may now do the reader, had not been an
eye-witness of it. One of the crew, whilst
fishing for a few minutes, with a line belonging
to a passenger, hooked a very large fish,
which dropped into the water in the act of
being hauled on board. The man, determined
on securing his prize, without a moment's
hesitation, leaped overboard after it; and,
seizing the half insensible fish in his arms,
held it there until he was hauled on board,
with his extraordinary booty. In explanation
of this, it should be known that the gills of a
cod-fish, when out of the water, swell
considerably, so as to prevent it from properly
performing their functions when restored, even
alive, to its native element. It was whilst the
fish in question was in the act of thus "coming
to" that the man seized and secured it.

On the banks, when the night was clear,
we witnessed magnificent exhibitions of the
aurora-borealis. It was generally between
midnight and ten in the morning that the
phenomenon attained the greatest splendour.
When the whole northern sky was enveloped
in a trellis-work of flashing wavy light, of a
mingled golden, silvery pink, and blood-red
hue.

The first land we made, was Cape Breton,
an island off the northern extremity of Nova
Scotia; and between which and Newfoundland,
is the entrance to the Gulf of St.
Lawrence. The bold shore of the island was
more picturesque than inviting; but for the
live-long day every passenger strained his eyes
upon this, the first positive revelation of the
New World to him. The delight imparted by
the first sight of land, can only be appreciated
by those who have been for weeks at sea, with
nothing to meet the eye, day after day, but
the same monotonous and dreary circle of
waters, in the midst of which the ship seems
to rest immoveable. From Cape Breton we
stood up the Gulf, and being favoured by
the wind, soon made the Island of Anticosti,
not far from the mouth of the St. Lawrence.
It looked like a mass of petrified guano; an
illusion which was not disturbed by the
myriads of water-fowl which hovered about its
precipices.

The Gulf of St. Lawrence has not been
inaptly designated, the "vilest of seas." It was
our lot to have ample experience of its
capricious humours. When almost at the mouth
of the river, which expands into a magnificent
estuary of from seventy to ninety miles in
width, we were becalmed for two whole
days. Between us and the rocky shore on
our left, to which we were very close, lay a
vessel from Belfast, crowded with emigrants.
There was music and dancing on board; and
so near were we to each other, that we, too,
sometimes danced to the sound of her solitary
violin. On the evening of the second day,
we were suddenly overtaken by a furious
squall, which descending the river, came
upon us so unprepared, that much of our
canvas was cut to pieces ere it could be
taken in. In about half an hour all was
comparatively tranquil again, but on looking
for our comrade, not a vestige of her was to
be seen. It was not for three weeks
afterwards, when we heard of her total loss, with
upwards of three hundred and fifty souls on
board, that our dreadful suspicions respecting
her, were confirmed. Next morning it blew
very fresh; and although it was the 3rd of
June, we had several heavy falls of snow.

After beating about for two days longer in
the mouth of the river, we were boarded by a
pilot, and made way for Quebec, about four
hundred miles up. The ascent of the stream
is sometimes exceedingly tedious; as, when
the wind is adverse, it is necessary to come to
anchor at every turn of the tide. Thus as
much time is sometimes consumed in ascending
the river, as in crossing the Atlantic. We
were more fortunate, for we made the quarantine
ground, thirty miles below the city, in
ten days. Under such circumstances, the
sail up the river is interesting and agreeable.
For the first hundred miles or so, it is so wide,
that land on either side is but dimly visible.
But, as the estuary narrows, objects on either
side become more distinct. The northern
shore, which is bold and mountainous, is
replete with scenes of the most romantic grandeur.
The southern bank being much tamer in
its character, and more adapted for human
habitations. The channel too, some distance
up, is occasionally studded with islands, which
add greatly to the interest of the sail.

The quarantine ground of Canada is Gros
Isle, between which and Quebec stretches the
long Island of Orleans. We had scarcely
dropped anchor when we were boarded by
an officer of the Board of Health. Whilst
ascending the river, the ship had been
thoroughly cleaned, and the berths in the
steerage white-washed. We were all passed
in review before the functionary in question,
and could have been at once permitted to
proceed to our destination, but for one old lady,
who was not exactly ill, but ailing; on her
account we were detained until every piece of
clotliing on board had undergone a thorough
ablution. We landed immediately in boats,
and, after having been for about six weeks at
sea, it was with inexpressible joy that I sprang
ashore, for the first time, in the New World.

Gros Isle! With what melancholy associations
have the events of 1847 encircled the
name of the Canadian lazaretto! On our
arrival, in a year when the tide of emigration
was not strong, there was a little fleet anchored
along side of it. Some of the vessels (they
were all from Ireland), with their overloaded
cargoes of human beings, had been already
there for a month, nor was there any prospect
of their being relieved for some weeks to
come. There was an hospital for the sick;
the accommodation ashore for such as were
well, consisted of several large open sheds,
tolerably well covered and floored. In these,
meals were taken during the day, and beds