The Portland daily press., 1874-07-20
The "French Countryv in Canada.

Alter crossing the Victoria B.idge we fire.
quently read from the car window the sign.
Ird1efse de Chemin de fer,' ard we realize
that We are IN the "FIench counfry.'' We
become interested in the oddly built houses.
and Ill the long line of fences only a few rods
apart, YET parallel and stretching far out of
sight. We had noticed the same curious fea
lures as We passed down the ra pids to Mon
t cal. During the occupation OF this country
by the French those who had seen OF service
in war were rewarded by the F, ench govern
ment with grants OF land bordering on the
st. Lawrence or its larger tributaries. These
grants were termed seigniories and within
their limits all property, zeal or personal wa,
af1ected by tue C0utame de Paris OF 1866.
The seagnears Tor grantees) held in feudal
tenure, and to them were owing money and
service from the censitdires In 1855 the law
OF tenure vas done away with. and even real
ty ceased to be affected 10y The act above NO
tlced. The original seigniOries contained
from one hundred to five hundred SQUARE
miles; the frontage tupou some streaml was
narrow, but the depth was great, the propor-
ton being as one to ten. On ,he death of
the father the land was divided lopgitudinally,
the eldest son taking the largest share and
the younger sons taking fefs When roads
we're opened in the interior, latitudinal dyi-
slons were also made. But successive gener-
atlons thus dividing the paternal acres, and
setting down at home, have so reduced the
size OF the farms that the land is ..al, lopei-
tude.'' the frontage often being thi ty-three
and balf feet and the depth two thousand
ieet, or as oneito sixty. This causes the rows
Of old houses TO have the appearance of a viii
lage street.
But what can we say of the farms? The
poor soil is exhausted, and the whole French
Country is overstocked with wretched and
shiftless hdbitdnts. Thousands of them tray
el many miles to help the Vermoat farmers,
or to work in the brick yards OF New Eng
land The summer over, they return with
almost the only money they ever see, and
which is too often all exhausted before they
reach home. Their cabins are of SQUARED
logs, the chnks filled with mortar; the ga
bes are of sawed boards, and the roofs are of
tia or wood. The open summer kitchen is
exposed to every $40. m. Close by the adj in
ing corn-crib, and making ladder for the
rats, stands the ponderous cart, with wooden
axles and double springs of the same materi-
al. Within call Is the small-bodiel but large
limbed French horse" originally nom Nor
mandy, and as his master drives him he will
hrst deal e blow, aud then you will hear.
''Avaunt! All! pauvre chevall yous avez un
bon maltreT The Shaggy brown and a hiie
dog, unlike any other of his SPECIES, also ap-
pears. l. is well that these animals can sub
sist OH little, and that little OF the coarsest
kind; Tor their masters have nothing more or
bitter to give tnem. Besides onions aud DO
5, peas form the chief diet; d so
common is this staple that 'pea-soup' is used
derisively as an adjective or noun. Poultry
and salt pork are the more substantial iishes,
and the only meats on their bill OF fare. Yet
they have one luxury-the boudin, or blood
pudding" as the English call it. A fine pig
Is selected, the throat cut, and the blood al.
lowed to drip into a pan; an old woman adds
-four and other things, as experience sug-
gests, and stirs the whole until it becomes
cold. This delightful compound is then
baked, aud those who have eaten OF it say
that it is excellent.
Tobacco is no. luxury but necessity
with these people. After raising and curing
IL they twist it into rolls like Bologna sau-
sage, and smoke the strong and filthy stuff in
short clay pipes.
In person the habitants aie small, and have
the regular features OF the French. If any
boards are worn, they very thinly cover the
face. Upon their heads are hats with mar
row brims or caps without visors Theii
clothing is of coarse wooden stuff, called
"French gray" In cold weather several pairs
OF stockings cover their feet, which are then
thrust into moccasns, or immense boots with
out heels, secured by a strap over the iDstep.
For merely wet weather, or for standing on
the ice, wooden shoes (sdbotsI are used. In
personal habits cleanliness seems to be I'M
known. Smallpox prevails to an alarming
extent. The language they speak does not
arise TO the dignity of a pdtois. Even when
French is spoken entirely, it has the English
construction and idioms. They are poor,
but seem to be happy, especially in the en-
loyment OF their numerous holidays, the num-
Der of which they ever strive to increase On
saints days professions are formed, and all
Iookers-on are expected to uncover the head
and kneel as they pass with banners and i'm
ages From "On the Boundary Line" by
u. G. Mather, in Harper's Magazine for Au-
gust.