SOCIAL LIFE IN CANADA OF OLD.

Many quaint and interesting vistas of primitive Canada are disclosed in a recent, elaborate work: HISTORY OF CANADA, by WILLIAM KINGSFORD, F. R. S. C. Mr. Kingsford seems to have availed himself with great felicity, of the new and ever-growing materials for history, so industriously garnered at home and abroad, in our Public Record Office, Ottawa, by our untiring archivist Douglas Brymner.

A curious account of the mode of winter travel has thus been handed down to us, being the personal experience of a witty French Royal Engineer, M. Franquet, who visited Quebec and Montreal, in 1752.

To this agreeable summary of Mr. Franquet's journal which appears at pages 574-5-6 of Kingsford's III volume, the author has appended, by way of contrast and illustration, the narrative of a more recent partie de campagne, at Chateau-Richer, P. Q. Franquet's memoirs, add one more proof to many others, that social life in and round Quebec in the palmy, early days of the Bigot regime, was a round of pleasure, heedless of the future. Hear what the light-hearted Frenchman Franquet has to say: "In the morning (8th February, 1752) the Governor started, attended by Duchesnay, the captain of the guard, his secretary and servants. Some carioles were sent before him to break the way. The Intendant proposed that the other members of the party should pass the day where they were. The invitation was accepted. There was dinner, supper and heavy play. The following day, the Intendant's party returned to Quebec.

This trip was preliminary to a second journey, which took place a few days afterwards. As a rule the Intendant did not proceed to Montreal until March; but owing to his presence being indispensable to the organization of the Ohio expedition, Bigot arranged with Duquesne that he would be in Montreal about the 13th of February, and he had to start some days previous to keep this engagement. Some officers of the garrison were to accompany him, and several ladies desirous of rejoining their husbands were included in the invitation. Mesdames Daine, Péan, de Lotbinière, de Repentigny, Marin, the wife of an ensign, doubtless a relative of the Captain of the name in command of the expedition, and du Simon, wife of a merchant. Franquet, whose duties took him to Montreal, was one of the number; during the journey Madame Marin was assigned as his compagnon de voyage.

The baggage was sent to the Intendant's Palace six days before leaving, so that it could be leisurely forwarded, the travellers taking only what was required for the journey. Franquet describes the court-yard on the morning of the 8th, when the start was made. The carioles of the guests had two horses; they were. driven in tandem fashion, the roads being to narrow to admit any other arrangement. It, indeed, would have been impossible, on two sleighs meeting, tor two pairs of horses to have passed in the deep snow. The carioles of the servants had one horse; there was a full staff of attendants with a complete batterie de cuisine.

An early dinner was given at the Palace, with all the deliberation and ceremony, as if no start was to be made. On the first afternoon they reached Pointe-auxTrembles, a drive of nineteen miles.

Here Bigot gave supper, and after supper there was faro. They started at seven the following morning, having taken coffee with some biscuits. At Cap Santé, twelve miles distant, they breakfasted, and made a halt of two hours; in the afternoon they reached Sainte

Anne-de-la-Pérade; the day's drive was twenty-six miles. Bigot was again the host for supper, with the attendant amusement of play.

The start was made betimes the next morning, for the distance was long. Madame Marin was the sister of Madame de Rigaud, wife of the Governor of Three Rivers, whom she desired much to see. She therefore proposed that her sleigh should stop at Three Rivers, for the party proposed to drive through the place without stopping. Franquet assented and they were followed by Madame Daine and M. de Saint Vincent. Madame Marin found her sister indisposed and confined to bed. She, however, ordered dinner for her guests, and afterwards they went to her room for coffee, and to chat an hour. As they were at dinner they heard the guns fired in honour of the Intendant as he was passing onwards. They left Three Rivers at three, Bigot had determined to make the halting place at Yamachiche, fifteen miles to the west of Three-Rivers, and the horses were changed at the Cap de la Madeleine, nine miles to the east of the town. Franquet calls the place Ouachis. It had been an unusually long journey, forty miles. There was, however, supper and play, as usual.

After

The 11th was Sunday, so the party went to early mass. Madame Daine made the collection. breakfast they started, and took to the ice at Lake Saint Peter, passing the villages of River du Loup and Maskinongé. The shore was again followed at Ile au Castor, and the journey continued to near the Ile de Dupas, which must have been about Berthier.

They had met together, and were taking some refreshment before commencing play, in which they were to engage until supper, when they were agreeably surprised by the appearance of the Governor, M. Duquesne, with the husbands of the two ladies, Péan and Marin, and two Canadian officers, Duchesnay and Le Mercier. The distance was about fifty-five miles from Montreal; with good sleighing the drive may be looked

upon as an ordinary matter. Until the days of railways, in modern times it was not unusual to drive twentyfive or thirty miles to a ball, and the appearance of the party from Montreal need create little astonishment.

Madame Marin was suffering from headache, and was laying down. It was thought by her compagnes that the presence of her husband would restore her to health. This was not the case, and she was absent from the supper and faro. Whatever the cause, the party retired at nine.

On the following day they drove to Pointe-auxTrembles, forty-five miles from Berthier. The journey was broken at Saint Sulpice, twenty-nine miles distant, where they made a halt of two hours and took breakfast. From Berthier, Duquesne took possession of Madame Marin, and Franquet was left alone (1). They selected a house for supper, but as there was no room large enough for the party to meet, some partitions were removed. Faro followed the supper, and as it was the last night they were to be together, they played later than usual.

The next morning, having only ten miles to reach. Montreal, they did not leave until two. They arrived at Montreal early, and with the exception of Madame Marin, they were all received at the Intendance. On this evening the supper was given by Duquesne.

The journey reads as if it had been a more serious matter than it really was. There was no distress in the colony; it took place before war broke out, when provisions were cheap and plentiful. Most of the officers were proceeding on duty to Montreal, and it was by no means the last occasion in Canada when an official tour had been made one of pleasure. The objectionable feature is, that the additional expense was at the king's cost. It is included in this history from the light it

(1) "Le général m'avoit amené la malade," p. 206.

throws on the habits of those in good position. The French Canadians long retained their ancient gaiety, and in a modern times those whose memory takes them back a few years may recollect such trips, although not made on the same scale.

I append a memorandum from one whom I am certain, can only state what is true, which shows that the custom prevailed to within half a century back. Canada has changed since those days in many respects.

One bright frosty day in January, 1843, a party of young people between ages of eighteen and twenty-two, most of them connected, started in sleighs to ChateauRicher, about 15 miles below Quebec, to visit a near relation, the seigneur of the place. He was a widower, left with a large familly of sons and daughters, who were all present, the elder sons having come from different parts of the province to attend. The brother of the seigneur assisted him in receiving his guests; he had aided in bringing up his seven sons, for the mother had died at the age of thirty-six, leaving him with ten children, and he had never again married.

“On our arrival we took off our winter wraps and prepared ourselves for dinner. We had the good appetite of youth, sharpened by the wintry air of our two hours' drive. After warming ourselves at the large stove, we were ushered into the dining hall, in which was spread a long table, covered with viands of all kinds. Pig in all shapes was served up, as Porc-frais, boudins, sausage, in fact, in every form to be imagined. We did ample justice to the good things. Tea and coffee followed, and dinner being over, we put on our wraps again, and started on a snow-shoe tramp across the fields and over the cliffs; we also toboganned down the hill. The weather continued bright, and we enjoyed the glorious. sunset, remaining out until after five o'clock, when we returned to the house, and arranged ourselves for tea, which was as plentiful as the dinner, and we all enjoyed it as well. We adjourned to a large drawing-room, where