4. Canals. Lachine Canal, above Montreal, avoids a bend and rapids in the St. Law rence; length 9 miles. Granville Canal passes round rapids in the Ottawa; 12 miles in length. There are several other similar side cuts on the St. Lawrence above Montreal.

5. Towns. Quebec, the capital of Lower Canada, lies on the northern bank of the St Lawrence, which is here but half a mile wide, although it is several miles in width above and below the city. Below is the harbor, which lies between Quebec and the Isle of Orleans, and is 5 miles long, by 4 wide. The city is divided into the Upper and Lower City. The latter, the seat of business, has narrow, steep, and dirty streets, crowded with old and mean buildings. From this you ascend by a winding street, or by a long flight of stairs to the Upper City, which is built on a lofty promontory, about 300 feet above the river. The streets of the Upper City are narrow, but clean and well paved, and the public and private buildings are neat. Quebec is styled the Gibraltar of America, its military works being deemed impregnable. It is surrounded with walls, and the citadel on Cape Diamond, which rises abruptly from the water to the height of 340 feet, is a work of great strength. In front of the citadel are the Plains of Abraham. There is a garrison stationed here. Quebec contains about 30,000 inhabitants, two thirds of whom are Canadian French, and has an active and extensive commerce. The most remarkable buildings are the château or castle of St. Louis, which is the residence of the Governor; the Provincial Parliament house; a Catholic Cathedral, a large and splendid edifice; a Protestant Cathedral; the barracks, formerly the Jesuit's College; the arsenal or armory; 3 nunneries, &c. There are also here a French College, and other institutions of education. In the vicinity is the little hamlet of Loretto, inhabited by the miserable remnant of the once powerful Iroquois, and on the opposite shore stands Point Levi, near the falls of the Chaudiere. The view from Cape Diamond is celebrated for its grandeur and beauty.

Montreal, 180 miles above Quebec, stands on an island of the same name, in the St. Lawrence, near a hill about 800 feet high, from which it derives its name. Its population, including the suburbs, is estimated to exceed 40,000 souls, and it is a place of great trade. The streets in general are narrow, and the houses mean; but the upper or modern part of the city has some handsome buildings. The most remarkable structure is the Catholic Cathedral, built in 1829, which is the most splendid temple in British America. It is 255 feet in length, 234 in breadth, and 112 high, with 6 towers, and 7 altars, and can accommodate 10,000 persons. Three nunneries, the French College, the University of Macgill College, the Government House, the Barracks, the General Hospital, and the Catholic Seminary, also deserve

mention.

Three Rivers below Montreal, and Lachine above it, on the St. Lawrence, and Hull opposite Bytown on the Ottawa, are flourishing commercial towns. St. Ann's is a pretty village at the mouth of the Ottawa. Kamouraski, on the St. Lawrence, is a favorite bathing place.

6. Government and Laws. The executive authority is vested in a Governor, who is also Captain-General of British America, and an executive council. The provincial parliament is composed of two branches, styled the Legislative Council, the members of which are appointed for life, and the House of Assembly, elected by the freeholders. The executive and judicial officers, and the members of the councils are appointed by the crown of England. The laws are principally the old French Customs, somewhat modified by English legislation. The tenure of land in the seigniories is feudal. The seigniories consist of tracts of land, granted by the French Kings, with certain feudal privileges to the possessors, styled seigneurs, or lords, who, in turn, granted smaller parcels to tenants, or habitans, who pay certain services and rents to their lord.

7. Inhabitants. The inhabitants are mostly of French descent, and the French is the prev alent language. The Canadian French peasantry, or habitans, are frugal, honest, polite, and hospitable, but deficient in enterprise. They are attached to old customs, reverence their priests, thank the saints and the blessed Virgin with great piety, and are gay and contented. They are, however, generally ignorant, and their mode of agriculture is clumsy. The voy ageurs or boatmen are hardy and skilful in the often dangerous navigation of the rapid and broken rivers, and endure great privations with unyielding cheerfulness, enlivening their long and perilous voyages with rude songs. The Coureurs du Bois, are a race of hunters and trappers, who have in many respects adopted the manners and habits of the Indians, passing their whole lives in the unsettled fur regions. The Bois Brulés are half-breeds descended from the Coureurs du Bois and Indian women; they are mere savages in their dispositions and

mode of life, which is passed far beyond the restraints of religion and society. The Indians are still numerous in the Canadas.

8. Education and Religion. The inhabitants are chiefly Roman Catholics. That sect has several colleges and seminaries, in which an elementary or classical education may be obtained, and numerous elementary schools have been established.

CHAPTER XLIV. NEW BRUNSWICK.

1. Boundaries and Divisions. The British province of New Brunswick is bounded N. by Lower Canada, from which it is separated by the River Restigouche and the Bay of Chaleur; E. by the Gulf of St. Lawrence; S. by Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy, and W. by Maine. Area, 28,000 square miles. It is divided into 10 counties, and is but thinly inhabited, having a population of 110,000 souls. The interior is inhabited by Indians, and is mostly unexplored, the settlements being chiefly on the St. John, the Miramichi, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

2. Soil and Face of the Country. The surface is mostly broken and uneven, but not mountainous. There is much fertile soil on the rivers, consisting of alluvial or interval lands, and most of the country is covered with a dense forest.

3. Rivers. The river St. John rises in the northeastern part of Maine, and traversing the northern part of that State, enters New Brunswick, through which it flows southeasterly into the Bay of Fundy. It is navigable for sloops to Frederickton, 80 miles, and for boats, 200 miles, although its course is much broken by falls and rapids. Just above its mouth are falls, which can be passed only at high tide, and soon after entering New Brunswick, the whole body of the river plunges over a precipice of rocks 75 feet in height, exhibiting a scene of great grandeur. The St. Francis, a sinall branch from the north, forms the boundary line between Maine and Lower Canada, proposed by the King of Holland. The Miramichi, which flows into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is navigable for sea-vessels about 40 miles.

4. Bays. The coast on the Gulf of St. Lawrence is sandy, and most of the harbors are obstructed by bars. The Bay of Chaleur is 80 miles in length, and from 15 to 30 in breadth, and contains some good harbors. On the south are the fine Bay of Passamaquoddy, and the Bay of Fundy. The latter is 200 miles in length, and about 40 in breadth, and is remarkable for the great and rapid rise of its tides, which attain the height of 70 feet. The islands of Campobello and Grand Menan lie at the entrance of the bay.

5. Towns. The principal town is the city of St. John, at the mouth of the river of the same name, with 12,000 inhabitants. It has a good harbor, and a number of public buildings, among which are several churches. The streets are irregular and steep. Fredericton, on the St. John, is the seat of government. It has 2,000 inhabitants, and contains government buildings, and the college of New Brunswick. New Castle, on the Miramichi, is noted for its lumber trade and ship-building. St. Andrews is a thriving town with a brisk trade, at the mouth of the St. Croix. It is pleasantly situated, and has a good harbor, the entrance of which, however, is obstructed by a bar. Population, 3,000.

6. Government. The chief executive officer, styled Lieutenant-Governor, is appointed by the crown, and there is a provincial legislature, consisting of a council and a legislative assembly.

CHAPTER XLV. NOVA SCOTIA.

1. Boundaries and Divisions. Having the Bay of Fundy on the N., the Gulf of St. Lawrence on the E., and the Atlantic Ocean on the S. and W., Nova Scotia forms a peninsula joined to the mainland by a narrow neck, about 10 miles in width. Including the Island of Cape Breton, it is divided into 12 counties, with 185,000 inhabitants. The peninsula has a surface of 16,000 square miles.

2. Soil, Face of the Country, and Climate. A great proportion of the soil is fertile and well adapted to grazing or tillage. The surface is uneven, and in some parts rugged and hilly, but nowhere rises above 800 feet. The climate is healthy; the cold is severe, but the air is dry except in some particular exposures. On the Atlantic coasts disagreeable sea-fogs prevail. 3. Rivers and Bays. There are no rivers of much extent; the Annapolis, emptying itself

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PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND. — NEWFOUNDLAND.

into the Bay of Fundy is the principal, and has a course of 60 miles. There is a very great number of excellent harbors. Chedabucto and Mahone Bays, and the basins of Mines and Cumberland, running up from the Bay of Fundy, are the chief bays.

4. Islands. The Isle of Cape Breton, separated from the mainland by the Gut of Canseau, is about 100 miles long, by from 30 to 80 broad, and contains about 500,000 acres of arable land. It sustains a population of 25,000 inhabitants, and has some excellent harbors. Sable Island, to the southeast of Nova Scotia, is a dangerous bank of sand, on the track of vessels sailing between Europe and North America.

5. Minerals. Gypsum or plaster of Paris, limestone, iron, and bituminous coal, are found in Nova Scotia.

6. Canals. The Shubenacadie Canal extends across the peninsula, from the harbor of Halifax to the Bason of Mines, 54 miles, and it is proposed to cut a canal across the isthmus from Cumberland Basin to Verte Bay, 11 miles.

7. Towns. Halifax, the capital, stands on Chebucto Bay, with a fine harbor, safe, capacious, and easy of access. It is regularly built on rising ground, with wide, straight streets, and contains several government buildings, a dock-yard or navy-yard, and 10,000 inhabitants. The Government House, or residence of the Lieutenant-Governor, the province building, a handsome edifice of the Ionic order, containing the legislative halls and public offices, 8 churches, Dalhousie College, &c., are the principal public buildings. Several English regiments are stationed here, and there are generally some ships of war in the harbor. It is the centre of a profitable fishery and a thriving trade. Dartmouth, a little village, lies opposite to Halifax. Lunenburg, with 1,200 inhabitants, chiefly Germans, and Liverpool, a flourishing trading town, with 1,800 inhabitants, lie southwest of Halifax. On the northern coast are Annapolis, formerly Port Royal, an old French settlement; Digby, famous for its red herrings; and Windsor, containing the University of King's College, and a collegiate school. Pictou, on the Gulf of St. Lawrence, with an excellent harbor, is a busy town in the coal region. Pictou College is a respectable seminary. On the Island of Cape Breton are Sydney, which has derived some importance from its coal trade, and the ruins of Louisburg, once a formidable French fortress, captured by the Americans and English in 1745, and a second time by the English in 1758, when its works were demolished. Louisburg formerly contained about 5,000 inhabitants, but is now reduced to a few fishing huts. Arichat, on Madam Island, between Cape Breton and Nova Scotia, has 2,000 inhabitants.

8. Government. The chief executive officer is styled Lieutenant-Governor, and there is a council, appointed by the crown, which is at once an executive council and a legislative body. The other legislative house, called the Assembly, is chosen by the freeholders.

9. Inhabitants. Nova Scotia originally belonged to France, and was then called Acadia. The Acadian French, Scotch, and Irish, are the most numerous classes; there are also many English, refugee loyalists from the United States, or their descendants, some Germans, and about 3,000 negroes. One third of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics, about one fourth Presbyterians, nearly as many Episcopalians, and there are great numbers of Methodists and Baptists.

CHAPTER XLVI. PRINCE EDWARD'S ISLAND.

Prince Edward's Island, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is separated from Nova Scotia, by Northumberland Strait, 9 miles in width. It is 140 miles in length by from 15 to 30 in breadth, having an area of 2,000 square miles, and containing 35,000 inhabitants. It is divided into 3 counties, which are subdivided into 67 townships. The capital, Charlottetown, has an excellent harbor, at the junction of the rivers York, Elliot, and Hillsborough, which empty their united waters into Hillsborough Bay. Population, 3,500. The climate of the island is mild, dry, and healthy, and the soil fertile; the shores abound with fish. The inhabitants are chiefly Scotch, with many Irish and Acadian French. The local government is like that of Nova Scotia.

CHAPTER XLVII. NEWFOUNDLAND.

1. Extent, Population. This island is separated from the continent by the Straits of Bellisle and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is 380 miles in length, and from 50 to 300 in breadth,

with an area of 36,000 square miles, and is on all sides indented with spacious bays, for ning a great number of harbors. Its interior is little known, having been but recently traversed, and a great proportion has never been visited by the whites. The surface is described as generally level, or moderately uneven, with a good soil, and a mild climate, the winter being less severe than in the same latitude on the continent. The inhabitants are entirely occupied in trade and fishing; the cod fishery is prosecuted on the coasts and on the Labrador shores, and the seal fishery has been lately undertaken and carried on with great boldness and activity, on the icebergs or floating mountains of ice, which are brought down from the north by the ocean currents. About 500 vessels and 10,000 men are engaged in the seal fishery, and 25,000 men in the cod fishery. The island has a separate government, with a provincial legislature, like the other British provinces. Population, 85,000. The western coast and the interior are uninhabited. 2. Towns. St. John's, the capital, lies on a bay of the same name, and has a fine harbor. The streets are narrow and dirty, and the houses mean. It contains a Government House, 4 churches, and 12,000 inhabitants. Harbor Grace, on Conception Bay, is a fishing-village, with about 4,000 inhabitants, and contains 4 churches.

The uninhabited island of Anticosti in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and the Labrador coast, are dependencies of the government of Newfoundland. St. Pierre or Peter's and Miquelon are two small islands near the southern coast, belonging to France.

3. Grand Banks. The Great Bank of Newfoundland, to the southeast of Newfoundland, is the most extensive submarine elevation known. It is 600 miles in length, and 200 in some parts in breadth, and appears to be a solid mass of rock. The soundings vary from 4 to 10, 30, and 100 fathorns. The Outer Bank, or Flemish Cape, appears to be a continuation of the Grand Bank. These banks form a well-known fishing ground. The perpetual fogs which hover over them, and which also cover the coasts of Newfoundland and Cape Breton, are produced by the meeting of the cold waters of the north with the warm waters of the Gulf Stream.

CHAPTER XLVIII. NEW BRITAIN, OR HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY'S TERRITORIES.

1. Boundaries and Extent. To the north of the provinces already described, and stretch ing from the Rocky Mountains or the Pacific Ocean on the west, to the Atlantic Ocean on the east, lies a vast tract, belonging to Great Britain, and sometimes called New Britain. Hudson's Bay makes up far inland from the north, forming a large peninsula, of which the eastern coast is called Labrador, and the western, East Main, from its position in regard to the bay An extensive tract, west of the bay, has received the name of New South Wales, or Western Main. A great part of New Britain consists of immense forests, while the western portion is composed of wide, desolate plains, destitute of wood, except on the borders of the rivers.

2. Rivers and Lakes. The Saskachawan, rising in the Rocky Mountains, flows easterly through Lake Winnipeg, and, taking the name of Nelson, runs into Hudson's Bay. The Mackenzie or Peace River, also rises in the Rocky Mountains, and, pursuing a northerly course, passes through Lake Athapesco and Great Slave Lake, into the Arctic Ocean. It is 2,500 miles in length, and much of the country on its banks is covered with a rich vegetation. Coppermine River rises near Slave Lake, and flows through a barren region into the Arctic Ocean. Thleweechoo or Great Fish River flows northeast into an unexplored gulf. The lakes are among the largest in the world, and seem to be innumerable. The Winnipeg, Athapesco, Great Slave Lake, and Great Bear Lake, are the principal.

3. Inhabitants. This region is thinly peopled by small tribes of Indians, who rather roam from district to district, than occupy any fixed tract. They live by hunting and fishing, and present a degraded picture of humanity. The northern coasts are inhabited by Esquimaux tribes. On the coast of Labrador, there are several Moravian missions, the principal of which is Nain. The Hudson's Bay Fur Company has factories and posts scattered at great distances through the fur countries.

4. Islands. The whole of the coast on the Arctic Ocean has not been examined by whites. The northeastern termination of the continent is in 74° N. latitude. The name of Boothia has recently been given to an extensive tract here. West from Baffin's Bay, stretches Barrow's Strait, to an unknown extent, bordered on the north by the North Georgian Islands, and to the south by a range of islands separated from the northern coasts of the continent by a wide sea.

5 Climate. The climate is remarkably cold, and in the winter intensely severe. At this time wine is frozen into a solid mass, and brandy coagulated into a species of thick oil; the breath is condensed as it leaves the mouth, and, when in bed, forms on the blankets a kind of hoar frost. In winter, the aurora borealis is very frequent.

CHAPTER XLIX. RUSSIAN AMERICA.

THIS Country comprises the northwestern part of the American continent. It is bounded N. by the Arctic Ocean, E. by the British possessions, S. by Oregon Territory and the Pacific Ocean, and W. by the Pacific and Behring's Straits. This district is generally of a very alpine and sterile character. The celebrated mountain of St. Elias, on the shore of the Pacific, is probably a volcanic peak, and is calculated to be 17,850 feet above the level of the sea. La Perouse estimated the range of mountains which terminates at Cross Sound, to be upwards of 10,000 feet in height. The primitive mountains of granite or slate, in some places rise immediately from the sea, and have their summits constantly covered with snow.

The general appearance of this region is thus vividly described by Malte Brun: "Above a range of hills covered with pines and birch, rise naked mountains, crowned with enormous masses of ice, which often detach themselves, and roll down with a dreadful noise into the valleys below, which they entirely fill up, or into the rivers and bays, where, remaining without melting, they rise in banks of crystal. When such a mass falls, the crashing forests are torn up by the roots, and scattered to a distance; the echoes resound along the shores with the noise of thunder; the sea rises up in foam, ships experience a violent concussion, and the affrighted navigator witnesses, almost in the middle of the sea, a renewal of those terrific scenes which sometimes spread such devastation in alpine regions. Between the foot of these mountains and the sea, there extends a strip of low land, the soil of which is almost everywhere a black and marshy earth. This ground is only calculated for producing coarse though numerous mosses, very short grass, vaccinias, and some other little plants. Some of these marshes, hanging on the side of the hills, retain the water like a sponge, while their verdure makes them appear like solid ground; but in attempting to pass them, the traveler sinks up to the mid-leg. Nevertheless, the pine tree acquires a great size upon these gloomy rocks. Next to the fir, the most common species is that of the alder. In many places nothing is to be seen but dwarf trees and shrubs. Upon no coast with which we are acquainted, have there been remarked such rapid encroachments of the sea upon the land. The trunks of trees, that had been cut down by European navigators, have been found and recognised, after a lapse of 10 years. These trunks are found sunk in the water, with the earth which supported them." The inhabitants of the districts towards the north, are Esquimaux. There are only about 1,000 Russians in the country, who are engaged in the fur trade with the natives. Their principal settlement is Sitka, at the entrance of Norfolk Sound. There are establishments at Kodiac, and at Illuluk, on the island of Oonalashka.

CHAPTER L. THE ESQUIMAUX.

THIS race of people, which is spread over nearly the whole of the northern coast of America, differs much in form, manners, and customs from any other tribes of the continent. They resemble more some of the natives of the north of Europe, than the American Indians. In stature they are below the Europeans generally. Those to the northwest of Hudson's Bay, are of a larger size than those of Labrador, but all are dwarfish. Although they are diminutive, they are well-formed and hardy. Their faces are round and full, their eyes small and black, and their noses small, but not much flattened. Some of them seen by Parry had Roman noses, but in others, the cheeks were as prominent as the nose. Their eyes are not horizontal, but the lowest point is nearest the nose. Their teeth are short and regular, and, in the young, very white. Their complexions are clear, and their skins smooth; Captain Parry remarks, that in this respect there is between this people and Europeans, "more shades of dirt than of any other difference." Their hair is black and straight; the men wear it long and loose, but the women, who take pride in it, separate it into two portions, and tie it so that one part hangs over each shoulder. Some of the men wear the beard on the upper lip and chin, and cut the hair on the