The Delaware ledger. (Newark, Del.) 1879-19??, 1888-02-04
Quebec.


Tho outdoor life Of Quebec sur
prises a stranger from more south
ern climate. Having in mind the
furious tempests Of Canadian win
ter, when very often neither man
nor beast is safe outdoors, he fears
that suffering or even death is fire.
quently met here when one leaves
the house And certainly Nature
looks into Quebuc with uncommon
freedom the entire dome Of the sky,
rising from vast expanse Of waters,
plains, and mountains, is visible
from many parts of the town; so
that when the sun shines in this
exceptionally clear Northern air he
beams on everything, in Il great rus.
tic efiusion rare in city sun; you
almost take the firing ofthe midday
gun for his universal guililw, rolling
through the cloudlcss ky. Then
when a gale swoops down it bears in
upon you familiarity, even with a
terrible eagerness and ierocity and
fancy too that the moon and stars
hover close about Quebec, for when
| so out on clear night they stare
with large-eyed wondcr-as well
they may, at near view of such a
creature But the Canadian win
ter, excepting during II tempest, is a
season full of comforts and enjoy
ments for business sleeds, the Low
er Town seems empty, and life turns
either to irolicsome outdoor sports
Tor which the good mir furnishes
abundant yigor-or to warm and in
Innate social pleasures. Even if the
Thermometer be as low as ten de-
grees below zero, you will often find
the children outdoors -cherubie
bundles of fur and wool walowing
in the snow as if it were hay, the
babes in their little slcds, and pco-
pie out snow-shoeing, skating in the
rink, or driving in their cozy Carl
oles;' the horses may be silvcred
over with frost, and your own eye
lashes laden with glohutes of ice, or
now and then You may have to rub
your hose with snow to warm it
after freezing but us a rule, every
body is very comfortable in furs,
with the help of moderate exercise.
This French people in America
seem to have overcome the depend
cnce of their blood ON warm, sun
ny climate they walk the streets in
any weather with a comfortable,
moderate, often perhaps mincing
gait, while their English friends
stride oyer the snow with martial
earnestness. The poor hackman
have the hardest experience; in fur
caps, and long buffalo coats with col
lars coming up to the top of their
heads, they look like bears masqucr-
aiding as men; they tighten the na-
tional red sash about their waists,
stamp their feet, swing their arms,
and keep up a continual scullling
and joking to shorten the tcdium OF
their long hours and l should not
omit to add that their rubicund
noses promise well to defy the frost.
In Drawing the gloom and ferocity
of winter storm the city has u GER
tain savage as well as pathetic as
pect northeast gale comes up the
st. Lawrence in bounding-gusts, and
scaling the cliffs of Cape Diamond,
throws the snow back deiiantlv into
the sky and the battlements shake
out hoary names from their cretsr.
But the human elements of the
scene are more timid, the little
houses crouching down into the
snow-drilts look like tattercd toques
with tassels Of white smoke floating
out on the wind mercy ON any poor
soul that cannot escape the snow
laden gusts, cutting as a sand-blast
with bowed heads, and occasional
turning about to catch breath,
even the well-clad hurry on, and
like silent phantoms soon Hit out of
sight into the white obscurity.
When the brooding gloom settles
over the city ut twilight the bugle
throws its cherry notes into the aftic
silence Of the glacis as you struggle
along the ramparts the Angelus
rings from over the monastery wall,
while the cannon point to the night
approachingover the mountain-tops.
Hampers Magazine.
On a certain occasion gentleman
was relating to a companion the
substance Of newspaper paragraph
which he had read, to the effect that
Foote, during a trip through Scot