LETTER IX.

LOWER VALLEY OF THE ST. LAWRENCE..

Tardy progress, not without its Advantages-The St. Lawrence, the longest Navigable River in the World-Grandest Scenery in America-Cultivation of the Valley-Equality of the Population-Religious wants provided for-Revenue of the Catholic Church-Seniorages-Sailing from Quebec-White Porpoises-Width of the River, and Mountain Scenery in the distance-Few American Travellers ever see the Mouth and Gulf of St. Lawrence-Sir James Stuart and Family-Reflections on the Glorious Fourth.

MOUTH OF THE ST. LAWRENCE, JULY 4, 1851. WHEN I wrote my last letter from Quebec, I presumed that another would not be necessary for me till I should reach London; but here I am yet in the St. Lawrence river, and though at last our noble ship is on her way, yet contrary tides, adverse winds and adverser calms have so impeded her progress that we do not yet see the Gulf of St. Lawrence or the Atlantic Ocean. When at this rate we shall reach Europe, is known only to Him "who heaves. old ocean, and who wings the storm." But I long since learned not to complain of the ways of divine Providence, or to murmur against that which I cannot alter. wisdom is infinitely greater than mine, and I hope reverently and cheerfully to submit to all his will, however dark and mysterious that will may appear to my own weak and erring mind. He can never do otherwise than right; and

God's

does it not become us always to rejoice in the right? I have never known yet any darkness in the ways of Providence which was not found, at last, to have been necessary to the clearer light of a more glorious day following it. I believe this doctrine is true of all his ways, towards all his creatures, now and forever; and therefore I would "lay my reason at his Throne," trusting that He who governs the universe is competent to manage all its affairs for the promotion of his own glory and the best final good of each and all the subjects of his infinite grace and goodness. Here may my faith and hope ever rest.

The delay has not been without its present pleasures and benefits. It has given me an opportunity to see more of Canada and the St. Lawrence river, than I ever otherwise could have enjoyed; and has introduced me, in season, to some specimens of nautical life that may better prepare me for the voyage when I enter upon the Atlantic. The St. Lawrence is the longest river for ocean navigation. in the world. From Montreal to its mouth the distance is three hundred miles, occupied with ships of all dimensions from various quarters of the world. I have, or soon shall have, traversed the whole of this distance, and seen the river in its widest and narrowest parts, its intervales, its higher hills, and its distant mountain-barriers; with all the commerce floating on its deep bosom, and the cities, villages, rural districts, and unbroken forests by the way. And I must say, I have never witnessed scenery so grand and interesting. The shores of the Mississippi are low and unvarying in their aspects; the marks of civilization are rare upon the way; the channel is crowded, indeed, with steam-boats and other fresh-water crafts; but the proud ships of Tarshish do not go thereon; the water is al

ways muddy. But the shores of the St. Lawrence present a great diversity of appearance, -new forms perpetually appearing, and each new one being a fresh object of interest to the traveller. The water is clear and transparent as that which gushes from our own New England springs; and as it moves, sometimes through narrow passes of not more than half a mile in width between mountain gorges, and at others spreads out into lakes or bays of a dozen or more miles in breadth, it affords on its own bosom a variety as recurring as the ever changing panorama of the immense valley through which it runs. I am quite sure, and the remark is often made in my presence, that if the curious traveller would select the grandest scenery witnessed in America, he could find nothing equal, in magnificence and beauty, to a voyage from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Lake Ontario, or vice versa. At least I am satisfied with what I have seen, and have had so much leisure to behold, and am prepared to endorse the encomiums that may be bestowed upon the river and valley of the mighty St. Lawrence.

There is another thing with which I am disappointed in the St. Lawrence valley. I allude to the thick settlements and the evidences of comfort and taste all along its shores. In this northern, and therefore cold, region, I expected to find sterility and neglect. But the lands are rich, the farms are well fenced and cultivated, the buildings upon the great roads are near enough together for neighborhood purposes, and are invariably white. Many of them are of stone, some of hewn logs, and others framed and boarded; but whatever is the material, they are all white, made so either by paint or composition wash. Even the barns and out-buildings are thus covered; and from

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the river, the whole has a very neat appearance. Judging, too, from the sizes of the dwellings, there is great equality of condition amongst the people. Each farmer seems to have about the same quantity of land; the dwelling houses are of uniform size, and the only test of aristocracy amongst them, as an observing lady passenger on board protests is in the length of the barns. Those who, evidently, have most of this world's goods, have the longest barns to store them in. From Montreal to Quebec, 180 miles, and from the latter city to that point in the river on which our ship is now sailing towards the Gulf, there is hardly a mile of shore on which a carriage road does not run, and that road is all the way dotted with neat white farm houses, occasionally clustering into villages wherever some stream, emptying into the river, furnishes a water-power for saw-mills and other machinery, or wherever a favoring cove provides a good harbor for the lading and unlading of vessels.

I am surprised, too, to observe the number and elegance of the churches that are to be seen amongst the settlements. There may not be so many, because there is not so great a number of sects, as there are in New England. Here, except in the cities, where the Episcopal denomination and some dissenting churches exist, there is but a single sect, and this the Catholic. This church has provided well for the religious wants of her people; for wherever we see settlements, compact or scattered, there we are sure to see the spire or dome of an elegant church, in charge of its resident priest, and sacredly kept in good repair. And Catholics we all know, are obliged to attend upon their services, and contribute regularly and sometimes severely, for the support of the Establishment. But the taxes imposed

upon the people would hardly be sufficient to maintain so many churches and in such ample style, as we witness in passing the whole length of the St. Lawrence. These revenues, I apprehend, only meet the incidental expenses, which, however, can hardly be less to the Catholic church of Canada, than the entire expenditures for all the Protestant churches, of an equal number, in the United States.

Canada was originally colonized by France; and the first care was faithfully and perpetually to establish the Catholic religion. When the colony was new, it was divided into parishes, the territory of which, before it could be sold, and forever afterwards, must become subject to a church seniorage. This, except in cases which have been compounded, still exists; and every purchaser and holder of land, acquires and retains it only on condition of its paying a certain tax for the support of the Catholic church. In most cases, now, this is collected indirectly; yet, in re ality, the Seniorage rights are like a teat which the church has hold of, on every man's estate, and from which it derives the means of growing "fat and sleek." Every district, therefore, is able to erect its church and maintain its ministry. In Montreal, the Seniorage of the church is immense; there is no telling what is its value. In one sense, the Catholic Church owns the whole city and island of Montreal. Not a foot of land is there in Montreal, or the large and rich island on which it is situated, but what is obliged to swell the vast resources of that church. In some cases, indeed, private individuals have compounded for their freedom; but this can be acquired, we are told, only at the cost of eleven per cent on the value of the land. If this is the interest which the bishop and priests in Montreal have in all the landed estates of that island, it is no