine, or the red stems of those called Norwegian. Often as the canoes
proceed the voyager threads passages so narrow that the boughs almost meet
overhead, and the bushes, mosses and lichens on the ripple-worn rocks, sprinkled
with bright flowers, are so close that each may be distinctly recognised. A night-
camp among such scenes, when the tawny birch-bark flotilla just floats with the
painted prows resting on clean sands, and the fire's glow falls on the nearer pines
and firs, and a clear moon shows the more distant forest slopes backed by some
huge crag, remains in the memory as a joy for ever.

'36

Canadian Picturks.

.i::l!

These canoe voyages are only memories, for nowadays at Port
Arthur we enter the railway cars, and after passing for 400 miles through
a wooded and rocky region we suddenly emerge upon the endless meadows
of Manitoba. For miles and miles we now see the long grasses wave, and
out of the treeless land rise the spires of the churches of the new city of
Winnipeg. As we approach this creation of the last half-dozen years we cross
a river which, like the Tiber at Rome, rolls rapidly in a turbid, tawny flood.
We see that it is joined within the limits of the city by another stream, not
quite so large but equally muddy. These are the Red River of the north and
the Assiniboine. New cities are all much alike in general plan on this continent.
There are the same very wide str'>ets, showing how prodigal the community
may be of land. There are the same rough buildings of boards, with the front
run up in a square shape, hiding the gable behind, which it would be r ich the

prettier thing to show,
but it is hidden because
the square boarded
front gives more room
for some largely written
name or advertisement.
There are the same pre-
tentious, and some-
times very handsome
" blocks," where a
wealthy firm or an
enterprising speculator
has put his capital into
brick, stone, and lime.
There are the same
variety of hotels, some
great, some small, but
all furnished with the largest bar-room and entrance hall they can afford to have.
There is the same wooden " side-walk " along both sides of the street, the same
car-tramway on the roadway, the same flight of light springy gigs or buggies, with
their tall thin-spoked wheels, making it necessary to climb over the spider work
before the passenger can be seated in the vehicle. There is the same lumbering
along the highways o( loaded van and waggon.

But two peculiarities Winnipeg has, the one a remnant of bygone days, the
other a proof of how her citizens can well use the latest result of tolerance and
culture. I allude to the Red River cart, and the Manitoba University. Let
us look, first, at the cart. It is a very rough structure, but ingeniously made, for
its wheels are put together without one piece of iron. There is neither nail nor
metal tire. The thing creaks horribly, but answers its purpose well. Caravans
of these conveyances have for the last thirty years taken the half-breed's goods

C^EAl'-

Kk.d-Kivkk Cakt.

Education- and Farming in Manitoba.

^37

by the prairie trails to all parts of the great valleys, and often occupy ninety
days in getting to Edmonton.

Let us look, secondly, at an institution whose wheels, we hope, will never
creak. This is the university. The governing body comprises Anglicans,
Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Wesleyans, Baptists, Methodists. Each
religious communion has its own college, and they are all affiliated to the
university in this, that the students all get their degrees through examinations
approved by the heads of these colleges. The system has as yet worked
admirably. It approximates to the plan adopted by the University of London,
and is well worthy of the close attention of the stranger to Winnipeg. It is the
most striking product of this productive land. If this institution last, as all
must hope that it will last, the combination of the various religious bodies will
prove most effective for the purpose of securing united contributions for the
funds, without which it is impossible to secure the services of good professors.
The fault in many cases of the university system in Canada is that the degree-
giving establishment is supported only by the co-religionists of its founders, and
they in most places cannot afford to give large endowments. Some earnest,
eloquent, and influential man arises among the Anglicans or other religious
community. He succeeds in obtaining enough to start a college ; and all must
be glad that he does so. But his establishment is likely, unless it has relation to
others, to survive his life as a comparatively weak institution, having often the
right, through provincial legislative sanction, to confer degrees, but having, owing
to the want of funds, a band of instructors whose attainments are necessarily
commonplace. Higher education suffers from this. If the Manitoba model
were generally followed, a long step would be taken towards the improvement
of the universities. The provision for primary and generally for secondary
schools is excellent throughout the whole country, and in the North-West
one-eighteenth of all the land was originally set apart for school purposes."

Many speak as though the experience of ftirming in the province of
Manitoba dated only from yesterday, but this is not the case, for Lord Selkirk
many years ago brought in a colony consisting of Scotchmen from his
estates in the north, taking them by Hudson's Bay up the Nelson River to
Lake Winnipeg, and then settling them not far from where the present city
stands (then called Fort Garry), at a place named Selkirk. It is curious how
few of the members of that force under Sir Garnet Wolseley which put down the
Half-breed insurrection in 1870 seem to have been sufficiently impressed by the
experience of the Selkirk settlers, for the soldiers were not desirous to take up
the land allotment which was offered to every member of the expeditionary
corps. Yet if they had remembered how the early pioneers had told them that
the wheat grown on their lands came to a total of about thirty bushels per acre
in each year, and that these crops were raised gi.'ing the land a time of rest
every fifth year only ; if they could have realised within how short a time those
places which ihey themselves had reached with so much toil by march and canoe

138

Canadian Pictures.

i:i

portage through woods and endless lakes, would not only be reached by railways,
but become great railroad centres, they would not so carelessly have thrown
away their chance of making a fortune. When I was at Winnipeg in 1881 the
city had scarcely 10,000 people ; now it has 30,000. The streets are full of life.
Excellent shops, large warehouses, and some handsome churches have been
erected. The great want is a good pavement, for the soil is a tenacious black
stuff which clogs and sticks to everything it touches after rain. Fortunately
it soon dries, and in the neighbourhood of the town the prairie sod gives good
surface for anything but heavy traffic.

To the north and north-west are the lakes of Winnipeg and Manitoba,
both great inland seas, the first of which is connected by the Nelson River
with Hudson's Bay. It is proposed to export wheat during the short season
of autumn, when the straits which give access to the bay are not full of ice.
The time during which navigation is certain must be very limited, but it is
possible that, as in the case of Archangel, it may be worth while to run
steamers to Port Churchill, to carry away grain brought thither by rail.
Around Lake Manitoba there is plenty of timber in forests, which stretch
thence in a wide arch to the forks of the Saskatchewan, and thence north-
ward until the pine and fir belts descend again, in the neighbourhood of
Edmonton, to fill the valleys of the Rocky Mountains. But we arc wanderino-
in our survey too far afield, and for the present let us see how some men
who are not of our race, and who entered the country with but few of the
appliances brought or bought at once by the English, Scotch, or Canadian
settler, have found a prosperous home in the plains of the Red River. You
see neatly-made houses covered with a heavy thatch along the railway line
to the south, homesteads which are evidently occupied by farmers in com-
fortable circumstances, who have their cow-byres and other outhouses neatly
arranged in order near their dwellings. On a pole in the centre of the rustic
courtyard hangs a bell, which is placed to summon the labourers from the
fields for the noonday meal, or homeward when work is over for the day. If
you go to their houses you will be hospitably welcomed, but the speech you
hear is not your own ; it is German, and yet these men are not Germans.

Their history is a remarkable one. Their ancestors lived under the Great
Frederick in Brandenburg, in Pomerania. They had taken to the tenets of one
Simon Menno, who preached, as did the great Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania,
that war is a crime. He went further, for he would not suffer his people to
take arms in their hands even for the purposes of civil order. The sect increased,
but you may imagine how distasteful these maxims were to the cast-iron military
rule of the conquering Frederick. He would have none of them. What was
the use of a man who would not even become a policeman .'* And so away
from home and kindred they had to go, and finding in the Emperor Paul of
Russia a man who could value them as good agriculturists, and who invited
them as such to his Courland provinces, they settled down as subjects of the

The Mennonitks.

Czar. But as their numbers increased so did also the mih-tary systems of the
Great Powers ; and where every man must be a soldier, to refuse to wear the
uniform of the country is to be a neglecter of the first duty of a citizen. So
thought the Russian Government, and again these people were obliged to move
this time across the whole width of European Russia to the shores of the Sea
of Azov, near the Crimea, where they were again allowed to settle upon lands
m what at that time was but little better than a Tartar wilderness. Here a^ain
they throve and tilled and " replenished the earth," till " the desert blossomed
like the rose. In recent times, however, the demand for military service in
Russia determined the Mennonites-such is the name of this sect-io send
pioneer colonists to make a greater journey than any heretofore accomplished-
for this time they were to cross Europe and the ocean and half the continent'
of America and find freedom beneath the flags of the kindred peoples who have
fallen equal heirs to the grand liberty of the Far West. Some settled in
Minnesota and some in Manitoba. Where the land on which any of their
villages had been built needed draining they, with true German energy and
thoroughness and true Russian perseverance, set about the work ; and nowher'-
wil you see better cared for settlements, though perhaps on rather a humble
scale, than among the Mennonites.

Most comfortable are the interiors of their houses, though the floor
IS often only the hard-pressed earth ; but there is a cleanliness about walls
floor, and furniture, which tells of the presence of an excellent housewife'
China m a corner cupboard, and books in another, add to the appearance of
the apartment. As the wood was scarce a few years ago where they were
they largely used straw as fuel, and 1 was assured by one of the men. who like
all his neighbours spoke excellent German, that they had never sufibred in the
east from any winter cold, having with a very little wood and much straw as
luel obtained more heat than they wanted in the house. Althouc^h subject to
and willing to obey, the laws of the Dominion of Canada, there" is practicallv
no occasion on which these are enforced amongst them, for they have their own
system of justice. A religious and God-fearing people, crime is rare with them,
and when it occurs it is dealt with amongst themselves. The roads they have
made from yil age to village, and their whole system of rural economy, are
excellent, and they form by far the most satisfactory instance of any a<rare/ation
m one place of men belonging to a foreign race. Their villages generally
number from thirty to forty families, and it is their invariable custom on securincr
heir lands to hold a council, at which they decide what portions of all the lands
belonging to each head of a family are best adapted to the growth of wheat
potatoes, and tne various other crops. J3y this method all the wheat is grown in
one large tract, and so also with the potatoes, corn, and other crops-ip s^.ort the
land IS treated as being the property of the community rather than of' the
individual Out of this huge wheat-field, or whatever crop it may be. each familv
IS assigned one long strip, to be cultivated by that particular family ; and when the-

r 2

* ill!

140

Canadian I'ici tki's.

Hi
II:

harvest is rcuipiid the whole result is " pooled," and divided ecjually between the
families comprising the community. Their cattle also are all herded in common
in one luiife pastiiraj^e by a herdswoman, who is one of the two persons to whom
these curious pe()[)le pay a salary, tlie bishop, or elder of the village, being the
other. In the summer all hands, the bishop anil the children included, engage
in the farm work. Tluse latter are always dressed in clothes which, being of
the exact pattern, even to the hats and bonnets, of those worn by their elders,
give them a very grotescjue appearance, es[)ecia]ly in the case of the babies. Of
course in a country with such am[)le space as the North-West, where, if they
become crowded in one part they have only to move on and occupy another,
such a system may be pursued with far less evil occurring from subdivision than
in a little country largely peopled, as is the case with many a European land.
There is another foreign colony, consisting of Icelanders, who, however, have
not had at home the experience which makes men successful in husbandry ;
the gi' is, however, make excellent servants, and many of them are now distributed
through dm households of Winnipeg in that capacity.

In 1 88 1 I passed through two towns, one called Portage la Prairie, the
other Brandon, which have now 3,000 and 5,000 people, but then there were
only 200 to 300 in each, if so many. A broken band of Sioux at the iirst
named came hideously smeared with crimson and yellow ochre, and used
insolent language on the suliject of imaginary grievances. Only ten years ago
these fellows would come uninvited intt) houses at P'ori Garry. Now they are
heard of as little as are the remnants of the Iroquois in Western Ontario.

As there is virtue in many witnesses, let me cull from the journal of my
friend, Dr. McGregor, who was with me in 188 i, a note of one day's journey in
this part of the North West.

" We camped on the banks of the Little Saskatchewan (this stream has no
relation to its big brother of the north) on the iith August. We were up at
four, and off before six in a heavy showc- of rain, the only rain we had yet seen.
The road lay up a gentle ascent, through knotty or hum|)y ground, on to a rich
rolling land, with bogs or muskegs in the hollows. .Stopped at the settlement of
D. U. from Huron. Has 960 acres of what he thinks tiie finest land in the
world. He says that labouring men coming here will get work the whole year
without difticulty, but the best class to come is the small farmer who has a little
means. ' Send us as many Scotch farmers as possible,' he says ; ' we will get
on with them.' This is the universal testimony. 1 have inquired particularly
what money a man should have clear on arrival to get on comfortably. I find
that about /loo is the least sum they mention. Some have stated it lower than
that. Of course with nothing, or next to nothing, a willing workman will get on
here, but it will be a hard struggle tor some years. The best time for coming is
the month of June. The roads are clear. There is time to look about for land,
to make hay, to break up a few acres against spring, to build a house (which is
there a verv humble aftair), and to make ready against winter. Mr. St. [., who

!«

. ii

Climatm ami l''i:kTii.nv.

•4'

lias 1,280 acres, says that the soil is a clay loam six feet thick, and th;>t you can
dig ten feet without a pick. The snow is not more than one foot thick. The
climate is ilry and bracinjr in winter ; not a drop of rain falls from October to
March. He says that labourers can get $25 to $30 a month and board, and
can work at lumber in winter. Servant girls who know dairy work are in great
demand, and get ^lo a month and board. There is no summer frost. We
drove this day for hours through a country of marvellous fertility, not an acre of
which was tilled. Hour after hour the circle of the great plain keeps widening

WiNNlPKi; IN 1S82.

around, far advancing as you advance. There seem to be hay fields here
enough to supply the world. At twelve noon the barometer marked 400 feet
above Rapid City. Everywhere we see, where the grass is especially green, the
process by which the soil was made. Silt forms on the surface of the waters in
the hollows, grass begins to grow, and gradually a deep black soil is formed.
In loassing the gullies the black soil sticks to the wheels like glue. Here, as
elsewhere, a notable feature of the prairies, in striking contrast with all I have

14a

Canadian Pictures.

seen of the forest, is the abundance of bird life. The loneliness of the woods is
terrible, but here great buzzards and hawks are almost never out of si^ht. Thcv
tell their own tale. We come almost daily across bittern, snipe, widgcc n. teal of
two vanct.e. many kinds of duck, prairie hen or sharp-tailed grouse, plovers,
and coot. 1 ijcre arc great llucks of a species of starling. T\v, gopher, or
ground squ.rre. is met with every day. Scarcely a lake we pass but has the
dom<:-shapecl dwelling of the musk rat. of which 70,000 skins were delivered
lasc yea. at Carleton Fort alone. The flesh is eaten by the Indians, and the
skins often form the ' sealskin ' coats of ladies in London and Pans At i "o
we were passing Salt Lake, a beautiful sheet of water, but alkaline. These

y/^*^^
•-./^w^^"!?^^

A Farm in the North-West.

alkaline lakes are of frequent
occurrence, the white salt
showing in the soil. At 3,
we camped at Shoal Lake.

vege-

, , Such grass, such

tables, such potatoes, I have never seen as those in a garden at that place ;— the
soil a black loam as friable as sand,

"The settlers came to see the governor. I have their names, but it is
enough to say that tlieir statements tallied exactly with those already recorded
One of them gave thirty-five bushels of wheat to the acre, seventy-five of oats
and said that the potatoes were an enormous crop. I have learned that hail-
storms, though very limited in their range, were very destructive. They are
one of the worst evils that settlers have to contend with. I could not find any
who had suffered from locusts. Next day found us in a ro.iing plain, the view
m all directions interrupted by clumps of poplar. M. R.. a typical farmer

r
c

f(
I

tl
C

Fair Prospkcts and Rmmvav PcuORicssroN.

143

had come from Ontario fourteen months before. He came in June ; broke in
twelve acres from the sod. and cifrluf-en in the sprin- all now under crop •
expects thirty bushels of wheat and seventy of oats from this new-turned land'
I measured his oats, and they had strong straw four and a half feet high, with
wcll-niled ears. His house, and especially steading, which was formcd^'of logs
piled one on the other, and covered with his winter store of hay, were certainly
plain enough. But they served his purpose, and his house was commodious
enough to be used as a sort of run. He built them both with his own hands
at a cost of .$30. He gets water at twelve feet, likes the climate, and thinks
It better than that of Ontario. He says that the heights are warmer and more
fertile than the hollows. '1 he settler can dispose of ah' the grain he grows
for seed to the new-comer. In tlie afternoon we descended to the green and
beautiful valley of the Birtle, whose opposite slopes were indented with wooded
ravines. Some twenty houses nestling sweetly .,t the bottom of the long-drawn
vale, which is sixty miles in length, constitute the little village, a year and a
half old, with a mayor, a Presbyterian minister, a hotel, a general store, and
a— town house. There were all the inhabitants assembled with an address
and heartily singing ' God save the Queen '—a well-dressed company of ladies
and gentlemen, a clear-Howing river passing their doors, and they themselves
rejoicing in an unbounded hope in the future greatness of Canada, and Birtle
I am not sure that my eyes ever looked on a fairer land than that on which we
gazed soon after leaving these friends. I was on the edge of a vast plateau.
The ground sloped evenly and gently down for about two miles to the rtssini-
boine, 350 feet below, and on the high bank overhanging it were the white
houses of Fort Ellice. A long, dark belt of wood, lost on either hand in the
distance, marked the course of the river; while beyond it there stretched what
looked like the finest plain in England, a light and sunny land, that has been
waiting through all these long centuries to bless men with its wealth. There
was the river which had cut that deep, broad groove for itself out of the level
prairie, a tangle of ash, elm, and maple growing on its banks. And there in
the very heart of this lone land was a three-decked, stern-wheeled steamer of
260 tons, which runs regularly from April to November, but takes a week to
accomplish the 800 miles of tortuous watercourse between this and Winnipeg."
Lines are being constructed to the north-west and south-west, and it is
manifest that there is plenty of room, and a necessity for more railroads, for it is
only by means of them that the farmers can bring their grain to market. The
quickness with which even the least experienced in prairfe farming can provide
for himself is well illustrated in the case of the Highland crofters sent out in
1883 by Lady Cathcart. Mr. Peacock Edwards was requested by her to visit
them, and this is the account he gave by my request to a great meetino- at
Glasgow, of his impressions of the country and of the condition of the settlers:—
"I am satisfied, from personal observation, that a technical knowledge of
farming, however desirable, is not absolutely necessary for new settlers in the

144

Canadian Pktuues,

ill

■ t

north-west. Tlip soil is so rich that it only requirt-s to bo scratched and the
seed sown to yield an abundant harvest. In the ccnirse of my travels I met
with men, formerly occupied in a variety of trades and professions, successfully
carrying on farming operations. Among others I met a gentleman who had
been in a bank at Sheffield, and after visiting South Africa, had ultimately
settled in the north-west, and was successfully working a farm there with his
own hands. Another, who had been a Methodist clergyman for twenty-one
years in Ontario, had come up with his sons, and we found them reaping a fine
crop of wheat on the farm on which they had settled. Another was an engineer
who had not succeeded in business, another a coffee planter from Ceylon, and,
indeed, men who had been in almost every trade you could mention — all
successfully carrying on farms, contented with their lot, and full of hope for the
future. So that, in order to succeed in the north-west, a practical knowledge of
farming, such as is required in this country, is not at all necessary. No fertilisers
are used, and, consequently, the farmer has not to balance nicely the relative
values of dissolved bones and guano, nor has he a manure merchant's bill to
meet when he sends his wheat to market. Machinery has been brought to such
a degree of perfection that manual labour is reduced to a minimum. Everywhere
the self-binding reaper is in use, and the plough has a raised seat, on which a
man or boy is placed, driving it like a waggon team. I have seen a good deal
of the practical operations of farming in this country, both on large and small
holdings, and I can confidently assert, from personal knowledge, that the labour
of the farmer in Canada is much loss arduous than in this country. Canada thus
offers a comfortable home and an assured livelihood not only to those of the
agricultural classes who cannot gain a living here, but also to the unemployed
mechanics and labourers in our great cities, who, as I have said, can successfully
undertake farming without previous experience, and who only require to cross
thvi Atlantic to find themselves prosperous members of a rising community in
this Land of Promise.

"This leads me to the important question, what means should each family
or individual contemplating a move to Canada possess ? I observed that
Lord Lome, in his lecture at Birmingham, stated that a single man should
have from /50 to ^100, exclusive of the cost of journey ; and if married, from
/2C0 or ;^250 to /"soo; and I quite agree that such means would be suffi-
cient, and insure the settlers immediate comfort and success, though I think
he, speaking with official reserve and caution, probably stated the figures at a
higher sum than is absolutely necessary. In carrying out the practical details
of Lady Cathcart's colonisation scheme, I found that the average expense of
transmitting a family of five (including infants) from Glasgow to Winnipeg was
;^22, being £4 Ss. per head, and with ^100 additional to start with on the free
homestead farms, I believe each family could make a very fair start, though it
certainly would be better if they had from ;^ 150 to / 200 to commence with.
In regard to a single man I should say ^50, exclusive of the cost of journey,

A N()i<Tii-VV^:.sT Skttlkmknt.

'45

should b(' suHiciciU. Mc can alwiiys hnil (Miiploymnnt at hij^rh wages, and has
not the same n^jcessity for at once t:nlerinjr upon a honH-stcad. Durinj:r my
travels throujrh the country, I met with numerous instances of farmers now well
to do who had settled on the homesteads with practically nothin,<,r ; but, in order
to start comfortably, I should say /loo in addition to the expense of passage out
to be very desirable for an ordinary family." The new Canadian route by the
lakes is cheaper than that mentioned here, for Lady Cathcart's people went
via Chicago.

" The correctness of these figures has been proved by actual e.xperience.
Lady Cathcart advanced to each of the families that left her estates in spring
the sum of /-loo to enable them to start in Canada, and that sum, with the little
they possessed of their own, has been sufficient to enable them to settle in the
north-west in comfort and independence, and with an assurance of prosperity.
I saw sixty of these jjeople leave the Hroomielaw one misty April morning in
the present year, with careworn looks that told of a hard struggle for existence
in the crowded island homes they had left ; and I again saw them five months
afterwards in their new homes in the north-west of Canada, and I could not have
believed the change, had I not seen it. There we found them located in a
fertile and beautiful country, raised at once into the position of considerable
proprietors, and though it was the end of May before they settled on their
locations, they were already surrounded by fine crops ripening to harvest. I
shall never forget the scene as I approached this new settlement, on a bright,
sunny morning. It resembled a gentleman's park in this country, with orna-
mental clumps of i)lantations, and lakelets here and there interspersed through
the landscape, as if laid out by a skilful landscape gardener, with the temporary
turf houses of the settlers under the shelter of some wood, and the more perma-
nent dwelling-houses in the course of erection, A considerable extent of ground
was already under cultivation, and potatoes planted on the 4th of June were ready
for use in seven weeks and four days thereafter, excellent alike in quantity and
quality. The careworn expression these settlers had when I saw them here
was changed for one of bright, cheerful contentment, and they were full of grati-
tude to Lady Cathcart for this great change for the better in their condition.
Here I may say that the Celtic settlers showed the greatest energy, and told us
they could do double the amount of work in their new homes that they could in
the old country, and with less sense of fatigue. This may be attributed mainly
to the superior climate ; the sense that they were working on their own lands
had probably something to do with it also."

In speaking of the crops harvested, I put the amount modestly at twenty
bushels of wheat to the acre— that is, speaking of good land. Even this, which is
often below the mark, sounds a large quantity, but from the new soils of Canada it
has been frequently won. It is now only on virgin ground that, as a rule, such
an amount of produce can be expected. But there are tracts where an even
greater yield can be had from dry soils to which irrigation can be applied— a

i,|6

Canadian I'ictires.

;ii'

system used in some places in British Columbia. A <;reatcr yield has also fre-
quently been won from the Red River Valley of Manitoba. In that rich loam,
often four, five, and six feet in depth, very heavy crops have been regularly raised,
the wheat producing m-ore bread for its weight than any other. " Mr. Ogilvie,
an extensive miller in Winnipeg," so says Mr. Carling, postmaster-general, to me
in a recent letter, " declares that a barrel of Manitoba flour, made from hard fyfe
wheat, will make four loaves of four pounds each more than can be made out of
a barrel of Ontario flour," and he adds, " very much better bread." He also
says that the difference from Hour made of good Canadian spring or red winter
wheat would be from two to three loaves more per barrel in favour of that grown
in Manitoba. In the district round Selkirk the land has been annually cropped
with wheat, leaving it alone every fifth year. The cultivation has thus needed no
manure. All kinds of roots attain to a wonderful size. As a rule, indeed, agri-
culture, both in the States and in Canada, has up to within the last few years been
conducted on the system of ' a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.' Men,
knowing that they could proceed to other lands, should their own give out in fer-
tility, have cropped recklessly and regardless of the waste of the properties
inherent in the land. There is many a gigantic tract in the States whose wheat-
bearing capacities have not, indeed, been worked out, but which have been
seriously diminished. This has tended to increase the westward movement
amongst farmers. In Canada, throughout the old provinces, greatly increased
attention has been given to the manuring and treatment of farms, and the crop of
wheat, although by no means so heavy as when the land was first cleared, is still
very good. At the same time, no man must expect the gigantic crops procurable
from the newly-broken prairie to be his if he takes possession of an old farm.
But he has compensating advantages if he settles in Old Canada, for he has that
which he cannot find except in a long civilised country — that is, a continuation of
home life and traditions in his surroundings. In the north-west, rich as is the
provision now made for education, he cannot hope to find so fiilly developed
and admirable a system of school instruction for his children as that which
prevails in the older provinces ; he cannot, except in the newly-founded towns,
find the ministrations of the Church so amply provided for as he can in
countries east of the shores of Lake Huron. It cannot be too often repeated
that both in the east and the west of Canada a comfortable living can be had
for a farmer who desires to live on his own land, and has ^200 to ^'500 to spend
in procuring outfit. Men can go with only a few pounds, and, hiring themselves
to farmers, may in time win enough to buy an outfit for a farm for themselves.
The great point in conducting such settlements as Lady Cathcari's, is to have all
arranged beforehand \vh«re you wish your friends to go. Don't let them remain
at Winnipeg or elsewhere wasting their substance in looking round them. If you
wish to help any man with ^100 to, go, sec that he is told where to go at once,
so that he finds his land, and if possible a small frame house and store ready
waiting for him. There are many who have lost what they brought out because

i ■;

Uniformity and Diversity oi Landscape.

1 47

^-.ey were uncertain where to go. Good local guidance is aTeTe^^lijTY^
now get pk.nty of land from several companies, but the Government lands are as

fortune' '^''' "'' ^"' '"^ °"' ^"''^'"" '^^' ^^ ^'" '•^P'^'y '"^ke a

Both south of the Pacific Railway and to the north there is plenty of land

or^V'^n VTJ P"'"'' ^T ''^' ''° ^'^^^^ °f Government land to be had
or $2 to other lands g.ven at higher rates by other owners. The flat landscape
IS by no means always to be met with. Within the bounds of the province there
IS a considerable diversity. Sometimes the poplar woods grow pretty thickly

An Ixijian LoDci; in the North-West.

In other localities there are plains twenty miles in width without them

Some imes oak and a kind of maple are found, and about Turtle 122

and louchwood Hills the ground is much broken, and, for those who loT

ariety of greater attraction. Indeed, the sameness of the landscape is oftin

he only compla.nt of those who have gone from the old provinces^ although

obe sure, others maybe heard lamenting that there is not more society and

better opportunities for clu.rch. school and market. These are evils inseplrrble

from all i.rst settlement : they do not much affect the young man, and rvvHi

U 2

ai r* "" —

,;.liii

148

Canadian Pictures.

( ;

I ' ; 'ii:i

^llil

dwell in conversation only on the superiority of the crops he has to those he
remembers on his father's farm.

We will move on westward, and take the line ot the Canadian Pacific
Railway. Excellently laid over flat or rolling prairie, a train can proceed
at almost any speed ; but as we proceed along the solidly-laid track we can
take some notes. As we again take the " cars " and until we reach the
Assiniboine, on the frontiers of the province of Manitoba, we see on our
horizon-line, and usually nearer to us, clumps and bands of poplar wood.
There are also many lakes and lakelets — pretty ponds, for few are so large
as to be worthy of the name of lake ; ponds where numerous wild fowl
seem to be for ever swimming about among the rich reeds on the margin,
ponds around which deep rank grass rises higher than anywhere else on
the level summer meadows. There is many a tract where the meadow
appears still untouched by the hand of man ; yet it has long ago, depend
upon it, been bought, and bought for a good round sum, and is now being
held for a further advance in price. Why should a further advance be
expected ? The answer is simple. You need only look north, east, south,
and west, and everywhere you will see the wooden-planked house of the
emigrant. Often a great patch of yellow wheat-field is bowing in the breezes ;
each train along the line you are following has, during the summer months,
been carrying hundreds into Winnipeg, and hundreds away from Winnipeg
to the west.

Hundreds more have taken the trails over the prairie for points to which
railway companies are already directing their attention, and to which lines are
already projected or in process of completion. The arrival of yet more and yet
more, and the consequent rise in the value of the lands, is looked upon as a
certainty. Last year 40,000 to 50,000 entered this land of promise, and this
vear it is probable that the number has been yet greater. Never was a railway
better endowed for the purposes of its existence, for the Canadian Pacific
Railway has about 25,000,000 of acres in this fertile belt, and of this vast
amount they still at the present moment hold at least 1 7,000,000 ; and having
the power to choose the good lands, and being able to reject those which may be
inferior, they became possessed, when they undertook the line, of a land-fortune
which, with the !?25, 000,000 in cash, was one of the greatest dowers ever
granted. The line is the shortest from Europe to Asia by at least 1,000 miles.
There are 2,700 miles of track from Montreal to the Pacific. Truly a
stupendous and most essential enterprise !

An American company some years ago constructed the railway which runs
through the Mormon settlement of Salt Lake City; another line now sweeps
round by the south of California, and by the frontiers of Mexico, and across by
the cactus-covered deserts and wide torrid sands of Arizona and New Mexico,
until it reaches the east and the connecting lines of the Atlantic companies on
the Missouri and Mississippi. Remarkable progress has also lately been made

Rapid Railway Construction.

'49

by the Northern Pacific in the Northern States, thus ^^iving the Republic three
lines which cross from shore to shore. But in none of these cases have the
lines been pushed with the speed, certainty, and thorough workmanship which
have been exhibited on the Canadian Hne. The American Northern Pacific
Railway Company was incorporated as long ago as 1865, nearly twenty years
ago, whereas the Canadian company has been at work less than three years.
Richly endowed with magnificent lands, the equal of which can only be found in
the favoured American States of Illinois and Ohio, the British company has
spared no expense to make the track so perfect that trains passed over it at
great speed as soon as it was laid. In one week during the last summer no
less than between twenty-five and twenty-six miles were completed, six being
laid on a Saturday ending the week's work.

It is a beautiful exhibition of perfect organisation to watch the manner in
which this is done. First come the engineers with their levels ; closely
following them an army of spade men, who raise the embankment, or cut
through the earth mounds, removing by blasting any obnoxious rock. Then, to
the end of the completed track, and piled on vehicles drawn by well-equipped
numerous teams, arrive the " ties," or, as they are in this country called, the
sleepers, or wooden cross-beams. Quickly these are scattered along, and laid
by gangs in order. Instantly up comes a car laden with steel rails — steel rails,
which, by the by, have been imported all the way from the Old World. With
iron hooks the men grapple these rails one after the other, and as each pair is
laid upon the sleepers, boys place a couple of great nails along the line, on each
" tie," and the sturdy hammer-men with a few strokes drive these into the wood,
fix the rails, and onward over the fresh joint of railway goes the car, until all its
load of steel rails has been deposited. Imagine the perfection of the
organisation which, in the prairie untrodden as yet by men, or still worse, in the
rock-strewn and mountainous country, can on a single line of rail arrange for
the accommodation of men, for the transport of material in wood, iron, and
provisions, and can send on train after train to the end of the track, arrangin^r
the sidings as they proceed and accomplishing in a week such feats as tha^t
recorded above. The reader may ask how it is that such expenditure can be
incurred, that work can be so quickly and so perfectly finished by such armies of
workmen ; for many thousands have been labouring during the last year, and
are still labouring at this great national enterprise. The secret is in this, that
the lands in the central portions of the continent which have been granted to
the company are of such excellence, that from their sale alone a certain
remuneration can be expected. Emigration has poured into that region in a
manner unexampled since the days of the settlement of the great western
commonwealths, whose chief and most remarkable city now is Chicago. In
spite of opposition encountered from interested rivals, the fact of the excellence
of the soil has become so patent that there was no difficulty in finding the
money for the first great expenses, and the iiiiti.il co.t is always iar the greatest.

I50

Canaoian Pictures.

With the Americans, the Germans, the Russians, the Icelanders, and the
English, Scotch, and Canadians, who are now flocking into the country, the
traffic which must be developed to supply their wants in wood, coal, and the
necessaries as well as the luxuries of life, must continually increase. It was
only two years ago that the line left the suburbs of Winnipeg ; it was only
yesterday that it touched the mountains of the west, and already a vast increase
in its traffic receipts are noticeable. It is not as though it started from no basis,
and ended in no important terminus, or passed through barren lands on either
side ; it will rest upon two great oceans, and throughout the middle portion ot
the continent it has land, not only along its line, but also to the north and south
of it unrivalled on the continent of America. The branch lines, wherever they
stretch towards the north, must feed its energy, and supply it with nutriment, for
there is practically no limit to the vast a. i of wheat which may be created along
the banks of the North Saskatchewan river, and the immense country lying
towards that mighty stream, the Peace river.

A VltW ON Tin; I'tACE KlVIR.
(h'yoiH the Mttrqnis of Lofne'i >:otUctioH 0/ photogyafhs.)

i.ill

i ■1 I

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ill

liii

O i,

o
<

^^H

jF..>|

riff

An Indian of the North-West.

(/•w« a Sketch by Sydney Hall.)

CHAPTER VIII.

The Indians ok the North-west.

The North-West Mounted Police-The Prohibition of the Liquor Traffic-Horse Stealinc-Evils
OF Whisky Drinkinc-Sitting Bull's Victory over General Custer-The Sioux-Thf Biackfeet
-li.E Povv-wow IN 1881-lNDiAN Eloquence-The Sun Dance-Squaw Doctors-Canadian Policy
WITH THE Indians— Indian Cruelties— Indian Customs— The Christian Indian.

THE long levels of the prairie spread sea-like on each side of the Canadian
Pacific Line, but there are sudden breaks caused hv "mni; ^ " ^^ r.,„;„„„

Pacific Line, but there are sudden breaks caused by "couli.:

or ravines

plains

near the rivers ; and we pass one of the greatest troughs cut out of the pmuia
when we come to the Assiniboine, and, crossing it, soon afterwards enter the
territory of Assiniboia ; and here we leave Provincial Governments behind us
and enter the lands which are under the genial but despotic rule of the Lieutenant-
Governor of the North-West Territories, who, with his council, governs a country

154

Canadian Pictures.

bigger than France and Germany. You will soon observe at one of the stations
a fine-looking trooper, clean, soldier-like, with white helmet and brass spike on
head, scarlet jacket and broad yellow-striped trousers, boots and spurs, and
carbine in hand. This is a member of the North-west Mounted Police— a force
now five hundred strong, and having charge to keep order throughout ihe
country between this and the Rocky Mountains. This cavalry regiment is well
horsed and well officered, and woe to any whisky-trader whose barrels may come
within their sight, for, owing to the trouble which spirituous liquors are sure to
produce amongst the Indians, as well as amongst the white settlers in the initial
stages of a country's development, none are allowed. Enterprising traders bring
them in carts from the south, and often an exciting race occurs between the
horses of the trader and the police, who have perhaps a long stern chase to
undertake, but who finally ride up with pistols presented and make our friend
disgorge his goods, which are forthwith spilt upon the ground.

There are several points of politics and of social economy in regard to
which it is very interesting to see the experiments made in Canada, experiments
which may guide the statesmen of the old country in their legislation. It is
well-known that throughout the North-West Territories there is an absolute
prohibition of liquor selling. This prohibition, extending as it does to all who
do not obtain a permit for the private or medicinal use of alcoholic drink, is not
so difficult to enforce in the territories as elsewhere, for the channels by which
merchants can introduce such commodities may be watched with comparative
ease. But in the provinces, a Federal Law allows a district or municipality to
vote by ballot on the requisition of a certain number of voters whether or no
a prohibitory rule shall exist for a time in the district. The time during which
no liquor can be sold on a vote of a majority approving the experime.it is
three years.

The success of this law depends upon the locality in which it is put in
operation. In places where liquor is easily smuggled in it has not so much
effect as in isolated districts where the regulations can be enijrced. But there is
a natural tendency to adopt temperance if not abstention. In America it is not
a common thing to have wine offered to a guest at country houses. In the
woods the lumberers never drink anything stronger than tea, and no one works
harder or to better effect than a lumberer in the forests. The air itself is a tonic,
making it unnecessary to resort to stimulants. The legislation is a consequence of
this and of the evil effects of drink, most notable with the Indians, who are
driven crazy with rum and brandy, and who will take anything which even reminds
them of "fire-water" — even the medicine called "pain-killer,' a compound
sold as an antidote to rheumatism, being greedily drunk by them whenever they
can obtain it. If an argument derived from the effects of over-indulgence in
stimulants can be derived from the conduct of white men under their influence,
a far stronger proof of their bad consequences may be drawn from the ruin they
work on the Red man. Mr. Colmer, the Canadian Government Secretary in

The Licensing Act of 1883.

155

England, recounts very concisely the general legislation in force in the provinces
of Canada on the subject of the sale of liquor :—

"An Act was passed during the session of 1883 of the Dominion Parlia-
ment which provides that the country shall be divided into license districts,
identical, so far as possible and convenient, with existing counties, electoral
districts, or cities. A Board of Licensing Commissioners, consisting of three
persons, will be appointed in each district. One member of the Board must be
a county court judge, or other judicial official ; another the mayor of a city, or
warden of a county, as the case may be ; and one is to be appointed by the
Government for one year. A Chief License Inspector, and one or more
inspectors, are nominated by the Board in each district. The Act determines
the number of hotel and saloon licenses to be granted. In cities, towns,
and incorporated villages one license may be issued for every 250 of the first
1,000 of the population, and one for each full 500 in excess of that figure, but
there may be two hotels in any town or incorporated village where the inhabit-
ants number less than 500. In county towns five licenses may be granted.
Two hotels beyond the number the population may warrant may be licensed for
a period of six months, commencing on May i in each year, in any locality largely
resorted to in the summer by visitors. In incorporated villages, tt./nships, or
parishes, no saloon licenses are granted. Shop licenses, which authorise the
holders to sell and dispose of any liquors— not less than one pint in quantity—
not to be drunk in and upon the premises, may be granted, one for each 400 up
to 1,200 of the population, and one for each 1,000 beyond. Any person
applying for a license who is not already a licensee under the Act, or under any
previous Act, must be supported by a certificate signed by one-third of the
electors of the district. Ten or more electors, and in unorganised divisions five
or more, out of twenty householders, may object to any application, and can be
heard by the Board, and it will be refused if two-thirds of the electors petition
against it. Before any license is granted the applicant must enter into a bond
in the sum of $500, with two sureties for $150 each for the payment of all fines
and penalties which they may for infractions of the law be condemned to pay.
No license will be granted by the Board within the limits of any town, incor-
porated village, township, or other municipality, excepting counties and cities,
if three-fifths of the qualified electors have declared themselves in favour of a
prohibition. Hotels and saloons and shops are prohibited to sell liquors from
seven on Saturday night till six on Monday morning, and from eleven at night
till six in the morning on other days, except for medical purposes under proper
restraint. Lodgers in hotels may, however, be provided on Sundays during
meals, between the hours of one and three, and five and seven in the afternoon.
The hotels and public-houses are closed on the polling days for dominion,
provincial, or municipal elections. A provision enables two justices to forbid
any licensees to sell drink to any person who ' by excessive drinking mis-spends,
wastes, or lessens, his or ler estate, or greatly injures his or her health. &c./ in

X 2

156

Canahian Pictures.

L'f

any city, town, or district in which the drunkard may be likely to resort. Another
clause provith^s that any husband or wife, whose wife or husband may have con-
tracted the habit of drinking intoxicating liquor to excess ; the father, mother,
curator, tutor, or employer of any person under the age of twenty-one afflicted
with the same weakmss, and uv manager or person in charge of an asylum
in which any such p< ' xni r.-^^-'s or is kept may require the chief inspector of
the district to give notice in writing to any person licensed to sell liquors that he
is not to supply them to such interdicted person."

Hut to return. The work which has to be undertaken by the members of
the North-west Mounted Police in winter time has hitherto not been light, for the
detachments are necessarily placed whcr, ^hc - can be available in case of any
arrest of horsc-stealers being necessary. Horse-stealing is prevalent in those parts
where settlement is scarce, and where the manners and customs engrafted
on the half-breed population by their Indian ancestors still obtain. The
western highwayman takes your horse— the most valuable possession he can
obtain — and the summons may come at a moment's notice that a theft has been
committed, and it may be necessary to send a party of men prepared to camp
upon snow, and to follow up the trail of the marauders.

We will suppose such a theft to have taken place, and the depredators to
be Indians of the Cree tribe. The officer and his party, after two or three days'
hard riding, have overtaken the redskins before they can cross the frontier.
Now is seen of what advantage reputation or prestige- a thing sometimes
derided nowadays— is in preventing bloodshed and maintaining order. The
officer finds the Indians camped and numerous. Without a moment's hesitation
he rides through the lodges to the chiefs tent. He enters, his handful of men
waiting in the meantime. He finds the chief, with his councillors round him,
smoking in silence, and hardly daring to look at him. As he enters he says
through his interpreter, that he knows that horses not belonging to the tribe
have been run off. Grunts and universal protestation that nothing of the kind
has occurred proceed from the savages. The officer maintains his ground, says
that he knows the horses are in the camp, and that they must be at his bivouac
before morning. Finally the chief says that it is impossible to give up the
horses, that the young bloods of the camp would not allow him to do so even if
he wished it. The officer now declares that the tribe will not be allowed to
cross the frontier or move from the ground they now occupy until the horses are
surrendered ! He knows perfecdy well that he could not enforce the demand,
that the Indians are well armed, and that his own men would be cut off in a
moment should hostilities commence. Yet a whispered consultation now takes
place among the chiefs, and in a short while a promise is given that the horses
shall be in the officer's hands before the morning. Out of the tent strides the
officer ; and sure enough at dawn the horses are brought to hi i. He insists
upon the surrender also of the men who first took them, and he marches off
with these men under guard back whence he came. The secret of his power

VViij) Indians becoming Extinct.

•57

is this— that the Indians know that the rod-jackets mete out equal justice to
white man and to red man, that a white settler would be punished in exactly thi
same way as the redskin for any crime he may commit, and that to set the
Canadian authorities against th(; In(hans will he for the Indians the cuttinjr off of
the only chance tiiey possess of livinjr in a country where they are treated with
equal justice. It is confiihintly expected that in two or three years more the
last hors(r-steaIinj,' (expedition will have inecome a malur of history. lUit the
force of mounteil police will for a lonjr time be found useful or necessary because
of the ease widi which they can move, and will form the surest guarantee
that the evil-disposed among the white population shall not follow the old
Indian cattle and horse " lifting" customs.

"fer'

l§i

-'mm- " "'

i<L^1iCu^yi r>sttJ' uf-S^u

t\;i.Y CusroMKKs.
(From a Sketch hy Sydney Unit)

In a few more years no wild Indians will be seen except in the far north ;
and it is curious to observe them now, while as yet, in some tribes, their dress,
manners and habits are what they have been for centuries. As a rule, they
are well-made fellows, showing not so much muscle as a white man, but sleek
and finely moulded in limb, and untiring in wind.

Whisky is the bane which drives the savage wild, and is the fruitful
cause of every crime amongst the white men in the American western villages ;
and the prohibition placed upon its use does much towards preserving order
among the young communities on Canadian soil. You do not hear in villages

158

Canadian Pictures.

in our land, as you do hear It said further south, that " shootingf was pretty
lively here last night." There is a story that in a Colorado ball-room it
was necessary, on account of the manners and customs of the inhabitants, to
write in large letters over the head of the unfortunate gentleman who had been
detailed to perform music for the evening's amusement, " Please don't shoot the
pianist — he is doing his best." If trouble occur in our Canadian West, it is
promptly suppressed, and the guilty ruffian handed out. Ample provision is
made, as the country settles up, for school purposes ; nor are the spiritual wants of
the people left unheeded. The Roman Catholics were early in the field, but
Anglicans, Presbyterians, and other denominational bodies have quickly followed
in their steps, and many a devoted servant of his Church is at present
labouring among the scattered population of every part of the Territories. It is
interesting to see how originally wild savage bands are becoming tame and half
civilised.

It is only a few years ago that near our line a band of Sioux, under the
leadership of a chief named Sitting Bull, achieved a victory over a civilised force
which has no parallel in the annals of any recent war between civilised and
savage troops, except the single case of Isandula. General Custer, one of the
most gallant officers of that gallant Northern army — a man distinguished for
intrepidity and skill in the war against the Southern Confederacy — had been
appointed to a command of cavalry not very far from our frontier line. As is
too often the case, unnecessary quarrels had led to unnecessary fighting between
Uncle Sam's boys and the braves under Sitting Bull. Custer, coming upon their
camp in a place chosen with rare skill by the savages, impetuously ordered an
attack. Accounts vary of the struggle which ensued, but the' story must
necessarily c* me from one side only, because no American soldier lived to relate
the tale, 1 he Indian account, given in Sitting Bull's words, is as follows : —

" During the summer previous to the one in which Cii;,ter attacked us, he sent
a letter to me, telling me that if I did not go to an agency he would fight me ;
and I sent word back to him by his messenger that I did not want to fight, but
only to be left alone. I told him at the same time that if he wanted to fight,
that he should go and fight those Indians who wanted to fight him. Custer
then sent me word again (this was in the winter), 'You would not take my
former offer, now I am going to fight you this winter.' I sent word back
and said just what I had said before, that I did not want to fight, and only
wanted to be left alone, and that my camp was the only one that had not
fought against him.

" Custer again sent a message, ' I am fitting up my waggons and soldiers,
and am determined to fight against you in the spring.' I thought that I would try
him again, and sent him a message, saying, I did not want to fight ; that I
wanted, first of all, to go to British territory, and after I had been there and
came back, if he still wanted to fight me, that I would fight then. Custer sent
back word and said — ' I will fight you in eight days.'

Preparing for General Custer.

»59

wor M f \f. : ""'' ?.° "'"• "'•"' ^ ^°"''' ^^'^'^ ^" ^'«ht, SO I sent him
word back, All rijrht ; get all your men mounted, and I will ^ret all my men

mounted ; we will have a fight ; the Great Spirit will look on, and the side that
13 rn the wrong will be defeated.'

" I began to get ready, and sent twenty young men to watch for the
soldiers. l< ,ve soon came back with word that Custer was coming. The other
fifteen stopped to watch his movements. When Custer was cmite close
ten young men came in. When he had advanced still closer two more

of them came in,
leaving three still
towatch the troops.
We had got up a medi-
cine dance for war in
the camp, and just as
it was coming to an
end two of the young
men who had stopped
out came in with word
that Custer and the
troops were very close,
and would be upon the
camp in the morning.
That night we all got ready for the battle. My young men all buckled on their
ammunition belts, and we were busy putting strong sticks in our ' coup sticks.'
Early at sunrise two young men who had been out a short way on the prairie,
came to me and told me that from the top of a high butte they had seen the
troops advancing in two divisions. I then had all the horses driven into the
camp and corralled between the lodges. About noon the troops came up, and
at once rushed upon the camp. They charged in two separate divisions, one at
the upper end, whilst the other division charged about the middle of the camp.

A View on the Ei.bow River.

{Fnm a SitIcA iy tii Man/uis of Lome.)

Uiil

ill

"Wi

! ;,1

The latter division struck the camp in the centre of the 250 lodges of the
Uncapapa Sioux, and close to the door of my own lodge. At the time that
the troops charged I was making medicine for the Great Spirit to help us and
fight upon our side, and as I heard the noise and knew what it was, I came out.
When I had got to the outside of my lodge I noticed that this division had
stopped suddenly close to the outer side of the Uncapapa camp, and then they
sounded a bugle and the troops fired into the camp.

" I at once set my wife upon my best horse, put my war-bonnet on her
head, and told her to run away with the rest of the women. She did so, but in
her hurry forgot to take the baby (a girl) ; after she had gone a little way she
thought of the child and came back for it. I gave the child to her and she
went off again.

" I now put a flag upon a lodge-pole, and lifting it as high as I could, I
shouted out as loud as I was able to my own men, ' I am Sitting Bull ; follow
me.' 1 then rushed at the head of them up to the place where I thought Custer
was, and just as we got close up to the troops they fired again. When I saw that
the soldiers fired from their saddles and did but little damage to us, I ordered
all my men to rush through their ranks and break them, which they did, but
failed to break the ranks, although we suffered as little damage as before. I
then shouted to them to try again, and putting myself at the head of my men
we went at them again. This time, although the soldiers were keeping up a
rapid firing (from their horses), we knocked away a whole corner and killed a
great many, though I had only one man killed. After this we charged the
same way several times, and kept driving them back for about half a mile,
killing them very fast. After forcing them back there only remained five
soldiers of this division and the interpreter alive, and I told my men to let
them live. Then the interpreter, the man that the Indians called ' The White,'
shouted out in Sioux and said, ' Custer is not in this division, he is in the other.'
I then ordered all my men to come on and attack the other division. They did
so, and followed me. The soldiers of this division fired upon us as soon as we
got within range, but did us little harm When we had got quite close, and we
were just going to charge them, a great storm broke right over us, the lightning
was fearful, and struck a lot of the soldiers and horses killing them instantly.
I then called out to my men to charge the troops and shouted out, ' The Great
Spirit is on our side ; look how He is striking the soldiers down ! ' My men saw
this, and they all rushed upon the troops, who were mixed up a good deal.
About forty of the soldiers had been dismounted by the lightning killing and
frightening their horses, and these men were soon trampled to death. It was
just at this time that we charged them, and we easily knocked them off their
horces, and then killed them with our 'coup sticks.'

" In this way we killed all this division, with the exception of a few who
tried to get away, but were killed by the Sioux before they could get very far.
All through the battle the soldiers fired very wild and only killed twenty-five Sioux.

Defeat of General Custer bv Sitting Bull.

i6i

I did not recognise General Custer in the fight, but only thought I did, but I would
not be certain about it. I believe Custer was killed in the first attack, as we
found his body, or what all the Indians thought was Custer's body, about the
place that the first attack was made. I do not think there is any truth in the
report that he shot himself. I saw two soldiers shoot themselves. The Sioux
were following them, and in a few moments would have caught them, but they
shot themselves with their pistols in the head. The body which all the Indians
said was Custer's had its hair cut short. There were seven hundred and nine
Americans killed. We counted them by putting a stick upon each body, and

Blackfoot Crossing. Indian Pow-wow with Governor-General proceeding -.n the Plain.

(/•>■»« a S/alih by ike Morfuh ly Lome.)

then taking the sticks up again and counting them. We counted seven hundred
and seven carbines."

It was greatly to the credit of the American people that when, years
afterwards, we wished to get rid of Sitting Bull, who had taken refuge on
Canadian soil, amnesty was granted to him and his people, and in reply to
the query addressed by the Canadian Government as to his probable treat-
ment should he surrender to the Americans, Mr. Evarts, United States
Secretary, replied. " He will be treated as a great nation always treats its

mataat

162

Canadian Pictures,

iiffl I

\\i

:■

prisoners of war." We were anxious to be rid of his presence, for he and his
5,000 were eating up the scanty game of our own Indians, and he himself, from
his well-known astute and warlike character, gave anxiety to us, in that we never
knew whether he were noi harbouring against our republican friends some evil
design. He was often reported as about to embark in a raid or cattle-lifting
expedition, an amusement for him which it would have been difficult for us, at
that time, to prevent, and which might have yet led to a rupture of that friend-
ship and excellent understanding which has most happily always prevailed along
our north-western borders. The redoubtable Sitting Bull and his tribe aie now
safely placed upon an American reserve of land, where the old warrior will be
allowed to end his days in peace, and in whatever comfort the industry of his
people and the generosity of the United States Government may bring him.

After the Sioux, the most interesting people now left, and still retaining
much of their aboriginal traits and customs, are the Blackfeet. Their braves
say that their first ancestor received from the morning star, their war god, a
magic ointment, wherewith if he anointed his feet, he would be endowed with
such swiftness that the antelopes would flee in vain before him. There are
many stalwart men amongst these people, and it was most interesting to observe
them in the great councils held with them by the Governor-general in 1881.
They were under the leadership of a chief named Crowfoot. He maintained
good discipline among his people, listened attentively to the suggestions made to
him to encourage them in agriculture, and while he complained that his allow-
ance was not sufficient he always advised his tribes to remain friendly to the
white man.

The Indians came to the appointed place of meeting mounted, and in full
battle array, firing their Winchester repeating rifles in the air, and shouting and
waving their weapons. Behind them tripped in gay colours the women, bringing
their children, for the children could not be left in camp, and the women must
see what their lords and masters were after in their conference with the white
chief. Arrived close to the tent where I awaited them, they sprang from their
horses, and advanced to shake hands, which ceremony was performed by the
chiefs and head men ; these then sat down in front of me, the chiefs in the
front row, the head men behind, and ranged around in a deep half-circle was
the rest of the tribe ; on the right an allied set of cousins, with their aunts
and sisters behind them ; while on the left, in triple ranks, crouched on the
ground, sat the warriors, round-limbed and lithe young fellows, clad with little
but paint on the body, and with long warlocks, braided with brass, depending
from their temples ; the rest of their hair — after being gathered up upon the crown,
so that if an enemy wanted to have a good tug at the scalp, he could do so
without trouble — being allowed to fall in long dark masses over their shoulders.

From the flank of the line of braves, round in front to the right, stretched
the ruck of the tribe and the women and children. A good deal of quiet
sitting and smoking was indulged in before a word was spoken, and then it

Indian Eloquence.

163

was always necessary to look on at a dance for some time longer before
business was opened up, for nothing could be done until the pipe had been
smoked and a dance had been performed. Strange and weird and uncouth
these dances are; the magicians sit on the ground seating a tom-tom, and
in a circle, fbllowmg each other in single file, strut, bow, howl, and jig the
braves detailed for the duty ; pretending occasionally to be in pursuit or in
flight, round and round they go until the music ceases, when all sit upon
the ground. Sometimes the young men would insist on recounting their
deeds m war, boasting of stealing cattle and of killing their foe. When by
these processes the chiefs have sufficiently gathered together their thoughts
to be able to detail their desires, each man rises in succession, and speaks

Group at the Pow-wow.

{From a Sketch by Sydney Hall.)

while the interpreter stands listening, and at intervals turns to the white
chief, and tells him in substance the eloquent and fervid harangue to which
all are listening. Usually, amid much flowery rhetoric, the speech resolves
Itself into a demand for more favours, and is, in short, nothing but an
exclamarory beggar's oration. Often the interpreters will not take the
trouble to render all the flowery language, although they themselves are
lialt-breeds. On one occasion, after much eloquence had been exercised
and the interpreters had said nothing, it was asked, "Why do you not
interpret ?-what does he say ? " All the translation vouchsafed was-" Oh I
he say grub!" The pleading for this very necessary article was backed

Y 2

I IP I

mmm

i El

164

Canadian Pictures.

1 • SI

by the certainly very cogent argument that the coming of the white man
had taken from them their land, or rather, what they valued upon their
land, that is to say, their great game, the buffalo ; each year the white man's
presence had marked a decrease in the buffalo; and what was the Indian
without the buffalo ? how could he get skins for himself, for his house ? how
procure food or sinews to s«w the clothing together ? how live without his
beloved buffalo ? The argument would certainly hold good, for although it is the
improvement in the weapons of the chase, and the introduction of fire-arms,
which has mainly contributed to diminisli the numbers of the buffalo, yet the
very introduction of these fire-arms was due to the coming of the stranger.
And what does the white man give in return for the evil thus inflicted ? He
gives five dollars for every man, woman and child in the tribe every year to
the chief, to be apportioned for the good of his nation ; he gives, also, when
he is obliged to do so, a ration of flour ; and he gives above all, and every
year to an increasing degree, that knowledge of husbandry which can alone
save the red race. Already, in 1881, although these Blackfeet had but
lately been engaged in hunting parties, some effect could be produced upon
them by speaking of the advantages of potato growing. After haranguing
them upon the subject, the chief warrior rose when the council had finished,
and grasping my hand, and putting round my^ arm the bridle-cord of his
horse, he asked me to accept the animal as a present (which of course could
not be accepted), and repeatedly assured me that, although he had hitherto
been the first in fighting, he would now be the first in working. I am sorry
to say he did not stem very much pleased when he afterwards received a
fowling-piece instead of a rifle for a present ; but the latter would have been
of no use to him for duck shooting ; and I hear that he has kept his promise,
and has cultivated his own potato patch this year. There is another great
and scattered people, the Crees, and yet another with a stranger namp, dwellers
in the rocky country on this side of Winnipeg, who call themselves the
Ojibbeways. Differing in origin and language, the red men fought constantly
against each other, and these wars, and the epidemic diseases to which, as they
averred, they had become subject after contact with the whites, made them less
numerous than the enormous extent of country over which they hunted would
lead us to suppose. It is, however, only when the savage cultivates in some
measure the ground that he can greatly multiply. Champlain and Frontenac
found the Indians of the St. Lawrence growing corn. There is no evidence
that the wild horsemen of the plains ate of any plant sown by their hands.
In warfare they employed some methods of defence and communication which
show that recent European army regulations enjoin practices long known to
Sioux and Blackfeet. Thus, pits, whence the archers could discharge iheir
arrows, are seen within the lines of old entrenchments, and when the Canadian
mounted constabulary regiment first entered the " Lone Land," they found that
their movements were signalled to the tribes by a very good "heliograph"

The Feast of the Sun Dance.

165

system of " flashes." No such signalling was at that time known in our armies,
and the troopers, as they rode along over the vast grass-covered plains, wondered
what the twinkling points on th-r horizon could mean.

Amongst all these tribes the custom, formerly universal, still obtains to
have a great annual feast called the Sun Dance. This is the occasion
appointed when the young mer may show of what mettle they are made, by
undergoing a voluntary torture. The medicine man, the sage, herbalis-;, doctor,
and mystery man, stands in a great circular tent made of boughs or skins.'
Fantastically adorned with head-gear, and painted with streaks of on nge,
crimson, or blue, he holds in his hand a sharp knife, and when he is about to
perform the final ceremony, the victims have already fasted for many hours.
They come one after another and stand before him, and on the chest of each he
makes four cuts, so as to divide the flesh into two bands. In the bleeding wounds
he places two long spigots of wood, lifting the muscles so as to pass these
through the incisions of the flesh. He then attaches cords and ropes lo each
end of each spigot of wood, run up round a central pole. Then the drums and
tom-toms beat, and while all stand admiring their courage, one youthful warrior
after another tries to break away from the attached, cords. The muscles start
and strain, and the flesh is extended far from the chest ; the wounds gape, and
the sight h- comes horrible, for the agony is dreadful. Still the wild dancing or
hanging on the cords goes on, until the man falls exhausted, but free. It is
almost inconceivable how much can be endured by these young men in their
efforts to prove themselves worthy, in the eyes of the women and others of their
tribe, of the manhood which gives important privileges, belonging to him who
has shown himself bravest in the camp of the savage. Buflalo heads, guns,
and other heavy objects are dragged about attached in the same horrible manner,'
while it used to be considered a proof that the man would be the best at stealing
horses who tied himself by the shoulder-blade to the bridle of a horse, whose
every motion, as it stooped to feed, brought a fresh pang of pain. But enough
of these^ terrible rites : they still continue, but the number who undergo the
torture is diminishing year by year, and we may trust to the Gospel and to
missionary efforts to put an entire stop to them before long.

Much is said of the knowledge of simples possessed by the squaws. It is
certain that they are very clever in producing decoctions and in making
poultices from various trees and shrubs, whose healing properties are well
known to science. Thus from the bark of a certain species of willow a
preparation can be made which staunches hemorrhage, and quickly heals the
woivid. Strange tales were told us of the efficacy of some of their medicines.
u. g.ntieman employed in botanical research was puzzled by an application
.i^^d^^ to a slight wound he had sustained. He had, when shooting, hurt
his thumb by the accidental discharge of his gun, and for some days, having
nothing but water with which to bathe it, he was in considerable pain, and
the thumb became much inflamed. Lighting, in the course of his niarch,

I - !

ri<ma&i^"Mi«iUM»iWii BMBMiiiMillii

1 66

Canadian Pictures.

one day on a camp of Sioux Indians, one of the women observed his hurt ;
she came to him and g-ave him a milk-like liquid, and told him to apply this
when he felt pain ; he did ao, and from the first application the pain ceased, and
in a. few days a very complete cure was effected. A sergeant in the mounted
police was an eye-witness of the effects of an opiate given to a man for whom
the ordinary remedies of opium, laudanum, and chlorodyne had proved useless.
It was evident that the medicine man had some good stuff, although it was
equally certain that he employed a great deal of what is known as hocus pocus in
applying it. He asked for a, vessel, and after a time poured into it a white liquid
he had concocted. He then covered this vessel over with a skin, pierced holes
the covering, rolled up some pellets of buffalo hair in his hand, muttered

some pretended incantations, and dropped these balls of hair through the skin
into the liquid. After a while the covering was removed, and it was seen that
the vessel held no longer a white but a red liquor. This, with an amount of faith
which one does not often fiinl in a sick patient, was drained by the invalid, and
a sound sleep, which was the beginning of a perfect recovery from the illness,
appeared to be the result. There may be something worth discovering in the
application made by the Indians of certiiin herbs ; but it is to be noticed that the
roots and plants hith.-rto found in the medicine man's lodge have, as a rule, been
plants whose properties are alrr-idy well known to science. The natives are
very fond of a sweating bath. A little arbour of inwoven branches is formed.
Heated stones are placed inside, and the Indian crouched over them is wrapped
in the steam arising from water thrown on to the hot stones. After getting into
a thorough t-er-:pi ration, the patient (for this treatment is often practised in cases
of illness) •■.• il 'uii cut and plunge into cold water, thus following the custom of
other nations L'is.des his own, for Russians and Turks are equally fond of such
refreshmer,

It is indeed fortunate for us that we have followed the good example set us
by the Hudson's Bay Company's servants, and have invariably kept faith with
the aborigines in all our dealings. " Honesty is the best policy " — an old truth
proved afresh in the north-wost. The Americans have never been fortunate in
their relations with the poor savages, and many a bloody scene has in consequence
been enacted. We have a band of Sioux near Battleford, in Saskatchewan
Province, which is a remnant of those who killed 1,500 white people in 1863 in
Minnesota. An agent had, as they believed, robbed them, and they fell upon
the white population around them, slaughtering all. A woman was pointed out
to us as one who had the reputation, whether well-founded or not, of having
roasted nine American babies alive i It was impossible to substantiate the
statement, for she naturally disliked to talk upon the subject ; but there is no
doubt that in all the feuds the Americans have had with the Indians, .t has always
been found that the women participated in the work of slaughter. The man
who pointed the woman out to me had himself escaped wounded from the
massacre, after seeing his mother, sister, and others of his family shot down. I

Indian Cruelties.

167

had held a council that day with a large number of redskins, and I asked him if
at the time of his misfortune the whites had received any warning ; his answer
was, " No, they had been as friendly with us that day, to all seeming, as were
your Indians with you here to-day." The cause of the outbreak was ascribed
by him to the dishonesty of the agent appointed by the American Government,
whom he accused of having perverted the goods sent for the Sioux to his own
use. " If the agent had been killed, it would not have so much mattered," he
sai ' ; " but they ascribed the fault of one to all, and hence the trouble." The
late President Lincoln, whose memory is revered in England as well as in
America, was at that time at the head of the Republi-. General Sibley was
sent in command of forces in pursuit of the Sioux, and with great skill he drove
them before him till he came to a large encampment where they were strongly
posted. Pretending then that he hesitated, he waited with his force until, lulled
into false security, the Sioux allowed themselves to be surprised, when the names
of a great number were sent up to the President to receive their death sentence.
It was a remarkable proof of the justice and clemency which signalized the
character of Lincoln, that he cut down the number of those sentenced to death,
and returned the list, when it was found that the names of those on whom'
justice was to take its course had been written down in his own hand. It is
strange that the scattered remnant of these Sioux, who are still amongst us, bear
the reputation of being good Indians, and the name, which was once one of
terror, now never excites even a passing emotion of disquiet.

Some horrible cruelties have been practised in our day by Indians in
New Mexico and in the American far west on their white prisoners, cruelties
that recall the tortures described by the French voyagers, who saw with disgust
the treatment to which their own ailies subjected their fallen enemies. Cham-
plain describes how his Indian friends, taking a captive, recited to him all the
atrocious things the prisoners' nation had perpetrated against the French allies.
They bade the poor man sing if he had the courage to do so, and the victim
did manage to sing, bat, naturally enough, " it was a song which was sad to
hear." " Meanwhile," Ivt continues, " our friends lit a fire, and when it was
well aflame, each cook a brand and burnt the miserable creature by slow degrees,
so as to make him suffer more torment. Sometimes they left him to throw
cold watef over his back. They then tore out his nails, and put the fire to
his hands and feet. After scalping him they poured hot resin upon the head.
Then piercing the arms near the clenched hands, they seized the nerves and

drew them forth The poor creature uttered strange cries, but yet

suffered with such constancy of courage that sometimes one would have supposed
that he felt not the pain." Champlain at last persuaded the fiends to let him
kill the already half-dead prisoner by a shot from an arquebuse.

It is horrible enough to recall these nightmares of history. But it was the
fate reserved for many a Christian martyr, whose successors in the Church now
are the trusted and beloved guides of these Indians' descendants.

! ' i ill

1 68

Canadian Pictures.

Ihe modern redskin baby is treated much like a bundle of clothes.
Swauied tightly in skins or other clothing, it looks perfectly happy with its
brown bead-like eyes, but perfectly helpless. It is strapped down on a board, as
seen in the engraving, which does not make the mother as happy looking as she
ought to look with such a prosperous and sleepy infant on her back. At the
head of the papoose's board cradle is an upright arched piece of wood, from
the centre of which usually hangs some toy to keep the child amused. An
Indian's "lodge" or portable house is often a most comfortable abode. An
extract from a journal kept in 1881 describes a Blackfoot camp :

An Indian Squaw with Papoose.

"We visited a fine Indian camp where each lodge was well equipped in the
good old style with buffalo hides. It was p pleasant thing to see these Pujans,
Bloods, and Blackfeet with such comfortable dwellings, which contrasted well
with the poor cotton or bad canvas tents in the possession of the scattered
bands of Crees we have met, On these moyas or hide lodges were painted
eagles, buffalos, deer, serpents, and other animals in red and black. Owing to
the scarcity of hides, none were new, and the colours of the paintings were
browned with smoke. Formerly each spring saw a freshly covered moya, but
necessity now compels the poor men to use the old skins until they get too
ragged to be used any longer.

Indian Lodges and Manners, j^jg

ground The sk.ns rose a good height above the ends of the poles, where th.. points

:^Z!fl 'X^^^'l '"' '" °'""'"^ "^^ '''' ^-^h--^^' '^' ^he apex of the'con

wnd Vh^" ; '' r'" P''t'^^^' P'-^^-'^^'y ^° ^^-^'^^ ^he vent from the
Wind. The entrance ,s by a small oval manhole, a foot above the ground and
covered by some fur hanging. Inside furs and other coverings are placed on the

by s^ntr^rs ^t'r'' f '^' ? "'"^^'-^^ '^^^- ^" ^h^ -"'- — d"

our own 1 '' ^ l^'^'"'"' ^''^'"'^^ " ^^'-^^^ "-^^e original, probably, of

our own-, arranged around, forming an inner wall. This, unlike the outer wall

k," s'afe n'r" T ,'° ''' ^""L^'' ^° ^^ ^° ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ts, while the ol
skms are not pegged down so t.ghtly. leaving a little room near the ground for
ventilation. Wicker or woven peeled-branch fittings separate onf sleeping
compartment from the next. Opposite the entrance' is a^ventiladon opeL"^
near the floor, and over this is placed a frame with furs, as a protectioS
to the valuables of the household, which are chiefly stored under it^ A fine
embroKlered saddle was one of the articles placed in this receptacle. The
worked S' : '^'^ •« P"^ °^^'" '^' P°">'''' ^'^-^-^' -- °ften beautifully

rrweatrL'fir-^''^^' ^-^ ^^"'^^ '- '-^ -^'^'^ ^'^ ^^^^^ — '

if Jl a'' "°' -"ter Jnto an Indians head to suppose that he is intruding
.f he walks unannounced into your house, and sits down silently staring at you

w/rf^'?rV- /''■ "^r ^' ^'^'"^ y"' ^"^^ 'f y°" -ter hi? abo'de
We lifted the skins, and introduced ourselves to the chief's family as a ma^er of
course We had walked through the rows of dusky tents, anc selected he best
painted and ta lest, and the crowds of copper-coloured, weK-dressed Indians
squaws, and children, together with the numerous dogs, ali looked on the visit of
the party of white men in a most unconcerned fashion. So, in entering the chiefs
quarters, the family did not seem either glad or the reverse. A young couple who
had been exchanging confidences in one of the fur-strewn compartments on the
floor ceased to talk, and gazed at us. The old chief sat on his bearskin and
moked, h.s pipes, of beautilul red stone, being carefully arranged in order
by his side Perhaps a more cordial greeting may sometimes be given • but
these people had said their say at a great council on the previou! evem-ng
and had not got all they desired. Hence, perhaps, the apathy ^'

At a subsequent meeting with another portion of the same tribe the
squaws came m long procession, riding their ponies, which had ^r'avovs
harnessed to them. This is almost exactly the rude machine used in the
Highlands for hay carrying. Two poles are fastened so that the butt ends rest
on the ground, and the lighter ends project beyond the pony's shoulders to
which they are attached. A cross-piece unites the ends near the ground knd
behind the horse's hocks. On the cross-piece the goods or children are placed
The woman mounts the horse, sitting man-fashion. Some of the dresses were

I70

Canadian Pictukks.

U{:i "^

very prettily adorned with beads and rows of the milk teeth of the wapiti,
the ornaments being sewn on to robes of finely cleaned antelope and mountain
sheep skin, v/hich descend nearly to the women's ankles.

Their mode of disposing of the dead is seen in the engraving, where
a corpse is raised on a platform, out of the way of wolves. Sometimes they
place the wrapped-up body in a tree. But the manner of sepulture is various
Many tribes bury. None burn the dead.

Indian Burial on the Plains.

At Brantford in Ontario and at Sault St. Marie may be seen excellent
schools, at which Indian children are taught several trades as well as other
branches of education. They are quick at learning, and i lake good carpenters,
printers, and shoemakers. One of the Iroquois, Oroniateka, was, by the help
of Dr. Acland, educated partly at Oxford, and has practised as a doctor of
medicine with great success. He is a pure-blooded Indian. On the plains it
is found that the half-white, if he has a French father, will take to the nomad

Christianity the Foundation of Civi

LISATION.

171

Ijfe of his Indian mother; but, on the other hand, if the father be of British
descent he takes to the father's ways, and becomes a farmer. This reminds
one of the devotion shown by the French in l->ance to their moihers, who
often have more influence than has the father in shaping their character.

1 he few savage tribes which yet remain in possession of their old customs
and manners do not form by any means a prominent feature of even the most
unsettled portions of Canada. The talk is not of Indians, but of engines, of
the plough, of the self-binder, of the reaper, of the hay-cutter. It is of the
price of timber for building, of the advantages of the long grass for thatching,
of the utility of straw for burning, and of the great output of coal which is
Iready assured from the newly-opened mines of Alberta. The speculations
are not of a visit from the wild man, but whether the splendid crop in the
ground shall be visited by any early frost, of the further facilities in the way
ot transport the railways shall afford, or projected lines may still further increase •
or Shall a new steamer on some river be able to make her return trip in time
to carry off some of the superabundant grain ?

People often speak of the difference and inferiority in worth of the Christian
Indian as compared with the native, untouched by jthe influences of the white
man. lint this is not only a careless but singularly unhappy mode of speech
It IS not, It need hardly be said, the conversion of the heathen which has bad
ettects but the contact with a civilisation which has its debasing as well as its
ennobling qualities. Nothing has kept peace among native tribes in their
original wild state but the Christianity introduced by the missionaries, who have
.sola ed and unsupported as they were in old days, yet produced a marked
effect wherever they took up their residence. The early French missionaries
prepared the way for the agents of the great fur-trading companies. They
gave to them the example to treat kindly, considerately, and justly the red man
It IS only too true that the fur traders at one time dealt with that worst of
poisons, brandy, in exchange for skins; but in the main they followed the advice
and precepts of the bringers of the Gospel. Bitter conflicts were thereby avoided
and the foundation laid for the unhindered advance of civilisation

It IS undoubtedly true that the first effects of the advance does no good to
tne native Just as his appearance; and often his health suffers at the commence-
ment for the change in his lodging and apparel, when instead of the birch bark
or hide tent he takes to bad hovels, and wears, in lieu of his buffalo robe and
embroidered " leathers," the cast-off clothing-incongruous and gaudy if he can
only procure such-of the European; so at first, in manners and habits he
mutates, not the best of the white man's ways, but what he sees the most of
namely the worst. Although Cooper in his novels exaggerated the stateliness
and virtues of the red man, yet in the main his picture of him is a true one
angularly honest, the Indian would not touch the food supply of a friend
although he himself might be almost starving. He spoke the truth, and was
true in his friendship, however merciless, cruel, and crafty against his enemies

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172

Canadian Pictures.

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It is natural that the savage virtue should vanish when brought in contact with
the manifold vices of civilisation.

The leavening element of that civilisation is the Christianity which may, and
does, touch the savage also, so that he becomes in time better, materially and
morally, than before. For the proof of such assertion we need only look at such
Indian communities as those at Brantford. The change in his condition when
he emerges from savagery may bring him for a generation new troubles ; but it
must be remembered that it saves him also from the old, and that the losses
formerly suffered by him in the incessant wars and occasional famines are no
longer to be feared by him. Absorption by the white races rather than
extermination appears to be their destiny.

Cariboo Horns.

{Ftvm the colltction 0/ tht Mari/uis of Lome.)

'■'I

I i

THE NEW TERRITORIES.

■#w»#iwiii<ii<h>*>iii I MWJa'BBiifciariawxaaiBrBii'iraa

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iNIHAN DkESSES, WEAI'ONS, AND ORNAMKNTS.
{/''r,'r/t the Collection of the Miiyiptis o/ Lottie.)

..MJMSliS^h: JLmkkJk. :

A NoKTK Saskatchewan Steamer.

(l-'roiii the Maniuis of Lome's collection o/ /itiolograflis.)

CHAPTER IX.

The New Territories.

The Stern-wheel Steamer— Prince Albert— Carleton— Fort Edmonton— The Peace River— Athabasca
—The Bell Farm— The System .> Land ArpRopRiATioN in the North-West— Comparative Pro-
duction OF THE North-West and other Parts— Alberta— Buffalo Herds— First View of the
Rocky Mountains.

BEFORE we go further along the Canadian Pacific Railway line, it will be well
to tal: a a passing look at the two great provinces which lie to the north,
namely, Saskatchewan and Athabasca ; called after the great rivers which, flowing
from the Rocky Mountains, join their waters near Prince Albert, and pour their
united flood into Lake Winnipeg. Each of the Saskatchewan River branches
is roughly 800 miles in length, and when united they have a course of some 900
miles to run before they reach the lake. The province called after them has
an area of 100,000 square miles. A railway will soon give access to the
districts around the lower parts of these streams.

Steamers have navigated for some years the North Saskatchewan, and on the
southern branch more vessels are now being placed. The river rises in spring
after the ice has broken up, an event which takes place about the 23rd of April.
Until October the vessels can find water, but in the ai.tumn the stream becomes
very shallow, and the numerous and ever-shifting sand-bars cause much delay.
The Missouri and the upper portions of the Mississippi are very similar in this
respect, and the difficulties in the latter are well known through Mr. Clemens'
(Mark Twain) able writings. The first thing which seems odd to a European
is that there is only one paddle wheel, and this single wheel is placed at the stern,
so that the craft looks like an upturned wheelbarrow. The feature which
will, secondly, seem the oddest is a curious erection of beams on the forward
deck. Two things, like the gyns used in lifting heavy weights, are placed on

176

Canadian Pictures.

■ r

!■ m I

each side. The heavy weight to be lifted in this case is the vessel itself. As
soon as very challow water is struck, two long beams are put over the side, the
wheel astern churns up the water, and the ship is fairly lifted on these, as a lame
man is on crutches, for a few feet over the obstacle. The poles are then hoisted,
and put forward again into the sand, and another step onward is made. Where
such a rig is not provided, the only means of making progress consists in getting
out a hawser and attaching it to something on the bank. The capstan is then
manned and the hawser hauled upon, and with much shouting, rocking of the
boat, and convulsive effort of the engines, step by step, way is gained, until
deeper water is reached. Much time used to be lost in old days from the absence
of the electric light on board. The want of such means of illumination made
it necessary to " tie up " every evening at sundown, and remain stationary under
the bank until morning showed the pilot the surface of the stream. To men to
whom time was not a matter of importance these halts were not unpleasant. It
gave time for an excursion on shore, for the shooting of the sharp-tailed grouse
of the plain, or possibly for a shot at bear or buffalo. All big game have now
vanished from the frequented routes, and the utmost excitement enjoyed by our
dogs was a night chase around the state rooms after a flying squirrel, which had
come on board from a neighbouring poplar thicket.

Prince Albert is already a well-settled pface. A Highlander, Bishop
MacLean, from the Isle of Mull, is the Anglican bishop. Parallel with the
Saskatchewan and to the south flows the Carrot River, along whose valley there i
abundance of fine land. Here too we meet the forest, which exists for 700 miles
near the great river to the north, coming down to clothe its banks again in the
neighbourhood of Edmonton. The bishop points out his first " palace," a little
log-wood shanty. Nor is his present abode imposing. But there is real grandeur
in the work he and his colleagues of other denominations have set themselves to
do, and have already succeeded in doing so well. These early evangelisers and
priests of the wilderness can often speak several Indian dialects. They have
peacefully prepared the mind of the red man for the greater changes yet to come.
Their place is no sinecure. Long before they can even hope to have civilised towns
and farms around them, they must be prepared to undertake long journeys, and to
toil ceaselessly with no expectation of any reward other than that their consciences
must give them. And it has been for this only that they have striven. Now
that Providence has directed towards their lonely habitations the throng of
emigrants, they have an additional responsibility, and one that they will meet and
accept, and a reward for which they have indeed unconsciously worked, for it was
never expected.

At Carleton, an old fort some way higher up the river, we heard, even in 1881,
rei^orts of the excellence of the land to the north ; and now Colonel Butler, the
author of that remarkably well-written book, the Grea^ Lone Land, has taken
a district where experiments in farming have been begun with the best promise.

Twenty years ago Lord Milton passed the winter here on the borders of the

Fertiuty of the New Territories.

i;7

northern forest. The buffalo herds were numerous to the south, and his party
had plenty of s^ort, while the Wood Cree Indians proved themselves to be good
neighbours. H.s most interesting book, The North-West Passage by Land
IS well worth reading, for he passed through that portion of the country to
the back of the northern branch of the Saskatchewan which will ultimately
prove to be one of the most favoured tracts of the whole continent The
grasses are green the whole summer through. No drought affects them, and
the near presence of the trees proves the moisture to be greater than further
south. He set out from Carleton on the loth October, crossing the horses,
carts and baggage by scow boat to the north side of the river. " We were now
travelling, he says, "through mixed country. The weather was still beauti-
fully fine and during the day pleasantly warm. The nights began to be very
keen and the lakes were already partly covered with a thin coating of ice. The
wild fowl had taken their departure for the south, only a few stragglers remaining
from the later broods Many of the latter fall victims to their procrastination
being frequently found frozen fast in the ice. But this, the Indians assert, takes
place in consequence of their excessive fatness, which renders them unable to
rise on the wing and they are thus detained behind to suffer a miserable
death. In four days we arrived at the Shell River, a small tributary of the
Saskatchewan. The next day brought us to a lovely little spot, a small prairie
of perhaps 200 acres, surrounded by low wooded hills, and on one side a lake
winding with many an inlet amongst the hills and into the plain, while here and
there a tiny promontory, richly clothed with pines and aspens, stretched out into
the water. The beauty of the place had struck the rude voyagers, its only
visitors except the Indians, and they had named it La Belle Prairie "

Lord Milton tells us how fat and flourishing the horses of his party were in

^fr"'?" , • " ^^^ ^^^'' '"'"^"^ '°°'^ ^' -he commencement of the winter

We had seen them or their tracks from time to time, and knew in what direction
they had wandered. One of the party followed their trail without difficulty, and
discovered them about eight or ten miles away. We were very much astonished
at their fine condition. Although very thin when the snow began to fall they
were now perfect balls of fat. and as wild and full of spirit as if fed on corn-a
most unusual condition for Indian horses. The pasture is so nutritious that
animals fatten rapidly even in winter-when they have to scratch away the snow
to feed-if they find woods to shelter them from the piercing winds. No horses
are more hardy and enduring than those of this country, yet their only food is
the grass of the prairies and the vetches of the copses. The milch cows and
draught oxen at Red River and in Minnesota, feeding on grass alone were
generally in as fine condition as the stall-fed cattle of the Baker Street Show "

He noticed at Fort Pitt, on his way up the Saskatchewan, how productive
the farming was, although this was then on a very small scale. Potatoes were
abundant, and attained an immense size. Carrots and turnips grew equally
well, and wheat would, no doubt, flourish as well as on Red River

A A

■ippiipi

178

Canadian Pictures.

The country around he describes as "glorious "— not, indeed, grandly
picturesque, but rich and beautiful ; a country of rolling hills and fertile valleys,
of lakes and streams, groves of birch and aspen, and miniature prairies ; a land
of a kindly soil, and full of promise to the settler to come in future years, when
an enlightened policy shall open out the wealth now uncared for or unknown.

He remarks on the beauty of the blue flowers which spring up in such
numbers in the north. In the more open country to the south an orange lily is
the flower which grows most luxuriantly after the disappearance of the snow,
and this is followed by the little sunflowers which spangle the prairie, and in
many places make it blaze with golden colour. For my part, I never tire of the
summer aspect of the plains. In the v/inter they are often desolate-looking
enough ; and what landscape is not ? There is at all events this to be said for
the winter prairie, namely, that the sky is seldom only of a dull grey above it,
and is oftener than in Europe of a bright blue, filled with the cheerfulness of
sunlight.

There is one drawback in summer, and this is the universal presence
of the mosquito ; but take a day in autumn, and then see if you do not enjoy
the prairie. If you are in the eastern parts, the long grass is nearly up to your
hips as you stand in it, and its green blades are varied with purple vetches and
tall asters. Your horizon is circumscribed, for poplar clumps, with their white
stems trembling in the noonday mirage, are not far off, in whatever direction you
look. Out of the netting of poplar you emerge into a more open world, with
hardly a tree. The grasses are not 30 long, but still the lily or the sunflower is
present in masses of blossom. There are marshes thick with tall sedge and long
tawny grass around the margin. There are clear pools and lakelets fringed with
reed ; and in September what numbers of wild fowl ! — swans, difficult to
approach, and tall white cranes, and the small sand-crane in flocks. We hear
cries in the air above us, and, looking up, we see against a grey cloud great white
birds flapping heavily along. They are pelicans, white except the quill feathers;
and behind them now, but rapidly overtaking them, is a long string of other
birds, also white, except the wing feathers. These fly in waving curves, looking in
the distance like rows of pearls waved in the air. They are snow-geese, coming,
like the pelicans, from the far northern breeding-grounds, and they alight on a lake
near at hand, making a long white band on its blue water. They are worth
stalking, and an attempt is made, but only one is killed, and the rest take the
wing and are no more seen that day. But the ducks are tamer, and come circling
back, and afford excellent sport. What a variety ! The most common are
blue-wing teal, shoveller, dusky duck, and mallard. Certainly there is no easier
and better way of having wild-fowl shooting than by a visit to the North-west.
Once out of Manitoba the land swells into waves, and from each ridge a marvel-
lous extent of country is seen. The lakes are fewer, and a long march is sometimes
necessary before a good camping-ground is found. The herbage, except in such
spots, is poorer, and the general effect given by it is a dull grey-green, shading

Aspect ok tiik Western Pi,ArNs. ,70

!!!;!!1h "^'JJ^'^^^;-!''''^"^^ !^ Srcy and ochre, and then far away these tints become
m.xed wuh dehcate pinks and cobalt blue. •• Far away ?" Yes indeed the

r^hlrvo: f ^'" ^°" ''-^•^^t ^'- '— cleameL or their ;:suchtha

before Pbt"'''^ T"" ""? '" ^'f '""^'^ "•■ ^° ^^^ ^^^-^ ^^^ wide horizons
before. Pla eaux, hollows, ndges and plains lie beneath yoi,, on and on and

Th re'is" no '"' '' .'^'^ ?' ''' ^"' "'"' '^^"^ ''^^ ^^"^ °^ - •"d^fi-'^e vasVess

those oin^nd'^M' T^ '\"'''''', '''' ^''''' ^"^ '' ^^'^"^^'-'^ ^"^ ^^-"^ers on to

n harlnv of T -'''^^^^'^%"here the skies, light and beautiful in tint, are joined

in harmony of colour to the endless swell and roll of the uninhabited world

;■**=

Fort EdmOxNton.

(From the Afnrfuis of Lome s
culleilioH 0/ fhologm/'hs.)

beneath them. A
wonderful sense
of freedom, and
yet of loneliness,
is borne in upon you ; and you feel
perhaps that you would like to
keep the liberty and yield some of the loneliness and
pitch your tent and live, if live in the wilderness' you
must, away to the north, where the streams chime in
swifter currents through the more varied lands, and
forest succeeds meadow, and fertile dale and prairie
have near them the whispering shelter of the firs, and morning and even ng

ifthe terrnTi;': "^"^''"^^ ^"^^"^^ °' '^'^ ^"' ^^ ''^'^'^ °" ^^^ — «^"^'
We will hurry on to Edmonton, and hear the reports there. Manv
men from Ontario have got property here, and there is abundance of coa^
as well as of _ timber in the vicinity. Horses do well when left out in
winter. This ,s now comparatively well-known ground, but there mav be
some interest ,n endeavouring to see what lies beyond the paths which are
already more or less beaten tracks. There is no stranger sensation than

A A 2

'\ym

li I

M
I' '

Tn^sm

1 80

Canadian Picturks.

that of carapinfj night after night in meadows which are full of such good
grass that you f("c;l inclined to look round for their owner and to ask his leave.
But there have been none from the beginning of time to say to you "nay."
Even the sava;Te has here never molested the pioneer. No one having a taste
for exploration, for sport, or for settlement in some far-away but fair region, where
he may live as the pioneer of a community on land certain to rise in value, need
fear to pursue his object on account of any native's hostility. There is no one
to hinder him, if he wishes to break the soil where the great Peace River forces
its way through the grand masses of the mountains, or settle near the Hudson's
Bay Company's posts further down along the banks of the deeply-wooded
stream. There is a singular charm in thus being among the first in a new land,
but by and by more companionship is desired : and it is not to be doubted that
each wave of emigration as it is poured westward will send many a stout fellow
onward until he rests satisfied with his farm, from which he may see the giant
and serrated ridges and peaks of the Rocky Mountains far away, cut clear and
distinct, dark blue, against the western sunset light.

But we must hear what our Edmonton friends say. " A party went in 1882
to Peace River from Edmonton. They went determined to farm, but having
lost three out of their four oxen on the trip, and not being able to get in as early
as they expected, they were unable to do anything the first summer, and were
compelled to come back in order to get a new start. They are very much
pleased with the country and climate, and consider both superior to Edmonton,
They had erected a shanty and done some breaking on a claim a few miles from
Dunvegan last fall, and two men remained on it until the 26th of February,
when one left for Edmonton. The weather was very stormy and cold in
January, the thermometer going down to 56° and 57° below zero on two days
about the middle of the month. The snow was about three feet deep in the
latter end of February. During the latter part of February and all March the
weather was very fine. Snow began to go off about the middle of March, and
the ground was bare in the first week of April. A very hard crust formed on
the snow in March, but this did not prevent the Hudson's Bay Company's herd of
horses which were wintering out from doing well. They kept along the north
bank of the river, where the sun has more effect on the snow than on the plain
behind. The Peace Rfver broke up about the middle of April, and grass began
to turn green in the latter end of the month. The spring was somewhat later
than usual. No horses died during the winter.

" The piece of breaking, about three acres in extent, which had been done
last fall was sown this spring with wheat, barley, and oats, and the grain was up
on the loth of May. The crop sown at Dunvegan was also up at that time
and looking well.

" Rabbits and chickens are plentiful all over the country, also ducks and
geese wherever there are any lakes or ponds. Of large game, bears, both black,
brown, and grizzly, are the most plentiful. The grizzly is generally found near

TlIF, Pl'Ari. RiVFK.

i8i

the mountains, and the black bear on the; plains. Moose are not as common as
a few years ago, and are found principally around Fort St. John. There are a
few timber wolves. Fo.xes, both red, cross, and grey, are very numerou.s, also
marten and hsher. I he claim was left in charge of one of the men, who went to
leace River m 1883. and intends to reside there permanently. He left
Dunvegan on the loth of May on a raft loaded with Hudson's Bay Company
goods for Battle River, which comes into the Peace below the mouth of Smoky
River. The trip to Smoky River occupied a day.

"The Peace is a grand stream, being half as wide again as the Saskatchewan
at Edmonton, very deep, with a strong current and a few islands in it The
banks are very high and slope back from the river, the northern being all
praine and the southern all timber. There are no high-cut banks, as on the

liitKtALO Hunting.

(/■>!>;« CnliiM's '• Xalth American Indians."]

Saskatchewan. The Smoky River is nearly as large at its mouth as the
Saskatchewan."

This letter refers to regions which are as yet far removed from any
considerable settlement ; but, from the accounts received, the Province of
Athabasca — such is the new name given to a country as large as France — will be
one of the finest in the Canadian Union. To reach Edmonton it required, a few
years ago, ninety days of travel across the prairies from Winnipeg. Slowly the old
caravans of Red River carts traversed the trails over the sod of the vast plains.
But, unless it were in places where small watercourses made a marsh, the trails
formed good roads. By these or by the river, people have still to travel to
Edmonton; but one of the proposed railways, which is certain to pay well,
will be that which shall proceed by the forks of the Saskatchewan up the

183

CaNAPIAN 1*I( TURKS.

northern branch of that river, and proceed from Hdnionton to Diinvejran, on the
Peace River, and open up that ^^reat ^rrain country. It is ini|)ossible to estimate
the amount of wheat which must be raised in the lifetime of many now here
from these parts of the central coiuIneiU. The dryness which is present
sometimes in the south is wholly absent from the richly grassed steppes that lie
in an inunense arched zone from Kdmonton to Prince Albert, having on its
northern »ulge the spruce forests, which end only when the sub-Arctic circle is
reached.

The American consul at Winnipeg. Mr. Taylor, says, " TIk! altitude of the
Athabasca and Peace River districts is less, and the trend of the Pacific winds
through the Rocky Mountains is more marked than at Battleford, a place once
proposed as the capital of the North-West Territories, owing to its central situation
between Edmonton and the eastern edges of the plains. It was on the banks
of the Peace River, well in latitude 60", that Sir Alexander Mackenzie records on
the loth May, the grass so well grown that the buffalo, attended by their young,
were cropping the uplands. The climate is not matt;rially different west of Lake;
Athabasca in latitude 60" to what it is west of Lake Superior in latitude 46°."
Professor Macoun shows two heads of wheat, one from Prince AIb(>rt in latitude
53°, and another from Fort Vermilion on Peace River, latitude 59°, and from each
cluster of the two he separated five well-formed grains, with a corresponding
length of the head. " Here," he says, " has the perfection of the wheat plant
attained, according to the well-known physical law, nearly the most northei-n limit
of its successful growth. The line of equal mean temperature, especially for the
season of vegetation between March and October, instead of following lines of
latitude, bends from the Mississippi valley far to the north, carrying the zone of
wheat from Minnesota away to the 60" parallel in the valley of the Peace River,
and reproducing the summer heats of New Jersey, and Southern Pennsylvania,
in Minnesota and Dakotah, and those of Northern Pennsylvania and Ohio in
the valley of the Saskatchewan. Within the isothermal lines that inclose the
zone west and north-west of Minnesota lies a vast area of fertile lands, from
which a dozen great new states might be cut."

Athabasca has 120,000 square miles within its limits. As long ago as the
days of Franklin's journey across these plains, Richardson, who travelled with
him as naturalist to his expedition, was struck with the fair soil, and the evidence
of a comparatively warm climate in winter, along the banks of the vast
Mackenzie River. It is evident that where a heavy wood growth can live by
the water's edge, that there wheat can be grown. But as yet it is a land of much
mystery. Hunters tread its vast woods and prairies for the sake of the fur-
bearing animals, notably fox, fisher, marten, lynx, mink, wolverine, musk-rat,
beaver, wolf, bear, and musk-ox. This last is a creature almost as grotesque in
appearance as is the buffalo. It has much of the sheep in its characteristics.
Its horns are sheep-like, in their rising from flat bases spread across the forehead,
but the animal is a huge one, with a coat of hair six inches in length on the back.

Fakmin(; r\ Assinihoia.

'S3

he colour is dark, uith a li^lu patch on the hack. Curious, too. are th.- fish of
these coumries. most of the.n well and truly described hy old Richardson. To
the list of natural leatur(>s wc must ,,rol,al,ly add the presence of petroleum. It
<s said th.it aloUK: the River Athabasca men have .seen clifts which for eiLdUv
miles are lull of this precious oil. '

We have seen something' of the Indians of Assiniboia. Let us m.w examine
the early results of the industry of the white man in that j.rovince. It is i
inaKMiil.cent sij^ht to an eye lovin- aj^riculture to .see some of his farms A
recent letter s^.eaks of a visit to the Hell l-arm, not far from the charminL'
village of Qu Appelle. This is an enterprise but lately begun, and everything
that IS now to be seen upon it has been done within tw(;Ive months. Listen to
the aspect of it in 1SS3.

" I'he dwelling-house or lu-ad-quarters of the farm stands about a mile and a
half back from the railroad. It is a plain, substantial building of stone
Surrounding it arc a granary and store-house, a large stone stable for horses a
blacksmith's shop, a shed for cattle, an ice-house, a dog-kennel, &c. The granary
and store-house are capable of holding 30,000 bushels of 'vheat, besides all the
stores and implements for the use of the farm. Irt one compartment alone of
this granary I .saw 8,000 bushels (and then it was not half full) of the finest fyfe
wheat, yellow and pure as gold, without dirt or weed seeds of any kind This
year, when the harvest has all been ingathered. there will be 30,000 bushels of
tiie same. It will weigh si.xty-seven pounds to the bushel, and average twenty-
two bushels to the acre. The yield of oats will be 70.000 bushels-all the
product of 3,000 acres of land this year. This wheat will all be reserved for
iiext year's .seed, both for their own use and the use of all Airmers who may
desire to purchase it. The company intend to establish a No. i grade, that they
call 'gu'Appelle wheat." which will be unsurpassed for quality on the whole of
the vast continent, if not in the world at large. The stable is a circular stone
building, with scpiare holes at intervals all round it, for light and ventilation
1 here are stalls for thirty-six horses in this building, and it is as clean as a
parlour. The feed is kept in the upper story, and is conveyed through a chute
to the lower. One man attends to the whole stable. The cattle shed is capable
of holding 200 head of stock, and is open on every side all round the roof
resting on heavy i)iles. The stock are to be left free in this inclosure, so that they
may be allowed to rub themselves against the posts. There are twenty-six self-
binder reaping-machines on the farm, and it is a sight worth beholding all these
machines marching by, as if in battle array, attacking the standing grain', laying it
low, gathering it into sheaves, binding it, and then casting it forth on the ground
without a single mishap or failure. They have fifty sulky ploughs ; each plough
IS required to travel twenty miles a day. and then its work is done. Two steam-
threshing-machines are now at constant work ; eighty-seven men are employed •
there are forty stations on the farm ; ninety-nine work horses are owned, and
sixty head of milch cows. Ten thousand acres will be put into seed next year

184

Canadian Pictures.

The farm is ten miles sq\iare, and there :s being planted a grand avenue of
10,000 poplar trees, ten miles in length. Some of the trees were planted last
year and are healthy, and average from twelve to fifteen feet in height. The
company is cutting 800 tons of wild hay for the use of the stock during the
coming winter, it would cost !?7o,ooo to do the fencing on this establishment
alone. Instead of leaving the grain when cut to stand exposed in stooks on the
field, as I notice that many of the farmers do, thus risking the loss of it from bad
weather, it is hauled off as soon as possible and stacked neatly and safely away,
si.K stacks in u place, to await the coming of the threshing-machines. Twenty-
five portable granaries are being constructed on the farm, to hold 1,000 bushels
each. They are m.onster barrels, with a square hole cut in the side for the grain
to pass through into them from the thresher. They are supported on heavy
sleds, and will be movable to any part of the farm. The Bell Farm Company
pay their employes $35 a monih, about ^80 a year, and settle with them
punt tually on the 20th of every month. There has been an expenditure already
of $250,000 on the farm. The town of Indian Head contains a population of
from 100 to 200. It is built on the land belonging to the Bell Farm. This
town is to be beautifully laid out and planted by the farm com.pany with shade
trees. The main street is to be the same width as Main Street in Winnipeg. I
could take up much further space and time in describing this iinmense undertaking,
but this will suffice for the present. Let me, however, before concluding, say a word
or two abcut some samples of grain that Major Beli has been collecting on the farm
for the Central Pacific Railway Company, to be sent as exhiJits to London,
England. One of these is a sample of oats, the product of one single germ
seed. It is composed of thirty stalks, more like young canes than oat stalks.
It is estimated that there are 10,000 seeds of grain on these stalks. Another is
a sample of 'soft wheat, Red River variety.' There are thirty stalks, and 1,200
seeds of grain attached to them. A third sample has eighty-three heads of the
fyfe variety, containing 3,000 pickles ot the finest wheat. The Yankees boast
that they can beat all creation, but here is something in the north- west that can
beat the Yankees, They have in St. Paul a sample of wheat with eighty-one
heads, and they have offered $500 for anything that can beat it in the States
But if Major Bell was only allowed to carry the war across tne boundary line, or
past this American Chinese wall into the enemy's country, he would beat them
all into a cocked hat in no time."

The system of laying out the land in Manitoba and the Canadian north-
west is most simple. The land is divided into townships, six miles square,
containing thirty-six sections of 640 acres each, which are again subdivided into
quarter sections of 160 acres. A road allowancoi iiaving a width of one chain
is provided for on each section line running north and south, and on every
alternate section line running ea^-t and west.

Division of Lan-d into Townships.

Lvenue of
mted last
;ht. The
luring the
bhshment
ks on the

from bad
"ely away,

Twenty-

bushels
the grain

on heavy
Company
nth them
re already
ulation of
ni. This
ath shade
nipeg. I
lertaking,
ay a word

1 the farm
London,

igle germ
>at stalks,
another is
and 1,200
ids of the
:ees boast
t that can
ighty-ono
le States.
ry line, or
)eac them

185

The following diagram shows a township with the sections numbered :—

o3 34 35 36

30 29 28 27 • 26 25

21 22

16 15

9 1 10

1 1

—

■

4 3

The sections are apportioned as follows :—

O/^cH for Homestead and Pre-eniptions.~'^o%. 2, 4, 6, 10, 12, 14, 16 18 -'o
22, 24, 28, 30, 32, 34, 2,(>.

Belongingto the Canadian Pacific Raihvay.~^09,.\, I. ^ 79 \x is 17
19.21,23,25,27,31,33,35. ' ' ' • ^' ^'

Nos. I, 9, 13, 21, 25, :^i along the main line Winnipeg to Moose Jaw sold
to the Canada North-VVest Land Company, the balance of their lands beine in
Southern Manitoba.

Hudson s Bay Company's Lands.— ^os. 8, 26.

SWwo/ Sections.—NoH. 11, 29 (reserved by Government solely for school
purposes).

Here is a statement of comparative produce in the north-west, and other
countries; but it is by no means to be assumed that all the country yields
twenty-nine bushels : —

an north-
is square,
'ided into
one chain
on everv

\\in:.vT.

Manitoha, average yield per acre .
Great Britain and Ireland ...

I\linnesota (the Empire Wheat State of the Union)
United States .

• • • •

Ontario ......

South Australia

29 bushels.

28-5 „

'4'5i ..
12-3 „

1 1 "5 »
8 ..

R B

■■II

!!!ll

1 86

Canadian Pictures.

The same, though to a less extent, applies to barley and oats. The averages
of barley are : —

BARLEY.

Manitoba, average yield per acre

Minnesota

Wisconsin ,,

Iowa

Ohio ' ..

Indiana „

Illinois .,

OATS.

Manitoba, average yield per acre

Minnesota ,.

Iowa , „

Ohio

39 bushels.

25
20

19
19

57 bushels.

28 ..
23

This remarkable growth is accounted for by the fact that the cultivated
plants yield the greatest product near the northernmost limit of their growth.
Hence the perfection of wheat in Manitoba, where, instead of being developed
too rapidly, as is the case further south, the undue luxuriance of the stem or leaf
is restrained by the cool, late spring, and the chief development of the plant
thrown into the ripening period. The assertion of the distinguished American
climatologlst, Blodgett, "that the basin of the Winnipeg is the seat of the
greatest average wheat product on this continent, and probably in the world,"
has been proved correct by the record of a yearly average of over twenty-nine
bushels per acre from 1876 to 1882.

The following conies from the Canadian Pacific Railway's Handbook, and
is useful, being accurate.

An approximate estimate of the first outlay, in a moderate way, of the
settler who has more than ^100 capital : —

Provisions for one year, say . . .

/50

Yoke of oxen

2>7

One CO"' ......

7
16

Waggon ......

Plough and harrow ....

Sundry implements ....

Cooking stove, with tinware . . .

Furniture, &c., say

Sundry expenses, say ....

/I49

Advice to the Settler.

187

of th(

To the above must he added first payment on land, unless he takes a home-
stead and preemption ; but an energetic man will find time to earn something as
an offset to a portion of his first expenses, either on the railway, or by working
for neighbourmg farmers ; and in addition to this there is the chance of obtaining
a partial crop the first year. A settler, therefore, who can boast of having
^500 on his arrival in Manitoba is an independent man, and cannot fail to succeed,
with ordinary care and energy. Many settlers on arrival have not a tenth part of
that sum, and yet they succeed. The cost of breaning, ploughing, sowing, and
harvesting is estimated on good authority at from £2 45. to £2 ids. per acre
which, of course, includes the settler's own labour and that of his family.

The settler from older countries should be careful to adapt himself to
those methods which experience of the country has proved to be wise, rather
than try to employ in a new country those practices to which he has been
accustomed at home. For instance, with respect to ploughing, or, as it is called,
••breaking" the prairie, the method in Manitoba is quite different from that in
the old country. The prairie is covered with a rank vegetable growth, and the
question is how to subdue this, and so make the land available for farming
purposes. Experience has proved that the best way is to plough a shallow
furrow, and turn over a furrow from twelve to sixteen inches wide.

It is especially desirable for the farmer who enters early in the spring to put
in a crop of oats on the first breaking. It is found by experience that the sod
pulverises and decomposes under the influence of a growing crop quite as
effectually, if not more so, than when simply turned and left by itself for that
purpose. There are also fewer weeds, which is of very great importance, as it
frequently happens that the weeds which grow soon after breaking are as difficult
to subdue as the sod itself. Large crops of oats are obtained from sowing on
the first breaking, and thus not only is the cost defrayed, but there is a profit. It
is also of great importance to a settler with limited means to get this crop the
first year. One mode of this kind of planting is to scatter the oats on the grass,
and then turn a thin sod over them. The grain thus buried quickly finds its
way through, and in a few weeks the sod is perfectly rotten.

As for fuel, specimens of coal have lately been taken out from various
parts of the- country, and the analysis and experience in the burning of the
mineral show that although the coal of the tertiary formations in Manitoba and
the eastern part of Assiniboia will provide fair fuel, it is not to be mentioned in
the same breath with the coal found from Medicine Hat onward to the mountains,
and northwards along the line near their " foot-hills."

Alberta has 100,000 square miles, and was named after the Princess Louise,
one of whose Christian names is Alberta. It is the great region embracing the
head-waters of the two Saskatchewans. Its surface is, in the south and centre,
a rolling prairie, treeless except near the water courses. On the west side of
the foot-hills of the mountains, among the gorges, and in the north, there is a
rich growth of spruce and pine. Anthracile has been found in a vein five

n B 2

I %

i88

Canadian Picturks.

feet thick in one of the glens, and veins of excellent coal of the cretaceous
period of geology seem to underlie the whole country near the mountains.
Excellent mines have been opened near Medicine Hat. The one great
necessity of the settler is thus bountifully supplied by Providence. There is
also plenty of good clay for brickmaking.

Principal Grant, in his interesting account of his journey from " ocean to
ocean," thus speaks of the coal in the north and of the scenery. He knew
only the stuff found on the surface or rolled in the streams, and says that the
" men he met had been in the habit of making fires with it whenever they wished
the fire to remain in all night. The
exposure of the coal on the Pembina
River was a mere nothing to that on the
north fork of the North Saskatchewan ;
that there the seams were eighteen feet
thick ; that in one canyon was a wal

Stalking Antelopes.

(Fivm CalUn's " North .tmerkaH tnJinns.")

:lf!-:

of seams so hard that the weather had no effect on them ; and that on all
the rivers east of Edmonton, and west to the Rocky Mountains, are abundant
showings of coal." In the valley of the Athabasca River, which flows through
part of Alberta, he describes the view near the Roche Ronde, which is a
type of many others. " Roche Ronde was to our right, its stratification as
distinct as the leaves of a half-opened book. The mass of the rock was lime-
stone, and what at a distance had been only peculiarly bold and rugged outlines,
were now seen to be the different angles and contortions of the strata. And
such contortions ! One high mass twisting up the sides in serpentine folds,
as if it had been so much pie-crust ; another bent in great waving lines like

BUFFALOKS, ETC.

189

petrified billows. The colouring, too, was all that the artist could desire
Not only the dark green of the spruce in the corries. which turned into black
when far up but autumn tints of red and gold as high as vegetation had
chmbed on the hill-sides ; and above that streaks and patches of yellow, green
rusty red, and black relieving the grey mass of limestone ; while up the valley
every shade of blue came out, according as the hills were near or far away ; and
summits hoary with snow bounded the horizon."

Some time will pass before travellers see these northern mountains, for
the Inter-Oceanic Line, which was to have passed by the Tete Faune Cache
1 ass, has been taken far to the south, through the Kicking Horse Pass. We will
iollow the line from the frontier of Assiniboia. Soon after crossing the South
Saskatchewan on a long wooden bridge, we shall see upon the prairies herds
ot cattle for the Government hcxs leased tracts of grazing land extending over all
the south-west corner of the territory near the mountains. Many of the beasts are
of the best Lnghsu stock, Mr. Cochrane and others having given large sums
for high-grade bulls. The bulk of the herds are from the Western States.
The ranchmen, as the lessees and owners of big cattle farms are called, will
tell you in the United States that it will not pay to have cattle where they
must be fed in winter, and no doubt it is far less expensive to keep them in
districts where it is not necessary to collect winter fodder. But forage is easily
procured, and shelter not difficult to provide, so that we may expect cattle-
keeping to become an extensive business. As we have seen, horses can live out
through the winter easily enough, and for them the area of good country is much
greater than for unhoused cattle. Throughout this country we saw in 188 1
the dung of buffalo, although we only met a small herd of thirteen young bulls'
Dr. Macgregor correctly describes " the boundless hay-fields, everywhere
pitted with buffalo wallows ; seamed by furrow-like and parallel buffalo trails
and thickly sprinkled with buffalo 'chips ' and their whitening bones You can
never go far without seeing the horned skull of this once famous dweller of the
prairie bleaching in the sun. The wallows are saucer-like depressions in the
ground, made by the buffaloes rubbing themselves ; and so densely were these
prairies at one time filled by these innumerable herds, that in many places you
will find these wallows every few yards. They are an especial characteristic of
the country, and will always be found to be deepest around a large stone
which IS invariably utilised by the bull buffaloes for sharpening their horns for
battle The narrow trails beaten by their hoofs as they follow each other in
line of march from one feeding-ground to another, and from lake to lake are
also of very frequent occurrence, as one painfully learns from the rough joitinjr
they cause. Any one in difficulty about water can always find it by following
these trails. Bu i. z herds once on the move are difficult to turn aside Thev
have been known to go right through an encampment, and even to have broken
a line of mounted policemen."

When the herds of tlicsc creatures were so numerous that the earth was

J90

Canadian Pictures.

black with their moving masses, a ride among them and the slaughter of the
bulls must have been exciting work ; but to run down a scattered band may be
amusing at first, but is a sport which must soon pall on a man, for it is so easily
accomplished. A good horse will always outrun a buffalo, and can easily lay
his rider alongside of him, and then it is impossible to miss the huge, ungainly
brute. When wounded he is formidable only to a dismounted man.

Another denizen of these territories is as graceful as the buffalo is un-
gainly. This is the two-pronged antelope, a lovely animal. They are seen in
companies, usually from six to twenty or more in number. Cursed with an
insatiable curiosity, they cannot resist examining every strange object, and it
is common to attract them by a handkerchief on a stick, while the hunter lies
among the grass awaiting their approach. A little grey wolf, called the coyote,
is common. A most impudent beast he is, prowling round the camps, and
possessing himself of any wounded game left unguarded. A ride after one
usually results in failure to get within shot of him.

With a native horse or " bronco," riding over the grassy plains is very
pleasant ; but a strange horse from the east is apt to put his foot into one of
the countless holes and roll over. These holes are the result of the united
labour of several varieties of ground squirrel an4 of a little grey badger, and
until these are exterminated there will be many a " cropper " for the horseman.
They say that the badger's hole is a sure proof of water existing not far from
the surface. If so, the augury is a happy one, for their dwellings are numerous
enough.

Few will forget the first view of the mountains. In 1881, after the long
march across the plains, the effect was heightened to us by the length of time
during which we had seen no steep ground except the cut banks of rivers,
banks that, sloping quickly, faced each other at an interval of many hundred
yards. Between these the prairie levels have been grooved out in past ages by
the streams. On an evening in September, when the jaded horses had with
difficulty accomplished their day's labour, they were halted at a place where there
was a sudden ending of the flatter grass surfaces. Immediately below us was one
of these valleys. The dip of the ground into it, and the rise out of it on the
opposite side over a mile away, was not so great as at Red Deer River, but the
fall was to a depth of roo feet, and then green level ground stretched in curves
in the cliffs around a winding bright river, with bossy woods in great clumps
along its margin. Three-quarters of a mile away, on the flat ground on the
further side, and nestling under the further cliff, was a large Indian camp. There
must have been 150 "tepees" or wigwams, and the smoke came from many
fires, hiding the green valley in that place with a dull, blue vapour. Far up
the stream more smoke mist showed that other camps were there also. This
was one of the principal quarters of the nation into whose old territories we
had entered. It was the old hpme of the Blackfeet, a people who were so
hostile not many years ago that they would allow no white man into their country.

The Rockv Mou.ntains.

191

Beyond and above this camp and the sheltering diffs stretched again the
vast plains, rising to the westward in higher fold^ ; and there, just underneath

.. M.

'S!%S

y'^il^t.i-;

I fe

\'--^ri-

a great, far-stretching distant line of cloud,

what faint blue points were those which were

growing momentarily plainer in the evening

light ? They looked like the serrated black

jags of some crocodilian reptile's spine, as he

lay all hidden but his back, guarding a golden

treasure from which yellow light poured out

behind him. Field glasses were brought out and

levelled at the western horizon. There they were,

the Rocky Mountains ! Distinct although so far — 120 miles

'tr^

ys-

=iy^

7^^

s--->r"^'^

Chief Mountain.

away, clear-cleaving that far air— towered right into the clouds a row of
stupendous craggy peaks. Wc had come at last within sight of them. There

193

Canadian Pictures.

was the back-bone — jagged like that of the old saurian monsters — of this
gigantic continent. We watched and watched them until the sun had sunk
behind the fire-lit clouds, and then before it grew dark we could see that the
snow came far down those awful hill-sides — indeed, as far as we could trace their
heights above the intervening country.

In the train the view of the mountains comes quicker on the traveller,
who will agree that the siyht of the 150 miles of Alps from the Bow River
Benches above Calgarry is one of the most wonderful views in the world.
From this point, although the nearest peaks are still forty miles away, they
seem close, and look down from heights of 12,000 feet. From the square
block of the Chief Mountain near the frontier, to the peaks to the north of
Morleyville, the view is uninterrupted. The snow, early in the autumn, is low
upon their flanks, and the tumbled series of icy cones, broken rock battlements,
sudden rifted gorges, and unsealed walls, extending right and left in an even
front of white, produces an impression which can only be compared to that made
by the Alps from the Lombard plains. But the colouring here is finer, for
the snow glory changes to a deep purple at their base, and then in successive
waves of deep blue, pink, grey, and yellow-green each shade is blended, until at
your feet you see the steel blue of the impetuous stream glancing in the golden
setting of the rare and autumn-smitten woods of poplar. Where, as in the
journey from Edmonton, men come upon the mountain chains more suddenly,
owing to the dense forests, the surprise may be greater ; but nowhere can they see
such a contrast as at Calgarry of mighty expanses of snow and of green sward.

BRITISH COLUMBIA.

c c

PQ io

} I. is

■i

'! H>

VmAV KKOM I''..S(j1IIMA1I|.T,
(/■>,!«< ,1 Si;/,/, l-y ihc Ar.tr,j,iii ,</ t.ornt.)

CHAPTER X.

British Columbia.

\ 1 T-E will anticipate matters a little, and rapidly perform in imagination the
V V railway journey to the sea, for the reader must he impatient of bein^
kept so long behind the barriers of British Columbia. Giving the rein to our
fancy, we see the tram crossing one or two beautiful rivers, whose waters as we
near the Alpme ranges are clear and azure, and the forest, which we have so
long left behind us near Winnipeg, again appears in scattered clumps of fir
and^ pine, the land is swollen into great hills, and we enter the defiles. Above
us rise enormous rocky masses with precipices hundreds of feet in perpendicular
height, and the train slackens its speed, for we are ascending a steep gradient.
Higher and higher yet we mount, until the aneroid barometer announces that
we have risen 5,000 feet above the sea level, and at last we are on the top, and
are now commencing the descent, which will ultimately land us on the shores
of the 1 acific. But more mountains have yet to be traversed, and when wc

c c 2

':1!

tgS

Canadian Pictukf.s.

1 ■•

arrive at the bottom of the valley, after passinj? the first prcat range, and cross
the jrreat Culuinijiu River, we find that our enj,'ine has still hard work of it, and
must again mount. Everywhere around us now the woods are rich, and the
trees increase in size as we proceed. Some hours of ascent, and the task is
accomplished, and again we rush downwards until the second bend of the
Columbia is crossed, antl the still hilly but less formidable country is gained.
Beautiful lakes are now seen shrined in their surroundings of forest, and then
an upland region of grass fiats, evidently refreshed by less moisture than those
we have quitted, spreads out before us, and we are in the very heart of the
province of British Columbia, on the shores of a lake called Kamloops.

And now the last stage of our journey has been reached, and it is perhaps
one of the most remarkable in regard to the engineering difiiculties that are
now being successfully encountered by the railway contractors. Strong rivers
bounding with imi)etuous energy through tremendous ravines seem to be our
guides, for we follow their course. Faster and faster yet the torrent rages its
way through the ravines and gorges of magnificent hills. We are told that the
river we are now following is the Fraser, and that 150 miles from this it empties
itself into the sea. The line now winds along immediately over this fiood,
creeping around the gigantic buttresses of rock which are too steep to give
sustenance to the trees, and have only their ledges and summits covered with
the deep green of the Douglas fir. More and more remarkable become the
steep needle-pointed summits thousands of feet above our heads; but the
descent is no longer so steep, and after passing mighty groves, every tree in
which rises to a height of from 150 to 200 feet, we find ourselves on the shores
of a deep inlet, and the water we see is salt water. We have reached the
ocean ; we have dropped down from cloudland to the rippling and sun-kissed
surface of the great water which can bear us, if we so will, to the shores
of Asia.

Along this route before very long the traveller will look on rocky peak,
glacier, snow-field and primeval thicket of giant tree growth, from his comfortable
seat in a " Palace Car." He will be able to see the operation of quartz crushing
and gold extraction near stations on the line.

The old gold mines are chiefly to the north, partly in the mountain region
named Cariboo, partly still further northward at Cassiar, w.'icrc the elevation
of the land above the sea level is so great that there are at least .^ight months
of winter. The mines hitherto worked are gravel mines, the gold being
found, not in veins in the rock, but loose in the sand and gravel. Sometimes
it is present only in grains the size of a pin's point, when miners speak of
it as 'colour" in the washing-pan, sometimes in lumps like wheat, sometimes
in nuggets J nrsiderable size, pieces worth from 300 to 600 dollars having
been procir; -j One .Aich was shown to us lately. The miner's pick had
struck it, Jcejilv i ideuting the soft metal, which was beautiful in its burnished
and bossy surfaces. There is no doubt that there are immense riches of

Oke Deposits.

197

this ore still to be discovered and worked in
quartz-rock, :ind largt; areas are already known
to possess them; but the difficulty of carrying'
crushing machinery into such a country has
hitherto prohibited systematic working, and many
of the best gravel creeks first found had their
treasure trove cjuickly extracted. The rush of
miners from California twenty years ago, s(;nt at
least 30,000 into the country. They travelled by
perilous trails up the Fraser, and
for two or three years gold dust
and nuggets were as plentiful in
Victoria as arc "coppers" in

The Cariboo Waggon Roap.

U-'ivm tilt Atari/His 0/ [.antes coHeclhii of
phologi aphs, )

London. 'I'he reck-
less gambling, crime,
and all the evils ram-
pant in such mining
communities, began to
appear, but were
sternly dealt with by
the local judges, with
Sir Matthew Begbie at their head. This whole-
some seventy, together with the great difficulty
malefactors found in escaping, owing to the small
number of practical paths leading out of the
country, soon introduced an amount of order to
which the visitors had hitherto been strangers.

«»■

1 98

Canadian Pictures.

more than two or three

This crowd has now ebbed back whence it camc;
hundred remaining where there were thousands

Long after the white men have abandoned ' ■ not worth further

trouble, the Chinese persist in working it, and man. ^^ .o cet a liveh'iood from it,
finding perhaps from a d liar to two dollars of gold dust each day. It is curious
to see the little men in the Ion- blue jackets, wide trc-is^^rs, and saucer-shaped
hard straw hats plodding at their task ; and then, before the winter snows have
become deep, taking the road t.; the shore with their pack, containincr their
gold, their rice and fish (prepared in China), and their indispensable bright-
coloured umbrella. We must .ake a good lor^. at our China.nan as he plods
along, for he may be one of the last specimens of hk race in British Columuia
There is no doubt that the presence of the Chinese in any number is only
a temporar,^ phenomenon. They remain strangers to the country thev reside in.
They are cordially disliked for many reasons by the white population. Their
manners and customs are odious to them, their cheaper mode of living, their
successful bidding in the labour market against the white man, the alarming
numbers in which they have come, and their thrift in spending little in the
country, and in sending all t!iey can out of it, make the Chinese odious. For
many years both in California and here they have, however, been of great use as
domestic servants.

Our friend on the road got his " little pile " together after a whole season's
washing. He has worked with a friend, and they have found the freedom to
come and go as they chose pleasanter than the more steadfast labour required
of the members of the gangs hired for the railway. Of these there are
hundreds lining the embankments and shovelling away in a quiet and persistent
manner, and yet without the thoroughness of work shown by a European or
Canadian. Whenever it is cold, they feel the inclemency of the weather very
much, and light little fires, over which they will crouch for a while every
half-hour, before resuming their spades. The happiest seem to be those who

are cooks, butlers, or general serving-boys in the houses. " Well, Mrs.

how is the Chinese boy doing ? " is a frequent question asked of a lady, for she can
hardly get any but a Chinese man-servant, and he, although nearly always tidy and
clean in appearance, and often an excellent cook, does sometimes give trouble.
They are jealous of their dignity, and a little yellow, pig-tailed cook has been
known in a rage to pursue with a copper saucepan an intrusive mistress
who had become too dictatorial in the kitchen. Even the foremen of the
Oriental^ navvies have sometimes to deprecate the wrath of the " Heathen
Chinee." An accidental explosion having killed a workman, the rest of the
gang made for the unfortunate officer, who had to take to his heels, and
scramble up the hill-face nearest him, followed, but happily vainly, by his
suspicious and revengeful mob of pig-tails, who imagined that some diabolical
purpose had lurked in the catastrophe. All these visitors from "the Celestial
Empire" live, as a rule, on the imported condiments they procure from

Pasturage and Farming Qualities.

199

) or three

th lurther
d from it,
is curious
sr-shaped
3WS have
ing their
i bright -
he plods
lolumuia.
r is only
reside in.
I. Their
ing, their
alarming
le in the
us. For
at use as

season's
edom to
required
lere are
ersistent
>pean or
ler very
le every
ose who

rs.

• she can
tidy and

trouble,
las been
mistress
1 of the
Heathen
t of the
els, and
by his
iabolical
Zelestial
re from

■\

home. When they die, their friends see that the bones are carefully freed
of the flesh (which is burnt) and packed, and forwarded by the next steamer
to China. Several of their merchants have thriven well at Victoria, and
are respected, although they are never looked upon as citizens. The wealthier

wear a black silk dress, consisting of loose tunic and
trousers, with thick and upturned white-soled shoes.
i The open country about Kamloops has around it

the Nicola and other valleys, giving good pastur-
age to cattle and sheep on the
famous bunch grass. No better
beef was ever sent to market
than that raised on the sum-
mer pasturage of the Chil-
coaten plains, or indeed gene--
ally in the interior, wherever
an excessive moisture has
not . made the forest cover

Vai.k. The Fraskr Kivi k.

(/•>,.«, ,, Sift,/, by the M„r,,„h 0/ L.<,„e.)

everything. The contrasts in the
character of soil and climate to be met
n , ^'^'^ between the Selkirk range and the

Cascade range near the sea are most remarkable. There is unfortnnnrX
but too little land which can be cultivated. Wherever it dols' o"ct it of
excellent quality and it may occur with great dryness close to a forest distric
where the rainfall is evidently heavy and the vegetation luxuriant. In the space
of hve miles you may see a farm which requires irrigation, and has upon it 'l e

i^!"

M
'11

1 1

200

Canadian Pictures.

signs of a dry climate in the growth of artcmisia and the sage plant, and another
farm on ground which is evidently an old lake bottom, and requires no arti-
ficially brought moisture, but has on its ancient shore land a heavy growth of
Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. For a hundred miles north of the boundary
line, the height above the sea is not great enough to make the winter severe,
and men say they only have four months of cold. Settlers in these valleys
desired nothing but better communication, their wheat and roots were magnifi-
cent ; the presence of the coyote wolf as a pest for sheep and poultry, and the
lonelmess of the mountain valley, formed their only grievances.

There has been for many years a good road from Kamloops Lake down the

South Thompson to Lytton, where it joins the Fraser River. Thence the

waggon road on one side, and the Canadian Pacific on the other side of the

canyon, lead to the flats of the delta, which afford the most accessible arable

land in the whole province. Along the gorges of these two streams the so-called

terraces, or ancient lake levels, are most remarkable. There are usually three

of these to be traced on the mountain side. The first is perhaps not more than

one or two hundred feet above the stream, and frequently has a large acreage

of flat, while the second has, as a rule, very little level space, and the third and

highest still less. Slips occur in the mass of the lowest, and a whole field

which had fine crops of potatoes on one side of the river was bodily transferred

on one occasion by such a movement to the other side of the valley, of course,

damming for a while the torrent, which was too strong to be long pent up, and

soon forced itself a channel. The pines which in the drier country stand like

sentries on the ledges, or as skirmishers scattered singly along the ridges only,

come down into the Cascade gorges, and cover, in close and dense array of dark

green, the lower zone of the steep hills whose summits never lose the snow.

The Cascade range does certainly not yield in beauty and grandeur to any
other in this country of sublime scenery. The mighty rock masses are thrown
against the sky in spire, tower, ruined wall, and snowy dome in wild con-
fusion; the torrents are hurled more furiously down the deep clefts ; and this
range has what the others have not, in the presence of the sea, which comes
twining around its forest-covered feet, repeating in the shadowed and sheltered
depths each and all of the wonders arrayed in the air above. It is difficult
which to admire most— the approach to British Columbia on the one side from
the prairies, or that to her alpine rampart where poised above the Pacific Ocean.
And what marvels of marine wealth choke the estuaries and swarm up the
water courses ! The annual migration of the salmon from the ocean to the far
interior is a thing which almost requires to be witnessed to be believed. It is
not a movement like that of the Atlantic fish, whose progress to the spawning-
beds occurs in the spring, or whenever the rain floods the stream, but it is a
continuous movement of apparently various tribes of salmon, lasting from the
spring until late in the autumn. There is but little pause between the various
" runs." People on the, spot will tell you that there are at least seven different

Salmon Fishing.

30I

varieties of fish. Perhaps it will be found that five kinds can be scientifically
separated. 1 he pools are so full of the salmon that the appearance of the water
can only be compared to that on our English coasts when the herring fry are
forced ashore and wedged together in the shallows, floating so closely that a
bucket put down among them would be filled with fish. The size of the Pacific
fish IS on the average smaller than that of those caught in the Canadian Atlantic
rhey average from ten to fifteen lbs. Their flesh is pinker, but has not so good a
flavour as that of their eastern congeners, but is much appreciated when " potted • "
and the " canneries," or factories where the fish is brought to be boiled down and
sealed in hermetically-fitting air-tight canisters, are a profitable source of
revenue. It is the local tradition that the fish never get back to the sea, that
they ascend to the inland spawning-beds, and after depositing their eggs', die.
This is no doubt the case with very many, and with all those which ascend very far ;
for they become exhausted with their battle against the currents, their skin is
hurt, and they shrivel into blackness and emaciation, and find themselves
hundreds of miles from the life-giving brine, and die in thousands. But with
many a safe return to the sea is possible. In the month of October I examined
a net at New Westminster, not far from the river's m6uth, and found meshed in
the net, on one side salmon fresh run from the sea, and on the other side fish
which had evidently been long in the river, and were on their way down. In the
Thompson River, above K-^mloops Lake, we saw hundreds of the feebler fish.
The gravel on the river's bed was grooved across the direction of the current by
the spawning fish, which had laid their roe in the furrows. In the Columbia, in
the Stickeen, and other rivers, the same enormous migration occurs. There
seems no limit to the swarms which come year after year from the exhaustless
sea. The best are the spring salmon. There is one ugly race called " the
humpbacked," apparently a very distinct kind from the others. Of other fish
there is also abundance. The herring appear in great shoals, and deposit their
spawn on anything in the tidal bays. The natives put bushes in the shallows at
low tide, and the herring attach clusters of eggs to them ; then the roe is taken
and made into food. Another fish, called the candle-fish, or oolaken, is also
very common. It is said to be so oily that a half-dried specimen will burn like
a torch.

All these give provisions to the Indians, who subsist almost entirely on fish.
The aboriginal British Columbian is not very nice in his tastes. All fish, in
whatever condition, are palatable to him. Up country, the inhabitants of the
camps along the streams arc seen spearing the blackest fish at the end of the
season. They split them and smoke them in strings attached to poles, and a
very ample store is laid in for the year's consumption. Sometimes, as in the
engraving, the fish store is kept in the branches of a fir, to be out of the
way of wild animals. No one could expect daintiness from the native. He
is an ugly animal. There are tribes in the interior who ride, and hunt, and
these men arc well made, but the coast man is squat, clumsily made,

ugly

D D

303

Canadian Pictures.

Indian Salmon Cache'.

(From the Mtirqms oj Lome's colkctiaa of i/iol\>x>

.//u.)

in feature, and very un-
like the strapping Sioux,
Cree, or Blackfoot. But
he has good qualities.
He is much more docile
when got to work, and
he often works with a
will. At Fort McLeod,
in Alberta, I remember
the commandant telling
me that he once arrived
home with his wife at
an hour when a good
many Indians were
around the house. He
carried his wife's travel-
ling-bag into the fort,
and heard a Blackfoot
exclaim in contempt,
"Just look at that
warrior carrying — actu-
ally carrying — his own
squaw's traps ! ! ! " Such
labour, or any labour,
was undignified in his
eyes. But in working
up the river in a steamer
on the west of the
mountains, we frequently
hailed a camp and asked
for the loan of men to
aid in working the boat.
Several men at once
came off, and during the
days for which they were
engaged they put wood
on board, hauled at the
ropes when we had to
get over a sandbar, and
made themselves gener-
ally useful with a cheer-
ful good will it did
one good to see. On

ar
th
P(

ca
tei
su
cai
fac

very un-
ng Sioux,
oot. But
qualities.
)re docile
vork, and
s with a
McLeod,
emember
It telling
e arrived
s wife at
I a good
s were
jse. He
;'s travel-
the fort,
Blackfoot
ontempt,
at that
ig — actu-
-his own
' ! " Such
^ labour,
d in his
working
I steamer
of the
equently
nd asked
" men to
the boat,
at once
jring the
hey were
tut wood
d at the
i had to
Ibar, and
;s gener-
a cheer-
it did
;e. On

Indian Carving and Architecture.

_____ 203

returning again down stream, we disembarked them, and whe^r^d^Tn^

especaliy towards the north, and their tackle is well Tade*^ A h oThke tTe
letter G ,„ form ,s used with a line woven of fibre. Capital nets are Inu
factured of the nettle. The carvings with which they cover their large canoes;

Carvings bv British Columbian Indians.

(From the CoUeclion of the Marquis or Lome.)

and the skill with which they cut plates and vessels and inlay them with bone or
the nch mother of-pearl of the ^.&/,V or Venus' ear shell rlmtad one of the
Polynes,ans and not of the red men of the East. Their hous;s are buHt of heavy

ca^ed Qren"ch?rl':.r'""' °" =1 ""."" ^^ '" ^°-='- '" '"= ^^P °f '''-^s
cailed yueen Charlottes, near the shore which belongs to the old Russian

tern ory recently purchased by the Americans, the villages are of v^r^

substan ,al shape, and in front of almost every dwelling if a coLsal post

"Is r'l '"'• '° ^T ""'' "■""^^'^ representations of anima faS menl
faces. It ,s cunous that many of these carvings exhibit the forms of creatures

D D 2

204

Canadian Pictures.

i I

I $1

unknown to North America. For instance, the hideous head and open jaws of
the crocodile are frequently represented. These pillrrs have a heraldic character,
inasmuch as they relate in sculptured hieroglyphic the descent of the families
of the Hydahs, as these islanders are named. Their race is said to be of finer
mould than their brothers of the south. Besides fish they catch the valuable
sea-otter, an animal twice as large as the British otter, and worth lOO dollars
apiece at the least. The languages spoken are various. The conformation of
the country must have always tended to separate the tribes, each residing in its
own valley, but a mixed jargon called Chinook is much used and very generally

understood. People yet manage a conversation

well enough by prefixing " Hy — u," which means ,
" much," or " very," to the English word for an
object ; and if the subject-matter of conversation
be sentimental, the word " tum-tum," which

Indian liKincK.

(/'><•/« tlw Mafiitih of Lonic*s toliei/iim 0/ fflotogra/'hs.)

Stands for every sentiment of heart or mind, can always be relied on for
effect. Demands from these Indians for schools and instruction were constantly
preferred in 1882. The colony when under Crown government wisely encouraged
the natives to become citizens, instead of treating them as wards of the State,
a practice still pursued by Canada, whether the men be savages, or civilised
for several generations.

Who would have thought that one of the latest inventions of civil engineer-
ing is an old Chinook idea ? We have seen that the " aesthete's " dado in
house decoration is the ancient adornment of a Blackfoot's lodge ; but ought
not our respect fo/ the Pacific slope aboriginal to increase when we find that he

1 jaws of
:haracter,
^ families
i of finer
valuable
)0 dollars
Illation of
ling in its
generally

phohgraphs.)

2cl on for
constantly
ncouraged
the State,
r civilised

engineer-

" dado in

but ought

id that he

Indian Provision for the Deao.

205

had suspension bridges long before such viaducts were known in Europe ? The
illustration of such a bridge is taken from a photograph, and therefore may be
trusted. In this case the supports on each side of the chasm to be crossed are
big firs, and from these depends the rest of the structure.

As with all the North American peoples, careful provision was made for
the welfare of the spirits of the departed. A curious set of likenesses of the
dead are put up over the graves, and the weapons, utensils, and clothes which
may be of use to them in the next world are carefully placed near them, but
are not usually buried with the corpse. Irreverent travellers in recent years
were so much addicted to stealing any good pots and pans or guns so placed
for the benefit of the departed, that it has now become the custom to bore a
hole in such metal vessels, and to place them in this state on a pole. For an
immortal, a pot with a hole through it, or a gun with the lock removed, is
apparently supposed to be as good as new.

The British Columbian Indians are to be seen labouring at the saw-mills as
well as at other industries, and are to be hired at a cheaper rate than the whites
or Chinese, but are not trustworthy in fulfilling their bargains, being apt to go
off whenever it suits them. The task of cutting down some of the Douglas fir
to be seen on the coast is certainly sufficient to employ a good axeman for some
time. I saw one tree over 300 feet in height, and ten feet six inches in diameter,
and am informed that there are single specimens of an even greater size. All
around this giant at Burrard's Inlet were others nearly as large. There is no finer
woodland scene than a glade of such mighty timber. Mixed, as the Douglas fir
is, with the gigantic cedar and some other kinds, there is no monotony in the
solemn groves which soar upward on each side of the road, as it winds below
among the wondrous stems and amid thickets of evergreen shrubs. The Douglas
and Thuya gigantea require shelter ; but as their native climate is like that of
England, these trees will probably be most profitable for planting, the first grow-
ing faster than larch, attaining a far greater size, and giving superior timber.

Among the animals which haunt these woods is a fine puma. The settlers
aver that where they are common the wolves disappear. This so-called
Californian lion is a powerful beast, but it is not dangerous unless wounded and
hard pressed. By far the most dangerous of all the denizens of the wilds,
namely the grizzly and tawny bears, are found only too frequently in the
interior. The grizzly is an immense bear, and a very tartar when caught,
wounded, or angry ; but all accounts agree that the tawny bear, often found with
him, is the worst. He is one of the very few of earth's creatures which will
wantonly attack man. He is thinner and uglier and hungrier-looking than the
grizzly, and more savage. The sportsman need not lack occupation, for if not
inclined to go after these monsters, he can find plenty of exciting work among the
crags and glens, where in the rocky solitudes he may also pursue the big horn,
or mountain sheep, and the wild white goat. The sheep often come down to the
valleys, and are more easily reached than are the goats. Both are well worth

2o6

Canadian Pictukks.

the labour of stalking thcin. The sheep is coiourecl like a deer, and has a coat
like a deer s. with white rump and nose, and strong, curving, gr(>at rani's horns
The goat is pure white, and on the saddle of the hack has a woolly Ikvce which
changes to hair on the Hanks. To hunt these, a fur bag or good blankets'should
be earned with the hunting
party, as the nights on the
hills are very cold, and fre-
(luent campings out at high
latitudes are necessary.

It is fitting that we
should keep to the last a
notice of Vancouver's Island
if it be fitting to reserve for

-3- -"'^Mp^''

Indian Gravks.

(/Vow ///,• Afntyuis ,</ Lome's (ollcitwn .■'I phol,'gr,,/-ks.)

I Ktmsi ii fmx

the last what is mo^t delicious, for much of that beautiful country possesses
attractions which will make it the favourite residence of Canadians. With
about half the area of Ireland, it has a climate far more favourable and
resembhng that of the south coast of England. It is very mountainous

TllK VlXJETATION AND COAL TraDK OF VaNCOUVKK. 207

the chief districts where there is much agricultural land lying along the
railway route from Nanaimo to Victoria. The vegetation is very luxuriant,
owing to the large amount of moisture during the winter months and the
pleasant sunshine of the summer. The thermometer seldom shows more
than a few degrees of frost, and the heat is so tempered by the sea that the
mercury does not rise above 80° Fahrenheit in the hottest summer day. Thick
woods cover the hills and lower ground, the Douglas fir being the commonest
I owards the south fine oaks and a singularly graceful arbutus, known by the
Spanish name of madrona, fringe the shore line. The arlnitus has an oval leaf
about the size of a hen's egg, and the trunk of the tree is of a fine red colour'
The undergrowth of glossy-leaved shrubs, or of high fern, adds much to the
beauty of the " bush." Nothing can be more beautiful than the effect of the
evergreen madronas mixed with the firs, and overhanging the calm waters of
the gulfs lying between the great island and the main shore-a sea full of
bvely islands of all shapes and sizes. Imagine several of the Outer Hebrides
linked together, and covered with fine wood—the inner isles similarly adorned
—and the Scots mainland magnified into a Switzerland, and you have the
British Columbia coast. Vancouver acts as a vast b'reakwater to the mainland
shore, and keeps from it the fury of the western gales of the ocean.

It was discovered first by Juan de Fuca, a Greek, in 1592. Cook visited
It in i7;8, and imagined it to l)e mainland. Vancouver, after whom it is now
named, saw it in 1792, and examined all the coast, bringing home singularly
accurate maps. In 1849 the Hudson's Hay Company became possessed of it,
but in 1859 a Crown Colony Government was established, and finally, in 187/
It became part of the Dominion. It can be reached by steamer in two hours
from the railway terminus at Hurrard's Inlet, and no more enjoyable voyage can
be undertaken. The steamer leaves the wharves at the head of the steep inlet,
and, clearing out with the strong ebb tide, proceeds into the open waters of the
Straits. In front of her the islands dot the sea, which to the north is observed
to lap the base of the mountains guarding, in varied array, the forest-girt lochs.

1 he first point touched at on Vancouver is the head-quarters of the coal
trade, the village of Nanaimo. The story of the discovery of the most productive
of these mines is an odd one. Mr. Dunsmuir, now one of the wealthiest and
most respected men in the Dominion, was many years ago employed by the
Hudson s Bay Company to " prospect " here for coal. He had found some slight
indication of what he searched for. and put a small " shot " of powder to blast away
tlie surface. This was in a dense wood near the sea. He and a negro attendant
walked away a short distance into the bush to wait until the charge ignited, and
Mr. Dunsmuir wandered further than he had intended, and fell ^in the thicket
over the trunk-roots of an uptorn pine. In rising again he grasped at the soil
on the roots, and found that his hands had become blackened.' He sank a shaft
at this place, and found the first surface seam of what has become one of the
richest mines on the continent. Although the measures of rock existing here

trie 1

tt>

208

Canadian Pictukes.

are not of the carboniferous era, but of the cretaceous period in geology, the coal
is as good as man can desire. In the San Francisco market it obtains the
highest price, and competes more than successfully with the imports from
Australia. It is a strange sight to see a mining community, and the great black
heaps of refuse from the shafts, in the midst of the primeval woods. Most of
the miners are Scots, and one of the best-danced reels I have ever witnessed
was joined in by all present at a ball given here.

The rail from this place to Victoria traverses country only partially cleared,
but which will support many people, and being well situated, both as regards
climate and the ease with which its products can be taken by rail or ship to
market, will be much sought after. The capital itself has wide streets, and comfort-
able, although unpretentious buildings, good shops under wooden arcades, some
prosperous factories, notably for cigars, soap, furniture, and matches, plenty of
churches, a pleasant society, and mixed white population of Europeans, Canadians,
and Americans, with a larger number of Indians and Chinese. It will be the
favourite abode of the wealthy who desire to pass the winter in a mild climate,
where daisies, roses, and lauristinus may be seen in flower at Christmas. The
rich marine life of the Pacific gives endless matter of interest to the naturalist,
and for the yachtsman and sportsman the country is perfect.

Close to Victoria lies the quiet little harbour of Esquimalt, the winter
station for vessels of our Pacific squadron. There is a fine dry dock hidden
away in a branch inlet, and a dockyard well provided with spare stores. No-
where are the officers and men of Her Majesty's Navy happier than here, for the
hospitality of the Victorians knows no bounds. Within five minutes' journey
from the anchorage in a steam launch, lies a strip of shore with a salt water
lagoon behind it, where excellent duck shooting may be enjoyed every evening,
and there are other places like it only a little further away. The engraving
at the head of this chapter is from a sketch of the hills on the American coast,
and shows the waters the sportsman watches from the shore as he waits for the
landward-flying ducks. It is a pity that the Navy does not use the fine " sticks '
to be procured in British Columbia. Although " the masts of some tall
admiral " are now of iron, there is plenty of use in smaller vessels for the
wonderful wood of this northern colony of ours. Nanaimo and Esquimalt
might be made strong places, and Nanaimo especially is easily defensible, and of
much value as a coaling station. The capital itself is built along the shores of a
secure but small harbour, from the mouth of which one sees across the straits,
named after Juan de Fuca (here sixteen miles wide), the lofty Olympian range
in Washington Territory. These have very fine outlines. Towards the east
they sink to lower levels, as they near the great inlet of Puget Sound, on whose
further side again, yet more to the left, can be descried above the sea the
needle-like summits of some of the Southern Cascade chain ; while nearer and
soaring above all across the island-studded gulf, is the magnificent white cone
of Mount Baker, nearly 11,000 feet in height. These peaks have evidently

WaI'ITI.

ao9

been parts of old volcanoes, but they have slept long, and their brethren far

away to the south in the same earth-spanning di-n-they of the Cordilleras

—are the only active fire-hills of the western world. Hut the earth's agonies of

those old days are seen in the contorted strata, in the masses of granite upheaved

here and there, m the lava flows, and the strange collection of measures on the

edges of many rock basins, where you will see the newest and the oldest Ivinir

in torn patchwork side by side.
In those ranges

of Washington

Territory we are

told that there are

herds of the great

red deer — the

wapiti — and that

three or four

hundred may be

seen on theirtravels

in autumn from one

feeding-ground to

another. In the

stores of Victoria

splendid heads may

be bought, but it is

difficult to procure

any set of which

the left and right

antlers exactly

match. The fur

depots are well

worth a visit, for

there may be seen

not only the furs of

bear, wolf, sea-otter,

and silver fox, but

those also of the

strange seals of

Alaska. Where

the northern coast

trends away to the westward are a remarkable series of islands, the remains of

what must have been a continuous chain of land binding America to Asia.

Thick fogs prevail in these seas, and under their canopy of cloud is the
very climate best loved by the Phocidee~?i climate sunless and cool. Here they
are found in countless thousands on the land near the sea. " In 1810 to 1820,"

E E

Wai'iti Horns.

(Fnni the cMi-ction of tht Ular^uU o/ I.criu:)

310

Canadian I'ictukes.

m !

says Sir George Simpson, who was for so long a time head of the Hudson's Hay
Company, " there was a most wasteful destruction of this seal, when young and
old, male and female, were indiscriminately knocked on the head. This im-
prudence, as any one might have expected, proved detrimental in two ways.
The race was almost extirpated, and the market was glutted to such a degree —
at the rate for some time of 200,000 skins per year — that the prices did not even
pay the expense of carriage. The Russians adopted the plan of killing only a
limited number of such males as had attained their full growth, a plan peculiarly
applicable to the fur seal, inasmuch as its habits render the system of husbanding
the stock as easy and certain as that of destroying it. In the month of May,
with something like the regularity of an almanack, the fur seals make their ap-
pearance at the island of St. Paul, one of the Aleutian group. Each old male
brings a herd of young females under his protection, varying in number according
to his size and strength. The weaker brethren are obliged to content themselves
with half-a-dozen wives, while some of the sturdier and fiercer fellows preside
over harems that are 200 strong. From the date of their arrival in May to that
of their departure in October, the whole of them are principally ashore on the
beach. The females go down to the sea once or twice a day, while the male,
morning, noon, and night, watches his charge with the utmost jealousy, post-
poning even the pleasures of eating, drinking, and sleeping to the duty of
keeping his favourites together. If any young gallant ventures by stealth among
any senior chief's bevy of beauties, he generally atones for his impu-
dence with his life, being torn to pieces by the old fellow ; and such
of the fair ones as may have given the intruder any encouragement
are pretty sure to catch it in the shape of some secondary punishment. The
females devote most of the time of their sojurn to the rearing of their young.
At last the whole band departs, no one knows whither. The mode of capture
is this : at the proper time the whole are driven like a Hock of sheep to the
establishment, which is a mile distant from the sea, and there the males of four
years, with the exception of the few that are left to keep up the breed, are
separated from the rest and killed. In the days of promiscuous massacre, such
of the mothers as had lost their pups would ever and anon return to the
establishment, absolutely harrowing up the sympathies of the wives and
daughters of the hunters, accustomed as they were to such scenes, with their
doleful lamentations. The fur seal attains the age of fifteen or twenty years,
and not more."

The reason that all the skins are sold in London is that labour is too
expensive on this coast to make the dressing of them profitable. Therefore
nine-tenths of the seals annually taken are sent to England, and are distributed
thence. Mr. Elliott has lately furnished to the United States Government a
very interesting account of the capture of these seals, and the cut, as well as
the information given here, is given on his excellent authority. He estimates
that there were in 1874 over 3,000,000 of seals on St. Paul's Island alone. Thev

The Seal.

ail

son's Hay
oun^ and
This im-
wo ways,
degree —
not even
ng only a
peculiarly
isbanding
of May,
their ap-
old male
according
lemselves
s preside
ay to that
ire on the
the male,
isy, post-
duty of
th among
lis impu-
and such
iragement
mt. The
ir young.
)f capture
ip to the
^s of four
breed, are
acre, such
•n to the
ives and
A^ith their
nty years,

ur is too
Therefore
istributed
jrnment a
IS well as
estimates
le. Thev

nbu 6 to V? H ' 7""^7'-' " T^he full grown male is," say., Mr.

f^ll'ott, 6i to 7i feet long, and we.ghs 400 lbs. The .)ld bulls will nuiintain their

hosen pos.t.on on the shore among the countless herds. A constantly s stained

g t between new-comers and the first arrivals goes on incessantly' A well

imderstood pnnc.ple seems to exist among them, that each shall remain on a

pec.al spot, usually about eight feet square, provided that at the start and from

the first commg untd the advent of the females, he is strong enough to ho Id th^

ground aga.nst all comers, as the crowding of the fresh arrLls often cause he

removal of those who though equally able-bodied at first, have become wllby

constant fightu^g. They are finally driven by fresher animals higher up n the

Ten!!' T r'"'"" "^ •'^'^°^^"^^'''- '^'^"y °^ 'he bulls exhibit wonderful
s rcngth and desperate courage. I remarked one veteran who was the first to

iTJZ'u r ^^"^^'" "' '""^' ^°"y °'- fifty ^'^^P^'-^te battles, and

fought off h,s assailants every time, and when the fighting .season was o^er I
saw h.m st.Il there, covered with scars and frightfully gashed, raw, festering

w L ^ /' nt", "^"^ T^"""^ ""'- ^"' '"'■^""^ •' '^••^^^'y «v«'' his harem, who
were all huddled together around him.

«,.. J' ^ u ^°"';? '^'''' " ^'■°'" 'he moment of his birth until he is a month or six
weeks old unable to sw.m. If he is seized by the nape of the neck and
pitched out a rod mto the water from shore his bullet-like head will drop
instantly below the surface, and his attenuated posterior extremities flap impo-
tcntly on ,t ; suffocation .s a question of only a few minutes-the stupid liStle
creature not know,:.g how to raise his immersed head. After the age of a month
to .X weeks the.r mstmct drives them down to the margin of the surf, where the
ebb and flow of the waves covers and uncovers the rocky beaches. They first
smell and then touch the moist pools, and flounder in the upper wash of the
surt. After this begmnmg, they make slow and clumsy progress in learning the
knack of swimmmg. For a week or two they thrash the water as little
dogs do with their fore feet, making no attempt whatever to use the hinder ones
Look at that pup launched for the first time beyond his depth, see how he
struggles-h.s mouth wide open and eyes staring. He turns to the beach, the
reccdmg swell which had taken him out returns and leaves him high and dry
t^or a few minutes he seems so weary that he weakly crawls up out beyond the
swift-returning wash, and coils himself up for a recuperative nap. He deeps
perhaps half an hour, then awakes ' as light as a dollar,' and to his swimming
happ"ners^°'' ''^'""' ' ^"''^'^ swimming, the pup fairly revels in his new

"The fur seals after leaving the islands in the autumn and early winter do not

visit land again until their return in the spring or early summer to the same

rookery grounds. They leave the islands in independent squads ; apparently

all turn by common consent towards the south, disappearing towards the horizon.

and are soon lost in the expanse, where they spread themselves over the entire

E E 2

212

Canadian Pictures.

North Pacific as far south as the 48th and even 47th parallels of N. latitude.
Over the immense area between Oregon and Japan doubtless many extensive
submarine fishing shoals and banks are known to them ; at least, it is definitely
understood that Behring's Sea does not contain them long when they depart
from the breeding-places. While it is remembered that they sleep soundly and
with the greatest comfort on the surface of the water, and that even when on
land in summer they frequently put off from the beaches to take a bath and a
quiet snooze just beyond the surf, we can readily agree that it is no inconvenience
whatever when their coats have been renewed to stay the balance of the time
in their most congenial element, the deep.

" The seals are driven slowly to the slaughter. Men get between them and
the water, and the poor beasts turn, hop and scramble up over the land. The
natives then leisurely walk in the flank and rear of the drove thus secured,
directing and driving it to the killing grounds. An old bull seal, fat and

unwieldy, cannot travel with the younger ones, though it can go as fast as
a man can run for a 100 yards, but then fails utterly, and falls to the ground
entirely exhausted, hot, and gasping for breath."

In taking such a rapid review as that we have now completed of the
provinces of the Dominion, it is felt how little of this magnificent country we
have even glanced at. Any such account must be a mere skeleton outline,
to be filled in by local books, giving flesh and blood to the meagre knowledge
any rapid survey can afford. In each part there is abundant scope for fresh
examination, for the discovery of fresh resources, and for the certainty that they
will give large populations an assured support and comfortable home. Yet
we have taken a view of each, and have spoken at some length on their
different characteristics. They afford a great variety of domicile, and their rival

Concluding Summary.

213

claims to attention arc being liberally examined and appreciated. Together
they form a united country, for there is not any serious cause for discontent and
quarrel among any of the members of this great family. They have a population
of about five millions, and soon will possess a far greater number— indeed, it has
been calculated that in all probability within the" next hundred years they will
have more people than we have in these islands to-day. They are thoroughly
devoted to the connection which exists between them and the mother country
a parent land which has allowed to its children the utmost liberty. If it had not
been so, they would long ago have cast off the allegiance of which they are now
proud, and which is so useful to them, and will in the future be of such vaiue to
ourselves. It is our duty to cherish and to foster to the utmost those feelin<rs of
regard and loyalty which they express. They entertain these because their union
with us is one of perfect freedom. We should remember at home what a strong
nation their descendants must become, and how it is for our interest to make
them satisfied to live under the flag we serve, for commerce always follows the
flag ; and p. greater commerce, both for them and for us, will be obtained by
an adhesion to the sentiment which made them ooe with ourselves. Their
countries offer to our youth, unable to find a proper outlet at home, an unfailing
field for success. There is hardly a man who has left these shores and has
cast in his lot with them who has not found it to his benefit. With the single
exception of the comparatively few Chinese upon their Pacific coast— a number
certain to decrease, because the advent of the Celestials is not encouraged—
their population consists of the elements which have made our own so strong
and exhibits the blended blood of the strongest European races. Almost
everywhere our own tongue predominates and our own customs are" observed
With the Dominion of Canada and the Australian continent in close relation
to England, she need never fear that the proud position she has gained in the
world can be shaken or even questioned.

British Columbia, by fat the most beautiful of the Canadian provinces
has, as may be inferred from what has been said of it, tracts of land which are
as rich as man can desire ; and fortunate are they who may secure them, for
there are not too many to be had. The mounta-'p.s, valuable as they are' for
minerals and wood, prevent the agricultural area from being large. Yet there
are many spots along the glorious coast with its temperate climate where settle-
ments will be thickly populated, and the inland higher areas about Kamloops
with their network of open grass-grown straths, will always be favourite pasture
grounds. The province is a most necessary adjunct of the Canadian Confedera-
tion, giving, as she does, access by excellent harbours to the wide Pacific. Like
its sisters, it has now heartily and loyally entered into the new national life of
the Dominion, determined to work out for the best the destiny which has given it
an important place in the greatest colonial union in the world. Making use of
a local government for provincial affairs, this union has placed all power for
national purposes in the hands of the Federal authorities. Let us share in the

214

Canadian Pictures.

\'ii

firm belief of these our cousins, that, successful and united as they now are, they
will march on from strength to strength, strong in their mutual reliance on
each other, and proud to be members of our mighty empire.

A few years ago it was thought that the influx of emigrants into Canada
was unusually large if more than 30,000 or 40,000 entered during one year. How
different is now the report of the minister charged with the enumeration of the
numbers of those who, on their entrance into the country, declare their inten-
tion to settle within its borders ! During the last two years Canada has seen over
100,000 and even over 130,000 souls come to share the fortunes of her people
within a twelvemonth. The stream is now directed to her shores, and fewer
than before go to America, vast as the tide is which pours into Castle Garden.
Men spoke much in England of the phenomenon of the rush into Kansas in
the days preceding the great war; and of the quick civilisation of Illinois and
Ohio. Mr. Bright has said, and said truly, that every schoolboy should know
the history of the marvellous progress of Chicago. Let every Englishman look
with pride at the wonder of the settlement of Manitoba and of the Canadian
North-West— at the spreading of the railway system of the Dominion— at the
order and security existing among the 40,000 to 50,000 new-comers who have
made their homes in these lands in each year— at the marvel that with so great
a number of strangers arrived at a new home there has not been failure of success
to the extent of even one per cent.— at the fact that these great territories are
now attracting the Americans from the south. Finally let those who see
the misery, the hopelessness, the over-crowding, and the unhealthiness of
the thronged quarters of our great cities, rejoice that within fourteen days of
London, Glasgow, Liverpool, and Manchester, land and healthy life cin be
provided for all sound in health and limb. Let them aid all less fortunate than
themselves to get together the little money sufficient to ensure a new start in the
New World of the north, where in another century will be a nation powerful as
that of Britain in numbers and resource.

APPENDIX.

Meet of the Snow-Shoe Cluii.

APPENDIX.

It will be remembered that in iS8i both Houses of the Canadian Lerf,
if Llfr"°'""°r ""■"■"'"*"«*=" ''='-<' should enjorsot sysfem

h df p^SS; To tTe" '" '"T'^'"'- ''" *= ^="='^'- D-inion- cSa
„„.,r 5 ,.^°. '" ^"P''^^^ '«=■• oP'i'on ; she has repeatedly been out to

great expense by I-enian alarms along her frontiers-alarms which occasion her
trouble only because she forms an integral par, of the British Empire Ts„e|

Um-rd S, ," "Tl"^"'"""''' "P°" ■•"= «°<^-""' "' 'he Govrrnment ofThe
no^c , """'■"■■ '""'' '™''"<^'' *=■" """ ^8="!" >rise whenever he ei!

poht,ca excitement ,n Ireland. Several of the Dominion's former statesmen

thev put before L '"^ "'"^'^^^ any proposition which

they put before the Canadian Parliament as likely to benefit their brethren in tZ

°Gen::ir'.riero^"i.rnr-^^7'^''^''*.^^"''°-' --= ^"'-"^

will suit anoth : Uhough nrbted S:rofTh """'" "". f" ""^ ^°™'^^

present vvidelydi,fere„tiaturetrsi^rc;r:ata,:.rs:urer^™
the case as between Canada and the old countries. Th. r / especially

exnariQP of lor.^.- u "^'^ oia countries. 1 he first possesses a vast

expanse of lands whose geographical interests may be alike but which w^.

doms have, on the other hand, a very small area of country. .Itl geogl^hicS

powers of self-government, ventures to express a hoi .W v '^ '"'' ^""'""^ '° ""''' '''■°^'"" considerable

exi>r«»ccl desire of ..o man/of Her Al.njei's^u^eclsf&c "''"' ''"'' "'''"" '"'^ ^' ^"""^ °^ °'"''"g "'^

1 !•

ai8

Appendix.

interests must of necessity be identical, and they have a population which already
swarms upon almost every tract where man can live in comfort. It is these facts
which disclose the vast difference between the two countries. It is of the
greatest importance to remember that the Central Government of both the
United States and the Dominion were created by the several separate colonies,
which agreed to relegate certain powers only to the Federal Chambers. The
Central Government of Great Britain and Ireland, on the contrary, is the out-
come of centuries of successful effort to unite in London the Imperial Legislature.
It was but the other day that the Unif.' '■ 'tcK fought for stronger Federal
powers ; it was after the successful issUw, ■> :. war, and the strengthening of
the Federal Government at Washington, ti; Canada <brmed her Constitution,
expressly guarding it against disintegration by making the Central Power
ijupreme in all but local legislation. Thus, we see these English-speaking
peoples aim at strengthening the Central Government ; and there is no instance
in which legislative privilege, once given to the Government of the Union, has
been taken from it and given again to the individual State. It may be a
question in America how far State Rights or Home Rule led to the great Civil
War; but in any rase the geographical and climatic differences between the
North and South led in the South to the institution of slavery, which was the
proximate reason of strife. State Rights or Home Rule in property or domestic
matters may be natural, and held to bring no national disintegration, where great
geographical and climatic differences make it impossible to have an all-powerful
Central Government. Strengthened as was the Federal Government by the
result of the war, it is notable that even now the militia of America take their
orders from the individual States, and not from Washington. This, which is
opposed to united national interests, is likely soon to disappear, and the Govern-
ment of Washington will probably seek to be masters of a stronger military
organization. The whole history of the United St:ates shows a steady tendency
to increase the powers of the Federal Governnient. The history of Canada
does the same. The Confederation Act of 1867 gave the largest powers then
obtainable. Payments made to the Provinces of the new Confederation (that is,
subsidies given to the Provincial Governments) persuaded some of them, almost
as much as did any sentiment in favour of forming a new nation, to join the
Union. The experiment of Confederation has been a success, and a national
feeling is rapidly rising — the young generation being proud of their country, and
not of their Province only. Now, if it be granted that the tendency to strengthen
the Central Power exists, it will be seen that it becomes a consequence of this
//^a/ no one member of a Confederation should be made strong enough to oppose
with effect the Central Government, which represents a majority. If a Provincial
feeling can arise which shall be stronger than the feeling of loyalty to the general
Government, the Civil War of 1860-64 m^Y t'e repeated on Canadian soil. The
balance of power represented by the equality in strength of the members of the
Confederation is the best guarantee against this.

Al'l'KNDI.^

219

Let us see then what individual rights the Canadian Provinces have alone
reserved to themselves. These rights are measured by the privileges given by
old treaties to Quebec. This is the only Province where English is not univer-
sally spoken. When Confederation was first mooted there were some voices
heard proposing a complete amalgamation of legislative power in one or two
Chambers at Ottawa. The French Canadians of Quebec would never have
tolerated such a proposition, and, indeed, it would have been distasteful to all
What did the old treaties guarantee to Quebec ? These things : her local
laws, which meant in this particular case the laws of old France modified by
recent experience ; the language and the institutions of the Province Quebec
was to have separate Chambers for legislation on education, civil rights and
on all domestic matters. It was called the " Pivot Province," because according
to the privileges guaranteed to Quebec, so were privileges meted out to or rather
retained by, the other Provinces. Although the language elsewhere than in
Quebec is English, the other Provinces have much the same separate rights • they
each control education,^ and make the laws by which property devolves, and the
local economy of rural and municipal government exists. Each Province gave the
National Government the control over all armed force, over national defence
over the collection of all customs and excise duties, over navigation the post-
office, the supervision of criminal justice, and all matters affecting any two
Provinces. In Manitoba the public lands were retained by the Federal Govern-
ment ; and in the creation of new Provinces in the North-W^est the same
practice will for a time be probably followed. It will be thus seen that it
would be difficult for a Canadian Province to propose any law, which, if vetoed
by the Government at Ottawa, would raise in the Province much strong feeling
against the Central Government. The matters on which any interference can
arise are small. If. for instance, local option legislation on drink be proposed
at Ottawa, and resisted in any Province, it would be difficult to get up a war for
whisky. No one Province has any domestic institution which is likely to be
touched by Ottawa legislators in a manner which would raise a rebellion against
the national authority ; and there is but little temptation for Local Governments
to enact laws provocative of disallowance by the Governor- General in Council.
Little or no margin is left for dispute ; each side, the Local as well as the
Dominion Government, knows the limits of its authority, and respects them
Then there is always at hand the impartial friend of both, the Imperial Privy

.K /J''^■^^'''*u"l!■'"l°^'''? ^""''^ ^°''"' '^'""'''' ^'='' ^^'<='> ""^^'^^'^ »'>« legislation for the Union, provided
that education should be dealt with by each Province ; but the rights existent at the time of Union pe^tainine to
mmorihes were guarded, and it was provided that Federal interference might be had should new legislation threaten
these rights In New Brunswick, after the Union had been some years in force, the Roman Catholics complained of a
Provmcal law which denied them public fund, for separate schools. The appeal provided for at the Union to the
Ottawa Legish-iture was urged, and the Dominion House of Commons were inclined to interfere. The Ministry were
however, agamst this, and on the question being referred to the British Privy Counci!, it wa« decided that the Province
should arrange for .tself .ts own difficulties, and that warrant for interference did not exist. This decision, therTre
trends to this effect: "give certain limited powers to limited areas, and let the storm, if it arise, be confined to Lhal

F F 2

220

ArPKNDIX.

Council, — not to mention tiie Supreme Court of Canada ; and either of these
may be used to fall back on as an anticns ciiruc, whose decision can settle any
dispute. So that there is little on which that guarantee of order among the
people beneath one Hag — namely, " the common sense of most" — can be severely
tried.

We see, therefore, that our communities in this Greater Britain have fined
down to a minimum their demands for Home Rule in the separate Provinces,
and practically retain only those questions for local decision of which the Central
Parliament is glad to be rid, and of which it may be profitably relieved. No
question can be raised which shall unite a race, section, or geographical part of
the country, as a unit against the Central Government. This is an important
lesson, and one not lightly to be passed over. Even in the subjects left to
be dealt with by the Local Governments, if internal Provincial trouble came,
the whole Commonwealth might think it necessary to interfere, and in any such
event the troops to keep order would be Federal, for there are no others. In
New Brunswick there was once a serious conflict on the subject of education ;
but the affair was settled without the intervention in any form of Federal
agency. No Local Government has proposed to change its Provincial laws
relating to devolution or tenure of property ; but this could be done by
Provincial enactment.

VVe must go back to the past and to an era before Confederation for any
great change in agrarian conditions. There is no instance in the history of the
United Province ; but there was a case of the kind when Ontario and Quebec
were united under the appellation of Upper and Lower Canada, and a single
Legislature endeavoured to meet the wants of both, in those days the old
seignorial tenure, derived from pre-revolutionary France, existed in Lower
Canada, and troubles arose. An enactment was passed by the Parliament in
which Ontario was represented along with Quebec, and the principle adopted
was practically one of compensation for abrogated privileges. The rights of
superiority were in the main abolished by the grant of a fee simple to the
superior over a proportion of the lands formerly held in feu, while the vassals
were freed from their onerous dues, and their vassal tenures practically converted
into a tenancy at a statutory rental which could at any time be converted, by
capitalizing such rental, into a tenure in fee simple. Unlike the process adopted
in the last Irish Land Act, whereby two men are obliged to have partnership in
one property, the Seignorial Tenure Act loosed the two men who had been tied
together as vassal and superior, and gave each a definite proprietorship. Some
feudal dues were retained for the superior, but these were of a certain kind, and
did not include casual or accidental payment. Quebec is the only Province
in Canada, and, indeed, the only State on the American Continent, in which a
race and language different from the Anglo-Saxon survive. The P>ench
Canadian rules by his majority in the local Chambers, and he takes care that the
population shall remain as far as possible French Canadian, and that in any

Al'I'F,Nt)fX.

aai

Icderal question that vote shall have its separate value. The old treaties gave

hem a nght to an autonomy which has not only never been disputed, but which

has become the model for ec,ual rights given to other States, whose area, as they

lhat"of Quiz '" ^'°^*"'""""' '''" ^'■"^^'^'y ^^ '""^'^ '»'' '■^^r as possible equal to

. J*"? /'•■''"''' ^'^'"'■•f-^'^ '•ace. therefore, occupies a very important place in
he Confederation ; yet from the.r position they cannot demand too much! so that
he danger of a separate Commonwealth is avoided. They are thorougidy loyal
to Canada: for that great Anglo-Saxonizing amalgamation n,ill. the United
States, would soon efface their language, should their fortune be cast with the
States. I he.r loyalty to the Empire is born both of inclination and of the
knowledge that Canada could not stand alone, but would be annexed to the
United States on the first pretext, were there not behind her the majestic form
of a United hmp.re^ Because no hand has ever sought to touch their rights,
they are loyal to the framework of the Power which gives them these and
ensures them a place which makes them a moving force in larger politics. Their
position Ks never likely to be menaced ; for. unlike the population of old France
their people increase in an astounding ratio. But they must in the future be
content, as they are now content, with the privileges they possess. They cannot
get heir I rovince. or another carved afresh, to suit the French-speaking
population. Suppose an improbable case-namely, that the English-speakinL^
people obtained a m.yority in the west part of the Province. No Canadian
would propose to re-adjust the Province so as to erect a French-speakinelort on
nuo a separate entity. Each I-^ederal Government would desire tc avoid Cing
any single homogeneous State made inconveniently strong for the Cen Tal
.overnment. or else any disallowance of legislation, however u/^ru vires it S
be. could be resisted. Divide ei impcra must be the true Federal motto, as
was the motto of ancient governments of other forms

We. therefore, see that Canadian provincial right means only the right to

make laws on purely domestic matters ; such, namely, as are mainly coir sed

..J educational and c.v. right legislation ; and any demands arising from ethnic

differences have proved capable of treatment, because the case has^een treated

I rovincally. the tempest being thus confined to the teapot. The troul le tT

not affected the country at large, but a Province only It may be urt e

remarked that the limits of the Provinces and the StaL into wL'ch An e ca

and Canada have been divided have been almost always accidental or a^ ficll

and hat the boundaries are often represented by a mere imaginary 1 ne of

longitude or atitude The abolition of the S.gnorial Tenure iL been

mentioned as having been the work, not of a Provincial Government, but of the

Government of the United Provinces of Upper and of Lower Canada, previous

to the great Confederation movement of 1867. As the Act affected riizhts of

property sanctioned and recognized by Crown Treaties, it is probable tl^a^ no

i>rov,nc,al Government would, even nowadays, have been allowed exclusively o

23:

Ai'i'KNnix.

deal with them. It may be aiklcd that, in the case of tht? abolition of the
proprietorships over the ^^reat estates in Prince Eaward Island, legislation took
place before the Canadian Union came into existence, anil the case had to be
dealt with by the advisers of the Crown in England. There is but little to be
learned from the Prince Edward Island enactment. Compensation was given
to the proprietors, but it was doubtful whether they had a right to anything, as
the provisions of the charters by which the lands were held had exacted
conditions vvhich had been rarely fulfilled. It will, therefore, be seen that
before Provincial Government obtained its present form in Quebec and in
Prince Edward Island, all agrarian trouble had been settled by a Parliament
representing higher powers than those of the Province only ; that compensation
had been given for rights abolished ; and that on confederation each member of
the Union continued its autonomous powers with a blank sheet, as far as any
ugly race or land question was concerned. Thus experience on the American
Continent shows that, while local matters may safely be left to Provincial
Assemblies, it is all important that no section of a country shall be organized in
such strength as to be able to formulate a policy leading to conflict with the rest
of the people under the same flag. If there be ethnic or religious dififer^nces,
the troubles arising from them should be dealt \v\t\} by the Central Government,
whose best policy is, after clearing the ground, to divide it under several local
authorities and give to them a definite and limited power.

Nature's Monumicnt, Canadian Pacific Coast.

INDEX.

A'lRicuLTURE in Ontirin, 84; at Lake St. lotin, in ;

in the North-Weit, I40 ; at Edmuiit.m, 179, l8i : at

Hell Karm, 183
Altjerla, 187
Algoma, 131
Annapolis, 44
Apples, 43

Ashiiapmouchouan, the, 11 j
Assiniboine, Ihc, 148
Athabasca, iP,i

Bass, black, 89
Hear-traps, 54
Hears, 205
Heaver, 90
Hell Farm, 183
Klackfeet IiKliaus, 16a
Urnndon, 140
lirock. General, 65
BiilTalo, the, 189
Huttcrflies, 54

Campobei.lo, 49

Canadian Ideas, 22

Canadian Pacific Railway, 148

Carlelon, 176

Cariboo mines, 196

Cascade range, the, 200

CaKcapedia, the, 52

Cnssian mines, 196

Cathcart, Lady, emigrants sent out by, 145

Chaleur, Hay of, 48

Champlain defeats the Indians, 109

( harlotte Town, 56

C!hateaugay, battle at, 11 1

Chinese in Columbia, 198

Chinese miners, 198

Chinook jargon, 204

Climate of Canada, 31

Coal, 187

Cod, 56

Columbia River, the, 196

Confederation of 1867, 5

Copper mines, 134

Dkad, Indian mode of disposing of the, 170; provision

for the, 205
Dominion Government, the, 17
I )ouglas fir, 205
Ducks, 89

Dunsmuir, Mr., discovers coal, 20J
Dunegan, 180

Kdmonton, 179

Edwards, Mr. Peacock, on emi|{ration, 14J

Klgin, Lord, 120

I'.migration, hints on, 22, 35, 13

Usquimault, 208

I'ertiie llelr, the, 8

Kires in Canr»ln, 121

I'lies, 53

Mour, Canadian, 146

i'"lowers, 32, 55

Kort Pitt, "177

Kraser River, the, 196

Krcderii'klon, 48

Krencii and iMiglith com.nuiiiiics, 6

French in Quebec, lOO

Fruits, 32, 43

Fuel, 33

Fundy Hay of, 42

(Jeorgian Hay, 13I
tioat, wild, 205
Gold-mining, 196
Government, form of, 4
Government of (Quebec, 1 10
Grand Falls, the, 48
Grizzly, the, 205

Halipax, 42
Hamilton, 95
Herring, 201

Highlanders in Canada, 47
llorse-stcaling, 156

Ice-boat sailing, 76
Ice harvest, I2(
Indian biby, i68
Indian bridj^e, 204
Indian camp, 158
Imlian carvings, 202
Indian cruelties, 167
Indian lodges, 169
Indian manners, 162, 169
In-lian medicii\es, 165

Indian mode of disposing of the dead, 170; provision for

the deaH, 205
Iroquois, the, ig6

JOOGINS, the, 47

Kaministiqitia, the, 135
Kamloops, 196
Keewaytin, 135
Kingston, 73

Lahrador, 61
Lachine rapids, the, 76

334

Index.

l.ncro««e, iij

I.akc of the U'iukIs, i 55

Lttiul, system nf lnyinj; i.\il, 184

License Inw, the, 155

I.ix'illiouMes, 117

Little SaskBtchewnn, the. 1.(11

l.obj|er», 57

London, 04

l.onp Point, sliijcilinj; a*, 89

Loiiishiir({, 4 J

LoynlistK, llic, i)6

Mackk.rel, 56

Mac I, fan, llishop, 176

Afanltoba, Lake, 13S

Manitoba I'niversily, 1 {7

Manitoulin Island, 131 '

Matiiinie provljices, tlie, >>

Mc(!ill Univer^ity, 120

Mennonilos, the, 1^8

Micliipicolen Island, ijj

Milicitcs, legend of, 51

Milton, Lord, traveln of, 176

Miramichi, citastrophe ;it, 51

Missionaries in Canada, 81

Mistassini, the, 113

Montagnais, the, 117

Montreal, 118; buildings of, 119; McCill University,

120 J carnival at, 121 ; ice harvest, 121; Victoria

Tubular Hridge, 124
Mosquito, the, 178
Mount Baker, 208
Murray, General, defeat of, 105
Musk rat, 142
Mussel mud, 56

Nanaimo, S07

Nepigon Straits, 133

New Hruiswick, description of, 12

Newfoundland, descrijition of, 57; restrictions in, (S;

the French shore, 58 ; the capital, 59
Niagara, 65
Nipissin? Lake, 130
North- West mounted police, n;4
Nova Scotia, description of, 9

On. in Ontario, 84

Ojibbeways, 132

Ontario, description of, 13

Oroniateka, 170

Ottawa, 69; llou.'cs of rarliaincnl, 71; saw mills,

7'
Ouaniche, 89
Oysters, 57

Pacific Railway, Canadian, 148

T'eace River, the, 181

Pelicans, 178

Peribonca, the, 1 13

Pictou, 43

Porpoise, white, 1 16

Portage la Prairie, 140

Prairie flowers, 178

Prince Albert, 176

Prince Edward's Island, dcsciiption of, 12, 55

Prohibitory liquor law, 154

Puma, the, 205

Quebec, Government of, 13

Quebec, city of, 99 ; population of, ico ; capture of, 105

Quecnstown heights, battle of, 65

KAit.wAv construction, r«pid, 141;
Ktnids of St. Mury, 130
Ked River carl, 136
Rcli^ioui census, 125
Resligiiuche, the, 51
Richelieu River, 113
Rideau Canal, 73
Kye'» Miss, Iloiries, 79

Sauienav, the, 1 16

St. Francis, Lake, 130

St. Jerome, first tcttfemeiit nl, \\i

St. , ohn, N.H., 48

St. ^ihn's, Newfoundland,

St. , ohn. Lake, 112

St. Lawrence, the, 130

St. Thomas, 94

Salaberry, Colonel de. It J

.Salmon, Atlantic, 51

Salmon, Pacific, 200

Salmon cache, Indian, 202

Saskatchewan, the, 175

.S.Tult Ste, Marie, 133

Schools in Canada, 66

Seals, 209

Selkirk, 137

Selkirk range, the, 199

Settlement of Canada, 4

Settler, advice to the, 186

Sheep, wild, 205

Shipbuilding in Nova Scotia, 47

Silver Lsland, 134

Silver mining, 134

Sitting Hull, victory of, 158

Sioux Indians, 158

Smoky River, the, 181

Snow geese, 178

South Thompson, the, 201

Sturgeon, 88

Sun dance, the, 165

Superior, Lake, 130

Sussex, Vale of, 4S

Tayi.ok, Mr,, mioted, 182

Thousand I.slands, the, 75

Tobogganin?, loi

Toronto, 78; sports at, 78; Miss Rye's Homes, 79;

meteorological office, 83 ; fair, 83
Townships, division of land into, 184
Travoys, 169
Trinity, Bay of, 60
Turkey, wild, 89

Ursuunes, convent of, Quebec, 105

Vancouver's Wand, climate of, 34; description (jI,

200

Victoria, 208

Victoria Tubular Bridge, 124

Wapiti deer, 209
Welland Canal, 130
Whittier, poem of, 60
Wild fowl, 89
Winnipeg, 136
Wolfe, victory of, 104
\\'oodcock, 89
VS'oods, solitude of, 49

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