built of stone.
1. The Cathedral church is on the right hand, coming from the lower to
the upper city, somewhat beyond the bishop’s house. The people were at
present employed in ornamenting it. On its west side is a round
steeple, with two divisions, in the lower of which are some bells. The
pulpit, and some other parts within the church, are gilt. The seats are
very fine.
2. The Jesuits church is built in the form of a cross, and has a round
steeple. This is the only church that has a clock, and I shall mention
it more particularly below.
3. The Recollets church is opposite the gate of the palace, on the west
side, looks well, and has a pretty high pointed steeple, with a
division below for the bells.
4. The church of the Ursulines has a round spire.
5. The church of the hospital.
6. The bishop’s chapel.
7. The church in the lower city was built in 1690, after the town had
been delivered from the English, and is called Notre Dame de la
Victoire. It has a small steeple in the middle of the roof, square at
the bottom, and round at the top.
8. The little chapel of the governor-general, may likewise be ranked
amongst these churches.
III. The bishop’s house is the first, on the right hand, coming from
the lower to the upper town. It is a fine large building, surrounded by
an extensive court-yard and kitchen-garden on one side, and by a wall
on the other.
IV. The college of the Jesuits, which I will describe more
particularly. It has a much more noble appearance, in regard to its
size and architecture, than the palace itself, and would be proper for
a palace if it had a more advantageous situation. It is about four
times as large as the palace, and is the finest building in town. It
stands on the north side of a market, on the south side of which is the
cathedral.
V. The house of the Recollets lies to the west, near the palace and
directly over against it, and consists of a spacious building, with a
large orchard, and kitchen-garden. The house is two stories high. In
each story is a narrow gallery with rooms and halls on one, or both
sides.
VI. The Hôtel de Dieu, where the sick are taken care of, shall be
described in the sequel. The nuns, that serve the sick, are of the
Augustine order.
VII. The house of the clergy [29] is a large building, on the
north-east side of the cathedral. Here is on one side a spacious court,
and on the other, towards the river, a great orchard, and
kitchen-garden. Of all the buildings in the town none has so fine a
prospect as that in the garden belonging to this house, which lies on
the high shore, and looks a good way down the river. The Jesuits on the
other hand have the worst, and hardly any prospect at all from their
college; nor have the Recollets any fine views from their house. In
this building all the clergy of Quebec lodge with their superior. They
have large pieces of land in several parts of Canada, presented to them
by the government, from which they derive a very plentiful income.
VIII. The convent of the Ursuline nuns shall be mentioned in the
sequel.
These are all the chief public buildings in the town, but to the
north-west, just before the town, is
IX. The house of the intendant, a public building, whose size makes it
fit for a palace. It is covered with tin, and stands in a second lower
town, situated southward upon the river St. Charles. It has a large and
fine garden on its north side. In this house all the deliberations
concerning this province, are held; and the gentlemen who have the
management of the police and the civil power meet here, and the
intendant generally presides. In affairs of great consequence the
governor-general is likewise here. On one side of this house is the
store-house of the crown, and on the other the prison.
Most of the houses in Quebec are built of stone, and in the upper city
they are generally but one story high, the public buildings excepted. I
saw a few wooden houses in the town, but they must not be rebuilt when
decayed. The houses and churches in the city are not built of bricks,
but the black lime-slates of which the mountain consists, whereon
Quebec stands. When these lime-slates are broke at a good depth in the
mountain, they look very compact at first, and appear to have no
shivers, or lamellæ, at all; but after being exposed a while to the
air, they separate into thin leaves. These slates are soft, and easily
cut; and the city-walls, together with the garden-walls, consist
chiefly of them. The roofs of the public buildings are covered with
common slates, which are brought from France, because there are none in
Canada.
The slated roofs have for some years withstood the changes of air and
weather, without suffering any damage. The private houses have roofs of
boards, which are laid parallel to the spars, and sometimes to the
eaves, or sometimes obliquely. The corners of houses are made of a grey
small grained lime-stone, which has a strong smell, like the
stink-stone [30], and the windows are generally enchased with it. This
lime-stone is more useful in those places than the lime-slates, which
always shiver in the air. The outsides of the houses are generally
white-washed. The windows are placed on the inner side of the walls;
for they have sometimes double windows in winter. The middle roof has
two, or at most three spars, covered with boards only. The rooms are
warmed in winter by small iron stoves, which are removed in summer. The
floors are very dirty in every house, and have all the appearance of
being cleaned but once every year.
The Powder magazine stands on the summit of the mountain, on which the
city is built, and southward of the palace.
The streets in the upper city have a sufficient breadth, but are very
rugged, on account of the rock on which it lies; and this renders them
very disagreeable and troublesome, both to foot-passengers and
carriages. The black lime-slates basset out and project every where
into sharp angles, which cut the shoes in pieces. The streets cross
each other at all angles, and are very crooked.
The many great orchards and kitchen-gardens, near the house of the
Jesuits, and other public and private buildings, make the town appear
very large, though the number of houses it contains is not very
considerable. Its extent from south to north is said to be about six
hundred toises, and from the shore of the river along the lower town,
to the western wall between three hundred and fifty, and four hundred
toises. It must be here observed, that this space is not yet wholly
inhabited; for on the west and south side, along the town walls, are
large pieces of land without any buildings on them, and destined to be
built upon in future times, when the number of inhabitants will be
encreased in Quebec.
The bishop, whose see is in the city, is the only bishop in Canada. His
diocese extends to Louisiana, on the Mexican gulf southward, and to the
south-seas westward.
No bishop, the pope excepted, ever had a more extensive diocese. But
his spiritual flock is very inconsiderable at some distance from
Quebec, and his sheep are often many hundred miles distant from each
other.
Quebec is the only sea-port and trading town in all Canada, and from
thence all the produce of the country is exported. The port is below
the town in the river, which is there about a quarter of a French mile
broad, twenty-five fathoms deep, and its ground is very good for
anchoring. The ships are secured from all storms in this port; however,
the north-east wind is the worst, because it can act more powerfully.
When I arrived here, I reckoned thirteen great and small vessels, and
they expected more to come in. But it is to be remarked, that no other
ships than French ones can come into the port, though they may come
from any place in France, and likewise from the French possessions in
the West-Indies. All the foreign goods, which are found in Montreal,
and other parts of Canada, must be taken from hence. The French
merchants from Montreal on their side, after making a six months stay
among several Indian nations, in order to purchase skins of beasts and
furrs, return about the end of August, and go down to Quebec in
September or October, in order to sell their goods there. The privilege
of selling the imported goods, it is said, has vastly enriched the
merchants of Quebec; but this is contradicted by others, who allow that
there are a few in affluent circumstances, but that the generality
possess no more than is absolutely necessary for their bare
subsistence, and that several are very much in debt, which they say is
owing to their luxury and vanity. The merchants dress very finely, and
are extravagant in their repasts; and their ladies are every day in
full dress, and as much adorned as if they were to go to court.
The town is surrounded on almost all sides by a high wall, and
especially towards the land. It was not quite completed when I was
there, and they were very busy in finishing it. It is built of the
above mentioned black lime-slate, and of a dark-grey sand-stone. For
the corners of the gates they have employed a grey lime-stone. They
have not made any walls towards the water side, but nature seems to
have worked for them, by placing a rock there which it is impossible to
ascend. All the rising land thereabouts is likewise so well planted
with cannon, that it seems impossible for an enemy’s ships or boats to
come to the town without running into imminent danger of being sunk. On
the land side the town is likewise guarded by high mountains so that
nature and art have combined to fortify it.
Quebec was founded by its former governor, Samuel de Champlain, in the
year 1608. We are informed by history, that its rise was very slow. In
1629 towards the end of July it was taken by two Englishmen Lewis and
Thomas Kerk, by capitulation, and surrendered to them by the above
mentioned de Champlain. At that time, Canada and Quebec were wholly
destitute of provisions, so that they looked upon the English more as
their deliverers, than their enemies. The abovementioned Kerks, were
the brothers of the English admiral David Kerk, who lay with his fleet
somewhat lower in the river. In the year 1632, the French got the town
of Quebec, and all Canada returned to them by the peace. It is
remarkable, that the French were doubtful whether they should reclaim
Canada from the English or leave it to them. The greater part were of
opinion that to keep it would be of no advantage to France, because the
country was cold; and the expences far exceeded its produce; and
because France could not people so extensive a country without
weakening herself, as Spain had done before. That it was better to keep
the people in France, and employ them in all sorts of manufactures,
which would oblige the other European powers who have colonies in
America to bring their raw goods to French ports, and take French
manufactures in return. Those on the other hand who had more extensive
views knew that the climate was not so rough as it had been
represented. They likewise believed that that which caused the expences
was a fault of the company, because they did not manage the country
well. They would not have many people sent over at once, but little by
little, so that France might not feel it. They hoped that this colony
would in future times make France powerful, for its inhabitants would
become more and more acquainted with the herring, whale, and cod
fisheries, and likewise with the taking of seals; and that by this
means Canada would become a school for training up seamen. They further
mentioned the several forts of furrs, the conversion of the Indians,
the ship-building, and the various uses of the extensive woods. And
lastly that it would be a considerable advantage to France, even though
they should reap no other benefit, to hinder by this means the progress
of the English in America, and of their encreasing power, which would
otherwise become insupportable to France; not to mention several other
reasons. Time has shewn that these reasons were the result of mature
judgment, and that they laid the foundation to the rise of France. It
were to be wished that we had been of the same opinion in Sweden, at a
time when we were actually in possession of New Sweden, the finest and
best province in all North America, or when we were yet in a condition
to get the possession of it. Wisdom and foresight does not only look
upon the present times, but even extends its views to futurity.
In the year 1663 at the beginning of February, the great earthquake was
felt in Quebec and a great part of Canada, and there are still some
vestiges of its effects at that time; however, no lives were lost.
On the 16th of October 1690, Quebec was besieged by the English general
William Phips, who was obliged to retire a few days after with great
loss. The English have tried several times to repair their losses, but
the river St. Lawrence has always been a very good defence for this
country. An enemy, and one that is not acquainted with this river,
cannot go upwards in it, without being ruined; for in the neighbourhood
of Quebec, it abounds with hidden rocks, and has strong currents in
some places, which oblige the ships to make many windings.
The name of Quebec it is said is derived from a Norman word, on account
of its situation on a neck or point of land. For when one comes up in
the river by l’Isle d’Orleans, that part of the river St. Lawrence does
not come in sight, which lies above the town, and it appears as if the
river St. Charles which lies just before, was a continuation of the St.
Lawrence. But on advancing further the true course of the river comes
within sight, and has at first a great similarity to the mouth of a
river or a great bay. This has given occasion to a sailor, who saw it
unexpectedly, to cry out in his provincial dialect Que bec [31], that
is, what a point of land! and from hence it is thought the city
obtained its name. Others derive it from the Algonkin word Quebego or
Quebec signifying that which grows narrow, because the river becomes
narrower as it comes nearer to the town.
The river St. Lawrence, is exactly a quarter of a French mile, or three
quarters of an English mile broad at Quebec. The salt water never comes
up to the town in it, and therefore the inhabitants can make use of the
water in the river for their kitchens, &c. All accounts agree that
notwithstanding the breadth of this river, and the violence of its
course, especially during ebb, it is covered with ice during the whole
winter, which is strong enough for walking, and a carriage may go over
it. It is said to happen frequently that, when the river has been open
in May, there are such cold nights in this month, that it freezes
again, and will bear walking over. This is a clear proof of the
intenseness of the frost here, especially when one considers that which
I shall mention immediately after, about the ebbing and flowing of the
tide in this river. The greatest breadth of the river at its mouth, is
computed to be twenty-six French miles or seventy-eight English miles,
though the boundary between the sea, and the river cannot well be
ascertained as the latter gradually looses itself in, and unites with
the former. The greatest part of the water contained in the numerous
lakes of Canada, four or five of which are like large seas, is forced
to disembogue into the sea by means of this river alone. The navigation
up this river from the sea is rendered very dangerous by the strength
of the current, and by the number of sand-banks, which often arise in
places where they never were before. The English have experienced this
formation of new sands once or twice, when they intend to conquer
Canada. Hence the French have good reasons to look upon the river as a
barrier to Canada [32].
The tide goes far beyond Quebec in the river St. Lawrence, as I have
mentioned above. The difference between high and low water is generally
between fifteen and sixteen feet, French measure; but with the new and
full moon, and when the wind is likewise favourable, the difference is
seventeen or eighteen feet, which is indeed very considerable.
August the 7th. Ginseng is the current French name in Canada, of a
plant, the root of which, has a very great value in China [33]. It has
been growing since times immemorial in the Chinese Tartary and in
Corea, where it is annually collected and brought to China. Father Du
Halde says, it is the most precious, and the most useful of all the
plants in eastern Tartary, and attracts, every year, a number of people
into the deserts of that country. The Mantechoux-Tartars call it
Orhota, that is the most noble, or the queen of plants [34]. The
Tartars and Chinese praise it very much, and ascribe to it the power of
curing several dangerous diseases, and that of restoring to the body
new strength, and supplying the loss caused by the exertion of the
mental, and corporeal faculties. An ounce of Ginseng bears the
surprizing price of seven or eight ounces of silver at Peking. When the
French botanists in Canada first saw a figure of it, they remembered to
have seen a similar plant in this country. They were confirmed in their
conjecture by considering that several settlements in Canada, ly under
the same latitude with those parts of the Chinese Tartary, and China,
where the true Ginseng grows wild. They succeeded in their attempt, and
found the same Ginseng wild and abundant in several parts of
North-America, both in French and English plantations, in plain parts
of the woods. It is fond of shade, and of a deep rich mould, and of
land which is neither wet nor high. It is not every where very common,
for sometimes one may search the woods for the space of several miles
without finding a single plant of it; but in those spots where it grows
it is always found in great abundance. It flowers in May and June, and
its berries are ripe at the end of August. It bears transplanting very
well, and will soon thrive in its new ground. Some people here, who
have gathered the berries, and put them into their kitchen gardens,
told me that they lay one or two years in the ground without coming up.
The Iroquese, or Five (Six) Nations, call the Ginseng roots
Garangtoging, which it is said signifies a child, the roots bearing a
faint resemblance to it: but others are of opinion that they mean the
thigh and leg by it, and the roots look pretty like it. The French use
this root for curing the asthma, as a stomachic, and to promote
fertility in woman. The trade which is carried on with it here is very
brisk; for they gather great quantities of it, and send them to France,
from whence they are brought to China, and sold there to great
advantage [35]. It is said the merchants in France met with amazing
success in this trade at the first outset, but by continuing to send
the Ginseng over to China, its price is fallen considerably there, and
consequently in France and Canada; however, they still find their
account in it. In the summer of 1748, a pound of Ginseng was sold for
six Francs, or Livres, at Quebec; but its common price here is one
hundred Sols, or five Livres. During my stay in Canada, all the
merchants at Quebec and Montreal, received orders from their
correspondents in France to send over a quantity of Ginseng, there
being an uncommon demand for it this summer. The roots were accordingly
collected in Canada with all possible diligence; the Indians especially
travelled about the country in order to collect as much as they could
together, and to sell it to the merchants at Montreal. The Indians in
the neighbourhood of this town were likewise so much taken up with this
business, that the French farmers were not able during that time to
hire a single Indian, as they commonly do, to help them in the harvest.
Many people feared lest by continuing for several successive years, to
collect these plants without leaving one or two in each place to
propagate their species, there would soon be very few of them left;
which I think is very likely to happen, for by all accounts they
formerly grew in abundance round Montreal, but at present there is not
a single plant of it to be found, so effectually have they been rooted
out. This obliged the Indians this summer to go far within the English
boundaries to collect these roots. After the Indians have sold the
fresh roots to the merchants, the latter must take a great deal of
pains with them. They are spread on the floor to dry, which commonly
requires two months and upwards, according as the season is wet or dry.
During that time they must be turned once or twice every day, lest they
should putrify or moulder. Ginseng has never been found far north of
Montreal. The superior of the clergy, here and several other people,
assured me that the Chinese value the Canada Ginseng as much as the
Tartarian [36]; and that no one ever had been entirely acquainted with
the Chinese method of preparing it. However it is thought that amongst
other preparations they dip the roots in a decoction of the leaves of
Ginseng. The roots prepared by the Chinese are almost transparent, and
look like horn in the inside; and the roots which are fit for use, must
be heavy and compact in the inside.
The plant which throughout Canada bears the name of Herba capillaris is
likewise one of those with which a great trade is carried on in Canada.
The English in their plantations call it Maiden-hair; it grows in all
their North-American colonies, which I travelled through, and likewise
in the southern parts of Canada; but I never found it near Quebec. It
grows in the woods in shady places and in a good soil [37]. Several
people in Albany and Canada, assured me that its leaves were very much
used instead of tea, in consumptions, coughs, and all kinds of pectoral
diseases. This they have learnt from the Indians, who have made use of
this plant for these purposes since times immemorial. This American
maiden-hair is reckoned preferable in surgery to that which we have in
Europe [38]; and therefore they send a great quantity of it to France,
every year. The price is different, and regulated according to the
goodness of the plant, the care in preparing it, and the quantity which
is to be got. For if it be brought to Quebec in great abundance, the
price falls; and on the contrary it rises, when the quantity gathered
is but small. Commonly the price at Quebec is between five and fifteen
sols a pound. The Indians went into the woods about this time, and
travelled far above Montreal in quest of this plant.
The Kitchen herbs, succeed very well here. The white cabbage is very
fine, but sometimes suffers greatly from worms. Onions (Allium cepa)
are very much in use here, together with other species of leeks. They
likewise plant several species of gourds, melons, sallads, wild succory
or wild endive (Cichorium Intybus), several kinds of pease, beans,
French beans, carrots, and cucumbers. They have plenty of red beets,
horseradishes and common raddishes, thyme, and marjoram. Turneps are
sown in abundance, and used chiefly in winter. Parsneps are sometimes
eaten, though not very common. Few people took notice of potatoes; and
neither the common (Solanum tuberosum) nor the Bermuda ones
(Convolvulus Batatas) were planted in Canada. When the French here are
asked why they do not plant potatoes, they answer that they cannot find
any relish in them, and they laugh at the English who are so fond of
them. Throughout all North-America the root cabbage [39] (Brassica
gongylodes, Linn.) is unknown to the Swedes, English, Dutch, Irish,
Germans, and French. Those who have been employed in sowing and
planting kitchen herbs in Canada, and have had some experience in
gardening, told me that they were obliged to send for fresh seeds from
France every year, because they commonly loose their strength here in
the third generation, and do not produce such plants as would equal the
original ones in taste and goodness.