"CONTENTdm"@en . "http://resolve.library.ubc.ca/cgi-bin/catsearch?bid=1556953"@en . "Wallace B. Chung and Madeline H. Chung Collection"@en . "Dufferin and Ava, Harriot Georgina Blackwood, Marchioness of, 1843?-1936"@en . "2015-06"@en . "1891"@en . "https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/chungpub/items/1.0056319/source.json"@en . "422 pages, [7] leaves of plates : illustrations., folded color map, portraits ; 21 cm."@en . "application/pdf"@en . " &&W&W\ny.. :\n/ r*\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\n1872-8\n\t *^/v>\n<*j\u00C2\u00A3*\u00C2\u00BB 4&\u00C2\u00A3jr\n**&'\nGOVERNOR-GENERAL OP CANADA, 1872-78\nFrom a Photograph taken at the time in Canada [frontispiece MY\nCANADIAN JOUENAL\n1872-8\nEXTEACTS FROM MY LETTERS HOME\nWRITTEN WHILE\nLOED DUFFERIN' WAS GOVERNOR-GENERAL\nBY THE\nMAKCHIONESS OF DTJEFERIN & AYA\nAUTHOR OF 'OUR VICE-REGAL LIFE IN INDIA'\nWITH ILLUSTRATIONS FROM SKETCHES BY LORD DUFFERIN\nPORTRAITS AND MAP\nLONDON\nJOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET\n1891 TO MY CANADIAN FRIENDS\nTHIS LITTLE BOOK\nIS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED\nH. D. & A.\nr PREFACE\nEncouraged by the kind reception given to my Indian\nJournal, I have ventured to prepare this earlier one for\npublication ; though I am well aware that the subject is less\nnew, and that Canada, and the life a Governor-General\nleads there, are much better known, and offer less novelty\nto most readers, than did a similar record of the Viceroy's\nsocial life in India.\nBoth Journals were sent in the same way, as weekly\nletters to my mother, and the only difference between the\ntwo is this\u00E2\u0080\u0094that whereas the one was published directly I\nreturned from India, the first pages of my Canadian diary\nwere written nearly twenty years ago, and it is more than\ntwelve since the book was closed.\nIn a prosperous and quick-growing country like Canada, [8] MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nevery year makes a difference: and I know, both from\nhearsay and from pictures I have seen, that places I\nmention as villages have become towns; that a new\nrailway traverses the North West, with cities springing\nup everywhere in its wake; that Ottawa itself has quite\noutgrown my memories of it; that the contemplated improvements, designed to keep Quebec the most beautiful\ncity in the world, have been accomplished; and that in\nalmost every part of the Dominion the hand of progress\nhas been busy, building, adding to, and improving.\nMy little Journal, therefore, is rather a record of the\npast than a description of the present I and this I sadly\nfeel, as I find in it the names of many who have passed\naway, some leaving never-to-be-filled blanks in their own\nhomes, others mourned by a whole nation.\nNothing has oppressed me more in the revision of this\nJournal than the sense that, from the necessity of shortening it as much as possible, I have done scant justice to the\nkindness of many friends, and that some of those of whom\nwe saw the most, and who added so materially to the\nhappiness of our daily life in Canada, are scarcely mentioned in it. The Prime Ministers, for instance, who, with\ntheir wives, were constantly associated with all we did, are\nonly occasionally mentioned, though the warm affection\nwe felt for Sir John and Lady Macdonald, and for Mr.\nand Mrs. Mackenzie, are amongst the pleasantest recollections of our Canadian life.\nAnd the same may be said of their colleagues, and of\nmany others, who, if they read these pages, will, I hope,\nremember that they relate but a quarter of the events and\nthe pleasures of the years we spent in Canada, and give\nbut a few of the names of those with whom we made PREFACE\nM\nenduring friendships, and with whom we worked and\nplayed and enjoyed our life in the Dominion.\nI have also been sorry to pass so very lightly over\nthe cordiality and the friendliness invariably shown us\nwhenever we crossed our borders into the United States;\nfor whether we were travelling officially through Chicago\nor Detroit, or went as ordinary visitors to New York or\nBoston, we were always received with a kindness and a\nhospitality which we can never forget.\nI must also say one word as to the silence on all political\nmatters maintained in this Journal. I have not attempted\nto record in it any part of the business of the Governor-\nGeneral ; and it is only as they affected our movements,\nor our social arrangements, that I have, even distantly,\nalluded to public events, and then, I fear, in a somewhat\nlight and irresponsible spirit.\nThe Governor-General and his wife belong to no party ;\nand we met with such universal kindness from all persons\nwith whom we came in contact in the Dominion, that I, at\nleast, never wanted to remember that people differed from\neach other in their political views, and was only too glad to\nleave politics to those whom they necessarily concerned.\nHariot Dufferin and Ava,\nClandeboye : August 18,1891. CONTENTS\n-+C+-\nCHAPTER I\nARRIVAL IN CANADA\nJune-August 1872\nThe Voyage\u00E2\u0080\u0094Reception at Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094River steamers on the St. Lawrence\u00E2\u0080\u0094Arrival at Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rideau Hall \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Household arrangements\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chaudiere Fall\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Lachine Rapids\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094Privileges\nof the Kings of Prance\u00E2\u0080\u0094Montmorency Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Riviere du Loup\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Dauntless \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Cacouna\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tadousac\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Saguenay \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Trout-\nfishing\u00E2\u0080\u0094My first entertainment in Canada\u00E2\u0080\u0094An early church\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCanoeing and camping on the Marguerite River \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Our first\nCanadian salmon ..........\npage\nCHAPTER II\nQUEBEC\nAugust-September 1872\nThe Citadel\u00E2\u0080\u0094Setting-up house\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our first dinner party\u00E2\u0080\u0094A picnic\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n' Mr. Briggs ' \u00E2\u0080\u0094Social duties\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Ursuline Convent\u00E2\u0080\u0094Canadian\nsongs\u00E2\u0080\u0094The local institutions\u00E2\u0080\u0094Receptions at the Convents\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball\ngiven by Lady Belleau\u00E2\u0080\u0094University Laval\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Stadacona Hunt\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball at the Citadel\u00E2\u0080\u0094Departure from Quebec ....\n18\ntt [12]\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCHAPTER III\nONTARIO\nSeptember\u00E2\u0080\u0094October 1872\nToronto \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Hamilton\u00E2\u0080\u0094Grand reception at Toronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094Niagara\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nFalls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Buffalo\u00E2\u0080\u0094Drawing-room at Toronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094Woodstock\u00E2\u0080\u0094London\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Petrolia\u00E2\u0080\u0094Schools at Toronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094 The York Pioneers \u00E2\u0080\u0094 jj Not at\nhome ' -Ball in the Parliament Buildings\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sunday schools\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nchildren arrive from England .......\nPAGE\n34\nCHAPTER IV\nOTTAWA\nNovember, 1872-January 1873\nOttawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rideau Hall\u00E2\u0080\u0094Thanksgiving Day\u00E2\u0080\u0094The first direct telegram\nfrom Australia \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Winter costumes\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tobogganing\u00E2\u0080\u0094His Excellency's visit to Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Daily routine\u00E2\u0080\u0094Snow-shoeing\u00E2\u0080\u0094Canadian celebrities\u00E2\u0080\u0094Frost-bites\u00E2\u0080\u0094Making a rink\u00E2\u0080\u009422\u00C2\u00B0 below zero\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nSkating\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sleighing\u00E2\u0080\u0094New Year's Day\t\n44\nCHAPTER V\nMONTREAL\nJanuary-February 1873\nMontreal -- Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094Citizens' ball\u00E2\u0080\u0094Drawing-room at Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nTorch-light procession on snow-shoes \u00E2\u0080\u0094 The Rink\u00E2\u0080\u0094The M'Gill\nCollege\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball\u00E2\u0080\u0094B.C. Deaf and Dumb Institutions\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fancy dress\nball at the rink\u00E2\u0080\u0094Winter games\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ladies' skating matches .\n54\nCHAPTER VI\nOUR FIRST PARLIAMENTARY SESSION\nFebruary-May 1873\nArrangements for the season at Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Cabinet dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094Opening of\nParliament\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Drawing-room \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Theatricals \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Parliamentary\ndinners\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball at Rideau Hall\u00E2\u0080\u0094Prince Edward's Island joins the\nDominion Birth of a daughter .\n65 CONTENTS\n[13]\nCHAPTER VII\nON THE ST. LAWRENCE\nJune-July 1873\nSir George Cartier\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094Christening of the Queen's godchild\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nViceregal functions\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Druid\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tadousac\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Godbout River\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Mingan\u00E2\u0080\u0094Indians in chapel\u00E2\u0080\u0094One of our men drowned\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nFishing\u00E2\u0080\u0094A day at sea\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gasp6\u00E2\u0080\u0094TSte-d-tSte drives\u00E2\u0080\u0094Camping out\non the Dartmouth River\u00E2\u0080\u0094On the St. John\u00E2\u0080\u0094Not enough blankets !\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 A strange coincidence \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Perce1 \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Curing fish \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Paspediac \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nDalhousie\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chatham\u00E2\u0080\u0094Newcastle\t\nPAGE\n76\nCHAPTER VIII\nTHE MARITIME PROVINCES\nJuly-August 1873\nPrince Edward's Island\u00E2\u0080\u0094Charlotte Town\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball in the Senate Chamber\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Pictou coal mines \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Louisburg \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sydney\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fog\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Landing at\nHalifax, N.S.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dinner at Government House\u00E2\u0080\u0094Party feeling\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMcNab's Island\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lobster-spearing\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Dufferin's speech at\nthe Club\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball in the Parliament Buildings\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball on H.M.S.\nRoyal Alfred\u00E2\u0080\u0094Industrial homes\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bay of Fundy\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. John, N.B.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Hotel life\u00E2\u0080\u0094Torch-light procession\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball in the theatre\u00E2\u0080\u0094Voyage\nup the St. John River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fredericton\u00E2\u0080\u0094Woodstock\u00E2\u0080\u0094Grand Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nTadousac\t\n92\nCHAPTER IX\nTHE FALL\nSeptember-December 1873\nBathing at Tadousac\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094Miss Florence Lees\u00E2\u0080\u0094Football\u00E2\u0080\u0094Convents\u00E2\u0080\u0094Paper chase\u00E2\u0080\u0094Visitors\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Stadacona Races\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball at the\nCitadel\u00E2\u0080\u0094Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Debate on the address\u00E2\u0080\u0094Resignation\nof Sir John Macdonald's cabinet\u00E2\u0080\u0094Curling\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Mackenzie, the\nnew Premier\u00E2\u0080\u0094Christmas . t > 113\n1/ [14]\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCHAPTER X\nOUR SECOND SEASON AT OTTAWA\nJanuary-June 1874\nThe New Year's reception\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tableaux\u00E2\u0080\u0094Only 10\u00C2\u00B0 of frost!\u00E2\u0080\u0094The institutions of Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094An ice storm\u00E2\u0080\u0094Concert\u00E2\u0080\u0094Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fancy\ndress ball in the rink\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Curling match\u00E2\u0080\u0094A winter's drive\nCaves \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Electrical experiments\u00E2\u0080\u0094Opening of Parliament \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCharles Kingsley-- Laurence Oliphant \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Citizens' ball in the\nSenate Chamber\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lumber mills\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Queen's Birthday\u00E2\u0080\u0094Excursions ........\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\nPAGE\n126\nCHAPTER XI\nFISHING ON THE ST. LAWRENCE\nJune-July 1874\nQuebeo\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gaspe\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Reynolds's camp on the York River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our\ncamp on the St. John River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dominion Day\u00E2\u0080\u0094' The Countess's\nPool\u00E2\u0080\u0094A fog\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tadousac\u00E2\u0080\u0094Up the Saguenay\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chicoutimi\u00E2\u0080\u0094An\nIndian passenger\u00E2\u0080\u0094Murray Bay\u00E2\u0080\u0094The St. Anne Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our cook's\nfamily ............\n143\nCHAPTER XII\nONTARIO AND THE LAKES\nJuly-September 1874\nTrois Rivieres\u00E2\u0080\u0094Toronto \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Rival hotels\u00E2\u0080\u0094Newmarket\u00E2\u0080\u0094Barrie\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake\nSimcoe\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Narrows--Orillia\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ojibbeway Indians\u00E2\u0080\u0094Muskoka\nLake\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bracebridge\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Summit House \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Settlers\u00E2\u0080\u0094Parry Sound\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCollingwood Owen Sound\u00E2\u0080\u0094Manitoulin Indians\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sault Ste. Marie\n- Miohipicoten - - Nipigon \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A portage\u00E2\u0080\u0094Camping out \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Lake\nSuperior\u00E2\u0080\u0094Silver Islet\u00E2\u0080\u0094Prince Arthur's Landing \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Indians at\nShebandowan\u00E2\u0080\u0094Kamanistiqwa River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake Michigan\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chicago\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe park\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Palmer House\u00E2\u0080\u0094Reception at the Exchange\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nboulevards - \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 The shops - - Detroit \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sarnia - - Lake Huron \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nGoderich Salt works\u00E2\u0080\u0094Stratford\u00E2\u0080\u0094Guelph\u00E2\u0080\u0094Miss Macpherson's\nHome\u00E2\u0080\u0094Brantford\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Six Nations\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. George Brown's farm Li,. i.i\nCONTENTS\n[15]\nPAGE\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Woodstock\u00E2\u0080\u0094London\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fire at Simcoe\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Catherine's\u00E2\u0080\u0094Swing\nbridge over the Niagara River\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Plumb's house\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nToronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Dufferin's speech at the club\u00E2\u0080\u0094Whitby\u00E2\u0080\u0094Port\nHope\u00E2\u0080\u0094Coburg\u00E2\u0080\u0094Iron mine\u00E2\u0080\u0094Belleville\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dr. Palmer's Deaf and\nDumb Institution \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Kingston \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Brockville \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Home again at\nOttawa . 156\nCHAPTER XIII\nWINTER AND SPRING\nSeptember 1874-May 1875\nThe Dominion Rifle Match\u00E2\u0080\u0094New York\u00E2\u0080\u0094The theatres and parks\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nEntertainments\u00E2\u0080\u0094Drive to \ Sleepy Hollow'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Dufferin goes\nto Washington\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Normal School\u00E2\u0080\u0094Night journey to Boston\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nLongfellow's house\u00E2\u0080\u0094Club dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094A Universalist Church\u00E2\u0080\u0094Return\nto Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094The steeple-chase\u00E2\u0080\u0094Visitors\u00E2\u0080\u0094An ideal Christmas Day\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Children's tableaux\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Dufferin's visit to Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Curling\u00E2\u0080\u0094Debate on Riel\u00E2\u0080\u0094Birth and christening of a son\u00E2\u0080\u0094Home on\nshort leave\u00E2\u0080\u0094Delayed by ice and fog\t\n99\nCHAPTER XIV\nAN UNEVENTFUL SEASON\nOctober 1875-July 1876\nR.M.S. Prussian\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Skating\u00E2\u0080\u0094A rainy Christmas Day\u00E2\u0080\u0094Plays\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Married v. Bachelors\u00E2\u0080\u0094Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Opening of Parliament\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fancy dress balls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Theatricals\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ice block on the Rideau\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Expedition up the Le Lievre\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094After the fire\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord\nDufferin's speech\u00E2\u0080\u0094Procession of Jean Baptiste\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gasp6\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fishing\non the York River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie's birthday\u00E2\u0080\u0094His departure for school\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nOttawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Preparations for the Grand Tour\t\n216\nCHAPTER XV\nACROSS THE CONTINENT AND ALONG THE PACIFIC. COAST\nAugust-September 1876\nOur special train\u00E2\u0080\u0094A reporter and his request\u00E2\u0080\u0094Five o'clock tea\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chicago\u00E2\u0080\u0094Omaha\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Platte Valley\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Rocky Plains\u00E2\u0080\u0094Cheyenne [16]\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nPAGE\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Alkali Plains\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Rocky Mountains\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ogden\u00E2\u0080\u0094Cape Horn\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Travelling with a murderer\u00E2\u0080\u0094San Francisco\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Cliff House\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA Killyleagh friend\u00E2\u0080\u0094H.M.S. Amethyst\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Pacific\u00E2\u0080\u0094Esquimault\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Victoria\u00E2\u0080\u0094Party feeling\u00E2\u0080\u0094Busy days\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our Chinese cook and his\nwife\u00E2\u0080\u0094Regatta\u00E2\u0080\u0094Nanaimo\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bute Inlet\u00E2\u0080\u0094Safety Harbour\u00E2\u0080\u0094Metla-\ncatlah\u00E2\u0080\u0094Successful missionary efforts\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fort Simpson\u00E2\u0080\u0094Indian\nmonuments\u00E2\u0080\u0094Queen Charlotte's Islands\u00E2\u0080\u0094Alert Bay\u00E2\u0080\u0094Burrard's\nInlet\u00E2\u0080\u0094A heavy mail 236\nCHAPTER XVI\nBRITISH COLUMBIA, CALIFORNIA AND THE SALT\nLAKE CITY\nSeptember-October 1876\nforest giant\u00E2\u0080\u0094New Westminster\u00E2\u0080\u0094A speech in many tongues\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nFraser River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Yale\u00E2\u0080\u0094Hell's Gate\u00E2\u0080\u0094An Indian escort\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lytton\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nIndian grave\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Cornwall's\u00E2\u0080\u0094Kamloops\u00E2\u0080\u0094A I Pow-Pow '\u00E2\u0080\u0094Down\nthe Thompson River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Perilous drive\u00E2\u0080\u0094Victoria\u00E2\u0080\u0094Strange servants\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball\u00E2\u0080\u0094Esquimault\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dry dock\u00E2\u0080\u0094A busy day\u00E2\u0080\u0094At sea\u00E2\u0080\u0094San Francisco\u00E2\u0080\u0094Good-bye to H.M.S. Amethyst \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A 'Frisco merchant's\ncountry house\u00E2\u0080\u0094A Californian ball\u00E2\u0080\u0094Giving names\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Chinese\ntheatre \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Joss House\u00E2\u0080\u0094The return journey\u00E2\u0080\u0094Salt Lake City\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMormon society\u00E2\u0080\u0094Cheyenne\u00E2\u0080\u0094Denver\u00E2\u0080\u0094Hotel manners\u00E2\u0080\u0094Oregon\nBill\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Louis\u00E2\u0080\u0094Toronto\t\n270\nCHAPTER XVII\nOUR FIFTH WINTER AND SUMMER IN CANADA\nOctober 1876-July 1877\nToronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Dufferin starts for Philadelphia\u00E2\u0080\u0094Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa-\nTom Thumb\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sermon before the service\u00E2\u0080\u0094Christmas festivities-\nToronto\u00E2\u0080\u0094Speeches\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Theatricals\u00E2\u0080\u0094Presentation by the\ncabmen\u00E2\u0080\u0094Procession in honour of Pope Leo XIII. Distinguished\nvisitors\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094In camp\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fishing\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tadousac .\n299 CONTENTS\n[17]\nCHAPTER XVIII\nTHE NORTH WEST\nAugust 1877\nIn the Cars\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Paul\u00E2\u0080\u0094Minneapolis\u00E2\u0080\u0094Minnehaha Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Across the\nprairie\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Red River\u00E2\u0080\u0094Greetings on the way\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Frontier\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nFort Garry\u00E2\u0080\u0094Winnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094' Silver Heights '\u00E2\u0080\u0094An Indian's idea of\nreligion\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Boniface\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Hudson's Bay store\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lassoing\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nSioux Indians\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball at Winnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094A Red River cart\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Rock-\nwood Penitentiary\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Andrew's-\u00E2\u0080\u0094Little Stone Fort\u00E2\u0080\u0094Selkirk\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Indian reserve\u00E2\u0080\u0094Winnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094Camping out\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mennonite settlement\u00E2\u0080\u0094A member of the local Parliament\t\npage\n312\nCHAPTER XIX\nMANITOBA\nAugust-October 1877\nInsect life on the prairie\u00E2\u0080\u0094Half-breeds\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. Andrew's\u00E2\u0080\u0094Pitching camp\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094On the Dawson route\u00E2\u0080\u0094A ' corduroy ' road \u00E2\u0080\u0094The North-West\nAngle\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake of the Woods\u00E2\u0080\u0094Canoeing on the Winnipeg River\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094The White Dog Mission\u00E2\u0080\u0094Portages\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rapids\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fort Alexander\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nAn Indian grave\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake Winnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094S.S. Colville\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Saskatchewan\u00E2\u0080\u0094The first railway in the North-West\u00E2\u0080\u0094Flour 51. a bag!\u00E2\u0080\u0094Stone\nFort\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gimla, the Icelandic settlement\u00E2\u0080\u0094Winnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094An Indian\nLodge'\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Lake Manitoba\u00E2\u0080\u0094Duck-shooting\u00E2\u0080\u0094Portage La Prairie\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nProductive land\u00E2\u0080\u0094Want of good drinking-water\u00E2\u0080\u0094Silver Heights\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe Canadian Pacific Railway\u00E2\u0080\u0094Farewell dejeuner and speeches at\nWinnipeg\u00E2\u0080\u0094A happy family\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Military College, Kingston\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBack to Ottawa ..........\n338\nCHAPTER XX\nOUR LAST SEASON AT OTTAWA AND MONTREAL\nOctober 1877-June 1878\nEarthquake\u00E2\u0080\u0094Christmas visitors\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bad accident\u00E2\u0080\u0094Tobogganing\u00E2\u0080\u0094Visit\nto Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Windsor Hotel\u00E2\u0080\u0094The McKay Institution\u00E2\u0080\u0094Villa\nMaria Convent\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ball\u00E2\u0080\u0094McGill College\u00E2\u0080\u0094Military display at the\na [18] MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\ntheatre\u00E2\u0080\u0094Convent of the Sacred Heart\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mount Royal Park\u00E2\u0080\u0094Farewell dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Art Association Conversazione\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sickness at\nOttawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094Death of Mr. Ward\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00C2\u00ABSweethearts '\u00E2\u0080\u0094A musical afternoon with the House of Commons\u00E2\u0080\u0094Farewell address from both\nHouses of Parliament\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fancy bazaar\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Phonograph\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nGeneral Hospital, Montreal\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Queen's Birthday Review \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nGood-bye at Ottawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094The children leave for England .\nPAGE\n369\nCHAPTER XXI\nTHE EASTERN TOWNSHIPS, AND LAST DAYS IN\nCANADA\nJune-August 1878\nGaspe\u00E2\u0080\u0094'Tinker'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Riots at Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our rooms occupied by soldiers\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Island of Orleans\u00E2\u0080\u0094Farewell address from the Quebec Parliament\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Visit to Boston\u00E2\u0080\u0094A New England home \u00E2\u0080\u0094 A literary dinner\nparty\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lord Duff erin takes his degree at the Harvard University\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nLongfellow\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Adams\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quebec\u00E2\u0080\u0094A fog on the St. Lawrence\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nFishing on the Metapediac\u00E2\u0080\u0094Run to Campbell Town\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rimouski\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nBic\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fishing\u00E2\u0080\u0094Last visit to Tadousac\u00E2\u0080\u0094The 12th of July\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nMaine Press Association\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sillery\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Roman Catholic bishops\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sir Edward Thornton's visit\u00E2\u0080\u0094Theatricals on the Island of\nOrleans\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Montmorency Falls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Expedition to the Chaudiere\nFalls\u00E2\u0080\u0094Danville\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sherbrooke\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lennoxville\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake Massiwippi\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nCompton \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Stanstead\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lake Memphremagog \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Magog \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Bolton\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Waterloo \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Granby \u00E2\u0080\u0094 St. John's \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Lake Champlain \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Lake\nGeorge\u00E2\u0080\u0094Juvenile coachman at Fort Henry\u00E2\u0080\u0094Good-bye\n388\nLord Dufferin's last days in Canada\n416\nINDEX\n419 ILLUSTRATIONS\n -\u00E2\u0080\u00A2<>\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\t\nLord Dufferin, Governor-General of Canada, 1872-78 . frontispiece\n(From a photograph taken at the time in Canada)\nIndian Tents p. [7]\nOur House and the Hotel, Tadousac .... to face p. 80\nGaspe \u00E2\u0080\u009E 144\nOur Hut (on the St. John River) p. 148\nThe Mouth of the Red River and Lake Winnipeg . to face p. 316\nRat Portage p. 347\nIndian Grave at Fort Alexander p. 351\nLa Roche Percee to face p. 362\nLady Dufferin \u00E2\u0080\u009E 392\n(From a sketch by Lord Dufferin)\nMAP at end MY CANADIAN JOUENAL\n1872\u00E2\u0080\u00941878\n-*o*-\nCHAPTER I\nARRIVAL IN CANADA\nS.S.' Prussian U Friday, June 14th, 1872.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ugh ! Ugh !\nhorrid ! Very rough ; everybody ill except the wretched\nbaby, Basil, who is perfectly well, but can get no one to dress\nhim, and is handed about, unwashed, to engineers, waiters,\nto anyone who can stand.\nMonday, lyth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ship rolling from side to side till\none's back aches. Such a noise of splashing and dashing and falling about, and such fears lest my infants\nshould follow the example of my toothbrush, and come\nflying across the room ! To add to my fears, two steerage\npassengers came to D. in the night, to inquire whether he\nthought there was any danger, and if the captain might not\nbe asked to put into port until it became calmer. In the\nmorning these men were found sleeping with life-belts on.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are much better now, and quite\nenjoy our meals, which D. and I have in a cabin by ourselves.\nWe are also able to look about, and find that there\nare 107 * street Arabs' on board, brought out by a saint\nof a woman, who, although very sick and miserable her* 2\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nself, sings to them, reads out loud, goes down into the\nsteerage, sees them to bed, and performs many other trying\noffices in the most unselfish manner. Miss Macpherson\npays her own passage and expenses. Each child costs\nioL to bring out, and will eventually be adopted into a\nCanadian family, where it will have a happy home. This\nseems to be an excellent charity.\nSunday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A beautiful day\u00E2\u0080\u0094a hot sun and a perfectly calm sea. Our parasols and shady hats have come out\nfor the first time, and Hermie and Basil[ are being made\nvery much of by the convalescent passengers. Preparations are making for our arrival at Quebec; and, as it has\nbeen discovered that there is no Canadian flag on board,\nmy maid, Mrs. Dent, is busily engaged in trying to\nmanufacture one. Nobody is quite sure what it is, but all\nsuppose that there must be a beaver and a maple-leaf in\nit. I sincerely hope that no great herald will be waiting\nto receive us.\nWe have attended a. meeting in the steerage, where\nsome of the Canadian passengers talked to the emigrants\nabout the country they are going to. D. also spoke, and\ntold them that in Canada they need never complain, as he\nhad heard one of them do, ' that he had too many children,'\nfor that there the more they had the better. An enthusiastic young man on hearing this slapped D. on the back\nand said, i That is just what I have been telling Emily.'\nQuebec: Tuesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A lovely morning. We anchored early, but did not land till ten, when the Ministers,\nLieutenant-Governor, and several other officials, came on\nboard, and with them we went ashore. A salute was fired\nfrom the citadel as D. stepped on land, and we walked\nthrough lines of troops to a carriage-and-four, in which\nwe drove to Spencer Wood, the Lieutenant-Governor's residence. We passed through Quebec, up a very steep hill.\nThe road was rough, and it was extremely hot and dusty.\n1 Our youngest children.\n^ june 1872 ARRIVAL AT QUEBEC AND OTTAWA\n3\nI could not see the view as we were driving away from\nthe river, and also, I was much occupied in looking at the\npeople who filled the streets; but when we got to Spencer\nWood we were charmed with it, and it looks right down\nupon the St. Lawrence. At three o'clock D. was sworn in\nas Governor-General of Canada, and received some addresses\nof welcome,\u00E2\u0080\u0094but, as I remained quiet in my country retreat,\nI can tell you nothing of the ceremony. Our host is Sir\nNarcisse Belleau; his wife is a nice quiet little Frenchwoman, and he is pleasant and kind. There was a dinner\nin the evening,-\u00E2\u0080\u0094but I don't feel that I have seen enough\nof any of the guests to tell you about them to-day, except\nthat the Prime Minister, Sir John Macdonald, is the image\nof Dizzy.\nWednesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The papers give a most amusing description of D., stating his apparent weight and height. lam\nvery flatteringly described, though the ignorant male writer\nspeaks slightingly of my dress as being a ' plain blue silk,'\nwhereas it was in reality excessively smart, and had caused\nme infinite trouble and anxiety ! However, I had the satisfaction of hearing from Lady Harriet Fletcher 2 that the\nladies knew better, and had appreciated it.\nLady Harriet and I had a drive about the old town,\nand I was quite delighted with it. The views are perfectly\nlovely, and it would be such a charming place to live in,\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nif only we had a house here !\nIn the afternoon we started for Ottawa in a magnificent river-steamer with four storeys and streets of cabins,\nand a grand table d'hote on board. We sat on deck and\nenjoyed ourselves immensely as we went up the St. Lawrence. I cannot tell you what a lovely voyage this was !\u00E2\u0080\u0094so\nlovely that I cannot believe that we did it of necessity, and\nnot for pleasure only.\nThursday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at Ottawa, the first view of\n; Daughter of the Earl of Romney, wife of Lord Dufferin's. Military\nSecretary.\n]', 2 MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nwhich is magnificent; but once landed there was no time to\nlook at anything! There were nine addresses to be listened\nto, and after them we drove off to our new home ! . . . We\nhave been so very enthusiastic about everything hitherto\nthat the first sight of Rideau Hall did lower our spirits just\na little! The road to it is rough and ugly, the house\nappears to me to be at the land's end, and there is no view\nwhatever from it, though it is near the river\u00E2\u0080\u0094and we have\ncome through hundreds of miles of splendid scenery to get\nto it! Then I have never lived in a Government House\nbefore, and the inevitable bare tables and ornamentless\nrooms have a depressing effect: for the first time I realise\nthat I have left my own home for many years,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and this\nis its substitute!\nFriday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Please forget the above growl. The\nmorning has brought more cheerful reflections. We are not\nintended to live here at midsummer, and I dare say that in\nwinter this place looks lovely ! Our house is, they say, very\nwarm and comfortable, and the Houses of Parliament\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nwhich, after all, I do see from my windows\u00E2\u0080\u0094are very beautiful. And I can cover up the tables and supply the homey\nlook which at present is wanting\u00E2\u0080\u0094so why did I grumble ?\nWe have driven in state through the town, and have visited\nthe Government buildings. I was delighted with the Senate,\nand with the Library\u00E2\u0080\u0094a large, circular room. When the\nHouse is sitting I may come and listen to debates, but the\nGovernor-General may not!\nThe weather is extremely hot, and we are not. going to\nremain here. D. goes to-morrow to inspect militia at\nPrescott, and I meet him there two days later.\nMonday, July 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went for a row on the river in the\nevening, which was delicious. It was very pretty ; and we\nhad a breath of fresh air, and got out of a perspiration for\nthe first time for a week !\nWe have been busy making a number of household\narrangements. I have chosen my nurseries; and it has\nA- ft\u00C2\u00A3^ july 1872 HOUSEHOLD ARRANGEMENTS 5\nbeen decided to add a storey to the little house in the\ngarden in which the Fletchers will live,\u00E2\u0080\u0094for they have a\nnumber of children too. The non-arrival of all our heavy\nluggage has been an anxiety; so far our Viceregal establishment possesses about six plates and as many cracked teacups ; and our own supply of china, plate, and linen seems\nto be trying to see the country, and to travel for pleasure,\ninstead of coming and settling down here as it should.\nPerhaps you may wonder where my children are all\nthis time. The three elder ones are still in Europe, trying\nto learn a little French, and Hermione and Basil, who came\nout with us, are now at Riviere du Loup, where we have\ntaken a house for the summer. There, also, are the\nFletcher children. Colonel3 and Lady Harriet Fletcher came\nout to Canada the mail before we did, and made all arrangements for us and for themselves. He is the Military\nSecretary. We have two very nice A.D.C.s at present.\nOne of them was with Lord Lisgar, and has kindly volunteered to stay and help us for a time. The other is Mr.\nCoulson, who is regularly appointed, and who will remain\neven after Fred comes out. Please tell the latter that I\nfind that an A.D.C. is a charming institution. These two\nask me I if I will drive,' ' or walk,' ' or boat,5 or ' if I want\nanything from the town '; and if I turn my head, they find\nout what I am looking for, and get it for me. So Fred\nneed not hope to get off any of his duties through my\nignorance of them!\nD. is very happy, and is much taken with the country\nand the people ; and all here seem pleased with him. I think\nthat I am getting on pretty well too,\u00E2\u0080\u0094though I say it that\nshould b\u00C2\u00A7 silent in the matter; and the papers, who talk\nabout us a good deal, lay great stress on my not being\naffected\u00E2\u0080\u0094a negative virtue which I may mention without\nappearing too conceited!\nMy attentive A.D.C.s have taken me to see the Chau-\n3 The late Colonel Fletcher, C.M.G,, Scots Fusilier Guards*\nM -rfim--\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\ndiere Fall. It is close to Ottawa, and is very beautiful.\nThere is a mass of water which appears to fall in three\ndifferent directions into the same pool, and a great smoke\nof foam rises from the splash; it looks just like a big\ncauldron. Close to it is a saw-mill. The trunks of forest-\ntrees are carried by the stream to the door of the mill, where\nthey are caught by chains and slowly dragged into the teeth\nof a bundle of saws. After passing through these, the trees\nfall in planks, which are quickly taken up by another machine\nto have their sides neatly trimmed. As they pass a man\nmarks them with a pencil according to their quality.\nAfter. this we ' ran the slide,' which was very exciting.\nThe * slide' is a long incline of water, divided into a series\nof small waterfalls, and is the artificial road by which the\ntimber from the higher levels is brought down into the St.\nLawrence. The wood is made up into rafts, and you sit\nupon these while they slip down the incline. It looks\nrather alarming to see one of these great monsters go headlong into the water at the foot of each fall; but, although I\ngot on board with my heart in my mouth, I liked it extremely, and when I found myself safe*on the calm level of\nthe Ottawa, I would gladly have recommenced the journey\nhad it been possible: but when one has slid down this\nsteep hill of water to the river, one is miles away from the\nstarting-point, and has to go home another way. The\nrafts and the quantities of wood lying about in all directions\nare the most curious sights here, but I see no really fine\ntimber growing in this neighbourhood.\nWednesday, yd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I left Ottawa early, and met D. at\nPrescott. He had been inspecting volunteer camps at\nKingston and Prescott, and is to see another at Laprairie\nto-morrow.\nWe shot the rapids. The rapids are places where there\nis a tremendous stream rushing over a rocky descent.\nWhen the steamer comes to them the engine is stopped,\nand the current carries the vessel over the broken water JULY 1872\nRUNNING THE RAPIDS\nat a great rate. If the pilot were to make a mistake, or to\nlose command of the ship, she would be wrecked. The\nrapids look like a stormy sea, but you do not go up and\ndown in them, and rather feel as though the vessel were\nbeing buffeted about, and as if it were striking some hard\nsubstance. The worst rapid is called the \ Lachine,' and\nthat does look rather alarming- The rapids are all down\nhill, and going at such a great pace the pilot4 appears\nto be steering straight upon some fearful rock, peeping\nabove water, when just as you expect the crash, the stream\ntakes the vessel and carries her clear of the danger.\nWe were met at Montreal by the Mayor and a guard\nof honour.\nQuebec : Friday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I saw a little of Montreal yesterday, but not enough to warrant a description. We went to\na little country place, where we had strawberries and cream\nunder the trees, and when I returned to the hotel I received\nvisitors. I find Canadian society very easy to get on with :\nthe people talk, and they are very simple and natural, and\nwilling to be pleased; so that receiving seventy or eighty\ntotal strangers is made a pleasant instead of an arduous\ntask,\u00E2\u0080\u0094as it might be.\nD. was occupied all day inspecting a camp, and in\nreceiving addresses.\nWe dined early, and went on board the steamer for\nQuebec. There were 800 passengers, most of them lying\nabout on the floors; but we had comfortable cabins, and\nslept well all night. The only new things we saw on this\njourney were the fire-flies; they were so numerous on the\nwooded banks of the river that their lights looked like those\nof a distant town.\nSaturday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Governor-General has some of the\nprivileges of the old kings of France, and one of them is\nthat he has the right to enter the cloistered convents. In\n'4 The pilot on this occasion was ' Old Baptiste,' who took us down a\nchannel he had himself first found in 1842. 8\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nhis train, therefore, we have been to the Ursulines and to\nthe Hotel-Dieu. The Vicar-General went with us, and at\neach convent, after inspecting the ordinary arrangements\nof the house, we went into a room where the nuns were\narranged in rows, and where we sat on thrones on a dais.\nIn a clever, easy way the Vicar inaugurated a kind of general\nconversation about the convent, and the nuns laughed at\nhis little jokes, and answered any questions put to them.\nWe were greatly struck by their manners, so pleasant and\ncheerful, without the slightest affectation or shyness.\nMonday, &th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We made an expedition to the Montmorency\nFalls. D. went in the Dauntless, a thirty-six ton yacht\nwhich he has bought, and we rowed in a big boat. The\nfall is six miles from Quebec. The day was very fine,\nand as we saw them from the river the shining tin roofs\nof the town looked beautiful in the sunshine.\nThe first view of the fall is spoilt by the quantity of\ntimber at its base. The bay is crammed with stacks of\nboards andwood, piled up in every way, and there are sawmills hard at work; but when you get close enough to see\nit, the Montmorency is really beautiful. It is 170 feet\nhigh\u00E2\u0080\u0094higher than Niagara\u00E2\u0080\u0094and it falls perfectly straight\ndown into the earth, clouds of spray rising up in front of it.\nThe water does not appear to rush on as in most waterfalls,\nand it is supposed that it dives into the ground, and comes\nout elsewhere.\nWe had brought provisions with us, so we lighted a\nfire, cooked an excellent lunch, and afterwards made tea.\nIn the cool of the evening we rowed back to Quebec, and\ngot on board the steamer for Riviere du Loup. This is\nthe fashionable time for going to the seaside, so the boats\nare very full.\nRivibre du Loup: Tuesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our house here is a nice\nlittle cottage, but it is a long way from the sea, and I don't\nthink that we shall care to shut ourselves up in it for long.\nWe are impatient to see more of the country and the MM\nJULY 1872\nTHE 'DAUNTLESS'\n9\npeople, and if only we can find a house at Quebec we shall\ngo there; for the more we see of that place, the more we\nlike it.\nWednesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After getting my letters ready for the\nmail we set out for the yacht. The day was not very good,\nbut there was a nice breeze, and although the Fletchers and\nI felt a little uncomfortable at first, we all got over it and\nenjoyed ourselves very much. H.E. was delighted with\nthe Dauntless. His sailors are not very smart, but he is\nlooking forward to the arrival of Hammond,5 who will soon\ngive it the air of an English yacht. The Dauntless has a\nwell to sit in, and a large but rather low cabin. She is one\nof the flat yachts with a sliding keel. D. steered back into\nthe harbour before an admiring crowd just arrived by\nthe steamer. An American on the shore called out,\n'Well, Governor, you seem to be used to this kind of\nwork.'\nThursday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dr. Campbell, of Montreal, came here\nto offer D. some salmon-fishing. He has accepted for two\ndays, and goes next Wednesday, the 17th\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel Fletcher\nwith him. They will live in a camp, and be eaten by black\nflies and mosquitoes. The former have a sharp lance, which\nthey insert under the skin. You do not feel the bite at the\ntime, but it bleeds freely and inflames next day. While\nfishing, you keep your face and neck covered with a preparation which the flies dislike. Dr. Campbell gave an\nexciting account of the fishing, and how the fisherman runs\nalong the banks as fast as he can, while the salmon rushes\ndown the rapids. I think I should like to go too\u00E2\u0080\u0094but\nladies are not invited.\nSaturday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094H.E. returned in the evening. He\nenjoyed his trip very much, though the salmon were\nscarce, and he only caught fiye trout. Dr. Campbell, Mr.\nUrquhart, Colonel Fletcher, and himself, were the party.\nMr. Urquhart attended to the dinner, and was * most\nAn English sailor, \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0096\u00A0---\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u00A2- \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\"\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'\u00E2\u0080\u00A2pww*\n10\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nanxious' about it,\u00E2\u0080\u0094it consisted of salmon and cold beef,\nand was very good; still, it does not sound as if it required\nimmense thought and preparation.\nMonday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel Fletcher has gone off to see\nhouses at Quebec.\nIn the afternoon we drove to Cacouna, a more fashionable watering-place than this, where there is a large hotel\nfrequented by Americans, who amuse themselves by dressing four times a day.\nWednesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I started in the afternoon\nfor Tadousac. It was quite dark when we got there, after\ntwo hours in the steamer, and we could only see that we\ndrove up a most dangerous road. It was a wooden ramp,\njust wide enough for the carriage, and with a little precipice\non each side. It led to the hotel, which we found extremely\nclean and comfortable. I think they manage these things\nvery well in Canada. There is a complete absence of pretence. The furniture is very plain: just a strip of carpet\nin one's bedroom, common-looking French beds, washing-\nstand and chest of drawers\u00E2\u0080\u0094no curtains anywhere\u00E2\u0080\u0094the only\nluxury being extreme cleanliness. There is a table d'hote\nwhere all dine\u00E2\u0080\u0094servants at the same table as the other\nguests\u00E2\u0080\u0094and the food is very good. We had private rooms\nand private meals, but no one else would think of such a\nthing. The same simplicity strikes me as characteristic of\nthe people. They do not pretend to be fine or smart, or\nanything but what they are ; they believe every word you\nsay, and take all polite exaggerations au pied de la lettre.\nThey are exceedingly friendly and kind-hearted, so that their\nsaying what they think does not lead to any uncomfortable speeches.\nTadousac is the oldest, but I should think the smallest,\nplace in the Dominion. Not only as tourists, but as\nsailors, we are delighted with it. The hotel is situated in\nthe curve of a lovely bay, with a nice sandy beach all round\nit. There are rocky walks of a most amusing description sm\nJULY l872\nTADOUSAC\n11\nfor the walker, a good anchorage for the yachtsman, and\nas all the fishing is up the Saguenay, and this place is at\nits mouth, there is sport for the sportsman. There are\nwhite porpoises and seals, and occasional whales to be seen\nrolling and jumping about,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and altogether we thought the\nplace most attractive, and have some idea of building a\nhouse here for the summer.\nThursday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up at six to go out fishing,\nand drove down to the pier, where we found Mr. Radford, a\nresident here, who had promised to chaperon us to the fishing-ground. It was rather too stormy, but we started\nnevertheless in the yacht, followed by two row-boats. We\nhad a charming sail, a beautiful coast to look at, and white\nporpoises and seals appearing in the water to amuse us.\nWhen we reached the Bergeron we anchored, and went on\nshore to prepare our fishing-rods. I was just being instructed\nin the art of throwing the fly, and was standing up in the row-\nboat, lashing the water with my line, when H.E. called out\nfrom the other boat, j Put up your rod, and come and save the\nship.' The yacht had dragged her anchor, and was fast\ngoing on the rocks. We got on board as quickly as we could,\nfastened tow-ropes to the two row-boats, and with great\ndifficulty got her out of the current; her sails filled, and off\nwe went, j Home,' said His Excellency\u00E2\u0080\u0094and in fact it had\ncome on to blow too hard for fishing, as the trout go into\ndeep water when the waves are too much for them. We had\na very rough sail back to Tadousac, but rather enjoyed it.\nWe reached the hotel in time for lunch, and settled with our\nfriend to get up at ^ve next day and try again.\nIn the afternoon we took a walk, and were quite charmed\nwith Tadousac. It is at the mouth of the Saguenay river,\nand the hotel is built close to the water, above a beautiful\nbay. Our walk was a climb, and yet it was not too\nfatiguing; the rocks are smooth, with no sharp points, and\ntufts and shrubs grow in the interstices, so that there is\nalways something to catch hold of if you slip. When we 12\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\ngot home, Mr. Radford brought two Rice Lake canoes,\nand D. tried paddling in one, while I went out in the\nother.\nFriday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Called at 5 a.m., with the information\nthat the day was very favourable for fishing. We were at\nthe wharf at six\u00E2\u0080\u0094a beautiful morning. There were two\nrow-boats ready for us, and we set off, up the Saguenay.\nThe river is like a rift in a rocky mountain, and it was\nvery pretty in the early morning rowing along it; great cliffs\non each side, the river every now and then spreading out\ninto a bay, and looking like a lake, the entrance quite\nhidden by projecting rocks. We had a three-hours' row,\nand arrived at St. Etienne, a feeding-ground of the trout.\nI again began to throw my fly, and soon became quite\nexpert at it. I caught sixteen, and D. nineteen, and after\nmy arm ached Mr. Radford took my rod and caught four;\nso our bag was a pretty good one.\nWe lunched on the rocks, and afterwards got on board\nand sailed nearly the whole way home till it began to rain,\nthen the wind fell, so we took to our row-boats and got back\nin time for dinner. Our long day was not over yet. The\nyoung ladies of Tadousac had got up a charity concert,\nwhich we attended: it was in the hotel, and between the\nsongs there were some pretty tableaux. When all was over I\nwas glad to return to my dear bed which I had left so\nearly in the morning.\nSaturday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another lovely day. We like Tadousac\nso much that we have actually chosen a site, and are going\nto build a wooden house here for next year. The air is\ndelicious, and we feel so well and cheerful!\nAfter breakfast we walked to an Indian hut to see a\nyoung bear they had found on the hills. He was very little\nand very unamiable-looking. The Indian women are very\ndark and ugly, and have their hair tied up in little bags on\neach side of their faces. D. next took me out in a canoe,\nand we had a talk with the authorities about our site. At mm\nJULY l872\nRIVIERE DU LOUP\n13\ntwo we got on board the steamer, and returned to Riviere\ndu Loup.\nColonel and Lady Harriet Fletcher came down to meet\nus, and we hear from him that the artillery quarters at\nQuebec are more likely to suit us than any other house we\ncan get this year. D. will go and see them.\nMonday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Directly after breakfast Lady H. and\nher governess and children came in to help me to prepare\nfor my first Canadian entertainment! Unfortunately, D.\nwill not be at it, as he has gone off to Quebec. Of course\nwe have small means here of doing anything grand\u00E2\u0080\u0094no\nornaments at all; thick, white earthenware cups, lodging-\nhouse furniture, etc., and only wild flowers to be had.\nWith them we determined to do a great deal. We got moss\nand. ferns, wild roses and red berries; called in soup-plates,\nfinger-glasses, and bark canoes; and had in the drawing-\nroom fourteen bouquets\u00E2\u0080\u0094eight on brackets round the walls,\nand one on each table. Then we put moss on the chimney-\npiece and filled it with bright flowers, and covered the\nboard in front of the fireplace with fir-branches, etc.\nOpposite the drawing-room is the best bedroom. We\ncarried out the bed, arranged the fireplace in the same way,\nand had tables with tea, coffee, iced milk, champagne cup\nand cakes there. On one side of our house we had croquet,\nand on the other chairs, and I received my company at four\no'clock in the chair department.\nThe arrangements took us the whole morning, and\namused us very much; the only drawback was that we had\nno man, not even an aide-de-camp!\nLuckily, the day was splendid. We sat ourselves\nupon the lawn, and soon the first people came. The\nsecond carriage which arrived contained three priests with\nFrench names! They had no cards, and Nowell, our\nEnglish servant, whom I had told to be very particular\nabout announcing the names clearly, remembering my\ninstructions, and unable to pronounce them, stopped my ' - ft -- --\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n14\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nguests outside and made them write their names on a piece\nof paper. One of them, a very jolly Irishman, asked, \ Are\nyou His Excellency's aide-de-camp ? '\nWhen all had arrived a good game of croquet was got\nup, and the people who did not play sat on the lawn and\ntalked. I had over thirty, and they admired our decorations\nvery much.\nThe moment my party broke up, and in sight of many\nof the visitors, my neighbours' servants came to fetch the\nthings they had lent me ; and it was funny to see cups and\nsoup-plates and chairs being carried off to their lawful\nowners. I had asked people from four to six, and, like\nCinderella, they rushed off when the hour struck.\nWednesday, 31s*.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at Tadousac late last\nnight, bringing the children with us. I took them this\nmorning to a sandy place, where they soon improvised\nspades and began to j make a dirt,' as Hermie said.\nIn the afternoon Lady H. and I went a drive\u00E2\u0080\u0094the only\ndrive here. It begins on a very sandy road, comes to a\nplace where the horses have, every few minutes, to walk\ndown one wall and up another, continues through the\nremains of a burnt forest, where the charred stumps of trees\nare almost buried in the luxuriant, fresh green vegetation\nspringing up around them, and then brings you to a\nplace which is really fearful: one side of the road is a steep\nprecipice, the other a loose sandy hill, which is constantly\nslipping down and filling up the very narrow space you\nhave to drive on. Here we got a pretty peep of the\nSaguenay, while heretofore we had been looking upon the\nSt. Lawrence. D. and the Colonel went out boating.\nSunday, August 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day was foggy and rainy, but\nwe walked to the little church, which D. admires, and where,\nhe says, we see ' the first principles of architecture.' It is\nthe first church ever built in Canada, and is made of\nwood, just as you would make one with a child's box of\nbricks; the walls are long and short bars of wood, piled one\niii; AUG. 1872\nTHE MARGUERITE RIVER\n15\nupon the other. It is very quaint and simple. The service\nat Tadousac depends upon stray clergymen, and this Sunday\nthere was none staying in the place, so they asked an\nAmerican Scripture-reader to read prayers and he gave us\na very nice service. D. and I took a walk in the afternoon,\nand were inveigled into paying a visit. We are too grand\nto pay visits as a rule, but sometimes we meet a friend at\nhis own door, and he asks us to come in.\nMonday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were suddenly struck with the idea\nof going salmon-fishing; so we ordered a hamper of provisions to be ready in twenty minutes, took a comb and\nbrush and a pocket-handkerchief in a bag, and set off,\nD. and I in the Imogene, which is a small yawl, Hammond\nfollowing in the Dauntless. We had a lovely sail up the\nSaguenay to the mouth of the Marguerite river, where\nwe arrived about four o'clock, and sent ashore for the\nfisherman. Then we each got into a canoe, and began to\nascend the rapids ! I have already described the rapids as\nthey appeared from a steamer, but from a canoe one sees\nthe dangers more closely. A man stands at each end of\nthe canoe, with a long pole in his hand; the passenger sits\nin the middle, on the floor. The current is something tremendous, and the water dashes about the rocks in quite a\nfearful way. The men pole the boat along, first giving a\nshove on one side and then on the other, shaving rocks,\nand conducting her safely with wonderful skill. It is\nvery hard work, and when I said sympathetically to our\nconductor, that it must be fatiguing work, he replied\nwith very great fervour, ' Joliment fatiguant.' This is\ngoing up the rapids; coming down the rush is with you,\nand then with equal skill the men use their paddles and\nward the boat off from the rocks, stopping her in her\nheadlong career as she appears to be rushing to destruction. We went up successfully, and landed about eight\no'clock at the edge of a wood, groped our way up a\nnarrow path, and found ourselves at three small wooden 16\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. I\nhuts. The first was a dining-room and pantry, the\nsecond two bedrooms, the third a place for the men.\nOpposite the dining-room, but fifty yards from it, was an\nopen shed, which I found to be the kitchen; and as I sat at\nthe head of the table I saw Imps dancing about the fire\ncooking our dinner.\nOpposite our encampment there is a curious geological\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nor clayological\u00E2\u0080\u0094formation : it looks as if half a high hill had\nbeen cut clean away with a knife\u00E2\u0080\u0094in fact, a perfect section\nof a hill is exposed to view. It is quite as flat as the side\nof a cheese, with nothing growing upon it, but the top is\ncrowned with trees. The side is grey clay, and it is six\nhundred feet high.\nWe were very glad to retire soon to our little iron beds,\nand to creep under our mosquito-curtains; but I confess\nI felt a certain emotion at the idea of sleeping in such\na lonely place, with no one between us and the North\nPole! |\nTuesday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Notwithstanding the solitary feelings\nwhich oppressed me for a time last night, I slept, and was\nready to get up at five. We performed a hasty ' toilette,'\nswallowed a cup of tea, and took to the canoes for fishing.\nWe were both most industrious, and flogged the water with\nour flies, but had no bites ; then ' Peter,' the fisherman, took\nmy rod and hooked a salmon. My rod is small, and he\nexclaimed, as the salmon ran off with the line, that j the\ncord was too short.' Quick as possible he jumped into a\ncanoe, and we saw a most exciting chase; the salmon flying\noff with yards of line,\u00E2\u0080\u0094being wound up again,\u00E2\u0080\u0094giving an\noccasional jump into the air, and battling courageously for\nlife. When he was getting worn out Peter landed and insisted\nupon my holding the rod. I found it almost too heavy for\nme, and I had a great deal of help in finishing the poor\nvictim, who still made dashes to release himself. At last\nwe got him near the shore, when a cruel gaff was stuck into\nhim, and a cry of triumph from the men announced his death AUG. 1872\nTHE FIRST SALMON\n17\nto us, and to the listening woods. The salmon weighed fifteen\npounds.\nAt nine we went home to our breakfast. After it we\nsat at the kitchen fire and burnt holes in the only boots we\nhad with us! The day was very fine, and we walked and\nsat about till four o'clock, when fishing recommenced. I\nmust tell you that we were oiled all over, face and neck and\nhands, with a strong-smelling stuff, to keep off the mosquitoes.\nAgain D. and I began to work, and soon he hooked a\nsalmon, and I laid down my rod to see the fight. It lasted\na long time, and the fish led the fisherman a good dance\nbefore he died. He weighed fourteen and a quarter pounds,\nand was His Lordship's first salmon ! We caught no more.\nWednesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At eight o'clock we left the huts and\nwent down the rapids, the men singing some of their wild\nand curious boat-songs as they paddled us along. We had\narranged to fish for trout at the place where we had anchored\nthe yachts, and then to be picked up by the steamer on its\nway down the Saguenay, and to go on to Riviere du Loup.\nHowever, to our astonishment, we saw our steamer going up\nthe river. She had been detained by fog, and our plans were\nthus put out. There was nothing for it but to sail back to\nTadousac, and await the steamer's return there. We had\na couple of very disagreeable hours, and finally arrived at\nour destination in a fog, a thunderstorm, and a heavy\nshower. As we expected the steamer's immediate return, we\nmerely lay down upon our beds, and waited till five o'clock\nin the morning, when at last she arrived, and D. and I and\nour two sleepy children got on board. D. went straight on\nto Quebec, so he retired to bed; but as we were to reach\nRiviere du Loup in two hours, we remained up, and got\nthere at last very hungry and tired.\n0 18\nCHAPTER II\nQUEBEC\nThe Citadel: Friday, August gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I\nhave joined D. at Quebec, and I am much pleased with my\nbarrack home. All books about Canada will tell you how\nsplendid is the situation of the Citadel; very high, and commanding a magnificent view of that great river the St. Lawrence. Our house\u00E2\u0080\u0094' quarters,' I should say\u00E2\u0080\u0094is not yet quite\nready, and workmen are still busy papering and making\nalterations. The old mess-room is our dining-room, and the\ndrawing-room is above it. It is a long room, with windows\nat either end : those facing the river open on to an immense\nplatform, the outer wall of which forms a balustrade. There\nI sit and look down hundreds of feet upon the town lying\nbelow me; or into the ships, on to whose decks I fancy I\ncould almost throw a stone; or at the St. Lawrence itself,\nand at the blue hills far away\u00E2\u0080\u0094in fact, at one of the most\ncelebrated views of the world! There are great black cannon\nalso looking out from the Citadel, and the Union Jack and\nthe Dominion Flag are flying beside me. I assure you it is\nvery romantic!\nI am rather afraid that with your little English ideas\nyou will not understand the size of my ' platform,' but it is\nbig enough to give a ball on, or a garden party, or a charity\nbazaar, or any other sort of gathering you like !\u00E2\u0080\u0094so open\nyour mind for the consideration of it.\nD. and Colonel Fletcher rode, and I went for a charming\ndrive, and was more pleased than ever with the country AUG. l872\nSETTING UP HOUSE\n19\nround Quebec. Everything is growing so luxuriantly now.\nThe hedges are full of flowers and large wild maidenhair\nfern, and quantities of berries which all seem to be eatable;\nand the crops, which, before they were fully developed, looked\nmiserable, have suddenly swelled out and filled up all the\nbare places one deplored a month ago.\nMonday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is very hot, but not oppressive. People here live behind green blinds, and shut the\nsun out of their houses: they cannot understand our liking\nto see it shine in, and they complain of the heat much\nmore than we do.\nTuesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon we went out to do some\nshopping. The most important part of it was choosing\nfurniture for a little room. It was difficult to get what we\nwanted. They have no plain stuffed sofas or chairs\u00E2\u0080\u0094everything is surrounded by elaborate carvings in wood* and the\nmen are astonished that their Excellencies' n'aiment pas la\nsculpture.'\nWe are miserable over our heavy luggage, which will not\narrive. We have nine dessert-plates, and no other china,\nno silver plate at all, no harness, and it is impossible to\n\ set up ' or to give dinners until these things arrive. No\none travelling here should lose sight of his box for an\ninstant. Things are never lost, but they may be months\ngetting to their owner.\nI have been looking for a scullery-maid, and find\nwomen-servants very scarce. I have only seen one young\nlady in search of the place: she spoke with a real\nIrish brogue, and appeared in a smart hat and feathers.\nShe was extremely surprised at my wishing to have a\ncharacter. She had one, but had left ii? at home, not supposing I should care to see it: of course she could fetch it\ndirectly. Next morning she brought me three lines, on\nvery common paper, which, in very bad writing, certified her to be honest and ' obUdgeing.' In spite of\nthe brogue she was Canadian, and was \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 sure she didn't\nc 2 20\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. II\nknow what Mama was,' when I questioned her as to her\nnationality.\nFriday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Having got my eleven letters shut up all\nready for the mail, I took a complete holiday from writing,\nfor one is always pen in hand here, and letter-writing becomes one's normal condition. We look upon our epistles\nas seed sown, and are always egging each other on to write\nto new people, that our harvest of news may be plentiful.\nThe weather has changed, and a gale is blowing. We\nhardly know our Quebec in this tempest, and long to see it\nin its usual sunshine again.\nEvery afternoon we take a drive, and generally manage\na little walk too. Colonel Strangel has lent us some arms,\nand at the top of our crimson-clothed staircase we have\na magnificent arrangement of swords and spears and flags;\nopposite it a star of bayonets. Our drawing-room is not\nyet finished, but we hope it will be ready by Monday, when\nwe have a dinner of twenty-four people; | and yet I am not\nhappy,' for glass, plate, and china are still on their travels.\nEleven of our twenty-four are cricketers, who are expected\nto arrive to-morrow from England.\nMr. Pattisson, D.'s Private Secretary, arrived from\nOttawa.\nMonday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were busy the whole morning arranging the drawing-room; then we drove to the town to get\ntable-covers and some finishing touches. Our efforts were\ncrowned with success, and the room looked extremely\npretty.\nNearly everything had to be hired for the dining-room;\nbut about an hour before dinner a few cases arrived, and\ntwo or three salvers were got out to ornament the sideboard.\nWe had thirty people\u00E2\u0080\u0094eleven of them cricketers. The\ndinner was supposed to be at 7.30, and the Canadians\narrived punctually, but the English guests were somewhat\nLondon-like in their hours. In the evening the officers of\n1 In command of B Battery, Canadian Artillery. AUG. 1872\nA PICNIC\n21\ntheB Battery, quartered in the Citadel, came in. Everyone\nadmired our new platform very much, and as a most\nsplendid moon shone down upon the St. Lawrence for the\noccasion, it really was very nice. The attractions of the\nplatform almost emptied the drawing-room.\nTuesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon we drove out, Lady\nHarriet, Mr. Coulson, and I. First we went over an asylum\npart of which is for old men and old women. The first old\ngentleman I saw said, f I was just coming up to see you. I\ncome from Killyleagh.'2\nAt each side of the building are orphan asylums. We\nwent over everything thoroughly, going up to the attics\nand down to the kitchens, and examining both the summer\nand winter clothing of the boys and girls.\nThursday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The morning looked damp and uncertain, but we started on a picnic. A tandem, containing\nour second cook and our guide and commissariat officer,\nled the way. Lady H. and I followed in a barouche. D.\nand Colonel Fletcher rode. I must tell you that our\n| guide ' is quite a character, and is of a most sanguine disposition : he declared the distance to the lake was only twenty\n- miles, that there we should catch fish of enormous weights,\nthat moose and bear and cariboo would be shot by us in\nthe bush, and, although it poured as we drove along, that\nthe weather would be lovely ' in half an hour.'\nD. thought seriously of turning back, but we voted for\ngiving the sun another chance, and things soon looked much\nbetter. When we had reached the ' twenty miles' we found\nwe were about half way, and we stopped at a cottage to\nchange carriages. The rest of the road was too rough for\nour barouche, so we got int\u00C2\u00A9 the waggon with the tandem'\nwhile the cook set out in a cart. We gave the horses an\nhour to rest, while we sat in the garden and talked to the\nman and his wife. She was Scotch, and he a very good\nspecimen of an Irishman. He had bought eighty acres for\n2 My old home in County Down. 22\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. II\n100L, but thinks a tenant in Ireland better off, in spite of\nhis 'rent.' They both dread the long winters, and the\nheat of the summer.\nThey had such a nice dog with an extraordinary taste\nfor putting out fires. When shown a lighted paper, he\nrushed at it, tried to extinguish it with his mouth, then\nhad recourse to his paws, and, after succeeding, cooled his\npoor tongue with some clay or a stone.\nWhen we reached our destination, we found our three\ntents pitched on the borders of Lake St. Joseph, which is ten\nmiles long, and is surrounded by hills covered with woods.\nAt sunset it was lovely; the hills becoming purple and\nblue, and the water looking like molten brass. Close to\nour encampment was a farm-house, and a nice Irish family,\nall with charming manners\u00E2\u0080\u0094the father a magistrate.\nOur guide had been beaming all day, and was radiant\nnow that the weather looked better. He had shown us the\ntea-plant growing on the way, the saffron-plant, etc., and\nhad told us a good deal about the country and the people.\nHe sent us out with our rods to fish, while our dinner was\nbeing prepared. With us went Hammond (who had\narrived before to pitch our tents), and a Mr. White, one of\nthe afore-mentioned Irish family. We were just throwing\nout our first line, when Mr. White said, ' There is a great\nstorm coming : we must get under the trees.' We jumped\nout of the boats, got under some bushes, and pulled a\nwaterproof over us ; a terrific storm, with tropical rain,\ncame on, and, in spite of all precautions, we got quite wet.\nWhen it was over, we set off for our encampment. Our\nguide met us on the shore. His spirits were not damped,\nand when Colonel Fletcher inquired anxiously if the tents\nhad let in any water, he replied, ' Not a drop, Colonel; not\na drop.' On reaching them, however, we found every bed\nand blanket wet through! They had looked so nice and\ncomfortable when we went out, and now all our possessions\nwere soaking.\nm AUG. 1872\n1 MR. BRIGGS1\n23\nWe lighted a fire,\u00E2\u0080\u0094for which the Whites sacrificed all\ntheir nice palings,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and surrounded it with the wet shawls,\nand beds, and bedding; then we pulled our table close to\nthe warm blaze, and our cook sent us soup and entrees, and\nroasts and pudding, and we were quite happy. >As soon as\nthe things were dry we went to bed.\nWe had three tents. In the first we dressed; in the\nsecond D. and I had most comfortable little beds, and we\ncrept through a hole to get to them. I procured a penknife to put under my pillow, to cut my way out in case of\nemergency, for in a panic I never could have found the\nhole. There was a faint possibility of a bear peeping in\nat it, and a pretty good chance of a pig committing the\nsame indiscretion.\nFriday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The fire was crackling outside my tent\nwhen I awoke, and as soon as D. had dressed, I skipped\nacross to the dressing-tent, and got ready for breakfast.\nThe day was lovely, and we were all full of anticipation.\nOur guide appeared so radiant and so exactly the image of\nthe celebrated ' Mr. Briggs' in ' Punch,' that he now goes\nby that name amongst us. There he was, with his short\ncoat, and a great wide-awake hat, on each side of. which\ndrooped an enormous long white cock's feather ; the living\npicture of Mr. Briggs when he stated that ' his heart was in\nthe Highlands.'\nThe gentlemen were to go into the busli with him,\nwhile we ladies were to fish. We had a very pleasant day,\nand caught fifty bass\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very good fresh-water fish, and\nan amusing one to catch. We came home to lunch, sat\ntwo hours in the sunshine, and went out on the lake again\nin the afternoon.\nThe other party, though unsuccessful, had great fun.\n' Briggs,' with his powder-flask round his neck, three or\nfour guns, and several fishing-rods in the canoe, ordered\nhis men to start. He recommended the gentlemen to take\nten ' rounds ' of ammunition, which they did, though they 24\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. n\nfeared there would be nothing to shoot, and they only\nwanted to see the 'bush.' Off they went, and as they\nrowed along Briggs would issue short and sharp words of\ncommand to Mr. White: j White, stop there and catch\na trout.' !f White, we'll take a bass here,' which they did\nnot do, and then went on. They landed, ,and Briggs was to\nlead them to a small lake, on the shores of which he\npromised cariboo. He had not gone ten yards before he\ncried,' Now, Colonel, we'll take a breath,' and during the\n4 breath' the poor Colonel was devoured by black flies, of\nwhich Briggs had previously declared there was not one.\nThe walking was very severe, as there were great trunks of\ntrees lying about, so covered with moss that the walkers\ndid not see them until they stepped on the apparently solid\nground, when they sank down between the branches of\nthe fallen trees. Briggs' ' breath '-taking became frequent,\nand D. soon began to fear, not only that Mr. Briggs had\nno notion of his way at all, but also that he was keeping\nhimself up by rather too many 1 drops' of brandy; so a\nconsultation was held and they found that if they went on\nuntil the sun set, they .would lose their way, and be unable\nto get out of the wood, so they thought seriously of returning. Briggs began to give more decided orders than ever.\n4 White, go and get me a glass of water; do you hear,\nWhite?\u00E2\u0080\u0094go and get it directly, sir '\u00E2\u0080\u0094this when no water\nwas to be seen anywhere; then,' White, go and find that\nlake\u00E2\u0080\u0094go on there, and you'll find it, sir '; but Mr. White\nwas afraid of being lost. Then Briggs lay down, called for\nhis mosquito-curtain) and D. and Colonel Fletcher began to\nconsider how they could get him home. They sent him a\nbottle of ginger ale (without any brandy), and soon after\ndrinking that he pulled himself together, and they, steering\nby the sun, got out of the wood.\nThey were immensely amused, but Briggs was crestfallen, and went to bed, and has never alluded to this\nexpedition again. Our cook had shot us some snipe and AUG. 1872\nLEVEE AND RECEPTION\n25\nsquirrels, and gave us an excellent dinner: we tasted the\nsquirrels, but they were strong of turpentine and were very\nnasty.\nWhen something was said to Hammond about poor Mr.\nBriggs, he said, ' And he turned out all hands this morning\nafter the roosters to get those two feathers for his hat.'\nSaturday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had our breakfast down on the\nedge of the lake, and sat a long time enjoying the sun;\nthen we rowed over to the other side to see the pitcher-plant\ngrowing wild. We also saw a turtle found in the lake. At\nnoon we started on our journey home. The views the\nwhole way were lovely, and we stopped to lunch on the\nborders of the Jacques Cartier River, lighted a fire, and had\nbroiled fish, etc.\nDuring the .tandem part of the drive we talked to Mr.\nBriggs, and he was very interesting, telling aLLhis trade\nsecrets. At the half-way house we were very well received,\nand the lady had baked us some fine plum-cakes, which she\nbegged us to take home.\nMonday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. held a levee, and was fully occupied\ntill seven o'clock.\nTuesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon we went to see the\nlunatic asylum here. It appears to be well managed, and\nis very clean.\nIn the evening we had a dinner of twenty-five people.\nMr. Russell Gurney and Mr. W. H. Smith, M.P.3 for Westminster, and Colonel and Mrs. Fessenden, Americans, were\nour strangers: the rest were all Canadians.\nWednesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. R. Gurney and Mr. Smith breakfasted with us, and went over the University with D. We\nhad another dinner; twenty people. At nine ' Her Excellency ' had a reception, to which all the people who had\ncalled were asked. Our platform was hung with Chinese\nlanterns.\nSociety is at present my business in life, and this is\n3 The Right Honourable W. H. Smith, First Lord of the Treasury, 1891. 26\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. II\nhow my week is laid out: Monday, I remain at home to\nreceive visitors. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, we have\nlarge dinners. Friday we'keep for sight-seeing, and Saturday we have small dinners. On the big nights we have a\n4 drum.' Hitherto we have enjoyed our dinners and parties\nvery much; the people are so pleasant and chatty.\nThere is a delightful old French lady here, Madame\nDuval, who thoroughly enjoys society and ' drums.' Unfortunately she is in mourning at present, and cannot come\nunless I diplomatically suggest that the invitation is a\n4 command.' Mourning is kept here in the strictest manner,\nand I believe there is a time fixed for keeping down a thick\nveil\u00E2\u0080\u0094a time for paying mourning visits, etc., etc.\nI was ' at home ' to visitors, and we had a very pleasant\nafternoon\u00E2\u0080\u0094a few people at a time, instead of the rush at\nan official gathering.\nAfter dinner we had a drum, at which nearly the whole\nof Quebec appeared. They were cheery, and it went off\nwell. I tried to have some singing but there was too much\ntalk. The band played, and, unluckily, finished its performance with ' God save the Queen': the instant the\nfamiliar bars were heard, half-finished ices were thrown\ndown and everyone rushed away.\nThursday, September $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I called at\nthe Ursuline Convent. We took the babies, and I was more\nstruck with the peculiarities of convent life than when we\nwent through the establishment before; for, not having\nD. with us, we were not admitted, but had to talk to the\nnuns through iron bars. In was quite funny to hear them\nall buzzing inside their cage, laughing and talking, and\nhanding sugar to the babies and admiring them ! Luckily,\nthey (the babies) behaved well, and both examined the\ncurious scene with the utmost gravity.\nFriday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was writing this morning when D. called\nme to see eight bishops, archbishops, and grands vicaires\nwho had particularly asked for me. I went into the drawing- SEPT. l872\nCANADIAN SONGS\n27\nroom, and found all these ecclesiastics in full dress. Our\nGrand Vicar as usual put everyone at his ease, and initiated\na lively conversation.\nImmediately after lunch we started off in a small\nsteamer to the other side of the river. We were met by\nMr. and Mrs. Roberts, who came out with us in the\nPrussian, and they took us to the Chaudiere Falls. We\nadmired them very much. There is a great body of water,\nof a deep brown colour, which tumbles down from a good\nheight, and the waterfall is very wide; the cloud of white\nspray looks so pretty against the dark water.\nWe also went to see a very handsome new Roman\nCatholic church just built at New Liverpool. We found the\npriest\u00E2\u0080\u0094Father Saxe\u00E2\u0080\u0094a most superior old man, and very\ngood-looking. He is proud of his church, and was pleased\nwith our visit. He cultivates grapes and a garden, ' which\nare his wife and children.'\nSaturday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening we had a small dinner,\nand as soon as the gentlemen came up we had singing and\nplaying. Mrs. Pemberton sang Irish melodies, and Madame\nSericole French songs, and M. La Rue sang a little of everything, and then we had a number of Canadian boat-songs\nwith choruses. They are very pretty, the music wild and\nplaintive. Our old friend, Madame Duval, was in great\nforce, and she and her daughter dictated a song to M. La\nRue which was rather amusing and pretty. She (Madame\nSericole) sang, ' I will be an eel in a pond to escape from\nyou;' then he, \ Si vous vous faites anguille, je me ferai\npecheur pour vous prendre en pechant;' then she, ' Si vous\nvous faites pecheur pour me prendre en pechant, je devien-\ndrai alouette,' etc. This kind of conversation goes on to\nany length, till finally she says she will become a nun, when\nhe makes himself 'precheur pour vous prendre en prechant.'\nThis fidelity she is unable to resist, and, ' Puisque tu m'aimes\ntant pour te faire precheur pour me prendre en prechant,\nI will marry you.' 28\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. II\nMonday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. and Mrs. T. Brassey4 and Miss Robinson dined with us. He has just come from England in his\nyacht, a twenty-eight days'* voyage; Mrs. Brassey came out\nin the steamer.\nWednesday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Bishop of Quebec and Judge\nStuart came to breakfast, and at eleven we started on an\neducational tour. At the first school separate addresses\nwere made to each of us, and I was asked for a holiday.\nThe boys' schools seem almost all to be under the Christian\nBrothers. The Cure of Quebec went with us. He, like the\nother priests here, is very 'jolly.' I think we went to six\nschools; at each an address was read, and at each we gave\na holiday. We also went to see the Houses of Parliament\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthat is, the local Parliament. Before the seat of Government was moved it was the imperial one. It is in good\ntaste; the outside quite plain. After lunch we went with\nD. (who had not previously been there) to the lunatic\nasylum. We saw as much as we dared to see, and D. just\nescaped a cup of tea which one of the wildest of the patients\nthrew through the holes in the door of her cell. After\nthis we went to see some Egyptian curiosities, and I\nhurried home to rest for twenty'minutes before my dinner.\nWe had twenty-two people, the Brasseys among the\nnumber.\nThursday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It is the experience of a very tired\nperson you will now hear, for to-day must be added to\nyesterday to understand my feelings. We did not go out\ntill two, for I was very busy all the morning; but at two\nwe went down to the Convent of St. Roch, where our\nreception was most charming. The nuns received us at the\ndoor and led us into a very large room, the walls of which\nwere lined from floor to ceiling with little children: they\neach wore either a blue or a red ribbon, and they were all\nfrom three to eight years old\u00E2\u0080\u0094five hundred in number.\nAbout twenty stood in the middle of the room and sang a\n4 Lord and (the late) Lady Brassey. 8EPT. l872\nVISITS TO CONVENTS\n29\nsong of welcome, and whenever they came to the word\n4 Excellence,' or ' Milor,' they all curtseyed together. Then\none came forward and made a little address, adding that\nthis great occasion was worthy of 4 a double holiday.' In\nhis reply D. said that although he had never heard of that\nphenomenon in nature 4 a double holiday,' he was happy to\ngrant it. Then we went upstairs to see the older pupils.\nI cannot tell you what a pretty ceremony it was, and\nhow gracefully they all made their reverences together.\nWe looked at the Church of St. Roch, which is a large and\nrather gaudy building. Then we proceeded to the boys'\nschool of the district, and heard some singing, and received\nan address. We had a large dinner at night.\nFriday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094To our duties again to-day, in spite of\npouring rain. We began at ten, and visited the High\nSchool, which is a superior boys' school, and several other\nProtestant schools.\nMonday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to the Ursuline Convent\nand were received at the door by the Confessor and\nsome other clergy, and by some of the official people in the\nparlour. We looked at pictures and at Montcalm's skull\nuntil all was ready, and then we went to the great door of\nthe convent and knocked. Some nuns opened to us, and\nconducted us to a large room, where we found all the pupils\ndressed in white and with wreaths of flowers on their heads.\nThey sang a welcome as we came in; then two came forward,\nand one gave a little address in English and one in French.\nAll the time we were there waves of curtseys kept sweeping\nalong the line every time our names were mentioned, and\nas we passed down the room. It was very prettily decorated.\nWe made a tour of the convent, and heard the pupils play\na piece on five pianos and a harmonium at once. We\nwere admitted to the cells\u00E2\u0080\u0094cold and cheerless places\u00E2\u0080\u0094saw\nthe great cage in which the pupils are enclosed when they\nsee their parents, the dining-room with its meagre furniture, the children's playground, and, in fact, all the sights 80\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH, II\nit;\nof the convent. The nuns themselves we found most\ncheerful and happy.\nIn the evening we went to a ball given in our honour\nby the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Narcisse Belleau. It was\nheld in the music-hall, a very fine room. D. danced\neverything, and I danced the square dances.\nTuesday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In spite of our fatigues, we had to\nstart early to visit another convent, ' Jesus Marie,' at\nSillery. Here our reception was too lovely. The convent\nhas only been built three years, and is a splendid house,\nwith all the new improvements, and with fine grounds\nsurrounding it. In one hall there are twelve glass boxes,\neach containing a piano, so that the pupils can practise\nsimultaneously; whilst in another glass house sits the\nmistress, overlooking, but, happily for her, not overhearing.\nAt the door we were met by priests, and by the Lady\nSuperior, and we first of all paid our respects to the nuns\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Httle black ladies with white, large-bordered caps. They\nconducted us through passages ornamented with maple-\nleaves, and placed us on thrones in presence of the pupils.\nThe children were in white, and a circle of twelve of them\nbegan a dramatic conversation, in which they consulted\neach other as to the best way of doing us honour. One\nsuggested that the ' Genius of Canada' should be asked\nher opinion on the subject, and, like a good fairy, she immediately appeared upon the scene, and settled the question\nby giving me a large bunch of artificial roses made in the\nconvent, singing meanwhile a song the refrain of which\nwas\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n' Ce sont des roses sans Opines,\nQue Ton vous offre au Canada.'\nThe Genius was a pretty, fair girl, wearing a silver\nwreath and a white gown ornamented with maple-leaves\nand roses. After all this the nuns gave us cake and sweet\nwine, and we hurried off to another convent. It was a very\nsmall one, only just setting itself up, but there were about\n1 H SEPT. l872\nTHE LAVAL UNIVERSITY\n31\nthirty pupils. On our way we went to look at a church,\nand called on Lady Belleau, and then rushed back to be ' at\nhome' all the afternoon.\nI had my room full of people from three to six, so, as you\nmay suppose, I was pretty tired when the hour for rest came.\nD. and I dined alone, which is much more of an event\nnow than a dinner-party would be.\nWednesday, iSth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day of our first ball. We were\nexcessively busy making decorations, and attending to all the\nendless ball arrangements. Nevertheless, we had to go out\nto pay a state visit to the Universite Laval. - There we\nwere received by the Archbishop, etc., and, after seeing the\nyoung boys, D. went through the building, museum, and\nlibrary, and finally into the great room, where we were\nreceived by the University proper. We sat on a dais at\none end, and the hall was filled with students, priests, and\nguests ; the Rector and the Professors, in robes, walked in\nand read an address, and listened to D.'s reply. Then we\nwent up on the roof, looked at the magnificent view, and\npeeped at the sun through a telescope. After this, home,\nwhere we partly rested and partly looked after the ball.\nOur room has light-coloured walls and a high arched\nroof, and we ornamented it with festoons of blue and white,\nfastened with great bunches of pink and white roses\u00E2\u0080\u0094the\nceiling the same. We had a military band outside, where\nthere was a very good floor, and a string band in the room ;\nso people danced both outside and in, and they kept it up till\nthree with great spirit. They really did enjoy themselves,\nwhich is encouraging, as we have another on Friday.\nThursday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gay people that we are! To-day we\nhad a paper-hunt. We started at eleven, D. riding, and I\ntaking two Frenchmen who are staying here\u00E2\u0080\u0094le Comte de\nMontebello and le Baron Brun\u00E2\u0080\u0094in the carriage. It poured\nat first, but cleared soon. We crossed the river in a ferry,\ncarriage and all, and were told where to place ourselves;\nso we were much amused, as we saw the jumping perfectly. 32\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. n\nWhen the paper was 4 killed,' we met at some country\nbarracks, had lunch, and formed a 4 club,5 J the Stadacona\nHunt,' with D. as president.\nFriday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At twelve o'clock I went over a Protestant\nhome, where orphans and old women have a refuge. It\nseems to be very nice and comfortable. After lunch we\ninspected an indiarubber manufactory, and saw the material\nfrom the time it comes out of the tree till it leaves the.,\nplace as goloshes. Then we proceeded to a wood-mill,\nwhere all carpentering is done by machinery, and where\nwe saw our Tadousac house laid out. It will be made there,\nand transported in barges to its site.\nWe had a second ball in the evening, and this time we\nhad an awning on the platform, which was hung with\nChinese lanterns. It looked very pretty, and it entirely\nprevented any crowd in the ballroom; in fact, it was almost\nthe more popular place of the two.\nSaturday, 21st,\u00E2\u0080\u0094H.E. had suggested some athletic sports,\nso we went down to see them and to lunch with the Mayor.\nThere was a very good place for the games\u00E2\u0080\u0094a smooth\nfield, surrounded by high grass banks on two sides, and\nwith houses on the third. People sat on the banks and in\nthe houses, and, as the day was lovely, there was an immense\nconcourse of spectators.\nThe hills all round, as seen from our celebrated platform,\nare of the most lovely autumn colours, and, covered as they\nare with red and orange trees, they really look like flames\nin the distance, or like gigantic flower-gardens; for our trees\nare quite as brilliant as your best flowers, and if you can\nimagine your conservatory magnified a million times, and\nspread over miles and miles of hill and dale, you will begin\nto understand how we do things in this Canada of ours.\nMonday, 23rd.-^-We left Quebec to-day, and received\nquite an ovation at our departure. The weather was lovely,\nand we started from the Citadel at three, escorted by a guard\nof honour. The streets, were hung with flags, and were sept. 1872 DEPARTURE FROM QUEBEC\n33\nfull of people. At one corner, the boys of the Universite\nLaval met us, and about fifty of them each presented me\nwith a bouquet, so that I was half buried with flowers.\nWhen we arrived at the wharf, we found almost the whole\nof the society waiting to say good-bye to us. The Mayor\nread an address, and invited us to a ball, and D. replied.\nThen we shook hands with everyone, and went on board.\nEvery part of the town, right up to the Citadel, was crowded,\nand six steamers full of people accompanied us for ten miles.\nWhen we got to Cap Rouge, the steamers turned back, the\npeople on board cheering and waving their handkerchiefs.\nOn the coast, too, at each little wharf, people were collected,\nand at the houses far up on the shore we saw waving flags\nand tablecloths. As we passed the Sillery Convent, all the\nchildren came out with flags. No wonder we like Quebec !\nD 34\nCHAPTER III\nONTARIO\nTuesday, September 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The train left Montreal at\n8 a.m., and we were in it till 11.30 at night\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very long\njourney. However, we had a most comfortable car, with\narmchairs and sofas, and managed to sleep a good deal.\nIn spite of the lateness of the hour we were met at Toronto\nby crowds of people and a torchlight procession. The\nLieutenant-Governor, Mr. Howland, took us to his house,\nwhich was magnificently illuminated.\nWed/nesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A large dinner-party and a very\npretty ball, the house and grounds being illuminated.\nThursday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At eleven o'clock, we started by special\ntrain for Hamilton. It is a very prettily situated town on\nLake Ontario, which looks more like the sea than a lake.\nAll the streets are planted with trees, and there is a high\nhill behind the town, from which the view is magnificent.\nWe were received at the station by the Mayor and Corpora^\ntion, who presented an address, and drove to the Cattle Show\nyard, where there was another, and D. and I walked round the\ngrounds and looked at the animals, while the people looked\nat us. We examined prize horses, cows, and pigs, but found\nthe crowd so great that we resolved to return in the morning to see everything more quietly. We are staying with\nMr. Mclnnes, who makes us very comfortable.\nFriday, 27th,\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were at the exhibition early, and went SEPT. l872\nTORONTO\nround sewing-machines, pictures, refrigerators, stoves, vegetables, fruit, etc. etc.\nAfter this we drove to the City Hall and received a\ndeputation from the Six Nations. The chief ' Chief' was\nfinely dressed, and wore feathers in a hat, and many medals\non his breast. He carried the silver pipe of peace, but also\nhad on a scalping-knife, a tomahawk, and a dagger; and\nhe was enchanted when, in allusion to these weapons, D.\ntold him that he would rather have him for a friend than\nan enemy.\nHe was a fine-looking man, and had the best of manners.\nHe read the address in English, the other Chiefs standing\nby in plain clothes, and when D. replied, the Chief translated\ninto Indian each sentence of his speech. As soon as the\nIndians left we had a general reception, and afterwards drove\nout to a lovely country place belonging to Mr. Mclnnes.\nThere we lunched, and then hurried off to the train.\nIn an hour and a half we reached Toronto, and the grand\nand official reception took place. A guard of honour and\nthe Mayor met us at the station, and we drove to the Town\nHall. All the streets were crowded with people, the windows\nfull, and the houses ornamented with flags. There were some\nsplendid triumphal arches, and the whole way along we were\ncheered. We made quite a procession, fire-engines and\ncarriages leading the way for us. Another guard of honour\nmet us at the hall, and we went in and had two more addresses. D. did not find his written replies at the station\nas he expected, so he had to speak extempore, and I think\nthat pleased his audience more.\nAfter this, we again got into the carriages and drove to\nthe hotel through crowds, where we remained as the guests\nof the city. In the evening twenty of the Corporation\ndined with us. I sat by the Mayor, Mr. Sheard\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very nice\nman. After dinner we drove out to see the illuminations:\nthere were some very pretty ones, and the arches looked\nbeautiful. 36\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. Ill\nSaturday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is quite splendid, and the\nCorporation took us for a drive. This town is one of those\nwonderful quick-growing places: the streets are very wide,\nand trees are planted on each side of them. There are\nsome very handsome buildings and numbers of the most\ncharming villas. On our return, we had lunch. Our health\nand the Mayor's health were drunk; and as the latter made\nfrequent mention of me as D.'s ' kind lady,' I am in hopes\nI made an impression.\nAt three, D. had a levee, and after this we returned\nto \"Government House. Another dinner of twenty tonight.\nWe are thinking of spending a week at Niagara, and\nwrote to the hotel-keeper there to ask price of rooms, etc.\nHe replied first to the business part, and then added, 'I\nshould like to know how many guests His Excellency will\nbring with him, as I wish to give a little hop while he is\nhere, and I have to write for the music,' etc. etc.\nP.S. ' The hop and the music will not be charged\nextra'!\nWe declined the 4 hop.'\nMonday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have arrived at Niagara, and I\nwrite to you in sight of the Falls. The spray rises in\nclouds and joins the other clouds in the sky, which has a\nmost curious effect, and there is a brilliant rainbow in the\nspray, and I am not in the least disappointed with the\nquantity of water, or with the size of the Fall; but I don't\nthink the first view of it is so overpoweringly grand as\nI expected. The Fall is so wide that it rather takes from\nthe height, and I imagine it is a sight the full grandeur of\nwhich will grow upon one day by day. Sir Hastings Doyle !\nis staying with us.\nTuesday, October 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to a convent, accompanied by the Archbishop in violet. It has a beautiful\n1 The late General Sir C. Hastings Doyle, Lieut.-Governor of Nova\nScotia, and Commanding the Troops in Canada. OCT. 1872\nNIAGARA\n37\nview of the Falls from its windows. After lunch we crossed\nthe bridge and went into the States.\nFrom that side we had fine views of the rapids and great,\nrushing river, and there we prepared to visit the 4 Cave of\nthe Winds.' I had no idea what the Cave really was,\nand was surprised to find that we were expected to array\nourselves in yellow oilcloth trousers, with jackets and\nhoods of the same material. Thus accoutred we descended\na flight of stairs, and found ourselves at the foot of a waterfall. On our feet we had soft cloth shoes, which enabled us\nto climb down the steepest and wettest and most slippery\nrocks. The spray beat in our faces, and we could only\noccasionally open our eyes to see the splendid rainbow in\nthe water, and the great height above us from which the\nwater was rushing down. We climbed in this way over\nrocks and small wooden bridges until we came to the Fall,\nand walked behind it, in a complete shower-bath,\u00E2\u0080\u0094but I\nenjoyed it immensely. We came out at the other side,\nhaving passed behind a portion of Niagara. We did look\na funny yellow party, dripping with water.\nThursday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were joined by Sir Edward Thornton, our Minister at Washington, and walked to the\nfoot of the Horseshoe Fall, which spot, I think, gives a\ngreater idea of the magnitude of Niagara than any other\nview. In the afternoon we drove to see the whirlpool and\nthe rapids below the Falls, which are very rapid indeed.\nWe went by train to see a great engineering work\nundertaken by Mr. Gzowski.2 He is making a bridge over\nthe Niagara, close to Buffalo ; the piers have to be built in\nwater eighty feet deep, where the stream is rushing along\ntwenty miles an hour. We saw the whole plan,\u00E2\u0080\u0094but I will\nnot attempt to describe anything so scientific. Colonel\nFletcher put on a diver's dress and went down the eighty\nfeet, bringing us some stones from the bottom.\nMr. and Mrs. Gzowski took us for a drive through Buffalo.\n2 Col. Sir Casimir S. Gzowski, K.C.M.G., Hon. A.D.C. to the Queen; \"IPPi^Ppill^*\n38\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\ncn. Ill\nThere are miles of 4 street' there, arranged with the road\nin the middle, and on either side three rows of trees and a\nbroad strip of grass, in the centre of which there is a stone\nfootpath. Each house is a handsome ' villa,' with a large\npiece of ground round it. One gets such an impression of\nwealth and comfort that one is astonished, and this is a\n4 third-rate ' American town.\nFriday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir Hastings Doyle left us to-day. We\nwere very sorry to part with him, he was always so cheerful\nand such an amusing companion.\nToronto: Saturday, \u00C2\u00A7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have-hired a house at\nToronto, and are settling ourselves in it to-day. There is a\nvery bad epidemic among the horses here, and ours are\nsuffering from it too, which is inconvenient.\nTuesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had our first Drawing-room. There\nwere about 1,500 people present, and, as I had to curtsey\nall the time, I had plenty of exercise. The room looked very\nhandsome when thus filled with smart people. This was\nquite a new experiment in Canada, drawing-rooms not\nhaving been held before, and it seems to be approved.\nWednesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Having recovered the fatigues of the.\nDrawing-room, I drove in the afternoon to see a lacrosse\nmatch. It is almost the national game here, and is a sort of\nideal football. The ball is caught on a racket and thrown\nfrom one side to the other. It is very pretty and amusing to\nwatch. The game was whites versus Indians. The latter\nshowed us their war-dance before we left.\nLondon: Thursday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our train left Toronto at\n9 a.m., and on our way to London we stopped at Woodstock\nto receive addresses. The station at London was very\nprettily arranged. Immense numbers of people were present,\nand gave us a very warm reception. We drove to the\nCattle Show yard, where there were more addresses, and\nwhere the people got over the palings and came in tremendous crowds all about us, so that we saw very little.\nAfter lunch at the Members' house, Lady Harriet and OCT. 1872\nPETROLIA\n39\nI returned to the hotel, where the City entertained us, and\nD. went on to Helmuth College and to some oil-refineries.\nWe dined alone, and just as we had finished a torchlight\nprocession passed, throwing up Roman candles and rockets.\nBeing dressed for the ball, I was requested to show myself\nto the guests in the hotel, and the American mistress of\nthe place said to me, X Well, missis, I must compliment you\nvery highly.'\nThe ballroom was very fine, and His Excellency danced\nevery dance.\nFriday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started at eleven, with a large party\n' on board the cars,' to visit the oil-wells of ' Petrolia,' where\nwe saw the oil as it comes up through the pump\u00E2\u0080\u0094thick,\nblack, and mixed with water. We also saw the process of\nlooking for a well, ' sinking a shaft,' and all the machinery\nused. The oil leaves Petrolia free from water, but black\nand thick: the refining is done at London. The oil district is, of course, ugly, the ground black and swampy.\nStumps of trees and wooden erections\u00E2\u0080\u0094some like enormous\nbarrels\u00E2\u0080\u0094cover the whole place, but it was very interesting\nto see it. On our way back we were shown into a ' drawing-\nroom ' car, where we found about twenty tables laid, each\none for two people. We had an excellent hot lunch\ncooked on board, and got back to London at three o'clock.\nHere the party left us, and we returned to Toronto.\nSaturday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I inspected an orphan\nhome, examining everything from garret to basement. On\nthe way we passed a large house moving to some other site.\nIt was on rollers, and was going slowly along the street.\nA dinner-party closed the day.\nTuesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I drove to see a fine Wesleyan\nchurch. In the same building, forming part of the architectural effect outside, but separate inside, there are Sunday-\nschool and Committee rooms. Then we went on to Bishop\nStrachan's Church of England Ladies' School. We liked\nall we saw there very much. The girls played and sang T\np**\"\n40\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\n.CH. Ill\nand read to us, and as they had decorated their bedrooms\nwe had to go into each one.\nWednesday, \6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At eleven our duties began again,\nand we visited the Normal and Model Schools. These are\nthe National Schools of Canada, and members of all\ndenominations met us, the English clergyman introducing\nthe R.C. Bishop. This afternoon I have been to two\norphan asylums, this evening to a charity concert.\nThursday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094My children and my brother Fred3\nsail for Canada to-day. H.E. and I went out at the usual\nhour of eleven, and paid a visit to Trinity College, one of\nthe first-fruits of disestablishment here; it is especially a\nChurch of England University. An address was read and\nanswered, presentations were made, and we visited the\nlibrary, which is young and small. Then we drove to the\nlunatic asylum and went over it. It is a very fine one, with\nbroad corridors, widening out into comfortable recesses, in\nwhich the people sit. At each end of the passage is a\ncovered quarter-deck, barred all round, but otherwise open\nto the air, where the inmates can walk, and which provides\na perfect means of airing each floor. One new feature\nin this asylum is a paying department, which is of course\ncheap, although it has all the comforts of a private asylum.\nWe had a dinner-party of twenty-four: one M.P. and\nhis wife, two legal gentlemen, two R.C. bishops, a Volunteer colonel, the editor of a newspaper with his pretty\nlittle wife, who sang for us, some members of the Government, and some of the Board of Trade.\nFriday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I drove to the City Hall to\nreceive an address from the 4 York Pioneers'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Toronto used\nto be called ' York,' and these are the first settlers here.\nAfter lunch we went to the University, where D. gave\naway the prizes, and made a speech. The hall was filled\nwith all the beauty and fashion of Toronto: they com-\n3 Lieut.-Colonel F. Rowan Hamilton, late 9th Foot, who was with us as\nA.D.C. in Canada and India.\u00E2\u0080\u0094H. D. & A. OCT. 1872\nTORONTO\n41\nplimented me, and D. complimented them, and the proceedings went off very well. This is a great place for\npresents\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very friendly custom. I have fruit, flowers,\nbutter, fancy bread, fish, and game sent me constantly.\nNearly every day brings some offering. The Show sent me\napples and pears\u00E2\u0080\u0094a few of each kind, arranged so as to\nhave some every day of the year.\nSaturday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon I went for a sail with\nD., and in the evening we had a large party of about 150\npeople.\nMonday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we inspected some Roman\nCatholic Schools. The first place we went to was the\nConvent of the ' Precious Blood.' I think I told you about\nthis order of praying nuns\u00E2\u0080\u0094it is very strict, and they use\ncorporal self-punishments. The dress of the nuns is beautiful\u00E2\u0080\u0094a white dress, with a broad piece of blood-red coloured\ncashmere hanging straight down both the back and the front\nof it, and a black veil on the head. Their beds are boards,\nand they get up twice in the night to pray. They looked\nvery well, and quite merry. The second place was a college\nfor boys, and the third a convent school. We also went to\nlook at the cathedral.\nThere happened a great contretemps this afternoon. I\nwas to be at home to receive visitors; so Lady Harriet and\nI sat in state, and nobody came ! At five D. returned home,\nand I said to him,' Not a single soul has come to see us.' Tea\ncame in, and he asked, ' Has nobody called ? ' 4 Oh, yes,'\nsaid the servant, ' but I said, \" Not at home.\" ' We sent\nfo.r the book, and found 104 people had been, so we had to\nsit down and write 104 notes to explain. I had a dinnerparty in the evening, and, luckily, no one seems to have been\noffended, though our conduct did look rude this afternoon.\nWe had a great deal of music after dinner. All the young\nladies sing and play without their music, and are very\ngood-natured about it.\nWednesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. visited the National Schools in 42\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nan. ii\nthe morning, and after lunch I went with him to finish the\nRoman Catholic institutions. We drove to the Loretto\nAbbey Convent, where the girls were dressed in white and\nblue. They gave us a little concert, and then all passed\nround, each making a curtsey to us. We were laden with\nbouquets, and the rooms were ornamented with 4 welcomes'\nand wreaths of maple. The next place was a \ House of\nProvidence,' where old, incurable, orphans, and sick, are all\ncared for. The third visit was to a boys' school under the\nChristian Brothers.\nThursday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went over the Toronto Hospital this\nmorning\u00E2\u0080\u0094a fine building and well managed, but badly off\nfor funds. D. was engaged to inspect two fashionable young\nladies' schools, and is not home yet. To-night we have an\nenormous ball.\nFriday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our ball last night was a great success.\nThe Parliament buildings, in which it took place, were\narranged for us by the Ontario Government. We had two\nballrooms, both ornamented with a good deal of crimson\ndrapery, arms, and shields, which lighted up very well. The\nsupper-room was upstairs. I suppose we had about 1,200\nguests. \"There was not a hitch in the arrangements, and,\npeople looked very nice and fresh. I danced all the square\ndances, and D. every dance, with a selection of celebrities.\nWhen the programme was over, ' God save the Queen ' was\nplayed, and we stood on the dais while the people passed out\nbefore us.\nD. had krbe off to a college at eleven this morning, but\nI was lazy, and reserved myself till one, when we went to\nthe Law Courts to lunch. The building, I Osgoode Hall,' is\nfine, and the Courts much better than any I have seen\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nlofty and comfortable rooms. We had our healths drunk,\nand D. told them the one blot he had discovered in Canadian\naffairs was the lowness of the judges' salaries; this, of\ncourse, the company present were very glad to hear.\nSaturday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There were to have been athletic sports\nm mm\nOCT. 1872\nSUNDA Y SCHOOLS\n43\nto-day, special trains, etc., but there is a steady downpour\nand they have been put off till Monday. I received a good\nmany farewell visits, and in the evening we went to a performance at the theatre for the Protestant orphans. The\ntheatre is small, but very pretty, and ' London Assurance'\nwas very well given\u00E2\u0080\u0094especially the part of Lady Gay\nSpanker, by Mrs. Morrison. She presented me with, a\nsplendid bouquet in which my monogram was made in\nshamrocks.\nSunday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning, at ten, we visited a\nSunday-school. Very great attention is paid to Sunday\nschools in Canada, and the children of all classes attend\nthem. There was a separate room for infants, and the man\nteaching them gave his instruction orally and with a blackboard, upon which he wrote: the children answered all\ntogether, and seemed bright and intelligent. They also sang\nhymns. The larger children were downstairs. D. made\nthem a little address, and we heard them sing too, which\nthey do extremely well. This was the cathedral school,\nand the average attendance every Sunday is 500. There\nis a class every week for the teachers, and the same lesson\nis given all over the school.\nMonday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Toronto at nine, and a number\nof people came to see us off, and cheered our departing\ntrain. We had a twelve hours' journey, and were glad to\nreach Ottawa.\nOttawa: Tuesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094My poor children have had a\nvery long journey: they arrived at Quebec on Monday,\nafter a rough passage from Liverpool, and did not get here\ntill this evening, when I devoted myself to giving them tea,\nputting them to bed, and hearing them chatter.\nWednesday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is perfectly lovely, and\nthe children are well and enjoying the fine day.\nMr. Coulson goes on leave, so Fred at once begins his\nduties as A.D.C., but he comes in for a time of rest. 44\nCHAPTER IV\nOTTAWA\nSaturday, November 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The journal here will grow\nvery dull, I fear. We are 4 settling down/ and do very\nlittle that is interesting.\nOttawa is a small town, with incongruously beautiful\nbuildings crowning its insignificance. A very bad road\nleads to Rideau, which is a long, two-storeyed villa, with a\nsmall garden on one side of it and a hedge which bounds\nour property on the other\u00E2\u0080\u0094so that at this time of the year\nthere is really no place to walk. When the 4 road-maker,'\nas they call the frost, comes, and when the ground is covered\nwith snow, we shall be independent of roads; and the knowledge of this makes the inhabitants careless of the state\nthey may be in at other times of the year.\nThe gentlemen try to ride every day, and come back\ncovered with mud. I walked into the town one day with\nD., and the following paragraph appeared in the evening\npaper:\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n4 Lady Dufferin.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It would astonish some of our fine\nladies to see Lady Dufferin walking about the town. She\ndresses plainly and sensibly, wears thick boots, and does\nnot shrink from the muddiest of our crossings.'\nThis comes of my Irish training!\nMonday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Directly after lunch, Fred and I began\nour duties. I was 'at home,' and he announced the NOV. 1872\nRIDEAU HALL\n45\nvisitors and helped me to talk to them. We had 108. I\nwas pleased with the society, and Ottawa itself improves\non acquaintance, especially as I have discovered a nice\ncommon and wood behind the house, where the children\nwill be very happy. Mr. Archibald,1 Lieutenant-Governor\nof Manitoba, and the Pattissons dined with us.\nIn addition to his social duties, Fred has to look after\nall the stable matters, expenditure included, after the\ninvitations, the amusements, such as skating-rink, etc. etc.,\nso he is not idle.\nTuesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The little ones, Basil and Hermie,\narrived from Quebec, looking well and merry. It is nice to\nbe all together again.\nSaturday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is lovely, and I generally\nwalk in and out of town. After lunch, games of football,\nstilts, hoops, etc., go on. We have five-o'clock tea, and\nfamily gatherings, the babies first, and then the old children.\nThe house gets on very slowly: the hall door is still\nboarded up, the schoolroom full of workmen who do not\nwork, the gas-pipes still innocent of gas.l I suppose we\nshall be settled by January. The Fletchers' house will, I\nhope, be ready for them in a few days, and when they get\ninto it we shall feel more settled ourselves. At present\nthey are staying with us.\nSwnday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to our very small parish church\nat New Edinburgh. It is very primitive, but we like the'\nservice, and it is so much nearer to us than the cathedral.\nMonday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We took a walk to prepare for the\nlabours of the afternoon. Between three and five I received\n144 visitors; Fred, Lady Harriet, and Mrs. Pattisson\nhelping me.\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This is Thanksgiving Day, so we went\nto church at the cathedral, but (as the papers tell us) we\ndid it in an ' unostentatious manner.' The first snow fell.\nFriday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A telegram arrived from Australia, the\n1 Sir Adams George Archibald, K.C.M.G. 46\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. rv\nfirst which has been sent direct: it arrived at 9.10 this\nmorning, having been sent at 10\u00E2\u0080\u0094to-night. Rather puzzling\nto think of. D. replied, ' Canada re-echoes Australia's\ntoast\u00E2\u0080\u0094our Queen and a United Empire.'\nSunday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A beautiful, ideal winter day: the\nground and trees white with snow, blue sky, and bright\nsun. We went to church, and the children were unable\nto resist some of the pleasure of a first day of snow, and\ntumbled about in it as though it were sand.\nYou should see them all five in blanket coats, which are\nmade of thick blue cloth, with red epaulets and sashes, and\npointed hoods lined and piped with red. The coats are very\nlong and straight, and the little figures in them look both\nfunny and picturesque. They have sealskin turbans, and\npull up the hoods if necessary. We all wear moccasins on\nour feet; they are of cloth, with indiarubber soles, and\ngenerally with a flower embroidered in colours on the toes.\nThe only drawback to going out here is the amount of\ndressing one has to do to prepare for it. There are overstockings, over-boots, over-etcs. of all descriptions to be put\non; there are fur caps with woollen clouds tied over them\nas becomingly as possible, fur coats, fur gloves, muffs, etc.,\netc. But once out it is delightful, and most exhilarating.\nWe have been tobogganing, though the snow is not deep\nyet, and our present efforts are very amateurish. We sit,\nstand, or lie on a straight board which is curled up at one\nend, and slide down snow-covered hills. The children enjoy\nit immensely, and have splendid exercise pulling their little\nsleighs, or toboggans, up the hill again.\nThe ' Black Rod,' Mr. Kimber, was one of our guests\nat dinner to-night. He sang us one of Figaro's songs,\nacting it with great spirit, and amusing us very much. He\nalso sang some very pretty Canadian boat-songs. Another\nguest was Miss Griffin, a lady who acted in a play with\nDickens at Montreal twenty years ago.\nWednesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D., Colonel Fletcher, Fred, and Mr. NOV. 1872\nMY FIRST SLEIGH DRIVE\n47\nCampbell (D.'s shorthand writer, and a very favourite\nmember of the Staff), went to Montreal.\nSaturday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I had a long letter from D., giving me\nan account of his doings. After a long journey on Wednesday, they reached Montreal in the evening, and were conducted by the Mayor and Sir Hugh Allan to the latter's\nhouse.\nOn Thursday D. unveiled the Queen's statue, and in the\nevening he danced all night at a ball, never flagging till\nfour in the morning, and being pronounced ' a brick' by\nthe young ladies of Montreal. He had a dinner at a club\non Friday, and returned here to-day, fatigued but\npleased. We are both going to Montreal in January for a\n' season.'\nWednesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are gradually settling down in\nour house, and are dragging from obscure packing-cases\nthe few ornaments that have emigrated with us. I have\nset up a boudoir, and in it I put all my favourite things, so\nas to have one home-like sanctum. The state-rooms continue, I fear, to have a hopelessly company look.\nWe had a dinner-party of twenty-six, a great number\nof Ministers among them. There is no clock (going) in\nthe drawing-room, so my guests fidgeted off before ten,\nand had to wait in the cloak-room for their carriages.\nWhen one person moves, they all go, and it is useless to\nsay, 'Do stay.'\nThere was snow in the afternoon, and we are getting up\nthe double windows. Most people have not only the extra\nwindows, but stuff cotton wool into every crevice. Their\nhouses are very hot.\nTuesday, December 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Yesterday I went for my first\ndrive in a sleigh. I think I shall like it very much when\nthere is a little more snow: it is rather rough at present.\nI will tell you how we pass an ordinary day. We breakfast at nine, then separate to our various offices and places\nof business. Fred goes to the stables, and afterwards helps\nr- 48\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. rv\nirl\nto write invitations, though Mr. Coulson manages the\nsociety at present. At eleven they all go into town. We\nlunch at one\u00E2\u0080\u0094the children and I generally alone, the gentlemen returning when they Like. After lunch we go out: in\nthis weather it is a duty, but later, I think, we shall have\ngreat fun out of doors. On our return we have tea, and\nbooks and children; dinner at 7.30. The Fletchers come\noften, and we have either one or two large dinners every\nweek.\nWednesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I put on snow-shoes for the first time.\nOne's foot looks like a dot in the centre of a large racket,\nand I expected to trip up on my own shoes; but I found it\nquite easy to walk with them; and very amusing. Without\nthem one has to keep in the middle of the beaten track on\nthe roads, but with them one can walk on the deepest snow.\nFriday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir John and Lady Macdonald are staying\nwith us for two nights. In the morning I took Lady Macdonald and Lady Harriet for a sleigh-drive, and in the\nafternoon we all rested for the coming dinner-party. We\nhad twenty-eight guests.\nOne of them, a senator and mill-owner employing\n500 labourers all the year round at high wages, told me\nthat when he came here himself he earned ten shillings\na month. Mr. Tod, the librarian here, was another\nguest. He is the author of the best book on the British\nConstitution. Then there was a railway celebrity, a very\nnice man, who got out of a sick bed to come: he brought\nwith him a pleasant sister-in-law and a very pretty\ndaughter. Sir Hugh Allan also dined with us, and Sir\nFrancis Hincks.\nSaturday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Macdonald left, and I went out to\nsee some tobogganing. The high hill is sufficiently covered\nwith snow now, and the children are very brave about going\ndown it. They start at the top and go bumping and\njumping all the way down, sometimes tumbling over into\nthe snow at the bottom, and sometimes going along the DEC. 1872\nFROST BITES\n49\nlevel ground for a good distance. To-day they looked so\nodd, all covered with snow, while the gentlemen's beards,\neyelashes, and hair, had the snow frozen into them. The\nthermometer was io\u00C2\u00B0 below zero, but the day was bright,\nand we did not feel the cold at all. Toiling up the hill and\npulling the toboggan after one, is hard work.\nMonday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094One of my exhausting 'at home' days.\nMy labours began at 1.30, for I had the managers of a\nconcert I am getting up to lunch, and went on till six\u00E2\u0080\u0094\na steady flow of visitors. It was a very cold day,\u00E2\u0080\u0094luckily\nfor the conversation required of me,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and ninety-three\nvarieties of ' How cold you must have found your drive! '\ndid I invent. On these occasions D. comes in when all is\nover and asks 'what news we have heard,' and we always\nhave to say that we have heard nothing. I generally keep\nMonday evening sacred to repose, but to-day we were obliged\nto invite travellers, and two Torontonians, the Pattiss6ns and\nFletchers making up twelve. Our tourists came to America\nfor ten months, but have found travelling so very expensive\nthey have to hurry home at the end of four. Their bill for\nten days at a New York hotel was 150Z.\nTuesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had invited these young men to\ncome and toboggan, and it made me freeze to look at their\ncostume: knickerbockers, no gloves, thin boots, English\nhats!\u00E2\u0080\u0094when flannel, and cloth trousers, boots of cloth with\nindiarubber soles, fur gloves, and fur hats are necessary.\nI only hope they won't be laid up with i pains.' One foolish\nfootman of ours who came out in the carriage with cotton\nsocks and leather boots has had a fearful attack of acute inflammatory rheumatism, and two Sisters of Mercy are now\nnursing him. Yesterday, Terence, having a hole in one of\nhis gloves, came home with his finger frost-bitten, and\nNelly had two suspicious white spots in her face : they were\nrubbed with snow, and are all right.\nWednesday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I had half an hour's skating: the\nfirst time we have been able to use the rink. The weather\nE 50\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. rv\nwas very cold, but bright, and the snow hard and dry. I\ndid not do much, as we had a dinner m the evening, for\nwhich it is necessary to be fresh.\nSaturday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This has been one of our regular\nOttawa weeks. After the Wednesday's dinner a quiet\nnight; then a visit from a Minister and his wife, Dr.2 and\nMrs. Tupper, who remained the night; and a visit the next\nnight from two Ministers, and one wife,\u00E2\u0080\u0094Monsieur Langevin,\nand Mr. and Mrs. Howe; these latter preferred returning\nhome to sleep, either because they liked their own stove\nside, or because the next day was Mr. Howe's seventieth\nbirthday. He was a violent politician, but is less active\nnow, and is talked of as a probable Lieutenant-Governor\nfor Nova Scotia.\nWe are working at our outdoor rink, and find it rather\ntroublesome to manage. An Englishman exclaims, ' Flood\nit!' but this is just the difficulty, for the water freezes as\nit touches the ice, and will not ' flood it'; and if, by having a\ncircle of barrels round the space and upsetting them all at\nthe same time, we do succeed in covering it with water, and\ngo happy to bed dreaming of beautiful ice and a capital\nskate, we wake in the morning to find either that it\nhas snowed, or that the wind has blown old snow over\nthe rink, which a ray of sunshine having partially melted,\nhas stuck hard to our lovely ice, and there we are longing\nto skate and obliged to begin ' au deluge' again.\nWednesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a ball. The room was\nwell lighted and looked well, the supper (by the new cook)\nwas very good, and I hope everyone was happy. Sir Hugh\nand Miss Allan arrived for it, and remain till Saturday!\nColonel Fletcher was told that ' Mr. Hamilton will be spoilt\nhere, people like him so much.'\nFriday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A great snowstorm. I was to have\ngone to a mission service in church, but I could not face\nthe weather. D. did go, and afterwards inspected the\nChristian Brothers' school, received addresses, etc.\n2 Sir Charles Tupper, Bart., G.C.M.G. dec. 1872- THERMOMETER 220 BELOW ZERO\nMonday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we visited the Grey\nSisters, and saw their school. Then I came home and\narranged my concert-room with stage, etc.\nThe Belgian Minister at Washington arrived in time\nfor an early dinner, and is staying with us. At eight the\nsingers arrived, and began to dress, and at 8*30 the listeners\ncame pouring in, were cordially greeted by His Ex. and\nHer Ex. at the door, and were seated by obliging A.D.C.s\nand secretaries.\nThe music began at nine\u00E2\u0080\u0094it really was very good, and\nthe acting admirable! The costumes were perfect, and\neveryone was delighted with the two hours' amusement.\nI allowed the three children to be present, and they\nenjoyed it immensely. Terence was in fits over ' Figaro,'\nand in great anxiety the whole time to understand everything. We had supper at eleven, and the whole entertainment was considered a great success.\nTuesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Oh ! this really is cold ; two ears, two\nfaces, two knees, and one finger frozen in our family. We\nare 220 below zero, and are devoted to our clouds, in which\nwe wallow. In spite of this we skate, but we are very thankful to think that we are feeling the worst cold we need expect\nhere.\nChristmas Day.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Thermometer 20\u00C2\u00B0 below zero. Proprieties out of the question\u00E2\u0080\u0094must go to church in sealskin turbans, and must undress when we get there, as we sit\nnear the stove; so that when we leave, the amount of things\nto be put on is frightful. There is my cloak, and my\ncloud, fur gauntlets, and woollen cuffs; there is Archie's\ncoat, and his cloud, and turban, and gloves. Then Fred and\nD. have to be clothed; happily, everyone in the church\nis equally busy muffling up. D., you will be surprised to\nhear, wears absolutely less than he used to do in May at\nhome, and scarcely seems to feel the cold at all. Fred, too,\nbears it well, with the exception of his ears, about which he\nis decidedly nervous. He is always feeling them and\nK\nL2 52\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. rv\ninquiring from passers-by whether they are frozen. The\nchildren play in the snow as if it were hay, and enjoy\nthemselves immensely. Their nurse, Mrs. Hall, dislikes\nthe wrapping up, but has been consoled by a present of a\npair of skates. Their governess is learning too; she won't\nwrap up, and I really fear some accident for her : nothing\nbut a frost-bite will make her careful.\nWe have arranged a Christmas-tree, and this evening\nall the children of the family assembled for it. They came\nat five, and the nine of them, with their governesses and\nnurses, were ushered into the room with great ceremony.\nHermie rushed at a doll. ' There is my doll,' and kissed it\nmost fervently. Of coufse, they all got various presents,\nand the big ones dined with us, and afterwards played blind\nman's buff, snapdragon, etc., etc.\nThe pictures have arrived, and are a great improvement\nto the house. In my room I have drawings of Killyleagh and\nClandeboye, and there are a few oil-portraits in the dining-\nroom, which make it look home-like. We shall be quite\nsorry to go away next week, to undertake a long journey in\nthe snow, and to be a month in hotels.\nMr. Pattisson's Irish cook came to tell him that, having\nhad her hand severely burnt and blistered by lifting a cold\niron pot, she would go home by next steamer. He pretends\nthere is not one to go in.\nFriday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We continue every day to practise our\nskating. I can get on very well with ordinary skating. D.\ncan go backwards and do the figure of eight. Fred is\nbeginning the outside edge, and is studying the art with\ngreat care. The children are not industrious: they find\nmaking snow houses and tobogganing much more amusing\nthan lamely shuffling over the ice, so I think they will be\nlong in learning.\nSaturday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we visited the ' Congregation de Notre Dame,' an educational c\u00C2\u00A9nvent, where Nelly\nwas shown a Cryistmas-tree, and told to choose what she\niMftft DEC. I872\nSKATING AND SLEIGHING\n53\nliked best on it. In spite of my nudges, truth would out,\nand she took a very pretty doll instead of the insignificant\npresent I was trying to suggest to her.\nDirectly after lunch I went down to the rink to receive\nmy skating-party. It went off extremely well. Some of the\nyoung people skated most beautifully, Miss Patrick and\nMiss Kingsford, two very pretty girls, being the best\nperformers. Skating is so very graceful when well done,\nand the scene on the rink is so gay; everyone moving\nabout so fast on the ice, and knots of people tobogganing\ndown the hill behind. I had on my skates, but did not\nfeel equal to skating before such experts.\nWhen it became cold, we came into the house, drank tea\nand mulled claret, and danced for an hour. We intend to\nrepeat these parties once a week. The dancing was quite a\nsurprise this time, but of course it will be expected now, and\nparcels of shoes and various decorations will be brought\nnext Saturday, which were dispensed with on this occasion.\nMonday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I think the pleasures of sleighing are\nexaggerated : it appears to me much the same as driving in\na cart. You have no springs, and the snow gets into hard,\nrough ruts. This is treason ! one ought to be enthusiastic\nover its delights. The bells and the red plumes on the\nhorses' backs are the best of it, I think.\nWednesday, January 1st, 1873.\u00E2\u0080\u0094New Year's Day is kept\nhere as a visiting-day. All the ladies stay at home, and all\nthe gentlemen visit. D. and I were ' at home ' from three\nto five and received 293 men.\nIt was a most lovely day, warm and bright, with only\nten degrees of frost, which seems to us quite, like a thaw !\nWith the exception of a few days at Christmas, we have\nbeen perfectly comfortable : the house is so warm, and we\nare so well wrapped up when we go out, that we cannot feel\ncold. 54\nCHAPTER V\nMONTREAL\nSt. Lawrence Hall 1 Sunday, January $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left\nRideau yesterday, had dinner at Prescott, and reached\nMontreal at night. A very successful winter journey, for\nhad the snow been troublesome we might have been days\nen route. The Mayor met us, and we drove to this hotel,\nwhere we have taken rooms for a month. Our own cooks\nand servants arrive early in the week and arrange everything, while we go down to Quebec for a ball. The rooms\nwe have here are very clean, but very hotel-like, stiff and\nstarch, and I shall not feel much at home when I receive\nmy guests in them.\nMonday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went early to the Rink, which we\nwere curious to see. It is a great place, 250 feet long,\nof smooth, dull-looking ice, which reminds one of wax, and\nwhich is covered with scrapings cut off by the skates ; there\nis a raised walk round the ice for non-skaters, and a gallery\nat one end. The roof is arched. Most of the skaters were\nchildren of four years old and upwards, going\" backwards\nand forwards, Dutch rolling, making eights\u00E2\u0080\u0094looking as if\nthey had been born on skates. There was only one young\nlady there, very pretty and a splendid performer. Her\nskating is the most beautiful, graceful thing one can see.\nSkating is particularly pretty for ladies, as the dress hides\nthe machinery which is visible when men skate. An in- JAN. I873\nQUEBEC\n55\ndoor rink is dull, however, I think, compared to skating out\nof doors.\nWe went down to the station at 11 t.m. D. and I had two\ngood bedrooms, and the others had beds in a Pullman car.\nMrs. Dent had a sofa in the sitting-room, and His Ex.'s\nshorthand writer, finding he was expected to occupy a\ncouch opposite to my fair maid, shyly jumped into it with\nhis hat on, which I suppose he considered gave an air of\nrespectability to the proceeding. Dent was giggling at him\nunder her rug, and was still more amused when, later, the\nhat of propriety rolled off, and the little man pulled his\nclothes right over his head.\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We awoke in time to have a cup of tea\nat a passing station, and arrived at Quebec at twelve.\nThe morning was lovely, and the Citadel, the river,\nand Quebec looked so picturesque, with the sun shining on\nthe snow. We crossed in the steamer, cutting through ice,\nand were accompanied by the Mayor. We drove up to the\nhotel over the most bumpy roads\u00E2\u0080\u0094the snow is in great\nmounds, and the jump from one hill to another is quite\namusing : it is like hunting on wheels. The warm reception we met with was very pleasant.\nWe went to the Rink after breakfast. The band was\nplaying, and there was some very good skating, but too\nmany children, who get in the way and make beginners\nnervous.\nWednesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we again went to the\nRink, where D. is practising hard, aided by all the young\nladies of Quebec, who give him lessons in turn. In the\nafternoon-we opened a poultry show, and I examined each\nscrubby fowl, and made the most of my home experience.\nThis place in winter is not suited to poultry, and their\nplumage shows that they are shut up in stables.\nThe Citizens' Ball took place to-night. It is one given\nfor us by the city, and for which we were invited to return\nwhen we left in the autumn. It was a splendid entertain- 56\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. V\nment. The room was decorated with our colours, and with\nwreaths of roses, and there was a large reception committee, who took great care of me all the evening.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094An excursion to Montmorency was\narranged for to-day, but I did not go. At noon, forty-two\nsleighs, each driving a tandem, came to the door, and D.\ngot into the first in a snowstorm. The weather cleared\nlater, and they drove twelve miles, had lunch, visited the\nFall, and were back by dusk. They enjoyed it very much,\nthough they came in very cold.\nD. and I dined alone, and then went off to a skating\nball. The Rink was lighted up, and hung with flags and\nlanterns, and there were regular dancing programmes. It\nwas a very pretty sight. I can't conceive anything more\ngraceful than the lancers skated; waltzing also is pretty,\nbut few people, even here, can do it. I had a very comfortable seat, and sat there with a never-ceasing stream of\nfigures passing before me.\nD. skated a good deal at the ball, and Fred ttfok\nsome turns with the young ladies hand-in-hand round\nthe place, but they did not dance. I went round twice, but\nam not a good enough skater for these public demonstrations.\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After some skating, I proceeded to the\ngrating at the Ursuline Convent to thank the nuns for\nsome lovely specimens of their work, which they sent me1\nas a New Year's gift. Then I came home and 'received'\nfarewell visits. All at Quebec, both in ' society ' and in the\nstreets, are so nice to us\u00E2\u0080\u0094they are very home-like. We left\nthe hotel in the evening, crossed the river, and had our\nspecial car, in which we first had tea and whist, and then\nwe went to bed, while Fred and Mr. Coulson attended ' a\nparty' in the next carriage.\nSaturday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at Montreal in time for\nbreakfast, skated, and had interviews with the Mayor and\nvarious officials, but our work only begins on Monday. jan. 1873 SNOW-SHOEING AT MONTREAL\n57\nMonday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. visited a hospital, the Law Courts,\nand some churches after lunch. In the evening we had a\nDrawing-room. There were about 1,000 people at it.\nTuesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We skated and visited a school in the\nmorning, and at night had our first dinner here\u00E2\u0080\u0094twenty-\neight people: Bishop Oxenden and his wife, the Mayor and\nhis wife, and others. Our drawing-room is small for so\nmany, but they left early, as we were going to a ball at a\nMons. Papineau's\u00E2\u0080\u0094the first private entertainment I have\nbeen to in Canada. His wife must have been handsome,\nwith brown eyes, and white hair powdered. They have a\npretty house, and the ball was pleasant.\nWednesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This evening we attended a snow-\nshoe torchlight procession given in our honour. At eight\no'clock the president of the society came for us, and we\ndrove out until we met the ' snow-shoes.' They wore white\nblanket coats, tight leggings, and red caps, and the sight\nreally was very picturesque and very Canadian: the\nbright night, the snow-covered ground, hundreds of sleighs\nand thousands of tinkling bells, the torches, and the gaiety of\nthe whole scene, were delightful. The procession walked\nup the mountain, and we drove round it, watching the fiery\nserpent winding among the trees. The roads were excellent,\nand it was the first sleigh-drive I have really enjoyed.\nIn about an hour we arrived at a house where supper was\nprepared, and where we had a very amusing evening.\nThere was a long list of toasts, and a song with a chorus\nwas sung after each. There was the usual amount of\ncompliments to the country, to us, to the Mayor, to everybody. Canada was the finest country, the Canadians the\nfinest people, His Excellency worthy to be a Canadian,\nHer Excellency most excellent, the Mayor admirable, the\nMayoress most hospitable, our hosts . . . words failed!\nWhen the Mayor got up to return thanks, he said that\n* As Canadians, we have one fault\u00E2\u0080\u0094we are too fond of\npraising ourselves; but in this case it is sincere.' When all MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. V\nwas over, we got into our sleigh again, and the fresh air\nwas delightful! The snow-shoers were by this time 'jolly\ngood fellows,' and I foiled them rather alarming to our\nhorses and to me *, so we begged them not to accompany us\nhome, and I think they were not sorry to return to the\nsupper-room.\nThursday, \6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I may tell you, once for all, that we\nspend the morning in the Rink.\nThis afternoon we visited a Catholic commercial school\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nreally a well-arranged building. The boys have a very\ngood string band, and betwixt addresses we had some\nmusic.\nWe had a large dinner in the evening : Sir Francis and\nMiss Hincks were of the party. I fear it was not lively,\nbut what can one do in a small room with thirty strangers ?\nSaturday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After our morning skate we came\nhome in a snowstorm, and then out again to a benevolent institution where old women and orphan children\nare lodged, and the latter educated. We had tea with the\nBishop and Mrs. Oxenden. They have a very nice house,\nand they had collected a little party to meet us; but we had\nrather to hurry away, as it was snowing hard, and we had\nto dress for a dinner-party. It was to have been a small\none, but stretched out to twenty-four, and was, I thought,\nthe pleasantest we have had here.\nMonday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was rather a hard day. Sir Hugh\nAllan and M. Delfosse came to breakfast at nine, and D.\nwent off to be photographed for a paper dollar immediately\nafter.. At eleven we proceeded to the Rink, and only\nreturned for His Ex. to receive an address from the Board\nof Trade.\nWhen that deputation was dismissed, we drove to a Protestant deaf-and-dumb institution, which was a very good\none; but it was the wrong one as far as I was concerned,\nas that I wished to see was the Catholic establishment,*\nwhere the deaf-mutes are taught to speak. JAN. 1873\nMONTREAL\nA refuge for old people was the next institution on our\nlist, and we only got home for a short rest before a big\ndinner. I enjoyed the evening, and some nice people\ndined with us.\nTuesday, 21 si.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Miss Allan came to lunch with me,\nand D. and I drove in state to M'Gill College* Here\nour horses were taken out by the students, and we were\ndragged up to the door. Speeches were made, and we were\nshown everything of interest; but while D. was taken to\nthe dissecting-room, I went to have tea with the ladies.\nD. afterwards visited the Normal School by himself. We\ndined with the Mayor, and as we stepped out in the snow\nto get into a great, lumbering, covered sleigh, we greatly\nrejoiced that the most of our Canadian gaieties are in\nour own home.\nThe Mayor has a nice house, and there was a splendid\ndisplay of flowers on his table; in fact, I believe he had\nbought every flower in Montreal for the occasion.\nWednesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I stayed at home the whole day,\nand disappointed the Jesuits, whom His Ex. went to\nsee, and who sent me magnificent bouquets. They have a\nfine church and college here, and are celebrated for their\nmusic.\nWe had (of course) a dinner-party. D. took in a bride,\nand I had a senator and a judge on either side of me.\nThursday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At ten D. went to a military school,\nand had the rest of the day for amusing himself with\nskating and curling. We had another large dinner: 130\npeople will have dined with us this week, most of whom are\nquite new acquaintances.\nFriday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a tremendous snowstorm today, but we had an appointment to visit ' Monklands,' a\nlarge educational convent some distance from the town, so\nwe had to make the best of our way there, and really experienced something of a snowdrift: in places it was quite\ndifficult for the horses to drag the sleigh along, and they\no\u00C2\u00BB 60\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. V\nwere l floundering' about, while the coachman was shading\nhis eyes from the snow, and we all had to cover our faces\nand take as much care of ourselves as was possible.\n4 Monklands ' used to be the Governor-General's house\nwhen the Government was at Montreal. I believe the\nsituation is fine, but it must have been too far from the\ntown for a Government House. It has been enlarged, and\nnow contains 22 nuns and 150 pupils.\nAfter seeing the nuns and the household arrangements,\nwe were ushered into the ' theatre,' or schoolroom, where a\nstage presented itself to our view, upon which the 150 young\nladies, dressed in white, were curtseying, and whence proceeded sounds of harps, pianos and harmoniums. The usual\npretty little entertainment followed, and D. and I both\nanswered addresses.\nWhen this was over, poor ' His Ex.' had to visit a\ncollege; but, in mercy to myself, the horses, and the men-\nservants, I came straight home.\nWe had a small dinner, and were tolerably merry. One\nof our young ladies turned out to be a ' blue-stocking,' and\namused us much by laying down the law to the company.\nSaturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I took a drive along the river to prepare for the labours of the afternoon, being ' at home.' We\nbegan to receive at three, and had a stream of visitors till\n5.30. I had not much time except for shaking hands, and\nall my conversation was ' How do you do ?' ' How cold you\nmust be!' 4 Good-bye!' A funny little American woman,\ntravelling alone with her maid, came and looked in at the\ndoor to see me; then she thought she would come in, so\nshe went home and changed her hat for her bonnet and\nreturned. She asked for ' my husband,' and invited us both\nto Philadelphia. She looked small and thin enough to blow\naway, and Fred found her afterwards almost fainting from\nthe exertion of her visit.\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After skating, I brought Miss Allan\nback to lunch, and we went to a chemical lecture. It was JAN. 1873\nTHE CITIZENS' BALL\ngiven to ladies, and I am patroness of the association. I\nthen went on to the Protestant Infants' Home. D. visited\nthe Montreal Waterworks.\nWe had a dinner of thirty-six\u00E2\u0080\u0094our last here. The\nchildren arrived at midnight, looking extremely well.\nTuesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We all went to visit a large convent\ncalled Hochelaga. It is a fine building, and contains a\nvery beautiful chapel copied from one in Rome. We heard\nthe organ played and the novices sing.\nIn the evening there was the ' citizens'' ball given in our\nhonour. There was an excellent ballroom, with an enormous supper-room off it. An arrangement was made at one\nend of it, like the canons' stalls in a cathedral: these were\nlined with green, and decorated with the antelope and\nheart, our motto, etc., etc.; in each a chair, but only one\nstall was used all the night, and that by me. The whole\nroom was ornamented with flags and 'V.R.s ' and ' D.s,' and\nwas very pretty. There was a state quadrille first, of\nenormous length, reaching the whole way down the room,\nand with us and the Mayor alone at the ends. I enjoyed\nmy share of the evening very much, and danced all the\nsquares before supper, leaving very soon after. An official\nlist of partners was made out for D., and he remained\ndancing with dowagers until four o'clock in the morning.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had relaxation to-day, skating\nand curling, and I did some business, and went over the\nR.C. Deaf-and-dumb Institutions.\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 These were very interesting, as the poor creatures are\nbeing taught to speak, and very successfully too. There\nare separate establishments for the boys and girls, and\nthe master showed us the whole system of teaching.\nThis is a cold, bright day, 200 below zero.\nI spent the evening with the children, D. and staff\nhaving gone to a night-tobogganing party and dance. The\nformer returned at twelve, and the young ones not till\nnearly three. They enjoyed it, but thought it a dangerous IN ,\n62\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. V\namusement in the dark, and Mr. Coulson had the sleeves\ncompletely cut out of his coat by a toboggan coming down\non the top of him.\nThursday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The fancy-dress skating ball took\nplace in the evening, and was a most beautiful sight,\nbesides being great fun.\nWe drove to the Rink wearing morning dress, and went\nout on a balcony to look down upon the scene. It was like\na fairy pantomime of gigantic size, and was most striking.\nThe building was hung with flags and Chinese lanterns, and\nfrom one end to the other there were gaily-dressed figures\nof every sort and variety moving about with that easy,\ngraceful swing which belongs to skating. Wlien we went\ndownstairs we were conducted to the further end of the\nrink, where a platform and chairs at the edge of the ice\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2were prepared for us.\nHere we stood, while the two sets of ' state' lancers were\ndanced in front of us. One was a poudre set: each couple\nskated in, bowed to us as they passed, and took their\nplaces. I think I have already told you how beautiful the\nlancers are whei skated, and you can imagine how the addition of costume increases their beauty : I never saw anything\nhalf so pretty. When they were over D. and Fred put on\ndominoes, and skated off too. I collected a few friends\nunder my canopy, the children sat on the edge of it, and\nwe were amused the whole evening watching the different\ncharacters as they came before us. There was one delightful\nold gentleman who passed us every round in some different\nway, acting capitally the whole time. There was an excellent\nand large monkey, who performed for the children. There\nwere Indians and Chinamen, cavaliers, etc., etc. The ladies'\ncostumes had of necessity short petticoats, so there was\nevery variety of peasant\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dolly Vardens, Watteaus, etc., etc.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094and very pretty they were! In fact, to an ordinary fancy\nball you have to add perpetual motion,\u00E2\u0080\u0094for no one ever\nstands still on the ice. The spectators lined the walls. We JAN. 1873\nTHE RINK\nwere torn away to have some supper, and after it I sat on\nthe upper balcony to see the general effect. They danced\nanother set of lancers, and ' Sir Roger de Coverley.' I am\nsure that if they had not turned the Governor-General out,\nby playing ' God save the Queen,' I never should have been\nable to get him away, he enjoyed it so much.\nFriday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. visited the blind-schools, and, from\nhis account of. them, I was quite sorry not to have gone\nwith him. He was so touched by a little blind child\nfeeling his face all over with her tiny fingers to feel what\nhe was like.\nSaturday, February 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went this afternoon to see\nsome snow-shoe races, and, for the first time since we have\nbeen in Canada, we were all thoroughly cold, and were glad\nwhen it was over.\nIn the evening some games in the Rink were very\namusing. One sport looked dangerous : it was a hurdle-\nrace, and the skaters had to jump over stiff barriers placed\nin their way. Numbers of them caught their feet on the\ntop bar, and came down; it was wonderful that they\nescaped being seriously hurt. The funniest race to watch\nwas the barrel-race : a number of flour-barrels without ends\nwere placed at intervals along the course. The first row\nhad the same number of barrels as boys; the second, and\nthe third sets had fewer, for the competitors got separated\nand did not all reach the barrels at the same time. Each\nboy dived down when he reached the barrel, crept through\nit, and skated on, as fast as possible, to the next. Of\ncourse the barrels rolled and tumbled about on the ice, and\nsome boys were much quicker at getting through them than\nothers. There were also backward races, and girls' races,\nand boys' races, etc., all on skates. I gave the prizes at\nthe end.\nMonday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we went to the Rink, and,\na small band of music having been obtained, there were\nlancers danced, and waltzes, and everyone worked hard, 64\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. V\nsome because they skate for the prizes to-morrow, and some\nbecause it was to be our last day there.\nWe went to an Irish concert after dinner. All the songs\nwere Irish, and there was a little speechifying between\ntimes.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It thaws to-day, and is consequently\nhorrid, but we are all full of excitement about the skating-\nmatches this afternoon. Quebec has sent a champion lady,\nand has told her she need not return to her ancient city if\nshe does not win the locket which D. has offered as a prize.\nLater.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ladies' match was very interesting, but the\nday was spoilt by two contretemps. The judges said there\nwere ties, and awarded the prize to two, which ended in\nD.'s having to duplicate the locket he had chosen. Then,\nat the very last moment, the gentlemen found fault with\nsome arrangement, and refused to skate, so one walked\nover the course by himself!\nThe little girls' skating was beautiful.\nWhen the matches were over, there was dancing till\neleven o'clock. i^-^p^\n65\nCHAPTER VI\nOUR FIRST PARLIAMENTARY SESSION\nOttawa: Friday, February 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The curling-rink,outside our windows, was ready to-day, and the gentlemen had\na game in the morning and skated in the afternoon. We\nplayed ' puss in the corner' and ' friar's ground' on skates\nwith the children, who were delighted with this idea\u00E2\u0080\u0094mine,\nI beg to say.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Curling and skating are our exercises\nevery day. We have had a great consultation over our\narrangements for the ' season.' During Lent there can be\nno balls, but we shall have some plays. Two pieces, ' The\nFirst Night' and ' To Oblige Benson,' are already in hand,\nand we are to have one play each week, and each play twice.\nThis will give us four entertainments. After Easter we\nshall give a big ball in the new room.\nFor the opening of Parliament we have invited Mr. and\nMrs. Howland, with whom we stayed in Toronto, to come\nto us. The meeting is on the 5th, and we have a Cabinet\ndinner the night before, a dinner the day after, an ice-\nparty on Friday, and a small dinner on Saturday.\nI suppose the House will ' sit' all through April, so\nthat we can ask the 280 members to dinner before they\nleave Ottawa.\nThe children's dreadful colds are all better, but the\ndoctor tells me he has had over 200 cases of the same.\nF 66\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VI\n1\nAt one o'clock in the night the thermometer was 200 below\nzero, and at one in the day 500 above\u00E2\u0080\u0094a difference of seventy\ndegrees\u00E2\u0080\u0094so it is not extraordinary that people catch colds !\nD. continues to feel quite warm and comfortable, and\nnot to wear a fur coat: his turn will come in the summer,\nwhen he will begin to wrap up.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred, Nelly and I took a drive this\nmorning, as the day was so splendid, and as I had to remain\nat home in the afternoon. I received 133 visitors, and if\nthe weather has ears they must have been extremely hot\nwhen we had finished discussing it on every side.\nThe curling, which we have set up in a covered rink\nclose to our skating place, seems to be very successful, and\nD. and Fred play a great deal.\nThe ' Witness' publishes an account of ' Hamilton\nRowan,' mentioning me as his grand-daughter, which, they\nare pleased to say, ' accounts for the good drop in me.' This\nis the paper which came to ask Fred for details of our\nengagements at Montreal, and said, ' Oh ! we will miss the\nball, if you please; we are a rehgious paper.'\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a thaw to-day ; our ice was all\nunder water, and we are quite afraid the winter is going.\nWe shall have a very mauvais quart d'heure between this\nand summer\u00E2\u0080\u0094a time when skating is impossible, and\nwalking and driving nearly so, everything dripping around\nus.\nSome of Lady Harriet's \ imported' servants are beginning to marry; happily, mine are still fancy free.\nSaturday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The actors in 4 To Oblige Benson'\narrived at twelve this morning to rehearse the piece. They\nnone of them knew it in the least. ' They' are Fred and\nMr. Coulson, Colonel and Mrs. Stuart, and a-nice-looking\nMiss Himsworth. After lunch the rest of the world arrived\nto skate. It was a lovely afternoon, and they practised the\nlancers, while I looked on at the tobogganing, and just\nmissed seeing a disagreeable sight. Little Edward Fletcher FEB. I873\nOPENING OF PARLIAMENT\n67\nwas standing dreaming in the middle of the hill, and as a\ntoboggan was coming fast down upon him the people on the\ntop shouted to him to get out of the way; but he did not\nhear, and the toboggan, with a young lady in it, lifted him\nright up in the air. She got her eye cut, and had a bump\non her forehead. It might have been a bad accident.\nAfter the outdoor party we had a dance to warm ourselves, and all went home at 6.30.\nSir John and Lady Macdonald, and M. Langevin, arrived,\nto stay till Monday. Sir John is the Prime Minister, and\nM. Langevin the Public Works, who has built our ballroom and does all our improvements.\nMonday, March 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094To-morrow the Session, with its\nduties, commences.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094As the dancing is over for the present, I\nhave been busy all morning refurnishing my big drawing-\nroom, which has hitherto been kept as a ball-room. The\nnew room is nearly ready, and is very handsome. It is to\nbe opened as a theatre, and we are having such a pretty\nstage put up. Lady Harriet Fletcher has come over to\nspend a few days, for a change, and to help me to entertain\nMrs. Howland.\nWe had our Cabinet dinner; all men, except Lady\nHarriet and me, the two ladies of the house. I sat between\nthe Prime Minister, Sir John, and the Postmaster-General,\nMr. Campbell. They were both very pleasant neighbours.\nAll were in uniform, and all full of animation and ready for '\nthe fray.\nWednesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon, D. dressed in uniform, and drove in a sleigh-and-four, escorted by troops,\nA.D.C.s, and secretaries, to direct his faithful Lords and\nCommons to choose a Speaker. This did not take very\nlong, and on his return we went and sat at the rink in\ndelicious sunshine for a couple of hours.\nThursday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The opening of Parliament. Having\nto dress in the middle of the day, I was lazy, and did not\nF 2 68\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VI\nappear at all till I was arrayed in my finery. His Ex. wore\nthe Governor's uniform, like that of the Queen's Household : collar of St. Patrick, and cocked hat kept on all the\ntime. Mrs. Howland and I, Mr. Pattisson and Mr. Curtis,\nwent in the first carriage, Miss Blake and three children in\nthe next. We arrived some time before the Governor-\nGeneral, and I was conducted to my seat by the Gentleman-\nUsher of the Black Rod. The Chamber looked very well.\nI sat to the left of the throne, and down each side of the\nSenate were rows of ladies in full dress; the Senators were\non the floor of the House, and the galleries were full to the\nceiling. D. drove in an open sleigh with four horses,\naccompanied by Mr. Howland and Colonel Fletcher. Mr.\nHolbeach followed with Fred. As they came up to the\nbuilding twenty-one guns were fired. The Black Rod met\nthe procession and walked backwards, bowing all the way,\nHis Excellency getting more stern-looking every minute.\nWhen the procession arrived at the Senate-Chamber, we\nall stood up, and waited until the Governor-General, having\ntaken his seat on the throne, requested us to be seated.\nThe Commons were sent for, and we sat in solemn\nsilence till they came. D. then read his speech, first in\nEnglish, and then all over again in French; and everything\nthat was said was repeated in the two languages. Then\nColonel Fletcher carried the speeches to the Speakers of\nboth Houses, and so the ceremony ended, and we went\naway as we came. The children were much interested,\nbut remarked upon Papa's gravity: they thought it a\nproper occasion to be wreathed in smiles.\nSaturday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had rather a pleasant dinner-party\nof Ministers. Mr. and Mrs. Howland seemed very happy,\nand she looked very smart in blue velvet. The Speaker\nof the Senate came to stay with us.\nMonday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The frost seemed to have returned,\nso we sent out our invitations for a skating-party for this\nafternoon. The day was, however, too lovely, and the ice,\nIi\n3M! MARCH 1873\nENTERTAINMENTS\n69\nwhich had been in splendid order got quite soft. It is\npossible to be happy on doubtful ice here, as we know there\nis no water under it, and that it is only snow sprinkled.\nThe skaters kept in one shady corner, and I and my guests\nsat on the brink, and were quite warm and comfortable.\nWe had another dinner-party\u00E2\u0080\u0094our farewell entertainment to the Howlands.\nTuesday, 1 \th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. and Mrs. Howland left this morning\nin a snowstorm, and we remained in the house all day.\nGreat arrangements and discussions go on about the coming\nDrawing Room: Who is to have the entree ? Who is to have\nseats ? Which way are these people to come in, and which\nway those ? Where is Her Excellency's cloak to be taken\noff ? etc., etc. Then I,\u00E2\u0080\u0094not being very well, and having\nmeekly asked to have a tall office-stool behind me, against\nwhich I might occasionally lean,\u00E2\u0080\u0094an architect and several\ncarpenters have been'busily engaged in making a design-\nground-plan and elevation\u00E2\u0080\u0094of a complicated and splendid\nerection, crowned by a vase of flowers, and covered with\ncrimson, which is to appear as a part of the throne, but\nwhich is to be scooped out for me to sit on; and a request\nfor my exact height has been forwarded to me, that all may\nbe correct. This ceremony will be in the Senate Chamber,\nand both Houses of Parliament have adjourned for the\noccasion.\nWe also had a discussion as to whether we could put\noff our theatricals on Thursday, for Mario and Carlotta\nPatti, who were to have given a concert to-day, have\nbeen snowbound, and cannot get here till that day; and\nas 200 of the principal people here are coming to us,\nboth the singers and the public lose a good deal. Pepper's\nGhost is also tearing its hair at the number of gaieties\nin Ottawa, and wrote an entreating appeal to D. to come himself on Friday, so we could not take the Ghost's day; after\nmuch consideration we keep Thursday, but try to get Mario\nand C. Patti to sing a song here after our play; it will be 70\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VI\nvery nice if they can do so. The arrangement of our\npolitical dinners also requires some thought. We have to\nstudy which party the proposed guests belong to : which\nprovince, whether French or English\u00E2\u0080\u0094Upper or Lower\nCanada, their social position, etc., etc., so that the dinners\nmay be made as pleasant as possible to the guests.\nWednesday, \2th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Still too fine and warm, and ice bad.\nWe are sorry, as this evening two very good skaters come to\nstay with us, one from Quebec and one from Montreal.\nWe dressed in our best for the Drawing Room, and got\nto the Parliament Buildings at nine. In spite of all the\ngrand arrangements we got out at the wrong door, but\neverything else went off very well. The Ministers went in\nwith us, and we stood by the throne\u00E2\u0080\u0094I with my support\nbehind me\u00E2\u0080\u0094their wives followed, then Senators, and then\nthe World.\nThursday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a great party to-night, and\nopened our new room. The guests assembled at nine, and\nafter having some tea were conducted through unknown\npassages to their future ball-room, where they found 300\nchairs arranged in rows, in front of a very pretty little\nstage, and a band dressed in the gorgeous uniform of the\nGovernor-General's Guards. The entertainment began\nwith music, and was followed by 4 To Oblige Benson,' which\nwent off admirably. People were particularly delighted with\nFred's performance\u00E2\u0080\u0094he did the part of Trotter Southdown;\nand Mrs. Southdown was excellent, too.\nJust as they finished, Mario and M. Saury, a violin-\nplayer, arrived. They came as guests, and would hear of\nno terms. After a little, D. asked Mario to sing, and the\naudience were greatly delighted at his doing so twice. The\nviolin-player was also a great treat. It was wonderfully\nkind of both gentlemen to perform for us, as they only\narrived at Ottawa at iive in the afternoon, and came direct\nfrom a concert. This delightful music made our party\na great success. We went straight into supper after- MARCH 187\nO\nPARLIAMENTARY DINNERS\nwards, and it took some time to feed and ' speed' the\nparting 300.\nFriday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I kept this as a day of rest, and in the\nevening despatched my young party, under Lady Harriet's\nchaperonage, to see ' Pepper's Ghost.' She does not seem\nto have been a good duenna, for she said ' good night' to\nthe young men and maidens directly they were seated,\nand slept composedly through the whole lecture.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It began to pour with rain this afternoon, and the roads were very bad for our dinner-party.\nWe had one of thirty people\u00E2\u0080\u0094the first of a long series of\nsimilar dinners to be given every Saturday for three months.\nThe guests were culled from all parts of Canada; we had\nrepresentatives from the shores of the Atlantic, the Pacific,\nthe St. Lawrence, Lake Huron; Upper and Lower Canadians, French, English and Scotch, 'Grits' (the Opposition)\nand Conservatives (the Government).\nThe night turned out very bad; it blew fearfully, and\nhas blown in a very large window in our new room.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another young lady, a Miss Macpherson\nfrom Toronto, came to stay with us, so now we have representatives of the three great towns in our house.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were out all the morning; but\nthe ice is soft and the snow wet.\nTwo tourists came to skate, in wonderful costumes :\nstriped red-and-yellow stockings, moccasins, bright blue\nblanket-coats, with embroidered shoulder-pieces, and Albanian scarfs round their waists. We asked them to dine\nwith us before the play.\nPeople were quite surprised and delighted with ' The\nFirst Night.' The old actor was most splendidly done by\nM. Kimber, and the singing introduced before and during\nthe piece was excellent.\nFriday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I took a drive in the afternoon, and at\nfour went to the Houses of Parliament to pay my first visit\nthere. I have a seat on the floor of the House, next to the\n[\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 \u00E2\u0080\u0094jar 72\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VI\nSpeaker's. The business was not very interesting, but I\nwas rather amused, as a number of people made very short\nspeeches, and one saw their | tricks and their manners.'\nSaturday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening we had a large Parliamentary dinner. One of my near neighbours was very\ninteresting. He is a ' working-man' member; we had met\nhim soon after his election, when he dined in a rough coat,\nbut now he wears evening clothes ; he talked so pleasantly,\nand was full of information. One of our guests, a French-\nCanadian, made great efforts to reach the nursery when\nhe heard the children romping upstairs, and told me he\nwas most curious to see ' le lord.' I think he imagined\nArchie - must be very peculiar.\nWednesday, April 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove into Ottawa on\nwheels. D. goes in every week to have tete-a-tete interviews\nwith different Members of Parliament. This evening there\nwas a vote of want of confidence in the Government, but\nthe Ministers won by thirty-three.\nWe had ' Benson' for the last time ; very well done, and\nmuch appreciated. The children helped to warm up the\naudience by their shrieks of delight.\nFriday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Two men dined with us : one, the Speaker\nof the Legislature in Manitoba, who has lately been tarred-\nand-feathered by the people, and who came to relate his\nexperiences of that operation. The other, a Mr. Otley\u00E2\u0080\u0094a\nnephew of Sir Hastings Doyle's, who has been engineering\nnear the Rocky Mountains\u00E2\u0080\u0094has walked hundreds of miles\non snow-shoes, lived for months on salt pork, been eaten by\nmosquitoes in summer, and slept and lived, unprepared for\nwinter, in an atmosphere 400 below zero. He came out\nwith us in the Prussian.\nTuesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went to the House, as a' scrimmage\nwas expected. First, there was great excitement over the\nEaster holidays\u00E2\u0080\u0094what length they should be\u00E2\u0080\u0094and then a\nparty motion about which there was a great deal of interest.\n1 Viscount Clandeboye. APRIL 1873\nBALL AT RIDEAU HALL\nThe Opposition had asked for a Committee to inquire into\nthe conduct of members of the Government, accusing them\nof bribery. They lost, and then the Government itself\nasked for the same Committee, saying they courted inquiry.\nThere was a good deal of irritation about the whole affair.\nTuesday, 1 $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The two Miss Bethunes arrived yesterday to stay a week with us, and we opened our new ballroom this evening. It is a fine room, very lofty and well-\nproportioned. It has not yet been painted, so we decorated\nit with white-and-blue twists of tarlatan and bunches of pink\nroses. These encircled all the windows and doors, and\nappeared to be twisted round the flat pillars against the\nwall and across the corners. The crimson throne was at\none end of the room, and there was a place for the band at\nthe other. The ante-room, hall, billiard- and tea-rooms,\nthe passage leading up to my boudoir, and the conservatory,\nlooked very pretty, the latter being lighted with Chinese\nlanterns. The large drawing-room and dining-room were\nboth arranged for supper, and seated 140 at a time. Some\n650 people were present, and, they say, all were pleased.\nThursday, May 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This week we have had lovely\nweather. The sun is quite hot, and I am out all day. We\nhave put up a tent on the lawn, and every afternoon the\nfamily play football, marbles, prisoner's base, and other\ngames, to the great delight of all.\nWe find Parliament is likely to sit another ten days, so\nWe have given up all idea of moving to Quebec at present.\nWe are rather afraid of the heat and the mosquitoes here,\nbut it cannot be helped.\nFriday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Encouraged by the lovely weather, I put\na notice in the paper that I should be 'at home' to-day,\nintending to receive people in the garden, have tea and a\nband there, and at five to let those who liked dance in the\nball-room. The morning was, however, cold and miserable,\nand the afternoon poured with rain ; so I had to sit in the\ndrawing-room. About fifty people came, and they danced\np^\nmmm^ 74\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VI\nindoors all the time, and were apparently quite happy. Nine\nchildren took part in the amusements, the little ones liking\nthe band, and getting quite at home with the strangers.\nSaturday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The provoking weather was fine again\nto-day, and I am under my tent once more. Mr. and Mrs.\nRyan and her daughter arrived from Montreal to stay Sunday with us. Mr. Ryan is a very pleasant Irish Senator,\nhis wife a very nice Swiss-French lady, for whom he waited\nforty years, she marrying someone else in the meantime.\nThursday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I saw Lady Macdonald on Tuesday,\nthe day that Sir John made his splendid speech in the\nHouse, with which Fred was so greatly delighted.\nFriday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I advertised that I should be 4 at home\nbetween three and six' this afternoon. Part of the entertainment was to be out of doors, and part in. The weather\nwas very doubtful all the morning; but we took courage,\nhad the tea laid on the lawn, put up a tent and down a\ncarpet, turned the drawing-room chairs out into the garden,\nand at three were rewarded by the commencement of a\nreally fine afternoon.\nI received in the tent, and the company sat and walked\nabout listening to the Guards' band till after four, when they\nwent into the ballroom and danced very vigorously for the\nrest of the time; but I stayed in the garden and watched the\ndancers come out to the tea, and talked to a few of the old\npeople, though most of them danced, too.\nSaturday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Coulson left us to-day. We were\nsorry to lose him, and, I think, he was sorry to go. He joins\nhis regiment (60th Rifles) at Halifax.\nWe had our last Parliamentary dinner for this Session.\nThe Prime Minister of Prince Edward's Island and some\ncolleagues of his, who are here to try and arrange about\njoining the Confederation, dined.\nWednesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred went to dine in Ottawa, Lady\nHarriet was having tea with me, and D., the Colonel, and\nthe Doctor were looking for fossils, when, to my great MAY I873\nPRINCE EDWARD'S ISLAND\n75\nsurprise, Lord George Campbell was announced\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Duke\nof Argyll's sailor son. We sent to the hotel for his things.\nThursday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred took our guest a ride, and in\nthe afternoon they went with Lady Harriet and Miss Blake\nto the House. We had a dinner-party, which was arranged\nfor a young lady who is going to marry an Englishman,\nand who wanted to dine here before she went home. We\nasked two other girls, and put the smart young man between\nthem! Oddly enough, an old shipmate of his, whom he\nhad not seen for four years, was also at dinner.\nPrince Edward's Island has come into the Confederation,\nso the Governor-General's dominion is enlarged; but he\nloses one of his titles.\nSaturday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A little girl was born this day, and\nthe Queen has telegraphed that she will be her godmother. 76\n'\nCHAPTER VII\nON THE ST. LAWRENCE\nTuesday, June 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Ottawa this morning very\nearly, going by rail to Prescott, with our whole family, the\nnew baby included. There we got into a steamer, and sat\nall day on deck. We had a delightful cruise down the\nriver, and an exciting descent of the Rapids. In one place\nwe passed within a few inches of a wreck, and we felt quite\ncreepy. At Montreal we changed steamers. The children\nwere delighted with the grandeur of the St. Lawrence\nboats, with their enormous saloons and state-cabins. When\nwe were at tea we heard some music\u00E2\u0080\u0094the ' Dead March'\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nbeing played ; and looking out, we saw, passing slowly in the\ndarkness, the steamer with the body of Sir George Cartierj\non board; it was a striking moment\u00E2\u0080\u0094the chapel on board\nlighted up, the band playing, and bells tolling at sea,\nanswered by bells tolling on shore.\nWednesday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We awoke at Quebec, and found it\nwet and cold. In spite of the weather and the early hour,\nwe had a friendly welcome from the people.\nMonday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The little baby's christening-day!\nA large bouquet had been sent me in the morning,\nand beautiful flowers for the font, by Mr. Levi. The\n1 Sir George Cartier, late member for Montreal East, had died in England.\nHe was a descendant of the famous Jacques Cartier who, in 1534, took possession of Canada in the name of Francis I., King of France. JUNE 1873\nQUEBEC\n77\nCathedral was full of people; I had my whole six children\nthere, and they made a very good show. Lady ' Victoria\nAlexandrina Muriel May' behaved admirably, and slept\nsoundly the whole time, in spite of a deluge of Jordan\nwater.\nThen we registered her baptism very fully :\u00E2\u0080\u0094Myself as\n4 Proxy for Her Majesty the Queen'; Lady H. Fletcher,\n' godmother' ; Sir John A. Macdonald, ' godfather '; Fred\nand a Minister, Mr. Campbell\u00E2\u0080\u0094as present.\nBasil was, I am told, on the verge of being naughty, and\nwon all the ladies' hearts by his wicked efforts to climb over\nthe pew, and to knock down all the prayer-books.\nWe came home and rested a little, and at four I was\nI at home.' The company, D., and the Fletchers went out\non the platform and enjoyed themselves, listening to the\nband, but Fred and I were kept hard at work announcing\nand receiving people; we could not stir for an instant, a continuous stream coming in, and he was doubtless much\ntantalised as the young ladies passed him, and left him, like\na sentry, tied to the door-post. I tried to drink a cup of\ntea, but had it nearly shaken over my dress by twenty\nhands, as I said ' How do you do ? ' and gave it up in despair. However, the A.D.C. and I did our duty,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and outside everyone was well entertained, and the affair went off\nwell. We had a family dinner, and all, upstairs and down,\ndrank baby's health.\nTuesday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A long day of Viceregal functions. At\ntwelve we ate a hasty lunch and started, with five children\nand our | suite,' to the Ursuline Convent, where I was to give\naway the prizes.\nThere is a new Lieutenant-Governor here, and as he\nhas a large family, our combined movements on State occasions require a deal of arrangement. The first fact established is, that the Governor-General and I, on public\noccasions, walk first; His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor\nand his wife follow. But the five Lieutenant-Princesses I r\n78\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vn\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 ll\nhave also to be seated in proper positions, and when (as\nto-day) I take three of my family the A.D.C.s tear their\nhair! Priests met us at the convent door, and we proceeded to the room where the prizes were to be given,\nwhich was filled with people. The nuns did not appear\nat all. I found in front me of trays full of books, and as\nthe names of the winners were read out, with an account of\ntheir various merits, they walked past, and I presented\nthem with books. There were at least 200 prizes, every\ngirl in the school, I am sure, having gained from one to\nsix ' rewards of merit.' Then I crowned six of the most\nremarkably virtuous young ladies. The first three wreaths,\nalas! I put on wrong side foremost, but perceiving that the\ngirls managed to turn them round, I was more careful, and\nwas at the end complimented upon the way in which I\nplaced them on their heads. Between each trayful of books\nwe had music. x The ceremony lasted two hours. One lady\nfainted, but the children bore it admirably, and I took\nthem to a field of cut grass to refresh them when it was\nover.\nWe dined at six, for we had to go out early to celebrate\nthe 200th anniversary of the discovery of the Mississippi.\n' Why on earth ? ' you will exclaim. Well, I don't quite\nknow why, but the Laval University has to find some\nobject for a yearly fete, and the discoverers were French-\nCanadians.\nThe celebration was a tremendous affair. For three\nhours I sat on a very hard and stately arm-chair, with my\nLieutenant-Governor beside me, on my right an empty\nspace, on the other side of which sat His Ex. and his Lieutenant-Governess .\nFriday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We christened a large new ship this\nmorning\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Earl of Dufferin. The day seemed fine, but\nheavy showers came on. The ship is on the stocks at present,\nand I had great difficulty in breaking the bottle, as the\nrope was badly hung, and when I aimed at the narrow bow JUNE 1873\nTADOUSAC\n79\nit would swing away. At the third effort, however, I succeeded.\nIn the evening we attended a concert given in aid of the\nwidow of a poor gunner who was killed by the bursting of\na gun the day before we arrived here.\nSaturday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove down to our new yacht. The\nGovernment has fitted up a vessel for us\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Druid.\nMost charming cabins are arranged for me, and everything\nis perfect for yachting\u00E2\u0080\u0094but I have to combine sailor clothes\nwith garments enough for two months of Viceregal ceremonies, which would be difficult even on the Great Eastern. I\nfear Dent will go mad with the agony of crushing my things\ninto 4 bunkers.' My cabin has a comfortable bed, a hanging-\npress, and a large glass, ornamented with pink ribbon and\nmuslin. D. has an excellent cabin off it, and Dent another.\nThe dining-room is panelled with chintz and light wood, and\nFred sleeps on one of the sofas there. We have a nice after-\ncabin for a drawing-room, and Lady Harriet and the Colonel\nhave small rooms off it. To-night baby sleeps on board\nwith her two nurses, and we sail for Tadousac.\nSunday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast we went to our new\nhouse at Tadousac. It is so pretty, with red roof, green\nblinds, and white walls. We have a platform, upon which\nwe sit and look out upon the St. Lawrence, and on to\nwhich all the sitting-rooms open. The children will, I\nthink, be very happy and comfortable here until our return,\nfor we do not remain here now.\nThe clergyman has not yet arrived, so there was no\nservice. We sat on the sands and paddled a little in D.'s\nRice Lake canoe\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Lady May. Then we returned to our\nship to dine and sleep.\nMonday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a stormy morning: Dent, my\nprecious maid, wild about her boxes, and giving warning on\nthe spot; myself in despair, for she is a treasure. On\nshore another valuable member of our household also in\na tantrum about something, and when I land I must if I\n80\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VII\nencounter her. Dent will, I trust, calm down, for I really\ncan't bear the idea of losing her.\nAn address was presented to His Ex. by the Tadou-\nsacians on the occasion of his becoming a householder here.\nWe gave a house-warming, and had the Cure, and the\nSquire's agent and his daughter, and our captain to dinner.\nWe sat on our balcony till nine o'clock, and then came on\nboard.\nTuesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started in a boat directly after\nbreakfast to see the salmon-fishery, and saw ten fish caught\nin a labyrinth.\nWednesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The anniversary of our arrival in\nCanada. We left Tadousac during the night, and had a\nmost lovely day on board, sitting out reading; the weather\nperfect. We reached the mouth of the Godbout in the\nafternoon, and the owners, or, rather, the hirers, of that\nriver came on board to bring us two salmon, and to make\nplans for to-morrow. They are Mr. Gilmour, Mr. Cross,\nand Mr. Muir.\nThursday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up before six o'clock, and\nstarted for the shore. In the night the wind had risen\na little, and we were in the happy position of being anchored\nin a swell. However, we got safely to the river, which\nwas quite smooth, and the weather beautifully warm. We\nbreakfasted at the wooden huts, and fished all day. It\nwas almost too fine for the salmon; they jumped and\nfrisked about under our noses, and would not rise, so that\nafter many hours' hard work there were only three fish to\nshow. Fred caught one his very first throw, but did no\nmore after this hopeful beginning. The Colonel retired to\nbed on his return to the ship; but the swell is better !\nFriday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and Colonel Fletcher went off early\nin the morning to fish, and Lady Harriet and I met them\nin the afternoon. They had had very little sport, but D.\nhad some fun with one salmon : in pursuing it he fell into.\nthe water, but held on to his fish and landed it; he had to\niM JUNE 1873\nTHE MINGAN\narray himself in Mr. Gilmour's clothes, and when we returned to our ship we found such a gale blowing that it\nwas impossible to send the boat back again, so D. had to\ncarry off his borrowed plumes.\nWe bought two little beavers from fhe Indians, to keep\nas pets on board. The crew were greatly interested in them,\nand we have established them in a barrel on deck, and\namuse ourselves with giving them baths and feeding them.\nA rough-looking evening; we are to start during the\nnight.\nThe Mingan, Sunday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Found ourselves in a\nsplendid harbour this morning, where we shall never feel the\nslightest movement; on one side is an island, and on the\nother we see a little settlement of Indian wigwams, their\nnicely-built chapel, and some houses belonging to the\n'Honourable Company' (the Hudson's Bay). We had\nservice in the cabin, and after lunch went ashore.\nA priest visits these out-of-the-way stations once a year,\nand he happens to be here now. The Indians are very\nobedient to him, and are religious in their way. It was\nvery picturesque to see them troop to church, the women\ndressed in gaudy colours, with cloth caps of red and black\non their heads (something the shape of sailors' red, pointed\nnightcaps), their babies and children with them. We\nfollowed them into the chapel, and found all the squaws\nsquatting on one side, and the men on the other. They\nsang a Canticle\u00E2\u0080\u0094the women one verse, the men the next;\nthe music was a melancholy wail, with very few notes, and\nthe voices of the singers were thin and weak, but it was\ninteresting and curious. I should like to have stayed till\nthe end, but the Chief began to get us chairs, and to bring\nus into notice, so we left.\nWe walked across the little peninsula on which the\nchapel is, got into our canoes on the river Mingan, and\npaddled up to look at the fishing ground. It is at the foot\nof a very pretty waterfall.\nG\nr- 82\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VII\nII-1\nThe Priest and the Captain dined with us. The former\nis a pleasant man. He is just going up to the Esquimaux.\nHe is very ill at sea, and has before him a voyage in a small\nschooner which may last three weeks. These missionary\npriests have hard lives. We were told that on Saturday\nhe had scarcely had anything to eat, the Indians having\nnothing to give him. The huts here are made of poles very\nlightly covered with birch-bark ; in each of these tents seven\nor eight families live.\nThe priest in his yearly visits to these Indians arranges\nall of a suitable age in couples, and marries them; and\nthere is a total absence of all love-making. They are very\nmoral: drink (when they can get it) and laziness being\ntheir sins. Those we have seen here are hideous.\nThere is a great meeting at a place called Bersimis\nonce a year, and all the Indians, that can, go there; the\ngreater part of the marriages take place then. The Chief\nhad on a black frock-coat ornamented with epaulets. He\ncalled D. ' Brother.' The same man received one of our\nPrinces when they came here, and saluted him in the same\nway, then showed him a medal he wore on his breast, and\nsaid, ' Ta mere ; tu connais ?'\nMonday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up at six, and went in our\ncanoes up the Mingan. It is about an hour's paddle.\nThe three rods fished away, and D. caught two salmon, one\na twenty-pound fish; this was all the success before eleven\no'clock, though there were about ten rises. It became very\nhot at this time, and we went into our tents to wait for the\ncool of the day. The gentlemen bathed, and in getting into\nthe canoe to go to the bathing-place were upset, and wet\nall their clothes.\nWe were just going to begin fishing again, when an\nIndian canoe arrived bringing us very sad news. One\nof our footmen had gone out fishing and was drowned:\nWe returned immediately. We saw the place where the\naccident happened; on the rocks lay a piece of bread he JUNE 1873\nTHE MINGAN\nhad been eating. He had got up and stood at the edge of the\nwater with his rod. The steward said, \ Can you swim ? '\n'No.' ' Then take care, for it is slippery, and the water is\nvery deep.' ' Never fear,' he said, and instantly slipped*\nHe put up his hands to take off a mosquito-veil he had\non, and disappeared. The steward dived after him, but he\nnever rose at all. A boat was got, and presently the men\nsaw the thick end of a fishing-rod sticking up. They took\nhold of it, and lifted the poor dead body up with it. He\nappeared to be upright in the water, the rod fast in his\nhand.\nThe Hudson's Bay Company overseer has arranged\neverything, and the funeral will be to-morrow.\nTuesday, July 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The priest gave us a place in the\nchurchyard here, and at two o'clock to-day the funeral took\nplace; the flags were half-mast high, and every possible\nmark of mourning and respect was shown. All the crew\nattended, and the sailors carried the body to the grave. D.\nread the service.\nWednesday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At three o'clock to-day we started to\ngo up the river.\nThe fishermen are not very fortunate ; the salmon are\nnot rising, and the greater part of those that have been\nlanded have been hooked by the tail or in the back. Fred\ncaught five ; one weighed 23J lbs., and it was taken in a\ncurious way: the hook never touched it, but it was caught\nin a noose round the tail. Colonel Fletcher got two, but\nD. was very unlucky.\nThe morning was extremely foggy, but the afternoon\nwas fine, and we dined out on the rocks, and came on\nboard to a late tea.\nThursday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The fishermen again left in the afternoon and went to sleep up at the Waterfall. The night\nwas wet, and there was thunder and lightning.\nFriday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I went up the river\nafter lunch with the Captain, who is to have some fishing. 84\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. Vtt\nThe salmon will not rise, and it was in vain that everybody\ntried every dodge to entice them; they will not be caught.\nWe dined on the rocks, and left our gentlemen in their tents\nfor another day, coming back again with the Captain, who\nwas, I fear, much disappointed with his want of success.\nWe reached the ship in such a fog!\nSaturday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We spent a quiet day on board, and only\nwent ashore for half an hour, to visit Mrs. Scott, the wife of\nthe Hudson's Bay Agent. She is a French-Canadian, and\nmust live a lonely life here. We also went to look at the\ngrave of our poor man. The gentlemen returned in the\nevening, and we had another wet night. They had had\nvery bad sport. It turns out that the foot of a waterfall\nis an impossible place to fish in. The salmon do not rise\nat all, but a great many get foul-hooked; this accounts for\nour ill-success.\nSunday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had intended leaving the Mingan today, but it is too stormy. We had prayers on board, and\nthen went for a walk on the island, and looked for fossils,\nand saw a live seal, a flock of wild duck, and three tame\ngoats.\nMonday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast we fished for trout. I\ncaught six good ones, and was the only lucky person; the\nothers got some tiny creatures. We returned to our ship\nat three o'clock, and instantly got under way. The afternoon was lovely, and we spent it in that kind of busy idleness which distinguishes life on board ship. 3.30: Rumour\nthat a seal is seen ; rush to the side\u00E2\u0080\u0094get out rifles, opera-\nglasses, telescopes\u00E2\u0080\u0094fire\u00E2\u0080\u0094splash; all right! nobody hurt;\nseal looks up again. 3.50: Number of sea-birds to starboard; fire again. 4.15: A whale! he appears, disappears,\nturns up again for nearly an hour. 5 o'clock-: An island !\n5.10 : On the island thousands of sea-gulls sitting on their\neggs. ^.20: Fire at the island, tremendous excitement\namongst the gulls, and instant flight of the whole colony.\n5.30: Attend to the tame partridge: fetch water for her, catch July 1873 GASP&\nflies for her. 5.50: Attend to the beavers; they refuse to\ncome and be looked at; are they ill ? Oh, the poor pets !\n'Turn their box upside down'\u00E2\u0080\u0094no, they won't come out.\n' Shake them,' ' put in your hand,' etc., etc. ' Anticosti in\nsight'; everyone rushes to look at it. A long, low strip of\nland, where we are glad to see there is nothing to be seen,\nas many people wanted us to stay there. 6.30: Dinner.\n6.50: A shower. 7.30: A beautiful sunset. 7.40: Waves\ngetting up, passengers getting less and less frisky. 8.15 :\nAssured that in five hours it will be calm* 8.30: Colonel\nFletcher says ' good night.' 9: Tea comes\u00E2\u0080\u0094ladies won't\nattempt it. 9.10: Lady Harriet disappears. 9.30: All in\nbed, and, I am happy to add, asleep and well.\nTuesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A new page in our Canadian history\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nGaspe. This morning I came on deck, and found that we\nwere steaming up a lovely lough into a splendid harbour*\nA sunny landscape: hills, and white houses, and red roofs\ndotted about; sufficient houses to make it very gay, and not\nenough to make a town of it. 4 Such a place for a sailing-\nboat,' D. thinks, and is delighted with it.\nA gentleman comes on board, and we make arrangements for the morrow. We get our mail, and write our\nletters.\nIn the afternoon a deputation appears, and reads an\naddress, to which His Ex. replies in ' suitable terms.' The\ndeputation consists of the Mayor, the Custom House\nOfficers, the Doctor, and other local dignitaries. They ask\nif we will have a drrve, and promise to have carriages ready\nfor us when we like. So at four o'clock we go ashore. On\nthe landing-place we are met by our friends, and I find\nthat Gaspe driving is all to be done tete-a-tete. The Mayor\ntakes His Ex. in a gig, I follow with a millowner in\nthe next. Number Three contains the Colonel and Mr.\nEden (of whom more hereafter); Number Four, Lady\nHarriet and the Doctor ; Fred closes the procession with\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nI don't know who; but he must have been the fifth in order 86\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vn\nof precedence at Gaspe. It was amusing, starting off in\nthis way, and we took a pretty drive for nearly two hours,\nand made ourselves as agreeable as possible to our\nseveral companions. It was rather fun, in the evening,\ncomparing notes, as to the various items of news, and the\ndifferent opinions we had gleaned from our drivers. One\nconsidered Gaspe the rising place in the universe, another\nviewed it gloomily; etc., etc.\nMr. Kidd and Mr. Campbell (belonging to the Governor-\nGeneral's office) dined with us, and we saw some fireworks\nand a bonfire in our honour on shore.\nWednesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very great day. Up at six, and go\nashore; tents and baggage are packed into canoes and go\ndown the bay, while we drive to meet them. We are in our\ngigs again; but ours is a double one, and we are driven by\nthe Mr. Eden of whom I spoke before. He is the \ oldest\ninhabitant,' a Custom House officer, and a most sanguine\nperson. He assures us we shall catch fifty salmon, and\nviews everything in the couleur de rosiest light. We do\nhave.a most lovely drive. The country is like the Highlands, and we see wild hills on one side, and Gaspe Bay on\nthe other. The road is through trees, and it would be impossible anywhere to see a more beautiful country. The\nday is very fine, we drive very fast, and it is most pleasant.\nIn an hour and a half we meet the canoes on the Dartmouth River, and we become most picturesque! Imagine\nsix birch-bark canoes in procession; in each two men stand\nupright, with long poles in their hands, While two passengers\nsit in the centre of the boat. We have three hours' journey\nin this way up a beautiful river, going up rapids and enjoying\nourselves. Then we arrive at a salmon-pool, get out, and\npitch our tents. We have two bell-tents, a small one for\nFred, and a tent for the cook. The twelve canoe-men\nmake one of birch-bark for themselves. We hoist our flag\nand take possession. Our chef is capital; he works away,\nbuilds himself a fire-place, gets out his pots and pans, and\nsoon sets before us a splendid dinner. We have soup and JULY 1873\nTHE DARTMOUTH RIVER\nfish, and entrees and pudding, and are far from ' roughing\nit.' We have but two trials in life\u00E2\u0080\u0094one is great, the other\nsmall\u00E2\u0080\u00941st, the terrible flies; and 2nd, the obstinacy of the\nsalmon, who do not rise. The gentlemen whip the pools and\ncatch nothing, and we ladies find a few trout; then we\nhave tea, and retire to our tents. We have a little trouble\nin them at first. Mosquito-curtains have been put up,\nbut as I endeavour to crawl under them the whole erection\ntumbles down, and it is some time before I am safe inside.\nThursday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are all up early, and breakfast at\nfive, get into our canoes, and proceed higher up the river.\nThe pools we reach to-day are very lovely, and we have\na very pleasant day at them. I catch a number of trout,\nso do Fred and Lady Harriet; and Fred got a salmon\u00E2\u0080\u0094the\nonly one. We stopped fishing at eleven; the men made\na bower of branches and birch-bark, and we sat and read\nand ate until four, when we fished again. The last pool\nwas so pretty\u00E2\u0080\u0094or, rather, fine. There were great cliffs on\neither side, and in front a waterfall with a wall of rock and\ntrees behind it, the further course of the river being quite\nhidden from view. At eight o'clock we left, and paddled\ndown to our camp, passing through some great rapids. The\nworst are called the ' Lady's Steps.' Tea and bed followed.\nFriday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Again we breakfast at five, and begin\nour return journey in exactly the same way as we came.\nFinding an invitation from an American gentleman to go\nup his river, the St. John, and to stay with him, we\naccept; so we go on board the Druid, wash and dress better\nthan is possible in a tent, and in two hours begin a new\nadventure.\nWe drive for half an hour, cross a stream in a boat,\nwalk a little way, and then meet six saddle-horses. These\nwe mount, and ride for three hours through the forest; five\nmiles of the way being through a burnt wood. The tall,\ncharred trunks are all that remain of the old forest, but a\nbeautiful fresh underwood has grown up everywhere. This\nride brings us to Mr. Curtis's 'shanty' on the St. John, Ill\n88\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vn\nI could not get on with him at first, but I soon found\nthat he was very nice, and that it was only pre-occupation\nthat was the matter with him\u00E2\u0080\u0094and no wonder, for it seems\nthat we ought to have brought blankets with us, and the\npoor man is in despair, as he, of course, has a very limited\nsupply in the backwoods. We swear that we like doing\nwithout blankets, and he is happy. There was time for a\nlittle fishing, and Fred caught a salmon. Lady Harriet\nand I sleep in a tent; D., the Colonel, and Fred, side by side\nin the house. Off their bedroom is a dining-room, partly\ncovered in with mosquito-curtains, under which we dine.\nThe sand-flies are dreadful here, but we try to defy them\nwith smoky fires (called 'smudges') and curtains. After\ndinner we sit out of doors before a pile of blazing wood.\nYou remember that I told you that a poor manservant\nof ours was drowned at the Mingan. As we knew nothing\nabout his people, we were unable to communicate the news\nof his death to them, so D. ordered any letters that might\narrive for him to be brought to himself. The first of these\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094which we have just received\u00E2\u0080\u0094was from a servant girl he\nwas attached to at Ottawa, and was dated exactly seven\ndays after the day of the accident. In it she said, ' I have\nbeen in my new place a week, and I like it very much, but\nI had such a dreadful dream on the day of my arrival. I\ndreamt that you and Nowell were upset in a boat together,\nand that Nowell was saved, but you were drowned.' As\nthe spot where the accident occurred is in an uninhabited\nregion on the coast of Labrador, more than 500 miles\ndistant from Ottawa, without either telegraphs or posts, it\nwas impossible that she should have had the news of her\nlover's death when this letter was written.\nSaturday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast this morning we got\ninto canoes, and were four hours going up the river ; however, we stopped five times on our way to fish, and so the\ntime did not appear long. We only caught trout thus far ;\nbut we have reached ' Kelly's Pool,' and are told that here\nsalmon will surely come. D. catches one (18 lbs.) almost JULY 1873\nPERCE\nimmediately. Mr. Curtis hooks one for me, and hands me the\nrod, but in so doing off it comes ; then he hooks another, I\ntake the rod again, and enjoy myself immensely while I play\nthe fish. I landed him, and great was my joy and pride.\nColonel Fletcher and Lady Harriet each play one, but she\nloses hers. Then we were carried swiftly down the rapids\nhome. Dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094fireside\u00E2\u0080\u0094bed ! Alas ! bed is not the end.\nThere was frost to-night, and the limited supply of blankets\nwas terrible. I woke at one, very cold, got up, and dressed\nin all my clothes, and lay down again; but not to sleep. I\nshivered till four, and at this early hour on Sunday morning might have been found sitting at a great wood fire out of\ndoors : a tent on my right, where sleeps my friend ; behind\nme a wooden house, where sleep my husband, brother,\nand the Colonel; to the left a section of a tent, jutting out of\nwhich may be seen the feet of sleeping men; one\u00E2\u0080\u0094who is\nawake\u00E2\u0080\u0094attends to my fire; a dog lies by, the river roUs along\nin the background. In this picture I may be represented\nreading a novel; the primeval forest extends itself on every\nside of me. The rest of the world got up to breakfast at\nseven, and we rode and drove home to our ship again. Mr.\nCurtis ' of Boston ' was most kind to us and very pleasant.\nMonday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started in the night, and found\nourselves next morning off Perce. The view from our ship\nis quite lovely. There is the great, precipitous rock standing\nout by itself, with a natural arch through it, which gives\nthe name to the place; then, on the mainland, the red cliffs\nrise up above the sea, crowned with green shrubs, and the\nplateau on which the little town is built slopes down to the\nwater, and ends in another great cliff. The sun shines,\nand everything is delightful. Colonel Fletcher and D. both\nmade sketches; when they had finished we steamed round\nthe rock, and got into a boat to row ashore.\nA salute was fired (by the blacksmith), and all the fishing population of Perce, headed by their Mayor, Manager,\nand the Sheriff, met us, and of course read an address.\nPerce is a most important fishing-station. It is princi- ^ptzf*\n90\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VII\npally owned by Jersey people who have never been to it,\nand their representative here is Mr. Orange. In addition\nto its beautiful scenery it has the merit of spotless purity\n(in spite of a strong smell of fish pervading the atmosphere). The houses and stores are all of the freshest\nwhite, with red window-sashes and doors; the streets are of\ngravel. When His Ex. had replied to the address, we went\nthrough the places where the fish is salted, dried, etc.\nThe operation is as follows :\u00E2\u0080\u0094On a table on the beach\nthe cod is beheaded, cut open, and spread flat. He is then\nbrought into a large, square room, laid upon the floor, and\nsalted; above him, below him, and around him, are his\nfellow-cods. After remaining in this retreat for three or\nfour days, he is put into a great tub and washed. From\nthis he gets into a barrow, and is wheeled out of doors\nto a long bed of dried fir-boughs, upon which he reposes\nwith his neighbours and gets dried. He ought to lie there\nfor six days, and the Perce fishermen have to watch the\nclouds all that time, and rush to lift him into a shed\nshould it threaten to rain. A shower would spoil him.\nFrom this free-and-easy stage he is removed, and stacked\non the gravel, and covered over with birch-bark and heavy\nstones ; this is his final trial, and he is now fit to fulfil the\nobject of his existence, and to be eaten.\nThe stacks are really works of art\u00E2\u0080\u0094they are so neat and\ntrim. We also inspected the stores and shops of the\ntown. We were told there was a splendid view from the\ntop of a mountain or high cliff above the town, and we\nstarted to drive there. I only got to the bottom of the\nworst climb in the gig with the Mayor and Mayoress, but\ntho gentlemen went to the top. In the afternoon we con*\ntinued our journey up the Bay of Chaleur to Paspediac,\noff which little town we anchored at ten o'clock.\nTuesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went ashore at 7 a.m. to look at\nthis place, and found a sleepy Agent, who could not rise to\nthe magnitude of the occasion, or comprehend that it was\nthe Governor-General who represented the 4 early bird.' JULY 1873\nCHATHAM\n91\nPaspediac is another part of the Jersey fishing-business.\nHere ships are built, and in them the dried cod is sent off\nto its various destinations.\nWe were detained an hour by our engine, which had\ngot out of order, and so did not reach Dalhousie till five\no'clock. The scenery towards the end of the Bay was lovely,\nand the surroundings of this village reminded us of Scotland.\nWeiiad not seen such high hills for a long time.\nThe courageous people of Dalhousie fired off some old\nguns which had been found at the bottom of the river, and\nit is a mercy no accident occurred.\nThe principal inhabitants met us on the wharf, but\nHis Ex.'s hand was first shaken by a black man, who\nappears to be a pet jester of the neighbourhood. Later,\nthis gentleman perceived he had forgotten me, and made\na dive through the crowd to shake hands with me. My\ngravity was rather upset by this unexpected welcome.\nWe walked to the Court House, and had an address\npresented; then D. took a drive, and I went up to the\nhouse of a senator\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Hamilton. We got on board again\nin time for dinner, and continued our journey in the night.\nWednesday, \6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have had a rough twenty-four\nhours, and could not enjoy the deck until we were some way\nup the Miramichi river. The country round here is flat\nand uninteresting. We reached Chatham in the afternoon, but a sad accident occurred in firing the salute.\nAn address was read, and lunch prepared at the house\nof the Member, Mr. Muirhead, to which we had to pass under\nan arch specially erected in our honour. We returned in\nthe evening to attend a concert given by the convent-school.\nThursday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We invited Mr., Mrs., and Miss Muirhead, and two other gentlemen, to breakfast on board, and to\ngo with us to Newcastle, a town a short way from Chatham.\nThere was an address, and a drive to a new bridge which\nis being built over the river, and then we set sail\u00E2\u0080\u0094or,\nrather, ' got under steam '\u00E2\u0080\u0094on our way to Prince Edward's\nIsland, where I hope to receive letters. IM\n92\nCHAPTER VIII\nTHE MARITIME PROVINCES\nFriday, July 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we found ourselves in\nsight of Prince Edward's Island; and very pretty it looked\nin the sunshine. The cliffs are low, but they show a red\nline above the water, crowned with green, and the whole\ncountry is much more cultivated and more park-like than\nanything we have as yet seen in Canada.\nWe anchored at ten, and got some letters from Tadousac,\nwith good accounts of the children f and at twelve we\nlanded at Charlotte Town.\nThere was a crowd, and a very pretty arch, one of the\nmottoes on it being ' Long courted, won at last,' in allusion\nto the island having just joined the Dominion.\nWe are staying at Government House with Mr.1 and\nMrs. Robinson. They took us a drive through red lanes,\nfarms, trees and ferns\u00E2\u0080\u0094country sights which are quite\ndelightful to us, who of late have only seen forest scenery.\nSaturday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We walked through the town, and in\nthe afternoon had a reception, and in the evening a dinnerparty.\nMonday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we started to take the\nfirst trip on the first railway made in the island. About\nthirty people came with us, and at a distant station we\nwere met by carriages, in which we drove to the seashore,\n1 Sir William Robinson, Governor oi Trinidad, 1891,\ni JULY 1873\nCHARLOTTE TOWA\n93\nwhere we had lunch. Then we returned home by the same\nroute, and had a little rest before we dressed for a ball at\nGovernment House.\nTuesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove out with Mr. and Mrs.\nRobinson to do some shopping, to look at a fine view of\nthe town, and to be photographed under the triumphal\narch. Then we went off to the Druid, and H.M.S. Spartan\nmanned yards as we passed. There was a regatta in the\nharbour, for which D. had given prizes, and we had invited\nforty people to lunch with us on board and to see the races\nfrom our ship. We had a very pleasant afternoon, and as\nsoon as the sports were over we went ashore to give away\nthe prizes. The day was a perfect summer day.\nWe dined quietly at Government House, and dressed\nfor the ball after dinner. This ball was part of the reception which the local Parliament had resolved to give the\nGovernor-General.\nIt was in the Parliament Buildings, and the Senate\nChamber was beautifully arranged for it. From the ceiling\nhung a thing like a chandelier, made of roses and moss,\nwhich spread out into single ropes of flowers, attached\nto the gallery all round the room, forming a light canopy\nof flowers above us; then there were flags and wreaths\non the walls; so that nothing could have been prettier.\nBesides a dressing-room, a little resting-place was provided for me, in which there was a large supply of refreshment !\nThe supper-room was decorated with green, and with\na large painting of D.'s arms, surrounded by all the\nCanadian flags, that of Newfoundland being still rolled up\n(it has not joined the Union). The supper was a sort of\npicnic, being sent by different people, and was very good.\nA pretty girl with whom Fred danced said to him : ' I\nnoticed that you danced with all the plainest girls and the\nworst dancers at Government House on Monday, and I said\nto myself, \" Well, really, I don't think Mr. Hamilton is such\nM-' 94\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VIII\na swell that he need dance with all the plain girls and the bad\ndancers,\" '\u00E2\u0080\u0094alluding, of course, to the Governor-General's\npartners being chosen for him. Fred immediately asked\nher for a second waltz. When we left, we were accompanied\nby a torchlight procession to the pier ; there we got into our\nboat, and went on board the Druid. All the ladies, in their\nball-dresses, came out on the balcony of the house to see us\noff; and the arches were illuminated.\nThursday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we reached Pictou.\nI must mention here that the climate of Prince Edward's\nIsland was very much more like England than that of our\npart of Canada, and both Lady Harriet and I felt the\nchange. She got hay-fever and asthma, and is in bed, and\nI have a cold; however, I did not like to miss seeing the\ncoal-mines of the Dominion, so I went with D. to inspect\nthem. I saw all the above-ground part: the engines, the\nventilators, etc. The principal ventilator is called the\n'Lady Dufferin,' and there are two engines which go by\nthe name of the 'Lord Dufferin ' and the ' Lady Victoria.'\nD. went down the mine with Fred and Colonel Fletcher.\nThe shaft was 1,000 feet, and it took them just fifty-four\nseconds to get to the bottom in a lift. They stayed down\nthere an hour and a half, while I talked to the managers\nat the top.\nWe got back to the Druid in time for dinner. All night\nthere was a fearful noise going on\u00E2\u0080\u00944 coaling,' just over our\nheads.\nFriday, 25^.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Sailing through the Gut of Canso, with\nthe land close to us on each side, on our way to Louisburg,\nwhere we anchor in the morning.\nSaturday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There is a fog outside the harbour, so\nwe are caught here, but have had a most pleasant day.\nI looked in a book of universal knowledge, and read\nthat Louisburg, in addition to its historical interest, is a\ntown with broad streets and stone houses; it is, in reality,\na small village, consisting of a few scattered wooden cottages. JULY l87\nD\nCAPE BRETON\n95\nWe landed at one of these, borrowed two gigs, and set off\nto drive twenty-five miles to the capital of Cape Breton,\nSydney by name. D. drove me, and Fred the Colonel;\nLady Harriet remained on board.\nWe drove through pretty woods, occasionally getting a\nglimpse of one of the several arms of the sea which cut\nCape Breton in so many places, sat by the roadside to\nlunch, and reached Sydney in the afternoon.\nIt is situated on a beautiful harbour, and we found\nseveral large steamers there; the biggest was the Hibemia,\nwhich has just been laying the Atlantic cable, in company\nwith the Great Eastern. We went on board her, and saw the\nmachinery, and the tanks which held the cable. We had\nasked to see the mayor of the town, and when a gentleman\njumped out of a carriage and accosted us, we took it for\ngranted that this was he, and accepted his offer of a pair\nof fresh horses and a cup of tea. We went to his very\npretty house, where his English wife received us graciously;\nand then D. heard that a deputation was waiting for him at\nthe hotel. There he found the real Simon Pure, and spent\nan extra hour with him and the other magnates of the place;\nso that we left very late, and had a dark drive back through\nthe woods.\nThe weather was quite lovely, and the trip extremely\npleasant. At four o'clock we bought a Sydney paper, in\nwhich we found our arrival announced. Very sharp of the\nSydney Press.\nLouisburg: Sunday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are detained here by the\nfog. After church we went to look at the old forts; there\nare scarcely any stone remains, but Colonel Fletcher's\nmilitary eye easily discovered the form and plan of the\nfortifications in the grass.\nMonday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started this morning, and got on a\ngood way before the fog came down upon us again. Fog\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nrain\u00E2\u0080\u0094Atlantic swell!\nTuesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Still very foggy. We had great doubts 96\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VIII\nas to whether we should get into Halifax at all, and stories\nof ships being kept out for three weeks were rife. However,\nwith great care, we poked our nose in just at the right place,\nand at two o'clock appeared in the harbour, to everybody's\nastonishment.\nIt was so wet we did not go ashore, and put off our\nlanding till next morning. The Lieutenant-Governor and\nMrs. Archibald came to see us, and arrangements for endless gaieties were made.\nWednesday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At twelve o'clock we landed, on a slab\nof marble which commemorates the arrival of the Prince of\nWales on the same day, thirteen years ago.\nThe weather was most dull and muggy, and gave a\ncertain melancholy to the ceremonial of address reading.\nFred and, the Colonel had been exulting all the way upon\nagain seeing f real soldiers,' after all the Volunteers that\nhave welcomed us in other places ; but I have been provided\nwith a fund of chaff against them by the non-arrival of\nthe ' real' guard of honour, who made some mistake2\nand turned up an hour later at the Government House,\ninstead of at the wharf.\nI received Admiral Fanshawe, his wife and daughter\nand son, in the afternoon, and when the day cleared up and\nthe sun shone we saw that we were anchored in a very\ncheerful place close to the town. Dartmouth, which is almost a part of Halifax, is on one side of us, and woods and\nvillas and large institutions are dotted round the Bay, while\nat the mouth of the harbour is a small fortified island.\nThere is one man-of-war here, and we have just missed the\nFlying Squadron.\nThere is a question as to whether Parliament should be\nprorogued on August 13th or not, and the papers are advising\nthe Governor-General, and abusing him in advance, if he\ndoes not follow each of their different counsels,\nThursday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I went a drive with,\nMrs. Fanshawe. and saw the North-west Arm and Bed- JULY 1873\nHALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA\n97\nford Basin, and enjoyed the country drive; the weather was\nlovely.\nIn the evening we held a Drawing-room at Government\nHouse, and had the pleasure of ' full-dressing' in our\ncabins. We got ashore in safety, and had a very successful\ngathering. Everyone said, ' We did not know there were so\nmany people in Halifax.' Going back to the ship, we\nfound ourselves in a fog, and my,feathers and tulle were\nmuch the worse for it. Dent says, with indignation,' Every\nday in this yacht takes pounds and pounds off the value of\nyour clothes.'\nFriday, August 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was the day of the Regatta,\nand, had it been fine, it would have been a very pretty\nsight; but as there was fog and rain, little except the lunch\ntook place.\nWe had a great dinner at the Lieutenant-Governor's,\nwhich was long but pleasant. One of my neighbours was\nthe R.C. Archbishop of Halifax, a clever, amusing Irishman.\nThe dinner had rather a funny finale. Mr. Archibald\nproposed the Queen's health, and we all stood up to drink\nit; the band played the National Air, and at the end of the\nusual eight bars we all prepared to sit down. But no; the\nband went on\u00E2\u0080\u0094a slight smile passed down the table ; eight\nbars more\u00E2\u0080\u0094the band strikes up another verse ; until at last,\nafter several of these unexpected beginnings, the whole of the\nsolemn and stately party broke out into a hearty laugh.\nThere was an evening party after dinner, and D. and I\nwalked about and talked to all the strangers till 11.30\no'clock, when we returned to our ship.\nSaturday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Early this morning we went to visit\nthe fortifications, and saw three different sets of forts. We\nreturned to the Druid at two, and had the Local Government to lunch. They are in opposition to the Dominion\nParliament, and their papers were rather disagreeable\nabout our visit here ; but I am happy to say they have set\naside all political differences for the moment, and really\nH\n\u00C2\u00AB f 1\n1 )\n- J ft\n!* . '\n98\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VIII\nseem as if they could not do enough for us. The result\nis, that next week we have four balls, three monster picnics,\nthree dinners, a concert, a cricket-match, and a review. Is\nit not fearfully kind ? 4 What shall I wear ? ' is a question\nI must debate seriously every day.\nWe dined to-night at Admiralty House with Admiral\nand Mrs. Fanshawe, where we met the same people as last\nnight and a few sailors. One guest, a midshipman, was\nPrince Louis of Battenberg.\nSunday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were to go to the English Cathedral\nto-day, but our coachman, after driving us to the Roman\nCatholic Cathedral, proceeded to another church, at which\nwe remained, and only discovered afterwards that it was the\nwrong one. It was a lovely afternoon, and we sat on deck\ntill bedtime.\nMonday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A day of Herculean labours! At 8.30 a.m.\nD. went to breakfast with Admiral Fanshawe, to see his\nbeautiful drawings. At ten we rowed down to the Dockyard to meet him, and all went on board the Royal\nAlfred. She and the Spartan manned yards as we approached, and then we got on board and went into every\nhole and corner of the ship. We had finished the inspection about 12.30, when we returned to the Druid, and\nprepared to receive a party at luncheon, including the\nLieutenant-Governor and the Admiral. No sooner had\nwe finished this meal than we started for a picnic given by\nthe Irish Benevolent Society. D. and I sailed to it in our\nown little boat. The rendezvous was at McNab's Island,\nand we were received on landing by gentlemen wearing\ngreen sashes. The President armed me up the hill by way\nof helping me. He, of course, impeded my progress considerably, and when he stumbled and nearly fell, told me\nthat itwas 'the blind leading the blind.' There was a\nlovely view from the door of the large picnic* shed; but\nwe had to go in at once, and dance a quadrille. At five we\nhad a' cold collation ' and many toasts, The old Archbishop AUG. l873\nLOBSTER-SPEARING\n99\nwas rather amusing. When the chairman, who proposed\nhis health, said he had known him for 4 forty years,' he\ngroaned aloud, which made us all laugh. We returned to the\nDruid at seven o'clock, and having re-dressed and re-dined,\nwe left her again at eight, to attend a promenade concert in\nthe Horticultural Gardens. We did not ' promenade' at all,\nbut sat on the centre one of three stages, a bright gaslight\nthrown full upon us, and an immense crowd looking on.\nOn one side was the band of the 60th Rifles, and on the\nother that of the 87th. They played in turns, and we\nremained till the end of the performance. To-day, at any\nrate, we have earned a night's repose!\nTuesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady Harriet and I went a Httle shopping\nexpedition this morning. At one shop I saw a poor woman\nwho had come 250 miles to ask me to get her husband out\nof prison. I fear she did not believe that I really had not\nthe power to do so.\nWe were given a picnic to-day by the 87th Regiment.\nD. and I sailed down to the Island about five o'clock. There\nwas a great number of people, and it was very pretty and\namusing.\nWhen it was quite dark, we went out lobster-spearing,\nWe had two boats, and two great torches in each, and we\nstood up,\u00E2\u0080\u0094with poles forked at one end in our hands,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and\nwatched the bottom for lobsters. Presently we saw one\ncrawling along ; I made a grab at him, but missed. Then\ncame a second; this time I was more careful, and aimed\nmy weapon slowly at him, putting the fork right over his\nback, and then lifting him, kicking, into the boat. It was\nvery exciting. We were only able to stay a very short time,\nbut we ' grabbed' at five and brought home three.\nWednesday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A luncheon party on board, which\nwent off very well. Then a visit to a great lunatic asylum,\na beautiful one, so gay and clean and quiet. Almost all the\npatients were out in the grounds, the band playing, and\neverything and everybody happy and peaceful. It seems to\nH 2 100\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vm\nbe admirably managed, and the view from the building is\nsplendid. D. dined with the Archbishop, and Lady Harriet\nand I with Mrs. Fanshawe. She had the Prince-Midshipman\nand some other sailors to meet us.\nThursday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had another great lunch on board,\nwhich went off very well, in spite of the weather being rather\nwet and cold.\nIn the evening D. dined at the Club, and made a speech\nupon the absolute impartiality of the Governor-General in\nparty matters (there is great strife going on now), which was\nextremely well received. He ended by saying : ' As a\nreasonable being the Governor-General cannot help having\nconvictions upon the merits of different policies. But these\nconsiderations are abstract, speculative, devoid of practical\neffect on his official relations. As the head of a Constitutional State, as engaged in the administration of Parliamentary Government, he has no political friends, still less\nneed he have poHtical enemies ; the possession of either\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nnay, even to be suspected of possessing either\u00E2\u0080\u0094destroys\nhis usefulness. Sometimes, of course, no matter how disconnected his personaHty may be from what is taking place,\nhis name wiU get dragged into some controversy, and he\nmay suddenly find himself the subject of criticism in the\nPress of whatever Party may for the moment be out of\nhumour; but under these circumstances he must console\nhimself with the reflection that these spasmodic castigations\nare as transitory and innocuous as the discipline applied\noccasionaUy to their idol by the unsophisticated worshippers\nof Mumbo Jumbo when their harvests are short or a\nmurrain visits their flocks.' D. met me afterwards at a\nball at the General's, where he had to dance everything\ntiH two o'clock.\nFriday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a large lunch on board, and after\nit went to a review of the garrison and. Volunteers on the\ncommon, and, as the afternoon was lovely, it was a very fine\nsight\u00E2\u0080\u0094red coats, brilliant staff, His ExceUency and Fred AUG. 1873\nPICNIC AT McNAB'S ISLAND\n101\nriding about, cocked hats, rifles, bands, artillery, engineers,\na sham fight, a large number of spectators, etc.\nTo-night we had a really beautiful baU, given by the\nLegislative Council, in the Parliament Buildings. The ballroom is very lofty, has handsome cornices, and several full-\nlength oil portraits hanging in it. The whole of the walls\nwere covered with white calico, striped with bands of pink;\nover the doors and windows were ' D.'s,' surrounded by pink-\nand-white flags ; the curtains and all the windows were pink-\nand-white tarlatan, and it was all very bright and finished-\nlooking. The supper-room was hung with real flags, and the\nentrance-hall was converted into a grotto of ferns. There\nwas plenty of air in the dancing-room, and a very good\nband, and we really enjoyed it very much (you know there\nare occasionally entertainments which are more duty than\npleasure).\nSaturday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The political difficulties to which I have\nalluded call D. back to Ottawa, and he has had a very busy\nmorning, writing farewell letters, and making arrangements\nfor the long journey, which he begins to-night. If he had\ngone by rail it would have taken him at least seventy hours ;\nbut he luckily catches an English mail steamer on its way\nto Quebec, which will take him part of the way, and will\nleave him within twenty-four hours' journey of Ottawa.\nIn the afternoon we went to a monster picnic given to us\nby the citizens. The day was lovely, and we sailed down to\nMcNab's Island in our boat. The Mayor, who received us,\nled us to the large shed, of which I have already told you,\nwhere all the people were waiting for us. We danced a\nquadrille, and were applauded after it, and then a few round\ndances. After dinner D. made a speech, in which he\n'confided me to the care of the people of Halifax during\nhis absence,' and very soon after this we were conducted\ndown to the boats and returned to the Druid.\nAt eight we went to Government House, and were met\nthere by a torchlight procession, and by a grand fire- \m\nll \u00E2\u0096\u00A0*\nfl\nii\n102\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCh. VIII\nengine demonstration, the engines preceding us, and being\nbrilliantly illuminated. Many of the houses also were lighted\nup, and there was an immense crowd in the town, which we\ndrove slowly through, back to Queen's Wharf, where a guard\nof honour was in waiting, and where D. said ' good-bye.'\nThe torches all remained at the pier till we had reached the\nDruid ; it was a beautiful sight.\nD. and Colonel Fletcher got on board the Nestorian at\nten, and we watched them steaming past us ; both we and\nthey sent off some rockets. And now, here am I, alone for\na week, doing ' Governor-General' at Halifax.\nMonday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was a very tiring day. In the\nmorning I had a great many things to do for D., and in the\nafternoon I had lunch with the Archibalds, which lasted\ntill after four ; and at 6.30 had to be at the General's2 house\nfor dinner.\nHe was too ill to appear, and we were a small party of\neight. After dinner we proceeded to the theatre, where we\nsaw ' Still Waters Run Deep ' and' Under the Rose ' acted by\namateurs. There were some excellent actors, and I enjoyed\nit very much. I received three bouquets, which I carried\ntogether in an enormous bunch. The best performers were\nMajor and Mrs. Hall, Captain and Mrs. Mitchell Innes,\nCaptain Wallace of the 60th Rifles, and Mr. Poe, who is on\nthe Royal Alfred.\nI went to supper at the Artillery Barracks, and I believe\nthere was dancing afterwards, but, mercifully, I knew nothing\nof it, and left before there were any symptoms of such an\nintention. I was so very tired.\nTuesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. and Mrs. Robinson came on board\nto say ' Good-bye,' and I had a lunch for fourteen people.\nMy guests were two handsome Toronto girls r and two\nadmirers of theirs, the Lieutenant-Governor and his family\n(five), and Captain and Mrs. O'Grady Haly. He is the\nGeneral's son and A.D.C.\n2 The late General Sir W. O'Grady Haly. aug. 1873 BALL ON BOARD H.M.S. ''ROYAL ALFRED' 103\nIt was a lovely afternoon, and after lunch we drove\nthrough the Horticultural Gardens to a cricket-match\u00E2\u0080\u0094the\n60th Rifles against the Garrison.\nThen we dined with Admiral and Mrs. Fanshawe, and\nwent with them to the ball on board the Royal Alfred.\nI did like this entertainment. The ship was close to\nthe wharf. The deck was divided at the mast into two\nparts\u00E2\u0080\u0094supper-room and ball-room, and at midnight the\npartition was taken down. The funnel was beautifully\ndecorated with arms\u00E2\u0080\u0094swords, bayonets, etc.\u00E2\u0080\u0094and was\nsurrounded by jets of gas. The supper-tables were arranged\nbetween it and the main mast, round which there was a\nrockery and fernery, in which water trickled and frogs disported themselves. The band sat upon a scaffolding round\nthe mast. The whole was covered in with flags, and all the\ncompanions, compasses, wheels, etc. etc. were ornamented\nwith plants. The poop made a second ball-room, also\ncovered, in the shape of a bell-tent, and I had a seat there,\nand a good view of the ball. Those who preferred Nature\ncould gaze out in the opposite direction upon the moonlit\nsea. I did not occupy the chair-of-state much, but danced,\nand enjoyed myself.\nWednesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I took a long rest this morning, and\nwas ready in the afternoon to visit some Protestant\ncharities.\nThe first was an orphan-home, and the second a very\ninteresting reformatory for boys. It is on a new principle\nand seems to answer admirably. All the inmates are, or\nwere, criminals. There are no walls, or bolts, or bars, and\nthe boys are even allowed to go into the town ' on honour.'\nThey promise to return, and do.\nThey all learn trades, and do not leave the Home till\nthey are able to earn their bread. They choose one of four\ntrades, and are allowed to change their minds once. We\nsaw them hard at work, carpentering, shoemaking, tailoring,\nand, cabinet-making, the smaller ones cutting up firewood, 104\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vni\nand tying it in bundles. They also do gardening and farm-\nwork, and have got small pieces of garden and pets of their\nown, and a band; school-work is done in the evening. The\nboys looked very happy, and the few who at different times\nhave run away generally return of their own accord.\nThis evening a ball was given to us by the 6oth Rifles.\nIt was a most successful one. The room looked like a very\nsmart lady's boudoir, and was beautifully lighted with wax\ncandles. I danced a great deal, and liked the entertainment\nextremely. We were not home till three.\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I had to leave Lady Harriet in bed with\nan asthmatic cold, while I delivered myself over to the Roman\nCatholic Archbishop. Fred and I visited his house and\nhis Cathedral, and a convent, and went on to his country\nplace, where he had 150 people at lunch to meet me. The\nlunch was out of doors, and was really very pleasant. There\nwas a band, and little wooden platforms, on which we were\nsupposed to dance!\u00E2\u0080\u0094and did try to, but everyone is worn\nout with past gaieties. I got back to the ship at five\n(having left it at twelve), and at nine I attended the Sergeants' IBall.\nThe political excitement is fearful, and we hear that the\nOpposition is going to ask for the Governor-General's re-\ncaU !! So expect us home in disgrace.\nSaturday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to Dartmouth, and visited a\nrope manufactory, and a skate manufactory, where I was\npresented with a grand box containing two lovely pairs of\nAcme skates, for D. and me. We drove on seven miles,\nby a chain of lakes, till we came to an old-fashioned inn,\nwhere we had lunch. After this we went to a gold-mine,\nand saw all the process of extracting the precious metal,\nwhich I thought very interesting. This ended- our sightseeing. All day we went about in a procession of ten carriages, I gave a dinner to the amateur actors on board\nthe Druid, and afterwards went to see them do 'Caste,'\nwhich was very amusing.\nIll AUG. 1873\nST. JOHN, NEW BRUNSWICK\n105\nmorning,\nMonday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left our dear Druid early in the\nand drove to the train, where the Lieutenant-\nGovernor met us, and escorted us for about six hours on\nour way. We passed through * Evangeline's' country to\nthe Bay of Fundy, where we got into a crazy-looking\nsteamer and sailed for St. John. Here the Mayor, Sheriff,\netc., came to meet me, and there was a great crowd on the\nlanding. Never was I so stared at as to-day. When D. is\nwith me I feel that I am only part of the show; but alone,\nI have to bear it all. At the stations people looked in at\nthe windows, and gazed at me while I ate sandwiches (of\nall the things in the world !); when we got to the hotel, a\ncrowd outside eyed me, and a crowd inside stared at me,\nand on the stairs Yankee visitors criticised me, ' I guess ';\nI went to my room for a little, and on my way to dinner I\nfound them all still on the stairs,, and they looked at me\nthrough the hinges of the door; when I came up again there\nwas a couple walking arm-in-arm in my room, and three\nladies looking into it; but I walked by them in so stately\na manner that they sent me word they had only come to\nput some flowers there. Then the crowd outside would\nnot go, and I had to stand at the window, and be cheered,\nand hear 4 God save the Queen' (to which I have no right\nwhatsoever).\nTuesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. arrived here this morning. He left\nOttawa on Friday, slept that night at Montreal, and\nSaturday night at some place in the White Mountains,3\nwhere he found a ball going on. Sunday, he saw the\nscenery, and came on here at night.\nThe whole day was wet, and I cannot say I was sorry\nto have a complete rest.\nThis is a fine hotel, upon American principles. The\ncooking is excellent, and we dine alone, and are waited upon\nby our own servants in a 'private dining-room,' which\nseems to us a very noisy one after the ship. The floor is\n3 In the State of Maine. 106\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. VIII\ncovered with oilcloth, there are no curtains, and outside\nthere is always going on a racket of plates and voices..\nSome kind of steam-engine thumps underneath, and carriages rattle down the street. We manage our dinner in a\ntolerably English fashion; but if we followed the ' mode,' we\nshould eat in a great room, filled with various-sized tables,\nwith a large ' bill-of-fare' by us to choose from. After\neach mouthful a familiar waiter would lean his hand upon\nhis knee, and, staring into our faces, ask ' What, we should\nlike next ?' Then, at every pause, and on every opportunity, he would pour us out a large glass of cold water,\nand place it ostentatiously before us\u00E2\u0080\u0094this even at breakfast, when the sight of it makes one shudder. Salt-spoons\nare unknown ; you use your knife instead.\nOur own sitting-room is very nice and comfortable.\nEverything is arranged so that one may require as few\nservants as possible; and this is lucky, for an idiot generally\nanswers one's beU, and is merely bewildered by one's order.\nThere is a large public drawing-room, and the guests\nalso perambulate the passages a good deal.\nOur maids enjoy themselves, as they dine with the company, and can have many kinds of food, while they fill their\nheads with the fashions. Dent gave a sigh of relief when\nshe dressed me this morning, as she said, 'Well, I am\nthankful none of them have a dress like this ! ' ' Them '\nare Americans, who are all in a sort of uniform of grey,\nwith enormous buttons.\nI was amused by seeing in the papers this telegram:\n'Mackenzie has left for Halifax, to worry the Governor-\nGeneral.' Mackenzie is the chief of the Opposition, and\nD. is the Governor-General.\nWednesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At eleven D. and I went to some\npubHc room, where an address was presented, and at three\nthe Reception Committee came for us, and took us in\ncarriages aU about and around the city.\nThere is a fine harbour, and we saw it well, and visited AUG. tS73\nTORCHLIGHT PROCESSION\n107\nmany of the pretty villas, and got, in fact, a good idea of\nSt. John.\nWe dined almost directly we came in, and dressed for\nthe Drawing-room, which was held in a great room in\nthis hotel. It went off extremely well, and we stayed and\ntalked to the people when the presentations were over.\nThursday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning, early, we started to see\nthe Regatta. I had a headache, and no sooner got on\nboard the steamer, which was crowded with people, than\nI found that, although I might sit through four hours,/\nI certainly could not talk and smile through them; so\nI went to the cabin, and lay still all the time of the\nraces. The day was lovely, and the crowds of people on\nthe shore and crowded into the rigging of the ships which\nfilled the harbour made it a pretty sight and a most\nsuccessful entertainment. We got home in the middle of\nthe day, and were quiet till five, when a procession of the\nschools came to the door of the hotel, and we stood on the\nsteps to see them.\nI believe about 4,000 children were collected, and they\nwere to have stood around us; but the crowd was so great it\nwas impossible for them all to get through. A small circle\nwas formed for those who were dressed up to represent the\nProvinces, and they gave me a bouquet; the other children\nhad to stand where they could. D. made a speech to the\nsea of heads, which few of the waves heard, but which will\nread well, I hope.\nIn the evening carriages were again ready, and we\ndrove through the town in a procession.\nBeing part of the procession we saw little of it till the\nend, when our carriage stood to let the crowd pass us. There\nwas an immense stream of walking lights, and all the fire-\nengines were lighted up, and ornamented with wreaths\nand flowers. Some of the horses had high arches of roses\nover their backs. The crowd was perfectly tremendous,\nand received us heartily. When we got into the hotel, we Illlj\n108\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vm\nwent to a window on the second storey to look down upon\nthe crowd, and they saw us and cheered.\nFriday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a long drive of fourteen miles\nto Chief Justice Ritchie's house, where we were to lunch.\nThe drive was through a beautiful country, and we had\nseveral warm greetings on our way. An arch was put up\nat one place, and a bouquet presented. At another private\nhouse the gate was hung with flowers, and the lady stepped\nout with a second bouquet for me, while a third was brought\nme further on.\nWe had lunch, or what was called a 4 high tea'; but\nthere was no tea\u00E2\u0080\u0094only champagne. Returning home, we\nfound several bonfires lighted along the route.\nWe reached our hotel at eight, and dressed for the ball.,\nThis was given in a new theatre, and was got up in a\ngreat hurry. The floor had to be laid down over the pit,\nand the decorations to be done, and during the day we\nheard that it was not nearly finished, and that it would be\ndull and wretched.\nIt was, therefore, a pleasant surprise when we reached\nthe door and saw a brilliant room, the stage end with\n' Welcome ' in gas-Hghts over two crimson chairs, the floor\nlined with ball-dressed people, the boxes and the dress-\ncircle filled with spectators, draperies of red and green,\nflags, plants, and cages of birds (which sang, and gave a rural\nsentiment to the entertainment), and a very beautiful string-\nband playing ' God save the Queen.' Supper was in the\ngreen-room. The ball was very \"successful and amusing.\nThere were many Americans present; they dance in quite\na different style from ours.\nSaturday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We felt very sleepy when we were\ncalled this morning, but we had to be down at -the steamer\nat ten, and could not aUow ourselves any lazy indulgences.\nWe drove with the Mayor to the wharf, and were met\nby a great crowd, and there was much waving of handkerchiefs and cheering as we left, Our journey was up a. AUG. 1873\nFREDERICTON\nsplendid river, the St. John, with lovely scenery all the way.\nAbout five miles from Fredericton we were met by three\nsteamers crammed full of children and people, who greeted\nus warmly, and, having once begun to cheer, felt obliged to\ncarry it on the whole way.\nMr. Wilmot, the Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick,\nmet us at the landing-place, with a number of people, and\nwe had a most gracious reception at this, ' the ambitious\nlittle city,' ' the celestial city,' Fredericton.\nWe dined early, and went to the Exhibition Building,\nwhere the address was to be presented. It is a very fine\nbuilding, though only made of rough wood, distempered; but\nit has good proportions, and is very large. There were at\nleast 3,000 people present. The school children sang, and\nafter the speeches we walked round, and then got into a\ncarriage and drove in the torchlight procession. The engines\nlooked beautiful; but my pleasure was somewhat destroyed\nby my dread of fire. The torches were paraffin lamps, and\nthe way in which many of them were spilt about the ground,\nand went on burning there, muslin gowns walking carelessly\nclose to them, made me fear some bad accident. Rockets\nand Roman candles were also flying wildly about.\nThis Government House (where we are staying with the\nWilmots, who are both most kind to us) is a very good one;\nthe river passes the house, and a very pretty flower garden\ngoes down to it.\nSunday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A pouring wet day, and very stormy.\nWe got to the Cathedral in a close carriage. It is rather a\nfine one, and is quite finished,\u00E2\u0080\u0094strange to say ! The rest of\nthe day we spent quietly, the greater part of the time in\nour rooms.\nMonday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The people of Fredericton had arranged\na picnic for us to-day, so we started off on our business\ndirectly after breakfast. We went first to see an interesting settlement, the property of a Mr. Gibson. Eight\nyears ago there was not a house in the place; now there 110\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\noh. vnr\nare good cottages for the labourers, fine houses for Mr.\nGibson and his sons, a very ornamental church, and a\nschool. He has done everything himself, and the place is\nquite a Happy VaUey. His business is lumber. His old\nmother, who left our neighbourhood in Ireland fifty-four\nyears ago, was so deHghted to see someone from home.'\nHer parents having objected to her marriage, never wrote\nto her, and I wished they could see her now, in her son's\nfine house, surrounded by every comfort that money could\nbuy her, her grand-daughter playing the organ, and her\nson so much respected and honoured!\nAfter this visit we got into the train, and with a large\ncompany of people went thirty miles up the new line, and\nhalf-way back again, to a place on the St. John River,\nwhere an arbour of evergreens had been erected, under\nwhich 250 people lunched.\nA band played, toasts were proposed, and all went off\nweU, in spite of rather dull, cold weather.\nIn the evening there was a dinner and a party, the\nprincipal excitement of which was that Fred and a young\nlady disappeared for more than an hour into an illuminated garden; that her parents were asking everyone where\ntheir daughter was; and that, consequently, all eyes were\nfixed upon the culprits when they returned. Fred has\nhad a great deal of chaff to stand ever since, particularly\nas the father said ' Good night, my son,' to him.\nWe were told that, at the hotel where the young lady\nwas staying, other young ladies remarked that ' they\nthought it was very bad taste in a girl thus to monopolise\nan Aide-de-Camp' i\nTuesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Fredericton in the morning,\naccompanied for an hour by the Wilmots, the -Sheriff, etc.\netc., and proceeded on our way to Woodstock, a drive of\nsixty-five miles. At a half-way house we changed horses\nand had lunch. .We drove aU the way through lovely AUG. 1873\nGRAND FALLS\n111\nscenery, following the river St. John, and enjoying ourselves\nvery much. We reached Woodstock in time for dinner, and\ndirectly afterwards went to the Court House to receive an\naddress, and to see a large assemblage of people. We finished\nthe evening by driving in a torchlight procession. I can't\nsay how many bouquets I received to-day !\nWednesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a fine day and a delightful drive, changing horses four times in the seventy miles.\nWe lunched at a charming little inn, and slept at Grand\nFalls. To our surprise, we found two arches at this little\nplace, all the cottages illuminated, magnificent bonfires, an\naddress, and an assembly of people in the Court House;\nand after we had gone to bed we heard ' Rule Britannia '\nbeing sung all round the house. There was also a very\npretty procession of birch-bark torches. The inn was kept\nby a North of Ireland lady, and was perfect! The Grand\nFalls here are very fine.\nThursday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started at eight punctually this,\nmorning, for we have 250 miles to go, and drove on as\nbefore, stopping to have lunch by the way, and sleeping\nat a little French inn. The family got up a dance when\nWe had gone to bed, and we heard the fiddle going, and\nour servant instructing them in a Scotch reel, during half\nthe night.\nFriday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up very early, and drove, drove,\ndrove on through forest nearly the whole day. We saw\none great fire in the wood, and were nearly choked as we\npassed through it. We missed seeing a beautiful lake\nowing to the clouds of smoke hanging over it.\nWe reached Riviere du Loup about five in the afternoon,\nand got a tug steamer to take us straight over to Tadousac.\nThere we found the whole party of children in their\ndressing-gowns, just going to bed. The fise elder ones are\nlooking so fat, and rosy, and well; but my baby is a mite\nindeed! 112\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. vin\ntil\nSaturday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our summer tour is now over, and I\nreturn to a prosy account of home affairs. We have done\nall we intended to do; and the drive of 250 miles in\nfour days was a very pleasant termination to our tour.\nThe Druid was to have met us at Riviere du Loup, but\nwas detained by storm, and only reached Tadousac this\nmorning. r-\n113\nCHAPTER IX\nTHE FALL, 1873\nTadousac: Monday, September ist.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I seized upon a fine\nmorning to bathe with the children. It is rather late in\nthe season for a first dip, but I could not resist trying it,\nthough the water is at all times extremely cold here. We\nprepared for the bath in our own rooms, and, covered with\nwaterproofs, ran down to the water. My costume is of\nthe brightest orange, and is very striking. We are very\nquiet here, and D. very busy. He is writing the whole day\nlong.\nFriday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went on board the Druid just before\ndinner, last night, and took Nelly with us for a little holiday. The night was rather rough, but the wind suited,\nand we reached Quebec early this morning. We found\nMr. G. BrodrickI at the hotel, and D. brought him up to\nstay with us ; he is very pleasant, and gave us much English\nnews. I drove him to the Montmorency Falls, and just as\nwe were on our way to the Natural Steps we were caught\nin a heavy shower, and got rather wet. These steps are\nvery curious. The river narrows at this place, and has cut\na regular staircase in the rock through which it makes its\nway. D. did not move from his desk all day ; he was up\ntill two, and the clerks till four, and the steamer had to\nwait half an hour this morning (Saturday) for the monster\ndespatch.\nFriday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We gave an outdoor afternoon party on\n1 The Hon. G. C. Brodrick, now Warden of Merton College, Oxford. 114\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\n, t ti\nthe platform, and were anxious about the weather, which\nturned . out to be perfectly lovely. The amusements consisted of a band, dancing, a bear, and my children (who\nall arrived in the morning) to be looked at. Basil was\na splendid sight, and had the air of Henry VIII., as he sat\nback in a small rocking-chair, with his sturdy form and\nrosy cheeks. The others are very flourishing, and the\n' family' did us credit, particularly as I did not show my\nbaby, of whom I cannot yet be proud. Instead, of her, we\nexhibited the Queen's present to her godchild. It is a large\nmedallion, with Her Majesty's head in raised gold in the\ncentre, surrounded by rows of diamonds, pink coral, and\npearls. On the back is engraved, ' Lady Victoria Alexandria Blackwood, from her godmother, Victoria R.'\nSaturday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day was pouring wet. I had a visit\nfrom a charming lady, a Miss Florence Lees.2 She has\nbeen thoroughly trained as a surgical nurse, and did nurse,\nand underwent great fatigues (not to say danger) in the\nFranco-Prussian War. She wears the Iron Cross, and\nanother order, which only three ladies possess. After\nnursing twenty-two men through typhus fever before Metz,\nshe took charge of the Crown Princess's Ambulance at\nHomburg. She has been sent out to visit the hospitals\nin Canada and the States ; and all anti-women-working\npeople ought to see her !\nMonday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I took the children to some athletic\nsports, and after lunch we drove out to the Cemetery. It\nis a very pretty one, and the trees are most of them\ndecorated with a crimson or a golden branch\u00E2\u0080\u0094the first touch\nof autumn.\nWednesday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A football match took place this\nafternoon. The Dufferin Club were dressed .in blue-and-\norange jerseys, caps, and stockings; and the B Battery\n(the Citadel soldiers) wore red. Colonel Fletcher played\n2 Now the wife of the Rev. Dacre Craven, Rector of St. George the'\nMartyr, Holborn, London. SEPT. 1873\nCONVENTS\n115\non their side. The soldiers were somewhat rough, and\none gentleman had his nose broken. The Dufferin Club\nwon.\nSaturday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Stadacona Hunt met to-day, and\nhad, as usual, the worst possible weather. I drove out with\nthe children to see the meet, and they were amused for a\nshort time watching the jumping ; but we felt so cold that\nwe took advantage of a heavy shower as an excuse for\nreturning home very soon.\nMonday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I inspected two convents this afternoon,\nwhich D. had visited without me last year. The first was\nthe ' Bon Pasteur.' The Misses Caron and some other\nyoung ladies were there to meet us, and to take charge of\nmy A.D.C. The inspection was very long. First I was\nintroduced to all the nuns, and specially to the Irish ones;\nand I saw the novices, and the school-children, who sang\nand read an address; then we passed to a large room\nwhere the penitents were collected, and observed how they\nhad given up the pomps and vanities of the world, for the\nmost unbecoming dress possible. We looked at the beautiful embroideries, and at the useful work the nuns do;\nadmired the chapel, and visited the reformatory school,\nbesides going into every bedroom, etc.\nHaving thoroughly done the 'Bon Pasteur,5 we proceeded to the ' Grey Sisters,' who take charge of old people\nand orphan children. Here I visited three different\ndivisions of the schools, and in each room found a prettily-\ndecorated throne, songs, and a request from the youngest\nchild present for a holiday. The Grand Vicaire was my\nspokesman on each occasion. He went round with me and\nmade little exhortations\u00E2\u0080\u0094thus relieving me of the necessity\nof finding something to say to everybody.\nTuesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a wet day ! We just managed\nto get out on the platform for half an hour, for a game of\nvery odd football with a brick, with the children, and had\nto give up all hopes of dancing there in the evening.\n1 2\nI! 116\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\nWe had a dinner party, and then a ' drum'; and as the\nbalcony failed us, we opened our one passage, and the\nyoung ladies promenaded up and down, and drank tea, and\ncracked crackers, and had supper, and seemed to bear the\ndisappointment about the dancing very well.\nWednesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a bride and bridegroom to\ndinner. They have been married six weeks, and are taking\nan immense tour, on their way to Japan and India. I am\nquite surprised at the small quantity of clothes she carries\nabout for so extensive a tour, and one comprising so many\nclimates. Two serge dresses, one ' good ' silk, cut square,\nand a black silk skirt with a white ' top ' : with these, she\nhas entered into the smartest New York society, and is\ngoing round the world.\nSaturday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was a most lovely warm day, and\nthe weekly Paper Hunt was a very gay affair. About thirty\npeople were riding, and nearly twenty carriages following. We saw the jumping very well, and the country\nlooked quite beautiful with its autumn-many-coloured hills,\nthe blue river, and the gay villages with their shining-\nspires and roofs. The riders found the sun almost too\nhot.\nWednesday, October 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon I took the\nchildren out to see a collection of birds made by Mr.\nLemoine. The trees in his place were lovely, the leaves\nbeing now of the most brilliant colours\u00E2\u0080\u0094some trees perfectly\ncrimson, and others orange, with yellow ones and dark green\nfirs all mixed.\nThursday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were surprised this morning to find\nit snowing; but the day cleared up, and after our dinner\nthe young ladies and the ' drum' generally danced out of\ndoors on the platform. We had a very nice party: the\ndancing amused some, and the Boston Quintette Club, who\nare here now, brought their instruments and played beautifully to us; we had supper, and people left after twelve\no'clock.\n-___*.-___\u00C2\u00BB -ft^^UM^\nSB\n_____\u00E2\u0084\u00A2_\u00E2\u0084\u00A2\u00C2\u00BB\u00E2\u0080\u009E__\u00E2\u0084\u00A2\u00E2\u0084\u00A2. OCT. 1873\nQUEBEC\nSaturday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ground covered with snow, and a\ndismal snowstorm still going on. This is rather early to\nbegin winter, but we hope to see the ground once more\nbefore it disappears until May.\nMonday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very wet day; our intended visit to\nthe Indians, and all the sports of the week, postponed.\nMr. and Mrs. Rothery3 arrived. He is the British Commissioner who is to settle the fishery part of the Washington\nTreaty. His wife, George Dallas (his* secretary), and a\nyoung Mr. Russell, are with him. They lunched with us.\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred went off before breakfast to train\nfor the race which he is to ride. He has scant hopes of\nwinning, as he walks a stone over the proper riding weight,\nand his horse has just come off the grass. In fact, his only\nchances lie in the possible misfortunes of others.\nMr. and Mrs. Rothery dined with us, and we went to\nthe Sergeants' Dance, where we opened the ball with the\nSergeant-Major and his wife.\nWednesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I visited an asylum for old women,\nand paid a morning visit to the Ursuline nuns. The\nchildren were so astonished when a dozen cheerful ladies\ndressed in black appeared behind a double grating to talk\nto us. Basil and Hermie could not get over it at all, and\nNelly seemed greatly amused. The key of the room into\nwhich we went was handed to us through a hole in the wall,\nso that nothing could be seen but the hand that held it.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather was so beautiful that we\ncould not tear ourselves away from the ' home-view,' and\nremained on the balcony all day.\nIn the evening the Lieutenant-Governor, Admiral Hill-\nyard and twenty-four others dined with us, and we had a\nparty. As the night was perfect, our guests danced to the\nlight of the moon, and were much pleased with the entertainment. But it began badly, for when the band was\nwanted to play, it was discovered that the men were all\n3 The late Mr. Rothery, Commissioner for Wrecks. 118\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\nasleep in bed, so there was nothing for it but to drink tea\nwhile we waited for them to awake and dress.\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were startled this morning by fifteen\nguns,\u00E2\u0080\u0094our guns saluting the General (O'Grady Haly), who\narrived by the Montreal boat. We sent down the carriage,\nand an invitation for him to stay with us.\nWe have begun to prepare for our ball, and I am trying\nto solve the difficulties we have to encounter in moving\nfrom Quebec. All our servants, plate, etc. have to be at\nthe ball on Tuesday night. Then all has to be packed to\nstart Wednesday afternoon; the servants are to get to\nOttawa Thursday evening, and visitors come on Saturday.\nParliament meets on the Wednesday after.\nWe went to see the ' Stadacona Races.' I took the\nGeneral, D. rode, and the jockey (Fred), of course, was on\nthe course before. He wore a lilac jacket and cap, weighed\ntwenty-one pounds too much, and his horse was not ' fit.'\nThere were twelve hurdles and seven brooks to jump.\nThe 'favourite' threw his rider at the first fence. The\nremaining three had a good race, and the end was most\nexciting, Fred coming in a very good second in spite of\nall his disadvantages. He rode beautifully. The other\nraces did not interest us greatly, but the weather was\nmagnificent.\nSaturday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The General inspected the B Battery\nbefore breakfast, and we looked on; and then I assisted at\nthe first meeting of the ' Clandeboye FootbaU Club'\u00E2\u0080\u0094all\nboys under twelve. There are twenty members. They\nhad two capital games, and afterwards elected a secretary,\nArchie being president.\nMonday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The morning looked bad, but the day\ncleared up, and it was fine, but excessively cold.\nThe athletic sports were most successful, and crowds of\npeople were present, who seemed to enjoy themselves very\nmuch. The esplanade was fringed with people, bands playing and flags flying.\nm OCT. 187\nBALL AT THE CITADEL\n119\nTuesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ballroom looked unpromising this\nmorning. The decoration had yet to be done, and, worse\nthan all, the platform, upon which we are so dependent for\nroom, was covered with puddles. However, we set to work:\nsailors decorating the outside, and myself and maids the\ninside. Fred Ward got in three stoves which he set a-going\nunder the tent, and with which he successfully dried the\nfloor and the roof; still, the weather looked so bad that we\ngot ready two of the children's bedrooms to act as safety\nvalves should the company be unable to use the platform.\nIn the dancing-room I had three hooks in the middle of\nthe ceiling, to use as keynotes to my ornamentation, and\nfrom these I brought ropes of pink, white, and blue tarle-\ntane, and made the room look like a tent, with a chandelier\nhanging from the centre of each group of ropes. The ropes\nwere fastened all round to the cornice, which was finished off\nwith festoons and roses. It looked very light and pretty.\nThere was a heavy shower at six o'clock, and then it cleared,\nand everything went off well. The platform was so popular\nthat it ended in our having almost too much room in the\nballroom. The supper, too, Mr. Pattisson managed very\nwell. The room only held sixty, and we were 330; but\nthere was no crush, and the relays were kept quite distinct,\nand each sat down comfortably. The guests stayed till\n2.30, having begun to dance soon after nine.\nWednesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We took a farewell walk on the\nbeautiful platform before going down to the boat, where we\nfound many of our friends waiting to say good-bye. The\nLieutenant-Governor paid me a state visit at the Citadel.\nMontreal, Thursday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a comfortable passage to Montreal, and were all glad of a good long night on\nboard the boat. To-day D. was kept extremely busy seeing\ndifferent people. We managed between two interviews to\nget a Httle walk in the streets, and at one o'clock, he being\nunable to come, I went to the Geological Museum, and was\nshown part of the collection of fossils by Professor Dawson,\nM 120\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\nwhich I enjoyed very much. After lunch we had to start\noff immediately to take Mr. and Mrs. Rothery over the\n'Mont Ste. Marie' convent. The nuns had only two\ndays' notice of our intention, but every preparation had\nbeen made, except white gowns for the girls, so they were\nin black.\nAfter we had gone over the house accompanied by the\nSisters, the Bishop of Montreal (an old man, with long, white\nhair), and the Archbishop of St. Boniface (Manitoba), we\nwere shown into the salle de reception, where all the young\nladies were assembled. Here we had music, and a little\npiece acted by the ' Muses ' and the ' Graces,' each stating\nthe reasons why she was specially privileged to present the\naddress to His Excellency. This had of course been composed for the occasion.\nFriday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We travelled up to Ottawa, and found\nall the children well, and the house looking so nice.\nMany improvements have been made, and our principal\npassages have had new crimson carpets, and white paint on\nthe doors and walls; so they look very gay and smart.\nAfter all our travels, home looks very comfortable, and we\nshould be very happy but for political anxieties.\nThe Judges came to bring D. the report of the\nCommission.\nSaturday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was busy all day getting the drawing-\nroom to look 4lived-in.' The Rotherys arrived in the\nevening. The weather was wet and bad.\nWednesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094To-night we had the Ministerial\nbanquet, and were thirty at dinner. The only missing\nMinisters were Dr. Robitaille and Mr. Tilly.\nThursday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We dressed for the ' opening' before\nlunch\u00E2\u0080\u0094low gowns, feathers and diamonds, uniforms or\nevening coats\u00E2\u0080\u0094and at 2.30 set off in carriages: Mr.\nand Mrs. Rothery, Mr. Pattisson and I in one; Lady\nHarriet Fletcher, my three children, etc. etc. in others,\nand the Governor-General in a carriage-and-four behind\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0r\u00C2\u00BBif\nii.'ifi,1,!' : r-\nOCT. l87\nJ\nDEBATE ON THE ADDRESS\n121\nus. He opened a bridge on his way, which is to be caUed\nthe Dufferin Bridge, and then came on, and entered the\nHouse with a very brilliant staff\u00E2\u0080\u0094for he had this year a\nnumber of officers and friends in uniforms accompanying\nhim. The Senate Chamber was full; numbers of ladies\non the floor, and crowds of people in the galleries. D. read\nthe speech in French and in English.\nFriday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At last we have a lovely day. I took\nMrs. Rothery, Mr. Brodrick, and Mr. Russell to see the\nChaudiere Falls, and we also went over a lucifer-match\nmanufactory.\nSaturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I gave the prizes for some athletic\nsports. Mr. Brodrick and Mr. Rothery went to a Ministerial\ndinner, and brought us home much news. Lord Rosebery\n(who came to us to-day) dined with the Opposition; but,\nalthough they sat till twelve, they never mentioned the\ngreat fight which is coming off on Monday, and about\nwhich they were all thinking, but talked instead of Shakespeare and the musical glasses. The Archbishop of Manitoba (Riel's protector) dined with us.\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The great debate began; but I did not\ngo to the House, and D. and I had Rideau to ourselves.\nTuesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went to the House to-day, and remained till 11 p.m. I heard Sir Francis Hincks,4 Mr.\nMacdonald, of Pictou (who is a very good speaker, but\nuntrained), and a Mr. Glass.5 It is supposed that Mr.\nBlake6 and Sir John Macdonald7 are waiting for each\nother.\nWednesday and Thursday, 2gth and 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our thoughts\nand time still occupied by the debate. The first day, two\nspeakers took up the whole time.\nSaturday, November 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is very wretched,\n\\n4 Sir Francis Hincks, member for\nVancouver, British Columbia.\n5 Mr. Glass, member for London\n(city), Ontario.\n6 Mr. E. Blake, member for South\nBruce, subsequently Minister of Justice in Mr. Mackenzie's Cabinet, 1873.\n7 The Premier. 122\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\nand very EngHsh-wintery. It tries to snow, and succeeds\nin sleeting and being raw and dull.\nI saw people, for the first time since my return, to-day:\n134 visitors came. I had Lady Harriet and Mrs. Rothery\nand the young men to help me, and the afternoon was\npleasant, and like a party.\nMonday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Brodrick left this morning. We\n(ladies) went to the House of Commons at three o'clock.\nBefore the recess for dinner, there was a little scrimmage\nover His Ex.'s despatches, and at the end of this we\nadjourned for two hours.\nAt a quarter to nine Sir John Macdonald rose, and\nspoke for five hours, making a very fine speech, full of\npower, lively, and forcible to the end. He did not fail in\nthe slightest degree whUe speaking, but when he sat down\nhe was completely exhausted, and his voice was quite gone.\nMr. Blake got up after him, but adjourned the debate in\na few minutes, and whl finish his speech to-morrow.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I did not hear Mr. Blake. He spoke\nfor five hours too.\nWednesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I drove into Ottawa, intending to\nhear the speeches and see the division, but at the Office\nI was told that Sir John was with the Governor-General.\nAs the House would not sit without him, I remained\nin the carriage, and soon we saw Colonel Fletcher taking\nMr. Mackenzie to His Excellency. Of course, we guessed\nthat he had been 4 sent for'; and the groups of two and\nthree who stood about turned their heads curiously and\nnodded in a knowing way.\nWe took our places in the House, and Sir John got up\nand briefly announced that the Government had resigned.\nThe announcement was received in perfect silence.\nThe Opposition, directly it was over, crossed the House\nto their new desks.\nSaturday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This is the family half-holiday; so\nafter dinner we went down to the ice, and exerted ourselves r\nNOV. 1873\nCURLING AND SKATING\n123\nto learn the Dutch roll\u00E2\u0080\u0094mother and children and governesses\nov\nstruggling and tumbling about, but aU making great pro\ngress.\nMonday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There is a regular snowstorm going on.\nSkating was out of the question, so we went out to toboggan.\nThe snow was soft and loose, and we were nearly choked\nand buried in it; but, of course, the children liked this\nvery much.\nTuesday, 2$ih.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were inveigled down to the ice in\na biting cold wind, but were too much blown about to learn\nanything.\nMonday, December 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had a party of Scotchmen\nfor curling and lunch (St. Andrew's Day), and we drank\nthe ' Queen of Scotland's ' health. This was the opening\nof our new Curling Rink. It is close to the Skating Rink,\nand the tobogganing hill is on the other side ; so we have\nquite a nest of amusements there.\nWednesday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Alas for the thaw !\u00E2\u0080\u0094our Rink was\njust right, and now all the ice, and all the skating, disappears ! It is in a terrible state\u00E2\u0080\u0094aU over lumps and\nbubbles, with dead leaves frozen into it, which, as you\nknow, burn holes in the ice.\nSaturday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Being the twelve children's half-hoHday,\nSaturday has now become a weekly festival. We skated all\nthe afternoon, and after tea had a great rehearsal of the\nchildren's play. Mr. Dixon exhibited a magic lantern, too,\nwhich, though only partially successful, was received with\nshouts of delight.\nMonday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Thermometer 180 below zero. The day\nlooked dull, but we had a most deHghtful skate on the\nOttawa\u00E2\u0080\u0094clear, smooth ice, and any amount of space. I\nfound myself able to go more than a mile as fast as possible\non the outside edge. The children enjoyed it immensely.\nMonday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went into Ottawa, and came back in\ntime for a short skate. In the evening we had some of the\nnew Ministers to dinner. I am trying to become a Grit,\ni\u00E2\u0080\u0094 124\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. IX\nbut I can't quite manage it. It takes me as much time as\nthe outside edge backwards. I sat between Mr. Mackenzie\nand Mr. Cartwright: I Hke them both, and the latter is very\ntalkative, and pleasant. Mr. Mackenzie is very straightforward and nice, and very Scotch, in accent and in looks.\nOn the other side of him sat M. Letellier St. Juste, a French\nCanadian, and then came Mr. Vale, from Halifax, and the\nHaHgonian Prime Minister, Mr. Almon. We also had the\nhead of a large deaf-and-dumb institution at Belleville, who\nis very anxious for us and ' family' to go down there to\nsee a pantomime done by his pupils, and thinks a journey\nof six hours absolutely nothing for the purpose.\nFriday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We attended an amateur performance in\naid of a charity. It was very good indeed. The first part\nconsisted of ' waxworks' done by the beauties of Ottawa.\nThey certainly have a talent for tableaux, for I never saw\nanything more perfectly still than they were\u00E2\u0080\u0094although\nthey were ' on view' for nearly half-an-hour at a time.\nEach one was wound up in turn, and went through its\nperformance admirably.\nTuesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I drove into Ottawa on a Christmas\nshopping expedition, skated in the afternoon, and dined at\nsix, as we had to go and give prizes to Protestant schools\nin Ottawa. The room was very hot, but the ' exercises'\nwent off weU, and 200 people had to be sent away for\nwant of space. Children read and sang. D. received an\naddress, and repHed to it, and we did not give the prizes,\nas there was not time.\nWednesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gawen and Fred8 arrived this morning, both looking very well. They found me busily\narranging the Christmas-tree. Gawen began his skating,\nbut at present he looks very tall and shaky on the ice.\nThursday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The church was beautifully decorated\nfor Christmas.\n8 My brothers, Captain G. Rowan Hamilton, late 7th Dragoon Guards,\nand Captain F, Rowan Hamilton, A.D.C. DEC. 1873\nOTTA WA\n125\nLunch and a little skating filled the afternoon, and at\nfive the children's Christmas really began. There were ten\nof them under eleven for tea, and very pretty the table\nlooked, with their little fair heads all round it.\nThe tree came next, and was a great success: everyone\nseemed to get what they wished for, and the books, toys,\netc. will be thoroughly appreciated during the week's\nholiday.\nSaturday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we attended a performance at St. Joseph's College. The house was beautifully\nilluminated outside, and we had songs and addresses, and\na little French play acted by the students. It was a good\nnight for sleighing, and the drive home was pleasant.\nWednesday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had our first skating party today, and I was able to perform the outside edge backwards\nand forwards quite well enough for public display. About\nseventy people came, but there was not enough snow for\ntobogganing. After the outdoor amusements we danced in\nthe ballroom, and I think all enjoyed themselves very much. I\n\"^!\n126\nCHAPTER X\nOUR SECOND SEASON AT OTTAWA\nThursday, January ist, 1874.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had, unfortunately,\na bad cold and headache, and so I was obHged to receive\nthe gentlemen of Ottawa by myself. You remember that\nthey pay visits to all their acquaintances on New Year's\nDay, and that every lady in the land remains at home\nto receive them. Two hundred and seventy came to see\nme, greeted me, and passed through the drawing-room into\nthe dining-room for tea or champagne\u00E2\u0080\u0094mostly champagne ! One very odd man appeared whom I had never\nseen before. He said to me, ' Ah, very sorry indeed to hear\nthat Lord Dufferin is iU; he is such a great fellow, it really\nwould be a pity if anything were to happen to him. ... Do\nI speak to Mr. Hamilton ?' Fred got him off into the\ndining-room, where he continued, ' I knew Mr. Conway'\n(our other A.D.C., whose name was Coulson) ' so weU that I\nfelt I knew the crowd, so I thought I would come to-day.\nSorry His Ex. is ill; he is such a good fellow, always\nturning up everywhere. Awful bore this sort of thing, but\none is obliged to do it.'\nI have been busy the last few weeks teaching the children to act a little play, to be performed before an audience\nthis New Year's Day, so directly the last of my visitors had\ngone, I rushed to make final arrangements on the stage, to\nvisit my patient and get him up, to dress myself, and to\ndress the fairies.\nEvery member of our two familiesl between the ages of\ntwelve years and eight months appears either in the play or\n1 Ours and Colonel Fletcher's. JAN. 1874\nNEW YEAR'S TABLEAUX\n127\nin the tableaux which come after it, and I only wish you were\nhere to see how weU they all do it, and how pretty they look!\nIn the piece they represent imps who, clad in the\ngayest attire, are invisible to mortal eye the moment they\nput on certain bright-coloured caps, and visible again\ndirectly they take them off. The fun of the play consists\nin the way in which they are supposed to appear and disappear, plaguing the life out of a gigantic mortal, who\neither cannot see his tormentors at all, or whose frantic\nattempts to catch them when he does, only lead him into\nthe traps they have prepared for him.\nMy Httle troop entered fully into the spirit of the plot,\nand were so delighted with Fred's acting in the part of\n' Grumps,' the troubled mortal, that they were reaUy holding their sides with laughter, and there certainly was more\nnature than art in their representations of the mischievous\nimps.\nThe tableaux were equally successful, and though an\neye was occasionally opened during the i Sleeping Beauty in\nthe Wood' scene, and then conscientiously shut up again with\nunnecessary firmness\u00E2\u0080\u0094though one infant preferred to sleep\nwith his legs in the air, and another made an uncalled-for\nannouncement in the middle of a tableau vivant\u00E2\u0080\u0094the whole\nperformance was most charming and successful, and actors,\nparents, and audience were all equally delighted.\nSaturday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The cold has diminished, and now there\nare only ten degrees of frost\u00E2\u0080\u0094which is nothing. One reaUy\ndoes not feel cold half as much here as in England. The\nhouse is warm throughout, day and night, so that one does\nnot shiver over one's*dressing, or dread venturing out into\nthe passages, or crowd round the fires in the rooms, as one\ndoes at home. And then, when one wishes to go out, one\nknows\u00E2\u0080\u0094thanks to tradition and to the thermometer\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nexactly what ought to be put on, and one wraps oneself up\nlike a mummy, and drapes one's face in an indispensable\nand most becoming ' cloud,' and thus defies the weather. 128\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nI ill I\nWe had a delightful skating party. The ice was lovely,\nand while numbers of graceful performers danced over it,\nother young men and maidens, to say nothing of fathers\nand mothers, were sliding down hills in toboggans, children\nwere .digging and burrowing in the snow, and nurses and\nperambulators added a homely aspect to the scene. You\ncan't think how lively it looked\u00E2\u0080\u0094like an ant-hill decked in\nbrilliant colours.\nWhen it got too late for outdoor amusements, we came\nin for tea, and the young people danced for an hour.\nMonday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The thermometer only 530! The most\nunheard-of thaw, and the snow almost entirely gone. We\nwere, however, able to skate about two miles up the Rideau\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very rare chance here. In the afternoon I actually\ndrove on wheels into Ottawa, to begin a tour of inspection\nof the Institutions there with Miss Lees. We went first\nto the Gaol, which we found comfortable and well kept:\nMiss Lees thought it the best she had seen in Canada.\nWe next went on to the Protestant Orphan Home, a small\nhouse, with a stuffy sleeping and living room for the babies.\nA better house is much needed.\nTuesday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove in a snowstorm to the Grey\nNuns' Convent, and were received at the 'MotherHouse,'\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe order having about ten establishments in Ottawa, of\nwhich this is the head. I visited the ' Community,' and\nthe ' Postulants,' and went into the chapel, where the nuns\nwere singing beautifuUy. From this house we walked to\nthe Hospital, and after it to the Orphanage, and the Refuge\nfor the Old. All these Miss Lees examined as well as she\ncould. But she likes to turn up every sheet, and to peep\ninto every corner, and this is a kind of inspection to which\nthe good nuns are not accustomed. They like my perfunctory style much better, and I am amused when I go\nabout with her to see her slipping behind the scenes at\nmost unexpected moments, and surprising everybody by\nher searching questions. T\"\nmm\nSJAN. 1874\nAN ICE STORM\n129\nWednesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094-We finished the ' Grey Nuns' to-day\nby visiting their school and an English Orphanage. Miss\nI Lees is going to write a book about these things, so I need\nsnot record details.\nLast night we kept Twelfth Night by practising the\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0' Boston Dip ' and Badminton.\nThursday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather is despairing. It will thaw,\n1 and even condescends to rain, which in a Canadian January\n! is mean ! Think of the ground being visible! and no\nskating! and umbrellas up ! and driving on wheels !\nThere was, however, a sight to-day which I am glad\nto have seen. After the rain it froze hard for a short\ntime, leaving ropes of beautiful clear ice hanging from the\ntelegraph-wires, while the trees seemed to be the decorations\nof a fairy play. Words really do fail to describe the beauty\nof our woods while this ' ice-storm ' continues. There is a\ntransparent sheath round every twig, the birch-tree being\nparticularly pretty, with its small and well-known rods all\ncased in clearest crystal, while in the distance the trees\nseem to be made of silver with dazzling jewels on every\nbranch. It reminds me of the story of the twelve princesses who used to disappear at night, and were, after much\nsearching, discovered by the owner of an invisible cloak to\nfrequent a garden whose trees were covered with precious\nstones. Like the invisible soldier, I cannot resist breaking\noff branches and taking them home; but, unlike his, my\ndiamonds melt.\nSaturday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The skating party, which had been\npostponed on account of the thaw, took place to-day, but\nresolved itself into an indoor party. The young ladies came\nin extra smart attire, feeling that they had not got to\nencounter the snow, and from 3.30 to 6 they danced. Some\nof them, I regret to say, evidently rejoiced in the bad\nweather ! After the dancing the children performed their\nlittle play and tableaux again with great success.\nSaturday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was a most lovely day for our\nk Rill Is\n130\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nI\nskating party, so warm (about io\u00C2\u00B0 below freezing-point), the\ntobogganing hill in perfect condition, and the ice good.\nI skated the whole time, only stopping occasionally to\nwatch the toboggans come down : once Fred was left behind\nin the middle of the hill, and rolled to the bottom ; another\ntime, three passengers remained in the snow, while the\nfourth sailed on to the bottom of the slide.\nTuesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Thermometer 300 below zero during\nthe night\u00E2\u0080\u0094about zero during the day. We skated a little,\nbut there was a good deal of snow on the ice. At five\no'clock the children were all ready in their fairy dresses\nto act their play to about fifty of their contemporaries.\nAfter the performance they had tea, and then games and\ndancing till eight. The guests were many of them very\npretty, and all very well dressed.\nWednesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have lent our ballroom for a\nconcert in aid of our little church, and the morning was\noccupied in placing the 300 chairs, and in preparing the\nstage.\nThe first part of the programme consisted of vocal music\nby amateurs. Then 'Rosa d'Erina' sang four songs capitally. Three very pretty tableaux closed the entertainment :\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Death of Cleopatra ; the Expulsion of Hagar I\nand a group of flower-girls, Nelly being one of them.\nCleopatra was very handsome, and was beautifully dressed.\nI think they will have cleared fifty pounds.\nSaturday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Saturday brings its usual skating\nparty. The day was very cold, and we cut short the outdoor amusements, and had a very successful cotillon indoors.\nMr. Mackenzie, the Prime Minister, arrived. At the\nstation he received a note from D. asking him to come\nout to us, which he did immediately, and stayed for\ndinner. On returning to Ottawa he found he had missed an\novation, which had been prepared for him after his very\nsuccessful elections. I believe his majority will be about\neighty.\nB3 w\nmm\ntfEB. I874\nMONTREAL\n131\nMontreal: Monday, February 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left for Montreal, and had a long day in the train, but with books, and\nshort naps, we got through it very weU.\nTuesday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Soon after breakfast, we went up to the\nRink, the two Misses Bethune and ourselves being the\nonly privileged persons, as it is shut to the pubHc on\naccount of the fancy-dress ball which is to take place there\nto-night; we had plenty of room, splendid ice, and a most\ndelightful skate.\nAt eight o'clock we went back there for the ball, and\ntook our places on a raised dais at one end of a great\nbuilding like Westminster Hall, with an architectural roof\nand ornamented rafters, its shiny ice floor illuminated by\na thousand lights. As soon as the band changed from\n' God save the Queen' into some lively strain, we saw,\nfrom the far end, gay fancy-dressed figures gliding hand-in-\nhand down the ice, and passing us in couples, tiU at last\nthe whole space was covered with Dolly Vardens, Nights,\nKnights, Queens, Savages, Red-Riding-Hoods, etc. etc. D.\nskated in plain clothes ; I only looked on and enjoyed the\nscene.\nWednesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. visited the High School, and made\na Latin oration there.\nTuesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a band at the Rink this morning, and skated to music. We danced the lancers and Sir\nRoger to their proper tunes, and then some waltzed and\nsome ' outside-edged ' to the' Blue Danube.'\nI must tell you the names of some of our figures, though\nI fear they won't convey much to you. We execute the\n' Rose,' the ' Shamrock,' and the 4 Thistle'; the ' Ransom,'\nthe ' Lily,' the ' Snail,' the ' Serpent,' a chain of ' eights,'\netc. etc. I wonder if ever you will see a performance ?\nWednesday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We took the Gaol by surprise this\nmorning, and inspected it. The women's department is\nmost unsatisfactory, but as a new female prison is being\nbuilt, little can be said. We found five women sleeping\nK 2 132\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nin a tiny cell, and three in a bed; and we saw prisoners\nwith curl-papers and ornamental ribbons, and one with her\nhair much dressed, and with curls gummed down upon her\nforehead. The men were much better cared for.\nAfter dinner Fred Ward, Mr. Thompson, D. and I\nwent to see the games at the Rink, which looked very\npretty, with its shining ice floor, its lights, and a quantity\nof flags. There were 211 entries for the races, and some\nof them were most exciting and amusing. The barrel-races\nwent off with great spirit, and the boys, in all stages of\ncreeping through bottomless barrels, roUing and struggling\nabout, looked like strange sheU-fish. Mercifully, none were\nhurt, for it must be a dangerous game. I gave away the\nprizes afterwards.\nI have been elected a member of the Rink, and am the\nonly lady who holds that proud position, being also, I\nbelieve, the first wife of a Governor-General who has ever\nskated here.\nThursday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I left early, and were 'seen\noff' by a guard of honour composed of the students at\nMagill College\u00E2\u0080\u0094a fine-looking rifle regiment. We had Mr.\nBridges' car, and traveUed in great comfort. We found it very\ncold at Ottawa. All the children in different stages of cold.\nOttawa: Tuesday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a very exciting\ngame in the Curhng Rink between D. and Mr. Gordon, a\nPresbyterian minister. They play for the Club prize, and\nwhoever wins to-day has to play another member, and so\non, till the last man remaining gains ' the horns.' This\ngame was very close, 'twelve all,' and the next shot must\ndecide the winner. We aU came in to watch the last\nstrokes, and D. got 'two,' and so won, and has a new\nantagonist to encounter.\nThursday, igth--We had a great expedition to-day.\nOur party filled two sleighs, and we started at eight o'clock\nin the morning, and drove three miles along, or rather on,\nthe Gatineau river, and then eighteen miles through the r-\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\nFEB. 1674\nA WINTER'S DRIVE\n133\n'bush,' enjoying the winter scenery. It was a prettier\ndrive than I had expected, being more open, less shut up\nin wood, and the horizon more varied than it usually is\nhere. We saw the Gatineau rapids, rushing along black-\nlooking through the snow; also something of the lumber-\ntrade, for we met all the little sleighs full of wood coming\nto market. As they were loaded, we had to make way for\nthem, and on two occasions we met in most awkward places,\nwhen we all had to get out, and lift our sleigh sideways\non to the bank, and once we had to take out the horses.\nAnother time we were at the top of a hill, and our foe\nwanted us to back down it. We asked if he could not back,\nbut he exclaimed indignantly, ' Why, there are enough\nof you there to lift that cutter of yours right over the\nmountain'\u00E2\u0080\u0094this of the great family sleigh !\nWe arrived at last at the house of a farmer, the owner\nof a cave, which cave was the end and object of our expedition. Here we lunched, and then, guided by the farmer,\nwe proceeded on our way two miles along a lumber snow\nroad, very narrow and bumpy. We left the carriages on\na lake, and climbed up a hill to the mouth of the cave,\nwhere we took off our fur cloaks, and, each taking a lighted\ncandle, entered the cave.\nAfter examining a part of it, which I may call the hall\nand ante-room of this subterranean mansion, we proceeded\non hands and knees through a very low passage to the\ndrawing-room. We ladies had great difficulty with our\npetticoats, especially when in this doubled-up position we\nhad to cross a pool of water on a narrow plank, and were\ngreatly relieved when we were able to stretch ourselves\nupright again. New perils were, however, before us, and\nthe gentlemen were astonished to find that Lady Harriet\nand I really did intend to descend the ladders which, in the\ndarkness, appeared to lead down to the middle of the earth.\nBut, as we very naturally observed to them, we had not\ndriven twenty miles, and crawled on hands and knees to I j\n134\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nthe spot, to be deterred by a small difficulty; so down we\nwent, and saw two more large rooms in the basement of said\nmansion. Of course the place requires a geologist's eye to\nappreciate it thoroughly. It is made of\u00E2\u0080\u0094no; I won't even\nattempt to describe its origin.\nWe came out from our crawHng very dirty indeed, and,\nreturning to our carriages, drove homewards. Our sleigh\nwas first, and we had just descended a very steep hill\nwhen we heard a noise, and looking back saw the second\nsleigh stranded in the middle of the road, its horses galloping madly towards us. Our footman rushed in front of\nthem, and caught hold of their bridles just as they were\nupon us: he was knocked down between them, but was not\nhurt. The gentlemen all got into the broken sleigh, and\nfinally arrived safe home, though they were run away with\nat every hill on the way back.\nIt snowed most of the day, and at the end of our drive\nwe looked ideal Canadians.\nMonday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a very exciting curling\nmatch to-day between D. and Hutchison for ' the horns.'\nD. won by six points, and will now have to encounter\nanother player. The boys made some calculations afterwards, in which they proved that each player had run\neight miles, had thrown four-and-a-half tons forty yards,\nand had swept out the Parliament Buildings\u00E2\u0080\u0094pretty severe\nlabour for one game !\nTuesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ' Freds'\u00E2\u0080\u0094for we have no less than\nfive of that name in our household\u00E2\u0080\u0094played a match, the\nwinner to be the 'representative member' of the new\n' Viceregal Curling Club.' Brother Fred won it.\nHe and Colonel Fletcher dined with the Ministers,\n' in honour' of the Dominion Board of Trade, and Fred\nreturned thanks for the ladies.\nSaturday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel Strange, from Quebec, and\nMr. Plumb, M.P. for Niagara, dined with us, and we had an\n' electric evening.' I don't suppose you could have one at r\nmarch 1874 ELECTRICAL EXPERIMENTS\nhome; but here by rubbing our feet on the carpet, and\nthen touching another person, we can produce a sparl\nand from any hot metal, such as the fireplace, we get quite\na shock.\nMr. Plumb showed us a very curious thing. We went\ninto a dark room, and rubbed the inside of the back of\na book with a fur glove, and instantly the gilt pattern on\nthe outside was illuminated by sparks, so that the whole\ndesign was as clearly marked out as it is in the daytime.\nHe discovered this accidentally by passing a piece of fur\nround his hat, when the maker's name appeared inside in\nletters of light. Then we tried to light the gas, and I\nhad the satisfaction of succeeding three times myself. I\nheld a piece of wire, or a needle, in my hand, rubbed my\nfeet on the carpet, and touched the burner; a spark was\nemitted, and the gas instantly blazed up. The children are\nextremely fond of charging at some unsuspecting victim with\na finger or a nose, which instantly emits a perfect flash of\nlightning. One day I brought the baby down to the\ndrawing-room, and Fred (who had just been rubbing his\nfeet preparatory to trying an electric experiment) kissed\nher, and gave her such a shock that she cried with fright!\nWednesday, March 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The ice still demoralised, and\neveryone grumbling. Both grown-up people and children\nfind ' walking on the boards' a sad exchange for skating,\ntobogganing, and curling.\nFriday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Ottawa Curling Club came and\nplayed on our rink for His Excellency's medal. They\nmade a good score, and have hopes of winning it. Mr.\nGilmour and Mr, Mackenzie spent the afternoon here and\ncurled with D. The Premier brightened up very much\nduring the ' roar in' game.'\nSaturday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It poured, and the beginning of the\nafternoon-party was trying. Skating was out of the\nquestion, and a few ladies dropped in alone; I was in\ndespair, but at last the two necessaries\u00E2\u0080\u0094men and music\u00E2\u0080\u0094 m\n136\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\narrived, and we had a very nice little dance and cotiUon.\nHermie and Basil contribute greatly to the amusement of\nthe company. She and Basil talk to everyone, and are\nalways in such high spirits, that the lookers-on like having\nthem to play with.\nNowell (D.'s valet) won the cup, and I presented it to\nhim; it is to have his name, and ' Presented to the Viceregal\nCurling Club,' etc., engraved on it.\nTuesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was tremendous excitement in\nthe Curling Rink to-day\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. playing another opponent, Mr.\nRussell, for ' the horns.' The game was very interesting.\nThey had to make twenty-one points, and five times during\nthe course of the game they were ties, D. winning finally\nby one\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very honourable and unexpected victory, as Mr.\nRussell is the ' skip ' of the Ottawa Club.\nTuesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was beautiful tobogganing today The children went down in every sort of way, double\nand single, standing, sitting and lying. Once they tied four\ntoboggans together, which looked like a raft covered with\npeople\u00E2\u0080\u0094a rescue from shipwreck.\nFriday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A day of much ceremony. Diamonds,\nlappets, and feathers at two o'clock, when all drove to the\nParHament Buildings, the Governor-General in carriage-and-\nfour, and I in a quiet brougham, to a private entrance. I\nwent into the Senate Chamber, which I found Ml of gay\nladies, and soon we heard the guns which announced his\nExcellency's arrival. We all stood up to receive him, as he\ncame in preceded by his Staff. He sent for the Commons,\nand the new Speaker made a little speech, and the President of the Senate replied to it. Then D. read the speech,\nfirst in English, then in French, and we departed as we\ncame.\nOn my return I doffed my finery until after dinner,\nwhen I dressed up again, and we returned to the Senate\nChamber to hold a Drawing Room; it went off very well,\nand was quite a brilliant affair.\nliklL MARCH 1874\nENGLISH VISITORS\n137\nSaturday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We turned out of the drawing-room\nto-day, to have it arranged as a second supper-room.\nThe conservatory was hung with Chinese lanterns, and\neverything that was possible done to embellish the rooms\nfor an evening-party.\nThere was a band, tableaux, and some singing in the\ndrawing-room, supper in two rooms, and I believe people\nenjoyed themselves.\nSunday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had such a nice walk on the Ottawa.\nThe banks were lovely, clothed in icicles, and ice-grottoes,\ninto which we got, had been formed in places. They\nwere supported by enormous pillars of ice, and a fringe\nof large icicles shut us in.\nTuesday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went into the House, expecting to see\nRiel take his seat. There was great excitement outside, but\nhe did not appear. We heard a very amusing debate\nabout abolishing the sale of spirits within the precincts of\nParliament. We were very busy at home preparing everything for a full-dress rehearsal of a selection from the opera\nof 'Semiramide' and the little play of 'One Hour,' in\nwhich I myself take part. The rehearsal was successful,\nthe servants making up an audience.\nThursday, 2nd April.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Charles Kingsley2 and his\ndaughter are staying with us, and we took them over the\nHouses of Parliament, and had Sir John and Lady Macdonald one day, and Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie another, to\nmeet them at dinner.\nSaturday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We looked on at curling to-day, and\nsaw D. beat the ' champion,' Mr. Gilmour, twice. Dr.\nGrant dined with us, and he and Mr. Kingsley were very\nhappy over geological subjects.\nEaster Sunday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a great congregation,\nand we had an excellent sermon from Mr. Kingsley, appropriate to the day. He does not stammer at all in preaching.\n2 The late Rev. Charles Kingsley, author of \ Westward Ho! ?\n'Hypatia,' etc. 138\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nThe gentlemen say that in the smoking-room he is most\namusing; but he seems shy, and is therefore less brilliant,\nin general society.\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. walked into Ottawa, and in the street\nmet Mr. Laurence Oliphant,3 whom he asked to come to us\nat once, and to bring his wife. He is very pleasant, and she\nis a sweet pretty Httle woman, very chatty. They both belong\nto a curious sect, headed by a Mr. Harris. They have no objection to talking about it to us, but she tells me that in the\ncommunity they never speak of religion, that they have no\nchurch, no services, and that every member believes, or,\nrather, disbelieves, what he likes. They look upon Mr.\nHarris as a ' moral doctor,' and all their efforts in a ' good'\ndirection are employed in conquering their own faults by\ntheir own efforts\u00E2\u0080\u0094and Mr. Harris's prescriptions; they also\nbeheve that their prophet actually suffers physical pain when\nhis followers offend, and that they know when they do wrong\nthemselves by a peculiar sensation in the throat. They consider themselves bound to spend all they have; not merely\nto give to charitable institutions, but to distribute it personally. They live in a district where they have farms,\nand the members all help each other as they can.\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. curled, and nearly killed Mr. Oliphant\nwith the exertion. I like both her and him very much;\nand certainly their faith in what they do believe, and their\nconscientious performance of the same, are wonderful.\nFriday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The great ball given by the citizens of\nOttawa in our honour took place to-night. The dancing\nwas in the Senate Chamber\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very handsome room\u00E2\u0080\u0094and a\nnew floor was put down for the occasion. I suppose two\nthousand people were present, but there were so many\npassages and promenades that the dancing was not too\ncrowded. We much appreciated our hosts' kindness and\nhospitality.\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were pleased to see in the morning\n3 The late Laurence Oliphant, author of ' The Piccadilly Papers,' etc. APRIL 1874\nAMATEUR THEATRICALS\n139\npaper that there are 900 dollars (nearly 200Z.) over, after\nall the ball expenses have been paid, which are to be given\nto charities.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening our play came off,\nand was a great success. People seem to listen with eyes\nand ears, and to be quite delighted. The whole company\nwas good, and every one knew his or her part, and it went\nsmoothly and with spirit.\nAfter it was over I changed my dress in about three\nminutes, and came down to supper. Stray couples walked\nabout the corridors, visited the conservatory, and had what\nis called ' a lovely time.'\nWhen I had shaken hands with the ' six hundred,' and\nwe were alone again, we had our supper, of which we were\nall very glad, for acting makes one so hungry !\nSaturday, May 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and Fred went out hunting,\nand had a very pleasant run.\nThe children tried a paper-chase. Colonel Fletcher was\nthe fox, and the run was most exciting, the ' hounds'\nshrieking all the way, and having some delightfully stiff\ntimber to climb.\nA Parliamentary dinner ; five expected guests failed to\ncome, and left a great gap at the table.\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Lieutenant-Governor of Nova\nScotia and Miss Archibald arrived to spend a few days\nwith us.\nLady Harriet is expecting her sister and uncle\u00E2\u0080\u0094a great\nexcitement in our small world; for, though our guests are\nnumerous, our home-circle is small. We have very pleasant\nweather, and sit out a great deal, enjoying it; but as yet\nthere are no leaves on the trees, and no plants bedded out.\nFriday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had such a pleasant day, driving in\ntwo carriages to visit Mr. Gilmour's place on the Gatineau\nRiver, and to see his sawmills, etc. Lady Mary and Mr.\nMarsham, who arrived on Friday, went with us. The\nweather was fine, and the river very full; the rapids were 140\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nlit\nmagnificent, and it was very interesting to see the lumber\ngo down them.\nWe watched the trunks of great trees turning and\ntwisting in the whirlpools, passing from one current to\nanother, dashing down waterfalls, disappearing in the\nwaves, and coming up again on the brink of other rapids.\nWe saw them reach a place where a number of men, with\npoles and spikes, stood by to harpoon and mark the passing\nmonsters, sending those stamped with a ' G ' in one direction, and those with a ' P ' in another. After this, a further\nrush down the river brought the logs to a calm pool, where\nthey were just recovering from their exciting voyage, when\nthey were laid hold of by an innocent-looking cogwheel, up\nwhich they marched slowly and surely into the teeth of\nfourteen thickset saws, which sent them in pieces on a\nfurther sail, down a small trough of water, to the stack-yard.\nIn addition to the almost human interest of this tragic\nperformance, we had lovely scenery to look at, a good\nlunch to eat, a nice drive, and a row home in boats; so we\nenjoyed ourselves much.\nMonday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Queen's birthday kept. The morning looked bad, but we dressed ourselves up, and at eleven\narrived in front of the Town HaU, where the firemen and\nengines were to be reviewed. We looked at and walked\nround them\u00E2\u0080\u0094the rain coming down a little\u00E2\u0080\u0094listened to an\naddress, and then proceeded to the review-ground.\nThe Governor-General's Foot Guards looked extremely\nwell; but the weather was dreadful, and when I came to\ngive away the colours it poured in torrents, so that the\nfeathers in my bonnet stood on end, and I had to take off\nmy veil and throw it away. You may imagine my mother's\nfeehngs when I turned round in the middle of the deluge\nand found that Archie was out in dancing-shoes ! We had\nlunch in a large tent, and D. made a speech, which you\nmay read in the newspaper I send you.\nWednesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We made an expedition down the\n22 r~\nMAY 1874\nEXCURSIONS\nSlide to-day. D. paddled his canoe to the foot of the\nChaudiere Falls. Colonel Fletcher rowed there, and we\ntook two carriage-loads, with five children\u00E2\u0080\u0094all in a great\nstate of excitement. We found a magnificent' crib ' prepared\nfor us\u00E2\u0080\u0094flags and green arches over it; and when we were\nall assembled, we started at a slow and stately pace on our\njourney over the Slide down to the Ottawa. It takes three\nwaterfalls to reach the level of the river, and going over\nthese is the greatest fun. We remained on our crib for\nsome time, and then got on to a raft for tea, which we drank\nout of tins, without milk or sugar; and we ate raft-made\nbread, which was excellent.\nFriday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went up the Rideau in a carriage for\nabout eight miles, and saw the Falls, which are very pretty.\nHad tea there, and came back in canoes, D. rowing me.\nThere was a beautiful sunset, and the river was lovely\u00E2\u0080\u0094the\nscenery much more English-like and meadowy than it\nusually is here. There were some rapids to run, and we\nladies got out, while the Colonel and D. took their canoes\ndown. It was quite dark when we got home.\nSaturday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094As it was a lovely day, and as the\nmosquitoes are, so far, very harmless, had tea out of doors.\nWe carried the things down to the rocks, and the children\nwere extremely happy attending to the fire, and jumping\nabout at the edge of the water. The two families were\npresent\u00E2\u0080\u0094ten old enough for picnics.\nTuesday, June 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove about twelve miles into\nthe country to the borders of ' Meech's Lake,' a pretty piece\nof water inhabited by swarms of mosquitoes. We drank our\ntea in a cloud of smoke, to keep off the tormentors, and\nthen got into our canoes (which had been brought here in\na cart), and explored the Lake. ' We ' means the Fletchers,\nLady Mary Marsham, D., and myse]f.\nOur expedition did not end quite pleasantly. It had\nbeen arranged that we were to get into a boat half-way and\nrow home. The night was very dark, and the current 14*2\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. X\nlUiilll\ntremendous. Presently we came up against a beam of wood\nstretched across the rushing river, which we knew had an\nopening in it through which boats could pass; but in the dark\nwe could not find the place. The Colonel, who was rowing\nwith D., said the ladies would have to get out, and that\nthe boat must be Hfted over the bar. Oh, it was disagreeable ! We knelt on the narrow plank, with the rapid stream\nswirling under it, and I don't think I could have done it but\nfor a fortunate peg in my bit of plank by which I held on,\nand which gave me a certain sense of security. Lady Mary\nwas so brave: she made no fuss at aU. When the boat had\nbeen dragged over the beam we got into it again; but we\nhad several more alarms about steamers, rafts, etc., and I\nwas thankful when we got safe home without collisions or\nfurther accident. 143\nCHAPTER XI\nFISHING ON THE ST. LAWRENCE\nQuebec: Saturday, June 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Ottawa yesterday\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie, D., and I; Nelly was up to see us off, and looked\na little melancholy at being left behind. We went by train\nto Prescott, and had two hours to wait for the boat, which\nhad been detained by fog. We feared this delay would disarrange our plans, and make us late for the night-boat from\nMontreal; but as it waited for us, we made our journey successfully, and arrived this morning at delightful Quebec,\nwhere as usual we met with the most friendly welcome.\nPeople always seem so glad to see us here, and aU the\nway up the town faces were smiling at the windows, and\nhats were off everywhere; it is just like coming home !\nIn the afternoon Archie played in a football-match\u00E2\u0080\u0094| The\nClandeboye' against ' The Rovers'; I need not say who\nwon.\nD. and I had a walk in the town, and then I unpacked\nthe English box, which has just arrived, and which astonished\nme with the new fashions it contained. I cannot yet decide\nwhether to put on the bonnets forwards, backwards, or\nsideways.\nWednesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went on board the Druid, and left\nQuebec. The day was lovely, and as we went down the\nSt. Lawrence the colouring was beautiful everywhere. We\npassed numbers of saihng-vessels.\nFriday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Found ourselves in sight of Gaspe this 144\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nmormng\nNot a ripple on the water, and the place looking\nlovely. Mr. Eden, the vivacious harbour-master, came on\nboard, presented me with a large Indian box which had\nbeen made for me, told us all about the salmon, etc.\nD. went into the bush to see about our fishing-box. We\nhave brought with us the pieces of a little bedroom and\ndressing-room, which are to be put together on the site,\nwhich D. walked eighteen miles to select.\nThe night was very bad\u00E2\u0080\u0094rain, snow, and hail. We are\nglad to be in harbour.\nSunday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rather a fine-looking morning, but cold.\nWe went to church, and had a good sermon\u00E2\u0080\u0094short and\nplain. In the afternoon we landed on the York side of\nthe harbour, and drove along a good road.\nWe met a friend on the way, a farmer, originally from\nCavan, who has cleared, and now lives upon, thirty acres of\nhis own land. He and his wife have added fifteen to the\npopulation of Gaspe. He asked us up to his house, which\nwas very comfortable: a large sitting-room, with three concertinas, books, etc., in it; a dining-room, kitchen, and nice\nbedroom on the ground floor, and everything very neat\nand clean. The view from his door\u00E2\u0080\u0094lovely.\nMonday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our two rooms were taken off in the\nmiddle of the night to their destination on the St. John\nRiver, and D., Archie and I soon went after them. We made\nthe first part of the journey in a 'waggon,' then got on\nhorses, and rode at a jog-walk for three hours, when we\nreached our fishing-box. We gave aU necessary directions\nthere, and then mounted again to cross to the York River.\nWhen we reached Mr. Reynolds's camp, which is situated\non this rushing river, I got Archie some food, and then\nthe poor little man had to start back again, and only\nreached home at ten at night. He was very proud of\nhis long day, which prevented his acknowledging any\nfatigue.\nOur host is so pleasant and kind, and we had a very\n1 r\nS3\nCO JUNE 1874\nTHE YORK RIVER\n145\nagreeable dinner ; Colonel McNeillT and Mr. Monck are also\nhere. Afterwards we sat round a fire outside, and then\ncame in to write up the game-book.\nTuesday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It rained early in the morning, but\nwas sunny, though cold, during the day. I fished for a\nshort time, and caught, or, rather, hooked, a 'kelt'\u00E2\u0080\u0094an\nuneatable salmon, which has been in the river all the winter.\nD. caught one salmon of 14 lbs., Colonel McNeill two, and\nMr. Monck two; but it was considered a very bad day's\nsport.\nThis is a beautiful river : numbers of pools, a very rapid\ncurrent, very clear water. The woods have a great deal of\nbirch in them, and the look-out is much more open than on\nmost of the rivers.\nOn our return we had dinner, camp-fire, etc., as before.\nI have such a comfortable room, with carpet and curtains.\nWednesday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. fished vigorously aU this very\nwet day with no result. The only fortunate person was\nMr. Monck, who brought home two salmon, 26 and 27 lbs.\nThe others caught kelt, and were very angry over those\n' unclean' fish.\nThursday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We telegraphed last week to Fred and\nDr. Campbell not to come, as there seems no chance of\nthe fishing on the St. John beginning yet; but to-day we\nhear that they have arrived. Colonel McNeill and Mr.\nMonck have most kindly gone up the river to a distant\nhouse in order to leave room for them here, as Mr. Reynolds\ninsists upon having them. The day is terribly wet.\nSaturday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred and Dr. Campbell arrived here\nvery early, having left the Druid at 5 a.m.\nWe had a very beautiful day as to weather, but the river\nhad risen so much that there was no fishing. D. and I\ntook a walk, and Fred upset a canoe, and sent himself and\ntwo men into the water.\n1 Major-General Sir John McNeill, V.C., K.C.B., Equerry to H.M. the\nQueen.\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 w\n146\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nMr. Monck came down from his house with two salmon,\none twenty-nine and the other twenty-two pounds.\nSunday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At last we have a fine day, though it cannot be considered a ' mid-summer's day.' We took a walk,\nand sat round a ' smudge '\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is, a fire of damp wood,\nwhich smokes and keeps the black-flies and mosquitoes off.\nMonday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Nice weather, but the salmon not\nrising. The river is much too high, and the current too\nrapid. I went down to the pool where D. was fishing in the\ncanoe, and walked back by myself; but I am advised not to\ndo so again, lest I should meet a bear.\nTuesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Here are the statistics of our fishing so\nfar at York River :\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMr. Reynolds, five fish, weighing 23, 21, 33, 28,\n12 lbs.\nColonel McNeill, twelve, weighing 24, 22, 11, 18, 24,\n25, 27, 25, 24, 20, 26, 14 lbs.\nMr. Monck, seven, weighing 25, 11, 26, 27, 27, 23, 15 lbs.\nLord D., three : 14, 13, 10 lbs.\nFred, two : 22, 14 lbs.\nSo far we have not been fortunate. Last year Mr.\nReynolds caught ten fish himself the first day he went out.\nTheir respective weights were: 47, 37, 30, 12, 19, 20, 18,\n30, 30, 10, the average being 25 lbs. This is marvellous\nin the way of fishing, and I record it as an interesting fact,\nthough I don't suppose you will appreciate it.\nThursday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie arrived to-day, and Mr. Reynolds left. D. had at last a good day's fishing, and came\nhome with six salmon: 2,6, 25, 14, 13, 12, 10 lbs. Dr.\nCampbell caught one 23 lbs., and Fred nothing. The day\nwas extremely cold, and we were surprised that the fish\nrose at all.\nOur mail arrived, and in the middle of his salmon-\ncatching D. sent off despatches.\nFriday, 26th,\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred was given the best pool to-day, and\nD. went up to the ' Little Salmon Hole' and the' Flat Rock'\nwm r\nJUNE 1874\nON THE YORK RIVER\npool. I walked there with him, a distance of about three\nmiles through the woods, and Archie went up the rapids\nin a canoe. He and I then looked on at the sport, he\namusing himself between times by cutting down trees with\na hatchet and by feeding a fire with wood.\nD's first fish was a very lively little one, which jumped\nand. frisked about, and finally took him right down the\nrapids. It was 12 lbs. The second sulked, and merely\nkept a good steady pull on the line, keeping it up for an\nhour, and only making for the rapids at the last moment.\nIt weighed 23 lbs.\nOur lunch, which the men provided, consisted of lumberman's fare : bread fried in pork fat, and tea. We all came\ndown in a canoe, the stream bringing us at a great pace.\nWe found that Dr. Campbell had not even seen a fish.\nFred caught two, and having just finished a struggle with a\ntwenty-six pounder, he came home to dinner in very good\nspirits. This fish was already gaffed and in the boat, when\nit jumped out again, broke the top of his rod, and had to\nbe played for another Rve minutes ; so that it was a miracle\nhe saved it.\nSaturday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We leave to-day to go to the St. John,\nso we had all our packing to do, Besides our clothes, there\nwere two tents to be put up, and a sledge to be transported\nover the river, for carrying our goods through the bush.\nD. and Fred started to walk, and a few minutes after they\nleft we saw a raft coming down the stream, with a little\ndog upon it, and a green tree floating over his head. Then\na canoe came in sight, with Colonel McNeill and Mr.\nMonck in it, and we found that the raft contained the salmon they had caught, which they sent off with the dog as\nits only live passenger to astonish us. They brought home\nnineteen large salmon, the average being twenty-three\npounds weight. Mr. Monck had caught eight one day, and\nfive one evening.\nWe were soon after this ready for our start. Archie,\nL 2 148\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nOH. XI\nDr. Campbell, and I rode\u00E2\u0080\u0094I with a jar of cream on my\nknee. Our road was very bad, trees lying across it, and\nmuch mud and marsh to go through.\nD. met us just outside our camp, and we were all\ndeHghted with our new habitation when we reached it.\nThe men had worked very hard, and had made cedar-bark\nmm\nmm\u00C2\u00AE\n'*\u00C2\u00BB!\nMl&fi\n'isftll\n\u00C2\u00BB\nS*5\"$\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\"\u00E2\u0080\u00A2*\ni\ntH*^-'\ni/IH\n/OI.\n\"T?\n^m.\nm\nua\n\!.rt\n1WN\n^CS?r\nW/M\nOUR HUT\npaths and fir plantations round the houses. The 'viUage,'\nover which the Dominion flag floats, consists of two large\ntents for the men, and of a wooden house divided into two\nrooms. The windows have green mosquito-blinds over\nthem, and the bed, white mosquito-curtains. There is a\nwashing-table, and lots of pegs and shelves, and a Httle bit 1\nmm\njune 1874 OUR CAMP ON THE ST JOHN\n149\nof carpet, which is a great luxury in the woods. A cedar\npath leads to the log-house, in which there is the sitting-\nroom, and two little ' cabins,' in which our guests sleep.\nOpposite our door a bonfire burns, and when the flies\nare bad we have a row of smudges to smoke them away.\nThe kitchen is in another log-house on the other side,\nand from it we soon had an excellent dinner.\nNowell (D.'s valet) has made all these arrangements,\nand, in spite of many bites from the untiring flies, he works\naway with great good-humour and skill.\nMonday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The first fishing on our own river. The\nfishers drew lots for the pools, and Archie and I went to see\nD.'s success. He only brought two home when we returned\nto dine at two o'clock. The others had not seen a fish, so\nD. and Dr. Campbell resolved to go down towards the\nmouth of the river, the fish being only now on their way\nup. There is a little house there, in which they intend to\nsleep to-night. Archie went to fish in a lake close by, and\nbrought home fourteen trout. Some of these we ate for tea.\nWednesday, July 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another very bad day, but, as\nit was Dominion Day, we had several flags flying and a\ngreat bonfire in the camp. D. and Dr. Campbell returned.\nThey seem to have enjoyed their trip in spite of the weather,\nand if it had been good they would have had splendid fishing : as it was they had fished till two o'clock in the day,\nand the former caught three salmon\u00E2\u0080\u009421, 13, 11 lbs.; and\nDr. Campbell five\u00E2\u0080\u009421, 13, 11, 9, 9 lbs.\nThursday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. was up at a nameless pool, and\ncaught five salmon before two o'clock. He was coming\nhome when he caught the last, so he determined to bring\nit down to the house. I was hungrily watching for the\nfishermen's return to dinner, when I saw the canoe arriving\nwith D. hanging on to a salmon. This was very exciting,\nand we saw the creature brought ashore without a gaff.\nD. wanted me to fish in the afternoon, so about five\no'clock we went again to the nameless pool. I stood up in 150\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nthe canoe, a man at each end keeping it steady with poles,\nand began to throw my fly. The fish did not come, so we\nchanged the bait, and tried ' Jock Scot' and ' King Coffee.'\nThis royal personage was large and gaudy, and had, alas ! a\nvery big hook. ' A rise !' ' He's on!' Then I stand firm, and\nmy friend jumps several times up in the air; but I hold him\nwell in hand, and suddenly he spits out my fly, and is\ngone ! Again we go up and down the pool with ' King\nCoffee,' and then we try the ' Silver Doctor,' and at seven\no'clock another fish is on ! This one simply tugs; he\nkeeps a steady pull on all the time, and I do the same by\nhim, and take care to give him no rest, but wind him up\nevery time he attempts to lie quiet; once he jumps, and\nthey say he is a large one. This game goes on for some\ntime, and then my friend thinks he will take me down the\nrapids. I am still standing in the canoe, but keeping firm\nby pressing my knees against the bar across it. We went\ndown half a mile hand-in-hand like this, and I began to\nfeel that it was a question which of us would be exhausted\nfirst. A salmon-rod with a fish at the end of it is no joke !\nI began ' to wish he were dead,' and to say to myself that I\nnever would go through such an anxiety again, for the fish\nis never safe till he is in the boat. At last we gaffed him,\nbrought him safely to his death, weighed him, and found\nhim twenty-six pounds\u00E2\u0080\u0094the largest caught here this year;\nso I am very proud of my success. The nameless pool\nis now the ' Countess Pool.'\nSaturday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A wet morning again. We packed up,\nand went down in canoes towards the Druid, fishing on\nthe way. The salmon would not rise, and we had only\nthree to show at the end of a long day. We left our boats\nin the evening, and drove to Gaspe, where we got on board\nthe Druid, after saying farewell to our fishermen, etc.\nWe meant to start at once, but there was a fog outside,\nand we did not get off till four in the morning.\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A fog,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and the Druid at a standstill all JULY I874\nTHE SAGUENAY\n151\nyesterday, we not knowing where we were tiU three o'clock,\nwhen the mist rolled away suddenly. We anchored at night\nabout fifteen miles from Tadousac, and came in there early\nthis morning. The children were looking out for us, and\nArchie went ashore to fetch Nelly and Terence for breakfast,\nand to show off his steering.\nWe landed after breakfast, and found Hermie and Basil\nwith outstretched arms at the top of the stairs, waiting to\ngive us a warm welcome. Then we saw the baby: such a\nfat fairy, so pretty, with golden hair curling all over, and\nlarge, dark \"grey eyes. Such a merry, happy little thing;\nshe stands at a chair, and crawls about everywhere.\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast we got on board the\nDruid\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Fletchers, Lady Mary Marsham, ourselves and\nNelly\u00E2\u0080\u0094and started up the Saguenay. At two o'clock we\nstopped to fish for trout, but the wind rose, and we were not\nvery successful.\nThen we proceeded on our journey, and saw a most\nlovely sunset, which turned the Saguenay hills into gorgeous\nmasses of purple and blue with golden backgrounds. This\narm of the sea is considered one of the great Canadian\nsights; it is a reft in the rocks, and the water is very deep\nright up to the sides, but the hills are all the same height,\nwhich is somewhat monotonous. There are two enormous\ncliffs or capes, called ' Trinity ' and ' Eternity,' but it was\nvery dark when we passed them, and we hope to see them\nbetter on our return.\nSaturday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are anchored in Haha Bay, and\nD. and Colonel Fletcher started very early for a day's\nsalmon-fishing in a small river near. We ladies foUowed\nlater, and found that the fishers had had splendid sport.\nWe were able to watch them, and we had some most exciting\nand terrible moments to go through ! D. hooked a salmon\nin a pool, and the creature seemed very strong and large,\nand after tugging more than half an hour he insisted upon\ngoing down the rapids. D. had on great wading-stockings 1\n152\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nand boots, and ran or stumbled through the water over\nrough, round stones. At the foot of one rapid he nearly got\nthe fish in, but the gaffmen were inexperienced, and made\na dash at it, which frightened the salmon and sent him off\ndown a second rapid ; then there was another long pause,\nanother attempt on the part of the gaffmen, the hook came\nout of his mouth, and he was gone ! However, we brought\nhome seven salmon, and were all very happy, and very\nhungry for dinner at nine o'clock.\nBranches were being planted all along the road, in\nhonour of the Roman Catholic Archbishop's visit. He\ncomes here once in five years. D. was able to present\neach of the priests with whom he was to stay with a\nsalmon, which was very acceptable. The Comet, and a\nsplendid Aurora, appeared for us to look at after dinner.\nIn the night we start again..\nSunday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We reached Chicoutimi this morning.\nWe sent a note ashore inviting ourselves to breakfast with\nthe Prices, and when we were dressed found Mr. Price waiting with his carriages to take us to the house. The Prices\nare a happy family of four girls and six sons, all unmarried,\nand all living together. We found their house charming.\nAs you enter the gate you see through the trees the\nbeautiful blue water, with large ships upon it; and the\ntide, when high, comes right up to the edge of the parapet.\nIt is a delightful summer residence. They always have a\nlarge party in the house, and have lovely rides and drives,\nand boating excursions for their guests.\nThey gave us a good breakfast, which we ate ravenously,\nenjoying all the country fare, and the wild strawberries and\ncream! Afterwards we walked to a waterfall, and then\nreturned to our steamer, and waited on board, while D.\nreceived an address. When we left we fired two guns as\nwe passed the Prices' house, saluted with our flag, and\nexchanged pocket-handkerchief waves ! The weather is\nfine and we are enjoying our sail immensely. \u00E2\u0096\u00A0p\nJULY 1874\nMURRA Y BAY\n153\nBefore we left Tadousac an Indian came to D. and said\nthat he wanted to go to the Marguerite, a little way up the\nSaguenay, and asked if he might go with us; D. told him\nto go on board the Druid with his canoe, and there we\nfound him comfortably installed; but we passed the\nMarguerite and many other ' stations,' and at each he\nrefused to. get out; so it ended yesterday in our bringing\nhim back again. We were much amused at the idea of his\ncoming the trip with us, enjoying good fare, and returning\nhome again. But when we came to examine him, it turned\nout to have been a misunderstanding: he wished to offer\nhis services to D. as a fisherman, thinking he was going to\nthe Marguerite, and once on board he was obliged to continue the voyage.\nIn the afternoon we passed under the cliffs 4 Trinity'\nand 'Eternity,' and went quite close to them. Trinity\nrises straight out of the water 1,500 feet high, a straight\nwall of rock. D. fired at the cliff, and we threw stones,\nwithout being able to hit it; it looks so much nearer than\nit is in reality.\nWe reached Tadousac at nine, and Archie was on the\nsands waiting for us, Terence awake in bed, and the others\nasleep and invisible.\nMonday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening we went on board the\nDruid, hoping to sail; but there was a fog, which continued all night, and which kept us at anchor.\nTuesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We could not see our house when we\nfirst got up, but the mist cleared away suddenly, and we\nimmediately prepared to start. Then there was great waving of handkerchiefs from the balcony to the steamer, and\nfrom the steamer to the family on shore. About two\no'clock we reached Murray Bay, and went ashore to see\nthis rival seaside place. We took a long drive in two\ncarriages, D. and I leading the way, and the Fletchers and\nLady Mary following. We had beautiful weather, and\nthought the place quite lovely. The ground seems to have 154\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nbeen cut into terraces and mounds by the action of water,\nand there are the St. Lawrence, the Murray River, the\nmountains, and some very picturesque houses to make up\nthe landscape. After driving for nearly three hours, we\ndined on board, and saw a beautiful aurora; and at twelve\nwe started again, and found ourselves on the morning of\nWednesday, i$th9 at St. Anne. We drove off .early, in\ntwo gigs, to see some celebrated falls. The drive was nine\nmiles, and we passed wood-carts almost by hundreds drawn\nby oxen and horses. The weather was fine, but not clear, and\nwe did not see the beautiful views to their best advantage. At\nthe end of the drive we foUowed a woman who was to guide\nus to the Fall. She brought us up to a pretty little one,\nwhich we decided was scarcely worth all the trouble we had\ntaken to see it; but, happily, I had been told a great deal\nabout the St. Anne Fall, and felt sure this could not be the\nright one. We questioned the lady, and as she admitted that\nthere were some' little' faUs.above, we determined to go on.\nThe walk was tremendous\u00E2\u0080\u0094up such a hiU, in the bush, and\nwith pouring rain coming down upon us. However, we\nstruggled on, and were rewarded by finding ourselves\nsuddenly in front of the FaUs. The water was rushing\nfrom a great height down a narrow gorge, forming six great\nsteps or waterfalls, each one with a still pool at its base; so\nthat they were six separate faUs, and yet but one flow of water.\nBy the time we got back to our carriages we were very\ntired indeed, very wet, and very ready for our lunch, which\nwe were to have in a cottage.\nThe yacht's cook's mother-in-law lived on the road, and\nhe begged to be allowed to give us our lunch there. Nowell\ntells us that when he and the cook arrived they found the\npoor people busy with their summer cleaning; the man\nhad two cans in his hand, and when the cook suddenly\nannounced to him that the Governor-General was coming\nto lunch with him, he dropped both his cans, fell back into\nhis chair, and shrieked ' Jamais !'\nL JULY 1874\nST. ANNE\n155\nWhen we arrived, we found a flag at the gate, and one\non the house, and the man and his wife\u00E2\u0080\u0094he not sixty, she\nseventy-two, and just married to him, en seconde noce\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nwaiting to receive us.\nThe first room of the cottage was a big kitchen, with a\ngood cooking-stove; and the room behind was also very\nlarge and very clean. In three corners were beds, surrounded by chintz curtains hung from the ceiling. There\nwas a large stove, some chests for clothes, and a cupboard with glass door containing china. A table in the\nmiddle of the room was spread for lunch.\nThe old lady talked to me, and seemed much amused at\nour having so many people to wait upon us. The cook gave\nus an excellent meal, ending with wild strawberries, cream,\nand maple sugar ! We soon after said a warm farewell to our\nhosts, and drove back to the wharf. We ought to have\nseen a church at St. Anne celebrated for miracles performed\nthere, and in which about 100 lame people have left their\ncrutches ; but we had not time to visit it.\nAbout eight in the evening we reached Quebec, and just\nas we landed the most awful shower I have ever seen came\non, accompanied by thunder and lightning.' The streets\nwere literally flowing with water, and every spout was\nspurting forth little waterfalls. Is\n156\nit\nI)\nCHAPTER XII\nONTARIO AND THE LAKES\nWednesday, July 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our mail arrived at Quebec\nyesterday evening, and as soon as we had read our letters\nwe embarked on board the Druid, and began our Western\ntour. We arrived at Trois Rivieres, and the Mayor came\non board at eight o'clock this morning and took us ashore,\nwhere we found awaiting us a magnificent array of firemen, some in helmets and plumes, and some in full\nZouave costume.\nWe drove to the Town Hall, a new and very large\nroom for a town numbering only 9,000 inhabitants, and\nthere we had an address in French, to which D. replied in\nthe same language ; then we went on to the Roman Catholic\nCathedral, to a House of Providence, to the Ursuline Convent, and to the English Church, at the same time seeing the\ntown, which is very pretty, with many grass corners, some\nfine trees, and a very pretty square. All this we accomplished by 9.30 o'clock, when we returned to our steamer, and\na cannon announced that the Governor-General had gone.\nHe soon after emerged from his cabin as an unofficial tourist,\nand we started in three carriages to see the Waterfall of the\nplace; it was twenty-four miles off, and we had to be back\nat 7.30, so we had no time to lose. When we got to it,\nwe found a very pretty faU, though not, I think, quite\nworth the journey. Close to it there is a curiosity in the JULY 1874\nTORONTO\nshape of an enormous hotel, buried in the bush, like the\npalace of the belle au bois dormant, and into which no mortal\nguest has ever stepped\u00E2\u0080\u0094the produce of some incomprehensible speculation. We rowed six miles of the way back\nin a big, slow thing called a ' scow/ got into our carriages,\nand returned to Trois Rivieres.\nThere we were met by a number of young ladies and a\npile of bouquets, and symptoms of an illumination, for\nwhich they hoped we would stay; but we had to be off\nearly, in order to reach Montreal at a particular hour.\nThursday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We travelled by train as far as\nKingston, and thence by steamer.\nFriday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After a calm night on Lake Ontario, we\nlanded at Toronto this morning. We had heard of guards\nof honour, etc. to meet us, but found only the hotel-keeper\nof the Queen's, who said our luggage was in our rooms (it\nhad arrived by train the night before). He ushered us\ninto carriages and drove us to his hotel, where we found\nvery comfortable rooms arranged for us.\nColonel Cumberland, the provincial A.D.C., having made\nall arrangements for us, we did not even know where we\nwere to go, but it now turns out that he had engaged rooms\nfor us at the Rossin House; however, a friend of the Queen's\ntelegraphed to the proprietor of that hotel, and he came to\nmeet us, carried off our luggage, showed us into the Rossin\nHouse carriages, and drove to his own rival establishment.\nOur steamer was in an hour earlier than it was expected,\nand Colonel Cumberland was walking up and down his\nverandah waiting for the proper time, and so missed us.\nD. received an address of welcome from the Town\nCouncil, and walked about to see the improvements in the\ntown, and at five we had tea at the Lieutenant-Governor's.\n'Saturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie joined us. Directly after breakfast we drove to the railway-station, accompanied by a\nguard of honour, and there we found a very smart pilot-\nengine, ornamented with flowers and branches and flags 158\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\na second one, equaUy gay; then a sort of open carriage,\nwith a canvas awning, with red piUars, and green boughs\ntwisted about, and bouquets in the lamp-stands; next\nthis we had a very comfortable ordinary railway-carriage,\nwith chairs and sofas, but when we passed stations we\nwent into the open one, and smiled sweetly.\nThe first place we stopped at was caUed Newmarket;\nhere we got out, and, mounting a stand, received two addresses. Then we got into carriages, and drove through\nthe town, passing under four or five triumphal arches, to\nlay the foundation stone of a church.\nAll the country had come into the town, and almost\nevery house had decorations and people in the windows.\nD. laid the stone, upon which ' Straight forward' was\nengraved, was given a silver trowel, and drove back to the\ntrain.\nThe next ceremony was lunch at Allendale, in a very\nfine station on the borders of Lake Simcoe. It is the junction for Barrie, of which it has a lovely view; we went\non there in the train, and passed under a fine arch close\nto the station at Barrie, to receive addresses from the\ncorporation, and one from the clergy of all denominations\nin the place. There was a great crowd, and all the people\nwe have seen to-day seem well-to-do; so well-dressed, and\nflourishing-looking.\nHere we left our smart train, and got into a ' special'\nsteamer, in which we had the most deHghtful voyage across\nLake Simcoe: the air delicious, and the scenery beautiful;\ngreen, clear water, and wooded islands, and a very distant\nshore. The day warm, but this travelling was perfection.\nAbout five we came to a very curiouB place, called the\nNarrows, where the steamer passes under two bridges, and\nthrough a grass cutting; having only a foot to spare on\neach side, it is necessary to go very fast so as to be able to\nsteer. Just before we got here four steamers decorated\nwith flags and filled with people came out to meet us, and JULY 1874\nLAKE SIMCOE\n159\nD. and I stood out on the bows and bowed, and the people\nwaved their handkerchiefs and cheered; then we went in\nprocession through the Narrows. Soon we came in sight\nof the hotel at which we are now staying; it is built on a\npromontory, and is a sort of garden in the bush; the\ngrounds are laid out with grass, flowers, fountains, and\nwith summer-houses hanging over the water. Having got\nthrough the Narrows, we are now in Lake Couchiching, and\nthis is the Couchiching Hotel. We passed it, however, for\nthe moment, and went on to Orillia. Some Indians in\ncanoes came out to meet us; their flags were larger than\ntheir boats, and one man kept making furious gesticulations\nof welcome with a drawn sabre.\nOrillia gave us a great welcome; there were four or five\narches\u00E2\u0080\u0094immense erections\u00E2\u0080\u0094one of them rather different\nfrom the ordinary pattern; it was castellated, and was\n. ornamented with wheat, and with the animals of the\ncountry, stuffed\u00E2\u0080\u0094a deer on the top, birds, foxes, etc. in\nvarious recesses. Then there were all sorts of mottoes and\ngood wishes, and the name of ' Killyleagh ' appeared, having\nbeen inspired by an old shopman from Belfast.\nThis place is on the edge of the settled country, and on\nthe outskirts of the grant now set apart for emigrants. It\nis most flourishing. We drove through the town, and\nreceived two addresses on a stand in the middle of a sort\nof common. Then we returned to the steamer, and made\nour way to the hotel.\nWe dined privately, and afterwards were ceremoniously\npresented to all the people in the house; we then 'repaired'\nto the larger dining-room, where there was dancing. We\nalso had fireworks, and a band playing tiU eleven o'clock,\nwhen at last we went gladly to bed.\nSunday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went by steamer to church at\nOrillia. Towards the end of the Litany the poor old\nclergyman fainted; another clergyman finished the prayers,\nand we left. 160\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nI\nD. went to see the Rector, and found that he was dreadfully disappointed that the sermon he had prepared had\nnot been read; so we are going to ask for a copy of it. It\nseems he had been ill all night, and the doctor fears\napoplexy.\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went out fishing before breakfast,\nand brought home some pretty but uneatable sun-fish.\nFred had been miserable since we arrived, his portmanteau,\ncontaining everything he possesses, having disappeared,\nand he has been dressed in borrowed plumes; but last\nnight it was found in the hotel. The young ladies in a\nbody congratulated him, and he had to make them a speech.\nThere was a little regatta this morning, and an Indian\ncanoe-race; I gave the winners of this last their prizes,\nand afterwards we started in our small steamer up Lake\nCouchiching.\nThe first place we stopped at was an Indian reserve\ncalled Rama. They had put up a platform and flags, and\nthey fired off guns, and the chief and his ' young men'\nmet us on the wharf, and when we got on the dais they all\nstood round. The Wesleyan missionary read an address,\nto which D. replied that he was glad to hear that his\nchildren were content, and that it was the intention and\nendeavour of the Government to keep faith in every particular with the Indian subjects, in whom their great Mother,\nthe Queen, took also a special interest, etc. Then he presented the chief, Benson, with a History of the Holy Land,\nillustrated, and we looked at the babies, who were being\ncarried about on a novel sort of cradle. It is a flat board,\non which the child lies ; at the top of it there is a skeleton\nhood, which can be thrown back in the house, while out\nof doors it is raised, and has generally a shawl thrown over\nit. It is a most convenient cradle, as it can be set up\nagainst a wall, or hung up on a nail, or in a tree, the child\nbeing quite safely tied into it. It also goes flat against\nthe mother's back as she walks along.\ntM;\nE2 July 1874\nMUSKOKA LAKE\n16\nWe looked at the plain little church, and went into one\nof the houses and distributed pipes and beads, and then\nsaid good-bye. They sang ' God save the Queen ' in Indian.\nThese are the Ojibbeway Indians. The missionary, his\nwife, and two nice children came with us to the next place\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Washago.\nThis is only a temporary railway-station, but there was\nlunch in a car, an address, a guard of honour, and a foundation stone of a church to be laid. After this we got into\ncarriages to drive fourteen miles. We stopped twice on\nthe way\u00E2\u0080\u0094at Severn and at Gravenhurst\u00E2\u0080\u0094and received\naddresses. -At each place where this occurs D. makes a\nspeech, instead of reading a formal reply. When we left\nour carriages we got on to a steamer covered with flags, and\nsteamed along a lovely place, caUed Muskoka Bay, into\nMuskoka Lake, and then through a most curious, narrow\nriver, in which we twisted and turned round islands, and\nhad only just room to move; sometimes we appeared to be\ngoing straight ashore, and then turned suddenly to one\nside and were saved. This river brought us to Brace-\nbridge.\nBracebridge is an entirely new town, on the border of\nthe New Muskoka Grant. It has grown wonderfully, considering that eight years ago the white man had not set\nhis foot there. A band and a crowd met us on the wharf,\nand we drove through the town, the band preceding us,\nthe Governor-General's carriage in front, and mine behind.\nI think we passed under seven or eight arches before we\ncame to the dais erected for the ceremony of presenting\nthe address. The houses here are remarkably neat and\nfinished-looking, and the population is almost entirely\nEnglish.\nWhen we returned to the steamer I had an interview\nwith a very charming emigrant. I was very much interested\nin her, and in her husband's history and their present life.\nHe was valet, and she was lady's-maid, with Sir William\nm 162\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nand Lady Anna Stirling-Maxwell; they married, and made\nup their minds to come here. Of course, neither he nor\nshe knew anything in the world about farming; but they\ntook the grant of 200 acres of uncleared land (in fact, of\nforest), and set-to to make a home. They have been here\nfive years, and have two fine boys, and she was so merry,\nand so happy and courageous. They do everything for\nthemselves, and are getting on well. Their land is good,\nand, if only the railway comes to it, Bracebridge will become\nan important town.\nTuesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We slept on board, and started at\nsix this morning, sailing through Lakes Rousseau and\nJoseph. As we passed through the lock between the two,\nD. stepped ashore to speak to the few men there, and was\nfollowed in great haste by his A.D.C. and two reporters.\nHis visit was quite unexpected, but one of the men made\nhim a very good speech, though he trembled so over it that\nhe could scarcely stand.\nI can't attempt to describe the delightful travelling on\nthese lovely lakes, or to tell you particulars of the scenery,\nand I have so many facts to put down that I have no time\nfor details.\nWe stopped at Rousseau, where we visited the church,\nand a poor Icelandic family, and landed at the Summit\nHouse, where we got into carriages. The drive was seventeen miles long, and was right through the free grants,\nwhere any man coming out and wishing to take up a farm,\nreceives 200 acres of forest free. As we drove along we\nsaw settlers in all stages of their existence.\nFirst we went into a neat cottage, where we found a\nCounty Down man ; he seemed delicate. AU his sons had\nset up for themselves, and I think the work was too much\nfor him alone.\nThen we saw a Parisian jeweller\u00E2\u0080\u0094the merriest man !\nHe was turned into a hard-working farmer, and sees everything in couleur de rose, He had two very nice boys. JULY 1874\nCOLLINGWOOD\n163\nAgain, we saw a Canadian and an Enniskillen man living\nopposite each other, and both very happy and content.\nThey all say the land is good, though there is much rock\nin parts of it. The finest family we saw was that of an old\nsoldier from Meath. He and his wife had nine children,\nall beautifully dressed in white frocks with sashes, and, in\nthe house, one wall was covered with books. The man\nwas loud in his praises of the country, and would advise\neverybody to come here. The whole of this line of road is\nmuch more thickly settled than we expected ; it is through\nI fine forest, and no part of it is far from a lake.\nFinally, we arrived at Parry Sound, where we had\naddresses and arches, and a ' sail' in a steam-tug; then\nwe went on board the Chicora, our new home for a fortnight.\nShe is a very large steamer, and was formerly a celebrated blockade-runner known as the Letter B. Now she\nhas storeys of cabins built on her deck. We have her all\nto ourselves. This was Archie's birthday, so he dined\nwith us.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Parry Sound early in the\nmorning, and about twelve o'clock found ourselves off\nCollingwood.\nNine steamers came out to meet us, with flags and\npassengers. They turned, and followed us to the town.\nThere we had addresses, and arches, and a drive. Two\nlittle girls dressed as ' Britannia' and ' Canada ' stood at\nthe corners of the principal arch.\nWhen we left, the steamers followed us out for some\nway, and there was a great farewell, with cheering and\nshrieking of engines, as we parted company.\nOur next destination was Owen Sound. The addresses\nand arches you may imagine. The feature of the visit was\na drive. I found myself behind four horses and postilions,\nan outrider in uniform in front of us, and about forty vehicles\nfollowing us. We drove through the town and under the\narches, and out to a waterfall. The country is very beau-\nM 2 164\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\ntiful; the finest trees we have seen in Canada, and everything more park-like than is common here.\nWe returned on board for dinner, and during that meal\nwent on to Presqu'ile, where there was a magnificent bonfire and a string of lamps. While taking in wood we\nwalked to the bonfire, and were given a letter and a jar\nof honey.\nThursday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went into Killarney (the Indian\nname of this place signifies 'here is a channel'), and\nsailed up a very narrow passage to reach it. The Indians\nwere collected on the wharf, and fired a salute. One of\nthem made a speech to His Ex., stopping at the end of\neach sentence to have it translated into English; D.'s\nreply went through the same process. We also spoke\nto the women and looked at the church, and distributed\nknives, pipes, tobacco and beads. There was one funny\nold man with a drum, who took to dancing and singing\nbefore us.\nAt one o'clock we came to another Indian settlement\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nManitoulin. The Indians here seemed very poor, and the\none who made the speech spoke much to this effect:\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n4 We are glad to see you; our wives and our children are\nglad to see you, our father. We have come far to see\nyou, and have brought our wives and our children to see\nyou; and we are hungry, for we have had nothing to\neat.' D. ordered them a barrel of flour and a hundredweight of pork. When he replies to the Indians, they give\na deep grunt at the end of each of his sentences, which has\na most peculiar effect.\nThey sometimes give me presents of their work, which\nI immediately pay for. At this last place there are Episcopalian and Wesleyan missionaries; and at Killarney we\nsaw a Roman Catholic priest, who came in our steamer,\ngreet his flock in a very affectionate manner.\nThe evening was a little rough, but we stopped at\nBruce's Mines for the night. JULY 1874\nSAULT STE. MARIE\n165\nFriday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At six in the morning we went ashore\nto see the copper-mines, which are not flourishing; though\nthe ground appears to be covered with the mineral, and we\npicked up a great many specimens.\nOn our way to Sault Ste. Marie we passed through a\nvery beautiful and curious place called the Devil's Gap.\nThere are a number of islands, so close together that it is\nimpossible to see the way between them till you come\nstraight opposite the channel, and then the view down each\npassage is very pretty. The one we passed through seemed\nonly just large enough to hold our great steamer.\nWe stopped a few minutes at Garden River, where there\nwas an Indian settlement, and a fine-looking chief, who\ndanced for us. Then we reached Sault Ste. Marie, where\nwe found an arch and an address, and went some way in a\nboat to lay the stone of an Indian School, and had lunch\nin the carpenter's shop, which the ladies had ornamented\nand made very smart.\nArchie was very ill all day, and frightened us in the\nafternoon. Luckily, we found a very good doctor here,\nwho has kindly promised to come on with us in the\nsteamer.\nSunday, August 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at the mouth of the\nNipigon River this morning, and went a Httle way up it\nin boats to see a Hudson's Bay settlement.\nThe gentlemen visited a store there, and came home\ndressed in white blanket-coats and red caps, looking very\npicturesque. At the Fort we saw a number of most miserable Indians, who sat huddled together, and who were\ndressing their children's hair much after the manner of the\nmonkeys in the Zoo. These are the lowest class of Indians\nwe have seen.\nIn the afternoon we found ourselves off Michipicoten\nIsland, which is supposed to be very rich in agates; but\nall those on the surface have been already picked up, and\nwe only saw a few small specimens. The old gentleman who 166\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\n1\nkeeps the Lighthouse gave me a good one, and also presented us with three splendid trout.\nMonday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our next stopping-place was Nipigon.\nWe passed through some very pretty scenery in coming to\nit\u00E2\u0080\u0094high rocks and curious-shaped hills\u00E2\u0080\u0094and anchored at\na little Hudson's Bay settlement at the mouth of the river,\nwhere our first business, in the morning, was to rush to the\nstore and make purchases for our fishing and camping-\nout expedition\u00E2\u0080\u0094knives, blankets, tin plates, mugs, looking-\nglasses, flies, etc. There were a good many Indians sitting\nabout, and D. did the portrait of one girl, who giggled\ntremendously over it. The next thing was to pack our\ncanoes. We had five. Ours was painted white, with\nUnion Jacks on the bows; and into it got D. and I, the\nFletchers, Archie, four men, and all our blankets, luggage,\nand tents. The second held the Freds, Dr. King (who\nis looking after Archie), Captain \"JVilson (our guide), Mr.\nDixon (Archie's tutor), and four men, with a good deal\nof their luggage. There were three more canoes with\nbaggage.\nOur journey was a good specimen of the canoe and\n' portage ' journeys one reads about.\nWhenever we came to rapids we landed, and walked to\nthe head of them, the canoes and all the things being\ncarried by the boatmen. We had one portage soon after\nwe left the Chicora, and when we again got into our\ncanoes we passed through a widening of the river which\nmade quite a respectable lake. We came to a peninsula,\nwith a rapid rushing past it, which we thought might\nbe our camping-place; so we got out, and I began to fish,\nand very soon landed a good trout with my four-ounce rod.\nWhen the rest of the party came up, they told us that this\nwas not our destination, so we had to cross the rapid and\nportage again. We did not quite like this camping-\nground ; it was on the banks of a small arm of the Nipigon,\nand We thought it damp, so, although we ate our dinner\nit-. AUG. 1874\nPORTAGES\n167\nthere, we pitched our tents on the top of the hill. The night\nwas cold, and a heavy dew fell.\nD. and I have an ' American officers' tent,' which is a\nmost comfortable one, and Archie Was allowed to have a\ncorner in it. Colonel Fletcher has a funny Httle tent, which\ncomes out of his carpet-bag, and which holds him and\nLady Harriet. All the other gentlemen sleep in one large\nmarquee; and the men have three more tents.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up early, as we had a portage to\nmake at once; and after a cup of coffee we set out. All the\ngentlemen had to carry things, and stumbled along with\nloads of blankets on their backs.\nWhen we got to the end of this rather long portage, we\nhad breakfast, and started off again. The day was very\nhot, and I felt the sun rather, and was not very well; but I\nmanaged to get along with the others. We paddled through\nsome lovely places, and saw some beautiful rapids, and\nhad three more portages. At the end of one we found a\nparty of Americans\u00E2\u0080\u0094three doctors\u00E2\u0080\u0094who seemed very nice\npeople. Straight opposite them, across the river, was another\ncamp of Americans, with a lady in it. At the site of our\npermanent camp three branches of a very pretty rapid\nmet, and swept down the river together. Here I stood out\nupon a rock and fished. On one side of me D. was lashing\nthe water ; then Fred Ward, barefooted, in the middle of\nthe stream; then Archie, with (tell it not in Gath !) a\nspoon at the end of his rod (poaching, in fact); then Fred\nand the Doctor also fishing. None of us made great bags,\nas the fish (of which there are quantities) were perfectly\ngorged with shad-flies, and had no room for our deHcate\nbaits. Those we did catch were about two pounds weight.\nThe cook, who carries about iron bars and sets up a fireplace wherever we go, provided us with an excellent dinner,\nand we sat round a bonfire till bedtinle.\nAs this was our permanent camp, we made ourselves\nvery comfortable. The wrible floor of the tent was spread wmmmm\ni\n168\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nwith fir-boughs, which are laid down most carefully and\nscientifically by the men, and make a most delightful\ncarpet and spring mattress.\nWednesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Alas ! it rains. Lady Harriet and I\nspent the greater part of the day in my tent; and D., Colonel\nFletcher, Fred Ward, the Doctor, and Captain Wilson, went\noff to see Lake Nipigon, which is about sixty miles long.\nIn the evening we fished again, and the Lake party came\nhome in time to try their luck\u00E2\u0080\u0094which was small.\nThursday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094To-day we de-camped. We began with\na portage, and arrived at the beginning of another long one\njust before lunch. You have never seen such appetites as\nwe all had! We were ravenous, and cleared every plate.\nThus strengthened we started again, everybody carrying\nsomething, and some of the gentlemen with great loads on\ntheir backs.\nWhen we got to the end of the portage we had to wait\nsome time, as the men having to carry over the canoes\nhad to make two journeys of it. When we got into the\ncanoes we ran some very exciting rapids. We camped at\nthe ' Alexander Camp,' which I have told you of before\u00E2\u0080\u0094a\ncharming spot, but the fishing no better than at the other\nplaces. I wish, however, that you could see Archie catch a\ntrout; the instant he gets it ashore he hugs it in his arms,\nand seems to think that the danger of losing it only begins\non land. His coat suffered greatly in these struggles. D.\nand I each caught one trout, and then we dined, roasted\nourselves at the camp-fire, and slept.\nFriday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Off we are again, tents and baggage, and\npots and pans, packed for their last trip in the canoe.\nWe had a pleasant voyage down to the Chicora, and\nfound her beautifully ornamented for our reception, a\ntriumphal arch at the top of the companion, and green\nwreaths over all the doors and hanging from the chandeliers. We lunched, devoted an hour to a tremendous wash\nafter four nights of camping-out, and, arrayed in a little AUG. 1874\nSILVER ISLET\n169\nextra finery as a reaction, went to call upon Mrs. Crauford,\na lady who had sent us a jar of most delicious fresh butter.\nIt is six o'clock, and we have just sailed away; and the\never-rough surface of Lake Superior lies before us.\nD. has been doing several portraits of Indians. The\ntranslations of their names are curious, and we made the\nacquaintance of a ' Naughty little Woman,' of ' She who\ncries with Joy,' and of ' The Cloud that is past.'\nSaturday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a fog on the Lake, so we\nremained at the entrance to it all night, but got off early in\nthe morning, and arrived at Silver Islet in four or five\nhours, having to pass through a disagreeable swell on our\nway there. The island itself is a mere rock, originally\nseventy by eighty feet; but it has been artificially increased\nfifty-seven times that size by breakwaters and docks built\nall round it. A Canadian company first began to work the\nmines, but, getting into difficulties, they sold them to an\nAmerican company, who are now making a great deal of\nmoney. There is great expense in keeping out the water, as\nthe ' Islet' only just rises above the level of the Lake. We\nwent over from the mainland in a tug, and saw all that\ncould be seen without actually going down the mine. The\nsilver is in fern-like patterns in a sort of white quartz.\nThe ' Captain ' of the undertaking is a ' Frew' from Co.\nDown, and talks of going home this year to put up a\nmonument to his mother in Bangor Churchyard.\nYou see, we are constantly meeting successful people from\nthat renowned County!\nWe proceeded on our journey, and passing Thunder\nCape\u00E2\u0080\u0094high basaltic rocks, in places very precipitous, a fine\npiece of scenery\u00E2\u0080\u0094got into Thunder Bay. We landed at\nPrince Arthur's Landing, and received an address under a\nvery hot sun. This is quite a new town,\u00E2\u0080\u0094four years old;\nit looked very pretty, every house being decorated with\ngreen, and a quantity of flags about. It expects to become\na great city. D. went out for a drive; but as I always 170\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xn\nshirk four strange horses When I\ncan, I returned to the\nsteamer.\nWe asked some gentlemen to dinner, and we sat on the\ndeck and looked at the fireworks on shore. The young\nmen went to a dance, and enjoyed themselves very much.\nSunday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to church in the morning, and\nafterwards to Fort William, a Hudson's Bay settlement,\nwhere we lunched with Mr. Macintyre, his wife, and their\nnice daughter. It came on to thunder and rain heavily\nlater, and we were glad to get back to the Chicora in a tug.\nMonday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to start at five o'clock in the\nmorning, having seventy miles to drive. Some of us were in\na sort of char a banc, drawn by four horses, which we changed\nfour times en route, and the rest of the party were in smaller\ncarriages. We got safely to Shebandowan, where we found\nabout 120 Indians, who had all come down from the woods\nto be paid their annual stipend.\nThey were more savage than those we have seen before,\nand, though most of them wore European clothes, they had\nsome symptoms of the wild man about them. They are\npagans; and there were two medicine-men, who sat on the\nground, and drummed, or 'tom-tom'd,' and sang in a\ndreary, monotonous tone, winding up each song with a discordant yell. One of them was painted green and yellow,\nand each wore a band round his head. Their profiles were\nhandsome, but their full faces hideous. The interpreter\nwas bad, so D. was not able to say very much to them;\nbut he presented them with tobacco, pipes, knives, pork,\nand flour, which they probably preferred to conversation.\nWe went into a wigwam made of birch-bark, which looked\nwonderfully roomy and clean inside.\nWe then got into a large canoe, and were tugged about\nthe Shebandowan Lake, a very pleasant and cool way of\nmoving about, compared to the carriage. We did not get\nback to the sleeping-place, which we had passed on our.\nway here, till after nine; so we dined at once, and went early AUG. 1874\nKAMANISTIOWA RIVER\n171\nto bed. We slept in a cottage, and the Fletchers in a\ntent.\nTuesday, 1 ith.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were again called at five, and found\na wet morning\u00E2\u0080\u0094such a wet morning! However, we breakfasted, and, hoping for the best, drove in our shaky waggon\nfor five miles to the borders of the Kamanistiqwa River, where\nwe got into canoes to paddle sixty miles. I may say here,\nthat the river is evidently lovely, and had the day been fine\nwe should have enjoyed it immensely; but the weather was\nperfectly awful, a thunder-shower lasting till one o'clock,\nwhich wetted us to the skin long before that hour.\nDuring this downpour we had to get out of the canoes\neight times to make portages, and you may imagine how\nmiserable we were walking through narrow paths in dripping\nwoods, our clothes heavy with rain ! The worst bit of walk\nled to a magnificent waterfall, which was well worth seeing,\neven though we had to stumble over roots and trunks of\ntrees, and in and out of pools of water, to get to it. It is\n120 feet high, and very grand.\nAt one, we lunched, and the rain ceased; we lit a fire,\nand dried our cloaks, but of course could do nothing to our\nboots or underclothing. A dish of hot potatoes brightened\nus up, and we got on pretty well till 7.30 p.m., when we\nreached a place where a steamer was to meet us. We had been\nlooking forward with longing to this happy termination of our\ntroubles; but when we got there, we found that the steamer\nhad given us up, and had left ten minutes before ! We were\nin despair at the idea of a further ten miles' paddle, but the\ncanoe-men bore it with great good-humour, and immediately\nstarted off to race, by way of enlivening the time, and it was\nvery pretty to see our five canoes shooting through the\nwater. Our patience was rewarded, and our misery was\nsoon changed into joy, for some wise friend sent the steamer\nback; and when we met her we were comforted by a cup of\nthe best hot coffee I ever tasted.\nWe had promised to visit an Indian Mission on our way, :la\n172\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nand so we did ; but the children there had all gone to bed\nwhen we arrived, and so we just peeped at their little dark\nheads as they lay asleep.\nWe reached the Chicora about nine, and took off our\ndamp things at once. I was rather ill in the night,\nbut none of us caught cold or were really hurt by the\nwetting.\nThursday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We reached Sault Ste. Marie early this\nmorning, having made a quick passage from Thunder Bay\nacross the terrible lake. Captain Wilson, before giving up his\npost as guide, took us down the rapids here, which are very\nlong and exciting; and then we bade farewell to him and to\nthe Doctor. We have liked them both very much, and they\nhave been a great addition to our party, so we were sorry\nto say good-bye. Dr. King is an Englishman, but has joined\nthe United States Army.\nWe had a very pretty sail down Lake Huron, and arrived\nat Mackinaw late in the evening, anchoring in a little harbour\nwhich only just held us.\nFriday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A delightful voyage down Lake Michigan.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we came in sight of\nChicago. A tug came off with our Consul (Mr. Warwick) in\nfull uniform, who told us all the arrangements that have\nbeen made for our reception. The weather is beautiful.\nWe lunched early, and immediately after the Committee\nof Reception came on board. The President of the Committee is from Co. Down (Mr. Dickson), and his wife was\na Miss Reid, and was at Killyleagh the day of our marriage. He is very happy here, and is pleased at being so\nwell acquainted with us. Another member is from Killinchy\n(more Co. Down).\nWhen D. had spoken to all the committee, we adjourned\nto the immense drawing-room of a gigantic hotel; there we\nwere introduced to the Mayor, who made a speech, to which\nHis Ex. replied; then to the President of the Board of Trade,\nto the Presidents of the St. George, St. Andrews, and the AUG. 1874\nCHICAGO\n173\nCaledonian Societies, who all made speeches, which were all\nreplied to; also to the Governor of the State; and I think\nthere must have been more, but I cannot remember them.\nSome unofficial introductions followed, and then we got into\nthe first of sixty barouches to drive through the town. We\nsaw the extent of the fire of 1871, and the wonderful way in\nwhich the city has risen from its ashes ; also the effects of\na second enormous fire last July: streets, churches, etc. all\nin ruins.\nWhat I think is really beautiful here, is a drive by the\nshores of Lake Michigan : the water is a lovely delicate blue-\ngreen colour, there is no land in sight, the beach is charming,\nand the lake is covered with ships. This drive forms part\nof a very pretty park, in which there are small lakes, zoological gardens, etc., and lots of people about, in carriages,\nand boats, sitting, walking and picnicing\u00E2\u0080\u0094the most Hyde\nPark-like thing I have seen on this continent.\nWe next visited the Waterworks, which are enormous.\nWe passed twice under the river through massive tunnels,\nand saw a number of very handsome new streets.\nThe Consul sent me some beautiful flowers and fruit.\nI don't attempt much description of Chicago\u00E2\u0080\u0094a guidebook and statistics would be required. I can hardly believe\nI am, here, and shall certainly not realise it until I see the\ncelebrated pig-killing machines on Monday, of which one has\nalways heard.\nMr. Dickson and his wife, the Consul and his sister,\nGeneral Sheridan, and the President of the Board of Trade,\ndined with us on board, and at ten we drove to the hotel\nwhere we are to stay\u00E2\u0080\u0094the ' Palmer House.'\nIt is a palace : marble staircases, broad passages handsomely carpeted, and furnished with crimson-satin sofas and\nchairs ; chimneypieces from Italy, in lofty rooms also beautifully furnished; pier glasses\u00E2\u0080\u0094every luxury, in fact. Each\nbedroom opens into a sitting-room, and off mine there is\na bath-room with hot and cold water laid on. The bed- i\n174\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nroom has velvet-pile carpets with Aubusson patterns, plain\ncrimson curtains, and chairs\u00E2\u0080\u0094such as I wish I had in my\ndrawing-room at Clandeboye.\nWhen we arrived we were presented to the manager,\nwere seated in a comfortable room, and were ' elevated' to\nour flat. The manager walked along and talked amicably\nto us. Pointing out the sitting-room he said, ' This is the\nyoung gentlemen's room '; and then, laying hold of D.'s\narm with both hands, added, ' I don't know whether you\nare to be counted among them, my Lord.'\nSunday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a breakfast! No wonder Americans\ndespise our efforts in the way of hotels. Being out of the\nDominion, we arranged to have our meals in the public\nrooms, so we went into breakfast in an enormous hall, and\nsat at a small table. There were two smaller rooms off it,\nfilled with tables, and quantities of black waiters to attend\nupon the people, and a lengthy bill-of-fare to select from.\nI must say that everything was very good of its kind\u00E2\u0080\u0094tea,\ncoffee, milk, eggs, and cookery, all of the very best, and\nit was amusing to see how it was all managed.\nI went to a church which was in mourning for a bishop,\nand we had a curious sermon in his praise. His industry,\nhis good manners, his beautiful French, the graceful way\nin which he could pay a compliment, etc., were all set before\nus with much gesticulation; but, in spite of all that was\nodd in the description of him, we received the impression of\nhis having been a really good man. Everybody uses fans\nin church, and the singing was ' done ' by two men and two\nwomen.\nThe manager of the Hotel has placed the most magnificent flowers in my room, ' with his compliments.'\nI have, you see, lost one of my prejudices already\u00E2\u0080\u0094that\nagainst the American hotel system; and I think their ladies\ndress well; they have quite the French knack of putting on\nthings. We saw some girls in the Park with the commonest\nuntrimmed harvest-hats, and they looked smart in them; AUG. 1874\nTHE PALMER HOUSE\n175\nblack or grey is almost entirely worn, but the simplest\nmaterials are made up, and put on in a successful way.\nAt five o'clock we went into the Park for a little. All\nthe German population were out, sitting on the grass,\nrowing in boats, eating their dinners, and spending the\nday there. A band played during the afternoon. There\nis the beginning of a collection of animals : two fine elk,\na small lion, two grMy bears, two buffaloes, etc.\nThe drive by the Lake was crowded with carriages.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast we got the manager to\ntake us over the Hotel. It is a\" great concern, and was a\ncurious sight.\nThere are 200 women- and 125 men-servants, and 18\ncooks.\nOutside the kitchen is a carving-room, in which all the\njoints are on hot plates, with their own sauces in tins before\nthem; vegetables also ready to be helped there. Regulations for the servants were written up on the wall; the\nfirst was, ' No servant is ever to tell a guest there is none\nof anything until he has first been to say so to the\nmanager.'\nA washing-up room came next, and then the enormous\nkitchen, in which were two large ' kettle-drum ' cauldrons\nfor soup, six broiling places, an oven for beef, one for\nmutton, another for veal, etc. etc., and places in the same\nway for each different vegetable. We were there between\nmeals, and saw the chops, cutlets and chickens being\npacked in tins ready for cooking; when ready they are\nslipped into an ice-cupboard in the kitchen till required.\nThe store-rooms are regular shops. We also visited the\nbake-room, where excellent bread is made; the pastry-room,\nlaundry, larders; and finally we inspected the bedrooms.\nEven the top ones are smartly furnished, and there are\neleven miles of good carpet down in the hotel.\nOne drawing-room is in the Egyptian style: green and\ncrimson satin furniture, the chimney-piece and the corners 176\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XH\nof the chairs and sofas carved into black and gold Sphinxes.\nOne bedroom is done in pink satin and black velvet, but\nevery part of the house is most gorgeous. The bar-room\nis very large, and has ten or twelve bilHard-tables in it.\nThey gave us the most dehcious lemonade there, and I\nwas just enjoying it when a message came to say the 'Board\nof Trade' (to which I had not intended to go) did expect\nme; so I had to get on my bonnet at once.\nThe Mayor, Governor, and other officials conducted us\nthither, and we met together in a smaU room at the Exchange, which was what D. expected; but what was our\nsurprise at being taken from it into the enormous Exchange Room, and to find it crowded with people. D. and\nI were put upon a platform before them, and the President,\nknocking with a hammer for silence, said : ' His ExceUency\nthe Governor-General of Canada will now address you,'\nD., who was taken quite unawares, made them a very good\nspeech. He had to speak at the top of his voice, for it was\nvery noisy outside, and there was some telegraphing machine\npassing through the room, which kept up a constant\nracket; but he was heard, and what he said was very\nweU received. The Governor of Illinois said a few words,\nand then the President asked anyone who wished to be\npresented to pass by the ' north' side of the platform,\nand we shook hands with all who came up.\nWe next adjourned to the Grand Pacific Hotel, where\nthe Board of Trade gave us luncheon.\nThis is another palace, and I never saw an entertainment better done, or with more taste. A band was stationed\nin the passage, which played 'God save the Queen,' and\nother music. The lunch was cold, with the exception of\nhot turtle soup and coffee.\nThe table was T-shape, and we sat at the top, having no\none opposite us. A row of black waiters stood at the end\nof the room. They wore white aprons, black tail-coats,\nand white gloves, and looked so funny ' at attention,' their AUG. 1874\nCHICAGO\n177\nwhite paws crossed over their chests; when a signal was\ngiven, they all marched in to serve.\nAgain we got into our carriages, and drove to the Stockyards. The machinery, into which a pig walks alive at one\nend, and comes out a ham at the other, had just stopped\nworking, but it was fully explained to us. There were\nyards full of cows waiting to be sold.\nI enjoyed the drive there, and if it had not been so very\nlong, the drive home would have been delightful, and even\nin my state of fatigue it interested me much. I was so\nsurprised to find nine miles of boulevards\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is, of broad\ncarriage-drive, the edges beautifully finished off, trees\nplanted on either side, parts of it park-like, and parts\nfilled with flowers. Then there are beautiful villas and\nstreets, in which each house has its own bit of lawn and\ngarden. I had thought of Chicago only as a money-making\nplace, and did not expect to find so much spent on beautifying. I am delighted with it\u00E2\u0080\u0094the place.\nI had an hour's rest after my return, and then dressed\nto receive any people who might come to see us. The\nmanager sent Lady Harriet and me beautiful bouquets for\nthe occasion, and when we went into his drawing-room\nthe flowers were a beautiful sight. One table was covered\nwith bouquets, which were afterwards presented to each lady\nas she came in; the chimney-pieces, etc. all over flowers.\nA number of people came, another Killyleagh man\namongst them, Murdoch by name; he only left ten years\nago, and has ' seen nothing equal to it' (Killyleagh) since.\nHe took to printing, about which he knew nothing, and\nseems to be flourishing.\nTuesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and the other gentlemen drove off\nearly to see the ' Prairie,' and Lady Harriet and I went an\nexpedition with the Consul's sister-in-law over the shops of\nthe town.\nThe first we ' did' was Field & Lighter, where a most\namiable man showed us everything from top to bottom. It\nN I.\n178\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nis a very large general shop. Gloves are ios. a pair; a\nmuslin dress, very much trimmed with imitation lace, \u00C2\u00A330;\nand the making of a plain dress, \u00C2\u00A36,. which is not cheap.\nThen we went to a china-shop (all came from England),\nand to a toy-shop, where I made a few purchases for my\nfamily. We also were shown a confectioner's, or ' candy-\nshop,' and we saw the picture painted in England, and sent\nby the ' Graphic' as a memorial of the Chicago fire.\nAnother sight was very curious. People here often keep\ntheir own money, instead of putting it into banks, and we\nvisited the safes. There are small rooms, the walls of which\nare lined with pigeon-holes, each having a very strong door\nand lock of its own. Persons hire these boxes, have their\nown keys, and sometimes go twenty or thirty times a day\nto use their money. Ladies also hire these safes for\njewellery. The outside door weighs five tons.\nD. enjoyed his visit to the Prairie, or ' Perairer,' as they\ncall it here. He shot one ' chicken '\u00E2\u0080\u0094a prairie fowl; the\nothers nothing ; but they were only there a short time, and\nthey saw the country, which was what they wanted.\nOn their return we dined, and prepared for our departure. The hotel-keeper again presented us with bouquets\nand enormous baskets of splendid fruit. Mr. Murdoch\ncame to say good-bye to his Killyleagh friends.\nWe travelled all night in a Pullman car, and slept very\ncomfortably.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at Detroit this morning,\nwhich seems to be a very pretty town. D., Fred Ward, and\nColonel Fletcher went by steamer to Windsor and Chatham,\nbut as they had to return here I gave up the expedition.\nAt both places D. had very warm receptions, and Colonel\nFletcher tens me he made excellent speeches.\nLady Harriet, Fred and I, walked about to look in at\nshop-windows, and at five o'clock we crossed the river in a\nsteamer to meet D. at Windsor.\nWe all returned together, and were magnificently\nII ii AUG. 1874\nDETROIT AND SARNIA\n' received ' at Detroit. The steamer stopped at the foot of\na fine, very wide street going straight up the town ; it was\ncrowded with people, flags flying from most of the houses ;\nthere were companies of United States troops, fire-engines,\npoHce, a military band in the streets, and people sitting in\nall the windows. We drove in procession through a great\npart of the town, D. going first with the Mayor, Mr.\nMoffatt. Detroit is very pretty: the streets are planted\nwith double rows of trees ; there are squares, a fine Town-\nHall, and gardens round all the dwelling-houses. At one\nplace the procession reached completely round the square,\nthe head and the tail of it meeting and passing each other.\nWe returned to the Town-Hall, and there we heard a\nspeech of welcome from the ' Orator' of the town, and D.\nmade a very good reply. Two other speeches followed, all\nexpressing the warmest friendship to England and Canada.\nThe Town-Hall was illuminated. After dinner some singers\ncame and serenaded us.\nThursday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning, at 8.30, we left Detroit,\nand getting on board a most comfortable little steamer,\nwent down the St. Clair River to Sarnia.\nMr. Mackenzie, the Prime Minister, who comes from\nSarnia, was with us, and we had a pleasant journey through\nlovely scenery, and in beautiful weather.\nMr. Mackenzie was evidently very anxious that Sarnia\nshould distinguish itself, and looked very much pleased\nwhen four steamers, crammed with people, and covered with\nflags and green boughs, came out to meet us.\nThe river here joins Lake Huron, and is at this\npoint very narrow, Fort Huron, an American town,\nbeing straight opposite.\nWhen we arrived at the wharf we found a pink-and-\nwhite paviHon erected, ornamented with festoons of red,\nwhite and blue ; and close by it, on the one side, a very large\nstand, upon which hundreds of people were sitting; on the\nother side, two tents carpeted, and arranged for a reception.\nN 2 tf.ll\n180\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nD. as usual replied to two addresses, and then no less\nthan ten were read to him by chiefs of different Indian\ntribes, to which he replied in one speech. These Indians\nare more civilised and advanced than those we have seen\nlately, and speak with horror of the 'disgusting' war-\ndance.\nWe went into the tents, and shook hands with everyone\nwho came by, and then we got into carriages to drive\nthrough the town. Sarnia (the ancient name of Guernsey)\nis a small place, but there was an immense crowd in it,\npeople from the country, and a trainful from London,\nbeing there.\nThe first arch we passed through had a picture of the\nQueen on one side, and one of D., by a native artist, on the\nother. As we passed under the second, a large cheese was\nlowered into the carriage, as a present. At one house\na. little stand was erected in the garden, covered with\nchildren, who cheered and waved flags. All through the\ntown we received the warmest welcome.\nAfter the drive we came a couple of miles in the\nsteamer to the railway-station, over which some very comfortable bedrooms were arranged for us. We dined there,\nand some of the party went to an impromptu dance at Sarnia\nin the evening.\nFriday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We ventured on to Lake Huron this\nmorning in a small steamer, and were punished for our\ntemerity. The sofas and chairs danced about the cabin,\nthe band rushed to the side, the reporters sat drooping upon\nthe stairs, I lay on the floor, and we were all glad when at\nfour o'clock we landed at Goderich. It is a very prettily-\nsituated town, on a high bluff, and after an address we\nimmediately drove round it, and to the house of.our host,\nMr. Cameron; and about five o'clock, somewhat giddy, and\nnot at all hungry, we sat down to a great luncheon. When\nit was over, we again took to our carriages, and drove to\nthe Town-Hall. It is built in the centre of the Square, AUG. 1874\nSTRA TFORD\n181\nand every street in the town leads to it. Here we held a\nsort of reception, people passing by and shaking hands.\nThen we went on to see some salt-works.\nIn searching for oil, they found salt, and salt of the\nbest quality, j Salt water is pumped up into shallow iron\ntanks, which are heated, so that the water evaporates, and\nleaves the whitest, most sparkling salt. Of course we had,\nbefore leaving these works, to stand over glasses of\nchampagne, and D. made a very successful speech to the\nguests assembled there. Back again to our house. Dress\ninstantly for dinner, and for the ball which comes after.\nDinner is my greatest trial on these occasions, for I\nreally can't be hungry so often in the day.\nAfter it we went to the ball. The Curling Rink was\narranged for the occasion, and was very pretty, and there\nwere numbers of nice-looking girls. I left before supper,\nD. directly after, and the boys some time in the morning.\nOn our way to the ball we saw some fireworks and a candle\nillumination in the town.\nSaturday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to breakfast at eight, and leaving our kind hosts, Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, go on our way.\nAn hour after starting we stopped for ' five minutes' at\nthe railway-station of Mitchell, and heard and answered an\naddress.\nThe next stopping-place was Stratford, which town was\npromised 'two hours.' Here there was a guard and a\nband and crowds of people, two addresses, and a drive\nsedately round the town with four horses and a large\nfollowing of carriages. We went into an Episcopalian, a\nRoman Catholic, a Presbyterian, and a Wesleyan church,\nso that no one might be jealous; and when we returned\nto the station an address was presented by some Germans.\nWe looked into a refreshment-room, and left everybody else\nat lunch when we again got into our train.\nIn a short time we reached Berlin, a German settlement.\nWe were met by the usual number of carriages, and by\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0HMti... Sesssaoossasse 182\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nsome horsemen wearing red, white and blue sashes, who\npreceded us into the town, with a band playing. All the\nhouses were decorated, and all the inhabitants were out.\nThe address was presented under an awning in front of the\nTown-Hall, and D. spoke so as to make himself heard by a\nlarge part of the crowd. I think it was a very successful\nvisit. A German glee club sang ' Die Wacht am Rhein' to us.\nGuelph was our last station, and resting-place for the\nSunday. Guard of honour, band, two addresses, lunch in\nTown-Hall (four o'clock), our healths drunk. D. went for\na drive, and I came up to Mr. Leman's house, where we\nstay. In the evening we drove to the Town-Hall to see\nthe illuminations, and to hold a fuU-dress sort of Drawing\nRoom, which went off very well. On our return we had\nsupper; and this time we were really very hungry, for we\nmade mistakes about the hours to-day, and did not eat\nwhen we might, and then could not when we would. I\nhave a most charming bedroom here, everything so pretty\nand nice. The hostess is very Hvely and pleasant, but, not\nbeing very well at present, her mother dt)es the honours.\nSunday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to a large, new, and rather\npretty church. You can't think how we bless the Sunday !\nMonday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted early, as D. had to be\nout at nine to drive over a model farm, and see some other\nGuelph sights. I remained quiet until eleven o'clock, when\nI joined him at the railway-station. We had only a short\ndistance to go, but stopped three times on the way.\nWe first arrived at Preston, a German settlement, and\nheard an address read with great emphasis, and D. was\npresented with a native suit of clothes. Gait came next,\nand our object here was to visit Miss Macpherson's Home.1\nShe brings waifs and strays out to Canada, and gets them\nadopted by farmers or placed as servants.\nThere was an address at the station, after which we\ndrove off with Miss Macpherson to her Home. The\n1 Vide ante, pp. 1, 2. AUG. I874\nBRANTFORD\n183\nchildren were all at the door, and looked very well and\nhealthy. An old gentleman took us over his house to see\na view he was very proud of, and then we got back to our\ntrain.\nWe visited Harris burg, but were not expected till next\nday, so we only saw a few people. Br ant ford is our real\nstopping-place, and there we were met by guards of honour,\nboth foot and horse, a band, and a very great crowd. We\ndrove to a square, where the address was presented, and\nthen to a school, where hundreds of children were arranged\nround the lawn. They sang, and the mistress read an\naddress; but D. could not make much reply, as we had\nnot known of this visit, and had only just time to carry out\nour programme. Half an hour was given us for lunch at\nthe hotel. Our rooms are most comfortable, the people who\ngenerally live in them having furnished them for themselves, and having turned out for us.\nLunch over, we started on new duties. D. turned the\nfirst sod of a railway ; and I laid a stone of a young ladies'\ncollege now building, and His Ex. replied to the address\npresented to me in a speech about young ladies, which I\nrecommend to all those whom it may concern. The Blind\nAsylum came next, but as all the pupils were away for\ntheir holidays, it was not very interesting. We got home\nan hour before dressing-time.\nThe weather to-day was lovely, and the whole of\nBrantford and the surrounding country had turned out in\ntheir best clothes ; the houses were gaily decorated, and\nthere was an indefatigable band, which played the whole day\nand evening; some arches were up, and everything went off\nsuccessfully. D. from his speeches is daily becoming more\nknown to the people, and they receive him better and better\nas we go on, and that is very pleasant.\nThe Mayor, Clergyman, President of the Senate, Captain\nof the Guard, etc. dined with us\u00E2\u0080\u0094a party of eighteen.\nTuesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094You lazy people who amuse yourselves 184\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nall day, can scarcely imagine how difficult it is to me to\nfind &ve minutes to write in; I seize two or three moments\nbefore our early breakfast, enough in which to scribble down\ndry facts, but I have to leave out many little things I might\nteU you if I were not so hurried, and which I long to have\na record of myself.\nWe were in our carriages by nine o'clock, and, followed\nby forty-six other vehicles, started to visit the Indian\nReserve\u00E2\u0080\u009452,000 acres\u00E2\u0080\u0094on which the Six Nations Hye.\nOutside the Reserve is the oldest Protestant church in\nCanada, caUed the Mohawk Church; in it is a service of\nplate presented to the Mohawk Indians by Queen Anne.\nThe tomb of the great Indian warrior, ' Captain Brant,' is\nin the churchyard. We had thirteen miles to drive, and at\nthe entrance to the Reserve we found an arch\u00E2\u0080\u0094' The Six\nNations' Welcome' on one side, and on the other, ' The Six\nNations are gratified; come again.' There was another\narch farther on, where we were met by Indian bands and\nIndian people; most of them in European clothes, but a\nfew with feathers, etc. The interpreter is a very clever, fine-\nlooking man, and he was beautifuUy dressed in well-made,\ntight-fitting tunic and breeches of deerskin, with silver\nornaments; the sleeves were short, finished off with fringe,\nand over the rest of the arm there was a long gauntlet of\nwampum ; a slouchy black felt hat finished off his costume.\nHe looked very magnificent on horseback.\nClose to the ' Council House' was a third arch and a\ngreat crowd of Indians, among whom were a number of\nold warriors 'got-up-' in paint, feathers, etc.; but these\nadornments are no longer natural to them and are only put\non in our honour. We waited in the Council Chamber\u00E2\u0080\u0094a\ngood room, where several curiosities were laid out for\n.inspection\u00E2\u0080\u0094and when all was ready we passed into an\nenormous arbour erected for the occasion, which was filled\nwith Indians and other spectators.\nWe sat on a dais, and listened to an Indian speech, AUG. I874\nTHE SIX NATIONS RESERVE\n18\n0\nwhich was translated to His Ex., who replied in EngHsh,\nstopping at the end of every sentence for the interpreter\nto put it into Indian. The words of the language are very\nlong, and the Indian speech took twice as long to dehver as\nthe English one.\nWhen this was over, the old chiefs shook hand with us,\nand there was a great rush of women, many of whom presented me with things. One pinned a little silver brooch\ninto my dress. She was a very handsome-looking person,\nand wore a large straw hat and a great cloak, underneath\nwhich one saw cloth gaiters, worked in beads.\nThe next ceremony was a war-dance. Seven men took\npart in it; but the shrieks which accompanied it were more\ncurious than the dancing. The Indians then gave us a\ngreat luncheon and some excellent tea, and we were waited\nupon by most respectable native girls, who have been to\nschool, and who are quite civilised.\n[Here I was interrupted, and for three days it has been\nimpossible to write a line, so busy have we been.J\nAfter leaving the Indians we drove on to the farm of\nMr. George Brown, editor of the ' Globe,'2 senator, great\n' champion' of the Grit party, and amateur farmer. His\nplace\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bow Park\u00E2\u0080\u0094is so called because the river forms a\nbend there. He goes in for Shorthorns, and has 300 of\nthem. I was amused to find that, with this number of cows,\nhe has not sufficient milk to make butter for his own house,\nso ' exigent' are the calves, who expect to have a wet-nurse\nas weU as a mother, and who, being very precious, have to\nbe humoured and pampered in this way. They also go on\nbeing nursed till they are almost grown up. What surprised me was to see a second crop on nearly all his fields.\nThat is his method: to cut the green food, and carry it to\nthe cows, and so to get second crops from off the whole\nfarm. When we had looked at each beautiful but expensive animal, we adjourned to a tent, and had dinner. Mr.\n2 fhe Globe newspaper of Toronto, Tr\n186\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nBrown proposed His Ex.'s health very nicely. He was one\nof D.'s opponents during the Pacific Scandal, and he said :\n' There may have been a time when some of us may have\ndiffered with and found fault with the Governor-General's\npolicy ; but now that we have the means of understanding\nand knowing him better,' etc., etc. Everyone laughed, and\nenjoyed the allusion. The drive to Brant ford brought us\nthere at eight o'clock, and I had at once to dress for a reception at the Town-Hall, which went off very well. But you\nsee that, as D. says, we 'work our passage.'\nWednesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Off at 9 a.m. as usual. We drove to\nParis, where we were received by the Mayor and the people,\nand drove a mile and a half, at a foot's pace, to the railway-\nstation.\nThe town is prettily situated, and takes its name from\nthe gypsum in its neighbourhood, of which it makes plaster\nof Paris. The station was most beautifully decorated:\nat one end of a square was the platform, raised, carpeted,\ncovered in with flags and hung with green garlands and\nbird-cages, and all the telegraph-posts down the railway-\nside twined with green and joined with garlands.\nAddresses, of course, were read, and then we shook hands\nwith numbers of people; amongst others, with a woman who\ncame from Clandeboye a year ago, and who seemed almost\nmad with excitement at seeing us. She asked to kiss D.'s\nhand, but he said: ' I could not allow a lady to kiss my\nhand.' ' Then may I kiss your face ? ' D. got out of this\nembarrassing position by saying, ' Lady Dufferin does not\nallow that.' Woodstock was our next destination. The\naddress was at the station, and we drove out to the place\nof Mr. Alexander, a senator, where a great public picnic\nwas given in our honour. D. had to reply to an address\nfrom the county, and to return thanks for his own and for\nmy health, which were proposed separately at lunch ; mine\nby a farmer, who did it rather well, referring to William's\nspeech on revisiting Holland, when he said that the welcome\nii AUG. 1874\nLONDON\n187\nwould have been greater if 'Mary had been with me.'\nWe met here a Southern gentleman, Mr. Fearn, whom\nwe had known eleven years ago in England; and the three\npretty Misses Alexander.\nThen on to Ingersoll, a small town, well and compactly\nbuilt, where we drove through well-decorated streets, followed\nby guards, firemen, and people, to the School. Ingersoll is a\ngreat cheese-making place, and there, was an arch made of\ncheeses, the motto on it being, 'Cheese, the making of\nCanada.' We drove out in procession to a cheese-factory,\nand saw the whole process of converting new milk into\ncheese in five hours. The Sunday milk has to be used for\nbutter, as for the cheese-making it must be quite fresh.\nWe always feel glad when we approach our sleeping-\ntown, and at 6.30 to-day we got to London. We had been^\nhere two years before, but the people gave us as warm a\nreception as if this had been our first visit.\nIt was almost dark when the address-ceremony was\nover, but the streets were crowded, and we were^ conducted\nby all the people to Major Walker's house. Over the gate\nwas a beautiful, illuminated arch. I had a room furnished\nwith the prettiest specimens of Canadian maple furniture\nI have ever seen. Mrs. Walker is a German, and very nice,\nand she gave us a quiet dinner, for which we were so\nthankful to her.\nD. had to go out to a ' concert,' and found that he was\nexpected to speak\u00E2\u0080\u0094for the ninth time to-day!\nThursday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were routed out directly after\nbreakfast to go and open, and name, the ' Victoria Park,'\nand then we proceeded to the Town-Hall, where we held a\nreception and ate a lunch. It was given by the town, and\nthere were about 1,000 people in the room. D.'s health was\ndrunk, and he made a very good speech in reply, and we\ngot off to the train by 1.30. In an hour we arrived at St.\nThomas. I need not enter into aU the usual reception\nbusiness\u00E2\u0080\u0094arches, guards. We had a drive, and saw a 188\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nwonderful wooden railway-bridge, and were taken to another\nrailway-station, where we were introduced to heaps of\npeople; and then, just as we were getting into our carriage,\nthe Mayor, horror-stricken, exclaimed: ' But the lunch ! you\nmust come and lunch.' D. consented to run in for a\nmoment, and got through three speeches. On the return\nto the carriages Colonel Fletcher says the Mayor was in\ndespair\u00E2\u0080\u0094300 or 400 dollars' worth of lunch, and nobody to\neat it. He had been there fifty-six years, and never received a Governor-General before, and said : ' I know you\nwill never come back.' It was quite touching, and I really\nlonged to eat some of the lunch.\nSimcoe is a very pretty rural town, which we reached\nin an hour's time. It had made great preparations for us\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nno less than nine arches, and every house streaming with\nflags, and yards and yards of red and blue and white stuffs.\nThe Court-House was very prettily arranged with a covered\nplatform outside, where the address was read. We went\nto stay with Mr. and Mrs. Campbell, at their charming\nlittle country-house, out of which we had to turn after\ndinner to see fireworks and illuminations, and to be introduced to people on the aforesaid platform. In the night\nthere was a real fire, caused, I fear, by these honours to us,\nand the Freds both worked hard till two in the night, carrying buckets, and helping to put out the flames. When D.\nnext morning expressed his regrets that such an unfortunate\naccident should have occurred during his visit, the Mayor\npolitely assured him that it was a very good thing and\nwould greatly improve the town.\nFriday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove to Waterford, first visiting the\nschools at Simcoe. There, and at Dean's Corner and\nWeUand, we stopped for addresses from the counties, and\nat four we got to St. Catherine's. It is near Niagara, and\nis celebrated for mineral waters. The town is very pretty,\nhouses and trees being mixed everywhere.\nThe arches here were of new patterns. One represented AUG. 1874 SWING BRIDGE OVER THE NIAGARA\na ship with the yards manned, and a large boat, fiUed with\npeople, hung from the centre of it. One was made of\ncarriage-wheels, one of chairs; and across the street, in\none place, a man was slung, apparently sitting in an\numbrella. One flag had : ' Hamilton\u00E2\u0080\u0094Killyleagh Castle,\nCounty Down\u00E2\u0080\u0094For Ever,' written on it. The prettiest\narches to look at were some with mottoes in very large-\nheaded tin nails on red cloth. The Royal Arms were also\ndone in this way, and were quite lovely.\nA platform was erected in the middle of the market-\nsquare, and D. spoke from it. Strings of green and flags\nwere hanging from side to side of the street.\nWe drove slowly through the crowd to the Schools, and\non to the hotel. Being very tired, I escaped a dinner that\nwas given by the town; nor did I go to the fireworks,\nwhich were really beautiful. D.'s arms were done, and\ngreat bouquets of coloured ' candles' finished off the display. When he came back, I held a reception with him.\nNow I have had to write all this at once, so I have only\ngiven you the slightest account of all our doings and of all\nthe kindness we meet with everywhere ; but even the shorthand reporters have been unable to keep up with the descriptions they ought to write, so you must forgive me.\nSaturday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went to the Welland Canal Works,\nand Lady Harriet, Fred Ward, and I met him in the train a\nshort way from St. Catherine's, where we went to see a great\nbridge which Colonel Gzowski has \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 thrown ' across Niagara\nRiver.\nI told you two years ago that we saw it being built.\nThis time we crossed over it, and on our return stopped\nin the middle, and waited to see the way it opens to let\nships pass. We stood on an immense piece of it resting\non three piers; the two ends were detached by machinery,\nand we swung on the centre pier straight up and down the\nriver. It was beautiful to see how easily it worked, and\ncurious to look at our train left standing at the edge of a [If 1\nill\n190\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nprecipice; then we swung \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 back, and the rails and all\njoined together again. Opposite the Falls we got into\ncarriages, and drove down to see them again. The second\nvisit lifts Niagara in my estimation above all disappointment, and, after great experience in waterfalls, I can say\nthat none approach it. We saw it in beautiful sunshine,\nwith a perfect rainbow joining the Falls. When we had\nquickly admired them, we proceeded in our train to the\ntown of Niagara, which is fourteen miles away.\nHere we stopped at the door of Mr. Plumb, who is to\nbe our host for a couple of nights, and having had a cup\nof tea, went on to the Court-House, which we found prettily\ndecorated, and where an address was read and presentations made.\nSunday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove to church, and went into the\nRectory afterwards to see Mrs. McMurray, who is a celebrity\nin her way. There is an account of her in a book called\n' Winter Studies and Summer Rambles in Canada,' by\nMrs. Jamieson. She is an Indian half-breed; her father\nwas an Irish gentleman of good family, but she spoke\nnothing but Indian till she was fifteen. Dr. McMurray, a\nmissionary, married her. She is now a very tall old lady,\nwith a great deal of the Indian peeping out; but as she is\nproud of her nationality, that is as well.\nWe made a round on our way home, to drive through an\noak park on the borders of Niagara River. The quiet of\nMr. Plumb's place is delightful: it is a red brick villa, with\na Mansard roof, and a large new dining-room just added\non. He has three sons and. three daughters at home. He\nhimself is an M.P., American by birth, Canadian by adoption.\nWe see peaches and grapes ripening in the open air,\nand the weather and climate in summer are delightful in\nthis part of the country.\nMonday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Niagara in a steamer, and\ncrossed Lake Ontario in the most lovely weather.\nOB AUG. 1874\nTORONTO\nThe chief excitement of this trip was caused by my maid.\nShe was rushing to the waiting-room to fetch a parcel,\nwhen the steamer went off without her, and she ran about\nthe wharf gesticulating in the most excited manner. We\nput back for her, and got her on board on the verge of\nhysterics. I kept safely away until she had had time to\ncalm down. We went to the Queen's Hotel at Toronto, and\nin the evening I took a walk in the streets with D. As we\nwere walking along, a man looked over his shoulder, and\nsaid : ' It is quite pleasant to see you going quietly like\nthat,' and then entered into conversation with us respecting our tour, and especially about our reception by the\nAmericans.\nD. and Fred went to a theatre after dinner, where D.\nwas recognised, and received with cheers. The actors, who\nWere in the midst of a tragic part, could not imagine what\nthe noise was about.\nToronto: Tuesday, September 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. looked at a\nregatta, and lunched with a rifle-club. There he made a\nspeech. I did nothing until the evening, when we dined\nwith Mr. Howland. He has a nice house, and, although\nthe dinner was rather long, it was very pleasant. There\nwas a Southern general, with one leg and one arm, who sat\nby me, and told me his wife was the most distinguished\nwoman in the South, as she had seven children under five\nyears old\u00E2\u0080\u0094two pairs of twins amongst them.\nWednesday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went again to the Regatta, and to\ngive away the medals won. In the evening he dined at\nthe Club, and made (people say) an exceedingly good speech\nthere. The hearers were quite enthusiastic, and besides\ncontinual cheers during the speech, they stood up and\ncheered for fully fuve minutes after he had finished.\nIn speaking of our tour, D. said, ' Never has the head\nof any Government passed through a land so replete with\ncontentment in the present, so pregnant of promise in the\nfuture. From the northern forest border lands, whose 192\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nprimeval recesses are being pierced and indented by the\nrough-and-ready cultivation of the free-grant settler, to the\ntrim enclosure and wheat-laden townships that smile along\nthe Lakes; from the orchards of Niagara to the hunting-\ngrounds of Nipigon; in the wigwam of the Indian, in the\nhomestead of the farmer, in the workshop of the artisan,\nin the office of his employer\u00E2\u0080\u0094everywhere have I learnt that\nthe people are satisfied : satisfied with their own individual\nprospects, and with the prospects of their country; satisfied\nwith their Government, and with the Institutions under\nwhich they prosper; satisfied to be the subjects of the\nQueen; satisfied to be members of the British Empire.'\nThursday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Hitherto we have been hot. To-day\nwe were very cold. It rained a great deal, and we had our\nfirst experience of this sort of tour in wet weather.\nWhen we began our journey again: Whitby was the first\nplace we stopped at. Soldiers held a tarpaulin over our\nheads while the address and reply were being' got through,'\nand an umbrella-covered crowd stood around us. Then we\ngot into a carriage, and drove to a platform in front of the\nHigh School. The poor children had taken great pains\nwith their decorations, and there were V.R.s and D.s in\nevery pane, and garlands on the walls, and children in\nwhite standing out in the rain.\nNext we went to a college about to be opened. An arch\nat the entrance was very prettily done. Children in pink,\nwhite and blue stood all round the top of it, forming a\nlovely decoration\u00E2\u0080\u0094if only the sun had shone upon them !\nThis college is called ' Trafalgar Castle,' and the house was\nbuilt as a private residence, but had to be sold. There\nwas another address, and presentations in the drawing-\nroom.\nBowmanville came next, but the rain poured so heavily\nthere that we hurried through three addresses as quickly\nas possible.\nAt Port Hope the rain ceased. But as the carriage drove SEPT. l874\nCO BURG\nup here I conceived a dislike to the horses provided for us,\nand as we went jogging uncomfortably along I disliked\nthem more, and D. made me get out and return to the\nstation. In this way I missed seeing the town, which is\nvery prettily situated, and also missed a \u00C2\u00A7ad and fatal\naccident which occurred. In the Fletchers' carriage, which\nwas second, there were also some spirited horses. Of\ncourse there was a great noise, a crowd, bands, escort of\ncavalry, shouting, etc.; in fact, all the things which, combined with fatigue, have made me terribly nervous during\nour various processions through the towns.\nThe carriages stopped while a school sang ' God save\nthe Queen ' ; and just as they were going on, a poor woman\nrushed forward to look, and got between the first and\nsecond carriages. The horses could not be pulled in, and\nshe was knocked down, and killed on the spot. I fear she\nhas many children, but the Mayor has not yet sent us\nparticulars.\nAt five o'clock we reached Coburg, and had an address\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nor two, I think\u00E2\u0080\u0094at the Town-Hall. A Drawing-room afterwards. The rest of the evening, wonderful to say, was\nunemployed. We are in a most comfortable hotel.\nFriday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left the house at 8 a.m., and went\nby train for half an hour to Rice Lake, where we got into\na steamer.\nRice Lake is very pretty indeed, and is so named because\nof the wild rice which grows there. We had one address\non the way, as we passed through the lock at Hastings.\nThe reeve there was a most amusing old man, and told\nus he had been waiting fifty years for a nobleman to come\nand see him.\nThe final object of our expedition was an iron-mine, and\nwe had to go a short way in a train to reach it. I did not\nexpect to care the least about it, we have seen so many\nuntidy, stony, barren places called mines; but this one\nwas really an interesting sight,\n0 Wi\n194\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nWe found ourselves at the top of an enormous hole or\ncavern (these words are too small for it), 140 feet deep,\nand large in proportion, perfectly open, and light as day.\nThe men looked like imps as they worked below, and it was\na sort of thing one sees represented, in miniature, in a\nfairy play. The sides were walls of iron; but, alas ! the\ncoal is in the States.\nWhen we returned to the steamer we found a barge\ntied to its side, covered in with green\u00E2\u0080\u0094a floating arbour\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094in which lunch was laid; and very glad we were of\nit, as we breakfasted at 7.30, and it was now past two.\nThe managers of the mines, steamers, etc., are Americans,\nand we were their guests. Colonel Chamblis and General\nFitzhugh, with their wives (two sisters), were our hosts;\nthey live in the hotel, and are charming Southerners.\nThere was great anxiety about the time of our return,\nas a banquet and a ball were to follow. From the beginning\nI had said I would not dine, and I withstood very severe\nsieges upon the subject; but I was glad I had refused\nwhen I found we did not reach Coburg till 7.30, after eleven\nhours' outing. We were met by a torchlight procession,\nand as my carriage was drawn by men, and not by wild\nhorses, I enjoyed it. The firemen presented me with an\nenormous bouquet as I got out of the carriage.\nAll the other ladies had to rush home to dress, and Lady\nHarriet and I enjoyed a quiet tea.\nWe went down to look at the dinner-table, which was\nbeautifully arranged (in the hotel). It was shaped to represent the deck of a yacht, and two pillars which supported\nthe ceiling of the room acted as masts, the rigging being\nproperly arranged from them. There was a tiller and a\nbowsprit\u00E2\u0080\u0094in fact, the idea was completely carried out,\nand in front of D. stood a cake, on which was. inscribed\nthe word ' Foam.'3\nD.'s health was drunk, and the company were delighted\n8 The name of the vacht in which Lord D. went to Iceland. SEPT. 1874\nBELLEVILLE\n195\nwith his reply, which brought all the guests to their feet.\nThe dance was in the same room, and was very pretty and\nsuccessful. I was at it for a short time.\nSaturday, ^th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At our posts again at 9 a.m. A tender\nfarewell to Coburg, and a warm ' How do you do ?' to\nBelleville.\nThe station was three-quarters of a mile from the town,\nand we had a slow march all that way, and all through the\ntown to the place where the addresses were read. Then\nout to a great institution for the deaf and dumb. The building is on a fine site, and is most airy and cheerful. The\npupils were collected in a large room, and on the wall, in\ngreen letters, was written, ' Accept our silent welcome.'\nDr. Palmer, the head of the institution, brought forward\nsome untaught children just arrived, and showed us how\nhe began to teach them so as to give them their first\nideas. It was very interesting to see their expressions\nof dawning comprehension. Dr. Palmer then showed us\nother children in various stages. One little girl, who\nhad just returned from the holidays, having got a little\nrusty during her absence, made the most curious faces\nof disgust with herself when she made a mistake, and\nthe most piteous sort of sound, between a laugh and\na cry.\nA deaf-and-dumb teacher next came forward to show\nus the sign-language, and in pantomime told us a story ;\nit was a wonderful piece of acting. He afterwards (in the\nsame way) told the story of Christ stilling the storm; and\nI don't think that the reading of the passage could be more\nimpressive than the way in which he conveyed the narrative\nto us by signs. I thought, when he began, that, coming\nafter the comic story, it might seem irreverent; but it had\na most solemn and reverential effect. D.'s speech was\ninterpreted into signs as he spoke it, so we saw the method\nwell. No word is spelt; every sentence is in signs. They\nall ' did' ' God save the Queen' in this way before we left.\no 2 196\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nIf:\nThis interesting entertainment made us unpunctual for\nthe first time during our tour, and we had to run in and\nout of Miss Macpherson's Home, and to cut Napanee very\nshort indeed, so as to get to Kingston at the right time\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthat is, about six; and after the address we had to drive\nsome way, and go in a steamer to Mr. Cartwright's, where\nwe stay.\nI felt very unready to go back to Kingston after dinner\nto hold a reception; but it had to be done, and through\nrain and lightning we returned there.\nThere were a great many people in a brilliant room, and\nafter we left the ' young things5 danced, but I have not\nyet seen them to hear about it. I have forgotten to mention\nthat Brother Fred left for England on the morning of\nthe 3rd.\nSunday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Kingston is prettily situated, almost at\nthe beginning of the Thousand Islands ; and sitting under\nthe trees here and resting is delightful.\nMonday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have had a lovely journey through\nthe Thousand Islands, the weather being beautiful. We\nhad a comfortable steamer all to ourselves, one full of\npeople following us. When we came in sight of Brockville,\na hundred small row-boats came to meet us; each one had\na lady in it, and a flag, and it was a very pretty sight.\nWhen we landed we got into a carriage, and the horses\nimmediately stood upon their hind legs ; and as continual\nexperiences of the sort have spoilt my nerves, I got out,\nand took a lower place behind two lambs; these, however,\nhad the misfortune to run their noses up against a flag,\nand shied fearfully; so I was really delighted to think that\nthis was my last drive.\nHere D. made a speech, in which he gave some account\nof our reception at different places, and said, ' During the\nsix weeks my tour has occupied, I believe that I have received something like one hundred and twenty addresses,\nevery one of which breathed a spirit of contentment, loyalty, SEPT. 1874\nBROCKVILLE\n197\nand kindness. In fact, from first to last, no harsh, desponding, or discordant note has marred the jubilant congratulations of the nation. But the demonstrations with which\nwe have been honoured have not been confined to mere\nvocal greetings. It would be impossible to describe either\nthe beauty or the variety of the triumphal emblems which\nhave glittered on either hand along our way. In addition\nto the graceful and picturesque decorations of evergreens,\nflags, tapestry, and prismatic canopies of colour from\nwindow to window, with which the towns were gay, we have\npassed under a number of the most ingenious and suggestive arches. There was an arch of cheeses, an arch of salt,\nan arch of wheels, an arch of hardware, stoves, and pots\nand pans, an arch of sofas, chairs and household furniture,\nan arch of ladders, laden with firemen in their picturesque\ncostumes, an arch of carriages, an arch of boats; a Free-\ntrade arch, a Protectionists' arch, an arch of children, and\nlast of all an arch\u00E2\u0080\u0094no, not an arch, but rather a celestial\nrainbow\u00E2\u0080\u0094of lovely young ladies ! Indeed, the heavens themselves dropped fatness, for not unfrequently a magic cheese\nor other comestibles would descend into our carriage. As\nfor Lady Dufferin, she has been nearly smothered beneath\nthe nosegays which rained down upon her, for our path has\nbeen strewn with flowers.'\nWe had a reception in the Victoria HaH, and then\nreturned to the train. We stopped at Smith's Falls, where\nthere was a charming little reception, though we did not\ngo farther than the station. We also stopped in the same\nway at Carleton Place, and D. made his last speech. Two\nMinisters, M. Letellier and M. Fournier, met us at Smith's\nFalls, and at Ottawa all the Ministers came to the station.\nThey are all pleased with the success of the tour, and delighted with the Toronto speech.\nA fine guard of honour met us at Ottawa. The Governor-\nGeneral's guards looked splendid, and even our Colonel was\nsatisfied. 198\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nWe gave a sigh of rehef when we got home. The house\nlooked so nice: a cheerful little fire (merely for the look of\nthe thing) in the drawing-room; Fred's office grown, and\nwith a fine glass side to it; my bedroom re-papered and\nnew-carpeted, and looking so large after all the various rooms\nand cabins I have slept in; the quiet so charming, and the\nidea of not having to catch a train in the morning, of not\nhaving to reply to an address, of not having to visit three\nor four towns before we go to bed again, and of having\n' got through' with flying colours\u00E2\u0080\u0094delightful!\nWe asked our faithful reporters and Colonel Cumberland to dinner, and we congratulated each other all the\ntime.\nSo ended our tour of 1874, which has been very delightful, though I am so glad of a rest now. 199\nCHAPTER XIII\nWINTER AND SPRING, 1874-75\n'Ottawa: Tuesday, -September i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We opened the\nDominion Rifle Match, and I fired the first shot, and am\nsaid to have made a bull's-eye\u00E2\u0080\u0094which some people won't\nbelieve, in spite of my having received an engraved silver\ntablet in commemoration of the event!\nSaturday, October 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went out hunting. They\nhad a very good drag for about twenty minutes, and then\na bagged fox was let loose; but he sat quietly looking at\nthe hunt, and refused to stir. The man near gave him a\nkick, upon which he ran at him, and after him with open\nmouth; and at last he bolted into a wood, and so was\naltogether a failure.\nSaturday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have received invitations from\nNew York : one to D., from some of the principal men there,\ninviting him to dinner on Monday, 19th; and one from\nMrs. Wilson, asking if she might issue invitations to meet\nme on the same afternoon.\nMonday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We set off on our journey to New York,\nleaving about ten in the morning and travelling all day and\nall night till we got to our destination the next morning.\nTuesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094When we arrived the town looked gay\nand bright\u00E2\u0080\u0094so many creepers and trees, and bits of gardens\nand lawns; but the day was dull and cold. We had visits\nfrom some people, made some engagements, and took a\ngood walk down Broadway. Mr. Duncan sent us a box for 200\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIII\n' Madame Angot,' to which we went, and enjoyed it much.\nWe are at the Brevoort House, which is comfortable, but\nvery dear. Our rooms and one fire are #18.50 a day,\nand the servants' board and lodging will be (#5) i^ a day\neach.\nDinner is made disagreeable to me by the menu having\na price attached to each thing. I do not like, when eating\nmy soup, to know that my share of it is 75 cents, and that\nmy potato costs 30 cents, and that ' some more' will go\ndown as another order on the bill. Seeing the prices enables\none to be economical, if one wishes, but it makes that virtue\neven more disagreeable than it usually is.\nWednesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Sam Ward called, and I believe\nsome engagements are made with him. I went to do a little\nshopping, wanting, among other things, a dark parasol. I\nwas asked 61. for a very ordinary black one, with a little\nsilver at the handle.\nIn the afternoon I set out on a round of visits, and found\nthe distances immense. I had to go to 74th Street, which\nis miles away, and D. started to walk there, and pitied himself very much. In the evening, having had an opera-box\ngiven us, we took the Fletchers to see 'Ruy Bias.' The\nperformers were not of the Patti order. The house is fine,\nthough too bare-looking. It wants some more boxes and\nmore shade. The box we had was very open, and had none\nof the privacy of an English one.\nThursday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This evening we went to a theatre\nowned by Mr. Stuart, and were very' much amused by a\nthoroughly American piece from Mark Twain's novel of ' The\nGilded Age.' The house was very full, and the people seemed\nespeciaUy pleased at jokes which alluded to the corruption of\ntheir own Legislature. The heroine shoots her false lover with\na revolver, and the last act caricatured a Yankee court of\njustice, with its appeal to the feelings of the jury, and its\nverdict of .' Not Guilty,' though the murder was completely\nproved. The principal actor was excellent\u00E2\u0080\u0094Raymond by OCT. I874\nNEW YORK\n201\nname\u00E2\u0080\u0094and the woman was good in the tragic parts, but\nlooked much too wicked in her innocent days at the beginning of the play.\nMr. Stuart told me he made 20,000?. a year by his\ntheatre. He is getting up Sunday concerts, to * relieve the\nloneliness of the Sabbath evening.'\nLadies go to theatres in bonnets, and were not very\nsmart at the opera.\nFriday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I saw Sir Edward Thornton, who called,\nand at the appointed time D. and I started for General\nWilson's house in 74th Street. I was in a morning gown\nand bonnet, but found my hostess in a low dress ! Everyone\nelse, however, was like myself, and only those took off their\nbonnets who (I suppose) looked best without them. I had\nto do duty, standing at the door all the time, and shaking\nhands with everyone, for two hours.\nMr. Sam Ward sent me a most lovely bouquet of pink\nand yellow rosebuds for this reception.\nSaturday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove through Central Park to\nJerome Park, where the races took place. We were in\nthe Jockey Club stand, opposite the Grand Stand, and the\nhorses passed twice between the two, so that we saw both\nthe beginning and the end of the race very weU.\nSir Edward Thornton dined with D. and me, and we\ntook him to a theatre in which we had been given a box.\nWe had not been there three minutes before we found it\nwas such a piece which we could possibly not stay to see.\nImagine the history of the temptation and faU of man in\nburlesque upon the stage !\nSunday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to an unsatisfactory church today : little service and much sermon. I walked home, and\nmet all the world doing the same. As a crowd, the Americans\nare better dressed than we are, but I do not think that they\nexcel our best-dressed people, such as appear at Ascot or\nGoodwood; and they are not, to my mind, so pretty. We\ndined with Mr. A. T. Stewart, a Belfast man, who came out \u00C2\u00ABJ3T\n202\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIII\nhere at sixteen, and must be very rich. His palace is\nentirely of white marble. In our honour the dinner was\nat six instead of at three. A silver dish-cover lay before\nMr. Stewart; at each course it was removed, the dish of\nfood put in its place, to be looked at for a minute, then\ntaken away to be helped, and the cover replaced. When it\nwas over we saw the picture-gaUery and the house. I liked\nMrs. Stewart\u00E2\u0080\u0094she seemed very simple and natural. We\nsat in each room in turn: a little in the drawing-room,\na short time in the library, a few minutes in the billiard-\nroom, a Httle while in her bedroom, etc. The latter is very\nbeautiful, and I suppose it is slept in, but it does not look\nas if it were.\nThere was a lady there who was just like a conventional Yankee on the stage. She announced, first, that she\nhad told her husband she would never put on black for\nhim, as she meant to marry again as quick as ever she could.\nThen she informed me in a light and cheerful manner that\nshe had had convulsions every Sunday since January, and\nthat this was the first occasion upon which she had not been\niU ! She next proceeded to teU her domestic troubles, and\nhow she had had to get a policeman to turn her cook out of\nher house. When she got so far, a more fashionable person\ncame up, and.would talk ' opera ' to me, so I heard no more.\nMonday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I walked in the streets, and paid a\nnumber of visits, and in the evening I went to the opera\nwith Mrs. Stevens. It was ' Ruy Bias' again, as Albani,\nwho had just arrived, was too unwell to sing yet. C. Yznaga\nwas the young lady of the party, and there was a stream of\nyoung men passing through all the time. No one seemed\nto dream of listening!\nD. was dining with thirty gentlemen at Delmonico's; the\ndinner went off weU, and there were no speeches.\nTuesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had a breakfast given to him by\nMr. Sam Ward, which he liked immensely, and in the\nevening a dinner, which he also enjoyed. OCT. 1874\nNEW YORK\n203\nThursday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started off before nine in the\nmorning to a railway-station, where we were met by Mr.\nDudley Field, and went by train to Parrytown.\nThere a coach-and-four, driven by Mr. Dudley Field,\njunr., awaited us. We were glad to see the country; there\nwere pretty villas all along, and a capital road. The view\nought to have been lovely, but a fog hung over the\nHudson, and hid its opposite bank. We returned by road\nto Irvingstown, where we saw Washington Irving's ' Sleepy\nHollow,' passed in front of Cyrus Field's house to see the\nview, and then stopped at Dudley Field's, junr., for lunch,\nor rather breakfast, for we had only had a cup of tea\nbefore starting. Everyone was very kind, and we enjoyed\nit very much; then we drove back to the station and returned to New York.\nFriday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another country day. This time we\ntook the ferry, and went over to Orange Valley, where Mrs.\nYznaga lives. She gave us Spanish and Cuban dishes;\nthe first, ' gumbo,' a curious gelatinous soup, with oysters,\nchicken, sassafras leaves, and red pepper in it. Then a dish\nwith rice and tomatoes in the middle, grilled chicken and\nfried bananas round; then various sorts of light pastry, and\nchocolate to drink. We returned about four o'clock. Our\nparty consisted of Miss Stevens, Madame van Hoffman, and\nBret Harte.\nWe dined with Mr. and Mrs. Morton, and met Mr. and\nMrs. Duncan, Mr. and Mrs. Randolph Robinson, General\nTaylor, and Consuela Yznaga. We dined at 6.30, as we\nwere all going on to the opera. They gave us a very nice,\npretty dinner, and we only missed the first act of ' Lucia,'\nand enjoyed the rest very much. Albani, who sang for\nthe second time here, was very well received, and we are\nproud of her as a Canadian.\nSaturday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went with Mr. Duncan to see Mr.\nBelmont's picture-gallery, and on to the house of a gentleman who is rich, and collects pictures. I D. then went with 204\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xm\nMr. Bierstadt to see his pictures, and afterwards made a\nround of gaUeries.\nIn the evening we saw ' The Romance of a Poor Young\nMan' acted by Mr. Montague, whom the young ladies here\ncaU ' a lovely man.'\nSunday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. had to leave for Washington before\nnine o'clock, so we dined quietly with some very nice\npeople. It amused me to observe in what way their dinner\ndiffered from one we should give. Their house is handsome\nand comfortable, and they are very rich; but their table was\nlarge for the number of people, and had absolutely nothing\non it\u00E2\u0080\u0094not a bonbon, a flower, a bit of china, a candle,\na bit of food\u00E2\u0080\u0094so it looked very bare. We had oysters,\nsoup, fish, an entree, cold beef\u00E2\u0080\u0094as a compHment to the\nSunday\u00E2\u0080\u0094and a hot pudding. The cloth was then taken\noff,, and we sat at a mahogany dessert-table once again.\nMonday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went to Washington, where he\narrived at six in the morning, and was just settling down to\na quiet sleep in his train-bed, when he heard Sir E. Thornton\nhad come to meet him, so he had to jump up at once. Sir\nEdward gave him a cup of tea, and took him a walk, then\nbreakfast, and then a drive to all the sights. He saw the\nPresident, who was very civil and called upon him, and Mr.\nFish, and then started for Baltimore, where he slept.\nTuesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. returned, and when he had had a\ncup of tea we paid a few visits in different directions;\nafter dinner he attended a poHtical meeting at Tammany\nHaU, which interested him.\nWednesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning Mr. Cyrus Field came\nfor us, and we went to see the Normal School. We sat\nupon a platform with the teachers, and at nine precisely\nmusic struck up, and 1,200 girls marched in, and in about\ntwo and a half minutes were seated. Of course, this can\nonly be done by the most perfect arrangement, and is quite\na military manoeuvre. A chapter in the Bible was read,\nand a hymn sung. The President got up and said: ' Young t\nOCT. 1874\nNEW YORK\n205\nladies, I present to you the Earl of Dufferin, Governor-\nGeneral of Canada, and his Lady'; and D. said a few appropriate words. The President then said : ' The young\nladies of the First Section will repeat their quotations'; and\none after another a number of girls got up, and repeated\nsomething they had learnt. This is a voluntary exercise,\nand is intended to give them confidence in speaking before\na number of people. These girls are all being trained as\nteachers. After this a chord was struck, and they all rose,\nand to music marched to the various class:rooms. We\nfollowed to the exercise-rooms, where we saw a hundred\nor so doing gymnastics. Then we peeped in at chemistry,\ngeology, drawing, and Latin classes.\nOur next visit was to a common school, and the children's\ndepartment was very interesting. There were 1,150 collected in one room, and they marched in at a much slower\npace than their elders, and with an air of solemnity that\nwas most amusing. The second half of the room had the\nseats raised towards the back, and a view was painted on\nthe wall which finished the scene admirably. At a signal\nfrom the mistress the 1,150 heads went up in the air; at\nanother, there was clapping of hands ; at another, singing ;\nand so on. We also saw the big boys and big girls. There\nare 2,500 children at school in that one building.\nFriday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. dined with Mr. Stoughton last night,\nand I went about eight o'clock to fetch him. The landlord\nof our hotel went with me, and sat by me in the carriage,\nand then I realised how wanting I had been in not shaking\nhands with him when I first arrived at the hotel.\nWe travelled all night, and though the beds themselves\nwere comfortable, the night was not. The engine kept up\na perpetual shriek, and the train went more like an animal\nthan a machine\u00E2\u0080\u0094in jerks and with varieties of speed.\nWhen we reached our destination\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Rivere House,\nBoston\u00E2\u0080\u0094I rested, but D. put off his nap, and took a walk.\nLater we drove in an open carriage through the town. 206\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII\nThe streets are narrower than those of New York, but appear\nto be very busy and full of people and vehicles. There\nare some handsome buildings, and the 'residences' seem\nvery nice. There are pretty public gardens, and a common,\non which a great many good houses look out. We visited\nBunker's Hill and Harvard College. The Memorial Hall,\nbuilt to the memory of the former students who were killed\nin the War, is where the young men dine, and is very handsome. We saw one student's private room, plain and comfortable. Then we visited Mr. Longfellow, and found him\nin a nice old-fashioned house, where Washington was living\nwhen he took command of the American Army. The poet's\nstudy is a plainly-furnished room, with a large orange-tree\nstanding in one window. He is a most charming and\nloveable old man ; he gave me one of his poems as a\nsouvenir of my visit, and he invited D. to dine at the Club\ndinner to-morrow, so we remain for that. Just as we were\ngoing out of the house his daughter Alice appeared, and\nhe introduced her to us.\nWe have our meals in the American fashion here, in a\npublic room: there are numbers of small tables for ten\npeople; sometimes we are alone, sometimes there are other\npeople at our table ; at every meal the first ceremony always\nis to place a glass of iced water before us.\nIn the evening we went to the Boston Theatre\u00E2\u0080\u0094a\nfine one, with spacious entrance-hall. The theatre itself,\nvery large and beautifully decorated, finer than any we\nsaw in New York. The piece was ' Belle Lamar', a story\nof the War, and was very interesting and well put upon\nthe stage. Here they have a farce both before and after,\nwhile in New York there was only one piece given in each\ntheatre.\nSaturday, 31 si.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove this morning to Dorchester\nHeights, and to see some more of the city, and at 2.30 D.\nwent to his Club dinner. He has been very lucky to be\nhere for it. It takes place only once a month, and he met at OCT. l874\nBOSTON\n207\nit Longfellow, Lowell, Emerson, Dana, Dana junr., Holmes\n(the Autocrat of the Breakfast Table), etc. They have all\npromised him books as a remembrance of the occasion.\nI took a walk in the town, and in the evening D. and I\nwent to the Museum Theatre. It is not so fine as the\nBoston, but it is uncommon in one way: you pass through\na museum to it\u00E2\u0080\u0094statues, pictures, stuffed animals, etc.\nThe play was 'Arkwright's Wife,' by Tom Taylor\u00E2\u0080\u0094very\ngood indeed. The heroine was pretty and graceful, and\nall the parts were well filled.\nSunday, November 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We tried two churches before\nwe could get a seat, and the third we attempted to enter\nturned out to be a Universalist church. It is one of the\nOld-English chapels, and the service was our Liturgy very\nslightly altered, and a sermon upon All Saints' Day. This\nservice is intended to suit everybody, whatever their opinions\nmay be; and in many places in Canada where they cannot\nsupport a number of different sects, they have these Universalist churches.\nWe drove afterwards, and saw a great deal of the neighbourhood. The villas are very pretty, and the country is\nEnglish-looking.\nWe had to dine at four\u00E2\u0080\u0094American system ! However, it\nwill enable us to go to bed early, and prepare for thirteen\nhours' railway to-morrow to Montreal.\nMonday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day passed much more pleasantly\nthan I expected, and we really enjoyed the journey. We\nhad a very comfortable compartment to ourselves, passed\nthrough beautiful scenery (seeing the Green Mountains\nand several rivers), and had two most exceHent meals.\nGenerally they only wait ten minutes for dinner, but, thanks\nto our ' high office,' they gave us half an hour.\nOttawa: Saturday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have had nothing particular\nto relate since our return here, but to-day I took Mr. Hep-\nworth Dixon, who is staying with us, his son, and Lady\nHarriet, to the steeplechases. 208\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIII\nFour horses started in each race; the first was for\nthe Governor-General's ChaUenge Cup, and the only fall\nwas that of a man of fifty-seven\u00E2\u0080\u0094rather old to do ' jockey.'\nHis horse swerved at a pole, and the rider lay still for\nseveral seconds on the ground and frightened us; but he\ngot up and walked about all the rest of the day. We saw\nthe same horse ridden by a jockey proper in the last race;\nhe swerved at the same place every time he came round\nto it, and so lost the race. There was constant variety in\nthis race, for the order of the running changed every few\nseconds.\nWednesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel Fletcher got his recall from\nEngland to-day, and I fear they will all have to leave in\nFebruary. Lady Harriet will be a terrible loss to me ; she*\nhas been my constant companion, and was always ready to\ndo everything and to enjoy everything with me ; the most\nsympathetic person I have ever met. We had many things\nin common, and I cannot bear to think of her departure\nyet. | -\nSaturday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The new General,1 Selby Smyth, and\nhis A.D.C., Mr. Miles Stapleton, came to stay till Monday.\nThe A.D.C. looks very ' jolly,' and will be an acquisition\nto Fred, I think. But the really exciting question is : ' Does\nhe look as if he would dance the Boston ?' which all the\nyoung ladies have been practising.\nColonel Barnard and a very big and pleasant Chief\nJustice\u00E2\u0080\u0094Begbie, from British Columbia\u00E2\u0080\u0094came to dinner.\nThe latter has been out there sixteen years, and has, I\nbeHeve, succeeded in making the law respected by Indians\nand other ' wild men.' He gave us an amusing description\nof the difficulties which occur from the Indian plan of\nfamilies and property descending in the female line.\nSaturday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A heavy snowstorm during the night\nand nearly aU day. The children, with the help of Colonel\nFletcher, Mr. Dixon, and a ladder, have erected in front of\n1 The General Commanding the Canadian Militia. NOV. 1874\nOTTAWA\n209\nmy window an enormous and hideous snow-man, who will\nremain an eyesore to me the whole winter, unless some kind\nfriend assassinates him. I was threatened with a wife for\nhim, but I am in hopes that a judicious suggestion I have\nmade as to the appropriateness of making the pair stand\nas spectators over the Skating Sink may induce the\nbuilders to model the statues there. The creature has a\ncarrot nose, and lips of the same material, coals for eyes,\nand an old hat on his head; he is eight feet high, and\nstands right in my way, hiding my view of the Parliament\nBuildings. In the evening he was illuminated with red\nand green fire.\nTuesday, December i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was some very good\ntobogganing to-day. The new slide is most exciting, for,\nthe natural hill not being considered sufficiently steep, a\ngreat addition has been made to it. A long flight of stairs\nnow leads to the top of a high wooden slide, and, as this\nis almost perpendicular, the toboggan starts at a rapid rate\ndown it\u00E2\u0080\u0094and its occupant has both the length and the\nexcitement of his slide greatly increased. To-day the\nwooden part of the slide is a sheet of ice, so the toboggans\nrush down it at a tremendous pace.\nFriday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gwen and Katie2 arrived about five\no'clock, looking extremely well.\nChristmas JDay, Friday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094An ideal Christmas Day\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094the weather lovely, twenty degrees of frost, and a bright\nsun. The children had received presents from their\ngoverness and nurses in the morning, and were in great\nexcitement. After breakfast they came down, and we\nintroduced Nelly and Hermie to a dolls' house, which\ndelighted them. Hallie had dressed a number of inhabitants\nfor it, and it is a charming toy.\nIn the afternoon, everyone, except me, went out and\nhad a very pleasant afternoon skating and tobogganing.\nI found plenty of work at the Christmas-tree, which was\n2 My sisters* III!\n210\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xra\nready directly after tea. The only contretemps of the day\nhappened just as the children were jumping with excitement\nto go in to see it. The gas went out, and we had to wait\nmore than half an hour for it to recover. In the meantime\nwe got up a dwarf, who amused them much. The tree was\nnext lighted up, and was greeted with cheers. The fifteen\nchildren\u00E2\u0080\u0094the eldest eleven years old\u00E2\u0080\u0094were all perfectly\ndelighted, and were much too pleased with the treasures\nthey had received to feel inclined to play games afterwards.\nThey simply sat on the floor absorbed in their new possessions, with sighs of perfect happiness. The youngest of\nthe party was one of the happiest; she ran about the floor\npulling a sheep after her, and looked such a pretty little\ndear. The big people also went away laden. We were\nfourteen at dinner, with governesses, secretaries, etc., and\nin the evening we played games.\nFriday, January ist, 1875.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were more or less busy\nin the morning making the arrangements for the children's\nplay, and from 2.30 to 4.30 His Ex. and I were ' at home'\nto receive visitors. We had 211 gentlemen, who said 'How\ndo you do ?' had a glass of wine or a cup of tea, and passed\naway.\nWe refreshed ourselves with a little tea when the reception was over, and then I dressed for the evening, and\nhelped to paint the actors.\nThe play took place upon a small stage erected in the\nanteroom to the ball-room. Mr. Dixon wrote the piece\nand painted the scenes. ' Pussy-cat, Mew-mew ' was the\nname of the play, and it went off very well. Fred was\nexcellent in the part he undertook, and was well made-up,\nwith red stockings, red knickerbockers, a brown blouse, and\nred wig. Fred Ward was the master-magician, in a dressing-\ngown covered with mysterious signs. NeUy looked very\npretty in white tarlatan and gold, a crown on her head, and\na wand in her hand. Archie was a prince in green and silver;\nTerence, the ' Man in the Moon,' in red. Hermie, a pink JAN. 1875\nCHILDREN'S TABLEAUX\n211\nfairy; and all the others in the same style of costume in\ndifferent colours. Terence's first appearance was through\nthe full moon, and he did his part very well. All have very\nmuch improved in acting since last year.\nThe tableaux were very pretty. I had to be behind the\nscenes, and so only managed to see one myself, which I\nwill describe to you.\nThe foreground of the stage was painted in dark colours\nto represent a cavern, and the back opened, displaying a\nbrilliant grotto in gold and silver and red. Hermie stood\non a raised rock of gold at the top; beneath her sat three\nlittle ones, with baby in the centre, who was enchanted\nwith her position. Terence lay at their feet in his red\nmoon-costume, and grouped beneath were Archie, Nelly,\nMaud, Edward, etc. They were lighted up with various\ncoloured fires. Baby amused us so by giving three cheers\nin the middle of the performance. The other tableaux were\nscenes in a tournament: the Encounter, the Result, and\nthe Coronation of the Victor.\nFriday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. played the final game of the curling-\nmatch with Colonel Fletcher, and won a cup presented\nby me.\nWe had a large children's party, and we repeated the\nplay. Directly it was over we had tea for sixty-five children,\nwho seemed very hungry and very happy, and after that\ndancing and a few games till eight, when the little people\nleft. \u00C2\u00A7\nMonday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. started for Montreal. I copy the\nfollowing out of his letters :\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n' We had not left Ottawa ten minutes before the train\ncame to a stand, and all our sweepers had to jump out.\nBy their exertions we got on another few hundred yards,\nwhen a second stop occurred.\n' This kind of business went on for nearly an hour, at\nthe end of which time the Parliament Buildings were still\nin sight. After a little, however, matters improved.*\np 2 I\n212\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIII\n' On arriving at Montreal we found our rooms looking\nvery cheerful, and a nice little supper ready, for which\nthose marvellous ladies3 were again quite ready.\n' Tuesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started at eleven o'clock for the\nRink; found the Bethunes, Miss Campbell, Mr. Maxwell,\nand a couple of nice Englishmen. With these playfellows\nwe passed a couple of hours very pleasantly, and executed\na brilliant lancers.\n'At 2.30 the two Freds and I and Nowell went to\nhave a game of curling, preparatory to a match to-morrow\nwith four of the oldest members of the Montreal Club, whose\nunited ages, I believe, are to amount to something like 350\nyears. We did not play well, and got a bad beating, though\nwe ended by winning the two last ends, the latter of which\nwas an end of four. The girls went out walking with Colonel\nFletcher. Maxwell and the other two young men I have\nmentioned dined with us, and at ten we went to the ball.\nIt was a nice large, square room, with beautiful music,\nexcellent parqueterie, and very jolly. Gwen looked very\nwell, and I liked her dress. As you may suppose, she got\nlots of partners.'\nMonday, February 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The great event of the day was\nthe opening of the new theatre here\u00E2\u0080\u0094the first one at\nOttawa. The house is really very nice, and the state box\na very comfortable and convenient one.\nTuesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A great curling-match was played between our club and the Renfrew Club, for a medal presented\nby the Caledonian Club. Four of ours had to go to\nRenfrew, and four of their men came here ; so the winner\ncould not be announced till the two games were over. The\ntwo Freds and Messrs. Baker and Dixon went early to\nRenfrew, and D., Nowell, Colonel Fletcher and Robertson\nwere the team who remained here. The game began at ten,\nand they had to play for three hours. The V. R. C. C. were\nat one time five behindhand, but they finally won by one ;\n8 \"My sisters. MAECH 1875\nOTTA WA\n213\nand an hour later we heard by telegraph that at Renfrew\nthey were ties, so we won the medal by the one shot.\nThis is the first public match our club has played. The\nboys got home to dinner, and we talked curling and played\nwhist all the evening.\nFriday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a large dinner-party to-day\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nmarried Ministers and their wives. A great. division was\nexpected in the House; so they went off there after dinner,\nand they amnestied Riel during the night.\nWednesday, March 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094My baby-boy4 is now ~B.ve\nweeks old, so I was able to be present at the second representation of the 'Maire of St. Brieux,' of which the first\nperformance had been extremely j successful. It is an\noperetta, written by* Mr. Dixon, whom you know well by\nname, and composed by Mr. Mills, the organist in Ottawa.\nThe music is very pretty and the whole play excellent; it\nis very interesting to bring out a new thing on one's own\nstage, and even the author and composer must have been\nsatisfied with the actors and singers who played in it. The\nprima donna, Mrs. Anglin, both sang and looked charmingly,\nand the Maire himself, Mr. Kimber, was quite perfect.\nI asked the actors to keep on their costumes during the\nevening, and they made the party look very gay and pretty,\nthe girls' coloured petticoats and high, white caps, and the\nmen's bright-coloured clothes, being very effective.\nWednesday, April 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a severe frost last\nnight, so we determined to have some skating on the Curling Rink\u00E2\u0080\u0094rather late in the year for my first skate!\nSunday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Baby was christened by the name of\nFrederick Temple.\nTuesday, May nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We leave for three months' hoHday\nin England, and had quite a sad parting with the seven\nlittle ones. General Selby Smyth met us, with his A.D.C.,\nat the gate, and at the station there was a crowd of .people\nto wish us adieu and bon voyage. The day was lovely.\n4 Lord^Frederick Blackwood, born 26th February 1875. 214\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XII1\nAt Montreal we were met by General O'Grady Haly,5 who\nis to be Administrator during D.'s absence.\nWednesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A torrent of rain falling all day.\nWe left Montreal early, and spent ten hours in the train,\nreaching Quebec about six in the evening.\nFriday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very stormy night, slates blowing about,\nand we ,go on board to-morrow !\nSaturday, i^th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a dreadful morning : snow, rain,\nand cold wind of the bitterest description. D. sent to beg\nthe Mayor not to bring the steamers out to accompany\nours, as it was impossible for any ladies to go in them.\nThe Lieutenant-Governor came for us, and drove us down\nto the Polynesian. One steamer did go with us for a little\nway with a band on board. They played 4 He is a Jolly\nGood Fellow' and 'God save the Queen,' and cheered us\nwhen we parted. This was about 1 p.m.\nAt three we stopped suddenly, and on sending out to\ninquire we found we were ashore! We got off soon,\nbut at four we were stuck again; this time we were told\nwe could not get off till high-water, at two o'clock in the\nnight. We have a very comfortable sitting-room on deck,\nwith a warm-water stove in it, and next to it the smoking-\nroom, in-which we have our meals privately. Our sleeping-\nberths are comfortable.\nSunday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Awoke to find ourselves stuck. No hopes\nof getting off tiU 4 p.m., at high-water. One of the boats\nwent out to do something or other, and could not get back;\nanother was sent after her, and now both, with a large proportion of our crew, are gone. I suppose when we do get\noff we shall go after them.\nTuesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon we sighted a field of\nice, which looked very pretty in the rosy evening. Some\nsmall pieces floated round the vessel, and during the night\nwe got into quite a thick part of it, and had to stop.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Loose and large pieces of ice aU round\n5 The General Officer Commanding H.M. Forces in British North America. MAY 1875\nICE-BOUND AT SEA\n21i\nus\u00E2\u0080\u0094some, dirty brown-looking lumps, others white, and all\nrough and ragged. A fog over all, a wet deck, a ship\nstopped on its voyage\u00E2\u0080\u0094such are the pleasures we find on\nthis May day. About five o'clock we began to move slowly\nthrough the ice. It was a fascinating employment, that\nof watching the great ' Juggernaut' we were in cutting\nand pushing its way through this field of ice. Sometimes\nwe went through great pieces, just as a knife cuts through\na wedding-cake, sometimes the piece resisted us to a certain\ndegree, and we had to push it slowly aside before we could\nget on.\nThursday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I awoke about five in the morn, hearing the vessel crunch up against the ice; at ten we were\nfree, but in a fog; the steam-horn blew all day.\nAs soon as we got far enough south we turned the\ncorner of the ice, and went on our way rejoicing, in spite of\na great deal of fog, and fog-whistling. 216\nCHAPTER XIV\nAN UNEVENTFUL SEASON, 1875-76\nFriday, October 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I sent you a post-card from\nLondonderry telling you that we were off on our return to\nCanada after our holiday at home. We got on board on a\nvery disagreeable evening, but we thought the wind was\nlessening, and that we should probably have a calm passage. We talked of seeing land on Thursday, and made\nup our minds to reach Quebec at the latest by Tuesday.\nThursday, however, found us very near Ireland, in a regular\nstorm, which lasted two days and two nights, during which\ntime we scarcely made any progress. In twenty-four hours\nwe only made forty knots, and the captain said he had\nnever been so delayed in his life before. We were obliged\nto remain below, and I can't tell you how dreary it was,\nrolling perpetually for two days and two nights in one's\nberth. Later on we saw some beautiful icebergs;\u00E2\u0080\u0094and now\nthat I have seen field-ice, icebergs, fog, and a storm, I do\nnot wish for any new experience of life at sea. We got to\nQuebec this morning, and found the weather beautiful, but\nvery cold. One steamer, which left the Monday before us,\narrived yesterday with her bulwarks washed away, and having\nlost three boats. Our Prussian received no damage; she\nis such a good sea-boat.\nThe General, Lieutenant-Governor, etc., came to meet\nus, and our landing at this lovely place was very pretty.\nIt is so gay and sunny, and the Canadian air does feel so OCT. l87S\nOTTA WA\n217\nexhilarating. The children sent letters of welcome to meet\nus at Father Point, begging us not to stop on the way\nanywhere. We go on by the boat this afternoon, and reach\nOttawa at four to-morrow.\nTuesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel and Mrs. Littleton,1 who have\ncome out with us in place of Colonel and Lady Harriet\nFletcher, reached Ottawa yesterday, and are at the hotel\nthere. They came to lunch, and to see their house.\nThursday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lawn-tennis, and a drive. The\nLittleton children came to tea, and quite won the hearts of\nmine. They expected to see ' the King of Canada' in a\ncrown and train, and still think that at some future time\nhe will appear in full dress.\nWednesday, November 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The new tennis-court has\nbeen begun. It is to serve the purpose of a supper-room\nas well.\nSaturday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are proposing later in the season\nto give a fancy ball, and are already deep in miUinery-talk.\nThursday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We skated for the first time this\nyear, on the Rideau, where we had swept a place.\nWe had a great dinner to-night for the Judges of the\nSupreme Court (sixty-two guests), and had a large T-shaped\ntable spread in the ball-room for it.\nMonday, December 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lovely day, and the skating-\nice simply perfect. We have had a man from Montreal to\nteach us to flood it properly, and the result of his instructions is excellent.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was great excitement at receiving\na box directed to me from ' the Queen.' It contained a\npretty doll, dressed in the smartest blue velvet gown, for\nVictoria. She was delighted, and carried it about all the\nevening.\nSaturday, 1 ith.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We asked Miss Kingsford, Miss Patrick\nand some of the other good skaters to come to-day, that we\nmight practise our figures. This was a real, true skating-\n1 Lord Hatherton, G.M.G., late Colonel, Grenadier Guards. 218\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIV\nparty, with no temptations to toboggan or dance, and it was\nvery pleasant. We worked away at roses, double roses,\nthistles, HHes, snails, etc., and then we came in, had some\ntea, and talked about\u00E2\u0080\u0094the fancy ball.\nMonday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094On Saturday we had the same people\nas last week, but as the thermometer was about 200 below\nzero, skating was a doubtful pleasure. Sunday was still\ncolder, and to-day the weather is no milder.\nTuesday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094During the afternoon a sudden and\ncomfortable change in the weather. They say there was a\njump of 76\u00C2\u00B0 in the twelve hours; and certainly it. became\nvery warm, and a complete thaw set in after a very ' cold\nsnap' indeed.\nFriday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The snow is quite off the tobogganing-\nslide, and the Skating Rink is spoilt for the present; but it\nhas begun to freeze again. I was very busy all day with\nMrs. Hall, arranging the Christmas-tree. At five o'clock\nGwen and Russell2 and Fred Ward arrived. They met\nat Prescott. Gwen looks extremely well. During the severe\nfrost in Montreal her hot-water pipes burst, and she was\nnearly frozen.\nSaturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A wet Christmas Day in Canada! We\nwent to church undej: umbrellas ! However, it cleared up\nafterwards, but was at no time a nice day. At five o'clock\nthe Littleton children came, and after tea the tree in the\nball-room was lighted up, and the shrieking ' brats' were\nadmitted to it. The tree was very successful, and reaUy\nlooked very pretty. It was placed just in front of the\nThrone. Its natural eccentricities of shape were concealed\nby ropes of many-coloured crackers and glass balls, and it\nwas covered with small presents, and surrounded on the\nfloor by larger ones, the whole being bounded by a paling\nof gaily-ornamented curling-brooms. On the floor were\nalso to be seen four toboggans, presented by His Ex. to\ndifferent people\u00E2\u0080\u0094one very lovely one for me. When the\n2 My sister and brother-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Rupert Stephenson. DEC. 187S\nOTTA WA\n219\nfirst excitement had a little subsided we began to take the\nthings off the tree, and I am happy to say the children\nappeared well pleased with their presents.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a great deal of curling\nto-day : in the morning a match between D., F. Ward\nand Russell Stephenson, Mackenzie, Fred and Colonel\nLittleton. We also drew for the match for my cup.\nI anticipate great amusement in seeing Mrs. Littleton\nand Gwen watching their husbands play: they are both\nvery excited over a game, and both offer much advice, and\ngroan and triumph alternately\u00E2\u0080\u0094the ladies, I mean.\nSaturday, New Year's Day, 1876.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We received our\nvisitors between twelve and two to-day\u00E2\u0080\u0094225 gentlemen.\nThe day was very mild : rain in the afternoon, and no\ncurling or skating\u00E2\u0080\u0094most sad and un-Canadian; but at any\nrate the weather was decidedly interesting to talk about.\nMy children had invited all the workpeople and their\nchildren to come to tea and to see their play, 'Little\nNobody,' written b}r Mr. Dixon. He has taken great pains\nwith the scenery, which is quite beyond that of a mere\namateur stage. There is a street and a castle, with a background of sea and sky, followed by a magnificent transformation scene, in which a silver-dressed fairy stands behind\na star of many colours, the rays of which gradually part\nand open, leaving her supported on each side by minor\nfairies of the female sex, while two male fairies sit in cars\nunderneath. This is the last scene of the play, and while\nthis gorgeous sight is in the background the active performers in the piece are grouped in the front. We had\nan appreciative audience, filling the room.\nTuesday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very important curling-match took\nplace in our rink, between the four ' Fredericks ' of the Viceregal Club and the four ' Jameses' of the Ottawa Club. Alas !\nthe Jameses won by one. There was tobogganing and\nskating after lunch. A lovely day\u00E2\u0080\u0094about zero.\nWednesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The married men of the Curling 220\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xrv\nClub had a match against the single ones. The best\nbachelor was absent, and 'Httle Campbell' (who is very\nshort-sighted, and never plays) took his place. He was a\ngreat element of amusement; for, in the first place, he made\nby accident two most beautiful shots, then he fell in front\nof a stone while sweeping, etc. The bachelors were beaten\nby 18 to 2. There was much tobogganing in the afternoon,\nand a frightful upset, Fred and Colonel Littleton coming\nin with their noses scraped by the icy snow upon which\nthey fell.\nThursday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The bachelors determined to try and\nregain their laurels to-day, and marched in procession to\nthe Rink. They were dressed in white blanket-coats, wore\nwhite kid gloves, and orange-flowers in their button-holes.\nTheir fate was, however, as sad as yesterday.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a large children's party in the\nevening. When the fifty-five children and their mammas\nhad arrived and seated themselves,' Little Nobody' began, and\nwent most successfully till near the end, when in the middle\nof the last beautiful fairy transformation scene there was a\nfire, which might have been very bad. The man attending\nto a lime-light held a candle under an indiarubber pipe\ncontaining gas. The pipe melted, and the gas, of course,\nburnt furiously; there were people rushing about, water\nflowing, and a great scrimmage going on, during which the\nimperturbable queen of the fairies continued her speech.\nDarkness ensued, and then we lifted the curtain and threw\na rose-Hght over the scene ; but of course the grand effect\nwas spoilt, and the author and the carpenter burnt their\nhands a little.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We begin to feel that the fancy baU\nis near, and are making arrangements. I have been writing\nout the programmes. There are to be singing-quadrilles,\nvalses, and lancers. The dancers have to learn and to\nrehearse their parts, and we expect this will be a very pretty\nfeature in the ball. JAN. 1876\nMONTREAL\n221\nTuesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Spent a great deal of time over a most\ntroublesome business\u00E2\u0080\u0094that of getting 150 parts copied\nfor the singing-quadrille; that is, thirty copies of each\nfigure. You may imagine the confusion and the difficulty\nof arranging aU these separate bits of paper. Fred Ward\ndoes the hardest part; but I help\u00E2\u0080\u0094and dream of it.\nSaturday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The thaw was so decided this morning\nthat we gave up all idea of outdoor amusements. At two\nwe rehearsed ' School,' which is to be our next play, and as\nsoon as the people had collected afterwards we danced. I\ngot up a tempete, and made the elderly people join. I\ntook a judge for my partner, who was very much astonished\nto find how hard he had to work, and received, I fear, a\nshock when he found that, having conducted him down to\nthe bottom of our long room, I intended to take him up\nagain at the same pace. After this came more waltzes,\nand a cotillon, which wound up the day.\nSunday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Comte Louis de Turenne arrived,\nand we took him a snow-shoe walk.\nMonday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We all\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I, the Littletons, the\nFreds and the Comte de Turenne\u00E2\u0080\u0094started in a private car\nfor Montreal.\nWednesday, March 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very stormy, snowy day,\nextremely cold, and no admittance to the Rink. In the\nevening there was a fancy dress baU on the ice. The\nCount, the Littletons, and those who had not seen this\nbefore, were delighted with the sight. It was bitterly cold,\nand I was glad to skate a little in a domino. I danced a\nset of lancers and some other things with D.\nThursday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Some good skating in the morning,\nthen a grand lunch at Mr. Ryan's, which our three\nFredericks had to leave early, as they were going to join\nthe fourth Frederick in playing against four Jameses. We\nmeant to go and see the game, but when we arrived at the\ndoor of the Rink we met our party coming out, victorious\nand radiant. MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XI\nSaturday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Montreal by the morning train\ntaking with us the Comte de Turenne and Gawen.3\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Marquis and Marquise de Bassano\narrived this afternoon, just as we were finishing a laborious\nrehearsal of part of ' School.'\nWednesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A cold, windy day ; however, we went\nout and skated. The Comte de Turenne is working hard\nat the outside edge. The Cabinet dinner took place tonight, and the new Ministers came for the first time in\ntheir uniforms. The dinner was in the ball-room, and we\nhad a band to play during the evening.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we had some skating\nand curling ; the day was beautiful and mild. After lunch\nwe went to the opening of Parliament.\nOn our return the energetic gentlemen had a great\nafternoon's tobogganing, but Madame de Bassano and I\nrested, as we had to dine at seven, and be present at the\nDrawing-room afterwards. I never saw so many people\nat one before, and I must have made an enormous number\nof curtseys. The boys went to a dance after the Drawing-\nRoom.\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A complete thaw, with pouring rain.\nThe Bassanos left; and in the afternoon we rehearsed the\nfirst two acts of ' School'\u00E2\u0080\u0094 very successfuUy. Mr. Kimber\nand Miss Fellowes remained for dinner, and in the evening\nthe other twenty-eight singers arrived, and we rehearsed the\nsinging-quadrilles, lancers, and waltz. The lancers went\nbeautifuUy, and the waltz is very pretty.\nSaturday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was such a lovely day, so bright\nand so mild that it was doubtful whether there would be\nany skating. Guests kept telegraphing from Ottawa, ' Can\nI bring my toboggan ?'\nFortunately, we were able both to skate and to toboggan,\nand as it was very pleasant for the lookers-on, we remained\nout tiU past five, and had a most successful party. This is\n3 My brother, Colonel Gawen R. Hamilton. MARCH 1876\nBALLS AT OTTAWA\n223\nthe last we can have before our ball, which now draws\nnear.\nOur new supper-room, with its red-and-white tent, let\ndown inside the tennis-court, and the shields bearing the\narms of the various provinces hung round its walls, will be\nvery pretty. The ball-room is wreathed in roses.\nWednesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The American painter, Mr. Bierstadt,\nand his wife are staying in the house with us, and he has\nbegun to paint me a picture as a remembrance of his visit.\nIt will be a nice thing to have. We went out, and saw\nthe great curling-match of the year, for His Ex.'s medal.\nMontreal won it. The sixteen players had lunch with us.\nWe dressed for the fancy ball at nine\u00E2\u0080\u0094all our household\nin costumes of the same period\u00E2\u0080\u0094and walked in procession\nup the room. The dresses of our guests were beautiful,\nand there was great variety in them. The singing-dances\nand the new supper-room were much admired, and when\npeople went away at 4 a.m. they seemed extremely pleased.\nSaturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It snowed hard\u00E2\u0080\u0094in fact, I have never\nseen the snow round us so deep. The Littletons have to\nbe almost dug out every day, and the road to their house is\non a level with the palings.\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The French members of the Commons\ngave a beautiful ball in the new Library at Ottawa, to which\nwe went. The room, an enormous round building, was very\nwell lighted. I believe 1,500 people were in it, and there\nwas no crush at all. We enjoyed it very much. Numbers\nof people wore their fancy dresses.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Comte de Turenne arrived for\nthe play. The actors dined early, in D.'s room. Then I\nwent to dress for Mrs. Honeyton, in the 'Happy Pair.'\nThen the ' School' arrived, and began to dress in one room,\nand the men had another, and the guests came crowding in,\nand got off their things in the school-room, and there was\npainting and curling and excitement going on everywhere.\nFred and I began the performance with 'A Happy Pair,' 224\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIV\nand had a very warm audience, which was pleasant.\n' School' is a very difficult piece for amateurs; but I must\nsay that it was an unequivocal success. Every part was\nweU done, and it was quite new here, so the audience liked\nit immensely. I was reaUy surprised when I came into\nthe supper-room to see how handsome it looked, and it\ncertainly is a much-needed addition to the house, enabling\nus to give supper to a large party at once. Afterwards I\nwent into the drawing-room, and said good-night to all the\nbeaming crowd.\nTuesday, April nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a lovely day. We play\ntennis, walk, lunch, practise some music, drive into Ottawa,\nand go to a birthday-party of the Littletons, where there was\nto be a magic lantern. I took six children, and Victoria\nenjoyed her first party immensely, and applauded every\nslide. When a \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 somewhat undraped statue was exhibited,\nshe exclaimed that ' HaUie would pip (whip) her.'\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gwen, Miss Abbot and I drove into\nOttawa in the morning, and after lunch walked to the river\nRideau to see the ice coming down. We stood for some\ntime watching great blocks go over the Falls, and then\nwent to look over a bridge a Httle way off; but after a little\nwe saw such masses of ice rushing towards the Falls, that\nwe returned to our original place, and when we got there\nfound that a new bridge immediately over them, upon which\nwe had been standing a few minutes before, had been partly\ncarried away. We sat down where we could have a good\nview of the river, and saw such a smashing, and heard such\na crashing of timber. There was great excitement on the\nspot\u00E2\u0080\u0094men and horses hard at work cutting and dragging\naway what could be saved from the wreck.\nThursday, May nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The waters of the Ottawa are\nsix feet higher than they have been for years, and there is\nmuch more ice to come down; there are floods everywhere.\nTuesday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather deserves to be recorded,\nfor it really was fine, bright and sunny, and unlike anything JUNE 1876\nRIVER PARTY\n225\nwe have had before this month. A few mosquitoes were\nable to appear, but they are not strong enough either to\nbuzz or to bite.\nThursday, June 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u00941030 in the shade. I was 'at\nhome,' and received my visitors in the garden from four to\nsix, when it was cooler and very pleasant. They looked at\na game of tennis, and seemed to enjoy the garden.\nWednesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I, Nelly, the Smyths, and\nLittletons, left by a steamer at seven o'clock in the morning, and landed at Buckingham at eight. There we saw a\nlovely waterfall. The river Le Lievre, a large tributary of\nthe Ottawa, rushes at this place through a very narrow\npassage, and after falling a few feet the incline becomes\nmore gradual, but the water tumbles over rocks and stones,\nand looks like a very steep rapid, unlike anything I have\never seen before, and very beautiful. This sight was only\nen passant. Nelly was delighted, and kept up a fire of\njoyful exclamations, which helped us to like getting up so\nearly.\nAfter driving through the village of Buckingham, which\nwas gaily decorated with flags and arches, we got out at a\nwharf, and found a small steam-launch ready to take\nus up the river. We had twenty-five miles to go, and\nwere to be four hours doing it. There were some swift\nrapids in the river, and when we came to the worst\nones we were told that the steamer was too heavily laden,\nand that some of us must get out. We had a good\ndeal of trouble landing the gentlemen, D. only remaining\nwith us.\nThe small engine puffed away, but we made no progress,\nand we got very frightened. The bell-rope which the pilot\nused for giving his orders had been burnt through, a lace\ncurtain having caught fire early in the day, and when he\ncaUed out his orders the stoker did not always seem to hear.\nD. tried to reassure us, but when we looked out and found\nthat we remained exactly in the same place\u00E2\u0080\u0094off a great rock\nQ 226\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. 33V\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094We ladies were in an agony of terror. Then the boat\n\"began to tarn round, and the gentlemen on shore were\nfrightened too when they saw this manoeuvre. They were\npowerless to help us, and they feared that if we were to touch\na rock, or the branch of a tree, while we had thfe powerful\nstream broadside on, we should be toppled over. By this\ntime Nelly and I were both in tears, and it makes me laugh\nnow to think of Nelly's face, the tears pouring down, as she\nexclaimed: ' Oh! it will be so horrid to be drowned.'\nHowever, we turned safely, and did get to the shore again,\nand there we landed, so that the steamer was light enough\nto get up the rapids, while we walked, and got into her\n'above them.\nWe had all lost our appetites through fright\u00E2\u0080\u0094and they\nhad been good\u00E2\u0080\u0094for we breakfasted at six, and it was three\no'clock before we landed, stiU trembling, and had lunch on\nthe shore. After that we had to walk a mile and a half to\nsee the Fall, the object of our expedition.\nThe walk was rough, and we had some climbing and\nsome steep places to go down, and there were a great many\nmosquitoes on the road, so that after our adventure we felt\nthat the waterfall must really be fine to compensate us.\nWhen we arrived our first impression was that we could not\nsee the waterfaU for the foam, but it really was a splendid\nsight, and perfectly unlike any faU I ever saw or imagined.\nWe stood on a rock about half-way down the FaU, and\ncould neither see the breadth nor the height of it, but\nonly the thickness of it. A river with a rapid stream\npasses through a very narrow passage here, and issues Hke\na waU of water from between the rocks. I felt as if a puff\nof wind might topple it down over me. We went lower\nafterwards, and saw more of it; it is very high and very\nbroad.\nAbout six we returned to our boat, and when we asked\nfor something to drink we found that everything had disappeared from our basket. Lucky for us that drinks had JUNE 1876\nOTTAWA\n227\nbeen preferred to silver spoons! Nelly and I rather\ndreaded the descent of our friend the rapid, but we got\ndown safely in three hours.\nWe found a large bonfire burning at Buckingham, and\na crowd of people. There we got into the carriages, and\nprospered till we came to a steep hill with a precipice on\none side, in the middle of which our horses jibbed, and\nwhen they got us well to the edge of the ' precipice,' Nelly\nand I escaped through the window (a large one). The-horses\nwere led down the hill, and D. reproached us for leaving\nhim alone in his peril.\nIt was rather cold all day on the water, but warm when\nwe landed. We got back about eleven, very tired; but, in\nspite of all our troubles, we were glad to have seen those\nsplendid falls.\nWhen we undertook the expedition (invited by the\nowner of the steamer) we did not think it would take so\nlong, and, in fact, knew little about it. The steamer has\nonly been on that run for a few weeks, and scarcely anyone\nhas seen this Fall; but I think it is a most magnificent\nsight. A reporter was present, and it depends upon what\nhe thought of the rapids whether other people are encouraged to go or not. As he was not in the boat, and had no\nfriend to be alarmed about on board, his view will probably\nbe cheerful.\nMonday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Packing day ! Very hot, and everyone\nmelting and busy. Boxes and bags yawning all over the\nhouse. A holiday for the children.\nThursday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094-We started early in the morning by\ntrain to Prescott, there got into the steamer, and had a\npleasant voyage to Montreal, where we changed from one\nsteamer to another, and came on to Quebec.\nQuebec: Friday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Arrived early, and landed at\neight; the Lieutenant-Governor and a guard of honour\ncame to meet us, and we found the children waiting breakfast. It was very hot, and we did not go out till the evening.\nQ 2 228\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIV\nD. and I then walked over the scene of the late Fire\u00E2\u0080\u0094\ndesolation over a large space.\nSaturday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to see the temporary accommodation arranged for the sufferers: charities have taken in\nsome, and drill-sheds and barracks hold others. Poor people\nwho have lost their all bore their misfortunes wonderfully,\nI thought. Very hot all day. In the evening we went to\nsee the ' Busy Bees ' perform. They are the officers and\nsoldiers of the B Battery, and represented on this occasion\nthe Christy Minstrels, singing songs, etc.\nMonday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Three strangers dined with us: a\nFrenchman, an Austrian, and an Englishman. D. enjoyed\nit very much, as he heard something of European politics.\nI was ' at home,' and saw many old friends in the afternoon.\nTuesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At ten o'clock there was a parade on\nthe Esplanade\u00E2\u0080\u0094a review on a small scale, with the B Battery as performers. Then D. presented some medals and\nprizes won by the Battery. The weather was beautiful,\nbut directly after a series of heavy thunder-showers came\non, which lasted all day.\nWednesday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The citizens of Quebec gave a great\ndinner to the Governor-General to-night. The room was\nmost beautifully arranged, and the stage, at the far end of\nit, looked like a garden, with real flower-beds in the foreground, and a painted shrubbery behind them.\nThere was one long, straight table, at which the principal\nguests were sitting, with the Governor-General in the middle ;\nand four more long ones ran down the room towards the\ngallery. About 200 gentlemen were present.\nD. and his speech were immensely well received, and he\nspoke very well. He began by saying, ' I cannot help remembering under what various conditions, in how many\nvital emergencies, at what supreme epochs in its history,\nduring the last 300 years, my illustrious predecessors must\nhave had occasion to harangue the citizens of Quebec. In a JUNE 1876\nQUEBEC\n229\nthousand vicissitudes of fortune, in perpetual alternations\nof triumph and despondency\u00E2\u0080\u0094when hordes of savages were\nlurking round your palisades; when famine had prostrated\nyour strength, and the unaccustomed rigours of an Arctic\nwinter had benumbed your faculties ; when novel forms of\npestilence devastated your homes, crowning your clergy and\nyour sisterhoods with the aureole of martyrdom; when\nforeign leaguers assaulted your independence, and hostile\ncannon threatened your battlements\u00E2\u0080\u0094Viceroy after Viceroy\nhas appealed to your patience, your fortitude, your charity,\nyour patriotism; and never once, whether in good fortune\nor ill fortune, as your history tells us, has the appeal been\nmade in vain.' At the end he proposed the toast of ' Prosperity to Quebec'\nFriday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We visited the Sillery Convent, and\nthen walked into a place belonging to Colonel Rhodes. He\nhas underground gardens, which supply flowers, mushrooms, winter salads, etc. The Colonel, who entertained us\nmost hospitably, has made quite a name for himself as a\npractical gardener here. The view from the house is lovely.\nOn our return home we had a long visit from the\nBassanos, who were delighted with our platform. After\ndinner the soldiers had some very good theatricals.\nSaturday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went down to the steamer to say a\nfew words to the Canadian rifle-team, now starting for\nWimbledon.\nI was 'at home,' and the lovely morning turned into a\nvery bad afternoon. Thunder and showers and wind came\non, and though I had many visitors, they were all uncomfortable. Some feared for their gowns, some disliked\nthunder, and some thought it would frighten their horses ;\nand I sincerely sympathised with them all.\nMonday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to the High School, and from\nit saw the procession of Jean Baptiste pass through the\ntown on the way to the church. This is the great festival\nat Quebec. /f\n230\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIV\nWe spent two hours at the Ursuline Convent in giving\nprizes to the pupil-teachers, D. made a speech to them, and\ncommented upon the disrespectful way in which young\nladies are alluded to on this continent, instancing the case\nof ' Nellie Grant.'\nWe returned home in time to see Gwen and Russell off\nto Montreal, and Gwen was obHged to continue waving her\nhandkerchief to the children for several miles down the\nriver.\nIn the evening we attended a concert given by the Jean\nBaptiste society. An address was presented to D., a great\nbouquet and gilt china jar to me, and fireworks were sent\nafter us as we departed.\nTuesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very busy day, preparing again for\ndeparture. I made time to call upon Lady Belleau, and\ntook four children to see the Ursulines. It is a great treat\nto them to visit the nuns in their cage, and to receive maple\nsugar through the bars.\nWednesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got off in the Druid; a lovely\nday, and everything on board very comfortable and nice.\nWe enjoyed saiHng calmly up the beautiful river. Mr.\nGregory, the official who furnishes the yacht, presented me\nwith a key and with a Hst of goodies, which he bought for\nmy special benefit, and had locked up for me.\nFriday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Arrived at Gaspe at eight o'clock, most\nfortunate in having had so good a passage. Bad news of\nour river: they say it is much too high for fishing. We\nwent up to it, however\u00E2\u0080\u0094an hour's drive and three hours on\nhorseback\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie being the only one who reaUy enjoyed\nthis. Our servants had made our huts look very nice, and\nafter lunch we went out to try the river ; but the news was\ntoo true\u00E2\u0080\u0094the water was much too 4 heavy.' We returned\nhome to dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094and mosquitoes. Let me say at once\nthat these torments are ever present, and are quite intolerable.\nSaturday, July ist.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Having no hope of salmon here, JULY 1876\nTHE YORK RIVER\n231\nD. and Fred went off to the York River, where they had\nbeen invited to fish, and which is an earlier river than\nours. I sat all day in mosquito-armour reading, Archie\ntook charge of smudges, and occupied himself in various\nsmall devices for kiUing time, and at eight o'clock D. and\nFred returned. D. had caught five salmon and a grilse, the\naverage weight of the salmon being 24 lbs., the largest one\n28 lbs. Fred* had one salmon of 26 lbs., and a large trout\nof 5 lbs. fiis salmon had been foul-hooked, and took him\ntwo hours to kill.\nMonday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094As it has rained again, and there cannot\nbe any fishing here for some days, we resolved to return to\nour comfortable and mosquito-less Druid. Archie and I\ncame off in the morning, and in spite of the long ride I ami\nquite glad to be away from those torments. D. and Fred\nwent to the York. D. this time got one, and Fred five.\nThe largest of his was 32 lbs., and all were over 23 lbs. It\nwas quite late when we assembled on board again, and we\nhad not finished dinner till nearly ten.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The greater part of the fish yesterday\nhad been caught at a pool called Miller's Landing, and as\nD. found we could drive over there quite easily, he suggested that I should try my luck. We started directly\nafter breakfast, and three hours' driving and walking\nbrought us to our pool. We immediately set to work, but\nnot a rise was to be got, and I feared my expedition was\ngoing to be fruitless. We gave up this ' good ' place, and\nwent lower down the river, and I very soon had the pleasure\nof a rise. I stood up in the canoe to throw the fly, and sat\ndown to manage my rod when the fish was on, for it would\nbe no joke to upset the boat in these swift rivers. I landed\nmy victim with success, and he weighed 21 lbs. I tried\nonce more, and caught another 24 lbs.. D. and I then had\nlunch, and I returned home at four, while he fished on, and\nbrought two more salmon home in the evening. Fred was\nfishing higher up the river, and we hoped he would have 'JS\n232\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIV\n11 \\\nhad a good day; but he had not a rise tiU five o'clock,\nwhen he came down to the place where we had been in the\nmorning, and immediately had three. He got the third on,\nand was just happy, thinking it secure, when his reel broke,\nhis fish went, and he had to come home.\nWe had a very jolly little dinner when we met again,\nand enjoy being comfortably on board after our experiences\nof the ' Bush.'\nThe owner of this river, with his party, caught fifty-seven\nsalmon, averaging 23 lbs., the first week he was up here ;\nbut, hoping for more, he went a long way higher up to camp\nat the ' Narrows,' and we have just heard that after four\ndays there they have only caught three salmon. Mr.\nReynolds will regret this expedition when he sees what\ngood fishing we have had close to his house.\nWednesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This was a lovely day, and we are\nassured that two or three days ' of this ' will set our river\nright. We went ashore 4to shop,' and D. visited two\nschools, and after lunch we fished for ' Tommy cods.' We\nall sat in a boat and fished over the side. The excitement was in the variety of the game\u00E2\u0080\u0094sea toads, blue\nfish, flat fish, Tommy cods, smelts. We brought home\na bucketful.\nSunday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to church in the morning, and\nin the afternoon took a most lovely walk. The weather\nwas beautiful.\nMonday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning Fred and Archie started\nfor the Bush, and D. and I went to fish the lower pools,\nintending to sleep here, and to follow them to-morrow.\nD. went on foot taking with him a little boy to act as\nguide. On the way, this boy told him that his father had\nbeen drowned two months ago, about twenty miles up the\nriver, having slipped into a rapid as he was pushing some\nfelled wood into the stream, and that his body had never\nbeen found. To-day, when fishing from a canoe, D. hooked\na salmon, and the man had actually gaffed it, when it JULY 1876\nTHE ST. JOHN RIVER\n233\nwriggled over the stern of the canoe back into the water.\nKnowing that the salmon was a dead fish, D. paddled slowly\nover the pools below. All of a sudden, as he was looking\nover the side of the canoe, he saw lying at the bottom of\none of them, in about fifteen feet of water, the body of\nthe poor man. It was in the same condition as on the\nday of his death, having been preserved in the ice-cold\nwater.\nI had a canoe and two men to myself, and began the\nday well by getting several rises and three salmon. I\nthought I was going to do wonders; but salmon-fishers\nare never sure of an hour's ' luck.' D. came from his pool\nto meet me, with four fish, and we landed, and were devoured by mosquitoes during lunch. I began again, and\nwhipped the waters, without even a rise, till 6.30. On my\nway home I tried a new pool, and got fast to a salmon, which\ngave me very hard work and the greatest anxiety for half\nan hour, for we were on the brink of a very troublesome\nrapid, and I wanted to keep him away from that. Then\nsome parts of the pool were very deep, and in others there\nwere logs and traps of all descriptions; so that I never felt\nsure of my fish tiU he was landed in the boat. The salmon\non our river are smaller than those on the York, but they\nare very strong and lively. This one kept rushing off with\nthe line, and jumping up in the air so far from me that I\ncould scarcely believe he was my salmon. D. had eight\nsalmon, and I four\u00E2\u0080\u0094a great day's fishing.\nWednesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. did not go out this morning, and\nsent in his stead our captain, a nice old man, who has never\ncaught a salmon in his life. He returned at two o'clock\nhighly delighted with a twenty-pounder he had landed, and\nwhich we have sent off to his wife.\nMr. Reynolds and Mr. Middleton, who left their river\nto-day, came on board, and had lunch before embarking for\nQuebec. Mr. Reynolds gave us his score, which I copy for\nthe sake of those it may concern :\u00E2\u0080\u0094 234\nMY LAJVAVJAA' JVUKJN*\n4L\nCH.XIV\nSalmon-Fisfyfag on the York Biver,\n1876.\nSalmon\nHis Excellency .... 8\nLady Dufferin..... 2\nCaptain Hamilton .... 6\nMr. Molson 14\nMr. Middleton 50\nlbs.\n197\n45\n148\n326\n1,094\nAverage\n24l\n222\n24|\n23f\ntttt\nMr. Eeynolds 29\nMr. Grant 1\n^33\n27\nJiff\n27\nTotal . .110\n2,470\nGeneral average, about 22^ lbs.\nWe are rather afraid that, now we have come down, our\nfish have gone up the river.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went up the river with D. and Fred\nto catch trout. D. was yery anxious to make up jfeiis forty4\nsalmon, but he was only able to capture a grilse. When we\nreturned to the ship we dined, said good-bye to all the men,\nand started for Tadousac.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were in sight of Tadousac about one\no'clock, and immediately shrieked from our steam-whistle\nto report ourselves to the children. They came down to\nthe beach to meet us.\n* Yor& River.\nHis Excellency ....\nLady Dufferin ....\nCaptain Hamilton\nSalmon\n. 8\n. 2\n. 6\nlbs.\n197\n45\n148\nTotal\n. 16\n390\nAverage, 24^ lbs.\nSt. John.\nHis Excellency ....\nCaptain Hamilton\nLady Dufferin ,.\nOur Captajin *\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 30\n. 14\nj 4\n1\n546\n217\n53\n20\nTotal\n. 49\n836\nAverage, 17^ lbs.\niffi'fe\n- JULY 1876\nOTTA WA\n235\nTuesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We keep Archie's birthday to-day, so\na hay cart, a buck-board, and a horse were ordered, and\nD. and I, five children, and Mademoiselle packed into the\ncart. Archie rode, and Fred, Mr. Dixon, and the provisions\ncame in the buck-board. We drove to a place where\nthere is a small waterfall and a mill, lunched there, stayed\ntill it was time for a cup of tea, and then mounted our\ncarts and drove ' round the. Concession.' The buck-board\nbroke down, and we had to borrow a cart. As the road\nhome was very rough, the fun of the expedition consisted\nchiefly in the fearful bumps we got! All our plates and\ncups were smashed, and I felt much bruised and shaken;\nbut the children enjoyed it immensely.\nThursday; 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Tadousac to-day, and had to\nsay good-bye to Archie, who now goes to school in England\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094so the first break in our home circle is made. Parting\nwith him took off rather from the distress of parting with\nthe others ; though even from them we shall be away some\ntime. We left in a great shower and thunderstorm, and had\nto anchor some hours in a fog.\nOttawa: Monday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Delighted to get to Rideau in\nthe evening. Found the weather cool enough for fires.\n2$tk-2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The week has been spent in arranging for\nour departure for the Grand Tour. A great difference of\nopinion exists as to what we shall want en route. Some\nsay take provisions, others say don*t. We decided, however, in the first place, to have a box made to hold plates,\ncups and saucers, knives and forks, tea, salt, etc. Then we\ntake cases of preserved meats, a basket of eggs, some butter,\nDevonshire cream, and jam, and we have a refrigerator in\nour baggage-car. So we shan't starve, as we can add our\nown delicacies to the tough antelope-steaks we are to get on\nthe way.\nMr. Reynolds has taken the greatest pains about our\ncomfort in the railway carriages. Fred Ward arrived\nSaturday night, so we are now ready for our departure.\nii 236\nCHAPTER XV\nACROSS THE CONTINENT AND ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST\nSunday, July 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I must begin my account of this\nGrand Tour one day before its actual commencement, because upon this Sunday, when even our rugs were rolled\nup in their straps, and only finishing touches remained to be\nput to our piles of luggage, a blow fell upon us. Dr. Grant\ncalled to inform me that Mrs. Littleton was ill, and that in\nbed she must remain for at least ten days.\nI went over to see her, and found her dreadfully disappointed, but a little comforted by the hope of following us\nwhen she recovers. To me, and indeed to us all, as a party,\nshe is a great loss\u00E2\u0080\u0094she is always so cheery, and so ready to\nenjoy everything.\nMonday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted comfortably, and went\nto the station at 10.30. There we were received by the\nGovernor-General's Guards, and by a great many friends\nwho came to wish us ' good-bye.' We have a whole Pullman\nto ourselves, and ' two drawing-rooms'; these last are\nsmall, square cabins, where four berths can be made up.\nMy lucky maid inherits Mrs. Littleton's, and as it can be\nopened into mine I also have some additional space. The\nthree gentlemen\u00E2\u0080\u0094Colonel L. and the two Freds f\u00E2\u0080\u0094sleep in\nthe Pullman, and we all live in it by day, when the top\nberths shut up and disappear, and the under beds turn into\nseats for four.\n1 Captain E. B. Hamilton, A.D.C., and Captain Fred Ward, A.D.C. JULY I876\nOUR REPORTER\n237\nAt Prescott we lunched in the station, and then returned\nto our * house-upon-wheels,' and reaUy began to live the life\nthat is to be ours for seven days. Here I was introduced to\nthe American reporter, a very nice young man, who comes\nwith us to give an account of our tour in one of the New\nYork papers. During the day he became so enthusiastic\nover the delightful prospect before us, that he made known\nto me, through Fred, his desire to invite a charming young\nlady of his acquaintance to share his enjoyment of the trip,\nassuring him that, if only I would lend her the shelter of\nmy name, no more active chaperonage would be required\nof me ; and that her mother\u00E2\u0080\u0094too delicate to undertake such\na journey herself\u00E2\u0080\u0094would be perfectly satisfied with this\narrangement for her daughter. He proposed, with my approval, to telegraph at once and to arrange for the girl to\njoin our special train at some station on the way.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Hardhearted, prim Englishwoman that I am, I felt obliged to\ndiscourage the scheme !\nOur next amusement was our five o'clock tea. Mr.\nReynolds had made us a most ingenious' portable kitchen,'\nand we all sat and watched our kettle boil, and were extremely particular about scalding our teapot, etc. We had\nan excellent cup of tea, in spite of the watching and the\nnumber of cooks; so we set two proverbs at defiance with\nimpunity.\nI have a comfortable chair (between the rail way-couches),\nand I sat in it, did a little work, read and talked till eight,\nwhen we reached Coburg, where we had supper or dinner,\nwhichever you like to call it. The evening is the least\npleasant part of the day; the light in the cars is not sufficient to read by, and we do not always feel inclined for\ngames.-\nTuesday, August 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We slept pretty well, though\noften awoke for a moment by the unusual sounds and shakings. We crossed in our train to the American side by\nmeans of a ferry opposite Sarnia. 238\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nWhen we were dressed, and our carriage turned into\nits day condition, we got ready our breakfast; the public\nhad theirs at Sarnia. A most excellent meal we had :\nfresh-boiled eggs, which Fred Ward superintended; tea,\nMr. Reynolds's home-made bread, our own butter and\nDevonshire cream, potted meat, a cold chicken, raspberries, and jam! We enjoyed it all very much, which\naccounts for my telling you so much about it.\nWe were so warm and so dusty by the end of the day,\nthat the sight of Lake Michigan, and the pleasant fresh air\nfrom it, as we passed close to it into Chicago were very\ndelightful. Crowds of people were bathing, and we longed\nto join them. When we arrived at the Palmer House Hotel,\nwe were shown into the most gorgeous suite of rooms: a\ndrawing-room with marble statues, satin curtains, embroidered chairs, gold and carving and pictures ; a dining-\nroom furnished with very pretty light wood, oh, so smart!\na bedroom too splendid to sleep in, and with a magnificent\nsatin cover over the bed; a bath-room off it, and a large\nroom, with two ' unique' beds in it, for a dressing-room.\nWe settled into these magnificences as well as we could, but\nI think we rather agreed with my maid, who said that at\nthe end of a long day in a train one did not feel inclined\nto be ' bothered with so much splendour.'\nWednesday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Count de Turenne breakfasted\nwith us, and drove with us to the station. Mr. Palmer took\na tender farewell of ' Mr. and Mrs.' Dufferin, as he called us,\nand Mr. Forrest and his daughters (old acquaintances) also\nsaw us off, and I was introduced to Mr. St. John, the \ Globe'\nreporter. The Chicago morning paper speaks of me as ' Her\nRoyal Mbess,' and says that I do not wish my ' hubbie to go\nand see the \" Nausty \" man,' Brigham Young. It also reports that we went to bed early to ' save gas,' and that' if our\nmoney holds out' we shall go to the Centennial.\nWe had rather a pleasant day: it was less dusty, some\nof the country very rich and well cultivated, vineyards to AUG. 1876\nOMAHA\n239\nbe seen, and nice little homesteads; we saw some prairie\nland, and in the evening stood outside our car to cross the\nMississippi. There is a beautifully light bridge over it,\n2,260 feet long. It is a sensation to see this river, of\nwhich one has heard so much; and a great river can't help\nbeing striking, but there is nothing grand in the scenery at\nthis point.\nWe lunched and dined at stations, Burlington being the\nprincipal one at which we stopped. After dinner we played\nwhist, and all agreed that we had got over the day very well.\nThe people we have seen travelling so far get out looking\nvery dirty and crumpled, and one is quite tired of the sight\nof brown holland ; everyone is attired in it; you might think\nit was a livery.\nThursday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a very bad night\u00E2\u0080\u0094stopping so\nconstantly it was almost impossible to sleep\u00E2\u0080\u0094and I was not,\ntherefore, in good condition for trying the S hotel car,' which\nwas put on. There seemed to be an excellent meal provided; but the room was hot, and smelt of food, and I\nlonged for our own little quiet breakfast.\nAt ten we reached Omaha, and crossed the Missouri\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nsuch an extremely muddy river, it excites no desire to bathe\nin it. Carriages awaited us here, and we drove up to our\nhotel, and chose our rooms; they really are very good for\nthis last point of civilisation, before the prairie begins.\nD. and I took a drive to see the town, and we sat on the\nsteps of the High School while he made a sketch of the view:\nlow hills in the background, the Missouri twisting about\nthrough muddy-looking plains, and the small town in the\nforeground.\nWe took another walk later in the day, and saw our\nfirst Chinaman\u00E2\u0080\u0094-.a neat young man, all in black, with his\ncoat cut after the fashion of his country. The streets of\nOmaha are very new, with bridges of loose planks between\nthe footpath and the street, and the houses are low and\nsquare-looking; but there is a fine post-office. 240\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\ni/j\nThe Mayor called upon D., and one resident Canadian\npresented an address.\nFriday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Omaha in the morning, and had\na most delightful day. The weather was perfect: warm\nenough to sit with every window open, and yet fresh and\npleasant; no dust, and a most exhilarating atmosphere.\nWe are rising all day, going slowly over the Rocky\nMountains; the train moves at an easy sort of jog-trot,\nand we thoroughly enjoy everything. We passed through\nthe Platte Valley, the river Platte running at some distance\nfrom us all day. The scenery, if not beautiful, is interesting : a great sea of land, very flat, but with a good soil,\nand giving one an extraordinary idea of the capabilities of\nthe country and of the room in it.\nWe lunched at Fremont, and dined at Grand Island.\nThere is a difference of opinion as to the food at these\nstations. My idea is that it is excellent; the reporters and\nmy maid think it is disgusting. This difference of opinion\ncan be explained. If you require a meat dinner, you will\nfind it bad; but I want neither meat nor wine, and' can\nlive upon the things which we get good everywhere:\ntumblers full of iced milk, good bread, butter, eggs, fish,\nand iced cream!\u00E2\u0080\u0094the latter, at the most unpromising-\nlooking stations, rivals Gunter. We generally have a table\nreserved for us, and at Fremont a very smart negro, with\na beautiful peacock-feather fan, brushed the flies away\nwhile we lunched.\nSaturday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We slept much better last night, and\nI did not even awake when we were stopped by\u00E2\u0080\u0094the\ngrasshoppers ! They get on the rails, and, being squashed\nthere, oil them, so that the engine can scarcely pull the\ncarriages along, as the wheels don't bite.\nWhen we did awake, we found ourselves on the Rocky\nPlains, a delicious wind blowing, and not bringing the dust\nto us.\nI got out at the station, where the people were break- AUG. 1876\nCHEYENNE\n241\nfasting, and looked about\u00E2\u0080\u0094a scene of desolation; and yet\nwhen we look back from the train it does not appear so\ndesolate : great plains of dull-coloured grass, broken up by\nrocky mounds, which present a white appearance to the\neye; in fact, a part of the Rocky Mountains. We have\nrisen 3,600 feet since we left Omaha, and I suppose the\ndelicious air makes everything appear couleur de rose. We\nhave seen flocks of cattle, and four antelopes. The curious\nthing is, that you see cattle apparently quite near, but on\nconsideration you realise that they must be very far away,\nas you cannot make out the details; a man on horseback\nthat you fancy quite close, looks like a stone moving. There\nare no trees or houses, or any object by which to judge\ndistances, and the atmosphere is wonderfuUy clear.\nThis is very like being at sea: the wind whistles round\nthe car, and the land round us is flat, with white-crested\nwaves of rocky sandhills, while the air is most exhilarating.\nBut I must not, under its intoxicating influence, fill up my\njournal with rhapsodies.\nWe lunched at Cheyenne, and were met there by the\nGovernor of the territory, Mr. Thayer. There \"is a large\nhotel at Cheyenne, and it is ' quite a place.' After leaving\nit the scenery became lovely. First, we had the interest\nof the plains, with its little prairie dogs to watch, the\ngophers\u00E2\u0080\u0094a sort of ground-squirrel\u00E2\u0080\u0094and an occasional\nantelope; then the plain broke up into undulating hills\nand heaps of rock, a few scattered trees, and the magnificent\nrange of Rocky Mountains, with patches of snow reHeving\ntheir blueness, in the distance. Some of the 'heaps of\nrock ' look like ruined castles, for the stones are piled one\nupon another. The ground is much broken. Altogether,\nI think the views enchanting, and I breathe the air with\npleasure. At Sherman we reached our highest point\n(8,263 feet), and soon after leaving it we went over a very\nawful-looking structure\u00E2\u0080\u0094a sort of skeleton bridge, without\na parapet, across a ravine. 242\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nThe wind, of which there is a good deal, blew off the lid\nof our precious kettle, but luckily we stopped a moment\nafter, and it was rescued.\nSunday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The scenery early in the day was ugly:\nsandy, desolate plains\u00E2\u0080\u0094' the Artemisian Desert,' it is called,\nor \ the Alkali Plains.'\nBreakfast and lunch, at Evanston, was served by ? John\nChinamen.' They wore clean white blouses, loose blue\ntrousers, and stumpy embroidered shoes, their long pigtails\ntwisted round their heads and fastened up. Their height,\ntheir dress, their hair, and their singularly mild expression, make them very feminine looking. AtEvanston there\nwere some very Indian Indians\u00E2\u0080\u0094hideous brown squaws,\ndressed in brilliant rags, waiting at the doors of the\nrailway carriages for gifts of food, and a number of boys\nwith arrows standing about with them. The Colonel set\nup a coin on a stick for them to shoot at, and one split the\nstick. He also knocked the cork off a bottle without touching the bottle.\nThe guide-book told us that after leaving Evanston we\nwere to watch with \ full breath and anxious heart' for the\nmagnificent scenery now about to burst upon us as we\npass through the Echo Canyon, or valley. Accordingly,\nwe sat out on the edge of our baggage-car, and if we were\na little disappointed at first, by the evening we were well\npleased, and felt that we had really seen a most curious\nand (part of it) beautiful place. We came down hill\nthrough the valley, starting from a great upland of the\nUintah Range of the Rocky Mountains. The railroad seems\nto divide the country into two parts, for on one side, rising\nimmediately from the track, were green, sloping banks,\nwhile on the other were gigantic hills of rough, red\nstone, twisted and tilted and tumbled into every sort of\nstrange form\u00E2\u0080\u0094castles and pulpits, monuments,\u00E2\u0080\u0094all kinds\nof devices seemed to stand before us. We remained\nthe whole afternoon watching the views develop as we AUG. 1876\nTHE ROCKY MOUNTAINS\n24(\npassed the various points, the beautiful part was when we\ndistanced the details, and when the green and the red\nand the curious shapes become a broken mountain range,\nopening now and then to show us miles and miles of mountain and plain below.\nFor several hours we had a little stream close to\nus, and as the day became very hot, the river seemed\nmost refreshing, and added a foreground of fresh green\nto the magnificent views in the distance. We passed\nthe Thousand Mile Tree,\u00E2\u0080\u00941,000 miles from Omaha,\u00E2\u0080\u0094and\nclose to it \ the Devil's Slide,' a curious geological formation : two natural walls of rock down the side of a hill,\nwith just sufficient room between them for \ Him ' to slide\nthrough.\nA short time before we got to Ogden we came, as it\nwere, through the Rocky Mountains, passing quite close to\npatches of snow, and looking back upon a very much more\nrocky appearance than the mountains have from the other\nside. Now, do you understand that from Omaha the\ncountry gradually slants upwards towards these mountains,\nand that the railroad mounts to a height of 8,242 feet,\nafter which it suddenly descends ? Do you realise that now\nthe rivers flow the other way, and that we have crossed\nthe Great Range ?\nAn American general came to have tea, or rather iced\nwater, in our car, and stayed till we reached Ogden. We\npart from our car and our two conductors here. The\nguard (as we should say in England) and the porter\u00E2\u0080\u0094by\nname and by nature Mr. Brown\u00E2\u0080\u0094belong to this particular\nPullman, and have been most attentive to us on the way;\nbut the lines of railroad change here, and we have to get\ninto another car.\nWe had arranged to sleep at Ogden, and on arriving\nthere, at six, we visited our rooms. They were frightfully\nhot, for the weather is very warm. The village is in a\nvalley, and there are stony httls straight opposite the\nB 2 MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nhouse. This is on the way to Salt Lake City, and this\nplace is almost full of Mormons; so, of course, when Fred\nand I took a little walk, we fancied every two women we\nsaw together were colleague-wives, and every house to us\nseemed to have several entrances for the various ladies of\nthe family.\nMonday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had every door and window of our\nrooms open, and so spent a tolerably cool night.\nAll the morning we sat on the platform of the station.\nThe thermometer was gg\u00C2\u00B0 in the shade. In the afternoon, D. and I went for a drive up the Ogden Canyon,\nthe same thing, in miniature, as the Echo Canyon, through\nwhich the railway goes.\nOur driver gave us much information as we went along,\nshowed us the house of a bishop who owns eight wives and\nforty children, one of the wives busy clothes-washing at the\nback door. Our reporters went to Salt Lake, and interviewed Brigham Young. The American found that the\nProphet had married a relation of his, for on hearing his\nname, and where he came from, Brigham Young said: jj Oh,\nI must have married your father's sister, but I had forgotten\nall about the family.' This reporter thinks no name bad\nenough to apply to his new relation.\nOgden has no time of its own, but keeps i East' time\nfor one train, and ' West' time for the other. A perpetual\nsum of mental arithmetic goes on, and we were constantly\nforgetting by which time we ought to go, and trying to\nremember whether the | left-hand clock' or the j right-hand\nclock' was ours.\nWe left in the evening, and found our new carriage\nvery comfortable, though it has only one ? drawing-room.'\nWe sat at the end of it\u00E2\u0080\u0094the last of the whole train\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094and passed by moonlight along the banks of the Salt\nLake.\nTuesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are going through the Alkali\nPlains, and the dust is dreadful: a large, rough dust, AUG. 1876\n'ROUNDING CAPE HORN'\n245\ncovering everything in a second, and very painful to the\neyes. As I write this my paper is like a ploughed field,\nand, the wind being very high, one can only see a few yards\nfor the clouds that surround the carriage.\nThe only thing that grows on these plains is sage, and\na ' sage-bush' here is the worst name one can apply to any\nvegetable growth.\nWednesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up at six this morning in\nCalifornia, the sandy desert changing into a mountainous\ndistrict covered with pine and oak, parts of it laid bare like\na great quarry by the mining for gold. As one looks back\nupon the country through which one has just passed, it\nseems perfectly impossible that the railway should really\nhave made its way through such steep and perpendicular\nrocks, which seem more fitted for the Alpine traveller with\nhis helpful stick than for an immense long train like ours.\nThe point of interest is * rounding Cape Horn.' There\nis a {path' just wide enough for the railway round a precipitous rock, and one looks straight down upon the valley\nfar beneath. This is very fine, but I find the skeleton\nbridges very trying to the nerves; one can see through\nthem, and they make no attempt at having sides, and are\nso very weak-looking, and so high from the ground.\nNowell expressed our sentiments when he kept saying, as\nwe went over the last: \ A very light bridge,' \ Avery weak\nbridge,' ' We are over it,' 'A very good bridge.'\nThe country now begins to look rich and park-like, and\nat the stations the most enormous peaches are offered to\nus at twopence apiece.\nThe Colonel was talking to a certain man on the\ntrain yesterday, and we hear that this morning the said\nman has been arrested for murder. He and others set\nfire to a Chinese establishment, and shot the wretched\npeople as they came out. The murdered were ' only'\nChinese, so it is supposed that a small bribe wiU get the\nassassins off. 246\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nWe lunched, very badly, at Colfax, where there was a\ngrizzly bear at the station, and then returned to our\ncarriages for a hot, dusty afternoon. However, we felt that\nour long journey\u00E2\u0080\u0094of nine days\u00E2\u0080\u0094was near its end, and\npacked up the things in our ' house-on-wheels ' ready for\nour arrival at San Francisco.\nMrs. Littleton telegraphs that she can't come at all. I\nam so sorry.\nHaving washed off the dust, and made ourselves as\nsmart as possible, we prepare to ' land ' at a small station\ncalled Oaklands. Captain Chatfield, the captain of H.M.S.\nAmethyst; Mr. Booker, the English Consul; and Mr.\nWalkem, a British Columbian, came 'on board,' and\nescorted us to our hotel. We got into a large ferry-\nsteamer, which took us over to San Francisco. Our hotel\nis the 'Palace,' and is enormous ; it is built round a court,\nwhich, by the way, is loaded with American flags; there must\nbe at least five hundred of them hung about. Our rooms\nare very nice, smart and elean. We took a walk while our\nbaggage was being brought up, and looked at some shop-\nwindows ; but oh ! it was so cold. I had on my light\n' train' garments, and the wind blew through and through\nme. I saw many ladies in furs, and have now ordered out\nmine. The climate is treacherous\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is to say, that of\nSan Francisco, for it is a promontory, and its climate is\ndifferent from the rest of California. We went home after\nseeing some second-rate shops and quantities of Chinamen.\nWe shall not be able to visit the Chinese quarter on this\noccasion, as the small-pox is very bad there.\nCaptain Chatfield, who has kindly made every arrangement for our comfort on board the Amethyst, dined with\nus, and we went to the play, and saw the ' Geneva Cross.'\nThe theatre is a very good one, and we enjoyed the\nplay; though I, at any rate, began to feel the effects of\nhaving risen at six and travelled day and night for many\npays. AUG. 1876\nSAN FRANCISCO\n247\nThursday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Breakfasted in the enormous dining-\nroom, and were very glad of a fire in our sitting-room.\nReceived visits from Mr. Bradford, the artist; Captain\nChatfield; and a lovely basket of flowers, with' Welcome to\nCalifornia,' from an old North of Ireland friend.\nAt one o'clock D. and I, the Colonel and Fred Ward,\ndrove off to see the sights. We went to Woodward's Gardens to see the sea-lions fed, but were too late for this, and\nso, after looking at an aquarium, we resolved to go at once to\nthe Cliff House. This is an hotel overhanging the Pacific,\nand is a great resort of the people here. To get to it you\ndrive through the Park, a place which has been reclaimed\nfrom a sand-heap, specimens of the original desert being\nplentiful on all sides. Every morsel of earth has been\ncarried to the spot; a beautiful road has been made, and\ntrees and green grass are actually growing on this unpromising place. The balcony of the Cliff House, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, is charming. Close to the\nhotel there are some great rocky islands, upon which sea-\nlions are basking in the sun, and pelicans stand combing\nout their feathers.\nI counted seventy-one sea-lions to be seen at once; some\nwere dry, and of a real lion colour, others which were still\nwet looked quite black. They made a noise very like that\nof hounds in a kennel, and it was most amusing to watch\nthem climbing about the rocks, jumping in and out of the\nsea, and enjoying themselves generally. The pelicans, too,\nwere flying about, and taking headers into the water.\nThere was a haze in the distance, which prevented our\nseeing the land view. We lunched at this hotel upon its\ncelebrated fare : oysters, ' Porter-hall steak,' and omelette,\nand then drove home. San Francisco is built on the side\nof a hill, and everywhere there are other very steep hills,\nand our driver ' beat' down some of them, going from side\nto side all the way. Most of the houses are built of wood,\nand have small gardens in front, and creepers growing up 248\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nthem; the streets are pure sand, and there are windmills\nfor pumping water everywhere; you see ten or twelve of\nthem in two or three streets.\nOne curious thing here is a car in which to go up and\ndown hill without horses. There is an engine on the top\nof the hill, which winds and unwinds a wire rope, and\nthis is attached to the carriages; as the rope is invisible,\nthis unexpected movement of the carriages has an odd\neffect.\nGeneral McDowell, the hero of Bull's Run, dined with\nus, and we took him to a special performance of ' Brass ' in\nour honour. We had a good box, and enjoyed that very\nridiculous play.\nD. and I took a walk, and on our return we found a\nmost staunch old man from Killyleagh. He is connected\nwith both our families, having been called Hans after D.'s\ngrandfather, and having been taken on board my grandfather's ship when he was thirteen. It is extraordinary\nhow he remembers everybody of that day\u00E2\u0080\u0094the very old\ntimes. He put me through such an examination as to my\ngreat-aunts, uncles, and cousins, that I felt some self-\nsatisfaction at having passed it. He thought me like my\nfamily, but said the ancestors did not come out so clearly\nin Fred.\nThis man has been mining for forty-five years, and now\ndeclares that he is going back to the i old place' to buy a\nHttle property and die there. I dare say' going home ' is a\ndream of his, and that he expects to start by every steamer;\nbut the gold-fever is difficult to shake off, and, even if he\ndoes go, I fear matter-of-fact Killyleagh will be dull after\nyears of Californian gambling.\nThis interview ended, we had to begin to prepare for\ndeparture. The gentlemen had to get into their uniforms,\nand there was great agitation over a missing bit of uniform,\nand a frantic rush to the tailor to make up the deficiency.\nWe breathed again, and were all gloved, booted and spurred, AUG. 1876\nH.M.S. AMETHYST\n249\nthe luggage and servants gone, when I peeped into HisEx.'s\nroom, and discovered an enormous bath-sponge unpacked !\nFred and I were in despair over it ; we ungloved, and\nwrung it, and squeezed it, and reduced it to its smallest\npossible compass, and then we did not know what to do\nwith it. Could I in state, could he in uniform, carry a\nvulgar paper parcel? Could we march on board H.M.S.\nAmethyst with the consciousness of a damp, unwieldy\nsponge about us ? No ! drops of water oozed through the\npaper at the very idea. Happy thought! Push the sponge\nup into the arm of His Excellency's fur coat, and carry\nit so: ' It might drop out just as the salute is being fired ;'\n' it does look rather gouty for the arm of an empty coat,\nbut still, what better place can we find for it ?'\nWe carried out our brilliant idea, and were satisfied\nwith our ingenuity. D. came in, and I told him that on\nno account must he put on his fur coat; but the despotic\nruler of the Canadian Dominion declared that not for all\nthe sponges of the sea would he consent to be cold with a\nfur coat at hand; and after all we had to submit to a\nvulgar newspaper parcel. It was lent the shelter of the fur\ncoat at any rate till we got to the boat, was received with\nrespect by a gentleman in uniform, was laid with care by\nHis Excellency's side in the man-of-war boat, and was extricated during the voyage to the ship by one of his Aides-\nde-camp, who managed to leave it lying innocently upon\nthe seat when His Excellency stepped on board the Amethyst,\nwhence it was conveyed to the proper quarter by one of\nHer Majesty's seamen.\nWe sent two men-servants on by the mail steamer,\nso the party on board the Amethyst consists of D. and I,\nColonel Littleton, the Freds, Miss Alexander2 (my maid),\nand ' John.'\nThe captain has taken a large slice off his cabin, and\n2 Mrs. Dent returned with me to Canada as my housekeeper, and Alexander was my new maid. 250\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\ndivided it into two; if I were not afraid of using a wrong\nmathematical term, I should say that the slice is an equilateral triangle, that a smaU angle at the top or point is my\nmaid's room, and that D. and I, two iron beds, and a large\nchest of drawers, inhabit the base of the said triangle.\nCaptain Chatfield has been so kind in making everything\nnice\u00E2\u0080\u0094pictures on the walls, muslin-covered dressing-table,\netc. We remain at anchor till the morning, and are, consequently, very bold and brave and perky, and dine below,\nand play whist and enjoy ourselves.\nSaturday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094' A change comes o'er the spirit of my\ndream': it appears to me that the Pacific is a nasty ocean.\nI get on deck, and He and sit and doze all day; the men look\npale, and are not in good spirits.\nSunday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Pacific is even a nastier ocean than\nI imagined, very much nastier than the Atlantic, and the\nCaptain's cabin the least nice place one could possibly be in.\nThe screw thumps and vibrates directly under it, and the\npitching is longer, and in it one has to perfection that\ndeHghtful sensation of being held in mid-air which is so\nvery trying to the inner man.\nMonday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Got on deck, and lay in a cot swung\nunder a tent of flags; everyone better, but not weU\u00E2\u0080\u0094not\nby any means. I should have felt very low about myself,\nhad I not heard the Captain say that we ' shipped green\nseas' nearly the whole way over; so I feel that I had a\nright to be ill. Alexander got very much upset by the\nscrew, and I awoke in the night to hear her cry that she\ncould not stay there, and to see her advancing into the\nCaptain's cabin. D. helped her in there, and as the\nCaptain did not awake, she lay herself down on the floor\nunder his cot and slept.\nTuesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Things look better. I dress, and sit\ndown and eat, and soon begin to walk, and to look about\nwith pleasure. We coast all the way, and there are\nstrange, dangerous, isolated rocks sticking up out of the AUG. 1876\nESQUIMAULT\n251\nsea. About three we arrive at Cape Flattery, and directly\nafter passing it come to a narrow channel (ten miles) between\nVancouver and the mainland. We have the sun, smooth\nwater, and before us a splendid snow-capped range of\nmountains.\nWe reached Esquimault at nine, dropped anchor, and\nthe screw ceased, so that we shall have a quiet night before\nencountering British Columbia. The mail steamer has not\narrived, and they say we are twenty-four hours sooner than\nwe were expected.\nWednesday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After a peaceful night I came on\ndeck, and found myself in a beautiful harbour, very small,\nbut very deep; two men-of-war besides our own, gaily\ndressed with flags; flags and banners on land, beautiful\nmountains in the distance, charming weather.\nThe early morning was spent in waiting about, messages\ncoming and going; some anxiety felt about the mail steamer,\nwhich is two days late; however, at twelve she arrived with\nour servants, who are announced as the ' Hon. F. Nowell\nand the Hon. G. Dame, Aides-de-Camp to His Excellency.'\nIf they had arrived first, as they should have done, I believe\nthey would have been received by the whole city.\nWe were to land at one, and at that hour the Staff went\noff in one boat, while we followed in another, and remained\na short way from the ship while the salute was fired.\nThen we stepped ashore, and were received by Sir James\nDouglas and a number of residents, and got into the\ncarriage which was to drive us to Victoria. We grew into\nan enormous procession before we reached that city (it is\nthree miles distant), numbers of carriages and riders joining\nus. At one point along the route there rode out from the\nwood a party of magnificently-dressed archers, such as you\nhave not seen off the stage: green-feathered hats, green\nvelvet coats, breeches, big boots, bows, arrows\u00E2\u0080\u0094really very\nhandsome-looking people. They formed an escort the rest\nof the way. Further on we picked up a band of horsemen MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nwith red ribbons across their breasts\u00E2\u0080\u0094a company in green\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094bands\u00E2\u0080\u0094some militia\u00E2\u0080\u0094an army of small boys, each\ncarrying a bright-coloured flag\u00E2\u0080\u0094my ' bodyguard.' The\nmen who wore the coloured sashes saluted in a curious\nfashion, by putting the hand to the mouth. We went over\ntwo bridges, both ornamented with green and with various\nflags and devices, whence we saw a number of the Indian\ncanoes, which here are shaped like gondolas, full of people,\nand covered with flags; the Indians were singing, and we\nwere sorry we could not stop to look at them longer and\nto see them nearer.\nThen we passed through the Chinese quarter of the town,\nand saw a number of the men and a few of the very funny\nlittle women. The Chinese put up their own arches, and\nthey were very prettily designed; they hung up lanterns\nin some, and on one there was quite a houseful of little\nimages. When we entered Victoria there was an address.\nD. replied from the carriage. At present the feeling here\nis British, but anti-Canadian, on account of the railroad, which can't be made yet; so it is not all plain\nsailing. We were told that on one arch there was written,\n' Our Railroad or Separation.' The Governor-General was\nobhged to refuse to go under it, though he said he would\ndo so if the ' S ' were turned into an ' R '; and one man\nwho found we were making a turn to avoid the street\nwith the obnoxious arch jumped about as if he were mad,\nand when he met us above the arch he jumped again, and\nshrieked, ' Three groans for Mackenzie.'\nI think every one of the 5,000 inhabitants of Victoria\nmust have been out in the streets, and we drove at a foot's\npace to the Government House,3 which has been lent to us\nduring our visit here ; the drive lasted 2\ hours.\nWhen we got to the door, we stood while the procession\npassed, and D. had an opportunity of stopping a carriage\n3 The Hon. Mr. Richards, having been only recently appointed\nLieutenant-Governor, had not yet occupied Government House. AUG. 1876\nVICTORIA\n253\nfull of Chinamen, and thanking them for their reception of\nhim. At last everybody was gone, and we looked about.\nThe house is very nice and comfortable: there is a good\nball-room, small drawing-room, large billiard-room, and\nexcellent bedrooms. We have a Chinese cook, who is, I\ngrieve to say, highly British, having cooked for six\nGovernors, but he is very good in his homely style; Ah\nSam is his name. Then I have-a very comfortable sort of\nhousekeeper, a housemaid with a Chinaman under her, our\nown four servants, a coachman, and a gardener\u00E2\u0080\u0094but I\nhave had to write so much to-day that I will finish my\ndescription to-morrow. We were very tired at night, and\nwere glad to go early to bed.\nIn the evening the Chinese quarter of the town was illuminated, and all their houses were opened; people went in\njust as they liked, and were given tea and sweetmeats.\nThursday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This Government House is built on a\nrock, but a nice garden has been made; the drawback to\nit is the want of water. Every drop, both for house and\ngarden, has to be brought in barrels ; so there is not much\nto spare, and the grass is all burnt up. From the windows\nthere is a view of a magnificent range of mountains, a little\nwanting in variety of outline, but extremely high. Mount\nBaker stands by itself, and really is a very splendid sight.\nBetween us and them there is the sea.\nD. interviewed people from ten till \u00C2\u00A3.ve. They are\nvery angry with Canada, and he has hard work. About\nfive I got him to come and take a little drive. We called\non the Lieutenant-Governor\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Richards\u00E2\u0080\u0094drove through\nthe city, and as our drive was unofficial, went under the\nobnoxious arch, and round the ' park,' Beacon Hill; from\nthe coast-road there is a very fine view of the mountains.\nCaptain Chatfield came to stay with us. There is a bright\nsun, but a cold wind. It seems to me a trying climate,\nand the many changes of temperature and food, and the\nlong journey, have rather knocked me up.\n! ' i\n91 254\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nI\nChief Justice Sir Matthew Begbie dined with us. He\nis a very big man, very amusing, and the whist-player\nof British Columbia; however, on this occasion D. and I\nbeat him thoroughly. His mind was, I suppose, distracted,\nfor I found afterwards that he had planned to serenade us,\nand had arranged for some young ladies to come up at 9.30\nto sing with him at our windows; so he was all the time\nlistening with one ear for the sound of wheels, while he\nwas attending to the trumps with his eyes. At last D.,\nwho had just gone away to do some business, heard voices\nin the garden, and with well-feigned astonishment rushed\nin to tell me. We brought the singers in, and gave them\ntea.\nFriday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a dinner for the Lieutenant-\nGovernor and his wife. The other guests were Mr. and\nMrs. Bunster (he is the Dominion M.P.), Mr. and Mrs,\nRoscoe, Senator and Mrs. Macdonald, and the local Prime\nMinister, with his wife, Mrs. Elliott.\nSaturday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. kept busy till within ten minutes\nof dinner-time. He is working very hard. At five o'clock\nI gave him up, and took the Commodore and the boys a\ndrive. We went to the Gorge. The roads here are good,\nand the drives pretty.\nIn the evening we had a Drawing-room at the ParHament\nBuildings. The officers of the fleet helped to make a brilliant Court, and it was very largely attended, and was most\nsuccessful. Six Chinamen came, and their names greatly\ntried the gravity of the A.D.C. who had to read them\naloud.\nMonday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I walked for an hour with D., and the\nwhole of the rest of the day he was shut up with various\npeople. One deputation stayed from two till six. I was\n' at home,' and the Commodore helped me to receive my\nvisitors, for Fred was deep in invitations, and the others\nwere with D. In the evening we had a dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. and\n1 Mrs. Trutch, Mr. and Mrs. Crease, Mrs. Grey, Mrs. O'Reilly,, AUG. 1876\nVICTORIA\n255\nthe Ministers Smith and Vernon, and the Mayor (Mr. J. S.\nDrummond).\nTuesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094As usual, the morning was spent by\nD. in seeing deputations and visitors of all kinds.\nWe had an afternoon-party, and I received the guests\nin the garden. We had a band there, but in a very short\ntime we adjourned to the house, and danced. D. was released about four o'clock, and was able to lead off the ball.\nSix Chinamen came, and looked on with great interest.\nThe party broke up at 5.30, and we had a dinner, beginning\nat 6.30, and had afterwards to attend a concert held in the\ntheatre.\nWednesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have just received such a funny\nvisit. Our cook, Ah Sam, has been lately married, and\nsaid he would like me to see his wife; so she came this\nmorning. The door opened, and in walked a Chinese\nlady, dressed in black satin, wearing bracelets and rings,\nand with her hair wonderfully done; and supported by\nher came a little creature with a baby face, who evidently\ncould not walk alone on account of her tiny feet, her hair\nvery much dressed, and ornamented with what appeared to\nbe a cap of many-coloured cut papers; she wore a blue\ntunic with embroidery on it, black satin petticoat, bracelets,\nand earrings, and had rings on her bits of hands. This\nwas the bride. We got her into a chair, for she seemed at\nfirst incapable of even shaking hands without help, and for\nsome time she appeared to be on the verge of tears, and\nhalf covered her face with a red silk pocket-handkerchief.\nIt was a little embarrassing for us all. Ah Sam kissed my\nhand, and brought in a tray fuH of presents : two packets\nof fireworks (which will be awkward to travel with), some\ngimcracks they use in their churches, a Chinese crepe\nhandkerchief, and some shell frames. We looked at these\nand thanked him, and then he went away, and we began\nto talk to the bride, who by this time had somewhat recovered. She was reaUy a very pretty Httle thing, with -a 256\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nbright complexion, pretty eyes and teeth; and she answered us very nicely in English, and quite understood D.'s\njokes as to the respective merits of her hair dressing and\nmine.\nPoor baby that she is, she has only been married a\nweek, and has not known Ah Sam, who is an elderly and\nvery ugly gentleman, much longer. When leaving, she\nkissed my hand, and then made a set curtsey at the door,\njust like a child who had learnt its lesson.\nAt twelve o'clock we went in carriages to see a regatta,\nwhich was to be held at the Gorge\u00E2\u0080\u0094an arm of the sea\nwhich spreads out like a small lake, narrowing at each\nend; its shores are rocky mounds and wooded banks, and\non them there were knots of people in every direction.\nAcross one end there was a string of flags, which, with the\nbackground of mountains, wood and water, looked very\ngay ; a number of boats were dotted about, and arranged\nin three groups were twenty large canoes, filled with\nIndians, and covered from stem to stern with flags. It\nis impossible to conceive anything more brilliant than the\nscene was, with a bright sun shining over all. As soon as\nthe Indians saw the Governor-General approaching, they set\nup an extraordinary howl, and jumped about, stamping and\nclapping.\nWe got into a man-of-war's boat, and rowed about\namongst them, being greeted by each set with fresh contortions and acclamations. There were about seventeen people\nin each canoe. Most of them had their faces painted,\u00E2\u0080\u0094bright\nred being the favourite colour. Some had a streak across\nthe face, others patches on their cheeks, some were almost\ncovered with it. Some had down sticking all over their\nheads, and looked as if they had slept inside a feather-bed.\nThey also wore coloured handkerchiefs tied on in every sort\nof fashion, most curious to behold.\nThere were some excellent races, four or five of the large\ncanoes in a race, the men rowing, or rather paddling with\nmt AUG. 1876\nNANAIMO\n257\nall their might\u00E2\u0080\u0094eighty strokes a minute\u00E2\u0080\u0094leaving quite a\nsea behind them.\nThere was, too, a most exciting squaw race. We rowed\nalongside most of the way, and saw the women well; one\ncrew consisted of rather nice-looking young ones, but\nthese did not win.\nMany of the squaws wear handsome silver bracelets,\nand a certain young lady, Amanda by name, has promised\nto try and procure me a pair.\nThe Commodore came home to dine with us, and we\nhad a party. We were obliged to dismiss our guests rather\nearly, as we embarked after they left. We drove to Esquimault, and when we got into the boat the three men-of-war\nsuddenly illuminated. At the end of each yard a blue-light\nburst into flame, and every port was lighted up; there were\nalso some rockets.\nThursday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was awoke about seven by the thump,\nthump of our screw, and found we were again on our travels.\nWe passed through the Georgian Bay, and had all day the\nmost lovely scenery. One part of the time we were in a\nvery narrow channel, and could almost touch the rock on\none side. About four we reached Nanaimo, and anchored\nin its harbour. We went out to fish for salmon, and being\nunsuccessful, we stopped a fishing-boat to ask if they had\ncaught anything, and the owner immediately introduced\nhimself as a County Down man. He ran away as a boy,\nand now turns his hand to anything here. He pointed to\na half-breed girl on board, who, he said, was his daughter ;\nadding, f Of course, she's not like any of us, but she is a\nvery good girl.'\nFriday, 25th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Directly after breakfast we landed at\nNanaimo; it is a small place, but the inhabitants gave us\na very kind reception. A large square place was built up,\nand decorated with flags and evergreens, and at one end of\nit the school-children were placed. There was an address,\nand then a song, written for the occasion, was sung.\ns 77\"\n258\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nWe went to the coal-mine, looked down it, and came on.\nboard our ship again.\nWe left at one o'clock, and proceeded on our journey\nnorth, reaching Tribune Harbour in three hours. The\ngentlemen rather expected to get some shooting, and\ndirectly we anchored everyone appeared in sporting-clothes.\nD., the Captain, and I went in one boat, and landed where\nthere was an Indian house. The inhabitants promised to\nshow us grouse and deer, but directly they had put us in\nthe track they went off at a gallop with their own guns,\nand we suppose they intended to kill a deer, and to bring\nit on board to sell.\nWe tramped on through the narrow path, climbing over\nfallen trees, our only pleasure being the beautiful view as\nwe looked over the bay in which the Amethyst was anchored.\nWhen sunset was approaching, we turned back. D. and\nthe Commodore had just unloaded, when three grouse rose,\nthe first we had seen. One of them perched upon a tree,\nand sat there, so we said, j for the pot,' and the Captain\nloaded and shot him; however, he was lost in the thick\nshrubs, there being no dog to find him. The rest of the\nparty had no better sport, but they were much pleased with\nthemselves for having bought some fish from an Indian;\nthey found, however, upon their return to the ship, that\nthey had purchased the refuse of what had already been\noffered on board, and that a great supply of better and\ncheaper ones had been laid in.\nSaturday, 26th.-~We started in the middle of the night,\nand when we came on deck in the morning we found ourselves in Bute Inlet. The scenery here for forty miles is\nperfectly lovely. The channel between the outer belt of\nislands and the mainland is narrow, and the water very\ndeep. On every side rise high pine-covered hills, exhibiting\nthe greatest variety of form and outline, and some of them\ncapped with snow.\nUnfortunately the weather was bad, and got worse AUG. 1S76\nBUTE INLET\n259\nevery mile we went, so that sometimes we only saw the\ntops of the mountains for a few moments before the mist\ndescended upon them and they were lost to view.\nBute Inlet is expected to be the terminus of the Canadian\nPacific Railway, so the Governor-General came out of his\nway to see the harbour. The water is the most beautiful\ngreen. We saw several glaciers and cascades coming down\nthe mountains. Directly we anchored we set out to fish.\nI never saw so many fish jump so very close to one before;\nhowever, they would not look at our tempting spoons, and\nwe caught nothing.\nOn shore we saw the most picturesque figure. There\nwas an Indian wrapped in a scarlet blanket, and with a\nconical hat on his head, perching upon a large stone, his\narms clasped round his knees. He looked like an enormous\nrobin redbreast. D. went to speak to him, and when he\ngot up we saw that the red blanket was almost his only\ncovering. He produced an old sock, from which he extracted with pride a written paper, signed by an English\nadmiral, which informed the reader that this Indian was\na decidedly bad character, but that he had behaved better\nthan usual on some particular occasion.\nHe was in the act of making a ' dug-out'\u00E2\u0080\u0094a canoe\ncarved out of a tree\u00E2\u0080\u0094which \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 lay on the shore in its unfinished state. D. looked into his hut\u00E2\u0080\u0094a miserable place\nopen at two sides; a woman and three children, and a\nquantity of dried fish, were in it. We gave the man what\ntobacco we had in the boat.\nSunday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another misty and rainy day. We had\na very nice service on board at ten o'clock, with good singing.\nWe at this time were still in the Sound, and the scenery\nwas very fine, but for about three hours in the afternoon\nwe were in the open sea, and there were doubts whether\nwe should not have to keep out to sea for the night, to avoid\na very nasty bit of navigation in the dark; but the good\nship Amethyst went very fast, and we had the pleasure of\ns 2 MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nanchoring at eight in Safety Harbour, and having a quiet\ndinner.\nWe found our tender waiting us here.\nMonday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started as usual about daylight, and\nagain passed through narrow channels and most beautiful\nscenery. At ten we had some gun-practice, and saw shot,\nshell, and case fired at the rocks on shore. The latter is\nused for firing at boats, and as it leaves the gun it breaks\nup into small pieces, and powders the water all over with\nscraps ; a boat coming off could scarcely escape being hit.\nThe sailors equipped themselves for war, with swords and\npistols, and the doctors prepared for broken legs and various\nwounds.\nWe arrived at our anchorage about four o'clock, and, as\nusual, this sporting community prepared to fish and to shoot.\nWe were surrounded by steep, high, pine-covered hills, so\nFred Ward, Mr. Rowe, and a half-breed, determined to shoot\nfor us a deer or a bear. The Commodore, D., and I went\nfishing, but another boat-load made for the little river\nbefore us.\nThe bear-hunters shot a goose, the large boat-load\ncaught six trout, and the Commodore and D. took a\ntremendous walk through the bush, and succeeded in getting to the top of a very pretty waterfall, which stopped\ntheir farther progress. They saw tracks both of deer and\nof bear. It rained, and I remained in the boat, and did\nnothing.\nTuesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There is very little to tell of to-day, for\nthe weather has been desperately bad\u00E2\u0080\u0094pouring rain, and\nmuch fog. We have seen nothing in the way of scenery,\nand had it not been for having our tender to pilot us into\nMetlacatlah, we should have spent the night at sea; however, here we are safe at anchor. I saw one little sea-beast\nto-day; it jumped clear of the water several times, and\nshowed itself plainly\u00E2\u0080\u0094a sea-otter. AUG. 1876\nMETLACATLAH\n261\nMetlacatlah is one of the most successful of Indian\nmissions. It is entirely the work of a Mr. Duncan, who\nwhen he came here found the Indians in a most savage condition. He has lived entirely amongst them, and is regarded\nby them as their father and their friend. I hear that the\ninfluence he has, and the real good he has done, is wonderful.\nWe fired a cannon directly we arrived, and Mr. Duncan\ncame off to see us. He is very pleasant\u00E2\u0080\u0094bright and\nenthusiastic, good and clever\u00E2\u0080\u0094quite a model missionary.\nComing to these Indians in their most savage and debased\ncondition, he has Christianised and civilised them ; he has\nnot only taught them their religion and the three R's, but\nhas himself shown them how to build, taught them how to\ntrade, to make soap, to sing; is their chief magistrate, and,\nas I said before, their father and friend.\nHe came to Metlacatlah from Fort Simpson with fifty\nIndians, setting up a new village on this spot; now there are\neight hundred living here. When he first came the Indians\nwere some of them cannibals, and all exercised the most\nhorrible heathen rites and ceremonies, dressed in blankets,\nwore painted masks, had several wives, and knew no law.\nNow Metlacatlah is quieter than a white village of its size ;\nthe Indians themselves are police, and they form a council,\nwhich settles all their local matters.\nMr. Duncan amused us by telling us how he once\nbought a schooner to take furs to Victoria ; he started as\nits captain, and his crew were Indians. Neither captain\nnor men knew anything about the sea, and the voyage is a\nmost difficult one, and somewhat long, for they were out a\nmonth.\nWednesday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It was delightful, after yesterday's\nrain, to find a lovely morning, and to see the beautiful\nscenery of this place to perfection ; but I must tell you\nto-day about our visit to the Indian village of Metlacatlah,\n11 MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nWe started in boats directly after breakfast, our Staff\nbeing dressed in red, to please the Indians. As we approached the shore they (the Indians) fired off two cannons,\nand when we landed we found a very respectable guard-of-\nhonour ready to present arms; a boarded place had been\nprepared on the grass for us to stand on, and round it were\nall the inhabitants of the village.\nThey had received no notice of our intention to visit\nthem before our arrival last night, so the greater part of\nthe inhabitants were absent on their summer fishing-tours,\nand we only saw about a hundred. These, instead of being\nscantily clothed in blankets, were all\u00E2\u0080\u0094men, women and\nchildren\u00E2\u0080\u0094remarkably well dressed, the men in cloth clothes,\nthe women in neatly-made prints, with bright-coloured\nhandkerchiefs on their heads and shawls over their\nshoulders. They and everything we saw here were quite\nDutch in their cleanliness.\nMr. Duncan presented me with a silver bracelet, made\nfor me by the Indians, and two silver napkin-rings. He\ngave D. a lynx robe and a beautiful black wolfskin,with its\nhead and teeth perfect. The animal was shot outside his\ndoor in the winter.\nHis assistants, Mr. and Mrs. Collinson, gave us some\nspoons carved out of horn, Indian rattles, and a carved box\nwith a set of teeth, and green eyes staring out of a face on\nits side; so I had quite a cargo of gifts. Mrs. Collinson\nteaches the girls and trains them for servants, or rather\nfor wives. We next saw the ' Council Room,' and in it a\npeculiar fireplace, which they have in all the cottages, and\nwhich D. would like to put into some large hall somewhere.\nIt is a good-sized square, in the very centre of the room,\nwith the chimney directly over it. Everyone in the room\nis thus able to get an equal share of the fire, and it looks\nmost cheerful with people sitting aU round it.\nIn this room Mr, Duncan and his Indian coUeagues AUG. 1876\nMETLACATLAH\n263\ncarry on the business of the place. Outside, there are\ngymnastics for the boys.\nThe Prison stands opposite; it is a funny little tower,\npainted black below and white above. It is divided into\ntwo rooms, the ' black' prison being more disgraceful than\nthe ' white.' On the top of this building there is a stand\nfor the band ! The Church comes next, and is quite new,\nhaving been built entirely by Mr. Duncan and the Indians.\nIt is 120 feet long by 60, and is 50 feet high; it is made\nof cedar and cypress, and is, I suppose, the only building\nof the kind to be seen anywhere made by people so lately\nsavage. It holds 1,200 people, and is very handsome inside. Of course it is made of wood, and is perfectly\nsimple, but the proportions and the simplicity together\ngive quite a grand effect.\nThe School is another very good building, and round its\nwalls there are texts and pictures. The pupils all learn to\nread English, which they prefer for reading to their native\ntongue\u00E2\u0080\u0094their own words are so very long. They translate\nwhat they read into Tschimchyau.\nMr. Duncan has succeeded in educating them up to the\nidea of having separate bedrooms, and houses to themselves, instead of living five or six families together in one\nroom; and the first of his new houses has just been put\nup. We went into it, and were received by the master and\nmistress; the former presented me with one of the masks\nthey used to wear in their dances. The house was very\nnice, the floors and part of the walls covered with a kind\nof native matting.\nAfter making the tour of the village we returned to the\nplatform. The people collected round, and sang ' God save\nthe Queen,' and some English songs, and then a song about\nMetlacatlah, composed by Mr. Duncan, and set to the air\nof ' Home, Sweet Home'; also some English and Tschimchyau hymns. An Indian then read an address in 264\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nEnglish, and the chiefs signed it in our presence. D.\nreplied, Mr. Duncan taking down his speech, and translating\nit afterwards. He speaks their language perfectly, while\nmany EngHshmen only learn a jargon caUed Chinook, which\nis a sort of 'pigeon English,' intended for trading purposes, and quite unfit to explain the mysteries of a new\nreHgion.\nClose to the wharf there is a large, empty room, which\nis used for stray Indians who arrive here, and who may\nhave sickness among them. Mr. Duncan has put up a\nsaw-miU, and I think I told you the Indians make soap;\nthe traders used to ask them a doHar for a piece the width\nof a finger! This manufactory is not working at present,\nand the Indians came off in canoes to the ship, and asked\nfor soap, instead of money, for furs. Great exchanges were\nmade by the men on the ship\u00E2\u0080\u0094furs for old clothes.\nWe were obliged to leave this most interesting place at\none o'clock, as we were to visit Fort Simpson, the most\nnorthern station of British America on the Pacific coast.\nWe went there in our tender, the Douglas. Fort\nSimpson borders on Alaska, and that country lay before us\nas we entered the harbour. The view from the Fort is most\nbeautiful.\nUnfortunately, the Governor of the Fort and the missionary were both away, and few of the Indians were at home.\nMost of them are Christians here, but they are not nearly\nso civiHsed as at Metlacatlah.\nThe Fort is surrounded by a sort of enclosed court, and\nMrs. Crosbie, the missionary's wife, took us through the\nvillage, where we saw for the first time some extraordinary\nmonuments put up to Indian chiefs. The subjects are, I\nsuppose, symbolical, but to us they appear grotesque.\nThe most curious one we saw was an enormous bare\npole, on the top of which was carved and painted in gigantic\nsize a grinning head. The body was that of a bird with AUG. 1876\nFORT SIMPSON\n265\nits wings spread out, and on each wing and on its breast\na naked baby or imp; underneath was nailed a longcloth\napron ornamented with buttons. Another pole had a dog\nat the top and a queer face carved below. These poles\nare said to cost the Indians about 300Z. apiece\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is to\nsay, they will give away blankets to that amount for the\nprivilege of putting one up.\nWe went into some of the houses ; they consist of one\nvery large room, with the square fire in the centre, the\nrafters being made of the most enormous trees. His Ex.\nspoke to the Indians, and they made a reply, which Mrs.\nMorrison (who is a half-breed) translated.\nWe had a very short time to stay here, and were soon\nin the Douglas again, on our way back to Metlacatlah.\nMr. Duncan and Mrs. Collinson dined with us. An Indian\nchief came with them in order to present D. with the hat\nhis father used to wear in the feasts and dances. It is\n3 feet high, made of strips of thuja-bark plaited together ;\nand jointed so as to sway about with every movement of\nthe dancer. The man valued it very much, and Mr.\nDuncan told us that, although he has known him for\nyears, he never saw the hat before. He says many of the\nothers had presents ready for us, but we had not time to\ngo to the houses.\nThursday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were to have started at daybreak,\nbut there was a thick fog, which only lifted at 9.30; after\nthat the day was beautiful, and we had a splendid passage\nover to Queen Charlotte's Islands. I suppose this is the\nwildest place I shall ever be at. It is solely inhabited by\nIndians, and as yet there is no missionary amongst them;\nbut Mr. Collinson is coming here from Metlacatlah.\nWe anchored opposite a village which, in the distance,\nlooked like a forest of bare poles. These poles are heraldic,\nand are the monuments to chiefs that I told you of before.\nEvery house seems to have one\u00E2\u0080\u0094and, as I think I said,\n1 266\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nthey are highly valued\u00E2\u0080\u0094as symbols of rank. Some are\ncarved the whole way up with grotesque figures and faces,\nsome are painted; and in many houses the door is a part\nof the pattern of the pillar, and is an oval hole, through\nwhich you see the picturesque Indian figures appearing.\nWhen a man dies, his friends destroy his house, leaving the\nframework and the pillar, and make a little hut for the\ndead body to lie in, with a blanket nailed before it. We\nsaw one with two canoes outside, ready to take the owner\nacross the ' silent lake.' On one house were two figures\nwith tall hats and frock-coats\u00E2\u0080\u0094missionaries, evidently.\nFriday, September 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and the Commodore started\nat six in the morning, with some Indians, to try and get\na bear, but they saw nothing. The Freds and I went to\na little trading settlement, where an American is buying\noil. The Indians were in tents and lying about the shore ;\nthe day was lovely and warm, and we had great fun\nbargaining, buying silver bracelets and carved bowls from\nthem. They have a market at Victoria, and ask a good\ndeal, but the American knew what we ought to give;\nand when we came back to the ship, and exhibited our\nbracelets to an Indian who was trading here, he did not\nseem at all pleased, and would not let me have another\nbracelet which I wanted so cheap. It was so amusing on\nboard to see aU the buying and selling going on, furs and\nbracelets, old clothes, soap, tobacco, and biscuits being\nexchanged, while hideous faces, painted black or red, looked\nup from the canoes.\nThe people here all seem to paint their faces, and they\nwear blankets, which they, unfortunately, buy white, so that\nthey are generally very dirty-looking. D. is rather sorry\nnow that he did not stay and see more of the fun here.\nHe returned at 2 p.m., and we are off again. You may\nsee by my writing that the screw is at work.\nSaturday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had beautiful weather, and were\nable to enjoy the evening; but the night was somewhat SEPT. 1876\nALERT BAY\n267\nrough. A fog this morning, and many doubts as to\nwhether we could go on at all, or whether we should have\nto go out to sea\u00E2\u0080\u0094a very unpleasant prospect. We had just\nturned back, when we met our little friend, the Douglas,\nand, as she draws less water, she undertook to show us the\nway. We were off Vancouver Island, and wanted to pass\nbetween it and the mainland. The fog came on very thick,\nand we lost sight of the Douglas, and stopped again; then\nthe mist suddenly lifted, and we were immediately able to\ngo on at full speed\u00E2\u0080\u0094a great delight and relief to us all.\nThere are two things I forgot to say about the Indians.\nOne is, that at Metlacatlah they are rapidly increasing in\npopulation, whereas in most other places they are diminishing in numbers. Then, I don't think I told you about the\nhideous way in which many of the old women have their\nlips stuck out, by means of pieces of wood, which are put\nin when they are babies, and changed for larger bits as\nthey grow old; so that sometimes the tablets are the size of\na spoon, and are used as such. In the case of too hot a\nmorsel, it is laid down upon this convenient dumb-waiter,\nand is tipped up into the mouth when cool. Other women\nhave a hole in the lower lip, through which a silver pin\nappears ; this is a movable ornament.\nThe fog this morning detained us so long that we found\nit impossible to get to the harbour, in which we had intended to stop the night; so it was suddenly determined\nto anchor in Alert Bay, which we accordingly did. We had\nan hour to spare before dinner, so we landed to see the\nIndian village there. We found a great number of people,\nsitting in front of their houses\u00E2\u0080\u0094large buildings, with whitewashed fronts. They were wrapped in blankets, with\nhandkerchiefs tied round their heads. We walked straight\nthrough them to the last house, which was the chief's.\nOh, the smell! This house had a very Egyptian-looking\npainting in black all over it, and when we went in we found\na great square room, with fires in three corners, and three w\n268\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XV\nsets of people sitting round them. In the centre was a\nwooden figure of a man, holding out his hand to welcome\nvisitors. We went up to one group and saw the chief, who,\nhowever, appeared to be stupid; and his son was lying on\nhis back playing an accordion. The other people were\neating berries and flour-and-water round the fire; they\nshowed us some masks, but did not appear much interested\nin us, though they had fired off two cannon on our arrival,\nand had whitewashed their houses on the chance of our\ncoming.\nThe trader who lives there soon explained it all. They\nhad been having one of their most savage orgies, and had\nbeen singing, dancing and feasting for six days. This very\nmorning their ' medicine-man' had been out on the rampage, and in his tantrums had bitten six people. On these\noccasions he rushes out of the house naked, and all the\npeople are bound to run away; but, if caught, they stand\nstill to be bitten, as they consider it a great honour. The\ntrader said: ' If you had come two hours sooner you\nwould have seen the most terrible phase of savage life';\nbut I don't think we should, for the moment the man-of-\nwar came in sight they quieted down, hid their drunken\npeople, and allowed their medicine-man to escape into the\nwoods.\nDrink is at the bottom of much of the misery. In\nCanada there is a fine of #500 for selling spirit to Indians,\nbut here they get it from American traders.\nSunday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a lovely day, and after morning\nservice went through the last danger on this route\u00E2\u0080\u0094-the\nSeymour Narrows. There are several whirlpools formed by\na rapid tide in this very narrow channel, and an American\nman-of-war was lost in them not long ago.\nWe anchored in Tribune Harbour, and took a nice walk\nover the cliffs, returning in time for dinner.\nMonday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This is the last day of our voyage in the\nAmethyst,\nm. i 1 kiiK SEPT. 1876\nBURRARDS INLET\n269\nWhen we arrived at Burrard's Inlet we saw the Rocket,\nand the sight of her told us that our mail was in. Not\nhaving heard for a long time, we were all delighted. In\nthe evening, by another steamer, two more mails arrived,\nand when I went to bed I had quite a headache from\nreading letters. I had forty myself\u00E2\u0080\u0094so many from the\nchildren, etc.\nv \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 270\nCHAPTER XVI\nBRITISH COLUMBIA, CALIFORNIA, AND THE SALT LAKE CITY\nTuesday, September $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The repose of a sea-life is\nover; posts and telegrams, addresses, replies, arches, bands\nand salutes are alive again.\nAlmost before we had finished our breakfast we were\nhurried into boats, and put on board the Douglas, and in\nher we steamed along for an hour, reading up the news\nin the papers. Later we got into boats and canoes, and\nlanded in the bush, where we went to see a great tree cut\ndown. Our time being short, our host, Mr. Raymur, had\nchosen a tree near the water, and he made many apologies\nfor its small size; but as it was 250 feet high, and about\n6 feet in diameter, we thought it enormous. It had been\npartiaUy cut through, and we stood by to see its overthrow.\nTwo men were working at it. They stood each upon a\nspring-board, on either side of the tree. These boards\nwere narrow planks stuck into holes about 12 feet up the\ntrunk (for they say the lower part of the trunk is too hard\nto repay the labour of hacking through it) ; the springboard gives the workman great power with his axe.\nIn about ten minutes the monster began slowly to bend\nto one side, and then a crashing and a great thud upon the\nground announced its downfall. According to its rings it was\n400 years old, and planted in the reign of King Edward IV.\nWe set off again in our boats to the Amethyst, where SEPT.\nl876\nNEW WESTMINSTER\n271\nwe had a lunch still more hurried than the breakfast. The\nDouglas towed us in the ship's boats, and as we went very\nfast; and the water was full of pieces of timber, we had\nquite an exciting voyage, trying to avoid a blow from one\nof these.\nWe landed at a wharf, and got into carriages, which\ntook us eight miles over a corduroy road through the\nprimeval forest. Our destination was New Westminster,\nand when we arrived within the precincts of the city we\nwere met by the Mayor, a guard of honour, and a band,\nand passed under arches decorated with flags. There were\nsome very pretty devices, and two rather amusing ones.\nD.'s motto was very happily combined with the great\npolitical question of the day\u00E2\u0080\u0094'which route the Pacific\nRailway is to take'\u00E2\u0080\u0094' Per Vias Rectas, The Fraser Valley.'\nAnother had ' Speed the Railway' written upon a board,\nabove which a little train moved along as we passed.\nWe had a short way to drive, and turned up a grass hill,\nat the top of which a series of platforms were arranged,\ncovered in with flags, and decorated with evergreens ; the\nview over the Fraser River, the town, and the distant mountains was quite beautiful. The whole town was out, and\nthere was besides a great assembly of Indians. After\nvarious varieties of white men had presented addresses and\nbeen replied to, and after numbers had been shaken hands\nwith, we looked down the hill, and saw a mass of flags\nmarching up; the bearers of these gay banners were all\nIndian chiefs, or^ great men, followed by a set of Indian\nVolunteers, who had got themselves into a very smart blue\nuniform, and were commanded by the owner of an old red\ncoat and a pair of epaulets. The chiefs formed into a\ncircle, while the army remained in a column, and stood\nfacing the platform. D. went down and shook hands with\nthe chiefs, and then returned to the platform and listened\nto the speeches of four of them, every sentence of each\nbeing translated by an interpreter into English. MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI'\nWhen it was his turn to reply, D. spoke one sentence,\nwhich was taken up by five interpreters, who each, in\nturn, put it into some new Indian tongue. The process\nwas long, but it was interesting. These poor people have\nbeen waiting here for the Governor-General for nearly\nthree weeks, and have taken great pains to get themselves\nup for the occasion.\nThere was lunch in a tent, and after it we walked down\nto the river, and saw three very good canoe-races. One set\nof boats had twenty-one Indians in each. At six o'clock\nwe made a move to go to the steamer upon which we\nsleep. On our way we passed under a Chinese arch, and\ngot out of the carriage to speak to some of the people\nabout. After parting with the officials, we amused ourselves in our own fashion, and seeing a great sturgeon at\na fishmonger's, we went in to look at it; he showed us\nmore than a hundred salmon he had in store, and asked\nus if we should like to see some caught that night; which\ninvitation we accepted.\nD. had a long talk with various gentlemen on business\nbefore dinner. After it we stood on the roof of our drawing-\nroom on the steamer to see a most beautiful torch-light\ndisplay by the Indians in canoes. We steamed up a little\nway, and then back, the canoes following, their torches\nlooking very brilliant in the darkness and reflected in the\nwater. Some men on foot, also with torches, ran along\nthe banks, and the town was illuminated., Before the\nlights disappeared there was cheering, and ' God save the\nQueen.'\nAfter this we retired into private life, and prepared to\ngo out fishing. Conducted by our friend the fishmonger,\nMr. Herring, we got into a boat, Mrs. Herring coming with\nus to do the honours. We foUowed Mr. Herring, who, in\na second boat, put down a great net, which we saw him\ntake in. We caught six fine salmon and a sturgeon, and it\nreally was great fun. When we landed we walked under SEPT. 1876\nTHE FRASER RIVER\n273\nthe Chinese arch again, and were amused by their lanterns,\nwhich had little animals going round and round inside,\njumping and moving their legs\u00E2\u0080\u0094so cleverly managed. Sir\nMatthew Begbie joined us here, and goes with us for some\nway. All glad to get to bed.\nWednesday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our steamer started at night up the\nFraser River. She is a stern-wheeler, and has capital\naccommodation.\nThe scenery of the Fraser is lovely. I am quite tired\nof writing this, and it is impossible to convey an idea of\nthe luxe of beautiful views there is in this country.\nUntil we reached Yale the only event of the day was to\nbe called out to see some magnificent one. We stopped a\nfew minutes at Hope, a charming little place, and got to\nour destination-\u00E2\u0080\u0094Yale\u00E2\u0080\u0094in the afternoon. A coach-and- six\n(in which we travel for a week) took us up to Mr. Oppen-\nheim's house, where we are to sleep. On the way we\nstopped to receive a Chinese address, written on pink paper,\nand an Indian one. The decorations were wonderful for\nsuch a small place; the most original being a live horse,\nwhich was placed in the way, with a cloth over it, on which\nwas written, ' Good, but not iron,' in allusion to the celebrated railway.\nThe Oppenheims had a banquet for us, cooked by\na Frenchman from Victoria\u00E2\u0080\u0094very good, but so plentiful\nthat Nowell managed to suppress some dishes behind the\nscenes.\nMrs. Oppenheim, though French, is like a motherly\nEngHsh woman, and I liked her very much. They have a\nvery nice house and no children, but have a nephew living\nwith them, and I was so surprised when I asked her what\nprofession the young man was; she said 'a blacksmith.'\nHe did not dine with us, but with the servants, who did not\nknow who he was until my maid discovered his photograph\nhung up in my bedroom.\nThursday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast we started on our\nT 274\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\njourney. Unfortunately, it rained on and off all day, but\nexcept that the views would, most of them, be prettier in\nsunshine, the wet was not sufficient to damp our enjoyment.\nJust before leaving, an Indian woman brought me a pin\nmade of a gold nugget.\nWe set off in a large carriage, which held six inside,\nand three on the box; the servants had gone before us,\nand D. and I, the Commodore, the Chief Justice, the\nColonel and the Freds, went in this coach, drawn by four\nhorses. We had forty-four miles to drive, and the road is a\nwonderful piece of engineering: a wall of rock on one side,\nand a great precipice upon the other, almost the whole way,\nwith every now and then a sharp turn round some fearful\nbluff, where, looking forward, the road seemed to end, and\nthere was nothing but the river to be seen, a hundred feet\nbelow. We were following the Fraser all day. The river\nitself is muddy, but very rapid, with mountains almost\nprecipitous on either side.\nIt was very curious to see the little Indian fishing\nestablishments on the way. Wherever there was a rock\nrising a little above the water, there you were sure to see\na scaffolding, upon which were hung rows and rows of\ndried fish, and near it a sort of spring-board jutting out\ninto the water, upon which a man stood over the stream,\nand dipped a net, shaped like a snow-shoe, into it; we saw\none man bring up a large trout, and cheered him from the\ncarriage. Another curious thing we saw was a sort of\nhouse in which the Indians winter. A large hole is cut in\nthe ground, and covered over with a round roof; in the\ntop of this there is a hole, through which a notched pole\nis stuck, and by this the people go down\u00E2\u0080\u0094and through it\nthe smoke comes up.\nWe lunched at a place called Boston Bar, and D. took\nseveral portraits of Indians there. They were a different\ntype from those we have seen before: instead of very fat\nfaces, they have thin ones, and large, but not coarse, SEPT.\n1876\nTHE FRASER RIVER\n275\nmouths. As we approached our camp we saw a most\nbeautiful mountain view; down the sides of the precipitous hills there were streaks of light green, the rest\nbeing very dark fir; light clouds of mist floating about, and\nthe river, far below, flowing rapidly along. We got out at\none place to look at Hell's Gate, where the Fraser rushes\nthrough a very narrow pass. We passed several teams of\nsixteen oxen, and some with twelve mules, drawing two\nwaggons fastened together.\nWhen we arrived at our sleeping-place, which had been\narranged by Captain Layton, a village came in sight! Our\ntents are on the side of a hill, 800 feet above the river, and\nwhen we walked up the little path made to them, we found\na large dining-room tent, carpeted, the walls hung with\nchintz, and ornamented with green; and out of this my\nbedroom, fitted with every luxury ! Outside the dining-room\na row of ten tents\u00E2\u0080\u0094one for each gentleman, to sleep in\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nand a public dressing-room.\nA great camp-fire is burning, the Chinese cook is at\nwork at another fire, and a lovely view lies before us.\nI was a little tired after the long journey, and was very\nglad of the good dinner we had. After it we sat* round the\nfire; the Indians joined the circle, and passed a stone pipe\nfrom one to another.\nI have retired from the fire to write this, but it is impossible to do justice to the day so hurriedly. I have not\nmentioned a waterfall, perfectly straight, down an enormously high cliff. The road really is rather awful, and I got\ngreat credit for my courage in driving over it.\nFriday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted in our spacious camp at\nseven o'clock\u00E2\u0080\u0094to the tune, alas! of a pattering rain\u00E2\u0080\u0094and\nin half an hour set off on our drive. The rain kept on aU\nday more or less, the weather luckily being least wet at the\nmost important moments. The road was, I thought, rather\nworse than before, being equally precipitous and narrow,\nT 2\ny/ MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nand much softer and more slippery-looking. Before we\nreached Lytton we met a great assembly of Indians, who\nhad built an arch close to a little church they have there.\nThere were about 500, of whom 200 men and women were\non horseback; numbers of foals were following, and the\nneighing and excitement among the horses was as great as\nthat among the men. An Indian had met us about three\nmiles from the town, and said, 'Tayee?' (chief). 'Yes,'\nwas the reply from our carriage, and off he started on his\nway to tell them we were coming. Such a motley and\npicturesque assembly: every sort of colour and dress;\ncurious caps, made of handkerchiefs tied on in every possible\nway ; fur caps, made apparently of a whole animal, though\nsome were merely a strip of fur tied round the head; and\nevery face a study. The women rode astride, but had a\nblanket so neatly laid over the knees, and tucked into the\nstirrup at each foot, and sat so well, and were so much at\nhome on their saddles, that they looked charming. Sometimes there were two on a horse, and many a mother and\nchild sat together on one. The men's saddles were often a\ngood deal ornamented.\nThe missionary read an address, and ' God save the\nQueen' was sung in Indian. We visited the Church, and\nshook hands a good deal, and then rode on, the troop after\nus, to Lytton, where D. ordered beef and flour for the\nIndians. Here the whites had an address and an arch,\nand we stopped a few moments.\nAfter we left it the Indians followed for some way, and\nwe handed out tobacco to the women who came nearest,\nyoung and old being glad of it.\nYou can't think what a pretty sight it was! We were\ntwo large coaches-and-four, and a great procession of these\ncurious riders, talking and laughing, following after us.\nTheir horses are very small, but very good, have plenty\nof work, and are never ill. Just before lunch we met\nanother, smaller troop of horse-men and women ; one girl,\n-0 SEPT. 1876\nON THE THOMPSON RIVER\nwith a yellow handkerchief on her head, was very tall, and\nlooked very handsome as she rode along.\nWe have now left the Fraser River, and are on the\nThompson. I must tell you about some Indian graves\nwe saw on the way. One was a lean-to shed, under which\nthe body or bodies were laid, and in front of the grave\nwere three tin pans; outside the shed, facing the road,\nstood three wooden figures, a man and two women, dressed\nup in the clothes of the deceased. On a tree close by hung\na quantity of horse-skins. When a man dies, his friends\neat a few of his horses, and hang up their skins, so that he\nmay ride upon them to the Happy Land. Another grave\nwe saw was surrounded by a paling, inside of which was a\nfigure of a woman, dressed, a small cross by her side.1\nWe arrived at Mr. and Mrs. Cornwall's house after\na twelve hours' drive, and in a pouring rain, rather tired.\nI am sorry to say Mr. Cornwall is not at home, having most\nunfortunately had a very bad accident on his way here to\nprepare for us. His horse shied on the road over which we\nhave just come, and he went over a precipice, happily in one\nof the least dangerous places to be found on the way. He\nbroke his leg, while his companion rolled down twenty-five\nfeet, and escaped with a few scratches. Mr. Cornwall had to\nbe taken back to Victoria to have the leg set. Mrs. Cornwall\nhas a very young baby, and her brother and sister-in-law\nare helping her to do the honours. They have made D. and\nme very comfortable in their house, and were most kind.\nThe rest of the party are lodged elsewhere.\nSaturday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left the Corn walls' before 10 a.m.,\nand again embarked in our coaches. At last the sun shone\nupon us, and we were able to dismiss from our minds all\nthoughts of umbrellas and waterproofs. The country here\nis very curious: there are low hills and rolling plains\nwhich to a stranger look barren, but which really support\n1 We heard afterwards that these figures had had new cotton dresses\nput on them in our honour. 278\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\ncattle all the year round, and certainly produce the best\nbeef and mutton I ever ate. One carries away from this\ndistrict the idea of a great sandhill of a yeUowish tinge, cut\ninto terraces, valleys, mounds, and apparently carved all\nover by ancient watercourses. Could it be irrigated, the land\nwould be very valuable; but as it is there is scarcely any\ncultivation, and the only crop is bunch-grass. Though it\nproduces such good beef, I can't tell you how many acres\nit requires to feed one cow, and the animal has quite a walk\nto take between one tuft of grass and another.\nWe had not left our starting-point long when all the\ncolours of the rainbow on horseback appeared before us,\nand, with shouts and drums and neighing of horses, we\nwere surrounded by a cavalcade of Indians. The next\nhalf-hour was one of the greatest excitement. I never saw\nanything so delightful as the sight of these men, women,\nchildren, waving their flags, horses and foals galloping up\nand down the low hills, around us, while our two coaches\ndrove steadily along the road.\nSome of the figures were most interesting to watch.\nThere was one man with a square drum, which he beat as\nhe galloped along, his legs keeping time, and his body\ndancing on the saddle. The chief was a remarkably handsome old man, with a majestic air and a fine seat on horseback. He wore a red uniform, and the whole costume was,\nstrange to say, complete, and unspoiled by any vagary of\nhis own taste. Another wore a blue coat, deer-skin leggings, and a fur cap, and carried a sceptre mounted with\nsilver. Several women had babies before them, and bigger\nchildren tied on behind; and you may imagine how the\nbaby's head wagged as its mother galloped along! The\npeople ride splendidly, and I did so enjoy seeing them\nscampering over the ground.\nAfter much cantering and skirmishing we arrived at an\ninn and a shop, where we got out of the coach to speak to\nthe people, and to buy them flour, sugar and tobacco.\nsha SEPT. 1876\nKAMLOOPS\n279\nThese Indians are very bright and intelligent-looking.\nWe shook hands with a great many of them, and particularly\nadmired the ' British General'\u00E2\u0080\u0094the handsome chief I told\nyou of. I looked to see if the babies' heads were all right,\nand I found one poor old lady who had been galloping\nalong in this furious fashion with her hand and arm\nswelled with rheumatism. I got her a warm shawl at the\nstore. The whole assembly foUowed us a mile or two\nfarther, when they collected on the top of a small hill,\nwaved their flags, and disappeared. Four of them\u00E2\u0080\u0094a\nwoman and three men\u00E2\u0080\u0094came on the whole way to the\nLake.\nAfter passing through arid plains, we suddenly came\nupon a glassy sheet of water, into which, and out of which,\nthe river Thompson flowed. We got on board a steamer,\nand as usual found every comfort and luxury surrounding\nus: pictures in our cabins, books of poetry on the tables,\nrocking-chairs, and good beds.\nWe steamed along for three hours, when we arrived at\nKamloops. On one bank of the river we saw a quantity of\nwhite men and Indians on horseback, and just as we were\ngoing to land our attention was called to the other bank\n(we had got into the Thompson), where about five hundred\nwild horses were being driven down to the water. D. landed,\nand drove up in a carriage-and-four to a platform, where\nhe found me (I having walked up) and some other ladies.\nThe platform was close to an arch, and the carriage was\nsurrounded by all the people on horseback. I was presented\nwith a bouquet by a young lady who had been a school-girl\nat Clandeboye when I was married. She and some aunts\nand uncles live here, and our meeting was quite exciting.\nThere were addresses, etc., and D. went a short drive,\nand then returned to the steamer, where the Indians followed him, and stood on the banks chanting a sort of\nPsalm.\nA deputation kept His Excellency for some time, and 280\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nAh Sam (our cook) got so impatient, and so fearful that his\ndinner would be spoiled, that in spite of everyone he\nsounded a gong (upon a tin pan), as a hint to the people\nto go.\nI must tell you that a lady at Kamloops was warned in\na dream to give me a beautiful pin, made of a nugget\n(not the one I mentioned before), which she accordingly\ndid.\nSunday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had prayers before breakfast in the\ncabin, and soon after steamed across to the opposite shore\nto visit the Indians.\nThere was rather an interesting ' Pow-wow.'. They have\nhad a land grievance in this province, which is serious\nto them, and they set it before the Governor-General in a\nvery grave and dignified manner. They seemed pleased to\nhave the opportunity of seeing him, and, although he made\nthem no promises, I think they felt that they had secured\na friend at court. The conversation over, D., Fred and\nColonel Littleton mounted some of the Indian horses in\norder to visit the Reserve, and although they did not find\nthe Mexican saddles at aU comfortable, they enjoyed their\nride very much. ' Louie,' the chief, showed them all his\ncarrots, onions, potatoes, etc., and, once the' Pow-wow' was\nover, became very cheerful, and made them gallop along at\na great pace.\nThey returned for lunch, and afterwards rode again on\nthe Kamloops side of the lake. D. got a long way up the\nhill, and had a good view of the country, and the remainder\nof the party walked. Mr. Dewdney and Mr. Vernon dined\nwith us.\nI must teU you a story of Ah Sam. Captain Layton\nhad slept on shore last night, but as we start very early\nto-morrow he wished to have a cabin in the steamer, so he\nsaid to Ah Sam : ' You take your mattress, and put it on\nthe floor somewhere, as I am going to sleep here to-night. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\n' Oh,' says Ah Sam, ' me workee hard, Captain Layton no\nSfe*v SEPT. I876\nTHE FRASER RIVER\n281\nwork; me want good bed; if Captain Layton get in first, he\nhave it; if me get in first, me have it.' So at nine o'clock\nthe whole saloon was disturbed by the snores of Ah Sam,\nwho retired very early indeed to make sure of keeping the\nbed. He is a great character, and always takes his boots\noff in the coach, lest he should be made to walk up the hills.\nMonday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was awoke by the stern-wheel, which\nis immediately behind my cabin, and which shakes one\nmore than any screw. We were starting, and about seven\nwe stopped at a place where most of the party landed to\nshoot; the steamer went on, and the Commodore and I\nbreakfasted at nine, and went out fishing at Savernagh's\nFerry, in the Thompson River. The trout were only just\nbeginning to rise when the steamer whistled for us, and we\nhad to go back. The sportsmen had had a beautiful walk,\nand brought home five and a half brace of the ' sharp-tailed\ngrouse,' and we all enjoyed our morning very much.\nWe embarked at noon in our coach, and parted with\nthe Chief Justice at Cache Creek, on his way to Cariboo.\nI then got on the box (or ' fore-top,' as we call it, having\njust come from the Amethyst) to see Mr. Tingley drive;\nthis was an easy part of the road, so I thought it a good\nplace to take a front seat.\nWe got to Mr. Cornwall's at six, and all dined there,\nD. and I remaining to sleep. We had a most lovely\nday.\nTuesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got away early ; a beautiful bright\nmorning.. On the road we met many Indians, and gave\naway much tobacco and shook hands a good deal. The\nold ladies are so animated; they shake both hands before\nyou, talking all the time, and continue the motion with\nhead and hands, when you give them tobacco, saying,\nor rather making a noise like, ' tu-choo.'\nAt Lytton we caught up the second coach ; some of the\npassengers had felt the heat so much that it made them\nsick, but we did not mind it at all. D., the Colonel and MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nthe Commodore stopped and bathed in the Thompson. We\nare returning the same way we came, and are enjoying the\nbeautiful scenery in the fine weather. Having plenty of\ntime to spare, and passing one of those fishing-stations I\ntold you of, we scrambled down the bank to see the man\nat work. His implement was like a very long landing-net,\nand he stood on the most rickety little spring-board platform\nover the rushing stream, and put his net into the water,\ndrawing it down stream as far as he could reach ; when he\nfelt a fish in it, he let go a string, which allowed the net to\nrun down the frame, and to shut up the fish jn a regular\nbag. Our gentlemen tried to do it, but they nearly tumbled\ninto the river, and could not manage it at all.\nI again got on the box, and drove over the worst piece\nof the road\u00E2\u0080\u0094such awful turns, and such a precipice at the\nedge of the narrow road ! It certainly requires good driving, and the coachman has to work hard all the time. We\nreached our camp at six, and in an hour were at dinner and\na splendid camp-fire.\nWednesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I got up at six to look out at a curious\neffect of fog. We are about 800 feet above the river. The\nmorning was bright and lovely, all the mountains clear,\nand an extensive view lay before me; but when I looked\ndown at the Fraser, instead of its muddy stream, I beheld\na beautiful river of soft cloud ! This layer of fog must have\nbeen 200 or 300 feet thick, as we could tell by the trees on\nthe banks, and it was the prettiest thing I ever saw in the\nway of mist.\nWe had a very successful journey back to Yale, and D.\nand I sat on the box for the last hour of the way. The\ndriver and all the Yaleites were delighted that we had enjoyed the trip, and were not frightened; and the coachman's testimony to my courage during the perilous drive to\nKamloops was ' that I hadn't a scare in me.' We drove\ndown to the steamer Royal City, and had the Oppenheims\nto dine with us.\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The stern-wheel awoke us about 6 a.m. SEPT.\n[876\nVICTORIA\n283\nIt gives the most odious motion to the steamer. About\neleven we got to New Westminster, which D. thinks should\nbe the terminus of the new Pacific Railway, and the Mayor\ncame on board, and presented me with photographs of all\nthe arches. The Commodore left us here, and we went on\na little farther to join the Douglas, upon which steamer\nI have been scribbling this.\nWe had a very smooth passage of about twenty miles\nto Victoria, where we found it raining heavily. This only\nmade our drawing-room, with its fire and lights, look more\nthan ever comfortable after all our travelling; and then the\ndehght of finding a mail waiting, and a nice quiet hour for\nreading our letters !\nFriday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred Ward, who is 'housekeeper,' has\nordered up the prisoners from the Penitentiary to ' pluck\nchickens' for the ball; it is the custom here, and this morning, when we walked into the ball-room, we found six prisoners, with chains to their legs and an armed man standing over them, polishing the floor.\nD. was, as usual, shut up with some argumentative\nVictorian till 4.30 p.m., when I got him out for a little drive,\nand we walked home^\nSaturday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After lunch we went to a rifle-match.\nHis Ex. gave away his medals, and we saw some ' company ' there. The Commodore joined us, and we walked\nhome. In the evening we attended an amateur concert.\nMonday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Prisoners all busy, preparing for the\nball. Fred brought the head gardener into the drawing-\nroom to give him some directions about flowers, and was\nabout to take him to the dining-room, when he said: ' I\ncan't leave that man here; he's a convict.' There was a\nstorm last night, and the weather looks bad.\nWe visited the High School, received an address, and\nreplied. D. presented some medals for competition, which\nwere unexpected, and gave great pleasure. We then called\nupon the ex-Governor, Mr. Trutch, to see his mother, an\nold lady of seventy-seven, who is dying to come to the ball, MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nbut cannot get her doctor's permission to do so. I rested\nin the afternoon, and at seven we had a very merry Httle\ndinner in a small room. There was a rumour that the\nreat Ah Sam was drunk, and that the supper would be very\nbad; but the dinner was aU right, so we felt some hope.\nThe guests were invited at 8.30, and soon after nine D.\nand I came down to open the ball. The room is a very\nnice one, and we had had all the windows taken out,\nand a sort of corridor tent of canvas, lined with flags, put\nup the whole way round the outside, which added greatly\nto the available space. I must say I enjoyed the baU very\nmuch, and I think everyone else did. We aU danced from\n9.30 till three without intermission, and as fathers, mothers,\ndaughters and sons are all equaUy dancing-mad here, and\nas we had a great number of naval officers, and were in\nourselves an element of novelty to the Victorians, and they\nwere new to us, there was a great deal of spirit in the ball.\nWhen everyone else had gone, we had some more supper\nand a talk; the former was very good, and Ah Sam had\nbeen maligned.\nTuesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted at eleven, and had to\nstart immediately after for the Esquimault Dockyard; the\nCommodore went on first, and received us there with the\nofficials belonging to it. D. was to drive in the first pile of\na new dry dock; and when this ceremony, which was performed by the aid of steam, was accompHshed, we went\nover the stores, and then to lunch. The croquet-ground\nwas covered in with sails and flags, and the tables were\nlaid on it. Our health was drunk, and D.'s reply was very\nsuccessful, containing a Httle chaff about the way in which\nhe has been shut up every, and all day with the male\nportion of the population of Victoria\u00E2\u0080\u0094which amused them\nimmensely.\nWhen aU was over we went to see the Rocket\u00E2\u0080\u0094a gunboat\u00E2\u0080\u0094and then drove home, the Commodore returning to\nthe Amethyst, sEaasa\nSEPT. 1876\nSAN FRANCISCO\nWednesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a day of labour ! D. very busy\nfrom 7 a.m. preparing for a very important speech; at\neleven the deputation came, and he spoke till 2.30; then\nlunch, and off to the Cathedral to attend the christening of a\nbaby\u00E2\u0080\u0094' Frederick Temple Cornwall.' Then on to a public\npicnic on Beacon Hill; there were numbers of people there,\nand we stayed an hour, and said good-bye to all we knew.\nFred and I then came on board the Amethyst, and D. went\nback to Government House to see that the speech was\nready for the Press. Some mistake had been made in\nreporting it, and he found it in such hopeless confusion\nthat he did not get away till quite late, missing the dinner\non board, and half the performance which was given for\nus. The officers had got up some songs and glees, and\nafterwards we had some Christy Minstrels, which were very\namusing.\nThursday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The morning was lovely, and D.\nhaving finished his business, was able to enjoy himself.\nThe Commodore took me for a row, and he went on board\nthe Douglas, where there was a party to see us off. We\nstarted at twelve, accompanied by the little steamer, and\nhad much waving of handkerchiefs before parting with her.\nI regret to say that I was not able to appear at dinner,\nand that, one by one, those who sat down disappeared from\nthe table. We had a very rough night, and half the officers\nand sailors were ill.\nThe mail steamer Dakota started an hour after us,\nbent upon beating us.\nSaturday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Beautiful weather, and all decidedly\nbetter.\nSan Francisco: Sunday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Anchored at 7 a.m., and\nhave won the race against the Dakota. We stayed on board\nfor church, and then said a temporary ' good-bye' to the\nship and her officers, and came ashore to the hotel.\nMonday, 25th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At twelve o'clock we went on board the\nAmethyst again, the ward-room officers having asked us to 286\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nlunch with them. They are all so civil and kind, and received\nus most hospitably; we are sorry to part. After our farewells\nwere made to our hosts, we set off again, accompanied by\nthe Commodore, on another little expedition. General\nMcDowell met us, and we went by train with him southwards for an hour ; at the station we had a carriage-and-\nfour, and drove to the house of a Mr. Mills. This was to\nshow us a Californian home; and certainly, after passing\nthrough the sandy hills, it was refreshing to come upon a\nlittle oasis of brilliant green, and tropical plants. The\nhouse was as nice a show-house as I have seen : some good\npictures, and bedrooms really liveable in, in spite of magnificent monograms in the centre of each pillow-case. All\nthe country round looks burnt up, and yellow and sandy,\nwhile the place itself is fresh, green, gay with flower-beds,\nand dignified by very handsome evergreen oaks and enormous bay-trees. We had to hurry away from it, and get\ninto our carriage, to drive to Mr. Sharon's.\nIt was too late for us to see the grounds, but I am now\nin a position to tell you something of a Californian merchant's home, and society.\nThe house was built by a certain Mr. Ralston, and on his\ndeath it became the property of his partner, Mr. Sharon, who\nwas a miner, has twice been a millionaire, and twice has\nlost all, this being his third enjoyment of a great fortune.\nHe owns a gigantic hotel, another almost as big in San\nFrancisco, a large house in town, this country place, and a\nbig house at Washington, not to mention various little mines\nand railways ; and he is here considered as the merchant-\nprince of 'Frisco.\nWe were shown into the hall, which at first gave the\nimpression of a small house, though opening into large\ncorridors; it seems as though originally there were two\nsitting-rooms, and that a baU-room and supper-room, a place\nfor the dancers to flirt in, and a corridor, had all been\nadded. SEPT. 1876\nA CALIFORNIAN BALL\nEverything opens into everything, with sliding, muffled\nwindows; and nothing is imposing. The ball-room is a good\nroom and pretty, but the nicest feature of the house is a sort\nof sitting-room upstairs, on to which the bedrooms open.\nWe were immediately taken there, and told not to dress for\ndinner (our servants had brought on our ball things); so\nwe were soon down again, and were introduced to the company in the house. The guests are General Sherman, a\nvery pleasing man, and Mr. Cameron2 and his daughter, a\nladylike and handsome girl. General McDowell does most\nof the honours, and he marshalled us in to dinner, I going\nwith our host, Mr. Sharon, a very quiet little man. I\ntold him I liked his hotel, and I tried to look as if\n14,000,000,000 doUars\u00E2\u0080\u0094a sum he named\u00E2\u0080\u0094conveyed a definite idea to my mind. There was no plate, no ornament,\nno china on the table, no luxury whatever here. No table\ncould have looked less wealthy, and the dinner itself was\nsimple. I only saw part of it, however> for I was suddenly\ntold to go and dress, and accordingly off we ladies w7ent to\nprepare for the ball.\nThe ball guests were coming by train, and nothing was\ndone until they did come, which was an hour and a half\nafter I was ready, so Mr. Cameron gave me an arm, and\nwalked me up and down the corridors, and sat me down\noccasionally, and took me up again and round again.\nThe train did at last arrive, and with it the company\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nladies first. I observed a great latitude as to the style of\ndress worn. There were low dresses and square dresses,\nvelvet, merino, morning silks, and regular ball gowns;\neveryone seemed to appear just as they pleased. There\nwere girls who would have been pretty but for the paint\nand powder, which was laid on thick, and sprinkled over\nthe hair just in sufficient quantities to spoil it. I asked\nsomeone afterwards whether she considered that paint\nwas de rigueur here, as I saw it was so much used,\n2 Mr. Cameron, at that time Minister of War in the United States. MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nand she told me it was used by girls to a great extent. I\nsaid, ' Do they acknowledge that they paint ? ' She said,\n'Not paint; powder.' There is no deception about it,\nhowever, for it is thick.\nThe dancing is different to ours\u00E2\u0080\u0094the square dances an\nimprovement, I think\u00E2\u0080\u0094much more Hvely, and much delightful curtseying and bowing going on. I danced the opening\nquadrille, and was much amused; the bandmaster stood\nclose to me, and called out the orders,' Ladies' chain, set to\npartners, cross,' etc., in a loud voice. The waltzes are slow,\nand there is a particular way of holding your partner, which\nI don't admire.\nThere was no tea-room; the only refreshments were for\nthe gentlemen\u00E2\u0080\u0094a large bowl of punch, brandy, gin, and\nchampagne; the table was in one of the recesses of the\ncorridors, and the men sat and drank and smoked there.\nAt twelve Mr. Sharon came, and told me it was time ' for\nlunch,' and I went with him into the dining-room, to the\ntop of the table, where a small round one and a chair were\nplaced for me ; the others stood. The only ornamentations\non the table were sugar ships.\nEveryone was most kind to us, and Mr. Sharon took us\nin his carriage to the train, in which we returned with the\nrest of the company to San Francisco. When we got into\nour carriage at the station, we had a good laugh. It was\na large sort of coach, but four was the number intended to\nbe inside. We sat three on a seat: D., the Commodore, and\nI on one, and three people opposite to us, when, to our\nastonishment, an extra bench was put down between us, and\ntwo ladies came in and sat, one partly on His Ex.'s knee\nand partly on the bench; the other, after trying my lap,\nhappily moved on to the Commodore's.\nAt Mr. Sharon's my maid met some Clandeboye and\nBangor people; one maid-servant told her she should go\nhome as soon as she could sell out her ' Stocks' at ioo. She\nhad bought in at 18, and now they are 85. SEPT. I876\nTHE CHINESE THEATRE\n289\nTuesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast Fred Ward and I went\nto church for the purpose of standing as godfather and\ngodmother to Francis Ward's baby, who was born the day\nwe reached 'Frisco.\nWhen we met the baby in church her name was not\nchosen; but they wanted one to go with May, and when\nI suggested Muriel they were delighted; so Muriel May\nshe was called. I held her the whole service, and as she\nwas awake I had to nurse her, and to do the ' goose-step,'\nall the time.\nMr. Miller, navigating-lieutenant of the Amethyst, came\nto lunch with us, and brought the charts, in order that we\nmight choose some anonymous places to which we might\ngive names. You will be interested to hear that future\nmaps will show the ' Dufferin Range' and the ' Countess of\nDufferin Range ' of mountains, ' Dufferin Island,' ' Chatfield Island,' 'Hamilton Cape,' 'Littleton Cape,' 'Ward\nCape'; and Mr. Miller is to be immortalised, too.\nThere are ' no end ' of mountains, and the ranges had\nno names before.\nWe asked our reporters to dine with us, and they, ourselves and the Commodore had a most delightful evening.\nD. and I quite agree we would have come the whole\njourney for the sake of seeing the Chinese Theatre.\nWe went there with the necessary appendage of a\npoliceman, and had a box next to that of Generals Sherman\nand McDowell. The theatre itself is quite unornamented,\nand is what some people might call dirty; but I am too\nmuch pleased to be critical. The pit was quite fuU of\nChinamen, as was the gallery, with the exception of a small\nplace set apart for women, where about fifty ladies sat.\nOur boxes were opposite to them. The stage ran right\nacross the theatre, and was innocent of side-wings or scenery,\nThere were two doors, with a curtain in front of each;\nthe band sat between these doors, and the actors played in\nfront of the musicians. The two ends of the stage seemed\nu 290\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nto be used as sitting-rooms for anyone who chose to\n' walk up.'\nI don't know whether you are aware that a Chinese\nplay is not an affair of hours, or of days, but of months,\nand that you can have about six hours a night of it as long\nas it lasts. We went for half an hour, and stayed two, and\neven then we left most reluctantly.\nThe music is of the bagpipe order, but not so loud,\nand D. was charmed with the minor key and the barbaric\ntunes. It went on almost the whole of the play, one\nmusician at a time taking a smoke and a rest, while the\nactors performed.\nWhen we arrived the stage was occupied by a company of aristocratic Chinamen, and it was evident that an\nimportant council was being held. The councillors were\nmagnificently dressed in gold and embroidered satin and\nvarious-shaped head-dresses, and their manners were\nsplendid. The acting we might consider stagey, but it seems\nto suit the dress and the people, and it was delightful to\nsee them walk or move their arms, and, above all, sit down\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthey did it with such an air! One gentleman wore two\nenormous drooping feathers in his hat, which he twirled just\nas if they were moustaches. There was a discussion, partly\nsung, between the dignitaries, and I' guess' that there was\nrebeUion going on, for when they rose the party divided\nand went out at separate doors, returning again with soldiers\nunder their respective leaders.\nA fight then took place, with a pirouette between each\nblow. The soldiers were plainly dressed (black Chinese\ntunics with sashes), but their chests were bare, and in the\nsecond part of the performance one gentleman showed so\nmuch of his manly bosom that I really thought that, in\nhis ardour, he would get out of his sleeves.\nAfter these political scenes the drama became more\ndomestic, and a lady (a man dressed as such) came on.\nShe had the most modest of manners, and a. great affecta- SEPT.\n1876\nA JOSS HOUSE\n291\ntion of refinement; she begged her husband not to join the\nwar, but, in spite of her prayer and that of his mother-in-law,\nhe went, and then the story began to resemble that of\n'Faust.'\nHaving torn ourselves away from the theatre, we went\nto the cafe opposite, which had lanterns hung outside. We\nfound music and gambling going on upstairs, and a few\nwomen and men about, who instantly offered us chairs,\nand began to speak English to us. They asked if we would\nhave tea, and as we ' would,' they took us into an adjoining room, laid a table, and all collected round us talking.\nThe tea was delicious, drunk without cream or sugar (the\nlatter they greatly object to), and we had also ginger and\nsweetmeats. The women came behind me, and touched\nmy things, and were especially interested in the jet on my\ncloak. We saw opium-pipes and water-pipes, and looked\nat the women's nails; and the men laughed and said, in\nallusion to their length, ' They lazy, never do anything.'\nWe offered to pay, but \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 No, no, we treat you' ; so we\neffected an exchange of cards, and are to have and give\nphotographs. D. shook hands with a lady, who instantly hid\nher face and fled.\nOur guide next took us on to see the ' Joss House,' or\nChinese church. We passed through a dark passage, and\nmounted a winding stair outside a house, till we reached the\ntop storey, where we found the place of worship. We saw\nit by the light of two candles and three night-lights burning\nin front of idols. It is not at all imposing, being small, and\ncrowded with things; no seats, and very little standing-\nroom. The \ altar ' stretches across the building, and is\noccupied by three miserable gods in separate divisions; a\nfew gimcracks are placed near them\u00E2\u0080\u0094offerings from their\nworshippers. The only thing at all handsome is a beautiful\npiece of carved wood, gilt, which evidently portrays an\nallegorical subject, and which stretches in front of the\nentrance-door, and partially screens the idols.\nu 2\n1\nI\n/ MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nThis ended our last day at San Francisco, and to-morrow\nthe return journey begins.\nWe said good-bye to the Commodore (Captain Chatfield, R.N.), who has been very kind to us on board his\nship, and a very pleasant addition to our society ashore.\nYou will see that I was not bewildered with the magnificence of San Francisco, and was surprised when Mr.\nCameron, a Cabinet Minister (but a man who has not been\nto Europe), told me that when he was asked ' what he\nthought of San Francisco,' he replied : ' I think nothing ;\nI am simply dazed.' Of course the town is wonderful, because it is built on impossible sandhills. Chicago is to me\nmuch more splendid and magnificent; but in reply to this\nopinion I am told, ' Oh! but then, so far West!'\nWednesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to leave the hotel at San\nFrancisco early, and to cross in a ferry to the railway-\nstation, where we found our Pullman ready for us.\nThe day was very warm and dusty, and the grizzly bear\nat Colfax looked intensely miserable with the heat. He\nreceived grapes thankfully. Enormous bunches here are\nto be had for five cents.\nThursday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094On the Alkali Plains; weather pleasant, but the acrid dust disagreeable to the eyes.\nFriday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted at Ogden, and said goodbye to Fred Ward there, he being the first deserter from our\nparty. Then we started for Salt Lake City. The journey\nof two hours is a very pretty one. Salt Lake was in sight\nalmost the whole way, and was of a deep, bright blue; while\non the other side of the carriage the hills were red and orange\nand brilliant yellow, autumn having already put the sumach\nplant into her gorgeous livery. We had arranged to dine\nat the hotel, and to sleep in the railway-car; but I may\ntell you at once that the mosquitoes took possession of it\nearly in the evening, and that we accepted our defeat, and\nspent the night at the Gentile Hotel, which is the very best\nfor food I have been in on this continent. SEPT. 1876\nTHE SALT LAKE CITY\n293\nThe city is certainly a wonderful creation. The streets\nare very broad, so that the tramway which runs down the\nmiddle of each one does not interfere with one's carriage-\nwheels. At the side runs a little open stream of rapid-\nflowing, clear water\u00E2\u0080\u0094a most refreshing sight in a naturaUy\nvery dusty place. Green trees grow along the banks of\nthis artificial ditch, and the watering of the arid plain is\nthe greatest work the Prophet has performed.\nAs we drove from the station to the Walker House, we\npassed a pretty villa, with a garden and lawn and fountain\nin front; and this afterwards proved to be the house of our\nfriend\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is to say, the gentleman to whom we had,\nbrought a letter of introduction.- D. and I went there\nlater, and found a good farmer kind of man Hving in this\nfine house. A wife, a daughter, a friend and a son came\ninto the room, and I became very impatient when I found\nthat nothing but European wars and trifles of that kind\nwere to be talked of; we could not even make out whether\nour host was a Mormon or not! At last I managed to\nsuggest to D. that we \ really must be going,' and then our\nhost asked if we wished to see the Tabernacle, and if we\nwished an interview with Brigham Young; this last honour\nwe declined. D. declares that it made me quite irritable\neven to be in his vicinity, and I think it did.\nOur friend drove, and a nephew of his wife's went with\nus to fetch Fred and the Colonel, and when some bright\nparticular Mormon star passed the carriage stopped, and\nD. was introduced. The gentlemen jumped out for these\npresentations, and it was when left alone for these few\nseconds that I picked up some scraps of information. Her\nEx., in a violent hurry, to young man: ' Hem\u00E2\u0080\u0094, is Mr. J.\na Gentile?' Young man, smiling: 'No, but I am.'\nSecond opportunity: ' Has Mr. J. more than one wife ?'\nNo; she is my aunt.' This may be called an evasion, for I\nfind that he had two, and has eighteen children; but the\nsecond lady died, and the daughter we saw was her child. 294\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nI was introduced to a few people too, and met George Q.\nCameron, an M.P., a polygamist, an apostle (he is building\na very fine house for some favoured lady); and Olson Pratt,\nthe man who led the Mormons to the Promised Land, and\nwho is one of the cleverest of the apostles.\nThe first thing to be seen was the Tabernacle, in front of\nwhich a temple of granite is being built. The service\nwill be held there when the congregation is small; but\nit seems to be intended principally for church offices of\ndifferent kinds, and I suppose they will have a new Endowment House in it, for the place in which the marriages'\nare now performed is a miserable little building.\nThe Tabernacle is a huge and hideous edifice with a\ngreat flat dome. There is no support to the arch inside, of\nwhich fact the Mormons are proud. It holds 12,000 people,\nand we found it decorated with garlands and hanging\nbunches of flowers. There is an enormous organ, which\nwe heard played; and from Brigham Young's pulpit you\ncan see every seat in the vast circular room. The acoustic\nproperties are perfect.\nWe next visited ' Zion's' co-operative store, a very large\nplace; indeed, the shops of the town appear to me to be\nremarkably good. Amelia (Brigham's most powerful wife)\nwas in the shop, but unfortunately we did not know it at the\ntime, and, being with Mormons, we were not told any gossip.\nOur driver took us past the Amelia Palace, a fine house\nwhich Brigham is now building for the favourite. Opposite\nto it is the Lion House, where she and other ladies now\nreside, and the Beehive, also the abode of the Mrs. Youngs.\nA wall is built in front of this harem, so it is only when\nthe various gates are open that a peep in is to be had. The\nonly real evidence of polygamy to be seen by the stranger\nis the multiplication of doors to a gentleman's house; the\nMormons are certainly shy of the subject with ' gentiles,'\nand only say, ' that is Mr. Cannon's house'; \ that is\nanother house of Mr. Cannon's.' SE\n5PT. 1876\nTHE SALT LAKE CITY\n9Qfi\nWe visited the Theatre and the Town-HaU, and then\nreturned to dine at our hotel. I beHeve our one friend\nhere is a ' wet' Mormon, and at his house, where we spent\nthe evening, we only met one-wifed men. The Governor\nof the State and his wife went with us, and on arriving\nthere we found everyone sitting in a circle close round\nthe waUs of the room. We took our places in this very\nstiff row, and I kept mine aU the time. D. managed to\nlift his chair and to change his position a Httle. There\nwere some officers of the U.S. Army, and some of our\nhost's two families, also a Mr. H., whose daughter has just\nmarried one of the sons; the parents, when they found\ntheir children had been to the Endowment House, showed\ntheir want of faith by carrying them off to a registry office,\nand insisting upon their going through a legal marriage.\nMiss H. has only one father, but she had four grandfathers. We had Mormon fruit, Mormon cake, and\nchampagne, handed round by a Mormon daughter of the\nhouse.\nOur hostess was quiet and rather melancholy-looking\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nthe shadow of a possible colleague over her; she has not\nbeen out of the town for twenty-two years, though her\ndaughters have been to Europe, and go to New York; I\nsuppose Mormon husbands think, 'where ignorance is\nbHss,' etc.\nSaturday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to leave very early in the\nmorning, and were, as our hotel-keeper playfuUy remarked,\n\ sent off with fireworks,' the illumination being the burning\nof a rival inn. The whole roof was on fire, and the goods\nwere being thrown out of the window.\nWe breakfasted at Ogden, and then, in our comfortable\n' house-upon-wheels,' began to ascend the Rocky Mountains.\nSunday, October 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It was difficult to beHeve that this\nwas Sunday, for when we arrived at Cheyenne all was\nbustle at the railway-station, and in the town the shops\n\t 296\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nwere open. The only ' Sabbath' look was given to the\nplace by the laziness of the men, who sat about and drank\nbeer. The ' West' seems to me to be very careless in\nreligious matters, and the only church we could discover\nin this town was a Roman Catholic one. We and our two\ncars were left here.\nMonday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We slept 'on board,' and started at\nfive in the morning. About nine we reached Denver,\nwhere, unfortunately, we had arranged to sleep before we\nknew of the quiet night at Cheyenne. It is an uninteresting town, surrounded by mountains. It has some\ngood shops, and is planted all over with fresh little\ngreen poplars; but we found twenty-four hours too much to\nspend in it.\nIn spite of its uninteresting character, it has its own\nlittle political excitements, and a torch-light procession of\nDemocrats marched past our hotel this evening; while a\nRepublican one formed close by, and set off in the opposite\ndirection. It is wonderful how these rival processions are\nmanaged without collision.\nA curious man with long hair sat by us at meals, who\nturns out to be a great hunter; he offers to take D. and\nme across the Rocky Mountains.\nOne falls into very bad manners at these hotels. The\ndinner is before one in little dishes, and one dips a fork\ninto each dish, and takes bits of this and of that in the same\nplate, and uses one's knife promiscuously for salt, butter,\nand the whole dinner. The cloth is generally somewhat\ndirty, and there is a clatter going on in the room that is\nbewildering. The service is excessively slow, and it is useless to try and get anything from any waiter but your own.\nAt Cheyenne we had a most sympathetic black, who said,\nwith the utmost feeHng, that ' he was so sorry' when we\nexpressed an inability to eat any more ; we almost over-ate\nourselves to oblige him !\nI saw numbers of negro men and women on horseback OCT. 1876\nST. LOUIS\n297\nto-day, and there was a white lady riding about in a pea-\ngreen habit.\nWe heard of a young man who came down from the\nmines a week before with 1,900 lbs. weight of gold, worth\nabout 16s. an ounce. He had an escort of twenty men, to\neach of whom he paid #200 (40L). We were shown a\nnugget weighing about 145 ounces.\nTuesday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were very glad to leave Denver this\nmorning. D. had a talk with the hunter, who is known as\nOregon Bill. He gave us his photograph, in which he is\ndepicted with an Indian scalp hanging from his belt.\nWe travelled through the ugliest country it is possible\nto conceive: a flat plain, without the smallest variation in\nit the whole day. Our only excitement was seeing a calf\ndragged along by a lasso, and numerous prairie-fires at\nnight, illuminating the landscape in every direction.\nWednesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The country stiU ugly, though when\nwe got to the Missouri a few trees and some castor-oil plants\nwere to be seen. I think we found this almost the longest\nday of our tour.\nThursday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Arrived at St. Louis early, and found\nthat it is the day of the year to be here\u00E2\u0080\u0094the best day of the\nGreat Fan*. The town and hotels are crammed, and some\nresidents good-naturedly turned out to give us their rooms.\nWe found two mails awaiting us, and after reading them\nwent off to see the show.\nThere is a very fine, uncovered amphitheatre, where we\nsaw trotting-horses and four-in-hands; a band played, and\nthe seats all round the course were filled; there must have\nbeen 30,000 people there, and crowds outside and aU\nthrough the grounds. It is a great hoHday here.\nD. took me a walk through the town, which is one of\nthe nicest I have seen in the States\u00E2\u0080\u0094solid-looking, and\nwith very handsome residences. The hotel is very good\nand comfortable.\nFriday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left St. Louis early, and stood outside 598\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVI\nour train to examine the great bridge over which we had to\npass. It crosses the Mississippi and the Missouri, the two\nhaving joined into one muddy river. The bridge is built on\nthree piers, and is, I beHeve, a wonderful piece of engineering work. The carriage-way is over the bridge, the railway\nthrough it. The whole looks very Hght and airy, and suggestive of a ' smash'; but it is, of course, reaUy very strong.\nWe read our newspapers, and I went for the third time\nthrough all my letters! Letters are never more appreciated\nor spelt through than when one is travelling.\nSaturday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Soon after breakfast we crossed the\nSt. Clair in our train, on a large boat built for the purpose,\nand being now in Canada, the * Grand Tour' ends.\nD. and I spend Sunday at Toronto; on Monday morning\nI go to Montreal, and he to Philadelphia. Friday, I hope\nto see my children, and am planning hoHdays and ' great\nlarks.' 299\nCHAPTER XVII\nOUR FIFTH WINTER AND SUMMER IN CANADA\nFriday, 13th October.-\u00E2\u0080\u0094The 'Grand Tour' being over,\nI quite forgot I had still to keep up a Journal, and, suddenly\nremembering it, I find myself at the end of a week with no\nnotes, and the necessity of remembering how I have spent\nthe time. We arrived at Toronto last Saturday night, and\nwere very hospitably received by the Macdonalds at Government House. I liked them all very much.\nOn Sunday D. and I went to church in the Cathedral,\nand in the afternoon a few people came to see us\u00E2\u0080\u0094Lady\nMacdonald, old Mr. Chapman, etc. The Howlands, Mowats,\nColonel Cumberland, and Mr. Crooks, dined.\nOn Monday morning I had to be up at 5.30, to catch\nmy train to Montreal, and D., whom I left behind, started\nat eleven en route for Philadelphia. In spite of our recent\nlong tour, Alexander and I both thought this the longest\njourney we ever made. We got to Montreal at 9.30, Mr.\nMackenzie having been with me as far as Prescott. Russell\nmet me at the train, and I found Gwen in her own house,\nlooking very well, and all her surroundings so pretty and\ncomfortable. Gwen and I spend quiet mornings together.\nOne afternoon we went a lovely drive up the mountain.\nWe visited her chief friends, having tea with Miss de Roche-\nblavel and Mrs. Stephens,2 and driving with Miss Allen to\nthe Races.\n1 A French-Canadian lady who has very many friends in England.\n2 Lady Mount-Stephen, one of my sister's best and kindest friends. mm*\n300\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nWe breakfasted early this morning, and I left by the\ntrain for Ottawa.\nFriday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Two days of Indian summer; such\nlovely weather. We drove in the afternoons, and remained\nin the garden till five. The Council and Ministers are\nmaking arrangements to give D. a grand reception on his\nreturn ; we expect him on Monday or Tuesday.\nTuesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sunday was wet and gloomy again, and\nso was Monday, on which day D. returned. Four aldermen\nwent to meet him at a station thirty miles off, and when\nhe arrived at Ottawa there was a platform, a guard of\nhonour, an address, and a carriage and four to bring him\nto the Government House. The children were very happy\nlistening to the guns and watching for the four greys, and\nwe all stood at the door to receive the Governor-General.\nHe was so surprised at the sight of his baby, who is\nmuch grown and improved, and admired Victoria, whom later\nin the evening Nelly dressed up in the most artistic manner\nas the ' Queen of Sheba.'\nWednesday, November 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Count de Turenne arrived this morning to pay us a visit. He returns to France\nnext month.\nAt three o'clock we went into town\u00E2\u0080\u0094a large party:\nseven children, accompanied by three parents, a nurse and\nthe Count\u00E2\u0080\u0094to see Tom Thumb. We filled two boxes, and\nthe delight of the children made it very amusing. Basil\njumped up and down, pounded the cushions, shouted\n' hurrah,' and roared with laughter; and they aU clapped and\ncheered in company with the rest of the spectators, who\nwere mostly children. The dwarfs did some little plays,\none having a man in the part of a ' mischievous monkey'\nin it, who once made a dash at our box, and was received\nwith shrieks.\nThe Littletons dined with us, and the Count told us\nfunny stories about his tour. The weather is very bad\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nalmost pitch-dark, and wet.\nni ..- NOV. 1876\nOTTAWA\n301\nSunday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were surprised when we got to church\nto have the sermon first; it was explained in the evening\nthat this was a hint to people who came late ; and it was\nrather unfortunate that on this day it happened that the\nGovernor-General was two or three minutes late, and of\ncourse he could not imagine what had happened when he\nfound us in the middle of the sermon.\nTuesday, igth December.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The children did their Christmas shopping. I think it is the event of the year they like\nthe best, and they each go with a few shillings, and with\na list of about sixteen people, for whom they expect to buy\nhandsome presents.\nChristmas Day, 1876.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The children's voices are heard\nvery early, rejoicing over presents they have received from\ntheir nurses.\nThe whole family, except the absent Archie, dined at\nour lunch, Baby and Victoria for the first time. The Littletons came to tea, and there was a round table with ten\nvery happy faces at it. Then came the tree, which looked\nvery brilliant, and gave universal satisfaction. Everyone\nseems to have got just what they wanted, and the clamour\nof musical instruments resounding through the house ever\nsince sounds cheerful, if not pretty. When the pleasures\nof the tree were exhausted we had snapdragon, and then a\n'Yorkshire wassail-bowl,' in which we all drank Archie's\nhealth with cheers.\nSunday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gwen's baby was christened to-day.\nMonday, January 1st, 1877.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A hard day. At ten the\nchildren rehearsed their play; at twelve His Ex., the\nA.D.C.s, and I, having dressed ourselves smart, sat for two\nhours receiving all the men in Ottawa.\nExhausted by two, we lunched, and I then packed off\nmy family to bed, promising faithfully to call them at four.\nAt three a servants' children's party commenced, and\nmine joined them for tea; after which they acted a little\nplay with great success.\n\h\n:\ny\nti\n1\niii\n1 / \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n1/\nJJjjB 302\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nFriday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I had my annual children's party to-day.\nSeventy-eight of them came at five, and mothers besides.\nAfter the play, which was acted again, there was tea : two\nlong tables down the dining-room, and one outside for the\ngrown-ups. The magic lantern came next, and then we\ncleared away the chairs, and the children danced about, and\namused themselves very much.\nSaturday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a skating-party, and final representation of the children's play, ' Fifine, the Fisher Maid,'\nwhich went off extremely well. They like the appreciative-\nness of a grown-up audience.\nVictoria was very funny : she would run on to the stage\nand exhibit her shoes, bracelets, etc. to the spectators; at\nlast I had to draw her back, as she was taking the interest\noff from the real performers. When the curtain was drawn\nup again at the end, she came forward and made a very\nnice little curtsey, and said ' Good night, everybody.'\nThere was a scene in the play in which all go down to\nthe bottom of the sea. I managed this by having green\ntarlatan, upon which fishes were pasted, drawn up slowly\nin front of the children to a certain height above their heads,\nshowing the depth of the water.\nToronto: Wednesday, loth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Ottawa for Toronto\nyesterday, on the most lovely Canadian morning, to stay with\nthe Macdonalds. After lunch to-day we set off for the Town\nHall, and had an address from the Mayor and a reply from\nHis Ex. This was the one about which one of the aldermen\nsaid, when discussing the question of our reception, and the\nexpense of it, that ' a nice little speech from the Governor-\nGeneral would cost nothing.'\nPeople were presented to us after it, and then we went\nto tea at the Macphersons'. There was a very pleasant\ndinner of thirty people here in the evening.\nThursday, i ith.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I went to the Mechanics' Institute\nto receive an address. A ball given in the evening was very JAN. 1877\nTORONTO\nnicely managed, and handsomely done. We received the\nguests with Mr. and Miss Macdonald, and then walked\nthrough the room to the dais prepared for us. I sat there\nmost of the evening talking to different people, and His Ex.\ndanced everything till early next morning.\nFriday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After breakfast D. and I visited the rooms\nof the Art Union Society of Toronto, and in the afternoon\nwe went to the Curhng and Skating Rink, where an address\nwas read, to which he replied in very happy terms. They\npresented him with curling stones and brooms, and me with\na beautiful pair of skates.\nI skated a little, and D. curled. He had a dinner at the\nNational Club, and made a very amusing speech. Alluding to his duties as a constitutional governor, he likened\nhimself to ' the humble functionary we see superintending\nthe working of some complicated mass of chain-driven\nmachinery. This personage merely walks about with a\nlittle tin vessel of oil in his hand, and he pours in a drop\nhere and a drop there, as occasion or the creaking of a\njoint may require; while his utmost vigilance is directed\nto no higher aim than the preservation of his wheels and\ncogs from the intrusion of dust, grits, or other foreign\nbodies.' The ' Grits' being the party now in power, this\njoke on their name was much appreciated.\nThe weather is very cold; there is so much wind we feel\nit more than at Ottawa.\nSunday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Before church we visited the Sunday-\nschool, and then had a very long service in the Cathedral.\nAfter it we drove out to see Mr. and Mrs. Gzowski in their\npretty house; then lunch here; and after it Fred and I\ndrove out with Mr. W. Howland to the General Hospital.\nIt is a very fine one, and we went all over it, and on to tea\nwith Mrs. Howland.\nMonday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We four ladies\u00E2\u0080\u0094Miss Macdonald, her\nsisters, and myself\u00E2\u0080\u0094dined alone, the gentlemen being at the 304\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nr\nClub dinner given to His Ex., where he made another important speech.\nTuesday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094-Such a lovely day at last. In the afternoon there was a very pleasant Httle skating-party at Government House, and in the evening we went to see ' Arrah na\nPogue' at the Theatre. When the play was over we drove\nback, changed our dresses, and went off to the railway-car,\nwhere we meant to sleep. We remained in the station aU\nnight, but there was such a noise that we could not sleep,\nand in the morning we started for Ottawa.\nThursday, February 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon I attended the\nopening of ParHament. The Senate Chamber was crowded,\nand aU the dresses, etc. looked very handsome. The Speech\nwas a rather long one.\nIn the evening we had a very large Drawing-room in the\nSenate Chamber. There must have been 8oo presentations,\nand the room got quite crammed.\nThursday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had an evening rehearsal of some\nplays we are getting up, and all the actors came to dine\nfirst. Of course there were several things to be improved:\nthe gas did not go out when it should, etc.; but by working\nhard we got it aU right.\nFriday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had the dress-rehearsal. Both pieces\nwere immensely successful. D. was delighted ; the dresses\ncapital, and in ' Our Wife' very pretty.\nThe ' Loan of a Lover' came first, Mr. Kimber and his\nsister doing the principal parts, and doing them admirably.\nColonel Littleton and I, Mr. Brodie and Mr. McLean, did\nthe smaUer parts. The songs were all well sung, and we\nput in a few additional ones. The two Freds looked very\nmagnificent in 'Our Wife.' Fred Ward acted extremely\nweU; his part is most amusing, and suited him exactly.\nMr. Kimber was at his very best; indeed, we had a very\nstrong cast for the whole play.\nSaturday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A rehearsal of ' The Scrap of Paper'\nafter lunch, and then a skating-party. There was no snow\n1 FEB. l877\nOTTA WA\n305\non the top of the slide, and consequently no tobogganing;\nand it was too cold for much skating, so we began to dance\nearly.\nWednesday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day of our theatricals. The\nweather is beautiful, almost too warm. Great misfortunes\nhappened to-day. Miss Lea,3 who is staying with us to do\na picture of me, took hartshorn by mistake, and nearly\nchoked herself. Then D. got a bad headache; and at\nseven we had no gas at all! I was in despair. The order\nwas given to collect all the candles and lamps in the house,\nand our cook, who was preparing a supper for 400, was left\nin sudden darkness. His wife was furious, and of course a\ncouple of lamps had to be returned to him. You may\nimagine my feelings : all the passages and dressing-rooms\nin a miserable light; for by eight o'clock only a glimmer of\ngas had appeared. The stage was lighted up with candles,\nwhich dripped over us, and had to be replaced between\neach scene. It was so depressing.\nPeople declared they were delighted; and certainly they\ndid not mind the want of gas half as much as I did. At the\nend I felt much more tired than usual, owing to the worry.\nWednesday, March 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have forgotten to say that on\nFriday, the 2nd, there was a great curling-match between\nour club and BelleviUe for a medal; it was very exciting,\nthe V.C.R. being behindhand at first; but we finahy won\nby two points. We have to play once more before we can\nkeep the medal.\nSaturday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a magnificent day. The trees\nsparkle like diamonds, and every twig and branch is entirely cased in ice. Against a bright blue sky they are too\nlovely. A large Parliamentary dinner in the evening.\nWednesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. went into town, and after he\ngot out of the sleigh he slipped upon the icy pavement,\nand fell very heavily on a step. Some men picked him up,\nand put him on his feet; but he could not stand, and fell\n3 Mrs. Anna Lea Merritt.\nA\nII\n1\nti\n*1\nM\nill 1\n1\nJL 1*\n306\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nagain. They then carried him into a shop, where he lay\non the floor for quite twenty minutes before he could recover his breath at aU. Two doctors came, and bandaged\nhim up tight. They said no bones were broken; but he\nwas very severely bruised and shaken, and in the evening\nsuffered great pain if he moved.\nOf course he had to go to bed, and he missed the ' Scrap\nof Paper ': it went off very well, and people were deHghted\nwith it. They were so interested in the story, and they\nthought everyone very good in their parts. There were no\nhitches at all; the only drawback was D.'s absence.\nFriday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. very poorly all day, and quite unable\nto move. Colonel4 and Mrs. Hewitt came for the large\nmilitary dinner which we gave. There were fifty-four at\ndinner, and the room looked very well. D. so disappointed\nto miss it.\nWednesday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094About 11 P.M.Mr. Brodie drove up\nto say that he, General Smyth, his son, etc., had been\nburnt out, and had lost everything\u00E2\u0080\u0094two theatrical suits\nfor Saturday into the bargain !\nSaturday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had the last performance of the\n' Scrap of Paper.' D. was able to be at it, and in the\nhouse we had the Stephensons and Hewitts. There was a\nvery large audience, and the piece was a great success.\nBetween the acts we had some very good singing and\nplaying. |\nMonday, April 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I were the recipients of\na great- honour to-day. The cabmen of Ottawa, having\nbenefited by the gaieties at Government House this winter,\ngot up a testimonial and an address for us, which they presented themselves.\nThey came at two o'clock\u00E2\u0080\u0094fourteen very respectable-\nlooking men.^ They read an illuminated address, and then\npresented D. with a handsome stick with a gold top and\n4 Colonel Hewitt, R.E., at this time was Commandant of the Military Col\nlege at Kingston, Ontario,. APRIL 1877\nOTTAWA\n307\ninscription, and me with a silver card-case on which is\ninscribed: ' Presented to Her Excellency the Countess of\nDufferin by the Hackmen of the City of Ottawa, as a token\nof esteem. April, 1877.'\nWhen the presentation was over, D. showed them the\nhouse\u00E2\u0080\u0094our sitting-rooms, etc.\u00E2\u0080\u0094and gave them dinner in\nthe ball-room. Directly the wine was poured out they all\nstood up and drank the Queen's health.\nSaturday, May 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left home, D. on his way to the\nCentennial Exhibition at Philadelphia, and I to pay a visit\n(with Fred) to Gwen at Montreal. We had Mr. Reynolds's\ncar, and parted from D. at Prescott. We had four hours\nto wait, but passed the time very pleasantly, walking and\nsitting by the riverside.\nSaturday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After a very delightful week with Gwen,\nFred and I returned to Ottawa to-day, and the baby came\ndown to see us off, as merry and amiable as usual.\nMonday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening Fred, the Littletons,\nand I walked to the Reynoldses', and sat out on the steps at\ntheir house watching the procession on the water in honour\nof the new Pope (Leo XIII.). There were a quantity of\ncanoes with torches, which were very pretty, and the Roman\nCatholic houses in town were illuminated. The night was\nfine, and we enjoyed the walk and the fine view from Erns-\ncliffe (the Reynoldses' house).\nTuesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. arrived from New York at 1.30,\nand we spent the afternoon out of doors.\nSaturday, June 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Ford5 came to stay till Monday.\nThursday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Before lunch an assembly of ecclesiastics arrived : ' His Excellency the Apostolic Delegate to\nCanada,' the Bishops of Ottawa, Newfoundland and Prince\nEdward Island, with all their acolytes.\nThe first-named is Bishop Conroy, of Ardagh, and is\nsent here by the Pope to arrange various matters in this\n5 The present Ambassador at Madrid, Sir Francis Clare Ford, G-.C.B.\nx 2\ni \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\n/I 308\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nP\ncountry. He is a very pleasant man, and after ' doing'\na quantity of institutions, he came with all the others to\ndine here, and he. and his chaplain remained the night.\nWe dined in the ball-room, and were about fifty-five\npeople\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ministers, Priests, Supreme Court Judges, etc. The\nDelegate has been feted and worked so much in Canada,\nthat he seems to be longing for privacy and rest.\nFriday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Bishop was off at 7*30 to have Mass in\ntown; he returns to lunch, goes back to hold a levee, and\nthen dines here.\nTuesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094AU the last week we have had most\ndelightful weather, and not a mosquito to destroy our\npleasure.\nWe left Ottawa to-day and had to be up early, and to\nbreakfast soon after seven. The children were all dressed\nin time to see us off. Our travelling-party consists of\nNellie, Fred, ourselves; Mr. Johnston, who comes as far\nas Montreal; and Colonel Stuart, whom we take with us in\nthe Druid for a few days. We reached Prescott at ten,\nand then got on board the river-boat and spent a very\npleasant day, the weather being delightful.\nThe Druid as nice and comfortable as usual. Nellie\nsleeps in the cabin next to us, and originally intended for\nmy maid. Fred and Colonel Stuart have the two cabins\nin the fore part of the vessel.\nWednesday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got to Quebec directly after lunch,\nand as soon as D. had dismissed the guard of honour, we\nwent to the Citadel, and returned to dine on board the\nDruid. Dinner being over, we again started on our journey.\nGaspe: Saturday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A fine but cold and windy day.\nD. and Fred went off for a little fishing, and brought back\ntwo salmon and three trout. D. was the lucky one. The\nmen say we are a week late (always the case with salmon-\nfishing !); so we shall have to go up and live in the bush,\ninstead of in our comfortable ship.\nMonday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Reynolds, Mr. Middleton, and the JUNE 1877\nFISHING\n309\nMolsons came to see me in the afternoon, and after dinner\nD. and I went over to their yacht. They expect to sail in\nthe morning, and are leaving the fishing in disgust. Mr.\nReynolds has only caught nve fish, and Mr. Middleton\nnine.\nThe only lucky person has been Colonel McNeill; he\ngot thirty-three salmon in the York, and last night there\ncame a letter from him to say that he had just reached\nthe Metapediac, and in one evening's fishing caught four\nsalmon, averaging 29^1bs. in weight.\nTuesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and Fred have gone up to the house,\nso we shall not see them till we get to them to-morrow.\nColonel Stuart is fishing down here, and will dine on\nboard.\nWednesday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094All the morning preparations for our\ndeparture were being made, and at two o'clock we got off.\nWe drove in a buggy for two hours, and then got on to\nhorses. We only go at a foot's pace, but Nellie enjoyed it.\nWe arrived at five o'clock at the camp and found the\nriver very low, but the water beautifully clear. We had a\ngood account of the fishing. Tuesday afternoon D. caught\nsix salmon and Fred four, and yesterday D. caught four\nand Fred six; besides, they have several trout. Nellie and\nI welcomed them home about eight o'clock, and saw the fish\ndisplayed on the rocks; then we dined, and sat at the camp-\nfire till bedtime. Nellie amused herself making ' smudges,'\nand filling saucers with moss and violets.\nThe flies are not so bad as usual this year.\nSaturday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D.'s morning's fishing produced three\nsalmon, and Fred came home with two, and thirteen beautiful trout. After lunch we again went out in the canoe.\nAt one moment I was to be seen standing on a small rock\nin the middle of the river, Nelly upon another, and D. on\na chair, which we had brought with us and planted in the\nstream. We were all lashing the water, but were most unfortunate, and only brought home one trout between us. 310\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVII\nI \"\nTuesday, 3rd July.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I went out with D. and while\nfishing for trout had quite an adventure with one. I\nhooked him at the same time that D. had on a salmon. I\nwas standing on a small rock in the middle of the river, and\nhad neither landing-net nor salmon-killer with me, as D.'s\nman was to bring the net to me when I wanted it. The\nsalmon, however, wished* to go down the rapid, so D., his\nmen, and his canoe, had to pass under my rod, and between\nme and my trout. When I had tired the fish out, the\ndifficulty was to capture him ; but I managed to get him on\nto my rock, and to unhook him; and I had another on\nbefore D. came back.\nHe had arranged to go far up the river and sleep, so he\nstarted off at eleven o'clock, and after lunch Nelly and I\nwent out with Fred. As the salmon would not rise, we both\nfished for trout, and had great fun. To our surprise, on\nreturning home we found, D.; no fish had arrived so far up\nthe river, so of course he did not stay, and we arranged to\ngo ' out' to-morrow.\nWednesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094All busy packing. D. stayed at home,\nand I went out for an hour, and caught ten trout\u00E2\u0080\u0094one\n3\ lbs., and the others smaller. I fish with a beautiful\nlittle bamboo rod which with the reel only weighs six ounces.\nIt was a lovely day; I was quite sorry to leave our camp,\nas I enjoyed it very much this year, and we were less\ntroubled with flies than usual. We had the Captain to dine\nwith us, and started immediately after dinner.\nThursday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A beautiful day, and a lovely sunset\nand double rainbow. 'A rainbow at night is a sailor's\ndelight,' so we hope it will be very fine to-morrow, when we\nought to reach Tadousac.\nFriday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Arrived about eight in the morning; a\nmost beautiful day, the children all well, and enjoying the\nseaside very much. We sat out on the balcony, and\nwalked on the rocks.\nSunday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have spent a very pleasant ten days. JULY 1877\nTADOUSAC\n311\nThe weather has been lovely, and we have sat out the most\nof the day. We were able to bathe occasionaUy, although\nthe water is always very cold here\u00E2\u0080\u0094quite icy.\nD. drew a good deal, and had finished some very nice\nsketches, which yesterday met with a sad mishap. We\nwent on a fishing expedition up the Saguenay, taking the\nGillespies with us in the Druid. We breakfasted on board,\nand then had a very pleasant voyage of two hours to the\nfishing-grounds. When we got back, D. found he had left\nall his sketching things and finished drawings below high-\nwater mark at the fishing-place. He sent a man in a\ncanoe to look for them, who found them, soaked and spoilt.\nWe are now returning to Ottawa to prepare for a tour\nin Manitoba, to which we are all looking forward with great\npleasure.\n1 312\nCHAPTER XVIII\nTHE NORTH-WEST\nMonday, July 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Ottawa this morning in\ngood spirits and in smartish clothes, which we put on for\nthe guard of honour and the friends who come to see us\nstart. Once really off, we arrayed ourselves in cooler and\nmore suitable travelling garments.\nThe day was not so hot as we expected, and when bedtime came we all acknowledged that the time had flown.\nThe maids, who are travelling more luxuriously than any\nladies on board, grumble at having to sleep in the ordinary\nPullman. Nellie and I have a cabin together.\nTuesday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The train behaved in an extraordinary\nmanner during the night. It rushed along at a furious\npace for a couple of miles, pulled up with a frightful bump,\nstopped to shriek, went on again after three or four jerks,\nand in this way kept us thoroughly awake for what appeared\nthe whole night, but was, I suppose, less than half of it. I\nfelt a little the worse for the night's shaking, but a good\nbreakfast in our own car and an hour spent outside of it\nin the fresh morning air quite revived me.\nWe had such a dusty day: five minutes sufficed to cover\ntables, sofas, our faces, hands and hair with the dirtiest\npowder; and it was quite useless to wash, for we became as\nbad as ever immediately after. We were so glad when we\narrived at Lake Michigan, and felt the cool breeze from JULY 1877\nST. PAUL\n313\nover its surface, and saw hundreds of people bathing in the\nrefreshing water. At Chicago we got into carriages, and\ndrove rapidly to the luxurious Palmer House, where we\ndined, and enjoyed the quiet and the cleanliness, after the\njolting and the noise and the dust of the railway. We had\nan hour at the hotel, and returned to our Pullman much\nthe better for our outing.\nWednesday, August 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had rather a pleasant day\nin the train, passing through a good deal of ' bush' and\nhalf-settled country, and as we got near to St. Paul we\ncrossed a very pretty lake, and then came in sight of the\nMississippi, on which the town is built.\nAt the station a dozen gentlemen came on board, and\ntook us to the hotel in carriages ; and we enjoyed a night\n' on shore ' very much indeed.\nThursday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We breakfasted at 8.30, and almost\ndirectly after held a little reception. A great number of\ngentlemen were presented to us, and then one made a\nspeech, to which D. replied. They told me afterwards they\nwere ' more than delighted ' with his ' remarks.'\nThis affair was scarcely over when I was hurried off to\nmake a tour of the country. In the first carriage D. and\nI, General Johnston, and Mr. Rice went. They were both\npleasant men, citizens of this town; the latter had been for\nmany years in Congress, and was a person to whom everyone appealed for every sort of information.\nThe second carriage contained General Terry and the\nLittletons. General Terry is the officer who was in command\nwhen General Custer attacked the Indians, and lost his life.\nFour more carriages followed, with Nellie, the A.D.C.s, and\nmore gentlemen.\nWe drove to Minneapolis, through a flat country, sometimes bush, sometimes prairie, and sometimes beautiful\ncornfields. Minneapolis is younger than St. Paul, the latter\nbeing about thirty years of age ; it is, I think, more flourishing-looking, and the residences in the town, each surrounded 314\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nwith lawns and flower-gardens, look charming and comfortable. The hotel where we lunched is a very fine one.\nWe soon set off again, and went to see the St. Anthony\nFalls. They consist of a series of rapids and an artificial\n' sHde'; the water was wearing away the rock, and the hand\nof man has intervened to keep it in check, and to prevent\nthe lumber interests being injured by Nature. Then we\nwent over a flour-mill, the flour here being a great speciality.\nThis mill turns out a thousand barrels a day, some of a\npeculiar, very white quality, which makes the most delicious\nbread; it contains the most nutritious parts of the wheat,\nand is made by a newly-invented process ; but I wul not\nattempt to describe this, any more than I have the engineering works on the river.\nInto our carriages again, and off to see the Minnehaha\nFalls. ' From the waterfall, he called her \"Minnehaha\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n\"Laughing Water.\" ' The season has been very dry, and\nthere was very little water coming over the Fall; but I am\nvery glad to have seen it, as Longfellow's poem is one of\nmy earliest recollections. When we returned to our\ncarriages we changed company a little. General Terry\ncame with us, and we went with him to the Fort.\nIt is beautifully situated on a very high cliff at the\njunction of the Mississippi and the Minnesota. As we drove\ninto the court formed by the barracks, we were saluted by\nsoldiers, and found the troops and the band arranged\n(what an unmilitary expression!) on the grass, looking so\ngay with their uniforms and colours. The band played,\nand we walked about, and then the officer in command\ntook us into his house, where we were introduced to his\nsister and to another lady, and through the house on to\nthe top of a tower, at the corner of the fortification, looking\nover the rivers. It was covered overhead, and there was a\nbalustrade round it, ornamented with flags. Such a pretty\nplace ! We enjoyed sitting out in the cool, refreshing air,\nand looking at the lovely view. AUG. 1877\nON THE PRAIRIE\n315\nWhen we left we crossed the Mississippi in a sort of\nferry-boat, which was made to go backwards and forwards\nby the current of the river itself; the flat boat was pulled\nin a slanting direction, so that the stream acted upon it,\njust as the wind does upon a sail, and moved it across.\nWe reached St. Paul about eight o'clock, said good-bye to\nour very kind entertainers, and were introduced to Mr. Rice's\ndaughters, who appeared to be very nice girls\u00E2\u0080\u0094the only\nladies we have had an opportunity of seeing here. Nellie\ncame home in tremendous spirits. In her carriage there\nwas a doctor, who had laid himself out to amuse her, and\nwhom she thinks very ' witty' and delightful. At the Fort\nshe was much interested at hearing there was an officer\nwith a wooden leg; so when one came up to speak to her,\nshe looked at him, and having decided that he at any rate\nwas all right, she asked him to show her the gentleman\nwith the wooden leg. He replied that he was the one, and\nin her confusion she could only think of asking him if it\nhurt still.\nAfter supper we were serenaded by a band, and an\nattempt was made to induce D. to speak to the crowd; but\nhe declined. Everyone has been so kind and civil to us\nhere; we have enjoyed our day very much.\nFriday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left the hotel early in the morning,\nand once more got into our train. We journeyed on all\nday, through swamps, lakes and prairie-lands. In the\nevening we went through some burning woods. They\nmust have been on fire in about a hundred places, but the\nflames had not yet joined together into one devastating\nsheet.\nSaturday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was awoke by the most disagreeable\nbumping and jolting, and soon discovered that we were\noff the Hne. It took us two hours and many shakings\nbefore we got on again. We were now travelling through\nthe flattest of flat prairies, very ugly and very green.\nAbout ten o'clock by the new time\u00E2\u0080\u0094for our watches are 316\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xvm\ni\ncalled upon to change their opinions as to the hour at\nevery place we get to\u00E2\u0080\u0094we found ourselves at Fisher's\nLanding, and the steamer ready to take us up the Red\nRiver.\nWe have to leave our house-upon-wheels, and to embark\nupon the boat, which friendly hands have decorated with\nflags, wreaths of leaves, and flowers. She\u00E2\u0080\u0094the steamer\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nis a stern-wheeler, such as we had on the Fraser River;\nshe draws very little water, and certainly has an extraordinary passage to perform. The river, which to all\nintents and purposes is the Red River (the first few miles\nit is called the Red Lake River), is very muddy, very\nnarrow, and extremely sinuous. I can scarcely convey to\nyou an idea of the extraordinary manner in which it\ntwists and turns itself about; think of a braiding-pattern,\nor of a zigzag path up a very steep hiU; or imagine sailing through hundreds of small ponds aU joined together,\nthe second being concealed by the curve of the first, and\nyou may form an idea of it.\nI can only tell you that we go from one bank to the\nother, crushing and crashing against the trees, which grow\ndown to the water-side; the branches sweep over the deck,\nand fly in our faces, and leave pieces behind them. I had\njust written this when I gave a shriek as I saw my ink-\nbottle on the point of being swept overboard by an intrusive\ntree; and D.'s hat was knocked off his head by it. The\nconsequence of this curious navigation is that we never\nreaUy go on for more than three minutes at a time: we run\nagainst one bank, our steam is shut off, and in some\nmysterious manner we swing round till our bow is into the\nother; then we rebound, and go on a few yards, till the sharp\ncurve brings us up against the side. Our stern wheel is\nvery often ashore, and our captain and pilot must require\nthe patience of saints. I told you when the last branch came\non board; weU, I have been writing as fast as possible\nsince, and now we are ashore on the other side; so you AUG.\n1877\nON THE RED RIVER\n317\nmay easily believe that we travel seventeen miles for two that\nwe make, and were it not a lovely day, and had we not a\ndek'cious air, I don't know how bad our language might\nnot become.\nWe were told at St. Paul that we should be eaten with\nmosquitoes; that no oil, no veils, no gloves, no leggings\nwould keep out the devouring monsters; fancy our delight,\nthen, to find there are none, and that we are able to sit\ngloveless on deck and write.\nWe breakfasted early, and were hungry for a one-o'clock\nlunch, which was more elegant than substantial. Sardines\nwere the piece de resistance, and ice-cream the most 'attractive dish to be procured. I hope dinner will be more suited\nto our appetites.\nThis exceedingly twisty river is the ' Red Lake River' ;\nit is forty miles to travel, though the distance is only twelve\nfrom point to point. When we reached the Red River itself,\nwe found the stream wide enough for us to go straight down\nit, less sinuous, but quite as muddy and uninteresting.\nTrees come down to the water's edge, and one can see nothing beyond them; behind stretches out the prairie, and\nevery now and then we were just able to see how thin the\nscreen of trees really is between the river and the plains.\nAlas! alas! towards evening the mosquitoes appeared,\nand bit us horribly. At dinner (a very good one) we were\neaten while eating, and were very glad to leave the lighted\nsaloon, and sit on the bow of the steamer in the air. The\nnight was very dark, and the river looked gloomy and\nmysterious, and we sat there and watched the black reflections in the water. Our steamer whistled, and in the\ndistance we heard it answered. Slowly we turned a point,\nand saw another boat approaching us. It looked beautiful\nin the dark, with two great bull's-eyes, green and red\nlamps and other lights on deck, creeping towards us ;\nwe stopped, and backed into the shore, that it might pass\nus. It came close and fired off a cannon, and we saw on 318\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nthe deck a large transparency with the words ' Welcome,\nLord Dufferin' on it, and two girls dressed in white with\nflags in their hands; then a voice sang'Canada, sweet\nCanada,' and many more voices joined the chorus, and\nthey sang ' God save the Queen' and ' Rule, Britannia,' and\ncheered for the Governor-General as they began to move\nslowly away, and he had only just time to call out a few\nwords of thanks before they disappeared into the darkness.\nIt was very striking, and we scarcely recovered from\nour surprise and bewilderment before the thing was gone.\nSunday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a very heavy shower of rain\nthis morning, but happily it cleared up before we reached\nPembina; there the American troops were drawn up to\nreceive us and we went ashore, and up to the Fort, where\nwe saw four ladies and some manoeuvres, and spent about\nan hour. A little way further, and we passed the line, and\nfound ourselves in Canadian territory again. The first\ntown we came to was Emerson, and we landed there. It\nseems the people had put up some very pretty arches, but\nthe storm in the morning knocked them all down. We\nfound a platform with carpet on it, and flags all round it,\na very good guard of honour (militia), and a very strange\none of Indians. Some of the latter were in red coats, some\nin blankets, some with painted faces, feathers in their hair,\nbeads, medals, etc. ; others were more quietly got up, but\naltogether they formed -a most picturesque and curious\ngroup. All the ladies of the place were on the platform,\nand D. received two addresses there, one from the Indians.\nWe walked down and looked at the women and children,\nand a second Indian speech was made, and answered. The\nfirst described them as very happy and prosperous, the\nsecond named some grievance to be redressed.\nD. also spoke to the Mennonites (Russians): they are\ngetting on very well, and want to have many more of their\npeople out here. D. explained to them that as far as we\nare concerned we should be very glad to have them, but\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0yifiiLiiii -./1 :i , ru'\nummmmmmomm\n-^\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n\t 1\nAUG. 1877\nFORT GARRY\n319\nb\nthat it was impossible for us to take any steps to bring\nthem from their own homes. They are very good settlers,\nand in addition to the virtues of sobriety and industry they\nadd the advantage of bringing money into the country.\nIn the afternoon we had prayers on board, and the\ngentlemen bathed in the Red River ; they seemed to enjoy\nit very much, and stayed in so long that the mosquitoes on\nshore found us out, and came on board.\nWe were stationary all night, as we did not want to\nreach Winnipeg till a reasonable hour in the morning. At\nfive o'clock the gentlemen got up, and went out duck-shooting, and shot four birds.\nWe have been very comfortable on board, though our\nsleeping-cabins are extremely small, and there is scarcely\nroom to turn round in them.\nWe heard Nellie describe her papa to a girl, who asked\nher to point out the Governor-General, as ' the gentleman\nin the chimney-pot.' She was very anxious to get Colonel\nLittleton to tell her the Freemason secrets, and, failing,\nsaid, with a sigh of relief, ' Well, I dare say when women\nget their rights we shall know them.'\nMy only difficulty is in keeping her at all smart on these\noccasions, for no sooner is she dressed than she visits the\ncoal-hole, or climbs into some unthought-of place, and\nreturns to me, each of her exploits marked by stains and\nsmudges.\nMonday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left our anchorage early in the\nmorning, and came in sight of Fort Garry about ten o'clock.\nThe Red River appears to divide the town in two, but we\nleft it, and turned into the Assineboine, round the corner\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2of which we found the wharf. We had two hours to wait\nbefore landing. Some people came on board to see the\nGovernor-General, and he arranged for me to start half\nan hour before him, and to go to the City Hall, where we\nladies sat till the noise of bands and shouting announced\nhis arrival in a earriage-and-four. IT7WE\n320\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\n!|i ii\nThe town of Winnipeg is rapidly increasing, and to-day,\nwith its decorations of transplanted trees and flags, it.\nlooked gay and pretty. A very large number of people\nassembled round the platform, and came along the streets\nwith D., and some very handsome arches had been put up.\nAddresses were read and answered, the soldiers inspected,\nand then I got with D. into the carriage, and drove to\n' Silver Heights,' where we are to live.\nIt is quite five miles from town, along a prairie road,\nwhich is a little rough when the weather is dry, but which\nis simply impassable when there has been rain.* The mud\nhere is, from all accounts, fearful. The Lieutenant-Governor,\nMr. Morris, told us it once took him nine hours to go eight\nmiles, and two days to do twenty-two miles.\nf Our house ' is a cottage, and lent to us by Mr. Donald\nSmith, who met us at the door, introduced us to his\ndaughter, and showed us our accommodation. The A.D.C.s\nare in a smaller cottage close by, and the men-servants\nsleep in tents. A fine reception-room, and two ante-rooms,\ncarpeted, papered, and furnished, have been added to the\nhouse for us, which we regret, as the place is really too far\naway to entertain in; nor have we the china, or the knives\nand forks, wherewith to give a ball or a dinner!\nWe are near the road, and on the other side of it is the\nAssineboine River; we sat on its banks, had tea on the\nbalcony of the house, and spent a very quiet evening.\nThere is a long programme for this week, but it shall\ndevelop itself.\nTuesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went into town to call upon Mrs.\nMorris, the Lieutenant-Governor's wife. The Government\nHouse is surrounded by a wooden palisade, and has a brick\ngateway, which forms a nice old-fashioned court in front of\nthe house.\nIn the evening we went to a 'Parlour Entertainment '\u00E2\u0080\u0094songs, speeches and change of costumes\u00E2\u0080\u0094very\nwell done, and amusing. Driving back we realised even\n1 u\u00C2\u00BB *ijm\n-*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0- 1 j \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 1 jh|ii,i ii, 1,1.11 1 \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0L..HJ1.L L ... AUG\n1877\nWINNIPEG\n321\nmore fully than we had done before the disadvantages of\nHving so far from the town. The road is a sort of track on\nthe prairie, and we soon found that we were off it. We\nasked the other carriage to go first, and the driver replied\nthat he had no lights ; our man said his lamps dazzled him,\nso finaUy the other carriage did go first. It took us over an\nhour to get back, and if the four other nights on which we\nhave to go into Winnipeg are dark or wet, I don't know\nwhat we shall do.\nWednesday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a visit from an Indian. He\nwas sent by a chief, who lives twenty-six miles away, to ask\nwhen the Governor-General would visit him. The messenger was a fine-looking man. His hair was long, and\nhe wore a fiUet round his head with eagles' feathers fastened\ninto it. He had a red cloth tunic embroidered with beads,\nwith quantities of ermine tails hanging down from aU the\nseams, each tail sewn into the centre of a circle of beads.\nRound his neck he wore a large necklace of bears' claws,\nmoccasins on his feet, and European trousers, which were\ngeneraUy hidden by a large blue blanket, which he pulled\nround him in very graceful folds. We had rather a long\ntalk with him, and gave him some breakfast; he eat a few\nmouthfuls, and then asked for paper in which to wrap up\nthe rest. Mrs. Littleton asked him about his religion. He\nsaid he had none\u00E2\u0080\u0094that the Indians were here from the\nCreation, that there was one Great Spirit, but that he found\n' religion ' cost money, and so it was better not to have any.\nHe was given a.pound of tea, one of tobacco, his passage\nhome in a steamer, and an order for some provisions on\nthe way.\nWe drove into Winnipeg to see Some games, and were\nsitting on a platform, and rather enjoying ourselves, when\nthe most desperate shower came on. Our covering was\nsoon soaked through, and we bundled into our carriage as\nquickly as we could, but not before we were very much\ndamaged; feathers out of curl, dresses dirtied. The people\nl\n1\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 f\n' XK B \u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n322\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xvin\nwere wonderfully good-tempered ; the whole crowd seemed\nto be in a fit of laughter, and it was amusing to see some\nholding a bit of sail over them, soldiers with wheelbarrows\non their backs for shelter, and others sitting under the shade\nof a big drum. One sergeant went about in the funniest\nway, holding a bit of wood over his head, and pretending\nhe could not see from under it. Happily, we had not to go\ninto town again in the evening. Mr. Campbell dined at\nWinnipeg, and lost his way on the prairie coming back; he\ngot up to his knees in mud, and at last made for a light,\nand got a shake-down for the night in a farmer's cottage.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started off after breakfast to visit\nthe Archbishop on the other side of the river, at St.\nBoniface. He and his clergy received us at the Palace,\nwhere two addresses were read. Then we saw the church,\nand went on to a convent.\nThe Grey Sisters have about thirty children under their\ncare; in these thirty there are representatives of eleven\ndifferent nationalities. Each child had a little flag with\n' Welcome' written in her own tongue upon it. There were\nCanadian French, English, Irish, half-breeds, and different\nIndian tribes.\nThe weather was really nice, and we sat on the balcony\nuntil it was time to dress for the ball at Government House.\nWe were asked at nine o'clock, and went punctually, but\n' in honour of us' the other people were late, and we stood\nabout for a long time before the dancing began. A fine room\nhad been put up for the occasion, and everything went off\nvery well.\nAll the ladies were well dressed, and the dancing as at\nOttawa or London. Six years ago, at a ball here, ladies\nwould have come in moccasins, and danced nothing but the\nRed River Jig. This state of society would have had some\ncharm for us, but the change shows how rapidly the place\ngrows, and how quickly outside ideas make their way in.\nThe Jig was danced for us: it is exactly the same as an AUG. 1877\nWINNIPEG\n323\nIrish Jig. The supper was good, and the table prettily decorated with flowers. The fruit had to be imported, as none\ngrows here yet. The Roman Catholic and English bishops\nboth came to the ball for a few minutes.\nThe drive back was very dark in spite of a fine display\nof lightning on the horizon. The second carriage drove\nup against a post, and broke a spring, and Captain Smith\nhad to jump down every now and then to see if we were on\nthe road, and the driver kept ' wishing he was at home.'\nFriday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We held a reception at the City Hall at\nthree o'clock. It did not last very long, but as we had to\nattend a concert in the evening we decided to dine at the\nhotel, and not to drive out to Silver Heights. The hotel-\nkeeper insisted upon giving us our dinner free.\nMrs. Littleton and I went over the Fort, and through\nthe Hudson Bay Stores. The shop is a very good one, and\nI purchased a hat for my rough expeditions, and a jacket of\nwhite cariboo skin, embroidered in silk by the Indians. We\nalso saw the furs. The room full of buffalo robes smelt\nhorribly; but I bore it, being determined to see all I could.\nI believe the smell is not altogether from the skins, but is\nmixed with the odour of the Indian camp. Another place\nwas full of various skins : wolf, grizzly bear, cinnamon bear,\nfoxes of aU sorts, etc. etc.\nThe concert was ' classical,' and its great merit was the\nshortness of it.\nNellie spent the afternoon at the Government House,\nwhere there are three children, but she dined with the\ngrown-up people, and enjoyed herself very much.\nSaturday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There were races to-day at Buffalo\nPark, and happily the changeable climate did not spoil them.\nThey were held in a large piece of prairie, waUed in by a\nstout paling ; numbers of people were there, and we had a\ncapital stand for seeing everything.\nThe races were the least interesting part of the performance, though they were rather lively, for the riders shouted\nY 2 324\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xvin\nas they galloped; there was no such mystery as ' pulling,'\nand everyone went as fast as he could.\nWhat we most enjoyed seeing was a man lassoing a wild\ncow. He rode beautifully, and sent the lasso round her\nhorns; after holding her thus, and riding about a little,\nhe laid her gently over on her side, unable to get up. Then\nhe let her go, but left the lasso fastened to her horns, and\nas he rode fast after her he stooped to the ground and\npicked the end of it up. Once he took hold of the cow's tail,\nand held it for some time. He put the animal down again\nin front of our stand, and a quantity of men rushed forward to undo the cord which was twisted tight round her ;\nthe people gathered in about them, and as soon as the cow\nwas loose there was such a stampede! She knocked over\ntwo men, but they were not hurt, and there was great\nlaughter.\nThree buffaloes were on the field in a state of semi-wild-\nness ; these were cantered round to exhibit themselves, but\nthe owner would not allow them to be lassoed lest they\nshould turn savage. We were surprised to see how fast\nthey could run, and how well they could jump, for their\nbig heads do not give them a very* active appearance.\nSunday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Went to church, and arrived there in\ntime to escape a tremendous storm of rain. I never saw\nsuch a cHmate : one may be wet through on the finest day.\nMonday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove over to St. Boniface to see a\nrifle-match. The day was perfectly lovely when we started,\nnot a cloud in the sky, and such a hot sun; nevertheless, I\ntook my waterproof and umbreUa, and sure enough the\nclouds gathered, and a thunderstorm came on with rain!\nWe were received in an arbour erected for the occasion, an\naddress was read, and I fired a shot, which was off the\ntarget, but which was marked a buU's-eye, and then the\nmatch began. In two or three minutes after we had been\nbaked in the sun, the rain came on, and we had to retire\ninto a large shed, where we lunched, and D. repHed to a til\nAUG. l877\nWINNIPEG\n325\nspeech proposing his health, and then, as the rain continued,\nwe drove home.\nIn the evening we had a visit from eight or ten Indians,\nwho came to dance and sing before us. Their faces were\nmost elaborately painted, and they came up the road uttering the most extraordinary cries. The men were fine, good-\nlooking and tall, of the Sioux nation. They all came over\nfrom the States fifteen years ago. They had feathers in their\nhair, and we are told that each white feather represents a\nwhite man's scalp taken by the wearer, and a coloured\nfeather stands for an Indian's scalp. When they reached\nour door they sat down on the grass and hung their\ndrum upon some stakes they brought for the purpose; then\nhalf of them sat down, and the others danced round, while\nthe sitters beat the drum, and the whole company shouted.\nThey kept this up for a few minutes, and after a little rest\nbegan the same thing over and over again. We dismissed\nthem when we had seen enough, but D. promised to go to\ntheir camp in the morning.\nTuesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to leave home immediately after\nbreakfast, as His Ex. had to lay the foundation-stone of a\nladies' college. On our way we stopped at the Indian encampment, one large half-covered tent, with twenty men\nand women sleeping in it. The men did not seem to have\ncompleted their toilet, and were still putting on their feathers,\nand having their hair plaited. There were some new devices\non their faces. D. promised them some powder and shot,\nand then we drove on.\nThe Bishop of Rupert's Land is building a girls' school.\nHe is already the head, and entire manager, of a very successful college for boys, and after the usual ceremonies\nattendant upon laying a stone we drove to see it. A very\nnice set of boys received us at the door, and showed us into\nthe house, which, for this country, is a very old-fashioned\none. It is on the banks of the Red River.\nThe Bishop gave us lunch, and then we returned to MY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nthe hotel at Winnipeg, where we dress for the ball given by\nthe citizens to-night.\nWe dined with the Governor, and were escorted to the\nball by a torchlight procession. The city hall was beautifully decorated, and a large supper-room was built for the\noccasion, and made to look like a tent, with red, white and\nblue material. The room and floor were very good, the\nladies well dressed, and the whole thing most successful.\nWednesday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have had a very pleasant day on\nthe prairie. We managed to shake off our sleepiness after\nthe ball, and to be quite ready for an early start. D. and\nI got into a small phaeton, Mrs. Littleton, Nellie, and\nAlexander into an ambulance waggon, and our three gentlemen mounted their horses, and off we went, with a twenty-\neight-stone-weight gentleman in a buggy to guide us. We\nwent through Winnipeg, and drove past the Bishop's College,\nwhere we were yesterday, and so on to the illimitable prairie.\nIt is covered with long grasses and wild flowers, and\nis flat as the sea, parts of it so swampy that our horses\nseemed to have difficulty in pulling us through it. It\nhas a peculiar smell, and there is a delightful air upon\nit, and one begins to feel the freedom-of-the-savage raising\none's spirits. We drove in this way for three hours (the\nservants following), our only adventure being the fall of\nCaptain Smith's horse, and his narrow escape of being run\nover by the ambulance.\nHave I told you that we are bound for the Penitentiary\nat Rockwood ? The building is erected on ' the big, stony\nmountain,' which is really only a rise of eighty feet above the\nlevel of the prairie. It is limestone rock, and descends quite\nsuddenly on the other side\u00E2\u0080\u0094like a precipice\u00E2\u0080\u0094back to the\ngreat plain-level.\nWhen we got within half a mile of the place, we were\nmet by some gentlemen, who said they wished us to arrive\nin a vehicle peculiar to the country\u00E2\u0080\u0094namely, a Red River\ncart. These are made entirely of wood, and this one was AUG. 1877\nROCK WOOD PENITENTIARY\n327\nornamented with boughs, and was drawn by eighty oxen !\nD. and I, Mrs. Littleton and NeUie got in, and our eighty\nbeasts, each conducted by a man with ribbons round his\nhat, began to move off. It was such fun, and looked so\nvery pretty and picturesque. Sometimes an ox would\nbecome a little troublesome, but he was soon brought to\norder, and I felt like a barbarian princess as I drove along\nin this carriage of primitive magnificence.'\nWe passed through a beautiful triumphal arch, made\nof grain, with a spinning-wheel, plough, and other agricultural implements on the top of it. D. here got out, and\nanswered the address, and then we returned to our\ntriumphal car, and drove on, attended by a crowd, to the\ndoors of the prison. A very handsome arch had been\nput up about a hundred yards from it, and fifty yards\nnearer to the house was another: these two were connected\nwith chains of green rope, hung from poles with flags on\nthem, and a new road ran between the two, which is the\nfirst part of a road to Winnipeg. I was asked to open it,\nand was presented with a spade. I emptied some earth\nout of a smart little barrow, and then we all went in to lunch.\nOur hostess is a half-breed lady, pretty, and very nice,\nand her husband, Mr. Bedson, is the warder of this prison.\nThey gave us an excellent lunch, and the usual toasts. In\nhis speech D. told them that he much preferred going to gaol\nin a cart to leaving it in one.\nAfter this, we walked on the prairie, to breathe the\ndelicious air, and looked at the snake-hole, where, Mrs.\nBedson told me, they had killed 360 snakes in three days\nin the spring! It seems to be a rendezvous, where the\nsnakes appear suddenly, half frozen with the winter cold.\nWe looked at the prisoners' garden, but when I proposed to\nlook at the prison I was told all the people were asleep.\nWe were dreadfully sleepy ourselves, and were actuaUy\nin the enjoyment of ' forty winks' in our very comfortable\nbed-rooms when our dinner was announced, about nine 328\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL.\nCH. XVHI\nIf\no'clock. The guardians of the penitentiary had arranged\nsome fireworks, and we sat upon the prairie watching them\nuntil bedtime.\nThursday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At eleven o'clock last night there was\nthe most beautiful cloudless, starHt sky, but I was awoke\nby a terrific thunderstorm, peals of thunder, and flashes of\nvivid Hghtning. The driver of one of our waggons was\nknocked down by the shock of one crash, and on our way\nto St. Andrews to-day we came across the body of a cow\nkilled by Hghtning. It was enormously swollen, but the\nmud in its hoofs was quite moist.\nWe breakfasted at eight, and went over the building. It\nis quite new, and the men's department is beautiful to look\nat. At present it is very expensive, as there are fourteen\nofficials to fourteen prisoners. The women's cells are not\nnearly so good as the men's, and I felt the more sorry for\nthis as the one inmate was a wretched lunatic.\nWe said good-bye to Mr. and Mrs. Bedson and drove off\nover the prairie again. The storm had passed, and the day\nwas lovely. About two we reached St. Andrews, one of the\noldest settlements in the province. It is on the banks of\nthe Red River, and is very prettily situated. We found an\narch, or rather bower, there, made of branches, flags, and\ncoloured cloths; the platform inside it was circular, so all\nthe people could see us. D. repHed to the address, and\nthen we shook hands with everyone, and Nellie and I\nwere presented with bouquets in pretty Indian ' roggins.'\nA very good lunch, on the teetotal principle, was given\nus, and our healths were drunk in water. Two mottoes\nin the luncheon-room were: 'Kit Atumiskatinan,' which\nmeans ' we welcome you,' in the Cree language; the\nother was\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nNative, or EngHsh, Canadian we,\nTeuton, or Celt, or whatever we be,\nWe are aU of us loyal in our welcome to thee. AUG. 1877\nLITTLE STONE FORT\n329\nThe young lady who presented me with the bouquet\nmade me a long speech in Cree, trembling violently the\nwhile, and a girl in the school who read a poem of welcome\nwas almost speechless with fright. Then I gave the prizes\nat a ladies' school, and after this we got into our carriage\nagain, and drove five miles more along the banks of the\nRed River to the ' Little Stone Fort' where we slept. A\nvery sad thing happened here last Dominion Day (July 1st).\nOwing to the explosion of some gunpowder, &ve children\nbelonging to the Fort were killed, and our hosts, Mr. and\nMrs. Flett, lost two, so they are very depressed. I hope our\nvisit and the consequent bustle and change may do the poor\nwoman good.\nThis is one of the Hudson's Bay stores, and is quite\na fortified place. . We all enjoy the air so much, and\nhave had another very pleasant day. I have written\nthis out on the balcony while our rooms are being prepared. We have our own cook and provisions, so we are\nnot such an invasive army as we appear. D. is drawing,\nNellie climbing up everywhere to look into everything, the\nothers walking about seeing the sights. It is a very\nrestful evening after our journey.\nFriday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got into our waggons directly after\nbreakfast, and started on our way, rejoicing in the beautiful\nweather.\nWhen we had gone about five miles, we came to signs\nof festivity: flags flying, I and sounds of music, Indian\nwarriors dancing in time to the band, and uttering their\nown extraordinary shouts. They were curious-looking\ncreatures; most of their legs were naked, though so covered\nwith paint that they looked clothed. One had his legs of\na dull white colour, with large black bands spread over\nthem. Another had black stripes. The upper man was\nvariously dressed: either a cotton shirt, or coloured pieces\nof cloth, or shawls were worn; the heads had feathers stuck\nabout them, and the faces were elaborately painted. The 330\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nch. xvin\nmost striking decoration I saw was a large green caterpillar,\npainted crawHng up a man's cheek, and losing itself in his\neye. The chief wore the coat which I described to you in a\nformer letter, and which he had then lent to one of his\nfollowers when he sent him to ask us to come and see him.\nThis band of brethren are pagans (from economical\nmotives), and are not very good friends with the Christian\nIndians we are on our way to see.\nFrom the place where we met this strange assembly\nwe went slowly, followed by the crowd, through the town of\nSelkirk, to the place where another large arch, surmounted\nby railway implements, was erected; for this is the spot\nwhere the Great Pacific Railway is to cross the Red River;\nthen we got on to a platform, and had an address, and\nlooked at all these Indians, and went through the regular\nbusiness of presentations, etc.\nWe next drove on towards the Indian Reserve, and at its\nentrance were saluted by a large deputation, who came to\nwelcome us there. One was a splendid man, with a large\nnecklace of feathers, bare legs, and squares of beaded cloth\ngracefuUy covering the rest of his body. He had in his\nhand a standard, like a gigantic hand-screen: it was a long\npole with a stiff fringe of feathers the whole way down it,\nand red cloth setting it off as a trimming.\nWe stopped for lunch soon after this, and spent a couple\nof hours very pleasantly sitting about on the grass, before\nwe walked on to the grand ' Pow-wow ' place. The chief is\ncalled by the unromantic name of ' Henry Prince,' and is a\ngentleman in a fine red coat, and with two enormous\nmedals on his breast. He received us in an arbour-platform,\nand gave D. a very pretty address, which he answered, each\nof his sentences being translated. This over, the chief\nasked to speak, and then he made a long oration, telling\naU his grievances. D. told him to write them down, and\nsend them to him on paper. We went into the school, and\nheard a hymn sung and saw a canoe-race. We walked aU AUG. 1877\nWINNIPEG\n331\nround the camp, to visit the women and children. The\nlittle babies have their legs packed in dry moss, and are\nthen tied up tight in a sort of back-board. D. had two\nsuns and two watches to present to chiefs, and on his own\nbehalf he gave four bullocks for a feast, so we left them all\nin good spirits, while we had a pleasant drive back, getting to Stone Fort at six o'clock.\nSaturday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a long drive home from\n' Stone Fort' and got to Silver Heights in the afternoon.\nSunday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Bishop of Rupert's Land preached\nat Winnipeg, and came back to lunch with us.\nMonday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Another expedition ! The first thing we\nheard this morning was the sound of rain, and when we got\nup the day looked most unpromising ; however, we started\nabout ten, the four gentlemen riding, Mrs, Littleton and her\nmaid, Nellie and I in the ambulance drawn by four horses.\nWe got on very well for the first three hours, when we came\nto some fearful swamps. Our horses plunged through water\nand mud, the wheels of our carriage sinking, first on one\nside and then on the other ; two or three times the horses\nin the carts sat down in despair, and once they sunk so\ndeep in the mire that the whole caravan had to stop\nand help to pull them out. The rain came on in\ntorrents, and there was thunder growling overhead.\nAltogether it was not a nice day for camping out. We\nexpected to reach our destination at two, and to lunch\nthere, but owing to our adventures in the bogs we did not\nget there till five, and we were all wet and famished. The\nLieutenant-Governor had arrived before, and he gave us\nshelter and some tea, which revived us; then the rain\ncleared off, we made up a nice fire, and things began to look\nbetter. Our cook had been in the most unfortunate cart,\nand had been over his knees in water most of the day, but\nthe moment he arrived he lit his fire, and made us a dinner\nof good soup, mutton chops and potatoes. It was next discovered that three tents had been left behind\u00E2\u0080\u0094three out 332\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nof six; however, we managed very weU without them. D.,\nNelHe, and I had one tent, Mrs. Littleton and her maid\nanother (our maids take the expeditions in turns\u00E2\u0080\u0094mine\ncame last time), and the three gentlemen the third. We\nhad stretcher-beds, with buffalo-robes and blankets on them,\nand dry hay on the floor, so we were really very comfortable. Our camping ground is near water, half river, half\nswamp, and as we can get wood, water, and milk, we shall\nreturn here for another night on our way back. I rather\ndread going through those bogs again!\nTuesday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 We were awoke rather early by the\nnoises of camp-life; wood being chopped up, conversations\ngoing on in every tent, etc., and I had some difficulty in\nkeeping Nellie in bed till the orthodox hour of seven, but,\nas I am very much afraid of her being over-tired on this\nexpedition, I have to insist upon this. The weather was\nmuch better\u00E2\u0080\u0094the sun shone, but the wind was very cold.\nIt was nearly ten before everything was packed, and we\nwere on our way to the Mennonite settlement. Four of\nthese men met us on horseback, some way from their farms,\nand rode before us through their Reserve. You know that\nthe Mennonites have left Russia for conscientious reasons, in\nthe same way that they left their native land, Germany,\nand settled in Russia, because they will not fight, and these\ntwo countries require that their subjects should serve in\nthe army. The Mennonites are most desirable emigrants;\nthey retain their best German characteristics, are hardworking, honest, sober, simple, hardy people; they bring\nmoney into the country, and can settle in a woodless\nplace, which no other people will do. Necessity (in Russia)\nhas taught them to make a peculiar fuel\u00E2\u0080\u0094cakes of manure,\nmixed with straw\u00E2\u0080\u0094which is kept a whole year to dry\nthoroughly, and which looks exactly like turf; with this they\nget through the long Canadian winter without wood or coal.\nThey speak nothing but German, and are Lutheran, to which\nform of religion they add the Quakers' non-fighting doctrine. AUG. 1877\nMENNONITE SETTLEMENT\n333\nThey dress in the plainest and least decorative fashion; the\nwomen, from their birth to their graves, tie up their heads\nin coloured handkerchiefs fastened under their chins, and\nwear dark-coloured stuff gowns, the baby's being made\nafter the same fashion as its mother's. The men shave,\nand wear black stocks round their throats. Partly in consequence of this unbecoming costume, all the people, men and\nwomen, are plain. One hundred and twenty families arrived\nin Canada three years ago and settled on this bare prairie\none autumn day. For a week they had not a roof to cover\nthem, and slept under their carts; then they dug up the\nsods, and with them made rude huts, in which they lived\nthrough one of our long and severe winters. This is, therefore, their third year here\u00E2\u0080\u0094and now I will tell you how we\nfind them situated.\nWe drove about five miles through their Reserve, which\nis eighteen miles square, and in so doing passed through\nfive or six villages of farmhouses ; they are not in streets,\neach house being surrounded by land. The houses are\ncottages, very plainly built, roofed with very thick hay\nthatch, the walls wooden, but covered with plaster. Next\nto, and opening into the living-house is a large, building\nin which the cattle spend the winter.\nEverything looks very neat; home-made wooden furniture, flowers in the windows, nice gardens, etc. Each family\nis given 160 acres of land, and the way in which they work\ntheir farms enables them to do so very advantageously.\nSupposing there are twenty families in a village, they\nput all the land together, and mark out the different spots\nwhich are best suited to particular crops; thus, all the\npasture is in one part, all the potatoes in another, and so\non. Each man, however, works his own share of each\ncrop, and has his profit to himself. Their church is most\nsimple\u00E2\u0080\u0094plain deal forms without backs, and no ornament\nanywhere.\nAfter driving through these prosperous-looking villages,\nc= 334\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nii\nand passing through great corn-fields, we saw before us on\nthe open prairie an arbour erected, and in front of it at\nleast 700 people. The men stood on one side with specimens of their farm produce before them, corn grown\nfrom Russian seed, from Canadian seed, flax, etc. The\nwomen on the other side showed their garden produce.\nThe babies and children were out too. In the arbour were\nthree girls, with lace handkerchiefs on their heads, and\ntrays with glasses in their hands, ready to offer us some\nRussian tea, which was most refreshing after our cold\ndrive. The arbour was very prettily hung with garlands\nof flowers and bunches of corn mixed with poppies,\nand there were tables all round it, and little Christmas-\ntrees on which hung bouquets with some German lines of\nwelcome wrapped round each, the whole most charmingly\ndone. Mr. Hespeler, the Mennonite agent who arranged\nthe whole of this immigration, was with us, and acted as\ninterpreter. The Mennonites' most learned man read, and\nMr. Hespeler translated, a very nice address, and D.\nreplied in a speech which delighted them greatly.\nThey never cheered, but when anything pleased them they\nlifted their caps. In allusion to their peculiar tenets he\nsaid: ' You have come to a land where you will find the\npeople with whom you are to associate engaged indeed in a\ngreat struggle, and contending with foes whom it requires\ntheir best energies to encounter. But those foes are not\nyour fellow-men, nor will you be called upon in the struggle\nto stain your hands with human blood\u00E2\u0080\u0094a task so abhorrent\nto your religious feelings. The war to which we invite you\nas recruits and comrades is a war waged against the brute\nforces of nature; but those forces will welcome our domination, and reward our attack by placing their treasures at\nour disposal. It is a war of ambition\u00E2\u0080\u0094for we intend to\nannex territory\u00E2\u0080\u0094but neither blazing villages nor devastated\nfields wiH mark our ruthless track ; our battalions will\nmarch across the illimitable plains which stretch before us KiifjimmwHiiii\n.\nAUG. l877\nTHE MENNONITES\n335\nas sunshine steals athwart the ocean; the rolling prairie\nwill blossom in our wake, and corn and peace and plenty\nwill spring where we have trod. ... In one word, beneath\nthe flag whose folds now wave above us, you will find\nprotection, peace, civil and rehgious liberty, constitutional\nfreedom and equal laws.'\nWe walked round, and muttered a few lame German\nsentences, and were as speechlessly poHte as we could be.\nThis being over, after a song from the school-children,\nMr. Hespeler asked us over to his camp-fire, where we had\nRhine wine and German cake, and where he gave hot coffee\nto the women who had come from a distance. Nellie made\nlove to all the babies, and having nursed one for some time,\nits mother presented her with a cucumber. It was very\npleasant sitting by the fire and seeing the people enjoying\ntheir coffee on the grass. After an hour and a half spent here\nwe walked to our camp, a quarter of a mile off. Some women\nshowed us their houses, and then we dined, and sat round\nour own fire. Presently we saw fireworks rising from the\nother camp, and so we got up an enormous torch, which\nwas seen and responded to by a distant cheer, and one line\nof' He is a jolly good fellow.'\nThe only other thing I have to say about the Mennonites\nis that the great proportion of those here are young, and\nthat everybody has at least six children. Think what a\ngain they are to this country: in three years to have\neighteen square miles of country settled by such people.\nWed/nesday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our camp is on good ground, and\nwe aU slept very comfortably, and longer than we did the\nfirst night. We were packed up about ten, and set off to\ndrive through some more viUages. Mr. Hespeler took us\ninto one house, and showed us the domestic arrangements. The only fault to find with these is that the stables\nopen into the living-rooms. The inhabitants wiU graduaUy\nleave off this nasty plan, but it is their devotion to their\ncattle which makes them wish to have them so near. The 336\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XVIII\nvillage herd and the village schoolmaster are the only two\npaid labourers in the Mennonite vineyard : the clergyman\nreceives no pay. School is not kept during the three\nsummer months.\nWe reached our new camping-ground early in the day,\nand the gentlemen went out shooting; they got a mixed,\nbut not a good bag\u00E2\u0080\u0094prairie chicken, snipe, plover, duck,\nand a bittern, the latter quite delicious to eat. In the\nevening we sat over our camp-fire, and Mr. McKay told\nus some very interesting stories of his life. I must introduce him to you, for he is (to use a very Yankee expression)\nthe ' boss' of our party. He arranges everything for us,\nprovides the horses, carriages, tents, beds, etc.\nThe Hon. James McKay, M.P. (in the local Parliament),\nhas been a mighty hunter in his day, but as he now weighs\n320 lbs., he leads a quieter though still a very active life.\nHe has a pleasant face, and is very cheery, and a thorough\n' good fellow,' but so enormous ! It is curious to see him\nfilling up his buggy, and driving on before us, steering us\nthrough the bogs, and making signs to our driver to avoid\ndangers on the way. His boy of eleven rides on a pony\nwith him, and promises to be as large. I never saw such a\nfat boy.\nMr. McKay is a half-breed. His parents had some\nFrench blood in them, and he speaks the three languages,\nbut I believe he talks Indian at home. He has lost\none thumb, and besides this gun-shot wound he has had\nseveral other very narrow escapes of his life. One day\nhe and an English gentleman killed seven grizzly bears:\nthere was a bag! Mr. McKay shot four, and the Englishman\nthree; but what seems to me the most wonderful feat is that\nhe once kiUed a mother and two young cubs with a lasso.\nHe had no gun with him, and the great bear came towards\nhim on her hind paws; he threw the lasso over her head,\nand, turning his horse quickly away, pulled her over on\nher back, and strangled her ; then he killed the cubs too. AUG. 1877\nWINNIPEG\n337\nHe said he thought nothing of it, as he had killed a\nblack bear with a lasso when he was fourteen years old.\nj Jemmie ' (his fat boy) is always practising picking things\noff the ground when he is on horseback, with a view to\nfuture excellence with the lasso. Mr. McKay knows a great\ndeal about the Indians, and it was very interesting to hear\nhim talk of them.\nThursday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had about twenty-five miles to\ndrive home, and as we got a good deal shaken we were very\ntired at night and ready to go very early to bed after reaching Silver Heights. The younger gentlemen, however, having\ngone to Mr. McKay's to see about some shooting, found\ndancing going on, and amused themselves by trying to learn\nthe Red River Jig.\nI\n\u00C2\u00A3\n41 338\nll ill !\nCHAPTER XIX\nMANITOBA\nSaturday, j^ugust 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mrs. Morris-and her daughters\nlunched with us, and we had a visit from an American\nProfessor, who has come here to study the manners and\ncustoms of the ' hopper.' As I have not a great deal of\npersonal interest to tell you about to-day, I will try to instruct\nyou in Manitoban zoology and entomology. You have of\ncourse heard of the grasshopper plague which devastates this\ncountry year after year. The creature is simply a hideous\ngrasshopper, but he comes in such extraordinary numbers\nthat he literally clears all before him\u00E2\u0080\u0094crops of all sorts, bark\nof young trees, leaves, buds, flowers, window-curtains, ladies'\ndresses. Nothing escapes his great appetite and ostrich-like\npowers of digestion. He flies into your face, he climbs up\nyour garments, he sits upon your food, he lets you walk\nupon him, drive over him, slay him by thousands, but\nstill he forms a thick covering over your palings, and\ndarkens the air with his devouring presence. He has but\none merit\u00E2\u0080\u0094no, two : he does not bite you, and (if you can\nmake up your mind to eat him) the Professor declares he is\ngood to eat.\nThe creature is supposed to be brought here by one\n' prevailing - wind and taken away by another. For two\nyears (after fourteen of annual visitation) the people here\nhave had a rest from him, and the crops are flourishing. AUG. 1877\nINSECT LIFE\n339\nThe common fly is a great nuisance too. We call him\nthe ' house' fly, but he also swarms on the prairie. He\nwakes us in the morning, assists at our breakfast, worries\nus while we write, and makes himself thoroughly objectionable, as a fly well knows how to do.\nIn speaking of the mosquito I must change my pronoun,\nfor the Professor declares that it is only the fair ladies who\nbite. She is a real plague in this country, but we are fortunate enough to have escaped her almost entirely. An\nEnglishman came out last year for pleasure, but after three\ndays' journey into the land he turned back, finding only\npain, and literally defeated by the attacks of the mosquitoes.\nI am told that they often kill animals by choking them,\nand that when so killed, a great ball of mosquitoes will be\ntaken out of a cow's throat. This may be too interesting\na fact for you to digest: stay-at-home people are so incredulous.\nCows and horses have even a more fearful enemy in\nwhat is called here the 'bulldog,' but what we call the\n' horse-fly.' They really do kill horses by the irritation\nthey cause. Mr. McKay told us that by scraping his\nhand along the back of his horse he has taken off 173 at\nonce (don't smile!) and he described to us the mane of a\nhorse standing on end with the crowds of flies in the hair,\none on the top of the other, all struggling for blood.\nThese nasty things come into the houses too, later in\nthe year. I am very happy to add that the Professor\nsays that blood is injurious to all these creatures, and\nthat they are punished when they give way to their unhealthy appetites.\nThere are no rats and no earthworms in Manitoba,\nbut there are squirrels which come into the houses, and I\nam told that mice are plentiful, and are particularly fond of\nmaking a nest in one's best gown.\nOxen are much used as beasts of burden, and one sees\na few mules.\nz 2 40\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nMonday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The gentlemen went out shooting for\nthe whole day, and came back well pleased, though they\nwere unable to find half the birds they shot. It came on to\npour in the evening, and they lost one good hour's sport.\nWe ladies lunched with the Morrises, and met Mr.\nMacpherson and Mr. Campbell, who have come all the\nway here by water (three weeks in canoes); we are going\nover part of the same route, so they were able to give us\nsome hints. Mr. Macpherson did not like it, and three\nweeks of pork and canoe-made bread made him ill. They\nfortunately had lime-juice with them.\nTuesday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We drove through rather a pleasant\ncountry, a wooded prairie, making our way towards the\nWinnipeg River, and did twenty-nine miles in the day. Our\ncamping-ground is on the banks of a winding stream, and\nwe were just settling down when we heard that one of the\nhorses had fallen into the river. We went to look at the\npoor brute, floundering up to his neck in mud; he was\ngetting very much exhausted, and we were almost afraid\nthe men would be unable to save him, but they did\nmanage to get him out. Another misfortune was that a\ncart, containing the men's food and bedding, broke down\non the way, and did not arrive till very late; and a third\nthat my maid is iU. She has been so for a few days, but\nsaid nothing, and to-night she has a fearful headache.\nWednesday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Alexander is still very ill, and\nnaturally thinks everything very horrid, camp beds too\nhard, tin cups nasty; she touches everything with the\npoints of her fingers, and makes a face over everything she\ntastes; she really is ill, and I hope she will like this life\nbetter when she is well.\nWe expected to go through a number of swamps, but\nthe weather has been so dry that happily there were none\nto speak of. We had not gone more than two miles when\na whole cavalcade of horsemen met us. They wore red\nsashes across their shoulders, and rode on Indian saddles, j\u00C2\u00A3KUU2H3Sr'\nAUG. 1877\n57*. ANDREWS\n341\nmuch embroidered with beads. There was one Httle boy\non an enormous horse, which nearly pulled him off when it\nattempted to eat, which it did often. The horses are not\ntrained much, and have very hard mouths. These riders\nwere French half-breeds, and looked very Indian. They\nrode beautifuUy, and galloped by us for over two miles,\nfiring a feu-de-joie every few minutes. When we got near\nto St. Andrews we found that the people had made an\nimpromptu avenue of trees fuUy a mile long, and at the\nend of it an arch decorated with arms and welcomes. This\nsettlement looks very flourishing and well cultivated. The\npeople read a French address, and D. replied in the same\nlanguage. Then an English one was read, and answered.\nAfter this we went on, accompanied for some way by our\ncavaliers, and after7they left us we halted and had lunch.\nAbout nve o'clock we reached our camping-ground,\nhaving driven thirty miles, and having had one little interval of prairie-shooting on the way. When the horses\nwere unharnessed we all set to work: the gentlemen\npitched the tents, we picked up sticks, and made two fires,\nand then I made four beds, and plucked a duck for dinner!\nThis meal was highly appreciated by us all, and we sat\nround the fire and listened to some of Mr. McKay's stories.\nThe gentlemen were made very angry by hearing that\nat seven in the morning a bear was seen quite close to\nour camp ! The men thought of telling them, but did not,\nand it was so close they could easily have got it. Was\nnot that provoking ?\nThe prairie-fowl shooting is very odd. The birds\nremain in the grass quite close to the sportsman, and stare\nat him thT he makes them get up, and then sometimes they\nflop down again before anyone can shoot. Yesterday, the\nmother of the brood which had been ruthlessly shot down sat\ncalling for her young, and looking about quite close to us.\nThursday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Travelling on the Dawson route. A\nhot day, and the road dusty and extremely rough. We\nii 1 342\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nti\nwere very tired by two o'clock, when we stopped at a sort\nof half-way house to rest and have lunch. The hostess\nwas a Norwegian, with five children\u00E2\u0080\u0094four most charming, pretty little girls, the fifth, a baby, seven days old!\nShe, poor woman, had got up to decorate her room for us,\nand to make flags. She seemed such a nice person, and\nshe wept bitterly when we left. Of course she was very\nweak, and she Hves in a very lonely place, and was glad to\nsee some one to speak to; her prospects are not good, as\nher husband is delicate, and does not seem to get on. They\nare just going to move to the Pembina Mountains, where\nthey have taken up a farm of 160 acres. Neither he nor\nshe knows anything of farming, and when they reach the\nplace they will have to build a house. We named the\nNorwegian baby Frederica. The other children had made\na train in the yard, with a piece of stone for an engine,\nsnow-shoes and boxes for carriages, etc. When D. saw it\nhe asked for tickets, which one child instantly produced,\nand which everybody, entering into the spirit of the game,\nbought. They immediately took the money to their mother,\nand we were able to please them with some little necklaces\nwe had for the Indians. Johann Nord is the father's name.\nDuring the afternoon-half of our journey we passed\nthrough a bush fire, but not close enough to the actual\nblaze to be very much annoyed by the smoke. We did not\nget to our camping-ground till six, and then we had some\nnew experiences, for there was no water and no food for\nthe horses. We had to dig for the former, and Mr. McKay\ntried to take his horses somewhere for better gras$, but\nthey would not leave the carts, where they hoped to find\ncorn.\nThis part of the country is wooded, and there is no\nscenery at all.\nWe are in Keewatin now. It is governed by a council,\nand has not a Lieutenant-Governor of its own, though\nMr. Morris is what is called the ' Administrator.' AUG. 1877\nLAKE OF THE WOODS\n343\nFriday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Before lunch we did about seventeen\nmiles, and as the road was rough we were glad of the rest\nin the middle of the day. When we started again, we\nwere told that we had only nine miles to go, and thought we\nshould have such an easy afternoon. It proved a very hard\none. We had five miles of swamp, and a road made with\nrough-hewn trunks of trees. When first made this sort of\nperpetual bridge is not disagreeable, but when time has\nworn furrows in it the jogging of the ambulance waggon\nupon it is not to be described !\nWhen we had been knocked about as much as we could\nbear we got out and walked a couple of miles ; but almost\nour whole journey was over corduroy road, and as we had\nto go at a foot's pace, it was very fatiguing.\nAs you may guess, a' corduroy' road is a Brobdingnagian\nimitation of the material worn by rough little boys, and\nwhen an occasional ' cord' has broken away altogether,\nwhen another has got loose, and turns round as the horse\nputs his foot on it, or when it stands up on end as the wheel\ntouches it, the corduroy road is not pleasant to drive many\nmiles over! In consequence of our slow progress, it was\nquite dark when we reached our camping-ground, and the\ncook did not arrive till half-past seven.\nSatwday, September 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Ten or twelve miles of rough\nroad brought us to the North-West Angle, where we found\na beautifully decorated steamer on the Lake of the Woods.\nThere were a few Indians about: one who is always\ncalled ' Colonel Wolseley,' because he was guide to Sir\nGarnet, on the Red River Expedition.\nWe had got up at six in order to do our steamer voyage\nby daylight; but our horses wandered away in the night,\nand it took some time to catch them, so that it was one\no'clock before we had done the twelve miles, and packed\nour things into the boat. We had to part with Mr. McKay\nhere, and to put ourselves into the hands of twenty-six\ncanoe-men. They all came on board at the North-West\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 \u00E2\u0096\u00A0'II\n11 344\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nAngle, which is a morsel of the United States mixed up\nwith our land.\nWe had such a pleasant afternoon in the steamer. The\nLake of the Woods, about which we had heard nothing,\nproved to be quite lovely: islands innumerable, rocky and\nwooded, a great variety of shapes and sizes, sometimes\nfar away, and sometimes so close to the steamer as quite\nto darken it. We lunched and dined on board, and did\nnot land till it was dark, and the setting-up of our camp\nwas most difficult. We could only get three tents up,\nand I had to be one of four in mine, so we were rather\ncrowded.\nI found that we were close to the house of one of our\nOttawa brides, who has come out here with her husband.\nShe was a Miss Ashworth, and he a Mr. Fellowes. We\nwent up to see her, and found her very happy and cheerful.\nShe has one neighbour nine miles away, and a second\neighteen miles off.\nSunday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had such a pleasant day after once we\nhad got into our canoes and were well started. The weather\nwas lovely, and the River Winnipeg beautiful. We have\ntwo large and two small canoes. The first big one carries\nD. and Nellie and me, and eight men, and a good deal of\nluggage; the second, Colonel and Mrs. Littleton, and eight\nmen. The first small one had the two A.D.C.s, Nowell,\nand six men; and the other small one held three servants\nand six men\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is to say, there ought to be six men\nin the two smaU ones, but two left us, so our servants take\nit in turns at the paddles. We were most comfortable, and\nlay back reading and looking at the scenery, and occasionally\ndoing a little sleeping. Sometimes the men sang the Canadian boat-songs which sound so delightful on the water, and\nsometimes they cheered themselves up by racing the other\ncanoes. Our tents, luggage, and provisions are distributed\nover all the boats. In the middle of the day we landed to\nlunch, and at live we stopped on a piece of ground where Sir SEPT. l877\nTHE WINNIPEG RIVER\n345\nGarnet Wolseley and his troops once camped. NeUie and\nI had a nice bathe, and returned to find our camp full\nof activity; our twenty-four men, and four gentlemen and\nthree servants hard at work chopping wood, putting up\ntents, mending canoes, cooking dinners, and making beds.\nThe latter is a most important office. The bed-maker\ngets a quantity of dry grass and smaU branches of fir,\nwhich are laid one over the other so as to form a spring\nmattress. A buffalo-robe goes over that, and then blankets\nad libitum.\nWe had a dinner of hot soup, curry, stewed beef, duck\nand prairie chicken, and a blueberry pudding, our cook\nhaving got up early to pick the blueberries. The soup and\nthe beef were carried here in tins, the game has been shot\non the way. Monsieur Beselin, our cook, has done so weU.\nWhen we were driving he used to arrive sometimes long\nafter us, when it was quite dark, and in five minutes' time\nhe would be hard at work, and our dinner weU under way.\nMr. McKay, who is a great traveller, said he never saw a\nman who could produce a dinner so expeditiously, and get his\nthings packed up again so quickly. In addition to this, he\nis always in a good humour, and in the daytime now he\npaddles away with a beaming countenance.\nStrange to say, though on the banks of a splendid river,\nwe have no good drinking-water, and are obliged to suck it\nthrough a sort of baby's-bottle filter! In the matter of\ndrink we are badly off; we have brought no wine so as to\nlessen our luggage; we have no milk (except preserved\nmilk), and, as I said before, good water is hard to get.\nTea is our principal beverage, but without milk it is not\nvery nice. We also have chocolate (which makes us\nthirsty).\nMonday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Up at six ; lovely morning; the gentlemen bathed, and we got off on our travels by 8.30. We\nhad another delightful day. We made two portages, and at\nthe end of the second we lunched; a waterfaU, which we 346\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nescaped by our portage, was really a very pretty and important one; and after lunch we went over such an exciting\nrapid : it was a great dip, the upper part of the water being\nquite smooth, and we seemed to slide over it, and then to\nplunge into a stormy sea, the canoe gallantly rising to the\nwaves. At this one there were great cries of ' Back water !'\nand energetic signs made to the canoes behind us to avoid\na certain rock on the way. Later on we had another very\nexciting descent, where the stream carried us at a fearful\npace sharp round a rock; we were all covered with waterproofs, and some of the canoes shipped a good deal of\nwater.\nThe scenery is beautiful: the Winnipeg seldom looks\nlike a river, but nearly always like a lovely lake full of\nislands. They are rocky and wooded, and sometimes there\nare steep precipices of rock. The foliage is varied (not\nall pine), and the delightful weather helps to make it all\ncharming.\nWe camped at frve, and the usual busy scenes were\nenacted. I watched the way the men kneaded their bread,\nand then I made a loaf; they use a little baking-powder, and\npour the water actually into the sack of flour, and do all the\nkneading in the top of it; then they spread the dough out\nin a frying-pan, and put it before a good fire. A very nice\nsort of cake is the result. Pemmican soup is another of their\ndishes, and really it is not at all bad, and it is very (excuse\nthe word) 'filling,' which is a great advantage.\nIt is wonderful how quickly these men put up our tents,\nespeciaUy as they have to cut down trees to make room for\nthem. I don't think they were half an hour getting them\nup to-night, lighting all the fires, and unpacking all the\nthings. Each crew has its own cook and mess.\nWe stopped at a small Mission we saw on the way, to\nget some milk. It is called the ' White Dog Mission,' and\na half-breed clergyman lives there. His wife has been ill a\nyear, has never seen a doctor, and is now on her back in a SEPT. l877\nPORTAGES\n347\nbirch-bark tent, where she thinks she has more air than in\na house. I went in to see her : she can speak English a little,\nbut did not seem to have more comfortable surroundings\nthan an Indian. We were sorry we had no doctor with us\nto help the poor thing, and such eases make one realise\nthe hardship of living in these lonely parts.\nTuesday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather and the delights of our\njourney have been much the same as on the last two days.\nThe only events were the view of one most lovely waterfall,\nand some fine rapids. At the fall the river was about half a\nmile wide, and the fall stretched the whole way across.\nIt is really an enormous rapid, but, except in height, it is\none of the finest waterfalls I have seen. We portaged\nacross, and got into our canoes again at the foot of it.\nBAT PORTAGE\nThere was one rapid which D. went down but would\nnot aUow me to try, as there was some danger that one\nmight be swept into a whirlpool and upset; but all the\ncanoes got safely through it.\nWe have just camped at a portage for the night. We\nlanded at one side of an island, and the canoes and all our\ngoods were carried to the other side of it; there we found\nourselves (to use geographical language, without really\nstudying the points of the compass) ' bounded on the north'\nby a waterfall, flowing from us; on the south by a great 348\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nrapid and a wood ; wood on the east, and an island filling\nup the space between the Rapid and the Fall on the west.\nTo-morrow We have to row across the little basin, and portage\nto the bottom of the Fall.\nThis Winnipeg surpasses aU rivers I have ever seen, being\nso much more beautiful than the other large rivers and\nlakes I have been on. We enjoy our days immensely, and\nare sorry we have only two more of this delightful life.\nD. is so industrious about drawing; he has made a\nquantity of pretty sketches.\nWednesday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I tried to describe to you the situation\nof our camping-ground, and I hope I made it clear that we\nhad just to cross a small bay to the head of a water faU,\nand to portage there, getting into our canoes again 354\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nsisted of a flower-pot, with a geranium growing in it. She\nwent on to Fort Alexander in our canoes. We took a\ntender leave of aU our men, who were greatly delighted\nwith a Httle extra pay D. gave them. They were a most\ngood-natured, friendly, shabby lot; and each day their\nclothes got more and more ragged, but at Fort Alexander\none or two new shirts and caps made their appearance.\nI think our own clothes are rather in the same disreputable condition; for, what with dragging oneself through\nthe bush, sitting by camp-fires, having holes burnt in one's\ngowns, lying or sitting on one's hat, and never having\none's boots cleaned, one is conscious of being rather\nUncivilised-looking when one re-enters society. I have\nbeen happy in the knowledge that after this journey my\ngown need never appear again, and that a misfortune more\nor less is a matter of no importance. I bought, too, at a\nHudson's Bay store, a man's soft grey felt hat, which turns\nup or down, and accommodates itself to every ray of sunshine ; the rain may pour upon it with impunity, and I can\nlean back upon it, so that wearing it I suffer no economical\npangs. The old gown is grey, and I have one new navy-\nblue serge in which to encounter natives; and this is all\nthe finery J. could pack into the canoe.\nNeUie also has a dear old frock and hat, and one good\none in a box for grand occasions; but she cannot have anything of hers on for two minutes without its meeting with\nsome serious accident; the glory of her smart frock has\nbeen sadly marred during the two days upon which she\nhas worn it.\nOf course we have fresh provisions on the Colville, so\nthe pemmican diet is postponed for a time. The reporter\nhas met us here again.\nMonday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094;The longest day I have spent for some\ntime.\nLake Winnipeg is so large we were out of sight of land,\nand the Colville is a terrible ship for rolling. In this fine\n-+ \u00E2\u0096\u00A0vspB\nSEPT. 1877\nTHE SASKATCHEWAN\nweather she rolled all day, and even when we anchored at\nnight she went on swaying from side to side.\nTuesday, 1 ith.-\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started again early in the morning,\nand landed at eight o'clock on the shores of the Saskatchewan. There is not very much to see at this particular spot: trees on each side of the river, two large\nwooden houses at the wharf, and some groups of Indians\nsitting about. They had put up decorations, and fired off\ntheir guns as usual. Mr. McTavish, one of the Hudson's\nBay Company, came to meet us, and took us two miles\nacross the portage on a tramway laid down since July, and\nthe first railway in the North-West. The car was most\ngorgeously lined with coloured blankets, and when we got\nout of it we jumped into spring-carts, in which we did the\nunfinished part of the railway. During the drive we saw\nsome views of the river, and went to the Hudson's Bay\nCompany's store. We then inspected a new steel steamer,\nand lunched; and I put in a rivet in the last bit of the\nrailway, and was presented with the hammer. We met\nhere Mrs. Bompas, wife of the Bishop of Athabasca, and\noffered her a passage in our steamer, which she was\nthankful to accept. She has been travelling a month to\nget here, and her journey from an opposite direction makes\nus feel as if we had not penetrated so very far into the\ncountry after all. We also visited Mrs. Mathisson, a half-\nbreed, who gave us some pretty specimens of her work.\nAnd then came the event of the day\u00E2\u0080\u0094our descent of\nthe Grand Rapids of the Saskatchewan in a ' York' boat.\nThe' York' is a very large, heavy, wooden boat, which holds\nabout twenty people; and the rapids we went down are\nfour miles long. They are simply extremely rough water,\nand we found them more sea-sicky and less exciting than\nthe Winnipeg River rapids.\nIn our absence one of our servants got a good bearskin from a man who killed the animal last night; he saw\nanother bear there, but we have no time to go after it. We 356\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nfished, but though we saw a man with a great barrowful of\nbeautiful' white fish' fresh out of the water, caught nothing\nourselves. Colonel Littleton got three pike in the morning.\nD. saw an Indian chief, and gave him a gun.\nWe started off on our journey home about &ve o'clock,\nand looked forward with dread to Lake Winnipeg.\nWednesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a very good night, and,\nstill better, a beautiful day, so we enjoyed our voyage. We\ntalked to Mrs. Bompas, and heard her missionary experiences. She lives in a place where she never has milk or\nbutter, bread only three times a week (as flour costs |J| a\nbag), and fresh meat very rarely\u00E2\u0080\u0094pork and pemmican being\nher chief food all the year round. No spirit is allowed to\nbe sold in the North-West, so ' the pleasures of the bottle '\nare also denied the inhabitants of these distant regions.\nIn the middle of the day we went ashore to see some\nIndians. The Chief was such a funny old man. He gave\nwonderful expression to his one remark, repeated in a\nvariety of ways while D. was speaking to him ; all he ever\nsaid being 'Ah!' ' Eh !' 'Ah!' ' Eh!'; but one understood\nhis gratitude, his wonder, his assent, and all his feelings,\nperfectly well each time he emitted the sound. The receipt\nof a gun evoked a very well-satisfied ' Ah !' but the mention\nof pork and flour brought forth an enthusiastic ' Eh !' and\na shout from his people.\nThursday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u00944 a.m. : Rolling, rolling, doors banging, jugs upsetting all the morning; no more sleep to be\nhad, and the melancholy news that it is quite impossible\nto land at Gimla to greet us when we feebly struggle down\nto breakfast.\nGimla is the Icelandic settlement which D. must see,\nand the alternative before us is either to roll about at\nanchor until the wind shifts, which it may do in a day or\ntwo, or to go all the way to the Stone Fort to coal, and\nreturn to-morrow (always provided the wind changes).\nD. thought the first alternative was out of the question SEPT. l877\nGIMLA\n357\nfor me, so we settled to come to the Stone Fort\u00E2\u0080\u0094and here\nI am.\nOnce safe in a house, with the memory of the roUing\nfresh upon me, I could not make up my mind to seven\nhours more to Gimla and seven back again; so Nellie,\nMrs. Littleton, my maid, and I remain here for the night,\nwhile D. and the gentlemen, having arrived here at two,\nstarted back again at five.\nThey will get to the mouth of the river before it is dark,\nanchor there, and, if they can land, go on to Gimla in the\nmorning.\nIt has been such a dreadful afternoon\u00E2\u0080\u0094pouring rain,\nand two fearful thunderstorms. I shall have to give you a\nsecond-hand account of Gimla. I am very sorry not to\nhave seen it, but the Colville is such a lively little steamer\nin rough water that I dreaded fourteen hours more of her !\nWe have telegraphed for horses, and hope to leave this\nto-morrow. Meantime, Mr. and Mrs. Flett are making us\nvery comfortable.\nD. left with a very bad headache; he was up and down\nall night, saving all our goods from being flung about the\ncabin, so I was not surprised that he had one.\nWe landed Mrs. Bompas at the house of Archdeacon\nCowley, where she is going to spend the winter.\nFriday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our carriages arrived very early in the\nmorning, and we were able to start before noon in the\nambulance, or, as my maid calls it, the ' rumble-tumble\nmachine.'\nWe had, during the next six hours, a real specimen of Red\nRiver mud. Imagine driving twenty-five miles over a field\nof clay soil which has just been harrowed, and you may\nacquire some notion of the way in which our wheels were\nclogged with mud, and the horses' tails weighted down\nwith great balls of it. Happily it was fine overhead, and\nwe got' home' at five.\nWe had six mail-bags to open% and were busy tiU\nU 358\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\ndinner-time reading our letters. The housemaid cooked\nfor us, and we enjoyed the quiet evening after aU our\ntravelling.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such a pouring morning ! We are so\nglad to be safe at Silver Heights.\nHis Ex. got to Gimla yesterday. He spoke to the Icelanders, and said in his speech: ' The homesteads I have\nvisited seem well-built and commodious, and are certainly\nsuperior to any of the farmhouses I remember in Iceland ;\nwhile the gardens and little clearings which have begun to\nsurround them show that you have already tapped an\ninexhaustible store of wealth in the rich alluvial soil on\nwhich we stand.' He then welcomed them to this country,\nsaying, 'It is a country in which you will find yourselves\nfreemen, serving no overlord, and being no man's men\nbut your own; each master of his own farm, like the\nUdalmen and Bonders of old days'; and concluded with\nthese words: ' I trust you will continue to cherish for aU\ntime the heart-stirring literature of your nation, and that\nfrom generation to generation your little ones will continue\nto learn in your ancient Sagas that industry, energy, fortitude, perseverance, and stubborn endurance which have\never been the characteristics of the noble Icelandic race.'\nThe gentlemen arrived this afternoon, but the servants\ndid not get through the mud till late in the evening.\nSunday, i6th.-\u00E2\u0080\u0094So cold ! We are thankful for a fire,\nand shiver at the thought of our camp to-morrow.\nChurch in the morning, and in the afternoon a visit\nfrom eight men, three ladies, and two children\u00E2\u0080\u0094all Americans from St. Paul, who have come here for a trip, remaining only two days, and coming in for bad weather.\nThey brought me all sorts of messages from the ladies\nof St. Paul, who regretted so much that they had not seen\nme there. They did not know I should be at the Reception,\nand when they heard I was, they ' felt so badly,' because\nthey had not come to it. SEPT. l877\nA LEATHER LODGE\n359\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We did not manage to get off, ourselves\nand our baggage, till after two o'clock; but then we started\nin the ambulance, and with all the usual riding-horses and\nwaggons, the only difference in our procession being that,\ninstead of the portly form of Mr. McKay, we had a clerk of\nhis in our guiding-buggy.\nWe reached the camping-ground at five, having driven\nto it across the prairie; but our provisions and our\nmattresses did not arrive, and at first we thought we had\nabsolutely nothing to eat. On closer investigation, we\nfound that the cook had a few scraps with him, and of them\nhe made us a capital dinner.\nInstead of a bell-tent we tried a leather 'lodge'\u00E2\u0080\u0094in\nother words, a regular Indian tent\u00E2\u0080\u0094the chief merit of which\nis, that in it you are able to have a good fire. We watched\nthe men putting it up. There are thirteen long, stout\npoles. Three are tied together at the top, and are lifted\nup, and spread out at the bottom; eight others are then\nfitted round these, so as to complete the circle at the\nbottom, and to form a frame for the leather covering. Two\ncorners of a large sheet of leather are attached to two more\npoles, and with these it is lifted over the skeleton framework ; these two poles also work the chimney apparatus.\nThe tent is quite open at the top, but the two flaps of\nleather regulate the draught. We had a good fire to go to\nbed by, and to dress by in the morning; but we let it go\nout at night. The provisions arrived late in the evening.\nTuesday, 18th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up early, and were breakfasting\nwhen Mr. McKay arrived. We cheered his arrival, but I am\nsorry to say he brought the Littletons a telegram from\nDr. Grant to say their baby is very ill, and that they had\nbetter return home.\nThey went back to Winnipeg at once, and wiU telegraph\nfor further news ; they cannot get a boat to leave in till tomorrow, and the child may be better.\nWe were a long time packing our waggons and catching 360\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nour horses; but at last we started, and had a cold drive\nover the prairie. D. had a headache, caused, he thinks,\nby the extremely bad water we had to drink last night.\nIt required no microscope to show the animals in it. Of\ncourse we filtered it, but I don't think it was possible to\nmake it wholesome. When we reached our luncheon-place\nD. lay down, and with a good fire we got a little warm.\nThe sun is bright, but the wind is bitter.\nThe afternoon was equally cold, and when we reached our\ncamping-ground I was glad to get the ' lodge ' up as quickly\nas possible, that D. might get to bed. He was very feverish,\nand had a terrible headache.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I found the fire in my leather house\nso hot this morning that I had to let it burn down before\nI could dress at it. D. was better, and able to start\nin the ambulance with us. We drove past Shoal Lake,\nwhere we saw quantities of geese and of large crow-ducks\nstanding upon pieces of rock in the water; our way lay\nthrough prairie, oak-coppice, and marsh, and after a drive\nof seventeen miles we began to see farm-houses here and\nthere, then a Hudson's Bay station, and finally a little\ncottage, at which we stopped, and from which we looked\nout on Lake Manitoba.\nThe cottage is Mr. McKay's. It consists of two rooms,\nin one of which our dinner will be cooked, and in the other\neaten. We pitched all our tents close to the house.\nWhile waiting for the waggons to arrive, we walked\ndown to the Lake, ah enormous sheet of water, like a sea,\nwith no land to be seen across it. It is fifty miles wide\nat this spot. The shore is a beautiful sandy beach, and\nNeUie amused herself with the shells. D. after a little\nlunch felt well enough to go out for an hour to look after\nsome ducks. Captain Smith brought home a bittern, a\nplover, and three ducks, but no one else got anything.\nThursday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The gentlemen went off in four canoes\nthis morning, and NeUie and I remained alone. We visited Sj\nSEPT. l877\nLAKE MANITOBA\n361\nthe Hudson's Bay store, where Mr. Clark was very civil to\nus: showed us his bears, his dogs, his garden, and afterwards sent me a quantity of flowers from it. The sun\nshone brightly, and it was very pleasant.\nThe sportsmen got home about seven o'clock. His Ex.\n18 head, Fred 16, Captain Smith 17, and Mr. McKay 25.\nThey had several sorts of duck, plover, bittern, grebe,\nand coot. They saw over a thousand duck, but they were\ndifficult to approach. D. says the shooting was very\npretty and curious. They paddled to a sort of marsh,\nwhere there were gigantic rushes forming streets, lanes and\nsquares of water. About these waterways they went, trying to get quietly up to the duck ; but the birds were very\nwild.\nAfter dinner Mr. Clark and an Indian agent came over\nfrom the Hudson's Bay store, and sat by our fire. Mr.\nClark has lived here nine years. He has not one single\nneighbour or companion, and is unmarried.\nMr. McKay described to us how he shot sixteen swans\nhere last April. He had an enormous tub made for himself,\nwhich he sunk into the ice; he had it fiUed with hay, and\nsurrounded with rushes. As he weighs twenty-eight stone,\nhe must have looked funny in his tub. In front of him\nhe placed a stuffed swan, and there he sat, and shot the\nfive ones which came to look at it. He remained there all\nday, got frightfully chilled, and was ill for fifty days with\nrheumatic fever\u00E2\u0080\u0094the first ailment he ever had.\nThe wind began to rise in the evening, and at night the\nnoise in our tent was dreadful; the wind whistled in at the\nhole in the top, and the chimney flapped about. Then an\nenormous dog crept in, and alarmed me. I heard a\nrustling, and, looking up, saw a black creature, which I took\nfor a man; I spoke, and the creature rushed out of the\ntent in such a rapid manner that I knew it must be a dog.\nI told D., who declared I was dreaming; but in a short\ntime I again saw this great animal, and again frightened 362\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nhim with my voice (Indian dogs are very shy, but savage\nif you don't succeed in frightening them); then I got up\nand barricaded the door of my tent.\nNext moment a howling was heard; so D. at last\nbeHeved I was awake, and got up too, and assisted in\nmaking the flapping oilcloth door a little more serviceable.\nWe had everything we possessed piled upon the end of it to\nkeep it down. The noise in the tent was louder than\nthat in a gale of wind at sea, and there was so much\ndraught we had to wrap up our heads as if we were out of\ndoors.\nFriday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. McKay has a terrible headache, and\nthere is too much wind for the canoes, so the shooting is\nput a stop to, which is annoying. Fred and Captain Smith\nhave walked out to see if they can get anything in the\nmarsh close by.\nThe wind fell, Mr. McKay lost his headache, and the\ngentlemen went off for the afternoon's ' hunting,' as shooting is called here. They did not bring back a great deal\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094the birds were so wild; twenty-six the total bag. A\nnumber of the birds they shot were lost in the rushes.\nSaturday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left our encampment this morning, and after luncheon Mr. McKay, D. and Captain\nSmith went out shooting again. Fred and Captain Smith\ntossed up, and Fred lost the place in the canoe. We drove\non to the camping-place, which is rather an uninteresting\nspot. There is not even a shrub near it, and we are in\nlong grass, on a smaU piece of highish ground surrounded\nby swamp. We can hear the sportsmen's shots, and see an\nimmense number of ducks escaping, and flying over us.\nFred has gone on foot to see what he can get.\nThey came back, having greatly enjoyed their sport.\nD. got nineteen birds, and Fred shot seven duck, four of\nwhich he brought home.\nSunday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had intended to make a very short\njourney to-day, but the shooting yesterday kept us back a. Ph\nO SEPT. 1877\nPORTAGE LA PRAIRIE\n363\nlittle. We lunched close to the house of a German surveyor, who brought us some excellent bread-and-butter,\nand we visited his wife and daughters. He has established\nhimself upon 1,000 acres of good land. We camped about\nfour o'clock, and soon had the pleasure of seeing Colonel\nLittleton riding towards us. Mrs. Littleton has gone home,\nbut the child is better. Our letters also arrived, and were\nvery welcome.\nMonday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Started about half-past eight, and drove\nalong a good road and through five farms to Portage La\nPrairie. There were arches and an address, bands of\npainted Indians, and a long procession of ' buggies.' We\ndrove to one farm to inspect it, and as we did not see much\nchance of any lunch, we asked the old lady for some, and\nsoon filled her house, eat up her bread, tasted her homemade cheese, and drank her rich milk. Her husband and\nson seemed to take great interest and pride in their farm,\nand if they had a market they would be very well off; the\nmarket and the railway will come in time. They have\nmagnificent crops.\nFood and presents were given to the Indians, and we\ndrove back to our camp, which is on the way to Winnipeg,\nand on the way home !\nIndians came and inspected us, and one very tall man,\nlooking grand in his blanket and red leggings, embroidered\nwith beads, sold us first his garters, and then the stripes\noff his trousers; while an old friend of his, with a green\nwreath on his head, and wrapped in a toga (blanket, Nero\nfashion), nudged him, and egged him on to add dollars to\nhis original prices. The man had a beautiful pipe, which\nhe would not sell.\nTuesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Before starting this morning we received an address, and were introduced to a quantity of\npeople at High Bluffs; but we were on our way again by\nhalf-past nine. We drove till lunch-time along a good\nroad, and through a beautiful farming-country. By the\nI I\nI\n1 364\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nway, a farmer told me yesterday that they built no barns\nhere, because it would be impossible to have them large\nenough to hold their grain! There is a great deal of natural\nwood, the country is flat, and the soil very rich; the only\n' ifs \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 the agriculturists have here are, ' if' the ' hoppers'\ndon't return, and ' if' the railway does come,\u00E2\u0080\u0094then they\nwiU be millionaires.\nWe camped at Houses to-night, and I think the only\ninteresting feature of the place was the water. Just as\nNelly was about to drink off a tumblerful, she saw that it\nwas full of large and lively animals. Colonel Littleton, who\nhad not looked into his before he drank it, felt very un -\ncomfortable. I think that, throughout our whole journey,\nwater has been our greatest difficulty; though we have\nalways had ' water, water everywhere,' there was generally\n' not a drop to drink,' unless your filter was at hand. The\nsettlers seem to get accustomed to it; but it would have\nmade us very ill, I am sure.\nWednesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At twelve o'clock to-day we reached\nSilver Heights, and our journey is virtually over. We have\nall enjoyed it very much, and are well and much sunburnt\nafter six weeks of almost constant open air. Our good luck\nin weather has been extraordinary; there was only one single\nnight that we were driven from our camp-fire by rain. The\nbad weather always seemed to come the days that we had\na roof to shelter us, and this morning's drive was cold enough\nto make us glad that our camping out is over. Our leather\nlodge was very comfortable, though a little smoky ; but a\nstove in the hall and an open fire in the drawing-room of\nSilver Heights are not unwelcome luxuries.\nThe evening was frightfully wet\u00E2\u0080\u0094such pouring rain, as\nif to make us thoroughly appreciate our house.\nMr. Mills and Mr. Pelletier (two of the Ministers who\nhave been travelling here) came to see us, and were unable\nto look upon my extreme sunburntedness without remarking\nupon it. Btan^H^n \u00E2\u0096\u00A0Mff.CTMftf\"\"\"\"\nSEPT. 1877\nWINNIPEG\n365\nThursday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Most of us went into town to pay biUs\nand arrange various matters connected with our departure.\nI called upon the Morrises.\nThere are such swarms of beautiful birds about the\nfields and roads. In the distance they all look the same,\nlike small crows; but near, there is great variety. There\nare orange breasts and crimson breasts, red-brown heads,\ntwo or three coloured feathers in a wing, and all the rest of\nevery bird black. They must do a great deal of harm to\nthe grain, one would think.\nFriday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and the other gentlemen went out\nshooting, and had a very successful afternoon. The bag\nwas seventeen plover, four prairie-chicken, one snipe, one\nduck, one goose (shot by Fred), one musk-rat, and one\nskunk! There is variety for you !\nMr. McKay and Mr. Donald Smith dined with us. The\nformer gave Nellie and me two buffalo robes, and he has\npresented D. with the most magnificent horns I ever\nsaw.\nSaturday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Last day at Winnipeg. We said goodbye to Silver Heights soon after breakfast, and drove through\nFort Garry and across the Red River to a place where D.\nand I each drove in a spike in the Canada Pacific Railway, the first line in this part of the world. The chief\nengineer had gone to try and get the locomotive there in\ntime for us to start it, but unfortunately it could not be\nmanaged. Mr. Whitehead (the engineer) was a stoker on\nthe first line of railway opened in England, and now he is\nabout to open the first line in the North-West.\nWhen this ceremony was over we visited the Roman\nCatholic Schools on this side of the water, and there were\naddresses both from the boys and girls. We crossed the\nriver again, and drove to the City Hall, where a dejeuner\nwas given to the Governor-General.\nHis speech at it was very good, and the company\npresent were much pleased with it. He spoke for about\n/1\n1 366\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nthree-quarters of an hour, and people seemed to listen with\nall their ears, and laughed a great deal at the amusing,\nparts. He tried to give some idea of the great size of the\nDominion, and, speaking of this Province, said:\u00E2\u0080\u0094\n' From its geographical position, and its peculiar characteristics, Manitoba may be regarded as the keystone of\nthat mighty arch of sister provinces which spans the continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. It was here that\nCanada, emerging from her woods and forests, first gazed\nupon the rolling prairies and unexplored North-West, and\nlearned, as by an unexpected revelation, that her historical\nterritories of the Canadas, her eastern seaboards of New\nBrunswick, Labrador, and Nova Scotia, her Laurentian\nlakes and valleys, corn lands and pastures, though themselves more extensive than half-a-dozen European kingdoms,\nwere but the vestibules and ante-chambers to that till then\nundreamed-of dominion, whose illimitable dimensions alike\nconfound the arithmetic of the surveyor and the verification of the explorer. It was hence that, counting her past\nachievements as but the preface and prelude to her future\nexertions and expanding destinies, she took a fresh departure, received the afflatus of a more imperial inspiration,\nand felt herself no longer a mere settler along the banks\nof a single river, but the owner of half a continent; and in\nthe amplitude of her possession, in the wealth of her resources, in the sinews of her material might, the peer of any\npower on the earth.'\nD. had two addresses after lunch, and about four o'clock\nwe got to the hotel, and received people till five, saying\n' good-bye' to all who came. Then we went over to the\nMorrises', and had a cup of tea; after which we got on board\nthe Minnesota, and started on our return journey amidst\nmuch firing and shouting and waving of adieux.\nOne dear old member of Parliament (who came as Fal-\nstaff to our fancy baU) was quite overcome by the grief of\nparting with us, and almost fell into the water because he SEPT. l877\nUP THE RED RIVER\n367\nwould continue his parting speeches until the gangway was\npartially removed.\nWe were very sorry to say farewell to Mr. McKay, whose\nsubstantial figure, in his well-known buggy, was one of the\nlast things we saw as we steamed away.\nWe felt very tired in the evening, for this had been a\nhard day.\nSunday, 30th. \u00E2\u0080\u0094The Minnesota's screw shakes so much\nthat I find great difficulty in writing at all; but as we travel\nstraight through to Ottawa, I think it better to defy it,\nrather than wait till I arrive there.\nThere is a cinnamon bear on board; a tame pig, which\nanswers to the name of Dick, and a dog. The bear sometimes hugs the pig, and the dog rushes to the rescue.\nSomeone tied a bun to the pig's tail to-day, which the\nbear perceived, and seized; but while he was leisurely arranging himself to enjoy it, the pig seized it, and ate it up.\nMonday, October 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Steaming up the monotonous\nRed River, we reached Grand Forks at two o'clock, and\narrived at Fisher's Landing in the night.\nTuesday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went ashore, and saw the engine\nNo. 2 of the Canada Pacific Railway; it is going to\nWinnipeg with a train of railway-trucks, and it is to be\ncalled the ' Lady Dufferin.'\nWe started at three o'clock, and slept in the train.\nWednesday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We reached St. Paul, and had time to\ngo and dine at the hotel, which made a very nice break in\nthe journey. The Milwaukee Railway Company gave us\nan additional car here, and sent us off on their line, free of\nexpense, to Chicago.\nWe came this way in order to see the banks of the\nMississippi, but unfortunately we had left the river when\nwe got up in the morning.\nThursday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We arrived at Chicago in the afternoon,\nwent to see an exhibition going on there, dined at the\nPalmer House, and left at nine in the evening.\nH 368\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XIX\nFriday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We crossed the St. Clair at Detroit, and\narrived that evening at Toronto; the Macdonalds and a\nnumber of other people met us there, and sat with us while\nwe had our tea.\nSaturday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094During the night we reached Kingston,\nand slept quietly in our car till the morning, when, directly\nafter breakfast, we were met by Colonel and Mrs. Hewitt,\nSir E. Selby Smyth, and a guard of honour, and went off\nat once to inspect the new Military College.\nIt is beautifuUy situated, and is a very flourishing young\ninstitution, and D. saw all the driU, etc. He then visited\nthe Fort, but I went straight to the Hewitts' house, as the\nwind was bitter, and I had caught a little cold on my\njourney.\nThe Hewitts gave us a lunch, and sent us off at two\no'clock on our way to Ottawa, where we found the children\nweU and in great spirits. 369\nCHAPTER XX\nOUR LAST SEASON AT OTTAWA AND MONTREAL\nOttawa: Sunday, November 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a bad shock\nof earthquake in the night. I am sorry to say it did not\nawaken me ; but several people in the house got up to see\nwhat was the matter, and there are accounts of it in all the\nnewspapers.\nMonday, December 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went into town, and did\na quantity of Christmas shopping, and on our return found\nthat Fred Ward, John Petty Ward, and Price Blackwood had\narrived. I was also very busy most of the day getting the\nChristmas tree ready; it is always a long business. I have\nit in the middle of the ball-room, with a little red-baize platform round it, and then a green carpet, forming a square,\non the floor round that; on the platform and carpet all the\nheavy things are put, and the display this year is gorgeous.\nChristmas Day, 1877.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had such a ' Merry' Christmas. I must tell you about it.\nIn the morning we finished the tree, and then we went to\nchurch. The children were very anxious to kill time, so after\nlunch we skated on the river till past four o'clock. Then\nwe had tea, and at half-past five I gave the order to\nlight up. Mr. Dixon, the governesses, all the Littletons,\nand our guests were present. The display of presents\nwas grand. Victoria was hoarse with screaming over hers,\nand everyone was pleased. Archie (who is at home from\nBB\nII\n*j 1\nH\n11 /\nUM 370\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nEton for the holidays) was delighted, and in a great state of\nexcitement aU day. We were twenty-one at dinner, and\nhad some deHghtful music in the evening.\nNew Year's Day, 1878.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At nve I began to dress my\nchicks for their play; but before that I went down to the\nservants' hall, where all the children of the place were\nhaving their tea ; the servants had decorated it beautifully.\nThen I proceeded to the putting of finishing touches\nto the actors. The piece, ' Fifine, the Fisher Maid,' went\noff admirably, and everyone was delighted. The General\nand his son, Mr. Dixon, and Mr. Higginson dined with us\nafterwards.\nWednesday, 2nd January.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Skating on our Rink for the\nfirst time this winter.\nThursday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went into Ottawa, and skated on\nthe Rink there. Some gentleman had gallantly provided\na band, and we danced the lancers and other figures, and\nenjoyed it much. We are still driving on wheels; but the\nOttawa is at last frozen over.\nThis is the day of the children's party. I had tea for\ngrown-up people in the recess off the corridor, and for the\nchildren in the dining-room. The guests Were all quite\ndelighted with the play, and as it lasted from five till seven,\nwere hungry enough to enjoy their tea. Afterwards they\nhad a great romp in the ball-room.\nMonday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we went and skated in\ntown, and, although it was extremely cold, we danced our\nlancers and other figures, and enjoyed ourselves very much.\nAt lunch the gentlemen were full of tobogganing, although\nthe slide was not quite ready. There was a good deal of\nfun and chaff about it, and they soon went out, and at once\ndecided to go down four on one toboggan. There was so\nmuch loose snow that the person steering the toboggan was\nblinded, and they came against a tree, and J. P. Ward was;\nseriously hurt. Fred rushed up to the house for brandy\nand assistance, and in a short time they carried him up. JAN. I\n878\nOTTA WA\n371\nThe doctor got here in half an hour, and found his leg\nbroken and his side much bruised. He suffered greatly. It\nis so unfortunate; he was enjoying everything so much,\nand now his whole winter is spoilt.\nOf the other three, Price was stunned and bruised, Fred\nknocked and bruised, and Fred Ward the least hurt.\nMonday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Archie and Terence left us on their way\nto school in England. Mr. Higginson went with them to\nNew York. We all miss them so much, and spent a\nmiserable day. In the evening we got letters from them\nwritten in the train.\nThursday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Katie and I went into town and had a\ndelightful skate. Mr. Haycock had had a pole put up in\nthe Rink, from which depended a number of ribbons. The\ndancers stood round it, and each one held a ribbon in her\nhand; then we went round and round to music, as in the\nlast figure of the lancers, the ribbons being lifted over and\nunder, so that gradually they got plaited round the pole.\nThen we stopped, turned round, and going in the opposite\ndirection unplaited them again.\nA great number of skaters had collected, and we had a\nvery amusing morning-party.\nFriday, February 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The day of the opening of\nParliament. It was very fine weather, but we had to go in\ncarriages, not in sleighs. The Senate Chamber was full,\nand looked very handsome: the ladies well got-up, the\njudges very splendid, etc. Having dressed in our finery so\nearly, we were somewhat tired on our return, but after tea\nwe had to dress again for dinner and the Drawing-room.\nA thousand people passed\u00E2\u0080\u0094a steady stream for an hour and\na quarter\u00E2\u0080\u0094so many curtseys were exhausting.\nMonday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We left Ottawa, a great party, to stay\nat Montreal as guests of the City. The only two left behind\nwere Cis,1 who is ill, and Mr. J. P. Ward, who was to\nget up for the first time to-day. Mr. Bierstadt and Mr.\n1 My sister-in-law'(Mrs. Rowan Hamilton).\nbb 2 372\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nHayes go with us. The latter is the son of the President\nof the United States.\nWe reached Montreal at six, and met with a splendid\nreception. The place was crowded, and there was much\ncheering, a lovely bouquet for me, an address to D., and\na drive through the crowd with four horses to the Windsor\nHotel, the bells of the town ringing out a welcome.\nWe are by way of opening this new hotel\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Windsor.\nIt is a very fine one, and the Reception Committee were\nawaiting us in the gorgeous drawing-rooms; in reply to\ntheir words of introduction, D. told them that the humble\nrooms at Government House would not be able to contain\nhim on his return.\nOur dinner was very good, but a long time being allowed\nfor digestion between each course, we retired before the\npudding, and found Gwen waiting to take the gentlemen\non to a.baU.\nTuesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D., I, and a certain proportion of our\nparty, lunched with Mr. McKay, a dear old gentleman who\nhas spent his hard-earned wealth in building a great deaf-\nand-dumb institution, which he to-day presents to the City\nthrough the Governor-General.\nAfter lunch we drove to the Institution, our sleigh being\nescorted by a troop of cavalry. The building was ornamented\nwith flags, and was full of people. There were prayers first,\nthen addresses, and an inspection of the rooms.\nAfterwards we went to the Villa Maria Convent, where a\nvery striking scene was presented to us. Turning in from\nthe cold and the daylight (it was a snow-stormy day), we\nfound ourselves in a brilliantly-lighted room, full of young\nladies, saw a gorgeous display of flowers, and heard sounds\nof music\u00E2\u0080\u0094' God save the Queen ' played upon harps and\npianos, and sung by numerous voices. All the girls wore\nblack dresses for the Pope's death (Pius IX.), but they had\nwhite lace bibs and cuffs, broad' sashes of coloured ribbon\nover the shoulder, and in their hands long sprays of arti- FEB. 1878\nMONTREAL\n873\nficial flowers. The hall is a very large one, and all along\nthe walls were rows of girls; at the end of the room a\nrising bank of the pupils, and in the centre three platforms : on one the pianos, on the second five harps, and on\nthe third, D. and I.\nWe had a good deal of music and six addresses\u00E2\u0080\u0094two\nin French and two in English, and two from little girls,\nwho presented bouquets.\nWhen we got home we had to dress for dinner and a\nball. The latter was given for us in a very fine dining-room\nin this hotel. There were 2,000 people at it, and it was in\nevery way a success. We entered the room in a procession,\nand D. danced everything, while I ' did ' a few squares, and\nwas introduced to numbers of ladies. Everything went\nmerrily till 4.30 a.m., when we retired to bed. Katie2 enjoyed\nthis, her first ball, very much, and danced everything.\nWednesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went to M'Gill College, and at\nthe gates the students met us and dragged us up to the\ndoor. Happily, no one was hurt, though these volunteer\nhorses were constantly falling, being dragged by the rope,\nand half driven over.\nI was taken up to the Hall, where I waited the arrival\nof the new LL.D., for D. was down in the library being\nclothed in cap and gown. The students soon filled the hall\ncompletely, so that it was impossible for His Ex. to get\nthrough it, and he had to be brought by a back stair, and\nappeared through a trap-door on the platform, where the\nlearned sat.\nThe address and reply were in Greek, and I was listening\nin a vacant manner, when I saw the Greek scholars smiling\nat me, and I found that the word Countess had been introduced into the harangue. I came in for a share of glory\nalso when the students presented me with a very handsome\nsilver bouquet-holder, made on purpose for me, with\nCanadian and English symbols, the arms of the College, and\n2 My sister (Lady Nicolson).\niH 374\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nan inscription engraved upon it. After a speech from the\npresident, the new graduate signed the register, was handed\nhis diploma, and was called upon for an address.\nI suppose a learned and serious speech was expected;\nbut D. surprised his audience by a few light and airy\nsentences, and I don't think I ever heard him speak more\neffectively. He had not thought of anything particular to\nsay, and did not wish to enter into a serious speech about\nnothing; and, as it turned out, his impromptu jokes were\nmuch better, I had one or two people to tea on my return,\nand after dinner we went to the theatre.\nThe house was crammed, and presented a most brilliant\nspectacle. The piece was, in its way, unique, for it was\nmade the excuse for a grand military display. There were\nat least 160 artillery men and officers, and a number of\nsoldiers in red, exhibited on the stage as about to embark\nfor India. The steamer with its funnel was in the background, the bands played, the regiments marched on board;\nfive horses at a time came on, one ridden, the others dragging\nthe gun-carriage. All was done in regular military fashion,\nand it made a splendid scene. This was got up for us\nby the Volunteers, and it was most successful. We did not\nleave the theatre till midnight, and then were dragged by\nthe snow-shoers of Montreal to the hotel. Our two-legged\nsteeds wore a very picturesque costume, and were very lively\nhorses and most cheery companions. ' To bed, to bed,\nsaid Sleepy Head.'\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to leave early to drive a long\nway out to the Sacred Heart Convent. It is one of the\nmost exclusive of the nunneries. When we got there we\nwere received by the ladies, many of them very charming\nwomen. The Lady Superior is an Italian, and very clever\nand pleasant. They gave us a cup of hot coffee, and then\ntook us into the room where the children were assembled.\nIt is a long, narrow room, the walls covered with white-and-\ngold. At the far end of the room was a stage with rustic FEB. 1878\nMONTREAL\n07 0\narbours oh it and quantities of flowers, and on it was performed an original musical operetta, in which all the flowers\ntook part, and which ended in the 'Rose' carrying a magnificent basket of flowers to His Ex., each of her attendants\nholding a ribbon attached to it.\nWhen this was all over we were shown the house, and\nthe fine chapel where the girls, with white veils thrown\nover their heads, marched two and two up the aisle, stopping for a second at the altar, and then on to their places,\nwhere they knelt, filling all the centre part of the church,\nthe colours of the painted windows lighting up their white\nfigures, and colouring them with a rainbow light, which\nlooked very beautiful. The organ played, and there was\nsome very good singing, the last thing being a sort of grace,\nfor after leaving the chapel we went straight to lunch. There\nwas a large party, and the nuns did the honours. They\nhelped to wait upon us, and at the same time talked to us\nso pleasantly.\nDriving home, we went up the mountain\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is to say,\nthrough Mount Royal Park. It is only just made. The\nroad winds up to a great height, and the views from it are\nlovely. It will be a very beautiful drive to have so near a\ncity. [\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 |- I \u00C2\u00A7 t\nThis evening there was the banquet, and I am sure no\nGovernor of any kind ever received a more magnificent\novation than this at the end of his term of office. The\ndinner was in the great ball-room. There was one long\ntable down the side of the room, and ten others across,\nholding in all 350 people. The first thing of which I can\ntell you from personal experience was my own entrance.\nI went in with my sisters and a few other ladies to hear\nthe speeches. When I came in, everyone stood up, most\nof them on their chairs, and cheered me for so long that,\nafter acknowledging their greeting repeatedly, I sat down\nbefore silence was restored. Sir Francis Hincks was the\nchairman, and of course the Queen's health came first,\nI 376\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nand was enthusiastically received. As a special compliment, D. next proposed the health of the President of the\nUnited States (Mr. Hayes), his son being present.\nThe toast of the evening was the signal for most tremendous cheering\u00E2\u0080\u0094the gentlemen stood on their chairs,\nand waved handkerchiefs; and when D. spoke, almost\nevery sentence was followed by the greatest applause, and\naU the amusing part by roars of laughter. Nothing could\nhave gone off better or more brilliantly than this banquet\ndid, and I wish I had time to give you a better account\nof it.\nFriday, i $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had to be at the Curling Rink at 10.30\nto play a great match\u00E2\u0080\u0094the Viceregal Club against the Three\nRivers\u00E2\u0080\u0094for the Caledonian medal. The game was an exceedingly close one, but, alas ! we lost by one point. The\nRink was beautifully decorated, even the ice being covered\nwith designs ; and our side played very well, though it was\nbeaten.\nI skated for an hour, and hurried home to lunch, and\nto dress for a reception we had at three. That over, I\nhad the Chief Justice to tea, and then got ready for a\ndinner. In the evening we opened an exhibition of pictures\nof the Art Association of Montreal, and D. announced that\nMr. Bierstadt was going to present the Society with a\npicture. The hall of the hotel, in which the exhibition was\nheld, is an immense place with a marble floor, and looked\nvery splendid, filled as it was with gaily-dressed company.\nSome of the principal people came to our room afterwards.\nSaturday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our week of ovation is over, and this\nmorning we started for home. Gwen and her dear little\nbaby came to breakfast, and at ten we were off, first of all\nto visit an indiarubber manufactory and a cotton manufactory, and then to the station, where there was an\naddress.\nOn the way to Ottawa, by a new line of railway, D. had\nat least one address at every station, sometimes three\u00E2\u0080\u0094and I FEB. 1878\nOTTA WA\n377\ngenerally got a lovely bouquet. We were very kindly, and\nindeed affectionately, received everywhere, and the whole\ncountry seemed to turn out to greet us. A number of\ngentlemen came part of the way home with us. Lady\nSykes and her brother are staying here.\nI thought it best to finish the happy part of my Journal\nfirst; but there has been a drawback to my pleasure in the\nweek. While D. was dining on Friday, and just before I\nwent in to hear the speeches, I received a telegram to say\nthat Basil had scarlet fever. He is going on extremely\nwell, but of course I shall be very anxious until I know\nwhether this horrid disease spreads. The other children\nare separated, but they were with him when he first feU\nill. His room is in the centre of the house, and the isolation is not as perfect as I could wish. Here we are, with\nCis in bed, Mr. Ward laid up with a broken leg, scarlet\nfever in the house, and visitors on the top of aU this who\n' are not in the least afraid.' Katie remained at Montreal\nwith Gwen.\nBut for these domestic misfortunes our week at Montreal would have been an unqualified pleasure. We found\neverywhere so much personal affection and kindness, and\nwere in every way so magnificently received, that nothing\ncould have been more delightful than it was.\nMonday, March 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Harvey3 dined with us, and\nwe had music in the evening. Russell and he played the\nviolin, and Mr. J. P. Ward sang the ' Lost Chord ' to us.\nHe has a most beautiful tenor voice. He has only just\nrecovered from the tobogganing accident.\nSunday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Ward fell ill to-day, but we were not\nat all alarmed about him till the evening, when the doctor\ntold us his illness was most serious, and that there was no\nhope. He was told so, too, and immediately settled all his\naffairs and wrote a letter. I went to see him in the evening.\nHe was perfectly calm and happy.\n3 Of Ickwellbury. \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 '\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n378\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nTuesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Ward passed away this afternoon,\nhaving lingered all Monday, exhibiting always the most\nwonderful patience, resignation and thoughtfulness for\nothers. I was with him when he died ; Fred Ward seldom\nleft him. The anxiety was terrible, for on Monday afternoon\nwe were given a ray of hope, soon to be destroyed again.\nThursday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094He was buried early in the morning;\nnone went to the funeral but those who knew him, and had\nbeen with him here. He was a very great favourite with us\nall, and this has been a great sorrow to us.\nTuesday, April 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We put off our farewell gaieties\nas long as we could, but to-day we resume our social duties.\nI spent the day nursing my voice, driving out, and looking\nover my parts ; at six we dined, and our plays began at a\nquarter to eight.\n' Sweethearts' came first; then ' New Men and Old\nAcres'; and at the end an epilogue\u00E2\u0080\u0094a farewell D. had\nwritten for me to speak. No one knew anything about it,\nnot even my fellow-actors, so that it was a great surprise.\nThe worst of it was, that it made the audience so melancholy\nthat the evening ended tearfully.\nThursday, 4th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Gwen, Russell, the Baby, and Miss\nAbbott arrived. Muriel is very pretty, and a dear little\nthing in every way.\nFriday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our last play here. We had an enormous audience, and both ' Sweethearts' and ' New Men '\nand the epilogue were greatly appreciated. They certainly\nwent off well, and everyone was delighted; but all were\nsad to think that we were having our last party here, and\nI know I feel miserable about it.\nMonday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fred Ward left for England\u00E2\u0080\u0094a signal\nof our approaching departure, for we shall have left this\nwhen he returns to Canada. I hate these symptoms of our\nwaning existence here, I have enjoyed it all so much. His\ndeparture makes also the.first break in what has been a very\nhappy family party. APRIL 1878\nOTTA WA\n379\nSaturday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the morning we drove into Ottawa\nto see an enormous map of Canada, prepared for the Paris\nExhibition. We also looked at models of the WeUand Canal.\nHearing that the House had been sitting aU night, and\nwas likely to sit all day, we determined to come in again in\nthe afternoon to hear what was going on.\nThe Opposition were talking against time, to prevent a\ndivision being taken about some Quebec affairs (the Governor\nhaving dismissed his Ministers) until Monday, as the\npolitical meetings amongst the French are generally after\nMass on Sunday, and they did not wish to have the defeat\nof their motion announced to the congregations.\nLast night there was singing and cock-crowing and all\nsorts of noises, and when Mr. Plumb was speaking another\nmember got up and said he was interrupting the music.\nWhen we went\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gwen and I, Mrs. Littleton, and the Colonel\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094a Member was speaking, merely to fill up the time. He\nread out of a book, and gave us the title in full several\ntimes, and said it belonged to ' his hon. friend the Member\nfor Niagara'; and then, when noise was made, he said he\nfeared hon. members had not heard, and so he would repeat\nwhat he had been saying or reading. Singing began\u00E2\u0080\u0094' Auld\nLang Syne,' ' En roulant ma boule '\u00E2\u0080\u0094cock-crowing, and all\nsorts of noises and fun, while the entertainment\u00E2\u0080\u0094as far as\nI heard it\u00E2\u0080\u0094ended with the Marsellaise, beautifully sung by\na musical M.P. When I got up to go, what do you think\nhappened ?\u00E2\u0080\u0094the whole house, both sides, stood up and sang\n' God save the Queen,' and then cheered. Of course I got\nout as quickly as I could. We were told afterwards that\nwe had been as ' sugar ' to the House; that they were just\ngetting very cross when we came in, and that our presence\nput them in a good humour\u00E2\u0080\u0094very good humour, as you\nmay perceive. They were expecting to sit all night, but\nat six Mr. Mackenzie consented to adjourn, on condition\nthat the division should be taken early on Monday.\nWe had a Parliamentary dinner that night, so when I\n\u00C2\u00BB1!.'\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0:\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0080\u00A2 380\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nAh\nwas in the House I instituted inquiries as to who would be\nable to come. On my return a telegram followed me,\n' Thirty will not be able to dine'; so I had the dinner moved\ninto the small dining-room, and cut down from forty to\nsixteen. Soon after another message came to say the\nHouse had adjourned, which was agitating; but only thirteen\nguests arrived, so our table was all right. We had a pleasant little dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Macpherson, Mr. Campbell, Mr.\nBunston, Mr. Odell, and the old Mr. Glasier, who went\naway from our theatricals ' because he did not come all the\nway down here to see a lot of love-making.' Mr. Ryan and\nthe Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms, Major Smith, were also there.\nTuesday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. received the address presented to\nhim by both Houses of Parliament. We\u00E2\u0080\u0094Gwen, Nellie and\nI\u00E2\u0080\u0094went to the Senate Chamber, where our seats were\njust in front of the Throne, Ministers' wives, etc. behind.\nI found it a very melancholy ceremony, and it gave me a\nnervous headache.\nMonday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We began our last fortnight of gaieties.\nGwen and Russell4 are already here, and Miss Abbott and\nMiss Scott arrived to take part in two concerts. Miss\nAbbott has stayed with us before, and is very nice, and\na great musician. Miss Scott is very pretty and nice, and\nsings and plays well. They both live at Montreal.\nWe also began to say ' farewell.' D. and I went into\ntown, and in the Supreme Court spent an hour and a half,\nsaying good-bye to the members and senators. Mr. Kimber\nand Mr. Flemming dined with us, and we had music in\nthe evening.\nWednesday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had our last ' Good-bye ' at the\nSupreme Court; and in the evening we had our last big\ndinner. The table formed three sides of a square, and we\nhad over seventy people. After the ladies left the room a\nsenator (Mr. Vidal) got up and proposed my health; he\nsent round to ask D. if he might, and he did not like to\n4 Mr. and Mrs. Russell Stephenson. APRIL 1878\nOTTAWA\n381\nrefuse. We had singing after dinner, and Fred told us,\nwhen he saw the party off, they were delighted with their\nevening. They said they had left a man in the House to\ntalk against time, and had promised to be back at nine; but\nthey did not leave till 10.30.\nFriday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the evening we went to see Charlotte\nThompson in ' Jane Eyre.' She is not a handsome woman,\nbut so good an actress that she makes you quite forget her\nface. Her voice is very pretty.\nSaturday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Our concert took place this afternoon,\nand was most successful. The music was really lovely,\nand people seemed delighted. In the evening we went to\nsee Miss Multon ('East Lynne').\nTuesday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have organised a bazaar in our tennis-\ncourt to pay off the debt on our little church, and we began\nto arrange it. The carpenters put up the shields on the\nwalls of the tennis-court and set the tables. We carried\ndown all the things, and some ladies from New Edinburgh\ncame to help, so that when we locked up for the evening\neverything was ready, and extremely pretty it all looked.\nWednesday, May 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Will the weather be fine ? That\nis what we are anxious about; it pours all the morning.\nD. is arranging a Picture-Gallery in the ball-room, to\nwhich the public will be admitted upon payment of 25 cents.\nEvery painting, water-colour, engraving or photograph which\nwe possess, whether in a book, a portfolio, or a frame, is\nexhibited here, and in addition we have borrowed two very\nfine paintings of Mr. Gilmour's. An orange ticket, 25\ncents, admits the juveniles of Ottawa, and many of the old\npeople too, to the mysteries of 'Punch and Judy,' which\nMr. Dixon and Mr. Brodie perform most admirably.\nWe were putting finishing touches to ourselves and to\nthe tables till the last moment, and happily the rain cleared\noff, and the afternoon was lovely. In the garden we had\nthe Guards' band, and a large tin full of small parcels tied\nup with string. Near this stood two lovely ladies (Miss 382\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nGriffin and Miss Scott), with fishing-rods in their hands;\nfor ten cents you were allowed to try your luck\u00E2\u0080\u0094that is, to\ntake the rod and fish for a parcel, and this became so\npopular an amusement, both for old and young, that it went\non all three afternoons, and made much money.\nMiss Mary Macdonald sold flowers, and various young\nladies had raffle-papers to fill up. Miss Macdonald and\nNellie had the principal stall, and I was kept busy at my\ntable answering questions, seeing to raffles, etc. There\nwas so brilliant an account of the first performance of\n' Punch and Judy,' that I went to see the second ; but I\nhad not long been in the room when I heard someone say,\n' There is a fire!' And we did have a marveUous escape.\nA smell of gas, a lighted candle\u00E2\u0080\u0094and flames appeared\nthrough the floor ! Mothers shrieked; but in a few seconds\nthe hose put out the flames, and no damage occurred, except\nto the unfortunate author of the disaster, the man with the\ncandle, who burnt his hand. In the confusion a lady threw\nher arms round Fred, and said: ' Oh my children ! my\nchildren ! my husband is in the Public Works Department;\nwhat shall I do ?' etc., etc.\nThe buying and selling, the music, the raffles, the tea,\nthe fishpond, all go on merrily.\nFriday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The weather was bad yesterday, and we\nhad to keep indoors, which was a great loss to our pockets.\nBoth Wednesday and yesterday I enjoyed very much,\nthough I don't think I ever was so busy in my life, for I\nfound it impossible, from morning till night, to take my\nattention off bazaar business for one moment. The third\nday was harder work, and not so amusing. We had to\nraffle all the things, and fewer people came, and it was\nwet; but at the end we had an auction for about an hour,\nwhich amused people much.\nThe thing was a great success. Everybody enjoyed it,\nand instead of my modest anticipations of making 600\ndoUars, I think we shall clear more than 2,000. Everyone M\nAY 1878\nTHE PHONOGRAPH\n'\"\u00C2\u00BBO\u00C2\u00AB)\n000\nsaid they had never been to so honest or so pleasant a\nbazaar, and they proved their sincerity by coming every\nday while it was open.\nI am going to pay off the debt on our church (for\nwhich I got up the Bazaar), and shall give the surplus,\nand the things left, to the Protestant Orphan Asylum in\nOttawa, which is very badly off.\nThursday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094ParHament was prorogued to-day.\nFriday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning we had an exhibition of\nthe phonograph. Two men brought this wonderful invention for us to see. It is quite a smaU thing, a cyhnder\nwhich you turn with a handle, and which you place on a\ncommon table.\nWe were so amazed when we first heard this bit of iron\nspeak that it was hard to believe there was no trick! But\nwe aU tried it. Fred sang ' Old Obadiah,' D. made it talk\nGreek, the Colonel sang a French song, and all our vocal\nefforts were repeated. As long as the same piece of tinfoil\nis kept on the instrument you can hear all you have said\nover and over again; and the inventor will soon have completed a flat instrument, in which you will be able to put\nin old sayings of yours, or of others, and hear them again.\nYou may imagine how susceptible the needle is when I tell\nyou that the first time D. spoke into the machine he spoke\ntoo loud, and tore the tinfoil. The last performance was\nfor D. to say something which should be repeated by the\nmachine to a ptfblic exhibition in Ottawa in the evening.\nWhen D. had finished, it was repeated to us (by the\nmachine), and was, we hope, again delivered with good effect\nin the evening.\nWe are scattering for a few days.- NeUie goes to\nNiagara with the Littletons. To-morrow morning D. goes\nto Toronto for an exhibition of pictures, and I to spend a\nweek with Gwen at Montreal. Then we aU meet at Montreal\nfor a Review on the Queen's Birthday.\nThe house is full of packing-eases, and everything bare\n91 384\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\nand miserable-looking, and I am very glad of a rest and a\nholiday.\nMontreal: Monday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the afternoon Gwen and\nI walked to the General Hospital, where the Grey Nuns\nhave old people, orphans, and foundlings. We went over\nthe whole institution, which took us fully two hours, and\nwere very graciously received by the Sisters. They admitted\nus to the cloistered parts, and we saw their foundress lying\nin state. Her body is covered with wax, and the sight is\nnot at aU ghastly\u00E2\u0080\u0094if you could think it was only a wax\nfigure. The superior gave me a very handsome book, a\nbiography of the foundress.\nThe Hospital will be enormous when the building is\nfinished; it now holds over 700 inmates.\nThursday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D., Fred, Colonel Littleton and Dr.\nGrant reached Montreal this evening, and came up to tea\nat Gwen's house.\nFriday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Queen's Birthday; a most successful\nday. The weather was exactly suited to the occasion : not\ntoo hot, not dusty, not wet, but bright and sunshiny. The\nReview began at 11.30, and Gwen, Russell and I drove up\nto the Grand Stand at that time. The roads were full of\ncarriages and people walking, and the effect was quite\nDerby-like. I never saw such a crowd in Canada. The\nfield, the trees, the side of the mountain, were covered with\nspectators, well-dressed, smart-looking people, and all in\nthe best of humours.\nThere were about 3,000 troops, and the Governor-\nGeneral and his 'brilhant Staff' rode down the ranks,\nstopping opposite to a company of United States Volunteers,\nwho had come to take part in the proceedings, to make a\nlittle speech, welcoming them to Canada, etc.\nThe feu de joie, the march-past, and a sham battle\nfollowed. Everybody was delighted with everything, and\nwhat could you wish for more ? The horses ridden by the\nStaff and those in the carriages behaved admirably, though MAY 1878\nFAREWELL TO OTTAWA\n385\nGwen and I never could get up a perfect faith in ours, and\nwere much alarmed by the bands, and the squibs, which\nwere to be heard at intervals.\nWe next hurried through a little lunch, and proceeded\nto the Lacrosse ground. D. was there presented with an\naddress and a ' crosse,' and we saw two very pretty games.\nThen we rushed back to the hotel to drop D. for a great\nmilitary banquet, which began at 5.30. I dined at Gwen's\nhouse, and returned to the hotel to pick up the gentlemen\non our way to the theatre. The dinner not being over, we\nwent up and peeped in. It was a very pretty sight, all the\nguests being in uniform.\nSaturday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I left Montreal at 9 a.m. and\nwith Colonel Littleton and Dr. Grant returned to Ottawa.\nOttawa: Saturday, June ist.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I was 'at home'to say\n' Good-bye '; and as the day was lovely we sat out on the\ngrass. It was very hard to say ' Good-bye' to so many\nkind friends. I have two more of these farewells to go\nthrough.\nSunday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We -went to our Httle church for the last\ntime, and in the afternoon D. and I drove with NeUie,\nFreddie, and Victoria to the Cemetery, to see the stone put\nup to J. P. Ward's memory. It is a small Irish cross.\nOn our return we found Dr. Grant 5 he can't bear to say\n' Good-bye,' and comes here nearly every day.\nThursday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We went into town, where an address\nwas presented at the Town Hall. There was a large guard\nof honour and crowds of people. The building is a new\none, with a fine hall, where we were received.\nThe Mayor read the address, and when that and the\nanswer were over we shook hands with aU the people who\nliked to come up. Then we went out on the balcony, and\nan alarm of fire was sounded, that we might see the engines\nat work.\nD. then addressed the guard of honour (Governor-\nGeneral's Foot Guards), and we drove away amidst loud\nc c 386\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\ncheers. We were shown a full-length picture of D., an\nexcellent likeness painted by order of the Government for\nthe Parliament Buildings.\nI am sure I have told you before how much Fred is\nliked here, and what a popular A.D.C. he has been. Well,\nas a proof of their appreciation of his unfailing kindness and\ncourtesy during the last six years, his Canadian friends have\npresented him with a handsome silver tray, teapot, urn,\ncream jug, etc.\u00E2\u0080\u0094quite an unprecedented honour!\nFriday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Left Ottawa. We had to get up early and\nbe at the boat by seven. It was trying; first we had to\nsay good-bye to all the people about our house, and then at\nthe wharf we found many friends. The large guard of\nhonour was drawn up on the top of the cliff, and at the\nwater's edge were the friends.\nA number of young men\u00E2\u0080\u0094the bachelors\u00E2\u0080\u0094were waiting for me on board with a bouquet and silver holder;\nthen the ship began slowly to move away, and there were\nlong cheers and waving of handkerchiefs till we were out of\nsight. Ottawa looked lovely as. we left, and never shall we\nforget our happy six years here and our innumerable\nfriends.\nWe had to change at Grenville into a train, and there\nsay a few more good-byes. After half an hour we got into\nanother steamer, which took us to Montreal. At several of\nthe small places we passed crowds had collected to give us\na parting cheer. At Montreal the steamer was full of\npeople, all come to say good-bye, and to see an address presented. This was from the Curlers, and with it was given a\nbeautiful coloured photograph, with a view of Montreal, and\nportraits of ourselves and many other people we know. It\nis an oil picture, and is a most charming remembrance. D.\nreplied; but in the middle of the ceremony the galleries\nbegan to creak, and the crowd had to get out of them quickly.\nSaturday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Up very early to see the children off to\nEngland. We breakfasted on board the Quebec steamer, JUNE 1878\nPARTINGS\n387\nand went in a tender to the Allan s.s. Scandinavian. The\nBishop and Mr. Dobell are on board, and it was a lovely\nday for starting; but it was very sad seeing aU our flock\ngo\u00E2\u0080\u0094and now we have half left Canada.\nDufferin and I, Mr. Reynolds and Mrs. Littleton, went on\nboard the Druid, and are now on our way to Gaspe; but we\nshall not be ourselves till we have slept upon aU the partings of the last two days. It has been so deHghtful in\nCanada, and never again, I fear, can we hope to be surrounded by so many true and kind friends.\nc e 2 588\nCHAPTER XXI\nTHE EASTERN TOWNSHIPS AND LAST DAYS IN CANADA\nTuesday, June nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Everything we do now seems to\nbe impressed with that horrid word ' last'; here we are at\nGaspe, for the last time, enjoying our last fishing, cruising\nfor the last time in the old Druid, and mentally saying\n* good-bye' to many a pleasant thing which has become\na habit to us during the past six years.\nWe arrived early in the morning, and even before breakfast there was an evident excitement on deck, and I could\nhear through my skylight as I dressed ' yarns ' of the forty-\npounder the Colonel had lost, and of the smaller fry he\nand Sir F. Grahaml have killed. I elected to remain at home\nto-day, but Mrs. Littleton went with Mr. Reynolds to stay\na few days with him, and to join her husband on the York.\nFred and D. went to the lower pools of our river, which\nthey can fish from the Druid.\nI am left in possession of ' Tinker,' Fred's devoted fox-\nterrier. No blandishments of mine affect him : he chooses\nto sit in sackcloth and ashes until his master's return; he\nshivers in the ante-room, will not be warmed by my fire;\nwill not even eat the mutton-chop I present him with, and\nmakes me feel rather small at my signal failure to gain his\nconfidence.\nWednesday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Rain all night, the river rising.\nAnd\u00E2\u0080\u0094as I tell the gentlemen to cheer them\u00E2\u0080\u0094there are\n1 The late Sir Frederick Graham of Netherby. JUNE 1878\nRIOTS AT QUEBEC\n389\nfourteen hours to be spent in doing nothing ! I divide my day\ninto hours of eating, working, reading, writing and walking\non deck. So I hope to answer all my letters, to braid Victoria an elaborate frock, and to be well read in the history\nof the War of Independence before I go to Boston.\nThe afternoon was fine, and D. sketched, and some very\nimportant telegrams came. I had a cipher one to do, which\ntook me two hours and a half, and that made a hole in the\nfourteen! There is a riot at Quebec : the soldiers out, the\nringleader shot, and many people wounded.\nThe Littletons arrived when we were at dinner, and we\nspent a pleasant evening hearing of their adventures, and\nplaying whist. Sir Frederick remains with Mr. Reynolds.\nThursday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The steamer which was to take the\nLittletons away arrived unexpectedly at 5 a.m., and they had\nto pack and go off at once.\nD. and Fred went out fishing, and brought home only\none salmon each; Fred's was a beauty, weighing 29 lbs.\nWhen D. came home he settled for us to go up to the\nbush, as the fish have left the lower part of the river. This\nwas just arranged, when he got a telegram from Quebec asking him to have a British regiment sent there, so D. thinks\nhe had better return at once. The fires are lighted, coal\ntaken on board, and by two o'clock in the night we are off.\nGreat will be the disappointment to the men we employ\nhere when they come in the morning and find us gone.\nBefore starting we sent off numbers of telegrams, and the\nclerk at the office said his ' head felt very bad.' He seldom\nhas so much work to do at quiet Gaspe.\nFriday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Such lovely weather, the sea like a glass,\nand covered with fishing boats. We stopped and bought\nover sixty cod, some of them very large, for two dollars.\nSaturday, i$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At Father Point we received a telegram from Dent to say that all our rooms were filled with\nsoldiers, beds on the floors, etc. We made up our minds\nto stay on the Druid.\n'<::>\n11 390\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nSunday, 16th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We found on our arrival at Quebec this\nmorning that most of the soldiers had left, so we went up\nthere and found everything tidy again. There is stfll one\nregiment here, and the officers are filling the rooms we\nintended for Gwen.\nDent had to provide for sixty officers\u00E2\u0080\u0094give them blankets,\ntowels, etc.; so I don't know what they would have done if\nshe had not been here. She kept them in great order, too,\nand insisted upon their replacing a pillow which had come\nto grief in a bolstering match.\nWe had an escort of cavalry to come up to the Citadel\nwith. Everything seems quiet for the present.\nColonel Strange came to see us, and told us all about the\nriot. The day was muggy and wet, and in the night there\nwas a severe thunderstorm.\nMonday, 17th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. was very busy all day, and in the\nevening we dined at the Lieutenant-Governor's. I sat\nbetween him and M. Joly, the Prime Minister; and on the\nother side of him was a pleasant man. They talked a\ngreat deal, and were very amusing. It was a large dinner.\nWe had the military chiefs who distinguished themselves\nin the riot, Sir Narcisse Belleau, Mr. Irvine, and several\nmore of the political celebrities here.\nWednesday, igth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094There was a review of the 8th Royals\nthis morning on the Esplanade. It was fine and sunny,\nand the regiment gave great satisfaction to the military\nlookers-on. D. complimented them, and on their return\nto barracks they were disbanded.\nThursday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had a very pleasant expedition\nto-day. Starting in the Druid about lunch-time, we went\nover to the Island*of Orleans, where we drove in a carriage\nlent to us by a ' Habitan.' The views from the island are\nlovely.\nFriday, 21st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We slept on board and started early in\nthe morning, reaching St. John, a town at the other end of\nthe island, by breakfast-time. We were not expected there, JUNE 1878\nQUEBEC\n391\nbut the Druid was seen in the distance, and by the time\nwe landed every cottage had hoisted a flag or a tablecloth,\nand people were at every door bowing and smiling.\nAfter our drive round this end of this pretty island,\nwe found more preparations had been made: two men had\ngot themselves into red tunics, and seven or eight voung\nladies had guns, and fired an impromptu and amateur\nfeu de joie. They also had bouquets ready for us, tied with\nwhite ribbon; mine had written upon it ' For Lady Dufferin,\nin remembrance of her visit to St. John.' The cure said if he\nhad only known before we should have had all the country-\npeople in to greet us.\nQuebec: Saturday, 22nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094At three o'clock we went to\nthe House of Parliament, where addresses were presented\nto D. on his approaching departure; he replied, and both\naddresses were read in French and EngHsh. The room\nwas very full, everyone having come to see the ceremony.\nThe speeches in Parliament upon the address were extremely flattering, and, coming from both sides of the\nHouse, are very gratifying.\nSunday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We had some difficulty in arranging\nour journey to Boston\u00E2\u0080\u0094to which city D. has been invited\nin order to receive a Doctor's degree from the University\nof Harvard\u00E2\u0080\u0094so as to arrive there on Monday; it would\ntake twenty-four hours, and there were no trains on\nSunday. We talked of going up to Montreal in the Druid,\nbut as that would have cost the Government 100Z., we\ngave up the idea; and virtue was rewarded, for the maU\nsteamer arriving, an express train had immediately to be\nsent off. So we finished our packing and went in that. D.\nand I had an excellent night in the train, and reached\nMontreal at six in the morning.\nMonday, 24th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started again at nine on our way\nto Boston.\nThe railway passes through a lovely country\u00E2\u0080\u0094rivers and\nmountains and fertile valleys\u00E2\u0080\u0094and we arrived at Boston 392\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nlate in the evening. We were met at the station by Mr.\nWinthrop, who had just been assisting at rather a melancholy dinner\u00E2\u0080\u0094a gathering of the survivors of his class at\ncollege fifty years ago; the heavy hand of Time had of\ncourse committed fearful ravages in the half-century, and\nI only wonder anybody was able to dine at all.\nHe drove us out to Uplands, which is about a quarter\nof an hour from Boston, in a suburb called Brooklyn.\nOur host's family consists of Mrs. Winthrop, his daughter,\nand an invalid daughter of Mrs. Winthrop's. We had tea,\nand were then glad to go to bed.\nTuesday, 2$th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Immediately after breakfast there were\nprayers in the hall, which is long and narrow, going right\nthrough the house, with a door at each end into the grounds.\nThe walls are wooden, and covered with pictures; there are\ntables, books, busts, and bronzes about, and it makes a very\nnice sitting-room. On one side is the dining-room, and on\nthe other the drawing-room and another small room.\nAt eleven we went for a drive in the neighbourhood;\na very pretty neighbourhood it is\u00E2\u0080\u0094villa after villa, surrounded by plots of grass and gardens open to the road. Then\nwe lunched, and then came what I call the American part\nof the day. I had had an idea of sitting out in the\ngarden and of walking in the grounds; but as I came\nout of the dining-room I was told that I must rest, and\nthat dinner was at six. I was led therefore up to my\nroom, again reminded of the dinner-hour, and shut up\nthere for the remainder of the day. Having a nice book,\nI reconciled myself to this un-English way of spending the\nafternoon.\nAt dinner I sat between Mr. Winthrop and Mr. Long-\nfeUow, with Mr. Dana on the other side of him; Wendell\nHolmes and Mr. Parkman opposite ; the Governor of the\nState, the Chief Justice, Mrs. Amory, Mrs. Mason (formerly\nSumner's wife), Mrs. Perkins, ourselves, and young Mrs.\nWinthrop, formed the party.\nIK,\n# *\nI\nLADY DUFFEKIN\nl/l JUNE 1878\nBOSTON\n393\nIn the evening there was a reception, and we saw a\nnumber of distinguished people.\nWednesday, 26th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This morning D. drove with an officer\nin a carriage-and-four to the State House, where he met\nthe Governor, and at ten went with him, escorted by\nlancers, to the College (Harvard).\nWe ladies did not leave the house till ten, and then went\nto Harvard, and took our seats in a handsome theatre, immediately opposite to the platform, where all the University\ncelebrities sat.\nThere were nine orations; after which the classes came\nup one by one, listened to some words in Latin from the\nPresident, and were handed a bundle of degrees, which\nwere re-distributed afterwards. When D. received his he\nwas greatly cheered. We were allowed to peep into the\nfine hall, where the party (800) lunched; D. was there,\nand had to make a little speech ; he did not get back till\nsix. We went to Mrs. Eliot's (the wife of the President\nof Harvard), and had a ladies' lunch. She is very pretty\nand nice, and I enjoyed it very much. I drove home with\nMrs. Winthrop through a very fine cemetery filled with\nbeautiful plants.\nThursday, 27th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I spent a very quiet day, taking a\ndrive with Mrs. Winthrop in the afternoon. D. went to\nanother lunch, with an ' oration' before it. The speeches\nwere not reported, but I hear his was very amusing and good.\nFriday, 28th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. and I went to breakfast with Longfellow. He and his daughter, a Mr. Green, and ourselves,\nwere the party. Longfellow was very pleasant and kind,\nand gave me at leaving a copy of ' Keramos,' in which he\nwrote my name.\nHe told us of a letter he received from a lady, asking\nfor his autograph, and suggesting that he should copy her\none verse of that lovely poem of his beginning ' Break,\nbreak, break.'\nWe got back to Uplands at eleven, and soon after started 394\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XX\non a very long drive to see Mr. Adams. He was Minister in\nLondon at the time of the War, and made many friends there.\nHe lives in a charming old-fashioned house, which has\nbeen added to in every direction; and a few years ago he\nbuilt a Hbrary in the garden, which is a fine room, with\nsomething very quaint about it. There are box borders in the\ngarden, and everything is old-fashioned and English-looking.\nMr. Adams has five sons, all doing well; but the New\nEnglanders seem to think that the money of the West will\nprevent the Eastern men from ever taking a prominent\npart in politics again. Mrs. Adams is a very nice person,\nand there was a very pretty daughter-in-law there too. We\nhad luncheon with them. The drive is a beautiful one,\nand the day was warm and sunny.\nMr. Parkman dined with the Winthrops, and had a long\ntalk with D. Miss Motley is staying here.\nSaturday, 2gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were up very early, as the train\nstarted at eight, and we had a long drive to Boston. The\nWinthrops and Miss Motley saw us off. They have been\nmost kind, and our visit has been very pleasant.\nIndeed I must say that wherever we have been in the\nStates we have been most kindly received. Nothing can\nexceed the hospitality of Americans ; they seem as if they\nnever could do enough for the comfort and entertainment of\nthose who visit them in their own homes; and D. and I have\nnow had many opportunities of appreciating their kindness\nto strangers.\nThe day was hot, and it seemed very long in the train\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094from 8 a.m. till 9 p.m. ; then a rush up to the hotel for\ntea, and then all night in the ' cars.'\nSunday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We reached Quebec early in the morning,\nand came over to the Citadel.\nMonday, July 1st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094A very hot day, upon which we did\nnot do much till the evening, when we started in the Druid\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nFred, D. and I\u00E2\u0080\u0094for Bic, where we take the train for\nCasaupscal, on the Metapediac river.\n-^ \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 \u00E2\u0080\u0094, v-8- JULY 1878\nDOWN THE ST. LAWRENCE\n395\nTuesday, 2nd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It was very pleasant sitting on deck till\nbed-time last night, with the prospect of a beautiful passage,\nbut less delightful when we awoke this morning, and\nrecognised that easy roll produced by a swell, and heard\nthat the wind was very strong, and that we were just going\nto anchor on account of the fog.\nThis we did, and when I felt a little more accustomed to\nthe motion, or when it was lessened by anchoring, I got up,\nand looked into the surrounding mist, wondering when it\nwould clear, and whether we should see land soon enough\nto get ashore, and catch the train anywhere; and what the\nStephens' would think when they went to the station and did\nnot find us, they not knowing that we had trusted to the\nsea at all; and what Gwen would imagine if she did not\nhear of us for three days (which is quite possible). But\nhappily our ' wonders ' were cut short by the lifting of the\nfog, and we found ourselves between three shoals, and near\nRiviere du Loup. We landed at once with our baggage,\nsending our servants on first, had a long drive to the\nstation, and near it met a very excited old Frenchman, who\ntold us that the train had just gone when our servant\narrived, but that they had stopped it at the next station,\nand were going to send us on in a car and engine to pick\nit up. There is some use, you see, in being Governor-\nGeneral.\nWhen we reached the train at Cacouna, Mr. Brydges,\nthe chief of the line, came into our carriage, and we found\nthat we had been keeping him waiting. As, however, the\ntrain was originally an hour late, we only added a little to\nits delinquencies.\nBic, where we were to have landed, is such a pretty\nplace; and, indeed, on our way to Casaupscal there are\nSeveral lovely bits of scenery, though a great deal of the\ncountry looks desolate and dull.\nMr. Brydges had his wife and family on board his own\n^private car, and he and his friends walked about with hats\nI! f 396\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nupon which was written ' Great Caesar's Ghost.' We asked\nthe meaning of this, and found that it is the name of a\nbarge on which he lives in his river. He fishes in the\nRestigouche, a magnificent river which branches off from\nthe Metapediac at a place called the Forks. Up this he\nis drawn in his barge, anchors it at the top, and makes\nexcursions in boats, always returning to his yacht at night.\nWe got to our destination about half-past eight, and\nfound Mrs. Stephens, Mr. Douglas, and Sir Frederick\nGraham at the station to meet us. Mr. Stephens is, unfortunately, away.\nThis is much more civilised fishing than our river\naffords. The house itself is a very nice cottage. A railway runs along the banks of the river; the station is close\nto the house; there is a telegraph, and there is nothing\nlonely about the life. The surroundings, too, are open:\nyou look over distant hills and mountains, and have plenty\nof space round you, very different from our ' bush.'\nWe had an excellent dinner, and afterwards sat round an\niron pot full of fire, the fuel being supplied by Peter, a\ncharacter of dwarfish height, who used to keep a lighthouse, but left it in disgust because his wife's master\ninvited so many guests to see the lighthouse, and each one\nput his or her finger on the reflector, leaving a smudge,\nwhich Peter had to rub out. I can imagine how aggravating\nit must have become. Gwen had told me of this man, and\nwarned me that he would always enter my bedroom without knocking; however, I think a lady has been told off to\nwait on me.\nMrs. Stephens was much afraid we should be too hot\nin our bedroom, which is under the roof; but the evening\ncooled down considerably, and we found it luxurious ; also\nthere are no flies, which is delightful.\nWednesday, 3rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We got up at seven, had a cup of tea\nand a bit of bread, and went out fishing. D. and I went\ntogether in a wooden canoe with a man called John Beshavi, JULY 1878\nON THE METAPEDIAC\n397\na Gaspe fisherman. I worked away (Mr. Stephens being\nvery anxious that I should catch a salmon) and D. flogged\nthe water, and we tried 'Alec's Elbow,' another pool\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nbut eleven o'clock came and not a rise had we had, so we\nwent home to breakfast, and found that everyone else\nhad been equally unlucky. It was too hot, or had been\ntoo hot (salmon are wonderful creatures for finding out\nreasons for not rising); but we were cheerful, and hoped for\nbetter sport in the evening.\nBreakfast was a great meal of porridge, smoked salmon,\nbacon, eggs, tea and coffee ; and after it came a period of\nrest and idleness. I sat with Mrs. Stephens till about four,\nwhen the gentlemen went out again, and I took a walk with her.\nWe went along the road to Alec's Elbow, where D.\nwas fishing, and watched him for a long time. Then\nwe walked back to the house, and he returned there too,\nand made me come and try my luck in a beautiful pool\nclose to it; but no ! not a fish to be seen. It was dinnertime, and D. was just taking ' one cast more,' when the\njoyful click of the reel was heard, and away rushed a\nsalmon, jumping out of the water, and then taking another\nlong run, so that D.'s line was nearly all out. We followed\nhim as well as the very rough water would permit* but our\nlong-expected victim dropped the fly out of his mouth, and\nleft us feeling very much ' sold.' The fishing having been\nso bad all day, the whole household were collected on the\nbank to watch the capture !\nWe dined well, in spite of our misfortunes, and spent\nthe evening as usual.\nThursday, 4th.-\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have Mr. Brydges's private car on\nthe line, and an engine whenever we want to move about;\nso we settled to make an expedition to see the river\nto-day. We started at 7.30, servants and luggage in our\ncar, D. and I in one canoe, Sir Frederick in the other; and\nwe had a charming morning going down the river, fishing\nat every pool, but seeing no prey.\nI\nI ill 398\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nAt eleven we reached Assmaquaghan, where our car\nwas ' anchored,' and in it we found a breakfast laid, and\neverything looking so comfortable.\nThen w7e ordered the engine to start, and had a really\nlovely' drive' to Campbelltown. The junction of the Metapediac and the Restigouche is quite beautiful, and all the\nway along the road the views are well worth coming to see.\nAt Campbelltown D. and I walked down to the pier, and,\nsitting down there, enjoyed the views and the sea air till\nour engine had turned round, when we got' on board' again,\nand came back to our anchorage.\nWhen the sun was low, we resolved to give the salmon\nanother chance, but by dinner-time the only thing caught\nwas a small grilse, which D. got just before dinner, and\nwhich we ate at once. We have most comfortable bedrooms\nin the car, where we slept after we had sat over a splendid\ncamp fire outside.\nFriday, $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The morning fishing over, we set our\nengine going, and returned to Casaupscal in time for the\neleven o'clock breakfast; and very hungry we were for it.\nIn the afternoon everyone set to work again, and D.\ncaught one 28-pound salmon, and Fred one 26. While we\nwere away he got one 25 pounds, so he has been the luckiest\nof the party.\nAfter dinner no less than seven bonfires were lighted in\nour honour\u00E2\u0080\u0094six on the opposite bank of the river, and one\nnearer to us. They looked very bright in the dark night.\nSaturday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fishing unlucky\u00E2\u0080\u0094nothing done in the\nmorning; and at three we left in our special train, very\nsorry not to spend a few days more in this pleasant spot.\nIn about two hours we got to Rimouski, where there was\na crowd and an address. We drove round the village,\nlooked into a college and a convent, and returned to our\ncar, where we refreshed ourselves with a cup of tea. The\nnext station was Bic, and there we had another address,\nand walked through the viUage and down to the quay, where mK\n\u00C2\u00A3j\nJULY 1878\nCHICOUTIMI\n399\nwe found our own boat waiting for us. Bic is quite lovely:\nthe hills are of most curious and picturesque shapes, and I\nshould think it a charming place to spend a summer in.\nWe looked into a great cave, where a party of Indians were\nburnt by their enemies long ago\u00E2\u0080\u0094exchanged greetings with\nMrs. Archibald Campbell, whose chUdren were firing a\nsalute in our honour, and who has a very pretty cottage\nhere, and then got on board with the cure, a M. Sylvain,\nand some other visitors, who went over the Druid, and then\nleft us. We remained at anchor till twelve, and then set off\nfor Tadousac.\nMonday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started up the Saguenay. At one\nwe began to fish for trout, and by three had caught about\nseven dozen between us. In the evening, as we were\nanchored, we got a boat's crew to row round us, singing\nthe Canadian boat-songs.\nTuesday, gth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir Frederick Graham and Fred left us\nat Chicoutimi (where we arrived early in the morning), and\nwent on an expedition after land-locked .salmon. They wUl\ncamp out for three or four days. D., Gwen and I went by\nsteamer to Ha-Ha Bay, and there, getting into a buggy,\ndrove to the A-Mas River. D. had capital sport here with\ntwo good salmon, and we enjoyed watching him, and looking\nat the salmon jumping up the leap.\nWe returned to the Druid, dined, and sat on deck. In\nthe night we started again, and arrived at Tadousac in the\nmorning.\nWednesday, 10th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Went over our empty house, took\naway our blankets, but left all our nice furniture, and shut\nit up\u00E2\u0080\u0094the last time, I suppose, we shall ever see the place.\nI hate these good-byes.\nRussell Stephenson came on board, and we started for\nQuebec. Unfortunately, the day was very wet and disagreeable ; but the rain will put out the bush fires, which are very\nbad just now at Three Rivers. The Montreal boat actually\nhad to turn back on account of the smoke. 400\nMY CANADIAN JOUR'NAL\nCH. XXI\nThursday, nth.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Got to Quebec early, and came up to\nbreakfast at the Citadel. I suppose we shall not again\nspend a night in the dear old Druid. In the evening we\ngot a telegram from Sir E. Thornton (Washington), to say\nthat two thousand roughs had left Buffalo, and gone to\nMontreal to 'help ' on the 12th.\nFriday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Great anxiety felt in the morning as to\nwhat would happen in Montreal. Three thousand troops are\nthere, and the Mayor has two hundred special constables.\nAt eleven the General telegraphed,' There will be no procession '; and the end of the whole thing was, that the Mayor\nfound an old Act which declared the procession illegal; he\nseized the marshals as they came out of the Hall, and the\nrest of the people remained shut up the whole day, and in\nthe evening were conveyed home in cabs. We hope this is\nthe end of it.\nSunday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir Frederick and Fred returned from a\npleasant expedition, but unsuccessful fishing. They came\nback in a boat full of Americans\u00E2\u0080\u0094forty-seven of the Maine\nPress Association\u00E2\u0080\u0094and had great fun, as these people sang,\nand recited, and acted, and made speeches. They were all in\nchurch this morning, and we asked them to come up and\nsee the Citadel and have tea. It was rather awful when\nthey first arrived, as there was no one to introduce them,\nand they came in two and three together, all arm in arm.\nHowever, I cut it short by going and shaking hands with\neveryone, though they evidently did not consider this an\nintroduction, as all the afternoon they kept re-introducing\nme one to the other.\nThey said they were a large party, ' all harmonious, all\nserene, all bent upon having a good time, all acquainted\nsince childhood.' We walked about the platform, and they\nwere much pleased when they found they were admitted\ninto the 'inner circle,' and that it was a private spot.\nThey greatly appreciated our beautiful view, and were\ninterested in all we showed them. Then we gave them tea JULY 1878\nQUEBEC\n401\nand claret-cup, which they seemed to enjoy; showed the\nPlains of Abraham, and then returned to the Citadel to\nsay ' Good-bye.'\nForty-seven people shaking hands quickly, and all saying the same thing in a different form: ' Thank you for\ndelightful entertainment; ' j Most happy to have seen you ;'\n' Such a lovely time; ' ' Your hospitality;' \ The honour;'\n' Hope to see you in the States;'' Will never forget;' ' Never\nexpected; ' ' The feature of our tour,' etc. I smiled almost\ntoo pleasantly over this ceremony.\nIn the morning paper I see that ' their Excellencies\nreceived the parties most graciously, and were quite as free\nfrom restraint as themselves.' One man told Fred to give\nhis love to his mother, and tell her she had a good son.\nThere was one very funny little man, who combed his\nhair in the drawing-room when he came in; but I never\ncould talk to him, as someone was always being introduced to me.\nSaturday, 20th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We were up early, and breakfasted at\neight. Directly after we went down to see Sir F. Graham\noff to England. Colonel and Mrs. Littleton came down from\nOttawa, and their children sail to-day. I was very sorry\nto say good-bye to them, as it is another break-up of our\nlife here.\nAt twelve we had a combination of breakfast and luncheon,\nno one having eaten much this morning; and afterwards\nwe went over to the Camp, where we saw a little bit of a\nfox-hunt, and the gentlemen played lawn-tennis.\nThe Littletons and Mr. Adams (son of the American\nMinister in London during the War), with a friend and a\nyoung Mr. Potter (son of an English M.P.), dined with us.\nMrs. Littleton and I were left till 11.30 upstairs alone, the\ngentlemen having got into politics downstairs.\nTuesday, 23rd.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mrs. Littleton, Gwen, Baby and I drove\nout to Sillery, where the nuns received us most graciously,\nand then we went on to the Prices'. They have a lovely\nD D\n1 1 402\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nplace on the St. Lawrence, with some fine trees on the lawn\nand a good view of the river; there is a nice old-fashioned\nhouse and flower-garden, and we had tea, with strawberries\nand cream, and flowers to take home. D. rode there, and\nfound a game of tennis going on when he arrived.\nTuesday, 30th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094D. remains another month, at the request of the Secretary of State.\nWednesday, 31st.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We made up our minds to go out for\ntea, so at four we drove off to Spencer Wood, where we sat\non the grass and admired the view, and on leaving were\npresented by the gardener with three bouquets, one for\neach lady. The Littletons dined with us.\nThe papers are full of ' Our New Governor-General,' and\naU are delighted at the idea of having a Royal Princess\nhere.\nMonday, August $th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Roman Catholic Bishops of\nthe Province of Quebec, who had been assisting at the\nconsecration of the Bishop, called. There were seven or\neight of them, gorgeous in purple and gold. The new Bishop\nof Chicoutimi (Racine) was one of the nicest.\nWe heard of the death of the Apostolic Delegate, Dr.\nConroy, Bishop of Ardagh. He died in Newfoundland. I\nam very sorry, as he was always longing to get home, and\nnever seemed to be happy over here. His old parents are\nalive, and will feel his death terribly.\nTuesday, 6th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir Edward Thornton came to stay with\nus, and it rained\u00E2\u0080\u0094poured in tropical style. However, when\nin the afternoon it changed to drizzle, we went out and\nshowed the town to Sir Edward. At six we went on board\nthe Druid, and dined there, as we were engaged to attend\nan amateur theatrical performance on the Island of Orleans.\nThe expedition would have been charming had the weather\nbeen fine, but of course the rain spoilt our pleasure in all\nthe yachting part of it. We landed at eight o'clock, and\ndrove up to what had been a carpenter's shop, but was now\nconverted into a ' Theatre Royal'; the ' green-room' was a\n-J AUG. 1878\nISLAND OF ORLEANS\n403\ntent, and the porch, in which the band stood, was made of\ntarpaulin.\nI rushed through this as one does when one is bundled\nup in waterproofs and is making for a shelter, and suddenly\nfound myself, as I thought, upon the stage, in the presence\nof an audience. I quickly stepped back, and handed out my\nwraps, allowed the Governor-General to precede me, and\nmade a proper and formal entrance.\nThen I found that it was the theatre I had entered, but\nthat in front of the stage there were banks of flowers, two\nlittle arbours in the corners, and seven figures dressed in\npowder and Dolly Varden costumes. You can't think how\npretty they looked. There were tables spread with refreshments in the arbours, and behind stood these Dresden\nfigures ready to serve us ; and on stools in front were four\nchildren\u00E2\u0080\u0094two little girls in each corner\u00E2\u0080\u0094also in costume.\nWhen we had stood for ' God save the Queen,' and had\nseated ourselves in the armchairs prepared, a little powdered,\nchina-looking girl came and handed me a beautiful bouquet,\nand then another came with a painted programme, and\nbetween the scenes the grown-up China brought us ices,\ncake, and claret-cup. The room itself was hung with flags,\nor rather lined with flags. The play was \ She Stoops to\nConquer,' and it went off very well. The Tony Lumpkin was admirable, and the prima donna was very handsome,\nand acted very well. She is a Mrs. Watson, and she had\narranged the whole thing. The small figures got very sleepy\nand tired before the end; but they added greatly to the\ngeneral effect, and amused us a good deal by the natural\nway in which they admired their own finery, and examined\neven the soles of their feet and their coloured heels.\nWe went to the hotel afterwards, where we were given\nsupper ; so that by the time we got to the Citadel it was\nnearly two.\nWednesday, 7th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Actually fine weather ! so at eleven we\nwent on board the Druid, a party of fourteen, and sailed\nP D 2 404\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nfor the Montmorency FaUs. They were full of water, and\nwere looking lovely. We landed in boats, and our party\ndivided when we got ashore. Some went one side of the\nFaU, some the other, and some sat down and sketched.\nI went to the left, and had a very fine view; but we got so\nwet with the spray that we soon had to move. The workmen there (lumbermen) would keep budding me up substantial thrones in the very wettest places, and I felt obHged\nto try each one for a few minutes; then we went off to\nsee the saw-nnlls, and were weighed there. About three\no'clock, having thoroughly enjoyed the sight of the beautiful\nFall, we went on board again. A different but very acceptable sight was the deck, where luncheon was spread; we\nwere aU so hungry. Our party consisted of ourselves and\nA.D.C.'s, the Littletons, Stephensons, Herveys, Judge and\nMiss Johnston, Colonel Montizambert, the Spanish Consul,\nand Sir E. Thornton.\nThursday, 8th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mrs. Littleton was offered the use of a\nsteam-launch, so she came up early, and invited us all to\ngo on an expedition with her, arranging that I should\nbring the tea, and that we should go and see the Chaudiere\nFaUs. So after lunch we assembled at the dock\u00E2\u0080\u0094Sir E.\nSmyth and his son, the Littletons, ourselves, and M. Chau-\nveau ; also the police-officer (it was the police-boat), who, it\nturned out, was really the host.\nWe puffed along quickly, and just had one little fright\nwhen the funnel tumbled down, and of course I thought\nthe boUer was going to burst; however, it was soon put up\nagain, and we reached our destination in safety.\nWe had to get out and cross the river (Chaudiere) in\na scow; but we found everybody ignorant as to how far\noff the waterfall was; someone told us it was two mUes,\nand we trudged off to walk there. People here are not\nfond of walking, so at the same time messengers were sent.\nto look for buggies ; and very lucky this was, for when we\nhad gone two mUes in the rain, we asked at a cottage how AUG. 1878\nDANVILLE\n405\nfar it was to the waterfall, and we were told ' three mUes\nmore.' *\nFour carriages soon overtook us, and D. drove me in a\nbuggy, followed by all the others in various machines. We\nhad one collision : going down a hill, the carriage behind us\ncame too fast, and the horse's leg got over our wheel; both\nanimals being extremely quiet, no harm was done. The\nstorm cleared away, and when we reached the Chaudiere\nthe view was lovely. It is a most beautiful faU, and the\nshapes of the surrounding rocks, which jut out into the\nfoam, are most picturesque. We had a great climb to reach\nthe best point of view, but when we got there we sat directly\nopposite the Fall, on a promontory of rock, and were able\nto admire thoroughly the volumes of water and of spray,\nand the rainbows which shone through them. D. made a\nsketch, and we sat idle and enjoyed ourselves tiU M. Chau-\nveau called us to have the champagne with which he had\nreplaced my tea.\nWe drove back to the scow, and crossed over to the\nlaunch, which took us to Quebec in thirty-five minutes. It\nwas 8.30 when we got there, and by the evening we were\nall extremely tired.\nMonday, 12th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We started at one o'clock upon our tour\nin the Eastern townships.\nAfter crossing the river in the steam-launch (steered by\nHis Ex.), we landed at Port Levi, and were presented with\nbouquets on the way to our car. It is a Grand Trunk\nprivate car, and is very comfortable. Our first stop was at\nDanville, where we were received by a guard of honour and\na crowd, and were led to a carriage. We got out at the\nTown Hall, had an address and a bouquet, and were introduced to a few people; amongst them an old lady, who said\nmy father's name had been a household word in her famUy.\nWe had a drive through the town, which was prettUy\ndecorated, and saw thousands of people who had come in from\nthe country.\nk 406\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nOn our way back to the station D. spoke to an old\nPeninsular War soldier, who exhorted him to' go and conquer\nEgypt,' which, he said, ' we must have.'\nHaving spent an hour at Danville, we got into our car\nagain, and proceeded to Richmond. A platform had been\nerected here, and an address was presented, signed by\neleven Mayors. After being introduced to some people, we\nhad lunch in the station, and then drove about. D. had\nfour horses, but I drove with Lord Aylmer (who is settled\nout here) with a pair.\nWe visited a college, and saw the town. There was a\nvery good band at the station, with a little boy of eight years\nold, in uniform, playing the cymbals with a most grave and\npreoccupied air.\nSherbrooke was the station we reached next, and a most\nmagnificent reception it gave us. It was dark when we\narrived, and from the railway we saw large manufactories\nand hotels with lighted candles in every pane.\nWhen we stopped the Reception Committee came on\nboard, and presented Mrs. Littleton and me with bouquets 1\nthen we stepped on to a platform, and saw before us a\nfine guard of honour, a great crowd, a brilliantly lighted\nbuilding, and a quantity of torch-bearers in red uniform (the Fire Brigade). After the address and reply we\nstarted in a carriage-and-four, escorted by three or four\nhundred torches and a crowd (to say nothing of soldiers),\nto drive through the town. It was beautifully illuminated\nand decorated, and the reception was exceedingly gratifying\nto an almost defunct Governor-General! I must trust to a\nnewspaper to describe the arches, the lights, the various\ndevices for decorating houses, the procession shooting up\nrockets in every direction, for I have not time to enter into\nparticulars. But I must mention one arch dedicated to me,\nand made by ladies; it had an enormous coronet of flowers,\nsurmounting it, with ' Welcome to our Countess' on one\nside, and ' Kind hearts better than coronets ' on the other. AUG. I878\nSHERBROOKE\n407\nOne arch was in imitation of a Gothic archwav, and was\nvery pretty.\nWe drove, with the crowd and the torches surrounding\nus, to Mr. Brooks's gate, where they left us.\nWe are staying with Mr. and Mrs. Brooks. He is an\nM.P., and she is a very handsome and pleasant woman; they\nhave a very nice house and pretty grounds. The house is\nnew, and had not yet been papered; but Mrs. Brooks has\nornamented her walls in a very effective way by pinning\ndried ferns and leaves upon them. One large room with a\npolished floor had our monograms, portraits, quantities of\nflowers, and a welcome in rhyme on its walls. There is a\nbeautiful view from the windows here.\nWe had supper, and went to bed soon after.\nTuesday, 13th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The sun shone brilliantly at breakfast-\ntime ; rain poured from ten till four, all the time we were\nout; and then it was beautifully fine the rest of the\nevening.\nWe drove into Sherbrooke early, and visited first a fine\nnew bank, just built; we admired especially the burglar-\nproof safe, with a lock which, when set to a particular hour,\ncan be opened by neither friend nor foe until that hour\narrives. Next we visited the Fire Station, saw the stable-\ndoors opened by machinery, and the horses step out, and\nfall into their own places in the various fire engines. After\nthis we Went to a convent, where there was a little singing\nand an address ; and to a great wool manufactory, where\nwe saw everything, from wool in its filthiest state to the\nsame article converted into fine cloth. D. was presented\nwith the material for a pair of trousers, and Mrs. Littleton\nand I were each given beautiful rugs.\nAfter seeing everything, D. made a speech to the operatives,\nand we proceeded to Lennoxville. In the village there was\nan address, a platform, and the usual etceteras, and at the\nCollege and School the same. It is one of the best English\nschools in Canada, but the boys were away for the hoHdays.\ni 408\nMY CANADIAN JOURNAL\nCH. XXI\nTwo rivers pass by it, and the country round is real country,\nand very pretty. We had about four miles to drive back to\nthe house of Mr. Heniker, in Sherbrooke. It is situated\non the banks of the Magog, and although only a villa it\nhas a magnificent rapid and splendid rocks, and scenery\nwhich many a great English landholder would give his\nfortune to possess in his park. Mr. and Mrs. Heniker gave\nus lunch, and showed us the place. By this time I felt\nvery damp. My petticoat was wet and muddy, and my\nvery summery gown was out of place; but it was nothing\nto our A.D.C.'s unlined suit of tussore silk. The trousers\nbegan to look very limp and sticky, and I laughed every\ntime I looked at him.\nOn our return to the Brooks's we had to change quickly\nfor a reception, which was held in the room with the motto.\nHappily it had become fine ; a band played outside the\nwindows, and a great number of people came. We sat\nabout between the verandah and the rooms till we were all\nvery cold, and then we had a little dance, three young ladies\ncoming in. The daughter of the house, a nice, pretty girl,\nis not out yet.\nD. and the Colonel have to spend the night in the train.\nThey meet Mr. Mackenzie% at Richmond, do business\nbetween the hours of twelve and two, and return here for\nbreakfast in the morning.\nWednesday, 14th.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Bed-time. I seize a few minutes to\ntry and describe the doings of a very pleasant day. The\nweather was perfect, and we began the morning by being\nphotographed in groups at the door of Mr. Brooks's house ;\nthen I planted a tree.\nWe were to have left by train at ten o'clock, but the\ntelegraph had broken down, and the necessary assurance\nthat ' the line is clear ' could not be obtained. At last they\nmanaged in some roundabout way to get the message, and\nwe got off in time to fulfil our engagement to Mr. Murray.\n2 The Premier. \u00E2\u0096\u00A0 .- \".'?\n$\nf,!isK\ni Our Viceregal Life in India\u00E2\u0080\u0094continued.\n' An attractive and interesting book, full of graphic and entertaining\nsketches of her own and her husband's experiences.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Morning Post.\n* A record of life in India as it presented itself during a sojourn of\nfour years in all its rich and manifold variety, to the wife of a Viceroy,\ncould only fail to be deeply interesting through some deficiency of\nsympathy or lack of descriptive power. Happily, in neither of these\nprime requirements for her task is Lady Dufferin in any way wanting.'\nDaily News.\n'A most animated account. It would be difficult to mention a\nwork in which the infinite and varied picturesqueness of Anglo-Indian\nlife is brought out more vividly.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094St. James's Gazette. v\n' Lady Dufferin's Journal should he read, if only for the account it\ngives of the truly noble work with which her name will always be\nconnected. . . . She was keenly interested in everything that concerns\nthe women of the country, and never missed an opportunity of showing her warm sympathy with those who are working for their welfare.'\nAcademy.\n' Throughout the book Lady Dufferin is bright, lively, and entertaining.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Spectator.\n1 All who understand and sympathise with Indian life will hasten to\nread these two pleasant volumes. The journal is a running commentary on the multitudinous events which must crowd into such years as\nshe passed in India, and is none the less pleasant for its simplicity and\nunpretentiousness. Perhaps the visit which Lady Dufferin paid to\nBurmah three years ago will attract as much attention as any other\npart of her travels.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Daily Telegraph.\nJOHN MURRAY, Albemarle Street. ME. MURRAY'S NEW WORKS.\nTHE BAMPTON LECTURES, 1891 : The Incarnation op\nthe Son of God. By Charles Gore, M.A., Principal of Pusey\nHouse, Oxford ; Editor of 'Lux Mundi.' 8vo.\nJASMIN: Barber, Poet, Philanthropist. By Samuel Smiles,\nLL.D., Author of 'The Lives of the Engineers ' &c. Post8vo.\nWINTER JOURNEYS IN PERSIA AND KURDISTAN:\nwith a Summer in the Upper Karun Region, and a Visit to the Rayah\nNestorians. By Mrs. Bishop (Isabella Bird). Maps and Illustrations.\n2 vols. Crown 8vo.\nA DICTIONARY OF HYMNOLOGY : The Origin and History\nof the Christian Hymns of all Ages and Nations, with special reference to those contained in the Hymn Books of English-speaking\nCountries. By Bev. John Julian,M.A. (1,600 pp.)- Medium 8vo.\nESTHER VANHOMRIGH: a New Novel. By Mrs. Woods,\nAuthor of ' A Village Tragedy' &c. 3 vols. Crown 8vo.\nJAPANESE LETTERS: Eastern Impressions of Western\nMen and Manners, as contained in the Correspondence of Tokiwara\nand Yashiri. Edited by Commander Hastings Berkeley, R.N.\nPost 8vo.\nEXPLOSIVES AND THEIR POWERS. Translated and\nCondensed from the French of M. Berthelot. By Colonel J. P.\nCundill, R.A., H.M. Inspector of Explosives, and C. Napier\nHake, Inspector of Explosives in Victoria. Illustrations. 8vo.\nHANDBOOK OF GREEK ARCHAEOLOGY : Sculpture, Vases,\nBronzes, Gems, Terra-cottas, Architecture, Mural Paintings, &c. By\nA. S. Murray, Keeper of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British\nMuseum. Illustrations. Crown 8vo.\nTHE PSALTER OF 1539: a Landmark of English Literature.\nComprising the Text, in Black Letter Type. Edited, with Notes,\nby John Earle, M.A.. Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford.\nSquare 8vo.\nBEGUN IN JEST : a New Novel. By Mrs. Newman, Author\nof ' Her Will and her Way' &c. 3 vols. Crown Svo.\nTHE BARONETAGE OF GREAT BRITAIN : a History, a\nCriticism, and a Vindication. Including all ascertained Facts as to\nthe Foundation of the Order, with curious particulars as to the\nVaried Fortunes of certain Titles and their Holders, and Thoughts\non the Degeneracy of the Order. By Robert Dennis. Square 8vo.\n[ Contmued.\nh\nll Mr. Murray's New Works\u00E2\u0080\u0094continued.\nTRAVELS AMONGST THE GREAT ANDES OF THE\nEQUATOR. By Edward Whymper, F.R.G.S. With 4 Maps and\n140 Original Illustrations. Medium 8vo. 21s. net. Uniform with\n* Scrambles amongst the Alps.'\nSUPPLEMENTARY APPENDIX TO TRAVELS AMONGST\nTHE GREAT ANDES OF THE EQUATOR. Illustrated with\nFigures of New Genera and Species. With Preface. By Edward\nWhymper. With 60 Illustrations. Medium 8vo. 15s. net.\nHOW TO USE THE ANEROID BAROMETER. By Edward\nWhymper. With Tables. Medium 8vo. 2s. Qd. net.\nTHE COMBAT WITH SUFFERING. By Major E. Gambler\nParry. Fcp. 8vo.\nLUX MUNDI: a Cheaper Edition. A Series of Studies in the\nReligion of the Incarnation. By Various Writers. Edited by Rev.\nCharles Gore, M.A. 15th Thousand. Crown 8vo. 6s.\nEGYPT UNDER THE PHARAOHS: a History derived en-\ntirely from the Monuments. By Heinrich Brugsch-Bey. A New\nEdition, Condensed and Thoroughly Revised, by M. Brodrick.\nWith Maps. 8vo.\nSTUDIES IN THE ART OF RAT-CATCHING: a Manual\nfor Schools. By H. C. Barkley, Author of \ My Boyhood' &c.\nPost 8vo.\nPRIMITIVE CULTURE : Researches into the Development of\nMythology, Philosophy, Religion, Language, Art, and Science. By\nEdward B. Tylor, F.R.S., Keeper of the Museum, Oxford. Third\nEdition, Revised. 2 vols. 8vo.\nTHE INDIAN EMPIRE. A new Handbook for Travellers in\nIndia. In 1 vol. With numerous Maps, &c.\nTHE JAPANESE EMPIRE : a Handbook for Travellers in\nJapan. Third Edition (1891). Revised and for the most part\nRewritten. By B. H. Chamberlain and W. B. Mason. With 15\nMaps. Post 8vo. 15s. net.\nLIFE OF ALEXANDER N. SOMERVILLE, D.D. In Scot-\nland, India, America, Australasia, Europe, &c, 1813-1889. By\nGeorge Smith, LL.D. Popular Edition. Portrait. Post 8vo. 6s.\nOLD ENGLISH PLATE: Ecclesiastical, Decorative, and\nDomestic. By Wilfred J. Cripps, C.B. Fourth Revised Edition.\nIllustrations. Medium 8vo.\nJOHN MURRAY, Albemarle Street. MR. MURRAYS RECENT WORKS.\nSIR ROBERT PEEL: his Early PoHtical Life as Secretary\nfor Ireland, 1812-18, and Secretary of State, 1822-27. Published\nby his Trustees. Edited by C. S. Parker, M.P. Portrait. 8vo. 16s.\nA MEMOIR OF JENNY LIND: her Early Art-Life and\nDramatic Career, 1820-1851. From Original Documents, Letters,\nDiaries, &c, in the possession of Mr. Goldschmidt. By Canon\nScott Holland and W. S. Rockstro. Third Edition. Portraits,\nIllustrations, and Music. 2 vols. 8vo. 32s.\nSTEAY VERSES, 1889-1890. By Eobbbt, Lobd Houghton.\nCrown 8vo. 6s.\nA PUBLISHER AND HIS FRIENDS: MEMOIR AND\nCORRESPONDENCE of the late JOHN MURRAY, with an\nAccount of the Origin and Progress of the House, 1768-\n1843. By Samuel Smiles, LL.D. Fourth Thousand. Portraits.\n2 vols. 8vo. 32s.\nLONDON: PAST AND PRESENT: its History, Associations, and Traditions. By Henry B. Wheatley, F.S.A. Based\non CUNNINGHAM'S HANDBOOK. Library Edition, on Laid\nPaper. 3 vols. Medium 8vo. \u00C2\u00A33. 3s.\nMEMOIR AND LETTERS OF SIDNEY GILCHRIST\nTHOMAS, Inventor. Edited by R. W. Burnie, Barrister-at-Law.\nPortraits. Crown 8vo. 9s.\nADVENTURES IN THE LIFE OF COUNT ALBERT OF\nERBACH. Translated from the German. By H.R.H. PRINCESS\nBeatrice. Second Edition. Portraits. Crown 8vo. 10s. 6d.\nTHE QUEEN'S COMMISSION: how to prepare for it;\nhow to Obtain it ; and how to Use it ; with Practical Information on the cost and prospects of a Military Career. Intended\nfor Cadets, Subalterns, and Parents. By Capt. G. J. Younghusband.\nPost 8vo. 6s.\n[Continued. Mr. Murray's Recent Works\u00E2\u0080\u0094continued.\nTHE LIVES OF TWELVE GOOD MEN.\nMartin Joseph Routh.\nHugh James Rose.\nCharles Marriott.\nEdward Hawkins.\nSamuel Wilberforce.\nRichard Lynch Cotton\nRichard Greswell.\nHenry Octavius Coxe.\nHenry Longueville Mansel.\nWilliam Jacobson.\nCharles Page Eden.\nCharles Longuet Higgins.\nBy J. W. Burgon, B.D., late Dean of Chichester. Sixth Thousand\nWith Portraits of the Author and of the Twelve. 8vo. 16s.\nFERGUSSON'S HISTORY OF THE MODERN STYLES\nOF ARCHITECTURE. A New Edition, Revised and Enlarged.\nWith a special account of Architecture in America. By Professor\nRobert Kerr. With 330 Illustrations. 2 vols. Medium 8vo.\n31s. 6d.\nf\nA HISTORY OF INDIAN AND EASTERN ARCHITECTURE. By James Fergusson, F.R.S. Cheaper Edition. With\n400 Hlustrations. Medium 8vo. 31s. 6d.\nA RIDE THROUGH ASIA MINOR AND ARMENIA. With\nSketches of the Character, Manners, and Customs of the\nMussulman and Christian Inhabitants. By H. C. Barkley.\nCrown 8vo. 10s. 6d.\nIMPRESSIONS OF A TENDERFOOT, during a Journey\nin Search of Sport in the Far West. By Lady Seymour\n(Algernon St. Maur). Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 12s.\nHISTORICAL INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF THE\nBOOKS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT: being an Expansion of\nLectures delivered in the Divinity School of the University of\nDublin. By George Salmon, D.D., FR.S., Provost of Trinity\nCollege, Dublin. Fifth Edition. Post 8vo. 9s.\nTHE INFALLIBILITY OF THE CHURCH. A Course of\nLectures delivered in the Divinity School of the University of\nDublin. By George Salmon, D.D., F.R.S. Second Edition.\nPost 8vo. 9s.\nJOHN MURRAY, Albemarle Street. J SSS^fts??\nf \u00C2\u00A3$#IB8f 1BV\n-^-\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0080\u009E;:;.: :\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0096\u00A0-\u00E2\u0096\u00A0-\nB&i&v\n\u00C2\u00ABefe\u00C2\u00BB\n'Sl^wfe\niBSp*\" j\"?5 JSJ^fev?*^' ' *&&\u00C2\u00A3#\u00C2\u00BB= \u00E2\u0096\u00A0.\n "Books"@en . "F5019_D85"@en . "10.14288/1.0056319"@en . "English"@en . "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en . "London : J. Murray"@en . "Rare Books and Special Collections"@en . "These images are provided for research and reference use only. Written permission to publish, copy or otherwise use these images must be obtained from Rare Books & Special Collections http://www.library.ubc.ca/spcoll/"@en . "University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. F5019 .D85"@en . "Canada--Description and travel"@en . "Canada--Social life and customs"@en . "My Canadian journal, 1872-8, extracts from my letters home, written while Lord Dufferin was Governor-General"@en . "Text"@en . ""@en .