MONTREAL.
Thousand Islands.--Long Sault Rapids.--Lachine Rapids.--Victoria
Bridge.--Mont Real.--Early History of Montreal.--Its Shipping
Interests.--Quays.--Manufactures.--Population.--Roman Catholic
Supremacy.--Churches.--Nunneries.--Hospitals.--Colleges.--
Streets.--Public Buildings.--Victoria Skating Rink.--
Sleighing.--Early Disasters.--Points of Interest.--The
"Canucks."
The traveler who visits Montreal should, if possible, make his approach
to that city by a descent of the St. Lawrence River, that he may become
acquainted with some of the most beautiful scenery in America. Leaving
Kingston, at the outlet of Lake Ontario, he will wind his way through
the mazes of the Thousand Islands, which will seem to him as if
belonging to an enchanted country. These islands, situated at the head
of the St. Lawrence, extend down the river for a distance of thirty
miles, and are innumerable and of every size and shape. Wolf Island,
about fifteen miles in length, is the largest; while some of the
smallest seem like mere flower-pots rising out of the water, with but a
single plant. They are most picturesque in appearance, their rocky
foundations being veiled and softened by the trees and shrubbery which
cover them. In past ages mythology would have made these islands the
sacred abodes of the gods, and peopled their woods and dells with nymphs
and fauns, while the intervening channels would have been presided over
by naiads. A little more than a generation ago, a single inhabitant, a
freebooter, who levied toll upon the passers up and down the river, and
who concealed his ill-gotten booty in his numerous lurking-places in the
islands, turned this terrestrial paradise into a pirate's den. To-day
the Thousand Islands have become famous summer resorts for the denizens
of our northern cities; and large and small are studded with attractive
cottages and imposing villas; while nature, already so beautiful in its
wild state, has been trained into the tamer beauty of modern landscape
gardening.
Beyond the islands the majestic St. Lawrence rolls on until it reaches
the rapids, celebrated in song by Thomas Moore. Here the river narrows,
and the current rushes impetuously over and between the rocks which jut
from its bottom; while the pilot, with watchfulness and skill, guides
the boat through the treacherous channel, and lands her safely in the
smoother waters beyond. These rapids are known as the Long Sault Rapids,
and are nine miles in length. A raft will drift this whole distance in
forty minutes. The passage of boats down these rapids was considered
impossible until 1840, when the famous Indian pilot, Teronhiahere, after
watching the course of rafts down the stream, attempted it, and
discovered a safe channel for steamboats. Many of the pilots are still
Indians, who exhibit great skill and courage in the undertaking. There
has never yet been a fatal accident in shooting these rapids. The
Cornwall Canal, eleven miles long, permits vessels to go around the
rapids in ascending the river.
The Lachine Rapids, nine miles above Montreal, although the shortest,
are the most dangerous. It is easy enough to descend these rapids, if
one is not particular as to results; but it is difficult enough to
descend them safely. The faint-hearted had better commit themselves to
the more placid waters of the canal, or take to the railroad. But to the
brave traveler there is a certain exhilaration in thus toying with and
conquering danger. The rapids fairly passed, one can distinguish the
long line and graceful archways of the Victoria Bridge, and the towers
and spires of Montreal.
Montreal is on an island thirty-two miles in length, and with a width at
its widest of ten miles. It is at the junction of the St. Lawrence and
Ottawa, both of them noble rivers, and is connected with the mainland by
two bridges, one of them spanning the Ottawa by a series of immense
arches; and the other, the Victoria bridge, thrown across the St.
Lawrence. The length of the latter bridge is nearly two miles. It rests
upon twenty-three piers and two abutments of solid masonry, the central
span being three hundred and thirty feet long. Its total cost was about
$6,300,000. It was formally opened to the public by the Prince of Wales,
on the occasion of his visit to America during the summer of 1860. The
railway track runs through an iron tube, twenty-two feet high and
sixteen feet wide. The river rolls nearly a hundred feet below, in
summer a sweeping flood, and in winter a sort of glacier, the ice masses
piled and heaped upon one another, as they have been upheaved or hurled
in the contentions between the current and the frost-king.
The city of Montreal is distinctly outlined against Mount Royal or Mont
Real, which rises back of it, its edifices showing dark and gray, except
where the sun catches its numerous tin roofs, making them glitter like
burnished steel. It takes its name from Mont Real, the mountain already
referred to, which closes it in on one side, and rises seven hundred and
fifty feet above the river. Its eastern suburb, still known as
Hochelaga, was the site of an Indian village when it was discovered, in
1535, by Jacques Cartier, and this explorer it was who gave the name to
the mountain. In 1642, just one hundred and fifty years after the
discovery of America, it was settled by the French, retaining its Indian
name for a century later, when that appellation was replaced by the
French one of "Ville Marie." In 1761 the city came into the possession
of the British, and received its present name. In 1775 it was captured
by the Americans under General Montgomery, and held by them until the
following summer.
Montreal was, under both French and British rule, an outpost of Quebec
until 1832, when it became a separate port. The shallower parts of the
river being deepened above Quebec, Montreal became accessible to boats
drawing from nineteen to twenty-two feet of water. It is now the chief
shipping port of Canada. It is five hundred miles from the sea, and
ninety miles above tidewater; and being at the head of ship navigation
of the St. Lawrence, and at the foot of the great chain of inland lakes,
rivers and canals which connect it with the very centre of the American
continent, its commerce is very important. At the confluence of the
Ottawa with the St. Lawrence, it is also the outlet of a vast lumber
country. It feels, however, the serious disadvantage of being, for five
months in the year, blockaded, and made, to all intents and purposes, an
inland city, by the closing of navigation during the winter. Then, by
means of the Grand Trunk and other railways, it becomes tributary to
Portland, Maine, and finds, at that city, a port for its commerce. Its
two miles of quays, including the locks and stone-cut wharves of the
Lachine Canal, all built of solid limestone, would do credit to any city
in the world; while a broad wall or esplanade extends between these
quays and the houses which overlook the river. Montreal takes a front
rank in its manufacturing interests, which embrace all kinds of
agricultural and mechanical implements, steam engines, printing types,
India-rubber shoes, paper, furniture, woolens, cordage and flour. In
1874 its exports were valued at over twenty-two millions of dollars.
The population of Montreal in 1779 was only about seven thousand
inhabitants. In 1861 it had increased to 70,323; and in 1871 the census
returns made the population 115,926. Of these inhabitants, probably more
than one-half are Roman Catholics, representing a great variety of
nationalities, among which, however, French Canadians and Irish
predominate. The Catholics were, at first, under French dominion, in
exclusive possession of the city, and the different religious societies
gained vast wealth. Ever since Canada has passed into the hands of
England they still hold their own, and exercise an influence over the
people, and display a magnificence in their edifices and appointments,
unknown in other sections of America.
No city of the same size in the United States has such splendid
churches. The Roman Catholic Cathedral of Notre Dame, fronting on the
Place d'Armes, is the largest on the continent. It is two hundred and
forty-one feet in length, by one hundred and thirty-five feet in width,
and is capable of seating more than ten thousand persons. It is a
massive structure, built of stone, in the Gothic style with a tower at
each corner, and one in the middle of each flank, numbering six in all.
The towers on the main front are two hundred and twelve feet high, and
furnish to visitors a magnificent view of the city. In one of these
towers is a fine chime of bells, the largest of which, the "Gros
Bourdon," weighs twenty-nine thousand four hundred pounds. But as large
as is this cathedral, it will be surpassed in size by the Cathedral of
St. Peter, now in process of erection at the corner of Dorchester and
Cemetery streets, and built after the general plan of St. Peter's at
Rome. This cathedral will be three hundred feet long by two hundred and
twenty-five feet wide at the transepts, and will be surmounted by five
domes, the largest of which will be two hundred and fifty feet in
height, supported on four piers and thirty-two Corinthian columns. The
vestibule alone will be two hundred feet long by thirty feet wide, and
will be fronted by a portico, surmounted by colossal statues of the
Apostles. It will, when completed, be by far the finest and largest
church edifice in America. St Patrick's Church at the west end of
Lagauchere street, is noticeable for its handsome Gothic windows of
stained glass, and will seat five thousand persons. The Church of the
Gesu, in Blewry street, has the finest interior in the city, the vast
nave, seventy-five feet in height, being bordered by rich composite
columns, and the walls and ceilings beautifully frescoed.
The Roman Catholic churches undoubtedly exceed in size and number those
of the Protestants, though some of the latter are worthy of note. Christ
Church Cathedral--Episcopal, in St. Catherine street, is the most
perfect specimen of English Gothic architecture in America. It is built
of rough Montreal stone, with Caen stone facings, cruciform, and
surmounted by a spire two hundred and twenty-four feet high. St.
Andrew's Church--Presbyterian, in Radegonde street, is a fine specimen
of Gothic architecture, being an imitation, on a reduced scale, of
Salisbury Cathedral. Zion Church--Independent, in Radegonde street, near
Victoria Square, was the scene of the riot and loss of life on the
occasion of Gavazzi's lecture in 1852.
Like Quebec, Montreal is famous for its nunneries. The Gray Nunnery,
founded in 1692, for the care of lunatics and children, is situated in
Dorchester street. This nunnery owns Nun's Island, in Lake St. Louis,
above Montreal, once an Indian burial ground, but now in a high state of
cultivation. In Notre Dame street, near the Place d'Armes, is the Black
or Congregational Nunnery, which dates from 1659, and is devoted to the
education of girls. At Hochelaga is the Convent of the Holy Name of
Mary. The Hotel Dieu, founded in 1644, for the cure of the sick, and St.
Patrick's Hospital, are both under the charge of the Sisters of St.
Joseph. The Christian Brothers have control of numerous schools, and
render material aid to morality and religion. The Seminary of St.
Sulspice is a large and stately building, devoted to the education of
Catholic priests. Nuns and priests are familiar objects upon the
streets, and not always a welcome sight to the Protestant eye;
nevertheless, the good works in which they engage are numerous and not
to be undervalued.
The number of hospitals, scientific institutions, libraries,
reading-rooms, schools and universities of Montreal is remarkable. Many
of them are under Catholic control, and all are worthy of a highly
civilized and prosperous community. First among the educational
institutions of the city is McGill College, founded by a bequest of the
Hon. James McGill, in 1811, and erected into a university, by royal
charter, in 1821. It is beautifully situated at the base of Mount Royal,
and, besides a large corps of able professors, possesses one of the
finest museums in the country.
Montreal is a beautiful city. Its public buildings are constructed of
solid stone, in which a handsome limestone, found in the neighborhood,
predominates. Its churches, banks, hospitals and colleges are all
edifices of which to be proud. Its private dwellings are, a majority of
them, substantially built, while many of the roofs, cupolas and spires
are covered with metal, which, seen at a distance, glitters in the sun.
The most elegant private residences are found upon the slope of Mont
Real, surrounded by ample grounds containing fine lawns, trees and
shrubbery. From these hillside residences the scenery is most lovely,
looking over a panorama of city, river and country, with the blue tops
of the mountain ranges of New York, Vermont and New Hampshire plainly
perceptible on clear days.
St. Paul street is the chief commercial thoroughfare, and extends nearly
parallel to the river, but a square or two back from it, the whole
length of the city. Commissioner street faces the quays and monopolizes
much of the wholesale trade. McGill, St. James and Notre Dame are also
important business streets. Great St. James and Notre Dame streets are
the fashionable promenades, while Catherine, Dorchester and Sherbrook
streets contain the finest private residences. At the intersection of
McGill and St. James streets, in a small public square, called Victoria
Square, is a fountain and a bronze statue of Queen Victoria. A number of
fine buildings surround this square, prominent among which are the
Albert buildings and the beautiful Gothic structure of the Young Men's
Christian Association.
Bontecour's Market, a spacious stone edifice in the Doric style, is one
of the handsomest buildings in the city. It fronts the river at the
corner of St. Paul and Water streets, is three stories high, surmounted
by a dome, from which the view is exceptionally fine. The new City Hall,
at the head of Jacques Cartier Square, containing the offices of the
various civil and corporate functionaries, is an elegant structure,
spacious and perfect in all its appointments. The Court House, in Notre
Dame street, is three hundred feet long by one hundred and twenty-five
feet wide, in the Doric style, and erected at a cost of over three
hundred thousand dollars. It includes a law library of six thousand
volumes. Back of it is the Champs de Mars, a fine military parade
ground. The Custom House is between St. Paul street and the river, on
the site of an old market-place, and is a massive structure with a fine
tower. The Post Office is an elegant building near the Place d'Armes, in
great St. James street. In the Place d'Armes, is the Bank of Montreal
and the City Bank, Masonic Hall, the headquarters of the Masons of
Canada, and several other of the principal banks of the city. Mechanics'
Institute, in great St. James street, though plain externally, has an
elaborately decorated lecture room. The principal hotels are the
Windsor, in Dorchester street, one of the finest of its kind in America;
the St. Lawrence, in Great St. James street; the Ottawa House, corner of
St. James and Notre Dame streets; Montreal House, in Custom House
Square; the Richelieu Hotel, and the Albion.
One of the principal points of attraction in both winter and summer is
the Victoria Skating Rink, in Dominion Square. This extensive building
is used during the milder months of the year for horticultural shows,
concerts and miscellaneous gatherings. In the winter the doors of this
place are thronged with a crowd of sleighs and sleigh drivers, while
inside, skaters and spectators form a living, moving panorama, pleasant
to look upon. The place is lighted by gas, and men and women, old and
young, with a plentiful sprinkling of children, on skates, are
practicing all sorts of gyrations. The ladies are prettily and
appropriately dressed in skating costumes, and some of them are
proficient in the art of skating. The spectators sit or stand on a
raised ledge around the ice parallelogram, while the skaters dart off,
singly or in pairs, executing quadrilles, waltzes, curves, straight
lines, letters, labyrinths, and every conceivable figure. Now and then
some one comes to grief in the surging, moving throng; but is quickly on
his or her feet again, the ice and water shaken off, and the zigzag
resumed. Children skate; boys and girls; ladies and gentlemen, and even
dignified military officers. Some skate well, some medium, some
shockingly ill; but all skate, or essay to do so. It is the grand
Montrealese pastime, and though the ice is sloppy, and the air chill and
heavy with moisture, everybody has a good time.
There is one other amusement of the public, and that is sleighing. The
winter in the latitude of Montreal is long and cold, and sometimes the
snow falls to a depth of several feet, lying upon the ground for
months. When winter settles down upon the city, the river freezes over,
leaving the island an island no longer, but making it part and parcel of
the surrounding continent. Then the people wrap themselves in furs and
betake themselves to their sleighs, and glide swiftly along the
well-beaten roads, between the white drifts. Vehicles of every
description, from the most elegant appointed sleigh down to the rough
box sled, are seen upon the road, and the jingle of bells is everywhere
heard, as the sledges follow, pass and repass one another on the snowy
track. Ladies closely wrapped in furs and veils, and their cavaliers in
fur caps with flaps brought closely around ears and chin, alike bid
defiance to the temperature, which is not infrequently in the
neighborhood of zero; and the blood seems to course more quickly for the
keenness of the atmosphere.
During its long history, Montreal has had disasters as well as
successes. Something over a hundred years after its founding as a French
colony it was nearly destroyed by fire, and a little later it became a
favorite point of attack during the two American wars. But to-day it is
the most thriving city of the British provinces. It has pushed its
railway communications with great energy, and so long as peace is
maintained between Canada and the United States it will continue to
prosper. In the event of war, the city lies in an exposed position, and
during the winter its only outlet, by rail to Portland, would be cut
off.
The Nelson Monument in Jacques Cartier Square, and near it the old
Government House, will prove objects of interest to the visitor, though
the former is in somewhat of a dilapidated condition. The city is
supplied with water by works which are situated a mile or so above it,
in the midst of beautiful scenery. Mount Royal Cemetery is two miles
from the city, on the northern slope of the mountain. One of the most
beautiful views in the neighborhood of Montreal is the famous around the
mountain drive, nine miles in length, and passing by Mount Royal Park.
First settled by the French, their descendants, the French Canadians,
form a considerable proportion of the population of Montreal. But
whatever they may have been in the past, they have degenerated into an
illiterate, unenterprising people. The English, Irish and Scotch, who
during the past century have been emigrating to Canada in such numbers,
have monopolized most of the business, and have rescued Montreal, as
well as Lower Canada generally, from a stagnation which was sure to
creep upon it if left in the hands of the descendants of the early
French settlers. Arcadian innocence and simplicity have developed, or
rather degenerated, into indolence, stolidity and ignorance. The priests
do the thinking for these people, who, apparently have few ambitions in
life beyond meeting its daily wants. Thus, though the streets of
Montreal still bear the old names, and though its architecture still
retains much of the quaintness which it early assumed, the business is
largely in the hands of the Anglo-Saxons and Celts, who are its later
settlers; and English pluck, Irish industry, Scotch thrift and American
push, are all brought into marked contrast with the sluggishness and
lethargy of the "Canucks." The names over the principal business houses
are either English, Scotch or Irish; and the sympathies of the
intelligent people are entirely in harmony with the government under
which they live.