In the autumn we moved for a month nearer the village, and occupied the
house owned by Mr. Beaupré. It was a commodious dwelling, neatly
furnished, and on my remarking a rather nice bureau in my room, and
inquiring if they had a cabinet-maker in the village, my landlady
answered, "Oh! my husband made that himself, and, though never
apprenticed to any trade, built nearly the whole of this house himself."
and then the old gentleman, pointing to the other side of the river,
said, "Do you notice, madame, that clump of trees; well, beneath that
rock is a cavern which I discovered and made a residence of when, as a
boy of thirteen, I walked from St. Augustine across the country to
there, to see what I could do for myself. I had no near relations, and
determined if possible, by squatting, to get a home. I built a
projecting porch, and lived for many a month in that cavern. I earned
my living by doing odd jobs for the farmers, who came from some
distance, and helped to row them over in a scow to St. Raymond proper,
now the village, to get their horses shod, and while waiting for their
return, noticed how the blacksmiths worked; then it occurred to me how
well a blacksmith would do on my side of the river (thus saving the
crossing), and I commenced to learn, and here I am, the master of a
comfortable home and several farms"—the reward of energy and favorable
circumstances, which brought the railroad to their very doors, and with
large stores opening for the supply of the railroad employees, and the
influx of summer visitors, has made the desert blossom like a rose, and
a charming village (the intersecting waters spanned by a pretty bridge),
spring in a few years from the bush.
Mr. Panet, advocate, and his charming wife are residents here. Mr. P.,
representative and nephew of Mrs. Shakspeare, wife of General
Shakspeare, daughter of Bernard Panet, of old Quebec memory.