296 THE THOUSAND ISLANDS. pendicular ascents, crowned with the most luxuriant foliage; and here and there is seen an islet, formed of fantastic rocks piled on each other, and contrasting their rugged and barren surface with the smiling fertility of the rest. On some few of these fairy islands you perceive a cottage, or a log-house, rearing its simple structure amid this landscape of loneliness and silent beauty, and affording a pleasing relief, in the symptom of human existence which it offers, to the otherwise unbroken solitude that reigns around. On another side you see a natural terrace, or a glade, peeping forth from its half-concealed position in a wood; while the transparent water casts back from its placid current the rocks and trees by which it is overshadowed. The endless succession of objects that regale the eye, as you thread the maze of isolated rocks and woods, basking, in countless numbers, on the sunny element, brings home to your imagination all the enchanting visions of Arabian and Oriental descriptions. I was forcibly reminded of the interesting Straits of Malacca, through which I sailed a few years ago, on my passage to China, and presenting a similar aspect; and where several of the islands, though larger and much less numerous, exhibit, in their grotesque shapes, the forms of crocodiles, rabbits, alligators, and other singular animals. Nothing, however, can exceed, if equal, the RAPIDS OF THE ST. LAWRENCE. 297 "Thousand Islands" of the St. Lawrence. Here Nature has wrapped herself in all the witchery of her silent charms, and here her lonely and soothing beauty speaks a language to the heart unfelt by the proudest works of man. On arriving at Prescott, I prepared, in company with an agreeable Irish gentleman whom I had met on my route, to descend the Rapids; and having made a bargain with the conductor of one of the bateaux, expressly made for this turbulent navigation, we stepped on board. The first of the series of Rapids, down which we were hurled, is called "Les Galops." Here the St. Lawrence, suddenly contracting its previous breadth of two miles to about half a mile or less, rushes along in a very strong and agitated current, resembling those of the Niagara, and offering to the view, in its broken and foaming waters, an appearance singularly picturesque. From these Rapids the river has a descent of 231 feet in 280 miles, and carries you along, in succession, to those of the Long Saut, the Cedars, and the Cascades of St. Louis, which are much more impetuous and turbulent in their course than those of Les Galops. The first of these, extending through a meandering length of nine miles, are said to be passed in the short space of twenty minutes, being at the flying rate of twenty-seven miles an hour. This will give you some idea of the great skill and 298 RAPIDS OF THE ST. LAWRENCE. caution required in the boatmen, in avoiding the numerous shoals by which the navigation is obstructed, and where an inexperienced pilot would inevitably be lost. Though I did not observe the time, I think the statement somewhat exaggerated; since, fast as we were certainly hurried along, we were not made to skim over the surface quite as fast as I have seen flying-fish do within the Tropics, and which would have been the case had our shooting the channel been as rapid as it is positively declared to be. The most picturesque and dangerous of the whole are those of the Long Saut and the Cedars, where the stream, dashed into foam and furious breakers, whirls and boils in numberless pools and eddies, and which, in case of accident, would render it a hopeless attempt to save one's life by swimming. On one occasion, our situation appeared so alarming, that my companion, by an instinctive movement of self-preservation, in an instant flung off his coat, in order to be better prepared for stemming the whirling current; and whose example I was on the point of following, when our boatmen, who were themselves in a state of confusion and apprehension, managed to clear the danger that threatened, at the moment, to swamp our bateau. Our excursion on these "troubled waters" to Montreal - diversified by an occasional drive on the land was equally interesting for its novelty CANADIAN BOAT-SONG. 299 as well as beauty; the windings of the St. Lawrence being frequent and abrupt, and the shores delightfully wooded, with sloping terraces and patches of newly-cleared land, enlivening, at intervals, its margin, on which the cottager had reared his humble log-house. To give an additional romance to the scene, and to gratify an anticipation previously formed, I requested our bateau-men to sing the Canadian boat-song, with which they complied; but I must acknowledge that their execution rather disappointed me,' as they had either forgotten the scientific lessons taught them by the composer of this sweet and simple song, Mr. Moore, when he was traversing these waters; or, rather, they required the harmonious aid of that gentleman's well-known vocal powers to modulate and direct their voices. After passing several villages and lakes, of which latter St. Francis expands to a length of twenty-five miles and to a breadth of fifteen, we reached the city of Montreal, where, for your sake as well as for my own, I shall now leave you; with this honourable and friendly understanding, that if you will not complain of aching eyes, I will not utter a single word about cramped fingers. Adieu! LETTER XII. Description of Montreal the dominant Religion-School Societies Island of St. Helena-Passage to Quebec- MY DEAR FRIEND, Quebec, 24th August, 1831. THE city of Montreal, where I last took my leave of you, is situated on an island of the same name, thirty miles long, formed by the embracing arms of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers. It lies to the southward of Quebec about 170 miles, being the second principal city in Lower Canada, and contains a population of 30,000 inhabitants. The aspect of the town, as seen from a distance on the river, forcibly strikes the eye, in consequence of the peculiarity of roof which covers-in many of the houses, and particularly the one surmounting the cathedral, that towers in lofty |