Stratford Central Secondary School - Collegian Yearbook (Stratford, Ontario Canada)

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COLLEGIAN, 1930 the current. After we were through l could not help but think of what an exciting time the Indians must have had shooting the rapids in thin frail birch-bark canoes. These rapids are the deepest and swiftest in the St. Lawrence. They have a drop of forty-five feet in one and a half miles, and if a raft were placed in the water it would drift nine miles in forty minutes. The next group which we passed, later in the afternoon, was the Ce- dar Rapids. These rapids are al- so very swift and have the largest visible drop of any of the groups. A short time later, We passed the Split Rock rapids. It derives its name from the fact that there is a pe- culiar rock formation which runs di- rectly across the river but there is a fault or slip in the formation which enables the boat to navigate through safely. The river broadens out beyond these rapids and farther on it be- comes Lake St. Louis. Looking away to the south of us we could see mountains which we were informed were a spur of the Alleghanies. As we passed on, the river nar- rowed down again and we knew that we were due to arrive at the next group of rapids. Before we arrived we noticed a height of land on the horizon directly ahead of us, and we were told that this was Mount Royal. However, our attention was drawn to the rapids, which We were ap-- proaching, the famous 'Lachine Ra- pids. These rapids are by far the most interesting and exciting of the whole river. They are swift and what makes them more thrilling is the fact that you see so many rocks jutting up out of the waterg the boat passes so close to these rocks that you can almost reach out your hand and touch them. The boat rolls a great deal in these rapids but the rolling does not last long enough to prove disastrous. After we had passed these rapids we centered our attention to the city of Montreal, which we were ra- pidly approaching. The city with its suburbs occupies the island of Montreal. Midway on the island lVlount Royal rears itsi impressive bulk to the height of six hundred feet. We soon docked at Victoria Pier but we did not have an oppor- tunity of seeing any of the city as we immediately went aboard the boat for Quebec. About this part of the trip l can tell you very little as the most of the passage was made at night. How- ever, judging from what I did see in the early morning, the river is lined with steeper banks, than on the other side of Montreal. The river, too, is narrower and swifter. As l said before we journeyed all night and by the time it was day- light, we were about ten miles above Quebec. Seven miles above Quebec we passed under the famous Quebec bridge. lt was a matter of almost an- other hou14 before we rounded a cape and came into sight of Quebec city. What a flne view that city is from the river. The old, crowded Lower Town, and above it the line new buildings of the Upper Town. Along the edge of Cape Diamond runs the outer wall of the fortifica- tion of the Citadel. These are the main points of interest that you no- tice from the boat as you are dock- ing. We immediately went to the Up- per Town and found our way to the Dufferin Terrace. This is a board walk along the edge of the cliff, from which you can look down upon the Old Town. From this terrace you also command a fine view of the river. Directly opposite on the other shore lies the town of Levis. Looking towards the ocean, you see the island of Orleans, looking in the other direction, that is, up river, you see only thickly wooded country cut by the broad St. Lawrence. We then followed around the wall of the Citadel until we came to the gate. We then went inside and were 1.31.-

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COLLEGIAN, l930 to the Hotel for tea. After tea, we explored the magnificent grounds of the hotel until darkness set in and then embarking in our charas, set off once again, this time homewards towards Glasgow, where we caught the train for home. Thus ended one of the most wonderful days I have ever spent and one to be long re- membered. -john A. Whittaker, SA. TORONTO TO QUEBEC BY BOAT Last summer it was my pleasure to take a boat-ride from Toronto to Quebec. l had never been on a voyage of any great length before and l looked forward with great in- terest to my journey down part of the world's greatest inland system of waterways. We left Toronto in the afternoon and headed across the lake for Ro- chester. Although a strong wind was blowing, the lake was not very rough and the boat made good time, arriving at Rochester nearly on sche- dule. We stopped only for about an hour and then started back a- cross the lake for Kingston. It was then about midnight. Let me slip in a word of advice here, to all prospective travellers: Be sure to reserve a berth. Sleep- ing on chairs or improvised cots is the bunk , l speak from experi- ence, our sum total hours of sleep was three and one-half. Early the next morning we ar- rived at Kingston. This city, as you know, is just at the head of Lake Ontario. Soon after we left King- ston we came to the first of the Thousand Islands. This renowned group of islands looked especially beautiful in the ruddy glow of the morning sun. The islands are scat- tered for several miles along the river. There are big islands, small islands. medium-sized islands, and then more islands. Some are mere- ly rocks jutting out of the water, others are several acres in areag al- most all are thickly wooded. Many of the islands are owned by Ame- ricans who have their summer re- sidences situated on them. These homes too, are very beautiful. Gradually the islands became scarcer and you see before you the broad rolling St. Lawrence. For se- veral miles the land on each side is fairly flat and almost bare of woods. Then as you go on, the banks become rockier and more steep, and also more thickly wooded. The couri- try is very peaceful, there are few houses, only an occasional summer home. These are built, like old cha- teaus and make the country very picturesque. You pass an occasional busy little town but soon are in the open again. ln the forenoon we arrived at Cornwall where we had to change to a smaller boat which was to take us through the rapids. The river beyond Cornwall widens out in some places and becomes quite shallow so that channels have been dug to get around them. One particular chan- nel, about a mile and a half long by some four hundred feet wide, has been cut through solid rock. However, the most interesting part of the trip was yet to come, namely, shooting the rapids. We were informed that there were four main groups of rapids and were told at approximately what time we would reach each one. The first was the Long Sault Group. Everyone crowded to the front and sides of the boat in or- der to see the rapids. As we ap- proached them they became more and more formidable in appearance. The water was white with foam, the waves were high, the boat was caught in the swift current and we were in the midst of the turbulent water. The engines were shut off and the boat was allowed to drift with -30-

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COLLEGIAN, l930 conducted about the place by a guide. This old fortification is cer- tainly an interesting place. It covers a large areag in our walk we covered one and a quarter miles and We did not go around the outside fortifica- tions. We were informed that in the days when the fort was in use, the moat about it could be filled with water, brought from the St. Charles River, a distance of twelve miles, within twenty-four hours. After a thorough inspection of the Citadel We set out towards the Plains of Abraham. This field is situated a short distance away from the forti- hcations. The plain is now a beau- tiful park surrounded by many shady walks. Along the walks are placed old cannons, some of which date as far back as the capture of Louis- bourg. We did not visit Wolfe's Cove but we were shown just where it was. When we had thoroughly examined the park and vicinity we vifited the Parliament buildings and some of the principal churches. ln the afternoon we took an el- ectric tram and went to Ste. Anne de Beaupre. On this little side-trip we learned more about the old cus- toms of the Quebec habitants than on any other part of our journey. The railway follows close along the shoreg we came opposite the lsle of Orleans and from the train we could see the farms marked out in long narrow strips of land, as in the old days of the Seigneurs. ln the fields, we saw the farmers working, making hay. ln our part of the country we are accustomed to see the farmer and his few hired men at work, here, however, the farmer employs his whole family, sometimes as many as seven or eight children helping, 'they have poorer implements in Quebec, the wagons are only small two-wheeled carts. The fields themselves look scarcely bigger than a good-sized city lot. However, the country is very pictur- esque. The white-washed houses and barns contrast beautifully with the green fields. When We arrived in the village of Ste. Anne de Beaupre, it seemed that we had come into a different country. This little village has not been modernized. The street is nar- row and is skirted by a narrow board walkg the houses are right against the walk. Of course, the chief place of in- terest in Ste. Anne's is the Shrine and Relic of Ste. Anne. This Basi- lica, built in 1876, was destroyed by fire in l922, and now a huge struc- ture is under construction. The in- terior of this church is beautifully deccratedg there are many fine paint- ings and statues. as is customary in all these churches. Of interest, too, are the many historical relics in the vestry, many of which have a long history, for example, the Mass Vest- ments were made and given by Anne of Austria, mother of Louis XVI of France. The story of the first miracle wrought at this shrine in 1628 is an interesting one. Louis Guimont, who was unable to work at the building of the church on account of a great infirmity which took away his strength, used to make frequent visits to the place. One day, through devotion, he took three stones, and put them in the founda- tion as best he could and was in- stantly cured of his disease. This is only one of hundreds of similar cases. Another interesting place in this village is the Royal Museum. ln this building is an exhibit of Wax Works and Oil Paintings. Included in the Wax Works is The Last Moments of the Marquis de lVlontcalm, The First French Canadian Couple who Lived at Ste. Anne de Beaupre, 250 years ago. Also the HLast Supper reproduced in wax. This concluded our tour of Beau- pre and We returned to Quebec, stopping off on the Way back to see the famous Montmorency Falls. The next day we took the train for Montreal, and here we stopped for a day and a half. The first eve- L32...