The Sun.
London, England, 1838-01-10 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10, 1838.

a free pardon to all had been offered, upon condition of our •
being delivered into the hands of Government, and we felt an
ambition to become the vicarious sacrifice for the political of-
fences of the county of Richelieu. We also imagined that
the august representative of the ruling petticoat of Britain
might, in his ardour for an interview with two individuals
who had caused him so much disquiet, offer a price for our
heads that would render them a marketable commodity. With
these considerations we determined on visiting the States.
On Friday evening, the Ist of December, and myself
left St. Denis, accompanied by five others, who considered
emigration expedient. We rode all night in carts, and ar-
rived next morning about daylight at St. Cessaire, where we
were pushing on towards the townships bordering on the
lines, when a man informed us that we were going into the
geuele du loup (the wolf's throat), that guards were stationed
along the road to intercept gentlemen moving on especial busi-
ness, and that it would be necessary to go through the woods,
with the passes of which he was acquainted. After break-
fasting, we crossed to the right or northern bank of the Yam-
aska river, and continued walking until nightfall, when we
found ourselves in a tremendous windfall, the trees crossed in
every direction, through which we forced ourselves, like small
fish through a salmon net, until we arrived at a swamp,
when darkness prevented our going onward. The proximity
of some huts prevented our making a fire. To compensate for
the absence of sleep during the last forty hours, I had the
consoation of getting my back against a tree with my knees
drawn up to keep my feet out of the water, which re-
freshing posture was disturbed about two o'clock in the
morning by a violent rain which lasted till morning. At
daylight our march was resumed. The outer world was
fair and beautiful, but in the forest the constant dripping from
the trees was like a shower-bath from an ice-house. A Ca-

nadian forest is not a Vermont wood, where you move be-
tween majestic trees and tread upon the dry elastic leaves,
the accumulation of ages. No, the damp, low soil throws
the roots of trees to the surface, and every wind overthrows
them in every direction, while small brush grows up in every
little opening thus created. Your course is a continued
climbing over fallen logs or swimming through a thick-set
hedge of brush-wood, with the expedition of a fly through a
saucer of honey. Underneath the ground is spongy, leaving
water in every footstep. One half the surface is covered with
little pools, which king slightly frozen, kept one in constant
tremour between hope and fear and alternate changes of jo)
and sorrow, as his feet sunk or remained firm upon the
treacherous surface. Onward we packed till night, when
choosing a dry spot, we kindled a fire, collected hemlock
branches for our beds, dried our clothes, and passed a com-
fortable night. For food we had during the day found a few
small turnips, which the owner appeared to have left on the
field for the gleaners, after the precept of Levitical law. For
drink, the swamp pools furnished abundance, that we drank
according to the custom of the Jews in the days of the
Judges, whereby I perceived that we were not men fit
for war, for none 'lapped with their tongues.' On Mon-
day eaily we reached the skirt of the wood, when what

was. our horror in discovering that we had got into the
throat of a still stronger wolf than the one we left behind.
We were in fact close upon the Tory village of Granby,
where a guard appeared stationed. Our guide, like Natty
Bumpo, deceived by the clearings, had lost his way. Re-
turning to the woods we discovered the northern branch
of the Yamaska river, about a mile, when —, who is of a
Kentuckian frame, dashed into the water, and fording across
wanted us to follow him. By comparing the water-line upon
his body by a section of corresponding height upon our own,
we saw that the experiment with ourselves would approach
too nearly the sub-marine, and therefore listened to our
guide's insinuation that there was a better place lower down.
By moving to this place we lost sight of entirely, and,
upon reaching it, our guide, upon pretence of looking a little
further, deserted us for ever. was gone, and we were
deserted by our guide. My companions, fire Canadians, tired
of war.dcring in the woods, determined upon returning to the
French settlements ; but I informed them that I must go to
the States, wherever they might go ; and, upon coming near a
log-house, I decided upon going towards it, instead of making
one of those everlasting turns into the woods to avoid it,
such as we had practised for three days. My companions re-
monstrated in vain. They turned into the woods, and I to-
wards the hsu,s a and thus I found myself alone. I neglected
to mention that fortunately finding a potatoe patch, we
regaled ourselves the second time upon the raw vege-
table. Before leaving St. Denis I had lamed one of
my feet, and a fall from a horse at St. Charles having
nearly broken one of my ribs, my side was much inflamed.'
On approaching the cabin, I found the only inmate an Irish-
woman. Her husband was absent for several days—probably,
however, hid under some neighbouring log: Her voice was
for peace. She had nothing eatable but potatoes, which she
charitably offered to boil ; but as she mentioned there was a
Yankee living a mile farther down, declining her civility, I
proceeded towards his clearing. On coming to the house, how
grateful to my ears was the sharp voice of the nice, scolding
her children. It was a Yankee voice. Upon entering her
dwelling, which was composed of one room, without a chim-
ney, but with a tremendous pile of wood burning upon a hearth,
the smoke from whence escaped through a hole in the root, I
asked for some milk. The lady, eyeing me suspiciously,
guessed she hat none—" the children had rat it all up." I
had, however, hardly felt the grateful infivence of the blazing
tire, when a bowl of milk with bread accompaniments was on
the table, and instantaneously the frying-pan was biasing upon
the coals with pork. Oh, woman ! whether in the palace or
the log hut, in spite of your vagaries, how universally does the
spontaneous impulse of compassion gild your character when-
ever or wherever a case of distie ss is presented to you. The
husband soon arrived, dark and suspicicus ; but upon learning
I that I was like a Vermonter, and a republican, things went
smoothly. I was quite ignorant of Cenada affairs, but spoke
learnedly of pine trees mid swamp lands. There were nine
children in the family. A little girl pertly remarked, there
were " plenty of children, but noshing to put on 'em." In
rummer, the absence of neighbours, to make uncharitable re-
marks, made clothes of little consequence, and in winter they
could stay in the house. The squatter was, however, an indus-
trious man, who will one day have a good farm, for the big
boys split long shingles all the evening, to use for hoards in
covering a barn, elide the father shaved them. I slept among
the children, who knotted up like a nest of eels ; but how
would you expect children bred in the woods to know the
points of compass to a bed?
On Tuesday morning, after eating a hearty breakfast, I
crossed the branch of the Yamaska in a canoe. Three miles'
walk through the woods brought me to the south branch, up
which I walked until I found another canoe in a clearing,
when I was ferryed over by a Canadian woman. Proceeding
until three o'clock, I reached the clear, cultivated country,
and laying down in a point of woods, slept until dark. My
lameness had become insufferable ; but I walked briskly along
the road to the lines, passing a bridge while they were
changing guard, to the subsequent chagrin of the guardians,
who heard of it in the morning. At midnight fatigue corn-
pea( d me to resort to a couch of hemlock boughs in the woods
until drvlight, when I continued my route to within two miles
of Durham village, when I struck into the woods to gain the
Stanbridge. road. I inquired for milk at a log-house—they
had none ; but the owner started to inform the village of my
presence, and was informed he would have made his fortune
by catching see. For four long hours I trudged before I
found bread and milk, and great was my sorrow to learn I had
only gained fifty rods in distance. 'the truth is, one of my
legs having become useless, my supporters had performed the
action of a pair of dividers, one leg standing still while
the other walked round it. Refreshed, I continued my
route till late in the afternoon, when I passed a large
clearing on which were five cultivated farms. Inquiring
at the last one for a wood road leading five miles
through the forest, I entered it boldly, fired my carbine, as
though game was my object, and laid down till dark. With
the best disposition in the world, I could go no farther. The
leg that bad been dragged all day, not only refused to be
dragged any longer, but the other, which had so patiently en-
dured the toil would drag it no longer. With such mutinous
members I could only return to one of the houses and make
out as good a story as I could devise. As I approached I
met the owner, to whom I said, " 1 was going through the
woods, but it looks so much like snow I will wait until morn-
ing." He looked an instant in my face, and exclaimed,
" I know you, but here are four friends of yours, and
you are safe ; I have just come from the Flat, they are all after
you; old Cup'er was fixing his old gun, I told the d—d
old cuss it wouldn't go off, but he swore he'd shoot you if he
see'd you; I daren't take you into my house, so you must come
into the barn."
ceounnucilmoefatnhse feofures'e'afpreie,ndesx'
c'
eNpvtas
weaallkleindg.
immediately reornu,g hw theas i
mwporoadest. i
et
aoblteh, e
ulnilneesss.
devAis
'Phis, I
they could mfuordneissthlymienfworimtheda
now pair of legs. Coverlids and a supper
were
then brought,
and I was hid for two nights and one day under
by which time the swelling in my limb had nearly a
hay-mow,
subsided.
My danger was not over, for the women, considering the se-
cret of my hiding-place too weighty for their weak abilities,
had called upon their neighbours to help them keep
ac-
cordingly removed for one day to another barn
whenep it. I
my limbs
becoming renovated, and a young man having offered as a
guide, regain set out on Friday evening last.
that I was watched in every direction, w e passed Knowing h
throut
woods, and, at a great distance from the
road (the
snow was rather unpleasantly deep), to avoid observation,
and happily succeeded in reaching Chaneyin
Berk-
shire, (Vt.) before morning. Having left Saint Denis
with a determination of getting to the States in safety
body ever hailed the land of freedom with more ei
ti, no-
On Saturday I moved to the southward. The first allukt,aneon.l
paper I saw contained, sure enough, a reward for
my head,tra
and that of We certainly have precedence on the list,
but I don't like the classification, and consider the valuation
far below my own estimate. Poor Lord Gosford must, tlon
how-
ever, be pardoned. We had, by our proceedings, already
caused so much expense to the little Queen's treasury, that we
most charitably suppose he could riot afford more.
A laughable thing occurred at Milton. The stage passen-
gers (among whom was Mr. Rodier, member of Parliament;
Mr. Beaudry, Vice-president of the Montreal Youncs Men's
Society ; and myself), sat down to breakfast, when a Yankee
dry goods seller of Montreal ordered a breakfast apart for him-
self and a bank clerk, that they might not be contaminated by
eating with rebels. This man belongs to a class of Yankees
in Canada, who expect to grow fat by licking not indepen-
dently their own paws like the bears, but the posteriors of
British Royalists. Several have come out to prejudice the
Vermonters against Canadian freedom; but so universal is
public sympathy in the north, that unless they beware, Lynch
law will be applied as unsparingly upon those persons as mar-
tial law is by a bloody government in Canada.