The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-12-13
Miscellany.
Quebec.

Quebec.
Mr.. 81. w. Beecher has lately paid visit to
Quebec, and thus dscourses of that city in
the last number of Mr.. Bonners Ledger:
Queer old Quebec! OF all cities on the
Continent of America, the quaintest. 1t is
populated cliff. 1t is a mighty rock, scarped
and graded, and made to bold houses an cas-
ties which, by all proper natural laws, ought
20 slide off from it's back, like an unSirded
load from a camel's back. But they stick.
At the foot Of the rocks the space OF several
streets in width has been stolen from the riv-
er.
As we landed here, swarm OF drivers and
a snarl of grotesque vehicles stood ready Tor
us with bewidering otficiousness. In New
York, the hackmen at the landings make
one think of Shernan's Bummers in his
grand march, jolly, miscuievous, impairment
ly enterprisinS, and sometimes, it is to be
feared, given to gouging and lies In Boston,
hacklnen are put in long lines, as becomes
Puritan backmen, and thence solicit custom
as decorousy as if they were saying their cat
echism out of pew. In Quebec, the hack
men seemed to be cross between the mild
French and the smart Yankee. Impertinence
it was, or, rather, importantly licked into the
shape of moderate poIiteness.
Away We went, climbing the steep streets
at a canter, with little horses hardly bigger
than flies, and, like flies, with an aptitude Tor
climbing perpendicular walls. 1t was strange
to enter walled city through low and gloomy
gates, on this continent of America. Here
was small bit of medieval Europe perched
upon rock and dried for keeping, in this
northeast corner OF America, curiosity
that has not its equal, in its kind, ON this side
of the ocean.
We rode about as if we were in a picture
book, turning over new leaf at each street!
We were much panied to see some signs of
enterprise, and tokens of undermining some
parts of the city. That ought not to he. A
spruce modern house in good old Quebec
ought to be regarded as an affront. The
place should always be kept old. Let people
60 somewhere else for modern improvements.
It is shame, when Quebec placed herself far
out of the way, up in the very neighborhood
OF Hudson's Bay,that she should be hunted and
harSssed with new-fangled notions, and all
the charming inconvenience, and the irregu-
larities OF narrow and tortuous streets that so
delight travellers eyes, should / e altered to
suit the fantastic notions ofmodern people
We were greatly comforted to learn that since
the removal of the Government to Ottawa,
the city is becoming stasnant, and is likely
to fall back into its slumbrous fxity of odd
and angular LONELINESS.
Our hotel was tor all the world a second
Quebec, in SMALL with roof on. We could
not find the front door, and when it was
shown, we could not ind 1t The next time;
and when we got in, the entry was SO narrow,
and SO dark, that we were under the impress
ion that, after all, we were tIespassing on
some poor mans domain. Upstairs we
stumbled, by stairs that seemed intent on
brewing accidents, and that squeaked and
ratified as it they could not get over the fun
of the last gentleman who broke his neck
here and at the top, we found ourselves in
profound darkness.
1t was sweeping day. The Gentle of the
small hall was full of furniture; no lamp was
lit; no door was open; there was no window,
and nobody came to show us the way. In
minute more we should have shouted "mur-
DER" in the fear that we had been inveigled
into some hole of danger. AT length, the
parlor was reached. Three stout girls were
sweeping with amazing vigor. Leaving our
outer garments, we began an exploration to-
ward the dining hail. How we got there, or
got back again, we do not know. The inte-
rior OF that hotel must have been patterned
on the interior passages Of an Egyptian pyra-
mid. -