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C
A N A D A
ITS
FIRST SETTLEMENT AND EARLY HISTORY, CLIMATE AND PRODUCTIONS.
| First
settlement of Canada; first Cartier expedition |
The
first settlement made by Europeans in Canada, was in 1535, by Jacques
Cartier, a French navigator, who sailed up the river of Canada,
(which he named the St. Lawrence), as far as the island of Montreal,
where he found a settlement of Huron Indians, called Hochelaga,
to which island he gave the name of Mont Royale, (afterwards called
Montreal). He took possession of the territory, which he called
New France -- built a fort -- and wintered in the country. On this
expedition he carried off a chief of the natives, and conveyed him
to France, where he lived about four years, was converted to Christianity,
and died there. |
| Second
and third French expeditions |
In 1540, an
expedition, consisting of five ships, under the command of Cartier,
was fitted out by command of François de la Roque, Lord
of Roberval, who had been appointed Viceroy of Canada by the
King of France; and who himself intended to follow with two additional
ships. His departure, however, was postponed till the year 1542.
When he arrived in Canada, he built a fort, and wintered about four
leagues above the island of Orleans. In 1549, the same nobleman,
accompanied by his brother, and a numerous train of adventurers,
again embarked for Canada; but they were never afterwards heard
of, which so discouraged the government and people of France, that
for more than 30 years no further measures were taken to communicate
with the settlers who remained in Canada. |
| English
expeditions under Martin Frobisher |
In 1576, Martin
Frobisher was sent out by Queen Elizabeth, with three small
ships, and discovered Elizabeth Foreland, and the straights which
still bear his name. He entered a bay in north latitude 63°,
and carried off one of the natives. In this voyage he discovered
what he supposed to be gold, which encouraged a society of adventurers
to send him out the following year, with three other ships, to explore
the coast of Labrador and Greenland, with an ultimate view of discovering
a passage to India; but he returned without success. He brought
away with him nearly 200 tons of the ore supposed to be gold; which
however, to their disappointment, turned out to be some other mineral.
In 1578, he sailed again for the continent of North America, with
no less than 15 ships, in search of gold; and carried home immense
quantities of the same glittering substance, to the complete ruin
of many of the adventurers. |
| French
trade renewed; founding of Quebec by Champlain |
In 1581,
the French trade to Canada was renewed, after an interruption
of more than 30 years; and in 1583, three ships were employed
in the trade to the continents.
In 1598,
the Marquis de la Roche received a commission from Henry
the Fourth, of France, to conquer Canada; but returned
without doing anything of consequence; and shortly afterwards
died of vexation. On the death of La Roche, his patent
was
renewed in favour of M. De Chauvin, who made a voyage up
the St. Lawrence, as far as Tadousac; where he left some of his
people, and returned with a freight of furs. The following year
he sailed again, and proceeded as far as Trois Rivières.
In 1603, Pierre du Gast, a gentleman of the bed-chamber
to the same king, received a patent, constituting him Lieutenant
General of the American territory, from the 40th to the 46th degrees
of north latitude, with power to colonise it, and subdue and convert
the
natives to Christianity. In 1608, Champlain was sent out
with three ships for the purpose of making a permanent settlement;
and
after having examined all the most eligible situations along the
coast of Nova Scotia, (then called Acadia), and the River St.
Lawrence, fixed upon the present site of Quebec, where he laid
the foundation of what he intended to be the future capital of
the country.
|
| First
capture of Quebec by England and its subsequent return to France. |
In 1627,
in the reign of Louis XIII., Canada, then called New France, was,
by direction of Cardinal Richelieu, placed together with
its trade, under the management of a company, called the "Company
of One Hundred Associates;" at the head of which was the Cardinal
himself. A commission having been given by Charles I. to David Kertk,
and his kinsmen, to conquer the American dominions of France; Kertk
attacked Canada, in July, 1628, and continued to carry on his military
operations with vigour. In 1630, he appeared again off Point Levi,
and sent an officer to Quebec to summon the city to surrender. Champlain,
then in command, knowing his means to be inadequate to a defence,
surrendered the city by capitulation. The terms of the capitulation
were favourable to the French colony; and they were so punctually
and honourably fulfilled by the English, that the greater part of
the French chose to remain with their captors, rather than return
as had been stipulated to France. In 1632, Charles I., by the treaty
of St. Germain, resigned the right which he had claimed to New France
and Acadia, as the property of England, to Louis XIII., King of
France. |
| College
founded in Quebec; Champlain dies |
In 1635,
Rene Rohault, having become a Jesuit, resumed a project
which had been interrupted by the English conquest of Quebec,
of founding a college in that city; an institution that had been
planned ten years before. In this year, M. Champlain died
at Quebec.
In 1640,
the French king vested the property of the island of Montreal
in 35 Associates, of whom Maisonneuve, a gentleman of Champaign,
was one; and who on the 15th of October, 1641, was declared governor
of the island; and brought over with him several families to Montreal.
|
| Start
of French troubles with the Mohawks and Iroquois. |
The French
in their trade with the neighbouring Indians, being much obstructed
by the Mohawks, then a powerful tribe, and being unable to subdue
them without assistance, in 1647, sent M. Marie, a Jesuit,
as an agent to solicit aid from Massachusetts, with
offers of liberal compensation for assistance, which the government
of the English colony refused, on the ground that the Mohawks
had never injured them.
In the following
year, the colonists of Newfoundland sent to the Governor and Council
of Canada a proposal of perpetual peace between the colonies,
even though the mother countries might be at war. Although the
French were much pleased with the proposal, and anxious to conclude
an agreement of the kind, the business terminated without success,
because the English were firm in their determination not to assist
the French against the Iroquois (or Five Nations.)
In 1649,
in the month of March, a party of Iroquois, about 1,000 in number,
attacked the Huron village of St. Ignatius, containing
400 persons, all of whom, with the exception of three only, were
massacred. About five years afterwards, the Eries, a numerous
tribe of Indians inhabiting the borders of Lake Erie, were so
effectually exterminated by the Iroquois, that were it not for
the
name of the lake, we should have no memorial of their existence.
|
| Fur
trade in New France turned over to West India Company. |
In 1665, M.
De Courcelles, being appointed governor of New France, transported
the regiment of Calignan Salieres to Canada:
it consisted of 1,000 foot, and they were accompanied besides by
numerous families, with mechanics, hired servants, horses
(the first ever seen in Canada), cattle and sheep. The 100 associates
in whom the property of the colony was vested, had grown weary of
the expense of maintaining the colony, and from the year 1644 abandoned
the fur trade to the inhabitants, reserving to themselves as their
right of lordship an annual payment of 1,000 beavers. Reduced at
length to the number of 45 associates, they
made a total resignation of all their rights in 1662, to the French
King, who soon afterwards included New France in the grant
which he made of the French colonies in America, in favour of the
West India Company formed by the great Colbert. |
| A
year-by-year account of the war between the
French and the Five Nations, from 1663 to the peace treaty in 1699
at Onondaga. |
The Mohawks
having greatly annoyed the French, were attacked in the following
year by a French army of 28 companies of foot,
and the whole militia of the colony. This formidable body of troops
marched upwards of 700 miles, in the depth of winter, from Quebec
into the country of the Mohawks, with a view of utterly destroying
them; but the Indians retired with their women and children into
the depth of the woods, leaving only a few ancient sachems in the
villages, who chose rather to die than desert their habitations.
These were murdered by the French, and their villages burnt, but
nothing was gained by the expedition. In the following year, peace
was at length established between the French and the Five Nations,
which continued for several years, and they cultivated a mutual
trade. In 1670 the small-pox broke out amongst the Indians
in the northern parts of Canada, and swept off whole tribes, particularly
the tribe of Atikamegues, which has never since been heard of. Tadusac,
the chief mart of the Indian fur trade
with the French, was deserted, as was also Trois Rivieres, where
the small-pox carried off 1,500 Indians at once. In 1671, a grand
congress of the French and of many Canadian Indians was held at
the Falls of St. Mary; where the Indians professed submission to
the king of France in a formal manner. In 1672, M. de Courcelles,
governor of Canada, commenced building a fort on the north side
of the outlet of Lake Ontario (near where Kingston now stands),
as a barrier against the Iroquois, which was completed in the following
year by Count Frontenac, who called it after his own name.
The French likewise built a fort at Michilimackinac. In 1647 Quebec
was made a bishopric. In 1678 M. de Sale rebuilt the Fort
Frontenac with stone; he also launched a bark of ten tons on Lake
Ontario, and in the year following another vessel of 60 tons on
Lake Erie; about this time he also enclosed a little spot of ground
at Niagara with stockades intended for a fort. In 1683, the French
erected a fort between the Lakes Erie and Huron; and in the following
year M. de la Barre with a large army from Canada made an
unsuccessful expedition into the country of the Five Nations, and
found it necessary to conclude his campaign with a treaty. He was
met at the place appointed by the Oneidas, Onondagas, and Cayugas;
the Mohawks and Senecas refusing to attend. Seated in a chair of
state, surrounded by his own Indians, principally the Hurons of
Lorette, and the French officers, he addressed himself to Garangula,
an Onondaga chief, in a very haughty speech, which he concluded
with a menace to burn the castles of the Five Nations, and destroy
the Indians, unless the satisfaction which he demanded was given.
Garangula, who sat at some little distance before his men,
with his pipe in his mouth, and the great Calumet of peace before
him, did nothing but look at the end of his pipe during this harangue:
when it was finished, after walking five or six times round the
circle in silence, he stood perfectly upright, and thus addressed
the French general: "Onnuntio, I honour you, and all the warriors
who are with me honour you. Your interpreter has finished your speech,
I now begin mine: my words make haste to reach your ears; hearken
to them. Onnuntio, in setting out from Quebec, you must have imagined
that the scorching beams of the sun had burned down the forests,
which rendered our country inaccessible to the French, or that the
inundations of the lakes had shut us up in our castles; but now
you are undeceived, for I and my warriors have come to assure you
that the Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, Oneidas and Mohawks are yet
alive." After ascribing the pacific overtures of the general to
the impotence of the French, and repelling the charges brought against
his countrymen, he thus concludes: "My voice is the voice of all
the Five Nations; hear what they say; open your ears to what they
speak. The Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, Oneidas and Mohawks, say,
that when they buried the hatchet at Cataracuay, in the presence
of your predecessor, in the very centre of the fort, and planted
the tree of peace in the same place, it was then agreed that the
fort should be used as a place of rendezvous for merchants, and
not as a refuge for soldiers. Hear, Onnuntio, you ought to take
care that so great a number of soldiers as appear now, do not choke
the tree of peace, planted in so small a fort, and hinder it from
shading both your country and ours with its branches. I do assure
you that our warriors shall dance to the Calumet of peace under
its leaves, and that we will never dig up the axe to cut it down,
until the Onnuntio or the Corlar shall either jointly or separately
endeavour to invade the country which the Great Spirit has given
to our ancestors. This belt confirms my words, and this other the
authority which the Five Nations have given me."
In 1685,
according to a return made by order of the Government, the inhabitants
of Canada amounted to 17,000, 3,000 of whom were supposed to be
capable of bearing arms.
In 1687,
M. Denonville, who had succeeded De la Barre, took
the field at the head of 1,500 French and 500 Indians, in order
to attack and destroy the Senecas, who had refused to attend at
the late treaty, and were known to be firmly attached to the English.
He commenced his march from Cataraqui in June; and the scouts
of the French army advanced as far as the corn of the Indian settlements,
without seeing a single Indian, although they passed within pistol
shot of 500 Senecas, who laid on their faces, and suffered them
to pass and repass without attacking them. At length, when the
invading army had approached within a quarter of a league of the
chief village of the Senecas, they raised the war shout, accompanied
with a discharge of fire arms from all sides. This surprise threw
the French into confusion, and the Senecas fell upon them with
great fury; but the French Indians being rallied, repulsed them
in the end. In this action about 100 French, ten French Indians,
and 80 Senecas were killed. The next day Denonville continued
his march, with the intention of burning the village, but he found
it already in ashes; the Senecas had burnt it and fled. Two old
men only were found in the village, who were cut into pieces and
boiled to make soup for the French allies. Before Denonville
returned into Canada he built a fort with four bastions at Niagara,
in which he left a garrison; but it was soon afterwards abandoned.
In 1689 Denonville
was recalled, and Count Frontenac came over as governor
of Canada. On the 26th of July in this year a body of 1,200 Indians
of the Five Nations invaded the Island of Montreal, burnt all
the plantations, and made a horrible massacre of men, women and
children, throwing the whole French colony into the utmost consternation;
insomuch that Valrennes, the commandant at Cataraqui, was
ordered by Denonville to abandon that place. In this attack
1,000 French are said to have been slain, and 26 carried off and
burnt alive.
In the following
year an attack was made on Quebec by an English fleet, under command
of Sir W. Phipps, which proved unsuccessful. Between this
time and the year 1698, when the Count Frontenac died,
the war between the French and Indians still continued, with varying
fortunes, neither party gaining any very signal advantage over
the other; and on the arrival of M. de Calliers in 1699,
who succeeded Count Frontenac as Governor of Canada, he
terminated the disputes with the Indians by agreeing to an exchange
of prisoners; which treaty of peace took place at Onondaga.
|
| A
short account of the British capture of Quebec. |
In
1705 the loss of a large and richly laden ship bound to Quebec
(which was captured by the English), compelled the colonists to
raise their own hemp and flax, which by permission of the French
court they manufactured into linens and stuffs.
In 1714
the whole number of men capable of bearing arms, between the ages
of 14 and 60, that could be raised in Canada, only amounted to
4,484; and in 1749 the population had increased so much, that
the militia of Canada numbered 12,000.
In 1759 Quebec
was taken by General Wolfe, and Niagara was captured by
Sir. W. Johnston; and on the 8th September, 1760, Montreal,
Detroit, Michilimackinac, and all other places within the government
of Canada, were surrendered to his Britannic Majesty; and the
destruction of a fleet ordered out from France in aid of Canada,
completed the annihilation of the French power on the continent
of North America. As a reward to those soldiers and officers who
had fought during the late war, the governors of the British possessions
in North America were empowered to grant to each field officer
5,000 acres of land; to a captain, 3,000; to a subaltern or staff
officer, 2,000; to a non-commissioned officer, 200; and to
each private 50 acres of land. At this time Canada contained upwards
of 65,000 inhabitants; and the exports for the year from Great
Britain to Canada amounted to £8,623.
|
| The
division, naming and settlement of the two provinces. |
In 1791, by
an act of parliament, the Province of Quebec was divided into two
separate provinces, to be called the provinces of Upper and Lower
Canada; and the first parliament of the Upper Province met at Niagara
on the 17th Sept. 1792. In 1797 the second parliament met at Little
York (now Toronto); which place continued to be the capital of the
Upper Province till after the re-union of the two provinces
in the year 1841, when Lord Sydenham removed the seat of
government to Kingston, where it remained till 1844, when it was
again removed to Montreal. When the two provinces were re- united
their designation was changed from Upper and Lower Canada, to Canada
West and Canada East. Canada East is inhabited principally by the
descendants of the old French settlers, with the exception of Quebec
and Montreal (which, being the principal shipping places and commercial
depots of the Lower Province, have amongst their population many
English, Irish and Scotch merchants, and other persons connected
with the trade and shipping interests of the province and Great
Britain), and the Eastern townships, which the British American
Land Company have been for some time engaged in trying to settle
with British emigrants.
The Upper
Province, or Canada West, (to which province this work is limited),
is settled principally by emigrants and the descendants of emigrants
from Great Britain and Ireland. There are also large numbers of
U. E. Loyalists (or persons who fought on the side of Great Britain
during the American war, a mixture of all nations) and their descendants;
and in particular localities there are large settlements of Pennsylvanian
Dutch; and there are also many Americans scattered over the country.
The Irish have rather a majority in the province, and next to
them the English.
|
| Putting
to right many misconceptions, common in Britain, about the Canadian
climate. |
Much has been
written against, and strange notions are prevalent in Britain respecting,
the climate of Canada. Most persons on the other side of the Atlantic
imagine that the winter is so severe, and the snow so deep, that
it is impossible for any one to stir out of doors without being
wrapped up to the eyebrows in furs or woollens; nor even then without
the risk of being frozen to death, or lost in the snow. This is
a very erroneous idea; and persons after being a short time in Canada
are not a little surprised to find the climate very different to
what they had expected, and to what it had been represented. Emigrants
from England find but little difference between the climate of Canada
and that which they have left, except that the former climate is
much drier, much more so indeed than any one would be led to expect,
considering the immense bodies of water distributed over it and
by which it is surrounded. Persons in Upper Canada generally clothe
themselves much more lightly than they have been accustomed to do
at home; and many persons who in England always wore both cloak
and great-coat in winter, in Canada seldom put on either. It matters
little how low the thermometer may be, if there is no wind, a person
taking exercise does not feel the cold; the atmosphere being remarkably
clear and bracing, with a cloudless sky, the weather is generally
very pleasant; and the finest winter's day the author was ever out
on, was spent in travelling between Barrie and Penetanguishene,
the mercury in the thermometer being early in the morning down to
28 degrees below zero. Indeed, in Upper Canada, parties are heard
much more frequently complaining of the heat than of the cold; and
(which seems rather singular, considering their colour) the Indians
say they suffer much more from the heat in summer than from the
cold in winter. To convey a more definite idea of the severity of
a winter in Upper Canada, it may be mentioned that the chain of
shallow lakes which are distributed over the Newcastle and Colborne
districts are seldom or never frozen over hard enough to bear a
man with any heavy burden before Christmas, and they are generally
open again before the middle of April. Lake Simcoe is seldom ventured
upon with sleighs before the end of January; and farther west the
winter is still shorter. Owing to the want of proper explanations,
and misstatements by travellers and others who have attempted to
describe the country (some of whom have seen very little of it),
an idea has been formed in England that the great lakes are frozen
over in winter, which is entirely a mistake. Lake Erie alone, which
is very shallow, is said to have been frozen over two or three times
within the last 40 years; which, however is very doubtful. The earth
is seldom frozen to a greater depth than from 12 to 18 inches, and
the snow does not generally lie deeper than from 18 inches to two
feet. The length of the winter and the depth of the snow vary very
much according to the latitude of the locality; for instance, in
the south of the Western District there is at least six weeks less
winter than in Montreal; and while the snow at Sandwich or Amherstburg
is seldom more than a foot in depth, at Penetanguishene it is frequently
four feet deep. East or north of London there is generally sufficient
snow for sleighing by about the third week in December; this usually
lasts for two or three weeks, sometimes a little longer, when a
thaw (called from its regular periodical appearance the January
thaw) takes place, which continues for a few days, when it is succeeded
by a fresh fall of snow; and the sleighing then continues good till
the end of February or the beginning of March, when it breaks up
altogether. In Upper Canada the occurrence of winters with scarcely
any snow at all is not unfrequent; and such seasons are generally
found to be injurious to the fall crops of wheat, and are besides
considered to be a great misfortune, as they are found in many places
to be a serious hindrance both to business and pleasure travelling,
the snow when well beaten making the worst road in the province
fuly equal to a railroad. In fact, the winter is the season
for travelling on the roads in Canada; in summer the principal part
of the travelling is performed by steamboat. There is a material
difference between the climate of Upper and Lower Canada. In Upper
Canada a man can, if he chooses, work out of doors at all seasons
of the year; but in the Lower Province there are occasionally days
in the winter when the cold is so severe that it would be impossible
for him to work in the open air.
It is something
rather singular with respect to the climate of Canada, that the
weather generally changes every three days; for instance there
is seldom more than three days of severe weather at one time,
and if the weather continues fair for three days, and does not
change on the fourth, there is almost certain to be a continuation
of fine weather for two days longer. In summer the thermometer
seldom rises above 85 degrees, and the heat is generally moderated
by pleasant breezes from the lakes. By the following statement
from the minutes of the Trinity House at Quebec, it will be seen
that navigation never opens later, even there, than the sixth
of May, and seldom later than the latter end of April; and the
steamboats on the St. Lawrence and Lake Ontario, seldom cease
running till nearly Christmas, and from Toronto to Niagara they
frequently continue to run (weather permitting) through the whole
winter.
|
| Table
showing the dates of the opening of navigation. |
Statement,
from the minutes of the Trinity House at Quebec, for the dates
of the opening of navigation, and of the arrival of the first
steamboat from Montreal, in each year, from 1817 to 1844.
| Navigation
Opened |
Arrival
of First Steamboats |
| Year |
Date |
Date |
Names
of Boats |
| 1817 |
May
6 |
May
7 |
Malsham. |
| 1818 |
April
28 |
April
27 |
Do. |
| 1819 |
No
minute |
May
2 |
Telegraph. |
| 1820 |
" |
April
24 |
Lady
Sherbrooke. |
| 1821 |
" |
May
3 |
Quebec. |
| 1822 |
" |
April
29 |
Lady
Sherbrooke. |
| 1823 |
April
25 |
" 27 |
Quebec. |
| 1824 |
" 20 |
" 21 |
Swiftsure. |
| 1825 |
" 19 |
" 17 |
Do. |
| 1826 |
No
minute |
" 22 |
Laprarie. |
| 1827 |
April
14 |
" 16 |
Waterloo. |
| 1828 |
" 15 |
" 12 |
Chambly. |
| 1829 |
" 18 |
" 20 |
Lady
of the Lake. |
| 1830 |
" 16 |
" 17 |
Do. |
| 1831 |
No
minute |
" 21 |
Do. |
| 1832 |
May
1 |
" 29 |
St.
Lawrence. |
| 1833 |
April
19 |
" 18 |
Do. |
| 1834 |
" 18 |
" 17 |
Lady
of the Lake. |
| 1835 |
May
4 |
May
4 |
Canada. |
| 1836 |
" 10 |
" 11 |
Do. |
| 1837 |
" 2 |
" 1 |
British
America. |
| 1838 |
" 1 |
April
28 |
St.
George. |
| 1839 |
April
23 |
" 21 |
British
America. |
| 1840 |
" 21 |
" 19 |
Lady
Colborne. |
| 1841 |
May
4 |
May
1 |
Queen. |
| 1842 |
April
26 |
April
21 |
Lady
Colborne. |
| 1843 |
May
5 |
May
5 |
Canada. |
| 1844 |
April
23 |
April
23 |
Alliance. |
|
| The
climate causes less sickness in Canada than in Britain. |
From the greater
dryness of the climate, persons suffer far less from coughs and
colds than they do in England; and many persons frequently expose
themselves to the weather with impunity, in a manner that in any
part of Great Britain would be fraught with great danger. Almost
every work on the subject of Canada has a chapter or two devoted
to that never-ending and ever-fruitful theme -- ague.
An emigrant comes out, and (contrary to the advice of every one
capable of giving it) thoughtlessly settles himself down in the
immediate neighbourhood of a swamp; as might naturally have been
anticipated, he catches the "ager," and forthwith he condemns
the country -- unfairly so; he had been previously warned, but was
unwilling to take the advice of those who knew better than himself,
and he suffers the consequence of his folly. As well might the whole
climate of England be condemned, because the fens of Lincolnshire,
Cambridgeshire and Essex produce ague. The Indians are as liable
to suffer from ague as the whites. |
| Climate
continues: the length of the growing seasons. |
In consequence
of the dryness of the climate, the surface of the country, in
the latter part of the summer and autumn, has not that beautiful,
verdant appearance that is so attractive in a moist climate like
that of England; but this want is amply compensated for by the
magnificent appearance, and the beauty of the tints of the forest
trees in the autumn, when their leaves are changing. Here every
variety of colour may be noticed, intermingled one with another
-- crimson, orange, yellow, and every variety of brown; the whole
forming one of the richest scenes that can well be imagined.
Canada may
properly be said to have but three seasons -- summer, autumn,
and winter; indeed were it not for the change in the appearance
of the foliage, it would be difficult to say where summer ends
and autumn commences. Generally, as soon as the snow disappears,
warm weather sets in, and vegetation is exceedingly rapid, so
much so, that although the spring is about a month later than
in England, by the end of June vegetation of all kinds is as far
advanced as in the latter country. It occasionally happens that
frosts occur in May, which do a great deal of mischief, but these
are only occasional, and the farmer may always reckon upon fine
weather for his harvest. Corn, on an average, is ready for cutting
about a fortnight or three weeks earlier than in England, and
the grain, when once ripe, dries so fast, that it is not at all
unusual for corn to be cut and carried on the same day.
|
| Fruits
and vegetables which may be cultivated in Canada. |
From the warmth
of the seasons, and the absence of summer frosts, many fruits that
can only be raised under glass in England, such as melons, are grown
in the greatest perfection in the open ground. In the southern portions
of the province, fruit is grown in such plenty, that peaches have
been sold in the Western District, on the shores of Lake Erie, at
a quarter of a dollar per bushel, and apples have been sold on the
Thames at three-pence halfpenny per bushel. Pumpkins and squashes
grow in the open fields to an enormous size; from 50 to 80 pounds
weight is not at all unusual. All the vegetable productions of England
flourish under proper cultivation; apples, pears, plums, peaches,
cherries, raspberries, currants and strawberries; damsons are not
yet much cultivated, and gooseberries have had but little attention
paid them. Cabbages, peas, beans, celery, asparagus, lettuce, onions,
turnips, carrots, parsnips, tomatoes, cucumbers, rhubarb, and spinach
grow luxuriantly; and almost every other description of vegetable,
necessary or desirable for the table, may be cultivated with very
little trouble. |
| The
kinds of trees which grow in Canada and the many products made from
them. |
Of the natural
productions of the country, amongst the monarchs of the forest may
be found, white and red pine, the former of which will frequently
be found 100 feet high to the first branch, and will occasionally
reach 200 feet in height; the average size of the timber cut for
the Quebec market, will be in logs of about 20 inches square, and
60 feet in length; white oak, which will cut to about 18 inches
square, and about 50 feet in length; although sticks of both timbers
are occasionally cut considerably larger. Of both these kinds of
timber immense quantities are annually sent to England; and large
quantities of white oak are split up into staves for the manufacture
of puncheons, hogsheads, barrels, &c., for the supply of the
English and West Indian markets. There are several kinds of ash
: white ash, which is valuable for making oars; swamp ash; and prickly
ash (or black ash, as it is frequently called), which is an ornamental
wood, some of which is very handsome, and is used for making furniture;
black and white birch, with the bark of the latter of which the
Indians make their light and beautiful canoes; beech; elm; hickory;
sugar maple, from the sap of which immense quantities of excellent
sugar are made (some families occasionally making as much as 2,500
pounds), and the beautiful birds-eye or curled maple; butternut
is also a tree the wood of which is highly ornamental, and the fruit
of which is very good eating; it is rather larger than the walnut,
which furnishes the most beautiful wood for cabinet work grown on
the continent of America; this wood is as yet but little known in
Europe, but it richly deserves to be so; it is much used for the
best kinds of furniture in America, sawn into veneers; much of it
is most beautifully veined, and some of it is richer in colour,
and far more beautiful in appearance than the finest specimens of
rosewood. The wild cherry tree (the Laurius Cerasus, or cherry laurel),
is very abundant and is much used for common furniture; it is a
hard and durable wood. The bass-wood or lime tree; on rich
moist ground, the white sycamore and button-wood tree; in the
marshes, alder, spotted alder, willow and varieties of thorn; and
in the swamps red and white cedar, tamarack and hemlock; from the
tamarack the gum is obtained with which the Indians cement and make
water-tight the seams of their bark canoes; besides which there
are the spruce fir, pitch pine (or Scotch fir), larch, black oak,
and several other varieties; the cedar is a most useful wood for
many purposes, and very lasting. Of shrubs there are many varieties,
amongst which are the sumach and leather-wood tree. |
| The
kinds of wild fruits which grow in Canada. |
Of the wild
fruits of the country may be mentioned the wild cherry, which is
principally used for flavouring spirits; wild grapes, few of which
however are to be found sufficiently sweet for eating; black currants,
which although not equal to the cultivated, make a very good preserve;
red currants; several kinds of gooseberries, red, green and black,
the fruit of most of which is covered with prickles, and is only
usable when young; raspberries, which are of a fine flavor; and
nearly equal to the cultivated; black raspberries; cranberries,
which make a most delicious preserve, and large quantities of which
are exported; none of these however reach England in a state of
perfection, the reason of which is that the berries are gathered
much too early, long before they are ripe, through the jealousy
of the Indians, each of whom is afraid he shall not get his share;
they therefore generally pick them in August, although they are
not thoroughly ripe till October; when they are allowed to hang
on the bush through the winter, and are gathered in the spring,
they are a very rich fruit. These cranberries grow in marshes, which
are generally much infested with rattlesnakes, therefore the white
settlers seldom venture into them, but depend for their supply of
the fruit upon the Indians. Besides these there are wild plums;
strawberries, which grow in great abundance in particular localities,
and which are about equal to the English wild strawberry; blackberries
and hazel nuts; and many other kinds of wild fruit. |
| The
kinds of wild flowers which grow in Canada. |
The flowers
are almost innumerable, early in the summer the woods are literally
clothed with them; amongst which will be found many beautiful varieties
which are cultivated in the English gardens, such as the scarlet
lobelia, blue lupin, purple gentian, columbine, violets (without
scent), fleur de lis, the beautiful white water lily, two varieties
of dog's-tooth violet, scarlet and other honey suckles, wild
rose (rosa canina), dogwood, arbutus, diosma crenata, sweet briar,
asclepias (two or three varieties), campanula, lychnis, golden rod,
michaelmas daisy, hyoscyamus niger, hydrastis Canadensis, pyrola
(or winter green), hare bell, mimulus, phlox, Solomon's seal, calceolaria,
&c. To give, however, a detailed list of the botanical productions
of Canada would occupy a volume. Hops grow wild and in great perfection.
|
| A
lengthy account of the kinds of wild game to be found in Canada;
the wanton destruction of many animals and birds, and the enactment
of laws to prevent this. |
The living,
breathing denizens of the forest are various; but their numbers
are fast diminishing before the destructive progress of civilization.
When they shared the sovereignty of the land with the red man,
they were comparatively but little disturbed; but as the country
became settled up they were either gradually destroyed, or were
obliged to retreat before the advancing footsteps of their common
foe. On this subject there has been much misrepresentation in
all works published on Canada. Game of all kinds has generally
been represented as so plentiful, that no person would so much
as dream of starting for Canada without at least one gun;
and emigrants on their arrival, generally keep glancing from side
to side as they walk up the streets, expecting every instant to
see a bear or a wolf dart from the doorways; and in strolling
into the country, they walk very cautiously along, lest they should
inadvertantly tread upon and crush some poor partridge, hare,
or turkey. In the present day, bears and wolves are only to be
found in the more unsettled neighbourhoods, and it is very seldom
that they are seen, unless regularly hunted after; and sometimes
the hunters will be out several days before they can find a bear;
and wolves are still more difficult to come at. Both these occasionally
commit depredations in the farm yards bordering on the woods;
and the Legislature in consequence established a premium or head
money, payable for the head of each wolf. Formerly it was only
neccessary to take the scalp (i.e., the skin from the top of the
head, and the ears) to a magistrate, who granted a certificate
entitling the applicant to the premium. But this was found to
lead to abuses, as some of the Indians were in the habit of breeding
a cross between the wolf and their own curs, which when sufficiently
old were killed for the sake of the premium; and many instances
have occurred of foxes' scalps being substituted by white
settlers for those of young wolves. A new regulation was
consequently made, and the party claiming the premium was compelled
to present the whole head. The beaver is now seldom found within
reach of the white settlements; and the panther, lynx and wild
cat have emigrated far to the north. Foxes, both silver grey,
cross and red, racoons, otter, fishers, martens, minks and muskrats,
still remain in diminished numbers, and large quantities of fur
are still annually exported.
Of the game
-- deer have become gradually destroyed, and but few comparatively
now remain. In some localities, as in the Western District, they
were tolerably plentiful till the winter of 1842-3, when a numerous
band of Pottawattamie Indians came to the province from the United
States. These were noted hunters, and the winter being favourable
for the pursuit, immense numbers of the deer were slaughtered.
The Indians do not generally kill more than they want for use;
but this roving band appeared to hunt merely for the sake of destroying,
as many a deer was left where it fell to be devoured by the wolves.
In Canada, large numbers of deer are killed, at what are called
"deer licks;" these are wet swampy places, the water of which
is strongly impregnated with salt, and which places the deer are
in the habit of visiting at night, during certain seasons of the
year. In order to get within shot, the Indians usually built up
a kind of platform in the branches of a neighbouring tree, and
watch there, rifle in hand, for the arrival of the deer, whose
doom is soon sealed. Occasionally the deer, when hunted, will
take to the lakes, and swim out sometimes more than a mile; the
hunters generally follow in canoes or skiffs, and a desperate
water fight ensues, which usually ends in the destruction of the
poor quadruped. Previous to the winter of 1842, wild turkeys were
also plentiful in the Western and London Districts; but the severity
of that winter, and the great depth of snow, caused them to be
completely starved out of the woods; and immense numbers were
killed in the farm yards, whither they had ventured in search
of food. This was complete murder, as most of them were little
better than skin and bone. Had they been fed and taken care of
during the winter, and allowed to escape in the spring, the breed
would have been effectually preserved; whereas in consequence
of the wholesale destruction practised amongst them, not a single
turkey was met with during the following year. Last year, two
or three flocks were seen, therefore there are still hopes of
their continuing to exist in the province. In particular localities,
and at certain seasons of the year, the partridge or pheasant,
for by both names it is know, (which is in reality a kind of grouse),
is tolerably plentiful in the woods. Woodcocks and snipes are
not so numerous, but may occasionally be met with. There is also
a species of hare, which turns white in winter. Pigeons are very
plentiful in the spring and autumn, and are killed by hundreds.
Of ducks there are many varieties, some of them are very beautiful;
they are excellent eating, and being found in great numbers, particularly
about the marshy parts of the lakes and rivers, afford excellent
sport. Wild swans are occasionally seen, and wild geese very commonly.
Amongst the smaller animals the squirrels must not be omitted,
as they are in great numbers, and form the the principal game
of Canada : of these there are four varieties, the black squirrel,
the largest and most numerous; the grey squirrel, which is seldom
met with; the red squirrel, and the ground squirrel or chipmonk
: these when properly cooked are excellent eating, and most persons
prefer them to pigeons.
For the purpose
of preserving the game of the province, and in order to endeavour
to prevent its utter destruction, a bill was lately brought into
parliament by Colonel Prince (himself a keen sportsman),
the enactments of which are as follows:
"That no
person or persons shall, within this province, from and after
the passing of this act, hunt, shoot, take, kill or destroy any
wild swan, wild goose, wild duck, teal, widgeon or snipe, between
the tenth day of May, and the fifteenth day of August, in any
year.
"That no
person shall hereafter trap or set traps, nets or snares for any
grouse or quail, or kill, or hunt, or go in quest after the same
at night, within this province.
"That if
any person shall hunt, shoot, take, kill or destroy any wild swan,
wild goose, wild duck, teal, widgeon or snipe between the tenth
day of May, and the fifteenth day of August in any year, or shall
sell, offer for sale, buy, receive, or have in his or her possession,
any of the above mentioned birds, between those periods, (such
birds having been taken or killed after the said tenth day of
May, the proof to the contrary whereof shall be upon the party
charged,) or if any person shall trap or set traps, nets or snares,
for any grouse or quail, or if any person shall kill or hunt,
or go in quest after the same at night, (that is to say, between
sunset and sunrise,) on any such person being convicted of any
or either of the said offences, before a justice of the peace,
upon the oath or affirmation of one or more credible witness or
witnesses, (which oath or affirmation the justice is hereby authorized
to administer,) or upon view had of the offence by the said justice
himself, shall pay a fine or penalty not exceeding five pounds,
nor less than five shillings, current money of this province,
together with the costs and charges attending the conviction."
It is to
be feared, however, that no enactment of the kind will have much
effect in preserving the game, as its provisions cannot be extended
to the Indians, who are the principal hunters in the province;
few other persons having much time or inclination for the sport.
|
| The
kinds of wild birds to be found in Canada. |
Among the
smaller feathered tribe are many beautiful birds : the jay, which
is about the size of the English jay, but the whole of whose plumage
is blue, and beautifully marked; several varieties of woodpecker,
the largest of which is called the "cock of the woods," a bird nearly
the size of a rook, with black plumage, and a tuft of scarlet feathers
on his head; a smaller one, with the body and wings black and white,
the head and neck of a glossy black shaded with green, and a crimson
spot on the top of the head; another, about the same size, spotted
over with black and white, with one or two other varieties. The
scarlet taniger, a scarlet bird with black wings, and a very sweet
note; the bluebird, nearly as large as a blackbird, of a most beautiful
blue, with a red breast; the indigo bird, a smaller bird, of a deeper
blue; three varieties of blackbirds, one of which has scarlet shoulders;
the American canary, or flax-bird, a bird much resembling the
canary both in plumage and note, the only difference in the former
being that the wings are black; and there is also a patch of black
feathers on the top of the head. The robin, a bird something resembling
the English robin in appearance, but more than double the size;
the meadow lark, (a different bird to the English sky lark); the
thrush; the kingfisher; the whippoorwill; the sandpiper; several
varieties of fly catchers, and tree creepers; the swallow, two varieties
of plover; the curlew; two species of humming birds, one of which
is of a golden green, and the other has a crimson throat; with many
other species, some of which are equally handsome. Some of these
birds, however, only spend the summer with us, coming in the early
spring, and migrating to the south in the autumn. Besides these,
we have the bald-headed eagle, a noble bird; the kite; the
large fishing hawk; the sparrow hawk; the large horned owl, and
two or three smaller varieties; the heron, the bittern and the crow. |
| The
kinds of fish to be found in Canada; depletion of game fish and
the passing of a fisheries act. |
In the lakes
and rivers, the principal fish are the sturgeon, which is frequently
taken of from 80 to 100 pounds weight; the lake or salmon trout,
which grows to the size of from ten to 40 pounds; the whitefish,
(the most delicious fish in the lakes), and herrings; of these three
many thousand barrels are annually taken and salted, a large portion
of which is exported to the United States. There are also pike,
of large size; pickerel; three varieties of bass; maskelonge, a
magnificent fish; cat-fish; suckers; perch; and occasionally
eels; and in most of the rivers and mill streams may be found the
speckled trout. In the St. Lawrence, and rivers running into Lake
Ontario, large quantities of fine salmon have formerly been taken
during the migration of the fish in the spring and autumn. In the
river Credit, in particular, a waggon load has frequently been taken
by two or three persons in one night; but for the last two or three
seasons the fish have almost deserted the streams running into Lake
Ontario, the reason of which is supposed to be, the great number
of dams erected across them, for the purpose of securing a supply
of water for the grist, and saw mills, which have much increased
in number within a few years, and the immense quantity of saw- dust
which is consequently constantly floating down them. It being considered
desirable to preserve the salmon if possible, and prevent their
being altogether exterminated or driven from the lake, an act was
passed, which provides as follows:
"That from
and after the passing of this act, it shall not be lawful for
any person or persons at any time between the tenth day of September
in any year, and the first day of March in the succeeding year,
to take, catch or kill any salmon or salmon fry, in any manner
whatsoever.
"That it
shall not be lawful for any person or persons at any time to take,
catch or kill in any manner, in any disrict in Upper Canada, any
salmon or salmon fry nearer the mouth of any of the rivers or
creeks emptying into Lake Ontario or the Bay of Quinté,
than 200 yards, or within 200 yards up from the mouth of any such
river or creek as aforsaid; Provided always, that nothing herin
contained shall be construed to prevent the taking of salmon with
a seine or net at any place along the shores of Lake Ontario between
the first day of February and the first day of August.
"That it
shall not be lawful for any person or persons to take, catch or
kill, or attempt to take, catch or kill any fish whatsoever, in
any river or creek within Upper Canada, by torch or fire light
within 100 yards of any mill which may now or hereafter be erected
on any such river or creek as aforsaid.
"That from
and after the passing of this act, it shall not be lawful for
any person or persons to buy, receive or have in his or their
possession, under any pretence whatever, any salmon taken or caught
during the period in which persons are hereby prohibited from
taking or attempting to take or catch salmon within Upper Canada;
and the proof that any salmon was not so taken or caught, shall
lie on the person or persons in whose possession any such salmon
shall be found.
"That if
any person or persons shall be convicted of any offence against
this act, before any one or more of her Majesty's justices of
the peace within the district in which the offence shall have
been committed, upon the oath of one or more credible witness
or witnesses, such person or persons shall upon conviction, as
aforsaid, forfeit and pay a sum not exceding ten pounds, nor less
than five shillings, for the first offence, at the discretion
of the justice or justices before whom such conviction shall be
had, with all reasonable costs both before and after conviction;
and for every subsequent offence of a like nature, the sum of
five pounds, with costs as aforsaid; and upon any such conviction,
it shall be lawful for the said justice or justices before whom
such conviction shall have been made, to issue his or their warrent
of distress against the goods and chattels of the offender or
offenders."
|
| Other
animals, snakes, frogs and insects found in Canada. |
Two varieties
of turtle are plentiful in the rivers and ponds -- the common
and the snapping turtle. The North American porcupine should not
be forgotten, it is considerably smaller than the South American
porcupine, and the quills are both shorter and more slender; they
are naturally of an opaque white; and the Indians dye them of
many beautiful colours, and use them extensively in ornamental
work.
Snakes are
numerous; but venomous kinds are not so plentiful as in the country
more to the south (in the United States); of the latter are the
rattlesnake, adder; and the copper- head is also said to exist.
The water-moccasin is also said to be venomous. Those which
are harmless consist of the large black snake, the small brown
snake and the garter snakes. Great numbers of the snakes are destroyed
by the large hawks, which seem to consider them a very delicious
morsel. Frogs (or Canadian nightingales) exist in great numbers
in the ponds and ditches. Wild bees are also numerous : they make
their comb in a hollow tree, and occasionally a tree (called a
bee tree) is felled, in the hollow of which will be found two
or three hundred weight of honey.
Of entomological
specimens many beautiful varieties are to be met with, and mosquitoes
are apt to form an early and sometimes rather too intimate
an acquaintance with the newly arrived emigrant.
|
| Minerals
found in Canada. |
Minerals,
and those of the most valuable kinds, are very abundant in the province.
Iron ore of the richest description (which is said to produce iron
equal to the Swedish) exists in the townships of Madoc and Marmora,
in the Victoria District; in Bathurst, in the Bathurst District,
and in other places; and bog iron ore is found in great plenty in
many places, and is used extensively for making stoves and other
castings. Silver, tin and lead are known to exist in various parts
of the Province, beautiful specimens being frequently seen in the
possession of the Indians; but the exact locality of the mines is
not known, and the Indians are not willing to discover them. Copper
has lately been discovered on the Canadian side of Lake Superior,
and gold is also said to have been found. Marble of many beautiful
varieties -- pure white, green and yellow striped, spotted black
and white, grey and black -- exists in great plenty in the Eastern,
Bathurst, Johnstown, Midland and Victoria districts, and also on
Lake Huron. Lithographic stone in the townships of Marmora and Rama
: freestone, limestone and granite are also abundant. Gypsum (or
plaster of Paris) is also found in large quantities on the Grand
River and other parts. And in various parts of the province salt
has been made from brine springs; the water, however, has not generally
been found sufficiently impregnated with salt to make the operation
profitable. |
END
OF THIS SECTION.
SEE
NEXT SECTION:
DIVISIONS
AND EXTENT OF THE UPPER PROVINCE:
IT'S
PROGRESS AND IMPROVEMENTS ; RESOURCES ; TRADE AND
AGRICULTURE ; EDUCATION ; ADVICE TO EMIGRANTS, &c.
|
