Iron ore has been discovered in various parts of the country; but works for the smelting and manufacturing of it have been erected at one place only, in the neighbourhood of Trois Rivieres. These works were erected by the king of France some time before the conquest: they are now the property of the British government, and are rented out to the persons who hold them at present. When the lease expires, which will be the case about the year 1800, it is thought that no one will be found to carry on the works, as the bank of ore, from whence they are supplied, is nearly exhausted. The works consist of a forge and a foundry: iron stoves are the principal articles manufactured in the latter; but they are not so much esteemed as those from England.
Domestic manufactures are carried on in most parts of Canada, consisting of linen and of coarse woollen cloths; but by far the greater part of these articles used in the country is imported from Great Britain.
The experts from Canada consist of furs and pelts in immense quantities; of wheat, flour, flax-seed, potash, timber, staves, and lumber of all sorts; dried fish, oil, ginseng, and various medicinal drugs.
The trade between Canada and Great Britain employs, it is said, about seven thousand tons of shipping annually.
LETTER XXVI.
Of the Soil and Productions of Lower Canada.—Observations on the Manufacture of Sugar from the Maple-tree.—Of the Climate of Lower Canada.—Amusements of People of all Descriptions during Winter.—Carioles.—Manner of guarding against the Cold.—Great Hardiness of the Horses.—State of the River St. Lawrence on the Dissolution of Winter.—Rapid Progress of Vegetation during Spring.—Agreeableness of the Summer and Autumn Seasons.
Quebec.
THE eastern part of Lower Canada, between Quebec and the Gulph of St. Lawrence, is mountainous; between Quebec and the mouth of the Utawas River also a few scattered mountains are to be met with; but higher up the River St. Lawrence the face of the country is flat.
The soil, except where small tracts of stony and sandy land intervene, consists principally of a loose dark coloured earth, and of the depth of ten or twelve inches, below which there is a bed of cold clay. This earth towards the surface is extremely fertile, of which there cannot be a greater proof than that it continues to yield plentiful crops, notwithstanding its being worked year after year by the French Canadians, without ever being manured. It is only within a few years back, indeed, that any of the Canadians have begun to manure their lands, and many still continue, from father to son, to work the same fields without intermission, and without ever putting any manure upon them, yet the land is not exhausted, as it would be in the United States. The manure principally made use of by those who are the best farmers is marl, found in prodigious quantities in many places along the shores of the River St. Lawrence.